#'oh its only on the internet its not hurting people irl' i promise you it is not and i hope you die

[pyr0cue]

everytime i see whatever weird pronoun discourse ppl have going on i want to rant SOOO bad about it but. i block and move on. i block and move on and do not engage in silly internet stuff

[shuakkinda-blog]

Joshua crushing on you !! // scenario

A bullet-point scenario starring our LA boy, Joshua Hong!!

Send in reaction and scenario requests on my page if you’d like to :)

- Josh is legit the kind of boy that my parents want me to bring home LMAO

- I don’t even have to list out why bc we all know that he is the epitome of a gentleman

- well, most of the time

- if you didn’t hear

- Josh has this secret “not-so-gentlemanly” side lolol

- I KNOW I KNOW IT CAN BE A LITTLE HARD TO IMAGINE AT FIRST BC THE BOY LOOKS LIKE A HARMLESS BUNNY

- but svt keeps bringing up how different Joshua can be off camera and I can’t help but think that they mean he’s 5000x more sassy irl

- and no not the bad kind of sassy, I mean the fun kind

- the type of sassy that keeps the conversation interesting 

- why I’m bring this up is because although Josh would want to show his gentlemanly side to his crush

- he’d also want to show his crush that he’s not always the passive, quiet type

- Josh knows there’s another side of him that could ALSO get him the girl he’s after

- and if she can handle this hidden side of his

- then he’ll know that this girl is definitely meant to be with him

- AY SCENARIO TIME !

- so as an intern at pledis, you’re given access to all of the company building’s facilites ay it’s lit

- from the water dispensing machines to the high quality speaker systems

- they’re all at your disposal

- as long as no one else is using them at the moment

- so one day you’re finishing up the last of your daily internship tasks when you spot a guitar atop a random table !!

- do yall know where I’m going w this?

- what does this guitar even have to do with you, you ask?

- well you’ve actually been wanting to learn how to play this m a g i c a l instrument for awhile 

- but you could never find a guitar that you could readily use for learning

- and since pledis is aLLOWINg you uSe whAtEver you wAnt in the buiLDINg

- you’re like:

- “wHAT THE HECK LET’S DO IT.”

- so you get the guitar in your hands and take it to a vacant office in the building

- at first you think it’ll be a breeze learning the instrument because THE INTERNET is by your side

- and guitar tutorials exist all over youtube soOoOOo

- WELL I’M SORRY YOU’RE WRONG IT’S ACTUALLY PRETTY HARD LMAO

- even with the help of “guitar for dummies” beginner tutorials, you just can’t seem to make the chords sound decent without straining your fingers in the process lol

- and even with all the pain, your playing still doesn’t sound too good

- BUT BEING THE STRONG INDEPENDENT PERSON YOU ARE, YOU! DON’T! GIVE! UP!

- so you decide to make this “guitar practice” a routine thing after finishing your tasks around the building

- M E A N W H I L E

- Joshua, having arrived to the building on the day you took the guitar for the first time, comes up to the room where he keeps the guitar

- he stops his tracks at the sight of an empty table, the table he usually returns the guitar to

- “it’s not here??” he says internally

- “oh well, I guess it’ll be back by tomorrow,” he shrugs and carries on

- but the next day, the guitar isn’t there agaiN

- and Josh starts to get a little worried about its whereabouts

- he looks around the rest of the room, thinking someone might’ve placed it elsewhere after using it

- buh n0pe

- he kinda gets a little lazy in his search and gives up for the day

- “maybe tomorrow,” he tells himself

- he actually ends up telling himself this for a whole week bc it just never reappears again lol

- and with that week passing, Josh’s worry for the beloved six-stringed instrument only grows

- so he asks people around the building if they’ve seen it anywhere

- almost everyone says they haven’t seen it recently

- until Josh comes across Jihoon

- “hey Ji,” he calls out the producer, who is fetching himself a drink from the water dispenser outside his studio

- Jihoon’s eyes move to Josh, letting him know that he’s got his attention

- “have you seen the Taylor guitar anywhere? You know, the one that I always place on the table upstairs?”

- “no, I haven’t,” he replies plainly

- “Oh, okay. Thanks,” Josh’s eyes dart down at the floor in hopelessness

- but just before Jihoon retreats to his studio again, he takes a step back

- “actually,” he catches Josh’s attention again. “I was upstairs a few minutes ago and I heard someone playing a guitar in one of the vacant offices on the third floor, but I didn’t check who was playing.”

- “I know it wasn’t you because-” Jihoon snickers before he can continue his sentence

- “what? Was it bad?” Josh laughs lightly

- “it wasn’t too bad, but it definitely didn’t sound like a pro either.”

- “I’ll take that as a compliment for myself,” Joshua smiles and shakes his head. “Thanks, Ji.”

- “no problem. Good luck trying to get it back.”

- so Josh heads up to the office floor to investigate

- and upon arriving on the designated floor, he hears strumming coming from down the hall

- he creeps quietly through the floor until the strumming is loud enough

- then he crouches down next to the door of the office you’re in

- but before he could peek into the room...

- “UGHHGG WHY DOES THIS HURT SO MUCH,” you yelp

- and Josh, frightened by the sudden yelling, falls out of his position next to the office door, and his knee makes an audible thud

- you look back at the doorway and hEY IT’S THAT JOSHUA DUDE FROM SVT

- ... wait wTF IT’S THAT JOSHUA DUDE FROM SVT!1!1!!?!

