#oh yeah I’m posting out of order cuz I started the one earlier than the other

[chopshajen]

1-5.

Janos’s Disguise Self disguise! They’ve had a few occasions to not look like themself, mostly because they were traveling to a country that had a massive bounty on their head. They disguised themself as a much more luxuriously beautiful tiefling woman, though one who was still short and who still looked kind of severe. They wore a sari-like outfit that was common in Nicodranas, because the disguise debuted there.

This sketch was cooking for a day or two and it was Not working so I nearly abandoned it, but today I rallied and tried to let go a little, and lo and behold, not feeding my perfectionism worked!

[lilysdaydreams]

The Artist and The Musician

→  I do not claim to know corpse- therefore please don’t think that this is what he would actually act like, or that any details about his life are actually true. this is fiction.

→ Pairing: Corpse Husband X Fem!Reader

→ Genre: Fluff.

→ Words: 5.6k

→ Request:  Hey! It’s me again lmao I was curious maybe like sykunno or raes little sister (like 2 or 3 years younger) meets the group and her and corpse just click. How would either of them react to them hearing the news that their little sis is dating corpse and like they’ve moved in together and everything idk I thought it’d be cute💛

→ Warnings: Swearing.

→ Authors Note: Its been a hard couple of weeks and im really sorry that this took so long to be done but depression rlly hit me and I could barely move myself. I hope you enjoy this, and if you do, please comment some words of encouragement or feedback 💛

→  if you have some spare change , consider buying me a coffee.

You sighed as you finally dropped the last box in your new room, stretching to get rid of the pains in your back. Grabbing your phone, you moved over to Sykkunos room, knocking before sticking your head in.

"You want subway?" you asked when he looked up from the computer. He nodded with a quick smile, and as you closed the door behind you, you could hear him talking to the stream, letting them know that it was just his sister. Quickly ordering on Ubereats, you slumped on the sofa, closing your eyes and resting for a bit.

You had decided to move in with Sykkuno a month ago, the same week you'd decided to drop out of college. It wasn't something your parents were happy with, but after seeing how big your art and business had gotten, they had let you drop out. You'd dropped out and moved to LA, moving into an apartment with Sykkuno since he had to leave the OTV house. Sykkuno had moved in a week earlier which was why his room and computer was all set up. You'd only moved in today, spending a few weeks at home with your parents before leaving for LA. Stretching, you grabbed your phone, checking how long it would be until the food came, and then clicking on Instagram. Your most recent post was of this morning, a photo of you sitting on top of half the boxes in your room, throwing a peace sign at the camera. Sykkuno had taken it for you, the whole process taking 10 minutes cuz you made him take it at 45 different angles. Scrolling through the comments, you liked a few, replying to the ones by your best friends.

@selinaissss: "HOW DARE YOU LOOK THIS PERFECT AT 8 IN THE MORNING????"

→ @junefarie: i look like a racoon dont u dare

@onlyalyssa: "we need a house tour"

→ @junefarie: bitch I dont even have a bed yet

You grabbed the subway order when the bell rang, saying a quick thank you to the delivery man. You left yours on the table, and went to Sykkunos room, yelling "Sykkuno catch!" before throwing it at him, giggling as he leapt forward from his chair to catch it. Closing the door softly behind you, you jumped onto the couch, sitting cross-legged, grabbing your sketchbook and pencils from your backpack and setting them on your lap. It was time to wind down a bit.

~

It was a week later and you had unpacked fully, now focusing more on creating new pieces of art for a shop update. You were also working on some designs specifically for shirts and hoodies. Sykkuno found you in front of your computer, blanket wrapped around you and glasses perched on your nose as you emailed the manufacturer you were working with for the hoodies.

"Un, y/n?" he said hesitantly knocking on the door. You spun around in your chair, raising your eyebrows at him. "What's up?"

He walked in, sitting down gingerly on the edge of the bed and you got your water from the table, taking a sip as you wait for him to talk.

"I um- You know how I- I play Among Us right?" he asked, scratching his neck.

You hummed in response, urging him on with a nod. Sykkuno was almost never this nervous around you. Most of the time, you guys talked normally, joking and teasing each other. For him to be stuttering around you, he must have been extremely nervous.

"Well, you know Rae right? She um, she asked me to make a lobby," he said, standing up and pacing now. You furrowed your brows, confused as to where this was going.

He was explaining what a lobby was (which what the fuck, you watched his streams, of course you knew what a lobby was, why was he explaining that) when you cut him off, getting up and grabbing his shoulders to stop him.

"Hey, what's wrong?" you asked, holding his shoulders with both your hands.

He sighed and slumped into you, his head coming to a rest on your shoulder.

"Rae asked me to make a lobby and it's the first time I've ever made one and I'm really nervous about it. I've already invited people, but um I was wondering if you wanted to join as well? I- It would help me to have you there." he muttered, the words muffled as he spoke into your shoulder.

"Me?" you asked, a little shocked because you had never played among us before.

He nodded against your shoulder.

"Um sure!" you said, wrapping your arms around his middle, "It'll be fun!"

"And hey," you added on when he didn't say anything after that, "I can meet all your friends as well!"

He finally lifted his head a little, smiling as he muttered out a quick "Thanks y/n."

"However," you added, jumping back onto your seat and wiggling your eyebrows at him. "You have to buy me pizza for tonight's dinner."

He chuckled, grabbing his phone and already mutterng the order to himself as he opened up the ubereats app and walked out of the room.

You turned back to the laptop humming a tune under your breath. From interactions like this, most people would probably assume that you were older but the truth was that Sykkuno was 5 years older than you. Your roles were reversed and you were probably more protective over him than anyone else. Once in high school a girl had called him cute and asked him for his number only to write it on the bathroom walls. After the first three prank calls, you'd taken the phone from him yelling at anyone who called that if they called again, that you'd personally track them down and shove a dildo up their ass.

Both of you had always been close, but with the amount of bullying and teasing he got in high school, you'd got even closer, eventually becoming his best friend in a way. Seeing Sykkuno grow as a person, get new friends who were genuinely nice and kind made you the happiest person alive. When Sykkuno had first started streaming you'd been worried, scared that people online would say something mean. When he had first started streaming with other streamers and then met Lily and all his other friends, you had been anxious, worrying that they might only be putting up a friendly facade. You were also the happiest though when he grew even closer to them, when he smiled more, laughed more, talked more.

You had yet to meet or talk to any of his friends, mostly because you'd been in college, and the pandemic had made it harder. Maybe it was finally time.

~

The day came and you sat in your room, once again a blanket wrapped around you, glasses perched on your nose as you accepted the discord invite Sykkuno sent you.

"DO I GO IN THE CHAT THINGY?" you yelled to Sykkuno, hearing a "YES" before clicking on the voice chat.

You mumbled a "hello", wondering if your mic was on.

"Hey, yeah I can hear you y/n."

Breathing a sigh of relief, you logged into the game, smiling as you heard sykkuno introduce you to his chat. "Hi everyone," you said, feeling a bit weird only talking to a screen. You rubbed your hands, a little nervous to be doing this.

Just then someone else joined and before you could even speak another three people joined as well, all of them yelling hello as they joined.

"He- Hey guys, how's everyone doing?" started sykkuno.

"Im doing great oh my god, guess what guys, I'm-" started Rae, cutting herself off. "wait, whos um "ms snores a lot"?

You were a bit confused for a second, furrowing you eyebrows for a second before realising what had happened.

"SYKKUNO YOU ASSHOLE WHAT THE FUCK?" you yelled, staring at the name underneath the voice channel that you now realised belonged to you. You could hear Sykkunos laughter from the other room but you just spluttered indignantly. He was the one who had set up everything on your computer yesterday because technology was something that you rarely messed around with.

"Sykkunooo" you whined, when he kept laughing, "How the fuck do I change it now?"

"Um wait, sykkuno who is this?" asked Rae, the other three echoing her. You glanced at the names and from the voices figured out that it was Rae, Toast, Sean and Corpse in the lobby.

"Hey okay, so guys this is my sister, her names y/n and we recently moved in together, so I asked her to be in the lobby because... um.." he said stuttering at the end to find a reason.

"Because he wanted to embarrass me apparently!" you exclaimed, giving him a way out.

"Oh god, um - you can change it in settings, at the bottom near where your name is."

"Ahhh," you said finding it and then simply typing in your art business name.

"Its nice to meet everyone by the way," you started. "I've been watching your videos for ages so it almost fels like I already know you"

Raes voice started in your ears and you winced at the volume befoe turning it down a bit.

"I would love to say that Sykkuno has told us a lot about you, but the truth is that he keeps a lot of secrets and I didnt even know he had a sister, I AM SO SHOCKED RIGHT NOW"

You gasped. "Sykkuno what the fuck, you didn't even tell Rae?"

"You told me not to tell a lot of people!" he protested.

You heard someone saying "they're so different!' but you ignored it and kept talking.

"Yeah at the start! and on stream! I can't believe you never even said you had a sister." you spluttered out, followed by another gasp.

"Are you embarrassed of me?" you whispered dramatically.

"N-What no of course not!" he exclaimed, and you could also imagine how wide his eyes would have gotten.

You giggled before telling him that you were only joking.

"Um since sykkuno is embarrassed of me," you said jokingly, "I'll just tell you myself."

"I'm like five years younger than sykkuno, I'm a June baby, I do art, my star sign is cancer, I'm 5'4, I recently moved in with sykkuno, and my favourite colour is purple!"

"Oh is that why your username is junefarie? Because you were born in June?" asked Sean.

Before you could say yes, someone else cut in.

"Wait, junefarie?" asked corpse, "like the artist?"

Your eyes widened as you realised that he knew you. Sure you had quite a few followers, but you never expected any of Sykkunos friends to know you from there.

"Um yeah," you said letting out a shocked laugh, "I didnt expect anyone here to know about me."

"Dude, your art is fire!" he exclaimed, voice louder now. "I was honestly thinking of buying a piece soon, I've followed you for ages!"

"Wait, I wanna see as well." whined Rae, "Ima look you up, are you on Instagram?"

"Um," you said still shocked by the fact that somone this big knew you. "yeah I'm on instagram, its just junefarie." you said first replying to Rae, "Um corpse, thankyou so much! thats so nice of yo!"

"Um my art isn't that great yet," you chuckled, embarrassed by all the attention now. "I'm hoping to improve a lot more and I have a bunch of ideas for it as well. I'm hoping to work more now that I moved in with Sy."

"Oh my god, this is amazing," whispered Rae, Toast and Sean echoing her. You ducked your head even though no one could see you. Your cheeks were blazing hot and you pressed your hands to them to cool yourself down.

"Thankyou," you mumbled, not sure what to say.

Someone else entered the lobby, and said "hi" and you welcomed the source of distraction.

"Hi! I'm Sykkunos sister, y/n!" you said , wanting to move away from the topic of your art.

The reply of "sykkuno has a SISTER?" made everyone laugh, successfully moving the attention to Sykkuno and off your art. Finally Sykkuno started the game and you breathed as you lost yourself in the art of gaming.

"OH MY GOD!" yelled Rae as the game ended and everyone appeared in the lobby. "That was like amazing, Y/N I cant belive you pulled that off!"

She was talking about the last game where there was 50/50 between corpse and Sykkuno (because you refused to kill sykkuno when you were imposter) and you somehow managed to convince Sykkuno that it was Corpse.

"Honestly, neither can I!" you exclaimed back staring at your screen, eyes blurring the screen because of how tired you were.

"I can't believe Sykkuno," mumbled corpse. "I literally said I saw her vent and kill toast and Sykkuno was still like "hmmm, I don't think so."

Giggling at Sykkunos yell of "SHES MY SISTER" you yelled out a bye as everyone started leaving and then struggled to find a way to end the call.

"Wait, how do I end it," you muttered to yourself.

You jumped as Corpse talked, not expecting anyone to be there.

"You can see yoru name at the bottom left right? Its above that but a little to the right." he said chucling a little.

"Oh." you said, you cheeks heating up. You didnt know if it was because of him or because you were utterly useless with technology.

"Um thankyou," you said awkwardly.

"No problem."

You exited out of the call, a small smile at your lips.

Sykkunos friends were nice.

~

After the stream, your fanbase grew, and with it, the number of orders as well. For the next week, you were buried under orders, only leaving the house to go to the post office.

An Instagram post on @junefarie account: 

[ID: A photo of y/n and sykkuno standing in the middle of the living room, packages scattered everywhere. Y/n is hugging Sykkuno tight and Sykkuno is staring at the camera, a distressed look on his face.]

Caption: Thankyou so much for all my supporters and all the love shown to me. Sending out loads of orders and I cant wait for you gusy to get yours! Special thanks to @sykkuno for helping me send out orders. luv yu.

Comments: 

@Sykisacutie: best sibling duo!

@valkyrae: hope my order is in their as well.

→ I SCREAMED WHEN SY TOLD ME THAT WAS YOUR NAME.

@corpse_husband: sykkuno looks like he's accepted death.

→ @sykkuno: I would have welcomed death at that point

→ @corpse_husband @sykkuno: okay ill be honest, I would have welcomed death as well.

@ariesin: go best friend, go! we need to get together to paint soon !!

→ SOONNNNNN

~

You flopped onto your bed, every part of your body hurting. Carrying boxes filled with orders down the stairs had tired your whole body, which wasn't used to any exercise at all. That had taken practically the whole day and then you had to clean your room because the mess from the orders had barely left any room to move. You flung your hand to the side, grabbing your phone from the table and bringing it up to your face. The "1:02" was clearly visible on your screen and you unlocked the phone, heading to Twitter. Scrolling through your feed, you liked a few tweets from friends before gearing yourself up and moving to the messages. Ever since you'd played with Corpse, Sykkuno and everyone, you'd been getting a lot of messages. Most of them were just the streamers fans, asking you if you know them or telling you to take care of sykkuno. There were a few though that targeted you, telling you that your art sucked, that they didn't know why Corpse could like my art. You'd taken to deleting them before sleeping so that your inbox wouldn't get cluttered and you could still find any serious requests or messages from your followers. Therefore, you didn't really think anything of it when there was another message from someone with a Corpse icon and you clicked on it only to see the message and gasp, immediately sitting up in bed.

Corpse_Husband → Hey, I was wondering if I could work with you on something? I really love your art and was wanting to commission or collaborate for an album cover or some merch designs. Message me on this number cuz I barely see my dms.

Underneath was a number.

"Oh my god," you whispered, unsure as to what to do.

When you had decided to drop out of college, you had expected hard days. You had expected your normal orders and mostly just improving your art and marketing it more. You had expected long days and not much money in the bank account. You certainly had not expected the immense amount of orders you'd gotten. Along with that, the amount of love and support had taken you by surprise and you had spent the last night crying because of how much love you and your art were getting.

You had also not expected such a big opportunity just landing at your feet.

Quickly you clicked on the number, putting it in your contacts with the name Corpse and then writing a quick message.

"Hey I got your twitter dm! I've personally never done art for merch or album covers but I would love the opportunity!"

You bit your lip, confused as to whether that was enough before deciding it was fine and just sent it.

Your heart beat a little faster as you slumped back onto the bed.

~

@junefarie Instagram story:

[ID: A zoomed-in picture of a drawing, the only part that was visible was curly hair. The text read: "Working on something SO COOL"]

~

Your phone was ringing. Stuffing the rest of the pizza in your mouth, you swept your hand over the covers of your bed, trying to find it. With a muttered "aha", you grabbed it and swiped on the call before it ended. Pressing the phone to your ear, you mumbled a "hello", still chewing the pizza bite.

A low rapsy voice came out of the speaker, one that you definitely didn't expect. You choked on the pizza, coughing out pieces onto the bed.  Sure you guys had messaged each other a bit (you kinda had to because of the commission), but you hadn't expected him to call out of nowhere.

"Um I hope this isn't a bad time," he said when you didn't respond for a second. Of course, he didn't exactly know that hearing his voice so close to your ear had you frozen for a second.

"Um no," you replied, coughing slightly to clear your throat. "It's fine! What did you wanna talk about?"

"Oh, um I know you're already working on the commission and its looking great! I can't wait to work with the merch team to create something really cool with it, but um-" he broke off for a second sounding hesitant. "I really wanna get another commission done as well."

"Oh?" you said after a second when he didn't reply. "I'd be happy to do another one for you!"

"Uh yeah, but I'm afraid that I might be a bit late, You see I was wondering if it could be done before Christmas?"

You sucked in a breath as you counted the days in your mind.

"Hmm, it depends on how big it is tbh. There's still 2 weeks to go till Christmas so I could fit it in," you mumbled, biting your lip as you remembered the onslaught of orders you still had to send out.

"Well," he started and you smiled a little as the excitement crept into his voice. "You know that Sykkuno, Rae, Toast and me are called the 4 Amigops right? I kinda wanted a portrait of all 4 of us, in our um among us colors, and I basically wanted to print it out and send to each of them for Christmas."

"Aww, that sounds like such a good idea, I'm sure they'll all love it!" you smiled, thinking about how much Sykkuno would appreciate that.

"Uh thanks," he mumbled, "do you think you can get it done?"

"Sure!" you replied immediately. You did have a lot of orders, yes, but like, you could fit Corpse in. If you pulled a few all-nighters. "I'll send you the sketches soon okay?"

"Oh thank god, thankyu so much for this y/n, I really appreciate it. Youre one of my favourite artists and I'm really happy that I could finally commisison you after so long."

"So long?" you questioned. "Since when have you known about my art?"

There was a moment of silence and then "Um, around the time you still posted your sketches and stuff I guess?"

You furrowed your eyebrows thinking for a second before letting out a gasp.

"Corpse that was 4 years ago!"

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, oh my god, I cant believe you've seen those, I was so bad then!"

"No no, they were really good at that time as well! I was so shocked when Sykkuno told us you were his sister because like, I'd been following you for ages and I had absolutely no idea. You guys are like really different."

"Hah yah, Sykkunos so soft, and then there's me. An actual devil."

"Your usernames so different as well! I remember when I first saw a picture of you on your account and I was kind of shocked because based on the name junefarie, I was expecting someone very soft I guess but then you were literally the opposite and wearing actual devil horns."

"Oh god, that was one of the first few photos I posted of myself. that was on Halloween I think,", you took a deep breath still shocked that Corpse had known about you for that long,

"Yeah, I chose junefarie because...”

It was 2 hours later when Corpse said that he should probably be working on his music.

"Oh I'm so sorry," you apologized, "I didn't mean to keep you,"

"Oh no, I um, I liked talking to you."

Your breath caught for a moment and you smiled like a lunatic at your Pokémon covered bedsheets.

"I liked talking to you as well," you whispered out, heart sinking a little as you realized the call would be ending soon.

"Um, do you, maybe want to stay on call? like I'll just be writing and we can just chill?" he asked and you felt like your prayers had been answered.

"yes" you said quickly, not giving him a chance to back out.

He chuckled, and you fell in love a little.

Just a little.

~

You continued like that, calling each other every few days, talking so much and then at times, not talking at all, simply content with each others company.

He had even started facetiming you, the first time with a mask and then the second without it. You hadn't made a big deal about it, but the first time you saw him, you could barely breathe.

There were five days left until Christmas when you got the idea.

You were entirely not subtle about it, because, well to be honest, there wasn't a subtle bone in your body.

"Hey Corpse, do you like surprises?" you had asked, in the middle of colouring Raes hair (her hair was the last thing left before you could finally print the goddamn thing)

"It depends," he had murmured after a second, voice sending shivers down your spine like every time. Now whether that was because of his voice or because of him, you weren't entirely sure.

"on what?" you prodded when he refused to answer.

"On whether its a good one or a bad one" he had huffed out.

You had hummed, waited for a second and then blurted out that next question because you did not have a cent of patience.

"So what are you doing at Christmas?"

"Sleeping, if I can manage it," he replied, his voice taking on a sardonic tone, eyes flicking to you on the screen. The only thing he could see though was the top of your head because you had your iPad on the bed and were laying over it as you drew.

"Not with that attitude you aren't," you replied right back, making a small smile appear across his face.

"Hmmm, okay!" you said when he didn't reply.

He looked back over, eyebrows furrowed and mouth opening as he started to question you.

"Hey did you see the video I sent you?" you quickly asked distracting him from his question.

He would probably guess the surprise but that was okay. You only wanted to make a smile appear on his face. And honestly, for someone with anxiety, a small warning of a surprise was definitely needed.

~

It was Christmas day and you woke Sykkuno up at 6 in the morning with the promise that you'd buy him McDonald's. 30 minutes later, you were both in the car, yelling the lyrics to "All I want for Christmas" at the top of your lungs.

You had told sykkuno of your plan a few days ago and he had smiled at you with that stupid smile, agreeing with a small "alright."

You'd immediately realised that he knew. Even though you pretended otherwise, Sykkuno was the older one and the thing about older siblings was that they always knew.

They always knew.

So there you were, snacks loaded into your car, McDonald's fries practically everywhere, and a cake you had made in the backseat, on your way to Corpses house.

There was a lull in the music, and you were only 30 minutes away from his place, butterflies fluttering in your stomach when Sykkuno asked you a question.

"You like him right?" he murmured, head leaning against the window, eyes closed.

There was a moment of silence as you thought about what to say. Did you like Corpse? Of course, you liked Corpse! He was funny, he was nice, he made you feel like you were the only person that mattered and your heart beat faster than ever whenever he looked at you. Hell, that was through a screen, in real life, it would probably be even worse. So of course you liked him! The question was, did he like you back?

"Yeah," you answered Sykkuno, eyes straight on the road.

A second passed and then he smiled. "Good," he replied. and well. That was that. You sighed.

At least you had your brothers blessing.

~

Pulling into the apartment building, you breathed in, your heart beating a million times a second and the butterflies in your stomach had turned into snakes. Maybe, maybe this wasn't a good idea at all. I mean, you expected Corpse to get the hint but what if he didn't? and what if he didn't want you to come? Maybe you were being too quick. After all, It'd only been a month since you'd met.

These thoughts plagued your mind as you trudged up the stairs, turning to Sykkuno as you reached the door.

"Maybe we shouldn't have come," you whispered to him.

He looked at you, eyebrows high, "We just travelled two hours to get here. There's no way im going back without at least giving him the print."

"What if he doesn't want us to be here?" you hissed.

"Then we'll go away." he stated, "after we give him the print."

"But what if-"

Before you could even finish your sentence, the door opened and you both jumped, turning to face the person standing in the doorway.

You forced yourself to breathe as you finally saw him. It was him. Wearing a black beanie, half his hair spilling out the sides, stubble clear on his chin... it was him. At that moment, there was only one thought in your mind.

You were gonna marry this man.

"You suck at whispering," he said, and you huffed out a laugh, jumping onto him without even responding. You wrapped your arms around him, not letting go until Sykkuno cleared his throat from behind you.

