#despite the misfortune she’s very nice :)

[nightbigail]

This is a jjk oc (even tho it looks like demon slayer lol)

Her hobbies include: knitting, doing her sister’s hair (that’s if she can get past the crippling guilt of making her blind), crying, staring at gojo pretty people, avoiding her asshole brother, not having out-of-body experiences when she’s unconscious, talking to herself, bottling up her feelings, and baking!

[gloomy0x0phantom]

Nightmare chapter one

ʚ synopsis ɞ You haven't been able to sleep for a while, and Bepo has the solution to your problem. As you develop a friendship with the polar bear, you fail to notice the jealousy of a certain captain.

pairings : Bepo & Fem!Reader / Trafalgar D. Water Law x Fem!Reader

words count : 5.2k

content : fluff, a very tired reader, mention of nightmares.

note : Here's the rewrite of the first chapter of Nigthmare! I hope you like it ♡ I decided to keep the old version up cuz I don't want to lose all the nice comments 😭 A huge thank you to WesNest for being my beta reader!! English is not my first language

Next chapter // Chapter index

In the middle of the ocean, on a small island lost in thick fog, lay the crews of the Straw Hat and Heart Pirates. Once again their paths crossed, much to Trafalgar Law's misfortune and Monkey D. Luffy's delight. Despite having seen each other a few weeks ago, Luffy insisted that this umpteenth encounter should be celebrated with a big feast, a bonfire, and music. The Hearts, equally fond of a good night's drinking, gladly accepted the offer without consulting their captain, who had expressed reservations about the idea. Although Law was hesitant, his crewmates knew he didn't harbor animosity towards the Straw Hats and that he would be unable to resist an evening with them. Why? Well, let's just say they were well aware of their captain's weak spot... a weak spot concealed within the opposing crew.

A cheerful melody of violin fills the night air. Between the beach and the tropical forest, a towering fire illuminates the faces gathered around it. Luffy, Penguin, Shachi, Usopp, Bepo, and Hakugan dance enthusiastically around the flames, waving their arms and reveling in the moment. Even after a hearty meal the guys find the energy to twirl and celebrate. Chopper, his belly full, peacefully dozes in Robin's embrace while she talks with Jean Bart and Jinbe. Brook plays the violin while Franky joins in with an old tune. Nami, Zoro, Uni and Clione are competing to see who can best hold their liquor, with the redhead taking the lead of course. After completing his cooking duties, Sanji approached Ikkaku, expressing that he doesn't have the opportunity to see her often and desires to cherish every moment in her delightful company throughout the evening. Although unimpressed by the blond's flattery, the young woman allowed him to continue to be around her. Leaning against a tree, Law observes the pirates with a bored expression, yet a faint smile betrays his true feelings.  And you? You sit slightly apart from the others, quietly observing the festivities.

The others made efforts to include you in their activities, and you almost succumbed to Usopp's invitation; however, you opted to take it easy instead. Despite your desire to join the dance, you feel too drained to participate. While you find the drinking competition entertaining to watch, your distaste for alcohol prevents you from taking part. Although you enjoy listening to Robin's stories, there's a risk of nodding off while she speaks. Right now, despite your body craving it, sleep is the last thing on your mind.

You're glad to see your friends unwinding and enjoying themselves; everyone needs it. It's a relief that the Sunny has stopped at a deserted island. Since leaving Wano, you've encountered one unpleasant situation after another with pirates who believed they can defeat Luffy. Additionally, you've had to hastily depart from the last three islands as the Navy was covertly lying in wait for you. It feels like the crew's every move is being meticulously tracked. Nami insisted on searching the Sunny in case a camera had been planted on board. Thankfully, nothing was found, but it's clear that every member of the crew is exhausted. Meeting the Hearts provides the much needed distraction to unwind.

You can sense that Law isn't pleased with this coincidence. At least he's smiling. You noticed it when your gaze landed on him. The fire casts such a beautiful glow on his skin. He's dressed in a white tank top that showcases his black tattoos. You're secretly admiring the artwork - well, you think you're being subtle, but you soon realize that Law is watching you. Caught red-handed, you quickly avert your gaze. Despite this, you can still sense his eyes on you, and it's embarrassing.

“Chronicler-san!”

You are surprised when you hear your nickname cheerfully shouted by the Heart navigator. The guys halt their dancing while Brook takes a break to stretch his bones. Bepo, exhausted and needing to catch his breath, settles down next to you. You greet him with a warm smile. The polar bear is someone you appreciate, even though you've never had time to chat for more than a few minutes. It's not as if you've had the opportunity in the past. You're constantly in dangerous situations or caught up in Law and Luffy's plans. Come to think of it, this is probably the first time you've all been together outside of a mission.

"It's a beautiful night!" he says, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. He's breathing hard, which is not surprising given his size, but he still takes the trouble to ask if you're okay between breaths.

"I'm fine, and you? Life with your crew isn't too hard?" you reply in a playful tone.

"I could ask you the same question about yours," he replies, laughing. "I'm fine, a little out of breath."

"A little?" you say, raising your eyebrows and smiling, gently teasing him. You've just witnessed him dancing for a solid thirty minutes. It was quite entertaining. It's a good thing everyone was dressed casually; otherwise, you're sure Bepo would have fainted. He might have even ended up in the fire. There's always something wild happening at parties.

Bepo usually chooses to be by his captain's side, so you get the impression that he hasn't come to see you by chance. You're curious about why he's here, but based on what little you know of him, you can tell he's likely searching for the right words. You choose to keep the conversation going.

"How's your journey been since Wano? I hope you haven't run into too much trouble with the new bounties, unlike us."

"We came across a few annoying cases, but Captain is so strong, he wiped them out in a heartbeat!" Bepo gestures animatedly as he speaks with such admirationI. It's cute. "To avoid drawing any attention, we stayed underwater most of the time. Otherwise, the Marines would have chased us too."

"Oh Bepo!" you gasp, and it's his turn to jump. "Would you trade places with me? I'd do anything to live underwater for a while and vanish from the Marines' radar!"

"I don't think the captain would be happy about losing his navigator!" He chuckles, glancing at Law, who once again looks your way, though you remain unaware.

"Don't worry, I've got a plan," you wink at Bepo and motion for him to lean in. As his ear draws near, you whisper, "I'm going to dress up as a polar bear, and you're going to wear a wig. No one will suspect a thing!"

Bepo straightens up with a laugh. "Do you even have any navigation skills?"

"No, but that's a detail!"

You both laugh at this outlandish idea. Pulling off such a plan would be next to impossible, but the thought of wearing a polar bear suit and casually strolling around the Polar Tang brings a smile to your face. You can imagine the amused reactions of the Heart Pirates, except for Law. As for Luffy, you know he'd be thrilled to have Bepo join your crew simply because he's a mink.

"What brought you out of hiding?" You ask. 

“Hm?”

"Why did you surface and come to this island?"

"Oh! Um... Well... It's kind of my fault. I enjoy being on the Polar Tang, but after a while, I start craving some sun and fresh air. My body can't handle the heat of the submarine. Maybe I complained a bit too much to the captain, and he agreed to stop at the next island, which happened to be this one." The navigator scratches the back of his head, embarrassed.

"I'm sure the others wanted some fresh air too. Just look at them!"

The two of you take a moment to observe the Heart Pirates. All you see are smiling faces, including Hakugan's mask. To you, this scene appears ordinary, but for Bepo, it holds significant meaning. They spent months without their captain, wondering if he would come back alive. And when he did, they had to face two emperors, which could have ended badly. Bepo smiles proudly. Their captain is healthy, and everyone is safe. They emerged victorious.

"I was so relieved when I saw the Polar Tang in the distance." you murmur as you continue to look at the others.

"Really?" asks Bepo, curious to know the reason.

"Yeah... I'm tired of all the fighting. We haven't had a break in ages. When I saw the submarine, my body just relaxed. I know you won't harm us. I feel safe with you guys." You glance at Bepo with a wide smile and flushed cheeks. Suddenly, you realize the magnitude of your words. "B-But I know we're not... I mean, we're enemies."

“Right, enemies…”

As if you shared the same brain, your attention shift to Law and then Luffy. Finally, you meet each other's eyes and hold back a laugh. Yeah, enemies. Luffy can't consider Law a real enemy, not after all they've been through. And honestly, you'd like the alliance to be renewed, someday. It may never reach the same level as when Law lived aboard the Thousand Sunny, but having him as an ally is comforting.

"I'm glad you feel this way with us. I feel safe with you too!"

You're taken aback by his declaration, and even more so by the wide grin Bepo offers in return. You don't doubt his sincerity. Your heart races, and your cheeks ache from smiling so much. Then, you hear a small voice in the back of your head saying, "He shouldn't."

You look at the fire, and gradually your smile loses its brightness. Returning to the boat would be a wise choice. The conversation is enjoyable, but you shouldn't continue. You're enemies, despite everyone getting along well. It's only a matter of time before Law betrays Luffy again.

Bepo noticed the sudden shift. “Alright, now would be a good time to intervene,” he thought. But how? It's not for nothing that he decided to approach you. While he was dancing, he noticed that his captain was watching you intently. The subtle frown of his eyebrows meant he saw something wrong with you. And it must have been very important, given the tension in his shoulders and his clenched jaw. As his second mate, it was his duty to find out what was wrong with you, for the sake of his captain's sanity! 

Now that he's close to you, he sees what his captain noticed.

"Are you sure everything's alright? Your dark circles are starting to look like the Captain's, and that's never a good sign," Bepo jokes, trying to lighten the mood with his question.

"It's a bit unsettling, isn't it?" you ask, with a dry laugh. "I don't sleep very well."

"B-because of the attacks?"

You hesitate for a moment. "Partly."

Bepo senses there's something more, but he's uncertain how to encourage you to open up without crossing any lines. Yes, he's eager to assist his captain, but... Bepo genuinely wants to help you. He's always held a fondness for you. He recalls your initial interaction: you were kind and appreciative. His mink instincts don't fool him; he's adept at sensing energies that humans might overlook.

"Captain could prescribe you some sleeping pills," he suggested in a hushed tone.

"I don't want to sleep," you confessed darkly.

Instantly, Bepo understands.

"Nightmares."

You nod in agreement. Bepo has known Law since childhood, and living with someone who suffers from chronic nightmares alters one's perception of sleep. For Law, sleep isn't refreshing. Bepo has seen him push himself to stay awake to the brink, and it's not a pleasant sight. So when you mention that you're reluctant to sleep because of nightmares, the navigator believes he can understand the root of the issue. However, he doesn't plan to pry further with any probing questions.

"As a doctor's assistant, I feel obliged to list all the reasons why sleep is important, but I suppose you already know them all."

You tilt your head slightly and regard him with curiosity. "You help Law during surgery? I had no clue! How long have you been studying medicine?"

"Oh, well, everyone in the crew knows how to assist the captain during surgery! It's crucial knowledge that enables us to handle situations both on and off the submarine. I've been learning for - You've changed the subject."

You look down, embarrassed.

“I did. Sorry…”

"N-no! I'm the one who's sorry!" Bepo attempts to reassure you, his tone gentle. He doesn't want you to think he's mad at you.

"Please, don't be. I'm the one who tried to fool you."

Bepo sighs, concern etched across his features as he observes you. He notices your trembling hands, the dark circles under your eyes... You don't resemble the vibrant young woman he met at Sabaody. Reflecting on it, even during your time in Wano, you seemed burdened by stress, much like everyone else.

"How many hours have you been awake...?"

"About... 60 hours, I think. Actually no, that's not true. I sleep 5 to 15 minutes every few hours, it's never a deep sleep. I wake up as soon as I hear a noise. The adrenaline rush from the fights keeps me going, pushing myself beyond my limits. But I feel strange. My heart feels like it's pounding everywhere, I can't focus on writing, food's lost its appeal, Sanji has saved my ass a few times during fights because I'm not paying full attention, sometimes my vision gets blurry and I see things in the corner of my vision. But otherwise I feel fine."

In one breath, you spill out your words, leaving Bepo staring at you with wide eyes, clearly shocked by your extreme lifestyle. He shouldn't be so surprised; enduring 60 hours without sleep is far from healthy, but for you, it seems, this is just another day in the life.

"Have you discussed it with the others...?"

"They're aware of my nightmares; that's nothing new. But I haven't brought up my current issue. It'd be foolish for Monkey D. Luffy to have a crewmate who can't sleep due to stupid nightmares... I don't want to embarrass him."

"Nightmares are not something to be taken lightly, especially the ones that are-" Bepo stops abruptly, his expression twisting into a grimace. "Uh.. Don't feel ashamed. Capt-," he halts once more, grunting in frustration. His lips clamp shut as he bites down on them, then he resumes, "I know someone incredibly strong and respected who dealt with nightmares. They'll never be seen as weak or a disgrace in my eyes. They're truly remarkable, destined to become the king of—" Bepo abruptly cuts himself off, covering his mouth with his hand. He's let slip more than intended.

The navigator's reaction is cute. It's clear he's referring to Law. You appreciate what he's trying to say. You understand why the Heart Pirates hold the polar bear in such high regard; he truly has a talent for making people feel at ease with his attentive listening and open-mindedness. You can't help but wonder if he also serves as a psychologist on board the submarine; it wouldn't be surprising.

Slowly, you lower your head, resting your elbows on your knees and concealing your face behind your hands, assuming a vulnerable posture. With your back bent and your shoulders trembling, it's a sight that catches Bepo off guard. Panic grips him, and he quickly scans the surroundings, ensuring that no Straw Hat crew member is watching. You're... You're crying. And he's the one to blame! He feels a pang of guilt wash over him. He's replaying what he said to you, he doesn't know what could have provoked such a reaction! He wouldn't dare hurt you on purpose!

Bepo's hands fidget nervously as he mutters a string of "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" His entire focus is on you, but he can sense his captain's frustration looming in the background, only adding to his anxiety. If you were part of his crew, he'd instinctively reach out to hug you, offering comfort and reassurance. But you're not part of his team, and he hesitates, unsure if such a gesture would be appropriate. After all, he doesn't know you well enough to gauge your comfort level with physical contact.

“Can I... hold her? Give her a hug?” Bepo's thoughts race frantically as he considers the consequences. “I've seen her snap a man's neck with one kick—I don't want to die!” But the fear of the Straw Hat discovering her tears fills him with dread. “If they see her crying, they'll know I'm the cause... they'll kill me!” He shudders at the thought of facing the wrath of the redhead. “I don't want to provoke her wrath, she's terrifying!” Panic grips him as he wrestles with his dilemma. “Oh no, what am I doing? WHAT AM I DOING??? I'M SO SORRY!”

Behind your hands, a sound that doesn't resemble crying catches Bepo's attention, halting his panic. He tilts his head, intrigued, and whispers your name. Swiftly, you unveil your face to reveal a broad smile, tears glistening in the corners of your eyes. You don't look sad, on the contrary, you're laughing! Relief floods through the navigator as he releases a breath he didn't realize he was holding. For a moment, Bepo had feared the worst—walking the plank and sparking a conflict between Law and Luffy. But now, seeing your smile, he knows everything's alright.

You wipe away your tears of laughter and jest, "What kind of spell have you cast on me, Bepo? I never allow myself to broach this subject with my friends, yet here I am, spilling my heart out to you without a second thought!"

From the look on his face, you realize you've startled him. You let out a soft giggle and gently pat his back. Predictably, Bepo hangs his head and apologizes. Wanting to reassure him, you decide to do what comes naturally to you: offer a hug. You're not sure if he enjoys being cuddled, but he seems like the type who appreciates a good hug. After all, you've witnessed him embrace several members of his crew before.

Since the navigator towers over you by several heads, you have to stand up to reach his neck. Bepo quickly catches on to what you're trying to do and bends over slightly to make it easier for you, allowing you to control the strength of the embrace. As your arms encircle his neck and your face brushes against his fur, you freeze.

"B-Bepo..." you whisper.

The mink senses the tension in your body and quickly pulls away, fearing he's made you uncomfortable. But as he looks at you, he sees anything but discomfort in your expression. You stare at him as if he were your soulmate, as if he were an oasis in the desert, as if he were the most delicious treat in the world!

"Bepo!" you shout, disregarding the volume of your voice entirely. "You're... you're... so..."

"Y-yes?"

"You're so... FLUFFY!!!"

Once again, Bepo relaxes. "Thank you! We polar bear minks are known for having very soft fur," he responds, his tone tinged with pride as he puffs out his chest.

His pride comes to an abrupt halt when he hears you say, "Give me your fur!"

"Huh?! No way!"

You burst out laughing at his reaction.

"You can touch me, if you like. But you can't have my fur!"

"Really?" you say, hopeful.

Bepo nods eagerly, a wide smile spreading across his face, showcasing his beautiful, sharp teeth. Seeing his joy, you can't help but smile too. Driven by a sudden warmth in your chest, you decide to climb onto the polar bear and settle in his lap. It's impossible to wrap your legs around his waist, his stature is impressive, but that doesn't stop you from trying. You can't stop giggling like a child. Your fingers trace down Bepo's arms to his shoulders, and you even muster the courage to touch his round cheeks. It strikes you as surprising that this is the first time you've thought of cuddling him, and you find yourself wishing you'd done it sooner!

Struggling to remain composed, you fight the urge to cling to the navigator and squeeze him like a cuddly stuffed toy. It's not the first time you've had such an impulse. In the past, you nearly suffocated Chopper in your embrace when he donned a cow costume; and poor Karoo fell victim to your accidental feather-plucking. You've always been wary of approaching small animals (and even larger ones) for fear of inadvertently harming them with your overwhelming cute aggression.

You don't want to hurt Bepo, but you want him to know how much his fluffiness messes with your brain. 

"You're so cute and soft! I want to bite you!"

Bepo flinches and lets out a little cry of fear. "Please don't!"

You squeeze him with all your strength and rub your face on his furry chest, releasing a high-pitched squeal of delight. Your statement catches him off guard; while he's accustomed to receiving compliments on his fur, being told that someone wants to bite him for it is a first. Unsure of how to respond verbally, Bepo reacts instinctively, wrapping his arms around you and rubbing his head against yours. The two of you share smiles and giggles, caught up in the moment. He couldn't be more adorable!

