AN: To those that are my usual readers, this story might be a bit out left field, especially in content. I've kept my more "mature" stories on AO3 up until now, but this story is a special one. I've been working on it with a fellow fan fiction writer that goes by TalosLives, and I wanted to share this story on both AO3 and here on Fan Fiction.
That being said, since Helluva Boss is an adult show and Persona 5 Royal is rated M, I've taken the decision that this story is going to be rated "M" here on Fan Fiction just to be safe and to differentiate it from my usual K+ to Teen writings. With that being said, be aware of spoilers for both series and enjoy "Persona 5 Royal: The Aeon"!
Chapter 1: Dream of Butterfly
On a dark and dull night at Stella's personal manor, Princess Octavia Goetia watched with intrigue as a ghostly blue butterfly fluttered into view. The owlet always had a fascination with animals, starting from her abundance of stuffed animals as a kid all the way up to her pursuit of weird taxidermy at Stylish Occult, but this butterfly was not one she ever recalled seeing. It had no discerning pattern on its wings, and if Octavia stared at it for long enough, she could have sworn she saw a human man-
"Welcome. It's a pleasure to meet you," said the man, now standing before Octavia. She gasped, looking around to see that she was not in her bedroom anymore, but instead on a checkerboard platform in the middle of a blue void. The man wore a white suit with a black shirt and tie underneath, a black-faced mask with a purple butterfly design on half of it obscuring his identity, besides the long flowing black hair held in a ponytail. "I am Philemon, a dweller between consciousness, and unconsciousness."
"So, this is a dream?" Octavia questioned.
The man, Philemon, did not seem to acknowledge her question. "And now, a simple test. Can you state your name?"
"Uh…" Octavia was at a loss for words but decided to go along with the dream. "Octavia Goetia."
"Splendid," Philemon nodded. "There aren't many that can remember their identity when in this domain. It seems you've passed that test, but tell me this…" He pointed at Octavia. "Are you aware of the many and buried selves you harbor within you? The self suffused with divine love. The self capable of demonic cruelty. People live by wearing different masks. Your current self may be only one of those innumerable masks." He seemed to be staring directly into Octavia's soul as he spoke, holding out a hand and conjuring a playing card of some kind within it. "You, though, you seem to have a firm grasp on your identity. I respect your strong will. In return, I grant this power: Persona."
"Persona?" Octavia repeated.
"It is the power to summon the selves within you," Philemon explained. "The gods and the demons you harbor. The time is soon when you will need this power. Now, you must return to your proper time and place." He held the card out to Octavia, letting her take it in her hand and flip it over.
The card depicted a bird-headed humanoid figure holding a staff, with the numbering of "XX" on the bottom of the card. "Aeon…?" Octavia said, somehow recognizing what the card meant. The owlet didn't have time to ponder it longer as the world shifted around her, and soon Octavia sat upright in start, sweating and breathing heavily from the intense dream she had just had. Holding herself close, Octavia looked to see that she was still holding the card that Philemon had given her.
"It wasn't all a dream," she said, only to gasp as the card transformed into the blue butterfly and floated away. Octavia didn't have time to question it, instead compelled to follow the butterfly out into the manor, creeping quietly as to not wake her mother from slumber. Octavia came to a stop once the butterfly phased through the front door. Opening it, she gawked as a vaguely familiar Goetia demon stood before her.
He was a Great Horned Owl with pitch black feathers, and eyes that glowed red like her father's. His beak formed a jagged red smile over his face, head feathers slicked back underneath a red fedora as a lit cigarette was clutched in his beak. The demon wore a red jacket with a high collar and gold trim over a white shirt with a black tie around his neck, with thigh-high black boots studded with gold over a pair of black slacks held up by a belt with a golden buckle, a pair of white fingerless gloves and gold-tipped claws completed the look. The stranger stared down at Octavia before discarding his cigarette and smiling.
"Hello there, my dearest niece," the demon said, giving a bow. "It's been some time since we last met."
"Do I know you?" Octavia asked.