You turned back immediately, grabbing the stuff in Sykkunos hands so he could greet Corpse too. As they awkwardly did their handshake/fistbump thing, you walked over to the couch behind them, putting down the print and the takeaway bags, and putting the cakebox down on the table.

You turned around to see them both standing there staring at you.

"Surprise?" you said when no one else spoke. That broke the ice a little and you grabbed the print from the couch thrusting it at Corpse.

"Open it. Open it. Open it." you mumbled, your heart beating fast as he carefully ripped the paper off. The smile that overtook his face made your heart immediately calm.

"It's beautiful," he whispered, eyes roaming everywhere, trying to take it all in. Clearing his throat, he nodded his head further into the apartment, mumbling that he was going to put it in the room, eyes still on the print as he walked there.

"You smile is gonna blind me," muttered Sykkuno.

"Oh shut up."

~

A few hours later, you stood in the kitchen, putting the leftover cake into Corpses fridge. You had all chilled, eating cake and the takeout that you and sykkuno had bought, laughing every few minutes. It felt like you were all on an adrenaline rush. You had facetimed Rae and Toast, Rae shrieking when she realised where you guys were. Sykkuno had just fallen into a nap, still tired from being wakened up so early, you assumed.

You leaned against the kitchen bench, smiling as Corpse walked in.

"Thankyou." he said as he came to a stop next to you, matching your position.

"For what?" you mused, even though you had a good enough idea.

"For the print. For coming here. For making my Christmas, a much happier affair than it has been my whole life." he stated, chuckling at the last point.

You turned your head sideways, and you didn't know what it was, but something about his face made you spurn into action. You grabbed his collar, pulled him down, and kissed him before he could even say anything. It would be too cliche to say that fireworks erupted. And if you were being honest they didn't. Instead, it felt like everything was finally right. You fit perfectly in his arms as they wrapped themselves around you, and you smiled into the kiss as he lifted you up, making you sit at the counter. You twirled the hair at the nape of his neck with your left hand, taking a deep breath in as you both slowed down and pulled away.

"Well," he whispered, "that was unexpected."

You raised a single eyebrow. Honesty you'd done a lot for this relationship. You just drove for nearly 3 hours! If he wanted it to progress, he was gonna have to say it himself.

"But not unwelcome," he continued when you didn't speak. A moment passed, where you could see that he was psyching himself up to say something. Finally, with a heaving sigh, he whispered  "Darling, would you do me the honour of being called yours?"

You melted right there.

A nod was all he needed before he grabbed your lips with his again, both of you giggling when he accidentally hit the side of your mouth instead of the lips.

The sound of a picture being taken filled the air, making you spring apart and swing your heads over to the doorway, which had sykkuno leaning against it, his phone in his hand.

"Thank god. Rae and Toast bet that you wouldn't confess until after Christmas, so now they both owe me 20 bucks." he said, now fiddling on the phone. "Dont worry Corpse, I'll add a circle over your face or something."

Your mouth dropped open as you stared at your brother.

"You bet on my love life?" you scoffed, still shocked.

At his nod though, you swung off the bench, marching until you were eye to eye to him.

"I want half the winnings."

Rolling his eyes, he turned back to the living room, jumping onto the sofa.

"C'mon, let's watch one more episode before heading back," he said and you jumped in next to him, patting the space next to you as Corpse came in behind you.

You grabbed Sykkunos hand and squeezed it, letting him know that you were grateful that he didn't make it such a big deal. Leaning your head on corpses shoulder, you smiled to yourself.

You'd have to leave in 30 minutes, to drive back to your parents and spend the rest of Christmas with them, leaving Corpse behind. And that made you a bit sad sure, but it couldn't overpower the feeling of pure happiness at being here. At giving him a happier Christmas. You smiled as he pressed a kiss to the top of your head.

Nothing could overpower this feeling of absolute happiness.

fin.

Corpse husband taglist:  @mythicalamphitrite @ramble-writes @atsumubabe @anxiouskat5646 @itssierramcquade @xaestheticalien @jotaroslightning @starstruckllamapuppy @gxldenskiez @shinyshimaagain @cavanana @fee-btheweeb (send an ask to be added!)

[johannstutt413]

(requested by coldgoldlazarus)

“Hey, Rope, question.” Vanilla approached the Cautus while they were both working the northern trading post. “Did you grab a bottle of pills from my pocket earlier?”

“Maybe? Hang on...No, I’ve just got mine in my pocket.” She gave the Vouivre a thumbs-up after patting herself down.

The Vanguard reached into her bag and pulled out a prescription bottle. “You might want to check the label, because these aren’t Biggie’s stomach meds.”

“They aren’t?” She read the label on her bottle. “Oh, okay, so those are my- Oh! Oh, no...”

“It’s fine - I’m just glad we checked before you had to get your stomach pumped, and Biggie melted through his home again. Honestly, it’s really impressive you took them in the first place and remembered to give them back. I remember the last time you accidentally took my wallet and I had to ask Liz to cover lunch for me.”

Rope sighed. “Yeah, that’s good, it’s just...I didn’t want anyone to know, you know? Being infected is one thing, but if people knew, they might look at me differently.”

“...If they knew what?” The Vouivre cocked her head. “I think I’m missing something.”

“Wait, so you didn’t read the bottle?”

Vanilla was steadily getting more confused. “No, I read it, but I don’t know what it is. What do you take Aldactone for? It’s not a migraine medication, is it?”

“No, it definitely isn’t that.” She couldn’t help but chuckle a little at that; she’d forgotten who she was talking to. Telling her couldn’t hurt at this point. “It’s part of my hormone therapy so I can, uh...be the me on the outside I am on the inside, if that makes sense?”

“Not really?” The Vouivre was quick to admit.

To be fair, the Cautus never knew how to answer questions like this. “I’m a woman, but my body doesn’t match - or at least, it didn’t until I met Aak.”

“Oh!” A few puzzle pieces clicked together in her mind. “Now I get it.”

“Good, cuz I don’t know if I could find another way to explain it,” she sighed, relieved.

That didn’t mean that was her last question, though. “Do you not like talking about it?”

“No, I don’t.” For exactly this reason, honestly. “People start asking me all kinds of questions about it, and I just wanna be me, you know? That’s the whole reason I have to worry about the pills and stuff.”

“Right, sorry. I, uh, won’t ask anything else.”

Rope looked at her for a moment before sighing again. “You have a lot of questions, don’t you?”

“Yeah.” Vanilla visibly relaxed. “I don’t want to bother you, though.”

“...Tell you what: buy me dinner, and I’ll answer a couple questions, whatever you’ve got. Sound good?”

That did perk the Vouivre’s interest, and, somewhat unexpectedly, a bit of a blush, too. “I’d like that, yeah. Tonight or...”

“Sure, if you don’t have plans.” That was a very enthusiastic no, apparently. “Cool. Well, I’m gonna take a break, so talk to you later!”

“Uh-huh!” Once she’d left, Vanilla let herself start breathing rapidly before pulling out her phone to text Franka. She had a favor she needed to ask.

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

About an hour after dinner service opened in the cafeteria, Rope got a message from Vanilla saying she was on her way; that’d given the Cautus enough time to pick out something to wear - something without pockets, to keep herself from stealing as much stuff as she might with places to put it - and psyche herself up for a kind of awkward conversation with someone she worked with and hung out with at a couple of parties but didn’t talk to all that much otherwise. Still, that put her in the Top Ten on her “friends and associates” list, since Rope didn’t really talk a lot, period, and she was so innocent and soft...Would’ve been a good mark back in the day, honestly. Course, if she tried anything serious these days, Dobermann would chew her head off, and who knows what Blacksteel would do to her…

Ding-dong! That was her cue. The Cautus gave herself one last once-over and opened the door. “Evening, Va...Vanilla.” Holy shit, she cleaned up well.

“Good evening.” The Vouivre looked more than a little out of her element, admittedly, but that just added to the charm. “I, uh, already got us a table at a place, if that’s alright?”

“Hey, I came in from off the streets; anything’s good enough for me.” True, she did have a couple preferences, but since her...since Vanilla was paying, it wasn’t going to be an issue. What was this, exactly? And wait, didn’t this imply she’d make reservations somewhere? Like people did on dates in movies or whatever?

Doing her best not to jump to conclusions, Rope walked with Vanilla to a nice-looking Siracusan place not too far from her apartment. “This place looks nice, but you didn’t have to spoil me.”

“I know, but uh...I wanted to.” Since there was no way in hell she could be nonchalant about this, she was just going to be as genuine as possible. “We’re at a corner booth, and they aren’t too busy tonight, so we won’t have people listening in on us.”

“Well, well, I didn’t expect you to think of that. Sorry, that sounded meaner than I meant it to be.”

The Vouivre shrugged. “It’s fine - I know people don’t expect it from me. Um, are we drinking tonight, do you think?”

“It’s your money, not mine,” the Cautus replied, “but it’ll probably help if I have a lil’ wine.”

“That works. Excuse me, reservation for 2 for Vanilla?” And with that, their dinner date began.

Once they’d been seated, given a bottle of wine to start with, and ordered their meals, Rope took the lead. “So, you’ve got at least a couple questions for me, right? Wanna make this worth the cash you’re spending on me, after all.”

“How did you know?” That was the most interesting question to her. “Your body says one thing, your heart says another, how do you know which one’s right?”

“I mean, you don’t eat the wrapper, you eat the candy, right? Took some time to figure out why I felt so uncomfortable just, well, being, but as soon as I did, I knew what I wanted to do. Problem is, it’s kinda expensive to get the medications and the surgery and stuff, so for someone stealing just to eat every day, there wasn’t a lot I could do. Then I met Aak, and he helped me out a lot before I got locked up - he’s actually the one who gets me my prescriptions here, too - but I lost some progress since they wouldn’t let me take my meds in prison. The Doctor got me out of there, though, and now I have all the support I need. Sorry, that was more than you asked for.”

Vanilla smiled. “That’s alright; I wanted to ask about all of it. You know, I really had no idea. I mean, even up close, you’re so pretty, I’d never have guessed...”

“Thanks, I think.” Something about that smile raised a question in the Cautus’ mind, so she decided to try and confirm her suspicions. “Where’d you buy that dress, by the way? It looks really good on you.”

“Oh, thank you! Croissant’s resale shop, they might not have another one, but she sells a lot of good stuff for reasonable prices.” It helped that she had a concrete answer, but there was no hiding how happy the Vouivre was to receive that compliment.

Which gave Rope the confidence she needed to say, “It looks like it’s pretty easy to take off, too.”

“Yeah, it’s only got the one strap that...” Vanilla realized what’d happened when the Cautus started giggling. “I was going to ask for help with that later, but I guess you beat me to the punch.”

“If I ever had doubts I was a woman, I definitely don’t right now.”

Now the Vouivre was bright red. “Am I really that obvious?”

“You don’t wear a sign or anything,” Rope replied, still smiling genuinely, “but the way you’ve been looking at me tonight was enough.”

“Yeah, I guess I, um, have been staring...Does this count as a date?”

Rope nodded, having thought she’d regained her composure but finding more giggles to release. “It does now. Oh, man. This was the idea from the beginning, right?”

“I was going to ask you out when I went to give you your meds back,” Vanilla admitted, “so when you asked me to take you out, it was kind of perfect.”

“Wow. I played right into your hands, huh?” The Cautus hadn’t done something like that since she’d tried to pick Miss Swire’s pocket all those months ago - the thing that’d gotten her locked up, actually.

She shrugged. “You kind of did, yeah. We should probably eat our food before it gets too much colder.”

“Shit, how long have we been talking? I lost track.” The ex-thief cut into her steak, watching it bleed with a satisfied smile. “Nice and rare. Oh, sorry, you’re an animal-person, right?”

“W-well, as long as they’re raised humanely, being used for protein isn’t the worst thing that could happen to them. I mean, slugs eat meat, too, although Biggie’s actually doing really well on the low-meat high-protein diet I have him on.” At the mention of her beloved pet, her eyes lit up.

Rope leaned forward. “I’ve seen you driving him around base in a stroller before. You really love him, don’t you?”

“He’s so precious, how could you not!” And as planned, she was off. “Oh, you should have seen him the other day...”

What’d started off with an awkward moment in the trading post was quickly shaping up to be the best night either of them had had in awhile; as the Vouivre began regaling her with stories of her precious pet slugs, the Cautus ate her meal, paying close attention. Vanilla would’ve made an easy mark, it was true, but looking at her now, that was the last thing on Rope’s mind, even though she had plenty of thoughts on what she could do with her...

[yuthoe]

Day 10: Paint Me (PENTAGON: Kino)

OH MY LORD THIS TURNED OUT LONGER THAN I PLANNED AND IT'S 12:30AM HERE, BUT IM JUST GONNA POST IT AND ADD THE REST OF THE TAGS LATER

anyway, today's prompt from this list is

Day 10: Meet Cute

and the scenario of reaching out for the same thing at the same time just would not leave my head lmao. so have this haha, it took me a surprisingly short time to finish, but the only reason im posting this on the 11th is that i was procrastinating

PAIRING: Kino/Kang Hyunggu x reader. GENRE: fic, fluff. WARNINGS: none. WORD COUNT: 1,389.

---

Art Bar is four hours away from your apartment, and therefore a luxury you only indulge in every few months, when you have a free day or two. It’s also an excuse for you to splurge and get new art supplies—your favorite brush broke last week and you’ve run out of green paint for the landscape piece you’ve been working on.

But also there’s this really high quality sketchbook they started selling recently and you desperately want one. You’d been eyeing it for the past month, sighing wistfully every time an ad for it crossed your feed on social media.

The faint smell of coffee slips past your nose as you push past the glass doors, and you take a look at the overhead menu of the cafe corner by the entrance, making a mental note to get a latte after you do your shopping. You hook a metal shopping basket on your elbow and head in.

The first stop is the brushes, and you quickly look through the choices for the exact ones that broke, and another finer brush as replacement for the one that’s currently losing a lot of hair. You eye one of the more expensive options, biting your lip and considering getting one, but you’re probably not going to end up using it for fear of wearing out the bristles.

You quickly look away and head for the oil paints, running through the really good selection, and pluck out a green, white, and black tube, along with a pink for the flowers. The pile of canvases off to the side catch your eye and lure you over, immediately taking a 24cm round canvas, just about the size of a small platter and perfect for an experimental circular piece.

The voice inside your head is screaming at you to mind your spending, but your sense of reason and all self-control get left at the door whenever you step into the store. The copic markers are teasing you, sitting docilely in their neatly organized shelves, and the section of the store dedicated solely for Faber Castell tools further entices you to grab a whole colored pencils set and just run away with it.

But you sigh deeply, stroke the row of pencils longingly and whisper, “Soon, my lovelies…”

You look around for that sketchbook that’s been haunting your waking moments, finally spotting it by the cash registers and beelining for it.

There’s one sample left open and you run your fingertips over the page, testing the smoothness of the paper, the thickness of every page, and inspect the ones filled out with watercolor, charcoal, and regular graphite. The more you look at it, the more you desperately want it.

Alas, it’s expensive, and you can’t afford a really big one right now, especially with the other tools in your basket that need to be purchased, so you go for the next smaller size instead.

A hand meets yours as you reach for the pad, and you jerk back. The owner of the hand recoils as well and says, “Oh, I’m sorry—were you about to get that?”

Oh, he’s cute, you think, dumbly nodding at his question. “Ah, yeah… But it’s okay, you can take it.”

He tilts his head, brows furrowing slightly and chestnut hair falling over his pretty eyes. He’s carrying his own shopping basket, loaded with a few small rectangular canvases, a bunch of copic markers, brushes, and a watercolor tin. “Are you sure? I think you were reaching for it first, though. And it’s the last one on display.”

You shake your head. “No, it’s fine, it’s fine. I’m pretty sure they have more at the back anyway, ‘cuz this brand has gotten pretty good reviews lately.”

“Ah yeah, that’s true,” he replies, wagging a finger at you. “I’ve seen a lot of reviews of it on YouTube, and I’ve been wanting one so bad.” He giggles, looking at the sketchbook fondly.

“I totally get it, I’ve been saving up for one for a while, too.” You smile at him. “That’s why I’m saying you should just take it, they probably have more in stock.”

He hums, thinking it over, but the allure of the sketchbook is too strong and he says, “Well, if you insist, I’ll gladly take it.” He picks up the last packaged sketchbook and slides it next to the canvases in his basket. “Thanks for this,” he says as you both move to the register.

It takes a while for him to pay for his items and you look around the frames displayed behind the counter as you wait. After around five minutes, the man steps aside with a hug bag, cradling it like a child. You see him move to admire the Faber Castell section nearby as you step forward with your basket.

“Excuse me,” you ask the cashier as you set the basket on the countertop. “Is there any more of the A4 size of that new sketchbook?”

“I’ll check our inventory for you,” she cheerily says, typing in a code in the computer and looking at it briefly before turning back to you. “Oh, I’m sorry, it seems like the last A4 one was just purchased. The next restock won’t be for another week or two. If you want, we can get your number and notify you when our stock is replenished.”

You can’t help but feel a bit down at the cashier’s answer—you have been waiting for weeks to get one, and who knows now when you’ll be able to stop by here again?

“No, it’s okay,” you say and gesture to the basket. “Just these then, please.”

The transaction is smooth and soon enough you’re clutching a paper bag of your own and heading for the cafe corner to get that latte—and a cupcake because you want to feel slightly better about the situation.

Sketchbook Guy is there too, his lavender patterned cardigan contrasting with the green diamonds wallpaper in the most complementary way. He turns to go to the claiming area and sees you, waves with a tight smile on his face.

You reply with a smile and order at the counter quickly, and step aside to wait for your coffee and pastry beside Sketchbook Guy.

There’s an awkward silence between you, until he finally blurts out, “Okay, I couldn’t help but overhear the cashier lady earlier.” He rummages in his paper bag and takes out the coveted sketchbook, holding it out to you. “Please have this. You said you were saving up for it for a while.”

“No, I can’t,” you say, waving your hand to decline him. “You already paid for it, and I told you to take it, anyway.”

Sketchbook Guy smiles, nudging the book closer to you. “Please. I insist. And if it’s the payment you’re concerned about, you can pay me back. With coffee, or something.”

You scoff. “This costs way more than one cup of coffee.”

He’s nodding before you’re even finished speaking. “Yeah, I know.” There’s a mischievous purse to his lips and your brows knit for a moment before you register his words and feel a heat rise to your cheeks.

“Ah… uh… I mean, sure? Okay?” you stammer, taking the sketchbook with both hands and looking at it before meeting his eyes again. “I live quite far from here, though, so—I don’t know—maybe we can, like, schedule something?”

He smiles even wider. “Yeah, of course. Here, I’ll give you my number.” He holds a hand out and you pass your phone to him. Long fingers tap on the screen and you hear a soft piano a moment later.

“Here you go,” he says, handing your phone back. You peek at the screen, at the new contact simply named Hyunggu, and the string of numbers underneath it. “Now you know my name and number, and we can talk about when you can buy me that coffee.”

This dude has got to be the smoothest and most charming guy you’ve ever met, and it’s leaving you flustered and amused at the same time. You’re basically left with no choice but to go along with him, but you don’t even mind it.

“Okay,” you say, nodding and pocketing your phone as your drink and to-go bag arrive. “My name’s Y/N. I’ll message you later about that coffee.”

[if-found-return-to-gusu]

Drunken Shenanigans

(First off, sorry that this isn’t broken up into parts. I don’t know. Maybe you guys prefer it in one long chunk anyway? Well whatever. I’m too lazy RN but let me know your preference maybe for future stories? Cuz like. Y’all know how long winded I am.)

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

FUCK OKAY JUST

FUCKING DO IT WEI YING

ENOUGH PUTTING OFF THINGS.

I want to tell things in order. Or as close as I can remember. But I’m gonna be honest. The fire fucked me up. And I know that each story brings me closer to having to talk about it. 

But I think I have to talk about it. 

So

Let’s see. Drunk Lan Zhan. 

I WANT to talk about that because in retrospect it was fucking hilarous. 

But I haven’t been able to because I’m just all sorts of fucked up right now. 

But I think a way to get me less fucked up is to just start unwinding the pieces.

And honestly, writing helped before so I think it’ll help now. 

It’s just that starting has been difficult. 

So I’m just gonna rip off the bandage. 

I’m just gonna start. 

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

So it was Friday. Fuck. Already a month ago?? Jesus I’m late. 

Okay A month ago today. Friday. 

Let me gather my thoughts. 

What was I doing? I think I was at home. Doesn’t really matter. 

I got a text from Lan Zhan. Not completely unusual, but I knew he’d had plans to meet his family earlier. I think I was surprised that he was texting me so early in the evening? I remember expecting to hear from him later..

Er.. no wait I think I was going to text him around 9. To at least check in on him and wish him a good night. But he texted me first. 

I’m scrolling back through my phone. What exactly did he text? I know it was like… wrong right away.

Oh yeah. It was my name 3 times in a row. Or almost. The first two times were mistyped. And then after he got it right he apologized for the misspellings. 

I asked him what was wrong and…. String of martini glass emojis? Oh man he was GONE already wasn’t he?

SO obviously I booked it over there. Remember going through a few different apps to figure out which company would get me there the fastest because I sure as shit wasn’t gonna leave him there alone.

Looking back maybe I should have called someone else? His brother could have gotten there faster. I think I didn’t want him to worry. I figured if this was the state that Lan Zhan was in after meeting with his uncle, then Lan Xichen probably wasn’t in the best state either. 

I should have checked up on him too but I didn’t. I was too worried about Lan Zhan. 

I really should have checked in on him.

Maybe it’s not too late? Who takes care of Lan Xichen when Lan Zhan is fucked up? 

Okay that’s not right. Fucked up isn’t right. Lan Zhan… Lan Zhan has issues, I know he does. After all he is, surprisingly enough, still human. But he manages them so much better than I do. 

I’m fucked up. Not him. 

So let’s rephrase. Who helps Lan Xichen when his little brother is also upset? I know he was, is?, dating Jin GuangYao? Though he doesn’t talk about it much. I’ve met the man in passing a couple times. Doesn’t seem the most comforting.

Though I guess there’s DaGe too. I remember he took pretty good care of him at my birthday. 

Is it wrong to want to make Lan Xichen split up with Jin Guangyao so that I can set him up with DaGe? I just think they’d be cute together. 

Ah not that I’m in any place to do that. See above; I’m fucked up. I should untangle my own love life before I try to poke holes in someone else’s. 

And… maybe I shouldn’t be talking about these things on my blog?

Ah fuck it. I’ve said more personal stuff here already and none of you know anyone I’m talking about anyway except Ghosty and… Idk. I trust Ghosty. 

Can’t help it. I just trust them. 

Anyway

Anywaaaaayyyyy where was I?

