#so it means a lot to me to know that somebody else digs it!! >w<

[lunarforrest]

STOOOOP NO WAY 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 wow thank you SO much for the follow back, your art is so fucking cute dude 😭😭😭😭 thank you sm omg wow 😭😭😭 ok ily byyeeee 💖💖💖💖✨️✨️✨️

hehehe, when folks least expect it I appear like a cryptid in their notes!!>:3c i should really be the one thanking you for your lovely comments!! they honestly made my morning and i've been buzzing about em all day since! thank you so much!! :D

[citrinesparkles]

doctor todd.

jason todd x gender neutral vigilante!reader. 1,875 words. notes: requested by @jason-redhood as part of my hundred followers celebration! this got a lot longer than i intended, oopsies. thanks for requesting- hope you enjoy! warnings: tending wounds, mentions of food.

"y'know, lurking outside somebody's window is a good way to get yourself shot," jason called over his shoulder.

"i'll keep that in mind," you said, voice strained enough to shoot dread into his veins and draw his attention completely away from his work.

he set the gun he had been cleaning on the table and twisted around to find you gingerly sliding through the open window.

"hey," you mumbled, giving him a weak wave after your boots hit the floor. "sorry for not calling, i just..."

you were backlit, the glow of the city making it impossible to see your features from the dining area- but your posture alone was enough to have him shoving his chair back and crossing his apartment.

"how bad?" he asked, stopping a few steps back, now able to make out the tears in your suit and the bruises around your mask.

"pretty sure i sprained my wrist, and there's a poorly-bandaged gash on my leg, but otherwise i'm peachy."

"how bad's the leg?"

"i'm... not sure. bad enough that i think i need your help." you patted the windowsill with a gloved hand. "obviously."

he nodded and slid to your good side, gently resting a hand on your shoulder. "okay. c'mon, my stuff's in the bathroom."

-

"here." he handed you a pair of shorts and a large tank top. "change into this so i can get to the wounds, okay? i'll be right out here if you need anything."

-

"you're good!" you called.

he nudged the bathroom door back open and scooped your uniform up from the floor, carefully putting it in a canvas bag and tying the handles together before setting it in the tub to deal with later. "alright," he sighed, turning back to face you.

his clothes looked way too right on you, he realized, a wave of emotion he would vehemently deny surging through his chest and pushing heat to his neck and cheeks.

"alright?"

"okay. alright. uh-" he jerked a thumb at the counter- "up here, i guess, so i can see your leg."

you propped one foot on the toilet lid and braced your good hand against his shoulder, his hands instinctively coming up to hover around your waist as you pushed yourself up and settled next to the sink.

the grateful smile you gave him was enough to tug his lips into a smile of his own.

"you're up, doctor todd," you teased.

he stepped forward with a halfhearted eyeroll, fingers brushing the cloth tied hastily around your leg. "can i take this off?"

"go ahead."

he tugged gently at the knot, wincing when you inhaled sharply. "sorry."

the scrap fell away, revealing dried blood and an open wound on the outside of your thigh.

"yeesh, that is nasty," he said.

you scoffed lightly. "gee, thanks."

"hey, if you wanted a nice doctor, you probably should have gone somewhere else." he shifted to the side, grabbing a clean cloth and bottle of alcohol. "fair warning, you're really not gonna like me here in a minute."

your quick "i seriously doubt that." was greeted with a grin that felt a little too fond for his liking.

he told himself it was for your benefit.

...yeah, that sounded good.

he could live with that.

-

he made quick work of cleaning the gash, doing his best to distract you by making stupid small talk about the horrible movie he'd sat through that morning because the tv remote had been out of reach and the mediocre new coffee shop with dry blueberry muffins.

"was the coffee okay, at least?"

"okay, yeah, but not 'five-dollars-fifty' okay. if i hadn't been falling asleep in line i probably would have left when i saw the price."

"there's a nice one up by my place, they make the best blueberry muffins ever."

he hummed. "i'll keep that in mind, next time i'm over that way." he leaned back, studying your cut. "i think stitches would probably be smart."

you groaned. "of course they would."

"i'm okay to do them- i do them on myself- but if you want i can give you a lift to a hospital or something."

"no. if you can, i want you to do them. i trust you."

he sat with that for a minute, searching your face for any hesitation. when he found none, he nodded. "okay."

-

as you both expected, it sucked.

to make things worse, he was rapidly running out of mindless things to talk about.

how many times could two people really argue about pizza toppings before it got old?

-

"alright, done."

"holy shit, finally." you slumped back, leaning on your good hand for a moment before your head snapped back up. "no, not like- i meant thank you, you did great, i'm not being an ingrate-"

"i know, relax." he nudged your knee with a goofy smile. "here, gimme your wrist."

you pouted (which, yes, that was also adorable, much to his dismay), carefully stretching your bad arm out.

he took your hand gently, scooping it up in one of his and bracing your forearm up with his other. "it's actually not too bad, considering you hit hard enough to tear your glove. i'm gonna clean the scrapes here up, though, okay?"

"do i really get a choice?"

"it's your body, so, yeah."

you sighed dramatically. "fine, if you insist. go ahead, clean my wounds for me."

-

he was quiet this time, focusing intently on removing bits of dirt and stuff from your raw palm with a set of tweezers.

trying to ignore the way your eyes seemed to linger on him now that he was looking down.

he set the tweezers aside, glancing up at you to find you smiling at him thoughtfully, and dropped his gaze just as quickly as he had lifted it. "what, you enjoying making me do all the work?"

"you could say that, yeah."

he scoffed. "well, you're going to enjoy it a lot less in a second. time for the alcohol again."

"ugh."

-

he managed to dig up an old wrist brace in the back of his sock drawer. a little big for you, but it would work for now, he figured.

"may i?"

you nodded and held your arm back out for him to loop the brace over your thumb and tuck the velcro strap under and around, pulling it snug against your skin before sticking it to itself.

-

"last one, tough stuff." he pointed at your cheek, where a small patch of dried blood stained your skin. "ready?'

you nodded tiredly. "let's just get this over with. this counter isn't as comfortable as it looks."

he chuckled, dampening the softest cloth he had and wringing it out. "sorry, i didn't think i needed to get an apartment with counter cushions." he raised his left hand up, hovering an inch or so below your chin. "uh, can i..?"

your eyes widened, glancing at his hand. "oh, uh, sure. yeah."

he moved slowly, raising it to cup your chin softly with his middle and forefinger on one side and thumb on the other. "this okay?"

"mhm." your eyes slid shut and he could almost believe that you sank into his touch.

if it wasn't absolutely insane, anyway. his touch wasn't exactly the kind people sank into- much less people like you. people that good, that caring, that stunning? yeah, no.

he tilted your head to the side slightly, rubbing gentle circles across your cheekbone with the cloth and watching as the blood faded.

"so, who did this?" he asked softly, casually.

apparently not casually enough, though, because you snorted at him. "why, you think you need to go avenge me? defend my honor or something?"

"no! i'm just curious. just... making conversation."

your eyes opened, amusement dancing in them and threatening to hypnotize him. "good. i shouldn't have to tell you who won that fight, jay."

"well, i mean, you are missing a chunk of your thigh."

"aw, is the big bad vigilante worried about lil old me?"

he squeezed your face gently, pushing your cheeks up and forward into a goofy fish face. "it's rude to tease the guy tending to your wounds, babe."

he definitely didn't imagine your breath hitching. "babe, huh?" you asked playfully.

"shut up," he grumbled. "don't make me regret helping."

-

"alright, looks like that's the last scrape. you're all cleaned up."

"thanks, jason." you smiled up at him, soft and warm and genuine. "i really appreciate this."

"yeah, yeah." he squeezed your jaw again. "try not to make it a habit."

"mhm." a moment passed quietly before you spoke quietly. "so, you gonna do something here, or can i have my face back?"

he froze.

your mouth- which he was really trying not to look at- shifted into a confident smirk, a challenge written clearly in the angle of your lips.

your eyes, bright under the harsh lighting, told a different story. one of vulnerability, and want, and something close to fear.

"do you want me to?" his voice was hoarser than he'd intended, and he swore you could hear his heartbeat echoing in it.

your gaze dipped to his lips. "would it make everything super weird?"

"you just came crawling through my window in the middle of the night in a mask and kevlar. i think things are already weird."

he felt your hum under his fingers. "then why not?"

"do you really want me to answer that?"

"jason, will you please just kiss me already?"

"well, you did say please." he leaned in slowly, giving you every opportunity to slip away or yell 'sike!'

all you did was bring your good hand up to his collar and pull him towards you.

your lips were soft and gentle, and the way they pulled upwards slightly when his hand slid from your jaw to cup your cheek was something he'd be thinking about for weeks.

when he eventually pulled back, it took him a moment to open his eyes. he was half convinced that if he did, it would be to his bedroom ceiling, the past half an hour all a dream.

instead, he found your fond gaze.

"finally."

he let out a huff of laughter, thumb running over your cheek. "you should stay here tonight."

"w-"

"not like that," he clarified quickly. "you have stitches, you shouldn't go leaping across rooftops tonight. i can take the couch."

"hm." you smoothed out his shirt collar, the barely-there brush of your fingers against his shoulder almost tugging a whine out of him. "or i can take the couch, and then you can take me home in the morning and let me treat you to an actual blueberry muffin."

"are you asking me out?" it was a teasing comment, paired with a tiny smirk meant to fluster you.

but it was also a reality check.

you seemed to catch the second meaning. "yeah, i am. would you, please, let me take you out on a date?"

"i'll have to check my calenda-"

"you're so full of it."

"yeah, probably."

"is that a yes?"

he laughed, bringing his other hand up to squeeze your knee. "yeah, i can let you take me on a date. i could use a good muffin."

[athyathye]

Twisted

CHAPTER 5

Author's note 📝: sorry I'm late! I had to do a lot of stuff today that I couldn’t edit lol, this chap is backstory~ very vague if I do say so myself

Warnings ⚠️: Lots of profanities, Child abuse, Aika pov and more.

⏮Previous///Next⏭

*Slap!*

“How could you let something as small as that fail. You truly are nothing but an embarrassment to me! Get out of my sight!” My mother screamed at me, as if I hadn’t already been scolded by that tyrant of a father.

I remember a day like this back then.

Maybe a few days before I had officially moved in and became a L/n. A day I could vividly remember, a day I thought my whole life had changed.

I remember the first face I had seen as I walked through the gates, a face so striking that I probably wouldn’t forget even after a century. It was lodged in my memory, the way that girl seemed to look at me with a smile at first. A smile so friendly that it made me unbelievably happy.

That was, until my new ‘father’ left. She looked at me with a frown, her eyes sharp and narrow as she turned to leave as well.

I tried to reach out to her, wanting to be friends, wanting so desperately to have someone by my side.

My mistake was I had been too hasty. My hand that reached out to her was the reason, my finger that had unfortunately wedged in between was the reason why her bracelet broke.

She turned to look at me in what I thought was a surprise, raising her hand to me. Naively, I thought it was a sign that she was willing to be my friend. It didn’t seem to occur to 5 year old me that it was a sign of an act that was repulsive.

I was so happy, that was before the harsh handprint was left on my face. Everybody around us stood silent, everybody else comforting her instead of me who was hurt.

Why...why was it like that. Why? I didn’t do anything wrong. Was it the bracelet? Surely she didn’t have to be so jarring about it, I was a child as young as her, what could I have done.

My mother came to me that day, a few hours later when I had already received scolding after scolding from the people around the house. I bet I looked pathetic back then, tears and snot running down my face as I wailed for her to come and take me.

Slap!

“Why would you do that!? Do you know how embarrassing it is to have your daughter get scolded by someone else?!”

“I didn’t mean to!” I really didn't. Wasn't this too harsh of a treatment for a child?

“I had to hear that brat crying all day too! All of the attention that was directed at us was negative because of you!” She screamed at me, at the young child who was trembling from fear and from tiredness of crying all day.

“If it weren’t for you in the first place, I wouldn’t have had to stoop so low in being somebody’s mistress.”

I stared at the floor, having no strength to even look at the woman I dare to call my mother, If I did I don’t know what I'd do.

“Get out of my sight.”

I’ve been waiting for that one. I clenched my fist, my nails digging into the skin of my palm, I felt a wet substance run through them, but I didn’t care. Digging it further as I tried to control myself from throwing a temper tantrum.

Why was it that everyday of my life I get compared to that woman. She’s not better than me. I tried so hard getting both of their attention but why does she do it naturally? What? What does she have that I don’t!?

...

“Know your place. Don’t do unnecessary things if you value your life.” His tone was cold, he held the woman I so desperately hated yet also wanted to be in his arms. The look of her vulnerable state made me want to drive a knife down her throat.

He glared at me as if I was the scum beneath his shoes, as if I was someone who had no worth. The exact opposite of how he talked to me back then, it had only been a week as well. How could he change his feelings so easily?

It was that woman. Tch! That minx! That lowly b*tch! She seduced him! It must’ve hurt her pride having somebody fret over me instead of her.

Has he forgotten about me already? Am I that replaceable?

“What’s a pretty flower like you doing outside? Aren’t you supposed to be with your family inside?”

He spoke to me, the first person to do so in events like these. He held his hand out, gracefully but maybe it was just in my memories.

"Ah...you're hurt." He glanced at my lightly scratched arm.

"...I don't really know how to do medical stuff...but here's a band aid"

I remember the wind blowing around us that day, making the small strands of his hair blow over his face, I remember how the harsh sunlight hit him, but his figure took it, making a soft orange hue shine over him. What a soft gaze he had.

“Haitani Ran at your service”

He smiled at me. It might be straightforward, and even weird but it was at that moment that I thought I could finally have someone of my own.

Someone who didn’t treat me like the lesser person. Someone who knew I existed, That I wasn’t just someone’s shadow. Waiting for the sun to hit her in order for me to get noticed.

“I know you’re there. Come out.”

Among the shadows, the blue-silvery hair caught my attention. No doubt he was waiting for me. After all, I harmed his precious master, that loyal fool.

“Have you come to tell me I was an idiot as well? Hurt me? Go ahead. I don’t care. Just don’t be surprised if I fight back.”  I glanced at his stance, wondering what his plan was before he came out of his hiding place.

There were things in the night that would eat you, things not visible by day because they were more comfortable in the night, in other words nocturnal.

The dark was always prettier around us. For us, darkness was our broken light. In our space, light did not exist in darkness for the sole reason that we didn’t need it. Yet this fool that stands before me acts as if he had already experienced light.

Yet, those things are not evil in a moral sense, they were creatures trying to survive as per their natural instincts. Rarely anyone calls lions, bears, or sharks evil because we’ve come to understand their natural places in the natural world.

“Why’d you do that?” I heard him ask.

"Why’d you do that?" I asked.

“Why should I tell you? Go wait outside of your master’s room instead, dog. You won’t be getting any answers from me.” She replied, dragging her thin finger to the way of y/n’s bedroom.

She left without a word, and I watched her back. Was it always that small? I could’ve sworn her back looked more menacing than this. I know because it’s what I looked at back then.

“Is it scary? If it’s too scary for you then just look at your sister's back.” She smiled back at me, but I could see the small hand holding the umbrella that was used to swat the vicious dog that was barking loudly at us.

We had to go home in a hurry that day, no I had to carry her back. Whimpering against my back I could tell she was trying so hard not to wail, the blood from her wound dripping across my shoulder which urged me to run faster.

She was the only person who protected me, besides another boy.

“Why are you so quiet? You’re gonna have to grow and protect us, you know.”

A haughty voice asked me one day.

I looked up at the taller girl. A person who was as dirty as me couldn’t compare.

She looked as if she was made for royalty, eyes shining brightly, complexion as clear as the water from the ocean I’ve always dreamt about..

“Y/n! You don’t ask a person that! It’s rude” I remember the boy say, but why was it that I couldn’t even remember his face now.

“Hi! We’re the children of the owner! You’re gonna have to protect us, I heard. But a feeble boy like you wouldn’t even be able to flip a page from our books.” “Isn’t that more rude-”

...

‘Ah...stop talking about effort and effort and more effort. It makes me cringe. ‘Try harder’ why should I have to. Can’t I live a normal life like them?’ The thoughts I used to have as a child whenever I see the 3 of them playing while I was trained by another person.

I remember the words of the woman telling me I had to pay for my meals. I couldn’t just leech off of them. She repeated those words so earnestly it felt like a mantra to me. So I trained and trained until I could finally be deemed worthy, worthy enough to be with the others.

Since I was a child picked up from somewhere, I had to put in twice more effort than them. I’ve heard it all, the way the others

Both of the kids I met  were stuck-up, I despised them for having the life I wished I had. It seems like Aika was the only person I could relate to. Though I was brought here from a person’s dirty request even still, they treated me like an equal.

“Ha? It’s a lollipop. Haven’t you seen one before?”

“Why are you just standing there like an idiot? Come and eat with us!”

Never was there a day I felt left out with them, even though I was quiet as can be.

All 4 of us grew up in a tight knit. But it was obvious we were only there for those two. We were their shadows, and I learned to grow by that. I was just thankful I had a clean space and clothes with food to eat.

“Hah? Who told you to follow me? I’m not that weak. Besides I’m with Aika”

Although she said that, she still grabbed my hand. Leading me to go wherever she wanted, Aika following behind us.

“Before that...I’d rather hold your hand like this…” I didn’t know where I got the confidence, but I intertwined both of our hands, looking away so I wouldn’t have to see her expression. I could feel my face about to burst from sheer mortification.

Though I did feel her turn back before facing the path in front of us again.

"Taizo...."

“My sister is the most important to me, you know? So if I'm not here, it’s your duty to take care of her, right bodyguard?”

My loyalty is to the L/n family. Nothing will ever make me think that way, even if I have to die for one of them I will. After all, there were only 2 people in it.

[razorblade180]

Interdimensional Moms pt4

Part 3 here! <-

The tales had be interesting. The tales had even been emotionally gripping, yet all of them so far didn’t seem to register at the moment as Ruby’s teammates looked at her with the same excitement she used to give her own mother during story time. Ruby couldn’t help but give a little smile.

Ruby:I take it you’re ready for my turn? You do know it’s not exactly a sunshine and rainbows story, right?

Weiss:We figured as much, but....

Yang:You’re so different! From the moment you showed up I could just feel it in my gut. You have this...presence about you. Not to mention intsene confidence.

Blake:Yang is right. You said you beat your Salem when your seventeen. That’s...scary if I’m being honest. Such a drastic departure from any of our worlds.

Ruby:*red* Hehehe ummm I guess I’m just awesome? Really I don’t think it’s the most outstanding feat. At least by my worlds standards I suppose. I mean sure, I’m consider cream of the crop there too but there’s talented people and challenges all over that would put me through my paces still. I’m just...me.

Weiss:Sigh...honestly, I suppose that means our own skills must pale in comparison to our counterparts.

Ruby:Mmmm I wouldn’t say that for sure. My Yang would kill me if she heard this but there’s something about the one right here that has spark I dig.

Yang:Really?

Ruby:Uh huh. Can’t put my finger on it but I think you take her if you want it bad enough. As for Weiss....couldn’t tell ya. Haha, I know better than anybody to not underestimate the power of mother, and you pumped twins out.

Weiss:Not sure if those are pity points or real ones but thanks either way.

Blake:You don’t even have to tell me I’d lose. Just gave an entire story about me an my condition.

Ruby:Don’t feel too bad about it. I can’t imagine much reason for you two to fight for any reason. You’re both too reasonable to not reason with yourself.

Blake:Aw I’m touched.

Yang and Weiss:We aren’t....

Ruby:Hahaha I’m just saying! So, I guess I take things from the top like you all? From what I learned from all of you our Beacon experiences really are more or less the same, not counting certain interactions between a bookworm faunus and an adorkable blonde knight. Enrolled early, blew up the entrance, Weiss was rude, Yang ditched me, all the same beats.

Yang:There’s no super badass change like you beating Cinder the night of dance and making our entire lives easier?

Ruby:Ha! I wish I was that legit. No, I was very much the young girl tripping in heels that night. Vytal festival came around and was attacked, then Beacon fell. Pyrrha was lost and so was Penny. Difference being that was my last time seeing her, unlike Weiss’s story apparently.

Weiss:Yeah that...that’s a little bit of shock to be frank. Sorry.

Ruby:No worries. Not like you did anything and it was decades ago for me now. After that day is when I started to get a bit more serious I think. I had always taken being a huntress seriously and never slacked of in trying to live my dream. However, my perspective may have honed in on just how do or die life his when you’re the one choosing to walk into unknown danger. Team RNJR’s first and only mission, save the world!

Yang:Sub mission: Flirt with Jaune Arc.

Ruby:*blushing* We do not choose who we fall in love with it. But yes, that may have been a personal pseudo mission for me. He’s my first friend at Beacon for crying out loud and I you know.....thought he was cute then too.

WBY:Yeah that checks out.

Ruby:What does that mean!?

Weiss:Ruby, even my Ruby admits to finding Jaune attractive and having a crush on him back in the day.

Blake:Same.

Yang:I already went into enough detail on how my little sister feels about Jaune. Your just the reality where you pounced on the opportunity and never let go. Struck when the iron was hot and none of us were around; sly fox.

Ruby:Gee you make it sound underhanded. It isn’t like I intended to actively pursue him. Everyone was really sad and stressed traveling to Anima. There was a tension in the air. One that really strained us. I did my best to keep focus, but a leader is only as put together as team. Ren and Nora confided one another as usual and I tried being there for Jaune because seeing him emotionally shut down was rough; so I did my best to be there for him. Then...he ended up being there for me and I was the one who needed comfort. All the airing out and late nights just...led to....*red*

Blake: “Breaking the tension?”

Ruby:I guess that’s one way of putting it. We were lonely. I hid my feelings best I could under the veil of comfort in the moment. Not that needed to. He made it pretty clear that he wanted me in the same way I wanted him. I just the two of us were too scared to ask for promises we weren’t sure we could keep so we loved in the moments we could, so to speak.

Weiss:If it wasn’t under dire situations, all that sounds oddly romantic.

Ruby:Right!? Looking back at it makes the entire thing seem romantic but I definitely wouldn’t wish a similar experience on anybody! I guess it’s what I wished for when I fantasized huntress life huh? Things obviously got better along the way. Our relationship got a bit more serious right before we got to Haven. Then Tyrian and other crazy stuff happened that threw all of us into panic mode again before slowly getting better again by a lot.

Yang:We showed up?

Ruby:Bingo! You and Weiss, met Oscar, and then eventually Blake came back. Things were on the up and up.

Weiss:Uh, Haven attack?

Ruby:We lived, up and up. Yeah you got stabbed but you know...that’s not new I’m sure.

Weiss:Yeah I have the scar and I’m still little pissed.

Ruby:Valid. Anyways, so my Atlas experience was different as hell. There was no formation of Remnants armies like Weiss spoke of or even between two kingdoms like Blake. Yang, what happened yours again exactly?

Yang:Nonsense. Cinder showed up with lackeies but not Salem’s lackies. Those people showed up separately, then Adam came back from wherever the hell he- a lot! A lot of people showed up for different reasons but also the same reason and to be frank, we all almost got shot by the military for being in bases that quote unquote, “didn’t exist.”

Ruby:Man I wish we traded. That at least sounds crazy enough to be fun. Just a rollercoaster in the dark basically. My experience was probably as hectic, but also way more streamlined. We showed up, and then all hell broke loose. Specially a mass grimm invasion lead by Cinder and her annoying associates. We were there for about three weeks updating General Ironwood and getting our barrings together when it happened. I wanna call it a hit and run tactic but it was clearly planned in advanced. Mechs were hacked again, traitors in the military, grimm lying in wait before hand; it was chaos! All for the relic.

Blake:Who was the maiden?

