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The Hat Brothers' Story (Part 1)

I'm not sure how many parts I'm gonna make to this, maybe the second one will be when they're growing up until Luzbel starts doing experiments on Black Hat, and a third where the experiments get worse and worse, and maybe then I'll write Nergal's story. This is for my buddy @demonangelgirl134 for her AU, and I hope y'all like it! (it's a bit longer than Aku's part but whatever)

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10,000 years after Luzbel and the Dark Angels were banished to Tartarus…

Tartarus, to put it lightly, was even worse than Hell. There was darkness and fire lining the border, preventing anyone from escaping if they even bothered to try. It was where the truly evil demons went when they died or were erased from Hell, and clearly, fate had plans for the worst of the lot.

For the first 8,000 years, Luzbel was locked up in Tartarus, unable to leave no matter how hard he tried, so he used his army and the Dark Angels to his advantage and carry out his commands. But after Thamuz, the Ritual Master, managed to break the curse binding him to Tartarus, Luzbel was able to leave but never more than 48 hours, or else he would become fatigued and fall unconscious. Not willing to risk that, Luzbel spent near all of his time in Tartarus, lounging on his throne or carrying out commands.

Ione handled most of his tasks, serving as Luzbel's loyal right hand (and his personal concubine, but nobody dared address that). He did his job as the leader of the Dark Angels, ensuring that everyone did their tasks right and with efficiency. Hagenti was busy with the experiments Luzbel had assigned him, toiling away in his lab and tending to his pet black seagull.

Bogart collected and studied the plants and fauna in Tartarus (well, what plants and fauna there were, as Tartarus was mostly a rocky wasteland with bare, dead trees and the only creatures there being demons who had died and monsters that feasted on any poor soul who happened to cross their path. Vex did his usual job, watching over the slaves and prisoners, and torturing those who stepped out of line. Thamuz practiced and studied rituals and rites, as well as hitting on Vex every other time he saw him.

Falkor did nothing special, other than making sure the cooks did their job and made delicious meals for the castle's residents. Ixtal trained and commanded the armies, and his mate Leonidas spent most of his time in his room, dressing up, gazing in the mirror, and lathering his face in make-up; that, or he and Ixtal were spending time in the General's private chambers (thankfully, Luzbel and the Dark Angels' chambers were soundproof).

Tesoro spent his time alone in his own chambers, counting coins and toying with gems, as well as assisting Bogart if she needed help with anything. Mazarine and Ranzar had somehow managed to find a way to leave Tartarus, sailing around the seas of Hell on their ship or hunting.

The Dark Angels obeyed Luzbel's every command, not wanting to suffer his wrath…or worse. If they even dared to speak up against him, the punishment could range from a simple slap to the face to a full-on torture session.

But if there was one member of the Dark Angels who was the most broken…it was Jeretik.

Minutes before they were banished to Tartarus, Luzbel battled the one who had come to overthrow him—Lucifer Morningside, the son of Luzbel's brother Jehova, and the first royal angel to fall. It was a great battle, but in the end, Luzbel was cast into the flames of the pit that led to Tartarus, and those who obeyed him were forced to follow.

Except for one.

Aku was Luzbel's creation, but was placed in Jeretik's care since the Scroll-Keeper was such a bleeding heart who wouldn't hurt a fly, and because Luzbel was too lazy to take care of him and pissed off that his conjuring chant had failed. He only saw Aku as a whiny, mewling inconvenience that he now had to live with.

But to Jeretik, Aku was everything. He was the one who named him; he even called Aku his "little shadow", since he followed the Scroll-Keeper everywhere like a lost puppy and absolutely adored him. Luzbel quickly became annoyed by this, since Jeretik's "coddling" made it so that Aku refused to attack anything Luzbel put in front of him, which resulted in harsh punishment more than once. There was even a time when Luzbel tossed Aku into a pool of boiling lava because he refused to kill a rat; being a demon, Aku didn't die from it, but was severely burned.

Jeretik knew that Aku was still up in Hell, but he trusted Lucifer to take care of him, as he and the other Dark Angels had been watching him from their master's magic viewing mirror, and they knew that Lucifer used to babysit when he was in Heaven.

Once Jeretik realized that there was no going back to Hell—and that Aku would be much safer and happier with Lucifer—he just…shut down.

He barely ate or left his room, and he hardly spoke to anyone. The others wouldn't see him for days at a time, and Luzbel kept demanding that he stop moping over the loss of "that little brat" and do his job, but each time Jeretik gave no response. The only one he would respond to—or even speak with—was Hagenti, the Scientist…his beloved.

This day was another just like that, where Jeretik was laying on his bed, staring at the wall blankly. His fur was slightly matted from months of no grooming, and his bones showed through his army-green fur from refusing to eat. He had bags under his eyes from no sleep and tear-stains on his cheeks from crying.

