The LitNerd Archives

Welcome to the Archives, where all of my stories and fics can be found! Alternatively, they can be found on AO3

[thestoryarchives]

Masterlist

Request Guidelines/Fandoms I write for

Kingdom of the wicked

[reveries0fmine]

Bad dream — Valko

pairing: bf!Valko x gn!reader synopsis: you wake up from a nightmare where valko disappeared, leaving you alone. thankfully, he's lying by your side when you wake up... cw: fluff, hurt/comfort ig, petnames, established relationship wc: 1.5k a/n: yes this is my way of coping Valko masterlist (wip!)

Valko was gone.

He had disappeared, seemingly without a trace.

You woke up to an unusually empty and cold bed. So you got up, searching the bathroom instead, calling out to him by the nickname you knew he secretly loved despite acting against it. But he was nowhere to be seen.

You tried calling him or sending him a text, but you couldn’t find his contact in your phone anymore. 

So you tried social media, but you couldn't even find his account. Even after looking his username up.

The pit in your stomach only grew deeper and heavier as you rushed out of your bathroom, making your way to your entrance, throwing on the first pair of shoes you could find, grabbing your keys, and leaving. You noted the fact that his boots weren’t at your entrance anymore.

Arriving at his place, you walked up the luxurious modern driveway and pulled out the spare set of keys to his place he’d made for you. But the door didn’t open, or budge. The key didn’t even fit into the lock. 

But in your panicked state of denial, you continue forcing the key into the hole, until the door opens from the other side.

You look up, expecting to be met with your 6’2 hunk of a boyfriend. Maybe in loungewear, with his glasses resting low on his nose, a book in hand. 

Instead, an older woman looked at you with fear, disgust, and confusion all at once.

“Can I help you?” she asks condescendingly.

You stutter, still shocked. 

“If you’re just going to stand there, then get off my property. I won’t hesitate to call the police.” she huffs.

Her property? What the hell was she talking about? 

“Go on then.” she shoos you away, closing the heavy wooden door right in your face.

You remain standing there, baffled, before slowly turning around and looking at the cars in the driveway. Three sleek Mercedes’. And Valko’s jeep was nowhere in sight.

Your hands start trembling as you slowly make your way back to your own car. Shutting the door behind you once you sit in the driver’s seat, you pull out your phone again.

You decide to call his aunt. Surely she’d know where he was. 

You sigh in relief once she picks up, and immediately ask her about Valko’s whereabouts, without even bothering to greet her properly.

She’s quiet on the other side of the line before speaking. “... Who?”

Your mouth falls agape ever so slightly, and your eyebrows knit together in a frown. “Valko. Do you know where he is? I’ve been trying to reach him all morning.”

She’s quiet again, but this time breaks her silence with a chuckle. “Sweetheart, did you hit your head? Who’s Valko?”

The hand holding your phone up to your ear falls in your lap, as tears start to well in your bottom eyelids.

Although you’re not on speaker, you can still faintly hear the sound of her voice. 

“Y/N? Are you still there?” she questions, before laughing again. “I swear if this is another one of your pranks―”

You hang up before she can finish her sentence. 

You stare down at your phone, and click on your camera roll.

There are no photos of him. There are no videos of him. Your album of him is gone. 

Valko is gone.

Lost on what to do, you break down. The tears instantly stream down your face, hot and heavy. Your heartbroken sobs echo through your car. You fold in on yourself, leaning forward until your forehead rests against the steering wheel. The cries that rip out of your throat only get louder as you close your eyes, blinking the tears away.

The next thing you know, you’re in bed again. The sheets cling to your body due to the sweat rolling down your back. It’s humid, and sticky, and you feel as though you’re suffocating. 

You immediately sit up and tear the covers off of you to catch your breath. 

That’s when you realize… Valko. Where is he?

Your gaze drops down to your right. 

There he is. Lying down with an arm propped behind his head, the other resting on his chest.

You nearly pounce on him, grabbing him firmly by the shoulders and shaking him awake. 

“Valko! Come on, wake up, please―” you mutter, your voice raspy and broken as you start tearing up again.

But he doesn’t budge. You pray it’s just him being his usual heavy sleeper self, and continue trying to wake him up. 

Eventually, he starts to stir, eyelashes fluttering open.

You stop your motion and stare down at him with wide eyes, and tear streaks adorning your cheeks.

Once his vision focuses and he takes in your appearance, he immediately sits up.

“What’s goin’ on?” he asks, large hands already moving to cup your face.

But the second you feel his warm touch again, the dam breaks and you sob even more. Your hands move to rest against his own, as you lean into his palms. “I―” you start but choke on your words. 

His golden eyes dart back and forth between yours. “Hey, it’s okay, take your time. Use your words.”

You sniffle repeatedly, catching your breath. He continues wiping your tears away with the pads of his thumbs, remaining silent.

Once you feel more calm, you speak up. “You were gone… you left–you left me.”

Now it’s his turn to frown, but he still says nothing.

“You left. Like you never even existed.” your breath hitches. “I tried calling you but I couldn’t find your contact on my phone—and there was an old rude lady living at your house, and I called auntie to ask about you and she was acting like she didn’t even know you.” you ramble, your words occasionally getting cut off with your sobs and voice cracks.

He lets out the breath he was holding before pulling you in. You immediately bury your face into his chest.

“I’m here, baby.” He whispered against your ear. “You hear my heartbeat? Smell me?” he presses kisses to your head. “I’m right here. Not goin’ anywhere.”

Pressing your ear to the spot right over his heart, you listen to it beat against his ribcage, focusing on the familiar and comforting rhythm. Your crying eventually ceases, and you’re left hiccuping and letting out deep breaths. 

His hands continue caressing up and down your back until he feels you’ve really calmed down.

You’re the first to pull away, and you wipe your tears while staring down at your lap. 

He notices how distant you look and cups your jaw with one hand to make you look up at him. 

“Feelin’ better?” he asks, eyes unusually soft. 

You slowly look up to meet his eyes and shrug.

“It was just a bad dream, ‘kay? I’m not leaving you.” He leans down, nuzzling his nose against yours. “Ever.”

Your eyes flutter shut as you lean up so your foreheads touch, and you breathe him in. You immediately bask in his warm, inviting scent that you swore could wake you up from a coma. “... Promise?”

“I promise.” he whispers against your skin, letting his words sink in.

You look up at him through your wet lashes. He stares down at you in silence, his eyes half-lidded, before slowly and carefully leaning down. You try to meet him halfway and lean into him as well, closing your eyes. 

But instead of pressing his lips against your own, he swipes his tongue against the corner of your left eye, licking your tears away. 

Your eyes snap back open and you stare at him in shock. “Valko.” you reprimand, yet your voice is soft and still exhausted.

He pulls back, and looks as though he’s deep in thought. “Salty.” he finally comments, the corners of his lips tilting into a smirk.

You continue to stare at him with parted lips. “... You’re gross.” you scoff.

But he’s quick to lean in and lick the tears from your other eye. You yelp, moving away and trying to push him off, giggling in the process.

His hands move to grab your waist, pushing you back against the mattress as he climbs on top of you.

You shield your face from him, arms coming up to hide it.

His fingers slip under your shirt to tickle your skin, making your defenses drop. He takes the opportunity to lean in again and lick an annoyingly long stripe up the side of your face, tracing the tear tracks on it. 

Your laughter echoes through the bedroom as your legs start kicking up in all directions. “Valko, enough!”

He continues for a good two minutes before finally stopping. You’re caged between his biceps, staring up at him, while you try to catch your breath. He’s slightly winded too, and some of his hair has fallen on his forehead. 

“... I love you.” he mutters.

Your heart squeezes painfully, and you cup his face with both hands, caressing his jawline. “I love you too.” you respond.

He leans down, lips finally pressing against your own. 

Reminding you that he was real, present, and that nothing would ever change that.

[silverflameataraxia]

How is Nesta rude for sitting quietly and politely and not talking to anyone during Winter Solstice in ACOFAS, but Elain's not rude for sitting quietly and politely and not talking to anyone during Winter Solstice in ACOSF?

The only real difference in behavior is that Nesta was struggling with PTSD and was actively being triggered by the fire. Hating on her for being "rude" is like hating on a soldier for struggling with PTSD and getting triggered by any loud noise. People can't exactly control what triggers their PTSD, and no one with an ounce of sympathy would condemn them for being "rude" while they're actively struggling with flashbacks.

[thestoryarchives]

They call Nesta rude for sitting quietly at their solstice but don't consider that the person who coerced her to be there was Feyre, so she should be responsible for accounting for Nesta's presence. As in getting her a gift, making sure she feels welcome, including her in conversation, etc. She could also make sure, after what happened at the end of WAR, and when she saw Cassian drop Nesta's hand, that she could talk to Cassian about what that meant in the human lands, and how, if he's serious about Nesta, he may have already given her the wrong idea. Again, Feyre cooerced her to come for her and Elain's sake, and to 'give solstice a chance' or whatever. It's on Feyre to go out of her way, as the host, Nesta's sister, and the one who made her come, to ensure Nesta feels comfortable and welcome. Not Nesta.

Also, if the entire room stopped to scowl/gawk at you the second you walked in or said anything, I think most people would probably chose to to sit in silence and not draw attention too.

[thestoryarchives]

Okay, hear me out.

MC goes to visit Caleb at the Farspace Fleet headquarters one day. It's a spur of the moment decision made while she was out, so she's dressed more cute and casual than practical. Particularly her hair. While she's looking for him (or Liam so he can take her to him) some officer or fleet member, maybe a new recruit, approach and ask about her hair, and she lights up, happily telling them that Caleb did it for her, not really thinking much of it. While she's happily gushing about how good Caleb is at doing her hair, the people around her are blinking incredulously, unable to believe that the terrifying Colonel who doesn't give an inch of leeway, much less mercy, was capable of something sooo... Domestic. Much less something as cutesy as the hairstyle he did for MC.

Caleb ultimately finds out MC is there when he hears whispers outside his office about some girl wandering around, claiming that he did her hair for her. Naturally, he immediately goes off to find her, as one does. By the time he arrives to the crowd of recruits surrounding her, they're fully convinced he's going to toss her into the deepspace tunnel, given his expression. Only to be floored once more when MC just goes to hug him, and offers to have lunch together, to which he obliges with a smile, only to silently threaten everyone else present over her shoulder. By that evening, two sets of rumours are going around. The first is more like conspiracy theory/joke amongst the recruits, perhaps even used to tease newer recruits, and it's that The Colonel was replaced by some strange creature from within the deepspace tunnel, and the girl that came to visit that day was his contact on earth. How else would you explain the duality they witnessed that day? The second, and more widely accepted theory, is that underneath the cutesy appearance, she's as much, if not more, of a monster than The Colonel, and which is how she was able to leash him. Some of them make offerings to her when she stops by (or asks Liam to deliver them) to pray she calm the Colonel when he's in a particularly bad mood. Caleb admires the fearful reverence and respect they have for her, but would sooner shoot himself than actually deliver said offerings.

[thestoryarchives]

I fell asleep 🥲 Then I got caught up in assignments for Uni. So sorry for that. Definitely plan on doing a multi part about Euphemia‘s birth and the circumstances surrounding it, but I’m swamped with assignments right now so I’ll put that on hold. I want to find more time for writing but I’ve been largely focused on my original story recently but here’s to hoping I’ll learn how to balance it out. Thank you @princeofsinweek This was so much fun!

Day 7: The Biggest Party of the Century

How the Princes Celebrate the Birth of their Niece

Following the tensions that arose with the latter end of Emilia’s pregnancy, as well as the traumatic labour and birth that came after, it felt as though a pin drop silence had pressed down upon the entire Underworld, barely leaving any room to breath. For a brief, yet endless moment, all anyone could hear was the sound of their own hearts. It was shattered only when loud wailing resounded through the halls of House Wrath, like the ringing of bells, echoing across the land. As The Princes and their Princesses released collective sighs of relief, Fauna stepped out of the chamber.

