#mortellanarts

[zecretsanta]

to: @goggles-girl

from: @mortellanarts

prompt: A reunion of Aoi and Akane post-ZTD good end

Extra gift!!! Didn’t feel right to have this as the main one because it’s a scene I was already working on for my own fic but I did make you a doodle (with outdated dialogue because I edit sentences. a lot) But yeah I love them here you go enjoy the sneak peek ^•^

——————

The first thing Akane intended to do, as soon as Carlos put down the gun, was head to the intercom. The only reason she doesn’t head there right away is because Junpei had been more concerned about going to them instead, checking the body, then checking the chamber of the weapon to be, thankfully, devoid of any more bullets. He was still very adamant about keeping it on him, though. Understandable bit of paranoia, which… she might have had a hand in embedding into him just a tiny bit… she’s glad to let him have it over anyone else here at the moment, so it’s fine.

Diana had actually gotten up there first, with Sigma in tow now permanently glued at her side, but she made the nurse hand the radio to her almost as soon as there was any reception. The excuse of her being better spoken was there for decor, no real effort into hiding her intention was going into it and she thinks Sigma can tell, not that he appreciates the tone she just took with his… partner? Crush? Spouse? Whatever their relationship status, all Akane could give a solid thought to at the moment was structuring her sentences on the radio just the way she had arranged with her brother. 

Feign a regular distress call while using just the right words of code that he’ll recognize while listening in on the monitored connection, and he’ll know to intervene and locate the source of the radio signal and send a team to pick her up, like they agreed, and he’ll be here and he’ll get her out–

Before she knows it the talking is done.

The little bit of palpable anxiety that she felt start to dread up her neck vanishes as soon as she gets the last word in, certain that Aoi picked up the signal. Now it’s back to regular anxiety that she can easily shove down in order to not display any weakness. 

Easier than breathing at the moment, practically second nature. 

Turns out they’re still subconsciously dividing themselves into teams, more or less. Mira, Eric and the kid were the first to break from the group, off to the side of the building, at first trying to find cover from the sun themselves and then for Gab’s sake. Surprisingly, Phi had then joined them, uncomfortably sneaking past her own team and sitting down petting the old fluff ball as if he were a therapy dog.

Most urgency they might have had seemed to evaporate along with the dry air outside the facility. Any normal metabolism would burn out from a shock as sudden and drastic as having their already sufficiently overwhelmed consciousness jammed into versions of their bodies with absolutely no time to anticipate. And that’s regardless of any training one could possibly have undergone, a burst of adrenaline like this is bound to mess you up eventually no matter who you are. 

What a ragtag assortment of people… Sure, they all agreed to work together now to save the world and everything, but she’s pretty much the only one here who knows the kind of work that implies. At least everyone seems equally and utterly fatigued. It is great news, as long as this provenly volatile mix of personalities doesn’t have any more energy to cause friction or implode in on itself, she’ll manage. 

The only thing that is not ideal about that is how she’s included. God, she’s at her wits end. She’s resorted to counting the seconds until Aoi gets here to keep herself awake. 

She is, afterall, oh so fond of this place. And this environment. And, best of all, the temperature. It was only the air conditioning that made the coming and going from building Q even marginally bearable. Even in winter this dress is far too heavy and warm- god– okay, where did Jumpy wander off to?

Having since joined the growing line of people forming under the sparse shade around the perimeter of the building, roughly 18 minutes pass of her trying to ground herself by indulging in conversation with Junpei. Who… didn’t seem to have wound down as much as the others himself. There’s a topic to disarm him though, sheepishly talk and tease about the ring she knows to be in his pocket, though he doesn’t want to bring it back out again just yet. Come to think of it, wasn’t one of the other couples talking about marriage proposals at the start of the week…? Weddings weren’t on her list of subjects she expected out of this venture.

Carlos is there too. She has to teach herself to be civil with him if only out of respect for the fact he never did anything to her out of truly bad intentions, even with ample room to do so. Not that she’s fond of people getting in the way out of sheer ignorance either. But, she has to know to cut her losses, and there are certainly good qualities there she could see as very useful to have on her side still.

Then, finally, the cars arrive. She’s already dusting herself off as soon as they come to a stop and of course a bed of white hair poking out of the door is the first thing she sees. Rushing out, he pulls her into a hug so quickly that she’s still piecing together the look on his face as her head rests under his chin. Considering everyone that is still here to see the scene, it’s a bit… much. But she knows she has to let him have this second of comfort. Besides, it’s not like she herself doesn’t feel overwhelmed and grateful for it too, a safe embrace after nearly a full day’s worth of torment. As always, she hides it better, but she clings on just as tight. 

“Are you going to tell me what that silence was all about?” When he pulls away just enough so they can look at each other to talk, still gripping her by the shoulders and leaning down a bit, she can tell he didn’t even touch up his hair and, even more telling, had left the house without concealing his eyebags.

“At some point, yes.”

They agreed on several times for daily check-ins. Nothing complex, literally any thought she could easily send his way counted. How many of those did she miss in this timeline? What time is it? What date- Not that- it isn’t hard to believe he’d be worried sick over just one. It’s Aoi she’s talking about, afterall. 

And she’s so relieved to talk to him.

“Ok. Are you okay?”

