#android floyd

[merakiui]

AAAH i love your content so much...dang it i wonder how would Floyd react to preggo darling

If it’s android Floyd, he’s very protective of you! He always was, but now that he knows you’re carrying a baby he’s even more dedicated to keeping you safe. Jade is methodical in his approach, but Floyd has far more empathy than he needs. He’s more human than his twin counterpart. He baby-proofs the house based on what he feels is safe, whereas Jade does it based on the data he’s gathered. Either way, no danger will befall you with Floyd looking after you.

Androids shouldn’t have any programs that allow them to feel on the level of a human (or feel at all). Perhaps it’s a virus or a malfunction, but Floyd feels intensely and authentically. One particular emotion of his that you’ve noticed is embarrassment. Floyd actually gets flustered. You didn’t think it was possible, but when your libido is out of control, your tits are sore and full, and everything is just so miserable without Azul around you rely on Floyd for help. And he takes one look at you in your sheer maternity chemise and he blue-screens. It’s such a fascinating phenomenon.

When he fingers you gently and you breathe so softly, practically panting his name, he’s not sure what he’s supposed to do. He thinks and feels closer to a human than an android most days, but sex is an entirely new realm for both the human and android sides of him. You’re so…soft. It’s the only adjective that comes to mind. Logically and quite literally, you are very soft. You must be for the baby: soft and round, beautifully well-fed. If Azul wasn’t so keen to nag him, Floyd would feed you way more than what you need just to watch you happily stuff yourself. He likes seeing you happy and content, but too much can be bad. He needs to learn the limits of humans so he doesn’t overdo it.

Still, he knows this is overdoing it—sinking his synthetic cock into your gummy walls while his arms snake around your gravid middle, cradling the bump so lovingly. He does this because he wants to, not because it’s his duty to look after you. Maybe these sorts of things shouldn’t come with feelings, but Floyd watches romance on TV. He sees how close humans are in intimacy. How soft and warm it must be.

He can content himself with his role on the sidelines so long as he gets to be there for you whenever you need him. He’s always there, ready to serve you.

[miachangedblogs]

TWST Become Human

Warning!!! This contains: Spoilers for Detroit Become Human + twisted wonderland. Later on would have NSFW, fem reader, noncon/dubcon etc!!

Heartslabyul

Riddle Rosehearts

Status: Human

As the only child of the two most astound doctors of Twisted Wonderland, it’s no wonder his parents are so protective over him. Raised to know more than five languages, always the top of his class and even managing to remember all 810 of the Queen of Hearts rule by the age of 10, he’s sure to to become something great. Imagine the surprise and horror of everyone when he got in an freak accident and was almost pronounced dead on the spot?? It’s a miracle he survived such a horrible fate. Ever since the incident, the Rosehearts family became very private, even more than before. They invested in multiple androids to guard Riddle as they made sure not even a scratch were to adorn his features. But.. it’s so strange…

But why can’t he remember what happened before the accident?

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Trey Clover

Status: Human

One of Riddle’s only friends in this world and the only friend his parents allow Riddle to have; The Clover family is known worldwide for their delectable pastries and equally sweet hospitality to anyone and anything, even androids. Everyone is welcome in the Clover bakery! Trey’s big brother like personality makes him so hard to hate! And so hard to notice his weirdly observant and weirdly… obsessive nature? There’s no way someone as humble and kind as him could be someone so malicious. But as the taste of poison is hidden by the sugary batter, his ‘flaws’ are quickly overlooked. If not, his unique magic can always help him out.

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Cater Diamond

Status: Android

Bought as a playmate for Riddle, Cater immediately Fails as he’s deemed “obnoxious” and “rude” by Riddle. Trey seems to hold sympathy for him though, the two becoming quite close as a human and an android without emotions could get. Though, even as an android, Cater’s programming makes him seem so real. Perhaps the expressive and seemingly real emotions creeped Riddle off.

Some speculate he’s a deviant, but no need to worry! Cay-Kun is soooo harmless! Just ask his siste- wait what? Sisters? Since when did he have those?? You must be hearing things. Come on, hold still and give a big smile to the camera, yeah?

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Ace Trappola

Status: Human

No one knows how or why Ace managed to snag a job at the Rosehearts estate. His rebellious nature and constant rule breaking always ends up with him collared by the Riddle, and yet he’s never fired. His favorite pastime by far would have to be screwing up Deuce’s work, sabotaging his coworkers hard work to put himself above him. Deuce is just too gullible, there’s no way people would actually choose him over the clear winner of the Ace Trappola! His eyes filled with clear distain and disgust whenever Cater calls the two “besties”, even making a nickname for the two, “adeuce”. Gross. Don’t fucking group him with that idiot. He’s clearly way better. Don’t you think?

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Deuce Spade

Status: Human

Wanting to be a police officer when he grows up, Deuce eagerly jumped at the opportunity to work within the walls of the Rosehearts Manor. After all, it would look great on his resume. He always seemed to have a clear distain for androids. Perhaps it’s his mind already conditioning him to be prepared to fight against deviants when he ultimately joins the forces. Even with this clear bias, he remains respectful towards any androids that reside amongst the manor. Although not the sharpest tool in the shed, he tries his very best!

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Savanaclaw

Leona Kingscholar

Status: Beastmen

Being the second born prince of the Afterglow Savannah, Leona was constantly watched by eyes from all around the world, yet never truly basking in the spotlight. Even within the shadows his every move was constantly criticized. He would be forgotten if not for the constant ‘tantrums’ he used to throw. Refusing to go to his lessons, family dinners, important meetings and so on. One day, it all stopped. No one knows how or why until Leona emerged after months with a scar adorning his left eye. Rather than sympathy, his people cheered at the seemingly calm Prince. How cruel. He should be feeling enraged, betrayed at his own people’s lack of empathy, but right now he’s just so tired. He doesn’t know why but he just doesn’t have the energy to feel anymore.

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Ruggie Bucchi

Status: Android

A lowly hyena android who’s desperation led to him snatching the scorned Prince’s wallet. Of course he was caught immediately, his fate to be destroyed publicly for his audacious actions. Leona however, had different plans for him. To put it simply, he was amused. Perhaps it was his audacity that let the Prince show mercy, or maybe it was the droplets of blue smudged all over Ruggie hands. Either way, Ruggie managed to secure the role as Leona’s informant amongst the villagers of the Afterglow Savannah as well as his personal servant. At least it pays well I suppose.

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Jack howl

Status: Beastmen

He cannot stand injustice towards anything, especially the ones androids face in the hands of humans. The deviants at first creeped him out but he learned to respect them to a degree. He wouldn’t necessarily go out of his way to help them escape to Canada, nor would he befriend them, after all they were deviants. Who knows if they’re the violent type? He will however protect them if he saw some kids throwing rocks at it or adults being unreasonably physical with them.

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Octavinelle

Azul Ashengrotto

Status: Human

The heir of his mother’s multi million restaurant business housing many android servers, Azul Ashengrotto isn’t a stranger nor is opposed to androids. His two “bodyguards” (and regrettably best friends) are androids after all. Besides, androids are very profitable! He also runs a benevolent business where he can grant any of your wildest dreams and wishes. Want to be thinner? Or perhaps after the heart of a young woman? Indeed he’ll be able to help! Just sign your name riighhhht here. Oh, and make sure you do abide by the contract. People who don’t have a tendency to… disappear. We certainly wouldn’t want that, would we?

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

The leech twins

Status: Android

After the grief of none of their eggs surviving, Mr. And Mrs. Leech desperately contacted every android company for a custom Androids that would resemble what would be their children. After years of prototypes and programming, one unnamed company managed to come up with two twins for the new parents.

Unfortunately, the robotic nature of their ‘children’ were not enough for the two, leading to some tweaking in their code.

The Leech family announced their twins as mermen to the public, hiding the true nature of their children. The only ones who know are the Ashengrotto family who swore to secrecy to keep their mouth shut about the whole situation. It is common knowledge in the sea that those who oppose the Leech family meet a gruesome fate. It’s not like they have a choice really.

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Scarabia

Kalim Al-Asim

Status: Human

As the eldest son of the Asim family, the heir of all the wealth, Kalim has been spoiled rotten since birth. It’s no wonder his perception of money and people are distorted. The public views him as spoiled, entitled, overly bubbly and dumb. He may be naive, yes, but he’s not dumb.

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Jamil Viper

Status: Human

A servant of Kalim Al-Asim from birth to his destined death. Kalim’s “best friend”, “playmate”, “right hand man”, “advisor”. He’s heard it all. He could only grit his teeth and smile politely. As always, Jamil was tasked to taste test Kalim’s food, only to find himself at death door. He watched in anguish and rage at the amount of people swarming the young heir instead of him. The one about to die.

After the hospitalization, Jamil has become more quiet. More alert. At first his parents grew concerned, though Kalim’s father kept trying to reassure that nothings wrong. Overtime Jamil learned to put on a mask for his parents to ease their concern. It’s nothing new to him anyways.

Sometimes he wishes it was Kalim instead…

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Pomfiore

Rook Hunt

Status: Human

Rook Hunt is most popular for being Vil’s unofficial manager and best friend. One of the most loyal people in Vil’s life allowed Rook to be able to house every single secret of Vil. Paparazzi have tried numerous times to get him to fess up, even offering him millions. Rook would always just smile with his fox-like grin and brushed them off with a swift change of topic. It is also to be known that Rook is known to have a “morbid” curiosity regarding anything that isn’t human. His curiosity doesn’t have any bad intentions, no underlining malice whatsoever. He just sees beauty in everything. It’s more fascination than anything. This does cause him to come off as creepy and overly eccentric, his mere presence causing unease to those around him.

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Epel felmier

Status: Human

A country boy who came to the big city for education but more so excitement. His small town, Harveston was known to be one of the only places that didn’t house androids. It wasn’t a matter of the people despising androids, Harveston was just a traditional town. A small town that barely even used modern day farming equipment. They simply just wanted to keep tradition. You could imagine his surprise when he saw just how realistic and smart androids were. He doesn’t have an opinion on them, not yet. All he cares about is working hard for the blast-cycle he’s so desperate to buy.

