#why does the antagonist in the ring feel the need to hurt others- innocent people

[taldigi]

You like Five Nights at Freddy's? I thought you hated horror?

Yes.

[xiidra]

Jerk.

I hope you’ll like this story. Sorry if my writing is not to your liking and I’m still new to the whole writing thing. 

Pairing: Tsukishima Kei x Reader

Warnings: None

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  I watch as the leaves are carried by the wind to someplace else, a cool breeze slips through the small gap by the window and hits my warm skin. I let out a long sigh through my nose, tuning out the crowded classroom that's filled with students talking to each other.

  Today's start is going smoothly, nothing but the chattering sounds of people and the chirps of the morning birds around the place. Even though it's quite crowded in the classroom, I can feel at peace.

  The sound of the door sliding open takes my attention, and I avert my eyes from the window to check who it is. A tall, short blond-haired boy walks into the room, his hands shoved into the pockets of his pants, and a headphone hangs around his neck.

  His golden-brown eyes land on my (Y/E/C) hues, the edges of my lips twitch in irritation at the eye contact we're making. A smug grin plastered on his lips, and he makes his way to his seat behind me, his eyes never left mine.

  "I see that the great (Y/N) has arrived at school earlier than she used to. Have you finally come to your senses that you need to be on time to go to school?"

  "Shut your damn mouth, four eyes."

  I watch the outside world through the window; a scowl crept up to my face after what Tsukishima said.

  My name is quite popular among the teachers and students at Karasuno because of how late I can be when it comes to school. A lot of teachers complained about it, but they're still content with the scores I got when I take quizzes or tests. Sure, I like to sleep a lot through the lectures and the studies, but it's because I prefer to study by myself using my way. It's easier to understand.

  "Did I hurt your feelings?" I can sense the smug grin on Tsukishima's face goes more extensive, and his presence is quite close to me. I grit my teeth holding back the anger that's starting to boil because of him.

   Tsukishima Kei annoys me and shoots remarks at me on everything that I do. There was this one time where I'm alone in the classroom, and he acted as if I'm a low-life person with no friends. From that point on, I start to dislike him day by day, even to the point I almost hate and despise him.

  I never did anything to him to make him annoy me all the time. School is already a living hell, but with Tsukishima in it, it's more than hell for me.

  "You know, I wish I can sew that mouth of yours so that I can be at peace."

  "Unfortunately for you, you can't do that."

  I flash him a fake smile over my shoulder, brows still furrowed in anger before I face to the front of the class. The teacher has walked in, and I didn't hear the sound of the door slide open because of the conversation I had with Tsukishima.

  "Alright, we'll have a quiz today."

   Great.

~~~

  The bell rings loudly, the sound of it bouncing off the walls and into the classrooms. The students let out a sigh of relief and hand their quiz sheets to the teacher, immediately leave the room right after. Tsukishima, Yamaguchi, and I are the last ones to hand it over to the teacher.

  "Can you hand it to her for me?" I ask Yamaguchi as he's about to past by my desk. He looks at me for a moment, and a smile creeps up to his lips, taking my quiz sheet from me as he trudges up to the teacher.

  "So, you can't walk now?"

  "Leave me alone."

  I earn a smirk from Tsukishima after I answered. I roll my eyes at him and bury my face in my arms; eyes closed shut as a train of thoughts flood into my head.

  Tsukishima Kei. That's who I'm thinking.

  I dislike him with all my heart, but I can't help to feel attracted to him. There's just something about him that intrigues me, something interesting under his blunt and antagonistic nature. There are a few times where I enjoy the competition we have like who has gotten a better score or who manages to get a reward from any teacher because of our intellect.

  I enjoy the times like that, but, sadly, that rarely happens between us.

  Legs of a chair scrape the ground, and I look up, meeting golden-brown eyes once again. Tsukishima sits in front of me with his arms crossed and one of his legs on top of the other; his head tilted down slightly as he looks at me.

  "What do you want now? My money?"

  "I'm not that poor."

  "Says the one who still gets money from their parents."

  "You get money from your parents too."

  "Says who?"

  He's about to retort at my question but quickly shuts his mouth again and clicks his tongue. I grin innocently at him and bury my face again.

  "Now, leave me alone. I don't want to be bothered," I say, voice muffled because of the arms. I waited until Tsukishima's presence is gone, but it never does. I peak through my arms to check on Tsukishima.

  He's staring at me with his brows furrowed as if he's deep in thought. His jaw clenches and his grip tightens on his sleeve. What's wrong with him? Is he pissed off because of me? What did I do now?

  An irritated sigh escapes my lips, and I stand up, rubbing the back of my head as I stroll out of the classroom. Tsukishima stops me by the door frame, his grip on my wrist firm. I glance at him.

  "What do you want now, for God's sake? Do you want me to be your errand girl? Do you want me to be your slave or something?"

  He seems to come back to reality after I said that. He lets go of me and pushes his glasses further up using his index finger, clearing his throat. I arch an eyebrow curiously at him before I depart from the classroom to somewhere else.

  I walk past a classroom, and I can hear two familiar boys shouting at each other about something. I look into the classroom since it has its doors opened. There, near the window, Hinata and Kageyama are arguing about something and fuming at each other because of it.

  I scoff at their bickering and excuse myself as I go in to separate the two boys from bickering further.

  "Alright, what's the problem here?" I ask, glancing at the two boys back and forth.

  "Hinata said that we don't have practice for today," Kageyama says, glaring at Hinata.

  "It's true! I got a text about it!"

  "Why don't we just ask Daichi about it?"

  Kageyama and Hinata blink their eyes a few times at me as if I'm a mad man. A vein popped on my forehead, and I drag the two troublemakers out of the classroom by their collars, earning a choked sound from them. Some of the students that are in Hinata and Kageyama's class shouted thanks to me.

  "(Y/N), let go of us--" I oblige, and they breathe like they never breathed before. Hinata takes one big breath and lets it out slowly, sad pout forms on his lips, and his eyes are wide.

  "You didn't have to drag us like that."

  "Sorry, I couldn't stand your bickering. You made your classmates uncomfortable."

  Kageyama looks away from me, a tint of red spreads on his cheeks. My hands lay on their backs, pushing them to the stairs that lead to the classroom for the third year upstairs.

  "Come on now. We don't have much time."

  They stop at the stairs, hesitating to go to the next floor that's full of the third years. I sigh again and ruffle their hair as I walk up the stairs first.

  I know Kageyama and Hinata when they were bickering in their classroom, like always. One of the students poked their heads out to me and complained about them while I just laugh it off. The bickering didn't stop for fifteen minutes straight until I intervene. Since then, the other students in Hinata and Kageyama's class comes to me when they need help to break the two apart.

  "Excuse me, have you seen Daichi Sawamura anywhere?" I ask one of the third years that's leaning on the railings. He nudges his head to the right where Daichi is standing, leaning out the window with a longing gaze. I thank the third year and drag the two troublemakers by their wrists to where Daichi is.

  Third-years are looking at us weirdly, scowling, and shooting disgust looks as we make our way to Daichi. Most of the third-years are like this towards their juniors.

  "Daichi."

  The said man turns his head with a questionable look. When his eyes land on me, a smile plasters itself on his face.

  "(Y/N), where have you been? I missed you."

  "Oh, come on, Daichi. We talked to each other yesterday."

  Daichi chuckles to himself, and he puts one of his arms around my neck, pulling me closer to him as he gives me a noogie. I struggle under his embrace, and I manage to try him off of me.

  "What's the problem?"

  "It's those two again."

  Hinata gives Daichi a nervous smile while Kageyama has a straight face. A sigh left Daichi's lips.

  "What is it now?"

  "We have practice today, right?" Kageyama speaks up.

  "Yes. Why are you asking?"

  "Hinata said that we don't have practice for today."

  "It's true!"

  "Let me see," Daichi says, and he extends his hand at Hinata. Hinata opens his flip phone and gets to the message before he hands it to Daichi. Daichi and I read it, deadpanned at the words of the message.

  "Hinata, the announcement is for other clubs."

  "What?!" Hinata snatches his phone out of Daichi's hand and reads it over and over again. Kageyama slaps the back of Hinata's head, scowling at the orange-haired boy.

  "Hinata, you idiot!"

  "Sorry!"

  Daichi chuckles to himself at his juniors' behavior.

  "You better get back to your classes. Recess is about to finish."

  "Alright. Thank you, Daichi," I say, and I drag the two boys again. Once we're at our floor, I bid the two boys goodbye and rush to my classroom.

 I open the door and collide with someone. I managed to catch myself before I fall and rub my forehead to get the stinging pain out of my system.

  "I'm sorry," I mutter. I crack an eye open, and my sympathies are gone in an instant. I have bumped into Tsukishima.

  "Better watch where you're going."

  "You're the one who should know where to stand."

  "You're the one who collided with me first."

  "Because you're standing in the entrance, dumbass."

  I slip past him, and I can feel his eyes bore into the back of my head. The feeling of uneasiness nips at me because of what just happened, regretting the thing I called him.

  The connection between Tsukishima and me is already bad enough to make me regret and feel guilty to utter comments to him. I just made our relationship worse, and I hate it. It would've been so much easier to brush my comment off if I didn't feel attracted to him.

  "You should watch your mouth, (Y/N)," Tsukishima says, anger and threat coats his words. I feel a pang in my heart after he said that and bury my face in my arms in an attempt to avoid eye contact with him and try to forget what I said to him.

  He's right. I should be careful with my words around him if I still want to talk to him. Sure, we bicker and shoot salty remarks at each other, but I enjoy it. I don't know if Tsukishima enjoys it too, but if he does, I'm glad.

