#WAIT NO NOT THE KAITO CROP

[griimbones]

haiiii *goes through a vocaloid obsession*

[elekilokal]

wait, crop top kaito as in costume or in card? which card?

i’m talking about this

[plaindangan]

Junko was bored, that was nothing new, but what was new was her plan to cure her boredom, she decided to make some real gothic sluts, So she knew her target, Celeste, Kirumi, Her sister Mukuro and Maki. She would change the meals of all of them and over time she would monitor them with great care, at first nothing seemed to work but Over time Junko got her wish as the group slowly became sluts.

Disclaimer: R18 material! If not to your liking then please do not view!

...Why is it taking so long?!

When Junko commissioned (threatened to strip naked into a crowd) Seiko into making a 'slutty goth' drug, she had expected things would go much faster. But its Day 5 of drugging those four girls and she hasn't seen any action! What gives?! Does she actually have to strip that geeky pharmacist just to get her to make a drug that actually works?!

Well, when Junko awoken on the 6th day, she got her answer standing right above her. While it was custom for her plain, boring sister to wake her up in her plain, boring, dress shirt and skirt, Mukuro had clearly shifted to something different for the day. Instead, she was wearing 'baggy', black cargo pants (complete with a noticeably black thong peeking out), a black crop top with a skull printed on it, wearing purple lipstick (...wait, wasn't that from Junko's?), somehow a lip piercing (where did she get it at this hour?), a dark purple beanie and (while most of her hair was covered by it) the long strand left uncovered was clearly dyed purple as well. And to add to the look? Well, the drug clearly also had an effect on the soldier's body, giving her tits on par with Junko (forcing the despairful fashionista to resist the urge to dive right on in) and quite the curvy set of hips that made the 'baggy' part of her pants technically a lie now. When asked about her new look, Mukuro claimed it just felt 'right' for her...

Well, that and she was certain Makoto wouldn't be able to resist her now~ So confident, she even arranged a meeting in one of Hope's Peak classrooms for a 'one on one talk with the new her'. She didn't care if she had to coat all the desks in the room in cum: she's not leaving until he choose only her and fills her with his hot, gooey, spunk~

As Mukuro departed, with Junko blushing as her big sister's hips and new badonkadonk was swaying so invitingly for someone to smack them, Junko was ecstatic at the new Mukuro and quickly ran out of their place. She just had to check on the other girls!! Thankfully, Junko didn't have to wait for long to run into one. The next she saw was Maki...or rather heard her~

In the bushes of the park, she heard noises and went to investigate. Peeking into them she discovered Maki going to down on Kaito's giga cock to give it the sloppiest dome that she could~ She wearing a matching black sports bra and tight black yoga pants with coffin imagery on both sets. The former was small enough to still be revealing lots of cleavage to salivate over and given Maki's position, her gigantic, ridiculously wobbly, bubble butt was pointing right in Junko's direction and made even more appealing by her new look~

This, in addition, to the assassin now wearing black mascara, scarlet lipstick and hair (which she had abandoned in keeping in her classic twintails for it to just hang around all over her). Though, from how Junko could see it, Maki was into it so much, that her mascara had ran, leaving her face with very noticeable black tear streaks. Not that she seemed to mind~ Before long, Maki had torn away her yoga pants, showing off how she went commando today, and lustfully began riding on Kaito's slick dick. Eager for a new workout that had her her ride Kaito aggressively and the astronaut pushing himself to go further! Deeper! Longer! Until ten minutes' later when he finally came inside her, filling the assassin up with enough cream to last a lifetime...and promptly passing out soon after~ With a roll of her eyes, Maki chuckled and kissed her KO'ed lover on the lips. A cue Junko finally took to quietly slip away and leave Maki to get her boytoy back up in running before people came in (though she'd be lying if she didn't say recorded the entire thing as a 'memento'~)

Finally, for Celeste and Kirumi, they were in the dining hall. Considering she was already a goth, there wasn't much Celeste needed to do to really get into a new look, but could still see she put some effort into her new appearance. Celeste was sitting at a table, plump legs cross, and was wearing a long, black dress, with red frills around it. In addition to a huge cleavage cut out for her new huge knockers~

As one could imagine, many other in the dining hall couldn't keep an eye off of those pale milkers, thoughts consumed with how to get between them~ But beyond that, she was also wearing black bat symbol earrings, a black spiked choker, lipstick and even eyeshadow for it. Her nails though, was painted dark red with black yen symbols on them. Finally, there was a black crown that seemed just right, placed on this girl's head. Making a very stunning, very beautifully, and terrifying sexy sight!

"Kirumi. A refill of milk tea, if you please." Kirumi, standing next to her, bowed. "At once, Ms. Ludenberg." As for Kirumi, she was wearing a long, stunning black dress, with a small black jacket over it. She was also wearing white gloves, with now matched her new white dyed hair. She was also wearing a big black dress hat with three white roses in it. Of the four, Kirumi was the most reserved, but that didn't mean she wasn't a sight to behold as well. Her dumptruck was moving in quite the lewd manner, clapping and jiggly readily, as she got the dirty cup and other dishes Celeste had finished off this morning. The dress, too, also head a cleavage window meaning people could get a look at her set of milky tits too~

But, as Kirumi went towards the kitchen, Celeste suddenly stood up. Claiming she wanted it straight from the source this time~ As both entered the kitchen, neither noticed Junko slipping in. In hiding, Junko watched with horny amazement as the women had three 'cows', with quite the heavy erections waiting for them. 'Cows' that Kirumi wasted now time in servicing~ One by shoving its fuckstick into her boobs for a fervent titjob, and the others by taking their cocks into her new gloved hands and jerking them to heaven~

But Celeste was satisfied. Apparently at such a rate, one was bound to just not be able to give the 'milk' she needed. So what to do? Why, lift up her dress, pull down those lacey panties of hers, and get one of those hard-on in between her doughy buns of course~ Together (with some cock kisses for the one getting just a handjob) The room was quickly filling up with 'milk' that had both sluts eagerly slurp it all down with each hard bust from such dedicated 'cows'.

Ding!

Hm? Junko checked her phone for the latest notifications. Oh~ In front of her was a photo of a naked Mukuro, sticking her tongue out in lewd manner. On the floor was an exhausted Makoto, also naked, body covered in a mass of warm, white, goo.

'Toldja this little Hope boy wouldn't be able to resist the pull of my new look!! Sayaka and Kyoko can eat their heart outs~' Mukuro texted soon after, sending more pics that showed her riding Makoto's thick cock, the desks of the classroom they were in all being filled with spunk as Makoto pounded her ass on one after the other, and, the last pic, being Mukuro sloppily making out with a Naegi that seemed very into it~

It was official. The drug had worked and what had made such sexy, horny goths out of all four women~ God, thinking about the entertainment all four would get up to now was fantasies that had Junko practically drenched in her panties! Perhaps she should give Seiko some thanks...

...Yeah, fuck that!! She was going over there to not only get the geek to make more of this drug to make it faster acting, but also 'repay' Seiko by having her test out the new batch until it was perfect~ Because why stop at just four goth sluts?~

But that's another story for another time~

[kimmimaru]

Another little snippet from my Halloween fic. I am pretty pleased with how it’s going. Reno’s doing his best.

XXX

Finally, Reno found what he was looking for. It was a small door set into a seemingly innocuous brick wall. Reno rapped on it with his knuckles, and they waited. After a few moments a small panel in the door slid back to reveal a pair of startlingly hazel eyes. “Yo, it’s me. Open up.” Reno whispered.

The panel slid back, and they heard the click of a lock. The door swung inwards to reveal a dark room beyond. Reno ducked under the lintel and his friends followed him inside.

“Reno,” The voice was that of a girl. She was short, skinny and had her hair cropped short above her ears. She wore a pair of denim shorts and large, heavy boots. A pair of silver earrings were in her ear, the boys noticed the glint of materia shards in them. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Hello to you to, Garnet.”

The girl rolled her eyes, “Come inside.” She jerked her head towards a small seating area. Reno took a chair and his friends sat around him. “What is it you want now? You in some kinda trouble?”

“Me? Nah. Not this time, Gar.”

“Uh-huh. Sure.” Garnet rolled her eyes and sat in the largest chair, “Neo’s out on a job right now, he won’t be back ‘til later.”

“That’s fine. Don’t plan on stayin’ long anyways.” Reno leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “I’m here for intel.”

Garnet eyed him for a moment, then crossed her legs. Enzo’s eyes followed the movement, eyes a little glazed and lips parted. Reno nudged him with his knee, jerking him out of his daze. Garnet was chewing gum, the sound wet and too loud in the small room. She blew a bubble and it popped. Reno took a breath, “You heard about all these kids going missing, right?”

“Who hasn’t.” Garnet shook her head, spiky hair swaying. It was dyed a violent shade of purple, “Why’re you so interested in that? Kids go missin’ ‘round here all the time, Reno.”

“Yeah but we lost one of our own. Some kid saw ‘em. A group of grownups, they lured him away from the main paths and we haven’t seen him since.”

“You want my advice, Reno?”

Reno shrugged, “You’re gonna give it if I want it or not.”

“Yeah,” Garnet grinned, “Keep your nose outta it. Stay away from these kidnappings, do you hear me? It’s not somethin’ kids like us should get involved with.”

“I just want to know who’s doing it. We can stop ‘em-”

Garnet shook her head, her face twisting a little, “You’re not listening to me! Stay outta this shit. Go find some hole to hide up in until all this blows over, look after your own and forget about your little friend. He’s already dead.”

“No! He can’t be!” Kaito stood up, furiously pointing at Garnet, “I won’t believe it.”

“Believe what you want, kid. I’m not in the business of makin’ up fairy stories.” Garnet waved him away.

“Gar, you know somethin’.” Reno leaned closer, “Please. I’m beggin’ here.”

“Reno, begging?” Garnet laughed, “You really care about this, huh?”

“Yeah I do. This is my family, yo.”

Garnet sighed heavily, shoulders slumping, “Fine.” She said reluctantly, “But remember I warned ya.”

“Sure. On my life, I swear I won’t do nothin’ stupid!” Reno held up his hand and smiled.

Garnet laughed but then sobered after a moment, “These men in black, you heard of ‘em right?” Reno nodded, “They’ve been seen in every sector. Every time a kid disappears someone sees ‘em nearby. Men with black suits, smart lookin’.”

“Upper-platers?” Reno frowned.

“Yeah. Rich types, ya’know? But worse than them is the guy in the white coat. People’re sayin’ he’s Shinra.”

Reno let out a slow breath, “Thought so.” He rubbed at the back of his head, “Then there’s no hope?”

“None.” Garnet insisted.

“Shit.”

“We’re gonna try though, right?” Kaito looked at Reno, “For Seren?”

“Kaito…” Reno hesitated, seeing the hopeful light in Kaito’s eyes.

“No.” Enzo shook his head, “We can’t. If it’s Shinra, we have to stay out of it, like Garnet said.”

“If you won’t go, I will!” Kaito rose as if he was about to run out the door and storm Shinra HQ himself.

“Sit your ass down,” Reno growled. Kaito dropped back into his seat, eyes wide in shock. “None of us have the power to take on fucking Shinra, you hear me Kaito? We’re kids. Just kids.”

[geminiamethyst]

Kingdoms. Chapter 21: Dark Days

Chapter 1: click HERE

Chapter 20: click HERE

Chapter 22: click HERE

This chapter might get emotional. If any of you are susceptible to tears, please grab a box of tissues now.

"How long does he have?"

"Young man, I don't think-"

"Doc, please. My grandfather is the closet thing that I have to a dad."

"I'm sorry, but there's nothing that I can do. He'll be lucky enough to live until tomorrow."

Those words didn't help to lift Kaito's spirits. He noticed that his grandfather had taken a sudden bad turn about a week ago now. The old man was too stubborn to go see a doctor. He believed that he was going to be okay. However, while he was helping to plant the crops for the fall, Kaito found his grandfather had collapsed on the ground. He carried his grandfather into the house and immediately raced to the village on Taurus's back. He got to the village and grabbed the doctor as fast as he could. He and his grandmother had to wait for nearly two full hours to get the diagnosis. Unfortunately it was worse than they had hoped. Kaito allowed his grandmother to see her husband one last time, knowing that their last moments together will have to count for them both.

When the doctor left after Kaito had paid him, Kaito's grandmother shuffled towards him. Kaito's heart broke when he saw her face. Tear stains marked her face and her eyes seemed to have lost their shine. Her form was sagging from all the weight that her emotions carried. Kaito wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her.

"Kaito, he wants to see you." She said, her voice heavy with the grief that was to come.

"Are you-" Kaito started to ask, rubbing her shoulders comfortingly.

"I'm fine. Please go talk to him." His grandmother interrupted, gently prying his hands off of her. Kaito quickly gave her a small peck on the head. As he crept up the stairs, he could hear his grandmother crying again. He wanted so badly to comfort her, but he wanted to say one last goodbye to her husband. It took everything Kaito had to not break down as he saw his grandfather. His skin was as white as a sheet. He was shaking despite two extra blankets covering him. His breath was shallow. His life was slowly fading away. Kaito silently approached him, and gently held his grandfather's hand in both of his as he sat down on the chair next to the bed. Kaito held back a hiss as he felt how cold the elder's hand had suddenly become. The old man looked at Kaito, his face becoming serious despite his weakened state.