“It’s a girl.”

This time, the silence that followed was filled with rising anticipation, and broken by the joyous sound of new life. It was time for all of Hell to celebrate.

🖌️Envy🖌️

🐺 The painting just… appeared! Right there, in her mind’s eye, she could see it. The sight of her very first niece, so small and new, had been a moment she wished to preserve in paint.

🐺 The first thing Camilla did upon returning to House Envy, is run right to her studio. Paints, brushes and canvases were lined up, and a smock was thrown over her gown, before Envy even caught up with her. Cans of black, gold, white pink were the most common monastery those strewn nearest to her easel.

🐺 She didn’t bother glancing at her husband, who stood against the door frame, watching her with a Cheshire grin.

🐺 He tried to distract her many times, even bringing up food from the party in the throne room (the court’s own celebration for the birth of the princess) but she only picked at it as she painted.

🐺 At some point, the vaguely remembers demanding that Envy go and find a suitable frame for the painting. He furrowed his brows and came to see what she was painting, and when he saw the half done painting, showcasing the familiar silhouettes of his brother and sister in law, holding a swaddled bundle in their arms, a faint smile graced his lips.

🐺 Envy spent days searching for the finest frame that would suit the painting. Eventually, he settled for having one made custom.

🐺 He had his demons collect wood from the Sin Corridor, feeling it fitting that the portrait of Hell’s King, Queen and newborn Princess be framed in a material from a place where no single sin ruled.

🐺 Envy smiled every time he saw the painting as Camilla added more and more layers to it, working harder on it than any other. In it, Emilia‘s gaze was glued to her daughter, while her husband‘s eyes were pinned to her, warmer than he’d ever seen. In Emilia‘s arms, a pair of curious golden eyes gazed back up at them.

🐺 He’d never admit it out loud, though he’s sure Camilla figured out, that Envy’s heart melted each time he took in the sight. Although, part of him was certain that once his brother saw the effort that went into the picture and the frame alike, Wrath would come to the same conclusion.

⚱️Greed⚱️

🐸 Greed’s gambling halls were more packed than ever, following the birth of the princess..

🐸 Old bets on the child’s gender were being called in since it was announced she was a girl, while new bets on her appearance were being made as Demons argued over who she looked more like; The Goddess of Fury or the Demon of Wrath. 

🐸 Greed remains in his office, sorting through piles of gems. He h led each one up to the ribbon tied in a bow, around the neck of the stuffed deer.

🐸 His second found it amusing how hard he was trying to pick the right accessories for a children’s toy.

🐸 Eventually, he wrote a letter to his brother, asking about which gemstone looked more gold to him, the yellow Sapphire, the yellow Diamond, or the Moissanite.

🐸 Envy had a far better eye for colour than Greed, so it wasn’t a shock that Greed would write to him about this, but Envy still read the letter through twice, and then thrice, after which he had Alexi confirm that what he was reading was, in fact, correct. Greed was typically more concerned with material value and rarity than colour or appearance.

🐸 Before he could even think of how to respond, Camilla glanced over his shoulder and gave him her thoughts, before continuing back to her studio.

🐸 Envy could only shake his head, having wolf draft and deliver the response, before turning his attention back to the various designs proposed for the frame he was commissioning.

🐸 Greed narrowed his eyes at the hasty response, about to complain about Envy not taking him seriously, but Wolf pointed out that it was Camilla’s opinion. Frankly, he found her opinion far more reliable than his brother’s.

⚜️ Lust ⚜️

💟 House Lust has been celebrating the birth since it was announced. There was drinking and dancing and indulging for days.

💟 Lust had his second do research on what the ladies of his House found most useful when they had newborns.

💟 He received many suggestions, from baby carriers to stuffed toys. Eventually, he settled on a baby blanket.

💟 Lust spent weeks sampling various fabrics, from silks and velvet yarn, to cashmere and bamboo. He thoroughly examined many spools of thread used for embroidery, in dark yellows and shimmering gold. He had even asked for several samples of floral lace to go along the edges.

💟 He eventually settles on a soft, buttery white cashmere. Using a golden thread, he had his Niece’s name embroidered on, beside a black serpent. The edges were lined with a baby pink, floral lace.

💟 Lust even went to House Sloth to find various useful enchantments for the blanket. It’d be resistant to stains, always keep the babe at the perfect temperature, no matter how hot or cold it was outside, and Sloth suggested a tracking spell, making the blanket easy to find when needed, but also so, should anything happen, Euphemia would also be easy to find, so long as she had the blanket.

💟 Lust agreed to that quickly, and while the enchantments were being cast, he pestered Sloth about what he’d gift the baby.

👑 Pride 👑

🦁 Pride and Lucia immediately set to work on monitoring potential threats. Especially witches.

🦁 While Lucia wants to believe her mother will respect her happiness this time around, history has shown that it’s better to be prepared than regret it.

🦁 Pride focuses on feeding his sin, allowing celebration to occur, and even sharing all the ways he is, undoubtedly, the superior uncle (low hanging fruit, for sure, but that was mostly to agitate his brothers).

🦁 Lucia casts divinations, and protections charms any time she can, hyper aware of any activity that could once again bring harm to her home, and those she cherishes.

🦁 When she does catch a break, she enjoys crocheting scarves, hats and booties for her new niece. She even makes shawls for Emilia.

🦁 Pride selects the prettiest gowns for newborns, with matching ribbons and bows, in just about every colour. Even Lucia is shocked by the size of the wardrobe Pride seems to be creating for his niece.

🦁 Pride ensures that the seamstresses he hires are unable to remake any of the gown and accessories he gets for anyone else, adult or child. Which Lucia (and later Emilia) think is too much, but he insists that the first born Princess of Hell’s wardrobe must be entirely unique.

🦁 Before long, Lucia had come to Pride with a list of rising threats from all over the Underworld. From witch covens seeking to avenge the defeat of La Prima, as Lucia feared, to solitary fae, and, arguably the most pressing, remnants of the former Vampire Prince’s faction.

🦁 Many would rather see Blade removed from power, and would rather see a blooded heir on the throne, or try to seize power for themselves. Apparently they felt as if attacking The Seven Circles while the realm was distracted, and attempting to sabotage his strengthening alliances with the Demon Princes by implicating him in an attempt on the newborn princess’s life was how they’d try to earn Hell’s backing.

🦁 Needless to say, Pride set out under the guise of buying more dresses from outside The Seven Circles (which he did do), leaving the court to Lucia to tend to the court while he killed two birds with one stone, by removing a threat to his niece, and (secretly) helping blade strengthen his support, all the while leaving Blade indebted to him.

🐲 Gluttony 🐲

🩵 Gluttony’s first point of business was ordering winter ale. His second was pulling out the finest bottle of wine I his House’s wine cellar. When Adriana and Val questioned it, he happily informed them that the first drink Emilia should have after being sober for nine whole months should be the finest Hell had to offer. Which, in his opinion, could only be found in his House of Sin.

🩵 The rest of his circle celebrate with feasts, dancing and festivals. His hunters set out, into the North, but not to hunt ice dragons. They hunt Hell Stags, for their antlers and hide.

🩵 Gluttony went out on such hunts as well, seeing what he could find that would also be appropriate to gift his niece.

🩵 He considered just bringing the head to mount on her nursery wall, but Adriana shouted at him and threatened to make him sleep in the stables unless he decided on something else.

🩵 He knew his wife was writing some children’s stories, some of which were her own creation while others simplified versions of the misadventures their family had before Emilia fell pregnant. Adriana insisted on keeping them simple, so that their niece might even use these to learn how to read one day.

🩵 Gluttony laughed when he read her child friendly rendition how he and Adriana had learned the cause of the Ice Dragon’s unrest, and finally managed to undo what the Hexed quill had caused.

🩵 Surprisingly enough, it was Sophie who had suggested using shed antlers to make jewellery, at a dinner with Adriana’s family one night. Then Vanity suggested that that they may even be enchanted.

🩵 Knowing that Lust used magic on the baby blanket he’d commissioned, Gluttony settled with tracking spells, just in case she was taken without the blanket, and spells for good health. Although, he did need Sascha to use witchcraft instead of demon magic, so the spells would be affective, but not strong enough to risk causing harm or discomfort.

🩵 He, ultimately, decided on having the antlers maid into hairpins, for when she was a tad older.

🦥 Sloth 🦥

📚House Sloth celebrated through preparation. Of course, he allowed his ballroom to be used for dancing and dining for those who desired. After all, it’s not every day that a Princess of Hell was born. But many preferred the anticipation for what she’d bring.

📚 Whispers of change spread throughout all the seven circles. Of laws being revised, and opportunities for young lords to acquaint themselves with her highness.

📚 Much like his brothers, Sloth quickly, and methodically squashed any such rumours or ideas. Still, he and his brothers knew well that everyone has their own opinions about the princess. It won’t be long before she learns what all those different smiles truly mean.

📚 Sloth decided to have a mobile commissioned, filled with all sorts of stars and flowers.

📚 Lore picks out various fairytales she adored as a child, and complies them into an anthology. Between her stories and Adriana’s, Lust is certain his niece will be able to stock an entire library,

📚 Sloth also makes sure to compile anthologies on illnesses, injuries, and abnormalities that babies can experience, along with antidotes and remedies.

📚 He does the same for child development rates and magic development rates, so Emilia and Wrath have quick and immediate access to any and all possible tricks, techniques, dangers and antidotes at a moment’s notice.

📚 House Sloth values preparedness.

🐍 Wrath 🐍

🗡️ Wrath and Emilia are too caught up in the flurry of their daughter’s arrival, as well as their own overprotectiveness, that it was several weeks, perhaps even a month or more, before they have a chance to properly celebrate.

🗡️ Naturally, that involves a family dinner with everyone present. One where Emilia insisted on cooking, leaving Fauna and Anir to watch over the baby.

🗡️ From the moment they arrive, her sister-in-laws are all surrounding her, cooing excitedly over her daughter, and her little tufts of silver hair.

🗡️ The night is spent passing Euphemia around as she takes in her whole family for the very first time. She greets them by yanking on their hair and tugging at their clothes.

🗡️ She even tries to bring Adriana’s hair to her mouth at some point, before she quickly pulls back, and brings her over to the baby mobile Sloth gifted instead.

🗡️ Emilia quickly set it up, over the bassinet and her heart melted at the joyful sounds her baby made.

🗡️ At some point, Wrwht and Envy stepped out to hang Camilla’s portrait. Emilia wanted it somewhere in their private suite.

🗡️ Gluttony and Lust had groaned when she told them that she still shouldn’t drink until Euphemia’s feeding schedule spaced out a bit, since she was still nursing. But she assured them that she was determined to get her on a schedule of some kind before the next family dinner.

🗡️ Sloth would never admit it, but he felt a dash of pride when Emilia’s eyes lit up at the sight of his research. Obvious relief flooded her at the gift.

🗡️ Lore and Adriana spent their time dramatically reading fairytales to the baby.

🗡️ Pride went stiff when he heard Lucia telling her about how he’d gone to dispatch threats to Euphemia in the Malice Isles. He merely puffed out his chest, and continued to drink with the swagger of a debauched, arrogant prince when he felt his wife, sister-in-law’s and brothers’ gazes all turn on him.

🗡️ He won’t admit that a piece of his heart melted when Emilia held up the cooing baby to him, telling her in a warm tone to ‘say thank you to Uncle Pride’.

🗡️ He reluctantly, but softly, pinched at her cheeks, smiling when she cooed back at him.

🗡️ Wrath spent the evening enjoying his family’s company, and appreciating how it had grown from just himself and his brothers. Never before did they bring their partners to family dinners. Not before Lucia, anyway. And none of the. Ever expected any of them would bring newborns either.