~~~

  School ends earlier than it should, students from all classroom files out of the building happily. The sun is descending on the horizon, coloring the sky orange and purple as it starts to get dark.

  Tsukishima's words are bouncing around my head as I walk down the empty hallways of the school, replaying our argument like a broken record. I think back to the times that I call him names, and I admit that I'm harsh to him, but he never seems to mind about it until now.

  I stop near the gymnasium filled with the sound of shoes screeching against the floors and the spikes they're making. The boys' volleyball club is practicing like always for the upcoming competitions that are getting near.

  I peek through the opened door and watch them, impressed by how high they can jump and how strong they can hit the ball. Hinata can jump higher than the net even though he's small for his age.

  "Do you like watching them?"

  I snap my head at the source of the voice, lips pursed tight. It's a third-year student, and she's holding a clipboard close to her chest, her shoulder-length black hair frames her face perfectly. A distinct mole located on the lower left side of her chin makes her all the more attractive.

  "Kiyoko Shimizu." I slap my mouth after I uttered her name without permission. She smiles softly at me and stands beside me, watching the boys do some receives and switch places.

  "That's me. And you are."

  "(Y/L) (Y/N)."

  "So, you're the one who Kageyama and Hinata have been mentioning about."

  "They mention me? Why?"

  "They were scared when you intervened their bickering the first time, impressed at you nonetheless."

  "Oh. Are you the manager?"

  "Yes. Would you like to be the second manager? We need a new manager in the future since I won't be here anymore after I graduate."

  "Thank you for the offer, but I can't be the manager. Don't want to argue with Tsukishima all the time."

  "You know him?"

  "He's my classmate."

  "You're the one who he has been talking about."

  "What do you mean?"

  Our conversation is cut off by Tsukishima standing in front of us with a scowl on his face, glaring down at me. I flinch at the way he's looking at me, gathering the courage I have left after feeling guilty to look back at Tsukishima.

  "Kiyoko, the captain called you."

  "Alright. I'll talk to you later (Y/L)."

  Kiyoko leaves me with Tsukishima at the entrance of the gymnasium, glaring at one another for some time. I let out a sigh and rub the back of my neck, eyes staring at my feet with guilt.

  "Why are you here?" Tsukishima finally asks me, his voice monotone.

  "I come here to apologize and clear things out with you."

  "So, your brain is finally working, and you have empathy."

  "Tsukishima, I'm not looking for a fight. Can we talk this out, please? I can't argue with someone 24/7 just because of little things."

  "Tsukishima!" I hear Daichi call him out, and I peek to the side from his tall body. Daichi gives me a little wave with a smile on his face.

  "Daichi! Can I borrow Tsukishima? I need to talk to him." Daichi's mouth opened, but he shuts it again after I gave him a pleading look. He nods at me.

  "Don't take him too long."

  I mutter a thank you at Daichi, and I drag Tsukishima by the wrist to the side of the gymnasium, letting him go when I feel like we're out of ears reach. Tsukishima rests one of his hands on his hip, half of his body weight goes to one leg as he looks down at me.

  I get that I'm shorter than Tsukishima, but is it necessary for him to look down at me?

  "I'm sorry for calling you a dumbass. What did I do to you that made you dislike me so much? Did I hurt you when we first met? Is my existence in this school that annoying to you like I'm a mistake?"

  Tsukishima stiffens at the last question, his eyes softening a little, and his hand falls to his side. I bite the inside of my cheeks, eager for an answer.

  If he thinks my existence in this school is annoying to him, I'll try to move if I can to make him content with his life. I may not be happy that I don't get to bicker and see Tsukishima anymore, but if that makes him happy, I'll gladly get out of his life.

  "It's not like that."

  "Then why do you like to hurt my feelings and make me look like a fool in front of other students?"

  "You're so sensitive."

  My lips part in disbelief. I can't believe him. I bite my lip hard, and I can feel a pool of blood start to form at the spot, anger boils inside me, and my hands curls up into fists. I click my tongue and pull him to my level by the collar of his shirt, knuckles turning white at the pressure that I'm putting.

   "How can you be so oblivious and cold-hearted? I've told you many times recently to leave me because I don't want to argue with you anymore. We argue because of little things, and I hate it, I just want a normal conversation with you as a classmate. As a friend."

  Our faces are inches apart, my nose brushed against his, and his breath is lingering on my face. My view starts to blur and push him away, trying to contain the tears that are about to spill.