"Kaito, I want you to promise me something." He wheezed, looking Kaito sharply in the eyes. Despite his weakened state, the stubborn old man was determined to keep hanging on.

"Anything Grandpa." Kaito said, struggling to keep his voice strong. He can't break down. Not now.

"Keep your grandmother going for me. She's going to need you." Kaito's grandfather said, his own voice starting to waver a little. He let go of Kaito's hand as both of his slowly pulled a bronze pendent off of his neck. "More importantly, keep this safe. It was your father's, it has been passed down our family for generations." Kaito gently took the pendent from his grandfather. He had seen it only a few times when he was small. He had honestly forgotten that his grandfather had it.

"I promise Grandpa! And a man always keeps his word!" Kaito smiled, trying to make it as bright as he could as he slipped the pendent around his neck. He felt pride as he wore it.

"That's my boy. You're so much like your father. He'd be so proud you. I just know it." His grandfather smiled too. However, his face suddenly turned serious as he grabbed Kaito's hand with almost impossible strength. "But there is more to our family than you know." More to the family? It's true that Kaito didn't know everything about his family, his parents for starters. However something told Kaito that the elder meant more than that.

"What do you mean?" He asked. His grandfather opened his mouth, but all that came out was a horrible raspy cough. "Grandpa?"

"I'm okay, son." His grandfather wheezed, trying to catch his breath. Kaito readjusted the blankets and pillows, trying to give his grandfather some comfort. However, the elder grabbed his wrist. Kaito was quite shocked. The grip was tight, as if all of the old man's strength returned to him. "You're not old enough yet, but when you are, your grandmother will tell you. I promise. But until then, you must never show that pendent to anyone, not even your best friend." Not even Shuichi? Why?

"I don't understand. Why can't you tell me?" Kaito asked as he sat back down. He didn't understand anything. He needs to know now. He doesn't want to wait. He's sixteen, he's old enough to understand.

"I'm an old man, Kaito. And I'm tired. So very tired..." Kaito's grandfather sighed, his eyes becoming half lidded. Kaito's internal confusion and anger vanished. His walls that he kept up suddenly crumbled. He tried to stop the tears, but he couldn't.

"Please...please don't go..." he whispered, icy cold tears streaking down his cheeks. He wanted to stop them from coming. A man shouldn't cry after all. His grandfather didn't scold him, he simply put a hand to his face and gently brushed the tears aside with a comforting smile on his face.

"Don't cry. Remember what we've told you? When someone dies-" he sighed, his voice becoming quieter.

"-their soul becomes a star." Kaito chocked out, his shaking hand lightly grasping at the one on his face. "But...this doesn't help! I won't ever see you again!"

"No matter what, your parents and I will always watch over you. Even when you can't see us."

———————————————————————————

Kaito hesitated when he was at the front door. It had been a little more than a whole year since his grandfather passed away. He kept his word as he said he would. He has never shown the pendent to anybody, not even Shuichi. He bought new leather string to keep it securely around his neck. He kept it on him at all times, hidden under his shirt as like a lucky charm. Keeping his grandmother going however had started to grown more difficult. Since her husband was buried, she rarely smiled or laughed. There were times when she would "shut off" completely. She wouldn't speak or move during those times. Worse thing that happened during those times was when she refused to eat or drink, leading Kaito to spoon feed her like she was a child. Kaito kept his smile up when he was around her, trying to get her to smile more too. However, he felt like breaking down every time he laid down to try to sleep. It was getting harder and harder everyday to keep smiling.

"Hey, I'm back!" Kaito smiled as he finally stepped into the house. He didn't hear a response as he made his way into the kitchen. "I was able to get more bread. And I managed to get you your favourite tea. I saved up enough to get it especially for you." Again Kaito didn't hear anything. He turned around, but felt his heart stop. The food that he had made for his grandmother before he left was still on the table. It was hot when he left, but now it was stone cold.

"Grandma?" Kaito called up the stairs. Nothing. "Grandma!" Something was wrong. Something is terribly wrong. Kaito came to his grandmother's room. He hadn't seen her all morning. She hadn't touched the food he left for her. She hadn't left her room. Feeling sweat drip down his brow, Kaito opened her bedroom door. Kaito's grandmother laid on her back. She kept to her side of the bed, refusing to touch the side where her husband used to lay. She looked frail. For the first time ever, she finally looked peaceful without her broken hearted expression on her face. However, she looked still. Too still.

Kaito knelt by her bed. He shook his head in denial. His body shaking, he placed his fingers on her neck. There wasn't a pulse. Still in denial, he hovered his hand by her mouth and nose. No breath. No. No, no, no! She can't be gone. She can't be! Kaito slapped his own face as hard as he could. This had to be a horrible nightmare. Kaito shook his head and looked back at the bed. This wasn't a dream. Kaito couldn't stop himself from breaking down.

"GRANDPA! GRANDMA! DON'T LEAVE ME!" He wailed, tears freely flowing down his face. He hit the ground harshly, feeling the floor vibrate. "You...you haven't told me...the secret of our family..." All the secrets of his family, every single one of them were now gone forever. He had no other relatives that he knew of. There was no one else. Everything Kaito had the right to know, he'll never hear nor see them. Why? Why was life cursing him like this?! This wasn't fair! He was ready to know everything! Now he'll never know anything. He has lost everything!

"Sssshhhhh...it's going to be okay."

"M-Maki Roll?"

Kaito looked up, wiping away his tears. That was Maki's voice, right? What was she doing here? Why was she in his house? Wait. This was a memory right? Maki wasn't there when his grandmother passed away. How was she here?

Feeling a change, Kaito turned back to the body on the bed. It was gone, leaving an imprint of his grandmother behind. Dust and cobwebs covered everything the room had. The sky seemed darker than it was before. That's right. Ever since his grandmother was buried beside her husband, Kaito hadn't stepped in this room. Ever.

"I'm here...I'm not leaving you."

That was Maki's voice again. She was here. Memories immediately flooded back to Kaito. Meeting Maki and treating her wounds. Racing to the village with Maki and escaping from Shuichi and Kaede's house. Meeting the bandits. Flying on the airship. Being turned into a rodent. The night at the inn. Going to Web Valley. Running in the underground tunnel. A sickening feeling running through his body as he felt like he was paralysed and unable to breathe. He wasn't at home. He was just reliving through the dark days. Feeling frustrated, angry that his mind was betraying him with this game, Kaito yanked the bedroom door open, leaving his footprints in the dust. He slammed the door behind him. It vanished, becoming the wall behind him. Kaito suddenly felt fear run through his body. This was Web Valley. He was underground again. He didn't want to be here. He can't be here again. He heard something behind him. He could see it. A spider, the largest that he had never thought to exist. It chased him as he ran away. He knew that it was the cause of him trapped in this nightmare.

"I WANT TO WAKE UP!" He screamed, hoping that Maki heard him. Wherever she is.

He had to find her!

He has to wake up!

[trouvelle]

You Might Melt Me

Fandom: Detective Conan/DCMK Pairing: Heiji/Kazuha (mentioned Shinichi/Ran) Rating: PG Genre/Tags: Fluff, Comedy, College!AU Warning: Implied smut (a tiny bit of dirty talking) Summary: “So what?” Kaito asks, “Do you watch her eat and stuff?” “It’s like a ritual,” Shinichi tells Kaito helpfully.

•

Heiji is only twenty and he’s already facing a quarter-life crisis.

It’s not the fact that he has an entire class period (which dares to take up any normal person’s lunch time) every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon. Yes, having to have late lunch just so he can attend his class dutifully does sort of bothers him. And no, Heiji does not hate studying. Not at all. Especially when it’s chemistry, one of the areas of study that he excels in, aside from maths... and biology. And physics. Yadda, yadda, he’s smart.

The unfortunate quarter-life crisis he’s currently facing, though, has been one and the same for as long as he can remember.

And it’s also right here, in his class, as of the moment.

Heiji pushes down the urge to bang his fists on the table surface as he tries to listen to the professor’s explanation. Trying would be so easy. In fact, scoring a perfect score would be a piece of cake with a cherry on top if only the girl beside him would stop spending the entire class period stuffing her face with food and making Heiji want to scream at him to please freaking stop for his sanity.

She doesn’t stop eating, the ends of her chopsticks stained with sauce and mouth munching at a piece of glorious fried chicken, and doesn’t seem fazed by Heiji’s intense glaring.

This is why it’s a serious crisis and not some random matter that he can shrug off and forget. He has to pass this chemistry course with flying colours but concentrating on the lecture isn’t easy when Toyama Kazuha is eating right beside him, a box of karaage on her lap and without a care in the world, and Heiji seriously considers smacking the packaging right at her cute face. Beautiful face. But also undoubtedly annoying face. Not like he pays her extra attention or anything.

Kazuha pokes a piece of chicken into her mouth and turns sideways to glance at him and he is absolutely not staring at the way the piece of chicken visibly pokes at her cheek from inside her mouth as she continues to munch nonchalantly and the way her mouth moves rhythmically as she chews and swallows down her food. He ignores the way his heart is thumping excitedly in his chest. There was a time when there is no possible way Heiji would ever think that Toyama Kazuha is cute. Nowadays, whenever he sees her, his mind is always spelling out at him, in capitalized bold glittery letters, the word CUTE.

Kazuha raises a perfect brow at him, looking like she is sizing Heiji up and has a judgmental remark at the tip of her tongue ready to be thrown at Heiji, only that she’s too busy munching to do that. She only looks away when Heiji does.

She spends the rest of class occasionally looking up to nod at the professor’s words. He spends the rest of class trying not to notice.

•

Today is Tuesday.

Tuesday means pizza at the campus cafeteria.

That doesn’t mean Heiji is going out to buy two boxes of pizza for both lunch and dinner so he doesn’t have to wait for his beloved roommate Shinichi to return to their dorm with his girlfriend’s homemade food. Well, that too, but Pizza Tuesday mainly means that Kazuha gets to eat pizza for lunch. In class.

Pizza Tuesday also means Heiji slumping down in his seat as he listens to the boring lecture (boring, because Heiji always comes to Organic Chemistry II academically prepared and knowing that he’s already had firsthand knowledge about the materials anyway) and tries not to watch the way the slice of pizza disappears into Kazuha’s mouth.

Said girl looks too cheerful for twelve at noon.

She is also wearing a sleeveless and cropped sports tank top today and he chokes on his own saliva when he sees the band of her black freaking bra as she moves to bring a slice of pizza into his mouth. Damn that top of hers with armholes too wide to even qualify as a shirt. He reaches for his water bottle and ignores the way his mouth waters at that delicious piece of… pizza! Yeah. Definitely the pizza. Heiji is undoubtedly craving for pizza right now.

Half way into the lecture he finds Kazuha turning to him with a mildly pitiful look on his face. She’s definitely thinking Heiji is salivating at his pizza. Which Heiji is. Definitely. 

Heiji slumps further down his seat and grumbles into his sweatshirt.

•

Heiji wonders if it’s possible for him to react with excess oxygen to form water and carbon dioxide because at this point, he might as well just combust. At least then he won’t have to listen to the constant sound that she lets out as she eats, the sound so loud and distinct Heiji wouldn’t be surprised if she had been eating her cookies right in front of his ears all this time.

He feels like crumpling his desk into a makeshift ball of anger and smacking it at her face as she won’t stop snacking her pretty and pouty mouth off, seating relaxedly on her chair as the sound intensifies, and he thinks he’s going insane because no one else, not even the professor, seems like they give a damn about Kazuha eating extra loudly and practically disrupting the lesson. He doubts they even notice, which is probably the case with their professor.

Heiji wants to scream.

•

Heiji doesn’t scream.

Not in class, anyway. But he does scream when he goes back to his room, lying face down on his bed with his feet resting on the headboard. It’s a very comfortable position.

“Hattori!” Shinichi growls from his desk as Heiji continues to scream and scream and scream into his comforter because if Kazuha can disrupt his studying period by making the loudest and most enticing noises possible, then he has all the rights to yell as much as he wants.

“Hattori, I swear to your pathetic wrinkled ass that if you don’t stop that—”

“My butt is amazing!” Heiji yells back at him, still into the comforter, because getting up and shifting into a different position just so Shinichi can hear him is too much work and a waste of valuable energy.

Shinichi makes a disgruntled sound.

Something flashes in Heiji’s mind and he halts his screaming to a stop. Shinichi is gathering his stuff up when Heiji lifts his head to look at him.

It’s only happened too many times, Heiji can’t even pinpoint when exactly he became entranced by the sight. He vividly remembers that one time wherein he was walking behind Kazuha (they usually walk side by side) and didn’t waste his chance to stare at Kazuha’s back figure and the way her jeans hugged her toned legs and the curve of her ass so wonderfully.

Heiji sighs, almost dreamily. She looks amazing. Shinichi makes wild, incomprehensible gestures with his arms that Heiji thinks make him look like a ridiculous flailing pigeon. Heiji sighs again, this time more heavily because he has too many unnecessary feelings. He turns to Shinichi, hoping that the pout on his face makes him look pathetic enough for Shinichi to sympathize with him.

