#if u were not around 4 their brief appearances in order left to right names are: eele/eel-uh(17). cad(17). tula(12). lulu(9)

[pcktknife]

these four

[lux-pain-project]

Episode 01 - Mystery Pt. 1 of 4 Kisaragi Gakuen - Morning

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Touhou-Dou - Home

< Narrator >       Atsuki is dreaming.

< Atsuki >    As countless images arbitrarily flood my mind,     I realized I had been crying    and screaming out.

   I was screaming and crying    from the depths of my soul.    Shouting, in remorse, sadness    and sudden bursts of anger.    I saw my younger self,    sitting on top lush green grass,    staring at my mother’s face.    My mother, who was both kind and beautiful,    was hit by a drunk truck driver.    Resulting in her trajic death.    I can recall the sad eyes of my father,    who died two years later.    On his deathbed, he wore a weak smile    and told me that the world is filled    with sadess and sorrow.    Watching these images of my parents,    I understood how much I must have    loved the two of them.    There was no reason, not a single one,    for them to die.    I remember my little sister,     who always wore a beaming smile on her face.    She was a girl with the most beautiful smile,    intelligent and cheerful.

   That little sister, was reduced to     a pitiful corpse that laid on the floor    of our pitch black room.

   The floor had turned into a literal    sea of blood, nothing of what    was originally there was left.

   During our sleep, these strange-looking things    had suddenly appeared, attacked us and    then literally devoured my sister.

   I let out a scream.    A battle cry, in order to burn everything    in front of me down to the ground.

   Against those hateful strange-looking things,    against God, against everything.    I’ll definitely make them pay.    Pay for the price of this curse.

< Narrator >     Atsuki jumped out of bed.

< Atsuki >    I felt a lump, tasting like metal,    tightening deep inside my chest.    Filling my mouth with a bitter aftertaste.

   Cold sweats sticks to my body,    it almost feels like I’m covered in blood.

   It has been a long time    since the last time I’ve seen a dream.    I can’t remember dreaming a single time    after joining FORT.

< Narrator >      Unconsciously, Atsuki touches his left arm.

   Atsuki himself also had half of his face    and his left arm devoured and ended up    losing consiousness in a pool of blood

< Atsuki >    I couldn’t do a thing.    During the moments those I loved were so brutally killed,    I could only tremble in fear    and wasn’t even able to lift a single finger.

FORT - {Call}

< Nora >    Good morning, did you sleep well?

   Well then, I’ll start the briefing    without further ado.

   About the Target. Other than the fact that they have a love for art,    we know nothing about them, be it their nationality, age or gender.

   All we know at FORT is that    the target is likely to be in Kisaragi City.   

   We know this because of that incident    in Shanghai that was caused by a Silent Infectee.

   In just three months that man managed to     infect 10.000 people in Shanghai with Silent.

   This caused thousands of crimes and mass suicides    to happen on a daily basis.

   However, when we finally identified the man and looked into him,    it turned out that he was not the Original Infectee.

   This means he too, was infected with Silent    by someone else.

   Next, when we looked into the infection route,    Kisaragi City caught our eye.

   By which I mean to say that the man from Shanghai,    was infected in Kisaragi City.

   Atsuki, your mission for the time being,    is to identify those who appear to be infected with Silent.

   It appears that a Silent Infectee might    be involved in the incident from last night.

   It might be worth looking into who they     were trying to get in contact with.

   The E-mail they sent was sent to the school    you’ll be attending from today, right? Atsuki.

   Truly a nice opportunity.    Could you try and look into that for me?

   I'll make sure to contact you if I find    anything new on my side as well.

   Aah, and also, about that curious girl from last night…    We're currently looking into her.

   it's uncanny how she knew you have powers.

   Atsuki, if you find out anything with Sigma,    make sure to contact me.

New Information Has Been Added To FORT: >Click Here<

(New) Locations Available: Kisaragi Gakuen - Courtyard

Courtyard

< ??? >      “Good morning, Matsumura-sensei”

< ???(Aoi) >    “Yes, good morning”

< Narrator >      A petite, female teacher stood in front of the school gate.

   She’s checking all the students    coming to school, one by one.    Her expression looks honest    as she makes sure to look at them properly    while she greets them.

   Suddenly her gaze stops    on a pair of students.

< ???(Aoi) >    “Hold it right there, you two”

< Narrator >      She turns and calls out to the two,    a boy and a girl, who are happily    holding hands together.

   The soft and romantic atmosphere    that was between them    up until that moment,    shatters in an instant.  

< ???(Aoi) >   “It’s not proper conduct    to be holding hands first thing in the morning!”

< ??? >     “W-We’re sorry!”

< Narrator >    The two students quickly let go of each other    and ran into the school building.

< ???(Aoi) >    Wait, I haven’t seen you before, have I?

Choose: [I’ve just transferred here today] [*Sigh* Is that so?]

[I’ve just transferred here today]

< ???(Aoi) >     Ara, that’s right.    It’s very nice to meet you.

   Ahem, well then, let me start over.

   My name is Matsumura Aoi,    I’m the Japanese language teacher here.

   Pleased to make your acquaintance.

< Narrator >     As she looks at Atsuki,    Matsumura-sensei’s cheeks suddenly turned red.    Whether she realized this or not,    she began to talk in a fluster.

< Aoi >    U-Um...

   However, I suppose transferring during this time of the year    must be quite hard for you.

< ??? >    “Good morning, Matsumura-sensei”

< Aoi >    Good morning.

   Ah, that’s right.

   If I’m not mistaken, your homeroom teacher Yamato-sensei,    has the day off today...

   So if there’s anything you need,    don’t hold back and come see me, alright?

   Well then, I hope you’ll enjoy your time here.

[*Sigh* Is that so?]

< ???(Aoi) >    Ara?    Was I mistaken?

   But, I’m sure I heard that Yamato-sensei    would be receiving a transfer student in his class today.

   This isn’t you?

< Atsuki >    ... No, that’s me.

< ???(Aoi) >    So it IS you.    My name is Matsumura Aoi, I’m the Japanese language teacher here.   

   Pleased to make your acquaintance.

< Narrator >    As she looks at Atsuki,    Matsumura-sensei’s cheeks suddenly turned red.    Whether she realized this or not,    she began to talk in a fluster.

< Aoi >    U-Um...   However, I suppose transferring during this time of the year    must be quite hard for you.

< ??? >    “Good morning, Matsumura-sensei”

< Aoi >    Good morning.    Ah, that’s right.   

   If I’m not mistaken, your homeroom teacher Yamato-sensei,    has the day off today...   

   So if there’s anything you need,    don’t hold back and come see me, alright?   

   Well then, I hope you’ll enjoy your time here.

New Information Has Been Added To FORT: >Click Here<

(New) Locations Available: Kisaragi Gakuen - Computer Lab Kisaragi Gakuen - Art Room

Computer Lab

< Narrator >    There’s just a single male student    in the Computer Lab this early in the morning.

   Said student is sitting at one of the computers,    working rapidly with expert movement.

< ???(Shinji) >    “Alright, done”

< Narrator >    It seems he finished    transfering his data to a portable terminal.

   The student gets up from his seat    and trots over to the exit.    He notices Atsuki,    who is standing in front of the door.

< ???(Shinji) >    Oh hi! Are you also studying this morning? 

   Hmmm, I don’t think I’ve seen you around before,    are you a transfer student?

   Well, not that it really matter, does it?

   I mean, this is the first time the both of us have met,    so there’s really no point in talking about stuff like that.

   I'm in a bit of a hurry anyway, so be seeing you!

< Atsuki >    Those people from last night    sent an E-mail adressed to    someone in this school.    Who would they be sending it to?

   Is there someone in this school,    who is also infected with Silent    like them?

   If there IS an infectee in school,    we’d be talking about    a Silent with considerable power.

   Which can only mean     that the Original    is a very powerful one.

< Narrator >     Atsuki takes a look inside the PC    to see if there are any relatively new Residual Shinen.

   If their companion    received and read their E-mail,    there should be Residual Shinen left.

Invoke Sigma & Obtain: [Suicide Location]

[Suicide Location] A Shinen that was found in the Computer Lab. It’s a small Shinen that appeared when emotions lacking in any large Shinen were stirred.

< Atsuki >    The Residual Shinen    belonged to the young man    who was just here.

   From the contents of the Shinen,    I can tell that he saw    the E-mail in question.

   However, he has nothing to do    with the people from last night’s incident.

   He came to school early    and probably found the E-mail by accident.

   Then he wrote down the adress    and went home.

   Judging by the contents    of his Shinen Trace,    it's clear he's going to    investigate on his own.

< Narrator >     When Atsuki tried to examine the computer    he discovered that the E-mail and its data    had been deleted.

   It was probably done by the student from just now.

Art Room

< Narrator >    Inside the classroom is    a single female student who’s been    working on a painting all morning.

   There’s no one there aside from her.    The silence is only filled    with the sound of brushstrokes    as she is completely focused on    the canvas in front of her.

   She then hold the brush in front of her    and starts inspects the whole composition.

   That’s when she finally    seems to notice that    Atsuki had entered the room. 

< ???(Yayoi) >    ... Good morning.

   Did you also arrive early    to work on your painting?

   ... wait, hm?    I don’t think I’ve seen you before, have I?

   This is our first time meeting, isn’t it...?

   Ah, I see now. You must be the transfer student, right?

   Our teacher said that    we’d be getting a new student from today.

   My name is Kamishiro Yayoi, it's a pleasure to meet you.    If I'm not mistaken, we're in the same class.

< Narrator >    Atsuki also introduced himself briefly.    Then asked her about her reason    for arriving early to paint.

< Yayoi >    I came in early, because I was hoping that    Arthur-sensei would be back by now.

   Arthur Mays. He’s a world-renowned painter    known for his contemporary art.

   Such a famous person, is teaching us    as a temporary teacher.

   Don’t you think it’s a wonderful opportunity?

   However is seems he hasn’t been feeling well    as of late, so he doesn’t come in often......

< Narrator >    Atsuki couldn’t help but notice    the painting in the corner.

   Because although it’s faint,     he definitely felt the presence    of a black, distorted Shinen.

Invoke Sigma & Obtain: [Fading Colors] [He Seems Kind]

[Fading Colors] A Shinen that’s stuck to a painting leaning against a corner of the room. It’s a small one, but there’s something abnormally dark and distorted about it slipping in and out of view.

[He Seems Kind] The first impression Yayoi had of Atsuki. She feels that  he must be a gentle person.

Fusion

Obtain: [People Change]

<Yayoi >    Ah, that’s right!    I’m the one on duty today...

   I’ll be going on ahead to the classroom.    Well then, I’ll see you in a while!

< Atsuki >    The Residual Shinen that was    attached to that painting, was    full of despair and deep sorrow

   The same as the Shinen    from the man that I met    at Crimson Hill last night

   Which probably means    that the man from last night    was Arthur, the painter.

   And since I can sense    the presence of Silent from him,    he’s the most similar to    our Target.

New Information Has Been Added To FORT: >Click Here<

FORT - {Call}

< Nora >    Have you found any information    that might help us find the E-mail’s recipient?

   What do you think of that boy    who was at the computer this morning?

< Narrator >    Atsuki answered that judging from    the boy’s Residual Shinen, he’s not    involved with the incident from last night

   Then reports that he's certain     the boy has seen the mail    in question, because it had    already been deleted.

< Nora >    I see, then let’s follow    these two routes.

   If that boy is not the recipient, then there must    be someone in that school who IS involved.

   So the first route is to investigate and find them

   The other route is to follow that boy    and take a look into his mind.