  I've never liked talking about my feelings to someone because they might mock and make fun of me. Talking about my feelings to Tsukishima is enough to make my eyes pool with tears.

  "I'm sorry." My eyes dart to his face, blinking a few times at the apology he muttered.

  THE Tsukishima Kei is apologizing for his actions. Am I dreaming?

  "Can you stop crying? It makes you look like a crybaby." He brushes his thumb onto my cheek, wiping away a tear that rolled out. I didn't notice a tear came out until Tsukishima brushes it with his thumb. A sniffle escapes my mouth.

  "Then tell me the reason." He clicks his tongue and runs his fingers through his blonde locks, brows furrowed.

  "At first, I just wanted to annoy the hell out of you because you looked like a simpleton until you showed your intelligence to the class and around. I was pissed because of it, and I tried to beat you many times by getting higher scores than you. I've been obsessed with you since then, and I try to beat you in anything I can, even in arguments. Then, I start to feel attracted to you, and I don't know why. That's why I start to say things to you without thinking it through. I didn't know you'll get hurt because of it."

  I scoff and wipe the remaining tears in my eyes, the edges of my lips curled up in amusement. Tsukishima arches an eyebrow at me questioningly.

  "Is this a confession?"

  The faintest color of red appears on his cheeks in an instant. His jaw dropped for a second, and he clears his throat, getting back his composure to look as if he's unimpressed with what I said.

  "A confession? You wish."

  "Admit it, Tsukishima. You don't have to hide it anymore."

  He sighs and rolls his eyes. He pulls me closer to him by the back of my head to his face, his lips brushing against mine, catching me off guard. He smirks at my reaction and kisses my cheek. I touch the spot where he kissed me, trying to process what just happened while Tsukishima is looking down at me, amused.

  "I'll see you tomorrow. You better get home now rather than later."

  I nod gently at him, bewildered of what just happened. He ruffled my hair before he trudges away and into the gymnasium, leaving me in the spot.

  Damn jerk.

[thran-duils]

Devils Look Like Angels (Ch. 4)

Title: Devils Look Like Angels (Chapter 4) Summary:  Fem!Reader x Psychotic!Castiel. An unhinged, criminal, supernatural artifact collector extraordinaire… and the reader caught his eye. It will not take her long to realize that beneath the charm and mystique is a crazed killer who will go to great lengths to woo her. Words: 2,139 Warnings (for the fic in entirety): Stalking, angst, death/murder, violence 

Author’s Note: I have reset my tag list. If you want to be added back, please DM or send me an ask!

Chap 3 || Chap 5 || Masterpost  || Fanfic masterpost

“What the actual fuck?” Dean demanded, gripping the steering wheel furiously.

The three of you had been quiet after getting the people safely home. You were all trying to process what had happened. As soon as you had gotten back to the car and sat inside without the car on, no one moving, the floodgate opened.

In a fluid motion, he turned, throwing his arm over the back of the seat in order to see Sam in the passenger side and you in the back. Mostly to see you. Sam looked at you as well.

Defensively, you threw your hands up in defeat at their piercing stares. “I don’t know!”

“He sure as hell seems to have taken a liking to you,” Dean retorted.

“What are you accusing me of?”

“I’m not accusing you of anything, Y/N.”

Sam cut in, “I think the question is, what is his deal? What does he want?”

“Apparently a fan of Y/N,” Dean responded. “And killing innocent people for entertainment!”

“How did he even know we would come? This is far from Vermont,” Sam asked.

Closing your eyes in frustration, you leaned your head back on the seat with a sigh. Of course it was too good to be true that a normal, well spoken man would have interest in you. Why had you not been more concerned when you met him at the café? There were red lights all over the place, the biggest one being that he happened to be in Lawrence of all the cities he could choose in the country and happened to be at that café at that exact moment.

“What?” Dean asked after a pause. “What are you thinking about?”

Seems you would need to divulge that you had had contact.

Opening your eyes again, you leveled them with a stare. “We are pretty close to home. Only a few hours away.”

Sam and Dean exchanged a look, Sam venturing, “And? And how would he know that?”

Adjusting uncomfortably under their scrutinizing gaze, you cleared your throat. “He, uh…” you paused, the words getting stuck in your throat as the guilt crept in. How could you have been so relaxed about that meeting? “I ran into him at the coffee shop on the corner of Crescent and Fifth.”

“What? When?” Sam asked, genuine concern lacing his tone.

You shrugged, “A couple weeks ago at most. It was when I brought home lunch from Sopranos. We just bumped into each other – almost collided, really. He recognized me, apologized for almost running me over, and bought me something to eat.

The words were rolling out of you now.

“We ate, had some small talk, where he told me he was a journey salesman which is why he was in Lawrence –”

“And you believed that?” Dean interjected. “Y/N… Jesus. He followed you from freaking Vermont back to Kansas!”

“I’m quite aware. It is painfully obvious now. But he admitted to me that he procures and sells supernatural artifacts. Which is why he hadn’t been as surprised about the banshee as a normal person should or would be. And he is not looking for something in Lawrence. My first thought when he mentioned artifacts was the bunker; if he was trying to use us to find it. But he didn’t seem to know. He was talking about Topeka, Ottawa… and somewhere else.”

“Anyway, Lawrence is central to all three of the places. And when eh explained it like that, it made enough sense. Then, Sam called shortly after. I excused myself, we exchanged numbers –”

“He has your phone number?” Sam interrupted.

You admitted, blushing, “Yes.”

“Jesus,” Dean swore again.

“Well, at that moment, I didn’t know he was off his rocker!”

“That’s putting it lightly,” Dean quipped.

“Alright,” Sam cut in or tried to because Dean pressed on.

“No, not alright. You know what?” He reached his arm toward you. “Give me your phone if you have his number.” You shook your head immediately and he rose his brows. “You don’t have his number?”

“I do.”

“Then why can’t I call it?”

“Do we really want to be antagonizing this guy, Dean?” Sam asked, staring Dean down. Dean tried to argue but Sam held his ground. “It’s not smart. Now, if he doesn’t seem to know about the bunker – and even if he did, he can’t get in – that seems to be all the more reason to not reach out to him. If you do, that could give him the wrong idea.”

“The asshole already has the wrong idea!”

“How do we not now he won’t follow us home?” you asked. “I mean, it’s dark. We won’t be able to identify what a car looks like behind us if one starts trailing us.”

Dean exhaled annoyed at the thought of that.

Sam suggested, “Let’s get a hotel then. Not towards Lawrence, let’s go further out. And we can take turns keeping watch. If Dean drives, I’ll sleep until we get there and then he can rest while I stay up. And then Y/N can get up to relieve me.”

Shaking his head, Dean muttered, “I don’t like this.”

“We don’t really have a choice given our situation.”

Silence filled the space, Sam’s words sinking in. What he suggested was smart and would ensure the group of you would feel more safe than potentially leading Castiel back to the bunker.

Suddenly Dean turned back around to face the steering wheel and threw the key in the ignition. “Fine. But anymore contact and I’m calling the bastard. Antagonistic or not.”