Shinichi merely gives Heiji a disapproving look before coldly closing the door behind him and leaving twenty minutes early for his date with Ran. Lover boy.

•

Heiji confronts Kazuha one morning, on the hallway just outside the lecture hall. She doesn’t look the least bothered by it, instead sporting an amused smile on her face as she licks at her chocolate ice cream like the irksome ahou she is.

“Can you not eat in class?” He asks, looking her in the eye and trying not to stare at the way her tongue drags down the side of the ice cream. Oh, how he misses their high school days when food is absolutely forbidden during class time.

“Why?” She asks, peering up at him. She has really long lashes.

“Because,” Heiji says and wets his lips when she licks at her ice cream with a torturously slow drag of her tongue. “Campus regulations prohibit food and drinks in class.”

Kazuha merely blinks at him before bringing her ice cream up so that she can suck at the swirling tip of it. His breath hitches involuntarily, which results in him inhaling a waft of what is probably her scent that strongly smells like citrus and vanilla. “I don’t know,” she says, an innocent look on her face. “Professor doesn’t seem like he minds.”

Heiji wants to strangle her. And maybe dip his finger into Kazuha’s mouth so he can feel how that ice cream must have felt like to be licked by that⁠—wait, what?

“That doesn’t make it okay,” Heiji growls instead, voice dropping an octave lower to show how serious this matter is for his future.

“Why?” A wet tongue darts out to lick ice cream off her lips that curl upwards at the end into a mischievous, kittenish smile and Heiji feels his insides melt and twist and swirl and explode into a myriad of feelings. “Does it bother you?” Kazuha asks, looking up at him and her mouth working, savoring the taste of milk chocolate. He might also be wondering how her lips might taste like, though nobody else has to know about how long he’s been having that thought for. Too goddamn long.

“Yes,” he says before his mind can register. After it does, he quickly adds, “No!” with his forefinger pointed at her because he’s supposed to be angry. “I’m supposed to concentrate on the lecture but I can’t because you’re right there beside me and won’t stop snacking in class and it’s getting on my nerves, you ahou!”

She ignores him and runs her tongue around what’s left of her ice cream and Heiji feels like he’s the one melting instead of the ice cream.

He must look really dumb standing right there with his mouth hanging open as he stares at her speechlessly.

She watches and studies him, still with that same mildly amused smile on her face, as he tries to find something to say and fails miserably. “Ahou.” Kazuha says with finality when she’s decided that he doesn’t seem like he’s got anything else to say, and continues to munch and bite into her cone as she walks away. Just like that.

•

Heiji decides the best decision is to unleash all of it to Shinichi and Kaito after class and make them listen to a verbal showcase of his concerns because that’s what friends are for.

“Oh. You’re early,” is Kaito greeting, the man not tearing his eyes away from his bowl of noodles as Heiji barges into his room and drops himself on their couch. Shinichi barely looks up before turning back to his laptop. He’s probably gotten tired of being exasperated by Heiji at some point.

“Are you not going to ask me how chemistry went?” Heiji gurgles into the couch.

“How was chemistry?” Kaito asks, monotonously.

“That ahou brought another food to eat in class again today,” Heiji says, sighing emptily.

“So what?” Kaito asks, before he seems to get it. Is this guy even more hopeless than he thinks? “Do you watch her eat and stuff?”

“It’s like a ritual,” Shinichi tells Kaito helpfully. When Heiji turns to look at them, Shinichi is still typing into his laptop, probably doing some essay for his literature class. 

“She eats too goddamn loud. I can hear everything—her chewing, munching, swallowing—it drives me crazy! And it’s so annoying because I can’t hate her,” Heiji states, jabbing his finger at the couch and totally making a point.

“Why would you want to hate her?” Kaito asks, using his chopsticks to swirl around the remaining ramen in his bowl. “ I thought you⁠ li—nevermind.”

“Because she’s loud and she’s distracting me from studying in class,” Heiji says, glaring at the other boy.

Kaito looks up from his bowl. “She’s distracting you? Not.. you’re distracting her?” he asks, eyes narrowed looking cat-like and a lot more invested in the conversation. If there’s one thing Hattori Heiji is good at, it’s being ridiculously distracting at any given circumstance.

“Yes, and I don’t disturb nor distract people,” Heiji defends himself.

“So she’s loud… and you’re not.” Kaito repeats, this time more of a statement than a question, “And she’s distracting... and you’re not.” 

“Well, yeah,” Heiji shakes his head exasperatedly.

He’s about to snap at Kaito because this is getting ridiculous, but Shinichi joins in, looking up from his laptop. “For the record, Hattori, you’re the only one who thinks Kazuha eats that loud.”

Kaito says, with a quirk in his mouth, “The problem is on you, not her.”

What? “I don’t—”

“Kuroba is having a bowl of ramen and you don’t seem to even realize how messy he’s eating.” Shinichi points out, trying to get his message across the thick-skulled boy, earning an unamused look from Kaito instead.

Nobody says anything, the slurping sound Kaito’s making as he eats his instant ramen is the only sign of presence in the apartment. Heiji briefly recalls what she looks like eating a bowl of ramen. With broth smeared around her lips and still looking effortlessly delectable nonetheless.

“Exactly.” Shinichi finishes with an exasperated look dead set in his eyes, like the wise old man he is, and Heiji really, really hates his friends.

“I hate all of you,” he groans at them both.

“Nah, you don’t,” Shinichi says, turning back to his stupid laptop with that stupid smile on his stupid face.

Heiji trashes his limbs around their stupid couch just so he can make their living room look a lot messier. Very mature. Heiji is proud of himself.

“Nah, you don’t,” Kaito reiterates, getting up to put his bowl into the sink. “Also, you’re on dish duty today.” Heiji doesn’t think they’ve helped him at all.

“You should consider the fact that your brain simply shuts down and all your other senses are heightened whenever Kazuha is present,” is what Heiji hears and ignores before he shuts the world off with his arm draped across his forehead to cover his eyes and sulks away to his sleep.

•

Heiji drops in his usual seat beside Kazuha’s. She’s not here yet, so he concludes that her other class is running late. She walks to class with what looks like soft milk breads in her hand and has an almost unnoticeable smile on her face that she tries to hide by biting into her bread when she catches sight of him.

The next hour he finds himself trying to subtly catch glimpses of her eating. She’s so fucking adorable, sparkly eyes focused on the lecture and cheeks bulging out cutely as she stuffs her face with food. That bread must be so soft and delicious, but Heiji is more curious of how soft Kazuha’s cheeks would feel again under his palm.

It’s stupid, but he doesn’t try to suppress the smile that creeps up his face as he stares at her fondly and thinks that, yeah, maybe he can finally accept this.

•

It has become a habit that Heiji forgoes lunch every Tuesday and Thursday in favor of coming to chemistry class on time. That doesn’t stop him from getting some snacks, though, because food is a must and is absolutely important, even more so than chemistry.

Usually, he stops by the nearby vending machine to get a pack of chips before the lecture and no more. This time, Heiji buys two. He finishes his pack of chips and chucks the empty packaging into the trash can and walks to class.

The professor walks in right after and the lecture starts just as he takes a seat, placing the pack of chips on his desk and dropping his backpack onto the floor. When he looks to the side, Kazuha is sulking in her seat, slumping into her oversized camel coat grumpily. He still thinks she looks the cutest in them.

“Want food,” She whines audibly into the desk, frowning cutely. He makes no effort to resist the urge to reach over and pinch her cheek, so he did. Not before throwing an “ahou” her way to make him seem more sincere, of course.

He glances at the pack of chips on his desk. 

Kazuha looks up when he places it in front of her. “Food?” she asks, sitting up and looking at Heiji with an adorable, confused look on her face.

“Food,” Heiji says unintelligently.

The lights are turned off for a powerpoint presentation the professor is currently doing, but he can see the way her eyes narrow at him in mild suspicion. “What did you put in this?”

He turns at the expected accusation. “Nothing!” he says defensively, feeling attacked. She has apparently not forgotten their middle school prank wars. He sighs. “I just bought it. For you.”

She looks at him intently. There’s a moment of pause, and he shifts in his chair anxiously, before she raises a brow and gives him a small, knowing smile. “I thought you hated it when I eat in class?”

He is ready to respond to her with a snide remark, but it doesn’t come. Instead, he feels bold, confidence growing as he says, “I like watching you eat.” She is toying with the plastic packaging of the chips and grinning when he smiles happily at her.

“Not surprised. Because I eat very gracefully, unlike you.” She throws back at him, a teasing glint in her eyes as she continues to smile at him. Heiji never noticed until now, but their obligatory daily arguments have blossomed into something more comforting and teasing like these ones. He wonders why they used to yell at each other so much when they were younger.

Heiji tunes out the professor’s words as he watches Kazuha throw chips into her mouth, the frown gone from her face. He keeps his gaze until she’s done with the chips. "Do you want something else?" Heiji asks, keeping his voice down and leaning in.

She turns to him. "What do you mean?"

She doesn't tear her gaze as he reaches for his backpack and rummages in it. He smiles as she leans in curiously, trying to peek into his bag with that cute pout on her face. Her eyes widen when he fishes out a bar of chocolate and places it on Kazuha's table.

"Heiji," Kazuha whines, eyes narrowing as she stares at the chocolate bar. "You've eaten half of it," she states as a matter-of-factly.

He indeed has, just yesterday, because he was hungry and who wouldn’t if he knew he had chocolate in his bag? But he still wants to give it to her, because a hungry Kazuha without food is a sad Kazuha and a sad Kazuha is the recipe for a sad Heiji.

He shrugs, pretending to reach for the chocolate. “If you don’t want it, then…”

Her hand quickly lands on the chocolate before his does, covering it with her hand protectively. "Thanks," she says, reaching over to brush the back of her hand against his and smiling up at him with those expressive eyes. She unwraps the chocolate so she can bite into it even though they're clearly in the middle of a lecture, and Heiji can't even be angry at her. Instead he feels like vomiting butterflies and unicorns because Kazuha is so freaking cute and he has never been happier.

•

If Heiji had known that being Kazuha’s boyfriend would be this amazing, he would have stopped burying his feelings years ago and started looking for all the things he can hate Kazuha for since day one.

They’re in Heiji’s room, laptop perched at the end of Heiji’s bed and a bowl of half eaten popcorn left to rest beside it. Having kicked out an exasperated Shinichi and Kaito out of the apartment half an hour back, Heiji made sure that they have the door securely locked, just in case. It’s a fortunate thing, because, as it turns out, Kazuha has a completely different plan for them that does not involve watching the many Avengers movies he has saved into his laptop, and it’s not like he is complaining, anyway.

Kazuha has a downright feral grin on her face as she trails a palm down Heiji’s naked torso, fingers brushing lightly at the hem of his pants as she looks up at him with twinkling eyes. Her hair is tousled up from where he buried his fingers in her dark locks as they made out earlier and he gulps because he’s never seen anyone look so distractingly adorable and suffocatingly hot at the same time.

Heiji shudders at the lingering warmth of her breath on the skin just above where his pants are pulled taut because he’s so achingly hard and her teasing isn’t helping.

“Heiji,” Kazuha purrs, peering up from under long lashes and the ends of her lips pulled up into a feline smile.

He breathes out, grip tightening on the sheets as he pushes down the urge to buck up because it’s only been fifteen minutes and he’s already so desperate.

“Heiji,” He really likes the way Kazuha says his name. “Remember when I had that ice cream? Want me to do exactly what I did to it⁠—” a wet tongue darts out to lick at where skin meets the seam of jeans to leave wet trails behind and he groans as she smirks in satisfaction “⁠—to you?”

“Kazuha,” Heiji hisses out as a warning, feeling like he’s on the brink of exploding because she is so torturously slow. Too slow.

“Want me to lick you up?” Kazuha dips down to take the head of his pants’ zipper in between her teeth. “Suck you dry?” Her palm is hot and welcome as it leaves a burning trail down Heiji’s sensitive ribs. “Swallow you down?”

“Kazuha. Just—” Heiji chokes into a stop when she hushes him up with a soft sound.

The kitty grin on her face makes him want to curse. “Do you want it?”

He looks down at her, chest heaving as he breathes hard. He closes his eyes, willing himself to think because thinking is hard when the body wants otherwise.

Fuck it. “Yes. Fuck, yes Kazuha. Do it.” He all but groans as soon as his mind registers, and doesn’t bother restraining himself from bucking up when she drags her head down, pulling the zipper open with her teeth. Her lips look so beautiful wrapped around the piece of metal and Heiji feels like the luckiest man on Earth to be the sole witness to that. He’s about to melt, physically and mentally, in all sense of the word.

Later, he finally finds out how the ice cream has felt with Kazuha’s lips wrapped around it in a tight, warm heat, and feels so damn happy because, let’s be real, now that he has her, he’s luckier than the luckiest man on Earth.

[lisatelramor]

I found your blog through DCMK and stayed for c-drama and various funny posts. You have excellent taste. Is there a fandom you consider to be your primary right now, and would it be different from any you’d consider to be your lifelong fandom?

