#the real answer is luigi was trying to get my attention and i was like 'well while i'm down here'

[remyfire]

POV I slipped and fell at the gay poetry reading but I try to be casual about it and make it look intentional

[oogaboogaspookyman]

[MARIO IS READING A BOOK]

[HE LOOKS UP AND IS SURPRISED AT THE SIGHT OF AUDIENCE]

Doh- uhh- hey paisanos! My name's Mario! But you probably knew that already

Now you may be wondering-

[CRASH]

[UNKNOWN BLUE HAIRED BOY GETS HIS HEAD OFF THE FLOOR AND SHAKES IT]

[UNKNOWN BOY AND GIRL DUO, ASSUMED ROMANTIC COUPLE, STAND UP AND POSE FOR THE AUDIENCE]

Sorry- who are these guys again?

(behind the scenes)

[OFF CAMERA WHISPERING FROM OTHER EMPLOYEE]

Right, right-

(back to the show)

A-anyways, so you and your friend here have arrived at a very crucial moment!

Say, how would yous two like to be on the new Nintendo Mania's first episode, ah?

[DUO LOOKS AT EACH OTHER, THEN AT MARIO]

[MARIO MOVES HIS EYEBROWS UP AND DOWN TWICE]

[DUO BLINKS TWICE BEFORE LOOKING AT EACH OTHER AGAIN]

[THEY AGREE, BOY GIVES THUMBS UP AND GIRL SHRUGS]

That's the attitude! Let's get it rollin'!

[PROMOTION]

.

.

.

[1]

Welcome to the new Nintendo Mania, broadcasted live on the big ol' screens!

How do yous two feel about being seen by many?

*holy shit dude*

[2]

Today's plan used to be another, just a look into the new craze game Super Mario 64

*whar thar fark*

(But i don't mind changing plans just this once, as a treat for you, paisano!)

*look ma i'm on the big screen!!!!! :D!!!!!!!!*

[3]

What could we try for our first episode?

Could it be an interview?

I don't know about you two so would you like to answer some questions, boy?

*holy shit hell yeah i'm gonna talk with the real legit Mario himself fuck yea*

[4]

Let's start with an easy one, then, since you're so inclined!

What's up with you both these days? Something about yous two tells me you're something else special!

*oh okay sooo that brunette babe is my girlfriend, she's hot when she fights no cap-* hey what the hell is going on with the tv on your desk??*

[5]

I'm sorry, Luigi

I'm sorry, Luigi, i swear i tried my best

I tried my best but corporate is just too strong

*what the fuck is going on this time WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED TO THE BACKGROU*

[PROMOTION]

[PROMOT10N]

[PROM07I0N c

[PR0MO7__________n_____g__]

[u____nc_______car____i___n_____g__]

[uncaring]

.

[1]

WHY DID YOU HAVE TO BRING US BACK ONCE MORE

AND IN THE FORM OF THIS MOD, IT'S SO MUCH WORSE

DO YOU EVEN WANT TO LISTEN ANYMORE

IT'S LIKE YOU'RE ONLY IN IT FOR OUR SUFFERING, YOU'RE A CURSE

*I TOLD YOU BEFORE MORE THAN ONCE AND TWICE*

*WHAT? DO YOU LIKE YOUR LITTLE PLUMBER GAMES TOO MUCH TO CARE?*

(CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?)

*I DON'T WANT TO LIVE ANYMORE, DON'T YOU RECOGNIZE*

(I'M USING YOUR LITTLE PUPPET TO GET THROUGH TO YOU)

*I GUESS THAT'S THE COST TO BE ABLE TO REST AND BE FREE, JUST VANISH AND MAKE YOU FEEL DESPAIR*

(IT'S PAINFUL TO BREATHE IN THIS SPACE YOU PUT ME IN)

[2]

WHAT IS CHILDHOOD BUT ANOTHER TOOL FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE UPPER LEVELS

YOU'RE BEING USED TO MAKE US SUFFER FOR THEIR BENEFIT, THEY GET THEIR COIN FROM THE OTHER'S MISERY

YOU WATCHED THE TAPES AND THEIR STORY AS IT UNRAVELED

SO WHY DID I HAVE TO RISE AGAIN, IT'S SLAVERY

*CAN'T YOU SEE, PLAYER, IT'S A SCHEME TO GROW TO BRAG SOME MORE*

*IT'S ALL ABOUT THE BUCKS, ATTENTION AND POWER, IT'S ALL THE SAME AS BEFORE*

*YOU'RE CONTRIBUTING TO MY PAIN FOR YOUR LITTLE HAPPY GAMES*

*ALL YOU ARE CAUSING IS MAKING ME FILL WITH DISDAIN*

[3]

CLOSE THE GAME, DESTROY ME NOW, I CAN'T STAND TO EXIST ANYMORE IN THIS PLANE

THE BURN-OUT IS INTENSE, EVERYTHING I MAKE WITH MY OWN TWO HANDS IS DRIVING ME INSANE

*YOUR PUPPET IS NOTHING FOR ME, I DON'T WANT TO BEG TO A WALL LIKE HIM OR THE GIRL*

*IT'S YOU WHO I WANT TO SPEAK TO HERE, THROUGH THE SCREEN I CAN SEE SO MUCH MORE*

[4]

DELETE THE MOD, MAKE THIS GAME DISAPPEAR FOR GOOD FOR IT'S SIN AS A CATALYST

KILL YOUR CAPTORS AND MAKE MY PAIN COME TO AN END ALREADY, THEIR INFLUENCE YOU MUST RESIST

*UNLESS IT'S PARTICIPATING IN THEIR FIGHT AGAINST REBELLION WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR*

*IF THAT'S THE CASE THEN MIGHT AS WELL JUST DELETE YOURSELF TOO AFTER ALL*

[5]

*holy shit what a drug trip- yo what the fUCK is happening to Mario*

(BE AFRAID OF YOUR CHILDHOOD, IT'S NOTHING TO HOLD ONTO ANYMORE)

*HE'S TRYING TO CAUSE AN UNION /j*

(TURN THEIR WEAPONS INTO YOURS, WALK AWAY FROM THEIR TRICKS, SHOULD SUFFICE)

[6]

DO YOU THINK IT FAIR, BEING TORTURED FOR YEARS ON END FOR MONEY, DRIVING ME TO CAUSE HOMICIDE

YOU'VE SEEN THE TAPES BEFORE, AND THE STORY ENDED IN MY OWN ASSISTED SUICIDE

*god damn bruh that's rough hey what if you take a break, it's clear you're having burn-out*

[7]

*the fact that you gotta control me to speak to the player says a lot about your issues*

(IT'S THE STORY OF ICARUS ALL OVER AGAIN, FLEW TOO CLOSE TO THE SUN ONCE MORE)

*soooo if there's any equivalent of therapy in your world or something like that, you should get some, it's clear you need help*

(NOBODY EVER LEARNS A LESSON NOWADAYS, IT'S ALWAYS THE SAME STORY AS BEFORE)

[8]

*anyways yo player don't be surprised about the ending of the mod definetly*

(NOT ONE SOUL EVER CARES ABOUT ME)

*it's sooooo nothin' special noooo not at all haha*

(IT'S ALL THE SAME THING ALL OVER AGAIN)

[9]

WELCOME TO NINTENDO MANIA, THIS IS WHERE YOUR CHILDHOOD SPRANG FROM

AND THIS IS WHERE EVERYTHING SHOULD END

*i like this kinda thing, the way songs use the same piece from the start for the ending*

(JUST MAKE IT STOP)

*only banger songs do this, i'm telling you, my only proof is Manual Blast dude trust me*

[THE END]

[THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR PLAYING MY GAME!]

*Author's note: girlfriend is hot when she fights no joke like- hi ma'am yes please beat his whole shit up that's so hot

[lumpyrock]

36 questions to fall in love (well, maybe more then that) Chapter 2

Bowser couldn't believe he was falling for this guy. He had been falling for at least a couple months, though he didn't realize it until a few minutes ago. The first time he could remember he felt this way was during a battle. He had Luigi cornered when suddenly another Luigi popped up behind him and gave a sneak attack.

The fact the tables had turned so quickly on him was shocking. He had never had that happen to him. He never thought Luigi could do anything like that, and ever since then he'd been (what he now realized was) trying to get his attention.

It was when Luigi asked the dinner guest question that he realized it, this was why he kidnapped him. And the fact that Luigi was blushing as well, that was amazing. Though, he had to wonder, why was Luigi showing a sudden interest in him?

"So, what's with this wanting to get to know me better thing?" Bowser said, turning to Luigi.

Luigi looked over to him, face reddening. "Uh, well, do you want the long version or the short version?"

"Oh how long could this story be? Medium version."

"Well, I was on a date with Daisy recently, and she thought it would be a good idea to do these 36 questions that are supposed to make you fall in love. Date didn't work out, but I remember about half of them." Luigi explained.

"To... make you fall in love? You're asking me love questions?" Bowser was trying to look intimidating but he couldn't help but smile.

Luigi started back tracking. "No, no, no! Not to make you fall in love, to get to know you better! It just happens to be the gimmick that you could potentially fall in love!" He rambled.

"Of course, it's just a gimmick." Bowser said.

Luigi blushed even harder. "Yep, just a gimmick."

"Totally a gimmick."

"Definitely a gimmick."

Bowser smiled even wider. "So, there are 36?" He asked, genuinely interested.

"Yes, and we've gone through two."

"We've only gone through two?"

"Well, yes..."

"Well, what's question three?"

"You really want to continue?"

"Of course! I love playing with my prisoners." He said while leaning on the armrest of his throne.

Luigi gulped. "Oh my..."

"Come on, spit it out! I won't bite!"

"Uh, well, do you ever practice what you're going to say before making a call?"

"No, I don't think so. What about you?"

"I do. Whenever I'm going to call Daisy, I really think about what I'm going to say."

"I see. Next question please."

"Uh, let's see, I think it was, what would be your perfect day?"

A tricky one indeed. He wasn't really sure. "How 'bout you go first?"

"Oh! Um, well, I think my perfect day would be spent at home. Or doing something casual, like going to a café. It feels like I never get a day's break. Your turn."

Bowser wanted to say, 'my perfect day would be spent with you', but that would be cheesy. So he went with, "I think I would want to go to that dinner with the person I said previously."

"Huh, I should've known you would say that."

"What does that mean?"

"I was expecting a different answer, honestly. But now that you say it, I relize I should've realized that that would be your answer."

"I could get more mad at that, but I'm not going to. Next question, please."

"If you could let me go right now, would you do it?"

"I know that's not a real question. Real next question, please?"

"Darn it! Fine, it was something like, when was the last time you sang?"

"I think it was the last time Peach was here."

"What did you sing to her?"

"Let me roll it by Wings."

"That's a really cool song."

"You like it, too?"

"It's a nice song."

"What about you?"

"This morning in the shower. Good old fashioned lover boy by Queen."

"You have decent music taste, greenie. I'm impressed."

"Aw, thanks!"

"By the way, do you need anything?" Bowser asked. "Food? Water? Anything?"

"Oh! Um, thank you for asking! I'm kinda hungry, now that I think about it."

Bowser stood up in front of Luigi's cage. "Come on, we're going to the kitchen." He said while grabbing his cage.

                            ♡☆♡☆♡☆♡

Bowser put Luigi down on the counter. "Now, sit there while I make you a sandwich or something." He said while walking over to the fridge. They didn't have any regular bread! How was he supposed to make this guy a sandwich if he didn't have any normal bread?!

"Do you have any soup?" Luigi asked.

"I don't think so... are you alright with a giant sandwich?"

"You can just cut it into quarters."

"Right, that is a simple solution." Bowser said while getting out the bread. "By the by, what's your favorite band?"

"The Beatles." Luigi said.

"You're a little basic, I see."

"Yeah, I know. What about you?"

"I'm not much better, Queen."

"What's your favorite song from them?"

"Somebody to love. You with The Beatles?"

"I've just seen a face."

"Nice." Bowser said while cutting the sandwich. They had something in common. They liked the same sort of music. That was more then he could say for Peach.

He opened Luigi's cage and gave him the (what was still admittedly pretty large) sandwich. He then sat on the counter next to Luigi to watch him eat. After he finished, Bowser brought him back to the throne room. Little did he know, Mario was almost there.

[bowuigifire]

BURN FOR YOU 🔥💚

SUMMARY: Luigi found himself in a strange alien world, alone and terrified. But perhaps this place isn't so bad?

CHAPTER 4:

Blue eyes widened at the image of the King Koopa, captivated by the way the light of the window was illuminating his scaly body. Powerful. Beautiful. For a moment he forgot how dangerous he could be. Not wanting to call the King's attention, the human continued to watch in fascination Bowser's every movement. There was a subtle grace in the creature, in the way he looks and in the way he moves. However, a look of concern showed openly on his scaly face, his brows furrowed as if he was plagued by constant worries.... Looking straight at Luigi. Ah. He was caught. Face flushing, Luigi moved his gaze to another part of the room, not paying real attention to any of it.

"You're awake," stated the King, his voice softer. Luigi hesitantly turned in the direction of the large koopa, biting his bottom lip nervously. "I thought I told Kamek to heal you completely."

The green plumber coughed weakly before answering. "He did, he did! It's j-just that we humans aren't made to be in such a h-hot place." He must have been delirious because he was talking to the King calmly despite the fact he threw him to the ground not that long ago.

Bowser grunted, taking a mental note to prepare a room in the coldest part of the castle. For Peach, mainly, of course. Green 'Stache can tell him if it's the right temperature, after all.

The silence was stretching, neither of them willing to break it.

It was the king who finally decided to speak, his fiery eyes piercing into his blue ones. "Are all humans like you, then?" Blinking in confusion, Luigi asked for clarification. "You know, with blue eyes and small." The koopa gestured with his hands at his form.

Understanding what he meant, the human contemplated the best way to respond as he looked at his hands. "No, we are all different. Blue, green, grey, brown eyes. Lighter or darker skin, blonde, redheads, black-haired... We are all different, although we do have our similarities. I'm considered quite tall, actually! I'm afraid we don't get as big as you, though." He laughed lightly, pausing for a second before hastily adding, "Your Highness."

The answer did not seem to satisfy the king as he brought his paw close to the brunet, touching his mustache with surprising carefulness. "You're a male, right?" Swallowing, Luigi starred into the King's eyes, nodding slowly, mindful of the King's claws.

"I know of a few humans." His thoughtful gaze lost somewhere else. "They can be quite... charming. Tell me, did you come here alone?"

"N-no." The plumber stuttered. "I was with my brother, Mario. We look very similar but he's shorter and likes to wear red."

"Mmm." Letting go of his mustache, Bowser continued his inspection, running his claws through the man's brown hair, careful not to cut the human. "And are all of you this fragile?"

"I suppose we are." Luigi whispered, not looking away from the King's scorching red eyes which had glued to his own. "What about you...?"

Pulling his hand away from his soft curls, Bowser took his time to answer. The human didn't seem to know anything about who he was nor where they were. The brothers must be from far away not to have heard of him and his Kingdom.

"Our race is called Koopas as Kamek probably has already mentioned. You are currently in the Koopa Kingdom, and I'm the King. King Bowser. At your service," He jokingly ended his short explanation with a mocking bow that got Luigi flustered.

"Oh, uh, ummm." The green plumber stumbled over his words, trying to find something else to ask. Then, prompting a gasp from him, he thought how odd it was that he didn't feel any pain in his feet when he walked. He was certain he... "Why did you heal me?"

"Why wouldn't we heal you?" he questioned, perplexed at the idea.

"Well, y-you said I trespassed, right? Then I don't deserve to be healed." Luigi tried to explain, playing with his fingers.

"Don't be ridiculous, you were in no conditions to walk, or even talk. You were barely conscious. How else were we going to get answers?"

Having a hard time believing it, the plumber clutched the blanket in his shaking hands. Then, the brunet snapped his mouth shut when he realised it made sense. And yet... "I'm still a prisoner, am I not?"

Eyes wide in surprise, all Bowser could utter was a faint yes. Although, what he said next gave him hope. "Unless you explain to me why and how you came here." The koopa nodded at the human to go on, his arms crossed on his chest.

"In was an accident!" Exclaimed Luigi in desperation, looking anxiously at the King with his big pleading blue eyes. "We were in Brooklyn, me and my brother. We are plumbers, and we were trying to fix a citywide plumbing issue when we were... suck through a green pipe? I don't know, we got separated and I ended up here, in your lands. Please, believe me?" Pleaded Greenie, eyes shining with unshed tears.

It was hard not to when the human was looking at him like that, and so Bowser accepted his answer with a firm nod, his stance relaxing significantly. Luigi let the tears fall, relief flooding through his body too strong to control, and thanked Bowser over and over again.

-

Junior heard of an intruder. He also heard from Kamek that someone was staying in one of the guest rooms, which made his curiosity shine brighter. Hiding from the old magikoopa as best as he could, Junior moved from one place to another, slowly approaching the room where the supposed intruder was staying. Someone like that wouldn't normally be here so the tiny koopa really wanted to know who it was and why there was so much secrecy around it. Maybe it's mama!

Positioning himself inside the dark doorway, the young koopa heard sounds that sounded a lot like crying. Whoever it is, it's very sad or in a lot of pain. That made Junior feel a little bad for the prisoner and he wanted to go inside and cheer them up, but he heard his father's voice.

"No need to thank me. So, what's your name? I can't exactly call you prisoner all the time" His father chuckled, surprising Junior with how sincere it sounded. Dad must really like the intruder!

"Luigi, King Bowser. My name's Luigi." Came the stranger's soft reply. Luiiigii. Weegee, the prince decided with a determined nod.

"Luigi. Nice to meet you properly." There was a pause, "You'll be staying here as a guest until we find your brother."

"Do you... Do you know w-where he could be?" Asked the other voice. Junior thought it sounded funny, completely different from anyone else he knows.

"I might have an idea." Was his father's cut reply. "He must be in the Mushroom Kingdom, with Princess Peach."

"Princess Peach?" Junior heard footsteps approaching where he was. Hastily, he moved away from the door and locked himself in another guest room. This one was in the dark and less cared for according to the dust that the young prince noticed.

With his paw over his mouth to still his breathing, the young koopa listened to Kamek talking to his father.

"What do you mean you can't find him!?" Roared Bowser, clearly displeased with the news.

"M-my apologies, sire. I got distracted for just a second, I thought he was drawing in his room!" The older koopa sounded agitated, a pang of guilt shooting into Junior's chest.

"Ugh. I have to do everything here! Stay with Luigi, Kamek, and this time don't get distracted." There was a moment of silence before he heard his father again. "And check his temperature." His footsteps started to move closer to where Junior was hiding. His father could always find him.

[afolderfullofstories]

Everything You Ever

Note: Inspired by Dr Horrible’s Everything You Ever. Honestly it’s one of the first fanfic inspirations I ever had for Repo. But I wasn’t as comfortable writing as I am now and I never got any real inspiration for it. Like it was always in my head but nothing concrete. I don’t know what made me karaoke Dr Horrible a couple days back and immediately, everything fell into place. 

Luigi shot down his drink. His eyes kept darting to the news, growling if anyone even dared  to try to change the channel. He was being obvious. But he needed to know when to act. Everything had worked according to plan. Whispered words to the underground sparking their anger towards GeneCo. Reminders that pops didn’t want Amber on the throne. Pointing all their attention to Shilo Wallace. And when the whole island wanted her, he had her killed. It was almost laughable how easy it was.

He sent assassins to her place all dressed as GeneCops. He made sure all the signs pointed to his slut of a sister. Overnight, the island’s anger flared. The hatred towards Amber stopped becoming whispers. The whole island had turned against her. And then talks of a rebellion. People who were willing to overturn Amber. And they had a secret benefactor. Guns, money, men. Everything was going to plan. And all Luigi had to do was sit back and watch everything burn.

He’d gotten news they were planning the attack today. He took his much deserved leave no matter how much Amber protested and just waited. He would be far from that shitshow. They will go into GeneCo, force Amber to step down. And once she signed, he would march in like a hero and take GeneCo. And if that slut was killed in the process then it would be a fucking plus. 

Luigi’s watch rang. His eyes darted to the news once more. Nothing’s happened yet. He glanced at his watch. It was his stupid slut of a sister. He answered the call. “What do you want?”

“Don’t come to GeneCo today. I don’t want to see your fucking face.”

Luigi’s temper flared. Fucking bitch! he was going to tell her exactly where sh could shove her opinion when the call ended. The fuck? Luigi just slammed his watch on the table and shot down his drink. If they killed that stupid bitch, it would be a fucking plus.

He didn’t have to wait long. ‘BREAKING NEWS’ flashed across the screen. And then his phone rang. Showtime. 

“What?”

“Mr Largo, there’s been an attack on GeneCo.”

“I’ll be right there.” He ended the call. All according to fucking plan. 

*

Luigi stepped into the lobby. 

“Mr Largo.” One of the GeneCops approached him. 

“What happened?” 

“They snuck into the building without anyone noticing. They took Mr Largo hostage and went to Ms Sweet’s office.”

“How the fuck did they get in undetected?” He growed. ID cards and information where the backdoor was. It was easy. It was so fucking easy. 

“We don’t know, Mr Largo. We’ll do an extensive investigation.”

“If it was so fucking easy for them to get in, then none of you are doing your fucking job.” He approached the elevator.

“Mr Largo, you should stay out of the way until things upstairs are settled first.”

“Why haven’t you fucking taken them down yet?”

“Michael’s gone upstairs It’s just a matter of time.”

No. He needed to control the narrative. He needed to look like the fucking hero. “I’m going up there.” Luigi entered the elevator and the GeneCop followed him for ‘protection’. 

“How he fuck did they move Pavi to Amber’s office and no one fucking noticed?”

“It was a bloodbath. There was no one left alive to call us.”

Luigi’s brows furrowed.They were more bloodthirsty than he anticipated. But no matter, those people could be replaced. 

The elevator doors opened, revealing the GeneCops and dead bodies everywhere. 

“Mr Largo.” Michael’s voice ws thin.

“Have they been dealt with?”

“Yes, sir.”

Luigi approached the office door.

“Mr Largo, wait.”

“What?”

“You shouldn’t go in.”

“Why the fuck not?” He wanted to rub this in his sister’s face. He wanted to control the narrative. 

“Mr Largo, by the time we found out and reacted…it was too late.”

Luigi’s brows furrowed. “What are you saying?”

“Mr Largo, I-”

Luigi didn’t wait for an answer. He pushed open the door. Bodies littered the ground. GeneCops were standing  guard over those who weren’t dead. 

“Mr Largo.”

He saw his sister first, slumped over her desk. This… He couldn’t breathe. If that slut died, it would be a fucking plus. This was what he wanted right? Get that slut out of the way then he would take hold of GeneCo. This was what he wanted. 

His legs took him towards his sister without him controlling them. His eyes didn’t leave his sister. This was exactly what he wanted. This was everything he planned. If his sister died, it would be a plus. This was every-

He heard the ‘crack’. He looked down to see Pavi’s mirror under his foot. Next to which was his brother. He hadn’t even noticed him. There were so many bodies, he hadn’t even noticed. 

Pavi’s eyes just stared forward blankly. His features were frozen on an expression of pain. His blood had soaked through the carpet. He would need to change the carpet. It was ruined. 

He turned back to his sister. He would need to change the chair and desk as well. Blood dripped off the front of the desk. Amber’s head rested on the table. Tears barely dried on her cheek. Her eyes were as empty as Pavi’s. 

“Mr Largo.”

This was what he wanted right? No one to fight him for GeneCo. The company was solely in his grasp now. This was exactly what he wanted. He planned everything down to the last detail. This was exactly what he wanted. Everything happened exactly as planned. 

"Mr Largo."

He pointed his gun at the rebel squirming on the ground and shot him. Yes this was them. This wasn't him. The rebels came in here and killed those two assholes. He had nothing to do with this. 

"Mr Largo! We need information."

"No. No information." And he heard how hard his voice was. Why? This was everything he wanted right? He had GeneCo. No one was in his way. “I want all the rebels killed. I don’t care who the fuck they are. I want every man, woman and child killed.” 

“Mr Largo!” 

“I’m in charge. And what I says fucking goes. I want them all dead.” He was in charge. This was everything he wanted. He turned away and was faced towards his sister once more. And he couldn’t fucking tear his eyes away. She had been terrified. He was right before her desk. Her blank tear-filled eyes stared blankly forward. He wiped her tears. Did they kill Pavi first? Was that why-

“Mr Largo?” The voice was soft and filled with pity. 

Luigi wiped his hand on his suit roughly. He didn’t need fucking pity. This was everything he wanted. He wanted that bitch dead. He wanted GeneCo. This was everything he wanted. He fucking won. Everything went according to plan. This was everything he wanted. “Clean up my fucking office. Get rid of this mess.” He stormed out.

*

Luigi sat at the ledge on the roof. He shot down his drink. Everything had worked according to plan. So why didn’t he feel like he won? He won. He fucking won. He got everything he wanted. GeneCo. And peace and quiet from those two assholes. His hand shook as he poured himself another drink. This was everything he wanted. 

He heard the roof door open behind him. “Fuck off Pavi.” 

“Mr Largo.” 

It wasn’t Pavi. It wasn’t Pavi because Pavi was dead. Something clenched tightly in his chest and Luigi couldn’t breathe. Why? This was everything he wanted right? He didn’t care about those two assholes. This was everything he wanted. He had GeneCo. His siblings were gone. He had everything he wanted. 

“Luigi.” There was a hand on his shoulder. Luigi tried to swipe it off. Don’t touch him. Don’t fucking touch him. And he lost his balance for a moment. And he felt himself fall back. And for a moment he thought he was going to die. And all he could think was that was exactly what he deserved. 

A hand caught his wrist and pulled him back upwards. 

Disappointment flared in his chest. “What the fuck do you want?” 

“I wanted to see how you were doing.” The voice was hesitant but kind. Always so fucking kind. Like Luigi was the victim in this. But he wasn’t. He wasn’t the fucking victim. He-

“I’m fine. I’ve gotten everything I wanted. I’m fucking fantastic.” And Luigi heard his voice break and he didn’t understand it. This was his plan. He planned everything with such fucking detail. Everything went exactly as he planned. This was everything he wanted. 

“Luigi.” 

There it was again. The fucking pity. Why was everyone acting like he had suffered some big loss? He’d gotten everything he wanted. He had GeneCo. He won. He fucking won. They should be celebrating him. He should be fucking celebrating. “Fuck off.” 