- you guys know the basic things about each other from when you were formally introduced at the beginning of your internship, but that’s about it

- Josh’s face blushes pink upon being caught and he quickly gets up to brush off his knees

- “ah, uh, I’m- I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to... you know,” he struggles to find words

- you’re speechless for a few moments, but you eventually work up the courage to say something at least

- “how long were you waiting there for?” you laugh nervously

- “uhh... not long I promise,” he smiles and puts hands up in defense

- “regardless, you probably heard how bad I was,” you cover your mouth out of shyness

- “oh nonono, you’re actually not that bad,” he tries to make you feel better

- “did you not just hear me out there?” you laugh at him. “Trust me, I’m pretty bad.”

- “okay okay, so maybe you’re... just okay, but I think you’ve got a lot of potential.”

- and inside you’re kinda like WHERE? WHAT POTENTIAL? LOL

- but what he said gives you a little bit of hope and you can’t help but smile

- “I guess,” you tap the guitar nervously. “I just started learning about a week ago. I found this guitar on to-”

- “on top of a table on the second floor, I know,” Josh smiles

- oh shit, is this guitar his? you think

- “wait, have I been stealing your guitar?”

- “mm well it’s not really mine,” he replies. “But I use it the most out of every one in this building.”

- “well, with the exception of this past week, when it went missing,” he laughs

- “oh my god I’m so sorry for not asking. I just-” you think of a better way to apologize, but Josh, being an unDeRsTaNDiNg gEntLEmAn, is quick to forgive you

- “It’s fine, don’t worry about it. All of the facilities here are meant to be shared with everyone anyways.”

- Inside you’re all sassy n shit like, DAS RIGHT BIH I’M JUST FOLLOWING THE RULES K

- but on the outside you’re just:

- “ah I know but I think out of everyone here, you should have priority over the guitar, you know. Because you actually perform with it.”

- “yeah, but I’d love for you to be able to learn too. I don’t even perform with a guitar that often. It’s honestly just a side-hobby,” he tries to justify

- “hey, if you want, I can give you some lessons or something,” he offers shyly

- “I don’t know,” you contemplate aloud. “I’m pretty hopeless with this guitar thing... I’ve been using the easiest guitar tutorials on youtube and I still can’t get it right.”

- “I know. I went through that too,” Josh shares some sympathy. “But don’t you think learning the guitar in person is better than learning it from some random guy on the internet?”

- “well technically, you are some random guy off of the internet too,” you tease fr tho we wouldn’t know about svt if it woren’t for the internet

- “HEY, at least I don’t look like some old man that lives in an outhouse, like the guy in that tutorial there,” he points to your laptop screen

- he’s super nice for offering but

- jeez this guy’s attitude though, you think to yourself

- is it sass?? or humor??

- and i thought he was supposed to be the gentleman of the group...

 - ... WHATEVER I LOVE IT

- and aw shit he’s kinda cute too... I’d pick him over this old dude on the tutorial vids any day lmao

- so you accept the offer for a lesson or two

- and it’s mostly because you’re curious about Josh

- you know his public reputation as a nice guy/gentleman

- but this encounter with him definitely showcased another side of him

- and you want to know more about it...

- so the first lesson happens the day after you guys meet

- and you don’t know this but Josh is actually pretty stoked to be teaching you the guitar

- he’s been meaning to talk to you for awhile, but he never really had a legitimate excuse to do so

- until now :3

- and although he thinks he’s gonna revert to his “nice guy” self out of nervousness with you

- your easygoing attitude makes it easy for him to loosen up and be his true self

- he cracks funny insults and jokes here and there and it just makes the whole lesson really fun

- after having such a good time, you guys agree to make this a regular thing

- but slowly, as you get better at the guitar, your little lessons become less like lessons and more like regular hangouts

- a lot of times you’ll find yourselves just jamming out to whatever songs you feel like playing

- not only are you learning more about the guitar, but more about each other as well

- these “lessons” are honestly what the both of you look forward to the most everyday :’)

- one day, during one of your hangouts, you show Josh a song on the guitar that you’ve been practicing for awhile

- he recognizes the song and begins singing along with you

- it’s probably one of those throwback love songs you both heard when you guys were kids bc tbh he’d be huge sucker for those lol

- and as he goes through the lyrics

- he realizes something

- what he’s singing... he means it... for you

- it’s cute when this hits him because he kinda loses track of the song and thinks about the lyrics to himself while he stares at you AHH

- and you’ll have to snap him out of his thoughts like, “hey Josh, why’d you suddenly stop singing?”

- you’d also have to wave a hand at his face to get him to stop staring at you

- Josh shakes his head after snapping out of his daze and apologizes

- “oh my bad, I’m sorry, uh... Wanna take it from the top again?” he laughs nervously

- and at night he’ll think about that moment he kinda lost himself in the lyrics with you

- and he’d replay a particular thought in his head:

- Josh, I’m pretty sure you like y/n...

- but does she feel the same?

- CRUSHING HABITS DISCUSSION TIME !!!