   We need to know the details    of what he saw of the mail’s contents.

   Alright then, Atsuki.    Move according to those two paths.

(New) Locations Available: Kisaragi Gakuen - Classroom

Classroom

< Aoi >    Good morning, everyone.

< Narrator >    Aoi said as she took a look    around the classroom.

< Aoi >    Ara, it looks like Naruse-kun    is absent today.

   Alright then class representatives,    please make sure to take notes

   for those who aren’t here today     and show them to them later, okay?

< ???(Mika) >    Sensei~, I’m sorry    for being late!

< Aoi >    Ara, Nozaki-san,    you were absent as well?

< ???(Rui) >    Sensei, it looks like    Ryou is also running late!

< Aoi >    Eh?! Ara, ara,    he is? I’m so sorry!

   So Unami-san wasn’t present either.

< Narrator >    With her cheeks turned red,    Aoi looked a bit embarrassed as she said so.

   In that moment, Aoi gaze fell    on Atsuki.

< Aoi >    You just transferred and I’ve already made    a fool of myself... I need to be more careful......

   It might be a bit weird to ask you    this right after just now,

   but what do you think of this school    so far, Saijou-kun?

Choose: [I like it] [I don’t really know yet]

[I like it]

< Aoi >    Is that so? Thank goodness.

   It might be difficult at first,    but I hope we can get along.

   The people in this class are all very nice,    so I’m sure they’ll lend a hand if you need it.

  Well then,   let’s start today’s class!

  Saijou-kun, do you have a textbook?   Ah, looks like you do.

  Then, please open page 276   of your textbooks.

[I don’t really know yet]

< Aoi >    I can understand that...    I mean it IS still your first day after transferring.

   But, the people in this class are all    very nice.

   So if if you run into any trouble,    I’m sure they’ll be happy to lend you a hand.

   Well then,    let’s start today’s class!

   Saijou-kun, do you have a textbook?    Ah, looks like you do.

   Then, please open page 276    of your textbooks.

< Aoi >    Since this is your first day,    I’ll explain it again briefly for you later Saijou-kun.

   This work is called “Collection of Young Herbs”    written by “Shimazaki Touson“.

   It uses the seven-and-five syllable meter rhythm

   and is said to be an examplary poem    anthology by the Japanese Romatic School.

   Since last week, we’ve been working    on a particular poem of the anthology.

   It’s an especially famous one even among     their whole collection, called: “First Love.

   I’m sure you’ve also heard of it    before, haven’t you Saijou-kun?

   It starts like this: “You had swept    back your bangs for the first time~”

   Does that ring a bell?

   Perhaps the next poem    will come to mind more naturally?

   Touson overlaps the seasonal springtime    with the springtime of life

   and composes poems of the sorrows youth...

< ???(Mika) >    Looks like this explaination    is going to take a while. Again...

   Well then, I guess, everyone’s just    going to do homework like usual then.

< ???(Rui) >    Yup.

< Aoi >    And so..., this wonderfull    way of projecting love is.......

~ 45 Minutes Later ~

< Aoi >    Well then, we’re at a nice place to stop,    so let’s end here for today.

   Saijou-kun, if you have any questions    about today’s lesson,

   you can come to me at any time,    I’ll be in the staff room.

   Alright class, next time we'll start working    on "Rashomon",

   so please make sure to come prepared.

< ???(Mika) >    So you’re the new transfer student.    I’m Nozaki Mika! It’s nice to meet you!

   Aoi-sensei’s lesson wasn’t too intense    for you, was it?

   She’s takes her job seriously and makes    sure to to teach us well,

   but she has a tendency to go off on a tangent.

   Especially when words like “Love” are involved.    She’s already explained that part multiple times.

   Alas, since we’re doing love poems this week,    it looks like things will continue like this for a while *sigh*

   I’m sure she’ll start the next class    with the exact same explanation.

   But I guess stuff like this doesn’t happen too often,    so class will be back to normal before you know it.

   Well, see you!

< Aoi >    So how was your first class?    It wasn’t too tiring?

   It must be different from your previous school,    so you might feel a bit bewildered at first,

   but it’s alright to take it slow    and get used to things bit by bit.

   Oh right, now that I think about it,    I almost forgot!

   Please hold on a moment!

< Narrator >    Aoi said as she turned around to    Yamase Rui who was in the back of the classroom.

< Aoi >    “Yamase-san, do you have a moment?”

< ???(Rui) >    “Oh yeah, sure!”

< Rui >    What is it, Sensei?!

   Hm? Oh?    You’re the new transfer student, Saijou-kun, right?

   So, what do you need me for, Sensei?

< Aoi >    I would like you to show him around the school    during lunchtime.

< Rui >    Hmmm, I don’t mind I guess.    So, what do you wanna see?

< Aoi >    ...um, Yamase-san. I didn’t mean like that,    I meant show him as much as possible...

< Rui >    Sure, I got ya, Sensei!

   Since you help me out with homework,    and take good care of me and stuff, I’ll do it.

   Alright, let’s go!

< Narrator >    With that, Yamase Rui    takes a hold of Atsuki’s arm    and starts walking.

   This kind of behaviour    might be natural for Rui,    but seeing her link arms    as if she was holding    her boyfriend’s arm,    Aoi’s face turned red unconsciously.

   Then, she started feeling    just a little bit uneasy about    asking Yamase Rui.

END Ep01 - Pt.1 of 4

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[hispeculiartreasure]

All We’ve Got is Time - Chapter Four | B.B.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Female Reader

AU: If They’d Survived/Post-War/Window Washer!Bucky Barnes

Rating: Teen

Word count: 3,371

Chapter 4/24

Warnings: Very brief, yet strong language

AN: Let me just say that I am profoundly grateful for the love this series is getting! I am enjoying your comments and theories and am so flattered by your praise. I didn’t get a chance to respond to every comment like I usually do - my car accident took care of that. I’ve had a hard time focusing and coping after that traumatic day so I hope everything in this chapter is in order. Love you all so dearly. Come scream at me when you’re done. 💖

Chapter Three

‘All We’ve Got is Time’ Masterlist

Exiting the elevator the next morning you fumble through your handbag, trying to find the lipstick you didn’t have time to put on before you left.

Of all mornings for the subway to not be working it had to be today. I’m so late, I’m gonna have to bust my tail before Anderson notices.

“Good morning, Mrs. Flannery,” you say absentmindedly as you approach her desk.

“You’re late. I have-”

“I know, it’s been a hell of a-- excuse me, it’s been a heck of a morning,” you interrupt, head still down, lipstick nowhere to be found.

“Miss-”

“It won’t happen again, I promise.” You rush past her as your mental to-do list only grows longer.

“Ahem.”

There was no denying that was aimed toward you. You come to a halt, slowly turning back to the daunting woman. Peering over her glasses, one hand perched on her hip while the other was stretched out to you, grasping a piece of paper.

“This was left for you yesterday afternoon after you had completed your shift.” You timidly reach for the slip, when Flannery pulls it back at the last moment. “I feel the need to remind you that this is a place of business. Not romance, not courtship, not frivolity. I meant what I said on your first day - beaus are not allowed in this office. This is the only time I will extend grace. Understood?”

Mystified you take the paper, nodding your understanding.

What the hell is she talking about?

Suzy sidles beside you on the walk to your desk before she whisper-shouts, “The note was for her!”

Immediately, six other women leap from their desks and huddle around you talking a mile a minute.

“We were here when he dropped it off!”

“He was so cute!”

“Why do I feel like I’ve seen him in the movies?”

“Maybe he’s a war-hero?”

“He looked familiar,” Connie muses.  

“Who cares! What does it say?” Suzy urges as she pokes your arm.

The huddle falls silent as you open the neatly folded note.

The gaggle of girls around you squeal for a moment before Flannery’s harsh shhhh quiets everyone to whispers.

“How sweet.”

“He’s one of the window washers?!”

“Wait, we have window washers here?”

“I still feel like I know him from somewhere else. . .”

“Well, how do you feel?” Suzy draws the focus back to you.

You bite your lip. “Umm. . . it makes me feel. . . pretty great.”

“Jeeze, for you that may as well be equal to jumping up and down!” One nudges you gently with her elbow. “What are you gonna do?”

“Do? I- I’m not going to do anything. I got a nice note and I appreciate it,” you state, hoping it would bring an end to all the attention surrounding you. It didn’t.

“Oh come on!”

“Have you been flirting? You need to be more tantalizing!”

“You have to find him right now!”

“Show us your moves, we can help!”

Waving your arms for quiet you declare, “I’m already late and if I don’t get to work, I’ll be canned before I get the chance to see him again. Is that what you want?”

Everyone begrudgingly trudges across the office while Suzy lags behind. With a knowing grin she says, “Lemme know if you wanna talk about it. It’s nice to see you smile like that.”

As she leaves you plop down into your desk chair, rereading the note. It’s then that you realize just how much you’ve been smiling the last few minutes and just how fast your heart was beating.

Yeah, I could tell you enjoyed the new look. Why am I blushing all over again?

He came up here to try to talk to me. To actually see me. In person. He faced the wrath of Flannery to get up here and leave this.

He can’t wait to see me? Does he look forward to seeing me as much as I look forward to seeing him? Of course he couldn’t be bothered to sign his actual name. What a tease.

It takes a shout from Anderson’s office to bring you back to reality. Propping the note against your typewriter you read it one more time before grabbing your pencil and notepad.

For the rest of the day you anxiously check the window every few minutes, waiting for the author of your note. Every moment you feel self-conscious, not sure what you should do when he stops on your floor. Is he expecting more to come from this? Do you need to be a little more flirtatious, like some of the girls had mentioned? Should you be making more of an effort? Is that something you even wanted?

But then you see him and the uncertainty fades away. The work day is almost over before he descends to the sixth floor. You make eye contact, check your watch, and tap its face twice. You’re late.

He nods while wiping his brow. His head lolls to the side, eyes closed, tongue sticking out in a comical manner. Slept in.

Shaking your head and tutting softly, you raise an eyebrow.

Both his hands shoot up in a I know, I know. Won’t happen again.

With a short nod, you go back to filing and leave Window Washer to his work.

By the time you turn around, you expect him to be gone. To your pleasant surprise, he seems to be waiting for you. He beckons you to the window. When you get close enough, you notice something written in the suds at the very bottom of the pane. The word doesn’t make sense to you, so you scrunch your eyebrows at him.

He taps himself on the chest several times and mouths “my name”. You look again and it finally clicks. B-U-C-K-Y. You nod your understanding and smile. It isn’t until he points at you that you realize he’s waiting for your name. You press your finger to the glass, waiting for him to mirror your touch. You trace your name on your side, allowing him to spell it on his side. He reads it and grins wide. Nice to meet ya, he mouths.

“Mary! Get in here, take notes.” You turn from the voice, eyes rolling into the back of your head.

Hooking a thumb toward your boss’ office, you sigh deeply. Gotta go.

Bucky held two fingers to his brow and gave you a half-hearted salute. Good luck in there.

------

You are dutifully typing a letter when a pair of shiny Oxford heels appear in your peripheral vision next to your desk.  “You need to go ask that boy on a date.”

Heaving a sigh, you keep your eyes on the task in front of you. “Didn’t we have this discussion yesterday, Suze?”

“Yeah, and you still haven’t wised-up.” Papers rustle on your desk as Suzy props a hip against it.

“On the contrary, I think I’m exercising a lot of wisdom.”

She scoffs, finally drawing your attention away from your paperwork.

“Someone’s a scaredy cat.”

“Suzy.” You fix her with a pointed look.

Pretending to have a sudden interest in her cuticles she mutters, “It’s the only possible explanation.”