"Oh, sorry, where are my manners?" the demon said. "I am Duke Raoul Goetia, son of Paimon and older brother to your father, Prince Stolas Goetia. I believe we met once when you were younger, so it doesn't surprise me if you failed to recognize me."
Octavia vaguely recalled seeing this Raoul person at one of the family reunions that King Paimon held. It was an event held every twenty years and seeing as Octavia was only seventeen that would explain why she didn't fully recognize the demon before her. The owlet's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of footsteps behind her.
"Octavia, why are you up at this late hour?" Stella questioned. "Don't you know that a lady must always-" The swan trailed off as she caught sight of Raoul. The two locked eyes, and all of Stella's thoughts turned to mush as she beheld the tall, dark, and handsome owl in front of her.
"Ah, you must be Princess Stella Goetia," Raoul greeted, taking Stella's hand and planting a kiss on it. "Duke Raoul Goetia. A pleasure to meet you in person, seeing as you weren't at Paimon's reunion last time."
"Oh my… a Duke you say?" Stella said, her face going red as she continued to be mesmerized by the gentleman demon. "Well, why don't you come in? Get out of the drafty doorway. We'll get some midnight tea going."
'Laying it on a bit thick there, don't you think?' Octavia raised an eyebrow at her mother. She knew her parents were very much on the rocks at the moment, but to see Stella acting this way brought thoughts of how Stolas acted around that imp when they took that trip to Loo-Loo Land a few months back. 'God my parents need to just divorce and find better people to screw.'
"That won't be necessary, as I come here on business," Raoul explained, stepping into the manor. "I'll be frank with both of you: this is a matter that concerns not only our family, but the fate of all realms. However, it might be best to talk about this subject if my brother was here as well."
"My 'husband' is probably being a sad sob at his mansion, wasting away watching hell-a-novellas and eating copious amounts of ice cream," Stella said, rolling her eyes.
"That seems very specific… and quite sad," Raoul stated. "Either way, this is a matter that he should have input in, considering that his daughter is at the center of it."
"Me?" Octavia said.
"Yes. I'm guessing that you met this fella earlier tonight?" Raoul asked, holding out a hand to reveal the blue butterfly. When Octavia nodded 'yes,' the owl demon gave a concerned hum. "Then time is of the essence. I will get us to my brother's mansion as quickly as possible." Raoul lifted his coat, which he whipped around as it magically expanded and enveloped the three of them.
When Octavia's head stopped spinning, not only were they standing in front of Stolas' mansion, but Octavia and Stella had their day clothes on instead of their nightgowns. The fact that she hadn't even registered such a change proved how much power Raoul must have. 'Well, he is a Duke, so that has to count for something,' Octavia mused. She looked up at the mansion to see her father on the balcony overlooking Imp City in the distance. "Is he… singing?"
Raoul trained an ear to listen in. "I believe he is. Wow, he's in even more of a funk than I imagined. Stolas, down here!"
The prince looked towards the voice, before quickly making his way to the courtyard. "Raoul? It's been years! What are you doing here?" He tilted his head to the side. "And bringing Octavia and Stella with you as well."
"It's not that I want to be here," Stella scoffed. "This is a matter in regard to our daughter."
"Well then, come inside, all of you," Stolas said. The four of them moved into the living room, with Octavia and Stolas taking the couch while Stella sat to the side in a chair, leaving Raoul to take the floor.
"Are you aware of my duties as part of the Goetia?" Raoul asked rhetorically. "Our father, King Paimon, gave me the duty to observe the realm of dreams and human unconsciousness. In my travels to these realms, I met the most fascinating being known as Philemon." Octavia gasped. "Yes, the same one you saw in your dream, Octavia. He is neither demon nor angel, instead a resident of the Collective Unconscious, a passive observer with the unique ability to unlock the potential in those he contacts."
"Potential?" Stolas said. "You put emphasis on that word."
"Yes, this potential is the ability to manifest your inner self as physical and magical power, a Persona," Raoul explained. "And it was the power of Persona that Philemon unlocked within Octavia this night."
"But why me? What would I need this Persona ability for?" Octavia asked.
