#today i did that second method again and cut more off

[creaturebehavior]

trimmed my hair again

added more layers and again, it looks better than it did last time

[catchingdaydreams]

Beach Day!🏖️

Mithrun x Gardener Reader

Part 1 here to make sense of some stuff

Word count: idk 2000 ish.

Begrudgingly the summers heat over the island became too burdensome to work along your orchids for the past couple of days. It was particularly a good season too for your plum trees but this blistering heat made up unable to harvest at this time. Furthermore, you were more afraid of your friend and helper, Mithrun of passing out from heatstroke....again. And you really didn't want to spend the hot summer afternoon playing hide and seek, looking for him among the many acres that were bestowed onto you.

Staying indoors wasn't very productive either. The times that you don't work, you spend having tea with Mithrun in your green house. He had picked up a bit of a bad habit from trying to slowly regain his desires again. See he became very picky, stubborn even , noting that he only would rest and have tea in the same spot. Before you got well accustomed to him, you immediately chased him out with your broom when you first invited him into your home only for him to call it as quote " a poor shack that even the rats won't nest in". At the moment he still won't even step inside your home, despite your friendship blooming. The last mention of it, he made a puzzlingly looking expression. For a brief second you saw his ears twitch from his hair, catching flushed redness. But that could have been just your imagination.

Nevertheless the green house was out of the question, for it was way too hot to endure as well. As you were thinking of a way you would be spending your time with Mithrun today and an excellent idea popped into your head.

---------------------🍋--------------------

"The beach?" Mithrun mimicked, confused at your sudden suggestion. "Yeah! Why not. It's too hot to do anything today and I thought, what's something I haven't done in a long time and can escape this awful weather by doing it". Mithrun hummed, looking in deep thought. One might think by looking at him that he seemed completely uninterested. But you knew him long enough to at least pick up a few signs. There was curiosity in his eyes for the most part but hesitation pooled in.

" I don't think Cithis would agree with this. I'm not allowed to go near large bodies of water". Mithrun stated. There were many things he still wasn't allowed to do on his own anymore, not since the time he became a lord of the dungeon. Most rules he followed were for his health, both mentally and physically. Pattadol even bestowed you the rights to cut his hair. You thought it was strange at first until she quickly filled in on his situation and his not so past history with sharp objects. The elves method that cutting others hair was a sacred thing among family and close friends, that I should feel honored to do it. In reality you only do it as Mithrun had stopped anyone else from touching his hair , proclaiming that you did a better job at evening it.

In the moment you laughed at his response.

You found his statement kinda ironic too as he didn't care at all what the Canaries thought now, especially when he was wandering off to see you while they had no clue where he was. Your laughter was interrupted as he spoke again.

"I cannot swim either" he stated, this time a bit meekly, almost embarrassed. " Not with the ocean's current." You understood what he meant. His body was still too weak for physical endurance. That's why he uses magic most of the time for travelling to see you.

"that's fine, you should be alright if you just stick to the shallows. And even if you get swept away I can come rescue you!" You reassured Mithrun, grabbing his hand and giving a light squeeze.

"so you be my knight in shining armor then?" Mithrun says his usual monotone voice, but smiles.

"mmm probably not the shining armor part, I think I'll just sink to the ocean floor before reaching you" You joke, acting it out dramatically, pulling Mithrun down with you ever so slightly as you kept holding his hand.

He smile grows.

"Maybe a siren would be more befitting with you, y/n. Considering your dragging me down with you already. How monstrous." You just gently shove him at his response.

You quickly collect yourself and make way into your home, gathering up all the necessary equipment before coming back out. Interlocking your arms with his you say your ready to teleport there. And in a flash your gone.

....

"um Mithrun?"

"mmm?"

"this isn't the beach"

Looking around, Mithrun quickly took in that in fact this was not a beach but at the entrance of a dungeon.

"Oh, yeah I don't think this is the beach"

...

...

.......

"Mithan, the beach this time".

"Okey"

----------------------🍋-------------------

Several teleports later the two of you eventually find yourself along a secluded beach. You stretch as you take in the sea air. Already the coolness of the oceans breeze was doing wonders for you.

You sigh as you plob down your towels in the nearest shade. You pat a spot for Mithrun to sit and he follows instantly. From your supplies you carried along a picnic basket.

"thought we might eat first before we go for a swim. It's not what we usually have, but this is more fitting for this setting" you say as you take out various fruits and cheese you got from the market, alongside some cracker's and bread.

Mithrun ponders over the options before noticing something was missing. "No tea?" His ears dropped as he could not find is favorite lemon tea packed along with everything else.

You snort. "Oh Mithrun, that's something a bit hard for me to make. I know you can make the water boil with your magic and such but I wanted you to try something else. You'll be the first one to taste it too.

That seems to cheer him up a bit. More curious if anything.

Reaching into the basket you pull out a small flask and two shot glasses. Pouring the clear liquid in both you hand it to Mithrun. He inspects before taking a small sip. Instantly he gags at the strong flavor, quickly picking up a few sliced apples to get rid of the taste.

"mmm might be too strong" you ponder, taking the shot in one go like it was nothing to you.

"Wha-what that?"Mithrun rasps.

"oh! It's Pálinka, it's an alcoholic drink made from some of the plums I was able to harvest. Thought you might like it but maybe a cherry base would have been better for you considering you like sour stuff more. Mmm sorry ."

"no, no it's.....nice" He lies, he couldn't even hide the disgusted look on his face.

"welp more for me", you take the shot glass from him and down the hatch it went.

"I can handle alcohol". He says.

"I'm sure you can". You don't fully believe him, certainly not after that reaction.

In the corner of your eye, you see Mithrun quickly tries to grab the flask out of your hands but you are faster. "You don't need to prove yourself, Mith, it's an acquired taste that not many tall man ourselves like." You say placing the beverage back into the basket. He just grumbles in response, nibbling on the crispy apples.

"Besides we came for the beach not to get drunk". You say picking on some fruits before getting up and taking your top off, reviling swimwear undergarments. As you were about to take your pants off you heard a Mithrun breath heavy, as if he was holding on to it before. You didn't bother to glace over as you were too preoccupied folding your clothes.

"what?"

"nothing..." He quickly responds. It was in fact not nothing. He was lucky for you not to see his flushed shocked face as you stripped in front of him. He just managed to control his emotions in time as you turned around to place your clothes in the basket.

You just hummed at his response You didn't want to pressure him further on the matter. Besides you had other things to do Such as swimming.

You raced into the water, giggled at the relief it gave you from the summers heat. It was bliss. You call out to Mithrun stating the waters fine and to hop in with you.

He slowly gets up and trots to the waters edge. You know the whole beach thing was at the spare of the moment so Mithrun didn't have swim shorts with him so his pants would have to do. But as he entered the water you were quite puzzled as to why he didn't remove his long sleeved shirt.

"you're not taking your shirt off? It would be heavy to swim in it". The odds of him actually having trouble swimming would become higher if he kept it on. You went too fond of actually trying to save a drowning elf anytime soon.

Mithrun stopped, looking at you before quickly avoiding your gaze. A flash of emotion took his eyes. Pain, disgust and shame washed over.

"Im- you won't like it" he says, barely able to hear it.

"like what?" You say confused.

....

It took a few seconds before he spoke. As if unable to properly find the right words for what he was going to say next.

"My body. Isn't it right" it's a crit and vile tone as he spoke about himself.

You were still confused but concerned about how Mithrun was reacting. He took a glance at you and signed. He knew he didn't have to show it to you but he felt like he had no choice. Just let you see him and then you wouldn't bring it up again. You would be too disgusted anyway. He got over it and pulled his top partial up.

"Mith...."

You didn't know what to expect. His stomach was adorned with warped skin that twists and pulls looking like it never truly healed properly. His lanky and frail form was littered in scar, some thick and asymmetrical, some thin, some repeated over and over in the same spot. It made your heart drop. Not how it looked but how awful Mithrun must feel.

Your lack of silence stung even more for Mithrun. He wanted to leave right then and there but was too frozen. He didn't even hear your voice call out to him. He was in a haze, about to shut down until you cupped his cheek, making him properly look at you. His glassy eye bore in shock as he looked directly in yours, searching for disgusted in any way shape or form. But there was none.

"You can keep your top on if you want to , if that's what makes you feel comfortable. But I just want to let you know I'm not disgusted nor I would look down on you for it. Never ever. You're still my friend Mithrun and Im here for you. All your scars, it shows you are a survivor, so strong and determined to continue on despite dealing the bad hand.... Oh I'm not good with these types of things when it comes to words but I hope that helps-ah!"

Mithrun pulls you into a tightly hug. He nests his face in on your shoulder, a feeling of dampness is on your skin. Your hands reach out to rub his back, soothing him as his cries in front of you for the first time. You let him continue letting it out, until cries become sniffles.

"...Thank you" he says meekly, still holding onto you with the same force, as if scared that you would disappear if he let's go.

"Do you still want to swim with me ?"

He just nods into your shoulder.

You're the one that breaks the hug but your hands move to his own and intertwine them as you guide him into the deeper water.

"wait". He says and you pause. He let go of your hand for a quick sec, to take off his top completely, chucking onto the sand. You smile as he grabs it again giving it a squeeze to confirm to continue.

The two of you spend most of your time in the water, cooling off and not drowning. As pleasant as it was you wanted to do other beach style activities with Mithrun. He in fact cannot build a sand castle. He was being too much of a perfectionist and would redo his castle again and again. It didn't help that the tide was coming in a swept away at one less imperfect castle he made. Shortly after you decided to look for seashells before arriving back on your towels and finishing whatever food was left.

Both of you lay down on the towel, taking in the warmth. Neither of you said a word to each other but there was no need to. Everything felt content. It was a pleasant day, you felt, spending it with your friend made you all the more content. And as you both further basked, the greater ease of sleep fell onto both of you till eventually you're snoozing together on this summer afternoon. Truly peaceful as if nothing could go wrong.....

You both got sunburnt.

----------------------🍋-----------------

Phfft

"Oh my God, you look like a tomato!!" Fleki cackles as she slams her hands on the table, unable to control her fits of laughter as all the Canaries witness a very sunburnt Mithrun. She tired poking at his red skin but Pattadol swatted their hand away.

"Mmmm? He's not completely red though look there I think there are hand prints on his hips. Oh Mithrun you're not leaving much to the imagination are you. Quite Naughty~" Lycion giggled.

Mithrun shot him a glare.

"Well I think he's learnt his lesson. Next time please apply sunscreen." Pattadol stated as she applied aloa over his burnt back.

"I'm surprised he even took his shirt off, wasn't you with y/n? Usually you kick such a fuss about exposing your body even hiding your injuries from us. This is an odd change indeed" Otta says puzzled.

In the mist of all the chatting Mithrun turns his gaze to the only elf in the room who hasn't made some jab or snark comment about his appearance. Cithis smiles warmly at Mithrun, a sort of fondness like a mother has for a child. Deep down she knows something about Mithrun that he doesn't quite know himself yet.

"Did you have a fun day at the Beach, Mithrun?" She asks softly.

The group stops talking, all eyes are on him.

Mithrun ponders in deep thought. Recalling the events that took place today. The elves were shocked to see a cheshire cat like smile was plastered on his face as he gazed fondly into nothingness.

"Yeah, I think-no.... I know I did".

[Thanks for reading!]

This fic was just made up on the spot and was originally supposed to be a funny crack fic about Mithrun getting in all sorts of trouble at the beach in a comedic way. But as I kept writing I was like damn it's definitely not a crack fic. Anyway I am really happy with how this turned out.

[katsukikitten]

the second addition to a little series that will just be random moments in a bit of a chronological order? anyway enjoy sako and descriptions of drinks and desserts lmfao Sako is in his late twenties as is reader

Sako finds himself returning to this cute little dessert cafe just between territories. This is the only place that makes his latte perfect each and every time. He's noticed that it's only you who makes it right, finding himself in a bad habit of trying to sneak into the shop to see who's working.

Long fingers grabbing at the brass bell overhead to keep it from alerting the staff that normally had their backs to the door around this time. They'd be too busy focused on cutting the fresh sweet rolls and pastries into perfect sizes to freshen up the case.

Sako had seen an Instagram post from your cafe this morning about some purple iced coffee, dyed with what could be blueberry or taro just light enough to show off the moon and star shaped ice.

The post popped up just in time to give him a good enough excuse to return to your cafe so soon and Inugami did suggest that Kota “try talkin to her!”

Sako figured changing his coffee order counted.

Thankfully it's you behind the counter. Humming softly, apron strings amplifying your figure and suddenly Sako is swallowing thickly.

He noticed you the first time he came in, your customer service voice was bubbly and friendly and then when you laughed at something that bum ass coworker said, it was loud, unashamed and genuine.

Contagious as he found himself smiling down at his latte and swiss roll slice those few months ago and since then he's been back for more than just the perfect latte.

He should say something, should alert you that he's present and watching you. Humming along with the radio that plays overhead, setting some of the cakes on long platters. Rolls sliced perfectly, pastries dusted in powdered sugars and small personal sized cakes iced beautifully. Sweet puddings with colorful macarons gently tucked into the vibrant sweet.

He could watch you work methodically all damn afternoon and he was certain you wouldn't be the wiser.

But then the thought of any one else, of any other man, getting to stand where Sako stood taking in your most candid moments makes him grit his teeth.

“I heard you make cute ice.” His voice cuts through the silence and startles you, it's cute how you flinch.

Damn near jump out of your skin, almost lose the cookie you were placing in the sweet dessert. Slowly turning around with the plastered smile on your face that falters when you see him.

It's like he looks extra handsome today with the sun still flooding in behind him, making a halo of his ombre blonde hair.

He dresses like a businessman but you know he isn't, between the time of day he pops in, the way his eyes burn into your skin, the golden earrings he wears, how his knuckles are scabbed or bloodied and the bruise blooming on his jaw says otherwise.

But men had all sorts of hobbies didn't they?

“Sako.” You sound relieved that it's him but then it's like you've caught yourself, clearing your throat, “Ah, right? Sako-san?”

“Yea.” Is all he offers, the two of you staring at one another for a moment before you grab for the portafilter to pack with grounds, “Like the helpful fox on the cup.”

You go rigid for a moment, manicured finger hovering over the button to grind the beans with your back mostly turned to him. He doesn't see you open your mouth to utter your apology.

“No latte today.” He watches you deflate for a moment.

“Oh.” It comes out soft, dejected, shoulders hunching before you start to stand straight again. Turning around to give him a pinched smile you save for more of the rude customers “What would you like today sir?”

An odd feeling sits in your stomach, chasm yawning open in a heavy reminder that you didn't know this man at all. How could you? You knew his family name, not his given, and only because you have to ask in order to write it on the side of a fucking paper cup.

Almost pathetic of you to fall for a stranger and imagine that you'd know that he wouldn't like anything other than a latte.

“I wanna try this.” His voice brings you back to the moment, his phone held out in your direction with a drink you'd never seen before. You think you'll correct him, that this purple drink isn't served here until you glance down at the handle under the post.

That damn asshole posted the picture too soon, the owner said they wouldn't have the stuff on hand for another week aside from the ice.

Sako watches your face fall, watches your brow furrow and your pretty lips snarl. You look mad, furious even, as your eyes bore into the screen.

Kota thinks he likes it.

Just as quickly as it happened you collect yourself, full customer service mode.

“Aw Sako-san I'm sorry but that post was put up too early. We don't have the ingredients for it.” You make an apologetic face before you get an idea, “But maybe I can make you something else.”

You move to flip on hot water, stopping just before you hit the switch, “Oh your dessert?”

Jeans tight around your ass and thighs, shirt riding up to show off the small of your back as you pause on tiptoes as his eyes wander back up to your face as you're turning to glance over your shoulder to him.

A perverse thought enters his mind, one he struggles to push away as the answer sits on the tip of his tongue.

“You.” His answer slips out anyway, floating between the two of you as you wait patiently for him to finish his sentence, he blows air out of his nose playfully when his shameless flirting doesn't land, “You pick.”

Barely saving himself although you cannot tell a difference in his tone. Smiling as you begin to formulate a plan. Flipping on the kettle as you searched for something on the top shelf, grabbing for two jars. One filled to the brim with small dehydrated flower heads and the other a finely crushed dark blue powder. The final thing you disappear into the kitchen for, a small curse echoing around the space before you grab for the edible glitter.

In the meantime the kettle flips off before it screams, water the perfect temperature as the light turns green patiently waiting for your return.

Which you do quickly now with a glass teapot in hand, scooping out one teaspoon of those dried flowers. Soka can just see you scrunch your face as you ponder something before deciding to add another scoop.

The tea steeps into a deep and rich midnight blue as you work to pop the star and crescent moon ice from their molds. Refilling the brightly colored silicone before gently placing it back into the freezer, scooping what you've just popped into a glass.

Next is the sweetened milk, adding a bit of the blue pea flower and some of the edible glitter, stirring until it is a few shades lighter than the base tea will be. Steaming it to perfection before you first pour the steeped tea and then the milk on top to watch them meld into one another like a swirling galaxy.

Triumphantly you set it on the counter, ready to call his name before you pause as you realize you've forgotten his dessert.

Staring into the case for far too long, worried the drink will settle too much before you can get it to Sako san. Fingers twitching as you think of the flavor profiles, everything in there would be far too sweet and make the milk tea seem bitter.

Not to mention nothing would look aesthetically pleasing next to it anyway.

The drink was like a late summer night in the countryside where you could see the stars winking back and you. That's when it hits you, that experiment the owner wanted you to work on for the upcoming festival season.

“Oh I hope it's set!” You speak aloud, closing the dessert case door as you rush again into the back where the air was cooler to keep confections from melting. Hoisting open the walk in door with desperate pleas, “Please please please!’

Peeking to see if that dessert gelatin had finally set in their large round mold, anxiety prickling the nap of your neck as you tap one to see if it was ready.

It jiggles slightly in its container but nothing that indicates it could fall apart from just looking at it wrong which gives you some hope. Grabbing the single mold that sat next to the only other one you made before you blindly reached for a plate.

Without second thought flipping it over and it slides out looking as beautiful as you hoped it would, rushing to get it to Sako before the ice melted in his drink.

Setting them down in front of him giving him the service he normally dreaded but from you he wouldn't mind.

“A special dessert for a very special guest.” You giggle, holding the tray to your body when the bell chimes over head pulling your attention to the new customer that you greet. Turning to Sako before you depart, “It's like a taste of summer.”

He looks down at the perfect setting even down to the smaller details like his fork and napkin. The fork is one of those small golden three pronged ones, dainty with a scalloped handle, the napkin a dark blue that almost matches the drink and dessert before him.

He's never had a gelatin like this before, deep midnight in color, shaped like a cut in half sphere and the top of the globe had glittering golden and silver brusts of fireworks.

Kota will never understand how you made this so beautifully as he snaps a picture of the setting to post to his secret dessert account that had a cult-like following with no caption or tagged location.

He takes a sip of his drink first, the sweetness is just subtle enough that it doesn't over power the earthy lemongrass flavor and compliments it quite well. Refreshing and light despite it being a milk tea which was more known for their sugary flavors.

Next is the jelly, debating if he even wanted to destroy this work of art before he gently plunges his fork all the way to the base, sure to grab some of the whitish pink fireworks.

The flavor explodes on his tongue and he tilts his head back from his pleasure. Peach and lemon grass dance across his taste buds tied together with the softest hint of cream. He realizes the peachy flavor comes from the firework while the earthy profile comes from the jelly itself. You must have used butterfly pea tea for both.

To say Kato was impressed was an understatement, he'd yet to find anyone to make that tea taste like anything other than nothing or straight grass clippings. Yet here you were with your timers and steady hands crafting the most summery refreshing thing he's ever had.

His phone vibrates on the table, a notification on his latest posts as people ask where they can find the delicious dessert.

Sako replies to someone for the first time in the five years he's had his account.

I'm not sharing this one, she's my little secret.

[linagram]

[ 𝙷𝚊𝚗𝚊𝚜𝚊𝚔𝚒 𝙰𝚒𝚖𝚒'𝚜 𝚃𝚛𝚒𝚊𝚕 𝟹 𝚅𝙳] 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙴𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝙰𝚕𝚕 𝙵𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚙𝚜

AIMI TIME!! honestly, i really can't say what kind of verdict would be better for her. i have no idea how her trial will go this time..

Warnings for Aimi's VD: mentions of toxic family dynamics and bullying, Aimi's murder method is discussed and implied to be very brutal, but the description is not detailed.

Warnings for Aimi's MV: themes of bullying and toxic relationships between Aimi and her accomplice and also her classmates. One of the characters gets their head cut off.

(sounds of footsteps)

Hinode: Sorry for dozing off like that, Miki-san.. I just got so tired all of a sudden..

Miki: It's kinda weird to hear that from someone who.. you know, said all of that to Miyagawa-san.

Hinode: Hm? What do you mean?

Miki: Well, I really didn't expect you to be so.. harsh, maybe?

Hinode: *laughs* Harsh? Please, Miki-san, I was just trying to learn more about his crime, that's all.

Miki: B-but it sounded like you had everything figured out already-

Hinode: Are you ready to interrogate the second prisoner? I promise, I'll try my best not to fall asleep this time.

