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rosakuma · 8 hours

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The Defense of one suspect and reasoning why the other one is sus(big spoilers for ep14 of DRDT)

Okay so with the huge reveal in the latest episode, we had a big revelation that we are down to two people who could be the killers. This post shall be a heavy discussion of that, so if you haven’t check out the latest episode, please go watch it before continuing to read(thank you!) Also warning: This is very long so prepare yourself to read for awhile if you can or want to.

Those being Eden or Ace. These two are picked as the murders due to both being connected to Nico’s murder attempt on Ace's account of being there. As for why, it’s because only those two could see the murder scene and gain access to the most important part of the crime scene, the tape. I’ve seen both parties talk about why their respective theories on which one did it before this episode. And while I can’t guarantee who I believe is innocent is not the culprit or vice versa, I wanted to share why I don’t believe Ace is the killer. Which would leave Eden as the culprit(unless we get another twist that there was someone following her). I’m going to go point by point with my reasoning. It probably won’t be perfect, but hey. If no one going to try to defend Ace, then I will(poor dude needs it, like seriously it’s so sad he has no one in his corner).

Reason 1: The crime scene + tape

As Teruko concluded, the culprit is connected to Nico’s murder attempt and tries to reuse that method to kill Arei. We know for sure Teruko is not the killer obviously from seeing her POV+ no motive to do so. When we get to the murder scene, we see that before Ace gets up, Teruko and Eden have enough time to look around at what happened. While Eden tells Teruko she needs a minute to process this, for all we know Eden could’ve been scanning the room still or maybe even listening to Teruko’s explanation.

Right as Ace gets up, he’s in pain and yelling while knocking Eden to the ground. He then grabs onto his neck from it stinging in pain.

After Teruko questioned him on what happened, he explained Nico tried to kill him(which he would know it was Nico before being knocked out again since Nico verified that he woke up struggling from the fan before going unconscious again when he hit the floor). To which to add to this, Ace at this moment must’ve been trying to get the wire off of his neck while getting a glance at Nico before he caused the fan to fall down and knock him back unconscious.

He then bolts out of the room to go find Nico to kill them. Afterwards, Teruko and Eden are greeted by MonoTv who has to clean up the scene and then kicks them out. They both go after Ace, who after talking with Teruko, Eden, and Levi, goes into his room for the night.

Now this could arguably be either him or Eden who grabbed the tape. But let’s think about what happens here. Ace wakes up in pain after being unconscious, immediately tries putting pressure on the source of his pain, and then runs out of the room trying to find Nico which is on his mind. Ace didn’t have enough time to absorb what was happening to process what Nico did to him along with grabbing the tape. But Eden however? She had a few minutes to look around the scene and was even knocked down onto the floor. And what was on the floor before that happened? The tape. (Also ignore the pony reacting to the tape being missing, I just wanted to draw my sona reacting to it for fun)

Another important detail to this is that MonoTv kicked Teruko and Eden out of the gym to clean it up.

To which it stated “I kept the gym closed overnight to make sure everything was super dry. Don’t want you slipping and falling into my chemical cleaning brews!” Meaning no one would’ve been able to go back and grab the tape or see the crime scene before it was cleaned up. So at that moment if our potential killers wanted to get that tape for murder, it would have to be right at the moment Teruko and Eden entered and caught Nico. Ace only had one thing on his mind, which was finding Nico. So he would not have picked up the tape. Plus we have to keep in mind that Ace acts on his emotions rather than logic(basically he ain’t that smart). Bro was willing to kill Nico(even though the complications of what would happen if he did it) without stopping for a moment to realize what happened nor to let himself calm down. I doubt he thought of a complex idea to copy Nico’s murder on the spot like that. While Eden on the other hand, our little clockmaker would probably be able to understand the mechanism of this murder in a matter of minutes since she’s used to having to build and work with parts running in motion.

Reason 2: Eden’s behavior, the note, and the timing of Alibi

Eden’s behavior across this case has been strange to me on rewatch. When going to the moment when they found Arei dead. Whit tries to cheer up Eden who is sad and crying over Arei dying. Immediately afterward switching up in saying she’s fine and just needs to deal with it. Even being peppy of saying “I’m super ready to investigate! I’ll do everything I can to help find Arei’s killer”.

She then tries to investigate with Teruko before she rejects her out of worry she could be the killer. Eden still tries to follow Teruko after this and overhears her talking to Charles, Whit, and Rose about the note. We know the note does have Eden’s name and was written to Arei to come meet her at the playground.

Now the logic was brought up of why would Eden try to help resemble the note when that would incriminate her to be the killer. Well, remember, pieces of the note were missing, with the key part being the time on whether it’s “PM” or “AM”. This evidence must’ve been important for Eden to get to prevent anyone from knowing when the murder takes place. Since Arei’s murder was confirmed to have occurred at 7:30 am due to her swinging. We know Eden doesn’t have an alibi for the morning. Only at night around that time she does.

Even the nighttime alibi I argue could’ve not prevented her from getting the fish due to the time frame of when her alibi is and the relaxation room. Eden claims around 7:30 pm that she was cleaning up dinner with Hu, right around when people thought it was the original murder time. Nico claimed after dinner, they went to feed the fish and then left afterward without seeing anyone. We know the relaxation room closes at 10 pm.

To which I purposed that Eden would’ve had enough time to get the water before it closed and after Nico left. Nico didn’t keep track of what time they fed the fish right? So for all we know they could’ve finished up dinner early or around 7:30 pm, left, and fed the fish. I doubt it took Eden and Hu that long to clean up dinner, so she could’ve slipped and gone to the relaxation room before 10 pm to receive the fish. Now yes you can still apply this to Ace of doing this still too, but I just wanted to point out that Eden could’ve still done it within the time frame. Eden if she was the culprit, she would wanted the note to be vague originally to make them think it was around 7:30pm as around the time of her alibi with Hu so no one would think of any suspicious on her possibly preparing for Arei’s murder for in the morning. Which would by default make someone like Ace who has no alibis at nighttime and the morning seem more suspicious than her who has one at least during nighttime. Thus why she came over to help repair the note as while it would make her seem suspicious of restoring it, she could argue with someone trying to frame her and that “Why would I help repair something that would incriminate me!?”

Reason 3: Evidence that doesn’t add up with Ace.

The evidence that confuses me with Ace being the killer is the starch ball and the turpentine. The starch ball most fans have concluded is turpentine, which was used for the clothes to stick them together. The thing is we don’t know the exact use this has in the murder case. But that isn’t important for this yet, what is important is where it came from. Charles found the ball in the dress-up room formed by Teruko and Hu’s old clothes.

The clothes were left in the dressing room. Meaning the murderer must’ve known about this outfit change occurring in there. We see suspiciously later that before Nico’s murder attempt, Eden was already there when Teruko went to that room. Eden claims she heard about the outfit change from Hu and went there to receive the new clothes for her and Teruko.

Eden at this time could’ve easily gotten hold of Teruko and Hu’s old clothes to use. Not to mention, if we assume that Eden was going to plan to kill Arei(just maybe didn’t have a set method yet), their conversation between them of Arei promising to be Eden’s friend happened before she came here.

As for Ace, when at any point was he in the dressing room? He wasn’t there when Teruko, Hu, and Whit had outfit changes or after it. So I’m confused about where Ace could’ve known about the clothes and got them to form the ball. And the ball has to be important as otherwise why is it there? It needs to be used for some part of the murder we haven’t figured out(my guess is it was used to knock out Arei) as I doubt the Dev would’ve just added a useless piece of evidence(even in DR there wasn’t evidence that was useless or not used). The only thing I’m confused about is how Eden got the turpentine, but idk how Ace would’ve either.

Reason 4: Fricken David

Okay I know this is David we’re talking about here and we know he’s a lying scumbag who tried manipulating everyone into committing mass suicide to follow in what he thinks Xander wanted to do to end the killing game. But I don’t think he’s lying about seeing Arei first. As much David trying to get everyone killed here(which causes more doubt of agreeing with J on he could be lying AND putting the idea into Teruko’s head that “Oh you want to distrust others, it’s the only thing you can do” which would motivate her into trusting Eden), I think he’s serious about Arei. If David truly didn’t care about Arei, then why were we shown that flashback that continued off of the conversation Arei and David had that Ace overheard?

David thought back on that moment when Arei confided in him that she was relieved they were the same and that maybe they could be friends while learning to be less shitty together. He even lied to Eden that nothing else happened because he didn’t want to share that moment or possibly give despair to Eden about what happened between them.

Even before when he had his fake persona on, the way he reacted about Arei dying and in the trial of his feelings towards the killer…I feel like it’s one of the rare times he’s being genuine about his feelings here. Arei was someone who understood him and could’ve helped him as a friend…to only lose her the next day. Of course, he’d be pissed and upset. I can even believe he did see her first because in disbelief or upset that he lost the only person who truly knew and understood him. Following I wrote out the dialogue word for word of the scene where David describes how Arei could’ve fallen for the note, him showing disgust for the killer, and even Eden showing regret in thinking this(which before we thought was just about the note, but now…she might’ve meant that as “I killed Arei and all she wanted to do was change…but I didn’t give her that chance….it is my fault”).

David: What kind of person would fall for such an obvious trap? You’d have to be shortsighted, naive, foolish, senseless, downright idiotic.. Unless, of course, you were Arei

David: That girl wanted desperately to prove herself as a “friend” to Eden. And yet she completely lacked any experience with what “friends” were actually like.

David: Of course it never occurred to her that handling out suspicious notes was something that normal people did. What could she know about “friendship” after all? Someone like her, who had not once experienced kindness in entire her life up until now?

David: Even if she had her misgivings about something so suspicious, she must have pushed it aside due to her unwavering faith in her blossoming friendship. A friendship that she didn’t understand in the slightest.

David: It’s…it’s so…Ahaha. It’s just so foolish. For someone to take advantage of Arei like that….

David: It’s absolutely unforgivable. All she wanted was to change. What a reprehensible person this killer is. I look forward to seeing their painful execution.

Eden: …So then…It really is my fault…isn’t it? She died because she believed in me

With David’s expression throughout this entire scene even if this was before he revealed his true colors. It shows signs of his true self and how much he really loathes the person who killed Arei. He knows personally that she wanted to change and that she understood him. There’s no way by now he’s making it up that he didn’t see her body with knowing how much emotion he has in his facial expression and dialogue in this scene. It also really doesn’t help Eden’s case of seeming so regretful after this.

Reason 5: The theme of the chapter overall

Okay, so I think ultimately to me at least, why it doesn’t seem like Ace would fit as the culprit of this chapter is due to its theme. The theme is “There are no good or bad people” and “Everyone is not always what they seem”. We see throughout this chapter that every character we thought was a “good person” is slowly showing their flaws and even turning out to have some darkness in them.

We thought Levi was just an awkward guy who wanted to be helpful to others around him, turns out he killed 4 people(one is his dad) and barely remembers it because no one he cares about as the concept of caring for others is foreign to him and he just tries to copies others to try to be good. Nico seems like a shy person who struggles to defend themself from bullies like Ace. Nico then literally tries to murder Ace and almost does, while admitting(with regret) that they did try to kill Ace because Ace reminded them of their traumatic past with their peers, teachers, and father. David is the biggest example of someone we thought cared about giving inspirational speeches to others to turn out to be a manipulative jerk who might be suffering from depression(if he was telling the truth which I think he was to some extent). Even others had their moments too with Arturo being revealed to have guilt over his sister dying because he left and threatening Eden to keep it secret, Veronika only doing her talent to prevent herself from self-harming her, and even Hu showing her flaws of trying to be useful and letting her ego get the best of her in defending the wrong people.

So looking at both of our two culprits, Eden fits to be the main culprit. Before all of the reveals and Arei’s revelation about good and bad, I felt like the characters were categorized into two groups. The “Saints/Good people” and “The jerks/irredeemable ones”. Like what Arei said, she thought people like Eden and David were the ideal good people to look up to or to be, while someone like her who had a rough start and ended up as a jerk cannot ever be good. To assume that means not seeing any of the other cast people as people generally can either be good or bad or even neither(morally grey).

We see the flaws of who we thought was the ideal good or potentially good person of David, Hu, Nico, or Levi while seeing there’s more than what meets the eye to the jerk group of Arturo, Ace, and Arei(the triple A battery squad lol). Eden is the only person left in the cast we haven’t seen(not counting her being responsible for Xander’s eye as only us the audience seen that) whose main flaws or her status as a good person is broken. I’m not saying Eden has to be the culprit to reveal she was secretly evil all this time! But she has to be the culprit because she has yet to be shown as human as Arei is. Ace started as a jerk and while still is, we get hints and see how his situation is a tragic one. Like Arei, he probably had a bad start in life or before this killing game that affected him. His worst enemies are himself and the others, he has no one to defend his side for who he is to them. Despite the fact, that he’s a victim of an almost murder attempt on his life and even a victim of an eating disorder that is eating away from his body and mind. Ace unlike Eden or Nico doesn’t have someone willing to defend him or speak up for him when in trouble. The one person he did think he had was Levi, but that was just a projection.

Eden on the other hand I feel like what’s not talked about her is her main flaw of being “weak” and relying on others.

Examples:

▪️Ep 9 when Eden says “Teruko! Back me up!” “You’re smart and you always know what evidence to use during the class trial so find a way to show everyone they’re wrong about Arei!” “Please! I’m relying on you!”

▪️Ep 10 when Eden says “If I was strong enough…If I didn’t need Arei to help me…” and Arei saying “Just as I thought, you’re pathetic and weak, and you always need to rely on others to get by”

In a sense, this parallels Nico who attempted to murk Ace because others had to pick up their battle and Ace called them weak for not being able to stand up for themselves. Eden for all we know might’ve gone through the same thing when Arei yelled at her and it resulted in her planning Arei’s demise. Like Nico, she probably regrets it now. But unlike them, Eden isn’t admitting to this flaw of being the cause of this situation and is trying to rely on others like Teruko to defend her from being accused of Arei’s murder. Even down to doing the same hug that Min did to Teruko previous chapter.

Another point to add is that with the previous points showing a bit of Eden showing guilt. I can possible see her main motive of killing Arei is because of not believing her at the time. Even Arei notes this in ep10

Arei: That look you’re giving me…You don’t believe me, do you? Figures.

Arei: I’ve been so shitty and manipulative this whole time. It’s only fair that you think I’m only putting on another fake act to make people like me.

Ultimately to fit what Arei said even someone as sickeningly sweet as Eden had done something bad, which makes her human. Eden I feel has to be the culprit as what would Ace fit in this? It would just feel like Arei’s words meant nothing and Ace was the irredeemable jerk the whole time who “got what he deserved” despite not having anyone to reach out to him like David did for Arei.

Hooboy that was long. Like I say this may not be perfect in terms of defense of Ace and might not fully cement Eden as the culprit. For all we know, there could be a secret third option. Plus there still isn’t a full explanation for some parts like how both parties got the turpentine or Eden’s stalker(tbh tho I could just see her being paranoid it’s Arturo and Bro is stalking J so). But I just wanted to share my piece as I think part 2 of ch.2 did make me see Ace in a different light and Eden too, to where I wanted to at least give Ace a defense the best I could because he doesn’t have anyone on his side. Along with highlight parts of Eden’s character I feel needs adjust for why she could be the culprit. Anyway, might make more post stuff on analyzing Ace or other parts of the case. If you have any thoughts, share them! As long we’re all civil and just having fun with this tragically emotional case, I’m happy to hear others' thoughts on who dunnit. Thanks for reading!^^

#danganronpa despair time #drdt #drdt spoilers #eden tobisa #ace markey #arei nageishi #david chiem #Only tagging those four since they’re very important for this discussion #Man I tell you my emotions were HIGH last night and heart was beating after everything that happened #I really do hate that Eden and Ace are our last suspects of who dunnit #I will cry if either of them are the culprit regardless of who

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moody-alcoholic · 9 hours

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These Violent Delights

Chapter 6 - Passion Colors Everything

Summary: Poly 141 x fem!reader, a/b/o alternate universe 12.3k words. Shepherd is here to chew bubblegum and kick ass.... and he’s all out of bubblegum.

CW: MDNI +18 explicit content. a/b/o alternative universe, a/b/o dynamics, typical a/b/o universe tropes (heats, knotting, claiming, nesting), nightmares, angst, mentions of past abuse, nightmare of past abuse (descriptions of physical abuse), angst, sex, oral (F receiving), PiV sex, fingering, slight overstimulation.

AN: I was going to post this tomorrow. I couldn't wait I have no self control.

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Enjoy <3

It feels like all the air has been sucked out of your lungs. Your ears are ringing, and you're not listening to what John is saying as he talks to Kate. There’s no way you’re going back? No way John would let that happen right? You close your mouth looking around the room, you want to leave, run, get as far away as you can. You can hear Kyle and Johnny talking now and Kate turns around. You use the opportunity to run out of the building.

You don’t know where you’re going, and you don’t care. You want to get away from this place, from whoever wants to take you back to the Professor. Your lungs burn and you find yourself running to the lab. You want to see Dr. Piper, she’ll tell them, she’ll make sure they don’t take you. When you burst through the door panting, everyone looks at you as you rush over to her office. You don’t knock, you throw yourself in. She stands up from her desk, and as soon as you see her you fall to your knees sobbing into your hands.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” she says, coming around and bending down in front of you, trying to pull your hands off of your face. You’re just sobbing, you can’t go back, you can’t. She manages to get you to look at her.

“Breathe, look at me,” she says, her cold hands on your cheeks. You hear commotion in the lab, and it makes you panic. What if he’s here already? Hairs stand up on the back of your neck, and your hand flys up to protect it as you throw yourself in Dr. Piper's arms. You hear John’s voice behind you, Johnny’s too.