Ruby:Never met her. By the time we got there, Ironwood was panicking because she had vanished, taken right from under his nose. It was some young girl apparently, really young. The attack on Beacon looked like child’s play to this. Mantle got attacked, grimm were on the chains, they tried dropping Atlas to the ground; all a diversion for a relic. We all should’ve died, and yet, we didn’t. Winter and Weiss weeded out traitors, huntsman and military held the line, Yang bested Hazel with Nora, Qrow and I cut down Tyrian! Ren, Blake and Jaune helped the kingdoms while Ironwood struck down Watts. Nobody was in the mood to die that day. There wasn’t gonna be another Beacon. By all means, we were pissed. Even Raven showed up of all people.

Yang:What!?

Ruby:You can’t attack a kingdom without the world knowing. Especially when traitors leak info. Honestly she came for you though, or she never left to begin with. Couldn’t tell ya. Thanks to Maria I had a bit more handling with my eyes. That helped a lot. Without them and Os-

She stopped herself, choking on the words. The zest and excitement of recalling the heroic feats of her friends dimmed slightly with her smile. Her joyful smile became bittersweet like the memory.

Ruby:Then there was Oscar, the real warrior on that flamed filled night. That battle had to have been three days at least. We were so driven, and so tired. I was tired, but Cinder, Neo, and the others with her at the time weren’t; always showing up at the worst time. I managed to push Cinder back in a fight but grimm and others still swarmed. We were at a point that grimm very well might’ve did us in and the villains didn’t have to push any harder. But Oscar changed that. Hehe, what’s it about country folk that makes people like him and I not hesitate to grit our teeth? That dork looked at me, gave me the biggest smile on the the steps to Atlas, and then he left. His hair went white as he twirled the cane and then he left, forever. Oz came out, and he left nothing to the imagination. “Limited magic” my butt. He obliterated grimm and made a barrier aroma Atlas while everyone else cleared Mantle long enough for the world to send reinforcements. Salem didn’t get the relic, but she got the maiden and thousands of casualties. Oscar being one of them. Also, Whitley....he was in critical condition for a very long time.

Weiss:What do you mean...critical condition?

Ruby:Everything happened so fast Weiss. Panic was high, buildings fell....a piece on him. I wasn’t there but when I eventually found you, you were nearly hysterical and banged up. By some miracle he lived even though we could not reach him and he did not get aid for awhile. We thought him dead. It was only after everything we learned somebody got him. Being rich never paid off more than with medical bills. Thanks to youth and medicine he can still walk, but he can only do so much before being tired. He also left Atlas. The cold hurts.

Weiss:So, I run the company because he can’t?

Ruby:I wouldn’t put it that way, but it was one of dozens of reasons that made that goal stronger for you. Relax though, both of you get plenty of time to be witty siblings like I told you earlier.

Weiss:I know. It’s just, I guess it’s hard imagining Whitley hurt like that. I don’t think I could handle it.

Ruby:You definitely teetered in the moment. Knowing that happened though probably gave you anger and grit to fight the entire battle. You were a beast. Scarier than Winter. Anyways, that hollow victory was a real wake up call for the world. They didn’t know about Salem and we never told society in earnest. Cinder and other conspirators were enough to make Remnant work together to boost defense. Relief went to places that needed it and I, became the face of hope. Haven, Argus, Atlas, even people from Vale got to chattering of a particular group of people who always seemed to answer the call for help. Then the towns in between chattered. Yours truly had been carving a name in the history books and was only gain popularity the moment I stepped into Vacou, alone.

Blake:Alone!?

Weiss:What!?

Yang:Where were we!!!!!?

Ruby looked at surprised faces around the table, smiling tenderly. She looked down her dress and pulled out the cross she wore around her neck. Her thumb traced its edges as her mind began wandering down an old path paved with emotions raw to the core.

Ruby:I’ve always felt different. Not just because of my eyes but that there was just...a certain spark that never stopped going off for as long as I remember. There are plenty of people who can’t bare to watch others suffer, but there are fewer people I believe that truly feel the agony of other people’s pain. Beacon, Haven, Atlas, Argus; there was no place I went that I didn’t see the faces of others lamenting, and I didn’t make me want to grieve. Atlas took so much out of all of you and I just felt so....driven to stop that ache. For everyone’s sake, but mine as well. I wanted the world to finally get to the happy ending. Enough trauma had be sowed for a hundred lifetimes, so I went on ahead of everyone. I never doubted you all would follow but I wanted to get ahead of the curve and take on as much of the suffering I could do others wouldn’t. If the world wouldn’t give me a miracle than I’d be it myself for everyone else.

Yang:That’s suicidal! Salem wanted you specifically!

Ruby:It’s not like I went marching up to her door and said “1v1 bitch, I’m here” no, I just chose to move forward quicker than what we were all doing. Believe me, all of you were upset when you caught up, after I had already saved Vacou. *smiles* I really like that place. I told the people it was the next target and all they did was double down on pushing back. I managed to pin down the Summer maiden before the villains and thanks with the city on alert, there wasn’t a shift in the sand that didn’t go unnoticed. I got the jump on Mercury and Emerald, personally paying them back. Can’t say I didn’t enjoy it. It didn’t take long before they realized how screwed they were with them being outed like this and Cinder having the nerve to retreat before hand. Both of them threw in the total, outing the plan against Vacou. A wipeout of a win. Not to mention they told me the location Salem’s little hiding hole.

Weiss:We missed all of that?

Ruby:That’s what happens when I leave in the dead of night and running on adrenaline. Like I said before, people were tired. As much as all of you wanted to hoof it, other’s were relying on you. Atlas almost dropped for gods sake. Eventually when you all caught up it was at a good time. Soloing was rewarding but difficult. Fortunately Sun, Neptune, Ilia, and a few other familiar faces were close by if I needed an extra set of hands. My little stunt earned the anger of everyone for awhile.

WBY:Yeah no shit...the leader left.

Ruby:Yang was the most upset, followed by Uncle Qrow, and you Weiss. I was ready for the blowback. Jaune and Nora saw me though and bursted into tears. Hehe, wasn’t ready for that. Felt terrible and cried back. To prevent that stunt again, my Yang convinced Raven to link me. A couple days of apologizing and rest smoothed things over. It also gave time for just a few close friends and colleagues to get together for an assault on Salem’s castle. A few were apprehensive about it at first but at the end of the day I was going. That attitude was infectious apparently. You guys, actually everybody, they started getting this hunger to end it all. Maybe it was the high of victory? Regardless, it sent me racing to the end with those that I loved most.

Yang:You’re a real “my way or the highway” kind of Ruby. I don’t get how that explains what made you so...elite.

Ruby:I’m not sure what to say. A fight needed to to fought so I fought it. A cry for help was heard so I ran to it. A grimm needed slaying so I slayed it. People needed me to win so I didn’t dare think of losing. Dying was never option, even when it stared me right into my eyes. I had things I wanted to do and people I wanted see for years to come. I guess...I am strong because of the fact I want things my way. A moment I’m not giving it 110% is a moment wasted. After all, a huntress is all I ever wanted to be.

A single dream she wanted since birth. The never ending desire to be the hero in stories told to her many nights ago. That’s all it ever was. That’s all it’s ever been. Even in meadow of beautiful red roses, one would be the rose that captured the eyes of many, that bloomed stronger than the rest. As simple as it was, that had to be the answer here. Weiss, Yang, and Blake were in front of that flower. The Ruby Rose that simply bloomed stronger than the rest. The one that clung to her dream as if letting go meant dying itself. The devotion was inspiring, yet also overwhelming. If this was Ruby they had lead them that day in the Emerald Forest, could they have kept up? Could she be the leader they followed? No, they couldn’t have. Something deep down inside them gave them that answer. No matter how she looked and how much she loved, this Ruby Rose was cut from a cloth they simply weren’t off. The same as others, but oh so different.

Weiss:You’re....kinda a monster, you know that right?

Yang:Seriously, I’m so...floored. It’s intimidating.

Blake:Not to mention humbling. I used to think I gave it all I had. Now I’m not so sure.

Ruby:Oh don’t be like that you three! You’re all living proof there was more than way to go about life, this war! Everything you gave was enough because you’re done with it! Nobody failed. Besides, I...am far from ideal. The assault was challenging. Getting around hoards of grimm and making it to Salem was hell made real. Neo tried taking another shot at me but Yang held her off with help. Everyone pushed the obstacles in front of me out of the way as I went to Salem herself. Cinder had been abandoned by her and stripped of a lot of her powers. Angry and desperate, she tried killing me again as a way to prove worth. I beat her. However, I let her walk away.

Yang:What!? Why would-

Ruby:Naive, I was...naive okay? She was all spent and though I hated her, I just couldn’t. Not when I looked into her eyes and saw that same hunger I had to claw and scream at my dream until it was in my hands die inside her. We both knew from this point on there was absolutely nothing she could do where this ends her way. All she worked for turned burned to ash. So I gave her the choice to not burn up with it. Cinder swallow her pride and then fled. A part of me couldn’t help but rationalize killing her didn’t solve or justify any of my beliefs or desires. It would’ve done it because I hated her like she hated me. That was the dumb logic of a seventeen year old who never quite learned to take things slow.

Blake:....I don’t think it’s dumb. Naive for sure, but maybe that’s good? Even my Ruby, she never wanted to act on hate. She didn’t. Salem lives.

Weiss:Mine sent her soul to be at piece instead of passing a cruel judgment.

Yang:As a person who’s seen what you looked like with nothing but vengeance inside, I can say it doesn’t fit you. Before that day you had a warmth inside you to even foes that were somewhat admirable. You chose to leave Cinder’s fate up to those who had that hate and Salem was undone by her own doing at the very end. That’s what really makes you special Ruby. That’s why you’re called an honest soul. Good will is your nature.

Ruby:....Hmm, you sure know how to butter me up. *scratches head* I guess that part of me is uni-I mean multiversal. Strangely, that makes me feel better, to a degree.

Weiss:Do we even have to ask what happened to Salem at this point? I doubt the story ends with you loosing and having to retreat.

Ruby:Who’s to say it doesn’t? I could’ve been beaten to death before the gods themselves descended down to revive me with awesome power.

Yang:....Did you?

Ruby:Wh-No! Haha, I made her an immortal statue.

Blake:I-It was that easy?

Ruby:Well I wouldn’t call rushing into hell’s castle easy, or Salem. I lit her up at least a dozen times. My head pounded from each use, I was tossed around a bunch, magic is annoying, and not to mention running out of ammo. I left nothing to the imagination in that fight. If it were easy then I wouldn’t be rooting my horn and my age doing it. I was so tired I blacked out afterwards. I woke days later with a sore body and the title of “Remnant’s Savior.” Apparently beating Salem had weakened the grimm everywhere and all of you made sure who was to be thanked for it. That’s the tale of how I saved the world with my friends. Love, trust, elbow grease, and a lot of bullets. Before the final battle, Ozpin had struck a deal with everyone involved. In return for saving the world, he’d cut ties with us.

Yang:Seriously? What brought that about!?

Ruby:Good or not, he lied and was a schemer. Sure I was gonna try to save the world regardless of his interference but there wasn’t a person alive that didn’t to finally take a step towards the future after all this. All of us finally had time chase dreams and help the world the way we wanted to before all of this. Blake begin mending hate, Weiss took back her company, if Yang wasn’t with Blake then she was seeking more answers to Raven on wild adventures.

Yang:You mean Raven still left after all that!?

Ruby:In her defense, both of you made everything fucking awkward when she was around. It’s like you both wanted to talk about something but knew any subject was a land mine so you all you ever did was...stare, like weirdos. Glad that’s in the past. She just lives with dad now and you two now to hold a conversation. I dare not ask for more. I’d be a granny by the time I did.

Yang:Sigh...I don’t know what I expected. Shit it the fan several times and children were born before mom and I found solidarity and understanding. What did you do afterwards? Your goal was already met.

Ruby:Like hell it was! I started busting my butt traveling around the world, visiting every place to help in anyways I could. Ren and Nora tagged along for awhile before going off to make an orphanage in Anima near Ren’s old village. That left Jaune and I to do our hero thing.

Yang:As well as other things....

Ruby:Hey, what can I say? We were young and going up in the world. By the time I was nineteen, I was now a married to my partner and best friend.

Weiss:Uhhhh-

Ruby:He’s my partner on RNJR and you’re my BFF, gosh did I really need to explain that hehe?

Weiss:I just had to make sure. Crazier twists could happen.

Blake:Wow you married young. Not that there’s a problem but I’m surprised. Then again you also dated earlier than my Ruby. Hehe, weapons were on her brain for a long time.

Weiss:No kidding. When I learned about you crushing on my brother I was shocked to find out you liked anybody in general. Especially a person who isn’t a weapon nut in the slightest.

Ruby:*shrugs* All you’re telling me is I’m clearly the most impatient or impulsive Ruby you all know. Don’t know how that happened. Maybe I was dropped as a baby or had one too many coffees growing up?

Weiss:I’m willing to bet it’s both.

Ruby:Ruuuuude. So yeah, that’s...the story of how I saved the world and married Jaune. We even built a home just outside Vacou, overlooking the kingdom and neighboring town in the distance where Maria grew up. Yeah, that’s me....more or less. All the triumphant parts anyways. Anything later on is......

.......

Blake:R...Ruby? You okay?

Ruby:Nope, not really. *clenches cross*

Yang:......You know, I never really got religion, especially after learning the truth. It just seemed completely hollow when you learn of the real gods, ya know? However, I changed my tune a bit after being a parent and then some more when uncle Qrow died. It was never really about the truth behind if those other gods were real-

Ruby:It’s the piece of mind in believing in a better place for loved ones and having people watch over you. It’s truly based on blind faith in every sense but that’s okay as long as it gives peace of mind, to stay strong. Yeah....that’s why I wear this.

Yang:If that’s the “why” then I guess the unavoidable question is what happened?

The reaper leaned back in his chair, letting out a long sigh. Ruby brushed her hair out of her face while her face went pale. Then, Ruby’s eyes, her teammates watched a pair of stunning silver eyes dim, becoming akin to a clouded mirror.

Ruby:Being a huntress was all I wanted. The plan of having a family and settling down never appealed to me much. I feel, I felt like being in the field was where I was meant to be. It’s where I was most myself in a way. So the day I learned that I was pregnant was more than a little upsetting and terrifying, until dad and time itself filled me with the most genuine joy I may have ever experienced. Dustin Arc Rose, my first born son. He opened a door to a world and life I never knew I wanted to be apart of. Then...that door was shut minutes after, when Cinder and Neo stole him right from my arms. I couldn’t do a single thing about it other than blackout. That single act of good will I showed, it did nothing but kill me inside. The same way I did to her.

WB:.....

Yang:Ru-Ruby....your eyes.

Ruby:Hmm? Are they clouded? Funny, I would’ve thought your Ruby would’ve had a similar change. Maybe that’s a world exclusive thing, or a testament to the will you Ruby has to endure. Clouded eyes on a silver eyed warrior means the person has lost the desire or rather the mindset of persevering life. Be it their own life or wanting to end another’s life out of resentment, strife. My entire world fell apart when I woke up and learned nobody was able to retrieve Dustin. I was in pieces, Jaune was broken, nobody was the same. There wasn’t a soul we didn’t know that hadn’t tried to find a lead, but we never did. He was just...gone; and I couldn’t cope at all.

Weiss:I don’t think any mother could. Ruby, I’m so sorry that happened to you.

Ruby:I’m sorry too. I lashed out in anger, and shut people out. My eyes clouded and I dove into my work for a little over a year doing nothing but searching aimlessly as I took and every job back to back. The more time went by meant the more people eventually had to go back to their own, and it drove me up a wall inside. No one could reach me. I didn’t want anybody to. Not even Jaune. I....*teary eyed* I left him alone in house. There was no part of me that could even attempt to understand his pain because I was drowning in mine. I was told he tried his best to catch them at the hospital. I never hated him for not succeeding but I...he... I just, I can’t. I don’t know what I thought. All o knew was I didn’t even want him to touch me. How cruel is that? *hugging herself* I made him drown in despair in the same way I was. I wasn’t home so often that I never realized he eventually left it abandoned to live with dad. Yang and Blake I didn’t even show up to your wedding. Jaune did that much. Hell, Raven attended. Ruby Rose as a person didn’t exist any more. I was only a wandering huntress looking for answers or the challenge that might’ve ended me.

Blake:What changed?

Ruby:Oz, he did what nobody else dared to do. He fought me. I don’t think he thought twice about it. He was prepared to accept all the anger I kept inside until I eventually broke down into tears like I’m trying not to do right now. Thinking about that time is still, extremely difficult. Oz let me lament, encouraging me afterwards to finally except the fact Dustin was gone and that I needed to process it properly. First I went to you Yang, in order to have a my big sis to lean on. Can you guess how that went?

Yang:With me holding you tighter than I ever had before.

Ruby:*smiles gently* I don’t deserve you. You and Blake then came to patch with me where everyone else waited for me and helped me face Jaune. That may have been the hardest thing I’ve done. Grieving or not, the fact that I left him in such a state. I know what that does to people firsthand and yet I left. For the first time in over a year we embraced and finally grieved together. The next two years were spent trying to heal and cope. During my time away the world had fully acknowledged me. I even got a proper nickname, but it all felt hollow. Imagine that, achieving your dream but not caring? If that’s not salt in a wound then I don’t know what is.

Weiss:What’s your title?

Ruby:I am the person people want to see when evil comes to cut their story short. I am a symbol that their tale still has more to tell. Remnant has named me The Storyteller. Curtsey of Maria, who spread the name around. Healing was slow and most nights I felt a pain in my heart, but then everything changed. One moment made me dare to try again to open that shut door in my life. *looks at Yang* I held your son in my arms. Sweet little Kovu.

Blake:*smiles* Kovu? Now I wonder who named him?

Yang:*red* Huh...how about that? Hehehe, wish I could meet him. I know he isn’t technically mine but I can’t help but feel all warm now. Also I can’t believe I named him that!

Weiss:I can. Veronica’s middle name is Nala.

Yang:Okay, maybe not marrying Blake was a win? Clearly I can’t be trusted to not name my children after other cats.

Blake:The wrong kind of cat too. I’m a panther faunus, not a lion. Even if they’re blonde that’s still false advertising of what they are.

Ruby:Well Yang was the one giving birth so you lost a majority of the option to complain.

Blake:That is fair.

Weiss:You gave birth to Vee, so I think that solves who picked her first name.

Ruby rested her head in her propped up hands that rested on the table. She felt exhausted reliving that chapter of her life mentally. Still she managed to smile, then smile bigger. Her eyes unclouded and a warm feeling filling her again. What Ruby said earlier about what made her different may have reign true, but her friends could since that there was now more to it. Ruby had spiraled into an unimaginable tragedy, yet was able to bounce back thanks to loved ones. To smile as she does, it was truly a strong sight to see. Even if she wasn’t fully aware of that.

Ruby:Carmine Arc Rose, my second born and the first child to call me mommy. Followed many years later by itty bitty Garnet. He’s my little man, five years old while is big sis is seventeen now.

Yang:Damn! That’s a gap. Oh, also congratulations. Almost forgot that part. I’m glad you got to be the super awesome mom that-

Ruby:I am easily C-teir.

Yang:Oh come on! What!?

Ruby:Listen, I know I got on you all for calling yourselves bad parents, but I will hear no debate about me understand!? I flop a lot of times.

Weiss:That doesn’t make you a C-teir. That makes you a new mom, silly.

Ruby:*grumbling* I agree to disagree but thank you. It’s just a lot okay. Too much to dive into honestly.

Blake:Summarize. Give us an abbreviated version.

Ruby:Ummm so Carmine is real special kid. The absolute love I have for her is unbreakable but gods damnit if she isn’t the most... “me” I could be! In a way similar yet different from myself, Carmine has always had this sense of urgency in her and a love for the world around her. She recognizes that it’s a fragile piece we have and just how hard I’ve worked with everyone to make it. I could tell that from her when she was five. I’d sound crazy, but the fact she used her eyes at the age proves I’m not.

Yang:She has silver eyes!? Why didn’t you bring that up?

Ruby:I thought that was obvious. All of my kids were born with then. Unlike her baby brother though, Carmine was a weird little kid. She didn’t socialize well. Still doesn’t, she’s kinda comes off rude and cold because of her bluntness. She doesn’t really express all her feelings or understand others fully. One might call her a little cold but the passion she had to protect life itself is a testament to how much she cares. Carmine is also a genius fighter. To put in perspective, people use the same nickname for her that they used for Pyrrha.

WBY:Oh....

Ruby:Yeah! It’s not hyperbolic to say ever since Carmine is far beyond any skill I was at her age since she turned thirteen. You called me a monster earlier but no, I merely gave birth to a beast. I mean she could pass the huntsman exam at fifteen if I didn’t make her wait. I can’t call her arrogant, she talks with confidence because she has that right by all means. Still, besides her face, that’s where the similarities start separating; besides terrible grades in general stuff. We’ve never been in step completely. To put simply in her own words, “What I am is a hero, while she is a huntress.” That good will and mercy I try to give everyone isn’t how she rolls. It drives a real wedge that has resulted in us not going on missions together.

Blake:Is she...killing?

Ruby:She has before, and it had valid reasons entirely, but I also know for a fact she is more than capable of bringing down people without taking that step. Not all cases are that intense thank goodness. Her overall aggressiveness is the root of the problem. You don’t have to put you back into it when handling thugs. They aren’t Hazel.

Yang:Ooo okay, yeah I’m seeing what you mean now. It’s like that one comic you always read!

Ruby:Sigh...yeah she channels a bit of Batman energy and I need her to not do that all the time. I suppose being an honest soul isn’t particularly hereditary. It always feels like we aren’t enjoying each other’s company these days. I can’t blame her though. So....you know how all of you have had one serious problem that has both destabilized yourself as well as the kids and their relationship to you? *clouded eyes*

Weiss:Wait...you loosing a child wasn’t that?

Ruby:Oh it was. It just so happened that it never ended. It grew day by day. Night by night. Jaune and I were cautious with Carmine. Going as far to give her contacts and giving birth to her off the record and not at a hospital. Just in case Cinder came back. Well, Cinder and Neo came back, with my Dustin.

Nobody said anything. What do you even say to that!? All they did was let out a stifled breath and tried to gauge Ruby’s look of guilt.

Ruby:Yet again we had gotten too comfortable. It happened when Carmine was thirteen. I don’t think Garnet was even one yet. That’s when the cruelest realization hit me. My son had been alive and hearing about how his so called mother being a person who saves everyone, yet she never came for him. She had moved on, letting his eyes become clouded with such seething hate for the world she did save; the children she had after. It’s been four years since the day he attacked Carmine and helped grimm try to invade Vacou. To this day it’s been a life of staying on gaurd, searching for them as they popped up countless places to tear Remna- to tear me down and I can’t decide what part hurts the most. The amount of anger that prevents me from killing Cinder in a blink of an eye, or looking at my daughter who has told me herself that she is going to kill her older brother because I’m too weak to do so. That I’m in no way as good as the world believes me to be. *puts hood up* Like I said, C-teir mom, at best.

Blake:That’s- you can’t- there’s no way for you to reach him? Maybe if you-

Ruby:He looks at me the same way Neo and Cinder do, Blake. They raised him to hate me. Besides, he hurt Carmine. She’s just not gonna let that slide and frankly I shouldn’t either. Carmine acts tough and for the most part is, but gets terrified like everyone else. In many ways she’s still just a young girl that I wish had never chosen to become a huntress. If I had it my way she’d just be a normal girl with normal knees; but her mother’s weakness and inexperience wrapped her up in yet another war. It’s ironic. I barely remember mom and yet I ended up putting my family in very similar situation as if she lead instruction. Happy endings, I’m not sure if I get-

Yang:You’re better than mom....

Ruby:......

Yang:Yeah I said. Look I love Summer Rose but at the end of the day she wasn’t around, not that she didn’t want to be, but it’s the truth. Several years of pleasant childhood memories and a lifetime of grief is what she left me, and all you got were tales you should’ve experienced first hand. Ruby you have spent seventeen years loving your daughter unconditionally and being there for her no matter if it’s for better or worse. Yeah you might not being doing it perfectly and I have no idea how to even fathom your predicament, but at least you are there trying. Take it from me, that’s all a daughter ever wants from their mother. It’s also what makes a pretty kick ass dad. *smiles* Chin up, hero. Your story isn’t over yet after all.