- I think the one thing that would bother Josh when he’s crushing on you would be the question that’s two bullet-points up ^^^^^

- do you feel the same? HECK YEAH DUDE TAKE ME NOW

- this would be the basis of all the little things he does to you when crushing on you

- well for one, he’d be the type to move closer to you when hanging out with you just to see how you’d react

- prior to his crush on you, he’d just point to the strings you need to press on the guitar when teaching you

- but while he’s crushing, he’s definitely gonna come up behind you and put his arms around you so that you guys can play the on the same guitar at the same time

- and if you ask him why he’s changed his “method of teaching”

- he’s probably gonna use some stupid excuse like,

- “it’s just easier this way, okay?” AIGHT JOSH AIGHT

- and oh boy this guy’s gonna be so damn proud every time his gets you flustered

- he’d do this by shamelessly throwing a few random compliments here and there like:

- “hey Josh, this riff sounds pretty doesn’t it,” you say before pluck away gently at the strings of the guitar

- “I don’t know,” he says as he furrows his eyes at the instrument

- “why? What’s wrong with it?” you ask

- “hmm, I just think there are prettier things out there,” he’d pause as he looks up to your eyes

- “like you.”

- “what?” your cheeks tint pink and a tiny laugh escapes your lips

- Josh starts laughing at your face. “It was joke, y/n.” ISTG JOSHUA

- your cheeks heat up until the pink shade turns into a red. “HEY, that’s- that’s...” you struggle to find words

- “a lie, I know,” he smiles. “God, y/n, I get it. You’re pretty. You don’t have rub it in my face.”

- “JOSH WTH THAT’S NOT WHAT I MEA-”

- “Stop stop, I don’t wanna hear it,” he hold up a finger to your lips to make you shut up and die internally rip you

- also

- from time to time you’ll feel the need to ask why the hell Josh agreed to help you learn guitar in the first place

- bc he’s honestly such a great teacher and you fEEL SO UNWORTHY OF HIS KINDNESS

- “hey Josh, why me of all people?”

- “pardon?”

- “why did you offer to teach me guitar when we first met? You heard me and I sucked. Like real bad.”

- he laughs

- “doesn’t everything I do for you make it obvious?” Josh says as he cleans out the dust on the guitar

- “huh?”

- “jeez, y/n, anyone can see through all of this. You’re just oblivious,” he laughs before blowing the surface of the newly dusted instrument

- “J-Josh are you trying to say-” you think he’s trying to say he likes you but he cuts you off

- “that you’re dumb? Yes,” he smiles slyly

- you roll your eyes and get up from your seat, annoyed by all the useless things Josh is saying to you

- “wait y/n,” he laughs and grabs your wrist before you could walk out of the room.

- you try to tug your wrist out of his grip, but it’s too strong

- “c’mon y/n, I need you to keep making me smile,” he says, his eyes softening at the sight of your face again

- you redden once again

- “so stay,” he continues as he loosens his grip on your wrist and moves his hand down to yours

- you let go of his hand and he follows. “why are you always trying to use dumb lines on me,” you sigh and struggle to hide a shy smile

- “but they work, don’t they,” he smirks as you sit back down next to him

- Josh would feel comfortable making his crush on you obvious as long as you give off signals that you like him too

- or at least get flustered when he says something nice about you goddamnit

- SO YEAH you’ll be up at night wondering if Josh really means the words he’s always teasing you with

- honestly he’s just trying to get you to confess to him before he can

- Josh just wants to make sure you’ve fallen for him like he did for you :’)

- BUT if you’re a tough person to crack, he’ll eventually reach his own breaking point and will have to tell you how he feels somehow

- LEMME EXPLAIN

- on some days when you guys can’t meet up (aka days when Josh’s schedule doesn’t allow him to go to the company building while you’re there), Josh sends you a text with a song or two that he thinks would be nice to try on the guitar

- and one day, instead of a few song titles and their artists, you get a link

- so you tap on the link and it leads you to a private document

- it has chords and lyrics scattered across the page

- but you don’t recognize the song

- and wtf it doesn’t even have an artist name or title on it

- so you search some of the lyrics up

- but nothing matches up to it

- so you text Josh back and you’re like:

- you: “hey man what’s with song you sent me?”

- Josh: “what’s wrong? do you not like it?”

- you: “I don’t know the song and this document doesn’t have a title or the artist’s name???” “so I can’t even search it up and give it a listen first”

- Josh: “well if you’re wondering who the artist is”

- Josh: “it’s me”

- Josh: “:D”

- you: “hAh nice joke Josh” “no really who’s the artist”

- Josh: “I just said it’s me”

- you: “JOSHUA HONG TELL ME WHO WROTE THIS SONG BEFORE I GET ANY MORE FRUSTRATED”

- Josh: “y/n I’m not kidding, I wrote the song”

- Josh: “and I put it into a document so you could try it”

- you: “Josh how the fuck am I supposed to play it if I don’t even know whAT IT’S SUPPOSED TO SOUND LIKE???”

- Josh: “Idk make it up? lol”

- you: “I still don’t believe it’s yours” “the lyrics are too nice”

- Josh: “I’m offended”

- Josh: “but thanks I wrote it anyways”

- you both stare at your phones simultaneously before Josh continues

- Josh: “it’s fine if you don’t believe me. I just want you to look through it and tell me what you think”

- you: “well it’s nice, like woozi-quality music...”

- you: “mAYBE HE WROTE IT”

- Josh: “okay but would Jihoon talk about you in his lyrics?”

- you: “wait what?”

- you: “I don’t get it”

- you: “waiT JOSH”

- you: “THIS SONG”

- you: “THE LYRICS”

- you: “ARE YOU TRYNA SAY SOMETHING HERE?”

- you: “HONG ANSWER ME”

- you: “I KNOW YOU READ YOUR TEXTS FROM YOUR HOME SCREEN”

- you: “WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO TO GET YOU TO ANSWER ME”

- Josh: “text me when you get it”

- you stare at your phone once again

- Josh, what are you trying to say?

