I've grown familiar with villains that live in my head...
Soooooo I'm putting more thought into my version of Infinite, and it's a doozy lol. Basically I decided that when Shadow attacks his squad, Zero also dies. And the Phantom Ruby has remnants of Black Doom's consciousness, so manipulates Eggman into finding him a suitable vessel. That vessel is Zero, who subsequently becomes Infinite.
I used lyrics from Control, as the lyrics made me think of Zero accepting Black Doom's control to live forever and become a force powerful enough to fulfill his revenge, when really his body is being used for Black Doom's selfish reasons.
Version with text at the back as well as Infinite's redesign are under the cut!
the poor guy couldn't escape from them, was only an vampire hunter apprentice in that time. he hadn't any chance, the monsters who literally broke his neck turned him into a vampire as a mistake. for some people is a lucky shot than he's "alive", although not really. suffered a lot after that.
well, there's a reason which Aizawa never ever takes off the "scarf" in this fucking au.
For the prompts list can you do "are you kidding me, we're not fine" for some adrienette angst. Thanks! Your writing is amazing!
Thanks so much, Nonny! This has been banging around the ole noggin for a while now so I decided to get it out. While it isn’t strictly Adrinette, it is angsty, so there is that. This drabble has a death warning.
“Are you kidding me?” Chloe hissed. “We’re not fine. Marinette won’t eat. Nino hasn’t said a single word since...” She glanced at Alya’s reflection in the mirror for a moment before checking her own. “Waterproof mascara, my ass,” she muttered, wiping at the smudges under her eyes.
“Well, we have to be fine today.” Alya swallowed thickly and tilted her chin up, glaring at her own reflection. “At least for a few hours. We need to be strong for them and then we can fall apart when we leave.”
“This is going to be such a shit show.” Chloe inhaled deeply and nodded. “Let’s get back there. I’m sure Nath is in need of reinforcements by now.”
______________________________
Relief washed over Nathaniel’s face as Alya and Chloe approached them. Nino was slumped on one side of him on the uncomfortable fainting couch, eyes downcast. Marinette sat stiffly on the other side, fingers twisted together but expression blank.
“Come on, Nino. Time to go inside.” Chloe took one of Nino’s hands and he let her guide him up to a standing position, Nathaniel standing with him and steadying him on one side.
Marinette looked up at Alya. Dark circles had filled in under her eyes and her cheeks were hollow and drawn. “I can’t,” she whispered.
“We have to. He would for us.” Alya watched a tear well up in Marinette’s left eye and spill down her cheek. “We’ll do it together.”
Marinette let Alya pull her up and the group made a slow trek into the sprawling sanctuary of the chapel.
Nathaniel swore and Chloe inhaled sharply. “I can’t believe that bastard made this open casket.”
Alya’s eyes flew up to the front of the room where the slick black casket sat, the top opened. She could just make out a tuft of blonde hair over the edge from their position. Marinette began to shake beside her, eyes trained on the casket. There were a line of people moving slowly by the casket, peering in, before moving on to mingle quietly at the edges of the room.
“I need to see him.”
Alya and Chloe exchanged glances. “Marinette, maybe that isn’t the best idea,” Nathaniel said gently.
Marinette shook her head and squared her shoulders, a fierce light filling her eyes as her whole being seemed to strengthen. “I just thought of something. I’m going to see him. He needs me.” She reached for Nino’s hand and he numbly turned his head to look at her. “You’re coming with me.” She pulled him forward and led them to the end of the line, leaving the rest of their group to shakily follow.
“What’s going on?” Nathaniel asked softly. “It’s like she just flipped a switch and was Mari again.”
“Not the reaction I was expecting,” Alya agreed, voice quiet, “but hopefully a good one? Although I’m not sure it’s going to last...”
“I don’t know if I can do this.” Chloe pressed into Nathaniel’s side as they moved closer to the casket. “I don’t want to remember him like this.”
Alya nodded to the rows of seats. “I’ll stay with them. Go find us a place.”
Chloe tilted her head gratefully and they left the line. Alya’s eyes widened when she heard Tikki’s high voice ahead of her. She closed the small gap between herself and Marinette and Nino.