Silence filled the air and Ruby’s throat ran dry. Ruby pulled out her scroll to go to her pictures and displayed one of her favorite photos for everyone to see. It was Carmine’s fifteenth birthday. Ruby didn’t lie about the resemblance. the girl had short blonde hair that stopped halfway down her neck in the back and was longer in the front, reaching shoulders. Like her mother, the tips of her hair transitioned to red. The beautiful young woman tried to her hide her smile but her gleeful silver eyes were practically twinkling with joy as Ruby hugged her tightly from behind and a tall, more solid version of Jaune was smushing one of Carmine’s cheeks with an overly dramatic kiss to it. A tiny child no older than three at most was in his big sister’s arms. Garnet had his mother’s hair and eyes but something about the chubby face definitely showed Jaune’s features. The child had red frosting on his face and was reaching eagerly for more cake somewhere out of frame.

Yang noticed the girl took page from her father and wore some regular cargo shorts, but clearly didn’t lack flair by wearing a red crop top that showed off a fresh tattoo of the Arc crest on her toroso. Knowing her sister, that tattoo was most likely practical. The family looked happy, proud; and the mother of it currently sat across the table crying with her head face down in her hands cwhile Weiss and Blake hugged her from each side. Roses may have thorns, anyone who knew roses knew a simple truth. They’re still fragile flowers.

Yang:(Carmine Arc Rose. For you and your mother’s sake, I hope things go well)

xxxx

Though Carmine seemed cold by nature, people were quick learn the opposite. The most recent learner of this was a scared little girl that held on for dear life. It was nighttime, nothing but the sound of pouring rain and the distant glow of red and the warmth of Carmine holding the girl against her body while she sprinted through a mud ridden forest. The little payed no attention to the pain in her side, but the glow of roses, eyes, and flames through her tear filled eyes.

Beowulves chased frantically but then severed immediately by something the girl couldn’t understand, but it looked like the person carrying her. The dead beasts brought no comfort. Not when more followed close behind.

Girl:I-I’m sc...scared!

Carmine:Don’t look at them sweetie, it’ll be fine. Just keep being a brave little girl.

Girl:M...Mommy was back there.

Carmine:.....I know, she’ll be just fine. Your village, there are plenty of people there that will be just fine! Huff..... You got a name?

Mary:Mary.....

Carmine:Oh that’s a beautiful name, Mary. You know I was almost a Mary? Yeah my grandma was a really amazing person and I almost got named something similar to her. Mary is a very strong name!

Mary:You’re a liar! I’m sad, not strong. I want my mommy! Everything his dark and hurts and I want her!

The girl began painfully crying as Carmine followed her trail of roses to avoid getting lost. Things were getting worse. The storm raged and she could feel this girl burning in her arms. Not to mention the unsettling warmth the mixed with the cold rain against her body and dripped to puddles below. Any grimm near by could only be dealt with by many copies of her nearby, but that would only go so far when fear was out full force. Carmine’s boots felt like cement, but she still ran.

Carmine:Mary, you know what do when I miss my mommy? I sing! Yeah, my mom sings the best lullabies that made me feel super strong when I was little! It’s a magic song that makes everyone strong. How about I sing it you and they can sing it your mommy later okay!? But you have to close your eyes to really focus on the words!

Mary:*sniffling* Okay....

Baby deathstalkers swarmed the path made ahead as small Nevermores dove at her. Out of options, Carmine broke from the path, trying to rely on memory to go towards the safe zone while also singing lyrics to her favorite song.

Dream of anything; I'll make it all come true.

Everything you need is all I'll have for you~

Carmine never wavered. No matter how badly her lungs her or nearly slipped, she kept singing all the way to her destination where several other clones were seen racing towards with more civilians to injured or young to go themselves. An orphanage where Nora and Ren stood outside rushing people in while Jaune was keeping the grimm at bay. The sight brought a little ease.

Don't worry, I've got you; nothing will ever harm you.

I'm close by, I'll stay here; through all things, I will be near~

Carmine finally reached Nora and passed off the girl who’s grip weakened overtime. A few lyrics in and Carmine knew she was singing mainly for herself.

Carmine:Get her medical attention! I’m gonna go and find more! There’s still-

Jaune:Wait, it’s too dangerous!

Carmine:I know! That’s why I have to go! That fire is spreading and there’s stragglers pinned down! Dad.....I’m pinned down!

Jaune tensed up and looked at Carmine. No scraps on her and her clothes only soiled by others. It didn’t take long to realize. The man resisted the urge to run out to the ruined town and stood firmly.

Jaune:Carmine...end it. We’ll worry about the consequences later.

Carmine:....Okay.

Across the woods amongst the flames the real Carmine stood bleeding and bruised in front of two Beringel that charged over the vanishing corpses of their fallen with more grimm, her sword stabbed into the ground supporting her weight. Behind all living people that remained finally managed to flee. All except for a woman trapped by house debris. The woman watched this young huntsman stand proudly again. She wasn’t sure what happened next. All she heard was one sentence.

“Close your eyes...” before everything went white. Next thing she knew, Carmine was lifting debris off her as rain and wind washed away any evidence. A relief she didn’t care about in the slightest. She neither had the strength, or the time too. Much like Carmine, who began to pant and teeter. It was clear to the woman that whatever just happened didn’t come without cost as she watched the girl fall to her knees. Though she tried moving, Carmine was spent.

Carmine:Don’t worry...we’re safe....let’s-

Woman:Go...

Carmine:Huh?

Woman:I...my legs. Everything...I can’t move. Just go. I d-don’t think I’d las-

Carmine:Don’t talk like that! The hard parts over! I can-

Woman:Barely walk. *smiles* It’s okay. I don’t blame you. You fought hard.

Carmine:.....I...I’m sorry. *teary eyed*

Woman:Say, I know that face anywhere. Your Lady Rose’s kid. Funny, I thought your eyes were red? My daughter, Mary, she loves your mother. Makes me kinda jealous hehe, but hey I love her too. *crying* Do you know if Mary made it? She was wearing-

Carmine:A black dress, pink ribbons in her hair...

Woman:Yes! Is she safe? I saw you- one of you carry her off.

Carmine:...She’s just fine.

Woman:Good. That’s all....that.....

The woman never finished her sentence. Carmine’s body fell limp on the ground, facing the rain. Even with the cold downpour she could feel the warmth of her own tears, containing her emotions best she could as she looked through her clones eyes to watch Nora take Mary away from the survivors and out of sight to not stir further panic.

Carmine wasn’t sure how long she layed there, but it was long enough for Jaune to find her. The man didn’t say a word. The town was in shambles. Grimm were still fading and his daughter looked tired, but not in serious condition. Unlike the those who didn’t make it. Jaune put Carmine in his arms, carrying her away to safety.

Carmine:......Does mom ever save them all?

Jaune:No, but that never stops her from trying; or mourning.

She clenched her father’s shirt and let herself be fragile, to be a Rose.

Carmine:Next time. Mom and I, we’ll both get it right next time. A happy ending for all!

Jaune:Yeah, I know you will. Together....

[ohmyitsfaith]

Did I mention?

Pairing: Five Hargreeves x Reader

Summary: “Omg I just had the saddest idea (kind of haha).So with Number Five, something where he likes the reader and has been giving signals to her here and there, and then the day he works up the courage to ask her out she's a bit rude to him, but she was just having a bad day. But to him that was a bullet to the heart because he was already very insecure, so basically his hole week is ruined, and at the end she notices how sad he is and remembers her mistake. Just lots of fluff and cuddles from there.” -Requested by anonymous

Warnings: some angst

Word count: 1.9k

A/n: This took longer than I expected it to take. I started with one idea but then deleted the whole thing and changed the title and the idea lol. But I like the outcome, hopefully you’ll too!

Five was torn. He had no idea what to do. He was so lost and he lost hope too. He needed guidance but he had no idea where to or who to go to. He couldn’t go to Vanya… she was still depressed about losing Sissy. He couldn’t go to Klaus, he couldn’t give normal advice. His brother Luther was only in love with his sister, so he wants no advice from him. And Diego was still obsessed with finding Lila. So…

“Hi Five.”

He flinched at the sudden sound of your voice.

“Y-y/n!” he stuttered.

A confused smile made its way up your mouth and soon it reached your eyes. You were happy to see the boy, but to your recollection he never stuttered. You sat down next to him as he cleared his throat.

“Hi Y/n” he said, sounding much more collected.

“What are you up to?” you asked, the smile still evident on your face.

“Uh- uh nothing” he said, kind of panicked. “W-what are you up to?”

“Are you okay?” you asked with a giggle.

“Y-yeah! I guess…” he sighed, putting his face into his hands. “I don’t know…” he mumbled.

“What’s wrong?” you put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it lightly.

“T-there… huh… there- there is a girl” he muttered.

“A girl?” you asked, shocked. “What girl?”

“She- she’s very… beautiful. And… she’s an amazing person…” he started.

“But?” a pang of jealousy hit your chest.

“But she’s blind! At least to me… I’ve sent so many signs her way and she either doesn’t see it, or… or she just doesn’t care” he sounded troubled.

“Tell me… about her” you said, even though you felt incredibly jealous.

“Are you sure?” he asked, looking up at you.

“Five, I can see that it’s troubling you. You’re my best friend and I could go to you when I needed help. Now I’m here to do the same” you smiled at him softly.

“Okay” he sighed, already feeling bad that he’s telling you about yourself, without you knowing that it was you and… “Well… she’s very smart and witty. Which is good, because she can always just hit me with a comeback. And she’s incredibly pretty. Like the “you can look at the sun but not her” type. She’s also very friendly. And nice. And sweet. She’s the whole package, you know?” he looked at you sadly. “And I love her so much…” he said looking at you, but then turned his head away. “But I don’t know how to tell her. I’m so scared that she’ll reject me… that I’ll ruin our friendship. She’s a great friend, but I wish she was my girlfriend.”

You thought for a few seconds, just looking at the boy. He looked so lost. Obviously, he never experienced something like this and now he was scared and confused. Your heart fell at the thought of him being with another girl, but then as you thought, you realized that you didn’t want him to be miserable. So you tried your best to give him a good advice.

“Look, I’m not an expert in romance. But… what I think you should do is… just try to talk to her, okay?” you sighed. It was hard for you. “Like… you said she’s a great friend, right? Just… try to ask her. I know, it’s hard… but… you’ll feel this immense amount of stress… just… dissipate. It’s… scary. But you’ll feel better. And… if she rejects you, she doesn’t deserve you.” you said. “You’re a great person, Five. Anyone would be glad to be your significant other. And I’ll always be here to help you. So if she rejects you, I’ll be here as a shoulder to cry on.”

Five sighed, looking at you with a sad expression. He then nodded and pulled you in a hug. You hugged him tightly, like if you let him go, he’ll disappear. Then you sighed and let him go.

“Come. Let’s get coffee to calm your nerves” you smiled at him.

“Thank you, Y/n” he sighed, a small smile appearing on his lips.

“Any time lover boy” you joked and his smile grew.

The next day was horrible for you. Your anxiety was acting up and the thought of Five getting a girlfriend, who was not you, felt like a stab every time it appeared in your mind.

You grumpily made your way to the kitchen and poured a cup of coffee for yourself. You sat at the table and looked at nothing in front of you.

“Good noon Y/n” Klaus chirped and you mumbled a hello. “Somebody is in grumpy mood today. Is everything alright my little friend?”

You looked up at him and if looks could kill, Klaus surely would be ten feet underground.

“Okay, well… I understand” he said, putting his hands up in surrender. “Oh, Five! Good noon!”

“Good morning Klaus, Y/n” Five said in his usual “everything sucks and you’re possibly the cause of it” tone. “I need to talk to you” Five whispered to you.

“Five! Would you like a cup of coffee?” Klaus asked.

“Y-yeah!” he waved his hand at his brother and stayed at your level. “Can we?”

“I don’t have time Five” you mumbled.

“Is there something wrong?” he asked, concerned.

“Everything is wrong, Five” you scoffed and stood up.

“Y-y/n?” he called after you.

But you didn’t even look back, just walked up the stairs, right into your room. You had no time or the mood for a talk with Five about some other girl. And you kept that mood for the whole day. Of course you felt bad for being mean to Five, but you couldn’t stop it. You had a bad day, it happened to everyone.

For Five that’s what caused a bad week. Not just a bad day, a bad week. From the morning when you dismissed him, he just avoided you. He felt heartbroken and just broken in general. He of course didn’t know that you had a bad day that day, in his mind he convinced himself that you found out about him loving you and you were so disgusted that you didn’t even want to look at him. Of course, he should’ve figured it out when after a day you were there and tried to talk to him, but he was too heartbroken for that.

So he avoided you. Whenever he entered a room and saw you there, he turned back. When you walked into a room he was in, he could’ve been doing anything, he abandoned that and went to find something else to do. Or when your paths crossed, he simply teleported out of the way and to the place he needed to be.

It was like a mouse-cat game and you were the cat, trying to catch him. You always saw his heartbroken expression and your heart ached for the boy. You didn’t know if this was because of the one time you were mean to him or if it was from a rejection from that girl he mentioned. However, you couldn’t even find it out since he never was in the same room as you.

The twist came on the day nearly a week after he started avoiding you. You planned all your move and calculated his. You weren’t sure if it was right, but you hoped it was. The day started in the kitchen. You walked in, saw him and when he saw you and went to leave, you blocked his path. As you calculated, he simply teleported behind you, but your hand was there to catch his arm. From then, he tried to blink out of your hold, but your grip was strong and he pulled you with him. You knew what to expect, so you didn’t let him go when the nausea hit you. He was shocked by how sternly you stood in front of him, still holding onto his arm. In his shock, he didn’t even try to blink away from you.

“That’s enough” you said, your voice strong and almost dominating. “This has been going on for a week. You’re going to tell me why the fuck you’re avoiding me and you’re going to tell me now.”

He blinked twice before sighing. He accepted defeat and grabbing your hand, he pulled you to his bed.

“Okay” he sighed.

His hands were shaking and his feet were bouncing. You could tell by the clear signs that whatever was bothering him and causing him to avoid you, was making him super anxious. You slowly put your hand on his, grabbing onto it and holding it to calm him.

“Is this about the girl you told me about?” you asked softly and he slowly nodded. “Did she reject you?”

“Yeah, I think so” he said.

“You think so?” you got confused.

“Y/n…” he turned to you. “That girl is you.”

You stopped breathing for a moment. At first your heart started racing, but then is sank in your chest as you realized that that day when Five wanted to talk to you and you dismissed him, he was trying to tell you this exact same thing. And you being rude to him, let him believe that you rejected him. Then you felt him start to pull his hand away. You quickly squeezed his hand, holding onto it as tightly as you could. You looked into his eyes and a soft smile tugged at your lips.

“Really?” you asked and he nodded. “You- you love me?”

His blood rushed to his face as he nodded again. A happy breath left your mouth as you put your hand on his cheek and turned it towards you. You smiled at him before pressing your lips to his. His breath hitched at the feeling but soon closed his eyes and deepened the kiss.

Your first kiss with him felt like heaven. You finally understood why people were so excited for their first kiss. It was simply amazing. Feeling the lips of the one you love on your lip, was one of the most amazing feelings in the whole world. As he kissed you more than once until both of you were out of breath and panting. Still, as he put his forehead to yours, you let out a giggle and he smiled at the adorable sound. You pecked his lips a last time before leaning your head on his shoulder, your nose digging into his neck. Your breath tickled his neck, but he just pulled you closer to him.

You ended up lying in his bed, with you practically on top of him. He didn’t seem to mind though, as his arms went around your waist and held you as close to him as possible.

“Did I mention that I’m in love with you?” you asked, voice barely above a whisper, not wanting to disturb the calming quiet.

“And did I mention that I’m in love with you too?” he asked, his volume and tone matching yours.

“Please tell me this means we’re officially dating” you whispered.

“I thought that I made that quite clear” he let out a breathy laugh.

“Okay” you sighed and closed your eyes.

“Are you going to take a nap?” he asked.

“Maybe” you hummed. “Are you?”

“A nap sounds nice” he shrugged.

You lifted your head from his chest and propped yourself up on your arms. Five looked at you and you pulled yourself up more to be completely above him.

“I love you” you said, looking into his eyes.

“I love you too” he said, a small smile tugging at his lips, which you kissed not even a second later.

You lay down and hugging each other, you slowly fell asleep.

[Masterlist]

[nightowlfandom]

I’m a Bad, Bad, Man- AU! Criminal! Levi Ackerman X Detective! Reader. (Part 2)

 So this mini series will have mentions of death, blood, murder, smut, smut with a criminal, mentions of gangs. A. LOT. OF. VIOLENCE. This isn't for the faint of heart...so with all that said, please proceed with caution. I will even include a read more break just incase you don't want to read it all.

READ PART 1 HERE

Leggo

...

You sat across from Levi, arms crossed as you waited for him to speak. You wound up following him to what you assumed was his VIP section. You straightened out your back, refusing to break eye contact as he poured himself another glass of whiskey. The first sign of a lie, you were gonna shoot him right there. 

“You sure are dedicated aren’t you.” he huffed. 

“Only when I’m on a mission.” you replied flatly. 

“Tch! Of course. As annoying as you cops are, I respect your diligence.”

“I’m not a cop! I wouldn’t be caught dead working with one of those useless toads in uniform.” you instantly corrected. “I’m here for answers, not to have my time wasted.”

“Feisty. I like a feisty cadet.” he leaned back, a sadistic smile gracing his lips. “One of mine got hit last night.” he cut right to the chase. 

“That’s your excuse? Really?” you raised an eyebrow. 

“That’s not all. I wasn’t even here last night, I was taking care of business. Got into a pretty bad fight and managed to rip this off the asshole.” he dug into his pocket and pulled out a cloth patch. On it was a red snake with white eyes.

“That’s the symbol that was found on the body last night!” you realized. “You said you were fighting somebody?”

“Yep, and this isn’t my symbol. I don’t do snakes.” he threw the patch on the table. “All I know is that I wanna find the asshole who did this to one of mine so I can put a blade through his head.”

“Well I wanna bring justice to a woman who lost her husband behind petty violence.” you uncrossed your arms. “People like you piss me off you know.”

“People like me make the world go round, cadet. I say the only way for you to get your guy is for us to work together.”

“Me...work with you.” you rolled your eyes. “Yeah, that’ll happen.”

“Think about it. With me, no one will even think of messing with you, Detective.” he leaned forward, a smirk painted on his lips. “Plus, you could help me get rid of a few headaches of my own.”

“So you want me, a detective that makes a living of bringing assholes like you in to help you?”

“I’m the best lead you have so far and probably only source of evidence you have so far, cadet.” he winked. You despised that stupid pet-name he for some reason coined for you. “Your choice.”

You’d rather die than get help from a criminal like Ackerman...but he was right. He was the most helpful source you had right. “Fine.”

“Eh?”

“You help me...I take down my guy and help you catch yours. Deal?”

“I had no idea your were a dirty cop, cadet.”

“Only when I want something.” you replied. “Like I said, I’m not a cop. What do you say, Ackerman?”

“Hm, I like you Detective...when do we begin?”

...

“You’re working with a criminal!”

“Ryan, do not start with me.” you groaned. “I’m doing this for Mrs. Johnson.” You stood outside a hotel, shifting on your toes as people dressed like you walked up the grand steps. Ryan was basically yelling at you on the phone.

“Joining forces with that guy?! Have you lost your mind?!” you could just hear him exploding on the other end of the line.

“I said don’t start!” you glared down at your phone screen. “He has information, he has ties, I need both.” you adjusted your dress.

“I get that, but being his plus one to a gala full of criminals? Black market much!? He could be tricking you!”

“Probably.” you replied, shrugging. Even thought he couldn’t see,  “But there’s no reason I can’t check it out.”

“You’re gonna get yourself killed. This guy could be tricking you.”

“Maybe.” you stood up. “I’ll be ready for him though.” you straightened yourself up.

Levi was invited to what he called a ‘black tie affair’. He told you that you were going to be his plus one. Every bigshot would be there, rich men and women, CEOs, Businessmen and most of all...the worlds richest lawbreakers.

You hung up your phone without saying anything, shoving the device back into your clutch. It’s now or never.

“I didn’t think you’d show up.”

You turned your head to see Levi walking up. “I was beginning to think you had rethought out deal.”

“Please.” you scoffed. “Let’s just get this over with.” you dug your nails into your clutch, stopping yourself from insulting him.

“Shall we, cadet?”

Instead of snapping at him to stop calling you that god-awful petname, you linked arms with him and allowed him to lead you up the stairs.

You were soon in a huge room with blaring orchestral music. As you suspected, rich bastards and bitches from all walks of life were there, talking as if they were friends. You knew the police force was corrupt but to see just how many, it put you off.

“Everyone’s staring at you.” Levi leaned over and whispered into your ear. “Do you know how many woman would kill to be near me right now?”

“The same amount of fucks I give about how many women would kill to be near you right now.” you answered, clearly uninterested in the amount of people who wanted to fuck this guy.

“Just stay close, princess. The minute you’re left alone, they’ll be waiting to dig their claws into you.”

“How reassuring.” you rolled your eyes. 

... (One hour later)

“Shit, where are we?” you asked as Levi led you down a brightly lit hallway.

“Technically under the hotel.” he answered. “He went this way.” he had a firm grip on your wrist. “Stay close.”

“The world is getting more and more corrupt. Illegal auctions at hotels?” you shivered in disgust. “Whatever, let’s find him and demand answers so I can leave.”

“As you wish, princess.” he laughed. “He should be heading this way. We just have to watch out.” 

“Let me guess, we aren’t supposed to be here.” you scoffed. 

“No, not that. It’s just I don’t want anyone thinking you’re part of the auction.” he winked. 

“Okay EW!” You felt your stomach turn. “Please never say that again.”

Just as you were about say something else, someone came around the corner. You didn’t have time to register panic because Levi suddenly pinned you against the nearest wall with a thud. 

“What are you-” you were cut off by Levi holding onto the back of your neck and pulling you into a feverish kiss. He balled up your dress in his fist and he held you up against the wall. You could tell whoever turned the corner was surprised to see you in such a compromising position. 

You instantly caught on and kissed Levi back, wrapping your arms around his neck. His fingers ghosted over your exposed thigh from the slit in the dress. His free hand rested on your cheek as he slid his tongue into your mouth, really selling it.

To make it look even more compromising, you held onto his blazer pulling him against you.

You weren’t sure what it was, but Levi released a low groan against your lips. You weren’t sure if he was acting anymore. 

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize-” a scared voice caused you both to glare in the direction of whoever was talking. You instantly took note of the red snake tattoo on his forearm. One quick gaze at Levi and he instantly understood.

Levi instantly zipped over and grabbed the guy by the throat, holding him up against the wall. 

“Listen here you worthless worm, you’re gonna tell me everything I wanna know.” he snarled. You stood behind Levi, digging the patch out of your clutch.

“Who does this belong to?” you asked, holding it up to his face.

“I don’t know, I swear!”

“Wrong answer.” Levi tightened his grasp. “Every time you bullshit me, I get closer to suffocating you.”

“Okay okay!” the guy cried. “Please don’t kill me!” 

“Tick tock, buddy.” you impatiently crossed your arms. “We don’t have all day.” 

“My boss is gonna kill me.” the scared man shook in his shoes. His feet were barely touching the ground at this point. “It’s a patch off of a jacket belonging to the White Snakes.”

“Were they at a nightclub two nights ago?” you asked. 

“Yes.” he nodded frantically. “Please...don’t kill me.”

Levi dropped the young man, who fell to his knees. “You’re gonna tell us everything we want to know...starting with this little boss of yours.”

... (Another hour later)

You were back in your apartment, looking through the results Ryan had come back with. Levi had insisted on following you incase anyone was dumb enough to follow you home.