“I'm–!” For a second she sounded so enthusiastic she almost uttered the word, mouthing it but not quite following through the rehearsed motion. Hearing the affirmation crack under her own voice hurt more than expected, but still she cleared her throat and cheered. “–We all made it this once. No one’s, to my knowledge, currently in any need of urgent care… Oh! Right, ehrm… hehe, although we do need to clean up a little mess…”

The little twinkle in her eyes isn’t coming back anytime soon, but she’s trying her best not to falter, to keep the mood from dwindling. 

“This- once– yeah- cool, cool, cool–okay… Okay.” The more her choice of words sinks in the more he feels like he dodged a bullet, the more he has to redirect his thoughts elsewhere. “Do I have to know? And what kind of mess are we talking about here?”

She coos as if she doesn’t get what he means immediately.

“Oh-! I don't… I suppose not everything would be relevant for you to know right away, no.”

“Good then.” He places a kiss on her forehead. Priorities. Right now he has to keep focused and match her attempt at levity until further instructions, that’s all.

The near heart attack he had during the time nothing they tried could establish contact was enough of letting his imagination run amok with worst case scenarios. Plus, popping up somewhere completely different in this desert had its own implications, he knew that. 

His tone is still too shaky to really sound like a joke. 

“Please don’t do the details yet then, alright sis? Beg of you.”

Not only does she look a little dejected by that but the way she looks over to the other people with her leaves an anxious unspoken weight on both their minds. For a second, her breathing goes uneven and she looks like she’s keeping herself from crying.

Not that one could tell just hearing her voice. 

“Well, I beg of you to tell me if the air conditioner on these cars was running and if I can sit down without-”

“Fuck, of course, lemme just-” 

Even though the desert air pouring into the vehicle as they speak isn’t ideal, the cool interior is just enough relief that she needed to get her bearings back. Aoi quickly pulls some water bottles from somewhere between the seats too.

Then she nods and takes a sip before speaking again. Gesturing more energetically, more theatrically. 

And the weight is gone.

[ajdrawshq]

The bonding earring worldbuilding thing is so cute I love earrings they definitely got their ears pierced right after birth like I did and I am so fond of Mirabelle being upset about that in retrospect I feel you girl she's canonically aro right? literally such a good detail

YEA YEA YEA the bonding earrings are such a fun detail both as a part of worldbuilding n culture n relationships n creativity but also as a way to show amatonormativity in a fantasy setting its so cool.. n YES she is aro and i love love love the way thats shown ingame shes so <3 Mirabelle my beloved..

[datastate]

Not as bad as the two zero raps that I could find as the only zero escape fansongs that literally don't even feel like the person finished the game to know who zero is (I don't actually think it's worse I just don't know enough about yttd. we are shaking hands and sharing in the pain of no songs for the hyperfixation passing the vibe check)

HOW DO YOU GO THROUGH ZERO ESCAPE WITHOUT FINISHING THE ENDING... WHAT!!! at this rate just make a saw (movie) fansong.

[gaulemtypefemale-dm-l-016]

LOOK AT THE SCRUNKLIES I COMMISSIONED FROM @mortellanarts (go check the page if you haven't and follow them ^^)

I ADORE THEM 🥰🥰🥰

[dailysanta]

I need you to know I adore your art and you're currently CARRYING the 999 fandom in these trying times. I only played the game this year and the fandom is kinda non-existent so your blog gives me life🙏

Loving the leverage au too! Question: thoughts on aoipei? I liked them a lot before I found out Aoi and Akane were siblings and now I'm trying to get their dynamic to work after that, but it's tough work 😔

oh you flatterer. thats kind of you to say BUT i would be remiss if i didnt give credit to the other amazing artists in this fandom!!! go chuck a follow to @mortellanarts, @gaulemtypefemale-dm-l-016, @sinlizards and @handsometimr. i also gotta shout out my besties @kaetor and @argentsunshine (who has done some santas for this blog before!). the fandom's actually bigger than you might expect for a game that came out over 10 years ago, if anyone else wants to throw some artist recommendations in the replies PLEASE do. these blogs were just the first that popped into my head there are so many more amazing people whos urls i cant think of rn.

AS FOR AOIPEI. they fascinate me so much. my favourite version of their dynamic is in the safe end, with them kind of being fucked up codependent toxic haters at each other. buuuut theres also a fun universe in the vlr timeline with them and light as three weed smoking grandpas. one time kaetor described them as "fundamentally aoi and junpei are very similar people who care about the same things but also in any universe where akane is alive and in their lives they just hate each other". theyre both silly i like them a lot <3

[oopsallautistic-zine]

❤️ CONTRIBUTOR SPOTLIGHT! ❤️

Let's welcome Mortellana to our zine! His favorite animated media includes Avatar the Last Airbender, Monster High, and Gravity Falls.

Find them on tumblr as @mortellanarts!

[khplayingcards]

♣ CONTRIBUTOR LINEUP ♣

“The heart may be weak, and sometimes it may even give in. But I've learned that deep down there's a light that never goes out!”

🔊💖

Our guardians have finally assembled, and we're ready to bring you the best playing deck project across all the worlds!