Aww, glad you’ve stuck around, anon ^_^ <3

The fandom I always seem to gravitate back to is Detective Conan/Magic Kaito, so it’s safe to say for the moment at least that DCMK is my ‘lifelong’. Something about those characters just keeps drawing me back ^_^; 

I’m not sure I have ‘active fandoms’ so much as ‘active stories’ at any given moment, so if something sparks an idea I tend to poke at it because I will take inspiration when it comes haha. At the moment I’m working on 2 untamed fic, a soulmate snippet fic collection (because I needed something to poke at when I get stuck on the other fic), and a original thing that’s less a story and more script format for the game I’m poking at making (which knowing me will never get finished, but I hope to at least finish a ‘day’ of in-game play and all the various things I need to learn to do that). The Untamed fic were supposed to be short and something to work on before trying to poke at older WIPs, but hahaaaaa. >___> I started them in January-ish, and here we are, still not done and still without a clear end point for one of them. Lately I’ve been mostly reading fics from Chinese dramas/webnovels so it was kind of inevitable after spending most of a year reading Untamed fic that a story idea would bite.

That said, I’m low-key waiting for the next DCMK or DNAngel fic idea to slap me across the face because it’s always a matter of time before one of my main fandoms resurfaces with claws out to hook me back into their character voices. I’m missing the dopamine burst from finishing a story at the moment so the longer I go without finishing something, the more likely it is new ideas will crop up and look more enticing than a WIP ^_^;;

Thanks for the ask! <3

[himiko-yumehellno]

Beta au fan quotes part eight – inspired by things Kagz and I have said edition:

Kirumi: I just consumed the mighty miso soup.

Kiibo: Oooh interesting.

Kiibo: I don't know what to say about that.

Kirumi: It's soup.

Kiibo: I mean I would assume so.

—

Kaito: You named one of my plants Bob Ross.

Shuichi: Actually I named your plant Boba Rose. You were the one to give it the nickname Bob Ross.

—

Himiko: I'm gonna make you a moodboard now.

Kokichi, tearing up: NO!

—

Tsumugi: Every day I do my silly little contribute-to-my-rivalry-with-Rantaro work and wait for him to say "YOU" or "BITCH."

Rantaro: ... What did you do.

Rantaro, two minutes later: YOU BITCH!

—

"If I'm not allowed to uwu you're not allowed to quote that show!"

- Angie Yonaga

—

*while standing in chaos*

Miu: I have one question.

Kiyo: Go ahead.

Miu: Who did the stupid thing?

Kiyo: Everyone.

Miu: Oh god.

—

Gonta: I just ate a cinnamon muffin and that's all my brain is focused on right now.

Kokichi: What's a muffin?

Gonta: ...

—

Shuichi: Who's a good boy?

Marshmallow the Spinda: Spinda spin spin da da! (I have committed numerous war crimes and cannot enter heaven as a result!)

Shuichi: That's right! You are!

—

Maki, talking about a character in one of Kaede's stories: Can we please give him good things?

Kaede: No.

Maki: AAAAH!

—

Miu: Do you want me to draw like a motorcycle onto a crop top or something.

Miu: Will that satisfy you?

—

Shuichi: Everytime someone does something for me I'm like "why though."

Tenko: We're a platonic ship dynamic ready to be discovered by mainstream writers. Person A who's a disaster when it comes to gifts, and Person B who loves to give people gifts.

Shuichi: WE ARE NOT A FUCKING CHARACTER TROPE!

—

Miu, spray painting a new art piece: TORQUIISE!

Rantaro: The color sure is bright.

Kaito: DARK MAGONT!

Miu: PORPLE!

Kaito: GOT SHADE?

Miu: PORPOISE!

Rantaro: Ah yes my favorite colors, porpoise and ping pong.

—

Kokichi, looking at clothes reference pictures for Angie: Do you want a shirt with a dog on it, a quote on it, or a joke on it?

Angie: I'M TALKING ABOUT A SEXY ASS TOP TO PUT ON A SEXY ASS MAN TO MAKE MY BI ASS HEART GO BRRR!

Kokichi:

Angie: ... Sorry.

Kokichi: I am not a good judge of what constitutes as "sexy."

—

Kaito: Are you okay?? Rantaro was glaring at you during math class; what happened?

Shuichi: I used his charger without asking and he's been holding a grudge even though I gave it back

Kaito:

Shuichi:

Kaito: What?

Shuichi: ... Did you not realize we're brothers?

Kaito:

Kaito: WHAT?!

—

"I can't pay you for French lessons also where did the baguette mention come from?"

- Gonta Gokuhara

—

Maki: *is crying*

Kaede: Do you need a handkerchief to wipe your tears with?

Maki: Nah, I use them to water my plants.

—

"Nevermind, Kaito is a sexy girl."

- Miu Iruma

—

Marshmallow the Spinda: Gonta, I'm trying to sneak around, but I'm dummy thicc and the clap of my asscheeks keep alerting the guards.

Gonta: Please I just want to see my wife again.

—

@kagazuly celebrate with me. Gaze upon the shit we've said and be proud of your hard work.

[dooniwrites]

𝖌𝖔𝖙𝖍 𝖎𝖍𝖔𝖕

Read 𝖌𝖔𝖙𝖍 𝖎𝖍𝖔𝖕 on AO3 Here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24957589

Fandom: Danganronpa v3

Ship: Kokichi Ouma X Shuichi Saihara, Background Harukawa Maki X Momota Kaito

Word Count: 4,889

Warnings: none!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shuichi Saihara rolled over in his bed and struggled to open his tired eyes. The sounds of a morning talk show came from the TV that rested atop his dresser. As he was never one to lounge around in bed all morning, he got right up and made his way to a slightly cramped bathroom to brush his teeth and get ready for the day. He was mindful of the stacks of paper strewn across his floor; files he had meant to organize the previous night but had fallen asleep before he could. Once he had changed and brushed his teeth, he entered the living room with a yawn. He glanced at his phone. Shit. It’s late. How is it already almost noon? he asked himself as he saw empty cans of soda and papers scattered about the coffee table and floor. Kaito must have been working out here last night . Shuichi was knocked out of his train of thought when he heard keys jingle as the door opened.

“Hey, man, you’re finally awake! It’s about time. You never sleep this late. I was getting a little worried, if I'm being honest,” Kaito laughed as he entered the apartment. Kaito was his roommate in college. He helped Shuichi become more active and stronger, and Shuichi would help him on his assignments when he had the chance. Shuichi was always there for Kaito, and Kaito was always there for Shuichi. When they both graduated, they had both decided to stay in the city since they could both find a job easily as well as an apartment for cheap. Shuichi was currently working as a private investigator with his uncle and Kaito worked at the Dodonpachi Observatory. They were already used to each other’s schedules and had decided to rent an apartment together as it made sense for them economically.  

“Sorry about that. I had to finish up some reports last night, and I guess I lost track of time. Honestly, I don’t remember falling asleep,” Shuichi said as he yawned again, walking over to the kitchen island and took a seat. He rubbed his eyes and glanced over at his roommate. Kaito appeared to be covered in sweat. He must have just gotten back from one of his morning runs. Kaito pulled the carton of eggs out of the fridge and grabbed a cup from their cupboard. As Shuichi watched Kaito, he heard his own stomach growl. Guess I should probably eat something, he thought to himself as he got up off his stool and made his way to the fridge. He saw a bunch of apples on the counter and shook his head. Pancakes could be good, he mused as he opened up the pantry. His eyes scanned the area looking for ingredients. He placed the pancake mix on the counter and went to grab the carton from Kaito. He watched as Kaito cracked the last egg into a cup. Shuichi watched in horror as Kaito downed the egg in one gulp. He cringed at the sight. Shuichi opened the fridge, trying to see if there was anything he could use a substitute for eggs. He went to his phone and googled what he could do. He sighed after doing a quick search, realizing that he would have to go to the store no matter what.

“You good, man?” Kaito asked.

“Oh, yeah. I just don’t know what to eat,” Shuichi said as he shut the fridge. “I was planning on making pancakes, but it looks like we’re out of eggs now,” he awkwardly chuckled as he gestured to the empty carton of eggs.

“Ah, shit. I’m sorry, man,” Kaito said as he looked at the empty carton. He placed a hand on his chin and hummed, thinking deeply. He snapped his fingers. “I know! Let’s go to 𝖌𝖔𝖙𝖍 𝖎𝖍𝖔𝖕. It’ll be my treat.”

Shuichi corked an eyebrow. “Are you sure? It’s nearly noon. Don’t they only serve breakfast?” Kaito began laughing.

“Bro, they’re open all day! You know brunch and breakfast for dinner exist, right?”

“Oh, yeah. I guess people do that,” Shuichi shrugged. “Still, I don’t know. I don’t want you to have to come out with me just because I wanted some pancakes,” Shuichi trailed off. He worried he was being a burden. He didn’t want Kaito to feel obliged to go with him. It was his own fault he ended up sleeping in so late. Shuichi wondered if he should even go, given that he still had a lot of work to do.

“Dude, you’ve been working your ass off, and you know I don’t mind! Plus my Maki Roll is working today!” Kaito hummed. Maki was Kaito’s girlfriend of almost four years. They had gotten off to an awful start in college, they were both in the same *class* and had been paired together for a project. Maki gave Kaito the impression that she absolutely hated him. Kaito was infatuated from the start. Shuichi was surprised Maki didn’t file a restraining order the first year they had met. Kaito constantly insisted that they should be workout buddies since they both had a strong interest in fitness. At first, she only accepted because she hoped this would lead to him getting off of her back. Soon, much to her dismay, she began looking forward and actually enjoying their daily workout sessions. It was not long after until they started dating.

“Oh, I see, you just want an excuse to go see your girlfriend,” Shuichi teased. “Alright, fine,” Shuichi said as he reached for his phone on the counter and called for an Uber.

“Yes!” Kaito cheered as he made his way to the bathroom to freshen up.

Kaito held the door for Shuichi as they both walked into 𝖌𝖔𝖙𝖍 𝖎𝖍𝖔𝖕. They made their way to the host stand. Maki stood there wearing a short black lace dress ripped and patched together with safety pins. She was zoning out as she traced the design on the menus sitting atop of the stand with her index finger. She began her greeting as she heard the door close.

“Hello and welcome to 𝖌𝖔𝖙𝖍 𝖎𝖍𝖔𝖕. No, you may not do a wrist check. How many will you be today?” Maki looked up to see the customers. Her eyes widened. “K-kaito?! What are you doing here?” she whisper-yelled.

“I’m here to see my little Maki Roll!” Kaito cooed as he made grabby hands toward her.

“I love you, but please do not, and I mean, do not call me that here.” Maki hissed as she glared at Kaito.

Shuichi definitely felt intimidated as he took in the scenery. He was used to Maki since she was basically being herself, but the heavy rock music blasting and the skulls decorating the place was more than he was used to.

“Okay, fine,” Kaito grumbled. “Anyway, can Shuichi and I get a table?” Maki nodded as she grabbed two menus and two sets of silverware. She motioned for them to follow her. She kept her head down as she led them through the restaurant. Shuichi deduced that she was embarrassed that her co-workers could see the affection her extravertive boyfriend was trying to show, especially since the restaurant was empty, and there was nothing for most of them to do but gossip. She placed the menus and silverware on the table at their booth. “Enjoy your meal,” she huffed before she leaned down to Kaito and placed a quick peck on his cheek. “I’ll text you after my shift.”

“Aw, thank you, Maki Roll!” Kaito grinned widely as he said her nickname aloud. She clenched her fists as one of her coworkers snickered from behind her.

“Maki Roll? That’s a new one!” the voice laughed as it cleared the table next to their booth. Shuichi looked behind Maki to see the owner of the voice. His plum-colored hair curled messily at the ends, framing his face elegantly. Light violet eyes were accentuated by a rim of dark smudged eyeliner. He seemed to fit into this place well. Shuichi could see his ears poking through his hairstyle; they appeared to be covered in piercings. Underneath his apron, he wore a dark purple cropped tank top which showed off his toned sides. He had a black and white checkered bandana tied around his thin-yet-toned bicep paired with skin-tight leather pants that did not leave much room for the imagination. Shuichi mentally scolded himself for staring at that area a little too long. He made eye contact with the voice who shot him a smile. Shuichi’s cheeks began to heat up. He felt as if he could get lost in those piercing eyes. The two stared at each other longer than socially acceptable before Maki walked away with a huff, embarrassed by her coworker. He was snapped out of the gaze. “I’ll be with you two in a minute!” the voice called as he carried the dishes into the back.

As Kokichi entered the kitchen he saw that Maki was leaning against the counter. Her lips were pressed into a firm thin line. She looked unamused and her arms were crossed. Kokichi let out the laugh he had been trying to hold in. “Maki Roll! Oh my god! Who even was that dude?”

Maki clenched her hands into fists. “Do you want to die?”

“Oh, I’m so scared.” Kokichi sneered. “You know, if I didn’t know any better I’d say he’s your boyfriend, but how could anyone ever love a edgy bitchl like you?!” Maki was silent, Kokichi took her silence as an answer. “HE IS!” Kokichi exclaimed.

