#((Since I did it for Mikoto I remembered I got tagged for it here too))

[reysonsmanymuses-archived]

YOUR ROLE IN A MURDER INVESTIGATION

the vengeful ex it was supposed to be perfect, you tell yourself, as you shatter the picture frames and rip down the photos. it was supposed to be everything. it was supposed to be the happy ending. the perfection. and it is not. and you are alone. marooned on a desert island and your throat is raw from screaming and your limbs are glassy. you hold all the cards, love. the knife is in your hands. are you ‘the’ killer? no. but you are 'a’ killer. we are all murderers here.

Tagged by: @historias-multorum​

Tagging: Whoever wants to steal it.

[imaginativeamateur]

[Itachi X Reader] First Snow Season 2 {Part 1}

Prologue | Part 2

Pairing: Itachi Uchiha x fem!Reader

Note: I'm back after a long wait! Needless to say, this one is pretty eventful, judging that we are on a long journey for Itachi to redeem himself. Can't say much otherwise I will end up revealing everything, but this one has a huge twist in it, so be prepared! And I think Tumblr just changed its interface so I'm not sure if the tags work, notify me if you're not tagged but your username in shown in the bottom! Enjoy!

The sun was above your head when you rose from bed. Yesterday night was a whirlpool of all sorts of emotions drumming in your head. 

You remembered inviting a few of your friends out for a night out with the sole intention to wash away all the exhaustion that just happened to dumped onto your poor soul in the last few days. You and three of them headed straight to a sake pub owned by their relatives and began unpacking words.

“Itachi and you,” when the alcohol finally blended her cheeks with a tint of red, one of them brought his name up reluctantly. “Are you guys…”

“Divorced.” You stated without even blinking. “But I’m on good terms with his family, really. Mikoto-san usually writes me letters, Sasuke-kun, too.” Just not Itachi.

“Married for how long?” Another one slurred.

“Six months,” you muttered, “maybe four days less than six months.” 

“Are you guys on good terms now?”

“No, and hopefully never,” you downed another glass, terrified at the thought of being his puppet once again.

“I saw Itachi and Izumi together the other day,” she added, glancing at you to see your reaction. “They held hands.”

“So that’s how she got out of prison,” you mumbled inaudibly, feeling disgusted at the couple but glad that their unethical behaviors did not surface, otherwise it would be a detrimental loss to the Clan’s reputation.

“What did you just say? What prison?”

“Marriage is like a prison,” you swiftly said and giggled sarcastically, “where the singles don’t want to get in and the married’s want to get out.” You indulged in the lightheartedness that alcohol blessed your nerves with, pouring yourself yet another glass of sake and downing it before your friend could say another word. It has been a long time since you last felt so free.

As the four of you continued to drink and laugh merrily at the bar, people filed into the place, filling up the seats around you. You never noticed it when a man ordered two drinks and slid one across the table, in front of you.

“Good evening, miss.” His voice turned your head around, your eyes blinking a few times before you gave him a slight nod. He continued, “May I please have a few minutes of your time?”

You nodded again without thinking too much and he smiled. “I’m a reporter, here to get a story on the Northern region’s recent developments.” He clanked his glass with you. “You look like you are from here. If it’s possible, may I interview you tomorrow for some insights?”

“Me?” You asked him again, interested in his offer but more interested in the reason behind his decision to ask you out of all people here tonight. 

“Yes, because you look like a local here,” he paused and quirked a brow playfully, “and maybe because I want to get to know you more.” The man quickly laughed it off, “How about tomorrow morning at eight, at the front gates?”

He appeared to be clueless about your identity. You mentally checked your schedule for tomorrow and accepted his offer, giving him a smile. “Sure.”

When he left your side, your friend sitting beside you immediately grabbed you by the shoulders and spun you around, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. The other two also had their eyes fixated on your face, smiling widely. As clear as they made their intention to be, you ignored their curiosity and took a sip on your drink, the bitterness of alcohol ran down your throat, and trailing behind was a sweet aftertaste—feverish but soothing. You swung your bag in one arm and placed a sum of money on the table. “You guys go on, I need to go get a decent rest for tomorrow.”

The evening breeze swiveled through your locks of hair, dancing on the skin of your face, bathing you with a refreshing atmosphere. As you rounded the corner, you spotted a figure leaning against the wall, both hands in his pants pockets. Your brows furrowed in enmity, purposely avoiding Itachi as you made your way through the segment of the street. But Itachi did not intend to let you go just like that. “Be careful.”

“It’s none of your business.” You cleared your throat, refusing to give him a glance. He followed you?

After a long pause and you were ready to continue your way back home, he spoke again. “Do you really need to be so hostile towards me?” 

You did not answer him. Itachi sighed, his exhale vibrating in the night’s air, exuding inexpressible loneliness. For a moment, you felt as though you could hear his heart beating, his arms wrapping around your shoulders, and his warmth engulfing yours. You gazed at his shadow on the ground, getting closer and closer to yours, looming over it, and he eventually came to a stop right behind you.

You turned around, determined to cut him off his nonsense. But when the faint moonlight illuminated upon half of his face, reflecting off of his dark orbs, shining brightly with a tint of sadness and tenderness, your jaws went stiff. You saw yourself in his eyes, the you that still felt whole, unbroken, unsubmerged in the sea of vengeance and deceit.

Itachi stared deep into your eyes. His eyes moved from yours to your pinkish cheeks, and down to your plum lips, slightly opened but no words came out. In the next second, his body moved on its own accord, seizing your wrist and pulling you into him. His sudden action left you paralyzed, falling into his chest, inhaling a breath of his comfortable scent—of Konoha, of your happy time together, of his smile, of his care, and of his betrayal. Your eyes widened in both terror and perplexity, pushing your way out of his grasp. The more you pushed him away, the harder he held onto you. 

You felt his hands tremble as he caressed the back of your head, holding you close in his bosom. At this point, you started to detect a slight scent of sake in his breath and the abnormality in his behavior. Angrily, you removed his hands from your shoulders, “Let go of me, Itachi!”

He smirked, his face turning cold. He lifted your jaw up in one hand forcefully and you winced in pain. “You’re out of your mind! You’re—,”

Itachi stopped you with his lips, pressing them harshly against yours. You were petrified, biting his bottom lip until the iron tasted bitter in your mouth. He let go of you and stepped back, wiping his lips. “I am. I must be out of my mind, Y/N.”

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

Taglist: @dai-tsukki-desu @darling-imobsessed @animepickle7 @simping-master-69 @tirzamisu @the-tiniest-one @greenshirtimagines @icedemon1314 @madaraswittleslut @saturn-falls @adeards @mistymuii @kishimoto-did-us-dirty @oneofsummersday @iluvjessemac @baby320 @byyalady @rory-cakes @brnel58 @arkem1s @aireenmoon @blyanyan @yesperonon @nats-the-geek @milkshake4800 @dramaticq @sonja3 @sharingangirl @melovehiddlestan @sakinotfound @shuxjodie @luvjaclyn @smutteedreams @simp-38

[bearseungmin]

CONTENT CREATOR YEAR IN REVIEW

tagged by: @hanflix :’))) my love, rue!!! i love you so much!

tagging: @binniesthighs @milkym00n @dreamyhan @mochinnie @hanjizung @seungmoomin (if you’ve done this before please feel free to ignore this! :) ily) + anyone who sees this that hasn’t gotten to do it yet! tag me!!! i want to read into your world please this is fun to do i promise

NOTE: most of my works are nsfw. under 18 please do not interact with them.

1. first creation of 2020 and most recent creation of 2020 first creation: runaway, a lovely fluff + sci-fi! au about alien hyunjin running from his lab and finding solace inside of your bedroom. most recent creation: ironically another hyunjin drabble (he’s my kryptonite)! free with ads is a smut request by a lovely anon about hyunjin wanting to have fun during a movie night with skz! hard warnings btw, beware.

2. one of your favorite creations from 2020 the ricochet effect, although it’s not out yet! it’s an ot8 series, part per member/’choose your own’ vibe, and it’s already got me in my feels. the entire series is meant to have the message of “love does include sex, in a healthy way. you can experiment without being called names, learn from mistakes, and even (just maybe) find someone that you can share a little more time with. all while learning about yourself, and how to love yourself!” or at least i hope it comes across that way. :) it’s witty and has bits of actual advice i want to pass over to smut readers, all while still being fiction. i hope it turns out well.

3. a creation you’re really proud of imminent! it’s a long fic about wolfman! changbin. It’s completely based off the movie “the wolfman” from 2010 that i love substantially, (mainly because it starred benicio del toro, who i’m constantly inspired by) and sort of follows the lore of the film without being exactly like the film. i wrote it in two short sittings, and i’m completely proud of myself for coming up with a huge spin to the plot within like an hour before writing it. it’s also one of the only works of my own that i can read without cringing too lmaoo.

4. a creation that took you forever the ricochet effect, again! i currently have 4 out of 8 written, but it feels like it’ll be the year 3000 by the time i finish it, and i will not be living under water. i’ll be screaming at my wifi for going in and out and deleting what i’m writing. rip.

5. a creation from 2020 that received the most notes could listen to you read the dictionary is the highest of my notes right now! which, who doesn’t have a very specific felix’s voice kink? this was my first request on this blog, so i’ll cherish this drabble for a long time.

6. a creation you think deserved more notes before i swapped over to this blog from bearseokie i was doing a 1k drabble game/halloween drabble game, which brought two of my favorite drabbles to light! epitaph is a warlock! au smut that is centered around the idea that minho can make you see a few minutes into the future, and also bring you back to the now moment! vampire is a vampy! au (obviously) smut where you’ve come to love your human seungmin, and all he wants to do is join you in the life of immortality to make you feel less alone. bonus: for my harry potter/hogwarts! au lovers, stars is considerably underrated and is very cute! jisung is a ravenclaw, reader is a slytherin. could i make it any more obvious?

7. a new fandom you joined and a creation you made for it i’m still a baby stay, so stray kids! i have a tendency to listen to a group’s music for months on end before i even get into the members and knowing their history. but when i got into skz holy shit you’d think i had an epiphany, these dudes are insanely talented and i am so sorry i slept on getting to know them. i’m just going to link my entire m.list since that’s what stanning them has brought out! masterlist!

8. a creation you made that breaks your heart words to me, definitely. the idea of being around soulmate! chan is enough to make anyone weak, but the lights in each other’s eyes put together form a diamond to tell you both that you’re soulmates? i’m on the floor, i hardly even remember writing that bit but it’s in there and i’m going awooga right now.

9. a ‘simple’ creation you really love 11:47 took my brain cells and ran with them. fuckbuddy! hyunjin is always on my mind, but damn if me writing this out didn’t electrify those thoughts by a thousand.