Crying at the loss of his little shadow.

He'd taken such good care of Aku; he'd fed him, bathed him, rocked him to sleep—he was the only one who'd ever given a damn about Aku, at least that's what it felt like. He remembered the days when his little shadow's laughter filled the library during a game of chase between him and Hagenti that ended in a tickle fight. He remembered the days after Aku had gone through another brutal training session with Luzbel and had been punished for failing, and Jeretik would hold him close and whisper soft words of comfort to him until he fell asleep in his arms.

'My little shadow…' Jeretik thought, on the verge of more tears. 'I miss you so much…I'm sorry I couldn't save you…I tried to protect you…but I failed…and now I'll never see you again…I'm so sorry…'

Just then, a beam of light pierced through the bedroom, and Jeretik didn't have to turn to see who it was. He already knew.

"Jeretik…?" Hagenti's raspy yet soft voice echoed through the room, his metal gaze resting on Jeretik's curled-up form on the bed.

Jeretik didn't look at him, but he heard Hagenti's footsteps as he walked around the bed and knelt down to look at him. The blue light of his metal eye brought calmness to him, but not enough to make him feel better.

"Come on, Tik, you can't stay cooped up in here forever," Hagenti said gently. He watched Jeretik's face, then frowned as his mate looked away from him and stared off into space.

The Scientist sighed, taking a seat on the bed next to him, reaching out to place a hand on his side, taking note of how Jeretik flinched under his touch.

"Jeretik, I'm worried about you. We all are," Hagenti urged. "I haven't seen you come outside of your room for days. You refuse to eat, and you barely even take care of yourself. I know that you're still mourning about Aku, but you can't be like this forever. He's safe now. You have to move on—"

At once, Jeretik sat up with a fierceness Hagenti had never seen before and smacked him right in the face, striking him in the cheek and narrowly missing his metal eye. Hagenti cried out and groaned at the sudden blow, his head spinning. Once he got his bearings, he saw Jeretik glaring at him with wide, tear-filled eyes, his body trembling furiously.

"How can you tell me to move on?!" Jeretik yelled. "I lost the one thing in this place that gave me any purpose, the one thing that gave me a reason to keep going, and now he is GONE because of me!" He was shaking with anger, tears running down his face like a river. "I left him. I was so spineless and cowardly that I didn't even bother to get him before we were sent here, and now I'm never going to see him again. I…I don't even know if he's alive anymore!"

When he was done with his rant, Jeretik's breath came out in heavy pants. Hagenti was so stunned, he almost forgot how to blink; never in all the years he'd been with Jeretik had he ever seen him get this angry, or at least express it. The words "Jeretik" and "angry" did not fit in the same sentence.

Once he calmed down, Jeretik's face softened and he realized that…he'd hit Hagenti. He'd hit his love in the face out of anger that wasn't even his fault. He curled up again, hugging his knees as they sat in silence.

Hagenti let Jeretik calm down for a few minutes, and then spoke. "Jeretik…" he began, scooting a bit closer to him. "I know you're upset. And…I know that…Aku was the only really good thing we had here." He smiled gently at him. "But…that doesn't mean the good is completely gone. After all…" He reached out again, cupping Jeretik's cheek. "we have each other, don't we? Even if we lose everything…we'll always be together. And that's all that matters."

Jeretik was moved by his words, and for the first time in what felt like years, he smiled. He leaned into Hagenti's touch, letting his mate hold him close as he rested his head on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry I hit you," Jeretik muttered. "I didn't mean to take my anger out on you."

"It's alright, I understand," Hagenti reassured him. He lifted Jeretik's chin to look at him, wiping away his tears. "Just know that no matter what, I'll always be right here for you. I promise."

Jeretik's smile widened, a long-lost warmth growing inside him. He leaned in, tilting his neck to meet the Scientist halfway, closing the distance between them in a kiss that warmed them both.

The Scroll-Keeper rested his forehead underneath Hagenti's chin the moment their lips parted, rubbing his snout against his neck. He couldn't see an inch past his nose through the haze of unshed tears, but it didn't matter.

He already had all he needed.

"Um…" Another voice interrupted, making the couple look up to see Bogart, the Collector, standing by the doorway awkwardly. "Am I interrupting anything?"

"Oh—no, you're fine, Bogart," Hagenti said, smiling at her.

Besides himself, Bogart was closest to Jeretik; he helped her out by giving her medicine to ease the aches her warts gave her, and in return she gave him information about new plants she looked for daily, since she knew he loved gathering information about new things, no matter what it was.

Bogart walked into the room and looked at Jeretik, smiling at how much better he looked. "There's the smile I remember," she mused. Then she wrinked her wart-covered nose in disgust. "You could use a good bath, though."