“So what’s the verdict, cadet?”

“If Ryan’s conclusions are right, and they usually always are. Then that guy was right.” you sighed. “I’m gonna be on a man hunt.”

“You mean we.” he corrected. “I have someone to catch too.” 

You took a good look at Levi. You knew he used to be a former captain or something. It probably came in handy when it came to talking to his gang. Your mind instantly wandered back to that kiss. You could still feel his fingertips against you. Part of you wanted him to do it again. 

“Alright.” you knocked yourself out of it. “I have a meeting in the morning so-” you took one step and nearly tripped over your own two feet. Stupid dress! 

“Woah!” Levi caught you, holding you in his arms. “Be careful.”

“Sorry! It’s this-” you gazed up at his face. “Dress.” you realized how close he was. 

Damnit! You were a P.I! This was a criminal! Why were you feeling this way.

“Um...w-we’ll meet up tomorrow.” Levi helped you stand up straight. “Be prepared.”

He left without another word, his face bright red.

[cuefog]

tog/khunbam fic rec

this is for @cannottranslate​ because you asked for it and i am grateful for the excuse to make a fic rec post

i expect this will be a long post so i’ll put it under read ↓ 

i’ll be leaving my own thoughts and comments under each fic (im sorry in advance for rambling too much)!! if you want the full summary and other info please click on the link provided lol

!!webtoon spoilers beware!!

♡ = one of my favourites

canon timeline

(these will be the ones that are set in the canon world and follow major plot events, even if there some changes in the details and relationships)

♡ deep sea blue by Feyren ♡

please read everything written by feyren!!!! lovely prose, wonderfully written khunbam emotional tension. khun braiding his beautiful hair accompanied by symbolism and perfectly crafted metaphor. bonus earrings.

♡ hollow moons by NoteInABottle ♡

please also read everything by noteinabottle!! equally lovely prose, wonderfully written khunbam emotional tension. khun wearing earrings and giving them to bam, accompanied by lots of symbolism and perfectly crafted metaphor. you could probably consider this a companion fic to feyren’s deep sea blue. both of these fics gave me a Thing for khun’s earrings (>_<;)``

take my hand (take my whole life too) by RadiantAshe

our dear ashe has written lots of great stuff but i think this is my favourite!! so much khunbam softness, very classic s3 vibes <33

Chestnuts at Nighttime by khunfounded (ongoing)

khun with a cat who loves him very much, and vice versa. that’s all the explanation you need. this fic overloads my heart with cute soft fluffy feelings!!! (bonus khun and bam dolls with little hands made of velcro so they can hold each other’s hands (ʘ‿ʘ✿) please i can’t take any more of this, somebody help my heart is gonna explode)

a thousand paths to you by LiannaAila

set during the time of khun’s coma. bam travels to a parallel universe and meets an alive and awake khun. this fic is exactly what it says it is and it’s so lovely <3

oh no he’s hot (and other earth-shattering revelations) by Bird_of_Dreams

tldr; bam being thirsty over khun

khun aguero agnis and his growing competency kink by chuuyaya

tldr; khun being thirsty over bam

motion by smokeandwaves (rated Explicit)

set during hell train, khunbam focused. this one is really popular in the fandom!! it’s well written, and if you consider smut a genre i would say this is the best one in the tog tag. lots of emotions, and a wonderful flow of feeling!! also it has a few sequel fics in the series, ‘obedience’ in particular being all about sub!khun,, which is,, (*ﾉωﾉ)

sometimes when i look into your eyes i pretend you're mine by agueros (minamis)

residents of the tower ship jue viole grace and khun aguero agnis and write fanfiction about them (i love these types of fics lmao)

From: Khun by AngrySheepProject  and To you who lies with my heart under the sea by Strawbellie666 (ongoing)

khun messaging bam’s pocket when he thought he was dead in s2

canon divergence + future canonverse

(future fics means it’s set in the future of the current canon, which at the nest arc rn)

♡ A World Without You by Breaking_Formation ♡

this one might be my favourite out of all of them. i know it says major character death but it happens in the beginning and there’s a promised happy ending so don’t worry!!! this one is a beautiful 20k word masterpiece.... seriously..... this fic is set after the nest arc, it has lots of Plot and plays around with the world and the lore of the Tower, so it’s already fascinating that way, but the real heart of the story is in the emotions!! if you love witnessing khun’s endless devotion to bam, this is the fic that shows you that devotion reflected right back at khun. it might bring you to tears :’)

♡ Our Hearts Are Made of Stars by Ruinous ♡ (ongoing)

out of the 5 or so other time travel au fics in the tog fandom, this one is definitely my favourite!! time travel aus are all super fun to read, but this one stood out to me especially because it hits all the right spots!! it’s written well and i love the level of foresight, and the emotions detailed into this, it really feels like the friendships and bonds are at the heart of this story and all the fighting stuff will turn out just fine, and everything will be ok :)

♡ enough by Feyren ♡

future fic, set in a cocktail party on the 87th floor. this is so well written!!!!! again, please just read everything written by feyren. the prose is wonderful and everything going on in this fic feels so well-crafted and carefully executed with just the right amount of subtlety in all the emotions. i think it’s gorgeous.

fire and ice by soundscape (ongoing)

set vaguely in the future. still ongoing, and the story feels like it’s just started, but very intriguing plot!! premise is people trying to separate khun from bam + the team trying to deal with shady fug plots

dig down deep by milkywxy (ongoing)

this one is a plotty one!! diverges from canon at the hidden floor arc. bam decides not to let rachel go with them. im super interested to see where this story goes!!

where the current leaves us by macrauchenia (ongoing)

this one is a Plotty one, still in the early stages of plot development but the premise is super interesting!! basically khun takes bam’s place in the bubble with rachel, during the administrator’s test on the 2nd floor. i’m excited to see where this story goes :D

special mentions for “bam climbs the tower” remix concept fics that you might like to check out (this is for you dango, since you said you like togverse canon divergence :D)

Moonlight by Shadow_to_rant (ongoing, khun meets bam in cave instead of rachel)

Timeless Existence by Jazebeth (Barrattiel) (ongoing, time travel au series)

Second Chance by Shadow_to_rant (ongoing, time travel au)

Never Let You Go by eternus (ongoing, time travel au)

Il Principe by euludey (ongoing, bam with different backstory/origins)

Night Never Falls by TripleTurtles (ongoing, au where rachel doesn’t succeed at pushing bam off the bubble on the 2nd floor)

Child of Arlene by MoodleNoodle (ongoing, bam is adopted by jahad before canon timeline)

au

♡ the king and his lionheart by chuuyaya ♡

khunbam royalty au with bam as king, khun as a genius war strategist. bonus pda in front of a whole courtroom. what more could you want?? this was soooo satisfying to read, i enjoyed it a lot :D (please also check out chuuyaya’s other fics if you like khunbam aus!!)

if there's anything in this life ive been waiting for (its you) by trueaguero (ongoing)

fascinating au where everyone is outside the tower and the tower is part of history. perhaps you could call this a “post-tower au” ?

if my heart was a house by The_Winged_Warrior

very cute magical fantasy au!! khun runs a potion shop and bam is an adventurer

aus are pretty self explanatory so i’ll put the rest in a list:

you are the magic in me by silverinerivers (ongoing, hogwarts au)

hope and legacy by chuuyaya (figure skating au)

♡ jump then fall (i'll catch you) by agueros (minamis) ♡ (figure skating au, consider it a prequel to ‘hope and legacy’, this is a beautiful 13k-word love letter to figure skating <3)

of social media and turtles by chuuyaya (celeb au with social media bits)

i am the last olympian by argenteas (percy jackson au)

who else is there to love but you? by khuns (college au, very soft pining!!)

Lucky coin by bothersomepotato (ongoing, college business majors au)

Greedy Turtles by Alien_ships (ongoing, on the surface it seems like just a pet shop au but there’s a lot of care and attention paid to the characters and relationship dynamics :D)

and i will come to you at every first snow by aguerobaam (khun is a magical doll in a toy store)

the heart heist by paused (ongoing, cyberpunk au)

khun special category

(it’s all about khun here)

♡ all the blue in the world won’t do, without you by NoteInABottle ♡ (ongoing)

multichapter fic set on khun eduan’s 111th floor!! if you’re too impatient to wait for the khun family arc, you should just read this fic. it’s still ongoing as of the time i made this post but it’s already looking to have all the elements i want out of a khun family arc. it’s written so so well too!! noteinabottle is one of my favourite tog authors :D

Brothers and sisters, I'm an atomic bomb by gleek_runner (ongoing series)

a wonderfully well written series of fics focusing on interactions between members of the khun family!!!! im just a sucker for the khun kids and im always starving for khun family content

He Wonders if He Still Breathes by Chocolatesandblood

khun and ran interactions!!

putting his resolve to the test. by soundscape

khun and hachuling interactions!!

Autumn Angel by XprincessxofxspadesX

khunbam meets maria and a series of complicated and fascinating interactions occurs. this was very nice to read ;w;

[butgilinsky]

angels & demons // rc

warning; angst, language, drugs, alcohol, alludes to violence but not graphic, basically everything that comes with rafe cameron, a toxic relationship

summary; y/n knows that rafe has demons, but for some reason she can’t pull herself away from him

word count; 1.8k+

i’m in no way trying to romanticize things that rafe does in the show, and i sure as hell don’t condone any of it. i’m not trying to romanticize toxic relationships or anything that comes w them, i just LOVE this song and it gives me rafe vibes soo.. idk i recommend listening to this song, it’s v good and this fic kind of reminds me of my dark writing style. if you’ve read my unfinished series rivals, it gives me those vibes a little.

based on angels & demons by jxdn

Two face, two face, yeah Black white, left right, yeah Up down, all night, yeah

the second they entered the house, rafe was ripped away from y/n. she rolled her eyes at the empty feeling in her hand, knowing that it would’ve happened sooner or later, despite the string of promises she received on the way to the house. 

“baby, i’ll be by your side, i promise.” 

the promise was empty, but most of the promises that rafe offered were. she’d fallen accustomed to the lies and the broken promises, barely batting an eye anymore. 

so she linked her arm around her friend’s neck and smiled at the happy expression she received. the girl locked her arms around y/n and swayed from side to side, rambling about how she didn’t think she’d see y/n at all tonight. 

the next time she saw rafe he was high, though that didn’t surprise her either. his arm wrapped around her abdomen, a soft kiss pressed to the back of her head before she leaned back and offered her lips to him. 

“you smell like beer.” she commented softly, hearing him hum before disregarding the statement all together. 

“i’ve had a lot.” he shrugged softly, the alcohol barely a factor in his behavior due to his tolerance. with the help of his height and his build, rafe had built a tolerance over the years. excessive drinking in high school had helped with that. 

she turned back to her conversation, smiling drunkenly at the girl that had been talking to her for the past half hour before rafe tugged on her waist subtly. the girl that was talking wasn’t picking up on rafe’s sudden urge to leave, but y/n was painfully aware of it all. 

“let’s go.” his lips pressed to the back of her ear, gripping her hip tighter when she didn’t respond right away. 

she smiled at the girl again and told her she had to go since it was getting late, before turning and looking up at rafe who wore a dazed smile. she nudged him softly, hand falling in his before he pulled her through the crowd and out of the house. 

Can't escape it ever Don't forget my name I don't feel the same On a trip, no train

rafe’s head fell backwards, his eyes screwed shut as he sighed out into the air above him. the breeze was cold against his searing skin, and his nose began to itch. it had only been a few lines, but it was enough to drown out the voice in his head, numbing the thoughts but not the ache in his chest. 

his eyes locked on his girlfriend, just a few yards away from him talking to a boy he’d forgotten the name of due to the lack of interest in it. her eyes found rafe’s quickly, and it only took a clenched jaw from rafe to dismiss herself from the conversation. 

she sent the boy a polite smile before stalking over to rafe, his hand reaching out for her when she was close enough. he pulled her into his lap easily, ignoring the fact that she definitely did not want to sit at the coke covered table. 

her head fell on top of his, her cheek smushing to the side slightly while she let her mind drift off elsewhere. rafe was talking to somebody across the table but she wasn’t paying attention, absentmindedly bringing her cup to her lips to drown out the sounds. 

“you alright?” she asked rafe after he’d gone quiet after a while, and he nodded shortly. “you look kind of out of it.” 

“need another line.” he said simply, tapping the side of her thigh quickly. 

she sighed but shuffled out of rafe’s lap at the silent command. she stayed close by, knowing she’d be sought out for if she wandered off, and it would ultimately cause more problems than not. 

And all these angels and demons Keep shouting and screaming I'm falling from Eden

she knocked on the door quickly, bouncing on her feet impatiently while waiting for the door to swing open. when it finally did, topper threw his thumb over his shoulder and she slid through the doorway. 

she jogged upstairs and around every corner, hearing the shouting all the way from the front door. the sight of her boyfriend pacing around the room filled her vision. he was tugging at his hair and mumbling incoherent thoughts while kelce stared at him in defeat. 

“rafe.” both pair of eyes snapped up to meet hers, finally allowing her to see the tears running down rafe’s cheeks as he crashed. 

he sighed softly, sending her an exhausted look before she walked over to him. she wrapped her arms around the boy, smiling at kelce when he excused himself out of the room to give the couple space. 

y/n pulled rafe to sit on the bed, letting him lean into her fully and cry into her chest. she knew how it was when he came down from a high, especially when his high was meant to cover up a shitty day. 

“i can’t stop thinking.” she sighed, trying to calm the boy, despite the constant ringing in his ears. 

“i’m right here, baby. you’re okay.”

So fuck me like a rockstar Dancing on a cop car Nothing in the world can stop me now

“rafe, get down, right now!” rafe scoffed loudly at his girlfriend five feet below him, waving her off when topper reached up to hand him a freshly filled cup. 

“dance with me, baby.” he bent his knees, nearing her height but still hovering over her. he held out his hand but she pushed it away quickly, glaring at him in the process. 

“rafe you’re going to get arrested. you can’t sit in a jail cell while you’re high, baby, get down.” he rolled his eyes and stood back up, wearing a drunken smirk while he ignored his girlfriend’s pleas. 

she watched for a moment longer before turning on her heels and storming off. she wasn’t going to sit around and watch rafe dig a hole from himself, though she seemed to be doing that for years at this point. 

Fucked up like a rockstar Ridin' in a cop car No one in the world can help me now

she grabbed her card back from the woman across the desk, not even bothering to smile while she signed multiple papers. her head snapped at the sound of a husky voice she’d recognize anywhere, though this time it made her growl in anger. 

“baby, i’m so sorry. thank you for coming-” 

“i don’t want to hear it, rafe.” she handed the papers back to the woman and waited for the man to unlock rafe’s cuffs before she walked out of the station, rafe hot on her heels. 

“y/n, please, i’m sorry. i didn’t mean to fuck up again baby, i swear.” she stopped on the sidewalk, turning to face the boy as her anger practically seeped out of her. 

“that’s the thing, rafe. you keep fucking your life up no matter how much i try to stop you. i can’t help you if you don’t want to be helped, rafe.” he looked down at his feet, the words he’d heard her say multiple times ringing between both of his ears. “just get in the car. you’re lucky they didn’t call your dad, rafe.” 

Everybody said that I'm falling Took another line I'm calling I'm so sick of the nonsense I'mma dive into the mosh pit

“can you stop lecturing me for one fucking second?” his voice was loud and harsh, and would’ve knocked anyone else down a notch. fortunately for the girl in front of him, she’d grown to figure out how to stand her ground for the time being. 

“i’m not lecturing you. i’m trying to help you, rafe-”

“well you’re not fucking helping! i’m sick of the bullshit, y/n. i’m sick of trying to make everyone happy, so just let me deal with my own shit.” she stood firm in her place on the sand, watching rafe stomp off. 

she ignored the burning gazes on her, turning around and walking off of the beach. if rafe didn’t want her to bother him, then she would stop bothering him. so she left the boneyard, slipped into her car and drove away. 

I don't really think I'm the problem I don't really think it's a problem Me plus me is a problem One gun shot could solve 'em

her back leaned against the door, her eyes trained on the carpet below her though she was painfully aware of the sobs that filled the room. she hadn’t spoken in almost an hour, listening to his string of apologies and excuses. one minute he didn’t think anything was wrong with him, and the next he claimed his world was crashing around him. 

he fell to his knees in front of her, digging his face into her stomach and gripping her hips. she sighed softly, ignoring the single tear rolling down her cheek and dropped her hand on top of his head. she scratched at his scalp gently, hearing his sobs turn to sniffles. 

“i’m so sorry.” he spoke softly, almost too soft for her to hear. 

“i’ve hear that too many times, rafe.” he shook his head quickly, looking up at y/n with wide eyes that glistened from the sheen of tears that covered them. the moon that seeped through his window casted a beautiful light across his face, one that reminded her how she’d ended up in this messy love story. 

“i mean it, y/n. i know i went too far this time and i’m sorry.” 

she wanted to laugh. too far was an understatement. he’d committed, arguably, the worst crime known to man, and he called it ‘too far’. every day of her life before this one, she would’ve sworn that anything like that would’ve driven her away from a person, no matter her ties to them. 

but somehow, the boy on his knees in front of her looked up at her with a look in his eyes that she couldn’t imagine never seeing again. she couldn’t imagine never waking up next to him, or never feeling his lips pressed against hers. she couldn’t imagine a life without rafe cameron, and part of her hated that. 

unfortunately, she saw how rafe tried to rationalize his actions. she saw how deeply rooted his demons were, and she saw how his mind ticked in such a way that she’d never seen a person tick before. she knew his intentions were less than pure, but they were far from malicious. 

“run away with me.” he looked up at her with such desperation, the thought of a life where the two of them could forget about everything around them bringing him a joy he hadn’t felt in years. “baby, let’s run away.” 

she hated that that sounded like heaven to her. 

[writingpitcheswearingpearls]

Nothing Says Soulmates More Than Sharing a Soul: Chapter 13

Ao3 Link

Once out of Danny’s body, Phantom found himself hyperventilating and his vision fading to black around the edges. This was it; the moment of truth. He was about to find out what Danny thought of him now that he’d seen his true colours.

“W-What just happened?” The sound of Tuckers voice got Phantom to turn and face him, which the ghost immediately regretted. Standing in front of Phantom with clenched fists and a heaving chest was Danny. There was so much pain and anger in his eyes, Phantom couldn’t help but immediately burst into tears.

“Danny, I –”

“Get out! I don’t want to see you!” Danny cut in with a furious growl. Phantom’s eyes widened with fear. He tried to say something, anything, but all he could let out was a pathetic whimper before turning and flying away as fast as he could.

As he frantically flew over the town, he felt pure dread fill his entire being. His absolute worst fear had been founded. Danny hated him the second he knew the truth, and now he’s lost the most important person in his life. Not only that, but he’s lost everyone else that’s important to him too. After all, it wouldn’t make sense for anyone to pick him over Danny. They’d only ever been there for him because they were under the impression that he was the friend they knew and loved, not some stranger who didn’t even have a clue who he really was.

Not being able to think clearly, Phantom flew straight back to Danny’s room and collapsed onto Danny’s bed, curling in on himself as he sobbed into the pillow that so painfully smelled of Danny. He knew he shouldn’t be there, but he had no idea where he was meant to go and it was the only place he felt safe. He figured as long as he left before Danny got back, there wouldn’t be any trouble.

“Danny? Are you back?”

At the sound of Jazz’s voice, Phantom choked on a sob. He somehow needed her and couldn’t handle the idea of talking to her. Immediately, Jazz burst into the room and rushed to him, apparently hearing him through the wall. She sat next to him and began giving frantic, yet still soothing strokes up and down his back.

“Danny! Are you hurt? What happened?” She asked in a panicked tone. At the sound of the name she called him by, he let out a small moan of distress and curled further into himself.

We haven’t told her yet…She still thinks I’m him.

“I- I’m not…” He tried to say through his sobbing, but the pain and fear attached to what he was trying to say made it all that much harder to let out.

“It’s okay. You can tell me anything, little brother.” She encouraged in a gentle voice full of protective feelings and love that he didn’t deserve. Finally, he found the strength to push himself up and back away from her touch.

“That’s just it! I’m not your little brother!” He exclaimed, bringing his arms close to his body and digging his nails into his biceps. It was all he could do to stop the frost that was building around him from spreading any further and hurting Jazz. He wanted to look up to see her reaction, but he couldn’t bring himself to.

“Don’t say that –”

“But it’s true! I was never actually Danny! I’m just some pathetic ghost that latched itself onto him, leeching off his memories and his friendships! Now you know the truth, you’ll want me gone too!” He cried out, lifting his hands to his face to clench his hairline.

“Phantom…” She said softly, before her hands wrapped around his to pull them away from his face.

“Please look at me. I… I already knew that you weren’t Danny.” That made him look at her.

“What? But then why did you call me that earlier?” He questioned with eyes wide with shock.

“It was a reflex, sorry. Having thought of you as Danny for four years, it will be hard to get used to the truth, even though I’ve had a couple of days to wrap my head around it. The point is that I know you’re not Danny, but I also know that nothing else you said was true.” She explained with a serious, yet empathetic expression. He opened his mouth to protest but was cut off when she raised her hand to gesture that she wasn’t done.

“You talk about yourself like some sort of malicious parasite, but that isn’t true at all. You’re a hero and the last thing I’d call you was pathetic!” She reassured. Phantom shook his head and looked away.

“You can’t know that. I have no idea what type of person I was before Danny, so who’s to say that fusing with him wasn’t intentional?” Phantom argued. The room was silent, and Phantom was afraid that what he’d said had convinced her.

“When that alternate future version of you fused with Vlad’s ghost, did he immediately go evil?” She asked.

Fuck, she thinks I’m going to go evil!

“I- I think so. I’m not sure.” He answered, shaking from how fast his core was pulsing with panic. He risked a look at her, only to become shocked to find her smiling.

“Great. So it stands to reason that when somebody fuses with an evil ghost, they are influenced to take on those evil traits. When Danny fused with you, he didn’t become evil, he became a hero. What do you think that says about who you were?” She explained with a confident tone that she reserved for when she was pretty sure she just won an argument. To Phantom’s confusion, it may have been warranted. He couldn’t find a way to argue with what she said. The calm only lasted a moment before he remembered the last time he spoke to Danny.

“Well, just because I didn’t go in a shit person, doesn’t mean I’m not a shit person now. You don’t know what I’ve done since separating from Danny.” He redirected. Her brow quirked in confusion.

“It can’t be that bad.”

“The second Danny found out, he never wanted to see me again.” Jazz blanched at his statement, visibly taken aback by it.

“What? That can’t be right. He wouldn’t –”

“But he did! He was everything to me and now that he hates me I’ve got nothing!” Phantom cried out, frost flashing out of him and spreading around the room, causing Jazz to flinch and jump up from the bed in shock.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to do that!” He apologised quickly, nearly reaching for her before thinking better of it. Jazz looked around the room at the ice damage, breath slowing down.

“It’s okay Phantom, you just surprised me. I’m not hurt. Has this been happening a lot?” She eventually said. Phantom groaned as he dragged his hands down his face.

“Yes. I can’t control my powers properly, especially my ice core. Danny has been helping me, but… without him I don’t think I’ll be safe around people anymore.” He admitted. The only place safe for him would probably be the Far Frozen. Frostbyte would surely take him in, even if he’s only half of “The Great One”. Jazz sighed, before sitting on the bed again.

“Phantom, I’m one hundred percent certain that if you just talk it out with Danny, you’ll find that he doesn’t hate you. That being said… spending some time away from him might be a good thing.” Phantom’s eyes snapped back to her, scared by what she’d said.

Is she telling me to leave?

Something about his expression must have told Jazz to realise what he was thinking, as her eyes widened and she suddenly raised her hands into a gesture that read “I mean no harm”.

