Istra's Links
There's something about Dicro that Istra finds hard to resist. Something about his soul is more tempting than usual, and the closer they are to him the more satisfied they feel. No matter what, they can't forget his name or his face, and the more time they spend away from him the more they long to be near him. He haunts their dreams, which they didn't even know they could have. Every time their mind wanders, it always ends up back at him. And when they see him there, in person... it feels like he was meant for them. Like he only exists to be part of them.
Why is that? Are they just... really hungry? Or is this what "love" is?
...Or both? Can it be both? Seems like both.
A... student? at Hell College. Well, they don't seem to go to class much. What's really notable about them, though, is that they seem really attracted to Dicro in a number of ways. They tend to follow him around campus, making it abundantly and vividly clear that they really, really want him inside of them. Like, literally. As in, like, they want to straight-up devour him. Preferably alive. And they're very descriptive. It's very... it's kind of... I mean, it's not like he... well, anyway,
Istra tends to be a little clingy and slightly possessive toward him, but not to the point where he feels uncomfortable or concerned. They seem sort of innocent, all things considered. I mean, it's a little weird when Dicro wakes up in the middle of the night and Istra's looming over his bed, but not super unwelcome or anything. I mean, what are they gonna do, kill him? You know whose links you're reading, right?
Istra's done a good job of grabbing his attention and, Shamefulness aside, Dicro really would like to get to know them better. He's interested in them as a person, and he hopes they feel the same way. It feels nice to just be around them...
and then bonnie bursts through the door and kinkshames him into oblivion. here lies dicro
He probably tastes like french fries.
They can eat anything... even metal!!! Holy crap!!!
They're also pretty cool in general, though they sure do make a lot of jokes about eating people! I mean, they ARE just jokes, right...? Dicro always seems to think they're funny, what with all of that laughing! Kind of nervous laughing, but that's still laughter!
He probably tastes like tormented souls.
Yenzhal has little opinion on Istra. To him, they're just lab equipment. They're not really a person, though that doesn't stop them from periodically annoying him by gnawing on his undead servants...
Istra holds on to memories of Zhirael a little better than their memories of others, presumably due to having spent a lot of time around him. They don't remember much about him overall, but he seems to be very familiar with them...
They feel a certain melancholy from Zhirael, but they can't understand why. It seems like Zhirael feels bad for them, but Istra can't really see what's upsetting about their situation. Is their life really that bad? What does he know that they can't remember...?
Either way, Istra trusts him and enjoys his company. They're more cooperative with him than with other Hell College faculty and alumni, helped by the fact that Zhirael understands their behavior the best.
Zhirael is very familiar with Istra, and he was vital in the effort to [DATA EXPUNGED]
During his time in Hell College Zhirael spent a lot of time studying Istra and performing experiments on them, in particular seeking a way to stabilize them and create a treatment to cure those they infected. His thesis revolved around them, so needless to say Zhirael has a thorough knowledge of Istra inside and out.
Zhirael sees Istra as his responsibility and feels guilty for leaving them for so long. He knows he wasn't obligated to stay and he had important reasons to go back home... but as much as he respects Hell College's faculty, he doesn't trust them to treat Istra properly. He has a deep understanding of how to get Istra to cooperate, what they're capable of, what their limits are... he's left all sorts of documentation behind, but from his experience he expects that information to be used to further manipulate and exploit Istra for power and financial gain.
His experiences with Istra helped set into motion his desire to liberate lower beings from higher beings and encourage respect all throughout the chain of power. He's looking forward to seeing them again, even if they won't remember him.
He hopes he'll be able to change that.
He probably tastes like fruity cereal with strawberry milk.
