#hey y'know that 'the love was there. it didn't change anything. but it still matters that love was there' post. yeah...yeah

[pokimoko]

On Waxen Wings We Soar, In Spite of Inevitable Ends - A Baldur's Gate Fic

Written by pokimoko

Chapters: 1/1

Word Count: ~15.5K

Fandom: Baldur's Gate (Video Games)

Rating: Teen and Up Audiences

Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Relationships: Astarion & Karlach (Baldur's Gate), Astarion/Karlach (Baldur's Gate), (it's fairly ambigious; is it romantic? queerplatonic? platonic? yes), (the love and devotion is there regardless)

Characters: Karlach (Baldur's Gate), Astarion (Baldur's Gate)

Tags: Post-Canon, Post-Game: Baldur's Gate 3, Spoilers for Act 3 (Baldur's Gate 3), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, (in which a certain scene on a certain dock doesn't happen right at that very moment), POV Karlach (Baldur's Gate), Astarion as Player Character (Baldur's Gate), Vampire Spawn Astarion (Baldur's Gate), Astarion & Karlach Friendship (Baldur's Gate), Ambiguous Relationships, Queerplatonic Relationships, Non-Sexual Intimacy, No Smut, Location: Faerûn (Dungeons & Dragons), Dungeons & Dragons Game Mechanics, Road Trips, (minus the car), Canon-Typical Bag Packing Physics, (how are they fitting all that food and a whole tent into one bag? don't ask me), Polymorph Spell (Dungeons & Dragons), Animal Transformation, Corvid Token (Baldur's Gate), Birds, oh? my wisdom check engine light is on? well i'm sure it's nothing to worry about, (and yes i know that joke doesn't actually work in terms of d&d mechanics. shhh), Quest: Our Fiery Friend | Karlach's Companion Quest (Baldur's Gate), Karlach Needs a Hug (Baldur's Gate), Astarion Needs a Hug (Baldur's Gate), Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst and Humor, Karlach-centric (Baldur's Gate), Astarion-centric (Baldur's Gate), Protective Karlach (Baldur's Gate), Protective Astarion (Baldur's Gate), Karlach Has Chronic Pain (Baldur's Gate), Dying Karlach (Baldur's Gate), Ambiguous/Open Ending, Bittersweet Ending, Character Study

Summary: With her engine breaking down, and little time left to live before she burns up completely, Karlach takes one last journey across Faerûn. And thanks to a little bit of magic, it's a journey she won't have to take alone.

[houseofperfecttaste]

Even

The second Rafe saw John B climbing out of Sarah's window around midnight he felt bad for you knowing you were in love with John B and here he was cheating on you with his sister. To make matters even worse you were the Camerons' housekeeper. Rafe snapped a quick picture of JB on the roof before heading inside acting like he didn't see anything.

You arrived at the Cameron house early in the morning starting to clean the kitchen not expecting to be bothered so early especially not by Rafe. "Good morning Mr. Cameron." You greeted Rafe as he walked in wearing basketball shorts, his hair messy from sleeping. As much as you hated Rafe you had to be nice to him if you wanted to keep your job. He was rarely home when you were working which made the job a lot more tolerable. "Good morning beautiful." Rafe never hid that he found you wildly attractive, so you were used to his compliments.

"Y'know I saw something you might be interested in last night." Rafe chirped leaning against the kitchen counter as he sipped his coffee. "Oh yeah? And what would that be?" You didn't turn your attention away from the chairs you were dusting until you heard his response. "I saw your little boyfriend sneaking out of my sisters' room last night." You stood up turning to look at him duster still in hand. "He wouldn't do that." You said crossing your arms thinking this was one of Rafes tactics to sleep with you.

"Well, he did. I can prove it." He fished his phone out of his pocket pulling the image up and turning his phone around to show you. The picture showed a boy climbing out of the window but it wasn't 100% clear who it was. "That could be anyone." Rafe chuckled knowing you would be in denial. "Look at the sweatshirt and bandana Y/N." You took his phone zooming in your heart sinking a bit when realizing he might be right. You sent the picture to yourself so you could have it when confronting him. You avoided Rafe for the rest of your shift, giving him one-word answers if he tried to talk to you.

You rushed to the Chateau seeing the whole gang on the porch, Sarah and John B sitting next to each making your blood boil. You slammed your car door shut stomping up to the screen door. "Hey, ba-" "Were you with Sarah last night?" You cut him off your hands on your hips and when he and Sarah looked at each other you knew Rafe was right, you knew it was John B in that picture. "Y/N I'm sorry." He apologized standing up making you back away. "It's fine, you want to start fucking a Cameron, I will too." You smiled sweetly at him and Sarah knowing it would piss both of them off. The look on John Bs face when you said it was priceless and you left the Chateau driving over to Figure Eight.

You knocked on the door waiting a few seconds before Rafe opened the door a shocked look on his face. Without a second thought, you leaned up pressing your lips to his and it only took him a second to start kissing back. He closed the door pushing you against it his hands roaming everywhere. "I was right. Wasn't I?" He always had to make a comment, didn't he? "Shut up Rafe." You groaned against his lips as he kissed down your neck. He picked you up leading you up the stairs to his bedroom throwing you on the bed.

Rafe's eyes were dark with lust and he ripped off his shirt and pants leaving him in his boxers as you took off your housekeeping uniform you never had a chance to change out of. "Look so pretty for me." He stood at the foot of the bed staring down at you licking his lips. "Look even prettier tied up for me though." He smirked heading to his closet and pulling out a pair of handcuffs. "Always need to be in control huh?" You teased but he quickly shut you up when he handcuffed your hands to his bedframe.

"Hm, where do I start?" He squeezed at your thighs kissing your breasts his fingers teasing your clit. "Fuck Rafe, please." You whined bucking your hips causing his finger to rub against your clit making you moan. Rafe started pinching and rubbing your clit watching as your muscles tensed and untensed and you were a moaning mess. "Rafe. Rafe." You moaned tugging at your restraints your legs opening more allowing him to kneel between your legs you were on full display for him. "Yeah, princess? Feel good?" He mocked slipping two fingers inside of you.

"Fuck yes, baby." You grew wetter when making eye contact with him, he was so fucking hot and his pupils were huge as he stared at you. He leaned down starting to lick and suck your pussy eating you like you were his last meal. He played with your nipples as your back arched into him and he had your legs shaking. He pulled away right as you were about to climax and his lips and chin glistened with your juices.

Your pussy clenched at the sight making him groan quietly. "Open your mouth." He instructed and you opened your mouth sticking your tongue out. He spit into your mouth making you moan at the taste of yourself. "Fuck you get me so hard. Always." He whispered into your ear making you blush, goosebumps rising to your body as he trailed his finger up your arms smiling at the handcuffs. "Fuck me, baby." You whined impatiently as he pulled his boxers down your mouth watering at the length and girth of his cock. "R-Rafe." You stuttered scared, John B was a lot smaller than him and nowhere as thick, Rafe was going to be a tight squeeze.

"It'll fit pretty, and if it doesn't I'll make it." He winked spitting on his cock before lining himself with your entrance. He pushed his tip in making you cry out in pain at the stretch, it getting worse as he pushed himself in more. "You're so big Rafe fuck." You moaned as he started thrusting into you your moans filling his room. "Such a tight little pussy. Squeezing me so good." He groaned his hand on your waist watching as your tits bounced with every thrust. "H-Harder." You choked out and he placed your legs over his shoulders folding you in half his cock reaching a brand new spot. You screamed at how deep he was making him smirk knowing no ones ever been this deep inside you.

His cock grew bigger at your vulnerable state, your hair was a mess, mascara smudged under your eyes, mouth hanging open in pleasure, screams leaving your mouth. Rafe pulled out of you flipping you onto your stomach spreading your ass and plunging into your pussy. You watched him in the mirror as he watched your ass jiggle with each thrust. You tried to keep your eyes open but the pleasure was too overwhelming causing your eyes to close enjoying the feeling of Rafes cock sliding in and out.

Your eyes snapped open when hearing your phone ring but soon drowned it out focusing on Rafes cock but Rafe answered the call when seeing who it was. "Y/N I swear to god you better not be with Rafe." Rafe chuckled putting it on speaker. "It's a little too late for that John B. She looks so pretty under me." A part of you felt bad about what was happening but soon got over it when remembering John B cheated on you with Rafe's sister. "I'll fucking kill you, Rafe." John B threatened and Rafe bit his lip laughing.

"Big talk coming from a cheater. I'm just giving her what she deserves." John B was growing more pissed off each time he heard your moans over the phone. "It was a mistake, I-" You rolled your eyes knowing he was going to start rambling so you snatched the phone from Rafe's hand. "I'm a little busy right now Routledge I'll talk to you later." You choked through moans hanging up and throwing your phone across his room shaking your ass on Rafes cock. Your actions shocked Rafe but also turned him on making him go full speed into your pussy making you cream all over his cock.

"That's it baby come for me." He helped you ride out your high before pulling out cumming all over your back. He grabbed a hand towel from his bathroom and wiped you clean handing you one of his shirts laying next to you. "That was the best sex I've ever had." You admitted panting and he smiled pushing his hair out of his face. "Yeah me too." Rafe agreed making you look up at him bewildered. "Out of all the girls you've slept with I was the best?" You propped yourself on your elbow as he mirrored you his hand on your waist.

"Yeah, you're the only girl I've slept with that I care about and like." He gave you a small smile embarrassed of his confession knowing you hate him and slept with him to piss off John B. You were about to kiss him but John B busted into the room causing Rafe to stand up protecting you. "No hard feelings right?" Rafe smiled shrugging causing JB to punch him in the face the two boys starting to fight. "John B stop!" You pulled him off of Rafe shielding him with your body. "You're protecting him?" He yelled his face red and chest heaving. "Yes! I initiated this! I'm the one who wanted to sleep with him." You crossed your arms knowing Rafe for once wasn't in the wrong.

John B scoffed looking between the two of you before leaving slamming the door shut behind him. You sighed running a hand through your hair turning to face Rafe helping him get on the bed. You grabbed his face in your hands kissing him softly his arms wrapping around you in response.

[circe69]

You Make it Better ❄

christmas fic with simon! fem reader, sweet soft simon "ghost" riley wc: 640

ᨐฅ

Tonight was the night of your huge Christmas party you were throwing for the entirety of the 141 troop. You had been preparing for weeks, and cleaning your apartment for what felt like months.

You were wearing a short black dress, with your hair tied up in a claw clip. A simple diamond necklace fit loosely around your neck, completing the whole outfit.

Everything was going smoothly, which was unexpected honestly. You had thought that at least at one point a fight would break out, or a stupid argument would ruin the evening, but things were going great.

"Bye you guys, thanks for coming. And hey, great job the last couple of weeks!" You yelled out the front door, making sure Alejandro, Soap, and the others could hear you.

You walked back in, closing and locking the door behind you, to see Simon Riley sitting at the kitchen counter, on a barstool drinking your homemade eggnog. You stood still for a minute, tracing his sharp back muscles through his t-shirt with only your eyes, before slowly making your way into the kitchen. Your high heels clacked on your tile floor, making Simon shift in his seat. Putting a warm hand on his shoulder, you slightly squeezed his tense muscle and looked into his eyes.

"You okay?"

Your voice was everything to him. You were everything to him. He didn't even realize how much he needed someone like you. Someone who cared deeply, some may even say too deeply.

His eyes looked tired, but not necessarily upset. His voice cracked as he responded, "M' fine."

You walked over to the other side of the counter, to stand across from him as he finished the last of his drink.

