#Both made the same mistake when starting out with the scepters

[tale-of-two-queens]

As much as I love Shuriki and as much as i both enjoy her being evil but also the idea of being broken to the point of becoming a monster in the past (not justifying her actions but i do wonder about her childhood/ngl)

I was looking trough my pics and remember a subtle moment of hers that i love

Its small but i do love the fact that she has a moment of self-doubt (and almost human like XD) in a moment when She's struggles with the scepter of night.

I do think she was certainly doubting herself (as She does have confidence and/or she never lets anyone see her vulnerable side) but does make me wonder if she wasn't written off so early what type of sides we would see

I do personally headcannon on this situation two things

1. Since the Northern Islands is very strict when it comes to magic, she has this underlying pressure to excell as She's a sorceress and She's supposed to succeed (although i still stand her magic clashed with the scepter in a sorta water and oil)

2. this isn't the first time she failed at mágic. Contrary to what some fandom believes, i do think Shuriki knows a lot of magic but most likely was the outcast turn wrong. She does recognize magic crystals and knows how to do spells, but since she never got to fully use magic we don't get to see much sorcery

[lokis-dark-queen]

Tropical Tension

Loki/Fem Reader Smut

Summary: You ask Tony if Loki can accompany the team on a celebratory tropical vacation in Aruba. He agrees but then you are told by Natasha that he must share a room with someone. Coincidentally, you and Loki have been harboring some feelings for each other. What will happen on your much needed getaway?

Warnings/Notes: SMUT 18+ Minors DNI. Teasing, pining, a little bit of shy Loki, BODY SHOTS, Oral Sex (F receiving), unprotected sex (don’t do that irl). Loosely proofread, I apologize for any mistakes.

Word Count: 8.6k

Also on AO3

*header from Pinterest*

You skillfully folded your favorite sundresses and swimsuits into your new suitcase, specially purchased for this upcoming trip. The most recent Avengers mission had been an overwhelming success and Tony had suggested an all inclusive group vacation to Aruba to celebrate. It was your first big mission, and the praise from your teammates gave you that satisfying feeling of acceptance. 

A sudden knock at your door pulled you out of your proud mind. Already knowing who was on the other side, you invited him in. 

“Come in, Loki.” You smiled as the god of mischief made his entrance. His long legs floated in your direction immediately. 

“How in the nine realms did you figure out it was me?” He announces sarcastically.

You can’t hold back a giggle, Loki seemed to always find a way to make you laugh. 

When the trip was announced, you immediately asked if Loki could come along. He had been staying at the tower for almost a full year now; it was almost two years since his attempted invasion of New York. After a surprisingly short imprisonment on Asgard, Loki had cut a deal when he helped Thor deal with the dark elves and collect the aether. He seemed to have won his brother’s respect after nearly sacrificing himself for Jane, who was now Thor’s ex girlfriend. Loki showed an example of selflessness, however, so Thor gave him a second chance. 

Loki also had important information on a potential threat who was on the hunt for infinity stones. He never spoke his name, saying he was tortured by the being. But his information helped ready the Earth for this potential threat, as well as clearing him for his crimes in New York. The argument claims that he was not in the right state of mind after torture and influence by the mind stone. A new plea on mind control was given, the same plea that excused Barton for the crimes he committed while under the control of Loki, no, the scepter. 

Loki found himself naturally attracted to your energy. You were quiet, calm, and collected, a certain peace in his life of chaos. When he got to know you, he heard you more, saw more sides of your personality, and he loved it. The two of you remained friends, your friendship was too far along and both of you were scared to ruin it. You both lived in a constant state of want for each other, however, you feared that neither of you would act on it. Loki was shy, surprisingly so. It took him months to warm up to you and once he did, he almost never stopped talking. You loved it though, and the sound of his voice. 

“Have you started packing yet?” You asked him as he hovered around you, constantly keeping an appropriate distance. 

“No need, I have everything I need in my magic compartments. I can summon any outfit at any time.” He brags. 

“And you have clothes for the beach, ready to go?” You raised an eyebrow. 

“I have clothes, my clothes, ready to go.” 

“Loki, it’s going to be hot there, do you even have anything to swim in?” You questioned him. 

“No need, I will not be doing such a thing.” He sticks his nose up at the idea. 

“Don’t be a bummer, everyone else will be.” You pause and lower your voice to make it more seductive, “I will.” 

Loki raises an eyebrow in sudden interest, “Not in this I hope.” He leans over and grabs one of your bikini tops out of your suitcase, ruining your careful organization. He inspects the emerald green bikini top, “If anyone sees you in this I will be gouging their eyes out.” His voice darked with his threat, causing a heat of arousal and embarrassment to run through your body and between your thighs. 

“Loki!” You squealed as you failed to grab the tantalizing top from his determined grasp, “Give it back!” 

“No chance darling.” He pulled his arms higher, his height kept it out of your grasp. 

You secretly loved when Loki teased you like this, you knew it was his way of flirting. You reached up, pushing your flushed body with his in the process. Loki persisted pulling his arm back as you reached past his head in an attempt to reach the bikini top. You were unbearably close to him, his piercing eyes looked down upon your pathetic form. You whimpered in frustration at every failed attempt. Soon you dropped your arm, resting your hand on his shoulder. Loki assumed you had given up, when you were really just trying a different approach.  

“Loki, please.” You looked up at him with innocence in your eyes, “Give it back.” 

The god bit his tongue at the sight, god you were so perfectly submissive for him right now. A rush of blood went straight to his crotch as he lowered his arm, the hand with the bikini rested on his chest and the other wrapped around your waist. 

“Y’know what I did on Asgard when I craved a refreshing dip in the hidden spring?” His voice has a seductive grow lacing it. 

“What?” You ask with caution as he leaned closer to your ear, his warm breath brushed against the side of your face. “I swam naked, the way the Gods intended.” 

Part of you feared where this was going, sirens blared in your head that urged you to stop. But your horniness pushed you to continue. 

“Well mischief, you are more than welcome to do so. However I doubt the team would want to see…” Your eyes darted lower to where his semi-hard erection was now pressing up against your lower stomach, so close to where you craved him, “That.” 

“They should be honored, I am a god. A very well endowed one at that.” His hips pressed even closer to you. 

“Oh, I don’t doubt that.” Your eyes darkened in lust. 

This, unfortunately, was not the first time this had happened. You and Loki would tease each other to the point of unbearable sexual tension and then one of you would abandon the situation, leaving both of you frustrated. 

You had managed to untangle the stringy top from his long, pale fingers as you retrieved it. Not knowing where to go from here, you froze in place. Maybe this time Loki would push it farther, the throbbing in your core was a telltale sign that you were ready for him, that you craved him. 

“Loki.” You whispered his name softly, full of lust. 

“Yes?” He said, voice full of desperation. 

Your hands gripped his biceps, leaning closer to his lips.

You nearly jumped out of your skin when you heard another knock at the door with a female voice yelling your name, “Are you in there?” 

Natasha. 

You loved her to death, but her unintentional cockblocking nearly made you explode in anger. 

Loki’s touch faded, his form disappearing before your very eyes. He most likely knew that your friend would be barging into the room any second and he didn’t want to be caught in the compromising position. 

You sighed in sexual frustration, “Yeah… come in.” You sounded utterly defeated and deprived. The bikini top is still in your hand. 

“Hey! You almost packed?” She asks as she walks in your room, “You’re kind of red, are you okay? You better not be coming down sick before the trip.” 

“I’m fine.” You sighed, sitting on your bed in defeat, cursing yourself when you felt the wet spot on your underwear. 

Natasha looked down at the bikini top in your lap, “That is a very specific color of green, looking to impress someone?” She wiggles her eyebrows suggestively, referring to a certain someone. 

“We’re just friends, Natty.” You stand, finally placing the top in your suitcase. 

“I can not be in the same room with you two without feeling uncomfortable from all of that tension. You two need to fuck.” She stresses that last part, if only she knew that was the exact situation she interrupted. 

“I don’t want to ruin our friendship, he’s so sweet and shy. I don’t want to lose him.” You try to reason. You weren’t lying, Loki was shy around the team. Around you however, he was a different man. 

“He stares at you constantly, you won’t lose him. If anything you will gain something.” She hints. 

You blush again, “Stop it! I wouldn’t even know where to start to encourage that from him.” You say as you throw a few more clothing items in your suitcase and close it with a victorious sigh. 

“Since Loki was an add on, he won’t have his own room, you’ll have to share.” She winks. 

“Are you kidding me? Tony is a billionaire, but he is too cheap to get one extra room for him?” 

“He said room arrangements are final, we each have our own. You asked for Loki to come at the last minute, he has to split with someone.” 

“He can happily share with Thor.” You suggested with a smug attitude. 

“One bed per room, poor Loki wouldn’t have any room sharing a bed with that mammoth.” You both laugh at her nickname for the thunderous god. 

“Loki can share with whoever he wants.” You say turning your back to your friend to zip your suitcase closed. 

“Even me?” She teases to piss you off. 

“No!” You turn quickly, yelling unintentionally. 

Natasha gives an amused laugh, “I’m kidding, you think he would stay with another girl that wasn’t you?” 

“He better not.” You say underneath your breath.

“He trusts you, more than his brother. Maybe I would go as far to say that he loves you.” 

You stiffen up at her words, shaking your head in denial, “I don’t think he loves, Nat.” You sigh. 

“Something tells me that you will be finding out soon.” She winks and goes to leave, “Good luck.” 

You throw a pillow at the door after she closes it, hoping she heard the soft thump on the other side. That flight tomorrow was about to be a nightmare. 

The group gathered around Tony’s private jet first thing the next morning. For once, you didn’t dread an early morning, in fact, you were excited. You needed this vacation and nothing was going to stop you from enjoying yourself. 

Loki sulked near the corner of the hangar, wearing an all black button down with some black jeans. 

You sighed, ‘He’s going to be miserable the whole trip if that is his wardrobe. And I know he is going to complain to me about it.’ You rolled your eyes as you thought to yourself.

You strolled towards the apathetic god, his eyes followed your form as you approached him. The sundresses have begun, and he couldn’t be happier. 

“Please tell me you brought other types of clothes.” You scolded him, already knowing what he would say. 

“Do not stress over me darling, this is a relaxing vacation, is it not?” He assured you. 

“I don’t want to hear you bitch about being sweaty and miserable.” You growl.

Loki stepped closer, your teammates were none the wiser of you two as they gleefully chatted in excitement. He towered over you, trying his best to be intimidating to the girl he constantly whines to like a spoiled child. You met his phony cold gaze in annoyance and hidden anticipation. You remembered that you haven’t even told him the room arrangements yet.

“No promises.” He smirked. 

“Loki I swear, if you fu-” You were about to go off on him for trying to make your ‘relaxing’ vacation less so before being interrupted by Tony. 

“Alright Princesses, let's board.” He leads the way as everyone else follows, you and Loki trail behind. 

Loki stayed right behind you as you walked on the jet, the knuckle of his index finger kept constant contact with the small of your back, hoping to not stray too far from you. The plane was cramped with all the heroes aboard, and he began to feel uncomfortable. Unfortunately for him, it would be a long flight. 

Much to his disappointment, you left his side to go drink champagne with Natasha, Wanda, and Pepper. He quietly tried to reach for you as you went to go sit with them, exactly where he didn’t want you to be. Thor attempted to wave him over so that he would sit with him and Rogers. Loki just rolled his eyes and sat in the far back corner of the plane, alone. 

You began to loosen up after a glass as you talked with the girls. 

“I really needed this, Fury has been on my ass with missions and papers, ugh…” Natasha groaned. 

“Me too,” You huffed, “I had to write that entire mission report, you know, the whole reason we are on this trip in the first place. He didn’t even acknowledge everything that I did to get that in on time.” 

“Well, we do. Thank you, for your hard work.” Pepper raised her glass as a toast to you. 

You all had a moment of silence, taking everything in. The men played card games on the other side of the cabin, being rather loud in the process. 

“Boys… What are we gonna do with them?” Natasha scoffed, sipping from her flute. 

“What about the stowaway?” Wanda points at Loki, sitting in the back of the plane. He read a book with one leg resting over the other. You noticed how his foot bounced, he was anxious. 

“He’s fine.” You sigh, finishing the rest of your second glass, “Just dramatic.” 

You put on a facade for your friends, when in reality, you felt slightly guilty for leaving him alone. He hated being around the large group, and you were all stuck in a confined aircraft gliding over the ocean. You knew he was anxious, you wanted to comfort him. 

“Go give him attention, he looks like those sad puppies in the commercials.” Natasha laughed and the other girls followed. 

“Oh stop it.” You scoffed, slowly standing to leave the giggling group of girls. You could feel their eyes on you as you made your way to him. 

He looked up at you from his seated position, “What? I thought I was just being dramatic.” 

Of course he heard you, “Hey… I’m sorry for abandoning you. I know how much you hate being stuck with these guys. You didn’t have to come, y’know?” You apologized. 

“Nonsense, I would never stop you from being with your friends. I came for you after all. I want you to enjoy yourself.” He states, continuing to read his book. 

You smile and take the seat next to him, “I enjoy myself most when I’m with you.” You did not fail to notice the slight flush on his cheeks. 

Loki didn’t know how to respond, his body tensed as your slightly tipsy head rested on his shoulder. You ignored the giggles and judgmental glances from the other passengers. It was just you and him. Your heavy eyes scanned the pages of the book along with him, taking in the sweet moment of silence among the chaos. 

As the energy winded down everyone leaned their chairs back, turning them into makeshift beds. The plane would be landing early the next morning and you wanted to be well rested so you can enjoy your first day. You remained next to Loki, the divider in between the seats kept you two from touching as you laid next to him. Your eyes met in silence besides the muffled roar of the jet engine and Thor’s snoring. 

“I should have told you earlier but Natasha said that you would have to share a room with someone else.” You whispered to the god next to you.

You swore you saw him smirk in the darkness, “And who should that person be?” 

“Whoever you want, I don’t think that many people would be willing to do so though.” 

“Well, I hope you don’t mind darling, but I think I would go insane if I had to hear Thor’s snoring for the next week.” You both gave out a silent, breathy laugh. 

“You’re always welcome to stay with me, Loki.” You brush your hand up against his. 

“Don’t say that darling, I may never leave.” He quipped. 

“Then don’t.” 

You and Loki fell asleep with your fingers intertwined, your touch helped calm him into a state of slumber. 

–

You awoke from the sun peeking through the shade on the cabin window and the pilot announcing that the plane will be landing soon. Loki was already awake, his chair back to its previous upright position. One hand held his paperback book, the other was still entangled with yours. 

The humid air of Aruba kissed your exposed parts of skin that the sundress failed to cover. Vacation chaos resumed as everyone exited the jet, already arguing about the trip itinerary. You chose to do your own things on this trip, and most of that time would be spent on the most secluded, quiet beach you could find. Loki remained directly behind you once again, his hand resting on the small of your back. He was going to make damn sure he didn’t get separated from you this time. You smirked to yourself as Wanda walked by, hand in hand with Vision.

“Separation issues much?” The witch giggles. 

“Hypocrite.” You growl, glancing back at Loki, “Ignore them.” You tell him. 

“I already do.” He rolled his eyes. 

At the hotel, you nearly had to fight for your life just to receive the room key as everyone crowded around the poor attendant at the front desk. When you finally obtained it you walked to Loki, who was kindly holding your bags. 

“Ready?” You ask. 

Before Loki could make some type of remark, Thor’s booming voice cut through the stiff air, “Brother! I hear we are short a room, would you like to stay with me? It would be just like when we were kids!” 

Loki clenched his jaw in annoyance as you laughed at the older Odinson, “No you oaf! I found other arrangements.” He glares at his brother before looking back at you. 

The blond god’s eyes darted between his brother and you, the woman standing next to him in confusion. You swore you could see the gears turning and the lightbulb appear over his head as he realized the situation. “Oh… Oh!”  He looked at Loki with brotherly pride as he patted him on the shoulder, “It’s about time! Have fun brother! Be mindful of the guests in the other rooms.” You both flush slightly at his words before he walks away to join the group. 

You and Loki break away from the group to find your room. His knuckles turned white as he gripped the handle of your suitcase, the two of you walking in palpable silence. 

Your eyes lit up as you opened the door to the room, the floor to ceiling window gave a generous view of the beach below. 

“Isn’t it beautiful, Loki?” You ask as the god sets your bags down with a dramatic grunt. You knew the weight was practically nothing for him. 

“It’s fine.” He speaks in a monotone voice. 

“What’s wrong?” You turn around and sit on the bed in the middle of the room. 

“Nothing, I’m just- I mean this is new and…” He stutters as you lay down on the king sized bed to stretch out. 

Loki’s heart seemed to skip a few beats as he saw your vulnerable form laid out before him. One strap of your sundress fell down your shoulder and the skirt rode up your luscious thighs. His hands rested on his hips as he sighed in frustration. His hand ran down his face before brushing his tendrils of hair back. 

“Loki,” You called out for him as you sat up, “You need to loosen up. It’s a vacation after all.” 

“How?” He mumbles. 

You stand from the bed and walk towards him, Loki’s body leaned into yours like a magnet as you reached him. Your hands ran up his covered biceps to the neckline of his shirt. Your hands found the top button and undid it. His strong hands rested on your hips in anticipation. Your fingers tangled in his inky curls that rested neatly on his shoulders before moving up to cup his flushed cheeks. 

“However you want.” You say, never breaking eye contact with his piercing blue orbs. 

Loki wasted no time as he pulled you in for a kiss. The room melted away as his lips finally met yours after all this time and teasing. Your arms wrapped around his neck as you stood on the tips of your toes to get closer to his towering form. One of his hands remained on your waist as the other held the back of your head, digits tangling in your hair as he did so. Your head rushed as you got high on his lips, your bodies flush together, as they were meant to be. 

You both took in a deep breath as you pulled away, his pupils were blown with lust and his hair was a mess. This man, this god, he was pure sex. 

“Did that help?” You giggle, intertwining your fingers with his once again. 

“It did.” He smirked, closing his eyes and resting his forehead against yours, taking in the blissful moment.

The kiss resumed after your short, shared moment of silence. You found yourself pinned against the cold hotel wall and the dense body of a god as his hands roamed your figure. He gripped the skirt of your dress, lifting it up and brushing over your ass in the process. His lips were desperate for yours as his skilled tongue entered your mouth, exploring what was his. You held on tight for the ride, unbuttoning the rest of his shirt in the process. You broke the kiss and brushed the dark fabric off his broad shoulders. 

“You’re going to get overheated if you wear clothes like this the whole time.” She reminds him, throwing the shirt on the bed behind them. 

“Then let's stay in our room and wear nothing.” He retorts, lips trailing down your sensitive neck as he speaks. Every warm breath on your skin sent a shiver up your spine. 

“Mmmm…” You groan, “But I wanna go to the beach.” You pout, driving him insane. 

Loki leans down to grab your thighs gently so that he can hoist you up and carry you to the bed. You let out a small moan as your back met the soft mattress beneath. Loki crawled over you and straddled your body. His lips found new territory as he explored your collarbones and upper chest. 

“Fine, a few trips to the beach can be done.” He groans, his lips ghosting the tops of your breasts, barely visible underneath the dress. 

His hands ran up your soft thighs, finding their intended destination underneath your dress. You had a feeling that this would finally be happening after all this time, however, you did not expect it to happen immediately after you entered your room. Who were you to complain? This was what you fantasized about every night after he left you high and dry. No walking away this time. 

Just as his talented fingers curled in the waistband of your thin, cotton panties, a dreaded knock was heard on the other side of the door. Loki didn’t jump away from you as he did many times before. He just raised his face from in between your breasts, he was fuming with anger after being so rudely interrupted from his interpretation of Valhalla. 

“If I have to kill somebody, I swear-” He growled, his hands holding your hips. 

“Wrap up whatever you guys are doing, we have a tour and I paid for everyone. Therefore, everyone is required to attend.” Tony’s arrogant tone rang on the other side. “Not to mention the private beach that I rented out for the party tonight.” 

“We’ll be out soon, Tony.” You spoke up from your position under Loki. He just rolled his eyes and his body off of you. 

You only heard muffled footsteps fade as Tony walked away. You sat up and looked at Loki who was sprawled out next to you on the white linen. His raven hair contrasted his pale features that were slightly flushed with arousal. The prominent tent in his pants almost made you feel sorry for him. 

“We’ll pick it back up later, I promise.” You leaned down to kiss his cheek, his eyes remained trained on the white ceiling. 

“What about this?” He motioned to his throbbing erection underneath the fabric.

“I’m sorry, Loki. Can you just put it off for a bit?” You try to reason with him. 

He groaned as he sat up on the bed, “It’ll be torture. Especially if you keep wearing those dresses.” 

You smirked as you opened your suitcase and grabbed a bikini, the emerald green one to be exact. “And if I wear this underneath it?” You tease. 

“You’ll surely kill me.” 

“Good.” You giggled and practically skipped to the attached bathroom to put it on underneath your sundress. 

–

The whole team was waiting for you and Loki, a flood of embarrassment rushed to your cheeks. Their looks suggested that they had a slight idea on what you two were doing up there, or at least trying to do. 

“This isn’t a honeymoon you guys.” Barton shook his head as he began to follow the tour guide who was showing the team around the resort. 

“Sorry…” You mumbled, fidgeting with the strap of your dress. An action that Loki did not fail to notice. 

You walked with the group, Loki on your left and Natasha on your right. You tried to look ahead and focus on the tour until the redhead nudged your arm. 

“Too busy settling in?” She wiggles her eyebrows suggestively. 

“Stop it.” You spoke between your teeth, making sure no one else heard. 

“Did you get anywhere with it?” She continues pushing. 

“It?” Loki acts offended on your other side, knowing that you were talking about him. 

“I was trying to be discreet.” She rolls her eyes at the god. 

“Either way it is none of your business.” He speaks with venom at your best friend. 

“Hey! Leave it alone you two.” You growl. 

“Apologies, darling.” He rests his hand on your back once again, giving you a sense of comfort. 

“Yea, darling.” Natasha mocked him. 

You eventually just went silent, hoping that they would take the hint that you were done with their bickering. You were not getting involved in confrontation on this vacation. Eventually, they both quieted down and walked next to you in silence. 

The tour came to an end at the private beach that Tony had mentioned earlier. There was a bar, fully stocked and open for drinks. There were speakers for music and tiki torches for atmosphere, it looked like it was out of a movie. 

The party would begin as the sun set, for now, it was time to swim. Everyone removes their loose covering clothes to reveal their swimwear. Everyone was prepared, besides Loki of course. He sat underneath one of the umbrellas on the beach, his sunglasses made it appear like he was reading his book that he brought. In reality, his eyes were on you, in that bikini. If any other men from the team got so much as within a foot from you, they would be sorry. You looked so happy as you splashed in the blue, salty water with your friends. Your smile made his stomach turn in the best way possible. He noticed your eyes looking back at him with concern every few minutes. Every time he gave you a nod of reassurance, as if he was saying, ‘Don’t worry about me, enjoy yourself.’ He was sweating under his clothes, however, he was too stubborn to admit that you were right. 

As the golden sunset began to reflect on the calm waves, the party began. Still wet from the beach, you tied a white, chiffon sarong around your hips. The fabric barely did anything to cover your ocean kissed skin as you ordered your first drink of the night. You didn’t intend on being drunk tonight, you planned on keeping your promise to Loki, who was currently nursing a drink of his own. 

You sauntered over to the secluded table where he sulked, noticing the bead of sweat on his brow as you sat across from him. 

“What did I tell you?” You spoke in an ‘I told you so’ tone. 

“I know, you were right, I was wrong, is that what you wanted to hear?” He leaned back in his chair, unbuttoning another button on the black shirt. The upper half of his torso was now on display for you. His pale skin shone in the rays of the sunset with a small sheen of sweat. You admired him, his godly form that you wanted to learn every inch of. 

You laughed victoriously, “Yes.” You smirked and took another sip of your pina colada. 

The music blasted through the speakers, and after you finished your drink, you found yourself relaxed enough to dance with everyone else, barefoot in the warm sand. After every song, you went over to Loki, asking him to join you, he turned you down every time. He was slightly hurting your feelings right now, eventually you stopped checking up on him. 

After two songs, Loki noticed your lack of attention towards him. When he walked towards the party from his secluded corner he saw you and your friends around the bar, laughing freely, some clearly more intoxicated than others. He noticed that Rogers was a little too close for comfort as you spoke. 

“You lick the margarita salt off of someone, usually on their chest, and then you take the shot. After that the person who you licked the salt off of will have a lime in their mouth. Immediately after you down the shot, you take the lime from their mouth with your mouth, no hands.” You explained body shots to the group around you as Loki approached from behind, placing a hand on your waist. 

“What are you talking about?” His curiosity peaked as he overheard the last part of your explanation. 

“Body shots.” You answered, motioning for the bartender to pour a shot of tequila. He could see your mischievous look, he feared that look, “Wanna try? I’ll teach you.” You smirk with confidence. 

Multiple gasps and ‘Ooohs’ feel from the small crowd surrounding the two of you. Loki’s eyes went wide, did you have no shame?

“And who will be taking the shot?” He asks, you smiled in excitement, happy that he didn’t turn you down immediately. 

“I’ve had my fill for the night.” You state, handing him the full shot glass, “You, however, need to loosen up some more.” 

Everyone leaned in around the bar, expecting a show. And you and Loki were about to perform for them shamelessly. They whispered and snickered as they awaited his answer. 

Loki sighed, trying to hide his excitement, “Fine.” 

Drunken cheers motivated you to sit on the bar, taking the small bowl of margarita salt in your hand. He was not even the slightest bit ready for what was about to happen as you leaned back, your eyes told him to come closer. 

Loki, who was still seen as shy by the rest of the team, approached you cautiously. Your foot hooked around the back of his knee, your eyes were sultry, flashbacks from earlier rushed in his mind. Some of your teammates, including Bruce and Steve, turned away, seemingly uncomfortable at your tantalizing display of suggestive exhibitionism. To be fair, it did look rather pornographic to spectators. 

“First…” You start, Loki’s eyes are only focused on you, “You’ll lick the salt from here.” You explain, sprinkling a trail of salt between your breasts, his breath hitching in his throat as he watches you intently, “After that, you will quickly take the tequila shot and then…” You pick up a lime from behind the bar, your body on display as you lean back, even the bartender was entertained, “You will take the lime from my mouth with yours, understand?” 

Words failed to form for the god, who could only nod with his eyes filled with awe and lust. 

You giggled as you saw Pepper smack Tony upside the head as he tried to explain himself, “Good, whenever you’re ready, mischief.” You shoot him a wink before placing the lime in your mouth and leaning back on the bar, propping your body up with your elbows. 

All eyes were on Loki now, there were many men here tonight who wished they were in his place, yet here he was, your body offered for him like the god he truly is. He leaned forward, one hand on either side of your torso, his right hand held the shot glass that sat on the polished wooden bar. His face found its way between your breasts, just as he was earlier in the day before being so rudely interrupted. The crowd was too shocked now to even attempt to stop the not so subtle erotic display. You gasped as his tongue found the trail of salt between your breasts, right above your bikini top. Your hand briefly held the back of your head as he trailed up your chest to the dreaded end of the salt trail. He sat up straight to properly take the tequila shot, wasting no time to take the lime as the liquid burned his throat. His lips briefly brushed against yours and he sucked on the lime before taking it from your mouth completely, you involuntarily clenched your thighs to relieve the throbbing between your legs. 

Loki stood straight, taking the lime from his mouth and throwing it aside as everyone around you hollered and clapped in drunken amusement. Natasha gave you a proud thumbs up from a few feet away. Loki returned to your side, helping you sit up and lifting you off the bar. He held you close so that he could whisper in your ear. 

“Can we return to our room, please?” He practically begged. 

You smirked and kissed him on the cheek, “I was hoping you’d ask.” 

The crowd wanted more from you two as they chanted for an encore, believe it or not, you and Loki were the most sober people there. You both walked towards the hotel, making sure you grabbed your shoes and sundress that were discarded earlier. You walked hand and hand with Loki back to the hotel, laughing in the moonlight as you walked barefoot with him. 

You swore it was the longest walk of your life as you finally made it to the hotel lobby and the elevator. Immediately after the doors closed, Loki pounced on you as if you were his prey, your hand gripping the bar as he kissed you passionately, fully aware that the elevator could stop prematurely and you two could be exposed at any moment. After your little show on the beach, however, it turned you on even more.

