#i think its cute. could also give him false eyes on the back of his eyelids thatd be funny

[nerosdayinanime]

so many versions of Fish...

original: sabito lionfish(xcatsharkxcoelecanth) & human giyuu met as kids, sabito goes to bother him(affectionate) @ his job at the aquarium(/merm rehabilitation/ocean research center usually. theyr Good)

1.5: sabito starts a mermaid theater group

2nd: vauge thought of traditional half-fish half-human mermaids, sabito as a white tipped reef shark. i forgot everything else :/

3rd: sabito & giyuu mermaids, giyuu gets seriously injured and a panicky sabito brings him to the aquarium, tries to follow them taking giyuu inside (shinobu & mitsuri trying to stop ~200lbs of Land Fish from going where he wants to go)

4th: all hashira mermaids, massive destructive hurricane/storm ripped through and they were some of the unlucky merms caught in it; local aquariums & water centers pitched in to help out the influx of injured merms & thats how they all meet

5th: mermaid giyuu & marine biologist sabito, sab finds fish out in the sea and it follows him home

6th: all humans mermaids, hashira + all the siblings/kids are a pod & get captured by illegal mermaid fishers which gets captured by authorities who find the fish in the brig(?) and take it to ppl who know what to do with them (aquarium) said ppl are the demons (humans now)

7th: some time pre-industrial era (all those^^ r modern) sabito as some worker on a ship that gets caught and capsizes in a nasty storm, gets rescued by giyuufish last minute [Castaways(barns courtny)]

[lurochar]

Before It All (Pt. 3)

Warnings: Obsessive Alastor

Part 1 + Part 2

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

It really was you.

His nameless Doe.

You seemed tense, clearly uneasy by the static he emitted and his presence alone by the looks of your erect ears and puffed fur of your tail.

(How cute, you had your clothes altered for your tail. A shame he hadn’t noticed it back when he had summoned you).

Alastor was now used to fellow demons being unnerved and frightened in his presence and so they should be, but you – there was no reason for you to be so anxious in his company, though he supposed he could understand it somewhat.

The power dynamics were completely turned around.

You had no advantage over him, he wasn’t that weak human anymore.

But still, Alastor didn’t like the fact you were so wary of him, so he needed to lighten the mood, break the tense atmosphere, and there was no better way than reminding you of your encounter with him when he was the weaker one, when you had the power over him, was there?

“How I’ve missed your wonderful ears, my nameless Doe.”

Alastor always did find your ears fascinating.

He may have his own pair of deer ears now and they had their uses – his auditory senses were vastly superior when compared to his human self, so much so, it took a week or two for him to adjust to sensory overload. They also gave any would-be attackers a false sense of security, he was just a deer demon, so he had to be weak.

Ripping those sorts to shreds felt much more satisfying.

But his ears were so damn sensitive to touch that Alastor had no idea how you didn’t just melt into a trembling mess when you allowed him to stroke your ears all those years ago.

He needed to move on from these thoughts before–

You blinked at his odd greeting, your body relaxing slightly from its earlier tensed position that had been poised to flee at any given second.

You blinked again.

And then you let out a loud yelp of surprise, springing forward when you felt icy cold hands playfully tug on your ears from behind. 

–before his shadow acted upon them.

You reeled around to see what had touched you, not expecting to see a grin right up in your face and you stumbled back a bit, happy enough that you didn’t embarrass yourself in front of the Radio Demon/Alastor by letting out some sort of pitiful sound like a scream or shriek.

“I do hope you can excuse my shadow’s behaviour. The poor thing can hardly contain itself, seeing it is a reflection of me.” Alastor gestured the shadow away, which it did after giving you a last glance before it vanished. “Well then, should we do now what we should have done twenty-four years ago?”

You’re unsure what he is talking about.

“Introductions, my nameless Doe! Unless you prefer that name over your real one.” Alastor bows in a flashy way. “Alastor Hartfelt! But you already knew that, correct?” He stood up straight and eyed you expectantly.

“It’s nothing special, it’s just Y/N.” You shrug before eyeing Alastor intently and you hope you don’t get killed or worse for your question. “You just seemed like a miserable boy brought up in a miserable situation, so I gave you a pass. I thought if I got rid of your main problem, maybe you could live the rest of your life normally. You didn’t even make it to forty. What happened?”

Alastor hummed. “It would turn out that my father was only a drop in the bucket. After that wretch was gone from our lives, my Mama instilled in me the importance and value of women. Women are not second-class citizens nor are they property, but this way of thinking was uncommon and misogyny was everywhere.”

You think you can guess where this is heading to…

“I killed men, men like my father. Men who see no problem in beating their wife. Degenerates that stalked the alleyways for their next rape victim. For over a decade, I was the ‘Bayou Butcher’. It’s only due to the incompetence of a hunter that I am here now.” The expression on his face was that of delight. “I have no remorse. I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it.”

Oh.

It’s… it’s not what you wanted for Alastor, but you remembered that sheer hatred in his eyes. Something that deeply rooted wasn’t so easily erased, even if the main cause was taken out of the situation.

Unfortunately, you were not wrong in guessing Alastor would eventually condemn himself to Hell.

Fortunately, you had held onto Hartfelt for the past twenty some years.

You do have another question, but you know better than to ask.

Some demons don't care, but some demons can get quite offended if asked about their appearance and why they ended up looking the way they do. It’s personal, tied to their sins in life and their manner of death.

Asking Alastor why he ended up as a deer demon, a prey-based demon, could get you killed or maybe worse.

“I was mistaken for a deer by an inept hunter who took a shot before bothering to confirm what he was shooting at.” Alastor answers easily and casually, as if reading your mind and knowing what you want to ask. “Do not be afraid to ask me anything, my lovely Doe. I assume you heard my message on one of my broadcasts, yes? I meant every word of what I said.”

Lovely Doe?

‘I told him my name…’ You decided it didn’t matter too much as it wasn’t demeaning or degrading. You’ve been called much, much worse and on a regular basis by Hartfelt, so hearing an affectionate(?) nickname was a bit of refreshing change–

Should you be thinking that way?

Your ears dropped.

“Listen, Alastor,” you noticed his eyes seemed to glow brighter from you simply saying his name, “I messed up that day. I… I shouldn’t have touched you, let alone hug you. There are countless reasons why most demons don’t have free access to the human world. Contact with demons tends to screw humans up. Even just one night with a Succubus or an Incubus can fuck up humans for months and they’re low-class demons.”

Alastor simply tilted his head.

“I’m mid-class and… and I should have known better.” You sighed. “I think I messed you up in some way by touching you and letting you touch me.”

You were taken back when Alastor started to laugh and your ears flattened completely, slightly bothered by his reaction to your words.

Did you say something amusing?

“Oh dear me, you have twisted it all around in your worrisome mind, haven’t you?” Alastor chuckled. “So you have yet to realize you saved me and my Mama from that piece of scum I had to call ‘father’? My life even? Had you not killed that man for me, I would have made a clumsy attempt to murder that man, whether I succeeded or not. Such a thing would have cost me my life much earlier. I would not have been able to pursue my career and take good care of my Mama until her final days.”

You flustered, not sure what to say back.

“I lived my life the way I wished to because you freed me from that man. I am here in Hell purely of my own actions, though perhaps a little earlier than expected. You are very much downplaying what you are to me and I cannot say I care much for it.” Alastor couldn’t help the loudening crackle of his static.

“...okay…”

“Pardon?” Alastor’s ears twitched at the mumble of your voice, though he heard you just fine. He wanted you to clarify what ‘okay’ meant and look him in the eyes as you did so. He wouldn’t trap you in a contract like the fools whose souls he owned, but with his guaranteed protection for nothing more than just staying at his side and within his sight, how could you refuse?

(Though, if you wanted to give him your soul, he certainly wouldn’t turn it down).

“Okay! Maybe I didn’t fuck you up! Maybe you were… a little ‘different’ from the start!” You weren’t sure how to say ‘psychopathic’ in a nice way. “I still felt guilty about it this entire time. I hoped differently, but I knew you would probably end up in Hell.” You admitted, huffing when Alastor let out another chuckle. “So I did something to try to make up for it in case I did mess with your mind somehow.”

“Hmm, and what is that, my lovely Doe?” Alastor’s smile seemed to widen and it may be hidden from view, his tail wagged in excitement. “You thought of me, even before I landed myself in Hell? I must say, I’m quite flattered!”

“I looked for him as soon as I got back from the human world and found him before he understood how… things worked around here.” You didn’t feel bad in the least. “So I tricked him into making a deal with me. Shelter, food, simple basics for his soul. He didn’t seem used to living on the streets, so he took it right away. He didn’t understand what it actually meant to give your soul away.”

“Well done! What a delightful little tidbit! I had no idea if you would be interested in the art of deal-making. I would be more than happy to guide you. Why, I already own a great number of souls myself.” Alastor’s smile turned a little more sinister and he felt his blood heat at the thought of watching you trick some desperate fool into giving you their soul.

He would slaughter an entire district just to see that.

“I’ve… never really thought about it? I just do what I can to get by. Prey and livestock-based demons don’t have it easy in Hell.” You were sought out for your meat after all. “Anyway, I thought I’d make it up to you by – well, that demon whose soul I own is your father’s.”

The static around Alastor went completely silent.

You swallowed thickly, suddenly nervous. “I, uh, I always intended on giving you ownership of his soul whenever you ended up here, if you ended up in Hell. You can do anything you want to him, I have no intention of interfering if you… wanted to broadcast his torment or something.”

Shit, why was Alastor staring at you like that?

Was it the wrong choice? Did he want nothing to do with his father?

“W-WAH!” It was the most pitiful fucking noise you could probably make, worse than that earlier yelp when Alastor seemed to melt into the floor through a void of shadows and then reappear right in your personal space before you comprehended what happened. That was not the reason you let out a damn bleat before you could help it, though.

Alastor was stroking your ears just as he had done twenty-four years prior.

“A gift from you is always welcome, but this – I never imagined one that would bring me such… joy. Truly, you were always meant for me, my lovely Doe.”

“S-so, I take it you want ownership of his soul?” You struggled to get the words out, feeling your vision blur for a moment. You let out a breath of relief when Alastor reluctantly released your ears, but he didn’t step away from your personal space.

“Yes. I’m more than willing to give you a soul – ten even, in return. Mama may disapprove of it, but I will pay back a thousandfold and more for what that man put her through. He will suffer the worst torture I can possibly think of.” To your amazement, Alastor’s pupils spun into a shape that resembled radio dials before returning to normal.

“It’s a gift. You don’t need to give me anything back in return.” You blinked in surprise when Alastor poked your cheek, pinching it playfully before tutting at you. “What was that?!”

“You have been here longer than me, but it seems I must teach you a few good lessons.” Alastor held out his hand invitingly. “Before this transaction, would you like a tour of my radio tower?”

You placed your hand in his. “You’re going to have to explain it like you would to a child how this radio stuff actually works. I can turn my radio on and change the station, that’s about it.”

Alastor felt that chill that followed him all his life leave him and his smile felt genuine for very few times that it was as he felt your hand wrap around his.

He may be dead and in Hell, but his (after)life was looking rather bright – he still could enjoy his passion for radio and he no longer had to hide his true sadistic nature and homicidal thoughts. Better yet, he could combine the two and broadcast tortured screams for denizens of Hell to hear!

He was powerful and feared, toppling Overlords to become himself in an extremely short period of time and he owned multiple souls to do his bidding whenever and whatever he wanted – and soon, he could add his miserable wretch of a father to his collection to torment all he likes.

Best of all, he finally found you, the demon who made this all possible for him and now that he had you in his grasp, there was no conceivable way he would ever let you elude him. He could certainly give you the illusion of freedom and space if that’s what you wanted.

He was charming, he knew that, it’s all he needed to win you over.

Perhaps it would take a little time and patience, but he would get what he wanted in the end like he always did.

His lovely Doe. His new wife.

It was a dream that Alastor was going to turn into his reality.

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

I hope this ending was satisfying

Tags: @alishii @yourdoorisunlocked @godsent69 @eris-norwega @catticora @tayraedoll @michi-keinz @martinys-world @n0tmentallystable @xalygatorx @everwolf-20 @yui-onnero

[glammiketrash]

Monty didn’t attack Bonnie. Freddy did.

This post is not a joke: Ruin gives us enough clues to know that Bonnie was attacked by Freddy the day he disappeared, and Monty saw the attack.

Word count: 2457 words.

Yup, I wrote an entire essay with pictures to take the blame from a fictional gator that became my comfort character. If someone from Steel Wool is reading this: Yes, I’m ok, thanks for asking. If you want to send a cute Monty picture to my inbox, it is open and I’ll be all over the place if you do it.

Now, let me take you with me on this wild ride, because this theory fits the narrative of both Security Breach and Ruin so well that I have to clap at Steel Wool if it is actually correct and not me playing with the puzzle pieces incorrectly. So, here we go!

