#regardless of caring or not it’s good to store it somewhere

[foodlesoodlesdoodles]

man thank god kakyoin lived guys I don’t know what id do without him

[katsutora]

— HEED

ft. isagi yoichi ; itoshi rin ; nagi seishiro ; bachira meguru ; chigiri hyōma ; itoshi sae

summary: how they are when you’re busy but they’re not

note: did you call, egoist? your fluff writer could only be me. NO JK ashsjdjahahah i love you guys sm though! thanks for the support! <3

⚘ ISAGI YOICHI

ㅤㅤthe sanest one a very decent one. idles somewhere near you because he doesn’t want to bother you, but obviously keeps tabs on you and will bring you snacks and drinks once in a while. a walking convenient store. will also drape a blanket over your shoulders when he notices it’s getting cold. sooo attentive 1000/10. he loves helping you so he’ll definitely feel honored if you ask for his contribution — though it’ll catch him off-guard too. “yoichi.” “!!” he can be funny like that. will carry you to bed regardless of whether not you fall asleep at the end. chef’s kiss. in conclusion: get you an isagi yoichi.

⚘ ITOSHI RIN

ㅤㅤgets... surprisingly clingy? yep, he’s battling his pride. whenever he’s mustered up enough courage to call your name, it’s instantly defeated by his overthinking and so the words died out in his throat. looks like a lost puppy just sitting there in the corner of the room. the embodiment of a CCTV, watchtower incarnate. very quiet too it’s kind of unsettling. when you finally turn to look at him, he’s going to pretend as if he didn’t spend the past thirty minutes trying to figure out how to get your attention. “rin, haven’t you watched this match five times already?” “and? you took five whole hours finishing up one lukewarm task.” gasp. man needs a subtitle like [you didn’t give me any attention for five hours straight and now i'm sad]. is down bad for cuddles and horror movie night but only if you ask him lmfao.

⚘ NAGI SEISHIRO

ㅤㅤdoesn’t care. flops on top of you. needs to be constantly reminded that he is, in fact, 190cm. NAPS in that position if you still don’t give him attention (a menace fr). spends the entire day attached to your hip like that. no but in all seriousness, he only pesters you like this if he thinks you’re overworking yourself. will just drag a seat beside you and go about his day (re: ranking up in games and watching matches chigiri recommended to him + annoying barou in the group chat) if you’re just finishing a task. fidgets with your fingers the moment he finds your hand idling; leans his head on your shoulder when his game character dies. good for you.

⚘ BACHIRA MEGURU

ㅤㅤcurious on what’s gotten you so caught up that he didn’t see you around the house for hours. once he realizes you’re doing some work, he immediately channels his inner motivational speaker. your #1 supporter fr. “you go!” “you can do it!” “you’re doing great!” but he kinda derailed halfway through so … “eat 3 square meals per day!” “get 8 hours of sleep!” “drink 8 glasses of water!” ?? sure, that’s probably just his way of telling you not to forget to take care of yourself. oh and he’s also made himself comfortable in a blanket fort that’s definitely not sloppily constructed to persuade you to take a break. BSJDBKSNDKS !! d-did something just collapse? “meguru?” *MUFFLED SCREAMING*

⚘ CHIGIRI HYŌMA

ㅤㅤyour cup: *exists* ; chigiri: *slowly pushing it to the edge* lmao. likes to think he’s very patient (not at all he's kinda bored). tried calling your name four times to no avail. the first one was only met with a short reply, then you merely hummed in response to the second and third one. got hella confused when you finally didn’t react at all. at some point, he found himself laying his head on your lap, somehow managing to squeeze in between you and the desk. how? kept staring at you trying to catch your attention but you wouldn’t budge, so he resorted to booping your nose. occasionally reaches a hand across your face to test your patience focus. congratulations, you have a house cat.

⚘ ITOSHI SAE

ㅤㅤit’s only fair that he finds himself right beside you just like you’ve always been there beside him — every step of the way. he’s doing random stuffs to pass the time: scrolling through his phone, ignoring rin’s texts, watching a game, reading a magazine, etc. mmm what’s that second one again? will tuck your hair away for you if it’s falling onto your face. places a hand over the sharp corner of the table to protect your head when you’re trying to grab something from the floor. will stay up with you if you’re determined to finish up the work despite having an early morning practice tomorrow. “aren’t you tired, sae?” “aren’t you?” “not at all because you’re here with me.” yk who’s tired? his manager having to reschedule all his appointments because he ended up oversleeping. help.

© 2023 katsutora ; do not repost and/or translate and/or claim my works

[moody-alcoholic]

Chapter 3 - The Ride Along

AN: It's a slow burn... I wanted to get some Simon & Johnny antics in...

Summary: Simon x reader, 4.4k words. You convince Price to let you tag along on one of the deliveries to see what the job is like. Although it doesn't really go according to plan.

CW: Implied violence, use of weapons, description of injuries, blood, alcohol.

Previous - masterlist - Next

AO3

Enjoy <3

When you get into work on Monday you have a plan. Not necessarily a plan to get into the store room but a plan to get answers. You don’t wait saying hi quickly to Johnny and Simon on your way up to John’s office. You take a breath in then knock on the door.

“Come in!” You hear him call. You walk in smiling. Confidence is key. He’s typing on the computer but stops when he sees you smiling and sitting back in his chair. 

“How was your weekend?” He asks. He puts you at ease almost immediately. Don’t let your guard down. 

“Good, got some housework done, you?”

“Mostly the same.” He says. “Did you need something?” 

“Yes actually. In my last job when I first started, I had the opportunity to ride alone with one of the delivery drivers. To see what that side of the job was like. It really helped me get a better understanding of how the flow of goods work. I can use it to improve my work and make sure it’s the best experience for clients and easy for the drivers.” You explain pushing the nerves away. 

“So you want to follow one of the drivers around?” He says his smile fading and his lips pressing together like he’s trying to think of what to say next. 

“Just for the morning, I’ll still make sure all my work is finished before the end of the day.” You say. Reassure him, it’ll make him feel better.

“Okay.” He says getting up out his chair and heading to the door. You try not to look shocked that he said yes, you were expecting him to shut you down come up with some sort of excuse. You follow him out to the top of the stairs. 

“Riley!” He calls. Simon walks up to the bottom of the steps.

“I want you to take the new recruit out with you she want’s to see the delivery side of the job.” Price says, Simon is frowning.

“But I’ve got the Renfolds job this morning,” Simon says.

“I’m aware, take her with you.” John says. 

“What if I need help with my other job?” Johnny asks appearing next to Simon. 

“Then you ask Simon for help.” John says almost sounding annoyed now. What kind of job would Johnny need to ask Simon for help in? More questions, burning questions you want answers too. John pats you on the shoulder and you hear him go back into the office as you step down to meet Simon. He does not seem too impressed. 

“Why don’t you go print the invoices off and I’ll get the van ready.” He says his arms crossed, you can’t tell if he’s mad or just annoyed, his mask hides half his face, regardless he seems to be good at hiding his emotions. You nod heading to the reception desk to print them off. You don’t think Simon likes you too much, maybe this will be good forced to spend some time with him. You pick up the stack of papers hearing your name being called.  

—————————— 

You drive out of the centre of London into what seems to be a very affluent neighbourhood, somewhere you have never been before. The houses just seem to be getting bigger. The ride had been pretty much silent. You needed to be careful when to ask the questions especially with Simon. You wished you could have been with Johnny or Kyle, they might have been easier to get answers from. With Simon you have to pick your opportunities wisely. 

“So who is Mr Renfolds?” You ask, he sighs his hand gripping the steering wheel tighter. 

“A client, a special client.” Simon says. That didn’t give you much information to work with. he pulls up to the massive gates of one of the mansions. Opening the driver door hopping out to go over to the intercom. A few seconds later he’s coming back into the van as the gates open. 

“Very fancy.” You say. Simon just hums in response. As soon as the gates are open he drives in parking the van by the door. You both get out as you hear Simon open the side door on the van. When you go to meet him though the door is already shut again. He hands you what looks like a toolkit. 

“What are we here to do?” You ask as you follow him up to the front door. 

“You’ll see.” He says ringing the bell. You don’t like how cryptic he’s being maybe you should just be pushy. If you’re annoying enough maybe he will just give in and answer the questions for you. A few seconds later the door opens there is a man stood there, he’s older defiantly in his 50 or 60’s, balding dressed in a smart suit. 

“Ah Mr. Riley, it’s a privilege again.” He says shaking Simon's hand. 

“And who is this lovely lady, do you have an assistant now?” He asks reaching out his hand to you you accept it and shake it. 

“Something like that.” Simon says before you can introduce yourself. Simon walks through the door to a case on a table in the centre of the lobby. You watch as Simon opens it as you stand behind him. Holy shit. It’s a weapon, a pistol. It looks scary as Simon picks it up turning it over in his hands. 

“You say it keeps jamming?” Simon asks Mr Renfolds. You look over at him as he explains the history. How he bought it from a visiting American but has only managed to fire it once before the whole thing jammed up and stopped working. 

“I wanted something small for protection, everyday use.” He explains looking towards you. You almost want to laugh. Small? everyday use? The weapon wasn’t small, it’s a hand gun sure but even in Simon’s hands it looks massive. 

“Do you want any tea, coffee?” Mr Renfolds asks.

“We’re good thank you.” Simon says. 

“I’ll leave you to it then.” He says and heads through one of the doors. 

“This is very illegal.” You say leaning so you’re whispering to Simon. 

“Open the kit.” He sighs. You do as you’re told opening it and setting it down on the table. 

“Rich fuckers don’t care about the laws, as long as they can afford bail.” Simon says taking the weapon apart with quick efficiency. He reaches over for a cloth cleaning the barrel and blowing down it. He holds part of it up to the light, you have no idea which part is which now. You stand there watching him work like he’s done this a thousand times. He probably has. He takes tools from the box muttering to himself as he cleans the weapon. 

“Do you have to do this a lot?” You ask. He looks up at you blinking.

“All the God damn time, they buy the weapons but don’t have a clue how to care for them.” He says. Once he seems satisfied he starts putting it back together. 

“Go find him would you.” He says, you nod and heading in the direction Mr Renfolds left in. The mansion is massive and you feel like you’re going to have to search for him forever but then you see him in the kitchen. You enter not really know what to say. He turns when he hears the door open. 

“Ah, finished so soon!” He asks jollily, clapping his hands together. You nod turning to leave and he follows you. You make it back to the foyer as Simon is packing the tool box away. 

“Got anywhere I can fire this?” Simon asks as soon as he sees the Mr Renfolds who nods enthusiastically. You let Simon pass you as you both follow him down the stairs to a basement. He leads you through a door with a key-code, when you walk in you gasp. There is a full shooting range down here, like ones you’ve seen on TV. The place is smaller but there is a wall with a bunch of scary looking guns. 

“I know, quite extraordinary.” He says sounding proud of the place. 

“It’s definitely something.” You say, Simon is stood in one of the booths he takes down the pair of ear defenders hanging above him.

“Here, put them on.” He says, you take them out of his hand putting them on. They’re too big for you but it’s better then nothing you guess. Mr. Renfolds finds a pair too and pulls them on. Simon walks over to a table and picks up what looks like weapon magazines. He places them in the booth then you watch as he loads the pistol. 

“What about you?” You ask, he turns to look at you. 

“I’m used to it.” He says and starts firing off shots. Even with the defenders the noise still makes you jump. Simon’s stood with his arms stretched out, you watch as his muscles tense with each kick back of the gun. His eyes sharp focused on the target in front of him. You wonder if he misses it, having a weapon in his hands. It seems the be the only time you’ve seen him like this before, it’s almost like... comfort. He shoots until the mag is finished then reloads it he fires off a few more shots and when he’s satisfied he unloads the weapon, placing it down. He turns round and you take the ear defenders off. 

“Brilliant, what a thrill!” Mr. Renfolds shouts going over to where Simon was standing. 

“Perfect shots! I’m going to frame that pretend it was mine.” He nudges Simon, who takes the ear defenders out your hand and hangs them back up. 

“Anything else we can do for you?” Simon asks. 

“No, you’ve been a great help as per usual.” Mr Renfolds says, still gawking over Simon’s shots on the target. Simon nods.

“We’ll show ourselves out.” He says and starts to walk out the room. You say goodbye as you follow Simon back through the mansion to the van outside. 

“So what you service people’s weapons? Do you sell them too?” You ask Simon as he opens the side door of the van taking the toolbox and putting it in. 

“No that would be illegal.” He says slamming the door closed. You scoff waking round the van getting into the passenger side. 

“What about all the guns in the store room are they just for personnel use?” You say raising an eyebrow. 

“Sometimes.” Simon says sighing as he starts the engine. You huff frustrated, he’s not giving you the answers you want. Or he’s being intentionally vague. It’s like trying to get water out a rock. You’re about to speak when you’re interrupted by Simon’s phone ringing. He presses accept on the dash. 

“Where the hell have you been I’ve been calling for ages!” It’s Johnny, he sounds pissed.

“We were in Renfolds basement.” Simon replies as he backs out the driveway onto the road. 

“Kinky. I need your help, jobs a bust-” Johnny get’s cut off by what sounds like gunshot’s. Your stomach drops you look over at Simon. 

“Johnny!” Simon is almost shouting. The van’s speeding up. 

“Shite, I’ll send the location, I’m pinned down in the back of some old warehouse.” Johnny says, you feel sick. A few seconds later Simon’s phone buzzes. He unlocks it and passes it to you. 

“Read the directions.” He says his voice low commanding it sends a shiver up your spine. You look down at the map. 

“R-Right at the lights.” You say pointing, trying to keep calm. 

“How’s the first ride along going lass?” Johnny says although his voice sounds strained, there are more shots. 

“Interesting,” you managed to say. “Left down this road there’s an industrial estate.” At least that’s what you think it is. 

“Aye, lass that’s it, what would Ghost do without you!” Johnny says, through more straining and more shots. 

“I’d be there with you,” Simon whispers under his breath. You don’t think you were meant to hear that so you look back down at the phone.

“Right in here,” you point to the entrance the gate is open and Simon drives in. You can’t tell if you can hear shot’s or it’s just your mind playing tricks on you. You see the other van Simon parks behind it. 

“Any chance on that ETA?” Johnny asks.

“I’m here stay on the line.” Simon says killing the engine, he bends over you and opens the glove box. He takes out two masks handing one to you. 

“Put this on. Do not move from this van no matter what happens okay?” You nod following his instructions and pulling it over your face. You turn to look at him as he discards his black surgical mask pulling the balaclava on. His eyes dig into you and you swallow hard the hairs standing up on the back of your neck. Simon jumps out the van, slamming the drivers door. It makes you jump as you hear the side door open. 

“Where’s Gaz?” You hear as Simon rummages through the van. This is bad, you have no idea where you are. You gave instructions to Simon but you weren’t paying attention to the names. 

“Fucking hell Soap why didn’t you call sooner!” Simon sounds angry as you feel the van shake as Simon shuts the door. Your body is tense you don’t think you could move. Simon walks round the front of the van he’s wearing a bullet proof vest now, he has a rife in his hands as he pushes a magazine into it. You gasp as you see him. This is very serious. You don’t even have time to think of the consequences of that this means when a car pulls up.

You watch as John and Kyle get out slamming the doors shut. They’re also dressed in tactical gear with weapons bigger then you have ever seen. John starts pointing around and Simon and Kyle nod jogging off. John looks back at you and holds his thumb up. You’re just staring wide eyed, mouth gaping open as you bring your shaking hand up to give him a thumbs up back. At least your expression is mostly hidden. You have no idea if that’s the right thing to do but he nods and runs off in the same direction as Simon and Kyle. 

