#dum's rules

[bokutone]

your first kiss with osamu feels so weird, you were used to his boldness, his flirty comments, and his touchy hands. so it comes as a bit of a surprise when the only thing you recognize in him is shyness.

he's not sure what to do, he has kissed people before. but it was always meaningless, and with you it's different. it's important. special.

he doesn't want to ruin it but he might be thinking is a little too late for that because confusion is plastered all over your face when he looks at you after that weird kiss. so he panics, you can see it in his eyes, the wave of fear clouding those grey orbs that you like so much disappears as quick as it cames and when you open your moth to question him you're met with a handful of rice shoved into your mouth.

because obviously, one awkward moment wasn't enough. he's so charming, isn't he?

[wandering-muppet]

Jokes on yout buddy bc I read em

Hahaha, I am sorry, and I love you, @mj-spooks ! 🤣😘

[khao1]

maybe boston is just a massive supporter of raymew and he's sabotaging their other relationships to get them back together

[why-are-the-allos-like-this]

"But are you head over heels for THEM?" I mean, if I wasn't I'd be lying

"Are you head over heels" Yeah that's how standing works

[dragproblems]

me and my brother now have an unspoken rule to were if one of us has a fake story, the other one has to play along, no matter how dum it is,

[its-avalon-08]

HAAS!Nico Hulkenberg x wife reader. Doing pr video together with him. Answering fans millions dollar question. Fluff, teasing, banter, kisses, suggestive. Thanks!! :))

uh boo! im back lovelies!

wifey talks (nh27)

✦ pairing - nico hulkenberg x female!wife!reader

✦ genre - all fluff

“Okay, Nico, Y/N—this should be simple. Just answer the fan questions naturally, have fun, and for godsake remember to keep it for godsake PG-13,” the PR manager warned with a pointed look before stepping aside.

Y/N smirked, shifting in her seat beside her husband. “You hear that, darling? PG-13.”

Nico rolled his eyes, already sensing trouble. “That rule is mainly for you.”

The camera started rolling, the familiar Haas logo in the background. A production assistant held up the first card. “Alright, first question—‘What’s a typical day off for you both?’”

Y/N hummed in thought. “Depends on where we are. If we’re home, Nico likes to pretend he’s a professional chef—”

“Excuse me, I actually am a fantastic cook,” Nico interrupted, feigning offense.

Y/N turned to the camera with a knowing look. “He sets off the smoke alarm making toast.”

“Lies.”

“Half-truths,” she corrected with a grin. “But if we’re traveling, we explore, eat good food, and I make him take aesthetic pictures of me.”

“Which take hours,” Nico added dramatically. “She’ll say, ‘Just one more,’ and twenty shots later, we’re still adjusting angles.”

“But you love it,” Y/N pointed out sweetly.

Nico huffed but didn’t argue, which made her beam triumphantly.

The next card was held up. “If you weren’t a driver, what job do you think Nico would have?”

“Oh, easy,” Y/N said. “A male model.”

Nico snorted. “A what?”

“Have you seen your jawline? That face was made for luxury watches and cologne ads,” she teased, trailing a finger along his sharp jaw. “Tag Heuer, if you’re watching, call us.”

Nico caught her hand, pressing a quick kiss to her knuckles. “Flattery will not distract me.”

“Won’t it?” she murmured, raising a brow.

He cleared his throat. “Next question.”

The assistant lifted another card. “Ah, the million-dollar question. ‘Who made the first move?’”

“Oh, this is good,” Y/N said, sitting up excitedly. “Do you want to tell them, or should I?”

Nico sighed. “I will, because I tell the truth.”

“Pffffftttt. Okay liar, I guess we're just making things up now..”

“I asked Y/N out first. Like a gentleman that I very much am.”

Y/N shook her head. “Half-truth. You flirted for weeks and guys just for a little bit of backstory, your guy Nico over here isn't sleek. He was a blushing red mess and wouldn’t actually ask me, so I got tired of waiting and did it myself.”

Nico smirked. “That’s what I wanted truly, for the pretty girl to ask me out. I want that... what do you call it? Ah Princess treatment! A master plan, if you will.”

“More like a cop-out you dum-dum.”

He shrugged. “Either way, I won.”

“Debatable.”

Nico leaned in slightly, voice dropping. “You married me, didn’t you baby?”

Y/N rolled her eyes, but her smile was soft. “Alright, fine. You win this round.”

“Finally.”

The assistant held up another question, but before they could answer, Y/N turned to the camera. “Can we just take a second to appreciate that after all this time, Nico still gets all smug when he wins an argument with me?”

The crew chuckled.

Nico tilted his head. “Because it’s rare.”

Y/N leaned in, whispering just loud enough for the mic to catch. “I let you win.”

He huffed a laugh before tugging her closer, pressing a deep kiss to her lips. “Liar.”

The PR manager groaned. “OH COME ON!! I said PG-13, guys.”

Y/N winked at the camera. “Oops," while going in for a quick peck on his cheek as he blushed.

[vampishnes]

Sanguine Hunger: About Time

Chapter one, Chapter two, Chapter four, Chapter five Pairings: Platonic!Thunderbolts & Fem!Reader, Bob x FemThunderbolts!ExAvenger!Reader Summary: Movie night with the Thunderbolts leads to old memories. Tags: No use of ‘Y/N’. Female reader. Slow burn! Found family, 'slice of life', Hurt/Comfort Warnings: Graphic depictions of a panic attack, vague descriptions of vomiting, references to past trauma. Word count: 2.4k A/N: There is now a chapter count for this work. There will be 10 chapters in total. Thank you for all the love on this; it means the world to me.

The common area couch was large enough to fit all of you, but somehow never felt spacious enough when everyone squeezed together. That was how you found yourself on the floor in front of the couch instead. Your shoulders were crushed between Bob and Walker; your back slumped uncomfortably on Bucky's knee. He was lucky enough to grab a spot on the couch first.

Yelena’s bleached blonde hair obscured your view of the screen slightly. You stifled a sigh; mentioning it started another bickering session.

“What are we watching?” Bucky asked, his leg dug further into you. The remote lay abandoned on the couch’s arm, waiting for someone to claim it. Alexi reached for it before anyone else could grab it.

“Hand it over,” Walker demanded, setting his plate down and lunging across you and Bucky. Alexi yanked the remote away, holding it out of reach. “Please, you’re gonna make us watch some old Russian movie.”

You used one hand to lift Walker’s elbow away from your plate and the other to stuff a bite of food into your mouth. Your left side dug into Bob as John fell further atop you. You hissed in discomfort, your body twisted awkwardly to avoid Walker’s armpit.

“Children, please,” Bucky grumbled, yanking the remote from Alexi’s grasp. “Let’s just see what they have.” Walker reluctantly sat back, dropping his hand from your knee, which he had used as leverage. Bucky flicked through titles with the intensity of someone personally offended by bad movie covers.

“Jesus, can you just pick something?” you spat, dipping your soft taco in sauce. Bucky kicked you in reply, just enough to annoy, not hurt. “Fine. What if we close our eyes and see what we land on?” you suggested, placing your empty plate down. Surprisingly, the room went silent.