“What happened?” Dr. Piper asks as you continue to sob into her chest. She’s trying to project a calming scent over you but it’s not working. You hear John come in, closing the door behind him. You’re trapped, they’re going to take you away. You’re not listening to them. You don’t want to go back, you can’t go back. Dr. Piper pries you off of her chest and gripping your wrists. She’s shaking you to get you to listen.

“Look at me,” she orders, voice harsh. You’ve not heard her use that tone in years. You stop sobbing and look up at her. She lets out a sigh, loosening her grip on your wrists.

“No one is taking you away. No one is going to let you go back to the Professor.” Her eyes are burning into you, all you can do is nod. She looks up at John, you feel him bend down next to you placing his hand on your back. You let your hand fall off the back of your neck. He’s not going to hurt you.

“Why don’t you go take a nap? By the time you wake up it will be dinner time and you’ll feel a lot better.” You don’t know what to do, but you let them help you up to your feet. Dr. Piper's arms leave you as you lean onto John, wiping your eyes. He leads you out of the building as quickly as possible, his arm wrapped around your waist as you’re walking back to the barracks. You can feel people staring, probably the same people from the mess earlier. Let them stare. You won’t be around for much longer anyway.

“I’m sorry,” you say, shivering as the rain hits you.

“About what?” he asks, pulling you closer to him. You’re not sure. You don’t know why you apologized, it just felt like something you needed to do. “You have nothing to be sorry about.” His voice is low, level, and there’s an edge of something to it. He’s tense all of the sudden. You sniffle, dragging your feet as you make it to the barracks. It makes a pit form in your stomach knowing that the Professor knows where you are now and he’s sent someone to get you. You don’t want to go back to him. When you walk through the door the smell of alpha hits you. It’s anger. Simon’s back.

“Is it true? Shepherd is on his way?” Simon snaps as soon as he sees John. His scent is so strong in the air, it makes you dizzy. You can smell his anger, it's scary, thick in the air almost to the point of suffocating you. You stand behind John, gripping his shirt. Alpha anger is a scary thing, and Simon is usually so good at controlling his emotions. You look at him, he’s bigger than Johnny and Kyle, and he might even be bigger than John. You look in his eyes dark and sharp, trained on John as he talks. His body language has changed. You didn’t think he would care if you were here or not. Maybe he would advocate to send you back to the Professor, one less complication out of his life.

“He should be here tomorrow,” John says. He’s calm unlike Simon. You look up at him, tears still running down your face. His eyes meet you for a second before he looks back at John.

“What does he want?” Simon asks.

“The omega,” John says. You swallow hard as Simon’s eyes land on you again, goosebumps run up your neck.

“How did he find out?” He turns to Kate.

“I’m not sure. I saw the order and rushed over here,” she explains.

“There’s plenty of ways he could have found out. We’re not exactly hiding,” John says.

“Maybe we should be,” Simon snaps back. John sighs, turning and pulling you to his side. He walks you past Simon and Kate to the hallway. Johnny and Kyle are standing in the corner of the room. They look at you sympathetically as John walks you down to your room.

“Get some rest. Johnny or Kyle will come and get you for dinner.” You open the door then turn to look up at him. You want to be around him, near him. He makes you feel safe. His thumb comes up to stroke your cheek, you can tell he’s thinking about something.

“You’re a good omega. I’m going to make sure nothing happens, no one is going to take you away.” He bends down kissing the top of your head. You nod at him, smiling. He smiles back then heads back down the hall. You don’t want to sleep, you don’t want to be alone. You go over to your nest, crawling between the pillows and blankets. If you’re going to get any rest, it’s going to be in your nest. You can hear the rain outside, the wind blowing past the building almost like it’s whistling. You can hear low voices in the common room. You trust John, you trust him. You close your eyes and try to let yourself relax as you listen to the rain.

You dream. You don’t want to, you wish you could have a restful nap, but you’re back in the bunker. The door to your room is thrown open. You see the Professor standing there in the doorway. He’s taller than you remember as he steps in. He looks tired, his hair a mess, his white doctor’s coat covered in blood.

“Had to kill another beta because you can’t keep your mouth shut!” he snaps. You flinch, covering your face with your hands. He takes another step towards you. You can smell the blood in the air. It makes you feel sick.

“You are a bad omega, no alpha is ever going to want you!” His voice is low, his anger filling the room. His hand comes down to grip your hair. You yelp in pain as he pulls you up off the floor throwing you on the bed. You bang your head against the wall sobbing silently as your head throbs.

“The next beta I kill will be that stupid doctor you like. She’s been nothing but trouble,” he says walking round the room behind you. You squeeze your eyes closed.

“Dr. Piper,” you whisper. His hands are on you pulling you off the bed. Your body hits the cold floor.

“Got something to say?” he snaps. You shake your head wrapping your arms around your chest, you just want to be left alone. He reaches down gripping your arm pulling it out from under you and stepping on your wrist with his boot.

“No, please!” you beg. You cry as his boot presses down harder.

“You are an omega, you’re nothing!” he shouts down at you.

“I know, I’m sorry!” you sob, hoping he won’t push down the little bit of pressure he would need to snap your wrist. Punishment for disobeying him, being a bad omega.

“Say it!”

“I’m a bad omega, I deserve this,” you cry. You know it’s not enough, it’s never enough. You can see the anger in his eyes, his face contorted into something horrible, gritted teeth, red face.

“One day you’ll learn,” he says, lifting his boot and slamming his heel back down on your wrist. The pain travels all the way up your arm. You cry out but he keeps his boot pressed down. You scream and writhe until eventually he relents. Black spots appear in your vision as he leaves the room hitting the light and leaving you in the dark. The heavy door slams closed. At least you’re alone now.

Your body jolts awake to a knocking at your door. Your eyes snap open as you suck in breaths of air. You’re sweating, your shirt damp. You feel sick, you don’t think you could eat even if you wanted to. Your room is dark, it must be almost time for the mess to close. You turn over in your nest. You just want to be left alone. There’s knocking again.

“Go away,” you call, although it’s quieter than you want. You don’t even know if they heard you, but then the door opens. Light floods into the room and you smell beta in the air.

“I picked up some dinner from the mess, thought you would want to stay here instead of going out.” It’s Kyle. You don’t want to see anyone, you just want to be alone. You want to sleep but you don’t want to dream.

“You need to eat.” He sounds like he’s pleading. You don’t want to see him. You don’t want to see anyone right now.

“Go away,” you say, closing your eyes again before you start crying. You hear Kyle sigh but he leaves, closing the door behind him. It feels like he’s only been gone for a few minutes when there is yet another knock on the door. You open your eyes. They’re sore and dry. You hear your name called as the door opens. This time you turn to look. You see Johnny standing there. He sighs, tipping his head to the side.

“Price won’t be happy if you skip a meal,” he says. You prop yourself up on a pillow.

“I’m not hungry,” you say.

“I know, but we got you extra pudding,” he says smiling. “It’s vanilla.”

You sigh and get up off the floor. Your limbs are stiff and your head is hurting. Johnny waits for you, letting you go first as he follows you down the hall. Kyle is sitting on the sofa watching TV. He smiles at you as you head over to the table. You can’t smell John or Simon, they must be busy trying to figure out a plan. You hope that’s what they’re doing and not trying to figure out a way to hand you back over to the Professor.

You sit down at the table and Johnny brings you a glass of water. You try to listen to what’s playing on the TV but your mind is too preoccupied. You look out the windows and you can see the floodlights lighting up one of the training fields. There are soldiers running up and down the hill. They look tired, stumbling and losing pace. You squint looking at the person standing at the top of the hill with his arms crossed. It’s Simon, you can see the white skull mask he wears as he turns in the light.

“What’s Simon doing?” you ask, turning back to see Johnny heating your food in the microwave.

“You know those recruits from the mess? Well turns out they've been causing a bunch of problems. The base commander was more than happy to let Simon run them around and remind them to be respectful.” That makes you smile as you look down at the table. Johnny brings a plate of food over to you.

“It wasn’t anything exciting today, just some kind of chicken pie.”

You smile at him pulling the pastry top off the chicken and letting the smell fill your nose. It does smell good. You keep flicking your head to look out the window at Simon and the people he has running up and down the hill. It makes you smile. Maybe Simon’s not always the best with his words but actions speak louder than words anyway. You read that in a book once. You let Johnny talk while you eat, better than the silence that’s been hanging over the building since everyone else left.

You eat your food. Kyle joins you at the table and he and Johnny chat. You listen to them and eat until you can’t take it any more, a wave of sadness washes over you and you sulk off to the showers. You take your time, letting the warm water and steam lull you back into a state of relaxation. When you leave the bathroom, John and Simon are still not back. You head into your room. You are tired, and you want to go to sleep. You see the bottle of pills on your bedside table. You don’t care that they’ll make you sick, you just want a good night's sleep. You take two, and by the time you’re changed into your pajamas you feel a heavy weight fall over you. You pick up the book Simon gave you earlier, and getting into bed you flick through it. You read until the words on the page start to melt together and your eyes are drooping closed.

When you wake you feel different. Your body feels heavy, your head pounding. You want to just curl up in your nest and sleep. You look over at it from your bed, and it looks wrong, like there’s something missing. You can hear people talking in the common room. It must be later than normal. You don't have to see Dr. Miller today so you’ve enjoyed the extra rest. You crawl over to your nest, something about it doesn’t feel right. You pull the pillows and blankets out. You rearrange it, but there’s still something wrong. You try again. It feels like an empty nest, it smells like an empty nest.

You need more things, something that smells like your pack. You’re still rearranging when there is a knock at your door. You don’t pay attention to it, your fingers running over the wooly blanket. You ignore your name being called, you have more important things to worry about. You hear the door open and the smell of beta filling the air, but you don't want anyone disturbing you right now or have people in your space. You turn to look at the threat in the doorway. It's Dr. Piper. You grip the blanket waiting for her to talk.

“We’re supposed to be having a chat with Captain Price,” she says. You nod, turning back to the nest. You move the pillows a little more but it still feels wrong. You just can’t quite put your finger on it. You put the blanket down, getting up and walking to the door.

“You’re nesting,” she says as you close your door behind you.

“It doesn't feel right,” you say, looking back towards your room. She looks at you studying your face for a second as you make it to John’s office. You can already smell his alpha through the door. There’s this burning inside of you to be close to him, you rub the back of your neck.

“Preheat. Could be a matter of days now,” she says as a matter of fact and then knocks on the door. That explains it. John calls you in and the moment you see him you blush as your scent cuts through the air. He reacts to it flaring his nostrils, his eyes dilating. You almost want to throw yourself into his arms. Instead you follow Dr. Piper over to the chairs.

“You smell different,” he says, frowning.

“Preheat. It doesn't always happen,” Dr. Piper says.

“What does that mean?” John asks. You don't really listen to the explanation; you know all about it. You’ve only ever had preheat a few times before. It's supposed to be a normal part of the heat cycle but you’ve never really had a normal cycle. Your body will spend the next few days getting ready for your heat. You’ll nest more, eat more and sleep more. You’ll be clingy, wanting to spend more time around an alpha.

“I guess General Shepherd picked the best time to visit,” John sighs. You can hear the sarcasm in his voice. You’re causing a problem.

“Is he really going to take me back to the Professor?” you ask.

“No. Doesn't mean he’s going to make our life easy. According to Kate, he wants a meeting with you, Dr. Montgomery. He would like to see the progress of your cure. He would like to meet you too,” John says, his gaze resting on you. You don't want to meet him, you don't even want to be in the same room as someone who would so willingly hand you off to someone like the Professor.

“I don’t want to meet him,” you say, looking down at the floor.

“We’ll be there, you won’t be alone,” John says. You look up at him. Somehow that makes you feel even more embarrassed, like you're a trophy they’re showing off. You’ve gotten too comfortable with them. At the end of the day you’re just an omega, a thing to be bred. Maybe the general wants you all to himself. The Professor's voice is loud in your head; you’re just an omega, you’re not worth anything other than to be filled with babies one day. You look back up at John, but you can’t tell what he’s thinking.

“Are you sure you still want to go through with this?” she asks. You watch John. It’s his choice, he could say no right now.

“Of course,” he says. You smile.

“Okay, so Dr. Miller has been working on a hormone blocker to help Lieutenant Riley. Just to be on the safe side though, he will be staying away from the building for the duration of the heat. Mostly for your safety,” Dr. Piper explains. Price frowns.

“When the omega is in heat, you will be in rut. It's basically like heat for males. You’ll become super protective of the omega. Anyone who isn't in your pack will be a threat.” You look up at John trying to see his reaction. He just nods.

“How long do heats last?” he asks.

“Usually between 5-7 days. It depends on her stress levels,” she says looking back at you.

“And you’re going to be pretty out of it?” he asks, looking at you.

“Yeah, I don’t know how to explain it. It’s all hazy,” you say, looking at Dr. Piper for support.

“Don’t be too worried. She’s not going to be unconscious or anything, more like extremely relaxed.”

“Yeah and it’s not like I'm new to this.” You smile at him.

“The betas will take it in turns to check on you both. I’ve already spoken to Johnny and Kyle. They’ll be making sure you eat and drink. You will also be out of it, not as much as the omega but things will definitely be foggy, especially when you’re knotted.”

“Knotting, you’ve explained it before,” he says. You’re blushing.

“One of the many wonders of the formula, don’t think about it too much, your body will do what's natural.”

“Okay, what about claiming? Is there anything else I should know?” You smile at him.

“You’ll need to let the betas check the wound, which might be easier said than done depending on how aware you are. Other than that, don’t be worried, there’s no right or wrong way to do it. It’s after the heat when things will really start to feel different,” she explains. He's going to claim you, you’re going to be claimed. Then you truly will be his omega.

“Okay, and it could be any time soon?” he asks. Dr. Piper nods. It’s not really the best timing but you can’t control it.

“I can go through it alone again. I’m used to it,” you offer. Dr. Piper starts to protest but John stops her.

“No, we’ll work it out, don’t worry,” he says, and you nod. “Now we need to focus on this meeting with General Shepherd. He should be here in an hour or so.”

“She can’t go back to the Professor,” Dr. Piper says.

“That’s not going to happen, but he might have other demands. Unfortunately this is very much a gray area. Since you worked so closely with the Professor, I think it would be best if you’re in there from the start,” John says looking at Dr. Piper. She nods.

“It would be nice to have someone who is used to this world on our side,” he says.

“Of course,” she nods. You zone out, letting John and Dr. Piper continue to talk strategies. Before you know it, you’re starving, your stomach rumbling as the cravings come. You want something sweet, french toast or pancakes. You feel like you could eat a million puddings. Dr. Piper can sense your fidgeting, putting her hand on your bouncing leg to stop it. You sigh. You feel like a kid waiting for your parents to stop talking so you can leave and do what you want to do. It feels like they're talking forever before you’re finally allowed to go.

You find Kyle and almost drag him to the mess. When you get in, you see some of the soldiers who were making comments about you. They look embarrassed, quickly looking away when you catch their eyes. You don’t care, you're too hungry.

When you get back to the barracks everyone but Johnny has left. Johnny tells you they’ll be back later, after the meeting with General Shepherd. You know he wants to see you too, but you don’t want to see him. You don’t want to see anyone or leave the building. Johnny puts his arm around you when you sit down on the sofa. You watch the TV leaning against him.

“Don’t worry lass, what’s the worst that could happen?” he says. You let out a sigh. The Professor could come in your sleep and take you back.

“Probably nothing,” you sigh. You don’t want to think about it anymore.

It’s an hour later when Dr. Montgomery is called to a conference room for the meeting. She stands outside the door waiting for John and Simon to show up. The General and Kate are already inside as well as a few other people she doesn’t know. It’s the nerves getting to her. She wasn’t sure what to prepare for the meeting so she just bought everything. She’d read through each piece of paper, each piece of data multiple times before neatly packing it away in the folder she was now clinging onto for dear life. She hears voices round the corner, the smell of alpha in the air. She lets out a sigh of relief as Simon and John step round.

“Ready?” John asks as he reaches the door.

“As I’ll ever be,” she replies. John smiles and Simon walks through. She pulls John to the side before they step into the room.

“She’s never been able to advocate for herself, she’s never had anyone in her corner. I know he’s your boss but she needs us to stick up for her.”

“Don’t worry, she’s not going anywhere,” John says, patting her shoulder, smiling. She doesn’t know if she quite believes him, surely the General can override any order. Maybe he could take her by force. Piper walks into the room. There are more people than she thought here, but still no one she recognizes. Everyone takes seats around the table with a projector at the end. There’s formalities, people being introduced, their significance. Everyone from the base commander to some people the General bought. He starts off with some speech explaining what was going to be happening.

“Professor Hale has caught me up with some of the terminology. I also heard your team has been exposed to the chemical?” General Shepherd asks. John nods.

“And you’re Dr. Montgomery?” he asks, looking at her. She nods.

“Okay I think we should get the elephant out of the room first.” He moves around to the front of the table.

“What made you think blowing up the lab was a good idea?”

“We had intel that they were making and selling chemical weapons, so we decided to act on it,” John says.

“If you had gone up the correct chain of command you would have been told to stay well away from Professor Hale and his little project.”

“Little,” Dr. Piper scoffs, rolling her eyes. The General’s gaze snaps to her but he ignores her comment.

“You shouldn’t have not gotten involved with this, Captain. Now we have one hell of a mess to clean up,” he says. Clicking something on a laptop brings your folder up, the one from the lab. It makes Dr. Piper feel sick. It’s the fake one the Professor would give to people so they wouldn't know what was really going on. Even in your picture you look somewhat normal, flushed cheeks, nice hair. People would even think you were happy. That’s what the Professor wanted people to think.