You let out another cry of joy, causing heads to turn in your direction. The music abruptly stops, and you feel a pang of regret for disturbing everyone. You hadn't realized you were being so noisy.

Suddenly, rubbery arms wrap around you and Bepo, pulling you both into an even tighter embrace. Luffy's body collides with yours, almost knocking the breath out of you. Like a true monkey, the young man clings to you, laughing gleefully in your ear.

"Oi bear, you are fluffy shishishi!"

As you catch your breath, Penguin, Shachi, Hakugan, Franky, and Brook all join the hug. You're completely crushed under the weight of all the men—and the skeleton—but you don't mind. It's a shower of love that you happily accept!

"Yohoho, your fur is so soft! Oh, but I can't feel it, I have no skin yohohoho!" exclaims Brook. 

You roll your eyes, a gesture Brook can't mimic, at his classic skeleton joke. 

"Bepo is the fluffiest!" declares Penguin.

"Yeah, he's the best mink!" adds Shachi.

The boys return to dancing and singing, leaving you alone with Bepo. His face is flushed with embarrassment, but there's also a hint of happiness in his expression knowing he caused this adorable moment. You're the last one to remain in his arms, cherishing the warmth of the embrace.

You release a long, contented sigh and allow your eyes to drift shut. Gradually, your body begins to relax. You immerse yourself in the sounds around you—the crackling of the fire, Bepo's steady heartbeat, Brook's music, the chatter of voices—and find the atmosphere to be perfect. Feeling a protective hand resting on your back, you take it as confirmation that Bepo doesn't mind your presence on his lap. Whatever worries you had earlier, they slip away from your mind. Normally, you'd muster the strength to snap yourself out of such a relaxed state, perhaps with a sharp slap to the cheeks, but right now, you find yourself unable to resist the pull of fatigue.

Before long, you fall asleep. It feels like being cradled by a giant teddy bear, shielded from the demons of the night. Bepo becomes your protector, kicking away any bad memories and nightmares, ensuring you're safe and sound in his arms. Almost unable to believe it, Bepo watches you sleep, feeling a sense of happiness wash over him. 60 hours awake... If you had continued, you could have slipped into psychosis.

A little further away from the duo, Law sits with his arms crossed and jaw clenched. He attempts to focus on the fire, seeking distraction, but his gaze inevitably returns to you. Your face is nestled against Bepo's chest, mouth slightly parted, hands grasping the bear's fur. A stray lock of your hair appears to tickle your nose; he has the urge to step forward and gently tuck it behind your ear, but refrains. Instead, the captain remains seated against a tree, determined not to retreat back to the submarine.

Of course, Bepo would notice your fatigue; it was obvious. It was the first thing Law noticed when you walked onto the beach.

You stepped off the Thousand Sunny with a radiant smile. You were looking at your feet, a habit he noticed, to avoid falling or running into someone else. Ikkaku took you in her arms, the lucky girl. That's when he saw it. Right there. Your hands, resting on the young woman's back, trembled ever so slightly. Were you that eager to see his crew? No, it couldn't be; when you're excited you tend to hop to your feet, and would have thrown yourself at Ikkaku to cuddle her. His suspicions were confirmed as you stepped back to chat with the brunette—your eyes were heavily bagged. So you were tired. When you're working on the logbook or writing a story, sometimes you get so immersed in your work, you end up pulling an all-nighter. Maybe you've been working a lot the last few days? While plausible, he couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to it.

Law recalls something peculiar about your behavior earlier in the day. You frequently glanced behind you in a manner that appeared paranoid. Moreover, you seemed more on edge, visibly flinching when Clione tapped you on the shoulder and even when Sanji placed a glass down in front of you at dinner. Nami's earlier conversation with Shachi may shed some light on this.

"People are insane for wanting to test Luffy's power! Ever since his new, stupid poster came out, wannabe pirates have been constantly coming at us! One group even had the audacity to attack us during the night! Zoro was pissed. We thought we could rest on the next island, but nope! The Marine was waiting for us. Sanji didn't even have time to buy food; the boys had to fish every day! I'm sick of eating fish! The Marines pulled the same stunt two other times, but at least on the last island we had enough time to roam around for a few hours and stock up. I decided to change course completely, and that's how we ended up here. So if you attack us, I swear, I'll electrocute you all."

Your nervousness could be attributed to the constant presence of enemies. Yeah, that's likely it. Tonight no one's going to attack you—Law's going to ensure that.

In the ongoing competition, Nami and Zoro are the final contenders. The swordsman eyes the opportunity to pocket some money, and he's adamant about seizing it. Though he's never emerged victorious before, tonight might just be his chance. Meanwhile, Nami has no plans of letting him walk away with the prize without a challenge, but she enjoys seeing him give it his all until he eventually succumbs to sleep.

But, Nami suddenly stops drinking, leaving a glass half-full.

"What? Now you're going to give up? I knew you were going to lose," says Clione, clearly intoxicated.

The redhead doesn't seem to hear; she's bewildered by what she sees across the fire. Has she indulged in too much alcohol, leading to hallucinations, or is it actually you sleeping? Doubtful of her own condition to discern reality, she slaps Zoro's shoulder and gestures towards you. Gradually, the swordsman follows her gesture and frowns in confusion.

"Am I crazy or...?"

"You are crazy, but it's real," replies Zoro. He waves his arm to get his captain's attention. "Oi, Luffy."

The young man tilts his head to the side and stops playing with the guys. He follows the navigator's finger and a huge grin spreads across his face when he sees you sleeping in Bepo's arms. Finally!

"The party's over."

Brook and Franky immediately stop playing music, leaving only the sounds of the fire and nature. The Hearts are visibly intrigued by this drastic change of mood. When Luffy says the party's over, something's wrong.

"What's going on?" Ikkaku asks, a worried look on her face.

Robin stands up while keeping the little reindeer in her arms, gently stroking his head.

"The recent events have affected the sleep of the whole crew, but (y/n) is the one suffering the most. We've tried to help her by giving her chamomile tea and exhausting her with training, but it's not working. Bepo, would you be willing to spend the night with her?"

All eyes are on Bepo, who must deliver an answer quickly. He's feeling the pressure of the Straw Hats. Disappointing them is the least of his concerns; the navigator considers that he owes them nothing. The alliance has dissolved in Wano, and there's nothing compelling him to comply with Nico Robin's request, but... The thing, or rather the person, that makes him hesitate is just a few meters away. Bepo doesn't dare turn to his captain, as it might raise doubts, but he can sense a negative energy emanating from his direction.

"Are you sure this is a good idea? Uh... S-she might wake up if I move."

"No problem; you just have to stay in this exact spot and not move a muscle," Nami replies, her arms crossed and a tone of finality in her voice, indicating she's not open to negotiation.

"Okay... B-but she might get sick if we stay outside!"

"Don't worry bro, I'll go get some blankets, no one will get sick." adds Franky with a thumbs-up.

Bepo lowers his gaze to your sleeping face. You look really comfortable... And with everything you've told him, it would be a shame to wake you up.

"Bepo, you have the right to refuse," Robin finally says, sounding sincere.

Did he truly have a choice? Because right now, he feels like murder will be committed if he refuses. Bepo doesn't mind sharing a sleeping space with you; you're not heavy, you smell good and he trusts you. Law is the problem. Bepo isn't the only one harboring this thought; Penguin and Shachi are visibly nervous as well.

"Bepo will stay with her," Law declares before anyone else can continue the conversation, thus putting an end to the negotiation.

"C-captain?" asks Bepo, uncertain and surprised.

"But only for tonight. My navigator is not at your beck and call," Law adds firmly.

"Of course, Torao." agrees Robin with a mysterious smile. "Franky."

"Yes! I'll be right back with the blankets, I'll be suuuuuuuuper quick!"

"SHH! You'll wake her up if you scream!" Sanji warns.

"Sorry! I'll be suuuuper fast!" murmurs Franky without losing his excitement.

"You're the one who's loud, shitty cook."

"What did you say mosshead!?"

"SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU!"

"Sorry Nami-san!"

The pirates walk away, their voices ranging from hushed murmurs to boisterous chatter. The Straw Hats aren't good at going unnoticed - they never have been. In contrast, the Heart Pirates are accustomed to lurking in the shadows, making silence second nature to them. Most of them bid Bepo a good night, but Shachi and Penguin restrain themselves from voicing the myriad thoughts swirling in their minds. They know that uttering those thoughts could provoke their captain's wrath. They certainly don't want to risk being swapped for the night or, worse, dismembered. So, they remain silent, merely waving their hands in farewell.

And Law? He uses his power to return to the Polar Tang, without uttering a word.

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[daycourtofficial]

Hickeys and The Marks We Leave

Summary: You and Cassian have been sneaking around for a year now, keeping your relationship hidden. You’re tired of hiding, but Cassian doesn’t want to tell everyone yet, so when his brothers accidentally see some hickeys you left on him, you want to tell everyone, but he doesn’t.

Author’s note: this is heavily inspired by Hickeys by @lalacliffthorne so I highly suggest reading that as well!!

Cassian didn’t think anything of the delightful morning sex the two of you had before he had to go to training. Despite keeping your relationship a secret, it was really easy to find ways into each other’s rooms throughout the day and night. A rigorous training schedule was one of the reasons you two slept in Cassian’s bed every night - you could slip out easily while him and Azriel were at training.

Cassian had, to his misfortune, cleaned the scent of you off of him, as he did every morning the two of you had sex before his training. He wasn’t ready to tell his brothers he was seeing someone, especially not that it was you. His brothers adored you, Mor and Feyre adored you, even Amren was somewhat fond of you.

The problem is once he tells them, it becomes very real. And once it becomes very real, he could mess it all up. Cassian was in love with you, no doubt about it, and you were in love with him. But Cassian was always afraid, waiting for the other shoe to drop, waiting for something to go wrong.

His thoughts whirled and swirled, consumed by you, which is how Gwyn’s voice catches him by surprise as she shrieks, “Cassian is that a hickey?”

Cassian stops stretching, looking down at his bare torso, finding a trail of hickeys down his chest that extend into his pants. He looks back up to see all of the valkyries and Azriel looking at him.

He thinks quickly, “I fell coming up here.”

They’ll buy that, right?

“This one has teeth marks,” Azriel says, pointing to one close to his belly button. He swats his brothers hand away, “besides you have no marks anywhere else, unless you want to drop your pants to prove they don’t go further down.”

Cassian was going to murder his brother in front of these priestesses, he just knew it.

Fuck, he thinks, Azriel never lets any information go. If he suspects anything serious, he’ll follow Cassian around for months, years even to figure it out.

Damn you and your beautiful mouth.

“Fine, I saw someone last night, happy?”

Azriel keeps his stare on Cassian’s face, “then they would have healed by now, or at least be more healed. These are fresh bruises, probably an hour or two old.”

“Okay, fine, I stayed with someone last night and we had sex again this morning. Now, let’s get back to work.”

Azriel let it go, but Cassian could see in his eyes all the lingering questions he has.

-

Cassian returns to his room in desperate need of a shower, only to find you still in bed asleep. He sits on the bed next to you, and kisses you nice and slow, waking you.

“Mm, morning Cass,” you drawl sleepily.

“Ah, good morning my little vixen. While you were sleeping here all nice and peacefully, I was getting grilled by my nosy brother for the beautiful trail of hickeys you left down my chest.”

You freeze, not realizing you were going to leave a mark on him. “I’m sorry Cass, really I am. But maybe this is an opportunity to tell them about us?”

He huffs, “we’ve talked about this, no. I’m not ready to tell them.” He gets up off the bed, heading towards the bathroom.

“Oh so it’s just ‘no’ and that’s it? I don’t get a say?” You reply, sitting up straighter in the bed.

“Not when it comes to my brothers you don’t.” He starts angrily looking around the room for fresh clothes.

“Your brothers? They’re also my friends? Anyway so what? We’ll never tell them?”

“We’ll tell them. Eventually.”

“Eventually? Cassian it’s been a year. What are you waiting for?”

“To feel ready,” he replies, wanting this argument to be over.

“What if you never feel ready to tell them?”

“Then they won’t know.”

“Cassian I’m starting to think the reason you won’t tell them is because you’re ashamed of me.”

Cassian doesn’t respond, standing stock still in the doorway to the bathroom, seemling confirming your deepest fear. This secret relationship was fun, yes, but you were always afraid he was either ashamed of you or that he didn’t see a future worth telling his brothers about.

“Well then, I guess there’s nothing for Azriel to find out then. If you’re so ashamed of me, you’ll be glad to be rid of me.” You reply curtly, storming out of his room, not letting him get another word in.

-

You’d been avoiding Cassian for three days since your fight. He hated what he said and what he didn’t say as soon as you had left, but he wanted to give you space to cool off so you could talk like reasonable adults. Except you’ve decided to not be a reasonable adult by avoiding him at all costs.

If it didn’t piss him off so much he’d be incredibly impressed. His family has still seen you, you haven’t completely dropped off the face of the planet. But you haven’t been in the same room as Cassian since your fight. He’s hardly caught your scent, but he knows you’re around.

“What’s wrong Cassian?” Rhys asks, Cassian’s distress the past few days impossible for him to hide or cover up.

Cassian sighs, rubbing his hand over his face. “I think (y/n)’s avoiding me, I haven��t seen her in days.”

Rhys has a ghost of a smirk cross his face before it turns into concern. “And why do you think she’s avoiding you?”

“We got into a fight and I said some things I shouldn’t have and I haven’t seen her since.”

“And when was the fight?” Rhys asks.

“Three days ago,” Cassian responds.

“So the same day we teased you over your hickeys at training.”

Despite having known Azriel for hundreds of years, he has always been able to sneak up on Cassian.

Cassian turns to the shadowsinger, grinding his teeth, “it might have been the same day.”

“Curious,” Azriel says, not even looking at Cassian. Cassian knows Azriel’s figured it out, he has the look on his face he gets during interrogations when he’s waiting for his prey to tell him what he’s already figured out.

The three of them stand in silence while Cassian weighs his options.

“Okay fine, we’ve been together for a year now and she was tired of hiding it and wanted us to be public about our relationship but I kept telling her I wasn’t ready. The hickeys were an accident, but I blew up on her over it and she might have insinuated I was hiding our relationship because I was ashamed of her. I didn’t deny it and she ran out before I could say anything.”

Cassian puts his head in his hands, trying to bury the shame he feels for how he handled things.

“A whole year?” Rhys asks.

“Yeah, things started happening around solstice last year.”

“I didn’t realize you guys had been sneaking around that long,” Azriel states.

Cassian snaps his head up at his brother, “you knew?”

“Of course we knew,” Rhys responds, “she hasn’t slept in her room in months. The maids complained to me that she doesn’t have to make her bed every morning. And I know she hates no task more than making a bed.

So I figured she was seeing someone and sneaking back in. I had Azriel figure it out. His shadows caught you two taking a bath together.”

“Well,” Cassian sighs, “there are much worse things they could have caught us doing.”

Cassian’s laugh dies as Azriel turns to him and asks, “Are you ashamed of her?”

The look on Azriel’s face reminds Cassian that while Azriel was his brother, he was also incredibly fond of you. Both his brothers were, they both loved you dearly, but Azriel especially.

“No, I’m not. I’m an idiot because as soon as she said it I couldn’t believe it! Me? Ashamed of her? She’s the best thing in my life, how could I be ashamed of her?”

Azriel backs down a little, his temper satiated by Cassian’s admission. “Then why keep it hidden?”

“Because if I told you two, it would become real. And I could fuck it up if it’s real. If it’s hidden, it’s our secret. It’s fun. But telling all of you makes it real. And when it’s real, the stakes are higher.

“I’ve had my heart broken before, I’ve survived it. But I couldn’t survive if we became real and it ended.”

Cassian’s silence hung in the air until he felt Rhys’s arms pull him into a hug.

“But what if it doesn’t end, brother?” Rhys loosens his hold on Cassian as Azriel chimes in.

“Whether or not you tell us, it was clearly real. And you really hurt her. Fix it,” he says, before walking out of the room.

Cassian and Rhys watch him walk out, confusion coating Cassian’s face.

“Ah, he’ll come around. He’s just upset he didn’t figure it out without my prodding. And the fact he views her like a little sister.

“No doubt he’ll kick your ass in training tomorrow, especially if you don’t fix things.”

-

That night, after you skipped family dinner, Cassian decided to go straight to your room. You answered the door, wearing one of his shirts, clearly upset.

“Hi,” you squeak, knowing he’d come around eventually to come talk to you, maybe even take his shirts you had stolen back.

“Can I come in?” He asks, a look of sadness on his face. You open the door, allowing him entry and he closes it softly behind him.

“I’m sorry,” he tells you, having to get the words he had rehearsed out as quickly as possible, afraid you’d shut him out again. “I’m not ashamed of you. I was terrified if I told anyone it meant this would become real and I could mess it up, but I messed it up anyway.”

You open your mouth to respond, but Cassian cuts you off. “I love you, and Rhys and Azriel know, which means Feyre probably knows, which means everyone likely knows. I don’t care who knows anymore if it means I can have you. If you’ll have me back.”

The past few days of ignoring Cassian were torture. You were in love with him, but he was also your best friend. Being mad at him felt awful, but feeling like he was ashamed of you was worse.

His confession makes you soften, reaching your hand out to his. “So you’re not ashamed of me?”

He clasps your hand in his, rubbing his thumb across the back of it. “Absolutely not. I didn’t respond because it took me off guard,” he looks into your eyes, reaching up to cup your face, “I could never be ashamed of you. I’m sorry you thought I was. I just couldn’t believe you would think that.

“I’ll shout from every rooftop in Velaris that I’m in love with you if you’ll have me.”

His gaze was piercing, an intensity you’ve hardly seen from him. You smile at him, reaching to touch his cheek, “can I pick the first rooftop?”

Cassian snorts, “what do you say? Will you let me grovel for you to take me back?”

You smile, pressing against him, “I’ll allow it.”