A few minutes of silence went past, as you put dishes in the sink and cleaned the counters. Simon watched you, pretending you were something you weren't. He pretended he lived here, that this was his house. That everything you were doing was something he had already done with you.

His mind wandered watching you tiptoe to reach the top shelf. He imagined marrying you, having kids, coming home to you every night. He wanted this every night. It didn't make sense to him, how easily you could change his perception of love within a matter of seconds.

You stopped cleaning to look up at him, finding his eyes were already on you.

He cleared his throat before whispering, "I hate Christmas, y'know? I just always have." He picked at the skin on his thumbs, trying to forget he was even talking about his childhood. You wanted to say something to comfort him, to just say you understood, but before you could say anything, he spoke up,

"But you, you seem to make it better."

His words caught you off guard. His words caught himself off guard. He stood up from his seat and walked over to you, keeping eye contact as he placed his empty glass in the sink. His hand grazed your hip, making you shiver.

Simon leaned down to your ear as the dish clanked,

"Honestly, you make everything better."

Your ear felt hot. Your whole body felt hot as his hands reached out slowly to grab onto your waist. He felt hesitant touching you, not wanting to scare you away. It wasn't until you reached out for him and rested your hands around his neck that he gently grabbed onto you.

You spoke into his neck as you softly kissed his skin, "Be with me for every Christmas then." You heard him hum as he gripped you tighter, almost like he was afraid to let you go.

"Make the eggnog every year then," he teased as his hands lowered to the lower side of your back, resting on the curve of your butt.

You smirked, and playfully slapped his arm. "Deal."

[strawberrymilk-sunshine]

Leave me alone!

Mushroom dance, mushroom dance, whatever could it mean?

Warning(s): yandere behavior from the twins, mentioned drugging via sleeping potion (it doesn't happen to you, but I still thought I should mention this one)

The Leech twins. Jade and Floyd. The so-called 'Tweels' of Octavinelle. You did not like them.

Oh no, you didn't like those twins one bit! One's CLEARLY plotting something, and the other's constantly trying to strangle squeeze people. You hate them. But they just seem to love you.

The worst part? Azul, their Housewarden/boss/childhood friend, doesn't do anything about it. Azul knows for a fact that they're creeping you out, but he just changes the topic whenever you bring it up, which really infuriates you.

You've been noticing the two of them more and more in your everyday life recently…

You just wished these two would leave you alone. Jade's always offering you mushrooms from his mountain hikes and telling you just how non-poisonous they are (which only makes you more suspicious of them), and Floyd's constantly trying to squeeze you.

Every day, you try your best to avoid them. Every day, it doesn't work.

"Theeeeeere you are, Little Shrimpy~!" Two clawed hands grabbed your shoulders. "Howzit going?"

"Leave me alone Floyd..." You sighed.

"Huuuuuh? Why?" Floyd asked. "I wanna play with you! You can be really fun, y'know~? Lets do something together!"

"No, I just wanna get food! I don't want to do... whatever it is you're trying to drag me into!"

"So we'll do it later?"

"No! Floyd, just-"

Suddenly, Floyd bit you on the cheek. Not a soft bite, no, a bite that straight-up pierced your skin.

"Take that as a promise. See ya later, Shrimpy!!" Floyd walked off, waving as he did.

There's no way he actually just fucking did that, right?!

That's it. If Azul refuses to do anything about it, you'll just have to MAKE HIM do somthing about it.

"Greetings, (Y/N)." A voice you immediately recognized to be Jade said, placcing his hand on the wound you had just received. Oh great, now you have to deal with the other one. "That's quite a nasty bite mark."

"Go. Away. Jade." You demanded, done with these two's nonsense today.

"My my, what's got your tailfin in a knot?" Jade asked. "I'm simply inquiring about that bite you have. You can't be walking around with an open wound like that, you know?" Jade used his magical pen to summon an ice pack, which he then applied to your face. "There you are."

"Thanks, Jade." You said, not actually wanting to thank him but knowing he wouldn't leave you alone until you did.

"My pleasure, (Y/N)."

You eventually got to have your lunch, but that didn't matter. Your food was spoiled by how angry you were with the twins (Mostly Floyd).

After school, you returned to the main building of NRC to find a certain clubroom. And when you did, you kicked open the door, earning a terrified scream and a shocked look from the two members inside, currently playing a game of The A-maze-ing Labyrinth.

You walked up to Azul and grabbed him by the tie, yanking him forward.

"You listen to me and you listen to me closely, Azul. You will get the Leech twins under control and you WILL get them to leave me alone, understand?!"

"Listen, (Y/N), I've tried! They just don't listen to me! Jade and Floyd do whatever they find 'fun' or 'interesting'. You just have to wait until they stop finding you interesting. They'll drop you like a sack of bricks."

"No, I want you to do something about thhis. Now, Azul." You demanded, taking the icepack off your face, allowing him to see the bite mark you'd received from Floyd.

"Oh Seven..." Azul said after seeing the wound. He sighed. "Listen, (Y/N), I'll try, but there's no telling if they'll listen to me or not."

"Good." You turned to leave. "Thanks Azul."

"Hey, could we, uh, get back to our game now...?" Idia nervously asked.

"Yeah, I'm done yelling at Azul. Have fun with your board game, guys."

Days later, you received a letter in the mailbox of Ramshackle dorm.

"Greetings, (Y/N). My apologies for all the trouble Jade and Floyd have caused you. Within this envelope, I have given you a very special, limited-time-use coupon for 50% off everything on the Mostro Lounge's menu. It will expire at the end of next month, so it is reccommended you use it as soon (and as frequently) as possible. Yet again, I apologize for the twins behaviour, and I hope this coupon is adequate compensation. I hope to see you soon - Azul Ashengrotto"

50% off? That's a good deal. Even if it turns out Azul was unsuccesful in getting Floyd and Jade to leave you alone, there's no way you're not gonna use this coupon.

So of course you made your way to Octavinelle, hoping to get yourself some half-off food (Big mistake, by the way). When you entered the Lounge, you found it to be... empty. Very empty. There weren't even any Octavinelle students.

Well... that isn't true. There were two Octavinelle students in the Lounge.

"Ehe! Shrimpy responded to our invitation, Jade...!"

"Indeed they did, Floyd."

Still holding the coupon in your hand, you realized this was probably a trap. But you asked the question on your mind anyways.

"Um... Azul invited me here... where is he...?"

"Ah yes. Currently, Azul is asleep." Jade explained. "I used what we've been learning in potionology to create a sleeping potion and mixed it in with some food I made for him."

"We found out he was onto us, thanks to you telling him to get us to stop." Floyd added. "Now we get to have our fun! Remember?" He placed his hand on his cheek, the same side as the one he bit you on.

You were terrified. Whatever happens to you, it's not going to be good.

"Oh dear, what's with that face, (Y/N)?" Jade asked. "There's no need to be scared! We won't hurt you- well, I won't hurt you."

"Speak for yourself, Jade! I wanna hear Shrimpy squeal!"

"Just be gentle with them, Floyd."

Something tells you that both of them will ignore Jade's advice,.

[cupidscrule]

PT ONE OF A SHORT FIC!!

Adam stanheight / reader.

Tw - eating disorder, bathroom trap.

Saw 2004

"Hey- sweetie- com'on Hun? Please you need help, we can't keep supporting you if you're just killing yourself." Your mother said to you over the phone, god you didn't care, it wasn't hurting them. All you wanted was one thing, to be a beautiful model, find love, to be loved jeez, and we all know the only way to do that is to be skinny. You were 45kg, 5'4. Yeah, most people would say you're horribly underweight, but fuck them and there stupid opinions, they didn't know you. They couldn't get a say in what shit you pulled, doesn't even matter? Who would care?

Whatever that's besides the point, you were underweight. Still starved yourself, didn't care how people felt, hell you could basically fit toddlers clothes, I mean you always wanted to get in kawaii fashion nows the perfect time. Okay okay back to the point,

You always hated yourself, ugly, pig, god those words you heard all your life. You hated yourself, your loving family, left all your friends, you were alone. Well not really, no I mean like not alone. See everything was going fantastic, i was crying on the bathroom floor like every night, when the shower curtain pulled back and a thing wearing a pig mask shoved a needle in your neck, well probably my neck

Was a bit too hazy to fully remember, so that's how we ended up here.

Little ol me, in a black room, ankle chained, smelled like shit, like actual fucking shit. Jesus, where the fuck am I.

Still haven't figured it out yet. "Hello?? Where the fuck am I??" Oh shit there's someone else here?? Too dark to notice, didn't really think to scream, y'know just in case. It was a males voice, sounded about 20-25. The details don't matter "WAIT I FOUND A LIGHT" he shouts before the bathroom lights flicker on. Jesus no wonder it smelled like shit you were actually in a bathroom, I was just joking earlier. The man was a few meters away from me, he was wearing a white shirt, weird blue button up shirt and was undone, and jeans. His ankle was also cuffed? Fuck whats going on, is this some sick prank? He had short brown hair, and looked tired. Guess you had one thing in common?

"Hey- what's your name??" I asked him with an awkward smile, y'know trying not to start CRYING. "MY NAME IS VERY FUCKING CONFUSED WHAT ABOUT YOU?" jeez, wasn't he just a ball of sunshine? "Well do you remember how you got here?" I said after a few seconds, honestly I didn't even care if he was pissed all I wanted to do was get out of here. I looked around, saw fuck all. Well besides a man in the middle of me and mystery man who killed himself. Yeesh hope it didn't get that unbearable. "Nothing. Fucking nothing. I went to bed in my shithole apartment and woke up in an actual shithole??" He says looking over at me. He looked upset, but who wouldn't if they woke up in a bathroom with your ankle cuffed to a poll. "But- what's your name." Mystery man calmly says, wow what a change in emotion. Went from crazy bitch to sweet little charmer

"The less you know about me the better. What about you?" I say rubbing my eyes, before reaching down to my foot trying to break the chain. "Adam." He says after a solid 40 seconds, god finally something useful. "Huh, well nice to meet you Adam, NOW HOW THE FUCK DID WE END UP HERE?" I gotta admit I did sound a bit angry there but fuck if I care? Seems like a life or death scenario either way. Doubt this guy cares about kindness the way he acted before, "well - nice to meet you.. Adam. Now, do you know anything? Like why we're here?" A good minute passed before I said that, I guess I did feel a bit bad. He looked over at me, looking confused but not at me? "No, I really don't but-" he says before cutting himself off "wait he has something in his hand??" Adam continued speaking, pointing at the corpses hand. Yeesh it was a tape player, what a weird thing to hold onto, it also looked like there was a gun? Well I mean kinda expected that, given the head shit wound. "Can you reach it??" I shout to him, before getting on my stomage Trying to reach for it "No- Wait - actually" he says going over to a bathtub, grabbing the drainer. Using it to grab the small player, "smart.." I said putting on a half smirk, he grabs it with his wet hands, he pulls out two tapes, one with Adam written on it, and the other with yours. He inserts the one that has his name on it and presses 'play'

"Rise and shine, Adam. You're probably wondering where you are. I'll tell you where you might be. You might be in the room that you die in. Up until now you simply sat in the shadows watching others live out their lives. But what do voyeurs see when they look into the mirror? Now, I see you as a strange mix of someone angry, yet apathetic. But mostly just pathetic. So are you going to watch yourself die today, Adam, or do something about it?" Wow, that's fucking harsh. Poor guy honestly? "Hey toss me the one with my name on it-" I say to him holding out my hands, he throws it with the tape.