Miki: .. Okay.

(the door opens)

Miki: Hello-

Miki: H-huh?!

(sounds of someone running up to her and pulling her in a hug)

Aimi: Hehe.. Hello, Miki-chan~

Aimi: It's so nice to finally see you.. I've missed you so much..

Aimi: Don't you know it's bad to just leave your best friend like that?

Miki: .. P-please let go of me.

Hinode: W-why do I feel like a third wheel in this situation?..

Aimi: Hmph..

(sounds of Aimi letting Miki go and sitting down)

Aimi: So, a third trial..

Aimi: Well, I have nothing to worry about, right, Miki-chan?

Miki: .. Y-you're really.. talkative today.

Hinode: Which is surprising, considering you don't talk to other prisoners that much anymore.

Aimi: Ah, about that..

Aimi: I just don't really understand why I should continue trying to become friends with them.

Aimi: Let's be honest here, all of them are sick in the head.

Miki: ?

Miki: But didn't you say that you like all of them and want to be friends with them-

Aimi: I really did like them.

Aimi: But.. Then I looked at them, saw how they act after being voted guilty or even after being voted innocent and..

Aimi: And I was like, "Damn, they really are murderers, aren't they?" *laughs*

Miki: .. You sound weird, Hanasaki-san. It doesn't sound like you at all-

Aimi: Aimi-chan.

Miki: Wh-

Aimi: Call me "Aimi-chan". Like a good friend would. 

Aimi: No, no, like a best friend would!

Hinode: I-I think we should start the interrogation-

Aimi: I'm sorry, was I speaking to you? 

Miki: .. Aimi-chan, what's going on?

Miki: You've changed. You're like a completely different person now.

Miki: Maybe that's just Milgram's influence-

Aimi: Um.. Here's the thing, Miki-chan. 

Aimi: I'll tell you a little secret, because you really are my best friend. You've forgiven me like two times already, surely you will forgive me this time too, right?

Aimi: Again, like a good friend.

Aimi: (to Hinode) .. Close your ears.

Hinode: Huh?

Aimi: You're not in my friend list. So close your ears.

Hinode: Um.. O-okay?

Aimi: So, Miki-chan.. I don't know how I should tell you this, especially because I don't know what you've seen in my videos and what you haven't..

Aimi: But.. Honestly, I always was like this.

Aimi: I don't know if there's something wrong with my behavior. I don't know if it's weird or if I'm being rude.

Aimi: You probably just see me as a cute and shy girl who went through something terrible and who deserves pity.

Aimi: You see me as a victim. A perfect and fragile victim.

Aimi: And.. You're kinda right, actually. 

Aimi: I.. I did not deserve to be treated like that. It took me quite a lot of time to realize that, but.. I really did not deserve to be bullied.

Aimi: So who am I? I'm a victim, right? And being a victim means it wasn't my fault, right?

Miki: Actually, about that..

Miki: Something about your story doesn't add up, Aimi-chan.

Aimi: Oh? W-what exactly?

Miki: .. So you admit that you were bullied, right?

Aimi: *nods* Yes. My classmates never were my friends, even though I wanted to believe that they were.

Miki: But.. why were you bullied?

Miki: Obviously, sometimes it just happens without any reason. Sometimes people can just.. be really cruel. 

Miki: But I just don't understand why someone would want to-

Aimi: Does that matter to you, Miki-chan?

Aimi: Hey.. If it turned out that my classmates had a reason to bully me..

Aimi: Would you stop being friends with me?

Aimi: Would you leave me? Would you betray me? Would you stab me in the back and leave me to die and choke on my own blood? 

Aimi: You wouldn't do that, right? 'Cause you're a good friend, Miki-chan.

Miki: .. You're asking me if I would vote you guilty, right?

Aimi: *stands up* I DON'T CARE ABOUT VERDICTS, TRIALS AND ALL THAT SHIT!

Aimi: I JUST WANT A FRIEND! I JUST WANT SOMEONE TO TALK TO, TO HANG OUT WITH, TO HAVE FUN WITH!

Aimi: .. So tell me, Miki-chan, would you stop being friends with me if it turned out that my classmates had a reason to bully me?

Miki: ...

Hinode: I'm so sorry, but I really want to ask you one question-

Aimi: Again, I don't remember being friends with-

Hinode: But Aimi-san, why do you think that you are friends with Miki-san?

Aimi: .. Huh?

Hinode: Miki-san, do you see Aimi-san as a friend?

Miki: ...

Miki: .. A-Aimi-chan is a really kind and sweet person.

Hinode: .. But do you see her as a friend?

Miki: ...

Aimi: .. Miki-chan?

Miki: .. Hinode-san, why exactly are you asking me this?

Hinode: Well, you see, of course we can form relationships with the prisoners.

Hinode: We become attached to them, we become friends with them, maybe even develop feelings for them.

Hinode: But.. I honestly don't think that you two really are friends.

Hinode: Aimi-san, again, why do you think Miki-san is your friend?

Aimi: .. S-she has forgiven me like two times already.

Aimi: I-I'm innocent in her eyes. So that means she loves me, right?

Aimi: That means you will never betray me, right, Miki-san?

Aimi: We're friends! Best friends even!

Aimi: So please.. Say that we're friends. Call me your friend.

Miki: ...

Aimi: Miki-chan, please-

Miki: S-so about your crime.

(sounds of Aimi trying hard not to cry)

Aimi: .. Whatever. Ask me whatever you want. I don't care anymore.

Miki: ".. I don't know what I want to ask her anymore."

Miki: "Maybe I should start with what she said last time?"

Miki: You said that your accomplice is dead, right?

Aimi: .. Yep. Sure is.

Miki: .. You killed him, didn't you?

Aimi: Did you see that in my video?

Miki: .. Yes.

Aimi: .. Yeah, I killed him. 

Aimi: But I guess you could say I killed my classmates too.

Aimi: I mean.. He came up with it, but I played along.

Aimi: I never tried to stop him. I was scared, I was really scared, but I couldn't say no to him.

Aimi: He always made me so uncomfortable, but I just couldn't stop him.

Aimi: He wanted to protect me. In his own insane way, yes, but he really did want to protect me.

Miki: .. And that was almost like having a friend, right?

Miki: A friend that wants to protect you so bad that he's ready to kill someone for you.

Aimi: .. *starts crying*

Aimi: I.. I killed him because I got scared..

Aimi: I saw their corpses and- 

Aimi: H-he tried to hug me right after that. I hugged him back, but-

Aimi: I-it was all just too much.

Miki: .. It was your brother, right?

Aimi: *nods* Y-yeah. I'm tired of saying that he's just very overprotective because..

Aimi: He.. He was worse than that.

Aimi: He was.. very controlling. He knew literally everything about me and my schedule. He knew everything about the people I talk to. If I said hi to a random stray cat on the way home, he somehow still managed to know about that.

Hinode: .. He sounds like a nightmare.

Aimi: That's because he was one.

Aimi: I could go into detail, but like.. You get it. I have no idea what was wrong with him, but he really was like that.

Miki: .. How did your classmates die?

Aimi: .. S-so I've told you that my family owns a theme park, right? I-I invited my classmates there.

Aimi: Y-you know, like I went "Hey, my family is so cool and rich, wanna go to this park we own?" And of course, they agreed. 

Aimi: Heh, they even forgot about how much they hate me..

Aimi: A-and, um.. Some of the rides actually weren't working properly a few days before that.

Aimi: Our parents knew about it, but they kept the park opened because.. You know, money, all that stuff.

Aimi: A-and my brother also made sure to bribe the people who were working there so that they won't try to fix them.

Miki: .. Are you telling me that your classmates went on those rides?

Aimi: *nods* I've told them that those rides were the most fun ones.

Miki: ...

Miki: .. T-they couldn't just all die from that, right?

Hinode: Miki-san, remember the second video? 

Hinode: There.. was a lot of blood.

Aimi: When I say "they weren't working properly", I mean "somebody could literally fall from those rides and end up breaking all their bones or just turn into a bloody mess".

Miki: ...

Miki: S-so all those kids-

(bell rings, machinery sounds)

Aimi: All of them died. Probably. At least most of them did.

Miki: T-that's.. A-and you killed your brother right after that too?

Aimi: Yes. And I just left right after that.

Hinode: Miki-san, you look pale. Do you need some water?

Miki: .. Aimi-chan. Just tell me one thing.

Miki: Do you regret your murder? Or murders, whatever.

Aimi: .. I think I just found my classmates' corpses scary. And the fact that I helped my brother kill them as well.

Aimi: As for my brother's murder..

Aimi: I'm just glad he's dead.

Miki: .. I see.

Aimi: Miki-chan-

Aimi: Ah.. No, that's not right.

Aimi: Guard 002-san, I will be forgiven again this time, right?

Miki: It all depends on your video-

Aimi: I was about to say that if you vote me guilty, I will just kill all of the other prisoners and then myself, but like, you've already betrayed me, so it doesn't matter anymore.

Aimi: I'm doing it anyway.

Miki: .. What?

Miki: What do you mean by that, Aimi-chan?

Aimi: Please don't call me Aimi-chan ever again and extract the video.

Hinode: Miki-san, we really don't have that much time left.

Hinode: I'm sure the third prisoner is already waiting for us.

Miki: But how do you even plan to kill the prisoners?!

Aimi: EXTRACT THE FUCKING VIDEO!

Miki: .. Prisoner 002, Aimi, please sing your sins. 

42% ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓░░░░░░░░░░░░ 100%

[ Aimi's Trial 3 MV: Blooming Connection ]

The video starts with showing us a dark garden full of nothing but dead plants. Aimi is standing in the middle of it alone and her eyes are completely empty. Suddenly, someone walks up to her and gives her a flower seed. She looks at it more closely and her eyes start to look much brighter and her expression is more hopeful.

"Ah, nothing is working out, making friends shouldn't be this hard

My high school life was supposed to be all fun and smiles

Maybe they're shy? Maybe they're not interested? Oh well

I'll leave them no choice but to become friends with me!"

The scene changes and now it's a classroom. Aimi walks in and watches her classmates talk to each other, laugh and have fun. She starts handing every single classmate a flower and most of them appreciate the gesture and find the flowers beautiful. Aimi smiles at them and walks to another classmate and gives her a flower as well. However, this time the classmate politely rejects it.

"Buying their friendship isn't a big deal

That's how you do it in the adults' world

I guess you could say it's my love language

So come on, say that you love me, everybody!"

Aimi.. doesn't take it well and stands there, refusing to believe that someone could've said no to her. Her expression starts to become more and more scary and suddenly, she jumps at her and makes the girl fall on the floor. 

"Come on, accept my gift, tell me you're grateful, tell me how thoughtful I am

Did I do great? Am I a good friend? I know I am, I know I am

"This flower reminds me of you" I'm the sweetest person you've ever met, right?

"Sorry, but I gotta go" Hey, what do you think you're doing?"

Aimi keeps pulling her hair, beating her and yelling at her and other classmates are struggling to make her let the girl go. When they finally manage to do so, they look terrified and don't want to look Aimi in the eyes. Aimi's hair is messed up, she's breathing heavily and she doesn't seem to regret what she did.

We're in the garden again and it looks like the flowers are starting to grow. Aimi doesn't seem that happy about it though and we can see someone putting their hand on her shoulder in attempt to comfort her. She can only sigh and continue looking at the flower, almost like she's expecting something from it.

"I can still become friends with them, right? I can still eat lunch with them, right?

They will smile at me, right? Say that I'm a good friend, right?

'Cause I'm a good friend, 'cause I'm a good friend

'Cause I'm a good friend, 'cause I'm INNOCENT"

The school setting again. Aimi is arguing with another classmate. Aimi is crying and pointing her finger at her, but the other girl is trying to prove to others that she's innocent and she didn't do anything. The others believe her and walk away with her, leaving Aimi alone. Then we can see a classmate yelling at Aimi and the pink-haired girl looking scared, but other classmates don't try to support or protect her at all and they nod and agree with everything that classmate is saying. We can see another flower lying on the floor next to Aimi. 

"So ungrateful, so damn ungrateful

So many gifts and all for nothing

I guess there really is no connection between us

I hate them so much, but I still need friends to survive"

Back in the garden, more and more flowers appear and Aimi still looks worried about something. Someone is standing next to her, but we can only see their silhouette and it actually feels like Aimi is trying her best to forget that person, since all the angles that we can see them from don't let us see any details of their design. Aimi turns to that person and nods, meaning that she's ready to finally do something.

"Maybe revenge is fine, maybe revenge is the right option

I want them to feel the pain they made me go through

I guess I'll try to buy their friendship one last time"

The door opens and Aimi walks into the classroom again. Her hair is a mess and she has dark circles under her eyes and she has a lot of bandaids on her body, just like in the first season. She walks to her classmates and shows them a beautiful bouquet of flowers from her garden. The classmates actually like it a lot and take the bouquet from her. She has nothing else to do but to watch them have fun, but if you look closer, you can see that their hands are bleeding while they're holding the bouquet. 

Aimi does look worried at first, but then she shakes her head and closes her eyes. When she opens them, she's in her garden again and her garden is even more colorful than before. Aimi also looks completely different: she has a crown on her head, she's wearing a beautiful princess-like dress, she has flowers in her hair and she has a sword in her hand as well. When she looks down, she sees a young man with dark pink hair and eyes that look similar to hers, but also have darker colors, getting down on one knee before her. It's like she's about to make him her knight. 

"Thank you for protecting me, thank you for staying by my side

Our connection is strong, the flowers of our friendship are blooming

Let's stay together forever, 'cause you're such a good friend"

Surprisingly, she smiles, but when the man opens his eyes, he suddenly goes pale and looks shocked. We can still see Aimi smiling, but now there is blood on her sword. 

"And such a terrible brother"

The man's head falls on the floor and she turns to her flowers and she notices some weird movement there. It's like someone is.. trying to come up from under the ground? 

A hand. And another hand. And another one. There's someone's head too- Oh, it's actually the classmate from the beginning of the video, the one who refused to take her flower.

"Finally, my true friends are here

They've grown from the seeds of my despair and sorrow

Finally, I can say that I love them

And they will never reject me"

More and more classmates are starting to appear and they look a lot like zombies. A lot of them are covered in injuries and those injuries look terrifying and you can tell that whatever killed them wasn't kind to them at all. Also, it looks like Aimi used their dead bodies as fertilizer. They're starting to surround Aimi, but she doesn't look worried at all. She actually looks happy. 

"I'm the sweetest person you've ever met, right?

I'm the best friend you've ever had, right?

Come on, give me a hug and say that you forgive me"

For the first time in this video, she turns to her classmates and gives them a sincere smile, but then, everything suddenly goes dark. We can only hear a sound of something being torn apart and falling on the ground. The video ends.

[wavesmp3]

i know, you know [they just don't have any proof]

mlist | wc. 3.7k | warnings: minor death (it's based off a detective show so), a very american high school experience, terribly woven together plot line

The station is as bustling as it always is, reporters running around and detectives flying in and out the doors. Normally, on slow weeks, Hyunjae would find himself in a corner with Younghoon messing with Eric and taking pleasure in the way it never fails to make you laugh while waiting for Chief Sunwoo to burst out from his office with a new case that needs Mount Pier’s one and only psychic detective. 

But today, unlike the many others Hyunjae’s spent in this office, he goes straight through all the chaos and walks right up to Eric’s desk, a newspaper nested under his arm. He clears his throat in front of the detective’s desk. 

Eric sighs deeply. “What is it, Hyunjae? I’m two months behind on paperwork and therefore, do not have even two seconds for any of your antics.”

“Oh well that won’t be a problem.” Hyunjae replies matter of factly. “This won’t even take one.”

Hyunjae grabs the paper from under his arm and places it on Eric’s desk.

Eric’s jaw locks immediately. “Get this–”

“See if you turn your attention to the big, bolded headline as well as to the rather large, but still flattering picture of Younghoon and I, you will see that our last solved case has actually been covered by the paper, again.” Hyunjae says emphatically. “Of course, we feel terrible that you weren’t also highlighted by the paper despite your tireless efforts to solve the case, but it seems that your methods are simply no match for my,” Hyunjae pauses for a moment, lifting his pointer finger to touch his temple before dramatically saying, “psychic abilities.”

“Hyunjae you better not be pestering Eric.” Sunwoo calls out, before Eric even has the chance to tell Hyunjae off for it. Hyunjae turns around and finds you and Sunwoo watching him gloat. Sunwoo already looks exhausted by the whole situation. You look slightly amused. 

“Oh, don’t worry, chief,” Hyunjae assures, grabbing the paper from Eric's desk, and pointing to a small part of the front cover article. “Younghoon and I gave you a shoutout.”

Sunwoo narrows his eyes at him. Hyunjae shoots him a thumbs up. Sunwoo mutters something under his breath, snatching the paper out of Hyunjae’s hands and heading to his office.

“Hey, I was still–”

“Get back to work detectives. And Hyunjae go back home until I call you with an actual case.”

You shake your head, laughing. Hyunjae ignore Eric’s growl from behind him. 

“So did you come to the office just to gloat or for something else too?��

“Actually,” Hyunjae starts, following you as you walk towards your desk. “I kinda came to see you too.” 

“Oh, really?”

“Really.”

“What for?”

“Well…” Hyunjae’s voice trails off as you and him reach your desk. A gift basket filled with snacks and treats and tiny gifts all wrapped up in cellophane. He hears you make a noise between a scoff and a laugh. He decides to call it a laugh. “You like?”

“I mean,” you step towards it, inspecting the basket and turning it around on your desk. “The flowers are nice.”

“Yeah, I thought so too. I wanted to go with the roses, but the clerk said that’d be tacky.”

“Breath mints?” 

“Always come in handy.”

“I suppose.” You finish inspecting the basket, stepping back in line with Hyunjae. He can’t tell what you’re thinking. “So, what’s it for?”

“Oh well, you know how Younghoon’s been planning our high school reunion?”

“Sure. sure. He sure has had a lot to say about the whole thing.”

“I know. Trust me, I told him a million times he needed to cut back on the catering jokes. However, as his best and, most of the time, only friend, I must go, and well,” Hyunjae pauses for a moment, testing the words on his tongue, “I still need a date.”

“Oh.”

Hyunjae stiffens. “Oh?”

“Not, oh oh.” You clarify. “Just.. oh.” As if that clears anything up.

“It’s just as friends. Nothing more.” Hyunjae assures you.

“I mean, I, well..”

“Don’t think. Just say yes.”

“Okay.” There’s a pause. Finally, you shrug, saying, “Yes, okay, yes. Why the hell not?”

Hyunjae erupts into a grin. “Perfect! I’ll meet you there tonight at 7.”

He promptly turns to leave and ignores you, registering what he just said and calling back out, “wait, did you say tonight?”

—

You and Hyunjae find yourselves in his old high school gym that night, which to Younghoon’s credit actually is decorated quite nicely. There’s a disco ball hanging from the center, streamers wrapped around each column, and too many vaguely familiar faces that are nothing more than reminders of a past Hyunjae has no interest in reliving. 

“You guys made it!” Younghoon calls, walking up to where you and Hyunjae are standing. He greets you with a hug and Hyunjae with their super secret handshake. “What do you think?” 

“It’s very nice, Younghoon.” You say. “You did a really great job with the place.” 

Younghoon smirks. “See, Hyunjae, some people know how to appreciate a good effort.” 

Hyunjae waves him off. “Yeah, yeah, good job, but dude can you believe the prom king and queen are actually still together?” 

Younghoon turns to where Hyunjae is looking. At the couple, as old as them but who haven’t changed a bit since Hyunjae last saw them. It’s a little bit freaky really.  

“The prom king’s actually running for the government right now.” Younghoon tells Hyunjae. “Said at first that he wasn’t gonna show tonight, but then changed his RSVP at the last minute.”

“Didn’t he almost get expelled at the end of high school?” Hyunjae questions. 

“No, not him. That other guy did though. What was his name?” 

Hyunjae’s face twists. “Who?” 

“You know, the one. The guy with the bowler hat, and he was always asking for people to sign his petitions.” 

“Stanley!” Hyunjae claps his hands together. “Now that’s someone I’d want to catch up with. Is he here tonight?” 

Younghoon shrugs. “He said he would, but I haven’t seen him yet.” 

“Hey,” your voice comes up from the side, “who’s that?” 

Hyunjae and Younghoon follow your gaze to find Alex standing on the other side of the gym, waving at the three of them. Hyunjae forgets how to breathe. 

“Oh shit.” 

“What? Who is that?”

Under his breath and behind Hyunjae’s back Younghoon explains to you how Hyunjae had a huge crush on Alex in high school and how after two years of pining, he finally asked them out on a date only for nothing to come of it. 

You knit your brows together. “What does that mean?” 

“It means that he never spoke of it again.” Younghoon says with a shrug. “I still have no idea what happened.” 

You step back towards Hyunjae, lighting pushing him forward with your palm on the small of his back. 

He shivers. 

“You should go,” you whisper encouragingly. 

“No, I- I- I can’t. It’s…”

“Don’t think. Just do it.” 

“Are you crazy?” 

“Hyunjae, what’s the worst that could happen?” 