As the door made a ‘ding’ that cut through the humid air of arousal, Loki lifted you bridal style and walked the short distance to your shared room. You wrapped your arms around his neck, swinging your bare feet slightly in giddy anticipation. You recalled Barton’s words from earlier, and for now, you were about to treat this trip as your own little celebration honeymoon. You deserved it after all. 

Using his magic, Loki swung the door to the hotel room wide open, slamming against the wall as it announced your arrival. 

“Loki! Tony will be pissed if you put a hole in the wall!” You playfully scolded the god who currently held you. 

“Darling, for once in your midgardian life, can you please not worry about something?” He joked, but you knew he was serious deep down. 

“Then fuck my worries away, mischief.” 

Loki placed one more chaste kiss on your lips before he dropped you on the bed, causing you to let out a grunt. He circled the mattress before standing at the end of the bed and slowly unbuttoning his shirt, his eyes filled with determined lust. You clenched your legs as you sat up slightly to appreciate his little strip tease. 

“Oh… I plan on it.” He smirked, throwing the shirt aside and crawling towards you on the bed. The only light in the room was from the moonlight that shone through the open window. It reflected off his features and made him appear as if he was glowing before you. He gently grabbed your arm and pulled you up to sit with him. You understood the unspoken words from his cerulean eyes as you reached behind you and untied the bikini. Loki’s eyes never strayed as they studied the new territory of skin that had been exposed. His hands went to your hips to untie your sarong, his eyes moving from your breasts to your eyes in the dark, “May I?” He asks for your permission. 

“Of course.” You sit up on your knees so that the light fabric can be easily removed. The only covering that remained on your body was the dark green bikini bottoms that tie around your hips and slipped graciously between your thighs. 

“You’re so beautiful…” He pulls you onto his lap, lips trailing feathery kisses along your collarbone, “So perfect.” He praises. 

Your fingers tangle in those soft raven locks as you pressed your core against his reawakening erection underneath his trousers. He couldn’t hold back a whimper, a fucking whimper, for you as he felt the wetness through the layers of restricting fabric. He supported your lower back as he laid you down, his hips finding their home between your spread legs. He finally had you, no interruptions, no running away, you were his now. 

His fingers ghosted along your ticklish sides, you arched into his touch and whined out for him in embarrassing desperation. Loki let out a deep, raspy laugh as his mouth descended lower and lower, until his teeth were biting at the strings of your bottoms. The slight taste of ocean salt stung his tongue in the best way possible as he undid the strings with his teeth. The sight was erotic, your heartbeat drummed viciously in your chest as he kept eye contact. Your head was thrown back as he untied the other side in the exact same way. Could he have just slipped them down your legs easily? Yes. However, this was more entertaining, the sight made you so wet that he didn’t need to give you any more foreplay to prepare you for his cock. But Loki was a giver and a pathetic pussy pleaser, you couldn’t stop him from going down on you if you even wanted to. And you did not intend on pausing his mouth’s journey to the apex of your thighs. 

He placed one kiss to your covered mound before slipping the fabric from your wet cunt, he threw it aside, the clothing item lost in the dark until the morning. He licked a wet stripe up your soaked slit to test the waters. He smirked into your pussy as your hips bucked toward him, back arched off the bed. Needless to say, he was more than pleased with your reaction as his silver tongue slipped into your opening.

He skillfully continued his pleasurable oral assault on your cunt, your shaky fingers tangled in his black strands that were bobbing playfully between your thighs. His large hands held up the backs of your thighs so that he could taste you better. His tongue found its way back up to your sensitive clit, teasing it with slow circles before picking up the pace. He would alternate between tight, steady circles and closing his lips around your clit and sucking graciously. 

“Fuck, Loki! You’re s-so good baby.” You spoke praises to the god in between your thighs between desperate moans and clenched teeth. Your words encouraged his fingers to find your soaked entrance as his tongue pressed flat against your clit. 

You gasped as you felt his index and middle fingers breach your wet opening, back arching in need for release. Your pussy fluttered around his digits as they pumped and curled against that spot, the spot that no other lover had come close to reaching before now. Thor’s words about being mindful of the other hotel guests were long forgotten as moans nearly turned into screams. Thankfully, the other guests on your floor were your friends and teammates, and as far as you knew, they were still partying at the beach. 

One of his hands went to hold your hips in place as you were moving too much for his taste. Loki was a god on a mission, a mission to make you cum as hard as you could. And damn him, he was about to succeed. He groaned, eating you out like a man starved and you were his first taste of sustenance in years. He was getting off on this immensely, his filthy late night fantasies were finally coming true. 

“Loki… I can’t i’m- gonna… AH!” You screamed out for him, your hips raising off the sheets as his mouth eagerly followed. You came on his face shortly after your failed attempt at a warning. Loki sucked up every drop that leaked from your sweet pussy, not wasting a single drop of your nectar. 

Your thighs shook on either side of his head as he continued, pushing you to unbearable overstimulation. You pushed back on his forehead and tried to breathe. 

“Stop. Sensitive.” Was all you could stay, thankfully he took the sign and stopped. If it was up to him, he would spend the rest of the vacation between your legs. 

He graced your shaking body with gentle, loving kisses, pulling you back to reality. Your hands searched for his body, your eyes blurry from all the pleasurable tears that you had just shed. He reached out for you, one hand held his form above yours as the other held your hand, leaving chaste kisses on your knuckles before you went to caress his face, appreciating every dark and beautiful feature of the god. 

“Love, are you okay?” He asks in concern, words failed to leave your lips properly since your orgasm. 

“That was… I don’t even have words I-” He cut off your stuttering with a kiss, your taste prominent on his lips. 

“Do you wish to stop?” He asks, assuming you were too out of it for anything else. 

Your lazy eyes snapped open as your hands went to rest on his belt, “No, please, I want all of you.” You begged, fingers beginning to fidget with the metal buckle. 

“Then you will have me.” He responds. 

Just as you were about to start working on his pants, they magically disappeared before your very eyes, thanks to Loki’s magic of course. 

Needless to say, he was huge. You had felt his cock before, pressed up against your ass or lower abdomen in compromising positions that he had put you in on multiple occasions. Then, you were separated by layers of clothes. Now, you both were completely bare for each other, in your most vulnerable state. The heat of arousal seeped off your body, he could feel it from the very small space between you two. 

Your hand curiously brushed against the head of his dick, the slit leaking precum that slightly lubricated the rest of his shaft. 

“You’re huge.” You mindlessly breathe out in admiration. 

Loki lets out his iconic breathy giggle at your words, “Are you sure you want me love? The destructful god of mischief?” 

“The only thing you ever destroyed was my heart when you kept turning away from me after all of your sexual teasing.” You tell him, lifting your legs around his waist to pull his hips closer to yours. 

“I’m sorry darling, I never meant to. I was just…” He paused, looking away from your eyes for a split second before your hands gently cupped his face, pulling him back to you. 

“What is it?” You ask. 

“I was too scared to lose you.” He admits, blue eyes flooding with tears.

“I’m not going anywhere, I’m here with you. Forever and always.” He leans to touch your forehead with his in a moment of pure romance. 

He pulls back slightly, opening his mouth as if he wanted to say something important. His lips close and press together, he flicks his dark locks over his pale shoulder before fully settling between your thighs. His hand held the base of his cock as he ran it up and down your wet pussy teasing and asking permission at the same time. 

“May I have you this evening, love?” He asks for your consent once more. 

“This evening and every evening that lay before us.” You answer. 

Loki chuckles in amusement, “Good answer.” 

A synchronized gasp left both of your lips simultaneously as the tip of his cock slipped into your entrance. He held you tight, as if you were about to flutter away underneath him. Your fingernails scratched down his shoulder blades, little did you know, Loki had a thing for pain. 

He didn’t hold back as his hips found a steady rhythm so that he could properly pump his cock inside you repeatedly. Your hands were all over him, feeling every scar, muscle, and hair that decorated his body. One hand of his held onto the soft flesh of your right thighs as the other played with your breasts that were bouncing in time with every thrust. 

“Loki- Faster!” You demanded underneath him, spreading your legs wider to give him more room. 

“Does my precious girl like it when- fuck… when I fuck her like a slut?” He had to pause for a second as he sped up the pace of his thrusts. He perfectly practiced self control to keep himself from spilling inside of you too early as your cunt clenched around him. 

“YES! Oh Loki… fuck me like the slut that I am.” Your eyes opened to meet his blue-green ones that were darkened with lust and arousal. 

“You’re my slut, no other will ever touch you. You. Are. Mine.” He accentuates every word with a deep thrust, driving his cock deep inside your core. 

He had dreamed of this, touched himself to the thought of claiming you. He mentally cursed himself for taking so damn long to do so. You were such a willing lover for him, for a god. With every thrust, every kiss, and every dirty word that he growled in your ear you knew that he fucked like a god, the true god that he is. 

His fingers found their way back between your legs as they rubbed against your clit with the determination to make you cum around him. Your pussy leaked your mixed arousal onto the hotel sheets below, a thin sheen of sweat covered both of your bodies, causing both of you to shine in the moonlight. This night was perfect, just you and the man that you had longed for all this time. 

“I’m close, come with me, cum all over my cock.” He breathes out as his thrusts become sloppy and uneven. 

Your whole body tensed and your legs wrapped tightly around his hips as his long thrusts turned into more of a grinding motion. The feeling of his pubic mound grinding against your clit along with his fingers precisely circling it pushed you over the edge. 

“LOKI!” You screamed out his name in orgasmic bliss as your pussy clenched around his cock, causing him to fall over the edge with you. Ropes of his hot cum coated your walls, a sloppy kiss was shared in the moment. The room seemed to melt away as you held each other, coming down from both of your powerful orgasms. He laid on top of you, careful to not put his full weight on you as his face buried itself in your neck, taking in your natural scent. 

In his state of bliss he murmured something into your skin, so quiet you could barely hear. But you knew what he said, you had imagined those words falling like spring rain from his lips many times. You knew them all too well. 

“I love you.” 

He immediately regrets it as he sits up, intending to move away from you as he pulls his softening cock out of your warm, welcoming tunnel. You crawl onto him as he laid on the bed, your silence scared him, although you clearly weren't revolted as you rested your head on his chest, admiring the glistening ocean outside the window before looking back up at him.

“I love you Loki, so much. More than you could even imagine.” You confess, showing that you reciprocate his feelings. 

He chuckles with love at your answer, even he couldn’t hide the love drunk smile that adorned his face, “Is that so?” He asks, playfully. 

“It is, it always has been.” You tell him, propping your tired body up enough to place another soft kiss on his lips before you fall asleep with him. Wrapped up in white, cotton sheets and pure love for one another. 

–

As you sat in the hotel lobby with Loki the next morning, innocently enjoying your complimentary breakfast, you noticed a few strange stares from your fellow teammates, while others refused to look at you all together. 

“Why are they staring at us like that?” You quietly ask the god across the small round table from you. 

“Well darling, it may be the fact that you sat your pretty little ass up on the bar last night and asked me to lick salt from between your breasts in a whorish display of alcoholism.” He answered nonchalantly. 

Your cheeks slightly blushed pink at his words, perhaps you did take things a bit too far due to your need for Loki. Before you could answer a feminine hand took a blueberry off of your plate. 

“That…” Natasha started next to you, eating the blueberry before continuing, “And the fact that you two were fucking so loud last night that Tony received a formal complaint from the front desk.”

You glanced cautiously at Tony across the room. The billionaire met your eyes with a threatening gaze. 

“Sorry.” You mumble, sure that you would die from embarrassment. 

The redheaded spy laughs, “Well, you both certainly needed to get that out of your system. However, Tony said that if it happens again, Loki will have to move in with Thor for the rest of the trip.” She points over her shoulder to the blond god, who waved in return and gave his brother a proud thumbs up. 

“We’ll be more considerate next time, agent. Thank you.” Loki replies in your place with a hand over his heart in fake innocence. 

With your face buried in your hands, you hid your face at the table. “Who was even around last night?” You ask, barely audible as you raised your head. 

“Some of us go to bed early, y'know.” Steve replies as he walks by with a coffee cup in his hand.

“I expect no less of Rogers.” Loki rolled his eyes before landing on yours as he pulled your hands down from your flushed face, “Now, how about that trip to the beach?” He suggests. 

“Will sex be involved?” You ask, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. 

“Most likely.” He smirks.

[skulduggery-pleasant-bp9]

Dead Men x M/n - Trouble (Part 4 of Dead Men meet M/n)

WARNING!: Cursing, mention of blood and gore AND MORE ! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED !!!

The names are all pronounced this !: Keiran(M/n) – Keer- in or Keer-awn Laoise – Lah-weese Lorcan – Lor-ken

As Skulduggery arrived at the Hotel Midnight, he already saw the Motorcycle of Keiran outside. He parked his car, turned off the engine, got out, locked the car and then entered the Hotel. As soon as he was inside he was tackled by a small girl.

“Daddy ! Are you okay ?!”, the girl greeted worried.

She was looking like an eight year old, but she was a bit older than that. Skulduggery’s children knew from the beginning that they were Mages, which caused them to age differently than other Mages. They aged slower.

“Hello, Laoise. I’m fine, my Darling. How are you, your Mom and older Brother ? I heard Serpine was around you again and Cousin Keiran had to beat his butt.”, Skulduggery asked worried.

Then a Teenage boy entered the Father’s sight.

“We have been doing alright, Dad. Keiran really whooped his ass.”, the boy replied with a snort.

“Lorcan, Son, I’m so relieved to see you alright. Last time...”, Skulduggery interrupted himself, struck with guilt.

“It’s in the past, Dad. You tried your best and I am still here and in one piece, aren’t I ?”, Lorcan replied with a smile.

Skulduggery smiled back, still feeling bad for what almost happened to him and his wife a few years ago. If Keiran, Ghastly and Anton wouldn’t have been with him, he could have lost them both, because of his own stupidity...

A woman came into view next and she smiled a small, worried smile.

“Love.”, she greeted Skulduggery.

“Honey... I’m so sorry, I was busy with the case of Gordon and the connections it had with Serpine, that I made the same mistake again and was away for longer than I should have.”, Skulduggery explained and rushed to her side, worry clear in his eyes.

She chuckled and held his hands.

“It’s alright, my Dear. We could have called you. Keiran always keeps an eye out for us all, so you don’t have to worry so much. Nothing bad happened.”, she assured her Husband.

“It is still not right of me.”

“You have a very serious job and you love overworking, so you have everything solved faster, to spend time with us again. We are not angry.”

Skulduggery looked at his wife in guilt.

“It’s still not-mph ?!”, Skulduggery was interrupted by his wife kissing him.

It caught him off guard, but he returned the kiss. After they parted, she looked at him with a serious face.

“Now shut up. It’s fine and I will punish you, if you keep trying to argue with me.”, his wife threatened.

Skulduggery swallowed a bit harder than usual. His wife was good with punishments... He hated them.

“Noted, Honey.”, he replied.

“Are you done with your sexual tension and come to Papa’s room, already ?”, Keiran asked annoyed.

The two snapped apart and Skulduggery’s wife chuckled awkwardly, while Skulduggery himself blushed a deep shade of red. How embarrassing that Keiran caught them...

“On our way, little Nephew.”, his wife replied.

“Good. And PLEASE stop smooching near me. Eww.”

“No promises.”, Skulduggery teased.

Keiran made a sound of disgust. He didn’t like it, when he had to see people kissing. It was weird and didn’t look nice to him. He liked kisses on the hair and forehead, but on the lips ? Hell no. Ewww...

They entered Anton’s room and Skulduggery saw everyone there already. Ghastly, Saracen, Dexter, Erskine, Anton, Hopeless, Larrikin, Keiran, Lorcan, Laoise and Stephanie. They were all there. Skulduggery and his wife sat down on the last free couch.

“So what did you find out ?”, Anton asked.

Stephanie started, before Skulduggery could.

“Serpine is after the Scepter of the Ancients. For some reason he killed my Uncle, so maybe he had it last and locked it away somewhere in Grimwood. Maybe it is just a replica, but he killed my Uncle for it, so we should take it serious.”, she explained.

Everyone stared at her and Laoise looked at her Dad.

“Papa, may I speak ?”

“Sure, Darling.”, he replied.

Laoise looked at Stephanie again, stare hard and serious.

“You DO know that the Scepter is just a myth, right ?”

“I do. Skulduggery told me that at the very beginning. But if Serpine takes it for real, maybe we should too and get our hands on it, before he does. My Uncle must have it somewhere in Grimwood.”

Lorcan stared at her in worry.

“Dad, do you think the same thing as the Mortal ?”, he asked Skulduggery.

“I do, actually. I am very certain that Serpine killed Gordon and he was a collector too. China assumed the same that he had something, where you have to die, in order for the next person to own it entirely. The Scepter was ONE of these things.”

“Not this again... Listen little girl...This is not your world. You don’t know much about our cultures and how things work. Of course she would believe Skulduggery’s opinions.”, Ghastly said.

“Uncle Ghastly, kindly shut up.”, Keiran said.

“Keiran !”, Anton scolded.

“Papa, think about it. This is like many other things we faced before. Mevolent was supposed to be very evil and a psychopath, but he wasn’t. Abyssinia was supposed to be nice and helpful. But she was a Psycho, who tried to get Uncle Skulduggery to be evil and, let us be honest, he was probably not the only one she corrupted. Immortality is supposed to be impossible, but Abyssinia had that trait. NOTHING is impossible. At this point I don’t even doubt that the Scepter of the Ancients exist and the Faceless Ones are real. We’ve seen a lot of crazy shit.”, Keiran countered.

At that everyone looked at one another.

“He has a point...”, Hopeless stated.

They all agreed.

“Also, what Uncle Ghastly said was quite rude.”, Lorcan stated.

“It wasn’t. She can still go back to her normal life.”, Ghastly argued back.

Keiran glared at Ghastly.

“Uncle...you are stupid. Uncle Skul doesn’t just pull Randos into the world of Mages. Something must have happened and as we all know Serpine, he probably sent someone to Grimwood and the girl was there.”

Skulduggery nodded.

“The bridge was flooded and her Mother’s car broke down. Only one of them could go with the workers and the girl offered to stay the night at Gordon’s house. She inherited it after all. It was raining heavily, so she was stuck over there and her Mother couldn’t cross over. I was there by coincidence.”, he explained.

“Some creep called me and wanted a key from me and urged me to tell him my name, which I refused to do. Then he started to aggressively knock on the front door and after I didn’t let him inside, he smashed the window in and entered. He was about to kill me as Skulduggery came and scared him off. He was forced to use Magic and his gun, but the creep left. I was in shock and passed out, as I woke up he made me tea and we talked a bit. After he wanted to leave, I forced him to take me with himself, because he bashed the door in and it was broken, so anyone could have entered and killed me next.”, Stephanie explained.

“She even took my hat hostage and threatened to stand on it...”, Skulduggery said saddened.

Hopeless snorted and then laughed at that.

“Then he explained a few things and I wanted to help out. He tried to scare me off, but I refused to let him do that. Then I found out as we were at China’s, that my Uncle got murdered and we talked a lot about Serpine, so I started to think it was him, until we found motives, so that’s why I am still around. I will avenge my Uncle and I want to do this for myself as well. It is easy for a Mage to say ‘Go back to your usual life, you are saver there’, but you don’t know that. Normal life is BORING. And safety ? Really ? I could be kidnapped the next second from school, I could be killed on my way home, I could be raped, HECK ! I just need to fall off of a bench stupidly and can break my neck by accident ! There is no safety.”, she said with a glare at Ghastly.

“True.”, Keiran agreed.

“When was life ever safe ? The Mortal world is sometimes more dangerous than our world.”, Lorcan stated with a shiver.

Keiran shivered at that too and nodded.

“Remember Freddy’s.”, he told Lorcan.

Lorcan glared at Keiran and had goose bumps.

“Shut up ! That was the WORST place to work at with you ! Asshole !”

“Ouch. Not my fault that Meritorius wanted us to go there and investigate, because the stupid American Sanctuary didn’t do shit about it, even though they knew what was going on !”, Keiran defended himself.

“You two went on a MISSION ?! Without MY and ANTON’S PERMISSION ?!”, Skulduggery yelled at them angered.

They both flinched and looked at Anton and Skulduggery. They both stared at them angrily.

“Well...we thought it was an easy pocket money job, really. We get money from Meritorius, if we watch the place and find anything suspicious there, while we also made money for five nightshifts. We had no idea that it would be actually dangerous.”, Keiran explained.

“The pay was terrible from the estate...”, Lorcan pouted.

“VERY terrible. One hundred and twenty bucks per week... For what we have seen and had to do, we deserved like five times more than that.”

“We did.”, Lorcan confirmed.

“Trauma on a stick. I will NEVER do the graveyard shift EVER again.”

“Me neither. I will enjoy driving around with my Father at night but never EVER get out of the car at night. Hell, I wouldn’t even let my own FATHER out of the damn car.”

Skulduggery and Anton got worried at that.

“I will only go on top of Papa’s roof, to go star gazing. You will NEVER see me anywhere else at night AGAIN.”, Keiran told Lorcan.

“I still jump at night, whenever I hear the smallest of sounds, Keiran.”

“I am already scared just looking at my door and window. Bruh. This shit really gave us a good taste.”

“We should have destroyed the place.”

“Mike Schmidt did in the end, did you forget ?”

“I did in fact.”

“Oh...wait...RIGHT ! You were passed out in one of the spare suits. I forgot...”, Keiran said sheepishly.

“Ha. Ha. Not funny. Kenspeckle had a lot of work to do.”, Lorcan pouted.

“I know. I saw you.”

“I gave you a scare, didn’t I ?”

“One hell of a scare.”

“At least I achieved that.”

“What are you two talking about ?”, Larrikin asked, worried.

They stopped talking and looked at everyone.

“Oh well, I supposed you have a right to know.”, Keiran said unbothered.

“We are SOOO getting grounded.”, Lorcan groaned.

“Meh. Not like we had it coming.”

“Fair...”

“Alright so, we went to Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. There were four Animatronics. Bonnie the Bunny, Chica the Chicken, Foxy the Pirate Fox and Freddy Fazbear. We were supposed to watch the place at night in exchange for some money. And so we did.”, Keiran started.

“We had no idea what we signed ourselves up for...”, Lorcan said with slight fear in his eyes.

“Meritorius also asked us to investigate there. Rumors said that five children went missing there and never found again. They never left the building apparently, so they had to be somewhere. They were reported dead after a while, because no one ever found them. It had been like...20 to 30 years now, since they disappeared. But more and more children went missing near places that belonged to Fazbear Entertainment.”

“To this day children disappear, that were at Fazbear Entertainment’s attractions.”, Lorcan added.

“But now even adults go missing. People that work for and with Fazbear Entertainment, so this is getting serious. Adults went missing in Freddy’s too, but only the night guards. After a while...well...we were sent to investigate and you were already on three cases, Uncle Skul, so he asked Lorcan and me to take over that case.”

“We went there and at first nothing was out of place. We looked around, looked into all rooms and tried to find anything that proved murders in the building or that the kids died there.”

“That was until the clock hit 3AM. We heard metallic sounds, it was heavy and creaked. As we looked, Bonnie was off of his stage. He glared right at us and suddenly sprinted after us.”, Keiran said, with a haunted expression.

“We sprinted like Demons to the office and shut the door on his face. Then we watched the cams and Chica was gone too.”, Lorcan explained, fear evident on his face.

“Music started to be played from the carousel that was in the main dining room, without anyone touching it. The cams started to twitch and show weird texts and we heard laughter of a child from time to time.”

“The Animatronics started to make glitching noises and moaned from time to time.”

“In the cams you could see posters of missing children some times. They only seemed to be there from time to time, but not all the time.”

“For clearance, there were no missing posters in Freddy’s, but when you stared at the Cameras, there appeared some from thin air.”

“I tell you, the place was haunted.”, Keiran got out.

Everyone stared at the two boys. They seemed frightened to just talk about it.

“Each night got worse. Each night we got a phone call and the man explained how to survive these things, until...”, Lorcan continued.

“Night five... His Power ran out and they got him. We heard the screaming of the Animatronics and how the phone was slammed on the table.”, Keiran finished Lorcan’s cut off sentence.

“He asked us to check one of the suits, when we finished our shift. Because these things STUFF you inside them, if they get you. He said, it doesn’t sound bad, but imagine a pile of metal shoving you into a Springlock suit, by force. You will be crushed if they stuff you in there.”

Anton and Skulduggery, with his Family, covered their mouths in shock, while Stephanie looked at them in horror.

“They got more aggressive with each night. Foxy ran for the office, if you didn’t keep an eye on him and Freddy moved if you didn’t look at him each night through the cameras. If the Power Generator went out, that meant one of them will get you, while you can’t defend yourself anymore. In other words, you will be fucked, if the Power runs out.”

“We couldn’t use any Magic either, which was scary. At daytime they worked, but as soon as the clock hit midnight, we were powerless.”, Lorcan told everyone.

Keiran only nodded.

“At the fifth night, we met Mike Schmidt. He sneaked inside and wanted to burn down the location. We decided to help him and we made it pretty well, Mike even had an axe with himself in case. But the power ran out ten minutes before 6AM.”

“Six AM is the time where all the spook stops and everything goes back to normal.”, Lorcan explained quickly.

“Until 6AM you won’t get out alive. They snatched Lorcan by the arm and tore him away from us. Mike and me, we hid away and played Cat and Mouse with the Animatronics, until 6AM. As soon as it hit six, we heard an ear piercing scream and we ran for the parts and service room, while the Animatronics were back on stage and Freddy had blood on his hands.”, Keiran explained, look far away.

Lorcan looked away, silent.

“We found Lorcan stuffed inside a Freddy Springlock suit. It made creaking sounds and Mike quickly acted by winding up the Springlocks, then he got Lorcan out as fast as possible. I carried him out, while Mike spread all the gasoline and then set the place on fire. We parted ways and I quickly brought Lorcan to Kenspeckle. He fixed him up and wanted information of what happened.”

“But we were too traumatized to talk about it back then. Even now it is still hard to talk about it.”, Lorcan finished.

“There was so much blood...”, Keiran got out, voice distant and filled with horror.

Skulduggery stared at his Son and Nephew, horror and worry on his face. He will have to talk with Kenspeckle to get an understanding of how bad it was.

“We would be crazy, if we would say that the Scepter of the Ancients isn’t real. Ghosts and killing Machines aren’t supposed to be real either, but here we are. Living proof.”, Lorcan got out with an empty chuckle.

Keiran still looked distant.

“This was worse than what I have ever seen in my whole life. I thought Lorcan was dead right then and there...”, he said.

“Welp, I am a survivor, Keiran. I am still alive and very healthy.”, Lorcan said happily.

“Thank fuck for that. Your Dad would have set the whole world on fire, if you wouldn’t have survived.”, Keiran said, snapping out of his distant state.

“You would have helped him.”, Lorcan deadpanned.

“Of course I would have. He’s my Uncle.”, Keiran confirmed.

Everyone stared at them and silently agreed, that they should believe that the Scepter is real, for now.

“Anyways ! Back to our actual topic ! I think we need to find the key, before Serpine does and get the Scepter before he does. Then me and Lorcan will whoop that right red handed bastard’s ass and give him over to Meritorius. No, even better ! We kill him off, so he can’t bother anyone anymore !”, Keiran suggested happily.

Ghastly, Saracen, Hopeless and Skulduggery stared at Keiran in shock.

“Did you wake up and chose violence today, Keiran ?”, Dexter asked.

“I always choose violence, when it comes to Nefarian Serpine.”, Keiran stated darkly.

Anton looked at his Son with concern.

“I don’t think violence is the answer this time.”, Saracen said carefully.

Keiran snapped his head to Saracen and faced him.

“With Serpine it is the ONLY answer. I can’t wait to bash his head in. He is one annoying, psychopathic piece of shit.”

“I agree with Keiran. Why try and jail him ? He will get out one day and go after us again. He still wants Dad dead and when he gets out again, the more he wants to kill him. We will never be safe as long as Serpine is alive.”, Lorcan told everyone.

“I agree with Bubba. He never leaves us alone. He is always there and stalks us.”, Laoise agreed with her Cousin and Brother.

“He is already a very big threat with that hand of his.”, Skulduggery’s wife agreed with the kids.

“True...”, Anton admitted.

The rest did so as well.

“He is a big issue, so let us get rid of it. Now we need to find out where the key is and what it looks like.”

“I am working on that with the girl already.”, Skulduggery said.

“Then we will keep eyes open and have sharp ears everywhere, until you have the key.”, Dexter said.

“And I will keep your Family in here.”, Anton stated.