Bonnie, judging by the golden eyes and his travel pattern, was protecting someone like Freddy did with Gregory. Important damage was directed to the stomach hatch, where a kid could hide.

He has claw marks there, but Monty didn’t got his until the first was decommissioned and was then modified to play his bass.

The scratches in his hatch are green, but also the cracks over it. It looks like it is his base color instead of paint left by the attacker. The next video is from FazFriends, where they look at every single detail in the Ruin animatronic models. Their analysis are totally worth your attention if you like SB!

Monty has black nails, even before he was modified to play Bonnie’s bass. They also are kinda blunt, and the marks the attacker left seem more clean and sharp in the ends.

Now, there aren’t lots of animatronics that have claws. We have Roxy (and I’m guessing Foxy, if he ever existed as an animatronic different to her), The mimic/Burntrap, who doesn’t really seem an option because he’s slow and in life support in SB and sealed in Ruin, and… there’s Freddy. But, and here’s the twist, not normal Freddy, who couldn’t get through gates like Monty until he got his claws.

I’m talking about this thing.

Not only do we have environmental clues that confirm this attack, but also a key clue that wouldn’t make any sense otherwise.

Let’s start with the Prototype itself!

Check those claws. They are sturdy enough to survive all the damage this model has received, and extremely sharp at the end. Now compare Bonnie and its hand together…

It’s a perfect fit. The metal is a bit bent in the left, but if you could lower it, the finger length, the palm, even the distance and shape between the thumb and index are the same than the hole in Bonnie’s chest.

If that detail is true, all pieces of the narrative fit together. Here’s what happened, which I will explain further adding sources:

Monty saw Freddy’s prototype attacking Bonnie (who was in safe mode) in Gator Golf’s catwalks. The hurricane hole-in-one was activated, causing them both to fall. He could see the prototype losing its head and taking damage to its leg, but Bonnie was nowhere: he was either able to go back to Bonnie Bowl by himself using the distraction or the fall knocked him out and was dragged there, where he was heavily damaged.

This next part is not so clear, so I’ll give you my version of what I think happened that night: Bonnie alerted police that a kid was in danger. They show up, but Vanessa sent them away, claiming she was the only person there and it was a prank call (False Alarm message in SB). Vanny uses Bonnie’s trust on Freddy against him: she sends the prototype to go after the kid and him. He makes it to Monty’s, where the hurricane causes damage to the prototype, and is then finally attacked and disassembled behind his attraction to silence him and bury any clue or what happened (his parts are all over the place, one of his arms has weel marks, and Ruin follows the PQ ending where Freddy is disassembled. In SB, endos come out from the lines to attack us, and in Ruin we see the zone where his vanity is infested with STAFF robots, both in its normal version and in VR, where a giant STAFF robot is seen being dragged to a door while it leaves scratch marks on the floor).

Fazbear Entertainment pretended they actually looked for Bonnie and found nothing at all. As a final punishment for his disobedience he was actively being erased from existence: most of his art was removed, and some ask for a re-theme of his attraction (Re-theme SB message). They make Monty the main bassist, giving him his green room too.

These changes are being quickly pushed after his decommission: Bonnie still has power when we find him, Monty falls from the catwalks “a month ago” and snaps in half, a place where he goes every time he skips a performance (Monty Mischief SB message), people constantly ask for Bonnie and there isn’t an approved answer to give, the bowling alley still wasn’t given a re-theme after taking out most of Bonnie’s images.

Despite FazEnt efforts, Bonnie is remembered, specially by a depressed Monty.

His body was modified, he was given his bass, his glasses, his room, his role. The higher ups clapped thinking about the possibility of him being even more popular than Bonnie, his disappearance becoming yet another opportunity to make money.

And it was Freddy’s prototype’s fault. His normal life, the person he admired the most, his own body, were taken from him because of him.

From that day, and after getting new claws, his attitude becomes obsessive, endlessly searching for what was left of Bonnie after the rest gave up: destroying fences to explore the undergrounds, constantly missing shows and always being found in the catwalks, even after being snapped in half by the hole-in-one bucket, trying to guess where his body was. His last known location was his attraction, so he should still be there somewhere, isn’t it?

Let me repeat this: he prefers looking for Bonnie in the catwalks even at risk of his own integrity than performing.

There are more details that show us he does care for him: there are four official images left of Glamrock Bonnie in the PizzaPlex, three of them in Monty’s ride, the last one at the entrance of his own attraction, where some animations can still be seen. These cutouts are in perfect shape, while Freddy’s is light off.

There is also a headless Freddy statue that once you go to FazerBlast screams “prototype”.

It looks like it’s been decapitated by a hurricane, some “cables” coming out of its head like the prototype, which has cables coming out of its neck.

This damage couldn’t have been caused by the earthquake: the head should had fallen to the ground instead of being pinned on the hurricane. Plus, it doesn’t match the theme of the ride, based on cutouts, and while the rest of the elements are placed in scenarios and their composition is clearly studied, this statue breaks the symmetry of the hurricane’s eye element, that is supposed to give you the illusion that you are entering its eye and being pushed out to the main attraction.

What’s more, in a story exclusively about Monty’s past and how he became a solo bassist in the PizzaPlex thanks to Bonnie, attracting the same amount of people than the Glamrocks themselves, a Freddy statue at the end doesn’t make any sense sense at all… Unless it was put there with a very particular purpose.

I like to think it’s part of an environmental story telling from Steel Wool, specially when you read the rest of clues together.

There’s more to say about this statue than the lack of a head: look at its leg damage, and how it matches the prototype’s heavily damaged one, and how the hand that is visible reflects the light making it look like it has long claws despite Freddy having short ones like the rest of the band.

It also has two blue long lines through his chest that resemble the ones in Bonnie’s.

If you still have doubt about how it is part of a scene representing the night of the attack, then you should know there is an easter egg here: if you follow the part of the tornado that goes up, you can see a Bonnie cutout at the very top of it. He’s far away from the rest of the scene and he looks like if he was being knocked by the tornado. If you zoom to look at his face, you can see he has a worried expression.

Monty didn’t destroy any of the images of Bonnie or his previous iterations, not the cutouts, not this poster, not the bass that belonged to him, even after causing damage to his room.

There is a detail in Gator Golf that is easy to miss: An intact poster of the original Bonnie near a log he uses as a hideout in Ruin (we see him quickly going out of it when we approach it).

He looks similar to the illustration at the entrance of Bonnie Bowl, but this image is not very charming. He looks half dead, yeah...? If you then go to Bonnie’s, some big screens are still on and advertising pizza. When you wear the mask, they change to a glitched version of the Bonnie animation, where his eyes go blank in a similar way to this poster.

This spot couldn’t have been used by Vanny: it is decorated exactly like the rest of Gator Golf in the base game, which ends with us saving Vanessa and exiting the PizzaPlex together.

The poster also has a drawing of Freddy stuck on it. In this chapter you can also find the Bonnie’s piñata collectible, the first time we can see his Glamrock design and the first clue of him having suffered an attack (it has a big gash in his chest).

He could have easily taken it down if he wanted, specially when it is so close to his hideout and he’s in such a volatile state, but he keeps it right beside it.

But the real Freddy (or, at least, things that resemble him) seems to cause some kind of reaction even in the base game, yes?

The most common example in Security Breach is the arcade version of Monty’s Gator Golf. There are two possible readings for it, depending on if you think it represents Monty’s mind or if you think it has been hacked to change his behavior.

Hole 1 depicts Freddy separated from the group, a big distance between them. Hole 9 shows him in a dumpster, and Chica, Roxy and Monty playing together. He’s never part of the group, so either Monty hates him or he was hacked so he would hate him, right?

But the main show were he looks happily at him while playing, the fact that he never attacks him even after being hacked, the presence of images of him on other holes all perfectly light and ok like this balloon, and the eye color difference between Hole 1 and 9, make me think Steel Wool is trying to tell us a way different story.

The Freddy in the dumpster is the only one with golden eyes. Hole 9 represents what is happening the night we play as Gregory, the AR part of the AR-cade, and of the main reasons the Monty taking down theory was so popular.

That night, Roxy, Chica and him are working on finding the kid to the point that their cases crack and get dirty, while Freddy not only glitched at the start of the show hours before, but is now also walking around the PizzaPlex doing NOTHING instead of helping (apparently).

It’s the animatronic equivalent of a group project were one of the members does nothing, so you have to do their part and then they show up and are praised. It makes sense he would be angry at the situation and think he’s trash, but even so, there are no real confrontations between them.

But what about Hole 1, then? The answer is the fireflies. There are some fireflies at the left part, but the right, where Freddy is looking, has other set of lights. If you calculate the distance from Chica to him, the center is almost where the hole is, the part of the arcade that is supposed to drag your attention. Having an empty space there feels uncomfortable and a very questionable decision from whomever designed the scene, but if this one is a reflection from reality or Monty’s current mind state, why aren’t Freddy’s eyes gold?

Well, I don’t think he is separated from his band.

I think someone is missing from the picture instead.

Bonnie was erased from the Arcade.

As it was said, these changes were quick and non-planned: they deleted his model from the arcade, but had no time to move and reprogram the positions of the rest of the characters so the space between them was filled. As a consequence, when you play this level, your attention is taken from the hole to the distance between them.

It is void, awkward, it makes you uncomfortable. You know something is missing, but you can’t quite tell what it is yet. It makes you wish there was one more character there even before you knew there actually was.

Once you learn what happened, how his story ties to the place this scenario represents, the void he left in Freddy and Monty specifically, Hole 1 gains a new meaning, and it hits you. When you go back to the PizzaPlex as Cassie and play the arcade, there’s no joy left there. No fireflies, no Glamrocks, just ruins. Two pairs of red eyes and a pile of Nightmare STAFF bots. That’s all that’s left.

But if you still need one more clue to convince you that the prototype was the one that attacked Bonnie, then let me tell you there is a final one that wouldn’t make sense otherwise:

The AR collectibles dialogue.

Cassie always makes a commentary about the things she finds: Monty’s AR plushie being very glitchy, how she wants to add Roxy’s one to her collection, how the her father wouldn’t tell her why they replaced Bonnie and how he was his dad’s favorite…

But she also asks him what happened to him, and gets an answer when she gets the last collectible.

The AR Golden Bonnie is hidden in Bonnie Bowl, next to a Wet Floor Sign bot.

She hasn’t been to Fazer Blast yet.

But the description answers the question that she asked him: a prototype.

Bonnie was decommissioned by Freddy’s prototype.

And the only ones that know are a kid lead to her death that can hear his agony through the Wet Floor Bots and unreal collectibles, and an animatronic blamed for his death and told he’ll never be him, obsessed with his loss and with finding whatever is left of the person that he admired the most and helped him become the star he once was.

[yanderederee]

Baji with 12 if it hasn't already been requested for the writing event

Event prompt12:

“We’ll burn it down and then we’ll build the world again.”

a/n:using the full context for this prompt; this is JD’s way of expressing how he intends to kill the guys who bully Veronica for spreading false rumors about her… and I want in on that👹

got a little too lost in the sauce and couldn’t find a good time for this as a line of text though; so please accept this instead.

cw: extreme bullying, toxic solutions, murder

Baji seriously had enough.

On the first day of school, Baji noticed your pencil drop under your desk, and decided he’d retrieve it for you in passing. You were so grateful for his assistance, completely over the moon with gratitude. It would have been unnerving, had you not been so sincere.

Usually, he wouldn’t give a normal person like you a second thought. But that sweet smile of yours captured him.

Ever since that day, Baji’s had his eyes on you. You were careful in the way you moved and talked, doing your best not to get in anyone’s way, or say the wrong thing. Soft spoken to a fault, but always kind and considerate.

Baji made an effort to talk to you more in class, soon after. You relied on him occasionally, enough to eventually call each other friends. But your relationship was only began to develop… He couldn’t have known about the bullying you experienced whenever he wasn’t around.

You never told anyone about the extent of your mistreatment. You thought it’d go away on its own— that ignoring it and paying it no mind would eventually make you less entertaining to mess with.

It wasn’t so bad… at first. A teasing here, being shoved there.

And Baji had no idea…

—-Until today.

It was just another school day. Cruelly early, bustling with students who were unusually chatty about the latest gossip hanging in the air.

“Are you serious?! That girl from Class-3?! I never would have guessed...”

“It’s always the quiet ones, I guess. Slutting herself out for attention though? How pathetic.”

“She’s not even that cute, you know Takeru just did it with her out of pity.”

“He told me she’d kept begging him for it! How disgusting!”

“Gross! I hope I never have to sit next to that whore ever again~”

‘Jeez, girls these days are so harsh’ Baji thought to himself in passing. Who were they even talking about? Some girl in class-3? That was his class. Well, he doubted he’d know who it was either way.

Oh, how wrong he was.

Upon entering the threshold of his class, Baji was frozen in shock.