“How do we know that note was an invitation? What if he was just saying hi? What if he-”

“Mhmm. Those are the thoughts of someone who is unafraid.”

“How do we even know if he’d want to go on a date with me?” You lean back in your chair, tired of this conversation.

The redhead’s eyebrows shoot up her forehead. “I’m sorry - ‘You looked beautiful’? ‘Can’t wait to see you’? Sorry, doll, but people don’t say that to just anyone. I adore you, but I can definitely wait to see you if it means coming in to work.” She dodges the playful kick you aim in her direction. “All I’m saying is that you weren’t here when he left that note - I was. He was all kinds of antsy and blushing.”

“He works outside, maybe he had a sunburn,” you deadpan.

“You were just talking about how you barely know anyone in the city and you need to meet new people. He’s new people!”

“But I don’t even know if I want a romantic relationship right now.” “Then you’ll tell him that after your first date if you still feel that way. But why shut it down now when it doesn’t even exist yet? Maybe he’s lonely too-” Suzy’s eyes dart behind you and her posture changes. She leans in toward you, feigning interest in the letter you’d abandoned. “Oh yes, those are the addresses I was looking for. Don’t know how they got on your desk. And you needed something from me right?”

You sit stunned by this sudden change of behavior until you see Flannery approaching your desk.

“Uhh-yes. I was wondering what the protocol would be for when. . .” you both watch as the office manager floats into the filing room and shuts the door behind her. You and Suzy relax back into your previous positions. “I never said lonely,” you point out, shoving your defensive instincts down.

Suzy rolls her eyes and with a wave of her manicured hand says “Fine, fine, you’re being adventurous. Does that make you feel better?”

“No.”

“Answer me one last question, Newbie, and I’ll leave you alone.” Raising a brow, you wait for the question. “What’ve you got to lose?”

You weren’t able to answer then, and you still don’t have an answer now.

Under Suzy’s watchful eye, the second your watch reads 12 o’clock you leave your desk and hustle down the stairs, hoping the physical activity would work out some of the anxiety in your chest. It doesn’t.

Turning the corner toward the service entrance you see the window washers gathered outside in a loose group, taking their lunch break. Your heart begins to beat faster when you imagine actually holding a conversation with Bucky. What in the world were you going to say to him?

I really should’ve thought this through a little more.

But then your feet were taking you toward the group and it was too late to turn back now. The clicking of your shoes on pavement draws the attention of each man whose heads simultaneously swing to watch you. You stop a few feet away from them, losing your words.

“Can we help you, miss?” The apparent leader of the window washing crew steps forward. He’s much younger than Bucky, scrawny and tan. He’d be lucky to be 18.

“Um. . .” you scan the faces, not finding the one you’re looking for. “Is Bucky around?”

The leader’s eyes narrow, giving you a too-thorough once-over. “Whaddya want with him? If it has to do with windows, I’m in charge here. Name’s Harrison. Maybe I can help you out.”

You control the urge to fidget under his scrutiny, steeling yourself to squarely match his gaze. “No, there’s something else I need to discuss with him.”

“He had to skip out early today. Something about a family emergency.”

“Oh. I see.” You think for a moment, not enjoying the pack of men watching you like vultures. “Would you let him know I stopped by?” You turn on your heel when Harrison speaks again.

“What’s your name, baby-doll?”

Shutting your eyes you remind yourself to watch your temper. Thinking better of giving your name, you spare a glance over your shoulder. Coldly you reply, “Tell him ‘Sixth Floor’. He’ll know.”

More questions are shouted at you but you keep walking, very familiar with the rakish tone in which they were spoken. You didn’t have time for drooling boys. For a moment you worry that Bucky is cut from the same cloth as them. But something deep in you urges that he’s different.

Unbeknownst to you, when Bucky arrives at work the next day Harrison actually does mention your visit.

“Barnes, some broad came lookin’ for ya at lunchtime yesterday.”

Bucky doesn’t spare a look from his kit he was preparing for the day. “Yeah? What for?”

“She wouldn’t tell us. Seemed kinda stuck-up and snooty. Like she was better than us or something.”

Hitching his kit over his shoulder to head to the roof, Bucky smooths back a stray strand of hair. “I hate to break it to ya, but if she was acting like that I’m sure you deserved it.” As the kid who was technically his supervisor opens his mouth to protest Bucky interjects, “Did she say anything else?”

Unamused, Harrison practically pouts. “She just said ‘sixth floor’ and said you’d get it. Then she left.”

Bucky stills immediately at the mention of you. “Really? She said that?”

“Yup. Was a bombshell too, real date-bait if you catch my drift.”

Eyes closing, Bucky imagines strangling the teenager in front of him rather than actually carrying out the action. “Shut your trap.”

“Wish she’d stop by again, wouldn’t mind an evening of necking with her.” He conspiratorially winks, mistakenly thinking he would go along with the sentiment.

Squaring up with Harrison, Bucky leans in dangerously close and says lowly, “You’d better watch that mouth, kid.”

“What’s the big deal? She’s not your girl or anything is she?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Bucky insists, eyes practically boring through the terrified kid in front of him. “She’s not yours, so don’t be a creep. Girls don’t like creeps, if you haven’t caught onto that yet. And I don’t either.” He leans back, smirking with satisfaction at the deer-in-the-headlights look he was getting. Resting his brush on his shoulder Bucky turns to begin his day.

“Keep your paws off me, Barnes!” Harrison shouts to Bucky’s back.

“I didn’t touch you, Harrison. Maybe you would’ve noticed if you weren’t always on skirt patrol,” Bucky tosses over his shoulder as he begins to climb the fire escape.

As Bucky climbs higher his thoughts turn to you. You’d been looking for him. You’d obviously shut down Harrison and the rest of the boys. Anyone that sassed that kid was a hero in his book.

Maybe his note hadn’t been a total disaster after all. Once he’d gotten into bed that night, he fretted over that dumb piece of paper for hours. He thought of a million things he could’ve said besides the three hastily scribbled lines. A million kinder, wittier, more fitting words for you. You’d been nice enough the next day, playful even. And he’d finally gotten your name - a sweet, suitable name that rolled around in his head for hours. But he couldn’t help feeling like he needed to do more.

He found himself even more excited to get to the sixth floor today, to see you, to have a little hope, to share in a smile. Though that’s not exactly what happens.

------

“Get in here, NOW!”

Anderson’s tone instantly drowns your insides with dread.

You rush to his door, quietly opening it. Anderson’s heels are crossed, kicked up to rest on the edge of his desk. His eyes bore into you, disdain obvious.

“Sir?” you make out much smoother than you feel.

“Do you know what this is?” he flicks a letter across his desk toward you. Quietly picking it up, you silently read its contents.

“The steel mill is turning down our partnership offer? Because they never received paperwork? Sir, I definitely-”

“Read the letterhead,” he bites out. “And then read what you sent out. What do you notice, Doris?” Another letter is flicked in your direction. You bite back a retort about your name.

Holding the letters side-by-side, a pit drops in your stomach. “I copied the address incorrectly.”

Anderson gives you a tight nod, jaw clenched. The room is claustrophobic in silence.

“Sir, I-”

“You cost us thousands of dollars with this idiotic move, because you didn’t proofread your work enough? Because you can’t copy a damn number over?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know how I missed-”

“You missed it because you were careless!” Anderson bangs a fist to his desk, causing you to jump a fraction. He stands up abruptly, stalking over to you. “This job isn’t a fucking joke. You were given a chance because you kicked up a fuss about being let go when our boys came back from war. You want this job? Act like it!” With every word Anderson steps in your direction causing you to match with a step backward. You are in his office’s threshold when he leans in and whispers menacingly, “If you can’t get a damn letter right then you shouldn’t even be here in the first place, Marge. Make sure it doesn’t happen again or you’re gone. Now get out of my office and fix your screw-up!” The door slams in your face.

Hands shaking, you make your way to your desk. Willing the tears not to fall you take a few deep breaths. Elbows rest on the surface, head in your hands, focusing on not falling apart in the middle of the busy office.

You’re tougher than this. A man raising his voice at you is nothing new. You are fine, you made a mistake. Don’t you dare lose your composure, it’ll only make you seem weak.

A tapping on the window directly next to your desk startles you. Bucky is there, looking more concerned than ever. He tilts his head, eyebrows furrowed together. What’s wrong?

The tears spill out at the kindness reflected in his own. You search desperately for a handkerchief before turning back to the window. Dabbing at your wet cheeks furiously, you gesture to Anderson’s office. You blink against the hankie, hoping to catch the makeup before it runs down your entire face. Pointing to yourself you mouth “my fault”. The tears don’t stop for several minutes, but everytime you look up Bucky is sitting at the window, watching you sorrowfully.

Eventually you dry up, puffy eyes meeting Bucky’s. “I’m fine,” you whisper, dropping your gaze to the handkerchief in your lap that you’ve been twisting into knots.

More tapping draws your attention back to Bucky, who promptly flips off Anderson’s closed door. You manage to stutter a laugh out in between your sniffles, feeling a little lighter already.

With an admonishing shake of your head that you don’t mean, you return his smile. Thanks.

You could be imagining it, but Bucky seems hesitant to move on to the next floor. Giving him what you hope is a reassuring thumbs-up you mouth, “I’m okay.”

Looking thoroughly unconvinced he watches you for a few seconds before nodding slowly. He drops out of your sight, though you still stare out the window where he had been.

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

One day passes where you don’t see Bucky at all.

Two days pass. No Bucky.

Three days pass. Zero handsome window washers.

When the end of your day comes and it hits you that he hasn’t made his usual stop you try to ignore the disappointment that prickles your heart.

It takes a while before it dawns on you that since you had started your job Bucky had washed every single window on this side of the building. Which meant he would move onto another side or possibly an entirely different building.

On your walk into work Friday morning, you notice that the window washing crew’s tools are absent from the sidewalk. An unfamiliar emotion has you biting your lip as you approach your desk.

I guess that’s that. We kept missing each other and time just. . .ran out. It’s not a big deal. . . If it’s not a big deal then why am I so sad?

Turning your gaze to the window immediately to your left, you notice a piece of paper in the middle of the pane. You stare for a moment, fairly certain that it hadn’t been there when you left work last night. With a purposeful step you go to the window, a sneaking suspicion in the back of your mind. You find a note written in a familiar hand taped to the outside of the window, the writing facing you so you could read it clear as day.