You sit there waiting, trying to listen. You think you hear shots, distant pops and banging. Why are the police not here yet? The place did look empty and you were on an industrial estate but still, this is London, people would report this. Your heart is thumping in your chest beating rapidly. You were in too deep, this is dangerous. This could get you killed. These are real people with real guns. Maybe you should run, there’s bound to be someone nearby you can get a lift from. What would you even say? No. You push the thought away. You want answers, that burning curiosity that bought you here in the first place is back. Curiosity killed the cat. You think back to the room with the guns. To Simon walking round the van with a rifle in his hands. It was a good look on him, he seemed more relaxed with a weapon in his hands. Maybe now they would have to give you answers. 

‘Aye, but satisfaction bought it back’ Johnny’s voice rings in your ears. You hope he’s okay, he sounded strained on the phone. The shots louder then the little pops you’ve been hearing here. They seemed to know what they were doing, of course they did they’re all ex-SAS, if anyone was going to be rescuing Johnny who better to ask. You’re not waiting much longer when you see movement ahead of you. You hold your breath hoping its them, all of them. You let out a sigh of relief when you see them come round. They all look fine, even Johnny. You want to get out the van and run over to meet them but you stay put remembering Simon’s instructions. Johnny waves at you when he sees you and you wave back. He walks over to the van and opens your door. 

“Suits you.” He says winking. You see blood running down his arm.

“Johnny you’re bleeding!” you say gasping. 

“Just a scratch, c’mon lass hop out.” He says moving to the side. You unclip your seat belt and swing your legs round jumping out the van. As soon as your legs hit the floor you wobble bracing yourself on the door. Johnny chuckles pulling the mask off your head and throwing it into the van. 

“So strangest ride along you’ve ever been on?” Johnny asks as you walk round him your legs still feeling like jelly. 

“Strangest anything I’ve ever done.” You say forcing a chuckle. You look past Johnny as Gaz walks over. 

“Always have to have all the fun without us.” Gaz says as he pats Johnny on the back. Johnny winces. 

“Aye, just the way I like it.” He replies. 

“I’m going to stay with Price clean this mess up, LT will drive you both back.” Gaz says looking at you and nodding. You nod back at him, he smiles. The adrenaline is wearing off now and you shiver. What just happened? You watch Gaz walk away and Simon come over you hear the beeping of the car being unlocked. Johnny leaves your side to walk round to the front passenger seat. You watch as Simon walks up to you stopping before he opens the driver door. 

“You okay?” He asks, his voice calmer now softer. It throws you off you were ready to be mad at him demand answers now he’s looking at you with those beautiful caramel eyes. You collect yourself ignoring the heat rushing to your cheeks. It’s just the adrenaline, you tell yourself as you look away. 

“I’m fine,” you reply, your hand reaching for the passenger door handle. He hums, almost like he doesn't believe you. You get in the car sitting behind Simon putting your seat belt on. 

“Job well done!” Johnny says. Simon scoffs. “We got ‘em didn’t we.” 

“Who did you get?” You blurt out before you can stop yourself. Simon’s eyes look at you through the rear view mirror. It’s almost like a warning. Drop it.   

“Got the bad guy’s lass, like we always do.” Johnny says turning and winking at you. 

“What did they do?” You ask ignoring Simon’s warning as he drives out the gates onto the main road. 

“They had themselves a nice little-” 

“Johnny.” Simon snaps stopping him, your eyes flick to Johnny who looks less then impressed. 

“You want to know you’ll have to speak to Price.” Simon says, he gives you the look again. You meet his eyes, this time not backing down you want answers.         

—————————— 

When you get back to the garage Simon lets you and Johnny out as he goes to park John’s car in it’s usual spot. 

“I don’t think Simon likes me.” You say to Johnny as you head inside. 

“He’s like this to everyone.” Johnny says sighing. He’s not his usual chipper self. Maybe it’s the fact he still has a wound that needs seeing to. Or maybe it was the awkward drive back were no one said a thing after Simon snapped at Johnny. You could tell there was tension, whatever happened today was clearly not the way things were suppose to go. You follow Johnny up to the second floor and he flops down on the sofa. 

“Do you need anything?” You ask feeling kind of useless. 

“There’s a bottle of scotch in the kitchen, second cupboard from the sink.” He says smiling, and pointing over. You hesitate not knowing if he’s joking or not but he nods so you go over to look. Sure enough there is a bottle of scotch, it looks expensive. You grab a glass and walk back over to him. Putting it down on the coffee table. 

“Christ you’d think after getting shot so much you’d get used to it.” He says as he opens the bottle pouring some in the glass. 

“How many time’s have you been shot?” You ask. 

“I stopped keeping count,” he smiles downing the glass. You hear the door open and watch as Simon walks in. He walks across the floor to the store room going inside. 

“Want one lass? You look like you need it.” He says passing you the bottle. You nod blindly accepting it and taking a big gulp straight from the bottle. It burns as it hit’s your tongue and all the way down your throat. It’s horrible tasting like burnt wood. You’re pulling a face as you put the bottle back down that makes Johnny chuckle.

“Good ‘ol Scottish craftsmanship, it’ll put hairs on ya chest.” You cough as you hear the storeroom door close then Simon coming up the steps. He walks past you, his mask and vest are off he’s carrying a blue medical bag in his hand. He sits down next to Johnny. 

“Off,” He says gesturing for Johnny to take his top off placing the bag on the coffee table. You get up to leave.

“Sit down lass, I might need someone to hold my hand.” Johnny pouts. 

“That’s what Simon’s here for right?” You say as you sit back down looking at Simon who’s too focused on searching through the bag for something. Johnny pours himself another glass before taking his top off over his head. You can see the extent of the damage now. It looks bad or maybe it’s because it’s been bleeding for so long it looks worse then it is. Simon looks up at it and tuts rethinking his choice of bandages. You try to keep your eyes off Johnny he’s very good looking, fit and tanned with a nice stock of body hair. You can see tattoo’s down his arms and shoulder you haven’t been able to see before. You reach over and drink the scotch, you need it now. Johnny chuckles and you pour him another glass.

“What happened to not drinking on the job?” Simon says rolling his sleeves up.

“I was shot in the field.” Johnny says being dramatic. You smile the drinks going to your head. 

“You were grazed by being stupid.” Simon says pulling some gloves on. 

“You’re not as nice as the other nurses I’ve been treated by.” Johnny says. You can’t help smiling it’s like they’re intentionally winding each other up. 

“I’m not a nurse, keep still.” Simon says gripping Johnny’s arm to hold it in place. 

“Do you have to patch him up a lot?” You ask watching Simon inspect the wound. He looks over at you for a second. 

“He makes a habit out of it.” Simon say sighing. You watch as he tips some liquid onto a piece of cloth. 

“You might want that drink now Johnny.” Simon says. Johnny reaches over for his glass as Simon starts dabbing the wound. 

“Ay ya fecking bastard.” Johnny says through gritted teeth trying to pull away from Simon who just keeps him in place. You could swear you see a smile form on Simon’s lips for a second. Johnny continues to curse Simon out even after he’s finished his drink. You hear the garage doors being pushed open and you look to see Gaz. 

“Well that was quicker then I expected.” Johnny says. You hear the vans driven in as you watch Simon finish bandaging up Johnny. 

“Will I live?” Johnny asks as Simon takes his gloves off and starts packing the bag back up. 

“To see another day Johnny.” Simon says standing up. You watch as Gaz closes the doors again. Simon walks down the stairs and you hear the door to the store room opening again. You turn to Johnny putting his top back on. You still have questions you want answered. 

“Johnny, what happened why were you shot at?” You ask, Johnny sighs. 

“It’s just part of the job.” He says not giving you a satisfying answer. You hear footsteps coming up, more then one person. You turn to see John and Gaz, you stand up waiting as they come over. The storeroom door beeps and you see Simon making his way up too. Good they’re all here. Now you can get some answers. The scotch has filled you with confidence and you’re convinced you’re not leaving until they have explained what’s going on.

“I feel like I need an explanation. Not just about what happened today but in general. I know you guys are up to some shady shit. You make people disappear. And it’s upsetting because you seem like really nice people. And now I’m saying this out loud all I can think about is you making me disappear. Okay I think what I’m trying to ask is do you kill people?” It’s word vomit it doesn’t even make sense, you feel embarrassed heat rushing to your cheeks. So much for being cool and collected. Johnny laughs pouring another drink. 

“Sit down.” John says, he’s smiling. Johnny passes you the drink. 

“We don’t make a habit of it.” He says.

“The drinking at work or the killing people?” You ask downing the drink, it’s still disgusting, it still makes you gag and pull a face, you don’t know why you accepted it. 

“Both,” He says taking the glass back. 

“Why do you think we make people disappear?” Kyle asks as he goes to sit down next to Johnny. You feel sick, a lump forming in your belly. 

“My neighbour recommended you, said you helped with her sisters stalker.” You say. Fuck. You realise what you’ve said after you said it. Maybe they won’t pick up on it. 

“Recommended?” Simon’s low voice from behind you, you hear him take a step up to the back of the chair. You look up at John who’s stood with his arms crossed leaning against the balcony fence an eyebrow raised. You swallow hard. 

“I guess if we’re all in the position to be spilling secrets who wants to go first?” You ask looking round at them all. 

Next

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[54625]

With the upcoming Fit lore later today, I figured it may be useful to transcribe his earlier lore drops for those of you who may not have been there, or want a refresher. These were attempts to contact the contractor to relay information, and happened before the dreams.

-First attempt-

(Text appears on screen.

CONNECTING...

BYPASSING FEDERATION FIREWALL

ATTEMPT FAILED

ERROR)

Fit- Hello, it's me.

Fit- Sorry I've been taking my sweet time.

Fit- I've been busy...

Fit- We need to pivot from our original plan.

Fit- I've adopted a son, and I've been caring for him.

Fit- I've grown attached to him, so he's been my priority.

Fit- Being a single dad is a challenge at times.

Fit- But it's much easier than the nomadic lifestyle.

Fit- Life here is very different from the wasteland.

Fit- But I haven't forgotten our agreement.

Fit- I will fullfil my contractual obligations.

Fit- They're still falling for the whole "vacation" thing.

Fit- I ask that you be patient though, as we have a problem.

Fit- Something called "The Federation" controls this entire island.

Fit- They've been keeping us here.

Fit- As long as they are in the way, I can't access what you are looking for.

Fit- And the anti-cheat on the island is strong.

Fit- I haven't been able to use my abilities.

Fit- The Federation must be eliminated for this to succeed.

Fit- I've gained everyone's trust and made friends...

Fit- I've been helping their fight against the Federation in order to advance our plan.

Fit- Still... It hurts me to see everyone suffering...

Fit- Some have lost things they cared about...

Fit- But this struggle is an unfortunate necessity...

Fit- The conflict is increasing the value of what you seek...

Fit- I know you're paying me...

Fit- But have you considered......

...the true cost?

Fit- regardless of my personal feelings, I'll slowly move the plan forward.

Fit- I hope you find what you're looking for.*

Fit- It's getting late...*

MESSAGE FAILED TO SEND

Disconnecting....

*(it is worth noting that these are messages Fit had previously sent in the Minecraft global chat in that odd font.)

-Second attempt-

(Text appears on screen.

CONNECTING...

BYPASSING FEDERATION FIREWALL)

Fit- Checking in.

Fit- I am messaging you again to keep you updated on my progress.

Fit- The Federation still has full control of the island.

Fit- They've been putting on some strange election....

Fit- I'm assuming to keep everyone occupied.

Fit- However, it seems they've let a vulnerability slip.

Fit- Player data and statistics are being tracked.

Fit- The Federation must have this data stored somewhere on the island.

Fit- If I had to guess, it's likely the computer system of the Federation offices.

Fit- If I tried to break in and access the data, they would likely capture me...

Fit- It would not end well.

Fit- However, whoever wins this election will likely have open access.

Fit- Perhaps they could be persuaded... Or tricked into giving us access.

Fit- I will fullfil the contract.

Fit- And yet... I'm starting to wonder....

Fit- What are you actually trying to achieve?

Fit- Even if I can access the data, what good would it do?

Fit- I'm skeptical, but I hope to hear from you soon........

(This island...... Is worse than I thought....)

(Text appears on screen.

Windows XP

Task failed successfully.

[OK] )

(A cinematic showing various scenes from QSMP and 2B2T play. All the images from the former are in full colour, while all the images from the latter are in black and white. A video of a capybara eating grass plays. It is in black and white.)

If I left anything particularly important out, let me know!

[makethatelevenrings]

well since you've got me thinkin' of the bats again,

what do you think their Oh Shit moment would be? Like that single moment where they realise This Is It? Cuz I can't stop thinking about it. Like imagine just sitting in the living room with Jason on a lazy day and you turn and he's kinda just staring at you with this lovesick look and you ask whats up and he just shakes his head and looks away smiling like an idiot cuz ah shit, this is the life he wants.

Or or or you're out grocery shopping or smth with Bruce and it kinda hits him somewhere through the point of entering the store and picking up 5 different cereal boxes that he genuinely wants this forever and ever

and ahhhhh like this could go so angsty but also so sweet?

ANYWAY I REALLY LIKE YOUR WRITING IT MAKES ME HAPPY

<3

Ok ok I thought about this the entire drive home!!!!

Bruce - the two of you are visiting an orphanage that’s Wayne Enterprises is interested in funding (in reality, he’s investigating them for embezzling funds and child abuse). You came as Wayne’s dazzling arm piece to draw more press, but he knew you were much more than tabloid fodder. You couldn’t care less about listening to the director drone on and on about how much he was doing (read: not doing) and when a small hand tugs on the hem of your pants, you immediately kneel on the dirt stained floor and give the child your full, undivided attention. You nod along, ask questions, and make the child feel as though they’re special. You show them that someone cares. Bruce watches this with his heart pounding in his chest. He remembers a time when a young orphan was ignored by the world unless they were able to manipulate him and use him for their own agenda, to make themselves look good. He realizes with a jolt that you see him. You see the orphan boy in the alley, the broken man in the cape, and the actor in his suit. You see all of him and you give him your whole attention. Oh.

Dick - For you, it’s just an offhanded comment made as the two of you walk through the crowded streets of Bludhaven. “There’s a halal market on the next street. Can we stop and grab Damian some gulab jamun and namoura? He’s been stressing over his grades recently and I know it’s not much, but hopefully it’ll cheer him up.” A bolt of warmth strikes through his chest as he realizes that you’ve memorized Damian’s favorite desserts. You researched halal foods and the local markets. You checked in on Damian, listened to his frustrations, and read his tells better than anyone. He recalls how you’ve made these passing remarks about all of his siblings. How long have you taken care of them in this subtle, gentle way of yours? He laces his fingers with yours, lays a kiss to your temple, and lets you lead the way to the market.

Jason - The sun that slips through the linen curtains Alfred hung up one day bathes Jason in a delicate glow. He reclines on the couch, your head on his chest and legs tangled together, with a book in his hand. You’re half asleep but he whispers the words he reads regardless. How long has it been since he felt this relaxed? Your soft breaths release in little puffs that tickle the skin of his wrist, but he refuses to move. He doesn’t want to wake you up. He wants to lay in this position for the rest of his life. He wants to be with you for the rest of time, until the scythe of death comes calling for him once more, and he places himself between you and the Grim Reaper.

[nebula-remnants]

oh man... you have no idea what i'm about to drop on you all.

HEY!!! so. I made a GIANT list of headcanons for Sun and Moon that are all autism related since I have an excuse to now. I gave twitter a warning but I forgot to here so sorry to anyone who clicks to keep reading and goes into this post unprepared.

