#they went around yelling 'yaoi get your yaoi here'

[moonlightrift]

pony town isn't a game, it's an experience

[total-drama-takes-takes-2]

ttwt episode 9

“Last time, on Total Takes World Tour: we laughed, we ate, we danced, and some of us even lost in beautiful Quebec. Bonnie accepted their fate as the team’s emotional support dog, while both Max and Kelly grew more suspicious of a certain environmentalist. Julia went ham on Team Yaoi in hopes of getting Patrick eliminated, but fell short when the challenge turned out to be a reward one, saving him another seat aboard the S.S. Drama. Who will be electrocuted this time? Will Phillip ever be able to absorb the moon’s power? Stay tuned to find out right here, on Total Takes: World Tour!”

The galley is full but slow this morning, everyone trudging along to help themselves to another inedible meal before the plane’s descent. The metal hull itself creaks and groans, sending a chill up everyone's spine.

“I wonder what torture we have in store for us today,” Max comments sarcastically, pushing around the soggy toast on his tray. 

“Nothing I couldn’t handle, heh,” Phillip responds. “I’ve been working on my... abilities. Be warned...”

Staci’s head pokes out from around the corner. “Phillip, you left your drawings in the confessional again!” she holds up a few crude drawings of werewolves staring forlornly off into the distance. 

The entire cabin bursts into strained laughter and Phillip sulks. Max ignores him. Bonnie grumbles and faceplants into the table. 

---

First class is tense, but this time, it’s not the usual suspects. 

Ass and Courtney are rather… civil this morning, going about their daily tasks without a peep from either of them. Julia, on the other hand, is pacing the entire length of the cabin, grumbling and cursing to herself, only stopping to throw darts at a picture of Patrick’s face taped to one of the seats. 

Mal is smacking gum loudly, typing on her phone and ignoring the darts whizzing past her head. 

“Stupid, stupid…” Julia grumbles, tossing another projectile. It hits Mal in the thigh. She has no reaction as she scrolls. 

“We need to think ahead,” the blonde insists, slamming her fist to her hand. “Where’s our next challenge going to be?”

“An island. Tropical,” Mal says, not bothering to look up from her phone. “In about… sixteen minutes.”

Julia blinks, then looks out the window over the great expanse of ocean. She turns back with a perplexed expression while Ass raises an eyebrow from across the cabin. “What? How would you even know that?”

Courtney’s eyes widen. “Don’t-!”

“May I present to you-” Mal says, standing and rushing across the cabin. She pulls down a screen map of the world with numerous pins in it. “Mal’s 100% full-proof Total Drama Predictinator!”

Ass and Julia stare. Courtney smacks their forehead. 

“Every season, I create a highly complex AI program that predicts each location, challenge, and eliminations with startling accuracy,” Mal says, pacing between the ends of the map. She speaks matter-of-factly. “According to my findings, we’ll be on an island in the Atlantic ocean.”

The intercom crackles to life. “Wouldn’t be so sure about that, Einstein!” Chris says merrily. “We’ll be landing in Waterloo, Belgium, in-”

The plane suddenly lurches, sending all unbuckled passengers flying. A sputtering, mechanical screech forces everyone to cover their ears and look around at the metal beast nervously. 

“Uh, Chris, you might wanna take a look at this,” Chef says. The intercom then dies and the lights in the plane flicker out seconds before it begins plummeting. 

“Brace yourselves!” Courtney yells. “Assume your positions!”

“Um…” Julia shouts, looking between Ass and Mal as they stare nervously. “We didn’t actually read your guide!”

“WHAT! I spent all night writing- AHHHH!”

The plane plunges, growing closer and closer to the ocean. 

---

Economy has all but buckled in, ducking and covering their heads as luggage and rats fly around the cabin. A loud siren begins to blare, forcing everyone to plug their ears. 

“I can’t die here!” Bonnie yells, pleading with the universe. “Anywhere but here!”

Phillip screams in terror, his high-pitched shrieks out matching the siren in volume. Staci grits their teeth and Kelly, Max, and Bonnie lean away. Patrick rocks back and forth in his seat. 

Only Albert seems unbothered, still flipping through his book without a midst of panic about him. 

---

ALBERT: “What? Everyone was too preoccupied crying for mommy to notice me. What does sudden and terrible death matter, anyway?”

---

At the very last second, the plane deploys a few massive parachutes, and lands softly on the beaches of an island. 

Mal looks out the economy window. “See? Island!”

Julia’s jaw drops. 

---

JULIA: “Okay, she may be crazy- like, class A crazy, nuttier than a nutbar dipped in peanut sauce nutty- but she isn’t stupid. I just have to find a way to use this to my advantage…”

---

The teens uneasily exit the plane, groaning and holding their heads. Most of them are a sickly shade of green, and even Chris looks tussled. 

“That was a nasty trick you pulled,” Courtney says, pointing an accusing finger at Chris and wheezing. “You could’ve killed us!”

“Hey, man, this one wasn’t me,”

Chef walks out from behind the plane, holding a wrench that’s bent in all kinds of wrong ways. He shakes his head. “It’s not looking too good,” he says. “We’re gonna need someone qualified to handle this.”

Chris shudders. 

“So, it’s fixable?” Max asks, crossing his arms. “You guys just don’t want to pay for it?”

“Hey! We’re on a budget!” The host snaps. “I’m sure we’ll figure something out- I’ll call the producers. In the meantime, uh… I guess we’ll do our challenge here. Wherever this is.”

The teams look around the island, taking note of the sandy beaches and lush vegetation. 

“St. Helena,” Mal comments. “We’re off the coast of South Africa, east of Rio de Janeiro. Coordinates 15° 58′ 0″ S, 5° 42′ 0″ W.”

Everyone turns to her, blinking. 

“Oh, great. She’s doxxing the island now!” Ass shouts. Julia shoves a finger to their face and approaches Mal cautiously, smiling widely. 

“Mal,”

“Hm?” the brunette asks, back on her phone. 

“Do you think your… um, geographical knowledge might actually help us?”

“Duh,” she scoffs. “But it’s not like anyone ever asked me!”

Julia grits her teeth and smiles wider. “Well, we didn’t know. Think you could help the team this time?”

Mal thinks for a moment, then shrugs. 

---

MAL: “What? I’m not stupid. I know a lot of things besides fandom and phones- I know where all the challenges are going to be, I know that Bonnie still keeps a picture of Caesar with them, I know Frollo is in the cargo hold-” she sighs. “You know, fandom bloggers really are the most oppressed people in society. I-”

The camera goes static. 

---

Chris stands before the three remaining teams as they organize themselves across from each other on a grassy field. The host himself is on the phone, grumbling to himself. 

“Yes, well, the hot tub was necessary, so- hello? HELLO?” he sighs, tossing the phone behind him. It hits an intern in the head and they collapse. The teams look between each other awkwardly. 

“Looks like we’re on our own. Luckily, due to a quick wiki search- we can stay on theme! Welcome to St. Helena- island in the middle of nowhere. Best known for being Napoleon’s final resting place after he was exiled here way-back-when. Since we were originally going to Waterloo, we can just do the same challenge here. You kids will be recreating the historic battle that sealed Bonaparte’s fate. Team Friendship-”

The aforementioned look up. 

“You’ll be playing the part of the French army. AKA, the LOSERS!” he chuckles. “Team Yaoi, you’ll be the Prussians, and Team Mojo, you’re the British.”

The respective teams watch as Chef begins rolling out cannons. Courtney raises an eyebrow. “What exactly is our angle here?”

“Um… don’t get blown to smithereens by a cannon?” Chris chuckles. “I was kinda just hoping you guys would get your hands on weaponry and go crazy.”

“You’re letting us have real weapons?” Phillip asks, eyes widening. He grins maliciously. 

---

PHILLIP: “I believe I’m destined to kill a man. Basically it’s like, my destiny and stuff, and this show seems like my best shot. Whoever I attack should thank me- dying in combat is the highest honor a man can achieve!”

---

“Historically accurate weapons... mostly!” Chris corrects. “Last team standing wins, yadda yadda… hey Chef, we still have that inflatable pool, right?”

Chef nods. 

“Sweet! See you all in a few,”

Staci sighs as she watches the two walk off. Turning back to the team, she crosses their arms. “We need a plan,”

“You think?” Bonnie asks, staring at the ginormous canon. 

“I do, in fact!” she beams. The goth rolls their eyes. “Now, I’ve read about this before… it’s been a while, but I think I remember enough to have us not obliterated instantly. First, we’ll need a stand-in Napoleon,”

Phillip’s hand shoots up. “Ooh, me! Pick me!” he then coughs and artificially lowers his voice. “I mean… or whatever.”

Staci paces back and forth. “It’s gotta be someone smart…”

Phillip trails behind them, casually whistling. 

“Competent. Organized!”

He clears his throat and begins casually leafing through his journal, mumbling his poetry under his breath. 

She looks between the group. “How about… Max?”

“WHAT?” Phillip and Max chime in unison. 

Bonnie raises an eyebrow. “You know… I could see it,”

“It’s because of my height, isn’t it?” he lowers his eyes. They shrug. 

Staci interjects. “No, no! You’re… I mean, you’re a natural leader! You’re smart! And romantic!”

Phillip seizes. “What? Napoleon wasn’t a romantic, he was like, a military guy!”

“But he was really into romance novels,” Staci says. “I used to be muts with someone who kinned him, but then there was a bunch of callouts for people who kinned real life people, so I had to softblock them and they sent a death threat to my workplace. But it’s all good now. Anyway…”

---

PHILLIP: “I am a lot of things, but I am NOT a romantic! I mean, I’m a chick magnet, sure, but I don’t let the ladies lead me astray. It wouldn’t be very sigma of me. I’m fine with being second in command, then,”

---

“All in favor of Max?”

“Wait!” he snaps. 

Everyone raises their hands and Max sighs, defeated. 

---

Julia watches the teams divulge and turns back to hers. “Alright. Game plan, anyone?”

“Don’t get blown up,” Ass comments dryly. They are ignored. 

“Mal? Anything?” the blonde asks. 

She shrugs. “Eh, whatever you guys think. I’m busy- #saveourshow is trending on Twitter, and-”

Julia nabs the phone out of her hands and holds it above her head. Mal pouts. “FINE! We should like… hm…” the brunette scans the field. “I guess we should attack Team Mojo first. We outnumber them, and they really only have the one decent player. Everyone’s been calling them “Team Losers- and Michela” on Tumblr, and it-”

“I am down for that!” Julia interrupts, tossing Mal back her phone like it’s a dog treat. “Team Mojo it is. Courtney, Ass, defend our ground. Mal and I have this covered.”

Courtney and Ass both raise a cautious eyebrow and turn to each other slightly. 

---

COURTNEY: “Is it just me, or are those two getting awfully chummy lately?”

ASS: “Definitely not just you. Something’s up- I smell an alliance,”

---

Patrick plays with the cannon while Michela and Albert try to discuss their angle. He chuckles as he loads the barrel full of heavy projectiles and aims it at Team Friendship. 

“Okay, if we just focus on defense, maybe we can scrape by,” Michela ponders, pacing back and forth. “But we only have the one cannon, and we’re surely going to be everyone’s first target…”

“Maybe we should offer them the princess as a sacrifice,” Albert mutters, gesturing back to Patrick as he lights the fuse. “I’m sure Team Yaoi would ignore us altogether if we let them chew on him for a while.”

“What’s that supposed to mean, cupcake?” Patrick snaps, glaring. 

“You can’t be serious- Julia’s been trying to get you eliminated for days now,” Albert says, waving at Team Yaoi. “And it looks like your odds aren’t good today.”

He scoffs. “As if I’d let some girl-” 

A sudden cannonball flies through the air, whacking Patrick in the back and sending him flying forward with a long shriek. Julia cheers from afar. Michela massages her temples. 

---

Phillip scans the teams, looking between them for weaknesses. 

---

PHILLIP: “Trying to choose a target is pretty hard. Team Yaoi is pretty scary… I mean, lame! I wouldn’t wanna waste my ammo on them,”

---

Staci and Bonnie shove the cannon around, aiming it at Team Yaoi. “Ready?” Max yells. “Fire!”

Kelly lights the fuse and the team ducks, covering their ears, waiting for… nothing. The flame disappears in the breeze, leaving their cannon unfired. 

“Okay, let’s try this again,” Max sighs, lighting another match. “Ready? Fire!”

Again, the breeze blows it away. He grumbles to himself. 

“Maybe we should aim in a different direction,” Staci says. “Team Mojo-”

“Out of the question,” Max snaps.

Bonnie sighs. “You and your moral high ground with that girl. Listen, if we aim for Albert…”

After a long, drawn out silence, he relents. “Fine. But be careful!”

Just as Patrick peels himself off the ground, another cannonball- this time from Team Friendship- hits him in the gut. Max shouts “Damn it!” from afar. 

Albert smirks as he lights the cannon and fires in Team Yaoi’s general direction. “Duck!” Ass shouts, pulling Courtney to the grass as the ball flies overhead. 

The two wait for it to pass, but just as Courtney begins to stand, Ass pulls them back down. “We should talk,”

“About?”

Ass nods in Julia and Mal’s direction as they load the cannon for another shot at Patrick. 

“If they team, one of us is next. And if Mal makes it further in this game than me, I’ll kill myself,” Ass snaps. “As much as I hate to say it, if we wanna stay, we’re going to have to work together.”

Courtney thinks for a moment, and then grins. “Anything to take her down,”

The two shake hands with equally big smiles and then rise just as Julia fires another cannonball at Patrick, nailing him in the back of his knees. He shrieks again and she laughs. 

A shot from Team Friendship flies past them, narrowly missing Mal’s head as she taps on her phone, ignoring the commotion around her. She doesn’t even flinch. 

“Man, that chick is crazy,” Julia grumbles, loading the cannon for another round. 

“Patrick, GET UP!” Michela shouts. “This isn't the time for napping!”

Patrick, face-down in the grass, groans to himself. It takes a few seconds for him to peel his body off the ground, spitting out a mouthful of dirt as his bruised and battered form limps back to the team. 

“Call me crazy, but… I think Julia might be mad at me,” he says to Albert. The latter rolls his eyes. 

“Well, you’d better patch things up, cause we’re getting wailed on over here,” Michela snaps as another shot from Team Friendship narrowly misses Albert. A faint dinging catches their attention and the team grumbles.

Patrick sighs. “I miss the way, Julie said hello- by punching me, in the stomach,” 

“I miss the nights, when she didn’t pick up the phone,” he continues.

“Oh, oh,” Michela and Albert chime in as another cannonball flies overhead.

“Cause other times, she’d wreak havoc”

Patrick places a hand over his heart and gestures towards Team Yaoi. Julie watches him, mortified, while the rest of the team looks between each other awkwardly from behind her. 

“Oh, Julie, oh Julie, I, I miss you so… Oh my Julie, my violent Julie, why’d I ever let you go?”

“I dumped YOU!”

“I miss her smile, and the tables that she threw- at me, when she was moody-”

“Your fault!”

“Oh, I miss the way, we’d never seem to agree,”

“Oh, oh,”

“Cause arguing, always brought out her beauty,” he continues, ducking another round of shots from Team Yaoi. “Oh, Julie, oh, Julie, I, I miss you so… Oh, my Julie, my scary Julie, why’d I ever let you go? Why’d I ever let you go?”

“I’m going to kill him,” Julia says. “Okay, number one goal- Team Mojo has GOT to go!”

Ass ducks a cannonball from Team Friendship. “No offense, but we’re kinda getting pummeled out here- Team Losers is the least of our concern!”

“Team Losers and Michela,” Mal says, matter-of-factly. Ass grits their teeth. 

“They have a zero-sum chance of winning. This is the smartest move. I need him GONE!”

Courtney and Ass make nervous eye contact, but relent. 

---

Phillip watches as Team Friendship misses another shot at Team Mojo. 

“They move too fast,” Bonnie huffs, wiping the sweat off their forehead as they move the cannon back around to Team Yaoi. “We’re never gonna hit anyone at this rate.”

“Hey, it’s not so bad! We got Patrick a few times!” Kelly smiles, putting a hand on their shoulder. 

“...Which makes no difference at all, since he has the relevance of a sack of potatoes,” Max snaps. “Let’s just focus on Team Yaoi- they’re not even looking at us now.”

Phillip nods, pulling out his notebook to scribble something down. 

---

PHILLIP: “You know, I’m actually glad I didn’t get to be Napoleon. Now I can observe the teams and mark my target!"

---

“Faster! We need more ammo!” Julia shouts, commanding her troops in a fitting military fashion. “Hurry up!”

“We’re trying!” Ass snaps, then turns to Mal as she ignores the challenge altogether. “Maybe if SOMEONE was helping, we’d be going faster!”

“Mal has already helped enough. You two, on the other hand, could stand to pick up some slack!”

Ass and Courtney make eye contact, but turn back just in time to see a cannonball flying at them. “DUCK!”

The three drop to the ground and cover their heads as the projectile lands behind them with a thud. Mal remains none the wiser. 

“Damn! Missed again!” Bonnie huffs. “This thing is killing me!”

Phillip chuckles maliciously. “Not yet…”

They glare at him and he sighs and walks away.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself,” Kelly puts a hand on their shoulder. “At the very least, none of our team has been hurt yet!”

---

PHILLIP: “Perhaps I’ve been looking in the wrong directions… maybe my true target has been here all along- the weak must perish!” he chuckles to himself and then screams at a spider in the booth.

---

“You’re not loading the cannon fast enough,” Max says. “Or moving it, or… anything. We need to be faster!”

“We’re going as fast as we can!” Staci insists. 

The team bursts into shouting, bickering and pointing fingers at each other. As they’re distracted, Phillip puts his full weight into turning the cannon around and facing it in Kelly’s direction as they try to mediate. 

“Here we go…” he grins, lighting the fuse. 

“And if YOU hadn’t been yelling, maybe we could’ve focused and gone faster!” Staci shouts, jabbing a finger in Max’s face. He swats their hand away and the two begin slap-fighting. 

Kelly gasps and rushes in to pull them apart, moving out of aim just in time- the cannon fires, sending a ball straight past Team Friendship, and right into Team Mojo’s barrel. 

“That’s not good,” Michela says, seconds before ducking as their cannon explodes. 

Team Friendship stops shouting and turns to the commotion, then to Phillip. 

“Holy…” Bonnie mumbles. “That’ll do it.”

---

As Julia, Ass, and Courtney take their hands off their ears and rise from the ground, they stare in bewilderment at the shredded remains of Mojo’s cannon. 

“So… now what?” Courtney asks. 

Before Julia can respond, however, a rain of cannonballs from Team Friendship showers them. The teens drop to the ground and cover themselves, bracing for the worst, but the balls simply bounce off them. 

Ass stares at one of the cannonballs, then lightly kicks it. It rolls away. “Huh. Imagine that,”

“They’re FOAM?” Phillip shouts in bewilderment from across the field. 

Chris walks back onto the field, holding a coconut drink with a tiny ornamental umbrella in it. He takes a long sip. “You guys done yet?”

“They’ve been foam this WHOLE TIME?” Bonnie shouts. 

“Uh, duh! Can you imagine the lawsuits?” the host scoffs. “The canons are real, though- and they pack a real punch!”

“But- what about Patrick?” Michela asks, pointing to her bruised and battered teammate. 

Chris shrugs. “Soft skin? Anyway… looks like Team Friendship has the most players standing, meaning they win the challenge!”