“The omega initiative; you’re probably aware of the finer details. It is important we continue the core research to finalize the formula, and the only way we can do that is with the help of Professor Hale. Professor Hale is willing to work with us as well as forgive the destruction of his lab—and the significant damage to his mansion—on the condition that we return the omega back to him.”

“You’re out of your mind ,” Dr. Piper laughs.

“Doctor.” It’s John’s voice behind her, his alpha is strong in the air and it makes goosebumps rise on her neck.

“She’s not going anywhere,” John says.

“Captain, we’re lucky this whole project is still confidential and no one outside this room, or the Professor's circle is aware of it. If our enemies were to learn about this we would have a monumental problem.”

“She’s not going anywhere, especially not back to the Professor,” Price says. This time there’s an edge to his voice. The General sighs.

“Look we can do this the easy way or—”

“Sending her back is a death sentence,” John interrupts him.

“We do not have another option. If we want to work with Professor Hale then we need to try and comply with his demands."

“We don’t negotiate with terrorists,” Simon speaks up.

“He is not a terrorist. He works for us,” he says.

“Excuse me!” Dr. Piper snaps. “He works for the government? Since when?”

“It is in the best interests of the nation to allow Professor Hale to continue his research and create a formula for the expressed purpose of improving the capabilities of our armed forces.”

“He gave you the super soldier speech then? That type of formula is years away, tens of years away,” Dr. Piper says, leaning forward in her seat.

“With all due respect Dr. Montgomery, the Professor thinks he will be able to have results before the end of the year.”

“I’m sorry, sir, but are you a scientist? Have you spent the last 20 years of your life working for the Professor? Well I have, and I’m telling you there is no way on earth he can have a working formula before the end of the year,” Dr. Piper says. Her anger is filling the air now. The General just looks at her for a second like he’s thinking about something.

“Regardless of your credentials, the Professor has made us a promise—”

Dr. Piper laughs. “I bet I have a cure before he even has time to start on creating a new formula.”

“It is my understanding that all he needs is the omega,” General Shepherd says. Dr. Piper leans back in her chair. He would need way more than that, his labs are gone. Even if he has a copy of the formula, as well as government funding, why is the omega so important? She’s stopped listening to him as he continues to talk.

“—I think it’s long overdue that we meet this omega,” Shepherd says. Dr. Piper is up from her seat before John needs to ask her. She wants to get out of the room.

“Let's break and meet her back in 10 minutes,” she hears someone say as she leaves the room rubbing the back of her neck. Something feels wrong. You’re more than just a toy for him, there’s something about you that he needs, otherwise he would have just created another omega by now.

You’re sitting at the table with Johnny and Kyle, nervous. You know they can smell it in the air, they’ve been trying to project a calming scent but it’s not really been working. It’s not their fault you’re way too pent up. You’ve felt nothing but the overwhelming urge to vomit for the past few hours. It feels like you’ve been waiting forever when Dr. Piper walks into the building. Kyle and Johnny immediately stand up but you wait until she comes over to the table.

“They want to meet you,” she says. You knew this was coming. You knew this was going to happen. You slowly get up, fear rising inside you. You wish you could run. Johnny and Kyle follow behind you as you all walk in silence into the main building on the base. You’re led to a room where Simon and John are standing outside waiting. They make you feel a little better that they’re both here. You don’t want to do this, it makes you feel like you’re just a thing, a toy to be played with or shown off.

“It won’t take long, we’ll be there the whole time,” John says. You nod at him trying not to panic. He comes to stand next to you placing his hand on your back. You swallow the nerves, digging your nails into your palms. Simon and Dr. Piper walk in first, then you and John. You look around the room.

There are people you don’t recognize and standing at the head of the long table is the person you assume is General Shepherd. He doesn’t look as mean as you thought. He reminds you of the Professor, big and old, only with less hair and no glasses. John is having to practically push you down the room over to him until you’re stood in front of him. You can’t smell anything off him. He’s not been exposed to the chemical and neither have the other people in the room.

“So you must be the omega everyone is talking about.” He smiles, turning to see you. You don’t know what to say. He holds his hand out and you almost flinch. You don’t want to shake his hand, you don’t care if you’re being rude. Goosebumps rise on your neck. You don’t want to be here. After a few seconds he drops his hand.

“So, are you aware that Professor Hale has requested you go back to work with him?” he asks. You nod. Work for him? So that’s how he’s phrasing it.

“And do you want to go back and work for him?” You shake your head. Why would he even ask?

“You are aware that refusing to go back may…complicate things?” He sounds serious. You don’t want to be a bother. You don’t want to be a burden. Maybe you should go back to make life easier for them all, to be a good omega. You nod. He sighs, taking a step back. You want to leave. You can’t help taking a step back, but John’s hand on your back keeps you in place.

“I would like you to think about all the options you have. Professor Hale is willing to offer Dr. Montgomery her job back as well as allow you to keep in contact with your pack,” he explains. You don’t believe it for a second. You don’t say anything, you just stand there in silence. He sighs looking up at John, then nods. You can tell he didn’t get what he wanted. You take a step back, turning to leave.

“Hold on a second,” he says. You stop breathing, freezing in place. “Professor Hale instructed me to check for a mark.”

“She’s not claimed,” Dr. Piper says. A pit forms in your stomach and your hand goes up to the back of your neck. You want to cry, there’s no way you’re letting him get close enough to see that.

“Hale insisted I check it personally.” You look at the end of the room seeing Dr. Piper stood with her arms crossed. You hear him moving closer to you, your hand reaches out to grip John’s shirt. You’re trying not to panic, you’re really trying hard. You can’t even control your scent anymore; you're filling the room with your fear. It causes Simon to move up next to John.

“It will only take a second,” General Shepherd says, and then he’s right behind you. You look down letting out a long breath and move your hand up to the back of your head pulling your hair out the way. He takes another step forward and you close your eyes, gripping John’s shirt harder wishing you were anywhere else but here. You feel panic rising in you, you bite the inside of your cheek. It feels like the seconds are taking hours.

“Okay, you’ve seen it. She’s not claimed.” It’s John’s voice. You open your eyes again, moving your hand and letting your hair fall back down to cover your neck. You look up at Dr. Piper across the room. She looks sad, her eyes not leaving you. You let go of John’s shirt as he moves to the side and you rush over to her. She opens the door for you and you rush out. Your eyes are already welling up with tears as you fall into Johnny’s arms. You’ve never felt so exposed, the fear and adrenaline keeping you going starts to fade and you feel sick. This time you let yourself breathe, letting their scent calm you.

“It’s okay,” Johnny says as he strokes your hair. It’s not okay, nothing about any of this is okay.

“A tracker!? She's not an animal, she's a human being!” you hear Dr. Piper shout. You pull your head out of Johnny’s chest, heading back towards the door.

“It’s just a precaution,” Shepherd replies.

“It's a human rights violation is what it is,” Dr. Piper snaps.

“You’re not putting a tracker in her,” John says.

“Captain, don't make this harder than it needs to be,” Shepherd says.

Kyle comes to stand next to you.

“Let’s head back, we don’t need to be here,” he says. You wipe your eyes. His hand wraps round your waist trying to pull you away. You hear John yelling as Kyle moves you away from the door. A tracker? You really are just livestock.

The rest of the day seems to move in slow motion. Kyle brings you food from the mess again. You’re hungry but you don’t want to eat. You know you have to though. No one has come back from the meeting yet, you’ve been waiting for an update all this time. You’re pushing pasta around your plate hoping that they will be able to come up with a plan that doesn’t involve you being handed over to the Professor. You’ve started to plan what you’re going to do if you’re not given a choice. You’re going to run. Anything is better than being back with the Professor. You put your fork down picking up the pudding cup. Johnny got you extra again, and he smiles at you as you open it, picking up the spoon.

“If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?” you ask Johnny. He thinks for a second.

“I’d go home, back to good ol’ Scotland. I have a house in the highlands,” he says. Kyle chuckles coming over to the table.

“You could go literally anywhere and you pick to go home?” he asks.

“Well where would you go?” Johnny asks, crossing his arms.

“Australia, or New Zealand,” Kyle says. You eat your pudding, listening to their conversation. It’s caramel flavored today.

“That’s not that adventurous.”

“You said Scotland,” Kyle protests.

“Okay, okay, where would you go, that isn’t the UK or the commonwealth,” Johnny says, folding his arms and leaning back in the chair.

“I would like to travel around Africa,” Kyle says.

“Africa sounds good. Panama,” Johnny says. Kyle looks at him confused, shaking his head.

“Panama?” Kyle questions. You can’t help but laugh. They both turn to look at you. You cover your mouth with your hand. Shaking your head but you can’t stop laughing, you don’t know why the conversation has tickled you. You keep laughing. If you stop, you think you’ll start crying again. You like seeing them smile, today has been a long day and you could use a little joy. The sound of the front door closing makes you stop. You turn to see John and Simon walking in. You look back at the table spooning more pudding in your mouth.

“Shouldn’t you both be in the gym?” Simon asks. There’s silence but Johnny and Kyle seem to get the hint, getting up and heading to their rooms. John and Simon take their places at the table. You’re holding your breath expecting bad news.

“You’re not going back to the Professor, you’re staying here,” John says. You look between them, licking the rest of the pudding off the spoon.

“What’s going to happen then?” you ask, putting the spoon down.

“Not sure, but for now you don’t need to worry. Let’s just get through your heat, then we’ll go from there.” You smile. It doesn’t feel right but it’s something and you’re not going anywhere.

“You did well today, just get some rest, take it easy. We’ll talk more tomorrow.” You nod. You push the plate away looking between them both.

“You didn’t have to stick up for me today. I know it would be easier to give me back to the Professor. Thank you.”

“Who said it was easier to give you back to the Professor?” John asks. You look down at the table.

“We’re a pack right?” Simon says. It surprises you and you look up at him. You nod.

“Then we take care of the pack.” He looks over at John. You smile at Simon, he does think of you as part of the pack.

“We take care of the pack,” John says back to him. Simon looks at you and you keep smiling, nodding at him.

Simon walks into the lab. It’s dark but he can see the light from around the wall. He steps in, he can hear Dr. Montgomery mumbling. He peeks in her office. It’s empty, just lit up by a computer monitor.

“Christ,” she says. It sounds like a fist slamming the desk. Simon walks round the corner seeing her looking through a microscope.

“Everything alright?” he says trying not to spook her but she jumps anyway looking up from the microscope.

“I can’t do this!” she snaps, throwing the glass of whatever she was looking at at the wall. Simon almost jumps looking behind him at the broken glass. She runs her hand through her hair.

“Okay, calm down,” he says. She looks at him, rubbing her forehead. He’s never seen her this worked up before. She usually has such a calmness about her, level headed and in control. Right now she looks like she’s about to burst into tears.

“Sorry,” she says waving him away as she sits back down at the table looking at the computer monitor. He waits, watching her click through something before he walks round the table to join her. He doesn’t understand what she’s looking at but she’s muttering under her breath as she scans the images.

“Is there anything we can do to help?” he says. She takes her glasses off, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“He needs her, he needs the omega. I’ve never thought about it before but she’s special. He could have created another omega and continued his research without agreeing to work with the government.” She turns to look at him, but he doesn’t know what to say.

“There’s something about her, he needs her.”

“Maybe it’s just because he’s her father?” He suggests.

“He never loved her. He spent all those years torturing her. You know that.” She turns to look at him. He knows it’s a dig at him. She’s frustrated, and she’s taking it out on him. That’s okay, he's used to it. She sighs looking back over to the computer.

“If we can figure out why she’s important we can use it against him. She might even be the solution for all this, for the cure, for perfecting the formula…” She trails off clicking back through on the computer.

“You did a good job defending her today,” he says. She sighs, shaking her head.

“He knows where she is, it’s only a matter of time before he tries something,” she says.

“She’s safe here,” Simon says.

“She’s not safe anywhere. She never will be until the Professor is dead.” She says looking back in the microscope.

“Thought you were a pacifist,” he says. She looks over at him quickly before going back to the microscope.

“You and John saved her today, not me,” she sighs. “I could have never spoken to General Shepherd the way John did.”

“You did good, just take the compliment,” he sighs.

“I don’t need to be complimented Simon,” she says. He smiles.

“You’re a good person,” he says. She looks over at him.

“When you start believing that about yourself I’ll listen,” she says. A smile tugs on her lips. Simon scoffs—stubborn women.

“Want to go through this data with me?” she asks after a few seconds. Simon nods, sitting on a stool scooting over to her. She passes him some papers. He picks them up looking at them.

“More chromosomes?”

“It’s the formula, circle anything over 2. Turns out reverse engineering is going to be harder than we think,” she sighs.

“It’s never easy,” he says picking up a pen.

“No such thing as easy,” she replies.

You wake and you’re starving. You pull yourself out of bed, changing and rushing out of your room. You almost bump into Johnny as you’re still pulling your shoes on.

“Easy lass, where you going in such a hurry?” He smiles.

“Hungry, “ is all you say as you continue to the front door. You want to get to the mess, fill your plate with stacks of eggs and bacon and as many puddings as you can eat. You see John sitting at the table with a mug in one hand and a tablet in the other.

“Morning,” he says as you pass him.

“Morning,” you reply, rushing out the building. It feels like you can smell the food coming from the mess and it makes your mouth water. Johnny comes out behind you throwing his arm around your shoulder. He slows you down but as soon as you get into the mess your stomach is rumbling. It feels like you haven’t eaten in days. Everything smells and looks amazing, even things you haven’t tried yet. You get two plates filling them both up with a little bit of everything. Mostly eggs and thick slices of toast and butter. Johnny looks on in awe as you demolish both the plates then go back for more. The pudding is strawberry today and you manage to eat 3 before you finally feel satisfied.

“Is this because of your heat?” Johnny asks as you finish licking the pudding off the spoon. You nod.

“Is it going to be like this for every meal?” You shake your head, maybe you went a bit overboard. You'll have to sit here for a few minutes to let your stomach settle.

“Dr. Montgomery talked to us about your heat. Gave us a list of jobs we have to do for you and Price.”

“Like what?” you ask slowly sipping on your water.

“Making sure you eat and drink. Keeping John up to date with what's going on.”

“What is going on?” you ask.

“Well, we’re kind of just waiting to see what Shepherd says,” he says. You nod. So he’s still here, and who knows when he’ll leave. Suddenly you want to get back to the barracks. You get up throwing your tray in the pile as you both walk back. When you get in you can hear commotion in the hallway.

“How did they get the first bed in here?” Kyle asks, you and Johnny stick your heads round the corner seeing a bed frame sticking out of John’s room awkwardly.

“Christ, you need to turn it,” Johnny says, going to help them.

“We’ve tried that already.” Simon’s voice comes out of John’s room.

“Well clearly you’ve not done it the right way,” Johnny says, trying to pull the frame back.

“Watch it Soap!” Kyle shouts as the bed moves off the wall, almost hitting him in the head. You chuckle backing out the way.

“Teamwork!” John shouts from his office. You turn to look in the office, his door half open. He sees you looking and smiles. You take it as permission to walk in. He puts down whatever he's working on.

“You okay?” he asks. You nod remembering how quickly you left the building this morning.

“Sorry I rushed out this morning. I was hungry.” He smiles.

“It’s okay, if there is anything you need just let us know,” he says, you nod, hearing a bang coming from the room next door.

“New bed?” you ask him.

“Something like that,” he chuckles. “I was wondering if you would want to spend the evening together tonight? I can get the boys out and we could just relax, see where the night goes?” You blush, you’re pretty sure he’s trying to ask you for sex. You smile nodding at him.

“Great, it's a date.” He smiles leaning back in his chair. You can smell his alpha in the air. There’s a loud crash and some cursing. You watch John roll his eyes as he gets up out of his chair.You chuckle as he walks past you, and you follow him. You get distracted though seeing a hat hanging on a hook next to his jacket. You run your fingers over it. this would be perfect for your nest. You take it off the hook, it smells like John, it’s a wool beanie, soft as you bring it up to your nose. John walks back to his office making you jump.

“Can I keep this?” you ask, showing it to him.

“Sure,” he says, sounding a little confused. You hum, going past him. You need to put it in your nest, then maybe it will feel right. You make it into your room kneeling down next to your nest. You take your time trying to make it perfect. You don’t know how long you’re doing it for before you get up heading into Dr. Pipers room. You breathe in her scent. You don’t know what you want until you’re drawn to a scarf laid on the end of the bed. It’s silk. You run it through your fingers. You had no idea she had something like this. You take it out back to your nest ignoring Johnny as he calls you from the common room. It’s getting there. You smile pulling the pillows off of your bed to add to the pile. You follow your nose walking down the hallway. Johnny's room door is open, and you stand in the doorway for a few seconds. His room smells stronger than Dr. Pipers.

“Need something lass?” Johnny asks, coming up beside you. You walk into his room flaring your nostrils. You’re drawn to a shirt hanging over the back of his desk chair. You pick it up and bring it to your nose.

“Can I have this?” you ask turning to go back to your nest before you even hear him give an answer. He follows you watching as you rearrange your nest for what feels like the hundredth time today. It’s getting there. You stand back up turning to see Johnny in the doorway.

“Do you think Kyle will let me in his room?” Again your body moves before he’s had a chance to reply. You open his door standing in the doorway. Kyle sticks his head round the corner.

“What’s up?” he asks as you walk into his room.

“She’s collecting things. Putting them in her nest,” Johnny explains. They both wait in the doorway watching you looking round Kyle’s room. His is more organized than Johnny's. Your hands land on another scarf, this one is made of a rougher fabric though. You bring it up to your nose and smile. You leave the room without asking. You just want to get this perfect. You’re getting frustrated, it’s still not right. You stand up, you need something from Simon.