"Normally, Personas are exclusively given to humans in order to overcome an ordeal of some kind," Raoul said. "It is one of these ordeals that Octavia will be needed for. Philemon came to me last night, informing me of a next ordeal that the humans are about to face. However, this time, the fate of not only the human realm, but possibly Hell and Heaven itself are at risk." The duke turned away from them. "In times of these ordeals, a champion is picked to represent the will of humanity, the challenge different each time. Past champions have had to prove their ability to face down and accept their mortality, or to look through the fog of deception and reach out to the truth. And the champion picked this time… is my own son."
"WHAT!?" the three shouted in shock.
"Yes, while I have never married, I have had many lovers in my time observing humans," Raoul admitted. "My sole offspring from these affairs, Octavia's cousin, has been given the unwitting task of representing the free will of humanity in this ordeal." He pulled out a picture and handed it over to Octavia. It depicted a Japanese boy with messy black hair, with an average yet charming look to him.
"Of course, an affair is the start of all this," Stella grumbled, shooting a nasty look Stolas' way. "Do all of Paimon's children share infidelity as a personality trait?"
"Regardless, I promised to keep an eye on my son, but this being in the Collective Unconscious has blocked my ability to observe or interfere in the ordeal," Raoul continued. "However, Philemon was able to tell me that there was a way to interfere in this 'game' as it were. Us demons that are well known to humans will be detected by this being, but if a demon could unlock the potential of a Persona, then…"
"That demon could act as a third party," Octavia finished, realizing what Raoul was getting at. "So, you want me to assist this human cousin I've never met in whatever kind of game this is, figure out who this malevolent being is, and put a stop to it before all three realms are, what, destroyed?"
"Or worse," Raoul shrugged. "Some would say there are worse fates than death."
"Octavia, you can't seriously be considering this," Stolas said.
"What if I am?" Octavia questioned. "It's not like I have anything to lose. I'm not a true part of the Ars Goetia, just a spare heir that no one will miss. If anything, this will give me a purpose instead of just sitting around while you two continue to have a cold war over who's going to suggest a divorce first." She gave both her parents a stern look. "And if you're so worried about me, Dad, then why don't you get your boyfriend to stalk me in the human world, since imps aren't easily detected either?"
"Ah, I believe I did hear something about that," Raoul said. "An incident at Ozzie's earlier tonight?"
"Yes, well, Blitz and I aren't exactly on speaking terms at the moment," Stolas said, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Yet another relationship you ruined," Stella muttered.
"Like you're any better," Octavia snapped. "Both of you have serious issues that I'm frankly sick of you trying to hide from me. I'm not a stupid child that's ignorant to the world around her. I could always tell that something was wrong between you, that we weren't a 'normal' family, but at least when I was a kid you pretended to tolerate being around each other." She pointed at Stolas. "If you care about this 'Blitz' guy so much, then man up and fix it before you lose whatever happiness you could have had." Her finger turned to Stella. "And how about you figure out your own problems instead of blaming them all on Dad?"
"Words spoken by a maiden about to embark on a journey," said a voice in her head, making Octavia pause, clutching her head as her eyes flashed yellow. Stolas and Stella looked concerned as this happened. "But now is not the time for my power. Just remember what you are fighting for, and you will never lose your way on the path home."
"I see that your Persona is starting to manifest," Raoul noted.
Octavia gave her uncle a brief glance, shaking her head as her eyes turned back to pink. The owlet looked at her parents again, both of them tense as her gaze was cast over them. "Look, you're both adults, so I don't care what you decide to do. Get a divorce, never talk to each other again, or if by some miracle there is still love for each other in your hearts, go make me another sibling for all I care. But if you're just going to continue hating each other, then don't expect me to stay around when I get back. I'd rather be on my own than stay in a place that's not home anymore."
Stella didn't display any emotions, turning her head away to hide her face, while Stolas looked at his daughter with a solemn expression. "It seems your mind is made up, my Starfire. If you truly wish to go on this journey, then I will not stop you. However, I will request that you take a bodyguard with you as protection. I believe that Blitz has a daughter around your age that could easily blend in." Stolas turned to his brother. "Am I right in guessing that Via will be attending the same school as your son, Raoul?"