“I’m not telling you to leave! I’m just saying that if you do leave, it may be good for you. It’s clear that you’re extremely dependant on Danny, so spending time away from him could help you develop as an individual and self-regulate.” She clarified. Phantom felt his shoulders drop, not realising that he had hunched them in the first place as he thought about what she said. Those sounded like things he wanted, but the idea of being separated from Danny for a long time gave him an uncomfortable tightness in his chest.

“In any case, you should wait until you talk to Danny before deciding anything. If you’re wrong about how he feels it will feel awful to leave with such a painful misunderstanding lingering between you. If you’re right, you’ll regret leaving without a proper chance to apologise and reconcile.” Jazz added on, bringing his attention back to her. The smile she gave him was warm and understanding, which he found deeply relieving.

“Thanks Jazz. For the advice… and for still caring about me even though I’m not your brother.” Phantom thanked sincerely, hoping his tone conveyed how deeply he meant those words. For a moment, Jazz’s eyes watered, before she suddenly lunged at him and pulled him into a hug.

“Listen closely Phantom, because if you don’t, I’m going to have to repeat it until it gets into that ectoplasmic skull of yours. Just because you aren’t Danny does not mean you aren’t my brother! You have been a part of my family for the past four years and that doesn’t end just because we aren’t blood related, you hear?!” She declared, voice shaking with emotion. Phantom couldn’t help but cry as he wrapped his arms around her back and clung desperately to his big sister.

~

“Dude, are you okay?” Tucker’s words cut through the tense silence. Danny turned to him and took in the concerned expressions of his two best friends. He groaned as he turned back away, too emotional to make eye contact with either of them.

“Not really.” He admitted lowly. So many emotions were bubbling inside him at that moment. Anger, betrayal, embarrassment, but mostly confusion. He wasn’t even sure confusion was an emotion, but he sure was feeling it.

“Did you want to talk about it?” Sam asked cautiously.

“Yeah, what the hell happened back there?” Tucker chimed in, voice raising in confusion. Normally, he would have loved to fill his friends in on what happened, but to do that he would have had to have processed what happened, and he did not want to do that any time soon.

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Danny growled bluntly, hoping his anger would mask his fear.

“But –”

“Drop it, Tucker. He’ll talk about it when he’s ready.” Sam cut in. She offered Danny a supportive smile, which he tried to reflect back weakly.

“Fine, topic dropped. What do we want to do now, if we’re avoiding dealing with our problems?” Tucker relented. Danny was almost stunned for a moment. If he had told his fourteen-year-old self that Sam would be the one enabling him not to process his feelings and Tucker would be the vaguely more responsible one, he would have gotten a laugh and a “good one, Amorpho” from him, before immediately getting attacked. The thought made him chuckle lowly, before thinking of how to answer his friend’s question.

With everything he was feeling, he wanted nothing more but to distract himself from what had just transpired between him and Phantom. He was even willing to do something he had been avoiding doing ever since he became a hero.

“Is it too soon to go to Mikey’s party? I really just need to get drunk right now.” Danny asked, finally turning to face his friends. Tucker snorted out a short laugh.

“It won’t start for another couple of hours, and it won’t be cool to show up for another few.” He answered matter-o-factly. Danny groaned. He should have realised. Years of not being able to go to parties really made him a complete novice at them. Seeing his disappointment, Sam stepped closer to Danny with an encouraging smile.

“If you wanted something to do while we wait for the party, we could have drinks at my house and play video games.” She suggested.

“Pre-drinking before a house party? Wow, we are finally acting like real teenagers!” Tucker cheered enthusiastically. Danny put on a grin, hoping it conveyed his gratefulness to both his friends, while concealing the feelings he desperately wanted to ignore.

After sneaking into Sam’s parents’ liquor cabinet and several rounds of Ultimate Mecha Strike III that got progressively worse the more the trio drank, Tucker finally announced that it was fashionably late enough to show up at the party.

Sneaking more booze into their bags, the three of them took off on foot towards Mikey’s house, which was luckily only a short distance from Sam’s estate. Being in the same part of the neighbourhood, Danny really shouldn’t have been surprised by how nice Mikey’s house was. Not as intense as Sam’s “old money” mansion, but still quite fancy.

“Wow, drunk Danny sure is interested in architecture.” Tucker commented teasingly.

“Oh shit, was I talking out loud?” Danny asked, immediately being answered by two grinning nods.

Before they could knock on the front door, it swung open to reveal a red-faced Mikey with a wide, excited smile.

“Danny! You came!” He exclaimed far louder than necessary. Tucker cleared his throat.

“We’re here too, y’know.” He grumbled, making Danny and Sam giggle. Mikey took a big step back and gestured for them to enter.

“Come on in! If you brought drinks, you’re best to put them in the fridge now if they need it. We’re running out of room fast!” He advised, before wandering off at the sound of someone shouting his name from the other room.

Standing in the doorway, Danny felt his heart racing. Here he was, at a real-life high school party that he was invited to. He was drunk and without a care in the world, with no responsibilities or ghosts to worry about –

Suddenly, the thought of ghost brought a vision of beautiful green eyes to his mind. He shook the thought out of his head, before pacing further into the house to find something to distract him.

“Hey! It’s Fenton!” Turning to face the sound of the voice, he saw Kwan and a group of footballers gathering around a ping pong table. The rosy tint in Kwan’s cheeks and the delighted smile brought a warm feeling in Danny’s stomach. Before the jock could even gesture for him to come over, Danny found himself gravitating in his direction.

“You up for some beer pong? You can be on my team!” Kwan offered. Danny chuckled.

“Sure, but I’m warning you that I am already pretty drunk, so my aim is probably shit.” He warned, winning a light laugh from the group of jocks.

“All good, bro! That just means an even playing field!” A footballer he couldn’t remember the name of called out, words slurring together slightly.

Danny turned to ask Sam and Tucker if they wanted to play, to find that they had only just caught up to him.

“Do you guys want to play?” He asked. Sam rolled her eyes.

“Ugh, no thank you. I hate beer, and they probably don’t have a vegan friendly one, either.” She replied. Danny did a double take.

“Wait, beer can be not vegan? How?” He asked, very confused. Before she could answer, Danny felt himself being pushed toward the ping pong table by Tucker.

“Come on dude. You know she won’t stop once she gets started.” With a shrug, Danny returned his focus to the group of footballers.

“Alright, let’s do this! Now… how do you play?”

Danny wasn’t sure how, but he managed to be insanely good at beer pong, quickly annihilating Tucker and the other team and winning an uproar in cheers from his own team.

Learning how to aim while losing blood must have been good training for this very moment.

Busy chuckling at his own thoughts, Danny was caught off guard when he was suddenly swept into a bear hug by Kwan.

“That was legendary, bro! Seriously, is there nothing I can say to convince you to join the football team?” The boy gushed, ruffling a hand through Danny’s hair and messing it up even further.

“Yeah, especially considering sign ups are well and truly over and this is our final year?” Danny replied, not sure whether to return the hug or not. The contact certainly felt nice, but there was something this was just… off about it. Maybe it was the fact that Kwan seemed to be running hot too, so there was no cooling relief like when he was holding Phanto –

No. He wasn’t letting himself think about him. It hurt too much.

“Oh, right. My bad.” Kwan laughed, pulling away from Danny. He had to admit that the jock was quite handsome, and the glistening of his sweat was weirdly mesmerising.

“Wow, dude. You sure are hot.”

“WHAT?” Danny exclaimed, not sure if his line of thinking had made him hallucinate hearing that or if it had actually happened. Kwan laughed again.

“I meant your temperature, bro. Are you coming down with something?” At that question, Tucker jumped into the conversation, wrapping an arm around his best friend.

“Nah, he’s fine. He’s just running warm because of his growth spurt, that’s all.” Tucker explained, with a dismissive wave of his hand.

“That checks out. You did seem to fit four years of growing into like, three days. Why don’t you have one of my rum and cokes to cool down? They’re in the fridge door!” Kwan offered, before waving and wondering back to the footballers.

“Danny, are you alright? You really are burning up…” Tucker commented, voice laced with concerned. Danny sighed before slinking out from under Tucker’s arm and stomping towards the kitchen.

“Look, I don’t want to talk about how I’m feeling, I just want to drink until I can’t feel my fingers, okay?” If he couldn’t feel his fingers, maybe he wouldn’t remember how Phantom felt underneath them. Maybe he wouldn’t want to run them through his ghostly hair and relish in how soft it was.

“Whoa, take it easy, okay buddy? I don’t want you getting hurt.” Tucker advised; voice laced with concern. While Danny appreciated that Tucker cared, he was in no mood to be lectured, so he ignored the warning and continued his path towards the fridge and grabbed one of Kwan’s cans. When he was halfway through downing it, revelling in the cooling sensation, he heard a sigh come from his friend.

“I’m going to go find Sam. I think I need her help with this.” He admitted reluctantly. Danny huffed with indignation.

“Fine, go get her. Neither of you will be able to stop me from having fun tonight.” He scoffed. Hearing a surprising chuckle from a new voice, Danny pivoted suddenly toward the source of the sound to see Spike leaning in the doorway.

“Damn, Danny. I am loving your new look on you. Have you ever thought about eye liner? I think it would look awesome on you.” Spike commented, eyes tracing up and down Danny. For a moment, the blue-eyed boy shivered under the gaze, before offering a non-committal shrug.

“Come with me, I’m going to put some on you now.” With that, the punk boy had grabbed Danny’s free arm and tugged him towards what looked like an entertainment room, before pushing Danny onto a fairly large couch and stepping out of view. Quickly he returned with a bag and was pulling out an eyeliner pencil. Any concerns about getting pink eye from sharing the pencil immediately evaporated the second Spike perched himself on Danny’s lap. The pressure gave him an instant flashback to the times Phantom was in his lap.

“Sorry, this is just the easiest way to do this.” Spike apologised, a blush rising in his cheeks.

“I bet you say that to all the boys.”  Danny was pleased with the laugh that quip won from the punk boy. Quickly, Spike stilled again and continued drawing along Danny’s lash line.

“With lines like that, it’s no wonder Punny Phantom chose you.” Danny couldn’t help but stiffen at the mention of Phantom. Spike leaned back to look at his work, only to frown as he noticed something.

“Uh oh, did something happen between the two of you?” At the punk’s concerned question, Danny groaned and realised that he must have been grimacing.

“Sort of? I don’t want to talk about it.” He mumbled, looking down and away from the boy in his lap. Suddenly, a hand pressed lightly into his cheek and turned his face back up to Spike.

“Hey…if you ever want to talk, or not talk… I’m here.” The punk boy offered, eyes lilting on the words “not talk”.

As Spike leaned closer in towards Danny’s face, it occurred to Danny that the guy might be into him. He was going slow, seeming to give Danny an opportunity to stop him. Feeling his heart rate increase, he wasn’t sure if he wanted him to stop or not. The guy was pretty cute and he seemed like a decent enough person having calmed down a lot from their freshman year, but there was something missing.

Before Danny had to make a decision, the door to the room slammed open, causing both boys to jolt in shock. Peering around Spike, Danny saw a very drunk Sam standing in the threshold, hand still on the door with an angry expression on her face.

“I have to go.” Spike said abruptly, scrambling off of Danny’s lap and pushing past Sam, revealing that she had Tucker and Starr behind her.

“What were you doing in here?” Sam asked with a scowl. Danny gulped nervously, not sure what he did wrong.

“Spike was putting eye liner on me. Do you like it?” He replied, hoping his nervous smile would be enough to smooth out her agitated mood. Sam narrowed her eyes, as she scrutinised his appearance, before a strong blush spread across her cheeks.

“Y-Yes.” She mumbled. For a few moments an awkward silence hung in the air, as Danny waited for anyone to say anything. Eventually, Starr groaned before pushing Sam toward Danny.

“For crying out loud, I thought you were going to confess, not stare awkwardly at him.” The blonde complained. Sam hissed lowly, her blush getting ten times worse as she staggered toward him. Danny was thrown off by what Starr had said.

“Confess? Do you mean like, to murder, or…?” He asked cautiously, trailing off when Sam stopped right in front of him. Either way, he was nervous for whatever she was going to say. She opened and shut her mouth a few times, before scrunching her face up and turning back towards Starr and Tucker.

“I can’t do this! It’s too hard!” She complained, earning an eye roll from them both. Seeing how distressed she was, Danny reached forward and took Sam’s hand gently, the touch getting her to whip back around to face him.

“You don’t have to be nervous, Sam. You’re one of my best friends; you can tell me anything and I’ll still want to be your friend.” He tried to reassure. Unfortunately it seemed to fail, as she let out a frustrated groan.

“That’s the problem! I’ve always just been a friend, but I don’t want to be!” She exclaimed almost angrily. Danny couldn’t helped but flinch, releasing her hand as he leaned away from her.

“Y-You don’t want to be friends with me anymore?” He asked, feeling tears begin to well in his eyes. The groan from every person in the room was Danny’s only warning, before Sam suddenly dropped herself onto his lap and pull herself in to his body until their lips met in an intense connection. It was at this point it clicked for Danny that Sam had romantic feelings for him.

As she gripped tightly into his shoulders with one hand and raked through his hair with the other, he took the moment to contemplate how the situation made him feel. He knew he should feel amazing; Sam was beautiful and someone he was very close with, not to mention the crush he’d had on her for the past four years. Theoretically, this was everything he should want and he should be satisfied.

The only problem? He couldn’t feel any of that. He tried kissing her back. He tried smoothing his hands over her waist. He even tried grinding into her. Nothing. Frustrated, he pulled away from her and groaned as he slapped himself in the face and leaned back into the couch.

“Ugh! What is wrong with me? Why can’t I just do this?” He mumbled, tears welling in his eyes. Why couldn’t his body react like it had with Phantom? Or even how he’d felt a minute ago with Spike in this same position. A scoff brought his attention back to the girl in front of him.

“I can’t be that bad at kissing.” Sam grumbled, crossing her arms defensively.

“Sam, I don’t think you did anything wrong. He’s just gay.” Starr interjected before Danny could open his mouth.

“What? No, I’m bi. I’ve had feelings for girls before, I swear! I even had a crush on Sam for like, four years! I don’t know why I’m ruining this!” Danny cried out. The irritated look in Sam’s eyes melted into one of sympathy as she slid off of Danny’s lap to sit next to him.

“It’s okay Danny. Sexual orientation can change, and crushes fade. I’m just sad I missed my chance.” She reassured, taking his hand comfortingly.

“But how did it change so fast? I swear a week ago Tucker caught me with a boner when you were picking up litter in a mini skirt.” Danny argued, before breaking eye contact with Sam to look at Tucker, pleading with his face for his friend to back him up. Seeing the thoughtful expression on his face made Danny’s stomach sink.

“Danny… I think those might have been Phantom’s feelings.” At the sound of Tucker mentioning the name, it all made sense. He’d always assumed he only started getting interested in girls after the accident because he’d only just reached that part of puberty, but what if it was because Phantom was the one who was attracted to girls? It would certainly explain why he hadn’t felt anything for any girls since they split. A weight lifted off of Danny, from both understanding himself better, and for the knowledge that Phantom was just as much in control when they were fused as he was. He let out a relieved laugh.

“So I wasn’t controlling him this whole time! He still had free will!” He exclaimed happily. He couldn’t wait to tell the ghost the good news.

“Uh… now that we can mention him without you losing it, can you please explain what the fuck happened back at the library?” Tucker enquired, making his way deeper into the room and sitting on a recliner. Danny found himself off guard, suddenly remembering that he was mad at Phantom.

“Ugh, don’t even get me started! He full on let me believe I was this perverted asshole that didn’t deserve a chance with him, but no! Turns out he was only acting weird because he did have feelings for me and was too much of a coward to tell me the truth! If he had just told me he was awake when I kissed him in my sleep then I wouldn’t have spent this entire time agonising over what a bad person I was!” Danny complained. As he spoke, it became very clear to him that the entire time he’d spent with Phantom as separate people, he’d been repressing his own feelings for the ghost to the point of almost being unaware of them. Seeing gears turn in Sam’s mind, he waited for her to speak.

“So, the problem was that he didn’t make it clear how he felt, which made you feel like he couldn’t love you?” Sam questioned, to which Danny nodded emphatically in response.

“Right… and how is that any different to what you are doing now?” She continued, stopping Danny dead in his tracks.

“W-Wait, what?”

“Come on dude, you had a look inside his mind and the first thing you did was tell him to fuck off, essentially. As if that didn’t tell him you aren’t interested. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if he thought you never wanted to see him again at all!” Tucker explained, rolling his eyes. Danny felt his own eyes widen with realisation and despair.

“Shit! I only meant I need space to cool down while I was mad at him! He probably thinks that I hate him! What if he runs away to the Ghost Zone? I have to go home and tell him the truth!” Danny exclaimed in a panic, before jolting to his feet and dashed out of the room.

“What the fuck was that all about?” was the last thing he heard from the room before he darted his way through the house and back onto the street.

Thanks to his increased speed and endurance, the sprint home was in record time, and luckily he had managed to sober up in that time. He wanted to talk to Phantom with as clear a mind as he could, so that he could tell Phantom how he felt without there being any more confusion between them. As silently as he could, he opened the front door. Luckily, he could hear his parents tinkering away frantically in the lab, so he didn’t have to worry about them slowing him down. Unable to slow his heart rate down as he climbed up the stairs, he focused on slowing his breathing and on what he was going to say.

“Don’t worry Phantom! I don’t think you’re a pervert! I’d probably watch you shower, if given the opportunity.” No, no, no… that doesn’t sound right. Just keep it simple and say you don’t hate him!

Figuring that was a good place to start, he took one last deep breath before opening the door to his bedroom.

To find it empty.

Disappointed, Danny walked into the room and looked around. The only sign that anyone had been in here since they’d left earlier today was that the computer was now on. He paced over to the screen to see a folder open with a single video file in it labelled “Goodbye Danny”. Nervously, he tapped on the file and the video began playing. On screen, Phantom was stepping away from the screen and steadying his breath before looking straight into the camera. It broke Danny's heart to be able to tell that he'd been crying.

“Hey Danny. By the time you’ll be watching this, I’ll have already gone into the Ghost Zone. I know Jazz said I should wait to talk to you before I go, but I think seeing you would hurt too much. When you told me to leave, I didn’t know who I would be without you. I… I need to be someone on my own, but I can’t do that if I stay with you. When I feel like I’m ready, I’ll come back to see you. But I’m not sure how long that will take, or if I’ll still feel the same way about you. I just want you to know that I’m sorry for what I did, and I’m sorry I let you down. I hope you find someone who deserves you. Goodbye Danny.”

With that, the video ended on Phantom leaning forward to stop recording, and Danny found himself as frozen as the frame on screen.

He was too late; Phantom had left him.

[youcantfiremebecauseiquit]

idk if u care but crispin gray recently had an interview about his entire career and it kind of changed my perspective of queenadreena…idk if for better or for worse lol. it was weird to see him so dismissive of a lot of his catalogue w katie except for ‘love your money’ just because that was the only remotely chart successful song. i get you want to be able to sustain yourself but jeez him and katie really had a weird back and forth relationship

Sorry i'm replying late, i've seen the interview pop up on Youtube but honestly i was too invested in university shit recently & generally not in the good mood for that but i'm planning to watch. How did it change your view on Queen Adreena, did he say something mean specifically on QA or Katie? I mean i gotta watch it but honestly? Not surprised in the slightest. A few years ago he was asked to describe fave songs he recorded throughout the years and he listed more of Daisy Chainsaw ones than anything else, with Love Your Money as number 1. The differences in their points of view are real something, Katie Jane absolutely HATED Love Your Money, same as Daisy Chainsaw. Kinda apparent he wanted bigger fame but DC dropped fast and QA failed to live up to their predictions.

i had a time when i liked to dig up old Queen Adreena interviews that are lost in the old internet & generally not available for years (which i planned to post on is-she-suffering but my investment in that site is... varied in its intensity). Also that was back in the days when i wrote Queen Adreena book during manic phase and tried to sell it but lost motivation Well since i don't do anything with that knowledge anyway i'll put what i know here as i love fan discussions

So they sure had/have odd back and forth love-hate relationship & that's the reason why their career went how it went. There's been a huge tension between them at some point. I'm sure you know she had a major mental breakdown (probably schizophrenic episode) after Daisy Chainsaw, or even beginning before her leaving, and then she went into isolation and lived with an old woman in Lake District for awhile. She left Daisy Chainsaw cause Crispin didn't want her to come up with her own songs (all of DC was by Crispin except for Lovely ugly brutal world by KJ).

They almost split up as Queen Adreena after Drink Me. The material for The Butcher and The Butterfly was written at different times, originally it was meant to be called Atom Bomb at Bikini but it was constantly delaying and they eventually recorded everything they've got live. So that's obvious right? But i was surprised to find out they were writing songs separately. Some of them (i forgot which though) were written by Katie Jane and Pete Howard's sons band (they're even credited) + some with Melanie Garside, Richard Adams + some other musician. Katie Jane didn't like it. They intended it to be their last album at the time. She also hated live at ICA show but they released it cause they were broke

But that's a digression. I just wanna say that at this point they were done with each other but kept pushing it. Katie had her own art projects and stuff, Crispin started Dogbones with Nomi and i just remember how vaguely pissed at Katie he waas in the interviews. Like he stressed that Dogbones is his number one priority and if Katie wants to do something with Queenadreena, she must wait til Dogbones have a break first or something, and it sounded oddly bitter.

RaCH and Djinn era are just so weird, they had opportunities but let them go in a way. I don't think many people know but they were huge demand in Japan. They entered album charts and were interviewed by 11 magazines and 6 (!)TV stations there (wtf happened to that material i want to know???). But they only played 5 times or less.

Katie said she considers the band dead but they decided they can try to play for a couple more months. But aside from that she 100% lost the interest in the band around Djinn. There's an interview where she says "the overall image is Crispin but the shape will change again at rehearsals". And you can hear it, it’s more blues rock than anything. IMO it's their worst production wise. Instruments are fine but Katie's voice is so badly produced that sometimes i find some songs fucking irritating, cause they didn’t cut out her breaths and the vocals are TOO LOUD, to the point of distorting. As if she stands too close to the mic. The album is fine but it feels unfinished.

And here we come back to Crispin... here's what he said after the QA split:

Why the Dogbones started? “I needed to work more than the previous band I was in was working, the previous band who shall remain nameless, haha… um… Queenadreena. I wanted to work more than the singer of Queenadreena wanted to work… so that’s why it started. Fine by me… but I really like to be in a band, I’m not a solo project kind of guy. The last album (‘Djin’) did come out in the UK, but it was so low key because Katie kind of disappeared so there was little point in promoting it. Personally it’s my favourite by far so it was a shame but there you go… So here are Dogbones, it’s not been an easy ride but we are trying very hard.

Ok so the bitterness is kinda apparent isn't it. I think there were two reasons why they argued so much, first musical differences. Katie at some point lost interest in loud rock music for some years and went the folk way in Ruby Throat. I have a theory that Taxidermy and Drink Me are more influenced by Katie Jane and Butcher and Djinn are more Crispin. During first albums i think Katie more actively took part in music composition and choosing arrangements. She wrote lyrics, melodies but also composed a lot of songs on some little electronic keyboard thing and 4 track (Heavenly Surrender, Pray for me, My Silent Undoing, all Lalleshwari +more). Plus she wanted more peaceful/dreamy sound on Taxidermy than full on rock, Crispin complained about it in some 00's interview, that he'd like it to be more rock. Then there are 2 versions of Drink Me, the original has rough and alt versions of songs (it was sold by Katie and it's leaked on FB and probably YT). Crispin Gray apparently really hated the final Drink Me. Now next album is The Butcher & The Butterfly and it's more standard blues rock, no more crazy dreamy things of previous albums etc., Djinn is even more blues rock but darker. Djinn was his favourite at some point while KJ hated Butcher, not sure about Djinn. So i think they had different views on where they should go, Katie made her weird simplistic creepy tunes (like Lalleshwari) and folk melodies adding that strange things to noise rock. Crispin probably wanted blues & rock.

