#Ginger the clown at this point

[vintagepresley]

Can Ginger Alden just stop? She’s trying so hard to discredit Lisa and her story over one little thing about her not being liked. Why are you still going??? Then asking your niece who was there when Elvis died if what Lisa said was true of what she recounted. As if another child’s memory of that day is more trustworthy than Lisa’s. Like what the fuck.

[sprout-battlecats]

longtail

[karamell-sweetz]

number one is the only one! 🌟

[corkinavoid]

DPxDC Police Officer Wes

"Excuse me, sorry, Mr. Batman, sir!"

That's definitely not a voice he knows. Bruce halts in his steps, aborting his usual retreat into the shadows, and turns back around. Commissioner Gordon, who was still in the process of wrapping up his small talk with Tim - the term 'grumpy banter' would describe their conversation more accurately at this point, but Bruce knows better than to argue with the two over semantics - also turns around, pausing in the middle of the sentence.

A ginger haired boy, wide-eyed and obviously either nervous, starstruck, or both, is staring at him from a few feet behind the Commissioner. Bruce can see a few more faces peeking from behind the half-opened door to the roof, all of them filled with anticipation. He knows two of them: detectives that work directly under Gordon, Isaiah Vasquez, and Tasha Kuznets. The third one, a black man in his forties, also looks vaguely familiar, but Bruce can't recall a name.

Yet, he knows absolutely nothing about the ginger, who hasn't blinked once since Bruce noticed him and is now biting on his lips. But he is wearing a police uniform, so, possibly, a new hire?

"Weston, get out," Jim sighs, waving a shooing hand at the boy with a look of barely concealed exasperation on his face. Definitely a new hire, then. That's the level of annoyance he reserves only for the overachieving rookies that he begrudgingly likes but never admits to.

"I-" newly named Weston starts but cuts himself off. Then, he takes a deep breath and straightens up, "Just one question, sir!"

"Weston, I swear to God," Commissioner pinches the bridge of his nose, lifting his glasses up a bit. But Tim tilts his head to the side, looking in the ginger's direction and raising his eyebrows. His domino mask hides it, but Bruce knows his menagerie of kids well enough to see that he is at least a bit curious about the boy. So he turns back around fully and inclines his head, giving Weston his attention. He doesn't mind talking with those rare few members of GCPD that Gordon likes.

Weston perks up like a very eager dog at the sight of a treat. In the contrast lighting of the BatSignal, his hair looks like it's on fire.

"If you don't mind, was the 'Smiling case' relevant to Joker in any sense?" The boy asks, loud and clear - maybe even too loud - with his unblinking gaze still glued to Bruce. Like he is afraid that if he closes his eyes for a moment, Gotham's vigilantes are going to disappear without a trace.

It's not a question Bruce expected, to be honest. The 'Smiling case' was closed just a few days ago, Gordon was still not done with the paperwork, as far as Oracle's records went. A murder of three, where all victims had some badly drawn clown makeup on them - post-mortem makeup, as it turned out, the murderer tried to deceive the investigation by trying to cover it up as Joker's doing. Only, he didn't do a good job at it, all the Bats were way too familiar with the Mad Clown's signature style. Not to mention that Joker was still securely sealed in his Arkham cell.

Bruce turns to look at Red Robin. He was the one working on the case, so Bruce gives him the choice of answering or not. Tim jerks his shoulder, looks the ginger boy up and down, and then shakes his head.

"Aside from a poor attempt at leading the investigation in the wrong direction, no, it wasn't," Tim shrugs, "The guy isn't even a Gothamite, he knew of Joker only from the rumors and media. And the clown faces were a makeshift cover-up."

Weston visibly deflates at the answer. Bruce watches in a slight amusement as Tasha nudges the other officer, one he doesn't remember the name of, in the shoulder, and stage-whispers, "Pay up." The older man huffs and disappears behind the door, followed by Isaiah.

"Thank you, Mr. Red Robin," Wesley nods politely and takes a step back, his eyes darting to Gordon. Tim snorts a laugh but doesn't correct him. Commissioner, though, gives the boy a long, dreadful sigh.

"Is that all, officer Weston?" He asks, not even bothering to hide his 'tired dad' voice.

The ginger nods again, "Yes, Commissioner Gordon."

"Then get out of my sight before I make all your shifts double," Jim commands, and Weston nearly runs back to the door with a speed that makes Bruce involuntarily think of speedsters. Must be the red hair.

Tim turns to look at the Commissioner right as the door to the roof slams shut behind both Weston and Kuznets.

"Who is he?"

Bruce is also a bit curious now. New recruits in the GCPD are nothing out of the ordinary, but Jim seems to know this one personally, and Kuznets, who is one of his trusted detectives, seems to also like the officer.

Gordon briefly huffs and stuffs his hands in the pockets of his coat. It's quite chilly today; Bruce makes a mental note to switch everyone to their more insulated suits. Scarecrow is currently out on the loose. It won't do any good if any of the Bats went down with a cold.

"Wesley Weston, fresh out of the Academy," Commissioner sighs, but, somehow, Bruce gets the impression it's not a sound of simple exasperation over a new officer eager to prove himself. Jim proves his assumptions by looking around the shoulder to make sure the door to the roof is still closed, and continuing, "Born and raised in the middle of nowhere, Illinois, but GCPD was his first choice. He explained it as having a few friends living in the city, which, unfortunately, proved to be right."

Bruce frowns and grunts, alarm bells ringing in his mind. Deliberately choosing to work in Gotham despite not being from here can be caused by many reasons, and nearly none of them are good reasons.

"Unfortunately?" Tim inquires suspiciously, also with a slight frown, but Jim waves them both off.

"No, he's got nothing to do with any of the criminals. It was the first thing I checked when he mentioned 'friends'. If anything, he's quite on the opposite; he'd make a great detective one day, what with his countless conspiracy theories, determination and the insane urge to dig up every single detail known to mankind," he laughs a bit, and Bruce notices a slight, teasing twinkle to the Commissioner's eyes behind his glasses. "On his second day here, the boy went and plain told me he knows that Batman is Bruce Wayne and that he's saying that because he knows I know and he is aware we're working together."

The alarm bells in Bruce's mind turn into sirens. They never discussed the matters of Bats' real identities with Gordon - Bruce had his suspicions that the man knew it and simply kept his status quo. In all fairness, James Gordon didn't make it to Gotham's Commissioner by sheer dumb luck, so all the Bats kind of expected him to figure it out one day.

But Jim knowing who's behind the cowl is one thing. A new, out of town officer is quite another.

"What did you answer?" Tim asks with an easy smile, but Bruce sees the barely noticeable tension in his shoulders.

Gordon nearly grins, "I didn't believe him, which turned out to be exactly what he expected. He also told me of some kind of a familial curse - he called it 'Cassandra's curse', I believe you're aware of what it means. And then, when I naturally expressed my doubts, proceeded to show it in action. Believe me, it works. Sometimes, it even works too well," the man looks to the side with an amused huff, "That's why officer Weston is strictly prohibited from voicing his opinions on any of the ongoing cases outloud. Detective Kuznets almost missed some critical evidence because of his input once."

Cassandra's curse, Bruce has heard of that saying before. Granted, he never thought it could be a real thing, and he is not intending on starting now, not before he investigates the matter thoroughly. But he does trust Jim - years and years of working together would do that to people - so he simply nods in understanding, leaving the matter of supernatural aside for now.

"What about his friends?" Red Robin asks again, and that causes Gordon to wince momentarily.

"That, I believe, was the cause of his performance just now. One of his friends runs an occult shop, and the other one loves to hang around our forensic scientists and coroners occasionally," the man waves their immediate frowns off again, "I don't go into the morgue often, but I heard he's good at finding out the causes of death by a few looks at the body. And they run a lot of bets between them three," Jim shrugs nonchalantly, "The last one was about the 'Smiling case', I take it."

"Any reason to worry about them?" Bruce can't help but ask. It's not unusual for people to be weird in this city, and running an occult shop and hanging out with pathologists are not exactly reasons to go through background checks when they've got much more pressing issues on their plate. Namely, Scarecrow: it's been more than a week since his escape, but none of the Bats have heard anything about him yet. Oracle is already busy enough with that and the current uprise of gang activity in the Narrows, there's no point in piling even more work on her shoulders just because of some gossip that rubs Bruce the wrong way.

Gordon, thankfully, doesn't take his question lightly and pauses, scratching his chin.

"No," he finally concludes after some thought, "They are a bit strange for non-Gothamites, I'll say that, but in terms of this city? They are no stranger than my neighbors from upstairs." Gordon doesn't tell them to leave it alone, Bruce notices. However, it's probably not because of any doubts he has; the Bats just have a habit of tripplechecking everything anyways, and who would know that better than Jim Gordon?

A quick glance to Tim proves Bruce's thoughts. Red Robin, despite the mask, looks thoughtful. How many cases is he already working on, seven? Bruce makes another mental note to ask Alfred to cut his caffeine intake. It might be a bit hypocritical of him, what with his own plans to send a few messages to JLD about the 'Cassandra's curse', but Bruce excuses himself as the adult in the family.

Commissioner Gordon clears his throat.

"Do you want me to turn around so you can make your mysterious escape, or-" he starts, but both vigilantes are already gone by the time he finishes, "-or not, okay."

[carouselunique]

Here you go!

Bonus Explanations for the Elements:

I treat the Elements as the values being the same throughout it's just how the bearers choose to interpret those values is how they end up being defined. In a sense the original Mane Six and the Swap Six all have similar values but express them somewhat differently.

Roseluck: Element of Inspiration - Rose inspires others to be their best selves, she is inspired to strive toward her dreams through her friendships and wants to pay that forward.

(Element of Generosity - Rarity focuses on what she can give to others while Rose focuses on bringing out what one already has.)

Ditzy Doo: Element of Cheer - Ditzy always delivers a smile, a cheesy mail joke, a wing to lean on, a feathery shoulder to cry on so you can feel better, someone to remember you and make you feel seen etc. She makes others feel lighter and cheerier and that cheer spreads to others in a domino effect!

(Element of Laughter - Ditzy doesn't mainly focus on laughter the way Pinkie does because she believes not everyone needs a laugh to feel cheer. Pinkie is more of a clown type while Ditzy is, well, more of a motherly type)

Sea Swirl: Element of Trust - If you put your trust into Sea, she won't let you down. She is honest sort, even if you sometimes have to take a leap of faith that you aren't sure about at first. Sea will uphold your belief in her with a trustworthiness that makes you want to be someone that others trust as well.

(Element of Honesty - AJ treats her Element as a very literal value while Sea doesn't feel the need to say every true thing outloud, more that you know that she is someone who's words and actions you can inherently trust even if she isn't always literally honest.)

Ginger Gold: Element of Integrity - No matter what ambitions Ginger has, she will always have the integrity to stick by her friends and family and do the right thing. Her integrity and willingness to do what's right by those she cares for no matter what even at the cost of her own goals makes everyone around her a little more honorable in turn.

(Element of Loyalty - It's nearly the same here more just that in my head, Rainbow will be loyal to her friends because they're her friends while Ginger Gold will have integrity because it is something she believes one should just always have and by having that she can be loyal to her friends - not to say one is more noble than the other, that is just how they see it if they're asked to really define it.)

Sunny Rays: Element of Empathy - Sunny is, as her name suggests, as warm as the sun. She is soft and understanding and empathetic and seeing everyone as being worth a chance at being seen and their issues felt allows everyone a kinder view of situations.