Chapter Five

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[surejo]

( victoria pedretti, cis woman ) hey ! have you seen JOSEPHINE “JO” CORMAC around ? SHE works at the HOT COCOA STAND at big bear resort, but they must be off their shift by now. well, if you do see them can you let me know ? they’re 24 years old & they’ve been working here for TWO YEARS. they tend to be +OPTIMISTIC & +EMPATHETIC, but can also be -IMPRACTICAL & -PASSIVE. the other employees have labeled them THE IDEALIST. thanks a lot ! ( the few nights the stars can be seen, books worn down by dog-ears and marks left throughout the years, the first crisp breeze of autumn, the duality… of t.s. eliot ) 

OK. a few notes before i get started:

1) i hope everyone loves how i literally j copied my ivan stuff. url format? ‘sure jan’ lives on. theme? too lazy to find a different one that’s easy to work with. luv that for me. 2) speaking of this theme i forget if i addressed this on ivan’s blog but tabbed bullets don’t appear tabbed.... so if anything seems like it doesn’t make total sense.... it is supposed to be tabbed™. 3) get ready for drama!!!!! you may ask yourself “but the app looks so tame! there will be no drama!” but you are wrong........ because she loves cats. the t.s. eliot book......... the musical........ even the movie.

ok jo,, is also a resurrected character,,, hence how i already kno,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, that she loves cats. anyway ! let’s begin ! (listen,,,, the intro format will at least be a little different from ivan’s ok im evolving)

QUICK FACTS:

full name: josephine “jo” rose cormac

date of birth: march 6, 1995

*does not perfectly reflect the below big three zodiac chart because that’s too much math

zodiac big three: pisces sun, gemini moon, cancer rising

gender & pronouns: cis woman & she/her

sexual orientation: bisexual ( preference for women bc we luv that for her but we also luv leaving things open to chemistry )

education: bachelor in english - literature that she is doing nothing with

enneagram: 2w1

mbti: infp

various inspirations: eleanor crain ( the haunting of hill house ), dolores price *as a child and towards the end of the book ( she’s come undone ), fox 8 ( fox 8: a story ), “why try to change me now?” - fiona apple (cover), “be still” - the killers

BACKGROUND INFO:

triggers: verbal/mental/emotional abuse/gaslighting, very slight implication of spousal abuse, brief mention of car accident/death & drowning

( ivan and jo’s breakout pop-punk single: “fuck happy backstories!” stream it on spotify ! )

jo......... was born into the wrong family, let’s get that out of the way.

it was pretty clear she was a ploy to save the marriage of her parents ( who have names: lucy and benjamin, luv that for them ). it didn’t seem like they’d ever picked up a parenting book, gone to a parenting class, rly prepped for being a parent at all...... in their entire lives.

that being said, her mom was actually decent at parenting. her major flaw, though? ok, so you know how kids usually have that one bedtime story that they love and want it to be read to them over and over? well lucy complied ! but y’all wanna know what that book was ?

t.s. eliot’s “old possum’s book of practical cats” whfeiuldjkn

anyway ! when jo was seven, after many failed attempts and simple threats, her mom was finally divorcing benjamin for realz. due to his volatile nature, it was becoming very clear that she was the more fit parent and she almost got sole custody ( the only reason benjamin was motivated for it in the first place was the power so?? )! how exciting!

but the keyword is ‘almost’!

alexa, play ‘my heart will go on’ but the off-tune flute version

just as the proceedings were going through, jo’s mother was hit by a drunk driver on new year’s eve. the car skidded onto some ice, minimal damage done... then the ice broke.

jo and benjamin both devolved after that. jo withdrew more into herself and pretty much coped by..... just reading old possum’s a LOT (hate that for her). all mopey, benjamin became much less outwardly violent. the keyword is ‘outwardly.’

ya, instead of j bein like “i will just chill” he was like “i will just make my rage more subtle because in this house, we love intimidation, manipulation, hostility, the blame game, and gaslighting! uwu” managed to convince jo that her mother’s death was somehow her fault, that he was the only person she could trust, that she will never be able to live without someone else, etc., etc.

a few years in and a cycle of many impromptu sleepovers began. luv that for her. hate that for her, but luv that for her. 

there is a lot i cld talk abt here, but it all seems like it cld j be tl;dr’d as: “basically became the surrogate daughter of a bunch of other people”

as for things that r not tragique™, jo was v much a drifter when it came to friends. managed to make a fair amount bc she does not seem like she will put a tadpole in ur hand like ivan. also j a people-pleaser but that’s starting to get into her personality which is another section.

did go to college. luv that for her. has NO CLUE what she’s going to do with her degree, but she can make some really sick niche william faulkner jokes. 

began seasonally working at big bear during the winter break of her last year in college because bitch needed some money!! wound up loving it and was like “i think,,,, i will continue to do this,,,, the people here,,,, r cul,,,,”

still visits benjamin every once in a while. not a way to say that uwu you should forgive ur abusive parent(s) uwu rather that jo.... still has slight belief in him. just to end on something emo.

THE REST IS HISTORY!!!!

TL;DR:

started life out as a saddie, not a baddie. still not a baddie, but no longer as much of a saddie. loves “cats” and there is no irony to that statement. can make good niche literary jokes, but that’s about it.

PERSONALITY/MISCELLANEOUS INFO:

a child. a literal child. a child to the point that she should have supervision when she goes on grocery trips because she falls for marketing ploys so easily. can’t believe she hasn’t fallen into a pyramid scheme yet.

an absolute dumbass. again, can make some great niche william faulkner jokes, but ask her the order of the planets? “...well mars is somewhere in there.”

unironically LOVES cats - both the musical and movie. thinks jennifer hudson’s grizabella is the best. will start sharing random facts about it or old possum’s book of practical cats if she runs out of things to talk about but feels pressured to keep talking. was broken when she first read a different t.s. eliot poem and realized he was actually super dark. the only thing that got her through it was a comparison to batman :\ bruce wayne is old possum’s, batman is everything else.

to take a brief break from fun personality facts, v down on herself bc benjamin’s words rly!! stuck with her!! convinced she is an absolute idiot and does not trust her own memory. v indecisive bc of this and always longs for someone to help her figure things out. tries to distance herself from memories of her mother because, again, benjamin got to her. her love of cats doesn’t help that, but... can you believe that’s her coping mechanism? makes up for it by giving all of her love 2 everyone else!! we love tragedy!! and needing to go to therapy!!

secretly knows her love of cats is weird and dumb. a part of her knows why it’s considered one of the worst musicals ever. but LISTEN. we luv rly weird coping mechanisms!

big dreamer. will develop the most impractical goals. she usually knows they are impractical, but still..... uwu

has decided everyone is good until proven bad! except for,,,, like,,, murderers and rapists,,,,

is #StraightEdge for the most part,,,, literally has a drink maybe three times per year

says “like” a whole lot for someone who majored in english with a concentration in literature and should therefore be more eloquent.

i am not great at these sections!! feel free 2 j refer to her zodiac, personality tests, and character influences!!

literally fox 8. i put the others there bc she’s similar but wow,,,, if u read fox 8 (it’s a short story i recommend it i luv george saunders u can find a pdf online),,,, she is fox 8. 

here u go here is a sample that doesnt need context: "Fox 4 woslike: No ofense, Fox 8? Your ideas are not super praktikal. Dreem, dreem, dreem, said Fox 11. Fox 41 woslike: Fox 8, does this honestly never get old for you?"

OH ALSO. she has a slet. a cat,,,,, named asparagus,,,, whom she calls “gus”,,,,, and y’all know WHY.

recent development: has downloaded tor so she can get on the dark web. why? because she thinks there will be more funny animal videos on there. is shockingly good at navigating it.

CONNECTION IDEAS:

close friends bc we luv that –– roman (nuanced), aylie (nuanced), hazel (nuanced), cleo (nuanced), vic (nuanced), marco (nuanced)

childhood friends whom she possibly had impromptu sleepovers with bc that is v soft and,,,,, y’all i left the city blank for a reason. –– hazel, marco, 

on that note, the person who was like “wait,,,,,,, u know that book was turned into a musical right,,,,,, like,,,,, a musical literally everyone knows” and shook jo’s world

good influence / bad influence –– cleo, vic, 

~*confidant*~

roommate

exes –– ian,

reciprocated pining

unreciprocated pining

someone..... who has accepted..... that she likes cats.... in a way that is not ironic. will see the movie with her. –– aylie, 

an enemy,,,,,, aka this person was like “cats is literally the worst thing in the entire world” and now they r on jo’s very short hit list –– riley

idk!!! im also obvs up for brainstorming!!! luv that!!!

** descriptive connections page is here ( only people who i’m messaging are on it, but i ?? would love to plot w everyone ?? so don’t make the short list make u think i’m trying 2 limit it 2 these ppl auhfoeidla )

LIKE THIS OR HMU TO PLOT !

[hhhhhzsskksz]

Eridan leaves the door open. It’s oddly comforting, the stretch of light from the hallway like an outstretched hand, a tether connecting you to the troll who saved your life.

The walls of the room are rounded by legume-sack chairs. You’re disconcerted to find that they lack the familiar lumpiness and poking of a sack stuffed with legumes. When you touch one, it gives way under your hand like a sponge, enveloping the tips of your fingers in yielding gelatinous material. You withdraw your hand like you had been been bit.

One wall is made of hard green cartilage like the surface of a telegrub. There’s a shelf stacked with movie discs, and even with a conspicuous lack of mode to play them, you pore through the titles. For a while, you sit on the soft floor, a distance away from the unfamiliar not-legume sacks, surrounded by a rising barricade of CD-disc containers.

Seeing as they’re Eridan’s, it comes as no surprise to you that the movies are mostly a mixture of romcoms and dramatic historical war dramas. You set the latter aside with delicate disinterest and start constructing a stack of Reesee Wither filmography, fondly reading over the blurbs of familiar films and excitedly examining the covers of more obscure ones.

Even with the faces of glamorous Alternian moviestars to keep you company, after a while boredom begins to itch under your skin.

Realizing nervously that you had no hope of remembering the order of the discs on the shelf, you opt for your own system. You place the romcoms neatly along the top shelf, and the war dramas which you had half-interestedly scanned along the bottom.

You’re left standing alone in the recreation block. It’s immaculate, like off the cover of a blueblood magazine. The air is still, and the only sound and movement is your breathing, disturbing the sort of glossy purgatory that surrounds you.

Each breath is heavy in your breath-sacs, like something thick struggling down a straw.

Perching at the entrance of the still-open door, you look left and right, and step into the hallway.

You recognize the posters on the left, leading you towards the entrance block and the shining ablution. The thought of it makes you feel sick.

There must be something about space, you think, that makes your immune system flounder.

Of course, Eridan seems fine. Great, even.

You see your reflection in the light reflecting off one of the posters. You look unreal, the distortion of the glass smoothing your image into an off-color ersatz of itself. You lift your hand to your cheek, but the reflection wavers and breaks before you feel skin.

The hallway seems to go on forever, with unmarked doors shut tight. You’re fascinated, in a morbid way, by the prospect that every door has an accompanying block; this isn’t a ship of war, that’s clear, and you haven’t the slightest idea how a residential ship fills so much space. You wonder if they’re just empty, put there to confuse visitors, and the thought doesn’t register as being unlike a cruel game a highblood would play.

The door to the block full of movie-discs is behind you. You had closed it when you had left, and if you step back it blends into the rest of the hall, just another identical and unknown door.

There’s a nervous tic to the beat of your bloodpusher, and the thought of returning to that newly familiar and empty block makes you dig your stubby claws into your palm.

In a moment of compounded bravery, boredom and idiocy, you decide to explore.

You don’t see any other trolls, thank the fucking empress. In the back of your thinkpan, you wonder how this ship is maintained. As far as you’re aware, it’s just you and Eridan. And the helmsman, you suppose, but a battery doesn’t really count.

At that thought, a bit of bile stings your throat at the unspoken rule that you don’t really count either.

You keep the poster by the movie-block emblazoned in the forefront of your mind as you move slowly, cautiously down the hallway. Your surroundings are almost hostile in their hospitality, like the sweet smell luring small flybeasts into the pitcher of a carnivorous plant.

The temperature is comfortable, a far cry from the alternating stifling heat and frigid gusts around your former hive. Not having to steel yourself against the temperature leaves you feeling unfamiliarly comfortable, like how you imagine Gamzee feels when he eats sopor.

Wary of an easy situation, the ship somehow leaves you both on edge and with a feeling of having let your guard dangerously down.

You pause, and faintly, just barely on the edge of your hearing, there’s voices. Too quiet for you to make out the words, but one has a sort of accent that sounds familiar.

Your bare walkpads dart down the hallway and you pause again, listening, and- yes!, it’s Eridan’s voice, he hadn’t gone far at all.