And that’s how Hyunjae found himself standing in front of Alex again after all these years saying, 

“Hi.”

—

Hyunjae and Alex end up walking up and down the halls, reminiscing on shared classes and past senior pranks. Turns out Alex, while they look a bit different, is as crush worthy as they were in high school. They just moved back to Mount Pier after living abroad and are teaching little kids at the school. The two of them end up in the library, sitting between the historical fiction and romance aisles, feeling as young as they did in high school. 

“So.” Alex says. “Can I ask?” 

“Anything.”

Alex’s lips part wordlessly, then close again. They swallow. “Why didn’t you show?” 

Oh. 

“I know that it’s been so long and that it’s silly to even care still, but I’ve just never understood why. I really thought that you… I don't know, I mean we were kids, of course, but I just haven’t…” 

Hyunjae doesn’t say anything, just watches Alex fumble around the question of why the hell Hyunjae stood them up in high school. Finally, he says, “Alex, I-“ but the words get lost in the back of Hyunjae’s throat because while all this is happening, somehow, from the corner of his eyes and outside of the second story window, Hyunjae sees something fall.

The only thing he says is, “holy shit.” 

—

Hyunjae finds you back in the gym, Alex right on his heels. You see them approaching from halfway across the room, eyes widening and quickly swallowing your drink before setting it down, rushing towards them and asking, “What? Oh my god? What’s wrong?”

“Body.” Hyunjae says, breathless and hunched over his knees. He really needs to work on his cardio. “Body. Outside. Back Lawn.”

“A body?” You scoff, slightly. “Here?”

“Oh, great point. Maybe I’m mistaken.” Hyunjae straightens up, hand flying to his temple. “Oh wait. Nope. Still a body. Dead. Very dead. Getting more dead as we speak.”

“Okay. Okay. Sorry.” You relent. 

“You think I’d joke about something like that?”

“No.” You offer half-heartedly. “No. Not Joke. But just maybe misidentified or–”

Hyunjae shakes his head. “Eric’s gotten to you, hasn’t it?”

“Guys!” Alex whisper-shouts from beside them. They motion to the exit. “Shouldn’t we…”

“Oh right.”

The three of them run to the door and towards the back lawn where a dead body awaits. 

—

To Hyunjae’s dismay, when the three of them reach the back lawn where Hyunjae is sure the body must have dropped, nothing is there.

You turn towards him, body hunched in a mess of disappointment and defeat. “Hyunjae, are you sure you saw something?”

Hyunjae barely registers the question, eyes zipping back and forth from the empty lawn to the second-story library window. “It should be right here.” He mutters to himself.

“Maybe it wasn’t a body. Maybe it was a leaf or a squirrel.”

He faces you and Alex, lips tipped downwards and brows knitted together. “It was a body.” Turning back to the empty grass, he quietly says, “I saw it. I’m sure”

You sigh. “I believe you Hyunjae. I always do, but, you know what they say,” Hyunjae feels you place a hand on his shoulder, “no body, no crime.”

Hyunjae only shakes his head. Behind him he hears you introduce yourself to Alex followed by the sounds of both of your steps retreating back to the gym. 

Hyunjae stares at the ground.

He stares and stares and stares and stares until…

There, off to the side of the grass spot he’s been staring at, the faintest hint of a footstep.

He runs off to find Younghoon. 

—

“Look, right there.” Hyunjae tells Younghoon, pointing at the pressed spot of grass with mud. “Now, self proclaimed shoe expert–”

“I swear to god, Hyunjae. If you dragged me out here only to mock me, I’ll kill you.”

“–What kind of shoe would that be?”

Younghoon pauses for a second, peering down towards the grass. He walks closer to it and stares at for a very very very long time. 

“Come on man, please tell me you know.”

When Younghoon does look back up, his face looks as horrified as it did when Hyunjae told him he wanted to start a psychic detective business. 

“What? What do you think? Talk to me?”

The only thing he says, wearily stepping away from the spot, is, “you sure you saw a body fall?”

“Yes, Younghoon,” Hyunjae huffs, tired of defending himself over and over again. “I’m sure.”

Younghoon gulps. “There’s only one person here wearing the kind of shoe that could make a mark like that.”

Hyunjae is floored, mouth dropping open instantly and patting Younghoon’s shoulder. “Who?”

“The prom king.”

—

Hyunjae and Younghoon all but sprint back to the gym to find you. 

To Hyunjae’s surprise, you’re still talking to Alex. 

“We know who did it.” Younghoon whispers as soon as he’s close enough to do so without drawing any suspicion. Hyunjae breathlessly just watches you and Alex, conversing casually over two drinks, stunned at his past and his present converging like… this. 

You shake your head slightly. “No, not you too Younghoon.”

“The prom king.” Younghoon hisses, eyes not so slickly casting over to where he stands with his wife. He laughs loudly and take a long sip of his drink.

“You’re kidding, right?” Alex says with a laugh.

And even Hyunjae has to admit, it does sound kind of far fetched. 

“The shoes don’t lie, Alex.” Younghoon defends adamantly. 

“Okay, okay,” you start, setting down your drink and waving your hands downwards. “Say, he did commit a murder tonight.”

“Because he did.” Hyunjae says.

“Who was actually murdered?” You ask blankly, mouth forming a fine line. 

Hyunjae and Younghoon just look at each other. 

“Well…”

“I mean…”

“Uh-huh.” You cross your arms, looking at the two of them with an all too familiar disappointment. “That’s what I thought. In fact, what was it a specifically said earlier–”

“No body, no crime.” Hyunjae says defeatedly. 

“No body, no crime.” You repeat. “Now, if you find a body, then come find me, but until then,” you pick your drink back up, “I think I will enjoy this party.”

You walk away from Hyunjae, Younghoon, and Alex, while Hyunjae mutters, “at least, someone’s having fun.”

Alex lets out a breathy laugh, and Younghoon whips to face them, asking demandingly, “Who isn’t having fun?”

“Will you focus? Someone has died.”

“I am focused, Hyunjae. Focused on the event on hand.” He lifts his chin up slightly, matter-of-factly adding, “You’re on your own.”

With that, he saunters off.

“Well, what are you going to do?” Alex asks. 

Hyunjae inhales sharply, pushing a hand through his hair. “I just lost my partner in crime, so, no clue.”

Alex nods slowly, swirling around the straw in their drink. “Wanna escape to the library again?”

Hyunjae smiles, “Yeah, sure.”

—

At the library, Alex pulls out the yearbook from their senior year, flipping through the pages. 

“Oh my god,” they exclaim, “what happened to your hair this year?”

Hyunjae flips to the next page immediately. “Yup, yeah. That happened, let’s move on.”

They flip through the pages blindly, laughing at bad haircuts and worse fashion. Until a picture comes up of the prom king, prom queen, and bowler hat dude.”

“His name is Stanley.” Alex reminds him.

“Right, right,” Hyunjae mumbles, scrunching his nose, “I didn’t know they were all friends.”

“Yeah, they were.” Alex confirms. “I wonder if they still are.” They say, before flipping to the next page. 

“You know what’s weird.” Hyunjae says suddenly, book forgotten and eyes trained on the window he’s sure he saw a body fall outside of. “Stanley RSVP’d yes to this thing.”

Alex shrugs, still flipping through the book. “Guess he didn’t show.”

“Doesn’t that seem weird to you?”

Alex looks up at Hyunjae finally, looking a bit lost. “People don’t show to things like this all the time, Hyunjae.”

“Yeah but Stanley?” Hyunjae sits up slightly. “He never missed a single school event. Look,” Hyunjae grabs the yearbook and flips through the pages, pausing at the pages with events pointing at the inevitable picture of Stanley with his bowler hat. “Prom. Homecoming. Every football game. Every bake sale.”

Slowly, as they put all the pieces flying through Hyunjae’s mind, Alex says, “Stanley went to everything.”

“And yet–”

“He missed this.” Alex gulps. “Are you saying that Stanely was…”

Hyunjae thinks back to the last time he was in this library. He tries to remember what he saw outside of the window. Anything that could confirm it was Stanley’s body. His hat. His face. Anything. 

But without any proof other than sole belief, he tells Alex. “Stanley was murdered.”

—

Hyunjae calls Eric immediately, praying he’s still at the detective's office. 

“What do you want?” Eric answers harshly. 

“I need you to run a couple names for me.”

“No.” He says flatly. “Goodbye.”

“No, no, wait a second! Wait!” Hyunjae stammers. To his surprise, Eric does.

“What? Is there another law you want me to break tonight?” Eric scoffs. 

“No, just the one, and the fact that you owe me.”

Hyunjae can practically hear Eric’s eyes roll. “No, I don’t.”

“Yes, you do.”

“No, I don’t.”

“Yes, you–”

Alex clears their throat. “Get to the point.”

“Look, remember last week,” Hyunjae starts, “the ping pong tournament. You bet I couldn’t beat you, and I did. Three times. I’m cashing in that win right now.”

Eric doesn’t say anything for a minute. A small grumble followed by a quiet, “damnit,” then a, “fine, what are the names?”

Hyunjae gives him the prom king’s and Stanley’s name. 

After a couple of loud clicks, Eric says, “not much on the first guy other than some speeding tickets, but the second guy–”

“Stanley.”

“Yea, him. Looks like he got charged with stealing a yacht in his last year of high school, was nearly expelled from school, and ended up having to serve a tiny bit of jail time. And hey, that other guy’s name you gave me, looks like he was there that night too.”

“I thought you said there was nothing on him.”

“There isn’t. Looks like he got off completely.”

—

“What does this mean?” Alex asks Hyunjae, following him as he travels through the halls of their old school.

“I’m not sure, but it’s got to mean something, right? I mean how could Stanley get charged with the whole thing and the jock get off with nothing. It’s weird, but it doesn’t tell us anything about why the prom king would have killed Stanley tonight when apparently they were once friends.”

“Especially, when you look at Jack’s life after high school.”

“Jack?”

Alex looks at him dumbfounded. “That’s his name.”

Hyunjae purses his lips, still confused. 

Scoffing, Alex clarifies, “The prom king. He went on to play sports with a full scholarship. What could he possibly have against Stanley? If anything, it’s Stanley who should have wanted to kill Jack.”

Hyunjae stops in his tracks. “That’s it.”

Alex raises their brows. “What is?”

“Jack didn’t want to kill Stanley. Stanley wanted to confront Jack. That’s why Jack changed his RSVP at the last minute. He didn’t come for some reunion. He came to silence Stanley knowing it’d ruin his chances to win the election.”

“Holy shit.” Alex gasps. “Do you really think that’s what happened?”

“Depends.”

“On what?”

“If we can find a body.”

—

It’s Alex who suggests the locker room. They run to the room, checking every locker, until Hyunjae opens one up and finds what he feared. 

A body bag. And a bowler hat. 

He pulls out his phone, and dials the first person that comes to mind.

“Hyunjae,” you answer his call, “where’d you go?”

Swallowing, Hyunjae says, “Remember how you said to call you if we found a body?”

—

Once Eric arrives, everything happens pretty quickly. Stanley’s body is taken away, and Jack confesses almost immediately. 

Younghoon’s reunion however, is cut off prematurely, which Younghoon doesn’t hesitate to blame Hyunjae for. 

“Look at it this way,” Hyunjae tells him, “at least everyone will leave with a story.”

Younghoon shakes his head grimly. “I’m not talking to you.” And walks away.

Alex taps his arm lightly, grimacing at Younghoon’s exit. “Is he gonna be okay?”

Hyunjae waves his hand. “Oh, he’ll be fine. I’ll buy him some shoes, and he’ll forget about this whole night immediately.”

“Well,” Alex begins, rocking on their heels slightly, “you’re definitely right about this being a memorable night. I never expected to help solve a murder when I got dressed for this.”

“You have a real knack for it, if you ever want to become a detective.”

Alex makes a noise. “No, thanks. I’ll stick to teaching.”

“And just like that, another killer gets off free.”

“But really, Hyunjae,” Alex says seriously, stepping closer to him, “I had fun tonight. Would you maybe want to, I don’t know, do it again some time?”

Hyunjae suddenly feels 16 again, watching Alex stand alone on the pier, waiting for him to appear. How does it somehow feel like nothing has changed?

“I didn’t stand you up that day.”

Alex’s head juts out a bit, registering what Hyunjae is talking about and asking, “you didn’t?”

“No, I didn’t. It was a little bit cloudy and windy. So not ideal weather for a date at the pier, but forgive me, I had not yet discovered the wonders of checking the weather yet. You were wearing that one yellow band T-shirt with the little saxophones on it. You had on that baseball cap too, that was black and green. And you kept looking around the pier— for me probably, but I just didn’t…

“I showed up at the pier two hours early. When you got there, you didn’t see me at first. And, I don’t know, I just felt so stupid and nervous, so I left. I regret that moment so much. More than you know. I hate that I hurt you. And I know how different everything could be right now if I had just walked up to you that day and said hi, but…” Hyunjae’s eyes catch you that moment, talking to Eric across the gym. You catch his gaze, giving him a small smile and a thumbs up. “If I’m being really honest, Alex, I don’t think I want anything to be different.”

“I can see why.” Is all Alex says. Hyunjae sees them looking at you too.

Sheepishly he tells them he’s sorry.

“Don’t be.” Alex waves off. “I’ll see you around maybe.”

“Yeah,” he nods, “I’ll see you around.”

Hyunjae watches them walk off.

“Fine,” Younghoon huffs, appearing next to him. “People love the drama, but you still owe me for this.”

“I told you they would.”

“I want shoes.”

Hyunjae laughs. “I’m one step ahead of you.”

He gives you one last look, and then walks out of the gym with Younghoon.

[radiowallet]

Eyes Open - Chapter 8

Pairing: Marcus Moreno x Amy Oliver (ofc) Summary: It seems silly to wait a whole week. WC: 2.1K Warnings: 18+ MDNI Canon-typical violence, talk of police work, a blatant show of testosterone, blood, injuries, kissing, making-out, dry humping, a smidge of dirty talk hurt/comfort, slow burn, yearning, idiots friends to lovers, financial stressors, second chance romance, workplace romance (sort of), older love interest, single parents, DID I MENTION THE YEARNING?

Series Masterlist II Main Masterlist II Marcus Moreno Masterlist

Cross-Posted to AO3

Part 7 >>> Part 9

For any new writing follow @radiowallet-writes and turn on notifications.

------

Marcus checks his reflection in the window of Amy’s apartment building one last time, happy to see the swelling around his eye is finally starting to go down. He slips his glasses back on, and checks again, relieved that the black plastic hides the worst of the damage. He must have been something terrible to look at earlier, super strength helping to dull the pain but doing little to hide the gruesome sight of his late-night scuffle. Still, he was pleased with the way the purple had already faded to something more grey, content that the bruise would mostly be gone by morning. 

Amy had been justifiably upset when they left the dark confines of the evidence locker, the bright fluorescent light of the precinct giving her a much better view of the damage done. He had tried to wave it off again, making a half-hearted joke about ‘seeing the other guy’ but she refused to laugh, instead marching him straight back to the bathroom, stopping only long enough to grab the first-aid kit from her desk.

“You can tell me what happened now, or I can just read it in the report that hits my desk Monday morning,” she warned, her sharp tone an odd match to the gentle way she cleaned his wounds. It was clear she’d had practice, and he had to fight back the wave of jealousy that her hands had touched anyone else with the same soft touch. 

“I miscalculated. I thought Miracle was on his way. Plus I didn’t know Baldwin was still working the case.” 

“He sweet-talked Special Crimes. Bought himself a little bit of time.” 

It was almost bolstering to hear that Derek was just as desperate as Marcus to put a stop to all of this, even if their methods were so mismatched. Perhaps success wasn’t so far out of reach despite the loss they took today. 

“And who made mincemeat out of your face?”

Marcus winced as Amy pressed a cotton ball of alcohol to the worst of his cuts, but she paid him little mind, still waiting for an answer to her question. 

“The guy down in holding cell 4.” 

She grew quiet after that, her movements slowing just enough to catch his attention. Marcus took care to grab her hands and hold them tight, waiting for her to say out loud what he already knew. 

“Amy?”

“…he’ll make bail.” 

He nodded, “I’m counting on it.”

It was wrong. Dangerous, even. Stupidly so. It seemed Amy agreed, echoing her plea from earlier, all but begging him to be careful. It had seemed like a good opportunity to kiss her again, and so he did, cupping her cheek to keep her close, as he stole the taste of stale coffee from her lips. When it became apparent neither of them wanted to pull away, laughter broke out between them again, the joyful sound helping to ease the tension that refused to part from this day. After that, Amy suggested he swing by after she got Harris down for bed. 

“Seems silly to wait a whole week.”

Marcus couldn’t agree more. 

Amy’s home feels just as cozy as it did the week prior, the lights dimmed low and the balcony door cracked open, letting a late spring breeze blow through. They settle together on the couch, curled into each other, the last of the wine Marcus brought Thursday split between them, the sound of the city keeping them company in place of the scratch of Amy’s records. 

He's quick to take advantage of the newest state of their relationship, resting the curve of his palm along the bend in her knee, and thrilling at the shade of pink creeping up her cheeks. Not to be outdone, Amy leans over to press a kiss to the corner of his mouth, giggling at the tickle of his mustache. He steals one of his own before pulling back, just enough for her to settle into his side, her head finding the space between his shoulder and neck. 

“What did you and Harris get up to tonight?”

“Had pizza over at Christine’s then came back home for a few cuddles before bedtime,” she shrugs, a generous sip of wine chasing her answer. “I always say I don’t hate these Saturday shifts until I get home and realize how much time I’ve missed with her.”

“You’re doing great,” Marcus asserts, but without even looking he can see the roll of her eyes and the frown on her face. “You are,” he says again because she is and he means it. 

He knows that guilt just as well as Amy does. That all-too-familiar foe that lingers at the back of his mind, a consistent and constant worry that one parent isn’t enough, could never be enough. He wishes there was a way to wipe it from her mind and put her heart at ease, but Marcus knows that the only solution is to remind her again and again. 

And so he does. 

“You are.”  

He feels her nod, a soft brush of her fingers along his chin before settling back onto his thigh, enough of a cue for him to change the subject. 

“How mad was Baldwin after I left today?”

“Oh, he quieted down not long after,” she hums, her smirk hidden behind her wine glass. “I think your mere presence is a trigger for him these days.”

Marcus can’t help but grin, something like victory blooming in his chest. He lets out a sharp laugh and squeezes Amy’s knee in reply. “Who’s gonna break the news that he’s about to see a whole lot more of me?” 

He’s only half-joking, his lips finding the crown of Amy’s head, breathing in the sweet scent of her shampoo. It feels almost like a dream – one he had been so reluctant even to consider – and the long list of reasons why seemed so stupid with the weight of her resting against him.

“Maybe we just let him figure it out on his own,” Amy offers, the tips of her fingers drumming a pattern out on Marcus’s thigh. It’s slight, the small wave of nerves shifting out of her. It feels like she needs room – or maybe it’s time – to parse through her words, and Marcus is content to wait for her. 

“I just…,” she starts, her breathing shaky along the rim of her glass. “I don’t want things to change.”

He presses another kiss into the crown of her head, this time holding his lips there for her to feel the intent behind them. “It won’t.”

She’s quiet in the wake of his reassurance, leaning deeper into his embrace, her fingers finally stilling where they rest on his leg.

“So you’ll still pop in to awkwardly flirt while I slip you police reports and suspect lists?”

This earns her an amused snort and another kiss, this one to her temple, his lips lingering on the small patch of skin. The feel of it sends a wave of pleasure to the base of his spine, something warm and heady pooling low in his gut. He hums, the sound rough and deep at the back of his throat, the hand on her knee curling tighter to ground him in this moment. He swallows around it, finding his own voice, but just barely.

“My flirting wasn’t that awkward.”

Amy tilts her head to brush her lips along the underside of his chin, her lips parting enough for him to feel her breathe out her gentle tease. 

“Debatable.”

Things fall into place quickly after that. Wine glasses find their way to the coffee table, Amy turning up and around, all of her settling in his lap. Marcus takes care to hold her steady, wrapping his hands around the slip of her waist, eyes finding hers as she leans in for a kiss. She gives just as openly now as she did the first time they kissed, her lips smooth where they meet his own. He parts them easily, his tongue melting into hers, the taste of her better than he remembered. 

Amy is warm and heavy on top of him, one hand curled into his hair, the other clinging to the back of his neck. Marcus almost feels helpless, gripping tighter to her waistline and pulling her closer and closer still, until he swears he can feel the beat of her heart against his own. The heat between them burns brighter, and with it, his hunger for her. He thrusts up, just once, dragging a moan from her between her lips. He swallows the sound, and trades her one of his own, letting the whole of it fill her up. 

Their kisses only grow more frantic from there, a messy press of lips lost in the sound of breathless sighs and hushed pleas. They move together, hips grinding up and down, not nearly enough but still so much in the heat of the moment. Marcus breaks first, gasping for air as his lips pull away. He doesn’t go far, knocking his glasses off and burying his face in the curve of her neck, teeth and tongue finding the salty sting of her skin. 

“M-Marcus…I…it’s been so… so l-long….” Her voice is a whisper, strangled and panting in his ear. It's like music, and he can’t help but bite down harder, officially marking her as his. Amy’s words break off, her hips canting down to meet his own. 