“What? None of us even got hurt!” Ass snaps. They are ignored. 

“And looks like Team Mojo took the hardest hit, soooo… see you guys tonight!” he chuckles, walking off. 

Michela and Albert look down at Patrick while Julia cheers and does a little dance around Mal. "Gooooooodbye, Patrick!" she hollers.

---

JULIA: "Finally- with that twit gone, I can focus on the game! Maybe having Mal around isn't so bad after all..."

---

“Did everyone have fun today? Yes? No?” Chris asks, looking between the three. Michela rolls her eyes. Albert turns a page in his book. “Anyway- it’s anyone’s game today! Three players left, who will lose, who will lose? It’s-”

“Just kick him off already!” Michela snaps. 

Chris huffs. “Geez, FINE! Patrick, you’ve been eliminated. See ya on the flip side, pal!”

Patrick whines and gets up, holding an ice pack to his head. He takes the parachute and jumps from the plane, landing face-first in the sand below. 

“You know, I usually hate out ground landings, but that one’s okay by me,” Chris says, peering out the door. “Who will be battered next time? Will we ever get off this island? Find out here, on Total Takes: World Tour!”

[translations-by-aiimee]

The Husky and His White Cat Shizun - Chapter 18

Original Title:  二哈和他的白猫师尊

Genres: Drama, Romance, Tragedy, Xianxia, Yaoi

This translation is based on multiple MTLs and my own limited knowledge of Chinese characters. If I have made any egregious mistakes, please let me know.

Chapter Index

Chapter 18 - This Venerable One has Begged You Before

Tianwen has a deadly killing move. The name was very simple, just one word: "Wind". Once activated, no piece of armor in the surrounding area could withstand it.

Mo Ran was naturally acquainted with the power of "Wind". He also knew Chu Wanning's strength so there was no need to worry. He glanced at the pale man whose robe was dyed red with blood. He threw away the rest of his talismans to buy Chu Wanning some time, then flew away to the edge of the fight. He grabbed Shi Mei with one hand, Madam Chen with the other, and took two unconscious people, hiding a far distance away.

Chu Wanning endured the severe pain and reluctantly moved his other. Suddenly, Tianwen burst out with a dazzling golden light, and Chu Wanning violently jerked it back.

The Master of Ceremonies Ghost went berserk. It jumped up and rushed towards Chu Wanning with a distorted face.

Chu Wanning's robe waved like a flame in a violent wind, billowing and flying. His eyebrows were furious, half of his shoulders soaked in blood. He quickly raised his hand, Tianwen's golden light became more and more intense then it took off by Chu Wanning's flying spin.

The willow vine stretched for several tens of feet and whirled into a golden spiral. Like a whirlpool, it engulfed the surrounding ghosts, dead bodies, golden children, and the roaring and twisting Master of Ceremonies Ghost into the center of "Wind". The fierce image that was created by Tianwen was then shattered in an instant!!!

"Wind" smashed and destroyed. Not even the surrounding grass and trees, being ripped up from the ground, were spared.

The huge storm centered around Chu Wanning let out a dazzling golden light. The sky grew dark, covered by flying sand and rocks. Whether it was a coffin or the dead, they were like grass fluttering in the wind.

She was sucked in and was cut up by the rapidly spinning Tianwen.

Sliced into tens of thousands pieces of debris. . .

When everything calmed down, there was no grass around Chu Wanning, a desolate and empty wasteland.

Other than him standing alone in his bright, auspicious clothes that resembled a blooming red lotus and a begonia blossom, there was only a ground covered in crushed white bones, and the horrible hissing of Tianwen's golden light.

From this point of view, Chu Wanning did the world a favour pumping out so many disciples.

Based on his performance today, if he wanted to, even if every disciple on Life-Death Peak were defeated, it wasn't impossible for him to keep fighting. . .

The golden light faded away.

Tianwen turned into flickering dots like stars, blending into Chu Wanning's palm.

He breathed a deep breath and frowned. Enduring the sharp pain in his shoulder, he slowly walked towards his disciples in the distance.

"How's Shi Mei?"

Coming to their side, Chu Wanning pushed through and asked.

The ink burned down to look at the unconscious beauty in his arms. He still wasn't awake, his breathing was weak, and his cheeks felt cold to the touch. This scene was too familiar, it was a nightmare that Mo Ran couldn't get rid of.

As Shi Mei was lying in his arms like this, as time went on, he wasn't breathing anymore. . .

Chu Wanning placed his hands on Madam Chen's and Shi Mei's necks. He mumbled out: "Hmm? How could the poisoning be so deep?"

Mo Ran's head snapped up: "Poison? Didn't you say they were okay? Didn't you say that they were just being compelled?"

Chu Wanning frowned: "The Master of Ceremonies Ghost relied on the fragrance powder to compel them. That was a kind of poison. I thought it was only superficial, but I didn't expect the poison to be this severe."

". . ."

"Send them back to Chen's house first." Chu Wanning said, "It's not difficult to expel the poison. It's fine as long as they don't die."

His voice was cold and unwavering. Although Chu Wanning normally spoke like this, at this moment, it really made people feel like he was uncaring and downplaying things.

Mo Ran was brought back to that year of heavy snow. He was knelt in the snow and in his arms was Shi Mei whose life was slipping away. With tears on his face, he hoarsely begged Chu Wanning to turn his head, look at his disciple, and pleaded for him to raise his hand to save his disciple's life.

But what did Chu Wanning say back then?

It was also in such a light and calm tone of voice.

Just like that, rejecting Mo Ran the one time he knelt down and begged.

In the heavy snow, the person in his arms gradually became as cold as the snow falling on his shoulders and eyelashes.

That day, Chu Wanning killed two disciples with his own hands.

One was Shi Mingjing, who he could have saved but didn't.

One was Mo Weiyu, kneeling in the snow mourning the death of his heart.

There was a sudden panic in his heart, a brutality, a snake-like flow of resentment, rage and viciousness.

There was a moment when he suddenly wanted to rise up and strangle Chu Wanning. Wanted to shed his kind and pleasant disguise, revealing the hideousness of a malevolent ghost. Like a fierce ghost from a previous life, it viciously tore into him, questioning him and demanding his life.

He claimed the lives of the two helpless disciples in that snowfield.

But when his eyes flicked up, they suddenly fell on Chu Wanning's blood-covered shoulder.

The beast's anger was suddenly cut off.

He didn't say another word, just stared at Chu Wanning's face with poorly-masked hateful eyes. Chu Wanning didn't notice. After a while, he lowered his head again and stared at Shi Mei's haggard face.

His mind gradually went blank.

If something happened to Shi Mei this time, then. . .

"Cough cough cough!!"

The person in his arms abruptly coughed. Mo Ran was stunned and his heart trembled. . . Shi Mei slowly opened his eyes, and his voice was extremely hoarse and weak.

"A-. . . Ran. . .?"

"Yes! It's me!" In his ecstasy, the haze disappeared. Mo Ran's eyes widened. The palms of his hands were pressed against Shi Mei's cool cheeks, and his shining eyes trembled. "Shi Mei, how do you feel? Does anything hurt? "

Shi Mei smiled lightly, his eyebrows still. He turned his head, and looked around: ". . . How are we here. . . How did I faint. . . Ah! Shizun. . . cough cough, this disciple is incompetent. . . this disciple. . ."

"Don't talk," Chu Wanning said.

He gave Shi Mei a pill: "Since you're awake, take this poison dispersing pill. Don't swallow it right away."

Shi Mei took the medicine then was suddenly taken aback, his colourless face appearing even more transparent: "Shizun, how did you get hurt? You're covered in blood. . ."

Chu Wanning still had that faint, calm, irritating voice: "It's nothing."

He got up and glanced at Mo Ran.

"You, find a way to bring both of them back to the Chen's residence."

When Shi Mei woke up, the gloom that was deep in his heart suddenly vanished. He nodded quickly: "Okay!"

"I'll go first. I have something to ask the Chen family."

Chu Wanning said and turned to leave. Facing the vast darkness of the night, the fields covered in decay, he finally couldn't supress a twitch in his eyebrow, revealing a painful expression.

The entire shoulder was pierced by five fingers, the tendons and veins were torn apart, and the Master of Ceremonies Ghost's claws even pierced the bones deep in his flesh and blood. No matter how he pretended to endure it calmly, no matter how he tried to stave the bleeding, he was still be a human being.

It still hurt. . .

But so what if it hurts.

He walked forward one foot after another, the hem of the wedding dress flying around.

For so many years, people respected and feared him, but no one has dared stand by his side. No one cares about him. He has long been used to it.

Yuheng of the Night Sky, the Beidou Immortal.

No one liked him. No one cared whether he lived or died, whether he was sick or suffering.

He seemed to be born without the need for the support of others, no need to rely on anyone, no need for company.

So there was no need to shout out in pain, and crying was even more unnecessary. Just go and dress the wounds, cut off all the festering flesh around the tear and apply ointment on it.

It didn't matter if no one cared about him.

Anyway, that's how he came to be alone. He's survived all these years. He can take care of himself.

When he came to the door of the Chen residence, before he entered the courtyard, he heard an ear-piercing scream.

Chu Wanning didn't care about aggravating his wound and immediately rushed in - only to see the old lady Chen with a disheveled hair, her eyes closed, but chasing her son and husband all over the house, only ignoring the young daughter of the Chen family. She stood beside her in panic, huddled tightly, shaking.

Seeing Chu Wanning enter, Mr. Chen and his eldest son screamed and rushed towards him: "Dao Master! Dao Master, help!"

Chu Wanning held them back. He glanced at Madam Chen's closed eyes, and said angrily: "Didn't I tell you to watch her and keep her from falling asleep?!"

"I can't help it! My wife is unwell. She usually goes to bed early. After you left, she was still holding out at first, then she fell asleep, and then she started to go crazy! She started screaming. . . yelling. . ."

Mr. Chen shivered and ducked behind Chu Wanning. He didn't notice that he was actually wearing an auspicious outfit, nor did he notice the hideous wound on Chu Wanning's shoulder.

Chu Wanning frowned and said: "What was she yelling?"

Before Mr. Chen spoke, the mad woman rushed over with her teeth bared, screaming mournfully. It was actually the voice of a young woman—

"Spineless liar! Pathetically fickle! I want you to pay with your lives! I want you all to die!"

Chu Wanning: ". . . This evil spirit stoops low." He turned back and sternly shouted at Mr. Chen, "Does this voice sound familiar?"

Mr. Chen’s mouth was trembling. He rolled his eyes and swallowed nervously: “I don’t know, I don't recognize it, I don’t know! Please help! Please help!

Just then, Madam Chen rushed over. Chu Wanning raised his uninjured arm, pointing at the sky above Madam Chen, and a lightning bolt slammed down, trapping Madam Chen within a barrier.

Chu Wanning turned his head with an icy gaze: "You really don't know?"

Mr. Chen repeated: "I really don't know! I really don't know!"

Chu Wanning didn't say anything else. He whipped out Tianwen and bound old lady Chen in the barrier.

He should have tied up the rest of the family outside, it would be more convenient and easier to gauge the situation, but Chu Wanning had his own rules of conduct. It wasn't easy using Tianwen to interrogate abnormal individuals. So he abandoned the soft approach and instead questioned the ghost in Madam Chen's body.

Interrogating ghosts wasn't the same as interrogating people.

When Tianwen interrogated people, they couldn't fight it and would speak.

When Tianwen interrogated ghosts, it would form a boundary where only Chu Wanning and the ghost would exist. Ghosts would regain their original appearance in the boundary and pass on their message to Chu Wanning.

A flame ignited on Tianwen. It snaked along the vine, burning from his end straight to old lady Chen.

The old lady let out a scream, and suddenly began to twitch. The original scarlet flame on the willow vine instantly turned into a blue ghost fire and burned back to Chu Wanning's side.

Chu Wanning closed his eyes. The fire burned up the willow vine onto his palm, but the ghost fire couldn't hurt him. It just burned all the way along his arm, down his chest, and then went out.

". . ."

The Chen family looked at the scene in horror. They didn't know what Chu Wanning was doing.

Chu Wanning's eyelashes trembled lightly, his eyes still closed, but a white light gradually appeared in front of his eyes. Immediately afterwards, he saw a small, white, jade-like foot step out of the light, and a girl about seventeen or eighteen years old appeared in his field of vision.

Previous Chapter Next Chapter

[bronykacchan]

📂

i’m in a kariage/katsuki/yasushi mood so 👁👁👁👁

after the sludge villain incident, they both realize their feelings for katsuki, because he could’ve died. they could’ve lost him.

yasu goes to kariage and tells him that he thinks he likes katsuki. kariage also tells him he likes katsuki. they make a “truce” that they won’t try and “steal” him away from the other.

they start to hang out more, just the two of them, and soon develop feelings for each other too.

one night, they’re goofing around together at kariage’s house, both tipsy. kariage just looked at yasu who laughing his ass off at something. and in that moment kariage found him so pretty. he leaned over and kissed him. yasushi kissed him back.

when they both realized what they just did, they jumped away from each other.

“what the hell was that for?” yasu yelled.

“i don’t know! i looked at you and suddenly we were kissing!” kari hissed at him.

“what about katsuki, huh? we both like him.” yasu asked him.

“apparently we both like each other too!” kariage’s bluntness shut the both of them up immediately, both turning their heads away from each other, face burning.

“....what are we gonna do?” yasu asked after a few moments of awkward silence.

kariage sighed. “i have no idea.”

after that night, things got awkward between them. katsuki could tell something was up, and frankly was sick of the tenseness between them. so he decided to intervene.

“what the fuck is up with you two?” katsuki bluntly asked them, one day while they were all hanging out at katsuki’s house. “did something happen? you two are barely speaking to each other.”

kariage and yasushi’s eyes both widened and the looked at each other before quickly looking away again. “i have no idea what you’re talking about.” yasu said, staring at the game controller in his hand.

“bullshit.” katsuki says. he stands up and takes the controller out of his friends hands. “you two are talking this shit out right now or i swear to god-“

he plops down right onto kariage’s lap and grabs yasushi, dragging his head onto his own lap. “now talk. i’m staying here until you solve your bullshit.”

his two friends faces were as red as can be, yasu trying to bury his face into katsuki’s thighs while kariage did the same with his back.

katsuki let out a sigh, and brought his hand up to run it through yasushi’s hair. “.... we kissed.” kariage’s muffled voice came from behind.

katsuki froze. “was it consensual?” yasu and kari both nodded. “then why is it such a big deal? you two like each other right?” he felt another nod come from the two of them. “then just go out!”

“it’s not that easy.” yasu mumbled. katsuki looked down at his friend, who’s face was still hidden. “why? why is not that easy?”

“....because we like you too.”

everyone stopped. suddenly a burst of laughter came from the blonde. “that’s it? that’s what got you two all freaked out? jesus! you act like two middle school girls!” he said between laughs and giggles. “i like you too dumbasses.” he smiled at his two friends.

yasushi and kariage whipped their heads up to look at the blonde. “seriously?”

“i don’t say shit i don’t mean! of course i like you idiots! you think i’d do this shit with just anyone?” katsuki raised his eyebrows at them, gesturing to the obvious cuddling going on.

kariage and yasushi’s faces became bright red, while simultaneously looking a little constipated. katsuki started laughing at them again. “you two are so stupid oh my god!” he turned and kissed kariage’s cheek, then leaning down kissing yasushi’s cheek too before getting up off of them.

kariage made a strangled noise in the back of his throat while yasushi fell back onto the floor, looking like his brain was reloading.

“up and at ‘em idiots! i’m gonna beat your asses in some mario kart right now.” he tossed the controllers back over to where they sat.

wait, he’s gonna move on? just like that?, kariage thought to himself. “wait! what about us? are we all dating each other now?” kariage called, looking up at the bed where katsuki sat.

“obviously.” he snorted. “...unless, you’re uncomfortable with that and i read the situation wrong.” his cheeks pinkened and he looked down at the bed, playing with his fingers.

“no!” yasushi yelled. immediately getting embarrassed, he tried to cover up his eagerness with a cough. “i mean... no. you didnt read the situation wrong. i’m okay with us all dating.” he looked at kariage, who just hummed in agreement.

katsuki bit the insides of his cheeks to conceal his smile and looked back up at them. “good. now get your asses up here! i’m gonna demolish you.” he swung his own game controller in front of them.

kariage snorted. “not if i beat you first!” he jumped up onto the bed, lightly elbowing his boyfriend. holy shit. they’re boyfriends. he has two boyfriends.

“id like to see you try!” katsuki elbowed him back.

“10 dollars that kat wins.” yasushi calls, slowly making his way on the bed.

kariage gave an overdramatic gasp, looking completely offended. “excuse you! i’m great at mario kart!”

“kari, babe, i love you, but you’re absolutely atrocious at mario kart.” yasu pats his boyfriends head.

katsuki snorts. “yaoi hands is right! you suck!”

yasushi squawked at hearing that new nickname. “YAOI HANDS?!?!?!?”

kariage burst into laughter. “YAOI HANDS- THATS THE BEST ONE IVE HEARD SO FAR! KATSU YOU ABSOLUTE GENIUS!” he leaned over and kissed his temple.

katsuki turned red and giggled, while yasu sulked. “we’ve been dating for 5 minutes and you two are already ganging up on me.” he turned his back on his boyfriends, fake pouting.

katsuki grabbed the back of yasushi’s shirt, pulling him backwards, causing him to land right back into katsuki’s lap. “aww boo hoo.” he jokingly mocked, leaning down and kissing his forehead.

and that’s how the night went on. the three of them having fun, being teenagers, and finally together. katsuki is so happy. they’re all so, so happy. and they wouldn’t change a thing in the world

[liquorisce]

decisions, decisions pt 2

Fandom : Bleach 

Pairings : Ichihime (ft. some ichi x ishi bickering which we love around here)

Rating : T

Part 1

A/N: A few months ago I wrote a post-tybw-karakura-gang-finishes-high-school kinda thing called ‘decisions, decisions’  ft career choice discussions and orihime thinking of leaving town for uni. I wanted to write some more of that stuff and more ichihime pining obvs, so here it is. also i hate myself for not being able to participate in ichihimeweek2020, i suck, but anyway, ‘nuff with the nonsense, here’s the fic: 

(ps: pls be nice to me and like/reblog/comment or whatevs and tell me what u think, ily thx)

...

It’s five minutes to two, and Ichigo fought to stifle a yawn. The menacing five hundred pages of English grammar exercises in front of him wasn’t helping. 

“... Unbelievable,” he curses, slamming the book shut, much to the annoyance of his bespectacled classmate sitting across him. “Why the hell can’t they just teach us proper English in school?! I’m absolutely fucking positive that Honda-sensei didn’t mention more than three tenses in her class. And what kind of English lesson takes place in Japanese anyway?!” 

“... Quit your whining, Kurosaki. Some of us are trying to study here.” 

Ichigo fumed. By ‘some of us,’ Ishida was pointedly referring to just himself and the long-haired beauty sitting right opposite him, who, judging by her giggling at his outburst, welcomed his distraction. The same giggling that was contributing to the problem, contributing to Ichigo’s immense distraction since after dinner. 

“You’re not even human, Ishida,” he says dismissively. “Keigo’s literally made his bed on my dad’s couch, you can hear his goddamn snores, and Mizuiro left to ‘watch the stars’ with some new girl thirty minutes ago.” 

“You’re the one who invited us over to your place for an all-nighter group study session and you’re calling it quits before the sun is up? As expected, you’re weak.” 