You look back at Johnny and now Kyle watching you, you walk past them over to Simon’s room. You can’t go in there, not without his permission. It’s an alpha’s domain. If you go in without him knowing and get your scent everywhere, he could get angry. You just stand there deciding on what to do. Johnny and Kyle stand next to you waiting. You should knock and ask him.

No, he doesn’t like you, he could say no. You want your nest to be finished but you don’t want to annoy Simon. You step back from his door heading back to your room closing the door behind you, and you crawl into your nest. It will have to do for now.

By the time the evening comes around, you’re strangely nervous. Everyone had left the building just as the sun was going down. It felt weird being alone. Simon left first, he didn’t say anything. Then Johnny and Kyle left an hour later joking about their temporary displacement and how long they can realistically stretch out a gym session. You felt embarrassed knowing you–or more John–was kicking them out so you could have sex. Although maybe it was for the best. When you’re in heat, they’re going to be around, helping even. This is different and that’s okay, that's the point.

“You ready?” John asks coming into the common room. You didn’t even hear him come out of his room. You nod getting up off the sofa, it feels so formal, you walk over to him, his hands wrap around your waist.

“Are you sure you still want to do this?” he asks. You nod looking up at him, in his deep blue eyes which look darker in the dim lighting. He looks tired as his hand comes up to your face, his thumb stroking your cheek. He leans down, planting his lips on yours. You relax into his kiss letting his hand run back down to your waist. His touch is nice, his hands warm as they map out your curves. You press up against him playing with his tongue as you make your way to his room. You’ve never been in his room before. You break from the kiss to look around. The double bed barely fits with the desk and built-in wardrobe taking up most of the space. Other than the smaller window the layout is almost identical to your room.

“They let you have a double bed.” You smile. “It’s just two single beds pressed together,” he shrugs, but you don’t care. You turn back to look at him, and there’s a glint in his eyes. You kiss him. He presses his tongue back into your mouth, you let it drag across yours. The smell of vanilla fills the room, and the musky scent of his arousal makes shivers run down your spine. His hands grip your waist, his thumbs dipping under your waistband.

“You are beautiful,” he says, breaking away from the kiss, his eyes soaking you in.

“Such a good omega,” he breathes, and you blush at the praise, which makes that warm knot come back in your stomach. You smile letting your scent fill the room. You want to let him know you’re ready, ready for him. He guides you over to the bed gently pressing you to sit down, he breaks away from the kiss.

“John, be gentle.”

“Of course,” his voice is low, humming in your ears. It sends vibrations down your spine. He sits on the bed next to you, his hands traveling up your thighs. You’re not really sure what you’re supposed to do—be a good omega just lie there. And keep calm. If he senses you’re worried or nervous he might stop, and you don’t want that. His hand squeezes your thigh, his other hand resting on the top of your back.

“Relax,” he says, and you drop your shoulders and let out a breath. “We can stop any time you want, you just have to say okay?” You nod, and he smiles, kissing you on the forehead before maneuvering your body so you’re both laid on the bed. His hand rests on your stomach as you lean in to kiss him again. This time you really do relax, letting the smell of vanilla fill your head to the point of making you dizzy. His hand slips under your shirt, it's warm and firm against your skin as he moves up to your breasts. His thumb brushes over your nipple causing you to moan into the kiss. He breaks away smiling.

“When was the last time you had someone just take care of you?” You frown at the question, your brain trying to think as he continues to rub circles with his thumb.

“Never,” you say. You don’t know why you feel embarrassed about that. He hums.

“That’s going to change, from now on it’s all about what you want. Because that’s what my omega deserves, to be taken care of.” You nod at his words, not quite knowing what to say. There's a tingle running through your body now, something you haven’t felt in years, you want to chase it. You go to kiss him again but instead he moves, his hands gripping the bottom of your shirt. You raise your arms letting him take it off over your head. The cool air hits your bare chest making goosebumps form.

You watch as John sits up pulling his own shirt over his head. He’s well built, of course he is, he’s a soldier. He’s got a nice stock of body hair too. That you expected. You wait till he’s done, soaking him in as he throws his shirt over the end of the bed. You smile as his eyes look over you, his hand coming down to your chest as he runs it over your body. You’re glad you decided to wear something comfy and forgo the bra, it makes it easier for John as his hand travels down to your abdomen. There's an ache throbbing between your legs as he holds his hand firm, looking at you. You smile at him and he leans down to kiss you.

The kiss is distracting, his hot tongue playing with yours as he slips his hand in your underwear. You spread your legs for him without even thinking. He goes slow, though, almost like he’s testing the waters. His fingers are warm as he pushes one between your folds. The brief contact with your clit makes you gasp pulling away from his mouth.

“So sensitive,” he says, his fingers pressing against your entrance. You nod blindly as he gathers some of your slick on his fingers then drags them back up, pressing them onto your clit. You moan as his fingers rub little circles. It feels like it’s the most contact you’ve had in years. Your head tips back as the scent of his arousal fills the room again. Of course you’re sensitive, you're in preheat, it’s not going to take you long to come especially like this, his rough fingers making steady movements, slowly building up speed. He knows what he’s doing, that's for sure. Your back arches as you chase the peak, closing your eyes and gripping the bedding as the orgasm washes over you.

It comes in waves, pulsating all through your body. It’s completely different to the ones you’ve had during your heat. It feels almost fulfilling, rushing through your body making your clit throb as John works you through it, slowing his movements until you relax back down on the bed. You open your eyes looking over at him as your hazy brain catches up with you. Your scent is thick in the air, you see his pupils dilate as he removes his hand leaning down to kiss you.

“That was amazing,” you breathe as he pulls away. He smiles, you can’t help your eyes traveling down to his crotch. There’s a prominent bulge there now, it must be uncomfortable.

“Not yet,” he says, pulling your chin back up so you meet his eyeline. “I want to make you cum at least one more time before that.” Holy shit. You nod blindly as he moves off the end of the bed. He stands up undoing his belt, you prop yourself up so you can get a better look. The only light in the room is coming from the bedside table light next to you. The shadows make his muscles look more defined, as he drops his pants. He stands there naked at the end of the bed. He’s big, or maybe it’s just the shadows. You’re trying not to gawk at him as he runs his hand down the shaft pulling back his foreskin to reveal the red hot tip.

Your mouth goes dry. He leans over you, grabbing the waistband of your sweat pants. You shuffle and bring your legs together so he can pull both your underwear and pants off in one go. He’s definitely done that before. You lay back down feeling slightly embarrassed, what if he doesn’t like what he sees? There seems to be no complaints as his hands grip your waist pulling you down the bed slightly. You see him bend down at the end of the bed, and he takes your legs putting them over his shoulders. You can feel his hot breath on your soaked cunt.

“You know what to do if you want me to stop,” he says. Even the feel of his breath is enough to have shivers running through you.

“I know,” you say, swallowing any nerves you had away. He hums, shifting his body one last time before his tongue slips through your folds. It’s like instant fireworks running through your body, you’re almost shaking, your legs squeezing his head. He chuckles which doesn’t make things easier, vibrations now running through to your core. You relax your legs arching your back instead, one of his hands comes to your waist while you feel the other slip between your legs. His mouth leaves your clit and you whine from the loss of contact.

“Being needy now, hm?” he asks. You can hear the grin on his face as your brain tries to comprehend the words.

“Yes,” is all you manage, you hear him chuckle again as his fingers brush your entrance. You moan from the contact as he inserts two fingers into you. You didn't even think about how thick they were until now that they’re inside you and you're clenching around them.

“Relax,” he breathes. You barely have time to react before his mouth is back on your clit. It’s a whole new sensation now, his fingers thrusting inside you in time with the strokes of his tongue. You’re trying to keep still for him, your hands gripping the bedding as he slowly builds up speed. Even now he’s so gentle, using just the right amount of pressure to build you up to the peak slowly. You’ve never felt like this before. You’ve never had sex like this before. Maybe Dr. Piper was right and there is some romance involved.

Suddenly he changes his pace, his fingers curling up and hitting that oh-so-sweet spot inside you as his tongue presses down on you harder. Your hand flys down to his head, your fingers lacing through his hair.

“John—” You breathe, trying not to clench your legs around his head again. He doesn't stop, and you clench round his fingers as the second orgasm hits you. You let go of his hair so you don’t pull it, panting as he keeps going until your legs start twitching. You feel almost empty as his mouth and fingers leave you. You prop yourself up so you can see him. You can see his fingers glistening in light covered in your slick. You smile at him as his eyes meet yours. He brings the fingers to his mouth sucking them clean. Why is that the hottest thing he’s done tonight?

“You okay?” he asks. Your brain is fuzzy, overwhelmed with the scents and the multiple orgasms. You nod, and he smiles. He climbs back into the bed, his body over yours. He leans down to kiss you, and you can taste yourself on him, his lips puffy as he gently presses his tongue into your mouth. You moan as the leathery smell of his arousal hits your nose. He breaks away, you see his eyes glossed over. You wrap your arms around his neck pushing your fingers through the hair at the base of his skull.

You press your thumbs gently on his scent gland, and he almost purrs as you do it, moving his body to a more comfortable position. He moves one of his hands down pressing his fingers on your clit then down to your entrance. For once you’re lucky you’re in preheat. There’s plenty of slick for him to work with. He gathers some on his fingers before moving and lining himself up with your entrance. You’re suddenly nervous, he looks big. He’s an alpha, they're always big, at least that’s what you’ve been told.

“I’ll be gentle,” he says, still nudging your entrance. You nod, you trust him. “Just relax.” You’re trying, it’s easier said than done. You smile at him as he pushes inside you. It takes your breath away, you feel like your lungs have just been emptied. He is big, bigger than anyone you’ve been with before. He rests there for a second moving his hand away and sucking in breath of air. You clench around him which makes him moan, a deep moan from the back of his throat that has goosebumps rising on the back of your neck. You relax for him, letting him get used to your body.

“Okay?” he asks, looking at you. You smile and nod. He reaches down to kiss you as his hips start thrusting. It takes a few seconds for you to get used to it but before you know it you’re panting into his ear. There is nothing going on in your brain now, your body moves with him as he whispers in your ear, his voice low, vibrating as he tells you how much of a good omega you are for him. With each thrust it feels like he’s going quicker, hitting you deeper. It burns but in a good way as he’s stretching you out, hitting a deep spot inside you that has you moaning into his neck.

You don’t know how long you’re going to last. You clench around him in an attempt to slow your drive to the edge down. It feels too good and you don’t want it to stop. He moans and pants in your ear which make the hairs stand up on the back of your neck. You wish he could claim you now, then you would be his, all his. The thought makes you shiver, tightening around him as your hands grip his hair.

“I know, I know you’re close,” he says between breaths. “Just cum for me, it’s okay.”

It’s like music to your ears. Your brain doesn’t comprehend it but your body does, moaning out his name as you come, clenching around him. His thrusts slow as the smell of his alpha fills your nose. It makes you dizzy, all you can focus on is his throbbing cock inside you. Maybe he’ll knot you, maybe he won’t be able to help it. He doesn’t though after a few seconds of panting his breathing goes back to normal and you feel him pull out of you. You feel empty all of a sudden, he lays down on the bed next to you turning and propping himself up on his elbow so he can look at you.

There’s a chill in the air now as you come down from the high. You look at him and he smiles. You wonder what it’s going to be like when you’re in heat. Will he be as gentle? Probably not. You smile back at him as his thumb comes up to stroke your cheek.

“Was it good?” you ask, feeling self conscious all of a sudden.

“Amazing,” he chuckles, and it makes you blush. He wraps his arms around you pulling you up against his chest. You can hear his heartbeat as you yawn. Your body feels heavy, eyes tired. You let out a long breath, the smell of leather and wood is heavy in the air. The smell of a satisfied alpha. You did that, you satisfied your alpha. You close your eyes, relaxing up against him. You don’t know how long it’s been but you feel like you’re just about to fall asleep when he moves. You open your eyes watching as he goes into his wardrobe.

“Have you ever had a girlfriend?” you ask, sleepy.

“A few. It’s hard to keep steady relationships when you travel so much,” he says. You watch as he pulls on boxers and a shirt. He comes over with a towel in his hands, you’re not sure what he wants but then you feel the slick between your legs, taking the towel from him.

“Want me to get you some clean clothes?” You sit up looking round the room. You shake your head, you put fresh clothes on a few hours ago after you spend 40 minutes scrubbing your body within an inch of its life in the shower. He walks round the room and collects your clothes as you swing your legs out the bed, throwing the towel in what you hope is a pile of dirties.

“You can stay if you want?” he says. You look up at him smiling.

“Yeah, that would be nice,” you say. He holds his hand out, and you take it, getting dressed. You skip the sweatpants, you’ll be too hot, especially with another person in the bed. He stands aside waiting for you to get into the side of the bed pressed up against the wall. You climb in, pulling the duvet over you.

He gets in and before you have a chance to lay down properly his arms are already around you pulling your back up against his chest. He’s warm as he nuzzles his face in your neck squeezing you in his arms like he’s worried you’ll disappear. You close your eyes again, relaxing into him. Your ears prick up when you hear the door to the building open. They must be back from killing time wherever they are.

“John, promise me you won’t let anything bad happen,” you sigh, your eyes heavy again.

“I promise,” he replies, kissing your neck. You let yourself believe him. At least you’re not going back to the Professor, and that’s all that matters. John will keep you safe, you know he will.

——————————

John can’t sleep. It didn’t take long for you to pass out in his arms. His head is too distracted though, too much going on too much to think about. Maybe he needs a break, maybe this heat is a good thing. He’ll get to spend a week away from the responsibilities. He should get up, stretch his legs, see if there’s any news from Shepherd. He waits, watching you for at least a few more minutes. Dr. Montgomery told him you needed to keep a low stress level to be able to have a smooth heat.

Now you’re in preheat, it’s even more important you keep you calm. It’s easier said than done, especially with Shepherd still being on the base. John takes his time, slowly slipping out the bed. At one point you murmur reaching out for him. He guides your hand to a pillow as he shuffles out of the bed. His eyes hardly leave you as he moves out the room as quietly as he can.

He leaves the door open slightly going into his office. He walks over to his desk, turning the light on and sitting down. When the PC screen comes on he sees the time, just after midnight. It’s a new day, another long day. He opens the drawer in his desk looking at the stack of paperwork he hasn’t had time or energy to go through. There’s a knock at the door, he doesn’t have time to answer before the door is opened.

“Got a minute?” Kyle says as he walks through the door. John smiles nodding at him. He leans back in his chair as Kyle walks round the desk behind him. His hands rest on his shoulders, pushing his thumbs into John’s shoulder blades.

“How’s things?” Kyle asks. John sighs, relaxing into the familiar feeling of his sergeant's hands on him. He knows Johnny has been taking care of Simon, but he hasn’t been able to find time for Kyle since they moved to Washington and now with the heat coming up, he’s not going to have time for much else.

“I cannot wait for Shepherd to be gone,” John sighs. Kyle hums in agreement.

“How is she?” Kyle asks after a few seconds.

“She’s fine.”

“You’re tense,” Kyle says. “You need to take time for yourself.”

“I will.”

“Yeah? When we’re on a plane back to the UK?” Kyle tuts.

“I’ll find time,” he sighs. He knows it’s a lie but he doesn’t need Kyle worrying. His hands move down to his arms, squeezing his biceps.

“Are you ready for her heat?” Kyle asks.

“As much as I can be. Dr. Montgomery keeps saying my body will know what to do,” he sighs. He trusts her, he just wishes she could give him more information. He knows he has to have a chat with Simon at some point. He needs to keep him busy, that's what Dr. Montgomery said, keep him busy, keep him distracted. Seems like the heat might be the hardest for Simon, never mind Johnny and Kyle who have to take up the role of caretakers.

“Did you pick up the food from the kitchen?” John asks.

“We’re going to get it tomorrow,” Kyle says, his hands moving back to his shoulders. He rolls his thumbs over his shoulder blades.

“Think Shepherd’s going to try anything?” Kyle asks.

“I don’t know. I hope not, the last thing we need is to be shipped off anywhere right now,” John sighs.

“What about Professor Hale?”

“I don’t know. Now that he’s working for the government, that complicates things. Unless we’re all looking to get court-martialed, we might just have to play along with his little games.”

“Do we know where he is?”

“No, they’re keeping that pretty confidential.”

“Think Laswell can find him?” Kyle asks.

“No idea. It’s not easy for her to do anything right now with Shepherd breathing down her neck.” John sighs, he’s tired. He wants to get back into bed with you.

“Go get some sleep Garrick, it’s going to be a long week,“ John says, Kyle’s hands leave his shoulders and he walks back round the desk.

“You too Cap, no use to anyone if you’re exhausted,” Kyle says as he leaves. John smiles. He waits until he hears Kyle’s door close before turning the monitor off and leaving the office. When he walks back into his room, you’re still sleeping cuddling up against the pillow he left you with.

Your scent is strong in the air, a mix of strawberries and vanilla. You look so peaceful, he almost doesn’t want to get back into bed and disturb you. His phone buzzes in his pocket, he takes it out seeing Kate’s name flash. He leaves the room heading back into his office and closing the door before picking up the phone.

“I found him, John,” she says. He lets himself smile for a second,

“The Professor?” he confirms.

“Yes, but you’re not going to like it,” she sighs.

“Where?”

“Seattle.”