You don’t stop to examine why finding him makes you so happy. He’s your morail, you guess. Of course you’d want to see him.

You creep towards the voice; your walkpads barely touch the ground, like when someone in your hivestem got culled by a drone when you were 4 and you spent the next few pedigrees walking on eggshells, too scared to garner any attention.

You almost trip on air when you come close enough to hear words. There’s your name, in a voice that’s not Eridan’s.

Her voice is calm and deep and you know, despite having having heard it only once or twice, who it is. Kanaya.

Kanaya, smart, lovely Kanaya. You adore her, and the sound of her voice makes you want to bolt in the other direction.

You had been so caught up in the amazement of being alive that you hadn’t considered how, or whether, you were going to contact your friends. It was as if on Ascension Day, as you and Eridan left your pupahood planet and breached the galaxy, the world outside of Eridan and you had ceased to exist, or was separated, like a shadow of a memory.

Kanaya was talking about you. Does she know? you think frantically, hand gripping your wrist as if hiding your veins would make them disappear, make you not have to confront this.

Eridan had made it so easy, you think darkly. He showed up, and he knew; there was no fighting it.

Kanaya laughs, and even through a wall and hallway it’s the clearest you’ve ever heard her voice. It’s the clearest you’ve heard her voice and you have to walk away, but she said your name, and this isn’t a conversation you’re supposed to hear-

You don’t feel bad about eavesdropping, really, but you’re almost certain that Eridan would have differing feelings on the manner, and that and the sheer terror of confronting Kanaya in your too-thin sleep-clothes with Eridan’s sign like a collar on your chest lead you down the hallway and back towards the room previous: reluctantly, at first, but the courage of exploration is brief and your fear of Eridan’s wrath is strong and so the last few steps towards the remembered poster are in a run.

You try to open the door. It doesn’t budge.

You nervously wipe your hands on your shirt, and they slip off. The door still won’t budge. Shit. Fuck. All of expletives, packed like ravers at an Xoloto concert, apply.

After three more attempts, you come to face the obvious; the doors lock upon closing. You try a few other doors in the hallway, and find the same result.

“Karkat?” You hear his voice behind you, and whirl around like a rebel facing the culling drone.

“Hey Eridan.” You gulp.

“I wwas talkin’ to Kan. Wwanna come?” He’s endearingly casual, and it reminds you of the pictures he’d send you during romcom marathons in earlier sweeps. It seems absurd, this fear you have of him, the sense of other. You’re just two dipshits figuring it out.

You drop your hand from the door as discreetly as possible. You can’t look, but you feel your sweaty palm leave an epitaph in the shape of your skin on the surface.

Eridan scrutinizes you for a moment before appearing to come to the revelation. He gasps in the dramatic way that he does for just about anything with you. It’s just about the cutest thing in the world, you think, except for crabdad sleeping upside down in the grubblock after marathoning movies with you on 12th Perigree’s Eve.

“Oh! You wwere probably looking for the ablution block. Shit, lemme showw you.” He goes to the door opposite and presses his finger into a sleek black sensor above the knob. A flash of light, and he’s turning the knob. While he’s turned, you press your own finger to the identical sensor of the movie-block’s knob. When you turn, the knob remains resistant and the door closed.

You enter yet another glistening ablution block, and are struck by a sense of miserable familiarity as you leadenly lean over the tap and stare at the unfamilar troll in the mirror’s reflection.

You can’t hide in here forever you, know. You wince at the soft-faced troll in the reflection, looking very much like the fragile lowblood quadrant-slave on the covers of trashy books. You make a note to ask Eridan for something to put over the thin, shiny sleepwear with Eridan’s sign before you face Kanaya.

The only place to go was foward, in this maze of a ship towards the only two trolls in the Empire with maps.

Dizziness and a sort of nausea are swirling in tandem within you. You swallow them down your throat. A nervous breakdown tastes an awful lot like choking on your own blood, you observe queasily. You don’t really have a choice. You step into the block, towards two trolls whom you pity very much and know nothing at all.

@are-u-kitten-me-right-meow ok I rewrote it!

[17cafe]

No More: part 4

↠ Asked:  ❝YOU BETTER MAKE A NO MORE PART FOUR(...)❞   lol here u go finally 

↠ Members: Dino x Jeonghan x reader

↠ Genre: angst + fluff

↠ Word count: 1500+

part 1 ll part 2 ll part 3 ll part 4

But, you keep a straight face and keep your mouth shut. He returns the same thing; he looks at you, no exact readable expression or thought. It is only a brief moment, but it feels like an eternity.

The last eternity before he breaks away from you, simply turning, and walking away.

Jeonghan wraps his arms around you protectively, putting his head to the right side of yours in order for you to look away from the boy who has hurt you. The boy who turned around once to look back at you before he turned the corner, but only seeing Jeonghan’s sour expression, turned back around again and left.  

Maybe he didn’t truly break away just yet. 

Dino leaves; he drifts out of Jeonghan’s sight completely, and now all of his attention is on you again. But he doesn’t dare to budge just yet. He stays there to hold you, to feel your warmth radiate onto him, and comfort him. He closes his eyes as he leans on you.

You stay standing there too. Holding him too. Feeling the comfort all throughout you, crawling through your veins. Undoubtedly you still felt heavy, but now it was in such a better way. But a voice disrupts you. Seungcheol’s voice from the other room, still booming. 

“Okay, come with me, let’s go look for y/n, I don’t want Dino to-”

You don’t have a chance to hear the full sentence that he voices due to Jeonghan jumping in. He pulls himself off of you to hurry to the door, going a step inside, after telling you to wait. So you did. And you hear him interrupt Cheol.

“No, it’s okay, y/n is just out here. They kind of want to be alone.” He sees the few other members in the room look confused as he goes to step back into the hallway to be with you.

“Sorry, we want to be alone. That’s what I meant to say.” You smile when he clarifies his actions before leaving the practice room and coming right back to you. You hold the gaze of his eyes with your own as he comes in front of you, taking both your hands in his and slightly swinging them side to side.

“What do you say we skip the movie, go somewhere else instead. Like maybe that little cafe you like, you know, with the lights?” He pulls one hand away to make movements as though pointing to the strings of lights themselves. You nibble on your lip and grip his hand a little tighter before nodding. 

“Come on then,” he suggests and takes a step back. You come forward. He intertwines his fingers with yours, not letting go of your hand. That was a first.

He pulls out the chair for you before your drink even touches the table. You were in the process of placing it down in order to pull the chair out yourself, but he was too quick.

“You didn’t need to do that,” you say, even though you appreciated the gesture. He simply shrugs and steps over to the chair parallel to you, sitting down. Smiling. You try to take a sip from the beverage you got - that he paid for - but only end up giggling when his eyes fail to stray from your direction. 

You turn around to look behind you, but the most intriguing thing there could be an empty booth. You turn to face forward again. 

“What were you looking at?” 

He pauses a moment before answering, debating what to say. In the end, he simply says: “You.”

You pause as well before asking the same question for the third time now.

“Why?”

He opens his mouth, but no sound comes out. He closes it just as promptly as it opened, and looks down meanwhile. You hear a small chuckle emit from him. He shakes his head.

“Tell me, what happened between you and Dino anyway? It seemed really harsh.” Now it was your turn to go quiet and look down. He didn’t even manage to have thought of the words he has said before he said them. All he wanted to do was direct the conversation to something else, but this was not the right thing to say. He realized that.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to just bring it up like that...” He lets go of his mug and grabs hold of your hands once again. His touch was warm as always.

“It’s okay Jeonghan. We can talk about it eventually, just,” you look up at him.

“Just not now.” 

He nods in understanding, as well as thankfulness that you are comfortable enough to talk about the issue with him. You have been friends for around two years so trust was a mutual thing, but any reassurance of that was flattering to him.

“You know,” he begins, “I do believe that you deserve someone... Else. I know how much you like him, and he is crazy about you, but just because that’s true doesn’t mean it’s right. If that even makes sense.”

You nod. He starts to run his thumb across your skin and continues.

“And you. You are so lovable. I know you don’t feel it right now, I know he broke something in you. I can see it in your eyes. But don’t forget how much you’re worth okay? How much you are. You-” he sighs. 

“God, I wanted to kill him after seeing that he made you so upset.” You manage to let out a giggle at his words.

“No, please don’t,” you mumble. He giggles too.

“My point is that you deserve someone who won’t run away when issues arise. Who will talk things out with you, like we’re doing now. Someone who... Who knows what you need. Who will come to you and stay with you when you get upset. Like me.”

Those last two words went unnoticed as your phone suddenly rang, loudly. It was perched on the tabletop and you jumped as the sudden sound echoed in your ears. Flipping it over, you see Dino’s name appear on the screen.

Speak of the Devil.

Your face spreads into a faux smile as you hold up the screen for Jeonghan to see. He let go of your hands, pulling his into his lap, waiting for you to take the call, as he assumed you would. But you just let it ring. It rang until the caller was sent to voicemail.

You put your phone back down on the table. You take your cup in hand and consume a proper sip of its contents. Then you place it down, dab your mouth with a napkin, and speak.

“What did you say?”

He looks at you, clueless.

“Before he called. I didn’t hear that last part.” Good, he thought to himself.

Your phone uttered a smaller sound. It was face up, and you saw the message, from none other than Dino himself. Again. It read:

“I’m sorry y/n. I want to talk about what happened. Call me later?”

You sighed and left it unopened. Jeonghan suddenly voiced what sounded as a near demand for you to finish your drink, and although confused, you complied. It took a few minutes for him, as his drink was still steaming hot, but soon enough you were both finished.

“I think it’s time we get you home, they’re already closing up the cafe.” It was only after he said that when you realized it was true. The employees were taking out the mops to clean the floors and the cleaning spray and cloths for the tables.

You both left your cups on the table and stood up, luckily leaving before they were close enough to mop over your feet. They did that to you once. Accidentally.

The walk home was usually short but the quietness in the air this time made it feel much longer. There was limited conversation ever since you left the cafe together. It was comfortable at first, but an uneasy feeling settled in you. He was never so quiet. Especially with you.

Once your place was in sight though, it changed. He reached for your hand again and you didn’t stop him. He intertwined your fingers together again too. That was your favourite part.

When you were standing before your front door, you turned around to him. It was a struggle to define his face in the darkness. But you managed.

“Thank you for everything,” you say with a smile. You take your key out of your jacket pocket and unlock the front door. He replies to you with a noise that says as if it was no problem. Unsatisfied, he adds words.

“It was a pleasure.”

After you unlock the door, you to him one more time. Your sight became accustomed to the low level of light and you could see him clearly. You come forward and lean up on your toes, kissing his cheek lightly.

“Good night, Jeonghan.”

And with that, you head inside. He felt his cheeks heat up much earlier. Now they must have been so hot that they could burn holes in the sides of his face. 

Once you were inside, he reached up to touch the spot that your lips did. The sound of your door closing was the only thing that brought him back to some sense of reality.

“Call me later.”

[missstormcaller]

CAN’T FEAR YOUR OWN WORLD Part 4 Full Translation

Chapter 3

  An abnormal event was gradually eating away at the world.

 Tragedy struck the noble district of Seireitei.

 That may be just the beginning.

 Strangely, it started from the day Hisagi Shūhei learned that Tsunayashiro Tokinada was to be inaugurated as clan head ----

 A budding malice that spreads like leaves and branches, extending its fingertips to the Soul Society, the Human World, and Hueco Mundo.

Seireitei - 4th Division - Squad Barracks.

 "……"

 In front of the 4th division barracks, there is a timid looking shinigami.