🗡️ His own heart melted as the baby reached in his direction, cooing happily.

[thestoryarchives]

I thought I uploaded these yesterday but then I opened the app and saw I didn’t 🥲 The final day will be posted a bit later. Hopefully I don’t fall asleep this time. @princeofsinweek

Day 6: Free Day of Indulgence

Teenage Euphemia headcanons

TW: None

🎀 Teenage Euphy loves romance novels, occasionally sneaking into her parents’ room to read some of Emilia’s, even though she’s not old enough for them.

🎀 Teenage Euphy wants to go to every party so she can dance, but many of them are still off limits, since she’s on young.

🎀 Teenage Euphy begs her uncles and aunts to take her to new places. She wants Envy and Camilla to take her to the Unseelie court. She wants to visit Ice Dragon territory in the Far North, beyond Merciless Reach with Adriana and Gluttony. She wants to visit the Vampire courts, and the Shifting Iles too.

🎀 Teenage Euphy is still scared of Abyssus. Especially on nights she can hear him. One night, when she was sixteen, he was being particularly loud, so she ended up going to her parents’ room. She’s a daddy’s girl for sure, so one look at her teary eyes had him agreeing. Emilia wasn’t as immediately pleased with the idea, but the second her daughter was stocked between her and her husband, she softened.

🎀 Teenage Euphy barely recieves invitations, unlike other nobles. When she does recieve them, they’re either from young ladies wanting to be friends or those who want to use her status to elevate their own. More often than not, the latter. When it is the former, the invitations tend to stop after one meeting. Still, sometimes she attends, sometimes she doesn’t. She makes choices based on information she has her father’s spies collect, and the potential benefits to associating with them. But not because she thinks she’s above them. She knows she is, status wise. But because of that, she’s aware that many people may not have the best intentions when reaching out. To protect her heart, she treats socialising like a strategy meeting, only truly giving the genuine a real chance, but occasionally associating with those she knows want to use her so she can gather information, or resources. She’s a Demon Princess of House Wrath. Never doubt that she’s always strategising, even when it comes to connections, with loyalty and honesty being her priority

🎀 Teenage Euphy bemoans not having seen House Lust before. She insists she’s old enough to wander its halls to her heart’s content. She is refused. Repeatedly.

🎀 As mentioned before, teenage Euphy gets lots of love letters. Most of which, she turns away, much to Wrath’s absolute delight.

🎀 Secretly, Teenage Euphy dreams of falling in love organically. She wants to have her very own meet cute, with someone who maybe does’t know who she is. Someone who will treat her the same before and after learning she’s a Demon Princess. She wants that everlasting, immortal love that can overcome everything, like her aunts, uncles and parents. She wants the kind of love romances are written about. She doesn’t care if it’s an epic adventure or a cozier tale. As long as she finds love at the end. Nobody knows this. Except maybe Vex.

🎀 Teenage Euphy has very protective uncles. When she was fifteen, a popular, rather well liked noble from House Pride spread word that he intended to propose to The Princess of Hell. Since he was so well adored, many of his admirers were rather jealous of her. Some outright resented her. Others thought it made sense. She had the status and he had the looks. But it was shut down within a week. Apparently, Pride had caught wind of his ideas, and casually called the boy in to see him. Some, including the young man himself, thought this was his chance, and the Prince of Pride would introduce him to his niece. After the meeting, the noble looked pale, and supposedly went to visit family on the Shifting isles. He hasn’t bothered keeping in contact with anyone from the seven circles since. Some think that it was at the Princess’ behest that Pride took action, proving her haughty attitude. But those close to her know she wouldn’t never ask her uncles to intervene like that. Which is exactly why Pride stepped in before she could ask him to do or not do anything.

🎀 Teenage Euphy sneaks into her uncle’s houses of sin. Pride came back from a trip with Lucia to see his teenage niece lounging on his throne, doing what appeared to be homework her tutor assigned. He merely raised a brow at her while Lucia giggled, and demon courtiers whispered with baited breaths, only to be shocked when he picked up the quiet teenage and had his second grab her things, before bringing her to a lounge, where she’d have more space, and privacy to study. They were even more shocked when they heard Pride bark orders to bring snacks to said study. Lucia had already began penning a letter to Emilia, letting her know where Euphemia was, and the three of them sat together, with the adults reading as she did homework, occasionally piping up to help.

🎀 In another instance, teenage Euphy showed up at House Sloth. She left the book she’d borrowed last time on her Uncle’s desk in his study, then went to grab more books. Researchers stared as she wandered into sections of the library they knew her overprotective family wouldn’t want her in, but none dared say anything. Sloth found her hours later, in a cute little nest made of pillows and blankets she’d snatched from around his house, eating snacks as she reads. He isn’t overly surprised, since this tends to happen when she gets overstimulated, so he just raised a brow in question, and joined hers when she nodded.

🎀 Even Gluttoyn has had instances where he’s eating at the OX and Raven, only to get a message from Val that Euphemia had arrived and gone to the makeshift dens they used when raising hatchlings. Gluttony had never teleported somewhere so fast in his entire life. Once he got there, he saw Val staring as Euphemia seemingly explained the contents of her book to the curious hatchlings.

🎀 Needless to say, as the first ever Princess of Hell by birth, and the first ever daughter/niece of her family, she get’s allowances. Especially due to her other circumstances. With that said, she also knows better than to do it too often. She knows her limits.

🎀 Euphemia, no matter her age, as days where all she wants is to cuddle up and cling to her parents. She’s a daddy’s girl, without a doubt, and has days where she just craves for father’s own form of protection and affections. But she also has days where she just wants to be surrounded by her mother’s warmth and comfort. There will be days where just plops down beside them, silently doing her own thing, only complaining when they try to leave.

🎀 Teenage Euphemia enjoys fighting with her bare hands. She can handle weapons, but she has fun just letting lose with her fists, and showcasing her strength for all to see. They know not to fuck with the Princess of Hell.

[thestoryarchives]

This one was cute and fun to write. I, thinking of going more into the circumstances surrounding Euphemia’s birth in later fics, but, for now, there are scattered hints. Hope you enjoy! @princeofsinweek

Day 5: The Brothers

Baby Talk ft. Wrath, Sloth and Lust

WC: 1245

TW: Talk of postpartum anxiety and mention of a traumatic birth but nothing besides it was traumatic.

“Don’t hold her if you’re going to do it like that!” Wrath snapped, snatching the swaddle from his brother’s arms as gently as he could manage.

“Father curse me, you’re worse than your wife,” Lust threw his arms up with a groan, then dropped into the armchair behind him. “There was nothing wrong with the way I was holding her. She liked it!”

Wrath shot his brother a glare while his wife consoled the fussy one-month old.

“He’s got a point,” Sloth drawls. “Her bones are still developing, so holding her by the arms like you did risks her dislocating her arms or elbow.”

Lust frowned at the correction, then his narrowed gaze landed on the book Sloth was lazily flipping through.

“Don’t tell me your House collects books on child rearing too,” he huffed.

“I collect all kinds of books,” Sloth shot back with a scowl. Then, he jerked his head towards a small coffee table by the chaise Wrath sat at, babe rocking in his arms. “But this one is actually his. There are an obscene amount of parenting books scattered around, if you’d bother to look.”

Lust glanced in the direction Sloth indicated, only to blink incredulously at the pile of books. His eyes then shot to the mantle, bookshelf and even the larger table between their respective seats. Any books that caught his eye were, inevitably, parenting books. He stared at his brother incredulously.

Wrath merely, shrugged as he took a glass bottle from the maid who’d just entered. The top had a strange rubber teat, over the lid. Lust stared at him like he just declared he wished to return to heaven, as Wrath let a drop of, what seemed to be milk, drip onto the back of his palm, before gently offering the rubber teat to the infant. She cooed up at him, accepting his offering glee.

“Emilia’s idea, but we both read them all from cover to cover,” he shrugged, though his eyes remained on the baby. If Lust didn’t know better, he’d even say there was a tiny smile tugging at Wrath’s lips, and not the kind that appeared when he was cornering an enemy. This one was, dare he say, gentle. “It’s natural to want as much information as possible before a battle. It’s how you strategise. You’d think even you would be aware of that, brother.”

“You can’t possible need that many books to figure out how to hold an infant!” Lust spluttered.

Sloth let out a low chuckle, while Wrath just glanced at him, then turned back to Euphemia.

“You’ll learn when it’s your turn,” he shrugged.

“Not a chance in any of the realms!” He huffed. “Putting aside that condemning yourself to a single partner for eternity seems like a level of Hell not even I wan’t to descend to, even you should admit that my House of Sin isn’t any place for a baby!”

His infant niece, apparently finding amusement in his outrage, blinked at him, and made tiny noises in his direction when Wrath pulled the bottle away.

“Grow up and stop distracting her. She needs to eat,” he growled, focusing on giving her the bottle again.

Sloth let out another laugh at Lust’s bemused expression.

“You can’t tell me that you don’t also find this insane. It’s like he’s a different demon!”

“Because if he wasn’t, his own daughter might start crying every time she saw him,” Sloth commented.

Wrath shot him a scowl this time.

“Speaking of, where is my favorite sister in law?” Lust asked, reaching for a flute of wine.

“Sleeping.”

“At this hour?”

Sloth shook his head at Lust’s cocked brow.

“We’re having an infant in the family for the first time, and that’s not enough to convince your to research?” He huffed.

Before Lust could clap back, Wrath interviewed.

“Babies don’t start sleeping through the night until about six months. Euphemia, however, tends to get fussy when she can’t see either of us, so one of us is almost always awake with her. Recently, that’s been Emilia.”

“Have you considered hiring a wet nurse?” Sloth asked.

“I offered it, but Emilia refuses. She’s only just started getting used to leaving me with Euphemia so she can rest, but she absolutely insists in being the one to breast feed her,” Wrath sighed. “It was only yesterday that she agreed to try incorporating bottle feeding into her schedule, and it was because I said I wanted to spend more time with the baby.”

“Have you considered that this might be a form of postpartum anxiety?” Sloth asked.

“Given how the birth went, I’d be more surprised if she wasn’t ridden with anxiety the moment the babe was out of sight,” Lust added, as he took another long sip of wine. “One of my courtiers behaved similarly after giving birth.”

Wrath and Sloth shot hum strange looks.

“I thought your House of Sin wasn’t a place for infants?” Sloth asked.

“It’s not. Or most areas of it aren’t, anyway. That doesn’t stop from demons in my court or circle from having children though,” he shrugged. “It’s just another sign my demons are indulging. At this rate, I’m convinced the population of your circle will die out.”

Wrath quickly interrupted, before Sloth could show his daughter what her uncle looks like as he’s bleeding out. He wanted her first exposure to battle and bloodshed to be in a far more controlled environment. Many, many years from now.

“What happened to that demon?” He asked.

“The babe’s father tried talking to her, but she was stubborn. When the child was six months, she started developing what the doctors called ‘separation anxiety’ as a result. Apparently, the mother’s post partum anxiety had affected her interactions with the child and he developed that anxiety as a result.” Lust frowned.

“They can develop anxiety that young?” Sloth asked.

Lust just nodded.

“The babe cried any time her mother left the room, never wanted to be held by anyone else and even had trouble sleeping.”

Wrath frowned at his daughter. The thought of his daughter struggling in any way had his heart aching in ways he never thought it could.

“I’ll talk to Emilia. And a doctor. It might be better to nip this in the bud before it causes problems for Euphemia. I don’t particularly enjoy seeing Emilia so anxiety ridden either.”

His brothers nodded.

“Perhaps you and Euphemia should spend a night in one of our circles instead,” Sloth offered. “She’d become used to new scenery, Emilia would get time off, and it might help ease Euphemia into the idea being away from Emilia for a bit.”