Other than that, i’m convinced they are bitter exes, lol. There’s been rumours about them dating during Daisy Chainsaw for years, plus Katie had a history of dating band members. Crispin wrote X-ing off the days about her. I don’t know if they dated again in Queen Adreena. Then there’s this interview, timeline is unclear, either The butcher & the butterfly or later:

„Katie writes all the songs herself and often looks for melodies and structure with the drummer. With Crispin - her husband or ex-husband, which is not entirely clear to me - for almost three years she has no longer been in a room. "Sometimes we send him a letter with a new song and that's all we can do. All we have are our lungs and our musical talent and we have to do with it. It is repugnant difficult life, I know most of the time how I should deal with it." But Queenadreena will still remain even exist? "I think so, we are now pretty busy and I see where the ship aground.”

I always wondered what exactly happened after Djinn, i’ve seen Katie Jane say „i think they gave up on me” while others said she disappeared. Other times CG said there’s no bad blood between them but at the same time there’s been some weird tension.  As of recent i thought they reconnected somehow through the internet and had a good relation but who really knows.s

I get why Crispin gets irritated when people compare everything he does to „stealing from KJ” but honestly, he gave them good reasons, at least in the 90’s. I can believe Starsha Lee singer isn’t copying Katie cause she’s from Brazil or something and she didn’t know Queen Adreena before. But everything else… Crispin’s problem is that he doesn’t know what he wants. He spent 90’s chasing something, tried singing himself, had girl singer replacements and even one KJ copy. Dogbones was ironically his most original non-Katie band, even with all their grunge influences. In a way he wants to be a frontman and at the same time doesn’t. Idk if he’s very controlling, but Daisy Chainsaw shows he valued his songs/lyrics first & in Queen Adreena he had to step back a lot, cause Katie’s condition was she would be in charge of the lyrics. I don’t think he realizes how strongly Daisy Chainsaw issues affected Katie, i mean from her own words you can read that aside from media attention/hate, her being unable to write lyrics had a role in her breakdown. I think she now let go but for years she hated remembering Daisy Chainsaw and she felt kind of worthless cause she was only somebody else’s mouthpiece. I’m not trying to say he’s cruel or anything, but i firmly believe rock lyrics writers should sing their own songs or else there are problems.

They both were writers-composers with different vision and i have impression they struggled a lot while shaping their songs, cause they both stuck to their ideas. Hence 2 versions of Princess Carwash maybe. Katie once said that he „gets terribly upset with her” cause she writes her songs on a simple wind organ and uses a few chord buttons only. Clash of writer ways/personalities/egos and at some point they had to let go.

Maybe he prefers music/bands where he was 100% in control including lyrics (note he wrote/sang some lyrics in Dogbones too). Daisy Chainsaw achieved bigger success US and UK wise as they were offered to play Top of The Pops, and they’re more well liked/remembered by „general alt public”. Queen Adreena however is way more valued as a cult band, with cult following and admiration in UK & France. Most people think Pretty Like Drugs and other QA songs are his best work and he probably finds it irritating cause truth is, he never managed to be more successful than Daisy Chainsaw/Queenadreena. Love Your Money is ironically the least Crispin Gray/DC/QA sounding song in my opinion. I kinda find it irritating that he downplays Queen Adreena cause it was probably his best work in this band but whatever

So yeah sorry for the word spill, that’s what i can think of it right now but as i said, i haven’t watched the interview yet, it’s just this kind of treatment is in a way consistent for him

[denkimystery]

Denki Mystery Series - 1st Episode: 『Six Men Getting Sick』

ー Midorito House, Eve of the Jyushimatsu Festival

A Voice: ... Come to think of it, the owner of my cab company… I wonder if he’s one of those people who's into the occult?

Ozo: I only come to the office sometimes. And whenever I’m there that’s all we talk about.

Ozo: Like, strange stories of this area? I’ve heard a lot about that too. I've heard it all from that person.

Takashi: Ah! I know who you’re talking about. He came to my store, too. He kept chattering on and on about how I should get out of this place before I am unable to leave, and then he just left.

Hajime: Wow. Is that person a local from here?

Ozo: No, it's nothing like that. I heard that he came here a long time ago, and then he was given the job and entrusted with the company. You're very curious, aren't you.

Karatsugu: I wonder what he was doing before that. He’s not from around here, but he knows a lot about it, right? The stories of this place, I mean.

Ozo: Come to think of it, people wouldn't talk so openly about that kind of stuff if they were from here. I wouldn't ask or deny it, though.

Ozo: He said I drive too rough, so he started calling me “Cowboy”.

Toshio: You sound like a villainous pro wrestler. It’s kinda cool.

Ozo: Right? But I'm not that buff! … Phew, that was a nice time. It's been about half an hour since we got back from the factory?

Ozo pops open a beer. The sound of the fizz is replaced by the sounds of him gulping his drink.

Chorosuke: It’s a bit late, but we've prepared a midnight snack.

Ozo: Whaaat, I didn't think the Master was here, but he cooked for me? That's very kind of you.

Takashi: Let me help, Chorosuke-san.

[[Takashi gets up to help Chorosuke set the food down.]]

Takashi: Wah, this looks so good.

Ozo: Ahhh! I'm so hungry!! … Ah, can you let me borrow your phone before we start?

Chorosuke: Sure, be my guest. … Dayoko, escort him please.

[[Ozo follows Dayoko out of the room.]]

Toshio: You have some for me too? Wah... It's mushroom soup! Looks good.

Chorosuke: Everyone, you must be hungry. After you eat, let's rest for today. We still have tomorrow.

[[Ozo comes back to the room.]]

Ozo: Thanks for letting me call. It was the president. I told him I was sick.

Ozo: Since we have a private gathering tomorrow, I told him I was gonna stay up and he replied with a resounding OK. Heheh!

Ozo: If it had been the old lady in the office, she would have told me to go home for sure!

Takashi: That’s the normal reaction. I think you're being underestimated by your president.

Karatsugu: Well, let's eat before it gets cold. Thanks for the food.

Toshio: Thanks for the fooood!

[[Toshio shoves a spoonful into his mouth, chewing eagerly. Everyone else follows suit.]]

Hajime: These mushrooms are delicious.

Chorosuke: These are the mushrooms that my student grew. He often gives me some, they are very fragrant and delicious.

Toshio: Are there other ways to eat it other than miso soup?

Chorosuke: You can also roast it, it’d still be delicious.

「Thank you for the meal.」 Everyone says when they’re finished.

Chorosuke: Did you all like it? Then, let's brew some tea. ... Dayoko, your big bwother*** will also help.

[[Chorosuke leaves the room.]]

Takashi: … Huh?

[[Takashi’s gaze is pointed down. Staring at something.]]

Takashi: ……. Jyushimatsu-niisan, why are you buried in the ground. Heyyy… Ah, another Jyushimatsu-niisan.

[[Hajime looks at where Takashi was looking at. There’s nothing but the floor.]]

Hajime: Ta-Takashi-kun? What’s wrong? … Are you ok!?

[[Meanwhile.]]

Ozo: … Hm? When did I get back to the car?

[[Ozo notices he’s not alone, looking into his rearview mirror he sees someone on the passenger’s seat.]]

Ozo: Customer-san, why are you wearing a paper bag?

Ozo: … Hie! [Ozo flinches as the customer removes his paper bag.]

Ozo: … You look just like me…!?

[[Toshio seems to be struggling.]]

Toshio: Uwah! What’s this thing in front of me! ... A big dog!

Chorosuke: Dayoko! I won’t hand Dayoko over to you!! Dayoko!? Where-? Dayoko?

Karatsugu: ... huh. I feel like my back is…

[[Karatsugu focuses on the feeling in his back before realizing that it’s sharp and he’s in deep pain.]]

Karatsugu: … W-Waaah!! I-I’ve been stabbed! I’m dead! I’m cuuursed!

Hajime: Eh... Where am I?

[[Hajime looks around.]]

Hajime: It’s pitch black.

Hajime: H-HIEEEEEEE!!! [[All of a sudden Hajime screams. Thrashing and flinging.]]

Hajime: H-Help meeee!!! SOMEBODY, HELP ME!

Takashi: Waaaaaah…!! … Huh. What was that?

Ozo: Wah! What the-? A-are these mushrooms safe to eat!? I just had a scary dream!****

Chorosuke: Huh? What’s the matter? Nothing happened to me, I’m fine. Here, have some tea.

[[Chorosuke starts pouring tea.]]

Toshio: I'm fine too.

[[Toshio starts munching on some of the snacks Chorosuke offered with the tea.]]

Toshio: Delicious! Where did you get these snacks?

Ozo: Eh ~ !? You're always eating them, so you've built up a tolerance? I don't remember it clearly, but I was really scared!

Toshio: Aah! Are you okay, Karamatsu-niisan? The corner of the desk is digging into your back.

Karatsugu: Eh!? The corner of the table? … Ah, thank goodness. I thought I was stabbed in the back…

Hajime: Haa~. [[Hajime releases a sigh he’s been holding.]]

Hajime: …. What was that. Just now. I’m not immune to these mushrooms… What did I just see…? Th-That was scary.

Toshio: Aaaa, that was delicious. … Well, I’m going home now. I’ll see you all tomorrow. My big brothers and Todomatsu!

Takashi: I'm getting a little used to it. That “Todomatsu”. Jyushimatsu-niisan.

Ozo: You live on the other side of the mountain, right? Why don't you just stay the night? Or, do you want me to drive you home?

Toshio: The roads are dangerous at night. I can take a shortcut.

[[Toshio stands up quickly in one fell swoop.]]

Toshio: Nanna is waiting for me.

Chorosuke: Here you go. Didn’t something break just earlier?

Toshio: Thank you, Choroma- Chorosuke-san. Todomatsu, my bigger brothers. Good night!

Thump, thump... Rustle, rustle, rustle. [[Toshio takes off running, his footsteps landing heavy on the dirt path. Soon after he runs through the bushes and into the forest.]]

Takashi: Ah…! He jumped into the bushes. I-I hope he’s ok.

Chorosuke: Ogami’s fine. Oh, and he’s always running around in the mountains.

[[Dayoko walks in to tell Chorosuke something.]]

Chorosuke: Hm, what. … Aah. Thank you, Dayoko. Everyone. The bath is ready. Please, help yourselves.

Ozo: Ah~, I'm going to catch my breath ‘cause my eyes are getting tired*****!

Chorosuke: Eh!?

Ozo: If we're going to talk about scary stories, how about we tell a “Hundred Stories” while drinking?

Chorosuke: Can you stop doing that I don’t want to get in trouble if something weird happens!?

ーThe Endー

Original Event

Summer Arc: 1 | 2 | 3

Mod Note: This came from the Stories that came with the Akatsuka Mansion Attraction from Trashneyland. All 4 and 3 star attractions have 3 stories, often related to the theme of the building. (ex. Akatsuka Mansion has 3 stories related to Denki Mystery. Geruge Castle also has 3 stories related to the Geruge Set).

The original title is 二豎(にじゆ)と六人の男 (lit. The Evil Spirits of Illness and the Six Men). *Nijiyu (二豎) is a term that originated from the legends of Zheng Chenggong. Unfortunately it’s all in Chinese and I’m already at my wit’s end so I can’t give you an exact origin lmao. I’m not sure what exactly happened but there’s this Duke who was cursed to not be able to eat anything new. He is feeling ill, he dreams of his illness and the doctor says that the illness can’t be healed because the cause is somewhere even his medicine can’t reach. That’s my rough understanding of what happened. Anw, that illness became known as the Nijiyu. Edit: I looked up David Finch's filmography again and turns out that the original title is referencing his 1967 work "Six Men Getting Sick (Six Times)". I've changed the title to make more sense to English readers, but I've kept the original title in the mod notes. If the stage names are references to David Lynch's movies then the story names are references to David Lynch's short films. And unlike the stage names, the titles of each story is relevant to what happens in the story.

*** Chorosuke uses Anii-chama again. Which is a cutesy way of saying bigger brother: Nii-san > Nii-sama > Anii-chama. He’s acting like a sis-con btw.

**** If you haven’t noticed, their mushroom trip is based on their original attack sprites. Ozo’s hallucination is a combination of his (Taxi + Passenger) and Toshio (Removing Mask)’s attacks. Karatsugu, Hajime and Takashi are slightly different from their original attack sprites (Karatsugu doesn’t write a dying message, Hajime doesn’t wield an axe and bolo, Takashi isn’t screaming). Chorosuke and Toshio’s hallucinations are original. Chorosuke is hallucinating about Dayoko being taken away and Toshio’s hallucinations involve a big dog, most likely the Inugami Youkai.

*****I think the original text is an idiom? I don’t know what it exactly means though so I did my best approx.

[melbee]

Melancholy Blues

David Lee Roth x Reader

Summary: The Highs were high... the Lows were low.. When dating a rockstar who is on the road a lot, there’s only one rule. Don’t cry. That means you’ve fallen too deep, and unfortunately you lost the shovel to dig yourself out a long time ago..

Notes: I love writing for DLR there’s not a whole lot of fics with him which sucks.. Hope you enjoy X

Warnings: fluff, a little angst, a little sad :(

Word Count: 1,934 words

I wish I knew when this was going to end. I sat so still behind my desk, staring at the crisp white wall, listening to the faint tick of the nearby clock as it counts down the minutes.. the seconds.. wasted time no.. important time..

I was stuck in a dingy office surrounded by a mass of nearby cubicles and desks wondering how in the hell I got stuck with a job like this, and how I managed dating a rockstar at the same time.

While I sat filing papers, setting appointments for my boss, writing up reports in hope I’d be the lucky girl picked for a star promotion- my boyfriend toured the world, singing to 50,000 fans every night- partying till the sun comes up definitely surrounded by the excesses of pleasure including girls.

I didn’t know how luck could be in my favor so much, that it managed to drown me at the same time. I scribbled aimlessly trying to muster up the strength to get this assignment done. I worked as a reporter, but I really wanted was a step-up... a position to manage my own fashion company. It was lost hope.

Somehow I managed to get through toward the end of the day, as I turned my head to see nearby coworkers at their desks begin to pack up, the sun beginning to prepare a descent onto California’s glimmering hills.

I sighed and stood up a crack within my legs sounded out, telling me I had sat for too long- as I gave my best attempt effort at a long stretch. I gathered my work and shoved it into my cabinet, fishing for my purse and keys and making my way toward the elevator.

Exhausted was an understatement. I couldn’t help however, to think of David... as often as I do. I thought about what he was doing at this very moment. Where he was, who was with him.. Jealousy reared it’s ugly head- or started to- but I shut it up quickly as the doors opened and I made my exit out of the building.

The drive home was short but my mind was swamped, I couldn’t get out of it, and I knew there was a simple solution for that. Wine.

As I opened my door I was greeted by my little cattle dog that Dave had gotten me for my birthday a year prior, Minnie. I smiled as I patted her affectionately, as a wave of emotions crossed me. I missed him, a lot.

I set my purse down as I made a bee-line to my kitchen- grabbing a bottle of the finest-cheapest wine I had and a glass as I poured generously. I traveled my way to my living room where I drew the curtains to the view so wonderful, of other apartment buildings, and the peek of the hills and the sun if you strained your head far enough. It wasn’t much..but it was home.

It reminded me of how David has wanted me to move in right before tour; I told him I was fine living here, and the adjustment of a big house just wasn’t what I wanted to feel at the moment. The truth was I didn’t want to be there alone, without him. Waking up to the smell of his sheets and his clothes that he left..

I had already found myself doing that while he was away from the various jackets, shirts and underwear he had left behind here. It was creepy. It made me sick to my stomach as I sipped my wine in a daze. I knew the feeling all too well, but I just didn’t want to admit it. I never fell quick, but with David... good god he made it so easy.

I checked the time on the clock nearest to me. He said I could call any time, but I always like to align it so I would get a sure answer from him- he should be somewhere in the U.K. right now..

I made my way over to the side table and set my wine down and my body down onto the couch, and grabbed the phone.

Oh shit, what was the number to the offices..? They always knew the numbers to call wherever the band was. Usually I would wait for David to call, but I needed to hear his voice desperately. God, aren’t I lovesick fool?

I dialed the offices and they redirected me to the number where the venue was, who then directed me to the phone in the dressing room. As I waited for someone else to pick up the phone I wondered if my girlfriends ever have to deal with this incessant worry with their boyfriends. Maybe so, but as prissy as it sounds, their boyfriends aren’t international rock stars.

“Hello?” I heard the sound of an unfamiliar woman pick up the phone, and I couldn’t help but feel my heart begin to pick up and race a mile a minute. Who was she? Did she know David? Were they having an affair?

It took me a time to realize I still had not said a word but simply breathed into the phone like some scary psycho stalker. “Er-Yes. Hi.. uh is this.. David Lee Roth’s dressing room?”

I heard a mumbled sigh from the female on the phone, “Look girl, I don’t know how to break it to you.. he isn’t interested as I’ve told the other girls. He has someone right now..”

My heart stopped beating, “What? Who? I.. who are you?” I asked as my worst thoughts and fears seemed to come before me, I felt my mind go light-headed.

“I’m the designers assistant? I don’t know who you are-but..” she began to ramble on, as I felt my emotions turn red hot.

“Look designer.. whatever the hell you are.. I’m y/n.. his girlfriend. I don’t care if he has somebody I need to talk to him NOW. Do you got that-“ before I could even finish my rant I heard a squeak and a jumbling that sounded like the phone was being tossed around before I heard a scruff voice.

“Y/n? This you?” I heard the familiar voice of David’s manager over the phone, and I lept with joy.

“Hey Noel! It’s me!” I said into the phone.

“Oh hey!” He chuckled a bit, “I’m guessing you wanted to talk to DLR huh?”

“Yes..” I laughed, but I soon realized that now I needed to address the elephant in the room. “Uh..Noel. Would you be honest, and tell me if he was.. with someone right now..?”

I heard a laugh, “I wondered the same thing for a while, as far as i’m concerned the man has had blue balls the entire trip. He’s as clear as a whistle.”

I blushed, “Well okay.. can I talk to him?”

“He’s coming in right now actually-” I heard a shuffle and the conversion between two people, before I heard a loud slam, and the phone being picked up again.

“Dollface?” I heard the beautiful, gruff sound of my boyfriend’s voice, and I couldn’t help but smile brightly.

“Yes Blondie, it’s me..” I laughed. There it was again, that heart pounding. It scared me shit-less because I knew I was a puddle of mess whenever he talked  to me; even if it was a thousand miles away.

“Oh Baby.. you don’t know how much I miss you..” He purred. “How’s my little Min Pin doing?”

I looked over to Minnie, to see her gazing at me, her tail wagging, “Missing her Daddy..”

I could hear the smile in his voice, “Baby, is everything alright? Not that this isn’t unpleasant but.. why’d you call?”

I frowned as the details from earlier flooded my brain, as I crosses my legs, beginning to chew my lip for a whole other reason entirely. “David..who is your designer’s assistant, with you on the road?”

“Sherrie.. I think is her name.. why?” He asked

“She told me you-” my voice suddenly cracked and I felt my emotions edging the surface of my eyes. Don’t break the only rule...

“Doll.. what’s wrong? Did she say something nasty to you? I swear ill sack her, and you’ll never have to see her-”

“David, she said you are with someone right now. She mentioned other girls calling.. David..please be honest with me.. Did you-” I began to say but I didn’t finish before he cut me off.

“Y/n I’d never in a million do that. Why would you believe her?” He asked.

“I don’t know, I’ve just been having a really hard time since you’ve been away David, I can’t even think about normal stuff, without thinking of you.” I said into the phone as my voice ended to a whisper as if I had shared my innermost feelings to a stranger.

“You don’t know what you do to me..seriously.” He said to my utter confusion. “I’ve fallen in love with you, Doll. It scares me shitless. Don’t think I don’t feel the same way you’re feeling.”

I smiled, “The aches?”

“Chills down the inches of my spine, I feel as if I’m an addict who can’t ever get a fix. Y/n, it makes me mad.. because every-time I try and take my mind off you, everything begins to settle in that I’m terrified because I don’t want to live in a world without you.”

“David I’m sorry, I just. I know I’ve been so hesitant.. It’s just..” That was it for me. I felt the years worth of heartache, messed up feelings, love, desire, laughter all explode down my face as I sobbed. “I’m in love with David Lee Roth and I don’t think I can ever stop.”

I heard a pause, before he spoke again, “Then don’t.”

I paused as my heart seemed to stop beating that very moment. “W-What..?”

“Lets be in love forever. Quit your job. You wanted a job to build your own company? Well I need a CEO for my new business, and baby you’re at the top of my ‘for hire’ list. Come with me, let’s go around the world.”

“David..do you know how crazy you sound right now? Like crazier then normal?” I said as I took in his scheme that seemed off the hook, and way out of my comfort zone.

“Baby, I’ll take care of all of it. If you want a pay roll to feel secure I’ll give you one. how does 300,000 a year sound? You can buy you a nice apartment.” He said as he laughed.

“Holy shit.. David I could never buy anything expensive like your apartment.” I laughed as I twirled the cord.

“You’re right.. you’d be so sick in love, in-bed with me to even buy one.” He laughed loudly at his own joke, and I just rolled my eyes a blush forming my cheeks.

“I’ll be coming home soon, love. We can talk more about it then, hmm?” He asked over the phone.

I simply smiled, as I felt tiny tears come down to signal to me how much I truly cared for this man. “Okay. I love you..”

“I love you more.. Au revoir! We’re heading to Paris tomorrow..” He said as I heard a door opening and noises of people rushing in.

“Bye David..” I hung up the phone as I set it down, and I looked at the abandoned wine, and looked toward the windows to see the sun had finally set, and the night had begun.

I had broken my one rule. I wish I regretted it, but the high of it all just felt so good that I wished I would be too sick, too un-well so I would be able to feel the impending crash and  burn...

[tfw-no-tennis]

mtmte liveblog issue 28

catch me completely ignoring dark cybertron lmao

yeahhhh so I'm just gonna skip dark cybertron bc no thanks. I did read the tf wiki articles for the issues tho, which is more than I did in the past, so at least now I kinda know what happened, though I had to suffer thru reading about dark cybertron to learn stuff about it. yikes. reading ABOUT dark cybertron further enforced my decision to not actually read thru it

anyways. the best part of dark cybertron was when chromedome threw prowl off that cliff. that was baller lmfao

a 1 page recap of dark cybertron is about all I can handle. thank you

ooh, the 6 months later smash-cut, I fucking love itttt

nautica’s here!!!!!!!!!!! I'm so happy I love her. also brainstorm, and I love their friendship sm

hvbjdkhfbshdfj god I love them. they have such a fun dynamic 

everyone eavesdropping on a therapy session vhbhdjkhafbhkjsdf. hipaa laws mean nothing as usual 

the casual reveal of captain megatron, oh god 

the title fucking slaps, as usual. this is one of my favorites - ‘world, shut your mouth.’ great stuff, and a song title/reference to boot! and this being part 1: towards peace...chefs kiss

and then we flash back to 6 months earlier...yknow now that I'm rereading this, mtmte has a LOT of framing devices used - there's story-within-a-story, flashback/flash-forwards, storytelling with narration, etc...I love it

god hbvhjakdfbshjkdf rodimus saying ‘magic’ and then the little *magic = science rodimus doesn't understand HBGKJHSDBFKHJSDF my idiot boy ily

rodimus roasting prowl is my fav hbfjdkafshsbjkf ‘maybe the knights can help us find a cure for your personality’ ily sm

and then prowl agreeing w/rodimus a few panels later about megatron’s guilt...

optimus...don't you think that making yourself chief of justice is...maybe a bad idea...like, maybe there's a conflict of interests here...just a little bit of bias...a bit too much history, perhaps...

the fact that all the big roles in the trial were given to high-ranking autobots who were heavily involved in the war...I see that cybertrons justice system is as much of a farce as their medical ethics and patient confidentiality laws 

the ‘you BROKE the MATRIX’ panel is so good bjhkdhfbajskhdf

rodimus: LISTEN dad I just wanna resume my space cruise with my frat bro ship I have no interest in politics

psychiatrists HATE him! local former warlord refuses to recognize the validity of psychological analyzation of people’s actions

ravage casually breaking hipaa laws and chilling in megatron’s therapy session like >:3

I love rung...he’s so good at like, passive-aggressively cutting right to the heart of someone’s issues, and he’s so generally mild that you can’t even really get mad at him 

the sudden inclusion of megatron as a major character in mtmte is kinda jarring at first - mostly, for me at least, due in part because I didn't read dark cybertron so this is like, megatron’s introduction as a relevant character in general - but I feel like jro does a great job laying a lot of intrigue down from the very beginning w/his character - like, I already want to know more about what his whole deal is, even though we have, ostensibly, seen pretty much all of his story play out already 

rung name-dropping froid...i remember that made me lose my shit bc cmon. FROID....jesus christ

rung and megatron: holy shit! we’re suddenly being drawn in a 90s-esque sci-fi tron-looking retro-futuristic style!

interesting that megatron sought rung out, and not the other way around

RIPTIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! my favorite sharkboy is HERE

CREWDITIONS...YES....

