#that we’ve sort of got a better sense of how they’re all working!!!

[sunny-day-jack-official]

So! The demo is finally out! Or, a bit of it is. What’s next?

Let’s run over a few questions, so hopefully everyone is in the loop!

Q: Why is it only a little bit after so long?

A: Development has been all over the place and a big reason is just how difficult it can be to mediate between artists, programmers, writers, etc.. Mental and physical health, personal emergencies, etc.. are also a big part of this— and it wasn’t anticipated that this would eat up so much time.

The original game was planned to have Sauce (presently speaking!) handling a large majority of tasks all at once. So— when health stalled, production stalled.

Of course, healing took a bit of time to. And even now, that’s why so much of the demo is left unfinished. Overall— it wasn’t possible to complete the demo in the same amount of time the original demo was completed because realistically speaking— that was extremely unhealthy and rushed.

Because of that tight deadline, 48 hours to a week, many significant errors or retconned elements made their way into the game. A huge toll was taken that resulted in extreme burnout after. Quality (as can be seen in the CGs) suffered. An emphasis on quality is currently being prioritized, but I can safely say that I am no longer able to work at my original 2021-2022 pace.

—

Q: Why are you (Sauce) working alone?

A: At this point in time— we had spent a while working on the GUI and design/function of the game. It is, after all, set to have some pretty hefty features.

Translation and dub settings

Censorship and Softcore modes

A VERY LARGE story map with several endings

An additional “one-shot” story mode wherein every ending you unlock, you then unlock additional content

That takes a lot more planning than we’d anticipated.

How do we make this efficiently run on most systems?

Are we able to make sure that the size of this game is compatible with older devices?

Are the assets optimized? ( A lot of time has gone into re-drawing and working out sprite systems )

What settings are accessibility necessary for impaired players? How do we implement those options?

How do we design a stylish and efficient system?

That was something we had figured originally would be pretty easy to work out! But multiple people here are wearing multiple hats.

The rest of the team is actively working on those portions. But at the moment— we’ve decided to shelve literal art development and scripting (which was where we were hovering for a while) until we got the programming bits truly sorted out.

That leaves little old me! While they worked on this, I’ve been spending time making sure we could serve you a sample of what’s to come. My job is doling out a taste of the narrative, style, etc.. That way, once they’re finished, we can consider any feedback in the implementation of these portions of the game in the final, official build.

Hopefully that makes sense! TL;DR - Everyone’s busy making the important program my bits and designing the menus. So I’ve stepped away to work on this so you all have something to see in the meantime!

—

Q: Why are you REBUILDING THE DEMO?

A: The old demo— you’d think it would be easy to patch up. But it’s literally the very first build, sized up and fixed and stitched over. Unfortunately it was an unoptimized mess, even for what it was.

Hopefully a cleaner, more organized build will allow for better gameplay. But the key factor is just a desire for better quality!

—

Q: How often will you be uploading new additions?

A: Until all the bugs are fixed and the whole demo is rebuilt. This should be every week or so until then. Once it’s all done, the demo will see a re-release publicly!

In the meantime, please keep in mind bugs may be aplenty— and I personally apologize for this. Demos released are intended to show proof of work— but they may not be the best, most fun experience for narrative-seeking players. It’s advised immersion-prioritizing players wait until the build is fully finished and christened on our steam page!

—

Q: Will there be Mac support?

A: I will absolutely try!

—

Hopefully that helps give a bit more insight. Unfortunately it’s difficult to articulate everything that’s going on, but we’ll do our best! We’d like to have someone more verbally gifted helping us to write these posts, but until we decide how to go about that, you’re stuck with me.

We’ll do the best we can to answer any questions as clearly as possible. And again— we thank you all for your patience.

Making SDJ was clearly a messier experience than we had considered. It’s been a rollercoaster— and as Sauce speaking, I can actually attribute most of the delays to my own personal health and absence.

That— I am sorry for.

The rest of the team is working very hard to put something together that’s quality. I can promise with my whole heart that they’re doing their best. We’re all just people passionate about this project, and no matter the weather I don’t think it’s ever not on our minds.

I look forwards to putting out a large Kickstarter update soon, detailing our work and more! And I’m excited to open the airways for more and more communication.

But for now— we’ll see you next bug-fixing update.

- Sauce

[the1975attheirverybest]

Promises To Keep

A/N: Day 4 of valentines week!

Warnings: none

***

“I- umm,” Jo’s voice quivered. “I’m p-pregnant?”

Matty looked down at the 4 pregnancy tests, all clearly indicating, either in “+” or lines, or big bold letters “PREGNANT.” He grabbed one of the opened boxed, scanning over the fine print. “Mhm. Y-you’re definitely pregnant. It would seem.”

He looked up at her from the bathroom floor, as she sat, wide-eyed on the side of the bathtub, staring down at the mess of tests at her feet. Matty was, of course, overjoyed. This was the best news of his entire life. He’s always wanted to be a father. And the fact that it had happened without them planning it or trying? He’s not one for religion but he was certain that’s what he would call a blessing, if ever such a thing existed. He wanted to scream it from the rooftops. until he could determine Jo’s feelings on the matter, though, he was trying to remain calm. And it was killing him. He wanted to hoist her into his arms and hold her tight. He wanted to kiss her from head to toes. He wants to cry. But he had to stay focused and supportive.

“I- am gonna be a mom? Like- a mother?”

“Mhm.”

“L-life is…g-growing? Inside me? I- have a womb and shit?”

Matty frowned. “Pretty sure you’ve always had a womb- that���s not the point,okay.” He corrected himself. “Well, erm….life doesn’t begin at conception, Jo.”

Her eyes met his for the first time since the tests turned positive. “Right.” She mumbled. “It’s not a baby. It’s just cells.”

Matty’s heart sank. But he couldn’t argue with facts. “Just cells.” He echoed.

Jo’s hand absently moved to rest on her nonexistent bump. Matty’s hand itched to rest atop hers, but he held back. He watched her look into the distance as she pictured her future. 9 months from today. A child changes everything. Her life. Her body. Her career. Not to mention, her relationship. She was under no illusions when it came to parenthood. She’d watched enough of her friends go through the process to know about the sleepless nights, and the breastfeeding problems and the ever-present smell of poopy diapers in the house no matter how much cleaning one does. She was young. Her career had just taken off. She has just started to get a sense of who he is as an adult….and yet….

The notion of having a baby, one that is half her and half Matty, felt bigger, better, more right than anything else that she had planned or foreseen for herself in the future. The idea that the two of them could love each other so much to the point of making a whole third person out of this love was the perfect next step for their relationship.

Tears stung the backs of her eyes; a smile danced on her lips. “Well, we’ve both always said we want to be parents…”

Matty’s eyes lit up at her words. “Yes! We have!” He said, half standing up.

“I mean- nobody’s getting any younger- I make good money-“

“I’m rich, Jo. In case you haven’t-“

“And I work in design I can do that from anywhere-“

“I don’t have to work at all!” Matty yelled out, as if announcing the fact to a room full of people.

“You, do, in fact, have to work. You leave for tour tonight.”

Matty got up to sit beside her on the edge of the bathtub. “Right. If this child decides to ignore school and start a band….they’re going to live in our house for a long time. We’ll need a bigger house.”

Jo giggled at the image that his words had painted.

“Speaking of house….i can’t go tonight. You’re pregnant.”

“Don’t be stupid! You can go. You have to go.”

“And leave my pregnant- not wife.” He chuckled. “Funny, I- always thought: rock band, husband, then kids. Guess not everything happens in the order you want it to happen.”

Jo nodded. “Yeah,” she sighed. “I…always thought I’d feel like an adult by the time that I got pregnant. You know, sort of in the way that moms do?”

“Mhm.”

“Moms always….know everything. Like what to wear to things and what to do if a scab won’t heal, and how to make the perfect roast potatoes.”

“Roast potatoes?” Matty frowned. “You make a good roast, Jo-“

“Yeah but I can never get them quite right. You know, crispy and golden on the outside but tender and fluffy on the inside?”

He nodded along, recognizing what she meant, “sure. Yeah.”

“Our child is gonna grow up eating subpar potatoes, Matty.”

Matty held his head in his hands, letting her words fly by. Their child was going to be subjected to a lifetime of imperfect potatoes. A lifetime. With a child. They’re having a child. He’s gonna be a dad! He’s having Jo’s baby!

“Hey, Jo?” He called out, his voice echoing through the porcelain tub.

“Yes, Matty?”

He picked his head up and looked at her, flashing her a huge, shimmering grin. “We’re having a baby!”

The joy that lit up his eyes was impossible to ignore. Jo’s smile softened. “We’re having a baby….”

***

“I don’t know….should we?”

Jo overheard Matty ask as he paced his home studio with the door only halfway closed.

“I reckon we could postpone at least….”

She peered in. He was on FaceTime with George.

“Maybe we discuss this with….everyone, including Jamie, in the room. That way we’ll have a better idea.” George suggested. “Do they all know already?”

“Ross does. Hann didn’t answer so I left him a vague and cryptic message.” Matty paused the back and forth, finally settling in his desk chair. “Fuck! I’ve got to call mom! And dad!”

Those words were Jo’s last straw. She rushed into the room, snatching the phone out of his hand. “You will do no such thing!” She looked down at George through the screen. “Hey, George.”

“Hey, mate. Congrats on the baby!”

She was surprised by the new rush of excitement that hearing his congratulations had brought her. It was the first outside acknowledge of her motherhood. “Thank you!” She squealed, then, glancing at Matty, recalled the reason she’d barreled in here. “We’re not telling your parents. I can’t fuckin believe you’ve told the boys already!” She sighed. “Sorry, George.”

“No worries. I kinda can’t believe it either, if I’m honest.”

Matty frowned, leaning forward “why not?!”

“You’re meant to wait! Until after the first trimester!”

“Yeah, I know that, but why?”

Jo had began to speak, but George unknowingly cut her off

“Well- it’s usually when the risk of miscarriage is lower stuff…” he said matter-of-factly, recovering a weird look from Matty through the camera. “What? We went over this with Adam and Carly. Don’t you remember? You never pay attention to anything….”

Jo smiled, sitting in Matty’s lap so that they’re both in the FaceTime camera frame. “Sorry to interrupt your call but I think Matty and I need to have a little chat before….whatever this is goes any further.”

George nodded. “Understood. Hey, Matty, listen….in terms of the band stuff…whatever you decide to do is fine, honestly. Just let us know what you need. If you don’t wanna tour, we’ll sort it out.” Matty nodded, and waved goodbye, a silent cue that he was hanging up.

“What’s this I hear about you not wanting to tour?” Joe spoke as soon as she was certain that Matty had put his phone away.

“Jo, you’re pregnant!”

“I’m aware.”

Matty rolled his eyes. “I can’t just- get on a plane and fuck off to another country. New city every other day. No idea when I’ll be home again.”

He watched her face scrunch into a puzzled expression.

“Why not?”

His jaw dropped, shaking his head in disbelief. “Im not gonna miss all the doctors appointments and the- morning sickness and the- everything!

Jo was touched by his determination, not that she ever doubted that he would be anything less than all in. Still; seeing it written all over his face was overwhelming. “Matty-“

“No! He stomped his foot as he spoke. “I’m going to be a dad, now. I’ve got to- to rearrange my priorities. I’m not going to just leave you. No way. Alright?”

“Honey, don’t you think it’s a bit too early to be make decisions like this?” Her eyes looked into his, so Matty didn’t notice when she reached for his hand, he flinched, initially, relaxing to her touch slowly.

He took a deep breath, attempting to slow down his racing heart. “I- I would just- like to know what my options are. If…canceling tour is possible, or if, pushing it back a few weeks might be an alternative. I think….the sooner that I have all the information, the better for baby.”

“For- b-baby?” Jo’s lips involuntarily curled into a smile as she repeated his words.

“Mhm. Baby. As in….our child. Sophia if it’s a girl. Aiden if it’s a boy.”

Jo chuckled, heartily. “Sophia? Aiden? What the fuck, Matty?! We’ve only known about… ‘baby’ for like a few hours. You’ve already named it?”

“Jo, I’ve been naming our children since our first date.”

She rolled her eyes. “That kind of talk doesn’t work on me. I know all of your tricks.”

“And I still knocked you up! Ha! I win!”

Jo ran her hand through his hair. “Seriously, though, Matty. We are not naming our child ‘Aiden.’”

He looked at her with big sad eyes, “No Aiden? You don’t like it?”

“I hate it.”

Matty ducked his head, pressing his forehead to hers. “Fine. His name isn’t Aiden. No weird, artsy French names, though, okay?”

“Really?” She pouted, “but I’ve always dreamed of naming my baby boy Jacques.”