“Shut up and go serve them,” Maki grumbled as she walked out of the kitchen, and made her way back to the front of the restaurant.

“Wait!” Kokichi called out, stopping Maki in her tracks. “Who’s that guy with him?”

“That’s Shuichi, his roommate. Now get back to work.”

Kokichi took a deep breath as he walked up to the table. “Hello, boys! I’m Kokichi and I’ll be your server of despair today. Can I get you two started with anything to drink?”

“Oh, um,” Shuichi stuttered, caught off guard by the greeting of the man. “Just a glass of water, please.”

“Ah, so you’re one of those cheapasses,” Kokichi said without hesitation. Shuichi sucked in his breath. Kaito held a hand over his mouth, trying to suppress his urge to laugh out, not wanting to embarrass his friend even more. He was used to the service here. “I’m kidding!” Kokichi laughed as he placed a hand on Shuichi’s shoulder, causing the man to jump. “And for you?” Kokichi said, turning his body to face Kaito.

“I’ll just have an iced tea,” Kaito replied. Kokichi hummed as he wrote the drinks down on his notepad.

“Be right back!” Kokichi chirped.

Shuichi let out a deep breath as he watched Kokichi walk away. “Relax man!” Kaito said as he watched Shuichi begin to tap his fingers nervously against the table.

“Are they all supposed to be like this?” Shuichi said in a hushed voice as to not offend the workers.

“Well, yeah. It is 𝖌𝖔𝖙𝖍 𝖎𝖍𝖔𝖕 after all,” Kaito replied. Shuichi leaned back into his seat as he saw Kokichi returning. Kaito stared at Shuichi as he watched his friend try to keep his head down, fiddling with his fingers.

“Here you two go!” Kokichi said as he placed the drinks on the table. He pulled his notepad out once again. “Ready to order?”

“Yeah,” Shuichi said cautiously. “I’ll just have the short stack of buttermilk pancakes.”

“Alrighty! And would you like a syrup pentagram on top of your pancakes?”

“Um, sure,” Shuichi said. He was unsure if he made the correct choice.

“Awesome!” Kokichi said enthusiastically as he wrote the order on his notepad.

“I’ll have the breakfast sandwich,” Kaito responded.

“Would you like your eggs in the shape of a skull?” Kaito nodded and Kokichi finished writing their order.  He took their menus and made his way to the kitchen to place their order.

“Here you two go!” Kokichi said as he placed their respective dishes in front of the two men.

“Thank you,” Shuichi stammered as Kokichi placed the plate in front of him.

“Careful now, it’s hot,” he paused, “just like you.” Kokichi winked at Shuichi and placed Kaito’s meal in front of him.

“You two enjoy your food,” Kokichi said as he sauntered back into the kitchen. Kokichi took a deep breath, trying to calm his heart. He couldn’t believe he just flirted with a customer. This was 𝖌𝖔𝖙𝖍 𝖎𝖍𝖔𝖕! He was supposed to be mean and edgy. He couldn’t stop thinking about the cold, calculating grey eyes of that guy. H Kokichi found it cute how timid he was.  He couldn’t help but try to stare at the boy through the window in the kitchen that looked out to the dining area.

“That’s really fucking creepy, you stalker,” Maki said as she walked into the kitchen, placing silverware into the dishwashing bin.

“I- uh, um.” Kokichi stammered, trying to pretend Maki didn’t just give him a heart attack. Maki said nothing as she walked off.

Shuichi hummed happily as he took another bite of his pancakes. “These are delicious!”

“I know, right?” Kaito agreed. “I think our waiter has the hots for you,” he said as Shuichi was taking a sip of water. This claim caused Shuichi to begin coughing and choking on his drink.

“What?” He croaked out.

“He keeps staring at you! He’s definitely into you! You should slip him your number!” Kaito said as Shuichi shook his head violently. “Come on man! Don’t be a pussy! Do it,” Kaito’s voice was gradually getting louder and louder. Shuichi feared that the other employees would hear him. Especially him .

“Okay, okay! Just be quiet,” Shuichi pleaded with a hushed voice. Kaito laughed and they continued to eat.

Kokichi made his way out of the kitchen area, noticing both of their plates were empty. “All done here?” he asked as he approached the table. The two nodded as they pushed their plates inward towards him. “I’ll just take these, and I’ll go get your check,” Kokichi said as he grabbed the plates and made his way to the kitchen. He placed their plated in the dishwashing bin and made his way to the register to print their check. He toyed with the idea of slipping the guy his number, but now it was his turn to feel hesitation. Once the check was printed he walked back over and placed it on the table along with a pen. “Take your time, you two!”

Kaito pulled out his debit card and slipped it into the check holder and filled out the receipt with the pen. Once it was filled out he handed the pen to Shuichi. “Now’s your chance, man,” he said as he slid a clean napkin towards him. Shuchi nodded as he took the pen. He began to write his number out on the receipt. His handwriting was shaky. He took extra caution to make sure the numbers were legible. After he wrote his number, he figured it wouldn’t hurt to add his name. He saw Kokichi coming back to their table. This caused him to panic and crumble the napkin in his hand as he placed his fisted hand in his lap, mentally cursing himself out.

“I’ll just take this!” Kokichi said as he took the check from Kaito and made his way back to the register. Shuichi released the breath he was holding and placed the napkin back on the table face down to avoid Kokichi seeing it, worried that he might see him as a creep.

“Shit,” Shuichi murmured, hoping at least his number was still eligible. He pulled out his wallet and grabbed a twenty-dollar bill.

“You never tip this much!” Kaito laughed

“Oh, well, I guess you can say he was special,” Shuichi blushed.  Kokichi made his way back over to the table.

“Here you go! Don’t worry, I only charged you about five hundred extra!” Kokichi laughed. “Kidding,” he said emotionless. Kaito and Shuichi chuckled nervously. “Have a horrible day you two!” Kokichi said as he began to walk off.

Shit, what if he doesn’t see the tip? Shuichi said to himself in a panic.

“W-wait,” Shuichi stammered as he stood up. Kokichi turned around. He was shorter than he expected; Shuichi towered over him.

“Yes?” Kokichi purred.

“Um, here you go,” Shuichi said as he handed Kokichi the twenty-dollar bill along with the napkin.  

“Aw, thank you!” Kokichi smiled. He read the napkin. “Shuichi Saihara.” Kokichi read in a sultry voice. “I like how that sounds!” He cooed. “Come back anytime, pretty boy,” he grinned. Shuichi felt his cheeks begin to heat up.

Throughout the rest of the day, Shuichi tried to push the idea of seeing Kokichi ever again out of his head. He figured Kokichi must have gotten hit on by almost everyone who went to that restaurant. Shuichi doubted Kokichi even read the number, convinced he had thrown it out the moment they left, figuring he was too bland to ever catch the eye of someone like him. He tried to busy himself with the piles of paper that needed organizing.

Maki came over once her shift finished. Her and Kaito hogged the living room. Shuichi decided to board himself up in his room. He laid atop of his bed, listening to the news on his TV mindlessly as he scrolled through his phone, trying to reward himself for finally organizing all of those papers and even cleaning his room up a bit. A notification flashed across his screen

Hey Shuichi! It’s Kokichi from 𝖌𝖔𝖙𝖍 𝖎𝖍𝖔𝖕! ;) Shuichi’s mouth dropped open. He couldn’t believe it. He was already convinced that this was a prank set up by Kokichi and/or Maki. As much as he didn’t want to get his hopes up, he didn’t want to leave whoever it was on read.

Hi! Not to be that person, but this isn’t a prank, right? Shuichi immediately regretted every decision in his life he had made up to this very moment. He didn’t want Kokichi to think he had trust issues or was an extremely paranoid person. He placed his hands over his face as he saw the three typing dots pop up. He groaned, his heart beating a million miles per minute.

Nope! It’s really me! Kokichi from 𝖌𝖔𝖙𝖍 𝖎𝖍𝖔𝖕! Kokichi responded. Moments later, a photo of him was sent. He was still wearing his outfit from earlier that day, without the apron. Shuichi could see his toned stomach. He wore a grin on his face. Shuichi felt his heartbeat in his throat and he studied the features of Kokichi. Five minutes had passed and Kokichi sent another message. Are you still alive, Shuichi? Shuichi scrambled to type out a response.

Yep! Sorry, I was just looking at your photo. Shuichi cringed as he read the message over once it was sent. He is making himself out to be a creep. He wished there was a reset button he could press.

That enamored by my beauty? Understandable. You’re not too bad yourself, though. Shuichi’s brain was short-circuiting. He dropped his phone and somehow, now his phone was calling Kokichi for a facetime.

“Wait, shit!” Shuichi cried out in a panic as he tried to cancel it. Suddenly, Kokichi accepted the call. Shuichi mumbled under his breath, “fuck me,” not aware Kokichi’s video had already connected.

“Is that how you greet every person you call? But don’t worry, I will eventually,” Kokichi laughed as he watched Shuichi’s face turn red. “Honestly, don’t feel embarrassed, I was actually about to ask if I could call you.”

“Oh, really?” Shuichi said quietly. He wished the earth would reclaim his worthless form.

“Mhm! You’re a cutie, and I wanted to see you again! So I hope you weren’t hoping you could just give me your number and never hear from me again!” Kokichi cheered.

“Really? You think I’m cute?” Shuichi whispered. He tried to hide the shock he was feeling. “I’d also like to see you again if you really meant that!” Shuichi stammered again.

“Yep! How about you and I hang out next Friday? We can do whatever you like!” Kokichi winked, Shuichi felt his throat go dry at what Kokichi could be implying.

“That sounds nice. I’d really like that. A lot, actually.” Shuichi responded.

“Awesome!” Kokichi sang. “You can come to my place! I’ll send you my address later.” Shuichi let out a yawn. He knew he should go to bed soon, but he didn’t want to end this conversation with him. Kokichi may never talk to him again. “You seem sleepy,” Kokichi cooed. “You should get some rest.”

“Yeah, I know,” Shuichi groaned. Kokichi noticed Shuichi’s hesitance to say goodbye.

“I’ll text you tomorrow morning, okay?” Kokichi smiled as Shuichi’s eyes seemed to light up. “You’re going to go to bed now, right?” Kokichi asked. Shuichi nodded his head. “Good boy. I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” Kokichi hung up the phone. Shuichi’s head was spinning. What just happened? he asked himself. His phone was lying atop his chest as he tried to make sense of everything that happened. His phone vibrated again.

You better be going to sleep now. Goodnight, Shuichi!

T hroughout the whole week, Shuichi had trouble focusing at work. He was able to do his job but he found himself becoming distracted, constantly checking his phone, worried he was missing any message Kokichi had sent him. Kokichi had said good morning to him every day and would text him throughout the day, usually complaining about customers and/or his coworkers. Friday couldn’t have come any quicker in Shuichi’s opinion. The moment he clocked out for the day he began to feel nerves coursing through his body. He had gone home and placed his bag on his bed, not bothering to unpack it. After a long day cooped up in a hot and sweaty office he had the strong urge to freshen up

“Good luck man!” Kaito said as he saw Shuichi making his way to the door. Maki was cuddling into his side, but once she saw Shuichi she quickly sat up and out of the position she was in.

“Thanks, I’ll text you later. See you guys!” Shuichi said as he began to open the door.

“Wait! Here, catch these!” Kaito called out. Shuichi turned around to a box flying at his face. He caught the box and read the front. Oh, this is a box of condoms… Shuichi felt his face burning up with embarrassment, but he simply rolled his eyes and threw them back to Kaito.

“I think you will be needing these more than I will. Have fun,” Shuichi said as he quickly left the apartment, making his way down the building stairs to meet his Uber outside.

Shuichi was constantly checking his phone, hoping he was going in the right direction. What do I even say to this guy? Oh my gosh. What if he kills me or something? Shuichi looked out of the car window, wondering if he could roll out of this car. No, this will be fine and I will be okay , he repeated to himself. He continued to repeat this to himself as he got out of the car and made his way into the apartment building. Please be the right place, please don’t be some random person that isn’t Kokichi , Shuichi prayed silently as he walked up to Kokichi’s supposed apartment. He knocked gently three times. Suddenly, the door swung open and Shuichi felt a weight pull him down.

“Shuichi! You came! I’m so glad!” Kokichi smiled as he pulled Shuichi into a hug.

“Uh, yeah!” Shuichi laughed nervously, patting Kokichi on the back.

“Well, make yourself at home!” Kokichi said as he led Shuichi into his apartment. You could always get a sense of a person based on their house and how neat it was, the colors, arrangement of furniture, etc. Shuichi was an expert at this, especially since he was an investigator. He was actually surprised when he entered the apartment, it was surprisingly bright. Based on Kokichi’s appearance, he expected it to be dark and almost have a satanic vibe. Instead, the apartment was very neat and quite modern. Kokichi made his way over to his black leather couch in his living room.

“Thanks,” Shuichi said nervously as he followed Kokichi to his couch.  