He was right, this had been Ichigo’s idea, Yuzu had offered to make them dinner and his dad had plans tonight, so they were guaranteed some peace and quiet. Despite the noise and the chaos of their group, he missed hanging out with his friends. Ever since the school had given them voluntary study holidays for the upcoming University Entrance Exams, he didn’t get to see much of everyone, as they were either studying or training for competitions. Even today, Tatsuki and Chad left after dinner because they had to get up early for practice and they had decided they wouldn’t be giving the exams anyway. 

Ignoring Ishida’s pointed attempts to rile him up, he turns his attention to Orihime, who despite enjoying their banter, was more focused on the cram book in front of her.  

“Inoue, how are you still so motivated and so… awake?,” he asks, exasperated. “It’s almost 2 am! And you’ve been scribbling away furiously for the last thirty minutes. What are you even studying?”  

“Mouuu, you’re right. I’m not able to solve this proof anyway. Maybe I should call it a night?”

“Electromagnetism?” Ishida asks, skimming the title of the chapter, “Oh, I’ve done this one, I can explain this to you if you want.”  

He doesn’t know what irritates him more, Ishida’s nerdiness, or the soft look in his eyes as he unfailingly offers to help Orihime out, as he’d been doing a lot more of late, ever since they had started studying for the entrance exams together. In fact, it’d been this way this entire evening, starting from when he took a seat right next to her at the table as if he fucking belonged there, leaning over into her notebook, whenever she needed help, his arm casually brushing against her long, silken locks, her answering smile bright and incredibly close to him, and - Ichigo forces that thought to a halt because it has him gritting his teeth.  “... For God’s sake, give her a break,” - 

“... Shut up, Kurosaki, not everyone is applying to study *English* in University”- 

“And what exactly do you mean by that, asshole?” Ichigo snarls, with more venom than needed, because despite having had enough with Ishida’s condescending attitude towards his study choices, his recent behaviour had Ichigo prickling under his skin.  

“... Err, Kurosaki-kun…” Orihime starts, because she’s used to Ichigo and Ishida arguing (they’re just being affectionate, she always insists), there’s a glint in Ichigo’s eyes that’s different.

“... Exactly what I said, some of us don’t have the luxury of skipping the math and science exams,” - 

“Ah, Kurosaki-kun is right! I think my brain really can’t function anymore tonight,” Orihime declares loudly, inserting herself in between them. “Kurosaki-kun, I think I will leave now. Thank you so much for hosting us today.” She bows, her formality annoying him even more, but still throwing him off guard.

As always, Orihime’s pleasant demeanour diffused the rising tempers… somewhat. With one last glare, Ishida grudgingly agreed, “Then I guess I will take my leave as well.” 

Ichigo wants to be polite and say something like, “we should do this more often,” but he’s pissed off, and couldn’t wait to be rid of Ishida’s arrogant mug, so instead he offers, “Inoue, can I walk you home?” 

He doesn’t notice the faint red on her cheeks or the hesitation on her face, when she mumbles, “If it doesn’t inconvenience you.” And he’s torn again - tearing his eyes away from the pretty blush dusting her cheeks unable to stop himself from wondering bitterly if she’d let Ishida walk her home without much protest.

“Ishida lives in the other direction and it would be out of his way, so I don’t mind.” 

“Well then,” Ishida says, looking at her with more fondness than Ichigo would have liked, “Your eyes are all red and puffy. Sleep well. Don’t strain yourself, okay?”

“Yes sir,” she gives him the salute, “... good night!” 

“... And text me that you got home safe. This idiot can’t be trusted with anything,”- 

“... for fuck’s sake, just go home already!” 

“Kurosaki-kun,” she whispers, amused, as she watches Ishida walk away with a cheeky grin on his face, “you’ll wake the neighbours with your angry yelling.”

“Ah, you’re right,” he mumbles, rubbing his neck sheepishly, as their footsteps fall into place beside each other, “I’m sorry for all the swearing, I don’t know why I let Ishida under my skin so much.”   

“Hmmm,” she says, “It’s kind of cute, your bickering. If this were a yaoi novel, I’d totally ship it!” 

“... what the hell?!” His face is red, not just because the thought of him… and Ishida… Ew. But also because this is coming from Orihime, the last person he’d ever expect to engage in fantasies of this sort.

Giggling, she quickly switches to a more somber note. “You seemed... on edge today. Did something happen between the two of you?” 

He doesn’t know how to answer that question. Truth be told, he’s barely able to understand it himself. Sure, there was the usual trading of insults that took place between the two of them, but it was different this time. His whole demeanour just pissed him off. The way he always seemed to know what Orihime was asking, the way he was always able to help her, the familiar way he spoke to her… and the revelation that they’d been studying together for weeks now! 

“I don’t know,” he sighs, because he can’t even explain what he is feeling, let alone the reason behind it, “... I guess it’s just the stress of the exam.” 

“Ugh, tell me about it,” she whines, “I’m so thankful Ishida-kun is giving the same exams as me, and we can share practice questions and tips. I really wouldn’t be able to do this alone.” 

He ignores her mention of him and the tick in his jaw in reaction. “But I don’t get it. You’re giving almost all the exams. Why?!? There’s surely no need.” 

She blushes, ashamed, “I know it sounds stupid, but I really haven’t decided what I want to study in University. I figured if I just gave all of the exams, I would have more options to choose from.” 

“... Come on,” - 

“... And I will also prefer to go wherever I get a scholarship.”  

His fist clenches, “... So you’re definitely applying outside of Karakura?” 

“Yeah, although I’m not sure if there’s any point. It’s so difficult to aim for the National Universities, I’ll never get through. But the counselor says it’s worth a shot for the scholarship.”

“... I thought your aunt was helping you with tuition?” 

“... Only till high school. And I cannot burden her anymore. I’ve received so much from her already.” 

Ichigo doesn’t miss the way her voice wavers at the end, the guilt evident in her words. And he can’t stand it. “... Cheer up,” he says softly, playfully elbowing her. “You’re one of the smartest kids in school. Rank #2 after all the shit we went through last year! If anyone can do it you can.” 

“... You think so?” she mumbles, looking up at him, her insecurities heartbreaking in the grey of her eyes.  

Everything about her is so honest, it hurts him a little bit because his first thought is to say no, to talk her out of it, because the revelation is too sudden, too jarring - he can’t bear  the thought of this town without her. But he nods, smiles encouragingly, because that’s just way too selfish.

Shaking his head out of these thoughts, he asks, “... what was the counselor’s recommendation, again? As a career path?” 

“Ah, Hirata-san said maybe I should just follow my love for baking,” she says, smiling. 

“... and? Why don’t you consider that? You wouldn’t have to give these blasted exams then.” 

He liked the idea of this, now more than before, momentarily regretting his role in convincing her to apply to university. Orihime working in the local bakery, coming around his house everyday to share the leftovers, staying back for dinner maybe… 

“... but Kurosaki-kun was the one who said I wouldn’t be very good at it!” She pouts, “You said I’d make too many things in weird flavours and nobody would want to buy them.” 

Crap. He truly felt like waltzing back in time and whacking the past version of him for saying something like that.  Because if it were anyone else shitting all over Orihime’s dream, he’d have sent the punk flying. Where were all these feelings coming from anyway?! 

“... Shit, I didn’t mean,” - 

“... it’s okay, you’re right. And besides I can work there part-time through University. I was thinking…” She took a deep breath. “Well, actually, it was Ishida-kun’s idea. Maybe I could study to become a doctor? My strength is in healing people anyway…” 

Ichigo rolled his eyes. "Well of course, he'd say that. He's going to study medicine too." And of course he would try to talk Orihime into it. The bastard had taken every opportunity to slither by her side - 

She laughs, a pretty sound, interrupting the profanity in his mind. "Yeah, he did say it would be nice to have some company… but I'm not sure." Sighing, she asks, "How did you decide on English Studies?" 

It wasn't too difficult for him honestly. It helped that he was fairly certain he didn't want to study math or science going forward. "... I like stories. And I want to be able to read and share stories in a global medium, so I decided to study English." 

He looks at her only to find her looking at him in fascination, "... Truth be told, I didn't spend too much time thinking about it. The career aptitude test returned similar results as well, so I just went with it." He shrugs, "I think I'll enjoy it. Let's see." 

"Ahh, you sound so optimistic about your studies, Kurosaki-kun. I wish I could be like that." 

They've reached her apartment building now and she turns to look at him, wistfully. He wishes he could do something for her, ease her anxieties in some way. 

"What about you?" He asks. 

She looks at him, puzzled.  

"... You've told me all about what everyone wants you to do. What do you want to do? I'm sure you must have some inkling." 

“... I,” she stops, opens her mouth again to say something, but nothing comes out. “... what I want… ah, you’ll probably think it’s silly.” She smiles wistfully to herself, because this wasn’t something that she’d ever admitted out loud.

He rolls his eyes, “... Try me.” Because she was many things, and yes, definitely silly sometimes in that unique way of hers, but he would never, could never, call her dreams silly. It’s a moment of realization for him, when he gets angry with the way she dismisses her own dreams that way, and he feels overwhelmed with the desire to pick them up, and keep them safe where no one can trample them, along with that spaced-out, wistful smile of hers. 

“Well,” she gulps, nervous, “I’ve never really thought too much about going to university. Sensei says I’m wasting my potential... but honestly, I think I’ll be happy working.” 

She looks at him unsurely, waiting for a reaction, an opinion, like everyone else. Everyone who’d been urging her to continue school and pursue all kinds of studies that she could possibly do, but… “I just - I want to build a simple life with someone I love. A family, maybe, someday.” 

It comes out so fast, she wishes she could grab the words and shove them back in her mouth. She chances a glance at him, her cheeks hot and furiously embarrassed. 

His expression is unreadable as he gazes down at her. She’s beautiful in the moonlight, he thinks, and it isn’t really a revelation to him, but the melancholy of her beauty is, the loneliness that he wishes he could extinguish as easily as he does hollows. “A simple life huh…” he murmurs. And he can almost picture it, Orihime, ten years from now, a child in her arms, a little boy maybe, with her wide brown eyes and - 

“Well, looks like you have planned it out better than any of us,” he manages hoarsely, unable to look her in the eye anymore. Not with all these… feelings simmering so close to the surface. And before he can help himself, “Do you already know who this mystery man is?” 

He’s come to realize how absolutely unequipped he is to hear the answer, but her unassuming statement has already taken residence inside him somehow, a burning sensation accompanying it. 

 His question jolts her into consciousness, and she notices they’re almost at her apartment. “Ah Kurosaki-kun is very curious today,” she laughs nervously, “only one confession per day! That’s the limit!” The fake cheer in her voice grates in her own ears but she hopes desperately it will steer him away because she’s this close to telling him sometimes, and this was one of those times. Especially in these rare moments when she feels an odd mixture of weakness and greed, where she wants to latch on to him and ask him to stay by her side, hoping selfishly that his kindness will make him say yes. But Orihime was practiced at hiding those feelings away. 

 “Is that right,” he smiles teasingly, albeit weakly, “... I didn’t know you were so mysterious, Inoue. Well goodnight, then.” 

And as he watches her climb up the stairs to her floor, and then lean over the railings to wave goodbye one more time, he can’t help but think of that image of her again, happy and in love and so beautifully fulfilled. And he thinks of the shadow of the man next to her, who will protect that dream and that smile, and his stomach clenches bitterly. 

“You deserve it,” he whispers to her retreating figure, “... You deserve all of it.”

- fin - 

A/N : The ending was cheesy, I KNOW UGH

[wthzoe]

chapter 4 - you’ll get along

“you'll get along with a little prayer and a song”

series masterlist - here

previous | next

a/n: don’t you just love it when the lyrics and the content of the chapter i wrote don’t match at all. anyways, here’s the fourth chapter. i had to put off writing it because i’ve been drawing my own yaoi characters plus my uncle who’s a doctor collapsed at work just the other night :( anyways, enjoy!

-

The night you brought Takeo to the ER, Kuroo stayed with you. Even when you stayed until the next day. He insisted that he’d drive you home. Thank goodness, it was Saturday the next day. You remember the warm feeling in your chest as you watch him doze off in his seat while still securely holding Kazuo. You were attracted to him, to say the least. But you didn’t want to make a mistake by making any moves because you were sure he was just being nice the whole time you’ve known each other. You know, because you’re that dense.

The doctor gave you a green light to take him home but he must be under your supervision. The five of you went back to your respective homes, with Kuroo carrying both Kazuo and Masao while you carry Takeo. Upon arriving at your apartment, you feel fatigue wash over you but you couldn’t succumb as Takeo needed to be monitored.

So, there you were, sleepily watching over the triplets as they sleep, eyelids getting heavier as time passes. When the clock struck twelve, Masao and Kazuo were quietly playing with their toys, occasionally glancing worriedly at their brother. You debated whether you should cook or order food, afraid to leave your poor son alone. Just as you were about to pick up your phone to order you heard your doorbell ring. Your brows furrow in confusion, you weren’t expecting anyone.

You open the door to a smiling Kuroo holding up two bags of food in front of you. “I heard what the doctor said earlier so I figured you wouldn’t want to leave Takeo for a long time.”

“That’s so kind of you. Come on in.” He slips off his shoes then walk in, taking in the interior of your home. “I haven’t really had a chance to clean up so it’s kinda messy.”

“That’s fine. It’s cute. My apartment’s so empty.” Kuroo was looking around when he saw Kazuo and Masao peaking from inside their room, probably only vaguely recognizing him. He waved at them and showed them the food he brought.

“Do you want to eat?” The two boys’ eyes sparkled as they smiled widely and nodded yes.

“Um, Kuroo, may I ask you a favor?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Can you watch over Takeo in their room, I’ll take care of the food.” You took the bags from him then guided him towards the triplets’ room. “We’ll eat here. I’ll bring a table.”

He looked around the room painted in baby blue, the walls covered with various stickers and drawings while a portion of the floor was cluttered with toys. He looked at the baby pictures carefully placed on top of the dresser and then at Takeo. The poor boy still hasn’t woken up ever since they left the hospital. Kuroo sat next to the sleeping boy’s bed and adjusted the blankets.

Unbeknownst to him, you were standing by the door when he did do. You smiled warmly at how gentle he is towards the boy. When he spotted you from where you were standing you placed the small table you brought over.

“Let’s eat.” With that, you shared a nice meal together, almost like a family.

The following weeks had you changing the routine you’ve gotten used to. This time you could sleep at least 20 more minutes which you and the triplets really appreciated. Not only does Kuroo drive you to the daycare and to the university, but he also helps in preparing food and/or the triplets. On times he’s free after class, he offers to pick the boys up from daycare and watch over them as they wait for you to come home from work. He remembered the first time he picked up the boys, the teacher had mistaken him for their father and for some reason that made him happy. Aside from that, the two of you had gotten so much closer that you’re practically considered a member of Kuroo’s friend group, which only really consisted of Akaashi and Bokuto. Sometimes the two would even help Kuroo with babysitting because he was bad at it as ‘three against one is too cruel’ he said.

Tonight, the three watched over the boys as well. In return you planned on having them stay for dinner as usual. Dialing Kuroo’s number, you push the cart you randomly took from one of the aisles.

“Mama!” Kazuo answered.

“Oh, hi, baby! May I talk to Tetsu?” You heard shuffling from the other line which you could only assume that it’s Kazuo running over to Kuroo.

“What’s this? Mama? Okay, thank you, big boy.” The sound of Kazuo giggling then yelling Takeo’s name filled your ears before hearing Kuroo’s answer. “Yes, mama?”

You laughed then joked, “What would Papa and his friends want for dinner.”

“Oh? So, I’m Papa now?”

“I was kidding, Tetsu. So, what do you guys want for dinner?”

“Hold up. Hey, what do you guys want for dinner?” You were sure Akaashi suggested something but it was covered by Bokuto’s loud ‘Curry!’. “We just had curry the other night. How about hamburger?”

After a few seconds of silence Kuroo finally finalized the decision of having hamburger for dinner.

“Alright, I’ll just buy the ingredients we don’t have at home. See you later!”

After shopping, you came home to Bokuto, Akaashi and Kuroo each carrying one of the triplets and making them ‘fly’ like superheroes. You smiled to yourself as you watch your boys have fun before having your eyes unconsciously drift to Kuroo, taking in the sight of him genuinely smiling happily. He caught your gaze and you quickly looked away.

“Hi, boys. Having fun?” The triplets tried to break free from the three males grasp as soon as they heard your voice, yelling ‘Mama!’ in chorus. You kneeled down in front of them to give them a big hug and a forehead kiss each.

“Hi, mama. Do we get kisses, too?” Kuroo teased.

You rolled your eyes, “Shut up, Tetsu. Akaashi, can you help me cook?”

“Of course.”

Approximately half an hour later, dinner was served. You had to serve dinner in the living room as the seven of you couldn’t fit at the dining table. The boys chow down their food, excluding Akaashi who ate slowly while muttering something about having table manners. After eating, Bokuto (surprisingly) offered to wash the dishes, Akaashi and Kuroo were sitting on the couch, each holding Kazuo and Takeo while you carry a sleepy Masao. You gently bounce him up and down while humming a soft lullaby your mother used to sing to you.

Kuroo marveled at the sight of your motherly side. He’d already seen it plenty of times but it still doesn’t fail to make him fall deeper. He found it admirable how well you’re able to care for the boys even when you were tired from university and work. He tried to sneakily snap a picture of you but Akaashi caught him in the act.

“Shh.” Kuroo whispered to Akaashi whilst holding his index finger to his lips. He knew Akaashi wouldn’t snitch but he still did it just to make sure.

By the time the boys decided to head home, the triplets were already asleep. You quietly thank them for their help then apologize for not being able to walk them downstairs at least.

“We’ll stop by again next time to play!” Bokuto whisper-yells as they walk away. You nod then wave to them goodbye.

You turn to Kuroo who was also waving to his friends as they walk away. “Thank you again for today, Tetsu.”

“You’re very much welcome, (Y/N).” He said before pushing you back into your apartment. “I’d love to chat more but you look very tired already. Wash up and go straight to sleep. Oh, but don’t forget to lock your doors.”

“Sheesh, okay, Mom.” You laugh. “Goodnight, Kuroo.”

“Goodnight, (Y/N).”

[capnudols]

Feelings! (Tsukishima x Reader)

Summary: You are the bestfriend of  Tsukishima and they just lost their game against Aobajohsai. You went to his house to comfort him.

Warning: Sex, Yaoi content.

This is only a fan fic with my own twist of Tsukishima’s childhood.

A/n: First time making a yaoi story so please bear with this hahaha.

Tsukki and me ,Y/n, are bestfriends since middle school, he gave me the inspiration to play volleyball, we were like brothers. He is not just my friend but he has a special place in me.

After losing the game with Aobajohsai, I went to his place to cheer him up. As i was outside his house I saw him by the window of his room but he took off immedietly.

“Tsukki! I saw you!” I yelled but he didnt responded.

I already know where the backup key for his house is so I raised the pot and saw the key. I went inside his home and said.

“Tsukki I went inside, okay?” 

Still no response.

I brought some beers to help him feel better. As i was passing by his living room, flashbacks appearedin my head. 

“We played together here when we were still kids. I really miss those days.”

I went upstairs to Tsukki’s room. I knocked and went in.

“Excuse me.” I said.

I looked around and i was amazed, his room is really tidy. I expected this because I know Tsukki don’t like unarranged things around him, but still, wow.