I did want to make an attempt to make this easy to read so, Green is just going to be for regular but still have some in depth meaning for why it's on this list, Orange is for a headcanon that is more serious!! I try to word myself correctly and explain why these ones are important in the case of accurate. (sometimes PAINFULLY accurate) representation. I wanted to go in depth for symptoms that are less discussed. so i'm going to discuss them the best I can regardless because their just as important to representation. ideas that stray from canon and are more my interpretations of how I think they'd act in certain situations will be pink

Both get frustrated when you mess with their stuff (this could just be a cleanliness deal for the daycare exclusively, however the barrels aren’t exactly a major mess since there are so few of them, so it can also be taken as wanting items a certain way. I kind of headcanon it as a bit of both tbh

I think Sun would have a strong sense of justice. He is a “hero” character as far as old theater traits go. And his canon behavior suggests he’s both petty and controlling of his environment. I believe those traits are a result of his current situation, but with this headcanon a sense of justice would go in perfectly because it means he’s strongly bound to his moral beliefs. Now it’s good to mention a strong sense of justice is NOT always a good thing!! Having a strong sense of justice does not automatically mean someone has all the correct moral beliefs, but it can sometimes make people self righteous (especially when they aren’t self aware.) but anyways moral righteousness does not always mean correctness!! I really like this headcanon especially because it’s complex, it falls into morally gray areas. Has good intentions but can hurt people by accident. Some of this applies to Moon too but I have less canon material to work with.

I think Moon would go COMPLETELY non verbal when upset, but it would go easily unnoticed because people might just assume he’s always quiet. which y'know. isn't okay obviously, but for his circumstance I do feel it would be at least accurate.

I don’t think they would know about being autistic themselves. LET ME EXPLAIN. So if the Fallfest thing is right they’re potentially from the 70s, that makes them old. Plus they’re robots. It’s not like someone realistically would go and diagnose them with autism, unless like, the guy that made them was autistic and was projecting onto them HARD. but what i’ve noticed from older family members that went nearly their whole life without a diagnosis?? They kind of just. Suffer and think it’s normal. My father has ADHD and kind of went most of his life thinking he was just a problematic kid in school, actually i still think he does 😭 (spoiler: he had a hard time focusing on subjects he wasn’t hyper fixated on and was treated without any accommodations even considered) the reason i bring this up for Sun and Moon is i think they sort of just go about their business thinking it’s normal and everyone experiences those things. So basically I think they’d be undiagnosed in the fnaf universe (or could have some outdated information about autism stored somewhere, like I even did a few years ago. because in my opinion I haven't really seen any widespread information until more recently and that's how I found out LATER in my life, when some damage was already done). Someone tell them please

I think masking would be minimum, they probably try a little bit but give up and decide they don’t care anymore (like I said, it’s possible that they’re older, so give them a break)

On the topic of not being aware of symptoms I headcanon Moon (or at least pre security breach one, maybe, idk) as the kind of autistic to have a hard time realizing he’s upsetting or genuinely scaring people. He’s being whimsical, but like, wouldn’t realize unless specifically told so. I don’t believe a potential nicer form of moon would be there to intentionally hurt people (i don’t like the idea of him being evil just BECAUSE) but i think he could still cause all kinds of distress by accident. I certainly don’t think he’s shy (and i believe Kellon Goff corrected himself in a later tweet and said Moon wasn’t exactly shy himself but he used a shy part of his life to bring Moon to life, if i remember correctly (correct me if i’m wrong bruh i don’t wanna misquote the man himself 😭)) Canon Moon probably isn’t shy but instead he gets to be fluent in being awkward in a conversation

I mean don’t get me wrong I adore the idea of shy moon but it’s most likely not going to be anything we see in canon. But in an au? Or in your own headcanon? Go crazy, make that man shy, be a little self indulgent. You’re not required to stick to canon to a tee.

I definitely think Sun and Moon would have clashing sensory needs. being opposites but also having a common root in an issue whether they want it to be there or not is like their whole thing. A lot of clashing except maybe the clicking they do. They fidget and click a LOT and the clicks are so pleasant to my brain so i think that could be maybe a similarity. As far as clashing sensory needs I think, y’know, if they were to be given separate bodies, because I actually really like that idea of seeing how their dynamic plays out that way (lots of fighting, so much fighting)... I DONT CARE IF IT MOST LIKELY WON’T BE A THING IN CANON BECAUSE OF THE DYNAMIC STEEL WOOL IS LEANING INTO SHSHHSHSHSH I CAN DREAM. 

Anyways I think Moon would have sensory issues related to lights (duh) and sound (MAYBE sun for sound too, if he has less control of it. Just because he’s generally louder doesn’t mean he couldn’t have an issue with unwarranted sound. And if anything, in the daycare I think that would contribute to his burnout MORE.) thought i definitely think Moon would be more reactive to noise and lights considering he’s much less used to them (that doesn’t exactly dwindle sun’s ability to become overstimulated to a sound because he’s used to it, but he might have a much more subtle response to it after a while like the snappy behavior/burnout in hw2. While I imagine Moon for once having a much more obvious response. (kind of like how he reacts to the lights in ruin but probably only half as much)

I think they both reacted to overstimulation through getting snappy, so like in an au where they’re physically separated and they have clashing sensory needs that’s… an easy argument starter. Visibly doing some small behavior that screams irritation on Sun’s part. And moon probably stares at you, but angrily (you can’t tell because he doesn’t have fucking eyelids)

I think the movements they do in canon are some form of stimming. Like I mentioned before, I think they enjoy the clicking. Moon does the movements with his head and rotating his face a LOT. and i began associating it with stimming a while ago. As for negative stims when stressed and anxious. Their wires are exposed. There may not be evidence for it but maybe that’s something they mess with. Also, no evidence for this but I felt like there damage in ruin was both from the situation and themselves, can be taken as a more self destructive (kind of like how scratching/hair pulling can be considered stimming at times for humans) but most likely accidental form of this. Or more likely a stress habit and causing more damage from fighting for control (idk man I kind of lost myself on this one)

Also!! The staff bot parts in their room, and later in Ruin more parts from endos are present. I think they fidget with parts on occasion. This strays from autism related headcanons but Those parts being there in the first place i think is Moon’s doing, and based on his behavior in ruin along with similar cases recorded in security breach i take it as frustration/misguided anger. And eventually because those parts are yk, there after Moon did whatever it is he may have done, i wouldn’t be surprised if the stuff in their room is occasionally fidgeted with as a distraction. The only evidence I really have for this is that in Ruin those items are all sorted. Someone was doing something as a distraction.

There’s no way they would be flirted with in a roundabout way and immediately understand, you need to be DIRECT AND TELL THEM WHAT YOU WANT!!!

I think Sun might easily misinterpret all kinds of things he's told, and be completely confident with his interpretation, while while recognize when he's a little unclear, decide it's probably not important if someone wasn't being clear, and then forget.

For whatever possible circumstance this would EVER come up I don’t think Moon would enjoy phone calls, nor would Sun but I think he likes yapping so he’d probably talk your ear off and then get really sidetracked. Moon would just respond with simple one word answers, or not all (me, i do that, i’m projecting) I don’t think Moon is shy in canon but i do headcanon he just, sucks at holding up a conversation (projecting again)

basically canon but hypo verbal Moon and hyper Verbal sun. (this gets a little too personal and realistic and a second) I just want to say that because it’s a trait associated with autism and instead of them just being considered too quiet or too loud, they are literally just being themselves. This also goes along with the idea where they wouldn’t realize they have autism, and just think whatever they’re doing is considered normal for everyone else so hey might recognize people think of them poorly but might not realize what someone has a stick up their ass about until someone is like “ermm you talk too much/too little 🙄” actually i definitely think they would get criticized on a daily basis for that. I have my own ideas about how they would react in an immediate situation vs over time after being told over and over again. And basically, I think Moon would kind of… NOT react at first but it would get to him later on and that’s when he goes completely quiet or makes sure to avoid people. I think Sun would react negatively on the dot (in one way or another) and stew in frustration for a bit, and sometimes it might come back to him on occasion.

A part of me wants to believe moon is capable of yapping but he spaces it out, like I think he’d randomly tell you a fact and then go quiet for a while. OR!!! OR!! He’d tell you a joke then wait for you to laugh as he stares at you intensely and silently.

I think Moon would mutter to himself a lot, but so quiet and muddled from an outside perspective it's completely incoherent. Sun too but a little easier to hear. Speak out loud in a quiet voice but still loud enough that still makes people briefly pause wandering if he’s speaking to them.

What if they were both heat sensitive… imagine getting to go outside (if they were part of Fallfest than maybe first time and years) but it’s during the summer, and they're both fatigued and miserable. I see a lot of people say sun would absolutely love summer, but considering if he is from Fallfest, and assuming they shut off animatronics when not in use, he’d realistically he might not even be used to summer at all. Then in this case it would actually be sort of an ironic situation where he grows to dislike summer heat.

okay ya'll I think it's done for NOW. I have a few I left out because they were half baked, or too vague for what I wanted to say so I may edit or add onto this in the future. a whole load of this ideas are also things I wanted to implement into my AU so!!

UGRHHHH IK I HAVE AUTISM BUT ITS NOT LIKE I EXPERIENCE EVERYTHING MENTIONED HERE SO I HOPE I DIDN'T MESS UP ANYTHING BUT LET ME KNOW!!

[aninagirly]

The Art of Asking Girls to Pose with or for you

It happens more often than you'd think: guys asking me for a photo somewhere. It could be in the city, in the park, at a bar, or even in a store. While sometimes I agree, 9 our of 10 I say no. And it's not because I always wouldn't do it, it's just because most guys are clueless on how to ask.

Let's explore why girls might not want to take photos with you and how you can increase your chances of getting a positive response. 

This is just from my experience and I am just trying to help by talking about the things guys have done wrong, ok?

Why Girls Will Say No

Personal Boundaries: Everyone has different comfort levels with personal space and interactions. A girl might not feel comfortable taking a photo with someone she doesn't know well.

Privacy Concerns: In an age where photos can be shared instantly online, some girls might be wary of where their image could end up. We don't like the idea to be shown around as your girlfriend somewhere!!

Mood and Context: If she's having a bad day, is in a rush, or simply doesn't feel like it, she might decline.

Safety: Unfortunately, there are instances where women have to be cautious about their interactions with strangers for their own safety. Creeeeeps!

It's crucial to understand that it is always up to the girl whether she wants to take a photo with you. Respect her decision without any negative reactions.

How to Increase Your Chances

1. Judge Her Context:

• Is she in a rush? If she looks like she's on a mission, it's best to let her go.

• Does she need help? If she seems like she could use assistance, offering help or being useful can be a good way to start a conversation, for example if you can help her with a suitcase. Make sure you help her first, before you ask for the photo though!!

2. Make It About Her:

Use the context to show that you care about her comfort and interests. For example, if you're at a park and she seems to be enjoying the scenery, you could mention how beautiful the park is and ask if she'd like to capture the moment together.

The good news about this tip is, it really works any guy, no matter what you look like. Most girls don't care about looks in guy, but more about how he makes them feel. It's like the biggest superpower guys have and most don't even know it!

3. Be sensitive, dial down the creep factor

Don't come on too strong. Being overly enthusiastic or intense can be off-putting. Keep the interaction light and friendly.

4. Offer a Compliment (yup, those still work!)

A genuine compliment can go a long way. For example you can compliment her for the choice of outfit she made for a specific night out in the context she is in, like playing pool at a bar.

Girls put a lot of thought into what to wear. Showing that you are into fashion from her point of view and care about the effort she put in is a great ice breaker!

Try to make it about her and not about the clothes she has on. E.g., "I love how you choose a leather mini for this occasion. Such a cool idea." Not: I love your leather mini. Huuuuge difference.

5. Pay close attention to her Reaction:

Pay attention to her body language and verbal cues. If she seems receptive and positive, you can proceed to ask for a photo. Don't continue if she looks mad, regardless of if you think you messed up or not. Just say sorry and leave. Trust me! Nothing is more aggravating than a guy who can't find the exit in a moment like this.

6. Finally, the Ask: Make her 100% comfortable and be transparent.

When you ask, do so politely and respectfully. Always ask "Is it okay if..." or "Can I..." before each step to make her feel in control.

Ask if you can be in the shot or not, first! Don't assume she agreed on a selfie!

Turn on the shutter sound, so she knows you only took one photo at a time.

Always show her the photo right away so she can see how it turned out.

If she doesn't like it, delete it immediately. Don't argue. Just delete it immediately!

Ask for her permission to take a new one, each time!

If she asks you to delete the photo, do so immediately and show her that you've deleted it from the trash as well. This shows that you respect her wishes and privacy.

Remember, the key is to be respectful and considerate. A positive interaction is more likely to lead to a positive response. Happy photo-taking!

[mamashenanigans]

Now that the Official English translation is out for Chapter 410…

It’s very interesting how the final thoughts of AFO really harken back to his backstory chapters. It confirms how unreliable of a narrator AFO was. He wanted to convince himself that he didn’t have any emotions and that those were crocodile tears. His smile really was a way to mask his emotions(referring to Hawks’ and Best Jeanist’s conversation about it) and that thinking about his childhood and losing Yoichi brought all of these intense emotions to the forefront.

Him finally stating that he NEEDS Yoichi/everything is for nothing if he doesn’t have Yoichi by his side, is sad. For once, he finally admits that he didn’t just want Yoichi as a possession, but as his actual twin and only family member. All that talk about ruling the world and having everyone look at him is nothing without Yoichi.

And him “talking” to Yoichi about wanting everyone to look at him is a direct nod to him seeing how the Demon Lord had a bunch of followers and his need to finally be paid attention to unlike when they were orphans trying to survive on the streets of a collapsing society. All his memories of his childhood are terrible because of that and so he wants everyone else to feel as awful as he did.

Yes, his death is “pathetic”, but that word means “having pity”. You pity AFO because he was born to an incredibly shitacular life up until he realized he could use his metapower to gain followers and thus pull himself and Yoichi out of poverty and living in half destroyed stores. You pity AFO because he was born with his metapower activated and had all the instincts associated with it. You pity AFO because, even as a baby just barely able to crawl, he still tells himself he can get to Tomura, that he can take OFA back and have his brother who he admits he NEEDS. You pity AFO because he really never got over killing Yoichi in a possessive rage. You pity AFO because, as Yoichi says, his power could have been kind and done so much good, but they were born with no one to take care of them or teach them morals. You pity AFO because the twins had to learn morality through a damn comic series.

All those plans. All his cockiness. All of it means NOTHING without Yoichi. So Yoichi was always the reason in the back of his head regardless of his excuses. Once you’ve been working towards getting your brother back for over a century, I guess it makes sense that you’d convince yourself there is no other conclusion than you succeeding.

This dude was the GOAT and it took an army of heroes to whittle him down enough for Bakugo to finally get him to the point he’ll blip out of existence. And his emotions and thoughts over Yoichi and that narrow goal of needing him by his side was what ultimately defeated him because he wouldn’t give up on it.

I think it’s sad, but a memorable death of a main antagonist.

But in addition…

I find the Official translation concerning the AFO vestige very interesting. It seems to hint that the vestige DOES still exist somewhere within Tomura, which makes sense because Tomura still has the AFO Quirk. Given what we know about the vestiges AND what occurred with Danger Sense and 4th being taken, Tomura shouldn’t have the AFO quirk anymore if the vestige is dead.

It would be great to have AFO’s vestige make one final appearance that allows him to interact with Yoichi. It was very disappointing to not have Yoichi appear at all during this chapter and I know a lot of people are hoping the AFO vestige will allow for one final talk between the brothers. It would be cool, if and when Tomura steals all the other OFA vestiges except Yoichi that the AFO vestige appears to keep Tomura from having him or something like that.