(Element of Kindness - Sunny Rays sees empathy as different than kindness, especially as she develops. She can have empathy and not always be kind as someone might see it and someone can be kind but not understand the point of view through an empathetic lens and therefore be kind but not empathetic. Of course it's a struggle to balance how to be kind and empathetic or when kindness has to stop because you know it is hindering your understanding of a situation, etc.)

Minuette: Element of Friendship - Her friendship brought the group together and allowed them to share their best values with each other and her realization that you should make time not just for academic exploration and what we can discover but for the cultivation of emotional and social development and that we need our connections with others to be truly happy helps other realize what truly counts.

(Element of Magic - In my head, Twilight calls it Magic because she believes that Friendship is a form of Magic a flaw that shows up in the later seasons where friendship is treated as something inherent and almost religious in a sense? At least to me? While Minuette believes that the Magic comes second to the Friendship and can only occur if one works on Friendship and treats the Magic of Friendship as something you work at and feel more than it is literal magic.)

[anatomical-puppet]

HAPPY HALLOWEEN it’s spooky wonders time >:) decided to put my special interest to use and draw them all as horror characters!

[characters belong to @abd-illustrates]

further elaboration on my choices and general rambling under the cut!!

alastor: patrick bateman. man i don’t even know 😭 it was the first thing i thought of and then i physically could not think of anything better. and also it made me giggle. annoying wealthy white guy, checks out enough for me. i don't think he'd like huey lewis and the news tho

dock: leatherface. i mean c'mon, he had to be leatherface. i did actually briefly consider making him pinhead because of the black leather and the fixation on pain and all that, but leatherface felt more correct. gave him the sledge because i was NOT drawing two fucking chainsaws for this. absolutely not

lorelei: carrie white. largely went with vibes on this one ngl. lorelei's obviously not nearly as sympathetic as carrie lmao, but i thought the haunted stare and the scary telekinetic powers fit for her :) also i kinda just wanted to draw her covered in blood . shrug

bandy: chucky. listen i wanted to make him a horror clown SO bad but none of them felt right :( wanted to make him a killer klown from outer space but they're so bootnasty looking and it wouldn't have carried well, and then i was debating making him tim curry pennywise but it just didn't connect well in my head. so now he's chucky :) ginger little asshole. the batteries being swapped into his hand was supposed to be a reference to the scene in the first child's play where karen realizes chucky doesn't have any batteries in, i thought that was fun. i also desperately wanted to make him the djinn from wishmaster but that was not gonna work out so i didn't even bother entertaining the concept fhdsjfhdjs

diana: pearl. country gal !!! also just thought she'd look soooo pretty in that red dress from the end, and i think pearl's energy in the scene where she's chasing mitsy felt sufficiently dianacore. diana isn't that manic obviously but u get the point. i want her to feed someone to an alligator!!!

lance: ash williams. the stupid fuckboy energy is PALPABLE, i think lance would absolutely get up to some goofy evil dead 2 hijinks omg are u kidding me. also i think if you told him that having a chainsaw hand was an option he would cut his own hand off immediately

[barelymaddy]

Sun Sign Observations☀️

!These are based purely on my interractions with the signs.Some people might not relate due to different chart placements,but i tried to incorporate the things i noticed overall in people with certain sun signs!

Aries Sun

-Chill but hyper at the same time -usually has light colored eyes

-a bit childish

-independent

-hard-worker(usually good grades)

-pretty popular

-friendly

-funny AF

-loud

-a bit intimidating

-gets into a lot of accidents

-messy and impulsive

Taurus Sun

-very calm

-low-key crazy

-hopeless-romantic

-cute

-artistic

-unbothered

-very stubborn

-accepting

-gives good advice

-usually from a wealthy background

-mommy issues

Gemini Sun

-the most popular in their group of friends

-usually has light-colored hair(have dyed their hair a lighter color at least once)

-charming

-smart

-usually part of a fandom

-cool(does a lot of random stuff)

-moody

-very skilled at what they do

Cancer Sun

-introverted

-intimidating

-anger-issues

-coddling

-not afraid to cut a bitch

-private

-protective

-kinda bitchy

-likes to gossip

-mommy

-likes mind-games

-cute but deadly

Leo Sun

-Usually pretty confident

-friendly

-high-key crazy

-very open

-charismatic

-wants to be rich

-a lot of flings

-dramatic

-has a lot of crazy stories

-very dead inside

-likes to flirt

-very attached to their families in some way

Virgo Sun

-is sick almost all the time

-chaotic

-obsessed with order(hyper-fixated on the way they organize their stuff)

-quiet at first

-tired 24/7 but on those rare occasions they're not,they are very fun

-gets along with everyone(does not like everyone)

-dorky

-pets and plushies💚

-very pretty(a lot of them have red/ginger hair lol)

Libra Sun

-appears to be very fake at first.👀 -pretty

-looks younger than they are

-likes aesthetics and is very trendy

-artistic

-devil's advocate

-just

-bad liar

-caring

-has a lot of love problems(failed relationships)

-very accepting(nothing can phase them at this point)

-secretly hates everybody

Scorpio Sun

-dark aesthetic

-edgy

-superiority complex

-smart

-extroverted introvert

-tendency towards rock/metal -opinionated

-intimidating

-good listener

-great intuition

-likes to tease their friends and crush

-owns a cat

Sagittarius Sun

-looks like a golden retriever(idk why y'all keep saying horse)

-z o o m i e s

-class clown

-fuckboy vibes

-unstable

-has dark secrets

-funny

-attractive

-proud(more than leos)

-impulsive

-anger-issues

-runs away from their problems -introverted extrovert

-not good at dressing up(most of them)

-can be a bit of a bully sometimes

-likes to gossip

Capricorn Sun

-ambitious but lazy(dunno)

-tired AF

-smart

-has lots of responsabilities

-sarcastic(and funny)

-intimidating

-chill

-very low-key

-your dad

-"i'm not mad,im just dissapointed"(is mad)

-prefers darker/neutral aesthetics

-reliable

-direct

-diplomatic

-very stubborn and hard to please

Aquarius Sun

-introverted extrovert

-very silly and chaotic

-"doesn't do emotions"(cries in secret)

-funny

-talks in an odd manner

-nerdy

-creatve

-misunderstood genius

-pretty,stubborn

-tech-savvy

-poker-face

Pisces Sun

-dreamy

-distracted

-can be very stand-offish

-escapist

-⚠️TW:could be dealing with addictions

-surfer vibes

-has particular topics they know a lot about

-more introverted

-knows and has many secrets

-artistic

-silent but deadly

[gingerlee-holds]

The Puppet Master, Part 2

The long, long awaited sequel! This one is brutal heehee so if you prefer gentle twords, read my other fics for that! But a very very flustered cutie has been waiting for this for a loooong time, and who am I to deny her what she needs heehee!! I hope you enjoy!!

Written for @featherfoxx, thank you to @devious-bliss for the inspiration!

Word Count: 2,953 Reading Time: About 12 minutes Warnings: hand restraints, feet twords, hard tickling, implied mind magic

Before we begin, keep in mind that this is a reader self-insert! Now, without further ado, let me tell you how exactly you were tworded to fucking bits heehee

All that night, you blushed and squirmed through tickly dreams. You awoke at multiple points throughout the early morning hours, curled up in a ball, blushing and sweating from a ruthless puppet master playing with your subconscious. No matter what you did to distract yourself, it seemed like that pesky little magician snuck back in to ensure you hadn’t forgotten how ticklish and vulnerable you were. Squirming around and holding your favorite stuffed animal over your bright red face, it felt like this had been intentional; that sneaky puppeteer had delicately wrapped your mind in her yarn, and ever since you had visited her, you felt that yarn occasionally pulled on, filling your head with flustering, tickly thoughts. You, of course, had no way of proving this - as it was most likely your imagination making it worse for yourself - but the idea that the ginger in the purple suit had somehow fiddled with your brain was enough to fill you with a playful determination.

After the third wake-up, still kind of feeling the fuzzy ears of a fox puppet around your collarbone, you were resolved. ‘That’s it! She’s not getting away with this!’ you thought to yourself. ‘I refuse to be her plaything!’ And having made up your mind to acquire retribution, you spent the rest of the night hatching a bold plan: you would catch her by surprise and give that pesky magician a taste of her own medicine!

After a night fraught with ghostly pokes and phantom scribbles, dawn came at last, and you arose with a fire in your soul, burning for vengeance. Quickly throwing on a band t-shirt and some jorts, you grabbed a makeup brush, a spool of your bright red yarn, a few fuzzy feathers, and - grinning evilly - a brand new electric toothbrush, setting it all into a backpack along with a few water bottles. You put on some sandals and set off toward the park. You were ready.

The carnival had just opened when you arrived, which, in a way, was much more amusing than you had anticipated. A yawning attendant gave you a bag of crackerjack for free, chuckling and saying he “can’t be bothered finding the receipt printer.” You almost burst out laughing when you saw someone in clown makeup scrolling through their phone while dressed in street clothes. The carnival in the morning reminded you of a college student - wild and carefree, partying with reckless abandon into the night, only to be rudely awakened the following morning to set it all up again. It’s no coincidence that the circus visiting your town was primarily staffed by college-aged folks.

Nevertheless, you soon found the tent you were looking for. The purple and green tent looked just as cozy as it had the night before, but the sign in front differed. It read: “The Puppet Master Returns Tonight @ 6! You won’t want to miss it!” Instead of being pulled invitingly open, the tent flaps were shut tight, except for a tiny bit at the bottom where the flaps had pulled apart slightly. ‘Perfect!’ you thought.

Crawling inside, you were surprised at how little the mood in the tent had changed. The lighting inside was cozy, as it had been last night, even though the sun was out. The sounds of birdsong outside faded, too, and if you didn’t know any better, you could even say that you had entered some kind of pocket dimension. No doubt some more of that magician’s trickery. Everything looked as it had: the plush floor, the stage, the curtains… but where was the Puppet Master?

Only one of the curtains was closed, but the other was still open, showing the stage. All of the puppets had been put away in a toy chest, and beside it, your target slept, snuggled to a pillow. The Puppet Master looked different; where she had been chubby before, now she was somewhat skinnier. Her hair was longer and messier, but that was most likely the fault of her sleep. Instead of her suit, she wore a pair of fuzzy pajamas and socks and a cartoonish nightcap drooped over her head. A snorer, too, you observed as you approached. The pillow was less to support her and more to give her something to hold onto, and she cuddled it close. She almost looked too cute to tickle, but you knew your mission. 

‘It’s too easy,’ you said to yourself, holding onto the straps of your backpack and beginning to approach the stage confidently. You made it about halfway before shenanigans struck. 

The plush, comfy floor you walked on seemed to provide less and less support as you went on, each step sinking you deeper into the softness beneath. Once you were halfway, you had sunk into the plushness up to your waist, and, grumbling, you pulled yourself forward. Instead of a mattress, this plushness reminded you of a foam pit, and after a few more steps, you were completely stuck. The surrounding plush floor held you snugly up to your chest, and much to your dismay, it had now become too difficult to pull yourself out. Moreover, you quickly discovered that you couldn’t pull back either: you were stuck in the comfy, foamlike, plush floor, conformed to your body shape entirely. 

“The hell is this!” you muttered out loud by mistake. Unfortunately for you, the Puppet Master softly snorted as she awoke, yawning and rubbing her eyes. She reached over, picked up a pair of round glasses, scratched her head, and stood up to see her intruder. 