“Shhh, I know. I know,” he promises, soothing the hair off her forehead, refusing to stop even as she presses her lips to his cheek, her mewls almost silent as tries and fails to beg for more. 

It’s intoxicating, knowing he’s making her feel so good; so good he’s stealing the words from her lips, and replacing them with only the pleasure of his touch. He feels light-headed, dizzy, almost lost, his thrusts frenzied but not without purpose. With each drag of his hips, bright white bursts across his vision, his cock painfully hard beneath the weight of Amy. But he doesn’t care. 

Fuck, how he doesn’t care.

All he cares about is how she whispers in his ear, her nails biting into his skin, pleading for him to keep going. As if he would dare to stop. He holds tight to her waist, wondering selfishly if she’ll bruise, pulling and pushing her into him as hard as he can. She winds her arms around his neck, muffling her cries in the turn of his neck. He can only guess at how close she is by the tremor in her muscles, legs and arms shaking where they’re wrapped around him. Already he’s thinking of the next time he has her like this, hungry to hear how loud she can be when given the freedom. How exquisite she’ll sound when she breaks around him, and he’ll take care to put her back together. 

For now, he’s happy, feverishly so, everything falling by the wayside as she gasps out his name, her body locking tight as her orgasm crashes into her. He talks her through the height of it, coaxing every ounce of pleasure from her that he can. 

“I’ve got you. I’m here,” Marcus repeats over and over, in awe at how she chases the wave of relief, seemingly desperate to hold on to how good it all feels. He grabs her chin, guiding her mouth to his with a skilled hand, swallowing the last of the quiet gasps she sets free, until finally, she falls against his chest, completely spent, sated. 

Carefully, her body pliant and her breathing even, he tucks her beneath his chin, another kiss gifted to the crown of her head. 

“What about…” she starts, her hips dipping forward to meet his erection, but he shakes his head and holds her steady.

“I just wanted to take care of you.”

She takes the admission in stride, her lips pressing to the hollow dip in his throat, her fingers finding a home where his hair curls at the nape of his neck. He thinks maybe he could fall asleep here, the twist of their bodies tangled on her couch, the city sounds floating in through the dark night, Amy’s warmth enough to keep any chill at bay. 

But neither of them are want for a night on a couch, and it isn’t long before she’s sliding away from him, casting a quick glance down the hall, ensuring the door to Harris’s room is still closed tight. Satisfied with what she sees, Amy turns her attention back to Marcus, her cheeks flushed and her eyes dark. He can’t help himself, pulling her in for another kiss, the palm of his hand cradling her cheek, and holding her close even as their kiss breaks apart. 

“I think I like this thing we’ve started,” Marcus whispers, the tips of his fingers finding the patch of skin beneath her shirt, the small of her back tacky with the lightest sheen of sweat.  

And then, after a pause, Amy whispers, “Please, be careful.”

And Marcus knew. Without even asking, he knew. 

Be careful with me. With us. Please. 

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

Part 7 >>> Part 9

For any new writing follow @radiowallet-writes and turn on notifications.

A/N: Would it be a story I wrote if I didn't include my favorite thing in the whole world? Surely not. What can I say? Your girl loves some dry humping.

Big huge thanks to @jazzelsaur who had to listen to me after I wrote this about how fucking hot I accidentally got myself. Who I would be if I couldn't whore around in her DM's?????

[grumpybunny-edith]

Edith Tries To Get Her Hormones (Chapter 1)

“That’s a joke, right?” I asked, eyeing the number on the register anxiously. My wallet had never felt lighter in my pocket than looking at the price I was being asked to pay for my Lagomorphine. 

“$326 is the price,” said the pharmacist. 

“Could you at least —”

“Run it through your insurance? Did that already,” she said offhandedly, pushing her glasses up and looking down at the computer away from me. The silence between us did its best to hold out against the kitschy music of the pharmacy. An old man sat in a chair near the register; I heard him arguing with them when I walked in, and he was now just waiting on his prescription as he poked at his phone. He kept looking up at me, his eyes falling on the ears and tail I can’t hide, not caring to look away when I caught him. 

“Why isn’t it covered? It was before,” I asked, punching the panic in my voice down. 

“The system said this administration method isn’t covered,” she said, tapping at a key on her keyboard boredly. “If you were taking the pill version, it’d be fine. Injections can also be covered to a point.”

For the first month and a half of my treatment I noticed almost no changes. I had to increase my dose to accommodate it, but that dose would’ve shot my liver, so we did injections. I got as far as halfway through doing one myself when I found out that was definitely, a thousand percent not gonna work for me. So, patches have been literally the only way for me to take the dose I need. As the fur started growing on my upper legs I’ve had to shave a little rectangle to stick them to. 

“That doesn’t make any sense,” I said. “Why’d they suddenly stop covering it?” 

The pharmacist just shrugged. “If you have questions, take it up with your insurance company.” 

I heard footsteps across the pharmacy, the tiny shink of things being pulled off the walls, the sliding noises of boxes moving off of metal shelves. I felt the shadow of someone behind me, my heart kicking itself into gear in case I need to make a break for it. The sliding doors and the little bing of the bell when somebody entered them cut through it all once every handful of seconds. The whole place felt alive with movement, people getting exactly what they needed while I stayed right where I was, rotting. When the pharmacist spoke again it came with the tick of her nails against the contact paper desk and a frustrated bite of her incisors.

“Will that be cash or card today?” 

I sigh. “Lemme check.” I already knew cash was off the table, so I pulled my phone from my back pocket to check my bank account. This was less to see how much I had and more to look like I was at all interested in or capable of paying that much. In doing so, the question was staring me in the face; do I keep my money so I have a place to live, or do I spend it so I have a reason to? 

“Sir, there are other people in line,” said the pharmacist, sounding unhelpful. I wanted to clap back with something like “yeah, I can see that”, but I was a gross combination of scared and embarrassed that made me want to leave as quickly as I possibly could. 

I stomped my foot. It was involuntary, but in the way of ‘I felt my body want to do this and decided not to stop it’. The old man in the chair beside me smirked; it was like I could hear the skin on his face contorting. 

“Guess I’ll talk to my insurance company,” I said. I could spare the dollar for an Arizona on the way out.

The summer sun burns straight through my clothes. Dressing for the season, in theory, isn't hard; there’s just something about going to pick up my drugs that makes me want to hide as much of myself as I can. Sure, the fur on my thighs and butt make wearing jeans in this heat excruciating, but it’s better than letting everyone see how well the drugs have been working. I considered wearing a beanie too, something I could fit my ears under, but I was worried they’d catch fire under all that heat. And I like how they look, or whatever, now that fur had grown on their ends.

I walked out to my bike, throwing my black denim jacket off my shoulders and into my backpack. I hoped I’d feel some kind of breeze on the patches of fur on my shoulders, but when the wind blew it was with sickening humid heat. I pulled off my mask, desperate to stop sweating into it so much, and let the small bit of fur around my nose feel the gross air. 

“No fucking clue what happens next,” I whined to myself, not cognizant of other people in the parking lot. My phone buzzed as I got on my bike.

pink-lightning: Hey everyone. Embarrassing thing — I took my shot early this week, and I can feel my heat starting early. I know we made the schedule for this weekend already, but is anyone gonna be available tomorrow morning? 

I was supposed to be with Ashley that weekend. I had no other reason I couldn’t show up — no job meant my schedule was pretty open. 

raeraebun: oof, sorry! im working in the morning :(( good luck and i hope it goes ok

thebuildingisonfire: I can’t come either. I had to pick up the morning tomorrow bc my trainer is getting a tattoo that afternoon 

wen-kutesuli: School ✊😔 Also I don’t know if I have the capacity for that right now anyway

pink-lightning: That’s totally okay, please don’t feel like you have to force yourself. Literally ever. 

I didn’t have to. Hell, Ashley probably wouldn’t want me to have said what I did if I didn’t want to. And it’s not like I didn’t want to. I didn’t know how I was going to manage without the libido, but I’d figure it out.

grumpybunny-edith: I can! Just lmk when

---

Prev - Next

This story is a spinoff of the series Gwen's Bunny HRT. To learn more about the setting and characters, check my pinned post here!

[tehrogueva]

Happy Birthday, Ink Sans (Audio Script)

So i was trying to get this recorded by today, but cant find the time so im gonna share what i wrote on the day and record it later just to have something to show for it!

Props to @0nem0retime and @celestial-scrapyard for the Prompt ideas

Ink sans - @comyet/@myebi

Error Sans - @loverofpiggies

Swap Sans - PopcornPrince/ AU Community

Dream Sans - @jokublog

Prompt: Methods, besides his scarf, Ink uses to remember things. Bonus points if he writes on a smearable surface and has to decode what he originally wrote. He’s having art block, and he forgets his birthday, but seeing his friends inspires him again?

Script below the cut

Ink: Oh, darn it. Why can't I think of what to draw. I hate when this happens. There has to be something, I just need an idea… hmm… Oh! My scarf! I'm sure something on here can give me some inspiration! Hmm, no, no, no idea what that says, hmm oh, what's this… birth… birthday? Wait, am I forgetting someone's birthday? What month is it? IS it Error's birthday! Oh, geese, I hope I didn't miss it. I should make him something! Yeah, that's it! Hmm, what would glitchy like? Hmm… He like undernovella… and chocolate… hmmmmm

Uhh, I got nothing… maybe I could just swing by underfell and steal him some chocolate. No, that's hard enough without getting caught. No, I should really make something. Hmm…. 

Dream: Hey Ink! There you are! Come on, you're going to be late for the party!

Ink: crap already! Ok, one sec, let me just doodle something real quick. And there, ok, let's go!

Error: I can't believe you convinced me to do this.

Blue: Oh come on, it's only one day, he’ll appreciate it.

Error: and why should I care again?

Blue: because you're my friend and I asked nicely. Plus you promised.

Error: *sigh,* ok, fine. I'll be nice to him. But only for today!

*Dream and Ink arrive*

Dream: where here! Now we can get started!

Ink: Error hey!

Error: hello, Ink

Ink: here, I made you this. I know it's just a dumb drawing, but it was really last minute. Hehe, Happy Birthday~

Error: Ink…

Ink: yeah…

Error: You idiot! My birthday was last week. Today is your birthday!

Ink: it is???

Blue: yeah! Of course, it is! 

Dream: this party is for you, silly.

Ink: awwww guys….

Error: *sigh* here… happy birthday or what ever…

Ink: whats this… *gasp* new pens!!! Awww Glitchy you shouldn't have!

Error: dont say i never did anything nice for ya, and its only for today, got it!

Ink: thank you so much! I just wanna hug you!

Error: no… 

Ink: aww come on just a little one.

Error: NO! You know how i am about physical contact!

Ink: just for a second, please. It is my birthday after all!

Error: uygh! Uhhh! Fine!

Ink: heheh!

Error: ok… seconds up… you can get off now…

Ink: just one more second…

Error:... get…. Offf…… NOW!

Ink: almost done….

Error: GOD DAMN IT INK!

Ink: ahahahha! Worth it!

Error: thats it! Your dead!

Ink: haha only if you can catcth me first glitchy!!

Error: oh you… GET BACK HERE!

Ink: uh oh…. Ahh~

Dream: should we do something?

Blue: no, just let them ware themselves out. Besides its fun to watch.

Dream: Blue…

Blue: what?

Dream: *sigh* lets just not let it get out of hand. 

Blue: oh ok. But where is the fun in that.

Dream: Blue!

Blue: ok ok! Dont want to dust him on his birthday.

Ink: haha! So close! Almost got me! Woah! Little help here, guys!!

Error: oh no you dont!

Ink: ahhh!

[pink-tonic]

Give Him This🔪

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Warnings: None

"It went wonderfully!" Kizano exclames as he approaches me from where I was hiding.

"We're going to meet up again tomorrow! And I'm going to know more about him! And he even gave me the cutest smile ever, only second to mine!"

Kizano's constant rambling is annoying me. I had to constantly redirect him on what to say since he would say the wrong things or move the conversation too fast.

Even while in love, he is still full of himself.

"We did good today," I start off as I cut off his rambling, "We'll do it again tomorrow."

"Oh, but when will it be my time to talk to him?"

I want to let out a sigh, but I hold it in,"You can do that Friday, but I think you have to keep talking to him before confessing."

"You're telling me that he isn't captivated by me as I am by him?" Kizano questions with an offended tone.

"I didn't say that. (Y/N) takes his time falling in love, so it's best to talk to him more."

Kizano lets out a heavy sigh, "Well, I suppose so..."

"Great, we'll pick this up tomorrow."

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

"Hurry up, Ayato! I can't let my darling get there before us!" Kizano exclames as he grabs me by my wrist and drags me through the hallway.

It's the second day of our plan, and I'm already getting tired of Kizano. Maybe killing him wouldn't have been so bad.

But I can't go back now, I'm too far into this plan to switch to a different method. It's Thursday, and I'm so close to ending this week. I just need Kizano to confess his love to (Y/N), and then I'll be in the clear.

"Good! He isn't here yet!" Kizano tells me as we make it to the fountain.

He lets go of my wrist, and I start to rummage around inside of my bag, and I pull out the equipment.

I hand the earpiece to Kizano, and he happily puts it in his ear. I then pull out a stuffed animal with a purple glittery bow wrapped around its body. I had it over to Kizano.

"Oh! For me? You shouldn't have, Ayato! I know my performance is amazing, but you really shouldn't have. But I'll still take it!" Kizano tells me as he gleefully accepts what I give him.

"That's not for you," I bluntly tell him, "It's for (Y/N)."

"Oh? Oh! Yes, of course! It's for him!"

"I'm going to go, but remember to give it to him at the end," I tell him as I go behind the tree and wait.

I crouch down behind the tree and put on the headset. I peek from behind the tree, and I see a figure from a distance walking over. It doesn't look like a student council member since they aren't wearing a white uniform. They get closer, and I notice that it's (Y/N) walking up.

"He's coming!" Kizano informs me with a slightly nervous tone.

"I know, I see him," I respond back, "Keep calm. I'll guide you."

I hear him take a deep breath before letting it out.

"Hello, (Y/N)," he greets (Y/N). Good, he is following my advice of not calling him anything like 'darling' or 'prince'.

"Hey, Kizano! How was your day?" (Y/N) asks with a smile.

"It was good, but then when you came along it became great," Kizano tells him. I can't help but roll my eyes at his response.

"That's very sweet of you, Kizano," (Y/N) responds as he gives Kizano a soft smile.

I let out another sigh for the hundredth time. I know that this is going to take a while.

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

Lunch is about to end, so I speak up to remind Kizano of what he has to do.

"Give him the gift. We only have three minutes left," I inform Kizano.

Kizano takes out the plush and hands it over to (Y/N).

"Here, I went shopping yesterday, and I thought you would like this," Kizano tells him as he hands the stuffed animal over.

"You shouldn't have, Kizano! The rose from last time was enough, but I can't turn down a cute gift! Thank you," (Y/N) says as he happily takes the stuffed animal I picked out.

"I'm happy that you like it, darling," Kizano tells him right as the bell rings.

"Well, I'll see you later," (Y/N) says before turning around and leaving the area.

Kizano waves and turns around as well. He approaches where I'm hiding, and I start to get up.

"Wasn't that marvelous?" Kizano asks as his eyes are filled with what I would describe as love. Which is exactly what I'm looking for.

"Yes, it went well. Tomorrow is the last day, and it'll be up to you. I won't be here, so I hope you know what you're going to tell him," I respond. I hope he understands that tomorrow is very important and he shouldn't rush things.

"Don't worry, I'm sure my darling is already swooning over me as we speak!" Kizano giddly responds as he decides to take his leave.

He better not mess this up.

[dark-frosted-heart]

Memories of the Beasts - Clavis & Sariel (main route)

We start off with a literal bang in the castle. The trap of the day's an extra large confetti cannon in the drawing room. Fortunately, no guests were hurt; however, several servants were buried under the confetti. While the castle is by no means understaffed, Sariel would like Clavis to stop creating so much unnecessary work.

Clavis: But that trap made our stuffy guests laugh, didn't it? Tomorrow, Nokto should be reporting that negotiations have concluded. A job well done, wouldn't you say?

Sariel: If what you say comes true, then I would be happy. But please improve your methods...is what I've asked at least 1000 times already, but you never learn, do you?

Clavis: Never learn? That should be my line. You're getting old. All that chasing's bad for your lower back.

Sariel cracks his whip at Clavis. His stomach will be the first to suffer before his lower back. Yves, who's also present along with Jin, flinches away from the force of whip. Sariel has to be forceful for it to have any effect on Clavis, Jin says. And then sighs at how neither are acting their age.

Suddenly, another explosion goes off. Oh, Clavis threw a pepper bomb and fled. And there goes Sariel chasing after Clavis again. Jin recalls hearing about how sprinting strengthens one's lower back. But at the cost of exponentially increasing stress, Yves responds back. Once the footsteps fade, Jin decides to get a drink.

~~

That night, Jin, Sariel, Leon, Yves, and Licht are at a bar. For a job well done on clearing up all the traps today, drinks will be on Jin. Sariel's drinks, not Leon's. Yves ordered some food for Sariel so that he doesn't drink on an empty stomach. He also cancelled Jin's cake order because he already reached his daily sugar intake.

Sariel's already downed his ale in a matter of seconds. The bar's got a great selection so he'll be trying them all out...is what he'd like to do. Clavis has been giving him a very hard time recently. Leon points out that his cup's creaking. Jin tells Sariel to take a deep breath, the cup did nothing wrong here.

Yves brings up how despite being on bad terms nowadays, Sariel and Clavis used to be teacher and student. They'd been together for so long, Yves wonders if they were false memories from when he was a child. Leon adds that Clavis learned how to pick locks from Sariel. The bureaucrat had no idea that would be the start of a teacher-student relationship or turn Clavis into a hellcat. Jin still remembers the time when Clavis would follow Sariel around like a duckling.

To this day, Sariel still sighs and finds himself wondering what happened. He pauses, as if a thought came to him, but brushes it off. Since Clavis has become full hellcat, he can't go back to the way he was as a kid. The best he can do is be a step ahead of him to minimize casualties. Jin says that without Sariel around, every day would be traps galore. Licht agrees and asks if there were traps that have failed that they're unaware about.

Jin says Clavis has always been a pain, but according to Sariel, Clavis was more difficult to deal with back then than he his now. Because back then, he was an innocent and reckless child. That reminds him, there was a day where Clavis cried in front of Sariel for the first time.

~~

The story cuts to Clavis with Nokto. The latter's home earlier than usual. Nokto tells Clavis that he's just back for dinner; he'll be going out again later. Clavis reminds him to enjoy his nightly entertainments in moderation and Nokto counters that Clavis should take things in moderation himself. Is he talking about the confetti cannon? Clavis controlled the amount it'd fire. The negotiations went well, didn't they? Nokto agrees, they signed a contract on good terms.

Clavis: That's great. I'm glad to be of service to my younger brother.

Nokto: At the cost of increasing the wrinkles between Sariel's brows.

Nokto asks how he's on such bad terms with Sariel. Clavis says that they have different values. Clavis wants to feel joy and a sense of pleasure every day while Sariel just wants safety and peace. While Nokto agrees that joy means stimulation, he doesn't think they can continue being friends if he takes it too far. Must be hard for Sariel.

Clavis: I'm having one of those days when I'm feeling depressed because my joy was interrupted, you know?

Nokto: Not sure I can say much to someone who redecorated my room with bright colors. Surprises are supposed to make our days better, but I guess that didn't work out for you, Mr. "I used to love Sariel as a child".

Clavis: Next time I'll...

Nokto: Don't. I'm pretty sure you've cried at least once or twice when Sariel got mad at you.

Clavis: Never! On the contrary, I'm the one that made him cry.

Nokto doesn't believe it but Clavis claims that he saw it with his own golden eyes.

The story goes back to a time way before they met Emma, a time when the pleasure-loving leopard and the court devil were teacher and student.

~~

Clavis: Sariel, it's morning! It's morning already! Your apprentice is here so wake up! What are you gonna teach me today?

Sariel: Ugh...Prince Clavis, we don't call it morning when it's before 4 in the morning when the sun hasn't even risen yet. For now, please get off.

Clavis: If you wake up then I'll get off! How 'bout that?

Sariel: I'm the master here aren't I?

~~

Clavis: Sariel, wake up! This time I came when the sun rose. Aren't you proud?

~~

Clavis: Since I'm your apprentice, it's only right for me to help my master!

~~

Clavis: Listen to this, Sariel! I was able to unlock all the boxes in the treasury!

~~

Clavis: This vial may look like it contains water, but when you smash it against the ground...!

Sariel: Your invention's potency is strong, so please show it to me in the gardens.

Clavis: Right?! My inventions are amazing!

~~

Sariel!

~~

Sariel!