Next Dividers by Plum98 & gild-ui rememberwren who proof read and eddited the longest chapter I have ever written. <3

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indigos-stardust · 2 days

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Violet, Blue, And Bruised All Over: Long Talks

Part 1/ Part 2/ Part 3/ Part 4/ Part 5/ Part 6

Note: this has been in my draft for at least 2 weeks, hit a slump and then a hyperfixation couldn't write lol. so this is alot shorter and the drawings wont make as much sense without part like?? 6.5???... but I just wanted to post it cuz I felt bad

Reblogs and comments appreciated <3 I wanna hear y'all's thoughts >:3c

Red and Blue: a deep conversation filled with compassion and vulnerability:

Meanwhile Vio and Green:

(sorry I haven't updated this in a while, real life calls :')

The following days were hell. Red knew how much fights shredded his heart into a bajillion tiny pieces, but really the forced normalcy was so much worse!

The two had gotten an even bigger longer (and honestly ranty) lecture from Green the next day. Red didn't think it really helped much. Like sure they were cowed into NOT biting each other or whatever, but c'mon!

It felt like everyone was mad at everyone else! And even though technically no one was really mad at him, they were all mad at each other which- considering they were all sorta kinda not really the same person? It still felt that way!

Green had gotten really bossy and super serious, and Blue and Vio were just avoiding each other like the plague! Whenever they did come into "an unfortunate proximity" as Vio put it, there wasn't anything but a ton of silent hate! Red really just wanted to curl up into a little hole and die. Well not really! But like, emotionally! Just a bit!

Green kept pushing them to talk about the details, but neither one would talk. Red decided to try asking them one on one, you know, use his charm a bit and soften the edges- But even when he cried it didn't work! Him crying always worked! Especially when he said just the right words in just the right way to softly push them into making a realization.

Red wouldn't really call himself a manipulator in that sense, because hey! He was using his powers for good, right? At least most of the time, anyways. It was a useful way to get out of trouble and get things he wanted...

By why couldn't it work now when he needed it most!!

Vio just treated him like how a parent would to their kid when the kid just, well, asked about death or some hard grownup topic. Like Red just simply wouldn't understand and not to worry about it- But he was worrying! He knew Vio just didn't want him to be sad but still...

Then Blue- Well, Blue was just sad. And a little p*ssed. But it was clear he was just mostly sad. At least when he talked to Red anyways. At first he had been all huffy and insisted that it was all so stupid, so why even bring it up anyways? Because it was "over already!" Which, no that was super stupid of Blue to think, because obviously all their relationships were like super mega sad???

When Red expressed that sentiment though, it seemed to change something in Blue. Blue just closed up and got all quiet. He hated when Blue did that. But it also meant his plan was working. Blue may be a little, uhm, explosive to people and things when he got upset- But really if he was like actually really seriously upset? Then he got all quiet and intense all by himself. But Red knew how to pry all those layers off, even if it was just melting his way though each one of Blue's icy walls, one at a time.

Not even a day later of the guilt obviously devouring Blue inside out, and clearly losing against his ego. (Red knew that's what happened, he probably didn't want to be the "first one to show weakness" and just talk about how his feelings were hurt and acted like he was just all angry and didn't care, but Blue was a big softie and no amount of pouting was gonna change that in Red's eyes.)

They'd been walking to the training yards extremely early in the morning, the sun had barely peeked over the horizon really. In Red's opinion, going all the way to the castle to train in the big professional courtyard before the birds even woke up was probably some sort of crime against humanity. And him. But Red was so close to getting Blue to spill! SO he had to stick with Blue the whole time to make sure his plan would work. He just had to be consistent! Even if... it was at like... Red blearily squinted against the horizon. Five AM? Uegh.

Green was right about those too being similar. But it wasn't just cuz they were so stubborn. More like they were both weirdos that had a vendetta against sleep. Seriously, would it kill Blue to sleep in for five more minutes...

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winged-mammal · 1 year

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I’d heard that all three endings made it clear that aloy was in fact a gay disaster over seyka regardless of your choice, but I hadn’t seen them yet. so naturally when I finished burning shores on ultra hard tonight (go me!), I recorded all three of them.

“I’m not ready for this” (brain) starts at 1:55, “this is too much for me” (fist) starts at 4:12, and “yes, I do” (heart) starts at 6:15

my gay thoughts:

I was not prepared for the “I’m not ready for this” option to be even gayer than the heart/kiss option, but she managed it!!! even the “this is too much for me” scene was, in fact, very gay. I was Not misled.

very juicy character stuff too

not gay but: “for two years my life has been...” ty aloy for clarifying the timeline for me

just prior to the hug in the "I’m not ready for this” scene, when seyka says “I’ll miss you, aloy,” they’re standing pretty close and seyka seems to be thinking about getting that bittersweet smooch anyway:

but after the “I’ll miss you, aloy” prior to the hug in the “this is too much for me” scene, they’re further apart and seyka is *not* contemplating going for it:

but the hug itself is the same in both of those scenes:

and of course the hug at the end of the heart option is much closer (and not seen from aloy’s side)

in conclusion, I have feelings

#god I wish there were another word for the fist option alkdsjflakjsdf #anyway the non-kissy options have some good juicy character stuff #and also I'm sure I'm not breaking any new ground here #but like I said I hadn't seen these collected anywhere #and even if they were #they probably wouldn't conform to my non-negotiable aloy armor requirements #namely that she's covering her VITAL ORGANS #(but also doesn't have a visible headpiece because I always toggle helmet visibility off in every game ever)#(yes that's vaguely hypocritical no I don't care)#hopefully yt's content monitor thing doesn't nuke this #idk how that works #it's fair gay use!!#horizon forbidden west #burning shores #burning shores spoilers #hfw burning shores spoilers #horizon forbidden west spoilers #hmm the list nests in the editor but not in the drafts #what will happen when I hit post? no one knows!!

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hinamie · 13 days

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to moving forward

#my art #jujutsu kaisen #jjk #jjk fanart #jujutsu kaisen fanart #jjk art #yuji itadori #gojo satoru #fushiguro megumi #nobara kugisaki #itadori yuuji #megumi fushiguro #jjk spoilers #satoru gojo #jjk manga spoilers #hina.comic #before any1 says anything i KNOw his birthday is in december ik ik ik this is just 2 show some post-battle bonding after the trauma #its winter in canon n megumi's birthday has passed and he spent it being piloted like a mech so they need to celebrate Now!!#also this was technically a request lmao anon wanted megumi birthday angst hehehehhe i hope u like it <3 bc it KILLED ME DEAD #im going to collapse remember when i said this wasnt harder than the hydrangeas im having second thoughts #page 8 made me want to bash my head in #could have stuck with one flashback image could have left them monochrome could have done literally anything 2 ease the workload #but noooo the chronic overachiever in me would not allow it #rule of threes i had to include all of them and they Had to be in colour it wouldn't have hit the same if i had kept it monochrome #i needed it to look how childhood memories look i needed it to look oversaturated and hazy and fond but unmistakably Gone #it may have killed me but im so proud of this rn like from an art style perspective these megumis and yuujis r top tier by my standards #personal favourites r the first and last panel of crying megumi like not 2 pat myself on th back but expression?????? hello??????#enjoy your cake megumi you've earned it <333 sorry fr hurting ur feelings it will happen again #oh my god i can sleep tonight bless <333 and i met my 3 day deadline NICE im so good at what i do

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piratespencil · 10 months

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This is so funny to me. Reducing them down to their simplest attributes. Turning them into symbols.

#this is some bouba kiki shit #also!! i said this in the tags of another post but i've finally gotten to the point in my op reread where i've hit the moment #when i stopped reading op back in like 2014 #that's almost ten years ago holy shit!!!! wild #i know a lot of what happens in later arcs bc i've been keeping up with the op fandom online #but it's weird to be reading chapters that i've never read before... new and fresh op content #(i stopped reading around chapter 750 btw)#(and this is from the sbs at the end of chapter 757)#one piece #zosan #kk talks about stuff #kk talks about op

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anominous-user · 4 months

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Double Indemnity, Veritas Ratio and Aventurine

This was originally a part of my compilation post as a short analysis on the Double Indemnity references, linking to this great thread by Manya on Twitter. However, I've recently watched the movie and found that the parallels run much deeper than just the mission name and the light cone itself, plus as the short synopsis I've read online. Since there isn't really an in-depth attempt at an analysis on the film in relation to the way Aventurine and Ratio present themselves throughout Penacony, I thought I'd take a stab at doing just that. I will also be bringing up things from Manya's thread as well as another thread that has some extra points.

Disclaimer that I... don't do analyses very often. Or write, in general — I'm someone who likes to illustrate their thoughts (in the artistic sense) more than write. There's just something about these two that makes me want to rip into them so badly, so here we are. If there's anything you'd like to add or correct me on, feel free to let me know in the replies or reblogs, or asks. This ended up being a rather extensive deep dive into the movie and its influences on the pairing, so please keep that in mind when pressing Read More.

There are two distinct layers on display in Ratio and Aventurine's relationship throughout Penacony, which are references to the two most important relationships in the movie — where they act like they hate/don’t know each other, and where they trust each other.

SPOILER WARNING for the entire movie, by the way. You can watch the film for free here on archive.org, as well as follow along with the screenplay here. I will also be taking dialogue and such from the screenplay, and cite quotes from the original novel in its own dedicated section. SPOILER WARNING for the Cat Among Pigeons Trailblaze mission, as well.

CONTENT WARNING FOR MENTIONS OF SUICIDE. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

To start, Double Indemnity (1944) is a film noir by Billy Wilder (and co-written by Raymond Chandler) based on the novel of the same name by James M. Cain (1927). There are stark differences between the movie adaptation and the original novel which I will get into later on in this post, albeit in a smaller section, as this analysis is mainly focused on the movie adaptation. I will talk about the basics (summaries for the movie and the game, specifically the Penacony mission in tandem with Ratio and Aventurine) before diving into the character and scene parallels, among other things.

—

[THE NAME]

The term "double indemnity" is a clause in which if there’s a case of accidental death of a statistically rare variety, the insurance company has to pay out multiple of the original amount. This excludes deaths by murder, suicide, gross negligence, and natural causes.

The part of the mission in Cat Among Pigeons where Ratio and Aventurine meet with Sunday is named after the movie. And before we get further into things, let's get this part out of the way: The Chinese name used in the mission is the CN title of the movie, so there's no liberties taken with the localization — this makes it clear that it’s a nod to the movie and not localization doing its own thing like with the mission name for Heaven Is A Place On Earth (EN) / This Side of Paradise (人间天堂) (CN).

—

[SUMMARY OF THE 1944 MOVIE]

Here I summarised the important parts that will eventually be relevant in the analysis related to the game.

Insurance salesman Walter Neff, wounded from a gunshot, enters his office and confesses his crime on a dictaphone to his boss Barton Keyes, the claims manager. Much earlier, he had met Phyllis Dietrichson, the wife of Mr. Dietrichson and former nurse. Neff had initially wanted to meet Mr. Dietrichson because of car insurance. Phyllis claims her husband is mean to her and that his life insurance goes to his daughter Lola. With Neff seduced by Phyllis, they eventually brew up a scheme to murder Mr. Dietrichson in such a way that they activate the "double indemnity" clause, and the plan goes off almost perfectly. Initially, the death is labeled a suicide by the president of the company, Norton.

Keyes finds the whole situation suspicious, and starts to suspect Phyllis may have had an accomplice. The label on the death goes from accidental, to suicide, to then murder. When it’s ruled that the husband had no idea of the accidental policy, the company refuses to pay. Neff befriends Phyllis’ stepdaughter Lola, and after finding out Phyllis may have played a part in the death of her father’s previous wife, Neff begins to fear for Lola and himself, as the life insurance would go all towards her, not Phyllis.

After the plan begins to unravel as a witness is found, it comes out that Lola’s boyfriend Nino Zachette has been visiting Phyllis every night after the murder. Neff goes to confront Phyllis, intending to kill her. Phyllis has her own plans, and ends up shooting him, but is unable to fire any more shots once she realises she did love him. Neff kills her in two shots. Soon after telling Zachette not to go inside the house, Neff drives to his office to record the confession. When Keyes arrives, Neff tells him he will go to Mexico, but he collapses before he could get out of the building.

—

[THE PENACONY MISSION TIMELINE]

I won’t be summarising the entirety of Aventurine and Ratio’s endeavours from the beginning of their relationship to their final conversation in Heaven Is A Place On Earth the same way as I summarised the plot of the movie, so I will instead present a timeline. Bolded parts means they are important and have clear parallels, and texts that are in [brackets] and italics stand for the names of either the light cone, or the mission names.

[Final Victor] Their first meeting. Ratio’s ideals are turned on its head as he finally meets his match.

Several missions happen in-between their first encounter and the Penacony project. They come to grow so close and trusting with each other that they can guess, understand each other’s thoughts, way of thinking and minds even in high stakes missions. Enough to pull off the Prisoner’s Dilemma (Aventurine’s E1) and Stag Hunt Game (Aventurine’s E6) and come out on top.

Aventurine turns towards Ratio for assisting him in the Penacony project. Ratio's involvement in the project is implied to be done without the knowledge of Jade, Topaz, and the IPC in general, as he was only sent to Penacony to represent the Intelligentsia Guild, and the two other Stonehearts never mention Ratio.

Aventurine and Ratio cook up the plan to deceive Sunday before ever setting foot on Penacony. Aventurine does not tell Ratio the entirety of his plan.

Aventurine convinces Topaz and Jade to trust him with their Cornerstones. Aventurine also breaks his own Cornerstone and hides it along with the jade within a bag of gift money.

[The Youth Who Chase Dreams] They enter Penacony in the Reverie Hotel. Aventurine is taken to the side by Sunday and has all his valuables taken, which includes the gift money that contains the broken aventurine stone, the jade, and the case containing the topaz.

Aventurine and Ratio speak in a “private” room about how Aventurine messed up the plan. After faking an argument to the all-seeing eyes of Sunday, Ratio leaves in a huff.

Ratio, wearing his alabaster head, is seen around Golden Hour in the (Dusk) Auction House by March 7th.

[Double Indemnity] Ratio meets up with Sunday and “exposes” Aventurine to him. Sunday buys his “betrayal”, and is now in possession of the topaz and jade. Note that this is in truth Ratio betraying Sunday all along.

Ratio meets up with Aventurine again at the bar. Ratio tells Aventurine Sunday wants to see him again.

They go to Dewlight Pavilion and solve a bunch of puzzles to prove their worth to Sunday.

They meet up with Sunday. Sunday forces Aventurine to tell the truth using his Harmony powers. Ratio cannot watch on. It ends with Aventurine taking the gift money with his Cornerstone.

[Heaven Is A Place On Earth] They are in Golden Hour. Ratio tries to pry Aventurine about his plan, but Aventurine reins him in to stop breaking character. Ratio gives him the Mundanite’s Insight before leaving. This is their final conversation before Aventurine’s grandest death.

Now how exactly does the word “double indemnity” relate to their mission in-game? What is their payout? For the IPC, this would be Penacony itself — Aventurine, as the IPC ambassador, handing in the Jade Cornerstone as well as orchestrating a huge show for everybody to witness his death, means the IPC have a reason to reclaim the former prison frontier. As for Ratio, his payout would be information on Penacony’s Stellaron, although whether or not this was actually something he sought out is debatable. And Aventurine? It’s highly implied that he seeks an audience with Diamond, and breaking the Aventurine Cornerstone is a one way trip to getting into hot water with Diamond. With Aventurine’s self-destructive behaviour, however, it would also make sense to say that death would be his potential payout, had he taken that path in the realm of IX.

Compared to the movie, the timeline happens in reverse and opposite in some aspects. I will get into it later. As for the intended parallels, these are pretty clear and cut:

Veritas Ratio - Walter Neff

Aventurine - Phyllis Dietrichson

Sunday - Mr. Dietrichson

There is one other character who I feel also is represented in Ratio, but I won’t bring them up until later down the line.

For the sake of this analysis, I won’t be exploring Sunday’s parallel to Mr. Dietrichson, as there isn’t much on Dietrichson’s character in the first place in both the movie and the novel. He just kind of exists to be a bastard that is killed off at the halfway point. Plus, the analysis is specifically hyper focused on the other two.

—

[SO, WHAT’S THE PLAN?]

To make things less confusing in the long run whenever I mention the words “scheme” and “plan”, I will be going through the details of Phyllis and Neff’s scheme, and Aventurine and Ratio’s plan respectively. Anything that happens after either pair separate from another isn’t going to be included. Written in a way for the plans to have gone perfectly with no outside problems.

Phyllis and Neff —> Mr. Dietrichson

Goal: Activate the double indemnity clause by killing Mr. Dietrichson and making it look like a freak train accident

Payout: Twice or more of the face value of the life insurance ($100,000)

Main Actor: Walter Neff | Accomplice: Phyllis Dietrichson

During the entire time until the payout, Phyllis and Neff have to make sure to any outsiders that they look like complete strangers instead of lovers in an affair.

Step-by-step:

Neff convinces Mr. Dietrichson to sign the policy with the clause without him suspecting foul play, preferably with a third party to act as an alibi. This is done discreetly, making Mr. Dietrichson not read the policy closely and being told to just sign.

Neff and Phyllis talk to each other about small details through the phone (specified to be never at Phyllis’ own house and never when Neff was in his office) and in the marketplace only, to make their meetings look accidental. They shouldn’t be seen nor tracked together, after all.

Phyllis asks Mr. Dietrichson to take the train. She will be the one driving him to the train station.

On the night of the murder, after making sure his alibi is airtight, Neff sneaks into their residence and hides in their car in the second row seating, behind the front row passenger seat. He wears the same colour of clothes as Mr. Dietrichson.

Phyllis and Mr. Dietrichson get inside the car — Phyllis in the driver’s seat and Mr. Dietrichson in the passenger seat. Phyllis drives. On the way to the train station, she makes a detour into an alley. She honks the horn three times.