[dqrciedaily]

one bed, abj

a/n: been in a bit of a aggie kick recently! promise for more people soon x

-

aggie couldn't believe her luck or misfortune, depending on how she looked at it. first ever senior lioness camp and she had to share a room with you, y/n y/l/n. sounded like a recipe for disaster to her.

she’d barely spoken to you before and now she was stuck sharing not only a hotel room but a bed with you as well. the idea of sharing such an intimate space with someone she didn’t know very well and isn’t particularly close to made her uncomfortable.

but as the night sky settled in, aggies mind raced with apprehension as she lingered in the bathroom. she wasn't sure how this sleeping arrangement would play out.

but after ten minutes of painfully awkwardly hiding in the bathroom, when she saw you peacefully asleep, she didn’t mind as much.

once the blonde got into the double bed, your faces were inches apart, and aggie couldn't help but marvel at how effortlessly pretty you looked even while you were sleeping.

as the night went on and in a state between slumber and awake aggie begrudgingly allowed you to snuggle up to her, feeling the warmth of your bodies melding together.

she tried to convince herself it was for practicality's sake, it was a cold night out and everyone knows body heat is much warmer than a few blankets! and to conserve space on the narrow bed. but deep down she found herself secretly enjoying the closeness.

in the quiet of the room aggie listened to the steady rhythm of your breathing, feeling a sense of peace wash over her. despite your surface level connection, there was something comforting about your proximity.

but eventually, aggie's curiosity got the better of her. "y/n," she whispered, barely louder than a whisper. "are you awake?"

you stirred slightly, blinking sleepily before looking up to face aggie. "yeah, what's wrong?" your voice was soft and laced with drowsiness.

"it’s stupid really, i just couldn’t fall asleep," the blonde admitted, feeling a twinge of vulnerability. "i’m just not used to sharing a bed."

you laughed softly before answering. "yeah, it can be weird at first. but don't worry, i promise not to hog the blankets to myself! and besides, it's kind of nice having someone to lie on."

the two of you fell into a comfortable silence, the weight of the conversation hanging in the air. and as you lay there, side by side. in fact, it might just be the start of something new, both on and off the field. as the night wore on, aggie drifted into a peaceful sleep, your bodies entwined, differences fading into the background. perhaps sharing a bed wasn't such a bad thing after all.

[qiangweirosa]

Could we please get some headcanons about the Ann, Makoto, Futaba, and Haru meeting s/o's super nice and welcoming mother and father for the first time? Like they make the girls a delicious home cooked meal, treat her like their own daughter and are super supportive of the twos relationship? Because these poor girls need some positive family interactions.

Ann + Makoto + Futaba + Haru meeting Reader's parents! (separate)

relationships: ann/reader, makoto/reader, futaba/reader, haru/reader, + the girls & reader's parents tws: none! wc: 641 extra: i am so. so sorry for how long this has taken me to write. i hope it'll be to your liking and thank you for the request!

Ann : 

Ann obviously knows that her relationship with her partner is serious, but when they tell her that their parents wish to meet her, she freaks out.

She has no idea what she’s supposed to do! She calls Shiho and begs her for advice, not wanting to ruin her first impression.

She also asks her partner an endless amount of questions about their parents, what they’re like, what they want their child’s potential partner to be like, and more.

When she does meet them she’s a little reserved at first, trying to be polite and make a good impression, but soon enough she turns back to her usual self the moment their parents start trying to converse with her.

She gets along with them so well. She’s always willing to eat their parents’ food and compliments it so much that she ends up going home with the leftovers. Overall she’s good company and their parents love talking with Ann as much as she does.

It won’t be unusual to see Ann spend time with her partner’s parents on her own, or randomly visit. After all, she’s always welcome.

Makoto : 

Makoto wants everything to be perfect.

When her partner’s parents first invite her over, she does an endless amount of research on the proper etiquette and how to behave and how she should look and even more.

When the day comes, she’s very stiff. Her partner can obviously tell something isn’t right – and they talk to her for a while to reassure her. 

It does somewhat work, and she’s slightly less stressed as she greets their parents.

Chances are their parents can also tell Makoto is stressed, and so they keep telling her to just relax, and that this isn’t a serious setting – she can just be herself.

Makoto isn’t used to being so pampered, and she’s pretty flustered over it. Still, she likes it! And having a happy family environment really isn’t so bad.

Futaba : 

Futaba already doesn’t like meeting new people, but meeting her partner’s parents?! That’s a terrifying situation!!

She has half a mind to cancel but no!! This is important to both of them, and besides, her partner will be there if anything goes wrong.

Her partner has probably already told their parents about how Futaba is, asking them to be patient with her. So when she first greets them, they don’t make any comment on her anxiety or the way she hides behind her partner.

They treat her so nicely, Futaba feels like she could cry. They’re sweet and let her take her time if she has trouble finding the courage to speak.

She can definitely see where her partner gets all of their care from.

Futaba gradually grows more comfortable around their parents and she enjoys getting to learn more about her partner’s upbringing (especially the embarrassing parts, to their misfortune).

Haru : 

Haru has experience meeting a partner’s family, if you could even call it that, having been engaged before.

But for some reason, she still feels nervous leading up to it.

Her current partner is someone she cares deeply for, and she wants to make a good impression! Despite how many times they reassure her, she can’t help but worry about their parents’ opinion on her.

Her worries immediately dissipate the moment she actually meets them. They do everything in their power to make her comfortable, and treat her like they had known her for years.

Haru feels… happy. Relaxed. She soon gets into joyful conversations with them (most of them about their partner, actually), and she seems at ease.

Haru soon grows to be pretty close with their parents. She visits them often and they have a lot to bond over (especially if the parents enjoy cooking too!). Overall, she’s glad to be part of the family, and especially to not be alone anymore.

[p0rkbun]

APACHE TEARS┊❝Happy Birthday.❞ Chapter 01

─ Sam Carpenter x OC

Synopsis: Alexis forgets her birthday, but she didn't forget to visit her childhood best friend.

Content warnings: bad writing, slow burn, mention of being chased by a dog, original characters, not proofread, other than that there's nothing too serious.

Word count: 3.4k

Before Alexis left Woodsboro, she lived her childhood in the town that was known for its murders in the 90s. Something like that—you don’t expect to live an ordinary life, would you?

A very slim chance you would have a life with no mishaps in a town like that. Even though it has been eleven years since the last murders happened, some crimes occur every now and then. People doing drugs, accidents, assaults, attempted murder, and more. Despite these occurrences, Alexis had gone on with her life, trying to avoid anything that might make her life miserable, and she did. She was smart enough to avoid anything suspicious, including not answering calls from strangers, not going out late at night, having protection, and knowing when someone is planning to mug you.

It was common sense; even a half-brain would know this!

But Alexis wasn’t lucky. Her efforts were all in vain, because not even intuition could stop any misfortune sent to her. Not only did she never felt safe, but she never had any expectations for her own solace.

One day, she caught a blue butterfly around the playground when she was a young girl. The insect had beautiful blue wings—not something you’d see every day—along with its rapid wings that Alexis almost failed to keep up with. The young girl stared at the insect with interest and fascination, wanting to take it home. She didn't, since she knew keeping a butterfly would not last, so she released the creature.

It wasn’t long until a stray and horrifying dog plunged its canine teeth onto the butterfly, ripping its small wings in an instant. The wrecked beauty was nowhere to be seen, already evaporated and chewed by the rabid animal.

Alexis only stared in shock before she took off, frantically fleeing from the dog chasing the poor girl.

Before she knew it, the memories of her first sight of horror were nothing but a faint memory that left her story of how she has cynophobia. Thinking about it now, she thought about how easily a dog can rip a small creature to shreds, thus scaring another one. It was the same thing with humans.

You can easily take someone’s life; for what cause? For your own survival? Pleasure? Revenge? A relief for your buried anger erupting within yourself?

No matter the reasons, the act of killing someone was immoral and will always be something that’s kept with you until the day you breathe your last breath. Even after death.

Years went by in the blink of an eye. Alexis was no longer a little girl but a drowsy looking freshman in college in Modesto, California. She felt like going back to her dorm to sleep, feeling regret seeping in after she accepted the offer from a friend to hang out.

“Aw you already cut your hair? Lame, I already miss your long hair." The charming-looking boy gives Alexis a teasing grin. “You told me to do something new for myself, didn’t you?” Alexis replies with a sigh to Jesse.

Jesse was the first person she met when she moved to Modesto for her college, he was smiley and handsome-looking, and he knew how to dress neatly even for casual hangouts. Coincidentally, the boy was assigned as her roommate. If you met him, he’d be someone with a bit of an obnoxious exterior, but he’s not a bad guy. He’s pretty considerate, Alexis honestly had thoughts of him liking her because of how abnormally nice he is, the other part is him possibly being an asshole underneath that grin. Not the case; however, he's just... slow sometimes.

“Yeah but I didn’t know you were gonna cut your hair!” He exclaimed, “Dude, everybody was literally telling you how long and pretty your hair looked, they’re gonna be devastated if they see you now.” Alexis glances at Jesse “I’m sure it’s not that serious. It’s a matter of time anyway. I don’t know why I kept my hair that long, I feel so much light now.” 

“Really? Did having long hair feel heavy?” Jesse asks with genuine curiosity.

“Of course it does,” Alexis said, her face contorted with irritation. “Could you leave the questions later? Where are we even going?” Jesse lets out a sheepish chuckle at the girl’s response.

“Okay, alright! C’mon grumps” He held Alexis’ sleeve and led her to wherever their destination was.

She didn’t pay attention to where Jesse led her; in an instant, they were at a small shop. The sign was detailed in black, and the exterior was full white. They both stepped in and met with the sight of accessories and items. All of them are for school, studying, or just for looking nice via keychains, pins, desk lamps, and more.

“Woah, i didn’t know they had something like this here,” Alexis says with surprise. She looks back up to Jesse “Is this some kind of thing you’re doing to get a date with me?” Jesse snorts. “No way! I know you’re not into me.” 

“Then what’s the occasion?”

"C'mon, Al, it’s your birthday!” Alexis blinks at him.

“....It is?” The younger girl thinks, and finally realization hits her. "Shit, I forgot...”

Jesse lets out a small laugh and nudges her arm “That’s kinda funny, how’d you forget your own birthday? Did you not celebrate a lot?” Before Alexis could answer him, Jesse drags her to a shelf and picks out a keychain of a cute looking brown bear. “Cute, right?”

She stares at the pin, rubbing the surface a bit as she inspects it. "Yeah," she mumbles, a wave of nostalgia washing over her. “Weird…I remember getting something like this on my birthday.” The taller boy hums. “A pin?” Alexis shakes her head lightly. "No, the bear.” Jesse stared at her with a perplexed look before he spoke, and his words made Alexis laugh. “You got a bear for your birthday?”

“No, it was a..." Her voice trails before she hums as she tries to recall what it was that reminded her of years ago. 

"Actually, I’m not so sure.”

“Happy birthday!” A young girl exclaims with a small gift box in her hands. Ten-year-old Alexis accepts the gift by taking it in her hands. She lifts her head to look at her friend. “You remembered my birthday?” The girl nods and smiles.

Tara was Alexis’ friend, her first and best friend, and she still is as she grows older. She met Tara at the playground when they were about six or seven. Alexis was a year older than Tara, but that didn’t change their close relationship with one another. Tara was the only friend who wanted to talk to her and hang out with her almost every day. 

“How could I forget?” She giggles; she holds Alexis’ hand while walking her back into the house. “You got me a bracelet a few months ago when it was my birthday; I wanted the both of us to match!” She beams with happiness when she sees Alexis’ small smile. “But that bracelet was pretty expensive; how’d you manage to buy the same one?” This causes the shorter girl to stammer a bit. "Well….I kinda begged Sam to buy it."

“Tara!”

“What?” Alexis sighs at her. This girl…

“Why’d you have to bother your sister?” She puts the bracelet on her wrist. The bracelet had small fake pearls on it, along with the green-colored string. Honestly, Alexis would consider it a scam since it was too expensive for its looks; it looked pretty, but it didn’t match the price. She only realized that after buying the thing. “It’s fine! Sam didn’t mind, i think...  besides she likes you; she even bought you your favorite soy milk on the way home.” Tara says this and hands her friend a soy milk box.

Alexis looks at the box and feels a small burst of joy in her heart. She rarely gets to see Sam, her best friend’s older sister, but she always made her feel comfortable when they were together. She found the older girl cool and sweet; she was a little quiet and scary at times, but it felt nice knowing Sam didn’t mind her. Things have been different for the last year for some reason. She was more distant, but that wasn’t weird for Alexis; she knew people change and get busy sometimes.

Alexis sends Tara an appreciative look before speaking “Could you tell her thanks?”

Tara frowns at the girl. “Hey! You didn’t say ‘thank you’ to me!” She huffs.

“Thank you, you brat.” Alexis rolls her eyes and receives a pinch from Tara for her response. “Ouch stop!” She hisses and pinches Tara back, earning a squeal from the shorter girl. “Ow! I got you a gift and this is what you repay me?!” Alexis dodged Tara’s hand when she tried to pinch her again.

The two ran back to Alexis’ house while giggling and squealing; it wasn’t rare when Tara visited her house. She seems to like being there more than her own home, especially nowadays. Alexis always got her to watch movies or play together.

Alexis snaps out of her daydream and finds herself resting her head on the desk. Memories of her childhood lives fresh in her mind; the ones she could remember vividly were with her best friend. The only memories she wished she could have visited again, being a kid again at least. Everything used to feel so much lighter. Only now, Alexis didn’t wake up and rode her bike around the neighborhood without any worries. Everything was so different; she feels like it was yesterday when she was spending most of her time watching horror movies and hanging out with her best friend. Crazy huh? You never thought time would pass so fast.

The next thing you were a happy kid, not knowing much about the world, until you grew up feeling bitter about things. Sometimes you wish you were a dumb kid who doesn’t know any better again.

Tara sent you a message.

Tara ♥️: Happy birthday lexi

Tara ♥️: I wish I got you something :( I know you’re busy and stuff. You gonna come to visit?

Alexis smiles at the text.

Lex: Yeah I will dw

Lex: Now stop being sad, be ready tmr Im gonna visit my dad first before you

Tara ♥️: Im not first? Wowww i thought im your first in everything. Finally over your best friend huh

Lex: Cmon you know I love you, I just love my dad more

Tara ♥️: You’re an asshole come quick before i hate you forever

Lex: You won’t

On the other side of the screen, Tara's lips curled into a bright smile. After a few months, she finally got to see her best friend again. It hasn’t been long, but it felt like a while for Tara, and it made her anxious. Alexis knew Tara wouldn’t like this distance between them, especially after…

No, let’s not.

But Alexis didn’t have a choice nonetheless; her dad didn’t want her in that town, and deep inside, she agreed with him. She could have brought Tara with her, but she doesn’t really have the requirements currently. So they both settled, visiting Tara once or twice every few months until she could kidnap her and put her in her pocket to live with her in Modesto. Doing it in a friendly way, of course.

Before leaving, Alexis decides to take a trip to the convenience store to buy some things for her ride. Driving came to mind, but she brushed it off, thinking it was too much of a hassle, and decided to take the bus instead.

Upon arriving at the store and stepping in, her mind wonders as she browses through the shelves, picking up a drink and a small snack. She thinks about how Tara’s been doing without her for the past few months. Alexis had the tendency to worry about the younger girl, even if she had others with her back at Woodsboro. Her thought was cut short when another person came to mind.

“hm…I wonder where Sam is and how she’s doing now.” She mumbles to herself; eventually, she purchases her drink and snack before exiting the store to wait for the bus.

How long has it been since Alexis saw Sam? She doesn’t know; she forgot when the older girl disappeared so suddenly. How did she even feel? She doesn’t remember.

With each passing day, Alexis would sometimes wonder what Sam was doing. Probably living her life peacefully without any disquietude. Or not.

The sound of a text message makes her stop halfway to the bus station. Alexis pulls out her phone to see Jesse’s message pop up.

Hey sorry but I left something somewhere and I’m a bit busy right now to get it.

I know you’re going to visit your family today but could you get my headphones and hold on to them for a while until you get back? Its at the bowling alley, you know, the one next to the gas station. Thanks 😀

This little…

Whatever, only 15 minutes remain until the bus arrives. This wouldn’t be so bad; make it really quick.

Alexis jogs to the bowling alley and enters through the door while receiving a greeting from a tall girl at the desk. “Welcome to Cardinal Lanes; how may I help you?” As Alexis approaches the desk, she takes in the tall girl’s appearance for a moment.

She was tall and had her black hair with brown highlights tied into a bun. Her eyes were dark brown, and she had tan skin, along with a rather expressionless face when Alexis entered, but a small smile formed on her face to be appealing and polite.

"Hi, sorry, a friend of mine left something here. Headphones with light-green and grayish colors?” Alexis rushed, not wanting to miss the bus; her voice was breathless from running.

The tall girl nods. “Oh yeah sure, I think I know what you’re talking about. Wait for a moment, miss.” She disappears into the back room for a moment before coming back with Jesse’s headphones.

“Here–” Alexis cuts her off, “Thanks so much—sorry I’m in a rush." She takes the headphones from her and pauses to look up at the woman.

Alexis can’t help but feel sympathy for the stranger; she looked tired as if she’s been working all day every day. Yet she tried to put on an expression to look winsome for the place’s policy and pleasing customer service—something like that.

A rush of thoughts swirled in Alexis’ mind. Funny how she was in a rush, but for some reason she wanted to make this stranger’s day a bit better. This always happens; at the most critical moments, most times, Alexis has this thing of wanting to cheer a stranger up when she sees them down. She knew she needed to mind her own business about whatever miserable thing was going on with somebody unknown to her in their lives. But would you cheer up this tall, pretty, and downhearted-looking girl even if you’re in a rush?

Shit what the hell do I do? What am I doing? I don’t have any time for this. But she looks kinda sad. What the hell…okay stop staring at her like a weirdo.

The tall girl furrows her brows in confusion at Alexis, feeling a bit anxious and flustered at this random Asian girl staring in silence.

“Is there something wrong, Miss?” She asks while her dark brown eyes linger on Alexis.

