#Someone's gotta be the responsible one and it's Not gonna be the ones that forgot to bring WATER on a 3 day hike

[theoscelosaurus]

NIGHTMARE.

woke up this morning. no paracetamol.

I only had 2 GRAMS. 2. HOW am i supposed to survive, let alone thrive in these conditions??

I'm supposed to see a play in the city tonight #crying

Texted friend to complain 'just take some ibuprofen' she said 'i know you have it I stole one yesterday and you're bag's like a farmacy'

D: what self respecting farmacy doesn't have paracetamol?? Ibuprofen is Worthless for period pain. How could I ever fall this low:') i used to have p much every over the counter pain killer...what have i become

[billliesbabygirl]

possessive

i wrote this months ago so i kinda forgot what it’s about but i think it’s good! i just don’t wanna go back nd read it cause ill be quite embarrassed.

just trust me that it’s good

i have a lil mommy kink we don’t gotta talk about it

y/n

i’m at a party with my friend billie, she’s gripping my arm and dragging me everywhere she goes. she literally told me not to talk to anyone before we got here.

“billie that hurts just let me go! i wanna talk to my friend” i begged her, she always does this.

“you’re not going anywhere, got it?” she gripped me tighter, making me gasp in pain. she dragged me to a couch and sat down, pulling me onto her lap.

“you’re staying right here with me sweetheart, you’re lucky i even let you come here.” she said smiling and running her fingers through my hair.

“you’re so pretty, i could look at you for hours” she softly whispered, i blushed but i was so confused.

after a few minutes i see my friend walk towards us and i go off to talk to her, i see billie glaring at us.

i don’t know why she gets jealous when i talk to people.

she comes up to us and wraps her hand around my waist, her fingers squeezing my skin. “we’re leaving”

she grabs my arm again and pulls me out of the room. she takes me to her car and opens the door for me, pushing me inside saying “get in”

she closes the door and walks over to the drivers side “if you ever talk to that bitch again i’ll kill her” she tightly gripped on to my hand.

“okay” i didn’t want her to get more mad. her attention turns to the road until we get to her house.

“don’t try to leave sweetheart, you’re all mine now” i just nodded and followed her inside.

she took me to her bed and told me to stay still.

“you say red if you want me to stop okay? that’s your safe word baby.” she looks down at me waiting for my response.

“tell me your safe word”

“red”

she smiled at me and kissed me softly. “that’s right baby, very good” she says before walking over to her closet getting a box of stuff out.

billie takes a soft silk black ribbon and walks towards me, she runs her fingers lightly along my arms before grabbing my wrists and tying them gently but firmly together so i couldn’t move my hands anywhere.

she lays me down and takes off my shirt, then she unclips my lacy pink bra, pulling the straps down.

she smirks at how helpless i look, laid down waiting for her to do something to me. she sucks on my breast while gently playing with the other one.

(guys i need someone to play with my tits also ignore me saying breasts i feel weird saying boobs i’m sorry)

“you’re nothing but a dirty little slut huh?” i just whimpered in response.

“you’re my little slut, and i’m gonna fuck you until you understand that you’re all mine” she smiles into my chest while sucking and leaving marks.

billie gets back up and starts taking off my skirt and panties, then spreading my legs. she laughs at my wetness going to my thighs.

“awh look at that, your pussy is practically begging to be fucked. such a wet messy slut.” she gets on her knees putting her face close to my heat. i whine desperately waiting for her to touch me.

“mommy please” billie smiles at my submission.

“look at you begging, so desperate.” she says in her cold mocking tone, keeping her hand away from my needy pussy.

“you’re mine now don’t forget that” she finally gives in, giving a slow, teasing lick to my pussy, making me whimper in pleasure.

she smirks against my skin as she continues to lick and suck at my pussy. her hand moves up to play with my breast again.

two fingers start to move in and out of my dripping pussy, matching the rhythm of me bucking my hips.

“you’re gonna cum for me, over and over again” she says between her licks and sucks. i whine loudly again in pleasure.

she sucks on my clit harder as her fingers pump in and out of my pussy, making me cum harder than i ever have, i literally started feeling like i could pass out from the pleasure .

i lay on the bed, sleepy and weak. billie takes out a vibrator and turns it on, the buzzing filling the room. she presses it against my clit, turning it up to the highest setting.

“m-mommy!” was all i could get out, she just laughs and continues to use the vibrator on my throbbing clit. she loves every moment of me squirming in pleasure. “you’re my little cumslut, huh baby?”

hearing her say that sends me over the edge and i cum again.

i try pushing billie away and move away from her a little, but she pulls me back to her and presses the vibrator on my clit with more pressure making my whole body shake from sensitivity.

“it’s too much please i can’t take a-anymore.. no more” my wrist strained against the rope as i try to squirm away from the vibrator.

billie just laughs softly knowing if i needed to stop i would say the safe word we had. “oh no baby, you’re not getting away from me now.” she pushes the vibrator even harder on my clit.

tears stream down my face knowing i was going to cum again.“please…” i say in a whimper.

“oh but i love seeing you so sensitive, i wanna make you cum some more. don’t you wanna make mommy happy?” she doesn’t give in, she uses her other hand to hold my hips still as she presses the vibrator firmly on my clit.

my back arches a little as i cum for the third time, my body shakes uncontrollably out of pleasure and pain. “mommy!”

“there you go sweetie, cum for mommy” she holds the vibrator still until i finished, smiling at my vulnerable state.

i laid there shaking and whimpering. i look up at billie with half closed eyes, she smiles down at me and places a kiss on my lips.

“this is just the beginning sweetheart, mommy’s gonna ruin you.” she says while putting on a strap on.

she pushes the strap into me roughly, making me cry out and whine. she starts fucking me harder, pounding my pussy.

“you sound adorable baby, you love mommy’s cock so much don’t you?” she grips my hips and thrust deeper.

“it’s too much please… mommy i can’t take it” she just shushes me and pounds into me roughly. i knew i was going to cum again soon.

“you can give me one more sweetheart. you can take a little more.” i just whine and she laughs, loving the noises i make.

“i can’t mommy i can’t” she shushes me and started to rub circles around my clit, sending me over the edge.

she continues to thrust into me as i cum, smiling down at me while watching me loose control, shaking and crying.

after i finished, billie gently pulled out of me. she unties my wrists and kisses them. “you’re so good at taking mommy angel.”

i don’t want to talk about it.

why is posting smut so embarrassing i cant believe people i know know that IIIIIIIIIIIII wrote this bullshit

i hope you likey

[lovesickhughes]

huge congrats for 500 my lovely! you deserve that and so much more 💕 can I request an amore love letter with the prompt “Oh no, there is only one bed, what will we do now?” for Jack Hughes?

a/n: of courseee!! i hope you enjoy! thank u for requesting (not edited)

18+ under the cut

You could hear the mischievous voices growing louder as you walked down the hall of the Hughes lake house, their bantering soft as if they were hiding from someone.

"Dude, she's gonna kill us! We gotta find a way to change this, there's no way she's gonna—" Luke's voice was hushed, panicked, but when you turned the corner of the hallway, your brows furrowed to find Jack and Luke huddled together.

"There's no way I'm gonna what?" You questioned, eyes squinting with skepticism when you find Luke and Jack both turning around, eyes wide with shock to find you standing opposite them as if they were caught.

They look between one another, searching for an answer before Luke nudged Jack's middle, earning a grunt from his older brother.

Jack muttered something under his breath to Luke before turning to you, eyes softening and a smile spreading on his face.

"So, there was a mixup." He started, making your head tilt further in confusion.

"Okay..."

"And, you see— you're gonna have to room with someone..." He continued, attempting to sound as persuasive as possible, teetering side to side on each foot.

You sigh, rolling your eyes and folding your arms over your chest, making Jack stand taller in his stance.

"Basically, this idiot beside me didn't plan right and you're gonna have to share with me in my room." Jack confessed, his cheeks rosy from embarrassment filling his system and you blinked slowly, earning confused looks to be shared between Luke and Jack.

"That's all?" You questioned, unamused.

"Uh... yeah?" Luke said from behind his older brother.

"You're not upset?" Jack asked quietly, as if he was walking on thin ice.

You shrugged your shoulders, "Why would I be?" You questioned again, growing frustrated with the shenanigans of the two brothers.

Jack shook his head profusely, "Oh no, y'know, just cause you have to share the room with me... I didn't know if you'd be cool with that." He confessed, his shoulder slumping slightly.

You let out a small chuckle at his confession, "Oh no, we're sharing a room, there is only one bed, what will we ever do?" You exaggerated sarcastically, earning small grins from the boys next to you.