“But it could work?” Marinette asked. “I could do it right now and it could work?”
“Marinette, I can’t promise anything. Perhaps I shouldn’t have--”
“It has been days but I think she should try,” Wayzz argued. “He was hurt in battle. It’s feasible that the Cure could--”
“He wasn’t hurt, Wayzz. He was killed,” Tikki hissed. “And what happens if it doesn’t work?”
Alya pushed between Marinette and Nino. There were only five people ahead of them now until they reached the casket. “What is going on?”
Marinette looked up at her and her eyes were feverishly bright. “I’m going to bring him back when we get up there.”
“M, you can’t--”
“She can.” Nino’s voice was low and hoarse from disuse. “Please let her try, Al. Please.”
“They took him away so fast. I didn’t think. I couldn’t...” Marinette trailed off, shaking her head. “I haven’t seen him, Alya. I didn’t realize it before. I was in shock, but I can do this.” She linked her fingers in Alya’s and squeezed. “I have to do this for him. I have to.”
Alya held her eyes before breaking contact as they moved forward again. She could see Gabriel, tall and stoic on the other side of the casket. Nathalie stood beside him, looking shrunken and worn. The sanctuary had filled even more since they had taken their place in line. “Everyone will know,” she said weakly.
Marinette shook her head. “I don’t care.”
“I’ll shield you,” Nino said, voice sounding stronger albeit still rough. “You’re not doing this alone.”
“You’re never alone,” Alya agreed. Only two people ahead of them now. She slipped her phone out of her clutch and sent a quick text to Chloe. She watched her reaction as she read it and then Chloe and Nathaniel were joining them again.
“We’re doing this?” Nathaniel asked, eyes a little wide.
“Everyone has to decide on their own.”
“I’ve personally always thought the secret identities thing was stupid anyway,” Chloe smirked. “So what if people realize who we are? I want people to love me for how awesome I am.” Her expression grew serious. “Mari, you know there’s a possibility--”
“I’m still going to try.”
“Then we’re all going to be right here with you.”
The last person ahead of them stepped away and the small group moved forward, Marinette’s hands going up to grip the side of the casket as the others huddled around her. “He doesn’t look like him,” she said weakly. “That’s...that’s not him.” Her arms began to shake, fingertips digging into the satin lining.
His hair wasn’t right, first of all. It was too stiff. Adrien’s hair was always soft and bouncy and this was...wrong. And his cheeks were too pink. Why were his cheeks so pink? It didn’t look right. The heavy dark metal Agreste ring Adrien had never been fond of was where the Black Cat Miraculous should have been and it turned Marinette’s stomach to see it. “His ring,” she whispered. “Someone took his ring.”
Gabriel was watching them now, worn eyes examining. Nathaniel glanced around nervously. “Marinette, are you going to try or...” Everyone turned their attention to her and a soft sob escaped as tears began to fall.
“Delusional. I was--” Another sob tore out of her and her knees began to wobble. Tikki pressed a small comforting paw through Marinette’s purse into her side.
“Mari, please,” Nino begged. “Please, you can bring him back. Please. Please.”
She swallowed hard, shaking her head. She leaned forward pressing her lips against Adrien’s cool cheek. His skin wasn’t right either and she felt more tears fall, wetting his face. “Miraculous Ladybug,” she choked out.
There were murmurs behind them but Alya couldn’t bring herself to care. Her vision was too blurry with tears anyway. She wouldn’t be able to find a seat now even if she had wanted to. Moving away from the casket meant saying goodbye and she wasn’t sure she could do that right now, maybe ever. Nino held her hand in an almost bruising grip and she squeezed his fingers even still.
Chloe was making soft sobbing sounds, her face buried against Nathaniel’s neck. He held her, his own eyes glassy as he stared straight ahead at nothing.
Gabriel cleared his throat and moved in front of the group. “The viewing is over,” he declared, tone brooking no argument. “The funeral will now be private. Please leave.” Nathalie watched him silently for a moment before turning her attention back to the casket.
The murmurs grew louder as most of the sanctuary emptied out with the help of the funeral director and assistant. When the director came close to the huddle of heroes, Gabriel shook his head. “They’re the only ones staying.”