I looked for him and he’s laying down on his bed.

“Tsukki, i brought some beers...” 

‘Well knowing Tsukki, he wont drink if there isn’t an occas-’ I told myself but stopped.

Tsukki sat and grab two beers, he opened both and lend me the other.

“Th-thank you tsukki.” I stuttered

I haven’t seen Tsukki this willing to drink, maybe I’m seeing a new Tsukki right now. I smiled and drank with him.

There was a total of 5 beers, i drank 2 and he drank 3. 

I looked at Tsukki and he looks drunk, he is half alseep. Well i guess it is better to let him just sleep.

I layed tsukki on his bed and looked at him.

‘This is a sight you don’t see everyday.’

He looks so innocent like a baby and i saw his lips. I wanted to touch his lips because it looks so fresh and bouncy??

I went over to his head and slowly putting my pointy finger to his lips. As my finger was getting closer and closer to his lips, he tilted his head while he was looking at me. He grabbed my hands and turned, swapping our places. I was layiong on the bed and he was above me. 

“T-tsukki what are you doing.” I stuttered.

I can feel my face going red so i looked away. 

He slowly went up my ear,

“Me? What are you doing?” he whispered in a cold voice like he was teasing me.

I got goosebumps after he said that with a feeling that i haven’t felt before. He went down going to the side of my neck and started kissing it.

“Tsukishima, your drunk so please go back to sleep or I’ll.” I said to him.

He looked up to me

“Or you’ll what?” he smiled while giving me a look i haven’t seen on his face before.

He went up to my face and slowly, slowly going near and didnt noticed that our lips touched.

He kissed me so i kissed back, and after a while our kisses became intense. He then removed my shirt and he was touching me on my chest.

He stood up with his knees still on the bed and removed his shirt. 

I can’t control myself due to the weird feeling i felt, so while he was removing his shirt i was putting my hands on his waist going to his abs.

He threw his shirt away and went back to kissing me.

He went down from my face to my stomach area while kissing my body. As he was near my pants he removed the belt, unzipped my zipper and slowly removing my pants.

He stood up and removed his short pants and underwear and he turned me laying on my chest. 

After that I don’t remembering what happened. I woke up at midnight and saw tsukki beside me, sound asleep. 

I can’t hold my feelings toward him anymore so i kissed him and went back to sleep.

@oikaw-ugh

[princessamericachavez]

Since we have a week off, is there a chance you could do a top 10 Fjorester moments so far?

OH HEY THIS SOUNDS LIKE FUN YES LET’S DO IT

10. “Did you just say I’ve been with your mom?!”

This whole sequence is hilarious. Jester is clearly annoyed that this woman is hitting on Fjord (as he tries to hire company for Kiri iirc) and tries to use her mom as leverage which clearly doesn’t work but...

what really gets me is how appalled Fjord sounds. It’s not “The Ruby of the Seas” it’s not “a famous courtesan” it’s not “a big score for a sailor like me” nope nope in his head this is “Jester’s mom” and given the flirty nature of their relationship he’s clearly Not Happy with the suggestion and Idk why but the way his voice becomes high-pitched with panic is just amazing and it was one of the first moments when my brain went PING he has a crush PING

9. Turning into water

Objectively, everything about that scene was hilarious. Fjord’s tired sigh, “nope, but thank you for that terrifying thought” was so funny and bantery... but what really gets me about this scene is how honestly worried about him Jester is at the beginning, just as he wakes up, and how later she tries to lighten the air between them with a joke...

And you can tell that it works because, despite Fjord’s initial discomfort, he turns it around and he gives her a wink and a smooth line and Jester just MELTS and it really just encapsulates so much about their friendship and dynamic and this was like episode 4 or smth

8. Post-Plank King talk

So this scene is pretty good already as a vulnerable and honest talk between them but also I like it for a few particular reasons. Firstly, the context. During the pirate arc, Fjord and Jester had some issues mostly because of Avantika, and Jester was starting to second-guess just how well she knew Fjord and he was pulling back from everyone under the pressures of leading... so to see her seek him out and just ask if he’s okay and how he is feeling was a wonderful thing for both of them. Also, I love how Fjord chose to open up to her about his conflicted feelings towards Vandran and how the whole thing hurt him. It’s just SO RARE to see him be this honest about his insecurities, and it really goes to show how much he trusts Jester. I also like that she mentions the accent thing. For us, as an audience, it’s pretty indicative that the person Jester thought she knew, actually is the real Fjord. That she has known him the best from the start and kept his secrets for him because they trust each other so much.

I also love the ending so so so much? Jester mentioning his growing tusks was such a soft little thing, and Fjord in turn acknowledging how much she supports him and thanking her for keeping his secrets was so sweet.

Plus, how to forget that perfect romcom ending where they both awkwardly pretend they have something else to do? PEAK SLOW BURN ROMANCE I TELL YOU.

7. Wursh

So this is two separate things, technically. First, their first meeting and Jester obviously noticing Fjord’s discomfort and insecurities and rushing to try to cheer him up after the talk. Jester is super perceptive, and she knows Fjord better than anyone, so I really appreciate that she didn’t just notice, she went out of her way to try to address it with him.

Also, though, the second time when she low-key threatens Wursh and makes sure he’s being nice to Fjord feels my heart with joy. Anyone who thinks Jester’s feelings for Fjord are shallow or performative is missing the point that she’s doing these things in private. He has no idea. She’s doing this out of love and selflessness, just checking in on him and making sure that he’s not going to be hurt by anyone else. And the way she TALKS about him, how gentle she sounds when talking about his insecurities and how she tells wursh that she knows he has a good heart I just- dfljañdlfja

6. Meeting the Ruby

I love so many things about this meeting omg. Firstly, that after watching Marion Lavorre aka the most famed and hot and expensive performer and courtesan in the Coast —at least— Fjord’s first reaction is “Hey, Jester, would you like to do that?” Like he has full faith she totally could do that and even when she voices certain self-doubts and Beau reassures her that she’s pretty and graceful, his contribution is “your singing voice is nice” as if the only thing that could stop Jester from reaching those heights was singing because she’s beautiful to his eyes.

Further proof? This boy, meeting the Ruby of the Seas, again, most beautiful and sensual woman, and his reaction is “I see where Jester got her good looks from” like, damn son, slow down! And Marion, bless her, all flirty but also perceptive being like “i can see you care about my daughter, do you watch over her?” and nearly making him break down right there, like Marion is part of the We Been Knew club.

And AFTER though, Fjord who has all this issues with family and who longs to find them but also dreads it, watching Jester (right after Caleb pointed out that her cheerfulness is an act) and making a point to ASK if she’s okay, “how are you feeling? do you want to have a drink? a walk? a talk?” this boy always going out of his way to make sure she feels okay and making sure they fix whatever is troubling her it’s just peak soft

5.The Tree Dive

Okay so what can I say about this that i haven’t yelled about yet? Travis “No Romance” Willingham giving ups PEAK ROMCOM DRAMATIC MOMENTS that take our breath away? Check. Fjord who just recently had an epiphany as to HOW MUCH Jester means to him and how her unwavering support is the one thing he can lean on, freaking LEAPING after her when she falls off the tree? The fact that there were ZERO seconds of hesitation between her falling and his jump? Feather fall giving them one quiet floaty yaoi moment where they hold hand and look at each other right before he booms them back up? How about Jester’s shocked and scared “Fjord, you-“ once they are back up, like she just CAN’T BELIEVE what he did for her?? AND THEN THE BOY USES HIS LAST SPELLSLOT JUST TO GIVE HER A BOOST WHEN SHE STARTS TO PANIC?!

IT’S FINE IT’S FINE I DIDN’T NEED MY HEART ANYWAY

4. The Second Temple

This one is, like, especially interesting when you consider the context, right? Like, it’s right after the blue dragon fight and Fjord just spent the whole past day trying to patch things up with Jester while she pulls away… and then they are here and he’s ready to go through with this and Jester is just SO SCARED FOR HIM. She doesn’t want to leave him behind, and he KNOWS that.

The way she just sits down to talk to her god, her best friend in the world, and ask him to look after him for her just MELTS MY HEART. And you can see it melts Fjord’s too. I mean, here is a boy who grew up all alone, with no one to help him or stand up for him, who deeply believes that no one in the world would possibly care about his problems, and then there’s this girl who is so worried about him, literally praying for him. And like, just the moment when he sits next to her and he’s so soft and touched by her worry. “Jester, it’s alright. You don’t have to tell me. I appreciate the sentiment.” THIS IS PRETTY MUCH A STAR WARS CLASSIC “I KNOW” OKAY??’  and her quiet “i really hope he does help you” “me too”

*banging pots and pans* TRAVELER SHOW TF UP FOR YOUR GIRL AND HELP FJORD OKAY WILD MAMA BEAT U TO IT BUT YOU GOTTA STEP UP

And the last part is just so cute, like, “just, don’t turn evil to me?” “Or anyone else? just you” listen listen listen if we ever talk dark au’s this is basically the foundation, “fuck the world but i can’t lose you”

3. Tusk Talk

There’s so much to appreciate about this talk, especially with Fjord being so open and vulnerable about his past, but I’m super soft about how Jester chooses to reassure him. “I think you would look good either way, Fjord” because she likes him and not just about his body, it’s about who he IS. And you can tell how much her opinion matters to him by the way he hyper focus on Jester after that comment. Everyone else keeps talking and he’s just like “you’re saying I should grow them back?” and she just reassures him again that it doesn’t matter to her.

And he does something that is still so impactful to the narrative about 50 episodes later: he gives her control, he trusts her enough to overwatch him getting over his worst childhood trauma, and in that moment he makes himself vulnerable in a way he never has before. And she takes that trust and honors it, and she comments on his tusks now and then, she makes them a mark of pride in her tattoos, she reassures him whenever those insecurities resurface. It’s such a meaningful thing that he has chosen to share with her, I don’t think I’ll ever be over it.

2. Underwater Kiss

Again, what can I say that I haven’t yelled about before? Fjord, who just tried to drown Avantika btw, sees Jester drowning right before of him and this protective self-sacrificial boy just grabs her by the face and KISSES HER. Travis used those words exactly, hell he specifically referenced The Shape of Water. And then he gives her all of his air. HE JUST DOES THAT.

He could’ve done so many other things?! Taken the key from her? Pulled her to the entrance with his double swimming speed? AND INSTEAD HE DID THAT

AND THEY HAVEN’T FREAKING TALKED ABOUT IT

ALSO JESTER’S FIRST KISS??? AND HOW JUST ROMANTIC AND AESTHETIC AND EXCITING IT IS?

when i tell you my heart can’t take it

1. Jellyfish Talk

Of course, of course, this is the TOP Forester moment. I mean. How could it not be? The romantic light, the heart to heart, Jester first and foremost checking on how Fjord is feeling with his mission and then carefully bringing up her negative feelings, for the first time, willingly, because she trusts him so much. And Fjord, who just had Caleb open his eyes about Jester hiding her emotions, being so tentative around her, so careful. Fjord being vulnerable too, opening up about his own negative emotions, give and take, so that she will feel better opening up. Fjord being so soft and reassuring for her, coming up with crazy plans to make her laugh and cheer her up. THE SOFTNESS with which he says “Don’t be sad. Your mama is pretty proud of you, that much is clear.” He’s so gentleeeee

And listen listen listen this moment is also key because of how much it affected what came next. Like, Avantika comes and muddles everything up, but this talk lingers between them as a moment of sincerity before all the lies, and then, as soon as they move on from this hell, Fjord’s main priority is getting Jester back to her mom, making sure Jester is okay, trying to return to that point. It takes them a while, of course, but you can tell this moment is a strong foundation for them to find their way back to each other.

Because in this moment, in the ship surrounded by beauty, they saw each other without masks.

[melon-cosplays]

The smallest things, The biggest conciquinces

Bakushima/ Kiribaku. Boyxboy (Yaoi)

TW- SELF HARM

Angst to Fluff

“You should work on your mental strategy. You’re strong like physically but really weak mentally, ya know?” Said bakugou, trying to give his boyfriend good advice but sadly, advice wasn’t really his forte.

Does he mean i’m weak? Thought Kiri, a thousand thoughts rushing into his head, causing him to tear up. He looked away in embarrassment. He started to cry.

“Are you laughing?” smiled bakugou.

He gently turned Ejirou around to see his tearful face. His smile quickly faded as a thousand thoughts rushed through his head. He felt so guilty. He wrapped his arms around Kirishima but he was pushed off.

“You think i’m... w-weak?” cried Eji

“No no no that’s not what i-“ Katsuki was cut off by Ejirou running out of the room, head in his hands and slamming the dorm door.

30 minutes later

Bakugou was so worried. Kirishima got upset very easily and it was easy for him to... slip back into bad habits.

“Kiri!” yelled Mina

“Ejirou?!” shouted Denki

“Kirishima!!!” cried Hanta

They all began searching for him. They looked around town until Kat decided to head back to the dorms and check there again.

Back at the dorms, Katsuki heard small sniffling noises coming from the men’s bathrooms. He quickly went inside to see his boyfriend sat on the floor, a small trail of blood dripping from his wrist and a small cut. His face was covered in tears. Bakugou began to cry heavily. Even Kirishima had never seen him this worked up.

“I- I’m gonna go g-get recovery girl... wait here.” Bakugou sniffled. Before he left, Eji grabbed his hand and twirled him around.

“I’m so sorry. I hate this. I will get back to my therapist and sort this out. i promise,” smiled the redhead, a waterfall still coming down his cheeks, “I love you.”

“I-I love you too. I’ll be back in one minute.” said bakugou, a tiny smiling forming.

I’ve been going to therapy again for a while now. Me and Bakugou are still dating of course so I went over and knocked on his dorm’s door.

“Kat, are you still up for movie night?”

“Always.” Bakugou smiled, walking out of his dorm room and hugging me tightly. We lay there watching The Lion King on replay and cuddling for hours. I’m pretty sure by the end of the night we knew the whole script! Sure my life is crazy but deep down, I know that I’m very lucky to be where I am today. I’m so great full for everyone.

Hey! Remember that you are loved, valued and supported. Stay strong and keep fighting. You can get through this chapter of your life and soon enough, you will find happiness... maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow but soon! Stay safe ~Melon 🖤

PS. yeah ik this is really bad but... that’s all i wanted to say 😂

[socallmelusopp]

I’ll Like You For Always

Pairing(s): None so far.

Genre(s)/ Warnings: Family, Angst, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy. Character Death. Yaoi in later chapters. More to come.

Words: 1668

Summary: “Can I be Max this time?” The small child asked, clutching the rubber man close to his chest. His father smiled down at the book and continued on. “And Usopp, the king of all wild things, was lonely and wanted to be where someone loved him best of all.”

Or the Usopp-centric Toy story AU we were all secretly waiting for.

(an): Inspired by a post from @filettillyoudrop, followed by a Godly idea from @usolu, which was then followed by a gushing art by @filettillyoudrop. And this is where I come in!! Hi! Also, see the end for a sneak peek of the next chapter to come.

Prologue

August 15, 2003

Mauritius, Southeast Africa

On the morning that Usopp’s mother was scheduled to die, a tall scrawny man with yellow hair waddled past his home. He always supposed that if all the gazillion people in the world wanted to hear about his small life, the first thing they’d want to know is where he was born. And what his lousy childhood was like, and how his parents were occupied before they had him, and all the boring things just to hear him talk. Talk. If they wanted to know the truth, he didn’t feel it.

“Usopp, you ready, bud?” But the child’s door is opened before he’s given free rein to answer. The man with the long yellow hair - daddy - stands in the doorway, his brown eyes staring down his son. Behind him, Usopp can see creatures cloaked in dark attire swanning what was once mama’s living room and not just the living room. Their skin varies, dark and light, pale and dead. They smell of human flesh and they stand at empowering heights, almost as tall as the m - daddy.

And despite this, the boy nods slowly. One, two, three times his chin rises and dips. He stands just as slow as well, his heart pounding with every inch he’s off the floor. There, with the swanning monsters. He has to go in there.

Daddy grabs hold of his hand and attempts to pull him out of the lonely room. It’s a tug that he wasn’t suspecting as he looks back at the four-year-old’s arm in mild disbelief. Arms aren’t supposed to fight back. He pulls again, gentle and cautiously. And yet, this one does. The boy can imagine how horrifying it must feel to his daddy. To be a big strong person and then to have it all knocked away by a skinny brown arm that had stitches from a ‘misguided’ rock jump. The arm keeps fighting back and Usopp thanks it graciously.

“Usopp. We’ll be late. Don’t you want to see mommy?”

The boy shakes his head. He can’t do it. He lied. He’s not ready at all. Those monsters will gobble him up. “I’m scared.”

“You’re scared of seeing mommy?” His daddy says nothing more after but continues to stare at him. He’s wearing a big question mark on his head, but the boy can’t find an answer.

“Don’t wanna go,” he tries again. “Scared. I-I-I want my mommy.”

A moment passes between them; father and son who have just met again under very bad circumstances; brown pouring into brown; the confused and afraid. And then the moment settles as Yasopp crouches down to his son’s height. He grabs the boy by the shoulders and Usopp cowers even more under the calloused grip. To him, daddy is a big strong man, clearly unafraid of these monsters. He wants to be like him...but...the boy’s lip trembles. He just can’t.

“Do you know that you are very strong?” He whispers it in kind, but he feels clumsy and awkward. He doesn’t know how to tell a four-year-old not to be afraid. He’s not good at being a father and he had hoped that throughout Usopp’s life, Banchina would be; so that he would never have to go through something like this. He’s just 21, holding the shoulders of an accident when they were stupid kids.

And despite this awkward and clumsy feeling, Usopp stares in confusion and wonder. No one’s ever said that to him. Mama did, but mama was a liar: she only said things to make him feel better. “I am?”

Yasopp blinks at him as if he wasn’t expecting the follow-up. He damn sure has an answer, though. This is easy, he thinks. “Of course you are. You helped mama all by yourself and made her happy. And even when she left, you stayed strong.”

Usopp looks down at the floor shyly, a blush dusting his cheeks like watercolor. “I did?” He whispers. And then he looks up in wonder, all those things coming back to him like a big wave. “I did!” Yasopp grimaces softly at the yell. Because fuck, he’s so loud and cute and determined. This little thing, this kid is half him. “Of course I did, I’m a good leader. I have to be strong.” Yup, half him.

“But Usopp…” at the call, the boy’s fist of determination lowers and he stares openly. “I need you to be even stronger. I need you to do something for me.”

The boy’s eyes widened. “Like..like a mission?” Yasopp nods. And then Usopp gasps and covers his mouth. Discreetly, the boy looks around, his suspicion aroused. “Are we spies?” He whispers. The imagination on this kid is tremendous, no doubt stemmed from Banchina, the young adventurous girl that would dream of everything.

Again, he nods. “I need you to infiltrate-“

“What does influ-tate mean?”

Yasopp smiles awkwardly. Right, four. “I need you to enter the living room and remain as invisible as possible. If no one notices you, they can’t bother you. Only then will we be able to get to mommy.”

“Go into the living room?” Usopp asks, his nerves coming back tenfold. It’s the wave again, but this time he’s stranded in water with no boat or paddle. He looks behind his father again, out the door. The monsters ...they've been replaced. Their horns and sharp teeth went away and in their place stand humans. Humans of all colors; dark and light, chocolate and bright. They’re as tall as daddy, but that’s okay. Because adults are supposed to be tall. He stares back. “Okay.” He nods and says it again. This time stronger. “Okay.”