It was routine for him to seek you out and chat with you for the first few minutes of class, before the bell rang.

However, instead of being met with your greeting grin, all that remained was a completely destroyed, empty desk.

Your desk.

His blood was boiling.

That was it. He’d seriously fucking had it.

Immediately, Baji looped his arms through the straps of his school bag, and made a B-line for your desk. He picked it up, and held it upside down by the metal bars underneath.

He wasn’t sure if you’d already seen the damage or not, but he decided right then and there no one else fucking would. It was fucking cruel. And he was pissed beyond measure.

“Baji-san! Just where do you think you’re taking that desk?” His teacher hollered after him. “I’m throwing it away!” He yelled back, a seething rage evident in his tone. If the teacher said anything after that, it didn’t even register to Baji.

Baji had a feeling you were aware of the rumors going around. You were always on time to class, so he was sure you’d also seen your classmate’s cruel defacing.

First and foremost, he was throwing this fucking desk away. Then, he’d go looking for you.

He wasn’t sure where to find you, though.

Possibility 1; you never came to school to begin with.

Possibility 2; you went to class as usual, saw the desk, and ran away. It was a toss up between if you went home or stayed on school grounds.

Those were the most likely possibilities he could think of.

Having finally made his way to the school’s dumpster, he took a moment of rest before tossing it in.

If there was one thing to beware of about Baji, it was his blinding hot rage. He’d practiced composing his tempter while in school. He couldn’t let himself lose his cool so easily. Calm down. He had to calm down, especially before he went looking for you…

However, fate had other plans…

Two wanna-be delinquents could be overhead chatting while ditching class behind the dumpster.

“You mean Y/n, right?”

“Yeah that’s the one! Takeru said she almost drew blood with how bad she was at sucking dick!”

“Poor guy. She probably wasn’t any better in bed…”

More Fucking Rumors…

Baji quickly untied his hair, and slipped his glasses into his school bag. If he couldn’t control his tempter, he could at least try to maintain face.

Baji stalked up behind the two punks, the desk dragging behind him in an eerily tight grip. He soon came close enough in distance to lift it single handedly, and slam it over the back of both of their heads.

Before they had time to react to their sudden assault, Baji just kept wailing.

With both hands, he kept swinging the desk up and down.

When they moved to dodge, he swung against the side.

When they tried to move away, he crushed their kneecaps.

When they begged for mercy, he hit harder.

Over and over, until he began to spin out of control. Wild with disgust and hate, the lies they would have spread were eating up all the sanity he had.

Fuck you. Fuck you. Fuck you. Fuck you.

Fuck.

Every.

Last.

One.

Of.

You.

“Pl… se…. … op… st…op—“ whispered out one kid, his last words sputtering past his broken teeth.

Wait, what happened?

Baji had a sudden moment of clarity. Two kids, beaten maybe a little more than half to death, laid motionless before him.

Shit, did he go too far?

When was the last time he blacked out like that?

But the rage circulating in his fists had yet to subside. “You conscious?” He asked his begging victim. The poor boy’s crocodile tears were response enough. “You ever, fucking dare, say another word about Y/n, ever. And I swear to god. I will fucking kill you.”

The punks were left there, barely alive.

Baji felt thankful he hadn’t gotten any blood on his school uniform, before discarding of the bloody desk at the very bottom of the large dumpster container.

He honestly felt a bit grateful to those two. He’d managed to blow off a good amount of steam thanks to their insolence. He took a deep breath, and began wandering the school in silent deliberation over where you may be.

Where were you… home, or school?

He’d figure he’d try his hand at looking over the school first. Careful to avoid any of the hallway monitoring teachers during classes, Baji checked every floor throughly.

Eventually it came down to the roof, or you’d ran home. Usually, the door to the roof would be locked at a normal school. However, Ryusei broke that lock long ago so he’d have constant access to the roof whenever he needed a nap.

Running up the stairs and through the roof door, he searched the area. Lo and behold, there he found you, huddled into yourself with your back against the wall. You were crying, not caring about how loud you may have been.

Finally…

Even though he’d been searching so hard to find you, now that he was actually there… Baji had no idea what to do. What to say. But he had to say something. His heart was breaking just looking at you.

Slowly, Baji made his way closer. You looked up when you heard footsteps, expecting to have been caught by a teacher. Yet you were surprised to instead see Baji, holding back a bitter expression. Quick to wipe away tears, you looked away right after. “S-sorry, I’m not feeling really well… could you please leave?” You asked shakily.

Baji pressed his lips into a line. “I know… I’m sorry I didn’t know sooner,” he said quietly, dropping to his knees in front of you and pulling you into a hug. “It’s okay to cry. Let it out.”

He made sure to hold you tight. Though, even if you had tried to escape his grasp, the overwhelming urge to cry kept you in place, clinging to him even. There, you cried for a good ten minutes or so, unable to suppress the feeling of being so humiliated and hated.

“I-I didn’t… I didn’t do anything t-that they’re saying I d-did… it’s all lies…” you sobbed into his chest. Baji knew that. He knew it. Hell, even if it was true, he’d still feel this same way.

“It’s okay, I know. You won’t have to worry about that anymore.” Baji spoke clearly, lifting your face to look him in the eyes. “I’ll make sure they apologize, and take back everything they said about you.”

“I promise, they’ll pay for the things they’ve said and done to you. No one will ever think of you in that way ever again.”

Baji promised you with fire in his eyes. While his expression would be scary to most, you couldn’t help the way your heart beat out of its chest at his words.

You were quiet for a while, wide and doe eyed under Baji’s meaningful gaze. “How… do you plan to do that…?” You asked.

Happy to see his declaration helped ease the sadness in your heart, he smiled, and kissed the crown of your head. “Don’t worry about that. Just know by tomorrow morning, everything will be back to the way it was.”

You weren’t sure why, but those words comforted you deeply. You didn’t really believe he was capable of something like that, but his intentions were enough. You smiled back at him, and nodded. “Sure,” you agreed absentmindedly. “Thank you.”

Baji felt as though for the first time since he’s met you, things felt right. You in his arms, smiling, relying on him, holding him back. This feeling he had been unfamiliar with, this whole time, was Love.

As soon as he came to the conclusion, that he loved you. Something in Baji shifted. A creature he had no idea lived inside him suddenly started making itself known.

How could they do this— to someone so undeserving of their malice? Who would ever dare to hurt someone as sweet as you?

It was an extraordinary wrong that they’d committed against you. One that couldn’t go unpunished. He hated them. Wanted them dead. Would kill them. That was the only way to make things right, he began to think.

“Come on, let’s go.” Baji said softly, helping you to your feet. You looked up at him inquisitively. “We’re ditching.” He clarified, offering you a mischievous grin.

Normally, skipping school would be against both your wishes. However, given the circumstances … You grinned back with puffy eyes. You took his hand, and together you snuck out of the school with no trouble.

Having snuck out to a nearby diner, you both enjoyed each other’s company. You two always got along well, his sarcastic remarks were somehow easy for you to read, and kept you fueled with engaging conversation.

Baji seemed like he could be the awkward sort around girls, but in truth, he simply had no interest in getting close with anyone. Only you.

It made you feel better, feel special in a way.

The day had started off in the worst way possible, but now, laughing to the point of tears with the person you liked the most, everything felt like it really would be alright….

Baji glanced at the clock, noticing how many hours had passed by so quickly. “We got one more stop to make before I walk ya home, sound good?”

You nodded at him simply, smiling wide.

… So why were you walking back towards the school?

“Uh, Baji? Where are we going..?” You asked nervously. Baji squeezed your hand reassuringly, throwing a grin your way. “Don’t worry, just trust me.”

And so you did. You took a deep breath to settle your nerves, and put your trust in the person you liked so much.

Standing off in a nearby alleyway just a few streets over from the school, Baji told you to wait behind as he stood at the alleys entrance, scanning students as they passed by, not giving him a second glance.

Soon, a familiar group of voices made your throat close up with anxiety.

“I still can’t believe you actually slept with Y/n! You sure you ain’t infected with her creepiness?”

“Hahaha! As if. It’s nice not having to see her gloomy face at school anymore though.”

“You’re the man, Takeru! Next time, invite me, Kay? I’d—“

Suddenly, there was no more outspoken foul voice speaking. “Mm? Suiren? Oi! Suiren!”

Quiet for a moment, Takeru could hear an unfamiliar thudding should come from the nearby alley.

Baji��s first punch was enough to knock the boy out cold, yet one after the other, Baji’s fist threw punches more fierce than the last.

Die. Die. Die. Die. Die. Die. Die—

“Wh-what the hell..!”

Baji’s head turned eerily slow, as he watched his friend get beaten in horror. Blood and hair stuck like glue against his cheek. Before Takeru could run or scream, Baji dropped the unconscious boy, and wrapped one large and bloody hand across his face.

“Shut the fuck up. That is, unless you want to die right now.” Baji threatening voice cut deeper than bone, dragging the two boys deeper into the alley and away from prying gazes.

Takeru doesn’t dare take his chances. Obediently, he nodded vigorously, putting his hands up in defense while holding back tears. Whiling scanning the area for a means of escape once his chance came, he quickly spotted a small form not too far off, frozen and wide eyed.

You.

Oh shit, he began connecting the dots.

“Takeru Izukura, right?” Baji asked. His victim wasn’t eager to confirm this. Unfortunately for him, that wasn’t a smart move. Tightening the death grip he had on Takeru’s skull, Baji shoved him against the wall, and began ramming his fist into his stomach.

How could someone be strong enough to crack a person’s rib in just one punch? Takeru couldn’t help the pathetic yells that ripped through his throat. As desperately as he wanted to cry his apologies out now, it was impossible to so much as breath with all the air being knocked out of him with every one of Baji’s outrageous punches.

All the pent up rage Baji had been saving was finally making itself known. The events of the day began flooding his mind with white rage. The desk. The rumors. Your tears. All of it. He gritted his teeth so hard he could feel a molar chip.

All because of this asshole. Only a few minutes ago he was laughing about your severe mistreatment, and only now wanted to apologize? Even if he did want to hear his excuses and sputtered sorrows, it wouldn’t be honest. It’d have been reactive.

You stood frozen at Baji’s brutal assault. You had half a mind to step in and stop this whole mess, but after catching a clear glimpse of Takeru’s face… you gulped.

“B-… Baji.” You called out quietly. Upon hearing your voice, Baji immediately stopped. Blood soaking his knuckles and face, he looked your direction, an unreadable expression on his face.

Should he feel shame for letting you see him like this? Maybe he should, but nothing like that came to surface. After your call, all he felt was attentive. He waited for you, as you moved closer, looking his victim in the eyes.

“I want… to hear what kind of apology you have to say.” You combed through your words carefully. You felt hatred for him, but had he given a sincere apology, maybe you could forgive him.

Takeru looked at you, warily. “It’s your fault I’m in this position in the first place—“ he tried reminding you, but a heavy fist broke his nose in response. “Try again asshole.” Baji warned.

Your bully sobbed. “I’m sorry! I fuc-cking sorry, okay! I won’t make shit like that up again!! I swear!”

You felt bile rise in your throat. “That’s it?” You asked, waiting only a few moment for a response. When he looked at you expectingly, you grew angry.

“You don’t even remember the half of what you’ve done to me, do you…” you chocked on tears you didn’t want to surface. “How about a sorry for tripping me down the stairs the first time we met? An apology for ‘jokingly’ pushing me against the desk, and flipping my skirt up for all your buddies to see?” You began listing ways he’d fucked up. His face went pale, now under two sets of hostile eyes.

“That so?” Baji’s deep tone only sent the beaten boy into a cold sweat. “W-wait! I’m sorry for that too, okay! R-really!”

But he wasn’t. Not really. He was just sorry he was caught.

“I don’t give a damn what happens to you. Whatever happens is what you deserve.” You swallowed hard, and took a step back. “Baji…” you drew your gaze back to him and his blank eyes. You didn’t know what to say.

But he understood just fine. “Leave this to me.”