“No, you haven’t” Matty saw through her lie instantly.

She laughed, silently, her body shaking with his arms wrapped around her.

“See, Jo? I know all of your tricks, too.”

***

Jo’s arm felt around in the dark attempting to wrap her arms around her sleeping boyfriend. Instead, she was met with the cold bedding where Matty normally slept.

Half asleep, she turned the bedside light on and saw that matty wasn’t in bed.

Instead, she found him downstairs, in the middle of the hallway, standing on top of a ladder, with a screwdriver in his hand.

“Jesus fuckin Christ, Matty, it’s 2 in the morning!” Her eyes squinted, adjusting to the light.

“Oh” he spared her a quick glance, “hey, Jo.”

“‘Hey, Jo’ ? Really? Matty what on earth are you doing up there!”

“Smoke detectors.” He mumbled “first step of baby-proofing is smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.”

Jo exhaled, it was too late into the night for this conversation and she was tired. “And you’re…doing what exactly?”

“Checking to see if we have that.”

“Matty, this house is worth millions of dollars, I’m sure it’s got the right kind of smoke detectors.”

Matty shrugged, screwing the tip of the screwdriver into the nail. “I don’t know that for certain. I never thought about a child living here when I signed the stuff that got installed in here. I’m sure I thought ‘I’m never in here long enough to be poisoned by carbon monoxide anyway.’ So….”

“My love? Listen-“

“Think I’m gonna have to cancel tour.” He announced. “Postponing my flight isn’t enough. There’s no way I’m going to be finished baby-proofing before rehearasals week is over.”

Jo grabbed a hold of Matty’s leg, tugging on his joggers. “Matty- that’s it - that’s enough. Get down here. You’ve gone over to the crazy side. I need you to step down from there and come talk to me. Please.”

***

Jo brought over two mugs of chamomile tea, handling one to Matty before taking a seat next to him. “Drink it. It’ll help.”

“Thanks, darlin.” He kissed her.

She watched him blow on his drink for a moment, and take his first sip. “Matty, what’s going on with you? Why aren’t we both in bed right now?”

He looked down at his reflection in the tea, avoiding her eyes. “Just couldn’t sleep. So I figured I’d get started on some things. It’s a big deal, Jo.”

“Matty, you don’t have to do it all overnight, you get that, right? The baby isn’t even a baby right now. It’s a tiny cluster of cells! It takes 9 months for it to grow.”

“And I’d be gone for 9 months!” Matty raised his voice for the first time since Jo has met him. “Tour is 18 months at a time. So that’s enough time for a while fuckin human being to be made, and to almost turn a year old! If I can’t leave you knowing that you’re safe and prepared, then im not fuckin leaving! It’s not that hard to understand.”

She set her beverage down, placing her hands on his shoulders instead.

“You know I called some accountants today?”

“Oh?”

“To see about….a will.”

“Jesus fuckin- that’s morbid, Matty!”

“What? I’m just….being practical. If anything should happen to me. I- I want my kid — and you— to be all sorted….anyway, they- they said things would be a lot easier if we had a marriage certificate or whatever.”

Jo withdrew her hands, frowning. “I swear to god, Matthew, if this is your way or fuckin proposing-“

Matty giggled. “No, no! Cmon! I’m insane but I’m not THAT insane. I wouldn’t just…do it like that. I’m just saying….i do wish that our child could’ve been born into a marriage. You know?”

“Why does it matter?”

“It- doesn’t. Not really. Just- would feel more certain.”

She smiled, finally understanding. “I forget that you’re actually a tightly wound ball of anxiety sometimes.”

Matty chuckled.

“Very well, then. Let’s do it.”

“Do what?” He turned around to look at her.

“Get married. Right now. Let’s do it.”

“Right now? Jo- it’s the middle of the night, darling.”

“I know.” She rolled her eyes. “But we can still do it. Between us! The paperwork and the marriage liscence and all that is just legal bureaucracy. You’re rich. Your parents are rich. Baby will be fine with that stuff. So, that stuff aside….what is marriage if not a set of promises that we promise to keep together?”

Matty’s lips parted, but he had nothing to say. He remained speechless, eyes glued to her face.

“So, let’s make each other promises right now. You and me….and the baby. Let’s get married.”

“R-really?”

Jo giggled. “Yeah, if…if saying a promise will make it feel more certain, more forever….if it’ll get you to shut up and go to bed, then why not?”

Matty smiled, wide. “Okay, let’s fuckin do it! Baby and wedding in one day. I’m really doing it all, huh?”

***

She held his hands in hers, their fingers intertwined. “Who’s gonna go first?” She asked.

“Oh! I’ve got one!” Matty said, “I- promise….to learn how to check smoke detectors cuz….if I’m being honest I…had no idea what I was doing up there. I was just gonna crack it open and see if there was a YouTube tutorial that would explain it to me.”

Jo laughed, dramatically. Her head landing in Matty’ lap for a moment.

“Okay….umm…I promise to love you, even when you’re doing insane shit like looking up tutorials of essential safety measures at 3 in the morning.”

Matty brought her hand to his lips, kissing it. “I promise to talk to you first. Before I go off cracking open smoke detectors. I know- I know I tend to- go a bit insane without really saying anything. But we can’t have that. I’ll- be better about it. Promise.”

“I promise to give you grace and be more patient when you inevitably lose it again and start acting like a lunatic. I know you do it out of love. And it’s cute. So, I should just…go easier on you”

“It’s cute, you say?” Matty wriggled his eyebrows.

“Oh, stop that. You’ve already got me pregnant. You know I think you’re cute.”

Matty was surprised to feel himself blush. He laughed, softly, his head thrown back. Then, he straightened his back, looking serious all of the sudden. “I promise to teach our child how to love you right by setting an example for them every single day.”

“I promise to love you second most. Right after our child, of course.”

“I….find that a fair arrangement. May I kiss the bride now?”

Jo beamed at him. “Fuck yeah, you may.”

“I love you, Josephine.”

“I love you, too, Matthew.”

[chris-continues]

A Strange Encounter…

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Cyberpunk Edgerunners AU (Trigun)

Vash The Stampede/Reader

WORD COUNT: 740

Synopsis: you encounter a strange man amidst the bar you lounge around. He gives you a job offer..

The usual thrum of boisterous customers fills the Afterlife, the staccato tapping of your nails against the counter is partly what keeps you sane. The buzzing of the overheard lights, drunkards wrapping their arms around unsuspecting individuals,

Yet here you were. Alone.

Bass boosts with boisterous fun, some small girl causing a racket in showcasing the newest chrome in exchange for excited jeers and cheers of some sleazy men she’d catch the attention of.

“..poor thing, you know?”

A man sits at the barstool beside you, blonde hair tinged to different shades under the colored lighting of the club. A royal blue, as of now. His eyelashes flutter as his head cocks over to the girl, his eyes trailing after your previous gaze.

“Eh”, you shrug, “It’s how things are. Surely, you should know that?” You can feel your voice edging further into a drawl, observing him more. Big red jacket, large collar. Pretty plain. He’s a relatively organic guy save for his bionic arm, the ports available at his neck standard with no crazy enhancers. “Or.. not.” Your eyebrows furrow at this revelation.

He chuckles at that, “Haha, maybe!” Hand moving to scratch the scruff of his neck, ruffling his undercut in practiced fidgeting. “..just, tryna start something.” His gaze drifted from the sad, lone cup he held and up to you once more, brandishing a look you couldn’t quite place.

Something’s off about him.

You aren’t sure what.

…you can’t quite place.

A stagnant pause fills the gap in your sad excuse of a conversation. Words didn’t hold much value here, that was a common fact. Business did. Missions did. Money did. Take action, not a lame deal or quirky promise.

“Something?” You turn to him more, his previously despondent, solemn gaze flickering once more. Mirroring the neon lights surrounding every which way of the bar, reflecting in its pulsing energy that filled Night City as a whole. He piques your curiosity. Despite his lack of chrome and rather.. not immature qualities, but something remains. No guns blazing machine gun, gone crazy potential cyber psycho- just a guy.

He perks up noticeably, continuing. “Yeah! Got a few pals, and we’ve heard some of your work is… good..?” He trails off once more, gauging you for a reaction.

A job offer. Your eyes blink, fingers drumming against your leg as you take it into consideration. Work had been running low for you recently and you probably needed the gig, and.. the guy didn’t seem to untrustworthy. His hair shone a slight red with the change in hue of the lights, sweet smile painting his lips as his warm eyes looked to you expectantly. “I know it’s a bit much, but we’ve been looking into you for a few weeks and.. yeah.” He ends awkwardly, clearing his throat and turning his gaze elsewhere momentarily.

Well, there’s nothing better for you,

“I may as well. Sure.” You extend a hand in a formality here- a handshake- a sign of trust, perhaps, as he eagerly takes your hand in his and beams with a sort of ecstatic expression that’s rare here.

Strange. But not.. not entirely unwelcome.

“Great to hear! I’ll see you here tomorrow..?” He fidgets with his hands once more, holding them up to explain himself further in a slight panic, “Ah- they’re not all here today. We gotta call a bit ahead of time sometimes for hanging out here.”

Mm. Fair enough.

In Night City, everything was constantly moving. A never ending, unpredictable and most definitely not merciful cycle of perpetual turmoil and terror that consumed every resident. Desensitized.

What you were to be called for? That was probably no different. You worked as a getaway driver for said operations, having installed a built in nav system for yourself thanks to your absolutely horrible sense of direction beforehand- it took some saving up and not so legal deeds, but who really cared about the law down here anyway? In order to truly survive a few rules had to be broken, and you never… truly harmed anyone. Directly, at least. You minded your business and clients minded theirs, teammates minded theirs. There was no need to pry, that much was a lesson to be had for anyone who question such.

“Details coming in tomorrow?” And eddies, hopefully, you thought to yourself.

He nodded, smile turning sheepish. “I’ll uh, I’ll leave you be for now.”

And then he excused himself once more.

[britishassistant]

We need some more octo-trio shenanigans in this house! How about this, yuu receives a coupon for half off at Mostro Lounge, they show up wanting to cash in (and looking like a total snack themselves) but once they’re seated they’re tied up and their attention is directed to the main stage, cue leviathan and Co trying to seduce the reporter through the power of bombastic musical numbers

Anonymous said: If azul ever had a song in this au I headcanon it to be either “phantom” by natewantstobattle or “poor unfortunate souls” (Jonas brothers ver.) both are equal parts rock and roll and just intimidating enough to get the message across, though for the sake of the funny rule I’d lean more towards “poor unfortunate souls” just because I can see him dragging poor yuu around while he’s singing

Thank you for the asks, dear anons!

Yuu should’ve known better.

After Azul discontinued his “frequent kidnapping” cards, Yuu should’ve known that he’d never actually give out a voucher for 50% off at the original location’s black tie evening without there being some sort of catch behind it.

But they were hungry, and short on funds, and damn it, they just want something nice to eat that doesn’t mean they have to break the bank or exhaust themselves after an already long day by cooking.

The outfit they slip into is an old standby, one that Uncle Divvy had tailored for them back when Yuu was just out of university, after a discussion about their career path and how important it is to dress for the occasion should they wind up covering a high-profile event.

Asymmetrical, form-fitting, with a matching clutch just big enough for the fedora to slide into. The ensemble pairs well with the glittering ivory-into-silver-into-black eyeshadow that Yuu spends ages perfecting the gradient on.

The reporter has to remind themselves not to feel flattered when Floyd actually does a double take when they walk in the door, that any attention from either of the twins is not attention they want if they want to have a nice, peaceful meal.

To say nothing of how their boss will react…

The maitre d’ leads Yuu to a table a reasonable distance from the entrance and the bar, takes the coupon, and brings them a cocktail they spot several other guests sipping on.

An oddly cutesy drink, brightly colored gummies in a tall glass of carbonated liquid, with a sweet, tart taste designed to mask how alcoholic it is.

They resolve to sip it sparingly, and are perusing the menu furiously, trying to work out whether they can afford to splurge on a starter or dessert with the coupon, or if they should focus on eating a filling main, when the already dim lights go out.

There are a few gasps and confused mutters from the other patrons, murmurs from the staff that there’s nothing to worry about, it’s all part of the show—

Yuu feels something cold and metallic brush their waist.

They try to leap out of their chair, get away from it—!

But it’s much too fast, wrapping around them as tightly as an octopus’ tentacles around unwilling prey, trapping their arms and legs by their sides and inducing a sense of vertigo as they’re lifted high into the air, away from where their clutch (their fedora!) is lying on the table.

The lights go up on a stage area below them, Jade sitting behind an electric keyboard while Floyd’s gone and got drums from somewhere. Other Octavinelle minions are standing with their instruments at the ready.