“That’s actually not a bad idea,” Yelena said, flopping her head back and covering her eyes. One by one, the rest of the group followed suit, mostly begrudgingly and with heavy sighs.

“Ava, count to ten, then Bucky hits select,” you directed, slapping a hand over your own eyes. Ava began counting, theatrically slow at first, until ten seconds suddenly felt too long. Her voice sped up until—“Now.” A soft click followed, and you opened your eyes to see what fate had chosen.

“About Time,” Bucky announced, his tone confused. The title screen appeared, the Netflix ‘bad-dum’ barely audible over the team’s collective groan.

“No way,” Walker protested, immediately reaching for the remote. Yelena smacked his hand down before he could start another wrestling match.

“Rules are rules, Walker. We agreed to this system.”

“I’ve never seen it,” Bob admitted, his body relaxing beside you. You tilted your head toward him, close enough that your whisper wouldn’t carry.

“Me neither. I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Bob tipped his fries your way with a smile. You grinned and grabbed a handful. “If it’s not, though, it’ll be good to point and laugh at.”

“Shut up,” Ava hushed, surprising you with her sudden interest. “I can’t hear it.” You raised your eyebrows in amusement before settling your eyes on the screen.

As the movie progressed, the team's reactions went from protest to enthusiastic engagement, filled with the occasional chime in from someone asking ‘why doesn’t she just kill him?’ or ‘I hate this man,’ which was immediately met with a unanimous hush. It wasn't until the credits rolled that the trance seemed to break.

Alexi was sniffling, desperately trying to hide his face behind a throw pillow. No one spoke; the room was blanketed in a thick cover of sad tension.

“That was…” Ava began, scratching her head as she tried to think of the right words. Bucky nodded beside her, head settled low.

“Terrible.” Walker finished, his voice trembling despite the clenched effort to steady it. Yelena furrowed her eyebrows upon hearing him, snapping her head around.

“You’re literally crying.”

“There’s something in my eyes.” Walker swiped at his face with a rough, hurried gesture.

“Yeah, tears.” You added, turning to the side to see Walker's reddened cheeks.

You were just as affected; love had never been kind to you. Before the snap, when the Avengers still felt like home, there were more chances. You had been so close to Bucky for the few years you spent together in Wakanda that if Thanos never erased everything you once knew, a fragile almost could’ve bloomed.

Those five years alone transformed you, hollowed you out entirely. You swore never to kill again after the night your powers first manifested. Fate had other plans, and you found yourself covered in blood, clawing animalistically at anything that got in your way: alien gore and sweat sticking to your tainted skin.

Maybe if you had won the battle, you could have justified what you did, who you’d become. Then Bucky crumpled to dust in your arms, and whatever remained of your old self went with him.

You tried to reconcile after the final battle with Thanos. You held Bucky so tightly that your nails dug their own crevices into his skin, carved out where home used to be. But watching Tony, the only father you had left, sacrifice himself for the betterment of the world solidified the truth into you: you were always meant to be this. 

Bile swarmed in your cheeks as the thoughts poured out of you, from the deepest pits you shoved them down. You jolted up, standing shakily like a newborn deer. You placed one foot in front of the other, tiptoeing through the symphony of limbs.

Bob lightly tugged at your arm, and you found yourself leaning into it, but the comfort itself was what terrified you. How easily you could depend on it. How easily it could be taken away. You jerked away with more vigour than intended, immediately regretting it when hurt flickered across Bob's face. How could you explain that you were terrified of the possibility of loss that came with caring?

“You ok?” he asked, his blue eyes piercing into yours. He looked so small on the floor, body huddled into himself, as if trying to curl himself into a tiny ball no one would notice. You nodded, mouth tightly wound together. You stumbled out of the room, hardly noticed by anyone else now that conversations had started again, but you could feel his eyes still following you.

The room spun around you, and blood pounded in your ears. You could feel your heart drumming beneath your ribcage, as if begging to be let out. You gripped tightly at your shirt, hand shaking relentlessly; your heart continued pounding painfully against you. Am I dying? You thought, vision narrowing as you stumbled down the stairs. I must be dying. 

A drop of sweat crept down your spine; the air blew against it, and the clash of heat and cold stung painfully. You didn’t know where you were going, only that you needed to leave. You continued down the empty hallway, hands stumbling for anything to ground yourself. You clutched against the door handle for the bathroom, pushing it in with the rest of your body. You pulled yourself up against the bathroom sink, facing your bitter reflection in the mirror.

Acid crawled up your throat again, and you couldn’t stop the influx of sickness that washed over you, a wave of shame and rot. You could hear his voice in your ears, Tony's voice. You wound your eyes tight; you could almost see the blue hologram playing in front of you, his voice clawing at your skull. 

‘You’re not the monster they made you.’ The thought slipped from your grip as you hurled yourself over the sink, lungs spasming as you heaved, body violently punching each breath from you. Warm tears slipped down your face, creating a rhythmic tapping against the porcelain sink.

Your fingers gripped the edge of the sink, knuckles white. You could taste the faintness of blood and were unsure if it was yours or just the memory of it. A soft knock on the door broke through your thoughts. “Hey,” you tried to respond, but your throat constricted. The tears came faster now, and you pressed your palms against your eyes. Another knock, this one more insistent. “Can I come in?” 

You turned on the sink, letting the cold water shock your system; you splashed your face once, then twice, until the reflection in front of you didn’t look so wrecked. Your eyes were still red, bloodshot. How many times had you seen this face staring back at you? How many nights had you spent washing blood from your hands, wondering if you'd ever be clean again?

“I’m fine,” you said, voice cracking in a telltale quiver. Not even an idiot would believe you. Your knees crumbled from beneath you; you fell down into a squat, using the sink to keep your weight up.

You couldn’t face Bob. You knew he’d see right through you. There was no reply other than silence, a part of you was relieved, but that familiar sting of loneliness nipped at you. Your brain ached, a sharp headache furrowing its way into your skull. You took a deep breath, holding the heavy air in until it burst out of you like a dam. With shaking hands, you quickly tugged the door open.

Bob stood across from you; when he saw you, he didn't crowd you. He just remained there, offering you the choice to come closer. You stood in front of the closed bathroom door, arms crossed. Your legs gave way beneath you, and you slid down the door, crumpling to your knees with a humiliating surrender. 

Bob surged forward, hands outstretched to catch you, but you stopped him with a trembling hand. Unable to lift your head, your body folded in on itself, and you sank further to the floor, the bottom half of your back pressed against the cold bathroom door. “Do you want to talk about it?” He asked, stepping back and slinking back onto the wall in front of you. You shook your head, waving your hand vaguely.

“I’m fine.” You swallowed hard, throwing your head back, resting it against the wall. You felt the steady thrum of your pulse begin to calm. He gave you a closed-mouth smile, one that said, ‘I don’t believe you.’ “I don’t need your pity.” You spat, rolling your eyes. You pushed your hand against your forehead, trying to will the headache away.

“It’s not pity.” The words came slowly. “I’m not good at this. Saying the right thing, finding the right words.” He took a shaky breath. “But you, you’ve been there for me, even when I hurt you. You still chose to save me, so let me do this. Let me care.” His words lay heavy between you, a desperate plea—no, a vow.