~~

In common room, Sariel lets out a long, long sigh. Jin's impressed by his lung capacity. Sariel suddenly flinches as he hears Clavis calling for him. Jin assures him that the prince isn't around. He's just starting to hear things. His younger brother's more attached to Sariel than he thought and he finds it cute. Only because it's not his problem, Sariel says. Regardless, he'll continue to act as Clavis' mentor since it's part of his duty to educate the princes and something Chevalier had told him to do. It's worth anyway since the prince is always eager to learn. Still, Sariel hopes that Clavis gets bored of it soon so that he can go back to his other duties. Jin's unsure about Clavis being one of those kids that frequently change interests.

One night Clavis ambushes Sariel and asks him to let him join him on a mission. Sariel regrets telling Jin that he'd be going on a mission. To Clavis, he tells the prince that he'll be in the way so he can't bring him, but Clavis insists that he won't.

Clavis: A apprentice grows by watching his master's back.

Sariel: You've seen it plently already.

Clavis: It's not enough because I'm still growing!

Sariel: What is that logic.

Clavis: You know what? I'm gonna tell everyone that you picked a lock.

Sariel: Be my guest.

Clavis: No! I'm comign with you.

Sariel: Where did the blackmail go?

Sariel tries to usher Clavis back to his room and have him wait for his return but the prince won't budge. He wants to watch Sariel and be of use to him. He promises to be good. Sariel relents; Clavis is going to follow him regardless. Fortunately the mission's just an inspection, but it's still dangerous so Clavis will need to listen to Sariel's every word.

~~

Clavis is in a wonderful mood because he's going on his first mission with his master. Sariel reminds the prince to hold on tight so that he doesn't fall of their horse.

For their mission, they'll be going in to town to visit a baron who invites orphans to his mansion to provide them with meals. He sounds like a good guy and the town has a good reputation. However, there's something suspicious going on because the baron shouldn't have the funds to actually do this so they're investigating.

Sariel can feel a stomachache coming.

Clavis points at some beautiful flowers and Sariel tells him about what kind of flowers they are. Speaking of flowers, Clavis brings up how his mom once gave him sweets and flowers as a gift for getting a perfect score on a test. He says his mom makes the best sweets; he'll give some to Sariel next time because he's his master and Clavis wants to share what his favorites. And it'd make him mom happy too. The prince just loves his mom so much.

Clavis asks Sariel about what his mom's like, but Sariel wonders about that himself. He has no memory of his family. Clavis goes quiet for a bit before imagining what Sariel's parents are like. He says that Sariel got his beautiful black hair from his dad and eyes from his mom. He could've inherited his meticulousness from either parents. Do his parents wear glasses, are they early risers like Sariel, are they strict about manners? Or are they surprisingly crude? There are so many possibilities. Clavis then asks Sariel if he's looking forward to seeing them again, but that's not something he's ever thought about. But thanks to Clavis, he's going to end up imagining what it'd be like.

~~

In town, Sariel disguises the both of them as street urchins. The baron will be providing meals today so they go to look for his mansion.

Sariel: Now then, is the baron black or white? We shall see

~~

Sariel and Clavis: ... Black

The two spy on the mansion from outside. The way the baron looks at the children is as if he's appraising them and the servants look like they're in pain, like they're being forced to do bad things. Clavis takes a step closer but Sariel stops him or else they'll get caught. Clavis says that if they don't do something, both the children and servants will continue to suffer. Sariel says there's no point in going in blind. The baron's going to keep an eye out for them and they won't be able to gather evidence. He suggests waiting until nightfall but is cut off by Clavis saying that the kids might end up being dragged into bad things so it doesn't feel right to just wait.

The prince continues toward the mansion and a servant takes notice. They ask him if he's here for a meal. Sariel starts to say they're not, but Clavis interrupts to say that they are.

Clavis: We came from the next town over because we heard that this mansion served free meals. Right, big brother?

Sariel: Huh...?

Clover End (Clavis POV)

Heart End (Sariel POV)

Epilogue

[prettyflyshyguy]

It's actually WIP wednesday today. Have some short snippets from some things I'm writing. Some inFAMOUS things.

Festival of Blood extrapolation cause I can't fucking help myself. This is C-Virus 2.0. Help.

“Alright, now hold still. This might sting a little.”

Cole grunted in response to the pain as he felt the alcohol bite into the puncture marks. 

“Zeke that really, really stings.”

“I did warn you.”

Zeke’s technique was rough, but thorough, ensuring the wound and surrounding skin was clean before a second round of pain hit as the antiseptic gel he began applying spared no mercy. He paused in his application, a chill swept through his body as he watched Cole grimace from the burning wound. Zeke turned his attention back to the immediate issue, refocusing on the job he had dutifully assigned himself. The surrounding skin had bruised deep violet and grey, broken up by lines of scattering dark veins spreading outwards, creeping and crawling under the surface, like vines reaching out for purchase.  

“Where’d you pick up all this stuff anyway, Grey’s Anatomy? Nurse Jackie?” 

Cole’s voice cut the stillness of the rooftop. The man had a knack for lightening the mood, but Zeke knew him too well. Cole was unsettled. This was his usual method for deflecting. 

“I got it from Trish.” 

Zeke held his breath, glancing up at Cole as he pulled open a packet of medical adhesives. Cole was silent and still, staring out across the city skyline, though he wasn’t looking at the fireworks and balloons that dotted the hazy gloom of the clear twilight sky. Zeke continued, “Back in Empire City, while you were in hospital. Had a lot of downtime, yknow? While the world was going to shit outside. It was getting scary, man. Figured I’d ask her to show me how to do stuff right in case anything ever happened.”

He lined up the patch, confirming it was the correct size before peeling the plastic protective film off and gently pressing it onto Cole’s neck.

“Didn’t think I’d ever need to.”

Before the thought could linger, the snapping sound of Zeke pulling off his gloves pulled Cole back into the moment. 

“Okie-dokie Gary Oldman, consider yourself discharged. Be sure to give the Dunbar clinic a five star review.”

----

Forced Conduit Zeke (name pending)

Ok this is more a handful of notes but I NEED to get it out of my system or I'll explode. Ever since I hit the bombshell that Bertrand can create forced conduits by effectively mutating people I really, really, really wanted to see him do it to a member of the main cast. Now I understand why the game did not. But I'm the dickhead that wrote 23k words of Leon Kennedy being mutated by the C-Virus for the same reason so you can bet your sweet ass I'd do it again. Initially you'd think, sure, I'd hit Cole with that, and I sort of want to as more of a what if/one shot exploration. Less likely a full scale fic more just some fun noodling.

However. Hear me out. Ok hear me out. I love Zeke but he's a perfect candidate - he wanted powers, he's working undercover in the militia as a double agent, Cole's way too powerful to risk attempted containment and then mutating (the risk of him being too powerful a creature to control? What happens if they can't knock him out long enough for Bertrand to work his magic?) - what happens if Zeke is found out. Not only is he a double agent, he's The Demon's best friend.

He's feeding information to Bertrand's biggest threat and that just won't do. So naturally, what's a good punishment. What's a good way to send a message? What's a good way to drive home the point that Conduit's are monsters?

-

“You know the last time someone kidnapped and threatened my best friend, thing’s didn’t end so well for him.”

Bertrand has Zeke hostage, Cole shows up for a rescue, mirroring the mission from inF1. Zeke's in his militia uniform (conveniently) but this also reflects that he got caught. Bertrand talks about how he was good, but not quite good enough. He caught wind that there was a mole and the guy has resources, and this is the age of smartphones. Someone caught a photo of them together maybe, or a guard spotted something that lead to suspicion. Zeke never let it slip firsthand though.

Cole show's up, Bertrand threatens to shoot Zeke if he tries anything though. Cole's basically stuck watching. Bertrand has a monologue on the resources, time, energy it cost to rat out the mole. He's pissed off. Really pissed off. This would occur sometime after they found out he was making monsters, but before proof and confirmation was gained, so they were going by Nix's word and Cole's firsthand witnessing to Bertrand's personal transformation.

Bertrand continues to yap, but he keeps it vague. He talks about how he thought about doing what he’s about to do to Cole, but realised when he figured out Zeke’s connection and relevancy, he felt this would be more interesting. 

Cole is helpless watching as Bertrand begins to corrupt Zeke.

“... promise me you’ll get that... sonova...bitch....”

After they’re done, Bertrand leaves a distraught Cole to handle a large, monstrous corrupted Zeke.

Cole has to fight him, mostly avoiding attacks, trying not to cause harm and damage, now grapping with the horror that every other monster he's killed was distinctly a person - seeing Zeke infront of him looking similar, acting similar, but knowing who he is/was. Cole manages to restrain him, hauls him via a boat out into the swamp where Nix first showed him where Bertrand's blast went off, figures he'll be safe here if he just chains him to a tree while he figures out: what the hell is he gonna do about it.

Kuo calls and Cole brushes her off the first time (maybe right after or as he’s fighting Zeke) doesn't tell her what happened.

They meet up later and he does tell her. She doesn't respond well. She comes from the angle of “put him out of his misery” - make the hard, but right call. 

“I know this is a lot to ask of you, and we’ve already asked so much, but you need to be prepared to make the right call–”

“Why is it always up to me? I’m just some guy, I was nobody special!"

“Why does everything come down to me to make the tough decision? Why couldn't it’ve been someone else’s best friend? Someone else’s girlfriend? Someone else’s life?”

Cole spends a lot of time with Zeke, looking for a sign he's still in there. He plays his favourite song on an MP3 player wrapped in insulation tape.

“C’mon man, give me a sign, give me something I can work with here.”

“Just show me that you’re still in there. Please.”

Nix comes at it from the “you can keep him, like I did with my babies/pets” - he also flips out at this like “My best friend is not a fucking animal!” Kuo and Nix both have points, to be considered, he doesn't tell Kuo where he left Zeke cause he’s worried she’ll seek him out. This angers her. Nix figures it out, comes and checks in on how they're both doing. They have a heart to heart about things. Nix is more understanding, she knows what it feels to lose people close to you.

After a while of barely any progress, bouts of aggression, and growing concern, Cole starts to cave. He asks Nix again about how she bonded with the other swamp monsters.

"Show me."

[kachikirby]

GranEssex Chronicles: Chapter 13 - Advent of the Lady of Shadows

The planet Nightfall. A small planet covered in eternal darkness. As a result, the planet is full of nocturnal monsters. Those who live here are practically confined to brilliantly lit cities if they wish to survive. However, this light occasionally does not stop all monsters from attacking and a few particularly brave or foolish ones will enter, looking for their next meal. One of these residents was an orphan girl, a Star Warrior named Kurabe. For Kurabe, moving from orphanage to orphanage, searching for scraps to eat was just normal for her. She honestly hated this lifestyle, the only thing keeping her going was her belief that her life would get better.

"I wonder if the soup kitchen is open today..." She sighed.

Kurabe had lived on this planet for all of her admittedly short life, and she hated it. The constant search for shelter was bad enough but the worst part was the monsters that lived there. She lost count of how many friends from the orphanage she's lost from a random monster attack. Even worse was what had been happening recently in this city. About one month ago, the power had started to go out for 5 seconds once per week. However, this had become much more frequent in recent times, with the last outage lasting 10 seconds. Thankfully, it almost always happened when she was eating at the local soup kitchen, but she was becoming increasingly worried about it going out while she was outside.

"Excuse me... sorry..." She said as she walked by other citizens, all with looks of sadness and agitation.

Every low-class citizen was of the same mindset: survive. She couldn't blame them, of course, being one of them as well. They were the most at risk when the power went out. The upper-class citizens could at least have protective shelters. Honestly, it sickened her.

"I really should get to the soup kitchen..." She uttered as she rushed down the street.

Honestly, that was the only place in this hellhole that she remotely felt safe in. Unfortunately, not everything lasts forever. In just an instant, all of the lights and power in the city was cut off.

"Maybe it'll come back soon..." She thought.

Once it passed five seconds and nothing changed, she began to panic and ran even faster to the soup kitchen. Ten seconds passed during her sprint and the power still hadn't returned.

"No... no... it can't be!" She thought.

She began to hear a roar of sounds, clearly being monsters and panicking citizens.

"The generator should hopefully be on. I just need to get there..."

At that moment she tripped over something. Or more accurately, a monster tripped her with its tail.

"Agh! Oh no!"

She got up and turned around. While it was hard to see, she could make out a menacing figure with sharp, red eyes staring at her. "...oh no." She uttered, backing slowly away as she attempted to think about her options.

"What should I do? What should I do? What should I do?"

There was no way she could fight. She couldn't see this enemy and she didn't have any method of attack. Suddenly she tripped again, but this time it wasn't due to the monster, it was a rusty lead pipe. She quickly picked it up and held it in front of her. She had no fighting experience, but if she was going to die it would be on her own terms. The monster lunged at her directly and she managed to block the first attack to both her surprise and the monsters. Unfortunately, the monster wasn't stunned for long and used its tail to whip her left eye, temporarily blinding her.

"Damn it!" She yelled, thrusting the pipe into the monster's own left eye with all of her strength.

Suddenly, the monster stopped moving, the pipe piercing its brain. "Did that do it?!" She asked as she felt herself begin to fall. Thinking quickly, she inhaled some air and puffed herself up, floating gently to the ground as she did.

"Did I... kill it?"

Kurabe was shocked. A monster being killed wasn't unheard of, but an orphaned, starving girl doing it was unexpected to say the least. She then shook her head. She shouldn't worry about that. All that matters is that the monster was probably dead, and she had to get to the soup kitchen before another one could attack her. She ran as fast as she could, noticing the screams of pain and death had begun to die down all around her.

---------

As Kurabe rushed down the street, she continued to notice that the power still had not come back on, greatly concerning her. However, she pushed herself and reached the area where the soup kitchen would be. Finally, somewhere safe and full of food! Her happy thoughts died as soon as she saw the soup kitchen was destroyed completely. The only thing there to greet her was twenty pairs of glowing red eyes. She shrank back in horror.

"It... can't be..." She uttered.

There was nowhere left for her to go now! It dawned on her just then. The power was never coming back and the whole city was being destroyed. Life as she knew it was gone in the blink of an eye. The monsters noticed her and started to charge at her. Kurabe closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitable. But... nothing came. She opened her eyes to see a new figure holding a lantern, standing over the now-dead monsters as if they were examining the corpses to ensure they were dead. The figure appeared to be a Star Warrior like her, but he wore a cape and carried a staff.

"Are you unharmed, young one?" The Star Warrior said with a deep, calm voice as he turned towards her, showing a pair of glowing orange eyes.

For a moment, the girl could not speak in amazement.

"Y... yes, I'm not hurt..." She finally uttered once she could find her voice.

The man smiled. "Good. What is your name?"

She looked at him curiously, somewhat wondering why he would ask such a question.

"K... Kurabe..."

"Kurabe... stay close to me. I'm going to get you out of here."

The child's eyes widened. Was this finally the day where she could escape from this planet? Or was this merely a dream? No, she can question if it's a dream later. This was her chance to leave this horrible planet. She quietly nodded and held on the stranger's cape.

"W-what is your name mister?" She asked.

"My name is Z, now follow me. My ship isn't too far from here."

"Ok." She replied in understanding as the two began to head towards his ship.

---------

Along the way, Z would kill any monster that dared to try attacking them. It was incredible for the young girl to see. The monsters that made this planet a living hell were falling like flies.

"Kurabe, you killed one of these Yamitiles didn't you? I can smell blood on your hands." He asked casually. Admittedly, it felt a bit too casual to her, but she still responded.

"I did. It attacked me and I had to fight it to survive."

"Impressive for one of your age." He said as he knocked away five more monsters. "Look, see those lights in the distance? That's my ship."

The girl took a look and was amazed to see the size and majestic beauty of the ship in the distance. Though, if she was being honest, it was more because of all the lights coming from it. This sense of awe only became bigger as they got closer.

"I found one survivor! Open the hatch!" Z shouted.

With a sudden burst of air, she saw the bottom of the ship open and out of the ship poured what felt like a beacon of light.

"Well, come on, let's get you inside." He said, picking her up and carrying her into the ship.

The inside of the ship was, to put it simply, was the most beautiful place she'd ever seen.

"Is this real? Or am I dreaming?"

The man gave a laugh. "This is very much real, young missy."

"Mr. Z, who exactly are you? And why did you rescue me?"

He seemed to scoff a bit. "Oh, I'm sorry, do you so desperately want to go back out into that eternally dark planet full of monsters?"

"Of course not. It's just that no one ever comes to this planet. So, I'm curious as to why you came here."

"Long story short, I had responded to an urgent call about a global power outage and was ordered to gather as many survivors as possible."

"I see."

Kurabe didn't fully understand what he was saying but she didn't care. What she did care about was what comes next.

"So, what happens to me now? Will I just be sent to another orphanage that doesn't want me?"

The man seemed to stare at her. "Is that true?"

Kurabe looked at him sadly. "I never knew my parents, they died shortly after I was born. Since then, I did everything I could to survive. Though whenever the orphanages became too full, I was always the one to get kicked out to make room."

For a moment, Z looked a bit sorrowful at her story, but then his expression became a smile.

"Well, how would you like to stay here?"

Kurabe looked surprised. "You want me to live here?"

"Why not?"

"...Nobody has ever wanted me around before. Are you sure you want someone like me around?"

"Would I be asking that question if I didn't?"

"I suppose not. Thank you, sir." She responded while bowing.

The man reached out and patted her on the head. "It's not a problem. Now, would you like something to eat? You're likely starving."

Kurabe nodded as her stomach growled. Though the mention of food reminded her of the soup kitchen.

"Mister, did you rescue anyone else?"

The man looked back at the hatch beginning to open once more.

"It seems we've found a few more survivors, thankfully."

Kurabe gave a sigh of relief. While she knew that most of the people she knew were dead, she was glad that a few did survive. She then felt her hand being taken by the man.

"Now, let's get you something to eat. Do you want anything in particular?"

"I'm not very picky about food. Honestly anything sounds good to me right now."

"Alright then, Superspicy Curry it is." He uttered with a laugh.

"...what's curry?"

"Ah right, you probably wouldn't understand that joke. It's a dish with meat, rice, carrots, potatoes, and onions. It's quite good and simple to make, so it's what's usually served. However, I'm quite sure you cannot handle Superspicy Curry yet. There's no doubt it will hurt your stomach at your age."

"I can handle it. I've never been bothered by heat." She replied with a pout.

"...is that so?" He uttered. "Well, you'll have to wait until you're older to try it."

"I understand. Then is there non spicy curry I could try?"

"Of course! Is that what you would like as the first meal in your new home?"

"New home..." That phrase repeated itself in her head into it was finally accepted as fact. She had a home now. "Yes, I think I would like that!"

The man smiled. "Very well then. Let's go to my cabin and I'll make it for you then."

---------

As he began to walk to the cabin, Kurabe took a moment to look around at her new surroundings.

"This ship, it's so much better than any of the orphanages. Is this how the rich live?"

Z smiled. "You best get used to it, Kurabe. You'll be here for a long time."

"...really?"

"Really."

Upon hearing those words, she began to feel tears well up in her eyes. Z gazed at her with a kind look in his eyes.

"You are a strong child. Most people would die for one reason or another on that planet. Yet you, a malnourished child, survived for so long. Fear not, Kurabe, you will never return to that lifestyle."

She let out a quiet sob as she began to cry. Finally. Finally, she would get off this horrible planet. No more starving. No more struggling to survive. No more going to bed hungry. Her former sanctuary may have been destroyed, but she has found a new, even better one.

"Let it out, Kurabe. There's no shame in showing emotion. Hold my hand, I'll take you the rest of the way. Just focus on yourself."

Kurabe nodded, making sure not to trip over herself.

"This is your first time crying in a long time, isn't it?"

"Y-yes. I never allowed myself to cry. Someone needed to be strong and brave for the other orphans."

"I understand. It's also strong and brave to cry if you need to, if you ask me. I myself do not trust a man who can't cry."

As if agreeing with his words, Kurabe's tears became bigger.

"We've made it to my cabin. Please, sit anywhere you like."

However, before he could move any further, he felt himself being tackled in a hug by the child.

"I see. I suppose I could cook with someone attached to my side." He uttered with a chuckle as he began to head towards his kitchen, the young girl remaining firmly attached to him.

---------

A few minutes after Z started cooking, Kurabe spoke up.

"I can help with cooking. The chefs at the soup kitchen taught me a few tips."

"I appreciate the offer young one but please, let me do this for you."

"But I want to help!"

"And I want you to rest. You look like you can barely stand right now, so I insist that you let me do this for you."

"But-"

"I understand why you want to help. You feel that you need to prove yourself in order to be seen as desirable so that you don't lose your new home. You needn't worry about that, Kurabe, just relax and let me finish cooking."

She only looked at him, pouting while puffing up her cheeks.

"Pouting does nothing but make you look cute."

She pouted even more as she held onto him tighter.

"I hope you understand that you cannot change my mind."

---------

After a few more minutes, the curry was finished and set on the table.

"Well, dig in, Kurabe."

At first, she looked at it in curiosity before taking a small spoonful of the rice and vegetables and sniffing it. Then she ate the spoonful. Instantly, her eyes lit up and she inhaled the rest of the meal. Z smiled and laughed.

"Normally, I'd ask you to slow down, but I'll make an exception for today."

"Do you have any more?" She asked.

"I figured you were starving. Just wait here, I'll make some more. Thankfully curry doesn't take long at all."