‘we’re not allowed to take anyone who might remind rodimus of prowl’ vhbhjdkshfbhaskfd brutal

I love nautica so so much. a perfect autistic scientist after my own heart

I adore that nautica brought chromia along for moral support

hgvbjdakhfbhsj and then swerve saying that rodimus hates ‘trisyllabic names’ and nautica is like....but....‘rodimus’.....

and then nightbeat busts in to get all bbc sherlock on they asses hgbfhjadkfbjaskdf

WHY was perceptor at the crewditions if he was already part of the crew lmao

ooof, and then we have megatron flipping out when chromedome, a mnemosurgeon, shows up

also damn the autobots were rlly like okay so we wanna speed this trial up so lets just like, probe megatrons brain, that seems completely ethical, especially when you consider the history of shadowplay and stuff that our previous government had

I know important stuff is happening but megatron is holding a CUBE and I love CUBES so I'm distracted by that. C U B E

and then right after a scene where we see chromedome willing to perform mnemosurgery again - despite rewind’s like, dying wish for him not to - we hear that he’s been locked up in his room rewatching rewinds goodbye message over and over again :( I'm fucking depressed

I love nightbeat, he’s so funny and kind of an asshole

and then you see more missing letters behind them next panel...clearly nightbeat is right and there’s a mystery afoot...OR somebody is fucking with the ship’s lettering as a prank, which is a plot point I would absolutely buy

yeahhhh skids is right, chromedome is clearly Not dealing 

the dramatic graffiti on megatrons door...I wanna know who spray-painted ‘die’ everywhere like they're reaper overwatch

oh god. whirl vs megatron

really cool red lighting tho

GOD its so brutal, all the stuff megatron said about how he told the cons not to kill whirl...and doesn't that end up being false anyways? so he was just saying it to dig at whirl, which is awful

also I'm never over the fact that literally everyone - including megatron and whirl - blames whirl for ‘turning megatron violent,’ as if the entire Point isn't that whirl was a tool for a corrupt system, and if it wasn't whirl it would've just been someone else, and megatron turning away from pacifism was inevitable given the circumstances, AND also a choice on his part, so he really only has himself to blame for his OWN ACTIONS

bye bye whirls right arm, see you in lost light 

‘people never stop changing’ that IS something I say all the time...damn you warlord grandpa! how can you steal my philosophies?!

ohhh man and then rewind’s goodbye message being different....oooh

AUGH the fact that whirl was basically trying to goad megatron into killing him, just like he did in issue 1 w/cyclonus...It Hurts Man

also I do love the hint at who he’s talking to w/whirl shooting megatron with the bow and arrow earlier, and we know that atomizer is a fan of those

ok, but here’s where my philosophy diverges - megatron talks about throwing away his past and starting new, but I think that you have to learn from and build on your past...either way, megatron’s arc is one that I enjoy greatly from a character writing standpoint, and I'm excited to get it underway, especially w/how controversial it is lmao

big ole double-page spread...I like how you can pick out individual characters in the background crowd, which is crazy cause that's a LOT of people. also how come cosmos is so HUGE

phewwww 4.6 billion cybertronians died in the war, that’s INSANE. that's like, an incomprehensibly huge number. is there an estimate for their current population? I bet its not a lot. no wonder jro leaned into reproductive themes so much in mtmte/ll - of course the continuation of your species would be a concern for many if your numbers have been that greatly reduced

optimus w/his fancy tyrest-lookin crown

oughdajbfsbdf and the fact that megatron ALSO murdered 100 BILLION non-cybertronians...bruh. I feel like they maybe should've dialed those numbers back a little to allow his ‘redemption arc’ to run a little smoother lmao. but also I admire the commitment either way

and then we end w/megatron doing captain stuff, and seeing The Coffin...and we never did see rodimus in any of the flash-forward parts of this issue, did we???? I love how concerning that is. where's my BOY

also of course we gotta remember the warning from way back at the beginning of mtmte: ‘don't open the coffin’....

and so begins mtmte s2! man I love s2. I love mtmte in general lmao. s2 takes on the impossible w/the whole ‘megatron redemption arc’ thing, and I know that’s like, a divisive plot point and stuff, but from a writing standpoint I enjoyed it a lot...I think it was pretty much as well done as it could've been given the enormity of the task, and I thought it was a really interesting direction for the story to go in 

also espec if it’s true that hasbro was like ‘hey jro put megatron in your story and give him a redemption arc’ rather than jro like, planning/asking to do it 

anyways. I doubt ill talk much abt the disc horse(tm) here bc this is just for fun and also my own personal opinions and whatever, but I for one am excited to reexperience this stuff 

so yeah s2 off to a strong start with some wild shit already happening! cant wait to read more!

[kitsoa]

So, about your Theory ...

So, we talked on Reddit a while ago, Kitsoa, and I have some more thoughts about your theory. It’s more rambling and longer than what I previously intended – my apologies for this.

Kitsoa- Hello again! I’ll reply in brief through quotes though I’m not interested in doing a solid defense of my theory. Mostly it’s a lot of creative stretching using the crumbs of the narrative and I’m not feeling particularly impassioned to bring out the counter citations nor do I think it necessary.

Also: I have written and re-iterated upon this meta theory of mine multiple times so if I am not referencing the correct Original Post in question that’s probably because I never bothered to do a big manifesto and I will take the fall for that confusion.

It’s certainly very interesting but parts of it seem to not only be unsupported but outright contradicted by the games. For instance, take your surmise that Xehanort’s villainy is motivated by his knowledge of the KH world as fictional and his self-knowledge that he has to play the role of the villain to create a conflict and thus sustain the universe. His actual speech in Re:Mind after Dark Road’s world tour points to something else:

“All around the world people live seemingly peaceful lives. They believe themselves to be moral and virtuous, but it’s all an act. Darkness lurks in the pit of everyone’s heart. Their light is a total farce. Those who are weak, and who desire greater power, simply strip the strong of their power, and convince themselves they’ve earned it. That’s how people become tainted by darkness. They believe what they want them to believe, using hollow reasons as justification. They repeat this cycle, and their darkness grows. No, its better they be ruled by darkness. People carry delusions of having power, but it’s a lie. They are but sheep pretending to be wolves. Though I can admit, I can understand why.”

This edgy little diatribe isn’t about the nature of the universe or Xehanort’s own origin … it’s about his view of human (or talking animal, w/e) nature. It’s a similar theme to his final speech in KH3, and ends not with him concluding that he needs to play the role of a villain to create conflict ,,, but that to prevent the KH universe collapsing into chaos, he needs to become its absolute godlike ruler. Which is what sets up the conflict, yes, but his goal isn’t explicitly to create conflict to keep the universe going.

Re: Xehanorts motive aligning with a meta-awareness on his ‘role’ as a villain. This is a theme I was definitely playing with. Xehanort is clearly symbolic of the corrupting pursuit of knowledge and we have a god-like encounter spark stranger behavior yet. It’s a fascinating trope yes? Corrupted by the Truth. Saving the world by sacrificing the world. That was my angle. The World Tour from Re:mind had him summarizing his villainous disdain and I’ll agree that it gives him no direction towards a ‘role’. But I also take note of the fact that this enlightenment comes directly from the actions of the chessmaster MoM who could feasibly manipulate Xehanort towards a conflict-sparking war. If Xehanort isn’t directly and consciously responsible for fulfilling the metacontextual requirements for a ‘story’ then MoM is. And as I’ve stated it probably comes from a more experimental god-mode type motive.

And again, your argument that time doesn’t really exist in the Disney worlds until Sora arrives and this is related to them literally being stories that he’s diving into. I don’t know where you get this from, at all. We go into Disney worlds and experience plots unrelated to the films (KH1 Olympus, Halloween Town); we go into Disney worlds in medias res (too many to count); we go into Disney worlds before the movie’s events take place (BBS Deep Space, Neverland); we even go into Disney worlds in-between or after the movies’ events (KH3 Toy Box, San Fransokyo). Which rather gets in the way of a simplistic “Sora arrives in the Disney world, time starts flowing forward and the movie starts” look at things. You’d previously characterized this as “every world has its unique story” which IMO would be a more reasonable way to look at things rather than the stronger “the worlds literally are the stories and nothing else”.

I’ll defend this a little. The entire concept of the Worlds as Stories demands only that we recognize a higher reality. A reader/audience/ creator relationship with the happenings. When I say ‘time doesn’t exist’ I’m saying it doesn’t matter. The only thing that does matter is the time spent there by Sora (or his subsidiaries). Time is going to move between visits but not at a pace that runs independently of Sora (and co). And all of the events within those worlds are unique to the source material-- on the virtue of having Sora. But when I say the worlds are the stories, I mean it... metaphysically. The relationship between the greater kh multi-verse (and no greater) and these literal planet world island things is that of stories given form. Most all of my KH musings come from the very simple concept that formless metaphysical concepts like love, bonds, imagination, memories etc are literal, tangible things. Tangible. In this, Worlds are not so much another universe equal to other universes. They are a story, fictional and potentially subservient to a greater reality. It’s only from that understanding that I add the extra layer upon KH (and Quadratum by later extension) itself. 

The exact logic behind this reasoning is cyclic. KH is a fictional story to the literal higher reality (us) and seeing how there's a parallel within the narrative, I just applied that logic within the universe and used my understanding of the ‘literal metaphysics’ theme going on with other lore concepts.

Power of Waking ejecting Sora into “real reality”: This analysis is based on the idea that Sora is “waking himself up” out of dream states until he “wakes up” out of KH reality into “real reality”. But YMX tells him (and implicitly us, via the conventions of this kind of villainous exposition) that Sora is repeating the same error he made in 3D and sending himself into the abyss at the bottom of the Realm of Darkness, not doing the opposite thing and “waking himself up” out of KH reality.

I’ll just punt Power of Waking stuff. There is a lot of stuff with the power but I take most of the speculation from the name and the results. There’s a big interweave of darkness that can support or deny my thoughts within the next sentence and I’m electing now to wait and see. Sora abuses the power of waking-- ends up in another reality. Waking--> realities--> dreams--> sleep. Run with the word association. I like to think the ambiguity with sleep and the darkness of abyss has more to say about the nature of reality as a whole ergo: “everything is a dream” concepts that are hard to swallow. What is waking up, if you find yourself deeper in sleep? Nonesense stuff like that.

MoM as Creator of the KH universe/Quadratum as the “higher reality”: Not only is he presented as a clear villain figure; given that the rest of the Foretellers are based on the Seven Deadly Sins, MoM as their leader would clearly represent the sin of pride. We also have him saying in Back Cover that he “might” disappear from the KH world, suggesting that it was beyond his control; and Luxu’s report suggests that the KH3 Keyblade War was engineered to open a means for him to return to the KH universe, presumably via Sora going to where he is in Quadratum/”unreality”.

I believe strongly in this still. MoM can be a villainous figure and at the mercy of universal laws while still being the Creator and denizen of a higher plane. I try not to dig into scenarios too much but follow me here: Creator of the world, literally self-inserts himself into a world of his own creation. He’s a verified Mad Scientist who of course likes to experiment and test his creations and he does so directly, physically, to them. There, he put them on auto-pilot and is watching Characterization carry on. I am not claiming that he is breaking the rules of his own universe and traveling in and out with ease. Nor am I saying if he is exercising any sort of Creator-granted power over their will. He’s there, he’s interacting with them, and he’s watching them. I find it to be an intentional obstaining of power. Self imposed limitations OR an understood sacrifice for this meddling (think, giving up ‘divine’ form to live amongst his ‘mortal’ creations in divine parallel. he is at the will of his universe but not out of control.)

When he says he ‘might’ disappear not only is he being vague on purpose to terrorize his high-strung apprentices but he’s made no indication that it’s something against his intention. And the actions taken by Luxu in formulating his return mean nothing to his plan or his ability or his potential Creator status. I can’t stress how Long Game I perceive MoM’s actions to be. All in the effort to observe, toy, and curate the perfect... something. And since I am talking about the literal nature of stories, I mean the ‘perfect’ story.

Also, we may note that if it was truly a “higher reality”, Quadratum wouldn’t be noted as the fictional Verum Rex video game in KH3 – there’d be no explicit sign at all of its existence, as it would be the higher reality generating the lower one. Which suggests that what may actually be the case, if the series is going meta, is that KH-verse and Quadratum view each other as fictional – in which case MoM would be somebody falsely claiming or believing to be the Creator, which makes sense in relation to the sin he represents.

Not that I’m saying KH-verse isn’t generated by a higher reality/being; but I don’t feel that the higher reality is Quadratum or that the higher being is MoM. There was a fairly interesting post on Reddit comparing KH to Plato’s world of the forms; in which case Kingdom Hearts would be the higher reality from which both regular KH-verse and Quadratum are generated. Or “unreality” really is a “lower reality” than the regular KH-verse, which TBF seems a bit less likely than “’reg. KH-verse’ and ‘unreality’ view each other as mutually fictional but are actually ontologically equal”.

I think my theory posts predate most of the Quadratum reveal so the details of the reveal haven’t been accounted for in my words but I did call it when breaking down Remind’s Yozora scenario. That said yes, I think there is a higher reality and I feel like you mentioned it outright. I see KH and Quadratum as equal fictional realities, segregated but connected through creator. Some of my earlier meta posts before re:mind saw Quadratum as the “higher reality” (or like “host reality”) until the presence of an author between them became apparent enough. We can potentially consider MoM=the author as a separate subject in this respect as it’s not entirely dependant on that reveal. Ultimately, my point in this caveat of the theory is that the relationship between KH and Quadratum strikes an intentionally meta-referential parallel to the actual creator Nomura. That’s an angle that is very audacious and I have full understanding in the denial but it’s my supporting evidence to a higher power within the re:mind secret episode alone.  As for the ‘unreality’ I literally think that is just a way for them to say ‘fictional’ without saying the word, not necessarily an indication of ‘rank’ (for lack of a better word). I use a little reverse logic on the reveal in Melody of Memory when I claim they are ‘equal fictional realities’. No one thinks to assume that they themselves are also “fake” so it;s not a stretch to believe that the reverse assumption could be true. This putting KH and Quadratum on the same level and almost guaranteeing a connection through a mutual creator. 

Now, you also talk about the Whispers in FF7R, but in that they’re in-universe contextualised as “guardians of destiny”, essentially manifestations of the Will of the Planet. Which just goes to show what I talked about earlier – the meta-level of a story can’t exist without a surface-level narrative. We know that the Whispers out-of-universe represent fan anger at changes to the plotline; but they’re presented as something in-universe, which can be defeated by in-universe forces (another reason I doubt it as it seems to leave no room for our heroes’ victory in the confrontation with MoM that’s being teased as the next saga).

I bring up the Whispers to note a synonymous use of the words ‘destiny’ and ‘fate’ to ‘story and ‘narrative’ Not explicitly of course, that would break the 4th wall, but its a subtext that's easier seen in a ‘remake’ because of direct references and deviations being drawn. I think the same synonymous use can be applied when brought up in KH because of their common creative entity.

Finally: How do you see this “metapocalypse” of yours playing out as an actual KH game? We know the conventions well enough by now – a trip through Disney worlds fighting monsters and villains in flashy shonen-style combat, being stalked and looked over ominously from afar by a council of villains with mysterious schemes. Then an invasion of the villains’ lair by the heroes with a final serving of flashy, SFX-heavy boss battles, a number of dramatic plot twists and arc resolutions, and an ending with the villains’ schemes having been at least forestalled. Then we get the ending credits; with an epilogue, a superboss and a secret ending all hinting at more to come.

Well I’m glad you asked! Honestly, I’m basically writing a fanfiction about it. I’m writing the story in part to engage some of these theories/speculations into a serviceable game narrative. So I’ll be vague:

Thematically: This breaking the 4th wall has the power to thematically drive home concepts of free will, defining your personhood and defying expectations. Furthermore, you have questions like... what makes something real? What makes it matter and what’s important? With growing up and the sanctity of youth being a constant struggle as the series and the characters age, the reverence in imagination and growing connections to things that aren’t stereotypically ‘real’ is a strong concept. If I were to break down the big message simply: As long as it’s real in your heart it doesn’t matter.

Overall, the reveal doesn’t really have to impact the basic formula. You can have Disney World Hopping and Villainous characters scheming and manipulating a greater force. I personally think the world-hopping parallel can become more direct with the context of it being movies/stories adding a different understanding of the process of visiting those worlds and meeting those characters. The episodes can be more about fate and predestination and can speak directly to the importance of the connections to those worlds. And the dramatic stakes are the literal threads of reality and godhood! 

If I am to be more detailed and imaginative (without substantial evidence)  I might say... MoM’s experiments in manipulating his own created world(s) are aiming to shape Sora (or 2nd favorite son Yozora) into some kind of perfect conduit for the marraige of reality and fiction and the success or failure of that process might weaponize his ability to connect with other hearts... real and not, all to the greater ascention of one chessmaster. 

(That’s not even mentioning how I have a personal reason to dislike it as it reminds me of an old theory that the KH plot was actually SRK imagining it all up in their childhood games or to put a darker twist on that idea, Sora dreaming it all up in a coma or while dying. I hated reading those ideas when I was younger and still do.)

I’m gonna sympathize hard with this. I hate ‘it was all just a dream’ theories. They are cheap and they trivialize the journey. That is not what this theory is saying. There is a higher reality in this concept and that is used as a proxy for our relationship with the series. The imagery of dreams is only a small facet of the reality/unreality theme so there is no ‘waking up’ or ‘end of story, goodbye’ attitude. The commentary is broader and it can potentially speak on the power of dreams and reality. The ‘realness’ of fake things. I’m sort of calling out KH for what it is: an imaginative story that expands upon what it means to truly experience stories.  Anyway, I rambled more than I thought. I haven’t written anything about KH in months so this was a little caffine shot for me. I’m not gonna be too stuck in the details and nor do I care exactly. I’m a story teller first and I just so happened to have predicted some things not so much because of the hints being dropped but because I understand some of the thematic intent behind the lore and certain narrative beats. The rest is just me having fun and finding the best reading. Sometimes I’m right. 

[akiology]

Hello, Are You There? || Part 2

Minako tries the number neighbor thing. Thinking it was an inactive number, she decides to vent and express her frustrations, turning it into a sort of mini diary. What she didn’t expect was somebody was actually on the other line and decided to send a message back.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Word Count: 4.3k+

Pairing: Akihiko Sanada x Minako Arisato

Note: this chapter includes a long text message thread between headphones and pancakes ehe and some slight angst jfjfdnjf im sorry the next one is gonna be fluffy i promise ; u ; ALSO i accidentally posted this w/o the proper editing so if u saw this b4 im sorry fhrkjfrbf

“Arisato, your grades aren’t so impressive these past few weeks, may I know why?” Miss Toriumi, the teacher in-charge of Minato’s class, asks with concern evident in her voice. This was so unlike him, he always manages to snag the highest scores and is an excellent student. Minato just shrugs nonchalantly. Miss Toriumi sighs, probably realizing Minato probably won’t open up any time soon.

“Arisato, I know you don’t feel comfortable opening up to me. But I hope you are at least opening up to someone. Perhaps your sister?” Miss Toriumi continues. Minato shrugged once again. Before Miss Toriumi could continue once more, a fellow student entered the room.

“Miss Toriumi, you are needed at the Student Council room.” Miss Toriumi gave a quick nod to the other student, and turns to Minato. “Well, I am needed elsewhere. I will take my leave, but please keep in mind that you can talk to me if you need guidance.”

Minato walked out of the Faculty Room and headed for the school gates.

These past few days, Minato has felt… lost.

He overheard his classmates talking about which career paths they will be pursuing, and he felt… left behind. His classmates have already started planning their future and they seemed so… certain.

Minato hasn’t felt the feeling of certainty ever since their parents went abroad without them. They said it's for work, but right now, he really isn't sure if it really is for work. Before they left, he heard them saying that ‘the children are getting bothersome to deal with’. Ever since then, the feeling of stability, the feeling of being sure about something has become a foreign concept to him. Do his parents still love them? Are they a burden? If he was wrong for thinking that his own parents most certainly love and support them, then what about the others? Who's to say he isn't wrong with everything else? Minato envies his classmates, because even though they are the same age as he is, somehow they have already gotten everything figured out for themselves.

‘Why couldn’t he be more like that?’ He could hear the voice in his head say.

This train of thought is the only thing occupying his mind for the past few days, and it has greatly affected his life. His academic grades, his club performance, and even his relationships with both his friends and his very own sister.

Ever since the seed of doubt in his mind was planted, the voice in his head started getting louder and braver.

‘What do you think you’re doing?’

‘Are you sure that’s the right choice?’

‘You probably won’t go far in life.’

‘You’re a failure. That’s why they left.’

He tried everything he can to drown out the voice in his head. He tried listening to music, hanging out with his friends, playing at the arcade, anything. Anything to make it go away or so that he can no longer hear it.

But of course, it is not that easy.

He wanted to talk to his sister, he really did. But he didn’t know how to. It was something he had in common with his sister. Despite being surrounded by many friends, opening up still remains difficult for the both of them. And what makes it even harder is that, he doesn’t know how to explain this feeling of his. Deep down, he is thinking that, perhaps, this was just something he made up himself and that it is not real. So he tried driving his attention somewhere else.

He decided to go somewhere quiet, somewhere hidden.

He let his feet lead him, with his loud music blasting from his headphones.

This mindless walking led him to the train station’s back alley.

It was deserted. Perfect.

He sat down and closed his eyes. Eventually his phone started vibrating. Picking it up, he received a message from Minako.

Sis: hey im in a study grp w fuuka and yukari

Sis: ill be late so eat b4 u go home

Minato was about to send a reply to his sister, when three older men approached him.

“Hey, little man. What are ya doing here?” One of them, whom Minato assumed was their leader, asked him. They didn’t seem too happy with seeing an unfamiliar boy at their hangout spot.

“Nothing.” Minato replied simply, shoving his phone in to his pocket and fixing his headphones into position. The men, however, were irritated by this.

“Ye’r in our spot.” The leader, who apparently has a nose piercing, took a step closer. They tried to look intimidating, but it did not faze Minato one bit.

“And?”

“Leave.”

“No.”

The guy was starting to get angry, and started digging around in his pocket. “Ye’r from Gekkoukan High, aren’t ya? Damn, one of yous are always trying to waltz around here like some hotshot, but guess what? Ye’r not.”

“Ok.” Minato said absentmindedly. And finally, the man reveals what he was hiding in his pocket. A knife. Minato stood up quickly. “I’ll leave.”

“Haha, ye’r too late. I am angry now.” The man swings his knife, and Minato was barely even able to dodge it. It grazed slightly against his cheek, forming a small scar.

“Hey, stop that!” A tall man wearing a beanie and maroon peacoat quickly came to his rescue. He was able to restrain the man and retrieve the knife from him. Mr. Nose Piercing tried flailing around, but the tall man was much stronger than he is.