<> <> <>

Groggy, it was almost impossible to open your eyes. The room was a blur; bright but blurry. You did not believe you were at home, it did not feel like home. Your eyelids were so heavy, your body felt like cement. Why were you so tired?

There were voices, hovering around you. You could not make out the majority of what was being said, only catching words like ‘blood’, ‘damage’.

Darkness crept in again, flooding from the outside in. You did not hear anything anymore.

<> <> <>

When you came to next, your vision was still unfocused. Your body felt heavy still, weighted down by…

You focused on the IV drip as it came into focus, hooked up into your right arm. Weighted down by medicine.

A voice drew your attention to your left. Mustering much more effort than it should require, you turned your head to the source.

Through your haze of sleep and medication, you still startled at seeing Castiel sitting there by your bed. He was staring at you with concern, leaning forward towards you, his large hand resting on yours.

You tried to jerk away from him but your moment was sluggish, although you were becoming alert much more quickly at this turn of events. Where were you? Why was he here? Where were Sam and Dean?

This had to be a dream. Why else would he be here? Next to your bed? But this was not your bed. Where were you? You thought again frantically. It looked like a hospital room. You racked your brain, trying to remember.

“Y/N,” Castiel tried again, drawing you from your frightened thoughts. “How are you feeling? It looks like the doctors got you stitched up alright and have your pain controlled.”

Stitched?

It came back.

You were in West Virginia or at least you had been. The Wendigo. It had gotten you cornered and slashed your thigh. You did not remember much after that besides Sam and Dean carrying you to the Impala.

“Y/N?”

“What… what are you doing here?”

“I do not know if that –”

“What,” you repeated with more force, trying to scoot away. “Are you doing here?”

You quickly took note that the door was closed. You had to have a call button to ring for help.

Castiel tsked you, ‘Now, now. Do not go getting yourself worked up. You have been through enough and you need to rest with minimal – preferably no – stress. I am not here to hurt you.”

“I don’t know that!”

“You are just going to have to trust me.”

“How can I? You killed innocent people to lure me in for a ‘game’.”

Holding up a finger, Castiel corrected, “To be fair, I did not kill the people that lured you in. That was my friend.” He paused and added, “I did kill two people as a safety net, yes. I new you were not going to fail and I did not want my friend losing his temper if he was not given the two more hearts as promised. I killed those two people for your safety. I will kill for you. But, then again, I do like killing.”

“You are not helping your case,” you told him coolly.

You had found the call button remote underneath the blanket. Your fingers closed in around it.

Lips tight, Castiel leaned away from you in order to reach your bed side table. He picked up a cup and held it out to you. You saw it was ice chips but refrained from accepting the offer.

Shoulders slumping ever so, Castiel sighed. Lowering his arm, he placed the cup back on the beside table, ‘I suppose I am just going to have to earn your trust.” The call button was not responding, your anxiety beginning to rise. “Y/N, as I have expressed, I am enamored with you. The light in your eyes, your quick wit. You also have a very lovely smile which is an extra bonus in the package for me.”

“I would love for you to join me. I think my experience and yours as well, we would make a formidable team. Now, I understand we do not want to be making any rash decisions. I am open to giving you time to consider, I really would like it to be a sound decision. It is always so much more practical when we come to the table together, both willing.”

“I would be disappointed if you turned me down. But I think if you take the time to really consider it, you will see how magnificent this agreement would be for both of us. Freedom to travel and discover riches and have adventure. Together.”

Leaning forward again, he told you, “So, really, kitten, hurting you is the furthest thing from my mind.”

He went quiet, gauging your reaction.

You had to say something.

“Thank you for considering that time is needed.”

He smiled, pleased at your appreciation. “Of course, of course. I do not want to rush a good thing. You deserve time.”

Looking to the door, he sighed, “Now, I suspect those two brutes you have around will be coming back. That blonde one, Dean, can put food away but even his stomach must have its limits. I should make myself scarce.” Standing from the chair, his hand brushed yours. “I am glad I stopped by to check in on you, kitten. I am relieved you are doing alright.”

He made it halfway to the door before turning back to you. His gaze fell to your concealed hand holding the call remote. “by the way, I would ask them to plug that back in for you. I do apologize but I needed some uninterrupted time with you to share my admiration. Please forgive me. I will be in touch.”

With that, he swung the door open and strolled out.

Your eyes were glued to the doorway, afraid he would return. He swore he did not want to hurt you but… unease still crept. If anything, it sounded like he was developing an unhealthy attraction.

Sam and Dean’s voices reached you before you saw them. You pushed yourself up to a sitting position in anticipation.

As soon as they walked in, they saw the fear in your expression.

“What’s wrong?” Sam asked alarmed.

“Castiel,” you said hoarsely.

“What?” Sam demanded. “Here?”

You nodded and Dean’s face set in stone before he made a beeline for the hall, searching.

“Dean, he’s gone. It’s been a few since he left,” you called after him, leaning forward in the bed. You winced at the tug on your stitches.

He came back into the room and you recalled the last ten minutes, stumbling through what he had said. When you got done, Sam meant to sit in the chairs next to your bed but stopped suddenly. He picked up a small box that was adorned with a lace bow. His jaw set when he read the tab.

“It’s for you.”

You opened it warily. Inside was a diamond bracelet. Balking at it, you held it up and whispered, “Is… is this real? This must be worth a fortune.”