Wrath considered it, but the idea of bringing Euphemia somewhere away from her mother made his stomach churn. Especially when he considered how upset Emilia is about the idea of being away from her as is. But his brother had a point.

“I’ll consider it,” he nodded, then lifted the baby to his shoulder to burp her.

The room fell into a soft silence as they watched their brother look after his child. It was a side of Wrath none of his brothers had seen before, and they never expected the addition of a baby in their family would bring it out. But just as they thought the silence would last, Sloth let out a low chuckle, eyes landing on Lust.

“You’re so knowledgable about infants. Are you sure you didn’t have one in secret?”

[thestoryarchives]

Day 4 is here! Just to be clear, If you’ve read the discussions I’ve had with @hrizantemy about religion on my other blog, you know I have a complicated views and relationship with religion that will likely come through here. To the point where I get somewhat existential over there. These are just my thoughts, and these headcannons don’t encompass my whole thoughts about religion, or even parts of them. They’re diluted to fit the layout of this fic, and won’t be addressed here. I’ve had people irl hea me ask these kinds of questions and take it as a sign to try and convert me, so please don’t do that. Otherwise, let’s agree to disagree, yeah? For now, I’m glad to be caught up. I have a poll on my page asking about how you wanna see fics posted in the future, so feel free to give your two cents. It should be right beneath this post. @princeofsinweek

Day 4: The Many Texts in my Collection

Yapping - Sloth x reader

TW: Um, I ask some questions about religion people may find uncomfortable. They’re based on my own thoughts or opinions, but diluted enough to fit the layout of this fic. I don’t plan to go in depth or try to address any of them here.

📖 Sloth wasn’t sure how he got here. One moment he was in his house of sin, the next, he was in a strangely decorated room.

The sight of book pages stuck to the wall, shaped like a heart in one area, and coating a mother corner seemingly at random, made his eye twitch. Amongst the remnants of desecrated literature stuck to the wall were colourful pictures. Some were obviously illustrations, but others seemed so realistic, he wasn’t sure what to make of them. More of those illustrations were taped to a bookshelf, right across from the bed, beside the window. There was also a desk pushed against the other wall, with multiple bottles, pots, boxes, stationary and books scattered all over it. Some, he recognised as stationary, while others were clearly cosmetics and perfumes. But the strange slab made of what felt like glass, and a bit of metal was entirely new to him.

No candles or chandeliers hang in the room, but strange contraptions in the ceiling emit a mix of soft orange and harsh white light-

“AGHHHHHHHHHH!”

📖 He was so caught up in exploring his new surroundings, that he didn’t realise someone entered 7til he heard the scream, followed by glass shattering.

He watched you stumble back out the door, scrambling away before your back hit another door across from your own, separated by a very, very small hallway. Your legs were bare, but you wore what seemed like a sleep dress? It was a pale yellow, with a blue cat and brown mouse on it, along with the names ‘Tom & Jerry’. It was clearly old, somewhat tattered in places, but seemed comfortable enough.

Your hair fell down your back in waves, and bright eyes stared up at him in horror. He walked carelessly across the shattered glass to kneel beside you. Before you could scream again, he placed a hand over your mouth, and brought a free one to his lips. You took several breaths through your nose before nodding at his demand.

📖 After that, Sloth and his new friend are able to talk, though I doubt you believe he’s a demon. Not until he pulls out the wings, maybe even take her for a flight. But you’re deathly terrified of heights, and hates rollercoasters, so you don’t have a good time. But, once they’ve established who he is and why he’s in her room, I’d say he might ask for information about things he didn’t understand.

“So this is an… I-pad?”

“Yeah. There are a bunch of tablets that function pretty similarly, but these are the most popular.”

“And you do… what exactly?”

“Pretty much everything. I watch shows, like plays but recorded as did with special effects to make them look realistic, but some of them are animated too, so basically a bunch of pictures played in rapid succession to give the illusion of movement. Um, I also write essays for school on here, do other projects, research, read books, text-“

“Read?”

📖 God help you when he learns about e-readers and apps like Apple Books or the kindle app.

📖 Soon enough, you’re lounging on your bed, reading on your kindle, while he’s made himself comfortable at your desk, reading on your iPad, occasionally using your browser to research something.

📖 One thing he didn’t account for, however, is how much you yap.

“So, if you’re a demon, does that mean He’ll is real?”

“Is heaven real too?”

“What’s it like?”

“Why did you leave?”

“Why did your brothers leave?”

“Is God real?”

“Why doesn’t he do something to make this world better?”

“Can he even interfere? If not, then wouldn’t that mean he’s not a god?”

📖 He found it bothersome at first, but some of these questions surprised him.

“If God is real, and can interact with our world, why won’t he stop the bad things?”

“If your brother is the one who tempted eve, why are we the ones punished for his crime?”

“If he lets us suffer, giving us no reason to believe in him other than corrupt institutions that push the burden of that belief onto those who suffer, why should we?”

“What kind of ‘all loving deity’ lets people burn forever because they stopped believing, when he was the one that let them suffer for no reason?”

“If we’re going to burn forever for not believing, why give us free will, thus the option to not believe?”

“Also, isn’t the reason we have knowledge of good and evil because Eve ate the fruit? Why not undo it if he’s so powerful?”

“Why should we be punished for exercising the free will he gave us?”

📖 Not all of your questions are region based though. Sometimes he enjoys listening to you mindlessly bitch about a trope, author or series that bugs you. These were ones he’d be more likely to answer, in some capacity.

“Can you believe the author had the audacity to respond to those comments like- like that?!”

“Her manipulation tactics could use some work.”

“What did she think was going to happen when she decided approach the guy people called ‘the mad king’ huh?! What made her think any of what he said would make sense?!”

“What would you have done in her shoes?”

“Uhhh….”

“Thought so.”

“What would you do if..”

📖 Sloth had plenty of questions of his own though. Mostly about mundane stuff. But in cases where you didn’t know, you’d research it together.

“So that’s how fuel powers a car. I never would’ve searched that without you!L

“You’d take a mode of transportation without knowing fully how it works? What if it broke down, or you needed to procure a new one?”

“I don’t think that’s what toasters are made fo- WAIT! YOU’LL GET ELECTROCUTED!”

“No! Don’t break it! It wasn’t trying to kill you, I swear!”

“Yeah, so audiobooks are for people who may be neurodivergent, and struggle to stay focused on a book, or maybe people who poor eyesight, for any number of reasons, and can’t see. Oh, or even people who want to read but are constantly on the move, so they can just listen while doing their thing!”

“Neurodivergent?”

“Well, yeah. Knowledge should be accessible to everyone, but so should rest, and the librarian can’t get that unless we go home.”

“In my library, I never had to leave.”

“ That’s because it encompasses your whole house,”

📖 He shows her magic.

“Oh my god, it’s really floating!”

“It’s not that impressive. This kind of magic is basic.”

“I wish I could light fires like that.”

“Oh, that must be so useful in a fight!”

📖 Despite being a bit of a yapper, Sloth finds that you like demanding to hear stories from him too.

“Wait, so the were you like pow! Bam! Haya! Take that! And the-“

“No one makes those sounds while fighting.”

“Well, you should.”

“Wait, tell me about that! I wanna hear about the dragons!”

“They sound scary!”

“They’re ice dragons…”

“They sound amazing!”

“Werewolf blood can do that? Sounds like it can make a sticky situation worse then.”

“How many gods are there in the Underworld?”

“Awww, they sound like such a sweet couple!”

“Honestly, if any of your brothers’ lives were romance books, I’d read them all. They sound so cute!”

“Don’t ever tell them that. For your sake, and mine.”

“Come on! Tell it again, please.”

“Owieeee! Alright, alright! I’ll go to bed! Just don’t pinch my cheeks like that!”

📖 By the time he’s found a way home, he’s reluctant to leave and your ever present questions, that he’d come to adore, only made it harder.

“Do you have to go?”

“I have so many more questions.”

“Will you come visit?”

“Stay just one more night?”

“Send me a postcard. I’ll frame it on my wall like a trophy!”

📖 So he decides to ask one final question of his own.

“Would you like to sell your soul?”

[thestoryarchives]

Do you prefer Euphemia-centred fics, or non Euphemia-centred fics more?

Euphemia-centred fics!

Non Euphemia-centred fics!

Both equally. I don’t mind what you post!

Love them both, but would prefer more variety/spacing out of fics

Voting ended onNov 6, 2025

I realised in planning for @princeofsinweek a lot, if not all, my ideas were Euphemia focused. I’ll still post about Euphy, I’m just curious if y’all don’t mind me writing several Euphy fics in a row, or would prefer them more spread out, with other fics in between, that maybe aren’t Euphy focused.

[thestoryarchives]

Here’s day 3, and I have some extra bits I wanted to add onto day 4 before posting it, so it’ll be up in a few hours! This one is much shorter, but I had a lot of fun writing it. It’s the first non-Euphemia-centred fic I’ve written for this Prince of Sin week, but I’m curious, do y’all prefer Euphemia fics or non-Euphemia fics? I’ll probably post a poll about it later, but feel free to leave thoughts. And feel free to let me know what you think Gluttony did. @princeofsinweek

Day 3: Some Kind of Knight and not a Wicked Prince

Royally fucked up

WC: 569

TW: None. Other than a pissed off Adriana? No.

Val’s eyes gleam at the scene unfolding, her lips stretched into a satisfied grin. Beside her, Vanity Raven, who had become a frequent guest at house Gluttony, didn’t bother to hide the amused twinkle in her eyes, nor her snickers, while Eden, her lover, merely shook her head in fond amusement. Even from beside he dais, they saw The Prince of Gluttony’s brows twitch. His jaw was locked and his narrowed gaze was set on his throne, where his beloved had made herself comfortable.

“Sweet nemesis, don’t you think this is going a bit far?” He groaned.

“On the contrary, my beloved scoundrel, I don’t think I’ve gone far enough. Yet.”

“Adriana.”

He said her name like it was a royal command, which would’ve sent most other demos to their knees, stuttering out apologies. But, clearly, his intended was not ‘other demons’.

“You brought this on yourself, Prince,” Adriana tutted, then reached for another chocolate. Without sparing her fiancé another glance, she stood, and turned to the other three women in the room. “I’m going to the parlour. Would you ladies care to join me?”

“Adriana, I need Val to-“

“But of course, my lady,” Val interrupted with a Cheshire grin. “Would it trouble you too terribly if I invite Sascha to join us?”

“Not at all. The more the merrier,” Adriana agreed gleefully.

“There’s scones in the kitchen that I prepared earlier. And Vanity brought some mud masks and serums from House Pride!”

Eden’s excitement soften Vanity’s expression for a moment, before the same wicked amusement appeared again.

“They’re very popular in House Pride at the moment. Lady Lucia herself was the one who created the recipes,” She added.

From beneath the throne, a tiny, scaled head popped out and bleated happily.

“Oh, and I expect you’ll be joining us too?” Adriana asked the baby dragon, before beckoning it out from under the seat of her fiancé’s power, and into her arms. Vex bleated again, in apparent agreement. “Well, I suppose your just cute enough to be an exception. We’ll have the kitchens bring treats for you too.”

The dragon seemed to agree, practically preening in her arms. Gluttony could only stare on slack jawed at the betrayal. As the ladies, and dragon, filed out of the throne room, Val stopped beside him. Without a word, she pressed the leather bound journal into his arms. Gluttony blinked, examining the cover.

“What is this?” He asked incredulously, as he pulled on the leather cord tying to closed.

“A to-do list, your highness.” Gluttony froze, and whipped his head to his second. “It’s the very last entry, marked by the ribbon. Your tasks for the day are ordered from most to least pressing,” She commented mildly.

“Val-“

“Oh, and your highness?”

