#Game Vanessa would be very secretive about herself

[chloesimaginationthings]

Mike and Vanessa learn about FNAF game lore

[puhpandas]

balloon world is GGY's princess quest theory:

so theres been speculation that Balloon world in SB is like Dr Rabbits equivalent of princess quest for Vanny because of the purple glitches inside. im here to add on some evidence to that theory

so ruin confirmed that the Princess Quest ending (free vanny) is canon. it hints at it multiple times and it pretty much confirmed. epecially with THIS room in ruin.

the third princess quest (aka the cabinet that freed vanny plus killed glitchtrap) is shown on its side with a sword driven through it. implying its been conquered and shut down.

its this exact theme that made me notice it in balloon world as well.

in ruin, the room with the balloon world arcade cabinet is still accessible, even though it seemingly has no impact on the story (it was famous for being disappointing when sb first released). in that room, balloon world is also shattered. and when you put on the mask, like seeing the sword driven in princess quest with the mask on, you see this.

the eclipse from balloon world is shown outside the cabinet in the AR world like the sword in PQ.

this is what the game looks like normally:

and by normally i mean ONLY when you glitch it out. this screenshot is a product of using the games mechanics to reach multiple PURPLE glitches across the arcade game. and multiple (meaningless) messages appear as well. That same eclipse is shown outside the machine in ruin.

we know pretty much nothing about ggy outside of the book. so here is what i think happened by this evidence along with more from the games in general:

pre sb, very close to the actual games events, gregory had been glitchtrapped just like vanessa before suddenly freeing himself on accident. this could have happened from anything, but my idea right now is that ggy found the secret room and unknowlingly played the game that held his free will because of his love for arcade games (shown in his high scores)

queue gregory getting freed from glitchtrap and waking up with amnesia pre sb. hes stuck in the pizzaplex with no memory and is freaking out. vanny and glitchtrap immediately know he isnt under control anymore. vanny goes after him herself, posing as vanessa during business hours

gregory escapes and after freddy crashes on stage, he hides in his stomach hatch. queue security breach, where vanny sends the animatronics after gregory to bring him back to re-glitchtrap him/just kill him so he doesnt tattle (let me take you to your parents/your family is looking for you)

due to the content massacre in sb, we can only guess if balloon world had ggy hints or if it meant anything before they removed any mention at all. eclipse feels like a last minute filler, and that could work in canon too. maybe eclipse was the games way of filling that hole gregorys conciousness left in the game

and when everything is said and done post SB, when gregory kills glitchtrap for good in princess quest, the machine breaks. and anything related to the VANNI network/glitchtrap virus is leaking out into the AR world, but contained in the pizzaplex.

and thats what i think :) this amnesia + ggy theory for gregory can also work with cut voicelines from security breach + ruin. it seems like gregory still doesnt fully remember/understand that he was glitchtrapped, and him seemingly being best friends with cassie but not contacting her at all after going missing is explained by the fact that he literally didnt remember her until he saw that she existed.

and maybe the memories started coming back after that, setting up for him eventually remembering all that he did as ggy

not to mention how a ggy reveal would perfectly explain why gregory would cut the elevator if it really was him. it would at least add context.

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

//And with close 60% of the final vote, our 11th Match will be Hajime Hinata Vs Izuku Midoriya.

//What a LANDSLIDE victory, and one that's very well deserved in my opinion.

//But with that, we come to our GRAND FINALE, and I don't know about you guys...But there's only one person who can bring a spectacular despairful finale to this Death Battle series...

//Connections:

Afton: Both are antagonists from video games that are both psychopathic and intelligent, and they both started a horrible event with little to no rhyme or reason behind it, that kickstarted the main timeline of their respective series (the Tragedy and the end of the world for Junko and the multiple child murders that Afton committed). Both used their designated place of work/study as a death trap for their victims (Hope's Peak Academy and Freddy Fazbear's Pizza) and both are connected to mascots with animal themes, one of which they hide behind to keep their actual identities a secret from others (The Monokuma's and the Animatronics, more specifically the RC Killing Game Monokuma and Spring Bonnie). Both of them have control of a variety of gadgets and tech that help them kill their victims, the most potent of which are a small army of animal-themed killing machines (Monokuma for Junko and the AR Animatronics and Twisted One's for Afton). Ironically, their death would come from being crushed by the very thing that they used to commit their murders, as well as being brought on by their own victims (Junko died in the Ultimate Punishment after Makoto and the other Survivors of the first Killing Game defeated her, and Afton was crushed by his suit's spring locks when confronted by the spirits of the 5 missing children that he murdered), but they would soon resurrect in order to carry out their murderous plans; initially, they would take over a robot, and later, they would emerge as a virus that would infect users' virtual games and take over their minds (Junko created an Alter Ego AI of herself that initially took over Kurokuma and Shirokuma before it's concentrated code was uploaded into the Neo World by Izuru, where it then tried to possess the bodies of the Remnant's of Despair. Afton's spirit possessed the Spring Bonnie suit, becoming Springtrap, and then later Glitchtrap in the Fazbear Virtual Experience, where he tried to corrupt the minds of the game testers). These AI's also successfully took hold in the minds of young females, who became their most devoted follower (Yukari Koime and Vanessa). Both are also notorious for coming back from the dead time and time again, no matter how many times people try to get rid of them.

Chris: Both are twisted presenters of reality TV programs where teens are coerced into risky and life-threatening situations for extremely petty and illogical reasons (Junko did so for her own amusement and to spread the feeling of Despair to all of mankind for no reason other than boredom, and Chris not only enjoys watching people suffer, but he's obsessed with gaining views, clout and money through his show). The majority of their victims are a group of teenagers who are all centered around a single stereotype (The Ultimate's and the Contestants). Both also have/had a partner, whom they tormented and picked on all the time (Mukuro Ikusaba and Chef Hatchet), they both have armies of robots at their disposal, among many other traps and gadgets.

Major: They are both the charismatic, nihilistic, and completely insane leaders of their own personally corrupted terrorist followers (The Ultimate Despair/Organization Zetsubou and The Millenium Organization). They have unleashed unimaginable levels of terror and carnage on the world and are in constant conflict with an organization that works to fight the evils they bring about (The Future Foundation and the Hellsing Organization). They have long since passed away from what should have been their premature demise, but they still find ways to return and wreak more havoc (Junko comes back as an AI and by employing prodigies like Monaca to carry on her legacy. The Major was once revived as a cyborg.) Their pursuit of destruction stems from a single, overarching concept that defines their identity and motivation for wanting to see the world burn (Despair for Junko and War for The Major)

Joker: Both are insane manipulative masterminds who are fixated on a psychotic and flawed philosophy that emphasizes the negative aspects of humanity (Despair and Insanity respectively). Their obsession frequently drives them to manipulate and put other people in bizarre situations to demonstrate the superiority of their philosophy and drive people insane. Both drove admiring women in the medical field into a similar state of madness and twisted undying affection by manipulating them (Mikan Tsumiki and Harleen Quinzel) and they have both brainwashed countless others, have unpredictable personalities that cause them to act erratically, have hatched elaborate plans to bring about anarchy in society, and they both enjoy killing people in bizarre and inventive ways. Both are the nemeses of men who solve intricate crimes and directly contradict their ideology and thwart their schemes (Makoto Naegi and Bruce Wayne/Batman) whom also partner with a law-abiding individual who has ties to the police (Kyoko Kirigiri and Commissioner Jim Gordon). Both have multiple selves that they frequently switch between (with Junko continuously switching between different personas and Joker asserting that he had a multiple choice past and that he was even three people in the "three jokers" plot), are willing to harm and betray their own allies in an attempt to validate their beliefs (Mukuro and Harley Quinn, multiple times), and, despite their obvious mental health problems, are remarkably unsympathetic (Junko lost all sense of humanity and could only experience true life when she was in the depths of despair. Joker was a failed comedian who completely lost faith in humanity, and later fell into a vat chemicals during a heist)

Monika: Both are the main antagonists of Visual Novels who are initially portrayed as talented high school girls and possess an abnormal degree of control in the world around them (Junko is the Ultimate Despair/Fashionista/Analytical prowess, and is extremely powerful and influential for a mere high-school girl and regularly breaks the fourth wall, while Monika, who is the president of the Literature Club and a very popular upperclassman in the school, not only also breaks the fourth wall, but has access to the game files, which she can play with how she fits) They both commit graphic crimes on the world and their classmates/friends for seemingly petty and nonsensical reasons (Junko does it to feel Despair and spread Despair, while Monika actively deletes the other characters from DDLC's game files until she's the only available romance option left) however, they do it with slightly contrasting motivations which makes one more sympathetic than the other (Junko is hopelessly fickle and does terrible things simply out of boredom and a desire to feel any sort of excitement. Monika does it out of desperation and love for the player, since the game denies her any role outside of a background character, and not an initial date option). Both, at least at one point, are also AI/coded characters in a digital world that they desperately want to escape from (Junko came back as an AI after her death and tried to use the Remnant's of Despair's bodies to escape the Neo World Program and wreak havoc on the world again, while Monika desires nothing more than to get out of the coded reality she's in so she can be in a romantic relationship with the MC behind the screen.) As a side note, Junko's protégé from Ultra Despair Girls is also called Monaca, though it is spelt differently.

[IMPORTANT NOTE: To make sure everything is covered, this version of Junko will be a COMPOSITE version of her that combines all of her iterations across Danganronpa as a series. This includes AI Junko from DR2, UDG and Survivor, but DOES NOT include DRV3, as that version is Tsumugi dressed up as her.]

Also, here's the Narumi animation that was used in the promo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEt7l49Y87Q

[acacia-may]

I really love the bingos and it really gives insight on what kind of Black Clover ships exists out there. Nozel x Vanessa was a surprise, but... I find the idea of it already interesting and what you said in your bingo sounds good as well. I'm interested in this ship, so what kind fics did you found about them and which would you suggest?

Aww thank you so much, anon! 🥰 I'm so delighted to hear you enjoyed the bingo game! I had lots of fun with it so it makes me happy to hear others enjoyed it as well. 💖

Nozel x Vanessa surprised me too, to be perfectly honest. I think I mentioned this somewhere in the bingo game so I apologize if I am repeating myself, but Vanessa is definitely one of those characters I could see happy with a lot of different characters (and different types of characters), so I like and/or could see lots of different ships with her in them. I could also see her perfectly content as the unmarried fun, 'wine aunt' of all her Black Bulls nieces and nephews too. It's really up to her and what life she would choose for herself! (Or, I suppose, that the author would choose for her. As Vanessa's love life hasn't played much of a role in the story, I doubt we'll get much of a resolution on that point in the canon, but you never know... 😂) Vanzel/Nozessa may not my all-time favourite ship with Vanessa in it, but it definitely could be fun! [Vanessa x [Fill In The Tsundere] is just such an entertaining dynamic in general! Really fun stuff!! 😁] I'm glad you liked what I had to say about them. I really have the fandom to thank for helping me see the possibilities of that ship! 💕

I'm certainly no expert on Nozel x Vanessa fanfictions by any means 😅--I've really only dabbled in the ship a little bit, but here are a few I really enjoyed! (Listed in alphabetical order below the cut)

Hurdles by Oighear (on AO3) -- Domestic fluff about Nozel and Vanessa trying to assemble baby furniture. Really all the warm and fuzzies! [I've really enjoyed all of the Vanessa/Nozel fics I've read by this author, but this is probably my favourite! It was just so adorable! 🥰]

Poetry Hour at the Bookshop by @crazedstoryteller (on AO3) -- This was one of the very first Vanessa x Nozel fanfiction I read, and it brought the biggest smile to my face! Just fun, funny, and fluffy in a modern AU (Also really shows off Nozel's tsundere side and gives Asta his moment to really shine with an absolutely inspired poem about potatoes 😂).

Night of Vows by Vilandel (on AO3. Rated T) -- This was a great story even if the premise didn't exactly fit with my personal headcanons of how I imagine their relationship. I loved the depiction of vulnerable Nozel (and gosh he's such a tsun too), and Vanessa comforting him. Also, the traditional Clover Kingdom vows the author came up with are just beautiful! 💖

Sugar, Spice and... by succulentsunrise (on AO3) -- It's about Vanessa and Nozel's first kiss with each other, and the author gives them a refreshingly healthy dynamic for a secret romance. Very cute! 💕

I also loved this one @lyranova wrote on request about Yami and Charlotte discovering Nozel and Vanessa are dating! (It has a little bit of YamiChar and some great Yami and Vanessa friendship in it too!) 🥰

Finally, I'm not sure if this one is actually Vanessa x Nozel or not because it's really more focused on Vanessa giving up her feelings for Yami, but there is an excellent moment between her and Nozel towards the end that is really what first endeared their friendship (or the idea of their friendship). I don't think I would have been as open to the idea of them as a romantic ship without having read this, so I'm mentioning it here. It's also very well-written, and I really like the author's insights into Vanessa's character. Little Birdie by S.C. Tucker on FFN. (Honestly one of my favourite Vanessa fanfictions in general too! 💗)

Thank you so much for the ask! I hope this helps! 😊

[teencrackship]

Do not Panic

Prologue

Every small town has a secret. Ours is a game. Losers stay here where losing is what we do best. The winners come out. In Carp, Texas, getting out of this rotten mess is the only thing worth it. This is why players risk their lives to win. Judgment is coming, but the game is not meant to kill you. And it won't. If you follow a rule. Do not panic.

As usual, Ivy woke up to hear her little sister complaining to her mother that she wanted her breakfast. Too busy getting drunk on the couch to care, so Ivy had the responsibility of feeding Isabella. The three of them had been living in this mobile home since Ivy and Izzy's parents separated. Their father had left with all their money leaving them practically poor. It was one of the many things she had in common with her best friend Heather, although unlike her, her father contributed money to an account for their studies every month for her and her little sister.

She dragged her feet into the tiny kitchen where her sister was drawing on the counter, still complaining about her mother.