"I know, I know," Jeretik said. "I promise I'll take better care of myself from now on."

That's when the two noticed that she was holding something wrapped up in a large bundle—and whatever it was, it was moving.

"What's that you've got there?" Hagenti asked, eyeing the bundle.

"Oh, right," Bogart said, handing the bundle to Hagenti. "The boss asked me to bring this to you. You know how…he made Aku through a miscommunicated conjuring spell that made him born as a baby instead of a mindless adult?"

Jeretik winced at the memory of how his heartless master had desired to turn Aku into another tool to do his dirty work. Then again, what else was new? "Yes, I remember."

"Well, as it turns out, he decided to take a crack at it again and made twins this time, and then he told me that he's too 'busy' to take care of them, so they're your problem now," Bogart said. "His words, not mine!" she added quickly, seeing Jeretik's pain at her description.

"Thank you, Bogart," Jeretik sighed, smiling tiredly at her. "You've always been a good friend."

"I'm here for you anytime, buddy," Bogart said, patting him on the shoulder. "Well? Don't you wanna see them?"

Hagenti and Jeretik looked down at the large bundle in their arms. It was maybe half the size of them, but from the way it wiggled…Jeretik hoped with all his heart that it was what he thought it was. Setting it on the bed, Hagenti and Jeretik unwrapped it and gasped at what they saw.

Bogart wasn't lying. She never lied about anything.

Luzbel had made twins.

They were small, maybe only eight inches from head to toe at least. They would've looked exactly alike, if not one of them had lighter skin and hair, wrapped in a purple cloth. The other one had dark gray skin and black hair, and was tucked into a red cloth, and both of them were cooing and squirming against each other. The darker one was the first to wake up, his dark eyes blinking up at Hagenti and Jeretik. He smiled, revealing tiny cyan teeth, and reached for them.

Jeretik was in shock. He'd never expected Luzbel to make more children, but he was happy for it, even if it was by accident. He smiled warmly at the twins, taking the lighter one into his hands while Hagenti took the darker one.

"Did Luzbel name them at all, or was he too 'busy' for that as well?" Hagenti asked as Jeretik cradled the lighter one.

"He just named them Black and Gray and called it good," Bogart said. "I mean, it fits, but it's kinda boring if you ask me. Feel free to name them whatever you want."

Hagenti smiled down at the darker one, who seemed to be mesmerized by his metallic tail and eye. "I'm sure we'll come up with names for them sooner or later. But thanks again, Bogart."

"I'm here everyday!" Bogart said, making her way out of the room. "Goodnight, guys."

After they bid her goodnight and she was gone, Jeretik and Hagenti sat in silence, staring in awe at the two little creatures they held.

"Well, this is certainly…a surprise," Hagenti commented, breaking the silence. He glanced over at Jeretik, his stomach twisting in concern as his mate stared blankly at little Gray. "Tik…? Are you okay?"

Jeretik nodded, looking at his mate with a tearful smile. "More than alright," he said, his voice cracking with emotion. "I'm just thinking that maybe…just maybe…this could be our chance to try again. To raise these children right."

Hagenti smiled softly at him, scooting closer to Jeretik and holding Black, wrapping his free arm around his mate. "I know, Tik," he whispered, kissing him on the cheek. "But Bogart's right about one thing—these two need names, real names, instead of names based on their color."

"What should we name them, then?" Jeretik asked.

Hagenti hummed thought fully, then his metallic eye lit up as an idea came to him. "For the black one, I think we should name him Negranous," he said. "The word 'negro' means black, so we'll call him Negro for short."

"Negranous…I like it," Jeretik said. He looked at Gray. "I think we should name this one…Allenous, or Allan."

"Allan?"

"Yes. It may not relate to his color, but it's special."

"Negro and Allan…" Hagenti tested the names, then smiled. "I like it."

Negro and Allan both yawned tiredly, rubbing their eyes with their tiny fists. The Scientist and Scroll-Keeper carried them across the room and placed them in a large basket that was lined with blankets for comfort—it was the basket Aku had slept in during his infancy.

Jeretik smiled fondly at the twins as they curled up next to each other and started snoring softly. He leaned down and kissed both of them on their heads. "Goodnight, little ones," he whispered to them. "I promise that for as long as I live, I will always make sure that you are happy and safe and loved…and I will never let anything bad happen to you."

Hagenti smiled affectionately at his mate, taking his hand and guiding him towards the bathroom, where he got Jeretik all cleaned and groomed. By the time they were back in bed, Jeretik finally felt that things were going to be alright after all.

#just text #fanfic #villainous #black hat #hagenti #jeretik #bogart #gray hat #my ocs #villainous au #villainous redemption au #au lore #my oc

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