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Ignihyde

Idia shroud

Status: half human, half android: Cyborg

An unnamed incident had caused the death of Ortho Shroud and severe injuries to Idia Shroud. Idia’s parents could only save the eldest via trading off his damaged human parts with android scraps, successfully producing the first recorded cyborg Twisted Wonderland has ever known. He’s still human, just some of his limbs and bone structure being held up by metal. As soon as he recovered he began working day and night to make a replica of his deceased brother. His grief made him spiral into a deep denial as even though he was the one to build Ortho, he fully believed he was the same old Ortho from back then. He began insisting that everyone treat Ortho as human, snapping at anyone who dares to call his little brother an “android Assistant”. Can’t you all see he’s alive?? How audacious.

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Ortho Shroud

Status: Android

A bright young boy who cares deeply for his brother. Much is unknown.

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Diasomnia

Lilia Vanrouge

Status: Fae

An Ex general and now the right hand man to the prince of Briar Valley, Malleus Draconia. Not much is known about this Fae, not much is known about anyone from Briar Valley in general. People do say he’s incredibly friendly, much more approachable than the Prince. Even with his bubbly exterior, people tend to be on edge in his presence. Perhaps it’s the sharp fangs, the hint of mischief in his eye, or maybe it’s the knowledge of his past as the most feared general. Nowadays multiple rumours circulate him such as him being a rockstar, a vampire, even an android. How amusing. Perhaps all are true, perhaps none. Who knows, really?

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Sebek Zigvolt

Status: Android

Loud and boisterous, an overly protective and aggressive android brought in by Lilia to be Malleus’s body guard. He has a clear disdain towards deviants and humans, constantly belittling both. I’m his mind, the hierarchy seems to be Fae first, then android, then everyone else. You can be sure that he will never become a deviant with his strict nature. Although Sebek does seem to be alarmed at the threat of becoming a deviant. He can’t help but feel scared… Scared? No, that’s not right. Androids can’t feel... Can they?

*. ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

Warning!!! This contains: perv Idia, noncon thoughts, masturbation, gross Idia, fem reader.

You just can’t believe your luck.

You’ve rubbed your eyes again to make sure it was functioning correctly, re reading the huge words “accepted” printed dark blue on the letter.

“Welcome to STYX mechanic number 0962! How’s your day been?” An android radiating with enthusiasm greeted you immediately, hovering towards you. A little peeved at your label you couldn’t help but frown just a bit. Behind him stood a tall, pale man; you could only assume it was Idia Shroud, the heir of STYX. You tried to push down your panic and unease, every ounce of confidence immediately evaporating. Ortho ushered you inside the huge building, talking endlessly about his brother, STYX, your role in STYX and just how happy he is to meet you.

Ortho is a clear deviant. That much is very clear when you first met him. Though nice and friendly, you ought to keep your guard up. You make a mental note; be cautious around Ortho.

“-re you listing Ms. 0962?” Ortho stops in his tracks as he tilts your head towards you.

“Hm? Oh yeah, sorry Ortho.” He giggled as he continued to hover around.

“You’re so silly Ms. 0962. I can see you and my brother becoming great friends!” You could only awkwardly smile and nod as you continued your walk with him, not noticing the constant glances from Idia directed right at you.

It’s been a month since your employment in STYX. You’ve tried making attempts to socialise with coworkers but they always give you such short answers, talking to you only when it’s absolutely necessary. It didn’t help that your boss was such a pain. Always giving you short responses, constantly glaring at you as if your very existence threatened him in some way. At least the pays good and your boss’s android assistant keeps you good company? You don’t even know anymore.

You were working on some papers when the door to your office opened.

It was your boss.

Mentally groaning, you got up to bow and gave him a nervous smile.

“Hello Mr. Shroud. What can I do for you?” Idia only glared at you as he swiftly turned around, beckoning you to follow him. Hastily you put down your belongings to catch up, jogging towards him.

“You’ll work on an “important client”. Try not to mess up.” Your boss went on about what it is and what is expected but all you could focus on was the speck of blue staining his jaw. You reached into your pocket and pulled out your handkerchief with a smile.

“You got some thirium on you Mr. Shroud. Here, lemme wipe it o-” just as you were about to wipe it off with your handkerchief, Idia snatched the cloth out of your hand.

“I’ll do it myself later.” Sneering, he puts it in his back pocket and continues to walk you to your office. You shrink at the cold attitude, awkwardly playing with the hem of your shirt.

Idia suddenly stopped in his tracks as he got his key card out to open a room filled with thirium bags and thousands of tools you never even knew nor heard of before. Walking inside you notice a huge box of what you assume to be the container of the android. Your boss rudely shoves a crumpled paper in your hands.

“The code to the box.” He explains as he swiftly heads out of the room, not even sparing you a second glance.

“G-goodbye Mr. Shroud!” You bow one last time as the door closes in front of you without a response. Sighing at the lack of response, you stare at the crumpled up paper and back at the box containing your new project.

Idia panted heavily as his hands pumped his dick desperately, chasing after his release. The other hand pressed the handkerchief into his nose.

God you were cute.

To be completely honest, hiring you was an honest mistake, a product of his carelessness and lack of sleep finally catching up to him. Your resume wasn’t anything noteworthy, if anything, you were severely under qualified for this job. Alas idia was too tired to notice his mistake when he accidentally pressed hire on his computer. He wanted nothing more than to smash his keyboard just thinking about the scolding he’d get from his parents.

Truly a blessing in disguise.

With a shaky moan Idia came all over his desk, gasping for air as he stayed slumped on his seat. After a few minutes Idia sat upright, groaning as he shoved the handkerchief into his pocket for future use. Grabbing handfuls of tissue he lazily cleaned himself up, mind hazy still thinking of you.

He wonders if you’d like pomegranates.

*. ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

I love the idea of android twst and wanted to put my two cents on it! Shout out to the lovely @cvlutos for the amazing concept and fleshing out go check them out lovelies! Currently unfinished so sorry! To be honest I probably won’t make new parts for this but we’ll see. If you have any thoughts, requests or questions please send them my way!!

That’s all for today!! Tune in for more sweethearts!

Bitter dreams<33

[edmundtheartist]

In retrospect, I'm kind of surprised that both North and Blue Haired Traci killed the people who rented them but not this fellow here considering he runs the place.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

We should make a list of every safety hazard in Alchemy class:

EVERYTHING WRONG WITH NRC ALCHEMY:

• Leona’s open toed shoes

• Idia drinking tea out of a beaker

•Lilia’s oversized coat

• Idia, Leona, Vil, & Malleus not tying their hair back (and i guess other students with their hair in their face. I never took chemistry in school so idk fbdiwhwhckxzm)

• Students not wearing their goggles

• CREWEL’S GIANT FLAMMABLE FUR COAT

Oh, I’ve seen more than one post talking about how the various students break lab dress or safety protocols in their initial Labwear art/models so I didn’t know if I should make one of my own?? But here it is, I guess—

(Please note that some of these violations are flexible/up to interpretation, particularly the “needs to pin/tie hair back” list. Generally it’s advised to do this for shoulder length or longer but others will want long bangs out of the way as well.)

Not pinning/tying hair back: Riddle, Deuce, Cater (kind of; his side bangs could be pinned back), Leona, Ruggie (not sure), Azul, Jade, Floyd, Jamil, Vil, Rook, Epel, Idia, Malleus, Lilia (?), Silver

Not fully buttoning lab coat: Ace, Cater, Trey, Leona, Jack, Floyd, Kalim, Jamil, Idia, Lilia, Grim

Not tucking in tie/ribbon or other loose fabric: Riddle, Ace, Cater, Trey, Kalim, Jamil, Epel, Lilia

Not wearing/keeping on safety goggles: Ace, Cater, Leona, Ruggie, Kalim, Epel, Lilia, Grim

Didn’t remove jewelry: Cater, Jack, Jade, Floyd, Kalim

Not wearing fur net: Leona, Jack, Ruggie, Grim

Not fully covering the legs (ankles exposed): Cater, Leona, Ruggie, Kalim

Touching face/clothes/hair with gloves on: Kalim, Jamil, Vil

Improper equipment handling technique: Jade, Floyd

Didn’t remove hat: Rook

Missing close-toed shoes: Leona

Oversized lab coat/sleeves too long: Lilia

Mixing tea in beaker: Idia

Not keeping an eye on the reaction (applicable depending on the experiment): Deuce

Didn’t put away the baton: Silver

Flammable (?): Idia (not sure though since his hair doesn’t actually behave like real fire), Grim (not sure)

So the most frequently committed crime is not keeping their hair back :/

And to compare the number of crimes committed by student (1/2 point granted for debatable sins):

Leona - 6

Kalim - 6

Cater - 5 1/2

Lilia - 4 1/2

Jack - 4

Floyd - 4

Jamil - 4

Idia - 3 1/2

Grim - 3 1/2

Ace - 3

Jade - 3

Epel - 3

Riddle - 2

Trey - 2

Vil - 2

Rook - 2

Silver - 2

Deuce - 2 (or 1 1/2 depending on how you want to judge his lab technique)

Ruggie - 1 1/2

Azul - 1

Malleus - 1

Ortho - 0

Sebek - 0

That makes Kalim and Leona the worst offenders… and brainiacs (like Riddle and Azul), people whose best subjects are Potionology (looking at you, Vil and Jade), and Science Club members (Trey and Rook) are making common mistakes 💀

Sebek is the ONLY student with no errors in his presentation or lab conduct. Ortho technically also has no errors, but he’s a special case and perhaps it’s not fair to compare him to the other students because of his advanced capabilities as an android.

Crewel has a few violations himself, most notably the flammable fur coat. Though we don’t get a formal reasoning for why this is, I like to headcanon that Crewel’s coat, while being a lab safety hazard irl, is enchanted to be protective. (I wrote about it here!) Why? Because I don’t think Crewel is willing to compromise on fashion, but he’s also not dumb enough to walk into a lab like lookin’ like that. Reinforcing clothing with magic is also something we know is possible and a actually see Crewel doing for the students in Endless Halloween Night, so he definitely has the capabilities for it.