“It’s stupid.” The silence stretched, your hands trembling as you pressed them firmly into your lap.

“It’s not stupid,” Bob said gently. “It’s not stupid if it hurts.” You let out a hollow laugh.

“That’s the problem, isn’t it? I’m not supposed to be hurt. I’m supposed to be stronger than this. I’ve been alive for a century, but I can’t handle a stupid movie?” Bob watched you with those gentle eyes of his, peeling back every lie you’d told.

“It wasn’t about the movie, was it?”

“Tony. It made me think of Tony.” The name felt foreign on your tongue. “And Bucky. And everything I lost. Everyone.” Bob nodded, giving you the space to continue. “That whole time during the Snap, I…” Your voice cracked, and you cleared your throat. “I became someone I swore I’d never be again. I killed, Bob. I killed so many. I hunted them down like animals.” Bob’s gaze didn’t waver.

“You were lost.”

“Stop,” you shook your head, words tearing out of you. “No. I had a choice. I could have stayed with the Avengers. I could have helped people. But I was so angry, so empty.” You ran a trembling hand through your hair.

Your fingernails dug into your palms, anchoring you to the present as the past threatened to drag you under. Your jaw ached from clenching it so tightly. Bob shifted his weight, the soft rustle of fabric against the wall echoing in the empty corridor. His patience was another form of torture, giving you time to reveal the inhumanity hiding beneath your skin. You shut your eyes. Faces flickered. Strangers. People you’d ended because Valentina pointed and said guilty. Because you’d stopped asking why.

“I mean… we all suck.” Bob said, voice low. Your eyes snapped to his. “But we’re trying.” The hallway light flickered above, casting shadows across his face.

You’d seen it personally: his regrets, his past, all the cruel truths that made him who he was now. You could still feel the way his skin felt gripping tightly on your throat, how the floor felt as your body collapsed on it. Now those same hands dried the dishes beside you, offered you comfort and warmth when you needed it most.

Those hands weren’t the Sentry’s, nor were they the Void’s. They were Bob’s, cracked and scarred. Just like the rest of you were.

You’d all killed; none of you denied it. None of you had the luxury of pretending to be anything other than what you were: broken things trying to be better. You both sat in comfortable silence, the Tower quiet around you except for the distant sounds of the team still gathered in the common area. “We should go back,” you said, though you made no move to stand.

“We could,” Bob agreed, equally still. Somewhere above, a muffled crash echoed. “Or we could just… not.” Another beat of silence passed before you spoke again.

“We’re starting the garden.” He hummed, gaze drifting to the dust swirling in a sunbeam. “Is there anything else you wanted to do?” Bob thought for a moment.

“Yeah.” He admitted, a small smirk flickering. “I’ve never been camping. I’ve been homeless, though, so yeah… I’d probably hate it.”

“Glamping, then?” You offered. “Or a remote cabin, make it a bonding exercise with the rest of the team.”

“That sounds amazing, but we’d never have the time.” He snorted, but his eyes softened.

“You’d be surprised.” You pushed yourself up from the floor, offering a hand to help Bob. He took it, his grip solid and warm. For a heartbeat longer than necessary, you held on, feeling the rough calluses of his palm against yours.

[maxmemer]

Take it as a compliment it means you're smart enough to know all the rules without having to check

[bnnysweets]

ADD MORE LOVE

abby x doctor!reader

author’s note: english is not my first language. i had so fun writing this one, i love love love jerry.

warnings: tlou au. jerry is alive (🎆). abby and reader were scared of his reaction to their relationship. jerry is just a caring father. reader and abby are two little loving birds. reader is called babe and kid. fluff and a lot of kissing!

before the outbreak you were in med school but after everything, you ended up working as a doctor at the medical section in the stadium. jerry taught you almost all you know, he always says to everyone that asks about you how you are so smart and kind, your relationship with him is one of the most important things to you, he is more than a professor or your boss, he is a friend, a safe place. when you were at you lowest he helped you, saying that you had a potential regardless everything had done wrong, he showed you how to save live people’s lives but he saved yours.

so when you and abby started to date, you had only one rule: jerry CAN’T know about, at least not until you two are ready to tell him. but didn’t worked, he knew you and his daughter very well. abby had just arrived from a rough patrol, they went to a new area filled to the brim with infected, the ones in further states, abby and manny counted 5 bloaters. so she was siting on a old hospital bed while you cleaned the wound on her shoulder, you were in a separate section, only you two there, “this’s a pretty deep one, babe, i think is gonna need stitches.” you said and she winced with the burn of the alcohol, “i don’t feel nothing.” she said confidently, “maybe is because your adrenaline still high.” you said rolling your eyes at her, “or maybe is because my girlfriend has the gentlest hands.” you laughed and looked at her, even sitting she was taller than you, “i gonna grab the needle.”

when you were done with her arm you kissed the wound and she hugged your waist, you kissed her forehead, “i missed you.” you said softly, “me too babe, me too.” you cupped her cheek and kissed her, softly, sweetly, without any hurry. you two separated when you heard the curtains open, “hi kid, did u see abby? nora said she already arrived but i didn’t find her-“ abby was holding a smile and you pretending to search for something on the shelf, he could read the situation very clearly but chose to say nothing. “hey abs, are you okay?” he said walking to her, “yeah, only needed a few stitches.” she pointed to her shoulder, he took a look at your work “this is one of the best stitches works i’ve seen.” he said and you walked closer them, “i learned from the best.” you said and he put his arm around your back.

later, you and abby were at her dorm, cuddling on her bed, sharing lazy kisses. it was a piece of heaven in hell, “i” kiss. “missed” kiss. “you” kiss. “so much” kiss. “i missed you too babe.” she said between giggles, “but now you are all mine.” she said singing and hugging your body closer to hers. you two stayed like this, glued together for a while. and suddenly you heard three knocks at the door, typically of jerry, you tried to get up but abby grabbed you harder “stay.” and you trying to get out of her embrace, “abby! let me go, you dad is here.” you shouted whispering and that woke her but it was a little late. you just heard jerry’s voice saying “i’m coming!” you heard the door open, “abby, my dear, how’s your shoul-“ and he sees. he sees you and abby on the same bed hugging each other “oh sorry!” he said and rushed to the door, “dad! wait! this’s nothing what lo-” and you two were left with a loud “dum” of the door. “i told you.” you said trying to get up but abby grabbed you, “screw it.” she said positioning you on top of her and kissing you. “you’re a pain in the ass abigail.”

after the little accident, you were avoiding jerry. every single time he would try to approach you, you went away. so he made the easy choice: talk to abby. so this time, when abby came back from a patrol, he made sure you were busy enough to don’t even see abby coming.

jerry and abby were talking while cleaning his dorm, when the silence took over he addressed the elephant in the room: “so… what’s going on between my girls?” abby swallowed hard and looked at him, making a fake confusion face. “oh you know what i’m talking ’bout. you and y/n.” she took a deep breath “i’m sorry, i know you really like owen and everything but i don’t think i like him, to be honest i don’t like men at all, and i understand if you’re mad at me but i really love her, and i want her, even if you don’t wanna us together, even if you don’t accept us, we’ll still be together, we’re dating. i love you dad, and i respect you but-” abby stopped her rambling when jerry started to laugh, “i don’t give a damn if you’re a lesbian, sweetheart.” “no?!” she said, surprised. “of course no, i love you no matter what. but i’m mad you didn’t told me you were dating her, i love this girl. she’s the best decision you could make.”, he hugged her shoulder, “yeah, i know, these last three months have been the best ones.” “you been hiding from me for three months? oh my god.” he smacked her arm playfully and she pushed him but he grabbed her hand and pulled her for a proper hug, “i love you, unconditionally. and fuck owen.”