—

Later that night, you found yourself organizing your toiletries in their compartment of your suitcase you had packed for the trip when you heard the door creak open, Jack's soft-padded steps echoing through the quiet and dimly lit room. You looked over your shoulder, catching the sight of a shirtless, tanned, broad-chested Jack walking over to his bed, sitting with his back rested against the headboard, scrolling absentmindedly on his phone, waiting patiently.

You went back to your prior task, moving on to find your pyjama set you had packed, but when you scrounged through your clothes, not being able to find the distinct pattern of your clothes, you let out a sigh of frustration.

"What's the matter?" Jack asked from his spot on the bed, and your turned to face him, face drained with disappointment.

"I forgot my pyjamas. I packed an extra dress, but I guess I forgot to grab my PJs along with it," You exasperated. "Do you have a spare t-shirt I can borrow or something?" You asked, arms slumped to your sides, the tiredness of travelling to the lake house catching up to you.

Jack nodded quickly, springing off of the mattress to a drawer in the one corner of his room, and he quickly pulled out what appeared to be a black New Jersey Devils t-shirt, with an '86' printed on the back with his name splayed along the bottom.

"Self-absorbed much?" You joke as he handed you the piece of clothing only earning Jack's eyes to roll in response as he sat on the end of the bed, watching your every move.

He groaned, "C'mon, you know it was just the first one I grabbed." Throwing his head back. You shifted your weight between feet, feeling the material of the t-shirt beneath your fingers and blinked slowly at Jack.

"You gonna turn around while I change or anything? You perv." You joked yet again, voice quiet due to the late hours of the night. Whether it was the atmosphere of the dimly lit room, the proximity, or the underlying fact that you were mere minutes away from sharing a bed with Jack who was undeniably attractive, you felt the air shift, and his gaze grew more dark.

"What? It's not like your hard to look at..." Jack shrugged through a mumble.

Your eyebrows raised in a teasingly surprise, "Is that so?" You pressed, walking closer to Jack who was still sat on the end of the mattress, his torso exposed, calling your name.

You walked up so that you were only an arm's length away, Jack's eyes looking up to meet yours as your tongue toyed with the inside of your cheek nervously. Jack's hand lifted to your side, slipping underneath the shirt you were currently wearing from earlier, his warm hand sending a vibrating sensation through your skin.

"Can I?" Jack said, his voice a low mumble and your mouth felt dry as you only nodded, letting Jack pull your body onto his lap, straddling his waist. His hands braced either side of your waist, roaming the scape of your body, lowering to your hips than to your ass, groping the flesh before travelling upward to your upper back, fingers undoing your bra clasp with expertise, making a gasp fall from your lips at the exposure to the cool night air.

Your hands rested on his shoulders before they found their way into his brown curls, tugging softly and twirling the soft hair between your fingers. His lips then found your jawline, placing wet kisses along your skin, trailing down to your neck and kissing all of the grooves of your skin. When he came to kiss your neck, just below your ear, hearing the sound of his wet, swollen lips against your skin and the sound of his breath, inhaling your scent; you let out a sigh of pleasure as he continued to litter your skin with kisses.

"Do you want to do this?" Jack said as he pulled away from attacking your neck, searching your eyes as his tongue darted out to wet his lips even more. You nodded eagerly, connecting your lips to his and when his hands slipped between your waistband and travelled to your core, the feeling of his fingertips rubbing against your sensitive clit made your body shutter with pleasure. His finger dipped into your core, feeling your slick coat his finger and earning a groan against your mouth in response.

"Fuck, Y/n, this wet for me already?" He groaned against your lips, and you whine in response, hips grinding against his own, feeling his bulge press into your core. "Take your pants off." He ordered, making you stumble to your feet to disregard your pants. While doing so, Jack slipped out of his own pants, taking his boxers off along with it, leaving his eager cock, throbbing for pleasure to be exposed, making your mouth water at the sight.

You adjusted yourself on Jack's lap, attaching your own lips to his jawline then neck, planting kisses against his warm, sunkissed skin. You could feel his throbbing member pressed against your pussy, waiting to delve into your core, so when you lifted your hips and aligned him with your entrance, the sigh that left Jack's mouth when you sunk down and completely bottomed out his cock, was almost the reason you could orgasm on the spot.

You adjusted to his size, letting him stretch you in a painful, yet pleasurable way, while his arms wrapped around your torso, holding you tight to his body.

When ready, you began to lift yourself up and down against Jack, feeling him stretch you in all the right ways and feeling his cock slide in and out. Soon enough, you had picked up your pace, and the sound of your panting and skin slapping against one another, your bit lightly into Jack's shoulders to contain your moans.

"Fuck, Jack, you feel so good." You whined softly into his ear, your hands finding his brown curls and tugging on them as you met each others movements.

"Yeah, baby? Doing so good." He mumbled against your temple, hands roaming your body and grabbing delicate handfuls of your skin. "Fuck, look at you bouncing on my cock so well. Takin' me so good." He said through gritted teeth, abs clenching to maintain his stamina.

You threw your head back in pleasure, letting out a whine when he readjusted his legs and thrusted up into you from a different angle.

"Jack, I'm close." You said, head now leaning forward against Jack's shoulder, hands steadying yourself as you try to stay coherent, despite Jack's thrusts into you.

"Yeah? Wanna come?" Jack said against your cheek, his one hand coming to grip your jaw, holding your face opposite his and meeting your gaze as he fucked into you.

You hummed, nodding your head and letting out yet another call of pleasure when you felt Jack's hand slip between your bodies and thumb your sensitive clit, eliciting more pleasure than imaginable.

"Just like that, baby, fuck. You're perfect. So good bouncing on my cock, like you're just made for me." Jack spoke, moans leaving your mouth in between every thrust.

"I'm gonna come," you sighed, body growing limp as pleasure spread through your entire body, hazing your consciousness. Jack's thrusts sped up as he continued through your peak, soon after spilling into you as his own body came down from the high.

Jack fell back onto the mattress, bringing your body to lay on top of his own, his hands caressing your back softly as you relish your recent euphoric episodes, and he slips out of you, making you groan at the feeling of loss between your legs.

"So that's a way to welcome me into your bed." You chuckled softly, meeting Jack's eyes.

He shut his own, laughing and letting his bright smile shine, "I'd say so."

[atlabeth]

a rose and her thorns | luke castellan

pairing: luke castellan x fem!daughter of aphrodite reader

summary: luke vies for a valentine. you're just trying to get through cabin inspections.

a/n: take this as my formal apology for the angst i’ve been throwing at you all with demeter girl lol and take this tooth rotting fluff. this was supposed to be shorter but i got carried away, after writing that 11k angst riddled monster this was a much needed palate cleanser lmao

wc: 3.3k

warning(s): no warnings this is all fluff <3

You huffed as you knocked on the door again, chewing on the inside of your lip as you waited for a response. The Hermes cabin usually always had kids in it—either they were ignoring you, or they were just causing too much ruckus to even hear it in the first place.

Honestly, you should have known this was how cabin inspections with Luke would go. He was probably in there right now, ushering all of them through rapid last-minute tidying in the hopes of something higher than a one. You had half a mind to knock a point off right now by virtue of tardiness.  

The hairs on the back of your neck stood up all of a sudden, and you whirled around. 

“Speak of the devil,” you said wryly. 

You were greeted with Luke Castellan himself, his hands up with a slight smile on his lips. “Easy. I didn’t think I looked that bad.” 

Your brows creased ever so slightly, and he gestured with head. You looked down and realized you were holding your pen like a sword. You cleared your throat and let your arm drop, adjusting your shirt on the way down. 

“Sorry. People tend not to sneak up on me.” 

“I can’t imagine why.” Luke put his hands down and started towards his cabin, craning his head back at you. “What brings you here on this fine day, Rose?” 

“Don’t tell me you forgot,” you pouted, holding up your clipboard and pen as you followed him. “We’re on inspection duty together. Where were you?” 

He snapped and pointed at you. “That’s what we were doing together today! I knew we were spending time together—not like I could forget that—but,” his hand paused on the doorknob, “I kind of forgot about the cabin inspection part. Had to spend a little extra time with one of your siblings at the end of sword-fighting lessons.” 

“Sounds like Liz is getting better, then.” A smug smile pulled at your lips as you stopped next to him. “And it sounds like someone’s gonna be cleaning the dishes tonight,” you said in a sing-song voice. 

You placed your hand over his and opened the door, and Luke groaned. “Take mercy, Rose. Please.” 

It was certainly a sight—more akin to a tornado than the inside of a cabin. Various kids—Hermes, unclaimed, and minor gods alike—ran around, shoving dirty clothes beneath beds, cramming duffles and suitcases into overflowing closets, with a few noble exceptions attempting the Sisyphean task of actually cleaning. 

“Wow,” you said, glancing down at the papyrus scroll. “Can I give you a zero?” 