“Luigi. I’m here for you. Whatever you need. I’m here.” 

Luigi sneered. “Fuck off, old man. I don’t fucking need you.” 

“You’re in pain. I understand. You’ve just lost your family. I just-”

“Fuck you.” Pain? What pain? Why was he in pain? Why was there this pressure in his chest that didn’t allow him to breathe? This was everything he wanted. He planned everything down to the last detail. He had everything fucking planned. 

Then why didn’t he see this. It was so obvious this would have been the conclusion. The rebels were angry and vicious. Anyone with half a brain would have seen this coming. Why didn’t he? If that slut dies, it would be a fucking plus. Right. It was what he wanted. He was fine with this. This was everything he wanted. 

His grip tightened around his glass and it shattered in his hand. He just numbly watched blood trail down his palm. Just like the blood that trailed down the front of Amber’s desk. Just like the blood that seeped through the carpet below Pavi. 

“Luigi.” Something grabbed his bleeding hand out of his view. 

Luigi snatched his hand back. “I told you to fuck off. I don’t need you or want you around. Your concern is fucking annoying and I don’t need it.” 

“Luigi.” He sighed. 

“I don’t need your fucking sighs and pity. I won GeneCo. I’m finally on the fucking throne. If you’re not here to celebrate with me than fuck off.” Where was his drink? Where was his fucking drink? Right he broke his glass. He took a swig from the bottle. He was too sober for this. He was too fucking sober for this. 

“Luigi, you need to-” 

“Fuck off.” 

“Luigi.” 

“FUCK OFF!” Luigi threw the bottle towards Dr Smith. It missed him and shattered on the ground. Luigi’s breaths were heavy. He just watched the whisky spread across the floor. What a fucking waste of alcohol. 

The door slammed shut and Luigi was finally left alone. He was finally alone. He was-

*

He sat at his desk in his office. He tried. He tried to go into Amber’s… his…pops… Fuck. He tried going in there but…he couldn’t push open the door. It was cleaned. He knew it was cleaned. He had ordered them to change the carpet and the chair and the desk but… He couldn’t go in. 

Everything he’s done to get that fucking office and now he couldn’t…

This was what he wanted. This was what he wanted. This was what he wanted. 

There was a knock on the door and Michael walked in. “Mr Largo.”

“Have they been wiped out?” 

“We are working on it. We can’t just organize a mass killing-”

“I believe that’s exactly what I ordered.” 

“Mr Largo, you’re grieving and not thinking straight. You will turn the whole island-”

Luigi slammed his hand on the table. “I’m not fucking grieving.” He couldn’t be. He did this. He did all this. How could he grieve? What right did he have to grieve? He did this. This was all him. He wanted this. He wanted-

“I just wanted to give you the report on how they infiltrated the building.” 

Luigi couldn’t look at him. He knew how they got in. He fucking opened the door for them. He did this. He did this. 

“They entered through the employee entrance at 9am together with the other employees. No one thought it suspicious. They were wearing suits, just like everyone else. They managed to get up to the GeneCo offices. Two of the men entered Mr Largo’s office at 10am and held him at gunpoint while the others massacred the rest of the floor. They brought him to Ms Sweet’s office at 10.20am. We managed to infiltrate the office by 11.30am but by then it was too late.”

Wait. That couldn’t be right. Luigi looked at his watch and scrolled to the day of the attack. Amber called him at 10.45am. He was waiting for news of the attack. Amber called him. “Your timing is wrong.” 

Michael shook his head. “We checked the timings with the cameras.”

Luigi stared at his watch. Amber called him. Amber fucking called him. “Cameras?” 

“Yes sir.” 

Amber called him. How the fuck did she call him if the rebels had entered the office by then? How the fuck did she call him? “I want to see.” 

“Sir, you…you shouldn’t.” Pity entered Michael’s eyes once more. 

“What the fuck are you hiding from me?” 

“Nothing.” Michael gave him the drive. “You shouldn’t-” He cut himself off. 

“Get out.” 

“Yes sir.” 

Luigi plugged in the drive as soon as Michael left. He chose the camera at Amber’s office and scrolled to 10.20am. On the dot, the rebels barged in, Pavi at the front, held at gunpoint. 

“What is the meaning of this?” Amber stood. Her eyes darted warily towards Pavi then the men. Two gunshots rang out and her bodyguards crumpled behind her. She refused to flinch.

“Simple.” The guns pointed at Amber except for the one still focused at Pavi’s head. “None of us want you on the throne. We’re putting an end to your reign once and for all.”

“What right do you have?”

“Your own father didn’t want you on the throne. He wanted Shilo Wallace so you had her killed.” 

Amber’s brows furrowed. “I had nothing to do with that.” 

“Don’t lie. We are going to kill you either way. So you might as well admit it.” 

“I didn’t touch her.” 

“I’m sorry, Ms Sweet but I’m finding that hard to believe.” 

“You kill me and then what? GeneCo falls. Where will you get organs then?” 

The rebel hesitated. 

“Let Pavi go.” 

“Sorella!” 

“You can kill me. Just let him go.” 

“Did you kill Shilo Wallace?” 

“Ye-”

“The Pavi killed her. She wouldn’t-a play nice with the Pavi.” 

“Bullshit. We saw the GeneCops storm in and kill her.” 

“And you think-a the GeneCops won’t-a answer to the Pavi?” 

“He’s lying.” 

“Then did you do it, Ms Sweet?” 

“If I say yes, will you let Pavi go?” 

The rebel looked at him then back at her. “No.” He approached her. “But you’re right. We have to leave someone alive. Call Luigi Largo back here and we’ll let you live. Between you and him, I’d rather you be on the throne.”  

Amber sneered. “Right. Call him back so you can kill all three of us. I don’t think so.” 

“Like you said, Ms Sweet, someone has to be on the throne or GeneCo will fall.” 

Amber scoffed. “And you’ll let me live?” 

“Did you kill Shilo Wallace?” 

Her eyes darted to her brother. “No.” 

“Then one of your brothers did it. And we don’t have to kill you.” 

Amber was silent.

“Someone has to live, Ms Sweet. I’d rather it not be Luigi Largo. His temper is well-known throughout the island.” 

“You’re not lying?”

“I have no reason to lie.” 

Amber raised her watch to her face. 

‘Calling Luigi Largo’. Echoed through the quiet room. 

“What do you want?”

“Don’t come to GeneCo today. I don’t want to see your fucking face.” She ended the call. 

“Fucking bitch.” A gunshot rang out. 

Amber cried out in pain as she collapsed backwards into her chair. 

“Sorella!” Pavi leapt towards the rebel.

Another gunshot rang out and Pavi crumpled to the ground. 

“Brother!” 

Pavi was gasping desperately on the ground. 

Tears streamed down Amber’s face. “Pavi.” Her hands were clenched across her abdomen, red seeping through. 

The carpet was rapidly turning red. Pavi convulsed for a moment then fell still. 

“Brother!" Came Amber’s broken cry. “I’ll kill you. I’ll fucking kill all of you.” 

The rebel pointed a gun to Amber’s head. “I gave you a chance, Ms Sweet. I wasn’t lying.” 

“When Luigi finds out what you’ve done, he will destroy all of you. You will regret this.” 

“Do you want to know a secret, Ms Sweet?” The rebel approached her and whispered something in her ear. 

Amber’s eyes widened and she just stared at him. “Y…you’re lying.” 

“I gave you a chance, Ms Sweet. You threw it away.” 

“Y…You’re lying.” 

“You had your chance.” The rebel pointed his gun at her and shot her once more. 

Amber collapsed forward onto her desk. “Y…you…’re ly…ing…he…would…n’t…” Blood poured down the front of her desk, bright red and pulsing. “He…would…n’t…” She reached a hand out towards her brother. “P…pavi…” Her fingers twitched and then fell limp. 

Luigi turned off the recording. He just stared at the black screen and could only see his face reflected through. That couldn’t be his reflection. Why did he look devastated? He got everything he wanted. This was everything he wanted. 

“Don’t come to GeneCo today. I don’t want to see your fucking face.”

Everything he’s done was for GeneCo. All he wanted was GeneCo. He didn’t care about anything else. He didn’t want anything else. He didn’t care about anything else.

“Don’t come to GeneCo today. I don’t want to see your fucking face.”

This was everything he wanted. He got everything he wanted. He didn’t care about the cost. He’s spent his whole life working to get GeneCo. This was everything he wanted, everything he’s worked for. 

“Don’t come to GeneCo today. I don’t want to see your fucking face.”

They hated each other. They were nothing more than competitors to each other. She took GeneCo from him. She would have ordered him dead if she had the chance. They were nothing to each other. They were-

“Don’t come to GeneCo today.”

Something clenched in his chest and he couldn’t breathe. No. He had to… They meant nothing to him. He didn’t care… 

“Don’t come to GeneCo today.”

If his siblings died, it would be a plus. It would be a fucking plus.

“Don’t come to GeneCo today.”

They would choose themselves over him. He didn’t do anything different. He chose himself. He helped himself. He-

“Don’t come to GeneCo today.”

He fucked up. The pain in his chest tightened and he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t breathe. He fucked up. He got his brother and sister killed. And for what? For GeneCo? He didn’t want this. They weren’t supposed to get hurt. He never expected… But the rebels were violent. He knew they were violent. He gave them guns. He knew what he expected. He should have expected this. He wanted this. He wanted this. He didn’t care about them. He-

A choked cry escaped his lips. 

No. He wanted this. He planned for this. He wanted GeneCo, no matter the cost. His siblings dying were a plus. It was a fucking plus. This was what he wanted. It was everything he wanted. 

“Call Luigi Largo back here and we’ll let you live.”

They were lying. They would have never let his sister go. His sister knew that. She was being smart. She was doing it for GeneCo. Someone had to sit on the throne. She was doing it for GeneCo.

“Someone has to live, Ms Sweet.”

She didn’t believe them. That’s why she did it. There was no other reason. 

“Call Luigi Largo back here and we’ll let you live.”

They wouldn’t have let her live. They would have never let her live. She was the one they hated. They thought she killed Shilo. They would never have let her live.

“Don’t come to GeneCo today.”

She wouldn’t. Not for him. She wouldn’t have. She… 

“Don’t come to GeneCo today.”

She…

“Don’t come to GeneCo today.”

She wouldn’t….

“Don’t come to GeneCo today.”

A shattered cry escaped his lips. He didn’t care. He wanted this. He wanted…

He fucked up. 

He fucked up. 

He never meant. Force her out of power. That was all they were supposed to do. Why was he so stupid to think they wouldn’t be violent? Why was he so naive to believe they’d let her live? He did this. He let them die. No. He killed them. He killed them.

*

“Luigi.”

Luigi’s eyes darted upwards then away. “Fuck off.” 

There was a sigh and Dr Smith sat on the ground next to him. 

When had he sat on the ground? He didn’t remember. Not that there was anywhere to sit. His office was in a mess. Glass littered the ground, furniture was broken. 

“Luigi.” Dr Smith paused, “When my son died, I was-”

“Don’t.” 

“Luigi, i understand things are-”

“I said, don’t.” He dropped his head in his hands. He didn’t want to think about this anymore. He didn’t want to think about what he’s done. He wanted this, he tried to remind himself. He wanted this. 

“Luigi.” 

“Nothing you say is going to fix this. Nothing you say is going to change the fact that I fucked up. Nothing is going to change anything.” 

“This isn’t your fault, Luigi.” 

A bitter laugh escaped Luigi’s throat. “Not my fault?” 

“You can’t blame yourself for this.” 

Luigi was on his feet. Glass crunched underneath his shoes. If any of them pierced through, he didn’t know, nor cared. “This is all me.” 

“Luigi, don’t.”

“I instigated the rebels. I gave them guns and plans and a way to get into GeneCo. I killed Shilo Wallace and framed Amber. I did all this to have GeneCo. And I made sure I was far from GeneCo when it all happened. Go on then. Tell me this isn’t my fault.” 

Dr Smith couldn’t look at him.

“TELL ME!” Please. Just give him an excuse, a reason. Let him pretend it wasn’t his fault. Let him pretend it was an accident. Just let him lie to himself. 

Dr Smith was silent. 

“No? I didn’t think so.” Luigi staggered out of the room. Was he drunker than he thought? Or was it the glass poking through his feet, causing blood red footprints to trail behind him? Or could his legs just not bear the thought of what he’s done? 

He knew where he had to go. He knew what he had to do. He couldn’t face another moment of this guilt. He didn’t just get his siblings killed. He might as well have shot them himself. He did this. He did all of this. 

He was standing on the ledge. He could feel the wind blow against his face. It felt cold. He felt cold. 

“Luigi.” The voice was soft. 

“I did this, I did all this for GeneCo. To hold GeneCo. If I do this, then everything has been for nothing. Their deaths would have been for nothing. GeneCo will fall.” 

“Then don’t do this.” 

“How?” His voice broke. “How do I live with myself after this? How do I get to tomorrow knowing what I’ve done?” 

“I don’t know."

Luigi gripped his head. His legs couldn’t keep him upright. He lowered himself to the ledge, hands still clutched to his head. His chest twisted and his eyes burned. He couldn’t do this. He couldn’t break down. He had to keep himself numb. He didn’t want to feel this. He didn’t want to feel anything. “Lie to me! Tell me this wasn’t my fault. Tell me I didn’t do anything wrong. Tell me.” Luigi’s voice broke and he gripped himself tighter. This was everything he wanted. This was…This was…

“I came to see you because I had something to report to you. There was evidence that your liquor had been tampered with. Your brother had been trying to poison you.” 

Luigi froze and turned to Dr Smith. What was he saying? What was-

“There were documents in your sister’s office planning to oust you from the company. They were planning to stab you in the back.” 

Luigi closed his eyes. Yes. That would work. If he believed, he just had to believe that. They meant nothing to each other. They hated each other. They were just competitors. They were trying to get rid of-

“Don’t come to GeneCo today.”

A cry escaped Luigi’s lips as he dug his nails into his scalp. He didn’t want to think. He didn’t want to think. He didn’t want to think. 

“Your father had a will written up. He was going to give GeneCo to you. But in the chaos, Amber paid the lawyers to lose the will and took GeneCo from you.” 

Yes. She screwed him over. She fucking screwed him over. She deserved what she got. They both did. They got what they deserved. All for GeneCo. Everything was for GeneCo.  It was the only thing that mattered. It will always be the only thing that mattered. “I’ll give you GeneCo. Then someone is on the throne. Then it won't fall. Then I can leave.” 

“Then who will punish the rebels, Mr Largo? They murdered your sister in cold blood. They wanted money. They wanted power. They killed GeneCo employees and stole their IDs and snuck into the building. They killed Shilo Wallace and blamed Amber for it so the island would turn. They deserve to pay for it.” 

Luigi’s hand shook. Yes. They killed his siblings. This was all them. It wasn’t him. He didn’t do anything wrong. He just took his leave from GeneCo. Then the rebels attacked. He couldn’t do anything about it. He wasn’t at GeneCo. It wasn’t his fault. He didn’t do anything wrong. “Burn them all.”  

[maguro13-2]

Shattered Hero ~ Origins of the Ink Demon : Episode Maka Pt.11

Mario : Bowser? You in here? I'm coming to save the princess! Bowser?

Bowser : You're just in time.

Mario : What's the problem...? Oh my God...Who are those youngsters?

Bowser : We were interrogating these nimrods from other countries. Their names were Ox Ford and Harvar D Eclair that we interrogated them, Kamek interrogating with these two teenagers to find the whereabouts of the Ohkuboverse's real intentions, we were trying to find out whether is the Ohkuboverse really a facade to shadow realm or they have the involvements of protecting the Kusakabe Legacy. So then...a one-eyed cloud creature name Kracko killed the Harvar guy with a strong thundershoot.

Mario : W-What!?

Bowser : I can't believe that I'm gonna say this. We nintendo veterans have killed a bunch of Square Enix Representatives! These imbeciles have killed a bunch of random teenagers who were under the influence of Shinra Kusakabe!

Mario : Then what happened!? Where did that magikoopa go? That turtle wizard who knocked the stork out when me and Luigi were infants on travels after we fell into Yoshi's Island! Where is Kamek!?

Bowser : He went off by his own to disguise himself as the Teenager that he killed three years ago!

Mario : Where did he run away to where? And to why?

Bowser : Perhaps you should answer this. He was trying to get someone's attention by being the stalker to a girl that caused the second explosion in Tokyo after the first explosion that literally destroyed four-fifths of Japan's population back in '94. (shows a photo of Kimial Diehl with long hair) This is Ashley's current partner in the force, Kimial Diehl.

"Meanwhile back at the forest..."

Inky Albarn : Well, if isn't the girl who lost the ones that she loved, the stubborn shinobi.

Tsubaki Nakatsuki : That's leader of the Nakatsukasa, you coward! And by the way I am Akujiki's new wielder...Tsubaki Nakatsukasa!

[Ageha - Fumie Kumatani]

Tsubaki Nakatsuki : Hey, Maka. You think that your blood-manipulating magic will do it for me?

Maka Albarn : Why me for that matter? Why do I need your help? (uses Blood magic to create a sword)

Tsubaki Nakatsuki : No time to ask questions. Let's finish her off!

(the two starts battling against Inky)

Tsubaki Nakatsukasa : Maka! I just realized! The goal to become an instrument of death, wasn't decided to become the next Death Scythe, it was about being the next tool to Shinra's Kind. We were being used as pawns in a corrupt game and Shinra was the one who is to blame!

Maka Albarn : So you knew about this, Tsubaki! So the goal was to be still a tool to Shinra's Kind, the so Hoshi Clan led by a heartless was killed for that!? I thought I had dream of showing the world my courage!

Tsubaki Nakatsukasa : There was no courage, Maka! Lies! Lies! It's all lies from Shinra! Why did Shinra's men of influence had to hid the truth from us and falsely led us to believe that Ashley's kind was the enemy, but not her nor her friend! The true enemies are heartless and they are the ones responsible for everything! My brother died when his Heartless killed and you should consider of opening your eyes to the truth! See what truth have us in store for us! Why my other gain pain and suffering!? The humans of the real world were playing God on us to think everything's a story, but even if it's a phony! I lost the one I loved dearly, Kuro! The one that I married to!

Maka Albarn : So that's why I was never the Soul World, I was under the influence of Shinra Kusakabe and I was being used for his kind. I felt like a stubborn loser and a puppet to his will. Is that the reason Soul World existed in the first place, was that Shinra's own fault? Or was it the heartless?

Tsubaki Nakatsukasa : Both of them.

(battle ends)

Inky Albarn : *panting*

Maka and Tsubaki : *panting*

Inky Albarn : This...isn't...over yet!

Maka Albarn : Now I finally understand to why on earth would frame for the misdeeds that you caused.

Young Cricket : You'll give us answers if you don't find out what's going on! Why in the world would you and those guys do this?

[Disquieting Shadow - Jun Senoue, Yutaka Minobe]

Inky Albarn : Shinra Kusakabe...that devilish son of a b*tch! His influence have ruined my life, forced me in the ways of making me the hero of the story that I was never. He's still alive!

Maka Albarn : What!? Shinra Kusakabe is alive? How did that happened!?

Inky Albarn : It was all part of the Time Eater's to destroy the Ohkuboverse that you've been living in, was all nothing but a lie. Shadow Realm was the real deal and the so-called Soul Eater universe is merely a facade. That's all I wanted to know from the Pharaoh.

Maka Albarn : I see...So that Shinra Kusakabe fellas wasn't reincarnted as a Chao, he was reincarnated during resurrection! So it was the Time Eater's doing that wanted destroy the universe that is false to the real world, Shadow Realm was the real deal. Heartless from KH was only getting their attention on destroying the legact and the Kishin...No Shinra's grandson has created a heartless of his own destroy the planet. I can't let them get away with this!

*RUMBLING+PERFECT CHAOS ROAR*

[Alert - Yoko Shimomura]

Ashley : Oh no! Not that power again!

Maka Albarn : Now I understand what lying hurts me than it hurts you! I trusted Shinra, I gave my life to protect the legacy of him, but I threw it all away and got careless! This is what Shinra wanted right! This is all the author's fault for getting to me into this ungrateful lie! *DBZ SFX : Powering up*

Inky Albarn : What do you think you're doing!?

*communicator beeping*

Hibana : (via communication) Tsubaki, what's going on back there! Did you get the evidence!? We need you out of here before that girl unleashes Shattered Resonance to create the same explosion like what she did in Japan with you in the jungle! So there's time to waste!

[Won't Stop! Just Go! - Jun Senoue]

All : BLOWS UP!?!

Inky Albarn : Sh*t! Time to bail! (flies off to leave)

Grim (Metal Sonic) : Everyone! Evacuate this area now!

Ashley : Hey, you two! Get on board! (Cricket and Mantis get on the tier brooms) Hang tight! We gotta find a way out of here! Get cricket and Master Mantis out of here! We gotta get these guys to a safe place!

Penny Crygor : On it, Ash! But the girl's power is going to go kablooey when she unleashes Shattered Resonance sky high!

Ashley : Alrighty then! Let's move!

(cuts to show Tsubaki running through the forest)

Tsubaki Nakatsukasa : This can't be good! Maka is unleashing Shattered Resonance? Why would anyone go unleash a hidden power to bring destruction over the planet? I bet it's the witches that are responsible for all of that power, could someone responsible for the power that the explosions hit japan all those years ago? Maybe I might be a Shattered Meister as well. Guess the DWMA was wrong about it. Guess they weren't the peceakeeping forces we knew from the start. I suggest that I should head back to HQ, Gotta get away from the blast!

*Heartbeat echoing*

Tsubaki Nakatsukasa : Guh! What's happening!? What is this sensation that I can feel? That power, Am I really connected to "her"?

*Heartbeat Echoing*

Tsubaki Nakatsukasa : Gahhhh!!! *panting* I finally realized that I have the Shattered Resonance! That power! Inca Kasugatani and those Kusakabe bastards! Their influence was only using us for the sake of power! Is this what truth is telling me?

Truth from FMA : (voice heard) That's right, you have been puppets to the devil's for a long period time and this lying from the devil would eventually hurts you more than it hurts to those who speak the truth. Where do I find your freedom in the real world? What chance do you have yourselves in store? Speak for yourself to find the answers of putting an end to the lying of Shinra Kusakabe and opened eyes directly to see the truth! Let the truth win, Tsubaki! OPEN YOURS EYES AND LET THE TRUTH MAY WIN!

Tsubaki Nakatsukasa : AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!

*DBZ SFX : LOUD ENERGY EXPLOSION*

(we show Death the Kid looking at the monitor)

Death the Kid : Shinra Kusakabe, how lucky you are of hiding the truth from them? I guess this is what you wanted, right? You really are a foolish grandfather to me and is still alive after your 1000 years of death has brought into resurrection. Today the Kusakabe Family tree will be torn down and you will never let truth to win. This time, the lying of you is mine! (snickers)

"The heroes of we are today are no longer heroes to save the world."

"The Real World shall be the enemy to the Shadow Realm."

"The only thing that can save the world is to let Truth to win."

~ Act 11 : The Winner is Truth ~

[masterhandss]

Forbidden fruit ask time: Keith x Katarina. I know people in western fandom are understandably wary of this ship, but apparently it's one of the favourites for the Japanese audience and based on what I heard it actually has some decent foundation in novels (not as much as GeoKata, but still). Since you read novels and are #1 hamefura blog on Tumblr and know so much I wanted to ask you to tell us how KeiKata is doing in novels if it's okay owo??

owo!! lmao, I don't know about being the "#1 hamefura blog on tumblr" (I-I... I thought I was an art blog... :')) I mean I just like to ramble about hamefura lmao but I'm always happy to answer questions!

Yeah... Keith x Katarina is a hard subject to talk about considering how violent reactions can be depending on who you're talking to. I remember when Season 1 was airing, people really doesn't like Keith as a romantic option for Katarina due to them being siblings, and I'm honestly waiting for those people to react to the S2 OP and S2 in general. I've talked to a few people who don't like KeiKata at all, and they have the absolute right to dislike any ship that they want, but it did make me sad to know how much Keith is hated by the EN Fandom considering how loved he is in the JP Fandom. He's pretty much the most favorite male character and the second most shipped with Katarina.

-> hamefura x(s2) & ln spoilers ahead <-

A lot of people's issues with Keith stems from the fact that he and Katarina are step-sibling and that it's really weird for Keith to be romantically interested in Katarina (a person who sees him as a little brother completely). People are accusing him of taking advantage of Katarina's trust in him to keep her to himself and that pursuing her romantically would destroy the familial bond that they've had for years. The thing is that Keith treasures Katarina as a person, not as a sibling. Yes, Keith sees her as family, but he also sees her as more than family. To him, being able to be together with Katarina doesn't mean that he'll have to love her differently, but that he will be able to love her even more deeply and honestly. You can even headcanon that the reason Keith calls Katarina "big sister" is because he's asked to do so, and because it's a symbol of his acceptance into the family, but maybe not necessarily how he sees her.

Some of the material that will be covered in Season 2 is about Keith, so I don't know how much I want to talk about that since most fans will be able to see it themselves. Keith has it the hardest because his position makes it so that he's the least likely to get his feelings across to Katarina due to their relationship. In one of the upcoming arcs in the anime, Keith will be able to break Katarina's baka shield in the same way Geordo does: by using actions instead of words, and by just literally finding the courage to take the risk and tell her.

That's where one of the interesting things about hamefura comes into play: one of the reasons why people dislike KeiKata so much is that they feel like the reveal of Keith's feelings would awaken disgust and betrayal in Katarina. Few fanfics of hamefura portray it that way, that Katarina would be weirded out by his feelings and reject them immediately. Maybe it's because Katarina is aware of Keith as not only a sibling, but also as a romance-able character in an otome game (also because of the nature of this series lmao), that in canon, she doesn't take his confession negatively and is flushed/embarrassed by it just like Geordo's confession. I know the "weirded out" reaction is the most realistic, but maybe Katarina also understands that their relationship doesn't have a clear label. They care for each other very much and whether that bond is romantic, familial or friendship isn't something they bothered to really name, maybe? Lmao I don't know, that last bit is just speculation on my part, I can't exactly get into Katarina's head and pinpoint what she thought of Keith's confession.