[luvh4nji]

𝐓𝐎𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐑𝐎𝐖 𝐗 𝐓𝐎𝐆𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 + 𝐑𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒

warnings; none really, but i did right this with the idea of bestfriend!reader, so keep that in mind <33

yeonjun ; he's so cocky about it. the minute he finds the little envelope with his name written on it, he's all over it, immediately trying to find the sender. he's the type to ask his friends to look out for him, he has eyes all over the place, looking for someone who even remotely gets close enough to his stuff for them to be able to leave a note. junnie definitely seems like the type to have a few false confrontations too. but when he finally gets it right and he realizes it's you whose left him the notes, his sweet best friend, he's so happy <3 he's the type to plant a sloppy kiss on your lips right then just to hear you giggle in relief. "you're so cute, y/nnie. but, y'know you could have just told me." and he'd definitely tell you to prove that everything you wrote in the letters were true.

soobin ; he already knows it's you. how could he not, he's been obsessing over you for the past few years. and the warmth that blooms in his chest when he realizes you feel the same way makes his knees weak :( he's so patient with you. even though he knows it's you, he doesn't want to make you uncomfortable or pressure you into confessing when you're not ready. so, instead, he just gets softer with you. he gets more touchy, pressing you close to his body, his hands almost reverent in the way he touches you. and when you finally do confess, he just gives you that lovestruck look, his big hands cupping your cheek, thumb rubbing against the crest of your cheekbone, telling you he feels the same way <3

beomgyu ; he think it's so sweet. someone's leaving him love letters? and its not on accident? he gets so soft <3 he's the type to leave notes for you, too, addressing them to his secret admirer. and he doesn't tell anyone about it, he likes how secretive it is. he likes that it's something just between you two. he thinks it's romantic in a poetic kind of way. a month or so of note passing go by before he finally catches you in the act, and he gets so happy. he can't help himself, he just says your name in a whisper under his breath before wrapping you up in his arms and pressing little kisses all over your face before landing on your lips. "it was you the whole time? my baby, my baby, my baby."

taehyun ; very straightforward with it. he takes the least amount of time to figure out who sent him the letters. he'd recognize your handwriting from the first note you left, no matter how much you tried to change your writing style. but he'd be patient with you, waiting until the right moment to ask you about it. and when he does, he's so sweet about it :( with the appropriate amount of teasing, of course. he'd wrap you up in his strong arms so you can't run away from him, telling you how cute your notes were and how he's gonna pay you back for them, pressing a kiss to the corner of your lips.

kai ; a mix between being a tease about it and being super shy. on one hand, oh my god, someone gave him a love letter!! but on the other, oh my god, someone gave him a love letter. he's definitely the type to try to keep them a secret; he doesn't wanna get teased for having for getting love letters from an unknown source, but he also can't help but ask his hyungs for advice :( and he also completely dismisses their advice :( he'd get way too nervous to go out of his way to try and find the sender, and he'd still get so shy when he accidently catches you leaving one in his bag for him <3

[lara-kaminari]

The benefits of the modern era

(Sebastian Sallow x F!MC)

AU University / +18/ ONE-SHOT / Explicit Language / Fantasize.

-----

Note: I had this thought and I had to write it down

----

Sebastian Sallow is a great lover of the modern era.

He loves advances in technology, medicine, music and art. It has evolved enormously in different aspects of everyday life. Who would think that today you press a button and you can communicate with a person twenty countries away? It is exquisite. So much to learn just one click away from achieving it.

However, above all the existing achievements of the human species, what Sebastian Sallow loves most about modern times are short skirts. Blessed invention of this new century, amen to freedom and free expression of bodies!

Perhaps, in a bleak time where light is produced only by candles and not by electric bulbs, Sebastian would be content to see the ankle of some neglected damsel. Now he pities those ancient customs full of false decorum and little skin-to-skin contact.

In fact, if it comes to that, Sebastian also loves the university library: It's comfortable, spacious, has those soft armchairs that are usually backless. Covered by a rigid fabric that can be made of different materials: leather, fabric, plastic, the interior is filled with soft materials such as polystyrene pieces which makes it adaptable to different spaces and uses. Its structure resembles a large cushion as it has no legs, resting its entire base on the floor. He can just lie down with a good book between his legs and enjoy the world from a different height.

The low height allows him to see the girls climbing the moving ladder to grab a book from the high shelf or those who spread their legs a little apart as they sit at the table in front of him.

And there he was. Sebastian snuck up stealthily, grabbed a book and leaned back on the colorful rubber seat in the corner of the place.

If anyone messed with him, he would make believe he was reading some very important history for his exam.

There was not much activity the first hour. Indeed, the warmth of the room and the comfort meant that sleepiness began to wash over him. It would have been a wasted morning except that, suddenly, he heard a stack of books fall and someone groan in pain, very close to where he was.

Sebastian sharpened his vision, the bookshelf hid a girl who now bent down to pick up her books. The position of the two was a blessing for him: the sight of striking green panties greeted him. Quite a sight.

The girl kept crawling to pick up all the scattered books. Something she was whispering, but Sebastian didn't give her enough interest. His attention was fixed on those high socks squeezing her thighs. The sight was enchanting and more so because she was swaying as she picked up each book without realizing she had a shameless onlooker.

Sebastian wondered how hard it would be to agree to such a fuck. Desperate bitches don't usually go to the library. Maybe she'd just be an easy-to-win bimbo. A couple of nice words and he'd have her in the bag. An hour locked up with her and I'd come home with that cute pair of green panties tucked in my pocket.

Those panties that fit those lips perfectly, Sebastian could run his fingers down the middle of those pretty legs and hear her let out good girl squeals. He could rip that fabric and fuck the girl in the middle of those soft couches while the stranger struggles not to scream. Maybe force her to bite the fabric of her panties to keep her quiet while he fucks her ass in the nearest bathroom.

He placed his hand above his fly, settling the future problem between his pants. This was no time to make a scene.

Sebastian moved back into the position of innocent reader when he saw the young woman shake out the bottom of her skirt with the intention of getting up. Perhaps, when she passed in front of him, Sebastian would catch her eye. A good conversation, a couple of compliments, nothing would make him happier than to feel what he could only taste with his eyes.

—Hi Sebastian, studying again?

Shit.

—Hi MC, you know me.

Fantasizing about his best friend he's known since the fifth year of high school is not a source of pride for Sebastian, this could become a problem if he doesn't undo that mental image right then and there. It was just a silly thing, no green panties and short skirts, just a misunderstanding.

—Sebastian, are you all right?

In an ancient era, he would be a man of honor who would not accept false advances. He would stand up, absolutely spotless, and say something like, "Splendid, my dear, never been better," and then walk far away without looking back. But this is the modern era and men don't have as many social skills as they used to.

Stupid modern era.

[smilingangel582]

Hiii one more sweet request from my little sister... im glad she likes my writing... its out secret too hehe.

Lee!sakura strikes again! Perhaps this might be my final windbreaker fic...

Who knows... hehe

Also this fic is based on the sweet adorable fact that Sakura believes every little white lie his friends say and false rumours too.

It's so cute...

Enjoy!

Warning spoilers from the manga after the keel arc.

- Beware of tickles, fluff, and diabetic sweet moments -

Summary: Sakura always believed whatever he heard. It's probably too hilarious that Suo intervenes to mess with him further... using this fact to his advantage.

The rumour...

Suo Hayato has always enjoyed messing with their black and white-haired grade captain. He's so easily flustered, easily angered, and triggered by the most subtle things.

It was in the afternoon, and everyone rested in their classroom after patrolling. Now Anzai, Kurita, Takanashi, and Kakuichi all gathered as well with the usual five. (Sugishita likes to sleep a lot in the back corner, so he's not with them, lol)

"Did you know... that in some towns, those who go out at night they are being followed by spirits who hold grudges against you...?"

It all started with Suo's little rumours and lies to mess with people.

Tsugeura whimpered, cowering behind Kiryuu "Suo come on... ya know, I hate ghosts!"

Nirei sighed comfortingly, "Tsugeura-san ghosts aren't real... dont worry"

Sakura's ears pricked like a cat, suddenly conscious, but not exactly frightened like the muscular guy. He spoke up for the first time since their conversation, "Really?"

Suo turns, slightly surprised but his grin turns to a menacing beam with ulterior motives.

Kiriyu sighed, both sympathetically and amusedly at Sakura's innocence, and shuddering at Suo's plan, which he saw through, "Seriously Sakura-chan... Suo-chan is -"

Suo cuts in just time, wanting to continue his fun as he smiled, feigning innocence, "Indeed... but there are many rumours I know are so true, Sakura-kun"

Nirei gives a sheepish laugh, not wanting to stop Suo's little game as he doesn't want to get on Suo's bad side. The rest of the class seemed amused, holding in their laughter as they ushered about Sakura's curiosity and naivety. They definitely didn't want to stop the fun as they all wanted to mess with Sakura, too.

Sakura folds his arms, somewhat suspicious despite his naiveness, "Are you sure? You messed with me a lot, and it's hard to take you seriously..."

Suo Shakes his head, eyes darkening now, "Tsk tsk tsk Sakura-kun, thats what the slime monster want you to think..."

Sakura stiffened, completely forgotten about his suspicions as he leaned in to hear more, his elbows on his knees which rest between his thighs, "The what?"

Anzai grinned, joining in on the fun, not wanting to create suspicion on Sakura, "Right! I heard every night the slime monster would often creep up behind you and follow wherever you go ...controlling you!"

Sakura stared like a cat caught in the sight of a fish tank, as if watching the beautiful fish start swimming, entrancing him, "Slime monster... its real?

Tsugeura clinging to Kiryu whined, "Not a ghost, right? please tell me it's not a ghost!"

Nirei uneasily pointed out, "Monsters are tangible, but ghosts aren't so no... this isn't about ghosts,"

The orange haired guy relaxes now.

Sakura looked at Anzai, and then at Suo, two people believed in this so-called rumour. He couldn't believe anything like that could actually exist. He just scoffed, crossing a leg over his knee as he rested back on his chair, "Well, ya have any proof?"

Suo and Anzai exchanged proud glances, nodding to each other.

Got him.

This time, Takanashi wanted in on the fun. He snapped his fingers, now getting behind Sakura, "Yes, that rumour is popular... the slime monster used to target freshmen every year... last year Enomoto-senpai was a victim..."

Sakura widened his eyes. Even Takanashi said this rumour was true. Is it true?

"Enomoto-senpai was acting weird! He started to do weird things... like..." he dragged on now, sitting next to him, seeing that they already hooked the cat in this false story.

"Sakura-kun," Suo smirked, making Sakura look back at him with disturbed mismatched eyes. Suo sits in front of him, leaning forward while Anzai settled next to him. The opposite of where Takanashi was. Suo continues, patting his dangling ankle, "I heard noises at my house yesterday..."

"Y-you did?" Sakura's on edge as he spoke, but not entirely frightened like Tsugeura. He's just like a cautious cat, his body stiff and alert. As if he's fully in on the story... he believing them.

Suo patted his knee, assuring him, but he had other plans. His hand had been on his leg for a while, too, unbeknownst to Sakura. Anzai and Takanashi smirked as they were on either side of him, preparing to pounce on him.

"The slime monster isn't just a story... I feel like he's sometimes taking control of my body..." Takanashi speaks, blowing on his ear. A note Nirei writes now as Sakura squirms and flinched at it.

Sensitive ears...

"And mine..." Anzai groaned, feigning a sudden swaying motion to indicate being possessed. Grabbing his head in his clenched fingers, like a madman.

Kiryu and Nirei sighed, feeling somewhat sorry for the guy who's being tricked. Tsugeura seemed to have caught on as well on what was going on as he watched the scene unfold with interest.

With that, Anzai grabbed his arm from the right side, hooking his arm under his while his hand held his wrist in place. Takanashi grabbed him from the left side, doing the same. Surprising Sakura, who had been too engrossed in the story, he wasn't wasn't struggling due to the concern, "H-hey... what's going on -eh!"

His ankle...

Suo grabbed his ankle promptly, his face lowered, trying to hide his amusement but speaking in a ghostly tone, slowly taking his shoe off, "Sakura-kun... the slime monster has one desire... and we have to fulfil it..."

"O-oi! What the hell?" Sakura struggled a bit now, confused and excited, like a cautious cat. But Kakuichi also joined to hold him down as well by the waist, "I'm possessed.... oh boo... I can't control it..."

That's so obvious, Nirei and Kiryu thought.

He sounds fake and obvious, but Sakura still believed him. Kiryu, despite the drama, is taking a video of this scenario, inwardly intrigued.

"The slime monster wants... wants... he wants..." Suo swiftly began to wiggle his fingers, his dramatic tone further creating anxiety for Sakura. "To tickle ya to death!"

Launching a light tickle attack on his socked foot. Sakura jerked, bewildered by the unexpected action, "Gah! Hey hey hey knock it off! Ahah!"

Everyone thought gladly, so the tough Sakura Haruka is super ticklish...

Despite his struggles, Suo holds his ankle firmly with one hand, while the other hand scribbled over his arch, making his foot jolt and scrunch.

Anzai laughs at his ear now as he still keeps Sakura's arm restrained, unable to play along, "Oh god, this is hilarious..."

Takanashi chuckles and breaks his character too, still keeping Sakura in a firm hold as he's taller and stronger, "Sakura actually believed all that? I thought Suo was exaggerating when he said our grade captain believes anything we say... but hot damn he does..."

Suo giggles happily, now removing the sock. He used a finger to slide up his sole, "Hmmm, Sakura-kun is also exceptionally ticklish... isn't he?" Sakura squeal at thar soft tickling touch unable to resist the urge to break into giggles.

Kiryu laughs, "Sakura-chan... I didn't expect that"

"Shuhut thehe fuhuhuck uhuhup!"