10. a creation that was inspired by another one beat it to the door was inspired by daniel sloss’ comedy special “X” (it is highly mature content and possibly triggering content btw pls look into it before watching if you do!!!) inside one of his jokes he was speaking about how sex is bound to happen to everyone, and can be under any circumstance. while listing things you could have sex during or between, he joked “order a pizza, see if you can beat it to the door.” and my brain went: chan. so welcome to how my brain works!

11. a favorite creation by someone else i love all of the recs under my tag #during.dawn.bookshelf, but oh do i know how many works i have yet to read and i know will shake me to my core. i honestly cannot choose any specific works off the top of my head, so instead i am just going to link my skz writer recs lists so you can see all the people i adore + who inspire me every (and i mean Every) day! skz writer recs: list one, list two, list three

12. some of your favorite content creators from this year where do i even start, okay: @hanflix​ - can make you cry and be horny at the same time? wtf rue. i came here for fun and now you’re making me Feel Emotions Through Your Writing That I Have Yet To Feel In Real Life Mom Pick Me Up Rue Is Too Talented. read rue’s works or you will regret it. @mikoto-ica-fics​ - i would be lying my sweet ass off if i said mica isn’t the explicit reason i made this blog. her works will literally (Literally) send you into another dimension and make you fall in love with skz all over again. @nightshade-minho​ - mika mika mika let me announce that i love mika, mika’s writing (so much that you make me genuinely excited to write), and mika’s aesthetically pleasing blog. the best “let me dip my toe into the water (aka mlist) and see what happens oh no i’m in it now and it’s 5 a.m how did i get here.” you’ll ever experience. @binniesthighs​ - if you’ve ever asked the question: where can i get some good fucking food (skz fluff & smut) around here? see ro! @dreamyhan​ - why is hazel everywhere, and how did i not find her sooner? how is hazel so talented? i ask these questions on a regular basis. @mochinnie​ - you’ll never be bored if you know isa’s @. everything she does is so neat, pretty, aesthetic, astounding, talented, beautiful, amazing, etc of what lady gaga says in that one meme which fits isa way too well. there are SO MANY skz writers i could go on about like this, so please please please check out the skz writers recs list above!!! i’m still adding to it as time goes on :) if you weren’t specifically mentioned here, just know i will find your blog and i will fall in love with you. this is a threat.

[let-me-love-you-loki]

In A Day or Two-Ch. 26

Chapter 26

           “What in God’s name are you wearing, Shaye Marie?” my mother asked, looking me up and down as the driver pulled away from the curb and into traffic. “What have you been getting up to in Japan?”            I rolled my eyes and let out a faint huff. “Mother, do we have to do this right now?”

           “Oh yes, we do. Everyone in the club is talking about you slumming it with that amateur wrestler of yours.” She glanced toward the driver, as if she weren’t sure if she should say anything else. “How could you do this, Shaye?”

           “Do what, Mother?” I sighed, turning toward her. “Live my life?”

           She smiled, although there wasn’t much warmth in it. “Don’t be dramatic, darling. You’ve been gone all summer, gallivanting all over Japan, carrying on this torrid affair right out in the open, and—good God—dressing like a ragamuffin.”

           I laughed. “There’s nothing torrid about the relationship Kenny and I have. And I swear, if you call him an amateur again, I’m going to get out of this car right in the middle of traffic.” I tucked my foot up beneath me on the seat, my flip flop left behind on the floor. “I was happier in the three months I lived in Japan than I’ve ever been here in New York.”

           The undertones of antagonism bled away as my mother took in the seriousness of my expression. “Are you planning on leaving New York for good?”

           The question caught me off guard. I couldn’t deny that I had thought about leaving my life here to live the life I wanted. But those wishes had stayed as quiet thoughts, never brought out or shared with anyone. Mostly because I didn’t know if I had the strength to make such a drastic change in my life.

           “Not currently,” I said diplomatically, “no.”

           After that, we were quiet. My fingers fidgeted with my phone. I desperately wanted to talk to Kenny. I missed his voice more than I had imagined. The hours that we’d been apart felt like years, and I was suddenly afraid that I would forget what we sound like, how he smelled, the feel of his curls against my fingertips.

           Ignoring my mother, I opened my messenger and found the string of messages Kenny and I had exchanged since that first day at the train station. I smiled as I typed. Mother met me at the airport. I miss you.

           My brain was too foggy from jet lag to do the math about time difference between New York and Los Angeles. Maybe he’d crashed once he got back to Nick’s place. Maybe he was busy. Maybe…

           Ping!

           I miss you so much it hurts, Shaytan.

           My vision blurred, and I blinked away tears. Suddenly, I could see Kenny’s face as clearly as if he were sitting in front of me. His unruly two-toned curls, bright blue eyes, and the smile that made me feel like I was the only person in the world. My heart squeezed.

           I miss the sushi from Mrs. Tanahashi’s shop. And the Vietnamese coffee from that place on the corner.

           Thoughts and memories swirled through my head. It was as if every moment from the past three months tried to replay at once. And while the background blurred into the myriad of places I’d seen in Japan, Kenny Omega stayed clear and focused in the eye of the storm.

           Ping!

           I miss the way you look when you’re asleep. And how you smell right after a shower. And the sound of your laugh.

           I wiped furiously at my face, careful to ensure that my mother never saw me crying. I loved my mother—my father and brother too—but there was suddenly this gulf that separated the life they lived from the one I wanted for myself. Being with Kenny, living with him in Japan and being part of his world, had made me feel happy in a way that I never had before. It was as if New York City and the legacy of the Hearsts and Pitzers had become a cage that I desperately wanted to escape.

           Watashinoie, I thought as I squeezed my eyes shut and thought of Kenny’s face.

***

           “Welcome home, Ms. Walker,” the doorman, Teddy, boomed as I stepped out of the back of the town car. He was a man in his late fifties or early sixties, but it was a hard thing to identify. He was tall, with salt and pepper hair, a beard, and a mustache that made him look a little like Santa Claus. Teddy had been the doorman at our building for as long as I could remember, and, even though Mother discouraged it, I thought of him as a part of the family.

           “How’s Eileen, Teddy?” I asked as I grabbed my backpack from the trunk. Mother rolled her eyes and stood to the side while the driver unloaded my luggage. “And Micah, did his wife have the baby yet?”

           The older man laughed, and I was again struck at how much he reminded me of Santa. Maybe that was why I liked him so much as a child. “Eileen is doing much better. Doctors say the treatment went well. Can’t find a thing! And Micah’s got a little girl now. Named her Sansa.”

           I grinned and gathered him up into a warm hug. “I’m so glad everything is better! Give them all my love, and congratulations!”

           “That I will, Ms. Walker,” he replied, holding open the door. His smile faded a little when my mother passed by, but brightened again when I leaned up to give him a peck on the cheek. He cast me a faintly fond look. “Ah, I’ve missed you, little girl.”

           “I have so much to tell you about Japan,” I whispered with a grin before I raced into the lobby behind my scowling mother.

           We rode the elevator up to our floor in silence. One of the building employees had taken my luggage up the back elevator. Heaven forbid Caroline Hearst Walker be seen with luggage! Or—gasp—the help! The moment the doors opened into our foyer, I practically ran from the elevator and into my bedroom. I flopped down on my King-sized mattress and�� frowned.

           There had been a time when I’d thought that nothing was more comfortable than my state-of-the-art iSleep King. But that had been before I’d fallen asleep in Kenny Omega’s arms. Before I’d known what it felt like to feel the warmth of another body, of the person I loved, and listen to the steady beat of their heart in the darkness. How was I supposed to sleep without that?

           I picked up my phone and hovered my finger over Kenny’s number. Hesitation made me waver for just an instant. It was true that the time I’d spent with him in Japan had changed me. And I was entirely certain that it had been for the better, but I wondered if I felt for him so completely and so deeply because he had been my first. I blinked and shook the thought away. That didn’t matter.

           All that mattered was that I was sure that Kenny Omega was my destiny. I pulled the bento box from my backpack and opened it. My fingers ran gently over the silk flowers at the top of the kenzashi before closing around the brocade sachet. I held it in my hands, brought it to my lips. I sighed against it, words pounding through my thoughts like water over a cliff—Onegaishimasu, kami, Okuninushi-no-mikoto, onegaishimasu, Tsubaksan—prayers to gods and spirits who lived a world away.

           The trilling of my ringtone drew me from my swirling prayers. Kenny’s face lit up the screen, and I nearly cried from the joy of seeing it.

           “Kenny,” I said softly, feeling the letters and syllables drift over my tongue. God how I missed him.

           “I love you, Shaytan,” he replied, voice firm and soothing.

           My heart ached in my chest. The sound of his voice was like lightning through my limbs. “I love you too, Kentan.”

Tag List

@mox-made-me-do-it​ @imagineall-the-fandoms​ @waywardstrong​ @lilred91​ @lakamaa12​ @maelleoute​ @not-that-kinda-gurl08​

[uraichievents]

UraIchi PC4 2019 Masterlist

Here’s a list of all the works submitted for PC4! I’ve ordered them in by prompt number under each work type, and it looks like we came pretty close to finishing the whole table! Thank you to everyone who participated this year~

FANFICS

Third Eye Blind by DevinePhoenix [#02]

Long before Kisuke was blinded by Askin, his eyes had already been damaged.

Patchwork Soldier by DevinePhoenix [#02]

When they wake up, they will have to deal with what their decisions have wrought. He will have to cope with his injuries and Kisuke will have to cope with his scars and guilt. But they still have time before that morning of uncertainty. In the dusty twilight of the Soul King’s realm, they could rest together and dream of a better ending.

Death Gods by Chaos_Greymistchild [#03]

AU in which Kisuke is still a mad scientist with only slightly more morals than the rest of them, but Ichigo is a vampire/death-dealer/human hybrid, a legal executioner, and (still) the world’s most recent supernatural anomaly.

The long avaited encounter by SueGra [#04]

Kurosaki Ichigo left Karakura after he lost his power. Urahara Kisuke listened to Isshin and he broke up with Ichigo. Somebody killed the rogue shinigami and his partners. Urahara went after the person who killed them and he was surprised. Who was it?

Wrong Side of Reality by Starrie_Wolf [#06]

If there was one thing that every invader of Soul Society did wrong, it was that each and every one of them measured one's power by the strength of their reiatsu alone. And every single one of them failed, because they did not understand that to be truly powerful, one must first have the Means to ensure their plans succeed.

He, who has been watching from the shadows for a thousand years, refuses to make the same mistake.

By Invitation Only by FeelingFredly [#10]

“No weapons are allowed past this point.  Please move forward to the weapons check and place them in the tagged locker.  You will be given the code to retrieve them when you leave.”

Ichigo turned on his heel as if to follow the robot’s directive, only to stop and spin back, trench knife in one hand and katana in the other, the smooth swing of the blades separating the brassneck’s head from his body.