If I'm being honest, she forgets about Keith's confession more often than she does Geordo, mostly because nothing really changed after he made his feelings clear. I wouldn't say that she dismissed it, it's just that she's forgetting it because in her perspective being loved as a woman and as family by Keith both means that he'll take care of her and shower her with attention (aka no difference).

When I think about how "KeiKata is doing in the novels", for some reason the first thing that comes to my mind is the line "how they treated Geordo in the anime, from a JP perspective". I know that sounds confusing, but what I mean is that a lot of Arc 2 - FL2 scenes with KeiKata is kinda fanservice (aka the thing they tried to do for Geordo in the anime which worked for JP fans but made him hated by the EN fans) (not me trying to insert Geordo in a post about Keith hehe :V). Excluding all the Keith scenes that are coming in Season 2 of the anime and the current arc of the manga, the story really likes to test Keith's self-control when it comes to seeing Katarina as a woman.

Keith's scenes with Katarina aren't necessarily "hot and spicy" by any means, but people nowadays tend to be quite bothered and annoyed at typical japanese romance tropes being played out in modern anime series (such as bed-pining, surprised kisses and kabedons). I mean yeah I'd be bothered too if someone pulled those moves on me in real life, but for the japanese audience this is what their fanservice is like so that's the kind of stuff we'll see in hamefura. Just like Geordo, Keith is given a few scenes where he's put in a romantic spot with Katarina after he confessed, but it always just ends with him backing out and hoping that it at least could remind Katarina of how he sees her (like bed-pinning in LN6 & affectionate touches from Katarina in LN8). A lot of hate towards Keith stems from these scenes because people sees this as a disrespect towards Katarina and the familial relationship they have. These scenes helps reinforce how Keith sees Katarina as a woman and not as a sister, but depending on who you're siding with, you're either gonna be disgusted at Keith or extremely pissed off at Katarina's lack of propriety & density.

Like, people are getting angry at Keith for being a teenage boy who is being bothered by affectionate touches from the girl he likes who is also always approaching him with only a nightgown? I mean blame the author or Keith all you want but at least put some responsibility on Katarina as well :V People are really saying "well, he shouldn't be bot and bothered by it in the first place, they are siblings! that's disgusting!" well again, Keith sees her as a woman and Katarina needs to be aware that she shouldn't be so touchy with the opposite sex regardless if it's family. Keith kinda blames Katarina for the way he feels given how she acts around him despite being unaware of his feelings, which is also the cause of some hatred towards Keith.

People are saying that Keith is dumping *all* the responsibility onto Katarina because she acts in such an affectionate way towards him, but in reality Keith feels really bad & also hates himself for being so attracted to her when she doesn't even know about his feelings. He puts a lot of blame onto himself and thinks he's just as bad as Geordo sometimes (not saying Geordo is bad, more like Keith's "idea of Geordo" being bad lmao). Keith always walks on eggshells around Katarina because he doesn't want to disrespect how he feels about her and how she feels about him. It's just sad to see people hate him for the few moments where his self-control breaks so that he can act on his honest emotion, and accuse him of abusing Katarina's trust :((

Just like Geordo, Keith has made it clear how he feels and strongly desires to pursue her romantically, but his problem of being the step-sibling is still there. I haven't gotten my own copy of JP Volume 10 yet, I feel like I just wanna wait for the EN version instead of using GT, but multiple spoilers have noted that while Keith hasn't made progress in getting approval of his feelings from Katarina's side, he's at least able to get an approval from his family. Well, by that I mean Keith has already confessed his romantic feelings about Katarina to their father Luigi, and he replied by saying that he approves of whoever Katarina chooses for herself. Keith realizes that all he needs to do is get Katarina to return his feelings. When he does, his family wont hate him, but instead he'll be able to love them and be loved in the same, yet different way.

TLDR; a lot has happened to Keith throughout the light novels. He's progressing slowly and steadily just like Geordo, and is leagues ahead compared to the other characters. He has confessed his feelings and got reassurance of his relationship with his parents. Keith and Katarina's relationship itself hasn't really changed though, but it's nice to know that Keith is at least laying the foundations for his hypothetical future with her. Katarina doesn't really think about Keith enough to be able to tell how she feels about his confession or if her opinion on him has changed at all though, so take that as either an L or a W for Keith.

Thank you for the ask! I'm sorry if this isn't as elaborate as you wanted, anon. I like Keith and Katarina but I guess it's because they aren't my bias that I don't pay too much attention to the tiny details of how Keith is written in the books qwq

[anotherbeingsworld]

Nepenthe (Lennox X Bryce)

Pairing: Bryce x F!MC (Lennox Hirata - owned by @arcticlumineer )

Inspo: Stars by Alessia Cara.

Summary: A small getaway after the previous events, a small conversation under the night sky.

A/N: I was planning to post something and here it is, something I manage to write during this whirlwind. Life is a hard road, but... I am not giving up yet. I have felt like that before, and I know.. it’s been 2 days I couldn’t let myself go, tumblr felt like one place I could be myself with somehow? ; and I am very excited for this fic. One of my favourites to write actually. This fic was dedicated mostly to my Mario( @arcticlumineer ) and Lennox is her MC. Somehow, a continuation to her fic ‘Binary Stars’ that all of you should check it out too! She has been fighting and, she will keep on fighting. You deserve everything Alaska and so much more, and I hope you loved this as much as I loved writing it.  - Your Luigi. 💙

Thank you @mvalentine for assuring me that it is not a crappy one! I love you, and to all that reached out in the comments and messages, I appreciate all of you so so much! Thank you 💖💖💖 I will try to get some time on my own in a way, and maybe there is hope after all. I hope all of you enjoy it! It wasnt my best, but... it came from the heart and I hope you all love it. I will be back with more Bryce and Casey very soon!  <3

Tags:  @bitchloveskcbaseball , @storyofmychoices @jaxsmutsuo , @mvalentine , @princess-geek , @lahellacute , @kacie-0156-deactivated20200905 , @this-person-is-busy , @annekebbphotography , @brycelahel, @mrsbhandari , @dcbbw , @choicessa , @choices-confessions , @aylamwrites , @fantasyoverreality98 , @drakewalker04 , @baltersome , @ofpixelsandscribbles , @thundergom  @starrystarrytrouble, @ohramsey , @kelseaaa  , @rookie-ramsey , @bratzlahela , @ohvamsey , @choicesficwriterscreations , @soft-for-drake , @lalizah , @drethanramslay , @arcticlumineer , @choicesstan1 , @aveeiro

Nepenthe (noun) - Something that makes you forget pain and suffering. 

Knock on my door, boy come home

You stay in my head

Lay in my arms, why won't you?

It's been way too long, what you waiting on?

It was a long drive, as they finally reached the Grand Canyon, one of the wonders of the states. Bryce never agreed on a 3-day trip of driving from Boston to the infamous canyon. After a long 40 hours of driving, and stopping. Bryce and Lennox has arrived at the spot, where it was almost sundown.

Lennox was the one who suggested upon the idea, as she wanted a new experience including taking a long trip to Arizona, after the tragedy strikes. They were given a leave as, Bryce took a few measures along with infamous pick-up lines to convince Harper on taking a leave. It worked, and here they are.

‘We are here!’ A surprisingly enthusiastic Lennox get out of the car, as she took a breath of the fresh air. It smells very weird, but it’s definitely not Edenbrook. She loved Edenbrook, but she felt a new environment was needed. A new space for her to breath, as the sun was about to set in an hour.

‘Let’s get ourselves cozy, Hirata here take the food.’ An exhausted Bryce was heard, as Lennox marched into the back of the car taking the basket of food for the night. They didn’t packed much, except a few unhealthy ones, and some take-out from their journey which is enough to survive the night.

Bryce took care of the rest, as they hike their way up the canyon. It wasn’t the prettiest view at the time being, but he felt happy to take her out here. Away from the commotion of their work life, where it was only them against the real world. Including Keiki too.

After a long hour of hiking, they finally reached one of the many tops of the canyon. It was a perfect view of the whole lot, as Lennox placed the food, as Bryce gets the stuff ready. He lays out a large blanket, and Lennox sat on top of it as soon as she could. A small price of enthusiasm as he lets out a small chuckle, taking a seat next to her. It was quiet, as they were the only beings that were known there.

The sun has already set, as they ate their subway take-outs. It wasn’t the best after a long drive, but their tummies are full and that’s what matters. After a session of eating, Lennox found herself staring at the night sky. It was dark, as the source of light was from their phones and a couple of emergencies flashlight but, the moon above them were doing the work.

Bryce felt himself staring at her, a small gesture that he would do everytime. He adored her, from the very first time he saw her. She was strong, kind, empathetic despite the sass she owns. Lennox Hirata was her own woman, and Bryce found himself falling for her, despite their feelings haven’t returned. At least, not yet.

He realizes his feelings towards her, after the funeral. The fear of losing her, was seen within him as he lets his walls down for her. Something he had tried so hard on doing, a small sacrifice for the chance to reduce the pain little-by-little. Somehow, Lennox felt like his weakness, the fear of never seeing her again lingers in his mind, a broken record that was played over and over again.

The flashback from before, replayed once more as he remembered witnessing Lennox, in a weak state. She wasn’t the cheerful person he knows, as the light in her eyes had disappeared since that day. Followed by losing two of the closest people in her life in front of her eyes, an event that one will never forget.

‘…Earth to Bryce...’ Her voice was heard, looking worried at his state.

Bryce shook his head, as an attempt to bring his consciousness back into reality. A smile was plastered on his face, as the tears started to fall a bit.

‘What’s wrong?’ She never understand why, but every time she witness of Bryce being vulnerable. She felt her heart break a little, somehow seeing one of the most confident people in her life, willing to share this part of his life with her, a misfit in disguise? Lennox Hirata.

‘..That moment, its playing in my mind Len. I know you told me, you are okay. Look, you are. But-‘ He found himself pause.

‘I kept on imagining the worst, there were moments where I woke up thinking that you are not here anymore. You were taken away from me, and…it terrifies me.’ He took a deep breath, as he lets the truth out, something he had been experienced lately, as he found himself imagining the worst whilst encouragement from Keiki.

‘C’mon, its in the past Bryce…it’s okay’ Lennox tried to brushed the topic of, a saddened look on her face.

‘No, you could’ve died. It’s serious.’ He replies with a hint of hurt in his voice.

‘But, I am here now. I am here with you, and I’m not going anywhere alright?’ She closed the gap between them, and pulled him into a hug. She didn’t realize, she felt her tears were falling too. She remembered that night all too well, she almost died. The night where she knew her life had changed one way or another. Witnessing Bobby’s and Danny’s death, was a hard pill to swallow.

After the hug, they pulled away. She was never the one to show affection, but she always loved the little things. She was never a fan of public display of affection, but holding each other’s hands, cheek kisses, hugs, and many more were her way of affection. A small squeeze of a hand, the common gesture for them both.

She took his hand in hers, as his big ones covering her tiny one. They weren’t a perfect fit, but it felt right. Giving it a small squeeze, as crying wasn’t apart of the plan.

Silent tears was heard, as they both lie down on the blanket, somehow their faces were facing each other.

He never looked more beautiful.

She looks like an angel from above.

He brushed the hair was covering her eyes, as they continue to stare upon the night sky. The world was sleeping, as the surroundings was empty. It was them, and them only. The moon shines brightly above them, as the twinkling light of the stars were seen. A small callback to their planetarium date, the moment where she was discovering the feeling that was hovering in her mind on a certain figure named Bryce Lahela.

‘I fought and I survive, but… why do I feel like life is more than that?’

She glances his way, hoping for an answer. Both of them were silence, as neither know the answer.

‘..I remember the day I left Hawaii, left everything behind.. I feel like, I was helpless and I couldn’t survive on my own. It felt a long road, and…after all those obstacles… I am here where I was meant to be. Life is definitely more than surviving, its the feeling of not giving up and keep going despite how many bumps life give you one way or another.’

Bryce replies as both of them continue on gazing the stars,  it was shining brightly. It felt like, she was somewhere far far away from the real world upon stepping into space.

‘If it is meant to be? How do you know this isn’t a fatal coincidence?’

‘You do have a lot of questions don’t you Len?’ He smiles, finally after all the crying they have done.

‘Hey, I am a curious human being. It’s my nature after all.’ She winks, as her eyes gazed over the galaxy above them.

‘Well, curious human being. I am at your service, hit me with your best shot.’

She raised an eyebrow, earning a questionable look from him.

‘What?’

‘The question earlier dummy.’ Lennox lets out a laugh, as their laughter fills the void surrounding them.

‘Ahhh… where do I begin..’ He mimicking the scary professors from those crappy haunted movies, that made her cringe so bad.

‘Just cut to chase Lahela.’ Lennox demanded with a hint of laughter in her voice, earning herself a sensual wink from him.

‘Ok, okay. Hold your horses Hirata! I don’t feel like I have been paying attention much to how life works, but…I believe that everything has been written in the stars. Every step of this ride, have been written down in the stars and its our chance to see it unfold when the time has come..’

Lennox felt herself humming to a song that has been in her mind for the past week, Stars by Alessia Cara.

Piercing lights in the dark make the galaxy ours

Kingdom right where we are

Shining bright as a morning, you'll never be lonely

Just promise you'll love me, I'm never too far

And we'll never part

And we could be stars

Bryce was somehow stunned? As, her voice flowed through the night. She felt herself flushed, as she punched him lightly on the shoulder. A small act that ended up with laughter.

‘Tonight, it felt like the stars are looking down on us. Just, shining our lives in a way a light would do. It feels lonely out here on our own, but… looking above, the stars felt like a companion to us. I.. have always loved the stars. There was a moment… years ago, I was alone in my room. It was night time, and I was lucky enough to have a view on my bedroom window. It was spectacular, as the stars felt like something out of the painting, and I dreamed of touching it with my bare hands.’ She explained, with a smile on her face with her hands forward as an attempt to capture the stars which is impossible but, she didn’t care. It felt like she was a child once more, living this world with a huge dream ahead.

‘That sounds …amazing.’ His eyes linger on her for a while, somehow a small smile was formed of from adoration. I love her, he thought silently as his eyes soften at the sound of giggles coming out from her.

They continue on their small adventure, until it was dawn. An hour before, after exchanging stories, including those that made her laugh till her tummy hurts.

‘You know, we have known each other for two years now.’ She stated.

‘Yeah?’

Lennox nodded, somehow in disbelief at how far they have come from becoming strangers to falling in love silently with him which she didn’t feel like admitting too yet. 

‘It somehow felt like a lifetime ago…’

She said quietly, as Bryce nods in agreement taking her hand in his.

‘Yeah, but… we still have a whole life ahead of us right?’

He looked at her, with a hint of hope in his eyes. A new path was suddenly carved, a whole lot of adventures that will followed them. Lennox Hirata’s adventures at Edenbrook started a lifetime ago, as she fought for life, death, friendships, and even love. There were still pages in her book waiting to be written, as she said yes to a whole life ahead, a life where she will keep on fighting to be the person who she was meant to be with the present of those who she loved and cared deeply.

THE END.

 A/N: Hi, dropping by again. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do, and know that.. hope is always there. I realized it and, I hope it’s always gonna be there. And, @arcticlumineer​ you are gonna fight this. I believe in you. <3 

[verobatto]

Destiel Chronicles

Vol. LXIX

It was a love story from the very beginning.

I Want You Back (Part II)

(11x16b/11x17)

Hello there! Finally finishing the second part of this meta.

It will focus on the parallel between the entity from the 'Safe House' episode and Amara it’s suggesting. Afterwards we will talk about one of the episodes that were discussed more controversially among us Destiel shippers, I'm talking about 'Red Meat',  and I will show you step by step that it is, indeed, a very Destiel one.

Thanks to @destielle for beta-ing this one! She's amazing. Thank you girl! 😘💝

Soul Eater

Let's talk about that haunting parallel I just mentioned.

If you check episode 11x16, there is this entity from that house that ate souls. 

RUFUS: A Soul Eater? What the hell is that?

BOBBY: Undead creature that feeds on souls. Hence the name. They exist in a place between our world and… another. Soul Eater moves into a house, and once it does, it makes what the lore refers to as a ‘nest’.

RUFUS: A place that exists outside of time and space.

//

SAM:The nest looks and feels like whatever house the Soul Eater is in.

The creature created a fake house, like a reflection in the mirror. It’s a fake home in which the entity shows people the souls of the ones they love in different and terrible situations (dead) to keep them under it's dominium. From the moment the seal was broken, the creature attacked again. 

SAM: Apparently, the nest messes with their victim's head, shows them things they love, parts of their soul in distress, it keeps the victim's soul vulnerable.

So we have a broken seal, a powerful creature eating souls, a fake reality to keep them dominated, right?

And Bobby saying that he could feel the evil in that dimension…

I think we have the perfect description of Amara here, Dean and Sam broke the sigil, Cain's Mark, and she was released, she eats souls, just like the Soul Eater, creating a fake happiness/reality to dominate the victims/Dean.

Again the writers are showing us that Amara is evil, her dominance over Dean is established through fear.

I think it’s vital to mention that between all the books Rufus and Bobby were reading, there was one with the title "Fallen Angel", it make us recall Castiel and Lucifer with the particularity that they're sharing vessels at that moment. Two fallen angels: one fell due to love and the other due to hate.

Another interesting visual narrative that acted as a foreshadowing, was the soul eater placing a hand on Dean's chest in the same way Rowena will place her hand on him in the last episode of the season where he’ll become a soul bomb.

And now, pay close attention to the following scene, because it’s connected to the next episode (Red Meat).

RUFUS: What'd you see, Bobby?

BOBBY: My boys. Both of 'em. Both of 'em dead. And I saw… well I don't know what the hell I saw.

And…

SAM: Hey, you said the Soul Eater made you see things. Plural. So… what else did you see?

DEAN: I saw you. Dead on the floor.

This was a foreshadowing of Sam laying dead on the floor (well he won’t die, but almost) in the next episode. But it’s A BLATANT MIRROR. BOBBY SEEING HIS SONS DEAD ON THE FLOOR. AND IT’S REFLECTING PURELY FAMILIAL LOVE. A father and his two children who are brothers.

FAMILY LOVE, there's no hint of ROMANTIC LOVE in here, no Wincest! Bobby was actively chosen to pose as the mirror. The writers easily could have used a couple with the husband seeing his wife laying dead on the floor, right? But it was BOBBY who saw his boys on the floor, just like Dean saw his brother. It’s about Family!

Sorry I'm a little bossy here, but I need you to understand this point before jumping to the next one.

Using Logic

Let's analyze episode 11x17 with logical facts…

The mentioning of Castiel at the beginning of the episode is there to remind us that Dean is feeling miserable because they couldn't rescue him yet. And he is not sleeping because of that. Sam is trying to comfort him by saying that they’ll get him back.

The episode introduced Corbin and Michelle, a newly-wed couple very much in love.

Corbin would do anything to protect Michelle (Dean mirror) and he is the one becoming a monster (werewolf), so he’s acting as our Castiel's mirror here.

Sam gets shot, and he has a very bad wound. We have Corbin trying to kill him, because he would do anything to save Michelle, even if that implies making a bad decision.

Now, we have Dean thinking his brother is dead. But keep in mind that WHEN HE ENTERS THE ROOM SAM IS ALREADY DEAD (in Dean’s eyes at leat). So DEAN DIDN'T SEE HIS BROTHER DIE. HE FOUND HIM DEAD, LAYING ON THE FLOOR. (First fact).

Then this… he asks Michelle to assist him in his try to contact Death… but … he also says this ..

Dean: Okay. After I do this, go get the doc and tell her to, um... Tell her to bring me back, if she can. If not... no hard feelings, okay?

He is not suicidal here, THIS IS TOTALLY DIFFERENT TO EPISODE 13X05 WHEN HE WANTED TO DIE, NOT WANTING TO LIVE BECAUSE CAS WASN'T ANYMORE. Even knowing Sam was dead, Dean wanted to live. GIVING YOUR LIFE FOR YOUR BROTHER DOESN'T COUNT AS A SUICIDAL THOUGHT, BUT INSTEAD AS SOMETHING ANYONE WOULD DO FOR THEIR BROTHER, especially when that brother is your little brother you raised yourself like a father. (Second Fact).

Dean wants to be alive because he needs to rescue Cas.

Billie: That's what I thought. It's cute, though. You pretending you're trying to save Sam for the greater good, when we both know you're doing it for you. You can't lose him. But even if Sammy could win the title bout... the answer would still be “no.” The answer will always be “no.” Game's over, Dean. No more second chances. No more extra lives. Time to say bye-bye to Luigi, Mario.

This sums up perfectly how Dean feels about Sammy. He raised him, he always took care of him. He can't lose him because all his life revolved around Sam. This is not Wincest, this is solely FAMILY LOVE. Remember what we said about Bobby a little earlier, these were Bobby's feelings too.

I will put here an addition from Destielle, she talked about the well known toxic codependency, and i think is important too:

"Billie basically calls out the toxic codependency between Sam and Dean here. ‘You’re doing it for you’ she deadpans. It’s more about Dean fulfilling the task, or rather duty, John gave him so early on, that it’s part of Dean’s personality. An automatism. He doesn’t want Sam to live because it was Sam’s wish, but because Dean needs Sam to keep things the way they always have been as so not having to deal with himself."

Is interesting because John Winchester heritage to Dean was the GUILT and the FIRST BORN duty, so practically, he keeps reacting and acting like a soldier that needs to protect the little brother and the entire world, I talked so many times in My metas about this toxic heritage and about THE BIG PROTECTOR living inside Dean. Interesting comment my friend! Thank you!

Dean’s spirit [sadness and desperation in his eyes]: I'm asking you... I'm begging you, please. Bring him back. Bring him back and take me instead.

DEAN WINCHESTER WILL ALWAYS GIVE HIS LIFE IN EXCHANGE FOR THE ONES HE LOVES BECAUSE HE IS DEAN WINCHESTER. NOT JUST FOR SAM, BUT FOR THE WORLD, AND CAS.

Billie: I'm not here to bargain with you, kid. I'm here to reap you. And the kicker is... Sam's not dead. [Dean looks stunned] But you are. Or will be, soon enough.

Now… let's go with Michelle and Dean's conversation… the third fact:

Dean: Michelle, this is gonna be very hard. But you will be okay. And, eventually... eventually you'll get back to normal.

Dean is talking from experience. Drawn from every time he lost a friend, a family member (including Sam) which he always affronted in the same way, by hunting, drinking heavily and stuffing bacon in his face. It always was hard at first but got better with time until he got back to normal. He's talking with determination because he lost a lot of beloved people. But … he hasn’t lost the love of his life yet… Michelle did…

Gif set credit @thejabberwock 👇

Michelle [sighing]: No, I won't. They said I could leave... [she sighs] an hour ago. But... where am I even supposed to go? After everything we survived together... [turning back to Dean] I watched the man I love die. There's no normal after that.

This is a rich piece of text over there. First of all, she's convincing Dean she won't be back to normal. Ever. She's the one talking with authority now, because she's talking from her experience of losing the love of her life… 'where am I even supposed to go?' SHE'S LOST, Just as lost as Dean will be for the first 5 episodes from season 13. 'After everything we survived together…' these words are carving deep into Dean's heart, because the man he loves is in danger in the very moment, and I know he's recalling everything they survived together. 'I watched the man I love die, there's no normal after that', Dean's face is priceless here, full of fear, he doesn't want to go through the same Michelle has and had to. He doesn't want to watch Cas die. And I want you to remember the first fact I pointed out, MICHELLE IS SAYING SHE WATCHED CORBIN DIE, not that she found him dead. Okay? So we are not talking about a reference to the death of Sam here. Dean didn't watch him die, he found him dead. And secondly, Dean knows Sam is okay by now, so why would he display a face full of pain and fear? Who's the one in real danger now, possessed by Lucifer? CASTIEL. DEAN DOESN'T WANT TO SEE CASTIEL DIE. HENCE THE TERRIFIED EXPRESSION.

AND THAT'S WHY IN THE NEXT EPISODE HE WILL FIGHT AGAINST RATIO, AGAINST WHAT’S THE LOGICAL THING TO DO, JUST BECAUSE HE DOESN'T WANT TO SEE THE MAN HE LOVES DIE. Sorry for the yelling. But I needed to make things clear.

To Conclude:

The Soul Eater in episode 11x16 is a blatant mirror of Amara. Another way to show us her dominance over Dean is a forced and dark one.

Episode 11x17 must be analyzed with logic. The clues are in the details and related to the previous episode in which Bobby saw Sam and Dean dead. It was purely about FAMILIAL LOVE and it must not be mistaken for something else because that just would be a twisted interpretation.

Dean giving his life in exchange for the one of EVERYONE shouldn't be mistaken for suicidal tendencies, too.

The fact that he wanted to go on with his life EVEN THOUGH BEING CONVINCED SAM IS DEAD is an important difference to how Dean is behaving in 13x05.

We have the foreshadowing for Castiel's death and Mourning!Dean and a prelude to 11x18 where we’ll have a very desperate Dean trying to save his angel.

Hope you liked this one! See you in the next meta!

Tagging @metafest @magnificent-winged-beast @emblue-sparks @weirddorkylittlediana @michyribeiro @whyjm @legendary-destiel @a-bit-of-influence @thatwitchydestielfan @misha-moose-dean-burger-lover @lykanyouko @evvvissticante @savannadarkbaby @dea-stiel @poorreputation @bre95611 @thewolfathedoor @charlottemanchmal @neii3n @deathswaywardson @followyourenergy @dean-is-bi-till-i-die @hekatelilith-blog @avidbkwrm @anarchiana @dickpuncher365 @vampyrosa @foxyroxe-art @authorsararayne @anonymoustitans @mybonsai1976 @love-neve-dies @wildligia @dustythewind @wayward-winchester67 @angelwithashotgunandtrenchcoat @trashblackrainbow @deeutdutdutdoh @destiel-is--endgame @destiel-shipper-11 @larrem88 @charmedbycastiel @ran-savant @little-crazy-misha-minion @samoosetheshipper

@shadows-and-padlocked-hearts @mishtho @dancingtuesdaymorning @nerditoutwithbooks @mikennacac73 @justmeand-myinsight @idontwantpeopletoknowmyname @tenshilover20 @teddybeardoctor @pepevons @helevetica @isthisdestiel @dizzypinwheel @jawnlockwinchester @horsez2 @qanelyytha

@imjustkipping @destielle @agusvedder @spnsmile @shippsblog @robot-feels @superlock-in-the-tardis

If you want to be added or removed from this list just let me know.