- Oh, finally! Your sister keeps complaining! Feed her, said Vanessa, his mother, before taking a big gulp of beer. "You could have taken care of that," Ivy muttered, pulling out two bowls and some cereal. That's being a fucking mother. - You said what? Vanessa asked, raising her voice.

She wanted to see if her eldest daughter would dare to repeat.

- Forget it, she whispered, opening the fridge.

She realized that her mother had forgotten to buy milk. Still.

- You forgot the milk. - I will go tonight. - You said that yesterday too. - Look shit, I have a life!

Ivy shook her head as she turned to her sister.

- Well this morning, it will be cereals without milk, but tomorrow I promise to bring you a chocolate croissant from work, okay?

Isabella shook her head enthusiastically as she imagined how her croissant would taste. While her little sister ate, Ivy went back to her room to get ready. Although her family is quite limited given that she works well, she can afford to buy the clothes and makeup that she likes. This is why she often gets compliments on her clothes when she goes out. Since she was graduating today, she chose to opt for a little white dress with cherries, white heeled sandals and styled her hair by taking the top half of her black hair in a high ponytail to give it a volume. She made up very discreetly at eye level, but underlined her lips with a magnificent red lipstick. She may seem very intimidating at first glance, but in truth, she would do anything for her friends and family. She wants a better life than her mother's. Above all, she wants her sister to be safe. That's why she would do anything.

The truth is, Panic started like many things here. Because it was summer and there was nothing else to do. The game always starts right after graduation. It lasts all summer. All senior graduates are eligible to play. Sometimes 40 players enter. Sometimes half. But there is still only one winner. Every year there are new players, new challenges, new judges.

She would do anything. Even killing herself in a game. Of course, she has a plan B. If she doesn't win Panic, she knows she could manage to marry a rich guy in a few years and thus support her sister. It's not ideal, but she would do anything for her. Even marry a man she doesn't love. It remains to find it among this band of loosers.

But the game also has ghosts. We never have to say their names. They know where to find us. They know we're not going anywhere. Not unless we're playing.

[kalopsiawasteland]

"SHE HAD A FACE STRAIGHT OUTTA MAGAZINE - GOD ONLY KNOWS, BUT YOU'LL NEVER LEAVE HER"

the devil on your shoulder being your best friend, feeling at-home in a casino, and a dainty spade tattoo to immortalize always playing your ace at the perfect time...

INTRODUCING…

NAME: Vanessa "Nessa" Sanchez-Navarro

GENDER & PREFERRED PRONOUNS: Cis woman {She/Her}

AGE: 39

BIRTHDAY: May 25, 1984

ZODIAC: Gemini Sun, Aquarius Moon, Capricorn Rising

SEXUALITY: Bisexual

FACE CLAIM: Aubrey Plaza

LABEL: The Miscreant

OCCUPATION: Con-Artist/Club Owner

HOMETOWN: Las Vegas, NV.

CURRENT RESIDENCE: Brisbane, AUS.

CHARACTER PLAYLIST: HERE.

↪ UP NEXT: “ROBBERS” BY THE1975

BIOGRAPHY: TW NEGLECT, HOMELESSNESS, CON-ARTISTRY

Vanessa was found in a dumpster. Swaddled in a towel and screaming. It was an elderly homeless woman who took her in, only to pass away when Nessa turned 9. To a degree, she never understood why the woman would take her in when there was nothing to her name. Though, she did manage to survive for 9 years, and it was because of that very woman that Nessa understood how to run the streets to her advantage. It wasn’t until Nessa was 16 that she was caught by a magician for pickpocketing his wallet. It was the only time she’s ever been caught in her 7 years of trickery. Through this man, she made a deal to be his magician’s assistant in order to be partners and run a con, all to be able to learn some better slight of hand. It was a very great act, entertaining people only to then take from them. This way of life not only excited Nessa, but it also was keeping her lights on in her shoebox of a shitty apartment. When she turned 18, she took all the money they made together and seemed to disappear to the richer area of Vegas. Her eyes were saucers, the greed mixed with her need for survival having her take all she learned and turn it on the rich and wealthy bachelors who turned up in Vegas. Her favorite where the ones on a business trip. Their black cards the reason she has the amount of Chanel she does and her Maserati. It was an easy con, to portray herself as something she wasn’t in order to get close, bleed them dry and then go off to the next. The last con, she married a billionaire, waited for him to go on a business trip, took the money and bolted. This time, instead of just a new area of Vegas, she took off to Brisbane. Now, she’s living her best life. She won a little run-down club in the area and flipped it into Seventh Heaven. Rumor is that she has a secret area of the club that turns into Club Rouge - where anyone’s wildest dream could come true. Even hers.

EXTRA-EXTRA, READ ALL ABOUT HER!

Vanessa is always the life of the party. She’s jokingly awkward, and it’s all a part of her charm. She’s definitely guarded, and hasn’t ever been caught by the police because she’s so good at coming up with stories on-the-spot and throwing off suspicion. Nessa is loyal, but only if she feels there is something in it for her in the relationship. She’s accepting of anyone and everyone and really pushes for people to be their authentic selves, mostly because she hides pieces of herself due to her past and has no choice. She’s the type to drag you out if you’re having a bad day and getting up on tables to dance. She has her hand on the pulse of the city and usually has an in for all the newest and hottest areas due to the fact she’s a nightclub owner. She loves weed, card games, and conspiracy theories (grab your foil hat). She appreciates humor and intelligence in others, and shows her sarcasm when she thinks someone is stupid lol. Uh, she is brilliant and it’s interesting because she dropped out of high school - mostly cause it bored her. She somewhat regrets it now and wishes she got a degree. She doesn’t do serious relationships really - mostly because of her conartistry. It sucks though because she is charming and she draws people to her but they tend to not leave and declare themselves her friends; She’s very black cat energy. Overall, she’s a fun time. She’s air-coded with how she switches up.

PERSONALITY:

+ Clever, Entertaining, and Charming

- Secretive, Manipulative, and Sarcastic

[vrabbiit]

🐰Chasing the White Rabbit: Vanny x F!Security Guard!Reader - PART II🐰

first fic i've posted here with multiple parts! i couldn't help but continue where i left off-

Wordcount: 2334

Contains: Mild violence, suggestive content (SFW)

PART ONE

Something was off.

A week had passed since your encounter with Vanny, and it was like she'd completely vanished. No longer did you feel red eyes following you wherever you went, or catch a glimpse of the woman out of the corner of your eyes. It was weird, and you were almost disappointed; even though you'd fought with her, there was a strange pull to the woman in the rabbit suit that you'd felt before, but had amplified massively now you've actually seen and interacted with her. What was she doing in the Pizzaplex? You knew her name, sure, but who was she under the mask? You found her on your mind constantly, even with her absence.

You'd done a bit of internet sleuthing but found nothing. You'd searched "Vanny" into the security databases, just to be disappointed. When you backspaced it to "Van", the only person that came up was your co-night guard Vanessa, who had ben adamant she knew absolutely nothing about any rabbit woman roaming the halls.

You'd considered telling her about your encounter, proving to her that you weren't crazy, and even getting as far as the door of the security room until you stopped. Did you really want to tell Vanessa? Last time she'd made it very clear she thought you were seeing things, and you weren't sure if she would believe you even if you said you'd talked to Vanny. And what if she did believe you? Vanny had threatened you (despite the fact your heart fluttered at the memory), and if she took it seriously there was a chance that Vanny would be gone for good, and you were holding out hope she'd come back.

Complex feelings aside, you decided this would be your secret. You wanted to know more about Vanny, and that certainly wouldn't happen if she got found out and arrested for trespassing. Thus, you left Vanessa to her security cameras and went on your rounds, keeping an extra eye out.

It was odd, though, almost unnerving in a way, to have exactly zero eyes on you in the Pizzaplex. You'd grown used to the glimpses of Vanny, grown to enjoy the weird cat and mouse game you'd had with her, even if you'd come to realize very quickly that despite your hunting for her, she would always be the cat. She was always one step ahead of you, and while it was frustrating, the dynamic was somehow exhilarating. You wondered idly one day if she'd ever completely turn the tables and seek you out herself.

So, you waited.

It took Vanny exactly a week and three days to return back to shadowing you. The sheer relief that bubbled up in you when you caught sight of a fluffy tail disappearing around the corner was quite honestly embarrassing.

In your mind, you rationed that she probably hadn't stopped, and was just choosing to let you see her again. You'd already been very much humbled in your beliefs that you were in any way on top in this dynamic. Your little scuffle on the catwalks had proven that. And yet, there was a weird sort of comfort in it; sure, it was annoying to learn that you could never truly catch Vanny off-guard, but she... hadn't killed you, or even put you in any danger more than the environment of your fight already did.

She'd called you pretty.

You were embarrassed to admit that whenever you thought about that interaction your heart beat a little faster and your face reddened, as well as when you remembered the feeling of her hands around your wrists.

Maybe you had a problem if someone literally threatening to kill you was making you feel like this.

But, you reasoned, she had a very nice voice, even with the robotic voice changer. And again, she thought you were pretty.

Vanessa was probably right about you needing to talk to someone, but true to form, you were not about to listen to Vanessa.

So instead, you went back to business as usual. No more following Vanny in case she actually made good on her promise, but if you pretended not to notice her just so she'd stick in your peripheral vision a little longer, who would know? She certainly never said anything.

As all good things do, however, this strange equilibrium came to an end. You'd been hearing reports of things going missing from shops only to never be seen leaving the Pizzaplex - plushies, clothes, food. In any other situation, this wouldn't be your problem. But management had asked Vanessa to check during the shift, and that meant you had to go because Vanessa was content to stick to her office and delegate any "fieldwork" to you.

And as such, you were spending the shift checking every nook and cranny of the Pizzaplex for lost property. You didn't even know why management cared so much, but your coworker had been adamant that you had to check everywhere her cameras couldn't reach. Which meant, for the first time in around three weeks, you were back in the area around and above Fazer Blast.

You had to say, you'd been nervous to come up here again. Despite your complex feelings around everything that had happened, you still were not a fan of heights, and your hand stayed very much attached to the railings as you walked. There was also a lack of Vanny, and you weren't sure whether that was a good thing or not.

On the one hand, you started to feel naked without her gaze on you, uneasy. On the other, you felt like she did not like you being up here. Which... made sense, since you were almost certain that she was holed up here.

This was the last place you had to check, and unless she was living in the walls or something, she had to be here. You'd already figured that she was probably the one taking the food - it had been almost obvious to you - and the idea that she'd been stealing clothes was also believable.

Plushies, though?

The idea of this potentially violent woman stealing the plushies in the gift shop shouldn't be cute.

And yet.

Sighing, you crossed the catwalks with more nerves than you'd like to admit. You kept an eye and an ear out for any movement, any creak of metal to alert you of Vanny's presence, but nothing. It was eerily silent and still, even with the flashing lights and distant music from below.

Honestly, you'd preferred checking the catwalks above Gator Golf. At least there, there was a chance you'd fall into water or soft fake foliage. Here, there were just unforgiving walls and set pieces. There was one final place you had to check, the old control room that had long gone unused since the company had changed to mostly robotic staff. It looked out over the entirety of Fazer Blast, and the only way to access it was these goddamn walkways.

If you were honest, you'd expected it to be empty. Just another wild goose chase you'd sent yourself on to track down the white rabbit. Except unlike Alice, you had no intention of falling.

Instead, you found her hideout. A small, albeit sparsely furnished room, and it was definitely hers if the name scrawled on the wall in purple spray paint was anything to go by. There was a mattress (that was definitely being slept in, judging by the covers folded back), a chair, and an arcade machine.

How the fuck she got Princess Quest III up here, you had no idea. You barely had time to note the lost plushies in the corner of the room before a hand clamped down on your shoulder and you screamed.

It was lucky that that second decided to be the second the power cut out, as you were sure she was going to attack you. Instead, with a worrying clunk, you were plunged into near darkness. You heard a sharp inhale from the person behind you - Vanny, you'd recognize that voice anywhere, it had played in your memories that many times - and you wrenched your shoulder out of her grip, staggering further into the room. She followed quickly, a hand making its way to your throat - not enough to restrict your air, but enough to stop you from trying anything.

The room was dimly lit only by the green of the emergency light from the door you'd just come through, and only allowed her silhouette to be seen. You'd thought, idly in the past, that her eyes glowed, but none of that was visible.

"I'm not going to tell anyone you're here," you blurted out.

Slowly and only barely visible, she tilted her head. It was like she was considering the statement, the silence stretching on.

"Why?" She said finally, suspicion audible.

You shrugged, before realizing she probably couldn't see.

"It's like you said," you said, "It's no fun otherwise."

A sharp exhale left her, like she was holding back a laugh.

"I knew we were on the same page."

At that moment, the emergency fire exit light decided to give up and flicker out.

"Shit," you said, suddenly feeling the dark a lot more than you had. "I didn't even know they could do that."

It was then that the situation began to kick in. You were stuck, in a room literally nobody ever went to, with a woman who your only coworker refused to admit existed, who had literally attacked you before and had her hand around your neck, and you were most scared of the dark.

Yeah, you definitely had a problem.

There was a sudden and unfamiliar rustling noise in front of you, and you held your breath as you realized she was taking her mask off. Her gloved hand adjusted its grip from your neck to your jaw, suddenly feeling much more intimate (and controlling) and making your head spin. She cupped your chin, tilting it up, and you felt her breath against your face, giving away just how close she was even in the complete darkness. You leaned almost subconsciously into her touch, and she let out an amused exhale, giving you a small pang of embarrassment.

This woman could have killed you at any moment, and all you wanted was to close the gap between the two of you. You barely even cared that this could be a trap - you felt, deep down, like she was enjoying the cat and mouse game just as much as you. She'd said it herself - you were lucky she thought you were pretty.

Even if you couldn't see her face, you thought she was pretty too. The way she moved, her playful act, her voice... You had it bad.