Fuck these tangents. Are they worse than before? Or have I always been like this? I should re-read my old posts but somehow I’m scared to. I don’t want to look at where I was right now. I feel like so much has happened… am I even that person?

I don’t know why looking back scares me. Probably old defense mechanisms. Probably why I can’t remember anything before I was 10 too. Mmm. I should look back. I don’t want to forget.

But I think I’m afraid that I’ll… I don’t know… Either miss or hate who I was. If I miss who I was what will I do? I can’t go back to it. You can’t go back to what you were. 

But if I hate who I was…. Well I hate who I am so I guess there isn’t much difference….

Shelf that.

Fuck. My complaining about going off on tangents became a tangent. 

Where Was I???

Okay. So I carted my ass over to Lan Zhan’s, thinking not for the first time that maybe I should just fucking learn how to drive???????????

But whatever. I got there pretty quick. 

I knocked on the door, heard some concerning bangs and then silence. 

Knocked again and called out his name. 

Think I heard him again… swearing????? But it was muffled so I can’t be sure. 

Shame.

Haha

So I decided to do what he told me to do before and just use my damn key. 

I mean… it’s not breaking and entering right? And besides. He texted me. That… meant he wanted to see me right? At the very least even if he didn’t it was for his sake. Totally not at all because I was curious what he’s like when he’s drunk. 

Nope. Not a factor. Purely just wanted to make sure he was okay. Absolutely innocent. 

(You know that’s a lie. I REALLY wanted to see what he’s like when he’s drunk. But I DID also want to make sure he was okay. So really, win win. Or… True neutral in intent? IDK but I think they cancel each other out.)

So I very carefully opened the door and peered inside to find…. An empty apartment. 

The lights were off in the entry way, but I could see something down the hall and around the corner. Turns out that he was in the living room with a lamp and a bit of a mess. 

He’d knocked over the bottle of wine when I knocked. Apparently I startled him? And then when I knocked again… ???

I’m not sure. 

But he was somehow tangled in his own pant legs? They were comfy pants and a bit flowy and his foot got stuck in the other leg? I don’t know how it happened and clearly neither did he. And he’d toppled over and… apparently had given up. 

So clearly my coming over was the correct call. 

(Sorry Lan Zhan. I know you’ll never read this and never know but… this was just too precious to keep to myself. I promise I won’t embarrass you TOO much but there needs to be a documentation of your drunken hijinks. SangSang please don’t tell him. ;w;)

So about this point. I decided that instead of helping him, I was going to call out to you guys to ask for help.

I don’t know why? I was panicking. 

So I posted Help. 

And then went to untangle him. 

Managed to fix his pants (don’t think too hard about that one) and get him sitting properly. He just kinda blinked slowly at me and kept silent the entire time. ????

Like okay looking at his face you’d never know the guy was trashed. But the guy was TRASHED. 

I asked him how much he’d had and he just held up a finger. 

One.

One what??

A glass? A bottle? A keg?

I looked over at the jug that had tipped over and tried to gauge how much he’d had. I don’t know if the bottle had been full or not when he started. I don’t think I’d left any half-empty? But he may have shared with another guest? I wouldn’t have been surprised if he kept some on hand for SangSang too. Not just me. It’s good wine.

Well either way. With how much was now spilled on the table and floor, and how much was in the bottle… I’m guessing… he had no idea and was bullshitting me how much he’d had. 

So there’s that. 

He had enough alcohol for one drunk. Got it. 

Well didn’t matter. Either way he was sloshed. I suppose this is karma (I know that’s not how karma works) for when I got drunk off my ass in front of him before. Ah well. 

You know… speaking of karma…. Like what kind of fucked up karma do I have? Like I must have just been a DEMON in my previous life. What the fuck did I do? Massacre a ton of people? Raise the dead? FUCK. Well whatever I did. Thanks a lot past life me. You’re a DICK.

Anyway.

I went to get a cloth to mop up the mess. While I was wiping everything down he disappeared.

I posted on my blog again because I have shit priorities, and then went to find him. 

He was in the kitchen. After turning on every single light. His head was completely in the fridge. 

I called out to him, because what the fuck? And he stood up and blinked at me again. Except now he was holding a package of skinless chicken breast??? For some reason?????

Why did he even have that Probably was planning to make it for me the next day since that was our Saturdate. He doesn’t eat much meat so it wouldn’t make sense for him to have so much. 

But okay

Like

He just held it out to me and said my name. 

???????

Just.. standing in the kitchen with ALL the lights on with the fridge hanging open offering me skinless chicken breast in its neat little vacuum sealed packaging. 

So uh…  Like what do you do with that?

I asked him what he was doing and he just pushed the package at me, asking if it was good? 

I mean they looked fine. Lan Zhan always buys good stuff. And this stuff was clearly bought fresh and then wrapped up by himself. He’s got a vacuum sealer thing. So like it’s not even stuff from the grocery store? He probably got it from a humane butcher. Because he does his research on EVERYTHING. 

So like… yeah?? They were good? And I like chicken. 

So I just kinda nodded and said yeah they’re good. And so he pushed the meat at me again and said it was all for me? 

So um.. I don’t know if he was asking me to cook it? I asked him if he wanted me to cook it and he looked confused. 

And fair. I mean I was confused too. No one wants me to cook. Everyone always complains. They just don’t appreciate the culinary genius that is me. 

But Lan Zhan looked at me, then the chicken, and seemed to be in the deepest thought. 

“Let’s put this in the fridge and we can eat it tomorrow, yeah?” I suggested, trying to take the meat from him and edge to the fridge at the same time. 

Apparently this was incorrect as he yanked it away from me and started towards the stove?????

I got to him just in time to stop him from turning it on. 

Like okay Lan Zhan is an amazing chef. And he’s got a NICE kitchen. But the stove is a gas one. You know the one with open flame? And like 

THe man had just dumped have a container of Emperor’s Smile on himself???

Like fuck. So I think I screamed. 

Because Fuck. No. Lan Zhan was NOT going to cook for me while drunk off his ass. 

I remember lunging at him and like pulling all the knobs off of the stove so he couldn’t turn it on. He glared at me with this.. this …. POUT. omg it was adorable. 

But NOT adorable enough for me to give him back the stove knobs. He tried to grab them but I put them in my pocket.

And then he tried to grab them again which is danger zone no no for SO MANY REASONS ;asldkfjsa;lkfaslkfjsd;lkfjas;dkfj;lafkjk

So I took his hands 

And put on my best most adorable pleading expression and asked him to please let us have it tomorrow? Because I really wanted to eat it tomorrow. He stared at me again, binked, then slowly nodded and put the chicken… in the cupboard. 

So I asked him if he wanted to watch a movie or something instead. He didn’t answer (How is drunk Lan Zhan even more quiet than sober Lan Zhan? How is it possible?) but he didn’t like protest or anything. 

So I asked him if he wanted to pick something out and I’d come in in just a minute for him to surprise me with whatever he selected. 

He nodded at that. Mumbled something that sounded like “for Wei Ying.” or something and stumbled off. 

I took a moment to breathe and update the blog again before putting the chicken in the fridge. Contemplated hiding the knives and stove knobs somewhere where Lan Zhan couldn’t get to them, but that seemed a bit much. So I put the knobs back on and went to see what Lan Zhan was doing. 

He was….

Drinking….

More….

Again.

So I updated my blog again????? What the fuck is wrong with me?

Well I did stop him again.  I grabbed the bottle and just took it. Downed the whole jar so that he couldn’t have any more. 

Maybe not the best option? But I had eaten dinner for once and I’m actually not a lightweight. (That one time was a fluke. Like it seriously was) so it was fine. Not like I was driving home anyway.

And besides maybe it’d help me get on his level? IDK. It was stupid but then so am I. And it was just a shame to dump it all out so down the hatch it went. 

It was at this point that I realized that Lan Zhan was still wearing the clothes he’d spilled all over. I suggested he go change into something clean. He seemed to find logic in this and stumbled off to his room.

Did NOT shut the door but that’s okay. It was down the hall and I couldn’t really… SEE anything unless I went further into the hall myself. 

Tempting but I was a good boy and resisted. 

Thats when things got quiet… too quiet (see post I’d made about it being quiet). 

I went to go check on him to find that he was stripped to his boxers, with his pants around his ankles. He was looking in his closet, probably trying to find out what suit to wear???

But when I entered he stumbled back, slammed the door shut and toppled feet over head to the floor!!

Man he’s jumpy when he’s drunk. 

I helped him to rights and was actually so distracted that I didn’t realize that he was practically naked for like 2 whole seconds!!

(I’m pretty sure Lan Zhan isn’t a mortal, no matter what I said earlier in this very post about him being a human. No human being has the right to be that fucking cut??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

It is NOT fair. 

FUck. )

WELL being a responsible and reasonable adult (lol) I decided I would help this drunk toddler of a man get dressed. I dug through his pajama drawer and pulled out something soft and fluffy. Hoped that it’d be more appealing to him if it was super super comfy. Started to hand it to him, but then figured fuck it. Probably better to just do it myself. 

Managed to keep my eyes and hands to myself as I helped him. Very proud.

He let me do this without complaint. He was very good. He lifted his arms up when I told him to and his legs. Ended up putting my face WAY too close to his hips but I looked at the wall the entire time so it was fine.

Fine. It was fine. We’re fine. I’m fine. It’s fine. 

Fuck I’m a mess. 

Okay what happened next. He was good. Sat like a good boy. Got him dressed (thank you A-Yuan for giving me practice? Did not think this was a life skill i’d be needing now that you’re growing up and can do your own buttons but guess life likes to throw them curve balls. Either way. A-Yuan m’boy. I owe you a solid.)

(Also do NOT miss changing your diaper. Fuck) 

ANyway

NO TANGENTS. (that’s a lie. There will be more tangents. Whatever.)

SO Lan Zhan was dressed like a human again. Somehow even drunk of his ass he looks like some sort of adonis. Not fair.

Uh.

Oh yeah. I got up and was gonna step away and he grabbed me. 

Not like hard? But really firm. Grabbed my arm and said “no.”

No what? No to the pajamas? No to the bunny slippers? No????

I asked him what he was saying no to and he just said no again and pulled me closer. 

“Lan Zhan Lan Zhan” I chided, “You’re being unreasonable. I got you all dressed and you were being so good but now I try to get up and you say no and stop me? What are you wanting? Do you not like these pajamas? Do you want me to dress you in something else?”

I remembered him looking at the closet and decided to be a little shit. I was gonna pretend I was gonna grab one if his suits to dress him in that instead. (No way I was going through that effort. Just wanted to prove a point that the PJ’s were much more comfy.)”

“Alright. Why don’t we change into something else? I know you like wearing suits. Or well, /I/ like when you wear suits. So let’s go get one.”

He started to relax his grip and I got up again, but then 2 steps to the closet he seemed to panic and grabbed me again. 

He wrapped his arms around me from behind and sat back down on the bed with me mostly in his lap?????

Okay Trying to keep myself pure here. I’m a good boy. Who was not going to take advantage of my best friend while he was drunk off his ass.  Good boy. Think of ANYTHING else but being in his lap. 

And of course. THis meant. I had to run my mouth. 

“OH? So you DON’T want a suit? Well then you should just be happy in those pajamas. As nice as you look in a suit I think they’re much more comfortable. The pajamas that is. Unless you’d rather be naked. But that--”

Anddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd

He covered my mouth. 

I tried to twist to look at him but he wouldn’t let me. 

I tried to protest against his hand but he wouldn’t let go. 

So I examined my options and decided the only course was to lick him.

So I did. 

Because I have had a brother and that always got me out when Jiang Cheng actually managed to pin me.

Worked like a charm this time too. Lan Zhan dropped me like I was made of fire. 

Maybe I should have been offended???? But I was too busy laughing. 

He stared at his hand in what had to be horror. I calmed down enough to offer to wipe it off for him but he just pulled it in to his chest protectively. 

“Oh come one. I’m not gonna lick it again! I said wipe it off! Clean it. Fuck I’ll wash ‘em with soap if you want. Dear goodness it’s not like I’ve got fucking cooties or something.”

He stared at his hand again and pouted, seemingly not sure what he wanted to do. 

I reached out gently again and he pulled away again.  Clearly not down for touching anymore. 

So I huffed and said fine. 

“You just go to bed or something then. I’ll leave you alone if you’re just gonna get all grumpy at me.”

So I started to leave. And he tried to grab me again???????????????????????????????????

Does he want to be touched or not? Or maybe he just wanted to do the touching now that I look back on it.

Well at the time I just kinda leapt out of the way and complained he wasn’t being fair changing his mind about what he wanted every 2 seconds. Quite unreasonable.

And somehow….

This ended with us chasing each other around the house??? 

Admittedly that part’s a bit of a blur. It started with him chasing me and then somehow we switched and I ended up chasing him?

Oh yeah. I think I thought he was going back to the kitchen or something and I panicked and tackled him onto the couch. That’s when I sat on him to keep him there and posted about it again while I caught my breath. 

He just let himself lay face down on the couch, his face pressed into the pillow completely. Both a blessing and a curse because I don’t know what I was thinking at the time. I dont’ know what I would have done if he’d pouted at me again. Licked him again?? But a curse because that meant all I had to focus on was how thicc his ass was. Like I was sitting on it. 

And it is a COMFY perch. Gotta say. Like fuck. This man is perfect in every way. 

NOT. THE. POINT.

KEEP MIND. AWAY FROM THAT. YOU DON’T NEED THIS RIGHT NOW. ESPECIALLY THINKING ABOUT THINGS THIS WAY WHEN YOU KNOW YOU’RE GOING TO BE SLEEPING IN THE SAME BED AS HIM AGAIN TONIGHT. 

(DON’T @ ME WE JUST SHARE A BED. OKAY? IT MAKES US BOTH FEEL BETTER AND IT’S FINE. IT’S FINE. WE’RE FINE. I’M FINE. IT’S FINE. I’LL TELL YOU ABOUT THAT MORE LATER BUT JUST.. IT’S FINE OKAY? IT’S FINE. TRUST ME. COMPLETELY NOTHING ROMANTIC ABOUT IT. IT’S OKAY TO CUDDLE YOUR BROS. I MEAN IT’S A BIT COMPLICATED SEEING AS I’M IN LOVE WITH HIM BUT WE BOTH AGREED THAT THE KISS MEANT NOTHING SO WE’RE FINE. 

FUCK.. okay I’ll get back to this in a minute because I made myself cry again. 

Hold on. 

Okay I’m back. And I’m actually fine now. Just a little bit of heartache. It flares up if I think about it so I just don’t think about it. 

So sometimes when it sneaks up on me like that it just causes a little bit of a panic. We’re fine though. It’s passed and we’re fine. 

Where was I? Where was I…. um… oh yeah. Sitting on that juicy ass--- um.. Sitting on Lan Zhan to keep him on the couch where it was safe and cushioned. 

It worked for a bit. But apparently only because he wanted it to. 

Somehow I forgot that the man can bench a fucking truck? So he just did a push up with me on his back while on the couch (Have you tried to do pushups on a cushioned surface? Please do not do this. Make sure you exercise on sturdy, solid surfaces or you will roll your wrists or something and I will not be held responsible for unsafe workout practices.)

SO Lan Zhan just pushed both of us up and I tumbled right off like I was made of fucking feathers. 

No idea what he was planning to do. 

At first he seemed worried about me because I tumbled. Which I think broke his train of thought away from what he’d originally planned? Or did he even have a plan to begin with? 

FUck who knows. Not me!

Well anyway

I had a bold stroke of genius. Because how does Lan Zhan get me to stay put?

So I told him to sit and wait because I had a surprise for him and that I’d be really sad if he didn’t do it. 

So he immediately assumed the lotus position and closed his eyes. Coulda been a fucking statue. 

I stared for a second but then remembered he was drunk as FUCK and I had no time. So I rushed off and grabbed Bichen and Suibian so I could dump ‘em in his lap. 

Fucking worked like a charm. Suibian didn’t stay too long because she always prefers my lap (aaaaaaaaaaaah my heart) but Bichen will always stay put when plopped on Lan Zhan’s lap. (I feel ya, li’l buddy. If I could get away with it I’d live there too).

Told him that he needed to be nice and calm for the bunnies and he nodded so seriously. He started to pet Bichen so carefully it was so sweet. The little bun flopped over right away. She loves her Lan Zhan so much. (Same)

Decided to try and get him to talk to me once he’d been quiet for a little while. I asked him what started all this anyway. 

At first he said that he wanted to learn to be more tolerant to alcohol so that he could drink with me

Which is so fucking sweet but does not explain why he went so hard into it. 

And I knew he’d seen his uncle earlier that day. So I pressed. 

I won’t tell you all that he told me. But yeah. Family is complicated man. 

But that part of the story.. That’s his story. I’m not sure if he even wants ME to know about it, so I’m definitely not telling you guys. Sorry. But please try to understand. 

We talked for a long while and eventually he ended up falling asleep. I very carefully moved the bunnies to their pen, then picked him up and carried him off to bed too. 

There’s something surreal about princess carrying Lan Zhan. Not gonna lie. 

I wasn’t willing to leave him alone in case he woke up again so I just climbed into bed with him. Wrapped him up in my arms to make sure I’d wake up if he tried to leave (hopefully).

But he slept through the night. 

It wasn’t until morning that he lurched out of bed and booked it to the bathroom. Poor guy.

I will never try to get him to drink again. With mornings that awful it’s just not worth it. Though admittedly he’d probably do okay if he just didn’t drink as MUCH as he did. Make I’ll get him a Mikes Hard? I know from talking to him since then that the wanting to be able to share a drink with me was genuine even if it wasn’t the only reason he was drinking. So maybe we can ease him into it. I mean Mikes hards are so weak that they may as well be virgin drinks so that should be safe? 

I’ll talk to him about it later. 

Anyway. I took care of him all morning and he was so miserable. (Even got to carry him again. He was so worn out he barely protested). 

I brought him back to bed with some aspirin and some water. I should have made him drink some the previous night but I guess with how crazy that night was maybe I can be forgiven for that at least. 

I gave him some kisses on his face because at that point it was our thing??? (Because… what were we??? Well now we’re back to just friends I think. After… after the kiss that meant nothing.)

Fuck.

Okay don’t think about it. We were… we were something… but now we’re just friends. And that’s just… how it is. Because i fucked up. Because of course I fucked up. 

I let him take a nap and watched something trashy on TV. Eventually he shlumped out of bed (as much as Lan Zhan ever schlumps which is not a lot) and crashed onto the couch next to me. 

We talked some more and he tried to apologize to me. I wasn’t gonna hear it. I got a bit of a more sober re-telling of the reason he was drinking and I did my part to listen. 

Despite how much I talk, I can actually listen if the occasion calls for it! Surprising, I know. 

We went to bed again eventually after watching more garbage TV together. 

And uh.. Yeah…

That’s the adventures of Drunk Lan Zhan. 

Sorry I know some of the details are probably wrong. It’s been a while and a lot happened. But yeah. That’s more or less it. 

[thespian-wallflower]

Just One Drink (Hazbin Hotel Fanfic)

(Hi! It’s been literally forever since I’ve posted a fic to my Tumblr account, but I wrote this one just for fun about a week ago. Yay, distancing.

Angel Dust x Husk, one-shot, takes place the same night as the pilot. Angel and Husk share some bonding time at the bar, and they talk about serious subjects. Alastor makes an appearance. Abuse mention. Rated M mostly for language and sexual references, normal for Hazbin. Threw a couple of personal headcanons in here, but I tried my best to be accurate to the characters. Enjoy!)

“Oh, bartender!” a familiar voice sang in a thick New York accent. Don’t look at him.

“Huskie?” No acknowledgement, and he’ll go away. “HUSK!” Silence.

“Ay, I’m talkin’ to you, pussycat!” Husk whirled around, slamming his paws on the bar counter and baring his teeth aggressively at the spider demon who taunted him. “What?? What the fuck do you want?” Angel Dust blinked in surprise at the cat demon’s outburst, but his shocked expression was quickly replaced by a coy smile. “Um, a drink, obviously. This is a bar, remember.” It wasn’t a question. He hoisted himself up on the counter, sprawling out into a relaxed position before speaking up again. “You’re gonna need a test subject for your first drink, right?” Husk rolled his eyes. “Look, I just got here. And I’m really not in the mood for your shit. Now get your ass off the counter.” Angel shrugged, ignoring the request. “It’s been a few hours. You had dinner with us and everything. Can’t you settle in, for me?” Angel batted his eyelashes in a flirtatious manner, which made Husk snort in disgust. “Why should I? I’m already being forced to work here against my fuckin’ will.” He glared across the room at Alastor, who was wandering around, sizing the place up. The Radio Demon caught Husk’s eye and grinned wider before wiggling his fingers in a condescending wave. Husk replied by flipping the bird.

Angel sighed. “Look, let me finish one drink, and I’m outta your hair for the night. Demon’s honor.” He raised two sets of right hands. With a bitter laugh, Husk stated plainly, “Demons have no honor.” “Hey, I’m tryin’ to reform here. Give a guy the benefit of the doubt, babe.”

Husk glared at Angel Dust for a moment, arms folded, then asked, “What’ll it be?”

“Sex on the Beach, thank ya much. I’m feelin’ something fruity tonight.”

Husk gathered the ingredients and started to make the drink. “Yeah, well, that’s fitting, because you look fruity, too.”

Angel chuckled lightly. “Clever. But if that was meant to insult me, you’re gonna have to try harder. I’ve heard ‘em all, doll.” He folded his arms and smirked at the bartender. Nodding in acknowledgement, Husk replied, “Yeah, I know. You’re a sex worker. Biggest porn star in all of hell.”

Angel pushed up his chest fluff and grinned, his gold fang gleaming in the bar’s lighting. “Ah, a man of taste. Familiar with my work?”

“No comment.” Husk poured the drink into a glass, and garnished it with a maraschino cherry. “Order up.” He held the drink out to Angel, and grabbed a bottle of cheap booze for himself.

“Thanks!” Angel swung his legs around to Husk’s side of the counter and took the drink from his paw. “Hey, you can be honest with me. I don’t judge. I mean, my early work was a little rough, but if that’s how you li-”

“Enough sex jokes!” Husk snarled. “I made your drink! Now fuck off!”

Angel blew air out of the side of his mouth and rolled his eyes, not intimidated in the slightest. “Ya can’t get rid of me that easily. I said I’d leave after I finished my drink, remember? A deal’s a deal.” He took a sip and winked at Husk over the rim of the glass. Husk just shook his head in defeat. “I’m not in the mood to argue with you, so stay if you want to. I don’t really give two shits anymore.” He sighed and sipped more of his booze. “Why do you wanna talk to me, anyway?” “Aside from the fact that you’re hot as fuck, you fascinate me, Huskie.” Angel paused to sip his cocktail, then threw Husk a curveball. “You’ve been through a lot, haven’t you?”