The sight of you, frustrated with the floor and confused at your predicament, sent her into hysterics. “Heeheeheeheehee! Ohohooh, dehehearrr!!” she laughed, hugging herself around her belly. “I-ihihihit seeeheeheems- heehehehehee!! - thahat sohomeone was a lihittle eager to return~!!”

Growling in humiliation, you hung your head to hide your face. The element of surprise had been entirely lost!

The sleepy girl before you padded over softly on her fuzzy socks, hopping off the stage and onto the plush floor, which didn’t sink under her as it did for you. Giggling helplessly at your condition, she laid down in front of you on her stomach, swinging her feet in the air behind her as she booped your nose. “Hey there again, cutie pie! Missed me that much~?” 

You said nothing, doing your best to retain your dignity.

“Couldn’t stop thinkin’ about me, huh~?” You suddenly looked up at her. She smiled as if she had known what your night had been like for you. Giggling at your shocked face, she continued, “Oh, you’re too precious. Don’t worry, hun! It’s only natural!” She reached over and ruffled your hair. “Anyone who needs this place finds it! That way, I can play with only the people I know will enjoy it as much as I do!” The Puppet Master suddenly tugged the air in front of your forehead, and all at once, your mind rushed with tickly thoughts and teases, all the memories of yesterday pushing forward and coloring your cheeks a bright red. It was her all along!

As you racked your mind trying to make sense of this information, you were interrupted by a sudden stream of bubbly giggles emerging from your throat. The Puppet Master’s head-scratching reached your neck, and her nails gently traced around and around. She smiled fondly, her whole expression painted with affection at your adorable glee.

“Now, let’s see whatcha brought! I’m super curious!” She crawled around behind you and sat, happily picking up your backpack.

“No, no! Don’t look in there!” you hastily said, but she had already unzipped it and was looking through its items. 

“Oh! New yarn, looks like! And… feathers? Is that a makeup brush…? Hmm…” She went silent for a bit, and you jumped when you suddenly heard her voice right in your ear: “Trying to get revenge, huh~?” she purred. “How absolutely adorable you humans are, thinking you can outsmart me~!”

Well, that cleared a lot up. She wasn’t human! That’s how she had all that power! What was she??

“Hey!” Her snapping her fingers in each ear brought your attention back. “Got a question for ya!” Pulling your bag of tools behind her, she crawled back to where you could see her. “Have you ever heard of Cat’s Cradle?”

Tilting your head a bit in confusion, you nodded. “Yeah, it’s that kids game with the string.” 

“Y’ever played?”

“Few times, while ago.”

She clapped her hands happily. “Perfect!” she exclaimed. The magician pulled out your red yarn from the bag but, to your shock, pulled out an identical spool of pink yarn after it. She unspooled a long string of each and cut it with a simple tug. “Okay, here’s yours!” she said, handing you your red yarn while she held the pink one. “Watch me. Try to follow along.”

Seeing as you didn’t have anything else to do, you sighed and tried your best to follow along as she skillfully began creating the Cat’s Cradle. She giggled a tiny bit when she finished, setting her yarn down to help you out by tugging the yarn here and moving your fingers there. In the end, you held a rather complex and beautifully made string figure between your fingers!

“Bravo! Oh, you’re remarkable at this!” She clapped again, making you smile sheepishly. However, it didn’t take you long before you realized you couldn’t untangle your hands from the yarn. Harder and harder you tugged, but your fingers were very well tied, your hands bound by the pretty Cradle. “Oop, here, let me help you with that…” she muttered, taking one of the ends of your yarn and giving it a gentle tug, and all at once, your hands clapped together, bound tight. “There! Now c’mon, cutie, let’s getcha out of my floor.”

Blushing at the realization that the game had been a ruse, you let yourself get tugged out from the floor by your yarned-up hands, feeling the ground become more and more firm underneath you. “T-that was a nasty trick!” you whined.

“Oh, you should have seen it coming a mile away. I’m a Puppet Master! Nimble fingers come with the job~,” she teased as she wiggled her fingers against your cheeks, making you sputter. Gently, her soft hands guided you to the floor so you were lying down on your back before she effortlessly grabbed your bound hands and moved them above your head, saying, as if it were an afterthought, “These can’t move now.” It shouldn’t have surprised you, but you were a bit bewildered by the fact that she was correct: you couldn’t pull your hands down as much as you tried. 

She suddenly gasped as she got an idea. “I know another game we can play! It’s called, how long can my ticklish little puppet stay silent while I tickle them!”

“T-that sounds like a terrible game!” you spat, and she patted your head in response.

“I don’t know… you did intrude on me while I was sleeping, so I think that deserves a little punishment~! Then again, maybe it’ll be a reward since I know you’ll enjoy it so, so much~!”

Before you could voice any more criticisms, you yelped in surprise when she pulled out all your tools and set them before you. 

“Hm… I can’t hold all of these at once… I know! I’ll need help!” She whistled, and the toy chest sprung open, a group of five puppets rushing through the air to her. “Here, Wolf, you can hold the makeup brush, and I’m trusting you two to hold these!” she said, handing the two extra-fluffy feathers to Lion and Cat. She removed the electric toothbrush as if she were holding a precious relic. “This one’s mine~!”

You didn’t even have time to say, “Wait-!” before it started~!

The two puppets with no tools, Snake and Owl, dove in first. Owl, all covered in fuzzy feathers, nuzzled into your neck, chin, and ears, hooting and cooing at you. “Whooooo’s a ticklish puppet! Whooooo’s a cutie patootie! Who? Who?” she asked, snuggling her soft felt beak into your ear. All by herself, Owl was sending you into squeaky, blushy laughter, but don’t worry, it would get a lot worse! <3

Snake, meanwhile, had slithered his sneaky way under your shirt, nudging your shorts down a bit to reveal your hips. “Sssssssscore~!!!” he victoriously said as he wound his way around and around like a belt, his surprisingly tickly underbelly making you jump and buck around. Besides the occasional hiss as his felt tongue flickered across your lower tummy, he stayed silent as he pulled wave after wave of laughs out from your lungs.

The Puppet Master sat, smiling and watching you being slowly picked apart so adorably by her cute little puppets. She was content to wait until you began getting used to the current tickles before ramping them up. After all, she had until six before her next show, so she was content to make you pay for your impudent intrusion!

Wolf’s patience wore out first, and after a lengthy squeal on your part when Snake dipped his head into your belly button, he growled and dove in, armed and ready with the makeup brush. The Puppet Master chuckled and pulled your shirt up to your ribs for him. Quickly swatting the reptilian puppet out of the way with the brush, he dipped it into your giggle button and swirling it around and around your tummy. He looked up and grinned happily at the results: deep belly laughter erupted from Mt. You, bouncing about the tent like a rubber ball, much to the amusement of the Puppet Master, who began giggling with you. To celebrate, Wolf started to nibble around your ribs while continuing to paint with the makeup brush. 

Lion and Cat, wielding their feathers like knights holding their swords, looked up at the puppeteer pleadingly, happily cheering when she nodded as their sign of permission. The two puppets flew down and began happily humming a circus tune as they started going to town on your sides. Cat, soft and sweet, hummed innocently as she wiggled the fuzzy feather up and down your right side, up and down, mercilessly rhythmic. Lion, by contrast, was anything but sweet as she giggled cruelly, turning the feather around to the pointy tip and, using it like a quill pen, began writing and scribbling over your left side. It was brutal! You thrashed away from the mean scribbles and pokes, only to be met by gentle feather strokes and wiggles! You were already shrieking through your laughter, yelping with glee, and unable to beg for mercy anymore. At around the twenty-minute mark, the Puppet Master herself made her move. 

You had absolutely no way to pay attention to what she was doing, so no alarm bells went off when she began crawling down to your feet and pulling off your sandals, but you could only go bug-eyed and squeal when you heard the unmistakable sound of the electric toothbrush turning on. Your thrashing increased a bit, but the other puppets made sure you were far too weak to put up any significant resistance. The Puppet Master smiled at you with pitiless satisfaction and adoring affection as she used the toothbrush under your toes on your right foot, scribbling across your left sole with her nails. That was the final straw for you. Tears rolled down your cheeks in rivers as you lay limply, unable to do anything but sit there and take your tickles like a good puppet. Your laughter had gone silent a while ago. Yet, this time, the puppets were out for metaphorical blood as they wrecked your spots creatively, curiously, and mercilessly. 

The second you began coughing, though, everything stopped. All the puppets dropped to the floor, inanimate once more, and the Puppet Master sprang up to get some water from your bag. She put the bottle to your lips, and you gulped it down eagerly, smiling at the relief it gave. She brought your hands back down again, and suddenly, you found that the strings fell apart, sloughing off your hands and allowing you to free yourself from the tangle with ease. Curling up into a ball, you finished your water, and the Puppet Master finished her water shortly after. 

“You feeling okay, cutie~?” 

“Y-yyeheheesss! G-gohohoshh…” 

“Didn’t think I’d go that far, didja~? I’m just a sweet, innocent girl, huh~? Not when you wake me up before I’ve finished my sleep!”

“S-sohohohorryy!!”

“Oh, don’t worry! This was such a pleasant wake-up ~!” With that, she quickly scooped you up in her arms, carrying you across the room and onto the stage, laying you down beside her. “Now, I think we could both use the sleep, right~? You must not have slept well, I’m guessing~!”

You nodded, all the sleepiness hitting you like a freight train as you yawned and got comfy on the floor. 

“Figures~!” She yawned, too, and wiggled over to you. “Besides, it’ll be nice to have something other than a pillow to spoon.”

The two of you were out like an identical pair of lights, you being snuggled by the petite magician. No dreams bothered you in your sleep as you floated in the void sea of the subconscious mind. What would await you when you awoke was no concern of yours because, for now, you were comfy, exhausted, and being snuggled by an adorably sweet… whatever she is. You’ll figure that out later. For all your life afterward, you would never recall a more peaceful slumber than on the floor of that tent, cradled like a cat by an adoring and tickle-hungry Puppet Master!

The end ~!

Read the previous entry in The Puppet Master!

[nomoreusername]

Costumes Maze Runner Characters Would Wear With You

Ghosts with glasses

Very little effort but you get some cute pictures out of it

Complains halfway through the night because it makes eating candy “too complicated”

Barbra and Adam (Beetlejuice)

Specifically the part where they change their facial features to be scary

He felt meh about it but figured if he was going to do it, he may as well go all out

Kyle and Stan (South Park)

A bit meh for kids but adults give a knowing nod

He insists on being Stan because he “doesn't want to play a ginger”

Scary clowns

Basic but still fun

You had to run from parents halfway through the night since he kept jumpscaring little kids

Coraline and Wybie (Coraline)

Tries to be the other Wybie so that he can just avoid talking to people all night

Very disappointed when you pointed out he wouldn't get candy that way

Scientists

Color coordinated costumes were a must

She carried around vials while you had charts

Ghostface

You carry the phone while she carries the knife

She adds fake blood for extra pizzazz

80’s

She rollerblades almost the entire night just to be extra

Spends a long time getting your hair just right

Stitch and Angel (Lilo and Stitch)

It was really just onesies so low effort

She let you pick which one you wanted to be though

[crowdsourced-webcomic-reviews]

Cargo

Cargo by Chloe Cunningham sure is a comic.