After the third honk, Neff breaks Mr. Dietrichson’s neck. The body is then hidden in the second row seating under a rug.

They drive to the train station. Phyllis helps Neff, now posing as Mr. Dietrichson, onto the train. The train leaves the station.

Neff makes it to the observation platform of the parlour car and drops onto the train tracks when nobody else is there.

Phyllis is at the dump beside the tracks. She makes the car blink twice as a signal.

The two drag Mr. Dietrichson’s corpse onto the tracks.

They leave.

When Phyllis eventually gets questioned by the insurance company, she pretends she has no idea what they are talking about and eventually storms off.

Phyllis and Neff continue to lay low until the insurance company pays out.

Profit!

Actual Result: The actual murder plan goes almost smoothly, with a bonus of Mr. Dietrichson having broken a leg. But with him not filing a claim for the broken leg, a witness at the observation platform, and Zachette visiting Phyllis every night after the murder, Keyes works out the murder scheme on his own, but pins the blame on Phyllis and Zachette, not Neff.

Now for Aventurine and Ratio. You can skip this section if you understand how deep their act goes, but to those who need a refresher, here’s a thorough explanation:

Aventurine and Ratio —> Sunday

Goal: Collect the aventurine stone without Sunday knowing, ruin the dream (and create the grandest death)

Payout: Penacony for the IPC, information on the Stellaron for Ratio, a meeting with Diamond / death for Aventurine

Main Actor: Aventurine | Accomplice: Veritas Ratio

From the moment they step onto Penacony, they are under Sunday’s ever present and watchful eyes. “Privacy” is a foreign word to The Family. They have to act like they don’t like each other’s company the entire time and feed Sunday information through indirect means so that the eventual “betrayal” by Ratio seems truthful to Sunday. Despite what it looks like, they are closer than one would ever think, and Ratio would never sell out a person purely for information.

Step-by-step:

After Sunday takes away the bag of gift money and box, Aventurine and Ratio talk in a room in the Reverie Hotel.

Aventurine establishes the Cornerstones’ importance, and how he lost the gift money and the case containing the Cornerstones to Sunday. Ratio turns to leave, saying “some idiot ruined everything”, meaning the Cornerstones were vital to their plan. (Note that Ratio is not wearing his alabaster head while saying it to said “idiot”.)

Aventurine then proceeds to downplay the importance of the Cornerstones, stating they are “nothing more than a few rocks” and “who cares if they are gone”. This lets Sunday know that something suspicious may be going on for him to act like it’s nothing, and the mention of multiple stones, and leaves him to look up what a Cornerstone is to the Ten Stonehearts of the IPC.

Ratio points out his absurd choice of outfit, mentioning the Attini Peacock and their song.

Ratio implies that without the aventurine stone, he is useless to the IPC. He also establishes that Aventurine is from Sigonia(-IV), and points out the mark on his neck. To Sunday, this means that Aventurine is shackled to the IPC, and how Aventurine may possibly go through extreme lengths to get the stone back, because a death sentence always looms above him.

Aventurine claims Ratio had done his homework on his background, which can be taken that this is their very first time working together. (It isn’t, and it only takes one look to know that Aventurine is an Avgin because of his unique eyes, so this comment does not make sense even in a “sincere” way, a running theme for the interaction.)

Ratio mentions how the true goal is to reclaim Penacony for the IPC, establishing their ulterior motive for attending the banquet.

Ratio asks if Aventurine went to pre-school in Sigonia after saying trust was reliant on cooperation. Aventurine mentions how he didn’t go to school and how he doesn’t have any parents. He even brings up how friends are weapons of the Avgins. This tells Sunday that the Avgins supposedly are good at manipulation and potentially sees Ratio possibly betraying Aventurine due to his carelessness with his “friends”. Sunday would also then research about the Avgins in general (and research about Sigonia-IV comes straight from the Intelligentsia Guild.)

Ratio goes to Dewlight Pavilion in Sunday’s Mansion and exposes a part of Aventurine’s “plan”. When being handed the suitcase, Ratio opens it up due to his apparent high status in the IPC. He tells Sunday that the Cornerstone in the suitcase is a topaz, not an aventurine, and that the real aventurine stone is in the bag of gift money. This is a double betrayal — on Aventurine (who knows) and Sunday (who doesn’t). Note that while Ratio is not officially an IPC member in name — the Intelligentsia Guild (which is run by the IPC head of the Technology Department Yabuli) frequently collaborates with the IPC. Either Aventurine had given him access to the box, or Ratio’s status in general is ambiguous enough for Sunday not to question him further. He then explains parts of Aventurine’s gamble to Sunday in order to sell the betrayal. Note that Ratio does not ever mention Aventurine’s race to Sunday.

Ratio brings Aventurine to Sunday. Aventurine offers help in the investigation of Robin's death, requesting the gift money and the box in return.

Sunday objects to the trade offer. Aventurine then asks for just the bag. A classic car insurance sales tactic. Sunday then interrogates Aventurine, and uses everything Ratio and Aventurine brought up in the Reverie Hotel conversation and their interactions in the Mansion, as well as aspects that Ratio had brought up to Sunday himself.

Aventurine feigns defeat and ignorance enough so that Sunday willingly lets him go with the gift bag. After all is said and done, Aventurine leaves with the gift money, where the Aventurine Cornerstone is stored all along.

Ratio and Aventurine continue to pretend they dislike each other until they go their separate ways for their respective goals and plans. Aventurine would go on to orchestrate his own demise at the hands of Acheron, and Ratio… lurks in the shadows like the owl he is.

Profit!

Actual Result: The plan goes perfectly, even with minor hiccups like Ratio coming close to breaking character several times and Aventurine being sentenced to execution by Sunday.

This is how Sunday uses the information he gathered against Aventurine:

• Sunday going on a tirade about the way Aventurine dresses and how he’s not one to take risks — Ratio’s comment about Aventurine’s outfit being peacock-esque and how he’s “short of a feather or two”. • “Do you own a Cornerstone?” — Ratio talked about the aventurine stone. • “Did you hand over the Cornerstone to The Family when you entered Penacony?” — Aventurine mentioned the box containing the Cornerstones. • “Does the Cornerstone you handed over to The Family belong to you?” — Aventurine specifically pluralized the word Cornerstone and “a bunch of rocks” when talking to Ratio. • “Is your Cornerstone in this room right now?” — The box in the room supposedly contained Aventurine’s own cornerstone, when Aventurine mentioned multiple stones. • “Are you an Avgin from Sigonia?” —Aventurine mentioned that he’s an Avgin, and Ratio brought up Sigonia. • “Do the Avgins have any ability to read, control, and manipulate one’s own or another’s minds?” — Aventurine’s comment on how friends are weapons, as well as Sunday’s own research on the Avgins, leading him to find out about the negative stereotypes associated with them. • “Do you love your family more than yourself?” — His lost parents. “All the Avgins were killed in a massacre. Am I right?” — Based on Sunday’s research into his background. • “Are you your clan’s sole survivor?” — Same as the last point. “Do you hate and wish to destroy this world with your own hands?” — Ratio mentioned the IPC’s goal to regain Penacony, and Aventurine’s whole shtick is “all or nothing”. • “Can you swear that at this very moment, the aventurine stone is safe and sound in this box?” — Repeat.

As seen here, both duos have convoluted plans that involve the deception of one or more parties while also pretending that the relationship between each other isn’t as close as in reality. Unless you knew both of them personally and their histories, there was no way you could tell that they have something else going on.

On to the next point: Comparing Aventurine and Ratio with Phyllis and Neff.

—

[NEFF & PHYLLIS — RATIO & AVENTURINE]

With the short summaries of the movie and the mission out of the way, let’s look at Phyllis and Neff as characters and how Aventurine and Ratio are similar or opposite to them.

Starting off with Aventurine and Phyllis. Here is where they are the most similar:

Phyllis is blonde and described as a provocative woman. Aventurine is also a blond and eyes Ratio provocatively in the Final Victor light cone.

Phyllis was put under surveillance after Keyes starts figuring out that the so-called accidental death/suicide may have been a murder after all. Similarly, Aventurine was watched by Sunday the entire time in Penacony.

Phyllis never tells Neff how she's seeing another man on the side to possibly kill him too (as well as how she was responsible for the death of her husband‘s previous wife). Aventurine also didn't tell Ratio the entirety of his plan of his own death.

Phyllis puts on a somewhat helpless act at first but is incredibly capable of making things go her way, having everything seemingly wrapped around her finger. Aventurine — even when putting on a facade that masks his true motives — always comes out at the top.

Now the differences between Aventurine and Phyllis:

Phyllis does not care about her family and has no issue with killing her husband, his previous wife, and possibly her daughter Lola. Opposite of that, Aventurine is a family man… with no family left, as well as feeling an insane level of survivor’s guilt.

Really, Phyllis just… does not care at all about anyone but herself and the money. Aventurine, while he uses every trick in the book to get out on top, does care about the way Jade and Topaz had entrusted him with their Cornerstones, in spite of the stones being worth their lives.

Phyllis also uses other people to her advantage to get what she wants, often behind other people's backs, with the way she treats Neff and Zachette. Aventurine does as well (what with him making deals with the Trailblazer while also making a deal with Black Swan that involves the Trailblazer). The difference here is Phyllis uses her allure deliberately to seduce men while Aventurine simply uses others as pawns while also allowing others to do the same to himself.

Phyllis makes no attempt at compromising the policy when questioned by Norton. Aventurine ends up compromising by only taking the gift money (which is exactly what he needs).

The wig that Barbara Stanwyck (the actress of Phyllis) wore was chosen to make her look as “sleazy” as possible, make her look insincere and a fraud, a manipulator. A sort of cheapness. Aventurine’s flashy peacock-esque outfit can be sort of seen as something similar, except the outfit isn’t cheap.

Moving on to Ratio’s similarities to Neff… There isn’t much to extrapolate here as Ratio is more of a side character in the grand scheme of Penacony, however this is what I’ve figured out.

Neff has dark hair. Ratio has dark purple hair.

Neff almost never refers to Phyllis by her name when speaking with her, only as “baby”. The few times he refers to her as Phyllis or Mrs. Dietrichson is during their first conversations and when he has to act like he doesn’t know her. Ratio never calls Aventurine by his name when he’s around him — only as “gambler”, sometimes “damned” or “dear” (EN-only) gambler. Only in the Aventurine's Keeping Up With Star Rail episode does Ratio repeatedly say his name, and yet he still calls him by monikers like “gambler” or, bafflingly, a “system of chaos devoid of logic”.

Both Neff and Ratio committed two betrayals: Neff on Mr. Dietrichson and Keyes, and Ratio on Sunday and Aventurine. With the former cases it was to reach the end of the trolley line, and with the latter it was on a man who had put his trust in him.

As for the differences…

Neff is described as someone who’s not smart by his peers. Ratio is someone who is repeatedly idolised and put on a pedestal by other people.

Neff is excellent at pretending to not know nor care for Phyllis whenever he speaks about her with Keyes or when he and she are in a place that could land them in hot water (the office, the mansion when there are witnesses). His acting is on the same level as Phyllis. With Ratio it’s… complicated. While he does pull off the hater act well, he straight up isn’t great at pretending not to care about Aventurine’s wellbeing.

Instead of getting his gunshot wound treated in the hospital like a normal person, Neff makes the absolutely brilliant decision of driving to his office and talking to a dictaphone for hours. Needless to say, this is something a medical doctor like Ratio would never do.

Now here's the thing. Though it's very easy to just look at Phyllis and Neff in the movie and go "okay, Aventurine is Phyllis and Ratio is Neff — end of story" and leave it at that, I find that they both take from the two leads in different ways. Let me explain. Beginning with Aventurine and Neff…

Neff is the one who hatches the plan and encourages Phyllis to go through and claim the double indemnity clause in the first place. He is also the key player of his own risky plan, having to fake being the husband to enter the train as well as fake the death. Aventurine puts himself at great risk just by being in Sunday’s presence, and hoping that Sunday wouldn’t figure out that the green stone he had uncovered wasn’t the aventurine stone.

Adding onto the last point, Neff had fantasised about pulling off the perfect murder for a long time — the catalyst was simply him meeting Phyllis. Aventurine presumably sought out Ratio alone for his plan against Sunday.

Neff makes a roulette wheel analogy and talks about a pile of blue and yellow poker chips (the latter in the script only). I don‘t even have to explain why this is relevant here. (Aventurine’s Ultimate features a roulette wheel and the motif is on his belt, thigh strap, and back, too. And of course, Aventurine is all about his chips.)

Neff has certain ways to hide when he’s nervous, which include hiding his hands in his pockets when they were shaking, putting on glasses so people couldn’t see his eyes. Aventurine hides his left hand behind his back when he’s nervous: Future Aventurine says that "they don't know the other hand is below the table, clutching [his] chips for dear life", and in multiple occasions such as the Final Victor LC, his character trailer, and even in his boss form in the overworld you can see that Aventurine hides his left hand behind his back. And he is also seen with his glasses on sometimes.

Neff says a bunch of stuff to make sure that Phyllis acts her part and does not act out of character (i.e. during their interactions at the market), like how Aventurine repeatedly tries to get Ratio back on track from his subpar acting.

Neff is always one step ahead of the game, and the only reason the plan blows up in his face is due to outside forces that he could not have foreseen (a witness, Keyes figuring out the plan, the broken leg). Aventurine meanwhile plays 5D chess and even with the odds against him, he uses everything he can to come out on the top (i. e. getting Acheron to kill him in the dream).

Even after coming home on the night of the murder, Neff still felt that everything could have gone wrong. Aventurine, with his blessed luck, occasionally wavers and fears everything could go wrong whenever he takes a gamble.

Neff was not put under surveillance by Keyes due to him being extensive with his alibi. After witnessing Robin’s death with eyewitnesses at the scene, the Family had accepted Aventurine’s alibi, though he would be under watch from the Bloodhounds according to Ratio.

Neff talks about the entire murder scheme to the dictaphone. Aventurine during Cat Among Pigeons also retells his plan, albeit in a more convoluted manner, what with his future self and all.

Continuing with Ratio and Phyllis, even with their personalities and motivations being quite different, they do have a few commonalities.

Phyllis was a nurse. Ratio is a medical doctor.

Her name is Greek of origin. Veritas Ratio, though his name is Latin, has Greco-Roman influences throughout his entire character.

The very first scene Phyllis appears in has her wearing a bath towel around her torso. Ratio loves to take baths to clear his mind.

Phyllis was instructed by Neff to be at the market every morning at eleven buying things. Ratio is seen in an auction house with his alabaster head on so no one could recognize him.

Phyllis mostly acts as an accomplice to the scheme, being the one to convince her husband to take the train instead. She is also generally seen only when Neff is involved. Ratio plays the same role as well, only really appearing in the story in relation to Aventurine as well as being the accomplice in Aventurine’s own death. Even him standing in the auction house randomly can be explained by the theory that he and Aventurine had attempted to destabilise Penacony’s economy through a pump and dump scheme.

With these pointers out of the way, let’s take a closer look at select scenes from the film and their relation to the mission and the pair.

—

[THE PHONE CALL — THE REVERIE HOTEL]

Before the murder, there is a scene with a phone call between Phyllis and Neff discussing the plan while Keyes is in the same room as Neff. Neff has to make sure that Keyes doesn’t think of anything of the phone call, so he acts like he’s calling a “Margie”, and says a bunch of stuff that sounds innocent out of context (“Can’t I call you back, ‘Margie’?” “What color did you pick out?” “Navy blue. I like that fine”), but are actually hinting at the real plan all along (the suit that Mr. Dietrichson wears.)

In a roundabout way, the conversation between Ratio and Aventurine in the Reverie Hotel can be seen as the opposite of that scene — with the two talking about their supposed plan out loud on Penacony ground, a place where the Family (and in turn, Sunday) has eyes everywhere. Despite being in a “private” room, they still act like they hate each other while airing out details that really do not make sense to air out if they really did meet the first time in Penacony (which they didn’t — they’ve been on several missions beforehand). It’s almost like they want a secret third person to know what they were doing, instead of trying to be hushed up about it. The TVs in the room that Sunday can look through based on Inherently Unjust Destiny — A Moment Among The Stars, the Bloodhound statue that disappears upon being inspected, the owl clock on the left which side eyes Ratio and Aventurine, all point to that Sunday is watching their every move, listening to every word.

Rewinding back to before the phone call, in one of the encounters at the marketplace where they “accidentally” run into each other, Phyllis talks about how the trip was off. How her husband wouldn’t get on the train, which was vital for their plan, because of a broken leg. All this, while pretending to be strangers by the passersby. You could say that the part where Ratio almost leaves because Aventurine had “ruined the plan” is the opposite of this, as the husband breaking his leg was something they couldn’t account for, while Aventurine “being short of a few feathers” was entirely part of the plan.

—

[QUESTIONING PHYLLIS — THE INTERROGATION]

This section is going to be a little longer as I will cover two scenes in the movie in a more detailed manner — Mr. Dietrichson signing the policy, and Phyllis being questioned — and how they are represented in the Sunday-Aventurine interrogation and the prior conversation between Ratio and Sunday in multitudes of ways.

Going about their plan, Neff has to make sure that Mr. Dietrichson signs the policy with the double indemnity clause without him knowing the details, all the while having Phyllis (and Lola) in the same room. He and Phyllis have to pretend that they don’t know each other, and that this is just the standard accidental insurance process, instead of signing what would be his downfall. To sell it, he gets Mr. Dietrichson to sign two “copies” of the form, except with Mr. Dietrichson’s second signature, he’s duped into signing the accident insurance policy with the respective clause.