Husk hopped up on the counter beside Angel, keeping a safe distance away. “Today? Yeah, I’ll say. I love being fucked with by that antlered asshole.”

“Nah, not with Alastor. I mean, like, entirely. When you get around like I do, ya get pretty good at reading other demons. You’re a drinker. And when you’re a drinker, there’s usually a reason behind it.”

Husk didn’t reply.

“Listen, I didn’t have the best life, and my afterlife ain’t so hot, either. I mean, look at me. I came from an abusive family, died, and I’m still gettin’ abused.” He paused again to take a sip of his drink. “It gets exhausting, never being good enough. Y’know?” Angel inched just the tiniest bit closer to Husk, who couldn’t tell whether or not it was intentional.

“Sure.” Husk scooted away and took another swig of his drink. God, when is this asshole going to leave me alone for the night?

Angel smoothed back his fluffy white hair. “Anyway, that’s partly why I’m here. I’ve been through a lotta shit, like you, and I feel like helpin’ Charlie is a step in the right direction. Just cuz my afterlife sucks doesn’t mean hers should, too. Guess I’m a people-pleaser.” 

“With a job like yours, you have to be.”

“No shit.” He plucked a cherry from his glass and started munching on it. “I’m doing a crappy job of it, though. Got into a huge turf war today with my best friend. It was a blast. Literally! I blasted so many of those little egg fuckers!” He chuckled, then popped the cherry stem into his mouth, rolling it around with his tongue.

“Yeah, I saw it on the news. That whole thing was a fiasco. At least Pentious got fucked sideways today, thanks to Alastor.” He cringed as soon as the words came out of his mouth. “Never thought I’d thank him for anything.”

Angel halted his stem-tying to state loudly, “I wanna thank him for being a sexy motherfucker!” He raised his glass in a make-believe toast to the Radio Demon, who was currently nowhere to be found.

“Speak for yourself!”

“Mmmmhm!” Angel hummed in agreement, then stuck his tongue out, the expertly-tied cherry stem resting near the tip. “Ta-Da! A perfectly tied thhhtem! Imprethhhhed yet, Huthhhhker?” Spit flew with every “S” he attempted to enunciate. Husk wiped the spit from his face and growled at the spider demon. “I’ll be more impressed if you stop spitting all over me, slut!”

“Okay, buthhhhkill.” Angel carefully removed the stem from his tongue, chuckling at the fact that he’d gotten one final word in. “Just think! With a tongue like this, imagine what I can do to your dick, old timer!” He held the stem out to Husk, as if presenting a valuable gift. “For you!”

Husk smacked it out of his hands. “Get that shit away from me! And wipe your mouth, you’ve got drool all over your lips.”

“You’re zero fun!” Angel grabbed a cocktail napkin and wiped his mouth, then took another sip of his drink. 

The pair shared another silent moment before Angel asked, “So what do you think of this place? And rehabilitation and all?”

Husk shrugged. “Too early to say.”

“Eh, fair enough. Who knows, though? This hotel just may be our ticket outta this shithole!” Angel flopped on his back and tipped his head backwards over the side of the counter, giving him an upside-down view of the lobby. He was closer to Husk than ever, but the cat demon didn’t bother to scoot away from him this time. “And wouldn’t that be somethin’?”

“Don’t push your luck.” Husk placed his empty bottle on the counter. 

“Hey, you’re a gamblin’ man! You know all about luck-pushing!” Angel looked up at him and smiled. “Don’t ya?”

“I have my moments.” The hint of tenderness between the two demons came to an abrupt end when Husk snapped, “Finish your fucking drink so I can close this place up.”

“With pleasure!” Angel responded, sitting in an upright position, picking up his glass, and downing the rest of the cocktail in one swift gulp. “Ahhh. Not bad. Ever bartend before?”

“None of your concern!”

“Yeesh, so aggressive. And mysterious. Sexy, if you ask me,” Angel purred seductively, walking two fingers toward the cat demon’s crotch. Without a moment’s hesitation, Husk grabbed Angel’s hand and twisted his arm around, causing him to nearly fall off the counter.

“OW! OW! OW! Alright, alright!” Husk let go, and Angel’s arm throbbed painfully. “Damn, who pissed in your cereal?” he asked with a smirk. Aggressive or not, he was still intrigued by the new bartender.

“You, currently. Now get lost, will ya?”

“Fine!” Angel pouted for a moment, then hopped off the counter and glanced over his shoulder cheekily. “So, same time tomorrow?” He blew Husk a kiss, reminiscent of the one he had blown him earlier after Pentious’s defeat.

Husk growled playfully, hopped off the counter, grabbed his empty bottle, and chased after Angel with his arm raised, threatening to throw it at him. 

Angel yelped and ran back to his room, laughing. “G’night, hot stuff!”

“Yeah, get fucked!” Husk yelled after him, then chuckled lightly to himself. He had to admit, if Angel hadn’t stopped by for a drink, the night wouldn’t have been nearly as interesting. He turned to walk back to the bar, only to see Alastor standing there, grinning at him. Husk’s faint smile quickly turned into a scowl. “And what the hell do you want?”

Alastor’s voice crackled to life in its usual static, showy and flamboyant. “My little Husker is already making friends, on his first evening on the job!” Al mocked, faux tears pooling in his eyes, his trademark smile staying put. “Ohh, they grow up so fast!” He whipped out a red pinstriped handkerchief and blew his nose with a trumpet-esque blare.

Husk wrinkled his nose in disgust. “For your information, I’m not making friends. And even if I were, why the fuck do you care?” “Forgive me for expressing interest in the well-being of one of my favorite demons in this godforsaken cesspool,” Alastor replied snarkily, tucking away the handkerchief and wrapping up the act. 

Husk scoffed, not buying it in the slightest, and went back behind the bar to work. He bent to pick up Angel’s abandoned cherry stem, staring at it for a moment before making the decision to throw it in the trash.

The Radio Demon manifested his cane and casually leaned against it for support, looking Husk up and down as the cat demon made the bar area look more presentable. “So, my friend, you seem to be adjusting well, despite your initial refusal to help.” Husk mopped the counter off with a rag, not making eye contact. “Not that it’s your business.” Alastor’s ever-present smile widened and he replied with, “I suppose not. But as an official employee, your business is now the business of the business! Ahahaha!”

“Ah, shove it up your ass.”

Al chuckled, unfazed. “I’d rather not! Ah, I missed that charming, friendly voice. It’s wonderful that you decided to join the Princess’s little passion project. The more the merrier, I always say.” He reached a hand over the counter and teasingly pinched one of Husk’s fuzzy, white cheeks. Husk swatted Al’s hand away and raised one of his long eyebrows. “That reminds me… why the hell are YOU here? You never-”

A long finger was delicately placed against the cat’s lips, interrupting him mid-sentence. “Ah-ah-ah, Husker,” Al replied, his voice dropping to a charming-yet-threatening lower pitch. “You know better than to question my motives.” He turned to walk away, hands behind his back, his cheerful tone returning. “Besides, you know that I would never turn down an opportunity to be entertained.” Husk flicked his tail in annoyance. “I have better things to do than run a bar for a bunch of namby-pamby demons who would rather be up in heaven, sucking up.” Alastor was silent for a moment, then he glanced over his shoulder and asked in an eerie voice, “Do you, though?”

Husk found himself pondering this unexpected question as Alastor said brightly, “Well, sleep well, treasured bartender!” and snapped himself away for the night.

Suddenly finding himself alone at the hotel bar, Husk decided it was bedtime for him, too. Working at the Happy Hotel would be a change, for better or worse. And one thing was certain: Angel Dust was here to stay.     (Thanks for reading! ^_^ Okay to reblog or comment)

[ixalit]

hello max!! i know i reblogged your post from earlier, but i had mentioned i would send you some stucky headcanons. again, i’m sending you so much love right now (and always), and i hope that this can cheer you up a lil bit 🥰

ok ok ok let me get into it— i kinda forget what i wrote because i’m so all over the place right now (i should be preparing for a math quiz tomorrow— the content of which i have no clue how to do it— it’s fine)

1) so my first autumn stucky headcanon is that steve and bucky can never get any of the yard work done in autumn (raking the leaves, stringing up the tree lights, etc) because they’re too busy being in love with autumn and each other. even though they love the outcome, and do eventually get it done, they would much rather be snuggling in front of the fire, surrounded by cozy blankets and fuzzy socks, and sipping hot apple cider 😊 the room must be filled with many candles— they are a necessity for them

2) my second headcanon, now that it’s fall, is that steve and bucky are HUGE decorators. especially bucky. i know that it’s a little (a lot) early for halloween, thanksgiving, and christmas, but they go all out. bucky loves his candles and spooky decorations, and steve adores preparing the thanksgiving table with fancy napkins and plate settings. and their christmas tree?? they make it beautiful. they’ve collected an ornament every year, whether that be from a friend or for themselves, each one holds a special memory (i do this in my own family, and i think it’s a cute tradition 🥰). they lost the ones they had from when they were young, but since they came back, they’ve made plenty of new memories.

3) the last one i can think of right now is about the food. steve and bucky both love to pamper each other by making treats and delicious fall meals for each other! they take turns preparing things like homemade pumpkin pie, spiced apple cider, hot cocoa made from scratch, you name it. they like to take turns “helping” each other out, and usually get a bit distracted 😅 usually, though, the food turns out good! ooh, and on big holidays, steve and bucky always insist on taking it on, as well as a few contributions from friends. they love their tradition of making holiday meals together— even in november, they’ve got that christmas music blaring!

i’m so sorry that this is so long!! i came up with some new parts on the spot (and i don’t want to do homework), so it kept on going 😊 i hope these cheer you up a little bit honey!! 😘💗

Oh these are lovely, Helena 🥺

It’s always nice to escape into these fluffy little headcanons and I’m gonna read them again and again today ❤️

I don’t have the mental energy to write much in response, but I love, love, love them. Thanks for taking the time to send them (and please go study so you’re not super stressed later!)

1) awwwww. I imagine whe they do finally hang up lights, there’s lots of time spent playfully wrapping Bucky’s arm up or debating where the best place is until it’s too dark to do anything

2) I want Bucky to discover those jelly window stickies. Also, Bucky and Halloween is something I think about a lot more than is probably healthy and there might be a fic in the making because of it. Or maybe two

He was made into a monster by Hydra—ghost story, a literal boogieman. Just all the feelings and angst-hurt-comfort around that and him re-learning why Halloween is fun because “why would someone want to pretend to be a monster?” But then they get trick-or-treaters and he sees all the little kids dressed up as avengers, as Steve... the joy on their faces... and starts to get it. The next year he dresses up. Something light and happy. Maybe Steve takes him to a masquerade type thing or just a regular party, and Bucky starts to see that wearing a mask, pretending to be someone else, isn’t inherently a bad thing. It can be fun and wonderful and.... yeah. Anyways. I have feelings about it and a very specific costume in mind for one of the years after that’s front and center in the fic I’m maybe writing

And the ornament thing... 🥺!!! I have similar traditions with my mom and now I’m thinking about incorporating them.... ugh I love it.

3) aw I love this one... certain people know I have thought about Steve in a uhh specific apron many times, but all joking aside I love them cooking for each other. Trying new recipes and both deciding that one’s a hard “no” and ordering takeout instead. Attempting to recreate the taste of a stew Steve’s mom used to make, but they can’t quite get it. Absolutely pampering each other with sweet treats and breakfast in bed.

And aww them hosting the rest of their friends... YES. Please. I need it. They don’t have all the big serving bowls and plates with special memories, so they ask everyone for theirs a week beforehand cuz they’re not just gonna use generic ones. Stressing in the kitchen and getting into arguments over stupid, insignificant things like “would you get your ass out of my space??” “Your space???” Or “I need the oven, Steve, we talked about this” until one of them just kicks the other out. Of course the little disagreements usually end in “oh god this is stupid why are we even fighting about this” and kisses and “it’s okay, it doesn’t have to be perfect, y’know?”

In conclusion, you’re amazing, Helena, and I love you and the things you come up with.

[mrslackles]

The Right to Remain Silent

Summary: Beth's FBI. Rio's... not.

[A/N: This is an unfinished work that I scrapped but I’m posting because of this tag game. I rounded out writing three of the main parts of the first chapter that I already had mostly done so it would be readable, but like I said, it is most certainly unfinished; there are whole middle chunks missing that I never got around to writing.]

**

“Ruby, do you think there's any way back once you're a bad person?”

She can almost hear her best friend frown on the other end of the line.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, if you've crossed over, do you think it’s possible to find your way back?”

There’s silence for a moment. Then Ruby lets out a breath. 

“I… I guess it depends how far you went. How bad what you did is.”

“The worst.” She swallows. “The worst possible everything.”

**

One week earlier

**

Beth’s feeling really good about herself.

So good that she’s even considering buying everyone in the office coffee. She thinks she’ll drink hers here, though. At least her first cup. She’s still high off yesterday’s bust and she doesn’t need the humdrum of today spoiling it just yet.

The barista smiles at her, catching her eye, then winks and goes ahead making her usual order.

“Lemme get that for you.”

Beth turns. There’s a guy beside her facing forward, his collar up, but he’s looking at her from the corner of his eye.

She smiles. “That’s not necessary.”

“Oh, but I wanna.”

“No, thank you,” she says more firmly, letting the smile go.

“Oh, c'mon darlin,” he says, voice smooth as honey. “How else’s a guy s’pposed to get a beautiful woman’s attention?”

This gets under her collar then seeps into her bones, sending a shiver down her back. Weird. Weird.

“Well, I'm married.”

She’s still trying to process this – a man hitting on her – when he suddenly turns to face her and, oh.

“Since when has that ever stopped anybody, Elizabeth?”

Her mouth falls open – at his appearance, at the tattoo, at him knowing her name – but he doesn’t give her the chance to speak.

“Sit down.”

There’s no room for arguing in his tone, face stony in an instant, and she follows him to a table with her heart fluttering in her throat. There’s a cat-like fluidity to the way he walks and she takes this in analytically before sitting, back straight.

She folds her hands into her lap, trying to shake off the surprise.

“What gang are you affiliated with?”

“Shit, first you don't want me to buy you a drink now you wanna take down my pants?”

There’s something about him – the lewdness? His smirk? The way he takes her in with gleaming eyes? – that unnerves her, but she tells herself it’s still just the shock letting it all get to her.

“How did you find me?”

He sits back in his seat, folding his hands; almost mocking her own posture.

“You raided a warehouse of mine yesterday.”

God. She clears her throat.

“You want your money back?”

She’d caught the line of his gun beneath his jacket; is slowly trying to survey the café to figure out if he’s alone.

“Naw. See, you asked how I found you,” he points at her.

“So then what do you want?”

Now he leans onto the table, steepling his fingers.

“Your hubby, he ain’t a real stand-up guy, huh?” He makes as if to give her a chance to speak then barrels right ahead. “Fucked around on you then getting himself into debt with some real rough guys.”

Breathe, Beth. Breathe.

“What are you talking about?”

He seems amused – he knows more than her and he’s relishing it.

“He been real flush lately?”

And she wants to say no instantly, but – he’d suddenly paid for the house after they’d been struggling to make the payment. He’d said he’d sold a car, but…

“You’re trying to bribe me,” she says, voice tinny.

“Nah,” he scoffs, laughing like she’s told a joke. “I’m tryna keep the limbs on all your loved ones. Y’know, they’re called loan sharks for a reason.”

Her hands are no longer folded, wringing each other.

“H-how are you going to do that?”

He shrugs cavalierly. “You need money, I got lots of it. We could be friends, and I like helping out my friends.”

He watches her, waiting, but she doesn’t react; doesn’t respond. She’s frozen, too stunned by this influx of information; this situation.

Not only had Dean torn their family apart, he’d also put them in danger? And she’d left her children with him to take this assignment; to get away. And now her babies could end up being collateral in more ways than just that one.

“Your hubby’s in the hole for ten grand,” he informs her, leaning over the table a little. “So I’m thinkin… a cool thirty gees?”

She stares.

“You’re going to pay me thirty thousand dollars for doing nothing?”

“Naw, darlin; nothin’s for nothin.”

“So what do you want?”

“Colleague of yours, an agent… Donnegan?” She nods and he continues: “Had a drug bust a week ago. My intel says the pills are still in your evidence room – I got a third party who’s real interested.”

“You’re insane.”

He grins, delighted, as if this is a compliment.

She shakes her head. “I can’t just take evidence, that’s not how things work!”

He shrugs. “Bat your lashes, sign it out for another ‘investigation’ – whatever it takes. I’m sure you’ll think of somethin.”

Before she can say anything – say whether she’s going to do it – he jumps up, kicking his chair back as he juts a thumb outward.

“That’s my boy, Mick.”

She follows his finger to see a tattooed man standing outside.

“He’s gonna take care of you. Make sure you got the details for the drop; that you all set up for payment.”

And then, with a quick squeeze of her shoulder, he’s gone.

**

She nearly growls when Dean’s voice finally crackles across the line, greeting cheery. 

“Hi, you.”

“Tell me right now and don’t lie to me: did you get money from loan sharks to pay for the house?”

There’s silence for far too long, loaded.

“Bethie, I was going to tell you—”

“Oh my god,” she sucks in a breath. 

“But, see, I knew you’d react that way!”

“Because you put our lives in danger! Do you know what those people do to the families of people who don’t pay them?”

“I know this all seems really scary, but it’s not as bad as it sounds.”

He’s always done that. She’s been a cop for years and he still makes it sound like she’s a little girl who isn’t capable of anything.

Even Bethie – she’s started hating how he’s always babied her name.

“What’s not as bad as it sounds, Dean?” she humours him.

“These aren’t the guys you’re used to, these are good guys.”

“They’re loan sharks.”

“No! Well… yeah. But they were really worried about our situation and so understanding when I couldn’t pay last month—”

“Oh my god, we’re already behind?”

“Beth. Bethie. I’m going to take care of it, ok?”

“No.”

She looks up from the floor to the evidence locker.

“I am.”

**

[Beth does the drop, gets paid then is forced into having dinner with Rio, after which he drives her to where she’s staying and invites himself inside]

Rio walks around, inspecting the place as she stands frozen by the entrance-way table.

“You have guys around?”

“I told you I was married.”

He turns back to meet her eyes.

“And I told you I know he's a dirtbag.”

“And that gives me permission to sleep around?”

His lip quirks up a little.

“Kinda does, yeah.”

“Well, I’m not that kind of person.”

“And what kinda person is that?”

“Vows mean something to me.”

“Like the one to serve and protect your country?”

And this jerks down her back, just like he wanted it to. He’s smirking and she’s driven forward, seething.

“So this is what you do? You recruit people, pay them, come and scope out their homes for when you need to intimidate them later?”

She wants to take him down a notch, wants to figure out how to get under his skin too, but he doesn’t seem bothered by her tone.

“Naw, house calls ain’t usually my thing.”

“So then what are you still doing here?”

He’s looking at her strangely, shoulders jerking as he comes closer.

“If you wanna know what I’m doing here, Elizabeth, you gotta stop thinking like a cop and start thinking like—”

“A criminal?” she snickers. “Quantico already taught me that lesson, but thanks.”

He smiles, eyes gleaming.

“…A woman.”

And now the shiver down her back is different – but it’s half anger. Is this why he’s here; is that why her? Because he’d wanted to sleep with her?

“Why did you choose me?”

It’s maybe the first thing she’s said all night that seems to throw him.

“’Scuse me?”

“Mick told me that there were other options – better options – but you chose me.”

“He’s got some loose lips this week.”

She folds her arms.

“Why?”

He stares back at her, seemingly conflicted, then backs up to lean against the table.

She waits and it’s a long few seconds before he finally speaks.

“I was there the day of your bust. Was rollin by to check on shit, y’know. But then I saw what was goin on and pulled ’round to the west side of the building.” He hesitates, eyes on the floor. “Saw you.”

He says this like it’s supposed to explain exactly what he means, but she shakes her head in confusion.

“Ok…”

Now he looks up, though not quite at her.

“While you was havin your… personal moment.”

Oh, god.

Everything had suddenly hit her – what Dean had done, how much she’s missing her children and the girls – and she’d had to excuse herself for a few moments.  

But she tries not to cower; not to show how endlessly humiliated she is.

“So you chose me because you saw me cry on the job?” 

Rio blinks slowly, thoughtfully. He swallows.

And when he speaks, it’s soft; nearly inaudible.

“I chose you ’cuz it looked like you needed choosing.”

And she should breathe, should force air into her lungs, but instead -- instead she finds herself stepping closer. 

She doesn’t breathe, doesn’t think, as her legs brush against his.

His eyes are on her, warm and wanting ­– god, when last has anyone looked at her like this?

She’s frozen now, has gone as far as she can, and he straightens up. Then his hand is slipping past her hair to cup her face, angle it up to his. And he’s so warm and she shouldn’t be doing this, but she can’t think to stop; can’t remember why she should be running in the other direction.

When he kisses her, it’s soft. Softer than it should be; softer than he should be. It makes her gasp a little and then she’s pressing closer, kissing him back harder because it feels so right even though it’s all so wrong, wrong, wrong.

She whimpers as his tongue slips past her lips and then his hands are on her hips and before she knows it, he’s spinning them around, lifting her up onto the table, and by the time her legs are spread around his hips, she’s forgotten every vow she’s ever taken.

 **

Rio sips at the bottle of water.

From her pillow she watches the inked bird bob with his Adam’s apple. 

Then her eyes go to the tattoos at the back of his arms. Angry red scratches run down them, a reminder of her that he’ll take home tonight.  

“I like this place.”

Her eyebrow rises in surprise.

“You do?”

“Yeah,” he nods, “looks like a criminal hideout. Doesn't suit you.”

She doesn’t know if this is an insult or a compliment but follows his gaze to survey the huge industrial space.

“Well, it's nothing like my house, that's for sure.”

Sitting up in bed, she wraps her arms around her knees with a sad little breath.

“Every time I think about it, I like this place a little more.”

“That why you volunteer for it?” He looks amused by her visible surprise. “Might not know much about coppers, but I know nobody of your rank's stayin in a dump like this against their will.”

She stares at him for a moment, weighing up the cost of the truth, then looks away.

“I took it because I wanted to punish myself,” she admits quietly. “You know, no creature comforts.” 

Not while her children are without her; are robbed of their mother, who’d willingly taken herself away.

“But then I realised I feel more comfortable here than the home I left.”

He watches her for a moment too long before snickering in a way that comes out more forced than he probably intends.

“That's real damn sad.”

“Yeah.”

What more is there to say? Especially to him, of all people?

“I'm really tired.”