He kept glancing over his shoulder, looking intently in the direction of the main street that merged together with the paths leading to the other squad barracks.

"What's the matter, 3rd seat Yamada?"

That timid young man who was referred to as "3rd seat Yamada" -- Yamada Hanatarō , turns to the members of the 4th division who had just emerged from the squad barracks.

"Huh? Ah…sorry. I'm okay!… probably."

"Well, on the contrary, there is nothing but anxiety in that answer."

In response to the voice of seated member Ogidō who had spoken with a calm visage, Hanatarō awkwardly replies.

"A short while ago, vice captain Hisagi was heading towards the 9th division barracks with an awfully grim look on his face, I wonder what happened…"

He replied as if he had become somewhat frightened, the likes of which would only be seen in faint-hearted fresh recruits.

Nevertheless, amidst the 4th division, he is one of the most prominent users of 'Kaido' -- the healing spiritual arts, despite his timid disposition, his gentle character makes him trustworthy and he was assigned to the position of 3rd seat of squad 4.

However​, the person himself thinks he was able to become 3rd seat because of the fact that Iemura Yasochika, who was originally the 3rd seat, had transferred to another squad, he confronts his personal duties whilst struggling with the pressure of thinking "by all rights, I am not well positioned."

It was a squad 4 member whose large build contrasted with Hanatarō's own, that reacted to the name of squad 9's vice captain.

"Hisagi……?”

"Ah, Aoga san was classmates with vice captain Hisagi right?"

At Ogidō's query the shinigami called Aoga answered.

"That's right…we seldom meet​ these days. But around six months ago we met on a visit to our friend's grave, and the last time I saw him was in a hospital room after the war."

Although from outward appearances Aoga looks more seasoned than Ogidō, since Ogidō is a seated member, Aoga uses honorific speech when addressing him. Hearing those words, the 4th division members around them begin to stir.

"Aoga san was Hisagi san's classmate……"

"That's so awesome, that was a season when many elites were produced right?"

"Yeah, during the several decades since lieutenant Hisagi's time there, it was a generation were many captain class Shinigami were produced, such as lieutenant Abarai, Lieutenant Hinamori, Lieutenant Kira and above all, captain Hitsugaya. The exceptional speed of their advancement through the ranks was also a topic of conversation even at the Shinō Academy."

"While we're on the topic of advancing quickly through the ranks, it's the same with 3rd seat Yamada right?"

In response to the subject that was suddenly brought up, Hanatarō, despite being 3rd seat, bows his head to the squad members.

"err, umm……I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologising?"

"Well, compared to Hisagi san and the others, I'm nothing special and I only end up annoying everyone at squad 4…"

Remaining expressionless Ogidō then addresses Hanatarō who had spoken of himself with pessimism in spite of being praised.

"What are you saying, 3rd seat Yamada? You are also an elite amongst the elites which goes hand in hand with your lineage and raw talent, aren't I right? Isn't it the case that even Urahara Kisuke san took his hat off to your kaido?"

"I realise that seems awe-inspiring but… what I mean is, saying that I don't feel like I'm going through a bad experience every time Urahara san is involved, wouldn't be entirely accurate…"

"By the way, a visitor came by a while ago for 3rd seat Yamada, he's been waiting more than an hour in the guest room already."

"Ehhh!? C-can you please tell me about these things earlier!?"

After watching Hanatarō hurriedly dash into the squad barracks until he was out of sight, Ogidō whispered with a nonchalant face.

"My apologies, that was a mistake. He arrived just a moment ago so he hasn't been waiting around that long."

One of the soldiers who heard those words then chided Ogidō with an astonished expression.

"You should've​ just said that beforehand no matter what… Your​ personality is as bad as ever, Ogidō san."

"Come now, if it’s the case that we must not keep visitors waiting, then I spoke shrewdly didn’t I?… Also, if I have a ‘bad personality', then I think that guest is considerably worse."

 " ? "

 When Ogidō shrugged his shoulders as he spoke, the soldiers around him tilted their heads in puzzlement.

Meanwhile, Aoga alone gazed in the direction of the main street where Hisagi had traveled down a while ago, with a complex expression he spoke to himself.

"Making a grim face, huh…?”

He remembers the time after the war, when Hisagi was carried into the 4th division, in a serious condition.

Although he was still alive his injuries were inconceivable.

With the help of Inoue Orihime's powers, he managed to escape death, however it took a considerable amount of time to recover his reiatsu afterwards.

After Hisagi had regained his consciousness, Aoga evasively posed a question to him.

"You still intend to continue the fight?"

That time they reunited in front of the grave of their former classmate Kanisawa, Aoga remarked to Hisagi, who continued to fight whilst often on the verge of death, that "you have pushed aside your fear."

However, seeing him on the verge of death again, Aoga understood.

No matter how many times one pushes it aside, when Shinigami do battle on the front lines they cannot escape from fear.

He thinks Hisagi's strength exists in his resolution to continue with his life whilst being at odds with that endless fear.

Therefore, although he had perceived his companion's reply, he couldn’t help but ask

He only said a few brief words and laughed "Even though they say the war is over, you're making such a face. Kanisawa would have your hide."

The next day, he forcibly left the hospital saying he would be witness to Aizen's imprisonment.

Concerned about the fact that Hisagi hurried off with a grim face, and not being able to do anything about it, Aoga whispered with a voice that seemed regretful of his own helplessness.

"For at least a little longer… until Seireitei is revived, I hope it doesn't come to something like fighting at the risk of his own life."

He would confront that battle if something does happen regardless of whatever the state of affairs around him may be.

That's because Aoga knew Hisagi's character well.

However, the fate surrounding Hisagi had already crushed Aoga's hopes.

Squad 4 Barracks - Guest Room

 Inside the 4th division barracks, which placed importance on its functionality for the purpose of performing Kaido, there is a room built there which adds just a little emphasis on splendour.

It is a guest room used when the captain commander or noble envoys are invited in.

Nonetheless, the 4th division, whose number one priority was the lives of the soldiers attached to the Gotei 13,  opened up that guest room during wartime to serve as a temporary first aid station, even now the faint smell of medicinal odours were still left in the room.

Yamada Hanatarō rushes into that room with footsteps that sound equally as hurried.

As he stumbles over himself into the threshold of that room, with the same momentum, he bowed his head and spoke words of apology.

"Awawa……uh…uhmm…I'm sorry…for keeping you waiting."

Before even seeing his host's face, a disheveled looking figure met his eyes, however the visitor couldn't even blame him for it, he let his witty voice resound within the room.

"As usual, you have a lifeless voice to go with your lifeless appearance. Did you plant a lesion in your heart whilst trying to understand the feelings of your patients? Hanatarō."

Feeling a sense of nostalgia, he realised it was a voice and manner of speaking he was used to hearing, with eyes wide open Hanatarō lifted his face.

"Eh…ah…S-Seinosuke nii-san!?"

"Oh my, lifeless even up to your face. It's worrying, whether patients taken care of by you wouldn't​ come to hang themselves from the anxiety."

Yamada Seinosuke.

He is the older brother of Hanatarō and the man that served as vice captain of squad 4 till a few decades ago.

Currently he is retired from the Gotei 13 with his name withdrawn from the official roster, and even his Zanpakutō is left in the care of the squad barracks.

However, though he is retired from his vice captain's seat, it's​ not the case that he is without an occupation, in fact he was headhunted to a new workplace which is a special case within a special case. In the Gotei 13, where “military discharge” basically meant being thrown into a special prison called ‘Nest of Maggots’, it was necessary to officially retire in order for him to leave his post.

And because he knows about the new workplace that recruited his brother, Hanatarō inclined his head.

"W…what happened? Is it your day off today from your work over there? I heard that you are kept busy these days."

"Hn. I guess so. But it's a job worth doing. After all,  In spite of being Shinigami noblemen, the old people who are unwilling to die come to me all the time. It is a pleasant feeling whenever I see a powerful, influential person frightened by old age, the unflattering sight of them struggling to cling on to something."

"U-uhh… Is that really okay, nii-san? To say such things about the noble people…"

"Of course not. That sort of treachery will probably be punishable by death. Does Hanatarō intend to inform on me, to tell someone what I've said? If Hanatarō wants me dead, then that is the request of my precious little brother. I have no choice but to graciously give up my life."

"Eehh…? I…I would never do such a thing, Seinosuke nii-san…"

After frantically waving his hands, Hanatarō clumsily refuted his brother.

"I-it's true nii-san is mean, and everyone dislikes that bad personality, but…if we look, there are also good points…probably…besides, I think a person who wants another person dead should not be in the 4th division to begin with!"

"It would be rather hurtful if you had seriously considered that."

Contrary to his words, a beaming smile was expressed on Seinosuke’s face as he shrugged his shoulders and came clean.

"Well, I'm on a break from work, but I had things to do here, so I thought I'd just come by and take the opportunity to give Hanatarō a little advice."

"Advice…?"

Then Seinosuke narrows his eyes ever so slightly and the smile disappears from his face as he touches on the real issue at hand.

"Hanatarō. Wouldn’t you like to take time off from squad 4 for a little while​?"

"Ehh?"

"Various rumours have reached my ears, relating to my work."

The representative of the Seireitei's Shinō Seyakuin* (*central pharmaceutical/medical institution) ---- or in other words, Seinosuke, who is the chief executive of a specialised relief station for upper class nobility with a focus on the four great noble clans, chuckled as he spoke in response to Hanatarō tilting his head at the sudden proposal.

"With the Quincy threat now gone, there probably won't be any big wars occurring for some time. However, the Seireitei seems to have fallen into slight crisis instead. This is not such a small course of events that will stop just because someone tries to stop it."

"If you don't want to get dragged into this, then separate yourself from a position of responsibility for a while, and cover your eyes and ears."

Human World - Karakura Town

 "Whoaaaaaa! Got dragged into thiiiis! We got dragged into this!"

Evening in Karakura Town.

As he ran through a deserted back alley, Asano Keigo who was fully enjoying his break until just a few minutes ago, was now making his tearful voice ring throughout the surroundings.

Running alongside him was a boy with a solid pokerface -- Kojima Mizuiro, who then spoke up.

"Be quiet Keigo. Your stamina will become just as useless as your yelling you know?"

"I've thought this for a long time but, why are you always, always so calm in situations like this!?"

"I can't help whether I'm calm or not."

Reducing his running speed, Mizuiro shifted his attention, glancing over his shoulder.

"It's the first time I've seen a monster that looks like that, but at least it's better than that cheating Aizen guy…"

Before his line of sight, there was an enormous and grotesque figure shaped like a crab -- a huge Hollow was drawing near, it let out an unpleasant shriek whilst raising its pincers overhead.

Kojima Mizuiro was once pursued by Aizen Sōsuke along with Keigo and Arisawa Tatsuki.

Although this situation isn't as bad as that time, the fact that their lives were in danger remained unchanged.

However, currently it's not Mizuiro or Keigo the monster was directly aiming at.

It was the figure of a young boy in a Shihakushō who was running slightly behind the other two that the Hollow was trying to crush with its pincers.

"Uwaaaaaaahh!! D-Danger! It's dangerous, so leave this up to me now, please escape quickly! But then who will save meeee!? Whoooo!?"

The young Shinigami who appeared to yell with almost the same tearful voice as Keigo, continued to run away from the huge hollow without being given even a bit of leeway to perform Shikai.

Yuki Ryūnosuke - a shinigami in charge of Karakura Town - casually happened to encounter a Hollow that was much stronger than himself, and in the midst of escaping in a panic, he ended up getting Keigo and Mizuiro, who were walking through a back alley, caught up in this situation too.