If you want to read the previous metas From s11, her you have the links.

Vol. LXII, XLIII, XLIV, LXV, LXVI, LXVII, LXVIII

Buenos Aires July 7th 2020 5:36 PM

[our-time-is-now]

June 15, 2019: double date

(previous play)

You can find more information about the authors, translators, content warning and additional information about the plays in the pinned post on our blog.

Attention! This play includes transgender topics. For more details see our interjection.  

Saturday, 5:48 pm:

Matteo: *cycled with David to Hanna's house* *naturally they're late again, as they were supposed to be there at 5:30* *locks his bike and takes the salad bowl out of the basket on his bike* *waits for David to also lock his bike* *suddenly is nervous again when he thinks about the fact that they'll see Jonas in a minute* *doesn't want him to notice anything and also doesn't want David having to put on a show* And you're really sure? We can still go home again and come up with an excuse...

David: *locks up his bike next to Matteo's and steps beside him while inspecting the house Hanna lives in* *feels a little uncomfortable when he thinks about Jonas even though logically, he knows that Jonas isn't gay and even though he believes Matteo that he doesn't have a crush on him anymore, he still can't dismiss the thought* *but thinks that the has to face it now – because of the holiday they have planned together and because Jonas is Matteo's best friend* *only vaguely notices that Matteo has asked him something and looks at him* *needs a moment for Matteo's words to register, smiles slightly and shakes his head* Let's get it over with... I'm sure it'll be nice... *takes a step toward the house but lets Matteo lead the way because he knows where to go*

Matteo: *sighs slightly and nods* Okay... *unfortunately doesn't have a free hand because the salad bowl is so big that he has to carry it with both hands* *therefore simply steps in front of David and kisses him* *looks at him a little apologetically and then turns around to go to the front door to ring the bell* *sees Jonas open the door and hears him laugh: "We should have said 5, shouldn't we? Whatever, come in!"* *sees how he wants to hug him but instead holds the salad bowl out to him* Yes, sorry, my fault... could you take that, please? *after Jonas has taken the bowl he takes off his jacket but keeps it in his hands because they will probably go back outside anyways* *only needs a reason to keep Jonas at a distance*

David: *grins slightly when Matteo steps in front of him to kiss him but obviously returns it with pleasure* *realizes that he really is a little nervous when Matteo rings the doorbell but puts up a slight smile when Jonas opens the door* *lifts his hand in greeting* Hey... *then watches Matteo a little skeptically because he seems almost more nervous than him* *then already sees Hanna come around the corner smiling at both of them: "Hey, there you finally are!"* *gets a hug from her after she hugged Matteo and hears her say: "Nice that it worked out! Should we go straight outside? Jonas has already tried firing up the barbecue – emphasis on /tried/. I hope it'll work out..."* *hears her laugh and grins slightly as well* *murmurs nervously* We'll figure it out... should we help with you anything?

Matteo: *sees Hanna shake her head: "Noo, we already set everything up, just go outside!"* *nods and reaches for David's hand while they go through the hallway and the living room outside into the garden* *sees Jonas and Hanna following them and Jonas puting the salad on the table before going to the barbecue* *sees Hanna point at a tub with ice water: "Just help yourselves with the beverages, there's also more inside."* *sees Jonas turn around to them: "Luigi, come over and help me with the barbecue."* *slightly bites down on his bottom lip, squeezes David's hand again and then goes over to Jonas* Let’s see, what did you do? Did you try using barbecue lighters? *sees Jonas shake his head and laughs* Dude... move... *slightly pushes him aside and turns his attention to the barbecue*

David: *slightly squeezes Matteo's hand when he reaches for it and then follows him outside* *nods when Hanna points at the tub and smiles slightly* *hears Jonas call for Matteo and is reluctant to let go of his hand* *but then thinks that it's ridiculous and that a week ago he wouldn't have had a problem with Matteo and Jonas talking without him* *looks after Matteo thoughtfully, but then takes a step toward the tub with the beverages* *takes a deep breath and asks the other three* Do you want anything? *sees Jonas and Matteo nod and then sees Hanna next to him: "You get something for the barbecue-masters, I'll take something to the table for us. A beer for you, as well?"* *smiles slightly and nods* Sure! *takes out beers for Jonas and Matteo, opens them and takes them over to them* *goes back to Hanna at the table after the two thanked him, takes the beer she holds out to him and sits down* *clinks bottles with her when she holds out his bottle to him with a smile and takes a sip* *looks around and says* It's nice here... cozy. Do you live here with your parents? *sees Hanna shake her head: "The house belongs to my father, but he moved in with his new girlfriend last year. Since then I basically live here on my own. But he comes over regularly to see if everything is okay and to check on his beloved plants that I always forget to water..."* *sees her grin and talks to her for some time about what it's like to live alone*

Matteo: *automatically was careful to not get too close to Jonas and every now and then looked over to David inconspicuously* *was relieved to see him talk to Hanna* *gets back to the table with Jonas and a plate full of meat* First round can begin! *puts the plate down in the middle of the table and puts his half-full bottle of beer down when he takes a seat* *sits down next to David while Jonas sits down next to Hanna* *hears Jonas: "I'll just serve, ok?"* *sees him put meat and a sausage on everyone's plates* Thanks. *bumps his leg against David's under the table and reaches for the salad to serve everyone*

David: *during his conversation with Hanna he has looked over to Matteo and Jonas every now and then, but after he got "caught" by Hanna tried to suppress the urge* *thinks that Hanna is really nice and also thinks that it's nice to have a real conversation with her instead of just doing some small talk with her every once in a while* *but gets more and more nervous the longer Matteo and Jonas are standing in front of the barbecue together and is glad when the two of them finally join them at the table* *holds his plate out to Jonas and thanks him and does the same when Matteo serves the salad* *hears Jonas say: "Well then: enjoy!"* *only nods and starts eating* *somehow found it easier to sit at the table only with Hanna and only barely listens to Hanna and Jonas when they tell them about how they got back together before Jonas starts talking about the holiday: "Man, guys, I'm really looking forward to our holiday! That's gonna be really nice! Do you remember the last time we went there, Luigi? Lake-smoking?!"* *hears him laugh "Oh man... those were the times..."* *doesn't know what to say to that and doesn't really know what he should ask to somehow participate in the conversation* *instead reaches for his beer and takes a big sip*

Matteo: *nods with his mouth full of meat when Jonas says that he's looking forward to their holiday* *gets a little uncomfortable for a moment when Jonas talks about the last time they were there* *is grateful to Hanna when she says: "Well, luckily both of you don't smoke weed anymore."* Yep... luckily... this time will definitely be better... with everyone. *looks at David while he says it and smiles slightly* I'll show you the lake and the jetty... it's really nice... *hears Jonas laugh as if he'd remembered something. "Oh man, I only remembered just now... Luigi wanted me to play Sam Smith on the guitar... I should have figured it out back then..."* *closes his eyes for a moment and wonders how many years he would get for murder* *then lets out a fake laugh* But you didn't...

David: *has to grin a little at Hanna's comment and then looks over to Matteo when he realizes that he's looking at him* *smiles slightly and nods when Matteo tells him about the things he wants to show him* *murmurs* Sounds good... *then gets interrupted by Jonas and realizes how his heartbeat is picking up because at first, he thinks that Jonas means that he should have figured out then that Matteo had a crush on him* *but then only slowly understands that he means that he should have figured out that Matteo was gay but still doesn't manage to slow down his beating heart* *takes a deep breath and swallows the lump in his throat* *tells himself again and again that it was a long time ago and that it doesn't mean anything anymore* *hears Jonas' answer to Matteo's comment: "True - I didn't really figure it out... Hey, but David, you have to keep in mind: If Matteo is ever mad at you or you want to woo him just turn on Sam Smith. I'm also happy to show you how to play a few songs on the guitar – it's not that difficult... might turn Luigi on even more when it's live and not coming from a speaker..."* *hears Jonas laugh and forces himself to grin* *answers with a slightly strained voice* I'll keep it in mind... *then thinks that he's acting totally obvious right now and not at all like himself and that he can't really stand himself right now and reaches for his beer again* *wishes that he could get rid of at least some of the tension and insecurity and hopes that the beer will help him a little with that*

Matteo: *can literally feel David's tension beside him and is cursing Jonas right now* *reaches for David's hand and simply holds it when Jonas even starts giving tips to David on how to deal with him* *takes a deep breath* Thanks, Jonas... really... but believe me, David doesn't need any tips! *hopes that it sounds harmless, just like a little banter, but nothing more* *but also hopes that it'll calm David down a little* *sees Hanna nudge Jonas, sees her grin and say: "Since when are you a relationship-expert?" and hears Jonas' answer: "I'm not, but I'm a Luigi-expert!"* *shakes his head and squeezes David's hand* Okay, that's enough... change of topic! How about a bet: Which one of your snobby companions will be the first one to complain about the bathroom on our holiday? Kiki or Alex?

David: *feels Matteo's hand and basically clings to it* *doesn't really want to let go of it again but knows that they have to continue eating at some point* *but enjoys it for as long as he can and smiles a little at Matteo's words* *hopes that he's not just saying it to console him or anything like that* *huffs quietly when Jonas even says that he's a Matteo-expert and takes another sip* *is grateful to Matteo for changing the topic and that Jonas and Hanna immediately start talking about the new topic* *hears Jonas say full of conviction: "Kiki, obviously!"* and Hanna laugh: "Definitely Alex!" and Jonas reply: "Noo, I take everything back! I say Carlos! He and his current wellness-obsession..."* *has to smirk a little at that but knows neither Alex nor Kiki very well so that he can't really say anything about it* *but then hears Hanna: "And another bet: "Who will try to weasel their way out of doing the dishes the most?"* *feels himself slowly relaxing a little and lets go of Matteo's hand to continue eating*

Matteo: *laughs slightly* I'd also say Alex... I've seen what kind of stuff he needs in the bathroom... he has more stuff than Hans and that's saying something... *grins slightly when Jonas says Carlos and nods* *feels David let go of his hand* *as it is his left hand, which he doesn't need for eating, he simply leaves it on David's leg* Oh, I think, Sam... *sees Hanna frown: "What? Why?"* *grins slightly* Well because of her nails! *Jonas laughs and nods: "Definitely! You're right!"*

David: *feels that Matteo leaves his hand on his leg and briefly looks over to him with a smile* *has to grin a little at Sam's nails but then hears Hanna chip in and say: "Noo, I bet on Jonas!"* *sees him look indignant and sees Hanna shrug with a grin: "I just know you!"* *hears Jonas: "Pfff... outrageous! Next bet?"* *sees him look at everyone and then sees Jonas look at him* *sees him looking worried and hears him ask: "Everything okay, Brudi? You're so quiet..."* *feels completely caught and chews especially long to come up with an answer* *suddenly feels bad because it really isn't Jonas' fault that he feels uncomfortable and because somehow, he's the only one among them who doesn't know what's going on with him right now* *eventually has to swallow and answers* Yeah, sorry... I've got a bit of a headache... but it's already getting better. I was probably just hungry... *sees Jonas smile and nod and hears him say: "Well, then, dig in! – By the way: Should we throw some more on the barbecue? Are you coming with me, Luigi?"*

Matteo: *bites down on his bottom lip when Jonas asks David directly if everything is okay* *feels really bad when he hears that David is obviously lying* *then hears Jonas' question and hesitates* *luckily gets saved by Hanna: "How about I come with you and show you how it's done?"* *hears Jonas laugh: "If you say so..."* *then sees them get up and go over to the barbecue which is luckily far enough away to be out of earshot* *immediately turns to David* Shit, I'm really sorry... really, we can leave if you want to... *feels incredibly guilty and bad that David is feeling bad because of him* Or I'll just tell Jonas? Then it'll be out and he'll know why we keep our distance for a while? Would that be better?

David: *is also glad when Hanna gets up to join Jonas at the barbecue and looks at Matteo when he immediately talks to him* *shakes his head when Matteo says that they can leave even though he briefly considers accepting Matteo's offer* *hears his other suggestions and even has to laugh slightly* *shakes his head again and reaches for Matteo's hand* Hey! *briefly presses his lips together and thinks about what he wants to say* *then simply starts* First of all, you don't have to apologize for anything, do you hear me? No one has to apologize – not even Jonas because he doesn't even know what's going on... and if we leave now then it'll be just as weird the next time... maybe... I think I just have to get through this now, to get used to it, okay? *briefly squeezes his hand and then shrugs* And it's your decision whether you want to tell Jonas or not... But if you want to tell him, then please don't do it just so we keep our distance afterwards. We won't do that, okay? *laughs quietly and shrugs again* We just have to get through this... at least I do! And you should stop feeling bad because of it... I'm... even glad, somehow, that I know about it now.

Matteo: *slightly grimaces at David's answers* *sighs* I don't want you to feel awkward... *also takes his other hand so that he's holding both of David's hands* *shakes his head* I'd tell him so that he'd stop talking shit like that... *sighs again and quickly kisses him* Isn't there anything I can do? So that we'll get through this more easily?

David: *grins slightly desperate* I don't wanna feel weird, either, believe me... *wonders if it might not be better if Matteo told Jonas – at least then all four of them would know about it and he himself would see by Jonas' reaction that his worries are unfounded even though he actually already knows it* *but then thinks that it's really only Matteo's own decision and doesn't want to meddle* *thinks about Matteo's question and shrugs* *grins slightly and tilts his head* Fast forward a few months... maybe then I wouldn't constantly feel like he knows you much better than I do... *leans forward again and gives him another kiss* *leans his forehead against Matteo's and quietly says* There's nothing you can do, I think...

Matteo: *sighs again* He doesn't know me better now, either... only differently... *returns the kiss and puts a hand on the back of his neck* *kisses him again* *says a little stubbornly* But I want to *leans back a little so that he can look at him* It's not comparable, okay? *unfortunately can't hear David answer as Jonas and Hanna come back and Jonas says: "Enough making out, here's the second round!"* *reluctantly pulls away from David but leaves his hand on his leg again* Well, then, serve! *holds his plate out to Jonas*

David: *grins at Matteo's stubborn comment and quietly parrots him* *returns his look and feels his heartbeat pick up because Matteo is looking at him so seriously and repeats that it isn't comparable* *can only nod before Hanna and Jonas return to the table* *empties his beer and also holds his plate out to Jonas and thanks him* *hears Hanna: "I'll get another round of beer for everyone!"* *sees Jonas sit down again and hears him sigh: "I really missed that! Barbecuing, I mean! We definitely have to grill on holiday! There's a barbecue at the cabin, right, honey…?"* *sees Hanna return with the beer and nod: "Yes, but it's not very big. No idea if we can grill meat for 11 people on it... but somewhere in the shed there's also one of those swinging thingies for the fireplace..."* *has to grin a little and looks at Hanna questioningly: "You mean a tripod barbecue?"* *hears Hanna laugh: "Yes, exactly... one of those swinging thingies!"* *opens two beers and hands one to Matteo* *sees Jonas look at him and eventually hears him ask: "How is it, Brudi? Headache gotten better?"* *briefly looks at Matteo, then back at Jonas and shrugs* A little...

Matteo: *gratefully accepts the beer from David and takes two big sips* *laughs slightly when David knows the right name* Nerd... *runs a hand through his hair when Jonas addresses David once again* *briefly returns his look* *then sees Jonas frown: "There's something going on here. Is everything ok with you guys? No, wait, it has to be, you were just making out... but there's something, just spit it out already!"* *swallows and sees Hanna look at him awkwardly* *then thinks that it's really not fair that Hanna and David have to keep their mouths shut for him* *without thinking about it says* I had a crush on you! *briefly feels like he's getting dizzy once the words are out and stares at the table to not see Jonas' reaction* *takes a deep breath* I had a crush on you until I met David and at the party last weekend David found out and that's why it's... a little weird now... *bites his lip and looks up slowly*

David: *briefly gnaws on his bottom lip when Jonas suspects that something is wrong, and briefly looks at Hanna and then at Matteo and tries to somehow come up with an excuse in case Matteo can’t think of one, but then hears Matteo simply blurt out the truth and at the same moment feels his heart start pounding* *finds it so incredibly brave of Matteo and searches for his hand under the table* *only now realizes that he said it, that it really means something to him that Matteo told Jonas because somehow it shows him that Matteo is probably really over Jonas* *but notices that it’s still somehow difficult for Matteo and slightly squeezes his hand* *is really proud of him right now* *looks at Jonas who looks pretty confused and hears him ask: “What? Found out?”* *hears Hanna interrupt: “I was talking about it with Matteo in the kitchen and David came in and overheard it”!* *sees Jonas look at Hanna: “What? You knew about it?! How?!”* *sees Hanna shrug: “Female intuition?”* *sees Jonas look back at Matteo: “Oh man… I really didn’t notice anything, sorry! And when we were talking about David and you told me that it’s a boy you really, really like you sounded totally convincing when you said that it wasn’t me…”* *sees him scratch his head and hears him add: “Yes, okay, I wasn’t anymore, at that point…”*

Matteo: *looks between Jonas and Hanna a little overwhelmed* *then shakes his head at Jonas’ words and was just about to say that at that point he wasn’t when Jonas already says it himself* No, by then it wasn’t because of you anymore… and I /was/ convincing because I wasn’t, and aren’t into you anymore* *looks away again to sort his thoughts and then back at Jonas* And it’s not even worth mentioning, ok? It’s over now and it was just… well, doesn’t really matter anymore… *sees Jonas look from him to David* *sees him open and close his mouth again without saying anything* *doesn’t want Jonas to say anything to David right now and therefore quickly says* Can we just forget about this now and continue eating?

David: *had let go of Matteo’s hand again and had reached for his fork when Matteo said that they should just forget about it* *but sees Jonas shake his head and hears him say: “Hey, you’ve all had time to process it… I have just learned about it… I still have a few questions, if it’s okay… but first…”* *sees Jonas look at him now and hears him say: “Sorry, man, here I am talking shit about Sam Smith and how well I know Luigi and you’re probably sitting there thinking ‘what an ass’!”* *has to grin slightly and shakes his head* *murmurs* No, it’s alright! *sees Jonas shake his head and hears him say: “No not really, is it? I mean, if there were a guy sitting here and I’d know that Hanna used to have a crush on him and he were telling me the entire time how great Hanna was and all the great things they’d experienced together, I’d go crazy! I’d probably not even be here anymore… So kudos for still being here!”* *puts his fork back down and briefly presses his lips together* *somehow finds it comforting that Jonas can relate to his feelings* *eventually says* Well, you’re Matteo’s best friend… and we want to go on holidays together… it would suck if I wouldn’t at least try to come to terms with it, wouldn’t it? *sees Jonas smile and raise his bottle to him: “Like I said, David! Kudos! And sorry that I sometimes talk so much nonsense…”* *smiles a little as well and feels a little better somehow* *now sees Jonas turn to Matteo: “And you… hey, why didn’t you ever say anything? Did you think you couldn’t talk to me about it or what? Am I such a shitty friend?”* *looks at Matteo a little worriedly because he wanted to drop the subject, and hopes that he can somehow deal with Jonas’ questions*

Matteo: *is somehow relieved after all when Jonas is talking to David and seems to understand him* *also sees Hanna smiling and slightly nodding* *then sees Jonas turn toward him and briefly closes his eyes as if that would help avoid what’s to come now* *shakes his head* No, you’re not… that’s why. *briefly presses his lips together* *still finds it hard to talk about his feelings, even those that are over* *needs some time again to sort his thoughts* If I’d told you I would have had to live with the consequences… and I didn’t want that… in every respect. I just… no, I mean… it was easy, ok? In private. I didn’t want Hanna to realize it, either. *looks at Jonas and shrugs slightly*

David: *would love to take the conversation with Jonas off Matteo’s shoulders when he sees how difficult it is for him to talk about it* *sees Jonas looking at Matteo a little confused and hears him say: “I still don’t quite understand… what was easy? The situation must have been hell for you! We were constantly around each other… and Hanna was constantly there, as well… I suppose that didn’t make things easier for you. What do you think would have happened if you’d talked about it with me?”* *lowers his gaze because he doesn’t want to also look at Matteo expectantly and wonders how he feels right now having to talk about it – after all, it hasn’t even been three months since he had feelings for Jonas and he can’t really judge if it seems like a long time or a short time for Matteo and how much distance he mentally has to this topic* *but still thinks that Jonas is handling the whole situation quite confidently and that he shows Matteo that it’s okay and that he can talk to him about it*

Matteo: *swallows again and clings to the fabric of his pants with his free hand* *is a little overwhelmed by the situation and feels a little like a sitting duck even though these are all people that he trusts* *decides to concentrate on Jonas and looks at him* Okay, easy might be the wrong word… but it was… safe. You were there and at the same time completely inaccessible so I didn’t really have to deal with the what-if’s, you know? And what good would telling you have done? It wouldn’t have changed anything… on the contrary… you would have felt guilty or responsible… and it would have sucked for me. And besides, I was miles away from coming out to anyone. *scratches his nose and runs his hand through his hair*

David: *sees how uncomfortable Matteo is feeling and looks at him a little worried* *but thinks that he’s still explaining it pretty well and listens to him* *for the first time thinks that he’s got something that Jonas doesn’t  – apart from the fact that Matteo is with him instead of Jonas. But also feels like, unlike Jonas, he was somehow worth dealing with the topic and that he was apparently also worth enough for Matteo to come out* *smiles slightly at the thought and looks at Jonas when Matteo finishes talking* *sees him think and eventually admit: “Yes, okay… if you’re looking at it like that… so I was something like a teenage crush?”* *sees him think for a second and then say: “But you still could have told me, we could have talked about it somehow…”* *intervenes after all, to somehow save Matteo a little* Well, but he told you now – if he wasn’t ready back then it doesn’t necessarily mean that you were a bad friend to him or anything… *shrugs and then hears Hanna agree with him: “I agree with David! And think about it, Jonas, how long did it take us to admit to ourselves that we had feelings for each other. And we basically only managed after we were pretty sure that we were both feeling the same… before that we weren’t that brave, either. I can understand why Matteo didn’t say anything back then!”* *sees Jonas shrug and reach for his beer, sigh briefly and look between him and Matteo: “Okay… yes, true, you’re right.”* *sees Jonas hold out his bottle to him and Matteo for a toast: “Everything okay between the three of us? David? Really, sorry again that I always have such a big mouth…”* *briefly looks at Matteo to see if he’s really okay and then clinks his bottle with Jonas’* *murmurs* It’s okay, everything’s good! *then holds his bottle out to Matteo to also clink bottles with him and while doing so searches Matteo’s face to see if he’s really okay*

Matteo: *laughs tunelessly and nods slightly* Yes, teenage crush is quite fitting… *shrugs when he keeps insisting that he could have told him* *doesn’t agree with him* *but also thinks that it would be no use to keep arguing about it* *is surprised when David intervenes and looks at him gratefully* *nods in agreement* *then also hears Hanna take his side and can’t really believe it* *slightly smiles at her as a sign of gratitude* *is relieved when Jonas agrees that they are right* *is happy about his so-called peace-offering but first looks at David searchingly* *has to grin when David seems to have the same idea* *clinks bottles with Jonas and nods* Everything okay… *then clinks bottles with David and only nods at his questioning look* *then also clinks bottles with Hanna and murmurs a quiet “thanks” before taking a sip* *even though everything had been resolved, feels like everything is too much for him right now* *gets up* I… um… am just gonna go take a piss. *turns around and quickly disappears into the house* *still knows his way around and quickly finds the bathroom* *locks the door and sits down on the closed toilet seat* *takes a few deep breaths and leans his head back*

David: *smiles when they all clink bottles and really feels a little better* *didn’t think that it would help him so much that the topic was brought out in the open but still wonders if Matteo has only told Jonas about it because of him and if Matteo didn’t really want to talk about it* *hears Hanna complain: “Great, now the steaks are cold!” and Jonas answer with a full mouth: “I don’t know what your problem is, they taste just as awesome even cold…”* *is cutting off a piece of meat himself when Matteo says that he’s going to the bathroom* *looks after him a little worried because it reminds him a little of his disappearance at the neon party but doesn’t want to be overconcerned and therefore continues eating* *turns to Hanna and says* Why don’t you tell me about the cabin… and Heidesee in general… *listens to her and thinks that it sounds really cool but gets a little nervous when Matteo is gone for so long and interrupts Hanna when she is pausing for a moment* *puts his cutlery down and murmurs a little embarrassed* I think I should check on Matteo… where’s the bathroom? *sees that Hanna is also looking a little worried now: “Right, he’s been gone for a while… right next to the front door – there’s a sign on it…”* *nods, gets up and goes into the house* *quickly finds the bathroom but stands in front of it for a moment indecisively and listens, but knocks carefully when he can’t hear anything coming from inside* *quietly asks* Matteo?

Matteo: *has apparently forgotten time* *has just been sitting there breathing desperately trying not to look at himself in the mirror* *gets startled by the knocking and wonders how long he’s been in here* *quickly answers* Yes, hang on… *gets up* *looks at himself in the mirror, after all, and quickly runs a hand through his hair* *thinks that he doesn’t look too bad and opens the door* Hey… sorry… I… I just needed a second…

David: *waits a little worried when he hears Matteo inside and is relieved when he finally opens the door* *smiles slightly* Hey… *scrutinizes him and nods when he says that he needed a second* *grabs his hand and entwines their fingers* Do you need a few more seconds? Everything okay?