And, of course, Octo Dealer is standing center-stage, a microphone in front of him, wearing a sly grin.

“So lovely of you to come out tonight, my dearest reporter.” He says. “As thanks, I’d like to dedicate a little number we’ve been preparing to you.”

“Hit it!”

Needless to say, Yuu would probably be more impressed if they’d been actually allowed to eat something, before getting roped into this ridiculous song and dance number.

[twilightknight17]

Last time on P3R: fun, not-fun, and another full moon!

Also, Koromaru <3

So I went back into Tartarus because two people wandered in like… three days before the full moon. So I gotta go get them. BUT. Elizabeth informed me that there was also something else in Tartarus I needed to rescue.

HOW did you get to the 72nd floor, kitty??? I mean, we got him out, he’s fine, but just ?????????

Elizabeth also requested another outing, this time to Naganaki Shrine. We had a great time. It’s actually really refreshing to have Elizabeth around. In a world where everyone seems to be some shade of unhappy, she’s full of wonder about the small things.

She recognizes a slide and a jungle gym, which means she’s seen them before somewhere. Do you think the Velvet attendants were kids once, like Lavenza? Now I want a whole room of the Velvet Room that looks like Discovery Zone.

Anyway, it’s full moon again. We’re off to an… abandoned underground military facility on the north side of the city. We didn’t have any trouble getting in, but once we arrived and determined that the shadow was deeper underground, we were surprised by two out of three of our weird trio of midnight assassins.

At least they’ve introduced themselves now.

Strega is pissed off that we’re trying to destroy the full moon shadows and Tartarus, because… they’re selfish, basically. If we get rid of the Dark Hour, they might lose their powers.

They like running around in a hidden hour, playing god. They like being untouchable assassins. And they don’t actually think Apathy Syndrome or anything worse that might come is something to worry about.

I mean… he’s not wrong, considering how many times over the course of Persona canon that humanity has almost destroyed itself. But like… dude. We still have to try.

Takaya and Jin lock us in the underground facility. Kudos to them, I guess, for not just shooting us dead right there. If they’re not killing anyone but their targets… at least they have some sense of decency? So, rather than banging on the impenetrable steel door, we’re going to head down into the dark to go look for the shadow.

...fun.

There are OLD ROCKETS AND DEAD BODIES DOWN HERE. Why would you just leave this stuff like this, wtf????

Anyway, something like 30 meters underground, we find the Justice Shadow! Or maybe Chariot?

Or both! It splits in half when you hit it hard enough. Which… the only thing that seemed to hit it hard enough was my theurgy abilities, so that was kind of a slog. They also do the thing where if one dies, the other revives it, so you have to balance your attacks so you can kill them in the same turn. I liked it. And the designs for these were cool. Half the full moon shadows so far have had really good designs, and the other half have just sort of been “...okay?” XD

So after the shadows are down, we call Ikutsuki to inform him that we won, but we are stuck in the base.

...sir, you could be a little more concerned???

Who are you sending, it’s still midnight???? Are you making us wait out the Hour? Hello????

We all make it back safe, though, and Pharos comes to visit literally the next night. I feel like I should be concerned that he showed up right away, but that’s fine. Hi, dude.

...baby boy, you could be a little more specific. X’D If we’ve got a traitor, that’s kind of important info.

Elizabeth gives me a chain-of-deals sidequest the next day, with the weird stipulation that she doesn’t want anything specific. She just wants me to trade the random bandage she gives me and turn it into something cool. I traded all over Iwatodai and ended with…

If she’s happy with what I got her, I’m glad. ^_^

Mitsuru calls a meeting in the evening, and we learn that Koromaru is better, and officially joining the team now!

No one’s really sure how this tech works, but with Aigis translating, we learn that Koromaru wants to help us because we saved him. He’s such a good boy. T_T

With the shadows eliminated and our fluffy new teammate, I’m ready for the rest of summer to be aweso---

...you know, Mitsuru, when I jokingly called you “mom”, it was just that. A joke. You didn’t have to do this to us. I’ve already had a week of mandatory track practice.

Fuuka claims that it’s only for “a few weeks”, so we should make the best of it. Actual school starts again in less than a month!! When do I get a break!! There’s at least two part-time jobs I haven’t even managed to try out yet because there’s no time!!

At least if I’m back at school, maybe I can rank up some of my school social links…

But first, we’re going on an outing with Junpei for some summer fun. We’re gonna smash a watermelon! And learn some more about Junpei in the process.

Instead of using Junpei’s childhood bat, Akihiko smashes the melon with his bare hands. Which… holy shit, senpai.

Adding injury to insult in terms of my summer break, Ikutsuki has decided that we all need to go to the doctor. You’re not my dad! Leave me alone! But I cannot refuse. We’re going one at a time, and my appointment is on the second to last day of summer school (which is only a week, btw, Fuuka).

Summer school sucks, though. Like… not only is it another week of just “go in, see cutscene, go home”, it takes my evening slots away too! Six days of getting nothing done, and the worst part is, even though it gave me points towards my academics for each day, my academics still didn’t rank up!! Ugh. X’’’’D

Thank god you can pet Koromaru.

When Friday rolls around, it’s off to the hospital for a checkup, which… goes very weirdly. Apparently Minato’s took much longer than everyone else’s, because his persona power is so unique. They had to run so many more tests! But, uh… what kind of tests are you running on personas at the hospital? That’s weird, Ikutsuki. What are you testing for?

He comments on how we’ve been making so much more progress since Minato arrived in Iwatodai.

Well, I am the Protagonist. B)

Apparently my fucking doctor’s appointment took so long that by the time I get back to Iwatodai station, it’s midnight. Like, wtf, Ikutsuki. Fuuka’s on-call with Lucia to make sure I get home safe, but before I can go anywhere, she detects a shadow in the city, like the night Koromaru got hurt.

LET’S GOOOOOOO, MOONLIGHT BRIDGE.

Sprinting off to Moonlight Bridge, I do not get to actually run around, but I do find Takaya and a weirdly fucked-up-looking Abbadon.

Minato and I are not willing to leave anyone to die, even if it’s this dude, so we team up to take out our common foe. Takaya’s gun is really effective, but we also get to see him summon his persona.

Dude looks like he’s in pain while summoning, and no wonder, considering what his persona looks like.

We successfully take out the shadow, and Takaya leaves before Mitsuru can show up to get me. But not before acknowledging that he owes me for my help. We’re enemies, but he doesn’t leave his debts unpaid.

Dude’s bonkers, but again, apparently has some sense of decency in there somewhere.

The summer festival rolls around, and it’s nice. We went with Aigis and Mitsuru, to give Aigis some more regular human experiences.

...I just suggested that we hold hands!

Koromaru is also a regular part of the household now, so you can spend time with him like you do your other teammates. Either going for walks, or…

You know what? Okay. Let’s do it.

Outstanding.

Lastly, since NONE of my school confidants are available to rank up, I guess we’re going out with the Gourmet King, again. Who is 100% legit in a cult and I am uncomfortable.

DUDE, NO. I’m not drinking your damn kool aid. I’m going home to watch more documentaries with Koromaru. X’’’’D

Next time I need to head back into Tartarus to see about the new area that unlocked. I’ve been trying to go for like a week, but stuff keeps happening at night! God, P3, I’m trying to manage my time and you are killing me. I’ve resigned myself to the fact that I’m not gonna max everyone’s links this time around, but I want to at least try, you know?

[thewertsearch]

GC: YOU SHOULD S33 HOW H3 T4LKS 4BOUT H3R B3H1ND H3R B4CK GC: SH3 H4S NO 1D34 HOW B4D H3S PL4Y1NG H3R

So Whitetext is in contact with Terezi, as well. I’d love to see what manipulation technique he’s using on her, because he can’t just piss her off like he does to Vriska. I don’t think we’re ever seen a genuinely angry Terezi.

Maybe his style with Terezi is more philosophical - appealing to her sense of justice, and such. 

GC: BUT TH3N 1 DONT TH1NK H3 KNOWS HOW B4D SH3S PL4Y1NG H1M 31TH3R

Now, here’s a question - does Terezi’s possibly-supernatural insight extend to someone like Whitetext? He surely knows how insightful she is, so maybe he also knows how to mislead her. 

But if it does work on him, then we’re getting some very surprising information - it seems Vriska has somehow managed to pull the wool over his eyes. Whitetext is trouble, so I consider this excellent news. 

Maybe this is related to the ‘transgression’ Vriska apparently committed. She seems to have done something to piss off Whitetext, and I don’t think he’d take it well if someone actually got one over on him.  

GC: S33 1TS COMPL1C4T3D GC: YOU R34LLY N33D TO ST4Y OUT OF 1T 4ND L3T M3 D34L W1TH TH1S

If someone avenges Tavros, Vriska will retaliate. Terezi knows this, and probably figures that she can take Vriska’s revenge better than Aradia can. 

She will be proven tragically correct. 

It's probably best you listen to the advice of your friend.

And yet, the voices are as lucid as ever. They urge you to make her pay.

Aradia’s death didn’t summon the Voices - it just made then louder, and presumably harder to ignore. 

I’ve been thinking about this, and I’m pretty sure Aradia’s spirit powers are troll psionics, rather than Aspect powers. Spirits and necromancy aren’t Time-themed - if anything, they’re Doom-themed. Plus, we’ve already seen a lot of other psychic powers represented on Alternia, and this feels like a logical progression.

Not that it’s doing much good for Aradia, here. Even now, she’s being manipulated.  

Also...

...poor Ram Mom. You deserved better.

It's a shame it had to come to this. You don't like summoning the spirits of the dead to settle scores.

Now this is real necromancy. This might be relevant later on, too - even if the trolls run out of resurrection methods, Aradia can still get her allies back in the game. 

...sort of, anyway. These shades certainly aren’t as substantial as Aradia, and doubt they’re as lucid, either. Maybe a troll’s soul deteriorates over time - or maybe maybe a medium’s soul retains more of its personhood. 

But if she had to face her victims again, maybe she'd finally learn to feel remorse.

You’re wondering if Vriska feels remorse? 

Dude, if we open that can of worms, we’ll be here all day.  

[theloverscardtarot]

I know you may not be willing to post this take but here goes. Woulda sent to Shamrock too but they must block unfollowers since I can’t send an ask. I have never been ‘’into’’ tarot but I will say I enjoyed the OG blog and for quite a while I did follow the more recent versions of accounts that posted Evan tarot content. And TBH I can say I never saw anything that I found ‘’problematic’’ – yes, I will admit some things were a bit less realistic than others but as far as I’m concerned it was in good fun and not something meant to be taken as an agenda of the OP. But as soon as Evan and Natlie showed that they were more than a one night stand, ya’ll lost the plot. Whether you mean to or not you are basically catering to the Rosa’s of the fandom and feeding into mental illness which is this obsessive nature of knowing about what they’re doing, feeling, whether they’ll be ‘’soulmates’’ eternally and that sort of shtick. You can’t say you’re not aware because I feel like multiple people have mentioned this to blogs including me, as a warning like ‘hey, not sure if you’ve realized but one of the most problematic people in the fandom is the one girl always in your ask box’. Those of us who have been in the fandom for a while know how Rosa types and can tell it’s her, it’s no secret. Multiple people sent it to them and also to Tweam. That’s why we’ve ‘turned’ on ya’ll, not because we hate you. I hate what this situation has become and who you’re feeding into with the obsessive posting. I don’t believe anyone deserves hate, trust me, but what I mean is you got to do better and be mindful of it all. There can be real consequences to playing with these unrealistic people emotions who want to know about E+N because they’re upset over the relationship. And even if you don’t post this at least you cannot honestly say someone didn’t try and talk sense into the situation because I liked you and Tweam and every other Evan fanpage that is normal and doesn’t stir the pot. Also you need to think about how you’d feel if strangers were constantly rooting against you and posting negativity day after day after day. Evan is human too, remember that. Anywho that’s off my chest now. Peace.

Hi anon. I absolutely understand where you are coming from. But, what I would like to say is that we are not intentionally trying to get Rosa and the others excited so they can do what they do. And we are also not rooting against Evan and Natalie. if the readings were actually read by you and other people, you would see that we always say we are not against anybody. The cards might be, but I always try to look for the good. Shamrock and Admin both have their disclaimers in big giant print saying to take tarot with a grain of salt and it's just for fun. I highlight in red that I don't know anybody, I just started reading and this is just what it is. I am not an OG reader and this is very new to me. So, it doea blow my mind when some of the same cards come up for all of us. Miles and countries away. If you don't believe in it, that is completely fine. No shade here.