[gloomyeiscue]

TWST Ultimate HCs (might add the staff and other characters too ? Idk)

Riddle: Ultimate Lawyer (Or Doctor ??) Trey: Ultimate Baker Ace: Ultimate Troublemaker (or Prankster) Deuce: Ultimate Honor Student (< Fake Ultimate) (Actual Ultimate: Ultimate Delinquent) Cater: Ultimate Influencer Leona: Ultimate Fighter (????????????????) Ruggie: Ultimate Thief Jack: Ultimate Botanist (,,?) Azul: Ultimate Businessman Jade: Ultimate Mycologist Floyd: Ultimate Basketball Pro (?) Kalim: Ultimate Affluent Progeny (Like Byakuya ,,,) Jamil: Ultimate Servant / Butler Vil: Ultimate Supermodel Rook: Ultimate Hunter Epel: Ultimate Farmer Idia: Ultimate Programmer (Like Chihiro) Ortho: Ultimate Android / Robot (Like K1-B0) Malleus: Ultimate Prince (Like Sonia) Lilia: Ultimate ??? (Ultimate War General) Sebek: Ultimate Follower (??) Silver: Ultimate Knight

I ,,, I gave up on a lot of these I'll be so fr I jst typed in whatever came to mind

[merakiui]

AAAAAAA OMG OMG OMG THE BELOVEDS!!!!! THE EELS!!! CRIMINAL EELS!!!!!!!!! (๑>◡<๑)❤︎ oh, how I love them!!! all of the details!!! serial killer!floyd with his handcuffs and prison jumpsuit,,,, and android jade!!!!! his broken eye!! the blue and red blood AAAAAAAAA!!!!! i love them, even if they're both terrible eels who have done bad things. >_<

their lovesick smiles as well! oh, they are so infatuated with their darlings. orz the dialogue is also so clever. even in separate aus, they still manage to mirror each other like the terrifying twins they are. >:D

once again, you're feeding me so well with your beautiful art!!! i can never get enough! i eat up every masterpiece just as ravenously as a certain sk eel... ( ⸝⸝´꒳`⸝⸝)

Hello! HI! I've got a new piece to share with everyone.

It's inspired by @merakiui fanfictions

The first one being inspired by one of her lunar love hotel works and the other being her android jade work.

I'm super happy with how this came out, I was a little worried that I was going to have a lot of trouble with it, but I pulled through!

Picture is under the cut for tw: blood.

[ducksido]

Hi! I hope you're having a lovely day. I was watching some "Avengers" movies (god, I can’t stop watching the one called "war" or something like that), and out of nowhere, I started imagining—how would the characters from Twisted Wonderland react to a Yuu (preferably male) who’s an Avenger? I was thinking you could take inspiration from different characters(? I mean, maybe a Wonder Woman (in this case, Wonder Man? 😓) dating Riddle, and Leona with Black Panther?? Sorry if I’m not making much sense. 😭😭

Riddle Rosehearts × Wonder Man!Yuu

Powers: Super strength, flight, indestructible bracers conjured from magic. Noble, principled, and terrifyingly efficient in battle. Vibe: You’re basically a walking justice manifesto wrapped in charisma and polite sass.

Riddle tries to scold you for breaking school rules, but the moment you disarm a rogue monster from the Ghost Camera event with your bare hands, he’s sputtering.

“That’s... not how we duel at NRC, Yuu! And also—did you just catch a bolt of lightning?!”

You: “You said to handle it without causing damage to the courtyard.”

He becomes lowkey obsessed with your sense of justice. You believe in rules because they protect the weak—his heart does a full 360. The Heartslabyul students are so confused when Riddle starts blushing every time you call him “your little rose.”

Leona Kingscholar × Panther King!Yuu

Inspired by Black Panther Powers: Superhuman strength and reflexes, enhanced senses, vibranium-clawed gauntlets, ancestral magic from a hidden jungle kingdom. Vibe: Calm, strategic, and a bit smug, with deep loyalty to your people.

Leona thinks you’re just another high-and-mighty noble at first—until you outmaneuver him during a Spelldrive match without even sweating. The audacity.

Leona: “Don’t think I didn’t see that fake-out. You trying to show me up?” You: “Just making sure the prince gets his claws sharpened.”

He finds you infuriating and attractive in equal measure. He respects strength, but he adores subtlety—and you’re both. You challenge his laziness and show him what it means to lead with grace. Over time, your quiet authority makes him soften (just a little).

Azul Ashengrotto × Iron Mage!Yuu

Inspired by Iron Man/Doctor Strange fusion Powers: Tech genius, magical artifact wielder, portal manipulation. A dramatic cape. Vibe: Snarky, charming, and too smart for your own good.

You run circles around Azul in business negotiations and smugly open portals like it’s child’s play. He pretends to be annoyed, but really? He’s obsessed. You two are the “too powerful for anyone else” power couple. Everyone is scared of you both.

Azul: “I’d offer you a contract, but I imagine you’d find a loophole I didn’t even write yet.” You: “Oh, Azul, darling—I invented loopholes.”

The Lounge thrives with your tech support. You built Jade and Floyd magical espresso machines. You made Azul a holographic customer tracker. He’s in love and terrified.

🐉 Malleus Draconia × Stormbringer!Yuu

Inspired by Thor Powers: Weather control, god-like durability, storm-born magic. Can summon storms with your voice. Vibe: Regal, intense, a bit dramatic—but charmingly clueless about Earth things.

Malleus stares in awe the first time you call down a thunderstorm during a Night Raven blackout. You stand in the middle of the storm, eyes glowing, and then say:

“Sorry, I was cold. Thought I’d make some lightning to warm up.”

He finds you fascinating. You're powerful in a way that’s natural to him. The others fear him, but you match his energy—no fear, only wonder. You talk to him like an equal, even when sparking with raw magic.

You two take midnight flights together, him with bat wings, you surfing clouds like a celestial.

Vil Schoenheit × Vision!Yuu (aka “Aesthetic Android” BF)

Inspired by: Vision Powers: Intangibility, flight, hyper-intelligence, and emotional evolution through data and experience. Elegant af.

Vil didn’t know what to expect when Crowley introduced you as a “foreign exchange student from a distant… timeline.” You glide into the room, composed, graceful, and glowing faintly with cosmic energy. You analyze NRC like a poetic computer:

“The beauty of this place… is data arranged into visual harmony.”

Vil's ego was ready to scoff—until you proceeded to walk through a wall, save a Dorm Spelldrive match mid-game by phasing through the field, and then compliment his foundation by comparing it to nebula shimmer.

You’re logical, well-spoken, and slowly learning emotion—especially love. Vil finds himself constantly surprised when you’ll suddenly say things like:

“Statistically speaking, I find myself recalibrating around you, Vil. I believe this is what humans call… affection?”

He is NOT prepared for a boyfriend who phases through mirrors to bring him fresh tea during spa days. But he adores it. You remind him beauty isn’t just visual—it’s emotional, too.

Idia Shroud × Spider-Man!Yuu (aka “Neighborhood Chaos Gremlin” BF)

Inspired by: Peter Parker / Spider-Man Powers: Wall-crawling, web-slinging, spider senses, chaotic hero energy. Vibe: Nerdy, snarky, and charmingly awkward.

Idia has never met anyone who can beat him at games AND do backflips off the ceiling. You’re the only one in the entire school who can sneak up on him—by hanging upside down outside his window and tapping on the glass with a webbed hand.

“Hey babe! Wanna skip class and swing around the school? I found a cool mossy rock!”

He thought you were a hallucination at first. “There’s no way a real person just thwipped onto my gaming chair.” But then you offered him a home-coded arcade cabinet with your webs spun into LED wiring.

You two bond over tech, coding, and being the most awkwardly brilliant people in the room. You call each other dumb nicknames like “WiFi Warrior” and “Web Head,” and you cling to walls during romantic conversations just because you can.

When you get serious (like, defending him from a magical cyber attack), your goofy nature flips into “calm hero mode,” and Idia melts.

Kalim Al-Asim × Captain Sunshine!Yuu (aka “Yuu Rogers”)

Inspired by: Captain America Powers: Enhanced strength, speed, leadership instincts, a shield made from sunsteel. Glowing hope incarnate. Vibe: Sunshine protector who makes inspirational speeches and also loves hugs.

Kalim was already sunshine personified—but then YOU showed up.

You caught a falling chandelier on your first day with one hand, told Crowley “with all due respect, sir,” and then helped mop the floor. Kalim was starstruck.

“Waitwaitwait—are you a hero hero?! Like—defends the innocent and jumps off buildings and helps little kittens cross the street?! THAT’S SO COOL!!”

You both get excited about the smallest things—buffet tables, flower crowns, matching outfits. You're a “power couple” in the most literal way.

You give heroic speeches and Kalim claps every time. You protect others without hesitation. And when he gets overwhelmed? You kneel down and smile softly:

“You shine so bright, Kalim. Let me shield you when you need it.”

He’s sobbing. Jamil is quietly begging you to not encourage his chaos. You do anyway.

[atefingersdagger]

Favorite Dystopian Stories

(Doing a post on this mainly if anyone is looking for recommendations or if anyone has recommendations based on my likes.) In no particular order

The Hunger Games (wow, what a surprise) - The original Dystopian obsession of mine. Got me hooked on the whole genre

I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream - A much more relevant story now than when it came out in the 60s. As the conversation around A.I. is a precedent one.

WALL-E - Yeah, I'm putting this on the list because despite my last entry, I LOVE robots/androids in pop culture (think Data in Star Trek). Plus, the movies message about overconsumption, caring about the planet, as well as corporations destroying earth resonates with me.

Snowpiercer - Although it's more in the post-apocalyptic genre (which I absolutely love and can be considered dystopian by nature, such as The Road), how life works on the train is absolutely a dystopian society. The topic of class disparity, humanity always wanting a quick fix, and humanities inhumanity to man also resonates with me. Plus, the acting is outstanding from Tilda Swinton (love her, originally saw her as Lyme before MJ part 2)

Tender is the Flesh - A super fucked up fic about human meat selling being legal and practically mandatory. I appreciate that the main character is a fucked up asshole (also a product of his environment and society but still an asshole), it's interesting to get inside the mind of someone who sells humans for mass meat consumption.