"Indeed. Arrangements for living spaces and registry can be easily made thanks to a few favors that humans owe me in the area," Raoul nodded. "It might be for the best if we set up an excuse as to why Octavia won't be here in the meantime, so that other royals aren't asking too many questions."
"That's simple: arrange for her death to be faked," Stella stated. When the others looked at her funny, she gave a huff of annoyance. "What, it's sure to work. As Octavia said, no one will bat an eye if a spare heir goes missing or turns up dead."
'I'm going to choose to ignore how dismissive that sounds,' Octavia thought. "Anyway, you said something about Blitz having a daughter. Didn't think he had a kid."
"Well, she is adopted, but from what he's told me she's good at her job," Stolas said. "Plus, hellhounds are known to be effective bodyguards."
"At the very least, a hellhound is more reliable than an imp," Stella admitted.
"Tomorrow then, we will go and meet Blitz to ask for his assistance," Raoul said. "The game may have already been set, but soon we will add our own pieces to the board."
[***]
The four Goetia arrived at IMP's office the first thing in the morning, only to find the place in a less than great state. Only Blitzo and Loona were there, and the imp looked like he'd been dragged through… well, they were already in Hell, but the analogy still worked. While Loona was obviously nervous at the sight of the four royals, Blitzo just seemed disinterested and unamused.
"I thought I made my feelings pretty clear last night, Stolas," Blitzo said. "What, did you bring your family here to gloat about how you're all happy and together, or that you wanted to introduce me to your new fuck buddy?"
"Blitz, this is Duke Raoul, my brother," Stolas said. "And the reason we're here is because of him."
Raoul stepped forward and explained everything: the intruder in the Collective Unconscious, his son being chosen as humanity's representative in their game, and how Octavia would be traveling to the human realm to assist in tipping the balance in the universe's favor. Once he was done, Raoul let Stolas have the floor again.
"I fear for my daughter's safety in this, Blitz, and I ask- no, I plead that you allow your daughter to accompany mine in this task," Stolas said. "In return, I will renounce our deal, meaning you won't have to have sex with me every full moon for my book. I've been looking into other ways for you to traverse to the human realm that you can use instead of my grimoire, that way you don't even have to associate with me ever again if you wish."
"What?" Blitzo said in confusion.
"After our disagreement last night, I thought about what you said and how you were right," Stolas admitted. "I was just using you for sex, convincing myself that you loved me after all the years of us being apart. But really, I just wanted to feel something, anything, because I was making myself miserable by staying in a marriage that never had any love to begin with." Stella turned up her beak, while Octavia covered her mouth at her father's words. "It's childish how I've been acting, not even respecting you as a person, blinding myself to the issues in my life that were in part my own fault to begin with. I'll understand if you don't agree to my offer, but I just wanted to say to you, to all of you… I'm sorry."
'Dad,' Octavia thought. She knew that Stolas wasn't the happiest at home, but for him to openly say it meant so much more than his feeble attempts of comforting her back at Loo-Loo Land. 'Blitz must mean a lot to you if you're willing to so freely spill your guts out to him like this.'
Blitzo was silent for a long time before he went to his office and came back with the grimoire. The imp took a deep breath, before finally speaking. "Look Stolas, I won't lie and say I'm not still mad at you, but feelings aren't the easiest things for me to express either."
"Understatement of the century," Loona rolled her eyes.
"As I was saying, the way you acted at Ozzie's, trying to get out of there and leave me alone… It hurt, Stolas, it really did," Blitzo admitted. "And I don't know about this Collective Unconscious stuff, but it sounds important if it could end the entire world. That'd be bad for business." The imp let himself laugh at his joke. "I didn't have the best life growing up, but I can tell that your daughter means as much to you as my Looney Tuney, so I'm willing to consider starting over."
"Really?" Stolas said in shock.
Blitzo held up a hand. "Before you get ahead of yourself, I'll still be taking the deal of getting alternative means to the human world for me and my team. Not having to keep this book around is probably better in the long run for both of us. Second, can you please do something about your bitch wife before you start making advances on me again?"
"That's my mother you're talking about," Octavia glared.