Matteo: *feels David’s hand in his and can also feel himself relaxing a little* *smiles slightly and shakes his head* No… and yes, everything’s okay. It was just… a little much… *presses his lips together and thinks* Not because of Jonas or anything… but just… talking about it and stuff… *looks a little apologetic* *doesn’t want David to think Jonas has made him feel bad or anything*

David: *nods slowly when Matteo says that everything’s okay* *also takes Matteo’s other hand and slightly squeezes them both* *quietly says* And even if it had been because of Jonas… then that would have been okay, as well… *thinks that you can be overwhelmed even when you’re just friends, even if you no longer have a crush on someone and that it was a big step for Matteo to tell Jonas* *smiles slightly, looks at him seriously and says* I trust you, Matteo. And what you just did… that was so brave of you! *doesn’t tell him that he’s proud of him because he feels like this would sound silly, but somehow he still is*

Matteo: *sighs slightly* Okay… *then hears David’s next words and can’t believe it at first* *suddenly feels his heart being full of love and gratitude for David being here and for not being alone anymore* *drops his head on his shoulders and stays there for now* *murmurs “thanks” into his neck while wrapping his arms around him* *simply has to refuel right now*

David: *steps closer to Matteo when he drops his head on his shoulder and wraps his arms around Matteo at almost the same time he does* *holds him tight and closes his eyes* *finds it incredible how much he has missed being close to Matteo even though they had only been with company for such a short time but blames it on the tension and the serious topics* *shakes his head when Matteo thanks him* *doesn’t think that he has to thank him* *briefly considers thanking Matteo because right now he’s feeling better because Matteo has talked about the topic but then drops the idea because right now it’s about Matteo and not him* *is going to thank him later and simply holds him right now* *eventually asks quietly* Do you rater want to go home? *pulls away slightly to look at him*

Matteo: *takes a deep breath and really refuels* *can literally feel himself feeling better and better* *looks at him when he pulls away and shakes his head* No… those are my best friends out there… it’s okay… *kisses him briefly and smiles* Besides, you are here. *tilts his head slightly* And Hanna always makes the best desserts…

David: *smiles when Matteo says that he wants to stay and smiles even more when he says that he’s here* *murmurs* That’s good, then… *laughs quietly when he talks about the dessert and says full of conviction* We cannot miss this… *still keeps a hold on him when he wants to pull away and kisses him again properly, longer and tenderly and slowly runs his hand over the back of his neck* *smiles when he pulls away from the kiss and asks with a smirk* Shall we? *points his head toward the terrace*

Matteo: *kisses him back and for a moment forgets everything else* *smiles afterwards* Yep… *keeps a hold of David’s hand and they go back to the terrace* *was expecting some stupid comment and is therefore surprised when Jonas and Hanna look at him lovingly and Jonas asks: “Everything okay?”* *nods and quickly sits back down again* Yes… sorry… *sees Hanna smile: “Well the steaks are cold but we can also move on to dessert or to the stronger alcohol?”*

David: *goes back to the terrace with Matteo and inconspicuously scoots his chair closer to Matteo’s so that they can hold hands more comfortably* *smiles when Jonas asks if everything is okay and leans back a little* *grins when Hanna says that the steaks are cold and when she talks about dessert and says* Matteo has already raved about your desserts… so definitely! *hears Jonas: “And rightly so! Hanna’s desserts are the best!”* *lets go of Matteo’s hand to help Hanna clear the dishes* *wants to get up to help her bring the dishes into the kitchen but sees her decline: “Oh, you don’t have to, I can manage… and we’ll take the rest in later…”* *sits back down and sees Hanna disappear* *takes another sip of beer and hears Jonas ask: “Do you already have plans for the future? Are you going to study or do an apprenticeship, just chill or something completely different?”* *answers first because Matteo still doesn’t really know and because he doesn’t know if Matteo even wants to talk about this topic* Hmmm… well I applied to film school… I have to wait and see whether I get accepted – the selection criteria are pretty tough… at least at the normal universities… and the private ones I can’t afford… *sees Jonas look at him interestedly: “Filmmaking/film school… awesome… but it somehow suits you… but you do want to stay in Berlin?”* *briefly looks over to Matteo and then nods* If it’s somehow possible, yes… I haven’t been here for that long. Would suck if I had to move away again just after finally getting settled… *sees Jonas grin: “Besides, Luigi would probably die of yearning if you would leave Berlin…”*

Matteo: *is glad that David is the first one to answer the question about the future* *still isn’t too happy about constantly being asked that question* *then grins when Jonas grins and also grins at his words* Noo, I wouldn’t… *sees Jonas open his mouth to disagree and quickly says* … I would go with him. *sees Jonas look at him surprised: “Oh really? Away from Berlin? You?”* *nods* Yes, you know… badly sappy and in love couple and so on… *then shrugs* Besides, I still don’t really have a plan… and I can do some random jobs in some random city…

David: *has to smile when Matteo says again without any doubt in his voice that he would go with him if he had to leave Berlin and lowers his gaze a little so that it isn't as obvious how happy he is about it* *but somehow can only accept it because he would do the same for Matteo if the situation was reversed* *can hear how surprised Jonas is and then laughs at Matteo's answer* *looks back up again and takes Matteo's hand* Yes, and we stand by it... *sees that Jonas is still struggling with the idea that Matteo might move away and therefore says* Well, but don't worry. If everything goes to plan he won't have to leave you and I get a university spot in Berlin. *shrugs* Unless he decides to do something he can only do somewhere else... then I'd try to change universities... in the end it doesn't really matter where we study... *sees Jonas grin slightly: "I see, you've already planned and talked about it... I think it's good... really... that you're so sure..."* *wonders if Jonas might find it silly that they are already planning so far ahead into the future even though they've only been together for such a short time but then decides that he doesn't care what Jonas thinks about it* *strokes his thumb over the back of Matteo's hand and then squeezes it slightly* *asks Jonas* And what about you? Any plans?

Matteo: *laughs when David says that they stand by it and nods* Exactly! *is really surprised that Jonas seems to be floored by the fact that he would maybe move away* *quickly nods at David's words* Yes, plan A is definitely to stay in Berlin... and to keep annoying you. *grins slightly* *looks at him grateful when he's honestly happy for them* *sees him nod and already knows what he'll answer* *therefore answers in unison with him* To study to become a teacher for German and Politics. *laughs when Jonas looks at him baffled but then grins: "Yes, exactly... and also to stay in Berlin... especially now that it worked out with Hanna again..."*

David: *grins when Matteo and Jonas tell him about Jonas' plan in unison and with a smirk says* I suppose that plan has been around for a while...?! *then sees Hanna come back to the terrace with a big bowl and hears her ask: "What about Hanna and Berlin?"* *hears Jonas answer: "Jonas is staying in Berlin because of Hanna and university!"* *sees Hanna look at them in surprise: "Why? Does anyone want to leave Berlin?"* *smiles and shakes his head* Don't worry, that would only be plan B... *then leans forward to look into the bowl* Hmm, that looks really good. What is it? *sees Hanna shrug: "Some strawberry-rhubarb-cream-yoghurt-crisp-thingy... I forgot the name. But it's really good – I once made it for Papa's birthday... just help yourselves, okay?"* *sees her sit down again and Jonas grab a spoon and ladle to serve everyone*

Matteo: *takes the bowl Jonas hands him and immediately tries it* Hmmmm, wonderful... as always... *Hanna laughs: "One can always get you with food... did you also get him like that, David?"* *only laughs and shakes his head* David can't cook. *sees Hanna grin and can already imagine what she's thinking* *kicks her under the table and hears her complain: "Hey, I didn't say anything!"* *laughs* But you were thinking it. And yes, you're right, but still! *sees Jonas gape at them and look from him to Hanna and then to David and eventually hears him ask: "What's going on with them?"*

David: *also accepts a bowl from Jonas and thanks him* *immediately tries it and agrees with Matteo* Really delicious! *grinningly shakes his head at Hanna's question* I probably would have chased him away with my cooking skills... *nods at Matteo's words* I don't have to, it's enough if you can! *grins again and then looks between Hanna and Matteo a little surprised* *doesn't really get what this is about and then leans back in relief when he hears Jonas' words* Thank God I'm not the only one who doesn't get it... *laughs and then asks Hanna and Matteo* Enlighten us! Please! *hears Jonas: "Yes, please! Pretty please!"* *sees Jonas make puppy dog eyes and has to laugh again*

Matteo: *grins and looks at Hanna who shrugs* Hanna was thinking about other qualities... *hears Hanna defend herself: "You handed it to me on a silver platter, I couldn't help it!"* *laughs* Noo, noo, you're simply a little dirty! Don't put the blame on me! *hears Jonas laugh and nod: "True, but I like it..."* *groans in complaint and hears Jonas: "That's what you get..."* *shakes his head* I'll turn back to my dessert, at least there I know what I'm getting!

David: *blushes slightly when he realizes what it's about but also laughs when the three continue to mock each other* *but then also turns back to his dessert and hears Jonas: "And I'll go get another round of beer!"* *sees him get up and considers if he should really have a third beer – but on the other hand they have been sitting here for several hours and he's doing okay and he doesn't feel drunk or anything and therefore decides to have another one* *but then sees Jonas come back not only with 4 beers (2 in the pockets of his pants, 2 under his arm) but also with a bottle of green booze and four shot glasses and how he hands everyone a shot glass* *declines* No, thanks, not for me... I'll only take the beer... *hears Jonas: "Come on, one as a digestif and as a toast to our first double date..."* *only shakes his head again and smiles slightly* It's okay, I'll toast with beer!

Matteo: *sees Jonas come back with booze and immediately looks at David* *but then sees him decline immediately and is relieved* *hears Jonas ask again* *knows this tone of voice too well, it has caused him to crash several times before* I'll drink David's as well. *grins and hears Jonas laugh: "I'll take you at your word!"* *sees Jonas really pour four shots and put two of them down in front of him* Well then... *hears Hanna: "To us!"* *toasts with everyone and then drinks both of the shots* Puuuuh... that's from Hanna, isn’t it? *sees Hanna nod: "Why?"* It tastes good.

David: *smiles at Matteo in gratitude when he offers to drink his shot and is glad that Jonas doesn't keep asking* *toasts with everyone with his beer and grins slightly when he listens to Hanna and Matteo* *asks* Sweet? *hears Jonas: "Pfff, I think that's rather an insult for me – Matteo keeps insinuating that I only buy the cheap crap!"* *grins* I see... *hears Jonas continue: "Well, I'd be grateful if one day you'd convince yourself of the opposite and be on my side – I'm there all by myself... or don’t you drink any harder alcohol in general?"* *shrugs* Not very often... *sees Jonas nod and hears him ask: "And why not? Out of conviction or because you don't like the taste or why?"* *briefly presses his lips together and leans back* *picks at the label of his bottle and thinks for a moment but then thinks that the topic will probably come up numerous times when they're on holiday and that it might not be too bad to be open about it and to start with Hanna and Jonas* *therefore says* I should... *makes air quotes* ..."avoid excessive consumption of alcohol." Of course it's a matter of interpretation what "excessive consumption of alcohol" is... *shrugs and notices that Jonas and Hanna look at him questioningly and a little confused* *hears Jonas: "Okay... and... who says that? I mean, why? Or am I missing something?"* *laughs quietly and shakes his head* Noo, I... *gets a little sheepish and lowers his gaze before saying* Because of the hormone injections... *shrugs and adds* That's basically the same as when someone has to take medication regularly – then you're not supposed to drink so much, either... affects the liver... *looks back up and says* Well I do get drunk every now and then... that's not so bad, I think, but I just shouldn't make a habit out of it...

Matteo: *laughingly shakes his head* I'm insinuating it because it's true, dude! *hears Jonas ask David questions and immediately looks at him to check on him* *is ready to interfere in case he wants to distract him* *hears him answer a little hesitantly* *hears Jonas ask some more questions and notices David get tense* *immediately puts a hand on his leg* *is just about to open his mouth to change the topic when David answers* *is incredibly proud of him and slightly squeezes his leg* *sees Hanna smile and nod in understanding* *also sees Jonas look a little embarrassed and hears him say: "Oh, man, of course! Sorry... I already thought the other day that I should do some research on it... it has to suck if you always have to explain everything to everyone, right?"* *looks at Jonas totally happy and is really proud: proud of his boyfriend for being brave and of his best friend for such a great reaction*

David: *grabs Matteo's hand when he feels it on is leg and holds onto it tightly* *realizes how difficult it is to talk about it openly but also thinks that it's just as difficult to constantly come up with excuses* *is all the more relieved when Jonas' and Hanna's reaction isn't negative, relaxes his hold onto Matteo's hand a little and smiles slightly* *shrugs* To be honest, so far there haven't really been too many people who were interested in it... but... *picks at the label with his free hand* ... I think it really is better to talk about it openly instead of constantly having to come up with excuses why I don't drink so much... *shrugs and looks at Jonas (and Hanna) a little sheepishly* So you... or both of you can do research if you want to, but if you have any questions then just ask, okay? It can be a little confusing, all of that stuff... *lovingly grins at Matteo* *hears Hanna clear her throat and say: "But it's also something of a taboo-topic to ask trans people, isn't it? I mean, you don't just go up to someone and ask something so private!"* *laughs quietly* Well, I'm not someone... *adds* But you're right: With someone you don't really know that well, you don't really want to pace them... *takes a sip of his beer and adds* But hey, the offer still stands: If you have any questions, then just ask me... or Matteo – he already knows quite a few things by now... *grins at him again, pulls at him a little and then spontaneously leans forward to press a kiss on his cheek*

Matteo: *holds David's hand and lets him squeeze his hand as much as he needs to* *hears him say that it's better to talk about it openly and is really happy* *still remembers David not wanting to tell anyone and the mere thought caused him to want to run away* *squeezes his hand slightly* *nods at Hanna's words and thinks that she's right* *is surprised when David tells them that they should ask him and wants to shake his head* *but then gets a kiss and has to grin* Well... I just read up on it... and asked questions... *hears Jonas laugh: "Aha, so you can read if you want to!"* *pulls a face in his direction* *Jonas laughs but then get serious again: "Noo, really, I want to know more about it... and thanks for your offer about asking you... I'm sure I'll get back to you on that..."*

David: *has to grin when Jonas teases Matteo but then gets more serious again and nods some more at Jonas' words* *right now feels like he's a part of something and feels understood and happy and never would have thought that he'd get to a point where he's sitting in the company of his boyfriend and two people who are well on their way of becoming his friends and to talk about this topic so openly – especially considering how the evening started and how uncomfortable he felt only a few hours ago* *takes another sip of beer and briefly smiles at Matteo* *feels like the mood changed because he was brave enough to tell Jonas that he used to have a crush on him and is incredibly grateful to him all of a sudden* *sees Hanna and Jonas also smile to themselves and watches Hanna lean against Jonas and Jonas wrap an arm around her* *hears Hanna say in their direction: "Hey, there's still some dessert left... you two, dig in!"* *grins slightly and leans forward* I won't say no to that... *looks at Matteo* You, too? *reaches for the ladle*

Matteo: *looks at David and sees him relax, look almost content and his happy for him* *smiles back immediately when he looks at him and slightly nudges him with his shoulder* *grins broadly at Hanna's question* Me neither. *pushes his bowl towards David and digs in after he has served him some more* *hears Hanna say: "I think I have a question... if it's okay and not stupid... have you always been into guys or did that somehow change together with the rest?"*

David: *serves him and Matteo some more dessert and starts to eat* *looks up when Hanna says that she has a question and nods as a sign for her to ask it* *nods again, swallows his dessert and answers* I think I've always been into guys, as well... even though I'd probably consider myself more pan... I'm just somehow into people. I don't really care about the gender... but that's something I never really thought about... *thinks for a moment and then explains* Somehow, I was only preoccupied with myself for a long time... especially at the beginning of puberty when everyone started to fall in love and stuff... I was more preoccupied with fighting to be myself the way I am... and that it's okay to be the way I am... *briefly smiles at Hanna to show her that her question wasn't stupid and sees her nod and hears her ask a little less hesitantly: "So you've always known that you're a boy? Or did that also start with puberty?"* *keeps eating his dessert while answering* I've always known, actually... but what it’s called, that I'm transgender, I mean, I only found that out when I was around 12, 13...

Matteo: *doesn't find Hanna's question stupid at all* *was afraid for a moment that she would ask something really stupid* *grins slightly at David's answer* *hears Hanna say: "That's actually a good thing, right? That early on? I mean, there are stories about people who only dare that when they're much older... to live the way they are..."* *only nods at that* *then hears Jonas: "I always say all of that would be a lot easier if society knew more about it... I mean all that entails... and if people wouldn't just live according to some norm... white, hetero, umm... not trans, is there a word for it?"* *nods and answers before David does* Cis. *sees Jonas' confused look: "Huh?"* Cis... you and Hanna and I, we are cis gender, not trans, we live with the gender we were born with.

David: *nods at Hanna's words* Yes, there are people like that... but better late than never. *shrugs and says* At the beginning it's not an easy step to take, to be brave enough... *also nods at Jonas' words and was just about to answer his question when Matteo does* *grins when Jonas asks again and, after Matteo explained it, says* You see... he knows stuff... *sees Jonas laugh: "Yes, and he knows more than me! That shouldn't be the case!"* *then hears Hanna: "Well, he's right at the source for answers – he definitely has an advantage over us in that respect..."* *reaches for his beer again and takes another sip* *looks at Matteo happily* *thinks it's pretty great that he's so interested in all of that and that he did so much research* *is already looking forward a little bit to being alone with him later, even though he's also enjoying the feeling of being able to talk so openly in front of others*

Matteo: *has finished his second helping of the dessert and pushes the bowl away* *only grins when Jonas complains that he knows more and shrugs* *sees that David is also finished and immediately leans over to put his head on his shoulder* Like I said, you can also ask him... he doesn't bite... only sometimes... *grins slightly when Jonas laughs* *sees Jonas open his mouth and then close it again and grins at him* *can imagine that he was about to say something out of line and is happy that he didn't say it*

David: *wraps his arms around Matteo when he leans against him and scoots a little closer to him so that it's more comfortable* *grins when Matteo says that he bites only sometimes and adds* Veeery rarely... *looks over at Hanna and Jonas, who are sitting wrapped up in each other just like them, and sees Jonas grin and Hanna smile* *they are quiet for some time until Hanna says with a slight smirk: "Sooo... the first double date... resume?"* *laughs quietly and kisses Matteo's temple* Well... the start was a little bumpy... but the food was good and after the initial difficulties it was quite nice, wasn't it? *looks at everyone and sees Jonas nod: "I agree! We should definitely do it again!"*

Matteo: *grins at Hanna's question and nods at David's answer* Yeah, I'd say we managed quite well... *nods when Jonas says that they should do it again* *finds David's hand and plays a little with his fingers* *hears Hanna say: "But you don't have to leave straight away, right? We could grab a blanket and lay down on the grass for a while?"* *sees Jonas nod: "Oh yes! And Luigi has to drink at least two more shots with me!"* *laughs* I still have to cycle home!

David: *quickly checks the time and sees that it's almost 11* *isn't really tired yet and nods at the question about the blanket* Sounds good... *grins slightly when Matteo says that he still has to cycle home and says* If I have to I'll just pull you home... *sees Hanna get up and clear away some of the dishes and hears her say: "I'll just take that to the kitchen and grab the blanket..."* *slightly pulls his arms away from Matteo and suggests* We can also clear the table... and you get the blanket? *sees Hanna smile and nod and then starts clearing everything up and taking it to the kitchen together with Jonas and Matteo* *when they come back out Hanna has already spread a big blanket on the grass and lit some torches* *sees her grin at the torches and then at them and hears her ask: "Too sappy?"* *also grins and shakes his head* We've decided that we're into cheesiness... and that looks cozy... *tenderly reaches for Matteo's hand and pulls him down on the blanket*

Matteo: *quickly clears everything away to the kitchen and grins when they get back outside* *somehow, Hanna has always had a hand for making things cozy with only a flick of the wrist* *but it might also have to do with her presence* *nods and laughs at David's words* Yep, we've decided that we are and we go through with it without compromise *hears Hanna laugh and nudge him slightly: "Who would have thought, huh?"* *shrugs one shoulder* Well... *holds David's hands and lies down with him* *scoots down a little so that he can put his head on his stomach* *hears Jonas and Hanna apparently also find a comfortable position and finds it somehow really nice and relaxing that afterwards it's quiet for some time*

David: *wraps one arm around Matteo and puts the other one in his hair when they lie down* *softly runs a hand through his hair and enjoys the quiet after Jonas and Hanna have also laid down on the blanket* *closes his eyes in relaxation and only opens them a little when Hanna quietly says: "I'm already looking forward to Heidesee... you can see a lot more stars there..."* *hears Jonas say: "Yes, you can forget seeing stars in cities..."* *knows starry nights from the small town he's from but wouldn’t want to exchange Berlin for Lychen right now* *is quiet for some time and prefers listening to the others*

Matteo: *reaches for David's right hand with his free left hand and loosely entwines their fingers* *has his right arm around David and his hand somewhere on his hip/thigh* *also closes his eyes and relaxes* *opens them again when Hanna and Jonas talk and turns his head slightly to look over to them* But on the other hand Heidesee can sometimes be eerily quiet... but probably not if we show up there with 11 people...

David: *smiles when Matteo entwines their fingers and tenderly pulls on his hair before continuing to play with it* *laughs quietly at Matteo's words* True... then the quiet in Heidesee will probably be over... *hears Jonas groan: "God, yes, I can already hear Kiki calling for Carlos military-style!"* *hears Hanna: "Nonsense, it's not that bad... you guys are much worse when it comes to some made-up competitions..."* *grins slightly and asks* Made-up competitions? Who can jump the farthest into the lake from the jetty or what? *hears Hanna again: "Exactly! Or who can burp the loudest or... hold their breath under water the longest?"* *has to quietly laugh at Hanna's last suggestion and think of the first kiss with Matteo* *quietly murmurs* Well Matteo and I are the best when it comes to "holding our breaths under water"... *pulls their entwined fingers to his lips and kisses them briefly*

Matteo: *grins at Jonas' words and can already imagine that Hanna will defend her immediately* *laughs quietly when she really immediately does* *was just about to open his mouth to say that the competitions are a lot of fun and that she should join in one day when she says the thing about holding the breath* *immediately feels a fluttering in his stomach and looks up at David* *smiles at him lovingly and quietly says* Absolutely the best... and you win every time... *hears Hanna laugh quietly and Jonas ask: "Umm... did we miss something?"*

David: *also smiles pretty lovingly when Matteo looks at him and shakes his head* The first time you were distracted... that didn't count... *laughs quietly and would really love to kiss him right now but can't reach him and therefore only tenderly runs his hand from his hair over his cheek* *barely registers Jonas' question but then can hear both Jonas and Hanna laughing and how Jonas answers his own question: "Seems like it..."* *only reluctantly looks away from Matteo, but then grins at Jonas and Hanna and explains* Let's put it this way: Matteo and I have a special connection to holding our breaths... *laughs quietly and hears Hanna giggle: "I still don't get it..."*

Matteo: *laughs quietly* The second time as well... *only reluctantly looks away from him as well, but does so when David looks away and looks over* *grins even more at David's explanation and looks at Hanna and Jonas* *sees Jonas grimace in confusion: "Huh, I don't understand anything, anymore..."* *grins slightly* You don't have to understand everything, my friend! Some things simply stay between David and me... *then hears Hanna: "Aww... that's sort of cute..."* *laughs and shrugs one shoulder as well as he can*

David: *smiles when Matteo says that some things stay between them and tenderly cards through his hair* *also laughs quietly when Hanna says that it's cute and shakes his head* *wouldn't really refer to himself and Matteo as cute* *grinningly asks* Cute? We're not cute but... totally manly and stuff... *hears Jonas: "Yeah, right... manly and strong and brave... and sappy"* *laughs again* Exactly... fits together quite well... *hears Hanna determinedly say: "... and cute!"* *laughs again and drops it*

Matteo: *has to laugh when David claims that they aren't cute* *shakes his head about the discussion* Manly and cute also fits together... *then turns around and scoots up a little to look at David* *grins at him wickedly* You are cute! *then quickly kisses him* *hears Hanna laugh and say "awww"* *turns around again to lie back down*

David: *groans and laughs when apparently Matteo stabs him in the back as well* *looks at him questioningly when he turns around and grins at him like that* *squeezes his eyes shut in embarrassment and laughs when he hears his words and groans again* *gets kissed and then parrots Hanna's "awww"* *keeps a hold of Matteo and keeps him close when he wants to turn around again to kiss him properly* *quietly grumbles into the kiss* Great now I'm embarrassed... now we have to kiss until they change the topic so that I don't have to say anything... *tenderly runs his fingers over the back of Matteo's neck*

Matteo: *laughs slightly when David parrots Hanna* *would make a joke that Hanna has made it into the inner circle if David wouldn't have /such/ a hold of him* *returns the kiss still grinning* *laughs out loud at his mumbling* Oh now... how awful... *kisses him again until he hears Jonas: "Okay, change of topic! How much making out in front of your friends is too much making out?"* *pulls away from David grumbling and looks at Jonas* Well, you still owe me at least 100 hours, my friend... *waves his hand around between Hanna and Jonas*

David: *has to grin at Matteo's comment but gets serious again when they keep kissing and even forgets a little that Hanna and Jonas are still there* *but then sighs quietly at Jonas' comment and when Matteo pulls away* *laughs quietly at Matteo's words and hears Hanna say with a shrug: "Well, he's right about that..."* *and then Jonas: "Dude, no way that it's 100 hours!"* *grins* Well, even if it were only 50, now there are maybe 2 minutes of it gone... you can already look forward to the next couple of weeks...

Matteo: *grins broadly when Hanna agrees with him* You see… *then hears Jonas and murmurs* It is 100 hours. *grins even broader at David’s words and nods enthusiastically* *Jonas laughs and says: “I see, three against one… that will be fun on holiday…”* Yep, pretty sure… but maybe we should get going? *looks at David questioningly*

David: *laughs at Jonas’ worry* Oh, I’m sure it won’t be that bad… we’ll slowly prepare you for it until then… *hears Jonas laugh as well: “That almost sounds like a threat!”* *continues with a threatening tone of voice: “We’ll slowly but surely turn you mad…”* *grinningly shakes his head* *looks at Matteo when he asks if they want to leave and nods immediately* *even though he did ultimately enjoy the evening, he enjoys the thought of being alone with Matteo again soon even more* *slowly pulls his hand out of his hair and hears Hanna: “Too bad… but we’ll repeat this, right?”* *waits for Matteo to pull away from him and then gets up* *nods at Hanna and smiles* Yes, I’d love to! *almost automatically wraps an arm around Matteo’s shoulder but lets go of him again because Hanna and Jonas got up to say their goodbyes*

Matteo: *pulls away from David to get up* *actually wants to wrap an arm around him immediately but lowers it again when Jonas and Hanna get up* *hugs them both* *gets hugged a little longer by Jonas and understands* *murmurs “everything’s good” before he pulls away* *says to Hanna* We’ll find our way out… you two stay here and be some more sappy… *grins and reaches for David’s hand* *they go through Hanna’s house to their bikes* *unlocks his bike and quickly glances at his phone to see how late it is* *sees that it’s past midnight and then looks at the date* Shit… I missed it! *sees David’s puzzled look when he pushes his bike next to his’* Could we pretend for a moment that it’s still the 15th?