“Thank you Anton. I owe you one.”, Skulduggery thanked the Hotelier.

“I will hold you up on that promise.”, Anton said and then left the room first.

“Good luck, Skul.”, Erskine wished him.

Ghastly held Stephanie back and gave her a bundled pile of fabrics.

“Your clothes. Be careful.”, Ghastly told her.

“I will be and thank you.”, she replied.

Ghastly nodded and then left.

“Welp then...we have a riddle to solve.”, Skulduggery said.

“We have indeed.”

With that they left the Hotel and entered Skulduggery’s car, driving back to Grimwood.

“We need to look at the door again and look what the keyhole looks like. Maybe we can make a duplicate of it and unlock the door.”, Skulduggery suggested.

“Good idea.”

“I always have only good ideas.”

“Sure you do...”, Stephanie replied with sarcasm.

“I do.”, he tried to convince her.

“Yeah, of course, Mr. ‘I leave a girl in her house defenseless with a knocked out front door’.”

Skulduggery pouted.

“Not fair.”

[thefirstknife]

Some of the more interesting bits of today's reset and dialogues. I loved this from Mara. She acknowledges her participation in steering Uldren towards his downfall AND she realises that she will have to do better with him in the future. This is from the ending dialogue when you finish the exotic quest for the Ager's Scepter.

I want to mention something from the start of the week because I've seen people get angry (but when do they not when it comes to Mara?)

Long post under read more:

It's about the discussion she and Ikora have at the terminal. Hot take, but both Mara and Ikora are right and wrong in the argument. Transcript:

Mara: "How long have your Hidden been privy to Uldren's resurrection?" Ikora: "Long enough to watch over him in your absence." Mara: "And you didn't direct him home. Why?" Ikora: "There was a concern he'd pick up some old habits." Mara: "You know the Garden made him sick. Riven twisted his mind. Eris would have seen it. She is not so easily deceived by skin-deep tricks." Ikora: "It's true I made mistakes, out of an idea of justice... out of grief. Are you leveling this same scrutiny toward Petra? Wasn't she supposed to be watching his grave?" Mara: "Petra has paid her dues. The Vanguard murdered him and has yet to pay theirs." Ikora: "We both lost family. I am sorry for my part in yours, but... Crow has been treated --" Mara: "My brother is dead. He was exhumed; his body twisted into a caricature. You had your vengeance." Ikora: "Is that what you're after? Cayde... I still feel that grief like a stone caught in my chest. Some days, it's more pronounced than others. Vengeance didn't erode that grief." Mara: "Then tell me. Who am I to blame? Who sent him to Savathun's clutches? Who bludgeoned Uldren into a scared animal and drove him from his home?" Ikora: "You did, Mara. And those Guardians that hurt him, did so out of misguided anger. Don't make the same mistake. Don't make my mistake."

This is some heavy stuff and there's a lot going on. First, I like that Mara doesn't respond at the end. It's uncharacteristic for her. It shows that Ikora's words did something to her. This is evident in the exotic quest later which I've already put at the beginning of the post. She's had time to think and she's admitting the part she played.

I dislike some of Ikora's arguments a lot. First, "concern that he'd pick up some old habits" goes entirely against the Vanguard policy and belief that Guardians are new people. They were only concerned because of bias towards Uldren due to what he's done. And Crow knows this! He said so last week when he wondered why is he the only Guardian judged by his past life. No one else is subjected to the same way of thinking. This is the reason why Guardians aren't supposed to dig around their past lives. Obviously with Crow, there's no way for him to avoid it, but the argument that, if he knew, he'd just magically become Uldren (and not just base!Uldren, but murderer!Uldren who will... I don't know, go after Ikora and Zavala or the innocent people in the City?) really shows how much the Vanguard mistreated Crow.

I also dislike the move to Petra. As Mara says, Petra has paid her dues. She really has. Let's not forget that Uldren was not just some guy to her or just her Prince; he was her friend. She had to watch him spiral out of control due to things she couldn't help him with, she had to make the choice to put him away until Mara comes back and at the end she had to make the choice to kill him. This trauma has shaped her.

The Vanguard hasn't paid any dues. That's kinda the whole point of Mara's questioning. Ikora tries to explain that this was due to grief and losing family, but pray tell Ikora, has Mara not lost family too? Mara mentions this immediately as expected.

Ikora is however right to say that it was ultimately Mara's actions that led to the situation we're currently in. The Vanguard had no say in Awoken royal family affairs. Mara knows this, she said as much in the past few weeks and other lore in general: she spoke at length about the distance she pushed between them out of perceived necessity, the need to shape Uldren in a way to make him less like himself (since she disliked his recklessness and dangerous behaviours), but ultimately that only made things worse. She's aware that his venture into the Black Garden was fuelled by Uldren's need to prove himself. Ironically, in an effort to make him loyal and devoted, Mara pushed him into more recklessness instead of stopping it. She's aware of this. Asking Ikora "who am I to blame" was just waiting to be roasted.

But Mara is also right to ask about how the Vanguard treated both Uldren and Crow. How they washed their hands from killing him "officially" by hiding behind the Guardian, how nobody in the Tower answered for this. Their treatment of Crow as well: forcing him into hiding, isolating him. Excusing all the suffering he felt at the hands of the Guardians as "misguided anger." The torture he endured from Guardians just for showing his face was so much more than just "misguided anger" and Mara is right to feel heated and enraged when she talks about this and when she asks her questions. She expressed similar distaste and anger in a voice line with Glint in regards to how the Spider treated Crow.

I got an interesting dialogue at the end of my Shattered Realm run which also made me really irritated on behalf of both Crow and Mara when it comes to the Vanguard. Ikora asks Crow why didn't he send his latest report and Crow replies that he's had a lot going on and a lot to deal with. Which is true! He's not the Drifter who doesn't send reports out of spite; Crow genuinely wants to help but he's struggling with a lot of things that we can't even begin to unravel. He deserves patience and understanding. However, the following then ensues.

Ikora:

Crow:

Ikora:

This last part is a nice sentiment. But excuse me. Crow has literally been resurrected, isolated, tortured, enslaved and then "rescued" only to be thrust into a cage in the Tower and given "responsibilities." He is not obliged to be the Vanguard's errand boy. It's honestly quite rude from Ikora to tell him that he has to take his responsibilities seriously. The man hasn't lived a single day in his life without anxiety over whether he'll be tortured to death in the street if he shows his face.

I know the Vanguard gave him protection from the Spider and stuff to do (which he enjoys) and accepted him into their ranks. That's all good. But there's very little empathy here that acknowledges the life he's lived. Crow deserves to experience things that aren't isolation, imprisonment and following orders.

And most of all, he deserves to know the truth. Something the Vanguard has denied him for almost a year now. I know Savathun's schemes were involved and specifically, they were involved through impersonating Osiris which made a lot of people turn a blind eye. But now that this is known?

Crow can't share his burdens without knowing the truth. That's the whole problem. Everybody, except him, knows who he was. Everyone looks at him and treats him through that lens. He can't unburden himself without being told half-truths and being denied information. His burdens exist precisely because he doesn't know while everyone else does. So while the sentiment is nice, it reads more like a "that sucks buddy" than a genuine offer to help him with what is really bothering him.

On the other hand, obviously sharing the truth is difficult. His past life is more complicated than for most other Guardians. He's been through things that other Guardians haven't. The situation is complex on every single level and every character has a reason for the choices they've made.

Sometimes those choices are wrong and they are mistakes. And Mara isn't the only one who made the wrong choices and mistakes, consciously and unconsciously. It's a disservice to the complexity of the situation, Ikora, the Vanguard and Uldren to boil everything down to "Mara bad." Doesn't make for a compelling story.

That's what I wanted to address in detail because on the surface, it's easy to just dismiss either of the character you dislike more. And that's just reducing the story to a spectrum of black and white that Destiny really, ironically, isn't about.

[checkingoutforheroes]

B.A.B.Y PROTOCOL.

Part 2.

Avengers x fem!reader 

Pt.1

Words: 1892

Synopsis: This takes place in Avengers: Age of Ultron. When The Avengers were at the rock bottom, Nick Fury and advised by Maria Hill, to initiate the B.A.B.Y Protocol. Will a young, damaged and broke girl agree to this initiative and help a team to save this planet earth?

Main Masterlist 

Maria and Fury bring you to The Avengers tower for mission briefing and meet the rest of the team. To be honest, you are beyond excited you see the building. You move from your seat to another, looking out of the window, facing the tower. Maria looks at you at the rear view mirror, seeing your awe face and smile. “If you open that window, I might’ve mistaken you with a dog.” You ignore her comment and ask them “Is this S.H.I.E.L.D? You guys work here? You build this place papa Bear? This is taller than I thought it would be!”

Fury look at you and then Maria “Now she’s excited.” Maria answer your question. “That is Avengers tower. S.H.I.E.L.D no longer exist. Burn to the ground.” You didn’t keep up about them after left the agency so you don’t know what happened. “What happened? Did this moody papa Bear show his emotion through action?” You let out a small laugh until Fury annoyed “Once again you call my name other than Fury, I’ll burn you too.” “Nahh, you’re not going to burn me. You need me. Otherwise, I’m not in this car right now. I said to him and Maria drive through the parking basement. “She got you, boss.”

Fury walk ahead to their meeting room. You stop your track when you see an aquarium placed at the wall. You never see something like that before in your life. When Maria realize that you are not walking behind her, she turns back to get you. “What are you doing?” “Looking at these fish in an aquarium stuck on the wall. How they do that? How they going to feed the fish? Rich people shit, quite awesome.” You said and Maria just shake her head. “We have a world crisis and the first thing you did is watch the fish?! Are you kidding me? Let’s go meat the team.”

 Meanwhile Fury already told the team about a new protocol or whatever. You didn’t hear that clearly until you are inside the room. Fury talk to them. “Since all of you are here, including Maximoff, I have a new protocol that you can use.” Steve looking confusing at Fury. “We already made a plan.” Tony interrupt to teasing Steve “Yeah and a good ted talk by the captain too.” Natasha asking about the protocol. “Do we know about the protocol?” Fury take a seat “No, Romanoff. No one knows about this protocol except Agent Hill. This protocol was created to help the team when in need, and this team clearly need it right now.” Steve ask him. “What protocol is that?” Natasha looking at Clint and he shrug. “B.A.B.Y PROTOCOL.” Tony just laugh while Steve have a serious face looking at him. “I’m sorry. That’s kinda funny name for a protocol.” Maria open the door and you both going in. All eyes on you and you feeling slightly nervous. How can you not, they are The Avengers! You recognize all of their face except one person wearing black dress and red cardigan.  

Fury introduce you to the team. “Right on time. Avengers, I introduce you B.A.B.Y PROTOCOL, as in Best Associate By Yours truly.” Maria added “Also, we call her Baby.” They are quiet and shock appear in their faces except two people. Natasha and Clint. They go greet you. “Baby!” Natasha walks to hug you while Tony look at you two weird. “Nat! Omg, I miss you. Clint! Miss you too!” You hug Clint and he hold your head. “Well, she grows up.” “Yeah, with some food and water, I did. Man, you’re old.” You said to him and Natasha smile “Kids growing, Barton.” “Natasha, beautiful as always. You have to drop your skin care routine, sis.” Tony interrupt the moment “You both knew her? Fury, you said no one know about this protocol.” Fury nods. “I said no one know about this protocol not that Romanoff and Barton didn’t know her.”

Steve starts asking question. “How old are you?” Tony interject again. “Yeah. You don’t look like a baby to me.”

             You looking back at Steve, smirk on your face. “How old are you?” Maria sign you to behave. “Baby.” Tony sit down at one of the chair. “I like this kid already!” He earns a glare from Steve and you apologizing “I’m sorry. That’s not a good first impression. I’m 22.”

“What is your name?” Damn he is a serious one.

             “People call me Baby.”

“What people didn’t call you?”

             “If they didn’t call me? Silence, I guess.” You whisper at Natasha left ear “Can I not tell them my name?” She crooks a little smile. “It’s up to you.” “I prefer being call by that name that Maria & Fury has told you or anything you want except my real name due to personal reason.” You nod and smile at them.

“Why? Dark past? Major criminal? Wanted by CIA? Interpol? MI6? Ugly name? Kicked out of family or something?” Seriously, how can they work as a team with a guy name Tony Stark? Maria, Natasha and Clint have your back.

“She’s here to help us. Nothing else, Stark.” Maria said to him.

Natasha glare at him. “I suggest you stop right there or you’re not going to see any sunlight.”

Clint agree with them. “Leave her alone man.” Tony look guilty. “Everybody in this room has dark past. I’m just curious, not judging. She’s not alone.” Wanda tell them that he told the truth. “He’s not lying.” “Thank you Wendy. Peace?” You walking toward him “No heart feeling.” You guys fist bump each other.

Steve ask again. “How do you know Barton and Romanoff?”

             “While I was in S.H.I.E.L.D Academy, which I thought a Juvenile school at first, they trained me combat espionage. Since that’s the only thing on my expertise. I wish to have Jemma Simmons and Leo Fitz brain though. They’re genius in bio-chem and engerneering.”

“Why you thought it was juvenile at first? You commit crime?”

             “Duh.” Both you and Tony said it at the same time and again “JINX!” Natasha look at Steve. “Relax captain, all of us commit crime back then.” “I didn’t” Tony look at him. “Are you sure about that?” “What do you mean Stark?” Steve ask and he say “You literally cheated your medical checkup to join the army.” “I did it to protect our country.” Steve said and Clint chuckle “Still crime.” Fury tell Maria to handle the briefing and he’s out. You ask where is he going? “Where is he going?” “He have another thing to do Baby.”

             “I know most of you but I don’t think I know or seen you, Mr. ?” You ask and Natasha introduce him. “That is Dr. Bruce Banner.”

             You shake his hand. “Nice to meet you. What did you do?”

Bruce seems like to hesitate to answer that. “You didn’t know? New York?”

             “Alien? Chitauri?” You ask him back innocently.

“Um. I’m, the big green guy.” He anxiously answers that.

             “An ogre! Wow, that is so cool!” Clint hold my shoulder. “The other green, buddy.” “Oh, I know. I’m sorry, I forgot your ogre name is Shrek. Still cool though. I watch all of his movies when I was a kid. Maybe we can watch it again sometimes.”

Bruce look at Natasha and then back at you. “That’s, not me either, but yeah, we can watch that, big green cartoon sometimes.” Tony finally tell you who he is. “You seriously don’t remember who broke New York kid? He’s The Hulk!” Bruce looks down and tilt his head to look at Tony. “Yes. I’m that! Thank you for bringing back memory, Tony!”

             You feel guilty for not remember that. “Gosh, I’m so sorry. But hey, New York already broken before you broke it. Can I have a selfie? You’re incredible.” You snap the picture before he even answers. Tony said something “I’m literally right here. The coolest guy in the group.” You turn your head to the girl in black dress, red cardigan. “And you are?”

She answers with a thick accent “Wanda Maximoff.”

             “You’re not from here? You have an accent just like Nat. Well, once she’s mad at me during training years ago.” You remember the detail and Natasha rolls her eyes at you. “That is one time. I slipped.” “Human make mistakes sis. You aren’t machine.”

“I just got here yesterday. I made a mistake. Wrong judgement, I want to make it right. I join them.” She explains and you currently melting, just to hear he talk. You want her to talk more so you can hear her talk. Thing is, you didn’t know that she can read mind. Where is that accent came from? Russian? You ask those questions in your head. “From Sokovia.”

             “Where are you from? What? I just ask-“

Maria answer my question. “She’s a telekinesis, energy manipulation and some kind of neuroelectric interfacing.” “Huh?” You don’t even know what that is and Maria make it simple for you. “Telepathic.” You turn to look back at her. “That is so awesome!” Tony huff at your statement. “Yeah, until she’s in your head.” She just looking down “I’m sorry.”

 Right after she said that, Thor, God of Thunder walk into the room and tell about the scepter. You are amazed and suddenly you bend the knee. “Oh. My. God. You’re Thor!” He looks back at you. “and you tiny female human.” “You. Are. the God of Lightning! I am a fan! No. I’m an air-conditioner.” He smiling, feeling proud. “Thank you, tiny human lady. It’s God of Thunder, actually. What’s an air-conditioner?”

Maria gives us final brief. “You guys might want to prepare something for tomorrow. We’re flying to Korea and find Dr. Chow tomorrow morning. Get some rest, sleep early, you guys need it.”

             You ask them a question. “Can I go back to my place, then come back? Clint can you take me?” “Yeah, I can.” Steve kind of not agree with you. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.” “Why? I need to take my stuff.” “I can pick her up tomorrow.” You and Clint said and Steve ask you again. “Do you have a suit? or uniform?” You unzip your sweater and show your Donut Do It uniform. “Will, this do? Because someone decided that it was okay to give a surprise visit when I’m on my way to work.” Maria just smirking at you and Natasha smile “I don’t think that appropriate gear for the field.”

Tony offers you to stay with them at the tower. “Captain’s right. Don’t want to risk anything on the team member night before fight. Stay here, I’ve got plenty of room. Natasha can show you. They basically live here. We have spare shirts too.” You look at Wanda “You live here too?” She’s thinking about the answer. “I spend the night here.” Natasha turn you to look at her. “That’s a good idea. Just stay here tonight. Wanda’s here too.” “Natasha can show you your room, take a shower and dinner later.” Tony said. You look at Maria by the mention of dinner. She sighs “Okay, spaghetti and chicken wings.” Natasha add “And caramel pudding?” You smile at her “You remember?!” “Of course I do.” Clint jokingly say “How can she not, you guys practically sisters.”

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

Thank you for spending your time reading this. Feel free to reblog or ask me anything, thank you in advance!

Part 3 is coming!

[fncreature]

Dad Ordeals

You and Tony have similar ordeals

A/n: Don't really have time ill fix it later but here you go I just didnt want to forget the title

*fixes it*

A/n: Just a blurb I came up with literal months ago

Warnings: A bad language word and implied blip

You stepped onto the time machine with the rest of the team. You bit your lip.

“You okay?” Scott asked you quietly.

“Sort of. My Dad will probably be in New York, which will be… hard. And this would probably be when he gives an epic speech” You answered. He nodded.

“No mistakes. No do-overs. Got it?” Tony asked. “Yeah” You said. The rest of the team nodded. “Whatever it takes” You said. “Whatever it takes” Clint nodded. Bruce stepped on and the machine began to activate.

“See you in a minute” Nat smiled. Your mask comes up and you feel yourself being launched through time.

~

You see the original Avengers circle up. It was a bit hard to see Steve there.

“Two stones uptown, one stone downtown?” You waited for confirmation.

“Yep. Let’s go” Tony nodded. You, Tony, and Scott run to Stark Tower. Well, you ran. You were the only one who had no way to fly. You walk in and let Tony do recom outside. You had disguised yourself as a shield agent, so there would be no hesitation when Hydra gave the stone to you, and after five years, you were twenty two, so you would look old enough to play the part. You stepped into the elevator.

“Scepter is in the elevator” You heard Tony say. “Just passing the 80th floor”

“Goddammit Stark, why are your buildings so big? I’m on it” You asked.

“Head to the lobby” You told him.

“Got it. Meet me there” He said. The elevator stopeds. You see some Hydra agents you recognized.

“ID?” One asked. You flashed a fake shield badge and one man made room for you in the elevator. You glance down at the case.

“Sir, I got a call from the secretary a couple minutes ago. I’m supposed to be handing over the scepter” You said.

“May I see your badge?” One asked. You unclip it from the jacket and hand it over. You had a contact at shield, and they had made you the badge specially for the mission. It would work. “Give it to her” He said. You took the briefcase, and stepped out of the elevator a minute later.

“Oh we blew it” You heard through your comms.

“Give me a minute. I’ve got the scepter” You muttered.

You turned off your comms. And then you walked straight into a hallway with Steve. Steve from 2012. You sighed. He had the helmet on, but still, it was good to see him. It was hard to not run to him. But you didn’t.

“I thought Sitwell was given the scepter?” He asked. He even sounded the same.

“Change of plans” You said. He took off the helmet.

“You alright?” He asked. You bit your lip.

“I just lost someone a couple years ago. Can’t seem to get over it. You look a lot like him, actually” You said. It wasn’t that far from the truth.

“Very sorry” He nodded, and soon you were both on your way.

“Got the scepter?” Tony asked.

“Yeah. Ran into my Dad from 2012 in the process” You said.

“That must have been rough” Tony said.

“You have no idea” You said. You hurried down to the lobby. You headed back to the recon point. Tony and Scott were already there. “Got it” You held up the briefcase.

“We got a problem” Tony said.

“Yeah we do” Scott scoffed.

“Well now what?” You asked. “You said no do-overs, no mistakes. You two made one heck of a mistake.”

They started arguing.

“Do we have any other options?” You asked.

“No. We have one particle left. Each. No do-overs.” Scott said.

“I got it” Tony said. “There’s another way to retake the Tesseract and acquire new particles. Y/n’ll know this. Military installation, Garden State” Tony said.

The garden state was New Jersey-

“You’re right. We have to take this. Let’s go” You said.

“What are you talking about? Where are we going?” Scott said.

“You’re not going anywhere.” You shoved the case into his hands. “When were they both there?”

“I have a vaguely exact idea” Tony said.

“Alright” You sighed.

“Guys, what is it? Scott asked.

“Guess we’re improvising.” You said.

“What are we improvising?” Scott asked.

“Suit up” Tony said.

“What’s in New Jersey?” Scott asked.

“0-4” Tony said.

“0-4” You repeated.

“Uh, 0-7” He said.

“1-9-7-0” You copied the numbers into your suit.

“Are you sure?” You asked.

“Sorry, look, if you do this, and it doesn’t work, you’re not coming back” Scott said. Tony nodded. You feel the time suit come over you and you tell Scott

“Whatever it takes” And then you feel yourself being thrown through time.

~

“He wasn’t… Like, actually born here, right?” Tony asked.

“Of course not, the idea was” You clarified.

“Where would shield hide it? Ever got a couple tips from your pops?” Tony asked.

“Plain sight” You said. You nod towards the entrance to an underground bunker. You and Tony walk towards the elevator. “God this dress and these freaking heels. I hate the 70’s” You muttered.

“Better than having 2012 ones in 1970” Tony said. You followed him into the elevator. There was another woman in the elevator. Tony stepped out.

“Good luck, sir” You said.

“Thanks honey” He nodded. You knew it was for show to make you seem inconspicuous but you hated it nonetheless.

“You new here?” The woman asked.

“You could say that” You replied. You got out of the elevator. You fake a call for Pym and watch as he leaves his lab. You hurry in.

“Pym particles” You muttered. You grab four. You walk away quickly and you see the woman from the elevator talking to two security officers.

You quickly slip into an office. And you saw a picture of your Dad on the desk. You picked it up sadly. You look at the name on the door.

Margret Carter.

“Holy sh*t” You muttered. You saw her from across a glass wall. You looked at the photo for a minute, and glanced at her across the wall. She left and you quickly exited. You leave and glanced at Stark. He was with a guy. They talk for a minute and Tony gave him a hug before walking over to you.

“Got ‘em” You said.

“You look like you saw something again.” Tony remarked.

“Had to slip into an office for a second so I wouldn’t get spotted. There was a picture of my Dad on the desk” You said.

“Who would have a picture of Rogers on their desk?” Tony asked.

“I slipped into the office of Peggy Carter. So who was the guy?” You asked.

“We all have our Dad ordeals. I just had mine” Tony said nonchalantly.

“Tony what the f*ck” You say. You both feel your suits coming up and you both get thrown back in time.

[janetsnakehole02]

Thoughts about Multiverse of Madness

*MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD*

I really liked the overarching theme - everyone has a little bit of darkness in them, everyone is capable of giving into it, and everyone has desires and feelings that they can’t control, but what they can control is what they do with those feelings and how acting on them might affect the people around us. 

Stephen - I was very worried about how they’d handle his arc and that he wouldn’t get the proper development or attention he deserved, but it was his movie from start to finish. I will say they focused more on the exploration of Wanda’s issues over Stephen’s. But I still liked that the story makes it clear he was the protagonist while it simultaneously does a good job of calling out Stephen on his arrogance. That really forces him to look at the mistakes of his alternate selves and make sure he didn’t make those same mistakes. His confrontation with Sinister Strange from What If was really cool to watch, especially his reaction when he realizes he’s capable of that level of darkness. I also really enjoyed the fight between those two - the musical notes was a great touch. I also liked how in the end the Darkhold ended up being his only solution, despite going through all that effort to get the Book of Vishanti. It seemed kind of ironic to me. And it also seems like they were trying to say that every Stephen is destined for a bit of darkness? At least that’s what I got from that ending. While I’m also glad we got to see more of Stephen’s inner conflict, I don’t think we got enough substance in that. We got to get a little insight in his dialogue with Wong and Christine, and we also got to see him react to both memories of his alternate selves and his actual alternate selves. But we never really got to see how he “wasn’t happy?” I don’t know, I felt like some of Stephen’s characterization was missing. That might be why I walked out of the theater feeling a little empty.

Wanda - she is a character whose portrayal I was also really worried about because I thought it would be very black and white, but both she and Stephen felt very humanized to me. Wanda’s arc was well done in my opinion but also felt redundant. It was pretty reminiscent of Wandavision, where what she’s doing is fucked up and it’s made very clear that it’s a fucked up thing to do, but you also know that with the right support and right people she doesn’t have to do that, because inherently she isn’t a bad person. So I’m not sure why I heard some people say this movie would cause more fandom division. It’s very clear cut from the start. The scene where Professor X goes into Wanda’s mind was such an interesting scene to me, just going to show once again that she isn’t a terrible person, and that this is what can happen when we lose sight of what we want and give into the darkness. She was so terrifying but it did make for a very interesting viewing experience. Definitely saw a lot of parallels between how the Darkhold was controlling Wanda and how the scepter was controlling Loki in the first Avengers movie. My only issue with Wanda is that her ending is very up in the air. I don’t believe she’s dead but it was a very abrupt ending tbh and I would’ve liked to see some sort of conversation between her and Stephen towards the end. Also @theycallmeshri and I really liked the Scarlet Witch temple so we were definitely a little disappointed when that got demolished lol

Wong - I wish we got more of him but he still had a bigger role in this movie than any other so far and I hope it keeps going up. He definitely got a chance to show off his skills as Sorcerer Supreme which was great to watch.

America - she’s great but she wasn’t fully developed and she has a lot of potential. The flashback scene with her moms was a good start though. I also loved the parts where she was speaking in Spanish with Wong and I really really enjoyed her relationships with both him and Stephen. My favorite moment of hers is when she finally feels in control of her powers and instead of totally giving up her life to Wanda, she uses her powers to help Wanda see the full impact of what she’s doing. I think it’s a great indicator of the kind of superhero she’ll be and I’m really excited to see more of her.

Christine - she had a much bigger role and I liked her dialogue with Stephen about love and happiness, that was great to watch. Also love that she was such a high profile researcher in Earth-838. But I still felt like she was somehow underutilized, idk maybe it’s just me.

Mordo - that man always keeps me on my toes lol I love watching Chiwetel Ejiofor on screen so I was disappointed that he didn’t have enough time, but he killed whatever time he had. You could still see the similarities between 838 Mordo and 616 Mordo, what with believing that rules exist for a reason.

The plot overall - honestly the movie wasn’t very plot heavy. Definitely less complicated than I was initially expecting. Sometimes I felt like the movie was going a bit too fast but it was still fun. The horror elements and the camera movements/angles were fucking fantastic. I’m usually not big on horror but the things Raimi chose to do were pretty jaw dropping, especially with Wanda. I was genuinely scared whenever she was on screen but in a good way, it’s weird to explain.

Overall I think the only reason I really liked this movie is because of Sam Raimi, period. I hated Michael Waldron’s writing in Loki and it was meh in this movie as well but Raimi’s direction saved it. I also really enjoyed Elizabeth Olsen’s performance as Wanda. Benedict Cumberbatch was great too but I feel like he wasn’t given as much to work with. Something still makes me feel like Wanda got more attention than Stephen despite the fact that Stephen had more screen time, a little reminiscent of Loki and Sylvie in the Loki series. So all in all - 3.5/5.

(other random thoughts - let out a massive scream at John Krasinski as Reed Richards + Lashana Lynch as Captain Marvel, I was accidentally spoiled about Hayley Atwell + Stephen’s “I love you in every universe,” I wanted to cheer when Wanda killed Captain Carter, and I still don’t know why Charlize Theron showed up in a purple suit)

[writerwrites]

Yuánfèn | 01

Ch.1: Depaysement: “The feeling that comes from not being in one’s home country; being a foreigner.”