Dean snapped, “Are we all still against calling this asshole and setting things straight?”

~~~

CASTIEL FOREVER TAGS: @willowing-love @perseusandmedusa @greenappleeyes @afanofmanystuffs @earthtokace @shikaros-blog @marisayouass 

[theanimeview]

Controversial Opinion: The Rising of The Shield Hero, I don’t hate it + Why

By Peggy Sue Wood | @peggyseditorial

Top of the controversial titles to like this season in anime, according to most everyone I know's list, is The Rising of the Shield Hero. Why? Well, as you may have heard, it starts off with a false rape allegation against the protagonist and that is enough to have it burned from most watch lists as a potentially good anime or manga in the western (and probably everywhere else) anime watching community. HOWEVER, I think that focusing on this aspect without consideration for the rest of the plot and characters is faulty reasoning. There are lot of animes with messed up sh*t that happens--including murders (One Piece has a ton, and that plays off as a generally happy-go-lucky series), torture (Overlord anyone?), and instances where rape is heavily hinted as an outcome for a character in addition to assault that actually took place (SAO tentacle scene ringing any bells?). Considering that I’ve met at least one woman in my adult life that is like the redheaded princess that made a false claim in the anime and manga (and presumably light novel the series is based on) in real life - a long story for another day - it doesn’t seem impossible. It’s rare, for sure, but not impossible. 

Taking a moment here, in American culture, of which I am speaking as a female, American citizen, false rape allegations are a major issue because women already struggle to be believed when they are indeed victims. So many women do not go forward about assault as it is and media that portrays women in such a poor light only reinforces the horrific mindset of “she probably wanted it” or “she probably just regretted it” or "she's making it up" that seems to be so prevalent in our culture. When false allegations are made, it only hurts real victims more. Media often likes to villainize groups of women as a result, and it makes it harder for real victims to come forward out of fear that they will be penalized for speaking the truth--which also happens way too often for anyone to feel comfortable with in the current state of affairs right now. Looking at this anime, it is hard for some to get behind the portrayal of this in any sort of media since we know how much it hurts real victims, but let’s take a moment to look at the anime/manga’s response to this setup. (*Please note, this is not an argument defending rapists or anything of the like. I am an avid supporter of victims of sexual assault and kindly ask that you don’t misconstrue my words. If you would like to question me further, wish to see me amend something stated here, or want to debate about what I’ve written regarding this subject, please feel free to message me. I am always open to criticism or revisions.)

What happens initially after the rape allegation is that everyone, save for the blacksmith after a short while and the people that later get to know Iwatani Naofumi (the protagonist), believes the victim. That is super rare for our culture, and even after the allegations come to light as being false, not everyone believes that he’s really innocent. Instead, the people continue to see him as a villain/rapist, which is even more surprising given the fact that he should have a lot of support given his prior actions and title. His title alone should have given him status enough to stand against her - I mean, he is (1) one of the four summoned heroes; (2) a hero that protects the masses more than the other three; (3) one that advances the most by investing in/learning about the culture he’s in and not just making assumptions because it reminds him of a book/game/whatever; (4) one that tries his best despite his severe disadvantages that continue throughout the series thus far (I’m only at chapter 50 in the manga); and (5) thinks critically about the state of affairs for the people beyond surface level (like cleaning up the corpse of a slain monster that one of the other heroes killed and left on the ground where it began poisoning the land and people living there). 

SIDE NOTE: Even after being proved innocent, the Spear Hero still says stuff like this (chapter 44): 

By the way, chapter 44 is where the ranged/arrow hero’s bad side really comes out. Just saying...

Naofumi lives through the allegation because he is a hero, so his status is helpful in that regard, but look at him compared to the others. Because of their hero status, the other heroes get away with a lot of ridiculous behavior, including their lack of foresight and not having to listen to the queen of the country they are summoned in (its a matriarchy system by the way, so they’re literally insulting the head of the country they live in and get away with it whenever they disregard her--which is something NO ONE else would be able to do). And yes, the manga makes it clear that the reason he is disregarded so easily is that he is the “shield hero” and not many respect the shield in this particular country, BUT he is still one of the four major heroes that they NEED. Angering him is not in their best interests, yet they still disregard/disown/hate on him because of this allegation (even after it is proved to be false). The situation, the society, is vastly different from our own and that’s something I appreciate from the series. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a fan of the rape allegation opening, but I can still appreciate that the author used it as more than just a means to put the hero in a bad starting position. As with most starting plot points, the allegation puts the protagonist into place for his hero's journey adventure while also setting up one of our antagonist for the series’ first arc. In addition to this though, it adds a world-building element to the story. Here, women are still considered relatively weak and damsel-like when it comes to fighting, but they have way more political and social power than men by comparison. The other three heroes don’t really experience this initially because they act like this is all a game and exist/live maintaining their patriarchal perspective hence the way the spear hero--a man who acts like he is all about women (protecting them, showing off to them, etc.)--doesn’t consider how the female characters that want to be with Naofumi feel. This idea could be applied to the others too since all the heroes disregard the queen regularly after the king is removed from power (before they were very amicable toward the king). If you are counting, that means the scene does three things. First, it acts as the starting plot point--setting up the protagonist’s starting point and an antagonist. Second, it shows that this is a matriarchal society in which women have more political and social power than men. Third, it shows/helps the protagonist understand the society is truly different here. The rules are different here. By extension, that means it is not a game--in games, justice always prevails (typically), but that is not the case here. 

The anime is pretty different too in the set up since they reveal more differences right off the bat than letting you know over time (like how the country is a matriarchy) and having Myne, the accusor, put a lot more work into tricking Naofumi than in the manga (in the manga, she never fights for him or tells him much about the world, instead letting him figure it all out after they’ve parted). In the manga, Naofumi is an active character, while Myne is bidding her time for that evening to trick him. Naofumi buys her the gear to protect her without instigation, while she tricks him into buying gear for himself that she uses to win over the spear hero. Moreover, Naofumi has to convince the court to let him live because of his role in the manga, whereas in the anime they say they’re letting him live because of his role, essentially taking away an important essence to Naofumi’s character (the essence that he is capable, more so than the other’s even realize, of adapting to the world around him). Another change that I’m not a particular fan of is the other heroes saying that he should at least do his job of saving the world after all this--one that they wouldn’t do at all without proper payment according to their anime selves. There are a lot more differences too like in the payment scene where Naofumi is given more than the others, or how--- way too many changes for me to get into that are not important right now. The changes all make Naofumi out to be more passive and victim-like, maybe because those adapting the series knew that the start was really controversial and want to make Naofumi as likable as possible before his inevitable, anti-hero-like personality comes into play, and while I don’t like it I can kind of understand it from a storytelling perspective since there is no guarantee that this series will get a second season (and as things stand now, it probably won’t) so lets move on. 