[mamamittens]

Oh, Sweet Child of Mine (Pt. 9)

Platonic Yandere Whitebeard Crew & Reader-insert

Main|First|Previous

Warnings: Yandere behavior, kidnapping (again), and vague descriptions of grievous injury (need I specify whom at this point?). Slight angst. If yandere content makes you uncomfortable, please do block 'oh sweet child of mine' as well as any variation of 'one piece yandere' that you feel is necessary. Do not tolerate this behavior in real life from anyone (especially backstabbing, definitely don't tolerate that and get medical assistance as soon as possible).

What you've all been waiting for (fearfully even) is here. The beginning of the end. The same story but... different now. For the better? We'll have to find out, won't we?

Word Count: 1,788

Apparently, Marco had promised Twin-Blade a party when he returned. And as you’ve seen several times by now—before discretely sneaking back to your room to avoid the shenanigans—Whitebeard Pirates don’t need an excuse to throw a party. Once the supplies were safely stored, Twin-Blade took center stage with a bundle in his arms.

You stared at it with something approaching horror, the pit of your stomach rotting from underneath you. You’ve felt a lot of different fruits before, brushing by them as you worked. But you’d never felt one like this. A little too alive and seemingly aware of your presence in a way you didn’t care for. Miraculously less than you cared for being on a pirate ship. It felt greedy like a spoiled child asking for more sweets with sticky fingers and sugar-stained lips. Like it would take and take and take everything you are if you weren’t careful.

Maybe devil fruits always felt this… intense? When it hadn’t been eaten yet? Just a bundle of raw power and potential.

Regardless, you didn’t like it.

Twin-Blade beamed, sneaking glances at you with his expression faltering.

“O-Oyaji! We were challenged on the way back by pirates. And guess what lovely prize they had?” Twin-Blade removed the fruit from the bag. Massive, even in his large hand, and purple with pointy spikes. The whole deck gasped in shock. Devil fruit users weren’t exactly rare on the Grand Line, but finding a fruit itself was a matter of sheer luck. Twin-Blade glanced at you again only to see your pinched expression. “What is it?”

You wrinkled your nose.

“…nothin’. Just feels… weird.” You shrugged, trying to push aside the sticky, reaching sensation of the devil fruit. Twin-Blade looked intrigued.

“Oh!?” He scrambled over to you, ignoring your flinch as the fruit got too close to you. “What do you feel? Can you tell what it does?”

So close to the fruit you noticed a new sensation. An almost magnetic pull. Not a compulsion to eat or touch it, but a literal draw. Like there was a rope around you gently tugging you closer. You shuddered, hating how it started to feel hard to breath near it.

“Dark. Grabbing. I-I don’t know. Feels weird. Please go away.” You huffed. Twin-Blade paused, looking at your face before frowning.

“Sorry. Got too excited. You don’t look so good, are you alright?” Twin-Blade moved the fruit away from your face and placed the back of his hand to your forehead. You swatted at him with a scowl.

“I’m fine! Stop that!” You hissed.

“Hey, Thatch, are you going to drink some of this booze or are you offering another mug to your loving brothers?” Ace declared, raising two mugs high as food was brought out from below deck to feed the rowdy crowd under the growing stars.

Twin-Blade jolted from his thoughts, immediately incensed.

“Oh, hell no! Gimme that!” Twin-Blade ran to claim his drink. You sighed with relief before quietly heading back below deck. A large hand lowered down in front of you. You looked up to see Whitebeard leaning over with a concerned expression.

“Are you alright, my child?” You huffed, attention torn between the Yonko and the devil fruit somewhere behind you.

“Yeah. Just headed to bed. Night.” You said with clipped words, veering around him hand, shuddering at the gentle pulse of the greedy devil fruit behind you.

Whitebeard’s eyes fixed on you as you walked below deck, dodging party goers and cooks bringing more food and booze up.

--*--

Thatch raised his mug up high with a cheerful laugh, accepting the teasing questions about his new prize. Ace kept glancing back every so often with a frown before drunken cried brought him back.

“What’s the matter, Ace?” Thatch asked, leaning against the younger man’s shoulder with a grin. Ace gave him a sideways glance.

“Nothing… I guess I’m just worried about them.” Ace tipped his head to the side, indicating the entrance to below deck. “They don’t really stay for parties but they seemed really eager to leave this time.” Thatch grimaced.

“Yeah. I think the devil fruit was messing with them.” Thatch huffed, irritated that his plan to drag you from your shell backfired so spectacularly. “What the hell does ‘dark’ and ‘grabbing’ even mean?”

Ace shrugged.

“Don’t look at me. They don’t usually talk about their devil fruit with anyone.” Ace explained. “But maybe you could ask? Couldn’t hurt at least. Maybe not with the fruit—”

“Zehahaha~! Got yourself quite the prize, eh commander?” Teach plopped down next to him suddenly with a cheerful grin and red face. He leaned over to ‘whisper’. “So… are ya going to eat it?”

Thatch sighed.

“…I don’t know. I don’t even know what it does. What if it’s really lame? I only get one shot, you know!” Thatch grumbled. “And your newest sibling seems more on edge than usual.”

Teach smacked his back hard with an uproarious laugh.

“ZEHAHAHA~! You’ll figure it out! Maybe they just need a bit to sort themselves out?” Teach suggested. Thatch smiled, feeling a little reassured at the possibility. Night had long since fallen and the party was still in full swing. They should be asleep by now.

“Ah~ I wish I could talk to them.” Thatch sighed wistfully.

“Well why don’t you?” Thatch looked at Teach in surprise.

“They’re probably asleep…?” Teach grinned.

“Well, it can’t hurt to check! And hey, I don’t think they ate anything, either!” Thatch bolted up.

“Ahck! What! I told them to eat while I was gone!” Thatch whined, his face hot as he swayed on his feet. Teach laughed at his misery, standing up to help steady him.

“Let’s make a food run and see if they’re still up, commander. Who knows, maybe they’ll be in a mood to talk after a bit of food?” Teach suggested reasonably.

Thatch, even a bit tipsy, could see no fault in the logic. Or possibly because he was tipsy? No matter, he was going to do the best damn food run of his life.

He needed to talk to you!

Thatch waved to Ace and, with Teach’s help, stumbled up to hopefully get food good enough to tempt you into speaking to him.

The whole time Teach was laughing and joking, teasing Thatch for getting so damn tipsy—which he honestly deserved, he underestimated the strength of the booze, which is a terribly rookie mistake to make as a Whitebeard Pirate.

“What’s the bag for?” Thatch frowned, rummaging in the fridge to make a quick snack. Teach chuckled, loading up the bag.

“What? Do you think you could carry food and walk in a straight line?” Teach asked.

“Ah. Good idea, Teach, eheh, I’d probably drop it on the floor and waste it all!” Thatch cackled, shaking his head as he grabbed a couple bottles of juice. He was probably grabbing too much food, but he wasn’t sure if Teach would be sticking around for the conversation and as a D, Teach ate a lot.

Teach gave Thatch a slightly odd smile, chuckling under his breath as he finished loading up the goodies.

By the time they made it to the hallway with your room, Thatch was now a lot more sober, aided by two whole glasses of water. He didn’t want to make a total ass of himself by being too tipsy to make any sense.

The door was, unexpectedly, locked. So Marco or someone else had already came by to check on you. Which meant you had to be asleep now. Thatch had a key, sure, but now he wasn’t so sure he should actually wake you up.

He paused in front of the door, looking at the key.

There was a soft, sharp sound behind him.

Like a knife hissing as it was pulled from a scabbard.

The hot, burning pain took his breath away and made his knees go weak.

He collapsed on the floor instantly, thinking hazily that he was having a stroke or something equally terrible.

He gasped, shuddering with agony as he was moved. Teach standing over him as he gently took something from his jacket.

Thatch couldn’t focus. His thoughts circling round and around again.

Teach was holding the devil fruit.

Teach had the key.

Teach had the devil fruit and the key.

He was stepping over Thatch into the room and Thatch found his heart racing under protest. Only capable of gasping weakly as his body refused to cooperate.

His eyes slid shut for only a moment. Briefly lifting up as Teach stepped over him again, locking the door and dropping the key on Thatch’s chest. A second bag slung over his shoulder.

“Zehahaha—nothing personal, commander.” Teach smiled sincerely before walking away.

What?

Thatch closed his eyes again and waited for the world to make sense.

It only grew colder, his erratic thoughts growing increasingly distant and unreal.

He thought there was danger, but where? He was a little cold, sure, but he was fine otherwise… right?

“THATCH!” Hot hands cradled his face, something like molten liquid dripping down his face.

Reluctantly, Thatch opened his eyes, the world growing soft and faint. Someone was crying over him. Probably because he was so damn handsome, heh. Tan skin and freckles all over. Silver eyes like a blade—he’s bleeding out, isn’t he? Seas, he’s not ready to die—overflowing with tears.

“MARCO! QUICK! SOMEONE GET MARCO!” The young man lightly smacked Thatch’s face. “H-Hang in there, Thatch! Y-You’re going to be fine! I promise!” He promised desperately.

But something was bothering Thatch. More than the chill in his bones and strong enough to pierce through the cotton in his head, numbing his tongue and fingers.

He didn’t know why, but your name was the last thing that left his lips.

Where did you go?

“THATCH!”

--*--

You shuddered awake hazily to the rocking of a boat. Your neck bruised and ropes wrapped around your body. The sea waves lapped away near your head.

You could see the rising sun on the horizon and a distant island when you turned your head. Something soft bracing your bruised neck from the wood of the row boat.

“…Mmm?” You hummed, head swaying as you laid back down.

“Hmm, go back to sleep. We’ve got a ways yet before shore and between the two of us, I’m definitely the better rower. Don’t worry—" You closed your eyes reluctantly and began to drift off. “—I’ll get a decent boat to sail properly with, zehahaha!”

You fell back asleep with the distorted sense that something was wrong.

Dark shadows practically wrapped around your ankles as you fell into darkness again.

[klaus-littlestwolf]

Random Thought

The Mikaelsons at Hogwarts: Students and Teachers

Elijah Mikaelson:

Student- He would absolutely be a Ravenclaw but that one Ravenclaw who is smarter than everyone including the teacher and yet never turns in the homework at all (but passes all his OWLs with Outstandings every time). Elijah was also a very talented Quidditch player, enjoying his role as a Keeper and staying on the team all 6 years after his first year watching from the stands and becoming obsessed. He actually went on to play on a professional team for quite some time after school.

Teacher- He would probably teach Ancient Runes and while everyone would hate the class they would love him and appreciate how he actually makes the class enjoyable. He would be best friends with Professor McGonagall 100% and would be one of the toughest graders in the entire school despite being generous with his help

Klaus Mikaelson:

Student- Klaus would be a Slytherin and while he would be cocky about it to everyone, he would actually hate it and believe that he was destined to be everything his father told him he was. However he would eventually let go of that worry as his best friend (who is a Hufflepuff) constantly tells him how smart and good he really is and will stick up for him to everybody that teases him in anyway (despite the fact that she cannot stick up for herself and Klaus has to do it whenever someone makes fun of his sweet, innocent friend). He is a talented student and excels in potions and charms, often Hexing whatever Gryffindor was mean to his sweet Hufflepuff for being friends with “evil wizards”.

Teacher- Klaus would teach Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid and he would be the only one who could reign him in, though he also enjoyed Hagrids love of creatures and helped him learn about them (even gaining the trust of the werewolf pack in the Forbidden Forest as well as being on good terms with the Centaurs). He would also teach an elective Muggle Arts class for students that love to be artistic to have an outlet in a school where such things aren’t considered important, wanting students like he would have been to have somewhere to go and not feel judged for being different.

Kol Mikaelson:

Student- Kol would probably be a Hufflepuff and while he would be the kind of student that coasts along the middle when it comes to grades, he would be friends with almost everyone regardless of their house. He would be incredibly talented with Charms of any sort (including Jinx’s and Hexes) and teach his friends more than their own teachers did on a regular basis. Kol would be one of the most talented wizard in his year by far.

Teacher- As a teacher Kol would definitely be the fun one that every student loves. He would teach Charms class and take it very seriously even while still allowing the students to enjoy themselves. He would be a hard grader but also be the type to help students and offer extra credit to kids that are actually trying their best and just not being the best in Charms. He’s also the kind of teacher who would happily try and help his students to find a class they enjoy and excel in, often signing his kids up for Hagrid and Klaus’ class. Kol was also very prone to creating his own charms which often ended with him visiting Madam Pomfrey at least once a week.

Rebekah Mikaelson:

Student- Rebekah would be a Ravenclaw like her older brother but she would focus on her studies far more than Elijah did. She would be a good student but would definitely excel more if she wasn’t constantly hanging on whatever Slytherin boyfriend she had that month. Rebekah would always put too much effort into whatever Slytherin boy was interested in her

Teacher- She would teach Herbology, loving her garden that she had been given permission to grow herself in a special clearing in the Forbidden Forest. She became good friends with Professor Snape and often grew unique plants for him to use in his advanced potions or stock his stores with things that were hard to find (as very few witches in the world were as talented in Herbology as Rebekah) or were too expensive. She was a fantastic teacher and very easy on her students, taking the time twice a week to have an advanced class for students who wanted extra credit and to learn harder material

Klaus Mikaelson Masterlist

Elijah Mikaelson Masterlist

Kol Mikaelson Masterlist

Random Thoughts

[macabr3-barbi3]

God, That's Good!

Chapter 3: My Friends

Alastor has something that belonged to the barber in a past life- and Lucifer makes a deal.

Chapter 1 🥧 Chapter 2 🥧 Chapter 3 🥧 Chapter 4 🥧 Chapter 5 🥧 Chapter 6  🥧Chapter 7

Tags: uhhh revenge? brooding? Everything is going so slowly right now, I promise it will pick up after we do our shows this weekend! (Thank you to @fraugwinska for her Show Week knowledge and making me wait and not post everything written as soon it's done- I'm probably not going to be getting much writing done this week because of rehearsals and shows so she is keeping me on track! I LOVE YOU FRAU)

The decor in the apartment in the back is more subdued than the front- still a lot of red, but the things that hang on the walls are more tasteful- paintings and newspaper clippings line the walls of the hallway, more soft jazz emanating from somewhere deeper into the apartment. “I found them upstairs when I purchased the building and shop from my mentor,” Alastor says as he leads Lucifer back. “He did a better job than I have of keeping people out of the place, so they were undisturbed when I went up to rummage around. I could have sold them, you know,” he adds, casting an eye back to Lucifer. “But they were such high quality, I wasn’t sure I would even be able to get what they were worth. Any profit is a profit, I suppose, but I wanted to make sure they were done justice- and I’m glad I had an inkling to hang onto them!”

He leans down into a chest at the foot of his bed, and Lucifer realizes that he’s been led into the man’s bedroom- he hardly has time to blush at the sudden intimacy before Alastor is standing again, looming over Lucifer when he turns with a decorative box in his hands, held gently between their bodies. His voice catches in his throat when he recognizes the walnut, the delicate wood burning that adorns the lid, the lovingly engraved ‘DD’ in the bottom corner.

He was a fresh twenty-one years old when he decided that he wanted to be a barber, to Judge Cain and Adam’s disappointment; they wanted him to join them. But they had supported him in his decision regardless, presenting him with these razors at his and Lilith’s wedding as a gift, a way to start his business on the right foot with the finest tools that money could buy. Lucifer had cried receiving them, the Judge had cried at his emotion, and Adam had been quiet and pensive- which, he now recognized, was likely due to the legalized relationship between himself and Lilith than any familial emotions at the gift. 