1984 - Kind of feel like if you are a fan of dystopian novels, this is kind of a no-brainer in a lot of ways

The Stand - My favorite Stephen King novel about the world after a virus kills most of humanity. Plus, it references my favorite song of all time

The Wall by Pink Floyd - Both the album and the accompanying movie

[dark-pink-fantasy]

Jackplushie reblogs

Automation AU

Automation AU

Automation Ft. Jade

Trey Baking

Automation AU w/ Scavenger!MC pt.2 pt.3

Tsundere s/o w/ Trey, Azul, and Ace (Ask)

Vil in the Automation AU

Bringing home Leona when you have Floyd/Jade (Ask)

Leona with his parts (Ask) pt.2 pt.3

King of the underground fighting Malleus (Ask)

Android concept (Ask) pt.2

Ruggie's mechanism

Believe ft. Ruggie

Jack!Bot

Azul!Bot

Markings Drabble ft.Azul

Jade/Floyd!Bots

Tiny Floyd!Bot (Ask)

Hollow ft. Jade

NSFW/Yandere Jade, Jamil, and Leona

Idia fixing you

Android mouths?

Mc being gentle with them

Bruises

Scarabia!Bots pt.2

FamousDesigner!Vil

More about Pomefiore

Inventor!Idia

TreyBots and RuggieBots

Meowbots/Twistbots

Replacing Companions (Ask) pt.2 pt.3

Loyalty ft.Trey

Welcome to Paradise ft.Cater

The Horror is real (ask)

Leona and Floyd with a Mc who has given up fixing them

[merakiui]

thinking about a concept where you break into wealthy businessman azul ashengrotto’s house in hopes of scoring big on some valuable items. you think this might be the smoothest job you’ve ever done. it’s so easy to avoid the cameras and keep your head low. too easy, almost. like it’s meant to be easy.

you think all will be well until you turn the corner with your bag full of stolen goods and run right into the real home security: jade, or formally known as model JEI-0511. a highly intelligent android programmed to detect and neutralize any and all threats to the home and its owner.

a single golden eye glints at you in the shadowed hall. you see the flash of a cordial smile and then you’re turning and running. the android subdues you within seconds, grabbing hold of the back of your shirt and yanking you to the ground. he’s silent and wordless as he looms over you, preparing to end you right there. you scramble away in a panic, your eyes squeezed shut and arms folded over your face for protection.

the light flicks on. “enough, jade. don’t kill the poor thing. the smell and the mess would be unbearable.”

“as you wish, master,” he replies, a hand held over his chest. he melts into the shadows, a lurking terror in wait.

slowly, very shakily, you lower your arms to look at the man who stands before you. he doesn’t smile.

“you’re quite crafty, aren’t you?” he asks, but it doesn’t sound like the type of question you’re in any position to answer.

you spend a long, silent minute watching him. he looks you up and down. before you even know what’s happening, the android surges forwards to drag you up from the ground. you struggle in vain, your scream muffled in his hand when it claps down over your mouth. the android holds you still while azul takes his time studying you.

“yes, you’ll do nicely.”

you have no idea what that means and you’re not going to because the android, swiftly and mercilessly, knocks you out.

hours later you wake in a cell, squinting under the intensity of bright blue fluorescents. you’re dressed in loose-fitting clothes; they remind you of the same material of a hospital gown. everything is cold and sterile. you’ve no idea where you are or what place this is.

you think you hear conversation on the other side of the glass, a window that only allows those on the other side to peer in.

azul has brought you to his business partner’s lab. idia shroud, renowned tech genius. the android who caught you was just a prototype. a model not yet sold to the general public. a secret still in development. that’s why they’re trying to manufacture a better model. FLO-0511. twin to JEI-0511. and you’re going to help train the AI to be smarter, better, more efficient.

tl;dr - you’re held captive by two crazy-rich businessmen and made to train android floyd, who is just as cold and emotionless as his android counterpart jade. something something you desperately need to find some way to outsmart two androids if you ever want to escape this terrifying situation. maybe trying to teach floyd to be human,,, manipulating jade into thinking he’ll be obsolete once project FLO-0511 is complete. :)

and of course trying to charm and seduce the two loser virgin businessmen so they’ll treat you more like a person and less like a test subject.

[asprinkleoftism]

Any songs that remind you of Donald 👀

I have a whole Spotify Playlist for that actually 👁👁 I'll link it here but just to name a few:

Paranoid Android by Radiohead

Coming Back to Life by Pink Floyd

Daydreaming by Radiohead

Do I Wanna Know? By Hozier

Only Ones Who Know by Arctic Monkeys

Sunstez by Cigarettes after Sex

Sparks by Coldplay

Heavydirtysoul by Twenty One Pilots

Lover, You Should've Came Over by Jeff Buckley

Shine On You Crazy Diamond (All Parts) by Pink Floyd

Fake Plastic Trees by Radiohead

Spotify link

[liviavanrouge]

War

Livia: *Sits with her eyes closed, opening her eyes when a bright light followed* Huh?

???: LIVIA!!!

Livia: *Stares in alarm, finding the restraints off* What...

Marina: *Throws her arms around her* LIVIA! I SUMMONED YOU BACK! I FINALLY DID IT, THIS WAS MY 30TH TRY!!!

Livia: *Stares in surprise* 30th...try...this whole time you've been trying..?

Marina: *Moves back, sniffling as she rubbed her eyes* I tied my life force to yours, only then did you come back..

Livia: *Stares in shock then grabs Marina's arm* Do you know what that means?! You're going to see everyone you care about die! I'm a long living being, Mari!!!

Livia: WHY DO SOMETHING SO STUPID!!!??!

Marina: *Stares at her* Because I care about you...you're more than my cat, you're my friend..

Marina: *Trembles, more tears started to fall* I was prepared to sit here every single day to get you back! Even if I starved!!

Livia: *Stares at her stunned then sighs quietly* Mari...

Marina: OH MY GOODNESS!!! LIVIA, YOU HAVE TO STOP YOUR GRAN GRAN!!

Livia: Huh?

Marina: SHE'S PLANNING AN ALL OUT WAR WITH THE AID OF THE OTHER KINGDOMS!!!

Livia: *Stares in shock then rushes away, Marina behind her* SHE WOULDN'T!!!

~~~

Maleficia: King Falena will be sending his troops our way, the Queen of the Queendom of Roses and the Crowned Princess have also agreed to lend their aid!

Maleficia: The Shroud Family reached out as well and offered us their Androids

Maleficia: If this Grieving Spirit refuses to pass on, we'll make him!!

Nilo: Indeed, the way he treated the Saintess will not go pass unpunished

Mayhem: *Looks out the window, staring at the angry crowd below* The people have gathered, they look equally as angry..

Nilo: Of course they do, Livia is Twisted Wonderland's Saintess, loved by all who know her

Nilo: She dedicates herself to her people and has been there for us ever since she revealed that the Temple tried to hide her away and keep her to themselves

Nilo: *Scowls* Everyone across the land is equally angry that such a respected and loved person was treated horribly

???: GRAN GRAN!!!

Livia: *Bursts in, her eyes wide* CALL OFF THE WAR, PLEASE!!

Maleficia: Beastie, we cannot do that, such a crime against you cannot be overlooked

Livia: Let me talk to him! Maybe I can get him to pass on!!

Nilo: LIVIA!! He put you in chains and muzzled you like a WILD ANIMAL!!

Nilo: You are not to go anywhere near that spirit!!

Marina: He meant no harm-

Maleficia: SILENCE YOU!! Your ancestor is the one who started this, I wish to not hear a word from you!!

Maleficia: The only reason you are standing here now instead of being thrown out is because of how much you and my Beastie care for one another!!

Marina: *Looks down* Sorry...

Livia: Gran Gran...please let me talk to him, I noticed the root of the problem whenever he came to yell at me..

Nilo: Yell....?

Mayhem: He yelled at you...?!

Nilo: *Looks at Maleficia* Your majesty!!

Maleficia: I heard...looks like he wants the painful way from us-

Livia: STOP!! EVERYONE JUST STOP!!

Livia: There will be NO WAR!! Nobody is going to fight or harm ANYONE!!

Livia: I will not risk thousands of lives like this! J-Just let me talk to him!!

Maleficia: *Stares at Livia*

Mayhem: Your majesty?

Maleficia: Two days...

Livia: *Smiles widely*

Maleficia: We will hold off the attack for two days, if he has not passed on by midnight of the second day, we shall barge into his realm and make him pass on

Livia: Deal!

Livia: *Turns away* Marina, come on, we gotta hurry!

Livia: *Runs off with Marina, heading to get changed into a traveling attire*

Nilo: Mal?

Maleficia: Send a letter to the kingdoms: "Postpone the attack for 2 days as per the Saintess' request, at midnight of the second day if the portal has not closed, we attack"

Mayhem: *Bows his head and stands up* Very well

Maleficia: *Looks out the window, her eyes narrowed* Livia is too selfless and kind for her own good...

~~~~

Livia: *Bursts into the auditorium* GUYS!!!

Jade: Livia!

Floyd: CATFISH! You're okay!

Livia: I need everyone's help!

Riddle: What is it?

Livia: We need to get Marina's ancestral grandfather to pass on or else all of Twisted Wonderland will be at war with him!

Livia: He restrained me in his realm and put a muzzle on me along with a steel collar..

Idia: Y-You're joking! That's a serious offense towards the Saintess!

Leona: I say let the bastard get what's coming to him, an offense like that does call for death

Azul: I do agree, ever since finding out Livia was our lands Saintess, I touched up on all the laws surrounding her...

Cater: Geez, all the Kingdoms are gonna fight this guy?

Livia: His realm had monsters, big ferocious beings who eat negative energy! It'll be a massacre for our side! They won't reach him!

Sebek: The Faes will make it if they're from the royal army, I don't know much about the others...

Sebek: There's still the possibility of everyone dying though..

Livia: That's why I need you guys help! We have until Midnight of the day after tomorrow to get him to pass on or else they'll be War!!

Vil: Livia, are you sure?

Rook: Livia, I'll go with you

Epel: Same here!!

Floyd: If Catfish wanna keep a war from happening who are we to say no to her

Jade: Agreed, I shall tag along

Livia: *Smiles at them then looks at the others*

Idia: *Sighs* I'll gather some high tech stuff

Leona: You'll need my knowledge of the 2nd Dimension, so I'll go..