Yasopp goes to stand and is about to walk out of the room when he’s tugged. When he looks back, the boy has his hand raised. “You have to hold my hand though.”

Yasopp nods and firmly grabs hold of the small limb and together, hand in hand, they enter the swanning nest of monsters.

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

Yasopp can’t stop watching the way his son’s legs swing beneath his seat, light in the air despite the heavy atmosphere of sadness around them. The child is nervous, no doubt, confused about what’s real and what isn’t.

On their way to the funeral home, he had talked to his son about what it would mean when they put his mommy in the ‘dark scary hole in the ground.’ In the four years that she had him, Banchina never told the kid about death or loss, despite being a doctor. Even when she became terminally ill herself, she never explained to Usopp what never seeing someone again meant.

And in the week it had taken him to travel to southern Africa, none of the caretakers had explained to him either. In that week, he supposed his son had been lost; confused and betrayed. Why wasn’t mommy coming to see him? Why did he have to stay with the hospital’s home of orphaned children? Orphans were children without parents and Usopp could swear he wasn’t an orphan.

And then someone did come to get him, but it wasn’t his mother. It was a man that looked just like him. It was his other parent. One he hadn’t seen since he was three days old. Confused, betrayed, lost.

“What’dya mean we won’t see mommy ever again?” the boy laughed sheepishly. “She’s on a trip right. She does that sometimes. Sometimes, she has to cure an old person in a whole nother city. But she always comes back.”

Yasopp grimaces. He supposes it was karma that he would have to teach the boy about something so grim. It’s a way to get back at him for leaving her and thinking that she could handle a young boy all by herself.

“Dead? Why does everybody say that?”

And then he told him exactly what dead meant.

The child’s eyes grow watery and no matter how hard he rubs them, the tears keep coming. The wave keeps coming. “But she’s joking, right? Mommy does that a lot. She’s a liar...like me. She’ll stop, right? Right?”

“We meet here today to honor and pay tribute to the life of Banchina Kenway, and to express our love and admiration for her. It is only natural that we should be sad today because, in a practical sense, Dr. Banchina is no longer a part of our lives.” Usopp whimpers beside him. Soon, he’ll have to stand and kiss his mother’s head and then watch her get lowered and covered in dirt. And Yasopp knows that’s what he’s dreading; not the ceremony, but the goodbye. “However, today is also a day for memories. Today will be remembered for many reasons, but mainly, I hope, it will be remembered by you all; as a very special day, a special day in which you shared some time with others; in order to pay your last respects; and to say both mentally and physically a sad and fond farewell to a lovely woman…. A woman whom we were all so very privileged to have known. Born in Wales….”

When the time does come, Yasopp doesn’t think his son has it in him. When the boy stands, there’s snot beneath his nose and tears all over his face. His knees are shaking and his teeth are shattering. With a heavy frown, the man grabs the boy’s hand and leads him forward. Usopp doesn’t tug, pull, or protest. Despite being scared shitless, the boy has courage.

They stop by the casket and Yasopp bites at his lip. Banchina looks just like she did years ago when she’d come to Mauritius. Young and pretty and angelic. She was….gone. His stupor is broken when Usopp stands on the tip of his toes and kisses his mother’s cheek, wetting her dead face. He sniffs loudly and cowers back. “B-bye, mommy. I love you. A lot. A lot a lot.”

Yasopp wonders if it’s possible a human can shrink from existence entirely.

AN: So this is totally the AU I said I was going to write. And it’s definitely going to feature a few of our Strawhats as toys for Usopp (especially cowboy Luffy). However, all stories need a plot and I decided I should focus on Usopp as he grows, not only with the toys but what he’s going to face from here on. The kid just lost his mother and now he has to live with a father he barely knows. I hope you guys are excited as I am. I’m going to try my best to post weekly as I am currently working on other fics right now. I just love this AU

Next Chapter: The Sheriff and The Forgotten Samurai

Sneak Peek: At the harsh sound, Usopp lifts his shirt and stares at his brown tummy, and Yasopp notes that his son has an outie belly button that looks like an earplug. The boy looks up sheepishly, his cheeks dusty and flushed. “My tummy growls sometimes. It’s like a cloud... getting mad.” The men stare at the four-year-old in silence. And then Shanks bursts into a fit of laughter. To Usopp, it’s angrier than the cloud in his stomach can ever be, loud and gushing with wind and lightning. The boy blushes and decides that Shanks is cool.

[dawnbutterfly]

Pariah

Let’s start off with a classic, and one that I actually finished: The “how I would have done it” scenario.

This one is named “Pariah”, and takes place in an alternate timeline where my character is present for the events of Tweek X Craig, and decides to intervene like the nosey little brat they are. Hope you enjoy.

“Hey Tweek, hold up!” Tweek stopped, as per the plan, as Craig called out to him, turning to face him. “Listen, it's just not going to work.” Craig said, his voice dripping with bad acting. “What!? Why not!?” Tweek asked anxiously. “I'm sorry Tweek, but we can't lie to ourselves anymore.” Craig said, dramatically moving his arms. He turned to face the accumulating crowd. “Yes, we are gay, but we do not belong together.” “We don't belong together? W-What's suddenly changed, Craig?” Tweek asked. “It's just that people are different, that's all.” Craig said. Tweek's eyes shifted. “Uhuh, and who the hell is Michael, huh? You wanna tell me that!?” He asked angrily. Confusion played across Craig's face at Tweek's sudden improvisation. “Wha-What are you talking about?” He stammered. “I went through your phone when we went out last night, Craig! I saw your texts to Michael about hooking up with him!” Tweek said. By that time, Grant had joined the crowd. “Uh oh...” He mumbled to himself. He had quickly put together what they were planning, but Tweek was getting caught up in the moment. He knew that at this point it would end badly for both of them in the long run without some kind of intervention. He quickly tried to think of something that he could do. “Wait. Uh, that-that's not what happened.” Craig said, off balance. “Oh, it's not!?” Tweek shot back. “No!” Craig said definitively. “L-Look, we both know this is for the better.” He said, still stilted. “Oh, don't use that lame shit on me, man!” Tweek said indignantly. “You don't wanna feel bad, so you try and tell me what I want!?” “Tweek, don't make me out to be the bad guy here.” Craig said, subtly pleading that Tweek tone it down. Tweek summoned up tears in his eyes. “No, you're not the bad guy. You're never the bad guy, are you!?” He said accusingly. “You-you just step on people, and you use them!” “You're going too far, dude. This is, like, totally not necessary.” Craig said, still trying to talk Tweek down. Tweek turned to face away from Craig. “I'm going too far!?” Tweek asked. He turned back to Craig dramatically. “What is wrong with you!?” He shouted. Craig's eyes finally showed anger. “This wasn't part of the plan!” He said. “Well guess what, Craig! Love doesn't follow a plan!” Tweek retorted. “Yeah!” Butters yelled from the crowd. Grant could see it was ending, and he became flustered. He didn't know how to defuse the situation without outing it as a farce. All he could think was to introduce a new factor to change the focus. He desperately hoped that he knew humans as well as he thought he did… “I was totally wrong about you…” Tweek said sadly, tears still in his eyes. “I opened myself up, and let you in, but you've got spikes, man. You've got spikes…” “That's enough!” Grant shouted, putting on his best distressed voice. All eyes suddenly fell on him, even Tweek looking surprised. “I can't do this, I just can't! I sent those texts!” Everyone looked shocked. “What?” Craig asked, still totally caught off-guard by all of the improv. “Your name is Michael?” Kyle asked. “No, that's a fake name I used!” Grant said. He looked Tweek dead in the eyes, begging him to play along. “Why would you do that!?” Tweek shouted. He either took the meaning in Grant's eyes, or was still so caught up in the moment that he simply rolled with it. “I…” Grant stammered. “I wanted to break you two up! I couldn't stand seeing you together!” “Wow, New Kid. I never took you for a homophobe…” Stan said. “I'm not!” Grant pleaded. “Then why!?” Tweek shouted. “Because if he was dating you, then I… then I couldn't…” He stopped dramatically, biting his lip. Everyone stared at him in disbelief. “I made up 'Michael' and started hitting on Craig over social media.” He said. “He didn't want to, but it's so easy for me to convince…” He covered his face with his hands. “Oh god, what have I done!? I screwed everything up, and I hurt you!” He shouted through his fingers. “What kind of manipulative monster am I!?” He removed his hands from his face, tears stuck to his cheeks. “I'm so sorry!” He shouted, turning and running down the hall. Everyone stood in shock for a moment. Craig finally organized his thoughts, and took the opportunity that was presented to him. “I'm so sorry, Tweek. I let him get inside my head.” He said, drawing everyone's attention again. “Can you ever forgive me?” Tweek looked back to Craig, tears still in his eyes, partially due to Grant's performance. “I… I don't know…” He said in an unsure tone. “But you were right about one thing… this isn't going to work…” Tweek turned away. “We're through…” He said, walking away. Craig watched after him for a moment, then looked down at the floor and walked in the opposite direction. Everyone else stood stunned. Emotions, betrayal, a love triangle. It was all so overwhelming, they didn't know what to feel, or who to feel it about. As soon as Tweek was out of sight, he got a determined look on his face, and ran off towards where Grant had run to. ⁂ “Why would you do that!? Are you insane!?” Tweek whispered loudly. He had managed to find Grant. Craig had had the same idea, and they both dragged him into a supply closet so they could talk without being seen. “Because you got caught up in the moment, and you were going to turn Craig into a pariah.” Grant said plainly. “What's a pariah?” Craig asked. “Social outcast. Hated person. Object of scorn. Take your pick.” Grant said. “Ok, but why would you put yourself in that position instead?” Tweek asked. “It was going to end badly for you both. I couldn't just watch as my friends got screwed.” He said. “If I'm right about people, and I usually am, this whole thing will be set up perfectly.” “What do you mean?” Craig asked. “The way I've set it up, I've created a tragic love triangle. Tweek is the innocent one, I'm the treacherous awful one, and Craig is the one caught in the middle, who had his feelings toyed with.” Grant explained. “It leaves our options open, and takes the heat off of Craig.” “But it puts it onto you.” Tweek said. “That's-” “Way too much pressure?” Grant asked with a smirk, making Tweek blush at his predictability. “Trust me, I can take it. I've been under a lot worse stress for a long time.” There was a moment of silence. “Thanks New Kid…” Craig said. “Yeah. I wasn't thinking. I didn't want to put Craig in that position…” Tweek said. “It's no problem.” Grant said. “But there is one thing you should know.” He continued. “What?” Craig asked. Grant's face went serious. “This whole thing isn't over…” He said. “It isn't!?” Tweek asked. “Nope.” Grant said. “If there's one thing I know about yaoi shippers, it's that they enjoy pain just as much as pleasure.” He explained. “If I know them, they'll still be drawing pictures. They'll just be about the misery of the breakup rather than gay love between you two.” He said. “Oh god…” Tweek groaned. “It can't be helped.” Grant said. “But they won't be nearly as embarrassing, so that's a plus.” “You actually set it up perfectly, Tweek.” He continued, making Tweek look surprised. “You gave me the opportunity to place all the focus on me.” “I was 'hitting on Craig', but because I was in love with you.” He explained. “Because of that, the artwork will mostly feature me selfishly tearing you guys apart, rather than any of us being intimate with each other.” “You guys should also probably act like you hate me, or at least avoid me like you're ashamed to see me.” He said. “We have to keep up the illusion.” Tweek and Craig looked at each other uncomfortably. “I… I know we said thank you, but…” Craig said. “Are you sure you want to do this?” Tweek asked. Grant smiled. “Hey, you do crazy and stupid things for the person you love…” He said with a chuckle, heading for the door. Craig raised an eyebrow. “Wait, is that a joke?” He asked. Grant looked around absently, seeming to take in something about his surroundings. “Who knows…” He said. He cracked the door open, confirming that nobody was there. “Whether it is or not, I'm not right for him.” He said, heading out of the closet. “I'm not the one who made him stop shaking…” Tweek and Craig looked at each other, then Tweek looked down at himself. He wasn't twitching at all. ⁂ Sure enough, in the following days, people stopped drawing yaoi of Craig and Tweek, and began creating depressing artwork of their breakup, usually featuring Grant either manipulating Craig through his phone with a vicious expression, or looking at Tweek lustfully from afar. Grant couldn't even walk down the hallway without most kids looking at him angrily. Some even pushed him on their way past. It was harsh, and hard to have everyone hate him, but he remembered who he was doing it all for, and kept on going. Meanwhile, Tweek and Craig were excited to finally not have vaguely pornographic pictures drawn of them, but as the week went on, they became less and less enthused as they saw how miserable everyone was. Not only that, they couldn't help but feel bad for Grant, who had taken on the role of villain in Craig's stead. After four days, Tweek couldn't stand it anymore, and went to Craig asking him to pretend to be back together. Craig refused at first, but after a night of thought, and a talk from his dad, he finally agreed. And so, the two boys met with Grant at the same closet as before. “What's up, guys?” He asked. “They haven't started drawing yaoi again, have they?” “No, but they might after this…” Tweek said. Grant raised an eyebrow. “We're going to pretend to get back together.” Craig said flatly. “What!? Why!?” Grant asked. “Because everyone hates you, and they're all miserable!” Tweek said. “We can't just let everything go south like this over us.” Craig said. “So, what? You're letting them socially extort you into pretending to be gay?” Grant asked. “That isn't right!” “Neither is letting you take the fall!” Tweek said. “It's either this, or leave things as they are and let the whole town mope around.” Craig said. “It may not be right, but it's our choice.” “Besides, what's the point of being happy if someone else has to suffer for you?” Tweek asked. Grant was taken aback to hear his own sentiments echoed back to him. He looked between the two pensively for a moment, then sighed. “You're really sure about this?” He asked. Both of them nodded. Grant sighed again. “Alright. But if we're going to do this, we should make it believable…” ⁂ “Hey Tweek, hold up!” Tweek stopped, in the very entry way that he had five days ago. He turned around to face Grant. Everyone around them stopped to look, anger coming to their eyes. “What do you want?” Tweek asked, agitation in his voice. “Yeah, what do you want, New Kid!” Butters yelled, stinging Grant more than anything that had happened the past four days. “Tweek, I…” He started. “I can't just leave things as they are now.” “Oh yeah? Well how should we leave them!?” Tweek asked angrily. “Look, I screwed up. Badly.” Grant said. “I was an awful person, and an awful friend. I don't expect you to ever forgive me, but…” “I realized something these past four days.” He continued. “I have feelings for you. But you were in love with someone else…” “I tampered with that, because I lost sight of what really mattered: I want to see you happy.” He said. Tweek's eyes shifted from anger to wariness. “I let jealousy get the better of me, and I hurt you.” He said. “I'd rather spend the rest of my life alone than do that again…” Tweek's expression softened. “Do you really mean that?” He asked. Grant looked at him with sincerity that went beyond the act. “I do.” He said. “I won't ask for your forgiveness. I don't deserve your forgiveness. But please…” “Don't blame Craig.” There was a long silence, a mix of emotions playing across Tweek's face, before he finally fell on determination. He turned around and headed down the hallway silently, everyone following except for Grant. Once everyone was gone, Grant smirked. “Who would have thought. My Tweek, an actor…” Everyone walked behind Tweek as he marched his way down the hall. Soon, he approached Craig at his locker, just as he closed it. Craig looked over at Tweek, what he thought was a look of surprise and regret on his face. Tweek just stared at him for a moment, before holding out his hand. Craig looked at the hand for a moment, and then took it in his own. Everyone's faces lit up with joy. “Craig!” A voice called from behind everyone. They all turned around to see Grant standing there. Everyone was wary. Tweek and Craig began walking towards Grant, the kids getting out of their way, but Grant took a single step back, turning slightly as though to leave. “You'd better take care of him, you hear?” He said, a single tear running down his right cheek. “I'm trusting you!” He turned on his heel dramatically and walked away, leaving everyone once again in a nebulous emotional state. Craig and Tweek looked at each other, still holding hands. They both smiled at each other for the first time in four days. ⁂ The yaoi production soon resumed, some even still having Grant in the background, either smiling with tears in his eyes, or simply walking away from the reunited couple. Somehow, it didn't bother Tweek and Craig so much anymore. They knew it was just the way things were for them right now, and at the very least, they had become better friends because of it all. Grant, meanwhile, was still looked down on by some for, at least as far as they knew, causing Tweek and Craig so much pain. But many people looked at him better for having given up his own love for Tweek for the sake of Tweek's happiness and love for Craig. None of it was truly right, but it was what it was. And ultimately, things worked out, in a way.

And that’s all she wrote. She being me. This is one of the more cohesive ideas I had for alternate timelines, hence why it’s actually finished.

[transformationstuck]

Commission work based on the old Milf Mag fics, but now with John as the focus.

“Roxyyyyyy!” John yelled, crying out into the whitespace nothingness he found himself in, “You left your overvoided junk on my desk again! Again, Roxy!”

This wasn’t the first time Roxy had overcharged her void powers and left the results around for John to find. T-shirts, cabinets, boxes of cereal… the common thread between them seemed to be that they were so full of Void that they would try to fill themselves with whoever tried to interact with them. Well, except Roxy, of course. And so John had found himself wearing or trapped inside of various items in ways that ranged from amusing to infuriating.

And this one was definitely the latter. For starters, he couldn’t see shit, and his attempts to wiggle around and punch a hole through the off-white surface before him were being met with so much resistance he could almost swear he wasn’t moving at all.

Where the hell was this? He'd just been trying to clean the place up and hadn't really been watching what he was doing. Had he bumped Roxy's mattress and gotten stuck inside that thing? It would explain the whiteness, and maybe how restricted his movements felt, and the surface he was up against certainly felt like fabric, but something about it just didn't feel right.

 But before John could put any more thought into his situation, a familiar voice came ringing out in a very familiar tone, "Oh Joooooohn... you hooooome~?"

The slight purr in her voice was unmistakable. Roxy was horny as fuck. Scooooooore!

As long as Roxy doesn't laugh at his situation so much that she kills the mood. But even with that in mind, John needed her help, so he let out what he hoped was a manly plea for assistance.

"....!"

W... Why couldn't he speak? He was speaking before, right? But now it felt like he couldn't even move his mouth! That was bad! He tried his hardest to kick and flail for attention, but again his entire body felt rigid and unmoving.

John could hear Roxy approach, but it didn't seem like she could see his attempts to wiggle for attention, "Boy Howdy I sure do feel like getting fucked by a strapping young lad and his big ol' donger!" Roxy called with absolutely no attempt to make it sound erotic. Damn, she knew just how to push his buttons!

"Haaaah... Oh wellllll." Went Roxy, and John felt the surface below him move as he heard the sounds of blankets being tossed abouy above him. But just as it seemed like his mattress theory was about to be confirmed, John suddenly saw everything in front of him suddenly moving in one great big blur of colour.

 "...!!"

He'd meant to say 'Roxy', but once again his voice failed him.

Where the hell could be possibly be that would allow him to see Roxy perfectly, while unable to be seen in turn? And, more importantly, why did it make her look so HUGE?

He watched nervously as Roxy slowly slipped herself under the covers, bringing her hand up to her mouth to give her finger a lick. Even John's face felt weirdly restricted as he tried to raise his eyebrow in confusion, but thay confusion didn't last much longer as her she reached out towards him and pressed her finger on the side of his face. He was glad he still had his glasses on to protect his eyes, as her massive finger squished right up against his face, adhering him to her as she gave her hand a flick.