Now, I understand that Rosa, Jackie, etc. all have tendencies. But they had tendencies before this blog, during this blog ,after this blog. Rosa posted an actual address of where Natalie was staying. She didn't get that info from any of us. She has plenty of platforms to get actual information from. I'm also not sitting here saying Natalie is a bad person. Actually I posted a reading on her that was very nice. We never say they are the end all, be all or not. Everything going on is something that can be worked out. Only they know what needs to be done. I've seen the Tumblr pages out there hating on Natalie and I don't condone that at all. In fact if you or TWEAM or whomever actually read anything on here, you would see we NEVER intentionally hate on Natalie. The cards say what they say and we are not joining forces to make shit up and "cherry pick" By the way, I see everything on TWEAMS page, blocked or not. Rosa ain't the only one with a burner account. As for Evan being a human. Yep, last I checked he was a human. He is not visiting Tumblr. That man doesn't touch social media with a 1,000 foot pole. Evan is more than capable of taking care of himself. If he or anybody he knows doesn't want to read these pages, they don't have to. Neither do you. 🤷 Listen, I understand your concern, but at the end of the day, people are going to do what they do despite a tarot blog. You are trying to do damage control on Tumblr where most everybody is anonymous and half the people are on here cause they are bored. I mean, me included. If I didn't have Tumblr tomorrow I would not cry about it. In the grand scheme of life, Tumblr is not the holy Grail. I don't believe your intention was to scare me or be unkind. But, what I can say is the asks don't scare me. This is a modicum of my life. I have deleted several posts because they were straight up Rosa hating on Natalie. If I posted anything of hers, I'm always clear that I won't tolerate the hate. I don't think you all "hate" us. But, for all the posts stating there's no tolerance of it over there, I'm still seeing a lot of it allowed. That being said, I respect your opinion. I have no harsh feelings towards anyone. Come to my blog or don't. Ask me anything. The only thing I won't tolerate is hate.

[heniareth]

Twins AU (Round 2)

Since our original post exchange got a tad bit long, @bumblerhizal I’m starting a new one here ^^ First, a few things on the doodles: I’m still cackling XD XD XD XD XD XD XD XD Especially about Amell (Pavle) going all “woe is me! 😩😩😩” over the dirt on his favorite robe while these two Alienage kids with probably multiple patches and mends on their clothes just look at each other like “can you believe this guy” XD XD XD XD XD XD XD It’s sooooooooo good and I am now imagining Pavle coming face to face with Sigrun’s particular brand of cheerful dead inside XD XD XD The official Grey Warden merch is amazing and our guys are great models. I really want that on a shirt now (and I could, now that I think of it. Ooooooh it’s tempting). I love Valendrian’s grey hair counter. The expression is on point XD XD XD The Plum of Peace should be a Feastday gift. And it’s very good to see reference for Radka, Pavle and Mr Andras (Who looks so kind!!!!!) Mousevhen is absolutely adorable. I want to give him all the pickled beets in the world

Next, onto the further building out of this AU:

You say Novhen is not able to realize that they’d work better as a team until they’re both neck-deep in the Blight. Is there a key moment when he’d realize? I wonder if they ever get to talk about the different conception they have of themselves and each other and their role with regards to one another or if it eternally stays as this sort of undercurrent until Novhen leaves to join Morrigan. I like the fact that Novhen sees himself as the lone wolf. It’s juicy and it makes a lot of sense given the backstory we’ve given them. And really, before becoming wardens, they have both been doing their own thing in pursuit of the same goal: Astala was working, and Novhen was criming. Astala would probably be between surprised, shocked and hurt if she ever found out (“What, am I not good enough to stand next to you now?”; not that she’d say it like that unless thoroughly provoked), but this is (partly) on her. IF she ever finds out she’s gonna have to chew on that. And it’s funny, bc when I got around to the Landsmeet and Denerim in my latest playthrough, both of Astala’s blades were better than Fang (yay for Starfang--also a fang!--and Topsider’s Honor). Kinda sad that I didn’t get to use Adaia’s Fang in-game. If this sticks in this AU, she’d be at a bit of a loss what to do when Novhen offers it to her, bc on one hand it was her mother’s, on the other that’s a weapon with a whole lot of emotional baggage and expectations attached, and on the third Novhen is giving it to her and what will he think if she says no? Will it be further rejection of Adaia and the cult and everything that tied into it?

She might just give the dagger to Novhen after the battle of Denerim as a side weapon. Everybody needs a dagger, and she’s already made good use of it. Funny how these two have feelings of inferiority with regards to each other, huh? Astala about not being rogue-y enough, Novhen about not being a dual wielder. Welcome to being siblings

And now I’m imagining Novhen at the docks, looking out over the ocean where they’ve taken half of the Alienage. Oh he’s gonna blame himself again T_T T_T

Let me jump to Broken Circle real quick, since we’re already talking about Astala and Novhen’s relationship with regards to Adaia. First of all, MOUSEVHEN!! HECK YEAH!! But also it might be Astala as well who’d ask him to stay in elf form for a bit so she isn’t alone with their ma. I think the reunion would on one hand be tough on Astala (depending on if she got the chance to apologize to Adaia after her outburst or if she held on to the grudge too long and then boom! Adaia’s dead), but on the other hand also awkward. By this point Astala’s had time to drift further from the cult and Adaia’s teachings. Seeing Adaia again would confront her with exactly how much she’s distanced herself. This and the fact that she’s left Novhen all alone to carry Adaia’s legacy. She may not believe in the cult or Fen’Harel, but she recognizes the need to keep traditions alive, and it’s not fair to expect Novhen to do all the work because she was angry. That said, she still does carry a grudge. Idk how or if she’d reconcile that, but she might come to the conclusion that she owes Novhen an apology. And, as far as I understand, meeting Adaia again is primarily going to bring a reassurance and some healing for Novhen, right?

Does Adaia have a temper? I somehow imagine her as having one, although she’d have a firm grasp on it

And Astala will definitely take Novhen up on doing target practice! They’re both bad at it now, so it’s fine XD XD Ilanlas and Nathaniel will be explicitly banned when these two are practicing

Oh, and Ilanlas will definitely say something insensitive about the city elves at some poin, count on it. Astala’s got a big shirt permanently within reach. How she’ll catch two very dextrous rogues is another question (maybe she waits until they’re busy arguing and thus distracted). Or she’ll tell Ilanlas he’s being an ass, Ilanlas will first put on airs and then mumble an apology through his teeth. Novhen seems like the type to hold grudges, right? Depending on the grudge, probably, but there’s already the thing with Nelaros’ ring. Things aren’t looking too good for Novhen’s opinion of Ilanlas. In that case, Ilanlas will have to content himself with them simply being companions. It wouldn’t be the first time he’s alienated potential friends because he was being an ass. He does warm up to Astala tho ^^ Ilanlas and Novhen might then be “that guy I’m only associated with bc I’m friends/siblings with this one very social person” to one another XD XD XD

I love the idea of Novhen telling the story of the Dread Wolf slow arrow around the campfire! Ilanlas would be all ears. Stories about Dalish gods from an Alienage are not something he comes across every day. He would, however, definitely go “the moral of the story OBVIOUSLY is that you shouldn’t trust the Dread Wolf”. And yeah, it’s not so much that Ilanlas invokes Fen’Harel for help, but rather that he expects the Dread Wolf to twist the words of a Dalish elf’s prayer to another god, because That’s What Trickster Gods Do.

Ilanlas will share his arrowmaking techniques, and he’ll definitely show him some heavy arrowheads the clan uses against fully armored templars. I feel like Novhen would be interested in that. As for pointers on stealthing in a city, first he has to not get overwhelmed by the noise. Then he has to hide his vallaslin XD XD Tramaking would be good bc Ilanlas knows traps for small game, but not for humanoid creatures. Tips will be welcome. As for quiet time during arrow repair, Ilanlas would love that. He needs his quiet time to wind down. If Novhen’s the one to walk over to him, or Creators forbid, invites him, Ilanlas might be a bit surprised that Novhen would want his company. If it’s been a good day, he’d count it as a win, if it’s been a bad day, he’d keep turning it round and round his head why Novhen would seek him out. I do have to note that Ilanlas sometimes starts humming to himself or singing really really quietly while he works. I hope Novhen isn’t bothered by that

Perinella is going to drag Kieran around with her if he’ll let her XD XD XD At some point they’ll sneak out and raise mayhem in the market (without outing themselves as mages, obviously. They’re smart kids 😌😌😌). Also, if Morrigan teaches her to shapeshift, her favorite form WILL be something with really pretty colors. She’s got Astala’s taste for fine dresses ^^

That Soris is already married to a human woman might work in Novhen’s favor, then. Let’s hope it does. Let’s cross our fingers real hard. Realistically, Cyrion probably won’t know too much about Soris and his family, right? Sounds like he broke off contact when he moved. Maybe Astala and Novhen should visit. Try to see how he’s doing. Try to reestablish contact

The question about the bann is a tough one because a) I don’t want Shianni to die but b) Novhen and Astala don’t know that Shianni will die if they make her bann. Astala agrees that Shianni is still young, but give her a few years and she’ll make a terrific bann. But also, Astala’s kind of wary of placing responsability like that on Shianni’s shoulders. Look what responsability is doing to her! I think keeping it tied to the position of hahren is a smart choice, even after it turns out Valendrian has disappeared. After all, the hahren already had most of the duties a bann would have. Maybe the title of hahren as a title could be preserved and given more of an alienage-internal role (Maker and Dread Wolf know there are enough problems, disputes, and people who need help inside the Alienage to give work to several hahrens at the same time). In that case tho, I think Shianni would make a better bann than a hahren

Also, good! I like that Kieran gets to have a bit of point to his ears XD XD XD Agreed, I don’t care for the “all half-elves look exactly like humans” either. That’s not how genetics work and having half-elves looking like hal-elves, elves and/or humans makes things much more interesting

We’re then having Khêd, Sulri, Ilanlas and Wynne arrive late at the tower, earliest when Astala’s already on top of the archdemon’s head ready to slice down. Maybe Zevran could be with them as well (although three rogues for one group that’s going into the market with all those ogres seems a bit much), and thus be greeted by a truly horrifying sight 😈 Or he’s already there. Kudos for Pavle for not wanting to cross Irving’s path, he’s a smart man and will get far

Also yes on the horror stories of jobs on ships turning out to be traps leading to enslavement. It makes a ton of sense and feeds right into that spirit of “stay with your own, don’t make trouble, and you might make it to the age of 70″.

Regarding Ostagar: yeah, I figured the newbies wouldn’t be allowed to the big ol’ warmeeting. Totally unfair. I’m currently laughing at the image of Novhen’s eyes flashing over to the group and the four of them going “oh shit oh shit” internally XD XD XD Good on him for not snitching!! Everybody appreciates that. Khêd probably especially so

Sulri might indeed run with Novhen to the tower. She prefers to keep away from darkspawn (not that Khêd does so any less, but Khêd’s also a softie) and I’m considering having her develope feelings for Alistair, so she might want to check in on him. Khêd and Ilanlas would attract a few looks at the very least if they made it to Ostagar. A dwarf and a Dalish elf make for a weird pair. Fortunately, as far as I know Khêd so this may be subject to change, Khêd grumbles only when he’s comfortable. When he’s not, he’s got a cheerful thing going on that‘s not always entirely convincing, but will definitely offset Ilanlas’ snark (“Nothing personal, salroka :)” before he attacked Oskias). They could find Pavle and their small group would get even weirder! A dwarf with missing teeth and a fake cheerful smile, a Dalish elf with the most obvious vallaslin you could imagine, and a guy who’s very very clearly a Circle mage in a town full of templars. What could go wrong?