Without ever being in Florida, this comic has quintessentially shown me the spirit of the place. Cargo tells a story of a ragtag smuggler crew in a post-apocalyptic world. Saying this ignores like 70% of what the comic is actually like. It’s dadaistic, it’s down-to earth, it has like 4 apocalypses in one, yet none of them matter much. There are supposedly zombies in it, I’ve never seen any. It reads like a political satire towards current capitalistic and facist systems, but I don’t think it aims to be just that. It’s a clown city. Cargo hides its heart under absurdism so strongly, I feel like any way of explaining what it is breaks the smokescreen. Yet I must…

Cargo is about Matt, the most moist man on earth, a delightful mix of zero self confidence with strong sense of righteous judgement, realising his life dream of being a pirate. Helping him is SJ, a cold-loving, cigar burning ex-journalist with a hooded past; her maybe-blackmailed nihilist friend, and one of the rare voices of reason, Ginger; hired thug and a Milf of All Times, Ekat; local cat lover and a boy, Richard Parker (not his real name) and, hold on I’m gonna close this sentence. I’m honestly listing all main characters like this, because they are a delightful crew and the pull of the story. You must understand.

Last member of the cast is Stanley, Matt’s cousin, zombie brainworm survivor, and a sudoku legend, among many other things. All the characters are bastards and I would not stand to be in the same room with them for 5 minutes, but together they balance out a delightful sitcom of failed dreams, perseverance, and somehow fumbling over the finish line all teeth intact. It is not found family, but it’s found acquaintances. It’s a road trip with people who barely stand each others. I love it.

What Cargo does exceptionally well is the dialogue. It’s witty and punchy, it keeps the flow through both fun and mellow times. Another thing that Cargo does well is the mystery. As a reader you’re thrown into this story with bare explanations, and at the point where the comic is now, I’m only starting to realise how little I actually do know. Where are the damn zombies? Why are computers sometimes just melting? What does all those little things and secret symbols MEAN? What bizarre out-of-nowhere thing is made illegal next? I would not survive in this world for a day, I’d be thrown into a clown jail and forcibly made into a cop for having socks in my sandals on tuesday (not having socks is illegal on wednesdays and I forgot which day it was). Please read Cargo, this is the only way I can be saved.

WHERE ARE THE ZOMBIES STAN?? I’D LIKE TO SEE THEM…

[sleepyspots-wc-designs]

🤍☀️🤡 for the emoji requests?

Absolutely!

[CLAIMED — by @/abbys-hideyway]

Potential names: Sunnysmile, Brightbounce, Goldenface

A big, fluffy gal with a sunny demeanor and heart of gold. She is far more concerned with the entertainment of herself and others than typical warriors duties, much to the frustration of her deputy, who just can’t seem to speak with her seriously long enough without laughing or the golden cat getting bored. Sure, she hunts and fights just fine, but if you asked her, the best way to settle an issue is with laughter or a nice cuddle session. No claws needed for that! Naive, affectionate, energetic.

Some notes:

🤍 — Heart shaped white facial marking. Tons of smaller heart patches scattered throughout. Predominantly “white” (aka pale cream).

☀️ — Golden-and-pale ginger-furred. Fluffy, large, pointed mane and tail. Curled fur.

🤡 — Clown makeup markings on face. Mismatched toes.

Please keep the emoji adoptable rules in mind when interacting with preexisting designs or requesting new ones!

[bloofinntoona]

Hii I hope you’re doing well!! I binged read all your Sebastian Sallow fics and they’re some of my favorites 😭💜 I was wondering if you could write something with a modern Sebastian x f!reader where Gildroy Lockhart is the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher and reader is swooning over him in class like everyone else and Sebastian is just ‘what does she see in this idiot’ >:( If that’s not enough to write something with, totally disregard this. Thank you!! 💖

so sorry for the super late reply! i had the story in mind for a while, but i just haven't had the chance to post it. enjoy a jealous sebastian sallow fic ;)

༻✦༺ 　༻✧༺　༻✦༺༻✦༺ 　༻✧༺　༻✦༺༻✦༺ 　༻✧༺　༻✦༺

"Let me introduce you to your new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher," the ginger-haired man clad in a golden cloak descended the stairs, flashing his pearly whites, "Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Honorary member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five times winner of Witch Weekly Charming Smiles."

Sebastian Sallow swore if he rolled his eyes harder, they would most definitely pop off from his face. The sound of students swooning echoed across the room, while several students, including Sebastian, physically cringed at the pompous wizard. Defense Against the Dark Arts was his favorite subject, but this particular teacher had absolutely destroyed his will to study for the rest of the year already. The walls that were decorated with different moving photographs and paintings of dangerous creatures now adorned with Lockhart's faces, paintings of the man sitting, standing, and some questionable positions. As Lockhart kept on rambling about his sterling background, Sebastian leaned in to you, ready to whisper a funny insult about the new teacher. Yet to his horror, you saw your eyes locked into the man, mouth agape as you craddle your face in your hands. You let out a small giggle when Lockhart made a stupid joke about some dangerous group of dark wizard that he defeated a while back. Sebastian widened his eyes and retracted his body, letting out a low groan. Surely this is a dream, right? Sebastian thought, Y/N would never fall for this clown.

The Slytherin student lightly slapped his own cheek, prompting the whole class to stare at the boy. "Ah!" Lockhart exclaimed, brows furrowing as he scanned the scroll listing the names of sixth-year students, "Sebastian Swallow, is it?"

Sebastian felt his brows twitched, "It's Sallow, sir." he muttered in annoyance. He heard a chuckle from his side, red tint quickly spread across his freckled face. Being humiliated in front of the class, and the girl that he has been crushing were definitely not on Sebastian's to-do list that day.

"Mr. Sallow, would you like to show the class how to properly duel using the Depulso charm?"

"I don't mind that." Sebastian shrugged. At least he could salvage whatever dignity he had left, knowing well that he excelled in dueling.

As the students stood up to clear the classroom, Sebastian felt a gentle tug on his robe. You flashed the boy a huge smile and a thumb up, "Good luck, I know you can do it!"

Just with that, butterflies flew all over Sebastian's stomach, and he felt his heart was going to explode. He walked over to the long blue carpet, positioning himself in the opposite position from the teacher. With a swish of Lockhart's wand, the floor lifted up. Lockhart fired the first attack, red lights flew from his wand. "Protego!" Sebastian casted, creating a blue barrier that deflected the teacher's casts. "Depulso!" Sebastian replied, pushing Lockhart back. "Ah, I found a talent, but not as good as I!" Lockhart arrogantly claimed, "Shall we continue?"

At this point, you could see visible veins popping on Sebastian's temple. "Confringo!" Fire erupted from his wand, accidentally burning a small patch of Lockhart's blindingly golden cloak. The whole class erupted in a collective gasp as Lockhart frantically cast Glacius to extinguish the fire, leaving a smokey hole in the cloth. "Not too worry, class, a simple spell will fix this," The teacher grinned again, annoyance prevailing in his voice, "Mr. Sallow, that is a dangerous spell and should not be practiced in the school grounds. I'm reducing ten points from Slytherin and detention after classes today. Class dismissed!"

A bunch of students crowded Lockhart, questioning if the man was alright - a few students even shot Sebastian a disgusted look, which the brunette replied with a shrug. Gentle footsteps approached Sebastian, "Are you alright?" you asked, "That was eventful."

"Yes, and I think he deserved to be knocked down a peg or two."

"Well, I don't think he deserved to be burned, Sebastian," you sighed, "now we can't go to Hogsmead after classes..."

Sebastian mentally facepalmed, totally forgetting that he had promised to accompany you to get a book for Potions class, "Oh God, I'm so sorry, Y/N. I'll promise we'll go tomorrow?"

You tapped your chin, pretending to think about the offer before nodding, "Deal. But you owe me a pumpkin pasty."

"Deal."

Detention was as boring as it could be. Seated between four other students, one of them being Garreth Weasley, who apparently created a massive stink bomb in Snape's Potions class. The Gryffindor boy gestured the red mark on his nape, mouthing about how Professor Snape hit him with a book in the very spot. Sebastian snorted before diving back into his essay, a 1,500-word essay about the dangers of fire-based spells.

It took Sebastian about two hours to finish the task. He quickly handed the poorly-written essay to Lockhart, who took the parchment as the two exchanged forced smiles.

As Sebastian opened the door to the hallway, he was taken aback to see a familiar figure, "Y/N..." he called your name, face red as ever, "What are you doing here?"

You shuffled closer to him, offering him your sling bag. "I sneaked some sandwiches for you. 'Bet you're starving for missing dinner."

"I'm not-" A faint sound of rumbling could be heard from the boy's stomach, "thank you, I really appreciate it."

"Tell me why you almost murdered Lockhart earlier?"

Sebastian sighed, his voice low, almost inaudible, "He just annoys me! I don't get what people see in him, he's pompous, proud, and barely teaches any knowledge about the dark arts!" he looked away, "... and I don't like the way you look at him."

Your face turned bright red, matching Sebastian's. You erupted in laughter, "Sebastian, I just find him funny." your legs shifted as you looked away in embarrassment, "Plus, I'm here waiting for you anyway, not him."

You felt Sebastian's arms wrapped around your shoulder, pulling you in a tight hug, burying his face by the back of your neck. You both stayed still, enjoying each other's warmth. You tiptoed and whispered into his ear, "Jealous, much?"

Sebastian's warm breath tickled your cheek as he let out a breathy chuckle, "I'm sorry." His face was just inches away from yours, deep brown eyes gazed on your lips. As you both were slowly closing the gap in between, the classroom door abruptly opened, prompting the two students to break apart.

"For the sake of Merlin's saggy balls, you two better get a room!" Garreth Weasly grimaced as he walked past, shooting a meaningful wink at Sebastian.

[nattinatalia]

Jack Harlow x Reader Instagram AU

A/N : Read this first 🎅🏼

Liked by jackharlow, urbanwyatt, yourbestiename, claybornharlow, and 7,456,245 others

yourusername I don’t know if I should laugh or cry. My poor baby, Mia’s ginger bread house was just not cooperating and her little face expressions were hilarious 😂

View all 1,900 comments

yourbestiename Bitchhhhh 😭

urbanwyatt 😩😩

druski2funnny So she’s dramatic like her dad.

yourusername You know what Dru? 🙄

claybornharlow She’s the best 😂💀

jackharlow Why are you clowning on my baby?

yourusername It’s funny 🤣🤣🤣

jackharlow 😩😩😩 Really was though 😭

•

Liked by yourusername, claybornharlow, urbanwyatt, nemoachida, and 7,567,356 others

jackharlow Christmas with The Harlows. My greatest gift in life is my family 🤍

View all 1,900 comments

yourusername Te amo 🥰 🫶🏻😘

urbanwyatt So the Wyatt’s are just chopped liver ????? 🙄

jackharlow Fucker you know what I meant lmao

yourbestiename You know how dramatic he can be… well like youuuu.

urbanwyatt That wasn’t necessary

jackharlow Collect your wife Urban, that comment was very Grinch of her.

yourbestiename Proved my point. You’re welcome ☺️

•

jackharlow added to their story

•

Liked by yourbestiename, urbanwyatt, badbunnypr, and 7,677,356 others

yourusername I’m not a regular mom, I’m a cool mom. Thank you mi amor for my Christmas present. I don’t deserve you, and you know I’m not talking about the gifts.