later in that day, during the dinner, you and abby were sitting together, it was the first time that you actually managed to be with her. you were talking, without any worry in the world when jerry sat across the table, you were about to get up but abby held you, “wait.” she said softly, but you couldn’t meet his eyes, embarrassed, so you just kept looking down when he took your hand, “hey, look at me. i’m not mad, kid.” you looked up and he continued, “i don’t see you any less because you like girls, i couldn’t give a less fuck about this. i love you, kid, really. doesn’t need to be all embarrassed from me, it’s just me.” he said and got up, walking towards you. you got up and hugged him, tightly, “i love you jerry.” you said while a fat glob ran out of your eye, “i love you more kid.” he said and kissed the top of your head, abby joined the hug, and he kissed her head too “i love both of you, my fave girls.”

and there, at his embrace, you realized how the fear of tell him was silly. it’s was jerry, the man that taught you how to ride a bike and abby how to braid her hair. he loved you both, more than he could ever explain. it’s was silly to think that the way you love each other would ever make him love you both less, when you add love, the result is always more love.

dividers by @pommecita

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

quick question- I was a bit confused in some dialogue during book 1 lol 😭😭 It’s during the later chapters when riddle has collared both ace and deuce after they’ve challenged him for his seat. More specifically, the part where yuu calls riddle out for his behavior (rightfully so) and he responds by insulting them and their parents I believe?

The confusion stems from aceyuu shippers (just wanted to clarify I’m not self shipping lmao) where they say ace ends up punching riddle because he’s explicitly defending yuu’s honor or whatever but i also see other people (non-shippers) who say ace punched riddle because he insulted ace and/or deuce’s parents? Im not quite sure which one it is and went back in the actual game to check but i feel like the wording of riddle’s insults is a bit vague? Idk, maybe im just being a bit of a dum dum and can’t properly comprehend the scene even though it’s quite simple. I feel like it’s also just because i see a lot of people saying different stuff and just wanted to hear your thoughts on it if that’s okay?

I just feel like you really understand both the story and characters in that regard haha

P.S. your posts r genuinely very informative and helpful especially for people like me who kinda have no media literacy (not in a negative way!!) pls keep up the good work you’re rlly great at it <333

Hmmm, I see 🤔

Before I get to responding to this question, I want to preface this with a few disclaimers! Firstly, I do not mean to invalidate or detract from Ace x Yuu shippers or anyone who may interpret their relationship as romantic. You should ship what you like and have fun doing it. My reply aims to be more objective, but that should NOT impede on your enjoyment or whatever it is you choose to ship. Secondly, for those who don’t ship Ace x Yuu, I will be discussing the pairing later on in this post, so please keep this in mind.

Let's first look at how the game and how it depicts the scene. This occurs in 1-22, shortly after Riddle collars Ace and Deuce in their duel for the dorm leader seat. With his victory secured, Riddle begins to gloat about how this is proof that he is "the most correct". At this point, Yuu/the player character is granted two dialogue options:

If you choose "But that's not right!", Riddle replies with, "I am the one who decides what is wrong and right! What sort of pitiful education have you received, that you cannot follow such simple rules?"

If you choose "You can't just use rules to do whatever you please!", then Riddle replies with, "If there were no penalties, no one would follow the rules. I have to wonder what sort of pitiful education left you unable to comprehend so simple a concept."

However, no matter which dialogue option you choose, Riddle continues on to say, "Clearly, you were born to parents with no great magical capability. And as a result... You lack even the basic education necessary to attend a school such as this. It's quite sad."

Deuce becomes upset after hearing this--but before he is able to act, Ace is already on his feet and manages to deck his dorm leader in the face.

Based on the fact that Riddle seems to react to something that Yuu says, the framing here implies that the "you" Riddle is using refers to them specifically. As you can see above, both Ace and Deuce take offense to what Riddle says, but it is Ace that acts preemptively and attacks Riddle for his rudeness. This is what Ace x Yuu shippers will point to as a defining moment in their relationship (though, to be clear, this scene can definitely also be interpreted as platonic!!).

… Buuut it’s not completely clear that Riddle is explicitly directing any and all insults towards Yuu and Yuu alone, even if Yuu was the one to prompt his tirade. Due to the visual novel style format of the game, we have limited assets to base our interpretations off of, so going by the game alone may not be entirely accurate to what is happening in this scene. For example, we don't know how the characters are oriented relative to one another. It's possible that Riddle responds to Yuu's dialogue and then turns away to berate Yuu, Ace, and Deuce for their stupidity, since all three of them are, in his eyes, rule-breakers. We simply cannot tell due to the constraints of a visual novel. Let’s consult the manga adaptation and see how that presents 1-22.

In the Episode of Heartslabyul, the framing of the panels centers Riddle and Adeuce; Yuuken is not involved whatsoever. (On a prior page, all Yuuken remarks on is how fast Riddle is able to cast his spell; Yuuken has no lines similar to game!Yuu’s earlierdialogue options.) Riddle stands imposing over his opponents and rants at Ace and Deuce about their lack of an education. You can see that it really strikes a nerve with Deuce (whom we learned used to be a delinquent prior to NRC). This still results in Yuu punching Riddle.

The manga seems to imply that Riddle is not insulting Yuu, but rather Adeuce. This makes sense to me, given that though all of them are rebels to Heartslabyul’s strict rules, Adeuce are the two who most directly challenge his authority.

You can see in a close-up panel that Deuce is gritting his teeth and trying to hold himself back from going at Riddle. The text in that panel involves the mention of parents who cannot use magic—which just so happens to be true of Deuce’s mother. The same mother that he worked so hard to make proud of, the mother he turned over a new leaf for. But again, it’s Ace that gets the hit in. Why is that?

Let’s check out our final source, the first volume of the light novel. On pages 319 and 320:

Riddle very clearly states “And as for you two.” This clearly refers to the fallen Ace and Deuce. He then unleashes his barrage of insults at them. Again, not at Yuu, but at Ace and Deuce. The text even goes on to remind us that Deuce would be especially rattled by Riddle’s words because of how he had come to NRC for the sake of his mom. In this version, we see our Yuu (Yuuya) being more involved by trying to keep Deuce from lashing out. Like in the game, however, Ace still gets in that punch on his dorm leader.