“I’m sorry,” he said, standing over the sparking remains, “but I refuse to make Aizen-sama’s acquaintance so underdressed.”

Kisuke snorted in his ear.  “No one is there to hear your dramatics, Kurosaki-kun.”

Ichigo kicked the head to one side, like a soccer ball. “You know that you’re the only audience I need, Kisuke."

stay with me (until the sun rises) by Fox_the_Hermit [#12]

Ichigo is friends with a great deal of supernatural entities. The one monster under every bed in town is his favourite, though.

these dreams like ashes float away by howls [#12]

Ever since Ichigo refused to leave something well enough alone, a shadow man would visit him once, or twice, a month. (What he never realized was that there was more going on in those moments than the shadow man would reveal. For now, at least. He could never refuse Ichigo for long.)

Gambit without Guarantee by Starrie_Wolf [#18]

How did everything go so wrong so quickly?

new life, same shit by Chaos_Greymistchild [#19]

Not all knowledge is gained through the Gate of Truth. Not all reincarnates are born with their memories. Ichigo’s not sure how comfortable he is with this knowledge.

Arsenic by FeelingFredly [#20]

He was poison and he'd accepted that fact. Now if only everybody else would.

Police Tricycle (or: it’s not a buddy cop if I’m the third wheel, says Rukia) by Chaos_Greymistchild [#21]

Ichigo chases Szayelaporro Gantz down the highway in a high-speed car chase with a grenade launcher cameo. That’s it. That’s the fic.

Winds of Change (Tempest) by Sky_King [#24]

When the war is over and Ichigo has won, fate will come back to get her due.

Ichigo gambled and gave everything away in exchange for power, and finally the price paid has to be claimed.

(When the war is over, Kisuke finds himself adrift, too guilty to live, too guilty to die. He carries on, fueled by that single promise, trying to find a reason for being.And when he does, he'd sooner kill the Soul King himself than let it disappear, no matter the cost.)

Whip It Good by FeelingFredly [#25]

You didn't live a life like Kisuke's without developing a few interesting preferences, but he knew they weren't for everyone, and really, his relationship with Ichigo was more than he could have ever asked for--loving and supportive in ways he still wasn't sure he deserved. It was just very vanilla. Which was fine. Really.

So why he was "just visiting" at his old BDSM club?

The very bad, terrible, no good first few days of Junior SID Agent Dokugamine Riruka by Starrie_Wolf [#27]

Sometimes, Dokugamine Riruka wishes she could go back to her 22-year-old self and tell her to choose another department, any other department, she’s got the grades to take her pick.

Berry Nice by Chaos_Greymistchild [#28]

“Can I kiss you?"

“If you don’t,” Kisuke said with remarkable control, “I think I might do something regrettable.”

“Okay.”

Calling You (Maybe) by EternalEclipse [#29]

Ichigo never answers his phone, and Kisuke always does.

building a future (and tearing down the past) by EternalEclipse [#30]

At first, Ichigo had just been an invention of Kisuke's, nothing more than a gear to be moved. A pawn. It was only natural that after the war, Kisuke left him to his own devices--they'd won, which was the best he could ask for. As it turns out, once he starts making things for Ichigo instead of just countering Aizen, it's a hard habit to break. By the end of it, he won't even want to.

Or, five times Kisuke made things with Ichigo in mind, and one time Ichigo asked him to destroy something.

Companionship (Stay with Me) by Nikolaila [#31]

People are people, even in space. Sometimes the required conversations in relationships are hard to have but necessary to hold.

Tsuki no Tsuppane by Silmariën (Starrie_Wolf), Starrie_Wolf [#32]

They have scarcely begun to unravel the complex web of Aizen no Sōsuke's treason when Kisuke is made aware of another layer to the conspiracy, one that threatens to expose all the secrets he has not yet decided if he will share with Ichigo-no-mikoto.

Few enough people are willing to accept onmyōji, but even fewer will be willing to accept that their lover is not even human.

Work/Date Balance by Starrie_Wolf [#33]

Kisuke doesn't seem to really grasp the meaning of a date, but it's okay, Ichigo loves him anyway.

“So… are you doing your usual fainting damsel imitation, or shall I take care of it?”

(Interlude during their vacation in London.)

a breath of fresh air by Fox_the_Hermit [#34]

Ichigo refuses to let Kisuke win yet another round of the "I took a cute photo of you and I'll use it to fund my experiments" game. Mostly on principle.

The world is changing by Starrie_Wolf [#35]

They’ve been doing this for so long that Kisuke has no idea how to wake up in a world where he doesn’t need to prioritise the Hōgyoku over his family.

Interlude: the day after Aizen's defeat.

Accidental Pokèmon Acquisition by EternalEclipse [#36]

Ichigo had never wanted to be a pokèmon trainer. To be flat honest, the ghosts kept him busy enough. But when Monferno fell into his life with a burst of laughter and trouble, Ichigo is drawn into a side of the pokèmon world he didn't even know existed.

Or the one where there are both ghosts and pokèmon, the Gotei 13 is a government organization with as many checks and balances as ever, and Ichigo will do whatever it takes to keep his own safe.

Feeling Horny by Silmariën (Starrie_Wolf), Starrie_Wolf [#36]

When Urahara shoved Ichigo to Hirako to learn how to control his inner Hollow, Ichigo thought it meant Urahara wasn’t Hollowfied.

He was wrong.

the fear is eating you alive / so I'll be your reason, I'll be your shelter by Chaos_Greymistchild [#37]

Sometimes, Kisuke doesn’t remember where he is, or who he is in his own personal timeline. Sometimes, Ichigo is more Hollow and instinct than human. But that’s okay.

one-sided understanding by Angst_Distribution_Service (Fox_the_Hermit) [#37]

suspended animation (patiently waiting for the end) by Chaos_Greymistchild [#38]

Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck is new on the starship Zangetsu, piloted by Captain Kurosaki alongside his AI Urahara Kisuke, who seems to have an… unprecedented freedom on board the ship, if she was being entirely honest.

Freedom worth Fighting (for) by Starrie_Wolf [#39]

Things have a way of coming full circle...

You Haven't Lost Me by FeelingFredly [#40]

Ichigo has moved on. It doesn't matter if his Shinigami powers are gone--he's a weapon, and there was always a market for that skill set. Currently that skill set was being tasked to collect the oyabun's past due tribute from a troublesome shopkeeper.

Troublesome shopkeeper. No... it couldn't be.

What they don't understand by Starrie_Wolf [#42]

Ichigo comes back from winter break with bruises he can't explain and a significant other who looks to be much older than him.

His classmate thinks she's put two and two together.

With Affection by wynnebat [#44]

"Yoruichi asked me if I had any family," Ichigo says. His gaze rests on the courtyard and squad buildings across from them while Kisuke cannot look away. Ichigo's voice is even, but Kisuke knows better than that. Ichigo adds, wryly, "I told her all I needed was you."

painting in blood by Chaos_Greymistchild [#45]

“It’ll be fine.”

He hopes that that proves true.

You Don't Have a Soul, You Are a Soul (You Have a Body) by FeelingFredly [#47]

Kisuke has a disregard for his own safety a mile wide and it's enough to drive Ichigo mad. This time he finds the shopkeeper unconscious but not alone, and the woman with him has some very interesting things to say.

Thunder For Bells In This Church Of Two by Chaos_Greymistchild [#48]

“[Resonance for a human is] total, complete, irreversible blending” -- Bell Tolls, esama

For the shinigami, it is... less so.

wear your soul (outside your body) by Fox_the_Hermit [#48]

Ichigo has no idea how he ended up with someone so brilliant. Kisuke has no idea how he got lucky enough to end up with one of the best people he's ever met.

your heart doesn't beat (let me teach it to) by Fox_the_Hermit [#52]

Kisuke understands that his time to go has come. It's time to accept that he can't hang around forever. His dear friend Ichigo has agreed to help him with finding what is needed to help him move onwards, whatever that really means. (Except he’s not ready to let go.)

roots in my lungs, blooms on my tongue by Chaos_Greymistchild [#55]

Astilbes, dahlias, and Queen Anne’s Lace. Patience, devotion, sanctuary.

Will you become my... by SueGra [#57]

The war with Ywhach has ended two years ago. Everybody enjoying the peace. Suddenly all captains get an invitation to the Shiba compound because there is a new clan head? Who is she/he?

Happily Ever After by Starrie_Wolf [#58]

Ichigo wasn't expecting a happily ever after, but it seems like he could find a little peace at last.

Omega as Fish Oil by EternalEclipse [#59]

Yeah, Ichigo's an omega. He's fine with it, especially since some of the instincts that come along with it are useful for protecting his own. What he's not fine with are a bunch of shinigami noble knotheads deciding that he's up for the taking because of it. Luckily, he's got a Kisuke to help him set them straight.

You are my Sanity by OrangeTeaMoon [#60]

And so, it had taken Urahara Kisuke nearly 4 months, 1 week, 3 days and a direct run-in with an absolutely impossible apparition of Kurosaki Ichigo to realize that he had lost his mind.

reach the epilogue (and then take it from the top again) by Fox_the_Hermit [#61]

Ichigo's alive and healthy and whole. But too many people aren't (friends, family, the one single crush that hasn't had the time to get anywhere), and this isn't an epilogue to his story that's worth living in. He'd rather rewrite the whole damn thing from scratch.

Only the truth you want to see by Starrie_Wolf [#61]

Growing up as the daughter of a police detective father and a novelist mother, it’s no small wonder that Rika chose to study English Literature in university. The class is unavoidably small – even for Todai,finding students interested in pursuing a degree in the classics of a foreign country is a difficult matter.

Which makes all her classmates so unavoidably interesting.

Especially that Kurosaki Ichigo.

I'm a Certified Genius, I Swear by Chaos_Greymistchild [#64]

Kisuke’s not quite sure why he keeps getting gifts from the Shiba Clan Head, Shiba Ichigo, but— Hiyori please stop laughing please.

-0-

FANART

UraIchi PC4 Prompt #32 - Magic AU / Mythology AU / Fantasy AU by @ananfer [#32]

UraIchi PC4 Prompt #48 - Daemons AU by @junoagriffin [#48]

[astraseason]

𝑪𝑯𝑨𝑹𝑨𝑪𝑻𝑬𝑹 𝑺𝑯𝑬𝑬𝑻

repost, don’t reblog !

𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐬 !

full name. princess araceli of hoshido, nohr, & valla. pronunciation. ah-ra-selly. nicknames. ara, celi, little princess, traitor. height. 5′5″. age. physically 22, mentally 300+ due to several repetitions of the hoshidan-nohrian conflict. zodiac. leo. languages. common, nohrian, hoshidan.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS.

hair colour. periwinkle blue. eye colour. red. skin tone. pale and rosy-cheeked. body type. petite and slender, with lightly toned muscles. some slight curves. accent. early on, araceli spoke with a distinct nohrian accent. over the years -- from her perspective, at any rate -- she has since lost it. dominant hand. ambidextrous, but favours her right hand. posture. straight and proper, befitting a princess. she has a habit of slouching when alone, though. tattoos. none. most noticeable features. pointed ears, her left eye is missing and has been replaced with a glass one. she is uncomfortable with displaying the false eye, however, and covers it up with a black eyepatch. almost always wears a big, silver butterfly hairpin. occasionally, dragon horns, a tail, or some other draconic appendage.

CHILDHOOD.

place of birth. the kingdom of valla. hometown. unknown; though likely valla’s capital. birth weight / height.  unknown. first words.  likely ‘mama’ or ‘papa’. siblings.  lilith ( younger biological sister, self sired by anankos or in the case of canon divergence mothered by mikoto ), any other custom my units ( can be older or younger, but always her biological sibling ), high prince ryouma, princess hinoka, prince takumi, princess sakura ( hoshidan step-siblings ), crown prince xander, princess camilla, prince leo, princess elise ( nohrian “adopted” siblings ). parents.  anankos ( biological father, first dragon, will eventually die by araceli’s hand ), mikoto ( second princess of valla & later queen of hoshido, deceased ), king sumeragi of hoshido ( stepfather, deceased ), king garon of nohr ( “adoptive” father, disowned ) parental involvement.  uh. let’s see here. biological father sent her and her mother away from valla to prevent them getting caught up in his degeneration... and set her up to be the one to kill him in the end, to the point of meddling with time magic to ensure his defeat. her time with her mother and stepfather was cut short thanks to garon ambushing sumeragi, murdering him, and kidnapping her. he then proceeded to quite literally beat any traces of hoshido out of her to the point where he had her memory wiped entirely, and even then continued to be abusive. when she finally got to reunite with her mother over a decade later, mikoto was murdered before her eyes. so uh... i’d say they weren’t really involved in her life.

ADULT LIFE

occupation. princess of hoshido/nohr/valla, commander of the united hoshidan & nohrian army. in the postgame, she becomes either the unwilling queen or an ambassador of valla. current residence. upon refusing to pick a side in the hoshidan-nohrian conflict she becomes a vagabond, later the rebuilt kingdom of valla. close friends. aqua, felicia, lilith. i want to say jakob too, but he makes her very uncomfortable nowadays... relationship status. verse dependent, but typically single. she will not get romantically involved with anyone in the birthright or conquest timelines. the pain of losing that relationship to a timeline reset and the other party not remembering anything of it is too painful for her to bear. financial status. despite being a princess of two ( three, really ) kingdoms, not very wealthy thanks to her decision to remain neutral. driver’s license. in modern verses, yes. jakob might act as a chauffeur, though... i don’t think much about modern aus tbh. criminal record. "treason”, if you want to consider refusing to pick a side in a war treason. xander and ryouma sure did. plays it straight in birthright or conquest, given she is picking a side there.

SEX & ROMANCE.

sexual orientation. pansexual. romantic orientation. panromantic. preferred emotional role. submissive | dominant | switch | unsure I equal preferred sexual role. submissive |  dominant  | switch | sex repulsed libido. this is a sfw blog, so we’re done talking about this. turn ons. kindness & intelligence. tends to gravitate towards people she feels she can take care of, perhaps out of a desperate desire to “do something right”, but also has a weakness for ‘knights in shining armour’. turn offs. being an irredeemable dick. that’s... honestly it. if you’re not the best person out there but you’re willing to put in the work to better yourself as a person, she’ll give you a chance. she also finds jakob’s almost obsessive devotion incredibly off-putting and scary, though that’s more a problem specific to him. love language. words of affirmation, acts of service, physical touch in the case of family or a significant other only. relationship tendencies. a little too self-sacrificing and slow to lower her walls, but incredibly affectionate and loyal. has difficulty accepting that her significant other actually does love her, however, due to the trauma she has endured... or that she even deserves the affection to begin with. but she will still move mountains for them.

MISCELLANEOUS.

character’s theme song. arsonist’s lullaby - hozier, no light, no light - florence + the machine, point of no return - starset. hobbies to pass the time. reading, sleeping, busywork around camp. mental illnesses. undiagnosed anxiety, ptsd, & depression. physical illnesses. n/a. left or right brained. right brained. fears. going underground, xander, takumi, jakob, making important decisions, abandonment, being misunderstood, losing control of her draconic form, anankos, garon, her immortality, being seen as property or a possession. self confidence level. practically nonexistent. vulnerabilities. dragonslaying weapons.

tagged by:@stormsiris​ tagging: you, if you haven’t done it yet.

[chilly-territory]

K ~ Four Seasons of K: One Month After

Munakata and Suoh as kids. The original Japanese text is kindly provided by blueseraphima, as always.

One Month After by Raikaku Rei

On that day, Munakata Reishi, after coming back from radio calisthenics, decided to go out.

To Munakata, a 5th grade student at a local elementary school at the time, any distance not easily covered on his bike was like a journey. Munakata put on a straw hat that he had his mother buy for him, slung a flask with cold water over his shoulder and slipped into sneakers.

"Oh, Reishi. Going out to play?" Munakata's older brother Taishi called out to him, watching the boy tag on his shoes. "No." "Hmmm? Then going to a library or something, despite having done all your homework ages ago?" "No, I'm not going to the library either." Munakata finished lacing his shoes and rose, standing with a ramrod straight back. "There is a place I wish to see, so I'm going to see it. I will be back by evening." Having said all he had to say, Munakata left the house.

He went by train, changing them a few times, to get as close as the transportation system allowed to the place of his destination, and then walking the rest of the way.

Although it had been already a month since the tragedy, at the same time it had been only a month. Needless to say, the uproar had yet to die down. In order not to be in the way of people heading in the opposite direction, Munakata avoided crowded places, taking a route along the deserted seacoast instead.

The August sun had climbed to its zenith, grilling the earth below with its violently scorching heat. The breeze blowing from the sea helped though, being surprisingly refreshing.

Once he stepped into the coastlands, Munakata lifted his head, staring into the sky. Direct sunlight rained down on his face, protected by the wide flaps of his straw hat until now, and made his glasses glint, reflecting off their surface. When he had had enough basking in the midsummer sun, Munakata's eyes shifted down, to the sea this time.

The water wasn't really transparent, but the surface glistened as it reflected the rays of the sun. Munakata found himself gazing at the glittering waters for some time before setting off to walk along the coast at a leisurely pace.

The beach wasn't sandy, nor did it have piers. What Munakata trotted cautiously on was unstable debris.

After a while, he came across an old man sitting on the rubble. Said old man stared at the sea with a stern-looking expression. His face was plowed with wrinkles, and his form, as he kept staring at the water without even the slightest of movements, was reminiscent of an expensive thematic carved artwork.

Munakata kept walking in silence, the distance between him and the old man gradually closing until the man finally noticed him and raised his head abruptly. That movement helped Munakata ascertain that the elder wasn't an actual statue, the fact coming as a relief somehow.

"It's not safe for a child to walk here all alone," the old man reprimanded. "No, it is not. I shall proceed with caution, sir," Munakata replied.

The old man took in all of Munakaka, from the top of his head to the tips of his toes, in one quick sweep, and in a voice quieter than before, asked, "...What, did yer friend die or somethin'?"

The wording was callous, but the old man's tone betrayed sings of concern, letting Munakata sense that the man did care, in his own way. Munakata shook his head.

"No. None of those I know personally died here." "Then why did ya come to a place like this?" "Because I wished to see it."

Munakata's answer made the old man grimace bitterly.

"And whatcha gonna do once you saw it?" "As I am now, there is nothing I can do. But I believe I must see it regardless. Although it is hard to put into words why I feel this way."

Munakata was a child who excelled at putting things into words. Not being able to find the right expressions to explain something was a rare state for him. Still, for once, he had a feeling that the moment he tried to describe this sensation with words, those words would become false.

"Hmph," the old man snorted. "Y'know, when I was a kid, there was a war raging," he suddenly changed the subject. "I see," Munakata nodded, unfazed. "And there were air-raids. Countless, again and again. And every time, we fled. Those who couldn't flee usually died. Many of those who did flee died too." "I see." "Tons of people died... The deathtoll in this incident is the same or even more, I hear."

Once again, Munakata turned his gaze to the sea. The old man stared at the water too.

This time, quite a while had passed before Munakata nodded and said "I see".

"Why did it have to happen, I wonder..." the old man wondered aloud in a seemingly laid-back tone. "It was said in the news that the cause was an explosion that occurred in the research institution of next generation energy sources. ...There are many suspicious points that do not add up though." "No, that ain't what I'm talking about. I don't care what the actual cause was... I was wondering why these things keep happening... just grumblings of an old man," the man chuckled with derision directed at himself. Munakata's lips thinned.

When a calamity strikes, it strikes.

However, Munakata pondered, was there really no one who could foresee it or prevent it? Or, maybe, there were those who expected it and tried to prevent it, and it all combined and fit together like a puzzle, with the picture revealed in the end being this calamity?

What would he do if he were one of those who had predicted such a catastrophe? Munakata tried to imagine it. Could a helpless child do anything? Or would he actually be able to see, if only a little, the right option to choose?

Munakata's age being what it was, he was often asked about his dreams and hopes for the future. And every time Munataka was hard-pressed to answer. He did have a picture of his ideal world in mind, but he could never quite tell who he needed to become in order to make that image reality.

A world where everyone could be happy could never exist, but a world that could gain peace while avoiding hurting people as much as possible or making them suffer was not too far fetched, and he wanted to become someone who would strive for such a world. Someone who would sense an impending calamity first and minimize the damage from it as much as possible.

Munakata thought long and hard about who he should become to be such a person, all to no avail.

"I... I want to become someone who would do everything in his power to prevent such things from happening," Munakata blurted out before he could check himself. He was sure, to the old man his declaration sounded as nothing more than a child's irresponsible dream and was no consolation at all, and he felt he made a blunder with his word choice, but after a second of surprise, the old man showed a tiny smile for the first time. "I see," he nodded.

A red-haired boy chose this time to abruptly come out of the sea waters long ways off from where Munakata stood.

Munakata's eyes opened wide, and for a fleeting moment, he believed him to be a ghost. Munakata's eyesight wasn't good enough to let him see the boy's face clearly at that distance, but from the boy's stature and physique it appeared they were the same age.

The boy rose from the water and climbed to the land. It seemed he swam right in his clothes, his tanktop and breeches soaking wet and clinging to his body. The boy gave a shake like an animal, shaking off the water.

"Did he swim at a place like this?" Munakata frowned. "Do you find it sacrilegious?"

In reply to the old man's interested question, Munakata nodded. "I do not find such an act agreeable." "It would be desecration if he actually meant to desecrate this place, but he has no such a goal, I assure you."