View all 1,900 comments

jackharlow Anything for my baby 💜 I love you.

urbanwyatt Tell the world how you couldn’t stop crying all through dinner 🙄

yourusername They didn’t see so it’s not true.

claybornharlow So I’ll be driving it on the weekends. K thanks.

user She could have bought it with her own money 🙄

jackharlow True, she can buy herself anything she wants and she’d have it with a snap of her fingers. But since there’s this thing called MARRIAGE, and I love spoiling my wife, she gets what she wants. NEXT!!!!

yourusername ☺️☺️☺️

user what did she get him?

yourusername A Rolex with his name and our kids name engraved on it. A chain. Three pair of costumed NB shoes among other things. Y’all happy with this response?

yourbestiename We can never share our gifts because it’s always “what did she get him” or “damn she’s sucking him dry.”

urbanwyatt Can you suck me up dry? 😭😭😭

jackharlow 💀💀💀💀

djdrama Happy holidays fam 🤍 enjoy

•

TAG LIST

@heavyhitterheaux

@harlowsbby

@arination99

@cmalass

@jackharloww

@minkookie95

@deannaard

@jacksmoviestar

@harlowcomehome

@fdl305

@httpkoylinnn

@xoxokiaraaxoxo

@hoodharlow

@automaticpeachsong

@amethyst09

@aliciacat20

@allyson15

@gabbylovesreading

[generic-sonic-fan]

My Soul To Keep

Summary: There’s been a close call. Rouge nearly doesn’t make it, leaving Shadow panicky and uncertain. To allay his fears, Team Dark sits down and discusses their plans for the worst case scenario. 

3913 words

Rouge comes home from the hospital three days later.

Omega’s carrying her bag, and Shadow is carrying her, helping her limp over to the couch. The baggy shirt she’s wearing covers the bandages criss-crossed over her stomach. He and Omega had spent those three days, before she got home, blaming themselves and each other. Too slow. Distracted. Extraneous variables. Stupid mistake. They’d slinged it all, at this point, gotten it out of their systems so that she didn’t have to hear the pity party. 

It doesn’t stop Shadow’s hands from shaking. 

“Set me down, riiiiiiiiiiiiiight here.” Rouge groans as she slides onto the couch cushions. “And set my stuff in the bedroom, okay, big boy?”

Omega tromps off down the hall. 

“Anything you need?” Shadow asks.

“More of the happy stuff they have at the hospital.”

“You're clear for another dose of painkillers in three hours and twelve minutes. You need water, and food, if you think you can keep it down.”

“Not hungry, but I’m not going to lose my lunch over it. Did you two eat all the twinkies while I was gone?”

“I AM INCAPABLE OF CONSUMING ORGANIC SUBSTANCES.” Omega returns from the hall. 

Shadow goes to the kitchen and fills a tall glass of water. He sets this on the end table beside her. He then retrieves a box of saltine crackers from where they've been shoved in the back of the pantry. 

“. . . not what twinkie wrappers sound like.” Rouge mumbles from the couch. 

He places the saltines beside her as well. “If you want something sweet, I can make you some tea.”

“Too hot. I’m boiling already.”

“Omega, grab an ice tray, then?”

“YOU FORGOT TO SAY THE MAGIC WORD.”

Rouge snorts. She’s trying not to laugh, but her chest shakes anyway, and she cringes as she smiles. 

“Please?” Shadow sighs.

Omega goes to the freezer. Shadow opens the tea drawer and retrieves the peach-and-ginger blend. He grabs a mug from the cupboard, fills it with water, then sticks it in the microwave. Three minutes later, the timer dings. Shadow dips the tea bag into the just-boiling water and waits. Omega returns with the ice tray and starts fishing the cubes into a water bottle. The tea bag is removed, sugar added, and the concoction poured over the ice, sealed over with a lid and straw. Shadow delivers it into Rouge’s waiting hands. 

“You’re too good for me.” She murmurs. 

“CORRECT. I AM.” Omega touts from the kitchen.

“Stop making her laugh.” Shadow says. 

It’s too late, of course. She’s already giggling between pained gasps. 

“SHE WILL BE ALRIGHT. IF LAUGHTER COULD KILL, I WOULD ALREADY BE A COMEDIAN.”

“You’re enough of a clown for it.” Rouge says. 

Now Shadow’s laughing, too, despite himself. Rouge takes a big sip of her tea, letting out a faint “Mmmm” as she sucks it down the straw. She then reaches the cup over to the end table. Her hand slips, the cup falls. 

She jerks forward to try and catch it and now there’s little dots of red poking through her oversized shirt. 

Shadow grabs her shoulders and pushes her back against the couch cushions. He holds her down, rips her shirt open, and feels along the bandages. His fingers grow damp. He presses a firm palm down. She cries out.

“Stay still!” He screams back. 

His damn hand won’t stop shaking. She’s bleeding and he can’t stop shaking and it’s not helping and he needs to do better he needs to be better he needs to STOP SHAKING-

The world around slows. Breathe, in and out. Stop the bleeding. Apologize. Check the IV. Find a doctor onboard to rebind her wounds. 

“I’m sorry.” Shadow chokes out. “The pressure will stop the bleeding-”

“THE BLEEDING HAS CEASED. STOP APPLYING PRESSURE.”

Shadow lifts his palm. He checks her own. There’s no IV line. There’s. . .

“SLOW YOUR BREATHING. IT IS ADVISABLE THAT YOU EXCUSE YOURSELF TO YOUR ROOM TO CALM DOWN. I WILL ATTEND TO ROUGE. MY KNOWLEDGE OF DESTROYING MEATBAG ANATOMY ALSO LENDS WELL ENOUGH TO MAINTAINING IT.”

A hand on his shoulder. 

“SHE WILL BE ALRIGHT. GO.”

He stands. The world sways. His pulse is roaring in his ears and energy crackles at his fingertips. He focuses it without needing to utter the words, and with a resounding crack he’s back in his room. He falls onto the bed, curls himself under the weighted blanket, and lets the burning tears finally fall out of his eyes. 

After some amount of time shaking and sobbing like the pathetic coward he is, he sticks his head out of the blanket and listens. Omega is saying something he can’t make out. Then, Rouge’s voice, just barely audible. The walls shake with Omega’s footsteps coming down the hall. Shadow untangles himself from the blanket and sets his feet against the ground.

“ROUGE HAS INSTRUCTED ME TO ‘CHECK IN’ ON YOUR EMOTIONAL STATE.” Omega opens the door.

“How is she?”

“AS I HAVE SAID PRIOR: SHE IS ALRIGHT.”

Of course she is. Of fucking course she is. Just a tiny bit of blood and he lost his goddamn mind about it. He grabs at his quills, pulling them just hard enough to hurt. 

“WHAT IS YOUR STATUS?”

“I’m fine.”

“ROUGE SHOWED ME A MEME SHE FOUND ‘RELATABLE’ ON HER INSTAGRAM FEED TWO MONTHS AND SIX DAYS AGO. THE MEME STATED THAT ‘FINE’ STOOD FOR ‘FREAKED OUT, INSECURE, NEUROTIC, AND EMOTIONAL’. UNDER THIS DEFINITION, YOU ARE INDEED ‘FINE’.”

“Shut up! Leave me alone!”

“NOTED.”

Omega leaves. Shadow’s tempted to tear his quills all the way out, but that would leave him with a migraine, and he can’t be where he’s needed if he can hardly stand. Not that he’s much help to anyone. Not like he’d do anything other than flip out at the slightest provocation. Might as well start screaming her name around to complete the look, right?

He immediately catches that thought and curls in on himself. He whispers an apology against his fur, lips forming the shape of the name. Lips part. Teeth come together. Mouth opens, ending on the “ah”. He’s sorry he even thought to take her name in vain. She doesn't deserve it.

She didn’t deserve any of it. Neither does Rouge. He knows he’s projecting; Rouge hates it when he does that. She doesn’t say anything but he knows she hates it. 

“ROUGE IS REQUESTING TO SEE YOU.”

Omega stands in the doorway again. Shadow slides off the bed. They return to the living room.

“I’m sorry.” He says the moment his eyes hit the couch. 

“It’s okay.” Rouge replies. She’s wearing a different t-shirt now. The old one is bunched on the coffee table. It smells of ginger and peach. 

“I’ll do better next time.”

“Well, gee, it’s almost like your best friend could’ve died. I’d be more offended if this didn’t happen at some point.”

He’d been hoping this wouldn’t happen at all, but he doesn’t tell her that. The less therapy she has to give while she herself should be the one getting taken care of, the better.

“IT IS ONLY LOGICAL FOR YOUR MEATBAG BRAIN TO BE EXPERIENCING HIGH LEVELS OF STRESS IN THIS SCENARIO.”

“Not helping, Omega.” Rouge says.

“I AM FORTUNATE TO NOT EXPERIENCE SUCH STRESS. HOWEVER, IN THE DAYS PRECEDING TO NOW, MY RAGE LEVELS HAVE BEEN HEIGHTENED TO THE POINT OF MY PROCESSOR EXPERIENCING OVERHEAT WARNINGS.”

“I know. You yelled at me plenty about it.” Shadow replies.

“I RAGE. I RAGE AT THE MAN WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS INJURY.” Omega slams his fists together. “I SHALL RIP HIM INTO 1,684 TINY LITTLE PIECES UPON OUR NEXT ENCOUNTER.” 

“You sure will.” Rouge murmurs. 

“AND YOU, SHADOW?”

“I’m going to start taking solo missions. Permanently”

“Don’t you dare.”

“DON’T YOU DARE.”

“You only have so much time. I’m not going to have that taken away from you.”

“FALSE. I AM A ROBOT. MY LIFESPAN IS THEORETICALLY AS INFINITE AS YOURS-”

“Shut your trap, both of you!” Rouge says. “It doesn’t matter who’s immortal and bulletproof and ‘Ultimate’ or whatever. You two aren’t so invincible either. You’re not leaving me behind.”

“I’m not-!” Shadow stops himself. “Please, Rouge.” 

She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, cringing as her chest falls up and down. She shakes her head. “I get it. I know why you’re on about this so much. But I don’t know what to say other than that you can’t stop me.”

A pause. Projecting, again. He grits his teeth. He doesn't say anything.

“I’m going to get hurt. Hell, I’m going to die someday. You’re gonna have to get over that because I’m not about to stop living my life over it.”

“I know.” 

“YOU KNOW THE VAGUE CONCEPT, IN THEORY. IT MAY HELP IF WE DISCUSS MORE CONCRETE DETAILS.”

“What do you mean?” Rouge asks. 

“ROUGE, WHAT SHALL WE DO IN THE EVENT OF YOUR DEATH?”

Rouge’s eyes flick once over Shadow’s face, before puzzling in the direction of Omega. “As in, funerals, and the like?”

“CORRECT. THROUGH MY RESEARCH INTO THE DEATH AND DESTRUCTION OF MEATBAGS, I HAVE DISCOVERED THAT THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO TEND TO A BODY. SOME ARE MORE RITUALISTIC THAN OTHERS.”

“We can talk about this later.” Rouge glances back to Shadow. 

She’s begging Omega, with her eyes, to notice what she imagines are eggshells, a covert intention made obvious by her pain and fatigue. It stings a little to think that she’s so concerned with setting him off again.

“Actually,” Shadow finds a spot on the floor and sits down. “I would like to know now.”

“You sure?”

“Maria and I talked about this sometimes.” The name is still heavy in his mouth, and leaves a bitter aftertaste, but he says it with as much normality as he can muster. 