He was near obsessive in his care of them as his business started and took off- he would allow no one to touch them or clean them, taking a soft rag to them after close each night and storing them adoringly back in their box. They stayed in the barbershop, away from where a curious Charlie could accidentally grab them and hurt herself or anyone else. Lilith teased him about it constantly, claiming that he loved them more than he loved her, and he would smile and pull her into his arms and mutter about how the razors were less likely to talk back to him. And she would smile and laugh and pull him into the sweetest kiss right there on the couch, and in that little bubble everything was perfect.

They’re heavy in his hands now as he opens the lid and extracts one from the box, Alastor silent and observant when Lucifer inspects it, noticing a spot of blood on one of the handles. Not from himself- he made sure they were clean before he put them away every night, which meant that sometime in the last fifteen years they had been in use. He makes an inquisitive noise in his throat, something not quite anger- it feels suspiciously like jealousy- bubbling in his chest, and Alastor makes his soft humming noise. “My apologies-  it seemed a shame to let them sit in disuse! I admit I’ll occasionally pull them out when my own blades will not suffice.”

Lucifer doesn’t answer- he doesn’t mind, truthfully. The thought of them having just sat in their box for fifteen years- unused, uncared for, alone- made him far sadder than the vague dismay at someone else having used them. That they hadn’t been stolen, reclaimed by the Cain family when he was sent off and Lilith passed, was a miracle. They were still here waiting for him after all this time- the only thing that was still here upon his return, even if his family wasn’t. 

He opens the blade, the sharp edge catching the light and glinting in a familiar way. They were beautiful instruments, and had been such a thoughtful gift from Adam and his father. To think they would give him something like this and then still do what they had done to him… an unforgivable betrayal. “This is… all I have left,” Lucifer says, his voice thick in the space between himself and Alastor. “Of my life before.”

“Well, you have it back now,” Alastor says, and when Lucifer makes eye contact with the baker his expression is almost tender, a soft smile on his face while he’s watched Lucifer sift through his wild thoughts. “What will you do with it?”

“I will have my revenge.” The last word is nearly hissed, and when he looks up he half expects to see Alastor watching him with horror. But his expression hasn’t changed, the air between them charged with adrenaline and Lucifer’s wrath. He’s shaking, he realizes, the hand holding his open razor trembling mere inches away from Alastor’s abdomen. The baker’s face holds no fear though, calm and relaxed despite the sharp object in Lucifer’s hands. “I apologize,” he mutters, taking a step back and closing the razor, placing it carefully back in the box. “You have nothing to fear; I would never-”

“What, hurt me?” Alastor’s smile grows, a mischievous smirk as he looks Lucifer up and down. “No, I wouldn’t think so. Who else would allow you to stay rent free in the lodging above their shop?”

Lucifer’s hope rekindles. “You mean it? I’ll pay rent eventually, I can start shaving again perhaps- but knowing my plans as they are, I wouldn’t want to bring any trouble to your doorstep. Is there anything I can do to repay the favor?”

Alastor waves him down cheerfully. “Nothing at the moment, good fellow! We’ll call it a gesture in good faith for now- perhaps down the line I may have a favor to ask of you and you can square up then. How does that sound?”

“Deal!” He steals one of Alastor’s hands from under the box to shake it, his grip firm in his enthusiasm. His mind races- there was one less problem to worry about with Alastor’s generosity. Now he had to figure how he was actually going to access Adam and this Beadle character; perhaps if he could get his business running again the pair of them might come in for a shave. He could prove himself an accomplished barber somehow, gain a bit of a reputation and lure them to the shop above the bakery with tales of a free shave…

And then he would have them. 

From there he would find Charlie. It didn't sound like they kept her locked in the house all of the time- perhaps when she was out on the town he could approach her, explain who he was and what had happened to him, try to build the father and daughter relationship he had wanted for them when she was a girl. He had been so excited to watch her grow into her own person, the perfect accumulation of the best parts of Lucifer and Lilith. He would never get that now, the progression of her growth, but she was still his Charlie- he would love her to the day he died, even if she turned him away when she found out who he was.

A throat clears, and Lucifer realizes that he’s still clutching Alastor’s hand. He lets go, a blush flaming his cheeks as he coughs awkwardly and steps away. “Do you have the key?” He asks, just to say something, and Alastor chuckles before he reaches into his pocket for a keyring that he holds out. “Lead the way!” Lucifer steps aside and allows Alastor to lead him back down the hallway, through the connecting door to the pie shop.

Husker has returned, polishing glasses behind the counter. He nods to Alastor and casts a suspicious eye at Lucifer as they approach the door. “As you know, there’s two entry points- the door off the back that leads directly to the apartment, and the one off the front here that leads to your shop.” He disconnects two keys from the keyring and slips them into Lucifer’s hand. “I had the keys replaced when I took over- who knows what kinds of people my prior mentor allowed to have access?”

He looks down at the keys in his hand- not the familiar gunmetal gray that he and Lili had obtained from the owner, but a rich black that was smooth to the touch. “Right. I’ll… I’ll be right back, if you don’t mind waiting down here?”

“By all means!” He steps aside to let Lucifer pass, and he feels eyes on him all the way up the stairs, until he’s turned the key in the lock and entered what used to be his barbershop.

Carnage. From the years of vandals breaking in, as well as the shattered mirror on the floor from where Lucifer had fought off the police when Adam had them sent after him so long ago. Broken glass littered the floor, his combs and towels scattered around the room, the door between the shop and their home cracked down the middle and hanging off its hinges. Tears blur his vision as he steps through the doorway, most of their furniture and decorations left undisturbed. Charlie’s drawings have fallen from the wall and the refrigerator, family ‘portraits’ of the three of them holding hands, various animals and bugs and buildings that she came up with in her imaginative mind. He and Lilith had always made such a show of praising her for them, their sweet girl with her art and the little songs she made up and-

He turns away from the living room, heading back to the bedroom they had all shared, Charlie’s bed separated from theirs by a simple room divider- her walls are also covered in her drawings and scribbled song lyrics that she had come up with. His and Lilith’s bed is against the far wall, as far as they could get from Charlie so their more amorous activities didn’t disturb or wake her. Lilith had always wanted more than this place for them- that was part of why she wanted to move North, where property was cheaper and the spaces larger. She wanted Charlie to grow up in a proper house, not a one bedroom apartment off the side of his barbershop; she wanted to be a proper homemaker, a housewife, something she claimed couldn’t be done in such cramped quarters.

But they had all been together, the two of them in such deep, desperate love, unaware of the tragedy that was coming for them when Adam decided that he had had enough of his unreciprocated longing.

It’s too much. Lucifer stumbles back out of the apartment, through the barbershop, nearly falling down them in his haste. “Ah! What do you think of the place?” Alastor asks from his position at the bottom of the stairs, and Lucifer collapses onto the last step with his face in his hands.

“I can’t do it,” he says. “I can’t be there, in the apartment- there’s too many memories, too much sadness and nostalgia and… I just can’t.” He meets Alastor’s gaze, his expression unreadable. “I appreciate the generous offer but I’ll have to find something else.” 

A smile. “Nonsense, my dear! If you’re amenable to the arrangement, I do have a spare bedroom in my living quarters that you’re welcome to move into. I do occasionally have other matters to attend to so I won’t be home all the time, but you’re welcome to use the space as your own.” He doesn’t take the keys back from Lucifer, holding his hand out and pulling the shorter man to his feet.

“That’s… too kind,” Lucifer says, and again something scratches at the back of his mind telling him that the situation was too good to be true. But he has few other options if he wants to be close to the barbershop, and no chance of any place else allowing him to stay without money. “Your mother clearly raised you well, to be such a giving soul.”

Alastor laughs. “Perhaps I just really want to cash in on that favor you now owe me,” he says slyly, eyes narrowed like they’re co-conspirators in on a secret plot. “Come now- I’ll give you a proper tour!”

They go back inside, and Alastor mentions to Husker behind the bar that Lucifer would be his personal guest in his apartment out back- “what the fuck do I care about that?” The man had grumbled, and as they passed him Lucifer saw him take a full swig out of one of the bottles behind him. Alastor shows him to the spare room and the bathroom, leaving him with his razor box and a spare shaving soap.

He takes one of the blades out again, setting it behind the faucet while he lathers the soap with scalding water and spreads it across his cheeks and chin with his fingers. Opening the razor, he’s careful as he brings it to his skin- he already feels more normal than he has all day, and the first swipe across his stubble leaving smooth flesh behind is a blessing, a token of grace in a day of hardships and strife. He shaves his own face the way he did others; quickly, smoothly, efficiently. A few strokes and he’s finished, completely bare faced once again and looking nothing like the man he had been before.

Which felt… fitting. Because he wasn’t Damien Diggory anymore; father to a daughter that wouldn’t recognize him from a stranger on the street; husband to a woman rotting in the ground; friend to a man that had betrayed him and ruined the life he had once known.

There was only Lucifer Morningstar now- and there was work to be done.

Chapter 1 🥧 Chapter 2 🥧 Chapter 3 🥧 Chapter 4 🥧 Chapter 5 🥧 Chapter 6  🥧Chapter 7

[asleep-in-the-keep-sideblog]

Asleep In The Keep: A DP x BNHA fic

Summary: Danny and Aizawa talk and bond

Word count: 3284

Chapter 23: You Hungry?

Danny and the Mummy stood awkwardly in the store. Maybe Danny was the only awkward one, considering that the man not only saw him during a low point, but Danny also thought he was his dad in his haze. Danny sighed, just trying to get it out. Everything would be so much easier if the man didn’t help Danny (he would’ve been fine on his own), now he felt like he owed the man some kind of explanation. 

‘Oh hey, thanks for helping except totally didn’t need it cause I’m already dead, yay!’ and what, would he just say, ‘oh totally cool and normal, have a good day!’ and leave? The ancients wouldn’t be so kind.   

At least he respected Danny’s “no” for a doctor- more than he could say for most of the adults in his life. There still could be something he could do. 

“Uhhh you want something to drink?” Danny pointed his thumb behind him at the counter, which he just noticed was covered in frost. He looked at the man and saw the same frost on his arms. Mummy man followed his eyes, and wiped it off, not letting his facial features betray anything. Danny eyed him suspiciously, but let it go. The guy had been the opposite of a threat so far (but that didn’t mean that he won’t be). Danny had to silence that part of him, he didn’t sense any malicious intent from the man. He was probably still strung up from his little episode earlier. 

Danny walked behind the counter, entering customer service mode. The man followed behind him but at a distance to make Danny comfortable. He appreciated it.  

“I’ll take a black coffee.” Danny eyed him again, but not from suspicion. 

“Are you sure?” He chuckled, “You had to choke it down last time, and I haven’t gotten the best reviews since then.”

“I’m sure. I like your coffee. It’s…” He paused, obviously thinking deeply, “like an old fashioned dark roast.” his face didn’t betray him, so Danny decided to believe it. 

“If you say so,” Danny rolled his eyes and started cleaning up the mess. “uhhh it’s gonna take me a minute to clean everything up, you can just sit down somewhere” he gestured to tables and booths. Fortunately the tables were screwed into the floor, so they were mostly alright. Same could not be said for the chairs. Danny groaned. 

“I got it,” Mummy said, already moving to put the chairs up. There was something casual in the way he said it, like he had known Danny for a while and it was expected. 

He did know Danny was Phantom, right? Like, that was what the whole, “I won’t tell anyone,” was about, yeah? Maybe he just hadn’t seen the news? Or maybe he just didn't care? Regardless, Danny would still keep an eye on him. It wouldn’t make sense for his luck to suddenly turn to gold.

Mummy had gotten a few chairs up when he moved to the door. He flipped the ‘OPEN’ sign to ‘CLOSED’. 

“Thanks,” Danny called out, but his voice felt too sudden, “I probably would’ve forgotten and then someone would come in, which would be hard to explain.” He scratched his neck.

“You’re welcome,” he nodded, “I’m going to shut the blinds as well, you should try to get the power back on.

“What?”

“The power-”

“No, I heard you. What do you mean it's-oh my god!” Danny facepalm. He blew the power out. “Uhhh just stay there.” 

It’s not that Danny trusted the man alone, it was more ‘what more damage could he do?’ than straight trust. He ran out the back to the fuse-box, leaving the door open to see inside. He flipped the switch but the lights remained off. Danny growled in frustration as he kept flipping it on and off, with no results. 

“Work you stupid thing!” He felt a zap from his fingers and all the lights turned on. He yanked his hand away and stared at the box. He can think about that later…

The man was closing the last of the blinds by the time Danny walked in. Danny really needed to learn this guy’s name, especially if he was gonna come here often, which seemed to be the case. Instead of asking, Danny turned around to make the coffee. 

It was quiet in the cafe, save for the sounds of machines and chairs scraping. There was a tense air that floated between the two, something that wouldn’t exist until it was spoken. After all the chairs were set up, the man just sat at the same table he did last time and pretended to look at the wall. They were both in a secret staring contest. 

Danny only wasted 3 cups of coffee until he got one that wasn’t burnt, and walked it over to him. The man took it gingerly, and placed it down, using a napkin as a coaster. He eyed the seat in front of him. 

“How about you take a break?” He said. He tried to make his voice sound smooth but it ended up being more forced, like a kid standing at the front of class. 

“I still have a lot to do before the end of my shift.” Danny wasn’t lying. Although the chairs and machines were cleaned, there was still a lot of debris on the floor. Coffee grinds crunched under his foot with each step he took. 

“You’ve done enough for now, it’s important to take breaks. Otherwise, the people who care about you get worried.” Danny laughed at that. Even when he did have people like that, he would always lie about how much work he was doing to make them feel better. He missed that…

“Do you have people who care about you?” the man asked. 

“Not anymore.” Danny sat down across from him, watching his reaction. He nodded, seemingly excepting that answer. “Does anyone care about you?” The question came off harsher than Danny wanted, but there was a smile in the man’s eyes.

“I do,” His face relaxed slightly and his lip twitched into an almost a smile, “I have a husband and a very good friend.” he rubbed his ring, and it clanked on the side of his cup. Danny didn’t say anything in response. 

“Do you have a place you’re staying at? Somewhere safe?” Concern leaked into every word. He seemed to be genuine, but it was clear he was hiding something, adults always were. Kids' motivations were easier to understand, especially when they wore their heart on their sleeve like Deku. Adults always wanted something or had an angle. 

“Yes. I’m safe.” That is all that he would give him. 

“That’s good,” The man watched him and Danny felt studied. He became violently aware that he was still in his ghost form (his true form). He never felt self conscious of it before. In Amity, when they saw Phantom, they just saw the persona, not Danny (except the few who knew). The man in front of him saw Danny completely. It felt violating, like a stranger reading his diary. 

Danny closed his eyes and pictured his human self, the life he lived before and was owed. Tingles like limbs falling asleep traveled down his body. When he opened his eyes, the man’s mouth in front of him was open. 

Danny shrugged, trying to make it seem like a smaller deal. He had forgotten that people don’t usually show their quirks off in public. He may have just crossed a social norm and made him uncomfortable. 

Good, the bitter teenager side of him said. He didn’t know this man enough to care. 

Zzz

Tommy replaced Phantom in front of him. Shouta tried to suppress the shock on his face, but honestly how do you react to something like that? It looked like his face was melting off, only to have another face underneath the goo. At least now he knew how Phantom turned into Tommy. Phantom glared at him in a way only teenagers are able. Shouta shut his mouth and took a sip of coffee. He gagged slightly as the flavor hit his tongue. It tasted like spoiled burnt rubber, a slight improvement from last time. Fortunately he was better at hiding his disgust this time since Phantom stopped glaring. 

“So,” Shouta wasn’t sure what to say, “Is that a quirk of yours?” He pretended to take another sip of coffee, his eyes scanning the teen over the brim of the cup. 