Sakura giggles and writhes despite their words, trying to use his other foot to kick him but messes up when Kakuichi tickles his ribs, causing him to miss and squirm to the other side, "No way Sakura-kun... we won't let you get away with defying the slime monster! Hahaa take that! Dont anger him furhter!" He couldn't even hide the laugh within his words.

"I'M NOHOHOT FAHAHALLING FOHOHOHOR T-THAT!" He snaps now, making them laugh fondly.

Sakura squeaks and breaks into angry laughter high in range than his usual voice. It almost melted Sugishita's heart, who have been watching from afar. He Scoff, looking away to hide his amusement.

"Dahahahamn ihihit yohohohohou lihihihihied? Ahahagahain? Shihihihitheheheads!" Sakura slips an arm from Anzai's grip to protect his midriff from the mushroom head, but Suo's teasing and touches just drove him mad and giggly at every tickle.

"Oho Sakura-kun" Suo laughed as well, airy and light, nwo sneaking his fingers under the toes, "Yohou are so cute when you actually thought a slime monster existed in Makochi..."

"Yeah!" Takanashi laughed, "His face was so concentrated like a child..."

Anzai said, who had a little difficulty holding Sakura, "Right? I bet we can make more stories like these... he always believes everything we say"

"Ehehe! N-noOHo, I don't! ShuhuUhut up! Stop thiIHIHIHis!" He arched his back.

"Mmm nope" they all said in unison.

Sakura blushed through his growling laughter and giggled, "Bahahahastards! Ahahaha lehehehet gohohoho!" He tried to push Kakuichi away from his fingers, aiming for his sensitive stomach, but Takanashi blows on his ear, making him squeak and lift a shoulder to protect his other side, "NOOOHOO!" When he pushes one person the other attacks the spot he opens unintentionally. Ugh! His classmates are definitely top class in the field of teamwork.

Suo smirks, "Sakura-kun, careful... even if there's no slime monster, there might be a gang who might sneak up on you and tickle you to pieces..."

"STOHOP! AHA SHIT!" Sakura slipped from the chair to the ground, hitting his back now, and luckily, that caused them to pause their tickling.

Anzai and Kakuichi burst into laughter while Takanashi gladly saved his head from hitting the ground, he said with a brief laugh, but half concerned as well, "oho my god are you alright?"

Sakura groaned, residual giggles still slipping as he get up on his elbows, "Y-yeheah, ow... ugh"

Suo offers a hand to help him up the chair, sure Nirei being the exaggerated one came over to look over for Sakura, "Eh... Sakura-san are you alright?"

"Ugh, it takes more than that to break me..." Sakura snapped, face pink like the cherry blossoms, his bright eyes now looking away in flustered sentiment.

Suo grins now, looking down at the casually seated Sakura, "But it takes a simple tickle to get you to lose face?"

Sakura blushed and aggressively snapped at him, attempting to punch the guy, "S-Shut up! I was caught off guard! It's not like I'm weak to it!"

A poke to his sides made him jolt almost a foot up from his seat, Anzai snickered menacingly, "Uh oh... our tsundere grade captain's got a weakness... and it's an adorable one"

Sputtering in embarassment, Sakura cracks with anger, "Y-you punk!"

Lifting an arm to punch, which earned a poke from Suo this time, right under his arm but it didn't stop there.

"Sakura-kun... whenever you try to pick a fight with us... we'll use this to stop you, simple, " Suo proudly said, showing a gun symbol with his hand folded into a pointer.

Sakura uneasily stared, growling and folding his arms, careful not to expose himself, "T-thats not fair... you assholes making fun of me, lying to me... a-and tick... t-ti doing that...!"

Kiryu finally joins the teasing with a coo, "Awww he can't even say the word how cute!"

"STOP RECORDING! N-NO NO GIVE IT TO ME!" Sakura struggles to reach Kiryu as he just now seen him being recorded.

"Hehe guys how about round two? Tsugeura cracked his knuckles now grinning like a child, "The slime monster in me is desperate to tickle him!"

The class watched in hilarity at how their grade captain kept getting teased and mocked. But they still know that they aren't no match for Sakura's power and influence. They respect him despite all the fun and taunts.

Suo knew Sakura would be the perfect grade captain. Someone who will protect them and share all their burdens with them.

Fun and all true... but the second years might come and punish them for the loud ruckus any time soon...

[monsieuroverlord]

NYX #1 Thoughts:

It was alright, very Kamala/Ms. Marvel and Sophie-focused. It was a decent set up of the premise, and I'll keep an eye on it.

Spoilers:

The Krakoan is Julian Keller/Hellion as everyone called it. Just in case anyone missed the leaks on Twitter.

Him and the rest of Cuckoos are apparently working with Empath, and the current implication is that he may be amping up and/or twisting their post-Krakoa emotions.

Anole, we didn't see much of, other than he's a bartender now.

Not only is David teaching, but he's also a tenure-track professor.

As someone who works for an American university, I'd be so curious to see how that happened. I mean, at least for the department I work for (very research-heavy stem field), its a LOT to negotiate tenure-track, even with years of experience and a Ph.D. Its like a 3-4 day marathon of presentations, wining-and-dining, meetings after meetings, tours, and a red-eye flight back home. You basically gotta meet everyone in our department and not only show that you know what you're talking about, but also that you won't be an asshole to the established professors (I know this, because I'm the one assisting in organizing everything and making sure the right faculty shows up on time to give a lab tour to the applicant, lol)

I think in some areas, you can get away with an M.S. degree for tenure, but in most cases, its Ph.D.

And that doesn't even mean you are guaranteed to get tenure. There's a whole other review process for that.

Anyway, Sophie is right to call it out here. It does kinda feel like a hand-out. I wonder if that will come into play later?

I'd like to see David's point of view first, though. Maybe there's a secret plot where some of the faculty are evil and its an anti-mutant trap to lure him into a false sense of security. But he's too smart for that and plays them. I don't know.

Or maybe he got his P.h.D. That'd be dope.

I don't trust David's new boyfriend. He hasn't said much yet, but I don't trust him.

This issue is heavily focused on Kamala's point of view, and strongly features Sophie as well. It makes sense, as Kamala is the "newer mutant" in a sense, and serves well to introduce the reader to the setting and potentional storylines to follow.

Sophie and Kamala also have a budding friendship, and I think it's very cute.

I think the next issue at least is supposed to shift to Laura's point of view.

We also don't see too much of Laura, and she didn't appear to be in the college class? Maybe she joins later, or is a guest speaker, I don't know. OR maybe she's going undercover?!?!

We did get this pretty image on the opening page:

Laura only runs into Kamala while she's investigating a mutant terrorist attack.

I love her new look so much. It's very fashionable and actually makes her look distinct from Logan while she's still clearly a Wolverine. Props to the designer.

And now Marvel needs to free Akihiro from Hellverine psuedo-death-ressurection and give him a unique outfit and/or codename too. Thank you.

Laura really only says this though:

I don't know how I feel about her characterization here. I mean, its not the worst thing, but it lacks context for me.

I mean, what is Laura doing? Where is Gabby? Is Akihiro still dead and she's surly with grief? (because Hellverine hasn't finished yet and we don't know how that will end) Does she feel like she has to pick up the pieces and play hero because Logan fucked off to the Canadian Wilderness again?

I have many questions about my girl and her general well-being.

In general, I'm currently on the fence about her characterization. It could go either way.

I suppose we'll have to wait until next issue ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

In summary, it was a decent set-up. I read the X-Men Monday interview, so there was nothing that surprised me. Art is very good.

Also, this is me being a grumpy old bastard, but I hate the QR code pages they're doing now. Just print the damn page. I tried the scanner on both my phone and tablet, and it kept redirecting me to a broken link and I get a "500 Internal Error" message. I have no idea what that page is about. I personally don't like this concept of secret QR code pages and is irritating.

For digital reading, its more okay, but I also buy physical copies. I don't want to have to whip out my phone and/or tablet just for a gimmick to get the full issue. And who knows if the website eventually goes defunt years from now and then the QR codes are rendered useless. Then what?

[multifandombullshitbabes]

Considering the SiD fandom is fucking dead. I can do whatever

So Walter x Killian hcs BITCHES. n also before anyone comes tell me that's problematic or whatever 1) i hate antis so just block me thx <3 2) Walter is literally 20-24 years in the movie, most likely 24 years old actually. Go to his wikia page n then to the comments for a pretty good theory/explanation on that. They said they'd put that age range on his profile but it just says 20 yrs old, which just seems false after all the proof from that commenter so. Yh. Fuck u <3

Now, first things first, yall know Walter upgraded the FUCK out of Killians body mods. Like he went "that looks cool! But i can make it better :) just saying :)"; now killian has better, comfier, smoother tech, like an actual robot hand instead of a claw; his eye was already pretty nice, Walter just helped make it more natural looking in case of malfunction, n avoid any pain n shit like that

Walter has Killian wrapped around his lil finger its insane. Anyone with any prior context of everything between them just doesnt know how to act. Walter wants a water? Ok but does he want it flavoured? Iced? Natural? Walter looks at Killian with those big blue eyes and suddenly he just has to touch him in any way.

Walter is definitely the chill half of this couple. Walters the anchor. And im not saying chill like in general, Walter is still is cute energetic self, what i mean is only one of them will become a flustered mess after their first kiss and think abt it forever all the time, especially at night while he watches the other sleep and pets his hair and is overwhelmed by the amount of Feelings he has for the other (killian is so emotionally repressed but then walter is the way he is n he just naturally forces killian not to be that way by just fucking breathing, n its very disorienting for Killian)

Killians not affected by sleep hours all that much, he goes to sleep whenever n then wakes up whenever n he'll be fine. Walter, however, is not a morning person. Can u imagine walter grumpy? Well, killian has now experienced it many times. Its actually how he first realized his feelings for walter. Its stupid endearing (he'd never admit this tho ofc)

Killian bites as a love language. Theyre very soft (sometimes >:)) n walter always turns beet red when he does them

Its hard for both of them to say i love u, but for different reasons. Killian, for ur regular degular emotional repression. Walter, because he never had meaningful emotional n intimate relationships to warrant saying that except for his mom, so saying it gives him anxiety like no other. So, they do that thing where u tap someone 3 times as "i love you" n then the other taps back 4 times "i love you too"

Killian never had the habit for listening to music. Walter introduced him to kpop n it all went downhill from there (his main group is dreamcatcher, because he has taste. His bias is dami)

Walter needs glasses but always forgets them. Killian is now used to carrying around two pairs of glasses: one for himself, n a duplicate of Walters glasses

I could make so many more of these bit its 4am where i am rn so i will go to sleep. If there's any mistakes yknow why that is

[brwnicons]

Otto x Male Reader

PT. 1 Here

☆ Hope you like it! Please, tell me if you find any mistake ☆

"God, Otto, how can you be so soft?" You groaned, your words muffled as your face was buried on his wide chest. It was like lying on a warm pillow that had its own heartbeats and that eventually raised or lowered.

He answered with a loud belly laugh, his body moving with it and so it was your face "Soft? You're laying beside a supervillain, boy. I don't think soft is a very accurate word."

You lifted your sight to look at him, raising an eyebrow as questioning his words

"Supervillain, right? Oh, I am so scared" You joked after you raised your hand to grasp a metal claw that happened to be passing next to you. You started to caress gently the metal pieces while looking into the doctor's eyes.

"For being so dangerous" you emphasized the adjetive with a dramatical hand gesture "You haven't harmed me once, why don't you hurt me right now? I've got your pretty evil tiny gripper right here". The claw chirped confused, first at you and then at the Otto, why would it hurt you?

He sighed, "How could I ever hurt you, my dear boy?" He allowed his proudness walls fall a little. Just for you, just because the comfort of the situation, comfort you helped him achieve. "You're the most precious thing I have"

Ah, what a pity that he noticed too soon how cheesy he was being.

"But... that doesn't mean I'm not able to do horrible things!" He excused himself, "I have terrorized thousands, I have made a hell out of their lives and I do not regret any of it! This city fears me, boy." He continued while slowly raising, his face getting closer and closer to your impassive one, his bare teeth exposed as a primal show of intimidation and his eyes were piercing yours with false rage.

You couldn't help it at his efforts and giggled soundly at how he tried to intimidate you; you had seen him in the most embarrassing situations, you had shared the cutest moments with him and, damn, you just saw him overestimulated under your body, turned into a shaky mess. "Easy there, scary man" you snickered while giving him little pats on his shoulder.

It was physically impossible for him to hurt you or for you to feel intimidated by him, you both knew it, but you just looved to mess around with him about it.

"Sorry, I just can't see you as evil, you're too cute!" you said between giggles, still caressing the claw, just to end up leaving a little peck on top of it.

Otto sighed heavily in defeat and laid back again, closing his eyes, but he didn't try to take the actuator out from your grasp. You lied beside him and looked sweetly in his eyes.