John knew that weird habit of hers. Roxy was reading! She always found it a little gross when she read like that, but it was far worse when it was being pressed right into his face.

He just hoped this was a good book!

 As the page fell, John's eyes were treated to an entirely new world. He could still see Roxy in his peripheral vision, but now he was looking out towards what looked like some kind of black-and-white college campus... was he in a manga? Did he look like a handsome anime boy right now? No, that was a dumb thought! He needed to get his ass back into the real world!

"Roxy!" He called, relieved that he could talk again, "I'm in here! You left your stuff full of void again!"

Roxy did not respond, instead turning her head away from him. John's attempt to cry out 'noooooo!' silenced like his earlier attempts at talking. Fortunately, a sudden shift in his perspective granted him a chance to learn why. Once again he was facing outward, and he could just barely see himself on the opposite page, a pair of speech bubbles filled to the brim with text, though there was something decidedly off about the text that John just couldn't quite make out from this angle.

At least he seemed to have another speech bubble in this panel, and he quickly made his plea, "Rox! I'm stuck in this dumb book, you--"

B'DONK!

John felt a sudden pain in the side of his head as his perspective shifted again. His vision was skewed as one of his eyeballs felt like it shrunk and the other grew, and he could see action lines all around himself.

"My apologies, John-kun."

John felt like he was falling, his feet weren’t even touching the floor… no, they didn’t even seem to exist right now, as his waist eventually gave way to whiteness as it reached what must have been the edge of the page. But that wasn’t what his character was paying attention to at all, for it seemed that he was stuck in a panel where he was looking up at a tall, handsome anime fella… and blushing so much his face felt like it was cooking.

“Th-Th-Thank you?” He stuttered, even though he didn’t really feel like he should’ve been stuttering at all. It would be kind of ridiculous to be nervous about this encounter, this guy wasn’t real! He was fictional! Though… he was holding onto John with an arm around his back while their hands touched. Kind of a weird way to stop someone from falling, it didn’t even feel like a pose they could’ve gotten into from how they bonked heads. All the while, he could hear Roxy giggling.

Yeeeeeah, John had a pretty good idea what kind of story this was now, “Roxy! I don’t wanna be a part of your stupid dumb yaoi manga!” He cried, albeit now he was in a new panel where he was standing up incredibly straight, and could feel puffs of steam coming out of his ears. It wasn’t exactly uncomfortable, but he really hoped she’d turn the page soon, “I’m not even gay, Roxy!”

John’s comment apparently fell on deaf ears, as once again Roxy licked her finger and flicked the page over. He was sitting now. Great, a classroom scene. What thing was he in for here? Once again he couldn’t talk, it must have been an establishing shot, but he very quickly transitioned into the next scene, with him staring at the door at… he wanted to sigh… ‘senpai’. That handsome man was walking into room, absolutely surrounded by sparkles and flowers and rose petals.

“Oh, John-kun. I didn’t realise you were taking this class.” He said, though it was weird, because he didn’t exactly have a voice, yet John always had odd memories of him speaking, “Try not to be too naughty, okay?”

Roxy giggled. John just grumbled back, “You… do know I’m not a homosexual, right?” He asked, hoping his sarcasm would be properly conveyed. Goddammit he wished he could half-lid his eyes right now, but instead they were wide open and staring. Worse, it felt like his heart was racing in his chest. He could just barely make out lines on the side of his chest, just over his heart. Why did Roxy have to be into this stupid romantic shoujo bullshit?

John felt his scene transition again, and found a chance to speak as his ‘senpai’ took a seat next to him, “Look… You’re probably not even real, but I’m just waiting for my girlfriend to--" But John was suddenly interrupted as Roxy turned over the page, and he found himself staring face to face with senpai, uncomfortably close to his big, round eyes, “W-Woah, h-hey! You seem nice and a-all… f-fucking, this stuttering isn’t me! I-I’m just flustered because I’m being drawn this way!”

No response. John had to imagine that the guy was stuck saying whatever the original script said, just with John’s name replacing whatever the original protagonist’s name was. But even though he wasn’t talking, and John’s attempts to speak were being prevented, the two lingered on for several more panels, just staring at one-another as John began to notice more and more details in his eyes. Though with every extra line and sparkle added to his irises, John felt more and more of himself being cut away. It didn’t hurt, but he kept feeling less and less of himself, chopped away by the panel border and leaving him as just a disembodied head… then face… then eye. It was a good thing he was already drawn with shuddering lines, because that’s exactly what he wanted to do.

Smooch!

And then once again John and his character matched perfectly. His eyes widened in shock as senpai’s lips met his. His entire face felt warm again, steam emitting from all sides as his glasses comically cracked. He wanted to scream at Roxy, to tell her to turn the page, because he was stuck feeling so many over-the-top emotions that he couldn’t even pinpoint them all! But no, Roxy just seemed enamoured with the scene. From the corner of his eye John could see Roxy’s excited face, and while normally that’d be enough to make him instantly forgive all her crimes, right now he just wanted out of the kiss, and out of the book!

 Thankfully, John eventually got his wish. In fact, Roxy was even kind enough to skip over a few pages, which John was sure had character development galore. As Roxy flicked through, John tried to find relief from the extreme sensations he’d felt, though it was made a bit hard as John was occasionally made to spend a few seconds or more stuck in odd positions, such as underneath senpai’s desk, ostensibly reaching for a pencil, only to instead notice a… uh… SIZEABLE bulge in the dude’s pants. It even had extra lines to emphasize just how big it was! God, why did he have to be dating a pervert? …And why was that pervert spending so long on this one panel! Big dicks had no appeal to him, except maybe in the hypothetical world where he had one himself!

“Mmmmmngh…” Roxy groaned, and John recognised the sound. Wow. That girl gets herself horny super easily, he thought. It seemed like she was turned on by the mere idea of handsome anime dick. He wished real dick had the same effect on her, that’d be fun.

The fun of imagining that idea proved an entertaining distraction, so distracting, in fact, that John didn’t even notice the subtle differences in the scene transition. No longer was he just staring at the guy’s cock… he was grabbing it!

“Goddammit Roxy!” He shouted, mentally slapping himself as he realised that he’d wasted the panel’s only text box.

“J-John-kun…” Went senpai, the next panel making John want to wretch as he saw a close up of his own hand pulling down that zipper. A feeling made worse when he realised he couldn’t even feel his own head in that shot, just a disembodied hand.

Aaaaand fwlomp! An absolutely massive cock fell out of senpai’s pants, and slapped itself down on John’s face, some unscrupulous fluids already trickling down onto his brow. “Gross gross gross gross gross groooooss… I-I hate dick!” He cried, desperate to pull away or push the thing off his face.

“Hee… hah…” Roxy giggled a bit as she panted. Her body and the entire world John was in were bouncing around. She was masturbating, and this was hentai. That realisation might have been more devastating to John if not for the fact he was already bringing the uncensored cock down to his lips, his pursed lips pressing against it and forcing him to taste the salty bitterness of pre-cum.

“Turn the page, Roxy, oh please, turn the page!” John cried, not sure how his character was meant to be talking right now, but he didn’t care, he just wanted to NOT be doing the gay thing right now and--

“HRRRCK!” John’s throat was static, but the sensation of constantly trying to force out some ten inches of manmeat from his gullet was constant. It was like he was permanently at the most intense part of having his gag reflex triggered, trying to push out the thing in his throat, even though he never could.

“Wow… John-kun… your throat is truly special…” Senpai sighed, his crotch squashed up against John’s nose.

“Mmnnn… Nnnngh…” For a moment John had thought senpai was the one moaning, until he realised that the sounds were coming from Roxy! “Nnnghh… c-cock’s too small…” She whined. John wanted to roll his eyes, this thing was already making his eyes roll back, both in the art and mentally, so calling it too small was ridiculous.

…Or it would have been, had Roxy not shown John just how big a cock could really get by bringing out a pen and adding in several crude lines in several quick strokes. What had been a small bump in his throat was now as wide as the rest of his neck, and he was made to feel the cock inside of him suddenly bloat up to match, even if it didn’t quite match with its width in his mouth. And then she made sure to go the extra mile by adding in a ballooned out belly, which was made to feel like it was rumbling and sloshing about as Roxy’s hand was made unsteady by her own pleasure.

If John wasn’t just a drawing right now, there was no way he could’ve survived all that, especially not with Roxy keeping her eyes on the panel for a minute straight as she played around with herself beneath the sheets.

When she finally moved on and John was finally moved on to a scene that was merely humiliating, he almost felt like he was in heaven.

“S-Sorry, John-kun… please take my semen bath…” Came Senpai’s melodic, weirdly disembodied voice.

“D-D-Don’t mention it.” John stuttered, this time not because of the character, “J-Just don’t, nngh… t-tell my girlfriend…” He joked, completely and utterly dazed after that last experience.

“No… John-kun… I want you to understand…” Senpai said, leaning in close to give John an unexpected hug, one that he desperately needed after the foot-wide cock he’d just had in his throat, “I… I love you.”

“S-Senpai, th-that’s…” John gasped, feeling his blush get intense again, “th-that’s ridiculous… y… you’re fictional and also not really my type. I-I’m just not… i-interested in--”

“BOH-RING!” Roxy chimed, and gave the page another few flicks. John braced himself for the worst as he prepared himself for something horrible.

“MNNNNNNYAAAARGH!” He screeched. Yep, there was something in his ass! He could feel senpai’s body over his, clutching him in a weirdly protective way, but it wasn’t enough to distract from the sheer pain of his virgin asshole being filled with a ten inch cock!

Or… oh no… “R-Roxy… please… I-I’m not gay… p-please don’t make him bigger again… p-please!” He begged, feeling as Roxy’s pen pressed into his skin, and started to drift upwards. It didn’t feel of anything, not yet. It was still just a line for now, but then she drifted to the side, adding in some bumps here and there before making her way back down again. The moment her pen was off the paper, John felt like he was going to burst, for Roxy had just added a cock-shaped bulge to his stomach that reached up almost all the way to his chin, made to feel even bigger thanks to the poor perspective on Roxy’s art.

“J-John-kun… t-tell me you love me…” Came senpai’s soothing voice, not that John cared over the overwhelming sensations of feeling himself being so ludicrously penetrated. Roxy even had to humiliate him by adding tiny little spurts of his own cum shooting out of his dick. It was a merciful relief, but it only pushed the problem further by adding yet more overwhelming sensations to the mix!

John was trapped in the middle of the most intense and yet pathetic orgasm he’d had in his life. He’d never cum from something like this before, his poor prostate the victim of two or more feet of leg-thick cock. It made it hard to think, and all he could do was try to focus on the sense of his own ridiculous pleasure to block out the sensation of being stretched to the extremes.

“Hnggghaaaaaawwh!”

John momentarily felt hopeful. Roxy’s orgasm squeal was unmistakeable. But the idea she’d free him from this mess was dashed as she watched Roxy’s body teeter about, the girl attempting to put the comic away, but instead just leaving it down on her pillow, her head landing on one page as John endured his fate on the one next to it.

How could things get worse than this?

“SNOOOOOORE!”

That was how. With a great big inhale, Roxy pulled the pages up onto her face, skipping back a few pages.

“S-Sorry, John-kun… please take my semen bath…”

John gagged as he once again felt copious amounts of spunk all over him, this time properly tasting the semen in his mouth that he’d not really noticed when coming off the heels of having his throat stuffed.

“Wow… John-kun… your throat is truly special…”

The feeling of his ridiculously overstretched throat was back! His big, rumbly belly made things feel like they were shaking, which only made things worse!

“No… John-kun… I want you to understand… I… I love you!”

Momentary comfort for John as he relived the hug, but only for a split second as Roxy began to exhale, flipping the pages all the way back to where they had just been.

“J-John-kun… t-tell me you love me…”

Senpai’s ridiculous cock was back inside John, and John was once again struck with an orgasm, or rather returned to one already in progress. It all happened so suddenly… from overfull asshole to an overfull throat and back again, and there wasn’t a thing he could do about it but be happy that he at least got some momentary relief.

“SNORE!”

“Wow… John-kun… your throat is truly special.”

Back to choking…

“J-John-kun… t-tell me you love me.”

Back to cumming…

“S-Sorry John-kun… please take my semen bath…”

Back to being made into his senpai’s cumdump…

“SNORE!”

“Wow… John-kun…”

Throat. Again.

“SNORE!”

“T-Tell me you love me.”

There was no pattern to it. John was subject to the whim’s of Roxy’s snores. All he could do was look forward to his next orgasm. …And the occasional comforting hugs of his senpai.

“I-I do love you… senpai…”

  “Grubble Translate”

Roxy took a few intermittent snaps of the comic as she settled down in front of her laptop. Sure, she could spawn a yaoi doujin out of thin air, but apparently she was just straining causality a little too far to try and get one in English.

[translations-by-aiimee]

Dig a Grave to Dig Out a Ghost - Chapter 26

Original Title: 挖坟挖出鬼

Genres: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Supernatural, Yaoi

This translation is based on multiple MTLs and my own limited knowledge of Chinese characters. If I have made any egregious mistakes, please let me know.

Chapter Index

Chapter 26 - Photograph

From the South Third Ring Road overpass, turn right and cross a small road covered by empress trees to reach Shenjiayuan.

The fragments of low-rise buildings and the chaotic street stalls on both sides of the street were standoffish in such a modern city. However, this was one of the country's famous antique marketplaces, and tens of thousands of people came here every day with lots of money to spend, risking being baked by the sun and getting heatstroke by lingering around each of the stalls, hoping to find one or two hidden treasures stashed away in a corner somewhere. It was an industry gaining some traction. There were many speculators, collectors, tourists, calligraphers, painters, and even gamblers among them. They firmly believe that a city thousands of years old hid unknown wealth somewhere. It was this mentality that gave them a similar look; intoxicated and wild-eyed with a long outstretched tongue, drooling over the crude high antique imitations on the stalls.

This was the place where Lin Yan made countless memories when he was a teenager. The middle school he went to was nearby. After school, he often came here alone with his schoolbag on his back. Back then, there weren't as many people. There was a very polluted river nearby that hadn't been turned into a landfill yet. The air was always filled with the smell of stinky salted fish. The vendors who set up stalls hadn't yet learned to casually laze about while sneaking glances at the faces of customers to judge how much money they could cheat out of them.

The old days were like rolls of yellowed newspapers. A young man in a light blue school uniform walked through it, exchanging his pocket money for a piece of colored glaze from the late Qing Dynasty. He squatted in front of a stall to sift through the options. The old man at the stall was smoking a cigarette while telling the story of Liulichang in the late Qing Dynasty. Lin Yan didn't know why he was only interested in street stalls when kids his age were saving up to buy posters of celebrities. Just like when they were gushing over the Belgian chocolates their relatives brought home, he was still obsessed for years with the pot full of honey hard candy the old lady in front of the school had.

The wood, rice paper, and the dusty rusticity of the old objects held a taste of time, and teenage Lin Yan couldn't help but be immersed in it. Like a lone fish in the stream.

The sun was shining on the ground at 3 o'clock that afternoon. Lin Yan carried a bulging bag in his left hand and a cup of roasted sencha milk tea in his right. He paced slowly in the crowd, the grass green V-neck T-shirt and cotton calf-length pants standing out. He didn't know why antique hunters liked to wear black, the dust on their clothes making them look like they had just crawled out of the ground.

"Here, it's weirdly hot. Do you want a sip?" Lin Yan shook the milk tea, the ice cube hitting the wall of the cup with a soft thud. Onlookers thought he was talking to the air when actually there was an invisible person next to him helping take off some of the weight of the bag. That mean, even though Lin Yan was carrying a lot of things, it didn't take much effort.

Xiao Yu lowered his head and took a sip where Lin Yan had touched. He bit on the straw a few times and turned his head.

Lin Yan wanted to laugh a little, and brought the cup back to the corner of his mouth.

A-Yan said that Xiao Yu might remember more following him around, so Lin Yan took him to the antique market after breakfast, hoping that something from his own time period might bring something back. Who would've guessed that, after going through all these stalls, lots of purchases were made but there was no progress with the ghost's memory. Lin Yan glanced at the bag in his hand. It was stuffed with clothes bought from a well-known Hanfu store in Shenjiayuan. They were well-made and expensive. Most people only bought them to complete a Hanfu set for their collection. For Lin Yan to buy these kinds of clothes on a daily errand, that was really a rare sight. Even the clerk couldn't help but do a double take.

Xiao Yu didn't understand the time they were currently living in, so he stood his ground and refused to adapt his style to the times. Lin Yan rolled his eyes and glared at him bitterly. He thought, you're the boss here making me throw away my money while I'm just your servant who follows behind you and pays.

Right after they left one store, before he could recover from the purchase, Xiao Yu suddenly stopped when he passed a woodworking shop. Lin Yan looked at the store’s gorgeous decorations and pieces of pearwood and red sandalwood furniture, whining that he really couldn't afford this stuff. Xiao Yu ignored him and dragged him inside. Thirty minutes later, Lin Yan swiped his card to check out under the watchful eye of the clerk and bought a beautiful Tongzhi wood guqin.

"Oh great ancestor, what more do you want?" Lin Yan tucked the order slip from the woodworking shop into his pocket and glared daggers at Xiao Yu.

Xiao Yu shook his head nonchalantly.

There were more people on the street. Some of them didn't know the treasures that they had found, and they couldn't hide their excitement, sneaking a peek at what they have just bought. Some of them had grim faces, looking like they had been ripped off. There were also groups of foreign tourists wearing Lei Feng hats gathered at the roadside to buy shadow puppets. Occasionally, they turned around and curiously look at the antique city, which was built in the traditional Chinese-style.

In the market area to the south, there were large ancient buildings imitating Ming and Qing style architecture. The bustling narrow street seemed like scene straight out of the Water Margin. The wooden window on the second floor were pushed up, supported by a short stick. Looking up, he could see customers sipping tea. The shopkeeper was a short man, busily carrying a large teapot back and forth.

The narrow street lead to a large emerald-green stall covered with plastic tarps to offer shade from the sun. Lin Yan and Xiao Yu walked under the shadow of the tarps when they heard a familiar voice yelling loudly.

"Look at how green the colour is and how good the water head* is! You won't be able to find another one at this price anywhere in Shenjiayuan!" The peddler selling jade pieces had a round belly, one foot on the stool, holding up a transparent fortune bracelet, spittle flying everywhere. The plainly dressed middle-aged woman in front of the stall looked hesitant. She took the bracelet and took another look at it.

*(T/N: Water head [水头] refers to how light shines through jade. Kind of like how the light would look if it were shining through water. There's a list of transparencies if you want to look at how jade is graded, but basically the best jade has a vivid colour with even transparency across the whole piece.)

"It's too expensive, lower the price a bit." The woman said sincerely.

"It's so green, so transparent, I can't go any lower. Miss, if you want a lower price, it'll affect my livelihood. Don't waste my time." The peddler grabbed the bracelet, his eyes bulging.

"I wanted to buy it for my daughter as a birthday gift. It's too expensive. It'd be a pity if she dropped it. Give me the lowest you can go."

"Here." The peddler rolled his eyes. He took out his calculator, punched in a few numbers, and showed it to the woman in front of him, "Is this all right? I can't go any lower!"

Lin Yan couldn't help but lean over and glance at the numbers on the screen. He let out a laugh.