Emphasizing the difference between him and the others, in a way that is more obvious then the other three continuing to think this is a game over the course of the series, is how much knowledge Naofumi gains about the world which brings us to another controversial subject in this anime/mange: slavery. (*Please note, I don’t condone slavery either. I’m just analyzing its role in the manga and anime as critically as I can.) (Check out chapter 16 to see how the three still think it is a game even though they are on the verge of defeat.)

Having distinguished that this is another world with rules different from our own, we find that here (in the summoned world), slavery is real, and Naofumi uses that to his advantage. He doesn’t particularly like the idea, but he’s not in a position to change it or really go against it. The anime doesn’t let us know how against it he is, choosing to stay out of Naofumi’s head for most of the episode, but it’s pretty obvious in the manga, and manga spin-off which features the spear hero as the protagonist, that Naofumi is not a supporter of slavery. Still, he’s not in a position to change the rules of the country. NONE of the heroes are, and Naofumi understands that better than most considering that he is thrown from grace in the summoned queendom early on. With not many options, none at the start really, he buys a slave, but despite his hard words, readers can see that Naofumi isn’t planning to force the slave-girl, Raphie as I will call her from here on, into doing something not up to a skill level that he can’t defend her from, at least at the start. 

Only after the pivotal scene in which Naofumi allows Raphie to make her own choice about continuing to fight does their relationship (him forcing her to fight and keeping her as a slave) change. After she agrees to continue fighting for him he never really orders her to do anything like that again, and the tone of the story and their relationship hints that she’s free to go whenever she likes if she chooses to do so of her own free will.  In the manga, when the spear hero, most loudly but not alone, confronts Naofumi about slavery, the Spear Hero acts high-and-mighty and is silenced temporarily by the response he gets from Raphie before making up his mind that she must be brainwashed. Even after the rape charge is cleared and a bunch of other things happens, none of the heroes can forgive Naofumi from being a slave owner, but that only makes them stand out even more as flawed heroes. (Not just because they don't listen either.)

See, the beauty of this show is that the hero’s path, no matter which one you take, is one uniquely flawed. The Shield Hero has disadvantages and to overcome them he has to get his hands dirty with sins he never would have considered otherwise. The other heroes choose to be lone wolves, playboys, and snobbish--they suffer from hubris, and so while they are not aware of their sins, their path is as stained with blood as Naofumi’s is, if not more. The only difference is that Naofumi is aware of it and trying to use these sins to help others. With Raphie, for example, instead of buying a strong slave that he could have gotten in order to level up faster, he chose one he could help get stronger and healthier because if he had to have a slave, he felt that he might as well chose one he could help. The others, however, justify their sins in ridiculous ways, the most egregious of which, I find, is their sheer lack of concern for the people of the land. They constantly take care of surface level issues without concern for the deeper problems or nuances that come from such situations. Like killing a monster to upgrade their gear and not caring that the corpse literally poisons the land meaning the people can’t grow food or drink the local water without suffering from contamination. Or invading on another person’s hunting territory during the leveling island adventure thing and not caring that it upsets people and prevents them from leveling up in ways that may allow them to protect their homes since heroes can’t be everywhere. 

I wouldn’t be surprised if all of the other heroes ultimately suffer horribly by the end with Naofumi living quite well-off for his efforts--maybe even being able to abolish slavery, though that does not seem to be a priority for him at all right now. And the good end wouldn't be simply because he's the protagonist, it would be because he's worked for it. If you take the spin-off as canon (I don’t know if it is), the spear hero certainly suffers betrayal at the end. That aside, I wouldn’t be surprised with the other three heroes suffering has nothing to do with their dislike of Naofumi, after all, Naofumi doesn’t make it easy to be likable to other characters (an anti-hero to the readers, in my opinion). The reason I wouldn’t be surprised if the other heroes ultimately suffer a bad end is because the other three heroes suffer from hubris while Naofumi does not. If, like me, you're a fan of ancient Greek and Roman heroes, you know that heroes who have hubris tend to fall on their own sword because of it. Already we see that their arrogance is causing the heroes that once were superior in fighting strength begin to suffer greatly for their hubris as the waves have been getting harder and harder and the other heroes are falling more and more behind Naofumi in necessary skills for living, and fighting, in this world.

In the end, it’s hard for me to hate this series when the storytelling elements are so strong. It paints its world as one filled with complicated grey areas, which is true of our own world and circumstances. By doing so, The Rising of the Shield Hero seems to be a transformative element in its genre. Not that other isekai’s aren’t attempting this kind of nuance in their writing, but the depth of this series stands apart in the current season and I don’t hate it. 

[darkspellmaster]

You really hate R!Ciel , calling him selfish and jealous when the one with such qualities is no one other than Our!ciel ! I get it , Real Ciel loves his brother in a scary way , but he is only a child . He never looked down at his brother , he even said he is proud of him already . he took care of him very well , the only thing he had done bad to his brother was asking him to give up on his dream but then he let this idea go . Stop saying bullshits just because you are Cie X Lezzi fan.

I”m honestly going to give this answer a longer one during the week since I nedd some time to gather some research on the tropes that I’m seeing in Real Ciel and why I honestly think that the kid is way darker and far more dangerous, and quiet possibly the person that may have been behind the whole situation in his parents murder. At this moment I’m going on a strong hunch and due to the fact that a LOT of Kuroshitsuji’s elements in story telling feel very much influenced by the work of Kaori Yuki, a pioneer of gothic manga, and who’s work still influences a lot of writers to this day. But in order to give you a short reply on your comments…1. I don’t exactly hate Real Ciel, I do not trust him though, and find him rather repulsive for various reasons. One being that he willingly allowed Agni to be killed by a person who was far more brutal then Sebastian has been recently, and honestly seems to have no problem with shooting an innocent person in all this, Soma. Even if he didn’t know who Soma was, he should have, at the very least, not reacted by shooting him then attacking him and wanting to kill him. This is not the actions of someone who has any good intentions. 2. He willingly is keeping Lizzy from her family. Given Edward’s reaction, I doubt that either Frances or Alexis know about what’s going on with their daughter. Now you could argue that they’re in on this, but I really don’t think that’s the case at all. So if he’s honestly a person that could be seen as caring, as Our Ciel has, he would have, at the very least, allowed her to return home with her family, or told her too. It seems that he is either being used by someone, and manipulating Lizzy due to being manipulated himself, or that he’s actually willingly keeping here there and holding her by giving only his side of the story. That is not to say that Our Ciel isn’t at fault for this either, but his actions  are very much reminding me of a character by the name of Jezebel from the God Child Saga by Kaori Yuki, which again I will get into in that longer post. To me the fact that he’s still keeping her there, even if she’s doing so willingly, says a lot about how he’s seen their relationship vs. how Our Ciel has seen her and grown with her. 3. He’s shown signs in various scenes that he’s possessive of Ciel, that he clearly doesn’t want anyone but himself to be with his younger brother. There are moments that his face, when Ciel talks about leaving and going off on his own, showing that he doesn’t want this, and clearly this is setting up for something else, because we’re not seeing inside his head. We’re seeing how he was seen through Our Ciel, meaning that we really don’t know how he perceives his twin, as we’ve only seen what Our Ciel has seen. Thus, the only thing we have is “Ciel is a good person because that’s what he outwardly shows me.” Even though we never see what Real Ciel is thinking since most of the time he’s only voicing some thoughts and not all of what he’s thinking. Second point, do I think that Real Ciel is Jealous and Selfish. Well yes, I do. Consider this…We know that he doesn’t like the idea of Our Ciel leaving