"Doesn't make her less of a bitch," Blitzo shrugged, earning him an equally scathing glare from Stella. "Anyway, I think it'll be easier on us and your kid if you just deal with her sooner than later."
"I'll do you one better, imp," Stella said. "Once we get home, I'll personally have the divorce papers written up so Stolas can go galivanting off with his imp lover as much as he fucking pleases." She gave a smug look to Raoul. "We can let the other noble houses deal with the fallout of your actions. In the meantime, I'll be staying with Duke Raoul until Octavia returns so she can have a proper home to come back to."
"Do I get a say in this, considering it's me you're shipping off to high school?" Loona asked. "I know I can pass as a teenager in human form, but this better not be an excuse to put me through a 'proper education' or some shit."
"Did you not want to go?" Raoul questioned.
Loona shrugged. "Eh, staying in the human world is better than this dump. Plus, there'll probably be plenty of losers at this school I can mess with. Humans are fun like that."
"So then, it's all decided," Raoul clasped his hands together. "One last thing: do either of you know Japanese? I probably should have mentioned upfront that my son is from Japan and going to school in Tokyo."
"(I've got the basics down pretty well,)" Octavia said in fluent Japanese.
"Since when could you do that?" Stolas asked.
"Mom offered to teach me any language I wanted as part of my royal training, so I picked Japanese," Octavia shrugged.
"A quick learner as well," Stella said with satisfaction. "She'll be a fine heir to the Goetia bloodline indeed."
"Yeah, no, I'm not learning another language," Loona shook her head.
"I can provide a charm that will translate any language you hear into English, and whatever you say into Japanese," Raoul offered.
Loona gave a simple nod at that, and soon things were set in motion. Stolas and Stella formally wrote up their divorce papers (with an amicable "thank Satan it's over" between the two of them), Stolas acquired three Asmodeus Crystals for IMP to use, and Raoul created an earring for Loona that would act as a universal translator. All that was left to do now was get the girls up to the human world, where the real game would begin…
[***]
In the human realm, while Octavia and Loona were being prepared for their mission, a different conversation was taking place. Months ago, IMP had an encounter with a group known as CHERUB, a trio of cherub angels whose goal was to protect souls on Earth and lead them to a better path. At least, that was their goal until during a battle with IMP the cherubs inadvertently caused the death of their client, and despite it being an accident the three were banished from Heaven for their actions. Now the trio of Cletus, Keenie, and Collin were stuck on Earth with no way home, and it was all due to those assassin imps.
Cletus wasn't taking the whole situation well, spending most of his time trying to come up with ways to get back at IMP, while Keenie flip-flopped between being depressed and angry at the drop of a hat. Only Collin seemed to be adjusting to life on Earth, and that was mostly due to the sheep distracting himself with tending to a garden of a small church the cherubs had taken sanctuary in. Collin wanted to help his friends feel better but was constantly shut down in his efforts, being their emotional punching bag as usual.
"At least you can't be mad at me," Collin said to the flowers as he watered them. "All I want to do is help, but nothing I ever do seems to work. Some friend I am…"
As the sheep hummed a melancholy hymn, a flash of magic scared the wits out of Collin, making him drop his watering can in shock. Out of a cloudy portal floated a deer cherub, her presence making Collin's heart jump a bit. "Hey, there you are," she said, giving Collin a wave. "So, how's your banishment going?"
"You should know, since you're the one that put us here," Collin said bitterly, before immediately gasping and covering his mouth. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that! Please forgive me, Deerie!"
"Aw, aren't you sweet, trying to be in my good graces," Deerie said in her sickeningly sweet tone. "I'm not here to judge you, Collin. In fact, I have a very special job for you."
"Y-you're taking me back?" Collin said, his face brightening up.
"Yeah, no," Deerie shook her head. "No, not that. But it is an option if you do this task for me."
"What is it?" Collin asked. "I'll do anything to get back into Heaven, anything!"
Deerie gave a nod then snapped her hooves (don't ask how, it was a mystery to everyone), summoning a scroll for her to read from. "You see, there's this issue that Heaven has been notified of, but we need to keep it on the down-low, if you know what I mean. There's this ordeal going down that will decide the fate of humanity, and us angels can't interfere with it, you know? But if a banished angel were to tip the balance, well… I think you know where I'm going with this."