From that statement, it appeared that the old man knew the red-head. Against his better judgement, Munakata found himself sending a reproachful look to the old man upon the realization.

The old man narrowed his eyes in mirth, watching Munakata, then got up heavily and, without saying goodbye, turned around to walk away.

It was 1999, the 11th of August, a month after the landscape of Japan had been altered due to a mysterious explosion, and South Kanto had become a crater that sunk to the sea.

*

It seemed grandfather's friend died in the incident that turned South Kanto into a crater.

It was summer break, and one morning grandfather suddenly announced that they needed to go to a month anniversary of death.

Suoh Mikoto lost his parents at a tender age and now lived with his eccentric grandfather, just the two of them.

In exchange for living like he wanted, said grandfather seldom made any demands of Suoh, but on that day his utterance was an order with no room for objection. Not waiting for Suoh's reply, he began making preparations.

Suoh never even met his grandfather's friend. But he had no particular reason to object either, so he didn’t, simply following his grandfather out of the house in silence.

The place they went to visit wasn't an area with survivors or an altar to lay flowers on. Instead, it was a deserted location to where no one bothered coming on purpose, a quiet place where rubble piled up, becoming makeshift breakwaters, and beyond that there only sprawled the vast sea - the endless blue ocean.

Until just a month ago, this was land.

Suoh's grandfather sat down on the rubble without a word and stopped moving, becoming what was essentially a living carved statue. Suoh, standing by his side, absentmindedly took in his surroundings that turned into the sea only a month earlier.

He, among countless others, remembered vividly what happened last month.

It was the 11th of July, and on that day, at that time, Suoh was playing soccer. Trapping the ball that came flying his way with his chest, he dropped it to his feet, and it was at the moment when he made the ball his that a thunderous roar reverberated through the space and the ground shook as if bouncing up and down.

Screams echoed around him. Everyone was frantically pointing in the direction of the south, trying to make out something there.

Suoh, too, was caught by surprise, if slight, but being a young child he was, the concentrated look on his face didn't change when he turned to the south to look.

The sky in the south was boiling hot red, and a massive column of fire towered there, as if piercing both heaven and earth. Even from this significant distance away, that red pillar looked thick and vividly blazing, and trying to guess just how exceedingly vast the area it had swallowed was defied imagination. From its shape alone, one could have mistaken it for a backbone of the world, propping the sky, but that burning hot red color triggered instincts signaling that it was much more violent than that.

Suoh's eyes were fixed on the sight for a while.

Commotion and shrieks filled the air, sounds mixing together, and Suoh heard somebody moan, "Looks like it's the end of the world".

'If this is what the end of the world looks like, then I guess it's surprisingly pretty,' Suoh thought at the time without much emotion.

The sea he was gazing at today was the result and remnants of that.

When he saw satellite photos shown on TV every day, he thought to himself, 'Oh, I see, so South Kanto turned into a crater and got submerged, changing the shape of this country a little'. Now that he stood there, on the coast of said crater, a thought of 'Oh, so this is what this place is like now' did flash through his mind with a little more gravity than before, but it wasn't like the sinking in reality of it hit him all that hard.

After a moment of consideration, Suoh kicked off the ground and jumped into the sea with a splash.

Once he submerged, all the sounds audible on the surface disappeared without a trace, leaving only the bubbling of the water in his ears that made up the whole world.

In the water, Suoh saw the ruins of the destroyed world.

Nearly nothing still preserved the shape it once had. Having sunk to the bottom of the sea, what was part of things and objects that once were part of the life of people that used to be alive was now broken and absorbed by the sands of the seafloor.

It was hard to call visibility in the water good, but Suoh did make out that what he was seeing was by no means a regular seafloor.

'I see,' Suoh thought.

It didn't invoke any further stronger emotions or impressions in him, neither did it trigger feelings of sorrow, indignation or compassion; he kept gazing at the view stretching before his dispassionate eyes as a fact of life.

Somehow or other, he remained submerged for as long as he could, rising back to the sea surface only after almost running out of air. He resurfaced at a spot much further from where he dove in, partly due to indulging in swimming in the ocean for a short while, and partly due to being carried away by the currents without him noticing. He found that his grandfather who was by his side earlier, was now sitting long ways off, and for some reason there was an unfamiliar boy standing next to him.

The boy's glasses reflected sunlight mercilessly, and Suoh couldn't get a good look at his face, but he did perceive that the boy was about his age. He also thought that the straw hat the boy was wearing didn't really suit him. To be exact, as a headgear for a child on a little summer trip, it was the right choice, the problem lay with this particular child who didn't go well with summer at all: he was pale and looked the type to never even sweat.

Suoh gave a shake, trying to shake the water off his drenched person, however futile the effort was. Intense sunlight was drying the seawater out of his clothes rapidly though, but not without leaving a sticky sensation of the seasalt still remaining on his skin in its wake.

Suoh's grandfather got up and was now walking towards Suoh. He must have had enough of being here, then.

For some reason, Suoh's eyes strayed to steal a glance at the unfamiliar boy who stood by his grandfather earlier.

The boy did the same, looking at Suoh.

The piqued interest lasted for only an instance, and before his grandfather even reached him, Suoh had already turned on his heel and started walking.

In the end, he and the unfamiliar boy who didn't mix well with summer didn't even have a chance to pass each other by.

[kaibutsushidousha]

DanganRonpa Re:Birth Summary - Chapter 1, part 1

Original script

Chapter starts with Fujimori in his room reading the school rules. His doorbell rings and it’s Maiko. She’s been going to all of the girls’ rooms to tell them everyone is meeting at dining hall after the morning announcement to discuss the situation. This was Yodogawa’s idea and he was going to tell everyone, but Maiko doesn’t want “that lech” near the girls, so she took that half of the jobs while he is telling the boys. Maiko warns him not to fall Yodogawa’s flirts. Fujimori is like “Thanks, Kagura-san”, but Maiko reminds him of she said in her introduction, that she likes “Maiko-chan” better. From this point on, Fujimori starts calling Maiko “Maiko-chan” when talking to her and still keeps Kagura-san in the inner monologue at first, but is gradually start to use Maiko-chan there as well. Maiko notices how empty Fujimori’s room is and comments that the other girls’ room are more tailor-suited to their talents. Maiko has some training equipment and what on hers.

Soon after, the nighttime announcement happens and we get a Monodora Theater thanking you for your first day of class in Kaihou and talking about how the school’s motto “faith, emancipation and justice” (shingi, kaihou and seigi) reminds him of doubt, ruin and sacrifice respectively (gishin, houkai and gisei).

The next morning, Fujimori goes to the cafeteria and everyone else is already there. Surprinsingly, even Itsuki came. Tsuchiya is dropped on the floor complaining about how sunlight hurts and he is only there because Aisaka had to practically drag him out of his room. The subject of the conversation was obviously a way to escape. Everybody went around wherever they wanted in the prologue, but it turns out none of them had actually explored the gym. Yodogawa volunteers to search there with Fujimori while everyone else rechecks the rest of the school, but Maiko is not letting the two of them be alone together. We already knew Yodogawa wouldn’t be able to murder Fujimori but I would have never guessed that the reason why was because Maiko would be tagging along with them the entire time. 

Everyone eats before leaving and the food is excellent. Fujimori asks who did it and it was Oosone. Fujimori is surprised she can cook.

Narumi Oosone: Huh-? What, rude!? You thought gourmands were people just said “Amazing, delicious” with beams of light coming out of their mouths!?

Ayumu Fujimori: N-no. Not at all.

Ayumu Fujimori (thinking): I did actually.

Narumi Oosone: I’m always striving for the ultimate most delicious foods, you know! I trust my cooking skills to be on the necessary level.

Aisaka says that cooking for everyone is too much work for her alone and she was taught a lot by her parents, so she can help her in the kitchen. Mizuta says she will help too. They invite Izumo too but she is not interested in food made for the living.

After everyone is done eating, Fujimori, Yogogawa and Maiko go to the gym. The only point of interest there is the locker room in the back. Maiko fails to see the doorplates and tries to use her e-Handbook on the boys’ room card reader, causing an alarm to ring. Monodora appears, explains the obvious and adds a new rule saying students are not allowed to enter the wrong locker room. The trio complains a bit about how he can just make new rules whenever he feels like it.

Yodogawa leaves first to explore the boys’ locker room, leaving the girls’ room to Maiko and Fujimori. Maiko tries to pull Fujimori inside, but he forcefully lets go of her. She asks what’s wrong and he tells his secret we already know, with some more details, like his long hair being a wig and that he is wearing a padded bra. He also explains his sister forces him to do that because she always wanted a sister for herself, but instead she only got 3 male brothers, so she decided to make the youngest of them into a sister. From this point on, Maiko starts calling Fujimori “Ayumu-kun” when they are alone together, but she still keeps as “Ayumu-chan” in public because she promised to keep his secret. Fujimori is surprised she is taking it so well, because he felt like she didn’t trust men that much. Maiko corrects him, explaining that it’s not like she doesn’t trust men, she just doesn’t trust Yodogawa specifically. She thinks he is not the upstanding man he presents himself as (great instincts there, Maiko). 

Maiko asks why he did introduce himself to everyone as a boy and he answers it was just his bad luck. As you remember from the prologue (or maybe you don’t, it’s been 5 months), Fujimori woke up already dressed as girl and in the same room as Yodogawa, so he couldn’t just get himself change just there. Then Yodogawa took him to introduce themselves to everyone, so he had to do it as girl. Maiko comments about he doesn’t know how to say “no” and they discuss about how he can’t go to the locker room in front of anyone. Maiko supports him saying the if this is ever necessary, Ayumu can just say he needs to go the infirmary and she will back him up with that. 

Anyways, Fujimori can’t explore the girls’ room, so Maiko has to go there alone and they need an excuse to make Yodogawa not suspect anything. Fujimori says he got interested in the podium where Monodora came from in his first appearance, so he is going to check that. He finds nothing there, not even an entrance for Monodora, which really makes no sense. He tries to think about, but Maiko is already done with her investigation and goes talk to him. The locker room only had some training equipped and a cleaning pushcar with a dusty mop. She is worried a dumbbell from there might become a murder weapon. 

Yodogawa appears after that and talks about the boys’ room. It didn’t have anything special but he was quite impressed on how wide it was. 15 beds wide in his rather unusual description. He is worried a dumbbell from there might become a murder weapon. The middle locker, the one directly in from of the door, can’t open because the door doesn’t quite fit its frame, but all other lockers are usable. As the 3 are all done with their investigations, Maiko suggests going back to the cafeteria, as she is hungry already. They just had breakfast, but Maiko’s metabolism is fast, so she gets hungry easy.

Back at the cafeteria, the trio joins Rokudou, Aisaka, Sakuma and Tsuchiya, who are also done with their respective investigations.