“Listen,” Luke said from behind you, “our thing isn’t tidiness. It’s thievery—swiftness, cunning, panache.” 

“I thought you were supposed to be jacks of all trades,” you mused as you checked off boxes. “Cleaning is a trade.” 

“Not here.” You could feel him peering over your shoulder and he groaned yet again. “Come on! You’re grading us way too low. I get input too, remember?” 

“Sure,” you remarked. You held out the clipboard and gestured with your head at the natural disaster in front of you. “But you can’t tell me this is anything better than a two.” 

“A two’s better than a one.” Luke plucked the pen out of your hand and scrawled out a number two on the final line. 

“Luke—” you started in protest, but he just snatched the clipboard as well with a wink as he started walking backwards towards the door. 

“We’ve got a chance, guys!” he called out. “Hephaestus has gotta be worse than this!” 

You huffed as you chased after him, shutting the door on your way, and you crossed your arms as you came to a stop in front of him. “This isn’t very cooperative of you.” 

“Gotta give myself a chance,” Luke said, smiling as he took the Hermes sheet off the clipboard and stuffed it into his pocket. 

“That’s just cheating,” you said, and he let you take the clipboard back from him. You started walking, and he fell into pace with you. “Hephaestus is next—we’ll see how much of a chance you have.” 

“We should get some slack because we’ve got double the campers,” Luke said. “Nine’s got no excuse—they’re just a bunch of messy engineers.” 

You tapped your pen against the board. “I’m not changing my mind, Castellan.” 

“Ouch,” he winced. “I got last name’d.” 

You merely smiled and shook your head. You could see his own smile in your peripherals, then he huffed.  

“You’re distracting me from my whole plan with these ridiculous grades,” Luke sighed. “I haven’t ruined everything, have I?”

“You’ve got a plan?” you asked in amusement. 

“Of course I do.” Luke took a few long strides to get in front of you then turned around so he was walking backwards, that stupid smirk still on his lips as he kept eye contact with you. “Valentine’s Day is coming up.” 

“You’re very observant,” you said. “Watch your six.” 

Luke moved a step towards you to avoid a younger camper with their head buried in a book, and you chuckled as he shrugged. 

“It’s a work in progress,” he admitted. 

You hummed, biting back your smile as you came up to the Hephaestus cabin. You were about to knock on the door, but once again, Luke caught your wrist. 

“You’re not even gonna let me say my piece?” he asked. 

“I’ll give you a little time to polish it up,” you said. 

“You assume I don’t have it prepared already?” 

“Oh, I’m sure you do.” You winked. “But I know the effect I have on you.” 

Luke’s fingers loosened on your wrist and you allowed a small, self-satisfied smile as you pulled free and knocked on the door. It took a couple seconds, but eventually the door opened and their counselor—Alya, if you remembered correctly—greeted you with a smile. 

“Just in time,” she said, smudging the bit of grease on her face as she wiped at her cheek. “We’re actually not horrible today.” 

Luke grumbled beneath his breath as you walked in together—usually, the place was a mess of loose parts and hastily sketched out plans and smoke-scented clothes. Today, it was still a mess, but slightly less so. 

“Damn it,” Luke muttered. “Still not as bad as us.” 

“Stop comparing your place to everyone else,” you said. “This is supposed to be fun.” 

“Cabin inspections are fun?” he asked wryly. 

“Hanging out with me is fun,” you clarified. “I—”

You were cut off with a gasp of your own as you slipped, and before you could even fully process it you were falling. It wasn’t until everything steadied that you realized someone had caught you, strong arms cradled you around your waist. You looked up to see Luke’s wide eyes. 

“You good?” he asked, his voice slightly higher than usual. 

“Yeah,” you said, nodding far too many times, “yeah. Yeah, I’m good.” 

“...Good,” he said, ever eloquent. 

A small smile creeped in. “You can let me go now.” 

It almost took him a moment to come back to Earth, because he blinked before he nodded, smiling on his own as he helped you back up. You could feel the heat in your face and tried your best to ignore it as you looked down. A small pool of oil was the culprit—you grimaced at the thought of having to clean that out of your jeans. Thank the gods for Luke. 

“That’s gotta be points off,” Luke whispered in your ear, still close by, and you stifled a laugh. “Oil on the floor, making pretty counselors slip. Right?” 

You ignored him too, looking over at Alya, though you couldn’t stop your smile. She looked mortified. 

“I am so sorry,” she rushed. “I guess Michael didn’t clean as well as he said.” 

“No problem,” you said. “I’ve got a little guardian angel. But this place isn’t too great.” 

“Damn,” she mumbled. “I even got one of your sisters to come in and help clean things up. Do you not smell the perfume?” 

“The smoke kinda overpowers it,” you said sympathetically, and she sighed. “Three out of five, Alya. But you’re right on the edge of a four.” 

Alya glanced at Luke. “Better than Hermes?” 

Luke grimaced. “I don’t wanna talk about it.” 

She smiled and went off to talk to one of her siblings. Luke shook his head and tutted once she was gone. “The double standards here are ridiculous, Rose. I might have to report you to Chiron.” 

“Oh, quiet.” You hit him in the side lightly with the clipboard and continued scanning the room for  a final check. “If you wanted help with cleaning up from an Aphrodite kid, all you had to do was ask.” 

“And would you have accepted?” he asked. 

“Of course,” you said as you scribbled down your last couple of notes. “I’ll always help you, Luke.” 

He went silent as you continued to write, and when you finished you saw he was only looking at you. 

You frowned. “What?” 

“Nothing,” Luke said, still smiling. “Let’s keep going.” 

You stared at him for a moment, but he didn’t say anything else. So you just laughed a bit and shrugged. Luke followed behind you as you walked out, and despite his claims of ‘nothing’ just a moment ago, soon enough he was talking again. 

“So,” he said, “Valentine’s Day.” 

“Valentine’s Day,” you said sagely. “What’s your plan?” 

“Be my Valentine.” 

“That’s your plan?” You glanced over at him. “Just asking me out straight-up?” 

“Oh, sorry. I also have this.” Luke pulled something out of his back pocket and held it out. You couldn’t help but laugh. 

“A rose?” you asked with a lopsided smile. 

“Not just any rose,” he said as you took it. “A chocolate rose.” 

“You are so cute.” You pulled the wrapper off, and though the stem and leaves were plastic, the flower was, indeed, very much chocolate, and in the shape of a rather pretty rose. 

Luke shrugged. “Figured you needed something as sweet as you.” 

“I’ve got a toothache just from being with you,” you remarked. You broke it in half with a bit of effort and offered it to Luke. 

“You can’t just split the gifts I get for you with me.” 

“They’re my gifts,” you said. “I can do whatever I want with them.” 

“Really?” he asked. 

“What’s a rose without her thorns?” you responded. Luke grinned as he took the other half from you. You popped yours into your mouth and your eyebrows rose. 

“This is actually good chocolate,” you said as Luke ate his part. “Not like that crap we get at the camp store.” 

“I might’ve snuck out to the city to get the good stuff,” Luke said offhandedly. 

You looked at him incredulously. “What?” 

“Did I stutter?” 

“You risked all that trouble just to get some chocolate for me?” you marveled. “Hell from Chiron, extra chores for a month, literal monster attacks—” 

Luke held up a hand, stopping your ranting. “Nothing happened. And even if it did,” he shrugged, “you’re worth it. So it doesn’t matter.” 

You shook your head and Luke continued. “Besides, I got some other stuff too for the rest of my plan.” 

“Right,” you nodded, “you never finished telling me.” 

“How’s your schedule?” 

“Busy,” you said. “I’m an Aphrodite kid during Valentine’s season.” 

Luke tipped his shoulder. “Fair. Think you can block something out for me?” 

“That depends what it is,” you said. 

“It’s a secret,” he said. 

You stared at him. “A secret?” 

He nodded. “It might be a foreign concept to you Aphrodite kids, but—” 

You cut him off with a light shove and he only chuckled in response. “So you talk yourself up and it ends up being a secret.”

“I think I’ve earned some secret surprises,” Luke said. “I’m already sweeping you off your feet.” 

You shook your head, smiling inwardly as you tapped your pen against the clipboard. “Is that how you see it?” 

“Well, I did keep you from an untimely death back there,” he said. “And the more unfortunate plight of having to get oil stains out.” 

“You read my mind,” you mused. 

“And isn’t that worth a date?” Luke asked. “Saving you from a fashion faux pas?” 

“You’re worth a date all on your own,” you said as you came up to the next cabin—Apollo was bright as ever, gleaming golden in the sunlight—and you looked at him with a smile. “No rescuing required.” 