While she waited for more of her food to cook, Kurabe began to think.

"Why exactly did he pick me up? I know he said not to worry about it, but I've heard some people from the orphanage be picked up by older adults and forced to do horrible things. I know my gut says to trust him, but I..."

"Earlier you asked about who I am, correct?" Z suddenly said, as if reading her thoughts. "Tell me, have you heard of The Organization?"

She shook her head.

"We are a galactic force that deals with all types of threats in the universe. Monsters, wars, criminal groups, that types of things. I'm the current leader of the Organization. As I told you, we received reports of global blackouts, meaning that this planet will soon be uninhabitable. So, I and my top soldiers came here to rescue as many civilians as we could."

She nodded in understanding. "Is that why you took me in then?"

"It's why I saved you. Why I decided to let you live here is another matter entirely. You've had a horrible life up until now. As a fellow Star Warrior, I cannot allow you to continue living in fear. I want to give you the life you were never able to have."

Kurabe stared at him in surprise, unable to think of how to respond to that.

"Well, anyway, here's your curry." He said, placing it on the table in front of her.

Kurabe began to inhale but was noticeably slower about eating than earlier.

"Mr. Z, since I live here, will I have to be apart if this Organization?" She asked after clearing her plate.

"Only if you wish to join. If you rather have the peaceful life you were unable to have on Nightfall, feel free to."

Kurabe wasn't entirely sure what she wanted. While she was happy to finally be someplace peaceful, there was no telling how long that peace would last. If she joined the Organization who knows how much more pain she would have to go through. But if she did join, perhaps she could learn how to avoid being in another deadly situation. She was able to kill one monster, maybe she become even stronger. She looked at Z, remembering how he effortlessly killed so many monsters.

"Mr. Z, I don't know if I want to join you, but could you possibly teach me how to become strong like you?"

"If that's what you wish, I'd be glad to."

"Really!?" She said with a smile, one of the few times she has ever smiled in her life. "Thank you, mister!"

"There's no need to thank me. Though, please, don't call me mister. Starting today, you are effectively my daughter, so please call me father instead."

She tilted her head in confusion, as if questioning what that meant. "Ok then, father."

Z chuckled, but there was hint of sadness in it. "Growing up in orphanages, you've seen children be adopted or taken into families, correct?"

The young girl looked down. "Yeah, many times..."

"Well, now you are in that position. Starting today you and I are family. Which means I'll always be here for you, Kurabe. Most people believe family needs to be born of blood, but that is incorrect. A family can be anyone, as long as those involved care for each other. It's a father's duty to raise and teach their children, and as your new father I promise to do my best for you."

Kurabe looked at him and quietly nodded. "Thank you, father."

"But while I'm teaching you, I want you to refer to me as either teacher, mentor, or sensei. They each mean the same thing so pick whichever term you'd prefer."

"Ok, sensei."

Z smiled and patted her on the head, an action that made her happy for some reason.

"We're not training yet, my daughter. You can still call me father. We won't begin training until I make sure your body is perfectly healthy, which might take a few days."

The girl nodded in understanding. "Ok. Thank you, father."

The man smiled. "You're welcome, my daughter. I will do my best to make sure your life on this ship is as happy as possible."

Kurabe smiled. While she was nervous about her future, she was definitely happy with how things were at the moment. She might have lost a few friends, but she gained something she never thought she'd have. A family.

"Well, we can talk more tomorrow. I'm quite sure you're exhausted, so I'll go set up a room for you." He said while standing up.

"A room... I'm going to have my own room..."

Kurabe was still in shock about today's events.

"You'll have much more than just a room, Kurabe."

The girl blinked in curiosity. "What else will I have?"

"Everything in this ship, really. You live here now, so you have access to everything."

"Woooow! What's on this ship?"

"You'll see that tomorrow. For now, let us get you to bed."

Kurabe nodded and followed Z out of his room.

---------

In a few minutes, they arrived at a room.

"This will be your room for the night."

"Just for the night?" She asked, concerned by the wording.

"It'll take time to make a room specifically for you, Kurabe."

She looked at him, but then at the room, looking a bit nervous. It took the man a moment to realize what she was looking at.

"Is this because of the darkness?"

She nervously nodded.

"Then in that case."

Z held out his hand and a lamp appeared in his hand like magic. The child hesitantly took the lamp in her hands.

"Keep this on your bedside. I'm sure it'll make you feel safe."

Kurabe nodded and placed it next to the bed. "How did you make this lamp, father?"

Z chuckled at her puzzled expression. "It's a type of magic I created."

She looked at him in curiosity. "What kind of magic?"

"A magic that lets me create anything I want, only as long as I know how it's made and how it works."

She girl looked at him in amazement.

"I can show you more of it tomorrow. For now, I'd appreciate it if you could go to sleep. You look like you're barely keeping your eyes open."

She nodded, but in truth she was scared to sleep. Scared to wake up only to find that everything was just a dream.

"You have nothing to worry about, Kurabe. You need to rest."

She quietly shook her head.

"Kurabe, please go to sleep."

She shook her head while clenching onto him tighter.

"Do you want me to stay in here while you sleep?" He finally asked.

"If it's... all right..." She uttered.

Honestly, even just knowing he was in her room would provide her to enough comfort. Even better if he held her hand. Wordlessly, Z summoned a chair next to the bed and smiled at her as he sat down. Understanding this, she hesitated to crawl into bed for a moment before forcing herself to. Once she was settled in, she began to relax, noticing how this bed was more comfortable than anything she's ever slept on, which was mostly the floor of the orphanage and a stale pillow. She then felt a hand begin to stroke her head.

"Sleep well, young one."

Kurabe closed her eyes and quickly fell asleep.

---------

When she woke up her vision was slightly blurry, and she wasn't quite aware of her surroundings.

"Where?"

She sat up and rubbed the sleepiness out of her eyes and saw Z sitting in his chair reading a newspaper.

"Ah good morning, Kurabe."

"...It really wasn't a dream." She thought to herself.

"I told you that you had nothing to worry about, didn't I?" The man said with a smile.

"Are you...reading my mind?"

"I don't need to read your mind when your face says everything."

She blinked for a moment, but then pouted.

"What are you pouting for? You woke up and your new home wasn't a dream, was it?"

"Because if I change my face, you can't read it."

The man gave a laugh and patted her head. "Well, I don't need to read your mind to tell that you're probably hungry right now. How about we get you some breakfast?"

Kurabe nodded and got up. As she did, she noticed from the window it was dark outside.

"Are we still on that death trap?"

"Worry not, Kurabe. We're currently in outer space. Take a closer look at all the stars around us."

The girl pressed her face against the window and widened her eyes upon seeing all the lights of various sizes outside in the darkness.

"It's... so beautiful..." She uttered.

"It is, isn't it? Now come along, a growing child needs breakfast."

Kurabe nodded and followed him.

"Now while we ate in my room last night, normally we'll have meals in the cafeteria. Take a seat while I get us food."

"Ok." The girl replied.

---------

Upon reaching the cafeteria, she sat down at a table and waited for him.

"I wasn't sure what you would like so I decided to get you something simple. I hope you like waffles." Z said as he put a plate in her face.

Almost instantly, she began to devour the food.

"I see you're still somewhat hungry. Well, feel free to eat as much as you like. You'll need it to become big and strong."

Kurabe nodded. "Where are we headed?" She asked in between bites.

"The main base for the Organization. That's where we'll begin your training."

"The main base? Is it a very big place? Is it as nice as this ship? Are the people there nice?"

"It covers 50% of the planet we built it on. It's even nicer than this ship. As for the people, mostly. Some people aren't the most approachable, but such is life."

The girl replied with a slight shrug. "Well, I guess it'll be fine as long as it's better than that planet I used to live on..."

"Don't worry, my daughter, there's no monsters on the planet. And even if there were, they'd never get close to you."

For a moment, Kurabe stopped eating, but the reason for that was clear as she gave Z a hug. The man laughed and accepted it.

---------

After five hours they arrived at the main base. It was almost like a large city, with a gigantic building in the middle. The size amazed Kurabe.

"Wow, this is even better than the city I used to live in!"

She pressed her face up against the window, trying to take in all of the sights as she saw all the tiny people walking below the ship.

"I'm glad you like it, because this is your new home now."

She then quickly looked back at him. "Can we explore the whole city? I wanna see what's here!"

"Let's get you settled in at the main base first."

She nodded in understanding.

"Don't worry, you'll have plenty of time to explore later. Now follow me."

As he began to walk off the ship, the girl followed him. As they walked through the city, she couldn't help but notice that many people were staring at them. But instead of the despair filled looks of agitation she was used to, these looks were gentler, more curious if anything. While she had learned to ignore others, it was nice getting different looks this time.

"I'm quite respected here, so there's no doubt they're interested in you." The man suddenly said.

"I see." She said, already zoning out all of the stares, keeping her attention focused solely on Z.

---------

Eventually, they reached a large building.

"This is where you will be staying from now on."

"Just me? What about you father?" She asked, afraid that he might abandon her after all.

"Oh, this is my home." He replied with a laugh.

Kurabe sighed in relief, then pouted. "You need to work on your explanations." She said, causing even more laughter.

"You got quite the mouth on you. Good, that's a strong trait to have."

She seemed to pout even more.

"I already told you that will do nothing but make you look cute."

She just pouted even more.

"And quit pouting when I give you compliments."

"...You were complimenting me?"

"Yes."

She silently blinked in shock for a moment before her face turned a deep red.

"I assume you haven't been complemented before?"

"...No, not often anyway."

He gave a sad smile. "That's quite a shame. You're quite a lovely young girl. I'm sure you'll grow up into a beautiful young woman."

"...ok, now I think you're overdoing it." She pouted, trying to hide her blushing.

"Now, let's show you around, shall we?"

Noticing him beginning to walk away, the child quickly followed him into the house.

---------

After a few minutes of looking around the massive, mansion-like building, Kurabe heard Z speak up once more.

"So, what do you think, Kurabe? Do you think you'll like it here?"

She seemed to jump a bit upon hearing that, the obvious result of being so entranced by her new surroundings.

"Um... yeah, I think I'll like it here."

"Good. I hope I'm able to provide you everything you never had."

"Well... you're already doing good at that. Last time was the first in a while that I didn't go to sleep hungry."

The man nodded. "Well, then I'll continue to do my best."

"Thank you, father." Kurabe said with a smile.

She didn't know what the future would bring, but at this moment in time she couldn't care less.

---------

Many years passed, and Kurabe became comfortable with her life with Z. While she did train hard to become strong, she also enjoyed the peaceful and happy life that she was unable to have back on Nightfall. Eventually, she decided that she did want to join the Organization. When her father asked for her reasoning, she responded with...

"Thanks to you, my life was saved, and thanks to your teachings, I've become strong. I want to use the gifts you given me to help those that can't help themselves. If I can protect others that were once like me by joining the Organization, then that's what I shall do."

Z simply smiled and accepted her into the ranks. In record time, she climbed the ranks and earned quite a reputation among her peers. One day, there was a large meeting for all young soldiers for them to meet and hopefully befriend each other. Kurabe, of course, decided to go. The venue was fairly crowded, a bit more than she honestly was expecting. Seeing as there was a bit of time before the meeting officially started, she decided to take a short stroll. As she walked around, she saw people of all kinds of species, even some she's never seen before! Admittedly, she was so distracted that she didn't see where she was going and ran into someone, causing them to trip and fall.

"I'm sorry, please excuse me." She said with a bow.

Upon looking up, she saw a grey humanoid in a secretary outfit and a small white cape over her shoulders shuddering on the floor. However, the thing that stood out to her the most was honestly the blue eyes that looked at her with slight fear.

"N... n... no... I-I-I'm so sorry...!"

A feminine voice managed to squeak out putting her head to the floor in an intense bow, with Kurabe now fully seeing her hair tied up in a bun. The puff stared at her in confusion.

"Wh... what? But I'm the one that ran into you..." She uttered, trying to process what just happened.

Upon saying that, she heard a slight whimper come from the person in front of her.

"What did you do to her?!"

Kurabe almost tripped over herself upon hearing a voice shout that. Turning, she saw another silver humanoid storming over to where she was.

"I bumped into her and then apologized."

The man glared at her through his glasses.

"And you weren't watching where you were going? How irresponsible..." He uttered coldly.

Then he turned to the person on the floor and knelt down to her, placing a hand on her back. She heard a whispered exchange between them.

"Are you ok, Mer?"

A weak nod.

"Let's get going then."

As the man helped the woman up and were beginning to walk away, they were suddenly cut off by Kurabe.

"Wait."

They both stopped.

"What's your name?"

The man turned and glared at her. "My name is Reedy-"

"Not you. Her."

The woman only looked at her nervously and clearly confused, as if she was surprised about being asked her name.

"You don't have to answer that if you don't want to, Mer."

She shook her head.

"It's ok. My name is Mercury." The woman uttered shyly.

The puff gave a smile. "And I'm Kurabe. Hopefully, we'll get to see each other around some time." She said as she waved the woman goodbye.

The woman gave a timid wave back as she followed the man.

---------

About an hour after that encounter Kurabe started to hear a large commotion. Curious, she decided to investigate. What she saw infuriated her to no end. It was the woman Mercury, now without that Reedy guy, surrounded by a bunch of angry soldiers yelling at her.

"Why did they let a monster like her in here?"

"Maybe she killed someone and impersonated them to get in?"

"In that case we should teach her a lesson!" A large man said as he threw a punch.

That punch would never reach its target as Kurabe jumped in front of Mercury and effortlessly grabbed the man's fist.

"Wait, what the-"

Without another word, Kurabe effortlessly beat down the group of soldiers.

"It seems that I was wrong to assume that all of you would have manners." She uttered coldly.

"Why are you protecting that monster?" One of them weakly asked.

"Monster? All I see is a frightened woman and a bunch of short-sighted fools trying to hurt her. From my perspective, you guys are the monsters." She said, slamming her heel on the soldier's hand. After the screaming died down, she turned to the woman. "Are you alright?"

Mercury slowly nodded.

"Good."

Kurabe then quickly grabbed her hand, startling the woman. "Follow me, I'll take you somewhere safe."

The woman became hesitant, but the warrior dragged her along anyway.

"So, where's that guy you were with earlier?" Kurabe asked, trying to start a conversation.

"He went off to find a superior officer to ask for tactical advice. He said he wouldn't be gone for long but after ten minutes..."

"Wow, for how protective he seemed to be of you, he is quite negligent..." The puff uttered in annoyance.

The woman only became silent once more.

"Why did you help me?" She finally asked.

"Do I need a reason to help someone in trouble?"

"...you are aware of what I am, aren't you?"

"Yes, I'm quite aware that you're a Limet. I fail to see why that's relevant."

The woman blinked, then suddenly became angry. "But it means everything! Don't you know that people will think horribly of you just because you helped me!?"

"Why should I care about what they think? People who judge others purely on appearances or rumors aren't worth my time."

"Even if it means you're unable to work with others because of it?"

"I'm capable of working on my own. Besides, I can always work with you sometimes."

"But why would you even want to work with me?! I'm pathetic! Hell, I just met you today!"

"Well, for one thing, you're honest." Upon seeing her confused face Kurabe decided to elaborate. "I've met many people in my life and learned to tell if someone's honest or corrupt. You are by far the purest person I've met. Well, next to my father anyway. I can tell by how you act. You're nervous but you don't wish to hurt anyone or be a nuisance. I can relate to that."

The woman became silent, unsure how to reply to that.

"Do you really think that?" She uttered, looking down.

"If I didn't, I wouldn't say it."

Once more, the silence came, with Mercury looking unsure about how to reply.

"MERCURY!" A voice suddenly called out.

Immediately, she looked up. Kurabe also turned to see the man from earlier running towards them.

"Mercury, are you ok?!"

"Y-yeah..."

Quickly, she was wrapped up in a hug.

"Thank goodness. I saw you weren't where I told you to wait, and I was worried about where you went." His eyes then became sharp. "Mer, for the rest of the party, I want you to stay by me, understand?"

"How about you let her decide what she wants instead?" Kurabe said, glaring at the man apparently named Reedy.

He glared at her as he adjusted his glasses. "Oh, you're that rude person from earlier. I'm quite sure she'd rather stay by me, considering she was more than likely hounded by other soldiers the moment she stepped away from me."

"She was. And I saved her from them. Surely, you saw the pile of unconscious bodies while walking here?"

"I did, and I appreciate that. However, I would rather that she not get into any more harm while we're here."

"I agree. But Mercury is her own person. She should make her own decisions. So, what do you think Mercury? Would you like to spend more time with me?"

The woman became silent, as if seeming unsure of herself, especially considering that both parties were staring at her intently.

"Mer, don't listen to her, she's just trying to trick you."

"Now that's an awfully rude thing to say."

"And you're an awfully rude person!"

"Reed, she's a nice person. Please apologize to her." Mercury suddenly said.

For a moment, the man was taken aback by this response. "...excuse me?"

"I said please apologize to her. She helped me at the risk of her own reputation. That's enough to make me trust her."

He stared at the woman for a moment, but then turned to the puff.

"I don't know the reason why you did it, but I would like to apologize for my behavior." He said, adjusting his glasses once more.

"Apology accepted."

"Now that we settled that, let's go, Mer." He said as he started to walk away, only to notice that Mercury hadn't moved a step. "Mer?"

The woman silently clenched her skirt, as if gathering up courage to say something.

"If... if it's all right with you, I would like to spend more time with Kurabe!" She shouted, clearly nervous in her tone.

The man became silent.

"...is that so?" He asked, making the woman even more anxious. Reedy then gave a sigh as he turned away. "Do whatever you like. Just meet up in the lobby by 10 so we can go home together."

Mercury smiled and bowed. "Thank you so much, Reedy."

"It's not a problem, Mer. If you need my assistance, please come find me immediately." He said as he walked away.

"S-so Kurabe, what do you want to do?" She nervously asked.

"I think we should somewhere less, loud. Let's go to my home." She said with a smile. She never got tired saying her home even after a few years after the fact.

"Ok...but wouldn't Reedy notice if I'm not in the venue...?" The woman uttered, concern evident in her voice.

"He said do whatever you like didn't he? He can't complain if we do what he said."

Mercury paused for a moment, but then nodded in understanding.

---------

As they walked Kurabe decided to ask a few questions to make small talk.

"So why did you join the Organization, Mercury?"

The woman took a moment to think. "Well, I have a few reasons, I guess. There's a negative view on Limets as you know, and I want to help change that perception people have about us."

"I see. And the other reason?"

Mercury looked down. "Promise you won't laugh?"

The puff nodded, as if to say she wouldn't.

"I... want to become stronger. Not necessarily as a fighter, but as a person. Though I'm not sure if I can..."

"Not with that attitude, you can't." The warrior replied bluntly.

"I know..."

"So, I'll help you with that."

Mercury froze and looked at the puff in surprise. "...excuse me?"

"I said I'll help you with that."

"...I know that, but why?"

"Let me answer your question with a story. Have you heard of a planet called Nightfall?"

"The eternally dark planet that had all civilization on it destroyed after the powerplant suddenly shut down?"

"That's the one."

"Why bring it up? Unless... you're a survivor of Nightfall, aren't you?"

"One of last living inhabitants of that hell hole. You see, I grew up an orphan. I never knew my biological parents and I had to move from shelter to shelter, eating scraps to just stay alive. Most of the adults either looked down on me or ignored me entirely. As a result, I was neglected and constantly starving, never knowing if I'd live through the day. Then the power went out and the monsters began the massacre. I would have died if not for the man who would become my father. He saved me and took me in. Because of him I was able to change from a scared, sickly child to the woman you see before you. I see potential in you, Mercury, you just need help reaching it."

The woman became silent. "Reedy has said the same thing, but I'm still not entirely sure..."

Before Kurabe could answer, she sensed someone running up to them. It was one of the ruffian soldiers, looking for revenge.

"Well, this is good timing. Mercury, I want you to fight him."

"Huh?! But why?! There's no way I can fight them!"

"Yes, there is, Mercury. You're stronger than you realize. There's something my sensei told me when we started training. Our greatest foe is fear. Overcome that and everything else will seem small in comparison. Face your fear and prove to yourself that you deserve to be here."

"...and if I believe I don't?"

"That's the fear talking. You can do it, Mercury, just focus. Now get ready, he's getting closer."

In just a few seconds the man was right in front of them.

"It's time for some payback!" He yelled as he drew his sword and went to stab at Mercury.

The woman looked on in fear but felt Kurabe encouragingly pat her back. She took a deep breath and held her hand out. The sword connected, but instead of piercing the Limet, it was absorbed into her. Mercury briefly smiled before scowling at her attacker. Using the metal she just absorbed, she turned her fist into a giant-sized fist and punch the ruffian as hard as she could, knocking him out cold.

Kurabe smiled. "Well, would you look at that? You took him down."

Mercury looked at her fist, which was now going back to normal size, and smiled. "...I guess I did."

"There is no guessing, Mercury. Anyway, come on, my house isn't too far away."

Before the woman could give a response, Kurabe began to drag her once more towards her house.

---------

Upon reaching the house, Mercury stared up at it in amazement.

"This is your home? It's practically a mansion!" She exclaimed.