“So, I was thinking we could just chill and watch a movie?” Kokichi asked. Shuichi nodded, “Cool! I’ll let you pick the movie!” Shuichi felt panic begin to rise in his body again. What if he thinks my choice is stupid or boring? Oh my gosh, he’s gonna think I'm lame and then never want to see me again . Shuichi’s train of negative thoughts was abruptly interrupted by the feeling of a hand being placed on his shoulder. “You okay?” Kokichi asked gently. Shuichi nodded.

“Yeah, sorry. I was just overthinking things a bit,” Shuichi chuckled. “Why don’t you pick the movie, actually?”

“Are you sure? I’m definitely going to pick a horror movie, so I hope you don’t get scared easily,” Kokichi laughed maniacally.

The two were in the middle of Evil in the Depths III. Shuichi was used to dealing with many graphic and gruesome crime scenes on a day to day basis, so he was pretty good with gory horror movies, but he could not deal with paranormal horror movies. The fact that there was so little that could be proven or disproven genuinely frightened him to think about. Throughout the movie, the two of them found themselves inching closer to one another. Shuichi felt his one hand become much warmer than it already was. He turned his head to his right, where Kokichi was sitting and noticed that Kokichi had grabbed his hand. Shuichi smiled. He did not want to seem like a maniac, but on the inside he was screaming in excitement.

“Scared yet?” Kokichi whispered in a teasing voice. Shuichi shook his head.

“This actually isn’t that bad. Usually, I hate movies with ghosts,” Shuichi explained. Kokichi cut him off by laughing again.

“Just you wait and see.”

Kokichi and Shuichi continued to get closer and closer. At one part of the movie, a scene of a girl crawling down the stairs, screaming demonically, caused Shuichi to turn and hide in Kokichi’s shoulder. Kokichi had taken his opportunity to wrap an arm around him. “You okay?” Kokichi asked quietly, watching Shuichi nod in response. They stayed this way for the rest of the movie. Shuichi finding comfort in Kokichi’s arms.

Shuichi felt as if he could finally breathe once the credits rolled. He could feel the tension in his shoulders leave his body as Kokichi rubbed his back soothingly. “Has anyone ever told you you’re adorable?” Kokichi wondered aloud.

“Um, no. Well not since I was like three,” Shuichi chuckled.

“Well, I’m calling you adorable now,” Kokichi snapped back jokingly, sticking his tongue out.

Shuichi pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the time. It was nearing midnight. As much as he enjoyed hanging out with Kokichi, he wanted to be able to catch a somewhat decent Uber driver. He began to sit up from the position he was in. “Thank you so much, Kokichi. I had a lot of fun tonight. I hope we can do it again,” Shuichi smiled.

Kokichi had a small pout on his face. “Heading out already? That’s okay. We should do this again. Sooner than later,” Kokichi winked as he stood up. Shuichi felt excitement rush through his body once again at the idea that he would get to see Kokichi again soon.

“I would really like that,” Shuichi said as he followed Kokichi to the front door. “Thank you again. I had a great time.”

“Me too, but I’m not ready to say bye until I do one last thing,” Kokichi smirked. Shuichi corked his eyebrow and looked at him in confusion. Kokichi reached up to Shuichi’s shoulders and pulled him down, allowing them to make eye contact. Kokichi suddenly placed his lips on top of Shuichi’s. Kokichi’s lips were surprisingly smooth, unlike Shuichi’s which were chapped and rough due to his constant toying with his teeth. Shuichi, although taken by surprise, kissed back with just as much passion as Kokichi.

They could have stayed this way forever if it wasn’t for that cursed human need to breathe. They both parted, both slightly panting in an attempt to catch their breath. “Wow,” Shuichi whispered. Kokichi nodded in agreement. “Um, does this make you my boyfriend?” Shuichi whispered, unsure how everything was supposed to play out now.

“Only if you want me to be,” Kokichi said as he wrapped his arms around Shuichi’s neck, pulling him down again for one more kiss. Kokichi teasingly nibbling on Shuichi’s lip before parting again. Kokichi’s brow furrowed. He realized he didn’t want to say goodbye yet. “Fuck it, stay the night. Please?” Kokichi asked, but it ended up sounding more like a plea. Shuichi didn’t even have to weigh the pro’s and con’s before he was nodding his head. Kokichi grabbed his arms and pulled him back into the apartment, kissing him again.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[obliterus]

NEITSU || @imitationpersonne

     SOMEBODY NEEDED TO WORK ON TIME MANAGEMENT. Or, at least get a better handle on their evenings. They hadn’t known what had gone on the evening prior, just that they’d been kept waiting longer than fifteen minutes. At a rate like this, they would barely make it to homeroom in time. Perhaps if they walked quickly, they’d escape scolding by merely a hair. A thumb had been hovering over the familiar name in their contact list, about to text another message his way, until they heard the rather messy stagger. 

      Now, such a sight was both amusing and equally alarming, enough for Shion to raise their phone to snap a quick photo, mostly to zoom in on Neitsu’s dumbfounded face -- having a plan to crop it and send it to just about everyone. They wouldn't be cruel enough to include the full body shot, but this was now their property and they would enjoy the chuckle they’d get to make up for his tardiness.  “--Despite your twin status, Kaito does have a feature or two that -is- different. I wouldn't be heartless enough to send this to the entire class, don’t you worry about a thing.”

     Shion knew better than to buy that friendly act he put on. They weren’t handing over their phone. The photo was already saved to their camera roll. ( After pinching and zooming in on specific areas just to provoke a grin or cause their shoulders to shake as they withheld their laughter. ) It was slid away into their uniform blazer, locked up tight. 

    “--No. Trust me. Now zip up your fly and let’s go, we’re already late here.”

[meimi-haneoka]

You probably hate me by now, because I’m like a broken record saying every month the same damn thing, but if I can prevent even one more sharing of this stuff I’d be more than happy to get the bad guy role, as long as the fandom 

STOPS SHARING SPOILERS ON SOCIAL MEDIA BEFORE THE DATE OF RELEASE!

Yeah, I’m talking about Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card, this month it’s chapter 29 and the official release date is on December 1st, which means really, wait just one more day and you’ll be able to share & scream & shout & throw banana peels at Kaito (fun, uh?). Also I’m probably gonna be the one providing the raws this month!

And like a mantra, let’s see why we should not spread spoilers around before the release date:

- First and foremost, CLAMP asked themselves 1 year ago to not do so. They had to do a series of tweets, exasperated by the leak of information that damaged all the involved companies. You can find a translation of said tweets here on Cardcaptorcoconut’s post: https://cardcaptorcoconut.tumblr.com/post/163798348959/announcement-from-clamp-regarding-ccs-spoiler If you love CLAMP even just a little bit for creating Cardcaptor Sakura, try to respect their wish.

- Some fans don’t want to be spoiled. They don’t want to be spoiled until the release date or until they can read the chapter themselves. While you may argue they can avoid all kind of social media to not come across any spoiler info/pic, why not trying to be kind/considerate/respectful, all things that CCS is supposedly trying to teach to all of us?

- Looking at pictures without a translation and without context does more damage than anything. Because I’ve seen countless times some misinformation spreading from spoiler pics without translation (which in some cases is very difficult because the text might be cropped), getting the fans fired up over nothing or panicking over incorrect interpretation of what they saw.

- The japanese fandom generally hates the leakage of spoilers. So if you like/retweet/whatever spoiler pics on social media, Twitter especially, don’t be surprised if you end up being blocked by Japanese artists/fans you’re following.

Reblogging to spread the word is highly appreciated, thanks!

[ryouverua]

Chapter 5 Investigation (2)

Are you telling me Shuichi is not the picture of silence and grace?

LEAVE ME ALONE YOU CREEPY BEAR

1 is here

 I.... I spent so much time moving slowly, with my heart just beating strongly against my chest - AND I’M NOT EVEN THE ONE THAT WAS IN DIRECT DANGER I DID THAT ALL FOR NOTHING

Is it bad that I’m enjoying Shuichi getting progressively more flustered and angry as we go on?

it’s a guilty conscience - all those forbidden trysts are weighing on him -

I KNEW IT!!! I KNEW IT!!! KOKICHI WAS GUARDING YOU WASN’T HE!!!

Yeah, so he makes an interesting comment about making things a level playing field. Why? And it seems... a bit vague... like, is the other person that knows this information the culprit, or the mastermind?

“You’re just attacking all of my flaws today, aren’t you.”

shuichi torrents old books and crime dramas pass it on

Now onto Maki’s lab, where to no one’s surprise we find the black bags with the crossbows one short. Could it possibly be the one from the bathroom? MAN I’m glad it’s Shuichi here so we’re not stuck wondering where the other could possibly be like we have video game-convenient amnesia

And we’ve confirmed Himiko was seen bringing a black bag...

Ah, man, I’m beginning to wonder if both Himiko and Maki were roped into Kaito’s plan. Had Kaito really not fully gotten over his personal issues with Shuichi? Was he still a bit uncomfortable, or did he not want Shuichi to feel responsible if something went wrong?

Are you putting together the same pieces I am, Shuichi? We had an awfully convenient scene with Kaito and Maki here a few nights ago!

How many trips do you think it took Kaito to carry all those weapons to the gym. 8′D That’s what, two flights of stairs between the lab and the gym? Damn boy, guess your muscles haven’t atrophied after all!

Shuichi how in the world did you notice that discrepancy in liquid! It’s minuscule!

This... sounds like the perfect poison to tip a certain weapon’s arrows with. 8/

With that said, what was the poison bottle in the bathroom for, then? A red herring? But it was empty, right?

Wait... wait wait wait - are those puns? For like, arsenic, hemlock and nightshade? 

*one google later*

OH STRIKE-9 IS STRYCHNINE! omg that’s actually really good 8′D Bless you translators, you’ve done good work here.

So basically there’s one, maybe two poisons in play, and possibly antidotes in case something went awry? So... where’s the Strike-9 antidote? Or is there one?

I do like Shuichi making some of the connections for us, like him making the (most likely correct) assumption that for every poison we have, there should be an antidote. I feel like I haven’t shown my appreciation for his evidence and mystery-solving side recently - I will say this again, once, twice, twenty times, but when it comes to the technical bits of the mystery, he is fantastic. Motive and emotionally? Not so great at it - but I think that’s because that involves a lot more abstract thinking. This is where he really shines.

So this is where we differ - he’s talking about how all the evidence points to Kaito being dead, and Kokichi being alive. I think that’s true on a surface level, but there’s a few key places that I may be ahead of him on that lead to a split in our thinking.

Which brings me to this - I’m surprised he hasn’t made the connection about Kokichi not being the mastermind like I have - but I think that’s because I have an outsider’s perspective. Once that basic premise flips, things are going to get a whole lot more ambiguous!

MY BOY!!! MY DEAR!!! MY SWEETCHEEKS!!!

.... D... Did I miss something???

You mean like EVERYTHING that was on the floor??

I mean, unless he can activate the hatch of the red exisal with the remote? Maybe? He’s proven really good at hiding around the campus though, so who knows. 8′D maybe he’s in the exisal wash clinging to one of those giant brushes lmao

But if he was... then we’d have to account for Kaito.

Unless they were both dead under there.

....

don’t you fucking do it DR.

I... sort of... understand Shuichi’s feelings, only because he clearly cared for Kaito so much...

but on the other hand, what a cruel way for Tsumugi to put it. Not, “do you think Kaito is still alive,” but “do you think Kokichi died,” do you prefer it that way - the connotations are completely different.

T.... Tsumugi... it may be best to stop talking now....

I’m starting to wonder if she can act so calmly because he isn’t dead, and she knows it - but I’ll save those thoughts for the end.

Kaito’s body is (probably) still warm Himiko, are you about to jump ship to Saiibo already??? 

OH HOLY SHIT

(BUTT NAKED?!)

What a brave, brave soul.

Y-Yes but, um, er, what would you have done if it... hadn’t... been a clue...???

Man, Shuichi’s first solo investigation since Chapter 1 when he discovered the mastermind’s door...

Actually, that might not be true. K1-b0 and Tsumugi have both been helping in small ways - well, K1-b0 much more than Tsumugi - so perhaps I can at least designate K1-b0 as his minor assistant in this chapter?

OW -

OW?!?!

Those are definitely the marks of a kid attacked by a crossbow!

So if they were both hit, then... was there a struggle? Kaito shot him, Kokichi managed to shoot him back? But if he was shot with two, and there was poison involved... would that be enough for Kaito to overcome him, illness and all?

Dear lord Shuichi I know you want Kaito to be alive but don’t act so happy about Kokichi being dead!

“MY NEW PARTNER!! AIBOU!!!”

LMAO K1-B0 WEREN’T YOU THE ONE THAT PULLED IT OUT IN THE FIRST PLACE

Yeah, now that’s the point I’m stuck on - though I do have a few ideas, one of them involving him being too weak to show himself at this point. 8(

Oh Shuichi, you’ll get there soon. I feel like that’s going to be one of the first illusions we need to dispel going in.

K1-b0 what in the world do you think Shuichi’s going to do in here?

In painful, awkward silence.

AND OH SHIT, THAT’S IT! IT’S GO TIME, BABY!

And whoever it is.... is going to have a lot of explaining to do. I mean seriously, that’s the thing I’ve been wondering - a lot of the issues have been dependent on not knowing who is dead. How can they maintain that mystery during the trial? Monokuma isn’t going to break his own rule for this - attendance is mandatory!