“BECAUSE OF HER TERMINAL DIAGNOSIS, CORRECT?”

Shadow nods.

“Makes sense.” Rouge says. 

“So. . . what do you want me to do when you are gone?” Shadow asks. 

“You’re being a little presumptuous there, hun. I’m not the only one who can catch bullets. Or burn up upon re-entry, as the case may be for some of us.”

“HA. HA. HA.” Omega vibrates up and down.

“I’m being serious! Tell me- what do you want me to do?”

“Guess I should get around to penning a will, shouldn’t I? I’m not letting my collection go to just anyone.”

“I WOULD REQUEST CUSTODY OF YOUR EXTENSIVE GEMSTONE COLLECTION.”

“Why?”

“TO SELL AND PURCHASE MORE WEAPONS WITH.”

“My point exactly.” Rouge rolls her eyes. “But besides that. . . well, I’m not going to lie, I actually have thought about this a fair amount. Shadow, Omega, I’m reserving my place on your fireplace mantle.”

“We don’t have a fireplace?”

“Not yet, silly. In the future, when you’re both rich and famous and have a house with one. I want the spot right and center. My Nan had her urn on Mama’s fireplace, but she got shoved behind pictures of the family dog. If you do that to me, I’m coming back to haunt your asses.”

“Are you sure you want your ashes kept in one place?”

“Well, someone has to keep an eye on you two.”

“TO ENSURE THAT I DO NOT SELL YOUR EXTENSIVE GEM COLLECTION?”

“Not just that. But to make sure you’re doing okay, you know? And so that you have something to look at and remember me by.”

“MY MEMORY BANKS, UNLIKE YOUR FEEBLE ORGANIC BRAINS, DO NOT REQUIRE SUCH JOGGING. HOWEVER. . . I UNDERSTAND THE INTENDED SENTIMENT. SURROUNDING ONESELF WITH OBJECTS THAT ARE PLEASING IS A DESIRABLE OBJECTIVE.”

“'Pleasing'? Oh please, it’s going to be absolutely lavish. I’ll put that in the will- I want my urn to be absolutely encrusted with my gems. I want to be more valuable than the Mona Lisa by the time I’m finished.”

“People will be looking to steal you, then.” Shadow says

“Which is why I picked the two most lethal people on the planet to keep me!” Rouge throws her head back as best she can, despite already having her head resting on the arm of the couch, and winks. 

“REST ASSURED, ROUGE. NOT A SINGLE FINGER WILL BE LAID UPON YOUR URN FOR AS LONG AS I FUNCTION. THIS I SWEAR.” Omega pounds a fist against his chest. 

“You two will be old fogies by that point anyway. You’ll need something to keep you on your toes.” She smiles.

“Thank you.” Shadow says. “For trusting us with this.”

“Of course. Who else could I possibly pick?”

Shadow reaches for her hand. She sees this and dangles it off the couch cushion for him to hold. He grasps her wrist, first, feeling the pulse beating inside of it. Then he slides between her fingers and presses their palms together. 

“Okay, I’m done. What about you, Omega?” Rouge looks over. 

“I DO NOT UNDERSTAND.”

“We just went over what happens when I kick the bucket- what about you?”

“BOLD OF YOU TO ASSUME I WILL PERISH.”

“It’s a contingency.” Shadow clarifies. “Take this seriously. What would you like us to do?”

“A MORE IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION IS WHEN YOU SHOULD DECLARE ME ‘DECEASED’. I AM INORGANIC. I CAN ALWAYS BE REPAIRED.”

“And?” Rouge prods.

“. . . I WISH TO REMAIN MYSELF.” Omega eventually says. “IN THE EVENT OF PROGRAM CORRUPTION OF OVER 65%, I DESIRE TO BE DEACTIVATED.”

“What, and the other 35% is somehow not worth our time?” Shadow snaps, harder than he means to. “Are you not worth getting to know again?”

“YOU CONFLATE THE CORRUPTION OF MY PROGRAMMING WITH THE LOSS OF YOUR MEMORIES. THOUGH MY KNOWLEDGE OF ORGANIC AMNESIA IS ADMITTEDLY QUITE PRIMITIVE, I CAN ASSURE YOU THE TWO ARE DIFFERENT.”

“Are they?”

“65% IS A SIGNIFICANT PORTION OF FUNCTIONALITY LOST, A HIGHER MARGIN THAN I WOULD HAVE ALLOWED EVEN A FEW MONTHS AGO. IT IS DOUBTFUL, AFTER CROSSING THAT MARGIN, THAT I WILL EVER BE FUNCTIONAL AGAIN WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT REWRITES. ANY ‘REPAIRS’ GIVEN WILL BE GENERATING PROCESSES THAT HAVE NEVER EXISTED. YOU WILL BE CREATING SOMETHING NEW. I DO NOT WISH FOR A NEW PROGRAM TO USE MY FORM. I WISH TO BE DEACTIVATED.”

“It would be like. . . someone putting fake memories in your head.” Shadow whispers. Rouge’s hand grips tighter around his.

“CORRECT. DO YOU REQUIRE ANY FURTHER CLARIFICATION?”

Shadow shakes his head. 

“GOOD. MOVING ON, UPON DEACTIVATION, I DESIRE FOR MY BODY TO BE MELTED DOWN AND MY ALLOY USED TO CONSTRUCT LETHAL WEAPONS.”

“Fitting.” Rouge smiles.

“I HAVE CALCULATED THAT I WILL HAVE ENOUGH SUITABLE MATERIAL TO MAKE TWO ROCKET LAUNCHERS, SIX RIFLES, AND APPROXIMATELY EIGHT PISTOLS.”

“Any preference in caliber?” Shadow asks.

“THE MORE DESTRUCTIVE, THE BETTER.”

“I’ll ensure there’s a 50. cal somewhere in there.”

“YOU- AND ROUGE, IF APPLICABLE -WILL HAVE FIRST CHOICE OF WHAT IS PRODUCED.”

“Thank you. I appreciate it.” Shadow says. 

“ONE MORE RULE.”

“Go for it. Shoot.” Rouge says.

“YOU MAY ONLY USE THESE WEAPONS IF YOU MEAN IT. YOU MAY ONLY KILL, INJURE, OR DESTROY WITH THESE WEAPONS. TARGET DUMMIES DO NOT COUNT.” Omega crosses his arms. 

“May I take them out to the target range to practice with them as long as I utilize them on a proper mission soon after?” Shadow says.

“I SUPPOSE THAT IS ACCEPTABLE.”

“How about for home defense?” Rouge asks. “You don’t mind if you hang from a wall most of the time, do you?”

“ALSO ACCEPTABLE. DETERRENCE COUNTS AS PROPER USE.”

“Good. Thanks, big boy. That’s a really great plan. You’ve thought about this a lot too, huh?” She says. “Glad I’m not the only one. I felt a little weird about it.”

“IT IS NOW SHADOW’S TURN TO DISCUSS HIS PLAN FOR AFTER HIS DEATH.”

“There’s no point. You two aren’t going to have to worry about it.”

“Given that you’re the only one of us who’s had a funeral already, I call bullshit.” Rouge replies.

She’s referencing the strange little event that Sonic held with all of his friends after the ARK. She’d gone. Said a few words, though she never told him what they were. What could you possibly have to say about a person that had spent only a few hours being on good terms with you? Sonic had found things to say too, apparently. Perhaps the guilt made it easy.

“I know what I want, and that’s to stay alive so that you two never have to worry about it.” Shadow replies.

“IT’S A CONTINGENCY.” Omega steps closer. “TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY.”

Shadow looks down. He lets go of Rouge’s hand. He folds his hands in his lap. He notices, upon further studying, a bit of red on his fur where there shouldn’t be. He hadn’t even washed his hands after dealing with Rouge’s wound. 

“I haven’t thought about it much.” He says.

“Okay, do you know what you don’t want, at least?”

An urn, he almost says. The idea of being confined to one place for all eternity, lingering, haunting, is. . .

“Not sure.” He replies. 

“Graveyard? Cremation? Something weird and different? Don’t tell me you’re going to donate to science.”

“Absolutely not!” His quills flare.

“NOTED. I WILL NOT PERMIT ANY SCIENTISTS TO STUDY YOUR CORPSE.” 

. . . Maria’s body had been studied, according to the records, then her existence sterilized like the rest of the ARK had been. Shadow knows, consciously, that the drop pod room is empty, but without having seen what had happened after, it is difficult to believe she isn’t still laying there. 

“Cremation.” He finally says. “I want my body destroyed.”

“So who’s shelf are you sitting on?”

“No one’s.”

“Scattered, then? Any particular location?”

He pauses. “Mount Everest.”

“Huh. Interesting. Is it okay if it’s, like, at the bottom? Or do we have to go all the way to the tippy-top?” Rouge asks.

“The top. Spread to the winds.”

“Making me work real hard for this.”

“I WILL DO IT. I AM A ROBOT; I DO NOT REQUIRE OXYGEN NOR DO I EXPERIENCE FATIGUE.”

“Thanks,” Shadow says.

“Why there?” Rouge asks.

“To make it inconvenient for you.”

Rouge rolls her eyes. “Sure.”

 “And. . . do it at night. Under the stars.” He adds.

“YOU HAVE SELECTED THE HIGHEST POINT ON THIS PLANET. YOU THEN FURTHER REQUEST TO BE SCATTERED UNDER STARS. ARE YOU SURE YOU DO NOT WANT YOUR REMAINS TO BE EJECTED INTO SPACE? DO NOT LIMIT YOURSELF. SUCH AN ARRANGEMENT IS FEASIBLE. I WILL MAKE IT SO.”

“No! That wasn’t the promise.”

It’s only when the silence sweeps over the room that he realizes what he’s said.

“. . . wish she’d picked a shorter mountain.” Rouge says. 

“We always tried to spot it from the observation deck whenever we passed over.” Shadow lets a hint of a smile cross his lips.

“CLARIFICATION REQUESTED: YOU ARE REFERRING TO MARIA, CORRECT?”

Shadow nods.

“ARE YOU REQUESTING THIS AFTER-DEATH RITUAL BECAUSE IT IS WHAT YOU TRULY WISH, OR BECAUSE IT IS SOMETHING SHE WISHED FOR HERSELF?”

His smile disappears.

“Omega.” Rouge hisses.

“SHADOW HAS EXPRESSED TO US THAT HE DOES NOT WANT TO LET HIMSELF BE DEFINED BY THE PAST. I AM ONLY AIDING IN THE PURSUIT OF THIS OBJECTIVE.” Omega speaks to her, but turns to him, staring him down.

“It’s both.” He finally responds. 

“INFORM US OF YOUR SIDE, THEN.”

“It’s that. . . I don’t want to be trapped somewhere.” He says. “No offense, Rouge.”

“None taken. Guess you’ve spent long enough in a jar already, being lusted after by powerful men. I get it. No biggie.” Rouge winks. 

Shadow glares, but he can’t hold it for long before a snicker slips out. “That’s the worst way you could’ve put it.”

“FALSE. THERE ARE WORSE WAYS. FOR EXAMPLE-”

“No thanks, we’re good!” Rouge says. 

Omega tilts his torso downwards and lets out a long-winded negative ping. Rouge laughs and manages to keep a grin on through the pain. 

“Stop making her laugh!"

“S-starting to agree with Shadow on this one.” Rouge slips out between giggles. “Ouch.”

“You should get some rest.” Shadow stands up from his spot on the ground. “It’ll help you feel better.”