You can tie this to how Ratio goes to Sunday in order to “expose” the lie that the suitcase didn’t actually contain the Aventurine Cornerstone, as well as there being more than one Cornerstone involved in the scheme. Ratio must make sure that Sunday truly believes that he dislikes Aventurine’s company, while also making sure that Sunday doesn’t figure out the actual aventurine stone is broken and hidden in the gift bag. The scheme turns out to be successful, as Sunday retrieves the two Cornerstones, but not the aventurine stone, and truly does think that the green stone he has in his possession is the aventurine.

This whole scene with Sunday is also reminiscent of the interrogation scene in the middle of the movie, where Phyllis was questioned by the boss (Norton) who was deducing that Mr. Dietrichson's death was a suicide, not accidental death. Neff, Phyllis, Keyes and Norton were all in the same room, and Neff and Phyllis had to act like they never knew the other. Phyllis acts like she knows nothing about what Norton insinuates about her husband and eventually, Phyllis explodes in anger and storms out the room, even slamming the door. Her act is very believable to any outsider.

Now back to the Ratio and Sunday conversation. One glaring difference between the movie and here is that his acting isn’t great compared to either Phyllis nor Neff. It never was throughout the Penacony mission. He even comes very close to breaking character several times, and is even defending Aventurine in a somewhat aggressive manner during his one-on-one conversation with Sunday, as in he literally tells Sunday to see a shrink. It’s very different from the way he was acting in Herta Space Station — like Ratio cares about Aventurine too much to keep his hands off.

It's also worth pointing out that Neff doesn't speak a word when Phyllis was being interrogated. Similarly, Ratio is silent throughout the entire scene with Sunday and Aventurine, with his only “line” being a “hm”. When Aventurine calls him a wretch to his face, all he does is look to the side. In fact, he can only look at Aventurine when the other isn’t staring back. Almost like him uttering a single word would give them away. Or his acting is terrible when it has to do with Aventurine, as he has no issue doing the same thing in Crown of the Mundane and Divine (Mundane Troubles).

So, Sunday finds out about the Cornerstones and reveals them to Aventurine, and reasons that he cannot give them back to him because Aventurine had lied. Note that in that same scene, Aventurine attempted to use the two murders that had occurred beforehand against Sunday to retrieve his own cornerstone. Similarly, when it was revealed that Mr. Dietrichson did not know about the accident policy and that the so-called “accidental death” was not, in fact, accidental, the insurance company refused to pay out the money.

Unlike the movie, this was all planned, however. The double-crossing by Ratio, the gift money being the only thing required for Aventurine’s real plan. All of it was an act of betrayal against Sunday, in the same manner as the meticulous planning as Mr. Dietrichson’s murder — To sign the policy, get him to take the train, kill him on the way, and to have Neff pose as the husband on the train until the time is right to get off and lay the body on the tracks. A key difference is that they could not have expected their scheme to be busted wide open due to forces outside of their control, while Ratio and Aventurine went straight down the line for the both of them no matter what.

From here on out, we can conclude that the way Ratio and Aventurine present themselves in Penacony to onlookers is in line with Neff and Phyllis.

—

[“GOODBYE, BABY” — FINAL VICTOR]

And now for the (in)famous light cone, Final Victor. The thing that truly kickstarted the Ratio and Aventurine ship in the fanbase, and the partnership between the two in general. It’s a direct reference to the final confrontation between Neff and Phyllis in the movie.

I’ll fire through all the similarities between the two scenes.

During the respective scenes, Aventurine and Phyllis both outsmart their partner one way or the other: Aventurine with his one-sided game of Russian Roulette, and Phyllis hiding her gun underneath the cushions until Neff turned away.

The guns are owned by Phyllis and Aventurine, not Neff and Ratio.

Phyllis couldn’t bring herself to fire any more shots after she realised she truly did love Neff. Ratio could do nothing but watch as Aventurine did what he did — he couldn’t even pull away if the LC animation is anything to go by him struggling as Aventurine firmly keeps the gun to his chest.

Neff says he doesn’t buy (believe) that Phyllis loved him. She then goes “I’m not asking you to buy […]”. The LC description has Aventurine ask Ratio “You don’t believe me?”, while in the LC animation Ratio straight up says “You expect me to believe you?” and Aventurine answering “Why not, doctor/professor?”

The visual composition of the LC and the scene are nearly identical, from the lighting to the posing to the way Aventurine looks at Ratio — Aventurine and Ratio are even wearing different outfits to fit the scene better. The background in the LC is also like the blinders in the movie, just horizontal.

In the shot where Phyllis’ face is more visible, the way she looks at Neff is strikingly like the way provocatively looks at Ratio. Even their eyes have a visible shine — Phyllis’ eyes brightly shining the moment she realised she really fell in love with Neff, and Aventurine having just a little light return to his eyes in that specific moment.

And now the differences!

Neff holds the gun in his right hand. Aventurine makes Ratio hold his gun in his left.

Neff is the one who takes the gun from Phyllis‘ hand. Aventurine is the one who places the gun in Ratio’s hand and fires it.

Three gunshots are fired. In the movie, Phyllis shoots the first shot and Neff the second and third. Aventurine unloads the gun and leaves only one bullet for this game of Russian Roulette. He pulls the trigger three times, but they all turn out to be blanks.

Phyllis does not break her façade of not smiling until the very last moment where she gets shot. Aventurine is smiling the entire time according to the light cone description, whilst in the animation, it’s only when he guides the gun to his chest that he puts it on.

So, you know how Neff meets Phyllis and it all goes off the rails from there. The way Neff goes from a decent guy to willingly involve himself in a murder scheme, having his morals corrupted by Phyllis. His world having been turned upside down the moment he lays eyes on Phyllis in that first meeting. Doesn’t that sound like something that happened with the Final Victor LC? Ratio, a man all about logic and rationality — a scholar with eight PhDs to his name — all of that is flipped on its head the moment Aventurine pulls out his gun in their first meeting and forces Ratio to play a game of Russian roulette with him. Aventurine casually gambles using his own life like it’s nothing and seemingly without fear (barring his hidden left hand). All or nothing — and yet Aventurine comes out alive after three blanks. Poetic, considering there’s a consumable in the game called “All or Nothing” which features a broken chess piece and a poker chip bound together by a tie. The poker chip obviously represents the gambler, but the chess piece specifically stands for Ratio because he plays chess in his character trailer, his Keeping Up With Star Rail episode and his introduction is centred around him playing chess with himself. Plus, the design of the chess piece has golden accents, similar to his own chess set. In the end, Aventurine will always be the final victor.

Furthermore, Neff had deduced that Phyllis wanted to kill her husband and initially wanted no part in it, but in a subsequent visit it was his own idea that they trigger the double indemnity clause for more money. As the movie progresses though, he starts to have his doubts (thanks in part to him befriending Lola) and makes the move to kill Phyllis when everything starts to come to light. It’s strikingly similar to how Ratio initially wanted no part in whatever Aventurine had in mind when they first met, but in the subsequent missions where they were paired up, he willingly goes along with Aventurine's risky plans, and they come to trust each other. Enough so that Aventurine and Ratio can go to Penacony all on their own and put on an act, knowing that nobody in the IPC other than them can enter the Dreamscape. The mutual respect grew over time, instead of burning passionately before quickly fizzling out like in the movie.

Basically, in one scene, three shots (blanks) start a relationship, and in the other, it ends a relationship. In the anan magazine interview with Aventurine, he says himself that “form[ing] an alliance with just one bullet” with Ratio was one of his personal achievements. The moment itself was so impactful for both parties that it was immortalised and turned into a light cone.

—

[THE ENDING — GOLDEN HOUR]

The ending of Double Indemnity that made it into the final cut has Neff continue his confession on the dictaphone until he realised that he wasn’t alone in the room. Keyes had come inside at some point, but none had said a thing, only listening to a dead man speak of his crime. When Neff sees Keyes, they talk for a moment, Neff says he plans on fleeing to Mexico. Keyes does not think he will make it. He tries to leave, only to collapse at the front of the elevator, Keyes following just behind him. Neff attempts to light a cigar but is too weak to do so, so Keyes does it for him.

Parts of the ending can still be attributed to the interrogation scene between Sunday and Aventurine, so I’ll make this quick before moving on to the conversation in Heaven Is A Place On Earth, Ratio and Aventurine’s final conversation together. Once Sunday mentions how quickly Aventurine gave up the suitcase, he inflicts the Harmony’s consecration on him, which forces Aventurine to confess everything that Sunday asks of. In a way, it’s the opposite of what happens in the movie — where Neff willingly tells the truth about the murder to his coworker. Aventurine does not like Sunday, and Neff is close to Keyes. Ratio also does not speak, similarly to how Keyes didn’t speak and stood silently off to the side.

Post-interrogation in Golden Hour, Ratio worriedly prods at Aventurine and asks him about his plan. He then gives him the Mundanite’s Insight with the Doctor’s Advice inside when Aventurine tells him to leave. Throughout Heaven Is A Place On Earth, Aventurine gets weaker and his head starts to buzz, until he falls to the ground before he can hand in the final gems. Similarly, Neff progressively grows weaker as he records his confession. Keyes says he’s going to call a doctor and Neff says he’s planning to go to Mexico. And when Neff collapses near the elevator, they talk one final time and Keyes lights Neff’s cigar as the other was too weak to do so himself.

—

[OPPOSITE TIMELINES AND DEVELOPMENTS]

Remember how I said the way certain events happen in the movie and the game are mostly opposite and reverse of one another?

The Final Victor LC is the first meeting of Ratio and Aventurine, and Neff killing Phyllis is their final meeting.

Between that first and last meeting between Phyllis and Neff’s whirlwind romance, their relationship becomes strained which ultimately leads to Neff not trusting whatever Phyllis has to say at the end point of the movie. As for Ratio and Aventurine, the exact opposite had happened, to the point where Ratio trusts Aventurine enough to go along with his plans even if they went against his own ideals. The basis of the mission involved Veritas Ratio, whose full name includes the Latin word for “truth”, lying the entire time on Penacony.

Aventurine is sentenced to the gallows by Sunday after his unwilling interrogation. The movie starts and ends with Neff willingly confessing everything to Keyes.

It bears repeating, but I have to make it so clear that the trust between Ratio and Aventurine runs incredibly deep. Being able to predict what your partner says and thinks and plans in a mission as critical as the Penacony project is not something first-time co-workers can pull off flawlessly. All the while having to put on masks that prevent you from speaking sincerely towards one another lest you rat yourselves out. You have no way of contacting outside reinforcements from within Penacony, as the rest of the IPC are barred from entering. To be able to play everybody for fools while said fools believe you yourselves have handed your case on a silver platter requires a lot — trust, knowledge of the other, past experience, and so on. With Phyllis and Neff, the trust they had had been snuffed out when Neff grew closer to Lola and found out what kind of person Phyllis truly was on the inside. Phyllis did not trust nor love Neff enough and was going behind his back to meet with Zachette to possibly take Neff and Lola out. And the whole reason Neff wanted to perpetrate the murder was due to him being initially taken by Phyllis' appearance, which single handedly got the ball rolling on the crime.

Now then, how come trust is one of the defining aspects of Aventurine and Ratio’s relationship, when Phyllis and Neff’s trust eventually lead to both their deaths at the hands of the other? Sure, this can be explained away with the opposite theory, but there’s one other relationship involving Neff which I haven’t brought up in excruciating detail yet. The other side of Ratio and Aventurine’s relationship.

—

[NEFF & KEYES — AVENTURINE & RATIO]

Here is where it gets more interesting — while Phyllis and Neff are at the centre point of the movie, there is another character to whom Neff has a close relationship with — Keyes. It’s also the only relationship with no pretences, at least, until the whole murder thing happened and Neff had to hide his involvement from Keyes. Watching the movie, I couldn't help but feel there was something more to the two than meets the eye. I knew that queer readings of the film existed, but I didn't think too much of them until now. And though Aventurine and Ratio parallel Phyllis and Neff respectively, the fact that they also have traits of their opposite means that it wouldn’t be completely out of the question if parts of their relationship were also influenced by Keyes and Neff on a deeper and personal level. Let me explain.

Keyes and Neff were intimate friends for eleven years and have shown mutual respect and trust towards one another. They understood each other on a level not seen with Phyllis and Neff. Even after hearing Neff confess his crimes through the dictaphone (and eventually standing in the same room while Neff confessed), he still cared for the other man, and stayed with him when Neff collapsed at the front door. The only reason Keyes hadn’t deduced that it was Neff who was behind the murder was because he had his absolute trust in him. Keyes is also Neff’s boss, and they are always seen exchanging playful banter when they are on screen together. Neff even says the words “I love you, too” twice in the movie — first at the beginning and second at the end, as the final line. There’s also the persistent theme of Neff lighting Keyes’ cigarettes (which happens in every scene where they are face-to-face), except in the end where it’s Keyes who lights Neff’s.

Doesn’t that sound familiar? Mutual respect, caring too much about the other person, the immense amount of trust… Ratio says he’s even the manager of the Penacony project (which may or may not be a lie), and despite their banter being laced with them acting as “enemies”, you can tell that in Dewlight Pavilion pre-Sunday confrontation that Aventurine genuinely likes Ratio’s company and believes him to be a reliable person. From the way he acts carefree in his words to the thoughts in his head, as seen in the mission descriptions for Double Indemnity. Their interactions in that specific mission are possibly the closest thing to their normal way of speaking that we get to see on Penacony.

Not to mention, this is the way Neff describes Keyes. He even says (not in the script) “you never fooled me with your song and dance, not for a second.” Apart from the line about the cigar ashes, doesn’t this ring a bell to a certain doctor? “Jerk” with a heart of gold?

After solving the puzzle with the statues, Ratio jokingly offers Aventurine to join the Genius Society. Aventurine then goes "Really? I thought you’ve given up on that already", and then Ratio says it was, in fact, a joke. Solving the puzzle through brute force has Ratio telling Aventurine that the Council of Mundanites (which Ratio himself is a part of) should consider him a member. In the movie, where the scene with the phone call with Neff and Phyllis reiterating details of their plan happens, Keyes actually offered Neff a better job (specifically a desk job, as Keyes’ assistant). The two pairs saw the other as smart, equals, and were invested in each other’s careers one way or another.

Because of all this, the character parallels for this side of the relationship are as follows:

Aventurine - Walter Neff

Veritas Ratio - Barton Keyes

With the way I’ve talked about how Aventurine and Ratio take from both leads in terms, it does fit to say that Aventurine is Neff, and Ratio is Keyes in this layer of their relationship. Since we’re on the topic of Keyes, let me also go through some similarities with him and Ratio specifically.

Keyes says the words “dimwitted amateurs” in his first on-screen conversation with Neff. You can’t have Dr. Ratio without him talking about idiocy in some way.

Keyes almost only appears in the movie in relation to Neff, and barring a single interaction in Neff’s house, is also only seen in the office. Same with Phyllis, Ratio also only ever appears regarding Aventurine.

Keyes genuinely wanted the best for Neff, even offering to celebrate with him when he thought the case truly had been busted wide open by forces when Zachette entered the picture. You could say the same for Ratio, as he hoped that Aventurine wouldn’t dwell on the past according to his response on Aventurine’s Interview, as well as telling him to “stay alive/live on (CN)” and wishing him the best of luck in his Doctor’s Advice note.

Whether or not you believe that there was more going on with Neff and Keyes is up to you, but what matters is that the two were very close. Just like Ratio and Aventurine.

—

[THE ORIGINAL FILM ENDING]

Something that I hadn’t seen brought up is the original ending of Double Indemnity, where Neff is executed in a gas chamber while Keyes watches on, shocked, and afterwards leaves somberly. The ending was taken out because they were worried about the Hays Code, but I felt it was important to bring it up, because in a way, you can kind of see the Sunday interrogation scene as Sunday sending Aventurine to his death in seventeen system hours. And Ratio doesn’t speak at all in that scene, and Keyes doesn’t either according to the script.

Another thing that’s noteworthy is that Wilder himself said “the story was about the two guys” in Conversations with Wilder. The two guys in question are Keyes and Neff.

—

[THE NOVEL]

With the original film ending covered, now it is time to bring up the novel by James M. Cain. I bought the book just to read about the differences between the adaptation and the original source material, and to list a few more similarities and opposites I could gather. For this section alone, due to the changes in the (last) names of certain characters, I will be referring to Walter Huff (Neff in the movie) as Walter, and Mr. Dietrichson as Nirdlinger. The plot is pretty much the same as the movie’s apart from a couple of changes so there isn’t a need to recount everything.

From my two read-throughs of the novel, these are the following passages that stood out to me the most. Starting with Aventurine:

Walter, as a top businessman of the company, knows how to sway a deal and to get what he truly wants with what the other gives him. Aventurine is the same, reliant on his intuition, experience and whatever information he has on the table to claim the win. Him luring out Sparkle in Heaven Is A Place On Earth and his conversation with Acheron in the Nihility is indicative of that.

• "But you sell as many people as I do, you don't go by what they say. You feel it, how the deal is going. And after a while I knew this woman didn't care anything about the Automobile Club. Maybe the husband did, but she didn't. There was something else, and this was nothing but a stall. I figured it would be some kind of a proposition to split the commission, maybe so she could get a ten-spot out of it without the husband knowing. There's plenty of that going on. And I was just wondering what I would say to her."

Phyllis, like in the movie, had been hiding her true intentions of talking to Walter in their first conversations, always saying things that she didn’t actually mean. In a similar vein, Aventurine consistently says stuff but almost never truly means any of it, which is all part of his façade.

• "And I could feel it again, that she wasn't saying what she meant. It was the same as it was the first afternoon I met her, that there was something else, besides what she was telling me. And I couldn't shake it off, that I had to call it on her."