Summary: When you’ve lost everything and try to run away from your problems, you keep finding a way back to the one person who completely understands. Can you make another person happy with a broken heart?

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader Chapter Word Count: 3.9k Chapter Warnings: Slow burn, grief, fluff

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After the 2012 Battle of New York, you didn’t have anyone to tell you that you shouldn’t start working for Stark Industries. The United States government swore that less than a hundred people had died in Loki’s Chitauri attack on the city you called home, but the loss of both of your parents and your only sibling was still sitting like an anchor of depression on top of your chest. They hadn’t even been in the same buildings and thinking about those devastating hours sitting at home alone waiting for them to come through the door as the wireless network collapsed under the panic of the city still sent you into a week of night terrors. The blood never did wash out of your scrubs, one of the worst days of both your professional and personal life. Still, you didn’t blame the Avengers and thought that if anyone was going to stop the world from falling into that darkness again that it was them. If all you could do was patch up those few people skilled enough to save the world, you would manage your own emotions. Compartmentalizations, that was all you knew after that day.

It was your maternal grandmother, a reclusive woman that retired in Mallorca, that was all you technically had left. With no relationship between the two of you, it was easy to take up the offer to start working for Stark and the team, especially with how busy both Dr. Cho and Dr. Banner had been with their own research. The facilities in Stark Tower were far beyond ‘state of the art’ and you’d been given a team of androids and nurses that helped you build confidence in knowing what you were doing when, in terms of years of experience, you’d been an unlikely choice for the job. It was those years learning under great minds that you really flourished and in a few short years, had found a rhythm to your new normal. Work, apartment, study and practice technique; rinse and repeat.

There was more expected of you at Stark Industries than just the titles of doctor, surgeon, or even therapist. You kept your head down for years, expecting Stark to think he’d made a mistake choosing you. It was Dr. Cho’s encouragement that made you stand a little more straight, a little less invisible, a little more emotionally available. When the team came back from Sokovia with an entire hole through Clint Barton, Dr. Cho took him for tissue repair and you ran your checks on the rest of the team. To your surprise they weren’t in the common area, everyone dispersing and choosing their solitude, uncommon for a mission that should have been deemed a success. You found Natasha first, sitting in a room next to Clint’s. “Hey Doc, I’m all clear. Just need to know how Clint’s doing.”

Pulling up your stool you shook your head. “Nice try, jacket off.” She nodded and you worked her bruised arm to make sure there weren’t any fractures or sprains. “Dr. Cho seemed confident Clint would be fine. You know that as long as you clean up she’ll let you in there. Physically you’re good to go, but what happened out there. Everyone’s run off.”

Watching Natasha’s gaze fall, the swallow at her cottonmouth, and the brief silence it was obvious the injuries were different on this mission. “There were some enhanced kids working for HYDRA, she got in Tony’s head, banged Cap up pretty bad too. I’m fine and we got the scepter, but this one isn’t feeling like much of a success. I just have to process, I guess.”

“Well, I’ll have JARVIS pencil you in for a chat. If you’ve worked through it, great. If not, you’ve got me. I get it, really I do. He’s your person.” Offering up a soft smile you tapped away on the tablet. “Clean up so you can get to Barton.”

“Thanks, Doc. I took it pretty easy compared to Steve and Tony.” She trailed off, offering an apologetic smile before she slipped out of the door.

Pinching your nose, you asked JARVIS for everyone’s location in the Tower and the A.I. made you a map with little blinking lights. Captain Rogers was closest and you went into the gym quietly, hearing the sound of his fists lobbing into a punching bag. Quietly crossing the wooden floor, you knew that with his enhanced sense he already knew you were coming before you walked in, but it didn’t stop you from being cautious. He had swapped the suit for sweats and an undershirt and you could see the crusted over cuts on his bicep and forearms, the stain of blood on his wrapped knuckles. By the time you were within arms reach, tablet and medical bag in hand, he grabbed the bag to stop it from swinging into you. Sweat dripped down his forehead causing his disheveled blonde hair to stick to his skin and you lowered your gaze so you’d stop staring. He broke the silence first, “Did you already check on the others?”

For a moment you were tempted to lie, “Clint is with Dr. Cho. Nat’s patched up. Your turn now, Captain Rogers.” With a firm nod to the bench he surprisingly obliged. As you carefully took off the bandages on his hands, cleaning them up and wrapping them in fresh gauze, you asked about what seemed to have shaken the team up. “What did the enhanced agents in the field do?”

He stiffened, not just from the sting of the astringent on his cuts as you moved up along his arms. “The girl used some sort of mind control. Tony thinks it was a vision, but I got the brunt of whatever telekinesis she has. I’ve never seen anything like it before. The boy that got Clint was just fast, threw him off and he got hit.” Pressing one of Dr. Cho’s artificial skin patched over a deeper cut in his bicep, you took off your gloves and tapped away on the tablet before meeting his eye, wondering if he would continue. “Whatever Tony saw, it’s put some idea in his head and, well, you know how Tony is. There’s a lot of pressure to do things right, to get everyone home. I’m not saying I’m not used to it, but since I came out of the ice I’ve had it relatively easy working with SHIELD and the Avengers.”

A crease formed between your eyebrows as you looked up at him. “I know the feeling.” Letting out a slow, shaking breath you took his hands in yours, just for a moment, “Focus on what you can control, Tony’s not one of those things, but the team could learn from the mistakes made. You can make a training plan to better prepare for another run in with the kids. Until you’ve got that down, I’m sure you’ll be busy trying to find out who they are.”

Unless Steve had looked into the undoubtable file Stark had made on you upon your hiring, there was no way he knew you had lost your entire family years earlier while he was out avenging. Maybe he didn’t know you’d noticed he was a planner. He certainly didn’t know you were too or if he did, he wouldn’t know why. Both of you pulled away simultaneously, neither managing to look at the other. It was isolating, unintentionally so. The dynamics in the Tower between the team and everyone else that worked there made you feel like you had each foot in two different worlds; a stranger to the team in an even stranger land. To your surprise, he stood up and grabbed the scraps of packaging and dirty gloves, “I’ll heal up in a few days, so I promise to stay off the punching bag until then. If I need anything I’ll find you, Doc.”

It was exactly what he needed and proof that he was used to these doctors orders. Despite the job, you’d kept a low profile. None of them really knew you. You were at best ‘Doc’ and at worst completely invisible. You watched him do what the rest did after a check up, walk away without another word. Under your breath you whispered your name- seemingly the only thing you could manage to string together as you felt misplaced. It was worse than homesickness because you knew there was no home to go back to, no friends that knew your former self. Lost in your thoughts you almost didn’t hear the soldier softly repeat your name before tossing the trash in the nearest bin and marching out the door. It closed so loudly behind him you flinched.

Pulling up the map that JARVIS had made for you, you finished your rounds and slipped back into your office to fill out your paperwork, the equivalent of a debriefing report. There wasn’t much to write, not a single one of them told you what they’d seen and it was the psychological, not the physical injuries, Clint aside, that worried you. Your thumb pressed into the smooth metal of the two gold wedding bands that sat against your sternum under your scrubs, then across the links of the gold necklace that held them. It was in the unspoken images the woman had placed in Tony’s mind, the powerful scepter sitting in a lab in the Tower, and the near-loss of Hawkeye, all of it was too much at once for the team. You could hear Natasha’s voice saying she had to process that gave you the sense of being unsettled and separate from one’s place of belonging and it had you reaching for the tokens of your past.

Absentmindedly clicking away from the forms to your email you noticed a high alert message with a heading in Spanish. As you clicked, you tried to switch your tired mind into what had once been your first language but that you hadn’t used in deep conversation in years. Line by line you reread the message, thinking that what you read was simply lost in translation. Right when you were about to ask JARVIS to translate, the door to your office opened. Tony Stark never had the decency to knock so you didn’t know why you half expected him to not read your emails. “Stark, come to tell me what the kid put in your head?”

Tony leaned against the door to your office, whiskey in one hand which was more than a hint that he’d found his own way to cope with what he saw. He tapped on the tech on his wrist and projected an images of your grandmother, her villa in Mallorca, and then swiped to display medical records. “I’ve made arrangements for you to take some time off and handle everything with your family.”

Before you could scold him for reading your email or tell him that he shouldn’t be keeping tabs on you, your phone chimed. The screen lit up with alerts from various apps indicating a flight, Uber, and Airbnb were all set up for you. “Mr. Stark, you didn’t have to…”

“Ah, but I did.” He cut in, wagging his finger at you. “You’ve kept the team in one piece for years, this is the definition of doing the bare minimum. Come back when you’re ready, your job will be here. We might even manage to stay out of trouble while you’re gone.”

“I might actually buy that if it was coming from Cap, but you wouldn’t know how to stay out of trouble if you were given a manual.”  Getting out of the chair and picking up your things you hadn’t noticed you’d been crying. Wiping the tears away when you weren’t looking you managed a soft, “Thank you.” By the time you turned around Tony was gone.

Walking the familiar path to the elevator you popped in your AirPods, keeping your head low as you waited for the elevator in case someone tried to stop you or ask you something personal. The doors dinged and opened and you were met with the familiar scent of bar soap and laundry detergent. Reaching for the garage button to see it lit up you pulled your hand back. “What happened to taking it easy?”

“Couldn’t sleep.” His voice was soft, but you kept your head down, music playing quietly in your ears, “What’s this song?” Pulling your phone out of your pocket you showed him the screen, uncertain if you could keep yourself together enough to speak, and ultimately not realizing that you hadn’t cleared the notifications from the screen when he asked with a tone of surprise, “You’re leaving for Spain?”

Fighting the burn in your eyes as your nerves seemed to insist on making you face the reality of this trip you looked up at him, only half way, talking to his chin instead of meeting his eyes, “Yeah, for my grandmother. I have to take care of… I won’t be gone long I don’t think.”

His calloused fingers lifted your chin forcing you to meet his eyes. The bright blue, the concern that melted into sympathy. “Cancel the Uber. I’ll take you to the airport.”

“You don’t have to do that. I haven’t even packed.”

“I want to,” His soft smile made you attempt your own broken smile, causing the tears to trickle down your cheeks. Despite never having a real conversation with you and knowing nothing about you, he wiped the tears away and gently squeezed your shoulder. “What’s easier for you, leaving your car here at the Tower or leaving it at home?”

You didn’t want to admit that the thing that would probably bring you home before the date on your return ticket was the team getting into trouble. “Leaving my car here.”

Giving him directions to your place proved to be an amusing distraction by the third wrong turn. Despite knowing him for three years, it was the first time you really saw him laugh. That melodic, deep laughter was contagious and you found yourself laughing into your hands to hide the ferocious blush that wouldn’t seem to leave your cheeks. With some relief you made it to your apartment and invited him in. “I just have to pack really quick.”

“I could help. Military made me a master at it.” His eyes were wandering over the place, hands in his pockets.

You didn’t need to look at him for more than a second to know that he had no idea who the people in the pictures were or that you’d lost them all. Your stomach twisted hoping he wouldn’t ask, so you thoughtlessly thanked him and led him to your bedroom, only partitioned from the living room with a vintage panelled wall divider. It was a relief you were almost never home, leaving the place fairly clean. Taking out your one small suitcase and your old canvas backpack from medical school you tossed them on the bed, “The longest I’ve been away from work was four days. I have no idea how to fit enough clothes in here.”

“Just set what you want to take to the side and I’ll get it in there. You should grab your toothbrush and computer, chargers and things.” He sat on the bed and picked up the backpack and suitcase, checking out the pockets as you tossed a handful of clothes onto the bed. You’d changed scrubs in front of other doctors and seen most of the super soldier, leaving you unfazed by the fact that he was now handling your intimates. Steve on the other hand was quickly becoming a warm shade of pink as he made quick work of the task at hand. “So...what’s the trip for?”

When Steve looked up from your luggage and reached for the item in your hands he knew immediately, as if he’d forgotten in the laughter on the car ride that he’d found you in the elevator fighting back tears. The black dress was formal but not flashy, a practical length but not something meant for an interview… and you knew that he knew as he took it and set it as delicately as he would have laid the flag of one of his lost soldiers in the hands of a mother or wife. “I just hope it still fits.” Turning away so he wouldn’t see you cry, you held your breath and rummaged through your dresser for something to wear to the airport.

As you pulled a tunic and leggings to your chest you turned around and smacked right into the super soldier. He didn’t hesitate to pull you right into a tight hug. “If you end up needing anything while you’re there just let me know. Anything at all, okay?”

You couldn’t be sure how long he let you cry into his shirt, but you knew it was soaked through when you finally slipped into the bathroom. With a glance at your phone you realized there wasn’t much time left to get to the airport, certainly not to shower. Cleaning your face and changing, you stepped back into the room to find him with his nose in the book you’d been reading that had been sitting on your bedside table, Heart Like a Window, Mouth like a Cliff. “Home is the place, for better or for worse, we learn to love.” You quoted as you picked up your backpack and put it on, “I haven’t finished it yet, but you can borrow it while I’m gone. I don’t think I’ll have much time for reading.”

He stood up and grabbed the suitcase, but not before tucking the book into the pocket of his coat. Both of you managed a smile and he looked around, “Got your passport, ID, and…”

“Yeah, thanks.” You nodded and patted the bag.

“Stop saying thank you for something you’d do if the shoe was on the other foot.” With one last look around your place Steve noticed the plants and a pet fish on the window sill. “Why don’t you leave your keys with me. I’ll check on your fish and water the plants, grab your mail.”

You hesitated, but it wasn’t as if you’d been home often enough to get to know your neighbors. Telling yourself that it was okay to let a coworker be nice to you, that this wasn’t anything like forming an attachment, you nodded and passed him your keys. “I’ll completely understand if it’s an assistant that ends up coming here, but, umm…” Catching yourself from saying thank you again, you stepped into the hall and watched him lock up a bit unnerved by how quickly he realized which key belonged to the three locks.

“You’re welcome, Y/N.” It was the first time you’d heard him say your name in full voice, close up and yet it somehow felt softer than it had earlier. You shuffled quickly down the one flight of stairs, but not before Steve took your small suitcase. Those blue eyes watched you the whole way, making you wonder if he thought you were about to snap.

From holding the door open to passing you the auxiliary cable and asking you to play the music from the elevator, the ride to the airport was fairly quiet. Periodically, a song would come on that would choke you up and you’d go to reach for your phone to skip it. Every time, Steve would grab your hand and give it a squeeze, waiting until you’d caught your breath before moving his hands back to the steering wheel. To your surprise he didn’t pull up to the drop off and instead parked and walked with you as far as the TSA would let him go, carrying your small suitcase and giving your hand a supportive squeeze every time you were asked about the reason for the trip overseas. Rather than saying thank you as you prepared to part ways, you cleverly thanked him in Spanish, making him shake his head disapprovingly. “Steve, you’ve been an absolute gentlemen through the hardest night I’ve had in three years. I know you said I would do the same for you, but I guess I never thought anyone at work knew I existed.”

Steve scoffed, “You’re a little hard not to notice. I’ll make sure you don’t feel that way when you’re back.” Your eyebrows furrowed, concerned he was going to scold the team or worse. “Don’t make that face.” He let out one laugh and shook his head and passed you his phone. “Here. I’m getting a lot better with the texting thing. Keep in touch while you’re gone... even if it’s just pictures of food so that I know you’re eating.”

You put your number in his phone and passed it back. “I’m not going to have a problem eating.” When you looked up at him, he seemed unconvinced. “I’m a doctor, knucklehead. I’m trained in the stages of grief.”

He nodded, but you both exchanged the sort of look that said you’d keep in touch anyways, thank you, and goodbye all at once. You wanted to hug him, but felt like maybe you’d used up all the proximity of a fresh friendship’s timer in your fit of tears in your bedroom. Looking back, glassy eyed as you prepared to move through the last line of metal detectors, you noticed he was still standing there, hands in the pockets of his leather bomber jacket as he watched you. Your chin quivered as you fought back tears. No one had stood by you through the loss of your family in 2012, now you didn’t know what you had done to deserve this, but you were eternally grateful for this man.

Your gaze felt to your feet as you fought back fresh tears and then, before you knew it, there he was, arms wrapped back around you, one hand rubbing your back and the other holding your head to his warm chest. He was saying something to the TSA agent but you couldn’t hear it over the fresh bout of weepies. Steve rocked you and then lifted your face in his hands. “What did I say? If you need anything, all you have to do is ask, okay? Don’t miss your plane. You’re going to get through this.”

Then, and you were certain he’d only done this to get your mind off the grief, he placed a kiss to the top of your head. You looked up at him as you slowly untangled yourself from the hug, his eyes stayed on yours but he stepped aside to let you go after another moment or two. You didn’t say goodbye or thank you, words seemed to fail you, and you’d have an entire plane ride to sit confused and overthink how this night hadn’t just turned into some crush on America’s most high profile bachelor. Nearly twelve hours later you made it to your grandmother’s home in Mallorca, emotionally and physically exhausted. As you collapsed onto the sofa, too anxious to roam through the house just yet, your phone chimed. “It’s Steve. I hope you made it to Spain and are getting some rest before you take care of your family. Thank you for the book, I really enjoyed it.”

With a sleepy smile you type back, “Finished already?!? What did you think? I made it. Resting is TBD...”

His reply surprised you, a quote from the book, and you fell asleep before you could muster one last reply:

We cannot know the remarkable velocity at which we pull each other, tear at individuation, until the distance between us curves and no one is themselves.

A/N: Thank you for reading! I would love feedback from you. As my followers know I have an obscenely demanding job, but I always try my best to keep you posted on if there will be a delay in a chapter posting. While I do keep Reader vague, I’m a Latina writer and I write fics I want to read.

Divider by the amazing @firefly-graphics​

I will be reblogging with tags, send an ask if you’d like to be added either to the series or to my overall tag list.

[itsuki-minamy]

LIMITED KINGSHIP, WAR STORIES:

CHAPTER 2: HEKIREKI & SENDEN

* Mini Episodes KFCN (List of Chapters) * Projects & Chapters

Translation: Naru-kun Raws: Ridia

Suddenly he realized that the enemy was gone.

The surroundings were full of the dead. Most of the folded corpses belonged to members of the "Purgatory" clan who wore black clothes. Fifteen minutes ago, a hasty force led by Gouki Zenjo raided that warehouse after being contacted by the intelligence department. And then the warehouse turned into a terrible battlefield.

With "Hekireki" bloody on his shoulder, Zenjo started looking for the next enemy to attack. But that no longer existed.

The battle was over and the remnants were hunting. There were still some in black who resisted, but it was only a matter of time before they were crushed or smashed. While he was thinking that, Bado's iron spear pierced one of the black ones, and Azuma's twin sword stabbed another. The "Purgatory" clan member, who had decent fighting ability, didn't seem to be staying anywhere.

"How boring."

He hit the field in an unsightly way and lowered "Hekireki" to the ground.

The next moment, the pile of corpses exploded.

"Zenjo!"

Fresh blood came out from the sword wound all over the body, and flames came from both feet, the one in black clothes was good at fighting. A deadly surprise attack that hid the corpse of a colleague. Long before he understood it, Zenjo tried to shake "Hekireki" with his own super reaction.

He could not.

According to a later investigation, it was an inadvertent collaboration between those in black. One in black that lay behind Zenjo was dying, but was still breathing. With the last of his strength, he grabbed the "outside" blade, regardless of whether his fingers fell.

That caused a delay of a few seconds. Zenjo was just looking at the flaming fingers approaching in front of him, holding "Hekireki's" fixed handle.

But he just grabbed Zenjo's nose.

"You need more than that..."

The one in black clothes who attacked Zenjo stopped in midair. Blood poured from the edge of his mouth which opened and closed with bloody eyes wide open. A thin saber protruded from his chest, and the saber that pierced his chest diagonally from below suddenly stopped the one in black clothing.

"Ah!"

A cheerful voice that did not seem to belong to the place, resounded behind the one in black clothes.

"I'm sorry I made a mistake! Zenjo-san, can you take care of it please?"

It was as easy as asking him to take the remote there. After blinking, Zenjo passed by "Hekireki" and frequently shook the ones in black clothes.

The flames that clung to both feet disappeared.

The body of the man in black, who had lost his neck, was thrown to the ground. A young man standing there waved his saber and wiped off the blood. The friendly look reminded him of a laughing dog.

"No, I made a mistake. If you tap it, it can't be the case, huh? Hahaha…"

"Kuze. You saved me."

Young Kuse laughed cheerfully and waved.

"I just did something extra. Zenjo-san, you could have handled it with a margin."

"No, I couldn't react now. I would have been 'without a nose' at best, because it was aiming at my head."

"Well, is that so? That's good. Soon it's new soba season!"

Zenjo smirked as he tapped on Kuze's shoulder, saying that he was out of focus.

"This season's buckwheat noodles are pretty good too. I'll use chopsticks when I get back to the barracks. Thanks for your help."

"Oh then, make it soba."

"What? Are you going to ask me to make arrangements again?"

Kuse was smiling. Zenjo saw the smile as if he was amazed. Not suitable for a bright appearance, this young man had a very persistent character.

"Well, I wish I could go home."

"Oh, thanks!"

As Kuze struck a gutsy pose, Zenjo shrugged and walked towards a group of hurrying troops who had begun to take care of the remaining work.

++++++++++

The war was escalating.

Kagutsu Detention Center "Red King" crackdown operation. The attack from "Scepter 4" intended to kill Kagutsu Genji was unsuccessful in retrospect. Although the force of "Purgatory" was greatly reduced, the original purpose of the operation was not finally achieved, and Kagutsu left his territory and fled, and the remaining clan members divided into thousands and went into hiding. The hive was destroyed, but the queen bee and the soldier bees were flying now.

The activities of the scattered members of the "Purgatory" clan were almost the same as before. Whenever something happened, there was a danger that they would explode. "Scepter 4" chased after them and they were incapacitated as soon as they were discovered, but "Purgatory" wasn't just silently hunted to death. The damage caused by a fierce counterattack who did not care about his own life was turning into a social problem that could not be covered even by "Tokijikuin".

There were two pressing issues.

One was the search and murder of Kagutsu as soon as possible. As long as that "King" will continue to exist on earth, this war would never end.

And the other was to increase the strength of "Scepter 4".

The battle with "Purgatory", who burned the people, burned the city and even burned themselves, was slowly shaving the staff of "Scepter 4". To make up for the loss, they touted that they had the cause of the war and recruited a large number of talented personnel from the relevant ministries.

Shuichiro Kuze was one of those supplemental staff members.

Originally a police officer, he achieved outstanding results on both his aptitude and skill tests, and joined the "Scepter 4" running unit at exceptional speed. He was a rare human resource who had already been dispatched several times and was not afraid to fight the deadly "Purgatory", but instead displayed a simulation as if he was enjoying it.

For some reason, Kuze teamed up with Zenjo.

Even now, Kuze and Zenjo were undergoing simulated one-on-one training in the training ground of the "Scepter 4" barracks. Except for the fact that the product was a bamboo sword, it was a form of training that came as close to the actual battle as possible. Even attacks on key points were tolerated wherever they were covered by armor.

Kuze raised the bamboo sword to eye level and turned its blade towards Zenjo.

Zenjo carried a large bamboo sword on his shoulder and was about to attack him.

Kuze's specialty was "pushing". His stab, fired by explosive acceleration with a different ability, was roughly equal to the speed of a bullet. It would be impossible to react if it were the perception of an ordinary person.

But, of course, Zenjo was not an ordinary person.

"Let's go!"

The next moment that Kuze said that, the figure disappeared.

An extraordinary light that glowed fluttering blue like the tail of a meteor. Before recognizing it, Zenjo's body was moving. The speed God's sword judgment darted into the void on the right.

Zenjo's bamboo sword touched Kuze's sword that jutted out without fail.

"Ah!"

As he wielded the sword of pursuit, Zenjo was impressed. Viewed from above, the location of the different abilities would have looked like a rank "nine". A blow from outside the field of vision due to explosive acceleration, but it did not exceed Zenjo's reaction speed.

"Che!"

Kuze sped up again, leaving a childish click of the tongue. As he repeated sharp turns ignoring the laws of physics, he jumped incessantly. He was like a spring-loaded toy that swept across the training ground.

Zenjo stopped chasing him with his eyes and closed his lids.

Behind.

Before he felt it, his body was still moving. He turns and cut the space behind him. The cut that was shot deflected Kuze's thrust horizontally upward and hit him like he was a face shield.

"Damn!"

With a stupid voice, Kuze struck and fell to the ground of the training ground. If he had been serious, he would have lost his nose.

"This is the ninth."

Carrying the bamboo sword on his shoulder again, Zenjo said that without pride. Kuze, who had stretched out into a large shape, lifted his upper body as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"I thought I could pull it off now... Zenjo-san, do you have eyes behind you?"

"Well, it's clear. You can understand it even if you can't see it."

"Mm... Zenjo-san, another one! Please."

When Kuze lifted his index finger, Zenjo was truly astonished and showed the training ground clock with his chin.

"It's closing time. It will be tomorrow."

"Really? Absolutely tomorrow!"

"I wish they hadn't sent me."

Saying that, while he was a bit crowded, Zenjo headed for the exit. Kuze also put the bamboo sword in a bag and bounced after him.

After taking a shower together, they had dinner later.

The barracks cafeteria was quiet, probably because it was late. Zenjo ordered a hazaru soba and Kuze a kitsune udon, and they ate together.

Kuze talked to Zenjo all the time while he ate.

"Zenjo-san, are you attached to the army?"

"Hmm?"

" I belonged there. There are a lot of people like that in 'Scepter 4', right?"

Surely it was so. The personnel of "Scepter 4" came mainly from other security organizations. Unless they didn't lack combat training on a daily basis, they couldn't withstand the battle with "Purgatory."

However, the situation was different for Zenjo.

After slurping his soba, he said...

"I am from a mountain."

"Mountain?"

"When I was waving a stick in the mountains, I met Habari, so I followed him."

Kuze blinked twice as he pinched the fried food with chopsticks.

"Well, what was that? What kind of situation?"

"Thanks, like I said."

Answering only that, Zenjo took a sip of soba again.

Kuze stared at Zenjo for a while with a surprised face, and then...

"Fu…"

He shook his shoulders and started laughing.

"Hahahahahahahaha! What's wrong, did you meet the commander in the mountains and follow him? Hahaha, Zenjo-san, are you a youkai?"

Zenjo was disappointed in Kuze, who bent over his body and laughed like a child. It was surprising that he was laughed at, although it was not his intention to make him laugh.

"No, sorry, I'm not going to make a fool of myself. But that was very interesting."

"Is it interesting?"

"It's incredibly interesting! I've never met such a person!"

"Mmm...?"

He wondered if that was the case. Originally, Zenjo was a guy who didn't understand many things. If they told him it was interesting, it would be true.

"No, you're good at 'Scepter 4' after all. It's not boring."

As he cheerfully said that, Kuze drank the udon from him. As Zenjo ate the soba noodles, he looked at Kuze as if he was looking at something strange.

"Bored?"

"Yes. The workplace in front of me was already boring. Anyone can do it, such as document preparation, on-site verification and traffic control. More like this, a fierce car chase with the criminal! Fighting battle! Shooting! I was imagining it."

He lifted the bowl and drank the soup.

"So it's so boring that I shouldn't do it. When I was thinking about it, they asked me and I came to try it. I can do what I want every day! It's a lot of fun, right? That's why I think you adapt very well to "Scepter 4"!

Zenjo scratched his cheeks while Kuze drank, wiped his mouth and clasped his hands with a "Thanks for the food!"

"Uh..."

"Isn't that the case with Zenjo-san? Don't you do it because it's medicinal?"

"Eh?"

He wondered if that was the case. Was he enjoying the battle with "Purgatory"?

There was no doubt that he was elevated during the battle. On the battlefield where a momentary judgment divides life and death, that feeling that inspires all cells cannot be experienced anywhere else.

But he didn't think he was struggling to taste it.

When he swung his sword under Habari's command in "Scepter 4", he felt that he was breathing properly. It seemed natural to do so and it "fit." He didn't know if he could describe it as funny.

"Well, that's correct."

It became difficult to think of the way and Zenjo answered that.

"That's right! Well, I'm glad you feel the same way as me!"

Kuze laughed in a friendly way and then a mysterious light fell on his eyes.

"But lately, it's more fun practicing with Zenjo-san than interacting with 'Purgatory'."

"Really?"