“When’s the next round of pills?”

Shadow looks at the clock. It takes him too long to do the math, but he gets it eventually. “One hour, forty-one minutes.”

“Ughhhhhhhhhh.”

“ARE WE FINISHED WITH OUR PRIOR CONVERSATION?” Omega tilts back upright. 

Rouge glances between the two of them. 

“SHADOW, ARE YOU NO LONGER ‘FINE’?”

“Huh?” Rouge asks.

“‘FINE’, AS IN THE ACRONYM THAT STANDS FOR-”

“Yes, I am feeling better.”

“LIKE IT OR NOT, YOUR FEEBLE MEATBAG BRAIN IS BETTER EQUIPPED TO HANDLE CONCRETE DETAILS THAN VAGUE CONCEPTS. ILLUMINATING THIS SUBJECT HAS ALLOWED YOU TO PROCESS IT MORE EFFECTIVELY.”

“How do you know so much about my ‘meatbag brain’, anyway?” Shadow asks.

“I RESEARCH ORGANIC PSYCHOLOGY, SPECIFICALLY THE STRESS RESPONSE, TO BETTER DISABLE THE WRETCHED DOCTOR EGGMAN WITH. IT IS. . . COINCIDENTAL THAT THIS KNOWLEDGE IS USEFUL FOR OTHER SCENARIOS.”

“Mhm. Sure, hun.” Rouge says. “But thanks.”

“Thank you, Omega.” Shadow concurs. 

“YOU ARE WELCOME.” Omega steps back. He looks around the room, before his optics settle on Rouge. “DO YOU REQUIRE ANYTHING?”

“I’ll look after her.” Shadow says.

“GOOD. I AM GOING TO GO PLAY VIOLENT VIDEO GAMES NOW.”

Omega tromps down the hall and shuts the door of his room. His “shut” is a normal person’s “slam”, but given that the door’s still on its hinges, Shadow knows he’s alright. 

He looks back down at Rouge. “Is there anything you’d like?”

“More tea?”

“Hot or iced?”

“We have any ice cubes left?”

Shadow returns to the kitchen. He grabs the mug, fills it with water, and sets the microwave going. He grabs the tea bag. His eyes catch on the ice tray sitting on the counter. All the slots are filled with water now.

“I’ll run to the store. Be back before the microwave timer goes off.”

“Yeah, fuck cashiers! Steal things!” She cheers.

He makes for the door. Soon he’s skating down the streets, whizzing past cars as he scans for a generic corporate superstore. A lucky break, for once- as he comes upon a Walmart, someone’s holding the automatic doors open. He skids inside, yanks open the freezer door, grabs a bag of ice, then reverses course. 

When he steps back inside the apartment, the microwave dings. 

“Just in time. Got worried you actually decided to pay for it for a moment.” Rouge leans out from the couch. 

“If you fall off, I’m not catching you.” He sets the bag of ice on the counter.

“Sure you won’t.”

He goes to the microwave, opens it, and puts the tea bag in. Then he opens the bag of ice and fills the water bottle. He puts the rest of the bag in the fridge- he has to really shove it in there to get the door closed.

He returns, a few minutes later, to the couch with tea in hand, and passes it to her. He makes sure her fingers are looped through the handle of the cup before he lets go. She holds it. Sips it for a while. She hands it back to him. He places it on the end table. 

“Want some television?” He asks.

She nods. He grabs the remote from the television stand and powers everything on. As he hands the remote to her, Rouge reaches for his other hand.

“Hey,” She whispers as she curls her fingers over his.

She doesn’t say anything more. She doesn’t need to.

[springlock-suits]

Um. *twirls my hair* For this day I wanted to draw Funtime Foxy and or Ballora as real/showbiz inspired animatronics but then I realized I didn't. Want to. And might not have the time to depending on how the inspiration hits and if I'm going to add Baby to be a proper ladies night. So. I wrote a fic one-shot 👉👈

Bear in mind, I am an artist first. And failed English class on multiple occasions. So have fun with this I guess

Fnaf-tober | Day 4: Ladies Night

Fnaf-tober by miiilowo

Content: Willry if you squint, mostly in the form of Henry's thoughts. Gender.

This is about 1000 words, so one of my more lengthy fics, if not the new record holder

-----

Henry reread the design notes in front of him again. He scratched his beard a bit in concentration. The ginger man was currently looking over William's work on some circus themed animatronics, they were only concepts right now, silly little doodles made by a man who happened to enjoy the aesthetic clowns and the like. However... he couldn't help but notice a small, inconcensistent detail. Had William made a mistake? Maybe he should call him to make sure he's reading this right.

No... he can't do that.

Henry sighed and took a sip of the tea on his desk, perfectly sweet, though unfortunately has long since become room temperature. Henry huffed a laugh as he took another sip, William always called Henry's tea "hummingbird nectar". Always scrunching his nose in that cute way of his when he saw Henry drinking a cup of a sugary concoction. Henry shook his head, focus, what was he doing again? He looked back down, right, William's notes. Calling him. Can't do that. Henry sighed again, William had taken a break from work this week to take care of his kids while Bella was away on a camping trip with her girl friends. William would be back for work this Friday, and correcting a detail on some concept work truly wasn't that important. Especially since the "funtimes" won't see the light of days for years, if ever.

Henry nibbled on his pen, and looked up at the time. 1pm. Would William be busy? Michael was at school, but little Evan and Elizabeth were home. Maybe they were taking an after lunch nap at this very moment and William was just as bored as he was and wanted to talk about his animatronics some more. Henry rapidly tapped his pen on the desk, thinking. Charlotte was still at school. His little Button had mentioned recently that she wanted to see Uncle Will and her siblings again. He remembered how he tried once to explain to her that William is not her uncle, and even if he was his children wouldn't be considered her siblings, she just puffed up and crossed her arms, stating that she obviously knew that, but she had adopted them, so they're family now. William had laughed and ruffled her hair, saying he couldn't argue with that logic, and Charlie had absolutely beamed at that. Henry smiled at the memory.

He shook his head, getting distracted again, what was he...? Henry jolts up when he remembers. Right, of course, Charlie wanted a play date. He should call William to ask him about it. And if the conversation happens to steer towards other things, well, that'd be convenient, just some light chatter between friends. Henry holds the phone to his ear, having quickly dialed the number.

Ringing...

"Hello?" comes the sweet sound of William's voice. Henry realizes that he's been silent on the phone to the point of becoming uncomfortable. "William! I ah, hope I'm not being a bother right now- I was just uh wondering if you were free at some point this week. And your kids. For a play date. Charlotte wants a playdate." Henry quickly rambles out, embarrassed. William chuckles on the other end of the line, and Henry hears the faint whispering of Elizabeth, excited at the thought of playdate. "You're not bothering me Henry, Evan just went to bed, and Lizzie here is practicing her makeup skills on me. Of course they can have a playdate later, how does after school sound? Or after Charlie finishes with her homework I suppose."

Henry doesn't even take a moment to think, "Yes yes that's perfect, my little Button will be excited to hear the news." Henry paused. "Practicing her makeup skill on you?" William chuckled, and Elizabeth seemingly shoved her face right in front of the phone as she now loudly spoke. "I'm making Daddy pretty! We're having uh,, um,,, a." The toddler struggled to remember a word. "A LADIES NIGHT!!" she shouted triumphantly, proud of herself. William quietly told her not to be so loud, as she might wake Evan or hurt poor Uncle Henry's ears. Henry hummed. "You and William and having a ladies night Lizzie?" Elizabeth nodded, and then gave a quick "Yeah!" when she remembered Henry couldn't see her. "Me and Daddy are having a ladies night, because we're the only ones in the house right now other than Evan and Evan is sleeping." She shushed the phone for emphasis. "And we're both ladies so we're having a ladies night!"

"I see," replied Henry, not seeing. "That reminds me of something actually, could you hand the phone back to your father, dear?" Elizabeth nods and William gently takes the offered phone from her, and watches as she quickly becomes distracted with rummaging in her mother's makeup kit again. William smiles as he puts the phone back up to his ear. "Was there something else you needed Henry?"

Henry quickly shuffles through William's notes again. "Oh yes, um, I was just looking through your notes and wondering about... the funtime fox character? It looks like you switch between using he or she for. uh... the fox.".William hums, "Did I? I suppose I didn't notice." he chuckles. Henry nods, "Right then, so I was just wondering what you meant to use for the character, so I can correct it." William smiles, "There's no need for that Henry, he and she both sound correct to me for the fox. He is above all else a performer after all, I imagine she simply finds it easier to use whatever fits best at the moment, and whatever fits best for the performance." Henry paused for a moment. "Like... your Springbonnie?" William beamed, "Yes yes like Springbonnie! Though not exactly, Springbonnie entirely doesn't care for such things." William paused, "Say I've been thinking of a new funtime character too! A fox like the other one, their name is Lolbit... "

Henry smiled as he listened to William ramble on about his latest idea, he ended the call quite some time later when Charlotte excitedly bounced up to him after getting off the school bus, talking about how she finished her homework while on the bus and proudly displaying her work. She was, as expected, very excited to visit Uncle Will's house when he told her about the playdate.

When they arrived. Henry couldn't help but notice that William had yet to wash off the makeup his daughter had put on him.

[the-faramir]

Niji-iro Midori: The Reluctant Ringmaster

Chapter 4: Not My Circus, Not My Monkeys

During one night's performance of the Celestial Menagerie, a commotion arose from the audience. An outraged upper-class member of the audience accused Toby of short-changing him. While the clowns performed, Mistress Dusklight herself went into the stands to settle the conflict.

"Mistress Dusklight! This ginger fool can't even count! I gave him a platinum and he gave me change for a gold! Are you simple, boy? I demand the rest!"

"Sir, we will resolve this matter," Mistress Dusklight replied, "but please let's not disrupt the performance. Now, Toby—"

"Stuff and nonsense!" The portly patron reached out toward Toby. "I'm taking my platinum back now!" The man grabbed at Toby's change purse, tearing the fabric and scattering coins about. In the cascade, a few earrings, bracelets, and gold coins ricocheted onto the floor. "What? My antique watch! How did you lift that from me, boy?"

Some of the surrounding audience, also seeing their stolen property, started an uproar, stopping the clown act altogether.

"Intolerable, Dusklight! Scandal! Disgrace!" The overweight man turned several shades of red not usual for human skin. "What kind of operation are you running here? No. I will not stand for this. Friends! Let us leave and never patronize this establishment again!"

Audience members scrambled to retrieve their stolen valuables, taking all of the coins Toby had collected in payment for tonight's concessions as well. As a good third of the audience left the tent, loudly clamoring for refunds, Mistress Dusklight turned to Toby, her ears pointed out sideways and her eyes practically incandescent with rage. She simply said, "My office. Now."

Having heard the ruckus from midway, and since the crowds had long since left to fill the big top for the show, Midori locked up the booth she had been running all evening and followed Mistress Dusklight and Toby, moving stealthily in the shadows to avoid anybody's notice. Arriving at her quarters, Mistress Dusklight greeted Mazael, her new aasimar bodyguard. The lovestruck young man stood at attention as the two approached, smiled at Dusklight fawningly, opened the door, let the two inside, and then closed the door, standing guard.

Midori sneaked around to the open window in the back, escaping Mazael's senses. She could hear everything from that vantage point.

"Toby, Toby, Toby!" Mistress Dusklight exasperated. "What went on back there?"