I also do agree that Lothering is the more easy place for a reunion. Especially with Astala’s head for navigating forests U_U

Khêd would probably keep a close eye on Radka until the fight with Jarvia. Then she’s okay in his books. He’ll definitely want to know how Leske got to be Jarvia’s right-hand man and what happened to her though. He understands the Carta being done with someone. They wouldn’t have rescued him during his origin either. Her pledging himself to Khêd would definitely make him raise his eyebrows. “You mean I’ve got some authority in this dump now?” *gestures at the Carta hideout* Once Radka gets to the surface and turns into her jester self, Khêd will probably definitely think the shock of the surface (and the sun!!) is being too much for her. Astala will probably be delighted though ^^

It’s a shame Novhen doesn’t get to dance during the ball at the Winter Palace, but yeah, a public dance together would be far too dangerous. Later in Morrigan’s quarters seems a good compromise ^^

Many of Astala’s recipe modifications will probably center around making the pastry more hefty (“It’s gotta feed you, not just taste good, y’know?”) and also putting in fun new ingredients (“Have you ever tried this chocolate thing? It’s amazing, have a piece”)

Astala’s definitely going to appreciate Novhen having her back during the infiltration of the arl of Denerim’s estate. I think she kinda knows as soon as they get to the room where Nola died that she could’ve maybe chosen a different, better moment to confront the past than the extraction of the imprisoned queen of Ferelden. But, here she is. Novhen’s support is gonna be a huge thing for her just to remind her where she is and what she’s doing and help her focus. And he also gives her the safety in knowing that, should she be out of comission at any point, there’s somebody competent she trusts wholeheartedly to take over. The two big bad spots for her are where Nola died (right at the beginning of the route) and where Nelaros died (at the entrance of the estate). The second one isn’t good bc they’re gonna be in the middle of the estate. Apart from that, I think she’ll manage just fine except for sounding a little off. She processes things slowly, which comes in handy here. No sudden shutdowns or anything like that 🙌

Also, I like the idea of ser Cauthrien having them surrounded. Otherwise people might be tempted to try and fight their way through. Between being surrounded and the need to keep the diplomatic route open, I think it’s quite plausible for the team to surrender the wardens. And ser Cauthrien does let the other companions go as promised, which speaks to her character. But damn that guard. It does sound like Novhen to try and sneak away as soon as he thinks he can get away with it. If Novhen’s getting concussed, you’ll have Astala struggling against whoever’s holding her back and trying to get between Novhen and those guards. And telling ser Cauthrien off for allowing that. That’s how Loghain treats his prisoners?? What the hell??

And oooooh, so mechanically speaking they reduce Novhen to 0 hitpoints? Damn, that’s rough O.O Especially if at that point he already has that one rogue talent that lets you play dead available and tries to play dead, but the guards don’t let themselves be deterred by that (although idk if you like that idea. Might be a bit much gratuitious violence?) As far as cleaning Fort Drakon goes, it’s very tempting. But there is still a need to keep the diplomacy route open. Right now, the Blight has priority, and they will need all the men they can have. That includes the blighted bastards at the fort.

But it really is tempting to have a shem massacre 2.0

Also, back to Anroa and the negotiations: Astala would want to be there after UITA at the very latest. She’s torn on whether or not she believes that Anora knew nothing about the slavers’ presence (and will probably consult Novhen on his opinion on the matter). I think she’ll let Novhen lead that conversation, with the occasional follow-up question or voicing of her opinion. He seems sure as to what to do, and he tends to do these things very, very well. She’s going to take the opportunity to observe Anora and try to figure out how she works. I could imagine Anora being a bit unnerved at these two city elves in whose hands her position of power (and maybe also her life?) lies; and that straight after her father sold half the Alienage into slavery!

[emotionalcadaver]

Part 1: These Devilish Intentions

Fandom: Peaky Blinders

Pairing: Tommy Shelby x OC

Summary: Lucy earns herself a new name and a fearsome reputation.

Word Count: 3,120

Notes: Warnings for depictions of blood, violence, murder, and drugging.  

Previous Chapter • Series • Fic • Next Chapter

Chapter 7: The Red Demon

There was a new woman working behind the bar. A tiny thing, with black hair and shining green eyes, light freckles doting her nose. Jeremy could have sworn that he’d seen her before, but he couldn’t place where. Not that it was of much concern; here barmaids tended to come and go.

He kept his eyes trained on the door, forever prepared to sound the alarm should a familiar face obscured by a newsboy cap appear across the threshold. There was almost no one else in the pub aside from their little group of rebels; just two women smoking in the corner and giggling.

“Where’s Jill?” one of his companions, Daniel, asked as the barmaid came to their table, setting their drinks down in front of them each carefully.

“She’s sick. Asked me to cover her shift for her. She’ll be back by next week,” the barmaid said.

“Pretty that one is,” commented Alexander, eyes trained on the barmaid as she walked away.

“I prefer Jill,” sulked Daniel.

“Enough of that talk,” ordered Jimmy, lighting a cigarette. “We’re here to talk about ending the Peaky Blinders. You can discuss which woman you'd prefer to get your dick wet on your own time.”

The men grumbled but quieted down. Jeremy took a nervous gulp of his beer. He always hated these meetings. They were too exposed, all together like this. Too easy to corner. And there was something about tonight in particular, some sudden sense of foreboding that made the hairs on his arms stand up in alarm. Something was wrong.

“I’ve gotten another letter from our benefactor in London. The weapons will be delivered no later than the beginning of next week. Once we have them, the real work can begin.”

A murmur of agreement rumbled throughout the group.

“Jeremy?”

He looked up from his beer to Jimmy’s wrinkled face. “Yes, sir?”

“What news do you have for us?”

He took another large gulp of beer. “Nothing much. Mostly it’s been quiet since they killed Xavier,” there were a few mumbles amongst the men. Xavier had been a long time friend to many of them. “There’ve been some rumors, though. That Thomas has got some sort of new assassin working for him,” Jeremy added.

“Another round?” he just about jumped out of his seat as the barmaid appeared suddenly behind him, another tray of filled glasses balanced in her hand. She set them down on the table and sashayed away. Jeremy waited until she was behind the bar before he spoke again.

“They’re saying that’s who killed Xavier.”

“I thought that Thomas killed Xavier.” George questioned from his spot tucked into the far corner of the booth. Jeremy shrugged helplessly.

“We need hard facts, Jeremy, not rumors,” Jimmy said sternly.

“If it’s true, we might need to be more careful–”

“Well, then you better find out if it’s true or not then, shouldn’t you?”

He looked back down into his drink. “Yes, sir,” he downed the rest of the glass and immediately reached for another from the tray the barmaid had set down on the table.

“You hear anything else from our friend in London, Jim?” Alexander asked.

“No.”

“How are we paying this guy again?” Oliver frowned. Jimmy rolled his eyes.

“I told you, Ollie, he’s not asking for money. Just that once we’ve dealt with the Blinders, we ensure that his stolen…property is returned to him. That’s the payment.”

Jeremy flinched and took another deep sip of his beer. He had never liked talking about human beings as if they were objects like that. A hand reached up to rub at his temples. He was starting to feel very, very tired. An unshakable grogginess making his head feel like it was full of stones. Christ, he hoped that he wasn’t coming down with something.   

He didn’t listen to much else of what the other men around him were saying, too busy fighting to keep his eyes open, a headache beginning to pound in his temples. From the corner of his eye, he saw the barmaid moving about–what the fuck was she doing?

“Does anyone else feel weird?” William asked, rubbing at the bridge of his nose. Jeremy blinked, his mind and movements sluggish.

“I-”

The sound of the gunshot was so loud, for a moment Jeremy thought that it had deafened him, hands flying to his ringing ears at the same time that he hurled himself to the ground, trying to get under the table. In front of him, Daniel’s head exploded into a bloody mess.

They all tried to move, some of them to get down under the table or behind chairs for cover, while others tried to return fire. But their movements were slow and unsteady. Two more shots rang out and both George and Gabriel’s bodies crumpled.

Finally, Jimmy managed to pull his gun out and get a shot off, but the barmaid ducked behind the bar. Jeremy was vaguely aware of the women in the far booth screaming, clinging to each other in the chaos. 

For a moment, there was silence.

“What the fuck, what the fuck,” chanted William as he struggled to pull his gun from its holster.

“You two,” hissed Jimmy to Oliver and Samuel, “go around that side of the bar, Jeremy, come with me. We’re going to corner the bitch. The rest of you stay down.”

Gun shaking in his hands and movements still staggering, Jeremy followed Jimmy towards one end of the bar while Oliver and Samuel took the other side. All of them were dangerously unsteady on their feet, the arms clutching their guns trembling and swaying. On the count of three, they rounded the corner, guns pointed at the empty space.

“Where the fuck did she go?”

Slowly, they began to advance behind the bar, guns still raised. Jimmy leaned forward, eyes peering into the darkness of a cavity beneath the bar used to store extra glasses.

She exploded from the cavity in a sudden flurry of movement, like a monster rising from the darkness. There was a violent slash, and a sudden red waterfall burst from Jimmy’s throat, where she had practically severed his head from his body with her blade. In one quick movement, she grasped Jimmy’s body by the waist and spun them, using his torso as a shield as she fired off another round of bullets into Oliver’s head.  

Diving back behind the bar to avoid getting shot, Jeremy only heard as Samuel returned fire, and a quiet yelp from the woman. He peeked his head out just in time to watch her lunge forward with a speed that was utterly inhuman, grabbing Samuel’s wrist and twisting it so that his gun was pointed away from her, a dagger stabbing over and over into his chest. She let Samuel fall with a heavy thump, head snapping around in Jeremy’s direction. For the brief flash of a second that he was able to make out her face before he ducked his head back down behind the bar, Jeremy could have sworn that she was grinning. 

Overturning one of the tables, Jeremy all but cowered behind it, the vision of Jimmy’s head lolling back, held only by a thin sliver of skin, replaying over and over in his mind. Christ, what the hell were they trapped in here with? He had expected that eventually the Blinders would come for them. But he had never expected them to send a fucking demon after them.

It was then that William tried to make a run for the door, only making it a few steps before a knife embedded itself into his back. For a moment, his entire body went rigid, arms halfway up in the air, before falling face first to the floor.

Jeremy clutched his gun tightly to his chest and squeezed his eyes shut. Fuck, he couldn’t think. His movements were too slow. There must have been something in the beer she gave them.

Across the room, huddled together behind another table, he could see Alexander. Nicholas had used William’s attempt at escape to sneak in closer to the bar. Rounding it, he lunged forward, and managed by some miracle to grab the assassin. She snarled, inhuman and spine chilling, twisting in his arms like a snake. Grasping Nicholas’s arm, she forced it upwards so that the shot he fired embedded itself in the ceiling instead of her gut. He grabbed at her hair with his free hand, yanking away the black wig to reveal hair the color of blood, wrenching her head back. Clearly struggling to keep the arm with the gun pointed away from her, the woman–no, demon, he was certain that was what she was–opted instead to sink her teeth into Nicholas’s forearm. He howled.

“One of you idiots fucking shoot her!”

 His shout shook Jeremy into action, rising from his cover and firing. But his aim was off, first shot only managing to smash a few glasses to the right of the demon’s head. He sucked in a deep breath, steadying his next shot, and in the exact moment that he fired, the demon twisted herself and Nicholas so that their positions were flipped. Jeremy’s bullet hit where his mark had been standing a moment ago, bullet coming to lodge in Nicholas’s throat. Nicholas’s grip on the demon slackened, grasping at the hole in his neck. The demon shoved him away from her, pulled a fresh revolver from inside her coat, and shot him in the head.

Scrambling, Jeremy took the brief moment that she was distracted by shooting Nicholas to hurtle himself towards the doors. Maybe, if he was quick enough–

Her shot hit him in the right knee, leg buckling immediately and sending him crashing to the floor, wailing. His gun fell from his sweaty hands in the fall, vision blurring as his head smacked hard against the floor.

He could hear her footsteps, heavy thumps against the floorboards as she walked around the bar. Poor Alexander didn’t stand a chance. The second that he rose from his cover he’d be shot dead. Something that the man seemed to realize. Jeremy still couldn’t see very well, blinking hard in an attempt to rid himself of the blurriness. But he could still hear Alexander’s voice.

“Wait. Please. I surrender. I’m sorry, just wait, please–”

Another gunshot and a wet thump were all that followed the pleas. 

He could hear her footsteps, moving slowly towards him, the sound of the revolver cocking. Palms slipping on the blood seeping over the floor, pushing with his uninjured leg, he began to crawl towards where his gun had slid away from him.

His fingers just brushed over the cool metal when the demon’s foot pressed heavily to his wrist. A hand grasped him by the shoulder, rolling him over onto his back. She kicked the gun further away from him, and knelt down so that they were at eye level, terrible green eyes blinking slowly at him. Blood covered half of her pale face, dark red hair a mess of curls dancing around her chin.

“Tommy said that you should be last,” the demon said finally, voice that had been high and musical now low and rasping. She holstered her gun, pulling from her pocket a switchblade.

“Please,” Jeremy said, widening his eyes, hoping to somehow appeal to her better nature. If that even existed. “Please. Just let me go. I’ll leave town. You’ll never see me again. I’m sorry.”

“He said,” the blade unsheathed with a click. “That we will use you to send a message. You’re going to help us ensure that no one in this town ever even thinks of rebellion ever again,” she cupped his face with one hand, holding his head still even as he tried to wrench it away, the blade approaching his face.

“You’re a demon,” he choked out. She hesitated just a moment, head tilting to the side. 

“Maybe so,” she whispered, and brought the blade to his eyes. 