♠ @altorav ♠ @amyhayanora ♠ @cerumoce ♠ @/chilijuicebox ♠ @crimson-chains ♠ @destiny-islanders ♠ @/oathkeeping ♠ @eveh-koko ♠ @iownfish ♠ @jaskdraws ♠ @justbabss ♠ @kikyoyuuki-arts ♠ @/sebychu ♠ @lostkimin ♠ @maesquirrel ♠ @mana-iac ♠ @miyabau ♠ @/miyanko ♠ @mortellanarts ♠ @/loiska_j ♠ @the-darkmess ♠ @/palliceart ♠ @quissti ♠ @redmoondragon-art ♠ @roxe-kun ♠ @/rushire_art ♠ @isadems ♠ @/stonefaeries ♠ @/tenacetracks ♠ @ultyso ♠ @/vanekaiiri ♠ @venoace ♠ @wearepopcandies ♠ @yoghurtknight ♠ @kokisketches ♠ @zillychu ♠ @/khansarah466 ♠ @/yoyodraws1 ♠ @/shidreamin

[mortellanarts]

Eu postei 62 vezes em 2022

Foram 27 posts a mais do que em 2021!

41 posts criados (66%)

21 posts reblogados (34%)

Blogs que você mais reblogou:

@mortellanarts

@gaulemtypefemale-dm-l-016

@wherestarsarestillasleep

@dreamdripdistance

@hamsphrey

Eu marquei 62 posts meus em 2022

#my art - 33 posts

#zero escape - 25 posts

#999 spoilers - 12 posts

#kingdom hearts - 11 posts

#9 hours 9 persons 9 doors - 10 posts

#akane kurashiki - 10 posts

#aoi kurashiki - 8 posts

#not art - 8 posts

#999 week - 7 posts

#zero escape spoilers - 7 posts

Maior tag: 137 caracteres

#but i shouldn't just keep reiterating the same thing and hearing how much it still resonates with people despite the flaws is honestly 😭

Meus principais posts em 2022:

#5

Ver o post inteiro

271 notas - publicadas em 12 de junho de 2022

#4

So..... Those Strelitzia and Naminé parallels, huh?

Who did we last see Streli with again?

297 notas - publicadas em 10 de abril de 2022

#3

Oh boi I sure am glad the new Nirvana AI trailer confirmed without a shadow of a doubt that everyone is still alive and well

449 notas - publicadas em 4 de fevereiro de 2022

#2

Just take me as I am

A memory so vivid

Then savor all the parts you can 'cause

No one mourns the W I C K E D

456 notas - publicadas em 18 de fevereiro de 2022

Meu post nº 1 de 2022

Flooded by memories; not even yours

(Made for the KH 20th Anniversary zine on Twitter!!)

872 notas - publicadas em 28 de março de 2022

Veja a sua Retrospectiva 2022 →

[akari-hope]

Dear mutual what is lgts about? I was pretty happy for the team and very impressed by the game's quality I already loved the artstyle of pocket mirror so much and they clearly only improved their presentation but the start of the game did not compel me story or character wise and the mechanics seemed like an intimidating amount to keep track of. So yeah I wanna know why you like it I wanna give it a proper shot eventually ><

okay disclaimer, i've never played pocket mirror and know only bits and pieces about it relative to what are the "canon" endings to lgts (i'd like to play but i always struggle with games on pc). the quick pitch is elise works tirelessly to be able to feed herself, and dreams of wealth and luxury. after finding a pair of red shoes, things begin to change - she starts to investigate the rumors of a secret in the woods, with hopes of it leading to the fulfillment of her wish. along the way you must keep a good reputation with the townsfolk to avoid suspicion of witchcraft, keep elise fed and sane, and spend time with the three potential love interests.

i personally picked up lgts partially bc i was intrigued by the premise, which was already appealing to me since it's not so subtly based on the fairy tale "the red shoes" which is a semi-niche fave of mine. pretty shortly after starting it up the game gives a few breadcrumbs to get started on the initial strangeness surrounding the town and elise's past, and for me that was enough to get me interested in the plot. a story about a girl trying to be seen as normal to the small town she lives in, while secretly investigating bizarre occult happenings that are tied to her past? yeah def appealed to me specifically. the investigation of the disparate threads and linking the pieces together was the part i liked best in regards to the main story. finding out more and more about the strangeness surrounding elise's past, the town's faith, and the secrets of the woods and how they connected was incredibly satisfying to me, even if it got off to a somewhat slower start. i think an early moment that totally sold me was when you get prompted to investigate a cave - like damn i absolutely loved that sequence. if i hadn't already been into it i was definitely hooked after that.

tbh...i straight up didn't know the game had lesbians until i already bought it. so it was honestly just a wonderful surprise. for me, i didn't immediately love freya or lebkuchen as characters. i grew to love them and find a lot fascinating in their stories, but initially i remember i thought freya was a bit boring and i was unsure of how lebkuchen's whole deal would progress. rozenmarine on the other hand was absolutely the character that immediately caught my eye. between the witchy design and the star-crossed lovers setup between her and elise, she was definitely my early pick to romance. and MAN. if you've already played pocket mirror you probably can put together what the "canon" end for her is. as someone who loves that sort of thing i absolutely ate that up. each ending for me was satisfying, but man that one fucked me up in such a fantastic way.

in regards to mechanics, i'll be SO real, i'm a person who loves resource management and whatnot in games so i had a natural inclination toward lgts and its balancing act, but i can see it being a deal breaker if you're not into it. for me the parts i disliked about gameplay were all tied to the witching hour segments which...honestly were FINE, i was just admittedly not very good at times with figuring out what exactly to do. but i'm also pretty forgiving of mechanics if i like a game's story, so take that with a grain of salt.

overall, i'd say if you're willing to work with the mechanics, there's a lot to love about this game's story and characters. all the routes have value imo, so it's really just up to whatever you enjoy the most.