Alexis blinks and averts her gaze for a split second. “Um yeah, sorry uh…” She stammers before swiftly pulling out a bear pin that she bought that morning and placing it firmly in the stranger’s hands. “Sorry uhm, here’s something of my gratitude for your service—thanks again, bye!” Before she could reply anything back, Alexis had already bolted out of the bowling alley.

The bowling alley attendant frowns at what just happened. She looks at the pin in her hands, her expression puzzled. Weird girl…. she thought. Unknown to Alexis, she probably made someone’s day a little better with her small act of kindness.

Upon arriving at Woodsboro, Alexis feels a sense of familiarity with the town. As much as she doesn’t like it, she misses some of the aspects of the place.

Throughout the ride, Alexis felt the need to jump out of the bus and into a ditch because of her awkwardness earlier. Being back at the place where she grew up took her mind off that for a while.

“Hey dad,” Alexis says to the phone with a bright smile, feeling excited to see her father again after months.

“Lexi? Honey, hey, how are you?” Dewey’s voice was heard through the phone, his soft tone making Alexis smile wider.

“I’m doing fine; I’m visiting you today.” Silence fell momentarily; this made Alexis a little nervous before Dewey spoke again.

“Honey…I told you not to come here.” He sighs through the phone, making Alexis feel a little guilty. “I know but I just wanted to see you." She responded as she walked along the sidewalk; it still brightened out as the sunlight hit Alexis’ face, causing her to squint. “I’m only visiting for a few days; I’m planning to stay at Tara’s house.”

“Oh Alexis…  you know I don’t like that.”

“What’s wrong? I thought you like Tara?” Her response causes him to exhale deeply. "You have to understand that even though I like her and she’s nice for you, I find it difficult to get a good night's sleep knowing that you are here at someone else's house." Alexis lets out a small sigh as she listens to her father’s words.

“I’m not staying at ‘somone’s’ house,” “I know, I know." "Dad, c’mon...”

Dewey goes silent for a bit, waiting for what his daughter has to say. “Dad… I know a lot has happened here, and a lot has happened with you and me as well, but things aren’t like that anymore. It’s been ten years, and nothing strange has happened—no ghostfaces, no killers. I’m not blaming you for being paranoid, but I want to spend time with you without the thought of another murder happening.” 

“I just wanted to see you. Don't you miss me, dad?” Alexis’ words hit Dewey like tree logs crushing a brittle shed. He lets out a sigh before chuckling a bit.

“You didn’t have to say that to your old man; of course I missed you.” He smiles on the other side of the phone before continuing, “Alright, I’ll let you stay, but you’ll leave first thing in the morning on your last day, and make sure to see me.”

Alexis hums. “I will. I’m going to go see you right now, later, Dad.”

“Stay safe, sweetheart.” With that, Alexis hung up and was about to continue walking until she was met with familiar black hair in her sight.

The girl stood in front of her with a grin—Alexis could recognise that smile everywhere. She didn’t expect her to be the first face she'd see once she stepped into this morbid town.

“Well, look who’s back in town.” She laughs, grinning wider, and steps closer to Alexis. “Haven’t seen you in a while; it’s nice seeing you again.” She said in a low tone, her voice sounded sweet.

Alexis gave Amber an acknowledging and surprised expression. She feels a tingly feeling in her stomach—not a good one. It’s a feeling similar to when someone you aren’t that fond of meets you on your way to your destination. Or when a teacher calls your name to ask a question about the lesson you learned but didn’t bother to remember, feeling like your heart stopped for a second. She feels dread for some unknown reason; she always has bad energy whenever she’s with Amber. It’s not because she’s sort of got this bad girl's agenda or that she has a violent way of expressing anger.

Amber is awfully nice to Alexis, and she doesn’t like that. 

If somebody is nice to you, you wouldn’t be feeling a sense of dread. So, why?

It’s always been like this with them; Alexis always felt something was wrong with that girl, and it’s a little messed up to think that.

“What’s with that face?” Amber tilts her head, her eyes lingering on Alexis.

Alexis needed to make this quick before she vomits from anxiety.

— Note: thank you if you managed to read this whole ridiculous thing 🥹 You're probably wonder about Amber and Alexis, they have a complicated relationship which will be revealed more into the story. I'll have to make a new character biography for Alexis soon lol.

[gatitties]

Hmmm let's see, since I'm feeling romantic, something inspired in Marilyn Monroe and Princess Diana!

how about a YN who has the beauty inspired of Marylin Monroe (not necessarily the same or exactly the same, but I say an extremely beautiful person) and with the sweet heart of Princess Diana.

•°°°•°•°•°•^•°

✧⁠*⁠。YN, who abandoned her role as a princess, to live on many adventures with Luffy, who won YN's kind heart.

All te people are amazed, even being a rival of Hancock, YN acted in movies , theaters and was a very welcome person in all corners of the world, YN was a good form of financial income on the Mugiwara ship, YN was someone so charming that she won the hearts of the Yonko and Shichibukai (you know me, needless to say💞😔💞)

But! due to YN's misfortune, one of the celestial dragons wants to marry YN, and they are constantly chasing YN, as well as pirates and bandits, as much as YN is strong, YN lived in constant danger, as she was always persecuted for being famous and extremely affectionate he was also very smart

even though he's young, he's already responded to Shank's sly and affectionate compliments and that he's already had drinks with the redhead, as well as not dispensing with good tea with Mihawk.

but, in addition to her theatrics being comedy, YN harbored many insecurities to herself, YN was someone who never felt genuine approval, who always wondered if she really deserved to be friends with the Mugiwaras and travel with them, but she loved them so much , and it frustrated her too many times.

YN always thanked Luffy at certain times for letting YN join the crew, as Luffy didn't know how happy it made her to see her teammates waiting for YN after a long day on an island.

YN also liked to give gifts to everyone YN could, whether from Shanks or even Whitebeard, who also had a lot of affection and respect for his faithful companions. YN simply loved and protected everyone they loved, even with Hancock's intrigues, which YN took advantage of and made jealous to piss her off.

YN running away from arranged marriages and making new stories, however much their emotional and mental problems could shake, the Mugiwaras in particular, always cheered YN up somehow, Brook singing and encouraging YN to sing, Luffy taking YN's hands and starting a nonsensical and strange but fun dance, Franky doing SUPER cool things to impress YN, Nami and Robin being kind and teaching new things, as well as YN teaching them how to act in certain moments of danger, Chopper being cute and letting YN hugging, Usopp making jokes, Zoro just making YN drink with him and Sanji bringing wonderful food and juice ✧⁠*⁠。

( sorry if it's long, hope you understand, do it if you want, have a nice day!)

─Shanks & Mihawk x fem!reader

─Summary: the peaceful life with little adventures that you were looking for always turns into chases, luckily you can always have a rest with two of your favorite people

─Warnings: none

"Will you go again?"

You smiled at Luffy's pout as you once again grabbed your trusty backpack to head to a small boat moored to the Thousand Sunny.

"Yes, I've already spent a couple of months with you all, plus I have an island to go to, they need staff for a play."

He nodded, still frowning, you said goodbye to him briefly before setting sail, the others found out later, you didn't like goodbyes so normally you would leave the ship to come and go whenever you wanted, Luffy didn't have many complaints since you were part of the crew since you ran away from your kingdom, abandoning your position as princess to go on adventures.

The thing is that your eagerness for the movies and the theater made you have to travel more constantly and get away from the Mugiwaras, at least you knew how to manage to fight or dodge the marines or pirates most of the time, since you had a reward for your head, not only that, but the last news you received, more like a threat, was that a celestial dragon wanted to ask for your hand in marriage. Despite being young, you had run away from many arranged marriages and this would be no exception.

After several days you arrived on the island, luckily there was no unwanted person waiting for you and you were able to tour the town warming the hearts of the people with whom you stopped to ask about the place. It didn't last long though because word spread fast, forcing you to keep a low profile for the rest of your stay until the day of the play.

Not everything is so bad when word gets out about your location, apart from marines, thieves or ruffians looking to take advantage of you or your reward, your friends also know where they can find you. You were a well-known person, either for your person in the world of acting or for your old role in your kingdom, not all you encountered after that were persecutions and dangers, you always met some of your friends on your days away of the Thousand Sunny.

"I don't know why I keep accepting."

"Aw come on, you always have a good time with me."

"Sure, whatever."

Mihawk crossed his arms, not looking at Shanks, both of them on their way to the bar in the town where you were, the swordsman's reasons went beyond sharing a drink with the redhead, although Shanks himself was also here because he found out that you would act tonight in a play. While the two men were spending the afternoon drinking, you were going over the last lines of your script, you didn't expect to see them there today, since they were usually busy with their Yonko and Warlord titles, you were unaware that these two would go to the end of the world to look for you if necessary.

You had to erase the goofy smile that grew on your face when you saw them sitting in the audience, focusing on your role once you went on stage, unfortunately halfway through the play a group of pirates broke in threatening you to go with them in a 'nice' way if you didn't want to be subjected to force.

There were few things that really bothered you, but one thing you never tolerated was someone interrupting your performances, even though Shanks and Mihawk were there, they stayed in their seats with a smile as they watched you use the stage set to hit and scold the pirates for having interrupted the play.

Luckily there were no more inconveniences and you were able to finish your work, the small anger quickly passed when you saw that those two were waiting for you at the back exit, you greeted them with your best smile and a warm hug.

"What are you two doing here? I thought you guys were busy or something, nice to see you again."

"We heard some rumors and I dragged Mihawk here with me, you know this guy needs to hang out more often."

The swordsman rolled his eyes, offering you his jacket since night had fallen a couple of hours ago and the wind was starting to get colder, you thanked him silently as you placed it on your shoulders.

"Yeah, he should travel and socialize more, why don't you join me in my next destination?"

You elbowed his arm with a mocking smile, he looked at you silently sighing, his head shaking slowly.

"I have places to be, but I wouldn't mind being with you."

"Me neither…"

The redhead put his hand to his heart pretending to be stabbed, he grabbed your shoulder dramatically, pulling you slightly.

"Why don't you offer me to travel with you?! I would also like to go with you."

"Because you have a crew to turn to, he doesn't."

Shanks pouted, looking at you with puppy dog eyes, giving his partner a dirty look without you noticing, though you caught him in the act which made you smile at his antics, you patted his shoulder pushing him to start walking.

"I'll think about it, but for now, why don't we go to the bar? I will invite to a couple of rounds."

[mmani-e]

Another post! This time featuring what the antagonists for my AU might look like. While Akane and Nekomaru are locked in the rest is up to changes in the future. Kyoko and Celestia were put on a poll but the results I believe I didn't set up properly, so now I'm amending that somewhat. I drew both sets in these sketches, and when enough time has passed I'll set up another poll, properly this time on strawpoll.

As for some design explanations and lore you can check under the cut :)

Kyoko and Makoto I believe are pretty straightforward here, I gave Kyoko a neckerchief that goes pretty far down to give her that sort of upper class educated look, while Makoto I gave a smart little jacket. There's only so far you can go with the normal boy, but I also made his hair fluffier and nicer. His ahoge is there but it's normally combed back, and only springs to full life when he's in murder mode.

Kyoko joined her dad in leaving the tradition of detective work behind and entered the business world where she used her analytical mind to be the best damn stock investor in the world, while definitely something she excels at it's not something she finds particularly fulfilling.

Makoto is a wholesome, normal dude who loves writing books about wholesome stories with good endings, while his family was and still is normal, he was captured once by unscrupulous scientists wanting to explore Despair and its mysterious qualities. Makoto never gave in, but in his suffering developed an alter ego who was grimly invested in justice above all else.

Sparkling Justice is a night haunter, who exclusively goes around killing murderers and evildoers against Makoto's wishes. Choosing to right any injustice he sees in the world, allowing for happy endings for the victims, surely?

I went hard with celes and hifumi a long time ago in previous designs, so here they are with similar designs as I gave them before. Hifumi wears a suit vest, and a button-up underneath while still keeping his bag... which may or may not be more than just a simple bag...

Celestia was born a normal kid and absolutely hated that life, so when a relative of hers from Europe visited she begged them and her family to go with them and she did. She grew up exploring Europe, and would propose money-making schemes to her family abroad and would eventually be able to fund the glamorous lifestyle she always thought she deserved.

Hifumi is just a writer-focused version of himself, though with a particular love for action-romance novels and fiction rather than strictly heart-melting novels like Touko. He's a sweet boy but very weird and horny for Celestia, so he's completely useless around her. He's basically a tool... just like...

ROBO-JUSTICE is a serial killer known for their modus operandi of targeting particularly attractive and very mean women with hammers or blunt force trauma. This alter was formed after one particularly awful night of bullying resulting in Hifumi getting thrown into an abandoned industrial park and nearly dying from exposure to wires and sharp metal. Despite this though, it is almost entirely subservient to Celestia whenever it surfaces from Hifumi's mind.

Akane and Nekomaru I've already drawn before, but I think it'd be nice to give some of the backstory I've planned for them.

Akane is a well-meaning, brash, and reckless person whose freakish natural strength pairs with a luck that does everything except help her directly. Random and unpredictable, Akane desperately tries everything she can to get into extremely unpredictable and dangerous situation for her luck to grace those around her with the best outcome from her misfortune, even if it means hurting a lot of people in the process.

Nekomaru was inspired by the nonstop hard work he saw the nurses had to do when they were treating his heart condition. So inspired that he made it his solemn vow to join them whatever it took, leading him to become the ultimate nurse. He would, however, be the first of his classmates to fall to the despair of the mastermind, as his well-meaning nature drew him into a trap he could not predict.

For Rantaro and Tenko I took inspiration from M. Bison(Dictator) and Criss Angel specifically. These are the most experimental designs I have as you can tell, but I plan on working on them a lot.

Tenko's story involves her becoming the head of her little "dojo" and straight up turning it into a cult, with her as the ultimate supreme leader and the greatest fighter in the world.

Rantaro started off doing magic for her sisters, and got so good at making them happy that one of them introduced his magic act to the world through sites like youtube, causing him to become a sensation drooled over by millions of girls around the world.

[laurasimonsdaughter]

What are your thoughts on "The Young Slave" from The Pentamerone?

Ah, the same way I feel about most stories from the Pentamerone: very grateful that we still have it, as a part of fairy tale history, without exactly liking it.

The Pentamerone (by Giambattista Basile, published posthumously in 1634/1636) is an incredibly important collection, but the tales are rather brutal. "The Young Slave" is no different. Basile's collection of Neapolitan fairy tales contains the oldest known literary version of many very well-known fairy tales. In the case of "The Young Slave" the story of Snow White. While it also contains elements that are more well-known for showing up in different fairy tales. For example:

• The beautiful protagonist, Lisa, was born because her mother swallowed a rose petal. This motif shows up in various Spanish, Portugese and Scandinavian folktales.

• Lisa is blessed by two fairies and cursed by a third to die prematurely, similar to Sleeping Beauty. (Though the fairy is not an unwanted guest, or inherently evil, she speaks in anger because she twists her ankle.)

• Because of the curse Lisa gets a comb stuck in her hair, which poisons her, and is put in seven crystal coffins and hidden away. While there is no evil queen, this does have similarities with Snow White.

• Lisa's mother firbids her brother, the baron, to open the room with the coffin and dies. Years later his wife discovers the coffin, however, and Lisa has by then aged into a beautiful young woman. The jealous woman drags her out by her hair, knocking the comb loose and waking her up. This reminds me more of Gold Tree and Silver Tree which is itself often named as a Snow White variant.

• Lisa's jealous aunt now takes the role of evil stepmother, dresses and treats her as a slave and abuses her. Much like various versions of Snow White.

• One day the baron goes to a country fair and asks everyone his household what thing they would like him to bring for them, even the slave girl, despite his wife's anger. Lisa asks for a doll, a knife, and some pumice-stone, and adds that if he forgets to bring them, he will not be able to cross the river. This reminds me of some versions of Beauty and the Beast and Russian tales like Finist the Falcon, where a merchant father brings the youngest daughter an inexpensive but very significant gift.

• Lisa can make the doll talk to her by threatening self harm and tells it her sad life story. (I mostly know magical dolls from Slavic and Chinese fairy tales, but that might be lack of further reading on my part). The baron overhears her talking and realises what his wife has done. The motif of telling your misfortune to an object and being overheard shows up in tales like the Goose Girl, The Ghoulish Schoolmaster and the Stone of Pity, and more notably The Maiden with the Rose on her Forehead (which is likely a more direct descendant of The Young Slave than Snow White is.)

• The baron sends Lisa to relatives to recover and then invites her back home for a splendid banquet, where she tells everyone how she was treated by the baroness. The baron banishes his wife (which is surprisingly merciful) and finds a worthy husband for Lisa whom she loves. This big reveal at a banquet shows up in various stories, like true bride/forsaken fiancée stories, or variations on The Cruel Sister.

To me the most interesting element of this story, apart from it's very different beginning, is that Lisa's uncle is so instrumental, while her future husband is only mentioned in the very last line. In most folktales with an abusive wife, the husband is notably bad at doing anyting about her cruelty. So this makes a nice change!

[kaledya]

HOWDY!! @marquisev

Overlord Arc general review:

First, OH MY GOD!!!! What level is this diyslog writing??????

First of all, I loved all the dialouges between Zestial and Alastor ı can READ them for hours. Everything they say is great And since they are both intelligent men,

it is not clear how their conversation will end.Sometimes it feels like Alastor is a Fly about to be caught in a spider's web.But Zestial expressions His speech is so vague that neither Alastor nor the reader knows what the outcome will be.But it's nice that Alastor stays calm despite this and approaches the event and sentences intelligently.

In short, look at this part And the scene at the end where Zestial warns Alastor about Constantine was very cool, it was a very nice description!!

Also The Tournament It's also a great detail to enter that area by measuring the weight of the Overlords!!. "Only those who are monsters enough can step here."

--

It was also very nice when Alastor met Rosie and talked to Serenity after entering!!

--

Then the Overlords gather and give a speech.I loved every dialogue here Vox's reaction to Alastor Alastor doesn't have his chair yet (you shouldn't have stayed AFK for 7 years)

And my favorite part is when things are getting heated, Lolicia comes out in a very cool way. It was really great how she supported Alastor and sat next to him.