Which is why you barely even hesitated when she leaned in, besides the initial shock of not being able to see. The kiss between you was clumsy, sure, but it lit a fire in you and soon you were grabbing at whatever you could feel in the darkness - the front of her suit (the white fabric of which was, you discovered, just as soft as it looked from a distance) - to pull her closer. It was like the thread of unspoken tension between the two of you, pulled taut since your fight, had finally snapped and the dam had broken open, leaving the two of you to fall together with the force of it.

She nipped at your lower lip, not hard enough for it to truly hurt but hard enough to send a jolt through your nerves, and you made an unexpected noise, somewhere between a gasp and a moan. (You discover something new every day, apparently.) This time you didn't imagine her smirk through her mask so much as feel it against your lips as she hummed in amusement.

The hand not on your jaw ended up on your waist, fingers digging in like her life depended on it. You let go of her suit to wrap your arms around her neck, pulling her impossibly closer (she was already flush against you). Every time one of you pulled away for breath, it was only for a moment until the other dove back in to render you lightheaded.

And then the lights turned back on. You barely noticed, your eyes having fallen closed long ago, but she stiffened against you.

"Open your eyes and I'll kill you," she murmured, sounding uncharacteristically unsure of herself. You nodded, reluctantly letting her back away from you and re-attach the head of her costume. Your heart was beating so loudly, you wondered if she could hear it. Her threat had lacked any of the fire it had previously, and you sincerely doubted that she would actually kill you. But, something stopped you from choosing to see the face of the girl you'd just frantically made out with in the brief power cut.

Maybe you respected her privacy. Maybe you sensed the vulnerability she'd shown you in even taking the mask off in the first place. Maybe you were just into the mystery of it all.

Either way, you didn't open your eyes until you heard footsteps receding from the room you stood in. Blinking them open, you were accosted with the brightness, and by the time your poor eyes adjusted Vanny was long gone, leaving only the phantom memories of her touches and the flush of your face as proof she'd even been in there with you.

Well, that and the stash of stolen goods. With everything that happened, you'd completely forgotten that that was your goal in coming out here, and not to be kissed breathless by your... enemy? Friend? Love interest?

In the end, you settled on "by Vanny." Your relationship with the woman was beyond complicated without even trying to put a label on it.

You also sent a quick message to Vanessa now that the power (and therefore connection) was back.

"No sign of stolen stuff, sorry."

[forcebewitht]

Force's Disney Geek Master Theory: Why Twisted Wonderland Is Called Twisted Wonderland

We have all grown to know and love various Disney characters over the years, correct? Yet, I believe a lot of us can argue that not many characters have the same effect on us even as adults today as the Villains do within their respective movies. In the game Disney: Twisted Wonderland as we all know and love, the select boys to Overblot are supposed to have the "souls" of their Villain counterparts, right? But...why is it called "Twisted" Wonderland, then? The truth may lie within something that has been right in front of us all along, my friends: the meaning of a mirror. Ready to buckle in for this one? If so, then here we go!

We have seen all of these guys share character traits, looks, etc with their Disney counterparts, correct? Well, what if I were to tell you that things in terms of the "main" guys that we are supposed to pay attention to aren't exactly what they seem? This could be analyzed in a few different ways, honestly, yet the most prominent way is this: the differences in their personalities- they are reversed. Let us take this bit by bit, shall we?

Ah, yes. The Queen Of Hearts. The ranting, raging, bundle of red, black, and gold we all know and love. (or else heads would roll, I'm sure) One of the things that everybody knows about her is that she's extremely hellbent on the crazy rules that she makes up and is prone to anger honestly very easily. Yeah, you can connect that to Riddle- but think about it for a second. While that rage and the rule thing is still there, it isn't as prominent with him as it was with her, is it? With the Queen of Hearts, her whole "issue" was that she wished to make everybody listen to her and follow her every command- but Riddle was essentially always following the rules of another- not his own. This seemed to make Riddle a little more calm most of the time in terms of how he handled and oversaw things. It wasn't until he actually Overblotted that the "listen to me and only me" thing came out- buuuuuuttttttt I'll get to that part in a bit.

Next: Leona and Scar. While we honestly didn't get to see a lot of what went on behind the scenes in the Outlands in terms of how Scar even met the hyenas to begin with at all, one thing can honestly be said- Scar worked very hard to get where he was. I mean, it's not like you can get an entire pack of rabid, hungry hyenas onto your side in the course of a single day, or maybe even a week (especially as a lion, no less). No, something to that extreme takes careful planning, wording, and stringing along to ensure that nothing goes wrong along the way. The way Scar spoke to Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed made it seem as though he had known them for a looooonngggg time before this- that's where that behind the scenes planning comes in. And then...you have Leona. Leona, from what we can tell in Chapter 2, planned the idea for the "endgame" alright- but he didn't actually act upon any of the plan for himself. Ruggie did. Even in the Lion King, we see that Scar had no problems whatsoever getting his paws dirty a little within his own scheme to take his "rightful place" at the head of Pride Rock- but Leona quite honestly did not a thing once Ruggie was in motion. See where this is starting to head?

Azul and Ursula. Ursula, the Disney baddie queen of my heart Ursula, the Sea Witch. She was known all around the ocean floor for helping out poor little merfolk in secret, wasn't she? Yet, nobody ever really seemed to catch wind of the whole "her turning those who didn't quite fit the bill into polyps" thing, did they? That was one of the things that made her such a honest threat to Ariel herself- because Ursula was cunning. She did things behind the scenes, and sure- we could catch onto it out in the audience (annnddd maybe Sebastian and Flounder as well), but nobody else really seemed to, right? Azul is the complete opposite in this standpoint. He instills direct fear into his "workers" and those even beyond and within his dorm. Like- basically most knew that this dude was bad news to begin with. Azul, mostly, seemed to hide his cunning facade behind a fake yet still seemingly "soft and genuine" smile and act. But all in all, he didn't really attempt to "hide" anything- hell, he even proclaimed his entire plan of what everyone with those things on their heads were gonna do for him in the open! At least when Ursula sang as Vanessa, she was in an almost perfectly enclosed room with nobody else around.

Jamil and Jafar. This comparison here, given what occurs in the movie Aladdin, is honestly one of the biggest possible indicators of this reoccuring theme I shall clarify in a bit. Jafar, while being sneaky, was known for being a more "out there" Disney Villain in terms of his personality alongside that of his partner Iago in the film. He would smile in a sinister way, he would crack jokes out in the open, and let us not forget his crazed yet oddly interesting laughter. Jamil? He's the exact opposite. Given his past and what he has had to dealt with growing up with Kalim, he is much more reserved and barely releases a chuckle or cracks a smile at all. His personality is a lot more repressed than that of Jafar himself throughout the film. Jamil has been so used to having to hold himself back thanks to his parents in favor of Kalim's family, he doesn't seem to know how to "let go" whatsoever. Yet Jafar, while still maintaining that sneaky side of him as well, has no problems whatsoever letting a little hang loose whenever he so chooses to.

Vil and the Evil Queen. This one honestly may be a bit more self explanatory than the others- but the difference between these two is their expressions of themselves. The Evil Queen was the very first animated counted Disney Villain within Disney's history- yet, she barely had any lines throughout the film at all. Her ranges of expression were almost little to none thanks to the era in which the movie was released in- but she always looked like she was pissed, huh? Vil is the exact opposite of her in this sense. He is able to fully express himself through his various facial expressions, theatrical abilities, musical experiences, fashion style, and even how he behaves. Vil is able to do so much more than the Evil Queen did or could do within that time period, that it's almost a little staggering if you fully picture it.

Idia and Hades. Now, now. We haven't honestly seen too much of the flaming blue boy yet in TWST, but one thing is apparent here right off the bat- in terms of his personality? He is the exact opposite of Hades. Idia is much like Jamil but to a more "geek" degree- he's extremely introverted, shy, a bit snippy, yet mainly keeps to himself and his gaming tech. Hades is most often renowned as the Disney Villain with the most personality- and the best humor. Hades has no problem whatsoever being "out there" with his crazy puns, sassy remarks, anger, and even mocking behavior. I mean, please, guys- I haven't been this choked up since I got a hunk of moussaka caught in my throat!

Finally, Malleus and Maleficent. Ooooohoooooooo boy. We have to count out the live action movie Maleficent for this one (sorry horned queen fans). One thing that basically everybody even with their toe in the water in that of Disney movies kind of knows this fact- Maleficent is c r u el. She's got a bizarre set of dark powers and an even blacker heart than that. Hell, we basically had to "soften her up" a little bit in Maleficent thanks to just how seemingly irredeemable her character is in that of Sleeping Beauty. I mean, c'mon now- cursing an infant? And we get no explanation for that in the original? C'mon, now. Anyways, Malleus? As we all can tell by now, this dude is the compleeettteeeeeee opposite. Sure, he has those repressed bits here and there too, but it is evident that this dude has a heart crying out for the MC and it is big, bold, and golden to the core once you look past how he looks. He sent the MC a card for winter break, for crying out loud. Yeah, let me know the next time you see Maleficent do that smh.

Now, I have avoided using a certain word up until this point to see if anybody could catch on to what exactly is happening here. Did you figure it out? Reverse. The boys that either have Overblotted already or intend to Overblot soon stop holding out on us, Chapter 6 have had the exact opposite personalities compared to that of their Villain counterpart- until one prime point in their "character arcs". Their Overblot.

Riddle wished to have all bow before him and obey his rules.

Leona led his entire dorm into ruin and nearly sanded away the entire school in the process.

Azul let himself finally free of his personal shackles entirely and "took what was his".

Jamil finally let himself go and opened up more in his personality, almost seeming to be driven insane in the process.

Vil wanted to become the most beautiful one of all and would kill anyone within the way of that goal without any hesitation whatsoever.

The moment that the boys' Overblotted, that was the exact moment when the "soul" of their Disney Villain counterpart took control. Keeping that idea in mind, that should mean that this will happen in the upcoming chapters and their Overblots:

Idia will show off all of the personality, powers, and intelligence that he has been keeping down within this introverted self of his.

Malleus will become so broken by being left out and alone in the cold for the final time that he will turn into a completely cruel Fae and possibly nearly kill either the MC or the representation of Prince Philip within that Chapter in the process.

(Hello, my dear Readers! Guess who is trying to get back into her bigger pieces of writing? This gal right here~ feel free to drop a comment and tell me what you think of this theory- I'd love to hear your thoughts! 💕)

[just-weird-fanfics]

Hello! Very good to know you aren't feeling like shit anymore! When you can, may I request a Vanny or Vanessa fluff and nsfw alphabet? Take your time ^^

I decided to do Vanny for this one cause you know. sexy murderer in a rabbit costume

-

NSFW under the cut!

A = Aftercare (What they’re like after sex)

Shes gonna cuddle you and basically squeeze you to death. she may be a murderer but she has a soft side

B = Body part (Their favourite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

i feel like she would like her thighs. she likes when you sit on her lap so i feel like it just makes sense

on her partner maybe their lips. she likes kissing you and likes watching your lips when you talk. and she loves your smile

C = Cum (Anything to do with cum basically… I’m a disgusting person)

vanny would 100% make you cum inside her or on her thigh if you were good that day. if you weren't then she's the only one cumming that night

D = Dirty Secret (Pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

she likes watching your face whenever she pulls her knife out during sex. she likes the fear in your eyes. it turns her on

E = Experience (How experienced are they? Do they know what they’re doing?)

she's had her fair share of relationships and is pretty experienced

F = Favourite Position (This goes without saying. Will probably include a visual)

i think her favorite would either be her riding you or you riding her

G = Goofy (Are they more serious in the moment, or are they humorous, etc)

she's a mix. she's always making small jokes here and there but is still serious

H = Hair (How well groomed are they, does the carpet match the drapes, etc.)

she shaves regularly and yes the carpet matches the drapes

I = Intimacy (How are they during the moment, romantic aspect…)

she can be very romantic but she can't promise anything with not bringing in a knife at one point. but she can have regular passionate sex. she's not that crazy

J = Jack Off (Masturbation headcanon)

she normally doesn't have time to do it and would rather you make her feel good then pleasuring herself

K = Kink (One or more of their kinks)

knife play is a must, fear play also goes along with that, she would be into choking whether it be her or you, if you're dating her you most likely have a mask kink so that also can come into play during sex, cnc, she'll degrade you, praise, blood sometimes if you let her cut you,

L = Location (Favourite places to do the do)

anywhere you guys can get privacy in the pizza plex

M = Motivation (What turns them on, gets them going)

anything. she's very random and the smallest thing you do can get her horny

N = NO (Something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)

i think one of the only things she definitely wouldn't do is anything in public. she doesn't want people seeing you only the way she's supposed to see you

O = Oral (Preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc)

she's really good it it. well when it comes to afab people. she can give good blow jobs but prefers to recive

P = Pace (Are they fast and rough? Slow and sensual? etc.)

depends on how she feels that day. sometimes her days get stressful having to deal with afton and those happen like all the time. so mostly rough sex

Q = Quickie (Their opinions on quickies rather than proper sex, how often, etc.)

she doesn't mind them. of course she would rather have proper sex but if one of you is really horny and your schedules are filled up then she doesn't mind a quickie here and there

R = Risk (Are they game to experiment, do they take risks, etc.)

i feel like she would take risks and ask to experiment with a lot of things. probably drop hints about stuff until she finally asks you straight up

S = Stamina (How many rounds can they go for, how long do they last…)

she can go for a few rounds. maybe like 3. she can aslo last like 30 minutes

T = Toy (Do they own toys? Do they use them? On a partner or themselves?)

she has a lot. i'm just gonna say that. and yes they will be used on both of you

U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

she teases a lot. all the time almost

V = Volume (How loud they are, what sounds they make)

she's pretty loud. mostly giggles when she's topping from teasing you and a lot of moaning

W = Wild Card (Get a random headcanon for the character of your choice)

if you let her she will carve her initials into your side. you still can't figure out her last name even with the first initial of it carved into you

X = X-Ray (Let’s see what’s going on in those pants, picture or words)

well. she has a variety of dildos. leaving that there

Y = Yearning (How high is their sex drive?)

shes horny almost all the time honestly. but she can control herself

Z = ZZZ (… how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

she normally stays up to make sure you have everything you need then falls asleep with you

[lyranova]

200 Follower Event!

Hi guys! Sorry i haven’t posted for my event in a while it’s been a crazy past couple weeks 😅, but I hope you all enjoy this! It was requested by @clovertitan and is a Yami x reader based off the song Tease by Taemin and you can listen to it HERE if you’d like! I hope you like it Nati dear 🥺!