-

Your journey to the rest of the cabins went by relatively quickly, especially the Apollo and Ares cabins—you think Luke had been temporarily stunned into silence by you actually flirting back. 

You’d had a subdued smile on your face nearly the entire time, even as you felt warmth bloom over your face again. Luke really brought out the inner Aphrodite in you—you were sure your mother was proud, wherever she was watching. What seemed to get Luke out of his addled state was the 5/5 you gave to your own cabin—he complained that the scent of perfume gave him a headache, and when you said you’d been wearing perfume the entire day, he claimed that it was different. 

(Cabin Ten kept their full score. It was amazing what a pretty smile could do, especially when Luke was the victim.) 

Finally, you were at the Demeter cabin. Luke insisted on going there last, so that all the expectations would be tapered—he was still trying to get a better score for his cabin, but the odds were looking pretty slim. The door was already open, and you smiled at the newly grown flowers outside the cabin. 

“Nice touch.” 

Luke sighed. “Great. Going out with a bang.” 

“It’ll be fine, Luke,” you said. “I’ll help you clean your cabin tonight.” 

He frowned. “You were actually serious?” 

“Of course I was.” You tipped your head. “It’ll just have to be pretty late. Y’know, because you’ll be cleaning all the dishes.” 

“Low blow,” he said, shaking his head. You chuckled as you stopped in the doorway and poked your head in. 

“Hey, Katie,” you called to the counselor. “How’re things?” 

“Good,” she said, nodding. A smile of her own bloomed on her lips as her gaze moved over to Luke. “I see Rose and her thorns are on duty today.” 

“Flattery won’t help you with your score,” Luke mused as he walked into the cabin. You smiled as he held out his hand for the clipboard, and you finally acquiesced. You could feel Katie’s eyes on you as he walked further in. 

“He takes that as a compliment?” 

“Thorns protect a rose,” you said, still watching Luke. He played the part of a foreman well, investigating their shelves and walls with vigor and even opening drawers. You couldn’t help but laugh a bit, and Luke looked back and smiled at you. You nodded, giving him the go-ahead, and he winked as he gave you a thumbs-up. 

“And he protects you?” she asked. 

You shrugged. “We protect each other.” 

“…You would be cute together,” Katie admitted. 

You managed to tear your eyes away from Luke, leaning back against the wall. “You think so?” 

“He’s only been vying for your attention and flirting with you since the moment you got to camp,” she said wryly. “But you’re the expert on love—you tell me.” 

You bit your lip as your gaze darted back to Luke, who was squatting on the floor having what looked to be a very serious conversation with a younger Demeter boy. 

“I think I’m his valentine,” you said, almost absentmindedly. “And I think I’m really looking forward to whatever this date is.” 

Katie came back into focus as you came back to Earth, and even she was smiling. “Then I think you’ve got your answer.” 

Luke had picked the most opportune moment to come back, when you weren’t staring at him like an infatuated idiot—you were only one of those things—and he held out the clipboard and pen to you. “After having a very in-depth conversation with Damian about how things are going here, I scored them properly.” 

You chuckled as you took it from him, but your eyebrows rose the more you read. “You’re kidding me.” 

He shook his head. “There’s unpaid labor going on here—unpaid child labor. Damian said he’s responsible for half the cleaning and plants here.” 

“We’re all children. All the labor we do is child labor,” you deadpanned. “And we’re sure as hell not getting paid.” 

Luke held his hands up. “Don’t shoot the messenger. I’m just delivering what he’s said.” 

“Don’t tell me he gave us all ones,” Katie said dryly. 

“You know him so well,” you mused. You scribbled out half of what Luke wrote as you stood up from the wall, shielding it with your body so he couldn’t see while you walked out together. “See you, Katie!” 

Her protests fell on Luke’s deaf ears as he held up the rear, shutting the door behind you two, and when you looked back at him he was grinning. 

“Straight ones,” he tutted, shaking his head. “What a shame. Looks like they’re gonna be cleaning the dishes tonight.” 

“You know they got a five, Luke,” you said, finally allowing him to see your revised marks. “If you’re gonna fudge the numbers, at least try and make them believable.” 

“Oh, come on!” he exclaimed. “A five is way too nice—it’s not fair that they can just grow plants all over and make everything look presentable. Using powers should count as cheating.” 

“Their floors are clean, their beds are made, and it smells like floral heaven,” you said. You tapped his chest with your pen. “You could learn something from them, Castellan.” 

He caught your wrist before you could move it away. “The Aphrodite cabin always gets perfect scores. Think you could teach me a few things?” 

You grinned as you pulled your hand out of his grip and continued walking, this time en route to the Big House to drop off the final inspections. “That depends.” 

“On what?” Luke came back into your peripherals as he caught up to you. 

“On how good this secret plan of yours is,” you mused. 

His eyes lit up, past worries of low inspection scores seemingly fading away in an instant. “So it’s a go? You’re in?” 

“Of course I am,” you said, tucking the clipboard under your arm. “You got me the good chocolate, Luke. How could I not see where this goes?” 

Previously unnoticed pressure dissolved in his shoulders as he took your hands in his. You could only focus on his eyes, on the warmth of his skin, on the callouses borne from years of sword-fighting. 

He was surely blessed by your mother. 

“You’re not gonna regret it,” Luke vowed. “All those promises I’ve made about blowing you off your feet, about making your mother proud—they’re all gonna be true.” 

“You know what wise men say,” you said wryly. 

“That they’re so glad you’re finally giving me a chance?” 

“Only fools rush in,” you provided. “Going all in on our first date seems a little hasty.” 

“Isn’t your whole thing supposed to be rushing in?” he asked cloyingly. “Y’know, daughter of love and all.” 

You shrugged. “Maybe I like taking the idea of taking it slow with you.” 

“Then call me a fool,” Luke mused, letting go of one hand to tuck a strand of hair behind your ear. His own curls hung over his eyes and you had the strongest urge to take his face in your hands. “Because you should know I can’t help it.” 

You felt your cheeks heat as warmth spread all over, and you couldn’t even try to hide your smile. “You think you can take me out on one of those city trips of yours? Show me how to steal a camp van without getting in the most trouble?” 

“I’m trying to steal your heart here,” Luke said with a goofy grin, “but I think a van’ll do.” 

“Oh, don’t worry.” You took his hand back, intertwining your fingers together as you pulled him closer to you. “We can multitask.” 

[sc0tters]

Worth It | Nico Hischier

summary: who would have thought it would take another girl screwing him over for you two to get together?

request: yes/no

warnings: mild swearing.

word count: 1.61k

authors note: this idea has been staring at me forever so I’m glad we’ve gotten it out! Nobody tell Kei I’ve change the entire idea for this (I forgot how we planned it out) I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to give us the Nico x Hughes sister pairing too…

For the last three years it had been the same excuse from him.

Each time you tried to make a move on Nico he’d turn you down citing the fact that you were too young for him. But there was always more to that story, you were Jack sister.

Being twenty one and smart enough to be at Princeton you could have had anyone and your brother knew that as he made sure to tell all of his teammates to not cross that line with you.

What Nico didn’t realise though was that his attempts to lightly turn you down with a lie was that it would come back to bite him in the face when he made a move on a girl who was younger than you and just so happened to be in one of your classes.

You didn’t know if you were meant to feel like an idiot or if you wanted to feel bad for Nico. One of the girls in the year below you had gone on about how she wanted nothing more than to get to know your brother and was planning on using his captain to get to there. So of course you went to tell Nico at the next game you went to, never expecting that he would throw it back into your face.

You nervously rocked on your feet as you waited for him to come out of the locker room “nice to know I’m not important to my sister.” Jack teased seeing that you were clearly not focusing on him “sorry J,” you apologised trying to give him your attention.

Your brother sighed “what’s up with you?” He inquired quick to pick up on the fact that you seemed different tonight “I’ve gotta tell Neeks something and I don’t know how he’s gonna take it.” You confessed letting out a huff.

Nico stood behind you as he furrowed his eyebrows “tell me what?” He cocked his head with a smile as you looked up at him.

Despite the fact that Nico always turned you down it was always nice to know that you found him attractive “you know how you’ve been talking to Cassie?” You chewed at the inside of your cheek wanting to just melt into a puddle to avoid saying it all to him “yeah?” He nodded waiting for you to continue.

When you struggled to get your words out he gave your shoulder a squeeze “she wants to get to Jack.” The mention of your brothers name made his face drop “I’m so sorry-” you were no longer upset that he had gone for someone younger than you.

It was the fact that he had gone for someone who clearly didn’t want him.

Nico scoffed shaking his head “that’s a low blow even for you y/n.” He spat taking you by surprise “knew you liked me but at least thought that you would have the decency to want me to be happy.” Nico was hurt that you seemed to meddle in something that was meant to be secret.