- you decide to give the lyrics another glance

- and you pick up on something familiar in a few of the verses

- “the songs are pretty, but there are prettier things like you”

- “I hold you close because it’s easier this way”

- “doesn’t everything I do for you make it obvious? see through?”

- “I need you to keep making me smile, so stay”

- did he just use the compliments he used to tease you with...

- to make a song?

- you immediately send a text to Josh

- you: “we need to talk when you get back”

- you wait for a quick response, but there’s none

- in fact, you check your messages, and it says he read it

- but nothing

- no word from Josh

- you’re kinda mad at him for the rest of the day for not replying

- the fact that he might just be confessing to you with these song lyrics keeps you up at night

- and you just wanted to talk it out with him to make sure everything’s crystal clear

- the next day you go to pick up the guitar in it’s usual spot, assuming you and Josh have no plans today since he’s so “busy”

- but the guitar isn’t there

- this can only be the works of a Joshua Hong, you think

- so you text him again:

- you: “Josh where is the guitar?”

- Josh: “I have it”

- you: “where”

- Josh: “find me ;)”

- you: “JOSHUA”

- you really want to talk to him today so you start your desperate search

- and you pretty much look everywhere except...

- wAIT THE VACANT OFFICE FLOOR, you scream internally before scrambling for the stairs

- and as you’re nearing that floor, you can hear the distant strumming of a guitar coming from one of the offices YALL KNOW

- and to no surprise, you find yourself at the doorway of the office you used to practice the guitar in all by yourself

- the office that Joshua found you in

- Joshua stops playing the guitar at the sight of you and smiles

- “why didn’t you reply to my text last night?” you ask in annoyance

- “because I knew you figured it out,” he says softly

- “yeah, I think... I mean, I could be taking it the wrong way but-”

- “go ahead. Tell me what you think I’m trying to say,” he leans back on his chair and waits patiently for your response

- you’re about to tell him you think it’s a confession to you

- but you know damn well that Josh is gonna embarrass you and say it means something else

- so you change up your answer

- “you’re trying to tell me that I’m dumb,” you smile coolly. “Like you always do.”

- “... you’re right,” he perks up a wider smile

- this was not the response you were expecting

- “JOSH,” you yell and pause for a moment to think about it

- “am I really?” you ask in an upset tone

- “yeah, y/n. You’re too dumb to realize that it was a co-”

- “CONFESSION I KNOW,” you say in frustration

- Joshua shies away, shifting his glance from your face to your shoes

- “looks like you’re not that dumb after all...”

- he actually... confessed?

- “well,” you clear your throat quietly. “I was pretty mad at you last night for not clearing this all up with me then, but consider yourself... forgiven.” a smile spreads across your face

- “what’s that supposed to mean?” Josh gets up from his seat and puts the guitar aside. He comes up close to you and looks down at your face, just inches away from his

- “are you sure I’m the dumb one?” you lift a brow. “because if you can’t tell what I mean by that, it’s probably you.”

- “it’s not,” his mouth curves up as he lifts your chin and lets his lips inch closer to yours

- but he stops before they can touch

- “wait, is this okay with you?” he asks hesitantly

- “Josh, as much as I love your gentlemanly side, I think it’s kind of ruining the moment,” you laugh

- “I’ll take that as a yes,” he replies before locking his lips with yours

- who knew someone could understand both sides of me so well? Josh smiles to himself

[dornishsphinx]

twenty-two meetings that never happened (5/22)

5. THE EMPEROR 

This is set around the same time as P5, and some things are mentioned here based off a certain promotional event that happened irl last year - but, unless you’re actively avoiding everything to do with the game, there are no actual game spoilers (honestly, it would be kinda hard for me to add them since, at the time of posting, there’s still about a week to go until it comes out here, so I know nothing that’s not been in trailers.)

"Excuse me, are you Kazumi’s teacher?" 

Hidetoshi had been psyching himself up for this for half-an-hour, and still his resolve faltered. He shoved all his suddenly turbulent feelings deep down where they couldn't embarrass him and, with more calmness than he felt, looked up from his paperwork. 

"Indeed," he said, standing and bowing. 

The butterflies settled down quickly enough after he carried out a quick examination of the man. The first thing he noted was the strange disconnect between the man's oddly youthful appearance and his true age. He was older than Hidetoshi by little over a decade - in his mid-thirties, according to the documents he'd studied before the meeting - and yet wasn't the stern patriarch he'd painted in his mind. His face, the centrepiece of which was a pair of perceptive, striking brown eyes, was framed by unruly black hair, cut in the longer-than-necessary style he remembered chastising male students for back in his student council days. As he bowed, it fell forward with him, ever so slightly shifting out of the way of a hoop earring. Well, naturally. 

No. He forced himself to regroup. This wasn't some delinquent. It was a student's father, who deserved respect, and Hidetoshi would treat him as such. Nonetheless, he couldn't help the hint of disdain which crept into his tone when he addressed him: "I take it you’re Kazumi Toudou’s father?" 

"That's right," Toudou said. "You asked for a meeting? About her behaviour?" 

Ah. Hidetoshi could hear a faint tremor hidden away in there. So, he was nervous too. Good to know. 

"Please, sit." The chairs gave them more of an equal eye level, and as they settled on either side of the desk, Hidetoshi considered his plan of attack. 