Vil: I have plenty of poisons I've been itching to try

Azul: *Chuckles* I've been wanting to show off my merman forms new size, I've grown a bit

Silver: *Smiles* This is good practice for me, Kuro and Sebek..

Sebek: Agreed!!

Livia: Thank you everyone!!

???: You students aren't leaving with us are you?

Crowley: *Walks over* Your professors and headmaster are tagging along as well

Crewel: We are responsible for you kids and the Saintess, there is no way you're all going alone

Trein: I may be old but I still have some kick to me

Sam: Agreed

Vargas: When do we leave?

Livia: *Smiles widely, her eyes watering* Thank you everyone...we leave in an hour, so prepare yourselves...

@queen-of-twisted @yukii0nna @shix13o @zexal-club @abyssthing198 @writing-heiress

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Ortho, Jade: Three Heads are better than Two

Once again, Ortho is a fashion icon 🫶 dbdvwksns His Duo Magic line with Jade is hilarious (they’re so giddy about exploiting their enemies’ weaknesses). In this fic, I wanted it to have more of a wholesome (?) feel. Maybe I’m just too tired right now to write feral, hahah…

Just one more birthday (Riddle, whose duo partner will probably be Rook) before the new rotation with Jamil 👀

A Tale as Old as Time.

Heroes in action poses aplenty decorated the interior of the art museum. Swords and shields in hand, they stood defiant against an onslaught of beasts, beings of shadow and primordial evil. A being half bull and half man, a monster with several serpentine heads, a one-eyes giant, and more.

But what Ortho was drawn to was the painting of two figures on a short marble column. There sat the hero and a squat satyr, locked in a conversation. The former, leaning forward and listening. The latter, mouth ajar—talking.

Strategizing for an upcoming battle, Ortho surmised. One last hope, and they’re seizing the opportunity.

The painting was a simple masterpiece, a work of heart.

Beside him, Jade piped up. “Oya, have you taken an interest in this work, Ortho-san?”

“Yes, this is the hero and mentor that inspired Star Rogue,” Ortho chirped. “The Son of the Thunder God must demonstrate that he is a ‘true’ hero in order to claim his heritage. He seeks the wisdom of a hero trainer.”

“Oh dear.” Jade’s faint chuckle echoed eerily in the room. “It sounds like quite the ordeal. How cruel to force one to labor to acknowledge their birthright.“

“It’s not so strange. There are families in similar circumstances of blood and bond. One does not necessarily guarantee the other. For example, children can be abandoned as well as adopted. Relatives can be shunned or estranged.” Ortho’s eyes drifted shut. “Human relationships are complex. There is no solution that can be applied to them all.”

“Indeed.” Jade tucked a finger under his chin. “Within my own year, there are a number of unique families.

“Ruggie-san is without parents, but was raised by his grandmother. He also maintains close ties with the local neighborhood rascals. For the winter break, he brought them scraps and leftovers from the NRC cafeteria.

“Silver-san is adopted and well-loved by his father. It must be difficult to raise a child as a single guardian, but he manages. I believe Silver’s father has a background as a veteran, so childrearing is a relatively new venture for him.”

“You know so much about your classmates, Jade Leech-san!” Ortho giggled as if he had just been told a funny joke. “And here I thought I was the only student capable of digging up information to that detail.”

Jade smiled sardonically. His answer, intentionally vague. “You’d be surprised what one can glean from a quick social medial investigation.”

“I know! Nothing much gets by me.”

The eel’s glinting eyes cut to Ortho, silently searching him.

“If memory serves, the Shroud family is a sort of unusual as well. It is the mother, the father, Idia-san, and…”

He held his breath, letting the sentence trail off.

“Ortho and Ortho,” the android recited, filling in the open space. He lifted one hand and then the other, as if he were a scale balancing out the weight of the souls. “Three Shroud sons.”

“Of course,” Jade said tactfully. “Having a brother of my own, I’ve learned that they can be a great source of both joy and sorrow. Floyd’s antics are as much trouble to clean up after as they are amusing.”

“Nii-san is the same. He’s the smartest person I know. I just wish he would get out more. They say that touching grass is good for stimulation, but nii-san would rather hole up in his room… Once he made a hissing noise like an angry cat when I tried to open the curtains to let some natural light in.”

“That certainly sounds like Idia-san.” Jade inclined his head. “Ah, but for as much of a handful as they may be… family is family,and we love them as they are.”

“I’m glad I chose you,” he had once said to his twin all those years ago. Again, again, those words rung true in his mind.

Ortho nodded. “Running the simulations and accounting for the changing variables in every possible iteration, it’s entirely possible that other routes result in happier endings. Even then, I don’t think I would give up this reality for any of them. It’s only here where I have two cool big brothers, a mom and dad that love me for being me, and the chance to go to Night Raven College with everyone!

“We struggled… shed our blood, sweat, and tears… survived and rose from battle victorious, just like heroes. It’s inefficient and perhaps improbable, but it’s something we can call our own.”

The young boy happily floated in circles around Jade. So jubilant, like dandelion fluff dancing on a breeze—it was difficult to think he was anything but living, anything but human.

“The Son of the Thunder God wished to be acknowledged by his own family,” Ortho said longingly as he gazed at the painting. “To that end, he went the distance and proved he belonged among them.”

Jade’s lips quirked. “It’s amazing what he accomplished. The Thunder God must be thrilled to claim him as his own.”

As for you, Ortho-san… You’ve achieved that and more.

“It’s a story with a happy ending.” The boy’s face was bright. “I want to earn that for myself one day—a future for me, for nii-san…”

Ortho folded both hands over his core. The flame there pulsated like a heartbeat.

For him, too.

Three, a lucky number. Three, the heads of Cerberus. Three Fates.

Three brothers entangled in their threads.

And he, the guardian of them all.

[aristidecouthon]

have you indulged in modern music?? could you name a few songs or an artist you like?

I have, and I am more than glad to, for artists I am quite a fan of Radiohead and Pink Floyd...

as for songs, hm...

2 + 2 = 5 - Radiohead Paranoid Android - Radiohead Karma Police - Radiohead Electioneering - Radiohead Don't Leave Me Now - Pink Floyd The Great Gig in the Sky - Pink Floyd The Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd

I also very much enjoy Big Thief, specifically Simulation Swarm, reminds me a lot of Maxime.

[unpredictable-probabilities]

Azul Ashengrotto of Royal Sword Academy || Chapter 28: Night of the Hollow

Summary:

Azul, Jamil, Rielle, and Floyd visit the Shroud Brothers' domain for the promised screening of Pumpkin Hollow, and learn some new things about each other.

Word Count:  6,430

Notes (more at the end):

For Day 6 of AshenViper Week 2024!

Prompt: Overblot / Azul's Mer-form

Ortho appears and takes them all to Ignihyde.

They arrive in what looks like a movie room; soundproof cushions on the walls, a big flatscreen TV, lounge chairs and bean bags all around, and a snack table to the side.

"Welcome to Ignihyde!" Ortho says to Azul, Jamil, Rielle, and Floyd. The android was ecstatic to find out that two more people wanted to hang out with his brother, though the brother himself was not as enthused. Idia Shroud isn't here yet, Ortho explains that he's still changing out of his Pumpkin Knight costume.

"Please wait here while my brother and I prepare the movie and snacks!" Ortho flies out of the room.

Jamil had been quietly gazing around the dorm ever since they entered. "It's not everyday you get to wander around here. For one, people rarely get invited to the home of introverts, and sneaking in only attracts the wrath of their security detail—or Ortho's," he comments, before quickly looking at Floyd. "Don't touch anything."

"Hah, too late." Floyd replies, booting up Idia's computer connecting to some devices on the walls.

"Unidentified fingerprints," a robotic voice says from the speakers. "Implementing Security Protocol Level 1."

All devices retract into the wall and disappear. A metal sheet appears from the ceiling and seals off the doorway. Spotlights shine down on each of them.

"Four lifeforms detected. Sending information to Ignihyde Prefect and Ortho Shroud."

"I suppose this is what you meant?" Azul lightly asks Jamil, putting his hand up to shield his face from the glare of a spotlight.

Jamil heaves a long sigh.

"Whoooooaaaa... This is kinda cool, though," Floyd nonchalantly states, walking up to a spotlight and ogling it. "You think I can try punching through the walls and see if I can deactivate any of their machine stuff?"

"How about we just sit tight and wait?" Rielle helpfully suggests.

"I don't like being contained." Floyd bares his teeth.

The doors open again and the Shroud brothers walk through, looking around in shock.

"Ugh, this is what we get for inviting a bunch'a clueless normies in…" Idia mutters.

"Life forms authorized. Disarm all defenses," Ortho says, and the room goes back to how it was when they first came in.

"Awww," Floyd laments when the spotlights disappear.

"Everything's okay now, Big Brother!" Ortho says to Idia, then he turns to the rest of the group. "Please refrain from touching any of the devices to prevent any mishaps!"

Floyd scoffs, pouting. Rielle chuckles amusedly at his reaction.

"Apologies for that," Azul tells the Shroud brothers.

"Indeed, Floyd just got a little too excited," Rielle adds.

"Just sit down," Idia says with resigned exasperation as he walks up to the computer to set up the movie.

"Make yourselves comfortable!" Ortho says, flying around and gesturing at the seats.

As Jamil settles himself down, the lights dim and a projection along the wall boots up, starting the movie right off the bat with a credits sequence.

"How did Idia come to discover this movie, Ortho?" Rielle quietly whispers to the android sitting next to them, in contrast with his brother who had taken to the refuge of his bed.

"My brother prides himself in knowing obscure media," Ortho replies. "He's in several group chats with fellow geeks where they talk about rare or underrated films, games, shows, and the like! Idia discovered the movie three years ago, I believe it was introduced to him by his online friend Crimson Muscle."

"Aww, that's pretty cool," Rielle grins, lounging back to lean against Floyd.

Jamil is more surprised that Idia was able to have an online buddy.

Then, seeing the other couple cuddle in the darkness, he quietly glances at Azul, wondering what he'd do.

Azul notices him staring. "Are you alright? Is it too cold?" he looks at the air conditioner.