The peddler squinted at him.

Lin Yan shook his head. He took the bracelet and said to the woman: "Don't buy this, he's fooling you."

"Hey, hey, what are you trying to say? I'm running an honest business here. If you don't believe me, go around and ask. . ."

Lin Yan smirked. He put the roasted sencha tea cup on the stall and held the bracelet at a different angle. The curved surface reflected the light from the plastic roof. He said to the woman buying the bracelet: "Look at the blurred edges of the reflection. If you look closely, you can see that there are very fine meshes on the surface." Lin Yan raised the bracelet to let the light through. "There is purple fluorescence inside, indicating that the reason this bracelet is so transparent because of acid washing and a glue filling."

"Also, notice how the green is only sitting on the surface and doesn't reach the middle. That means it was dyed after the fact. This thing is worth one or two hundred yuan. Don't buy it."

The peddler's nose and eyes scrunched up. At first glance, they looked like a dried walnut.

"Oh." The middle-aged woman hurriedly stuffed an envelope containing the money back into her bag, repeatedly thanking Lin Yan.

When she left, the peddler huffed. Pissed, he turned his head away, not looking at Lin Yan. Even his swollen belly seemed to be flatter than before.

"What else should I do when I notice that someone with money on the street?"

Lin Yan roughly flicked the peddler's forehead: "Everyone here has money. It's embarrassing to lie like this, there's no skill in it."

Several surrounding stalls burst out laughing. The peddler rolled his eyes back to normal. He grabbed Lin Yan’s milk tea and poured a few mouthfuls out of the plastic lid. He muttered while he crunched on the ice cubes: “I don't fool people in this business. It's not my fault their eyesight is poor. No refunds is the standard."

This much was true. Antique jade sales rely on good eyesight. Figuring out which store has more genuine products than fake depends on the customer. They can't return them either so the shop doesn't have to admit they were fakes. Lin Yan clicked his tongue: "These people don't know what to look for. You're just trying to make your father think you're good at this job."

The peddler rolled his eyes, knowing that he was in a bad position and couldn't say anything.

Lin Yan had been a frequent visitor to this antique market since he was a child. Since choosing his major in university, he preferred to come to the small stalls to practice his appraisal skills when he had nothing else to do. See what was selling for a high price but was bought for a low price. He was also kind and helped others pick out the best items, so many peddlers knew him. For example, Lin Yan first met this guy's father, a very honest old man. He even took out the receipt with the price he paid for it when he bargained with customers. Unfortunately, when Lin Yan graduated from high school, the old man fell ill and his son took over the business. and this was the leeching peddler in from of him.

Lin Yan wasn't polite with him. When he walked around the stall, he took out a copper box from under the table. Inside were piles of Ming and Qing paperweights. These objects were all family heirlooms that the original stall owner received from nearby residents’ homes when he was young. Lin Yan had just remembered this box of objects then dragged Xiao Yu over to look at them. Brass mirrors, jade bracelets, thumb rings, snuff boxes, tobacco pipes; Xiao Yu looked over them all and just shook his head. Lin Yan threw the last piece back into the box and patted the dust on his clothes, a little frustrated.

"That box has been there for ages and no one's ever touched it. What are you looking at it for?" The peddler kept squinting at him and was too curious not to ask about it.

"Looking for Ming Dynasty artifacts for my classes." Lin Yan actually didn't know what he was looking for. He moved on and put the box back.

"Ming Dynasty?" The peddler didn't care about the bracelet anymore. "Old man Liu has lots stashed away."

"No, no, no. . ." Lin Yan hurriedly refused, but he thought about it and sighed, "Forget it. I've been shopping all day and haven't gone there. I'll give it a try."

"Don't say the wrong thing. Good luck." The peddler made a face.

The shop run by old man Liu was quite famous in Shenjiayuan. Not just because he was the only antique peddler to sell only sell antique pictures, but also because he was notoriously grumpy. Every day, he'd leave the shop and hang up his old camera in the park to make money. Whenever he went to the shop to buy something, the owner was never there. Walking down the street, he ran into him wearing an old Mao suit, cursing and waving around. His thin mantis-like face was slanted and a pair of glasses rested on his nose at an angle. Sometimes the lens' were shattered like cobwebs, and sometimes the lens' weren't there at all.

His shop sells old photographs of the old city, hung densely from the floor to the ceiling. Because old photographs were difficult to reprint, they were also very expensive. The sub districts of Qianmen, Dashilan, old gardens in the setting sun in 1872, passers-by in long gowns with thin faces and numb eyes. The TV station came to interview him, but only half the program was filmed. From photographers to reporters, old man Liu chewed them all out without exception. The interview never went anywhere, and the shop still didn't have any business. The old man still walked around outside with his camera everyday.

The shop was in the northwest corner of Shenjiayuan and its location was considered unlucky. There was a symbol meant to ward off evil spirits designed by a famous Feng Shui master hung on the door. Xiao Yu couldn't enter and stood at the door waiting for Lin Yan.

Lin Yan looked at the ominous storefront. For the first time, he felt reluctant to part with Xiao Yu.

Unsurprisingly, Old Man Liu wasn't in the shop. A seven or eight-year-old girl in a red jacket was facing away from him. She was pointing at a photo on the wall and muttering something. When she heard someone enter the door, she turned back and grinned at Lin Yan.

Lin Yan was a little surprised. This little girl was his neighbor. Although he didn’t know where she lived, he often saw her running around in the yard downstairs in a dirty red dress. Sometimes when Lin Yan went out to buy dinner at night, he saw her playing with cats in the yard, no one coming to bring her home. He hadn't seen her often in the past month and he didn't expect to see her here.

Was it possible she was related to that strange old man? No wonder no one cared about her playing outside everyday, Lin Yan thought.

"Why are you here by yourself?" Lin Yan knelt down and asked her in a soft voice.

The little girl was lean, her eyes staring straight at Lin Yan, grinning silently. Lin Yan suddenly felt that the little girl’s smile probably made people feel uncomfortable. It didn’t seem right to call it a smile, but just a casual grin. The corners of her mouth were upturned but her eyes were dull. Wearing such an old jacket in summer, she seemed to be left behind by the times, like the rest of the photos in the room.

Lin Yan hesitated on whether he leave and wait outside for the strange old man.

"What the hell you XX, I XXXX. . ." Lin Yan was distracted, and suddenly there was a thud. Old man Liu hugging his broken camera fell through the front door. He fell on all fours in an extremely embarrassed posture, landing on the only part of the floor that had sunlight hitting it.

"A-Are you okay?" Lin Yan rushed over to help. Unexpectedly, the old man gave him a sour look. He rolled over and sat on the ground, patting the dirt on his knees, and continued his tirade of curses towards the door relentlessly. Lin Yan stood awkwardly off to the side, neither leaving nor staying.

The old man felt he had cursed enough. He grunted and got to his feet. When he turned his head and saw Lin Yan, his eyes widened like he had discovered a whole new world, and said with a quacking voice: "What are you doing here?"

"I came to buy something." Lin Yan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Shouldn't that be the first thing the shop owner thinks of when he sees a customer in the store?

"Leave. What is there to buy? Young people are clueless." The old man held his stern gaze and walked around behind the counter, irritated: "Why are you still standing there? You have no business being here!"

Lin Yan didn't want to talk nonsense with the old man, so he pat his back and turned to leave.

"Hey! Wait!" The old man yelled. Lin Yan had just reached the door and was so frightened by the voice that he came to a halt.

"You look good, I'll take a picture of you." The old man suddenly walked out from behind the counter with his camera in hand. He grabbed Lin Yan by the collar and pulled him into the room. After couple of pushes, he stood beside the little girl. He squatted down involuntarily, and the shutter sounded with a few clicks. The old man's furrowed face appeared from behind the camera and he smacked his lips with satisfaction.

After the shutter, several photos appeared from the top of the camera. The old man took one in his hand and glanced at it. He pulled one out and shoved it at Lin Yan: "You take it."

Lin Yan was shown the strength of this old man. He turned his face angrily, trying to walk out, rubbing his shoulder: "I don't want to."

"Take it!" The old man yelled in Lin Yan's ear, making his ears ring.

Lin Yan took it and glanced speechlessly. He saw that in the black-and-white picture he stood like a wooden pole, staring expressionlessly at the wall. The background was dimmed, and the entire thing looked like a horror picture people would share online.

What's wrong with. . .

Lin Yan eyes widened and a nerve in his head popped. He couldn't help taking a step back, looking at himself in the photo. When he looked at the spot where he was standing when the picture was taken, it felt like a bucket of ice water was poured over his head.

The little girl who took the picture with him just now wasn't in the photo. He was the only person in the black and white background straight out of a horror movie.

Lin Yan hesitantly looked up. The girl in red was standing where he stood, wearing an out-of-date ragged jacket, grinning at him biting her fingernail.

"Hehe, hehe." The old man held up the camera to his crooked eyes and a piece of the lens fell to the ground. "Perfect, great picture."

Lin Yan crawled out of the house.

The sun was bitterly hot and the bustling street was swarming with people. Xiao Yu was standing casually by the doorway. Lin Yan couldn't say a word, swallowing hard. He rushed over and wrapped him up in a fierce hug.

[kokichi-and-co-imagine-blog]

If the V3 cast were to play Monster Prom, who would each character go for?

This is like, my third time trying to write this? I don’t know why it’s taken so many tries; it probably just has to do with getting cut off in the middle of the thought I was on. This may go a little more in depth then you thought it would, but that’s just because I want this to be as thorough as possible.

If you’re interested in Monster Prom, I recommend either buying it or just watching a playthrough of the game before reading this. There are going to be spoilers for certain routes along with secret endings that you can get, so… there. Now that I’ve been super transparent about what this entails, let’s get started.

V3 Dating Some Monsters!

Since this is a MULTIPLAYER DATING SIM, here are the groups of people I think would probably play against each other:GAME 1 -Angie, Himiko, Tenko, TsumugiGAME 2 -Kirumi, Kokichi, Kiibo, KaitoGAME 3 -Shuichi, Kaede, Rantaro, RyomaGAME 4 -Korekiyo, Maki, Miu, Gonta

We’ll talk about each game from top to bottom, ok?

Himiko would be player one after everyone insisted that she gets it (”Nyehhh, what a pain, I have to choose first?”). After picking Brian (Green) because he looked super tired, she waited for everyone else. Angie ended up being player two, and went as Vicky (Blue) because of how cute and happy she looked. Tenko chose Amira (Red) afterward because she seemed like she wouldn’t take crap from anybody along with the fact that she was the only girl left to choose from. Tsumugi was left with Oz (Yellow), but she didn’t mind it much; she thought his simplistic design was perfect for her personality.

Himiko didn’t really go for anyone in particular on her playthrough, although she got the most events with Polly. She did seem to like Valerie (The shopkeeper) but didn’t know that she was romanceable. At the end of the game, Himiko ended up going to prom by herself, and had a good time.

Angie went for Miranda because of how devoted she seemed to be to her kingdom! It was very impressive, and she didn’t bat an eye when she ended up getting the throne ending! Nothing like releasing a kraken to sneak a fish man into the school. (Tenko was a little concerned by Angie’s decisions through this route though, and kept an eye on her for awhile.)

Tsumugi was the only person in the group to try and romance a male, and even then, it was because she already heard of a certain secret ending with Liam- “Liam The Weeb.” She was super excited that they put a character in a game that you could see develop a love for something she has, and also had a good laugh when she muttered to herself about him requiring yaoi hands. After successfully getting it at the end, she already had been thinking of fanfiction ideas for a continuation of this route.

Tenko tried to get with Vera! Unfortunately, she wasn’t the best at reading the situations, and her stats weren’t high enough, not to mention everyone else kept getting a table with her at lunch! How was she supposed to be stepped on with affection by the powerful snake lady?!? When she was turned down at prom, she felt her heart break a little bit, but attacked Himiko with a hug saying that she would be fine as long as the little mage was there.

Before anyone could decide who would be player one, Kokichi took a chance to be Oz, but named him Ligma because Kiibo would inevitably ask the question of, “Why would you name yourself Ligma?” and he was absolutely ready to laugh at his response to the epidemic of ligma. Kirumi went next, choosing Amira because she “seems like a capable young lady.” Kiibo got Brian before Kaito could object to playing a girl, but the astronaut soon got his second wind by saying that girl power would trump the guys. He held his hand out to Kirumi for a high five, which she hesitantly accepted. 

“Ohhhh, I’ve heard how hard it is to get Vera! Don’t worry Kaito, there’s no way you cou-”

“I’M GONNA FUCK A SNAKE WOMAN AND NONE OF YOU CAN STOP ME.”

This is probably the most chaotic of the games due to Kokichi being able to egg on Kaito with no problem. Kokichi also decided to go for Vera, making it that much harder for Kaito. Kaito almost never got the lunch events with Vera, while Kokichi had his own agenda.

“You’re buying a used tampon? I know you’re messed up, but GOD, that’s a whole other level.”

Little did Kaito know that Kokichi had started the cult ritual secret ending, and was planning to finish it. After fumbling around with her and failing to live up to Vera’s expectations, Kaito got turned down at prom, and was pissed when Kokichi got the secret ending! Why hadn’t he been paying attention to what the midget of the group was doing?! He wasn’t sure, but Kokichi was having a good time cackling and “reassuring” Kaito that he was too dumb and not logical enough to have gotten her route anyways.

Kirumi liked how Liam carried himself, and was more than happy to try romancing him. She seemed to have relaxed while playing this game despite the constant bickering of the grapes in the room. With no failed events, Kirumi went to prom with Liam, and appreciated how secretly funny he was under his hipster demeanor.

Kiibo was being crushed constantly by Kokichi and Kaito after making the grave mistake of sitting between them. He did his best not to let that get to him, but he was distracted for the majority of the game because of him. Before he could choose the last question of the personality quiz at the beginning, his hand was knocked and he accidentally got started on Damien’s route. He spent the majority of the time asking Kirumi questions about if it was normal to be that angry and destructive. He was especially concerned about how Damien had dead bodies in his home! However, he successfully took the demon to prom.

(After his failure, Kaito spent hours playing the game and trying to get all the endings possible. He ended up getting stuck on romancing Valerie.)

From the very beginning of this game, Shuichi and Kaede promised each other that they wouldn’t get in each other’s way, and would help each other should special events requiring the extra boosts in affection come up. Rantaro was happy to do his own thing along with Ryoma. This was probably the calmest group of people to play the game.

Rantaro chose Oz before others could, just changing the name to his own so that no one would get confused. Shuichi chose Amira, but Kaede asked if she could change the name for him without him looking. When he eventually turned back, he was named “Sweetchi

Rantaro decided he liked how excitable Polly was, and how every event with her was like an adventure. He liked being a part of her party scientist shenanigans, and watching her tell a sugar daddy to marry a llama. Which he did. He got the secret Party Science ending with her, and was super calm. Originally though, before dating Polly, he really hoped that Aaravi The Slayer was romanceable.

Kaede accidentally started the Blobert route, which made everyone’s day (”you can date… a blob with a hat?” “You’re just jealous of his hat, aren’t you?”). Getting to give everyone ridiculously specific greeting cards, including a corpse. Regardless, she was super happy to hear how much everyone loves Blobert, and decided that he would always be her favorite. (Shuichi was taking some mental notes through this playhthrough.)

Shuichi ended up going to prom with Miranda as a ghost. It was an accident that he even got on her route, and he still wanted to at least have a successful run. He went to the shop and saw the ghost costume, he was too interested to not buy it. Going through all the cutscenes, he thought Liam getting frustrated was a little cute (Though he wouldn’t dare admit that to anyone) and was happy when he managed to go to prom as a spooky little guy!

Ryoma saw the gentleness in Scott’s heart, and was taken by it. he wanted Scott to be the happiest boy in the world and stay unaware of the hardships that come with life. He ended up successfully going to prom with the werewolf, and was surprised at how fun it was to play a game with other people at the same time. He could probably get used to this.

“I don’t care what fuckin’ player I am, titless- just lease me the fire girl because she’s SMOKIN’ like yours truly!”

“... I think I’m already regretting playing this game with you.”

After Miu made a big deal out of it, she ended up with Amira. Maki chose Vicky, changing the name to her own. Korekiyo chose Brian, but named him Shiso Asobi. once again, no one knew what was with the ridiculous name. Gonta was left with Oz, but he had no problem with that! He did, however, have problems with changing his name. His hands were a bit too big for the keyboard.

“REVERSE ROMANIAN WILKINSON? I don’t know what she’s on, but I fuckin’ LOVE her!”Miu was all over Polly and how ridiculous she could be, including her Reverse Romanian Wilkinson ending. She wasn’t sure what the penguin mask was for along with the guacamole and bag of beads, but just imagining what it was getting her hot all over. She successfully pulled it off, and then proceeded to bother Kiibo about trying it with her.

Maki was attracted to the way Scott acted like a certain astronaut she knew, so she just couldn’t ignore him. getting the correct choices on his route was super easy for her, and she smiled just enough to get Miu on her case for a little bit. At the end of the game, she wondered if she’s been wanting a man who’s essentially like a puppy.

Gonta didn’t want to romance anyone! He just wanted to have the best time he could making people happy. Unfortunately for him, his actions brought him to the orgy ending. He wasn’t sure what it was, but he was asking everyone around him why they weren’t wearing clothes. Miu was yelling angrily because she hadn’t been informed that such a route even existed, and Maki just sighed out of frustration. Korekiyo wasn’t surprised given the rest of the games content, but he found humor in Gonta being the one to get such an ending.

Korekiyo wasn’t originally going after anyone. He just wanted to experience what it was like to play a game about dating people with, well... other people. However, when he basically summoned a powerful monster from the totem of zgord, he changed his playing style to fit accordingly. With a high enough charm stat and being able to take a tentacle monster to the prom, everyone was slightly disturbed, besides Miu. She just wished that she could be a part of that action.

[courage-a-word-of-justice]

Shield Hero 20 - 22 | Sarazanmai 7 - 9 | BSD 32 - 34 | Fruits Basket 8 - 9 | Demon Slayer 8 - 10 | OPM 20 - 21

Shield Hero 20

Motoyasu getting dragged by Filo was funny…not enough to get a proper laugh though. Just a smirk or two.

Stop narrating and just get on with it, Naofumi and friends…!

“I was saying we should fight together all along.” (from Itsuki) – Were you, now…? (skeptical)

Ass-pull! I call “ass-pull” at the power to swallow the phoenix flame! Seriously, when did the dragon get the opportunity to teach Naofumi how to do that???

How did Naofumi not die after losing so much blood…?

What does the Q even stand for in the queen’s name…?

Sarazanmai 7

The seagulls…so fluffy…

For some reason, I expect a fakeout, but then it never arrives…these boys are really connecting…

I found some kappa croquette thingy online, but it referred to a “Shiki City” which probably isn’t in Asakusa…

The shirt…Kazuki’s shirt says “frog” but I get the feeling it also means “return”.

Shirohasu water. It’s Irohasu in Japan.

Was the lyric to Kawausoiya (the otter song) “gonna take ‘em”…?

Nice ET reference, Sara.

Balls…not just sport entendre, but…y’know. The sort of humour I don’t like as much.

Ooh…Keppi is shaping up to be the bad guy. But what plans does he have? Am I speculating too much and is he being framed? Hard to know until next time…

BSD 32

When Kyouka is eating the sundae, she looks like the Tofu Kyouka from Mayoi…hmm.