“Hey, let him go!” The two other guys who entered with Mr. Nose Piercing, approached the tall male restraining their friend. But before they could attack, another male, a silver-haired gentleman wearing a red vest came, and was able to knock down one guy.

The one left standing kneeled down, pleading for mercy. “Please! I didn’t do anything! It was all him!” He then pointed at Mr. Nose Piercing. The tall, beanie-wearing man scoffed, “Wow, selling your friend out just to be able to escape? How pathetic.”

“Aki, get the knife.”

“Got it, Shinji.”

Mr. Beanie, or Shinji as he was called, dropped Mr. Nose Piercing onto the ground.

“Take your friend, and the other one too. Don’t come back or else we will call the police.”

“Fuck ya, Aragaki! I thought ye were one of us!” Mr. Nose Piercing shouted but quickly exited when he was able to successfully carry his knocked-down friend.

Shinji shook his head and muttered under his breath, “I was never one of you.”

Mr. Red Vest (Minato forgot his name) turned to him and asked, “What were you doing here?”

“I was trying to clear my head.”

Mr. Red Vest looks around, “In here?” He didn’t seem to understand why he chose this out of all the places in Port Island. It was really unhygienic and lots of trashes are strewn around. If he were to go here to clear his head, he’d probably exit more troubled than before.

“Well, you did find me here. So yes, here. I was trying to clear my head here.” Minato sarcastically quipped. Mr. Red Vest looked so confused.

Shinji, approached Minato and gave him a band-aid and an unopened water bottle. Minato raised his eyebrows.

“For your scar. I only have water for now, so use it to clean it. Then cover it with the band-aid. When you get home do a more thorough clean, though. It’s a small scar but better be safe than sorry.” Shinji stated. When Minato accepted the items, Shinji put his hands back into his pockets.

“Don’t come back here anymore. Find another place to clear your head. Let’s go, Aki.”

Ah, Mr. Red Vest was named Aki.

“Um, alright. Goodbye.” Aki awkwardly gave a small wave, and they left. Minato decided to gather his belongings and go home.

/./

As Minato approached the apartment, he pulled his phone out of his pocket to check the time. However, his phone died. Minato sighs and when looked up, he notices that the lights are on.

Minako is home.

He brought his hand up to his face, feeling around the band-aid that was placed. He hopes Minako doesn’t notice. The last thing he wants to do is stressing Minako out even more. As he turns the doorknob, he looks down. Hopefully, not meeting her eyes would make it less obvious. As he opens the door, he was met with his sister who was in front of the door. ‘Was she going out?’

“And just where have you been?” Minako asked in a harsh tone. It was rare for her to speak like that and when he heard it, he flinched.

Not wanting to anger her even more, he lied. “With the boys.”

“Lies. They told me they didn’t know where you were.”

‘Well, shit.’

‘You’re just gonna come up with a lie and it was a terrible one.’

Not wanting to receive her wrath, he skimmed past her.

“Minato, I am talking to you.”

He stopped abruptly, still not turning to face her, “What?”

“What? What?! What do you mean ‘what’? I was worried sick! You didn’t answer any of my calls, and your friends didn’t know where you were! Not to mention that it’s late, who knows what kind of criminal could be lurking around the streets at this moment!” He could hear the frustration and worry in Minako’s voice, but he couldn’t bring himself to face her.

He feels that if he did, he’ll break down.

“Calm down, I got home safely didn’t I? It’s fine. You’re worrying over nothing.” Minato cringed at what he said, he knew that he sounded extremely self-centered right now but he couldn’t take it back anymore.

‘You’re the bad guy.’

Minato quickly got up the stairs, not wanting to say any more things that he didn’t mean.

“Minato Arisato, come back down here! I am not done talking to you!”

/./

The next day, the twins’ train ride to the school was really awkward. They can’t meet each other’s eyes. However, Minako would be lying if she said that the band-aid on Minato’s face didn’t worry her one bit. They both seem like they have so much to say, but are hesitating whether it was the right moment or not. They instead decide to disappear into their own worlds, with the power of music. It didn’t help calm down Minako’s nerves, so she decided to fidget with her phone. She eventually found her thumb hovering over the messaging app.

‘Fuck it.’

Minako: hey headphones

Minako: gud am

Headphones: Good morning to you too, pancake. :)

Headphones: How are you today?

Minako: um

Minako: don’t wanna talk about it

Minako: can we talk about something else?

Headphones: Sure. What do you want to talk about?

Minako: uhh

Minako: wanna get to know eachother?

Headphones: Okay. How will this work?

Minako: we take turns asking questions, but no matter who’s turn it is, we will both answer

Headphones: Okay, you first?

Minako: mmm

Minako: pronoun?

Minako: i’m she/her

Headphones: He/Him. :)

Headphones: What do you do on your free time?

Headphones: I either train to make myself stronger or hang out with a close friend. :) You?

Minako: maybe at home cleaning/cooking

Minako: or hanging out w friends as well

Minako: do u like any sports?

Minako: i play volleyball

Headphones: Wow, that’s great!

Headphones: I’m into boxing :)

Minako felt her cheeks heat up. Wow, that’s kinda hot.

‘Wait…’

‘What the hell am I thinking?!’

Headphones: Favorite food?

Headphones: Of course, you already knew about pancakes, but I also like eating beef bowls and ramen from time to time. But no meal of mine is complete without sprinkling some protein powder on it. :)

Minako: oh uhhh

Minako: anything sweet ig

Minako: i’ve got a sweet tooth hehe

Headphones: Then I guess the nickname ‘Pancake’ is perfect for you then. :)

Minako doesn’t know why but whenever they call her that name, it makes her cheeks warm and her heart starts beating faster. This feeling is foreign, but it sure as hell isn’t unwelcomed.

Minako looked out the window and noticed that the train is nearing its destination.

Minako: hey so uh i gtg real soon

Minako: ttyl?

Headphones: Alright, pancake. Take care. :)

Minako: umm

Minako: thanks

Headphones: No problem.

Minako: i dont think u understand, really

Minako: thank u from the bottom of my heart

Minako: for talking to me n being here n all that

Headphones: Anytime. :)

/./

During lunch, Minako decided to eat with Fuuka and Yukari. On the other hand, Minato ate with Junpei and Kenji. Their friends do not seem to be aware that the siblings are currently giving each other the ‘silent treatment’ and haven’t even uttered a word to each other since last night.

As Minako sat down with her food, her phone vibrated in her pocket. As Yukari and Fuuka were settling down in their own seats, she decides to check her phone.

Headphones: Hey, pancake. It’s lunchtime and I hope that you are eating well. :)

That short message made Minako smile so big that it didn’t go unnoticed by Yukari and Fuuka. They gave each other a quick look and turned back to silently observe Minako.

After sending a quick reply, Minako put her phone on the table and placed her bag beside her. After a few minutes, her phone vibrated. Her screen lit up, and it was a message from Headphones again.

Headphones: It better not be all sweets! Your body needs other nutrients too.

Minako chuckled at the message. Which, once again, did not go unnoticed. Yukari scooted over to Fuuka and whispered, “Do you think she forgot that we were here?”

Fuuka replied quietly, “Um, do you know who she’s texting?”

Yukari shrugged and mouthed, ‘Rio?’

Minako: heh okay MOM

Minako: make sure ure the same ok protein man

Minako put her phone down and picked up her utensils, when her phone vibrated again.

Headphones: Hey, that’s not the nickname you gave me!

Minako giggled at the message, but it was cut off by the sound of Yukari clearing her throat. Minako freezed when she realized that she momentarily forgot that Fuuka and Yukari were with her.

“So… who is your new text mate?” Yukari started, sporting a teasing smile and looking at her knowingly.

“Uh, Rio?”

Yukari raised her eyebrows, “Are you asking me?”

Minako cleared her throat, trying to show a poker face. “No, it IS Rio.”

Yukari turned to Fuuka, “Are you buying this, Fuuka?”

“No… She’s acting a bit suspicious.” Fuuka said, shyly.

“Fuuka!” Minako exclaimed, startling nearby students.

“Heh, you heard her. So who is it?”

“It’s nothing! I just saw a funny meme!”

“Would a funny meme make your phone vibrate three times in a row?”

“It’s a notification from a meme page? Um, yeah that’s it! They’re just really active today!” Minako cringed when she heard how fake that sounded.

“Why do you sound so uncertain, this makes it easier to see that you’re lying, y’know?” Yukari said smugly, and Minako doesn’t know if she should admit to Yukari that her new text mate is actually the guy from their number neighbor shenanigan. It’s nothing bad, it’s just that Minako knows that if she mentions this to them, she would not hear the end of it from Yukari.

“Okay fine.” Minako took a deep breath. “I’ll tell you.”

Yukari smiled triumphantly, while Fuuka’s eyes widened in surprise.

“So, who is it?”

“Before I tell you, can I ask what happened to your number neighbors?” Minako asked, hoping to stall.

“Hm, mine blocked me when I sent that message.” Yukari shook her head, disappointed.

“Oh, mine was really scary. They said that if I message them again, they will call the police.” Fuuka said, fidgeting with her fingers.

“What?! Isn’t that a bit too much?” Minako quickly held Fuuka’s hand, hoping to give her some sort of comfort.

“Oh, it’s fine. Maybe they thought I was a hacker or something. It’s not bad to be cautious.”

Yukari sighs, “Let’s never do this again.”

Fuuka nodded, “Agreed.”

There was a moment of silence, until Fuuka spoke up, “Why did you ask about that though, Minako?”

“Oh um… W-well…” Minako looked away and nervously laughed. Until Yukari realized why.

“Wait, is your number neighbor your new text mate?”

“Ehehe, yes?”

Fuuka and Yukari gasped.

“Well, well, well… It looks like I was right. You were able to get a relationship out of this number neighbor thing. Oh! How romantic! You were just one digit away from each other!” Yukari giggled and began hugging Fuuka out of excitement.

“Relationship? N-no… We aren’t in a re-relationship. We’re just… talking. Hehe..” Minako stuttered, and she really wanted to slap herself when she heard how she sounded.

“Yeah, and a relationship comes next after that!” Yukari cheered loudly, standing up and thrusting a first in the air triumphantly. The students in the next table seemed irritated by our table.

“Yukari, simmer down! You’re disturbing the other students!” Minako tried to get Yukari to sit back down. Fuuka found the situation amusing, and giggled.

“Anyways, give us details! You can’t expect us not to want more info when you told us that you actually ended up being text mates with your number neighbor! Spill!”

“Well, he is a nice guy. He is really understanding and willing to listen to my problems. He also respected my decision when I told him to call each other by code names instead of our real names. He also checks in with me every once in a while to see if I was okay…” Minako tells them, and unknowingly smiling to the thought of him. It wouldn’t have been noticed by Yukari and Fuuka if she wasn’t blushing so hard.

“Aww, you like him! Ask him if he wants to meet up, ey?”

“W-what! No! I-I barely know him!”

“Yeah, that’s why you are going to meet up, duh! To get to know each other more… and who knows… This could be something worth mentioning at your wedding when Fuuka and I give our toasts as your maid of honors!”

“Oh, that does sound cute!” Fuuka mentions cheerily.

“Fuuka, NO. Do not encourage Yukari, that wasn’t cute at all!”

/./

After classes, Minato waited outside of Minako’s classroom. Minato decided that he was going to apologize and open up to Minako, no matter what. He doesn’t want to keep his sister in the dark anymore. After a few minutes of waiting for his sister, he decided to go in himself and approach her. He saw her chatting with Fuuka while cleaning up her things.

“Sis.” Minato called, while dumping his bag on top of her desk. “Come with me, you can leave your things for now.” He grabbed his hand and led her outside.

Fuuka seemed confused, but resumed to picking up the scattered trashes. After a few minutes, Yukari entered the room, looking for someone. She quickly found Fuuka and approached her. “Where’s Minako?”

“Oh, Minato told her he had something to talk about. They left their things here, so you can just wait for them. If you wish to talk to Minako, they’ll probably come back soon.”

Suddenly, Yukari grinned widely. “They left their things, ey? So Minako’s phone is in here?”

Fuuka blinked a few times. ‘Why would Yukari ask about Minako’s phone?’

“Yeah, I think? I didn’t see Minako bring anything with her because Minato quickly dragged her outside, it seemed like he had something urgent to say.”

“Aha, I see… Fuuka, want to do a prank with me?”

/./

Minako was surprised by how her brother took the initiative to approach her first. She was happy as it seems like Minato is finally going to start opening up to her, something she wished he did from the start. And then, she remembers Headphone’s words: ‘He just needs some time to figure it out himself and then he will approach you.’

Minato finally let go of her wrist when they arrived at the persimmon tree. He signaled for her to sit down at the nearby bench, which was under the shade. For a few minutes, they were silent. Just taking in the peaceful environment and the cool, refreshing wind.

Minato was the first to speak up. “I’m sorry.”

Minako turned to look at him, “I’m sorry, too. For shouting at you last night, that was unnecessary.”

Minato shook his head and gave his sister a small smile. “No, that was okay. I was being unreasonable. But that’s not the only thing I’m apologizing for.”

Minako tilted her head, confused. “Huh?”

“I have been hiding things from you because I had a feeling you wouldn’t understand me. But that was wrong of me, I shouldn’t just start assuming things and then suddenly start closing off myself. When we were at the train this morning, it felt wrong that you weren’t talking to me. It was a really sucky feeling to have. And then I realized, that this was what you must be feeling when I stopped talking to you.” Minato closed his eyes and buried his face into the palms of his hands.

Minako frowned seeing her brother so distraught. She was about to say something, but Minato lifted his head and continued talking.

“The truth is, lately I have been feeling lost. I don’t know what to do. I feel… empty. I don’t know how to explain it, but basically it’s like the world is in black and white. It’s lifeless, and I don’t see the point. I am… uncertain whether I am making the right choice or not. A voice in my head is always telling me that I am making a bad choice or that I’m a failure. I… I’m sorry if I’m not making sense.”

“Minato, it’s fine… I understand.”

“Do you still love me? You won’t leave?”

Minako was shocked by what he said, “Why would you even think that? I would never leave you! You’re my brother… I would never abandon you.”

“But… mom and dad did.” Minato said quietly, and Minako feel the lump in her throat growing bigger.

“That’s okay. We don’t need them. I won’t ever leave you Minato. You are my partner-in-crime, my bestfriend, and most importantly, my brother. I love you so much and we will always be together.”

“But what will we do about the voice in my head?”

“Well, you have me. We can figure about this together. If you want, we can go see a therapist?”

“I don’t think I’m ready for that…”

“Then that is okay too. You will only go if you want to. I am here for you no matter what, and if you ever start having bad thoughts or the voice in your head gets stronger, just go to me. No matter what time or day, whether there’s classes or not, I’ll be there. Okay?”

“Okay. Thank you.”

Minako and Minato gave small smiles to each other and they hugged. After a few moments, they let go and talked to each other for a few more minutes before heading back inside.

/./

When Minako and Minato returned to the classroom to retrieve their items, they were met with Fuuka looking uneasy and fidgeting. “Fuuka? You okay?” Minako approached her friend, going in for a hug to comfort her but Fuuka jumped.

“Minako! I am so sorry! I tried stopping Yukari but she was determined!” Fuuka bowed her head.

“What are you talking about? What did Yukari do?” Minato strided over, curious with what made Fuuka so worried. Minako shrugged at Minato, confused and worried for her friend.

Fuuka stood up straight, but still unable to look Minako in the eye. Right at that moment, Yukari came in holding an empty food wrapper. “Oh, Minako! There you are!”

Minako, Minato and Fuuka all whipped their heads to where Yukari’s voice was coming from. Yukari approached them, waving the empty food wrapper in front of their faces. “Minako, Fuuka and I are really sorry for eating this deluxe donut snack from the canteen without you! Fuuka was so worried because she knows you like it so much, but I was really hungry so I ate it! Sorry!”

Minako frowned and raised her eyebrow at Yukari, crossing her arms. “Is that all?”

Yukari gulped, and Fuuka started playing with the hem of her skirt, not strong enough to look Minako in the eye. “Yeah, that’s all! R-right Fuuka?” Yukari approached Fuuka, trying to silently ask for back-up.

Fuuka finally looked up to Minako and nodded quickly. “Y-yes! We’re really sorry, Minako!”

Minato stood awkwardly beside Minako, who was seriously studying Yukari and Fuuka. Serious Minako is scary Minako. Eyes scrutinizing their every movement, lips in a tight line, and arms across her chest making her seem even more intimidating.

After a few minutes of silence, Minako gave them a bright smile and laughed. Yukari and Fuuka were surprised and Minato was confused.

“Aww, girls! Don’t worry about that! You were hungry so it’s fine!” Yukari gave a sigh of relief, while Fuuka was still a bit shaken up. Minako closed her distance with the two girls and gave them both a hug.

“But next time, wait for me okay?” She whispered, in their ears eerily.

“Y-yes, Minako.”

“Haha, yeah…”

/./

RECENTLY DELETED THREAD

Minako: hey

Minako: do u live near tatsumi port island

Headphones: Yeah, I do. Why?

Minako: wanna meet tomorrow, sunday?

Minako: get to know each other?

Headphones: Oh, you want to meet?

Headphones: That’s fine by me. :)

Headphones: Where though?

Minako: paulownia mall, that ok? specifically chagall café

Minako: i have brunette hair with silver pins on it forming XXII

Minako: i’ll also be wearing a red scarf

Headphones: That sounds good!

Headphones: See you soon, pancake. :)

[marshmallowprotection]

Saeyoung + Unknown W/ an MC who suffered from Child Abuse.

TW: Child Abuse, CSA

It had not been easy for you to talk about what had happened to you when you were a child. As a matter of fact, you refused to bring it up and you would only talk about it if it was somebody that you could sincerely trust on the matter and even then it was not okay for you mention. The memories and scars were still fresh on your mind as if they had happened yesterday. It took a lot of effort for you to put yourself out there and you had finally decided that you were going to go out there and start working on yourself. 

You were going to start small at first, working your way into therapy and working on everything piece by piece until you felt like you were ready to talk about the worst of it. It was going to work, you thought. You knew that you could try your best to put on your brave face and be honest with yourself. 

Settling into your first session, you thought you had found a great professional to speak to and since this was your first time in a long time talking to someone else about your life, you were a little uneasy, but trying to seem confident enough to them that you could keep your wits about you. 

You had your hands on your lap and you were trying to ignore the ticking of the clock in the back of the room as they read through some of your paperwork and files. 

It seemed like everything was going to go well, and that they were just double checking your information so they knew what you may want to talk about first since you had labeled it in your paperwork that your anxiety was mainly what you wanted to touch on.

“...”

Suddenly, they looked up from their notes. “Yes, now, I see here that you’ve put down your difficulties as of late. I appreciate that, but I am concerned, however, that you did not label a few things in these notes. I can tell just from looking at you that this kind of difficulty only plagues people who were victims of sexual assault in their childhood.”

Your body stiffened, and your eyes went wide at that mention. “I...” you trailed off, a pit forming in your chest. 

Was it obvious? 

How was it obvious? Could someone just look at you and know that you had been abused like that? Had people been able to see it all these years? Is that why people pitied you or tolerated you? Your mind began to swirl with unease and dread. 

They did not seem to care about your unease, “It’s better to be clear with the medical staff everything you’ve gone through in life. How can you get better if you don’t address what happened? Let’s start from where it all began for you, shall we, Y/N? When was the first time someone touched you?”

That was what broke the camel’s back for you. 

It was that question that sent you into a blurry haze of panic and by the time that you came out of it, your eyes were hot with tears and you had left as quickly as you could muster the energy to get out there. Your head was heavy with all sorts of thoughts that you couldn’t stop. 

Saeyoung

You had called Seven, rather quickly. 

He knew that something was wrong by the tone of your voice and how hard it was for you to explain what was wrong. He dropped everything that he was doing and came to your side as fast as he could. Saeyoung sat with you for a long time as you tried to shake off your fear that had welled up inside of you. It didn’t take much for those memories to come flooding back to the surface and when they did come for you... 

It was hard to get away from them no matter how hard you tried. Your skin would crawl and you would feel sick for hours. You wouldn’t be able to close your eyes for very long as a flashback could very well take you underneath the water and it’s surface. 

He comforted you for the rest of the afternoon. He never pressed you to talk about what happened but you knew that he would want to know eventually what had scared you so much. By late evening, most of of the worst of the storm had passed by. Saeyoung asked how you were feeling after you woke up from a nap in bed. 

So, you started at this man that you loved so very much and you came clean with him about what had happened to you that afternoon.

He knew that you had really suffered as a kid but he never knew how badly it had been. It sickened him that someone hurt an angel as sweet as you, and his first thought was how badly he wanted to destroy whoever put their hands on you. He would not say those thoughts out loud but if you could have seen how much he seethed as you cried in his embrace, you wouldn’t have had to hear him speak those words. 

“Y/N.” 

“...” 

“It’s not your fault,” he murmured, gently running his fingers against the back of your head as you leaned into his embrace. “None of this is your fault. You’re a good person and you did nothing wrong. You wanted help and someone clearly took advantage of their power to torment others instead of helping them. I’m sorry this happened today... but it’s okay to be okay, I promise. I’m not leaving your side tonight.” 

You clutched at the back of his shirt even tighter. 

“You don’t have to worry about anything. I’ll protect you. I know you’re feeling really scared right now but you’re here with me. You’re not back in the past and you’re not being hurt anymore. I’m here. I won’t let anyone hurt you ever again, Y/N.” 

Unknown

Needless to say that day, when you came back to see Unknown, and you were in a desperately distraught state. 

He wasn’t used to seeing other people like this, no, that wasn’t right to say this time around. He knew what it was like to see people crying or pleading for mercy but what he did not know was how to deal with a person who was crying silently and would not say a damn thing to him. He was at a loss at what to do to help you. He needed his assistant to be in great shape but it was kind of hard to focus on his tasks when you were clearly in shock. 

Unknown didn’t know how to approach it. 

Yet, there was a pang inside of his chest whenever he thought that he should just leave you alone. You sure as hell never left him alone when he woke up in the dead of night with terrors and screams about his own childhood. You even held your ground when the elixir had driven him to a point of heated tears and frustration. You always helped him. 

Ugh, it wasn’t like he liked you or anything but the sound of your pitiful sobs made it hard for him to work. He turned his attention to you and quietly sat down next to you as your arms folded in around yourself. He didn’t say anything to you at first.

You didn’t say anything back to him either, for that matter. 

It was a stalemate of sorts before Unknown looked at you with those mysterious eyes of his. “Look, I don’t know what the hell happened out there, but you should tell me about what made you so upset. I’m your boss, I’m in charge of you, good or bad. I can’t get any work done on this project if you’re wallowing like this so we are going to sit here until you want to tell me what happened to you.” 

His tone is gruff and his voice is tough. There’s no denying that this man could care less about the rest of the world around him but there was something in his voice at times like this when you were vulnerable that he showed you a side of himself that nobody else would believe existed. 

So, you shut your eyes and told him about what had happened to you. Unknown knew that you had a troubled past, a lot like his, it had been in your files when he was choosing you. He didn’t know how fucked up it was or wasn’t, he didn’t dig that far into it after he realized that it sounded a lot like his childhood. He was rightly pissed the fuck off that someone had hurt you. 

Oh, the things that he would do to the people that made his prince(ss) cry this horribly. In a rare showing of kindness, he wrapped his arms around you and just told you let it out. If you had to cry, then he was giving you a pass this time to let it all out. 

“Listen, prince(ss), you’re in paradise now. The outside world is a fucking mess and as long as you’re with me, I’m never going to let anybody else hurt you from now on. You’re my assistant, you’re mine. As long as you’re mine that means that not a damn person is ever going to touch you again. I’m going to ensure you’re safe here. So, don’t you dare let another person upset you when I’m crush the head of anyone who makes you cry again. Got it? I’m not going to repeat myself.” 

He may have been crass but he meant well, in his own way.