WHELP -

If.... If this is going where I think this is going... 

Man, I know you and Shuichi weren’t as close as you and Kaito, but would you be willing to throw him away so easily? I guess it’s easier when you know there’s nothing left outside of this place, but...

With a murderous aura rolling off of her in waves, glowing blood-red eyes glittering under thick, dark bangs and venom lacing every word out of her mouth: “Don’t you see Shuichi? I am hope, personified.”

“U-Uh, um -”

“H O P E , P E R S O N I F I E D !”

YIKES...

“Collateral damage falls under the same big ‘hope’ umbrella tbh.”

Who knew that Kaito would be the one acting as a sober second thought. Kaitoooooo we need yooooou D:

SERIOUSLY WHY ARE YOU SO NERVOUS??? HOW MUCH DID YOU KNOW ABOUT KAITO’S PLANS WITH THE CROSSBOW???

Oh Tsumugi, you always know just what to say. 8′/

You are literally the only one with a peppy attitude right now, K1-b0! I guess robots really can’t read the mood

“Well, I mean, they may have, but the word ‘hope’ kept cropping up so I blocked it all out.”

Which means what, exactly? The world will still be reduced to ashes. There’s just a handful of you left. What is the point of victory now? 

Now that’s an interesting thought. Hope as a burden...

.... Aaaaw. Fair, but aaaw. :(

SMASHES that fourth wall like it’s no big thing

OMG they’re.... really not here?!?! Kokichi.... or Kaito???

YOU WERE THE ONE WHO SAID EVERYONE HAD TO SHOW UP!!!

“Look, only I’m allowed to make grandiose speeches about despair and hope, okay? ONLY ME!!”

To think that after the last chapter’s events, Shuichi would be relying so strongly on his gut feeling, despite the evidence he collected pointing him in the opposite direction...

THEY’RE PURPLE? W... We’re really going in without knowing then?!

Alright, notes time!

Oh man, which section do I begin with. Important facts of the case? The basics? We don’t even have an established victim, so...

Alright, location. Top left of the sheet, just to start things off, I wrote down the three important areas: the exisal bay, the bathroom (and window), and the open area in the hallway. There were supplies taken from the two different labs, but the majority of the action happened in those places.

Suspects... well, ruling out Shuichi, there’s Himiko, Maki, Tsumugi, and K1-b0 - but there’s also Kokichi and Kaito, depending on who died! Man! That does throw things off quite a bit, doesn’t it?

Now for the victim... well. Okay. I divided them into two sections, each with a yes or no column.

Kaito Momota - Victim?

Yes

Shirt sleeve was visible from the press

He was sick/unwell - an easy target to kill, and on top of that -

If he died, he wouldn’t be considered a person by the press and would be crushed without a problem (aka a callback to the K1-b0 scene)

No

Shirt sleeve was conspicuous

He got confirmed help from the outside via crossbow, if not more

His illness he has nothing to lose - that could give him strength, and it could also push him to kill someone and become the blackened for the ‘greater good’. If he’s going to die anyway, why not?

Kokichi Ouma - Victim?

Yes

Can’t be found

Monokuma is back and the killing game with it

His clothes were hidden, a stark contrast to Kaito’s visible clothing in the press, and had bloodstains

The power cord was cut to hid the body’s identity, which is strange considering the shirt sleeve situation

No

He was in control of everything. How did he get overthrown?

Just like with Gonta, I’ve circled my decision... I think Kokichi may be dead after all. Shit.

Before I go on though, some more important evidence outside of the hangar include the exisals being powered down and Maki’s hammer being at the scene of where they were circling Monokuma and Himiko being spotted bringing a crossbow to Kaito. I really think this is all pointing to a rescue attempt being staged last night, without everyone’s knowledge!

Right, so to add onto the ‘Kokichi is probably the victim’ hypothesis, I need to establish that he isn’t the mastermind because a lot of the evidence hinges on that (aka Monokuma’s return and the killing game being back). Honestly, seeing the exisal formation around Monokuma really made me confident in that - it really just seemed like they were guarding him, not protecting. Actually, with that in mind, the real mastermind has a very strong reason to want him dead! They would definitely help with the escape/coup effort with that in mind!

So... if it went something like this...

Kaito hears about the escape plan from Shuichi. Fully convinced that Kokichi is the mastermind along with the others and suddenly with his own motivation to move as fast as he can because he doesn’t want the others to risk themselves against Kokichi and the exisals, he formulates his own plan. Maki visits him - he asks her to bring him a crossbow from her lab. Or... Himiko, maybe. Either way, a decision is made by either Kaito alone or Maki, if it’s through her, to have Himiko bring him the bag because Maki skulking around would immediately raise Kokichi’s suspicions.

I think the crossbow bolts were tinged with poison, though? Would that be with or without Kaito’s knowledge? I can see Maki maybe doing that without Kaito knowing - I don’t know if he would aim to kill, even if the crossbow to Kokichi’s back suggests otherwise. I’m sure his aim is pretty poor either way. Maki does seem very intent on ‘killing the mastermind’ and the fact that it’s Kokichi is almost convenient for her, honestly. Kaito certainly wouldn’t want her to kill again, but if she can do it through him she’d be able to kill Kokichi without giving Kaito a chance to stop her, as well as take on the responsibility for his death... I don’t know. I might need to workshop that. 8′D

Anyway, there was definitely a scuffle of some sort - that’s the only way they would both have wounds. Honestly, the more I think about it, the more tragic it’s all becoming - it’s really starting to seem like Kokichi was trying to stop the game in his own strange way, but couldn’t find a way to do it without building up this huge target on his back - and now, just when he’d managed to steal control of the whole thing, Kaito may have killed him while making the exact same mistake as Kaede...

Ah, right - so I think I’ve been waiting for this moment where Kaito gets pushed off the pedestal of hero, but I shouldn’t be surprised he would do it in a way where he would think he was doing the right thing before getting the rug pulled out underneath him - he would take on the role of the culprit, the embodiment of the ‘self-sacrificing hero’, and die thinking he saved everyone, or even worse, die knowing he fucked up in his attempts to be a hero for Maximum Despair. ffffff

Any last things... oh, no matter the situation with the poison, Maki was definitely involved in that. I’m sure she was the one who brought the antidote just in case Kaito got himself poisoned. I also think she was the most involved third party - I don’t think Kaito would have the strength to bring Kokichi to the press by himself, and I can see Maki tampering with all the evidence after the fact like the cord for the press and the marks on the panel outside. Maybe she did a lot of the work with one of the exisals? But in order for her to enter in the first place, she would have to have someone on the inside to open the shutter for her, and if Kaito had fought Kokichi by that point he’d be able to do it. It would explain why she’s acting so cagey right now - she’s covering for him! Though... if Monokuma is back, would she risk everyone dying to save him? Does she think he doesn’t have the power to enact the punishment if his controller is dead (even if they really aren’t?).

With that said... I still... think... Kaito is the culprit, despite Maki’s involvement. Maki seems desperate to help him survive this (pushing that Kaito’s the culprit, continuously bringing up Kokichi despite Monokuma being a functional AI), but Kaito knows there’s no time left for him, and the whole reason he took the role on of culprit in the first place was because he knew that. Is the reason he hasn’t shown up because he’s too weak to appear at this point? ooooh boy oh boy oh boy, this is... bad.... W-What are they going to do when they figure out Kokichi wasn’t the mastermind......

Anyway, man we’ll see how much is right and how much is wrong - will this be right on like my conclusion with Gonta, or tragically, hilariously wrong like my attempt at guessing Korekiyo’s motive? still better than the game’s

oh right but if Kaito is still alive this is still relevant

STOP DEATHFLAGGING KAITO 2018!!!!!

ps

that theme of every character taking at least one second distinct role/alias/persona continues - I had said Kaito was wearing both his actual role of ‘Ultimate Astronaut’ and as well as his proclaimed role as ‘Hero’, but I think ‘Culprit’ will work just fine here.... 8′(

[gdwessel]

Tsunami Hits Eastern Coast of Japan; NOAH Bumper Crop 2022 in Sendai 1/16/2022: 11 Wrestlers Pulled From Show; NJPW Strong Episode 74 - 1/15/2022; NJPW v. NOAH WK16 On NJPWWorld & Wrestle Universe; DG, STARDOM, DDT, TJPW Results

The single biggest piece of news today is a tsunami hitting eastern coast of Japan after the underwater volcanic eruption off the coast of Tonga sent tsunami towards Japan, Tonga, Hawaii, the West Coast of the USA, and other parts of the Pacific. Nearly 230,000 people were evacuated from the seaside parts of Iwate, Miyagi, Chiba, Tokushima, Kagoshima, Aomori, Kochi and Miyazaki Prefectures, with warnings in effect all the way from Hokkaido to Ogasawara and Okinawa as well. Boats were capsized and flights were cancelled as well. The warnings seem to be off now, and casualties & damage seem relatively few especially compared to the 2011 Tohoku tsunami. We wish everyone affected by this to be safe and unharmed.

 New Japan Pro Wrestling

This week’s edition of NJPW Strong continues the Nemesis tapings from LA from December.

Karl Fredericks & Kevin Knight d. Bateman & Misterioso [Stray Dog Army] (Fredericks > Misterioso, MD, 10:04)

Brody King [AEW] d. Dave Dutra (Gonso Bomb, 6:31)

JONAH d. David Finlay Jr. (Tsunami, 8:20)

The New Beginning USA ran last night in Seattle, but I won’t be listing those results here, as I normally do not, opting instead to wait until the shows air on NJPWWorld.

Wrestle Kingdom 16 in Yokohama Arena is now on both NJPWWorld AND Wrestle Universe, with each promotion’s own commentary teams on each feed, Japanese and English. Check this out if you missed it last weekend live on ABEMA.

Pro Wrestling NOAH

NOAH ran in Sendai today, apparently unaffected by the tsunami. You can see it now on Wrestle Universe. Two title matches headlined this show. Several matches were affected by positive COVID-19 tests, or exposure to said cases. NOAH did not specify who on this list tested positive or were merely exposed, save to say Masato Tanaka was absent due to “poor physical condition” although a PCR test was negative. Kaito Kiyomiya, Yoshinari Ogawa, Junta Miyawaki, Yoshiki Inamura, Super Crazy, Tadasuke, Daiki Inaba, Kinya Okada and Yasutaka Yano were listed as being dropped today for COVID-related reasons.

Bumper Crop 2022 in Sendai - 1/16/2022, Sendai Sunplaza Hall (Wrestle Universe)

NOSAWA Rongai, YO-HEY & Kotaro Suzuki [Perros del Mal de Japon] d. ALEJA, Hao & Nio [Kongo] (YO-HAY > Nao, Dropkick, 8:56)

Atsushi Kotoge & Hajime Ohara d. HAYATA & Yuya Susumu [STINGER] (Kotoge > Susumu, Kill Switch, 11:50)

Daisuke Harada d. Seiki Yoshioka [STINGER] (Katayama German Suplex Hold, 12:07)

Daisuke Harada & Hao [Kongo] d. Nio & ALEJA [Kongo] (Harada > ALEJA, Katayama German Suplex Hold, 9:59)

Takashi Sugiura, Kazushi Sakuraba, Kendo Kashin & Kazuyuki Fujita [Sugiura-gun] d. Go Shiozaki, Masakatsu Funaki [M’s Alliance], King Tany [Funky Express] & Muhammad Yone [Funky Express] (Fujita > Tany, Powerbomb, 18:54)

GHC Tag Team Championship: Keiji Muto & Naomichi Marufuji [M’s Alliance] © d. Kenoh & Manabu Soya [Kongo] (Muto > Soya, Frankensteiner, 20:55) - Muto/Marufuji succeed their 2nd defense

GHC Heavyweight Championship: Katsuhiko Nakajima [Kongo] © d. Masa Kitamiya (Vertical Spike, 28:40) - Nakajima succeeds his 4th defense

Nakajima wins, and declared “WE (Kongo) ARE NOAH.” Kazuyuki Fujita challenged Nakajima to be his next defense, and that match is booked for Gain Control in Nagoya 2/23/2022 in Aichi Nagoya Congress Center Event Hall. Yuck, Fujita.

Muto pins Soya, and suddenly it’s early 2010s AJPW or Wrestle-1 all over again. I do not know the circumstances behind the tag match that followed Harada v. Yoshioka, save that they probably needed to do something to fill the card what with 11 wrestlers out.

NOAH next runs on Saturday 1/22/2022 from Osaka EDION Arena 2nd Arena. I won’t list the card here as I am planning an Upcoming Events post tomorrow, however with EVERYTHING going on, maybe safe to assume not all matches going forward are going to be happening as scheduled. Year Three of this pandemic, and we really should all expect this now.

Dragon Gate

Dragon Gate ran some spot shows the last couple of days.

