akiangel, chainsaw man au. kinda incomplete but i'm out of ideas.

an emotionless eye runs down the devil that stands in front of her — so this is her new partner.

with wings resembling the likeliness of a cloud, this devil’s true identity shines through her physical appearance. donning a well-pressed suit, the auburn-haired devil looks as soulless as every other fiend. the halo floating inches above her head helps to negate any trace of hostility if there is any, to begin with. 

only the public safety devil hunters would employ an actual devil to kill their counterparts, or perhaps there’s more than meets the eye. though, from what joohyun can tell, she is no minor devil to be trifled with, whatever keeps her here is perhaps bigger than joohyun will ever know.

“you’re my new partner?” the devil questions without a trace of emotion in her tone. straight to business, just how the devil hunter likes it.

joohyun responds with a curt nod, “bae joohyun, special division one.”

no handshakes are exchanged, joohyun had been briefed on the devil’s abilities in the event that she needs to be taken down.

“son seungwan.”

“it’s surprising that humans have a fear of angels,” joohyun notes wryly, “even more surprising that fiends have a full name.”

the angel devil raises her shoulders nonchalantly, “humans, they fear everything.”

“yet you work for them, angel.”

seungwan presses her lips into a thin line, noting that the devil hunter has chosen to see her as an angel instead of a devil. but she says nothing, swiftly setting the tone for their partnership.

flicking the blood off her hands, joohyun reaches into her pocket to pull out a pack of cigarettes. wrinkling her face in disgust, most of them have not survived the splatter of blood. still, she picks out one that seems salvageable and puts it to her lips. patting her pockets, she realises that her lighter has gone missing.

“angel.” joohyun calls out to her partner, “i need a lighter.”

no response could be heard from the devil, which isn’t uncommon but joohyun still expects a semblance of a reply. ignoring the sloppy wet feeling in her shoes, the devil hunter trudges towards the devil, stepping over corpses in the process.

desensitised to the hazards that come with her job, joohyun chalks this up as another regular day at work. surviving the day is good enough for her, though clean clothes would be an added perk.

standing beside the angel devil, the devil hunter casts her eyes down. her foot lightly digs into her partner, only to draw the devil out of her daze.

joohyun scoffs lightly at the sight of the devil cradling the limp body of a human. unbeknownst to seungwan, her auburn hair shrouds her face from scrutiny, saving her from snarky remarks about her being a devil that weeps for humanity.

“you’ve drained the poor fool, let’s go.”

the devil hunter’s voice is sharp against the silence that has settled in the area, abruptly, she pulls her partner back to reality.

seungwan exhales slowly as she releases the human from her grasp, allowing the corpse to fall to the ground with a soft thud. she rises to her feet, quietly trailing behind joohyun as they leave the area. she has to remind herself that she is still a devil before anything else, but everything that makes her a devil makes her more human than anything.

but the devil hunter that she has to call a partner is the exact opposite. alike most devil hunters, bae joohyun chooses to sacrifice parts of herself to wield the powers of a devil and the more she does it, the less human she becomes.

the irony of it all elicits a scoff from the devil. arching her brows, joohyun casts a glance at her partner, prompting her to speak.

“you don’t ever think about the people that’ve died.” seungwan comments grimly, an observation that she’s noted after a month of working together.

the hunter raises her shoulders in a nonchalant shrug, “what good does it do to think about the dead? as if it would ever bring them back.”

muttering under her breath, the angel devil can’t help but scowl, “you’re more of a devil than you are human.”

“and you’re more of a human than me? just because you weep for the dead does not make you human.” joohyun challenges, dropping her voice low, “step out of line and i will kill you all the same.”

seungwan stops in her steps and watches the devil hunter amble further and further. the idea of drawing her weapons is replaced with a sting in her chest caused by joohyun’s words. 

“angel! angel, get up!”

seungwan blinks groggily awake, her eyelids are heavy with sleep and joohyun’s aggressive shaking does little to wake her. even the mild panic tinting the hunter’s tone isn’t enough.

“what?” the devil murmurs, voice thick with sleep. it seems that there’s a haze she can’t get rid of, a heavy drowsiness that makes her feel more sluggish than ever.