Once the room had emptied out, Gabriel stood beside them as they grieved. “You’re the rest, aren’t you?” He opened his palm and offered Marinette a black ring. “I believe this should go to you then,” he said, voice breaking.
She stared down at the ring numbly. After a moment, she took it from him and slid it onto Adrien’s finger to rest on top of the Agreste one. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t save you, Chat,” she whispered. “I’m so so...” She trailed off as Adrien’s chest rose slowly. She blinked. His cheeks were still too pink but his hair seemed to soften even as she watched. His skin grew warm under her touch and her breath caught in her lungs as one glittering ladybug moved out from his hair and settled between his closed eyes.
______________________________
Adrien blinked slowly, eyes focusing on Marinette. “Why are you crying, my Lady?” he croaked.
Remember how Dream brought Friend back to Ghostbur after it died and he said he found it when it respawned back in L'manburg? At the time it seemed like he dyed another sheep blue and named it the same but what if he legit revived it with the revival book?
Dream’s laugh is giddy, but it’s soft, and when the sheep bleats at him, confused and no doubt rather unhappy at being killed in the first place, he buries his hands in its wool, closing his eyes.
“Welcome back,” he whispers, “I can do it.”
And it feels good to bring something back to life, even if it is only a sheep. His head feels clearer than it has done in forever, and everything is crystal clear and beautiful. He’s more powerful than he’s ever been before, more powerful than Wilbur and Schlatt and everyone on the server combined.
So why does he feel so lonely?
His fingers stiffen around the sheep’s fleece. He knows why. It doesn’t mean it’s a logical response: he’s twenty one fucking years old and in charge of a world, he shouldn’t get lonely when he’s closer to his goals than he ever has been. Dream wishes he could reach inside of him, extract every last piece of humanity, turn it into something he can handle. Because the gnawing, growing loneliness and tiredness isn’t something he’s equipped to handle.
“When they’re all a family again, it’ll be better.” He sighs, getting to his feet, looping a lead around Friend’s neck, who bleats at him again. “I know it. They’ll see how much I wanted this. They’ll... They’ll be grateful.”
It almost sounds hollow. Swallowing, he begins to tug Friend in the direction of its new pen underground. It’ll only be for a short time. It can’t be worse than death, after all.
The sheep baas, and Dream wonders if it’s asking where its family is. Ghostbur will be relieved to see it again, eventually.
His steps broaden, turn cold. “You’ll see your family soon,” he says aloud, and he doesn’t know who he’s talking to, “even if it kills me.”
Like I’m surprised no ones said this yet but....what if Dream has a history with the contents of Schlatt’s book? How much has he known about necromancy, and has he ever brought anyone back before? Despite how long he’s been in there, no one has really discussed how the resurrection’s going to actually happen.
Could a person resurrect themselves? Because that could explain the immortal!Dream hc. he isn’t, really, he’s a guy, but he keeps coming back, like a glitch in the matrix. he keeps stitching himself back together until he’s unrecognizable. It could be like a respawn almost, maybe there’s a certain way to use it for infinite respawns, though the ones after a last canon life are different. technically, he’s human, but he knows he’s wrong, he’s dead, and every time he comes back he feels like he’s desecrating his own body. maybe he doesn’t know how to make it stop, to really die. Perhaps he made an inbetween type place for comfort for the feeling of resurrection, made it his own fantasy and guided the occasional lost soul.