I really like Valentino and Vox's dialogues.Vox sort of takes on the role of constantly keeping Val at line. (You know no one wants to starta a War in there)

The part about the gangs was really good And it's great that they gave this task to Alastor.(You were gone for 7 years, now you will remember the hierarchy and obey orders)

I really love using Serenity, she loves how she acts as the one pulling the strings no matter what the subject is.A kind of news-bringer It's also nice for Vox to say "I buy my information from the best source" and look at Serenity.

In addition, Lolicia declares her alliance with Alastor with nobility and bloodliness as always. It was seriously a great scene.

And the last scene where Serenity looks at the Lolicia and says "After all, Sir Pentious is not the only one who left his region alone, right" and the episode ended there was VERY EXCITING

I was like: Who WILL WAIT FOR 2 DAYS FOR NEXT EP!!!

-------

The dialogues in this episode were great It was really fun to read the chaos of Lolicia's inner thoughts.Like Sherlock Holmes, because of Misfortune's warning. counted all the possibilities in her mind and eliminated some of them.

And Alastor mentally analyzes the Overlords on the Table and lists what his current position is and what he needs to do, etc. It's really fun to read.

And it was really cool that Vox then yelled at Alastor and said he always ran away like a wet dog..(ah Vox you found the last person to fall in love with)

And it was very cool that after this sentence, Alastor got really angry and his voice changed and the atmosphere became completely tense.

I also loved the tension between Serenity and Velvet, they have a really good exchange of words.

And Lolicia deciding to take action against the fey, assuming the rules. But on the other hand, Al thinks that this mission will cause a rift between him and Charlie.

And it is very powerful that Serenity comes out and speaks for Alastor as things go even further downhill.

Every overlord (including Alastor and Lolicia):Wtf??

Lolica: wait a minute is that...

Misfortune: What? (I'm defending my dad, okay?)

This chapter was really exciting and fun to read!!

------

This chapter was simply amazing. You write Serenity really well. I love the way you reflect her smart, quick-witted and sneaky attitude. It was a lot of fun to read!!

Also watching his little fight with Velvet Seriously, their banter was great and there was a lot of dialogue that made me laugh.

I think my favorite was "why shouldn't I give 1 coin to the beggar" to Velvet in Serenity's dialogue.

And Lolicia noticing the rope between Alastor and Serenity and theorizing about it She thinks about pulling it out, and just as she's about to listen, the thread disappears from the sound Velvet's gum makes.

Frankly, I wonder if Lolicia will say something to Alastor about this purple Rope !!

And it was also very cool during Velvet and Serenity's conversation, where Serenity told Velvet that she could never beat her in a Strategic battle and Velvet remained unanswered.

It was very nice when Serenity said goodbye to Alastor and left him wondering about more things.

And the Battle between Alastor and Vox was seriously awesome TO I read the song you wrote And you pay so much attention to details You seriously look at the meaning of every word like WOW🛐🛐. Simply a perfect arc. My eyes are truly blesed

I'm also very excited for what will happen after this arc.How will they go about destroying the gang? What will Lolicia's role be in this mission?what about Charlie's reaction ro what did her two member of her hotel AAAAA SO EXCITING

----

Arts:

FIRST OF ALL THE DRAWINGS WERE AWESOME AND VERY CUTE!!!!!?!

Jophiel and Abaddon are so cute It was very funny that Abaddon carved a statue of Raphael.

She is beautiful in the picture of her walking with Michael The picture of her exchanging letters with Uriel was really cute!!

And she was so cute in the picture where she was leaning on Gabriel's head

AND SERIOUSLY THANK YOU FANARTS, ARCHANGELS ARE REALLY GOOD IN YOUR STYLE 🛐🛐🛐🛐

And finally the Constantine on the Ring box You have drawn the Constsntine wonderfully and the ring and the box are in the Lolicia Theme (genius idea,). As soon as I find the energy to draw, I will draw the Lolicia version of this art!!

Seriously, thank you so much for the gifts!!!*Crying from Happiness

--

AND CONGRATULATIONS ON 100,000K It's really AMAZING that you wrote such a quality, creative and long work in such a short time. I have endless respect for you🫡🫡🛐🛐🛐

And most importantly SUMMER THEMED LOLICIA ART!!! OH MY GOD THEY ARE SO CUTE. I LOVE THAT THEIR SWIMWEAR IS FROM THE 30'S AND A LOVE THE COMPOSITION AND I LOVED LOLICIA'S BRAIDS, IT LOOKS SO SWEET

And the little Constsntine on top looks so cute too!!

And again, thank you so much for loving this AU and putting so much effort into it.And thank you very much for introducing me to OCs like Lolicia Abaddon Verdelet and Hürrem. It is truly an honor to meet a talented writer like you!!!

and in case I don't see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night!

And take care!! ❤️🫂🫂

[silvfyre-writings]

Misery and Misfortune Pt. 1 (BSD Fanfic)

Hello, hello, I bring you all some pain, and this time, I have a friend bringing the pain with me! This is a collaboration work between @hyaha-ha-ha and I, so I hope you all enjoy! CW: MCD, Gore, Body Horror

No one knows when it started.

No one knows how it came to be.

But everyone knows just how deadly it is.

I fear for those I care about.

I fear for everyone.

—Yosano Akiko

When the news of a mysterious infection making its way through Yokohama began, Yosano wasn’t even in the city to witness it. She’d been at the other end of the country, at a conference for doctors to get together and talk about the newest treatments. Although she wasn’t the most… conventional doctor, Fukuzawa had been insistent that she attend, so, she had. And while, she would much rather be tormenting her co-workers by strapping them down and removing their limbs when they were foolish enough to get themselves injured, she did have to admit that it was interesting to learn new things.

She also had a feeling it was a ploy to get her to experience things that normal doctors, with normal lives, and normal educations got to experience on a daily basis, which she did appreciate. Fukuzawa had always tried to give her a normal life—well, as normal as a life could be when it came to growing up with Fukuzawa and Ranpo who were very much not normal—after rescuing her from Mori all those years ago, and she’d been forever grateful. And while she didn’t regret how her life had turned out, there were times where she wished that her life had been different. That Mori had never plucked her from the candy store and whisked her away to war.

So with no hesitation, she packed a bag and hopped on the next train to Osaka, the goodbye’s of her co-workers echoing in her ears.

Goodbye’s that had involved warning Dazai against raiding her medicine cabinet—regardless of whether it was a joke or not—and telling Ranpo to eat an actual meal instead of his snacks for once, whilst also making sure that Kunikida didn’t stress himself out while she was gone because she knew him well enough to know that he would the moment she was gone. She’d made sure to check in with the younger members as well—because she did care despite her constant threats of bodily harm, and Atsushi and Kyouka still responded well to knowing that people actually cared about them—and had even made sure to have a quick break with Fukuzawa before her train. And it’d been nice, to see them all happy and smiling, and full of jokes and teasing quips.

It made her believe that everything would be alright.

Not that there’d been any reason to believe otherwise, because as chaotic and accident prone as her precious, put together, little family was, they were more than capable of handling any crisis that was thrown their way.

If only she’d known then, just how wrong she was.

The reporter on the news spoke of an infection of an unknown origin, bringing with it a rash, and open sores, along with a fever that could kill if it got out of hand. They also spoke of how it was unknown just how many people were infected, and that there was no reason to worry. Yosano wasn’t stupid though, and neither was any other doctor in the room currently. They all threw each other uneasy glances, and quiet murmurs broke out across the room, some groups discussing potential causes, and others already coming up with ways of treating it when they got back to their respective hospitals, even though, so far, it was restricted to just Yokohama.

And that was how the rest of the conference went; there was no panic, no fretting, only quiet discussion about what was going on in a city several hours away. Yosano herself, fell into the lull, keeping one eye on the news just like everyone else was, but focusing most of her attention on the people speaking. She wanted to go back and be able to prove that she’s actually learnt something while she’d been gone.

But the days passed, and the news became more frequent.

It was an infection they said, and medicine in this day and age, accompanied by the few skill users with healing abilities, meant that it wouldn’t be long before it was dealt with and forgotten.

It was an infection they said; no one had died, and it hadn’t been discovered outside of Yokohama yet, so it clearly wasn’t airborne, nor was it in the water.

It’s just an infection, Yosano told herself, watching as images of patients in hospitals flicked across the screen, dread filling her stomach that she couldn’t quite understand the origin of.

It’s just an infection, she continued to say, as the phone in her hand lit up with the President’s number.

Yosano wasn’t the type to believe in God; had never had a reason to with the life that she’d lived, with all that pain and suffering that she’d worked hard to put behind her. After all, what kind of God would just sit by and allow an eleven-year-old to suffer as much as she had? What had she done that was no bad to warrant that kind of torment? Not only that, but what God would endorse such a war to happen in the first place where she, a child, had needed to be on the battlefield?

After all these years, she still didn’t have an answer.

And when she arrived back at the Agency, and stepped into the infirmary, what little belief she somehow still had, vanished.

Yosano didn’t know what to think at first, when her eyes fell upon Dazai, his bandages unravelled and replaced with plastic covers that showed the gaping wounds being protected by them, the wires that were connected to him, monitoring his vitals, and the needle in his hand providing nutrition. Her heart skipped a beat, as she forced her eyes away from her friends almost… decaying form, to see Dazai staring at her, expression one that could only be attributed to pain, although she couldn’t be sure he was actually looking at her, eyes glazed with fever and staring right through her almost.

It was the weakest that she’d ever seen him, and she’d seen him on death’s door multiple times.

She stepped closer. “Dazai…”

Dazai’s eyes focused just long enough for him to notice her, and a smile grew on his face. “Yosano-sensei, how kind of you to rush back for little old me.”

“The President called me.” Yosano said, striding over to the bed and taking one of Dazai’s arms into her own to study it. This close, she could see the wound more clearly, see the bone underneath the flesh that had seemingly rotted away, blood leaking from the hole that was left behind. The sheer size of the wound concerned her; spreading up the length of the limb and disappearing underneath the gown that her colleague was wearing. Further up, she could see cracks in the skin on the right side of his face, not quite bleeding, but threatening to.

She’d never seen anything like it.

But she knew what it was.

Despite wishing wholeheartedly that it was anything but.

Yosano looked towards where Kunikida was sitting, looking more stressed than he ever had before. “How did this happen?”

“We aren’t sure.” Kunikida sighed, slumping forward to rest his head in his hands. He took a deep breath. “We pulled the idiot from the river about a week ago, and of course, he got sick from it. But then… he got worse. And now he’s like this.”

“Ah I’ll be fine. Now that you’re here, I’ll be fine.” Dazai interjected, tugging his hand free to drop back against the mattress. Neither Yosano nor Kunikida missed the way it dropped like deadweight, as there was no muscle to support the limb, nor the pained grimace that followed.

Yosano smiled, hoping that it conveyed the confidence that she did not feel in that moment. Her mind drifted away, back towards that of the news report about a mysterious infection spreading around Yokohama.

An infection that currently, had no cure.

Not that she would let that stop her.

She was Akiko Yosano, the Angel of Death. She wasn’t going to let some unknown infection get the best of her, not in her life.

“Well, Dazai.” Yosano said, reaching out a hand to smooth Dazai’s sweat-soaked hair, ignoring the heat that she felt, even through her glove. Dazai’s eyes focused on her once again. “Let’s see if we can’t get you fixed up.”

Yet, for all her efforts, Dazai continued to get sicker, and sicker. No matter what medicine she pumped him with, no matter how many times she and Kunikida cleaned the wounds, he just continued to waste away right in front of them. And because they weren’t sure how exactly Dazai had contracted the infection, Yosano made the decision to bar everyone but herself and Kunikida from the infirmary whilst they tried to figure it out; a decision that wasn’t well received. Atsushi had tried to force his way past her, desperate to see his mentor, but he’d calmed when Kyouka—bless her—had slid up to him and explained that Yosano wasn’t doing this to be cruel, she just didn’t want them to get sick as well.

Yosano had appreciated it, and promised Atsushi that the moment that Dazai was allowed visitors again, she’d let him know.

The first thing to do, other than manage Dazai’s symptoms, was discover how he’d even contracted the infection in the first place, which meant running through every aspect of Dazai’s life leading up until his collapse; a task made nearly impossible, not from Dazai’s unwillingness to talk, but because he was rarely lucid enough for them to even ask as the infection continued to ravage him. It’d gotten to the point where Yosano started to grow concerned that Dazai would die, so she’d made the decision to amputate his arm in a desperate attempt to stop the infection from spreading.

At first, Kunikida had argued, but he’d quickly given in when Yosano had argued back that at this point, they had nothing to lose.

It was one of the few times where she cursed being unable to use her ability on Dazai.

But after the surgery, Yosano felt nothing but relief when Dazai opened his eyes, and almost immediately cracked a joke about his missing arm, eyes clearer than they had been in a long time. It was almost as if Dazai hadn’t been sick in the first place, and once he’d rested from the surgery, she grilled him on what he’d been doing, what he’d been eating, and who he’d interacted with, but his answers had provided nothing.

All he’d been doing was walking around Yokohama, trying to find the ideal spot to die, nothing out of the ordinary for her eccentric friend.

But since it didn’t seem like Dazai would infect everyone else, Yosano didn’t see an issue with allowing the others to visit Dazai, although she did insist that they all wear masks and gloves just in case.

The last thing she wanted was to deal with an outbreak when she didn’t have a set treatment in mind.

“He’s going to die; you know that right?” Yosano was dragged out of her thoughts by the sound of Ranpo throwing himself up on top of her desk, twirling a lollipop in his hand. The words were harsh, and didn’t match the indifferent expression on Ranpo’s face, but Yosano knew better, knew just how much her oldest friend cared about Dazai.

Yosano sighed and glanced over her shoulder where Dazai was listening to Atsushi talk about his day, a bowl of half-eaten chazuke in his hand. “I know.”

Ranpo hummed. “Are you going to tell them?”

“They already know.” At least, she thought they did. She hoped they did, because if they didn’t… well, she didn’t quite have an answer for that. Yosano let out another sigh, and turned to face Ranpo. “Have you been asked by the police for help.”

“Not yet.” Ranpo said. “It’s only a matter of time though, since people are starting to die now, so I’m sure they’ll come begging for my assistance like they always do.”

“Do you know what’s causing it?”

“Causing it? Not yet. How it spreads? Yes.” Ranpo shoved the lollipop into his mouth, his attention focused on Dazai and the others surrounding him. “It’s through blood-to-blood contact, before you ask.”

Yosano frowned, filing the information away for later to deal with. She’d encountered infections of the blood before, but most of them had some other requirement involved for them to actually infect people; seldom was it as simple as blood-to-blood. But it would make sense for it to be so simply, really. It was common for the deadliest of diseases to be transmitted easily, that was what made them so deadly in the first place. And it didn’t make them easy to cure either.

“I’m sure you’ll figure something out.” Ranpo went on to say. “Dazai will die, but you did what you could, and he knows that. It’s why he’s still smiling, so people can remember him for that instead of rotting away in a bed.”

She didn’t think she’d done nearly enough to try and help, but it was nice of Ranpo to try and offer some comfort to her. She gave him a soft look. “Are you going to be okay? When he dies, I mean?”

Ranpo refused to look at her, his body tense. “It’s not like I have a choice. He’s dying whether I want him to or not.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I’ll say my goodbyes later once everyone’s gone.” Ranpo hopped of her desk and began to leave, stopping right beside her just long enough to speak quietly. “Just find a cure, okay?”

I will. Yosano thought, going back to her research.

She had to.

But just as Ranpo had predicted, Dazai died.

It was a painful death, it had to be with the way Dazai’s flesh peeled from his skin, leaving nothing but bone. It took days for him to finally pass, the fever finally becoming too much for his body to handle and causing total organ failure. Yosano had done everything she could to help, had tried everything she’d learnt over the years, but none of it had been enough, and in the end, all she could do was sit by Dazai’s bedside with Kunikida beside her, and hold her friends’ hand as he lost the fight to live.

“Don’t mourn me… too much, Yosano-sensei… we all knew I would be… the first to die…”

That was what Dazai had said in his final moment of clarity, and honestly, she wanted to smack him for it. Of course she was going to mourn Dazai, he was her friend, and he’d left a bigger impact on the Agency than he thought he had. He’d brought jokes, and joy, and that weird friendship of his that only Dazai could do, and she, along with everyone else, were going to miss him. She hadn’t cried when he died, too focused on keeping herself composed as she shared the news with those that hadn’t been in the room, and afterwards, there’d been so many tears from everyone else that it didn’t feel right for her to break down too.

But if she shed a few tears over a shared bottle of sake between her and Ranpo, who was to know but them?

After Dazai’s death, Yosano thought that the end of it.

They held a funeral, said their goodbyes, and did their best to push onwards. For a while, work was slow, on account of everyone struggling to cope with the subdued atmosphere, which eventually led to Fukuzawa making the decision to close the Agency for the week, just to give them the time they needed to deal and start healing. A decision that everyone was quick to follow.

Once that week was up, and everyone was back at work, things almost seemed to go back to normal. Well, not normal per se—because there was nothing normal about watching a co-worker and friend slowly waste away—but as normal as it could be. Although, for Yosano, life continued to grow more chaotic. The hospitals, having heard of her encounter with the infection, summoned her to see if she could try to help with the influx of victims, so most of her time was spent there, trying to help, but only watching more people die.

There was still no cure, still no idea on the origin of the infection, only a steadily growing death toll and fear amongst the general population.

And then she walked into the Agency, where she watched Kunikida collapse in front of her, blood spilling from the cracks in his face, and her heart stopped. Not again.

Like with Dazai, Yosano took Kunikida to the infirmary and refused entry to anyone that wasn’t her. She did what she could to get Kunikida’s vitals up, hoping that he would regain consciousness and be able to tell her how he got infected—which she already knew thanks to Ranpo deducing that it was contact with blood, but she needed to know when. Knowing when Kunikida had gotten infected would give them an idea as to how long it took the infection to present itself, and that kind of knowledge was vital in an epidemic.