∗ ∗ ∗

Once she finished with the eyes, she sliced through Jeremy’s throat like butter, tossing him back to the ground as he gurgled and drowned. One by one, she went to each body sprawled out on the floor, checking to make sure they were really dead, and slicing a horizontal line across their eyes with her blade.

The mark of the Blinders. So there would be no mistake who was responsible for the killings. 

In most of their pockets, she found little more than lint and cigarettes, but tucked into Jimmy’s innermost coat pocket she found a stack of letters, tied together with string, all addressed from London. Their benefactor. She flipped the first one open, and nearly dropped the entire little stack of paper.

No.

Her eyes skimmed over the words scrawled out onto the letter, barely processing them. She did not need to glance at the bottom, where the name of the sender was signed in looping letters. 

She would know her father’s handwriting anywhere.

Swallowing a wave of nausea, she straightened, pocketing the letters. She was barely aware of the whimpering cries of the two women still huddled in the corner of the pub, clinging to each other with their eyes closed. They flinched at the sound of her footsteps towards them, sobbing when Lucy laid her fingers on their cheeks, turning their faces to look at her. 

“You tell people what happened here today,” and then she was moving to the door, halfheartedly wiping at the sticky blood covering her face with her handkerchief as she stepped outside. 

∗ ∗ ∗

It was only around the time that she had made her way back to the betting shop did she begin to grow vaguely aware of the throbbing ache in her left bicep. The bullet had only grazed her, thankfully, but the wound still stung. And she was growing more and more certain that she would have bruises blooming across her torso within a day or two. 

Still, she wasn’t dead. That in itself was some kind of success.

“Holy Jesus,” Polly said the second she staggered through the door, jumping from her seat. Lucy only really realized in that moment just how frightening she probably looked; drenched in blood, hair a mess, eyes a touch unfocused. “Tommy!”

“I’m alright,” she mumbled, even as Polly grabbed her shoulders and pushed her into a seat at the kitchen table.

“You’re covered in blood.”

“It’s not mine,” she said at the exact moment that Tommy walked into the kitchen, took one look at her, and went white as a ghost. “At least mostly.”

“Where are you hurt?” Polly asked. Lucy gestured to her arm. The woman set about filling a bucket of water, grabbing rags, a bottle of alcohol from the cabinet, and a kit to stitch her up with. Tommy approached her slowly, cautiously, sinking into the chair beside her while his hand reached out, tracing lightly along her face.

“I got them all,” she told him, nodding urgently. He swallowed hard but nodded. Polly set the bucket full of water on the kitchen table.

“I’ve got it, Pol,” he said. She looked like she wanted to argue, but just glanced between the two of them and nodded, going into the back where the offices were. Tommy dipped the rag into the water, ringing it out before he began to carefully wipe her face. The white rag came away stained bright red.

“You’re alright?”

“Mhm.”

He began to clean the blood away from her arm, before pouring a helping of alcohol over the wound and grabbing the needle and thread Polly had prepared. Head rolling back, she let her eyes slide closed as he silently worked, suddenly exhausted.

“You’ll be getting the shakes soon,” he said. “Once your blood cools down.”

“Fun.”

He tied off the string and wrapped a strip of cloth around the stitches. Moving with her good arm, she reached into her pocket.

“We have another problem,” she tossed the letters onto the table. He picked up the top one, eyes scanning fast across the page. “Lifted them from the leader’s pocket.”

“Victor Winters?” 

“Three guesses who that is,” she bit at her bottom lip. “My guess is he’s still working with Matthew. There’s no other way he could afford to send so many weapons otherwise.”

Tommy set the first letter down and picked up another one. As he read, his hand curled over the one she had resting on the table, warm and reassuring.

“I won’t let them hurt you.”

Taking a deep breath, she let the promise wash over her, wrap around her in a reassuring embrace. “I know,” her head bowed forward. Why couldn’t they just let her go? It was hard for her to imagine that she was worth all of this trouble. Tommy leaned forward, until their foreheads all but bumped into each other. His thumb rubbed along her knuckles.

“You’re going to be okay.”

She nodded, closing her eyes. “Thank you,” she hoped that he knew that she didn’t just mean for his comfort and protection, but for the home and purpose he had also gifted to her. His head turned, a kiss pressing to her temple. Breaths stuttering, her mind whirled at the movement, unable to comprehend much outside of how soft and warm his lips felt against her skin. Her heart felt like it was about to pound free from her chest, and not just from the effect of the adrenaline slowly leaving her veins.

Tommy pulled back, but kept his hand curled around hers, reading carefully through each of the individual letters scattered across the table. The door opened, Arthur walking in, removing his cap and sliding a hand through his hair.

“Hey, Tom,” he greeted, then clapped her on the shoulder. “Good work, Lucy.”

“How do you know what even happened yet?”

“Word’s already out on the streets.”

“Oh.”

He disappeared into the back. Lucy ran a hand through her hair, ruffling at the tangled curls, looking down at her blood stained clothes and sighing.

“I should go back to my flat. Get cleaned up.”

Tommy stood, moving to grab his coat and hat from the hook on the wall. “I’ll walk you home.”

“You don’t have to,” she stood, arms wrapped around herself.

“I’d like to.”

Her shoulders shrugged. It wasn’t like she minded his company. “Okay.”

They said nothing as they winded through the streets towards her apartment building. All around them, she could hear the fragments of conversations, of whispered murmurings and flickering glances shot her way. Words that spoke of Tommy Shelby’s Red Demon, and how she had just slaughtered a room full of men.  

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Thank you for reading! Please consider leaving a comment, reblog, or like. I always appreciate feedback and love getting the opportunity to interact with you and hear your thoughts! 

[nejibaby]

Bonds and Ties (12)

Prologue | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12

Word Count: 0.7k

A/N: sorry it took so long for me to update this. i had a different draft and didn’t like how it turned out so i had to rewrite everything. sorry if this is too short too dfdfugdh thank you to everyone who patiently waited~

Having lived as a civilian while being taught the ways of a shinobi gave you quite a whiplash in the beginning. This is because in contrast to the life of a civilian, a shinobi lives a fast-paced life. Not only should you have a keen eye and a quick reflex, you’re also expected to be a step ahead of your enemies. It’s tough work, but it’s nothing a good training can’t fix.

However, while skills can be honed, perfection is just simply impossible to achieve. One is always going to have some good days and some bad days. There are days you win and there are times when you lose. That’s how life is, and it does not discriminate whether you’re a shinobi or not.

Today, particularly, is a bad day for you.

“You’re different today,” Shikamaru comments after their team’s first win against you.

“In a good way or in a bad way?” You ask, knowing what he’s implying but not really wanting to directly answer. After all, even though you did your best, you kept messing up your timing and your jutsus all throughout the training session.

He doesn’t respond to your quip, rather, he stares at you intently. If you were being honest, it makes you a little uncomfortable. It’s almost like he’s trying to read your mind, or pressure you into talking just by his gaze.

“You’re different today,” he repeats. “You were moving differently and attacking recklessly.”

“Really?” Ino asks with genuine curiosity. “I didn’t even notice.”

Choji nods his head in a manner that you can only translate as, “Yeah, what she said.”

“I think you’re overthinking it,” you say with a practiced smile.

Ino nods. “Yeah, Shikamaru, I think so too.”

“Besides, your team has always been so challenging to fight against. And you’ve bested me a great number of times, and—”

“Even so, we’ve never won against you,” Shikamaru interrupts.

“Well, now you guys did, because you’ve improved! You’re better than yesterday and ten times better than the week before.”

Choji hums in agreement while you speak, but Shikamaru remains unconvinced.

“She’s right though. It’s called growth, Shikamaru,” Ino tells him. She then faces you, “Don’t mind him, he’s too hard on himself sometimes, especially because we kept on losing despite his strategies. So now that we’ve actually won, he thinks you’re sparing our feelings.”

You shake your head and chuckle. “I assure you guys, nothing of that sort happened.”

Shikamaru just sighs, knowing full well that there’s no point in arguing anymore, even though he believes wholeheartedly that they just got lucky with this particular win.

“Well then, now that that’s settled, we’ll see you later!” Ino chirps.

And with that, you bid each other goodbye.

Once they’re out of sight and their chakra is barely recognizable, you allow yourself to deflate.

As you walk the other way, you feel the lingering regret within you intensify — for losing, for not being in top shape, for missing all the right moments to counter, for messing up over and over.

Before you know it, you’re running towards the forest. There’s so much going through your mind that you fail to notice how you’ve been getting nicked from passing through several branches and bushes at an alarming speed.

In fact, you actually feel numb.

You suddenly start to feel like there’s something occluding your airways, and like there’s some force squeezing your heart. This makes you lightheaded. And then without meaning to, you realize belatedly that you’ve activated the Flying Raijin jutsu.

Your mind is blank and you don’t truly know where you’re actually going to materialize until you’re there. But before you can truly comprehend anything and before you can even land on your feet, you sense a distinct chakra.

You know you should move, get away, or even body flicker elsewhere, but you’re unable to. You feel numb and boneless. Your muscles simply refuse to move, and it isn’t because you’re immobilized by some jutsu. Your chakra isn’t depleted, but you’re tired. So terribly exhausted.

And your state of mind isn’t doing any better. It’s as if your brain is blank but also simultaneously thinking too much. It’s a foreign feeling you can’t put a name into. All you know is that this isn’t a jutsu of sorts.

So despite your acclaimed speed, you remain stuck in place.

Just as quickly as you appeared, the person moves behind you and digs a kunai at your throat.

You then recognize the familiar chakra signature, and so you force yourself to talk but what comes out is a croak, “It’s you.”

Taglist: @nejibot​

[toinfinitywinning]

What you see & hear- or even if you can. Just a cover.

Open it? There’s no tellin’ the worm. But you bought the ticket. It’s your Day 1.

They’re gonna try to break you.

Yk every Day I wake up. And I’m scared of it. Don’t want to. And not b/c im warm in my bed snuggling w/ my feather duvet and rain, with the weight of a horse on my legs play pretending he’s a 3 lb Show shhnowzaa but b/c I’ve already, already lived it. And having been in a constant State of fight or flight, normal or abnormal, sometimes u can’t tell —I still feel bad. W/e differentiation you had to separate the two both ended up at the North Pole but you’ve at least got Santa.

So this means I’m confused all Day but I still want some of Michael’s Secret Stuff Gatorade (haterade) from “welcome to the space jam—alright.” 🎵. To get me through. A safe energy drink. And your body doesn’t ☊ anymore so the more you talk to yourself the saner. It’s just I’ve never had to fake I’m physically okay to be present so much. Physical sickness affects ur mind Health and if you already struggle w/ that my condolences b/c your leg hurts too.

It’s a nightmare never 1-upping to a dream of being without. Then some days it’s will hear a song or remember a Good time or just Start crying-faucet not included. No acute-reason onset. (We gotta find another word for trigger no joke). I only subconsciously wonder will today be better…Will I get better? And I don’t know why I continue to continue being somewhere inbtw positive and negative. All the sudden my mind is taxed and so are your paychecks and I’ve been up for 15 minutes not even thinking I was thinking b/c Truth is, when something becomes your reality for such a Long time, everything just runs together. You’re afraid to feel anything yet know if you don’t it’s not just your body ready to atrophy. Not Good. And it’s a sneaky lil’ mf.

I can’t Imagine the omnipresent (best word for constant I got) Pain people feel having been with Illness their whole lives. How differently their world is shaped. Pain, prolonged cynicism, Illness prolonged, disability prolonged, w/e u used to think about things is gone unless you’re born one of these ways. Now to be clear I was born this Way but not THIS Way don’t get it twisted. Some days I wonder what it would be like to swap around. W/e it is—This presence does not belong to God— but maybe its mere existence really does b/c we won’t have anyone to thank if things get better? And there’s no joy in the things we’ve hoped for and overcome? And everything always has an End result of some kind…Right? If that’s my endgame I can only look at some things very matter of fact-ly. But. Here we are. Pending. Loading. Accept All Cookies. Your Health for potential healing is At the mercy of literally a button click away from quality or lifesaving or changing Medicine or therapy. CAN YOU AFFORD TO STAY ALIVE? Be fired? Bankrupt-ed? Evicted? No college, no trade School, but you work ur butt off to provide but you’re still paid $7.25/hr as I was as head intramural supervisor at Georgetown College. 15 years ago. Not just that, exist, like eating, clothes to wear, some sort of roof. So you’re choosing between crappy and crappier. Literally no difference. How in the is someone even going to try to stay healthy?!