Word Count: 683

Warnings: None

———

Yami shook his head as he tried to get the image of Y/N out of his mind. She was completely different than what he was used too, one minute she would be teasing and flirting with him, and the next she would act sweet and innocent as though she didn’t do anything. Yami was a mixture of confusion and frustration.

Y/N was a tease. No doubt about it.

But today, today he would get an answer from her. The game was fun at first but now it was starting to just flat out confuse him. He liked her, and he assumed she liked him back, so why was she continuing to tease and pretend that she wasn’t interested? He didn’t think it was because she was afraid, she was one of the bravest people he knew. Maybe it was because he was a Captain and she was a 1st class Senior Magic Knight? He frowned in thought before he saw her walk in front of him. It was just the two of them at the base currently, so now would be the perfect time to ask just in case she was afraid.

“ Hey Y/N, can we talk for a minute?” Yami asked as he took a sip of his small glass of wine. He had snagged a bottle from Vanessa’s ‘secret spot’ in the common room, Y/N nodded and walked over before sitting across from him. “ So what’s going on?” He asked, causing her to frown.

“ What do you mean?” She asked cautiously, Yami leaned forward slightly.

“ You know what I mean; one minute we’re flirting and having fun, and the next you’re acting like it never happened. So, what gives?” He asked and watched her blink for a moment before she turned away in thought.

Yami watched her eyes dart back and forth, as though there were a battle going on in her head. She was feeling conflicted, he deduced. He silently hoped she wasn’t just playing a game with him, that she felt the same way he did, but if she didn’t then that would be ok. Sure it would hurt and it would take time for him to recover, but all he wanted was for her to be happy and if just being friends or just being colleagues made her happy then he would accept it. She finally turned to look at him, her eyes surprisingly soft.

“ I guess, I guess I was just unsure.” She muttered softly, looking away again. “ I, hm, I've had feelings for you for a while. But I didn’t think you felt the same way so I would pretend nothing happened and then you would act like you were interested so I would flirt again.” She sighed and shook her head, Yami blinked in shock.

Y/N thought he was the tease?

Yami busted out laughing, Y/N frowned but he held up a hand to quiet her as she opened her mouth.

“ It’s funny because I thought you were the one who didn’t feel the same way about me.” Yami said with a chuckle, Y/N blinked before she began to laugh herself.

“ Wow, we completely misread each other huh?” She asked as she continued to laugh and Yami just nodded in agreement.

After their laughter died down he reached out and took her hand gently in his, surprising both of them. Yami wasn’t usually an affectionate person but it just felt right in this moment. He noticed a small blush creep across her cheeks and he smirked.

“ How about we clear up this misunderstanding over dinner?” He asked, he watched her smirk and tilt her head slightly.

“ Sure, as long as you’re paying.” She teased as she stood up, not letting go of his hand. He chuckled before standing up and following her out of the hideout, he didn’t have much coin left on him after having gambled most of it away the previous night.

But Luckily for Yami, he still had a coupon for one of the nicest and most romantic restaurants in the Capitol.

———

Sorry this is so short and isn’t very good. The song was actually a lot tougher than I thought 😅, but I hope you all enjoyed anyway. Thanks for reading and I hope you all have a good day~!

[ruzek-halstead]

sparks fly

written for @fromiftowhen​ to celebrate chicago pd secret santa 💛

pairing: jay halstead x hailey upton

prompt: fake dating, i don't care how or why... just make them fake date for whatever reason. obviously, it should turn into real dating. 

masterlist 

special shoutout to @haileyyanneupton​ for coming up with the fic idea, collaborating and editing (and also talking me down when i was hella stressed i wasn't going to finish this on time). i appreciate you more than you know!! 💛

i hope i did this prompt and fic justice. i was very intimidated when i first got this because you are such a good writer!!! so i hope this is okay, please enjoy!!

💛

Hailey hadn't gone to many weddings in her life. It wasn't entirely surprising, given her childhood. Her mother would have to furiously cover up her bruises, as would her brothers. Then there was the chance of her father exhibiting questionable behaviour in public after he'd hit the open bar, and they couldn't have that. So, instead, the Upton family always marked the 'politely decline' option and sent the RSVP with a cheque instead. But now that Hailey was an adult and old enough to have friends who were getting married, weddings were becoming the new normal. The months of May to September are the classic wedding months, and Hailey knew that better than ever. She had attended three weddings within the past few months and truth be told, she was exhausted of attending them solo. She thought about finding a date, but it honestly seemed more trouble than it was worth. However, this time, things were slightly different. Her childhood friend, Raquel Sousa, was getting married this weekend. Hailey and Raquel had grown up on the same street, gone to all the same schools, and even attended the academy together. When they were assigned to different precincts, they hastily grew apart, and when Hailey went undercover, they weren't able to contact each other for months on end. They tried to keep in touch with random little messages every once in a while to alert the other that they were thinking about them, but it wasn't the same. But when Hailey received Raquel's wedding invitation in her mail a few months back, her blue eyes teared up instantly in blinding happiness. She was incredibly happy for her friend; so much so, that she took out her phone to message her, and hadn't stopped since. It was how she knew Raquel was incredibly stressed about planning, especially about the seating arrangements. "You need to bring a plus one!" Raquel had said to her two weeks earlier when they met up for coffee. It had been a long day and Hailey was utterly exhausted, but coffee with one of her oldest friends seemed to help. Hailey took a sip of her coffee, narrowing her blue eyes. "Uh — why is that?" "Because my tables aren't even! Specifically your table isn't even, and it would be if you brought a plus one!" Hailey was still confused. "Your argument seems flawed. Why don't you just add someone to the table?" "Because then it would just unbalance another table!" Raquel explained with a dramatic huff. "And I don't want you sitting alone at the table, Hails. There aren't going to be a lot of people you know there, and I'm going to be a little busy." "I won't be alone. I have the rest of the table," Hailey replied, enjoying the way her friend's eye twitched in frustration. Raquel took a bite out of her croissant. "What about that guy you're seeing?" "What guy?" Hailey snorted. "Do you mean the guy I just arrested a few hours ago? Because that's about the only action I'm getting lately." Raquel rolled her eyes, but there was a hint of an amused smile. "No! The one that's all over your instagram. He's cute! Why don't you bring him?" It took Hailey a moment, but she finally figured out who she was talking about. "Oh — oh, Jay? No, I'm not seeing him. He's just my parter." "Well, whoever he is, you should bring him. Or someone, I don't care who, just do me this one favour and bring someone." Hailey stared at her for a moment, before breaking into a small grin. "Fine. I'll bring a plus one." "Yes!" Raquel cheered excitedly. "Just let me know their name by this weekend so I can include it in my display!" She took another bite from her croissant, before raising her devious eyes back up to Hailey's face. "Tell me more about this Jay though..." 💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛 The next day following her coffee date, she was receiving hourly messages from Raquel to make sure she actually found a date. Honestly, her friend's confidence in her dating skills astounded her. She spent the day with Jay, but couldn't bring herself to ask him; she just found it so embarrassing. So, instead, she found discreet opportunities within the day to ask her fellow Intelligence members. Kim apologized but said she had already devoted the entire day to her niece and she couldn't back out, not that Hailey would let her anyway. And Vanessa had a date, and no matter how much she loved Hailey, this was a very special date that she couldn't miss. Kevin looked frustrated when he informed her it was his little sister's birthday and he couldn't miss it, but assured her in any other circumstance, he would absolutely love to be her date. Hailey's second last option was Adam and unfortunately for her, he was as subtle as a car alarm. "You want me to be your date to a wedding?" He echoed her question, in a loud voice that travelled from the break room into the bullpen. Hailey noticed from the corner of her eye as Jay's head peeked up from where he was sitting at his desk, working on paperwork; of course his desk was closest to the break room. Hailey instantly slapped Adam's bicep. "Shh!" She admonished, but didn't really have an excuse to share with him when he glared at her in confusion. "Yes, I do. If you're available. Please tell me you're available." "I'm always available for you, Hailey," he replied with flirtatious lilt, but Hailey could see in his eyes it was all just fun and games. They had their fun little run together, but it was clear to both of them, more than ever, that they were better off as friends. Flirty friends, maybe, but nothing more. For a moment, Hailey was hopeful her begging journey could end here; but then Adam frowned. "But I can't," he replied, "I'm helping my sister move this weekend. She'll kill me if I try to bail." Hailey's shoulders sagged and she took a long, deep sip from her coffee mug. "Oh," she responded sadly, "That's okay. Thank you anyway." "Sorry, Hails," he nudged the top of her head, as he waited for her to catch up. "If it wasn't for that, I totally would. Any place with an open-bar and a dance floor, you know I'm there." At this point, they were passing Jay's desk and Hailey was positive he could hear their entire conversation, but she couldn't be bothered anymore. Hailey took a seat in her chair, while Adam took his seat behind her. Before devoting his time to his paperwork, he leaned back and whispered to Hailey, "You ask Halstead already?" "No," Hailey hissed back. "You should," he replied, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Hailey whipped her head around, completely nailing Adam in the face with her blonde locks; he disgustingly removed her curls from his mouth. "Stop talking about this before I stab you in the carotid with my pen!" Adam's eyes flashed dangerously. "You really know the way to a man's heart, Upton." Hailey rolled her eyes, but she couldn't help but smirk at his words. As she turned back around in her seat, she noticed Jay peering at her from behind his computer screen. Hailey avoided his captivating eyes.   💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛 Hailey was walking to her SUV in the district parking lot, debating whether she should turn around and beg Jay to accompany her to the wedding, when she was stopped by Jay himself. "Hey," he greeted her gruffly. He was wearing his puffer jacket over his dark blue Henley (one of Hailey's favourite shirts on him) and his eyes were darting around her face, almost as if he was nervous about something. "Sorry, I just have to ask you something." Hailey looked on expectantly. "Yeah, sure. What is it?" Jay's eyes danced around her, before finally settling on her blue ones. "Were you going to ask me?" He blurted. "What?" "To the wedding," he added, meeting her eyes assertively. "You asked everyone else to be your date, but you didn't ask me. I just want to know why." Hailey's brain was starting to short-circuit. "Uh — well, I thought about it. I definitely thought about it, but I wasn't sure if it was your thing." "We face bullets everyday, Hailey," he smirked. "It's just a date to a wedding. If you want me to go, I'll go." He was clearly leaving her an opening, and Hailey wasn't stupid. He obviously wanted her to say it out loud; say that she wanted him to go. "I want you to go," she said definitively, meeting his eyes. It wasn't often they did things outside of work, except go get a drink, so this was new territory for both of them. But they've been partners for years, and if there was anyone Hailey trusted to accompany her to such an event, it was Jay. An excited smile broke out over Jay's features. "Great! Text me all the details. I'm excited." "Yeah," Hailey answered with a soft smile, "Me too." Jay nodded his head, stuffing his hands into his front pockets. "Okay, well that's all I really wanted to say," he replied, his excited smile fading into a sheepish grin. "I'll see you tomorrow then. Drive safe, Hailey." Hailey could feel her insides melting and it was merely over the fact that he said 'drive safe'. She wanted to hit herself, but that would just make her look crazy. "Yeah, you too. Night Jay." She watched him walk away, completely aware of the butterflies trying to escape under her ribcage. God, he was going to be the death of her. 💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛  Raquel was delighted when Hailey informed her she was bringing a date. She was even more ecstatic when she found out it was Jay; Hailey ignored the "I told you so!" Instead, she busied herself with finding the perfect dress for the occasion. She wasn't one for fancy dresses or fancy events (usually she had her blues to wear to fancy events), so choosing a dress proved to be challenging. She could only assume that Jay was going to blow them all away with his suit, because he was already naturally breathtaking. That man in a suit? Lord help them all. Hailey ended up choosing a burgundy dress she hadn't worn in ages. It was tucked in the back of her closet, but when she pulled it out, she knew it was perfect. It was a floor length gown, with cutouts above the hips and a long slit up the side, and if she was being completely honest, she knew it would look amazing on her. Plus, she had to compete with Jay somehow. Hailey already looked fancy enough with her dress. And she wasn't one for hair and makeup, so she kept her curls natural and applied a decent  layer of mascara. She was attempting to distract herself from the unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach; it was almost time for Jay to meet at her house, and she was unbelievably nervous. It seemed to work because as she was pulling on one of her block heels, the doorbell rang. Swearing, Hailey hobbled to the front door, attempting to not step on her dress. She hastily opened the door and headed straight for the stairs so she could sit and put on her other heel. "Hey!" She yelled out when her back was to him. "Shit, sorry," she mumbled as she stepped on her dress and nearly fell up the stairs. "I just need to put on my shoe and I'll be ready, I promise!" When she didn't hear an immediate reply for him, she glanced up. Jay had one foot through the threshold of the door, but his gaze was solely focused on her. His jaw was slightly open, and his green eyes were wider than usual. He seemed as if he was staring off into space, but he was staring at her.   In any other circumstance, Hailey would have averted her gaze nervously. However, once she caught sight of how he looked in his black suit, she couldn't look anywhere else. He looked captivating in every way possible; she could see his white dress shirt peeking out from under the lapels of his jacket, and her gaze travelled down his body all the way down to his dress shoes. God, he looked gorgeous. "Hailey," her name dropped from his lips in a ghost of a breath; Jay didn't realize he had even said it until her eyes snapped up to meet his. "You look amazing." She knew she was blushing before she could even feel the heat in her cheeks. So, she looked back down at her hands where they were fastening the claps on her heel. "Thanks," she mumbled. "You look great too. You clean up nice." "Thanks!" When she looked up, he was smiling proudly. "You ready to go?" Hailey nodded her head, standing back up and grabbing her clutch. "I am ready!" She followed him through the door and locked it. Turning back to face him, she stopped and said fondly, "By the way, thank you for doing this. I don't know if I've thanked you already, but I really appreciate this." The bright smile that formed on Jay's lips brought butterflies into her stomach. "Of course, Hailey. The thought of an open bar is nice, but just getting to look at you in that dress all night is reward enough." Out of all the things she was expecting him to say, that was definitely not one of them. She was so thrown off her game, that she managed to trip over her own feet. He easily grabbed her arm because he was smooth as hell, and Hailey truly hated he was using that to his advantage and to her demise. "You alright?" Hailey pulled away from him to make her way to the passenger side of his truck before he did something ridiculous like open her door. “Yeah, of course,” she brushed off his concern. “It’s been a while since I wore heels.” “Well, you look great in them.” Hailey huffed, observing him as he started the drive over to the venue. “Okay, you have to stop.” “What? Stop what?” “You have to stop complimenting me.” She was expecting him to look sheepish or mildly apologetic, but when she spared a glance in his direction, he was smirking wildly. She didn't have to explain; Jay knew. The venue was close by. It was an outdoor wedding; Hailey peered over to the side where there was a rustic looking arch, complete with delicate flowers, placed at the end of a bed of flowers. There were elegant white chairs spread out amongst the ground, and Hailey could see a number of guests had already taken their seats. Over to the other side, was a multitude of tables decorated beautifully in white and silver aesthetic colours. There was also a dance floor in between all the tables, and a stage where instruments were neatly laid out. "This place looks fantastic," Jay commented in awe, "Your friend did an amazing job planning." Hailey nodded in agreement. “She really did.” Before Hailey got the chance to do anything else, she was stopped by a hand on her elbow. “Hailey? Hailey Upton?” She turned to see Jake Patterson; he also attended the academy at the same time Hailey and Raquel, and god, she couldn't remember the last time she saw him. They had run in different circles, mostly because Hailey liked to keep to herself, whereas Jake was more of an entertainer type. She remembered him as energetic and slightly chaotic, and looking at him now, she could see why. "Holy shit! It's been a minute!" Jake greeted her, pulling her in for a hug before Hailey even knew what was happening. "How have you been? Where are you working now? What's new with you? Tell me everything!" Hailey merely blinked, overwhelmed by all the questions. To her left, Jay snickered and earned Jake's attention. "Shit, man. I'm so sorry. I'm Jake, Hailey and I went to the academy together!" Jay extended his hand to meet Jake's in a firm handshake. "It's no problem. I'm Jay, Hailey's partner." "Oh!" Jake's eyebrows reached nearly up into his hairline. "That's awesome! How long have you two been together?” Hailey’s brows furrowed and she glanced at Jay quickly. It took her a moment, but she understood what Jake was getting at. “Oh — no, Jake, that’s not—” Jake’s attention was pulled elsewhere when someone came up behind him and clapped him on the shoulder. They promised to get him a drink from the bar and Jake’s eyes lit up. “It was nice to see you again, Hailey!” He nodded at Jay before he hurried off. “Did he—” Jay nodded. “I think so.” Hailey couldn't help but stifle a laugh as she met Jay's eyes with a shake of the head. Neither of them addressed the issue any further  as they went on about their night, quickly finding their table after catching up with a few other friends. Being the first to arrive at their table bought a flock of others to follow their lead as the seats slowly began filling up, including the ones around them. "Bride or groom?" Both Hailey and Jay's heads snapped up at the sound of another woman speaking in their general direction. "Bride," Hailey smiled in response as she shook the hand of the woman before her. "I was in the academy with Raquel, actually. What about you?" "My husband is the groom's cousin — speaking of my damn, husband — where is he?" The woman craned her neck around in search for the man who clearly, was nowhere to be found as she settled down in her seat. "Well, at least you can keep tabs on your husband, right?" "Well actually —" "Oh! Richard! There you are! Sorry, dear — talk later? It was lovely meeting you!" For the second time that night, Hailey and Jay turned to look at each other, this time stifling a laugh at the apparent ridiculousness of the concept that they could be in any way romantically involved. Many thoughts were bouncing around in Hailey’s head but she pushed them all aside when the organ started playing and the flower girl and ring bearer started making their way down the aisle. Hailey wasn’t usually an emotional person, and she really had no idea how to react at a wedding, considering she hadn’t been to many, but she couldn’t held the proud smile accompanied by the tears that filled her blue eyes. She watched Raquel walk down the aisle with an almost bursting sense of awe, and she couldn’t be any happier for her friend. When she sat back down, she hastily wiped away the tear that escaped. She wasn’t expecting Jay to notice, but he was an observant detective, so of course he did. He hesitantly grabbed her hand and laid them in her lap. He gave her the opportunity to pull away if she wanted to, but when she looked up at him with a grateful smile, he relaxed in her grip. The ceremony was short and sweet; the reception to follow was the real party. Hailey and Jay were sat at a table with numerous other young couples, most of whom Hailey didn’t recognize. She saw the odd familiar face from back in the day but for the most part, Raquel was right; she hardly knew anyone there. Which is why she was more grateful than ever that Raquel forced her to bring someone, and that Jay was more than willing to accompany her. “So, how long have you two been together?” Hailey turned her head to meet the gaze of the friendly looking blonde to her left. The majority of her table had left to the dance floor or to mingle, but the blonde stayed in her seat while her partner chatted with another man who stopped by their table. “Oh,” Jay chuckled, deciding to intervene. “We actually—”