Ayumu Fujimori: Rokudou-san, where have you went?

Saiji Rokudou: Where have went?… No, you’re mistaken. My soul still resides in the world of the living.

Fujimori rewords the question to make it more clear and Rokudou apologizes, saying that’s a question he recieves a lot from his family due to their profession, so he answered it like that out of habit. Anyways, Rokudou investigated the library. It was quite varied, with a collection of manga, novels, encyclopedias, dictionaries,etc. But Rokudou didn’t search much of that because he found an altar photoalbum and was completely sidetracked by it.

Aisaka investigate the casino room because, by her logic, the impure place is where you find the impure stuff. That said, she found nothing. But she’s worried the darts there can become a murder weapon. Or a billiard ball if thrown with enough strenght.

Tsuchiya was a lazy ass and searched nothing.

Sakuma went to the indoors sports court. During his investigation, he found the best accustic spot there and he now thinks that the perfect place to play his music to everyone.

Then everyone except Itsuki arrives and, guess what, they were all unproductive. Fujimori wonder is she investigating, but Izumo says she doesn’t care, as Itsuki has been completely uncooperative from the start. Izumo considers Itsuki the most likely to kill someone. Fujimori strongly disagrees and thinks she is trying to stop the killing game her own way. Maiko suggests they should talk more about themselves to improve the group’s unity.

Ayumu Fujimori: But, shouldn’t we wait to do this when Itsuki-san is…

Mikoto Itsuki: …I’m right here.

Ayumu Fujimori: Waaah-!? I-Itsuki-san!? Since when were you here!?

Mikoto Itsuki: Since when that girl said I’m the most likely to kill someone.

Everyone makes their extended introductions of screen and we only get to see the last one: Itsuki. She just says the stuff we already know from her profile and that she has no brothers, no younger sisters and only 1 older sister. Kagura asks about she talents and she answers it’s none of their business and she doesn’t need to say it. She then changes the subject to Aisaka’s spiritualism, asking if she can’t use it to check what’s going on outside. Aisaka says she is right and her spiritualism is not only about lending her body to the spirit of the dead, she can also lend it to spirit of the living, so if she can get someone outside to possess her, the group can talk to them and after the possession is over, they can move things outside to free them. It’s worth giving it a try.

Aisaka sits in seiza on the middle of the room and everyone makes the silence she needs but it still doesn’t work. 

After some silly discussion about whether or not spiritualism signals can be jammed, the overall mood of the room gets really bad. Or rainy in Mizuta’s words. Mizuta does this kind of puns with “rainy mood” “you’re looking sunny” etc quite a lot. Anyways, Maiko decides to dance a bit to cheer everyone up and Sakuma, as he doesn’t have his equipment here, provides the rhythm only with beatboxing. It was apparently a quite impressive performance and it shows that Maiko practices a lot.

Ayumu Fujimori: Effort is also a talent on it’s own way… as they say. I really don’t think Sakuma-kun was able to beatbox like this on his first try. And didn’t Oosone-san explicitly that she could only improve her cooking skill because of much she strived for the best food?

Keigo Sakuma: Yup. No matter how talented, you’re not going anywhere with don’t work to improve it.

Ayumu Fujimori: My talent is not an improvable one, so… I’m a little bit jealous.

Maiko Kagura: …Geez! I don’t like this side of you, Ayumu-chan! I have what you lack so I can’t fill in for you where need it, and the same goes for me. I’m sure you have lots of things I lack! And if you want something both lack, you have my full support and we’ll work for it together!

Great speech there, reminds me of Saihara talking about Momota. I’m really liking Maiko a lot. 

Anyways the meaningful character moment is interrupted by Maiko’s stomach growling. Oosone, Aisaka and Mizuta go make the meal as promised and Maiko thanks, saying she loves girls who can cook. Maiko can’t because she dedicated all of her free time to dancing and her meals were almost always in hotels due to her performance travels. Oosone is like “What, did you just say if you don’t know something you can just work to learn it? Come learn to cook with us.” and she accepts. The cooking team leaves and Fujimori gets to talk a bit with the other kids who stayed there. The main talk out of those is with Rokudou.

Rokudou talks about how he has no friends because all the kids his age were creeped out by him. Due to his job, he is really desensitized to death. Death scenes in movies get no reaction from him. Even when his own grandfather died, he didn’t react. Hearing that, Fujimori proposes to become his friend, as Rokudou is relatively normal and easy to talk to. From this point on, he calls him Saiji-kun instead of Rokudou-san. Yodogawa butts in in the conversation saying he wants to as he also easy to talk to, but Fujimori jokingly answers he is not really. Maiko’s influence is starting to get visible. I’m guessing Yodogawa will kill Maiko in maybe chapter 5 or somewhere else late game.

Team Cooking comes back, everyone eats and Monodora shows up when they’re done saying he as present to everyone, but he will only deliver it at nighttime because still needs to finish editing it. After that, everyone disperses and it’s Free Time time. The Free Time Events are not included in the scripts, so we got no canon versions. I remember @morally-ambiguous-llama​ wrote 2 of them for Yodogawa, but I’m not sure if he is continuing this series. Speaking of Yodogawa, I really don’t like the way he talks. He has this thing he does a lot where he makes a full sentence, then adds a negative to it afterwards, like for example:

Maiko Kagura: Did you find anything in the boys’ room? The girls’ room got nothing really out of the ordinary.

Seishi Yodogawa: Well, guns, knives, wooden swords…  were nowhere to be found there.

Seishi Yodogawa: See, in games, all the events usually fall into place so that everything makes sense in the end. Which is completely be what will happens in out case.

Seishi Yodogawa: Sounds like a good idea. Except not all.

Anyways, back to the story. After Free Time we get the nighttime announcement and Monodora’s present. As you may have guessed by the word “editing”, it’s our good old Motive Videos. All Motive Videos are about the people who enrolled them in the Talent Removal Project. It’s relatively harmless to the people who enrolled themselves on their own volition. Yodogawa and Itsuki instead got videos of that reminded them of their duties. Fujimori’s video was various scenes of him being bullied by his sister.

After Fujimori watches it with almost indiference, Monodora shows up and says the present was not only the video and Fujimori now got a knife, a hammer, a rope and and a little bottle of poison. He locks everything on his closet and goes to sleep. The Monodora Theater is all about questioning why is study necessary for the future and about how people are constantly sacrificing the present for the sake of the future. Quite insightful if you know Tsuchiya is the mastermind. In glad they are doing all the Monodora Theaters vaguely about him just like almost all Monokuma Theaters in DR1 were vaguely about Junko.

Fujimori wakes up before the morning announcement and goes to the breakfast meeting early. Only him, Yodogawa and Mizuta are there and they talk about their videos. Yodogawa says his  was “him talking to a politician about his job” (technically not lying) and Mizuta’s was an office meeting informing her of the next day’s weather. The morning announced is played and Aisaka is there soon after. 

When everyone is there, Todoroki asks what was up with those medical diagnosis video and the other people say theirs had nothing to with medics. Fujimori suggests everyone watched everyone’s videos, but Itsuki is the first to refuse, followed by Tsuchiya. Everyone confirms they also got the second part of the present, but no one specifies what weapons they got, so I’m suspect everyone got different sets.

After everyone eats, Maiko invites Fujimori to exercise with her. He refuses due to his bad luck’s history of causing disasters when he moves around, but Maiko talks about how the indoors sports court is so wide and empty, so aside from the ceiling dropping, there’s no risks for them. 

When the two reach the court, Rokudou is there, as Tsuchiya ordered him to bring a towel for him. Maiko complains about how he (and Fujimori) can’t say “no” and Fujimori adds he feels like Tsuchiya is aware and takes advantage of it. The two invite Rokudou to join their work out.

Maiko is impressed by Rokudou’s strenght and his that it’s because of his job (he has to lift and drop coffins I think?). Rokudou talks more about his job and says he doesn’t have many skills he can use in the current situation, but in the “off-chance” someone dies, he can performed the advanced autopsy like Kirigiri, Tsumiki and Harukawa did in the real games. Maiko is surprised Fujimori also calls Rokudou "Saiji-kun” and she tells about their promise to become friends the previous day, inspired by Maiko’s own friendliness. Maiko doesn’t want to stay behind on the friendship competition, so she keeps playing badminton with Rokudou. Fujimori sits out of the game now because he is exhausted already. He also can’t exercise too much like this because he is always worried his wigs and fake boobs might fall off. 

After the match is over they get to talk again, complimenting Maiko’s reflexes and Rokudou’s trick shots. Maiko says again that she likes being called “Maiko-chan” better, but Rokudou just can’t do that and the reach a middle ground with “Maiko-san” (and Ayumu-san for Fujimori). Rokudou doesn’t really know what friends do. Maiko ponders for a bit and says friends help each other with their troubles and tells him to say if there’s anything he wants to do and they’ll do it together. Rokudou says see he’ll spend the night thinking and Maiko is like “Nooo, you have to sleep properly every night”. Rokudou answer tells her not to worry, he is used to sleepless nights because of his job. Maiko claims that’s the problem. She was talking to normal boy Saiji Rokudou, not the undertaker, so he should let other people worry about him like normal people do. Rokudou agrees to take his time. The trio leaves and Rokudou goes bring Tsuchiya his towel, as he kept him waiting this entire time. Not that any of them cares much, no one there really likes Tsuchiya.

Immediately after the trio disperses, we have more Free Time and Fujimori goes to sleep think about his new friendships with Maiko and Rokudou.  The Monodora Theater is about the true meaning of freedom. Watch Evangelion episode 25 to get the gist of the monologue. 

Fujimori wakes up the next morning with his doorbell ringing and knocking on his door. He yells “Wait a second!” a few times and starts hurriedly getting himself dressed, doing a Tsumiki-style super trip in the process (no CG for that). Fujimori gets the door and it’s Yodogawa. He asks Fujimori why is his knee bleeding and Fujimori was surprised Yodogawa didn’t hear him trip. Yodogawa apologizes for hurrying him, saying he was just worried because Fujimori was not responding. Fujimori finds it weird because he was responding a lot. The two do a little test and confirm the bedrooms are soundproofed.

Yodagawa explains that he was there because Fujimori, Maiko and Rokudou slept over the morning announced and everyone is worried they didn’t show up for breakfast. The two go meet everyone in the dining hall. Fujimori just overslept, but Maiko and Rokudou apparently were not in their rooms. Izumo is the first one to suspect they are dead. The group splits up to search. Samejima and Aisaka manage to quickly find Maiko in the infirmary. She got hurt practicing in her room and has been there ever since. 

Fujimori and Maiko go to the gym, where Yodogawa, Samejima and Aisaka found Rokudou in the boys’ locker room.