Thankfully I don’t have to worry as much about the material, which, its Stress alone induces more trauma and Anxiety, but I’d bet how we feel physically isn’t too different. All the sudden again in the subconscious where I am all the time I’m figuring and not truly present you really think existentially like how in not God’s name clearly did I get here? I fixed everything. But Life isn’t played by a claw that has never won anybody a teddy bear. I wouldn’t pin karma to me in itself but it sure makes you think.

None of this is about to make sense but it’s where my mind took me.

Think about what was happening in your Life before things changed. Before literally waking up one Morning and knowing that very second things had to change or I was headed toward death a lot faster than I thought until that God moment. I don’t have many of them that are that dramatic but nothing was clearer to me in that moment. And then that Damn bat and conspiracy crap of government population control. If anthrax was sprinkled in Amazon boxes we’d be extinct. But Pretty sure we know how to get rid of people without breaking a beaker or test tube and then turning on a fan just gifting particles. And Unraveling ALL of the many ways of healing I’d finally lived into. I was so close. To every Fk up id invited. And so asking why anymore seems vacant. Echoing. And my ears hurt. ATP I’m More so saying well, I’m not sure that strategy is going to work anymore. Where’s the ღ in Health. It’s lost it. How much are you worth? No, like write down a monetary number on a piece of paper, fold it and slide it across the desk. Insurance companies be like: I see your offer and I’ll raise your offer: have you tried dying yet? B/c you could save a lot of money that way. The money it will take to bury you might even be more deadly.

So The most defeating part is beginning the Day as it ends. When I think about that it’s just like how did I get here? I’m still stubborn about it but maybe regardless of w/e someone accomplishes there’s the reality you’re still living in an imperfect world where you can only control so many things. Even if u gain that control back all those traps R still available. So you can Imagine my surprise when there’s not enough OCD to Go around to control THIS. regardless of what we can have control over, do that, b/c the smaller victories become magnified and walking to the kitchen to take your Meds that may or may not be helping is like an 8-ball w/ only 8 options. Eenie meenie miney. Mo.

I don’t set out to cry or tear up in the videos I share. I’ve always been a cryer. I’ve been told I feel things more intensely so it hits different, does different. The direct quote will remain anonymous but the sentimental pack rat in me wrote it down ASAP. Like, a handwritten letter. You took TIME for me. The quote—It was several years ago and I almost can’t stand it b/c it’s me in whatever kind of Shell is available at the time.

[“people perceive me as an individual who has the kindest of all hearts, but who struggles with the realities of life given that kindness…Like how the tenderhearted feel the pains of the earth more intensely.”]

It’s so true. But if I can’t be real what Good’s that gonna do? For me it further affirms what I already am living. In Edgar’s scary A** pit or with the company of not one canary in the coal mine.

C’ya in the AM. 🫡

[icouldntfindquiet]

Hi it’s the LA Reddit girl/person/whatever I’m referred to. Just wanted to see how you were doing and say hello!

I know the mod news is a bit surprising but thank you for being respectful and kind about it. Much appreciated! I’ve already received tons of not so nice messages over the past few months. I don’t need to knows what fans are saying on here. I’ve seen the the sneaky comments going around hahaha it’s expected. All I ask is that everyone remain kind and respectful ♥️ I love your blog and obviously don’t want tension. Take care 😊

Hello! I’ve been good. Life and work have been busy lately so I’ve been online a bit less. I’m trying to sort things out before my trip next month but also trying to enjoy the last days of summer. And of course, still waiting for CATB to come back. 🥲 How’re you doing?

Putting the rest below the cut because I wrote a lot. 🙈

I admit it was a bit surprising but I think people are just concerned about the sub. I may be alone in thinking this but I find the zero tolerance on posting pics of Van or mentioning his whereabouts unnecessarily strict. This isn’t aimed at you btw because this was in place before you became a mod. I understand not sharing his address as that’s a violation of privacy but I think general whereabouts are okay. Also, if Van is out in public, I feel like it’s okay for people to take photos. Following him around, harassing him, or intentionally trying to find him isn’t okay but if you see him on the street by chance, I think that’s fine. I’m just tired of people accusing someone of being a stalker or not respecting Van’s privacy when they try to share something. It creates a hostile environment that makes you not want to share anything. (But then you’ve got people who lie or post things without proof which is super annoying!) I just feel like we baby them at times. They’re grown adults who can take care of themselves. I don’t think anyone’s booking the first flight to LA and camping outside Sardy’s studio in hopes of seeing him. We’ve got better things to do with our time and money. And yes, I know there are crazies out there but they can call the police and let them handle it. Sorry for the spiel.

I don’t know what can be done to make the sub better. We come to the sub to talk about the band, share news, share things we find, ask questions, etc. It could be the lack of content and silence from the band but I miss working together to gather the unreleased songs in one place, people recording gigs and uploading them for everyone to watch, etc. I miss that sense of community. Now things just feel disjointed. 😟 I think that’s why I’m on Tumblr mostly. That sense of community is still there and things are more lax.

I appreciate the theories but I’m at the point where I just want a no BS rundown of what’s happening with the band. I’m tired of being disappointed time after time. I’m sorry people send you nasty messages. I hope they stop. Like why waste your energy on negativity when it can be spent on better things? Just know this whole thing I wrote isn’t anything against you. I’m just sharing my thoughts about the state of things in the fandom. Anyways, I hope all is well with you and that you’re taking care. No tension whatsoever. x

[invisiblegarters]

Eternal Yesterday Episode 8

No lie, I've sat down to do this thing several times already, but instead of managing it I just get all up in my feelings and have to quit to calm myself down. I thought it'd be better today but nah, I'm just as much of a mess now as I was when I watched the last ep the first time. There was so much I loved about episode, but everything I loved also hurt my heart and made me a wreck.

So I've decided to just kind of push myself through it. I make no promises for coherency or brevity, however. I'm good at neither at the best of times, and this is not that.

The intimacy of this episode is just…of course, the heart of the drama is Mitsuru and Koichi and their love for each other, but if I'm fully honest I never expected them to sell it as well as they did. So often the chemistry is uneven that I just sort of expected it again, but these two got me. I fully, one hundred percent believe that they're in love, and what's more, they sold that they actually want each other, too. Somehow, for me, they nailed it so thoroughly that I kind of resent Japan for giving me a couple this perfect when there's no hope of a happy ending.

So yes, I liked that. I love all the forehead touching and the being comfortable right up in each other's space breathing the same air, the sense that these two people would be content to just be with each other all the time.

I liked Koichi's breakdown, and I loved Mitsuru comforting him through it. It hurts so much that Koichi has been putting this cheerful face on for Mitsuru, because he's clearly been having a rough time, until he just can't anymore. Until the countdown that they both know is there (and maybe for Koichi far more than Mitsuru - as he keeps saying, it's his body) is almost at zero and there's no more time, and he doesn’t want to go but there’s no choice. No amount of love in the world is gonna keep him there. 

One thing I kept noticing throughout the show is that they are just there for each other in a very real way. When Koichi has his moments in episode four and here, Mitsuru puts aside his own worry and grief to comfort him, and well. We've all seen Koichi doing it time and time again.

What really set me off though was the talk with dad. I don't know what logic made Mitsuru's mom think that being cold to her son would make it easier for him to lose her. It doesn't work that way, and it hurts that the only memory of her being kind Mitsuru has is when it was too late and she was on borrowed time herself. I thought it was interesting that she came back for a while as well. 

I keep wondering what tipped dad off that Koichi was the same. Perhaps he caught Mitsuru looking at Koichi in the kitchen, then saw him at the hospital later and put two and two together? Or maybe he clocked how pale he looked the first time he saw him, all the way back in episode two, and then put things together from there. I don't know. I do like that we see that it is possible to move on, though - he clearly does - but that's well over a decade later. Telling Mitsuru that he doesn't have to force himself to heal is maybe the best thing he could have said, and the truest. There's no making yourself get better from a loss like that. And even after you no longer live in the sadness of it, the scar remains.

Sneaky and awful, too, the credits being Mitsuru's (and probably Koichi's) dream of what might have been. When I saw those two cup noodles…I do think that Mitsuru finally understands what Koichi was trying to tell him during that time, in the bio lab. But I don't know that I believe that he'll ever quite manage to do it. I think in some ways that loss stopped him in time as much as it did Koichi, and he'll get older but there will always be a part of him that is back there, unable to move on. I think a part of him will always be looking for Koichi.

I liked Koichi's epilogue. I laughed a little at him calling meeting Mitsuru a miracle, mostly because of Mitsuru rejecting the same idea in the first episode. Of course Koichi would think that, and of course Mitsuru would resist it. It showcases their similar thought process and their differences all in one line, and I loved it.

I'll admit, I was briefly annoyed at the whole "if Micchan were a girl, I'd still love him" thing, because I'm not a fan of the "I'm not gay (or bi!), I just like you" trope, but I was glad that it was immediately walked back. Would have preferred it not be there at all, however. 

Finding out about his family made some things make so much sense. I don’t doubt that his family adores him as much as if he were truly theirs - and I don’t think that he does either - but I get the sense of loneliness he must have felt to have been abandoned by both bio parents so young. Both he and Mitsuru were searching for someone to belong to, and to love wholeheartedly, and I do think that the fact that they found that in each other is a bit of a miracle. 

So of course the end where he thanks Mitsuru for being his miracle sent me ugly crying straight into the credits.

I don’t think I’ve been this screwed up by a show since...well, it's been a while.  

It’s not just the sadness. If this show had just been sad for sad’s sake, or felt too over the top about it, I would have been able to write it off and move on easily. It's easy enough for me to cry at sad movies and shows, but in all honesty they don't tend to stick with me. They're sad, I cry, I decide if they were good and then I tend to keep on, already looking for the next thing. But instead Japan had to go and hit all the buttons to trigger a sort of grief process in me along with Mitsuru, and so I’ll find myself thinking about this drama at random moments and tearing up (or crying because one of the songs from the OST pops up on my playlist - both those songs are great but man are they hard to listen to now), or getting a little angry because it’s just not fair, or feeling a quiet melancholy that seems like it’s settled into my bones. I'm not used to that.

It hurts, and ultimately I find myself wondering: was it worth it? I put myself through eight weeks of this slow, creeping inevitability, this knowledge that there was no way for this to end but with everyone in tears, me included. I’ve cried so much this weekend already that I probably can’t go anywhere because of my swollen, red eyes and my head feeling about seven sizes too small for my plugged-up sinuses. 

I really thought I knew what I was getting into with this, but the truth is I didn’t expect to get to me so hard. I couldn’t have foreseen the way everything - the acting, the music, the direction and the story - would all converge to make the perfect drama to wreck me. I honestly don’t know if I would have watched had I had an idea that it would do so. 

But I’m so glad I did. The answer to the question is that yes, yes it was worth every bit of tears. I love this damn show. It’s hands down my number one, best show of the year, will definitely watch it again and yes, buy the blu-ray when it comes out in May. And while I completely understand that it’s not for everyone, I would recommend it to anyone who isn’t put off by a heartfelt meditation of grief and loss and losing someone you adore by increments. There’s a lot of loveliness to be found here, even in spite of the pain, and maybe in some ways because of it.