"I guess so. I suppose it is rather large for just two people." Kurabe said with a shrug.

She then opened the door and walked in, Mercury right behind her.

"I'm back father and I brought a friend." She called out.

"A friend? Now that's a first."

Mercury heard a kind, older voice say from another room. Her eyes widened when she saw who it was.

"Y-y-you're Great General Z!"

Z laughed at the shocked reaction. "Last time I checked, I was."

"But...but... Kurabe, you didn't say that your father was...!"

"That's because you never asked."

The moment the puff said that, the woman's legs seemingly gave out and she bowed, placing her head on the floor.

"Now, now, there's no need for that, young Mercury."

"How did?"

"I make it a priority to know the names of all my soldiers."

Kurabe then motioned for the Limet to stand up, and she did, a bit slowly and unsurely. "Kurabe, is this why you don't care about your reputation? Because you're the general's daughter?"

"That has nothing to do with it, Mercury. Even if he wasn't my father, the public opinion of me still wouldn't matter."

"She's right. She's always been a headstrong young lady even before I met her. And to further crush any doubts, no, she does not receive special treatment from me."

"And even if I did, I wouldn't accept it. My achievements are mine alone."

The lady became silent, as if she was unsure how to respond to that. "I'm sorry for doubting you, Kurabe."

"It's fine. I know you didn't mean any harm. I'm used to people assuming that kind of stuff anyway."

"Well, if you're sure..."

"I am. Now, you should tell the General about what happened earlier." Kurabe said, suddenly serious.

"You mean with the soldiers?"

"Yes. Trust me, he may seem intimidating but he's a very understanding man. He'll hear you out."

She quietly nodded before looking up at the general.

"Great General, I don't know exactly how to explain this but..." She sighed. "Kurabe helped me earlier today when I was being attacked by several of our own fellow soldiers." \

The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

"I assume they were attacking you because you are a Limet?"

Mercury nodded her head, for some reason not bothered by the sudden shift in his tone.

"I see. Kurabe, well done. Mercury, worry not, I shall remove these soldiers from the Organization personally. I have zero tolerance for fools who judge others for superficial reasons."

The woman's eyes widened in surprise. "Will you really do that for me?"

"Not just for you, but for other Limets in the Organization. I already know that you aren't the only Limet that works for me."

"Thank you so much!" She said with a bow.

"There's no need to thank me. Now if you excuse me, I have some garbage to toss out." He said as he left the house, leaving the two women by themselves.

"So... um... what would you like to do now?"

"Would you like to see my room?" Kurabe asked suddenly.

"Um... well, sure!" Mercury said, clearly happy about things potentially getting better for her and the other Limets.

"Very well. Follow me."

The woman nodded, walking with a noticeable hop in her steps.

---------

"Well... make yourself comfortable, Mercury." Kurabe said as she opened the door to her room.

Upon entering, the woman seemed amazed by it. It was a big and tidy room with several bookcases in one reading area, considering the comfy-looking beanbag chairs that were there, and a big bed among other things.

"Let me guess, not what you were expecting, right?"

"I'm not sure what I was expecting, but this is a beautiful room."

"Well, thank you."

"So Kurabe, what hobbies or interests do you have?" Mercury asked as she kept looking around.

"I believe you can first figure out that I quite love reading." She replied.

"Wow you don't say." She uttered sarcastically, which surprised her as normally she was only like that around people she felt comfortable around. Kurabe noticed this and smiled.

"As for not-so-obvious interests, I've recently been into designing swords and creating ice sculptures. Oh, and cooking as well."

The woman nodded. "I could guess the sword making and I suppose cooking isn't that weird. Why ice sculptures?"

The puff smiled. "Because ice is my specialty!"

"That's interesting." Mercury said with her smile. Despite her species natural weakness to the cold, the woman quite enjoyed ice to a reasonable extent.

"How about you, Mercury? What do you like?"

Her friend fidgeted a bit. "Well, I'm pretty interested in fashion." She said a bit embarrassed.

"Ah, well that case let's look at this." Kurabe said as she grabbed a book from her shelf. "Here's a book of different clothing styles from all across the universe. You might find something interesting."

Mercury nodded and the two looked through the book together.

"Hey, Mercury, I think that would look good on you.

" The woman turned looked at the page she was referring to. "That one? The one with the captain hat on it?"

"Yes! I think it would fit you well, especially if you become a captain."

"Well, if you're sure..." Mercury stood up and suddenly her clothes, which were made from her own body, and changed into what was seen in the book.

Kurabe gave a smile. "That looks cute on you! You should wear that more often!"

Mercury blushed and looked at her reflection in the mirror in Kurabe's room. "I think I will."

"Good, you look more confident already."

---------

The two new friends continued to just talk with each other about various topics.

"So Kurabe, what fighting style do you use?" Mercury asked, visibly relaxed.

"Oh, I use twin swords and magic, mostly."

"I read that the General fights with a staff. Why didn't you pursue the same fighting style?"

"There's something about the path of the blade that drew me to it." She uttered vaguely.

"In other words, fighting with swords just feels more natural for you?"

"Oh, absolutely."

"I can understand that."

"And what about your fighting style, Mercury?"

"Well, I'm not sure if it can really be classified as a style, but I usually turn parts of my body into different weapons like swords or hammers."

"And sometimes a giant fist?" Kurabe asked with a chuckle.

"Yeah, that, too." She said with a smile. "You know Kurabe, this is the first time in what feels like forever since I've been comfortable around someone that isn't Reedy."

"You mean other than that old fusspot? I'm glad to hear that." The puff replied with a chuckle.

"Kurabe, you shouldn't call him that." Mercury said, unable to contain her own laughter.

This caused the latter to laugh as well, but then she quickly died down and asked another question. "Come to think of it, what is your relation to him? It's clear you two have some kind of relationship with each other if he's so protective of you."

"Well, I suppose you can say he's my older brother, though we aren't technically related. When I was young, I was orphaned and Reedy's family took me in. Ever since, he's been really protective of me."

"Is that so? Well, considering what happened earlier, he seems to be quite negligent at times." She uttered with a sigh.

"Yeah... he does his best, but he has tunnel vision. Once he gets an idea or forms an opinion, it's almost impossible to get him to change his mind. It's a bit frustrating, honestly. Reedy's a genius. He's beaten many top strategists in chess and other strategy games with little difficulty. He's an excellent planner and has the makings of a leader."

"I hear a "but" coming along."

"...but he's also a massive idiot."

"And there it is." Kurabe uttered, giving a slight grin. "That does appear to be accurate, based on my first impression of him. I assume he's like that with everyone he first meets?"

"Not really, actually. Only if he feels they harmed me in some way."

"How odd. It was quite obvious that I didn't intend to bump into you, and I immediately apologized. There must be something more to it..."

Mercury pursed her lips nervously.

"Considering how smart he supposedly is, I wouldn't be surprised if he knew who my father was." The puff then stated.

The woman nodded. "That's most likely it. Though if he did, he didn't tell me."

"Well, yeah, otherwise you wouldn't have been surprised earlier." Kurabe said with a laugh.

"Yeah. If Reedy does know who you are, he probably assumed that you only got to your position because of your father. You see, we had to struggle to make it to where we are now. If he thinks you got into the Organization with no difficulty..."

"Then he'd immediately dislike me. Yeah, no offense, Mercury, but your brother is a moron."

"You think I don't know that?" The woman giggled. Mercury then stopped and took on a serious face. "Hey, Kurabe. Are we friends?"

Kurabe tilted her head in confusion. "The friendly conversation we were just having for a while wasn't enough to tell you that we are?"

"Fair point."

"Well, if you want to be certain about our relationship... Mercury, would you like to be my friend?"

The woman hesitated to answer for a moment. Then she looked down. "Am I really worthy of being your friend?"

"Please, who cares about worth? That doesn't matter, what matters is what you want."

Mercury blinked at her quietly but then gave a serious look. "If that's the case... then what I want is to be your friend."

Kurabe smiled. "Wonderful! Do you have a phone by chance? It'd be a good idea to exchange numbers."

"...I don't have one yet. Not enough money."

"Oh, then let's go buy you one."

The woman blinked in confusion. "Wait... as in right now!?"

"Yes, right now. Come along." Kurabe said as she grabbed Mercury's hand.

"But... but aren't they expensive!? Why are you going to buy something so expensive for me?!"

"Because we're friends. Besides, with a phone we can stay in touch whenever we want. I help you out and we stay connected. It's a win-win." She then looked back at her. "Besides, I'm quite sure that Reedy would also be fine with you having a phone, won't he?"

"I suppose so... but do you really want to pay that much just for me?"

"Mercury, with the money I've saved up I could buy ten phones and still have enough left over. It's really not a big deal."

She then gave a small smile. "Alright, then I'll accept it."

---------

The two left the house and started walking to the nearest store. Along the way, Mercury noticed that people were giving them looks as expected. But she noticed that Kurabe was simply ignoring all of it. Wanting to follow her example, she tried her best to focus only on herself and her new friend. Admittedly, it was a bit more difficult than she thought it would be, but she was still trying her best to do so. Kurabe noticed her discomfort and frowned. She then directed a small amount of killing intent at everyone around them, making them stop staring out of fear.

"I swear, some people are so ignorant..." She growled.

"Thank you, Kurabe, and I'm sorry that you have to do deal with this because of me..."

She softened her gaze as she turned back towards Mercury. "Don't apologize. It's not your fault that people are so narrow minded and foolish."

Kurabe then looked around.

"Besides, it's not as if everyone is a moron." She said, seeing a group of Limets and non-Limets hanging out at the local cafe.

The woman saw this, and a smile came to her face.

"Do you have other friends, Kurabe?" Mercury asked curiously.

"I have a few. Though I believe some are more what you'd call acquaintances than anything."

"Really? I would think someone as cool as you would have tons of friends."

"Well, I think it's because they know I'm the general's daughter and are afraid of getting close to me because they think they can't handle the pressure."

"That's... a dumb reason."

"It is, isn't it?" Kurabe looked at the bright sky, a habit she got after leaving planet Nightfall. "Some people just care way too much about superficial stuff like that, I guess."

"Yeah, it's especially bad if you're a Limet..." Mercury sighed.

"Then we'll just have to change that, won't we?"

"Do you think we can?"

"Of course. Anything can change with enough time and effort." The puff said, remembering how she used to be trapped on a nightmare planet.

The woman gave a sad smile. "I hope you're right."

"Oh, my friend, I'm always right." Kurabe said in a way that Mercury wasn't sure if she was being serious or not.

"Maybe I should just trust her on that..." she thought.

"Anyway, we're here now. Let's get you that phone."

---------

Upon entering the store, Mercury instantly felt intimidated. Honestly, she had no idea what kind of phone she wanted.

"If you want, I can just buy you the same model I have. Just tell me what color you'd like."

The woman smiled as she gave a sigh of relief. "I think I'd like something in blue, please."

"Blue, yeah that definitely suites you. Just take a seat somewhere and I'll go get it for you."

The woman looked at her worriedly, and Kurabe instantly knew why.

"Don't worry, it won't happen again. I shouldn't be long." She then grabbed Mercury's arm. "And even if it does, I know you can handle yourself. You're pretty strong you know."

The woman looked as if she wanted to deny that, but clearly relented and just smiled. Kurabe smiled and walked off to but the phone for her friend and Mercury sat down at a nearby chair.

"If it's for a Limet, I should probably ask for the resin coated version..." she thought as she looked through the phones.

"Anything I can help you with, Miss Kurabe?" An employee asked.

"Yes, you wouldn't have to have any cellphones treated with crystal tree resin, would you?"

"You're in luck, we have two left in stock."

"Alright then. Is one of them in blue?"

"One of them is yes. I'll go get it for you now."

"Thank you very much."

The employee walked away and Kurabe went up to the counter to wait. She looked around to see where Mercury was and smiled when she saw she was safe and sound. After a few minutes, the employee returned.

"Sorry for the wait, Miss Kurabe."

"It's no problem. How much will it cost?"

"About 10,000 credits plus tax."

"Ah, even cheaper than I expected." She thought to herself as she pulled out her card.

---------

After making the transaction, she returned to where Mercury was sitting.

"I hope no one bothered you while I was up there."

"Surprisingly, no one did."

"Excellent. Here you go, Mercury, make sure to take good care of it." She said as she handed the phone over to its new owner.

The woman took the phone and looked at it for about a minute. Then, to the slight surprise of Kurabe, she began to cry.

"Is everything alright, Mercury?" She asked, not sure about how to handle this situation.

"It... it's fine... just... this is the first time someone that isn't Reedy or another Limet got something for me..."

"I see. Well now that we're friends, you better get used to this feeling." She said while holding her hand out.

Mercury wiped her eyes and smiled as she took her hand. "Thank you, Kurabe."

"We should probably get you back to that idiot brother of yours." Kurabe said as she looked at the stores clock.

The woman nodded in agreement as they walked out of the store.

---------

After around thirty minutes of walking and sightseeing, the two arrived to see an annoyed Reedy. "It's about time you got here, Mer... what are you wearing?"

Mercury jumped and looked nervous.

"Um... Kurabe and I looked through a fashion book and I thought this would look nice on me..." She uttered, looking down in shame.

"Mercury, you have nothing to be ashamed about. Hold your head up high." Kurabe said with an encouraging pat to the back.

The woman did and, to her own surprise, she noticed that Reedy had a small smile on his face for a brief moment.

"I see. It's quite fitting for you."

"Thank you, Reed."

"Now let's go home, Mer."

She nodded and ran to his side. He then motioned and she began to walk with him. Reedy turned to walk away, and Kurabe could've sworn he heard a mumbled "Thank you." From the man, being directed towards her. Kurabe smiled, wondering when she'd next be able to see her new friend.

---------

Over the years, Kurabe had continued with her training, becoming stronger with each passing day. She had even achieved the second highest rank possible and earned a position in the Organization's Big Four. At one point, a massive war broke out between the Organization and a mysterious group calling themselves the Phantom Claw. Kurabe found herself in the middle of the battlefield, running around and protecting as many of her comrades as possible.

"Is... is that all of them...? No, it shouldn't..." She panted.

Just then, she saw a large explosion coming from the west. Having a bad feeling about this, Kurabe ran as fast as she could.

"Captain Kurabe, where are you going!? We were ordered to stay in this sector!" One of her comrades yelled.

"Screw that! I'm not going to let our other comrades die!" She shouted, not waiting to hear an answer.

"But captain-!"

"But nothing! Our lives are more important than my rank! If I get punished for doing the right thing, then so be it!"

She pushed herself to her own limits as she ran towards the base. When she arrived, she saw a lone soldier fending off twenty enemies. The soldier in question was none other than her friend, Mercury.

"Oh no, you don't!" Kurabe shouted as she plowed into the group of enemies, destroying them.

"K-Kurabe!" Mercury shouted as soon as she got over the shock of what happened.

"Mercury! I'm so glad I made it in time! What happened? Are you badly injured? Can you stand?"

"Yeah, I'm fine...!" She uttered, struggling to stand up.

"I assume you're the last member of your squad?" Kurabe asked as she helped get her up.

"Y-yes... unfortunately... none of them wanted to listen to me because I'm a Limet and they all... died..."

"Figures. Thankfully, you're still alive. Come on, we can grieve later. We have to get you to safety."

Mercury nodded quietly and began to follow her.

"...Kurabe, you disobeyed orders to save me, didn't you?"

"...yes, and?"

"...Thank you."

The puff gave a smile. "It's not a problem, Mercury. That's what friends are for."

"I'm sorry for making you deal with this, Kurabe."

"Save your breath."

The woman looked at her questioningly.

"We've got company."

True to her words, they were now surrounded by twenty more enemies.

"Kurabe, leave me and save yourself!"

"No, I refuse!"

Before Mercury could protest, the enemies charged towards them. With a simple motion, Kurabe froze most of them solid, but one of them managed to resist it and threw a dagger at Mercury's core.

"Mercury!" Kurabe shouted as she jumped in front of her, getting stabbed in her head. Before the woman could even say anything, the puff ripped the dagger out of her head and tossed it back, stabbing her opponent.

"Kurabe, are you ok!?"

"Of course... I am... AGH!" The puff then began to violently cough up blood.

"...a poison dagger, damn it..."

"...I'll be fine. Let's get back to the base."

The puff then fell down and struggled to get back up, only for Mercury to pick her up with a giant hand.

"Don't worry, Kurabe... I'll get you back even if it kills me...!"

"I can walk on my own, Mercury."

"You saved my life, now it's my turn."

She gave a smile. "Alright then..."

---------

By the time they arrived at the nearest medical station, Kurabe was in critical condition. For a while the doctors weren't sure if she would make it but by some miracle, they found an antidote and things started to look good for her. Meanwhile, Mercury started to make her way out of the base, feeling internally guilty for what happened.

"Where do you think you're going?" A recovering Kurabe asked.

"I'm going to head back home. You got hurt because of me, right? You nearly died. So, I was thinking..."

"Well, stop thinking." Kurabe bluntly said. "I didn't get hurt because of you. I chose to protect you. You have nothing to be sorry about."

"I know you chose to, but I still can't help but feel guilty about it..."

"Are you saying I should have just let my best friend die? Mercury, we're both alive so instead worrying about what could have happened, let's focus on the now."

The woman became silent, unsure what to say. "Well, I don't really know what to do now. With my squad dead, I don't really have anywhere to go."

"Well, Mercury, my old man gave me permission to form my own personal crew. Would you like to be my vice captain?"

"Do you really want to take me as your vice captain?"

"I wouldn't ask if I didn't want you to."

The woman blinked for a moment before continuing. "You do know Reedy will attempt to get me to join him, right?"

"Let him try." She then smiled. "Besides, he always tells you to do what makes you happy, right?"

"But-"

"Don't even bother asking if you deserve to be happy Mercury. The answer is yes."

The woman relented. "Well... if that's the case, then I'll join your crew."

"I'm glad to have you, sister." Kurabe said with a smile.

Mercury looked at her in confusion. "Sister?"

"Well, we're close like family, aren't we?"

"Um... yeah...you could say we are."

"Then we're sisters. Unless you don't want to be."

"Oh, no. I'm perfectly fine with that. Thank you so much, sis!" She smiled.

"There's no need to thank me, Mercury. Now, let's go home."

She nodded as she began to follow her.

"So, how am I going to tell Reedy that he has a new sister?"

"Ah... that's the thing, you don't." Kurabe said with a laugh.

She couldn't help but laugh along with her.

---------

A few months later, the war had to an end and true to her word, Kurabe made Mercury her undisputed second in command of her personal unit. Not only that, but this would be followed up by yet another announcement. While she somewhat expected herself to become one of the top commanders in the Organization, also known as the Big Four, it was this whole other statement that surprised her. It happened on what seemed to be a standard day. The general called everyone in the Organization to a large meeting.

"Attention, everyone. I have an important announcement to make." General Z said.

Everyone in the crowd looked directly at the General.

Mercury leaned over to her best friend. "Sis, do you know what this is about?"

"I don't. He never mentioned it to me."

"Then it must be a huge deal. Do you think he's retiring?"

"That... I'm not sure about."

Z looked around to make sure everyone was paying attention to him.

"My brave warriors, as many of you are aware, I am becoming quite old. I have no intention of retiring soon, but it's important that I choose my successor. Yes, one of you will be the next general after me."

Both Kurabe and Mercury started to hear worried chatter from the audience, many concerned about who would be the successor.

"Why do I feel like I already know who it is..." Kurabe thought.

"This individual has proven time and time again that they have the strength, charisma, determination and the heart needed for this position. It is with great pride that I name Kurabe as my successor!"

"Yes, there it is." She uttered under her breath.

There was a moment of silence, as if it needed time to sink in.

"Kurabe, please come up to the podium." Z finally said.

Letting out a slight sigh, the puff began to make her way up to the podium, stopping just before her mentor.

"Kurabe, do you accept this position? This will be your one chance to refuse it."

The puff had an unsure expression on her face. She knew it would probably be a lot of time before she would have to take over, but it would still be a massive burden on her regardless.

"I understand that I'm putting a lot on you, my daughter, but I have complete faith in you." Z whispered.

Kurabe nodded but was still unsure. That is until she heard a certain voice.

"You deserve the position, Kurabe! No one deserves it more than you!" Mercury yelled.

Slowly more and more soldiers vocally cheered her on. Honestly, the amount of support she received slowly began to overwhelm her to the point where she had to turn away for a moment to wipe a few tears from her eyes.

"Have you found your answer, Kurabe?" Her father asked. After taking a moment to recompose herself, the puff began to speak up once more.

"Father, I... I accept this position."

"Excellent. I remember when I first met you. So young and frail. Now look at you. You make me proud, Kurabe, both as a father and as a mentor."

She gave a small smile as she began to tear up once more. Though while everyone else was cheering for her, there was one man in part that was less than pleased at this development.

"Great General Z, may I ask why someone as reckless and disobedient was chosen?" He asked loud enough to be heard.

Z looked towards Reedy and slowly opened an eye, already knowing the reason why he was acting like this.

"For starters she's just as strong, if not even stronger than I am. A leader of the Organization must be strong enough to handle any opposition."

"I have no disagreements about her strength, but I fail to see any other leader-like qualities."