Keigo and the others have been involved in various events concerning their friend Kurosaki Ichigo, on top of that receiving something​ called 'soul tickets' from the eyepatch wearing Shinigami also seems to have been a trigger for them to become considerably susceptible to sensing spiritual phenomenon.

They've caught glimpses of Yuki's presence every now and then, and they've heard his name from Orihime and the others, but Keigo and Mizuiro didn't concern themselves with such matters by giving him a level of recognition thinking “they have chosen a successor, that probably means he is much stronger than Af-san”.

It turned out now, that this young Shinigami who showed up in place of Kurumadani Zennosuke -- the Shinigami who is his predecessor, referred to as "Af-san*" (*short for Afro-san) by Keigo and "Imoyama san" by Ichigo -- is far more unreliable than Keigo and Mizuiro could have imagined.

Watching Ryūnosuke escape whilst drawing out his Zanpakutō in a shaky manner, Keigo screamed loudly, Mizuiro on the other hand calmly thought "at this pace, I wonder if we can escape to Urahara san's shop…"

Mizuiro had also implicitly asked Ichigo about Urahara Shōten, he was told that he would be safe if he escaped there first of all if they were ever attacked by a Hollow in the event that Ichigo himself was not present.

In the course of handling the aftermath of the Aizen incident,  Mizuiro was gathering a certain degree of intelligence, so he understood that the shopkeeper of that Urahara Shōten was on par with the captain ranks, and moreover, he understood that Urahara is a man of great importance.

---- "I think he will try to sell you various items afterwards. But I guess you may as well give in and think of it as a 'thank you' for receiving his help."

Since Ichigo said that, Mizuiro has entered the shop a few times, of course there was a variety of suspicious goods stacked alongside each other such as "Anti-spirit serum Katakoran Alpha" and "Spirit Repellent Spray Sekirei X" which were clearly not brand-name goods.

"Oh, that reminds me."

Remembering something, Mizuiro dexterously began fishing inside his bag whilst running.

"W-w-w-what are you doing, Mizuiro!? Don’t tell me you're trying to take out some stun gun like thing again!?"

Mizuiro then produced a ball with a strange face drawn on it before the shouting Keigo.

'Electromagnetic​ Capture Sphere - Zeta-ball tan'.

It was the name of that product that Mizuiro had recalled.

When he asked the young girl tending to the store - who looked to be a junior high school student - about how to use the product, the explanation she gave was "uh let's see…if it is the case that you are being chased by something that defies human understanding, then after twisting this knob, please throw it at the Holl…… at the monster."

"Well, I might as well give this a try since I have nothing to lose."

As he muttered that, Mizuiro threw the item he was carrying at the huge crab monster in the way he was instructed to do so.

Then in the next instant --  an intense noise along with lightening devoured the surroundings, the monster's movements were slowed down as its whole body convulsed.

"Wow…how amazing. If I had thrown that at a person I wonder if it would have been fatal…?"

Next to Mizuiro who said that with calmness, Keigo slowed down to walking speed in blank amazement.

"What now!? Stun guns!? Eh?…huh? What do we do now!? stun guns!?"

As soon as he gave up trying to think, Keigo repeats the same line twice in bewilderment.

With a sidelong glance, he expected the boy clothed in black to now move on the offensive, however -- the 'key player' Yuki Ryūnosuke was unable to stay standing due to the surprise of the lightning and thunderous roar from just a moment ago.

"……lets resuming this marathon course again shall we?"

Although its movements were slowed down, it didn't mean that the Hollow was completely defeated. Because of this situation, Keigo began to consider the idea that he would have to flee whilst carrying Yuki underarm.

However, he was brought to a standstill midway through that thought --

-- By the loud voice of an assertive young woman which echoed through the back alley.

 "What are you doing!? Ryūnosukeee!"

 Watching the silhouette of the young woman -- the owner of that voice --jump down from the rooftop of a multi-storey building, Mizuiro confirmed that she was one of the Shinigami that had come to their town together with Yuki.

---- If I remember correctly, it was Madarame Shino san.

As her Shihakushō fluttered matching the force of her drop, with all her might, Shino swung down her Zanpakutō which had transformed into a Naginata*. (*A pole like weapon with a curved single edged blade on its end - same weapon type as Ikkaku's Shikai).

The violent impact made the area around the alleyway​ tremble like an earthquake.

The giant crab shaped Hollow is crushed and dissolved into tiny pieces, its Reishi purified by the power of her Zanpakutō.

Keigo's facial expression was one of amazement towards the Shinigami who had defeated that huge monster with a single strike,  Mizuiro took in the situation with a cool composure thinking "ah, at least there is also a competent Shinigami."

Meanwhile Ryūnosuke who realised that the Hollow had been purified, looked at Shino and spoke words of relief.

"That's good…you were safe Shino san."

"That's my line, this idiot!"

Shino who landed on the ground with her back turned towards Ryūnosuke​, jumps behind him and collides with the top of his shoulder.

Whether by chance or intentional, after she had sent Ryūnosuke tumbling to the ground with a luchador's 'tope de reversa' move, she attacked her defeated partner further by using a joint lock technique on his body.

"Pathetic! Why is it that this is a chance in a million and still you are too intimidated to even stay standing yourself!"

"Ai-tatatata! Let go, let go Shino chan! Please let go of my arms neck and back!"

Watching that sort of comedy exchange between the other two, Keigo was finally able to exhale a heavy breath realising they had overcome their predicament.

"Phew… we're saved. Shino chan was it? Somehow, I feel like I've seen you before."

"…oh? It's you? So you're the guy Ikkaku-nii​ took on as an underling in this place…"

"Ikkaku-nii!? And is that the way I'm supposed to be treated!? As an ‘underling’? That baldy was nothing like a leader to me at all you know!?"

Asano Keigo was once threatened by Madarame Ikkaku who had come to the Human World, he ended up being half forced to accommodate Ikkaku. However the fact that Keigo's sister was so eager was also a major reason why he lent the accommodation.

"Baldy you say… I'll pretend I didn't hear that but, if word reaches Ikkaku-nii's ears, he would kill you."

Listening to the conversation in a setting that has calmed down, Shino appeared to be either Madarame Ikkaku's sister or cousin. It seems the family of both her and Ikkaku were being repeatedly involved in violence everyday in Rukongai, before the both of them were old enough to understand the world around them, their parents had died one after the other and they were passed onto their relatives who kept giving them the runaround, as a consequence they also didn't have have a clear understanding of exactly how they were related.

After Ikkaku had suddenly become a Shinigami, she herself followed by entering the Shinō Academy, however that brother told her directly from his mouth "I think squad 11 is too intense for Shino", top management also concluded as such, and to this day, she is attached to the 13th division where she was eventually assigned to.

"Good grief, even though you've been training continuously all that time since that war with the Quincies ended, you still can't help but essentially be a good for nothing​ loser!"

"Oof, I'm sorry, Shino san…"

At Shino's telling off, Ryūnosuke dropped his shoulders despondently.

Unable to just watch without doing anything, Keigo interrupted the lecture in order to divert the conversation.

"I mean, it wasn't a matter of concern because of Ichigo's​ safe return. But even though the battle ended it didn't exactly mean that those white monsters decreased​ too did it…?"

Releasing a small sigh, Shino responded to Keigo's question seeing as how he was a victim who was dragged into this.

"It's not that we Shinigami and Kurosaki san were waging war with Hollows or something. This region is prone to hollows from the start…"

Listening to Shino's words, Mizuiro nodded in understanding.

"Ah, it was about that special sacred place wasn't it? The one that Aizen was aiming for right?"

"…You're a human, and yet you are well informed huh. I see. For that reason, anything could happen in this locality, so we can't be off our guard."

Then, Ryūnosuke opens his mouth to speak with a serious look in his eye.

"But, I think I'm pretty unprepared whenever I'm dispatched!"

"Don't say that to yourself!"

Ryūnosuke's scream echoed across the alleyways of Karakura Town as he was subjected to the joint lock technique again.

However, as if drowning out that scream, a voice on a loudspeaker resounded from the direction of the main street.

["……therefore, it is unacceptable for the world to remain in its present condition, however people do not wish to return to the past, what the Dōshi* seeks is an escape to a new world------" ] (* An officiating monk/priest/guru)

"What's that?"

When Shino knit her eyebrows together in discomfort at the voice that was streaming out from the propaganda vehicle like thing, Mizuiro answered that question.

"It's an emerging religious cult that was recently born. Because of the lengthy earthquake we had half a year ago, it sparked a considerable amount of disorder around the world."

The lengthy earthquake.

 This had occurred because of the fact that during the course of the war between the Shinigami​ and the Quincies, the Soul King had perished and as a result the boundaries between Soul Society, the Human World and Hueco Mundo began to collapse.

It was completely different from the geological system so far, due to the extraordinarily long earthquake that occurred for reasons that cannot be explained by science, the world was gradually being wrapped in deep anxiety to no ends.

Many people had premonitions.

 One could say they smelled danger.

 They wondered if this meant that some mighty force had encircled this world, defying science and conventional common knowledge.

 It was dealt with publicly as "a large scale deformation of the Earth's crust that was not present in our previous data, at present the cause is under investigation", however that alone was not enough to eliminate the anxiety that was born in people's minds.

 As a result, religious people who sought answers themselves, or those who tried to take advantage of people's anxieties, founded new religions one after another​, good and evil was jumbled together and chaos had slowly spread throughout the world.

 Currently, amongst those religious faiths, there is a particularly influential one, it is the same group that was distributing its doctrine with a propaganda vehicle just a moment ago.

 Trying to supplement the subject Mizuiro had brought up, Keigo talks about the information he himself knows with serious eyes.

 "They say, the founder of that religious sect can truly make things like miracles happen. And most importantly, it was rumoured that the founder is a sister with a nice body and a considerably beautiful woman! That founding sister came to encourage me directly about how a truly ideal world should be!"

 Listening to that, Shino's eyes became half closed as she asked Mizuiro a question.

 "Hey, can I beat this guy up?"

 "I think that's fine."

 Watching as Mizuiro nods,  Ryūnosuke also poses a question feeling some doubts himself.

 "All that out of the way, what is the name? The name of that new religious group?"

 "Right. If I remember correctly, the name of that group was……"

 Human World - Inside a certain multi-floor company building - President's office.

 "Thank you very much for giving me the opportunity to talk with you this time. President Vorarlberna."

 The woman who is ushered into the simple black themed room respectfully bows her head to the young boy who was seated on a sofa playing on his handheld gaming device.

 The woman was wearing a style of suit that gave off a flirtatious impression, and although it had nothing to do with her actual attire, it was her very being that would somehow make any observer sense the mystical seductiveness about her.

 However, without even turning his eyes to such a woman, the young boy that was referred to as Vorarlberna, continued to play around with his gaming device whilst crafting his words in an uninterested manner.

 "…Enough of your barefaced greetings. What are your objectives​?"

 Addressing the boy - Yukio Hans Vorarlberna - who had asked that question, the woman answered courteously.

 "Dear me. My one and only purpose here is to meet with president Vorarlberna representative of 'Y. Hans Enterprise', who is promised to be a victor of the future by fate. Young, talented people like yourself​ have the power to lead everybody into the future. As a guide that will pave the way to a righteous world, I would like to have your allegiance to our creed."

 'Y. Hans Enterprise'.

 It is a corporation owned by Yukio and a large company that is currently expanding its business with enough force to knock down birds in flight.