Parents, from what he'd been told by colleagues, could be a nuisance to deal with - one of them, a maths teacher with whom he often conversed at breaks, had even whispered to him about an incident five or so years ago involving a lawsuit and subsequent sacking. Of course, she'd explained, the teacher in question had most likely deserved everything she got - by all reports what she'd done was heinous and the school was well rid of her - but even so, it didn't hurt to know what he was doing. 

For his opening gambit, he decided on a polite: "Thank you for coming to see me." 

"It's no problem. You sounded rather serious. Has Kazumi been causing any problems?" Indeed, though he'd thought it best not to get higher-ups involved. It hadn't been an easy decision - his respect for the institution was unbreakable - but over his two years of teaching experience here he'd found that some of his colleagues in the school were rather quick to go for penalties harsher than the student's infraction. There were those who even seemed to take delight in it. 

"You've heard about the current events in Tokyo?" Toudou frowned. Oh. Presumably he thought it to be a non-sequitur. 

"Tokyo Tower? Everyone with an Internet connection has." 

Indeed. Though it was only rumour and no government official had come out and said anything, the entire country had been infected by the nonsense sprouting from social media about soul burglars, or whatever nonsensical name had been given to them. 

"Including your daughter."

Toudou winced. Good. He wasn't bringing up new information. He pressed forward. "Some of the things she has been saying in the classroom - well, whether or not these-" Ugh, and now he had to admit to their possible existence, "Criminals exist, she is enraptured by their story. Enraptured enough that she's voiced some very passionate views." 

The wince deepened. 

"You will understand that this institution does have strict standards when it comes to disruption of school harmony." He considered how to phrase his next statement without casting any aspersions on the rest of the staff. "However," he decided upon, "I don't wish for this to go any further than necessary. We all have strong opinions in our youth and it would be unnecessarily harsh to force her to tamp down her enthusiasm." 

"I understand your concern, Odagiri-sensei," said Toudou. "And I promise we'll talk to Kazumi about it. But can I ask how having strong opinions is disrupting class?" 

Inwardly, Hidetoshi tensed. He didn't seem to understand. That wasn't the major issue, here. Had she not brought it up to him? Was it possible that she didn't know? The only reason he'd not brought her in too was because he'd been so sure she had to have known. It seemed improbable otherwise - but then the panicked face of that girl from all those years ago, Hasegawa, flashed in his mind. She hadn't known either - or at least that's what she'd protested. 

Hidetoshi sighed, making Toudou, over on the other side of the table, tense with anticipation. He reached under the desk and pulled out a newspaper, dated from a couple of days ago. 

"Disrupting class is the least of it, Toudou-san." 

Toudou stared at the paper like it was a wanted poster with his face on it. "What's happened?" he asked. His voice was a little hoarse. 

"Two days ago, your daughter was approached for an interview with a local paper, who were trying to ferret out opinions on the recent goings-on from young people. Presumably they wanted some extreme comments, which Kazumi appears to have given them, knowingly or not. They're not comments the higher-ups would want associated with St. Hermelin's." 

Toudou grabbed the paper. "She wouldn't have known," he said, determinedly, as he flicked through the ratty pages. "She knows how much interviews like this can hurt someone's reputation." 

"Is that so?" said Hidetoshi. Parents, he'd found, rarely knew their children as well as they thought they did. While he too was hoping for Kazumi's innocence in the matter - in the sense that she had been manipulated into giving the interview, if not in the sense of forged remarks - he was hardly going to take such a biased party's word for it. 

Toudou seemed to feel it in the atmosphere when Hidetoshi raised his eyebrows, because he continued on with his impassioned defence of his daughter's intelligence: "What I mean is we have several well-known family friends. Not all of them have been especially discreet in the past, but they learnt to be and Kazumi was there for the fallout." 

"It doesn't really matter at this stage whether she did or not." 

"Of course it does." Toudou had lifted his head out of the paper to fully express his firm, steadfast indignation, luckily just in time to miss Hidetoshi's flinch. Damnable weakness. (He didn't particularly like to be reminded of third year at high school, and somehow, Toudou had known just what to say to remind him of... well. That person. Some wounds were still rooted in his heart like that little plum tree had been in Gekkoukan's courtyard.) 

"Yes, Toudou-san. I know. It matters to you and me, but it doesn't to this institution itself. You understand that in order to survive, it must protect itself and its reputation from such scandals, no matter how they have come about." 

"Scandals," said Toudou, flatly, putting the paper down between them. "Odagiri-sensei, I don't mean to be rude, but precisely how long have you been teaching here?" 

Hidetoshi straightened in his chair. He didn't like that tone. It signalled a challenge to his authority, and he wasn't quite sure how to deal with it. Before this, seniors had been easy to spot: those with grey hair and wrinkles; those with dozens of years of teaching experience. Toudou was older than him and a parent, but with an air of youth and inexperience in these matters; while Hidetoshi was younger, also had no idea what he was doing, but should probably have the reins in this, as Kazumi's teacher. Should he acquiesce? Should he fight it? 

"Two years," he admitted, keeping his tone neutral. 

"Ah, of course, that's right, I must have forgotten," said Toudou - he sounded light and pleasant, but Hidetoshi could feel the blow coming. "Odagiri-sensei, what you should understand is that when Kazumi started here, that marked the third generation of my family to have attended this school. So, I don't think I'm being out of line when I tell you I know this school, I know its history, and I know that it can survive ten-a-dozen scandals and be as unchanged as ever. Believe me. This place outlasted a goddamn apocalypse." 