Open The New Year Gate 2022 – Final Burst Out! K-Ness Forever Night 6 - 1/15/2022, Ishikawa Kanazawa Distribution Center

YAMATO, Dragon Kid & Keisuke Okuda [HIGH-END] d. Kzy, U-T & Jacky “Funky” Kamei [Natural Vibes] (YAMATO > Kamei, Galleria, 11:47)

BxB Hulk [R.E.D.] d. Ryu Fuda (Facelock, 4:53)

Susumu Yokosuka [Natural Vibes], Big Boss Shimizu [Natural Vibes] & Takuma Fujiwara d. Ultimo Dragon, Jason Lee & Takumi Hayakawa [Shimizu > Hayakawa, Big Boss Press, 13:13)

Riki iihashi TLD Ishin Iihashi (10:00)

Dragon Dia & Yuki Yoshioka d. Ben-K & Kagetora [HIGH-END] (Dia > Kagetora, Reptillian, 12:05)

2 v. 3 Handicap Match: Takashi Yoshida & Kota Minoura d. KAI, Shun Skywalker & HYO [R.E.D.] (Yoshida > HYO, Pineapple Bomber, 12:15)

The main ended up being a handicap match due to Naruki Doi registering a fever before the show. However, it seems that Kota Minoura now has fallen in with Doi/Kong’s new nascent unit. Prior to the show, Eita & Kaito Ishida, recently removed from R.E.D., were boycotting the event and stormed out fo the area. You can watch it here.

Open The New Year Gate 2022 – Final Burst Out! K-Ness Forever Night 7 - 1/16/2022, Shizuoka Act City Hamamatsu

Kzy, U-T & Jacky “Funky” Kamei [Natural Vibes] d. Dragon Kid, Ben-K & Keisuke Okuda [HIGH-END] (Kzy > Okuda, Running Elbow Smash, 11:20)

Kagetora [HIGH-END] & Takuma Fujiwara d. Riki & Ishin Iihashi (Kagetora > Ishin, Brainbuster, 9:22)

Shun Skywalker [R.E.D.] d. Ryu Fuda (Moonsault Knee Drop, 5:00)

Big Boss Shimizu [Natural Vibes] & Shoya Sato d. Ultimo Dragon & Takumi Hayakawa (Shimizu > Hayakawa, Big Boss Press, 9:06)

Dragon Dia & Yuki Yoshioka d. Susumu Yokosuka & Genki Horiguchi [Natural Vibes] (Yoshioka > Hiroguchi, Frog Splash, 12:03)

Takashi Yoshida, Kota Minoura & Jason Lee d. KAI, BxB Hulk & HYO [R.E.D.] (Yoshida > HYO, Pineapple Bomber, 11:07)

Kong keeps up his winning streak on his way to challenging for KAI’s Open The Dream Gate title. Jason Lee and Kota Minoura continue to partner up so no animosity there post-MASQUERADE! R.E.D. are not in good shape since the beginning of the year, and especially after what happened Wednesday. Shun Skywalker had to beat up a rookie to get his first win as an R.E.D. member. Doi was kept off today’s show.

The next show is another spot show, in Nagoya tomorrow.

DDT / Tokyo Joshi / GANBARE Pro

DDT was in Hiroshima yesterday.

DDT Sweet Dreams! 2022 Tour In Hiroshima - 1/15/2022, Hiroshima Marina Hop (Tape delay on Wrestle Universe)

MAO d. Yuki Ishida (8:12)

Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul d. Naomi Yoshimura & Toi Koyama (11:00)

Danshoku Dino & Yuki Ino d. Antonio Honda & Rey Paloma (12:46)

Yuji Hino, Chris Brookes & Akito d. Kazusada Higuchi, Hideki Okatani & Toru Owashi (13:27)

HARASHIMA & Soma Takao d. Kazuki Hirata & Kenshin Chikano (12:03)

Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Ueno d. Jun Akiyama, Tetsuya Endo & Yuya Koroku (20:47)

Tokyo Joshi also ran, which featured matches for the Futari No Princess Max Heart Tournament 2022.

TJPW Tokyo Joshi 2022 Winter - 1/15/2022, Tokyo Shinjuku FACE (Wrestle Universe)

Moka Miyamoto d. Kaya Toribami (5:08)

Nao Kakuta d. Arisu Endo (7:08)

3-Way Match: Hikari Noa d. Haruna Neko & Suzume (8:28)

Nodoka Tenma, Yuki Aino, Miu Watanabe & Rika Tatsumi d. Miyu Yamashita, Maki Itoh, Mahiro Kiryu & Pom Harajuku (12:41)

Futari No Princess Max Heart Tournament 2022 First Round: ASUKA & Yuki Kamifuku d. Kobashi & Raku (8:50)

Futari No Princess Max Heart Tournament 2022 First Round: Hyper Misao & Shoko Nakajima d. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (14:53)

 STARDOM

STARDOM ran shows this weekend as well.

- 1/15/2022, Tajimi City Industrial Culture Center

Mina Shirakawa [Cosmic Angels] d. Waka Tsukiyama [Cosmic Angels] (Figure-4 Leglock, 8:09)

3-Way Match: Utami Hayashishita [Queen’s Quest] d. Mai Sakurai [Cosmic Angels] & Saki Kashima [Oedo Tai] (Hayashishita > Sakurai, German Suplex Hold, 8:32)

Tam Nakano & Unagi Sayaka [Cosmic Angels] d. Saya Kamitani & Lady C [Queen’s Quest] (Sayaka > C, Taigi De Atta, 13:23)

Mayu Iwatani, Koguma & Hazuki [STARS] TLD Giulia, MIRAI & Thekla [Donna del Mundo] (20:00)

Syuri, Maika & Himeka [Donna del Mundo] d. Ruaka, Starlight Kid & Momo Watanabe [Oedo Tai] (Syuri > Ruaka, Buzzsaw Kick, 17:29)

- 1/16/2022, Aichi Toyohashi Loisir Hotel

1 v. 3 Handicap Match: Syuri [Donna del Mundo] d Waka Tsukiyama [Cosmic Angels], Mai Sakurai [Cosmic Angels] & Ruaka [Oedo Tai] (Syuri > Tsukiyama, Zanshu, 7:48)

Tam Nakano & Mina Shirakawa [Cosmic Angels] d. Giulia & Thekla [Donna del Mundo] (Shirakawa > Thekla, Gloria Collection Mina, 12:01)

Mayu Iwatani, Koguma & Hazuki [STARS] d. Saki Kashima, Starlight Kid & Momo Watanabe [Oedo Tai] (Koguma > Kashima, Rollup, 14:43)

Unagi Sayaka [Cosmic Angels] TLD MIRAI [Donna del Mundo] (15:00)

Maika & Himeka [Donna del Mundo] d. Utami Hayashishita & Saya Kamitani [Queen’s Quest] (Maika > Kamitani, Michinoku Driver II, 18:47)

Lady C suffered an injury yesterday, so the 6-woman tag main event was changed to the current one and then Syrui was put into a handicap match against Cosmic Angels and Oedo Tai members.

The next show is on Saturday 1/22/2022.

Other News

Michinoku Pro ran two shows this weekend, as did Gatoh Move ChocoPro and Ice Ribbon.

Big Japan and 2AW ran a joint show in Chiba.

A-TEAM, Prominence, WAVE and YMZ also all ran this weekend.

Upcoming Events post coming tomorrow.

[mysterious-matcha]

Kaito: Ouma poisoned our water supply, burned our crops, and delivered a plague into our houses!!!

Saihara: He did?

Kaito: No, but are we just gonna wait until he does?!

[ichigozen-blog]

Ichi: How to Create an Oni Part 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESsp3MMMVUM    A lone figure walked the old pilgrim’s path in the pastel light of the morning sun.  The once carefully maintained tall grass and wild crops, now wild and untamed by the hands of workers, waved in the cool breeze as if beckoning the weary traveler onward.  The lone wanderer had traveled this path often in her youth, noting the dead trees scorched with a fire that burned away their brilliant green leaves many cycles ago.  She paused, looking up the path from under her non la with keen golden eyes and a hand resting around the saya of her aged katana.  Her raven black hair swayed lazily as she surveyed the terrain with the nostalgia one has when returning home after being long abroad.  The sun kissed her beautiful features and glistened radiantly upon the raen’s scales as she pulled her yellow haori tighter around her, anticipating the end of her journey.

   The ruins were not far, tucked away in a natural alcove formed by a small mountain.  What had once been a large estate, complete with a temple dedicated to the Kami, had been reduced to forgotten ruins, overgrown and neglected.  Only the outer walls of stone and a handful of rotting wooden structures remained, stained black from raging fires that saw the last moments of this wondrous house of samurai.  Ichi stopped just outside the arch leading into a courtyard that served as a training ground for would-be Bushi.  She allowed herself a moment to reflect on her countless days spent on the stone stone squares that comprised the courtyard’s training ground before stepping through the veil of memory into that desolate place.

   At the far end of the courtyard was a sight that gave Ichi pause.  A small stone altar had been erected, countless sticks of burned incense jutting from various objects brought for them to rest in.  But the most alarming sight was a man resting before the altar in prayer.  The man looked up, disturbed by the clack of Ichi’s sandals on the courtyard.  He was a young Midlander, clothed in sekiseigumi garb and wore a non la of his own.

“Ah,” he smiled.  “Another pilgrim?  I rarely run into someone else out here.  Come to repay your respects to Kaito-sensei?” “Yes,” Ichi said quietly, struck to the core at hearing her adoptive father’s name.  A long silence follows as the Midlander waited for more, but he finally shrugs. “Right, well, feel free to join me.  Kaito-Sensei was my master a few cycles before- Well, if you’re here, I’m sure you know.”    Ichi approached the altar with a frown.  There was an aging piece of wood with the singular name, “Gozen”, etched into it.  She drew two sticks of incense and knelt down to place them in a jar filled with rocks before lighting them with a match.  The Midlander watched her quietly before breaking the silence.

“Did you know Kaito or his daughter?” “Yes,” Ichi said again bluntly.  “I knew them both.” “I see,” the Midlander nodded.  “I only knew Kaito-Sensei when he came to Kugane to teach.  He was a great samurai.  What the Shogunate did when he left.. It wasn’t right.  And then what the Oda clan did to his daughter, his house.  Rumor has it she massacred them all before she died and became an oni that stalks the land, but I don’t put stock in such rot.” “It’s true,” Ichi whispered quietly.

The Midlander furrowed his brow and gathered his things before leaving the strange pilgrim to pray in peace with a shake of his head.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Cycles Ago]

   “Family is a universal culture, Ichi.  Nationality means nothing when the freedom to live our lives in peace is threatened.  In the end, Doman, Hingan, Eorzean, we all want the same thing.  To live our lives in peace, and to share that peace with our families.”

    Kaito’s final words haunted Ichi, even in her dreams.  It had been two months since her father departed the estate to aid Doma against the Shogun’s will.  He had been stripped of his status and though she knew the wealth he had left behind would provide for her, the school had been all but abandoned by servants and students.  She had only been so alone as a child.  Ichi sat up, rubbing her face as she looked out the window.  The hour was late, perhaps past midnight.  In the stillness, a shout echoed from beyond the courtyard and a light in the distance caught her eye.  She jumped from her bed as her heart pounded.  The fields were on fire.  Dark figures carrying torches loomed closer, their silhouettes outlined in a shimmer against the growing blaze.  Ichi hesitated only for a moment as she threw on her clothes and snatched her katana from its stand by her wardrobe.

    Five Oda clan thugs chuckled among themselves as they made their way to the large arch marking the entrance to the mansion.  They wore the standard blue colors of their house and bore their torches beside them as they began tossing them among the undefended kindling of the Gozen estate.

“Ha!”  One of the Oda thugs exclaimed, a short Midlander, clearly the leader of the gathering.  “This place is gonna make one hell of a bonfire!”  The others laughed with eager grins that faded as a door slid open.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qupswFhMCxI

    A lithe Raen clad in a black haori stepped from the mansion as one would imagine a ghost appears from the night.  At the sight of the now burning walls of her home, Ichi’s face wrinkled with rage.  Her eyes flicked over the five stunned thugs. “What is this treachery?!”  Ichi’s voice boomed across the blazing courtyard. “Hey,” the Oda thug leader gestured at Ichi.  “She must be the old bastard’s daughter!  Looks like this night just got a lot more fun!”

   The other thugs, shaken at first, grinned wickedly and began walking toward Ichi, their gait filled with malicious intent, hands on their weapons.  When the leader was all but four paces from Ichi, a gust of wind blasted him.  The Midlander blinked and Ichi was gone.  He whirled about in confusion to see the Raen slowly sheathing her blade with her back to him.  He started to cry out in surprise, but a sudden spray of blood from his belly caused him to whimper pathetically before collapsing.  Ichi kept her hand on the grip of her katana.

“Now,”  Ichi screamed at the others, her shoulders wet with blood.  “Who else would like to feel my wind?!”   The other thugs shared looks of horror, but advanced with grim determination, not wishing to underestimate the woman again.  The first to strike was a Highlander, raising his katana high above his head as he charged.  Ichi drew steel as the Highlander brought his blade crashing down, knocking off-line and into the ground beside her.  She deftly stepped on the katana with her wooden sandal and freed his head from his shoulders.  The resulting spray of blood left Ichi’s face dripping with crimson.  Her eyes burned like coals in the light of the fire. “Go,” one of the last three thugs shouted to another.  “Get the others!  Hurry!”