He was Cornelius, stuck in Karl’s innocent game, suffering a scarring and traumatic death that was never really taken seriously, lost whatever family he had, crawled out of his mediocre grave, and was left to start from scratch away from the place he called home, just like he told Tommy to do every day. The mayor (idk name) even called him ‘the old and wise’ despite catboy confirming he was physically younger than the mayor himself
He was Hubert, (I’m assuming this from how ranbutler was treated but idk) who was worth nothing to the man he served, not allowed to speak, not to be seen or heard, was not called by his name, and treated less than dirt. This could be part of his history with the egg (why he was worried when he saw it, said the prison has to be finished sooner, seemed to know what it was) as well as additional trauma from being denied human rights (literally billiam said his butler wasn’t a person), and completely subservient and powerless to a cruel force. He projects this onto Tommy in exile and it makes his prison time and relationship w the warden so much worse. It also makes sense with how he’s not talking
Think of how many times Dream could have reset himself. I usually don’t like these hcs cuz I prefer to think he’s human, flawed and capable of feeling, but this technically wouldn’t make him immortal I think. Yes, he’s ‘living forever’, but it could also be that after a certain point he can’t come back anymore, and then death’s looming over him again and it’s so absolutely terrifying and earth-shattering be for so long he seriously considered himself above death itself, a god, but he isn’t. Perhaps it’s because he loses the book, and he is frantic, stuttering when Wilbur asks for tnt, fighting against his own friends. He’s erratic until Schlatt offers him the book and he’s just so desperate for control over his life and death, and he switches sides so quickly because no one, not tommy or Wilbur or sapnap, is as important to him as this power
I think Dream would realize eventually that because of how many times he’s died and because of how he’s never had to accept the inevitability of death, he has an irrational fear of it. There is also the frustration that he should act immortal and god-like, because he has that power, right? He should be cold and unfeeling, hardened, so why does it keep hurting every time he uses his ‘blessing’. Why does every life bring him more pain than the last. As he deteriorates in prison, he could begin to see this power as a curse, and that someone as horrible as him doesn’t deserve life in the first place, and he sets out to find himself true ‘peace’ What if he breaks and admits everything, and everyone blames him because ‘you did this to yourself’ as well as see it as an excuse why nothing they do will ever hurt him, ‘he can’t feel it, he’s an immortal corpse, he doesn’t have to worry about pain’ which would hurt if it wasn’t him who who gave himself the power and he didn’t know how to fix it
He’s using magic to create an artificial respawn, you could say, and it really makes you wonder how ethical any of this is. Should dead things stay dead? Would it really be right to bring Wilbur back, seeing what happened to Dream? Of course they both deserve help and a second chance, but this isn’t natural
sry for the long ask or if I repeat myself I just thought of this and wanted to know ur opinion,,,
YO this is such an interesting take !! it combines the idea of immortality and humanity really well — he’s human, but at this point he might as well not be, and he can’t face his imminent death either. the questions that would be raised about death would be such interesting ones, too, i feel like you could do a lot with them considering how close some characters are to dying permanently with only one life left.
there would also be parallels to be confronted between wilbur and dream, because loads of people would want to revive wilbur, of course, because he’s wilbur....... but then again, doesn’t that mean dream also deserves another chance? or should they let wilbur stay dead?
Summary: Davina brings Camille back to life using the spell Kol used to get her back in the hopes she can fix the new problems from Elijah and Kol's time under Marcel's boot. An unexpected passenger came back to life too.
Written for @febuwhump Day 6: Soulbond (very late please ignore me)
It didn’t feel like drowning. It felt like floating, just below the surface. The water was calm, welcoming, silent.
She reached for the surface and her fingers broke through, feeling cool air. Then a hand grabbed hers and it was warm and that was when she knew something was different.
Warmth was not something she felt in the afterlife.
The hand tugged and suddenly she was sitting up, her legs folded on a hard surface and water dripping from her hair, her face, down her body. The hair was pushed out of her face and then Davina was smiling at her. “It worked,” she breathed, then she hugged Cami so tight she feared she would crack a bone.
Cami hugged her back, hugging almost as tightly, only just remembering she may still be a vampire and might crush her.
“Practicing necromancy now?” she said, trying to tease her little friend but inviting a coughing fit instead. Davina only hugged her tighter.
“Might wanna let her out of the water now,” came another voice – Vincent? – and Davina slowly let go of her. “Come on, before she catches a cold.”
“I’m fine,” Cami muttered uselessly as each witch took and arm and helped her out of the stone pool she’d been brought back in. There were a million questions to ask and her thoughts were still racing but-
But she was warm and her friends were here and she was alive and that was something she could slow down and appreciate for just a moment.
Davina wrapped a towel around her naked body and Vincent disappeared with the soft promise of a bag of blood (did that mean she was still a vampire? how did he know?) and they were alone for a precious moment.
“Davina?”
“Yes?”
“What am I doing here?”