Can I confess something? Before I saw the illustrations for s2, I thought Louisa’s hair was much darker than what it is in the anime…hmmm, indeed.

I don’t think we were ever told (in the manga or the anime) what Louisa’s wish was…

This bit with Fyodor…I don’t think it was in the manga.

Subarashi-sou is a pun on “it seems wonderful”. That wasn’t in the manga, but it’s a great pun (because it’s right up my alley).

Fitz laughing at the neighbour’s TV wasn’t in the manga either, but that’s just the anime director’s humour peeking through.

“Blalack Daniel’s”, LOL.

Ohh…a quick Google reveals TJ Eckleberg is from the Great Gatsby. In there, he’s an eye doctor, but here, he’s an engineer.

George B Wilson is also from the Great Gatsby…Here be spoilers, but…George dies in his original work too.

Manhasset is a place in New York…I assume it’s connected to the Great Gatsby as well…

Oh yeah! Random Poe moment. That’s in the manga, so Igarashi (or whoever’s responsible for the terrible humour) doesn’t have to fake that bit.

Cue “Objection!” by Fitz, lemme guess. Even if I know the outcome and how it was done, I’d like to have my memory refreshed (by stabbing in the dark…and making an Ace Attorney joke in the process).

I already know, without googling, that Tom Buchanan is part of Great Gatsby as well…

Bank of Amerigo…LOL.

Fruits Basket 8

“If you show up for the banquet now…”

“The banquet sounds just like the folk tale!” Honestly, subbers, proofread…

Haa-kun and Haa-san. No distinguishing between them (aside from honorifics), even though they’re two completely different people.

Hatori’s squinty face was…hilarious, to put it simply.

Oh…I forgot the dance seems to be something the animal of the year does. So if Yuki was 3 years ago, it makes sense Momiji is doing it this year.

Best seat in the house for a sunrise, huh?

Kimetsu no Yaiba 8

I’ve seen Muzan being described as “Demon Michael Jackson” and now I can’t get that out of my head when I see him…sorry.

Tsukihiko, huh? It translates to “moon’s radiance” or something like that. That name is appropriate for a bad guy, isn’t it?

This is the first time I’ve really listened to the OST (aside from the OP and ED), so it’s…really something.

Ooh, I didn’t realise until now, but Ufotable even imitated the paper Jump is printed on with the next-ep previews…

OPM 2 8 (OPM 20)

Er…I haven’t mentioned it for the past few episodes, but Suiryu is hotttttttt. (No? I said that? Okay, next step.) That’s basically the only reason why I’m watching anymore…I can’t seem to find anyone who thinks positively of this tournament arc enough to do reviews of it that I can read, which has made my own opinion of this beloved series go down the drain…Also, if you weren’t aware, my taste lies not in Suiryu’s huge bulk, but rather in the fact he’s got long hair.

Didn’t Suiryu get pierced in the abs??? Where’s the blood coming from his injuries??? Update: He does have injuries there, they’re just not bloody…that’s all.

The main criticism for OPM 2 is the fact that it keeps cutting between different events, so it’s hard to follow. Well, I’ve had worse (see Concrete Revolutio) so that’s why I’m still here.

People say that clothing changes you – say if you put on a new outfit, you feel like a new person. (Of course, that’s all glamorising and praising consumption, but that’s beside the point here.) I think that’s what’s up with Max and Snek.

Shield Hero 21

“…the Shield Hero is worshipped.”

Really? Boob jiggle, at a time like this??? (Context: Malty is getting th slave crest painted on her.)

Wait, was there ever a Shield Church???

Okay, that felt like a real seasonal ending. What the heck is going to happen in the last few episodes, I wonder…?

Sarazanmai 8

Chikai knows the real meaning of YOLO…heh. I’m only kidding…

To be honest, I think I like Toi best out of the main trio. I tend to like the boys in blue…and no, I don’t mean the otter police.

Kazuki’s service provider is “Kappa Phone”, LOL.

When Reo held up the gun, I was yelling, “Enta! Get it for him!” (i.e. take the bullet) I didn’t expect him to actually do it…

…and here I thought tragic yuri was common enough and we don’t have enough Tragic Yaoi Dudes…

Notably, Toi was registered on Enta’s phone as “Kuji”, while Kazuki is registered as “Kazuki” (katakana) on Toi’s.

Shots fired…!

Update: I didn’t notice this, but the evil dude with kamome written behind him (I think it’s in this episode, but it might have been in the last one instead) must be based on a seagull…because that’s what kamome means.

Bungou Stray Dogs 33 (BSD S3 Ep 8)

I think it was around here I stopped reading the scans, because the series was picked up legally anyway…but I can see the death flags for a certain Port Mafia man…one who stands at the top.

As expected…butt shot. Igarashi (or whoever’s responsible for that shot) likes butts, so between this and Sarazanmai…*imagines image of kappa!Kazuki holding a shirikodama* There’s absolutely no buts about it (LOL), there’s no shortage of butts this season.

“To think that the rabbit being hunted would show its face…” – I think it’s hard for you to say that, Akutagawa, when you yourself have no face in that frame…

Why are both Akutagawa and Fyodor Naruto running today???

“So you’re doing this for that woman.”

What is “Mukurotoride”? I don’t seem to remember…maybe I never learnt what it was. Update: Apparently a tower in Dead Apple is called Mukurotoride.

Conspiracy time! This book sounds like Kunikida’s Ability…so imagine if it were under Dazai’s nose the entire time…

Fruits Basket 9

I love how the synopsis for this episode goes, “Kyo fights Yuki, Yuki fights a cold…”

Hatsuharu’s wearing such an ostentatious fluffy jacket…LOL, I love it.

Holy cow (LOL), I forgot how old Hatsuharu is…so that means he’s 15-ish, right?

Come to think of it…I see Fruits Basket characters in Ro Te O, which I started writing at about this time in 2013. The Azrael of that time was a hybrid of Hatsuharu, Ritsu and Ayame, Tetsuya is basically Yuki and Ryou is Kyou…hmm.

Apparently, Shigure had in the 2001 anime a song that went like, “High school girls, high school girls, cute high school girls for me.” So that’s where it was??? (Context: I haven’t seen Fruits Basket 2001, but read the entire manga.)

Kimetsu no Yaiba 9

Recap time, recap time…so the lady’s in the back room and Tanjiro conveniently forgets the man is in the basement…? Wuh?

Moya was complaining about how repetitive this show can get when it comes to the script (i.e. it repeats itself because it doesn’t trust its audience, but I think that’s because this is originally serialised on TV week by week that people may forget if they’re not bingeing, taking notes or following the manga). I’ll talk more about that in my KnY collab post, I guess…

When Yushiro said “watch your back”…he really meant it, huh?

Temari are the balls, but kemari is when you kick the balls.

“…the eyeballs on his hands are creepy.” – LOL.

Shield Hero 22

The ep title just says “Hero Council”…not specifically that there are 4 of them.

My stream’s been buffering more than usual, so I went “like mother, like daughter” before Naofumi did…

It would’ve ben massively funny to hear Melty call Malty either “Trash” or “B****”…especially the last one, because that’s always a fun way to end a sentence (especially for a girl as young as her). Update: She does, but the way she does it isn’t as funny as I thought it would be (and she doesn’t end her sentence with her sister’s new name).

Wait, I thought they got rid of her slave pact??? I thought it was only for the duration of her trial that she needed it for.

L’Arc and that lady seem like they’re foreshadowing for later…hmm. Update: The next-episode synopsis says “yes”. So does that new visual.

Sarazanmai 9

I can’t believe this show’s almost over…That means I gotta get a move on with RobiHachi, but to be honest? Non-anime things are probably going to kep me busy until…a few days from now. So I’ll get RobiHachi watched then.

Characetrs are dying en masse in this episode, aren’t they??? I saw a spoiler that (well, SPOILER) Chikai’s gonna die, but I don’t know about Enta or Keppi…Update: To be honest, I thought Chikai was going to become the next monster – a gun monster, perhaps. Maybe now that I’ve finished the episode, he’ll become a real zombie. (Hey, see what I did there with the bolding…? How’s that for hiding spoilers, eh???)

Oh yeah…I forgot Enta’s sister was Kazuki’s teacher…

There was a sign behind Masa that said”Hinode Asakusa” – “hi no de” meaning roughly “under the sun” or “leaving the sun”.

Tokarev…? The gun? Gun monster, maybe? Is this a critique of the American gun…(exaggerated voice) Nah, can’t be…this is Japanese.

Lionel…Lionel…for some reason, that name in relation to soccer seems familiar...I just can’t put my finger on who it reminds me of, though. Update: Is it, perhaps, Messi…? Yes, I think that’s the guy I was thinking of…!

Aw…I’m not crying, you are…But these words were running through my head before Toi chucked the bag of money away and yelled, “F***!”: “Everything I do, I do it for you.” Isn’t that cute…?

Bungou Stray Dogs 34

“…one by one?” Junban means “sequentially”, so I don’t see why you have to use the phrase “one by one”. Or “one at a time” would also work.

Hardbank…to contrast Softbank (a phone company in Japan).

Face-stealing aliens strike again…(re: Atsushi)

Oh flip. This reminds me of my Kunikida fic…yeah, I bet you don’t remember it.

Hey, this dude! Apparently he’s from one of Kunikida’s stories. I really am approaching the end of what I know of canon…*gulp* Update: Oops, we already passed that part…

I wonder if the real Fyodor could play cello…? Or is this just a thing to make him ominous and villanous…?

The cross on the wall behind Kunikida…makes this show more like Eva than Kekkai Sensen…exquisite. Absolutely exquisite, isn’t it?

Another cool cross, behind Tanizaki!

What’s a tatamigatana? Also, I didn’t know other people could be synchronised using Doppo Poet and Ranpo’s deduction…

Does Kouyou mean (by “the one I most despise”)…Chuuya? Or herself? It’s definitely not Ace.

Kimetsu no Yaiba 10

Headpats for Yushiro as well! Headpats for everyone!

There’s a lot of Tanjiro being terrified in this episode…

Wait…Kizuki? I thought they were the 12 Moons? (Well, “tsuki” means “moon”, but then what’s the “ki”?) Update: The “ki” means “demon”, so the Kizuki are the 12 Demon Moons.

Being alone with the body…that’s always a scary thought in murder mysteries…for the people who dissect them to determine the cause of death, that is.

Considering the name of the episode is “Together Forever”…nup, I don’t see Nezuko and Tanjiro separating anytime soon…

The Kasugai crow is what happens when you can’t turn off your Google Assistant…or GPS…or Siri.

If Tanjiro knows the name of his crow, how do the crows get their names? Do their trainers (is that the right term for a crow breeder in this case…?) give them names?

OPM S2 Ep 9 (Ep 21)

LOL, that one shot of the ants…JC Staff really don’t care about this series, do they…?

I kinda forgot about Genos after a bit more than a week…sorry, I was watching other anime in between. (More than usual, at least. I started playing Chibi Tamago – a forum game for AniList where you collect badges for watching anime - that’s why.)

Did he (Pri-Pri Prisoner)…store his phone in his butt…?

[karindalayson]

"Cold Hands Cold Heart"*

*An idea for a title created by Tai aka @miss-shiota so.. XD

Theoretically it is a HaiHiro story, about Hiroto who was sick and about Haizaki who took care about him. But they are OOC, very OOC XD

It isn't yaoi or shounen-ai (I'm not sure about this second XD)

Also, so sorry about all mistakes 😅 My English is dead and my writing sucks, I know 😅

Anyway, I hope you enjoy it~ or at least you won't kill me XD

Oh, and be prepared... This thing has 1595 wordsss XD

----

Hiroto woke up with a terrible headache. He tried to move but every part of his body hurt. Kira opened his eyes but he was blined by light and closed them immediately. The boy pulled his blanket and covered himself under it more. He was sick. Really sick. The only thing which he wanted to do was die. His throat hurt, eyes didn't want to open again and he was almost able to feel how temperature of his body is growing.

"Wake up, idiot! We have a morning practice in twenty minutes," said Haizaki with an ignorance in his voice.

"Leave me in peace," murmured Hiroto and turned over.

"Tch, it's not my business what you are going to do," snarled Ryouhei.

"So go to hell and let me sleep," wanted to say Hiroto but his voice cracked and he started coughing. Haizaki looked at him surprised.

"Are you sick?" He asked.

"You shouldn't be interested in me!" Kira tried to his voice sounds serious but he couldn't stop coughing. "Now, go away!"

Gray haired boy shrugged and went out from the room. Hiroto stayed alone. A few minutes later, which seem to have been an eternity for him, cough stopped but after that his body hurt even more. Kira closed his eyes trying to hold back tears, however without effect.

The evening.

Hiroto stayed in bed whole day. Most of the time he was alone but Tatsuya and others came a few times to see how is he feeling. Someone brought him a dinner but he didn't want to eat and even if he would like to do it, he was too weak to get up. Hiroto heard steps. Haizaki entered the room and stand in front of Kira's bed.

"How are you feeling?" he asked quietly but still emotionless.

"Don't act as if you were interested in it." This time Hiroto's voice sounded even weaker than in the morning.

"Maybe I'm not interested in your health," said Ryouhei angrily and clenched his fists in order not to hit his roommate, "but since we share this room I have to be a little friendly to you because Kidou is mad at me if I'm not."

"So are you doing it only for Kidou's sake? You are trying to be nice for me only because of him! Stop it. I don't need your fake help!" yelled Hiroto ignoring a pain in his chest.

"I only asked… You needn't be so mean for me" murmured Haizaki.

"Why did you even do it?!" shouted Kira and got up but regretted it immediately. He was hit by pain even more than before. The boy started coughing again but this time he wasn't almost able to catch a breath. "We are not friends! You haven't to be concerned about me!"

Hiroto embraced himself trying to overcome the pain

"Calm down, you idiot" Haizaki came to the bed and sit on the edge of it. He tried to lay his hands on Kira's shoulders but a boy pushed them away.

"Don't touch me!" He screamed but it caused only more pain and the tears which appeared into his eyes.

"Okay, okay, but calm down" Haizaki took his hands back, however he was still sitting on Hiroto's bed. After a few minutes a boy stopped coughing and fell on his pillow. Haizaki was looking at him a few seconds and went on to lay his hand on Kira's forehead in order to check his temperature.

"Don't touch me," whispered Hiroto weakly but this time he even didn't move.

"You have an awful fever," said Haizaki. "Maybe should I go to coach and ask him to call doctor or something?"

"It's not needed," replied boy with sigh and put his hand on Ryouhei's fingers. "Your hand is so cold… as same as your heart."

"What do you mean?" Haizaki looked at him surprised but then he realized that Hiroto has a big fever and everything what he is doing and speaking is weird probably because of it.

"I mean it what you've heard." Kira held Haizaki's hand and moved it from his forehead to the cheek. "You hand is so cold and it's pleasured...

"My hand isn't cold!" said Ryouhei trying to break his hand free. "Your forehead is warm!"

"You're probably right," whispered Hiroto quietly but he still didn't want to let Haizaki's hand.

"Can you give me my hand back?" asked the second boy with irritation. "If you want to have something cold I will bring you an ice pack or a wet towel."

In this moment Kira realized what he was doing all the time and threw a hand from his face.

"You can do what you want," he murmured.

Haizaki stood up and sent him a look. His face was red and sweaty because of high fever. Pink eyes were swollen and under them were signs after tears. Curly hair was more disheveled than usual.

"You look really horrible," concluded Haizaki but his voice wasn't as mean as always. It was more friendly and… maybe even worried?

"I'm sick. I can look horrible," responded Kira and closed his eyes "but you always look horrible even without it.

"You're an asshole." Haizaki turned round and went out from the room.

Before he had came back Hiroto fell asleep. Ryouhei sit on the bed and put wet towel on Kira's forehead. A relief appeared on sleeping boy's face.

"Why didn't you ask anyone about it before, you idiot" said Haizaki quietly in order not to wake up his roommate.

"I didn't want anyone help," responded curly haired boy. He opened his eyes and looked at Ryouhei. "I never needed it."

"Tch. You're so stubborn."

"As same as you."

"I'm not stubborn!" Haizaki's voice became louder. "You're the one who is!"

"No, you are."

"No, I'm not!"

"Yes, you're."

"No, I'm not!"

"Yes, you ar…"

Their arguing was interrupted by Hiroto's cough.

"You shouldn't talk so much. You'd better shut up and take some rest!"

"You won't tell me what to do!" shouted or more tried to shout Kira because he started coughing again.

"I said that you're stubborn… and idiot," murmured Haizaki and stood up.

"You're an idiot too and you're even greater idiot than me," claimed Hiroto but he laid on his pillow more comfortable and pulled his blanket. "Wait, where are you going?"

"To take a shower? I had a practice," said Haizaki and looked at his roommate like he was an idiot. "And you should go to sleep before I come back."

"Stop ordering me."

Ryouhei ignored what Hiroto said and went to the bathroom.

He came back after a few minutes and saw that Hiroto was still awake.

"You dumb, I said you that you should go to sleep."

"I can't," responded Kira quietly. "It's hurting too much.

"What do you mean? What is hurting you? asked Haizaki and came to bed.

"Everything?"

"So, do you want me to give you same medicines?"

"It's not needed."

"Stop saying such ridiculous things like that. It's NEEDED. There's no point suffering." Haizaki came to the table and started looking for medicines. "What a nuisance... Do you always act like that when you're sick?"

Hiroto didn't say anything. He was laying with his eyes staring at ceiling.

"I don't know… I never was sick before…," he responded quietly.

"It's probably reason why you are doing and speaking weird things. Your body isn't used to this condition," stated Ryouhei. He found a medicine and then brought a glass of water. "Can you get up?"

"Of course, I…" Hiroto tried to move up but he fell back on the bed "can't… What is with this body? What is with me? What…"

When he was speaking Haizaki helped him to get up and gave him medicines.

"Stop talking and swallow it."

Kira did it without objection what was surprisingly. Suddenly he felt very tired and unconsciously leaned on Haizaki's chest.

"Don't you think that a pillow is more comfortable than me? Or maybe you want to check if my heart is really as same cold as my hand?" asked Ryouhei but he didn't pushed the boy away.

"I only… I didn't want to… I.. " stuttered Hiroto laying back on bed. His face become more red than before because of shame which he had felt.

"I don't mind," said Haizaki and got up looking at his rival. "But now, you definitely should go to sleep. This medicine will work in around ten minutes."

"Yes yes, master. I will do everything what you want." said Kira who seem to have started feeling so much better.

Haizaki looked at him with consternation.

"I hope you will get better tomorrow. You're unbearable when you're sick."

"Thank you, I do my best." Hiroto smiled weakly. Haizaki ignored what Hiroto said and sit on his bed.

"Anyway... Haizaki… I…I want to…," Kira began speaking but cut off and started stare at ceiling.

"What do you wanted to say?"

"Nothing," said boy quickly but after a few seconds he started again. "I wanted to tell you… Thank you for took care of me, Haizaki. And I'm sorry that I was so mean for you."

"It's not needed." Ryouhei looked at him confused. "You're really sick if you has started thanking and apologizing."

"Don't worry. Tomorrow everything will be as same as before."

"I hope." Haizaki turned off the light and laid in his bed. "If you will need something wake me up."

"Okay, thank you again"

"And stop thanking! It's starting to get weird. Good night."

"Nighty night."

The end~ Finally, isn't it?

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So... If you are here and if you read all this shit story.. I admire you 💖

Have a nice day!~