"If you would allow me to finish speaking you would." Z said, now with two eyes open.

Upon seeing this, Reedy froze, as if sensing the amount of danger in that action. "Y-yes, please finish."

The general nodded as he closed his eyes once more.

"Kurabe has gone above and beyond in this field of work. Her actions and charismatic personality have prevented the death of many of our soldiers multiple times. So many soldiers already go to her for guidance and trust her with their lives. She has proven that she is capable of putting others before herself without hesitation. I genuinely believe that without her, this war would have ended differently." Z explained.

As the crowd soaked that in, Kurabe herself became silent, as if somewhat embarrassed at all of this praise. As much as she would like to deny it, she knew the general would say otherwise. Reedy was silently fuming, knowing he realistically couldn't argue against any of that.

"True as that may be, she's also incredibly reckless, sir."

"And I'm not?"

Reedy blinked at that, not sure as how to respond.

"For that matter, Reedy. Wouldn't talking back to a superior officer be considered reckless?"

The man became completely silent, unable to argue with that.

"Her reckless behavior has saved more lives than it has harmed them. A leader needs to balance both logical and emotional thinking. Something Kurabe has that others lack."

"But-"

"One more word, Reedy, and I'll ask you to leave."

The man nodded but clearly he was internally seething. The general then turned to his student.

"Would you like to say a few words to everyone?"

Kurabe nodded and looked over the whole crowd. Normally she wasn't the type of person to be overwhelmed by crowds, but she couldn't help but feel somewhat nervous. Then she felt Z place a hand on her back, and knowing what that meant, she cleared her throat.

"Thank you everyone for the support you've all given me. I promise that I'll focus all of my energy into making sure that our Organization continues to thrive! I may not always be the best, but that won't stop me from trying. Together we'll continue to grow and protect the universe we love!"

Upon ending the speech, she was answered with cheers and thunderous applause.

---------

Many years had passed since that day. Kurabe had become the captain of her own ship the GranEssex, traveling the universe and completing any tasks given to her. Today she woke up and got ready for the day like she usually did.

"Hopefully whatever mission they have for me is more interesting than the last couple." She mumbled as she finished adjusting her veil.

Just then, her vice captain, Mercury rushed into the room.

"Captain, we got an urgent mission! Do you remember that prominent criminal gang from last month?"

"So, we finally found the base of operations. Where is it?"

Mercury looked nervous. "It's on planet Opasnost."

Kurabe understood her second in command's hesitation.

"The death trap planet. No wonder it took them so long to find it."

"Would you like me to come with you, captain?" The woman asked.

Kurabe shook her head.

"No, I'd rather have as many capable fighters as possible here at the ship. That planet is filled with dangerous monsters and disasters. I need my vice captain to take command if something happens when I'm gone."

She received a nod in response.

"Ok. Just please come back safely, ok?"

Kurabe smirked. "Have you forgotten who I am?"

"No, I haven't. Just don't destroy your body too much."

"Oh, yee of little faith. Trust me, Mercury, I'll be fine. If this place is anything like Nightfall, I can handle it."

The woman gave a giggle. "Alright then. Please be careful regardless."

"Will do, Mercury." She then put her visor on her head and lowered it over her eyes. "Now, Chart a course to that death trap!"

"Aye, aye, captain!"

The GranEssex began to move and flew through space at top speed. Kurabe sat down in the captain's chair and closed her eyes, thinking about all possible scenarios she could come across on that mission.

"I don't doubt that I'll come back alive, but... I at least hope that something different happens this time..."

---------

When she next opened her eyes, she noticed she was no longer in the captain's chair. Instead, she was in her bed. Immediately, she got up and looked around, until her gaze fell on Meta and Mercury, who were sleeping next to her.

"How strange, I haven't thought about all of that in years. Still, it was a pleasant dream." She uttered, giving a smile as she stroked her student's head.

"Not once have I ever regretted taking that mission. It was one of the best decisions I have ever made." She whispered. The sleeping Meta smiled, as if reacting to what she said.

Seeing, this she gave a slight sigh.

"I guess I could lay here with you a bit longer, Meta."

"You sure you're not just using that as an excuse to stay in bed?" A semi awake Mercury mumbled.

Kurabe gave a pout. "Now when do I ever make excuses to sleep longer?"

"Whenever Meta comes into your room to sleep."

"That's different. It's my duty as his mentor to look after him whenever he seeks assistance."

"...it's also because you want to cuddle with him, isn't it?"

"I can do that whenever I want, Mercury. What about you, huh? You have no reason to stay in here, as much as I love your company."

"Oh, that's just because I was worried about Meta."

"I know that's why you slept here. That doesn't answer why you're still here now that you're awake."

"Because I just woke up a few minutes ago. And I don't want to wake him up, if you completely forgot the wall on the other side of me."

"You can shapeshift into a snake."

"Too much effort."

"Fine, then you can't complain about me staying in bed."

The woman gave a slight giggle. "Alright, you win. Let's just stay here at least until Meta wakes up."

Kurabe nodded. What both women were unaware of was that Meta was already awake but didn't feel like moving. Admittedly, this was the most comfortable he felt in a while.

"Did you have any dreams Mercury?" Kurabe asked.

"Of course I did. They were quite nice dreams, too!"

"What were they about?" She asked curiously.

"Well, one was you and Reedy actually getting along for once."

Kurabe gave a slight chuckle. "Really? And how was that?"

"It was pleasant. I don't remember every detail, but I recall there not being a single argument between you two."

"That does indeed sound quite enjoyable. Especially if it involves that moron learning a thing or two about respect."

"He respects you Kurabe. Though he shows it in different ways than most people do."

The puff scoffed at that and pouted, as if being doubtful. "Any other dreams?"

"...nothing of note."

"Well, that's fine, I suppose."

"What about your dream, Kurabe?"

"Me? I just dreamed about my past. It was quite wonderful."

Mercury looked at her with intrigue. "So, you relived parts of your life. Why are you so happy then? Considering how much you don't like talking about your youth."

The puff gave a chuckle in reply. "Well... it's because everything that happened in my youth lead to the life I have today."

Mercury smiled at that. "Good point. Well, since you just came back from a walk during memory lane, let me be the first to say... welcome home, Kurabe."

The puff smiled back. "It's good to be home, Mercury."

[gothethite]

Made a spooky necklace last night so thought I'd make a tutorial of it, it took about 20 minutes:

1: To make this I used 1 spider pendant, 2 jump rings, 2 split rings, 1 lobster clasp, scissors, needle and black thread, and spider trim I got last halloween.

2: First, cut the ribbon to about the right length. You want it to go around your neck with maybe a 1.5cm gap for the clasp and attachments.

3: get one of the split rings. The ribbon I'm using is uhhh not great quality to say the least (the eternal problem of trying to make a thing that will last years from halloween items designed to be used once) so instead of looping it through the gaps in the ribbon I'm sewing it in place in the thickest bit of the material I can find. To do this, I'm just looping circles of thread between the centre of the spider and the split ring.

4: Continue this about 20 times until it's steadily held in place then tie the thread off.

5: Attach the lobster clasp/whatever other clasp you're using to the second split ring, then do step 3/4 again to attach the second split ring to the other side of the ribbon. Now, the overall structure is complete.

6: Add the pendant: I did this quite differently to how I usually do this (more discussion at the end) as the halloween spiders ribbon is so fragile and loves to tear apart. So I attached 2 split rings to the pendant, then used the same method as step 3/4 to sew the ends of the split rings onto the two spiders on each side of the pendant to distribute the weight. And that's it!

Here are 2 other necklaces I made with basically the same method. The other two are just hung on with split rings because 1: the ribbons are much sturdier, so I wasn't as worried about wear from movement 2: split rings are probably better for this because they'll scratch the ribbon less at the opening (currently having to redo an old project because I made some bad jump ring and ribbon decisions) and are less likely to fall off, but I had spent the afternoon hitting my thumb with a hammer so really could not be bothered opening split rings lol. Also, the spider with the skull on the thin ribbon is held closed with a safety pin because I was out of lobster clasps when I made it, so that's also an option. Then the last picture is me today with the necklace

[inkribbon796]

Egotober 2022 Day 9: Divorce Papers

Summary: Silver and some heroes are trying to contain the Actor before he causes problems, but Dark comes in to formally request that divorce that Celine was trying to get.

Prompt: Shatter

Characters: Actor Mark, Dark, Silver, Marvin, Bob

Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31

They rarely saw him. He mostly bothered Dark and was rather unconcerned with normal citizens of the city unless he was using them for some act.

But the Actor was a menace. It was a reminder that despite their methods the Actor and Wilford were connected. The heroes weren’t exactly sure how because Dark wasn’t telling them, Actor refused to acknowledge Wilford’s existence with anything other than disgust or hatred, and Wilford didn’t even seem to know who they were talking about.

Today was a rough day, when the Actor’s thoughts of grandeur turned to the city. It had been a bit of a hard-fought fight.

Parts of buildings had been destroyed in the fight. There was broken and shattered glass everywhere from where buildings had been blown out.

Right now Marvin and Bob had the Actor cornered and trapped with shields and magic to keep him from escaping again and causing problems. The Actor had a rather insidious and hypnotic effect on people and the heroes didn’t want to give him the chance to start killing random people.

“Gatling, Marv, truck’s almost here,” Silver flew in. He was staying above in the sky and was braced to fly in and force the Actor back down.

“Fucking finally!” Gatling was staring the Actor down, trying to contain him while being tired and worn down from the fight. He could feel the Actor’s aura batting and fighting against his shields.

“Come on, buddy, we got a nice anti-magic cell for people like you,” Marvin told him, he was battered and cut off from his fight with the Actor.

“There’s no one like me,” the Actor boasted and he stared at Gatling a bit more intently before the brunt of his aura launched out and Bob’s barrier faltered.  The hero barely had enough time to shield himself protectively before he was flung back. Parts of his barrier shattering and breaking.

Silver flew in as Marvin did his best to be the sole thing keeping the Actor’s magic from getting out of hand.

“Stay down!” Marvin shouted as Actor tried to get himself out of a position where he was free to bolt and run away from them.

A couple things happened in a matter of seconds.

Actor threw his smoky aura towards Marvin, distracting him. Then as Silver flew in he slammed his head against Silver, causing them both pain.

Then, holding his head, Actor turned to run. His first thought was to turn into smoke and get away that way.

But when he turned around, a smile still on his face, and Dark came out of a portal in her red soul form and slammed an axe directly into the Actor’s chest.

“Fuck!” Marc shouted as Dark grabbed him by the neck.

“You’re going to get out of that body,” Dark said.

“Nah, I’m using it better than he ever did,” Marc said.

“You asshole, you’re giving it to me even if I have to keep killing you,” Dark said.

“If I let go of it, it’ll be unusable,” Marc said, looking smug despite having an axe buried in his chest.

“I don’t care, I just don’t want you to have it,” Dark said, both of her souls screaming for vengeance and death.

“Even if I die again, you’re not getting it,” Marc said. “Just run off back to that cheating whore of a boytoy you’ve got and that hired gun you’re fucking.”

“Don’t you dare talk about them like that, this is why I want that fucking divorce,” Dark told him.

“Nah,” Marc coughed blood in her face which made her furious and she slammed the axe into his chest again. “You’d enjoy that too much.”

“I’ll have your name written in blood then,” Dark said.

“Fuck you,” Actor told her.

“Fuck you,” Dark responded. And when she pulled her axe out again she kicked the Actor through a portal. The way that he went through the portal he was breaking up into smoke but parts of him almost broke like a mirror.

“That was for Chase,” Dark said as she closed up the portal. Then she looked back at the heroes, axe still in her hand. “Thank you for your assistance.”

“No, uh, problem, excuse me, are you married to him?” Silver said, pointing at where the portal had been.

“Over a hundred years ago,” Dark said. “There’s a loophole in Egoton law and it makes it so that death doesn’t mean divorce if you’re a demon. I think he’s the one that got it passed.”

“Yikes,” Silver said.

“I’ll just forge his handwriting,” Dark decided.

“That’s illegal,” Mark said, in the absence of anything else to say.

“So is vigilantism, but here we are boys,” she said.

“Where’s Illinois been, haven’t seen him in a while,” Bob said. “He out of town again?”

“Illinois is preoccupied with other business,” Dark said.

“If it’s date night you can just tell us,” Bob said. “Combust-Ion isn’t in right now either.”

“Gatling, if it was their date night, I would have said so,” Dark told him. “I’m not some forty year old preacher. Illinois is busy and it’s none of your concern what he’s doing.”

Before Bob or the others could ask another question, Dark opened another portal and stepped through it.

She left the three heroes to stare after her.

“Just when I thought that family couldn’t get any weirder,” Marvin said.

“Yeah, I’ll start with cleaning up, you two need to go to the hospital?” Silver said, starting to float up.

“I’m fine,” Marvin said.

“I’ll start clean up with you boys, I’ve gotten my second wind,” Bob said.

“Neat,” Silver said and flew off as Marvin and Bob followed him to where the bulk of the damage had been done in town.

They didn’t see the Actor a while afterwards for a while.

[monsterkissed]

i know you have shared snippets of fics and ideas with me and i am just sat here like wait wait wait which one is bad end and which one is worse end. i am gently asking for a little bit of "bad end" to orient myself. also, unrelated: lotd2 heehheehehooo (<-not a request, just excitement)

responding in reverse order, i have definitely already shared this part of lotd2 before but it's one of my fave openings to anything i have ever written so We Shall Read It Again:

Bruno Bucciarati was dead, so Giorno did not get to see him as often as he’d like. 

Little flashes, sometimes. Little moments. A word or two. A look. A sigh. A smile. Once or twice a month, if he is very lucky. He likes the smiles best, but they are by far the rarest, because Vinegar Doppio hates Giorno more than Giorno has ever hated anything in his entire life, and Vinegar Doppio is the one living in Bucciarati’s animated corpse.

it is to my eternal shame and frustration that "bad end" and "worse end" have absolutely nothing to do with each other. i think "worse end" actually predates "bad end" because there is something wrong with me as a person.

let's unearth a bad end under this cut and see what we find...

The creak of a footstep woke Doppio out of his dreams with a start. He tried to get up, before remembering that of course he couldn’t and going still again. He could barely even tell that his eyes were open in the darkness, blinking only changing the texture of the shadows, but he could hear well enough to count the footsteps. If the one that had woken him had been the first, there would be ten more. He counted them out, one after the other, his heart beginning to beat harder when the sound of them softened as they crossed onto the carpet. 

Doppio held himself very still, breathing as quietly as he could. Making any sound would make the footsteps stall, and every second already felt like an eternity as it was. He was usually safe, though, all bound up in cuffs and blankets. 

Apparently he would sometimes jerk or twitch in his sleep. It didn’t surprise him; he still dreamed of knives and hands and growths sometimes, especially when he had dozed off alone. Better that he be kept safe. 

The footsteps stopped and Doppio held his breath, not letting it out until he felt and heard the thump of weight settling on the floor. The soft hush sound of the carpet being pulled back. That let the light in between the boards and Doppio flinched away from the brightness of it, even as the sight of the shadow blocking out parts of it made his breath try to pick up again.

The click and scratch of screws being removed. Careful, slow, methodical. It must be a good day. Doppio allowed himself to move, still blinking back the light but trying to turn towards it regardless, and then with a heave and a thud it all washed over him at once, blinding. 

For a second or two that was all. Doppio’s eyes struggling to adjust and the shadow looming over him, letting out a soft sigh.

“Oh, Doppio.”

The shadow scooped him up with only the slightest effort, pulling him out of the dark, warm space under the floor to huddle on the carpet as his hands were unbound and his limbs freed. As soon as they were loose he reached out and crushed himself close, ungainly, awkward angles, clinging there and being clung to in turn. When they were so close that he could feel their breath synchronising he let his hands drop, running down the arms loosely wrapped around him until he found the hands at his waist. 

Sometimes that was as far as it would go, at least for a while. The hands would be stiff, tight, shaking, and Doppio would sit where he was and patiently stroke the tension out of them, keep drawing rough and fractured breathing back to his own steady pace and try not to listen too hard to the words being mumbled into the crook of his neck.

But today was a good day, so after only a few minutes the hands went calm and still in his own and he allowed himself to look up and see the Boss smiling down at him. 

“You look tired, Doppio. Did I wake you?” When he shook his head he smiled again, very gentle, indulging the lie. He glanced around the room, eyes lingering on the shuttered windows. “We… have a little time, I think. There is some work to do, but… I think I would like to start with you.” He ran a thumb over Doppio’s lips, so gently that he could barely feel it catching on his stitches, and then kissed him so firmly that they hurt a little when he pulled away gasping. 

And the Boss kept smiling at him, as beautiful and awful as the first time.

[pbandjesse]

I was a little nervous about today. Thinking I hadn't gotten enough rest. But I actually had an excellent day.

I woke up a lot last night though. And so getting out of bed was rough. James had gotten back in bed and it was really nice to wake up with them. It always is.

James put together a little lunch for me. And I got dressed. I felt very good but my hair was driving me crazy. My ends felt very split and bad. So I would wash and cut my hair when I got home tonight. Which feels real nice. I feel very cute. Though I did cut my hair a little shorter then planned but that is alright. I think I look cute.

When I left today the car had ice and frost all over it. So I had to scrap that off and accidently broke the lid of our storage box in the trunk where we keep the scrapper. Annoying but not a big deal.

I got to work and it was a good day. We had a new person start, Lauren, who also works at the nursery I worked at last spring. And she is very nice. She would follow tours all day, including mine as a last one.

I had a cannery and an assembly line and then the tour. They group I had was excellent. There were a few kids who were struggling with paying attention and kept asking to move on. But overall everyone was awesome and a lot of fun!

They were a lot of fun in the cannery and took it really seriously. Michael was leading D with Jessica and there were some timing issues. With me finishing quick and him not calling to end the shift. But it's all good. I'm getting better all the time with not stressing about making the kids wait. Overall it's fine when they have to wait for a minute or so.

And it was a good program. My throat hurts a little bit but I would get a little break after that program so it was all good.

During their lunch I ate the food James packed for me and I worked on my knit glove project. I was a little frustrated by a coworker just. Talking at me. When I was clearly doing something else. But whatever. I texted with Jess. I was trying to be in a good mood.

I was really excited that O'Malley was back though!! We chatted for a while and they said we should get coffee soon and catch up. They are so great and I'm really excited to hang out with them again and just have them back. The more educators the better.

I also got an email from Auni that my teddy bear workshop is still going on this weekend!! So that was really exciting for me. I will have to make sure everything is ready and packed on Wednesday since I have the morning off. But I'm thrilled.

My after lunch programs went great. The assembly line was good though it's always a little rough moving kids around to fill in jobs and then everyone is asking for a second job when I try to get them to understand that there's a method and it's not automatic. I will let you know I promise!! But it's fine. We got through it and the teacher was excellent and really helped me out with getting them all a chance to sit in the car before we went on tour.

And it was a pretty fun tour. I was also trying to make sure the parents enjoyed it too and I am pretty sure they did because the one Mom shook my hand after. Which was so sweet.

I was glad to be done though. My throat hurt. Talking talking talking.

But it was fun. And then I took Lauren to the office in the cannery to show her how we clean oysters and glue them back together. And with me and her and Jordan and Kristen and eventually Michael we got almost all of the oysters clean! Amazing. And I got more then half glued back together.

Really though we were just having fun gossiping. Talking about when me and Jordan and James worked at ships. How James still makes me Taney dinner (pizza and green beans) and the drama that used to happen. Memory lane for sure.

And it was just fun talking to my friends. And new friends. It made me feel really happy.

And then James was there!! They took the light rail down to the harbor and went to ace hardware to get new keys made so we would have spares. And they got us a new button extension cord. Which is great because ours has been so frustrating not working properly.

After I finished cleaning things up me and James heading out. But we didn't leave the museum grounds.

Instead we changed into our holiday clothes and set up a tripod to take our Christmas picture. And we got it in like. Two shots. And when we got home we ordered Christmas cards. I'm so excited!!

We went to the new Giant to get groceries. And it was nice. I would like to stroll it by myself some time. But we were on a mission because James was losing steam and we had to get our stuff and get them home.

We got some snacks and things. They actually had coconut milk. And then we paid and got out of there.

We got home and got everything inside. There was a cat in the hallway! They were beautiful. A Siamese cat and they just laid on the floor and made us walk around them. Silly.

We were both a little wrecked when we got back here. James worse then me but my blood sugar dropped and I got really dizzy and my hands started shaking really bad. I ate a few handfuls of chips but James would make me a quesadilla and that fixed me. Waiting was hard though. And then James was hurting real bad so they came and sat on the couch with me and had Mac and cheese.

And it was a nice night. I did some tank cleaning. James played video games. I have myself a hair cut. And did a light dye/gloss on my hair. And took a long shower. I am feeling good.

I did some sewing for my quilt project. And dried my hair. And now me and James are chilling in bed.

I am probably going to go and paint my nails. And then come to bed. Tomorrow me and James are going to get blood drawn before I go to work. It's another busy day but that is alright. I am looking forward to a good time. I hope it is.

I hope you all have a good night tonight. Take care of yourselves! Sleep good!!!