But frankly, Hailey found it hilarious that somehow, they’d been mistaken for a couple three times that night. So, what was the harm in having a little fun with it? Hailey turned to intertwine her arm with Jay’s and she stared up at him with fluttering eyelashes. Her actions seemed to cut him off mid sentence, and he looked down at her as if she’d gone insane. “Two years,” Hailey replied, leaning her cheek against Jay’s bicep and returning the blonde’s perky smile. She hadn’t gone undercover in a long time, and this gave her a little taste of what she’d been missing. “I’m Hailey, this is Jay.” Jay still looked bewildered, but he plastered on a smile to hide his confusion. “I’m Spencer, nice to meet you both!” She replied cheerily. “Sorry if I sound nosy, but you two are just so adorable! How did you meet?” Hailey glanced up at Jay, throwing him a tiny smile that only he could see. “You want to answer that, babe?” Jay’s eyes widened for a fraction of a second before he composed himself. “Uh, no babe, this is all you.” “Okay,” Hailey giggled, pulling away from him and facing Spencer. She stayed close to his side and even went as far as to grab his hand as she spoke. “I used to be a detective in robbery-homicide. I found him messing with my crime scene so naturally, I had to rip him a new one.” Spencer’s blue eyes were sparkling in excitement. “Feisty! So, not love at first sight?” “Actually, it was my crime scene,” Jay interjected, finally feeling comfortable enough to step into his character. He shot a smirk at Hailey, who raised her eyebrows. “Plus, you were late. Finders keepers.” Hailey scoffed. “That’s definitely not how it works. And like I said before, it was a robbery and there was a homicide; therefore, my scene.” “But it was a highly important case, so the commissioner wanted Chicago’s most elite unit to take over the case,” Jay shot back, eyes twinkling in amusement. Spencer’s gaze was jumping from Hailey to Jay, giggling at their banter. “And that meant me. Sorry, babe.” Hailey’s jaw dropped. She started this as a game, but Jay was here to win. Hailey turned back to Spencer with pursed lips. "Joke's on him because his boss recruited me a day later." "So, you two work together?" "We're partners," Jay explained, "She always had my six, and now she has my heart." Hailey choked on her glass of champagne, and one look at Jay's smirk, she knew he was just trying to mess with her now. He really drove it home when he stretched his arm along the back of her chair, fingers lingering on her bare shoulders. "That is absolutely adorable," Spencer cooed. Her eyes flickered up behind Jay. "Raquel! Caden! Congratulations, I'm so happy for you two!" Hailey turned to look behind her, spotting Raquel and her new husband. Immediately, Raquel's eyes dropped to Jay and Hailey's intertwined hands and an instant smirk made it's way to her lips. "Thanks, Spencer! I see you've met my friend Hailey." "And her boyfriend Jay!" Spencer tacked on with an excited smile; Hailey wanted to die at Raquel's amused expression. "They're the sweetest."

"Aren't they?" Raquel replied, trying but failing to hide the slight sarcasm in her tone. "I'm Raquel, it's nice to officially meet you, Jay." Jay happily shook her hand, moving onto her husband next. "I've heard so much about you! And congratulations on getting married, it's a beautiful wedding." "Thanks, man," Caden responded, holding onto Raquel's hand. "We need to finish the rounds. But thank you both so much for coming!" "Thanks, babe," Raquel said, leaning down to press a kiss to Hailey's cheek. "You owe me a conversation later!" She whispered. As they walked away, Jay looked at Hailey with soft eyes. "I think it's time for a drink. What do you think?" "I think it's time for a bottle," Hailey muttered, but turned to Spencer with a small smile. "We'll be back soon. Nice to meet you!" As they walked to the bar, Jay placed a low hand on the small of Hailey's back. "You want to tell me what that was all about?" Hailey ignored him until she successfully asked the bartender for a gin and tonic for her and a rum and coke for Jay. "I thought it was funny we kept getting mistaken for a couple, and I thought we could mess around with it for a bit. I wasn't expecting Raquel to show up." At his questioning expression, she continued. "Now she's going to be all I told you so and I'm going to have to hear about it for ages." "Why is she going to say 'I told you so'?" "Because she originally wanted me to bring the guy I was seeing as my date. She thought it was you because you're all over my Instagram," Hailey admitted. Jay nodded his head quizzically, a slow smile spreading across his face. "You always did like to post beautiful things." Hailey's eyes narrowed and without a second thought, she punched him in the shoulder. "That was gross, please stop." Their attention was brought back to the front when the MC announced it was time for all the single ladies to gather on the dance floor to catch the bouquet. Jay and Hailey watched as a swarm of ladies took up the entirety of the dance floor, and when Hailey didn't move, Jay shot her a curious glance. "Go on, Hails. It's your time to shine." Hailey turned to him with an incredulous expression. "I'm sorry, but do I look like the bouquet-catching type? No, thank you." Jay held his hands up in defence and turned back to the crowd. The ladies had backed up so much, they were only a few feet from where Jay and Hailey stood at the bar. The MC counted it down, and Raquel threw her bouquet on three. At the last second, Jay placed his hand on Hailey's back and shoved her forward, straight into the group of ladies who savagely fought each other for the bouquet. But as luck would have it, it landed perfectly in Hailey's unsuspecting arms. Hailey whirled around to glare angrily at Jay, but was distracted by all the congratulations from the other ladies. Raquel smirked wildly in Hailey's direction and held up her glass in cheers. Hailey really wanted to die now. A nudge from Jay's right tore his gaze away from Hailey's blushing figure. "Guess that's as bold of a hint as any, isn't it?" An older man, cradling a glass of whiskey, commented while glancing at Hailey. "You thinking of popping the question?" Jay instantly paled. "Oh, no. It's — it's too early for that." As he looked on at Hailey speaking to Raquel, he realized it wouldn't actually be the worst thing in the world for this relationship to be completely authentic, because honestly, it felt much too real to argue against it any longer. "Maybe one day." "That was ballsy, Halstead," Hailey hissed when she finally made her way back. "I have half a mind to shove this bouque—" "Dance with me." Hailey stopped, blinking in surprised. "What?" "Dance with me," Jay repeated, shrugging like it was nothing. He placed his now empty glass back on the bar and took Hailey's hand to guide her to the dance floor. His hand settled on her waist while hers hung onto his shoulder, while simultaneously holding onto her bouquet. "I was just thinking." "Yeah?" Hailey hummed. "About what?" Jay pulled her closer so he could look over her shoulder as he spoke his next few words. "Someone asked me if I was planning on proposing soon, after you caught the bouquet." He almost laughed when Hailey stumbled and accidentally stepped on his foot. "But the idea didn't totally horrify me." "Jay, what are you saying?" Hailey pulled away to look at Jay; his words were only confusing her even more. "I think you're beautiful and I always have. I think I've known for a while but I couldn't bring myself to mess up another partnership. I like you, Hailey. And to be honest, I was really glad Adam wasn't available to come with you tonight, because I don't think I would've been able to keep my cool. I like you, Hailey, and I'd really like to take you out on a date. A real date." Hailey expected many things from tonight, but a full-blown confession from Jay I-Don't-Talk-About-My-Feelings-Ever Halstead, was definitely not one of them. 

"I — I would love that." A wide smile spread across Jay's features. "By the way, it was totally my crime scene." "Oh, shut up, Halstead."

💛

thank you for reading & i hope you enjoyed! x 

[artificialqueens]

Modern Love, 1/12 (Branjie/Scyvie/Ninex) - Ortega

fic summary: Brooke Lynn is a 23 year old graduate writing boring, uninspired pieces for the fashion department of a newspaper and living in a city all her friends have moved away from. Silky is living at her parents’ house and spends her days applying for jobs she’s promptly rejected for. Nina and Monet are struggling through their first year as teachers whilst being sickeningly adorable girlfriends. Akeria is pursuing her dream of being a badass lawyer, even if her master’s degree is slowly crushing her soul. Plastique is acting like the second coming of Paris Hilton, so nothing there has changed. Scarlet is overworked and Yvie is underpaid and their relationship isn’t all it appears from the outside.

And Vanessa? Vanessa is nowhere to be seen.

(A story about a holiday, a breakup, friendships and relationships in a post-graduate world, careers, navigating life after university, figuring out what it means to be an adult, and coming to terms with the fact that we really are not nineteen forever.)

a/n: welcome to the sequel to Not Nineteen Forever!!! i should say it’s not *~ mandatory ~* to have read the original before this but it’s encouraged huehue xo hope u enjoy and please feel free to reblog, like and send love!!