A crude metaphor, but an effective one. It was true that Hidetoshi hadn't entirely grasped the length and scope of St. Hermelin's history. The older teachers were quick to shut their mouths when it came to things they witnessed in their early years. 

Toudou sighed. "But you're right that the staff here don't quite get that as well as they should. Not you in particular," he hastened to add, "The higher-ups are the worst ones for it. And they're the ones with the power to expel my daughter." 

So, he did understand, at least somewhat. Hidetoshi was still discomforted by his blatant disregard for the effects such a scandal could have on St. Hermelin's, but at this point, they had an agreement and he would have to use it if they were to move forward on this. 

"I agree," he said, primly. 

Toudou stared right at Hidetoshi's, freezing him in place with his implacable, striking stare. "You know, I don't see any of them here. If you thought this could hurt the school so badly, why is that?" 

"I told you already, Toudou-san. I don't want this to go further than strictly necessary." 

"You think you have a way of dealing with this." 

"You're the one who told me you had friends in high places, Toudou-san." Well. Toudou and the school files he'd pored over. The class of '96 had been quite the assortment of famous names and faces. 

Toudou leant back with a tiny grin. "You're not suggesting what I think you are, sensei? Not when Kazumi is always on about what a stickler for the rules you are." 

"I have every respect for the rules, Toudou-san," he said, not appreciating the insinuation he was doing anything below-board. "I believe there are many on the subject of the exploitation of children for sensationalist news stories." 

What had happened to Hasegawa had been unjust. He knew that now, as he'd been too blinded by protocol to see back then. He'd be damned if he let it happen to one of his own students. 

Toudou looked at him with newfound curiosity and - if Hidetoshi wasn't just hoping for it enough to hallucinate it - a flicker of respect. "You know, Odagiri-sensei, you remind me of one of the teachers I had here, twenty years ago." His tone told Odagiri it was a compliment of the highest order. He smiled, but Toudou wasn't finished. "So I wouldn't put on any strange masks you find lying around here." 

"What? Why would-" 

"Ten-a-dozen scandals buried here, Odagiri-sensei. And an apocalypse to boot. You should remember that if you plan on staying here long." 

Hidetoshi made a note of that: presumably, something had gone horribly wrong for the teacher in question, most likely during a school play, or drama lesson. "Thank you, Toudou-san. I'll keep that in mind." 

"Will that be all, then?" he asked. 

"I think that about wraps it up, yes," said Hidetoshi. "Unless there's anything you wish to discuss with me outwith the bounds of the previous matter?" 

Toudou sat still for a moment, in consideration, then shook his head. 

"No, I think that about covers everything." 

"Very well," said Hidetoshi. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Toudou-san." 

Strangely enough, it didn't feel like a lie. Toudou was an odd fish, that was for sure, and still had the fashion sense of a teenager, but if nothing else, he cared for his daughter's wellbeing. And then, there was that implacable something about him that brought back memories. Toudou smiled at him as he left, and as the door closed behind him with a click, Hidetoshi wondered if he'd be seeing him again any time soon.

[lostamxngstars]

God’s Game

Siblings thrown away from civilization in order to live, has now become the elusive, top-ranking player called 『　　』.

And after a tournament and a simple chess game, a new game comes.

『No Game No Life x Heroes of Olympus Crossover AU』

AO3 | WP

In the beginning was a world war.

In that world war were half-bloods: young and old, able and crippled, men and women. They scrambled day and night to protect the camps, the mortals, and themselves against the half-bloods standing at the other side of their gun. This war didn't touch the di Angelos, who'd been living and moving away from the worst sectors of the worldwide chaos. They would always find themselves in a hotel, waiting for where they will move next according to Hades. They were neither sad nor happy with the choice, however. It was unfortunate that they were akin to prisoners but one step outside would make them shorter by a head.

Until Zeus finally had enough, and brought down the entire hotel over their heads out of anger. For Hades had been deliberately ignoring his will, and only the Fates know how long could one's patience can go. Even for gods.

Only Nico survived that encounter, if not for Hades who blinked to existence right next to him. But he was all too late to save his mortal wife and his half-blood daughter. His memories were left intact, and he sorely wanted no more of that life. Of hiding. But what could a seven-year-old boy do? His father sent him to the Lotus Hotel and Casino with nothing but his clothes, then, vowing two things before leaving: to get in touch with him.

The other was obvious. I'll protect you from any god who might hurt you.

At that time he was seven, and a seven-year-old needed an education. But there was no way they could bring a mortal teacher inside. The hotel sucked the life out of every mortal to enter and never left. No, Nico didn't want to have a brain-dead, poker-ravished teacher. So he had to make do with what was available. 

The games. 

Often he would hear people discussing about cheap tricks done by those who shuffle cards, some patterns they'd seen when they played and watched the players and how they would make use of it. Nico took them to heart, wanting to learn all of it. It was still education, just informal. Uncommon. Strategies were important. And if people only looked deeper, they would realize that these games can be manipulated with statistics and probability. For the latter he needed to sharpen his wits. Enough to see through the game. Enough to outsmart his opponents.

But of course, kids weren't allowed to play with the adults in the casino. So when a certain lawyer came to tend Nico's needs, he always asked him to take him there and play in his stead. At first they lost. That was okay. Nico studied the way his opponents think, studied the field, study, apply, learn from the loses, rinse and repeat. In a few months they started winning in bigger bets, beat the adults who looked like they literally lived seventy years in the casino. The prizes were almost bigger than his own allowances coming from the god of riches and the Underworld, and that was something.