You took a step back frowning at his response words you wanted to say couldn’t come out quick enough as you lower lip began to quiver “y/n c’mere mom wants a picture of us!” Jack lied motioning for you to come to his side before his captain could say anything more to hurt you.

That night you did go home upset and you drowned your sorrows in a tub of ice cream. That was how you spent every night for a week until Nico landed up at your door.

You stared at him as you sent him a glare “fuck off,” you grumbled trying to shove your door back in his face but his hockey player reactions were too quick for you “can we talk y/n?” Nico asked pushing the door open as you walked into your apartment.

The robe you once had wrapped around yourself was no longer suffice causing you to find one of Jacks shirts that you could put on instead.

Nico’s jaw went slack as he watched the robe drop to the floor revealing your matching bra and panties that were quickly covered by the grey shirt “you answered the door like that?” The hockey player felt his face clench at the idea of a stranger at your door like that.

You spun around to face him with a glare “look Nico what do you want?” You furrowed your eyebrows pulling your hair from your shirt “did you have plans tonight?” The boy mumbled realising that you had your hair all curled and your makeup was still on.

It was a reminder you didn’t want “I was meant to go on a date tonight if you must know.” You scowled not wanting to bring it up again “but he stood me up so-” Nico reached out to grab your hand as he frowned.

This time you were quicker as you moved away “he was an idiot,” the boy mumbled not believing that someone could have done that to you “why are you here tonight Nico?” You repeated your earlier words “you were right about Cassie.” His words made your once irritated expression quickly morph into a sorry one.

Of course you were right, but hearing Nico realise it meant that something had happened “she was over and I had gone to the bathroom to come back and see her scrolling through my phone.” The hockey player explained as he sat on your couch dropping his head to his hands.

You felt bad as you crouched in front of him “I’m sorry,” your voice was soft as you tried to pull his hands away from his face so that you could see him.

Nico locked eyes with you as you sent him a soft smile “I should be the one saying that to you.” The hockey player pointed out causing you to let out a laugh.

His hand reaching down to cup your face “I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you.” He mumbled wishing he could go back and not yell at you like he did.

You nodded as he rubbed his thumb on your cheek “‘s okay,” you shrugged bringing your hand on top of his “you liked her.” It was hard to admit it but if Nico didn’t want you then you wanted him happy with someone else.

The hockey player sighed staring at how you ran your tongue over your bottom lip “you’re too good to me Hughes.” Nico watched as you sat next to him as he was desperate to reach out and do something that Jack would have killed him off.

A laugh left your lips once more “don’t think I’m good enough.” Your comment was obviously directed at the fact that he didn’t like you “want you to look at me.” The hockey player pulled you into his arms as you settle on his lap.

It was a weird feeling for you as his hands settle on your waist “if I wasn’t scared of Jack-” his words made you slap your hand over your mouth “you’re scared of Jack?” A snort came out over your hand “don’t laugh at me!” Nico complained as you laughed even harder.

He pinched at your waist resulting in a squeal leaving your lips “I can even take Jack on,” you pointed out making him roll his eyes “yeah well I’m not exactly going to wrestle your brother on a couch now am I?” Nico shot back making you smile.

The moment between you two was soft as you stared at his features “you look beautiful tonight.” He blurted out causing your cheeks to grow warm “what are you getting at Nico?” You tried to remain calm as you cocked your head.

Nico licked his lips as he smiled “you want to do something with me sometime?” The hockey player proposed as he got all nervous “aww is Nico all nervous to ask me out?” You teased him as it was now his turn to grow red “what happened to being scared of Jack?” You added pushing your tease further making him roll his eyes.

The hockey player clicked his tongue “well when you said that you were going to deal with Jack but if not-” Nico was cut off as you placed your hands on either side of his face as you pulled him into a kiss.

It took Nico a second to process what was going on but as he did, the boy melted into the kiss wrapping his arms around your torso like you were going to leave him at one point or another “baby you’re gonna have to stop that if you want me leaving tonight.” The Swiss man groaned as you grinded your hips against his “ever thought that I want you here in the morning?” Your words made him smirk as the image of your underwear came into his mind.

But Nico didn’t want to be a fool “you better not be fucking with me y/n.” He warned as you smiled getting off of his lap.

You grabbed the sides of your shirt pulling it over your head “gonna have to come and find out captain.” You playfully threw your shirt at him as you began to retreat into the hallway where your bedroom sat.

A laugh echoed off of those walls as Nico got up and followed you “she’s gonna get me killed ain’t she?” Nico asked himself as he smiled seeing you sat on your bed.

Whatever trouble you were about to get him in was gonna be totally worth it.

[heart-of-the-morningstar]

i'm really curious, what are some of your least favorite takes you've seen about Lucifer? (i'm prompted by that last post you reblogged :p) i know you're not a fan of Alastor, so probably RadioApple, and, because of the demisexual headcanon, probably almost any non-canon "canon x Lucifer" ship is a "least favorite," but what else? (if you're worried about getting flamed or put on blast or smth, feel free to ignore or just DM!)

I wanted to answer this earlier but I completely forgot lmao

I’m not worried about getting flamed, I don’t think my takes are gonna make anyone TOO upset lol. If it so, ehh who cares!

I feel like I haven’t made it clear how I feel about Alastor…I actually DO like Alastor! He’s one of my favorite characters and I’m very interested in learning more about him and his story. I think my main issue with Al comes from his popularity in the fandom and how he’s portrayed sometimes outside of the show itself.

I always say this, but I’m not here to rain on anybody’s parade, we are all kids playing with dolls here. Everything is fun and make believe and we all gotta find joy in something, right? Hell, people can be annoyed with my love for Lucifer and that’s perfectly fine! I just don’t expect to be harassed over it just like I won’t harass anyone who enjoys something I don’t! Because I’m a grown ass adult and I have real problems to worry about!

That being said, you are correct in saying I don’t really enjoy RadioApple (this is my first time admitting it publicly and I’m a little afraid lol) It’s just not a ship I vibe with. However, I truly don’t mind other ships with Lucifer that much, I’m more neutral than anything, but I can appreciate interesting character dynamics in ships like Adamsapple and Appledust. But y’all know I’m a Lucilith lover he misses his wife Tails. I’m just a sucker for that kind of devotion which is where my demi side really shines through lol

But back to your original question! The take I see the most and angers me the most is when people say that they wish Lucifer would have been portrayed as more of a bad guy; a neglectful father who belittles Charlie and her mission, someone who detests his lot in life and is more vicious and cruel “like the devil should be.” But guys…THERE ARE ALREADY SO MANY DEPICTIONS OF THE DEVIL IN MEDIA THAT PORTRAY HIM AS EVIL!!!! I am really happy they did something different with this Lucifer! They made him funny and charismatic and sympathetic. He’s not perfect, don’t get me wrong, he’s still very prideful, he resents sinners, and he can be a bit of a show off.

But I feel like most people forget Lucifer is still an angel, a being of light who made a mistake and was punished harshly for it. He didn’t mean to bring darkness into the world, all he wanted was to give humanity a gift, but they abused it. Lucifer is sad, he’s depressed, he isolates himself, he’s lonely, he doesn’t take his role as king of Hell seriously. Plus his wife leaving did not help. (I have a whole rant I could go on about the shit Lilith gets but I’ll save it for another time lol.)

As someone who had struggled with depression in the past, I did the exact same thing. I didn’t spend much time with the people closest to me and I ignored my responsibilities because of what I was going through. And yes, while he hasn’t been a great father, he still loves Charlie with his whole heart and would do anything to protect her. And I think that’s what matters; he cares and he’s trying to improve. This show’s main theme is redemption, is it not?

So no, I really don’t think we needed another evil devil character in media. I love my silly little duck man and I will ALWAYS defend him and his characterization!

[honeyoru]

popstar! reader x bakugou fic teaser

masterlist | part one coming soon!

“Lower.” Mina squinted at the brightly colored banner that hung unevenly across the expansive width of Bakugou’s living room. She and the rest of the gang on decorating duty were nearly done with their task to transform the blonde’s home, save for the obnoxiously large banner that stretched out “WELCOME HOME!” in a flurry of colors.

Denki adjusted himself on the stool he was precariously wobbling on, glancing quickly to Sero on the other side of the room and then back to the girl. “Who are you talking to?”

“Um,” she blinked. “You?”

“Is that a question or are you telling us?” the black-haired man snapped incredulously, his calves straining from the twenty minutes they’ve spent holding the strings of the banner up for Mina. I should’ve covered Shouji’s patrol, he thought, regretting ever volunteering to decorate.  

“Um.” She winced. “Telling you?” 

Twin groans echoed in front of her, and with nearly identical movements the boys slapped their taped strings onto the wall, ignoring Mina’s cries that it was not in fact, even. 