" Y/n , this is your wake-up call. Every day of you've starved yourself to look hotter, you have people worried that today might be your last day alive. Now, it's your job to end someone other then yourself,  Your aim in this game is to kill Adam. You have until six on the clock to do it. There's a man in the room with you. When there's that much poison in your blood, the only thing left to do...is shoot yourself. There are ways to win this hidden all around you. Just remember, X marks the spot for the treasure. If you do not kill Adam by six, then Cathy and Paul will die, Y/n ... and I'll leave you in this room to rot. Let the game begin. Follow your heart."

"Follow your heart -?" I say under my breath, looking over to Adam who is just staring "listen.. girl- we don't have to do what it says. Okay? We can figure this out and both live-?" He says oddly calm, "it said follow your heart- and there's ways to win everywhere?" You say looking around, "you said heart?" He says looking over at you "yeah?" I reply just kinda staring, what the fuck is he doing.

He stretches over towards a toilet bowl which has a heart smudged on it, sticking his hand in the toilet "Adam- no- ew-" you say gagging looking away from him. "Fuck nothing.." he says before opening the top of the shitter,  grabbing a black bag with various things in it, "The fuck is that?" I said to him looking back at him, a big ass trash bag which he dumped on the ground as two saws fall out of it, and a little case, with unknown things in it.

Adam immediately goes to cut off the chain, unfortunately the saw flimsily breaks In half. "What the fuck??" He shouts tossing it away, "they aren't meant to cut metal. They're meant to cut off our-" I say staring at the little saw, eyes wide, who the fuck would come up with this sick game? This is torture, hell on earth. What did I do to deserve this?

[zilabee]

Harry Nilsson and John Lennon

Quotes from "Who is Harry Nilsson (and why is everybody talkin' about him?)"

Harry Nilsson: I was still working at the bank and I, I hated the beatles because I said shhhhi, you know they're beating me to the punch... and then there was that moment when you say well you're either with them or agin 'em, and I decided to go for the latter [sic] and I said yeah, they really are... that good.

Jimmy Webb: We'd be arguing about the Beatles, and he'd say "The Beatles are the ONLY band! There's only one band. That's the Beatles. No one else matters."

Harry Nilsson: So one day I was, early, five in the morning, I got a phone call and there's this voice, long distance, hello hello who is it? It's John. John who? John Lennon. Is this really John? He says yeah I just want to say you're fantastic man, we're listening to you all weekend you know it's great great great, it's fantastic. Uh. the following Monday I got a phone call from Paul, how are you, just calling to say you're fantastic, you know, oh you're great, really love what you did and all that stuff you know, Derek played it for us and hope to see you soon. Clunk. The next Monday morning I get up, comb my hair, five o'clock in the morning, waiting for a call from Ringo. There was no call. But he ended up being the best man at our wedding so that's okay.

Ray Cooper: [The Beatles] uh, y'know, pronounced him to the world and said 'listen to this man!' and we did.

Micky Dolenz: I remember that's one of the only times I've ever seen him kind of patting himself on the back and tooting his own horn. He said 'you know they think I'm like the fifth Beatle'.

Harry Nilsson: I got a phone call and it was from Derek Taylor and uh, Derek said 'hey, the lads, the beatles, the fabs, would like you to come and join them for a session, they're recording at Abbey Road'. I thought right, Jesus, this is about as good as it gets.

Harry Nilsson: That first night in London I spent at John Lennon's house, and he gives me like a hug and he smiled and he put me at ease instantly. So I, for some reason I would say anything in front of this man and it would be okay. That night we spent the entire night with a little help from our friends, uh talking. Just sitting and talking. All night, till dawn, till seven or eight o'clock in the morning. And John and I on and on and on and on about marriage, life, death, divorce, women, what's it all about, you know, what are we doing?

Diane Nilsson: He said that he and John were a lot alike, that they'd had similar childhoods, and um, I wasn't surprised by that. So I, you know, it was clear that John had a lot of anger. He didn't hide that. Harry hid it, but John didn't. So. I thought that was very interesting.

Rick Jarrard (Harry's producer): Harry, after he went over to England, and was with the Beatles, or with John, I really don't know which. He changed. He changed and became somebody else that I no longer knew. Out of the blue I got a telegram that said 'I'm finding another producer' and basically that was the end of Harry's and my relationship. [...] I never saw Harry again after that telegram. Never spoke to him, never saw him.

Harry Nilsson: John was one of a kind, I mean there was just no one like him, he was tough as nails, he just uh, fearless and said what he felt. You know, that's something, he was always ahead, he was always a couple of steps ahead of you.

Jimmy Webb: To have John, was like giving Harry the best present he could have... That almost made up for the fact that his father left him. And there may be some of you out there saying, yeah, Webb's being the amateur psychiatrist, but I think that almost made up for it. Because Harry really wanted to be one of the Beatles.

_____________

'Pussy Cats'

Micky Dolenz: They were like in each other's face. It was like a duel.

Perry Botkin, Jr: They were a friendship made in Hell as far as I'm concerned. John had his troubles, Harry had his troubles, and they got together and really, that was when Harry really blew his voice.

Jimmy Webb: He and John Lennon were egging each other on as to who could scream the loudest and scream the longest and with the most ragged, actually self destructive vocals on tape as possible. He told me one time that there was blood on the microphone. Harry told me.

Perry Botkin, Jr: I believe it was purposeful. Not consciously, but I believe that he was - I can't believe I'm getting into all of this first of all - I really, I think he was for some very bizarre reason, trying to self destruct.

Jimmy Webb: That was the saddest thing that ever happened to me in my life, was when I realised that he, that he was in that much trouble vocally and that he didn't know how to tell me, and that he didn't want anyone to know and it's just hard for me to talk about it, I just can't talk about it...

_____________

John's Death

Mark Hudson: I was with Harry on the night that John was shot, and he was in the studio, it was that Monday night and we were all watching the football game and all at once a flash came on the screen that said John Lennon had been shot.

Van Dyke Parks: It devastated him. Because I don't think that Harry felt that they'd had their last conversation.

Yoko Ono: Well it was so severe, that we didn't talk about it. Between us.

Mark Hudson: I don't think he ever really dealt with it. And right after that he went into major gun control. [...] It was all for John but I really sort of think it was sort of a ghost that stayed with him forever.

Harry Nilsson: My name is Harry Nilsson and I'm the National Chairman of the End Handgun Violence Week which takes place between October 25th and October 31st. If you want to help please write to... Too bad we have so many people dying every year from handgun violence, thank you.

Terry Gillian: The whole focus of his being seemed to be about trying to get gun control laws.

Lee Blackman: And Harry, who was a very private person, and was rarely seen in public, went public with this, he went on television talking about the importance of handgun control, he formed an organisation for handgun control, he went to Washington and lobbied with lawmakers...

[la-princessaa]

In weird way, this post is a long time coming. Does it matter? No. Not particularly. Not to anyone other than me, really. But I'm going through a lot right now. Like, a lot. So I figure, I don't know, just... see where I've come from. The pictures are kind of important. To see how I used to look, the little girl I used to be. Show her some love and care that she needs. She was beautiful. But also be proud of maturing, celebrate getting older, and being alive. That's what these pictures are for. I'm going through a lot in regards to my body, my appearance, autonomy, mental health, and just general change and growth. Growing up. Getting older. Being honest with myself. And also remembering who, exactly, myself is. And carving out a space for me in my own life. Surprisingly hard!

I'm drastically different from 10 years ago. Obviously. 10 years is a long fuckin time. But also I'm one of the unlucky few (or many, I don't know) who had their mental illnesses really take off in their 20s. When I was 16, I was anxious mostly, with some depression. I felt very deeply, regularly, but most of it was happy. I was very sensitive. I did cry a lot. I didn't like the way I looked but I found ways to be happy and appreciate it. I broke up with my boyfriend and honestly. I cried for about an hour. And then I was done. The rest of my teen years were rediscovering myself, dealing with newfound trauma, worsening anxiety and depression, coping terribly, coping well, starting therapy, and just learning... How to be me. Or what exactly felt right. I was super cute, also. I'm baby.

In my late teens-early 20s I discovered that I have, at the very least, OCD-like symptoms in my anxiety. That consumed my life for awhile. My rituals, intrusive thoughts, ruminations, devoured my life for awhile. But I got it back eventually. Everything was... not fantastic, but it was okay. Y'know? I don't really remember a lot from anything before the pandemic, but, hey. Who does? After the pandemic hit, though, I got bad again. So bad, I had to get on medication.

Sometime in my early 20s, I decided I did not like the way I looked. I went to the doctor, saw my weight, went home and just cried. That's always been a struggle for me. Always. Ever since I was about 8 years old, maybe younger, my weight has been a subject. Either directly with me or to my parents from family or doctors. I'm realizing I grew up very different from some of my real-life peers. They didn't have to shop at plus-sized stores and spend exorbitant amounts of money to hope clothes fit. I feel joy and a twinge of jealousy now when I see how accessible clothing is now for fat people. It's fantastic, it's wonderful, but I do feel... some grief, every time, for younger me. I didn't realize I loved fashion until I started losing weight because I couldn't fit into anything. I didn't have variety. I had expensive ass Torrid. And a body that didn't match any of the models. And it was, always, just a little punch every time I went out to buy clothes and couldn't get anything fun in most other stores. Just a slow chip away at my self esteem every time I put something on and hated the way it fit me, hated the way I wasn't the acceptable fat shaped. Hated how I couldn't go into H&M and have anything fit. I still feel this way. I've lost a lot of weight, but these still chip away at me. I'm surprised there's anything left, at this point. Put on clothes, it doesn't lay right on my body. I have so, so much loose skin and it genuinely kills me inside every time I see it.

Anyway. I hated the way I looked, so I decided to lose weight. And it helped. It created a lot of anger and grief that I still have to sift through. A lot of anger at why did nobody tell me this was all it took, how everyone made comments but nobody helped me at all. Everybody was worried for me but nobody told me how to do it RIGHT. It was all no sweets, no fun, no nothing. Atkins. Which, for a teenager who emotionally eats? Fuck that. Plus, I was fine with how I looked, really, as a teen. Some stuff hit me wrong, I had parts I didn't like, but my biggest complex was my boobs. But that was due to a boyfriend. Anyways, I changed habits, it worked and helped. Until the pandemic hit. September of 2021, I bought a dress after getting a job, which was a whole other ordeal. But I put it on. It didn't fit right. And I went "oh". Something shifted that day. And I started down a path I haven't gotten off of. I ignored it, as long as I could. I think I did well. Hell, I started dating and stopped caring after awhile. I quit my job. Gained some weight back. Had a small, like, stupid small health issue that wound up affecting my confidence, and wuh-oh. I did a sharp, sharp left turn and was now having an absolutely terrible view of my body and how I fit into the world. It kickstarted a lot of problems. I went on websites I shouldn't, wandered through parts of Twitter that would make a grown ass, confident man feel terrible about himself. Looked through things I knew would hurt me, to make it all more intense. To see more "progress". I finally spoke up about it, and was like, I gotta get better. This isn't great. Which I have done several times before and since.

And then my world exploded.

Like, big-bang, everything I knew shattered, my world tilted and has never been the same. Every ounce of trauma came back, everything I've talked about here increased to a level I've never had before. I became so, so depressed. I've always been functional in my depressive states. Responsibility has always been stronger. But this time was so different. All I did was lay in bed and cry when I wasn't walking. I, at this point, had only self-harmed occasionally, and then suddenly it was so regular. I count this as when I developed my full-on eating disorder. In my fuckin mid 20s. Suddenly nothing fit me, everything sags, and let me tell you, that does not help. It makes it all worse, actually. I became genuinely suicidal. Like, "staring at my anxiety medication longingly" suicidal. My body dysmorphia is at an all time high, even now. I'm still not out of this. It's better, it's more... I'm doing more healthy, sustainable things, but it's still. bad.