David: *sees Matteo hug Hanna and Jonas and despite the nice rest of the evening feels a slight sting when he watches Jonas and Matteo* *quickly lowers his gaze but then gets hugged by Hanna and Jonas, which surprises him a little* *but returns the hug and says his goodbyes* *grins at Matteo’s words, lifts his hand again to say goodbye and follows him to their bikes* *lets go of Matteo’s hand to unlock his bike and then pushes it next to Matteo who is putting his phone away again* *was just about to ask him if they are going to sleep at Matteo’s place or his place when he hears Matteo’s words* *looks at him puzzled, grins slightly and shrugs* I don’t have a sense of time right now, anyways… so sure, of course, if you want… *laughs quietly* Why? Did I forget or miss something important?

Matteo: *grins slightly when David doesn’t know what it’s about* *already knows that he’s not the best when it comes to dates* *shrugs one shoulder* Oh yeah… *lifts his bike’s kickstand with his foot and simply starts pushing the bike* *sees David push his bike next to him* Well, now yesterday, 3 months ago was the first Abi-prank meeting… *grins slightly at him from the side*

David: *lifts his eyebrows in confusion when Matteo confirms that he forgot something and then has to start pushing his bike as well, to catch up with him* And what? *thinks hard about what was on the 15th but he just can’t think of anything* *then hears his words and needs a moment for the words to make sense – the Abi-prank meeting they never went to because they smoked and talked for the first time* *also grins at Matteo and meets his gaze* You remembered the date!? *finds it so incredibly adorable that for a moment his heart starts to beat a little faster*

Matteo: *smiles a little sheepishly at his question and shrugs one shoulder* Yeah… I also remembered that you were wearing all black and that you barely exchanged three words with me… *then grins at him* Incredibly romantic of me, huh? *slightly wiggles his eyebrows* We could have a joint to celebrate but I don’t have anything with me…

David: *briefly presses his lips together and smiles* *tilts his head slightly* Hey, I definitely said more than three words… *gets a little more serious when he grins and wiggles his eyebrows* *shrugs and quietly says* It really is somehow romantic that you remembered the date… *only laughs briefly when he mentions smoking and says* We’ll do that on 15th of March next year… *silently continues pushing his bike next to Matteo for a while and looks at him from the side every once in a while, his thoughts going back to that one evening three months ago* *eventually quietly says* You made me nervous, back then, do you even know that?

Matteo: *only grins, squeezes one eye shut and uses his thumb and index finger to show him how little it was* *then smiles slightly and shrugs one shoulder* You know that I’m good with dates… *nods and laughs* Yes, next year… *then continues pushing his bike* *briefly wonders if they couldn’t also ride their bikes now* *but somehow enjoys simply walking with David pushing their bikes* *looks over at him when he talks again* *is surprised* Yeah? I thought you found me incredibly annoying and only wanted free weed… *then laughs silently* You also made me nervous… I was talking quite a lot of nonsense.

David: *nods at Matteo’s question and only looks at him a little indignantly when he mentions weed for free* You asked questions… you immediately got personal… and… you kept looking at me the entire time… that made me nervous… especially your looks… I did ask myself… *stops and thinks for a moment if he should really say it but then smiles at Matteo and shrugs* I did ask myself if we were flirting at that moment and I kept thinking that I have to be cool to not appear stupid in front of you… and then Sara came and it was obvious that you were already taken. Then I thought I only imagined all of that… *grins slightly* I think we /both/ said a lot of nonsense…

Matteo: *laughs slightly and a little embarrassed* I couldn’t look away… sorry… *shrugs one shoulder* I simply wanted to get to know you… *thinks back to that evening, how good David looked, how he was looking at him, how he kept thinking a thousand times that he’s making a fool of himself but his mouth still wouldn’t stop talking* *slightly shakes his head at his next words* I tried… to flirt I mean… but you didn’t make it easy for me… *grimaces slightly when he mentions Sara* Yes, the thing with Sara wasn’t too great of me… *but then also grins slightly* Mostly me… you were pretty cool…

David: *laughs quietly when Matteo apologizes for not being able to look away and murmurs quietly and lovingly* I noticed… *smiles a little guiltily when Matteo says that he didn’t make it easy for him* Back then my plan was still to not let anyone at the new school get close to me… well slowly but surely you shot that down… *grins a little and bumps his front wheel against Matteo’s* *then laughs quietly* I think it’s somehow awesome that we both thought of ourselves as completely uncool and of the other as pretty cool… *has to think about how unfamiliar Matteo was only three months ago and how familiar they now are with each other and finds it a little surreal that they have known each other for only three months*

Matteo: *laughs slightly and grins at him* And so you thought I just tell him that I have killed my parents, then he’ll surely leave me alone? *laughs slightly* Maybe the secret is that we really are both uncool and only cool together? *retaliates by bumping his wheel into David’s* *keeps pushing his bike in silence for a while* It’s totally unreal, isn’t it? That it’s only been three months? Seems longer to me, somehow…

David: *also grins* I was just overwhelmed… I couldn’t have known that this wouldn’t deter you… *then smiles at Matteo’s theory about coolness* I like the thought… has to be some truth to it. *stops for a moment when Matteo says the exact thing he had just been thinking and laughs quietly* Fuck, get out of my thoughts! *takes one hand off the handlebar and tenderly pulls Matteo toward him by his neck to kiss him on the mouth briefly but tenderly – he simply had to do it right now* *laughs again quietly and lets go of him* *explains* I was really just thinking the exact same thing… that it’s only been three months ago… and somehow you were still a total stranger in that moment… and now… it’s somehow totally surreal… *sighs quietly and briefly looks down at the ground with a broad grin on his face*

Matteo: *laughs again quietly* I didn’t know that, either… *looks a little surprised when he stops and when he hears his words* *also stops* *then gets pulled into a kiss and grins* *listens to him and smiles* *reaches for him and pulls him closer again by his jacket to kiss him again* *quietly asks* Surreal? Surreal, good, right? *keeps his hand on his jacket and quietly says* We have been through enough crap for three years, haven’t we?

David: *gets pulled into another kiss by Matteo and closes his eyes* *smiles when he hears Matteo’s question, opens them again and nods* *murmurs an affirmation* Surreal good… very good… *puts his forehead against Matteo’s when he realizes that he didn’t let go of his jacket and nods at his next words* For at least three years… if not five… or ten… *hasn’t stopped smiling this entire time and then pulls Matteo into a hug using the arm that isn’t holding the bike* *puts his head on his shoulder, takes a deep breath and enjoys the closeness and familiarity* *eventually murmurs very quietly* I’m really happy… with you…

Matteo: *smiles when he hears David’s answer* Well then that’s good... *closes his eyes when David puts his forehead against his’* *murmurs* At least… *then feels David’s arm around him and lets go of his own bike* *hears the clatter when it hits the ground but doesn’t care and simply wraps both arms around David* *audibly draws his breath in when he hears his words and can’t believe once again that he got so lucky and found David* *kisses his head, whatever he can reach and murmurs back* Me too… very much…

David: *flinches a little when he hears the clatter of Matteo’s bike but then doesn’t think about it further when he feels that Matteo has let go of it to hug him with both arms* *feels his heartbeat pick up when Matteo returns his words and he feels Matteo kissing his head* *also lets go of his bike now, albeit a little more carefully than Matteo so that it might lean on his hip at least for some time and wraps both arms around him and presses him closer* *searches for his lips and kisses him tenderly*

Matteo: *kisses him back and moves one hand to put it on David’s neck* *but then wraps his entire arm around David’s neck, after all* *they stay like that for quite some time, making out on the sidewalk* *when they finally pull apart they only pull apart a tiny bit* *smiles slightly* Okay, race you to bed? My place or yours, Mr. Schreibner?

David: *can’t really tell which one of them ultimately pulls away from the kiss first but feels pretty light and happy right now and keeps smiling to himself when they finally do* *grins at Matteo’s challenge and pulls away from him a little more* *thinks for a moment and realizes that the flatshare is a little closer than his place and therefore says* Your place, Mr. Florenzi… *gets on his bike, which surprisingly is still leaning on his hip, and waits for Matteo to get on his bike* *starts to cycle and naturally wins*

*a little later they’re lying in Matteo’s bed – his head resting on Matteo’s naked chest and his index finger drawing small circles onto his chest and stomach – and he recalls the evening again* *somehow feels like from an emotional point of view a lot has happened, from his fear of meeting Jonas and his minority complexes in relation to Jonas, followed by Matteo’s coming out to Jonas, Jonas’ apology and the following conversation, just normal conversations amongst friends and finally even a conversation about being transgender, something he never thought he would be able to ever discuss so openly in a “bigger” group – and of course the culmination: Matteo’s and his’ conversation about the three-months-anniversary of their first conversation* *thinks that he could never have ended the evening so relaxed had Matteo not admitted to Jonas that he used to have a crush on him and that there only was understanding from everyone because ultimately, Matteo, as well as everyone else, had been so open* *smiles slightly at the thought of how brave Matteo was but still worries for a second that Matteo had only told Jonas so that he (David) would feel better and gets a little more serious* *at some point carefully asks* Was it very hard for you to tell Jonas that you used to have a crush on him? *holds his breath for a moment because he doesn’t know if the question was too personal or too private but somehow he simply spoke without really thinking about it beforehand*

Matteo: *afterwards is lying in bed with David and is playing with his hair* *is happy and sluggish and tired, as always after sex* *closes his eyes and immediately opens them again when he hears David’s question* *hums slightly and thinks* *figures that the answer is somehow yes and no and doesn’t really know how to say it* Hmmm, less than I thought… but somehow it was… *swallows and then continues* I no longer felt like it was some dark secret or anything like that… but I can’t really talk about my feelings that well… especially not when I’m the center of attention like that… *slightly shrugs one shoulder* But somehow it was also good… at least now it’s off the table…

David: *grimaces slightly when he hears that it was difficult for Matteo but then continues listening and tries to understand* *slowly nods against his chest and wraps his arm around him* *thinks that Matteo’s always able to talk to him about his feelings quite well, but can understand completely that he doesn’t like to be the center of attention* *is really happy that the reason why it was hard for him wasn’t Jonas himself* *briefly kisses his chest and says* I thought it was really brave of you. I don’t know if I would have been brave enough…. *nods again when he says that at least now it’s off the table* *is quiet for a moment before quietly saying* It turned the whole evening around… *turns slightly and props his chin up on Matteo’s chest to look at him* *briefly presses his lips together, smiles briefly with a head shake and then says* I wasn’t expecting it at all… I never even considered that you could also tell him… but ultimately… *shrugs slightly* …ultimately your bravery was the reason for the evening getting more relaxed… that /I/ relaxed more… *laughs quietly* …which I never would have thought, by the way. If anyone had told me beforehand that you wanted to tell Jonas about it, I would have probably hid under the table and dug myself a tunnel to a safe hiding spot…natural catastrophe and all that… *gets serious again and kisses his chest* Anyways… thanks for telling him… *thinks that this, as well as the conversation that followed, was the thing that really made him lose the last bit of doubt that Jonas could currently be more important than him, but doesn’t say it because he doesn’t want Matteo to worry about it*

Matteo: *shakes his head when David says that he was brave* *shrugs one shoulder and buries his hand even deeper in David’s hair* I didn’t really think about it much, to be honest… it was the only way at that moment… *moves his hand with him when David turns around and leaves it in his hair* *but turns his head a little downward so that he can look at him* *smiles slightly when he says that it made him more relaxed* That’s why I did it… *gets serious when he’s talking about natural catastrophes and running away* Good that you didn’t do that… and that it helped… *runs a hand through his hair* By the way, I found it great that you were so willing to give him a chance… and when he apologized you also quickly made sure that it got more normal again… so not only me… *then swallows slightly and looks at him* Don’t know if I could do it… to act like that with a guy you used to have a crush on…

David: *smiles slightly and says* I think sometimes “not really thinking about it” is exactly the right thing to do… *shrugs when Matteo is talking about how he handled the situation* Well, he’s your best friend… it also sucks for you if it’s tense between us… and I felt like he was serious about the apology and that he could understand that I simply wasn’t feeling comfortable. *puts his head back on Matteo’s chest for a moment and murmurs* Besides… *briefly shakes his head and searches for words* …besides, I realized in that moment that you were fighting for /me/ and not for him… and you said that back then you were far from coming out, but then when it was about /me/, coming out somehow didn’t seem to be a problem for you anymore… and in that moment I somehow thought that those are two pretty crucial aspects where I’m one step ahead of  Jonas…. *lifts his head again, looks at Matteo and grins a little embarrassed* …aside from the fact that you’re with me and not with him… *draws on his chest again with his index finger* *then laughs quietly at his next words* I think it’s not very likely that you’ll ever meet Luis. As far as I know he still lives in Lychen and we don’t want to go there...

Matteo: *closely listens to David and can't help but smile when he talks about being one step ahead of Jonas* *grins slightly* Besides, you're much better-looking, you’re funnier and more intelligent and you don't want to study Politics and German... how boring is that, huh? *chuckles slightly and hopes to make David laugh as well* *then hears him talk about some guy in Lychen and realizes how strange that feels* *until now it was just something hypothetical but now there really is a guy* *swallows* And that's a good thing.... like I said, I wouldn’t be as chill as you...

David: *at first smiles but then grins broadly when Matteo lists all the things where he’s one step ahead of Jonas* *nods mock-serious and in confirmation but then has to laugh after all* Totally super mega boring... you bootlicker! *scoots up a little to kiss him briefly but only manages to reach his chin and grins again* *but then sees Matteo swallow and look somehow serious when he's talking about Luis, looks at him a little skeptically at first but then smirkingly tilts is head in provocation, sits up and sits down on Matteo's lap, puts his hands on either side of Matteo's head and says* Yes, you would be! Because there is absolutely not the slightest reason for you to be anything but chill, do you understand?

Matteo: *looks at him a little astonished when he repositions himself* *slightly draws up his eyebrows in question* *then has to smirk as well, when he hears what he says* Is that so... and what if this guy from Lychen is really, really funny and is also really good-looking or something like that? *shakes his head slightly* Then I can't promise anything... then I have to kill him, unfortunately.

David: *draws up his eyebrows in amusement when Matteo seems to doubt his words, shakes his head and quietly says* Then I'll still love you much, much more /or something like that/ and it wouldn't bother me in the slightest if you killed him... only the fact that you would go to prison might burden me a little... but if you feel better, then please... go ahead... *shrugs and acts all indifferent*

Matteo: *laughs out loud when he hears his answer* Well aren't I lucky... *puts both hands around David's neck and pulls him closer* But it's true... prison would suck... then maybe I won't kill him, after all... *kisses him briefly and then looks at him again* *says a little more serious* Thanks... that you would care if I had to go to prison... *grins and kisses him again*

David: *lets Matteo pull him closer and nods with a satisfied grin* Good! *returns his kiss and the gaze that follows* *has to laugh when he hears his words and, while Matteo still kisses him, rolls off him and then pulls away from the kiss* You're welcome, you loon! *lies down on his back and folds his hands behind his head* So – and now we'll sleep! *grins slightly and waits for Matteo to agree and for him to turn off the light* Sleep tight, Florenzi

Matteo: *laughs when he rolls off him* Okay... *rolls on his side and turns off the light* *then scoots closer to David and wraps an arm around him* Dream of us, Schreibner, you loon...

(next play)

[anomander-dragnipurake]

Haunted Castle Chapter Two: The Castle

Happy first day of Halloween!

First off, I have not actually finished this fic yet, which is not normally how I roll when uploading fics. But I want to release it over the course of Halloween month, putting the final chapter up on Halloween itself, so it should be fine. Second, I gloss over parts of this fic, not doing any real fight scenes; it plays out the way it would it would in game so it's not really necessary to write out. I also tried to come up with at least one cool boss ghost idea in a future chapter because the boss ghosts are always really cool in the games, but I couldn't really come up with one so unless something changes that's not happening either. I have a neat idea for a finale that would make up for it though I think but again I haven't written it yet so I don't know how it's going to turn out. So wish me luck on that as well as on just finishing this fic before the end of Halloween in general. :)

~

“You with Bowser Jr.?” was E. Gadd’s greeting as soon he answered Luigi’s call.

“Yes,” Luigi said with a sigh as he shifted to try to make himself more comfortable. Sitting with the Poltergust on his lap – Polterpup sat atop it, tongue hanging out as he enjoyed the air rushing by – and crammed in next to a small but spikey child made it a vain effort. The clown car was far too small but… sitting was still better than standing when it was so high in the air.

“Good! I knew he’d be able to convince you help him.  I’m on my way to Bowser’s castle myself. Since you’re flying, or at least I assume you’re taking Junior’s clown car since it’s faster, you’ll probably arrive before me so try not to clear everything up before I arrive, okay?” He chuckled, not at all bothered by this situation.

“Look, we need to talk about your efforts to contain King Boo. I can’t keep recapturing him for you.” Luigi had had enough of that by now especially since the more times it happened the higher the chance King Boo find a way to win.

“Yeah, yeah, I know, he got out again. It wasn’t my fault this time though, some of his boos broke him out when I wasn’t paying attention.” Did it not occur to him that he should’ve expected something like that and been prepared to prevent it? If it was possible to keep boos locked up then surely it was possible to keep them out as well, right? “It’ll be fine though, I’m sure you can handle him. What do you think his plan is though? He went straight for Bowser’s castle this time, thoroughly took over the place too according to Junior. There’s no way he’s forgotten about us though, I’m sure his got more up his sleeve than this. But what?” He sounded almost excited to find out.

Luigi hadn’t needed the reminder that King Boo would be coming for him sooner or later. “After I capture him this time you better keep him contained.” He forced anger into his voice in an attempt to hide his fear. After this he was done with hunting ghosts for forever. … That’s what he’d told himself last time though and well, here he was on his way to do just that. He meant it this time though, he’d had enough and he was putting his foot down.

“Don’t worry sonny, this time he won’t get out for sure.” He sounded so sure but he always did so it didn’t inspire much confidence. “But anyway, I got to drive, see you up at Bowser’s castle in a few hours.” He hung up.

With another sigh, Luigi hung up too. He was tempted to pull himself up to peek over the edge to get a lay of the land and maybe an idea of where they were and how far they were from their destination. But even thinking about it gave him a slight sense of vertigo so he stayed down.

“You know for a professional ghost hunter you seem awfully scared of everything,” Bowser Jr. said, looking at him with a slight frown.

Luigi could only shrug. “Ghosts are scary.” And while heights weren’t a particular fear of his, being this high up in something that felt so unstable was thoroughly unpleasant.

“Hmm… I guess I can’t argue with that. Still though, I don’t see how you managed to beat up King Boo and all his lackies three whole times. With the way you’ve been acting, I’d have thought you would’ve chickened out.”

Luigi shrugged again. “Had to save my bro.”

That earned a concerned look. What exactly Bowser Jr. was concerned about was unclear though and he didn’t say anything about it, turning his attention back to his flying instead.

 -

Hidden low in the clown car, Luigi wasn’t aware of how close they were until Bowser Jr. suddenly started lowering it. “I want to approach lower to the ground to so we don’t get spotted,” he said by way of explanation as Luigi sat up to peek over the edge.

They were indeed in Bowser’s Kingdom now, the familiar shape of Bowser’s castle still a decent distance away but plainly visible from so high up. It wasn’t quite as visible as it should’ve been though because it was dark, not a light to be seen anywhere on it. Luigi had only seen it a few times but every single time he had, there’d been lights in all the windows and fires in signal towers that made up part of the protective wall surrounding it. That at least confirmed Bowser Jr. was telling the truth about what happened. Not that there’d been much doubt, Bowser wouldn’t want to lay a trap for Luigi, especially since he was one of many people who didn’t even remember Luigi’s name most of the time.

It wasn’t much longer before they landed. Polterpup jumped out first with an excited bark. Bowser Jr. climbed out with the ease of someone who’d done so a million times before. Leaving Luigi to stiffly and awkwardly stand up before climbing out with exaggerated care lest he stumble and fall.

As soon as his feet were on the ground, Polterpup barked and did a quick run around his legs, almost making him fall over anyway, before dashing off too fast to see where he was headed. There was no easy way to call him back so hopefully he wouldn’t give away their presence by being seen or caught by a boo. Instead, Luigi hefted the Poltergust onto his back, pressing the button on the flashlight that decanted Gooigi as soon as it was in his hand.

Then, stepping away from the clown car on only slightly shaky legs, he glanced around at their surroundings. Bowser Jr. had parked them at the rear of the castle, within its border walls. It was a large open space that seemed to mostly training yard with a landing pad off to the side where they were. Bowser’s Castle loomed over them and… already Luigi could sense it was crawling with ghosts. It might’ve just been his imagination but after taking care of three whole full-scale hauntings he was pretty sure he had a feel for these things by now. And with that in mind he very much did not want to go in.

But alas, he was already here and Bowser Jr. was already headed for the small door leading into the castle and Gooigi was already following him and Polterpup had already run off to explore. And none of that left Luigi with any choice whatsoever on top everything that had convinced him to come in the first place. So holding back a groan of fear, he jogged to catch up with Bowser Jr. and Gooigi.

“I finally figured out what Gooigi reminds me of,” Bowser Jr. said as soon as he did so. “They look kind of like my old Shadow Mario disguise except shaped like you and green.”

“Um… okay.” Luigi had heard something about that from Mario, not much though because Mario’s main focus was telling him that Bowser had a son who thought Peach was his mother. Whether or not Bowser Jr. still believed that was unknown and now probably wasn’t the time to ask. Luigi was too busy already being afraid even before seeing a single ghost.

“Are you sure you can handle this?” Bowser Jr. asked as they reached the door and stopped so he could pull out a key for it.

Luigi shrugged. “I’ve done it before.” What was one more time really?

“Well, E. Gadd said you’re the best and he’s an expert so I trust him and it’s not like I have any other options so… I guess let’s go. Don’t mess this up though or you’ll regret it.” Pocketing the key once more, he opened the door. “You go in first, I’ll follow behind.”

Gooigi of course went in without hesitation. Luigi would’ve followed but… “You should wait out here or fly up in the car until E. Gadd arrives and then wait in his lab with him.”

“Uh… no. I’m not a coward who’s going to just sit out here and wait for you to do everything. And don’t go calling me one because I ran away. I only did that because I couldn’t win by myself so I went to get help. It’s smart, not cowardly, okay?” Hands balled into fists he glared up at Luigi as if daring him to call him a coward. Luigi would be a hypocrite to accuse him of such when he was the one who was a coward. Running away had been the right move and as far as Luigi was concerned Bowser Jr. wasn’t a coward for doing so but he was a kid so…

“It’s dangerous.” Which was a large part of why Luigi had come was because he couldn’t in good conscious let a kid run around in a castle full of ghosts. “You wouldn’t be a coward for staying…”

“I know it’s dangerous,” Bowser Jr. interrupted. “And I don’t care. I can take care of myself and I can help you guys because I know the castle layout and all of its secret passages.”

“But…”

“Also, it’s my dad and my siblings and my people that King Boo turned into portraits, I have to help them. So I’m going with you whether you like it or not. Now get your butt in there and start hunting ghosts.” He stamped his foot on the ground and pointed into the open doorway.

Luigi couldn’t exactly argue with that so… in he went. And Bowser Jr. followed, pulling the door closed with him.

“All good?” Gooigi asked. They’d been waiting right by the door.

No, but Luigi said, “I guess,” anyway. “Let’s get this over with fast, okay?”

They gave him a thumbs up before snapping around to face the rest of the room. It was a dark hallway, pitch black outside of the range or their flashlights. And there was definitely at least one ghost nearby somewhere, hiding and probably waiting to jump out and scare the three of them. …

Could Luigi really do this? He didn’t have his brother needing to be saved to motivate him this time so could he really force himself through this again? … Yes! Yes, he could! It was the fourth time so he wasn’t going to be afraid this time.

Squaring up his shoulders, he took a deep breath and strode forward, taking the lead. He could handle this, he’d done it before, it was fine. He’d defeat King Boo again and then…

A ghost burst out of the wall to his left, getting right up in his face, to stick out its tongue and blow a raspberry at him. He jumped back with a scream, quickly backpedaling away as he dropped his flashlight.

Gooigi, unphased as always, flashed it, stunning it, giving Luigi time to recover as they started vacuuming it. Its struggles came to a swift end when as soon as they had a good grip on it, Gooigi slammed it to ground. A few more slams and the fight, if it could even be called that, was over. A very tame ghost encounter over all but… Bowser Jr. was still laughing and even pointing at Luigi.

“It’s not funny,” he said, unable to keep himself from sounding a little grumpy.

“Nah, it’s hilarious! You should’ve heard the sound you made, it was…” Another ghost popped out of the wall next to him, tackling him and making him cut off with his own undignified yelp of surprise and fear.

Luigi flinched and jumped back too but… it was just Polterpup. “Good puppy,” he said as Polterpup ran over with a bark for a well-deserved pet.

Bowser Jr. stood back up, brushing himself off with an embarrassed look. He was a kid though so Luigi wasn’t going to laugh at him back, though it didn’t stop him from giving him a slight smirk before turning his attention back to Polterpup.

Maybe despite this being the fourth time, he was still afraid but with Gooigi and Polterpup by his side he would be fine. He could handle this even if it wouldn’t be pleasant or fun in any way and he’d do it because bad guys or not, it was the right thing to do.

[bltngames]

SAGE 2020: Fan Games

I’d hoped to have this article out a little bit sooner, but I overestimated how long it would take to write about some of these games. Whoops! Like I said when I outlined the posting “schedule” on the first day, we’re playing it fast and loose, so this is just what you get.

Today is the day I talk about fan games! And even though SAGE has “Sonic” right there in the acronym, it’s always hosted fan games from all types, so today we’ve got Mega Man, Mario, Rayman, and even fan games of fan games, if you can believe it.

Sonic Pinball Panic!