“No one’s even gonna notice!” Sero jumped down, narrowly avoiding one of the many balloons scattered on the ground. 

“Yeah,” Jiro agreed, standing up from where she had been fiddling with the music setup for later. “This place looks great.” 

“She’s not wrong,” Denki said, looking around. “This would get hella views on Pinterest.”

“S’not like she’s gonna give a shit anyways,” Sero snorted. “She’ll throw a fit over the size of the place, not the decorations.”

“You know that girl would be thrilled to get fried chicken from FamilyMart,” Mina rolled her eyes. “It’s not her that’ll care how perfect it looks. We’ll be lucky if Bakugou doesn’t set us on fire for the banner.”

“Bakubro should’ve been here then,” the blonde responded. “Kiri won’t care, and it's his own damn sister. He said she just landed, btw.” He held up his phone where the group chat was open. “And since we're all done, we’re free to go. Anyone want to stop at FamilyMart? I want fried chicken now.”

Jiro snorted. “What did I say about abbreviating your words in real life, loser?” She kicked a balloon out of her way. “And Blasty's got reason to be on edge. It’s been what?” she asked, looking at her friends. “Two years?”

“Just about,” Sero said as he led the group outside of the sky-rise. “And no can do on the chicken, my bro. Gotta go shower and change,” he winked at the other man. “Gotta look good for my reunion with our pop star. Maybe I’ll finally win her over this time.”

“Like you’ve got a chance with her.” Mina can’t help but snort.  

“I totally do!” he argued before spinning around at the silence that followed. “What?” Sero said incredulously. “Denki convinced her to sleep with him before!”

The pink-skinned girl blanched. “Ew, I totally forgot about that!” 

“I could never forget,” Denki said a little too smugly. “I was just lucky to be in the right place at the right time. What a woman.” 

“I would actually love to never think about that again,” Jiro plugged her ears with a look of disgust. “And keep dreaming on the Kirishima front, Sero. Didn’t she reject you at school?”

“Hey, that was five years ago!” Sero says with a pout, leaning into his blonde friend’s shoulder dramatically. “I’m a Pro Hero now, how could she say no to me now?”

He gets three responses instantly. 

“She’s got standards.”

“She’s an idol.”

“She’s like, in love with someone else already.”

“Alright, I get it,” Sero scowled, particularly at the last statement. “Some friends you are.”

“Sorry bud, but at least you aren’t the only one pining for her,” Jiro laughed, pushing the two men out of the door. “Get in line.”

“Yeah!” The pink-haired girl scoffed. “Behind me, the rest of Japan and half the world, tape boy!” Mina flicked the lights off, sliding the extra key into the door and locking it. “Not that it matters,” she sighed with a lingering smile to the apartment door. “If the idiot manages to keep his head out of his ass this time, she’ll be spoken for soon anyways.”

_______________________________

Eijirou was certain his heart was about to fall out of his ass. 

Wheezing from chasing a bank robber (who even robs a bank nowadays?) in a dead sprint across Shibuya for the past thirty minutes drained his patience quicker than usual and he was pissed. There’s no way this guy doesn't have a speed enhancing quirk, he thought with a huff, his muscles burning with exertion. 

His pride would be hurt otherwise. 

He was late, much later than he could afford to be. He was supposed to be back at the agency ten minutes prior to when this bozo sprinted out of the bank past him. And from the way his pocket had been vibrating every 30 seconds since then, Bakugou was not pleased that his meticulously detailed plan was thrown off schedule. Again. 

Eijirou had been buzzing all day, his anxiety kicked into overdrive when he and his best friend had to cover patrols last minute for their sidekicks. A disadvantage of running a hero agency, for sure, but he would never complain. It was something he used to dream of, after all. 

As a result of their new schedule, decorating and other tasks for the party they’d been planning for months had been handed off to their friends at the last minute, who the redhead really hoped did a good job, lest his explosive best friend do something crazy, like set someone on fire.

“Shit.” He cursed.

The man ran through the list again in his head after taking a shortcut down an alleyway that he’s pretty sure will put him closer to the bank robber, taking care to avoid knocking anyone down as he shouted at civilians to get out of the way. 

Decorations? Covered. He hurled himself over a trash can. 

Food? Drinks? They’d stocked up on enough alcohol to supply a college frat for a month and Yaomomo was always thrilled to organize catering for their parties, particularly for one nearly all of their friends would actually be able to attend this time. Besides, Kirishima wanted to snort if he had the breath to do so. She and Hagakure had the time of their lives perfecting the menu a week ago. He didn't understand how feeding that many people would be exciting but he supposed when it came to his sister, everyone wanted to make sure the party was a success. 

The alley spat him out into a wider clearing, and he nearly cheered that he’d been right. The robber slammed into his outreached arm, clotheslining himself on the ground and allowing Kirishima to quickly slap handcuffs on him with a little more force than necessary for the trouble he caused. 

He huffed out a greeting to the policemen that arrived just in time to the disturbance (thirty minutes late) and handed the guy off, finally pulling out his phone just as it started to ring again. “Got sidled with a bank robber,” he panted. “I’m on my way back now.”

“About fucking time!” The voice on the other end snarled. “Hurry up!”  

The hero hung up immediately, barely giving himself time to throw his head back to catch his breath before he began the run back to his agency.

[fictionfixations]

book 7part 8 spoilers

OH FUCK WAIT THE BOOK 7 UPDATE IS HAPPENING TODAY/TOMORROW I FORGOT 😭 this is like really shit timing but tbh not even sickness will stop me! or well maybe it will but then ill just put it on auto or something so i can just stare and because i already saw what happens 💀 lmfao im so fucking excited for you guys to see it its the funniest shit ever

WE'RE GONNA SEE THE VIDEO HELL YEAHH its so fucking goofy i was hoping we'd see it last update and then we didnt get it so i realized itd be next update and HERE WE ARE

i stumbled on it on like twitter cause my feed is filled with jp twst and im just like wtf is this 😭what is going on (now ive seen worse stuff that genuinely didnt feel like it was real but it WAS LMFAO)

grim: are you giving us the hard part!? idia who JUST explained how he is doing a very very hard part of making the cheats, fixing bugs if he finds any, and hope it works on the first try and that he doesnt get caught or they are fucked:

well hes mad that idia isnt coming with them and idia is pretending hes still dreaming but on the other hand idk man i cant comprehend half attention being focused on us dream traveling and doing stuff while the other half is working on the cheats. like i mean he still kinda does that cause hes in tablet form and watching over us but i just cant imagine how hed go about working while on him does he have like a magical floaty keyboard or some shit idfk man

in any case there are benefits to having a guy to watch over everything from the outside

💀

also valid reason, that if idia tries to follow malleus will immediately realize whats going on

HAHAHAH DREAMY MAGICAL MAKEOVER VS DREAM FORM CHANGE

BAHAHAHAHAH

ive heard dream form change enough that i wont be able to get it out of my head but.. hahah... dreamy magical makeover...

i can just feel the embarrassment radiating of them

props to the diasomnia boys for not stumbling (we'll get some real stumbling later)

we see apprentice chef grim, that ones not on EN yet right?

read: headcanon LMFAO

ah.... its main street... i kind ofwant to laugh already i remember being in such utter shock at first

[loud ass stomping] (gotta be glad i dont have my volume super fucking high to hear as much as i can lMFAO)

i remember when this dropped on jp and i was scrolling through twitter and i saw epel and i was just like no fucking way thats real and then i kept seeing him and i realized wait he IS real wth 😭??

hehehee dreamy magical makeover

AHH ITS ROOK TIME

hehehadhahwh

LMFAO

ortho please when someone starts yapping about things theyre really interested in theyll keep yapping even if nobody is talking because they wanna talk about it okay dont judge 😭 i say as a person who yapped about my interests and then i just didnt get a response back about it 💀💀💀

😭

i mean i can get into going through stuff for 5 hours if its something im interested in but oh man id be very very sleepy like when is this gonna end im so tired

im sure its very emotional to see people you know be kinda delusional and dreaming and different to what theyd usually be, or being what theyd usually be against yet falling into it because it is a dream that will affirm itself constantly that yes, this is reality, no need to doubt, dont think, this is life, etc etc

LETS GOO BOOK 7 TWISTUNE

i cant explain how much i hate the purple notes theyre just unexplainably hard for me wth

every time theres a battle im so scared its gonna be malleus bruhs so difficult to fight

*cringes away* eww vil in RSA

oh my god "Don't you dare go tellin' those phonies the words Vil wanted to hear most of all that day!" 😭

heheh dreamy magical makeover

ah its background from the tapis rouge event (....vil's... red carpet cadets....)