I don't recognize myself in the mirror anymore, or in my own head. Genuinely, I've forgotten who I am. As the months have gone on, I've found things that bring me joy or remember things that do, but it's like it's underwater. It's so dull. I think the last week has been the most I've felt like my old self in genuine years. I've done little things to try and fix this. I pierced my nose, which was awesome. I've had a surgery I've wanted since last year. To finally help me feel more comfortable in my skin. To take away a part of me that made me violently uncomfortable. Reclaiming my body to be mine and mine alone. I'm finally buying clothes that fit instead of "I need to gain weight, so I'll get this larger" clothes. It's just as harmful as buying clothes too small to create "goals", by the way. Because in my case, I haven't fixed what's made me drop all the weight, so I'm PETRIFIED of gaining it back. So the clothes are just baggy and don't show off what I like. I don't feel happy or confident in them. Just buy clothes that fit. Seriously.

I'm comfortable saying I'm finally on the mend. I'm not better. But I'm not laying in bed sobbing every day. I'm not self-harming every day. I still have a lot of work to do. A lot. I've become obsessed with being sexy, and desirable, that it's drowning out anything I would actually like. My depression, my eating disorder, my desperation to be accepted and desired and loved, are all drowning out anything that is me. I'm trying to get better. But Jesus, it's a struggle. I do appreciate how I've grown into my face, the nose piercing definitely does a lot. I do still wear what I enjoy, not what my brain tells me I need to wear to be sexy. It's a battle, but I have little victories, at least.

[acaplaya-musings]

Voiceplay Visuals: Warriors

I feel like this cover (released on the 21st of March, 2020) was a little bit slept on for a while (by myself as well), and probably didn't get a little more attention till after Nothing Else Matters, but it's a good video and amazing arrangement, and it currently sits at a very respectable 2.1 million views.

I wasn't actually sure how much I would have to say about this video from a purely visual standpoint, but given the setting and the outfits and everything, I would feel bad for not including it, so here we go!

The origins of Violayne! (See maybe if more people were familiar with Warriors, maybe they wouldn't have been as shocked by Nothing Else Matters! 😝) (also J plays the violin in this one as well!)

I was gonna wait till a group shot to show each of their outfits, but I'll give at least some of them individual shots; I don't expect this to be a long post anyway.

Earl has a slightly different hairstyle to his usual one I think?

I don't know what Eli is wearing on his arms but they look cool! Also cool hood thing!

Even in a post-apocalyptic setting, Geoff is still wearing the necklace that Kathy gave him, bless <3

(Also what's up with the little pale lines/markings under his eyes? Earl has them in this video too (see above), so does Layne, and Eli I'm pretty sure, and maybe J as well? I'm guessing it was a deliberate makeup choice for some reason or another?)

It's so far been kinda tricky to get a decent screencap of Layne playing violin but man he looks so genuinely cool doing it. Bit of a change from his usual "class clown" demeanour/role in videos! (Also hey he's got textured stuff on his arms similiar to what Eli is wearing!)

Time for another Geoff Hair Study!

His hair is not as flat as I first thought it was in this video, but it definitely still has a little bit of a different vibe to it, y'know?

Did Layne snap a bowstring or something during the filming or this or does it just look/sound that way?

I definitely sense a theme going on with the outfits here

(Also only just noticed the roses on Geoff's ripped jeans. Cute!)

Fun fact: this is the only video where Layne takes centre position when all the vocalists are positioned in a line. He's not singing in this one, but he is playing the violin while beatboxing at the same time, and honestly that's even more impressive

Apparently this was shot at some place called "Best Shot Studios Warehouse", and I'm guessing the graffiti was already there?

Also, thanks to me paying closer attention to video credits and watching a lot of Voiceplay videos in a very short time period, I only just figured out that the person who did costuming for this video (a person named Tanya Buzu, of Buzu Designs), also did the costuming for Voiceplay's Oogie Boogie video! Shoutout to her!

Cool video!

I showed this video to a friend of mine a week ago, who knew the original song (I don't), and they really loved it and said Voiceplay totally did it justice! (Of course, as if we would expect anything less!)

So yeah, a shorter post, but I also wanted to do this video because this is the last video I will be covering that features Earl (no I won't be doing I Will Survive or Just Sing. Because(tm).) Very sad that he left the group, he was a great tenor and provided a lot of really funny moments in the videos, but hey, it's not like Voiceplay fell flat without him! My god I've got some big videos ahead of me!

[sonic7ischaos]

Y'know, talking about 'physics' in Sonic games, Momentum, inertia, pinball physics, slope physics, has become something of a meme in the Sonic community. A little bit an object of ridicule.

And y'know? I get it. We beg for it and criticize Sonic games for lacking it so much that I can imagine that for those of us who aren't even here for that, who picked up Unleashed or Generations or Colors and found their favorite game that hearing "It's missing momentum so it's bad" all the time is really frustrating. Like "NO! This game is amazing and you're just picking it apart because it's not exactly what YOU want!", which admittedly has SOME truth to it.

But I want you to imagine that Mario abandoned its jumping mechanics. Jumping into blocks does nothing but stop Mario's jump. Jumping onto enemies or into Koopa shells damages Mario now, and you're forced to use power ups to deal with foes, which are now just scattered across levels.

From the perspective of someone who grew up with Mario, hell, the average person with a passing awareness of what Mario IS, maybe they enjoy it for a game or 2. "Hey cool, this Mario game really zeroed in on using powerups and combat with enemies! New type of Mario game!" Then 5, 10, 15, 20 years pass and they're STILL doing it, They've alluded to some of the old mechanics here and there. "Hey, jumping on enemies doesn't hurt you now, you can bounce off of them like the old games" But still, the focus is on using powerups to defeat enemies. It doesn't feel like they've "changed things up" anymore, that they've "iterated on the old", it feels like they've abandoned Mario's core design, because they HAVE.

And before Mania, and now Superstars, that's what happened to Sonic. The core idea of Sonic was thrown completely to the wayside like it didn't matter. Imagine growing up with Mario, connecting with it enough that it's a part of your identity, not because you failed to find your own, but in the way that anything you love with your whole heart becomes a part of you, and then having the thing you fell in love with cast aside like garbage, just waiting for it to come back.

You break down Sonic to its very core, remove the imagery, the animation, the character design, attach the character controller to grey squares on grey platforms with grey backgrounds, and you still have what makes Sonic fun. It's in the programming, the design and functionality of mechanics, in the shape and functionality of the environment. Sonic the Hedgehog is merely the name and identity we attached to a game about building inertia and rolling on sloped terrain. And for decades it's been missing.

And listen, I LOVE Sonic Frontiers. It isn't perfect even in the areas where I love it, but it has the rest of the things that make me love Sonic. The stuff that you add on top of the grey squares, the visuals, characters, music, stories, even parts of the gameplay. Still, the game about building inertia and rolling on sloped terrain isn't in there. The last 3D game we got about building inertia and rolling on sloped terrain released in 2001.

There's a part of me that's terrified. That I'll die before I see another one. A modern 3D Sonic game built on that same idea. The grey squares becoming cubes. That I'll die waiting to see what could've been done.

[lucyglassesstuff]

Being kind to others is not pointless.

It took me a while to realize that.

To realize that being kind and loving does matter.

That it does make a difference.

That showing support and appreciation actually provokes change.

And what a huge change.

I don't know why I didn't realize it sooner, but my best guess is that a lot of us grew up surrounded by people who were tired of trying to fix a broken society so they stopped the efforts and taught us to not even bother, in the hopes it would save us from the trouble and anguish.

Or that's how it was for me, at some degree.

With a bit of observation to my own behavior, I realized I second guess every kind, nice, comment I have about anything or anyone.

"Should I say this?"

Should I say "Hey mom, you're looking so beautiful today" or "I think you're a smart and considerate person sis" just- out of the blue? Because I thought so?

It has always felt like that. It feels- weird to say compliments to others just for the sake of it.

Shouldn't it be their birthday or something?

Shouldn't there be something else than the mere want prompting me to do it?

Will I just look weird? Will they think I want something from them?

And with that kind of thought comes the flipped side of the coin: doubts about every compliment I get- Do they want something from me? What's the complicated squeam behind their kind words?

Is not a nice way to live life to be honest.

But still- I keep doubting before saying.

I doubt if I should smile at the people I cross while walking down the park.

I doubt telling the cashier her hair looks actually fantastic.

Hell, I even doubt saying "hello, good morning" or "bye, have a nice day" to some people.

And I love the people who do that.

I want to also be that people.

But anyway, since I always felt compelled to do it and I'm a sucker for finding less threatening ways of doing the things I want to do, I became a letter person, writing letters with the lovey-dovey stuff I don't usually say but always think, to give them to my family every once a few months.

Y'know, to not let them know I love them too much and all that.

We wouldn't want people knowing we like them and appreciate them, right?

Yeah, it does sound dumb. It is. It's- It's just- Why are we like that?

Why am I like that?

For me, the answer is quite simple: I'm freaking scared of people.

And yes, those we love are the ones who can hurt us the most.

By simple math, the more people you love the more chances you get of getting hurt.

No one wants to be hurt.

So we- Manage our love bank funds.

Tho, I personally think those funds are limitless. We're capable of loving as much as we want. But I also think is true you can love too much...

But anyway- to keep myself ontopic, your kindness, your words of appreciation and admiration do matter. They matter so much.

We are all way more confident and less reluctant when it comes to complaining and judging.

For some reason I have this internalized idea that having a lowkey kinda hateful comment equals to having a strong opinion.

As if we were really good judges of character, taking pride in our pointy noses.

I look tougher and rougher if I say a less kind thing.

I can't let everyone know I'm actually a Cinnamon roll and I mostly wanna hurt nobody.

I'll be taken advantage of if I let them see that.

I'll look weak and naive.

And blah blah.

Is a long train of thought that isn't even a train of thought to be honest. It's- like a code on a program: I don't think it word by word, but the code does make me hesitate before saying anything positive about someone else.

The worst part is that when I do convince myself to say it, I say it toned down, watered-down.

So, if I thought "Damn her skin looks so gorgeous! It's shiny, it's soft, it's radiant, all one cohesive color. God I want that skin!" I'll say "You- have a nice skin"

Yeah.

So I won't scare the hell out of her.

Or that's what I tell myself.

And I know this is just like- me exemplifying my previous rambling, but the point I'm trying to make is that we do not trust people's kindness when it comes from out of no where.

We're used to getting help and support when we are struggling.

Reason behind why when we do receive kindness we associate it with pity.

Is a long thing, but I just- I hope it wasn't like that.

But I've seen it happen: I've seen people being kind out of just showing appreciation and support and love for content creators that have helped them with their struggles.

Or just to- y'know, say "I see what you're doing. I think it's right. I agree with it. I'll support you doing it. Thank you for doing it"

And so they just- show love and support and appreciation and- how many times did I say those words already?

It's true for me too: there's so many content creators that I've been inspired by, that make me want to be a better person, that showed me that love does exist, that kindness is out there and people do want to help. People I want to hug and say thank you to. People I care about. People I wish good things upon.

And this takes me to a little add comment about the demonization of social media: The infamous internet is just an extension of society, and just like it, it's beautiful and awful at the same time.