She marked him with a glacial expression. One Gluttony rarely ever saw from her. The very sight of it had him pausing, and a grave expression settled on his own face as he mentally prepared for the worst.

“Yes?”

“Whatever you did to anger your betrothed,” she began, eyes darkening. “Don’t do it again.”

Gluttony could only nod slowly, processing her words while she held his gaze. But before he could even begin to formulate a response, the sound of the throne room doors closing echoed behind him. In the stillness of the aftermath, he could only process one thought; He had royally fucked up.

[thestoryarchives]

This is far longer than I anticipated, and, frankly, plays a little more fast and loose with the prompt, but I like it. Much better than what I was originally going to post, for sure. That one needs more work. I think either day 3 or 4 is going to be on the shorter side while I play catch up, so I hope that’s fine. @princeofsinweek

Day 2: Tell me I’m your favourite Sin

Missing - Father!Wrath X Daughter!Euphemia X Mother!Emilia (feat. Uncle Greed)

WC: 2279

TW: Mentions of a traumatic pregnancy, but only that it was traumatic. No details on how or what happened. Also, mother worried for her daughter, but it’s fine. Nobody’s hurt.

The sharp click of heals echoed throughout house Wrath. Demon Lords and Ladies stumbled to get out of the way, faces going far too pale as their queen baralled through the halls without so much as a glance.

In recent years, there had been many changes throughout the seven circles. Certain areas, like weapon rooms, The Crescent Shallows, and the training grounds were under stricter watch, while both courtiers and staff alike had learned to be far more vigilant. It had also become common to see the rulers of Hell change outfits an unnececery amount of times for a single day. The changes had been jarring, though not entirely unexpected since the birth of their princess. But seeing the queen clutching her skirts and storming through the halls was, admittedly, new.

Emilia was sure that her was sticking up in every which direction, and there may or may not have been cannoli filling in it. Flour still coated her hands, and her apron remained draped over her gown. The cacophony of frightened gasps and apologies were drowned out by a high pitched ringing in her ears. She could practically feel hear hearth ramming itself against her ribgate. Her magic hummed just under her skin, raging, demanding to be let out- to incinerate everything in her vicinity. Her stomach, on the other hand, had tied itself into so many knots, she, briefly, wondered if it had started resembling a pretzel by now.

Any and all thoughts flew out of head the second the door to her husband’s study came into view. Without preamble, she shoved it open, barely restraining the urge to burst through with fire.

“Euphy’s gone!” She declared, heaving.

Wrath didn’t even have time to stand before Emilia marched in and began pacing.

“She- She wanted Cannolis so I told her I’d make them if she finished the homework her tutor assigned but when I was making them her maid ran and told me she’d vanished! I checked her room, her closet, her bathroom, her study, the library, the dining room, the garden, the sta-“

“Emilia.”

She felt a strong grip land on her shoulders. Golden eyes burn into her own. His spine had gone stiff, and his jaw ticked.

Emilia drew in a breath, let her eyes flutter close, before letting it out again. Though, it did little to relieve the tension in her body.

“Which of the maids informed you she was gone?”

“Scarlett.”

Her husband nodded, and removed his hand. Before she could ask, he was moving to the door.

“I’ll have Anir bring her here. Then I’ll have every demon in this court searching for her if I must.” Wrath’s tone held the air of a general giving orders. Yet, with one hand on the handle, he turned back to his wife, voice suddenly a thousand notes softer, but with no less conviction. “We will find her.”

Emilia swallowed the lump her throat, and clasped her hands in front of her. She forced a stiff nod that her husband returned, hand gripping the doorknob. With no further fanfare, he stiffly pulled the door open, ready to storm through the halls, only to be stopped in his tracks.

Anir, with one fist raised as if to knock, blinked at them, brows furrowing when he took in Emilia’s harrowed state.

“Is it her highness?” He asked, before Wrath could begin barking orders.

“Anir-“

“She’s gone,” Emilia interjected.

“Summon Scar-“

“With all due respect, your majesties, I don’t think you need to worry,” Anir assured them.

Before either could protest, helld out a letter.

Wrath caught a glimpse of the frog stamped into the watch, and tore the envelope open. His eyes narrowed at the words as he read them through twice, then thrice, before Emilia snatched the parchment from him.

Brother,

It appears a member of your court has wandered into mine unannounced. Due to my uninvited guest’s status, I have seen fit to show her all the best hospitality House Greed has to offer. Rest assured, the little Helion is unscathed, and currently making my second regret his offer to play cards with her. As much as I’m enjoying watching her make him regret his life choices, I must ask that you collect her before my guest arrives. I would hate for her to become distressed.

Your most well endowed brother,

- Greed.

“How did…”

Wrath doesn’t bother to comment, choosing instead to wrap his arm around his wife, while barking something to Anir about keeping things in order while they’re gone. A single nod of approval from Emilia is all it takes for him to magic them both away.

———

Euphemia squealed in delight at her spoils, not paying much mind to a defeated Amat. In the hour she’d been here, she managed to win a large pouch of gold, and two small pouches of silver just through playing cards. Before she could demand another round, eager for more spending money that her was just her own, Greed scooped her off the ground.

“I think that’s enough play time for now,” he sighed.

“But I wan’ play more!” She demanded.

Greed glanced at Amat, and almost felt pity for the poor man. He’d lost. To a little girl. Several times.

“Your highness, might I recommend you hire her highness as your new second. I fear she might out match me by quite a bit,” Amat advised, still mourning his losses.

“Unfortunately, I’m quite certain my blood thirsty brother wouldn’t even bother declaring war before tearing my head from my shoulders if I attempted to hire his daughter,” Greed drawled.

“At least you’re somewhat self aware, brother.”

“Daddy!”

Greed turned to face his brother and sister in law, as they entered. Emilia rushed forward, immediately pulling the girl from his arms and cradling her close.

“How did you get here?!” She demanded, all while examining the princess for any injury.

Wrath pulled her close, wrapping his arms around the both of them.

“It appears. She learned transvenio magic.”

Emilia and Wrath whipped their heads towards him at the suggestion.

“Where would she even learn such a thing?” Emilia asked, stroking her daughter’s hair.

“It’s not uncommon for young demons with magic to begin showing when they’re only slightly older than Euphemia. In her case, though, she also has goddess blood, so that might also be a factor in how and when her magic manifests. I’d advise you to speak to your mother in law. Perhaps Sloth too. They may have more information,” Greed supplied.

Wrath nodded seriously, staring at his daughter.

“If her magic began showing, surely we would’ve known. How did we miss it?”

Greed knew his brother took great pride in his craft. All seven of them were honed and ready for battle at any moment. All seven of them were more than happy to remind those that dared turn their blades towards them why they ruled Hell. Power was the one drug they indulged in, eager to show it off. But Wrath? He took particular pride in the power he gained, the skills he cultivated. So to have missed something that should’ve been so obvious must’ve taken a blow to his pride.

Against his better judgment, Greed continued.

“You wouldn’t be the only one. She’s showed up here before.”

“What?“

“During the last feast of the wolf, the one you hosted, you mentioned you had put her to sleep before the party. While heading to my chambers, I saw her wandering the halls with her toy. I had tried to catch her, but she’d disappeared. When I asked a maid, they went to check and later told me she was still sleeping,” Greed brought a hand to his chin. “I just assumed I was seeing things until I spoke with Pride and Gluttony.”

His brother and his wife shared concerned looks.

“What did they say?” His sister in law asked.

“Pride once mentioned his guards catching her on the outskirts of his territory. He assumed she’d gone out with her attendants and accidentally crossed into his circle. He gave her coco and sent his guards to find whichever maids were with her, and sent them back together.” Emilia’s mouth fell open, while Wrath clenched his jaw. “And Gluttony said that two of his dragons noticed her playing in the woods beyond Merciless Reach. Apparently, when you asked him to watch her while you and Emilia attended the new Vampire Prince’s banquet, Silvanus found her playing with Vex. Gluttony was hunting a rival pack, so he took them both back to Merciless Reach. Val ended up meeting them but when she tried to take her in, Silvanus growled at her, made himself comfortable, and watched like a mother hen as she and Vex played outside the fortress until Gluttony got back.”

“And you didn’t think to warn us about her magic before?” Wrath snapped.

“I mentioned it to the maid, but thought I was mistaken when I heard she was asleep. Perhaps it was some other demon Lord’s child. Pride and Gluttony, however, each assumed she wandered into those places on her own. They were never too far from where she already was. Today would be the first instance of travelling such long distance.”

Emilia placed a hand on her husband’s arm before he could throttle his brother.

“At least it appeared she had fun,” she offers, jerking her head to their daughter’s winnings.

Pride sparks in Wrath’s chest at the sight.

“It seems your second has much to learn.” The grin Wrath shoots the man is nothing short of horrifying. Like a cat about to corner the mouse. “Lesson one, don’t make bets you can’t win.”

Amat mumbles a defeated ‘’yes, your hihness’ before going back to his wallowing.

Emilia just shakes her head, and Euphemia cheers. Gluttony, on the other hand, raises a brow.

“Should Pride be concerned, brother?” He asked.

“About what?”

“About you coming for his sin.”

Wrath scowls at Greed, about to retort when Emilia pipes up.

“You should see him during our day to day. Half the time, he’s jealous of the maids who get to see this cutie all day. Other times, she wants to play and play all day, but this big kitty just wants to nurse his wine and read. I don’t think we’ve had a moment of peace since she was born.”

Wrath’s head whips to Emilia, scowl deepening, but she only laughs, and holds up their child.

“Come on. Can you honestly stay mad at this face?”

“Daddy! Daddy!”

Greed watches the scene with wide eyes, as the Demon Wrath’s anger fades away, and Pride replaces it.

“She has you more whipped than your wife,” he mutters.

A flash of gold is all the warning Greed gets before a blade is slicing through the air. He dodges just in time, watching it embed itself into the wall behind his desk. With a wide grin, takes a glass of amber liquid and raises it in a mock toast.

“There he is. He could never abandon those tendencies for too long.”

Wrath is about to reach for another dagger, but Euphemia’s laugh draws their attention.

“Daddy! Daddy! Look!” She held her spoils up to him.

Greed felt the pride flicker in brother’s chest, but, this time, chose not to comment.

“What marvelous prizes you’ve won, Filia,” he sighed.

“Daddy, I wanna buy aaaallllll the candy! And one book!”

“Just one? How about allllll the books, and one candy?” Emilia offered.

“Nuh uh! ‘S candy money mama! But don’t worry! I’ll share!”

The Queen chuckles, shaking her head in defeat, though her fond smile didn’t waver.

“Which book does my Filia want?” Wrath asks.

“The one that Uncle Sloth doesn’t have! So I can show him!”

Wrath chuckled again, and this time, Greed picked up hiis own sin coming from his brother. He almost wasn’t sure if believed it. The demon of war was the most careful with which emotions he allowed even his brothers to sense. The fact Greed had picked up two other sins, including his own, in what felt like mere minutes almost felt like he was seeing a different person.

“I think it’s fatherhood,” Emilia supplied, having since left Wrath to dote on their daughter. “Since… Since everything, especially with how… How hard it was, when she was born, Wrath has wanted to give her everything she ever asks for. Every day, she shows me sides of him I’ve never seen before, and, it seems, that you’ve never seen them either.”

Greed only nods, watching the interaction closely. It’s true, the circumstances around her brith were traumatic, for both Emilia, and, he supposed, his brother too. Frankly, despite all they’d lived through, for all these millennia’s, none of the brothers had ever witnessed Wrath react the way he did while his wife was giving birth. He’d argue that alone was almost traumatic. And while they fed on fear with no issue, and had once even planned to feed on her at the feast of the Wolf, the kind of fear in her eyes that day was something none of them would wish her to endure again. Just the thought had a spark of wrath flicker in his chest.