***

Brooke felt the all-encompassing sense of dread wash over her as her alarm went off, the sounds of the radio that were gradually fading in doing nothing to make the experience of waking up for another day of work any more palatable. She groaned loudly as she stretched, her arms flying out to the side and hitting the edge of the double bed. Brooke starfished a little, stretching her legs out as long as they would go and trying to put off getting up and showered for as long as she could.

Rolling over in bed she reached for her phone and stopped when she saw the rose-gold rectangular frame beside her on the bedside table. It caught her by surprise every day, almost a sort of routine in itself. A picture of her and Vanessa from when they first moved in, standing at the doorway having just popped a bottle of champagne. Brooke’s face was in a funny contorted sort of smile as she yanked the cork out of the bottle and Vanessa was clapping her hands in excitement, a brilliant white moonbeam painted across her face. Brooke remembered the day well. Monet had taken the photo with Nina beside her, both of them still in their work clothes after they’d visited straight from a hard day full of teaching. Akeria, Silky, Plastique, Scarlet and Yvie had all been inside, shuffling through the huge variety of Domino’s pizza boxes that had just arrived at their door like a deck of cards. That night had been so special. Whatever had happened since then, Brooke would probably treasure that memory forever.

In spite of herself she smiled as she looked at the photograph, then turned her attention to her phone screen.

No notifications. She didn’t know why she expected anything more.

With a cloud over her head that matched the ones in the uncharacteristically grey June sky, Brooke brushed her teeth and peeled her pyjamas off before stepping into the shower and adjusting the dial to somewhere between tepid and warm. Vanessa’s shower gel sat in the corner, the tropical fruit and mint one with little tiny sloths all over the front. Brooke found herself hurting as she looked at it, still loath to use it as she took her own from the opposite side and splatted a huge dollop into her shower puff. Sometimes she used it indulgently, like a secret she shared with herself. She didn’t know whether she’d buy more when it ran out. That was something she still needed to think about.

Once she was clean Brooke briskly dried herself with a towel, sitting on the edge of the bed wrapped in it as she carefully blow-dried out her hair. She picked out her outfit: smart black work trousers with a fabric belt that pulled her in at the waist, a black and white patterned shirt, black stiletto heels. As she painted some minimal makeup on her face in the hope it would make her look less like a sleep-deprived zombie and more like she had her life together in some way, Brooke checked the clock and cursed as she realised she was running behind.

Leaving lipstick for the moment, she grabbed her bag, shoved her feet in a pair of black pumps, and left hurriedly for the train. Breakfast wasn’t a priority; she knew she could grab an iced coffee and a croissant from the cafe in the station in between changing trains, as it took her two to get into work. It was times such as these that she wished she knew how to drive like Monet, Plastique and Akeria, or had learned since uni like Nina or Scarlet. But then again, cafe food for breakfast was one of the very few perks of public transport.

Brooke eventually arrived at the huge concrete block with windows that held her offices, taking the elevator up to the fifth floor, clocking in, shooting a lacklustre “hi” to the girls she sometimes chatted to and settling herself in at her desk. As office positions went, Brooke supposed it wasn’t awful- it was beside the window looking out onto the streets of the city below and it provided some much-needed light to her day. Logging on to her work laptop, she checked her emails (one from her boss about the article due for Friday, and one from Cheryl about money for flowers for somebody going on maternity leave that she’d never met or heard of and might not even have worked there).

Her working day had started.

University hadn’t prepared Brooke for graduate life. It hadn’t prepared her for the fact that friends moved away for jobs and houses and flats, internships and apprenticeships and postgrads and masters. It hadn’t prepared her for the fact that her group chat, once flooded with about a hundred messages if she so much as left it for five minutes, gathered dust as everyone’s lives took over. It hadn’t prepared Brooke for the feeling of missing out on something…Christ knows what. Perhaps living, making memories instead of simply swiping through ones already made on a Saturday night spent alone in bed with a bottle of wine to herself. It hadn’t prepared her for the yearning, the regret at having taken those days for granted when they were the happiest of her life and she hadn’t even realised it. If Brooke had known how soul-crushingly boring her life would be once she got that rolled-up piece of paper in a little tube she would’ve been dragging the girls out every single night. The all-encompassing sadness and longing for something better hit her harder on days like these, sepia ones with big clouds that hung ominously in the sky but never gave her the satisfaction of raining. She supposed that feeling had only been exacerbated by…

She didn’t need to remind herself of that.

It was ten o’clock in the morning and Brooke was staring out of the small office window stupefied with boredom when her phone vibrated. She jumped, pouncing on it as she always did whenever a notification went off. Her phone hadn’t been on silent for a full month. It hadn’t been the person she’d wanted or expected, but it was a pleasant surprise nonetheless.

Silk: HEY GIRL LONG TIME NO SPEAK! I’M GONNA BE IN TOWN THIS AFTERNOON FOR AN INTERVIEW BUT I’LL BE FREE AFTER AND I’VE GOT A COUPLE HOURS TO KICK ABOUT UNTIL MY TRAIN. YOU WANNA GRAB DINNER? XXXXXXXXX

Brooke frantically made plans as if she was under a time limit, as if the moment would slip through her fingers like sand in an hourglass. She suggested some restaurants that she knew wouldn’t eat into either of their fragile graduate salaries and they settled on an Italian in the city centre, where the portions were big and the meals were tasty.

Brooke spent the rest of the day looking forward to meeting her friend. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen Silky. Maybe it had been as long ago as New Year. Brooke smiled as she remembered the occasion; all of them cramming into Scarlet and Yvie’s flat to see in the year. Silky and Akeria had got too drunk off prosecco and screamed along to JLS, Scarlet and Yvie had both made a buffet to rival a hotel’s, and Nina, Monet, Vanessa and Brooke had all been tangled up in an almost relationship-ruining game of Articulate. Plastique had brought her new girlfriend Naomi to introduce to everyone and the girl had looked ever so slightly alarmed by the sheer chaos of everyone put together, but she’d laughed and joined in all the same.

That had been another happy memory. Those seemed to be hard to come by these days.

Work dragged. It always did. Brooke managed to write three sub-par articles that she sent to her editor at the end of the day anyway because hell, it was their job to turn carbon into diamonds. So when she hopped on the train back into the city, Brooke felt a little buzz in her veins that she hadn’t felt in a while.

It took her until she saw Silky standing outside the restaurant- hair in a bun full of flyaways, eyebrows still Sharpied on, in a pair of smart trousers and a floaty top- that Brooke realised that part of the reason she was so excited was because she’d been so lonely for such a long time. Well, only really a month, but it felt like a year. It had taken her living on her own to realise just how boring her life was without all her friends so constantly part of it, and now they all had their own lives and schedules it only served to show Brooke how empty her own was without…

Well. Without her.

As soon as Silky looked up from her phone and spotted Brooke her face lit up, and she fixed her with a smile and a screech that Brooke never thought she would have missed hearing but by God, she had.

“BROOKE LYNN!” she screamed, followed by lots of squealing and babbling as she wrapped the taller girl in a tight hug and refused to let go for at least twenty seconds. Brooke didn’t mind and she found herself clinging back, Silky suddenly the loudest anchor she’d never known she needed. When Silky finally pulled away she grabbed Brooke by both wrists, shaking her back and forth a little. “Oh my God, BITCH! Oh my God. FUCK! It’s so good to see you. How the fuck are you?”

Brooke appreciated that- Silky asking how she was. Yvie tiptoed around Brooke’s feelings when they texted and Brooke tiptoed around her and Scarlet’s perfect domestic bliss, both of the subjects too touchy for Brooke and the pair of them instead choosing to communicate via meme. Nina barely had time to breathe these days let alone text back, and Plastique…well, Plastique wouldn’t get it.

None of them would, she supposed.

“I’m…I’m surviving! I’m being an adult, I guess, and this is what life is now. How’re you?” Brooke swiftly moved the conversation on, and Silky took the hint and dropped both her wrists, pushing open the door.

“I’m on cloud fuckin’ nine girl. C’mon, let’s get some vino an’ I’ll catch you up on the world of Ms. Ganache! Think of it as a free episode of the reality TV show that is my life.”

“Let’s be real, Silk. If anyone’s life’s like a reality TV show right now, it’s mine,” Brooke raised her eyebrows, not quite committing to her own attempt at being lighthearted and instead couldn’t have sounded more bitter if she’d eaten an entire lemon with its rind on.

Silky, for her part, shrugged and let out a small sigh. “You ain’t wrong, girl, you ain’t wrong. But the offer of wine still stands, so let’s get sat. Where the damn hell is a waiter?”

They eventually got shown to their table and the conversation flowed frantically and excitedly, mirroring the wine. Silky filled Brooke in on every last detail of her life- most importantly, Brooke thought, was that Silky’s parents who she was back living with had adopted a cocker spaniel puppy called Pooch. Graduate life had been tough on Silky; she still hadn’t managed to get a job and so therefore couldn’t afford to rent a flat, so she’d moved back to her sleepy and uninspiring hometown. Living with her parents, she’d groaned, was beginning to chip away at her; the constant pressure they put on Silky to find a job, move out, get a boyfriend, and lose weight was beginning to grow wearing in the extreme, and Brooke didn’t blame her for being fed up.

“You know you’re always welcome to come chill at mine, you know. If it’s getting particularly rough,” Brooke suggested not-quite-casually, glad of the fact that loneliness didn’t have a scent because if it did she’d be reeking of it.

Silky gave a bashful smile, looking down at her half-eaten plate of spaghetti bolognaise in front of her. “You’re a doll, B, but you know I can’t do an hour on the train any time my Mama tuts at me buying a size XL of anything. In fact therapy’s probably cheaper than a train ticket here but realistically I don’t got the money for either, so…thanks, but in the words of Simon Cowell, issa no from me.”

“That’s okay. I get it, Mums are simultaneously the worst and the best people,” Brooke pulled a face. Thinking about her Mum made her wonder when the last time she texted her was. She felt a little ashamed for not knowing off the top of her head. “But hey, at least you got that interview, right? How did it go?”

“Alright,” Silky muttered in a non-committal way. It was the most un-Silky response Brooke thought she’d ever seen her friend give. It was weird and unpleasant; the Silky from uni would’ve yelled the place down about how she’d aced it, how they’d make her the chief editor right there and then, how she could write an article for them entirely in Wingdings and it’d still be the best thing they’d read all day.

Seemingly picking up on Brooke’s discomfort, Silky gave a small laugh. “I don’ know, boo…I used to be so sure of myself, I used to be so set in the fact that writing was somethin’ I was good at. When I was a kid I used to write these fuckin’ huge stories…pages an’ pages long that my teachers would pull big overexaggerated smiley faces at an’ squeal over an’ put big glittery star stickers on. I thought I was somethin’ special. An’ then uni, y’know…I was a small fish in a big pond- hell, a big fish in a big pond- but I still thought I was the shit even when I got bad grades. I thought my markers just didn’t get it, that they were the ones that were wrong. But now it’s like…”

Silky heaved a sigh and put her fork and spoon together neatly on top of her half-full plate. “…I can’t even get a job at a fuckin’ local rag, so why the hell am I even tryin’ with the big city offices?”

There was something about it all that made Brooke’s heart break all over again, the way that life after uni had worn Silky down to the extent where she didn’t even know if she was good at anything any more, didn’t have much visible self-worth left. Silky had always been the heart and soul of their group; she, Akeria and Vanessa, and in the time it had taken between now and graduation Akeria had become the polar opposite of Silky- so completely embroiled in her quest to become a barrister that she barely had time to reply to any of them any more.

And Vanessa…well. She knew where Vanessa was. Or rather, she didn’t.

Greece was a big country.

“You’re trying because you’re Big Silky Nutmeg Motherfucking Ganache,” Brooke said with a determination she’d not felt in a while. “Come on Silk, you’re you. If grad life has broken you then what the fuck hope is there for any of us?”

( Any of us sounded better than me , Brooke thought.)

“Kiki’s doin’ okay for herself,” Silky shrugged, her downtrodden tone counteracted by the way she picked up her fork again and twirled a single strand of spaghetti around it, eating it once she was finished speaking.

“Kiki’s vagina-deep in a hellish and all-consuming masters degree that’s probably eating her up from the inside out just as much as everybody else’s jobs are. I mean, are any of us doing anything we actually like?”

“Nina an’ Monet? They’da quit by now if they hated teaching so much.”

“Nina West would join the fucking scientologists and stick it out just so she could say she didn’t give up. She’s the final boss of the term mama didn’t raise a quitter . They’re having a hard time, Silk. We all are. It’s just tough because we’re all so busy and shit at keeping in touch that everybody thinks each others’ lives are perfect but…they’re really not.”

“Yvie and Scarlet seem pretty happy.”

Brooke’s face took on an involuntary look of distaste, so irritated and bitter was she at the image of them and their perfect flat and their perfect jobs and their perfect coupley life. “They’ll have something up, nobody’s life is that perfect. Maybe their relationship’s secretly falling apart or…something, fuck, I don’t know.”

There was a beat of silence in which Brooke finished the last little pocket of tortellini she’d ordered and Silky twirled another mouthful of spaghetti around her fork. She chewed, then shrugged thoughtfully, her head tilting a little. “Y’know we should go on holiday. Fuck all this shit off for a week, get away from it all.”

Brooke’s eyebrows raised in appreciation of the idea. She and the girls had never been away together before and the prospect of lying on a beach doing absolutely nothing under the blazing sun was an inviting one. “What, a girls’ trip? Like in Sex and The City?”

“Mhm. ‘Cept we go on an all-inclusive to the Med ‘stead of Mexico ‘cause ain’t none of us can afford that shit.”

“Except Plastique.”

“True. Fuck that bitch. She could prolly buy Mexico.”