"You want me to help win this ordeal?" Collin questioned. "Why not ask Cletus, or Keenie?"
"Yeah no, neither of them has what we're looking for to help with this issue," Deerie said. "It has to be you, Collin. You're the purest of heart, so that means you must be the one to do this."
'What does that mean about my friends? Are they already… too far gone?' Collin thought. He turned to Deerie and gave a nervous nod. "O-okay, I'll help, but only if Cletus and Keenie get to return to Heaven as well!"
"Sure, sure," Deerie waved him off. "But you can't tell them about this, okay? We have to keep it on the DL, very hush-hush." She summoned another scroll and gave it to Collin. "Here's where you'll be staying, as well as the cover story you'll be using. Oh, and make sure you have your weapons polished up. You're going to need them." Deerie summoned a portal back to Heaven, stepping through before turning back around. "Oh, do you have any other questions?"
"In this ordeal, what exactly am I doing?" Collin asked.
"Oh, that's easy!" Deerie scoffed. "You want to help humanity, right? Well, this task will let do just that. All you have to do is find and help the one chosen to represent humanity and enact his justice. You know what I mean?"
"I think so?" Collin tilted his head in confusion. He opened the scroll and started reading it. "Wait, this is taking place in Japan! How am I supposed to get there?"
"That's for you to figure out," Deerie said, closing the portal. "Bye!"
Collin held out a hand for her to stop, but the deer cherub had already left. Collin sighed, looking over the scroll. 'In act justice, help humanity, face this ordeal…' he thought. The sheep looked back at the church, hearing the faint sounds of Cletus and Keenie having another argument. 'I've got to do this, for theirs and my own sake.' With that Collin turned to leave the church, only pausing when a radiant blue butterfly landed on his nose. The sheep sneezed, sending the bug fluttering away. "Huh, what a beautiful creature," Collin said to himself before shaking his head. "I don't have time to admire nature. I have to get to Japan… However I'm supposed to do that…"
Author's Note
This has been a project long in the making! The origin of this story begins sometime in late 2021 when the idea of Octavia teaming up with Morgana got in my head. It wasn't until this August that truly started working on this project, and with the release of Persona 5 Royal on all consoles (plus a new episode of Helluva Boss), now seems like the best time for these two series to cross over.
Philemon is a character more prominent in Persona 1 and the 2 duology, and his speech to Octavia here is taken from the one he gives to the player in Persona 1. Octavia's Tarot card "The Aeon" is a special card in the Persona series, not being part of the standard deck and holding a similar position to that of "Judgement." Only two other characters have held this arcana in the past, and I feel that Octavia fits in with both of its past holders pretty well. Also as a fun fact, Philemon is the blue butterfly that appears in every Persona game, so even if he doesn't appear physically anymore, he's still watching over the protagonists of each game.
Raoul shows up, not as a Persona but as a Duke of the Ars Goetia. His design is basically just how the Persona looks, but if you like you can imagine him in the Helluva Boss art style. He's Stolas' half-brother through Paimon and the father of Joker, making him and Octavia cousins (so no Joker/Octavia romance).
Most of this chapter is just setup for what's to come, as well as getting us to a place that Octavia and Loona can get to Earth without raising suspicions. On the Helluva Boss side of the story I'm going to ignore the events of Seasons 2, so while the flashback stuff from "The Circus" did happen, this prologue chapter overrides the Stolas and Stella confrontation scene. Octavia also stands up for herself against both her parents, causing her Persona to partially awaken. I wonder which spirit of rebellion our Goetia princess is going to summon?
We quickly get Stolas and Blitzo back on semi-good terms, smooth over the divorce with a lot less vitriol than the show, and set up that Collin is going to be joining Octavia and Loona in Japan as well. Life hasn't been easy for the sheep angel, and it's not going to be any easier if he finds out demons also on the same mission as he is.
Next Time: Our new transfer students meet the Wild Card and give a certain teacher a headache