She moves the sheet higher up onto her chest in what she hopes he’ll take as a hint. There isn’t going to be a second round tonight, not like normal. Things had gotten too personal and that’s not what this is. Although she still has no idea what it is. 

He sniffs in some kind of amusement.

“That a lifelong habit?”

“What habit?” she asks sharply, looking back at him.

He’s up, beginning to dress.

“Only openin up to people you know ain't stayin; who you can push away.”

She stares back, surprised. Offended.

“That's not what I'm doing.”

“Ain't it?” He stands from putting on his shoes to regard her. “Ain't that why you kissed me back to begin with?”

“No.”

He smiles a little.

“You should be a better liar, Special Agent Boland.” He pulls on his t-shirt then shrugs, grabbing his jacket. “But it's cool.”

He’s ready to leave, expression filled with his signature brand of guarded amusement. 

“...Takes one to know one.”

[thefudge]

‘aight i saw this movie finally (the pirated version, cuz i dont shill anymore) and

it was okay. chaotic and uncoordinated and clearly unplanned - i mean it reeks of “throw everything at the screen because we’re out of time” - but i enjoyed parts of it and i can see a good movie buried under all of this lost potential. in order to make TROS good, however, you’d have to rewrite the whole trilogy. you’d also have to rethink this world. i think the folks in charge committed a “prequels” error in thinking that the universe of star wars matters more than its characters. so you got all these kooky planets and alien species, and you’ve got side-quests and a dozen new characters/creatures, added without forethought or real stakes, just to show us how big the star wars playground is. whereas, going to a new location should be about the characters first, and the location second. lucas did the same in the prequels: crammed every frame with a million things because he had a thirst for his own universe, but at least he was passionate. disney is just calculated. 

i do think this movie’s better than the prequels lol, it’s just that it could have been proper good if they didn’t try to appease the fans so much and play it safe. i’ve written about kylo/ben’s death in other posts and what i think about his character. as for rey “palpatine”, ehhh. in the context of the movie i give them points for trying their best to sell it, but it would have been far FAR more powerful if she really was nobody. if you wanted a compromise, she could’ve been palpatine’s experiment or a clone, and that would’ve made her “nobody”, while also his creation. but i would’ve preferred it if she really had nothing to do with all of this BS. because a) it’s obvious they didn’t plan rey palpatine from the start, and b) if they did, it was very poor storytelling. the palpatine reveal should’ve happened in the second movie so that rey could actually react to it, so that the conflict about her dark lineage could be explored in depth. TLJ!rey seemed at peace with finding out she’s nobody, like that was her closure. to retcon that in the 3rd movie just because some folks didn’t like TLJ is cowardly. if they really wanted to do rey palpatine, they should’ve committed to it. idk which reviewer mentioned smth about how rey’s past ultimately was more important for these people than rey herself. they invested so much in this “secret” that they kind of forgot about her as a person. i wish these movies weren’t just her running around, mouth agape, chasing this illusory secret. TFA!rey, before she got dragged into this legacy shit, was far more interesting. rey skywalker is also just...really weak. i get what they were going for thematically, but again, the stronger message would’ve been: “i’m rey. just rey”. earlier she gave the same answer to that little girl in “burning man” village, but feeling sort of ashamed about it. now at the end she should’ve said it proudly. “i’m rey, just rey, and that’s enough.” but what do i know. old lady sigh

i liked some of the action sequences and the indie “a new hope” vibe of the resistance. i didn’t like the side-trips and all the macguffins, kerri russel’s character was...really unnecessary, i’m sorry, janna was fine, at least she made more sense in the story. and rose was shafted because of racist assholes on the internet. OLD LADY SIGH.

i liked the reylo interactions and their saber fights (when she stabbed him with his own saber? noiiiiice), but i think it would’ve been cooler if they’d kissed during one of those fights, actually. the kiss at the end was nice...but as always with these two, it felt very kindergarten to me. i’ve complained elsewhere that they keep making them act like uwu shy space babies. i would’ve liked a hate/love kiss mid-battle and for them to pull back sort of shocked but unrepentant. a lot of their fights had that kind of UST and i think that’s where they should’ve capitalized on it. but i guess that’s too sexy for disney. OLD LADY SIGH. i would’ve preferred a more sober moment at the end, like touching foreheads as he dies or smth, because lol it was inadvertently funny how quickly he died after they kissed, the tonal dissonance was aaall over the place. 

OH and finn/poe’s dynamic in this movie was weirdly belligerent and i didnt get it. maybe because these two didn’t get to spend enough time together in TFA or TLJ to set this up, but having them act like #married rebel veterans who’ve been together for years and resent each other was...weird. they jumped into this snippy, almost aggressive banter waaay too fast. i know folks think they should’ve let them be gay, and while i would not be opposed since they have a lot of chemistry....i...actually....maybe....ship finn with rey more.

yes folks, this movie actually made me ship finnrey more. 

i think it’s the fact that they finally addressed force-sensitive finn, although they did it in a pretty lame fashion. but at least they did (there were many missed opportunities where finn could’ve acted on his force-sensitivity. that scene where rey and kylo both wrestle-levitate that ship in the sky...and finn just watches from the sidelines...instead of trying to control it too...OLD LADY SIGH). anyway, rey and finn’s connection within the force was subtle and i liked it. i liked the unspoken yearning between them that felt a bit more mature here than in previous films. the final 2019 twist is that i’m tentatively back on finnrey (2015 me also liked them but i quickly lost interest when finn was infantilized and then put into a coma...). 

i DIDN’T like that finn/rose was totally forgotten (not a pair i ship but rose nearly died for him...wtf). and i also don’t think the finn/rey/poe trio works...as a trio. there was this painful scene towards the beginning of the movie where poe and rey started levelling playful insults at each other and it was awwwwfuuuuul. it felt like recycled marvel humor. and it got worse when it was the three of them bantering. they could have been a really fun trio if they had actually spent more time together in previous movies. here it felt really forced, sorry. 

oh yeah, the chewie medallion scene...less painful than i thought it would be. chewie mourning leia, though? oooouch, i felt that. probably only really heartfelt moment in this movie (i’ve written elsewhere how i think the ben/han moment was robbed of its weight, though i can see why people love it). 

in terms of comedy, though, hux’s death has to be number one.

anyway! glad this is over and done with. maybe now they’ll start telling star wars stories that don’t always involve the “empire” and the rebels or the fkin skywalkers. here’s to hoping. 

and whew, thank god for fanfics

[newcaptainofsquad9]

Oh my God, we’re roommates!~ Kate x fem reader (Tanner Hall)~College AU- Part 2

Here’s Part 1: https://newcaptainofsquad9.tumblr.com/post/185364926637/oh-my-god-were-roommates-kate-x-fem-reader

Pairing: Kate x reader

Summary: You and Kate go out for the night, and you can’t help but think of it as an informal date. Kate teases you like hell while getting to know you a little better than you did back in Tanner Hall. You both ended up at a party thrown by Dave and his acapella group.

Word Count: 1, 644

Writer’s Note: The long await second chapter is here guys, gals and my non binary friends! Again, tell me how you’re liking the series so far. Honestly I think it’s not that good, cuz I had to write something or this wouldn’t have happened so early so yeah here it is.

______________________________________________________________

I can’t help but stare as Kate whips her blonde curls around, singing rather greatly to Ariana Grande. The moment her eyes landed back on me, I quickly avoided contact. I need to be more discreet about it. If I’m not gonna tell her about my feelings, then I shouldn’t make it obvious. Kate chuckles as she turns the car onto a nearby Denny’s parking lot. 

“Y/N, wanna know something?” she asks cheekily. 

“W-What?” 

Kate’s grin widens and she leans closer while putting a hand over the back of my seat while backing into an available spot. I readjust against my seat-belt, it abruptly feelings a little tight against my chest. Could she park a bit faster? Once the car comes to a stop I reach for the belt, only for Kate to take my hand.

“Wait, I didn’t get to tell you,” Kate says lowly.

“Ok,” I chuckle and play along, “what?”

Kate’s voice grows low all a sudden, her eyes lower too. 

“You make me feel like God is a woman, you know that?” she asks.

My face grows hot, I try to slink away, but Kate pulls me closer and leans in. She pecks me on the cheek and giggles. 

“God, your face, “ she giggles.

“Why do you always play around like that?”

Kate says something but its muffled because I shut the car door on her. I start toward the diner. She’s at my heels in a moment.

“Y/N!”

I turn toward Kate. I wasn’t expecting an attentive gaze and an arched brow. 

“You all right?” 

I nearly lose it at her sincerity. She may have irritated me, but I don’t want her to stay like that. I’d rather her tease the hell out of me for the rest of my life than to see her down like this. 

“Yeah, I’m good it’s just–”

I pause and remember how intimate she seemed with Dave. We weren’t super close at Tanner Hall, I never heard anything about her liking other women or a hint at bisexuality or pansexuality. I’m not even going to try to ask her about my feelings, don’t want to ruin our relationship since we’re going to be living together for the next four months. 

“Y/N?” 

I blink and Kate’s hand brushes down my arm. It makes me bristle, in a good way. 

“Uh, let’s get pancakes, yeah?” I say and head to the door.

…

Kate and I both order two completely different dishes. I stick with a Denny’s staple: grand slam with two fluffy pancakes, bacon, eggs and grits. Kate ops for fish and chips, slathering her fries in ketchup and mayo. A disgusting combo if you ask me. 

“Why are you looking at me like that Y/N?” she asks obnoxiously.

She picks up a drenched fry and pops it into her mouth slowly. 

“Mmh, if you want one, all you have to do is ask,” Kate purrs. 

I shake my head before returning my gaze to the half eaten pancakes on my plate. Kate’s eyes are back on me as she whisks around the pieces of cod on her own. 

“What are you studying, Y/N?” she asks.

I sigh. Finally, a real question. 

“English,” I say, “taking a few creative writing classes as a minor.”

Kate perks up. 

“I’m an English major too!” she adds. 

I nearly choke on my bacon as she says that. 

“R–really?”

“Uh, yeah,” Kate declares, “Y/N, I may have teased Mr. Middlewood a lot, but I payed attention. Literature is so fascinating.”

“Have you taken American Lit yet?” I ask.

Kate shakes her head. 

“Nope, I have it ten a.m. Monday. What about you?”

“I have it Tuesday and Thursday, “ I say. 

Kate’s gaze goes down to my plate. 

“That’s a shame, we could have sat beside each other, pass notes and what not,” she says with a pout. 

“I mean, we can still study together,” I let out. 

I immediately regret it as Kate’s eyes flicker back to me as she bites her lip.

“Yeah? We could pull an all nighter some time, could be fun,” she suggests. 

I pick up a piece of my pancake with my fork and Kate reaches for a smaller piece left by it, eating it swiftly as our eyes meet again. 

“You have your fries, why don’t you eat them?”

Kate shrugs at my question.

“Maybe I just want to eat yours,” she says. 

God, I don’t know if I’ll survive this semester.

…

We get back to campus prior to nightfall. Kate raved the entire ride back about a small party Dave and the acapella group were throwing. I didn’t even know the school had an acapella group.

“Not really sure about this Kate,” I say, “how long have you known this Dave guy?”

Kate grins as she parks her car. 

“A few years, and Y/N there’s nothing to worry about. Not like they’re frats or sororities,” Kate says. 

“I’m still not sure Kate,” I whisper. 

Kate pouts.

“Why not? It’ll be fun. C’mon Y/N! Please,” Kate urges with a tug at my hand. 

I try to pull away, but her grip is tight. Her saddened face appears again and I can’t help but sigh in defeat.

“Promise you won’t leave me--alone?” I ask.

Kate narrows her eyes at me. 

“Never roomie. Plus, I’m your ride back to our apartment,” she says in a matter of fact tone. 

“That means you have to stay sober,” I declare. 

Kate rolls her eyes. 

“Fine, as long as you have fun. Doesn’t mean you can’t take a few drinks too,” she jokes with a quick smile. 

I roll my eyes this time and open the door. 

“Let’s just get this over with.”

...

Dave’s apartment is filled with lots of preppy looking kids, most of them talking in their own circles. Some say ‘hey’ to Kate and I but that’s mostly it. I let Kate lead me around with her hand encircled around my own. One girl stops us in our tracks, giving Kate and I a nasty glare. 

“You two don’t look acapella material, not even musical theater majors either,” she snarks. 

Kate lets go of my hand and crosses her arms, she gives the girl a hard look. 

“Does that matter?” she asks.

The girl lifts her head, as if trying to intimate Kate. 

“This is a party for majors and acapella club members only,” she growls. 

I put a hand on Kate’s shoulder, this girl looks like trouble. 

“Kate,” I warn, “let’s just leave.”

Kate rests a hand on my wrist. 

“No, Y/N. Let me handle this,” Kate returns her attention to the girl, “we were invited.”

“By who?” The girl asks. 

“Kate! Hey!”

Kate smirks as the girl and I turn to Dave. He holds his arms out with a toothy grin. Kate giggles as she rushes toward him, meeting him in an embrace similar to the one earlier. I glance down at my shoes as the girl seethes. 

“You know this girl Dave?” she asks. 

Dave nods as Kate wiggles her eyebrows at me while her arms snake their way around the back of Dave’s neck. God, I can’t take this shit right now. I stalk over to the kitchen where there’s a group around the punch bowl. I don’t need punch right now, something a bit stronger. My eyes go back to Kate, she’s still busy flirting with Dave and I need to sink my sorrows into something. Honestly, just half a cup. Maybe two. I’m not that much of a light weight. No matter what Rob and Jane say.

...

I don’t even remember the words to Imagine Dragon’s Thunder, but here I am flailing my arms around like an idiot.

“Thunder! Thunder! Lightnin and t-the--thunder!” I shout.

Most of the acapella people join in with twisted grins, egging me on and it works. 

“Yeah!” I shout into the mic, “Kate’s totally missing out!” 

There’s a whoo and a line of snickers. 

“Y/N!” 

I turn when I hear my name. Kate emerges from the line of aca-people with a frown. Why? She wanted me to have fun. 

“Yo, Kate! Come up, I’d love for a duet!” I shout through a fit of giggles.       

The aca crowd cheers and Kate purses her lips. 

“Y/N, not like this, “ Kate says, “how many drinks have you had?”

“I had two full solo cups--I think,” I reply.

Kate sighs.

“No wonder you didn’t want to drink--you’re a light weight,” Kate says as she takes a step toward me, “c’mon we’re going home.”

“Ah, man! Thought you wanted to have fun! I’m having fun!” I explain. 

Kate places an arm around my waist and my chest feels hotter than it ever has before. Something’s coming up too. 

“K-Kate!” 

She looks to me and my warning isn’t enough as I puke on her shirt. I’m never drinking again.

...

“I’m sorry,” I groan.

Kate helps with my shoes, they come off easily. 

“Y/N, it’s cool, it happens. Lay back and drink this water, ok?” 

She hands me the bottle with a tender glare. I take it and she walks away, slipping off her shirt. At this point, I still have some composure and cover my eyes. 

“I’m such an idiot, God I shouldn’t have drunk any in the first place,” I muffle into my hands, “all to impress someone who doesn’t even like me back.” 

“Hmm?” 

I remove my hands and there’s Kate, leaning over my bed and hovering over me with a very revealing tank top. 

“Kate?”

“Who’d you want to impress Y/N?” she asks again. 

“I-I-”

“You can tell me anything, you know that, right?” she whispers. 

Her hazel eyes darken and I open my mouth to tell her, but no words come out. It’s a short breath as I lean up, my mouth meeting Kate’s in a kiss.

[tomiyeee]

finished the story quests for bl3 (but barely any of the side missions yet) and i got...Opinions(tm)

(sorry if this doesn’t cut on mobile! also if you want to hide spoilers i’m tagging all my bl3 posts as “bl3 spoilers” so ny’all can blacklist it)

in no particular order:

i honestly wanted to give gearbox some slack and try my best to like this game bc i know people had probably unfairly high expectations for this game given all the build up, but they really just kept letting me down in everything but the graphics

said this before but overall, the characters are all Quite lackluster

^^ tyreen and troy included. adding the word "bitch" to every sentence does not automatically make it funnier

that being said, i super love their backstory + relationship with typhon/nekofeyo-whatever

the character designs are equally boring. moxxi was the only one who got a real improvement imo. lilith and maya are okay. rhys...i dont think i have to explain. lia...i dislike her hair; the black felt like it balanced out her design better and the white streak was interesting and cool but full white just looks bad tbh. zer0 feels less sleek and more bulky which doesnt fit him much. tina lost her pretty color palette and cute outfit. where are all the bright pretty color palettes in general???? there are other colors besides brown and black???? use them?????

ending of pre-sequel: “you will need all the vault hunters you can get” me: “ooh does that mean all the vh’s from previous games are back? i can’t wait to see everyone meet each other! :D” bl3: only nine of them come back, 3 of them die, the rest are involved in maybe one mission at most

boss fights. super. boring. and tedious. i mean this could be partly because i was playing on ps4 which made it extra not fun but if the only reason the fight is difficult is because they have a lot of health...it's not fun or challenging. i want fights like handsome jack with interesting mechanics. i want fights like angel with emotional impact. i want fights like the pre-sequel final boss that i forgot the name of with variation that isnt just "now they have an attack that shines bright lights in ur eyes, covers the whole arena, and can knock you down in one hit im looking at you traunt and killavolt". tyreens fight was the only one that i somewhat enjoyed because of this. all the others were just like "ughhhh again?"

im really enjoying melee amara playstyle. taking out badass enemies in four hits is my jam. this is just my fallout 4 playthrough all over again babey heck yea

typhon just wanted to be a good dad!!! he called tyreen starlight which is adorable!!! he did the best he could and tyreen hated him for it!!! i don’t blame either of them for that tbh, it makes sense from both their perspectives. tyreen definitely should have been more understanding, but she’s a dick so :/ (not saying this is a writing flaw, just a character flaw)

hammerlock needs higher standards in men but i really appreciate the undeniably in-your-face "fuck you" to all gamer dudes

i really. hate. how little the player character seems to matter in the story. in pre-sequel the vh's all had unique dialogue AND npcs would respond, sometimes even with character-specific lines. even when it was the same across vh's, it still felt like the npcs were interacting and speaking directly to them. the player character felt like a character of their own, rather than just a vessel for the player to do quests and kill enemies with or an errand runner for the important characters. i thought that was the direction they were going in with bl3 too but this just feels like bl2 only worse. there’s a separation again between you and the story and it feels like you’re just watching things happen. now ur not just a silent protagonist, but instead your a speaking protagonist who gets completely ignored. whats the point of including unique dialogue if it's not even acknowledged beyond an "uh-huh, moving on"?

sometimes the logic just feels kinda dumb. the twins killed/disabled maya and lilith in a heartbeat, they can literally disintegrate the most powerful beings in the universe, but the vault hunters? absolutely not. they must fight them for 40 minutes and then die.

after the fight with troy, no one even touched tyreen. there's no way they could have thought "yup she's definitely dead, no need to shoot her in the head or anything just to make sure. we didn't do anything to even hurt her, we just assumed." turns out she's 100% alive and gets up to start the apocalypse. who'da thunk! i know they wanted the end to seem more dramatic but it just seems stupid that they could have stopped tyreen like 5 missions earlier had they even the slightest bit of common sense.

lilith was one of the biggest threats to tyreen and troy's whole plan. of course they should leave her alive and simply steal her powers. let's kill the monk siren instead.

i know they didn't include this to give all players a fair experience instead of favoring sirens, but it kinda sucks playing a siren character and it's just completely ignored outside of ur action skill. tyreen and troy are sapping siren powers left and right, but they choose to leave you with yours. when you enter the eridian place with typhon tannis starts glowing because it has "something to do with sirens". what about the one standing right next to her? this applies to bl2 as well...jack i would willingly charge ur vault key for u pls why do u take lilith instead :'(

oh yeah speaking of tannis! i LOVE that she got angels powers. for some reason it just makes me really happy. maybe it's bc i think it's sweet that part of angel survived. maybe it's because it makes for cool fanart. maybe it's just cool. idk. also like that we got a solid explanation of what angel's powers were (influence over technology). i always thought her having control over it in bl2 might've been cuz it was hyperion tech and she had access to it same as she had access to the satellite from bl1. it wasn't super clear since it seemed like she could also materialize things like the ammo during her fight.

that also reminds me: all the dramatic reveals in this game felt kinda badly done.

the very first one with zer0/katagawa. like the whole time i was walking around looking for him i was trying to think why he might've turned/something must have happened to him or rhys. everyone was saying it was undeniably zer0. i finally meet him and take one look at his bright ass maliwan armor and its like. really. you couldnt have made it anymore obvious that thats not zer0. and then his helmet gets knocked off and surprise! it's not him. i totally didnt already figure that out with one glance 10 seconds ago. (maybe even earlier when you got glimpses of him around the building but i always missed it cuz i was looking at the fish tanks n shit)

also the tannis reveal. she was speaking to me in the same way that only known siren characters could. weird unexplained things were happening and seemed to be related to tannis. i wonder if she's a siren? surprise! she's a siren.

tyreen and troy knew about the great vault through some unknown means. typhon was talking about having a son and a daughter who he told stories about the great vault. typhon calls tyreen his daughter a while later and lilith acts surprised like honey ur a little slow, i figured that out several lines ago.

basically i'm not saying they were so obvious that i knew from the beginning of the game; i only figured them out a little before they were outright stated. but it was enough that it kinda ruined the effect and the characters acting surprised only when it was blatantly spelled out for them just made it annoying.

i feel like most of this is pretty negative, but i don’t mean that i hate the game and was miserable playing it. it was honestly okay...like i said i wanted to like it, but gearbox hates me specifically and killed/ruined all my faves just to spite me sooo...*waves hand back and forth in a sort of “ehhh” gesture*. i think my opinion on bl games from most to least fav would be: tftbl, bltps, bl2, bl3, and bl1. so it’s not the worst, but deeefinitely not one of my faves. i mean jack’s not in it (or if he is he doesn’t have a big role) so it’s already at a huge disadvantage. the ending was ok, it was all dramatic n stuff and it kinda makes sense i guess, but it was just about as okay as the rest of the game really. i don’t hate it but it’s not great either yknow?

[spookyrus-writes-sometimes]

Maka Gets a Boyfriend at the End of This Story

Fandom: Soul Eater Characters: Maka, Soul Eater, Black☆Star, Tsubaki Relationships: Spoilers! :P Genre: Humor, Fluff Rating: K+, no warnings Words: 2,635 Date: April 1, 2016 (revised April 15, 2020) AO3 | DA | FF

It was a fine summer's day in Death City, Nevada. Birds were singing, the sun was laughing, and Scythe Meister Maka Albarn was sitting in her apartment instead of enjoying the nice weather. On a day like today, most students of the Death Weapon Meister Academy would be out and about, playing games or hanging with friends.

But not Maka.