him, even suggesting he become a vicar on the estate so he doesn’t go far. To me that’s very telling that he doesn’t think he can manage things without Our Ciel. Our Ciel notes that he’ll have Lizzy and others to help him and Real Ciel seems okay with it, but also not so much. Later on we see Rachel giving a talk to Real Ciel about learning things, as he doesn’t want to be the Earl. This also is important as this is used a lot in stories to give hints that the character is jealous of a sibling or other person that doesn’t have the same responsibilities. Even if Our Ciel is jealous of Real Ciel, it’s clear that he’s jealous of him too over the fact that he won’t be having to be the Earl and make the choices that, eventually Our Ciel has to make, will be very hard for him while Our Ciel gets to make toys and lead a very natural and normal life, something that Real Ciel seems to want to share with him, or want him to share in the role of the Earl. But again without seeing inside his head we don’t know what he’s thinking, and that is part of the reason I’m thinking that there’s something darker with him then what Our Ciel sees. Consequently, with dramatic story telling, usually a twin brother, who even when they are nice to the main character, in dramatic stories, will normally be the Cain to the main character’s Able. I’m suspecting that this will be Real Ciel playing the Cain part. You say he never looked down at his brother, but again this is only the memories that Ciel has shown. Yet we know that Real Ciel can be down right hurtful of others, even if he “doesn’t mean it” as we’ve seen with Lizzy when he told her that he thought that strong women were scary. You can say that that was an innocent comment from a kid who thinks his Aunt is too hard, sure, but it’s still a damaging comment and, given what role Lizzy would have played to Real Ciel, more then likely a Sebastian part in being his right hand and killing people with her skills as a swordswoman, is it any surprise that she reacted the way she did and how it harmed her. Then we see his comments to Our Ciel when he comes in. It’s sweet, but talking down to him. Saying that now that he’s here Our Ciel doesn’t need anyone else. Commenting on his illness, etc. These are not kind words, these are not words that are meant to be nice or sweet or loving. These are words that are digs at Our Ciel for not only taking the ring, but probably for surviving and going forward with his plans. This kid has been warped and clearly his love of his brother is screwing him up to the point that he, again, attacked an innocent young man who had nothing to do with his brother’s revenge plot. Yes he is proud, but being proud could have many many meanings. He could genuinely be proud, or this could be the sort of proud you give your pet when he’s not gone to the bathroom on the floor. Again this very much reminds me of characters from Kaori Yuki’s works, and how the main character Cain of the count Cain saga, had his father, who’s not a nice man at all…trying to kill his son, says that he’s proud of the man he’s become. Coming from an antagonist, which clearly Real Ciel is being set up as -again, killing Agni and shooting Soma - you then have the term proud becoming something far darker in nature. It’s the sort of proud that indicates that he’s just impressed that someone weaker and smaller then him managed to crawl up as high as he has. And given that Real Ciel is supposedly mad at Our Ciel, it seems to be likely that the proud factor comes from the fact that he managed to take on and do things that Real Ciel didn’t think Our Ciel would ever be able to do. Okay let’s take a moment and really look at the fact that we’re seeing this from Our Ciel’s memories. It seems to me that to him Real Ciel was a hero, but we’ve already seen that this isn’t the case with various shots. We know that when the suggestion of the twins going to the school was brought up to Real Ciel he commented that the other students there would be “Fake Brothers” and there was a dead eyed look to him. Then while he does take care of him, he also at the same time doesn’t exactly allow for Our Ciel’s feelings to be considered. As we saw with the whole Halloween moment. Then we have a few other moments including a questionable vanishing act on the birthday, the whole reaction in the carriage ride where they were dropped off, and him sobbing because he was “scared” his thoughts on those under him, etc. We’re shown all the good things because Yana is setting up to show that there’s darker things to Real Ciel. 

And about the whole scene of letting go. I don’t think that’s the case at all. If that was true, why be so against his brother having anyone taking care of him when he shows up. Why is he clearly jealous of Soma being in the house. He Tells him to give up on his dream, but it doesn’t look like he’s over that idea, nor does it seem like in his return that he wants to have Our Ciel be on his own. It’s damn near clear given he tried to kill Soma to get Ciel’s attention. He doesn’t want Ciel to be on his own, that is not normal behavior. It’s one thing to be like “Okay I would rather have you working with me.” and another entirely different thing to say that Our Ciel only needs him, and then kills one of his friends because he’s angry. My view of Real Ciel doesn’t come from my view of Lizzy x Ciel. While I love the relationship, I’m not basing my view on that when it comes to Real Ciel. What I am basing it on is what we’ve seen with Lizzy, his actions against Soma, his comments to Ciel as well as the side glances and actions in the flash backs, and the fact that he very much seems to be a character who has similarities to two very large looming antagonist in Kaori Yuki’s series. That is where I’m getting my views on this. Not from any ship. I hope this at least answers a bit for why I’m looking at Real Ciel the way I am. Thank you for taking the time to write to me about this. 

[abundantchewtoys]

Homestuck^2 re: Chapter 1 “Clown Logistics” (p57-95)

So, I would like to see the persecuting crew, but I wonder what the Clown Logistics'd apply to in that context.

It might also apply to getting rid of Gamzee's dead body - if Vriska ML fears Jane might come after her and (Vriska).

Though I would like it to apply to something more innocent, like John talking to Harry Anderson and harlequins somehow making their way into the subject matter.

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Page 57

Oooooh, so THAT is what Vriska ML looks like! The text hadn't described her that much in detail, so this is a pleasant surprise!

She's a goth, hahah. It's ironic - in a way, dressing this way isn't rebellious at all, if that's what she was aiming for, since both her moms are themselves quite gothic too. Didn't expect the short hair, but it stands to reason a child raised by Kanaya and Rose wouldn't have long hair where her mothers don't!

Cool outfit all around.

So, it's also a nice juxtaposition to (Vriska) from the Game Over timeline. She went more the punk route under influence of Meenah.

And post-retcon (Vriska) is still looking quite burned and bloodied from her escapades on the battlefield in the Furthest Ring. Though it's notable that her chest isn't pierced, I thought a piece of broken spacetime hit her there

Hahah, she's claiming John's phone. Stickyfingers Serket.

So this means that when Jake says he didn't know where John went to... He was here just now, talking to Rose! So this takes place before John went to talk to Roxy and Harry Anderson. Oh boy, so we might be in for seeing that heartwrenching father-son conversation after all.

Say, the way Vriska ML holds her arms, with her sleeves like that... It kind of reminds me of Kanaya. I wonder if there are other mannerisms we'll see her having taken over from her mothers.

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Page 58

Oooooh, hah. That's actually so true to her nature. (Vriska) staying obsure, not as relevant as the real deal? Nope.

This actually feels like something where the suggestion box could have opened up again.

Then again, we might just be shown a list of fake options on the next page.

Though I wonder if this is where people chose Vriska ML, the term used in the recap page. Vriskers is a fan favorite for the original flavour.

Hmm, Rosemary? It's just accurate but left-field enough it might work. :P And it's 8 letters, come to think of it!

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Page 59

... Where did that eyepatch come from?! Was she really that hurt in the fight? Hah, she drew an 8/infinity symbol on it.

Ooooooh. Vrissy, huh? Okay, it's kind of a cute nickname. Sounds kind of like Vriska+sissy, though. Although, she IS kind of a sister to Vriska.

She seems to enjoy it though! But, uh, to me, it's still a bit confusing to read, since the first four letters of their name is still the same, and their text colour is all the same. :P We need Vrissy to change to red text colour, stat! :P

Anyway, they want to dispose of the body - not turn their back on it - and Vrissy wants to call some people.; So that's bound to be Tavros and Harry Anderson, right?

Though it's a bit strange she'd call her kismesis and matesprit at the same time, especially as said people are currently under close scrutiny by Jane, you'd think.