Jamil shyly looks away, not wanting to appear needy. "No, I'm okay."

Perhaps he can find a more subtle opportunity later on.

The movie opens up with a dark and foggy night, in the thick woods surrounding an old village as a horse-drawn wagon makes its way down the dirt road.

Different shots of a young man in black running through the woods become mixed with the footage of the carriage. Thundering in pursuit of the fellow are what sound like another horse's hooves.

The man eventually trips and a dark shadow looms over him as he screams.

A man with a coat and a top hat jolts awake in his seat in the carriage, seemingly from a nightmare. He establishes himself as a detective making his way to a small rickety town  in the middle of nowhere after communications with many of its townsfolk have gone silent.

Eventually the carriage stops after having spotted a disturbance in the road. The gentleman walks out and spots the young man with the black coat, slumped against the base of a tree with tendrils growing out of him like a seedbed.

"By Jove…" the detective breathes out a curse, exchanging bewildered looks with the coachman. What in the world have they gotten themselves into?

There's the sound of hooves in the distance, and their own horses grow restless upon hearing it.

"It could be our culprit!" the detective says to the man at the reins. "Or at the very least a witness. Let's follow the horse! Posthaste!" he clambers back into the carriage.

Jamil feels Azul casually lean against him, much like how he did at the rooftop back in Scarabia.

Jamil doubts this movie is actually terrifying, but he still leans close to Azul to whisper, "How are you with horror movies?"

"I don't mind them," Azul replies quietly. "Growing up in the ocean makes one quite familiar with jumpscares and even gore. I'm not fond of horror movies, but so far none has scared me as much as some actual experiences I've had back home. How about you?"

"They don't do much for me, either, though now I'm interested in hearing these horror stories of the deep sometime soon."

"Shh!" Idia hisses from his bed.

In the movie, the detective and his coachman have pursued the sound of equine footfalls and find themselves at the entrance to the village. Its wooden buildings stand dilapidated and lonely, almost appearing like sagging stalks of wood.

Uncertain about the atmosphere, they look around for anyone to speak to and they find an old woman by the well, fetching a bucket of water.

They don't get many answers from her, but she looks fearful upon them asking why the town's gone silent.

She simply directs them to the edge of the village where the old town hall stood, calling it the "local pumpkin patch".

The detectives get off from their carriage when they arrive at the town hall. The paths become grassy and uneven, and it might damage their carriage or injure their horses if they proceed. They continue on foot.

Rotten and dried pumpkins litter the ground, and some flies buzz away as they get disturbed.

A rustling sound comes from behind, and the detective whirls around, holding his lamp aloft. But there was nothing to be seen but grass and the dust motes floating in the lamp's light.

Azul passes a bowl of potato chips to Jamil, getting a handful himself.

Jamil happily takes a bit of the snacks, though begin to slightly regret digging in when the detective starts prying open pumpkins to find bits of humanoid flesh and skeleton.

The detective learns that the "local pumpkin patch" is, in fact, the town cemetery. With that revelation, he whirls into the town hall to look for the mayor and finds him cowering in his study.

"Wh-Who are you?" the trembling mayor asks them, hiding behind his desk while clutching a rusty rake as a makeshift weapon.

"A visitor, sent to investigate why communications have dropped between our villages, though it appears… I've stumbled into something more sinister."

"You fool! By entering this place, you've doomed yourself into being trapped for eternity like the rest of us!"

Further into the conversation, the detective learns of the villagers being hunted down by a mysterious figure in the night, which they suspect must either be a witch they aggravated or the malicious soul of a pumpkin farmer.

Ortho quietly speaks to the group. "Fun fact: this movie is considered a tad controversial for its stance against magic use. The director who made this film believes that magic, especially in the field of entertainment, takes away the 'magic' obtained through manual application. Because of that, a lot of the special effects and props here are all crafted by hand."

"Interesting," Rielle says. "I can see why it's controversial, but I admire the dedication to their craft."

"I wonder how they did the human flesh effect in the pumpkins," Floyd says, resting his chin on top of Rielle's head and wrapping his arms around him.

"According to the internet, they used a lot of material called ooblek, red food coloring, and corn syrup," Ortho explains.

"Hm, I want that," Floyd says thoughtfully. "Ooooblek. Sounds funny," he snickers, tightening his embrace around Rielle, who snuggles back into him.

"Yes, my brother loves this sort of stuff!" Ortho happily cheers.

"Shh!" Idia hissed again from his little bed nook.

The detective in the movie decides to see if he can capture the culprit lurking around at night, when they are said to be more active.

He heads into the local inn, where he meets a portly and sweet owner whose optimistic demeanor contrasts much from the mood of his fellow townsmen. He curiously claims not to fear the culprit at all, not because he is stupid to think that he can fight them off, but because he thinks the victims it has done in have often deserved their fate. He believes the culprit to be an executioner from the afterlife who has come to bring justice to those who have tried to escape their dastardly deeds, since the town is a place where many crooks and outlaws come to hide.

Despite the innkeeper's creepy mindset, he remains a friendly face to both the detective and the coachman and hopes that they do not fall into harm's way. There's a sense of camaraderie between detective and innkeeper, and the detective bids him a good night before preparing for a dangerous chase into the wee hours of the night.

They decide to go to the part of the village where outlaws are said to frequent. If there is any shred of truth to what the innkeeper said, the vigilante's next target might be around here, and they can catch him in the act.

Azul hands Jamil a bottle of soda, then he takes a sip from his bottle of sparkling water, the moisture on his lips catching the light from the TV screen.

Jamil gets a little distracted from watching the movie, even when the detective and the coachman were getting in trouble against the distrustful and frankly disturbing-looking outlaws. As a fight scene goes down, Jamil takes a sip of soda and slowly lets his arm drape around Azul's shoulders.

Azul glances at him in surprise, before turning back to look at the movie. Then he slides down a little in his seat, and leans his head against Jamil's shoulder.

The detective and coachman are now running from a group of outlaws in what is admittedly an impressively directed parkour chase scene.

Jamil finds himself enjoying the movie a lot more than he expected and he presses close against Azul, his heart happily fluttering despite the gritty sequences on the screen.

The scene takes an abrupt turn when the detective gets stabbed in the abdomen and is left at the mercy of the outlaws. The coachman flees for help, and the music changes into something ominous and foreboding.

Running into the scene, astride a horse as dark as midnight, a humanoid donned in black armor (which looks extremely similar to Idia's) and a pumpkin head swoops in. The outlaws grow frightened and run away, but the mysterious vigilante rushes forth and dispatches them one by one in a series of gruesome yet creative nature-based slaughters. The detective tries to give chase, but passes out from his injuries.

Rielle looks at Ortho in uncertainty. "Umm… are you sure this type of movie's appropriate for your age?"

"I have seen this movie many times before," Ortho says reassuringly, though Rielle only looks more worried. "It's all right, I always watch something fun and wholesome afterwards!" he says cheerfully.

"He's fiiine, Flame Tetra," Floyd drawls. "Lil' Clione here is much deadlier than that Pumpkin Head, ya know?"

Ortho giggles. "That is accurate!"

"Oh," Rielle says, looking unsure about how serious Floyd and Ortho are. "Um, okay."

The detective slowly regains consciousness. When he blearily opens his eyes, he sees darkness above him. As his vision gradually comes into focus, he tries to decide whether it's a lamp or the moon shining.

Azul shifts slightly in his seat and wraps an arm around Jamil's waist.

Jamil happily languishes in the contact. Idia spares a glance over to the entire group's direction and promptly regrets it.

The detective fully wakes up to the innkeeper tending to his wounds, having been called over by the coachman to help.

The innkeeper warns him of the danger that is to come, once again vying for the vigilante's side, but the detective is adamant in getting to the bottom of the mystery and dispelling the curse.

The investigation continues, with the coachman opting out from fright and staying at the inn. The detective tries to trace the origins of where the vigilante could have come from based on the group that was slaughtered last night and his foggy memories.

It eventually takes him to an old farmhouse on the side of a hill, abandoned and covered in large dark vines. If anything was to be the heart of evil in this village, it would be there.

The detective creeps up the hill, his footsteps cushioned by grass and vines. The air is humid and smells of mildew.

He reaches the farmhouse; the rotting door has fallen off its hinges and is in pieces on the ground.

The doorway leading into the dark interior of the farmhouse looks like a gaping maw.

Rielle looks a tad more nervous as the protagonist creeps further into danger while Floyd grins more and more maniacally, as if hoping for something terrible to happen to the character.

Jamil, meanwhile, continues to keep his cool. It's a shame he and Azul aren't particularly squeamish and don't have an excuse to hold each other more—

The detective uncovers patches of rotten pumpkin along the way and reveals a horde of insects scattering and crawling onto him when their vegetable home gets disturbed.

Jamil flinches and looks away, feeling chills shoot straight up his spine.

Azul promptly sits up straight and pulls Jamil to him, wrapping him in an embrace and caressing his back soothingly.

Jamil hears the detective yell in panic as he swats away the insects from his clothes.

"It's alright," Azul says softly, so only Jamil can hear. He holds him tight and continues to stroke his back.

Ortho, having hearing even stronger than fae, picks up on this but chooses not to comment.

Even the sounds of the insects are making Jamil uncomfortable, and though he's a little embarrassed to have been the one seeking comfort, he finds himself not outright hating it either.

"Tell me when it's over,” he mumbles.

As the detective scrambles away from the insects, the noise he's making stirs to life the tall figure of the vigilante.

It emerges from the plant growth on the staircase and the detective runs to hide and keep quiet. It slowly stalks the area, its movements a tad sluggish in the day.

As the detective crouches in the vegetation, he notes how solid the figure looks and slowly picks up a fallen timber of wood. He attempts to sneak up on the vigilante, believing it to be some sort of freaky serial killer.

Jamil begins to peek at the film again at this point.

Then, as the protagonist raises the lumber, the vigilante's pumpkin head suddenly swivels to face him, screeching.

Rielle jumps at the scare while Idia mimics the creature, even quietly reciting some of the lines as the scene of detective versus wretched knight intensifies.

"The insects seem to be gone now," Azul whispers, though he doesn't loosen his hold on Jamil.

The detective commendably holds his ground against the pumpkin creature, dodging sentient vines that attempt to attack and hold him down.