Maka would rather be sitting in the comfort of her home, book in hand and air conditioning roaring.

"Maka," groaned Demon Scythe Soul Eater from the kitchen, "if you're gonna stay inside all day, the least you could do is make some food."

"Make your own food," Maka retorted. "I'm reading."

"You're always reading," said Soul Eater, leaning in the door frame to the living room. "The only thing you ever do is read. Why don't you get up and actually do something with your life?"

"I am doing something with my life," said Maka. "I'm nourishing my brain with literature."

"That's the stupidest excuse I've ever heard," Soul scoffed through gritted teeth. "Now go outside."

"No."

"I'm not even asking you to stop reading. I'm just asking you to read outside."

"No," Maka repeated adamantly. "It's too hot. There's AC in here."

"Ugh... You're such a pain."

Soul Eater scratched his chin thoughtfully. Surely, there must have been some way to convince his meister to get up and about. Just a little push, some sort of motivation to do anything other than all this nothing. But what could it be? Then, Soul Eater got an idea. A horrible, awful, downright moronic idea.

"Maka," said Soul Eater, a glint in his eye, "do you know what you need?"

"My own apartment?" Maka replied snottily.

Soul shook his head. "No," he chuckled, grinning a twisted grin. "A boyfriend."

Immediately Maka's head shot up, her eyes bugging out of her face. "What did you just say?"

"You need a boyfriend," Soul Eater repeated, "and I'm going to get you one."

Laughing sarcastically, Maka slammed her book shut and set it on the couch beside her. "Um, no," she said, "that is not happening. I am not getting a boyfriend, much less one that you suggest."

"Aw, that's adorable," Soul Eater snickered. "You think you have a choice."

He then forcefully lifted her over his shoulder and carried her out the door. She screamed the whole way.

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

On the streets of Death City at the height of noon, Soul Eater taped a hastily thrown-together flyer to a lamp post. Said flyer depicted an unflattering school photograph of Maka and pencil-written advertisements saying that she was single. All the while, Soul Eater cackled maniacally, only encouraged by his meister's protests. "Soul Eater!" Maka exclaimed. "Stop that right now! You've made your point!" She held her arms open to the beaming sun, shouting, "O great sun, how beautiful art thou?!" then swung back around. "Can we go home now?!" "Nope!" replied Soul Eater. "Not until we've found you the perfect guy." "I don't need a boyfriend!" Maka roared. "I don't want a boyfriend! What part of this are you not understanding?!" "The part where you sit inside with your nose in a book on perfectly nice days like today." "But it's scorching!" It didn't take long for the flyer to start attracting attention. Unfortunately, this wasn't the kind of attention Soul Eater had been hoping for. "What the heck is this?" queried Shadow Meister Black Star, pawing the flyer as he looked it over. With a hearty laugh, he said, "You're seriously trying to get Maka a boyfriend?! What kind of guy would want to date Maka?!" "Now, Black Star," said Shadow Weapon Tsubaki Nakatsukasa, "I'm sure you don't mean that..." "I totally mean it!" Black Star asserted. "I say what I mean and I mean what I say! And I mean it when I say that no guy in his right mind would ever want to date Maka Albarn!" Tsubaki sighed. "Even if you do mean it, that doesn't mean you should say things like that about our friend..." "No, he's right." Some confused stares turned to Maka. "No guy in his right mind would ever want to date me," she declared, "because I am undesirable. We should just give up and go home, because this will go nowhere and we are all wasting our time." "Wow, seriously?" questioned Black Star. "I was trying to insult you." "I get the feeling that Maka isn't doing this by choice," Tsubaki observed. "Nope, but this is for her own good," said Soul Eater. "I am not unlocking the door to our apartment until she is happy in somebody's arms." "Then why don't you be her boyfriend?" asked Black Star. "Ew, no," said Soul and Maka in unison. "Besides," Maka growled, "he's part of the problem." "Well, what about Death the Kid?" Black Star suggested. "He's smart, a good meister, and a total snob. Just like Maka." "I'm right here!" Maka shouted, and Black Star reveled in the glory of a successful blow. "He does seem up your alley, Maka," Soul Eater concurred. "I'm not interested in Kid," Maka huffed, "or any guy. Besides, likes repel, and I don't think I could stand to listen to another one of his symmetry rants." Somewhere, Death the Kid pauses in the middle of one of his hourly symmetry rants to his weapon partners. "What's the matter?" asks Liz. "Someone is talking about me," replies Death the Kid. "Someone... unsymmetrical..." "If Maka doesn't want a boyfriend, she shouldn't be forced to have one," said Tsubaki. "It's her choice to make, not Soul Eater's." "Yes, thank you!" Maka cried. "You're just saying that to defend her," said Black Star, "and the fact that she is completely undateable." "That's not true!" Tsubaki exclaimed. "Maka has plenty of desirable traits! She's smart, nice, a talented meister... But if she doesn't want to date, she doesn't have to." "Well, she's gonna have to be dateable," said Soul Eater, "because she's getting a date, whether she likes it or not." "Did you hear a word I just said...?" "Hey, what's going on over here?" The group turned to see two new arrivals, Lamp Meister Kim Diehl and her partner Demon Lantern Jacqueline O'Lantern Dupré, checking out the Maka poster. "Maka needs a date?" Jackie questioned. "Looks like," replied Kim, "but why?" "Because she needs to step out and smell the roses for once in her life," said Soul Eater, attracting the girls' attention. "Do you guys have any ideas?" inquired Black Star. "'Cuz we're drawing a blank, and she's being stubborn." "I'm being stubborn because this is stupid!" "I can't think of anybody off the top of my head," said Jackie. "I can," said Kim. "How about Ox Ford?" "What?!" Maka wasn't the only person who said that. At the same time, Lightning King Ox Ford stumbled out from his hiding place behind the nearest building. "What were you doing there?!" Kim shrieked. "Certainly not following you around the city in case of any opportunity to be your knight in shining armor, that's for sure!" Ox Ford replied nervously, and Kim gave an exasperated sigh. "But really, I'm insulted that you think I would even consider going out with Maka Albarn! I am very out of her league, and I have no interest in someone such as her!" "Good!" Maka spat. "I have no interest in someone such as you!" "Sounds like we're running out of options," whispered Soul Eater to Black Star. "Yeah, Maka may be undesirable, but she can't be completely hopeless," whispered Black Star to Soul Eater. "There's got to be somebody who'd be willing to go out with her. Like, maybe if we could blackmail them..." Maka's eye twitched. "Ox, may I take a look at your school supplies?" "Of course," replied Ox Ford. "I don't go anywhere without bringing school with me." Ox held his book bag open for Maka, who retrieved a hefty textbook on soul science, hardcover. She slammed it spine-first into Soul Eater's head. He crashed into Black Star and they both hit the ground. Maka handed the book back to Ox and expressed her gratitude. "Ow," said Soul Eater. "Hey, I know!" Black Star exclaimed, prying his face off of the pavement. "That hit to the head gave my brain the jump start it needed to come up with an idea!" "Shoot." "Let's set her up on a blind date!" Black Star suggested. "That way the guy doesn't have to know who he's dating! It's the perfect plan!" "Are we sure this is a good idea...?" Tsubaki questioned. "No," Maka grunted, "no we aren't." "Hey, I know the perfect guy, too!" Kim added. "He won't suspect a thing!" "Oh my god," Jackie chuckled, "I think I know who you're talking about." "Just as long as he's decent," said Soul Eater. "I don't want some grungy jerk talking up my meister." Kim assured, "Don't worry about that. He's probably a better person than Maka." "You all keep talking about me like I'm not right here!" "Alright, then it's settled!" Black Star declared. "Tonight, we commence Operation Get Maka A Boyfriend! YAHOO!!" While Soul and Kim cheered, Maka buried her face in her hands, and Tsubaki patted her on the back solemnly. "My life is over."

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

That night, Maka found herself in a make-shift restaurant, this being Black Star and Tsubaki's dining room with a sheet draped over the table and some candles set about to solidify the "romantic" atmosphere. She hadn't bothered changing out of her attire from earlier, mostly because Soul Eater still wouldn't let her into their apartment, but also because she didn't care. She was sitting across from Pot Meister Kilik Rung, who was dressed in a messy bow tie over his street clothes. He looked even less comfortable than Maka did. Pot of Fire was playing a peaceful tune on a little violin while Pot of Thunder pretended to take the "happy couple's" order, wearing a fake curly mustache. "So," asked Maka dully, "how did Kim drag you into this?" "She threatened to text my grade school photos to the entire academy..." Kilik sighed. Black Star strutted into the room, carrying two plates and wearing a mustache similar to Thunder's. "Dinner is served," he said in a crude Italian accent before darting back to watch the chaos unfold with the others. On each plate was a ham sandwich. Literally just a piece of ham between two slices of white bread. Maka rolled her eyes. "Look, Kilik. I appreciate the effort, but I'm just not interested." "Oh, good." Kilik sighed with relief. "You said it first." "Does this mean you're not gonna make out?" Black Star called from the other room. "This isn't going to work, guys!" said Maka. "Just shut it down already!" "You heard her," came Tsubaki's voice, which was met with groans of disappointment. The lights came up, and Black Star, Tsubaki, Soul Eater, Kim, Jackie, and Ox Ford stepped into the dining room. Ox looked like he wasn't completely sure what he was doing there. "Aw, man!" Kim complained. "I was so sure that would work." "Maybe Maka really is hopeless," Soul Eater lamented. "Or maybe I just don't want a boyfriend!" Kilik glanced around awkwardly. "So, uh... can we go, or...?" "Rome wasn't built in a day," said Jackie, "and love can't be made in one." "There has to be some other way!" said Black Star determinedly. "Maybe we can sign her up for a dating website or something." "My cousin met her husband on a dating website," said Ox Ford. "That might work, actually..." said Soul Eater. Tsubaki cast a nervous glance to Maka, whose body was tensing and teeth were grinding. "We might have to get creative with the profile, though." "Maybe we could say that she's foreign. How good is her Russian accent?" "Does she have any talents other than reading?" "I'm gay!" A string on Fire's violin sprung. The room instantly fell silent. "What did you say?" Soul Eater questioned. "I'm gay," Maka repeated, now standing, her chair knocked over. "I like girls, okay?" She tidied her outfit, face flushed, before continuing, "I didn't want to tell you because I figured you'd make fun of me, since you're always looking for new material." Black Star scratched behind his ear. "But you didn't give me much of a choice there... and I guess you had to find out eventually." For a few seconds, nobody said anything. Kim and Jackie exchanged glances, and Kilik sat obediently for fear of what was coming next. "Seriously...?" Black Star eventually spoke. Maka scowled back at him. "What?" Black Star chuckled, catching Maka off guard. "You thought we would make fun of you for that?" He burst out laughing, on the verge of hysterics. "You're kidding! Why would we make fun of you because you're gay? That's just mean!" He elbowed Tsubaki in the ribs, and she squeaked. "Tsubaki's gay, too!" "You didn't need to tell everyone that..." Tsubaki whimpered, covering her face. "Yeah, half of my friends are lesbians!" Kim added. "That's nothing to be ashamed of." "Though I can't say I blame you," said Ox Ford, "for thinking Soul Eater and Black Star would use that as another excuse to harass you." Maka's expression softened. "I... didn't think you would all be so supportive." "Why wouldn't we be?" said Jackie. "It doesn't make you any different from the rest of us," said Kilik. Fire and Thunder each gave a thumbs-up of approval. Soul Eater approached Maka, and she eyed him skeptically. "I wish you would have told me sooner," said the weapon. "Why's that?" asked the meister. Soul Eater flashed a toothy grin. "Because then I could have advertised you for a girlfriend instead." Maka roared her frustrations, swatted at the howling Soul Eater and started towards the door. "Oh, come on!" Soul Eater cried. "We make fun of you and you get mad, we don't make fun of you and you still get mad, what do you want from us?!" Maka grumbled when she realized the door was locked, and Tsubaki walked to stand beside her. As she slid the key into the lock, she whispered, "If you want, I could take you out to lunch tomorrow. To make up for... all of this." Maka ran her fingers through her hair, cheeks slightly pink. "Uh, yeah," she replied. "I'd like that." Soul Eater and Black Star looked to each other curiously.

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

It was another fine day in Death City, Nevada. Flowers were blooming, the sun was snoring, and Scythe Meister Maka Albarn, as usual, had her nose stuck in a book. However, this time she had her nose stuck in a book outside on a park bench. As the boys played basketball on the court before them, Tsubaki sat down beside Maka. "What are you reading?" she inquired. "Oh, it's just a book that my papa got me," the meister replied. "It's called Boyfriend, and it's about this passive girl who has a really sweet boyfriend, but realizes she doesn't feel the same way about him and doesn't know how to turn him down. In this chapter she goes to her best friend..." As Maka went on, Tsubaki smiled and nodded, listening intently to the summary. On the court, Soul Eater and Black Star paused their game to observe their partners. "Well, it didn't go according to plan," said Black Star, "but you got her to come outside, right?" "Yeah." Soul Eater nodded. He watched Maka further explain her reading, sitting close to Tsubaki and smiling brightly. "She seems happy. That's what's important." He turned back to Black Star, and with a smirk, he added, "But I'm never letting her forget that I was totally right about her needing to get out more." THE END

[commentaryvorg]

Danganronpa V3 Commentary: Part 6.13

Be aware that this is not a blind playthrough! This will contain spoilers for the entire game, regardless of the part of the game I’m commenting on. A major focus of this commentary is to talk about all of the hints and foreshadowing of events that are going to happen and facts that are going to be revealed in the future of the story. It is emphatically not intended for someone experiencing the game for their first time.

…Okay, since this is the very last post of the main storyline, admittedly this spoiler warning has become completely moot at this point. But, you know. Tradition!

Last time as we got even closer to the end of trial 6, the audience literally murdered Keebo in the most pointlessly gratuitous death in the entire game, the narrative tried to insist this was necessary in order for Shuichi to both realise he needs to change their minds and actually be able to do so (but it wasn’t), Shuichi was adorably inspired by Kaito to make the impossible possible and Maki adorably agreed that a sidekick of Kaito’s could do that, I had A Lot Of Feelings, ones very personal to me (thanks to Kaito!), about Shuichi’s sentiment of how fiction can change the world… and then things abruptly mood-whiplashed into the worst Argument Armament both gameplay-wise and in terms of how it should have been literally actually impossible for Shuichi to change any of this asshole audience’s minds, even though things really could have been written such that it wasn’t if this audience had just been reacting to all this like actual human beings.

(…I did it! I found a reason to mention Kaito in every one of this chapter’s summary bits! Okay, admittedly I had to kind of shoehorn it a few times – though not remotely all of the times, mind you – but shush, Kaito deserves it, I have no regrets.)

Anyway, with the Argument Armament over and Shuichi having achieved the literal impossible, we’re about to go to the “vote”.

Monokuma:  “Puhuhu… I think hopeful Keebo should vote for despairing Tsumugi, without a doubt!”

My god, Monokuma is so transparently just trying to keep things on script and pander to the Danganronpa buzzwords when it doesn’t even make any sense. When at any point during this trial has Tsumugi herself ever seemed to be in despair? And Keebo has hardly been advocating hope recently – Monokuma’s just desperately trying to make it sound like that’s totally still his character. Plus, he’s Monokuma! He’s supposed to be the poster bear for despair! He’s not supposed to want anyone to be voting against despair!

Monokuma:  “Cuz that’s what the outside world wants to see!”

Since they’re in control of Keebo now, the outside world is already going to vote for what they want to see and shouldn’t have needed Monokuma to tell them what they supposedly want. Someone’s getting worried. (He really shouldn’t be, because what just happened should not have been possible, but.)

It’s pretty neat how it turns out that the real reason the game made you do the vote yourself the whole time is for the purpose of this bit in which you don’t vote. Though I guess technically they still didn’t need to do that and could just leave you to assume that Shuichi didn’t vote.

(If you do vote here, regardless of who for, there’s just a very brief game over in which Shuichi laments that he was a coward after all.)

Maki:  “If she had cast one vote for Keebo then it would be a tie, but—”

Tsumugi:  “Oh, there’s no need to worry about that. I didn’t vote either.”

Maki:  “…What?”

Shuichi:  “Just as I thought… You wanted hope to win.”

Of course she wanted hope to win, but then… why couldn’t she have just voted for herself, just in case Keebo’s body didn’t vote? I suppose this could be a sign that she actually does care about what the outside world wants and would be willing to accept it if they didn’t want the “hope” ending after all, rather than forcing it on them against their will anyway. But the rest of her behaviour a bit later when she realises they didn’t vote doesn’t really add up with that, so, eh?

Also it’s interesting how Maki seems particularly surprised to realise this. I guess she really was taken in by Tsumugi’s manipulative argument earlier that she’d want to be the lone survivor because she’s the big bad evil mastermind, and that Maki’s desire to not vote was all part of her plan.

(It’s okay, Maki! You were right to believe in your own feelings and stand with Shuichi after all!)

Tsumugi:  “No matter who he voted for, the only one who survives is Keebo… So in other words, the winner is hope.”

I was going to question whether it’d really be the same even if the audience voted for “despair” to win, which should mean Keebo’d be executed after all and we’ll get the boring everybody-dies ending anyway. But actually he’d just be “punished”, aka being put into a new killing game, so no, that would end up the same as the “hope” ending in which he sacrificed himself to that fate, wouldn’t it.

Tsumugi:  “He’ll be participating in the next killing game.”

Maki:  “Hold it! Why are you punishing Keebo? If Keebo survives, then there’s no need for him to be sacrif—”

Maki, I appreciate your desire to try and protect your friend, but Keebo is already dead. She’ll just be “punishing” his empty shell.

…Actually, that’s a good question. What would she have done to put Keebo’s empty shell in a new killing game? Would he have gotten a new personality? Would it be the same as his old one with his memories erased, or a different character? Or would the audience have been in complete control of him like they are now? That would have been… disconcerting to his fellow students, to say the least.

Himiko:  “Th-That’s not fair! Are you twisting the rules again?”

Tsumugi:  “It’s fine, cuz this is all fiction. Maybe it’s a bit forced… but that’s fiction for you, right?”

Ha. Haha. There sure have been a few forced bits in this fiction here and there, both in terms of things Tsumugi did in-universe, and also in an out-universe sense.

Not that this is an excuse. Writers should be trying to make the best fictions they can, not writing off their mistakes and problems with “oh but it’s fiction so it doesn’t matter, right”, as if that’s an excuse to not even try in the first place. This is more of Tsumugi’s mindset of seeing fiction as enjoyable but ultimately meaningless because it’s “just” fiction.

Tsumugi:  “And how about this for the next plotline? Hope has won but the lone survivor, Keebo, remains trapped… Now he’ll challenge the killing game anew. Will he be able to grasp true hope…? Yeah, an ending like that can work, right?”

My god, Tsumugi, you are a terrible writer and I hope you’re starting to realise this yourself. All of Keebo’s friends are dead and now he’s forced into a second killing game? That’s not hope winning! That’s the most despair ending if ever I saw one! And what the hell does “grasp true hope” even mean? She’s definitely not talking about “true hope” in the sense of the actual meaning of the word, so it’s clearly just a superlative to refer to an even more hopey kind of hope than the hope he already supposedly has. This “plotline” is so dumb, and at least this has got to be out-universely on purpose.

Maki:  “What? This is the worst possible ending.”

Himiko:  “But… this is bad. At this rate, our deaths will be meaningless!”

Shuichi:  “…”

Shuichi is smiling, and he’s been silent for most of this, because he somehow has confidence in the literal impossibility he just pulled off when he really shouldn’t. I wish I could enjoy this final moment of Shuichi being a hero and living up to Kaito’s words as much as the narrative wants me to, but it just falls flat and I hate that it does that.

Shuichi:  “Phew… I’m relieved.”

This is Shuichi after the voting results showed that the audience also didn’t vote. I’m glad he was at least a little nervous that he might not have been able to do this, because he should not have been able to do this.

Tsumugi:  “Danganronpa is going to end? This killing game full of tense standoffs and backstabbings amongst friends…”

Oh, that’s what Danganronpa is to you and the audience? I thought it was meaningless yelling about hope being better than despair and people getting gratuitously killed because executions are fun or something.

Seeing the audience’s faces disappear from the trial background as they all switch off and stop watching is a satisfying moment all on its own. I just wish the buildup to it had been as good as it should have been to make it feel like this was actually happening for an organic, meaningful reason.

Shuichi:  “You never appreciated us… And it looks like you didn’t appreciate the power of fiction!”

I still love hearing Shuichi talk about the power of fiction, even if his use of it here was so, so badly executed. If this audience had actually understood the power of fiction and appreciated these characters like a decent audience should, then things would never have needed to happen in this nonsensical way!

Shuichi:  “No one wants to hear your sick, twisted stories anymore!”

This is veering a little bit into making it sound like even the existence of Danganronpa as a work of fiction in the out-universe has been bad simply because it involves people killing each other. But if it really is fiction and no real people are getting hurt, it’s still perfectly okay for stories to have bad things happen to their characters – that’s one of the things that makes stories compelling, after all.

Of course, since fiction can affect reality, people have to be mindful of the messages that their stories give off. But just because a story contains murder, that doesn’t mean the narrative condones it. The message of Danganronpa has never been “killing your classmates is totally okay if you don’t get caught”, nor has it been “being executed if you do get caught killing someone is totally deserved”, regardless of what this nonsensical audience may have seemed to think.

Himiko:  “So what are we going to do now? Now that it’s over, there’s no need for any punishments.”

There really isn’t! Now that the outside world has already shown they don’t want the killing games any more, it’s already done. Shuichi and friends have no need to get themselves killed to try and give them a disappointing ending, or to try and make their point about how determined they are to end this.

Tsumugi:  “No, it needs to end with a punishment… at the very least.”

Geez, Tsumugi! This is possibly the most sick and twisted decision she ever makes. With everything else, she at least believed she was delivering what her audience wanted. But this, she’s doing purely for her own satisfaction because she still wants there to be horrible executions, even though nobody else does any more.

Shuichi:  “Now… if we… continue to live after this… the choice we made won’t really matter. The people will just want another killing game, so…”

No, they won’t! You already (somehow) changed everyone’s minds partly by showing that you would have been willing to die if necessary, but now that their minds have been changed, it isn’t necessary! They’re not all suddenly going to change their minds back just because you didn’t actually die!

This bit of writing does rather awkwardly reek of the out-universe writers desperately wanting to give themselves an excuse for one final execution scene so it can end with something of a bang. Out-universe writers, why are you behaving like Tsumugi.