For eight weeks, this show hasn’t been very far from my mind, and I don’t see an immediate change in that state of affairs. But i guess I really am a bit of a masochist, because I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Final rating: 10/10

[toshilove]

okay i need to rant about this bc this is still eating me alive even though i already yelled about this to my friends who also read the manga. I HAVE SO MANY THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS, OKAY?

before, lemme just preface by saying i still love tokyo revengers. it has become one of my favorite anime from starting it last year and even more so after starting the manga. the storytelling, the depth of each character, and what they’ve gone through made me fall in love with the series. HOWEVER…

*TOKYO REVENGERS MANGA SPOILERS AHEAD*

like many readers, i, too, am really disappointed with this ending. it’s not so because everything was reset and everyone is happy now, it’s just the way it was told really made the series fall off. it was wayyy too fucking rushed and each outcome was so surface-leveled. i wouldn’t have mind this ending had they extended the series for several more chapters so we can see how everything unfolded. we literally got 3 time skips in one chapter—one panel showing toman forming and then the next is them disbanding ??? and in between, somehow all the antagonists are now good and joined toman as well ??? WHY AND HOW ARE KISAKI AND TAKEMICHI BESTIES NOW ??? WAS IZANA ABLE TO FIND SHIN AND BE ADOPTED INTO THE SANO FAMILY ???

so much was happening so fast and instead of having previous questions answered, it just spilled out more questions. in fact, are the problems that are outside of maitake and toman just solved now?? like did taiju stop abusing his siblings ?? was there ever a fire in inui’s and akane’s house ?? it really makes no sense how all of these characters’ trauma magically disappeared because everything was reset. i mean, sentimentally, i could see how this gives everyone, especially the antagonists, a second chance, and everyone who has passed are now alive. however, erasing all the shit they’ve been through also kinda erases their character development too. a common theme in this series is how these people cope with whatever trauma they’re going through—good or bad. and in a way, these mindsets or actions can resonate with the readers who may be going through something similar. i mean, that’s how i know i’m a mikey kinnie LMAOOO. but yeah, taking away what made these characters just makes them…bland. their experiences made it seem meaningless if it was going to be reset anyway.

the way the manga was heading i thought it was gonna be a bittersweet ending. and honestly, as painful as that may be, it would’ve been more satisfying. i had a feeling takemichi would die in order to fix everything, but i thought the timeline would reset back to the beginning: him at the train station and have it in a loop yk? OR somehow he does revive everyone, mikey is now stable, everything works out, but takemichi would no longer be by his side and no one would no longer have any memory of him (basically like the spiderman 3 ending lol). something along the lines of those examples would be a more realistic ending, especially since the essence of tokrev is time travel. we all know w time travel, there’s always a cause and effect. there’s always some sort of sacrifice in order to restore something. in fact, we’ve seen it in the manga when toman disbanded for the first time. and mayhaps a bittersweet ending could have themes of fate and destiny. everyone can’t be saved, and that’s just that. “we won but at what cost” vibes fr.

now idk what’s going on behind the scenes; if wakui really meant to end it later but had to rush it because of conflicts with the editing/publishing team, or if he just really wanted this manga to be over already. either way, i still really enjoyed this series overall despite the bad ending. maybe the anime will no longer follow the manga towards the end and change it (we all know how cursed that decision is, but maybe it’ll be for the better 💀)

hopefully i made some sort of sense, i was really word vomiting AHDJSKDKS

[rotationalsymmetry]

Ok, having ranted a bit about science in The Dispossessed now let’s go onto the anarchism.

Ok, first off, I love that this isn’t a utopia story. It’s a way of organizing society that Le Guin sees as better, but it’s not romanticized. You still get moochers and whiners and all sorts of annoying people and people often don’t get what they want. It’s realistic.

(Somewhat terrifyingly realistic given that Shevek doesn’t really fit in and we’ve got his POV, and it absolutely reads like a setup for some Ayn Rand “look at this unusually capable individual who is being suppressed by horrible communism anarchism” nonsense, and yet presumably it’s not going to go there? Fascinating.) (anyways, I absolutely intend to do a Rand/Le Guin compare and contrast.)

And I’m really into what she does with sex and relationships. A lot of sci fi stories have more promiscuous sex but don’t necessarily do the work of addressing what would need to change in terms of gender roles and familial structure in order to allow that to happen. Le Guin is just like “fuck it, babies are raised collectively by default, “mom” or “dad” is about social role and not biology/formal adoption, nobody has to parent unless they want to even if they give birth” and I love that. I mean, I’m not sure I’d want to live in that world, but as sci fi writing it’s very well thought out. How good is their birth control? Don’t know, don’t need to know, being pregnant doesn’t mean having to be a mother.

Ok criticisms now: I can’t get over that post on here about how communist ideologies are named after people and anarchists ideologies are not, because anarchism isn’t about leaders, and then Le Guin’s anarchism is named after a person.

Worse, it’s a society that was apparently all blueprinted by a single person and them people were all “ok let’s do this” with as far as I can tell no structure for modifying Odo’s original vision.

What sort of anarchist community doesn’t have consensus decision-making I mean. (I guess we don’t know that it doesn’t? It’s not entirely clear how federatives or whatever they’re called are run but it sounds like representative democracy is pretty common?)

I’m not completely opposed to how work is handled but also I’d like to think an anarchist society would not have work be so similar to capitalist style jobs? Like sure, people can specialize, but it sounds like mostly things are done because people get assigned to things, rather than people deciding for themselves as default and sometimes that means one person spends most of their work time doing one thing and sometimes that means one person changes “jobs” every six months and sometimes that means one person does 20 different types of “work” in one decad. (And some people do not work for decads at a time and then just go to town and work five times as hard as anyone else for a decad or two, because neurodivergent people exist and some of them just cannot do normal work schedules.)

Where are all the disabled people?

Not thrilled about the new language thing, I mean… it smacks of top down nonsense. It’s prescriptivist. Let people speak however it makes sense to them. Which might mean taking old words out of circulation or changing their meaning, but there’s a difference between that happening organically and that happening by decree. Also how would you get an entire group of people to voluntarily learn space Esperanto or whatever? I’d get it if the people came from different language backgrounds and wanted a common tongue without one linguistic group getting their language to be the “real” one, but that doesn’t seem like what happened. Speaking of

Is everyone the same ethnicity, religion, etc? What the fuck.

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

Out-of-luck Lockdown: Part 1.

Wow...More units are here than I thought there would be.

They just need time to prepare. Then they’ll do a huge sweep of the lab until they find what they’re looking for.

Yo, Kaede! Shuichi!

Huh?

*Some familiar voices are heard nearby, which Kaede and Shuichi turn to see.

How’s that new upgraded spear treatin’ ya?

We came to help!

Yeah!

Oh great, you guys are here! That’ll make things a lot easier.

We still helping soldiers get ready. Once they done, we go into lab.

Your friends seemed pretty insistent upon helping out. I appreciate that bond, so I decided to let them tag along.

...If it’s all the same to you, Mrs Chairwoman...I was actually hoping that we could get a head start on the investigation by ourselves.

Yes, myself and my two allies here are of the same mind. We’ve already set up our individual forces at each lab exit, and were hoping to explore inside as soon as possible.

Is that so?

Yeah. We kinda got a feel of the layout and we’re currently the only three with the map. I’m not expecting we’ll find much, but we need to get this place sorted out as much as possible. Before Zetsubou arrive.

It’s true that we’re on a time budget. I guess we’d better let them go.

Yeah, I trust Kuripa to stay on top of this sort of thing. Daffy as he may be, he knows when to switch into work mode.

Psh...Thanks Boss...

Just one more thing before we depart. What happened with Hikaru Ando?

I can answer that.

*Setsuka joins the group.

Doc has been detained in one of the nearby camps we set up. We’ve actually brought down Doctor Kimura to take a look at him.

Seiko’s here?

We might not be able to communicate with her, but we know we can trust her with this sort of thing. She’ll find a way to get that parasite out of his system safely and soundly.

Despite our insistence that she should step back, Ms Eden Owari has decided to accompany her.

Eden can stay. Like I said, Ando would have gotten away if it wasn’t for her.

I suppose that’s all I needed to know. Try and get the doctor fixed up as soon as you can so we can get as much information out of him as possible.

Will do, second Chairman.

Catch you guys later.

*Munakata and Kaede head off, but before they can leave, Shuichi grabs Kuripa and whispers to him.

You three seem to be getting along well.

I’m just as surprised as you. Turns out we make a pretty good team.

...

Kuripa, listen...Something doesn’t feel totally right about this whole situation. I get the feeling bad things are gonna happen soon.

Why, because we’re winning? Makes sense. Every time we win lately, it comes at some kind of cost.

Look, Kaede trusts you. They aren’t as much of a threat on their own, but the Monokubs still may have some tricks up their sleeve, and they’re still in there. Not to mention, Zetsubou are probably on their way.

Please...Promise me that my and my girlfriend’s trust in you isn’t misplaced, ok? Please, make sure she stays safe.

Of course, of course. I get why you’re saying this. I haven’t given you much reason to believe in me lately.

But I promise I’ll protect her.

*Kuripa waggles his finger, then pursues his allies.

[Zetsubou HQ, shortly afterwards]

YOU IMBECILE!

...

*In the main lobby of the base, Akira Tsuchiya sits lazily on the sofa, as Mikihiko barks angrily in his face. Yukari, Celeste and Tsumugi stand nearby, baring witness to this interaction.

I think you fail to realize just how important that facility was to Zetsubou’s goals, and now the Future Foundation are clearing it out! We’ve even lost Ando, our one source of producing more parasites!

Because of your laziness, the Future Foundation got into the lab, and our plan to brainwash the cities has gone kaput! What do you have to say for yourself!?

...Yes...!

Huh...!? Wait...

*Mikihiko suddenly notices something, reaching over to Akira’s ear and yanking out an earpiece. He listens to it and hears the sounds of Japanese horse racing through it.

That’s it! I’m killing him! Lady Shirogane, permission to kill!

*Mikihiko grabs an ice pick from the table and thrusts it towards Akira’s eye, who doesn’t even flinch.

Denied! *sigh* Mikihiko, I appreciate it, but let me take care of this.

*Tsumugi goes and stands over Akira.

You mad at me too, lady?

Not as mad at you as I usually would be.

Let the Future Foundation have this victory. They haven’t stopped us. They’ve only delayed the inevitable.

What do you mean?

I had figured it would take a fair few more years to set up the game for Survivor. We’re going to move towards the final phase soon enough anyway.

Once that happens, we’ll have plenty of time on our hands. All we’ll have to do is repeat our process. Capture Ando and brainwash him again.

Besides, I’m sure the Doctor will cooperate once he finds out we have his darling daughter with us. We aren’t done and dusted just yet.

I agree. This victory is a trifle compared to our successes over the Future Foundation.

Still, don’t you think we’re getting a little cocky? We lost Emilia Feng and our weapon supply not too long ago. Even if we can replicate Feng’s procedure, don’t you think the numerous victory’s the Future Foundation have over us is concerning?

I joined this group and betrayed them because I believed you had the potential to give me exactly what I want. Now there’s no going back. So don’t you go letting me down, Shirogane.

Your feistiness is appreciated, Celeste. And believe me, I intend to reward you for it.

For now though, Akira, keep an eye on that lab. If anything big comes up, you know what to do.

Sure. I’ll take a look now.

OW!

*Akira lazily gets up, steps on Mikihiko’s foot on his way past, and checks the large monitor in the corner.

Hm...Now THIS is juicy~

What is it Akira?

Looks like the FF went back inside the lab to scout, see if they could find any parasites left over.

Then just tell the Monokuma’s to tear them apart!

I can’t. They already destroyed all our units in the lab. According to the vital signs, only the little one’s are left.

The Monokubs?

Yeah, those guys. Not much they can do on their own without those exisals up and running right? And that’s gonna take some time.

Ooh...Akamatsu’s really taking this seriously. She just dipped her hand in a whole box of sludge!

...!?

What did you just say...?

Huh? Wh-What’s with the scary face?

*Everyone looks towards Tsumugi, concerned.

Akira...who is in that lab? Some soldiers?

No, not many people actually. Just three targets. Kuripa Kurafto, Kyosuke Munakata and Kaede Akamatsu.

...!

*Tsumugi suddenly turns her back and starts pacing back and forth, her body slightly trembling.

M-Mugi-chan? What’s wrong?

Lady Shirogane, are you alright? You don’t feel well?

Akira...

*Tsumugi raises her head.

Activate the complete shutdown of the lab, enable all defense mechanisms and the plating on the large doors. Now.

What...!?

*Tsumugi’s request surprises even the stoic hacker. Everyone looks towards her with surprise.

Wh-Why?

Just do it...! Now...!

Lady Shirogane, if you’re hoping to trap the Future Foundation inside, wouldn’t it be best to wait until a few more soldiers step in?

Yeah, none of the people Akira mentioned are even targets. We should wait until Kirigiri and Saihara go back inside or-

I SAID DO IIIIIIIIIIT! DOOO ITT NOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWW!!!

!!!??

!!!??

!!!??

!!!??

*Everyone panics as Tsumugi suddenly screams out her command. Akira frantically goes to his monitor and types something in...However...none of the operatives realize they are being subtly watched.

...Oh no...

You find anything?

Ah!? Uh...no, no, nothing here...

...You alright?

Yeah, I’m fine just...Just a little jumpy is all.

It’s true that danger could be lurking around every corner. We shouldn’t let our guards down.

♪ *Hirari hirari mekuri mekuru! Sutoorii sutoorii! Kidoairaku sewashii!* ♪

Uuuh I think that’s mine.

*Kuripa picks up his phone.

‘Ello ello? What’s the situtation?

Uchui: KURIPA! GET OUT OF THE LAB!

Uchui!?

“Uchui!?”

Kamukura is calling you...!?

Shirogane is activating a shutdown on the lab! Get out of there NOW or you’ll be trapped in!

*He hangs up.

What the fresh hell?

*BLARE!* *BLARE!* *BLARE!*

!!!??

!!!??

!!!??

*As soon as the call ends, a loud alarm suddenly sounds out, and all of a sudden, heavy shielding shuts over the lab doors.

...That’s not good...!

We’re in trouble, aren’t we?

LET’S MOVE!