If his brother noticed, he didn’t comment, focused on his daughter.

Sensing where his thoughts were going, Emilia reached for the decanter on his desk, and refilled his empty glass, then poured one for herself. He nodded greatfully. After a couple of sips, she reached into her pocket to pull out a coin purse. Without even glancing his way, Emilia held it out to him.

“I bet Sloth and Lore will be next.”

[thestoryarchives]

I planned to upload this earlier today (UK time) but I’ve been busy with uni work, mostly my first time writing a report and a group project making me wanna slam my head into a wall, but I managed to do my final revisions and upload it before the end of the day, yay! Tomorrow’s probably also gonna be late. I may not even be able to post it until the the third day, since I do have school then, but after tomorrow, but Monday is the last day before I have over a week off for assignments, and fics, after that, I’ll be off from early(ish) December to late January. I’m also focusing on writing an original story. I’m just in the plotting phases but lmk if you wanna hear about it. Until then, please enjoy this fic, and I can’t wait to see all of the amazing content this week! Thank you @princeofsinweek for creating this event!

Day 1: Dancing at a bonfire

Favourite melody - Father!Wrath X Daughter!Euphemia X Mother!Emilia

WC: 1698

TW: Nothing but fluff. And mentions of canon typical violence. None of it is carried out, just talked about.

With the final stroke of the bow, strum of the cello, demons halt in their steps. Faces are flushed, and eyes twinkle as they bow once more to their partners. Some remain reluctant to step away, while the sound of clicking heels amongst the chatter hint that others can’t get away fast enough. Amongst them, the King of Hell stood, eyes glued on his wife, who‘s nails trailed from his shoulder, up to his jaw. Wrath’s eyes flickered from her to her perfectly manicured nails, and a sinful smile spreads across his face. His lips had barely parted before a high pitched scream rang out across the ball room, gathering many eyes.

“Daddy! Mama! Help! I’m being kidnapped!”

Ebony wings snapped free, casting a shadow across ornate ballroom. His house dagger is drawn before he makes it three steps away. Frightened murmurs are sent to the back of his mind. The frenzied footsteps of demons rushing out of his way go in one ear and out the other. For the first time in perhaps centuries, Wrath was aware of every vein in his body. Every breath, every step, felt like another century.

At the other end of obscenely decorated ballroom, demons had clustered together. Wrath didn’t stop to consider the murmurs rippling through the crowd, or even turn to see if Emilia had followed. No. The crowd barely parted fast enough for him to make his way too where his daughter continued to shriek. His eyes zeroed in on large hand loosely holding onto her wrist as she stomped screamed and stomped.

“It’s your fault she’s like this you know.” It wasn’t until he felt his wife’s hand on his arm that Wrath fully processed the words he’d heard. Lust, meanwhile, didn’t even bother to glance at his brother. Nor did he seem particularly phased by the ice coating half of Envy’s throne room. Instead, he raised an unimpressed brow as Euphemia stomped her little pink dolly shoes against polished dress shoes with all the might her little body could muster. Of all the things she had to inherit, did your dramatics have to be one of them?”

Wrath stiffly cocked his head, eyeing his brother, who pretended not to notice the tick in his jaw as he stared down at his niece. The temperature dropped, and any remaining sounds, be they from gossiping courtiers or lords and ladies whispering of sneaking to a more private space nearby, ceased. Ice creeped up the wall, over ornate frames and even began spreading across the ceiling. Perhaps Envy and Camilla disappearing from their own party wasn’t such a bad thing after all. Every eye in the court had turned to them, and nearby nobles dared not even inch backwards in the face of their king’s fury, least of all when it was directed at another princes.

But, it seemed those of divine ordainment had yet to abandon them entirely.

Before Wrath could gut his brother, a warm hand pressed against his forearm. His eyes slid to his wife, but she payed him no mid as she stepped forward.

“Lust.” Her voice rang out in the silence of the party, the warmth masking all but a spark of the fire that longed to reduce her brother in law to cinders at this moment. “What *exactly* do you think you’re doing?”

Lust shot her an amused grin.

“I was just offering my precious niece the chance to share a dance with her *favourite* uncle, but she seems to have inherited her father’s dramatics and just started attacking me!”

Wrath’s brow twitched. Emilia’s gaze shifted to her fussy daughter. She hadn’t shrieked or squirmed like this since she was a toddler throwing tantrums.

“Mama! Uncle Lust is kidnapping me!”

She let out a breath, before gliding forward and gently removing Lust’s grip, despite his protests. Euphemia immediately clutched at her mother’s skirts, glaring daggers at her uncle, who shot her an equally unimpressed stare right back.

“Lust, I’m sure you have a surplus of willing dance partners waiting,” she sighed, fighting the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose. “If none of them are to your liking,” she continued, upon seeing him open his mouth to protest, “then go find Sloth and have him dance with you instead.”

Wrath snorted that, while Lust brought a hand to his chin, seemingly thinking it over. Emilia swore she felt the temperature just around her drop another degrees or two, and new set of eyes, far less reluctant than any lord or lady, land on her the very moment the suggestion came out of her mouth. She’d be sure to watch her back, perhaps cast a few more protection spells, at the next party Sloth was attending. Just in case.

Before she could contemplate it any further, Lust had already slunk off, likely to find his bibliophile brother, and the room began to return to a normal temperature. Demons reluctantly returned to their conversation.

Gentle tugging at her skirt drew her attention, and her gown splayed out like a flower as she knelt before her princess. With warm hands, she cupped Euphemia’s cheek, thumb gently tracing over the coal hue that had been dusted over her olive complexion. Her makeup was very minimum, but the blush, neutral eyeshadow, and clear lipgloss was the extent of which makeup she was allowed at her age.

“I know you love your family, my lovely. And I know you love to tease Uncle Lust, but that was going a tad far, don’t you think?” Emilia asked, her free hand moving to stroke her daughter’s long, silvery hair. “You had your father and me very worried when you began screaming.”

“‘M sorry, Mama. Sorry daddy.” Her voice was a Low murmur in the room of demonic nobles.

Wrath settled at her side, pressing a soft kiss to her brow.

“Just, consider yelling something else the next time your uncle is doing something that warrants punishment, Filia,” Wrath offers. “Or just stab him your-“

Emilia’s jabs at his ribs with her elbow, a scowl on her face. Wrath merely shoots her a mischievous grin. She sighs, turning her attention back Euphemia, ready to put this entire thing to rest.

“Is there a reason you didn’t want to dance with your Uncle? You had so much fun with him at the last ball. I think the only reason you regretted it was because you and Uncle Gluttony gorged yourselves on sweets *before* stepping onto the dance floor,” Wrath interjected, before Emilia could end the discussion.

Euphemia glanced around the crowded room, fidgeting under their gaze.

“Last time, I danced with mama first. This time, I wanted to dance with daddy first.” she shrugged, and Emilia felt her heart ache at her shyness. “But you both looked so happy dancing together. I didn’t want to interrupt.”

Wrath frowned, but Emilia immediately pulled her daughter close.

“Oh, you don’t have to hold back what you want Euphy,” she coos, then pulls back. “If you wanna dance with either of us, then just ask.”

Wrath hums in agreement, gently stroking the top of her head. They smile at the delighted giggle that escapes her, even as several eyes turn their way. Curious, but not foolish enough to intrude on the moment.

“This applies to all matters, Euphy. If you want something, ask. Especially since you’ll be attending more balls once you’re older. At some point, other nobles will start coming to you with offers to dace. You’ll learn how to respond in your lessons, so remember them.”

Euphemia nods, and her chest lightens at the thought of covering something so fun in her etiquette lessons. Fantasies of dance practicies with her parents, and showing off to her uncles float through her mind.

“But, outside of what your tutors will no doubt tell you,” Wrath draws her attention back to the present, a scowl on his face. “Remember that if they get persistent, either gut them, or find one of us. Your mama, me, your uncles and aunties, it does’t matter. We’ll always protect you. Especially from foolish young demons who’s pride grow too large for their heads.”

Emilia sighs.

“What your father means to say, is if someone you don’t want to dance with bothers you, feel free to take punitive measures. Or, come find us, and we’ll take them for you.”

Another flurry of giggles escape their daughter, leaving the King and Queen delighted.

Wrath rises to his feet, and moves just to her side before bending at the waist.

“Care for a dance, my lady?” He offers his daughter.

Emilia can see the delighted squeal building in her throat, but Euphemia clears her throat and steps back before it escapes.

“I would be honoured, you majesty.” She responded, giving a somewhat awkward curtsy before following him to the ballroom.

As the next song began, Emilia watched in delight as Wrath guided their daughter through the steps, grinning broadly at the excited giggles she couldn’t seem to suppress. At some point, he began deviating from all standard dances all together, choosing to lift their princess towards the ceiling and spins her amongst the crowd. Some demons gawk from the sidelines, watching their King indulge his daughter’s free spirts, while others shot disapproving glares. Some mothers hid scowls behind pretty fans or dainty palms, murmuring what she can only assume are shrewd warnings and observations to their daughters.

She made a note to ask Fauna about it later. As of now, she slid her gaze back to her squealing daughter. Her gold eyes were bright with mischief and joy as Wrath spun her across the checkered dance floor. Her hair trailed behind her, gleaming under the lights like silver flames, and her pink gown billows out like shimmering rose with each turn.

Thinking back, Emilia can’t recall a celebration that had ever felt as upbeat or lively as this, no matter how much joy she attributes, or fondly she looks back on each memory. Though, she supposed that none of the music at those other parties were accompanied by the delighted squeals and laughter of her daughter. That, she finds, That, she finds, is her most favourite melody.

[thestoryarchives]

Uncle Lust - Headcanons

A/N: Chapter four of Clandestine Affairs will be up by Sunday, Monday at the latest (BST). Just doing a bit of chapter restructuring and edits. Thank you for your patience. Let me know which Prince you'd like headcanons for next!

Masterlist

💟 When Euphemia was born, Lust enjoyed sitting with her in his arms. Whether he's doing paperwork, meeting with advisors or eating, he's usually much calmer, and far more content when he's holding her. So much so, that Sloth had asked about him during a family dinner (since he hand't been bothered about the lack of orgies once the entire night) only to double take when Emilia actually pointed him out, two seats down and sipping wine while their niece napped peacefully on his lap.

💟 Speaking of napping, when Euphemia is in his lap, she sleeps more soundly than with anyone else. Emilia is envious of how quickly Lust manages to put her daughter to sleep, whereas she spends a couple of hours trying to get her down, only for her to wake a twenty minutes later. Especially in her newborn phase.

💟 I mentioned that Euphemia isn't allowed to visit House Lust, at least not until she's much older, but that doesn't mean she's never been. Lust was discussing something with his second when he heard a knock at his door, and found a lady in waiting to one of his courtiers standing there with his giggling niece. Lust was in shock as the toddler waddled over to him, while the poor lady in waiting looked haggard and white as a sheet, most likely out of fear of his brother.

💟 Lust is the second most relaxed of her uncles, following Sloth. He's the most vocal about letting her enjoy her youth, and spend time in other circles.

💟 He's also the most attuned to her. He's the first to notice if she's upset, or scared or hiding something. However, he's also the last to figure out how to fix it. He finds ways to distract her, no problem, but struggles to help find permanent solutions.

💟 Unless it's romantic advice. Regardless of if he's talking to a young Euphie who's complaining about her peers wanting to court her (more often at the behest of their parents than their own wills) or an older Euphie beginning to feel romantic attraction. He's the one she goes to for relationship advice.

💟 Wrath and Emilia are pleasantly surprised with how well Lust looks after Euphemia. They can tell she clearly trusts him, especially in moments where she doesn't feel she can talk to them.

💟 Lust is the one who plans Euphie's first tasting of Alcohol. Wrath wanted to do it, but Lust insisted that his court had a wider variety of alcohol, and less weapons lying around.