Tsumugi:  “I never expected an ending like that, so I don’t have a punishment ready…”

Don’t you? Not even for the possibility that the blackened wins and everyone else dies? I guess they really never do expect the blackened to ever win, do they. But even then, wouldn’t they have individual punishments ready for every character in case they become the blackened? They could just go through those one by one; that’s always what I imagined would happen in the eventuality that a blackened got away with it. I suppose doing it like that wouldn’t be exciting enough when she wants to kill them all at once for a grand finale. (Have I mentioned it’s fucked-up that she still wants to do this.)

Tsumugi:  “I worked so hard to keep this going for 53 seasons and now it’s all over.”

No, you didn’t, what the hell, stop giving yourself way more credit than you deserve. Tsumugi is a teenager, or at least she’s young enough to pass as one. We saw from that one comment that there’d been three years between this season and season 52. Even if the usual gap is shorter than that, that’s still probably something like at least fifty years this franchise has been around. Tsumugi was born into a world that already loved Danganronpa, and she’d have only been working on it herself for the last few seasons at most.

(Plot twist: Tsumugi’s actually like eighty years old, but because she’s a literal fucking shapeshifter, she constantly assumes the appearance of a high school student as her “default” form. Yeah, no, somehow I don’t think that’s what we’re supposed to be getting from this.)

Tsumugi:  “Well, that’s fine… If this is a world without killing games now… I don’t want to be a part of it.”

It seems, perhaps, that the main reason Tsumugi is insisting on a final execution is because she wants to basically commit suicide over there being no more killing-real-people-for-entertainment any more? Which is extremely fucked up in its own right, but even more so that she’s then selfishly insisting on dragging the other three into it when they have no reason to die any more.

Maki:  “But now, it’s all over. We’re the last ones to suffer from the killing games…”

Yes! Whether you die or not, that’s still true, at least. That’s worth it.

Shuichi:  “Come on, everyone! We should be proud! We were able to change the world in the end.”

You were! Somehow. I really wish it was easier to get behind this and be proud of Shuichi and friends for doing this. I really wish it had felt possible.

(The writers are the ones who didn’t make the impossible possible here and I am very disappointed in them.)

Tsumugi:  “My plan was such a flawless copy, it even failed right at the end… So I should be able to hold my head up high as a cosplaycat criminal, right?”

Shuichi:  “A ‘cosplaycat criminal’?”

Shuichi has some… odd deductions based on this statement in the epilogue, which we’ll get to soon enough. But just looking at it right here at face value, all it seems to be is that Tsumugi is trying to look on the bright side of her failure. She’s trying to tell herself that this is just like how Junko’s plan failed right at the end, so she can be happy because it’s like she really was cosplaying Junko and copying one of her favourite characters down to the letter. She calls herself a cosplaycat criminal, meaning she was copying a fictional crime!

I like how Tsumugi keeps trying to be happy about her Junko-ness during the execution by cosplaying her and copying Junko’s final grin… but she’s not Junko, and she’s not happy about this at all. Which is good, because she doesn’t deserve to be. Only Kaito gets to smile in death.

After even more destruction of the Academy, Keebo’s empty shell sees the rubble shifting, indicating that the other three are still alive under there. (Please imagine them huddling together with Maki using her body to shield Shuichi and Himiko as best she can. You know she would.) And the Keebo-shell just leaves them alone, because the outside world doesn’t want to kill them any more. Them not being visible means there’s plausible deniability that makes it look like he sure tried to kill them good and dead and totally didn’t know they were still alive at the end. Not that I’m entirely sure why he’d need to hide it, since right now, Keebo is the outside world, and they all want them to survive, so it shouldn’t need to be a secret. Maybe they’re just trying to give them some privacy and to let them live in relative secret when they escape. That would sure be far more empathy and decency than this audience ever seemed to have any capacity for, but then, Shuichi did a magic, so, whatever.

…Was this button that was in plain sight and easily accessible on Keebo’s stomach seriously his self-destruct button this whole time? Geez, can you imagine if someone had pressed it accidentally?

This execution music still has the usual “wa-wa-wa-wa, wa-wa-ooh” vocal part that they all have. Here, it plays as Keebo flies towards the wall to blow it open, and it’s in the usual lower key… but it shouldn’t be! This isn’t a killing blow, it’s a victory, again! This is allowed to be in the higher key just like it was for Kaito’s!

Based on the power Keebo’s laser gun displays, I’m still convinced that he could have just used the laser gun to blow a hole in the wall and didn’t need to straight-up self-destruct into it. The audience probably only made him do that because his body is a useless empty shell now anyway.

(Did Shuichi’s magic impossible miracle also make them feel bad for pointlessly murdering Keebo? It better have done. Maybe somewhere in the Team Danganronpa HQ there’s backups of his personality and he could possibly hypothetically be saved? Though he’d need a new body as well now.)

(…But then again, there’s backups of everyone’s personality if you use Flashback Lights, yet I can’t imagine Shuichi and co would be comfortable with creating what would awkwardly just be like copies of their dead friends.)

The credits listing the characters’ names are neat. They were all real people who contributed to this work of fiction, after all, right? …Though that idea sort of falls apart after it goes through the V3 cast and starts listing the DR1 and 2 characters, who were not real in this universe, and then characters like Kaito’s grandparents and such who had lines in certain flashbacks but were also not real.

I also like how the credits are being shown on the screen of a cinema, in which we can see people in the audience gradually getting up and leaving. Danganronpa’s over now! They’ll just go and find something else to watch.

It’s neat that it puts you back to what seems like the title screen before cutting to the epilogue. This isn’t a part of “Danganronpa V3” any more!

I’m glad the epilogue exists to show for certain that Shuichi, Maki and Himiko survived. It would have been incredibly frustrating if they’d just left us with some ambiguous moving rubble and nothing more than that. I’d have headcanoned the hell out of their survival anyway, but it’s nice to know for certain that they’re okay and that I’m not just desperately believing something that might not be the truth.

(That hole in the wall is very high up and I am not sure how they’re going to climb up there to get out of it. Awkward. Maybe it’s cracked enough that eventually the whole thing will shatter.)

Himiko:  “To the outside world, huh? I wonder what kind of world it is.”

Maki:  “A peaceful world with no fighting and no despair. That’s what Tsumugi said, right?”

It’s still a world where, until literally just now, the majority of the population was quite happy to watch real people kill each other for entertainment. That’s pretty fucked-up in its own right.

Really, though, the first thing the three of them should be doing before they even think about leaving is finding whichever rooms in the dormitory are still reasonably intact and getting some fucking sleep. They haven’t slept since before Kaito’s trial. (And Maki probably didn’t even get much sleep the night before that trial either.) Then they had the full day of that case and trial, including some very emotionally traumatic experiences, investigated through the whole night rather than sleep, then had this trial in the morning for several more hours, including yet more emotional trauma. They should be exhausted, both physically and mentally.

But the main thing about the epilogue is Shuichi’s odd theories about Tsumugi’s final words.

Shuichi:  “She said ‘copy’… That means she must have been copying someone, right?”

…

Shuichi:  “Perhaps Hope’s Peak Academy and the Remnants of Despair really exist. Maybe Tsumugi was just basing her performance on them.”

No? Tsumugi’s words were not any kind of indication of that at all? It is at least equally likely that she meant she was copying Junko’s fictional plan - more­­ likely, in fact, since she called herself a cosplaycat, not a copycat, and she was always very insistent about not “cosplaying” real people, regardless of whether or not the cospox thing was bullshit.

Shuichi:  “She might have been lying when she said ‘copy’. But if she were telling the truth, then… it would make sense that that was a lie.”

Himiko:  “What do you mean, ‘that’?”

Shuichi:  “What Tsumugi showed us… The way we were when… we first arrived.”

She doesn’t need to have been lying about the word “copy” for it to still mean that Hope’s Peak was fictional, what the hell, Shuichi. You can copy fictional things.

And by “what Tsumugi showed us”, Shuichi is talking not about the audition videos, but about the flashback of their pregame selves in the prologue being excited upon realising they were chosen. Which means that Tsumugi very explicitly did show them a video of that. Such a video cannot possibly have been faked. Tsumugi may have been a shapeshifter, but she was only one person. So that definitely happened, then! This is just even more proof that it was the truth!

Shuichi:  “I still don’t believe it. I can’t believe that any of us would volunteer for this.”

Because those people weren’t you, Shuichi! And as soon as you realise that, it doesn’t matter what you would have done in their place because you’re different people! It’s kind of frustrating to me that after Shuichi was willingly accepting that he’s a “fictional character” back in the trial, that he was “created” out of Flashback Lights and fake backstory, he still apparently doesn’t get that this makes him a completely separate person from the moron who used to inhabit his body.

Shuichi:  “Even if we were obsessed with this killing game, I still can’t believe we would participate in it. I just… I don’t believe it.”

Because you and your friends here are decent people who would never willingly choose to put yourselves through the terrible ordeal you’ve just been through. Of course you wouldn’t be able to or want to understand the viewpoint of these kinds of one-dimensional assholes from the outside world who apparently couldn’t even accept that people dying and suffering is bad until you magically yelled at them.

(And, like I’ve mentioned, it does seem that the people who chose to audition were specifically people who kind of hated their own lives and therefore wouldn’t mind dying if it meant they got to be in Danganronpa.)

Shuichi:  “Ah, but… I don’t really have any logic behind that…”

Himiko:  “One of Kaito’s hunches, huh?”

I would be annoyed that they’re attaching Kaito’s name to this obviously-flawed assumption… but to be fair I do think Kaito would also have trouble comprehending the idea that anyone would want to do this. This is a fair thing to want to believe, and I’m glad that at least Shuichi acknowledges that he has no proof at all for this part. (And I do like Himiko just bringing Kaito up like that. They’re going to be mentioning him and quoting his inspiring lines all the time in their new life outside and that makes me happy.)

This whole bit is my problem with the epilogue. I’m glad we have the epilogue itself to show that the three of them survived, but I hate the way it then tries to undermine everything we just spent the whole trial on by making flimsy, completely unconvincing arguments for how ooh maybe it isn’t true after all, look, ambiguity~! Despite their attempts to make it seem that way, it’s still not remotely ambiguous to me.

Even disregarding all evidence pointing or not pointing towards it, think about what it would mean if Hope’s Peak and all those characters really did exist in this world. If Tsumugi was lying about everything being fictional… why? What on earth would be the point of telling such a massively elaborate lie? There has to be some motivation to lie, especially when the lie is this huge. She’d have had to deliberately set up all of the of subtle clues that led to Shuichi figuring things out (yes, Tsumugi ultimately told them it was fiction in the end, but Shuichi had deduced himself most of the way there before she did so), and come up with all of the details about “Danganronpa” and its many many series that would all have been completely made up out of thin air. I literally cannot think of any conceivable reason why Tsumugi would have wanted to go so far to lie about this. She indisputably had some kind of audience she was trying to please, but why the hell would pretending that actual history was just a fictional franchise please any of them, if all that stuff really was actual history? And why would they have played along with that lie in their comments?

But aside from the fact that it being a lie simply wouldn’t make any sense, all of the evidence that I’ve discussed throughout this commentary overwhelmingly points towards the fiction thing being the truth of this story. Clues that point away from it are both far less frequent and generally a lot more ambiguous and unconvincing (which definitely includes this one here in the epilogue).

And ultimately, I really believe that the fiction thing being the truth is a better story.

See, the reveal of everything being “fictional” during the trial could be seen as having undermined the entire rest of the story by acting like none of it mattered. But that is not remotely the case. Shuichi goes on to reaffirm that even if their characters were created from Flashback Lights, everything that happened in this killing game still happened, and they still really suffered and died. The story up until this trial still mattered just as much as it ever did – the only thing that was truly revealed to not have mattered was the backstory about the Gofer Project, which was really never that important to the actual killing game in the first place.

But if we’re supposed to believe this claim in the epilogue that actually nothing was fictional at all and Tsumugi was just telling nothing but lies for the entire second half of the trial? Then that really does just mean that none of this trial we just had mattered. And if that’s the case, then why the hell did we even spend several hours on it only for it all to be literally completely meaningless? That is not how to write a story.

Clearly the out-universe writers knew, when they decided to make the final chapter and big reveal of their story be this whole fiction deal, that it would be divisive and controversial. But even then, they had the guts to go and do it anyway, having a whole trial confidently establishing that that’s what the story was about, plus many subtle hints of it throughout the rest of the story that you can pick up on a replay and that I’ve been talking about here. It’s a really interesting, unique premise for a story; I’m glad they went and did it! …And then in this epilogue, after all their conviction, they suddenly get cold feet and go “uhhh actually guys if you didn’t like that story we just told you then here’s a free pass to pretend it didn’t really happen after all, please don’t be mad at us”.

No! You told everyone that story even though you knew it might turn heads, you should be sticking to the fact that that really was the story! Stick to your convictions! Come on, you guys wrote Kaito, you should know what’s up!

That’s what this part of the epilogue reads as to me – not as any kind of remotely convincing indication that this actually is the truth of the story that the writers had in mind all along, but the writers suddenly being cowards right at the end, and it’s disappointing.

The other likely reason the writers threw this in at the last minute is in an effort to make their narrative point about how lies are ambiguous and sometimes you never know what the truth is. It’s that same point they made at the end of Kokichi’s storyline that was apparently half the reason his character was even here. But man, is this an incredibly half-assed last-ditch effort at this that doesn’t really work at all… and while I’m annoyed that they even tried it in the first place, I’m glad that it doesn’t work.

Shuichi’s final observation on Kokichi back in chapter 5 tried to make it seem like his whole character was completely ambiguous; ooh who knows whether he was even telling the truth about hating the killing game, or maybe he really was just full-on evil after all~? But… Kokichi really isn’t that much of an impenetrable mystery. You have to look for it, but if you do, the evidence overwhelmingly points to him being a coward with massive trust issues who did what he did for the sake of petty, selfish revenge, out of no particular evil but also no particular good. The only part of him that actually manages to be ambiguous, purely because there’s never any mention of it at all, is what happened in his past to make him this way. I complained about that part of his character being ambiguous, and I’m glad the rest of him isn’t, because then at least I can appreciate the character that’s here.

Related to this, there’s the plan in case 5, which was designed to seem as though it was completely ambiguous as to who the victim and the killer were. Except there was a very, very easy way to prove that for certain, by opening the Exisal and finding Kaito inside. And there was a less easy but still ultimately convincing way to be sure enough of it, by paying close attention to the way Exisal Kokichi had been acting to realise that actually it was very clearly Kaito in there. Things were not nearly as truly ambiguous as Kokichi had been trying to make them seem.

As for this entire story in general and the whole fiction aspect of it… well, there probably could have been a way to make it truly ambiguous such that it really is impossible to know for sure what the truth is – it would need a lot of rewriting, but I imagine it could hypothetically be done. But that wouldn’t be a good thing, to me, because I don’t think I’d be able to enjoy the story very much at all that way. If we couldn’t ever know for sure what the truth of the story was, it’d mean there’d be no actual truth of the story to grab hold of and enjoy. There’d just be a wobbly ambiguous blob on the surface that’s trying so hard to be multiple possible stories at once that it ultimately isn’t any story at all.

I love subtlety in stories – obviously, or I wouldn’t have done this whole ridiculously long commentary talking about all the subtle bits! But I only love subtlety when there’s actually something deliberate and meaningful that it points to once you take the time to look. And that’s what this story actually is: something with a concrete truth to it, even if some of the evidence pointing towards the truth is subtle and hidden and you have to look for it. It just… also has some extra twiddly bits that are desperately trying to make things seem ambiguous for the sake of making a narrative point about lies, but they really don’t truly throw the core of the story into question at all, because if they did then everything would fall apart.

The writers apparently want one of the messages of this story to be “sometimes things are just ambiguous and you’ll never be able to know what the truth is”. But… the message I’m actually ultimately getting from it, thinking about it here, is that despite how ambiguous things may seem on the surface, there is always a truth, and you can always find it if you look hard enough.

Shuichi:  “If lies can change the world just as well as the truth can… Then lies… are just another way of telling the truth.”

Um, no? Having a tangible impact on the world does not stop something untrue from being untrue. Shuichi, why are you the one saying this? You’re supposed to have more sense than that. Apparently the writers are just trying to get him to to wax lyrical about their intended theme of this story even in ways that don’t make any sense for him.

Himiko:  “I guess it’s not important whether it’s a truth or a lie. Just what it leads to…”

Shuichi:  “Yeah. That’s what I believe.”

That’s a better way of putting this! Some lies or fictions can have a positive impact on people, sure, and maybe you can argue that that’s what really matters. But that doesn’t magically make them true.

(If it did, then, welp, I guess that means Kaito is real you guys, you heard it here first.)

They’re also still not properly distinguishing between deliberately-deceptive lies and wilfully-bought-into fiction, which I wish they had done. There is a meaningful difference between the two.

The training spot is still intact, despite everything! Obviously they’ll hardly be able to use it any more once they get out of here, but still. I am glad it is okay. And leaving it miraculously intact even seems pretty deliberate by the out-universe writers, because man is everything around it nothing but rubble. It is good that they understand how important the training spot is. There are precious memories of Kaito there.

Shuichi:  (Was this lie able to change something? Was this lie able to change someone? If it was able to change even the smallest thing…)

Yes, Shuichi! It was! It really, really was.

---

[Chapter-end bonus ramble] [Commentary-end bonus ramble] [Bonus content posts]

[pinkykitten]

Mission Fail

Marvel

Yon-Rogg x starforce! female reader

Warning: violence, blood

Specifics: romance, fighting, one-shot, fluff, race neutral reader, 2 for the price of 1!!!!!!!!!

People: yon-rogg, carol danvers, minerva, some skrull people 

Words: 1,741

Requested: By anon Could you do a Yon-Rogg x reader imagine? Like where the reader goes on a mission with Yon but is then kidnapped, but breaks out and gets back to him. 

and

@fortheloveoflamp Hello! May I please request a Yon-Rogg x reader, where they are very close (and they secretly like each other) but he’s the unemotional robot so the reader doesn’t know. One day she gets injured pretty badly, and he mends her up, being all “you need to be more careful,” type of stuff and ends up spilling the beans by like saying “I need you to stick around” or something along those lines. Not a confession but not a cover-up. And it’s just really cute but also a lil angsty? Thank you so much!!

Authors Note: so i was gonna post yesterday but there was a issue with my house and yada yada yada i couldnt so im sorry for that but im happy i got to post today. my requests r closed atm cuz i wanna do something special for avengers soon so be aware of that when that comes out. also i thought of why not add two requests to 1 fic so i did and this is what came out of that. this is my first yon-rogg fic so i do hope u like it! 

“Do you remember the mission y/n?” Yon-Rogg was persistent in asking you this question. You were more of the rebel of the group and took precautions lightly. 

You groaned as you turned around sassily at Yon-Rogg, “yes commander I heard you like the 40th time. I get what we’re supposed to do.”

“Then I should suspect you do it with excellency and remember to be on the lookout.”

You raised your brow and placed your hands on Yon-Rogg’s arms, “aww are you worried for me? Do I feel an emotion coming on?” Yon-Rogg gives you a stern look of warning and you give up with a sigh. You sit in your seat in the ship and wait till you arrive to the planet. 

Vers and Minerva tried to stealthily motion over to you. Minerva with a knowing look and Vers wearing a smirk on her face. 

“So y/n, you and Yon-Rogg. Whats that all about?” 

“Yeah you two seem so suspicious lately,” Minerva crossed her arms, awaiting an answer. You rolled your eyes, “wouldn’t you two like to know?”

Both of their mouths flew open and you laughed at their expression and idea that there was something between you and the commander. “You guys I’m joking! He’s my commander, my boss, I can’t do that to him. Also, there is nothing going on between us, so whatever fantasy you two have please erase it. Oh and did you guys forget that we’re not allowed to have emotions? Please do be careful with that, especially around him.”

They both looked down seeming sad that the love they thought you two had was a mistake. 

“I still can dream though!” Vers shouted as she ran away before you can disagree with her on that. 

Unknown to you all Yon-Rogg was present and listening to that whole conversation. Why did he feel distraught when you said that your relationship with him was strictly business? He could feel himself drawing further away from the strict rules he was to obey. No emotions. Trying to shake the thought and feeling away he looked at the screen of the monitor. It indicated that they were on the planet. “Alright we’re here! For the good of all Kree! ”

As the whole crew exits the ship everyone spreads out to cover more land and to take in any Skrulls. 

“Okay lets all spread out, you y/n you’ll join me.” Yon-Rogg ordered as he stepped closer to you and grasped your arm. You could hear the chuckle of the other members as they saw how protective Yon-Rogg was over you. 

You felt that same way about him but tried to keep your feelings at bay so as not to have emotions. “As much as I would love to fight with you Commander I think I’m better off by myself.”

Yon-Rogg’s face became of annoyance as he wanted you to stick with him. He was about to intervene and order you some more but you fled the scene and gave the rest of the crew a wave of goodbye.

As you rounded around a huge boulder to get a better view of the Skrulls you paused to check up on them some more. “Finally, now Yon-Rogg can see what I’m capable of.” All this time you wanted to prove to him that you had what it takes to be in the Starfroce.

You took out your gun as you saw the Skrulls more in your vision but as you were about to pull the trigger you heard a rustle of the leaves behind you and saw a Skrull. You stood up quick and you were about to shoot him when another one punched you behind the head and made you go limp. The last thing you heard was the rest of the crew crying out your name, especially Yon-Rogg.

You were taken to a mini base on the planet, just far away from where the ship that you were in parked. 

“We need to get them in a trap. I know for certain they will go after this girl and when they do we will be here,” one of the Skrulls said as he watched the monitor with an evil smirk. 

You were taken captive, your arms and legs were cuffed to a metal bed. You could feel the sting on the back of your head from the punch earlier. “Yep thats gonna need stitches,” you thought as you looked around your settings, trying to find a way out. 

“Oh she’s awake.”

Your brows furrowed and you tried to untie yourself from the cuff, “what do you want with me?” You barked as you snarled to the enemies faces. 

“We don’t want you, we want your leader. We want to make you Kree pay, and be no more!”

You smirked and chuckled, “you think you’ll get rid of us that easily. You’re badly mistaken. We’ll always keep coming and taking you down no matter what. Its what you deserve.”

The Skrull stood quiet, shaking his head, “you don’t know everything.”

“Let me go now!”

The Skrull ignored you and turned around sitting by the monitor. You had to think fast on an escape plan. Seeing that your gun was far away and you were tied you quickly threw that idea away. You saw a guard sitting very close by near you fast asleep. You looked around you and then up and saw the perfect item. You stretched your neck and with your teeth bought the stick down that was atop the shelf above your head. You kept the stick on your mouth but quickly paused when you heard more shuffling of the Skrulls feet. They seemed to not focus on you and walked right by. You continued with your plan. Using the stick you point the stick, with your mouth at the guard and put the stick so that the ring or the chain that the key was on went around the stick. With more than one try you successfully got the key on the stick. You brought it to your hand and used the key to unlock the cuffs. (i know i say stick so many times in this sentence just like bear🐻with me and again im sorry) 

“Yes,” you whispered in victory as you hopped off the bed. You tip toed out of the room but accidentally bumped into a guard. 