But Kunikida never woke up.

And Yosano was forced to watch yet another friend die.

It was cruel, it was awful, and Yosano cursed every God that she knew of for allowing the most important people in her life to die from some stupid, incurable infection. She wanted to scream, she wanted to cry, but right now, she couldn’t. Right now, she had to be strong, had to provide a brave face to show the others that she knew what she was doing, that there was still hope to be had, even though she continued to lose it as the days passed.

Like Dazai, Kunikida’s flesh began to rot away, and honestly, it was a testament to just how much the human body could survive, as Kunikida’s arms were nothing but bone, yet he was somehow still fighting. And even though Kunikida was comatose, she kept him dosed on painkillers, just in case there was a part of him that was hurting; otherwise, she used the time to study the symptoms of the infection, to note how fast it spread and the order it happened in, comparing Kunikida’s suffering to Dazai’s and finding them almost the same.

There were a few variances, but that was expected with infections; everyone was different after all. Everyone’s body reacted to things differently; it was why Kunikida had started bleeding from his face first whilst Dazai rotted.

Not that it made it any less painful to know that.

This time, it was Fukuzawa that sat by her side as Kunikida slowly died in front of her. She appreciated the company, spent most of the time leaning against his shoulder as they sat in silence together. It was obvious from the tension in his face, that he was worried about the way that things were going, and that he felt a little helpless at not being able to do much more than support her. It was probably how the rest of the Agency felt, being trapped outside the infirmary as they were, and she felt guilty that she couldn’t risk allowing them to help her. She just couldn’t risk anyone else getting infected. It was already dangerous enough keeping infected people in the infirmary here, instead of taking them to the hospital like the government was asking of people.

“I’m sorry I can’t save him.” Yosano found herself saying, her voice quiet in the despair of the room. She ducked her head and stared at her hands. Maybe Shunzen was right. Maybe she was an Angel of Death after all, hands bloodied by the bodies of people she tried to save and failed.

Maybe she should just—

“You did what you could.” Fukuzawa interrupted before her thoughts could send her spiralling. He gave her a comforting pat. “Kunikida and Dazai know that.”

“But does everyone else?” Yosano retorted. “I’ve kept them from being here, to keep them safe, but for all I know, they hate me for not doing more!”

“They don’t.”

“You don’t know that.”

Fukuzawa tightened his grip on her, voice firm. “They don’t hate you.”

“But—”

“They don’t.” Fukuzawa insisted. “They merely wish that they could do more to help. Situations like this can leave many feeling helpless and we, are no different. You need not apologise for the decisions you make to keep us safe.”

Yosano bit her lip to keep the apology on the tip of her tongue from escaping, and just gave a single nod. There wasn’t anything more she could say on the matter, not without making Fukuzawa repeat himself. Her eyes rested upon Kunikida’s shivering form; death would come for her friend soon, and she resolved to let him be the last. She would do everything that she could to stop anyone else she cared about from succumbing to this infection.

Two days later, Kunikida died.

And this time, Yosano allowed them to grieve him properly.

She spent hours sterilising the room from top to bottom, removing all traces of blood, and covering the wounds that had killed Kunikida to prevent even the slightest drop of blood from escaping. And only then, once she was sure that the room was as clean as it could be, did she allow everyone to come and say goodbye. Yosano knew she’d done right when Atsushi stepped into the room, took one look at the man that had taken him under his wing, and promptly burst into tears.

She had to leave the room then.

She didn’t go far, just outside into the main office where she leant against the wall, listening through the cracked door as everyone shared their final words with Kunikida, shedding tears over the person that had supported their endeavours at the Agency the most. It warmed her heart to hear such words spoken, she just wished that he hadn’t had to die to hear them. And for the first time in her life, she tried to believe that Kunikida’s spirit was there, along with Dazai’s, watching over them and giving them the strength to continue.

They were going to need it.

In the wake of Kunikida’s death, Yosano found herself being called away from the Agency more often than not, the government and local hospitals hearing of their encounters, however brief, with the infection and wanting to know more about her findings in studying the infection. The people she spoke to sounded hopeful on the phone, and Yosano felt nothing but guilt as she crushed that hope into tiny pieces by being unable to provide any information that wasn’t already known. It also crushed her to know that she hadn’t discovered anything new about the infection, but there was a determination building within her, one born from the desire to not lose anyone else that she considered family.

The television in the Agency was permanently left on, at least one channel always reporting on the status of the infection, updating people on how many were infected and where the worst rate of infection was. As expected, Suribachi City was affected the worst; the ruined city had been cordoned off the moment the public discovered the method of transmission, with no one allowed to enter or leave, no matter what. This caused some argument, and a lot of distress, as it meant that the people trapped within the city were sentenced to a slow and painful death, without any means of relief.

Yosano considered herself capable of controlling her emotions, but after watching two of her oldest friends die to the infection, she couldn’t help but cry over the people in Suribachi City.

Weeks passed, and the situation worsened around them, but the atmosphere within the Agency was a positive one as no one else fell to the infection—mostly due to Fukuzawa’s decision for them to remain indoors unless absolutely necessary. Which wasn’t hard to do considering that in the wake of a deadly infection, people weren’t exactly scrambling for their services. This newfound free time of theirs was spent doing whatever kept their focus off the news; reading, playing games, swapping stories with each other. It was almost as this were just a casual sleepover instead of an attempt to stay safe.

Yosano couldn’t bring herself to relax, going over her notes over and over again until she would collapse at her desk. She couldn’t relax, no matter how many times the others pleaded with her to take a break.

She’d already failed them twice; she wouldn’t do it again.

So of course, the infection made her eat her words.

Rumours began to spread that those suffering from the infection would do their best to seek out contact with others, not because they wanted to infect others, but because the infection took their ability to stay warm. And who was warm but living, healthy, people?

This made the infection more deadly, considering all it took to get infected was the tiniest cut, and naturally, not long after the news had dropped, the death toll began to rose, bring with it, crushing despair and a lack of hope for their situation ever getting better. Yokohama was now in lockdown mode, a last-ditch effort to stop the infection spreading. No one was to leave, even to get supplies, and those that risked it, were left to die in the streets.

The hospitals turned their focus to those that were uninfected, ejecting the victims of the infection onto the streets, breaking their vows to save all lives no matter what, just to try and save who remained. These hospitals swore that they’d focus on finding a cure, and that when they did, the people they threw out would be welcomed back and treated, but it didn’t take a genius to know those were empty words. The infection was killing faster now, spreading even faster to try and take down as many people as it could.

It was a logical decision really, to sacrifice the lives of the few to save the lives of the many, but already, two-quarters of Yokohama’s population was infected, and one-quarter dead, so who were they saving really?

No one, that’s who.

So, Yosano wasn’t surprised when her more empathetic colleagues wanted to help those that had been abandoned, even if it was just venturing out to get people indoors, to get them food and water so that they may stand a chance of pulling through the epidemic. And try as she might, Yosano couldn’t stop them.

Kenji.

Kyouka.

Atsushi.

One by one she watched them die, her heart fracturing as she tried desperately to save them, only to fail. Even Atsushi, who’s skill allowed him to regenerate, succumbed to the infection in the end. But… Yosano learnt something from that, and she kicked herself over not considering it sooner. As Atsushi lay there in the infirmary bed, skin literally melting off of his bones, she watched as his body tried to fix it; the damaged skin would knit back together, as if he’d never been infected in the first place, only for the wounds to reappear days later.

It was an endless cycle, one filled with pain and agony, and ultimately, it ended with Atsushi losing his mind.

At that point, it was just her, Atsushi, Ranpo, and Fukuzawa left in the building. Everyone else was dead. And when Atsushi became infected, Ranpo retreated immediately—not that Yosano could blame her friend, for despite being confronted with death since a young age like she had, it was different when they were people you cared about, and Ranpo had been struggling ever since Dazai first died months back—which left just her and Fukuzawa to do what they could for Atsushi.

No one could tell them that they hadn’t tried, because they had tried so, so hard, to keep Atsushi alive, praying that his body would somehow fight off the infection and a miracle would occur.

But instead of a miracle, a curse came.

The tiger inside Atsushi had always been uncontrollable, and was only placid due to Fukuzawa’s ability making it so. But the infection must’ve broken that connection, because as Atsushi’s healing ability failed, and his flesh rotted worse than it ever had, the tiger broke free. Yosano found herself shoved across the room as the tiger lunged for her and Fukuzawa, and she could only watch as Fukuzawa drew his sword and sliced Atsushi in half.

But not before sinking his teeth into the older man’s arm.

“NO!” Yosano threw herself onto her knees by Fukuzawa’s side, blinking rapidly as if that would make the wound go away. Only a few feet away, did Atsushi lay in his tiger form, eyes wide and dull, devoid of life, and Yosano knew she should do as she did, and take notes on the infection’s progression in the boy, but she couldn’t bring herself to, not when she had to come to term with the fact that she was going to lose the man that rescued and given her a new life.

Her shout must’ve been loud enough to catch Ranpo’s attention from wherever he’d sequestered himself, for she heard the infirmary door open, and the shattering of a ramune bottle seconds later.

And despite the fate that was coming for him, Fukuzawa smiled at them both, covering his wound with a hand. “It will be fine.” He said, voice filled with conviction as it always was. “I believe in the both of you.”

“There’s no cure—”

“We’ll cure it.” Ranpo’s determined words interrupted her own hopeless ones, and Yosano turned towards Ranpo. His eyes slid to look at her briefly, hardened, and devoid of emotion, before flicking back to Fukuzawa. Despite the look on his face, she could hear the pain in his voice. “We’ll cure it, so you better fight, President. You aren’t allowed to die.”

“I will do my best, Ranpo.”

The stakes were higher than ever before, with Fukuzawa infected, not only because of how much he meant to her, but because Ranpo became absolutely unbearable the moment that the man that had saved them both became so ill, he was a far cry from their saviour now. She tried not to snap at her friend when he was short with her, or when he demanded more than she could give, but it was hard not to when it felt like he was about to start biting her neck instead of merely breathing on it with how close he lingered. She understood his distress, was feeling much the same herself, and wanted nothing more than to find a cure to stop Fukuzawa from dying, but there was only so much she could do. Realistically, Yosano had already accepted that Fukuzawa was going to die, had prepared herself for it to happen, but Ranpo hadn't. Like when Fukuzawa had been infected by the Cannibalism skill all those months ago, Ranpo camped out by the older man's bedside, refusing to move, to eat, to sleep, and nothing Yosano said or did could change his mind.

It wasn't until she finally sat down and documented her observations on Atsushi that she finally gained a bit of hope.

Atsushi had only lasted as long as he did because of the regenerative qualities of his ability, and it reminded her of her own ability. She'd never thought to use her ability on the infection, since Dazai was immune to her skill to begin with, and after he’d died, she’d automatically assumed it would be like any other illness, and fail, but perhaps this was different. After all, the infection caused massive wounds, and those were something she could heal. And even if she couldn't cure the infection, perhaps she could buy enough time for a cure to be found. 

Perhaps she would be able to save Fukuzawa.

So as Fukuzawa grew sicker, she fought the urge to amputate his limbs to try and stop the infection. She had to wait for it to take hold more, if she wanted the best chance at defeating it, no matter how much it pained her to do so. It was hard, when the flesh began to melt off his bones, and he gave into the pain he was feeling despite the heavy amount painkillers she supplied.

And finally, the time came for her to use her ability.

It was the first, and only, time she did it, and she watched Fukuzawa's chest fall still, butterflies filling the room, apprehension filling her body as she waited for it to restart. And right where he'd been sitting the entire time, Ranpo sat, clutching Fukuzawa's hand within his own, squeezing tight. His head was ducked so she couldn't see what kind of face he was making, but she could see his lips moving, recognising the words as a prayer—so unlike Ranpo with his usually uncaring nature towards anything spiritual. But dire situations brought out the desperation in even the strongest of people, and Ranpo surely must've reached his limit by now.

Time ticked by, and still, Fukuzawa's chest remained still. 

And then, just as she was about to shatter, she saw it. A breath.

A singular breath.

It was weak and shaky, but it was there, and Yosano dove straight into doctor mode, taking Fukuzawa's vitals, and making sure that he had enough nutrients going into him to keep his body as strong as possible. She didn’t dare believe it, didn’t dare hope in case it was just a lie. But as the day passed by, those breaths grew stronger, and by evening, against the odds of everyone else they’d already lost, Fukuzawa opened his eyes.

"Did you cure it?" Fukuzawa asked. He was tired. Strained. Barely conscious, yet there was pride in his eyes.

"I'm not sure." Yosano admitted, ducking her head. "We'll just have to wait and see. Atsushi regenerated his wounds, but... they would reappear days later."

"Yeah, but Atsushi didn't have your healing ability." Ranpo huffed, looking more alive now that Fukuzawa was awake and talking. Yosano reckoned that if he could’ve, Ranpo would’ve crawled onto the bed right that instant. "You've cured it, I just know it. President's gonna be the first one to fight this stupid infection off, just you watch."

Yosano sincerely hoped that Ranpo was right.

And as the days passed, with Fukuzawa appearing to grow stronger, Yosano's hope began to return, along with a little optimism. She’d cured it. Every day, she checked Fukuzawa over, and every day, there were no wounds. But still, she held her breath, just in case it was false hope, and the infection was simply waiting to make a comeback. 

She’d cured it.

A week passed by with no changes, just growth, and Fukuzawa was able to get out of bed, taking his first steps since becoming infected. And this time, she cried. Because she'd done it. She’d cured it—she'd cured the infection, and all she'd had to do was use the ability that she'd once despised. Fukuzawa held her close, whispering quiet words of reassurance, telling her that he was proud of her perseverance. After that, she pulled away, smiling, and Ranpo took her place, throwing himself at the President and finally unleashing his own tears that he'd been holding back for months.

"I'm going to grab some food from downstairs. If you can eat something, I'll contact the hospital and tell them that I've managed to cure it." Yosano said, leaving Fukuzawa and Ranpo alone in the infirmary as she made her way to the storage area, where they'd stocked up on food before needing to isolate—thanks to Atsushi. She couldn't help but feel excited, moving with a skip in her step. Even though she was still upset at not being able to save her friends and co-workers, being able to save Fukuzawa had given her hope. There was no doubt in her mind that she would miss them for as long as she lived. All of them had left an impact on her, however long or short they'd been in her life for. Her heart clenched, but she forced the feeling away. There would be time to mourn after they'd stopped the infection running rampant.

And mourn she would.

She'd grabbed a decent amount of food, enough to host a small party that she believed was well deserved after everything they’d been through, and was just heading up the stairs when she heard a loud crash, and her heart stopped dead in its tracks.

"YOSANO!"

Like lightning, Yosano bolted up the stairs, the food in her hands falling to the floor, but she didn't care. That'd been Ranpo's voice, and he'd sounded terrified. Ranpo was never scared, never fearful, never terrified, which was how she knew it was bad. Yosano threw open the main door to the Agency, and dashed over to the infirmary, grateful that she'd left that door open when she'd left.

And then froze.

Red. That was all she could see. There was so much of it over the floor, over everything, that you almost wouldn't believe that the room had once been white. And in amongst the red, Yosano saw a petrified green; Ranpo, covered in more blood than she'd ever seen on him before. There was so much of it that she felt nauseous, a hand coming to cover her mouth, her arm wrapping around her stomach. Ranpo was holding onto something—no, someone.

Fukuzawa.

She hadn’t cured it.

"He just—" Ranpo tried to say, only to choke on his words. He raised a hand and stared at the blood, shocked. Whatever had happened had been fast, too fast for his genius brain to comprehend. Yosano could see it kicking into gear though, and she wanted to cry. "I don't know what happened—he was talking, and then—and then he was on the ground."

Yosano threw herself onto her knees beside the two of them, jamming her hand into Fukuzawa's neck only to recoil as the flesh sunk beneath her touch. What...?

Now that she was close enough, she could see that the wounds she'd cured had returned, but worse than before. Fukuzawa’s hands were nothing but bone, the skin and muscle sliding off his skeleton even in death. Where his skin remained, it was soft, sinking in places almost as if the elder’s insides were liquifying themselves. Where Ranpo clutched at his mentor, his hands left bruising imprints—although upon closer inspection, Yosano saw that the skin had actually broken, and was literally falling off around her friend’s grip.

And his face—his face—

It was cracked and split all over, blood and what looked to be brain matter oozing out of the cracks.

Fukuzawa was dead before he'd even hit the ground.

"I'm sorry, Ranpo, I'm so sorry." Yosano sobbed, bowing her head. She should've known it was too good to be true, should've known that it wasn't as simple as just using an ability. Why would it ever work that way? It wasn’t like it had worked before for her. And now Fukuzawa was gone, leaving just her and Ranpo as the sole survivors of this cursed infection.

"I'm sorry too." Came the shaky response, and Yosano lifted her head to look at Ranpo in confusion, uncertain as to why he was apologising when there hadn't been anything he could've done in the first place.

But then Ranpo lifted his hand, covered in Fukuzawa's blood, and through that blood, Yosano could see a cut.

A tiny cut, but a cut all the same.

And Yosano's heart shattered.

Please…

… no more.

[gayuu-the-necromancer]

Evil Love Blooming In The Dark Part 1 Jude Jazza ~ Premium END

 ｡⋆｡˚🦋˚｡⋆｡

The man wearing a bowler hat recognized Mr. Jude.

With his arm around my neck and restraining me, he pressed something hard against my temple.

(.......Is that a pistol?)

Jude: "Ha, enjoying there, Kate?"

(If Mr. Jude says.....'I don't care about her, I'm not going to negotiate with you')

(At this moment, I'm will be----)

My whole body almost shakes with fear.

Mr. Jude looked at me like happily.

Jude: "......Haha. That's a nice face. Is it scary? Are you scared?"

Jude: "You want my help?"

(Isn't it obvious....!)

I was too desperate to be able to speak.

Jude: "Okay, bye then."

(........Hey!? Are you not going to help me!? Wait!?)

Man wearing a bowler hat: "I'll let the sweet reunion drama between lovers end here."