We have created communities, we found people we care about, we make friends, we share, we support, we get inspired. Internet is an amazing add to humans relationships, but of course, like every single thing on existence, it has a darker side too. A bad side. An ugly side.

It's not this post's topic but I'm just so done with the entire thing-

It's- It's not- It's like saying life is a wonderful gift. Life can do no harm.

Bitch we have done harm!

We are life!

We can do bad things!

It doesn't have to be one or the other!

Life is beautiful! Is a miracle! Yes! And it can also be the cause of destruction for everything else!

I- That's it. I'm done for today.

The point got across... I belive.

And is a topic I want to expand on with its own post. So back to what we were saying: I'm in the process of learning to be more forthcoming when it comes to the good things I think of others cause yesterday I was told I look prettier everyday and that is still making me smile, so- I want to do that for other people too. And I want to mean it. I want to see into their eyes and say "you are actually marvelous. Go be wonderful today".

Because it makes me happy.

Because I do belive we're capable of such wonderful things.

This is not me trying to start a movement.

Thank all the divine for that movement has already begun and people do care, do want to be more loving.

I'm just counting myself in, and if I get just one more of you to do it too, I'll consider it a success.

Hell, if I get myself to be more prone to output my kindness into the wild world I'll consider it a success.

But still, do join. Become a loving cinnamon roll with the rest of us.

Being kind is not weakness.

It's taking me actual conscious effort to learn that.

And I'm sure it will take all of us a good while before actually integrating that knowledge into our way of living, but hey, we've been to the moon, we can just say more nice things to each other, right?

Final ideas for today: YOUR KINDNESS MATTERS SO MUCH.

Please do not refrain yourself from being kind to others.

And have a great day, night, evening, whatever is ahead of you!

[cerezzzita]

Info dump about your OCs bestie!

Hey, Sylvie! Sorry for the late answer btw, and in advance, I wanna say that the info dumps here are mostly about Millie and Evangeline, and they came from a talk I had with someone a month ago and is slightly edited, but ahem! Let's see it!

When I firstly wrote Evangeline, right after joining the DMC fandom two years ago, she was more like a counterpart of Dante than her actual own character, but thank god I changed that; she still can be considered his counterpart, though, since she's born from a angel with a human woman and he's born from a demon with a human woman. Anyways, Evangeline is more on the calm, serene side, usually being descript as that mature friend that you can always rely on because they'll always try to help you or comfort you no matter what. She is also very patient, collected and a bit childish — not the bad kind of childish, y'know, it's just that she was raised a bit far from mundane things and when she sees them for the first time she mostly gets excited and amused, and she have a thing for simplicity. Evangeline never asks too much, she just want to love and be loved, she cares and want to be cared, and trust me, she does loves Dante very much (right after their mutual pining, by the way). After all, he was her first in mostly everything related to love/mutual feelings field. Evangeline's also the smooth, silky type of flirter, she always knows how to make Dante go goo goo eyes for her and vice-versa. She's genuine, and hates any kind of betrayal. Her younger self also had a difficult time speaking of her feelings, gladly that changed as she matured. Evangeline's family is everything for her, she values them with her full heart and soul, her daughter Evelynn is her most beloved treasure, because she sees her more than just a being she and Dante concieved; she's her and Dante's second change to make things right.

Evangeline's also a Devil Hunter, and her kit is pretty similar to Dante's: she owns two platinum-like pistols named Grace & Glory and a spear (sidenote: angels, in my concept, don't really like or see the need for swords, they rather prefer spears) named Adamant. She also owns very diverse types of Devil Arms, they're still a wip, by the way.

Now for a bit of her past, Evangeline was born and raised in a far but stunning city named Caelumia — mostly known for the wealth and for the status of "The Doorway to Heaven", because, secretly, the city it is the angels' doorway so they can enter the Human World, but only a few can pass through. Her surname is Celiath and came from her mother, Rachel, a single human woman, and her father is named Hamaliel, a high-class angel. Yeah, I could say more buuut you'll have to read my future fic!

Now, onto Millie. Her real name being Millicent, she's more that laid-back, relaxed friend you have, y'know. She mostly appears to not give a damn about anything, so much that she's indifferent with the fact that demons exists and was kinda surprised but didn't made a big deal when she discovered that Dante was a half-demon. Pretty much like Evangeline, she's calm and usually don't let her feelings get the best of her, since her work as a pawner can and will be stressful enough depending on the customer she has; and yes, Dante's her favourite. Why? Because Millie have a thing for the "occult", and as said before, she doesn't give a damn about demons, she rather like to have things from them, and she makes sure Dante will always bring her some Orbs or even little bottles with demonic fluids. That girl is crazy, I tell you that. She also is the best in her line of work and always knows how to gain and keep money, a ironic contrast with Dante, so that's why she decided that he and she should be friends; and even that the both of them are full grown-ass adults, they tend to behave like two teenagers. Millie really cherishes his friendship because she doesn't let most people close to her (for tragic backstory reasons), he's an exception. She may be kinda tough on the outside, but she's a softie on the inside.

As stated above, Millie owns a pawn shop that is basically located in the end of the street where Devil May Cry shop is, and it came from her grandparents. Her shop is known for not being a regular one, since you mostly finds there itens that are related to Devil Hunters, and in fact they look for her shop so they can find something of their use. She's not a good body-to-body fighter but her aim is impeccable and she owns a kit with shotguns and rifles, when she have to deal with some not pleasant client.

And I guess that's all, for now! Thank you for stopping by!

[lukamoonvibe]

All For Love and Love For All [Hanahaki AU pt 1]

Summary: 

To love with every fiber of your being, that's what he'd been taught. Never did he think this unconditional sentiment would lead to unrequited love, but that's where he was, surrounded by an array of different coloured flowers.

Fandoms: Crewniverse, Homies SMP, Chaos Crew/Derp Crew

Ships: Anthony | ChilledChaos/Max Gamble, Anthony | ChilledChaos/Jess Bubger, Max Gamble/Taryn Hillin

Characters: Anthony | ChilledChaos, Max Gamble | APlatypuss, Jess Bubger, Taryn Hillin, Zach | CheesyBlueNips, Lucas | KYRSP33DY, Kara Corvus, Courtney | Courtilly

Rating: Mature

AO3 Link

To love with every fibre of your being, that's what he'd been taught. Never did he think this unconditional sentiment would lead to unrequited love, but that's where he was, surrounded by an array of different coloured flowers.

At first, they were bursts of pink petals, just here or there occasionally, he thought nothing of it. Then it got worse, whole flowers, still the bright pink he was used to. It became the norm, petals spluttering from his mouth when he coughed. No one questioned it, they'd all seen it before. They'd all lost close friends before. 

But this was the farthest any of them had ever seen. The flowers had changed completely, they weren't the same. Instead, they were different colours, weaved throughout his jaw and lips. They couldn't understand how he'd made it this far, how he hadn't opted for the easy way out, to just feel nothing.

He always just muttered something about 'never giving up on the ones he cared for' before coughing up an array of petals.

----------

"Have you ever bothered looking up what the flowers mean? They changed pretty quickly y'know, they used to just be pink." 

The man shook his head, "Why bother? It's not like it'll matter-" his lungs seized as he coughed the petals into his lap.

"Dude this isn't healthy. It could kill you."

"Yeah, why don't you just tell us who it is?" 

"I will suffer if it means my friends get to be happy and still have me to support them. Not everyone gets their happy ending, and I'm fine with that." 

"You won't be here to support us all if you die."

"And I won't have the capability to feel anything if I put my life first." he moved the small soft petals between his fingers.

----------

Intense pressure pushed against his chest, weighing him down. If I go, at least I lived a life full of love and gratitude. He blinked away tears as he lifted his arms only to be showered with flower petals. Hmph, geraniums, they may not know them but I do. A flower that represents foolishness, no matter it's colour. He swiped the petals off his face, forcing himself into an upright position. He brought a handful up to his eyes, wincing as his arms protested the sudden movement. 

Purple, that's new. He picked a petal out, it felt rougher than the pink and red ones he was used to. Near him his phone dinged and he dismissed the new petals without a second thought.

Zach

Hey bud, you still coming to the session or not feeling up to it today?

"Fuck." He muttered swiping the notification.

Yeah, sorry. Play a few without me. I'll be there soon.

We haven't started yet, was just checking in. 

A small smile graced his lips, a rare occurrence. He flung the cover off himself spraying petals all over the floor. I have to remember to clean that later. He made his way to the kitchen and made his coffee, I trail of flowers following him in his wake. 

"Oh. Hello. I don't believe we've met!" A voice chirped from the living area. 

He glanced over, noticing a woman sitting with a mug in her hands. "Oh hi."

"Landlord did say someone else lived here, and they regretted informing me that my roomie had a passion for gardening." She joked tilting her head to the trail of petals and flowers on the floor.

He hummed, almost a chuckle, "I wasn't informed you were moving in. I would've cleaned it up."

She laughed, "Honestly it's okay. I got lucky, mine is a little easier to hide than that." 

He tilted his head but didn't enquire further. She's still a stranger. I don't even know her name.

"Taryn. Uh I'm Taryn by the way."

"I'm -" a fit of coughs erupted from his lungs, he turned his head so the petals could fall into the sink. He grimaced at the sight of the pink, red and purple flower petals laying there, hints of blood splattered across them. 

"That's not good. Why haven't you gotten it treated yet?" he hadn't even realised that Taryn had made her way to the kitchen.

He opened a draw to his left, pulling out a small plastic bag. He collected the petals and shook his head, "If they do the procedure, I'll lose all my emotions. Not just for them but for all my friends. I don't want to lose the love I have for them. It's not fair." 

"Listen, I'm just some stranger who was given accommodation to share with you, but if I know anything about a terminal illness it's that the longer you leave it, the harder it is to cure, if it's possible to." she placed he cup in the sink and heading back out of the kitchen area.

"Max." He called over his shoulder.

"Huh?"

"My name, it's Max."

"Well it's nice to meet you, Max." She said before entering her room.

----------

"I'll be back in a minute chat, I'm gonna go grab another drink." He pushed his chair out spraying petals onto the floor. He sighed shaking head picking up his glass. He wandered to the kitchen and filled it.

"How's stream?" Taryn was sitting on the longue watching something on her laptop.

"No wig today?" He questioned taking a sip of his water.

She shrugged, "why bother putting on something itchy if I'm not going anywhere. You don't mind do you?"

He chuckled, "Listen if you can put up with that," He gestured to the petals trail as more fell off his arms, "than I'm sure that you not feeling like wearing a wig should be the least of your worries. As long as you're comfortable."

She hummed, focusing back on her screen.

He smiled, making his way back to his room.

He placed the glass down and put his headphones back on.

"He's still muted, do you think he's alright?" Chilled's voice chimed through.

"Chilled, seriously. He's dying. Physically not metaphorically." Cheesy replied, their ghosts were floating beside his player.

His eyes flicked toward chat where they were going crazy. They couldn't see him, he'd stopped playing with face cam months ago, he couldn't even remember how many anymore.

"What do you mean by "he's dying"?"

Cheesy scoffed and Max could just imagine the scowl on his face, "He's one of your best friends and you don't even know what his health is like. He's been throwing up bouquets of flower petals for almost a year now Anthony." Oooo, now he's in trouble, Cheesy never uses our names on stream. "But you wouldn't know that because beyond these lobbies you don't talk to him anymore apparently."

He bit his lip, it wasn't that Chilled hadn't tried to talk to him. He had, but he couldn't bring himself to call or any of that. Too scared he'd say something stupid and ruin their friendship.