[nyctoheart]

Plot twist, since kh wants to make a game of every genre the khux movie is in VR and player is the PoV character

honestly i still forget that KH literally has a VR game already so who fucking knows LOL

i dont think i could handle any of the characters looking me dead in the eye and calling me their friend though, i would explode

[glitchplight]

Obsessed with how you do composition and typography hhh so good >•<

thank you sooo much!! the typography is a very new thing for me that I am still getting used to and making more of my own, so I am really glad you like it!

[zecretsanta]

to: @goggles-girl

from: @mortellanarts

prompt: Junpei and Akane decide to adopt a pet together (and it doesn’t come as naturally as they would like at first)

I also made a fic for this one! I feel like the first thing that would go wrong is that Akane wouldn’t be comfortable taking care of animals again at all, the second would be that Junpei’s canonically an impulse adopter. So this ended up being more about getting Akane to come around about the idea in the first place (also many catgirl jokes at her expense lmao) Also about the drawing I imagine she quickly comes around to enjoying the little head boops while reading :3

Hope you enjoy!

——————

Junpei and Akane had gone through hell to be by each other’s sides. That was true, sure, but a few years into their ‘happy ending’ and the picture perfect act has begun to feel rather unsustainable. Not to mention it should have long since stopped being an act to begin with.

The I love you’s are very real… when they are apart.

It’s not as bad as when they first reunited at least, it wasn’t a very fun sort of tension like she vicariously lived through a little by playing June all that time ago. No, it was more comparable to the tension between a bleeding wound and the injured hand applying pressure to it. They both knew it, felt it, then let the matter join the many subjects which they don’t talk about. Ever. Despite the fact that they probably should.

As counterintuitive as it sounds, their counter to all of that was wanting to be with each other as much as possible. Maybe that’d make the pain fade. To get to know each other better like any normal couple, maybe a bit to prove to themselves they still liked each other’s company and that they hadn’t changed completely from what brought them together as kids.

Big problem with that is, the farthest thing Akane wanted for any of those outings, especially the rare ones where she was somehow convinced into going outdoors, was for it to so closely remind her of any of the things that brought them closer together at that terrible tender age of twelve.

Wandering into an animal shelter wasn’t the intention behind this little stroll. Neither of them even knew it’d be here- really, it wasn’t even much of a proper shelter to begin with, it seems more like an adoption fair. One that was hopefully backed by an indisputably good-faith, locally known and reliable organization– and not by any other corporate entity with history that she’d be tempted to add to her criminal record over. Every time Junpei tells her that the ever-present instinct to suspect and look into every little thing she comes across is bad for her he also fumbles and asks what are the chances she’d just happen to bump into that kind of huge conspiracy so often in her life without actively looking. She answers it’s always a non-zero chance in the end, and they risk far more if unsuspecting. That’s always when he drops the subject.

Though at a certain awkward distance from the fences, she’d elected to just go along with it and follow him for as long as the detour entertains him. It’s not like she hates getting to see the little critters around the place, she’s not that messed up about it, of course not… There’s even a comfortable amount of people around too! Which is to say, far less than there are animals.

There would have been an attempt to just keep walking past where this was taking place, if not for the fact that it really hadn’t taken long for Junpei to start playing with one of the dogs. Not that the rest of the pack wasn’t jumping at trying to grab his attention too, of course, but he took a liking to a particular one.

Noticing she’d stayed behind, barely budging an inch, his voice turns into that clumsy but cute stammering, like it always does whenever he’s trying to sound sensible.

“Oh uh, do you- uh… do you have a fear of dogs?” It helps ease her into a grin just a little.

“No. ‘Afraid’ isn’t the word I’d use…” She just doesn’t know what to do with her hands at the moment other than hold onto Junpei’s, which wasn’t helped when he suddenly let go. And well, it’s not like she knows the temperament of the animals just by looking and it’s really a lot of sudden movements to keep track of in just one place, it’s also not like she would want to risk bothering them when she barely wants to be touched ever without initiating it either, not to mention the space they’re in seems quite small– she makes herself smile again and tilts her head squinting, realizing she’d forgotten to ask. “Is… that a Boston terrier?”

“…Got it. Well, you are more of a cat person I guess. And uh- I don’t know? If you say so, then it must be? I’m not really good at remembering the names for these.”

She steps closer and leans down next to him, who is just sitting on the floor without a care, palms on her knees for support.

"It’s not like I hate pups just because I get along better with the cats.”

"Of course not, just look at them. Aw… it’s hard to imagine anyone could hate these guys.”

Avoidant as she may be, after a solid half minute or so of her watching him have fun she also extends her hand out to pet the dog who, while not showing clear distaste for it or anything, only goes back to wagging its tail when circling back to Junpei. He quickly took over once more when she retracted her hand, vigorously pulling his hands along the fur around the collar and talking to it in a jumbled baby-talk that was apparently really enriching judging by how it earns enthusiastic barking back, as if in conversation. Exactly matching all that energy that Akane couldn’t imagine keeping up with even on a good day.