Brooke laughed and for the first time in a good few months she felt a little flicker of excitement lick at her heart, so much so that she could see her pulse race at her wrist. She couldn’t stop the smile that spread across her face. “Oh my God. I’m so in. Let’s do it.”

“We have to get all the girls on board, though. Otherwise there ain’t no point.”

“Definitely. Where should we go? Spain’s always good.”

Silky had her phone out and was typing furiously. She paused as something presumably loaded, then her face lit up. “If we go the week after Nina an’ Monet finish up school for Summer we can get flights to Crete for £20 return.”

“Twenty, what the fuck? That can’t be right,” Brooke screwed up her face in disbelief, and Silky cocked an eyebrow at her as she showed her the proof on her screen. Conceding, Brooke shrugged. “That’s so good. I don’t want to know what that plane’s like though. They probably just stuff you all into a tin can and ping you into the air with a giant rubber band.”

Silky howled with laughter and thumped the table so hard that the wine sloshed about in their glasses, little tiny red tsunamis. As Brooke snorted in response purely to Silky’s own mirth, a small thought set off a little drip of dread that threatened to put out the excitement that had only just begun to burn in her chest.

“Where is Crete again?”

Silky let out an unimpressed breath from her nose. “Bitch, you got all the geography skills of a Love Island contestant. It’s just off the Greek coast. Kinda near Turkey too, but it’s Greece.”

Brooke felt her heart drop, Alton Towers Oblivion all over again. She blinked quickly, tried to hide her discomfort. “Well, we’re not going there.”

Silky gave a small sigh, a little hint of resignation or long-suffering to it that Brooke didn’t appreciate. But when she reached over the table and patted her hand on top of Brooke’s, she felt a little bit more understood, a little bit more validated.

“B, Greece is a big place.”

It was the exact same thing Brooke herself had thought earlier, except now it didn’t seem true. Now, with the prospect of going there, it seemed like the tiniest microcosm of society. The world was simultaneously too big and too small, and Brooke felt the cold drip in her heart get worse. “Silky…”

“Look. We ain’t exactly gonna pick the same place she’s at, are we?”

Brooke put her head in her hands and sighed. “She’s not there anymore.”

“What?”

“I phoned the hotel a week ago to try and speak to her. I was going to fly out, try and talk to her and fix things. They said she didn’t work there anymore. So I don’t even know where she is at all.”

Silky huffed, frowning and concerned. “I’m sorry, Brooke, this shit must’ve been hell.”

“You’ve got no idea.”

There was a pause as Silky pushed her food around her plate. “Crete’s small, but it ain’t that small. We still got a one in a million chance of bumpin’ into her if we go.”

“That’s still too small for my liking. Both the island and the chances.”

“Aight, one in a billion. Trillion. Point is, it ain’t gonna happen. An’ besides…” Silky waggled her eyebrows, flashing her phone screen at Brooke again. “Twenty pounds for the first week of the school holidays. This shit’s like gold dust.”

Brooke smiled slowly in spite of herself. Maybe Silky was right. And maybe it would be fun to swan around Greece, eat seafood and pretend to be in some knockoff version of Mamma Mia. Scratch that, it would be fun. She’d get to spend a week surrounded by her friends in the sun, which was what she badly needed at the moment.

Brooke was nodding before she knew it. “Okay, fine. Crete it is.”

“YES, bitch!” Silky cheered, loud enough to be heard by the entire restaurant and possibly the chefs in the kitchen too. “Now let’s get dessert. All this wine needs soaked up by a big slice of sticky toffee puddin’.”

It was easy to feel optimistic with Silky back being her loud and just-the-right-side-of-obnoxious self, and with a plate of tiramisu in front of her. But after they’d finished up, paid their bill and she’d hugged Silky goodbye at the train station, Brooke found the endorphins wearing off as she got back to her dark flat and into her cold bed. Maybe it was because she was finally coming down from the high of meeting up with a beloved friend, maybe it was because she knew she had another monotonous, greyscale day of work to get through tomorrow.

Or perhaps, Brooke thought as she turned over in bed, caught sight of the familiar rose-gold frame and blew it a kiss, she was simply missing her girlfriend.

If she could even call Vanessa that any more.

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

//So in a rather dramatic twist of fate, Springtrap and Monika have BOTH ended up with 27.1% of the final vote.

//Upon seeing the result, we talked about what to do in response, but we've decided that we're going to settle it with a tiebreaker.

//You guys have one day to vote for who you want to be Junko's opponent between these two. If they tie again, we'll just do three-way battle (however the hell we're gonna make that work)

//As a reminder, here are the connections.

Afton: Both are antagonists from video games that are both psychopathic and intelligent, and they both started a horrible event with little to no rhyme or reason behind it, that kickstarted the main timeline of their respective series (the Tragedy and the end of the world for Junko and the multiple child murders that Afton committed). Both used their designated place of work/study as a death trap for their victims (Hope's Peak Academy and Freddy Fazbear's Pizza) and both are connected to mascots with animal themes, one of which they hide behind to keep their actual identities a secret from others (The Monokuma's and the Animatronics, more specifically the RC Killing Game Monokuma and Spring Bonnie). Both of them have control of a variety of gadgets and tech that help them kill their victims, the most potent of which are a small army of animal-themed killing machines (Monokuma for Junko and the AR Animatronics and Twisted One's for Afton). Ironically, their death would come from being crushed by the very thing that they used to commit their murders, as well as being brought on by their own victims (Junko died in the Ultimate Punishment after Makoto and the other Survivors of the first Killing Game defeated her, and Afton was crushed by his suit's spring locks when confronted by the spirits of the 5 missing children that he murdered), but they would soon resurrect in order to carry out their murderous plans; initially, they would take over a robot, and later, they would emerge as a virus that would infect users' virtual games and take over their minds (Junko created an Alter Ego AI of herself that initially took over Kurokuma and Shirokuma before it's concentrated code was uploaded into the Neo World by Izuru, where it then tried to possess the bodies of the Remnant's of Despair. Afton's spirit possessed the Spring Bonnie suit, becoming Springtrap, and then later Glitchtrap in the Fazbear Virtual Experience, where he tried to corrupt the minds of the game testers). These AI's also successfully took hold in the minds of young females, who became their most devoted follower (Yukari Koime and Vanessa). Both are also notorious for coming back from the dead time and time again, no matter how many times people try to get rid of them.

Monika: Both are the main antagonists of Visual Novels who are initially portrayed as talented high school girls and possess an abnormal degree of control in the world around them (Junko is the Ultimate Despair/Fashionista/Analytical prowess, and is extremely powerful and influential for a mere high-school girl and regularly breaks the fourth wall, while Monika, who is the president of the Literature Club and a very popular upperclassman in the school, not only also breaks the fourth wall, but has access to the game files, which she can play with how she fits) They both commit graphic crimes on the world and their classmates/friends for seemingly petty and nonsensical reasons (Junko does it to feel Despair and spread Despair, while Monika actively deletes the other characters from DDLC's game files until she's the only available romance option left) however, they do it with slightly contrasting motivations which makes one more sympathetic than the other (Junko is hopelessly fickle and does terrible things simply out of boredom and a desire to feel any sort of excitement. Monika does it out of desperation and love for the player, since the game denies her any role outside of a background character, and not an initial date option). Both, at least at one point, are also AI/coded characters in a digital world that they desperately want to escape from (Junko came back as an AI after her death and tried to use the Remnant's of Despair's bodies to escape the Neo World Program and wreak havoc on the world again, while Monika desires nothing more than to get out of the coded reality she's in so she can be in a romantic relationship with the MC behind the screen.) As a side note, Junko's protégé from Ultra Despair Girls is also called Monaca, though it is spelt differently.

[acacia-may]

Ooo may I ask for 7, 24, and 30 for Vanessa and maybe your OC Altan please 🥰?

Aww thank you Lyra! I adore Vanessa and will gladly take any and all opportunities to ramble about her, and I'm flattered that you'd like to know more about Altan. I'd be delighted to answer these for you!

Questions for this Character Ask Game

(Warnings: some mentions of Vanessa's childhood trauma, the Forest of Witches arc, and related nightmares. Some mentions of the House Vaude drama, related trauma, and strained relationship between Finral and Langris)

Vanessa Enoteca

7. A quote of them that you remember

This is a hard one because Vanessa has so many amazing moments, but I think I'll go with the two that came to mind immediately. (1) I love the moment where she tells the Queen of Witches, "You and I have no bonds." Recognizing that the Black Bulls are the family she always wanted and that she doesn't need Her Majesty's "love" to be happy is such a pivotal moment in her character development, and it honestly still gives me chills every time I watch or read it. (2) An anime addition, but I love that encouraging little speech she gives Finral before he faces Langris in the Royal Knight's Exam (I won't type out the whole thing but it ends with something like "You're not going to lose to him so easily anymore. Go show him how awesome you are--and I don't just mean the hair!"). Vanessa just has such a gift in building up her friends and encouraging them, and she believes in them even when they don't believe in themselves. I love that scene because it is a real reflection of that.

24. What do you think is a secret they have that they never told anyone?

In general, I think a lot of what happened to her in her childhood is a big secret for Vanessa. Vanessa is the type of person who really tries to bury her pain and focus on the positive and/or on other people's problems even when she, herself, is hurting. She had told very few of her friends about her childhood in the Forest of Witches, prior to the arc that took place there, and even then, I think she only told them bits and pieces of the story.

Since she doesn't want her squad family to worry about her, she's never told them that her past still comes back to haunt her, mainly in her nightmares and fears of enclosed, crammed spaces. Though they had gotten less frequent, she does have still nightmares about her childhood and also about the events in the Forest of Witches arc/losing her friends, and when they get particularly bad, she will sleep by candlelight because she is afraid of waking up back in that cage and her tower.

30. The funniest scene they had?

Vanessa has such a great sense of humor, and I loved any time she affectionately teased her friends. There are some great moments between her, Noelle, and Asta on their first outing to the castle town of Kikka for instance, and her friendship with Magna especially has always made me laugh from their first appearance where they're poking fun at each other's vices. The scene that came to mind immediately read this prompt is also from Episode 80 in the Royal Knight's Exam (can you tell that's my one of my favorite episodes?) though. There's a moment where Magna asks if she'll do his hair too, and Vanessa teases him that there's no way. It's all in good fun, and Luck gets some great lines where he chimes in and teases Magna too. It's cute and makes me laugh every time.

Altan Vaude (OC)

[A/N: Altan loves his auntie very much so he would be so happy to know he has been included as part of the same ask as her 💖]

7. A quote of them that you remember

Poor Altan. I've barely written about him, so he hasn't gotten to say much yet. He has appeared in some of my wips though, and there's an exchange between him and his Papa that I really like so I'll share that here:

Langris had to admit, he was happy for the temporarily distraction from poor Finesse and her failing health. His palms started to sweat again at the thought, and he began to wring his hands before Altan’s tiny fingers curled around one of them.

“Is Mama alright?” he asked.

“She’s just not feeling well,” Langris explained—trying to shake the worst-case-scenarios out of his own head.

“Should we go pick some flowers for her?” he asked with a kindness that brought a smile to Langris’ face. No words could describe how relieved he was that his son took after his gentle, kindhearted mother rather than a disagreeable misanthrope like him. The hard-lines in Langris’ face softened, and he even managed a slight smile.

24. What do you think is a secret they have that they never told anyone?

Altan is shy, but he's not particularly secretive on purpose. If asked about himself, he will share and actually answer instead of deflecting questions and playing 3D chess, smoke and mirrors mind-games like his dad used to do. It just isn't easy for him to freely offer such information without being asked about himself since he doesn't particularly like the spotlight. He tends to be pretty open with his family and closest friends though so he doesn't have too many secrets from them.

He does have one big secret, however which is that, by the time he's in his teens, Altan actually knows a lot about what went on between his father and uncle and how strained their relationship was in the past. Finral and Langris had long ago agreed to let bygones be bygones and decided not to tell their children about how much bad blood used to exist between them. Altan, however, kind of put a lot of pieces together and knows that his father made a lot of mistakes when he was younger, especially in regards to his relationship with his brother. He doesn't ever really bring it up, however, because he knows that his father has a lot of fear that learning all of that would change the way his son saw him, and he doesn't want to open those old wounds for his dad. However, the realization doesn't change much for Altan--he has forgiven his father and thinks what is important is that his dad learned from his mistakes and tried to better going forward, and in fact, he thinks that is a very admirable thing. Someday when Altan is a grown man, his father sits him down to tell him the truth, and it is such a moving moment for Langris when Altan just smiles at him and says he has known for a long time and it doesn't change anything.

30. The funniest scene they had?

Altan gets roped into all kinds of shenanigans thanks to his much more rambunctious cousins and friends, but he himself doesn't usually cause too much trouble or chaos on his own. However, he did participate in a prank of his dad once. When Altan wanted to get his hair cut by his aunt, the extended family decided to pull a bit of a prank on him and sent Altan home wearing a wig of a ridiculously awful haircut. Langris was so relieved when it was revealed just to be a wig, and they actually got him to laugh which made Altan very happy.

[peterstanslizzie]

Reacting To: The Hollow (Season 2 Episode 8)

Episode Title: Fang

Spoiler Warning: Kindly proceed if you’ve already seen the episode or aren’t bothered about spoilers.

1. The episode begins with Mira swimming after Tursas, the underwater sea creature and it looks like it wants to hunt for more food because it’s targeting the boat Adam, Reeve and Brynhilda, the viking leader are sailing on. Meanwhile, Brynhilda is telling the guys about the many brave vikings who have lost their lives trying to defeat Tursas and it’s psyching them out even more. 

2. Their boat rocks harshly all of a sudden and Tursas has now caught up to them. Brynhilda is feeling all sorts of excitement because she wants to witness Adam and Reeve slay this beast. 

3. In the underwater cavern, we finally get the truth about Vanessa. When they were competing in ‘The Hollow’ in Season 1, she actually wore a special contact lens that is used to block her memory inhibitor system. This means she had all her memories with her from the start of the game till the very end. That’s honestly genius! I wasn’t expecting this revelation. But obviously, something must have went wrong because her contacts were glitching during the last few seconds of the season. 