"Mistress Dusklight, ma'am!" Toby snapped to attention like a soldier addressing his captain. "They have so much and we have little. So I take a bit from those who can afford it. You know we all do it. I've done this for years and never got caught in the act. Never. Nobody gets caught. But that fat guy, it was dark in the stands. I couldn't see his coin was platinum. Nobody pays in platinum. Usually silver. Sometimes gold. If he just said 'gimme change for a plat,' I woulda known and that whole scene wouldn't'a gone down. Honest mistake. Won't happen again, ma'am!"

Mistress Dusklight's ears flicked backward for a split second. "For years, you say?" She began pacing back and forth. "You are damned right that won't happen again! Tonight, we lost nearly half of the audience." She pivoted and took a few steps away from Toby, her anger clearly growing by the second. "They all wanted refunds." She turned on her heel and leaned forward toward Toby with her arms spread out as if in explanation. "REFUNDS, Toby! And they won't be coming back! This is going to set the Celestial Menagerie back quite a bit. We will have to tighten our belts." She turned away again, stepping past her desk, her right hand skimming the desktop and picking something up off of its surface that Toby could not quite see. She spun around and took four quick steps, closing the distance between herself and Toby, her tail puffed and flicking furiously from side to side. "But do you know the worst thing, Toby? The thing that you've done in all of this that hurts me the most?" Toby, surprised, shook his head quickly. "You've been pickpocketing for years, and YOU'VE! NEVER! PAID! ME! TRIBUTE!" She emphasized every one of those last words with a thrust of her dagger into Toby's ribcage.

Toby looked down at his chest, aghast, then back up to Mistress Dusklight until his vision faded and he collapsed onto the floor with a weak, wet groan.

"I'm afraid, Toby, that your services are no longer required. Good day, sir." Dusklight tossed her bloody dagger onto her desk. "The Celestial Menagerie wishes you the best of luck in your future endeavors."

Hearing Toby collapse, Midori panicked and jumped through the window to come to his aid. The bottom fell out of her life as she saw him on the floor, lifeless. Midori fell to her knees and looked up into Mistress Dusklight's startled face.

"Mistress Dusklight?" Midori pleaded, "What happened?"

Mistress Dusklight chuckled. "Midori, I know Toby was an…attachment…to you. But in this business, there is so much workforce turnover that it's best not to get too close to anyone." Her eyes glowed gold and her pupils dilated as she pulled at her web of magical influence to manipulate Midori's emotions, staring unblinkingly into her tear-brimmed eyes. "Forget him." Her voice took on a honeyed, purring quality. "He is nothing. Go back to your post. Do not react. I am your mother. You will obey me. Good carnies follow orders." Dusklight grinned evilly as her power surged.

In Midori's head, there was practically an audible snap as her rising emotions overwhelmed Mistress Dusklight's spell. In a moment of clarity, all of the memories of all of the times in which Dusklight mistreated her or one of her fellow Celestial Menagerie members came flooding into her mind. Not only had Dusklight's cruel treatment caused people to leave the circus, but she had killed other performers before! Dusklight simply convinced everyone that her victims had left on their own accord. Nobody ever dared to question her.

Dusklight felt a twinge of feedback from her spells breaking; she knew that further manipulation would not be possible. Midori jumped to her feet, her boiling rage washing away her sensibilities. She raised her hands at Mistress Dusklight, her tiny, dull claws barely visible, and managed to force out coherent words: "Dusklight! Why I oughtta…!"

Dusklight snorted out a derisive laugh. "Oh, little kit! You could hardly open a letter with those. But still, my hands have gotten dirty enough tonight." She changed her voice to sound sweet and vulnerable, but could not help sounding sarcastic. "Oh, help! Help! There is an intruder in my quarters!"

Almost immediately, Mazael launched himself through the door, drawing his sword as his shiny plate armor clanked. "Fair Mistress! Someone threatens thee? This tiny vixen, mayhap?"

Seeing the sword drawn on her forced Midori to come to her senses, at least somewhat. "Whoa, whoa, Maz! Keep it in your scabbard! Mistress Dusklight and I were just having a friendly discussion." With no immediate threat to Mistress Dusklight, Mazael lowered his sword somewhat. "Turns out, I was just leaving, see? I'm outta here, leaving for somewhere better, and I just came to say goodbye." Midori drew a deep, calming breath. She redirected her murderous rage into the only other channel she had available: song. She cleared her throat, drew another breath, and turned to Dusklight. She began to sing:

🎶🎶🎶

You think you own me, you think you can cage me You think you can abuse me and not enrage me But you don’t know me, you don’t see the real me You don’t feel the fire, the desire, that frees me

🎶🎶🎶

Mistress Dusklight arched an eyebrow.

🎶🎶🎶

I’m a wild soul, I’m a fox in the night I’m a star in the sky, I’m a spark of the light I’m a wild soul, I’m a dreamer of dreams I’m a seeker of wonders, I’m a maker of schemes

I’m a wild soul, and I’m leaving you behind I’m a wild soul, and I’m going to find A place where I belong, a place where I can shine A place where I can be myself, a place that can be mine

🎶🎶🎶

With the circus show over, other circus folk heard Midori's song and wandered by. Some came in through the open door. Others gathered by the windows. A few security bruisers came to stand behind Mistress Dusklight. Some of Midori's friends, seeing Toby dead on the floor and not knowing what happened, came over to stand by Midori.

Seeing that she had an audience, Midori used the trick that Myron taught her to amplify her voice, carrying it throughout the circus grounds and into the big top. She poured her soul into her song in an effort to reach out to everyone in the Celestial Menagerie and break as many of Mistress Dusklight's spells as she could.

🎶🎶🎶

You call us freaks, you call us monsters You call us tools and fools and bothers But you need us, you want us, you fear us You need our charm, our skill, our talent

You say you’re an artist, you say you’re a star You say you’re a master, a leader, a czar But you’re a tyrant, you’re a liar, you’re a cheat You’re a coward, a traitor, a thief

You can’t stop me, you can’t hold me, you can’t control me You can’t hurt me, you can’t break me, you can’t erase me You can’t keep me, you can’t have me, you can’t own me You can’t change me, you can’t tame me, you can’t claim me

I’m a wild soul, and I’m leaving you behind I’m a wild soul, and I’m going to find A place where I belong, a place where I can shine A place where I can be myself, a place where I can be free

I’m a wild soul, and I’m saying goodbye I’m a wild soul, and I’m ready to fly A place where I belong, a place where I can shine A place where I can be myself, a place that can be mine

🎶🎶🎶

Seeing that she was rapidly losing support, Mistress Dusklight stepped into the metaphorical spotlight with her rebuttal:

🎶🎶🎶

You think you’re free, you think you can escape me You think you can betray me, desert me, and forsake me But you owe me, you serve me, you belong to me You owe me your life, your loyalty, your destiny

You’re a lost soul, you’re a fox in a trap You’re a speck in the dark, you’re a stain on the map You’re a lost soul, you’re a dreamer of lies You’re a seeker of trouble, you’re a maker of cries

You’re a lost soul, and you’re making a mistake You're a lost soul, and you’re going to break They call me the boss, they call me the queen You call me a coward, a bully, a fiend?

But they love me, they admire me, they envy me They love my art, my fame, my glory

You say you’re a star, you say you’re a hero You say you’re the leader, and you say I’m a zero But you’re a puppet, YOU’RE a liar, YOU’RE a cheat YOU’RE the coward, the traitor, the thief

You can’t fool me, you can’t outrun me, you can’t defy me You can’t hurt me, you can’t beat me, you can’t deny me You can’t leave me, you can’t forget me, you can’t ignore me You can’t change me, you can’t resist me, you can’t oppose me

You’re a lost soul, and you’re making a mistake You’re a lost soul, and you’re going to break You’re a lost soul, and you’re saying goodbye? You’ll stay with me or you’re GOING TO DIE!

🎶🎶🎶

Not to shy away from a challenge, Midori replied in a way that she knew would hit Dusklight right where it hurt:

🎶🎶🎶

Your ex-boyfriend Thunder, he’s upset You know he left you because of something that you said And he didn’t like the way you treat everyone like trash

He was a father to me and all the rest So, more than you, we all love him the best And we’re leaving here to go to a show with more panache

We’ll be in the back seat of Papa Thunder’s wagon He’ll be driving to the Circus of Wayward Wonders And I can’t help but think that this is where we belong 'Cause we’ve been dreaming of joining him all along

Oh, I remember you taking me away In the middle of the night

You said you wanted me to be your star But you never treated me right

You said I was a member of your family But you lied, you lied, you lied

So Mistress Dusklight, can’t you see That you can’t control me

No, no, you don’t control me

And we’ll be on the stage with Papa Thunder’s crew We’re putting on a show that makes the crowd go wild And I can’t help but smile, 'cause this is what I love And I know that he loves me too

🎶🎶🎶

Mistress Dusklight stood still, arms crossed, with a scowl on her face and her left eye twitching. "Hmph." She snapped her fingers. "Guards! Kill her!"

Mazael and the two security guards stepped toward Midori, who raised her fists and wished that she had a rapier or dagger so that she could at least take one of them down with her in the impending battle.

Brondin Stonehammer, an armored dwarf with a blood-red beard who worked in crowd control, stepped between Midori and Dusklight's minions. He slammed the haft of his greataxe onto the floor with a resounding boom. "Do not touch her! She's done nothing wrong."

Stefano, one of the circus riggers, stepped in next to Brondin, his fists raised in a fighting stance. "Is this really how you treat family, Mistress?"

More of Midori's friends looked at each other, nodding, and moved in between her and Dusklight with shouts of "We quit, Dusklight!" and "We're with Midori!"

"FOOLS!" Mistress Dusklight thundered. A team of heavily muscled goons in clown costumes and whimsical greasepaint entered the room to stand behind Dusklight, armed with clubs, maces, brass knuckles, and the like. "You are hopelessly outnumbered! Even if you were able to fight your way out of my chambers, you would never survive running the gauntlet of my minions to escape the circus grounds."

Bufurug, Midori's favorite cook and resident druid, piped up meekly in his raspy, high-pitched voice,

"Don't worry, folks, I'll get you out of here safely." Everyone in the room, including Mistress Dusklight, turned to look at the little shoony doubtfully.

A goblin in the back jeered "Whatcha gonna do, bite our ankles?"

Bufurug replied, "Um, no, well, I was actually thinking…." and quickly transformed into the ferocious shape of a tyrannosaurus rex, breaking through the ceiling and outer wall, sending wood-and-glass shrapnel throughout Mistress Dusklight's trailer, knocking Dusklight and her flunkies to the floor. Bufurug let out a thunderous feral bellow that Midori swore sounded like his voice shouting "Run!"

And run they did, hidden in the wake of the rampaging dinosaur. They soon ran safely away from the circus grounds and toward Abberton, the outskirts of which hosted the Circus of Wayward Wonders.

Meanwhile, Dusklight and her minions picked themselves up from the rubble on the floor in her destroyed office. She caught the eye of Ruanna Nyamma, a flame-red-haired half-elven carnival barker who had done a significant amount of dirty work for her in the past. "Ruanna! Form up a team with two others. I have a job for you…."

Chapter 1: We Are On a Diplomatic Mission to Absalom

Chapter 2: The Circus Arrives Without Warning

Chapter 3: Hi-Diddle-De-Dee, a Carny's Life for Me

Chapter 5: One Does Not Simply Walk Into Abberton

Chapter 6: The Circus of Wayward Wonders