?? maquillaville

i dont know how to feel about this it used to be fairest city i dont even know what it means or what its trying to reference ????

i cant really vibe with this outfit he kinda looks dumb imo 😭

dddreamy magical makeover....

id like to think my cards are getting strong but the book 7 battles will only get harder from here so im worrying

i was boutta throw hands cause for an entire turn darkness just didnt take damage at all like WHAT DO YOU MEAN

im still really hoping for overblot cards. ever since i first started this game ive really wanted overblot riddle hes just so pretty man. ill settle if we can get riddle's dream form (which we did not get a card for D:) but still

LMFAO HE POISONED EVERYONE AFTER HE WOKE UP like yeah youre not real im gonna poison you all anyway lmaoo

next is scarabia huh

[apomaro-mellow]

Family Planning 4

Part 3

There's a severe lack of hijinks in this chapter but I'm hoping to fix that in the next part.

Steve was caught off guard when he heard a call pull up in the morning and it was Tommy, with Carol in tow. They never picked him up, preferring Steve’s car. His dad looked over his newspaper questioningly and Steve had no choice but to go outside. Now that he thought about it, he and Eddie hadn’t made plans to go to school together today. He had just assumed, but even then he wasn’t sure why.

“Hey, what’re you guys doing here?”, Steve asked as he walked out.

“You know why Harrington, get in”, Tommy said.

He did and Tommy didn’t even wait for the door to close before asking him about yesterday. Carol interjected with her own questions. They were his friends, so he didn’t mind answering but just like his parents they couldn’t wrap their heads around Steve going through with it on his own. Clearly it was all Eddie’s influence.

“I get that he’s an alpha, but you can’t let some knot-head like that lead you around”, Carol said.

“And you know that’s all he wants right? To get that knot in”, Tommy snickered. “And he gets to pretend he’s your alpha with a pup? I bet that freak humped his pillow last night, thinking of it.”

“Eugh, gross. I do NOT want to think about Munson’s junk”, Carol said.

“Can you guys cool it? I’m the one that’s actually gotta work with him for the project”, Steve said from the backseat. Not only was it offputting, but it didn’t seem fair to Eddie. Besides the odd fashion choices and weird club, he was a nice guy.

His friends did in fact cool it, at least until they got to school and Eddie was spotted waiting by the front entrance. Without a word to either Tommy or Carol, Steve went over to him. They had to get their new sack of flour. Ms. Engels gave them what could only be called a glare and Steve had the decency to feel a little bad, but not much.

“I’ll take the little rugrat for the first couple of periods”, Eddie offered. “If you want, we can meet up at lunch to do the paperwork.”

“Sounds great”, Steve said without even thinking.

He honestly did forget about it until lunch came. And by then, he already had his tray in his hands, Tommy on one side and Carol ahead of them, going to their usual table. Steve set his tray down just as Eddie came up to them.

“Hey, you ready?”

“What’s he doing here?”, Carol sneered.

“Shit, I forgot”, Steve said. “Yeah, we can just do it here.”

Eddie’s eyes slid to the two betas who looked like they wanted to toss him in the trash. His flight response was kicking up but he knew Carol wasn’t a scrapper and Hagan wouldn’t do anything so long as he stayed on Steve’s good side. So when Steve sat down, he scooted over and Eddie slid on next to him.

“Alright first thing’s first, baby’s name. How do you feel about Gertrude?”, Eddie grinned.

Steve’s nose scrunched. “She’s not someone’s grandma. And who said it’s a girl?”

“Do you have a preference for sex?”, Eddie asked.

“Gag me”, Carol muttered under her breath.

“Hey!”, Steve scolded. “Like it or not, he’s the sire of my pup and will be until the deadline of this project. You two need to get over yourselves.” If Eddie was going to be around more, Steve wasn’t going to let those comments continue to fly. 

Carol forked her food aggressively and Tommy just rolled his eyes. “Chill out man, didn’t know you were taking it seriously.”

Steve turned to Eddie. “What about Hannah?”

“I’m partial to Isabelle myself.”

It took them about halfway through lunch to settle on Kimberly Farrah Lisbeth Odette Ursa Rebecca Munson. It was a mouthful of a name, but it all fit on the line. And Steve allowed Eddie full freedom with her middle name since he got her first name. Her last name being Munson was the traditional route. Omegas usually gave up their name when they got married.

“Hey Eddie, are you gonna spend your whole lunch here?”

Steve looked up to see one of the members of that club. Hellfire. He wasn’t entirely sure what they got up to, played some kind of game. But they were looking at Steve and his friends warily. Steve looked to the table where the rest of them were and they shared the same expressions. 

“Ummm”, Eddie turned to Steve, like he was asking permission.

“We’ve got her name and all that stuff”, Steve said. “We can figure out trade off times later.” They just had to get the papers to Engels before the end of the day. He also offered to take the flour for the rest of the day since Eddie had it in the morning.

“Well then, I guess my business is done”, Eddie said, pushing away from the table. “Goodbye little Kimmy.” He actually kissed the top of the flour sack and then walked away.

“Dude, are you actually trying this year?”

“I plan on walking that stage come spring Gare-bear”, Eddie clapped his friend’s shoulder. And if he had to do so with a bag of food on his hip, so be it.

When the end of the day came, Eddie reconnected with Steve just as he was about to walk out the doors. The moment he did, they both noticed the principal eyeing them by the exit. Eddie frowned.

“You don’t need to hover. We’re actually not doing the helicopter parent thing.”

“We said we’d stay out of trouble”, Steve said.

“Forgive me if I don’t have total confidence in the both of you. Mr. Munson especially.”

Eddie put his arm around Steve’s shoulders. “We’re gonna be the model family. Just watch! We’re gonna do so good, Steve’ll be knocked up by spring!”

Steve’s face got red and it felt like the whole hallway stopped in its tracks. Steve let out a sigh, head hung in mortification as Eddie realized everyone in a two mile radius probably heard what he just said.

“Bad timing?”

“Is there good timing?”, Steve asked. Deciding to commit, he took the sack of flour out of his bookbag and put it on his hip like a real pup. “Well sir, if you’ll excuse us.” 

He started walking and Eddie had no choice but to follow his lead unless he wanted to separate. Eddie’s van was easy to locate and it was only when they got to it did they move apart.

“Thanks for not leaving me high and dry. Sooo, how are we gonna do the trade offs?”

“I think what we did today was fine”, Steve said. Handing the baby off between breaks, giving each of them a few hours free. “Which means you get our little bundle tonight since I had her all afternoon.”

“Cool. Do you uh, need a ride or?”

Steve thought about this morning, how he’d expected Eddie to come without really communicating so. “Uhhh-”

Eddie gasped. “Steve! It’s horrible!” He opened up the passenger door to his van. “I don’t have a carseat!”

“...Okay?”

“Which means you’ll have to hold dear Kimberly while I drive!”

Steve looked around as Eddie made a spectacle of himself. Principal Woolsley was still watching from the door. Didn’t he have a life? With a sigh, Steve got in and buckled up with their pretend pup. As they drove off, the principal was joined by a custodian who gave a chuckle.

“Ain’t that project meant to discourage procreation?”

Their routine worked pretty well. Right down to who drove them each day. Whoever had the baby for the evening would be picked up in the morning. It felt like an even balance of duties. Steve admitted to himself being a little apprehensive of coming to the trailer park for the first time, but when Eddie got in, Wayne smiled at them from the door and Eddie even bid good morning to the old lady who had glared at Steve when he drove up.

Steve’s parents never came out to wave to Eddie, even when he came right to the door and knocked. Eddie didn’t come to their lunch table again, the trade usually happening either before they got to the cafeteria or after lunch was over. Tommy and Carol stopped their snide remarks about Eddie but they didn’t start singing his praises either. Which was fine.

As for the report, Steve just left the sack on his bedroom desk while he was at home. If Eddie was doing any different, he didn’t let on. But while in school, he was a doting father, calling the sack pet names and kissing it, hamming it up whenever Engels or Woolsley were in sight. 

All in all it was going well and that February deadline got closer and closer. But as Steve was crossing today off his calendar, he noticed a problem. He was about to be short on time and Eddie wasn’t going to like the reason why when he told him tomorrow.

Basketball season started soon.

Part 5

Taglist

@marklee-blackmore @aol19 @im-really-annoying @ellietheasexylibrarian @queenie-ofthe-void

@redfreckledwolf

[hooniemura]

_____________________________________________

Put a little love on me ~

Genre: Fluff, Crack

words: 1.4k (if I counted correctly)

Pairing: Riki x fem!reader

Warnings : cursing, (if I forgot anything lmk)

Description : Riki is your very clingy boyfriend. You both were still in High-school. He was often over at your house. Today, he was over again. You had to work for an important upcoming exam that was worth 40% of your grade. But as expected, Riki was eager for cuddles again.