"Yes, because Zenjo-san is much stronger than them, so it's fun to do it. Hey, Zenjo-san. Someday, with me…"

Kuze cut off the words when he suddenly remembered. After blinking several times, the mysterious light disappeared. Then suddenly he stood up and held the bowl of kitsune udon in his hands.

"Sorry, it's nothing! So, good night!"

With a smile, Kuze went to the place where the dishes were being returned.

As he drank his soba, Zenjo rebelled against Kuze's words.

(Well, I'm glad you feel the same way as me!)

Maybe it wasn't.

Although they belonged to the same "Scepter 4" and wielded a saber, he felt that something was decisively different between him and Kuze.

He didn't know what it was. He didn't want to think until he knew. Thinking again that he was okay, Zenjo dropped the green onion seasoning into crushed chunks.

++++++++++

Three days later, the hidden member of the "Purgatory" clan in Minari-cho, Fengze-ku, was discovered.

According to the information department report, there was only one member. However, the problem is that he was hiding in the houses of common people. They threatened the inhabitants and parasitized their lives themselves. A bully lurked in his house and behaved inattentive. The father of the family, who could not bear such a situation, rushed to a public institution and discovered his existence.

In response to this, "Scepter 4" quickly formed a unit that rushed over. They ran to the site to "exterminate" the abominable parasite.

However, this time, it was not possible to get through the gate with the transport vehicle and cut it randomly. After all, the other party was alone and the detained hostages were a mother and two young children, according to the father's information. If they took action inadvertently, it would have the worst consequences.

The operation required speed and stealth. "Scepter 4", the deputy director, Gen Shiotsu, selected the appropriate personnel and devised a strategy.

Shuichiro Kuse was included in the staff, but it was boring for him.

Kuze was toying with that idea while biting his yawn in the car.

It had already been three hours since they arrived at the place. Because "Scepter 4" stood out in a transport vehicle, they used an ordinary sedan type and stopped from hiding to blind spot. Kuze sighed softly, looking at him stagnant out the window.

He wished he could rush in and kill him.

It would be easy. He would jump out the door, go through the second floor and invade, and drive the saber into the heart of the guy in black. That was all that was needed.

Kuze understood why he was selected as a runner. The small body was suitable for infiltration, and the "Senden" saber he had was also a slim custom-made one, so it should work effectively in a small room.

So he wanted to do it as soon as possible.

Finally, the long-awaited command came from insiders.

"The target has taken the hostage. I enclose the location."

"Yes!"

He sprang to his feet, grabbed the saber, opened the passenger seat door, and Kuze broke into a run.

In seconds, the target house came into view. When he was hiding behind the wall of a neighbor's house and observing the situation, the transmitter spoke a voice again.

"The target is in the bathroom on the second floor. The children cannot confirm the whereabouts of their mother in the next room. Each member must pay the utmost attention and do everything in their power to secure the hostages."

"Kuze, ready!"

With a light tone, Kuze pulled "Senden" out of the scabbard.

He held his breath and waited for the moment. The plan of the house is engraved on his head. All the images of how he would move, what kind of path he would take and how he would kill the one in black clothes were created in Kuze's brain.

Kuze himself did not know that there were no hostages there.

"Fast!"

By the time Shiotsu's voice echoed, Kuze was jumping.

He jumped off the wall, landed on the ceiling, and ran. At the edge of the field of vision, he could see a blue trail that went through him in the same way. There were a total of four runners, all their own competitors, who aspired to the life of a single man in black. Kuze licked his lips and accelerated to the point where the shingles broke.

He jumped with the same impulse, he broke the second floor window with his body and ran inside.

"Eh?!"

He heard a high-pitched voice. Kuze invaded the children's room on the second floor. According to the information, two children who were less than elementary school students were shaking in a corner of the room.

Kuze ignored it.

The problem was that of black clothes. If he killed him, everything would be solved. So that should take precedence. Kuze thought that way and stepped out into the second floor hallway.

Their eyes met.

There was a figure in black clothes in the bathroom that was left open. However, when Kuze found him, he was strangling and using the children's mother as a shield.

"Stay away, blue clothes! This woman will die!"

He could barely see the one in black who was angry. Very firmly, he was hiding behind the woman. The scared woman shook her head, while she shook her head, he looked and disappeared his face burned in black.

Before thinking of anything, Kuze was kicking the ground.

If he killed him, that would be it. That was the only priority, and everything else was wiped from Kuze's head.

Many things happened at the same time.

"Kuze, stop!" One of the rushing staff members yelled.

"Damn it!" The man in black's burned face turned red, and the flame-filled woman screamed in tears.

Time seemed to flow slowly. He could feel precisely the extraordinary light of "Senden", the heat of the flames that sprouted from the face of the man in black and the smell of the flesh that enveloped her.

In the slowdown time, Kuze analyzed various factors and...

(Oh, this person can't be helped anymore.), he thought.

Too easily, he cut off the hostage's life.

This being the case, the hostage's body was no longer a problem. It was just a corpse, a wall of flesh less than 8 inches.

It did not hinder "Senden".

With a half-smile, Kuze stabbed hard forward.

A bright blue tip pierced the woman's chest, and the heart of the man in black was skewered and glued to the bathroom wall.

"......"

The woman opened and closed her mouth. Kuze tilted his head and looked at her face, thinking that she looks like a dying goldfish.

When Kuze drew the saber, the woman and the one in black fell one on top of the other. Their bloods mixed.

The bodies clung to each other and wet Kuze's shoes.

He takes a breath and inform the others.

"We have deactivated the objective. The mission is complete."

At the same time, an angry sound rang out from behind.

"Kuze! Damn! What did you do?!"

He thought, and looked at the owner of the voice as if he was confused. It was Shinohara, who belonged to the same group as him. He was yelling something when he flushed with anger, but Kuze couldn't understand the meaning of the word. He turned his neck and face away to keep them from flying off.

The frozen facial expressions of the two boys, looking through the door, were reflected in Kuze's field of vision.

++++++++++

"Do you know what you did?"

"Scepter 4", Shiotsu made a heavy voice in the barracks interview room.

Shuichiro Kuze, standing in front of him, replied as if nothing had happened.

"I killed the member of the 'Purgatory' clan. I think it was an unavoidable decision in that situation."

"Right now, 'Purgatory' is not the problem. The problem is Kuze, you stabbed the hostage and killed her."

"I did not murder her. At that time, the woman had already been killed by the one in black clothes. Should I be so reprimanded for damaging her corpse?"

Shiotsu had various reports in front of him.

"Shinohara's report is different. At that time, Shinohara said that the woman was still alive. However, he testified that you ignored the warning and approached the black-robed one and went through him."

"In my eyes, she looked dead."

Kuze spoke clearly.

"I think it would have been difficult to help her, even if she had a break. Is it the right decision to leave the dangerous clansman to help a dying woman? If the action was delayed, hers, two of her children and I could have been euthanized."

"It is not you who should judge whether the woman would be saved or not."

"The judgment of the site should be left to the members of the site."

Shiotsu groaned softly.

What Kuze said was correct in some respects. In the battle with "Purgatory", a momentary misjudgment could be fatal. And that moment came innumerably. It was not enough to have many lives if they were all compared with the regulations of the body and the current law. Above all, Kuze said that a certain amount of excessive acts should be allowed to protect one's life.

But…

Shiotsu watched Kuze's expression.

There was no expression floating there. Self-blame, regret, remorse. He couldn't read any of the emotions the one with the almost innocent human hands would have.

Shiotsu muttered to himself that that was the real problem.

"Kuze..."

At that moment, Shiotsu silently inhaled, and then...

"Where do you think the meaning of 'Scepter 4' is?"

"Eh…?"

"Answer it. What's 'Scepter 4' for?"

For the first time, the color of hesitation reached Kuze's expression.

As he listened to Shiotsu, Kuze replied.

"Kill the enemy. Annihilate "Purgatory" and bring peace to society."

Shiotsu sighed deeply and said.

"No. You are definitely misunderstanding."

"......"

"Our mission is to protect the general public. The sword to protect those who cannot resist the weapon of incompetence, that is 'Scepter 4'."

"It's the same as I said, right?"

In the words that Kuze muttered, unprecedented emotions appeared.

He was frustrated.

"Killing those in black clothes is to protect the general public. If they are left unattended, tens or even hundreds of people will die if they are not treated well. To avoid that, isn't it natural to leave two people alone?"

"Still, we should not be the ones to kill. We should be the ones to protect the people. If there is a defenseless civilian, that is why we have the power to protect ourselves."

"It's stupid."

Kuze laughed through his nose. His dark and bright gaze seemed harsher, as he generally had a friendly gaze.

"Why do we have to do that? It is so stupid for a good person to be sacrificed for an inferior person."

Shiotsu closed his eyes.

What swirled around his chest was not anger at Kuze, but responsibility for himself.

He may have been too impatient to make up for the personnel lost in the battle with "Purgatory". He had hired a person who lacked the most important qualities, distracted only by the ability to fight. He should have known well what would happen if that person had a different ability and special power.

People who cannot control themselves will eventually use their different abilities as they wish.

How is it different from "Purgatory"?

Shiotsu slowly opened his eyes and said in a low voice,

"Shuichiro Kuse. Say goodbye to "Scepter 4" from now on."

++++++++++

Kuze, who came out of the interview room, was looking vaguely at the ceiling of the hallway.

(I blew it.), he thought.

With that in mind, he sighs. This time, he looked down at the ground and started walking.

When he was called by Shiotsu, Kuze had decided what he should do. That was a field decision and he didn't think he had done anything wrong. He intended to stick to that statement.

It is the members of the field who exchange lives. However, it was not uncommon for him to be blamed for a later trial. It was a common feeling not only for Kuze but also for the ER personnel.

Shiotsu was smart and looked closely at the members. That is why he thought that he would not give such a severe punishment based on his thoughts.

"He was telling me something strange."

Kuze lied and looked at his hand. When he focused his consciousness there, the blue glow of the extraordinary shimmered.

It was proof that he was an excellent person and a chosen one.

Kuze couldn't respond well to Shiotsu's words asking the meaning of "Scepter 4". That was because Kuze didn't know. Therefore, he got a rag out of there. It didn't matter if the general public died or lived, he knew that his true intentions would probably not be forgiven within the organization, so he hid it.

The important thing for Kuze was to use that power in all directions to fight. Fight "Purgatory", bypass the momentary deadline and end the life of the enemy. Never in a dull life until now, was it a bright day.

That was stolen from him.

Because he took a boring life from a boring human.

Kuze sighed again and suddenly raised his face.

A familiar giant was walking down the hall. Kuze laughed and raised a hand.

"Hey, Zenjo-san."

"Oh, Kuze?"

Zenjo's eyebrows widened when he noticed that Kuze was there for the first time.

"What are you doing in a place like this? Is it training?"

"No."

Kuze laughed bitterly and...

"Hey, I've been preaching to the vice principal. I'm here for that."

"Oh, Shiotsu? It's loud."

Sympathy reached Zenjo's eyes. Seeing that, Kuze's smile changed to a natural one.

That person knew himself.

He had always felt that way. Zenjo, like himself, rejoiced in the fight. He was a person who should have the nature of killing people rather than helping people. So, Kuze was sure that if he talked about the situation, this person would be on his side.

"But you're almost right."

Zenjo simply denied the idea.

"Eh?"

"Shiotsu is loud, but he's always right. If he claims something from you, you're wrong. I wonder what he was. Apologize properly."

"......"

Kuze looked at his toes.

"Yes, what is that?"

"If that is all."

"I see."

Kuze scratched his head again with a bitter smile.

"In a way that's correct. I thought it was suitable for 'Scepter 4', but surprisingly, isn't it?"

"Eh?"

Zenjo mysteriously shook his head, thought for a moment and then nodded.

"That's right. You said you were the same as me, but I think you are different from me."

"......"

"I can't put it right. You might not be good at 'Scepter 4'. You should stop in time."

Zenjo said that in a wonderful and irresponsible way.

Kuze was about to start laughing. Interestingly, he didn't get mad at all. This was because it had been broadcast that Zenjo was saying that from the bottom of his heart without any malicious intent.

After all, Kuze didn't dislike Zenjo. He was clean, natural, and stronger than anyone. That's why he liked dealing with this person, because he could fight without shackles.

He regretted thinking that he couldn't do that from now on.

Then, Kuze suddenly glowed.

"Ah!"

"Hmm? What's wrong?"

"Sorry Zenjo-san, I just remembered my errand now! I'm done!"

In a hurry, Kuze ran down the hall. Zenjo said, "Oh...?", and gave up, but Kuze suddenly stopped and looked back.

"Please help me again later!"

Zenjo laughed and nodded.

"Oh, I have to be sent."

"Still, please!"

Kuze ran away, saying just that with a smile.

It was that night that Shuichiro Kuze disappeared with "Senden".

++++++++++

When he got out of the transport car, a warm wind caressed Zenjo's cheeks.

The policeman raised his face and smelled a faint smell on the wind. He was delving into the battlefield with "Purgatory". He smelled like sticky, burnt blood.

According to the map, the back alley where the discovery of the men in black was reported was divided into T-shapes. The unit split into three hands, blocking all exits. The most important thing to prevent was that those in black clothes escaped. They had to make sure to capture or neutralize them, even if they took some risks.

At that moment, in front of Zenjo, the entrance to the back alley was black and open.

"Over there."

At random, Zenjo entered an alley.

The back alley was narrow and dark. Polyethylene buckets and outdoor units blocked the street, and the walls of the building that approached from the left and right blocked the sunlight. If one in black clothes came out of the shadows and emitted a flame of extraordinary skill, there would be no way around it. It could be said that this was also a dead place.

Still, Zenjo was not afraid and advanced slowly.

The process suddenly stopped.

Shinohara, who was following Zenjo, said groaning.

"What is the situation? What is this?"

One in black clothes was dead, as if his back was against the wall of the building.

Wide-eyed and in a pool of blood. The burned right hand was soaked in the blood clot, burning and producing black smoke. This was probably the cause of the smell.

In the first place, it was a mystery from the initial discovery report.

It was said that several of the black clothes were fighting. At the time, there were no "Scepter 4" units deployed nearby, and since the Hiiragi incident, the police had been told to stay away from the men in black. Most likely it was a fight between those in black, but in the current situation where they were hiding in a scattered way, he did not think they would do such an outstanding act.

So who was fighting the ones in black?

Zenjo, who was inspecting the corpse in black, said the answer.

"It's Kuze."

"What…?!"

"It is pierced all over the body. This is due to 'Senden'."

Saying that, Zenjo stood up.

Since that night, Kuze's whereabouts have been known to be uncertain. Kuze's legal status was the same as an "Illegal Strain" since he was fired from "Scepter 4". They had to capture him and put a skill suppressor on him, but there weren't enough personnel to track him down in "Scepter 4".

Kuze killed the ones in black and, perhaps, he was still hiding in that place.

"But why is Kuze here?"

Shinohara said that, and suddenly closed his mouth.

Someone slowly emerged from the darkness behind the alley.

It was also one of black clothes.

"Oh, fufu...!"

His face was distorted with anger and hatred, and blood was pouring from his entire body to the point that his black suit was still drenched in red and black. Legs wobbly, the one in black slowly approached.

"Gah!"

The tip of the saber protruded from his chest.

The saber was instantly pulled out and the one in black collapsed to his knees.

Zenjo spoke the name from behind him, standing there.

"Hekireki."

"Oh, Zenjo-san!"

Dressed in a dark green raincoat, Kuze smiled at his face, which had been bathed in blood, and called out to Zenjo cheerfully.

"No, I'm lucky! I can't get it all of a sudden!"

"What are you doing?"

"What?"

Eyes blinking, Kuze looked around him, and mysteriously at himself.

"What's wrong? It's not a job. I got fired from 'Scepter 4'."

He shook "Senden" to spill the blood.

"But if you look for the black clothes, 'Scepter 4' will come, right? Maybe Zenjo-san is there! I thought it was good."

While he smiled, Kuze,

"I never thought we could meet at once! I'm lucky! So…"

He crouched down and pointed the tip of "Senden".

"Let's go."

Before Zenjo thought of anything, Kuze was kicking the ground.

The glow of the blue genie was diffusely reflected in the narrow back alley. He bounced off the ground, scaled walls, emergency stairs, he went up, down, left and right, and hit everything, drawing an unpredictable trajectory like a pinball.

Shinohara, who was behind Zenjo, couldn't even follow Kuze with his eyes. But Zenjo reacted.

It was also an action before thinking. The thick blade of "Hekireki" flipped up as the wind scattered.

The dark green raincoat split in half.

Kuze was no longer there. He twisted in midair, tossed his raincoat, and landed on the ground.

Zenjo kept "Hekireki" jumping and stopped in an unprotected posture. Looking at his empty torso, a fierce smile appeared on Kuze's mouth.

(I caught you!), he thought.

With extraordinary power in his legs, Kuze tried to strike a stroke of luck.

He felt the shock in his chest.

"Eh?"

He lost the strength of his leg. His soles did not separate as if they were stuck to the ground. Interestingly, he looked under his feet and saw a saber thrust into his chest.

"Ah?"

When he coughed, a blood clot spilled from his lips.

Kuze slowly looked at Zenjo.

Zenjo was flipping "Hekireki", with just his right hand.

Before he knew it, he held another saber in his left hand. That pierced through Kuze's chest.

"Oh, wow...!"

Kuze distorted the edge of his mouth when he heard Shinohara make a panicky voice.

"Hey, Shinohara. It's a pay cut to have a saber stolen from you."

When Zenjo drew the saber, Kuze sank into place.

The blood was overflowing. The color of his face was white and transparent. It was clear to everyone that it was no longer useful.

Still, Kuze was somewhat satisfied. He looked at Zenjo and laughed weakly.

"After all... you are amazing, Zenjo-san. I couldn't get over you."

"Kuze."

There was no anger or sadness in Zenjo's expression, just confusion.

"What did you want to do?"

"What?"

Kuze shook his shoulders and laughed. Eventually the laughter turned into a cough and the exhaled blood created a series of stains in the alley.

"I wanted to. A real and potentially deadly battle with Zenjo-san."

Breathing out, Kuze fell onto his side.

"It was fun."

That was the last word from him.

Zenjo, holding a bloody saber, shot a confused look at Kuze's corpse.

[fandomlurker]

A Ponderous Rewatch: Pavlov’s Mice and Cameo

So thanks to Tumblr nerfing my ability to make an admittedly absurdly long post combining the previous episode rewatch with this one, I had to do this entry in two parts.

But at least now we’re in for the real treat: The first episode in airing order that’s animated by TMS Entertainment. And hey, even the Animaniacs show itself seems to acknowledge that this is special, because theme song rhyme is…

We're Animanie! Totally insane-y!~

Pinky and the Brainy!~

…which hasn’t been done since their debut. So this is gonna be fun.

Might as well get this out of the way, then, since this episode obviously involves Ivan Pavlov. I think most people who know of Pavlov through cultural osmosis pretty much know him as just “that one scientist who got dogs to respond to the sound of bells as if they were being offered food”. This is what happened, but it’s only part of the story. In reality, Ivan Pavlov was doing research on the physiology of digestion in dogs and he noticed one day that the dogs he was studying started to drool in the mere presence of the lab technician who regularly fed them even if the technician didn’t have food with them. Pavlov developed a way to redirect the dogs’ digestive juices outside of the body so that they could be measured, and then he ran some conditioning experiments to see if he could get them to salivate in response to external stimuli that had nothing to do with food, like ringing a bell.

The year in the title card, 1904, was the year Ivan Pavlov was awarded the Nobel Prize for the previously mentioned experiments, which he published the results of in “The Work of the Digestive Glands” in 1897. Basically, by 1904 he was done with his work with dogs and he moved on to experimenting with mice…at least according to this article in National Geographic by Virgina Hughes.

With that, let’s begin the episode proper.

“At the dawn of the 20th century, Russian scientist, Ivan Pavlov, trained animals through his technique of conditioned reflex” says the narrator as we zoom in on a laboratory with Pavlov and our lovable mouse duo.

“Time to earn your dinner, my little mousey friends!”

It’s interesting how Pinky is the one that flinches uncomfortably at the loud sound of the gong while Brain simply snaps into his conditioned response. And that response? Uhhh…

“I’m a little teapot, short and stout.~”

“This is my handle, this is my spout.~”

(Is he…you know…?)

“When I get all steamed up, hear me shout!~”

“Tip me over and pour me out.~”

Oh no… This is a cute and funny scene and all, but when you know about Brain’s canonical issues with how he hates not being in control of a situation and all the traumas he’s endured (for those of you not in the know, yes, Brain does have a lot of trauma in his backstory that we learn about much later, both in the 90s spin-off and the reboot) regarding both general control and losing family and friends…there’s a bitter tinge to this scene.

He’s so embarrassed and humiliated.

He takes the cheese but he is positively fuming with rage, and I can’t exactly blame him from what I know about him.

This is made all the worse by Pinky’s innocent reaction to Brain’s little song and dance.

“Hahahahaha! Wonderful! Hahaha! EGAD, Brain, I could watch you do that dance all day! Haha, narf!”

For Pinky, this is harmless silliness and he gets to see Brain sing and dance and “have fun”, which is not a usual occurrence. But for Brain? Well...

“You have watched it all day, Pinky. Sixty-one times, to be exact. It’s a conditioned reflex to that infernal gong.”

“I’m powerless to stop it!”

Well, Brain, at the very least it’s not like you were a part of a more inhumane experiment like one regarding, say, learned helplessness or anything. …Oh wait. Whoops. (For those sensitive to animal abuse, I suggest refraining from clicking on the second link, and caution against clicking on the first if even more clinical text descriptions of such would upset you. The third link is spoilers for the reboot.)

All that aside, it seems like it’s Pinky’s turn. He gets the more traditional bell chime for his stimulus.

And the result is him going into an uncontrollable and very enthusiastic Slavic folk dance.

With violent results. I hope you appreciate that last screencap, as the animation goes by so quickly I had a lot of trouble isolating the part where Pinky kicks Brain and he goes flying.

Pinky is all too happy to get a reward of cheese, his favourite food, for doing something that he has no memory of.

“What’cha doin’ over there, Brain?”

“Contemplating your afterlife, Pinky.”

That’s not exactly fair, Brain, you know he has no control over this. To Brain’s credit, though, he doesn’t bop him or anything for kicking him involuntarily.

Pavlov leaves, playfully saying that he hopes the mice dream of cheese tonight, and the mice are immediately down to business.

“At last, he’s gone.”

“Now we can begin our conquest of the world!”

We’re already back to it being “our” conquest of the world, eh?

“Behold my latest creation, Pinky: The Vacuum-o-nator.”

Brain has never been good with naming things, has he? At least, not so far. I wonder if this will continue throughout the franchise?

Pinky is certainly very happy and impressed, though.

“It uses reverse air pressure to vacuum everything toward it.”

You know, I was just about to roast Brain for thinking that making a very odd version of a vacuum cleaner was such a brilliant thing, but then I remembered that this takes place in 1904. The vacuum cleaner as we know it was “invented independently by British engineer Hubert Cecil Booth and American inventor David T. Kenney” in 1901 according to Wikipedia, and portable vacuums were available to the general public starting in 1905.My apologies, Brain, that actually is very impressive.

Although, this all hinges on if the viewer considers episodes that take place in the past and/or at different locations than Acme Labs California to be mere Alternate Universe/What If? stories or Brain and Pinky using some kind of time machine to go to a different place and time for these episodes. (Before you tell me that this is just a cartoon and sicc the Please, Please Get a Life Foundation on me, I do this to have fun and maybe educate myself and the reader along the way. I promise I have a life. Barely.)

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking, Pinky?”

“Uhh… Yeah, Brain! But where are we gonna find rubber pants our size?”

Pinky, that’s… Listen, folks, don’t make the same mistake I did and google “rubber pants”. It’s not what you think it is. You will be disappointed.

BONK!

Seems like you’re enjoying yourself there, Pinky.

“No, Pinky. We’re going to use the Vacuum-o-nator to steal Russia’s crown jewels!”

Man, the animation for even this one small proclamation by Brain is so, so good. Brain standing authoritatively and holding the pen like a scepter or spear, the grand sweep of his arm as he says “no”, the serious and slightly menacing expression on his face, a violent and grabby swing of his arm on the word “steal”,  and a dramatic point and look up towards the sky when he finishes. TMS does great work, folks.

“Narf! Genius, Brain!”

Look at Brain’s satisfied smile at Pinky’s simple compliment. Remember what I said earlier about Brain going through his explanations to show off to and  impress Pinky? At this point I’m absolutely convinced that that’s why Brain turns up the theatrics more than necessary when going through his plans. After all, Pinky is (oddly and rather sadly) the only one in-universe who thinks Brain is a genius and a good person.

…Of course, the effect can sometimes be lessened by subsequent innocent bumbling.

“Turn it off, Pinky.”

He says this so exasperatedly yet so deadpan at the same time, it’s great.

“Oh! Right-o!”

Even Pinky immediately knows that he fucked up.

“Zort! Whew! Wild hairdo, Brain! Heh heh, I like it.”

He even pets Brain’s “hairdo”, aww. And though I personally could take or leave the ‘do, I like the pointed, sharp look this mishap’s given to his ears.

BONK!

“Now I feel cleansed.”

Okay, this one might have been a little too much, Brain.

“But Brain, aren’t the crown jewels always guarded by giant Cossacks?”

Well, Pinky, from what I know Cossacks were usually used extensively in the police force and as border guards during this time, so I guess that’s possible?

Brain picking the lock with the pen is a fun little detail.

“Don’t worry about the guards… For tonight, Pinky, at precisely 1 am, there’s a total lunar eclipse. “

Again, this is probably not a thing the average person could look up quickly and easily in the 90s and the writers most likely didn’t care about accuracy here, but there were no total lunar eclipses in 1904. There were some penumbral lunar eclipses in March and September of that year, though. Just a fun fact for you folks.

“The Earth’s shadow will completely cover the moon, blacking out all of St. Petersburg for a period of 30 seconds.”

Brain…?!? Brain, how did you get the diagram on that piece of paper to animate like that? What kind of Harry Potter-style magic bullshit is this?

I know this is a cartoon and all and I’m not truly upset but this honestly came out of nowhere and made me do a double-take.

“In that brief time, we will sneak past the Czar’s guards under the cover of darkness and steal the crown jewels…for he who controls the jewels controls Mother Russia!”

More dramatics!

“But…I thought your mother’s name was Désirée?”

I love Brain’s pose here. Very grumpy and sassy.

As for Pinky’s comment: We do get to meet Brain’s parents way later in the spin-off, though neither are addressed by any name. I’m taking this joke as canon anyway because it’s funny.

Well, well, well… Looks like we’re shaking things up a bit with an inking instead of a bonk. That’s gonna be a pain to get out of his white fur, though.

“Soon, Pinky, I will rule Russia…so from now on, call me Czar.”

Another sassy hand-on-hip pose.

“Right-o, Brain!”

“—eek! Czar Brain!”

“Come along, Pinky… Conquest awaits!”

Nice to know that despite the inking, Pinky’s still following him anyway. Plus he’s doing it with that fond look on his face again. Hmm…

What follows is a cute and ingenious sequence of Brain launching Pinky and himself through an open window via the spring force of a mousetrap. It goes by very quickly, but I just wanted to highlight a few things I managed to notice while pausing through it. Kudos to the animators again for these little details.

Pinky’s the one that wraps one arm around Brain’s shoulders so that Brain has both hands free to spring the mousetrap properly and so that they’ll be launched together.

Interestingly enough, Pinky’s the cautious one who braces for impact right away while Brain gleefully flies through the air with his arms outstretched.

The “camera” changes perspective and while Brain is still boldly flying forward with confidence, Pinky is still worried but has now opened his eyes as they fly towards the window.

Pinky’s still holding onto Brain and the Vacuum-o-nator as tight as he can. As they get closer to the window, however…

…Pinky seems to realize he’s going to smash into the wall above the window if he doesn’t let go, so he lets go of Brain. Brain doesn’t realize where his trajectory is taking him.

Pinky angles himself downward and through the open window, but it’s too late for Brain.

WHAM! RIP, Brain.

But his pain is not done! It looks like Pinky’s landing was in the soft snow. Meanwhile, Brain slides down onto the window and through the opening, only to bash into the lid of a garbage can, much to Pinky’s concern.

Then Brain falls headfirst into the snow.

And finally, Brain is clonked on the head by the same garbage can lid, which makes a loud gong noise. Someone get this poor mouse some Aspirin.

But since there was a gong noise, you all know what that means!

Cutely, Pinky joins in on the dance in the middle of it.

“Ha! Oh that was fun, Czar Brain! But let’s give it another go, right? Only this time with feeling!”

Man, that side-eye at the beginning from Brain…

Pinky’s body language is great in this episode, too. The gleeful flapping of his arms and feet and the “with feeling” gesture are fantastic examples of his more open and energetic nature coming through.

Oh hey, there’s that one shot of Brain being ticked off used in the spin-off theme song! I can’t exactly blame him for his anger here. He just went through a lot of pain in a short amount of time and was then involuntarily made to humiliate himself. Pinky doesn’t mean to be mean here—he genuinely wants to have some sing and dance fun with Brain—but it’s gotta sting to have the humiliation highlighted.

Pinky still doesn’t deserve a bonking for it, though. But it’s slapstick, so he’s fine.

Heh, “deliveries to rear” indeed.

Oh, are those jingle bells on a sleigh that I see?

Uh oh…

“No, Pinky… Not now!”

It cannot be stopped, Brain. He must dance!

Another quick detail as Brain launches himself at Pinky’s midsection to either topple him over or hold him still to get Pinky to stop.

Alas, Pinky’s dancing is too strong.

OUCH!

The face of regret.

His punishment is swiftly thwarted, though.

“…That was unpleasant.”

They take a different and more uneventful ride on a hay wagon to the palace.

I love the exaggerated perspective going on here.

Peekin’.

“We made it inside, Brain!”

“…’Czar Brain’.”

“Czar Brain.”

He says it so quietly and sweetly, aww.

“Yes, Pinky. There are fleeting moments when I even amaze myself.”

I…don’t know if it’s much of an accomplishment yet, Brain. Settle that ego down a bit.

Oh, that’s some classic Looney Tunes-style sneaking animation there.

Wait, why is the door to the treasure room just open behind them? Czar Nicolas II, what gives?

Speaking of…

Hello, Czar Nicolas II. I hope you’re enjoying your “eclipse party”. You only have another 14 years or so to live it up, after all.

“In just a few minutes, it’ll be totally dark and scary. OooOOoo!~ But don’t anyone touch me, I have cooties!”

I, uhhh. Okay, then.

Same, boys. Same. Best to get down to business.

“Behold the crown jewels of Mother Russia, Pinky. World conquest will soon be ours!”

Again, world conquest is “ours” and not just Brain’s. Also you can just tell Pinky’s thinking “I’m going to wear so much of this jewelry!”

“Now, Brain?”

“Not yet. Wait for the total eclipse.”

Speaking of…

“Complete darkness, Pinky. Start the Vacuum-o-nator…”

“NOW!”

That gonging noise is an interesting choice for a chime. Surely this ornate clock is only an omen of good things for our duo.

Pinky, you’re swooning again. And Brain…

Oh no.

Another clock! Who’d have thought Russian nobility loved clocks so much? This one has a more pleasant bell chime, though.

…Oh NO!

Well, looks like things are going to hell pretty quickly.

Goodbye, boys.

Goodbye, Czar Nicolas II! You might wanna look out for a man named Grigori Rasputin in the future, okay?

Nice hat, Brain.

“Whu--? The eclipse is over? Narf! What happened, Brain?”

BONK!

“Zort! I mean, Czar Brain.”

“We failed again, Pinky… But just wait until tomorrow night!”

“Why? What are we going to do tomorrow night, Brain?”

“What else, Pinky?: Try to take over the world!”

It was a nice try, boys, but honestly I don’t know how you were going to fit all those crown jewels into that tiny improvised vacuum bag, anyway.

One last cute little detail in this episode is our mousey duo jumping up with enthusiastic determination in front of the silhouette of the moon on the last note of the theme reprise. One day, you guys. One day…

Oh! And before I forget, have another short cameo from “Plane Pals”. It’s a tiny one.

Pinky and the Brain steal a sheep off of an airplane. For what purpose? Who knows? But that’s it. I’m kind of wondering if the writers wanted to make a running joke of them making cameos to steal random things for world conquering purposes and just sort of gave up.

Anyway, so ends our recap for this post. It sure was a long one, but what can I say? There were some very cute details that needed to be shared. Have we learned anything new this time? Well, I mean, besides historical trivia.

Brain thinks both he and Pinky are great actors, despite his own near inability to lie and keep up an innocent pretense. Oh, he can be sarcastic, sure, but he can’t seem to manage to stop himself from revealing that he’s out for world  domination whenever he has an audience.

For the first time we see Brain’s annoyance and humiliation resulting from him being a lab mouse. Though it’s on the more subtle side at the moment, Brain seemed extra grumpy and violent during that last     episode because of the conditioning he’s unwillingly gone through. I’m     curious to see if there are any more examples of this before we reach an  episode touching on his origin story. Or…one of his origin stories, at     least. There’s around four of them last I checked and all but one of them  can reasonably fit into the others.

Pinky is truly beginning to show how much he adores Brain, which is nice. Beforehand we knew he was down with his world domination plans for whatever reason and also that he thinks Brain’s plans are great and ingenious. Now, though, we’ve gotten to the point of him literally swooning at Brain and his plans. Something’s definitely brewing there.

Next time: We get some more substantial cameos, join our mouse duo on a Fort Knox heist, and meet a new character that is both pretty important to the “lore” of the show going forward…but also doesn’t appear in person after their introductory episode until the very end of the Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain spin-off run.

See you then!

[lefemmerougewriter]

Kim’s Anxiety, Milo’s Mistake, and the Great Backpack Mishap

I recently finished re-watching Milo Murphy’s Law and I just began watching Kim Possible… and I realized a similarity: Kim and Milo both wear backpacks, even though Kim doesn’t wear a backpack all the time, only for certain missions. Hence, this fic! This is my second MML fic, as my first one was “Lucky and the Lady with the Magical Scepter”.

Romantic pairing: Amanda Lopez / Milo Murphy

Friendships: Melissa Chase & Milo Murphy & Zack Underwood, Wade Load & Kim Possible, Kim Possible & Ron Stoppable

Words: 2.8k

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/36443596

Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/1179764789-kim%27s-anxiety-milo%27s-mistake-and-the-great

Characters: Milo Murphy, Zack Underwood, Melissa Chase, Kim Possible, Wade Load, Ron Stoppable, Amanda Lopez, Rufus

Summary: It is a snowy, wintery day, but for Milo, it's like every day, as he is a walking cyclone of calamity. This changes when he accidentally runs into a 14-year-old girl wearing a backpack. After they collect themselves, both grab backpacks, but are they the right ones? The events that happen in the day to follow, affect the lives of both kids in ways they couldn't have imagined, pulling them back together. This makes Milo's girlfriend, Amanda, jealous and protective of him against what she perceives as a threat. And Milo meets the girl, who is prepared for any challenge that comes her way, even if its nerve-wracking to return the backpack...

It was a typical day in the life of Milo Murphy. This time he was running from a huge icy boulder with spikes, with his friends running alongside. The snow started falling at a faster pace. Milo looked up at the sky while snowflakes were falling on his nose. “Zack, Melissa, we need to get back before we get buried in this snow.” Zack rolled his eyes. He smarmily remarked, “We don’t want to be stuck in a mall again...like that time the Murphys came for Christmas.” Milo couldn’t agree more. He didn’t want that to happen. As he glanced upward for a second, he didn’t see a person sliding toward him on the black ice: a 14-year-old girl with flowing reddish-orange hair, wearing ski goggles, a bluish helmet, and a red snowsuit. Melissa shrieked. “Milo, watch out!”

Milo heard Melissa’s words, but it was too late. When he looked forward, she was only inches away from him. They both banged heads with each other. In the process, her pack slid off her back, as did the one on Milo’s back. Melissa and Zack slid forward, past them, and ended up face down inside a trash can, which began rolling down the street. In a split second, Milo grabbed one of the backpacks and slung it over his back. The girl did the same. Neither apologized to one another, they just went their own, separate paths. She jumped on a hoverboard and sped away, into the distance. Milo started looking for his friends. He reached inside the pack.

Something wasn’t right. “Uh oh,” he remarked. He pulled out a hairdryer grappling hook. He stared at it for a second, unsure of what to do. Shrugging, he decided to use it anyway. He then fired it at the can. He was able to pull the can to a stop. Milo ran toward his friends, who stepped out of the can, dizzy from their time rolling from one side to the other. He was a bit exhausted. Melissa looked at him, confused. Usually, he appeared so sure of himself, but he didn’t this time. Not at all. “Milo, are you ok?” He shook his head. Everything was not fine. He groaned. “When I ran into...that girl, I think I switched backpacks with her.” While this horrified Zack, Melissa howled in laughter. This couldn’t be funnier to her, at least. She was developing a new sense of humor.

Zack looked at her with an annoyed look on his face. Milo chuckled. “Don’t fret about it, Zack. We’ll figure this out!” This made Zack feel a little better, although he stayed a little horrified. He pulled two skates out of the pack, which happened to be there. He felt relieved. They made it back to his house without any major incidents. They quickly scrambled inside, narrowly avoiding an I-beam which dropped from the ceiling. Milo slung the pack off his back and dumped the contents onto the floor.

All sorts of feminine products fell out, like ruby red lipstick, a green tank crop top, white shoes, blue capris, hair ties, and two yellow-orange pom-poms. There was also equipment for missions, like a rope, grappling hook, and extra cold-weather gear. One final item came out of the pack: a wallet. Zack shrugged. Why would that matter? As he paused for a second, Melissa snatched the wallet from the floor. She opened it and a glossy student ID fell out. Emblazoned on the front were the words “KIM A. POSSIBLE.” It also had a small photo of her in the corner and noted that she was a sophomore who attended Middleton High School. She turned over the card and it listed the phone number and address of the school.

Meanwhile, Kim made her way back to her medium-sized split-level house. It was surrounded by rolling hills which were covered with lemon trees. Unlike Danville, the weather in Middleton was nice and sunny. As she came inside, she sat down on the couch. She was glad that her parents were at work, so she didn't have to deal with them. She was ready to relax after a mission against Dr. Drakken. He had wanted to aim a space laser at the moon to cause global flooding and mess up the tides. His plans were diabolical and bonkers in many ways. As she reached into the bag, she felt a firm object: an anchor. She then touched a couple bungee cords, rope, a small anvil, snowshoes, and a rock. She gulped. She unlatched the bag and poured it all out. This was NOT her bag. This problem had to be fixed as soon as possible. She needed her bag back.

As luck would have it, she still had her hand-held computing and communications device, otherwise known as the Kimmunicator, in her pocket. Taping a few buttons, her friend came onto the screen. “Wade, I have a BIG problem. I don’t have my bag.” He put up his hands in confusion. Why should he care about this? Why was this a problem? He looked at her blankly. “That bag had my wallet, my school ID in it, my expensive lipstick, all sorts of personal stuff...and mission stuff!” Wade laughed. How did she not realize this until now? At times she could be a bit clueless. Not often, but from time to time. “It took you this long to recognize it wasn’t your bag? How come you didn’t realize it when you and Ron were fighting Dr. Drakken?” She wasn’t sure what to say. How could she make a mistake like this? This wasn’t like her. She thought back. “It had everything I needed then...it was prepared for the situation. So, nothing seemed off...maybe Ron knew.” Wade didn’t know what to tell her. At the same time, he did not want to get between her and Ron. He decided to sidestep the whole thing while not acknowledging that he realized it wasn't her bag but hadn't told her about it. He wanted to see how long it would take her to realize she had another person's backpack. “Kim, whose bag is this...then?” he asked

Kim wanted to know the answer to that question too. This backpack had to be someone else's, right? Maybe that person really needed it. Kim had no idea what to tell Wade. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a tag inside the bag. “Milo Murphy?” she said hesitantly, unsure if she was right. Wade nodded. Tapping away on his keys, he quickly came across a heap of results. “Ah ha!” he said with certainty. Kim eagerly awaited what he had to say. She wanted to return this bag and get her bag back. “Well, according to news articles, this Milo Murphy fellow is quite the town menace in Danville, you could say. He has this condition called Murphy’s Law.” Kim rolled her eyes. She knew exactly what that was from science class. She had even done a whole 15-page paper on it. “Yeah, I know, it’s the idea that anything that can go wrong will go wrong...I thought that was total poppycock?”

Wade shook his head. He didn’t mind explaining it. He could help her out. “Experts might say that, but this guy really has it.” He then shared a video with her from a MeTube channel entitled MURPHYLAWISREAL. It started with the words “Hi, I’m Milo Murphy and I’m going to demonstrate how Murphy’s Law works.” He moved one step to the side and kicked his foot. It caused one sand grain to annoy a squirrel, which jumped off a tree, and bit a rabbit. The mammal jumped on a seesaw, causing a rabbit to fly through the air and into a store window, shattering it into a thousand pieces.

Kim was intrigued but also terrified. After watching the video, she recognized him. She exclaimed, “that’s him, that’s the guy who I switched backpacks with!” Wade was a little distressed. He feared for Kim’s safety. What if this Milo character caused her to get hurt? “Kim, just be careful...we don’t know what he’s capable of.” Kim scoffed. What should she be afraid of? She had gone underwater, climbed mountains, gone in volcanoes, and in more dangerous situations than this. He was one kid. How much damage could she cause? “Wade, you worry too much. What could possibly go wrong?” He moved his head from side to side. He hoped she wasn't being serious.

She turned off the Kimmunicator. She pulled her flip top phone out of her pocket. Ron answered. “Hey, what’s up?” She told him what they needed to do. “We need to go on another mission...I gotta return a backpack...and I’d like you to come with me for...uh...protection.” That was a new one for Ron. Kim wanted him to protect her? He didn’t expect this from her. It must be serious. “Sure, I’ll be right over,” he replied. Kim repacked each item neatly into the backpack. Everything miraculously fit. She wasn't sure how that was possible.

Back in Danville, Milo paced around the room. Parts of the house started to shake. Zack and Melissa tried to calm him down. “Milo, it’s ok...it’s only a backpack. You can get another one,” Zack said. Milo stared at him angrily. His friend didn’t understand how much it meant to him. How could even say that? Even if it had nothing in it, the pack was like an extension of him, a part of him. Who was he without the backpack? “Zack, I know you mean well but...that backpack is important to me...it is part of who I am...I need to get it back.” Melissa tried to be more encouraging. She knew that everything would be ok. He was more than a pack. “Milo, let’s give it a day. If that girl comes to find us, then we can give it back to her. If not, we’ll go looking for this...Kim Possible.” That seemed acceptable to him. At that moment, he heard the doorbell ringing. Could it be her? He ran to the door so quickly that it almost caused the rug to catch fire. Luckily, he used a nearby fire extinguisher to put out the flames. When he opened the door, he was a bit disappointed.

“Hey Milo,” the voice said. He looked sullen. The dark-brown-eyed girl was uneasy. He wasn’t usually like this. “Is everything ok, Milo?” she asked, as she nervously twirled her deep burgundy hair. He grumbled. He thought she could help. “It’s just my backpack...I sort of lost it.” As his girlfriend, she knew how important that pack was to him. He wasn’t anywhere without it. It almost anchored him to the world itself. “Oh. Can I come in?” Milo smiled. She cheered him up no matter what. It was miraculous they were together in the first place. She cared so much about order and, he caused chaos, at least to a degree. “Sure, Amanda, you are always welcome here,” he said.

She came into the living room and saw the items from Kim’s pack. It set her back. She stared at Milo intently. Was he trying to tell her something? “Milo, why is there lipstick, pom-poms and all this girly stuff on the floor?” He didn’t mind being honest with her. What did he have to hide? She should know about all of it. He declared, “this is from the pack of a girl named Kim Possible...I kinda accidentally bumped into her earlier today.” Amanda gritted her teeth. She wouldn’t let another girl take Milo. He was all hers! “I’m gonna get that girl...I won’t let her take you away from me!” He cackled. He liked that she was so dedicated to him and cared about him so much. Certain people would be put off by Amanda, even claiming she was possessive, but not him. “Amanda, don’t fret...we are going to wait for her to come here...I’m not going on a special trip to wherever she lives.”

That made Amanda feel better. They heard fast-moving helicopter rotors nearby. A girl in her typical “mission outfit,” slid down a rope. Following this, the sound faded away. This girl ended up landing perfectly on the doormat. Seconds later, the girl was knocking on the door. As Milo rushed to get it, Amanda held him back. He agreed to let her answer it, this time. She guessed who it would be: Kim Possible, the girl who took Milo’s bag. She made a b-line for the door and opened it. She expected a tenacious woman. Instead, she found an extremely uneasy girl in front of her. She usually exuded assertiveness and determination. Other times she didn’t, like the time she had a crush on Josh Mankey. She bowed her head and handed the backpack over. “Here, take it...it's your backpack anyway.” She didn’t even look up to see that Amanda was standing there instead of Milo. She snatched the pack out of Kim's hands. She then declared, “I’ll give this to Milo...don’t forget, he is MINE.” She moved her head up to see Amanda’s deep brown eyes staring at her. She started to walk away. Perhaps this had all been a mistake. She picked up a nasally voice. “Wait, Ms. Possible...don’t go!”

Kim turned around to see Milo in front of her, with his hand interlinked with Amanda’s. He whispered in her ear that Kim was no threat and to let her misgivings float away. This satisfied her, as she was close to him. And that was good enough for her. “Can I come in?” Kim asked. Milo grinned. He wanted to get to know this girl...more. “Sure...you certainly can.” As she came in, she soon entered the living room. She saw the backpack sitting on the ground. She yelped a cry of joy. Finally, she would be reunited with it again. “Thank you, Milo...I don’t know why I was so clumsy today...this type of thing never happens.” Zack piped up. He had to make clear that what she went through wasn’t a fluke. “Well, it’s Murphy’s Law for you.” Kim laughed. She already knew about all of this. “Yeah, I know about that...from my communications, computer whiz...friend, Wade.” She whipped out her communicator. She pushed a button. The screen turned on in an instant. “Hey, Wade, here’s that Milo Murphy you told me about.” She turned the communicator so that it faced Milo. Wade shuttered. He was afraid of the potential of Murphy’s Law. “Uh, nice to meet you,” he said. Milo replied, “likewise, Wade.” He pointed to those around him. “These are my friends Zack and Melissa...and my girlfriend Amanda.” Wade waved at all of them.

An exasperated boy was knocking at the door. He was clearly out of breath. Milo opened the door this time. “Hi, I’m Ron Stoppable...I’m with her,” he said, pointing to Kim. As she picked up the backpack, she came close to Milo, making Amanda uneasy. She said softly, “can I get your number...you might be able to help me if I’m in a pinch...as you seem pretty capable yourself.” Milo was more than happy to make another friend. They traded phones, inputting each other's numbers in their respective phones. “Thanks, Milo!” Kim exclaimed. Ron introduced himself to everyone there, as did Rufus. At first, everyone thought it was weird that Ron had a naked mole rat as Ron’s pet friend. Then they remembered that their friends across town had a pet platypus. So, not that weird.

Following their short conversation, Kim waved to everyone before leaving. She and Ron then hopped onto a motorcycle together, first Kim, then Ron behind her. They sped away into the night. This had been one eventful day. Milo was relieved. He had his bag back and had met a new friend...or a set of friends. She seemed like a nice enough person. They all guessed that Ron and Kim had feelings for one another, although they didn't say it aloud. It was obvious enough to anyone seeing them.

Seeing that Kim had left, Amanda snarled. “That girl, when she gets going, she is so confident...and is attractive! I wish I could be like her.” Milo put his hand on Amanda’s shoulder. He didn’t want her to be jealous of anyone else. He didn't care if she was as bold as this Kim Possible girl or not. That didn't matter. “You are fine the way you are, Amanda...she has her shtick...with Ron and that mole rat...and that’s okay.” He surprised his friends when he gave her a kiss on the cheek. She hadn’t even expected that. She hugged him. Waving into space, he shouted “that’s all folks!”

The chimney of the house collapsed out of nowhere. He started singing the words ♪ It's my world and we're all livin' in it ♪ at the top of his lungs, with his friends joining in. Kim, Ron, and Wade had met Milo Murphy. It was only a matter of time before their paths would cross again, in a way that none of them expected.

*****

End note: Even though there are over 20 fics in which Phineas and Ferb-Kim Possible cross over, only eight of those have Milo Murphy’s Law characters. Of those eight only ONE is a simple crossover between PAF, KP, and MML. So, this fic appears to be the first fic which only crosses over characters from KP and MML and no other fandoms. If this does well, I might consider making it a series. Used the pages on the “Possible house,” “Kim Possible,” “Kimmunicator,” “Kim's clothes,” “Team Possible,” and “Kim and Ron's relationship” pages on the Kim Possible Wiki, and the “Amanda Lopez” page on the Milo Murphy’s Law Wiki. I suppose this is set sometime in season 1 of Kim Possible, as that’s what I’m watching right now, and after the final episode of Milo Murphy’s Law.

[sailorplanet1997]

am i the only one thinking Tinkerbell has most of her impact in the 2nd movie?

at the start we saw how Tinkerbell builded an boat with help from the animals and Terence, she got frustrated it failed even though it sort of worked but that’s not even the start with what impact Tinkerbell was having

she showed Terence the moonstone, you believe nothing can go wrong.....right? (it looked like it was going smoothly)

but then she got under a lot of pressure eventually

oof Tinkerbell get frustrated by Terence and she got under a lot of pressure eventually

and of course we get the anger Tink blaming him for the scepter and got their first REAL fights with each other

and because of her mistake the moonstone broke, ouch

and yep here we go again, they argues again expect this time it’s about pixie dust it will break the rules, Tink ended up crying and flew away, Terence was crying a little too

oof she got nearly eaten by a bat and her real journey is just a beginning out of pixie hollow

she met Blaze when she couldn’t find her food and yep Blaze got to the blame, i mean duh he ate her food

and these 2 argues, Blaze tried to keep an eye on a balloon, it’s not Blaze she has to blame for it though lol (she and Blaze tries to follow after a ballon in a middle of a storm)

i feel so sorry for her, she lost everything, her friend in her defense her food, drinks, balloon, she’s literally lost (she DID saw a sharp thingy and has thought of Terence)

omg i’d react the same if i have to stumble into the trolls and argues right infront of me, her struggles and frustrations again but knew how to cross the trolls once these 2 got distracted (so she was able to survive this with Blaze and funny enough, watching the 2 trolls arguing has reminded her of Terence last time she has spoken to him)

arriving at the lost pirateship is already something but oof going to the mirror is a struggle when there are danger around, including this and the rats, (she nearly fell)

this is definitely a struggle, trying to get to the baq but you’re not tall enough to reach to that

and of course she messed her final wish up, i’d react the same

and she felt the need to take it out on Blaze and turned red

of course she realized it was her fault but atleast she admits she has her flaws and teared up and all she could think about was Terence and wished he was still her friend thinking it was too late to make it up for what happened (but he reassured her they ARE friends and has forgave her they both has missed each other)

and of course once they DID made up, they had to run for lots of rats, uh oh but now Tink no longer has to suffer it on her own anymore now that she has Terence by her side

and just when Tinkerbell gave up her hope with the fall scepter this sweatheart brought the scepter (and probably missing moonstone that were in peaces) with him so they can still work on the fall scepter in a short amount of time before these 2 arrives in pixie hollow (i still wonder how they did that in just less then a day while they were on their way back to pixie hollow as a come back lol)

ever since after this, she started to be hopeful, even when she arrived in pixie hollow WITH Terence, like i said in my earlier blog, Tinkerbell has most of her impact so did Terence in this movie (not that she don’t have her impact in other movies, some movies has more impact on her then other movies though, just saying in my opinion she has most of her impact in this movie)

[spell-card-fusion]

Chaotic Souls

Blaze remembers the first time she heard Iblis’ voice. 

She was so very young, around six years old or so. Growing up without any siblings in the big halls of Soleanna’s royal castle made for a very lonely existance. Her life was mostly consisted of reading, learning, training her body, trying to channel Sol Energy, preparing for the day she might take the throne. 

It was a life of hard structure, one that kept her away from her parents most of the time. While this amount of stress would shatter any child, it was under this kind of pressure that Blaze thrived. 

After all, she had a destiny! A destiny she had been born into, a destiny that pumped in her chest and flowed through her veins. She was to learn as much as she could so that she could help rule her Island.

She knew she was lucky. Other people faced uncertainty, other people faced heartbreak, other people lacked the power that she had. It was her duty to help those people. Maybe not through the religious agenda that Soleanna’s royal family traditionally preached, but through actual efforts to better people’s lives.

And then came the time to check if she had any “Blessing”, to check if the gods had gifted her something with what she may strengthen her rule. Blaze did not have faith in this, she didn’t believe, she didn’t pray, she didn’t think of the Sol Emeralds as anything but a sacred national relic she had to protect.

That was her mistake, for the gods of Soleanna were harsh upon anyone who were to show doubt.

She held the Sol Scepter, and that’s when she heard it.

‘Everybody Dreams. Everybody Fears. Everybody thinks of Burning Alive’

‘Now you shall Dream too.’

Her very soul was burning, and flames were hers to control. Upon this revelation and the fact that her parents were having another child, she was made Guardian of these religious artifacts. For the first time in her entire life, Blaze’s future looked uncertain.

Blaze had a purpose, a purpose that burned bright inside her soul, a purpose that she breathed out of her throat and shot out of her hands when angered. She was TERRIFIED.

Rollin remembers the first time she heard Chaos’ voice.

She was very young, around seven years old or so. Growing up with her siblings meant that she was never alone. Christmas Castle, which a decade before had been a quiet, cold place, had now turned into a place of cheer for these three children the moment they were born. 

And yet there were always expectations, there was always something she was doing wrong, something she wasn’t quite living up to. Some kind of ongoing effort to shatter any sense of freedom she had. It gave her...A bit of an attitude.

She had a purpose, that’s what her mother would always say, that she was made for a reason. Sonia bought into that crap, Manic was doubtful, but even back when she went by her deadname she knew that she wanted to live life for herself. If she lived to make anyone happy it was her siblings, her friends. Maybe it was selfish, but she really did not care about being queen.

And then came the time she decided to run away. She had told her siblings about it, trying to get them to join, but Sonia was fully brainwashed and Manic wasn’t brave enough. 

She decided at the time that she would come back eventually,but running away was harder than she thought it would be. Apparently Sonia told on her, and she was up all night in a cycle of hiding, running, being captured, escaping, running again. They made a show to drive in just how trapped she was, how there would never be any other life for her.

That’s when she heard him.

‘Anything is possible. Anything is possible. Anything is possible. Anything is possible’

‘You are above reason.’

She didn’t think anything else after that, she just kept moving, she kept moving and just never stopped. Wind in her face, lightning in her step, wearing the wildest grin.

She had no purpose, she had nothing to live up to, no one to help but herself. She had no master except the wind, nothing to follow except her own whims. And Rollin was happy.

Rollin and Blaze sit on the sand, watching the waves come and go, their hands clutching each other supernaturally tight. Being close to each other felt like the culmination of some sort of prophecy, like magnets against metal. Something in their souls could not bear to be apart.

They don’t even know when they started kissing, they don’t even know what they’re thinking at the moment. It’s inhumanly warm for both of them, both of their hearts beat way faster than they should, and they’re working on pure instinct. Their eyes become heterochromic in a matching way, and they don’t even notice.

What they do notice is two voices whispering in their heads at the same time. Two soft, caring, inviting voices pushing them forward.

‘It is right to wish for power’

[fasterthanmydemons]

Based on another ask (Pietro and how he felt abt Wanda replacing him), we should talk about Pietro in general (including AU where he lives cuz Canon Bad) and my question is, did he ever feel something negative for Wanda? We all feel negative things sometimes for the people we love most, we get angry at them, frustrated, etc it's natural. Even if the twins love each other, negative feelings can appear, like Pietro being resentful because Wanda was wanted by adoptive parents but he wasn't.

{out of breath} You know what... no? You'd think so, but... no. For essentially being the reason why the entire family had to pick up and move to Sokovia. For starting the beginning of all his problems with his right arm and hand because she laid on them for two days in the rubble of their apartment building. For Wanda being wanted and Pietro not in the orphanage. For her shutting down a lot and placing a lot of burden on Pietro to take care of them both. For making the decision that both of them should volunteer for the experiments. For preventing Pietro from stopping Stark from taking the scepter. For telling him to go and then he gets shot up by Ultron. You would expect there to be something that he'd resent her for in all of that, but... there isn't.

Wanda's made a lot of bad (or at least ill-informed) decisions and has (really, through little fault of her own) been a burden to Pietro very often... but he doesn't see it that way at all. He has never blamed her for anything she did or didn't do, any decision she's made, or any poor outcome for him that resulted from her decisions. The amount of trust and loyalty and respect he carries in his heart for her is astronomical. That's his sister. His twin. The other half of his soul, and therefore his soul mate, since soul mates aren't limited to lovers. He loves her so much that in his eyes she can do no wrong. He has never thought of anything he's had to do for her, because of her, at her request, or at her order as something annoying, condescending, or a burden. There's not a resentful bone in his body for her. She accepts him for who he is, even at his worst, even when he does stupid things or makes stupid mistakes, and he loves her in the same way.

[thehereticaldeserthermit]

𝕆𝕦𝕥 𝕆𝕗 ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕣𝕒𝕔𝕥𝕖𝕣 ℚ𝕦𝕖𝕤𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟𝕤

ROLE PLAYER GET TO KNOW YOU PROMPT

Alright TDC Community It’s time for a task, 

and this time we’re all going to get to know each other a little better. 

Under the cut, you’ll find forty out of character questions split into two parts: OOC about your muses, and OOC about yourself! Answer what you’d like, add more if you’d like.

When you’re done TAG some of your writing partners and keep FUN going. 

-there is no pressure to participate

-IF You Are Reading This And You’d Like To Participate Consider Yourself Tagged My Friend! 

Much Love,

TheJesseWhoLurks

I tag @lyr-taxidermist  @theghostofharar  @hurdygurdyskeksis  @urskekyagvi  @skekmal-the-hunter  @skekso-the-emperor  @gourdplayer   @hedonistschambers  @ulvanmaudra  @littlebluezoologist @the-wandering-urru  @queenofthetides  @juliejewel24 @thecastleurru

OOC About  Your Character(s)

1.     What do you want to get out of playing this character(s)?

The reason I wanted to write for Gra was to meet fellow fans that loved the world of TDC as much as I do, I wanted to find fellow writers. I wanted to steep myself in the fandom. You can easily consider me skeKSis obsessed but I am growing a fondness for their counterparts -slowly ❤

2.     Describe your character(s) with three words.

Passionate | Erratic | Trustworthy

3.     What made you decide to write this muse?

Originally I was going to pick up The Ritual Master, he’d been my OG fav from the movie BUT Gra kept ... poking me with his scepter? Like; I live in the desert, you live in the desert, Ima recluse, you’re a recluse =we are simpatico. I think The Heretic picked me because he simply would not leave my mind when I considered him as a possibility. 

4.     If you could change one event in your muse’s life (in their main or canon verse), what would you change?

Canon. I mean they left us kinda hanging there. We really do not know what happened do we? They are simply, just not there anymore. I do not want them to perish, I want them to make it to the finish line and become urSkek. It breaks my heart to think they did not make it.

5.     If you could tell your muse one thing, what would you tell them?

I would not say anything, just hug him REALLY tightly and probably not let go until he gives me a chitter-laugh.

6.     If you could give your muse one gift, what would you give them?

I would like to give them...ME. 

7.     If you had to take one positive thing away from your muse, what would you take away?

I do not want to take a positive thing from the fibers that make up Gra. I feel they are very interwoven in his tale. Removing one would make another untether. If I could take away or diminish a bad trait Id have him not be so stubborn and or impatient but then again he would not be Gra now would he?  

8.     If you could “borrow” one aspect of your muse and apply it to yourself or your own life, what would you borrow?

His determination, passion. Damn son. You get things done. 

9.     Do you genuinely want your muse to be happy? What do you think would make them most happy in life?

Yes. He’s gotten his ass handed to him, I think he might be owed a slice of peace and happiness.  What makes him most happy? He’s already showed me; his relationships whether its friendship, extended family or a lover those are treasures he holds near and dear to his heart.  

10. Do you enjoy putting your muse through angst? What do you think would break their heart the most?

Usually I prefer to plot out angst rather then let it completely run a-muck because you never know what your partner is comfortable with, what might trigger them in a detrimental way and simply set fire to a plot unintentionally. 

I already know; it literally is ... break his heart. 

11. What do you love about your muse?

His dynamic energy, the wild fire, the mystical chaos, the creativity is off the charts. His sharp distinguished features, the way he looks shamanistically feral as compared to his brethren and their Garthic garb. His use of the color red. His scratchy rasp of a voice. His laugh. 

12. What do you hate about your muse?

He is a high maintenance muse, he is demanding and screeches loudly for what he wants. 

13. What about your muse amuses you?

The fact that he is a skeKSis. This brings a whole slew of challenges to the table for a writer. Case in point, I was writing a reply one day and I went to put something in along the lines of ‘he arched his brow and blah blah’ THEN he hit me! He has no eyebrows to arch, ahhh! I have to stop and think about how to write out expressive traits or reactions that are not of the usual human reaction tone.

14. What about your muse makes you sad? 

How fragile his heart really is after all the shit he’s endeared. 

15. How would you describe your muse to someone about to meet them, in person, for the first time?

Get Ready For A Wild SURPRISE!

16. Would you like your muse as a person if you met them in real life?

Yes, I like creative souls. I cherish them. 

17. In what ways are you better than your muse? In what ways are they better than you?

I do not think I am or he is better than the other. 

But I will say he is a handsome devil, for a skeKSis. 

18. Why do you think you connect to your muse?

Creative. Outcast. 

19. What aspect of your muse’s personality is most important to you? What aspect of your muse’s personality do you think is most important to them? Is it the same? Why or why not?

His passion and drive. I’d say its the same answer for us both. All of the accomplishments he tackled probably had their stacks of obstacles with each to-do. You’d have to have an unending supply of passion and drive to keep going, to complete all. He really is a work-a-holic and a busy body skek.

20. Has your character(s) changed over the time that you have been playing them? How have they changed?

Not yet but I am sure he will, creative liberties will be taken since I only have a a episode or two to work with -am I right? 

About You!

1.     What is your name? 

Jesse. 

2.     What is your profession?

secret shit. 

3.     What do you do to relax?

I write. Play video games. Naps are divine. Hot coffee and watch YT videos. DOodle. Desert combing walks. Long hot baths. Organize things xD

4.     What is your favorite treat (desert)?

All kinds, I’m not picky. I love me some chocolate lately. 

5.     Favorite movie

Too many to list. Its October right now. All I want is Hocus Pocus, some Harry Potter and Practical Magick at the moment. Tis the season. 

6.     Favorite book

I do not think I have a favorite. BUT I will admit that I have a copy of The Dark Crystal that I STOLE FROM A LIBRARY YEARS AGO! I have kept it all this time, its falling apart and its aged with beauty and I adore it  ❤ I also have a Jim Henson book about puppetry and his works, there is a page from TDC and if my memory serves me right it has the concept art of skekGra in it sooo sooo I was looking at skekGra YEARS AGO AND HAD NO CLUE the conjunction that would line up in the future! I really neeed to go find this book but its in a storage shed that will be a fresh hell to get to =[ *

7.     Favorite vacation spot

Anywhere where its either very green and or by some body of water. Ocean, river, lake. Yes, good. -not very many humans around save for present company reading thiiiis. 

8.     Favorite Disney movie

Are you kidding me? Too many to list, although I will say The Sword In The Stone did play a part in Gra’s Crystal Skimmer named Archimedes after the grouchy old owl. 

9.     How did you first get into role playing?

Years ago. I started writing on face book. I wrote for a pirate believe it or not, he was my first muse and he holds special place in my black heart and probably always will. But I am disinclined to acquiesce the gift of further details about this scurvy cursed muse, Ha!

10. What was your first platform? If it was something other than Tumblr, what made you get into Tumblr?

It was face book, before they got all crazy about accounts and security. I moved over to tumblr because writers were incredibly rude and rapid fire RP-ers. One liner sentences and I’m like NOPE I need a novel length. 

11. What’s a grammar rule you find yourself breaking or ignoring a lot?

Sometimes I have a touch of dyslexia, sometimes I typo, sometimes I am too tired to proof read, sometimes I make blunders. But I tend to focus on my mistakes rather then other peoples. I just go with the flow, I just write no matter what their level of ‘proper grammar’ IS because I’d like to think that maybe they are just starting out, maybe they will fall in love with writing and maybe they will be the next author who creates a world we all fall in love with and want to immerse ourselves in.  

12. Are there any languages besides English in which you think you could comfortably roleplay?

I do not RP in other languages. However I did have a muse at one time who was French, I would throw in little phrases but it was never entirely done in French and I do have a British muse at the moment, so again I will use slang and little sayings to make them well rounded as best as I can. Those are just little details I like to include that many others might skip on but I thrive for deets. 

I do however have role play writing partners that are from ALL over the world which is amazing to me. 

13. Do you listen to music while your write?

ALOT. I have tracks specifically for skekGra, that take me to his frame of mind. Even TDC soundtrack at times, the puppet show song and the blue flame part 2 are on replay a lot. 

14. Are you a morning, day, evening, or night writer?

I am all over the place. My life is very hectic. I’d like to say its usually in the afternoon of evening for me, the house is settled down and things are silent but thats not always how it works out. Oftentimes I will sit down and write a reply or two, then dip to do mundane human things that adults do, then return back for a few more replies. 

15. How does tiredness affect your writing?

Kills it. The weekends I work long hours therefor my brain is like WHAAAT. 

16. What is your biggest obstacle to writing every day, if time doesn’t count?

It is always TIME. Sometimes stress levels can be an obstacle too, no lie. If something major is going on, I just throw my hands up like ‘I got nothin’’ and thats that.

17. How many drafts is a paralyzing amount?

Oh damn. Been there done that. I am much more picky about it nowadays. I try to limit skekGra to a certain number of replies because he also has to allow room for other muses. 

Currently: Gra has ten replies on tumblr -no actually 11 &&& 4 on discord. I am two shakes away from cutting HIM OFF! lol. 

18. Is there anything character-wise or writing style-wise that you can’t stand?

I’m open to different characters, I have written with a lot. I love a writer who has style, I appreciate the effort.  

Etiquette, manners and consideration are oftentimes LACKING as of late. 

19. What kind of anonymous questions are your favorite?

ANYTHING as long as it is not anon HATE. 

20. What is your weakest point in writing? Angst, fluff, dialogue, etc.?

T I M E not having enough time to write the angst fluff and dialogue, smut too lets be real. It really is a bummer to me when I  do not have the time, I work, I have a a lotta responsibilities, my life is like a hurricane a lot of the time so TIME is my weakness, oftentimes I am super J E L L O of people who are online all day, every day, always there I’m envious and I get writers FOMO which makes me laugh but its so damn true I could ugly laugh cry about it. 

[itsuki-minamy]

“K - SIX IDOLS”

CHAPTER 1: “SPRINT DREAM” (Complete)

Translation: Naru-kun Raws: Ridia

"Good morning ladies and gentlemen."

"Good Morning!"

A pure voice echoes through the Kendo hall of "Promotion Scepter 4".

Many remains of that remain, in the office that was created with the remodeling of the old Army facilities. The Kendo hall is one of them, and the idols belonging to "Scepter 4" sometimes take lessons there and other times hold their swords in their hands.

And at the beginning of the week, there was always an instruction from the president, the "Idol Blue King", Reisi Munakata.

Munakata makes a soft voice in front of the idols lined up in a "rest" position.

"By the way, this week is the biggest event of the year for my production, "Sprint". The "Dream Live Tour" will take place. I hope to have the encouragement of each member so that no preparation or lesson is neglected."

"Yes!"

The responses of the idols are not disturbed. More than an entertainment bureau, the closer rigor to the police or the military was due to the nature of representative Reisi Munakata, and it was also a feature of "Promotion Scepter 4".

The group's glasses glowed brightly, staring at an idol.

"But recently, I have received some concerns, Andy Domyoji-kun. Go ahead."

"Yes!"

Domyoji, who was called by name, screamed to death. From his normally cheerful face, blood is drawn in the blink of an eye.

Domyoji took a heavy step and stepped out in front of the superior.

There is no anger in Munakata's expression. A slight smile floats on the sleek face like a statue. That doesn't mean that Domyoji and the other idols were relieved that they didn't understand the superior.

It was a man named Reisi Munakata, who sentenced to death with a smile.

"Domyoji-kun. The other day, there was a report that you were 5 minutes and 27 seconds late for the entire "Gyumetai" lesson. Is this true?"

"Actually, that's…"

"What is an idol in "Promotion Scepter 4"?"

"Ah, idols aim to be the ideal humans who should become the norm for people..."

"Do you have your own excuse for being late, knowing that?"

"No, I'm sorry..."

Domyoji is drooling. It was like a prosecution and a defendant, but in this case it was a military trial rather than an ordinary court. The sentence is already decided from the beginning, and this exchange is only a ritual.

Munakata acts like he's convinced of something,

"Ok. Let's ask Domyoji-kun to do one of the highlights of the "Sprint Dream Live Tour", "Extreme solo part, Idol from above 6500~”."

"What?"

With a strange voice, Domyoji's expression was frozen in despair. Munakata smiles and touches his shoulder intimately.

"As you know, "Extreme Solo Part" is one of the most popular projects on "Countdown Dissolution, Shoumutai". This time it's a solo part while skydiving from an altitude of 2,000 meters, so his brave figure will be a great copy on the big screen."

"President, please! That's! Just forgive me!"

"What do you say? This is your chance to get more fans. And if you're at the mercy of your life, you won't be late for lessons."

Munakata treats Domyoji, who clings to his eyes, with a smiling smile. The idols are silently staring at the horrible sight.

"Kindness is called haste. Let's start the special training today. Akiyama-kun, Benzai-kun, please take him to the office to complete the procedure."

"Yes!"

The same members of the "Shoumutai", Himori Akiyama and Yujiro Benzai, grabbed Domyoji crying from both sides. Domyoji screams while ruffling his hair.

"Not! I don't like the "Extreme solo part"! Akiyama, Benzai, I am a posterity, so don't miss out!"

"Hold on, Domyoji."

"Oh. Get angry and train. Hopefully you won't die."

Domyoji was dragged out of the Kendo room.

When the door closed, Munakata saw the idols lined up. All the idols looked at Munakata with a better attitude than before.

Munakata says, looking at him with satisfaction.

"Don't be late either. As members of society and as idols who should be a human norm, please respect that."

"Yes!"

The voice of the idols who responded contained a desperate sound.

++++++++++

"Sorry, President! I can't make it on time!"

The driver's scream also contains a desperate sound.

As he listened to him in the backseat, Munakata gracefully reassembled his legs, put his hand to his jaw, and muttered, "Hmm."

"Sprint Dream Live Tour", first day, 4:52 pm.

Munakata's transport vehicle got caught in heavy traffic filling the road and got stuck at all.

Until the day before, Munakata was planning a large-scale live concert in London as part of the overseas expansion of "Promotion Scepter 4". The big picture and charisma of Reisi Munakata, the "Idol King", managed to shake up the stubborn management of the French entertainment world. A few hours ago he won a partnership and a contract in the EU and returned triumphantly to Narita airport.

From the transport vehicle, Munakata continued to instruct the "Sprint Dream Live Tour". Back home. Although he has a difficult schedule of immediate events, he does not have fatigue or mistakes. There was a figure like: the perfect idol king.

It was in the time after Sakura's exchange that the news of the accident and jamming arrived.

Fortunately, no one died, but traffic was completely paralyzed. A line of cars continues towards the horizon, and it takes 30 minutes to finally reach 100 meters. Literally, he was forced into a state of immobility.

If nothing is done, the big event that is approaching a few hours later, will expose the mistake that the "Idol King" will be late.

In such a critical situation, however, there was no impatience in Reisi Munakata's expression.

"Ok."

Munakata says cheerfully to the driver reflected in the rearview mirror.

"I understand the situation. Please, I'll get off at the next intersection."

"But it will take 30 minutes to get there and, according to traffic information, the situation is similar on the lower road."

"It doesn't matter. In the meantime, let's get ready."

Munakata took his PDA out of his pocket and made a call. Munakata's trusted deputy director responded with two calls. It's Awashima Seri.

"Where is he now, President?"

"Currently, we are targeting a four-way interchange. It will take about 30 minutes to get there. I am planning to get out of here."

"That is…"

Awashima groaned. Even if he can get off the four road interchange, it will take more than an hour from there to the location, regardless of the mode of transportation. Since the show started at 6:30 pm, arrival on time is desperate.

After a few seconds of silence, Awashima's voice regained its composure.

"I would like to review the song list. The current program is to start with the president's number at the same time the performance begins, but we will correct this to start from "Shoumutai" and put the president's turn as far back as possible."

"Rejected."

Munakata categorically blocked her.

“Changing the song list will cut the rhythm of the fans. As idols, we shouldn't give fans any kind of anxiety."

"However! If this continues…!"

"I will be on time."

"......"

Awashima lost the words.

He was not surprised by Munakata's recklessness. She knows more than anyone what kind of person Munakata is and what kind of idol he is. He's never the type to talk about the impossible and break the plan.

If Reisi Munakata says that he can do it, he certainly can do it even if all other humans can't.

The next time Awashima opened her mouth, there was a determined intention.

"So, President. Please give us instructions."

A satisfied smile reached Munakata's mouth.

And 30 minutes later.

As soon as all contacts were completed, the transport vehicle passed the toll booth.

The lower street was still full of cars. Since Munakata hated traffic, he analyzed the situation. Progress is not much different from high speed.

However, that is no longer relevant to Munakata.

Because this is the end of the transport vehicle.

When he got out of the vehicle, the driver's seat window was opened. The driver looks from there and says...

"President, I wish you good luck."

Munakata smiled calmly at the young driver.

"Yes. Please drive carefully and come back."

That said, the next moment, Munakata was on the run.

With a forward leaning sprint style, Munakata is steadily increasing in speed. He reached a row of cars that couldn't move like a tombstone, and finally couldn't see his back.

Even after that, the conductor continued to pour his longing eyes beyond the horizon where Munakata disappeared. Holding on his chest the driver's cap that he took off as a sign of respect.

++++++++++

That day, Kazumasa Hatanaka (19) was driving his favorite Hara Chari.

He is in an unprecedented mood because he was able to finish his work early. The construction company he works for has been working hard these days, but yesterday they calmed down and was able to pay him. Hatanaka, who worked especially hard, was allowed to return home as the president had a special plan that day.

Akemi Hatanaka (18), a heavy wife, waits at home. Just thinking about it will loosen the origin of Hatanaka. When he wondered if he could serve his beloved wife and a child he had yet to see, his tired body mysteriously strengthened.

(Oh, that's right. Should I contact her to get back to Akemi soon?)

Suddenly, Hatanaka took out his mobile phone while driving the Hara Chari. He tries to send a message to his wife using one hand to handle and one hand to write.

Was when…

"You…"

"Oh?"

Hatanaka was about to fall due to the noise surrounding his ears. The body, which was about to slalom, was held by an outstretched hand and returned to its original trajectory.

While running to Hatanaka's side, the bespectacled man yells in a soft voice.

"It is a violation of the Road Traffic Law to use a mobile phone while driving."

"Uh, oh, sorry."

“In addition, it has already exceeded the legal speed of motorized bicycles. Wear your helmet correctly. It is meant to protect your life."

"Ah, hey, uh, yeah, sorry."

Hatanaka, who was once feared for being a "Chitaka mad dog", simply admitted his guilt not because he understood the accuracy of the words of the man with the glasses. This is because he was upset and scared by Hara Chari's run and the appearance of a man running side by side on only his own feet.

The man with the glasses smiled at Hatanaka's stunned face.

"Okay. If you follow the law and try to drive safely, you won't make driving mistakes like you do now."

(No, no, I'm going to be mad now because you called me. Do you want them to tell you that driving safely is something like running at that speed?)

The word never left Hatanaka's mouth at last. The man with the glasses raised his hand slightly and said, "Excuse me, bye." and then sped up and disappeared from Hatanaka's sight.

Hatanaka was stunned as he slowed the Hara Chari to 30 km / h.

(Is that so? I wonder if the god of the road advised me...)

There is a yellow light ahead. It stopped at the stop line correctly where it would normally cut, and the director took control.

(From now on, I will drive safely.)

++++++++++

That day, Nami Sakai (6) looked at the giant tree with tears in her eyes.

A blue balloon is stuck in a tree branch. It was in the hands of Nami just a few minutes ago, and in the hands of her beloved grandmother ten minutes ago.

Nami felt like a treasure when she received the blue balloon from her grandmother's wrinkled hand. She would take it home, about 10 minutes on foot, and she rushed to show it to her mother, but she accidentally fell off.

The balloon, which was detached from Nami's hand, floated in the sky and was blown away by the wind. She got trapped in a giant tree.

The giant tree has a height of about 10 meters. The blue balloon got caught near the top. Even if she asked the adults who passed by to take it, they just laughed and shook their heads.

Can't she get it again?

Every time she thought about it, she was filled with regret, sadness and guilt, and it turned into tears and appeared in Nami's eyes.

When the tears were about to break, Nami suddenly noticed something approaching from a distant road.

(Eh?)

In her childhood thoughts, Nami makes such a judgment.

In fact, in the distance it was like a colored wind. If she thinks it were there, it is way ahead. Nami stared at the blue breeze, which flowed without shaking her side, for a while, forgetting her sadness.

Suddenly…

With that wind, the eyes met.

The moment she thought that, he was already in front of her. When he stopped, the wind was not the wind, but a grown man with glasses. The skin is white like a woman and the facial features are beautifully groomed.

For some embarrassed reason, Nami looked down at her toes. The voice of a kind man spills over her.

"Do you have any problem?"

Nami looks at the man.

When she looked into the eyes behind the glasses, she felt like she was being sucked into the deep sky.

Nami opens her mouth to be fascinated.

"I cannot do it."

The man looks at the balloon at the point. Nami looked away and turned down. She was sure this person couldn't do it, and like everyone else, he would laugh and say "Give up", she felt such disappointment in her small chest.

But the man said in a nonsensical tone.

"Please wait a bit."

The man was already kicking the ground when she turned her face away.

He clings to the trunk of the huge tree and climbs up when he's ready. He deftly found the dents and bumps that could be called a steps, and in the blink of an eye he reached the top and took the blue balloon in his hand.

Nami was looking at the man who came down the same way, her mouth hanging open.

"Here it is."

Although he offered her the balloon, she was unable to receive it for a time. Then, finally picking it up, she asked with all her courage.

"Oni-chan... what?"

If you translate those boring words into something that makes more sense, it would mean something like "That move was out of the ordinary, who are you?"

The man accurately grasped the meaning of the question, smiled a little,

"I am an idol."

He responded like this.

Nami didn't really understand what an "idol" was. She blinks and look at the man. With a smile on his face, the man reached into his pocket and handed Nami a card.

"If you grow a little, come see us live."

The words "Promotion Scepter 4, President Reisi Munakata" were written there.

Of course, Nami can't read the card. She doesn’t even know about the existence of a business card. However, she thought the blue-tinted card was beautiful. Blue was Nami's favorite color.

Nami finally remembered what she should say to the man who gave her something nice and got back what she wanted back.

"Thank you."

"You are welcome. Well, I'm going."

The man bowed, turned blue again, and ran down the road.

Nami won't forget him forever.

++++++++++

An hour after the start of "Sprint Dream Live", the heat in the Tsubakimon Dome was visibly increasing. At the same time as the entrance began, a group of fans flowed into the audience seats like a flood, and they began to furnish the place with posters, posters and items with each of the recommended men drawn. At the same time, fans are excited about the upcoming festival and are looking at the stage with shining eyes.

To meet that expectation, a scene similar to a battlefield was unfolding in the backyard of the stage.

"The president has arrived at Shikaido Station! We will move on to Sequence B!"

"The target has been set at point B! We will wait until the president picks it up!"

In the temporary monitor room with the sign "Headquarters for the execution of the president's return plan", a part of the backyard, reports were constantly being raised.

The purpose of this headquarters is to fully support the return of Munakata. The staff involved are elite to make the "return plan" successful, from organizing and contacting various locations, managing the schedule, passing on traffic information and understanding Munakata's current position.

In one of the compounds in the panel, his current position is always displayed by the Munakata PDA tracking system. Awashima asks the staff while looking at them with a tight gaze.

"What is the progress of the plan?"

"It is 2 minutes and 15 seconds late, but it is within expectations. Currently, the Sequence C execution unit is moving. We will get to Point C on time."

"So…"

Awashima occupies a small area and looks at the monitor.

The plan is going well. At this rate, he can be in time for the opening ceremony, even if it's at the last minute. Unless something unexpected happens.

"Deputy Director Awashima."

Awashima looks around in a loose voice, rolling her shoulders.

Fushimi Saruhiko was as if he was leaning against the monitor room door.

He is the star idol of "Promotion Scepter 4", which is the center of the popular "Shoumutai" unit. Many fans were fascinated by the lonely atmosphere, and about 30% of the customers who packed the dome today are looking for him.

Awashima opens her mouth as she calmly looks at Fushimi.

"Fushimi. You should be in the final stages of doing a "Dream Corps."

"If the president is late, there won't be any 'Shoumutai', right?"

Awashima's beautiful eyebrows drew a dangerous angle.

“The plan is on the right track. You do not have to worry about that."

Fushimi laughs. It was an annoying laugh.

"Isn't there a countermeasure in case we run out of the star? Do you really think he can pull it off?"

"What do you mean?"

Fushimi casually pulled his hand out of his pocket and tossed what he was holding to Awashima. Awashima takes it deftly.

It is a recording medium in the form of a micro card.

"If you don't, I will. I made a new list of songs. If the president is late, I will."

Awashima's expression becomes more and more pronounced in a throwing tone. She squeezes the recording medium and she says quietly.

"Do you think I will receive this?"

"If you don't need it, you can throw it away. I can't bear to expose ourselves to that person's mistakes."

Awashima quickly waved her arm and threw the recording medium back.

"President…"

Fushimi deftly accepts that which came back like a bullet. Awashima, looking at the stagnant eyes behind the glasses as if shooting.

"I will not make any mistakes."

"Sorry."

Fushimi shrugged slightly and went back to his place. Looking back at Awashima over his neck.

"Well, tell me if you need it."

With that alone, Fushimi left the monitor room.

Awashima stared at the monitor room door for a while, staring into his eyes. It's like doing it is a protest against Fushimi.

It's not that she doesn’t understand what Fushimi is saying.

Believing is different from believing blindly. Fushimi's view that he assumes the worst and take countermeasures is entirely correct.

However, Awashima did not receive that song list. She refused to even see it and turned around.

She felt that receiving it would be a distrust of Munakata, who had confirmed that he would be on time.

"The president has reached point C! Collection complete!"

"We have started to move! The plan is going well!"

Awashima muttered unknowingly, listening to the reports that came in one after another.

"President, be careful."

Those words were like a prayer.

++++++++++

That day, Yuri Yamazaki (26) was vaguely in front of Shikaido station.

She works in a product store managed directly by "Promotion Scepter 4". It was supposed to be closed today due to the shift, but she got an urgent call from her boss about 5 minutes ago. She had no particular plan, and she was quick to get to this point because she was drawn to a pretty good vacation assignment.

Anyway, Yuri thinks.

It was a strange call. Being with the bicycle in front of the station instead of the store.

Apparently, they told her to lend the bike to someone, but they did not tell him who to lend it to and only told her the time of the meeting. It would be profitable to get a vacation allowance on this alone, but Yuri checks her cell phone while deeply thinking that she would complain if she was forced to do something else.

Seeing the displayed time, she sighed.

The "Sprint Dream Live Tour" will begin soon. Like most idol shop clerks, she is a fan of “Promotion Scepter 4.” She decided to work at an idol shop because she loved idols.

However, just because she is an employee doesn't mean there are benefits. Controls in that area are tight, and the clerk who secretly secured her own live ticket was sometimes ill. She must take the ticket herself, and if the lottery is lost, the schedule may disappear from the vacation she got, just like the current situation.

Two minutes have passed since the specified time.

"I wonder... if he's late, can I contact him?"

She doesn’t know, the murmur leaks out. After 5 minutes, she will contact the store manager. Thinking of that, she suddenly looked up.

And she doubts her eyes.

Someone was running from the street in front of the station, at tremendous speed. He easily overtook the next bike and came closer. Yuri instinctively tried to back away.

However, when she saw the man's face, she doubted her sanity.

"Ah, President?"

What she unwittingly said was the nickname of Reisi Munakata, the representative of "Promotion Scepter 4" and "Idol King". Naturally, it spread from the case where the idols under his command called him "President."

Faced with the stiff lily, Munakata strode over to a halt. He exhales a little and smiles at Yuri.

"Excuse me, are you a store clerk?"

"Eh, yes!"

Her voice shook. Feel the blood of her entire body concentrate on her face. The reason is that Yuri Yamazaki's favorite idol is Reisi Munakata.

Half in panic, she yells out the questions that come to mind.

"But why are you here?! What happened to the 'Sprint Dream Live Tour'?"

"I'm having a little problem and I've taken a different route than normal. Don't worry, I'll be in time for the opening."

She felt as if the blood that had risen through her head was coming down this time.

In other words, it is an emergency. Yuri was a fan and she knew how confusing it would be to be late for the opening ceremony. Perplexity, pain, disappointment. Just imagining being there, the pain felt like its own.

Yuri rushes up and says.

"Is there anything I can do?!"

“Lend me the bicycle. It's enough."

Yuri blushed again. If she thinks about it again, it was probably all part of the plan coming here. It is not a feat for the Munakata representative to give instructions to the directly administered office.

"Please..."

"Thank you."

Munakata straddled the bike without showing any pretense of noticing Yuri's tension. Somehow, it was an unattainable sight. The King of Idols, who can only be seen on TV or on stage, sits astride her bike.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going."

"Oh, yeah!"

Yuri instinctively stopped Munakata who was trying to get out.

Munakata looks at Yuri with his foot on the pedal. She held her breath with a mysterious look.

("Please sign.")

She had to desperately suppress that desire that came to her mind. Hasn’t she just found out it's an emergency? There is no second chance. And yet, unable to say such a silly request, that embarrassment forced Yuri's awkward smile and false words.

"Please do your best. I support you!"

Munakata, however, was looking at Yuri's face with calm eyes that looked through all her smile and strength. Munakata laughed lightly at Yuri, who suddenly became flustered and reached into her pocket.

"What should I write?"

"Eh?"

"I have a pen, but I don't really have colored paper. It's not in good taste with a notepad."

Yuri blinked many times. The feeling of regret, even the time she was wandering and wondering why him could see through her desires made her stiff.

Yuri handed him the PDA she was holding in her outstretched hand to Munakata. With her voice asking "Is it okay here?", she was fascinated by the magically moving pen. She picked up the PDA again, looking at the Munakata signature written there, and it was like a soliloquy.

"Why...?"

"I am an idol."

Munakata's response, as well as their relationship, was open and frozen.

"Idols live up to the expectations of their fans. My job is to capture your expectations."

"......"

"Good luck then. Thank you for your continued support."

With a courteous greeting, Munakata pedaled off the road in no time.

Yuri holds her PDA to her chest while watching him back. She murmured in an emotional voice, promising to turn it into a relic, and she was about to buy a new one.

"President, I will follow you for the rest of my life!"

++++++++++

That day, Yojiro Sato (51) was driving his own high-speed boat and racing in Tokyo Bay.

His main business was fisherman, but he also works as a fishing boat captain as a side job. In any case, the main job is to chase the school of fish, current high-speed boats are used for that purpose.

But today's work was different than usual.

The client was a fishing cooperative and the content of the request was mysterious: "Anyway, I want you to go to Chiba city using a high speed boat." He goes through it several times, but it seems the reason he couldn't get the point was because the fishing cooperative was asked to go further.

Sato accepted it simply because the reward was great. Otherwise, it would not accept suspicious requests.

However, when he passed by the Tokyo Bay Aqualine, he began to regret it.

He doesn't think it's a dangerous story.

It goes without saying that Tokyo is one of the largest cities in the world and Tokyo Bay is a large adjacent port. Many are trying to carry out illegal transactions by sea. Unfortunately, he has heard stories of people involved in such problems at the level of rumors.

He's been through the fishing cooperative, so he doesn't think it's something to worry about.

Even so, a bit of anxiety washed over Sato's mind.

At that moment the radio sounded. When he reached out his hand and responded by reflex, he heard an unfamiliar voice on the back of the radio.

"Hello. Is this Mr. Yojiro Sato?"

It was a feminine and intelligent voice. Sato responds while confused.

"Oh, yeah. That's right."

"Nice to meet you, my name is Seri Awashima. I was the one who made the request."

"Oh, I see."

The confusion disappeared, but Sato pressed his face into place. Listen to Awashima's words, eager to decline the request in the event of an emergency.

"First of all, I apologize for reporting uncertain content to you in the application. I was in a hurry, so I thought about explaining after taking the first step."

"Okay, but what kind of job is this after all? It doesn't appear to be a fishing request."

"Yes. I want you to pick up a certain person."

When suspicion and vigilance increase, he raises his eyebrow. Sato asked in a low voice.

"Who is that? He is not a criminal, right?"

"What, criminal?"

From the other side of the meeting, he could feel the sign that Awashima was completely disappointed. The voice that echoed next seemed to lack a bit of calm, unlike before.

"Incorrect! The president is not involved in such things!"

"Oh, yeah."

At the angry response, Awashima coughed a little.

"No, sorry. It may be inevitable that it looks like this. I would like you to pick up Reisi Munakata, the representative idol of "Promotion Scepter 4"."

While driving, Sato is confused.

"Why do idols want to get on our ship?"

“As I said before, it is an urgent matter. He didn't seem to be in time for a regular water taxi, so I contacted you."

"Hmm... Well, it's okay."

Sato is not familiar with idols. He is simply not interested. From time to time he sees them on television, but to him they all have similar faces and clothes, so he cannot tell them apart.

That sect image is probably one of those idols. No wonder that is used instead of a taxi, but, work is work.

"So where should I pick him up?"

"Please wait a moment. I'll link the information on the president's location to that PDA."

"Eh?"

A second after the stupid voice leaked out, a spot of light lit up on the GPS map attached to the ship. Sato opens his mouth and looks at it moving at high speed on the map.

“Did you get the location? The point that lights up in blue is the current position of the president."

"Yes, I got it."

"Good. Get closer to the point of light. It also shows the next meeting points."

The GPS map reacts again and projects an orange spot of light. It shows a jetty near the beach park, that made Sato panic even more.

"Wait a minute! How did you do that? This is my PDA, right? Why can you operate it on that side?"

"There is no time to lose! I took emergency measures! Rest assured that we have formal permission to use the system!"

"What is that system?"

To Sato's confusion, Awashima doesn't reply. "More than that!" When he started yelling, the blue point of light on the map continued to flash.

“He is approaching the meeting point. Thanks for your cooperation. Awashima, over and out."

And the radio was unilaterally cut off, leaving only Sato who was confused.

The ship curves and begins to move parallel to the shore. Sato alternately compared the map and the coast. If this location is correct, Munakata will soon be in sight.

"Ah."

With that said, he opened his mouth. Someone was there. That's probably definitely Munakata.

From a distance, he can only tell that he is a man. It would have been indistinguishable on its own, but the appearance of a human who could ride a bicycle at a speed comparable to that of a high-speed boat fits this unusual situation perfectly.

"What should I do?"

Sato is a man of the sea. He is confident that he can handle most things that happen at sea. However, he had never imagined such a situation. Sato looked towards the beach while maintaining his speed.

At that moment, Munakata pointed forward.

Sato looks ahead so he can catch it. A jetty leading off the shore blocked the ship's path as it gently curved.

Reflecting a sailor, Sato curves the speedboat along the jetty.

Munakata's bike has picked up speed.

"Hey, it can't be!"

Unknowingly, Sato was screaming. Because he understood the man's thoughts. Because he understood the meaning of "meeting point" that Awashima said on the radio.

The bicycle races down the jetty at a speed that exceeds that of high-speed boats. Sato made the boat's engine run at full speed. It was not because he understood their speculations, but because he thought that, as a man of the sea, he would not be able to stand upright if he was driving a boat and losing to a bicycle.

The bicycle and the speed boat run next to each other for a very short distance.

For the first time, Sato saw Munakata's face.

Munakata was smiling with a clean face in front of him. It was not the expression of a human reaching such high speed on a bicycle. He was horrified. Perhaps this is a monster that seemed to drag him to the bottom of the sea. Even such an imagination took over his head.

Munakata's bicycle leaned over. At the end of the jetty, Sato's high-speed boat drew closer and Munakata jumped with the bicycle with only the spring from his body.

Sato opened his eyes and looked at the figure of Munakata leaping against the sun.

After a short break, Munakata's bicycle landed on the back of the high-speed boat, made a sharp turn, and came to a stop.

"Fu..."

With a sigh, Munakata wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief.

"......"

Sato was just looking at Munakata, who was behaving like a human, with his mouth open.

When he got out and parked at the bicycle rack, Munakata looked at Sato and said with a smile.

"Nice to meet you. Sato Yojiro-san. My name is Reisi Munakata. Thank you for your transportation to the planned location."

Swallowing hard, Sato asks suspiciously.

"You are a human?"

After opening his eyes somewhat surprisingly, he replied with a bitter smile.

"I'm just an idol."

++++++++++

At the Suzugaya sorting yard, Domyoji Andy (19) turned his pale face down and swallowed nausea.

He, who is scheduled to appear on "Sprint Dream Live Tour", is at that location because the Suzugaya courtyard is a helicopter landing site owned by "Scepter 4."

The event titled "Extreme Solo Part, Idol from Above 6500~", is Domyoji's assigned role this time. The event of strumming a guitar solo while skydiving from 2000 meters above the sky is sure to be a great thrill if it succeeds, but it can only be said that it is insane.

For today, Domyoji was repeating a special training every day. In total, it would have fallen enough to reach the surface from the stratosphere. Domyoji said that if he ran for Guinness, he would not pass, and gave a tired smile.

At that moment the door to the waiting room was opened and the staff entered.

"Domyoji-san, please prepare for take-off!"

"Eh?"

His eyes are round. Domyoji looks at the watch as it is. There is still some time left before the live begins. The turn of "Shoumutai", including Domyoji, was supposed to be in the second half of the opening ceremony.

"Is it still early? Was there an accident?"

Anyway, when he got up and left the room with the staff, Domyoji was so quiet. He doesn’t know what kind of problems are waiting in the live presentation. Not only staff but also idols need to take this into account and respond flexibly.

"There is no change to Domyoji-san's appearance time! We are going to pick up the president from now on!"

Domyoji opened his mouth. The staff didn't look back and pushed the door in front of them while walking quickly.

At the landing site, the helicopter was already preparing for takeoff. The high-speed rotating main rotor disperses a roar like a gunshot. Defeating the sound, Domyoji yelled at the back of the staff.

"What happened to the president? That person is surely the interpreter for the opening ceremony!"

“Currently, the president is crossing Tokyo Bay! We'll pick him up at sea and head straight to the Tsubakimon Dome!"

Domyoji is confused. He is crossing Tokyo Bay? He has no idea what the hell is going on. What he knows is that he is about to fly high again.

After sitting on the seat and fixing his body with a harness, Domyoji finally noticed.

"Hey! Don't I need it if I pick up the president?!"

"It's the president's judgment that it's a waste of time to go back every time! After leaving the president in the dome, Domyoji-san will wait in the sky until the time of the "Extreme solo part, Idol from above 6500~”!"

That was brilliant. Wait a minute, he try to tell if he would be flying all the time, but then his body was fixed. Jumping out the rear hatch, the staff gave Domyoji a big thumb up.

"Thank you good luck!"

The hatch closes as he continues. The sound of the rotor increases the pitch. Domyoji's stunned face disappeared into the darkness of the plane.

++++++++++

"The President has arrived at meeting point E! The pickup helicopter that was already waiting has started to approach!"

"Let go of the rope, the helicopter must be very careful!"

"Got it! Let go of the rope! Try to drive safely!"

Brilliant laughter erupted in the monitor room as the pilot made a joke. Private language during the operation should be strictly prohibited, but Awashima felt a slight smile on her lips. This would indicate their high morale. She doesn’t have to worry.

"President, I secured a rope! Start climbing."

"Domyoji, can't you point the CCD camera at the president?"

"Oh, yeah, I'll try."

Domyoji hastily responded to Awashima's voice. After a while, a rough image appears on one of the monitors.

Munakata was about to board the helicopter. Standing in the open hatch, he turns and pays him homage. A high speed boat floating ahead, probably Yojiro Sato, a man who appeared to be the captain took off his hat and waved it.

The expression of the image has been softened.

"President. Thank you for being safe."

On the CCD camera, he sees Munakata smiling.

“Thank you for your hard work, Awashima-kun. Did you worry?"

Awashima shakes her head slowly.

"I wasn't worried."

It was a lie. During these 30 minutes, Awashima has looked at the clock no less than 50 times. It's not because she doesn’t trust Munakata. It is probably due to the weakness of Awashima's heart.

Munakata's deep eyes can even see Awashima's inner heart. Still, she looked directly at her boss and reported on the situation.

"We are on time. If you move at full speed from the current location of the president, it will be enough to reach the inauguration. The president's suit has been brought to the room of the occupant of the helicopter."

"Okay. Let's finish all the preparations on the fly. Has the final landing point I submitted changed?"

"No, there are no changes. The helipad is already in control."

At that moment, one of the monitors lit up red and emitted a warning sound.

"What?"

"I will confirm it!"

Staff operate the console quickly. Awashima holds her breath and stares at the movement.

Finally, the staff raised a strained voice.

“There was a fire at the Tsubakimon Dome Hotel! Looks like an evacuation notice has been issued at the hotel!"

"No!"

“No recommendations have been issued for this place! Deputy Chief, what do we do?"

Impatience melts in her hand. Various thoughts come to mind instantly. How big is the fire? How to accept evacuees? Should the concert be canceled, even if no recommendations have been made? The enthusiasm of the people involved and the fans for this live show is extraordinary. But if something happens to the fans, it is irreparable.

An intelligent voice broke those thoughts.

"Awashima-kun. Confirm the evacuation of the hotel guests."

Raise her face. Beyond the CCD camera, Munakata's rough expression was as calm as if he were sitting at his usual office desk.

Awashima looks at the staff. The personnel turned to the front and quickly returned to operating the console.

Finally, he told the staff in a shocked voice.

"We share the confirmation of the status of the place, but the evacuation of the three guests has not been completed! It seems that we are reconfirming the people who have been in the air and have been evacuated!"

"Three people. That means they are…"

The CCD camera points in the other direction. Seeing that, Awashima took a breath.

Near the window on the smokeless floor. A man and a woman are crouched in a narrow space. The woman appeared to be holding a child.

"The number of people matches. Apparently, the evacuation was delayed."

Awashima looks at the image from the CCD camera. Imagine a tragic future for a family left behind at the scene of the fire and blood gushes from their faces.

And Munakata said of course.

"I am heading to the rescue."

Awashima knew that Munakata would say so. Knowing that, she still screams...

"President! Don't do it!"

Domyoji's camera captures Munakata's face. Munakata wasn't looking there. He murmured, looking serious at the scene of the fire, perhaps putting together another thought.

"Awashima-kun. About us?"

"Ah..."

The answer to that was fixed. Awashima squeezed her hand so tightly that her nails dug into her palm.

"We are... idols...!"

"What kind of person is an idol in "Promotion Scepter 4"?"

"Our goal is to be the ideal human who should be a role model for people."

Munakata looked at Awashima with a teacher's gaze, watching over the poor students who gave the correct answer.

"So that's it."

"Huh!"

Munakata goes to the scene of the fire. Although he is an idol, he is only a human. There is no guarantee that he will be able to return safely, so the worst consequences may await him in the future.

And, while looking at the worst, taking steps to prevent it from happening is also a condition of being an ideal human.

Awashima said that decisively when she took a little breath, exhaled and was ready to do it.

“We will contact the various parties involved in the handling of this incident and request assistance in rescue activities. I pray for your safety, President."

Behind the camera, Munakata nodded slightly.

Fushimi Saruhiko clicked his tongue as he leaned his back against the wall.

If Munakata's decision was stupid, Awashima, who followed him, could only be seen as a fool. He are an ideal person and he are trying to ruin his job by getting caught up in an additional idea. Fushimi's frank opinion is that, it is the role of rescuers to help the victims, and that is why they have to get rid of that work.

But he will never reveal it. At least not yet.

It only deals with possible situations.

Makes a call from his PDA. The other party came out with a ringing sound. Before they say something to him there, speak up.

“Akiyama, I got a job. Call the members of the 'Shoumutai'."

While saying that, Fushimi turned away from the wall and quickly headed to the end of the hall.

++++++++++

That day, Maki Arakawa (29) was visiting the Tsubakimon Dome hotel with her husband Takashi Arakawa (32) and their son Daichi Arakawa (0).

That day was Maki and Takashi's third wedding anniversary. The Dome Hotel was the place where Takashi proposed to Maki, and it was customary for the couple to visit this place on their anniversary every year.

With a new family member who is less than a year old, Maki and Takashi huddled together and wanted a night view from the living room. Takashi leans into the champagne and Maki leans into the non-alcoholic sparkling wine, looking at each other with a smile. In Maki's arms, Daichi, who had just fallen asleep, was giving a silent sigh.

A little compliment to a family that usually leads a modest life. Still, Maki was happy enough until the explosion happened.

The moment the explosion caught her, Maki was thrown to the ground with her husband.

When she woke up, her head was covered in black smoke.

"Daichi?"

The first thing that came to mind was the safety of her son. Looking down into her arms with a pale feeling, Daichi was still asleep. It was just a moment of relief, and he was soon filled with smoke-colored anxiety.

"What the hell?"

There was no way to answer that question. Her husband has wandered off a bit. He appears passed out, bleeding from his head. When she saw him, she was terrified that his heart would stop, but at least he seemed to be breathing.

Maki crawls closer to her husband, feeling pain glowing throughout her body. There seems to be a fire somewhere between the black smoke that comes in and the heat that burns the skin. That fact irritated Maki and made her reach out her hand.

"Get up."

The husband does not respond. Maki raised her face slightly and looked around her.

There is no one but them.

Is it after everyone has evacuated? Have they been left behind? Even if she gets lost, she does not know where to go and cannot leave her husband. It was decided that she cannot take him or her son on her own.

Fear and anxiety clench Maki's throat.

She takes the PDA out of her pocket and touches the emergency number. However, Maki herself wasn't sure how much it meant. The fear that surrounds her is getting stronger. Even if the rescue team is dispatched from now on, will they arrive in time?

"Yes, what happened?"

Communication has been opened. Maki squeezes the words out of her throat that moisten her body.

“Please help, please help. Please, please."

Unless this child is saved.

The moment he muttered a sentence-like word in a weak voice, a roar deafened Maki's ear.

A helicopter appeared outside the living room, behind a glass window.

A high-speed rotating rotor disperses a bombardment sound and the strong wind moves in the opposite direction. The helicopter tilted slightly and a sliding door pointed into the living room. Maki saw with wide eyes that a man with glasses was standing in the place that had already been opened.

It was not a rescue team. She knew it at a glance. After all, clothes are different. She had never heard of a rescue team dressed in such white, flowing clothing. It has beautiful bright colors and is like the clothes that idols wear.

The man with the glasses laughs smartly when he sees Maki. Then jump out the sliding door with a run.

"......"

Maki loses her words and watches over the elaborate suicide scene. From the PDA that fell to the ground, a Fire Service official said, "What happened? Please respond!" She heard a scream, but couldn't react. That was not the case.

The man crossed his arms, jumped high and rough, through the window, rolled across the living room floor, and landed brilliantly.

He balanced on his right foot, left knee, and right palm, and lifts his face to look at Maki.

Then he said with a smile.

"Hello."

"Ah, hello."

Barely responding, the man approached slowly, keeping low.

Behind him, there was a figure that jumped in the same way. He rolls on a glass covered floor, jumps and screams.

"Gak! The glass stabs me!"

“Domyoji-kun, continue with the preparations immediately. Be careful not to inhale smoke."

"Yes! President Munakata!"

When the man named Munakata approached Maki, he lifted his body, turned it forward, and began to wrap something.

"Oh, that...?"

“We will get away from this. Please hold your son firmly."

The soft voice in her ear soothed Maki's fear. She hugged her son tightly and, through her armpits, Munakata fixed a harness on Maki's body.

Munakata looks back and calls out to Domyoji, who is also wrapping the husband in a harness.

"Are you ready?"

"Well, somehow!"

Domyoji nods wrapping her weakly passed out husband around his body with a harness. When Munakata turned around, he turned his smart eyes towards Maki.

"Don't worry, I'll get you to safety immediately."

Somehow, however, she had an unpleasant sensation.

Maki looks out the window with her harness wrapped up. She sees the back of a helicopter that was going very far away. Maki asks, swallowing hard.

"Isn't that the one you ride?"

"Unfortunately, the emergency exit leading to the helipad is blocked by fire. Landing is difficult and jumping from here to the helicopter would not be possible with you in tow."

The question of what to do then did not need to be asked.

Munakata walks over to the broken window while tying Maki and Daichi to himself. The trampled piece of glass rings. A strong wind from the high sky blew and caressed Maki's cheeks forcefully.

The Tsubakimon Dome can be seen below. She wonders if he was doing some kind of live performance, and she could see the crowded seats even from such a high place.

Munakata looks at her calmly and has a soft voice.

"And we have less than five minutes to get started. This is the only way to get there on time."

She is not sure what you are talking about, but she understands what "this method" means. Maki looks towards Munakata with tears in her eyes.

"I'll ask you just in case, you've done it before, right?"

Munakata responds with a smile on his face.

"I read the manual."

Maki tried to resist, but her hands were empty and only scratched the air. Maki, who was shaking, saw that she could no longer understand the language, Munakata placed the sole of the shoe on the window frame.

Smooth to the end, Munakata says the last sentence.

"Ok, let's go."

"Hm..."

She can't say wait a minute.

Munakata was a man who executed words. A second after he said that, he had already jumped from a height of 100 meters above the ground with Maki and Daichi.

++++++++++

Basically the longer it takes to fall, the faster it will fall.

Its formula, commonly known as gravitational acceleration, is 9.8 m / s, and a rough calculation consumes a height of about 100 meters in less than 5 seconds. Knowing that, it's probably a bit more serious. She would have resisted.

Fortunately, the fear fainted her and it did not interfere with Munakata's work.

At the time of take-off, Munakata quickly opened the parachute. Munakata experienced a free fall for a time until the acceleration died due to air resistance.

At the sound of the wind, Munakata heard laughter.

Suddenly the baby was laughing in his arms. He wondered if he was enjoying the fall, and while hearing a laughing little voice, Munakata was laughing too.

"It's fun? It may be common for you."

The parent's "up and down" game and the current situation may not change much for this child. With that in mind, Munakata precisely operates the parachute.

Air resistance travels through the harness and squeezes Munakata's body. Munakata looked at the Tsubakimon Dome below, while reducing the burden on mother and child as much as possible. Already in his direction, the dome has been opened to reveal the stage.

"President, please respond. Let us know the current situation!"

Awashima's voice echoes from the device close to the ear. Munakata responds to that.

"This is Munakata. We are currently gliding about 70 meters from the earth's surface. We will proceed to land on stage."

In the center of the stage is a circle of bureaucracy, the end of today's sprint. There are 2 minutes and 47 seconds until the start. The image of landing, taking off the parachute, and entering the performance has already been created in Munakata's mind.

"No problem. Everything is fine. Awashima-kun, let's meet up on stage sleeve!"

At the image of Munakata, a sudden gust of wind disappeared.

"Yes!"

Before thinking of anything, Munakata had to devote all his energy to controlling his posture. The parachute, which was about to rotate like a cone, was operated with one hand like a hot kneading jumper, and in the worst case it prevented a free fall due to the disappearance of air resistance.

"President? What did you do?"

Awashima screamed at the anomaly.

"Well, it's not a big deal. I was exposed to the wind from the building and my posture was altered for a moment. The check was completed, but there is a problem."

"What kind of problem is it?"

“The current gust of wind has blown me off the field a lot. If nothing is done, we will land in the audience seats."

Awashima took a deep breath.

Due to the gust of wind, the chances of landing on stage were nil. A similar gust of wind might bring the whole picture back to the landing course, but it's like waiting for a miracle. It was the role of the believer, not the role of the idol, to hold onto heaven with prayer.

Munakata ponders as he spins in the air.

He cannot get off in the audience seats. No action can be taken that could compromise the safety of the public. Not only Munakata himself, but even the metal parachute hardware cannot be dropped on the heads of fans.

So there is only one way left.

"We will take a landing course outside of the dome. We won't be in time for the performance, but we can't help it."

Awashima squeezed out a rough voice.

"Come here."

Until now, Munakata has been racing to get to the performance on time and not disappoint the expectations of the fans. It is not unfortunate that the effort turns into a bubble.

However…

Munakata stroked the baby's hair, giggling happily at his mother's breast, with his fingertips.

"Don't be sorry. We are idols. Those who seek the best. But if that doesn't come true, we can choose the next best option."

"President..."

Awashima's voice has a bitter resignation.

But she was also an idol. Awashima starts working after dispelling it in an instant.

"I get it. Immediately, personnel will be sent to the outside of the cupola, and the president, the mother and the child will be immediately collected. Even if the delay is unavoidable, it should be as short as possible."

"Yes. Thank you."

A sudden voice interrupted Munakata who was about to approve the decision.

"It's not like that."

Munakata slightly opened his eyes.

He can't be wrong, it was the voice of Fushimi Saruhiko, the center of "Shoumutai".

"What are you doing?"

"Please be quiet, Assistant Principal. President, there is no need to change course. 2 minutes to start. If so, it is time to do so."

"What?"

"Akiyama, do it."

With Fushimi's command as the trigger, a sight of pure white spread under his eyes.

It was a huge cloth that completely covered the audience seats at the Tsubakimon Dome. The pure white fabric that glows under the light has a blue dyed stamp in the center. That's the emblem of “Promotion Scepter 4”, the flag of the idol that they should be proud of.

"Now you don't have to worry about landing in the audience. Please come down quickly. The stage is set!"

Watch the scene and listen to the words.

A powerful smile appeared on Munakata's mouth.

"I get it."

Then she slowly descends towards the emblem of his proud "Promotion Scepter 4".

++++++++++

"Huh... someone..."

In a park located outside the Tsubakimon Dome, Domyoji Andy was trapped in a tree and called for help with a weak voice.

The rescued person, tied in front, fainted slightly. After all, he never woke up during the drop or after the landing. He doesn't think there is any difference in life, but he wants to be rescued as soon as possible and taken to the hospital. It's about time Domyoji's shoulders scream from their weight.

"Oh, Domyoji-san! You were in a place like this!"

At that moment, a light illuminated Domyoji's face with a voice of salvation.

They were the staff of "Scepter 4." It looks like he was holding a ladder and looking around the dome. Domyoji mutters through tears when he sees them preparing for rescue.

"Hail me..."

Domyoji, who was saved several tens of seconds later, asked the staff with a deep sigh.

“No, what happened to the president? Did he do it on time?"

"Yes! It seems that with Fushimi-san's ingenuity, he was able to make it in time for the performance! It seems that he is performing well as of now!"

The staff deftly pulled out the PDA which projected a live image.

6:23 pm. The stage lights go out and the noise from the audience seats quickly subsides. For example, fans' expectations, enthusiasm and excitement increase.

The silence of passion, as if you could see it.

A suddenly glowing spotlight pierced the darkness.

In the center of the stage was a man crouched with one knee raised. He is dressed in a beautifully decorated suit and holds a microphone in his slim hands. There is not a single mistake or a single wrinkle in his clothes. The ideal idol is that person, the Idol King who was there.

Those in the audience, behind the television who are watching him, probably don't know how he got to that stage. Munakata must say that it is also the idol's responsibility not to report it.

As soon as the song started, Munakata looked up. A confident smile. An act that can be said to be solemn. Take a fixed turn and start singing.

Domyoji laughed impressively as he watched the fans' enthusiasm explode.

"I'm glad. He is on time."

"Yeah, I'm glad."

The staff laughs too. Only they know how many difficulties Munakata had to go through to be in that place. These difficulties have finally been overcome and the goal has come true.

"Well then, I'm ready too."

Domyoji says that, shaking his head. He also has a major role in the "Extreme solo part, Idol from Above 6500~". For that, he has to go back to heaven.

The staff stopped Domyoji's back.

"Domyoji-san, it's very difficult to tell... but Domyoji-san's part is gone."

"Eh?"

The staff scratched their heads at Domyoji, where their eyes became a point.

“It seems that it is impossible to take off on time because the helicopter has run out of fuel on the previous flight. Therefore, we will reproduce the PV of the album released next week as a replacement for the emergency. That was decided."

Domyoji froze and said...

"What is that? Has all my special training so far been for naught?"

Look at the facial expressions of the staff, quietly but surely.

"What is that? Aaaaaaaaaah!"

Domyoji's scream echoed around the outer edge of the dome.