"Wah. I do talk to him. We were literally talking three days ago. We often talk Cheesy." He sounded offended, Max was sure neither had their face cams on at this point.

Cheesy scoffed again, "Right. Well then you'd know that he hasn't left his house in a month right-"

The sound of someone undeafening interrupted Cheesy's sentence, "Guys this is not the place to be having this conversation in front of three, by the looks of it, chats full of viewers. Platy's private life is not their business unless he wants it to be." Kara's voice came through before the deafening noise came back through the feed.

He unmuted his mic, "Oh shit, didn't realise we started. Sorry guys. Went to get some water."

"You're not dead-" the animation played across the screen, Platy killing himself. 

"Looks like your lover died."

"Motherfucker." Kara's voice joined the feed.

He glanced at his roles, investigator. Whatever, boring role. "Sorry I missed the round, went to get water."

"We figured you were afk after the first round, it's fine."

"Who got you?"

Kara snorted, "My imp partner. Warlocked Ze, killed me through him."

"Rough man," Platy replied, glancing at chat again. "I think this will be my last one, I'm not really feeling great."

"Awe, that's okay. Thank you for coming anyway. I'm sure Court will be happy to cover if she's still available." Kara replied.

The round ended with the Jester winning and Max said his goodbyes, before leaving the call and ending stream.

His phone dinged a few times, the screen illuminating the dim lit room. He sighed, picking it up.

CheesyBlueNips

Platy, seriously are you okay? I don’t want to hear…

ChilledChaos

Hey. You don’t normally turn down a lobby after an…

KaraCorvus

I’m not gonna pry. I shut it down when my chat told me…

He clicked the power button, leaning back into his chair, “How am I going to tell them?” if he was being honest, he wasn’t sure if he was talking about his fans or his friends.

[ddejavvu]

hey mei! i hope you’re doing well:) i had a sirius black request but it’s kind of a bummer and i’m super projecting here but,,,

reader who has a really hard time setting boundaries, and she’s not ready to have sex yet, but she’s too scared to tell sirius. so when he tries to initiate sex she just plans on letting him because she’s so afraid of upsetting him, but he notices something’s wrong and stops and comforts her😭

if you don’t want to write this/don’t feel comfortable writing this thats okay you can just ignore me:) thank you!!<3

honestly i'm really bad at setting boundaries too so this was easier to write for me than it should have been 😭 i hope that if you're ever in this situation, the person notices!

--

His hands on your waist feel foreign, which upsets you. They've rested there before, in fact, that's his favorite place to put them. But he puts them there now, over your bare skin, and they burn you.

You squirm slightly, but he takes it as a readjustment, because you haven't told him otherwise. Your lips are stiff against his own, but he charges on, chalking it up to first-time jitters. You suppose that's part of it, but not all of it. You're nervous for your first time, sure, you just wish it wasn't happening now. You aren't ready, but do you really have to be? If Sirius is ready, shouldn't you be there with him? After all, what if you say no and he gets upset? It would be best just to play along, you decide, it couldn't be that bad.

"You can relax, y'know," Sirius reminds you, his voice husky against your ear, "That's what this is for."

"Mhm," You reply lamely, forcing yourself to lay limper in his grasp, "Sorry, Sirius."

He stops.

Pulls back.

Arches a brow.

"What's'a matter?"

"Nothing," You lie, his eyes trained on your every movement, flicking between your own in measured concern. Then he sinks onto the mattress, sitting beside you rather than hovering over you.

The change in position is helpful, and eases the anxiety that's clamping your chest tight. You're still hyperaware of his attention on you, though, and you keep your face controlled.

"I think you're lying." Sirius says after a tense moment of silence, his voice soft. It's the same one he uses when he reads to you, quiet and soothing, and it brings tears to your eyes that glisten against your lashes.

"You are," He breathes, seeing your tears, "What happened, are you okay? Did I do something?"

"No," You're quick to reassure him, shaking your head and wrapping your arms over your stomach, "You didn't do anything, Siri."

"And you're not lying this time?" He raises a perfectly-groomed brow, the line sharp against his skin.

"No, I-" You start, but then your eyes flicker over his own and your chest aches at your continued dishonesty, "It's not.. it's not your fault. 'S mine."

"Things are usually my fault." Sirius cracks a smile, breaking the tension, "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure. I'm not.." You pause, only accentuating your point, "I'm not good at communicating. I can't tell people what I'm thinking."

"Um, that's not true." Sirius brows furrow, "Literally just yesterday you told James you thought his new outfit looked like shit."

"Well," You let out an involuntary snort at the mental image of James with his god forsaken fedora on, "It did."

"Right, so that's not it. What is it then, darling?"

The care that he puts into questioning you is what finally makes you break. There's nothing but love in his eyes, none of it shattered by your hesitance. You inhale, exhale, and swallow, "I don't want to have sex."

The world keeps spinning. Nothing jolts to a stop, nothing explodes, nothing sucks the air out of your lungs and crushes you. Sirius doesn't sneer. He doesn't hit you. He doesn't shout.

"Okay." He says simply.

Okay. That's it. No protests, no pestering, just okay.

You're okay.

"You're.. okay with that?" You verify, trepidation swirling in your irises.

"Uh," He frowns, craning his neck forwards slightly towards you, "Yeah. You didn't think I was gonna force you, did you?"

"I- not force me," You stammer, "Just- I thought you'd be mad at me for teasing you!"

"You weren't teasing me." He shrugs, "Jus' not ready yet, sweetheart. 'S okay, you don't have to be."

"Really?"

"'Course not." He leans back against the headboard with you, now side by side as he tips his head backwards and towards you, "I'd be kind of a rotten boyfriend if I pushed, wouldn't I?"

"I guess so," You nod, tension draining from your frame, "You're not rotten."

"I'm glad you think so," He buries his face in your shoulder, but this time his lips on your bare skin don't singe it, "'Cause a sweet thing like you deserves someone equally so."

"You are sweet," You smile wistfully even though he can't see it, "You made me ice cream the other day. You could have just waited 'till they served it for dessert!"

"They don't serve it until wednesdays," He reminds you, "Plus, it was kinda fun, shaking that bag around. 'M sure the elves didn't like it very much, what with the salt getting everywhere, but I'd do it again."

"Well you're gonna have to," You grimace, "James caught me eating it and I spilled the beans."

"You ratted me and my ice cream-making prowess out to Prongs?!" Sirius pops up from the juncture of your shoulder and neck, his eyes blown wide indignantly, "Y/N!"

"I'm sorry!" You gush, an overexaggerated frown on your face, "He just kept bugging me to tell him where I got it!"

"'Gonna have the man up my arse for weeks," He groans, flopping into your lap like a scorned puppy, "Thanks a lot, Y/N."

[ticklish-n-stuff]

HEY HOW ARE YOU?? HAVE A GREAT DAY :D (and oh oh OH you wanted lee kaito?!?)

honestly i havent seen if you ship or anything since i just read your toya and akito one but i like to think meiko and kaito have tk fights a lot

like kaito would trip on stage or something and meiko would playfully punish him with tks after the show auahahahah (sorryyyy im bad with requests, this is my first)

sorry if you already got a request or something buuuuuut if you did you can ignore this

buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut if you didnt............. 👀 i hope this idea helps?? lol

((if you dont have an ☯️ anon yet can i claim that??))

After show

HI THERE~! I'M DOING WELL! HAVE A GREAT DAY AS WELL!

When it comes to ships I'm pretty open minded about them, as long as it's not incest or y'know...illegal akskalsjakdh

Anyways, ty so much for feeding my Kaito obsessed brain!

I did change the prompt up a bit to incorporate an idea a friend of mine had given me prior, so I hope you don't mind aalskaksj

Hope you enjoy! :D

___________________________________________

Kaito x Miku (platonic) WxS Sekai

Lee: Kaito

Ler: Miku

Warnings: Tickles! My love for Kaito aisuaisjakd

___________________________________________

It was a special day over at the stage Sekai. All the vocaloids and plushies were rehearsing for their next upcoming play. Kaito's solo part was coming up, he went to do his dance routine but ended up accidentally tripping through it. Luckily Miku was there to catch him before he could hit the ground. Still, Kaito couldn't help but feel embarrassed and a bit frustrated.

After rehearsal was done for the day, Kaito went outside, still feeling embarrassed over what had happened. Miku caught a glimpse of him and joined him as well.

"Kaito~! Ehh...everything okay?".

"Yeah...I'm fine...".

Miku squinted her eyes at him, Kaito only stared back with a confused look.

"Y'know, you're pretty bad at lying. What's got you so upset?" Miku gave him her best puppy eyes, how could Kaito resist them?! That's easy, he can't.

"I'm just a bit upset over what happened earlier..".

"Whaaaat? But it was just a mistake! I'm sure you'll get it right the next time~!" Miku bumped her fist into the air energetically, but Kaito only sighed as he looked at the ground.

This sucks, Miku hated seeing her friends all upset. She was willing to do anything to make Kaito happy again, even if he didn't approve of her methods that's a lie he does. Miku grinned and giggled mischeviously.

"Oh Kaitoooo~" she said in a sing-song voice. Kaito knew that tone far to well, and it always lead him to trouble.

"Whatever it is you have planned, don't!" Kaito tried to sound as serious as possible but his cheeks were already getting heated and his voice sounded a bit flustered. Miku giggled again.

"I think you know exactly what I'm about to do~" Miku brought her hands up, teasingly wiggling her fingers at the male vocaloid. Kaito stared at her in pure fear and excitement before deciding to scramble on out of there! Miku wasted no time chasing after him, ungraciously tackling him face first into the ground.

"WAH-! M-Miku get off!" Kaito squirmed under her grasp, but he was effectively trapped. And to make matters worse, Miku pinned one of his arms behind his back.

"Not until you're happy again! Until then...tickle tickleeee~" she quickly dug her finger's against Kaito's side, making him chocke on a laugh. For some reason he was feeling stubborn and didn't want to give Miku the satisfaction of making him laugh, so he opted to bite his lip and thrash around. Not the best plan he came up with, considering how horribly ticklish he is.

"C'mon Kaito, y'know you wanna laugh~" she then moved her fingers up to his ribs and that's when the dam finally broke.

"Nahahahahaha!! M-miku stahaHap!" Kaito squealed and kicked his legs out from behind, he was too ticklish for this! Miku only giggled and kept tormenting the ticklish vocaloid.

After a while of some awfuly good rib tickles, Miku flipped Kaito onto his back. Kaito took this chance to catch his breath, knowing Miku she was far from done with him.

"Hehe I can see your tummy~".

"Huh-? EEP!" He let out a squeak at the sudden poke he felt on his bare stomach. Miku then flashed him a mischevious smirk, uh oh was all Kaito could think.

"Miku what are you- BWAH! AHAHAHAHAHA! M-MIKU NOHOHO!" Kaito shrieked and fell into a fit of hysterical laughter when he felt something soft and fluffy along his tummy. Miku was currently using the tail from her costume to tickle him! She truly was the tickle monster of the Sekai.

"Such a cute ticklish tummy you have~".

Poor Kaito squealed and cackled, kicking out his legs like a puppy. The ticklish dork covered up his face with his hands, too embarrassed from all the weird yet cute noises he kept making from the tail tickles.

Looks like Miku was having none of that though. She stopped the ticklish assault on Kaito's tummy and pinned his arms above his head.

"Aehehe...M-miku let me gohoho!" Kaito's flushed face got revealed once more, showing off his bright smile and watery eyes. He tugged at his arms but of course Miku wouldn't budge.