Between laughter, his voice starts being directed at her again, even if what he says is more of a musing to himself.

"Wait, I think I’m beginning to remember what this little guy reminds me of…”

Oh. Only now? Come on Jumpy, this one’s even black and white as well.

That’s it, she’s got to mess with him now.

"You mean like… a wrestler? The spots on its face already look like a mask but I’m sure a fun little costume would be a really cute look. Clover could DIY a big belt spelling out ‘winner’ for them as well! Unless- or was it a retired wrestler…?”

"No- what are you talking about?! Everything that you just said was absolutely bananas–” Even if his tone poorly feigns appalment there’s humor in it too. "I mean- what’s wrestling got to do with anything, what the hell–?”

"You mean you don’t know?”

It was just ‘bananas’ enough to pull his eyes away from the dog and, apparently, being met with her expression looking down at him while knowingly and visibly holding in laughter, was all it took for it to finally dawn on him.

"Ohh— ” She starts laughing before he facepalms and, from the sound of it, he hits far harder than intended too. Pulling her partner to his feet by hooking her arm under his, she speaks cheerily only once he seems to have recovered enough.

"You shouldn’t touch your face without washing your hands first.”

"Come on, give a guy a moment, okay? This is an overwhelming amount of emotion to feel all at once…” It’s endearing to see him engage in his own variety of theatrics, even if only for the sake of unfunny jokes that she can’t help but be fond of anyways.

"Dork.”

"But hey, you’re right. It would be pretty funny to give him a little wrestler costume… You sure there’s no place for him back home?”

Home as a single stationary place still sounds so foreign to her, and that’s just the part she doesn’t want to talk about.

"We’re here just looking.”

"You say that as if I were a stranger asking and not part of the we in question.”

"Very well. I did not intend on being here today and I won’t indulge in what’s essentially impulse buying a living being, Jumpy.”

"Come on Kanny, what could go wrong? I mean, we’ve got space, we’ve got more than enough funds, I think it would be–”

”What could go wrong?” Sometimes it’s hard to tell if he’s being dense on purpose. “Do you really need me to say it?”

"I… thought you liked animals?”

And with that, it’s finally safe to assume Junpei’s chances of getting his tact back are long gone. Not that she thinks he ever had any to lose.

Flat shoes walk away into the fair, but that’s only because the best way out is through. Akane gets pretty far in before Junpei decides to stop dancing around the subject and puts himself square in front of her, blocking the way.

"Look, I never heard of a single other person who had luck as shitty as we did that summer. Alright? It wasn’t a subject I looked into much but even hearing from people in law enforcement it was a freakish animal cruelty incident that doesn’t happen often. That whole area had issues with that sort of thing anyw–”

"I never heard of luck as poor as I was left with that whole entire year.”

"Y-yeah, there’s that-” When they do bring up a subject that should be buried, there’s not much to do except measure the reaction. That’s what’s between them, if they can’t look away then it better mean something at least. "And… I wasn’t there to help at first, but I came around eventually. I won’t let something like that happen again.”

It’s sweet, he even holds her hand in his… but it’s still a little conceited.

"What makes you think I would?”

"Perfect! Then, we’re both in agreement. There’s nothing bad that could possibly happen and we can totally bring one of these guys home uh… if you two click?”

"Excuse me? At which point did we agree?”

"It doesn’t have to be permanent, these kinds of places do all sorts of trial runs, foster–”

"That’s just cruel.”

"Well, but it doesn’t have to be. I’m sure the little fella will love us and we’ll end up keeping them.”

"What if I don’t want to get attached to a creature with hardly a sixth of a human lifespan?”

"Did you want to uh, take a look at the cats since that’s more comfortable for you?

"Junpei.” None of this is comfortable.

"Okay, okay.” He puts his hands up in a mock gesture of surrender… before plunging into his pocket and pulling out his phone for some reason. ”… Here goes a last ditch effort…”

“What are you doing now?”

"Hey man, can you help me convince your sister of something?”

Before she can even begin to reprimand him he’s clicking his tongue and dialing up again. When Aoi picks up again she can hear even from the arm’s length she’s being kept at.

"Whatever this is about, what makes you think I could possibly be on your side instead of hers?!”

"I don’t! Just hear me out, okay- gimme a second.” He opens the video option in the call and turns the phone in her direction. He has a mildly confused look urging her to explain the situation but it’s a few moments until she says anything, because Junpei has a stupid grin on his face and they both know he might win this.

”…Junpei wants a pet. And we happened to walk into a kennel. Cattery–”

“Adoption fair.”

"And he’s being really stubborn.”

Takes a second for her brother to process the absolute nonanswer he comes up with.

"Oh.”

"Oh?”

"There are worse arguments you could be having out there.” Though Junpei wouldn’t be the one pulling him into those. "Guessing that wasn’t on your itinerary?”

"You think? Why am I not hearing you antagonize him anymore?”

"I mean, I think it could be good for you? You used to beg me for one all the time- until I said Santa couldn’t send animals in boxes with little holes poked in them for air like in the movies.”

She yanks the phone out of Junpei’s hand and turns off the video before putting it up to her ear, looking almost embarrassed.

"Aoi.”