Okay, so… The game, manga, and light novels are different iterations of the same base story. Based on which you consume, you could walk away with an entirely different understanding of the scene in question. The game, being the most interactive medium with a self-insert main character, a gacha game which makes $$$ from endearing the characters to us, has the set-up which is most conducive for yumeshipping and thus making the player feel beloved and important in 1-22. This is obvious if you also consider that many fanservicey lines from other parts of the game (such as Ace wanting to sleep in Yuu’s room) being left out of the manga. It's also entirely possible that Riddle first reacts to what Yuu says, and THEN shifts his attention to address the group rather than just Yuu. The manga, with a more standoffish and level-headed Yuu, doesn’t speak up like game!Yuu does, so Riddle instead directly insults Ace and Deuce. The light novel, which features a timid and non-confrontational Yuu, is focused on deescalating the situation. And, like the manga, the light novel is NOT interactive and so it doesn’t need to concern itself with making the player feel special. Riddle isn’t mandated to acknowledge Yuu; he can instead be mad at Ace and Deuce all he likes.

If we were to combine information from across the game, manga, and light novel to decipher what is “truly” happening, here’s how I see it!

The light novel contains a scene exclusive to it on pages 176 and 177. As Ace is making himself comfortable at Ramshackle, he formally apologizes to Yuuya for being mean to him in the prologue. Ace explains that his meanness was because he thought that Yuuya had bullied his way to be admitted to NRC under special circumstances. “[…] the rest of us had to work our butts off to get in, and you just sorta walked in.” He proclaims that this was unfair, so it annoyed him.

This makes a lot of sense for Ace’s character. In book 7 of the main story, he expresses that he is insecure about being an ordinary mage and that he hadn’t even developed his UM yet. (Coincidentally, he has a Chat where he praises the Queen of Hearts for having no special magic but still being able to make it big—perhaps because her circumstances remind Ace of himself?) He calls himself lame and pathetic, someone who is always looking for an excuse to take the easy way out. This is in spite of the bravado he puts on and how he often brags about being better or smarter than Deuce (most notably in book 5). If we believe the light novel dialogue, Ace worked hard to get invited to NRC. He has pride in earning this, and he has something to prove while he is there. Recall that his older brother is an alumnus of the school, and that his own father is a magicless human. Ace canonically has a good relationship with both of these family members and often bonds with them through little things like card trick competitions. When Riddle insults Ace's background... he is also insulting Ace's brother and father. He is also insulting all the effort Ace put forth to get into NRC in the first place. Ace would of course lose it--especially when he has been the primary victim of Riddle's rage for most of book 1. He's the first to be collared, the one who had to apologize and attempted to make an apology tart (which got rejected). Bro's fed UP having to bend the knee to a tyrant and sick of watching everyone else do the same. The punch that comes out of it seems to me like the result of all Ace's pent-up frustrations, as well as his own fury at Riddle speaking ill of him and his family.

While Ace is unquestionably willing to ride or die for Yuu in books 4 (he takes a long public transit route from the Queendom to Sage's Island after receiving a SOS text from them) and 6 (he tries to protect his friends from Ferrymen)... I think book 1's a bit too early for him to be SO loyal to Yuu that he'd get this angry on their behalf and sock Riddle. (Book 1 takes place during the first week of school; Ace seems to have only known Yuu for a few days at this point + hasn't really hung out with them besides sleeping over at Ramshackle since he's not allowed back at Heartslabyul.) His punch definitely feels fueled by a bunch of other things rather than being extremely motivated to defend Yuu's honor. I think maybe a case could be made for the game specifically, since that's the only version where Yuu is potentially addressed rather than Ace and Deuce being addressed. However, this does take some extrapolation. You'd have to assume that Ace is actually very attached to Yuu this early on or pair it with the idea that Ace is sensitive about magicless humans in general being discriminated against because of his own father being magicless (ie Ace was insulted by proxy, even if Riddle might have aimed the comments at Yuu). Not sure if the latter argument holds up very well though, considering that Ace himself did discriminate against Yuu in the prologue because they lacked magic. Likewise, he doesn't get mad for Fellow and Gidel in Playful Land when they share about being looked down on for not being magically inclined. But hey, maybe that was just Ace being in denial and acting contrary in order to cope with his own complicated feelings on the topic. He’s been known to behave like this anyway, acting cocky despite having no UM and denying that Yuu would go home (even though we later find out he deeply does not wish for this to happen).

I definitely think that many of the game-exclusive lines and content are there as fanservice for the players, who are encouraged to project or to self-insert as Yuu. Ace in particular is one of the characters who gets a ton of this kind of yumejoshi bait-y stuff. Everyone has it to some extent, but Ace is one of the rare few who has several pretty overt instances in the main story (whereas most other characters have their fanservice content relegated to voice lines and maybe some events). On top of this scene (which could potentially read as "Ace defending Yuu's honor"), we have: multiple instances of Ace offering to share a room/bed with Yuu (once in book 1, again in book 3), he has shared his number with Yuu and invites them to call him if they "miss him", Ace's entire book 7 dream revolving around a reality in which Yuu is able to freely traverse between Twisted Wonderland and their original world (furthermore, he is the ONLY dreamer we have seen in which Yuu is involved in the dream), etc. Ace is also known to frequently tease Yuu, and, on top of having several voice lines inviting them to hang out, is actually shown hanging out with them and caring about them in various vignettes and events. For example, he has movie nights with Yuu (Idia's Labwear vignettes), asks for their opinion on whether or not he looks the part to woo the Ghost Bride, rides roller coasters with them in Playful Land while previously complaining that his ex-girlfriend wouldn’t, and worries for where Yuu might be (Endless Halloween Night). With this abundance of Ace and Yuu content, I can see why people that have the shipping goggles on--and even those who don't--might interpret early scenes as Ace acting out for Yuu's sake, be it romantically or platonically. More objectively speaking and when considering the manga + light novel though, I don't think I personally read 1-22 that way. I enjoy Ace as a character and I support Ace x Yuu shippers, but the evidence and context suggests that he's venting other frustrations to me.

Again though, this is just my interpretation. Feel free to use this information however you’d like and come to your own conclusion.

[cyanideconnoisseur]

Get the cat what he wants god damn it

[evergone]

I'm [Nott] a Bad Person

Theodore Nott x Reader

Warnings: swearing, bullying

Description: The reader and Theo are accused of causing a fight, but they swear they didn't do it.

Professor McGonagall’s office was a little too **Gryffindor-esque for your tastes. The couches, wallpaper, and even the rug on the floor underneath her desk were all some shade of dark red and you had no other way to describe it other than ‘detestably Gryffindor.’ Even so, the fireplace opposite the door warmed the room and gave it that undeniably homey feel you always got when you returned to Hogwarts after the long, hot break between years. She had a few paintings hanging from her walls, but either the subjects were busy elsewhere or she just had a thing for landscapes. One in particular caught your eye, a painting of the Forbidden Forest where you had certainly never been. After all, it was forbidden and you, ever the obedient Slytherin, would never break a rule.

“Do you know why you are here?” The professor asked and your attention slid back to the situation you were in.

“I know why they’re here,” Theo responded from your left, “But Y/n and I are victims.”

“Oh, please, you lot started this whole thing!” Granger squeaked like that little mouse the weasel kid used to have.

“Do you ever shut up, Granger?” Theo retorted.

Your lips tightened as you attempted to stifle a laugh and Theo sent you a quick smirk. McGonagall cleared her throat, again regaining your limited attention span as she tapped impatiently on her brown wooden desk; creating a dum-dum, dum-dum sound under the pads of her fingers like a heartbeat. Furrowed brows and an intense stare told you more than enough about her absolutely foul mood, and you reminded yourself not to play around with her.

“Each of you, tell me the story,” she said, “You first, Mister Potter.”

Theo muttered an ‘of course’ under his breath but you pretended not to hear it. If anyone was to get in trouble you were going to make damn sure it wasn’t you. You had a reputation to uphold; the nicest Slytherin anyone would ever meet. A façade, obviously, you were just as ruthless and cunning as your housemates, but the nice façade was what made you so. It was truly a shame Potter and co. had found you out, but you intended to cover your ass so well that no one else would ever know the truth about you, save for your friends.

“Well, uh…” Potter began to recount his version of the tale.

Apparently (and I say ‘apparently’ because despite his story being almost entirely accurate, you were going to make up a completely different one to get away with this), he had come to you in a free period to ask about how to befriend dragons quickly, knowing as well as most that your family had been breeding dragons since the dawn of dragonology. You were skeptical of him, having never quite interacted with him directly, only through the wild stories Draco or Pansy would tell you or small altercations in the halls that you always pulled Theo away from. Draco could do as he wished but you wouldn’t see yourself or your boyfriend being implicated in his shenanigans.

“I’m not supposed to talk to you,” you had told Potter.

“And why’s that?” He asked.

“All my friends say that you’re — and I’m quoting them here — ‘a mudblood mingling cunt,’” you said, “And though I have no care in the world for blood purity, I do like my friends quite a bit. They wouldn’t hang out with me if I got caught with you.”

You always had a wonderful way of putting things. Your monotonous voice mixed with your incredibly harsh words made for the most readable and expressive conversations. Potter’s little muggle born girlfriend (or girl friend, whichever it was) had almost jumped out of her own socks at your foul language. Personally offended, perhaps? You didn’t mean to hurt her, it just sort of slipped out. Maybe if you were actually a nicer person you’d apologise.

“Just… give me a hand? I know you helped Cedric,” Potter pleaded.

You shrugged, “I really can’t talk to you,” you said, “Though… I am weak to bribery… Maybe if you find me something I want I’ll help you out. Bye.”

And then you pushed through the group to go find your friends who you were bound to find eating in the courtyard instead of studying. Smart kids never studied and neither did dumb kids. When Crabbe and Goyle were there it was easy to tell the difference, but other times, not so much. Allegedly (again, I say this to protect the integrity of the tale you would later tell), you stopped half a step through and turned to show Potter your badge.

“Draco says you really like them,” you laughed, “Get a closer look.”

Desperate for your help and willing to do anything, Potter leaned closer to watch as the red ‘Support Cedric’ turned to the green ‘Potter stinks’ but then a forth colour emerged, a deep purple with no writing. He opened his mouth to ask what that colour meant, but was abruptly cut off when the badge squirted the most revolting smelling purple goo all over him. Again, allegedly, you had cursed it to do that when it saw his face… You would argue that someone must have cursed it prior to giving it to you without your knowing.

“Now you really do stink!” You had smiled sarcastically, “Bye now.”

You then continued on your journey to find your friends, leaving Potter drenched in the most malodorous thing he had ever smelt.

Later that very same day, he had approached you at lunch with a bribe. Oh, how you loved to be bribed. You were like a politician in that sense. He placed two objects in front of you: a book you knew was from the restricted section titled ‘Advanced Curses and How to Master Them,’ and a purse full of coins which, after peeking through the opening at the top, you realised were all gold.

“You know, you shouldn’t bribe people so out in the open, Potter,” You motioned to Theo, Pansy and Draco, all of whom were giving you looks that asked what in the name of Salazar were you doing, “It’s… counterproductive.”

“Merlin’s beard, L/n, just take it and help me,” Potter said.

“Is he bothering you, Y/n?” Theo asked.

You’d glanced between your boyfriend and Potter, wondering what to do in the situation. Potter noticed you’d become flustered at being put on the spot like that, even mentioned it to McGonagall. Truthfully, your head was telling you to say no because you knew as well as anyone how Theo could be when you were uneasy. He was awfully protective. But your heart wanted you to say yes so you could start a little fight and make your friends and Theo proud. You were never quite as provocative as they were when it came to the whole Slytherin-Gryffindor thing and it made you slightly self conscious, to be honest.

You would tell McGonagall that your head won, and Potter had started the fight. Theo was only defending you from the very scary Gryffindor who had decided to attack you just because you didn’t want to help him out earlier. But, in all honesty, your heart had won, or so the story goes.

“Yes, Teddy, he’s been bothering me all day,” you had said.

“How ‘bout you leave, Potter?” Theo asked, but it was hardly a question.

Potter rolled his eyes, “We had a deal, L/n.”

“I don’t think she would’ve agreed to anything with you,” Theo said and (allegedly) shoved Potter from across the table.

It was at that point that all hell broke loose. Potter’s explanation of the situation was riddled with what you would call lies about getting his shit rocked by Theo’s incredible fighting skills. You’d bloodied your boyfriend up afterwards using a little glamour charm you kept handy in case of emergencies. That was yet another way you were like a politician, you were incredible at deceiving people. On the off chance McGonagall noticed the charm, Theo had agreed to take the fall and stage an argument with you where you’d break up with him. The relationship wouldn’t be destroyed, you’d just act strained for a week or so while he did detention.

“Miss L/n, these are a lot of accusations being thrown,” McGonagall said, her eyes staring down at you over her nose, “What say you?”

You let your bottom lip quiver, but you wouldn’t dare cry. That would be too much and she wouldn’t believe you for a second. You may have had a good reputation, but she loved Potter and co. and had a huge bias in their favour. You had to be so convincing that she wouldn’t have a single doubt.

“I just didn’t want to get involved,” you said, “Professor, I’m a Slytherin, there’s a certain… standard that I’m held to. I told Potter that I didn’t want to help him because everyone would be upset with me and he tried to bribe me of his own accord.”

“She’s obviously lying, Professor, please—”

“Miss Granger, Miss L/n didn’t interrupt your telling of events, I suggest you don’t interrupt hers.”

You continued to lie through your teeth like a professional. You’d think McGonagall would know to use a truth serum when dealing with teenagers, but she was too trusting. Photographs of former students were framed on her desk, others who likely lied to her as you were doing. They were mostly Gryffindors, for obvious reasons, but there were Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs and the odd Slytherin as well, all of them moving slightly in celebration of their graduations. Potter and co. would likely end up on that desk one day and while you’d hope yourself and your friends would end up on Snape’s, he had never come across as the sentimental type.

“One of you aren’t telling me the truth,” McGonagall said with a sigh once you had finished your recount, “Know that I’m disappointed in you but I cannot be bothered to deal with this today. If I hear about troubles with you lot again I will not hesitate to give you all detention.”

A chorus of ‘yes, Professor’s filled the room before she shooed you all out to go your separate ways. At the door to her office which she had closed behind the four of you, or rather, the two and two of you, Theo turned to the others.

“Don’t start things you can’t finish, Potter,” he said with a snarky tone.

Potter and Granger hardly acknowledged the remark, and you found yourself missing the weasel boy who would have leapt at the opportunity to throw something back. At your core, you liked to consider yourself morally good, but Merlin’s beard, you were a bit of an instigator, perhaps even a bully, weren’t you? You glanced at Theo, who you hadn’t realised had begun a little bit of a rant about blood superiority, and laughed out loud.

“What?” He asked you, his head on the slightest tilt that it was hardly noticeable.

“I think you and the others have turned me into a bad person,” you giggled, biting your lip.

“Y/n/n, that’s so fucking mean,” he said, “You are so rude.”

“I learnt from the best,” you teased as you poked his arm.

Theo shook his head and captured your arm in his so the two of you could walk back to the Slytherin dorms together.

[carlyraejepsans]

Technically speaking, he was a light sleeper.

Which was just hilarious for two different reasons. One, he topped at twenty pounds soaking wet—and that was after he'd reached for the towel. The joke basically wrote itself. The other reason was, of course, that nobody believed him. Honestly, he could kinda get it. It's pretty hard for irony to escape him, even on a bad day. The way he saw it, though, maybe he wouldn't take as many naps as he did, if he just managed to get one to stick.

...heh, nah. Probably not. Late to rise, early to bed, makes a man lazy or clinically dead, or however the saying went. Still.

The kid stiffened against his ribcage and that was all it took for his eyes to fly open.

The popcorn ceiling of the living room stared back at him through the darkness in all its tacky glory. Now that's another joke that writes itself. It wasn't a movie night at Tori's without some comment about her taste in decor. That always earned him a round of groans. Or a halfhearted pillow to the head. It was one of his favorite moodsetters.

His hand dangled in the air at his side. Not on the floor. Just a few months earlier, that alone would've told him he wasn't in his room, but oh boy, had things changed. He had a bedframe now, not to mention enough self respect for one. AND fitted sheets—that was a lifetime first. You had to be careful not to fall off, but all things considered, it was the fanciest bed he'd slept on since he'd tried using his worker bonus at MTT's. If he risked falling off the bed now, he'd risked never finding his way out then. Not to mention the guy in the other room calling for room service the entire night. He almost retired the midnight snacks bit on Undyne out of sympathy the next time she came over.

Almost.

The kid's head twitched.

Right. Popcorn. Living room. Springy mattress. He didn't need to smoke a pipe to realize he'd fallen asleep on the sofa. Didn't need a goofy hat either to see that someone must've thought he'd make a good pillow. Go figure. He'd gotten real good at making himself look softer under his clothes, but still, it wasn't exactly the kind of magic a guy could keep up with his eyes closed and a pillow behind his head. He just hoped they weren't too uncomfortable.

He must've dozed off sometime after Papyrus left the house and Toriel turned in for the night, 'cause nobody had stopped by to throw a blanket over him. Most nights that would've been fine. Nice thought aside, skeletons didn't really feel cold "to their bones", on account of lacking all the soft and fleshy stuff on top of 'em.

Yeah, well. Most nights. Most nights he didn't have a human kid sleeping on top of him, either.

Sans looked down. He resisted the urge to blow a strand of hair out of their face.

Most nights, skeletons didn't have hearts beating against their ribs.

Ba-dum—ba-dum—ba-dum.

He would've asked them if it felt any different, having it beat on the other side of their ribcage, if they hadn't already crawled their way inside his months before.

Heh. Not like they hadn't done the same with everyone else. Or ever asked for permission, the little freeloader. But he supposed that part came free with being monsters. The whole HOPE and compassion and everything nice kinda shtick. As a rule, they were, uh, very prone to attachment. It was hardwired into their SOULs or something. Of course, he knew better than anyone that compassion had its cost, and he'd ran low on HOPE for a long, long while, but...

There was a ray of light coming through the kitchen at night like he hadn't seen in an even longer time. The kind with a moon and stars hung at the other end of it.

Yeah. Maybe he could afford something nice for once.

Frisk stirred again. He kept as still as possible as they wriggled around, pushing themself off of him—trying, he assumed, not to shove their boney little knees somewhere unpleasant.

Then they flopped to their side and fell to the floor with a thud.

See, THAT'S the kinda issue you don't have when you have no self respect.

Slowly, the kid got to their feet again. They stood perfectly straight for a moment, then took an unsteady step forward. Then another.

To call it "walking" would've been an act of mercy. It was more of an ambling. Maybe a shambling. Sans watched their journey towards the kitchen mentally listing of adverbs. Stumbling. Fumbling. Trailing. That one didn't have a mbl in it, points for originality.

Mostly, he was ecstatic. Nothing made for fun breakfast stories quite like sleepwalking. And well, he hadn't had one of those since Papyrus turned fifteen and stopped sleeping entirely.

When the kid finally reached the fridge, they all but shoved their head inside it. He heard them do... something in there. There were definitely teeth involved. He was about to ask them to bring some goods back to homebase.

The door of the fridge clicked closed.

He didn't.

Then, he almost made a joke about forgetting their headlights on, but thought otherwise. He was glad he'd left his own off.

Besides, it was the taillights that were supposed to glow red.

Eyesockets dark and still pretending to sleep, he kept watch as the kid turned around and retraced their shambling steps to the living room like a miniature zombie.

Halfway to the sofa, they stopped, making a small sound like a grumbling of annoyance. For a second their eyes grew even more unfocused.

"Sleep," they rasped out in a low, halting whisper, "I saved you a crick in the neck."

It took him a second to register that the kid wasn't talking to him. Mostly 'cause Frisk didn't speak. To him. Or ever.

By the time they reached their starting point again, his excitement had died off into quiet confusion and quickly curdled into caution. They stopped at the edge of the sofa and fixed him with a stare, looking at where they'd been sleeping before. Sans waited.

"I am not doing that," they rasped to themself again.

Then they climbed onto the other end of the sofa and curled around themself as small as possible. So tightly it looked like they wanted to tuck their tiny body into a ball.

When they stopped moving, they didn't move again.

Sans didn't lift a finger. His brain whirred in his skull, ready to chalk up the past few minutes to the sleepwalking and forget they ever happened. Staring up at the popcorn ceiling again, though, he couldn't shake off a wave of uneasiness; like he'd seen something he wasn't quite supposed to put together.

Any man would've spent the night awake.

He cast a glance at the kid, huddled in their corner. There was no heartbeat against his ribs now: something about the silence felt foreboding.

Sans closed his eyes.

Ten minutes later, of course, he was out like a light.

[tacobacoyeet]

TACOBACOYEET BOT REQUEST INFORMATION!

hi everyone! i put this in my bio post when i made my bot drop, but i figured i'd make an actual announcement as well. now that i have dabbled in bot-making and with summer approaching, i am opening a bot request form! feel free to send in your requests, and i will get to them as i have time.

here are a few rules that i ask you follow with regards to this:

this form is for bot requests ONLY. i will not accept fic or moodboard requests via this form.

i prefer for bot requests to be sent here, but i will accept them via ask as well!

if i don't write for it, i won't make a bot. this goes for fandoms and for content.

please, don't crowd me and other creators with the same request. if you've already asked multiple other bot makers for a bot, and they've made it, then there's no need to ask for another one. use it to your heart's content!

i haven't decided how i'm going to be structuring releases just yet, so please don't expect me to have your bots ready as soon as you request them. there is a lot of work that goes into making them, and i want to make sure i'm not doing a half-assed job. please be patient with me, i am still new to this!

this would not be possible without a lot of people, but i would like to close this out by shouting out some of my favorite bot-makers. you are all... 'pillars of the community!' get it? challengers joke. ba dum tss!

anyway... here's just a few of my people. i am so sorry if i miss you!

@jordiemeow

@voidsuites

@grimsonandclover

@tashism

@222col

@ellaynaonsaturn

@soaraes

@happenssweet

thank you to all of you for being such inspirations and for the talent that you constantly share with this community. i love you all! thank you to everyone who has brought me far enough to reach this point. i love all of you as well! happy c.ai-ing!

[a-rat-with-internet-accesses]

And only shooting staarrsss

SOMEBODY once asked "could i spare some change for gas, i need to get my self away from this place." I said "yep what a consept i could use a little fuil myself, and we could all use a little chaaaangeeee"

WELL THE YEARS START COMING AND THEY DON'T STOP COMING

this is a strange hill to die on but i truly believe that rat is one of the best smells in the world

[rainsoughtflowers]

do you see right through me?

part five

tw/cw - mentions of bullying, graphic depictions of death, angst.

a/n - this is it!!!

when da-bum enters the room, a bubble of laughter bursts out of this throat.

he crosses the quiet space, pausing in front of the sleeping couple. he cocks his head to the side as he examines the scene. their peaceful expressions, their soft, even breaths. slowly, he crouches down to face level, the corners of his lips curled up into a smirk. 

'how sweet' he thinks, glancing down at their joined hands, a desperate attempt to keep each other close, a small, intimate gesture. his gaze trails upwards, to the way kyung-jun's cheek is pressed against the top of her head, his lips brushing against her hair. in all his years of knowing the boy, of being tormented by him, the target of his cruelty, he never imagined it to be possible for the boy to care about anyone but himself. 

how lovely it would be to take it away from him.

he untangles their fingers, pulling her body away from his own and laying her on the ground. he considers her for a moment. the way her lashes brush against her cheek bones, her steady breathing. if da-bum had any room left to care, he would've felt bad for her. it's not like she was the one bullying him, but that fact doesn't matter anymore. what matters is that kyung-jun cares about her, might even love her. 

he pulls out a knife, weighing it in his hands. how should he do it? what would rattle the infamous ko kyung-jun the most? should he kill her quietly, her body untouched, so the boy wakes up in the morning with the false hope that they've been spared? or should he butcher her like he did to seung-bin, leaving her body mutilated, barely recognizable. oh, that would be nice. kyung-jun waking up covered in her blood, the horror and grief slowly building on his features. ba-dum has never seen that sort of expression on him before, but he could create it. 

he lifts up the knife, aiming it right over her heart. moves his body as if to strike.

then stops. 

YOU MUST FOLLOW THE RULES OF MAFIA. YOU MUST HOLD A MEETING TO COME TO AN UNANIMOUS DECISION ON THE PLAYER YOU WILL EXECUTE. 

he doesn't have to turn around to know she's there, lingering, but he does so anyway. jung-won leans against the doorway, arms crossed, examining the scene before her. 

she lets out a breath, "what are you doing?"

da-bum looks back down at the sleeping girl. with the sharp end of the knife, he brushes away a strand of hair, "i was thinking, what if we kill her instead?"

"we agreed on killing kyung-jun. he's the police."

da-bum glances back at her, his expression eerily calm, carrying something dangerous beneath, "you said i could hurt kyung-jun as much as possible. make him suffer for all the years he tormented me," he drags the knife down her face, across her neck and stopping at her chest, "if i kill her, and he finds her body in the morning, what do you think kyung-jun will do?" he laughs, the idea of it causing him great delight, "do you think he'll cry? that would be something."

jung-won glances at the girl. her brows pinch together, her lips pursed. 

"it's dangerous to keep him alive. he'll catch onto the fact that it's you."

da-bum grows silent. as much as he hated it, she was right. he supposes that's the reason why he listened to her in the beginning, her careful, calculative decisions ensuring they didn't get caught. 

but the rage that he feels, the hatred, it burns hotter than any rational thought in his head. 

"what if i kill them both?"

jung-won is quiet for several long seconds. her eyes flicker towards kyung-jun, whose body has fallen to the floor, his hair obscuring his face. then she looks at the girl, her friend, the sight of her relaxed features causing her great pain. she turns away, pushing herself away from the door, "fine. do what you want."

da-bum grins. he waits until the girl is gone, her even footsteps echoing in the hall before disappearing entirely. he glances back down, lifts the knife, and doesn't hesitate when he pierces her heart. 

-

you wake up slowly in the beginning. your hearing is the first sense to return, and you listen to the roar of the engine blend with the frantic voices towards the back of the bus. then your sense of touch. you feel your hands folded in your lap, fingers curled around the edges of your skirt. there's wetness coating your palms, something warm and sticky, like blood. a sharp pain pierces your abdomen then, like a knife being repeatedly plunged into your skin. your sight returns last. it is quick, and your eyes snap open to frantically glance down at your lap.

there is no blood there, not like you had imagined, and the pain in your abdomen is now nothing more than a phantom ache. your knuckles are white, gripping the fabric of your skirt like your life depends on it. you release it with a shaky breath, relieved. it was simply a bad dream. you're on the bus, heading to the youth center, not fearing for your life in-

in what? what exactly did you dream about?

"what is it?"

you turn to your right. kyung-jun's head is tilted in your direction, his eyebrows furrowed, a hint of concern in his brown eyes. for some reason, the sight of his expression, his steady breathing, causes all the tension to leave your body, relieved. 

"i don't know," you mumble tiredly, pressing your fingers against your temple and massaging the tender muscles, "probably nothing. i think it was a bad dream."

kyung-jun doesn't seem convinced, but he doesn't press the issue further. his fingers reach up and replace your own, and your eyes flutter shut for a moment, becoming pliant under his gentle ministrations.

"get some rest. you look like you just died and came back."

you open your eyes, sending him a halfhearted glare, but kyung-jun ignores it. he drops his fingers, relaxing back into his seat and closing his eyes. you watch him for a moment, fixated on the way he looks. serenely peaceful, his features soft and untouched. golden light washes over the planes of his face, glowing across his skin, making the brown of his hair more prominent. you reach up, sweeping the strand away from his forehead. underneath your touch, kyung-jun's face shifts, but he remains relaxed, even leaning into your touch, the ghost of a smile curling his lips. you mirror his expression, dropping your hand. 

you glance around the bus. it's quiet, the silence broken only by soft snores and gentle breathing. almost everyone is asleep, tired from the long bus drive from your school to the youth center. based on the way the sun dips down the horizon, you should be arriving soon. 

just as you're about to settle against kyung-jun's side to sleep, movement at the front of the bus catches your eye. confused, you sit up straighter, your attention falling towards yoon-seo. she frantically glances around the bus, clear panic evident in her expression. she catches your eyes, and you tilt your head at her, questioning. what's wrong with her?

yoon-seo shakes her head, stumbling back, an onslaught of tears threatening to spill down her cheeks, "no. not again."

again?

menu.