"do you have ANY idea how much kinkshaming i have to do now because of you???"
i swear i didn't mean to have two white-skinned black-haired pointy-eared vaguely demonic characters who like to eat souls, especially dicro souls... it just happened
that probably says a lot about me
"ummm??? who's this asshole stealing my gimmick??????????"
his hair looks like cotton candy but he pushes them away when they try to eat it ):
The catalyst that led to his fall from Heaven. Istra is a reminder of what he let happen and what he mustn't allow to happen again.
She causes a lot of trouble... she should be careful.
Every time she tries to steal their snacks they just make a baby holder out of tentacles and SHE'S 121 YEARS OLD C'MON!!! That's just rude!!! She deserves a more dignified method of capture!!! FIGHT ME!!!!!!
Troublesome... she doesn't seem to know her place. If she really wants to face the consequences of touching their food, though...
"DON'T CARRY ME LIKE SOME SORT OF PATHETIC BABY YOU LOW-LIFE PEASANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! RELEASE ME AT ONCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
They're the only one allowed to sneak into Dicro's car for pets... they're the only one who gets the table scraps... they're the only one who gets to eat people's homework...
Hal's existence is... problematic.
What's their problem? There's enough debatably edible junk on the floor for everyone!
Ignis tends to tolerate Istra taking up residence in his various cupboards and eating all of his food, so Istra has a pretty high opinion of him. They don't mind doing things for him as long as they get something out of it, though to be fair that's not exactly an exclusive honor.
Still, Ignis is probably his 3rd favorite person after Dicro and Ansaiele. Might be a toss-up with Zhirael. Either way that's pretty good, all things considered.
At first, Istra was just a convenient magical test subject and means of grabbing power at Hell College wrapped up into one convenient, if not a little unsettling, package. As time went on, however, he started to appreciate Istra's quirks and oddities, especially when that meant that he could bribe them into helping out with various things. It's not like he could keep them away from Dicro in the first place, so taking advantage of the situation works out for everyone involved.
Istra has no memories of Remaelius.
Remaelius doesn't believe Istra deserved to go through anything that Heaven College forced upon them. Though Heaven College's usage of them to decimate Hell College horrified Remaelius to no end and haunts them to this day, they're grateful that Istra is somewhere safer now.
Dioclea gives them snacks, and for that she's on Istra's good side. They're good snacks, too...
A weird demon(?) who hangs out at Maple Manor a lot. They always try to eat her ingredients when she tries to cook, so she tries to moderate things and maybe prepare them an extra snack... it's tricky, but she wants to be friendly without enabling them too much!
Istra is fond of Poe. He always compliments them, brings them snacks, pets them, doesn't care if they sleep in his bed or plop their head in his lap... The epitome of how everyone should treat them, Istra feels.
Poe met Istra early on at Hell College, as they too were a test subject. They wound up becoming friends thanks to Istra's nonchalant nature and Poe's kindness and generosity, and this connection has only grown as Poe's become closer with Ignis. Istra lives with him, after all! He doesn't mind their lapses in memory too much; it obviously bums him out, but he's always determined to get on their good side again. Not that it's terribly hard, seeing that he's always sure to bring them snacks.
Poe has inexplicably never wackily harmed Istra with his mutations. Maybe that's the power of friendship...?
No. Not friend. There's only room for one cat at Maple Manor. Get out.
Friend??? Friend!!!
Chaurus keeps Lureus out of their hair and always offers up snacks, so he's pretty high on Istra's approval list.
Istra doesn't play too nicely with Lureus, which is an issue because Lureus sure does want to play with them! That aside, though, he can't help but wonder what Istra's deal is. They ate most of the school and then Ignis took them in... and just kinda lets them do whatever? He's not questioning the guy or anything, but Istra sure is a weird presence in his life.
Istra hardly has any idea who she is, but she's in a maid outfit like everyone at Maple Manor, so she's probably just another person who'll obey them. And that's good.
A curious little creature, and quite the amusing one. A hassle to work around, but she is rather intrigued by them. Not for reasons anyone else would know, of course. Yes, what she sees in them is meant to be known by only a select few...