"You’re right, you’re right– it’s a ton of responsibility. Wouldn’t be trying to convince you sis, I’m just saying–”

"You think that’s the part I’d take issue with??”

Akane takes off, pacing away from Junpei, wanting some distance at least if not privacy to continue one of the silliest sibling squabbles in recent memory. Which is completely fine by him, there’s plenty to do while she talks herself into it just to prove a point.

After a few minutes, Akane’s standing next to Junpei again. Turns off the phone and extends her arm out for him to take it without looking at him, pouty like a child while Junpei’s looking smug. This is like the first marital dispute he’s won.

”…Only if we come across one I feel is a good fit.”

“I’ll take that.”

Aoi and Light had recently gotten a cat of their own, though insistently not as a couple, Akane doesn’t really understand what her brother’s love life is like (and she’s grateful to be spared of the details) but they have something going on, why else would he move in with them after she decided to move in together with Junpei? Actually, she might have heard him mention that one of Clover’s coworkers found the little calico abandoned and she offered to take it in, so really it wasn’t even like it was his responsibility any more than the Field’s by a long shot but still… he was so happy over it, which used to be such a rare sight, that Akane found it hard to be a buzzkill about it by voicing what came to her mind.

In truth, it wasn’t just the rabbit hutch thing giving her pause. Aside from the obvious glaring reason for her to be hesitant to hold such a tiny creature in her arms, despite her love for them, she just didn’t think she knew how anymore. At this point she’s more used to stuffed animals, not that she kept many of those around either.

While they visited recently, she sat very stiltedly holding the feline in her lap, her brother went from gushing about it to joking about already having experience looking after a weird ‘kit cat’ his whole life. After she complained Junpei followed up on it by sneakily referring to her as ‘kitten’, just that once, and even if by some metric seeing them getting along was cute she’d have kicked them both if not for the purring fluff ball snoozing on top of her thighs. This was far more anxiety inducing than a plush, she noted, and it only became more evident each fleeting second, each motion coiling for breath she felt against her skin. It was so precious and so easy to ruin and her hands were too singed to hold it. The fact her body deeply rejects such simple gentleness despite it having come so easily to her once is a mourning unto itself.

Most of the cats they see around are cozily lazing about, some snuggling together, staring back at them curiously at most. She could genuinely smile at that. It’s calmer with none of them seeming in the mood for interaction at the moment. They slow their pace now that Akane is actually participating, the unexpected unexpectedness of the situation no longer weighing her down as much.

Though it was still a bit much, so they sat together by a bench for her to rest a little. It wasn’t far at all, it’s right behind one of the cat houses in fact just where it starts leading away from the event.

She’s so completely lost in thought that she’s surprised to hear a small high pitched gasp before even realizing it was a sound she herself had made. Then looking down at her leg she understands why.

A little black cat scratched at her leg, accidentally, it looked more like the tiny little fuzz ball was attempting to climb her leg. Well, technically not black, she notices the fur is a dark grayish color with tons of off-color patches when she gets a better look and she only gets that better look because it succeeds at its task. At which point she has to attempt to scoop the very tiny cat with both hands so it’s not at risk from falling back down. Only stopping its determined meowing when he settles on her lap.

"Why do they always choose you?”

"Because I don’t try chasing after them like they’re dogs, Junpei.”

"Hey, that’s not something I’ve done since I’ve grown up, okay? Well- except–”

"If you say I’m the exception, I swear–”

"Okay! So, where did this little fella come from?”

"I didn’t see…” She leans in and rubs behind the cat’s ears, earning a soft little purr of gratitude. The fur really is weirdly patched when you look close, it doesn’t feel like the coloration should be that way, the texture’s also a bit different. Wait, are the eyes not open yet? Or is one–

It isn’t long before an employee? Volunteer? A lady in a friendly colored vest comes to gently whisk away the culprit, she seems young and a bit anxious to have to talk to them.

"Oogh, I’m so sorry ma'am, are you okay? These little nails didn’t do a number on you, right?”

Akane gets on her feet to more steadily help the kitten trade hands.

“Oh, oh no, I’m perfectly fine. Really, I could barely feel it. Thank you.”

“That’s good.”

And that’s where the interaction would have ended if Junpei didn’t also get up.

"Hi, I’m with her. So, how come he’s popped up all the way over here?”

"You see this guy’s a little escape artist– every time there’s people around he tries to hide away from visitors by sneaking out into the desk with us, so… then why today did he decide to bother such a nice couple instead? What’s up with you?”

The cat is still trying to climb out back to where it was a minute ago, which the volunteer seems to know how to handle, though it’s funny to see it go from her arm to her shoulder then back to the other arm. A lot of effort is going into making sure he doesn’t throw himself on the ground. Junpei waits for a moment where the pace’s slowed down a bit to also try to pet him, seems to like him too.

“Aww, I think that’s a really good fit, actually. What’s his name?”

“Oh we don’t know actually, this friend was found without a nameplate. He’s made a name for himself but it’s not been that long at all since he’s been with us, we haven’t agreed on a name yet since he’s been back from the vet. Wait, did you say you two were interested?”

He looks at Akane for her to answer. She looks back with what doesn’t seem to be a look of aggression to the general onlooker, but they know he’s putting her on the spot like this so she won’t be backhanded about agreeing.