“Yes.” He answered curtly. Shouta didn’t know if the boy was being honest or not, but he had to take it for what it was. If it was true, maybe his quirk was similar to Ectoplasm’s, both being able to manipulate the unique matter. In Ectoplasm’s case, he could only make clones while some of Phantom’s body seemed to be made of it. That would line up with what was said in the reports, at least with the fight last night. 

The list of his quirks were so far; ice/cold manipulation and flight, both seen in the Nomu incident. Intangibility, witnessed by Fat Gum. Perhaps some form of invisibility, as detailed in the report when he disappeared. Although the last two may be limited since he doesn’t seem to be using them more. And then as he witnessed today, electrification, similar to Kaminari’s except that it doesn't affect his cognition. That could either be because he’s trained with it more or it's a different strand. And finally, ectoplasm. It was suspected Phantom also had some kind of regeneration quirk based on the reports when Stain cut him, but that could be explained by the ectoplasm. It could be that his base quirk was the ectoplasm since it's a mutation type quirk, and those can't be manipulated, then everything else was jammed in later. The source of his glowing was unknown since Ectoplasm’s quirk didn't seem to do that. He could very possibly have more powers that no one has witnessed yet. All in all, he had almost every power from a ghost, just rammed up to 11. 

Shouta could feel a headache coming on. 

“You hungry?” Shouta said, partly to distract himself, and partly for the boy’s sake. Using energy based powers, regardless of what they were, took a toll on the body. He was surprised the boy hadn’t blacked out yet. Possible result of quirk endurance training by All For One.

“I’m fine.” At least he was answering Shouta’s questions. At any point, Phantom could get up or kick Shouta out, and yet they both still sit together. There must be some part of him, however deep, that must want help. 

“Are you sure, kid?” Shouta eyed him skeptically, “You just used your quirk a lot, you must be feeling exhausted.” On the outside, it almost looked like a quirk awakening. However, based on how causally Phantom was reacting, it must’ve been a common occurrence. That line of thought only brought up painful possibilities. 

“What are you, my mom?” Although the kid sounded playful, he was starting to look uncomfortable at Shouta’s questioning. Shouta could understand that. As a teenager, he was annoyed when people asked about his well being. He wasn’t used to it. It felt like they only pretended to care, or that he was being talked down to like a child. How could he get Phantom to understand that he meant it?

“For right now, yes.” He responded dryly. Phantom rolled his eyes at that, which mitigated the tension. Shouta let a small smile travel across his face, but it only lasted a second. “I can pay for it if that’s the issue?” He intentionally didn’t let pity into his tone, in case Phantom might react negatively to it. 

“No, it’s not that, uhhh,” Phantom started playing with his gloves again, “I have a…special diet?” He sounded unsure. 

Shouta signed, “Alright.” It could be true, or it could be a lie, the result was the same. 

“Let me grab something,” Phantom got up, but before he ran off he asked, “You like tuna?” Shouta just nodded, and with that Phantom disappeared behind the counter. 

Shouta went back to focusing on his coffee. It was half gone, but even that didn’t ease him. His tongue was numb as a trauma response. It made what he was about to do a little easier. He rose it to his lips, and gulped down the rest. Although he couldn’t taste it, he could still feel it slide down his throat. He shivered. 

Phantom returned before long. In one hand, he held a plate, balanced on his palm like they do at a fine dining restaurant, in the other, he limply help onto a metal cylinder. He placed the plate onto the table but kept the cylinder on his lap.

“What’s that?” Shouta asked, glancing at the chunk of metal.

“A tuna wrap. Why? Never seen one before?” Phantom cocked his eyebrow playfully at Shouta. He leaned back in his chair, “That was the only sandwich left, so you have to eat it.” 

The kid obviously knew what he meant but was ignoring him on purpose it. Shouta wasn’t gonna get any answers by asking again, so instead, decided to quietly eat the wrap. Phantom was bobbing his head and body while rhombically humming, clearly thinking about something. He would occasionally glance over at Shouta, then look away. Shouta just ignored him. Teenagers were like cats; if they knew you wanted their attention, they wouldn’t give it to you. It had to be on their terms. 

Seconds ticked like minutes as Shouta just sat and ate. It wasn’t uncomfortable, Shouta actually enjoyed quiet meals (or where Hizashi would talk and he would listen), but there was some sort of anticipation between then, like winding up a jack-in-the-box. 

Phantom decided to act. He placed the mysterious cylinder on the table and started fiddling with something. The cylinder looked to be made of meddled together scrap metal with a few dents on the side. It looked old too, what clearly was once a silver color clouded over time and looked like iron. There were a few patches of color, neon green and black ascended the weird object. The green was a similar color to Phantom’s eyes, or at least in his true-form. Now he sported a more human blue with a slight green ring around the pupil. 

It was interesting, although he was clearly looking at the boy, he wasn’t able to imagine him in his other form. If it wasn’t for the weird vibe he gave off or the white streak in his hair, Shoua wasn’t sure he would be able to pick Phantom out in a line up. Some type of hypnosis quirk? No that wouldn’t make sense. In the reports, witness weren’t able to describe him consistantly, even from far away. He would also have to be constantly emitting it, even if he didn’t think people were around. Perhaps it had to due with why he glowed? There were studies about different types of light affecting your brain, that could have something to do with it. Shouta looked at Phantoms face, studying every feature he could. Phantom was still wrapped up in whatever he was doing to notice. Shouta closed his eyes and concentrated on that visual, but it faded away like a blurry after-image. But Phantom wasn’t glowing anymore. Could it be that you only need to see it once to affect you? No wait- 

Shouta looked closer at the boy. There was a slight sheen to him, around his outline and especially his eyes. He still glowed, it was just softer now, like a glowstick in a lite room. Is that intentional, or just a result of overloading his quirk earlier? No, it seemed to be intentional. The glow vanished as soon as he changed forms. It could be he uses a less powerful light since he doesn’t need to worry as much about being recognized as “Tommy” than Phantom. It could also help conserve his energy. Smart kid…

There were a few beeps across the table and Phantom smiled. It was too wide and full of teeth. Strangely, it fit the boy in front of him. 

“I just had to charge it up a little and, voilà~”  The thing whirled to life, lighting up a few buttons in odd places. “This thing hasn’t been charged since, I don’t know, since I woke up?” he shrugged, but his eyes were giddy with excitement. Phantom was talking as if it had been years, rather than the few hours between then and now. “It worked earlier, but I think that was because of the radiat- anyway” He laughed. 

What was he gonna say? Before the question could escape his lips, Phantom hit another button and a loud ‘pop’ sounded out, surprising Shouta, and the top part of it opened. Phantom peered into it with one eye and swished it around. It glowed slightly, but Shouta wasn’t sure if it was from the device or the stuff inside. Without wasting another second, Phantom raised it to his lips and chugged it. 

“Is that…a thermos?” Shouta was gobsmacked and just watched with an open mouth as the boy kept chugging. It seemed too impractical for everyday use, not if you had to do that everytime. Well, Phantom did say he has a ‘special diet’, maybe it had to be kept at a certain temperature? And all those buttons could be a security measure. 

There were a few raids on abandoned warehouses and underground bunkers. They were believed to belong to All For One, and in them were found vats of a green liquid holding Nomu’s in different stages of development. Only 3 were recovered for testing. Perhaps the thermos held that same fluid to keep Phantom stable with so many quirks. How much more does he have left? 

After a few gulps of, whatever that was, the color returned to Phantom’s cheeks. Whether that be an indication of his health or quirk power was anyone’s guess. It could’ve been both if what Shouta thought was true. 

“Are you sure you don’t need any help?” Shouta couldn’t help the concern leaking into his voice. Phantom just looked at him, wiping some green goo of his face like it was a milkshake. 

“I already told you, I’m fine.” Phantom’s body was immediately tense. How many people had hurt him for him to be so distrustful? “I can take care of myself.” He sat straighter and there was a look of determination in his eyes. 

“I know you can.” The boy had already come this far after all, “But you can’t do everything alone.” Shouta slowly reached into his pocket for his card, watching Phantom. The boy seem to almost unravel and his form changed again- not to  his true form, but a mix between the two. His hair becoming more wispy, like smoke and his sclera turned an inky black but his pupils kept a touch of blue. He vibrated in his seat. It was like he was trying to hold it in. 

Shouta took his hand out of his pocket, showing nothing was in it. 

“I think I should go,” Shouta slowly stood up, careful to keep his body langue open and readable to show he wasn’t a threat. Phantom was still sat down, looking at Shouta like a feral animal. He looked so scared in that moment. 

“I really do want to help,” But he couldn’t help him like this, he couldn’t force him to accept it. 

★

“I know you do,” Danny said to an empty room.

But the man wasn't there.

[putyourhanddownmy]

If I owned you for 24 hours...

I wake up early, so there's a good chance I'd be awake and aware before you. I may just watch you for a while... admire your sleeping form like the work of art that it is. Eventually, I would want to wake you up, though, and what better alarm clock than to run my hands over every inch of that gorgeous body? You'd wake up to your tits being groped, or your cunt being fingered, and the first words you woud hear are "Mine. All mine."

Since you slept nude, I figure you must want to be ogled and perved on, so you wouldn't be dressed until we were ready to leave the house. My girl needs to be washed and fed, of course. In the shower, I would help you get your body all soapy, using my hands and my body to wash you. If I get hard, I'd tell you to take care of it like a good girl. No further instructions--I want to see what *you* think is the best way. Will you take me into your hand? Drop to your knees and suck me off? Or does kiddo need daddy inside her so bad that she'll line me up with her pussy and push herself down on it without even being told to? I want to see where that dirty mind of yours goes with an open-ended task.

After the shower, we'd have breakfast. I might put something on if I feel like it, but you'll still be totally naked. There's a pretty big kitchen window at my place, but you don't care, do you sweetheart? I see how you are on here. You love being the center of attention. It might even excite you for someone walking by to see you seated on my lap, being fed bites of waffles and fruit like the sweet little girl you are.

When it's finally time to go out, I would go through your clothes and pick out whatever looked the prettiest and sexiest on you *to me.* It doesn't matter what you look like to anyone else, does it?

I'd take you with me on my daily errands, and every possible second I would be touching you. It might be something innocent like holding your hand while we cross the street, or hugging you from behind while in line at the bank. If I catch someone else admiring your beauty, I might wrap a possessive arm around your waist and pull you in for a kiss. I just need to remind you and everyone around us that you're *mine.*

At some point during the day I may get a little pent up from being so near you all the time, so I'd take you somewhere with relative privacy, and bend you over. There wouldn't be time for us to get fully undressed, so I would pull my pants down just far enough to get my cock out, flip up your skirt, and push your panties to the side so that I could get fully inside you. I'd try to be gentle, but you know how riled up you get me, sweetie. I'd try to hush you sweetly, but if you just couldn't keep quiet enough, I may have to clap my hand over your mouth while I take you. We can't make a mess, so I'd just have to pump every last drop of my seed into you, as deep as I could. But there's still things to do in town, so after I pull out, I'd get both of our clothes back in place, take your hand and tell you to follow me. I know kiddo, you're probably still a little fuzzy after that. Just stay close to daddy, be as clingy as you need to be. I just have a few more grown-up things to do today.

If you'd been good all day--which I know you would be--I'd let you pick out a few things at the store once I've completed my shopping list. Treats, toys, pretty things to wear--anything my good girl wants.

We'd have dinner before going home, and while we eat my foot would be gently rubbing yours under the table. I love touching you, even if it's a little thing like this.

When we're back home, I'd tell you that I need to inspect your pussy. I want to see if my seed is still there, or if it leaked out while you walked... or maybe your body drew it deeper within, hm? Regardless, while I'm down here I just *have* to taste you. I'd spend awhile licking and sucking you, savoring the taste of you on my tongue and letting you dribble down my chin. Then I'd stand, and kiss you deeply on the mouth, because I want you to taste yourself... and just because I want to kiss you.

It's evening now, and I know my 24 hours are dwindling, so I would strip down once again, and tell you to do the same. After that, I'd use your body to let out any and all pent up lust and frustration. I may only have you for one day, but I'm damn well going to *claim* you during that time, so even after my time is up you'll still be thinking of me, and your body will remember me. But that's not how I'd want my day of owning you to end.

I want the last few hours of our evening to be us cuddled up on a big couch. Still totally naked, so I can play with your tits, or rub your pussy, or have you cockwarm me, but we're covered by a soft, cozy blanket. We might watch a movie and have some snacks. We might just lie there, soaking up each other's delicious body heat while I coo in your ear about how good you are, how pretty you are, how much I adore you. That's how I want you to end your day with me as your owner--feeling safe, loved, treasured.

(Hope you enjoy 😘)

I read this at work and got all wet and squirmy for the rest of the day 😵‍💫😵‍💫

driving me absolutely insane that you just know I need a while where I’m being taken care of and fucked right I don’t wanna think for a bit I just need this so bad 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫

my thighs keep squeezing together rereading the bit abt being woken up getting fingered, and the possibility or people seeing but you being possessive, and the part abt fucking me on the middle of the day somewhere semi public 🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠

[cheiyunn]

Raison d'être [Part 2]

Sekkun -> Sosui (in case it's confusing, because I completely forgot his name the first time whoops)

~Duck River office~

Sosui: I have led Wakakusa-san all the way to the front entrance. Shu-san on the other hand had jumped up and ran off somewhere though-

Ujigawa Gen: I don`t care, good work. 

Ujigawa Gen: Goodness, talking to a child is exhausting. You, pour me a cup of warm tea

Sosui: Understood. But sir, was it really the best choice to just tell them?

Ujigawa Gen: The thing about Duck River’s successor being Wakakusa-kun? Or is it the thing about how he and Shu are half brothers?

Sosui: Both. When the announcement of a successor is revealed, the fact that Wakakusa-san is your son will be obvious. Of course, plans to deal with the media are ready , however, the timing to reveal it to both of them was surprising, is what I thought.

Ujigawa Gen: Because Shu looked like he was about to make another out of pocket move. Before he becomes a thorn to Wakakusa-kun and FuRai, it was best to cut him off earlier.

Sosui: I see

Ujigawa Gen: As the face of Duck River, Fujin Rizing needs to be a successful band after all. For that, there being some minor sacrifices is a given

Sosui: Indeed, just as you said.

Ujigawa Gen: There is no use in keeping unusable pieces, time and money is finite you see. You simply just need to cut off ones you don’t need.

Sosui: …you’ve never changed, even from back then

Ujigawa Gen: Did you say something?

Sosui: Ah no, it's nothing. Your tea.

~Furai sharehouse~

Fuuta: Hey Ko-nii, has Aoi not come back yet? You think it's better if we go to pick him up?

Yamato: On the way there we can go to a convenience store, for some reason, I’m hungry.

Kohei: Yeah, but its not good if we miss each other. Someone should stay back

Misaki: Then what’d we do? Wanna decide this with rock paper scissors?

*Door opens*

Aoi: I’m back..

Fuuta: Ah, Aoi! Welcome back!

Yamato: Welcome back.  ..hm? You seem to be lacking spirit. Are you hungry as well?

Fuuta: What's wrong? I’ll grab Sakutaro here, wanna sing together? Then you’ll be back in spirits!

Aoi: No.. I’m fine, thanks though..

Kohei: Its pretty cold right? I’ll pour something warm for you so wait a bit

Misaki: Ah, I’ll help as well!

*Walks away*

Misaki: Yo.. Ko-nii.. What did the pres say to Aoi? Its pretty obvious that something happened, its written on his face

Kohei: Yeah, but I’m not sure its something we can force out of him. Even I don’t know, so maybe we should wait until Aoi talks

Misaki: But like.. Ain’t it something that affects us as well? Sooner or later we’ll find out anyways..