I found this scene really weird because Yodogawa, Samejima and Aisaka are three people, so the Body Discovery Announcement was supposed have played already before Fujimori and Maiko got there. And even now the two saw it, the announcement still didn’t play. Maybe it played when everyone was sleeping, but I’m not sure how that would make sense. Anyways, I’ll wait until I read the investigation and the trial before I judge this. That’s all for this part.

[petalurn]

( @vepid where do i even tag you wtf anw Transformers au! )

she smells like oil. she always smells like oil. always got in on her, around her, staining and marking. pretty faces no longer matter in this world. everyone’s either stained or kissed.

hyejin likes to think she’s been kissed. even if people say it’s by the devil themselves.

“he won’t hurt you.”

she’s not sure who she’s talking to. the twenty-foot sack of machinery, crouched down by her side, or the six foot human in front of them. he keeps wandering around here, getting lost in the stars, watching like he’s from it, and not like he’s afraid. these days everyone’s afraid. they get jelly in their knees when they think about what’s fallen, what’s to come. this kid, mikoto, looks like he’s flying when he thinks of it. reaching.

hyejin doesn’t reach, and somehow things always fall into her lap.

like brightstripe. he fell into her backyard the day they came. saved her after she saved him. 

she’s been working with cars since she was a teen, so imagine her joy when a giant one falls into her lap. he’s all black, with yellow parts that turn into a big stripe when he’s a Lamborghini. it’s pretty cool but, no one cares about how cool it looks anymore. neither does he. they are forsaken and the only novelty in them now is a spear through a rusted head. a sign of hatred.

they know this and live in this world.

she tells him to go and he won’t.

“seriously he’s a good guy.”

hyejin’s talking to him, mikoto but she’s talking to brightstripe too. convincing, smiling. the two things they need a lot of in this world. the humans raided them all, ripped apart, wore down and drove them out. she remembers. but they, they did the same. tor humans apart, burned and broke them. they both broke the world and here she is trying to bridge it.

“brightstripe, mikoto, mikoto, brightstripe.”

“why does he watch the stars?” brightstripe’s voice is, rough, gruff, but always gentle in the night. like a whisper when he speaks to hyejin. he’s always been a quite comfort since the day he fell to her backyard. since the day the world changed. he’s always been by her side, much like how he stands by, hyejin’s feet kicking over the rusty top of the roof. “ask him.” “human.” “you call hyejin by her name why am I human?”

mikoto has become another comfort. a bright reminder of the good that’s left, of the laughter that hasn’t yet run out. she’s smiling and she hears brightstripe’s eyes roll before she sees them. she’s watching mikoto as he watches the sky. wondering, maybe even wishing.

“why do you watch the stars like that?” “like what?” “like you’re not afraid.” “brightstripe-------.”

hyejin knows she should face reality sooner or later. or rather she knows she should face reality all the time instead of in pockets of the day. hyejin knows the truth of the hell they’ve entered, endured, earned. she knows. she’d just rather spend her nights doing different things. some nights brightstripe apologizes, some nights she does.

i’m sorry for us, for them. is what it sounds like.

“I’m not afraid.” “why not?” “hell rained on us that day, but the sky isn’t full of hell you know? heaven came too.”

thank you. is what it sounds like on other nights. like now when she’s smiling at mikoto, when he shushes brightstripe into acceptance.

“you are strange human.” “isn’t he.”

hyejin understands the situation they’re in. as much as she understands the dirt ridden rag around her neck, as much as she understands the trailer and junkyard that’s become their home. as much as she understands life can end the next night, she could lose both lights as quickly as she’s gained them. she understands and yet she clings to both of them.

so she smiles, watches the stars and remembers. she’s done wishing but she thinks she can continue living.

[words-are-like-colors]

Title: Tattooed To Misaki {3} “Pineapples”

Originally Posted On: July 31, 2016

Word count: 3422

Rating: M

Relationship: M/M

Parts: 3/11

Tags: Fushimi Saruhiko/Yata Misaki, Suoh Mikoto/Totsuka Tatara, Fushimi Saruhiko, Yata Misaki, Mikoto Suoh, Tatara Totsuka, Tenkei Iwafune, Nagare Hisui, Tattoo, Saruhiko is a tattoo artist, AU, Misaki is part of Homra gang, Jungle, Fluff, Cathedral, Slowish Build

Summary for Chapter 3:  Ha ha Misaki is a little angry that his friends keep joking with him about Saru while Saru is still uncomfortable with Mikoto. Eric gets his tattoo finally.

Notes: I've just realized I've been using USDs opposed to yen. Sorry ‘bout that. Edit: I’ve fixed most mistakes [currency, names, and some grammer] but not all versions [archive, this page, and original posting] are updated correctly. Please send me a message or ask telling me what needs to be fixed. Thank you :D

Yata angrily kicked the oven door shut. What’s wrong with everyone?! Do they have to spoil everything for me? Just because I think he’s… hot doesn’t mean they have to tell him everything! He plopped down in a chair and watched the oven, not taking his apron off.

“Misaki?”

“What?” he huffed, not moving his eyes away from the oven. He was still angry, but he could tell that it was Saru talking.

“You wanted to talk, so let’s talk.” The artist grabbed a chair and pulled it over to Yata. He sat down with a soft thump.

Yata shrugged, his mood still sour. “Fine. Like I said earlier, I noticed that you don’t have any tattoos.”

Saruhiko’s wrist invaded his vision. A small black outline was printed on it. “What’s that?” Yata tilted his head a little and realized it was a monkey. A small fit out laughter erupted from him. “A monkey. A saru.” He laughed again, then stopped, remembering how Saruhiko had called his father an asshole for the name.

“Tsk. I was forced to get this.” Saru slipped the arm band back over the tattoo.

“I’m sorry,” Yata said softly, honestly ashamed for laughing at him. The gang member had already forgotten about his bitterness towards his friends… was it because Saru was here with him?

Yata watched as the taller man shrugged and crossed his arms. “So?” Saruhiko prompted him to say something.

The skater glanced around for a topic and saw the muffins baking in the oven. “You like muffins?”

“No.”

“Well…. Try mine!” Yata watched him. “I made plain because I didn’t know what you like.”

Saru nodded. “Maybe I’ll try a bite….” he muttered softly.

“Okay!” Yata smiled. “You like it here?”

“It's….. nice, I guess.” Saruhiko shifted a little in his seat so he could sit cross-legged.

“That’s good.” Bing!

Yata jumped up from his seat and brought out the muffins.

Fushimi sat off to the side as he watched Misaki show off his aura. The artist sighed and nibbled on one of Misaki’s muffins—his 10th one, since Misaki wouldn’t stop making them. “So. Fushimi.” Fushimi looked up to see Kusanagi, the only person in the bar that really seemed responsible.

“Yes?” Fushimi took another little bite out of the muffin, finishing it off.

“How’s your business going? Have you heard of Kuroh Yatogami’s shop?” The bartender leaned against the counter, cleaning off an glass with a cloth.

Fushimi shrugged. “I’ve heard of him in passing.”

“He’s the usual guy we go to. Everyone here but Yata goes to him.”

“Why didn’t Yata go to him?” The younger man was actually curious.

Kusanagi shrugged. “I tried to ask him about it, but he kept his mouth shut for once.”

Fushimi glanced at the kid in question. A red aura surrounded him. Misaki pumped a fist in the air and yelled that it was the first time that the aura hadn’t gone out on its own. Mikoto replied that it was because of the increased amount of emotion for him to feed off of. Fushimi clicked his tongue. “I was wondering…. Has he always been this hyper and excited?”

Kusanagi thought for a moment before answering. “No. He doesn’t usually get this hyped up about something. I mean, yes, he gets excited occasionally, but never about something this particular. He started acting like this…. a week ago, to be exact. Yata-chan kept on saying that he wanted a tattoo from a certain artist. I’m assuming that’s you.” The bartender put a glass on the counter. “What do you want? I’ll give it to you free.”

Fushimi shrugged. “Anything not too strong.” He watched as Kusanagi started to make him a drink. “I’ve never seen him before last night. It surprised me how determined he was to get one.” The artist glanced back at Misaki for a moment, then noted that it was getting darker outside. He had lost the track of time.

Kusanagi nodded and put the drink in front of him as Misaki bounced over. “Saru! Did you see that?”

“Yeah. It was cool.” Fushimi didn’t mean it, but Misaki’s bright smile was enough to make it true.

“Thanks.” He noticed the glass. “Why does he get two without pay?”

The bartender looked at him. “Actually, you paid for the first one, I got the second one.”

“When did I say I would be paying for it?” Misaki sat down in the barstool, a confused look on his face.

“Last night, before we nearly stifled you with a pillow.”

The skater blushed. “I didn’t realize I said that.”

“Well you did, so I get a free drink from you.” Fushimi took a sip out of his teasingly.

Misaki gave him a soft glare. “It’s not like I can pay for it.”

The artist looked at him. “Why not?”

“I have just enough to get by before my next pay,” Misaki said sheepishly, ashamed that he didn’t have the money.

“Not my fault,” the taller man muttered. “You wanted that tattoo when you wanted it.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he snapped.

“Let’s see…” Fushimi started to list things off. “You didn’t come in with an appointment, you didn’t have an ID, which meant I had to do extra work by messing with your PDAWatch, you demanded that I give you the tattoo, you carelessly plopped down in my chair, you—”

“Alright! I get it.” Misaki crossed his arms with a pout. “Is there any other way I could pay you? Like you give the money back for extra fees and I do something for you?”

Fushimi thought for a moment, then nodded. “Fine. You have to do at least 200 dollars worth of quality tasks. You can’t just give me 200 candy bars.”  

Misaki brought his watch closer to Fushimi, who took his PDA out. They did a quick transfer before putting them away.

“Misaki.” A light voice sounded from behind them. Both of them turned around to see Mikoto standing there, Anna sitting on his shoulder. “Make sure you walk your boyfriend back home,” she teased lightly.

“He isn’t my boy—”

“It’s the polite thing to do,” she said, cutting him off. “Good night, Fushimi-kun.”

“Night…” Fushimi glanced at Mikoto and Anna walking up the stairs for a moment before turning away back to his drink.

Kusanagi sighed. “Well, I guess it’s time for all of us to go to bed. Can’t cause too much racket with them sleeping.”

Misaki frowned. “I wanted to spend more time with Saru though!”

“Then why don’t you ask him yourself?”

Fushimi looked at Misaki, who turned to him, blushing. “Could… I spend more time with you tonight?”

“No.” The artist didn’t hesitate. He needed to sleep and get ready for the shop tomorrow….. But he did feel guilty for saying no. He didn’t know why, but he did.

“I guess Eric and I will be seeing you on Tuesday, then.”

He did look upset, so Fushimi said, “Make me a batch of those muffins or something.” After a moment he added, “To make up for some of the money… and you don’t want me eating just energy bars, right?”