"You know, I still think you're a pretty intimidating supervillain" you said while hugging his claw gently as if it were some kind of plush.

He didn't respond, but you saw how his eyes softened.

He really didn't have had a good streak lately, spiderman always dismantling his plans or taking his hostages out of him without too much effort. In addition, his experiments were not going as planned and his lab was full of scattered scrap and broken gadgets because of his tantrums.

"Also, I think you're an amazing scientist"

"I know" he dryly answered, his brow slightly furrowing. You looked back at the claw between your hands "Sometimes I don't think you really do" you muttered softly.

He turned his head to you with a serious expression, watching how you peacefully traced the pieces of his metal limb. He remained silent but passed and arm around your shoulders, holding you closer. You silently accommodated your head on top of his chest, letting his hand caress your face while your arms still clasped his claw.

"Thanks, for everything" he finally whispered, closing his eyes and nuzzling into you, you smiled softly and reciprocated his gentle love.

"Uhm... I know you like my actuators but, please, let it go -I can feel them and you're really turning me on with all those pettings"

"Oops, sorry. My bad." you snorted as you let his artificial limb free, which chirped sadly but moved away from you to return with the others.

"Although can't believe you have energy for another round, old man"

He ignored your comment and only bothered to roll his eyes. You remained silent and after a few minutes of him playing with your hair and you drawing circles on his chest, an idea popped I your mind and you were eager to share it.

"So" you started hesitantly, breaking the silent atmosphere "You wanna eat out of something? Unless you already have a date with spiderman, or the lab, of course" you said without looking at him. "I think my plan of helping you relax has succeed, so I declare you a free man now."

"I guess I could take the entire day off, did you have something on mind?"

Your face light up and you were fast to nod at his question "Well, since I can't go to a restaurant with my dear boyfriend because he is the most wanted villain in all of the United States and he has, you know, four gigantic metallic claws on his back" You started, earning a roll of eyes and a frown of his brow, "what do you think about a roof date?" You finally looked at him, your eyes shining like little pleading suns.

He just couldn't resist that sight and you knew it too well. Also, he had to admit that it had been a while since you guys got out and the idea of relaxing with you on top of a skyscraper, covered by bright stars, laying on some soft blanket while eating something or just chatting was really something tempting.

"I like the idea. You can go get ready as I go to buy some food, any preference?"

You immediately jumped off the bed and glared at him. You poked his chest "Don't even think of crossing that door before I come back to pick you up, old man. This is your relaxing day and you're not allowed to set foot outside unless it's for a relaxing purpose."

He pinched the bridge of his nose in defeat as he sighed deeply. "Alright, just stop speaking so loud already, boy -you're going to give me a headache"

You giggled and softly kissed his nose before heading out of the bedroom, "I've left your favourite shampoo next to the shower! Also, clean clothes are folded above the drawers in the closet in case you want to use them!"

He muttered a low "thanks you" you weren't able to heard though he knew it wasn't necessary either.

It was only when Otto found himself alone on your shared bed that he felt the unpleasant sensation of a dry, sticky fluid between his legs and the before forgotten back pain. He pulled back the sheets with a disgusted face and headed to the bathroom. It was true, his favourite shampoo was laying on the sink along a yellow post it with a heart on it.

Otto took it off so it wouldn't get wet and made sure to keep it safe. He never said it but he loved your little notes, even the silly little ones with animal fun facts or terrible knock knock jokes.

He got into the shower and turned on the hot water, instantly relaxing and the contact it made with his sore skin. His claws chirped excited as they played with the drops and the soap and Otto finally felt fully peaceful at the lack of their usual, violent thoughts. Though, since he started his relationship with you, he had to admit that his actuators had calmed down and now they even had pretty thoughts about you.

However, he made sure to accept your suggestion and relaxed, trying his best to push the usual million thoughts he would have to the back of his mind. His body welcomed the sensation instantly.

After his shower he did as you said and looked in his closet, where he found the black turtleneck sweater and the dark pants he was wearing just before your...encounter. They were both clean and smelled as if cologne had been sprinkled on them. God, how long had you been awaken before him? He was getting embarrased just at the thought of you watching him sleep —something he was sure you had done more than a few times—.

He took the same sweater since he knew it was your favorite but chose another pair of pants. He wiped his small sunglasses before putting them on and made sure to give himself a quick comb. He even decided to give his actuators a little wipe so they could be all shiny and pretty.

All done! All he would need to do then was to wait for you in the living room, so he took a science magazine that was on the coffee table and gave it a look to kill some time.

-

It wasn't long until you appeared in the front door, a wide grin painted on your face as you showed him bags of snacks.

"I'm here Otto- Oh! You really are stunning" You complimented when you saw his outfit as he got up and approached you. The red that crept to his cheeks because of the unexpected compliment making him even cuter.

"Thank you..." He scratched his neck, "Are you ready to leave?"

"In a minute, I still need to get dressed up all fancy for you", you giggled and winked at him as you let him pick the bags you were carrying, "Why don't you get some blankets meanwhile? I won't be long" and so, you rushed to your room without waiting for an answer.

With the help of his actuators, Otto gathered some blankets and waited for you to return. When you did, dressed up in your favourite outfit as a sweet smell of cologne left your clothes, Otto couldn't help but blush a dark red.

You giggled softly and kissed his cheek before extending your arm and offering it for him for take, just like an old, corny couple. And so, an actuator put on him his dark fedora, that could half-hid his blush too, and you took a jacket for the night's cold.

"Shall we?" Otto asked while opening the door as his actuators beeped and screeched excitedly around. You giggled at his manners and their difference with his actuators' personality and nodded at his question, already taking a step out of the house,

"Gladly".

[corinthianism]

gold rush | thor

pairing: thor odinson (mcu)/f!reader additional tags: fluff warnings: none

note: super short cutesy fic about thor!! he's so cute i love him! anyway, i might just make this acc my main acc bc posts on my other acc literally just won't show up

“Come on! Just this once, sweetheart!” 

“No!”

“It’ll be good for you!”

“Good in what way exactly, Tony?” you raised your brow at him. Looking back at you was a grown man attempting puppy dog eyes. If you weren’t so annoyed by him, you would’ve laughed. When he didn’t respond to your question, you thought you were free to go but as always, there’s no winning against Tony Stark.

“Thor will be thereee,” he sang. “I’ll be sure to tell him to wear those extra-fitted gym shirts you like so much.”

“You’re a bitch, you know that?”

“Yup.”

That morning interaction left you in a daze for the rest of the day. The party was later at night, which left you with only a couple of hours to decide what you were going to wear.

It wasn’t uncommon for you to see people fawning over him. It didn’t mean that you were ever going to get used to it, though. But, as always, you understood. After all, how could anyone resist him? He towered over everyone. He was funny, kind, sweet, and smarter than people gave him credit for. And you swore his golden hair and blue eyes shone under the light. He was literally inhumanly perfect. It was simultaneously endearing and infuriating. 

You nursed your second (third?) mojito and tried to get your attention off of him. This was supposed to be a celebration. You’d been working for Tony Stark, or more accurately, Pepper Potts, as his new glorified babysitter. Your job ranged from reminding Tony to not die of sleep deprivation to reminding all of the Avengers to also not die of sleep deprivation. Naturally, you were invited to another big party Tony threw to celebrate the team’s latest successful mission. From what you heard, the situation was getting pretty bleak before Thor showed up.

Thor. The most beautiful man you’d ever laid your eyes on. He smiled so easily, like he didn’t have the weight of the world on his shoulders. He quite literally beamed like sunlight. 

“Snap out of it!” you blinked as you scolded yourself internally. This was getting ridiculous. It was at that moment that you decided to just ditch the party and get comfortable at home. You’d have to make up an excuse though. The Jimmy Choo heels Tony gifted you last month, as comfortable as they were, could be blamed for your sudden disappearance. “Yeah, that works,” you hummed to yourself.

Before you could leave the scene, however, you heard the familiar rumbling voice of a certain god of thunder, “Leaving so soon, my lady?” 

Shit.

You turned around, surely looking like a child caught in the act, and smiled awkwardly at him, “Uh…”–you laughed nervously–“yeah. Uh, my feet were starting to ache so I think I’m gonna just. Um. Dip. Yes.” 

“Dip,” he repeated, his lips curling up into a kind smile. “The more I think I know Midgardian culture, the more I’m proven wrong. You sure do know how to keep things exciting, my lady.” 

You could only manage to nod as you tried to suppress the dizziness you felt from his compliment. How does he even manage to do that? 

He cleared his throat and offered you his hand, “Oh! You said your feet were aching, would you like me to accompany you back to your quarters?” 

“Oh,” you gulped. Saynosaynosaynosaynosaynosaynosayno. “Yeah, sure! That would be great, thank you.” 

MORON!

You knew this was a bad idea. Not in the sense that he’d be a total asshole; he’s quite the opposite. It’s just that–maybe–this would just give you false hope. Thor often blurred the lines of politeness and plain flirting, the latter of which you have seen on numerous occasions, used on women you considered to be far better than you. Whatever level your self-esteem was at the moment, it certainly wasn’t increasing. 

You took his hand, feeling the roughness of his palm and all its little scars and thought about, just for a moment, how many battles he’s fought. How many people he saved. Or lost. You gulped, suddenly acutely aware of how small you were compared to him, but there was no fear. You felt his eyes on you, piercing through you, and you couldn’t bring yourself to look at him. 

The both of you stood in front of the elevator, seemingly waiting for the other to speak first.

“So!”

“So, um–” 

You were finally looking at him. He was golden in this light. He always was. 

“You go first,” he said lowly, urging you to continue.

“I was gonna ask how you liked the party?” you responded meekly, still in unfamiliar territory.

“How funny, I was gonna ask you the same thing,” he chuckled. “It was nice, however not as nice as the ones we hold at Asgard.” 

You smiled, “I can imagine.” 

“Perhaps one of these days, you’ll see them for yourself.” 

A beat.

“I’d like that.” 

[queer-coded-camaro-driver]

The Eye and Hand of Vecna

So I’ve already discussed how I think El is a good reflection of the Raven Queen based on the Forgotten Realms lore. Now I’d like to explore the roles of the Eye and Hand of Vecna, two incredibly powerful magical artifacts from the original Dungeons & Dragons game.

The Eye of Vecna: 

“The Eye of Vecna allows its wearer to cast the clairvoyance, crown of madness, disintegrate, dominate monster, and eyebite spells a limited number of times. It progressively regains its magic at every dawn. Using the artifact to cast any spells incurs a small risk of Vecna himself tearing the wearer's soul apart, devouring it, and taking control of the wearer's body, using it as a puppet.” 

The wearer of the Eye of Vecna also gains the ability to use Truesight:

“A monster with Truesight can see in normal and magical darkness out to a specific range, see invisible creatures and objects, automatically detect visual illusions and succeed on saving throws against them, and perceive the original form of a shapechanger or a creature that is transformed by magic. Furthermore, the monster can see into the Ethereal Plane within the same range.”

The first Eye of Vecna was Will Byers. He broke free with the help of his friends, who essentially banded together and repeatedly cast Dispel Magic (by offering happy memories and support for Will to use as ammunition). This also left him with the residual ability to sense Vecna’s presence (Truesight).

The second Eye of Vecna was Billy Hargrove. Alone, angry, and good at picking up the details around him, Billy provided an excellent window into Hawkins High for Vecna and the Upside Down. Unfortunately, despite El’s best attempts to save him, Billy was torn apart and “devoured” by the Upside Down. He lost his soul and became one of Vecna’s puppets, as seen in Season 4′s “Dear Billy”. 

And who’s my prediction for the new Eye? Max Mayfield. 

Ironically blinded by her run-in with Vecna at the end of Season 4, Max is now in the best position to become the new Eye. Related to a past Eye (Billy), emotionally vulnerable, and proven to be an aggressive and skilled ‘warrior’, Max meets all the criteria for a possession. She also has close ties with El (our Raven Queen) and therefore offers Vecna the best possible ticket to victory.

The Hand of Vecna:

This artifact grants supernatural strength to its wearer, as well as a boost of cold energy to spells and attacks dealt with a weapon held by it. In addition, the Hand of Vecna allows its wearer to cast the finger of death, sleep, slow, and teleport spells a limited number of times. It progressively regains its magic every dawn. Using the artifact to cast any spells causes it to demand its wearer to commit an evil act shortly thereafter, in a manner similar to the suggestion spell.

Claiming the Hand also gives its user the highest possible Strength (20). 

I would argue that the first Hand was Steve Harrington. He hindered the initial investigation, antagonized the Party/Nancy/Jonathan, and balanced his ‘cute boyfriend moments’ with semi-random acts of evil (we hear Steve say WAY worse things than Billy ever did throughout the course of S1). 