Kohei: Yeah, but if its bad news, seeing us all hurt by it, he’ll view it as the person who broke the news; his, fault

Misaki: You got a point..

Kohei: So, we should leave the time to talk about it to him

Misaki: Well, if you say so. But regardless of the news we’ll accept it, its hard seeing Aoi being the only one with a sad face

Kohei: Of course

*They return*

Kohei: Here you go, Aoi, cocoa. Its hot so drink with caution

Aoi: Thanks

Fuuta: Hey Aoi, what did the presi-

Kohei: Fuuta.

Fuuta: Oh. What’s up Ko-nii?

Kohei: Ah no, why don’t we leave that conversation for later?

Fuuta: …

Misaki: Yo Aoi. Something happened right?

Kohei: Oi Misaki..

Misaki: Sorry Ko-nii, I can’t handle it. If he doesn’t wanna say it so be it, but I don’t like it when Aoi is the only one suffering

Fuuta: Me too. Seeing Aoi lack energy is harsh, you think so too right Yamato?

Yamato: Yeah. You guys have gotten through everything together right? So I think that its better to talk to everyone and face the problem together.

Fuuta: Yup, and since Yamato is with us too

Kohei: Thats true.. Okay. Aoi, did something happen? Just say the things your comfortable with explaining, we’ll hear everything out.

Aoi: You guys.. Got it.. I’ll talk. The truth is-

(Aoi explains the situation)

Misaki: WHOA WHOA WAIT. This is a little too big to follow!

Yamato: To sum it up, your real father is Duck River’s president. Did you guys not know?

Kohei: We only knew about the parents in Nagasaki being Aoi’s adopted family of course

Fuuta: Is that so..?

Misaki: Aoi told us this when we were small right

Aoi: To me, my real parents are my mom and dad in Nagasaki

Kohei: But this time, that president is not only announcing your blood relation, he wants to name you his successor above all that.. This is a pretty unbelievable situation 

Misaki: Aoi becoming head of that big-ass company, thats big

Yamato: Thats right, but whats important here is us. Aoi, when you found out he was your real father, were you shocked? Or are you more troubled with the successor crisis?

Aoi: No..I didn’t really care about myself at that time. To me, what will happen with FuRai and you guys was what weighed on my mind the most.

Kohei: Aoi…

Aoi: FuRai being signed with Duck River and debuting was all because I was his successor, is what he said. I think the president wants to use FuRai and do whatever he wants.. At this rate, we’ll forever be that company’s lap dog! 

Aoi: But if I said that I didn’t want to become the successor, I’m sure our support will be cut off..

Misaki: But like! The most important thing here is your feelings. If you don’t want it then we don’t want it either. And if the opportunity disappears then so be it!

Aoi: But! You all saw how that company works! The reason FuRai is in this situation, is my fault… and plus, mom and dad.. Might become saddened by this.. I don’t want that!

Fuuta: Aoi.. don’t cry, I’ll start crying too…

Aoi: You guys… I’m sorry!

Kohei: No. You didn’t do anything wrong.

Fuuta: But, why does Aoi have to suffer through this? It would’ve been fine if we continued making music together as always, that we’d always be happy… — —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —

Shu: Before I realized it, I fell asleep huh. I don’t… even know what time it is now. I don’t have the energy to wake up, I don’t even have the energy to take a breath in and out, its painful. 

Shu: Why.. do I have to wake up.. It would be so much better if I just… slept like this forever… 

Shu: … then I wouldn’t.. have to think about anything anymore

– flashback-

Ujigawa Gen: Duck River’s successor has been decided to be Wakakusa Aoi-kun.  I have no intention of supporting from now on. By now, you are no longer someone with any form of relation to Duck River. Whether you want to continue with you band, or go back to Kyoto, do as you wish.  You are no longer of any use to me. I don’t want to see your face ever again.

- end of flashback - 

Shu: …why… did papa not look at me…? why… did papa throw me away…? 

Shu: Why… was it that since I was small, papa and mama were never by my side..? At school events, important days, even the day I caught a fever.. Why was I always alone..

Shu: …thats why I…made a song for papa… If its a song I put my heart into…surely it would reach him… if what I thought… but that, was all a lie…

Shu: I’m sure… the people who listen to my music are the same… 3 years in the future, 5 years in the future, even after this… there won’t be people who will always be there to look… at my music, at me.

Shu: If they get bored, it’ll all just be thrown away… aha… just like a toy they don’t need anymore.

Shu: The most ridiculous thing here is…me

Shu: In the end, I was just a worthless kid that they could’ve found anywhere…if that's the case then why… am I here…

Shu: why… am I alive…?

–flashback-

Young Shu: Mr.Felix! How do you read that french word..?

Felix: Ah.. this is “Raison d'être”

Young Shu: Raison de..? What does it mean?

Felix: Hmm.. Raison d'être.. In Japanese I suppose it could mean; A reason for living, possibly?

Young Shu: What does a reason for living.. mean?

Felix: Thats a quite philosophical term hence putting it simply is a bit difficult. Hmm.. lets see.. Its something that means that above realizing your reason for life, one must come to terms with the despair present within..

Young Shu: Thats too hard..!

Felix: Ahaha~ You’re right, even for grown ups, its a hard to define word after all..

-end of flashback-

Shu: One after another, useless memories keep popping up… my head… is filled with words..! If I don’t spit them out… my head feels like it might explode..!

Shu: Keh.. My notes… where did I put them… 

*Sound of writing*

Shu: Aha~ My hands are shaking… so much… that I can’t write properly… its suffocating… but, I need to write it out… everytime I write, I feel like I can breathe… just a little more…

Shu: I wonder… what happened to the notes I had burnt… what was written on them… was it words written in pain like the ones now… 

Shu: …or were they filled with lovely memories… I wanted to keep…

Shu: …I hope my words… will reach someone, someday…

~Epsi sharehouse~

*Knock on door*

Reiji: Shu, I brought food. Even if you eat only small portions, its better to have something- may I enter?

*Knock on door*

Reiji: Pardon me, I’m opening the door.

Reiji: He’s not here? …shit, since when?! …there's no note or anything too

*Dials phone*

*Shu’s phone rings from inside the room*

Reiji: He left his phone..? And wallet…?

Tadaomi: How’s Shu-kun’s condition? …oh? He’s not here… where did he go?

Reiji: Tadaomi, sorry but I’m going out for a bit!

Tadaomi: Reiji-kun-!

~Outside~

Reiji: I went to all the places I suspected he’d be but nothing.. Shit. Where is he? Since he left both his phone and wallet, there’s no way he’d be back in Kyoto. When I called the secretary, he said that he hasn’t come around either. If thats the case…where? There shouldn’t be a place that Shu can rely on, since he doesn’t have a single reliable friend after all..

Reiji: Am I… in a good mood? If I look at everything I’ve been through, I feel slightly better. ..but, the one I swore revenge on isn’t Shu; its his father. Him and my father… in the past he had made a wreck of my father’s Skyfox Records after all. If Shu falls here, that’ll be a big problem..! 

Reiji: And, he’s only a child. The only ones that protect him, protect his music, is only me. Then, there’s only one place to go.

~Duck River office~

*Knock on door*

Ujigawa Gen: Who is it?!

*Door opens*

Reiji: Karasuma Reiji.

Ujigawa Gen: Ah you. What is my secretary doing.. I don’t have any appointments with you.

Reiji: I have hasteful issue at hand. Shu has disappeared.

Ujigawa Gen: Disappeared? Hah. Isn’t that just his normal act, sooner or later he’ll come back anyways

Reiji: But he hasn’t brought both his phone nor wallet and simply left home..! If we use the people from the company we should be able to find him immediately, could you please assist in the search?

Ujigawa Gen: You’ve always been painfully swung around by Shu all the time right? How about you use this chance and grow a pair of wings or something?

Reiji: Wha-

Ujigawa Gen: Its simply his common lash out for attention, there’s no use in worrying. My god, what a bothersome kid..

Reiji: Isn’t it because you’re like this, that Shu grew up to become that sort of kid 

Ujigawa Gen: Oh, you say funny things.

Reiji: With no doubt he is selfish and self-centered. As time passes, he grows further from being an adult and instead pivots into caring less and less. And you say you really don’t know the reason why..?

Reiji: Shu wanted to be loved by you! He wanted to be loved, praised, acknowledged by the father he loved so much! All his actions were done so you would simply look at him!

Reiji: And yet despite all that, you haven’t done a single thing as a father, at the very least find him, and say something to him..! 

Reiji: Apologize to him!

Ujigawa Gen: Fuhaha!

Reiji: Apologize to Shu!

Ujigawa Gen: You seem to be very heated. IS that truly the attitude when asking something from others?

Reiji: ugh..!

*Reiji bows on the floor*

Reiji: Then as this..!

Ujigawa Gen: Aha! To grovel on the floor is another old-fashioned tactic. I have seen many grovel in front of me, but to have someone this young is a first..!

Reiji: I beg…of you…

~

Sosui: Oh my, Shu-san. Since when have you been here? To eavesdrop here is a bit..

Shu: Ah!

Sosui: To have such a servant that thinks so much for the master, are you sure you shouldn’t go in there to help him? To say, I’m here, to him.

Shu: *Runs away*

Sosui: Fufu~ This reckless behavior given by youth warms my heart, however, it seems that they need a bit of an adult’s helping hand after all…

~Street~

Fuuta: hah… it feels like today’s practice wore us out

Yamato: It can’t be helped.. Right now there isn’t anything else we can do..

Misaki: Talks between Duck River have become wishy-washy after all, well what we’ll do hasn’t been decided either so..

Fuuta: Ah c’mon… even walking feels like a drag and I’m kinda hungry how… Ko-nii, why don’t we grab a bite somewhere and then go back?

Misaki: Sounds good… lets eat somethin’ good and get our energy back

Yamato: As longa s there’s white rice I’m good with any shop

Kohei: I got it (2x), we should do that once in a while too. Aoi, what do you want?

Aoi: …I’m good… I’ll take a walk and get back home okay? Don’t eat something too expensive, okay? Then I’ll be off…

Misaki: Oi, Aoi..! Well he left…

*Aoi walks off*

Kohei: We should give him some alone time

Yamato: Thats sounds good

Kohei: If it gets too late, we should go pick him up together

Fuuta: Yeah..

~Park~

Aoi: Woah..! It suddenly started raining..! Maybe, I should be better getting back home.. Huh? That person sitting on the bench…?

Aoi: Uhm… Ujigawa-kun…?

Shu: You… what do you want?

Aoi: Erm.. its started raining, if you stay here you’ll catch a cold

Shu: You’re a sore, go somewhere else

Aoi: Even if you say that, I can’t just leave you here alone… and I, have been wanting to talk to you…

Shu: You’re noisy, shut up.

Aoi: No… I won’t shut up. Ever since that day, you face was burned into my mind. I, I know. Thats a face from a person that had fully given up.. But I didn’t know what to do…!

Aoi: It’s not like I was close to you, and you may not even want to see my face…! Even now, I don’t know for sure what to say, but..! Seeing you sitting all alone in the cold was something I couldn’t just let be-

Shu: SHUT UP SHUT UP, SHUT UP! I DON’T WANT TO HEAR YOUR VOICE!

Aoi: Wait! Ujigawa-kun..!

Shu: LET GO OF ME!

Aoi: Where are you going this late at night empty handed?! Do the other epsi members know? Since its started raining, I’m sure they’re worried too…!

Shu: WHAT’S WITH YOU?!! You appear all of a sudden and suddenly start acting all brotherly?!

Shu: ITS YOUR FAULT..!

Shu: ITS ALL YOUR FAULT THAT I-!

Shu: WHY IS IT YOU AND NOT ME..! When I had it all… from the beginning… if only you…weren’t here..! Just disappear now! DISAPPEAR FROM MY SIGHT-!

Aoi: No. If I disappear now, then you’ll be all alone again..!

Shu: YOU DON’T HAVE TO GIVE A DAMN ABOUT SOMEONE LIKE ME…!

Aoi: OF COURSE I CAN’T!

Shu: WHY!

Aoi: I DON'T FREAKING KNOW?! BUT MAYBE ITS BECAUSE YOU’RE HERE, CRYING..?!

Shu: GUH-!

Aoi: There was a time that I thought you were scary but, you’re really an amazing kid. To have that much talent, and to be able to make music enough to move adults..! Surely your music… can reach even the furthest of people..! 

Aoi: But from now on, regardless of whatever path you take, when you’re feeling alone and lonely, I’ll be here by your side until you’ll be able to say you’re okay.

Shu: …why… are you crying…?

Aoi: …because Ujigawa-kun… Shu-kun, you’re crying as well

Shu: …eh..?

Aoi: I’m sorry…I’m not able to comfort you when you cry..

Shu: …I’m…not crying in front of you…

Shu: … ah, what… is this…

Aoi: …I have…times that I cry when I really don’t want to…

Aoi: …but at times like that… isn’t it better to cry it all out until no more tears fall..?

— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —

Reiji: Shu!

Shu: …Reiji…

Reiji: You were in a place like this..? Your clothes are soaking wet as well. Goodness. It’ll be quite a problem if you don’t specify your destination beforehand. Come, we’re going home, are you okay?

Shu: …I’m okay… I got it, I’m going.

Reiji: Wakakusa-san, thank you. We will repay this someday.

Aoi: Ah, okay..

*They walk away*

Fuuta: Ah! I found Aoi! You guys, this way!

Misaki: Ah, seriously! Aoi..! You good?

Aoi: You guys…

Kohei: We were so worried. You didn’t come back so we went out to search for you. You’re chilled… here, have my jacket

Yamato: Its good that you’re safe. Fuuta and Misaki were making a big scene about what would happen if you got kidnapped or something. So we all ran out in a panic.

Misaki: I didn’t say that.!

Fuuta: Hm? Aoi, did you cry again?

Aoi: …I didn’t cry!

Misaki: You sure? If you’ve putin’ on a show we won’t believe it

Aoi: Nope, I’m really fine. Thanks for picking me up together

Kohei: Of course we would, c’mon lets go back. We got your portion to-go

Fuuta: It definitely feels more safe when we’re all together

Yamato: Even if we’re missing one, it feels really off

Misaki: Yeah! We’re the best like this, no takeaways!

Fuuta: Hey (2x) Maybe tomorrow we should really go to Duck River..? Its best for this stuff to get dealt with earlier

Misaki: Ooh… we sneakin’ in? I’m all in

Yamato: Sounds fun

Kohei: Come on you guys…

Fuuta: Even just now you were complaining nonstop about the company too!

Aoi: Ahaha… is that so?

Yamato: Yeah, if anything happened to you, he would've blown fists away into the company(?)*. He’s always been such a calm person though…

Misaki: Oho? I know right?

Fuuta: Then lets immediately start making a plan when we get back. We, won’t lose to anyone!

~Epsi sharehouse~

Kohei: Apologies for being late..!

Fuuta: Pardon the intrusion, coming in~!

Yamato: Comin’ in…

Misaki: Uweee~!

Aoi: Thank you for the hard work~

Kanata: You’re late- Did you get lost on the way or something? This is why country bumpkins are a hassle~

Misaki: aH? Not like y’all are from Tokyo either?

Fuuta: Yamato is from Tokyo though! Within us, he’s the most City Boy! 

Kohei: and with that Yamato, he is also the reason we came late… even though its his hometown..

Haruka: Any area thats outside of Tokyo is already considered the outer countryside though..

Tadaomi: Its nice to see everyone in FuRai in good spirits though. Since I heard your plans for debuting fell through, we were worried that you’d be all down in the dumps or something…

Kanata: Not even debuting, you guys snuck into Duck River and got fired right~? Aha~ Wow, lame~!

Yamato: No, rather than being fired, there was a difference in opinion so our contract got annulled. So we said “That's our line” to them.