“Wha-what do you think you’re doing?”

“Ugh using the bathroom!” You scrambled to your feet and ran as fast as you could. You could hear the guard call to the other Skrulls and soon there were a whole flock of them after you. 

“I wanted to be by myself I said, I wanted to prove myself I said!” Next thing you knew they started shooting their guns at you, left to right. You dodged all the attacks and as you turned a corner your face met with a hard chest. 

“Y/n?” A familiar voice called to you. As you stood up you saw Yon-Rogg. Happy to see him you hug him and whisper his name. You quickly realize that you are not supposed to do that and unwrap yourself from him. Before you could apologize Yon-Rogg grabs your hand and guides you and him out of the battle. More shots are fired and Yon-Rogg stands in your way so if by any chance a blast would hit him instead of you. 

You two make it out and jump into the Starforce ship. 

You were out of breath, holding onto the ships walls for dear life. You could tell Yon-Rogg was angry. “I told you to be with me. Why didn’t you listen?”

You opened your mouth, about to say something when you could see that privacy was not really happening at this moment. Everyone was looking at you two. “I would like to speak with you commander, alone.”

Yon-Rogg nodded as he understood. 

You opened the door to a tiny room with a bed and sat on the bed. 

“Okay, explain,” Yon-Rogg gave the commandment as if he were talking sternly to a little kid. 

“You know I’m not a little child. I get why you are so angry but I had my reasons.”

“Which were?”

You bit your lip and thought about what if you told him the truth, what if he thought you were being naive or stupid? Yon-Rogg sat by you and looked directly into your eyes, “you know you can tell me anything.”

“I just wanted to prove myself to you. I wanted to show you what I was capable of and that I was meant to be on this team. But instead I’ve just made a fool out of myself.” You peered down, disappointed with yourself. 

Yon-Rogg lifted you face up, “Y/n you didn’t need to do any of that stuff. I already knew you were extraordinary. You are meant to be on this team, you’re meant to be here. I had full faith in you.” He gave you a cheerful smile and this led you to want more of him like this, vulnerable. You were seeing a different side of him. Yon-Rogg caught himself before he could go any further and got off the bed and stood up, serious. “Um, well I just, are you okay?”

You were about to nod when you felt the cold feeling of your blood dripping down your neck. You shuddered and touched it with your fingertips. As you brought it to your eyes they were coated with dark, deep red liquid. (yeah thats called blood ms.writer. jeesh!) Yon-Rogg was worried, afraid if you were seriously hurt. “I need to take care of that.”

Yon-Rogg took part of his armor off and collected the first aid kit. He took part of your armor off so you could be comfortable and laid you down to work behind your head. Once he was finished he bandaged you up and sat by the bed while you laid it in, getting better. 

“You need to be more careful.”

Shrugging you give a light chuckle and placed your hand on his arm, “I’ll try next time.”

“I’m serious y/n, we...I need you to stick around.” Yon-Rogg placed his hand on top of yours. Signifying he cares for you, truthfully. You beam with a smile and start to close your eyes, exhausted. Just enjoying the presence of him there beside you and knowing that he will always be there to protect you. 

Tag list: @harrington-lover, @angelgl16, @perfectlybeautifulsuit, @hyehoney, @haven-prelude (wont let me tag), @leasly, @totally-alexa21, @creamy-pasta-boi, @multireese, @fanfictionrecommendations-com, @prentisskelley, @malereaderforkpop (wont let me tag), @guardian-of-cookies, @justafangirl-97, @teenageshitposts (wont let me tag), @andreaoreas, @dippergravity (wont let me tag), @some-booty, @fromfoolishpeopletodeadpeople, @collectiveyou, @wtfisalltherandoms, @fangirl-4-life415, @dirbel, @marwantr, @divaanya, @wassupitschloe, @idontknowwhattocallthisworld (wont let me tag), @spycii

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[365daysofsasuhina]

[ 365 Days of SasuHina || Day Two Hundred Seventy-Seven: Plastic Wrap ] [ Uchiha Sasuke, Hyūga Hinata, Yūhi Kurenai ] [ SasuHina ] [ Verse: Best Years of Your Life ] [ AO3 Link ]

Another day...another shift at work.

In all actuality, Hinata doesn’t hate her job...it’s just...well, not what she expected to be doing. She had such grandiose plans of going to college, getting a degree in education, and teaching a class of little kiddos before settling down and having a few of her own with...someone. Back in high school her dreamboat was, well...sunk. So that part of her plan was a work in progress.

But then her entrance exams for her school of choice went...horribly wrong. Struck by severe anxiety, Hinata completely bombed them. Ashamed, she didn’t even bother retaking them, and instead opted to ‘take a year off’ and see where life took her.

To her honest surprise, her father let her live at home during said year to find herself. And Hinata busted her butt at the local grocery store working to save up enough for what she knew would be her eventual getting kicked out and moving someplace on her own. And just as she predicted, Hiashi got fed up with her ‘lack of direction’ after that first year, and...she was left to wing it.

By some grace, she actually managed to get a decent roommate. Her cousin’s girlfriend was looking to move off-campus while getting a degree in sports medicine, and agreed to halve the costs with Hinata to make things easier on them both. Then Neji decided to move in, and...it’s actually worked really well!

...despite...constantly feeling like a third wheel to their relationship. But Neji assures her time and time again that they enjoy her company, and want to help ensure she doesn’t have to go it alone.

...of course, that’s going to be a little questionable once they both graduate and need to move.

For now, however...Hinata’s just taking life one day at a time. Back in the deli section of the grocery store, she’s part of the team that makes...well, all the deli food. Her own speciality is the sandwiches, and she’s gotten really good at it! She can whip up just about anything in a flash, packaging it neatly in plastic wrap and filling up the displays, or even making them to order as people browse the cases. She’s gotten oddly proud of herself, being marked as a model employee.

Sometimes some of the older staff ask her about her plans, given her young age, and she just...shrugs.

“I like it here,” she tells them. “It’s not...g-glamorous, but I enjoy it. And...I’m not sure the whole ‘college’ thing is really, um...my speed.”

And after a little while, she got more than used to the locals pestering her about it, too. It helped that her old theater club instructor Kurenai (with a new family of her own) was supportive. Add in Neji and Tenten’s help, and she got over the stigma of choosing work over schooling within just a few months. Sure, every once in a while she’ll get a little...melancholy about it. Mostly whenever on social media, seeing all the posts from her friends her age doing more ‘typical’ things. Attending classes or sports games, getting significant others, and just...other milestones Hinata herself has yet to reach.

“Life isn’t a race,” Kurenai had told her once, stopping in to have lunch with her old student one day. “If anything, it’s just the opposite. It isn’t about rushing from point a, to b, all the way to z. Take time to wander, meander...you’ll find those milestones at your own pace, if you even want to. Your life is your journey. So long as you’re happy and healthy...who’s to say you’re doing your own thing wrong, hm?”

That conversation had left a spring in Hinata’s step for a good long while, and as time passed, she found a sort of...peace in her work. Not to say she’d totally given up on things changing or improving over time. But until she figured out what that would be, well...she was just fine doing things her way.

“Hinata! We need more turkey and swiss, please!”

“On it!” Collecting the proper ingredients to her work station, Hinata gets to crafting, lost in the rhythm and pattern of her work. It’s the lunch hour, so anyone making their way through the store tends to gravitate toward things ready-made, able to just pick it up and take it home to eat. The display cases are kept full, and the smells of fresh food fill the air.

Once her set is done, Hinata loads them into the cases, arranging them just so to try and make them any degree more appealing to those walking by.

“...Hinata?”

Stacking the last sandwich, Hinata straightens and looks to the inquisitive tone, blinking. And then it hits her. “...oh! Sasuke…?”

Standing on the other side of the case is indeed Sasuke Uchiha, an old classmate. Hands buried in his jacket pockets, he looks just as surprised to see her here. “Uh...yeah. I...didn’t know you were working here.”

Giving a quick, sheepish smile (and preparing for the inevitable questions), Hinata replies, “Yeah, um...I-I’ve been here over two years now!”

“...huh. Surprised I didn’t notice you earlier, then. Guess I’m just never in the right place at the right time.”

There’s a pause, and...he doesn’t press anything else. Just sort of...stands there.

A bit lurching in the quiet, Hinata eventually offers, “So, um...did you...want something?”

“Yeah, uh…” He glances over the selections. “...you don’t happen to do, like...BLTs, do you?”

That earns another blink. “Not for the regulars, but I can make you one, sure! We do custom ones, too. So it’s no trouble! Anything else you want on it…?”

“Just some mayo, I guess. With rye bread, if that’s okay.”

“Sure! Do you want it...toasted, or anything?”

“You can do that?”

“Yeah!”

“...okay, yeah - sure. Thanks.”

Humming to herself, Hinata goes about her routine, quickly arranging everything on the requested rye bread. For a moment, she even forgets who she’s making it for, absorbed in the process until the finished sandwich is finished. Quick hands get it wrapped in a jiffy, and she hands it over. “There you go.”

“...thanks. You work here every day?”

“Every day but Sunday and Monday, yeah!”

“Huh...cool. I thought about getting a Summer job this year, but nothing ever panned out.”

Hinata’s head tilts. “...well, next time let me know, and I’ll see if maybe we have any openings here! If...if you want, that is. It’s a pretty nice place to work, in m-my opinion. Everyone’s fairly friendly! There’s...well, there’s some sour grapes, but they’re easy enough to avoid.”

“Yeah, okay. I’ll keep that in mind. School’s been kicking my butt, but it’d be nice to get a little spending money in the off months.”

“You’re, um...you’re going to the local uni here…?”

Sasuke nods, still holding his sandwich. “Yeah...haven’t picked a major yet, and it’s driving my dad nuts. I just dunno what I want to do yet...started out in some business courses, but it just didn’t feel right.”

“Oh...yeah, that can be t-tough. I know a lot of our classmates ended up changing their minds after this past year. Sakura gave up on dance and is going into nursing! So...you never really know what will end up c-clicking, sometimes.”

Surprise lifts his brows a bit. “Huh...didn’t hear that. I don’t really...talk to a lot of our old classmates.”

“Honestly, I don’t either...I mostly just sort of lurk,” Hinata admits, looking a little sheepish. “It’s...a bit hard to keep up with social media sometimes...you know?”

“Yeah...all you ever see is what people want you to see. It’s why I gave most of it up. It’s not as genuine as you think. That and I got tired of all the gag-me relationship drama everywhere, and pictures...it’s like people are only on there to brag, or complain. Not my scene.”

That actually gets her to perk up a bit. “E-exactly! It’s just...n-not any fun. At least...not really.”

The subject idles for a moment before Sasuke asks, “So...you like working here?”

“I do. I don’t know if it’s, um...a career, but…” Her shoulders hunch ever so slightly. “...it’s just...where I am for now.”

“Hey, whatever works, you know? No judgement here.”

“...thanks. Not everyone is so, um...understanding.”

“Yeah, all that status quo crap. The world needs deli workers just like it needs doctors and lawyers and engineers. Don’t sweat it, Hinata.”

A bit surprised, Hinata can’t help but go a bit pink, feeling rather...reassured. “...yeah, I...I guess you’re right.”

A short alarm then rings, and Sasuke pulls out his phone. “Ah, crap...I gotta go. But hey, thanks for the sandwich. I’ll have to make a habit of it.”

“O...okay! Any time!” Brightening, Hinata waves as he takes his leave, feeling oddly...giddy. It’s been quite some time since she’s talked to an old classmate, and...even longer since it went so well. Mood bolstered, she just calls out a ‘Got it!’ when her next batch is ordered.

...she’s already looking forward to seeing him again.

                                                           .oOo.

     So this is...super random cuz I was LOST with this prompt xD It's just so...random, and yet specific, so...hopefully this is still fun to read? lol      Just a little modern stuff with a...well, I guess she's not a drop-out, but...a college-less Hinata, and directionless Sasuke. He gets it. Or at least I think he would. I dunno, I'm very tired and this prompt was weird so who knows if any of this made sense, but...I tried xD      On that note though, I reallllly need some sleep, so I'll sign off - thanks for reading~

[nagatsukinura119]

Day 3 at Japan Expo Malaysia (28th July 2019)

Today was the last day. The day that I would last see the KiREI members. Cue gonna be a cry baby and go through Post Concert Depression (look it up hahah). Since I wanted to make the most of it, I wore the KiREI T-shirt I bought the first day I met them, which is gorgeous by the way (albeit it was a stock from their concert in Bangkok), especially the back side and I really love it!

As I said in the part one in Day 2’s report, I promised Hanapii that I was gonna draw an illustration for them. But here’s the thing, I initially thought to just post it on Twitter, but then my father said, “You should show them tomorrow” and that was exactly what I did! Now, the previous night’s adrenaline rush and fatigue was no joke, I was so exhausted, and my mind was so jumbled since I was still processing what happened at AKB48’s concert and at the airport (toldya it was VERY overwhelming). Thankfully I brought my drawing tablet in this trip (I don’t know why I did, but thank God I did). I barely finished sketching until I succumbed to exhaustion and went to sleep. The next morning I literally finished breakfast within 10 minutes and went back to our room and stayed there to finish the illustration. Since their last concert started at 2, and I had like 3 hours left to finish it (I wanted to be there by 1). Thankfully I finished on time and I quickly made my way to Pavilion.

When I arrived, once again I was surprised with the lack of people waiting at the stage (outdoor by the way), and this time I didn’t care what people thought and I just stood at the front row under the blazing sun, all in black clothes, and texting to my Discord fellas (lol). So first Austin and another host went up the stage and gave a quick introduction about KiREI and apparently KiREI was made up of 3 disbanded idol groups named “Tokyo Clear’s Smile” (this is the group where Hanapii originally came from, which I found out a couple nights ago lol), “Spring Chubit” and “Astarisk”. The girls were called in and dear gosh! Today they wore yukata again, but different designs than the first day! I just really like it when J-idols wear yukatas or any form of traditional clothing. It’s even more amazing that these girls were not just dancing, but also jumping in them! You have to admire their abilities, if not, impressed, cuz here’s the thing some of their dances were pretty vigorous, and after seeing their performances 3 times now, I could tell that Chori-chan is the ‘genki’ girl as she tended to jump the highest, dance with the most energy and also the one to rile up the audience. Miayan has the best and brightest smile that would capture anyone’s hearts (which explained why she has a fan account). Meanwhile Hanapii has the best balance in terms of her dance, her movements weren’t too extreme, and the fluidity and precision made her dance moves better, hence for me she’s the best dancer among the trio.

For this performance, Mianyan noticed me the most and as I said, her smiles were SO BLINDING! I could feel myself getting overcome by it that I had to look through my camera lens instead of my own eyes lmaoooo. Since I’m heavily biased for Hanapii I tended to look at her the most, and I couldn’t help but realized that she seemed a bit down today. I guess it wasn’t surprising since 3 days straight of performing and doing meet-and-greets could tire anyone. However, when she made eye contacts, she made sure to smile as much as she could (God I love her). Meanwhile, Chori-chan climbed in my Oshimen radar because of her bright and energetic interactions with the audience, including myself, especially whenever she invited the audience to chant with her. She’s really like the Takamina in this trio (that’s what I call ‘charisma’!)

Before they started the fifth song, Chori-chan told us that it would be their last song (cue the “Eeeeehhh~” by the audience), and I started to sob and felt my heart twinge a bit. Emotions from the previous night in the airport kind of resurfaced and once again I told myself to not cry or that would make them feel bad if they noticed. Their last song was ‘Dame Otoko’ and I’d say this was my most favorite after ‘Say Yeah! Away!’ (which I kept humming and singing to when I was at the airport the night before) and ending it with this song just made it twice the impact. The performance went splendidly but there was one point again the tears just started to leak, and I had to use my camera to hide my face. Again, I was like “NO. Don’t ruin this for them!”

After they were done, they girls professed their love for being in Malaysia, wanting to come back again (OH HECK YAS, please come back again! And I will too!) Then everyone was called for the obligatory group picture, and now me being in the first row finally paid off!

After the photo session the girls needed some time to freshen up for the last greet-and-meet session. And being the excited fan I was, I waited nearby at their booth, trying not to stand out as much as I could lol. When the booth opened, I immediately lined up behind some prepared fans. This time the man who was selling the merch definitely remembered me as he was like “Welcome back!” This time I was gonna be greedy and bought two Cheki tickets for each member and a towel. He was counting the total cost and I told him “Sanbyaku ringgit (300 ringgit)” which impressed him, and he was like “Oh! Your Japanese is good!” While I was telling him that wasn’t true, he noticed the KiREI T-shirt I was wearing and smiled even more. Honestly I really wanted to shake his hand right then and there, to thank him for his great work, but we just ended up chatting a bit more hahahah.

Before I was about to join the line, Hanapii saw me and she thought I was gonna immediately take pictures with her (oh you sweet darling). But I told her that today I was going to take pictures with everyone, and that I would start from Mianyan, then Chori-chan and finally her. When I went to the line Chori-chan spotted me and immediately assumed that I was gonna take pics with Hanapii as she asked “With Hanapii, right?” I told her I was gonna take pictures with everyone this time, and she was VERY happy, as in she started hopping (ADORABLE).

So I took a picture with Mianyan first. She kept saying I was cute and ‘comel’ (Malay for ‘cute’) and she wrote that on the polaroid frame. I told her where I was from, and since she had a confused look (cuuuuuteee) so I explained the location. I also thanked her for following me on Twitter (she was the first one who followed me). For the first round she and I took a pic with the freshly bought towel hahaha (she was really impressed that I wore their T-shirt too). I was gonna take another picture with her since I bought 2 tickets for each of them but she needed to assist to take pictures for other people, so being the social awkward I was, I stood back awkwardly and ended up going back in line since I wasn’t sure if I should’ve stayed and wait for Hanapii and Chori-chan to be free so I could take pictures with them.

While I was lining up in the very long line I realized Hanapii ran past me to the end of the line to give the last guy a sign that says ‘the end of line’ ah so adorable, at the same time I guiltily thought “Ah crap, I bought 6 tickets which meant I basically took 4 to 5 people’s chance to interact with the girls…!” When I reached them, I made sure to use two of my Cheki tickets in one go so that I didn’t have to go back in line as I specifically said, “Two tickets”. Chori-chan was so happy when I said I was using two tickets (can she get more adorable??). The first round she and I did a heart pose and when she was signing it poor girl thought my main name was “Nagatsuki” she actually remembered me on Twitter (gasp!) and she double confirmed my name with Hanapii like “‘Nura-chan’ dakke? (Was it ‘Nura-chan’?” And Hanapii was like, “Un! Nura-chan!” LOOOL! Before taking a picture for the second round, I told her on my Twitter I post my art and showed her an illustration of them that I made. She went “Amazing!” so many times I thought she was going fangirling as she started hopping on the spot (SO KYOOT). For the second round she held me close with one hand while her other hand was patting my head (I find this a bit endearing since she and I are about the same height while the other two are taller). While waiting for the polaroid to print and while she was signing them she kept saying I was cute and all, then asked if I was travelling so I told her that I came here in order to visit the event, that I was willing to fly over. She then asked me to come and see them again in Japan and before I could even respond she pulled my pinky with hers and made a pinky promise looooooooool. I remember I was so shocked that I stuttered, “Ahhh yeah yeah I’ll definitely try”.

Since Mianyan was busy I had to take pictures with Hanapii first in order to let the line go smoothly. I don’t care how many times she has greeted me with the cutesy “Nura-chan~~~” my heart still fluttered so much! Before we could take a picture, I mentioned about the previous day’s promise that I’d draw something for them and showed my illustration to her. She was like “Eh?!?! No way!” as I told her that I finished it earlier that day. She was so shocked that she was speechless and Chori came over to us and was like “Amazing right! She even drew my red ribbon!” while pointing at my phone. They traded a couple of words together and I just stood there smiling like an idiot. So we ended up taking a picture with that illustration lol.

For the second round, Hanapii was so happy with my visits, my support and the illustration that she was thanking me so many times and she literally hugged me so closely for the picture (I’m not joking, even I was like “Is hugging okay???” and she was like “Yes its completely okay!”). I thought that I still needed to put some distance between our faces, just as precaution, but nope, Hanapii pulled me so close that our cheeks were touching each other! IM SO GLAD IM A GIRL cuz so far I’d seen when they hugged guys (I was the only girl who lined up for the meet-and-greet), they still put some distance. So yeah, I was SO HAPPY with how Hanapii treated me. I then told her that I teared up a bit during their last song since it was their last day and she was like “Eehh don’t cry~” and started patting my head. She then said, “Let’s meet again in Japan, I’ll wait for you.” I thought I’ve died enough. But this comment, THIS COMMENT. I remember I blanked out for a second or two and just nodded (I couldn’t make that promise since I needed to consider my circumstances but MAN I WANTED TO PROMISE HER SO BAD). I was very reluctant to leave and this may sound pretentious but it seemed like she didn’t want me to go either cuz when she held my hands it was firmer than the last 3 times she shook my hands. Before leaving she asked me if I was gonna attend the closing ceremony later that night. Sweetheart you know I won’t miss it for the world so I promised her that I would.

For the last handshake I told Mianyan that I cried during their last performance and she was like “Ehhh~ don’t cry~ were they happy tears?” I took a second or two to rethink my words and spewed “It was both happy and grieving tears since this is the last day” hence we both ended up laughing. I was gonna show her the illustration on my phone, she ended up commenting my Murayama Yuiri lockscreen “Ooh~ cute!” and I almost had to bite my tongue to stop myself from saying “Ah that’s another idol (who happens to be my waifu)” so I just giggled a thanks. Thankfully she was also very happy with the illustration that she took the phone from me (she also added I must post it on Twitter). She then asked me if I just started liking idols (girl if only you knew hahah) so I told her I’ve always loved idols. After taking the picture, Chori-chan told us I was good at winking (I didn’t realize I winked to be honest) so Mianyan went “Ehh seriously??” and quickly checked the polaroid frame and was like “Oh yeah!” while I was fluttering, going “oh nononono, I didn’t mean to do that”. Then she asked something I did not see coming, “Can you do it to me?” and I was like “Eh?” then she said SO CUTELY “A wink”. I laughed embarrassingly at first, but I did it anyway and she was soooo happy. I knew Mianyan is the boldest among this trio but guuurrrrllll you’re climbing on my Oshimen radar too strong! And that’s how I ended my last meet-and-greet session with KiREI members in Malaysia.

Day 2 reports are here (KiREI) and here (AKB48)! To be continued in Closing Ceremony!

Bonus pictures: