#*grumble grumbles about why does /mig/ get /everything/*

[evilevolved]

oh no, be warned, he's making plans--

[miguelhugger2099]

Little Miguel, Big Miguel (Pt. 3)

Summary: You have a chat with your Miguel and Miggy makes a friend. Prev Next Art: LBY2K99 on twt Miguel x Reader, Crack, Fluff

You giggled to yourself as you entered back in Miguel’s little lair. The more you thought about it, the more it made you laugh. Miguel turned his head towards the door as you made your way back inside. He raised his eyebrows and let his platform slowly descend from the air with his arms crossed. “What is wrong with you?” He said gruffly. “It’s just–” You spoke between laughter. “It’s not even just looks, Miguel. He’s even got your personality!” You lean on one of the consoles and hold your stomach while you keep hysterically laughing. Miguel scowled and faced you, letting his platform slowly descend. “What do you mean?” He asked, ticked off and slightly embarrassed since he’s not understanding what’s happening. He bounces slightly once the platform had reached its end. “The kid. The you variant. He’s so sweet, Miguel, really but I forget that he’s not you. “You went out with the kid?!” “He asked to see the city,” You wiped a lone tear from the corner of your eye. “Don’t worry I didn’t actually bring him out for everyone to see. It’d be a disaster if Nueva York saw their beloved superhero look twelve.” You snorted to yourself, amused at the idea. Miguel groaned, rubbing his face with his hand. “I didn’t want you interacting with him.” He sighed, his tired red eyes were firm on you but had a speck of softness in them while he watched you laugh. “Why not? He’s adorable. It’s like getting the chance to meet you back then.” You got up off the console and walked up to him to wrap your arms around his waist. “I wasn’t even remotely close to acting like that.” He grumbled, his lips pouting ever so slightly and wrapping his arms around your shoulders.

You hum and rest your cheek on his broad chest, squishing closer to him. You think back on the kid–as adorable as he was, you couldn't deny that this is a much friendlier version of Miguel.

“Maybe you did act like that. Just inside.” You squeeze your arms around him and you feel him huff. “I’m serious,” He rolls his eyes. You place your chin on his pecs, looking up at him. “We’re not the same person.” “I know that. You think I don’t know that?” You frown and stand straighter. “It’s just sweet to see you so happy, even if it’s not you. I feel like maybe…maybe at least a version of you can be happy.” Miguel squints his eyes at you and lets go, crossing his arms once again. “Elaborate?” “Talk to the kid.” You say, folding your hands together. “Give him tips on how to be Spider-Man. Help him with the things you didn’t get to ask for help about.” You purse your lips, careful of your next words. Miguel doesn’t say anything. His eyes remained firm but at least he looked like he was thinking of what you were saying. “I know it wouldn’t be easy and I’m not saying you have to but he’s you. And I care for you just like I’m starting to with him. It’s weird but I feel like it could help the both of you. He’s starting the whole DNA change at a much younger age. It must be so scary for him like it was for you.” You say softly, placing your hand on his arm.

Miguel glances at the hand on your arm. He closes his eyes to inhale and exhale then turns away from you. “Did you get everything from home?” He asks. You sigh and shake your head. Worth a shot. “Yeah. All in this bag, Migs.” You pat the filled backpack and lift it to hand it over to Miguel. He collects it from your hands with ease, using one arm to carry it back to his platform and unzipping it to rummage through. You sit beside him as he stuffs his hands in the bag, pulling out various techs and prototypes and resting it on his console for Lyla to scan. Your legs dangle off the ledge as the platform raises back up, you looking down at your feet. “I don’t know how Peter does it.” You hear Miguel mumble. You turn your head to face Miguel but he’s looking away from you, focused on the gadgets in his hands. “What do you mean?” You ask. Miguel sighs. “How he can look at so many versions of himself every time he comes here. I…don’t even want to face one of my own.”

Miggy smiled as you walked away, cheeks burning slightly when you waved him goodbye. He rocks back and forth on his heels before shooting his webs on a high beam and perching on it. He rests his chin on his fist, eyes half lidded in a daydream look. “Where did you go?” Miggy hears a voice behind him. Miggy yelps, nearly tipping over the beam but he catches himself in time, talons digging into the metal. He turns to face the culprit and sees a younger male spider hanging upside down on his web. “Miles!” Miggy huffs a sigh of relief. “Hijueputa– you scared me!” He places a hand over his racing heartbeat. Miles’ eyes widen then he flips over and hangs himself straight, holding onto the web with one hand. “Sorry.” Miles strainly smiled before letting go of his web and joining Miggy at his side with a tilt of his head. “But I noticed you left. Just wanted to make sure you weren’t feeling left out or anything.” Miles frowns softly, a guilty look on his face. “What? No, no.” Miggy shakes his head. “You guys were great–I just, needed some fresh air.” He waves his hand off to Miles dismissively. Miles raises his eyebrows, a pout on his lips as he glances up at down. “Then what were you doing with them?” He juts his chin to the corridor where you left. Miggy stiffens. “What do you mean?” He coughs and looks away with furrowed brows, hoping to focus on anything other than the heat on his cheeks. He hears Miles say your name and his blush darkens.

“They needed…help.” Miggy squeaks out. He looks over his shoulder with an embarrassed look and sees Miles deadpan expression. Mile scoffs and shakes his head with a curl of his lips. “This has got to be ironic somehow.” Miles says. “What? What? What’s ironic?” Miggy pesters, getting closer to Miles. Miles puts his hands up in defense. “Hey, hey–look–Jess is not the kind of Spider-Woman to piss off, so if she hears that you snuck off and went outside–” “How did you know I went outside?” Miles ignores that part. “Then it’ll be on you, me and everyone’s head. So, let’s all just pretend that for the remainder of your orientation, you were with us and not the boss’ literal spouse.” Miggy snaps his head to Miles then pushes himself closer into his personal space with wide eyes. "Spouse?! Spouse?! They're... We're married?!" His voice squeaks, cracking through his surprise and the beat of his heart going wild. Miles falls onto one hand to move away from Miggy getting closer and closer with a wide smile on his face. Miles feels a little unsettled at seeing his boss' tiny face looking so...joyful. His eyes dart from side to side, stuttering as he tries to calm down Miggy. "Uh-duh-uh--yeah? I thought you knew? Or would've known? Do you not have them in your canon?" He asks and gently pushes Miggys shoulder back. His excitement slightly falters. "Canon? What's canon?" "Oh." Miles sucks in air through his teeth. He taps his chin with his pointer finger in thought. "It's.... I'll let you explain it. The other you. He's the one in charge of that stuff. The new rule of it anyway." He sighs. Miggy puffs his cheeks, flushed a soft red as he looks in his lap. He fiddles with his fingers, pulling on the fabric of his suit. He was still giddy at the idea of being married to you-even though it was a different version of him. He couldn't help but bite back a smile. Miles looks over at him with curious eyes. He'd never seen Miguel in such a happy light. Where stress lines weren't prominent, a scowl wasn't etched in his face and where he could see the shine in his smile. A smile. Miles looks back in his lap and feels a conflicting whirl of emotions. After the events of The Spot and dismantle of The Canon, Miguel had given a proper apology that Miles acknowledged but the potential relationship was strained. It's not as tense but it does feel awkward when they were in the room. But here he was, talking and seeing with his own eyes a version of Miguel who seemed kind and...innocent. It didn't seem like this kid had any anger in him. Miles almost feels guilty feeling uncomfortable around him but also comfortable? He wasn't sure. "Hey, you okay?" He hears beside him. Miles takes a look at the way Miggy's red eyes widened, curious about what had him scrunching his eyebrows. Miles smiles. "Yeah, man. I'm-I'm fine." He places a hand on Miggy's shoulder and shakes it gently which makes him giggle. "Thanks for, uh, finding me by the way. And saying you won't tell Miss Jessica that I kinda bailed on you guys." Miggy chuckles nervously. Miles chuckles along, amused that Miggy added 'Miss' to Jessica's name. "It's cool." Miles shrugs and lightly punches his arm. "I wasn't exactly known for following the rules around here. Plus Jess is..." He lifts his shoulders up and then down in a shudder. "A little scary anyway." Miggy doesn't seem to be bothered by that. "Well, I'm basically the boss here, aren't I? I gotta have some kind of authority by that logic." "That's terrible logic." Miles laughs. "Your you, is like, leagues ahead of you, man." Miggy waves him off. "I'll get there one day, hermano. We're the same person!" He says confidently. Miles shakes his head. "The ego is still the same..." He mumbles, but he says it lightly. He began to feel a certain endearment by the way this kid acts.

You were mindlessly scrolling through your phone while on your back. Sounds of the videos you were watching echoed softly in the errie quietness of Miguel's lair. "How is he like me?" You heard him ask. "Huh?" You move your phone from your face to see Miguel tinkering with his gadget, taking out certain parts he needed. "You said he was exactly like me. How?" You grin and put your phone away in your back pocket. Standing up, you approach beside Miguel, looping your arm through his while he plucked things out carefully with tweezers. "I didn't say he was like you. I said he had your personality." Miguel pouts. "That's the same thing." "No it isn't." "Yes it is." "No, it's not." "Trust me. It is." Miguel sighs, knowing not to entertain you further. You lean your head on his arm, cuddling him from the side. You feel Miguel lean closer to you- just a little bit. "He's got a spark like you. I can tell." You hum and he scoffs. "That doesn't say much honestly." He grumbles. "I don't know." You groan. "He's- there's something about him that's so you." Sighing, the conversation comes to a standstill, the only sounds being the sparks from his devices-which Miguel gently pushes you away to make sure it doesn't get you. "He has a crush on me like you do." You smirk. You hear him tsk. "That's stupid." His eyebrows furrow downwards. "No, he doesn't." You laugh. "Yes, he does and it's adorable. Why don't you try to impress me like he does?" You slip your arm off him and place your hands on your hips with a faux angry look. "He tries to impress you?" He looks over at you and raises a single eyebrow. "Every single time I see him. Which has been twice so far." You let out a humph and cross your arms. "You're being ridiculous. There's no way you're actually falling for a teenager." He rolls his eyes. "Maybe not. But it's nice to feel wanted around here!" You say dramatically and look away from him. Its quiet again. "Would you...like to join me for dinner tonight? I'll cook and I could get that wine you like?" Miguel mumbles. His cheeks are turning red, knowing that you'll know he's feeling one upped by his own variation-a child version no less. You look up and smile, slipping your arms back around him arm and he instinctively leans into you again. "I'd love to." Giggling through Miguel's grumbling.

A/N: long awaited and very short but ive decided to make these chapters short but quick updates from now on :) Taglist🏷 @sassypotatomoose @ihavemanyhusbandfandoms @arrozconpepitoria @nanarain @autismsupermusicalassassin @amberpanda99 @huniedeux @oharasfilipinawife @@m0stergirl @maimedloveaffairs @glassracecar @lazy-idate @peachipeachy @palesatan @sleepingghoule444 @lisaistewdelulu @cicithemess @amelialysm @keigoloveminty @tatatida @peachyrue-777 @laysmt @safixiovi @ilovetaquitosmmmm @your-girl-mj @the-pan-liquid @boringpersonality @jjuxiko

[5sosfanfictioncatalogue]

Insecurity Masterlist

Come As You Are (ao3) - HPFangirl71 luke/ashton E, 4k

Summary: Naked Luke keeps giving Ashton boners...

get down on your knees and tell me you love me (ao3) - dracomalfloy michael/luke E, 3k

Summary: They stay like that in the small bathroom stall for a while, just kissing and giggling into each other’s mouths. And even though it’s pretty gross and definitely unsanitary, Luke can’t bring himself to care. He’s just glad he has his Michael by his side, his beautiful boy.

glitter queen (ao3) - orpwrks (orphan_account) calum/ashton G, 1k

Summary: ashton has always been the one who pushed lauren to try new things, what about when its the other way around?

I Don't Care if the World Knows What My Secrets Are (ao3) - thatfangirlingfreak luke/calum G, 1k

Summary: Calum writes down his secrets. Luke finds them.

In Between Being Young And Being Right You Were My Versailles At Night (You And I Were Fireworks) (ao3) - Migs michael/luke, luke/calum M, 3k

Summary: Calum should know better than to say stuff like "At least nothing worse can happen" on the TV.

OR: A sextape is leaked and secrets come spilling out.

It’s Heaven In Your Arms (ao3) - babylrh ot4 T, 1k

Summary: A band cuddle never failed to fix everything.

It's Not My Pain (ao3) - Born_to_Riot michael/luke, calum/ashton T, 3k

Summary: A soulmate au in which soulmates feel each other's pain and Luke doesn't understand why.

Jet Black Heart (ao3) - Icanloveyoumorethanthis luke/ashton T, 7k

Summary: Luke and Ashton are ready to move in together. But once they buy a house, Ashton starts acting weird. Luke tries his best to understand what happened to the love of his life. Meanwhile, they have to deal again with the ninja.

Maybe you were the ocean, (when I was just a stone) (ao3) - LoserLucas (planetsandstars) luke/ashton G, 1k

Summary: It’s only much later, when they’re lying in Ashton’s bed and Ashton is half holding Luke and attempting not to hurt himself where he had his surgery, when he tells Luke how he’s been feeling.

Or Ashton has been feeling sad and insecure ever since he had his surgery.

one look and i'm enchanted (ao3) - jbhmalum michael/calum T, 1k

Summary: “Stop looking at me,” Michael grumbles, arms crossed and a pout on his face. Calum knows very well he’s not asking for safety reasons, which makes another teasing smile breakout on his face. “But you’re so cute,” he says, laughing at Michael’s disapproving noise. Michael hates being called cute. “I swear, you’re the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen.”

OR Michael now has to wear glasses. He hates it, so of course Calum teases him about it.

Reflections (ao3) - punchinginadream luke/ashton M, 4k

Summary: Ashton doesn't like his body. Luke decides to fuck him in front of a mirror to show him how beautiful he really is.

Silence (ao3) - I_ReadTooMany_Fanfics ot4 M, 30k

Summary: He was silent. He didn't like talking.

Being abused could do that to a person. And having a lisp and a stutter didn't help. He hadn't said a word in so long, but no one cared. Everything was better in a world where he didn't talk.

He probably could've lived like this until the day he finally decided to kill himself. Until he meets three people who decide to change that...

Talk Fast (ao3) - no_clue_who luke/ashton T, 2k

Summary: "What is it about then, huh? What is the fucking line 'won't last I'm ok with that' about?" Luke said, blinking back tears. He just wanted to hear Ashton say it, say that he didn't love Luke the way Luke loved him. "What does it mean?"

"It's only a matter of time." Ashton said. His voice was shaking.

"It's only a matter of time till what Ashton?"

or how not to write a song about your relationship

The Other Side of the Door (ao3) - mukedayparade michael/luke N/R, 1k

Summary: the one where michael has anger problems that make him say things he doesn't mean, and luke needs him to leave but he also needs him close by

Your Insecurities Make You Who You Are (ao3) - orphan_account michael/calum N/R, 3k

Summary:

"Cal?" Michael sighed out, voice sounding tired. "Yeah?" Calum asked, pressing his palms flat to the door. "Do...do you think I'm fat?" And if Calum was worried before, he was on the edge of full-on panic now. "What? No, baby, not at all." He said, hands pressing harder against the door than before. "Luke said I was." Michael mumbled softly.

Or the one where Michael is insecure, and Calum wants to show him how much he loves his faults.

[robininthelabyrinth]

Initiative pt 2 - ao3 or tumblr pt 1

It was just typical of his brother, Nie Huaisang thought. He finally, finally, finally found a girl that might suit him, agreed to marry her, and then he spent all his time worrying about…saber.

Typical.

Nie Huaisang volunteered himself to act as the family representative in negotiations with the Jiang sect, seeing as his brother would undoubtedly get them fleeced if he were trying to do it himself – “Try not to be too mercenary, Huaisang. We are the ones in the stronger position, through no fault of theirs.” –  and with one thing or another he arrived at the Lotus Pier less than a week after Jiang Yanli did.

Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian seemed rather surprised to see him.

“I haven’t had a moment to tell them,” Jiang Yanli said, pressing her head to her forehead and looking a little tired. “They’d just completed the memorial hall, when I arrived.”

“And it’s been nothing but keeping them from fighting ever since?” Nie Huaisang said, not without some sympathy.

Only some, though. If Jiang Yanli couldn’t handle Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian, even the grieved and tragic versions of them, what was she going to do the first time his brother went into a rage?

Maybe he was being too cold-blooded. After all, they’d been her parents, too.

“Your arrival is a good thing,” she said, narrowing her eyes a little in satisfaction. “Now they have no excuse to run away from me.”

Nie Huaisang couldn’t help but smile a little at that.

She summoned a few sect disciples, divided them neatly into two groups – one larger than the other – and instructed them to go bring her two recalcitrant brothers to the main hall. “You may use force,” she informed the larger group. “I would advise you that A-Xian is especially weak to tickling around his ribs, and don’t let him scare you off with that Yiling Patriarch stuff. And as for the group going to get A-Cheng – may I suggest looking especially pathetic when you convey the message that his sister, who he left alone for almost the entire war, would really like to see him if he has a moment to spare for her?”

Nie Huaisang’s smile broadened. “Tears,” he added solemnly. “Tears are very good. He hates tears.”

“Just so. Thank you all.”

“My brother is already planning out your saber,” he told her once the disciples had left, and she brightened visibly. “If there’s anything you want to contribute in terms of design, now’s the time – I brought mine in case you want to have a look later on.”

Aituan was in his luggage. Somewhere. His brother had refused to let him leave the Unclean Realm before he’d produced proof of saber, and he hadn’t unpacked since then, so surely it was somewhere.

“I’m sure whatever your brother comes up with will be fine,” she said. “I don’t know anything about weapons.”

A brief hesitation.

“Although, perhaps not – so large…?”

Nie Huaisang decided to be daring. He opened his fan in front of his face and looked at her over it, allowing his eyes to curve up in a smile. “Don’t worry about that – though if all goes well, you’re going to have to accustom yourself to dealing with a large saber at some point in the process.”

She burst out laughing, which was good.

“Nie Huaisang!” Oh, look, Jiang Cheng was here. “What are you saying to my sister? You’d better not be harassing her!”

“What would you do if I was?” Nie Huaisang wondered. “I mean, I’m not, I don’t think, but –”

“Just don’t.”

“A-Cheng,” Jiang Yanli said. “Be polite. Where’s A-Xian? I have something to tell you both.”

Wei Wuxian came in a few moments later, grumbling and rubbing his ribs but brightening when he saw them all gathered up there, and he slid into place by Jiang Cheng’s side easy as anything even if they did sort of stare awkwardly with quasi-glares, quasi-grimaces at each other first.

And then Jiang Yanli told them why Nie Huaisang was there, and all awkwardness fell away at once so that they could unite in glaring at Nie Huaisang.

“Why are you looking at me for?” he asked. “I’m not the one marrying her, that’s my brother.”

“If you had anything to do with this –” Wei Wuxian started, doing his whole looming-with-the-subtonal-wailing-of-dark-forces Yiling Patriarch thing, but ticklish around the ribs and a summer of nonsense didn’t really do much to encourage fear in Nie Huaisang, who’d never had as much common sense as a regular person ought.

“Oh, no, I objected to it,” Nie Huaisang said breezily. “Your sister doesn’t deserve my brother.”

And that, of course, got them both up in arms even more.

“What’s that supposed to mean? What’s wrong with my sister?” Jiang Cheng shouted, and Wei Wuxian’s aura-of-darkness got even more out of hand as he crossed his arms and glared death. “She’d be a great bride for anyone! Give me one reason –”

“I’m glad to have your support, didi,” Jiang Yanli said, calmly ladling out the soup she’d promised Nie Huaisang as if they were sitting in the midst of a nice breeze instead of a hurricane, and okay, fine, maybe his brother had a point about the importance of things like backbone and patience. “Don’t worry so much. If Nie-er-gongzi is here as his brother’s representative, that must mean he’s accepted the match.”

Or that he was here to sabotage it, but he appreciated her good faith interpretation.

“Please, just Huaisang is fine,” he said, smiling at her. “You’ll be my sister-in-law soon enough, won’t you?”

“We haven’t agreed yet!” Wei Wuxian exclaimed.

“Oh, like your opinion matters,” Nie Huaisang said, rolling his eyes. “You know how many people have put good money down on you leaving the Jiang sect in the next three-to-six months?”

That got all of them looking like they’d just been unexpectedly stabbed in the chest, Jiang Yanli included.

“What?” he asked, batting his eyelashes innocently at them. “Did I say something wrong? Everyone knows you aren’t doing anything for the Jiang sect anymore, Wei-xiong. All the rumors says so, and the only reason for that is if you were planning on ditching now that you don’t need them anymore.”

“That’s enough,” Jiang Yanli said, and there was a bit of steel in her voice. “A-Xian isn’t leaving, and even if he was, his opinion on my marriage would still matter to me.”

“That’s one of the reasons I objected,” Nie Huaisang said to her, deciding that she was clearly the only one mature enough to have this extremely necessary discussion with. “Meaning no offense, but in every possible respect, you’re a bad match. If you marry my brother, will you be expecting him to run around defending everything the Yiling Patriarch does whenever he’s in the mood to thumb his nose at the cultivation world? Or paying for the Lotus Pier’s reconstruction costs, even though Jiang-xiong hasn’t made a single overture to our Nie sect in terms of reestablishing trade routes or even just swapping craftsmen for mutual benefit?”

Both Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian were positively black in the face.

“Of course, even if you weren’t going to anchor him down with even more political obligations, there’s your personal value,” Nie Huaisang continued, tapping his finger against his cheek. “Word has it that you’re weak and sickly. Who’s to say that you won’t die along with the first child you bear –”

“How dare you talk about my shijie like that!” Wei Wuxian shouted, slamming his hand down on the table, while Jiang Cheng’s Zidian crackled lightning like an overactive firework. “How dare you –”

“And do you still support the marriage, even with all of these disadvantages?” Jiang Yanli asked, holding up her hands to hold her brothers back. Her eyes were a bit wet, but she was otherwise unperturbed, at least on the surface.

“I do, actually,” Nie Huaisang said, pleased. Even if she went to go cry later, which he didn’t think she would, she’d done well enough to pass his personal test of what constituted backbone. “My brother doesn’t care about politics, we have plenty of money, and there’s doctors for the rest of it. If you’re really willing to put in the effort, I’d be happy to call you my sister-in-law.”

Jiang Cheng was hissing like a pot of water on the boil. Wei Wuxian was grinding his teeth.

“I appreciate that,” Jiang Yanli said, disregarding them entirely. “I can promise you that I’ll do my best.”

“Good, good,” Nie Huaisang said, and grinned at her. “There’s only enough room for one useless flower vase in the Nie household, and the position is taken. By me, if that’s not clear. I brought my brother’s eight characters – do you have yours at hand? We can calculate the auspicious date immediately.”

“I still haven’t agreed!” Jiang Cheng exclaimed, and Jiang Yanli reached out to touch his arm lightly. “I haven’t! Jiejie, you don’t have to marry anyone you don’t want to, no matter what good things you think it’d bring to the sect, okay? You should marry for love!”

“Jiang Cheng’s right, shijie,” Wei Wuxian said at once. “You should get anyone you like. Even if you still want that stupid Jin sect peacock, we’d find a way to get him for you.”

Nie Huaisang looked at Jiang Yanli carefully at that one. It was even odds if his brother minded her having some vestigial affections, especially in the beginning, but he himself wouldn’t be having any of that – least of all with a Jin, no matter how much better Jin Zixuan seemed to be than his father.

His brother deserved someone who would put him first, this time.

“No, thank you,” she said without the slightest hesitation, and Nie Huaisang nodded in approval. “Young Master Jin has made his opinion about me clear enough, and not just once. I’m not going to run after him like I think that’s all I’m good for. And anyway, Chifeng-zun is a good man, who you both greatly admire – why can’t I marry him?”

“You can marry anyone you want,” Jiang Cheng said at once.

“And I want to marry him,” she said, and smiled. “At first, yes, it was primarily because he seemed to offer the most advantages for our sect, but…I don’t know. He’s very nice.”

Nie Huaisang mouthed the word ‘nice’ to himself, rolling it around in his mouth like a fine wine. It might be the first time anyone had ever described his brother that way.

“I think I would be happy being married to him,” she concluded. “Even very happy. Will you approve?”

They folded like a stack of cards.

“Oh, I like you,” Nie Huaisang told her, finally but now wholly delighted. “It’ll be good for my brother.”

And it’ll be interesting to see how the Jin sect takes it, he thought with a smirk half-hidden behind his fan. Since you bring the power and influence of whole Jiang sect with you, and the Yiling Patriarch too.

He wouldn’t mention that, of course.

Only an idiot would negotiate against themselves.

[megatentious]

My lengthy defense of the most hated Persona game

Here’s my grand defense for the most hated game in the series: Persona 1, AKA Revelations: Persona. I know it’s too late to try and rehabilitate the game’s reputation on the internet, but I’m hoping that by rambling in modestly structured form for a bit, at least some folks might be able to look at Persona with a fresh perspective. It would be cool if everyone could try to understand what the game did so well and why it resonated so strongly with me and 2 or so other people. If you are the kind of person that thinks games age and become archaic, then I probably don’t have any hope of reaching you, but still, try to put yourself in the right mindset and approach the game on its own terms, and maybe you’ll discover something quite special.

So, Persona. Persona does very interesting things with choice. As the first Megaten rpg released in America, the negotiation system was a revelation (har har), providing the choice to talk your way out of battles and into rewards is a natural D&D element that never got a foothold in countless videogame conversions of the game, and in the first Persona these elements are at their peak. With every demon having four moods, four series of animation and four sets of voiced sound effects, the expanded options really let you get into the headspace of the demons you’re conversing with, unlike traditional SMT’s more spare binary system. Getting into the thick of things with complex sets of reactions (Joy + Interest, that’s what’s up) makes for a fun simulation.

The theme of choice is also really built into the game’s fabric, it’s the reason why in old usenet postings, Persona was recommended to folks who were fans of Gold Box games, during a time when RPG labels were more porous and that sneaky “J” hadn’t yet latched itself omnipresently to the term. Choice here also extends to the fifth character in your party, a friendly way to promote replay value without new game plus, and certain choices locking you out of giant chunks of the game, an unfriendly way of getting you through the game again. In a world though where developers are desperate to ensure that gamers experience all content (so many buzzwords!), the chutzpah of Persona being willing to lock you out of huge swathes of the game is something I actually admire.

It’s easy to underestimate the impact of the modern day setting in a post Persona 3/TWEWY/Alpha Protocol world, but dungeons that were hospitals and police stations and high school students snarling “EAT THIS” with MIGs in pitched street battles felt revelatory. Exploring the comically low-rent polygonal city (is this another reference to the abstracted icons of SMT1 and 2 world maps?) was actually fun, as ridiculous as waiting for traffic to pass might seem. There are also many complaints about the first person perspective dungeons, even though the rest of the game is third person, but the setting variety is nice and many of the wall patterns are quite evocative (Deva Yuga looks like Persepolis!)

The game also does PSX-era philosophizing in a tasteful and generally thoughtful way, while contemporaries were drawing from Evangelion, Persona looked to Zhuangzi and Jung. Not very high-falutin, true, but at least middle brow enough such that my 14 year old Sophie’s World reading self was entranced. The game has something neat to say about loneliness and identity and the way we construct the world around ourselves (all hinted at in the moody intro. The story is very nice and very Kaneko, even if he’s overestimating the literary quality in this interview, I’m very fond of it and it is my franchise favorite.

Here’s where I alienate the remaining people who might have been on board with me so far: if you ignore the loss of the Snow Queen Quest, a 20 hour alternate version of the story that takes place in a series of SMT:If... like towers, Revelations: Persona is actually the superior game. “Lunarvale,” a hodgepodge of America and Japan cobbled together by localizers attempting to mask the game’s origins, is actually more weird and interesting than the Mikage-cho that appears in Persona PSP. This bizarre mashup, combined with a nonsense translation attempt, somehow manages to better fit the lurid dreamscape vibe the original developers were going for. I can’t undersell how one-of-a-kind and wonderfully unsettling the game’s atmosphere is in the PSX version, and this is helped along of course by the sound.

Here are excerpts from some things I wrote on the music in this game:

Revelations: Persona has the best soundtrack in the franchise, possibly the best soundtrack ever made. In raw quantitative terms it's ridiculous, 113 songs and 3 hours of music without being looped, and all without doing Persona 2's trick of repeated (but still awesome!) remixes. Two majorly sweet leitmotifs for the two major quests, employed creatively and thoughtfully, four fantastic composers on four discs, cohesive and thematically coherent when by all rights it should feel disjointed as fuck, this is a generous OST!

Hidehito Aoki (R.I.P.) composed the dungeon music, which is exquisite. Lengthy songs that are moody, elegant, just plain beautiful and get you PUMPED! The iconic Deva Yuga Monochrome: School Revisited Dream-like, synthy, catchy, beautiful, quintessential Persona sound. Pandora's Den (Deepmost Area): The climax at 1:12! Ice Castle/Black Snow The twists and turns in this one, so effing good. Sebek Music, Karma Palace 90's music is the best!!! Misaki Okibe's range is ridiculous, she composed some of the most memorable, interesting tracks in the whole game. Reverse Dream World: You think you have this song figured out in the first few seconds, but stick around to see where it suddenly veers off to around :30, hilarious and awesome. Theme of Nemurin's Love: The intro! The power of a simple lovely melody, a little Uematsu-esque. Augustia's Wood: The save music, so memorable, I love the grumbling. City 2 Accident: Do you remember wandering the streets in the town, disoriented, listening to this gorgeousness, thinking about how Lunarvale suddenly seemed so scary, like an unsettling dream? Bar Attacked by Harem Queen: A bit of jazzy beauty. And most important of all of course, Misaki Okibe is the composer of the Pharmacy Music, featuring vocals by one Hidehito Aoki of all people. Satomi Tadashi Drugstore Song In our heads forever, teaching us about item use since 1996. 

More alienating for readers who have gotten this far: the “whitewashing” character designs were all improvements, Kazuma Kaneko redrew everything himself and it’s easy to tell that a lot of thought was put into the redesigns. Finally, Mark is also >>>> Masao, everyone’s always yelling about the jive-talking but to me he came across as quite smart and savvy. I dunno, maybe this is just a Flavor of Love/Outsourced minorities just wanna see themselves effect operating here, leave me alone you guys! So yes, the franchise’s current fanbase might not be fond of them, but the cast is comprised of characters that are meant to be iconic and not friends you wish you had in real life, a cast that, FFVI-like, is meant to evoke broader themes and not follow the typical arcs of many RPGs these days. Check out the classiness of Yuki’s design, and allow me to quote some more stuff on how Tsuchiya, master of the character theme, nails it for each party member.

The sign of a good character theme is when you can extrapolate from instrument choice and melody to personality. Here Tsuchiya is the man, no one does it better this side of Uematsu. I hear these songs and I've got a perfect picture in my mind of each cast member. It's what I think of when I think of "videogame music" ha, here are my personal favorites, I could listen to these endlessly. Mary/Maki: Cheerful, just a hint of melancholy in the notes, love that slap bass. Yuki: Starts a bit slow, but soon we learn that Yuki's cool but determined. Alana: The song tells me she's brassy, energetic, fun. Chris/Reiji: Dangerous, exciting, a bad-ass delinquent. Ellen/Elly: Classy, elegant, confident.

Some also rag on the dungeon design, but it seems unfair to expect centerpiece labyrinths along the lines of Strange Journey or Etrian Odyssey in a game going for something completely different. Nevertheless, you’ve got tricky mazes with dead ends that test resource allocation skills and provide a sense of accomplishment. Encounters are tough and require thought, careful consideration of when to flee and negotiate is imperative for dungeon survival. This is something that gets lost a bit in the PSP remake as the encounter rate is increased but battles are a bit easier. Exploiting elemental weaknesses isn’t as elegant as in later games, but with a ludicrously high 14 damage types breadth supersedes depth. And there’s even a positioning system to consider that the developers decided to drop from later games rather than refine. In the end, surviving the dungeon and beating the boss is an RPG staple that just plain works, although yes you will probably grit your teeth at some of the loading times.

And finally, you don’t have to take my random word for it. Parish really liked it too! How’s that for an appeal to authority?

For series buffs, it’s fun to trace this game’s historical lineage, as one of the earlier spinoffs of Shin Megami Tensei, it's easy to spot the mainline series influence: the occultism of the opening ritual, the hospital as first dungeon, the first person perspective for dungeon travel, BLUE POINTER MAN, and the omnipresent danger of demons in town and dungeon alike. Revelations: Persona is drawing from a rich and storied history, but manages to recast SMT traditions in interesting new directions. Again, the atmosphere is really unbelievable and something I haven’t come across in other games. It’s more than a simple curiosity and it doesn’t deserve dumb dismissal or sneering derision for its flaws. Revelations: Persona is a real marvel, modern games ought to draw more inspiration from its lessons, and the game belongs in the RPG canon, there I said it!

[setsunameioh]

Cat Got Your Tongue

there’s a real, solid explanation for how this silly fic came about but I don’t feel like giving it and suffice to say that ones responsible know who they are. take ur heicat and enjoy it for what it is

When Toyama Kazuha arrived at the detective agency, a bag that he recognized as belonging to Heiji hanging over her shoulder, he quickly got the impression that something was wrong here.

Especially once he took notice of the way said bag almost seemed to squirm.

"Kazuha-chan?" Setting down the cleaning supplies that she had been holding, Ran turned towards her, a rather befuddled look on her face. That was odd- there had been times when Heiji had visited without Kazuha, to be sure, but it had never happened the other way around. And she was almost entirely certain that was his bag she was carrying, the one with the familiar V for Victory on it's sides. "Is everything alright? Where's Hattori-kun?"

"Well, about that..." Kazuha trailed off, glancing between the two of them, before heaving a long sigh. "Somethin' unbelievable happened."

"Does it have anything to do with what's inside Heiji-niichan's bag?" Conan piped up, watching as the bag almost seemed to squirm in response. There was almost definitely something alive in there.

"Well... I guess it does." Kazuha said after a moment. As the bag squirmed again in response, she made a low shushing sound, holding it in place for the moment as her eyes darted around the agency once more. "Is that uncle not here?"

"Dad?" Ran asked, before shaking her head. "No, he's out with a friend right now. Did you need him for something?"

"No, no!" Quickly shaking her head, Kazuha almost blanched at the way it looked like Ran had been reaching for her phone for a moment, only relaxing once she slipped it back into her pocket. "It's better we don't let him know about somethin' like this!"

"Something like what, Kazuha-neechan?" Conan asked once again. If he trained his ears, he felt as if he could hear something making sounds from within the bag- faint, almost mewling sounds. It almost sounded like a...

"Well, ya see..." Letting out a long sigh, Kazuha carefully unzipped the bag, finally releasing the creature that she had apparently shoved in there, carefully holding it in her hands. "Actually, this is Heiji."

Somewhere, in the back of his mind, Conan found himself thinking that if the animal she had extended forth towards them were a dog, he might have believed her easier. On the other hand, whether it was because it wasn't like Kazuha to play a prank like this, or perhaps because of the rather surly, disgruntled expression on the animal's face, somehow, he didn't think this was a joke, either.

Well, that, and there was the fact that he could only wonder how long it would have taken them to find a cat that managed to look almost exactly like Heiji. Between the tuft of hair to one side of his head, and the patches of dark brown above his eyes that almost resembled eyebrows, the cat in question really did look like him. It was even a black cat, a perfect fit, really, for someone who had as much bad luck as Heiji.

"Kazuha-chan, that's..." Ran began, only finding that she didn't quite know what to say until after she had already began to speak. Quickly shutting her mouth, she simply swallowed, her gaze darting between girl and cat, and then back again.

"I know, I know what it sounds like!" Kazuha told them, an almost desperate look in her eyes. "But I'm bein' dead serious here! This is really, really Heiji!"

As if to help his childhood friend out, the cat being dangled in her arms let out a rather loud yowl, his own gaze flickering between Ran and Conan alike. Blue eyes, they both took note of- and although they were like a cat's in nature, just like the rest of him, they somehow managed to be very familiar even so.

For a moment, Ran and Conan could only remain silent, exchanging a glance between each other. If this were a joke, it was a very elaborate one- and neither of them thought that Heiji could hold himself back from jumping out to laugh at them for this long. In other words, there was only one possibility left-

...this was real.

"Eh!?" They hadn't meant to sync their reactions, yet nevertheless, that was exactly what happened. As both the shoulders of Kazuha, and the black cat she was carrying, slumped alike at the sound of their outburst, Ran and Conan were left to process the fact that yes, somehow or another, Hattori Heiji had ended up as a cat.

A dog would be one thing- he'd always been rather akin to such animals. But a cat?

"So ya believe me?" Kazuha asked, letting out another deep sigh, this time, one of relief. "That's great, I didn't know what I'd do if ya didn't. We can't keep him at home, ya see, cause both my father an' Heiji's father are allergic ta cats, so I was hopin' that maybe..."

"Wait a second, Kazuha-chan!" Quickly cutting in, Ran held up a hand. "We're both still trying to wrap our heads around this idea. You're saying that cat's really...?"

"Yeah." Kazuha said with a nod, finally placing the cat down, which seemed to please him. "The other day, the two of us went ta a shrine, an' he accidentally broke the holy relic that they had on display there. We're pretty sure those two things are related."

Letting out a low yowl, as if to point out that it wasn't his fault, the black cat's gaze flickered from Kazuha, over towards the other two. His tail slightly twitching as he looked Conan's way, he let out another loud yowl, one that the shrunken detective could only begin to guess the meaning of.

"I'm guessing he can't talk?" Conan asked, the frown on his face set so deep that he nearly feared it would become a permanent fixture. This was, undeniably, an absurd situation- but so was being shrunk down into a child, he supposed. And quite honestly, if there was ever someone who was going to prove the existence of something like curses to him, it was pretty much always going to be Heiji.

"No." Kazuha said, shaking her head. "Though I think he's tried."

"That must be terrible for Hattori-kun." Ran remarked, only for her words to be met with a rather quick reply from Heiji himself- one that they didn't need to understand to know that it probably meant something along the lines of the main problem here wasn't that. "Well, among other things, obviously."

"It's terrible fer me too!" Kazuha protested. "We can't even keep him back at home, like I was sayin' earlier! That's why, Ran-chan, please," she begged, clapping her hands together as she did so, "...yer the only one I can trust ta look after him fer the time being! He can't exactly take care of himself like this!"

Heiji apparently cared to protest that point.

"Well that's..." Ran trailed off, her gaze straying down towards Conan, before it drifted once more towards Heiji. He was looking her way again, his tail almost seeming to sway expectantly, waiting for her answer. "I guess I'm fine with it if Conan-kun is, but what about Hattori-kun? He should have some say in this matter too."

Or as much of one that he could manage, given, well... goodness, this was going to take quite some time to get used to.

She was going to assume that the yowl Heiji made in response was a yes, given his body language. He really wasn't much of a cat, even if he was in fact, quite literally a cat, she thought to herself- if anything, his body language came off as being much more like a dog's.

And as much as she was ready and willing to help out a friend, at the same time, she couldn't help but wonder what, exactly, she had gotten herself into. ______________________________________________________________

"Conan-kun, I've already told you, you shouldn't tease Ellery like that!"

Grumbling a little as Ran cleaned the freshly made scratches on his face, Conan could only shoot a dirty look back towards the source of them. The black cat was watching him, what he had come to recognize as a rather smug grin on his face, as if he had done nothing wrong at all.

Sure, he'd been teasing him a little bit... but as far as he saw it, it was only fair payback for everything that Heiji had already put him through. Ran, on the other hand... probably wouldn't feel that way, he already knew. And Heiji, damn it all, was all too aware of this as well.

And after he had taken a bit of mercy on him, and named him after his favorite author. If he kept this up, he might change it to Holmes, like he had first considered.

"For a stray that brat picked up, he sure doesn't seem to like him sometimes." Kogoro observed, his gaze barely straying away from his newspaper. In the three days since they'd taken in the stray black cat, he'd gotten the same treatment his fair share of times as well- the cat was rather quick to express his displeasure, by virtue of his claws and teeth.

"You have had that thing checked out by a vet, right?" Kogoro asked, not missing the way the cat bristled at the suggestion. If he didn't know any better, he'd say the thing could understand human speech.

"Geez, of course I have!" Ran fussed, her gaze flickering almost sympathetically towards Heiji. It was probably better than cluing him in, but by virtue of thinking that Heiji was a real cat, her father had already made more than his fair share of missteps. "And his name isn't that stray or that thing, it's Ellery! Ell-e-ry!"

"I don't see why we have to take care of it in the first place." Kogoro muttered, his gaze flickering down towards the cat once more, a deep frown on his face. For some reason, it reminded him of someone, and that bothered him. "Not to mention, you won't even buy cat food for it. Is it really alright, letting it eat human food?"

"I'm sure it's fine!" Conan piped up, deciding to help Ran out- more for her own sake though, than Heiji's, who he was still mad at. "Ran-neechan is careful not to include anything cats can't eat in her cooking."

He'd tried to give Heiji cat food, as a joke on the first day- and he had paid for his joke dearly. He'd made it very clear that while he might have the appearance of one, he had no intention of eating like one. Without any ability to speak, not in any way they could understand, the human turned feline was rather quick to resort what few methods he had of conveying himself left- and pain, apparently, was one of them.

"Well, if you say so..." Still sounding unconvinced, Kogoro merely accepted it for the moment. He didn't really get it, but his daughter seemed rather defensive of the cat for some reason, and he had long ago since learned that sometimes it was just better not to cross her.

Honestly though... from the way his daughter treated the cat, you'd swear it was human. _____________________________________________________________

Being a cat, he decided, was exhausting.

He'd come to that conclusion on the morning of the second day, when it had dawned on him that this was both neither a dream, nor something that was going to wear off all that quickly. On the morning of the start of the second week, he had begrudgingly accepted his fate, which, of course, didn't really make the situation any less annoying for him. It was just easier not to spend every waking moment sulking over it, when it looked like it wasn't going to sort itself out any time soon.

With very little say in the matter, Heiji had more or less gotten used to his current state of affairs. Being a cat wasn't all bad, per say- he was pretty much free to do whatever he wanted, and go wherever he wanted. Sure, he'd gotten lost the first few times he had wandered out into Beika, but recently, he'd more or less learned his way around the place. His tiny cat body brought with it plenty of inconveniences, but he couldn't claim that he didn't like how agile he was with it.

As for the disadvantages, of which there were any number, he had begun to adjust to them as well. Not having opposable thumbs was a huge downside, and not being able to talk was a serious pain in the ass. Or to be more precise, not being able to talk to anyone human- at the very least, it had turned out that there was no shortage of cats in the neighborhood willing to chat with him.

As it turned out, the stuff cats had to say was actually pretty interesting. They seemed to recognize that, by and large, he wasn't quite one of them- but most of them had accepted him into their fold, and for that, he had to admit, he was grateful. He didn't know what he would do if he were unable to talk to anyone- and talking to his fellow cats was honestly better than not talking at all.

His fellow cats, though... well, as much as he said he was going to accept this, for the time being, it still bothered him at the end of the day. At the very least, he'd stopped doing things like forgetting he had four legs now, and catching sight of his reflection no longer startled him, only caused him to grumble a bit.

There were parts of his new field of vision that he was still getting used to- but he had to say, he was going to miss the night vision. The hearing too- both of which he found himself thinking would prove themselves useful in a case. Not that he would have much chance of using them as he was now- but when- and there was some small part of him that dreaded that it was actually an if- he went back to his normal self, he would kind of miss them both.

The sense of smell though... he wasn't going to miss that. There was a reason he stayed as far away from Kogoro as possible, and it wasn't just because the old man was prone to manhandling him in a way he didn't like. He'd be lying if he said that wasn't part of it though- but thankfully, among those who weren't aware he was actually a human, Kogoro was the worst of them.

Honestly, even the Detective Boys were better than him. That said, he did kind of wish they'd stop it already with the cat toys- especially the catnip mice. On the list of things that he would never be able to live down for the rest of his life, the catnip mice were pretty high on the list.

There were other things too, of course- being a cat brought a whole new set of instincts, and a whole new set of needs. And on occasion, when those two things collided, well... they could create some problems for him.

This time, the problem was a hairball.

The moment he'd realized what it was that he had coughed up, Heiji's eyes darted frantically around the agency, only relaxing once he confirmed that nobody had been here to witness what he had just done. If he were able, he would have let out a sigh of relief, but instead, his shoulders merely slumped, thinking what he needed to do right now to hide the evidence of this rather... embarrassing incident.

Of that, he was loathe to admit, there had been any number of. The litter box was the worst of them, worst still than the catnip mice- and he had made certain to impress the importance of leaving something unlocked for him to slip out of during the night to both Neechan and Kudo afterwards. It had taken him ages before he could manage to look anyone in the eye after that, but blessedly, they hadn't spoken a word of it to Kazuha.

Kudo probably wanted to, he could sense- ever since he had ended up like this, it felt like the guy was giving him nothing but grief. He would have thought that he'd have more sympathy for him, given that they had both been forced into bodies that they didn't want, but apparently, he was wrong.

Alright, that was a bit of an exaggeration- Kudo did in fact, give him plenty of sympathy. What he couldn't do anymore, Kudo usually did for him without too much of a fuss- though he always had something to say whenever it came to reading Ellery Queen novels, that jerk. For the most part, he still treated him almost look he always did, certain necessary hiccups not withstanding... and that, Heiji honestly appreciated.

For the most part, that was. He could do without the guy trying to lug him around everywhere like that- that was no way to hold a cat!

Which, god help him, he was.

Which was all the more reason why he could never let him find out about this. Eyes darting around the agency once more, Heiji quickly made up his mind, carefully shoving the hairball underneath one of the couches. Leaping up onto Kogoro's desk, he grabbed a tissue, using it as best he could to wipe up any trail left behind, before dropping it in the trash.

He might have not liked being a cat, but he'd gotten pretty decent at it nonetheless. Kudo might claim that his body language was still a downright mess, but when it came to dealing with day to day situations, he pretty much had the whole cat thing figured out. ___________________________________________________________

Ran, of course, found the hairball later. He'd been unable to meet her eyes during the entire time she had cleaned it up, grateful that at the very least, she was the only other person in the room with him. It was only after she had thrown it away that she had softly promised that she wouldn't mention a peep of it to anyone- a promise, which while he was grateful for it, was not one that would hold later on.

Not when it came to the laser pointer.

If there was another downside to being a cat, of which, he was swiftly discovering there were many- it was the instincts. It wasn't as if he forgot he was human at any point in time, but rather, it was just that at times, the instincts that came as a package deal with the body could be a... little overpowering, to say the least.

Logically, he of course knew that the red dot on the floor was impossible to catch, his brain running through exactly how it was that laser pointers worked, their ins and outs. Logic, however, fell to the wayside the very moment it moved out of his immediate line of vision, instinct surging up in it's place. For a moment, the only thing he knew was that there was something fast before him, something that he had to catch, otherwise he would be a complete failure of a cat.

He only dimly made out the sound of Ran calling for Conan to come and see, only truly noticing the presence of his friend by the appearance of a second, infernal red dot on the floor.

To hell with logic, he'd catch them both. ______________________________________________________________

Apparently, it wasn't enough that every man, woman, and child in this town had decided to become detectives. No, apparently now, even animals had to get in on the act.

At the very least, that was the only way that he had to explain the black cat that he'd found nosing around the crime scene, acting as if for all the world that he belonged there. One whose behavior, if Megure didn't know any better, was much more that of someone investigating the area, than of a stray cat that had just wandered in somehow. An ill omen, one of the officers had muttered underneath their breath.

Somehow, when the one who came to claim the cat in question turned out to be none other than Edogawa Conan, Megure wasn't all that surprised.

"So, I take it this cat is your pet, then?" Megure dryly asked. He had heard mention that the Edogawa boy had taken in a stray cat. The fact that it was a black cat that he had adopted had flown underneath his radar, yet somehow, it didn't quite surprise him.

"Something like that!" Conan hastily replied, not even needing to look down at the way Heiji's fur bristled to know that he wasn't taking kindly to being called that. He'd grumbled when the Detective Boys did it too, and while part of him found it funny, the other part of him had to admit, it was awkward to hear his best friend referred to in such a manner.

"Well, take more care not to let him wander into crime scenes, then." Megure simply told him. "We can't have him spreading cat fur everywhere."

That earned him a rather annoyed yowl, and for a moment, Megure could only wonder if the cat had perhaps understood him. When he later caught the child discussing something with the cat in hushed tones in one corner of the room, he began to suspect that he was on to something there.

And likewise, he decided that he wanted no further part in that. There were already far too many mysteries revolving around Edogawa Conan for him to want to have to start puzzling out the mystery of his cat. _____________________________________________________________

The weight of something landing on the back of his backpack was something he'd come to recognize, to the point where he didn't even need to glance back to know who it was. Letting out a small sigh, Conan nevertheless did that much, adjusting the straps of his bag so that he could carry the fuzzy freeloader a bit more easily.

"Taking a walk, Hattori?" Conan asked, grateful that he had already parted ways with the rest of the Detective Boys. The cat's grin was of course, not quite like that of the one he sported when he was human, but it was nevertheless a fairly close imitation of it. "Patrolling?"

That yowl was a yes, Conan gathered. He thought he'd wandered into the usual territory that Heiji had more or less claimed as his own, and it would seem that he was right. It wasn't the first time that he had crossed paths with the detective turned cat outside of the agency, and he suspected it was unlikely to be the last.

"Honestly, I can't believe you managed to get used to this." Conan told him, deciding that he was now a bit tired of the cat riding on his bag. "And get off already, Hattori. You're heavy."

Making a faint sound, Heiji nevertheless complied, hopping off the back of Conan's bag, stretching a little after doing so. His tail twitching slightly, a rather pleased expression graced his face as he caught up with his friend again, keeping pace with him.

"You are planning on going back to normal sometime, aren't you?" Conan asked. The look that he got in return was easy to read- a quick, unspoken retort of I could say the same fer you, idiot.

"Fair point." Conan admitted. "But at least I can talk."

Ah yes, that hiss he knew. It only ever had one meaning- one that Ran would have him washing out his mouth with soap if he dared repeat it.

"Geez, cranky. Did you lose a fight with a bird today or something?" Conan asked- a question he almost regretted asking, given the rather smug expression on the cat's face. "Don't actually get into fights with birds, Hattori."

Whatever reply he might have given was put on hold, as Heiji froze in place, his ears twitching in the direction of a sound that Conan couldn't even begin to hear. It wasn't the first time this had happened either- and he usually knew that it was prelude to something else. Sure enough, not a second later, Heiji was already on the move, darting off and leaping up a wall, following a path that would be difficult for even Conan's child sized body to follow.

Heaving a long sigh, Conan merely pulled out his cellphone, shooting Ran a message that he might be a little late coming home from school that day. He didn't know if it were part and parcel of whatever curse that Heiji had been placed on him, or if it were just something inherent in his nature as a black cat, but sometimes it almost seemed as if he'd developed an even more uncanny ability to find cases than he'd already had.

Well, as long as he figured out the source of the sirens that Heiji had undoubtedly picked up on, he'd probably find that darned cat. Hopefully before he gave Megure too much of a headache. ______________________________________________________________

"Heiji, I missed ya~!"

Were it anyone else, the claws would have come out the moment he had been scooped up and squeezed in a tight embrace, but as it was, he merely endured it. He had kind of missed her too, after all, even if they had only spent a week apart. To those who had spent a lifetime together, even something as small as that felt as if it were a great distance.

Besides, it wasn't as if he could advance their relationship any now that he was a furball, so the most that he could do for his childhood friend was let her pamper him. In truth, there was a part of him that couldn't exactly claim that he disliked it- Kazuha always seemed to know just how to stroke him just right.

The fact that he actually enjoyed being petted was a secret that he would take to his grave.

"Have they been takin' good care of ya, Heiji?" Kazuha asked, finally releasing him from her vice grip, as she flopped back on the couch. There was a pleased smile on her face as he curled up in her lap, letting out a yowl in reply to her question. "I see, so they have! I knew that trustin' Ran-chan was the right choice!"

"Would you like something to drink, Kazuha-chan?" Ran asked, sparing a smile down towards the cat curled up on her lap. Really, it would appear that he saved his most content expression for when she was around- it was almost transparent in a way like no other that he liked her. He only purred for her, after all. "Are you fine for now, Hattori-kun?"

That yowl was a yes, Ran determined. Figuring out what his various noises meant had become rather simple recently- but it should come as no surprise, seeing that Heiji had been with them for nearly three months now. As of yet, there had been no signs of his curse lifting, and as much as she could tell it was making Heiji somewhat antsy, he also had seemed to resign himself to his fate, whatever it might be.

"I'm fine, Ran-chan!" Kazuha told her, lightly stroking Heiji's head, a soft smile on her face at the sound of the purr that he made as she did so. Really, he was so cute like this- though it was bit frustrating not to be able to talk to him as she always could. "I just hope that Heiji hasn't been givin' ya too much trouble."

"The other day, Heiji-niichan-!"

"No, not at all." Ran said, quickly cutting Conan off, casting a smile down towards him that very quickly made him snap his mouth shut. They had promised to keep that bird incident under wraps, after all. "He's been a very polite house guest."

"Well, I guess he's got an awful lot less of himself ta make a mess with these days." Kazuha remarked, moving her finger so that she scratched right underneath his chin. "Ahh, if only he was this easy ta deal with normally!"

Her words earned her an annoyed glower from Heiji, breaking out of his otherwise pleased revere to let his protests be known. There were times it almost felt as if Kazuha liked him better this way, when he was small and cute like this. Still, there were only just moments- because all he had to do to know that she missed the real him was just look into her eyes.

He loved when Kazuha visited, but he also hated it too- because it reminded him all too keenly of the distance between the two of them. Honestly, now that it was like this, the first thing he was going to do upon returning to being a human was to properly confess to her!

But since he couldn't do anything about that right now, for the moment, he could at least let her pamper however much she wanted. It certainly wasn't just because he happened to like it- a lot.

As they watched Heiji all but melt into Kazuha's lap, Ran and Conan could only exchange a glance between each other, a shared smile between them. They didn't need words to know that Heiji enjoyed Kazuha's pampering to no end- that much was written on his face, etched into every signal his tiny feline body gave off.

Honestly, be he human or cat, there was no one out there easier to read than Hattori Heiji.

[gentlemenclubbbz]

forever and ever - Max

Someone requested a domestic Max fic, so here it is. Hope it’s alright cause it’s kinda cheesy and sappy, it’s the only thing my imagination could create. Sorry ‘bout that. I was listening to ‘Misha Mishenko - Vor I mig’ while writing this, so maybe it’ll add to the atmosphere of the story if you listen to it while reading? ^__^’

***

You remember everything. Every silly little moment that happened between the two of you: the good stuff and the bad stuff, the tears and the shouting, the reconciliation and the love making that sparks between the two of you. Everything that brought up to today, when you could finally say ‘Yes’ to the love of your life and have him as your husband. In that moment, all time seemed to have slowed down: it was only the two of you in that chapel, holding hands and declaring undying love to one another. All of your encounters passed through your mind, from your first meeting, to the point where you knew you have fallen in love with Max Stanley. From your first kiss, to the awkward and cute methods of flirting—to the romantic and the more naughty moments.

Everything that you didn’t want to change. You felt him lightly squeezing your hand and stared at him—he had tears in his eyes as he smiled so fondly at you... He was probably thinking the same, the steps which you’ve all passed through, together. And your heart skips a beat, just like it does every once in a while when you remember how much you love Max. You smile, wanting to just kiss him and so ready to spend the rest of your life with him.

“Don’t cry, my dear,” he says, leaning over to you a bit. “Things are going to be fine.”

“I know…” and just when he’s about to seal the deal—

You return back to reality. You open your eyes, breathing heavily, but with a fond smile on your face. Tears are streaming down your cheeks, not sure why—was it from happiness or sadness that it may not possibly ever happen? No. This ‘make-belief’ marriage that you recalled in your dream... You turn your head to the side, where your husband should’ve been—but his side is empty and cold, like he has never been there to begin with. But his form still lingers, his smell...You start to panic, feeling how your stomach tossed and turned in anxiety. Where was he? Your husband…You don’t wait anymore—you’re up and about in a second, pushing off the covers and desperate to find him. Because you knew, in your mind, that it hasn’t been just a dream and it has been real at some point. 

You realize you’re in his shirt, barely covering your body—just the way you liked it. You stop in front of the bedroom door to sniff it, remembering how he smelled like. Sweet, like his favourite deserts, but still manly enough to arouse you. Just the way you like it, just the way you’re forever going to remember. You giggle, eager to meet him in person. You want to make sure this was not just a very sweet dream and that your reality matched with your innermost dreams. 

Something seemed wrong with you today, but maybe it was just you...

You open the door, almost flying down the stairs, enticed by the smell of an omelette. Your favourite dish. Max always knew how to make your mornings better, knew what you liked—he knew how to treat you right. Your bare feet don’t make a sound as you’re rushing towards the kitchen; you’re almost out of breath as you arrive in the doorway, stopping there to admire the view.

Max’s standing in front of the oven, right in front of a large window. The sun rays fall onto his figure, illuminating him in the most pleasant of ways. He’s like an angel, his green eyes seeming lighter than ever as he’s so focused on stirring in the fry pan. A pout adorns those plump lips of his, his morning unshaved beard just asking to be rubbed onto your skin. You loved the sensation it caused you—the raspy feeling on you made your body tingle pleasantly. He was naked from the waist up, his large pants loosely tied around his torso—the marks of your late-night love making were still visible on his broad back. You smiled at that, barely containing your excitement.

You just want to hug him, give him all the love and care he needs and deserve. You could watch him for hours—but you feel pity for the steaming coffee mugs sitting on the table. You don’t want them to get cold—coffee was your vitae. ‘Maybe I should’ve just stayed in bed and wait for him to wake me up.’ He could come up with the most innovative ways to do that, with kisses, breakfast in bed; sometimes, he’d even joke around and splash a bucket of water on top of your head. He will laugh as he’s running from your wrath; he never tried that again after you promised no sex for a short period of time. You knew him too well, knew his weaknesses—and he knew yours.

So you settle for greeting him. “Hello, handsome.”

He almost drops the omelette on the floor from the surprise—you can only chuckle amusedly at his shocked expression that quickly turns into a large smile. “Hey, beautiful, you woke up!” He wants to rush to you and hug you, but breakfast was not ready yet, so he can only pout in need, like a puppy. You chuckle once more and you walk towards him. Hand on his arm, you tiptoe to kiss him chastely on the cheek, lingering there a bit more than you should’ve. Just to make him want more.

And he does want more—Max was needy. He grumbles something under his breath and you giggle. You wrap your arms around his torso and he turns his head to meet your lips head on. You stay there, kissing passionately, but still lazy enough—it was, after all, still so early in the morning. You ruffle his hair, suddenly breaking off the kiss. And he pouts more, knowing he’d want more than just such a brief kiss.

But you laugh “The omelette’s burning.”

Max curses loudly, obviously not pleased with the outcome of his meal. He wanted to be perfect for you, to give you only the best. And burning your food was not acceptable! You leave him be and go sit at the table, in your usual chair, in your usual way: knees to your chest. You take your favourite cup filled with coffee and blow on it to cool it off. When you take the first sip, that’s when Max finishes with breakfast—he comes to the table, putting two plates on it: one in front of you, and the bigger portion of omelettes on his side.

“Hey!” you laugh, putting the warm mug down. “It’s not fair!”

“What?” Max raises an eyebrow at you as he sits down on the other side of the table. “You said you didn’t like to eat much in the morning.”

“What if I have cravings, hmmm?” you muse, picking up the fork and ‘threatening’ him with it.

Max snorts “What are you, pregnant?” Instead of answering, you lean over the table and try to destroy his omelette. “HEY!” he’s quick to react, though, and before you could actually do some damage and steal a bite, he has the plate up in the air, out of your reach. He playfully glares at you as you can’t contain your smile. “MY food!”

“Alright, alright.” You throw your hands up in surrender and sit back down. “Your food.”

Max glances at you one more time, wary of your intentions—but you aren’t planning anything anymore. You shrug at him and pretend to eat your omelette; and he soon follows your example, putting the plate down and starting to scarf his food down. He was always such a messy eater—and he ate a lot, you had to admit. Especially sweets, those were his favourites and coincidentally, your expertise. Still, that didn’t make him less lovable: he was still everything you wanted and you learnt to love every side of him. And you stopped for countless long seconds to look at him—to just admire his whole essence and take him in.

He was so beautiful.

“What?” he questions you after feeling your intense stare, lifting up his head to meet your passionate gaze.

“What, what?” you repeat, resting your chin in your palm.

“What’s with that stupid grin?” he doesn’t dislike it—and your smile is contagious.

“I’m just admiring you, Max.”

Max is taken aback a bit and he blushes, feeling antsy from seeing you so into him. Your feelings towards one another were strong, but he was always surprised to see himself being loved so. Max never knew how to return it, but you didn’t seem to ask for it. But he tried, he really did. He wanted to show you the world just like you showed him.

So he’s smiling brightly. “Really? I’m flattered.”

“Yeah…” you sigh dreamily. “I’m glad you’re still here with me, after all this time…” You don’t want to grow nostalgic, but in this morning, you’re feeling like telling him all this.

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I don’t know. I’m just saying.”

“Weirdo…” he mutters, glancing away, embarrassed.

You giggle some more at that reaction and you just want to jump over the table and kiss him. “You know I love you, Max.”

And his heart melts. He smiles. “I love you too, [name] Stanley.”

“I’m glad...” And then you stay in silence, just looking at one another like two in love school kids that just discovered the mentioned sentiment. And you probably did—it’s always going to be this way. He suddenly extends his arm towards you on the table, taking your hand in his and holding it tight. Playing with your fingers lovingly, he says “I love watching you.”

“Me too…”

And there’s nothing more than you can say. You just enjoy each other’s warmth and presence—until he suddenly remembers something, disrupting the moment just like he always did. “Are we going to finish painting the living room today?” His expression told you that he didn’t quite had the patience to do it.

So you have to answer “How about we just sit on the porch like an old couple and sleep?”

“Sounds perfect to me.”