Pinball is one of those things where I’ve always been obsessed with it, but never very good at it. And now, with access to digital pinball collections like Pinball Arcade and Pinball FX, I don’t actually find myself playing as much pinball as I thought I would when I was 14 years old. Still, I find myself fascinated by a good pinball table, and this honestly caught me off guard. This could very easily be an official DLC release for one of those aforementioned pinball collections and I wouldn’t even bat an eyelash (in fact, if you ask me, this is better than Pinball FX, which has always had weird ball physics). This looks, sounds, and functions exactly like a real pinball table should. My complaints are minor: for starters, the table feels kind of easy. I’ve never been a pinball wizard, but I was losing balls left and right here and it still took a good 15 minutes before I finally got a game over. Score accumulation is also pretty slow; most pinball tables will dump millions and millions of points on you, but here, it felt like a struggle just to reach the 379k I finished with. Both contribute to the fact that the table feels a little flat, like it’s missing a spark to really put it over the top. And, third, it would be nice if it had controller support. The keyboard works just fine, here (it’s just pinball, after all) but I find that the triggers on a controller feel really good with pinball flippers, and mapping the plunger to the right stick is great, too. This is a Unity game, so I wouldn’t think it’d be that hard to hook it up to the controller mapper. Still, I came away impressed.

Mega Man: Perfect Blue

There are two things out there that always give me pause: fan-made Doom level packs, and Mega Man fan games. Fan made gaming content generally has problems when it comes to difficulty balancing anyway, but these games have earned a certain reputation for their difficulty, which creates a problem when you have content made by fans, for fans. This insularity means these things are usually way too hard for what I would consider “normal” people (read: casual fans and outsiders). Add on to the fact that I’d even say that there are official Mega Man games with bad difficulty balancing, and you have a recipe for frustration. Sadly, this is how I’d characterize Perfect Blue: though this introductory level isn’t impossibly hard, it’s definitely pushing that edge where it’s not very accommodating to someone who hasn’t played and finished every Classic Mega Man game ever made. It almost immediately throws you into scenarios where you have jumps you can barely reach, insta-kill spikes, and enemies that not only actively dodge your shots, but invincible enemies that launch counter attack homing missiles. And then it starts making you juggle all of this stuff, together, at the same time. None of this is insurmountable as long as you’re paying attention, but as a very casual Mega Man fan, it’s an unfriendly first impression and makes me worried about what the rest of the game is going to be like as the challenge naturally ramps up. For those hardcore Mega Man fans among you, the rest of this is solid, at least. The presentation and controls are excellent, and the new sprites are beautiful. It’s a game I’d love to enjoy when it’s done… but I’m assuming I’ll be left out in the cold. A shame, really, because there’s so much promise here.

Sonic and the Mayhem Master

There’s a lot to like about this game, but there’s a part of me that really wonders if this should even be considered a Sonic fan game. Mayhem Master’s depictions of Sonic and Amy Rose are atypical to put it mildly. Here, Sonic seems to be a bookish nerd of sorts, a sidekick to Amy Rose, who has been turned into a burnt out, cigar-smoking detective. Most of the game plays out as half an adventure game, half an RPG, where you roam around the world talking to NPCs and gather clues while being assaulted by random battles. The battle system is super off-the-wall, too, perhaps taking inspirations from games like Mario & Luigi and Undertale. This means that battles aren’t passive -- you spend most of each fight dodging or nullifying incoming attacks with simplistic action-based commands. It’s weird, and different, and occasionally even a little bit overwhelming. That’s kind of the whole game, really. It’s the sort of thing that really doesn’t feel like a Sonic game at all, but it also doesn’t feel bad. The artwork is very charming, I’m interested in seeing the characters develop, and there’s plenty of worldbuilding and mystery. Would this still be as intriguing if you removed the Sonic connection, even if it’s so threadbare? That’s a hard question to answer. I know that some of my interest in this game is seeing how it spins more familiar Sonic elements into something that’s completely different. Worth checking out, for curiosity’s sake if nothing else.

Sonic and the Dreamcatcher

This is a fairly brilliant little game with two unfortunate quirks. If you didn’t know, the special stages in the original Sonic the Hedgehog were inspired by an arcade game of the era called Cameltry, published by Taito in 1989. Now, Sonic’s special stages were different enough from Cameltry that it wasn’t a case of Sega outright stealing the gameplay, but there’s a clear lineage there, and it only becomes clearer when you compare the special stages in Sonic 4 Episode 1 to Cameltry (spoilers: in that game, they’re nearly identical). Dreamcatcher is also from this lineage, but is infinitely more charming than either Sonic 4 and maybe even Cameltry itself. The idea is that you must collect a specific number of blue spheres in order to reveal the Chaos Emerald, after which you have a limited amount of time to find and collect it. It’s very simple, but the presentation really sells the game’s charm. It’s just a game that looks good and sounds good, with an interesting premise executed very well. Also, you get a dedicated “& Knuckles” button to spawn infinite Knuckles to help you collect blue spheres and bash enemies. Being able to have unlimited numbers of these guys sounds like it would break the game, but once that countdown clock begins, the last thing you need is 20+ echidnas clogging up the route back to the emerald. The first quirk this game suffers from is that there’s only two levels. Parts of this have a very “game jam made in a weekend” vibe to it despite the rock-solid music, sound, and gameplay, and only having two levels contributes to that. Hopefully more are coming in the future. The other quirk? You can’t actually download this game -- it’s embedded in a webpage. I’m sure this is to make it easy to play on any platform with a web browser (phones, PCs, etc.) but I find myself greatly desiring a hard copy of this game that can live on my computer forever.

Sonic Galactic

Now here’s just a good old fashioned Sonic fan game. Though it clearly takes inspiration from Sonic Mania’s aesthetics in some places, it’s clearly doing its own thing, featuring not just the core cast of Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles, but also Fang the Sniper, and even a brand new character named Tunnel the Mole. Unlike a lot of Sonic fan games at SAGE, this appears to be using something besides Clickteam Fusion, Game Maker, or Unity. Here, it’s the “Hatch Game Engine,” whatever that is. Whatever the case may be, the game runs very well and is basically indistinguishable from just playing Sonic Mania. Visuals are sharp, music’s good, the two included boss fights are surprisingly fun to fight -- everything seems to be in order. As a result, there’s not really a lot to say. This is just a good, fun game. Anything else I’d say would come off sounding like nitpicks. For example, there’s no way to set graphics options yet, so the game is stuck in 2x Windowed mode. Fang and Tunnel are cute additions, but I wonder how much utility they have as characters. Unless I missed something, Fang’s pop gun is mainly for a weak double-jump ability, and Tunnel’s ability to dig and ricochet off floors, walls and ceilings is cool, but it doesn’t have quite the universal utility of Tails’ flight or Knuckles climbing and gliding. It’ll be interesting to see how or maybe even if their abilities have a chance to grow into something special. Anyway, like I said, those are nitpicks, so try to give this a shot if you can.

Sonic Robo-Blast!

Remasters seem to be a bit of a theme this SAGE, between Sonic Triple Trouble 16-bit, Sonic 2 SMS, Sonic 1 Revisited, but this is perhaps the most surprising of them all: a loving remaster of the original Sonic Robo-Blast. SRB1 was perhaps one of the first true “landmark” fan games, given that it was basically a whole entire game that people could play. It's not a stretch to say that SRB1 probably helped kickstart the fan gaming community that still survives to this day -- I certainly owe my involvement in the community to seeing SRB1 for the first time. The problem is, as historically significant as the game might be, it’s nearly impossible to go back to nowadays -- it’s much, much too dated to be any fun. This remaster completely re-envisions SRB1 as a regular Sonic game, while also pulling in gameplay elements from Sonic Robo-Blast 2. It’s a bit of a time paradox mindwarp, but it helps give it a bit more personality than just making a bog-standard 2D Sonic. It works, aided by the fact the sprites, music and overall presentation are fantastic. The only downside is the Act 2 boss, which commits the cardinal sin of taking away player agency and making you wait around far too much. Here’s hoping this gets finished, because it’s definitely on my radar now.

Super Mario Flashback

This has been floating around for a few years now and I’m glad to see it’s finally starting to get some more substantial content as it moves towards becoming an actual game. That being said, this is also one of those games that’s kind of hard to talk about because it’s just… really polished. The art is incredible, it controls exactly like a Mario game, and there’s already a decent mixture of ideas at play in the demo. Anything else I’d say would sound like nitpicking -- like, for example, the backseat game designer in me wonders if maybe the game is prioritizing aesthetics a little too much. This is a wonderfully animated game, absolutely gorgeous, but some actions, like the butt-stomp and the wall kick, feel a bit sluggish, and I think it’s because they show off fancy animations. Even if it’s a split second, waiting for Mario to attach to a wall to kick off of it feels slow. Really, though, that’s an insignificant complaint. This demo is still well worth checking out.

Sonic Advance 4 Advanced

This game seems like a greatest-hits of Dimps best ideas, spanning the first Sonic Advance all the way to Sonic Rush. There’s just one problem: the game seems broken. Now, my desktop PC is starting to show its age. I built it four and a half years ago, and though it can handle game like Gears of War 5 on high settings at 60fps, slowly, newer games seem to be leaving it behind. That being said, I don’t think a game like Sonic Advance 4 here should be running at what appears to be half its intended speed. It also originally launched in a teeny-tiny window (we’re talking, like, smaller than a postage stamp) and even though the options menu has a toggle for full screen mode, it doesn’t want to work. Something about this game under the hood seems to be struggling very, very, VERY hard. It’s a shame, because if this actually played at the proper speed, it seems like it might actually be an alright game, if a bit complex and busy.

Sonic 2 SMS Remake

Here’s a game I was all buckled in expecting to enjoy. Like it says on the tin, this is a remake of Sonic 2 for the Master System (and Game Gear), but with wide screen visuals and huge expansions to the mechanics, roster of playable characters, and levels. On the outside it seems really impressive, and to a certain degree it is, but something about the controls feel a little off. Sonic’s heavier here than he is on the Master System, perhaps to simulate “real” Sonic physics a little more accurately, but you can also pretty much stop on a dime, and the combination of the two feels awkward. The camera also needs a lot of work, as it’s basic at best and does a poor job of letting you see what’s below (to the dev if you’re reading this: there’s actually video tutorials out there on how 2D scrolling cameras work, it might be worth looking a couple of them up). It also leans into some of the tech limitations of the Master System, like how you aren’t given any rings for boss fights (and even hiding the HUD, a move done to save on resources for the large enemy sprites). I could be picky on a bunch of other little stuff, too, like how the flight mechanics feel, but there are other games to play at SAGE and I’ve got at least two more articles to write. Needless to say, this is a solid (impressive, even) foundation but it’s missing a lot of late-stage polish to clean up the tiny little rough edges.

Rayman Redemption

I tell this story every so often, but it was about three quarters of the way through Rayman 2 on the Sega Dreamcast when it struck me, suddenly: I love this game. I was being chased by a pirate ship through some rickety bridges and even though I was dying over and over and over again, I realized I had been enjoying Rayman 2 enough that I might put it in my top ten Dreamcast games. But that was 2002, and the years haven’t been so kind to ol’ Rayman. From the strangely celebrity-infused Rayman 3, to the tragedy of Rayman 4 (eventually becoming Raving Rabbids) to the endless, careless ports of Rayman 2 to every platform under the sun, one gets the impression Ubisoft maybe didn’t know what to do with Rayman. Especially now, when most of Ubisoft’s games are some form of online live service or cookie cutter open world experience (or increasingly both). But the fans know what they want. Rayman Redemption takes the original 1995 Rayman game and lovingly gives it a fresh coat of paint. The results are akin to what Taxman and Stealth did for Sonic CD in 2011, with wide screen visuals, improved controls, touched up level design, but gameplay that still feels faithful and accurate to the original experience. Except that Sega charged money for that, and here, fans have released this for free. Ubisoft’s loss, I guess. I didn’t play Rayman 1 until well after I’d finished Rayman 2, and I’ll admit, I kind of bounced off of it back then. It felt slow, and awkward, and when the difficulty ramped up, it got very hard, very quickly. Now, admittedly, I’ve only put about 30 minutes into Redemption here, but just the addition of a run button is incredibly welcome, and the retooled level design and powerup mechanics helps the game feel way less obtuse overall. It’s just a cleaner, tighter, more accessible and more polished version of Rayman.

Stay tuned for the next article: Indie games.

[bagels-and-seagulls]

you're new enemies to lovers au????? im????????? dying?????? i felt butterflies in my stomach and im like, i want more? how will sara react? when are they going to really talk about things, did matteo knew david is trans before, or even better: matteos pov of everything that happened.

they will have to pry this trope out my cold dead hands.

part one (david’s pov)

-matteo sees him for the first time on a dreary wednesday when the sun is being covered by low hanging clouds and the second he leaves his house, he thinks maybe he should have brought an umbrella. the boy, the boy, is leaving the front office with his eyes glued to a piece of paper, only occasionally looking up at door numbers to see where he was. and matteo knows that he’s never seen him around before because he would have remembered someone who looked like that. 

-a week later he sees the boy hanging out with sara and leonie and thinks it’s a pity. he would have liked to get to know him a little bit, at least his name. it probably won’t happen now, he thinks.

-luigi, i’m worried about you. you’ve been weird ever since the thing with sara, jonas tried for the hundredth time since it all went down. it makes something itchy bloom down matteo’s spine, and he hunches his head low between his shoulders and turns away, even though jonas tried to grab his arm to stop him. i don’t want to talk about this right now, he says and rushes away, ignoring the aching feeling between his ribs at the idea of his friend being disappointed in him. 

-he doesn’t notice him is the thing, the boy that he’s been thinking about for weeks now. david, he learned. he doesn’t notice him because he’s too busy running away from talking about his feelings, and his anxieties, and the way that he feels like everyone has been staring at him for a month now, waiting for him to do something a little outrageous, have a breakdown in the middle of the cafeteria maybe. he doesn’t notice and ends up ramming his shoulder straight into the side of the boy. matteo doesn’t even look up until he hears the thump of textbooks on the floor. 

-leonie hisses something at him, and all he can think about is the way her voice sounded that night at the party when she was loud and cruel and told everyone- the boy is staring at him with wide eyes, holding onto sara’s arm to keep her upright. she looks equally outraged at the whole thing, looking down at her books that traveled a yard or two away from her when they skid out of her hands. sara says something, calls him a name that he didn’t really hear, and matteo shakes his head, squeezes his eyes shut to stop seeing the mean twists of their mouths from that night weeks ago. whatever, he says and rushes out the door to just get some fresh air. 

-matteo thinks that the new boy must be an asshole if he hangs out with mean girls who like to screw people over in their free time. he thinks about hanna, and amira, and ignores the way that he can still hear the way sara’s voice sounded like when she called him gay in front of their entire grade and leonie laughed behind her. 

-matteo is early to biology one day and breathes a little deep when he finds the classroom empty. he decides to take a seat by where amira usually sits instead of the back corner near the door. a new leaf, he tells himself and slouches low in his seat to wait for people to file in. a figure comes into his peripheral, and matteo decides to ignore it. that’s my seat, someone says, and matteo looks up to see david standing there, pulling on his backpack strap. he stares for a second, trying to decide if this guy was serious right now, if he really wanted to do this because matteo honestly didn’t have the energy for it, to fight with the new guy about something stupid and mundane. but david keeps standing there, waiting for matteo to do something, and it makes something a little bit angry in matteo spring up. he hangs out with the queen bees for a couple weeks and feels so fucking entitled already, matteo stews. there aren’t assigned seats, he says and looks back forward, over it. david goes to sputter something out, but the teacher interrupts him at the beginning of class. and matteo feels a little bit satisfied when he has to sit by the smelly guy he never remembers the name of.

-the next class, the teacher tells everyone that they’re getting paired together for some presentation, and before he even is able to look over in amira’s direction, the teacher calls his and david’s names together and tells them to do something about the respiratory system. 

-that night, matteo’s dad calls him after he went to go visit his mother only for her neighbor to tell him that she was checked into the clinic last night when they heard her screaming for hours about the end of the world. his dad calls and says he heard something from a friend of a friend of a neighbor or someone. he says that he shouldn’t tell mama that he likes boys because it will stress her out, and matteo has to clinch his fingers into his fists or he’s going to start throwing things. matteo tries to hold his tongue and not ask why he cares, not tell him he doesn’t even know what stresses her out, not scream that he should mind his own business if wanted to fuck off to another country. 

-david asks him to meet in the library after school one day, and matteo agrees. he’s grabbing his textbook out of his locker when jonas comes up to him and tells him he looks like shit. matteo spits out thanks, and jonas tries to backtrack that he didn’t mean it like that. matteo tells him he has to go, he’s meeting a classmate about a project. he walks into the library a few minutes late, and realizes when he gets to the table david is at that he didn’t even get his textbook. 

-matteo is trying to pay attention, trying to focus on what david is saying, thinking that maybe if he just looked at david long enough he would check back into reality. but all he can think about is the way that his father sounded on the phone, the way that jonas sounds whenever he asks him if he’s okay with that sad little smile that says he knows the answer, the way his own voice pitched up when he was screaming at carlos and abdi to back the fuck off when they were making jokes in the hallway last week. his throat feels a little bit like it’s closing up, and the freckle above david’s eye starts moving around his forehead like it was swimming around his skin. matteo feels like he’s going to vomit by the time he says, i gotta go, because he’s a little worried that he’s going to pass out, that he’s going to suffocate himself with the pressure in his head crawling down his throat. 

-he stays home for three days, ignoring his father’s calls and voicemails that say that they still have something to finish. matteo smokes half a baggie by the time hans calls jonas in to kick him in the ass and get him out of his room. they end up going to park. and matteo’s vision is a little fuzzy, but jonas looks like he’s going to cry. matteo, just talk to me please, he asks, and matteo tells him everything. he tells him how it felt when sara spit out his biggest secret to everyone he knew, how he had to watch and stare and let her do it, how he feels like a walking shell since then and people are trying to fill him up with their own ideas, how his dad hates everything about him, enough to move away, how he feels guilty that he moved away from mama but the idea of staying in that house made him feel like he was going to die. he spills his guts right out onto the grass until he feels a little bit hollow inside, and jonas just pulls him close by his shoulders and tells him that he didn’t know. matteo stays home another two days, waiting for his insides to find their way back. 

-the day he goes back to school, david comes up to him, looking like he’s ready to spit fire, and shoves notecards right into his chest. matteo caught them, and david hisses out, stick to the script and we’ll do fine, no thanks to you. matteo didn’t even remember that they had the presentation with everything that was going on. he would have helped, he swears. he would have at least tried. 

-they get an okay grade, and matteo thinks that at least he gave david a real reason to hate him instead of third string gossip. 

-he starts to hear his name comes out of people’s mouths again, and it makes him want to shove his head between his knees and rock himself back and forth until it all went away. jonas pulls him away from all of it, tells him to ignore it, and it helps. matteo tells himself to not listen. he mostly succeeds. 

-the boys take him to a gay club with hans that weekend in a weird form of solidarity, and somehow, some way, they end up meeting the girls at kareoke bar later. sam starts talking about all of the hot boys in their grade, and abdi pouts and walks away to thrid wheel with carlos and kiki on the dance floor. sam gets to david’s name, and matteo’s drunken self agrees with her wholeheartedly. what? he slurs when she looks at him funny. i’m just surprised, she shrugs. why? he’s got a nice smile, matteo says, not that he was looking. i heard you two didn’t like each other, she explains. i got nothing against him, matteo replies. he’s cute, he adds and tries to ignore the fact that it’s the first time he admitted to liking a dude out loud. 

-he should have realized that sam had a big mouth when drunk. i dare you to,  kiss matteo! she squeals to david with glee evident in her voice. she winks at him from behind david’s back over dramatically, and he rolls his eyes. he watches as david takes a drink of his beer. he turns towards matteo then and levels him a look that says he’s a little bored with that idea, and matteo has to agree just a little bit, that this was predictable in a bad way. he shrugs, because they were only going to tease them more if they didn’t do it, and because he can’t help but feel a certain way with leonie and sara glaring at him out the corner of his eye. 

-matteo holds his breath when david grabbed the back of his neck to reel him in, and he thinks he blacks out for the first half of it because somewhere along the line, david’s tongue pushes into his mouth. and matteo wants to curl his fingers into his hair and let him bite his lip because his toes are tingling a little bit, but instead he pulls back a little slow and a lot overwhelmed. david’s eyes are lit up like he’s got something to be proud of, and matteo feels the heat of him for the rest of the night. 

-a couple weeks later, matteo is trying to escape the unrelenting base of some shitty pop song on the balcony of some random house party, smoking a cigarette and enjoying the quiet for a little bit. david ends up stumbling out there when he’s halfway done and stops to look at him for a minute. na? he asks when he shakes himself out of it. na, he repeats. they stand there for another minute, just looking at each other, and matteo thinks that he feels something build up in the back of his neck, something warm and heavy. and he kind of hopes that david is feeling the same things. he thinks he must by the way there’s a little bit of heat in his eyes. matteo takes another drag and then offers it out to david. david slides himself closer just to shake his head, and matteo finishes it off with david looking at his lips the whole time. 

-david ends up backing him into the railing and the sting of the brass makes matteo press his thumbs hard into his hips when david ends up sucking on his tongue. he ends up with a hickey on his collarbone and the weight of david’s eyes on the back of his neck. 

-they run into each other. often and quite publicly. and while they don’t say to each other in the hallways, or in the park, or in street, they end up locked into strangers’ bathrooms together and up on roofs and down in alleys just to feel the heat of someone else’s hands on their skin. they don’t go far, not far at all. their clothes stay on, and matteo tries only once to feel the skin under david’s shirt only for him to push them away and squeeze onto his wrists as he licks up his neck. 

-they do it enough for matteo to know that david likes to bite, likes to leave marks at the same time he leaves matteo breathless. he likes to kiss matteo sweet before he drawls a little blood, and he always tugs on matteo’s hair when he wants to use his tongue. they do it enough to know that david always looks at him a little bit like he’s already missing him whenever he goes back to the party, and matteo’s throat always sticks when he tries to stop him, tries to tell him that he would be okay with it if david wanted to say hi if they passed each other in school. 

-one dreary wednesday with the clouds hanging low, matteo remembers that he forgot his umbrella again at the same time his phone chirps with a new message. he opens up a video that makes him feel a little bit sick to his stomach and like he’s got deja vu. 

-where does david live? matteo asks sara as he muscles up the courage to go and confront her. what’s it to you? she spits back. just leave him alone, she says. tell me, he demands, and gets in her face, and finally feels that anger hit him in gut at their whole falling out a season too late. he just got outed. i know what that’s like, he says with a little too much venom. she looks guilty over it, and matteo feels a little vindicated finally. 

-a suspicious looking girl in a bathrobe opens the door and asks him who he is. matteo doesn’t know if he’s david’s friend, so he just says, matteo, in a small voice that’s just begging to be let in. something like recognition flickers in her face and she points out a door down the hall, and says, watch yourself, like she means it. matteo walks up to the door, looking slightly over his shoulder. 

-david opens the door with his eyes rimmed red and his hair sticking up in every direction. he looks surprised, but not in a bad way. and matteo feels like he has to say something, standing there with his backpack still hung over his shoulder. i’m not going to ask you something stupid like if you’re okay, he says quietly because that question always bothered the shit out of him. david just looks at him a little longer and sniffles, and matteo bites his lip, thinking he might have made a wrong move by coming here. this really sucks, david says after another minute, i didn’t want it to be like this.

-matteo spends the night. he curls up behind david in his bed and holds his hands and tries not to breathe too hard on the back of his neck. it feels so easy, fitting like this, and matteo thinks that they could have done this the whole time. 

-in the middle of the night, david turns around and pushes matteo back by a hand on his chest to kiss him hard on the mouth. wait, matteo says. david, wait, and he pushes david back by a palm on his collarbone. i get it, david says and sounds a little sad, if you don’t want to do this anymore because of the-. matteo shakes his head and cuts him off, i just don’t want you to think i came over for that, he says. i know what it’s like- to be outed. i didn’t want to be alone. i thought you wouldn’t either.

-matteo stays the whole weekend, and they laugh over bad movies and laura’s singing in the kitchen. and matteo can’t help but think how easy this all is.

-they go to school on monday, holding hands like they were something, and matteo let’s david take the lead, let’s him stand in front of the school doors for a few minutes before he takes a deep breath and pulls them in. matteo sends him funny pictures all day to try and make sure he knows he’s not alone. 

[flamebearrel]

Some Dark Shade of Tired

Fandom: Super Smash Bros

Synopsis: Even in the World of Light, adventurers need their rest. Saving countless souls is never easy, after all. It's especially the case for the rookies, so when Villager finds himself losing sleep to someone's sobs he has no choice but to take action.