"I never said there weren't any weapons. Just that there were less. At the very least it's far more manageable than House Wrath. If you tried to remove every potential hazard, you'd have to redecorate your entire house."

He turned it into an entire tasting party. Euphie wanted all her uncles, and their partners there, so it turned into a large family dinner where they all tasted different types of alcohol, and talked about their favourite until she was too tipsy to continue.

💟 Lust is absolutely the Uncle that held her upside down by the foot as a child, since he was unsure how else to hold a toddler. Wrath nearly gutted him for it. The only reason he didn't was Emilia, who was watching and noticed Euphemia was fine, and even giggling.

💟 Lust was the first one to lose his house dagger to Euphemia. He's unsure how she got it, but he didn't even realise it was gone until his second brought the crying toddler to him. It was the afternoon of the second day, and he was preparing for the sacrifice that evening when his second had knocked, and came in holding the House Dagger in one hand, and Euphie in the other. In the end, the only way to calm her without giving her his knife was to take her to see the horses in the stable, where Emilia found them, and almost sobbed in relief.

💟 Sometimes Euphemia feels pressured to pretend to have romantic interests because of the way that Lust teases Sloth for not indulging in sin the way he believes demons should. As a kid, she was worried that not having love interests in her teenage years and beyond would make her Uncle Lust hate her, so she started mentally preparing to try and fall in love the second she turned thirteen. She even began seriously considering the boys that noble ladies and lords would push to be her 'friend' as a child in order to worm their way into the royal family. Needless to say, when Lust finds out about it, he's horrified. So much so that he almost gets stabbed by Wrath because he entered his circle uninvited to fix it.

💟 "Little terror."

💟 Is absolutely the one who teaches her about healthy boundaries in a relationship, and consent.

💟 He also teaches her about the value of her own joy and prioritising her own happiness.

💟 Lust, despite his sin, is the most scrutinous with any potential suitor that approaches Eupheima.

💟 Lust enjoys dancing with her. Euphie doesn't dance often at balls, and if she does, it's with her family. But she's danced with Lust the most out of all the princes (not including their partners).

💟 Eupheima is the only one who can cockblock Lust and not be the target of his foul mood and still get whatever it is she came for. It's a feat, truely.

💟 Once, a noble boy was being particularly pushy, and Lust took notice. He happily used his influence on the boy, pushing him to make a spectacle of himself in front of everyone else at the ball, before ripping his joy away and leaving him empty in the middle of the dance floor. The boy was hauled out by soldiers shortly. Apparently, shortly after, he went to visit family on the shifting isles.

💟 Lust loves sharing gossip with Euphemia. They have regular tea parties where he'll happily listen to her tell him all of the gossip she's collected. Euphie's smart, she knows not to give away too much, since he's still a prince of hell, but he doesn't mind. He finds himself engrossed with stories of affairs and scandals. Lust also enjoys dramatically covering his mouth with his hand at shocking news, and leaning back in his chair and sipping tea leisurely while making smug comments.

💟 Even when she's an adult, Euphie demands her Uncle Lust to give her piggyback rides. She'll either jump up, or she'll stare at him with a pout until he offers. Either way, she gets what she wants.

[thestoryarchives]

Is it okay to request for prince Greed?

Yes of course! All the princes are fair game! The request guidelines have all the characters I currently write for, but if there are any requests for characters not on the list, you're more than welcome to ask!

[thestoryarchives]

Filia - Euphemia

Thank you so much @steh-lar-uh-nuhs for the wonderful ask! I had so much fun writing more dad Wrath and mum Emilia, and I'm really loving experimenting to with a slightly older Euphemia and her tone/voice. I've finally found some time and worked through some writers block, so I'll be working on some requests and writing the next part of Clandestine Affairs, which should be up this week, if all goes to plan. Amongst them, I'll upload occasional headcannons between fics, so keep an eye out for those. Let me know what you think and send me any requests you have, but be sure to check the request guidelines first. They're linked here, and on my masterlist.

WC:3,482

TW: Anxiety, and some bullying being hinted at. Also, mild spoilers for a scene in KOTC, not a major plot spoiler but something that happened. As well as a mild spoiler about Edan if you haven't read totf.

Notes: Filia is Latin for Daughter.

Masterlist Kingdom of the Wicked Masterlist

“Which do you prefer, your highness?”

Euphemia blinked, then met Sara’s gaze in the mirror. Behind her, her other attendants flitted about the room, grabbing shoes for her to try, and putting rejected dresses away. The only one paying any close attention to her was her head attendant, Sara, who smiled kindly at her, then gestured to the boxes on her dresser. Keeping her face carefully neutral, Euphemia glanced down at the boxes. 

The first held a gold necklace, in the shape of a snake with lavender eyes. The head and tail of the snake would lay flat against her collarbone, as if a serpent coiled itself around her, staring ahead, almost menacingly. The piece was striking, truly. Using amethysts for its eyes was an unexpected, but effective choice, if it wanted to capture attention. And the resemblance it bore to the design of her father’s house dagger would surely command attention. 

The second box held a thick, gothic lace choker with a thin, scalloped bead trim. This piece was a bit more understated, despite the elaborate design, but the pink diamond resting against the hollow of the throat was no less effective at drawing eyes to her. 

Her chest tightened as she glanced between the two boxes in front of her, while Sara stood patiently at her side. Her gaze, gentle as it was, had her heart pounding almost painfully against her ribs, the sound slowly beginning to echo in her ear. Sweat coated her palms and her stomach twisted itself into knots so tight, Euphemia was convinced that it intended to empty its non-existent contents onto the floor. 

“Well, princess?” Sara called again, trying to gently nudge her into a faster decision. 

“I-” 

“Are you almost ready?” 

Molten gold greeted her when she snapped her attention to the mirror. 

The princess barely noticed the attendants as they greeted her father, fixated on the mirror instead. Wrath leant against the doorframe, already dressed in a three piece. The jacket was black, as per usual, with a gold snake, weaving through the petals of rose gold flowers embroidered onto one of the lapels.  His waistcoat was also embroidered with the same snake pattern, though without any visible roses. She glimpsed the gold snake cufflinks on his sleeves, that matched perfectly with the golden crown on his head, and the snake pin on his black cravat, tied elegantly around the collar of his black shirt. 

“Well?” Wrath prompted again. 

“Almost, your majesty. We’re just waiting for her to pick a necklace, before adding the finishing touches.” 

Euphemia hums in agreement, forcing her eyes back down to the jewellery boxes. 

“Leave us.” 

She stiffened somewhat at the command in her father’s voice. The maids filed out without a single complaint, knowing better than to test the demon of war. Her father wasn’t cruel, per se. At the very least, not unnecessarily. However, was also The King of Hell, and he had a reputation to uphold. As a king, Wrath was fair, but ruthless. More so when his family was concerned. 

So, she took a breath. 

Let it out. 

And forced her body to relax. 

“Do you have any preference, little one?” 

Euphemia’s lips pursed together in a thin line, as she felt a tightness growing in her chest. Just looking at the two necklaces had her throat constricting, as if being squeezed. She squeezed her eyes shut, her loose hair bouncing, as she shook her downturned head.

“I suppose they do seem somewhat constrictive.” Wrath chuckled, then reached into his pocket. “Perhaps you’d prefer something like this?” 

Euphemia’s eyes snapped up at the light clinking of the chain and pendant being dangled in front of her. The gold disk spun slowly on the chain, reflecting light from the lamps hung around. Engraved in the very center of the disk was a dagger with a snake coiled around it, framed by tiny scratch- No. She squinted, bringing the pendant closer. 

H-help… Love… w-win- ward…

The princess huffed, as she struggled to translate the markings. All she could say for sure was that it was Latin, combined with magic runes, but they were all far more complex than the ones Celestia had taught her.

Just when she thought she’d been getting good at magic, she lamented to herself with a huff. Clearly, there was much more to study. 

Her father chuckled. 

“They’re protection spells.” He explained simply.

The princess glanced up at her father, taking in the gleam in his eyes. 

“Protection?” 

“Emilia worked hard, and even borrowed some books from Celestia to ensure they were as effective as possible.” Wrath grinned, then gently placed the pendant in her hand. 

She cocked her head to the side as she felt its weight, and traced her thumb over the engravings. The details were clear and sharp, while the piece itself was rather dainty. Euphemia stroked her thumb over the pendant once more, before clicking it open. A little squeak escaped as her breath hitched. Her movements stuttered for a moment too, and her pink eyes burned.

Engraved in the center of the pretty pendant, clear as the evening stars, was the beginning and end of every story she’d ever fallen in love with. Every tale Emilia would use to put her to bed at night. Every piece of fatherly advice Wrath had ever given her. Of the story her Uncles had told her, time and time again, founded on longing and desire, that grew into something magic could never recreate. Not truly.  

A tale of witches and spell locks. 

Of curses and missing memories. 

Of endurance, and sacrifice, and love. 

‘When all other avenues have failed you, remember that love is the most powerful magic of all.’ 

“You put magic in this?” 

Euphemia’s voice trembled, and her hands went stiff. The weight of the locket suddenly felt like a boulder in the palm of her hands. Her chest tightened to the point where she felt like it might squeeze her heart out, and her throat suddenly felt constricted again. The sensations had her eyes burning with tears that she knew would never fall. Even as she felt like she was choking. As she blinked away tears, and swallowed the lump in her throat. Even as the tightness- 

And then, she could breathe. 

The tightness in her chest began to loosen as well. It wasn’t noticeable, at least not at first, but with every breath she was now able to take, her limbs began to loosen up and her chest felt lighter. 

“Parts of the spell help to ease anxiety,” Wrath offered. “Not fully. But, we hoped that it would make this night as pleasant as possible.” 

Euphemia took another slow breath in, and paused. Some tightness remained. The pressure around her throat remained as well but it was… bearable. 

“I- Thank you. I love it.” I whispered, the locket clutched in her palms. 

“I’m glad. I’m sure Emilia will be too.” Wrath took a step towards her, and dropped a knee beside her vanity. His hand reached out, gently cupping her olive cheeks. “Now, do you feel better enough to share what’s got you so nervous?” 

“How-” 

Wrath met her question with a raised brow, before she could even let it all out. So, she sighed, letting her face sag gently against his palm. 

“It’s just… Do I have to go?” 

He blinked, then narrowed his eyes as he watched her wring her hands and bounce her knee. 

Her gaze shifted to the bottles of perfume scattered across her vanity, and locked onto the only unopened one. 

Wrath gently nudged her face back to him. 

“Do you… Is there a reason you don’t?” He asked carefully. 

Her eyes flickered back to the vanity. 

“It’s just, I don’t know if I should go,” She muses, forcing a smile as she begins to wave her arms. “I mean, I’m still young for a demon, much less a princess and we both know how debauched The Underworld is, even if it is here at House Wrath. So, maybe, you should take your own advice and let me sit this one out, since I-” 

“Euphemia.”

The princess stiffened at the tone, immediately falling silent. Her eyes slid back to him but the second she saw his expression, she let her shoulders slump, and brought her hands back to her lap. 

Wrath’s lips twitched up at the little pout. 

“Okaaay,” she sighed. “It’s just… Everyone thinks I’m weird.” 

Wrath’s brows furrowed, as Euphemia turned back to the mirror. 

“Weird?” 

“The only people who like me, in that ballroom, are you, mama, my uncles, my aunts, and I’m not even sure they all like me, and like, six others. Everyone else is just waiting for me to make a fool of myself. Which I know I will.” 

“How do you know they dislike you?” he asked. 

“How do you not? I’ve heard the whispers. The rumours. Not even aunt Adriana could silence them entirely, and from what I’ve heard, even uncle Gluttony was hesitant to try using her techniques,” She blew a stray lock of hair from her face. “Miss Val said Uncle asked her to clear his schedule for an entire week so he could dote on auntie. Partially out of adoration, and partially as a plea to convince her to never employ such methods against him.” 