By the time he was eight, he met his half-sister. A little furtive thing, almost naive. Yet Hazel Levesque knew how to read people like a book. Her eyes were soft and gold, unsuspecting but beneath that was a girl who did not trust anyone, not even the father who saved her.

So he really couldn't hide his surprise when he showed her how to play cards those golden eyes lit up in excitement.

Soon, they played together with the lawyer still being their representative. Win, win, win. That was all they did every hour and every day. The mortals always fought against them even when they kept on losing their coins by the thousands. Two years later it got boring. No one really put up a fight against them. And in the pit of despair they stayed. They didn't want to fight anyone in the thrice-damned hotel anymore. They wanted a taste of fresh air.

Their restlessness reached their father and so he stepped up the game. Games from the mortal world. Every year there would be new consoles, new game disks, new gadgets, faster internet installations laced with the strongest defense magic. Their world which was once the whole of Lotus Hotel shrunk to their penthouse suite, filled with every game imagined. They spent unholy amount of hours fighting in virtual worlds and beating the odds. They collected books in digital format to read about the outside world which, to them, almost felt as far as Nico standing at one end of the Milky Way's arm and Hazel at the other.

Living in that hotel made it so easy for Nico to forget that he was supposed to avenge his dead mom and sister.

Playing games everyday made it so easy for Hazel to forget how she had suffered in the hands of her cruel mom and the crueler Earth Mother.

And yet.

They wanted to make this moment, the magic of gaming, last forever.

The outside world didn't matter. Not anymore.

"Neeks."

"Yeah?"

"I'm dying."

Nico instinctively looked at the HP bar of Hazel's characters, (one on 95% and another on 94%) then realized she meant it in real time. "This is why I told you to get protein bars."

"But the chocolate. The new ones. I heard they were good."

"I know. And I wouldn't have asked for three bars if I didn't want to try it out myself. But to take half the box for our stock? We've got a long and bloody tournament."

"I really thought I brought the right one. I was so sure..."

Nico made quick work of the minions. They were sprinting once more to the deeper parts of the dungeon. "Nectar? Ambrosia?"

"Nein."

"Then what else do we have?"

"Cheetos."

Nico snorted. "Good taste."

They were heading towards the Grand Master, an angelic figure with four wings, four or five or ten HP bars (it depended on who you asked), armed with god-level spells and other things that beta testers have predicted. No one agreed on how powerful the Grand Master is, only on what it does after you lose to it. Your characters, its throwaway identities, and the game itself will be deleted from your PC. Some reported losing memories of the game or forgetting the game's name until they ventured outside and saw an ad... All sorts of strange stories.

Knowing the why behind those reports were beyond the 『      』's pay grade, though.

They were a small party of four played by two, last one standing and armed with god-level spells as well. At the moment they rushed through the dungeons, decimating the minions trying to ambush them. The siblings had one advantage: they were not as limited as a virtual character controlled by machines. And they never had a black spot on their standings. Ever.

On one of Hazel's phones, the screen showed a forum playing their game-play through live-stream. The nets buzzed with their title. Four million hits and counting. Thousands of comments and rising. Idolized. Hated. Loved. Mocked. It didn't matter. They were not regular players anyway.

Playing for almost two days with only a few minute breaks had been known to break down gaming mortals. But they were not just gaming mortals. They were demigods and they had a bit of nectar and ambrosia. But without those and the protein bars, they were as good as screwed. Nico wanted his characters to hide for a while in one of the catacombs, just enough to stretch and gloat at a Cheetos before devouring a bag. But the whole tournament was time-sensitive even their breaks were determined in system time.

There would be no breaks until they defeat the Grand Master.

"Needs HP," Nico grumbled.

"Look ahead for enemies. I'll feed you."

Nico smiled. After a quick three-sixty, he reported the two-hundred-and-fifty-meters area around them as clean. Hazel layered their characters in defensive spells, sent a few minions to set traps, and then grabbed a bag of Cheetos nearby. The area outside the boss room was pretty empty, which was probably part of a common strategy: gather everything at the key point of conflict. So much the better.

They ate and gulped down water as fast as they can, careful not to let a drop fall on their equipment. Nico wiped himself clean with the back of his hand. "I'm taking charge of the food starting tomorrow."

"My chocolates—"

"Will be safe," he assured her. "Have you checked the time?"

"I've eaten seven bars. Three every day. This is the second day...?"

"Unsure?"

"No."

"We'll discuss it la—god's cur!"

A horde raced out of the darkness. Thanks to Hazel's efforts earlier, the front-line shredded itself so bad it affected the little minions at their tails. Chaos everywhere, NPCs dying a little noisier than one would think. Their characters didn't have to move to inflict death but magic was not inexhaustible. Already, Hazel's characters chugged as many HP potions as they can at the side to fill their losses.

"Let's end this," Nico declared, moving his characters through the mob. Hazel followed suit.

They stayed awake for the next two days, eating Cheetos in a haste while their feet took the job of their hands on the mice. It was especially hard for Nico who doesn't have to use his feet very often and in this position. He was basically leaning far away

"Neeks..."

Oh, no, the loving brother thought. "We've gone through worse, Hazel. You can do this."

Worse as in hunted by foes. Worse as in kept awake by nightmares. Nightmares woven by gods, by magic, by the stink of this hotel — a lot of things. So many things.