Jude: "What a pity. I won't mind if you watch us a little longer."

Mr. Jude shifted his gaze from me to the man, and his amethyst eyes squinted.

Jude: "Looks like you're doing a fine business using our rental warehouse, huh?"

Jude: "If it's just buying and selling guns and other shady stuff that's fine."

Jude: "But didn't we me a contract that you wouldn't buy and sell humans?"

(....Buying and selling humans.....)

Man wearing a bowler hat: "I was hoping you'll let me off the hook there."

Man wearing a bowler hat: "Poor people can be sold for a good price."

Man wearing a bowler hat: "It's good for your pockets and also cleans the dumps from London Harbor, don't you think?"

Jude: ".............."

Man wearing a bowler hat: "You love watching other people's misfortune, right? And you also love money. You'll have no other options other than letting me go, right?"

Man wearing a bowler hat: "If you agree, I'll return your lover unharmed."

(.....In other words, this person was doing human trafficking in the warehouse, he rented from Mr. Jude and thus breaking their contract)

(And now he's threatening Mr. Jude to let it slide)

The arm around my neck, suddenly felt----uncomfortable.

(I don't want to die. But...)

(But that will lead to this person getting away instead of paying for his sins....)

(I absolutely do not want.....that bad aftertaste)

I bite my lips to hold back my fear and looked at Mr. Jude.

I strained my throat to keep my voice from shaking.

Kate: "Mr. Jude. I'll correct...what I said earlier."

Jude: ".........."

Jude: "........Seriously, you're hopeless."

(.......?)

Despite pitying and dismissing me, somehow, the kind smile he was making right now made my heart jump for a moment.

(W-What is...this feeling?)

Jude: "I don't need you telling me what to do, so shut the fuck up."

The smile quickly faded and Mr. Jude stared at the man with cold eyes.

Jude: "Even so, you're negotiating from a very high place."

Jude: "I see you have some misconceptions about me, so I'm correcting them."

Jude: "First. You're right about the fact that I love others' misfortune and money......but you know what I like the best?"

Jude: "I like making rich people like you, who are sitting on thrones and thinking we're the only ones who are safe, fall in despair."

Man wearing a bowler hat: ".....Ha?"

Immediately after that, gunshots and screams tore through the air in the warehouse.

(W-What the!?)

The guards surrounding the man wearing a bowler hat flop down in the darkness.

Man wearing a bowler hat: "W-What the hell!?"

Taking advantage of the upset man, Mr. Jude closes the distance at once and twists up the hand holding the gun.

Jude: "Second. No matter what weakness I may have, when it comes to making contracts, I will not forgive any defaulter."

Man wearing a bowler hat: "Nn....!"

Jude: "Third."

Kate: ".....!?"

He roughly pulls me away from the man and hugged me tightly.

Jude: "No matter what decision I make, she will be leaving this place unharmed."

Mr. Jude's knee dug deep into the man's abdomen and the man crumpled to the ground.

(....He saved me again)

He was still holding me close to his chest, and I was trying my best to soothe my raging heartbeat.

(This......This is different. Not because he is saving me or hugging me)

(I'm just nervous because I was scared....yeah, t-that's why)

While I was making excuses that I don't intent to tell anyone, Mr. Jude pointed the gun at the man.

Jude: "Don't worry. I'm not going to turn you in."

Jude: "Instead, you will be part taking in a rather 'dangerous' research."

Jude: "You will soon get to know the joys of physical labor. Aren't you excited?"

The man, bubbling and convulsing, groaned in agony and fainted.

Jude: "Ellis, take him."

When called out, Ellis emerges from the darkness.

(It was Ellis who shot the guards earlier.....?)

His large hand held a pistol like it was a toy.

Ellis: ".....So, Jude? You are happy, right?"

Jude: "Do I look like I'm happy? You know what, after you send him to the lab, go get your eyes checked as well."

Ellis: "Okay."

Looking a little sad, Ellis drags the man out of the warehouse.

Kate: "....Y-You didn't kill him?"

Jude: "' I accepted this 'mission' on the condition that if I could bring down the organization, I would be responsible for whether the target lives or dies."

(Eh.....)

Jude: "I don't think bastards like him who look down on and exploit people from a safe place should be easily punished by death."

Jude: "If you commit a crime, you must be punished for it. That's how the world works. But what's the point in simply killing him if he doesn't suffer the same hell as those he harassed?"

Kate: "Wait! Wait a second!.....This was a mission!?"

Jude: "Be quiet, you're too loud. So what if this was a mission, huh?"

Kate: "So then that means, you didn't coincidently come here to rescue me when I was accidentally kidnapped........"

Jude: "It wasn't accidental. They knew I was sniffing out their business...."

Jude: "I also knew they'd try something like this if they had a chance."

Jude: "And you were hanging out with me. How can you not be a target?"

Kate: "You knew that.....and still left me alone there...?"

Jude: "Do you have to ask me every time you want to know what I'm talking about?"

Kate: "I could've died you know....!"

Jude: "Don't be silly. I wouldn't let the person, I baited, get killed at least."

(And he calls me a 'bait'....!)

Kate: "You're the worst...."

Jude: "Yes yes and I take great pride in that. Thank you very much."

Mr. Jude lights up a cigarette and leaves the warehouse as if his work here is over.

Not to forget, kicking Mr. Jack away, who was lying on the ground, moaning in pain like the rest of the guards.

..........

Kate: ".......Since my task is to understand you better, may I ask something?"

Kate: "You said you were sending that man to be a subject of research, right? .....What kind of research is it?"

Jude: "You don't have to know about that."

(He said 'dangerous'.....so it could be life-threatening)

(I wonder if the aftereffects of being there will make that man hate Mr. Jude enough to want to kill him again)

(....I frown every time I remember the look in that man's eyes....when he pointed a knife at us in the alley during the day)

(I wouldn't be able to live with that kind of killing intent from.....so many people at all hours of the day)

Kate: "The more you harass people, the more they'll hate you..."

Kate: "Isn't it tormenting to live like that?"

Jude: "Well, that's the price I have to pay for a fun hobby."

Kate: "Is it so much fun that you're willing to risk your own life to make it worth it.....?"

Jude: "......."

Mr. Jude. who was walking in front of me, stopped and turned around at my question.

(....!)

His face comes closer and the tips of our noses almost touch.

Jude: "Can I harass you till you hate me so much you want to kill me, and then we'll see?"

Kate: *gulps*

Jude: "......Hah, just kidding. Did you actually think I would be serious?"

Mr. Jude looked at me with a satisfied smile as I looked back at him in horror. He then took another puff of his cigarette.

Jude: "Seriously though, I don't get you, diligent princess."

(I don't know.....I don't even wanna know him)

(This man is arrogant, ruthless, sadist....)

(But......even though it was Mr. Jude who put me in danger today, he also did protect me)

I really had made a promise to him, without thinking about the malice that would come after....

I would not have made it through the day unscathed if it were not for him.

-----FLASHBACK------

Jude: "Don't make promises so easily, princess. I'll teach you that slowly over the course of a day."

-----FLASHBACK ENDS------

I guess he was, as the saying goes, teaching me the rules of the dark night world I had stepped into.

Perhaps it is because he knows the weight of making promises.

(....I'm extremely reluctant to thank you, but)

Kate: ".........So.......thank you.......for everything....."

Jude: "What's with that discontented 'thank you'? Can't you smile more?"

(This man....!)

Kate: "I have learned the dangers of making promises. Next time, I will be more careful."

He smiles but it was a disciplinary one.

Jude: "Glad to hear."

Laughing coldly, he grabbed my chin roughly.

Kate: "W-What....!?"

Jude: "You were smart enough to keep your promise to Victor and your promise to me."

Jude: "But I saved your life twice today."

Jude: "You owe me twice."

(Mm.....?)

The ruthless amethyst eyes glinted at me bewitchingly.

Like a cunning predator who gifts his prey and also plays with it.

Jude: " I wonder how my cute girlfriend....is going to repay me?"

 ｡⋆｡˚🦋˚｡⋆｡

Story // Bitter End // Epilogue

[luminouslywriting]

Chapter 19 (Mastermind)—MOTA Fic

A/N: We've arrived to some vital bonding things...and next chapter includes a date haha! In other news, I'm wrapping up the story in my docs, so I'm pretty happy about that. As always, let me know what you think!

Christmas 1943, London

Being back in London should have felt like a dream come true.  Ruth had seen enough of misfortune and death during her time at Thorpe Abbotts.  She was well acquainted with disappointment and losing friends at this point.  War was war, after all.  She didn’t get to complain about much, given the fact that she still had all of her immediate family alive and well and her brother was currently with her. 

She wasn’t sure what Harding had been thinking, giving them all a weekend pass to London for the holiday season—and now the three of them were holed up in adjoining hotel rooms and Ruth just felt wildly out of place amidst all of the pilots and everything else that was going on. 

Currently though, there was a small gift exchange between the trio from Brooklyn.  Ruth supposed that her food poisoning of Robert Rosenthal the week prior didn’t count entirely as a Christmas gift or Hanukkah trade-off.  But he hadn’t even figured out that it had been her dessert that had made him sick and truly, she was just annoyed given the kiss that they had publicly shared at the Christmas dance at his request—because clearly they were a couple and needed to show that to people. 

Sitting stiffly in an armchair as Abe ripped open Rosie’s present, Ruth was almost struck with the domesticity of it all.  It almost made her stomach curl up in knots the way that this could be a scene out of Brooklyn itself.  Maybe the power was out back home and they were just at Robby’s.  It wouldn’t have been the first time something like that had happened. 

“Robby, this is such a nice watch!  You didn’t have to—” 

“Yeah well, every man needs a good watch.  And you’re—well, you’re definitely not a kid anymore,” Rosie said, leaning back on his hands with a grin. 

“Despite the illegality of that statement, I’m inclined to agree,” Ruth said with a sigh.  Her gaze flickered onto Robby briefly.  “Thank you for getting him that.” 

“It was no trouble.  He’s a good kid—man—definitely a man now.” 

“Nice save,” Ruth grinned.  “I suppose I should give you my gifts now before you both think I’m a Scrooge or something.” 

“Ooh, me first!” Abe exclaimed. 

Ruth just spared Robby a glance, gesturing at Abe in disbelief.  “And you call that a man?  I don’t think so.” 

“Ruthie!” Abe urged. 

A small smile crossed her features and she handed him a carefully wrapped box.  She was always the most meticulous wrapper of presents, needing every corner to be just so carefully done.  Abe tore through her hard work in seconds, opening up the box to reveal a small parcel of things. 

Inside the box lay a scarf, a pair of Jump Wings, a small picture of him and Mary from when they were kids, and some chocolate.  “Aww, Ruthie—this is—” Abe could barely bring himself to finish the sentence. 

“Well the scarf is for when you get cold.  The Jump Wings were a gift from a Colonel to me after I helped him with a few cases—I thought you could use a good luck charm for when you’re going up in the air.  I want you to actually write a letter to Mary so this is my way of guilting you into doing that.  And the chocolate is because I know you’re a growing boy.” 

She had no sooner finished her sentence when her brother was flinging his arms around her tightly.  For just a moment, Ruth was taken aback by the sudden physical contact of another human being touching her.  And then she relaxed into the hug.  Because this was Abe, this was her boy, and he meant the whole world to her. 

“I do love you very much, even if I don’t say it very often,” Ruth murmured in his ear. 

Abe broke away from the hug, eyes positively shining.  “I love you too, Ruthie.” 

Robby had a pensive look on his face as he glanced between the two siblings.  For a fraction of a second, he had been tempted to tease Ruth about the fact that she had actually said the dreaded ‘l word’.  But this didn’t feel like the right time for teasing, not here and now.  That felt cruelly out of the spirit of the season. 

For a second there, he actually wondered if Ruth would be a more likable person if she were like this all of the time.  The thought made him shudder. 

“And this is for you,” Ruth stated dryly, handing him over a small box. 

“It’s not poisoned is it?” 

“Well I’m not your wife, so no.” 

“Funny,” Robby replied, suspiciously glancing at the small box before opening it.  There was a navy tie that rested inside and atop the tie was a very old pen—one that was immediately familiar to him.  “A dried out pen?” He choked out, eyes going wide at her. 

“Oh come on, I said I’d return it at some point, didn’t I?” Ruth questioned smugly. 

“A pen?” Abe asked, gaze flickering between the two of them in confusion. 

“Miss Congeniality over here broke a pen before class one day and I lent her this one,” Robby said, holding up the pen. 

“I got 100 on the test, so clearly the pen worked wonders.  I’m giving it back so that you have a good luck charm when you go up in the air.” 

“That’s—” 

“Don’t get patronizing there, dear.” 

Robby let out a huff.  “I was going to say that it was oddly sentimental of you.” 

“I have my moments of sentimentality, contrary to popular belief,” Ruth replied lightly.  

“And the tie?” 

“I don’t like the ugly beige tie on you.  It does nothing for your eyes.  If you’re going to be my fake boyfriend, know what colors you look good in,” Ruth stated smugly.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“How the hell do you put up with the snoring?” Rosie questioned, looking up from his own letters and gazing at Ruth. 

Ruth seemed unbothered by Abe’s strong sense of snoring that kept everyone else awake.  She just continued to pen her letters.  “Grow up with two sisters who snore and you share a room, you get used to this sort of thing,” she answered.  

“Sometimes I forget how many people are always at your house.” 

“Yeah me too,” Ruth set aside her paper, glancing over at Abe.  “Though it’s emptier now since he’s here, I’m sure.  Is uh—is Daniel doing alright?” 

At that, Robby set down his pen and paper and wiped a tired hand over his eyes.  “Yeah.  Last I heard from him, training was going well.” 

“That’s good.  Glad to hear it.” 

“You know you don’t have to do the whole small talk thing with me.” 

“It’s not small talk.  I’ve known your family forever,” Ruth said with a shrug.  “Your family might be the only other family I trust wholeheartedly.  Even if you are included in that.” 

“I didn’t know you cared that much.” 

“Well I prefer the term heinous bitch, but your mother is an angel and your father is practically a saint.  I would be plain crazy not to respect them or like them.” 

“Damn, that might be the nicest thing you’ve said in a long time.” 

“I do have my moments,” Ruth said with a small smile.  “Few and far between, but they’re there.” 

A beat of silence between the two of them.  He reclined into his chair, watching the snowfall outside.  “Why’d you keep the pen?” 

“Sentimentality.” 

“Bullshit.”

“Wow, that sorta language—what would your mother say?” Ruth grinned, gaze flicking back onto the floor.  Another beat of silence and then a light sigh.  “I did mean to give the pen back to you.  Things just got—busy?  I don’t know.  I got committed to the pen and giving it back meant that I had to be nice to you, so I wasn’t really feeling that at the time.” 

“But you kept it.  All these years.  And it doesn’t even have ink.” 

“No I suppose it doesn’t.  But—despite my tendency towards being mean, I do appreciate kindness in this world.  It’s a rare thing these days.” 

“Well for now, truce?” 

Ruth thought about the laxatives in the cake she had made, the jabs and comfortability that she had with Robby Rosenthal.  Being nice meant that you had the capability of hurting one another.  But if the expectation was already there, then there was nothing that could possibly disappoint her. 

So she just threw her head back and gave a snort.  “Not on your life, Rosenthal.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, on December 24th—Ruth received an urgent call from someone down in Central London.  It was from one of the offices dealing with the refugees that were flooding into England and had been there for a while. While she wasn’t sure why she had been summoned there and didn’t know what she would find, Ruth found it prudent to be there quickly. 

Dressing in a navy pantsuit and adjusting her collar in the car, Ruth glanced over at the office.  “Are you sure you want us waiting in the car?” Abe popped his head into the front seat, glancing between Rosie and Ruth. 

“They asked for me specifically, so yes.” 

“Well what if it’s some sort of German spy that wants to kill you?” Abe added. 

At that, both Ruth and Rosie’s gazes turned on him in a deadpan.  “This isn’t a spy novel and I think that if anyone tries anything, I’ll just beat them with my purse,” Ruth added for good measure.  “I’ll be back soon.” 

With that, Ruth hurried into the building.  After checking in, she was led down a hallway and Ruth was pulled aside by an aide.  “I don’t know if anyone’s told you why you’re here—” 

“Not really, no,” Ruth admitted.  “Is this on official business for the JAG-Corp?” 

“Personal, I’m afraid.  Two months ago, a young girl and a family came into London.  She wasn’t their daughter but they had been traveling for some time and she looked similar enough to them that it wasn’t a problem.  They’re from Belgium.” 

“A young girl?” Ruth questioned, gaze falling on the doorway that lay just beyond the woman. 

“She says her name is Liesel Braun and the only family she has left is the Sharpe’s from Brooklyn, New York.  Everything checked out and seeing as how you’re the only one here in London, we found it best to contact you.” 

Almost immediately, Ruth’s heart sunk in her chest.  Liesel was her younger cousin—her mother’s sister had married Otto Braun some years ago and they had been part of the family that had went back to Germany when their grandparents fell ill.  If Liesel was here and alone—

“Yes, I’m glad you did,” Ruth murmured.  “Will you take me in?” 

“Of course.  Though I should warn you, she’s not said a word the entire time she’s been here.  Silent as a mouse, that one.” 

All of those words were just background noise to Ruth as she followed the woman into the next room.  And sitting there with dull and mousy brown hair, thin as a stick and hollowed out cheeks, was her thirteen year-old cousin Liesel. 

For a moment, Ruth wasn’t sure what to do or what to say.  She recognized her from the pictures that her mother had—before she had lost contact with that entire side of her family.  Ruth just stood there for a moment, purse in hand and gaze on the girl.  “Liesel?” Ruth finally said in a soft tone.  “I’m Ruth, I’m not sure if you remember me, but I’m Adaline’s oldest—” 

Liesel moved as quick as a shadow and the next thing Ruth knew, Liesel was clinging to her like she was a lifeline.  And all Ruth could do was hold the young girl and try not to let her own tears spill from her eyes.  

“It’s alright.  I’m here now.  I’ve got you,” Ruth murmured.  “You’re safe.” 