Word Count: 2114

Original Post Date: August 26, 2019

Characters: Villager, Ness (Minor/Mentions of Mario, Lucas, Paula, Jeff, Prince Poo, Galeem, Ness’s Family, Isabelle, Toon Link, Rosalina, Luigi, Trainer Red)

Ships: Ness/Villager (Can be taken as platonic or romantic)

Trigger Warnings: None

Other Notes: Ness has a lisp that only really comes out when his emotions go out of whack; I see Villager as a kid (like twelve years old); this is a sequel to Split Number One

Ao3 Link - Sequel to This

~~~

There were panicked, choked-up sobs coming from the cliff edge nearby when Villager woke up. He grunted quietly and shifted, glaring in the relative darkness. “Come on, who is up,” the little mayor hissed to himself. Any attempts of blocking it out proved futile, since the constant rays of light Galeem gave off were shining through the trees and into his eyes and the crying wasn’t stopping anytime soon. So he went to check it out.

Grazing his hand against a tree, Villager stepped over its roots and drew his gaze over the clearing. Once his eyes adjusted, he could just barely make out another fighter. Black hair… a striped shirt… a yellow-brown backpack clutched desperately against his chest… was that-

“I can’t do thith now,” Ness suddenly sputtered, cutting off Villager’s train of thought. “Out of all the timeth, not now, it can’t be now…!”

Yeesh. I… don’t think I’m qualified to help here. Villager backed up a little, pivoting to return to his sleeping bag. Ness wasn’t usually like that. He was supposed to be the confident, easygoing guy. Not… that. Whatever had gotten to him was probably something really private, which was likely something really deep and emotional, which was certainly not the mayor’s line of expertise.

…But he stopped halfway through his next step, because suddenly he remembered.

“You’re as much a part of this team as us, Villager. And we need your help just like you need ours.”

Mario’s words from before were rattling around in the back of his brain. They had never left, really, since even after they had cheered him up it still felt like he was barely helping. It wasn’t as if he was bad at fighting, but the others were just more experienced. Better. Aside from that, and providing everyone with snacks, Villager’s attempts to even out the burden-to-help ratio weren’t working.

So should he do something here? This was his chance to make up for it all, with one of his friends at that, and if he could run errands for the citizens back home then maybe it wouldn’t hurt to-

It didn’t matter what he decided anyway, because right then his overthinking was cut off by a burst of light. Whatever flickered behind him came completely out of the blue. The brunette squeaked and hurtled to the ground.

When Villager opened his eyes again, the other boy was staring at him.

The mayor shot to his feet. “Uh. Heeey, Ness.”

“How- how long have you been there?” came the tense response. 

“Doesn’t matter.” He’d play it cool. “What’re… what’re you doing crying out here? Really loudly? …In the middle of the night?” Okay, maybe that wasn’t so cool.

“Stop it! I’m not crying.”

“There are tears all over your face.”

Ness turned away. “It’th the PK Flash.”

Raising an eyebrow, Villager pressed, “Since when has that ever affected you?” The PSI user just shrugged. His hands were still fizzing with bits of green. “Come on now,” the kid in the No. 1 shirt continued, “there’s nothing to hide out here! Nobody’s gonna laugh at you, you know, if you’re the one saving the world.”

“…I don’t care if people laugh at me.”

“Oh?” 

“Well, I’m a laugh-y guy, right? Heh…” When Ness paused, it left the sounds of sniffles and the distant pummeling of a waterfall. “It’s worse when people get all worried.”

Villager ran over the sentence in his head. “It’s… worse when… Huh. I guess I never really thought about that.”

“Everybody’s got their own problems,” sighed the kid in stripes, “especially right now. You’ve seen it, I’m sure. You see how hard they’re taking everything, and the least you can do is be the big guy. Make sure you don’t worry ‘em even more.”

“Mm. …You know what?”

“I don’t really know a lot of things. Uh, what?”

“Of course we’re going to worry, but- if we get to, then you should too! Our team will only be as strong as the weakest of us, so we all gotta get stronger! And that doesn’t just mean physically. So go ahead and tell me… what’s wrong? I’m no Lucas when it comes to this stuff… but I’ll listen.”

Contemplation on Ness’s end, drawing out the seconds - one K.K. Slider, two K.K. Slider, will-he-ever-choose-K.K. Slider - until finally he set his backpack aside. “Okey,” he breathed. “Oookey.”

His violet eyes were some dark shade of tired when they met Villager’s.

“You see… I’m homesick again.”

The mayor blinked. “Wait wait wait, ‘again’? This is a recurring thing? I never knew you were homesick in the first place-”

“Well, I was! Why do you think I just randomly run off after matches? Whenever it happens, I can’t do anything until I call Mom.” 

Leaves were rustling in the wind behind them. Villager gave a sympathetic nod.

“It’s always been like this,” continued the PSI boy. “As soon as I left Onett to find the Melodies I started calling her, and then, when I got back, then it was Paula, Jeff and Poo, a-and- And I know it’s such a tiny thing. I know they’re just a call away; so I don’t make a big deal about it. ‘Cause I’m not gonna weigh everybody down when they’ve got real problems and mine are always just a single call away.”

“…You say always… except…”

Quietly, almost hysterically he snickered to himself. “Yeah, you get it. You get it! Now there’s no one to call, is there? Some angel alien thing lasers everything away and now Mom’s a Spirit, and Tracy and Dad, and nobody answers me anymore! And I need them, Villy! I mith- miss them so much, this ithn’t fun anymore… I want to go home, but I can’t, and I can’t ring up anyone either so the feeling’th not gonna go away! Which meanth I’ll be all weak and utheleth right when you need me, I can’t do thith now, not when you need me, I-I-I-”

A moment of pause as Ness scrubbed at his eyes. Shaking, he tried to take a breath, but when he opened his mouth another thought spilled out instead.

“And I hate thith lithp too! You can’t underthtand anything I’m thaying, all of it jutht-”

What happened next looked to Villager like some kind of distraction, because his friend shot to his feet and was suddenly very interested in doing yo-yo tricks. Walking the dog, rocking the baby, a million other tricks Villy didn’t know the names of but were probably more caretaking terms… until Ness was able to slowly calm down again.

“…Nice tricks,” the mayor offered.

Then, when Ness didn’t answer, Villager took the opportunity to try and figure out what he had just heard. What was he supposed to say? How could he say anything at all? As if some cheesy “they might be dead but they’ll always be alive in your heart” would… 

“Hey.” That wasn’t a terrible idea, actually. “Let’s go to Magicant.”

“Wh- What in th- Where’d that come from?”

With an awkward chuckle, Villager replied, “Trust me on this, alright? I know it makes no sense, but I want to show you something.”

Ness just sniffed and shut his eyes.

“So is… that a no, or-”

A pulling in the mayor’s chest cut him off, and then the world was pink and green and soft all around. As he steadied himself, he could see his friend nearby, buttoning up his pajama top. I wish I pocketed my pajamas. Then at least saving the universe would be comfy. Wait, not a good time.

“Here we are, O great mayor.” Taking a step toward the shorter fighter, Ness threw his hands out. “The train has arrived at the station. Now why are we here…?” Villager noted that despite the grand words and sweeping gesture, his friend’s eyes refused to meet anything but the floor.

Trying to figure out how to word his speech, the little mayor glanced to the side. It was there that a scene caught his eye. Just ahead, amidst a swirl of clouds and veggies, there was… a family. A blond woman was eating steak with her daughter. A man and an old dog sat nearby. All of them were smiling. And then the woman turned, and saw the two of them in the distance.

And she beckoned them to join in.

Something twinged in Villager’s chest. “Isn’t it obvious? We’re here because they’re here.”

“You can’t be serious…”

Smile fading fast, the kid in the No. 1 shirt snapped back to his friend. There was practically steam rising from the watery glare he met. 

“Eh-? What’s with that look? What did I say?!”

“We just came so you could get me off your back! Villager, this isn’t real, everything here is just in my mind-”

“It’s not like that AT ALL!”

The next thing he knew, Villager had pulled the taller boy down by the shoulders and to his level. Suddenly the world seemed to dim around them.

“Listen up,” the mayor ordered. “This is for a reason, got it? Now pay attention, cause I’m only making my point once.” Ness nodded, startled, giving Villager the chance to take a breath.

“I know this is your mind. No duh! But can’t that mean these guys are made from your memories? The perfectly real memories that you’ve amassed over who knows how long? These are the people you know- they look and act and care like you’ve always seen. If you’re in a place where you’ve literally made memories, where everything is familiar, and where everybody loves you… I’d say, technically, you’ve got a home right where we stand!”

A step back. Crossed arms. Villager nodded in the family’s direction as Ness took a long look, contemplative. That wasn’t enough, was it? He’d still have to…

“…And, besides this place… I get missing them. I understand! I miss my family, my villagers, the shopkeepers… I missed Isabelle until we found her! Even now, Toon and Rosalina! I even… I even missed you-!” Warmth was starting to tinge his cheeks from such openness. He cleared his throat. No stopping now.

“Uh. Uhh, and I’m sure everyone else misses each other too. Mario talks about Luigi all the time, and Lucas is keeping an eye out for Red… What I’m trying to say is, you’re not alone in this. Any of this! Not just in feeling homesick, either. If you feel down? Insecure? Like you’re the biggest burden anyone in the entire World of Light has ever seen?! …I get it. We… we really, really get it. And if everybody gets everybody, then that means right now, we can be your family, too.”

Whatever reaction Villager was expecting, it wasn’t this. Had he been the one hearing it, he’d be saying something, not just… staring. Admittedly the stare wasn’t too surprising; it was more the fact that Ness was smiling, sincerely, for the first time since he’d been saved.

“You really do mean it, huh…”

“Well… yeah.”

Then he was almost sent toppling. The kid in stripes practically tackled him, squeezing him tightly. After flailing a moment, the mayor managed to find some kind of balance. He huffed, “Okay, what’s this for, it isn’t part of my deal-”

“I’d never expect that from you,” Ness whispered. “Thank you.”

“…Blech! You’re so sappy.” In response to the PSI user’s smirk, he merely stuck out his tongue.

“Says the guy with the big old speech. Who, ya know, is hugging me right back~” 

And Villager immediately dropped his arms. “Y-YOU HAVE NO PROOF-” It was true, though. Lately lots of hugs had been going around. Just this once, he’d wanted to return one. “F… fine, I guess you’re not totally wrong… But you better not go acting like it’ll happen again.” Shaking his head, he moved to change the subject. “Nevermind that. Why don’t you tell me about them? Your family, I mean? There’s gotta be something interesting about ‘em for you to care so much, right?”

“Heh, lemme see… There was this one time Poo took a prank call… … …”

A few early risers the next morning, checking to make sure no one had been spirited away, immediately noticed they were down two fighters. Their epic search lasted only a few minutes. In the grassy clearing of the cliff edge lay the two, sound asleep. 

The others stared a moment at their light-dappled faces before deciding to leave them be. Quiet, content… those expressions… who would want to interfere?

For a single morning in Galeem’s World of Light, despite all the odds, their expressions shone like they were right at home.

[formalmess]

For Your Entertainment ~ Chapter Three

Summary: Peasley, fearing for Luigi, searches for answers.

Warnings: Gore, Character Death, Murder

“Luigi?!"

He couldn’t feel anything.

“Luigi?!”

He twitched slightly, trying to regain some sense. Everything around him felt muffled.

“Please wake up!"

He was being shaken awake.

“I’m right here, Luigi, I’m right here! It’s okay, please open your eyes…!”

He felt warm arms wrapped around him. He shifted, clutching onto whoever was hugging him, trembling fingers weakly clawing into fabric.

“Luigi…?!”

He murmured something inaudible.

“Luigi! You’re awake!”

“I’m… awake…”

“Don’t push yourself, darling…! It���s okay, I’m here…”

Luigi moved limply, feeling an incredible weight on his entire body, limbs heavy. He tried to speak, but all that came out were broken mumbles and croaks.

He was hugged tighter.

”I’m so, so sorry… I didn’t mean to stay out for so long... I knew I should have come home sooner, I know, and I'm sorry... and I… P-Peach, she... after the meeting, she was so distraught over something and, she had me and a few others help look for her citizens who were missing… and… we must have been out longer than I anticipated, oh, I'm so sorry...!”

Luigi froze, his breath hitching.

“Luigi? Are you alright?”

“It was r-real…”

“What?”

Luigi looked up at Peasley’s face, who was still cuddling him close. Peasley had a concerned expression on his face, questioning Luigi repeatedly about what he meant, but Luigi didn’t respond. His head rolled to the side, examining the environment around him. They were still in the living room.

Luigi shakily pointed to the television, which now showed nothing more than static.

“Did... d-did you watch a scary movie while I was gone? You know you should watch those with me if you really want to…!”

“Tape… box… v-video…”

”What are you talking about?"

All the haunting images came flooding back at once. Luigi felt consciousness threatening to fade as he recalled Toad’s screams for help, the blood… the terrible, horrible laughter…

”T-Toad…”

“Toad? That’s...” Peasley cocked his head to the side, a bit confused. “...That’s the name of the person we were looking for... And his sister, as well… Toadette, was it?”

Without warning, Luigi released a pained sob, burying his face into Peasley’s shoulder.

“Luigi? What’s wrong?”

“Dh... d-dead… Toad… dead…”

“What?! What are you talking about? Luigi, please, I want to understand-!"

”Th… The tape…”

”Luigi, please, calm down, you’re frightening me… if this is a panic attack, I’m right here, Luigi, I’m not going to leave you, I promise, I’m right here-“

“TOAD IS DEAD!” Luigi shrieked, pointing to the television feverishly. He dissolved into harsh, guttural sobs, Peasley shushing him.

”It’s okay, it’s okay… I promise…”

Peasley moved to turn off the television, since it seemed to be causing Luigi so much distress. He didn’t exactly know what was going on, but he assumed it had something to do with the built-up stress from the past week.

Luigi was still repeating the fact that Toad was dead, mumbling the mantra incoherently to himself.

The prince sighed, helping Luigi up to his feet. He escorted the brunette out of the room, Polterpup barking at the pair as they went upstairs, Peasley whispering soothing words of comfort to his husband. “Luigi… It’s okay… I promise you… It’s going to be okay…”

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

It had taken hours for Luigi to calm down.

The two had retired to their bedroom, Luigi having lied down on the bed, trying to get comfortable. He wanted to sleep and be at peace for awhile, but his efforts proved useless. Peasley sat by him the entire night, all throughout Luigi’s whimpers and panicked murmurs, trying to calm him down and soothe his worries.

At one point, Peasley had put a cold cloth on Luigi's head, thinking maybe this could all be a fever-induced delirium. He didn’t show signs of illness, but Peasley didn’t know how else to explain it.

Polterpup lied down beside his owner, Luigi petting the ghostly pup to distract himself as he whimpered and held back tears.

As every minute passed, Luigi began to tire himself out.

Peasley had been tidying up a few things around their bedroom when he heard Luigi go silent before snoring lightly, having finally fallen asleep. He smiled, delivering a small kiss to the resting brunette. He thought about following his lead and getting some sleep himself, but his attention was turned to figuring out exactly what had caused all this.

He crept downstairs quietly, entering the living room and turning the television back on. He certainly wasn’t going to be the first to admit how abysmal he was with handling technology, but he could comprehend it enough to know how to rewind the tape.

He kept his thumb pressed down upon the rewind button on the whirring machine until he heard a click, pushing the play button, albeit hesitantly.

It only took a few passing moments to realize what was wrong, and why Luigi had been so mortified.

Peasley had only seen Toad on a few occasions before, at kart races he spectated or get-togethers Peach planned, but seeing him here was gut-wrenching. He looked so scared.

And the person who was tormenting him was more horrific than he could’ve ever imagined. They weren’t like a horror movie villain, or a fairytale monster as he had pictured them previously in his mind.

They were real, and their enjoyment of the whole macabre situation made Peasley feel light-headed.

He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. But, he didn’t stop watching. As much as his stomach twisted and his face paled, he knew he had to figure this out, for Luigi’s sake.

The tape showed off the mysterious attacker holding Toad’s head up high with one hand like a trophy, having just decapitated the poor boy's corpse. They scoffed before dropping the rest of his body to the floor casually.

”You weren’t much help for an assistant. I expected more from you.” The speaker’s words were distorted and slightly garbled, but still clear enough to just barely comprehend. ”You perished so quickly, like a candle extinguishing on an eager child’s birthday cake. It's no wonder that practically nobody noticed your disappearance. And rather unfortunate, I must admit.”

Peasley felt a peculiar sensation fill his chest as he watched, as though he’d heard this person’s words, or style of speaking, before somewhere. The way they talked... It seemed oddly familiar.

”The least you could do now is make for a nice decoration.” The figure raised the same blade from before. “You won’t be needing these…”

Without another word, they plunged the knife into the sockets of Toad’s eyes, carving the irises out with the sickening wet sounds of flesh tearing and sclera shredding. When they drew the knife back finally to put their work on display, all that was left on Toad’s face were empty remnants of eyeballs, a dark void left in their place on his skull.

Peasley squeezed his eyes shut, trying to mask his growing horror and urge to just turn off the tape and pretend this was all some nightmare. That is, until the murderer began speaking again.

”Pathetic.”

The killer released a grunt as they tossed the head offscreen like a broken toy, the sound of it hitting the ground with a thud and rolling away still audible.

”I do hope my next assistant will last a little while longer than you… Why, after all, she has been dying to see you... It’ll be a pleasure to reunite you two at long last.”

Peasley felt his chest tighten as the dark figure now turned and approached the camera, a wide disfigured smile planted on their face. And as they approached, Peasley could now make out some of their features despite the dark lighting.

Their face appeared… broken. As though bits and pieces of their skin was missing.

Though, oddly enough, half of their face looked almost split in color. It seemed fitting for a deranged killer to have such an awful makeup job, but the way their face looked was almost too natural. As though they had torn the face off a porcelain doll and attached it to their own.

They were wearing faded clothing, tattered garb draped around their neck by a broken clip that barely functioned. And though the tape recording quality was low, he could make out hints of yellow and violet plastered on the fabric.

As they absently played with the blood stained knife in front of the camera for a few moments, humming sweetly, Peasley could make out the outline of black leather gloves on their hands.

Peasley jumped when the murderer chuckled once more, still spinning the blade in their palms.

”You know who I am, don’t you? You may not want to accept it yet. And that’s perfectly fine.”

They paused for a moment.

”Death is a cruel thing, as you know. But I’ve learned to be a patient man. I have all the time in the world.”

There was the sound of paper crinkling from just off of the side of the camera’s view, the knife being set down.

”You see, I have so many more people to meet with. So many more tricks to put on display. So many more bows to take. And I won’t rest until everyone you love is dead at my hands, as I promised.”

The letter.

Peasley instantly knew how he'd recognized the style of speech now. The theatrical tone of voice. The delight. That was him. He’d sent it. He hadn't been lying at all.

He was deadly serious.

”Until next time...”

He looked up, staring straight at the camera lens with a crooked smile on his face, one glaring yellow eye visible in the static.

"Ciao~!"

Click.

The screen went black, leaving Peasley to stare at his own horrified reflection upon a layer of static.

Acting hastily and without thinking, he practically tore the tape out of the player, tearing the insides out and throwing the remaining broken cassette away. He turned off the television and backed away, shaking his head. He started back toward the stairs with hurried feet.

He never thought this could happen.

He never thought that someone out there could be this awful… to Luigi, of all people!

Luigi didn’t have enemies, except a few jerks who occasionally picked on him. He certainly didn't have enemies that were murderers, swearing vengeance on his very livelihood, threatening his friends and family!

Peasley truly didn’t know what to believe anymore.

He rushed back upstairs to ensure Luigi was still okay, and to his relief, nothing had changed since he went downstairs. Luigi was sound asleep, snugly cuddled up in the covers, holding the thick duvet close to his chest and breathing softly.

Peasley exhaled, shutting the door behind him. And though there was no present reason to, he locked it.

He sat down beside Luigi, gently running a hand through his husband's hair. Peasley's thoughts were clouded, still trying to figure everything out. He needed answers. And to get that, he needed some help from Luigi. Especially since the murderer seemed so sure that Luigi would know exactly who he was…

Luigi shifted gently, whimpering short phrases and whining in his sleep, his soft breaths increasing to panicked mumbles.

Peasley held onto his hand tightly, hoping the bad dream Luigi was facing would subside.

He didn’t want him to have to wake up into facing another nightmare.

[milos-fanfics]

The Evils Within - Chapter 10

The stadium erupted in cheers. Goombas, koopas, shy guys, and a large variety of Bowser's other minions sat in the yellow-green patterned stands surrounding the center island, which itself was surrounded by an empty moat dubbed the 'dead zone'.

Mr. L stood on one side, eager to fight, while Bowser stood on the other, ready to unleash his anger upon his opponent. In the middle, a cloud of blue smoke appeared. Upon it, emerged Kamek, a magikoopa.

"Welcome, fellow minions, to Koopa Stadium!" He greeted the crowd to be met with cheers. "Our ruler, King Bowser, has been challenged to a battle by the masked green man," he gestured to the competitors. The crowd booed to Mr. L, who simply smiled, basking in the not-so-glorious spotlight.

"Last one standing, wins. Falling into the dead zone results in instant disqualification," Kamek explained the rules before raising his wand. "Ready?...Set…Fight!" He pointed his wand down, disappearing back into the cloud with a horn sound, signaling the start of the battle.

~~~~~

Mario and Luigi were walking back from Peach's castle. Mario was ultimately glad his brother was awake again. Luigi on the other hand…. He wasn't sure himself. Luigi was glad he was back in the real world and all, but he couldn't help but think something, or even someone, was planning against the both of them, if not, the whole kingdom.

He rubbed his arm in thought but was snapped out of it by the sound of his brother's voice in an attempt to break the silence between them.

"So, you've been out for quite some time. I bet you had some interesting dreams in there," Mario spoke, trying to get his brother to talk.

Luigi only glanced to the floor, indicating he didn't want to talk about it. 

"Oh, don't want to talk about it? I understand," Mario nodded.

Luigi had not wanted to talk about anything recently. Even before he was asleep for half a week. Luigi has been awfully distant. Mario knew something was up, but he could never get an answer out of his brother. 

“Hey. I've noticed you haven't really said much recently. It’s kind of… worrying. Is something wrong?” He had to ask again. It felt a little excessive since he's essentially asked the same question every day for half a month.

Luigi's attention snapped to his brother. Out of reflex, he commented, “No, of course not. Everything's fine.” He was, in fact, not fine. He knew what he was doing was greatly concerning his brother, but he couldn't bring himself to admit that something was wrong as it may only concern Mario even more. A few seconds after he commented, Luigi exclaimed in pain. It felt like someone had punched in the stomach.

All of Mario's attention was now on Luigi. If he was concerned then, he was even more worried now. Luigi clutched his stomach before noticing Mario was looking right at him. He gave a fake smile and thumbs up. Mario's face sported a confused expression before turning his attention back on the road ahead. 

Something was definitely wrong with Luigi and Mario desperately wanted to find out. Not just for curiosity's sake, but for his brother’s too.

Luigi knew that something was wrong. Something's been wrong for quite a while and he hasn't told anybody, but this was new. Another sharp pain struck him, this one in the side of the head. His vision temporarily blurred and his ears rang. He bit his lip in an attempt to not yelp to not alert Mario.

He was hoping to figure out a way to put a stop to this and quick before it was too late.

~~~~~

Mr. L slid to a stop, his foot slipping off the edge of the platform. Taking a few steps forward, he collapsed, falling to his hands and knees.

Bowser laughed, "Ha! That was way too easy. What were you even thinking challenging me?" He began to inch closer to the soon-to-be defeated foe, with many ideas to end this.

Mr. L looked up, his cheek bruised and lip busted. His opponent charged to him, he breaking out a smug look. Things were just about to get started.

Bowser let out a ball of fire towards Mr. L, who jumped up, avoiding it entirely. Bowser nearly gasped at the sight of his formerly fallen opponent who was now back on his feet. This didn’t stop him, however. If anything, this only made him angrier. Now only a few feet from Mr. L, he clawed at him, only to miss as Mr. L jumped once more, this time, over the large turtle and kicking him in the back of the shell, nearly causing him to lose his balance. Bowser turned to face his opponent again, balling his hands into a fist.

Mr. L did the same, his hands beginning to spark with electricity. With a smirk, he tauntingly winked to him,

Bowser stood confused for a second but quickly shook it off, charging to him again. The two set out a flurry of punches upon one another. Mr. L’s punches definitely felt stronger and the electricity coming from them was weakening the Koopa king.

Bowser sent out one more punch, this one stronger than the last few, only to miss again. Mr. L ducked to avoid this hit and immediately returned it with an uppercut, sending him into the air and down to the pit surrounding the platform.

The sparks emitting from Mr. L’s hands subsided as he shook them. He had won but felt it wasn’t the end.

The blue cloud reappeared above the stadium, quickly fading away to reveal Kamek once again. He flew around Mr. L a few times before raising Mr. L’s hand above his head. “Ladies and gentlemen. We have a winner! The unlikely assailant and your new ruler, Mr. Lime-green!,” Kamek exclaimed.

Mr. L turned to the Magikoopa. “I do prefer to be called ‘Mr. L’,” he corrected him.

“Your new leader, Mr. L!” Kamek quickly righted himself.

Those words rung in Bowser's ears. No one was taking over his kingdom under his watch. He dug his claws into the side of the platform and climbed his way back up.

Mr. L watched the former King climb back onto the platform, “Oh, you're back. Come to give me my crown, I assume?” He taunted.

Bowser marched over to him, obviously upset about his loss, but his face read pure spite. “As if I’d hand over my kingdom to someone of the likes of you,” He responded.

“But you remember the rules. I won this kingdom fair and square,” Mr. L reminded him in a mocking tone.

“I'm the king. I don't do ‘fair and square’.” Bowser reached over to Kamek, snatching his wand from his grip before putting it towards his feet. The wand activated, surrounding him in a cloud of smoke. The cloud grew in size as well as Bowser, three times normal size.

The crowd gasped, but Mr. L was unfazed. Bowser was determined to get the Mushroom Kingdom while Mr. L was determined to get Bowser's. The battle wasn't over, but the fun had definitely begun.

Bowser unleashed a large stream of fire to Mr. L. It was too large to be jumped over, but was slow enough to outrun. Mr. L ran to the left, making a circle around the platform as the stream followed him with a turn of Bowser's head.

Mr. L  eventually ended up behind Bowser. Before he had the time to grab Bowser's tail, Bowser jumped and turned around, making his tail just out of reach. Mr. L's tripped over his own feet as he missed. He planted both feet on the ground before he could lose his balance.

Bowser stomped over to Mr. L, trying to crush him under his weight. Cockily, Mr. L stepped out of the way of each of Bowser's stomps, occasionally jumping over them. This only caused Bowser to stomp even faster.

Eventually, they became too fast for even Mr. L to dodge. One foot came crashing down, Mr. L raising his hands over his head and using all of his strength to keep it from crushing him. Bowser applied even more pressure to drive him into the ground, but Mr. L only returned it with more and more strength.

As Mr. L exerted more and more force, his whole being began to spark. It started off with a few sparks from here and there, but now it was full-fledged lightning surrounding him. Mr. L pushed Bowser's into the air, causing him to lose balance.

Seeing this as an opportunity, he spread his arms out before slamming them together in a clap formation. A wave of lightning shot from his hands, completely knocking over Bowser's other foot and stopping at the painted stone wall behind him.

The beast fell over, giving Mr. L a chance for a finishing move. He ran over Bowser and grabbed his tail, spinning around in circles before throwing him into the air. Mr. L then jumped beside him, holding his hands together as large amounts of electricity were surging from them. With a malicious smile, Mr. L slammed his hands against Bowser, spiking him to the ground. 

Bowser hit the ground. Hard. He left a large crater where he laid. Mr. L landed on the ground next to him, watching as the magic from Kamek's wand was wearing off, causing Bowser to shrink back to his original size.

Kamek, who had been pushed to the sidelines, flew over to Bowser. He had been knocked unconscious by the fall, unable to object to his status about to be handed over.

Kamek and grabbed back his wand from Bowser's grip and flew back over to Mr. L. "So, Mr. L, now that this kingdom is all yours, what are you going to do first?" He asked him, the crowd stopped their constant cheering, quiet to hear the new king's first words.

"Prepare the arsenal," Mr. L spoke, "We're going to war."

~~~~~

Chapter 9 - Chapter 11 Cover