She knew it. Yet. "We're almost... Done... I..."

"And then you can rest," Nico promised, "all day long and until the next day, and you'll wake with chocolates at your side, I swear it."

"...if you say... So..."

The last HP bar, Nico muttered as he moved his character around, dodging the spells thrown at him. Even if IRL Hazel was lagging her characters didn't reflect it. Impressive sweet sister. He took out his trump card and set out the most powerful spell he knows against the damned boss.

Die already!

A great light filled their screens as his spell and the Grand Master met, and then the victory spiel and banners flying everywhere.

Nico and Hazel slumped against their chairs, exhausted. Pings filled their phones. Of course, these were only throwaway IDs and emails, quickly filling with news about 『      』's victory.

"They've got... something... to talk... About."

"Let them talk, little sister. Remember Snow?"

"Know... Nothing..."

"Precisely."

A special mail ringtone played on another phone. It announced any email coming from somewhere not listed among their saved addresses. Nico looked around for it for a while until he found it on one of the Cheetos boxes.

The subject was addressed to...

"Hazel..."

"Mmm."

"Hazel, look."

"...Why...?" Hazel was already rising, though.

"Come on. It's a mail. For us."

She started falling back on the floor with her frown. "What's so... different..."

Nico showed it to her but she shielded her eyes. "Too bright!"

"Ah, sorry. Sorry." He set down the brightness a little lower, and showed it again. "Read the subject."

"'To the siblings, 『      』.' Wait—" she stared at Nico with wide eyes. "No one knows we are!"

"She woke." Hazel stuck out her tongue. "You're right. No one knows that about us. So this person, whoever he is..."

"...Knows something."

They read the email's body together.

【Have you siblings ever felt that you guys were born into the wrong world?】

"Great. He knows our hearts."

"At least it's not another cheap invitation."

"Too true."

Attached below it was a simple link. It didn't look anything special, and seem to lead to... probably some game. Nico wasn't particularly worried with viruses; though of course, it would mean that he did not safeguard his computer with several firewalls. Which he did, and checked it as often as he could. He sat on his chair and let Hazel sit on the desk, switching the screen to show that email and clicked on the link.

It showed a plain online chess game.

Hazel squinted. "Really?"

"Really."

Though looking quite dead, Hazel managed a smile and blew a few strands of curly hair out of her faces. "Think you can...?"

"I beat Grand Masters for breakfast."

It was a record. A record he couldn't take for real. One step outside still costs them a head. Nico made his first move, Hazel watching intently. Nico knew what she was doing, reading through every move, calculating in advance. He also knew that she should be the one playing, knew that Hazel knew she should be the one playing.

But for Hazel to keep up this renewed energy, she needed a break. This, allowing herself to only calculate at the side, suggest a move or stop one, was an a-okay substitute. Somewhere in the hours they switched. Somewhere in the hours Nico started feeding Cheetos to Hazel, piece by piece. If Nico's eyes talked they'd be complaining.

They finally won after seven hours.

Hazel fell on the desk, loud. She didn't even say any "Ouch!" or "It hurts..." She's really tired. Nico pursed his lips and stroked her hair. "You won, dear sister."

"We... did... 『      』..."

It was a joke, their title. 『      』. Children of darkness, of emptiness. The void. Nothing. Nothing. Blank. Nothing. But no one wanted to die knowing nothing. No one wanted to leave knowing they did nothing to change their lives. So did Nico. That's why he learned how to play the game, the safer game, why he wanted Hazel to learn with him, why they strive to be on top without any black spots. It was hard work—they weren't children of the Wise Goddess—but it was fun. They smiled and laughed after a long time, and Persephone knows how much it made Hades happy.

So happy that he willfully drowned them in games, reported they were dead somewhere, the bastards like that all too well. And thanks to the gods unchanging rules no one could properly monitor them on the webs. No. That was too risky even for a god. The god of Death couldn't even Skype them for more than five minutes without hiding somewhere safe. They heard that the only thing the Wine God played these days was a PacMan machine.

A new email popped up on the screen. Same sender from earlier.

【As expected, 『      』. You really are good. It's a waste that such talents... are left in the darkness.】

They exchanged glances.

Was it possible that their father could somehow see this in the palace? He gave them this PC set laced with magic. What would he make of this?

"Trying to provoke us," Hazel pointed out.

Nico typed in a reply, heedless.

【This is the only way we can enjoy the cursed life we have. Why do you care anyway?】

Shortly after sending it came another email.

【What do you guys think about this world? Is it interesting? Is it a place worth spending your life in?】

"He must be joking," Nico decided. He was about to turn off the PC when another email came through.

【What if a world where everything was decided by games truly existed? The whole world above a game board, where the objectives and rules were clear. What do you think?】

They exchanged looks again. And together they typed in a response.

【Then we'd rather be there. Right now.】

As soon as they hit Send, static took over every screen. Strange points of light seeped through the walls. More appeared every second, breaking the walls.

"Impossible..." Nico whispered.

They could hear thundering cracks coming everywhere.

"Earthquake?" Hazel asked, clutching his arm. He squeezed her hands. They were cold with fear.

"I don't—we would've—"

The floor gave way and they started falling...

But not towards a hotel room right beneath them, like what they expected.

But towards the wide, pastel-like sky adorned with gigantic chess pieces, leaving the stars and the planets and the galaxies and a disintegrating box which was their old life behind them.