That made Misaki smile again. “Okay! I’ll be back in a bit.” He jumped off of the stool and ran back into the kitchen.

Misaki came back out not too long after carrying a plate full of muffins and a black container. “A batch of muffins and some Yata-rice.” He proudly put them on the counter.

“Yata-rice?” Fushimi looked through the transparent lid. It looked edible, Fushimi concluded.

“Yep! I was trying to make something that Kusanagi told me about with Kamamoto, but I messed up a little, so now we have Yata-rice.” He smiled smugly, prideful of his work. “Oh, and also you have to heat it up if you put in the fridge.”

Fushimi nodded and stood up, picking up the “Yata-rice”. “Misaki, help me bring this to the car.”

“Okay! Good night Kusanagi!” Misaki chimed while picking up his muffins.

“Good night, boys.” The bartender waved as the two walked outside.

Misaki hopped over to the car and put the muffins in when Fushimi opened the door. “Um… Saruhiko?”

Fushimi glanced at him after putting the “Yata-rice” into the car.

“C-can I… Uh…. C-can….” The shorter man was a blushing mess, stuttering over his words. He had pulled off his beanie and was twisting it in his hands.

“What?”

“Nevermind! Forget it. It’s just nonsense.” Misaki blushed more, looking away. “Just good night. Have a good night.”

Fushimi looked at him for a moment, his hand braced on the open car door. “Okay. Night, Misaki.” But before closing the car door, he said, “17,000.”

Fushimi did eat some of the muffins and “Yata-rice”. He wasn’t planning to, but Misaki had made it for him. So for dinner, Fushimi popped open the “Yata-Rice” container. Steam bloomed out of it because of the microwave.

The artist looked at the “Yata-rice” for a moment before taking a bite. It actually tasted good, or maybe it was because the only food he had eaten recently was Yata’s muffins… still, he was grateful for something nice after a day of work. Fushimi glanced up at his laptop and took another bite. With his free hand he clicked on a website.

White and Black

[times. address. etc.]

Kuroh Yatogami has been in service for at least three years, taking over the business from his late “master” Ichigen Miwa. He specializes in tattoos while his assistant, Yashiro Isana, specializes in piercings. This pair has rapidly gone up in the charts as the most reliable and affectionate.

*note: If you have cat allergies, do not come in. We own a cat named Neko. Also, unnecessary hassles will be a fee, we don’t have time for nonsense.

Midway towards the end of the description of Yatogami’s shop, Fushimi bit into something weird. He looked into the dish to see pineapples. The artist gave his food the straightest face anyone had ever seen. I’m going to have to talk to Misaki about this. He poked the vile piece of food with a chopstick, then realized that he had already eaten some. He’s going to pay for that.

Fushimi pushed the dish away from him and turned his focus back to the computer. Pictures of the two men and the cat were posted. Yatogami had a lot of tattoos covering his arms; one poked out of his shirt and onto his neck. His hair was tied back in a neat ponytail. The other man was kind of cute (not as cute as Misaki, but Fushimi wasn’t going to admit that). There were a few black streaks in his white hair and three lip piercings on his right bottom lip. He had his head cocked and his tongue sticking out, flashing a peace sign as well. He looks too lively to be working with Yatogami, Fushimi thought.

A twirling noise came out of the computer and a little green box appeared in the corner. He clicked on it. The box expanded and the box grew bigger until it was 3x2. The was private message for JUNGLE.

Hello Fushimi.

Fushimi glanced at the username, then replied. Yes, Mikoto?

Mikoto wrote back, Congrats on making it to fifth place. Didn’t tell you earlier cuz I doubted anyone else knew.

Misaki knows.

Fushimi clicked on Mikoto’s profile while waiting for an answer.

Mikoto Suoh

Play time: 5 months

Place: 4th

Online?: Yes

Age: 24

Extra information: Mikoto is currently the leader of the Homra gang. He has been in 4th place for 3 months now and he does not want to move. Beware.

Mikoto replied, You to are close. Fushimi frowned at the spelling mistake.

No we are not.

Misaki is close to you.

Why are you speaking to me? Fushimi asked, frustrated as to why everyone seemed to think that Misaki liked and knew him so well.

-Mikoto Suoh logged off-

“Of course,” the artist grumbled before getting up and returning the “Yata-rice” to the fridge for the next day. He shut his laptop and plugged it in. He grabbed his PDA and headed into his bedroom with a yawn. Before getting onto the bed, he took off his pants and threw them into the corner; he did the same with his arm bands.

Fushimi took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes, placing them on the nightstand. When he did, he noticed that his art notebook was open. He shoved his glasses back on and read what it said:

Here is my number: XXX-XXX-XXXX. I figured that you wouldn’t ask for it so yeah. Here you go! ~Yata.

There was a small crow next to the number that was poorly drawn (two circles with a triangle beak and stick legs), but strangely cute. Fushimi sat on the bed and put the number into his PDA, not intending to use it unless something important came up. But he hesitated before shutting off his phone. It would be…. nice to talk to him, Fushimi thought, even if it was just to annoy him about the food. Fushimi hadn’t had that kind of friendly human contact in a long time. Quite frankly, he really hadn’t had any friendly contact. Fushimi wanted to feel it again, the feeling of being mentally connected with someone.

He didn’t realize that he had clicked the call button until he saw Misaki across the screen and “outputting” written underneath. Fushimi was about to hang up when Misaki answered.

“Hey, Yata here,” a groggy voice mumbled through the phone.

Fushimi closed his eyes for a moment, stemming his nerves. He didn’t like talking over the phone; he couldn’t read the person’s features to tell how they were feeling. It was either text or face to face, nothing in between. “Hey… Misaki.”

“Saru? Hi!” The grogginess in his voice seemed to disappear. “It’s 2 am. What’s up?”

“Pineapples.” Okay. That was a good enough reason to call, right? Not just to hear someone’s voice.

“Huh? Pineapples.” There was a pause. “Or right! The “Yata-rice.””

Fushimi laid back on the bed so his legs dangled off the side. “18,000.”

“Did you just increase the price because I put pineapples in it? Did you even try it?”

“Yes to both.”

“Did you like it?” Misaki sounded like he was holding his breath.

Fushimi didn’t say anything for a moment. “Yes.”

“The you shouldn’t raise the price! I take it that you don’t like pineapples, but at least take it down to 1750! Pretend that the pineapple isn’t there.”

“I can’t pretend. But fine. 1750 since you answered your phone.”

“Yay!” Fushimi listened to Misaki cheer goofily over the phone. After another moment of silence Misaki said his name.

“Yeah?”

“There must be another reason why you called.”

“There isn’t.” Fushimi went to click the “end call” button, but Misaki interrupted quickly.

“Oh. But stay on please. I’m awake so we might as well—”

“Talk. I know. You like to talk.”

“It depends…”

“Let’s not talk,” Fushimi decided.

“O-okay.” Misaki went silent.

The artist rolled over onto his side, his phone now on speaker so he didn’t have to hold it to his ear. He stared at the phone, the screen casting shadows on the sheets and walls. He closed his eyes after a moment, then realized that he could hear Misaki breathing. It was oddly comforting—hearing someone breathe, yet not lying next to them. An unknowing smile crept across his lips.

Fushimi closed his eyes and darkness rolled in.

Fushimi pressed his palms into his eyes. “God dammit,” he growled. He didn’t get a wink of sleep the night before, except for right after the call. The usual nightmare happened again. He hated it so much that he usually got only an hour or two of sleep a night—or just skipped it altogether. The artist normally would go home or into the backroom to rest if he had gotten no sleep whatsoever, but he was waiting for Misaki and Eric.

His last client had just left with a wave, so he looked at the time. He let out another growl, seeing that it was getting later and later and they still hadn’t come. “Misaki. What’s taking you so long?”

Speak of the devil, the front door opened with a little jingle and Misaki walked in, his hooded friend right behind him. The artist got to his feet and walked over.

“Hi Saru!” The shorter man smiled up at him. “We’re here!”

“I see that.”

Misaki itched at the back of his neck, a blush blooming on his cheeks. “Uh….”

“What?” Fushimi frowned at him, not understanding his sudden embarrassment.

“N-nothing.” He blushed more.

The artist leaned down teasingly. “Why are you blushing, Misaki?”

The red on his face was suddenly ten times darker than it had been a second earlier when Fushimi had leaned down. “I-I just remembered when…. I just…. I was just remembering how much I liked listening to your breathing.” The last sentence came out quickly, as if he had had to force himself to say it.

Heat crept up into Fushimi’s cheeks, remembering that he had thought the same thing.

“[Chihuahua is cute when blushing.]” Fushimi turned and looked at Eric in surprise, who had lowered his hoodie to reveal light blue eyes. He noticed Fushimi looking at him. “[You understand me?]” he said in English.

“[Of course I do,]” responded Fushimi, glad that the awkwardness between the gang member and artist was interrupted.

Both men smirked evilly at the same time. Clearly Misaki didn’t understand, because he was looking at both of them with a confused expression. Now the two of them had something against Misaki.

Fushimi moved away from Misaki and over to Eric. “Where?”

Eric grabbed the hem of his sweatshirt, then hesitated. He frowned and shook his head as if to push away certain thoughts, then he pulled his sweatshirt over his head, his shirt coming off with it. He quickly looked away and tapped his shoulder. “There.”

The artist nodded. “Okay.” He pushed him a little and he obeyed, laying on his stomach. Fushimi quickly scanned his body with his eyes, to see why Eric seemed so uncomfortable with taking his shirt off.

“I was a dog of Hikawa, okay?” the blond grumbled, knowing exactly what Fushimi was looking at. The artist was staring at the scars covering his back, mostly around his arms and neck.

Fushimi didn’t respond, but instead grabbed the photo from Misaki’s tattoo and started to copy the symbol down. Misaki had wandered over, his skateboard now gone. “Go sit,” Fushimi grumbled as he finished the sketch.

The skater did as he was told and sat in a rolling chair. Fushimi took out his phone and took a picture of the sketch for Eric. After a nod of approval from the gang member, Fushimi did the rest.

During the process, Misaki had repeatedly come over to watch—enough times for Fushimi to click his tongue, annoyed, and allow him to stay. His bright amber eyes were sparkling in amazement as he watched Fushimi work.

Eric sat up, now with a pad on his shoulder. “[Thank you, Fushimi-kun.]”

“[Welcome.]” The artist put his stuff away.

“This is so cool! Your whole job is cool!” Misaki spun around in the rolling chair until his orange hair looked like a blur.

“Slow down or you’ll hurt yourself.” Fushimi flashed him a look, but didn’t really mean it. He pushed away the little happy feeling that had erupted in his chest at Misaki’s words.

The blond put his shirt and hoodie back on and fished his PDA from his pocket. “How much?”

“10,000.”

He nodded, and was putting his PDA close to Fushimi’s to transfer the money when the front door swung open violently.