When discussing the murder plan with Phyllis, Walter makes this comment, kind of like how Aventurine seems to operate in a way where he has a plan, but is ready to improvise and think fast when needed.

• "And then it's one of those things where you've got to watch for your chance, and you can't plan it in advance, and know where you're going to come out to the last decimal point."

Remember the roulette wheel line from the movie? In the novel, the gambling metaphor that Walter makes about the insurance business goes on for two paragraphs, mentioning a gambling wheel, stack of chips, a place with a big casino and the little ivory ball, even about a bet on the table. Walter also talks about how he thinks of tricks at night after being in the business for so long, and how he could game the system. Needless to say, insanely reminiscent of Aventurine.

• "You think I’m nuts? All right, maybe I am. But you spend fifteen years in the business I’m in, and maybe a little better than that, it’s the friend of the widow, the orphan, and the needy in time of trouble? It’s not. It’s the biggest gambling wheel in the world. It don’t look like it, but it is, from the way they figure the percentage on the oo to the look on their face when they cash your chips. You bet that your house will burn down, they bet it won’t, that’s all. What fools you is that you didn’t want your house to burn down when you made the bet, and so you forget it’s a bet. To them, a bet is a bet, and a hedge bet don’t look any different than any other bet. But there comes a time, maybe, when you do want your house to burn down, when the money is worth more than the house. And right there is where the trouble starts." • "Alright, I’m an agent. I’m a croupier in that game. I know all their tricks, I lie awake thinking up tricks, so I’ll be ready for them when they come at me. And then one night I think up a trick, and get to thinking I could crook the wheel myself if I could only put a plant out there to put down my bet." • "I had seen so many houses burned down, so many cars wrecked, so many corpses with blue holes in their temples, so many awful things that people had pulled to crook the wheel, that that stuff didn’t seem real to me anymore. If you don’t understand that, go to Monte Carlo or some other place where there’s a big casino, sit at a table, and watch the face of the man that spins the little ivory ball. After you’ve watched it a while, ask yourself how much he would care if you went out and plugged yourself in the head. His eyes might drop when he heard the shot, but it wouldn’t be from the worry whether you lived or died. It would be to make sure you didn’t leave a bet on the table, that he would have to cash for your estate. No, he wouldn’t care."

Returning home from the murder, Walter attempted to pray, but was unable to do it. Some time passed and after speaking to Phyllis, he prayed. Aventurine presumably hadn’t done the prayer ever since the day of the massacre, and the first time he does it again, he does it with his child self.

• "I went to the dining room and took a drink. I took another drink. I started mumbling to myself, trying to get so I could talk. I had to have something to mumble. I thought of the Lord's Prayer. I mumbled that, a couple of times. I tried to mumble it another time, and couldn't remember how it went." • "That night I did something I hadn’t done in years. I prayed."

Phyllis in the book is much more inclined towards death than her movie version, even thinking of herself as a personification of death. She’s killed ten other people (including infants) prior to the events of the novel. Something to keep in mind as Aventurine had mentioned several times that he attempted to kill himself in the dream, plus his leadup to his “grandest death”. Just like Phyllis, he’s even killed at least a few people before, though the circumstances of that were less on his own volition and more so for the sake of his survival (i.e. the death game in the maze involving the 34 other slaves where he was the winner and another time where he murdered his own master). Instead of Phyllis playing the active role of Death towards everybody else, Aventurine himself dances with Death with every gamble, every time his luck comes into play. Danse Macabre.

• "But there’s something in me, I don’t know what. Maybe I’m crazy. But there’s something in me that loves Death. I think of myself as Death, sometimes." • "Walter, The time has come. For me to meet my bridegroom [Death]. The only one I ever loved."

Moving on to Ratio:

Walter says several times that it’s hard to get along with Keyes, and how he says nice things after getting you all worked up. A hard-headed man to get along with, but damn good at his job. Sound like someone familiar?

• "That would be like Keyes, that even when he wanted to say something nice to you, he had to make you sore first." • "It makes your head ache to be around him, but he’s the best claim man on the Coast, and he was the one I was afraid of."

Keyes sees Walter as smarter than half the fools in the company. Ratio can only stand the company of Aventurine in regards to the IPC.

• "Walter, I'm not beefing with you. I know you said he ought to be investigated. I've got your memo right here on my desk. That's what I wanted to tell you. If other departments of this company would show half the sense that you show—" • "Oh, he confessed. He's taking a plea tomorrow morning, and that ends it. But my point is, that if you, just by looking at that man, could have your suspicions, why couldn't they—! Oh well, what's the use? I just wanted you to know it."

After going on a rant about the H.S. Nirdlinger case (Phyllis’ husband) and how Norton is doing a horrible job, he ends it by saying that it’s sheer stupidity. “Supreme idiocy”, anybody?

• "You can’t take many body blows like this and last. Holy smoke. Fifty thousand bucks, and all from dumbness. Just sheer, willful, stupidity!"

Phyllis’ former occupation as a nurse is more elaborated on, including her specialization — pulmonary diseases. One of Ratio’s crowning achievements is curing lithogenesis, the “King of Diseases”.

• "She’s one of the best nurses in the city of Los Angeles. […] She’s a nurse, and she specialized in pulmonary diseases. She would know the time of crisis, almost to a minute, as well as any doctor would."

As for the murder scheme, they talk about it a lot more explicitly in the novel. Specifically, Walter mentions how a single person cannot get away with it and that it requires more people to be involved. How everything is known to the party committing the crime, but not the victim. And most importantly: Audacity.

"Say, this is a beauty, if I do say it myself. I didn't spend all this time in the business for nothing, did I? Listen, he knows all about this policy, and yet he don't know a thing about it. He applies for it, in writing, and yet he don't apply for it. He pays me for it with his own check, and yet he don't pay me. He has an accident happen to him and yet he don't have an accident happen to him. He gets on the train, and yet he don't get on it."

"The first is, help. One person can't get away with it, that is unless they're going to admit it and plead the unwritten law or something. It takes more than one. The second is, the time, the place, the way, all known in advance—to us, but not him. The third is, audacity. That's the one that all amateur murderers forget. They know the first two, sometimes, but that third, only a professional knows. There comes a time in any murder when the only thing that can see you through is audacity, and I can't tell you why."

"And if we want to get away with it, we've got to do it the way they do it, […]" "Be bold?" "Be bold. It's the only way."

"I still don't know—what we're going to do." "You'll know. You'll know in plenty of time."

"We were right up with it, the moment of audacity that has to be be part of any successful murder."

It fits the situation that Aventurine and Ratio find themselves in extremely well: For the first point— Aventurine would not be able to get away with simply airing out details by himself, as that would immediately cast suspicion on him. Having another person accompany him who not only isn’t really a part of the IPC in name (as the IPC and The Family have a strenuous relationship) but would probably be able to get closer to Sunday because of that means they can simply bounce off each other without risking as much suspicion with a one-man army. Which is exactly what Ratio and Aventurine do in the conversations they have on Penacony. Secondly — they knew how Sunday operates: as a control freak, he leaves no stone unturned, which is how he became Head of the Oak Family, so their acting required them to give off the impression that a. they hated each other, b. Ratio would go against Aventurine’s wishes and expose him in return for knowledge, c. there were only the two Cornerstones that were hidden. This would give Sunday the illusion of control, and lead to Sunday to lower his guard long enough for Aventurine to take the gift money in the end. The pair knew this in advance, but not Sunday. And thirdly — the plan hinged on a high-level of risk. From breaking the Aventurine Cornerstone, to hoping that Sunday wouldn’t find it in the gift bag, to not telling Ratio what the true plan is (meaning Ratio had to figure it out on his own later on), to Sunday even buying Ratio’s story, it was practically the only way they could go about it. “Charming audacity”, indeed.

An interesting aspect about the novel is that the ending of the novel is divergent from the movie’s final cut and the original ending: Phyllis and Walter commit suicide during a ferry ride to Mexico. The main reason this was changed for the movie was because of the Hays Code, and they wouldn’t allow a double suicide to be screened without reprecussions for criminals. There’s also a bunch of other aspects that differentiate the novel from the movie (no narration-confession as the confession happens in a hospital, less characterization for Keyes and instead a bigger focus on Lola and her boyfriend, the focus on the murderous aspect of Walter and Phyllis’ relationship instead of actual romance, Walter falling in love with Lola (with an unfortunately large age gap attached), etc.)

As for the ending, this wouldn’t even be the first romance media reference related to Aventurine and Ratio where both the leads die, with the other being The Happy Prince and San Junipero (in relation to the EN-only Heaven Is A Place On Earth reference), which I normally would chalk up as a coincidence, though with the opposite line-of-thought I have going on here (and the fact that it’s three out of four media references where the couple die at the end…), I think it’s reasonable to say that Ratio and Aventurine will get that happy ending. Subverting expectations, hopefully.

—

[THE HAYS CODE — LGBT CENSORSHIP IN CHINA]

I’ve brought up the Hays code twice now in the previous two sections, but I haven’t actually explained what exactly it entails.

The Hays Code (also known as the Motion Picture Production Code) is a set of rules and guidelines imposed on all American films from around 1934 to 1968, intended to make films less scandalous, morally acceptable and more “safe” for the general audiences. Some of the “Don’ts” and “Be Carefuls” include but are not limited to…

(Don’t) Pointed profanity

(Don’t) Inference of sex perversion (which includes homosexuality)

(Don’t) Nudity

(Be Careful) Sympathy for criminals

(Be Careful) Use of firearms

(Be Careful) Man and woman in bed together

What does this have to do with a Chinese gacha game released in 2023? If you know a little bit about miHoYo’s past, you would know that pre-censorship laws being upheld to a much stronger and stricter degree, they had no problem showcasing their gay couples in Guns Girl Z (Honkai Gakuen 2/GGZ) and Honkai Impact 3rd, with the main three being Bronya/Seele, Kiana/Mei (admittedly the latter one is a more recent example, from 2023), and Sakura/Kallen. Ever since the Bronya and Seele kiss, censorship in regards to LGBT content ramped up, causing the kiss to be removed on the CN side, and they had to lay low with the way they present two same-sex characters who are meant to be together. They can’t explicitly say that two female or male characters are romantically involved, but they can lace their dynamics with references for those “in the know” — Subtext. Just enough to imply something more but not too much that they get censored to hell and back.

So what I’m getting at is this: The trouble that Double Indemnity had to go through in order to be made while also keeping the dialogue of Phyllis and Neff as flirtatious as they could under the Hays Code among other things is quite similar to the way Ratio and Aventurine are presented as of now. We never see them interact outside of Penacony (at least up until 2.2, when this post was drafted), so we can only infer those interactions specifically until they actually talk without the fear of being found out by Sunday. But, there’s still some small moments scattered here and there, such as when Aventurine goes near Ratio in the Dewlight Pavilion Sandpit, he exclaims that “the view here is breathtaking” (he can only see Ratio’s chest from that distance) and that Ratio could “easily squash [him] with just a pinch”. Ratio then goes “If that is your wish, I will do so without a moment’s hesitation.” Not to mention the (in)famous “Doctor, you’re huge!” quote.

It’s not a coincidence that Ratio and Aventurine have three explicit references to romance media (Double Indemnity, Spellbound, Oscar Wilde’s The Happy Prince), possibly even four if you take the EN-only Heaven Is A Place On Earth as a reference to Black Mirror’s San Junipero. It’s not a coincidence that the storylines or characters of said references parallel the pairing, from surface-level to deep cuts. It’s not a coincidence that the CN voice actors were asked to “tone it down” by the voice director when it came to their chemistry. It’s not a coincidence that Aventurine has only flirted with (three) men throughout Penacony, even referring to a Bloodhound NPC as a “hunk of a man” inside his thoughts, all the while ignoring Himeko and Robin when it came to their looks — women who are known across the cosmos with a myriad of adoring fans. There are so many other so-called “coincidences” related to the two that you could make an iceberg just based on versions 2.0-2.2 as well as content miHoYo themselves have put out on social media. They absolutely knew what they were doing, and were trying to get their point across through subtle means — the extent they went to with the Double Indemnity reference while also keeping it under wraps from a “surface” level point of view is proof of this — the implications are there if you take the time to look for them, and are simply hard to ignore or deny once you do find them.

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[CONCLUSION]

This was supposed to be short considering the other analyses I’ve seen were also pretty short in comparison, but I couldn’t get the movie out of my head and ended up getting carried away in the brainrot. I hope you could follow along with my line of thinking, even with the absurd length of this post, and the thirty-image limit. I tried to supplement context with some links to videos and wiki pages among other sources wherever I can to get around it.

I will end it with this though — the love in the movie turned out to be fake and a farce, going off track from what was a passionate romance in the beginning because of the murder scheme. Meanwhile, the whole reason why Ratio and Aventurine can pull off whatever they want is because of their immense trust in one another. What was initially shown to be distrust in the Final Victor LC grew into something more, for Ratio, someone who would have never put faith into mere chance and probability before this, put his trust in Aventurine, of all people.

TL;DR — (I get it, it’s over ten thousand words.)

Not only is the relationship between Neff and Phyllis represented in the deception and acting side of Ratio and Aventurine, but the real and trusting side is shown in Neff and Keyes. They have a fascinating, multi-layered dynamic that is extremely fun to pick apart once you realise what’s going on underneath the bickering and “hatred” they display.

Many thanks to Manya again for making the original thread on the movie. I wouldn’t be here comparing the game and movie myself if it weren’t for that.

By the way, I really do believe that Shaoji totally watched this movie at least once and really wanted that Double Indemnity AU for his OCs. I know exactly how it feels.

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Other points I'd like to mention that didn't fit anywhere else in the main analysis and/or don’t hold much significance, have nothing to do with the Penacony mission, or may even be considered reaching (...if some of the other points weren’t). Just some potentially interesting side bits.

Phyllis honks three times to signal Neff to go for the kill. That, and the three gunshots in the confrontation. Aventurine is all about the number three.

The height difference Aventurine and Ratio have going on is close to Phyllis and Neff’s.

Phyllis had killed her husband’s previous wife and went on to marry Mr. Dietrichson, pretty much taking the wife’s place. Aventurine killed his previous master, and had taken certain attributes from him like his wristwatch and the rings on his hand and the “all or nothing” mantra.

When calling Ratio a wretch (bastard), Aventurine smiles for a moment. This is exclusive to the EN, KR and JP voiceovers, as in CN, he does not smile at all. (Most definitely a quirk from the AI they use for lip syncing, but the smile is something that’s been pointed out quite a few times so I thought I’d mention it here.)

Sunday specifically says in the CN version that he knew of Aventurine's plans the moment Aventurine left the mansion, meaning that he realized he had been played the fool the moment Ratio and Aventurine talked in Golden Hour

In the description for the "All or Nothing" consumable, teenage Aventurine says this specific line: "Temptation is a virtue for mortals, whereas hesitation proves to be a fatal flaw for gamblers." According to Ratio, this is Aventurine's motto - he says as such in Aventurine's Keeping Up With Star Rail episode. Note that in the anan interview he explicitly says he does not have a motto, and yet Ratio in the video says otherwise. They definitely have to know each other for a while for Ratio to even know this.

A big reason why Neff even pulled off the murder scheme in the first place was because he wanted to see if his good friend Keyes could figure it out, the Mundane Troubles Trailblaze Continuance showcases Ratio attempting to teach the Herta Space Station researches a lesson to not trust the Genius society as much as they did.

In Keyes’ first scene he’s exposing a worker for writing a policy on his truck that he claimed had burnt down on its own, when he was the one who burnt it down. Ratio gets into an Ace Attorney-style argument with the Trailblazer in Mundane Troubles.

Neff talks repeatedly about how it won’t be sloppy. Nothing weak. And how it’ll be perfect to Phyllis, and how she’s going to do it and he’s going to help her. Doing it right — “straight down the line”. Beautifully ironic, considering what happens in the movie, and even more ironic as Ratio and Aventurine’s scheme went exactly the way they wanted to in the end. Straight down the line.

#honkai star rail #double indemnity #veritas ratio #aventurine #golden ratio #ratiorine #an attempt at analysis by one a-u #relationship analysis #you know what‚ i guess i can tag the other names of this ship #aventio #raturine #you could make a fucking tierlist of these names #um‚ dynamics (yk what i mean) dont really matter here in the analysis just fyi if youre wondering its general enough #also if you're wondering about the compilation thread - its not done. it'll take a while (a long while.)#this post was so long it was initially just a tumblr draft that i then put into google docs. and it ended up being over 2k+ words long #is this a research paper‚ thesis‚ or essay? who knows! this just started as just a short analysis after watching the movie on may 5 #final word count according to docs (excluding alt text): 13013 - 43 pages with formatting #i wish i could have added more images to this‚ 10k words vs 30 images really is not doing me any favours…#plus‚ i hit the character limit for alt text for one of the images.#if you see me mixing up british and american spelling‚ you probably have!#oh yeah. if any of the links happen to break at some point. do tell. i have everything backed up #there also may be multiple links strung together‚ just so you know.#I link videos using the EN and CN voiceovers. Just keep that in mind if the jump between two languages seems sudden.#I had to copy and paste this thing from the original tumblr draft onto a new post because tumblr wouldn't let me edit the old one anymore.#Feels just like when I was finalising my song comic…#(Note: I had to do this three times.)#I started this at May 5 as a way to pass the time before 2.2. You can probably tell how that turned out.#Did you know there is a limit to the amount of links you can add to a single tumblr post? It's 100. I hit that limit as well.#So if you want context for some of these parts... just ask.#I'm gonna stop here before I hit the tag limit (30) as well LMAOO (never mind I just did.)

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