But even as she said it, she felt the hollowness of her words—this was war.  And nowhere was safe. Not now.  Not until it would all be over. 

[x-digitaldollhouse-x]

"Just Julia" Contestant Audition: Charlie McGuire

Adventurous ❄️ Loyal ❄️ Clumsy ❄️ Loves Outdoors ❄️ Cat Lover

Charlie McGuire (he/they/she) was born to extremely overprotective helicopter parents in the heart of San Myshuno. He often felt trapped in a bubble, rarely allowed to play sports, have sleepovers, or really much of anything that a kid would like to do. Their concerns weren't for nothing-- Charlie was always a klutz, and it seemed like he could end up bruised from just laying in bed. But how was he supposed to learn and grow from inside a small apartment? Trapped and suffocated amongst the skyscrapers and light pollution, he longed for something different.

Hitting young adulthood, Charlie moved out as fast as he could, forgoing university to travel and taking up odd jobs to fund his adventures. For a long time, he was technically homeless, going to a new unfamiliar land and finding temporary lodging before leaving a few weeks later to do it all over again. He learned new languages, tried different foods, met sims all around the world, explored his gender identity and sexuality, partied a bit, and fell in love with extreme sports. Due to him not staying anywhere for long, he only had a few flings here and there, and never any serious relationships. However, he cherishes every connection he makes, and is very loyal to the people he befriends, even if he's not with them in person.

It wasn't all fun and games, though; true to his clumsy nature, Charlie got himself in trouble frequently with injuries and mishaps. Bone breaks, hypothermia, getting drained by a vampire, a werewolf encounter that left him with scars, and a bad hostel stay involving toxic mold were just some of misfortunes he encountered. However, an incident about two years ago put a damper on his adventurous spirit; a trip to the volcano in Sulani left him with a painful burn on his face and a raging fear of fire. He'd never come that close to death before, and the ensuing recovery period became a dark time for Charlie. He decided to find a place in Mt. Komorebi, his favorite place to travel, and became a bit of a recluse for a while. All of a sudden, not only was he self-conscious of his burn scar, but he was hyper-aware of the lines forming on his face, the pain in his body, the gray in his hair... everything suddenly seemed so real. He was only in his late 20's, but his adventuring had put a lot of stress on his body in ways he hadn't realized.

Things started getting better once Charlie sought help for his depression, and slowly, he's been getting back into living life. He hasn't left Mt. Komorebi yet, but he's rediscovered his love of skiing, snowboarding, and rock climbing, and has been enjoying himself at all the local festivals. He's still recovering and dealing with his chronic pain, but he finally feels somewhat back to his old self. Now, he's ready to confront his most challenging adventure ever: reality TV. At 28 (but feeling much older), Charlie is interested in the idea of finding love and living a life a bit more stable. And what more adventurous and wild way to do it than on television? He still undoubtedly wants to travel a bit and experience new things, but the idea of a nice home to return to and someone by his side sounds pretty damn good.

Charlie has never heard of Julia. He doesn't even realize she's famous, or rich. Despite exploring the world, he's kinda been living under a rock for a while and social media is NOT his thing. The name "Feng" might ring a bell when he hears it, given his San My upbringing, but even back when he lived there, he didn't pay much attention to politics and whatnot. If Julia wants somebody who doesn't care about her money, Charlie's the sim for the job-- as long as Julia doesn't care a whole lot about his finances, since his bank balance right now is... yikes. Don't worry, though, he's looking for a steady job, the first one he's ever really had. He prefers not to cook, due to the fire hazard, but he'll make up for it in other ways. Charlie hasn't partied or hooked up with anyone in a very long time, but rest assured, he remembers how to do it. So for a loyal partner who'll try anything at least once, book a trip with Charlie!

(Charlie is my submission for the Just Julia bachelorette challenge by @plumbewb ! Private DL files will be shared if chosen :] )

((UPDATE: I changed some cc around so I'd be happier with him, the only problem is that the only good burn cc I could find goes over the eyebrows and sideburns aaaaah. Anyway, this is what he looks like now:))

[alenchikova]

Slightly redoing GenGrievous wives

Aaand i'm here to tell somthing about 'em heh

Grievous' wives:

1. Lediva jai ShekShee - First wife, older than Grievous by 10 years. A woman of unhappy life and destiny. Collected and calm, does not panic in dire situations. She was responsible for the quick and efficient evacuation of her clan to the mountains, where the Hacks would not go. But despite this, she was unable to save her daughter from the clutches of the enemy. Lediva is quite harsh in her character, after losing her child she became even more harsh and unsettled. Eventually left the clan, becoming a mercenary. She joined the growing Grievous Khaganate. Lediva was good at logistics, for which she was noticed by Grievous. Over time, the two became close. Lediva has two children with Grievous. The fate of her first daughter is unknown.

2. Sangarta lij Rakkash is the second wife already of Grievous. Tribal Khan from the Grendaju territory (where Ronderu is from). She killed her mother (the past Khan, leading the tribe to death because of her submission to the Hakam, in a battle for the right to rule the tribe). Her marriage to Grievous was originally a marriage of convenience, with Sangarta receiving military and guianitarian support and Grievous himself a political and military ally. Three children by Grievous.

3. Izurr jai Nari'i is bright, talkative and easy-going. She can make anyone feel at ease. She was the first to find common ground with the withdrawn and traumatised Rarek. Originally just one of the many steppe Kalisha who had joined their tribes and families to Grievous. Izurr had no idea what Grievous looked like without his mask and customary Khagan robes, and was very surprised to find out who she interacted with so nicely and often. In one of their meetings, Grievous said that Izurr looked like Ronderu to him. He took offence at this, saying that he saw her as a long dead friend rather than Izurr herself. They got into a fight, but Izurr was the first to make up, because she's emotional and hot-tempered. at times, but she's also resilient. This moment took their relationship to a new, much more trusting and intimate level. Four children by Grievous. Isurr loves children, as she grew up in a large and close-knit family.

4. Mikir Inariuz is mistrustful, stubborn and harsh, and does not get along well with people. Her family was killed by the Huks, only Mikir and her younger brother escaped. She blames herself for the death of her family and hates herself for her weakness (she fled with her brother rather than stay to protect her tribe and family; she was 15 full years old at the time of their deaths), her brother will later become her right-hand man. Head of a small mercenary clan. At the time of her meeting with Grievous, she was working under the Khan Irrijar. Her relationship with Grievous began a few years after they met. Mikir has three children with Grievous. Before that, there were two aborted pregnancies and three children by him who died giving birth. This finally broke her completely. Mikir is very hyper-patient with her children and those close to her because of her fear of loss. Takes it upon herself to take care of all the clan members to feel useful and cope with the pain of loss.

5. Rigraz san Marrak - born as jai Emezzez. She is the adopted daughter of Ursaddi san Marrak. Rigraz tries not to remember her birth father. Rigraz's mother died of dystocia (folliculostasis, in simple language - obstruction of the oviducts, as a consequence of necrosis and death) after the birth of her only daughter, and Rigraz's father was disturbed by grief. He sincerely believed that the albino girl was responsible for her mother's death and other misfortunes, that she was cursed. He tried to "cure" the curse by abusing the child in every possible way. For example, he carved the clan symbol of a passing Kalish into her face, convinced that this would drive the demons out of Rigraz. Once he sicced a mewmuu pup on her, Rigraz miraculously survived. His final atrocity was an attempt to burn his daughter alive, which was foiled by Ursaddi, who was passing by with his troop. Ursaddi adopted Rigraz, gave her his clan and territorial name, and did much to help the girl overcome and essentially forget her past life. In character, Rigraz is mean, rude, stubborn, and fierce. She first spotted Grievous as a potentially interesting man and began matchmaking with him out of boredom. Grievous accepted her advances. Rigraz often argues and vouchsafes with other wives, places no value on anyone else's seniority and pulls the blanket over herself. Has 5 children with Grievous, this was her first pregnancy. Surprisingly good and caring mother, very fiercely protective of her children and family. The only opinions she listens to are her non-blood father and Grievous.

6. Shimirrailu is a very spiritual and devout woman in a good way. A priest by work and vocation. Ever since she was a child, she has dreamed of becoming a Spiritual Leader. Her parents insisted that the girl undergo her initiation of her first hunt and learn how to handle various weapons. And afterwards, if she didn't change her mind, Shimirrailu would be free to become a Spiritual Leader or whatever. Shimirrailu is calm and patient in nature, but that doesn't mean you can lord it over her or disregard her opinions. Her meeting with Grievous took place during her losing battle against a superior Huk force. Shimirrailu has five children with Grievous.

7. Rarek Kresh is the protagonist in my works. Tough, harsh and cold. Shuns outsiders, but at the same time is very attached to her family, soft and kind to them. Sensitive to the Force, trained by her long dead ghost parents on both sides of the Force. Four years younger than Grievous, was married before him and had a child. Does not know or have met any living blood relatives. At the time she met Grievous, she was a mercenary. No children in common. Survived capture by the Huks and further slavery. Hailed as one of the most brutal pirate admirals of our time. Became involved in the Separatist movement after learning of a Kaleesh named Grievous. Hates the Sith for what they did to her family. Jedi too. Rarek is one of the most evil and crippled members of that family. Coming from a nomadic tribe.

8. Suanim san Deidarri - descendant of pirates settled on Kalee, hacker and head of a guerrilla group of former slaves, zanimpnym stealthy rescue of kin and pocketing hack equipment. She's led the Grievous Khaganate into major Huk bases several times. At one extremely difficult moment for her rebel cell (Suanim is not a professional hacker and "ice pick", as well as her squad are not special forces, they are quite few, no more than 200 people in total, and sooner or later more technically advanced hacks would have figured them out, which happened) Suanim came to Grievous with an offer that could not be refused - she offered to unite their forces for the war against a common enemy. Grievous agreed. Suanim worked with him a couple of years before Grievous married Rigraz and Shimirailu, but became his wife much later. In character, she is a cunning, wicked-eyed and very self-aware woman who will do anything for the well-being of those she considers her own. Three children by Grievous.

9. Hariza Varrani, a pirate by birth, ended up on Kali in a most incongruous way. Fleeing from another raid, she came out of hyperspace near Kalee, where Grievous's VCS forced her to land. The Khaganate needed ships for the war with the Huks, and how they would get those ships was immaterial. Hariza wasn't about to give away her honestly earned ship to someone unknown, but forces weren't on her side. So she made a risky but effective deal - she would give the ship to the Khaganate, but in return she would become Grievous' wife (she didn't like him, but the choice was to stay on a foreign planet surrounded by her war-ravaged kin or to become the wife of a strange but respected man who wasn't so bad, and retain the remnants of her independence and some integrity), and Hariza also demanded from Grievous the right to remain the pilot of her ship. Grievous agreed, putting a dozen more of his soldiers on the ship as crew. At first Hariza was not happy with her marriage of convenience, but later grew accustomed and attached to Grievous. She has four children with him. She'd grown roots in their not inconsiderable clan. Grievous called her Koufia, after the snake she resembled in colour. Or RiRi, which the rest of the tribe picked up on. After Martyr's death, Hariza had become her own shadow. Nothing left of the bright, puckish, and angry woman, she died with Grievous. Most of the day she just lay there staring at nothing, remembering the husband she once didn't even want to know. Hariza lived on inertia. One day she just didn't wake up, that night she dreamt of a living Grievous.

10. Mizir san Karraz is a homely, sweet and quiet girl. Mizir's family comes from the outskirts of Kaleela, the named capital of Kalee. Mizir is the eldest of 6 children of the family, very kind and caring, loving to babysit her siblings from a young age. She loves working with fabrics and various jewellery, making up and telling stories. Open and friendly, but also shy around those who seem to be the standard of a warrior. Mizir is extremely mediocre in combat, but that doesn't mean she is helpless or defenseless. Mizir, as well as her siblings, are brightly coloured and rare among Kaleesh, making them desirable prey for hacks. Not all Kaleesh have chosen to fight the invaders, some have chosen to sell their own kin to the Huks for wealth or their own lives. Mizir's parents hid their children in the forests where the Huks would not go. But one day they didn't make it, someone turned them in. Mizir did everything she could to keep her siblings hidden, diverting attention to herself, but she ended up falling into the clutches of the Huks. She was in slavery for a short time and didn't suffer physically (people like Mizir are rare and piece goods, the hacks make sure to keep them safe). She was pulled out, along with other lucky ones, by Grievous and his squad. Mizir was scared shitless and incredibly far from her home, Grievous brought her to his place, not knowing where to put a young, frightened woman unfit for war. Eventually, that's where she stayed, becoming his wife. Almost immediately she fell in love with Grievous. It is Mizir who is in charge of the household and food, helping the other wives with the children. Mizir is an excellent herbalist, and her skills have helped the family and the Kaganate many times when medical supplies have been interrupted. Mizir has one daughter by Grievous. She and her daughter have managed to keep the memory of Grievous and his not-dying-in-a-bacta-camera alive. By my headcanons, Grievous' wives and children had their memories of his survival erased to keep them out of the wrong places.

[bellagrimfox]

Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Headcanons/Ideas for Epic Mickey

Headcanons

Oswald often gloats about how he got an appearance in Disneyland/world. Until he remembers some of the kids mistaking him for Mickey.

He hates being called old despite being made years before Mickey. (thanks @jakeneutron and your awesome interpretation of Oswald)

Oswald was responsible for naming all of their rabbit kids, but he'd always forget who's who since there's 420 of them. (I feel like this one is obvious but I thought it'd be nice to say it)

Oswald gets paranoid about his foot being stolen or cut off, to a point where he puts an extra blanket around his lucky left foot.

Oswald never rubs his right foot since it's cursed with bad luck, though his misfortune isn't often the foot's fault and if it is, it's usually someone mistaking it for his lucky foot or by complete accident.

Oswald has a huge stigma against wolves and foxes. As for dogs, he hates rabbit hunting breeds but is overall ok with them. Fortunately for Mickey, Pluto is one of the few dogs he likes.

Oswald originally was terrified of having kids (Reference to Poor Papa short), though he very quickly got over that fear once he saw his first child.

Oswald has a small interest in lost media, mostly preserving and finding cartoons long forgotten.

Fanny was Oswald's first wife and the one he had children with. She left him around the time the Bunny Children were born. Oswald remembers the reason, though he won't share that with anyone other than Ortensia.

Ideas

Let's start with mechanic ideas before we get into rewrite territories.

His remote weapon could function differently but in a way that perfectly mirrors Mickey's paintbrush. To do this, let's look back at what Mickey can do.

The paint allows Mickey to create and reform enemies, thinner is pretty much the opposite. Using this fact and the original remote mechanic in the sequel, let's see if we can combine them together.

Electricity

His original attacks are still the same with being able to stun enemies and effect technology. However, in the rewrite, this moveset is basically the Paint counterpart.

Now this is where the new stuff happens. His Thinner attacks are based off plasma.

Consider this image as a reference for how his remote would look like when in Thinner/Plasma mode.

Anyways, Plasma mode can kill Blotlings and similar enemies and damage technology. For example, when you use Plasma on fireworks, instead of just igniting them, they explode into a ball of fire that can destroy walls and anything else nearby.

Corruption

Consider this a part 2 of the Plasma mode idea. Reprogramming works differently when using Plasma. Whenever you fire a beam of Plasma on an unarmored Beetleworx, you will end up corrupting them which will turn them into violent drones. As for switches, they will malfunction and break, making them unstable throughout the entire playthrough.

Bonus Mechanic

When Oswald is on very low health, you can use his lucky rabbit foot to get a random beneficial effect such as healing or extra damage. Just note that you can only use one rabbit foot per level and it doesn't work on bosses.

SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT!! IF YOU HAVEN'T PLAYED OR SEEN THE GAME, PLEASE DON'T READ THIS PART!!!

Epic Mickey Story Rewrites

Note: I haven't played the original game yet so this is going to be based off what I've seen and read from the wikies.

In my rewrite, events in the game change in content and story based on if you've used the Paint or Thinner as the main weapon. That's just the summary but the worldbuilding post will go deep into it so please remember this for future posts.

First, the neutral path, Oswald follows the same personality and attitude towards Mickey like in the game. Though I'd add some moments of character development with extra cutscenes. These scenes would be slightly altered depending on the Paint and Thinner path but would be pretty much the same regardless of which path you take.

For example, I came up with a scene where Oswald wakes up in the middle of the night and he goes to where Mickey is sleeping. In this moment, Oswald is able to snatch the paintbrush and is about to use it on Mickey to steal his heart, only for him to not go through with it since Mickey has done so much to help him save Wasteland and stop the Storm Blot. (This is the canon name of the main villain blot. This video best clears up the confusion)

Now for the Thinner path Oswald, he's a lot more aggressive towards you and while he sees it's effective in wiping out the blotlings, he also sees that it's affecting the civilians of Wasteland and calls Mickey out on it often.

Paint path Oswald becomes more friendly and positive to Mickey, regaining the hope that he and Mick can really become brothers and forgetting about stealing his heart.

Now for the big spoilers, the last moments of the game.

I'm very happy to write this part finally.

In the beginning of the second part of the final boss, Gus says this-

In the rewrite, there is an actual time limit for the final boss where you actually have to recover the heart before Oswald gets absorbed. However, this time limit is long on purpose, giving you enough time to defeat the Storm Blot. Of course, both the neutral and thinner path endings don't change much from the original game.

Though, if you did go pass the time limit, you would get a secret pin and a secret non canon end where it's a mirror of the regular ending but Oswald isn't there.

But on the Hero path, a different scene plays out.....

After Mickey frees his heart, it lands into the hands of Oswald who, after some consideration, hands it over to Mickey. Only.....this time, before it could leave, Oswald keeps holding it. When Mickey tries to get closer, a transformation occurs.

Oswald's body becomes an unstable mass of ink and thinner, his mouth replaced with a mess of teeth, his hands replaced with sharp claws.

As for Mickey's heart, it became fused to his chest, covered in an armor of pure thinner, making it sickly green with pulsing veins. In hero mode, the Storm Blot has brought one more trick. The last resort. The final challenge.

The Forgotten (Oz-Blot)