Jason Carver was the Hand in Season 4. He incited violence, kept the sheriff’s department from making progress by insisting on a false narrative of Eddie’s actions, and appears at just the wrong moment every time. His strength comes not only from physical/athletic prowess, but from social power. 

I think the next hand might be Dustin Henderson.

Hear me out: 

He’s lost the most important people to him over and over. Will, Mike, Lucas, and now Max have all left him in one way or another. They come back, but their temporary loss weakens his already unstable foundation (I could write several papers about the experience of living as a child of divorce/under the roof of a single mother). Combining his intelligence and curiosity with his feelings of loss and frustration would be easy for Vecna.

Anyway, these are my thoughts.

[shoheiakagi]

Can you give me your thoughts of what you think of Homra alphabet boys? It could be who’s your favorite and who’s not, what you like and hate about them, who would you date and why. Etc etc…

of course i can!

i absolutely adore all of the abc boys and wish there was sooo much more content on them - fan and official content. although im a little more biased to some of them more than the others, i dont think im capable of disliking/hating any of them. theyre a lot more interesting and attractive than a lot of the major characters to me

i would literally be content with reading more stories on them getting drunk and causing chaos, despite serving no relevance to the plot lol

im gonna share some opinion/headcanons on each of the boys, so more under the cut:

Ask me shit!

akagi shouhei:

i think anyone that scrolls through my blog for like atleast 5-10 minutes will figure out that he's my favorite character in the entire series, even though he is a minor character. he's different from a lot of the other male characters that i typically go far (i usually go far guys with darker hair who have a similar personality to yata or even a quiet, cold personality similar to fushimi), but i remember reading mor for the first time and finding him super cute?? thats when i realized that even tho i typically prefer darker hair, im a huge sucker for guys with messy hair in general, especially when its tucked under a baseball cap. especially if theyre the rebellious type 🤭 think i got more interested in him when i reread mor around late 2018 and started analyzing the little details (he owned a motorcycle before joining homra, how he was all cocky and smirking when he raided that gang who kept his friend captive) that gave me this impression that hes not this generic nice guy that he likes to portray himself as. not ashamed to label this man as my fictional crush, 100% would date him irl, and 100% do think he gives chitose a run for his money when its comes to their face card (in the manga, at least). my least favorite thing about him has to be the lack of content on him. this applies to all of the boys, but i feel like the very few content we see on him, ends up relating back to bandou for the most part (i will get to that in a bit). like fuck, i want to know more about his daily routine, life before and outside of homra, his family, his friends out of homra, how hes like when hes drunk, how often does he party, whats his type, does he go to the gym, whats his views on life, etc. i also think that he can pull of the yandere stalker vibes very well cause first, he knows how hack into devices lol. second, i always see shouhei as someone who pulls this false, cheery facade to hide his true emotions. you can't really tell if hes angry or jealous unless youre closely paying attention and notice that his eyes seem darker than before, fists clenched, jaw locked, etc. and when he fights, he has this borderline psychotic grin on his face. like look at the material:

like yes daddy, pls fuck me

bandou saburouta:

i dont remember if i ever mentioned it here but out of all the boys, i related to bandou a lot when i was younger, with the whole introverted earth sign with dark hair who is jealous of their extroverted best friend who has better luck with the opposite sex lmfao. i really adore this idiot and he has me dying with how petty he can get, and how he seems to be the punching bag for some of the members (*cough* yata *cough). its so weird tho cause physically hes more of my type, but i guess its bc hes always decked out in a hoodie and shades, its hard to remember that hes actually pretty cute. the only thing that rubs me the wrong way is how the writers made his dynamic with shouhei erase some of shouhei's individuality. like even tho mor started off from shouhei's perspective, the minute we find out about bandou and him being friends, the narrative switches to bandou's inferiority complex around him. i love bandou's plotline, it definitely gives him more depth, making him one of the more developed abc boys along with eric. but i HATE how the writers made everything about shouhei, relate back to bandou. mor started off with shouhei joining homra to save his friend, which he succeeded in, great! but i feel like we learn more about bandou as a character, and whatever we do learn about shouhei, its mostly from bandou's perspective. there was also this series of short stories for each character, and boyyyyy you dont know pissed i was to see that shouhei's story was about bandou being jealous of how popular and friendly he is with girls. but when you read bandou's story, it was cute little heartfelt conversation between him and anna. i do feel like this is a reoccurring issue with the homra abc boys (we learn more about chitose and eric than we do about dewa and fuji in their respective chapters) but fuck man, at least in dewa's short story, we learn that he runs the bar when kusanagi is not around, making him popular with women, and that he loves extremely spicy food. granted, shouhei's story does provide some details such as how well liked he is and that he would take anna out shopping if totsuka and kusanagi are busy, but then most of his story morphs into bandou being jealous of him....like we get it, can we please move on from that topic? platonic banshou? 10/10, fucking love that shit. romantic banshou?? ehh, im indifferent

chitose yo:

chitose is my third favorite abc boy!! he's hot and a super fun character. its truly a shame that hes a minor character so the anime has him just standing around with a blank expression and maybe have him making a one-liner or two. hes genuinely the type of person i cant imagine staying silent and not giving his two cents, whether its during the more serious moments or the chill, laidback moments. im currently rereading mor and some panels of chitose got me like 😳🥵 cause hes fucking hot lol. but! im not a big fan of playboys/womanizers, so i never got into him the same way i did with shouhei and eric. at first, i was happy when i read one of the more recent post rok stories where it was stated that he finally found someone and got into a stable relationship! but then thinking about it, i feel like the writers should have made him seek therapy first, and then get into a relationship. cause from what we know about chitose, he was so scarred by how his first relationship ended with his late gf passing away, he avoided committed relationships bc he does not want to be emotionally vulnerable like that ever again. so clearly the guy had some psychological issues, which should have been addressed with therapy, instead of drowning himself in casual sex and alcohol. so i cant help but feel a little skeptic about him being ready to enter another relationship so soon. also hate how the writers make him say some suggestive comments about anna (getting married by 16, proposing to buy red lingerie for her as a bday gift, worry about her gaining weight for eating at night). like stop it, that shit is fucking gross and its making chitose go from a relatively harmless playboy to a creepy pedo. i never read the lost small world manga, but i remember coming across this omake (?) where chitose and dewa were talking and chitose made some comment that implied that he was willing to (or already had) have sex with a drunk girl, which is a huge no.

dewa masaomi

i would totally date dewa tbh. he fits my type irl (dark hair, introverted, can be witty/sharp, etc). it also helps that since he hangs out with chitose a lot, hes not really fazed by conventionally attractive women lol. along with fuji, he lacks a lot of depth since we don't know much about them. but hey, thats what im here for! i like to think that dewa makes all of his life choices by doing the exact opposite of what chitose does. where chitose would date and sleep any pretty girl that comes his way, dewa would be super picky and not just fall for a pretty face. chitose loves women in mini skirts and cropped tops, dewa prefers his women in suits and form-fitting long dresses that accentuates their curves without showing any skin. i think a general consensus for dewa is that he joined homra bc of chitose, which i definitely agree with. although some of the members may not be as brash and aggressive as someone like yata, i can still see them fitting in. dewa, on the otherhand, seems to be the odd one out. like the man seems like he would fit in with s4 better. but i do like the hc of dewa, despite how different he is from the other boys, dislikes authority figures trying to control his life, which is why he chose to stay with homra. cause its easier to join a gang for a friend, but its harder to stay in a gang if they dont align with your values/goals. i also like to think that dewa actually comes from a well off family, which reflects on his mannerisms and sense of dressing. but he doesnt share a close relationship with his parents. while theyre not emotionally or physically abusive, they are very emotionally absent, which is why he grows up detached from them. that doesnt stop them from trying to make his life decisions for him (i.e. have him take over the family business after college, settle down with this girl who is also from this well off family, etc), so dewa doesnt think twice before moving out once he hits 18

eric soult

my baby boy, my second fave abc boy!!! i think hes probably the only white character i like in anime lol (but then again, i dont really watch a lot of anime). i was veryy attracted to eric when i first read mor and found him so handsome (still do tbh), but now i feel so soft towards him??? like i still would tap it, but did you eat??? you look so cold, let me wrap a blanket around you!!! oh, youre telling me to back off or else you'll stab me??? aww, youre soo cute 🥰 all jokes aside, him and bandou are the most developed out of the abc boys, which makes sense on why theyre more popular than the others. i also wish we saw more of his dynamic with yata, cause i felt like their banter was fucking hilarious and i loved how eric was not scared to show him sass despite being new to homra lol. i recently started having this headcanon that eric has this old fashion mindset where as a man, you have to provide for your girl, even if its the most ridiculous and expensive thing ever, so whenever the guys talk about buying gifts for anna or any other woman in their life, hes always suggesting expensive jewelry and clothes. this also makes him very vulnerable to the wrong women, who would probably drain his wallet and emotionally abuse him if she doesnt get what she wants. i actually got this hc from the mor movie where fuji tells him that he'd fall for the type of wrong girl when he proposes buying designer gifts for anna lol. i was soo emotional when i read that eric makes the choice to travel the world by himself and taking pictures of beautiful sights. cause not only does it seem like he's honoring one of totsuka's hobbies, he's also getting this opportunity to see the world from a different and healthier perspective!!! he's going to be able to see more color in a world that was previously in shades of black and white for him!!!!

fujishima kosuke

my fellow taurus!!!! i remember thinking that he was related to mikoto when i first read the manga cause of his hair lmaooo. idk why but i always visualize him to have a deeper voice?? hes just so manly but yet so caring and nurturing, so i cant imagine him without a deep voice. i like to think that out of all of the guys, hes the only one who has a good relationship with his family, hence why he still lives with them, despite being part of a gang and having a bad habit of taking in stray animals. i know that in the same official story where chitose ends up in a relationship, fuji ends up being a carpenter, but i like the idea of fuji deciding to go back to school and becoming a vet so that he can take care of sick/injured animals. or atleast opening up his own no-kill, animal rescue agency!

[monstrousfemale]

could you write a ficlet for your spotify wrapped no.8 song pls? ☺️

aaaaaa Thanks soo much for asking, I was so excited bc this is definitely on my top 5 favorite songs ever. I hope you like it 😌 Warning for Mature content and loads of angst. I crossposted this to AO3 because I just liked it a lot... Ain't much but it's honest work.

led by blind faith - Mature, 1845 words

"I don't know why we thought this would work."

The words echo over the payphone, carried over thousands of miles. They hurt just as bad as if they had been said right in Eddie's ear. 

He wants to fight, wants to ask Steve, just how could he say that? Instead, he breathes deep; in, out. 

"I love you," he says, because it's true. Because he wants it to be enough. 

"I know."

The line clicks off, and Eddie is left in the phone booth, pressing his forehead to grimy glass. Outside, Gareth has been tapping his index finger to his wrist. It's time. 

Steve holds Eddie's hand as they wade into the ocean. These shores are not the same as the ones back home, the waters are always colder. But they're alone on the beach, and Eddie clings to Steve's hand as they hiss their way into the frigid depths. 

Steve laughs at him, his nose scrunched up, eyes brighter than the sun overhead. 

"I love you," Steve says, like it's easy. It's always easier when they are together, actually on the same continent, sharing the same bed. 

"I know," Eddie says. He grins when he jumps on Steve, causing both of them to go under. 

"It's late," Eddie says, eyes stuck outside the window of his hotel. There's a tree swaying in the wind. It's late Fall, and its leaves are mostly orange. The European weather is unforgiving, and there's already a mess of fallen leaves on the hotel's lawn.

"I missed you."

It punches a hole in Eddie's chest, crosses his body like a pen through a sheet of paper. Like an arrow through the heart. Eddie thinks about writing it down, could probably use that for his next song. But Steve is sniffling on the other side of the line, and he can't make his feet move.

"I miss you, babe," Eddie says, yawns. It's true, he always does. Travelling with the band is fun, and he loves it. He loves playing for sold out venues and scream-singing his lyrics to audiences that know them by heart. 

But he does also love Steve Harrington, King of Hawkins. He does wish he could bring him along, hates that he can't. Hates that Steve is at home working a 9 to 5 to pay for his own college education, because he won't let Eddie help. 

"I wish you were home," Steve says, his voice low. He's trying not to sound like he's crying, and Eddie's chest is so full for him, he feels like he might just explode. 

"I wish so, too."

"You never call anymore." 

Eddie sighs, tries not to get defensive. He's not calling because he's busy, he's tired, he's living life. So is Steve, he knows he is. 

"I'll try to check in more."

"I hear more from the agent than from you," Steve says, and it's not even an accusation. It's just hurt seeping through. "She calls and gives me the hotel numbers, and tells me you're still not eating right, and still only up after 1PM, no matter the time zone. I miss you, Eddie."

"Steve, I'm trying."

"Yeah, so am I."

"Look, I'm not trying to scare you, or make things worse… but how do you know he's not off kissing cute European guys?"