Her smile faltered. “It’s…. There’s a lot to explain. You should eat something first and then-”
A splash came from the pool and they both turned to look. Another hand attached to another arm attached to another shoulder to reveal another face.
“Finn?” Camille questioned, looking to Davina.
The witch seemed just as confused and slowly approached the edge of the pool. She took his hand and helped him out with less care than she’d offered Cami. She muttered something to him that Cami was too tired to listen for and handed him a towel before rushing out of the room.
Finn covered himself and looked about the room until his eyes landed on Camille. She stared back at him.
“Well,” he said eventually, his voice as grave as she’d remembered, “this makes twice the little witch has brought me back to life.”
“You might owe her a favor by now,” Cami replied
Finn laughed; she couldn’t be sure if he meant it or not.
-----------------------------
“I don’t understand. The spell was only supposed to bring Camille back. How….?” Davina looked to Vincent helplessly.
How did Finn Mikaelson accidentally come back from the dead? Again?
“There must be some connection between the two of them,” Vincent murmured. “Something that the spell picked up up and dragged him along with her-”
“What?! They never even talked to each other! What kind of connection could they have?!”
“I don’t know,” Vincent said. “But there has to be something…. Like when you brought him back the last time.”
Davina rolled her eyes. “Well, that made sense. The spell I was doing was for bringing back lost brothers. It was just supposed to be Kol but Finn is also a Mikaelson brother so he just showed up too. But they aren’t related or anything like that. Did they just become best friends in the afterlife or something?”
“I don’t know.” He put a hand on her shoulder and pulled her into his side. “Maybe it doesn’t even matter. Why don’t we just go get them comfortable for now and then we can figure out what happens next, okay?”
She nodded and leaned against him. “At least we got Cami back,” she murmured. “She can help… right?”
“Yeah, kiddo. I’m sure she can.”
If she couldn’t, they would have bigger problems.
-------------------------
Finn tapped his finger on the edge of his glass. He was alive, again. He was also a vampire, again.
Far from how he planned to spend his eternity, but it seemed his family still hadn’t learned to leave well enough alone.
He did feel a bit bad for Camille. She’d also been brought back a vampire, a hideous transformation she did not deserve. She seemed to be taking it rather well, to her credit. She hadn’t said much since Davina had gotten them both some blood to drink and gotten them settled with warm clothes, but Finn just had a sense that she was alright.
Still. She did not deserve to be brought into his family’s misery. And there was certainly no other reason she would’ve been brought back except to clean up one mess or another.
“You don’t need to be so sour,” Camille said, so softly Finn almost didn’t hear. “Davina wouldn’t have done this for no reason. I trust her.”
“I do not.”
“I know. But try to be nice. She died for your family too.”
Finn’s retort died on his lips as Vincent re-entered the room.
Finn had very little of an opinion on his former vessel. He had felt bad for taking the man out of his life for a time, but from what he saw it wasn’t much of a life. A criminal wife, a dead child, a house he couldn’t live in, a community he refused to engage with…. If anything, Finn’s time in his body improved things for him, giving him a reason to get re-attached to the magic he’d avoided for so long.
He seemed nice enough, apart from that. Though, given his involvement with this little ritual, that opinion may well be changing.
“You two feeling comfortable?” he asked.
“Yes,” Camille answered for the both of them. “How’s Davina? She seemed...shaken.”
The witch sighed. “It’s been a rough few months for everyone and this….” he gestured vaguely in Finn’s direction, “hasn’t helped. She’s checking on the family right now; she’ll be back in a few minutes to talk to you. In the meantime, I have a theory on how you two got linked up in a way that that resurrection spell would recognize.”
“Do you now? Enlighten us.”
Vincent braced himself on the back of an empty chair across from them. “Finn, you were bitten by Lucien right after he became the upgraded vampire, yes?”
“I recall you were there for that incident,” Finn muttered. “Yes.”
“Right. And Camille, you were bitten by Lucien as revenge against Klaus, right?”
“Just like Aurora made me a vampire,” she muttered. Finn felt another stab of sympathy toward her.
“Right. Okay. I thought so.” The witch began to pace. “And did either of you… feel something toward Lucien as you were dying?”