A beat passed. 

Then two. 

Then the temperature dropped. 

When Wrath didn’t respond, Euphemia’s eyes fell to him. One hand was wrapped around the leg of her stool, frost creeping out from beneath his fingertips. The other gripped his pant leg, pulling the fabric so tight, she feared it might tear. His golden eyes blazed with barely restrained fury. She was sure that if he wasn’t in her room, he’d have iced the entire place by now. 

“Daddy?” His eyes snapped to hers. 

Slowly, wrath released his grip on both the stool and his leg, but the frost didn’t melt and the temperature didn’t rise. 

“Euphemia.” His voice is far more restrained than earlier. “You are my daughter. You are Emilia’s daughter. Our filia. Remember that.” 

“Daddy, I-” 

Wrath stood, and took the necklace from her hand. He gently nudged Euphemia to face her mirror, and moved behind her. 

“Filia,” he repeated, as he gently moved her hair to one side. “Do you know what happened when a member of this court chose to disrespect your mother?” 

Euphemia’s eyes snapped open, immediately locked on her father’s reflection. Wrath kept his gaze down as he fiddled with the clasp on her pendant. 

“They disrespected Mama?” She muttered. “But she’s a vengeance goddess! Had they lost their minds?!” 

Wrath chuckled at her disbelief. 

“I had even issued a warning beforehand, cautioning any demon in our court to keep your mother’s name off their tongue.” he mused. 

“Then this demon was even more foolish than I thought.” his daughter huffed.

Wrath didn’t need to look up to see Euphemia’s furrowed brows. 

“The demon was named Makaden and he decided, with his infinite wisdom, that he should try to get a rise out of your mother, by debasing her in public,” Wrath’s teeth flashed in the mirror. “It was clear that he hated her, and I suppose he decided that, regardless of my warning, I’d be more likely to side with a member of my own court, as opposed to a vengeance goddess, who many blamed for the incident six years prior.” 

Euphemia felt him drop the clasp against her neck. He ran his calloused fingers through her silvery locks, as he pulled them back over her shoulder. 

Her face pinched, and she raised her fingers to her chin. Wrath watched her curl her pointer finger into a hook, and bring it to her mouth. Her teeth gently scraped against the joint, as her brows furrowed further. 

“The more you describe him, the dumber he sounds,” she mused, and Wrath smiled. He watched as she replayed his words in her head, over and over again. “Still though, to disobey the King seems to be taking it a bit far.” 

“Not all people have methods behind their madness, filia,” he reminded. “In some cases, a fool is just a fool.” 

Her shoulders slumped, and she nodded. 

“Maybe. But,” her eyes drifted to her mirror, “why are you telling me this?” 

Wrath met her gaze in the mirror, gold eyes flashing in warning. 

Not to her. Never to her. 

“No sooner had the vile words left his mouth, I made good on my promise by ripping out the lord’s tongue, and leaving it impaled at the table.” Euphemia giggled at the hint of pride in his tone, and the upward twitch of his lips. The sound had his gaze softening, ever so slightly. “I have no patience for senseless gossip, or impossible rumours. Especially when they concern my filia. Should any more circulate tonight, I will happily tear out the tongues, and perhaps even the throats, of all those responsible. ” 

Her lips part slightly. 

“If they’re from other houses-” 

“My brothers would be in agreement with this action.”

Euphemia’s mouth fell open again, but quickly shut when she’s unable to get a sound out. She repeated this twice more, as Wrath reached for the crown on her vanity. It was dainty, with gold branches, encrusted white diamonds, winding around evenly spaced, rounded pink gems. Smaller gems were placed at the peak of each slope, like tiny flowers, propped up by diamond coated vines. Without a word, he placed it on her head, and pinned it up, careful to keep the hairpins hidden beneath the delicate, twisted braids holding half of her hair up. 

“That doesn’t change the fact that I’ll be the subject of snickering and mockery all night. Even if you punish all of them, it would hardly be enjoyable, so why bother?” 

He walked around the stool and gently pulled her up.

“Your uncles will all be there. Your aunts will be there. Emilia, and I will be there. Everyone you love will be there,” he assured. “You will laugh with us, dance with us, eat with us, and any snickers and mockery will be the farthest things from your mind.” He leaned forward, pressing a kiss to her temple. 

“Wait, they’re all coming? Even Uncle Pride, and Aunt Lucia? And Uncle Sloth? He doesn’t even like formalities!” 

“It’s your first ball. One in your honor, and yours alone, my filia. They wouldn’t dare miss it.” Wrath offered her his arm. “Your Aunt Camilla has been talking about painting the occasion for you, and even helped your mother pick all of the themes and decorations. She insisted that everything had to be set up perfectly.” 

“Really?” 

“Really,” Wrath chuckled. “My brothers and I managed to finish up all of our business, despite many setbacks, mostly from Lust and Greed, long before your mother and aunt finished planning out this party.” 

A snort escaped her at the thought. 

“You got through the whole meeting, with all my Uncles, before Mama and Aunt Camilla were done? How long did they take?” 

“Long enough for my brothers to begin placing bets, and for Envy to decide to make himself comfortable and just stay the night.” He sighed. 

Another laugh escaped her. 

“Is that the night Mama tried to teach me and Aunt Camilla to make Cannolis?” 

“You mean the night she taught you to destroy the kitchen and traumatise our staff.” Wrath huffed. 

“We didn’t destroy it. Just redecorated.” 

Before she knew it, Wrath had led her to the entry of the ballroom, where Emilia waited. Her rose gold gown glided across the tiled floors, as she ran to her husband and twelve year old. 

“You’re late.” She chided Wrath with a smack to his arm, to which he just chuckled, before she turned to her daughter. “And you look absolutely radiant, my lovely.” 

Emilia took in her pink ball gown. The bodice was a sweetheart, illusion neckline, with long mesh sleeves. Flowery lace spread across the bodice, sleeves, and extended down to the skirt too, with each bit of leaf and flora decorated with tiny black crystals. 

As Emilia stroked her hair, and cooed over the dress, Euphemia felt her stomach begin to twist again. Even as her new pendant soothed most of her anxiety, she still felt a tightness in her chest as her mouth began to dry. 

“Euphemia.” 

She snapped her head towards her father. 

“Focus on us. On your family.” He soothed, offering her his elbow once more.

“Tonight will be wonderful, Euphy. You’ll see.” Emilia assured, taking her free hand. 

With each step, the sound of music and laughter became clearer, albeit still muffled by the large doors carved from bone. Before she knew it, the only music she heard was their creaking ringing in her ears, as light shone from large chandeliers. 

She barely heard the herald announce them, her chest tightening when she saw the size of the crowd. She felt several sets of eyes lock on her, some more interested in the locks of silver that flowed down her back than anything else.

“Tonight marks my daughter, Princess Euphemia’s, first-” 

Wrath’s address faded into the background, as her heart began to beat wildly in her ears and her throat began to close. She felt the pendant’s magic sooth her over and over, each time her nerves began to rise, but it did nothing to block gazes seering into her. Like they were-

Her eyes darted to Emilia, who gave her hand a firm squeeze. She followed the direction her mother nudged her thumb towards, and met a pair of deep, charcoal eyes. 

Uncle Lust leaned against a wall near the exit, nursing what seemed to be a glass of Demonberry wine, and beside him, Uncle Envy stood with his dark and sinful. Both demons gave her wide grins, that soothed some of the tension. 

Near them, Aunt Camilla had set up an easel, stool and box of paints. Bunny seemed content rolling across the floor beside her. Her aunt met her gaze, and gestured to her lips before they spread into a wide grin. Euphemia laughed softly at the reminder, as Emilia gave another, more gentle squeeze.

Uncle Greed and Uncle Pride stood near the stairs, a group of women draping themselves all over them. But the two princes' eyes remained firmly on their niece, even as Wrath continued to speak. 

Uncle Gluttony was standing beside Adriana, who was scanning the crowd and jotting things down in a journal. She noticed Edan, Adriana’s sister, as well, as scanning the crowd with Vanity, her lover, while occasionally whispering more information for Adriana to jot down. 

After scanning the ballroom a couple of times, she finally noticed Uncle Sloth on one of the balconies. He held a book in one hand, and waved lazily with the other. Beside him, she noticed a small plate of snacks that had her snickering. 

The sudden applause from the guests had her jumping, but the smile Wrath sent her way only brought a brighter grin to her face. As the guests began breaking off, ready to go back to enjoying the party, the weight of their stares never really left. But her chest still felt lighter, and as her family began to approach, she found that she barely noticed the stares. For now. 

With a twitch of her lips, she let out a soft whisper, just enough that only those beside her could hear. 

“Daddy. Mama?” 

Their eyes dropped to her immediately, the approaching guest forgotten. 

“Yes, Filia?” 

Euphemia turned to them both, a smile gracing her lips. 

“Thank you.” 

“Always, Filia.” Wrath offered. 

He reached for her head, ready to ruffle her hair until she was whining petulantly for him to stop, but before he could, Emilia dropped to her knees. She pulled  her daughter to her chest, holding her tightly. 

“Of course, my love. This is your first ball, it’s a momentous occasion. One that you should enjoy to the fullest.” 

“Hear that little devil?” Euphemia whipped her head to see Uncle Gluttony striding over, hands in his pocket. “Tonight you can gorge yourself on as many sweets as you want.” 

“I never said-” 

“Let’s go before Lust absconds with them,” Gluttony gave a toothy grin, before scooping her up and disappearing into the crowd. 

Over his shoulder, Euphemia could see her mother scowling at her Uncle, while her father merely chuckled at their antics. She was sure he heard him muttering something about Gluttony being the one more likely to abscond with the sugar.

“We can have all the sweets, right?” she asked sweetly. 

“Then we’ll dance until the sun comes up, little devil. Tonight's a night meant for enjoyment. So indulge as much as you like.” 

A bright laugh bubbled from her chest, and escaped before she could stop it. 

“The best night ever!” she agreed.

[thestoryarchives]

Headcannon Poll

So, if you saw my last reply, I mentioned I've been working past some writers block and working on some requests and the next chapter of Clandestine Affairs. I'll have the request up today or tomorrow, hopefully, and then update Clandestine Affairs, while reworking some pieces of my Nesta fic. In the interim, I was wondering if you'd like more headcannons? I loved writing the Last Euphemia Headcanons (formally posted on my @litnerdwritess account), so I figured, between fics, I could post those. Not just for Euphemia, but for the other characters too. If I were to post headcannons, which ones should I do them for?

Which characters should I write headcanons for?

Dad! Wrath+Mum! Emilia+Euphemia (Guest starring Anir, Fauna+ House Wrath Demons)

Uncle Pride+Aunt Lucia+Euphemia

Uncle Greed+Euphemia

Uncle Envy+Aunt Camilla+Euphemia (Guest starring Alexi+other totf cast)

Uncle Lust+Euphemia

Uncle Gluttony+Aunt Adriana+Euphemia (Guest starring Eden+Val+hunting guild)

Uncle Sloth+Euphemia

Aunt Vittoria+Euphemia (Guest starring werewolves!)

No Euphemia. Just ship (comment ship).

Voting ended onMay 25, 2025

[thestoryarchives]

will there be chapter 4 for clandestine affairs? Love the fic so farr

Yes! Thank you so much, and I'm glad you love the story. I am so sorry for the wait, but life had been happening and I've been working through a bit of writers block, since there are a few different places I could take the story and I've been struggling to pick which I like best.

I have a request I'm writing now, that should be done by today or tomorrow. After that, I'll get back to Clandestine Affairs, while writing an Nesta (ACOTAR) fic that I don't have much of an eta on. Thank you so much for your patience though!