4. And...I was sort of right! Vanessa thinks that her contacts must have caused the glitch. Kai theorizes that it must have also created some sort of infinite loop. whatever that means. Kai seems to be taking all of this well and he’s glad she’s owning up to her mistake. If the rest were here, I don’t think they would have the same reaction. 

5. Back to the battle on the surface; Mira reveals herself to Adam and Reeve and they’re so happy to see her. She tells them to pull the boat back while she distracts the creature. I’m glad to see Mira in action. It’s hard for her to be incredibly useful unless she’s around animals or water. She plays tag with Tursas and she manages to bring it as far away from the boat as possible, whilst escaping herself. 

6. Mira swims back to the surface, thinking that she bought them enough time to escape but nope, the sea monster returns just as she finishes her sentence. Brynhilda is very excited to see Tursas again because she wants to see all the action taking place in front of her. It bites and tears off the boat’s sail, slowing their boat down. This isn’t looking good for our heroes...

7. In the cavern, Vanessa is questioning herself and Kai if she should tell the rest of the group about her secret. It’s a no brainer for me; She needs to confess because her actions have already caused them so much pain and difficulty and hiding it would just make things worse. 

8. Mira tries her best to push the boat towards land but Tursas is catching up quickly to them. With their quick thinking, Adam and Reeve combine their powers to fight off Tursas; Reeve is levitating Adam so that he can get close to it and make his strike. As a result, we get a really cool action scene and Adam manages to land a solid punch on Tursas, knocking one of its teeth or fangs out in the process. I thought Tursas would be even more furious at them but in fact, it’s feeling better and goes back into the water because it doesn’t have a toothache anymore. Umm....all I can say is WTH? All of those poor vikings died because Tursas was grumpy from having a toothache?! That was so random.

9. Brynhilda thanks them all for their help and they jump back into the water with Mira, who also collected Tursas’s fang that was punched out. Mira pulls them both underwater and they swim back to the cavern, where Kai and Vanessa are waiting. Kai is trying his best to keep Vanessa’s secret to themselves. Although the right thing to do now is to tell the group the truth, it’s only Vanessa who should be the one to say it out loud. But she’d better do it as soon as possible. 

10. Mira puts Tursas’s fang into one of the slots near the wall of the cavern where there is already another similar fang positioned next to it and asks Adam to help her pull both fangs like a lever. They pull them backwards and something should’ve happened but it didn’t. Kai says that they’re stuck there. I’m pretty sure something is about to happen. Also, I disagree with Kai; They can always just swim back to the surface with Mira’s help. She, Adam and Reeve did just arrive from there. Unless of course they really need to solve this so-called puzzle in the cavern. 

11. AGAIN, Vanessa tries to make her confession to the group but finally, Mira’s idea is working because the wall is starting to crack open, revealing a tunnel that leads them up to the surface, specifically right within a peaceful looking fairy tale-like village. 

12. The group spots a trio of sprites/fairies giggling and flying through the air. They seem to be carrying Weirdy’s seafoam green scarf and his sunglasses. They run after the pixies but are stopped by a troll (not ogre..heheh) just before a river bridge and he says they can only go in unless they carry out a favor for him. Kai tries to ‘cheat’ and fire-jets up and over the troll but ends up face-plating himself against a force field and falls down really awkwardly but funnily at the same time. I wish I could gif that part because it was so hilarious.

13. The troll tells them that in order for them to be allowed to across the bridge, they need to bring a goat to him, probably for his meal. Adam says that he saw some goats in the previous village but Mira is totally against this because she’s a vegetarian and isn’t down to sacrifice a cute little goat. She comes up with the alternative and that is to make a veggie alternative of goat meat. I don’t think that’s gonna work lol.

14. Kai and Vanessa also agree to her plan and they volunteer themselves to help cook an alternative goat meal for the troll. I wonder what vegetables can they use that would act as a substitute for goat meat? This is honestly way too much work.

15. This is supposed to be the alternative? I thought they were going cook something like a veggie patty that tastes like goat meat. Instead, what they just made here looks like it belongs in an art museum. I don’t think the troll is gonna buy this. He can’t be that stupid. Well, he proves me wrong and accepts the weird looking faux-goat. I’m speechless...

16. We find out that the goat is actually meant for a huge toad-like monster named Malthezor to feast on. It sniffs the ‘goat’ and flicks it off the bridge and into the water. Instead, it proceeds to eat the troll and it dives back in. Wow, that was something; I actually feel sorry for that troll. Moments later, the force field disappears and they are able to walk across that bridge.

17. However, they still need to grab Weirdy’s items from the sprites but they’re too quick to catch up to. Vanessa flies up to find them and she spots the sprites taunting Weirdy near a tree. They approach Weirdy and confront him. Weirdy is shocked to see them because he thought he’d gotten rid of them in the last episode and he still thinks that they’re computer error codes. 

18. He mentions the glitch in the last game and how it has been making things go wrong in the current game. As he was about to snap his fingers and make them go through another portal again, the sprites pull his pants down, distracting him. The sprites get distracted because they are laughing at a pants-less Weirdy and Reeve and Adam were able to take Weirdy’s scarf and sunglasses from the sprites. 

19. They use his stuff as leverage to get him to tell them what’s going on and why they’re still in the game. I figured this would be a good time for Vanessa to spill the beans. Weirdy quickly snaps his fingers and portals are starting to open under them but Mira, with her quick thinking (once again) tells “Gustaf”, which is his real name in the real world to stop. He closes the portals and he questions her how she knows his name. They explain everything that’s happened to them and he gets a worried look on his face. 

20. We shift things over to the actual players that are supposed to be in this current game, Nisha, Tyler and Iris walking on the path in the same village our main characters are in. Nisha uses the skull key they stole from Adam to unlock one of the key slots on the weapon they took from Jules’s chateau and after some time, the weapon starts glowing and charges up.

21. Since this weapon is the equivalent to the Ishibo from last season, our main characters are seriously going to have a very hard time defending themselves from this team. 

22. Weirdy reveals to them that the Hollow Game company has been secretly making digital clones of the real-life players of the game during the memory block prior to the game starting. They also tapped into all the data in their brains to create and simulate a world that is similar to their real world, including their families and everyone they know. Ooo...So are the characters, including our main ones we’re seeing right now, all clones? Are the REAL Adam, Kai and Mira etc. in their own world living their regular lives and are totally unaware that they have digital clones?

23. Weirdy also tells them the reason for cloning them and developing this digital world is so that the company is able create a secret beta version of a simulated-life game. This is so technical; I’m literally copying from the close captions of this episode lol. He snaps his fingers and a screen pops up showing a presentation of the beta-version of the game, known as ‘Hollow Life’.

24. The video shows Gretchen Aguilar whom we’ve already seen a few times this season walking down the sidewalk and a clown suddenly pops around the corner whilst riding a bike, scaring ‘Sim Gretchen’. So this explains the individual/personal fears Adam, Kai and Mira had to face in episode 1 and 2 of this season. Someone is literally controlling the game they’re in. But who? I think it’s most likely the employees at Hollow Game company, whom are testing the game out. 

25. Weirdy points out that the characters in this digital world shouldn’t have their memories with them and he doesn’t know why our main characters are still able to remember everything. Cue in Vanessa...I thought she was finally going to tell them the truth that she was the one who caused that glitch but she doesn’t. Ugh, c’mon Vanessa!

26. As I’ve suspected a minute ago, our main characters in this game are clones of their real selves whom are all living a normal life in the real world, including the real Skeet. Although, this also makes me think that digital clone Skeet is most likely dead at this point, which is so sad. I’m still holding out hope that he will come back. 

27. This is some philosophical ish right here because they’re all worried about their future since they are just clones and the digital world right now is such a dangerous place to be in because the game is literally out to get them. On top of that, they still have the same memories and emotions as their real-life counterparts. That’s so true. I feel bad for these digital clones right now. Their chances of living a regular life is so slim. 

28. Unexpectedly, Vanessa comes up with a feasible solution and that is to transfer their digital world out of the Hollow Game servers, essentially moving everything offline and preventing beta gamers from messing with their lives. They plead with Weirdy to help them do that and he promises to them that he will try. All they need to do right now is survive the game till then. They also need to stop the other team from winning the game or else they will be erased from existence forever. No pressure right?

29. I have a bad feeling that Weirdy is going to get in trouble for trying to move the digital game world offline. Oh look here; From this picture, it looks like the other team has figured out how to use the doomsday weapon. Our heroes are looking a little sick right now. I guess the climax of this show is almost upon us. 

30. Thank you all for reading my review of episode 8. I really appreciate it! Stay tuned tomorrow for my review of episode 9. Bye!

[buggy-d-hoe]

Tagged by: @margothedestroyerr :) Thank you my love <3 <3 <3

Tagging: @booty-boggins, @ocfairygodmother, @lostiintheocean, @mystic-scripture, and whoever wants to do this. Not sure who hasn’t been tagged yet!

Rules: Answer 30 questions and tag 20 blogs that you would love to get to know better.

Name/Nickname: Ooooo, my real name is a secret, but the nicknames I go by are Grace, Gracy, G, Pip (<3 <3 <3), and I’m sure there are others. IRL, that’s another story hahaha.

Gender: Cis female 

Star sign: Leo...and that’s all I know -3-

Height: 5'5″ish....maybe somewhat close to 5′6″?

Time: 10:50 pm

Birthday: July 26

Favorite Bands: BTS (YESSSS), Blackpink, Twice, EXO, TXT, Blink 182, and others. Honestly, I listen to a lot hahaha.

Favorite Solo artists: Agust D and some others who fail to come to mind at the moment hahaha

Song stuck in my head: Honestly, it’s anything BTS because I have that playlist on repeat. 

Last movie: Batman Begins....for research purposes.....;)

Last Show: Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma...and a word of caution...definitely watch with headphones O.O

When did I create this blog: November 2012 for @itsjustgracy and September 2018 for this blog. 

What do I post: On my main, I reblog multifandom content and works of fellow creators that I’m tagged in. This account is strictly for my characters and my fan-fiction purposes.  

Last thing I googled: "Jonathan Crane Batman Begins”...again...for research purposes ;) and to drool over Cillian Murphy <3

Other blogs: @itsjustgracy is my main and this is my OC blog :)

Do I get asks: Only when I reblog ask games. Very seldom do I get asks outside of that. Annoying haters on the other hand, ughhhhh I wish they took a break and find something else productive. 

Why I chose my url: @itsjustgracy is something I hear a lot IRL (Oh...it’s just *insert real name*/ Gracy) and this blog’s name is from when I was younger and I used to watch this show called Atomic Betty and it sounded cool...which is also a slang word for atomic. So in short: it’s like Cool Gracy (lame...I know hahaha)

Following: 660

Followers: 140 on main and 207 on here

Average hours of sleep: Hahahah...it highly depends. If I get too much, I get cranky and if I get less, the more energetic I am? It's between 30 mins to 4/5 hours? Horrible, I know...

Lucky number: 13 <3

Instruments: I played guitar for a little bit but I don’t remember so much anymore (it was a high school phase). I am a mediocre clarinet player who was first chair during my years playing (only like that word because of Spongebob hahaha, so I guess you can say I was pretty good). I played piano since I was six and still dabble in it (played both genres of classical and other things like video games, anime, pop culture, etc). Does it count if I sing in the choir? I’m an alto voice who can switch to soprano if the number is lacking for the service. Currently perfecting the organ because I am practicing in church :) If you’re lucky, you can hear a wild Gracy humming or just singing to herself. Looking to pick up another instrument and the violin is kinda tempting!

What am I wearing: Black leggings, BT21 Cooky Striped Crew Socks, Sailor Moon black long sleeve, and Pink Sailor Moon hoodie from a friend’s shop (please check out https://www.instagram.com/special.move/ if you like anime hoodies! They have MHA, Sailor Moon, Demon Slayer and they are about to launch their Jujutsu Kaisen collection) 

Dream job: Traveling RN because I want to get out of my area and explore the world. Maybe be an author on the side :)

Dream trip: Visit the #chaoshouse members and just hangout. Other than that, Europe, Japan, South Korea, etc. 

Favorite food: Don’t make me choose! TT_TT My brother and boyfriend already have problems with me being picky and incredibly indecisive when it comes to “What are we eating?”

Nationality: An American that is looking for any way out

Favorite song: All K-Pop songs are stuck on repeat and favorites do change depending on what comes up on shuffle. BUTTTTT...the one song that hits home with me is Epiphany and it’s sung by Jin from BTS as his solo. Not because he is one of my bias, but if you listen and understand the lyrics (yay for English translations) you’ll see why :) 

Last book read: My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell. I am throwing up all warnings because the content material, or practically the entire book, is very triggering!!! This is an extremely dark book and even I had to put it down several times because it was definitely difficult to finish. It was hauntingly good read, but the subject material is what really made it difficult. My heart goes out to the author. 

Top three fictional universes I’d like to live in: Harry Potter, not only to chase after Draco, but to live out my childhood. I DO NOT support the author and I would love to make that clear. The Wizarding World is something that has always appealed to me growing up and I used to wish about attending Hogwarts. I am still awaiting my acceptance letter!!!! Maybe anything in the manga/anime field because have you seen the creativity and how awesome the worlds are?!? (Being a hero in MHA, surviving in AoT, raising a Psyduck in Pokemon, etc.). Last would probably be...crud...this is hard...but maybe Star Wars because, apparently, Pedro Pascal, Oscar Isaac, and Diego Luna are enough to convince me that men like that exist <3. In all seriousness, that series  is legit...umph.....so imaginative. Because I said so, maybe LotR because I wanna run around with @mystic-scripture and fulfill our Hobbit dreams....and marry Eomer...because Karl Urban. Also Star Trek....because Karl Urban....and Chris Pine....and cause I love it too. Goodness, I am just blowing this question out of proportion with my thirstiness hahaha.