What's Vriska's reaction going to be to Vrissy calling a Tavros, though? :P

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Page 60

Huh, that's less of an antagonistic interaction between them. Maybe "kismesis" is a loose term.

"Roll with it", pffffff.

So, Tavros is very much going to highjack one of Jane's smaller ships, right? Maybe this is what Jake referred to, his son and his kismesis being out.

Hah, namedrop! Now to see Vriska's response. Jawdrop?

Blaperile thinks Tavros might come in a car. That could work too, stuffing Gamzee's body in the trunk. And going on a roadtrip.

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Page 61

XD, yeah, actually, a cringe reaction fits too. Then again, it was only a few hours ago she saw Tavros' ghost, so it wouldn't be THAT big a blast from the past... Wait, was she expecting GCATavrosprite or something??

Hah, so Vrissy thinks Tavros will get a kick out of seeing Gamzee dead. I don't think he'll be estatic, but he'll certainly won't mind. I'm dying to see how he looks though, Jade and John's biological brother!

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Page 62

... That looks like a flying Smart from this angle.

Lol. Yeah, seems like a Vris thing, oggling Tavros car and being miffed it isn't hers.

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Page 63

oooooooh. Yup, this looks what a Jane/Jake child with a bit of Gamzee peppering would end up looking like! Cool sidebangs.

The purple text and suit does beg explanation though, since Gamzee's such a shitty rolemodel. Maybe he doesn't really have a say in his clothing. :/

He does remind me of one of the kids on the Sburb fan album this way, though.

I love him.

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Page 64

... Pfffff, and there's him keeping up the Tavros name in the unwilling clumsiness. Heheehh.

Vrissy did do a good job explaining the situation.

And it seems like this boy might have inherited some of John and Jake's panache at dramatic entrances!

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Page 65

D: Poor, poor dude.

Ding dong, the clown is dead.

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Page 66

(Still not seeing the kismesitude, though I LOVE Vrissy's attempt at being supportive.)

Vriska's also being rather uncharacteristically hospitable. Also, isn't she weirded out by the idea of attracting OTHER people, after having known the same 20-odd faces for so long?

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Page 68

He's on the brink of adventure. He's heard the note desolation plays.

Tavros' life is on the brink of changing, is what I'm saying.

I wonder, is he bare underneath the sweater? Oh righ, he had that shirt with the bowtie.

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Page 69

Hey, suspenders! ... They're just as orange as Vrissy's phone! Huh, I thought it might have been a compression issue, that Vrissy's phone was Crockertech (since it's presumably the foremost prelavent tech), but now I wonder.

... Wait, does Dirk have tech company? Orange and such. But suspenders don't strike me as his thing. :P

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Page 71

Wait what?

... Is THIS Harry Anderson??????????

I thought the kid had glasses too, and black hair like John!

Dang, okay, those are some STRONG Lalonde genes. Coooooool.

John's son is a coolkid. My mind is blown.

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Page 72

LOLLLLLLL.

So his personality is a delightful cross between Roxy and John's. He's only working off the assumption Vrissy's pranking him. Thinking he's the pranking MASTER.

Well, that coolkid facade is gonna be cracked real soon. Though I take his word for it he'll still know where to stash the thing. Even though he's all slick, I think the kid has inherited Roxy's IQ.

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Page 75

Hahah, Harry Anderson didn't play truant for his last hour of school.

And Vriska's references to Alternia are going to keep weirding the other teens out.

This clown business does INDEED bring a lot of logistics with it.

Heehee, yeah, Vriska notes as well that Vrissy's rather chummy with her kismesis. I wonder if she, Tavros and Harry Anderson are in a state of flux in their quadrants. When she's chummy with one, she antagonizes the other.

Oooh, time for the first real point of disagreement between the two Vris'!

Blaperile has a good point - Tavros is going to end up with the rebels somehow. Well, I suppose him being seen with Vrissy is going to be enough to start a rumour, but he might indeed end up in the rebel camp proper, in the Troll Kingdom.

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Page 76

Awww. Okay, so it's just a very low-energy kismesitude. His dorkiness vs her bossiness. And it just works, a better adjusted version of Nitram and Vriska's relation. It's even tamer than John and Terezi's bickering, is what I'm saying. At least for now.

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Page 77

Pfff, so he actually went 'Right-o' and still followed Vriska out the door. Cool move for a kismesis, for sure.

N'aww, she hates-likes him.

Why did no-one captchalogue the corpse, though?

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Page 79

So, are they gonna get caught? I'm not that worried about the honk. I mean, at this point, Gamzee reviving? I'm not really seeing it. But his body, even at rest, is full of the honkiest squeaks, that I believe.

If they let him drop now, which might happen since the aquabloods aren't stopping... It'll cause a ruckus.

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Page 81

Pfffff. Vriska's efficiency level is at such a low level. It's hilarious.

Tavros has a good intuition, it seems, he felt she would be counting to 8.

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Page 83

Ahhh, this is such a wacky hijinx adventure, I never expected...

Wait.

Hold the fuck up.

We're now in the Weekend at Bernie’s zone. Holy shit.

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Page 85

Pffff, they actually managed to set the sprinklers off with so much as smoke? My god.

Yeah, they have to run for cover now, leaving the dead clown behind.

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Page 86

Welp. WELP. They're caught. Hilarious BLUH panel though.

Okay, now, I can see how this story will get blown up, and Jane assumes the rebels kidnapped Tavros. ... Wait.

Chances are high that all the teens are just going to end up somewhere else entirely, not even at the rebel camp at all. Ah, yes, a misunderstanding pile-up causing the war to escalate is just something I can see happening here. Bonus points for it being a bunch of dumb teens covering up a dumb clown murder.

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Page 87

Ooooooh. Five-letter names! Well, it fits Harry Anderson. And emoji's! :O We're in a new decennium now, that's for sure.

Yeah this is going viral.

I wonder if these people's names are, like, coming from Patreon backers. Or old Kickstarter backers from higher tiers.

(Yeah yeah, it's probably the writers themselves having named these folks, I'm making a federal issue from it.)

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Page 88

Cool perspective

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Page 89

Pfffff, Vriska's having the time of her life. She's just having fun, since she doesn't really concern herself with consequences.

Vrissy has a better handle of the impact of what just happened.

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Page 90

... Yup, that's about the jumping to conclusions I was expecting.

Yeesh, Jane is actually as dense as Jake in a lot of critical ways. She's very good at convincing herself of the truth of something. Like here, how she still loved Gamzee, and how Tavros loved him too.

It seems like the conflict on Earth C pivots around Jane's policies. But I don't see how she can be made aware of all her shortsightedness and prejudice, at this point.

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Page 91

PFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF. Okay I wasn't expecting this to happen.

But it's an actual freaking callback to the beginnings of the story, and Act 6 Act 1, hahah.

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Page 92

... Harry is sitting on the bleachers.

Hah, he thinks this is the prank the other teens were pulling on him, just setting off the fire alarm. Thinks he has it all figured out.

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Page 94

Best reaction image. Ever. Hahahahah.

He was like:

8) |8) :o

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Page 95

Hah! And even a carapacian expression! (Alternatively, Pickle Inspector.) He's inherited that one from his mother's side, no doubt.

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Shenanigans. Best shenanigans.

So, where does this take place in regard with John's make-up conversation with Roxy, anyway? My gut says before, but my brain is thinking: how would that even work. Harry'd have to be a karma Houdini. Which would actually be fitting, since magic / sleight of hand runs on both sides of his family.

I'm in love with all of these walking teenage disasters already.