“get up!” joohyun practically screams as her foot digs into the side of seungwan’s ribs. now that perks the devil up instantly. 

the angel devil heeds her partner’s words with a soft sigh, what could be so urgent after all?

a wave of unease washes over her when she realises where they are. chilling dread fills her alongside terrible memories that come with returning to this place. the soft grass under her skin that she has neglected, the endless doors that line what should be the sky, the ominous feeling of being watched, there’s no doubt about where they are.

“did i die?” seungwan blurts before pausing — hell is a place meant for devils who die on earth, yet, joohyun is here with her. the gears in her head begin to turn, trying to figure how and why they’ve ended up here.

“we were pulled here by something,” joohyun explains, her brows stitching into a frown, “where are we?”

the terror in the angel devil’s eyes did not bode well. since they’ve met, joohyun has hardly seen emotion on seungwan’s face, let alone fear of this intensity.

“angel.” the hunter demands, “where are we?”

“hell.”

tensing up, the devil hunter swallows uneasily, “hell?”

seungwan bobs her head slowly and pushes herself up to her feet. her voice is soft, as if she worries that if she speaks his name too loudly, he would appear. “he did this. he’s the only one who can.”

“who?” joohyun urges, “and how do we leave?”

“we can’t.”

“bull.” joohyun spits, “there has to be a way.”

“hell is where devils go when they die on earth, and earth is where we go when we die in hell.” seungwan murmurs, “but you’re not a devil.”

with a sharp click of her teeth, it’s evident that the hunter doesn’t appreciate what she’s hearing and she’s not bent on being trapped here. the sword she carries on her back comes with consequences — such is the fate of a devil hunter who desires power.

and joohyun reaches for it, determined to fight her way out of hell or die trying. her fingers are wrapped around the handle when she catches a glimpse of her partner barrelling towards her. angel is fast, one of the fastest fiends the public safety devil hunters have on their side. without any time to react, the hunter is roughly tackled onto the soft grass.

“you’re going to die before we get out of here.” seungwan growls, straddling and gripping joohyun firmly by the wrists while ensuring her fingers don’t touch the hunter’s skin.

joohyun snarls, “you said it yourself, there’s no way out! if i’m going to die here, i might as well try!”

locking eyes, the devil’s grasp on her doesn’t loosen. an unspoken tension lingers before the expression on seungwan’s face softens and she releases joohyun. the two take a moment to catch their breaths and the hunter hears seungwan whisper something under her breath.

“if you’re going to try, at least be smart about it.” she murmurs as her halo begins floating forward, “use me.”

as seungwan reaches forth, a katana forged by her halo drops into her hand. twirling it with ease, she slides the handle into joohyun’s hold. a change in dynamics is evident with the angel devil offering up her power and joohyun accepts it with a grim nod.

“we’ll get out of here,” the hunter exhales slowly, “together.”

“i don’t have much time left,” joohyun utters breathlessly, “but i’ll give you all i’ve got.”

“joohyun?”

the hunter grabs seungwan by the hand and places it against her jaw.

“i’ve wanted you to do this for a long time now,” joohyun forces a weak smile, “grant me my final wish, won’t you, angel?”

the angel devil tries to pry her hand away but joohyun keeps it pressed firmly against her cheek. what little life she has left is being sapped away with each second they maintain contact, she’ll be dead in less than a minute.

“no… stop this, joohyun!”

“i’m sorry i have to cut our time short, maybe the months that we could’ve had would be better but i doubt it.”

“i won’t use you!”

“you have to put an end to this, you’re the only one who can.” joohyun begs, “please.”

seungwan’s lips tremble as she struggles to find the right words, she feels joohyun weakening before her. however many months she has left is slowly trickling down into weeks. then days. then hours. 

in her final minutes, bae joohyun is tucked into the arms of a devil.

“we had a good run, seungwan.” joohyun murmurs.

“we did, joohyun.” the angel devil whispers, “leave the rest to me.”

moments later, her head slumps to the side and seungwan knows she’s gone for good. death has always weighed on her, especially when she takes life. 

tears rolling down her cheeks, seungwan gently lays her partner down on the ground.

her halo floats forward and she forges a weapon with the life that joohyun gave her. it’s merely enough for a small dagger but seungwan has no choice.