Finn frowned. “How do you mean?”
“I don’t know. Anything positive. A sense of loyalty or desire to be near him.”
“I was rather distracted by the pain in the moment,” Finn said. Truth be told, he didn’t remember much of his death at all, aside from the fact that Freya had been there and for the first time in his life, none of his siblings seemed to want him dead. “I don’t know if I did or not.”
Camille was silent, staring into her cup thoughtfully. “I’m not sure,” she said eventually, not raising her eyes. “I just remember Klaus being there, convincing me I wouldn’t die. He didn’t leave much room for anything else in my mind….”
“Right, okay….” Vincent continued pacing. “But your souls are still connected. Perhaps….”
“Would you please just explain yourself?” Finn sat back in his chair and crossed his arms. “You’re being very cryptic.”
Vincent paused, standing with his hands clasped behind his back. “After you two died, Marcel took the extra dose of the serum Lucien made,” he started. “During an argument he was having with Klaus, Elijah killed him and completed his transformation. Marcel tried to drive the family out of the city and bit Elijah and Kol in the process. They died. And then they came back. Only, they came back...different.”
“Different how?” Camille asked, raising her voice for the first time all day.
“They were sirebonded to Marcel.”
“That’s impossible,” Finn said at the same time Camille said “Are you sure?”
“It’s not that impossible and yes I’m sure. I tested for it myself when they first showed up at his doorstep like loyal dogs and I watched that freakshow play out for seven years. If they weren’t sirebonded…. They wouldn’t have put up with any of that.”
“Any of what?” Finn asked through grit teeth.
“I’ll let Davina fill you in on that. If you’ll let me continue?” He waited for further interjection, then continued his point. “I suspect the reason you two became connected in the afterlife is because the Mikaelsons killed Lucien before either of you could resurrect.”
“You think that the bond was still there, but it had nowhere else to go, so it just formed between us,” Camille finished softly.
A sense of dread overtook Finn, almost overwhelming.
“In a way. I think it bound your souls together at least. I’m not seeing signs of a sirebond between the two of you now,” Vincent said. “But you two are connected.”
“And so your attempts to bring Camille back brought me back as well.” Wonderful.
“It looks that way.”
“Why did you bring me back?” she asked. Finn was almost glad of it; he also wanted a change in subject.
“That’s-”
“Because we need you.” Davina interrupted Vincent with her return to the room. Her phone was clutched tightly in one hand. “Kol and Elijah are free of Marcel and the sirebond. But….”
“But they’re being affected by it still?” Camille sighed. “You know, I never actually finished my psychology degree.”
“But you can still help,” Davina insisted. “You- We don’t know what to do. I mean, Kol is fine – well, he’s not… he’s not fine fine but he can manage. He’s just getting used to being himself again. But Elijah….” She trailed off, eyes traveling from the table to the floor to the wall and back again.
“But Elijah is….?” Finn crossed his arms. “What? What’s wrong with him?”
“He’s not himself,” Vincent said when Davina stayed silent. “The sirebond messed with his head and what Marcel did….” He trailed off and his eyes got this faraway look.
“We’ve tried,” Davina murmured. “We’ve tried to help him. But it’s not- We don’t know what he needs. And we don’t know what else to do.”
Finn glanced at Camille; how must she be feeling with all this? To be brought back, not for love of her, but for what she could do for someone else. Her face betrayed very little, but he knew she would not refuse this.
He wouldn’t either. Not that he was specifically being asked to help, but the way they spoke about Elijah piqued his curiosity.
Besides, where else was he going to go?
“Where are they?” Finn asked.
Davina’s shoulders relaxed. “Kol and I have a house just outside of New Orleans,” she said. “Elijah is staying with the rest of the family in Virginia.”
Finn raised an eyebrow. “Why so far away from each other?”
She bit her lip. “There’s some….issues between Kol and everyone else. It’s complicated.”
“Well then.” Camille stood and brushed invisible dust from her clothes. “Let’s go speak to Kol first. That might give me a better idea on what to do about Elijah.”
Davina finally smiled and hugged Camille. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“You’re welcome.” She hugged back, petting Davina’s hair. “We’ll figure it out,” she promised.