Steve brushes his hair off his face, checks his watch again. He has to call Eddie in an hour. And he loves Robin, he does, and he knows she's just saying this because she's his friend, and she cares about him… But he wishes he had to go right now, doesn't want to have this conversation. He trusts Eddie, but also he knows what the answer makes him sound like. 

Nevertheless, Steve says what he always says whenever someone asks about the stability of his long-distance relationship.

"It's blind faith."

Robin doesn't have pity in her eyes when she looks at him after that, like a lot of others had had before. She just looks worried. He smiles softly at her, steals the last of her popcorn, and tries not to think about that faith. He really does trust Eddie. And Eddie trusts him. 

Eddie pushes Steve against the hotel room door, thigh between his, lets him grind down against him. 

Tells him, "That's it baby, you feel so good, so good, Steve."

Steve clings onto his hair, kisses him like his life depends on it.

They don't get a lot of moments like this, Steve doesn't get to travel much. But it was their anniversary, and Eddie was still on the road. He finally convinced Steve to allow him to get the tickets, and here they are. Making out in a hotel room in South America.

In the background, to drown out their sounds, The Cure is playing from a tiny stereo. 

Steve sings along as he throws himself onto Eddie's bed, smiling through the lyrics.

You, soft and only You, lost and lonely You, just like Heaven 

Eddie holds on tight to Steve’s hips, moves with him, touches him in worship. Whispers “you’re just like Heaven” into Steve’s collarbones, into his neck, into his chest. Steve whimpers for him, beautiful, divine.

"I can't fucking talk to you when you're like this," Steve says, exasperation dripping off every word. 

It may be midnight wherever Eddie is, but for him, it's the middle of the day, and he has shit to do. 

"You asked me to call," Eddie says, slurring. He's high, Steve can tell. And it's not weed, when he's high off pot he gets cozy and chill. Now, he is extra hyper and off, and Steve hates his voice when he's like this. Suspects coke or some other shit. He doesn't want to know.

"You promised me you wouldn't get high on the road. This is not okay. This is your career on the line, Eds."

"Oooh, you never call me that," Eddie chuckles, but it's dark. Nothing like his usual laughter. "I thought you wanted me to call more. I'm calling."

It hurts. Feels like being punched over the head, and Steve has plenty of experience with that. The dull ache, the dizzying effects. He's so tired. One more concussion and he might just be done for. 

"Don't call like this again. You’re putting me through hell." 

It's Eddie who hangs up. 

“I love you. I don’t think I could ever love anyone else like this.”

“Sometimes it’s not enough, Eddie. You know this. We knew this.”

There's a beat. Steve thinks maybe the call dropped. Thinks about the phone bill for international calls.

“Don’t say that, please,” Eddie finally says, and there’s something so solid in his tone that grounds Steve.

“Eddie, it’s just so…” Steve doesn’t know what he wants to say. It’s hard. It’s fucking lonely. It feels like pure desperation sometimes. 

“I know, I know. I’m so sorry, please Steve,” he’s begging, and Steve doesn’t know what to do with it. Hates himself a little too much for making Eddie sound like that. “Please, I need you to forgive me.”

“It’s not just about that one call, you know things were hard before that. It’s not even all your fault.” 

“Steve…”

“I’m in love with you. I don’t think I could ever love anyone else, either.”

There’s a sharp exhalation, relief that seems to worm its way from Eddie, through the phone line, into Steve’s brain. 

“I really am sorry,” Eddie says, means it. Steve knows he does. 

“Me too,” Steve says, sighing. “We’re going to be okay.” He doesn’t know if he’s trying to comfort Eddie or himself with that, but he suspects it doesn’t do a lot for either of them. Nothing could, right now. 

Eddie calls in the middle of the night, wakes Steve up at 3AM. Steve grumbles, but he’s happy to hear his voice.

“It’s witching hour, baby,” Eddie says, voice low and breathy. He’s mindful of Steve being extra sensitive to loud noises when he’s just woken up. Steve suspects there might be something else behind it tonight, though.

“I miss you,” Steve offers, untangles the phone cord on his bedside table. Pushes a hand below the blankets, brushes over his stomach, lets his palm rest there. 

“I miss you, big boy. Woke up thinking of you. Barely 11AM, aren’t you proud of me?”

“Hmm, sure, you want a prize for that?”

Eddie hesitates, and Steve smiles. He’s awake enough now that he has no doubts in his mind about what this call is. 

“Not a prize…” Eddie says, and he already sounds out of breath. Steve wonders where Eddie’s hands have been wandering, if he had already been touching before he even dialed. 

“Mm, no. A reward, maybe?” Steve asks, but his fingers are already dipping down the front of his pants. 

“Yeah, that sounds good. What do you have in mind?” 

“Oh, you’d love what I have in mind. For now, though, speed up for me? I can hear you, you know. You sound wet.”

Eddie makes a noise that has Steve hard in his own fist, and they get lost in each other’s voices and sounds like they usually would from much closer by. 

When Steve comes, he misses Eddie so bad he almost cries. 

When Eddie comes, he tells Steve he loves him so many times it sounds like prayer, and Steve falls back asleep with the phone stuck between his ear and his shoulder. 

They had met just before Corroded Coffin had been put on the map. Steve had been dragged to a concert because Dustin had needed a ride, and he had finally conceded. Eddie had invited them backstage, had doted on Dustin like only Steve ever would. They had probably fallen in love over the top of Dustin’s curly head of hair. 

Steve tries to remember that. He tries to focus on how easy it had been to fall, when he goes to bed alone after a long day at work. He tries to console himself with the knowledge that Eddie could have just said no to this arrangement, could have chosen to be single when he had headed out on a goddamn world tour. They had only been officially dating for a year when the band had gotten an opportunity to open for some big metal band Steve had never heard of before.

So Steve focuses on the love he feels, focuses on what he knows. And what he knows is that being with Eddie is worth it. 

It doesn’t make things hurt less, though. Just kind of helps manage the pain.

Eddie comes home on a Friday afternoon. Steve picks him up from the airport, has a sign that reads “my rock star” on it. Eddie looks tired, but the smile he has for Steve is large enough to lighten up his face, even if he calls him cheesy for the sign.

Eddie kisses him, and when they walk side by side to the car, Eddie’s arm over his shoulder, Steve thinks that, just maybe, they’re getting away with this after all.  

[boyfhee]

i woke up, went on tumblr.com like one does, and the first thing i see is “to you, with love” reblogged for me. 

so i closed the app. screamed a bit into a pillow. and came back to write this.

THE THING IS.. i read that work, im pretty sure i even left an ask but it was more shy, timid (?)in a sense - “thank u, this was beautiful ,i cried.”cuz i was overwhelmed lol <- the lol is to make is seem more causal as if my heart didnt feel like it was punched ^^

but i remember vividly going through heeseung hashtag and seeing this for the first time.. and the title was cute, i was like “oh fluff”. i had not read the genre or warnings notes before diving into it….

so u can imagine my reaction to this sentence…

“however, heeseung’s death changed that for you.” BTW  ofc the best time to read angst its dead into the night with taylor swift playing on my headphones :>

if i remember correctly, you deleted it (?) and then posted it again? i read it the very first time it was uploaded. this might have been a changing point cuz i didn't read angst.. not in it full potential like that before this and know im knees deep 

i finished reading it. and time kinda froze. the concept of hearing the voice of the love of your life. when things were good, were fine. i wept. BUT hearing them talk about what future could hold for both of u? knowing what u know now? literally curled with my phone in my hand and bawled my eyes out

promises… the forever heartbreaking factor of life.. what are they? meant to be broken or kept.. maybe neither.. i hate them… they give false hope for those who long and yearn to be reassure and make u believe that a single person could hold such a power over the universe… well, heeseung certainly couldn't.. no matter how genuinely his heart was beating while he said “forever”

wow, im in my feels again, i just loved it, truly loved it and cherished it for so long, in my own little world with spiraling thoughts about this, 

thank u thank u thank u  thank u!!!!!!!!!!! ur works mean the world to me

im sorry for making u sad with my ask, but i cant help it :] u made me feel too much !!!!!!!!!!

i loved the poem. the flashbacks from the fic hit me like a truck. whats ur favorite poem? ^^ i would love to read some if u have a recommendation

thanks for the little career stuff note, i appreciate it a lot truly

thank u in general, ure the coolest writer,  love u too 

ps. hee angst ?? i might die tho

                                               - > swift anonie ♡♡♡

ANON MAY I INTEREST YOU IN ANOTHER THOUGHT I HAD . about 'to you, my love' being set after 'if lovesick was a person' 😁😁 IT FITS SO WELL im so devastated actually . and that's why they tell u to read the warnings but who am i to say bc i straight up jump to the content ( i like surprises ) also i didn't delete it, my brother deleted my whole acc before i remade under the same user and reposted it 😭 oh but im so honoured that was the beginning of your angst reading arc, you should not be missing out on such a genre

and ur thoughts on promises, umm i can't say you're all wrong but i think they can serve as a driving force to do something? like some sort of motivation, or a reason idk . obvs, not saying that empty promises should be made. actually i dont have any opinion here, head empty. please never apologise for sending sad asks or wtv, i enjoy reading ur thought processes ure really really cool 🫵💗 as for poem recs hmm; i wandered lonely as a cloud by willian wordsworth, cadabianca by felicia dorothea hemans, la belle dame sams merci by john keats, rain before dawn, on a play twice seen and marching streets by fitzgerlad ( anything by him and emily dickinson is worth reading ) that's all i have on the top of my head

and no, thank u for taking ur time to write these asks, you're even cooler than me fr ☝️

[jaimebluesq]

The Perfect Spiritual Pet

Just a funny little thing that popped into my head to cheer myself up. Also can be found on AO3

~*~*~*~

Nie Huaisang uses an array to attract the perfect spritual pet - the problem is, neither he nor Wei Wuxian nor Jiang Cheng have any clue what it is.

(Spoiler: It's a three-toed sloth)

~*~*~*~

“Well... this wasn't supposed to happen.”

Nie Huaisang stared at the middle of the floor of his dorm room where he'd painted the array just as Wei Wuxian had instructed.

“What is it?” Jiang Cheng asked, hand on his sword and ready to pull it at a moment's notice if the strange beast tried to attack one of them.

“I... really don't know,” Nie Huaisang replied with a shrug. “Though it's rather cute, isn't it?”

“It looks ridiculous – I love it!” Wei Wuxian approached the creature lying in the middle of the array. It blinked slowly at him and moved its head as if it were in a daze. “It's so slow! Slower than a tortoise.”

Nie Huaisang crouched down next to Wei Wuxian and held his hand out to the creature. The beast, whose head looked like it had been painted with a permanent smile, began stretching its paw out towards him. “It only has three toes, but its nails are so long. You're just a cute little three-toed baby, yes you are,” he cooed as the fingers wrapped around his hand.

“Be careful,” Jiang Cheng hissed. “You don't know what it is. It could be some sort of yao trying to lure you into a false sense of security. If you get your head eaten off by some strange animal, I'm telling Chifeng-zun it was your own fault.”

Nie Huaisang picked it up and held it in his arms, fascinated when it slowly wrapped its limbs around him in a gentle but secure hold. “I didn't think your array made up new animals, Wei-xiong.”

“It's not supposed to.” Wei Wuxian shrugged. “You said you wanted a spiritual animal because you thought it would get your brother off your back about your cultivation, so the array is supposed to find you a spiritual pet that best matches your personality. Seriously, I just expected it to give you a tortoise or something.”

Jiang Cheng snorted. “With your luck, just be glad it didn't try to give him a xuanwu.”

“What should we call you?” Nie Huaisang rubbed his nose against the animal's. The array was indeed an amazing thing if it could create a new breed of animal out of thin air. “I know! Yidi. You look like a Yidi to me.”

“You're naming him after the god of wine?” Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes. “Please don't tell me you're going to feed him Emperor's Smile.”

“Well, he already looks kind of drunk,” Wei Wuxian offered with a chuckle. “I think Yidi's a fine name.”

“Maybe we should take it to Lan Qiren.” Jiang Cheng still hadn't let go of his wariness of the creature.

“No, we should take it outside to show the rest of the students! Everyone would get a kick out of it!”

“It might still be dangerous!” Jiang Cheng argued.

“No it isn't, it's friendly!” Wei Wuxian countered. “And with the number of disciples around here, even if it did try anything, we'd all be able to stop it.”

The two argued for a few more moments before realizing that they hadn't heard any more from Nie Huaisang. They stopped simultaneously and began looking around the room, both pausing when they spotted Nie Huaisang's bed.

The boy had curled up in his blankets and fallen asleep, the creature in his arms sleeping just as deeply as he did.

Jiang Cheng snorted. “Maybe your array did work as intended after all.”

There was a chorus of snoring from the two sleeping in the bed.

“Only your array could find a creature as lazy as Nie Huaisang.”

fin