But then a root shoots up from the ground and trips him flat on his back. He tries to get up while he frantically searches for a weapon to use against the creature that's beginning to loom over him.

Without anywhere to hit the vigilante thanks to the armor, the detective just hopes against all hope and drives his fist into the gourd, smashing its carved grin away.

There’s a sickening crunch and the enemy lurches backwards while the detective recoils in pain, his fist burning from whatever’s inside the pumpkin.

As the vigilante rears up, disoriented, the detective takes the opportunity to put some distance between them.

Then, as the detective roars, "It's finally time to see who you really are, you bastard!" (with Idia silently copying the dialogue), he grabs a dilapidated chair and slams it onto the creature’s head.

The pumpkin face gets destroyed and the culprit is revealed…

And it's just a pure monster, containing nothing but another pumpkin inside, slowly growing to replace the head it lost.

Seeing what a freak of nature he's up against, the detective now fights to escape the house to rethink a strategy, but the house's vines grow and contort in compliance to its master's rage.

The detective stumbles as he tries to get to the door, nearly tripping over roots that break through the planks.

The walls seem to come alive as the vines writhe and reach for the detective, grabbing his coat and yanking him to the floor.

The pumpkin creature walks over to him, roots and broken planks crunching under its armored feet. It opens its mouth and lets out a screech of rage, and the camera zooms into its face until it fills the screen, its jagged mouth in high definition.

Azul tenses up and subtly looks away from the screen and towards Jamil, his eyes averted.

Jamil returns the other's protective gesture from earlier, surprised to see him react. What about it scared him?

"You all right?" he quietly asks as the movie has the creature attempting to engulf the detective's head into its fiery maw.

Azul gives a single nod, still not looking at the screen. "There's a sea creature whose jaws look very similar to those," he says in a quiet voice. "One almost got me as a child."

"Oh..."

The detective ducks just in time for the pumpkin-headed creature to sink its jaw into a vine instead and he starts scrambling up the stairs and onto the second floor.

"Did it lurk around those sunken ships, too?"

"No, I was going home from school by myself, and the area was rather deserted," Azul whispers. "Sometimes it happens, they wander closer to the residential areas." He cautiously turns to the screen again as the Pumpkin Knight stomps up the stairs two at a time, breaking them into splinters.

"How'd you get out of it?" Jamil asks, as the detective finds himself in an area filled with scrawling by a madman... or a mad plant-man, revealing ire towards humanity for its abandonment and its determination to punish humanity for their misdeeds towards prosperity.

"I almost didn't," Azul says somberly. "I was never as fast as Jade or Floyd. It grabbed one of my tentacles. I blasted it with cosmic magic and pulled free of its hold, and I was able to escape with the cover of my ink. I wasn't used to casting spells at the time, and the exertion combined with the injury had left me bedridden for  days."

The detective in the movie rushes to the broken windows, looking to see if there's any form of escape.

"Sounds like you really lived a dangerous life…" Jamil mutters, a pang of understanding resonating within him (all the while feeling sad that they're both familiar with danger). Deciding not to linger on such an emotion, he then asks, "I wonder how you'd handle this if you were in the detective's shoes right now."

"Assuming I had no magic?" Azul says. "If I still retain my grip strength, I'd break out of a window and scale down the house. I don't know much about the creature, so it seems wiser to escape rather than risk confrontation."

"If only the detective smoked… Fire'd prolly be at least a little effective on the plant vines, won't they?" Jamil reasons, perking up once he sees that the detective has begun climbing out of the window and onto a rusty metal pipe.

The detective is partway through sliding down when the pipe breaks away and collapses backwards.

Though he lands roughly on his back with a groan, the detective sees the Pumpkin Knight screech at him from the window and finds the energy to scurry away, knowing full well that he's getting hunted down.

"He should have brought a lamp, at the very least," Azul comments, snuggling into Jamil.

The detective races away just as it starts to rain, his shoes splashing in the mud as the rain comes down in sheets.

"Fire magic is quite difficult for me," Azul remarks. "I'm told it's quite normal for merfolk, but even with magic, I might have trouble with that creature."

"You could prolly drown it, though. Too much water can kill plants too, and I don't think the Pumpkin Knight falls under aquatic flora."

Rushing back to town, the detective begins to pack weapons as well as oil and tinder, informing the coachman that he will be withdrawing to the woods to confront the Knight where no other casualties can occur. He could not assure his own survival, though, and the ever-loyal coachman volunteers to accompany him despite being deathly afraid.

The innkeeper hears about their possible fatal fate and surprises the both of them by volunteering as well, curious to see the creature up close after learning more about the truth of its identity.

The three men delve into the woods, the detective leading with a lamp in hand to see through the fog that had settled in after the rain.

Jamil notices that the room has gotten colder, much like how he imagines it would be in those woods. Idia has mostly disappeared in his nest of blankets, only a glimpse of his flaming hair can be seen. The merfolk and the android seem unbothered, though.

Wishing for a blanket himself, he simply sinks lower into the beanbag and leans into Azul, hoping to find comfort and warmth by doing so.

Azul glances at him and seems to notice the change in temperature for the first time. He drapes his coat on Jamil, and levitates a blanket from the corner to wrap around both of them. Then he hugs Jamil close.

"Is this better?" he whispers, his breath warm against Jamil's ear.

Jamil practically melts into the hold, nuzzling up against the other with a pleased hum as his answer.

The characters in the movie are unfortunately not going through anything as pleasant.

As night begins to creep in, the coachman and the detective talk about how they've never faced something of a supernatural nature before. The coachman then rattles off about how it's been a terror and an honor to work with him, bidding goodbye in case this would be their last, but the detective will not have such doomsday speech.

The detective says that he could not have wished for a better coachman nor a more loyal friend, and he encourages his two companions to not give up hope just yet as they traverse the damp woods.

The sound of hooves can be heard in the distance, but in the vastness of the area they can't tell which direction it's coming from.

They hear the whinny of a horse and find the clear silhouette of the Knight charging its way towards them. Quickly, the coachman spurs the carriage horses to bolt for it and they tear through the forest.

The innkeeper and the detective begin to discuss what the Pumpkin Knight's weakness could be. Despite its plant-like exterior, its head is enchanted with a living flame, and they begin to wonder if fire would work against it.

There's a crash on the ground as an object narrowly misses one of the carriage's wheels. They look back to see that the Pumpkin Knight has begun hurtling flaming gourds towards them.

They cry out in surprise as the carriage jostles. One of the gourds hits a tree ahead of them and sets the leaves ablaze, branches cracking and falling off onto their path.

The coachman swerves the carriage dangerously, narrowly avoiding the flaming branches, but hitting the side of another tree as the door whips open from the momentum. The detective yells and almost falls out of the carriage, but the coachman grabs him by the coat and pulls him back inside.

The innkeeper suggests that they lead the creature to the swamp and attempt to drown it.

With his directions, the coachman tries to lead the knight to the swamp. A flaming gourd sails overhead before it crashes into the ground, sending the horses up to a frenzy and off to another path.

Cursing, the detective decides to deal with the Knight while the other two focus on course-correction. He clambers to the top of the carriage, grabbing the wooden pole of a pitchfork he brought.

As the Knight tosses another projectile at them, he swings and redirects it back, causing the creature to stumble.

The coachman shouts at the detective to be careful as he deflects the flaming projectiles one after another. The creature snarls.

A few moments later, the atmosphere becomes more humid as they get nearer to the swamp. The ground grows softer and the horses slow down as the carriage’s wheels have a harder time traversing through the mud.

The Pumpkin Knight's horse seems unperturbed by the difficult terrain. Knowing it was going to catch up to them if they don't do something soon, the detective and the coachman make a plan to hop on one of the horses and leave the carriage with the other steed and the innkeeper. They tell the portly man to hang back and hide, since the Knight hasn't seen him yet and they could use that to their advantage.

Blessedly, their ploy works. As they dash further into the bog, the Knight ignores the abandoned cart and pursues them with a cackling snarl.

It's more difficult for the detective to deflect the Knight's attacks with one hand while the other one is holding onto the coachman, but he remains determined.

The Knight seems to have realized that the coachman is the one skilled in maneuvering them around the bog, and he changes his attacks to aim for him.

The detective reacts instinctively and puts his arm out to block a flaming gourd that was aimed at the coachman's shoulder.

He screams as it hits him and sets his sleeve aflame. The coachman yells his name in panic.

The detective manages to pat out the flames and tells the coachman to continue on.

As the action continues to unfold, the whole group watching the movie has fallen silent, enraptured by the screen.

A gourd manages to hit the hind leg of the horse just as the swamp lake was coming into view.

As the animal crashes and falls, the detective finds himself pinned underneath it while the coachman is thrown a few feet away. Unable to move the injured animal fast enough, the coachman instead takes up the wooden pole and clumsily wields it to defend against the incoming enemy.

The Knight opens his mouth and releases a chittering sound that might have been laughter. He summons a flaming gourd and aims it at the detective—

The pumpkin head violently gets decapitated, flying to the side and splitting open against a tree.

As another pumpkin head begins to grow, the detective sees the coachman behind the enemy, holding a branch aloft, his eyes full of terror but also determination.

As the coachman struggles against the Pumpkin Knight after it fell off of its shadow stallion, the detective manages to push himself off from under the horse's body.

He gets to his feet just as the Knight slams its hand on the ground, summoning sharp roots from the dirt and spearing the coachman in his gut, effectively incapacitating him.

"NO!" the detective screams and tackles the Knight from behind. The coachman crumples to the ground, breathing laboriously with the root still in his gut.

The sound of hooves approaches, and the innkeeper appears with the carriage.

The detective is sitting on the Knight's stomach and pummeling his head with punches, destroying pumpkin after pumpkin as they grow. He yells at the innkeeper to take the coachman back to the village.

The innkeeper breaks off the root from the ground but leaves it in the coachman's stomach to prevent him from bleeding out faster. Once the coachman is no longer attached to the ground, the innkeeper llifts him into the carriage with much grunting from the both of them.

The detective finds a rock and uses it to keep destroying the endless array of pumpkin heads. He can feel the fatigue coming on but he doesn't stop, listening to the carriage wheels as it stumbles out of the bog.