"Well, yes. If possible, I mean- isn’t the saying that the pet chooses the owner and not the other way around? We sure sound like we’ll get along, we both aren’t super sociable either–”

The awkward little laugh got to Junpei, who’s more comfortable with failing at humor in front of strangers than she is to even attempt it.

"He must have thought ‘oh these guys are off by themselves away from everyone too, we’ll get along great!’”

That’s just silly enough that she can look at him funny behind crossed arms and it’ll be an entirely appropriate reaction. She can only hope that’s the only thing that he sensed in them.

The kitten settled into a nap on the volunteer’s arms by now, tired himself out. Really is an adorable sight.

"That’s just great! One of you just has to come fill up a questionnaire at the table and a few more things, we can sort out real quick- uhm… I guess I should- oh right! So, like I was saying, this fella may come with extra expenses due to health complications, is that okay with you? Are you new pet owners?”

"The issue isn’t money…” “We are? New to it- kind of…”

“Oh, don’t worry too much. He’s all healthy now, neutered and the vaccinations all in order too, it’s just… it’s a little bit of a hard sell to some people since he needed stitches and lost an eye so he’s always going to be a bit wobblier than average when moving around.”

"A-ah… why is that?”

Akane’s hand suddenly has a vice grip on his. For once, the resolve in her voice is undeliberate, shaky.

"We don’t need to hear the story.” She turns away from the volunteer and her voice turns small so only her partner hears. “Can you go take care of all that? I’ll go get my brother to help get things in order before they go do a housecheck, if they’ll do one.”

"There’s not much there to cat proof I don’t think, but sure. Guess you’d- uh, have a better eye for that stuff… Also let me guess, you want me to tell you when that is happening so you can go to his place while there’s strangers over?” A smile confirms that. "Alright. But I’ll check in with Clover too to make sure you two aren’t skipping town instead.” Another smile, more mischievous this time.

"Oh no, my plan’s been found out.” First off, if she really intended on making an exit she wouldn’t bring it up to him first, duh, as if she were an amateur. Second, maybe this line of teasing can get far too draining, far too quick, so she changes the subject one last time. "Tell me your name ideas when I get back.”

She places a kiss on his cheek and saunters off. Does she wish she didn’t get shoved into bringing painful color back into a memory that had just barely grayed and numbed?

Yes.

But she wouldn’t have been convinced if she didn’t genuinely think they were capable of giving it a try. Maybe any place they stay at together will feel more like a home when there’s someone living there with them that isn’t walking on eggshells, that is just uncomplicatedly happy to have survived whatever it did before it ended up there. Maybe she’ll learn to do that as well. Things already are complicated enough.

[ajdrawshq]

oh okay so one more question. I did not realize start again and isat were separate things on steam what is the relationship between those two like well it says prologue but I am confusion

OH yeah thats a thing.. to be real i havent played or watched a playthrough of start again yet (i found one (1) earlier while searching for some kinda guide) so im not entirely sure what kind of context it gives to the main game, i just know it came out before isat itself and IS related but from what little ive seen i dont even know how it fits in with isat's canon, so .. its not that its not important (probably) but u definitely dont Need to play it to get a good and full experience out of isat itself if that makes sense ?

[datastate]

i’m going to compile these all up (no particular order) because i don’t want to lose them :’] thank you everyone who took the time & also to my friends who want to reconnect i am Reaching at you...

eris (moonlitfool):

the kai guy :) ur analysis of yttd characters make me go feral

azzie (bugmoment):

kai guy. lurien guy. array of repressed men guy

rex (speedruntechnically):

cool yttd mutual that makes me wanna get back into the game

(bibiana112/mortellanarts):

mutual who's making me like yttd a bit more because of all the interesting stuff you post/reblog about. who also always leaves really nice tags on art :3

rowan (eclysia):

a very skilled artist!! i love the way you draw all of the yttd charas :) such a charm to them. i lovbe it

simone (crowempress):

friendly mutual!!! im happy i got to meet you through hollow knight :] you have lots of very cool in depth thoughts on things and your art is very lovely!! :]

buttons (yoggybloggy):

originally followed u for hk you are the certified yttd mutual which i know nothing about but 👍 love to see it. also the mutual who always leaves really really nice tags on art posts bless u <3 (including mine <3 ty)

clam (ratcandy):

Hiiii hello hiiii !!!!! Followed u way back when because of epic hollow bug hcs and have just stuck around even if I am 100% clueless on yttd !!! however I am very happy to see someone else get into witch's heart because I was obsessed with that when I was younger so even if i remember very little of it now outside of the big plot beats. VERY Happy tosee it all again :))!!!! so . yeas !#mutual who's posts I vaguely nod along to as though I totally understand what's going on there hKJDSHG also Art Good!

leaf (leafsheepseaslug):

you are so so cool. i always enjoy seeing what you think about games!! i haven't gotten around to playing yttd yet but i always enjoy seeing ur art on my dash. also you are the number one lurien enjoyer forever. kai as well

katniss (ninerosejack):

my hk and yttd mutual...i love seeing you on the dash you are so cherished ❤ also: you are also one of my star wars mutuals we are connecting mentally