 He obtained the company by seizing control of it from his father and thought it was not worth worrying about, but after going through conflict with Kurosaki Ichigo and the Shinigami, it was now one of his objectives in life is to expand that company​. In the future, it is his aim to construct fertile grounds that accepts stray people who are fellow 'Fullbringers' like himself. Actually, even at this stage, Dokugamine Riruka was part of the company as a cooperative worker, and although it was earlier than planned, it was through her that he was also able to call out to Jackie Tristan.

 That young company president that had a hidden identity as a 'Fullbringer', in a cold manner and for the second time, questioned the woman who was enticed into his multi-floor company building.

 "Do I look like the type that would keep company with someone who gives such a farcical response?"

 "Would it be better for me to outright tell you that I want a donation as a collateral in exchange for slaving away to expand your business?"

 "That is also a farce. That is not your, no, that is not your​ people's intention now is it?"

 Unfazed, and as if reading her like a book, Yukio continued to talk in a manner that was not dissimilar to muttering to himself.

 He then parted one hand away from his gaming device, taking his business card out of his pocket and placing it on the the tabletop.

 Looking somewhat ill-humoured he opened his mouth to speak to the woman.

 "Although it has been on my mind for a while, by you coming here today I was assured…from this point, you will not be given a chance to retry, I think it's better you answer me honestly."

 Taking it as an opportunity to make an appointment, a single business card was handed over to Yukio. As he glared at the name of the organisation that was written there, Yukio asked her again.

 "You people, what are your objectives?"

 On that business card, the name of the woman is also written down with monotone characters.

For Yukio, both names could by no means be overlooked.

 [Religious corporation - XCUTION representative - Michibane Aura]

[bloojayoolie]

Being Alone, Andrew Bogut, and Bad: ACEe 148151 -4 years old, 63 IBs le Trick or Trear el " Handsome Boy in need of TLC Obedient social, endearing & loaded with Potential- Ace is waiting for you at Manhattan ACC @Manhattan ACC waiting for LOVE **** TO BE KILLED - 10/10/2018 **** I NEED A SECOND CHANCE, LOTS OF LOVE AND SOME TLC :) A volunteer writes: Ace and his caretaker looked so cozy together that I asked permission to join the party! Ace appeared at first a little stern but treats helping, he loosened up, even sat down, sampled politely the dry liver bits and gave me a beautiful smile, not a brief one but one that stayed on his face for the duration of our time together. He was quite obedient, followed me as I asked, hopped on the bench and even sat again for treats. I felt deep inside quite comfortable with him. I guess, we could try a ball game tomorrow. Ace totally won me over, although I do not know him even a bit. He is a handsome big boy in need of TLC, may be just a proper diet, of course, all sprinkle with love. I learned later on that Ace came into the care center quite a wary dog but his actions today in the yard with his caretaker and myself told me that may be in experienced and loving hands, Ace could be a great four legged companion. Do you want to open your home and your heart to this beautiful soul? Ace is at the Manhattan Care Center, waiting for you. ACE@MANHATTAN ACC Hello, my name is Ace My animal id is #43151 I am a male black dog at the Manhattan Animal Care Center The shelter thinks I am about 4 years old, 63 lbs Came into shelter as owner surrender Oct. 2, 2018 Reason Stated: NO TIME Ace is rescue only Ace is very uncomfortable with handling and jumps away when touched by new people. He has also displayed a low threshold for arousal. We recommend placement with a New Hope partner who can provide any necessary behavior modification. Medically, Ace has dermatitis and possible bladder issues. My medical notes are... Weight: 63.6 lbs Vet Notes 9/10/2018 SO QAR in kennel Skin -- multiple epidermal collarettes with crusting seen throughout body. A pyoderma r/o allergies, FAD, parasites P cefpodoxime 100mg tablet -- give 2 tablets PO q24h x 7 days skin scrape ordered 9/10/2018 DVM Intake Exam Estimated age: Estimated 3-8 years based on overall appearance Microchip noted on Intake? Scanned negative History : Surrendered. Reportedly has a "bad bladder and dermatitis." No further hx available. Subjective: Alert, walks well on leash, waits patiently for exam Observed Behavior - Muzzled due to reported kennel behavior - difficult to muzzle. Once muzzled, pt was tense but allowed handling without any growling or aggression. Evidence of Cruelty seen - None Evidence of Trauma seen - None Objective BAR-H, MMs pink and moist, BCS 5/9 EENT: Eyes clear, ears clean, no nasal or ocular discharge noted Oral Exam: Not performed due to muzzle and behavior PLN: No enlargements noted H/L: NSR, NMA, Lungs clear, eupnic ABD: Not distended, non painful, no masses palpated U/G: Male intact, testicles S/S MSI: Patchy alopecia with seborrhea sicca and erythema on dorsum, flanks and legs. Ventrum is unaffected. Large erythematous alopecic areas of thin skin on lateral elbows. Ambulatory x 4, skin free of parasites, no masses noted. CNS: Mentation appropriate - no signs of neurologic abnormalities Rectal: Normal externally. Skin scrape: no mites noted Assessment: 1. Dermatitis - suspect bacterial, likely secondary to allergies - R/O environmental vs. food 2. Reported "bad bladder" - no further details available Prognosis: Good with proper treatment Plan: 1. Adjusting cefpodoxime dose now that pt has been weighed (previous dose was based on an estimated weight): 300 mg PO SID x10 days 2. Diphenhydramine 75 mg PO BID x21 days 3. CBC/chem/UA 4. Recommend follow-up care to address dermatitis SURGERY:Okay for surgery 1088 9/10/2018 CBC: Hct 50.8% WBC 7.96 k/ul Plt 305 k/ul Chemistry: Glucose 109 mg/dl BUN 18 mg/dl, creat 1.1 mg/dl Normal electrolytes, liver values Globulins slightly elevated - 4.7 g/dl ASSESSMENT: Mild hyperglobulinemia - R/O dermatitis vs. dental disease vs. other cause 1088 Details on my behavior are... Behavior Condition: 3. Yellow Behavior History Behavior Assessment Dog allows petting and handling. How is this dog around strangers?: Dog is very friendly around strangers. How is this dog around other dogs?: The dog was a little startled when he was in the room with other dogs. How is this dog around cats?: The dog seemed a little nervous around the cats in the intake room. Energy level/descriptors:: Calm Date of intake:: 10/2/2018 Spay/Neuter status:: No Means of surrender (length of time in previous home):: Owner Surrender Behavior toward strangers:: Friendly Date of assessment:: 10/4/2018 Look:: 1. Dog's eyes are averted, ears are back, tail is down, relaxed body posture. Dog allows head to be held loosely in Assessor's cupped hands. Sensitivity:: 1. Dog stands still and accepts the touch, eyes are averted, and tail is in neutral position with a relaxed body posture. Dog's mouth is likely closed for at least a portion of the assessment item. Tag:: 5. Dog growls, snaps, or tries to bite. Toy:: 4. Dog freezes and/or growls. Summary:: When in the assessment room, Ace appeared extremely fearful, having a tense body and tucked tail. He very cautiously approached the assessor and slowly warmed up, getting to the point where he was soliciting attention by rubbing against the assessor. During tag, he quickly became over aroused, jumping up and snapping at the leash and then at the assessor. For this reason, the rest of the handling portion of the assessment was not completed. When the assess-a-hand touched the toy he was in possession of, he froze. Summary:: Ace may be most compatible with respectful female dogs. He has not yet been introduced to another male dog due to lack of appropriate greeter. Summary (1):: 10/3: When introduced off leash to the female greeter dog, Ace is fearful and does not approach. Summary (2):: 10/4: Ace greets calm female dogs politely. Summary (3):: 10/7: Ace engages in some brief play with a select female dog. Summary (4):: 10/9: Ace is polite when greeting a calm female dog. Date of intake:: 10/2/2018 Summary:: Allowed handling ENERGY LEVEL:: We have no history on Ace so we cannot be certain of his behavior in a home environment. At the care center, he displays a medium level of activity. BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION:: NEW HOPE ONLY Behavior Asilomar: TM - Treatable-Manageable Recommendations:: No children (under 13),Place with a New Hope partner Recommendations comments:: No children: Due to how uncomfortable Ace is currently with touch and novel stimuli, as well as the low threshold for arousal he has displayed at the care center, we feel that an adult-only home would be most beneficial at this time. Place with a New Hope partner: At this time, Ace is very uncomfortable with handling and jumps away when touched by new people. He has also displayed a low threshold for arousal. We recommend placement with a New Hope partner who can provide any necessary behavior modification (force-free, positive reinforcement-based) and re-evaluate behavior in a stable home environment before placement into a permanent home. Potential challenges: : Resource guarding,Fearful/potential for defensive aggression,Low threshold for arousal Potential challenges comments:: Fearful/potential for defensive aggression: Ace is very fearful at the care center and avoids handling from new people. He has growled at people who were taking him out. It is important to always go slow and give Ace the option to walk away from any social interaction. Ace should never be forced to approach anything that he is uncomfortable with or to submit to petting or handling. It should always be Ace’s choice to approach a new person or thing. Ace would do best in an initially calm and quiet home environment and should be given time to acclimate to his new surroundings. Resource guarding: When the assess-a-hand touched the toy Ace was in possession of during his assessment, he froze. We recommend that Ace be left alone while eating, and that food guarding behavior modification steps (available at ASPCApro.org) be utilized if this behavior is problematic in his future home. Nothing should ever be taken directly out of Ace's mouth, and any time something is removed he should be rewarded with a high value treat or toy. He should be taught the "drop" cue and trade-up games. Low threshold for arousal: Ace displayed a low threshold for arousal during his assessment. When playing tag, he began to grab the leash in his mouth and then snap towards the assessor. Immediate intervention and consultation with a qualified behaviorist/professional trainer is strongly recommended to aid in addressing this issue to prevent further behavioral concerns that may appear in the future if not treated right away. We recommend only force-free, reward based training when introducing or exposing Ace to new and unfamiliar situations. * TO FOSTER OR ADOPT * HOW TO RESERVE A “TO BE KILLED” DOG ONLINE (only for those who can get to the shelter IN PERSON to complete the adoption process, and only for the dogs on the list NOT marked New Hope Rescue Only). Follow our Step by Step directions below! PLEASE NOTE – YOU MUST USE A PC OR TABLET – PHONE RESERVES WILL NOT WORK! * STEP 1: CLICK ON THIS RESERVE LINK: https://ift.tt/2ynocEZ Step 2: Go to the red menu button on the top right corner, click register and fill in your info. Step 3: Go to your email and verify account \ Step 4: Go back to the website, click the menu button and view available dogs Step 5: Scroll to the animal you are interested and click reserve STEP 6 ( MOST IMPORTANT STEP ): GO TO THE MENU AGAIN AND VIEW YOUR CART. THE ANIMAL SHOULD NOW BE IN YOUR CART! Step 7: Fill in your credit card info and complete transaction HOW TO FOSTER OR ADOPT IF YOU CANNOT GET TO THE SHELTER IN PERSON, OR IF THE DOG IS NEW HOPE RESCUE ONLY! You must live within 3 – 4 hours of NY, NJ, PA, CT, RI, DE, MD, MA, NH, VT, ME or Norther VA. Please PM our page for assistance. You will need to fill out applications with a New Hope Rescue Partner to foster or adopt a dog on the To Be Killed list, including those labelled Rescue Only. Hurry please, time is short, and the Rescues need time to process the applications. Shelter contact information Phone number (212) 788-4000 Email adoption@nycacc.org Shelter Addresses: Brooklyn Shelter: 2336 Linden Boulevard Brooklyn, NY 11208 Manhattan Shelter: 326 East 110 St. New York, NY 10029 Staten Island Shelter: 3139 Veterans Road West Staten Island, NY 10309