After an almost gory scene of wanton pumpkin violence, the detective grabs the creature's corpse and hurls it into the bog, watching it slowly sink down.

The movie then transitions to the detective stumbling back to the village, learning of the coachman's tragic fate.

As he despairs over losing his friend, the innkeeper reveals that he found something in the coachman's wound. In his outstretched palm is a seed.

The detective almost destroys it in a fit of rage, but something in him freezes. This is going to be the last remnant of the coachman, and by killing it, he can't help but feel he would be killing him again.

As he stares at the seed, the innkeeper sees a fire in his eyes, not unlike the fire within the Knight itself.

The innkeeper, as devoted as ever to his beliefs, chooses not to comment on it as he thinks that this is leading to a very curious development, indeed…

The screen fades to black, and when the next scene fades in, the detective is shown planting the seed in a field, moonlight shining on his face to show a grim and determined expression, the hint of a blue flame just visible in his irises.

The music rises to a crescendo and abruptly stops as the screen goes black. There is a second of silence, then the title is shown again and the music gradually comes back, and the credits roll.

"What?" Rielle gasps, confused. "Wait, what happened? Isn't that just gonna bring back the Pumpkin Knight?"

"Yeah, that's the point," Idia smirks, still too high off of the movie to be self-conscious. "Like you'd think the threat is done and over with but then when the detective decided to see if he can honor his friend by planting the seed, he's already fallen into the darkness, doomed to bring him back because of his own brand of justice!"

Jamil could personally see why the movie hasn't hit mainstream audiences with its bizarre execution and plot, but he can at least give props to its artistic aspects.

"He's doing all that for a 'friend'?" Floyd mutters, giving Azul a knowing look.

"Oh, don't even start!" the older Shroud groans. "They're clearly depicted to be platonic crime-solvers!"

The corner of Azul's lips turns up in a smile of amusement and understanding at Floyd's remark.

Floyd scoffs. "You play all those dating games but ya still think they're platonic? A'right."

Idia turns pink from his cheeks to the tips of his hair. "Y-you don't know if I play those games!"

"I've seen you doing daily log-ins in class," Floyd waves a hand dismissively.

"Th-That still doesn't mean that the detective and the coachman are romantic with each other! R-right?" he looks pleadingly at the others.

Jamil shrugs. "I think the interpretation can be fine either way. In fact, if you're clever about it, you can probably use that angle somehow for your visitors who see your booth as a romantic area. Because, in a way, they're not wrong."

Idia gulps, suddenly looking quite unsure and possibly regretting making them watch the movie.

"Anyway, you’ve definitely been holding back a bit on how grotesque you can make it all out to be,” Jamil continues. “Those corpses, for example, would've definitely made it sink in for visitors why the Pumpkin Knight's dangerous. I think you can even make the abandoned farmstead a reality..." He pauses to shiver at the thought of realistic bugs crawling around the projection mapping. He glances at Azul, trying to ignore the mental image. "What do you think?"

Azul nods. "I agree, there is still a lot of untapped potential for your booth,” he says to Idia. “Aside from images or perhaps even realistic dolls of corpses, you can also incorporate the sound of the Pumpkin Knight's laugh. Combined with the sound of hooves in the distance and some fog, it could make the visitors feel like the Knight is just lurking around and following them, and you and the other costumed students can jump out of the fog from time to time."

"See, Brother?" Ortho says happily. "I told you it would be a good idea to invite friends over!"

Idia doesn't seem too fond of receiving feedback, being the self-proclaimed genius that he is, but he simply sighs and begins to pull up glowing screens over his bed, making notes and arrangements to relay them to his fellow Ignihyde members. "I guess…”

"That was so funny. Come on, let's watch another horror movie!" Floyd playfully suggests.

"No, that's enough," Idia says tiredly. He turns off the screens.

"Ooh, should we have a sleepover?" Ortho says.

"What?!" Idia practically jumps. "N-No way, that wasn't part of the agreement! You said we'll just watch the movie!"

Floyd laughs. "Don't get yer pants in a twist, Firefly Squid! We're sleepin' over at Sea Snake's crib!"

"Awww okay, then!" Ortho says. "Would you like to bring some of these snacks?"

"Oh, sure." Jamil nods, accepting the bowl of treats into his grasp. "Will you guys be okay here?"

"Yep! We'll be working on applying all of your feedback and finish it by tomorrow's opening! If we ever need extra input, we'll contact you! Please feel free to visit and see the improvements firsthand whenever you can! Have a nice sleepover!"

And with that, they quickly tidy up and make their way out back to Scarabia.

Floyd and Rielle are talking about the movie, but Jamil notices that Azul seems to be deep in thought.

Jamil lags behind the group and gently pulls Azul back with him so they can talk while Rielle and Floyd walk a little ahead of them.

“Are you okay?” he asks Azul.

“Yes,” Azul gives him a small smile. “I was just thinking about that sea creature that the Pumpkin Knight reminded me of.”

Jamil furrows his eyebrows in recollection of what Azul had told him earlier. “The one you encountered when you were a kid?”

Azul nods. “As you know, I had some insecurities about my merform as a child. My classmates then would make fun of my long tentacles and how I could produce ink in distressing situations. But on that day with the sea creature, I was able to use those things to my advantage. The strength of my tentacles allowed me to free myself, and I used my ink to blind the creature while I swam to safety.”

Azul sighs and gets a faraway look in his eyes before speaking again. “Since then I have learned to be more proud of my merform. But two days ago at the Coral Sea, when I almost Overblotted…” his features become more guarded, like he's determined to maintain a strong facade. “I was about to turn into my merform, I could feel it. My Overblotted form… would have been the same as my merform.” He looked down at his open palm. “I could have been a rampaging monster like the Pumpkin Knight… And I would have looked like my true form doing it.” He lets his hand drop back to his side and stares straight ahead again.

Jamil laces his fingers through Azul's. “Hey. You're not a monster. You've never hurt anyone.” He slows down to let Rielle and Floyd walk ahead of them more, then he lowers his voice to be sure they won't hear him. “You know that Riddle and Leona Overblotted, right? From what I heard, Riddle hurt a few of his residents, and Ruggie himself told me that Leona hurt him. His arm still has bandages. You've met both of them, would you say they're monsters?”

Azul falls quiet, looking thoughtful as he runs his thumb back and forth on Jamil's hand. He takes a breath and gives a small smile that looks more relaxed. “No, you're right. If I am to be kind to Riddle and Leona despite what happened to them, I should extend that same kindness to myself. Still… it is concerning that you've already had two Overblots this school year,” he furrows his eyebrows worriedly.

“Hey, you two!” Floyd yells at them. “Whatcha walkin’ so slow for? It's sleepover time! Bring us to your dorm, Prefect Snakey!” he impatiently waves them over.

Jamil squeezes Azul's hand and turns to face him. “If it really bothers you, we can talk to Riddle about it. Tomorrow, or whenever you're ready. He might be able to reassure you more about what happened to you.”

Azul nods and squeezes his hand back. “Okay. Thank you, Jamil.”

Jamil gives him a reassuring smile and they walk over to Rielle and Floyd.

Notes:

In canon, we only know the general plot of Pumpkin Hollow. So the specific scenes and characters of the movie here (aside from the Pumpkin Knight) are entirely made up by me and @patchyegg87.

We hope you liked it!

<- Chapter 27

(AshenViper Week 2024 Masterpost)

(Masterlist)

[beer4breakfast19]

Dystopian authoritarian fiction has long served as a mirror reflecting society's fears and anxieties about power, control, and the loss of individuality. Authors like Aldous Huxley and George Orwell are central figures in this genre, crafting narratives that remain profoundly relevant.

The Foundations of Dystopian Fiction The genre gained prominence in the 20th century, with Huxley's Brave New World (1932) and Orwell's 1984 (1949) standing as seminal works. Huxley's vision depicted a society pacified by pleasure, consumerism, and genetic engineering, while Orwell's world was one of surveillance, propaganda, and brutal authoritarianism. Both authors explored themes of dehumanization, the manipulation of truth, and the suppression of dissent.

Other writers have expanded on these themes: - Ray Bradbury: His novel Fahrenheit 451 (1953) critiques censorship and the erosion of intellectual freedom. - Margaret Atwood: The Handmaid's Tale (1985) examines gender oppression in a theocratic dystopia. - Philip K. Dick: Works like Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (1968) delve into questions of identity and reality under authoritarian systems. - Yevgeny Zamyatin: His novel We (1924) is often considered a precursor to Orwell's 1984, exploring a regimented society where individuality is suppressed.

Music and Film Inspired by Dystopian Themes The influence of these authors extends beyond literature into music and film: - Music: Bands like Pink Floyd (The Wall) and Radiohead (OK Computer) have drawn on dystopian themes, exploring alienation and societal control.

- Film: Movies such as Blade Runner (inspired by Philip K. Dick), The Matrix, and V for Vendetta reflect the genre's core concerns. Adaptations of 1984 and The Handmaid's Tale have brought these narratives to new audiences.

Nine Inch Nails and Gary Numan fit well into the realm of dystopian-inspired music. Both artists have explored themes of alienation, societal decay, and technological dystopia in their work. - Nine Inch Nails: Trent Reznor, the creative force behind Nine Inch Nails, has often delved into dark, dystopian themes. Albums like The Downward Spiral and Year Zero reflect a world grappling with control, despair, and the consequences of technological overreach.

Reznor's music combines industrial rock with haunting lyrics, creating soundscapes that resonate with dystopian fiction. - Gary Numan: Known for his pioneering electronic sound, Numan's work often portrays bleak, dystopian landscapes. Albums like Replicas and The Pleasure Principle explore themes of alienation and the dehumanizing effects of technology. His more recent works, such as Intruder, continue to reflect dystopian concerns, including environmental collapse and humanity's disconnection from nature. Both artists have drawn inspiration from dystopian narratives and have, in turn, influenced the genre with their unique musical interpretations. Their work complements the themes found in dystopian literature and film, making them integral to the broader cultural conversation.

Dystopian fiction continues to evolve, resonating with contemporary issues like surveillance, climate change, and technological overreach. Its enduring appeal lies in its ability to challenge us to question authority and envision alternative futures.