(24602060451):

met you through spm years ago and we've been mutuals since :) i love what you post about even if i don't know anything about the stuff you play! i love seeing you having fun its awesome. also hollow knight enjoyer *spins you sround

tristan (forcesensitivebantha):

my buddy my pal my little cousin (internet edition)

dac (cisphobicflumph):

u r my internet niecphew and i am ur out of touch auncle who brings u cool presents (panda video). i dont know what u kids r talking about these days but i like listening to u talk about the minedcrafts (visual novel game) we dont connect as often as id like and i miss u ♡

giovanni (pollyannam3):

a good pal with good art whom i want to talk to more even when our current large interests aren't the same! I see ur art and posts on my dash and dont understand a single bit sometimes but i nod n smile cause Tobias :-0! Dont mean that in a mean way just a silly billy way. Very cool person 10/10!

vivi (heartfreckles):

ur my good friend who I love hearing analysis from! you srsly have such an interesting view on things and I rly respect what u have to say! i'm so happy to be friends w u; u brighten my day too...

hades (plushievoid):

the number one asunaro truther... to me !! its so fun to see ur silly deepdives into the characters actions in game!! and ur kai posting..

juniper (gothitelle-goddess):

good friend! really talented writer. i enjoy talking with aer

acci (the-treehouse-ever):

COOL PERSON WHO'S ART & WRITING I RLLY ADMIRE ........ FILIPINO SOLIDARITY!!!!! AND KAI & SARA FANATIC you're very sweet and i am happy we are friends. spinning u around <3

skye (goldiipond):

COOL FRIEND WHO MEANS THE WORLD TO MEEEE also fellow dark-haired autistic anime boy enthusiast JHGFDSDFG one day i will play yttd i prommy <3 and awesome art so so cool. yuor stuff is always so good its a huge inspo for me <3 weneed to talk more again. gah

daisy (floweringviolet):

tobias my buddy my spm mutual the kai satou fan of all time someone who i am subjecting to my insane interests and someone whose thoughts and art and writing always impress me!! i'd love to be able to do those one day w enough practice.

megan (its-captain-sir):

toby my bestie my beloved friend <3333 i love talking to you and you really are the type of friend where it's easy to start up a conversation with you even though it's been a while! you will always be the number 1 fives fan to me but it's been cool seeing everything else you've gotten into over the years and i love hearing your thoughts on each thing! your ideas are very creative and you're so good at analyzing and really digging deep into the media you like and i honestly admire that about you and your ability to so eloquently convey all your thoughts each time#there's so many cool and awesome things about you and I'm glad i can call you my friend!! when i think about it it's kinda crazy how many years we've known each other already hskdhskf but here's to hoping for many more :) <333

kez (azurehaiku):

tobias!!! toby my lovely little friend i cherish you. i met you at probably one of the lowest and loneliest points of my life and you really helped me get out of it. you're overall a really sweet and kind individual and talking to you makes me feel cozy. not only that but ur one of the only friends i have who's super analytical when it comes to media and it is an indescribable feeling bouncing analysis ideas off of someone else. i never get to do that!!! i really hope i get to meet u in person one day because it'd be really nice to just hang out and be nerds together ... i miss talking to you ... hopefully one day soon we can chat regularly again. love you! holding you holding you holding y

[happybunnykat]

📓boop

AAAHHHH! Thank you!

I'll spare you the fic I've had bouncing around in my head for most of the past year that has gotten INCREDIBLY CONVOLUTED and talk about the one I came up with just a few days ago.

Basically, I watched the first Venom movie and saw the ending teaser for Into the Spider verse (which I had already seen) and had an idea for a crossover.

Basically, Miles, Peter, and Gwen have each found a stable portal in their own universe, (but not the others because I don't particularly want to write them-) and all of them lead to Eddie and Venoms universe. Gwen and Peter have both fought Venom in their own Universes, but Miles hasn't. Peter knows that Eddie is Venom, but I think Gwen's version of Venom is different?

Ultimately the Spider group incorrectly assumes that Venom is with whoever made the portal and end up fighting him, which ends up with Eddie and Venom getting separated, and Venom bonds with Miles while Eddie doesn't know what happened to him.

This ends up with Mccarthyism taking over the Spider-people, who know that one of them has the symbiote, and Eddie writing articles about them that cast them in a bad light, while the real villan, Jackal (who is from the comics, which I have not read, but I did read his wiki page) who is planning on cloning each of the Spider-people and sending one back to each universe but doing so in universe that doesn't have a Spiderperson to stop him. He picks Miles Peter and Gwen because he wants to see if he could combine each of their strengths to make the ultimate Spider.

The whole thing ends with Venom, Eddie, Gwen, Peter, and Miles all teaming up to fight Jackal and the Spiderclones.

I don't know if I'll ever get around to writing this, but if I do I am going to do my best to avoid having to talk about more then one Spiderperson at a time. Somehow.

Sorry if this doesn't make any sense but it's kinda been coming together in my head for a bit now-

[storm-driver]

I mean, it would make sense given that the info we got on the sea salt trio in remind is "studying Roxas and Xion's memories" there must be something there to *be* found, Ven's memories is probably part of it °•°

yeah yeah!! when i read that line, i was thinking “wait...whAT?” at first but then realized it’s gotta be something to do with ven or sora, since they’re both the ones who had the most interaction with them both (roxas because he had ven’s heart, xion because she was always near roxas//roxas and xion both because they were with sora up until he released them both). it makes me super hype that they’re gonna bring up all these things again after they’ve been silently alluded to for so long!!