Pretentious Faces (Masquerade Au)

The Spiders, The Kings, and The Ice

"Hm. I can not believe you managed to take me. Tell me, who has aided you? There is no way you would have succeeded otherwise."

The arachnid fumed, but then grinned sharply, "Well, I did get some help from a certain...helper of mine." She held out her hands, revealing a child with dark hair and a soft smile. Something felt...off about her. The Bull still huffed, rolling his eyes.

"You know...There is someone familiar here." The queen snickered, watching as the bull's eyes widened, "Princess Iron Fan..?" Spider Queen waved her hand, huffing, "No, no! Your wife's fine...though how is she? When you're trapped here?"

"She can defend herself!" The bull proclaimed angrily. He then paused, "...Then who..?"

Spider Queen giggled, moving towards one of the darker corners, "An old friend of yours, of course." The green-tinted lights shifted, revealing a bound Monkey King. Demon Bull King snarled, "Simian." Wukong didn't even flinch.

"My lady, why do you allow him to still mock you with that mask of his?" The girl smiled much too sweetly, but the spider grinned. Only now did Wukong truly begin to struggle, catching the Demon Bull King off-guard. Spider Queen was quick, snatching away the mask--

Silence.

The mask fell to the floor, Spider Queen staring in pure horror. The great sage before her was scarred, ruined by something somehow stronger than the stone monkey. Something that could crush her wordlessly.

The girl was laughing, cooing at how pathetic the king was as he tried turning his face away. She mocked him, jeering loudly.

And the Demon Bull King...

It was complicated. He was still upset with the other king, but his theories on why he covered his face shattered violently. Wukong wasn't mocking anyone. He was trying to hide away, trying to conceal the crown stuck to the front of his head, the burned skin, discolorations littering his cheeks, blazing red eyes...

He had been hiding.

The queen retreated soon enough, followed by her newfound helper. It was just them now, nearly face to face. The bull king felt an old emotion bubbling.

"Who did this to you..?" The bull's voice was soft, delicate. As if trying to soothe the other. Wukong squeezed his eyes shut, shuddering softly as if giving up.

"Nothing I did not bring upon myself."

---

Spider Queen paced along the corridor, nervously muttering to herself.

Something, someone, had taken down the Monkey King, reduced him to such a display, and the monkey didn't seem to resent whatever did everything. Would she end up the same way? Marred for life, unable to feel angry towards whatever ruined her skin? Would she even survive such treatment?

"What bothers you, my queen?" A delicate voice asked. Spider Queen swallowed thickly, turning towards her, "I-I'm not strong enough. I'm much too weak to fight against--"

"Allow me to lend you my power. Though you will need to lock me up." The girl hummed innocently, tilting her head. The queen frowned, "Lock you away..?"

"Yes, I had to create myself a new body. So when my powers are given completely to you, this body will revert to a child, confused and terrified. Lock me away, so I am safe. Then you will have more than enough power to defend against whatever crippled the Great Sage."

It was tempting, the queen was scared, and she was desperate.

---

Demon Bull King felt a deep feeling of pure concern settle down in his bones as he watched the other king blankly stare ahead. They needed to get out, Wukong needed his mask.