Haruka: Ahaha…that's funny

Aoi: Well, that just means we’re back at the startline! We’ll just have to start from one again, together.

Shu: Okay~ with the proud babysitter at tow~

Reiji: Shu, since everyone is here, we should start soon

Shu: Yeah~ Okay everyone listen up~ From now, I’m going to be making a very~ big announcement 

Yamato: Is it… another scheme you’re planning?

Shu: No worries~ Today is just good news after all~

Shu: First, the label that I made; SkyFox Records is going to start full scale soon.

Kohei: The label you made..? But you’re only still in middle school right? How in the world is a child going to represent a company?

Shu: Aha~ Just like what you said, a child can’t represent a company~ being said is something I’ve already anticipated. So the representative of the company is someone we all are familiar with instead

Tadaomi: Someone we all know..?

Shu: Sorry for the wait, you can enter now~

Sosui: Hey everyone, its been a while… or not

Fuuta: Huh? You’re Duck River’s secretary… why are you here?

Sosui: Aha~ thats |previous| secretary to you

Aoi: Previous..? So that means?

Sosui: I have already cut ties with that company. Well then, let me do a re-introduction; my name is Sosui Sanetomo. From now on, I will be acting as SkyFox Records’ representative.

Kanata: Eh~ Even if you say previous, its still someone from that company in an important position like this~

Misaki: Well it ain’t a problem with us, as long as we ain’t dragged into messy problems like before yeah?

Shu: Oh don’t worry~ this old man, is on our side after all

Sosui: Eh~? To you all I’m already an old man..? Oh well, putting that aside, SkyFox intends to place the people here; Fujin Rizing and Epsilon Phi, under an artist contract.

Aoi: EH?!

Fuuta: Aoi? What does that mean?

Haruka: An artist contract is the same one you guys were under with Duck River. It means that both you and us are debuting under SkyFox. Am I right?

Shu: Thats right~

Kanata: Hm~ I’m still a little iffy about being on the same level as them but since we’re able to debut I guess its fine?

Tadaomi: Yup, its really good news..!

Kohei: This is something we didn’t ever ask for…so why?

Sosui: I’m sure that during LRFes, you all already faced up against other bands, but that was only on an amateur level. From now on, It’ll be a head-on fight as pros.

Fuuta: Head-on…as pros

Sosui: Yup, from now on, only bigger challenges will open. In this world of rivalry between bands, the bands SkyFox bets on winning are Epsilon Phi and Fujin Rizing.

Yamato: I see, and we don’t want to go back to being a company’s lap dog

Fuuta: And I only want to be with everyone. From now and forever, with the FuRai that I love and making the Skaa music that I love

Sosui: Of course, both you and Epsilon Phi are to continue making the music you each want. SkyFox is a label for that reason after all

Misaki: Ko-nii.. How we feelin’

Kohei: I have a few question but for now, I got it. You guys, we’ll talk about it later

Aoi: Yeah, lets discuss it together

Kohei: Thank you very much. Let us have a more thorough discussion afterward

Sosui: Oh course, anytime

Shu: Well, of course you could fail as well. We’ll think about that if it happens. Lets see how far we can go

Sosui: I have no intention to fail though~ Well for everyone here from now on, what you want to do in the future, why you chose the path of music, is something I want you all to ponder over seriously. I have high expectations

Shu: Okay thanks~ So for everyone here, you’ll start being more busy~ There won’t be any breaks until the world knows SkyFox is the best~

Misaki: Seriously?! Is this seriously gonna become a “black company”?!

Fuuta: Eh?! A dark company means-!

Aoi: I’ll explain it all later!

Shu: Ah Reiji, I have something to ask of you later

Reiji: Understood

— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —

Shu: (In the past, the SkyFox Record that Reiji’s father made, and my father destroyed. Its the same name, but not the same. The one here, the one who made this label, is me.)

Shu: (The SkyFox I made, today has let out it’s first cry. The past and Duck River, I could care less about. The one thing in my eyes are the future from where I stand.)

— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —— —

~Epsi sharehouse~

Shu: Raison d'être… you say

*Door knock*

Reiji: Shu. The item you ordered has arrived

Shu: Ah, wait a moment. Okay (2x)

*Door opens*

Reiji: The haircutting scissors you ordered.

Shu: Thanks~ I wanted to freshen up a bit~

Reiji: You’re going to cut your hair yourself? I think you can book an appointment at a hairdresser somewhere

Shu: Nope~ I want it now. Plus, the person who’s cutting it isn’t me, its you.

Reiji: Me?

Shu: Yeah. I’ll sit here all quiet. I’ll warn you in advance though, if you give me a weird haircut, I’ll turn you into a monk (haircut)

Reiji: I understand

*Hair cutting noises*

Shu: There. You can cut it shorter

Reiji: Okay

–

Shu: (Why does Reiji, listen to my words… why is he still by my side? Reiji had always been by my side solely to swear revenge on my papa…)

Reiji: This time, look down… hm? Shu? Are you lost in thought?

Shu: Hm? No, its nothing

Reiji: If you keep spacing out you might get injured

Shu: I know.

Shu: (Shouldn’t it be fine for the me that is hated to get injured..? That time, Reiji-)

Flashback Reiji: (Shu wanted to be loved by you! He wanted to be loved, praised, acknowledged by the father he loved so much! All his actions were done so you would simply look at him! And yet despite all that, you haven’t done a single thing as a father, at the very least find him, and say something to him..! Apologize to him! Apologize to Shu!)

Shu: (To even grovel to him… but, then I’d…)

–

Reiji: Shu, today you’re quite out of it. ..I’ve finished. I am no hairstylist so this is to the extent of my ability. Later on, do schedule an appointment to get it cleaned up.

Shu: Hmph, its fine like this~ Now its your turn to sit down here~

Reiji: Me too?!

Shu: Well because~ You’re a person to be used by me right~? If thats the case, you need to be cooler. You’ve always had this hairstyle after all. Okay~ Take a seat~

Reiji: At the very least spare me from the monk hairstyle

Shu: Ahaha~ Well then~ What to do~

===

*- I couldn’t quite catch what Yamato said, any help will be appreciated.

[dialovers-translations]

Diabolik Lovers LOST EDEN ー Azusa Maniac [08]

ー The scene starts with a black screen

Kino: Come on, get in already.

Azusa: O-Okay...

*Rustle rustle*

ー The scene shifts to the inside of the car

Azusa: ( I wonder what exactly Kino-san has in store for me...? )

( Since we got inside a car, does that mean this job takes place somewhere far-away...? )

( For one...I can’t imagine there’s any task I could possibly pull off... )

...Hey, Kino-san?

Kino: Ah, wait. I’d rather not have you ask me any questions about what’s to come.

Azusa: What do you mean...?

Kino: I was only asked to bring you here, that’s all. 

So you should ask him instead. There, the person in the passenger’s seat.

Azusa: Oh...

( ...A man? That’s a Priest’s attire, isn’t it...? )

Excuse me...Who are you...?

???: I did my research on you, Mukami Azusa.

The left arm you lost...

I heard you amputated it to save yourself from the injury you sustained after being shot by one of our guns?

Azusa: ( Our guns...? So this guy is a Vampire Hunter!? )

...

Male Clergyman A: Hmph...Whatever.

I have come here to make you a splendid offer. ...Do you perhaps seek power?

Azusa: ...!

Male Clergyman A: You are a good person at heart, are you not? I believe that someone like you could bring peace to the Demon World in no time.

Azusa: ...

Male Clergyman A: However, you need power to accomplish that. It’s something you’re uncapable of in your current situation.

That’s why we would like to make an offer. If it was one of us who caused you to lose your left arm. 

Then we would very much like to make it up to you by supplying you with the power you need...You see.

Azusa: Eh...?

Male Clergyman A: However, you must use your powers for our cause. 

Azusa: In other words...You’re asking me to betray my own kind...?

I can’t do that. I’m...a Vampire after all.

Male Clergyman A: You won’t betray them. ...You have always been a former human, no?

Azusa: How do you know that...?

Male Clergyman A: I found out while conducting my research. That you were born human.

Of course, I had my suspicions at first, but now that I’ve gotten a chance to meet you in person, I feel like it’s the truth. 

That you indeed are...a person with human emotions just like us.

Azusa: ...Oh...

Male Clergyman A: That’s exactly why I’m making you this offer. Why not try looing at it from a human’s perspective? 

Azusa: Think about it...?

Male Clergyman A: Exactly. Demons suppress humans and have now started to take control of their world.

Behind all big wars and conflicts in the human world, there are almost always Demons pulling the strings behind the scenes. 

To us humans, Demons bring nothing but problems. Do you wish to defend them regardless?

Azusa: Well...

( I doubt this guy is lying... )

( That’s exactly why...I’m at a loss. )

( I wonder if I truly want to protect Demons deep down...? )

( If they were to attack Eve and the others, then... )

( What...would I do? )

...

Male Clergyman A: You don’t have to make a decision right here, right now. I’ll wait for your answer. Please tell Kino-kun whenever you’ve found your answer.

ー They get out of the car as the scene shifts to the business district

Azusa: ...

...Hey, Kino-kun. Can I ask something...?

Kino: Hm, yes?

Azusa: Since you’re working together with those people...Are you on the humans’ side as well despite being a Demon yourself?

Kino: Ahaha, no, I’m not. I honestly don’t care about what happens to humans.

I’m only working with them right now because what they’re trying to do also helps me get rid of all Demons which are in my way.

We’re basically feigning ignorance and letting ourselves get used, all for our own personal gain.

Azusa: ...I see.

( Kino-san sure is something else. I can’t believe he can flip the mental switch so easily. )

Kino: Well, they said they’ll wait for your answer, so why don’t you put some thought into it?

Azusa: ...Yeah...

( I wonder...If I can feel the same way he does...? )

( And not care about what happens to others, as long as it benefits Eve and the others in the end... )

( ... )

ー A flashback ensues

Azusa: ...If only I was strong...

Yui: Eh...?

Azusa: ...If only I was strong, I could save everyone...

At this rate...I feel like I’ll let all of you suffer the same fate as the Vibora Clan...

That’s why I just can’t...simply sit here and wait for that to happen as I twiddle my thumbs...

ー The flashback ends

Azusa: ( I want to...protect Eve and the others... )

( I want to grow stronger...for that sake as well... )

( If the power to be able to protect them...comes at a price...then I’ll... )

ー The scene shifts to the dungeon at Kino’s manor

Yui: ...

( He’s still not back...I know Ruki-kun said not to worry, but will everything be alright? )

Selection

→ Try to distract oneself

Yui: ( No point in fretting over it forever. I’ll try to take my mind off it. )

Phew...Haah...

...

( I guess taking deep breaths won’t help much... )

→ Think about Azusa-kun (❦)

Yui: ( I can’t believe it’s this painful to be separated from Azusa-kun... )

( I can’t wait to see him. )

ー She hears footsteps in the distance

Yui: ( ...!? These footsteps... )

Yuuri: Well then, we’ve arrived. 

Azusa: Thank you.

Yui: ーー Azusa-kun!

ー Azusa enters the cell

*Clunk* 

Yuuri: Please do not consider trying to break out of this prison.

Azusa: ...Yes, I know.

ー Yuuri leaves

Azusa: Eve, you guys...Sorry for making you worried...

Yui: Azusa-kun...

Kou: For real! I was worried sick!

Yuma: They didn’t do anythin’ to ya, right? You’re fine, right?

Azusa: ...Nothing happened. I only had to listen to whatever Kino-san had to say as a way for him to kill some time...

Yui: I see...I’m so happy you’ve returned to us safe and sound.

Azusa: Yes...

Ruki: ...

Monologue

Now back inside the prison cell,

Azusa-kun seemed a little more cheerful than before. 

Because after spending the past few days looking depressed,

he would finally smile again every now and then. 

It feels like I’m blinded by this peaceful atmosphere (和やかな空気) after not experiencing it for so long. 

While spending time like this,

I nearly forgot the fact that we’ve been locked up inside a prison. 

However, deep inside my heart,

I felt somewhat suspicious of Azusa-kun’s behavior. 

Because it the look in his eyes,

led me to assume he had made his resolve (決意) in some wayーー ... 

ーー TO BE CONTINUED ーー

[mostspecialgirl]

terrible little first ashenworks doodle

rambling no one will read below

thought id nail down the first run designs of the ashenworks staff since they’re only five characters and i needed to scratch the itch of having them formed. i tried to make a little chart explaining their place in the relicverse for twitter but it ended up like this

so like yeah no thats not helpful at all really

so instead im just gonna talk about them here on tumblr where i can write infinitely.

across the sea of stars, almost every weapon you can find, regardless of if you’re in association or hundred nights space, is branded somewhere with the label of “ASHENWORKS”. regardless of any perceived cultural design, make and model, style of weapon, level of wear, perceived level of technology available to make it, somehow, almost as if it has transcended time, the weapons used by most all in sea of stars is branded with their name. storefronts, ruins, pawn shops, high end stores, black markets, stripped from the cold hands of an enemy or inherited tearfully from those of a fallen ally, they all seem to mysteriously trace back to this “ASHENWORKS”.

the origin traces back to one of the earliest planeswalker myths. from back before the prevalence of the association had its powerhouses, and not long before the creation of the hundred nights guild, the death of Yima Thekhrós Berezaiti at the hands of Enstorm Savant, the King Of Rifts, which resulted in the scattering of his million ashen remains across the sea of stars.

privy to none but his own minds, a single ash caught fire within the scattering. an insignificant piece of his being, one who by all accounts was at fault for his death, the failure of his ashen pieces. the materia of his “Cunning”. the shard gaining life not through borrowed power, but through the will of Natura itself, Shen Diao Berezaiti was born as Straychild, upon what is now OBSCURANT EARTH. bearing with him not only the ability to planeswalk as the other shards, but with a mind that sought to truly capture the places his past self had only looked to travel. and he would be willing to play any role necessary to once again stoke the fires of his renewed youth.

but who cares about that???? basically, ashenworks is the sea of stars’s most prevalent weapons manufacturer, with their true identity buried under puppet companies, complicated trade routes, local merchants signed to benefactors of benefactors, and all manner of unnecessary obfuscation. created by Shén Diāo Berezaiti for the simple purpose of making a fuck ton of money at almost zero cost.

how has the “King Of Grifts”, the “Cunning of Yima” managed to pull of such a feat?! By exploiting the working class, of course!!!!

now with names

Shén Diāo Berezaiti - little weasel of a man, incredibly immature and juvenile despite his wit and cunning. could easily become an active threat to both hundred nights and the association if he were born stupid enough to want to be involved.

Rosewater Costeau - second son of the Costeau Noble Family and Shén’s infinitely capable partner in crime. has a knack for psychology and managing people. head obscured by a Rift bound to him by his family due to his “unsightly appearance”. hit it off with shén during one of the annual Savant Ball’s.

Zhofskyv Fanyne - a relic automaton indifferent to his own existence, born from the relic “mattercurrent”, capable of replicating countless machine processes, formerly uncontrollably. serves as ashenwork’s one-man manufacturing plant through the use of several other relics. formerly employed as a butler for the costeau family’s winter manor, after being gifted to them by Enstorm Savant.

Miron - the lindwurm queen and straychild born of the relic “Golden River”, seemingly bottomless physical strength, she’s naturally attuned to relics, being able to “communicate” with them. absolute brainless meathead. has a good heart. she’s always making that face.

Cassius Oganglyph - dwarven artist and designer who helps bridge shén’s ideas into reality. a student of kailash discipline who hopes ashenworks is the vital stepping stone for his art to reach someone who understands it.

i’m tired and i’m going to nap now maybe i will finish writing this post with more info later. nobody reads these anyway