"Hmmm...are you feeling better now?".

"Mmhm!!!" Kaito nodded his head profusely, it was quite the comedic scene to witness.

"Hehe you suuuure~?" She playfully poked at his armpit.

"YeheHEs! Im suHUHURE!" Kaito squealed once again, almost bucking Miku off of him.

"You really really suuuuuuure~?" She gave his armpit a quick scribble.

"YEHEHEA! P-PLEHEHEASE MIKUHUHU!" Kaito threw his head back in laughter, too tired to even squirm or even think of getting away. Maybe being forced to endure Miku's tickle torture wasn't so bad after all. He couldn't lie, he was feeling much better now.

Looks like the heavens were in Kaito's favor, because shortly after Miku stopped tickling him. She let go of him and gave him room to breathe. He quickly curled up on himself, hugging his torso as stray giggles kept pouring out of him.

"Hahaha...t-thahanks..!".

"Hehe no problem~" she helped him up onto his feet. He was so giggly she was afraid he would fall down again!

"Also, could you please not mention this to anyone? It's kind of embarrassing..." he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Too late for that!".

Kaito let out a startled gasp. In front of him were none other than the gang of misfits- I mean the WonderlandsxShowtime group, all grinning mischeviously towards him.

"Uhh...I-I uhm..." poor Kaito tried to come up with an excuse as his face heated up once more.

"Get him!" yelled out Tsukasa and Emu as the four of them charged straight towards him. Looks like Kaito wasn't catching a break today.

___________________________________________

This kept me wildly entertained during my long ass car trip aksjakajsla

Also im planning on writing a poly VBS fic soo if anyone's got any ideas feel free to send 'em in👀

[iriika]

We'll meet again | [ TR ]

synopsis : It's probably the last time he see you before you move out, so maybe it would be good to confess, no ?

cw. : fem!reader, crack and fluff

characters : Mikey ( Manjiro Sano ), Keisuke Baji

nda : this is my first post, hope you like it :) probably gonna make a part 2 so if you have any suggestions, feel free to share <3

Manjiro Sano ( Mikey )

"I'm moving out."

Is world shattered into pieces just with 3 words. It's a joke right ? It must be one.

"Ah. Nice one [name]. But you won't get me with that"

He said, taking another bite in his Dorayaki.

"I'm not joking 'jiro..."

He could hear your sobs, and the words dying in your throat as you tried to wipe the tears running down your cheeks. He could hear the way your voice was trembling when you tried to say his name once again, apologizing for something that wasn't even your fault.

He don't know for how long the two of you stayed like, in silence, sitting on the stone wall.

"When. When are you gonna move out ?"

He said, breaking the silence first.

"Tomorrow..."

He just felt his heart break once again. He tough he would still have some time to spend with you before you go, but he realize now that it's too late.

"I'm going back home... I still have some things to pack..."

You said, standing up, avoiding the blonde's gaze.

Every step you took felt heavy, and you just wanted to pass the corner of the street so you could finally collapse on the ground, and cry without worrying Mikey.

Yet there he was, holding your arm with his hand, sliding slowly to catch yours when you stopped.

"Don't go."

There was plenty of things he wanted to say, but he didn't had enough time. So, he choose something simple instead.

"I love you"

Your eyes widened, still trying to take in what he just said

"Draken said I should let you go, and forget my feelings, because it would be too dangerous for you, y'know ? Since I'm a gang

leader and all."

You would probably have hated him for the tone he used, acting like your friendship didn't just shattered into pieces if your heart wasn't beating too fast to assimilate anything else than his hand in your.

"Hey, your starting to annoy me. I just confessed myself and you won't even gave me an answer ? Look at me in the eyes, at least."

Your cheeks were heating up, and even without looking in a mirror, you could tell they were red. And you did looked at him.

"I..."

"No. I changed my mind. Don't give me an answer. That would be suck if I got rejected like that. Pah-Chin would make fun of me until my death."

He toned, cutting you off.

"But ? You just said you wanted an answ-"

"Nah. Give me the answer when you're coming back."

He said, before giving you a soft and fast kiss on the lips

"I'll wait."

Keisuke Baji

You've been a avoiding him all day. And saying it wasn't bothering him would be a lie.

"[name] !"

He said, running after you in the school hall.

"Why are you avoiding me ? Your getting on my nerves."

Baji said, putting his arm around your shoulder like he always do.

"Let me go."

You said harshly, pushing him away.

"Damn. You got bad grades on your last test or what ?"

"Why are you always acting like that Kei ?"

"Like what...?"

He said, looking at you with a confused look

"Like an idiot."

No matter how much he turn the problem in his head, he still can't understand why you're acting like that.

He know he was acting like an idiot, but still, the way you said it hurts his pride.

"So are you gonna tell me what's wrong or ?"

"I'm moving out."

"Huh ?"

He was expecting anything but this.

When, where, why ??? Since how long have you been hiding it from him ???

"When did you..?"

"My parents told me this morning... I... I only have one week left here."

The hall was empty, everyone was on their way home. Everything was silent. Expected some muffled sobs emanating from your trembling figure.

"Don't wanna go Kei... What if we never see eachother again...?"

"You think I'm gonna let you go that easily ? Who is gonna help me with my homework if you're not here anymore ? Chifuyu is gonna kill me for sure !"

You liked the way that it was so easy for Baji to make you smile and laugh from his stupid attitude, the way he was always here when you needed to cry, and god know that you don't cry that easily. Leaving him behind you was too hard to handle. He was the first friend you made here and your first crush too.

"Hey [name], since you're gonna move out soon. Wanna go out with me ?"

"Huh ?"

Was it one of his stupid joke again ? Or did he really wanted to go out with you ? Was it because he knew you liked him and that he pitied you ?

"I'm really serious. Chifuyu told me you were out of my league. But I couldn't just let you go, so I just made my way to you. Do you really think it's a coincidence that I was always here ? Oh wait forget what I just said that looked hella creepy "

"Yes"

"What ?"

"I wanna go out with you..."

"WHAT ?! I was ready to get rejected but well... OH GOD LOOK AT THE TIME IT'S MY TURN TO FEED PEKE J."

"You should go then. I'm going to head back home."

"No way. Since you're my girlfriend now that mean you're Peke J's mom. Let's go feed our son."

And there he was, pulling you his hand in your to get to his appartement quickly to feed his cat.

"Soon I'm going to ask you to be my wife too. Peke J really need a mom figure. Chifuyu ain't doing the job well."

work belong to @iriika on Tumblr <3

[omori-civilwar]

Was this... really worth it?

Sunny's mind and heart were racing as he tried to process what was going on.

What just happened?

He looked down at his hands... at his knife. Blood stained a good portion of the blade, and some of it had splashed onto him. That's... not supposed to happen. That's not supposed to happen. Why is this happening. Why is--

"Woah.. that was about to get really messy..."

Sunny's fear-glazed eyes darted back up to Kel when he heard his voice. Why did he sound... relieved?

Kel didn't seem to notice his fear right away. "Good thing you had your knife there, or we would've... w-wait a sec! Gimme that!"

He quickly snatched the knife away. Sunny... honestly didn't mind. He took a step back, hugging himself tightly and looking down, feeling guilty.

None of the Headspace enemies bled like that when attacked...

Kel tucked the knife away before looking back at Sunny. "Hey... you good?"

"..." Sunny didn't speak a word.

Kel placed a hand on Sunny's shoulder instead, giving him a gentle grip. "Hey... it's okay. She'll be fine, I'm sure. Aubrey's really tough, and uh, I'm sure you didn't mean to hurt her... right?"

...no. No, he didn't.

"Besides... uh... she's been kinda violent lately. So... I don't blame you, either. She's changed a lot since... um... since you've last seen her."

The tone of Kel's voice wavered a bit. He was... hiding something, clearly.

"Anyway-- it's dangerous for you to carry around a knife like this, Sunny! You could really hurt yourself, y'know!"

... as if that mattered.

Sunny's gaze drifted back to the crying Basil, and he slowly approached him, putting his hand on his shoulder similar to the gesture Kel made.

"... Basil..."

Basil jumped at the sudden touch and voice, quickly looking back up at him.

"S-Sunny..."

"...where did you go?"

Huh????

The question felt like a knife in Basil's gut. Why was Sunny of all people asking where he was?

...surely he couldn't know about the nightmares...

"Um..."

Before Basil could really say anything, Kel came up to join them.

"Hey, Basil... how're you doin'?"

"Ah... er... I'm fine... thank you, Kel..."

Basil's voice was timid and weak and almost fearful. Naturally... whatever just happened with Aubrey and her apparent new friends must've really shaken him up.

"Alrighty-!" Kel shrugged, seemingly oblivious to Basil's very obvious not-fine-ness. "Man, it feels good for us to be together again! It's been so long!"

"Yeah... it has." Basil managed a very tiny smile.

"Hey- would you wanna hang with me n' Sunny for a while?"

Hang. The word sent a chill down Sunny's spine.

"Oh... u-um... I'd love to... but, uh... I should probably get home..." Basil said softly, looking down. "I'm s-sorry..."

"Huh..? Really?" Kel blinked a bit. "Are you sure?"

"... m-my, um... my grandma hasn't been feeling well recently..."

"Oh... I'm sorry to hear that..."

Kel's gaze changed from excited to concerned in almost half a second. It was... almost unnatural. A bit concerning.

"Well... let us at least walk you home. It's just been so long since we've last hung out!"

"O-oh... alright then... thank you." Basil reluctantly accepted the offer with a tiny nod.

"Alllrighty! You remember the way, don't you Sunny?" Kel asked, and Sunny nodded. South of the playground...

He led the way down, stopping to pet a stray kitty on the way there. He couldn't resist... it's just so cute!

They did, however, make it to Basil's house really quickly, and Basil went up to the door, stopping to look back at the other two boys.

"Um... t-thank you for walking me home..."

"No problem-o! If you ever need anything, just ask me, okay?" Kel replied with a grin. How does he change emotions so quickly? "We'll catch you later, Basil!"

"... okay..." Basil reluctantly nodded as Kel and Sunny turned to leave, but he shifted anxiously, feeling himself tremble.

For once in four years, he hadn't been alone. His friends came to save him. They were still here right now. This was his chance...

"WAIT!! Please don't go!!!"

The shout caught the other two by surprise, causing them to jump as they quickly turned to look back at Basil, who immediately lowered his voice, swallowing a lump in his throat.

"S-sorry... I-I mean... I do have...a small favor to ask..."

"Anything, Basil. What do you need?" Kel asked, stepping forward.

"Well... you see... something important was taken from me. When... we... used to be friends... do you remember how I'd take pictures of everyone...?"

Used to be????

The three words caught Sunny off-guard. They're not friends anymore? When did they stop being friends? Is that why he disappeared? Wait, this is a different world, isn't it? Things are really different. Did they stop being friends here? How? Why? When? What???

Kel immediately perked up. "Of course I remember! Those photos meant everything to you!"

"Ah... r-right... well... Aubrey... she took my photo album... a-and...-"

"AUBREY STOLE YOUR PHOTO ALBUM???"

Yeesh-- since when was Kel that loud and angry?? Sunny jumped at the shout, and Basil flinched just a bit.

"W-well... she... she won't give it back..."

"What a SCUMBAG! Don't you worry about a thing, Basil! We've got'cha covered!"

Kel suddenly put his arm around Sunny to pull him close, again surprising the poor boy.

How did he get dragged into this AGAIN???

"Oh... uh... thank you..." Basil nodded once, pausing as Kel came to his side again.

"By the way... about what you said before..."

He put his hand on Basil's shoulder with the same gentle grip he had with Sunny.

"We're still friends. I want you to know that. Okay..?"

"... okay."

Basil nodded once, though his eyes stared down at the ground. How could they still be friends after everything that happened?

"Well... I'll see you later."

He turned and walked back into the house, leaving the two boys alone again with their quest to find Aubrey and get the album back.

"... well, here we are. This really is the last place I would expect her."

Huh--?? ... Sunny must've spaced out again.

He gazed up at the building in front of them... a church. The only one in Faraway Town. Since when was Aubrey religious...? Especially with the way she acted earlier...

The statues in front stared Sunny down with cold, judgmental eyes, making him feel uneasy. The stained windows shimmered in the sunlight, adding a bit of beauty to the overwhelming place. It was really the only thing Sunny liked about it. The colors reminded him of Headspace.

"... I'm kind of skeptical, actually." Kel continued. "It might be a trap... I'll open the door a little to take a peek."

He quietly peeked inside, squinting as he scanned the area.

"Hmmmm... seems normal to me... I think they're in the middle of a sermon...-- oh! There she is on the right!"

He perked up just slightly as he leaned in closer. "Hmmmm... she's just... sitting there. All normal. So weird..."

He pulled back and closed the door again, looking back towards Sunny. "Yeah... I'd feel pretty bad about interrupting this. We should probably wait until the sermon is over or something."

Psh... wait? They don't have time to wait... it'd be better to just get things over with. Sunny took the lead again, pushing his way into the church and slowly entering.

The pastor was preaching something about God forgiving sins, and Jesus dying on the cross for them, or whatever. Could He really forgive a sin so great??

It felt... odd to hear him talk about that kind of stuff. Shards of memories tried to claw their way into his mind, but he pushed them back. He didn't want to think about that.

The door in the back almost seemed like it was... glowing. He felt like he could hear a familiar voice singing behind it. He wanted to go look, but the situation at hand was more important.

It felt odd to be here in the first place. He knew full well he didn't deserve to be here, especially now. He felt like a criminal. The thought of it made his heart race.

Kel suddenly ran in behind him before he could make it to the pews.

"Whoa, I didn't expect you to just walk in like that, Sunny... well, there's no turning back now... c'mon, we have to be really quiet."

He kept his voice at a low whisper to avoid disturbing the congregation. Sunny reluctantly gave him a nod, crouching down as he went to look for Aubrey.

... it wasn't hard to find her.

It was like everyone was... avoiding her.

There weren't many people in the church in the first place, but anyone who was there seemed to have made an effort to make sure they weren't anywhere near her. The only person somewhat close to her was the man sitting in the row in front of her, but it was safe to assume he didn't even know she was there.

Other than that, everyone else was at least one pew away -- it was obvious to tell who was with whom, too, considering how the couples were sitting together in distinct groups apart from each other... -- and he was sure he could catch them occasionally shooting her anxious glances.

This didn't seem like a very friendly place to be in, ironically, considering what he understood from what was being discussed.

"There she is on the right." Kel pointed out as soon as he spotted her. "Let's walk to the pew behind her."

Sunny led the way into the pew, leaning forward and resting his chin on the top of the pew Aubrey was sitting at.

...his stomach dropped when he saw the bloodied bandage over where he had stabbed her earlier.

"Aubrey... pssssst... Aubrey!" Kel whispered, lightly tapping Aubrey's shoulder. She flinched just slightly, turning to look at them.

"What the-? W-what the heck are you guys doing here?!"

"We want you to give back Basil's photo album!"

"You're still on about that?" She rolled her eyes. "That's none of your business."

"Really? 'None of my business?'" Kel huffed at that. "We used to be best friends... but now, this is 'none of my business?'"

"Yeah, Kel... exactly. We used to be friends."

... Aubrey's words hurt even Sunny.

This world is... so different from Headspace. They're all still friends in Headspace. Everything is okay in Headspace. So... why is everything so broken here? What were they talking about?

"... you know... Mari would be really sad to hear that." Kel suddenly said. Aubrey immediately tensed, her eyes going wide and her lips curling back in a snarl. She gripped the pew she was sitting on, and she looked like she wanted to snap at Kel, but instead she took a deep breath, forcing a smirk and she let out a low, quiet chuckle.

"... heh... really...? You really want to bring Mari into this?"

Her voice dripped with poison. She was obviously trying not to cause a scene.

"Who cares what Mari thinks?"

... obviously she should--

"Mari's dead."

... the words immediately made Sunny freeze.

No. No, no, no. Mari's not dead. He just saw her this morning. He saw her last night. He's seen her every night for the past four years. She's fine. She's alive. She's still friends with them. She's still holding the group together. She loves them. He loves her. They all love her. What was Aubrey talking about?

She's lying.

She's lying.

She's LYING!

Tears immediately pricked his eyes, and he started to tremble as his breathing quickened. Shadows creeped into the corners of his vision -- dark hands trying to grab at him. Eyes judging him from the darkness. He stared blankly, visibly disturbed by Aubrey's accusation.

The panic was only broken by Kel's voice speaking up again.

"Aubrey, seriously?! What's wrong with you?"

... it was hard to tell whether he was saying that because he, too, was offended by Aubrey's words, or because he saw Sunny's mini-breakdown, but whatever it was, at least it broke the sudden fear.

"I get that you have new friends now, but you can't just forget your old friends like that...!"

"My old friends...?"

Aubrey went tense again.

"My old friends weren't there for me when I needed them."

Her words brought a pang of guilt into Kel's gut.

"... so that's what this is about... when Mari... passed on..." Shut up. "... we were all dealing with our own stuff. We were kids... it was hard."

"You think it's all so simple."

Aubrey's voice was a low growl, and her cool demeanor was fading away.

"You've always been simple, Kel."

"So what if I am?" Kel immediately snapped at her. "I'd rather be simple than be like you! How could you do that to Basil? You know how important his photo album is to him!"

"It's important to all of us."

"That doesn't mean you can just steal it!"

"Is that what Basil told you?! I'm the one keeping it safe!"

"What are you talking about? That photo album belongs to Basil, and I'm not leaving until you agree to give it back!'

Aubrey finally scoffed and turned away, crossing her arms.

"Ugh... you're so persistent..."

She bristled before taking a deep breath and continuing.

"When Mari died... you moved on so fast.

Do you know why I come here every week? Even after all this time, I'm trying to find some peace... but it doesn't look like that's happening today. We haven't talked in four years, Kel. A lot changes in four years. You and Sunny think you can just barge back into my life and tell me what to do...? Don't be so naive!"

She accidentally raised her voice a bit. Kel shifted, but stood his ground.

"You might look and act different, Aubrey... but you're still the same person."

"Hmph... the Aubrey you knew is long gone. And the Aubrey that was your friend... she's long gone, too."

"..."

Kel finally started to step back a bit.

"... okay, fine. I get that you're angry. Look... if its' an apology you want, here. I'm sorry, okay...? I should've been there for you when we lost Mari." SHUT UP.

Aubrey paused, but turned around, looking at the floor as she thought for a moment.

"... ... no. I won't accept this."

She got up and started to leave, but Kel tensed, quickly going to stop her and dragging Sunny with him.

"Wait!! Where are you going?? I can't let you go until you promise to give Basil's photo album back, you thief!"

... that did it.

The congregation turned and stared and immediately started whispering amongst each other.

"What's happening?"

"Basil?"

"Isn't that the boy who I've seen Aubrey and her friends bully...?"

"Now she's stealing as well..."

"... oops."

Kel tensed as he realized his mistake. Everyone was staring at them. The whispers only continued, making Aubrey uncomfortable. Her eyes darted around, and her body went tense.

After a moment, she took a deep breath, reaching back for her bat.

"... you think you're the good guy, don't you, Kel...? And I'm the big, bad bully... here to terrorize poor, defenseless Basil..."

A weak, almost maniacal laugh escaped her as she stared them down, her eye twitching.

"YOU'RE THE ONE hanging out with a psychopath that carries around a knife!"

Again, Sunny's eyes drifted to the bandage, and Kel's followed suit. ... she might have a point.

"... now's not the time to do this, Aubrey..." Kel whispered under his breath.

"YOU don't get to say that!" Aubrey yelped out quickly. "YOU'RE the one who barged in here!"

"I already said I was sorry for everything!"

Kel looked like he wanted to say more, but Aubrey whipped out her bat, presumably cutting him off as she pointed it at the boys.

"If you want me to be a bully... THEN I'LL BE A BULLY! You two better come at me, quick...

OR I'LL COME AT YOU FIRST!!"

... Sunny must've blanked out again during the fight.

Who could blame him? He couldn't bear the thought of fighting a friend.

All he could hear were the judgmental whispers.

"Look at her clothing... completely inappropriate for church."

"I can't believe she would bring a weapon in here... how uncivilized..."

"What do these delinquents think they're doing? This is a place of worship!"

"Someone needs to stop them... where are their parents?"

"That girl is a threat to this neighborhood. There's no hope for sinners like her!"

"Ah... ever since her father left, she's so uncontrollable..."

"Disrespectful..."

"I feel bad for her mother..."

Aubrey started to tremble, stifling a sob at the horrible words spread about her.

This isn't how today was supposed to go. They had never given her a problem until now. Sure, they'd give her odd looks. They didn't like her there -- she knew that. She wasn't welcome there. She wasn't welcome anywhere, really... even her own mother didn't want her around.

Of course the boys had to come in and ruin everything. They had to humiliate her in the only place she felt tolerated. The only place she felt peace.

Of course it had to be now.

Embarrassed and crushed, she raced out of the church, forcing herself not to start crying until after she was out.

Kel watched her go before turning back to Sunny, seeming guilty about the whole ordeal.

"Shoot... I know she's been kinda messed up lately, but I still feel sorry for her... maybe this was a bad idea."

... Sunny couldn't help but feel guitly too.

He was the one who thought it was a good idea to come in and interrupt everything in the middle of a sermon. If he had just waited until afterwards... maybe caught Aubrey while she came out... he could've saved her a whole bunch of embarrassment. It would've saved all three of them, really.

How selfish.

He ignored the continued stares of the churchgoers and awkwardly made his way back through the door and down the street. They'd have to tell Basil that they let him down...

... on the way back, Sunny paused when he caught Aubrey coming out of...

Eugh... does she really live in THAT house?

It was the trashiest house on the block. Just being near it brought the stench of garbage to his nose... probably from the literal bags and piles of it scattered around.

The house itself looked worn down and in poor condition, too. It's a wonder why it hasn't been condemned for destruction or renovated to look better.

No matter... she went to the trashcan and put something in it. If only it was some of the trash littered around her house. That fact certainly made it more noteworthy, at least, and as soon as she was gone, the boys went to check it out.

Kel jumped up and dug through the bin, perking up when he found...

"I don't believe it! Look, it's Basil's photo album!"

Great! Looks like they didn't disappoint Basil after all! But did they really have to dig it out of the trash??????

"I can't believe she'd throw it out like that... it's a good thing we checked through the trash can. But on the bright side... at least we've got it now, and it only took us half a day, too! Talk about teamwork! How about a high-five, Sunny?"

Of course Kel's always looking on the bright side of things... not that it's a bad thing. Keeps things just a bit happier. Sunny accepted the high five, only to flinch and pull his hand back immediately after once Kel slapped it full force.

Ow.

"Let's give this back to Basil before it gets dark. He'll be so happy when he sees it!"

Sunny nodded and led the way back again.

... maybe it's okay after all.

[...to be continued... again...]