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊

____________________________________________

You were sitting on the couch and Riki was next to you. You had your books and notes laying on the coffee table in front of the couch. You seemed really focused on what you were studying and didn't pay much attention to your surroundings. But who could blame you? - it's one of the most important exams of the school year, and you obviously couldn't fail that exam. You were lost in your thoughts as you felt someone tugging on the sleeve of your sweatshirt. You snapped out of your thoughts and turned around to Riki, who was looking at you with puppy eyes and slightly messy hair.

"Huh? What is it?" You ask him, slightly annoyed because he disturbed your peace.

"Cuddles." He answered with that sheepish, but still smug look on his face. You raised an eyebrow at his response.

"I want cuddles. Give me cuddles." He repeated himself.

"Not now. I gotta focus." You replied bluntly. Visibly annoyed that he was interrupting your studies. But then He started pouting and sulking, like a toddler that was seeking for attention. Even though it was a little pathetic to watch, you felt bad. You didn't like seeing him pout. You had no choice but to give in to his plead for cuddles. You look at him for a moment and then your facial expression became a bit softer than before.

"Okay fine." You say, as you open your arms a little and wrap them around him. He immediately nuzzles his face into your neck and wraps his arms around your waist, returning the hug. You could feel his hot breath in the nape of your neck. You gave him a small kiss on the top of his head, nuzzling your nose into his soft hair. His smelled so good. You kept showering his head with small but gentle and loving kisses. You brought your hand up to his shoulder and started caressing it with your fingernails in a soothing manner. He squirmed a little and let out a few gasps now and then. You weren't that annoyed anymore. After all, you couldn't stay mad at him for too long. He is just so adorable and irresistible. The two of you were in your own little bubble but snapped out of it when you heard the door knob of the front door twist. Your parents had returned home from grocery shopping. Your Mother didn't mind it at all when Riki was over. In fact, she thought seeing you two being affectionate was quite endearing. But your Father on the other hand wasn't really a fan of Intak. And that wasn't unnoticed by Riki. You and your Mom kept reassuring Riki by telling him that it wasn't personal, and that your dad is just very protective. Especially for his little girl.

As soon as they stepped into the living room, seeing you both all cuddled up on the couch, your Dad shot Riki a disapproving glare. His look sent shivers down Riki's spine. But your Mom just smiled softly. They went to the kitchen to put the groceries in the fridge. As they left, Riki looked up at you and spoke up

"I was so scared for a sec. I thought he was gonna jump me or something."

The day went by and Riki even stayed for dinner. Your Dad wasn't too happy about Riki staying for dinner. A few days passed and Riki hasn't been over for a while because you both got into an argument. It was a really stupid and childish reason. He ghosted you and didn't answer your messages or your calls. It annoyed you so much that you just did the same. You both gave each other the silent-treatment. Then you both got into a huge argument. So, after a few days, you sat on the couch, scrolling through your phone, your mom approached you.

"Hey Sweetie. I want to ask you something." She spoke up, breaking the silence.

"Hey Mom, what is it?" You ask.

"So, Riki hasn't been over for a while now, is everything alright between you two?" She questions, with an almost concerned look on her face.

"We got into an argument. Nothing big." You replied, trying to seem nonchalant, even though it made you crazy not to talk to him.

"Oh that's unusual for you two. May I ask what happened?" She asks you as she puts her hand on your knee in a soothing manner.

"It was actually really childish. He ghosted me and I was like oh that motherfucker and ghosted him back. Then we got into the argument." You say, now seeming a little upset as you opened up to your Mom about the situation.

"Well, You know what they say, communication is key, especially in relationships." She responded with a smile on her lips.

You knew she was right but you still frowned and rolled your eyes at her response.

Now, a few hours had passed. It was evening. It was already dark outside and it was also raining. You and your parents were at dinner when suddenly the doorbell rang. "Now who could that be? It's fucking late and raining." You thought to yourself.

"I'll get it." You said as you got up from your seat. You opened the door, revealing a soaked and drenched Riki, who was mumbling "fuck" to himself because he was wet from the rain and out of breath because he ran to your house.

"What are you doing here?" You asked curiously.

"I'm sorry." He said, still out of breath as he held out a pretty bouquet of flowers, waiting for you to grab it.

"Can I come in? We need to talk." He added.

You stepped aside, allowing him to step into the house. Riki then spoke up:

"Listen, I'm really sorry. I know I messed up and I was acting like a fucking idiot. I shouldn't have done that and I'm not expecting you to forgive me right away I just wanted to let you know how sorry I am and how much I actually care about you." He blurted out. His look sincere.

"I'm sorry too. We both messed up." You replied, finally grabbing the bouquet out of his hands.

"Can we talk somewhere.. More private?" He asks.

You look towards your parents and your mom nods, letting you head off to your room. But there wasn't much talking happening. As you closed the door, he immediately wrapped his arms around your waist and smashed his lips onto yours. Then he left a trail of kisses on your neck and collarbone. He put his lips back onto yours, his tongue brushing your bottom lip, searching entrance into your mouth. You put your hand behind your back, reaching out to the key of the door, locking it. His tongue kept exploring your mouth. After a while he pulled back and looked you in the eyes, his one hand caressing your cheek, the other holding your waist, his grip firm.

"I love you." He says with a warm smile.

"I love you more." You reply as you bring your lips back onto his.

[foxilayde]

Conversion Rates [Nathan Bateman x Reader]

Word Count: 1.9k

Summary: Nathan gets some unexpected news.

Warnings: Cigarettes, talk about death, talk about blood, brief mention of oral sex.

A/N: Feel free to ignore 💚

There’s buzzing coming from Nathan’s side of the bed. Long and persistent enough that it appears in your dreams, morphs into reality, and annoys you to the point of shoving your boyfriend’s shoulder.

“Get it.” You grunt, peeking a bleary eye open to the clock at your own night table. 3:55am. Only someone with a death wish would be calling Nathan at this hour.

“I’m gonna kill whoever that is.” Nathan is haplessly searching for his glasses, he groans when he finds them and flips the blankets off of himself to then locate the source of the buzzing. The person must’ve called again because the buzzing has been going on for at least a minute.

“Whomever.” You yawn.

“What’d you say” Nathan grunts distractedly while pawing the sheets, searching for his phone.

“Nothing.”

“Were you correcting my grammar? At four in the goddamn morning?”

“Hey don’t get cranky on me. I’m not the one calling.” You sleepily smile at him as he shakes his head, “go back to sleep,” he mutters to you when he answers the call.

“What?” Nathan answers simply, the greeting replete with annoyance. He’s scratching his head and then suddenly his hand stops like it forgot what it was supposed to be doing. His back goes rigid and he shakes his head quickly before swallowing and swinging his legs out to rest on the floor, elbows on knees, forehead in palm.

“Yeah I’m here… mmhmm…yeah.. Sure…. Yeah… okay…” He sighs a lot and rubs his head, h is eyes, his beard. This doesn’t sound like a work emergency. You scoot close to him and soothe his back in long slow strokes. He puts a hand on your knee.

“Yeah. Friday…. Uh huh. Okay thanks— no, not— … I don’t know what to say, Aimes. It’s fucking four am over here…. That’s….. alright fine, whatever, see you Friday… yeah you can tell her. Fine, don’t tell her, tell her, either way I’m— I’ll be there…. Yeah. Okay it’s okay, I’m fucking—……. Yeah. Got it…. Bye.”

Nathan’s jaw clenches and one breath after hanging up he hurls his phone across the room and against the concrete wall in an over handed frisbee-type toss. It cracks against the wall and thuds on the rug.

“Oh, that one got some air. Eight point seven. I’m deducting a point for lack of expletive. Couldn’t even give me a ‘bastard’? Disappointing, Bateman. You’ll never make it to regionals with that attitude.”

Nathan pulls both hands down his face and lays back down. Not in a joking mood. It’s quite possible he didn’t hear you at all.

“Was it work?” You ask quietly, changing your tone to something softer, something more befitting the early hour and the mystified expression on his face.

“No.” He breaths. Your eyes fall to the smithereened phone.

“Where are you going on Friday?”

“Hmmm?”

“You said something about being there Friday? Where’s there?”

“New York.”

“But not HQ?”

“No.”

Nathan puts his arms behind his head and stares impassively at his reflection in the mirrored ceiling. He is nowhere near a playful mood, so it’s a mystery to you why he’s making you play 20 questions, but as long as he’s answering, you’ll keep asking. Your first instinct is to inquire how many questions of the twenty remain, but his face reminds you of the early hour and you think better of it.

“Do you want to talk about it?” You offer sincerely.

Nathan blinks several times but does not answer.

“You want to go back to sleep?”

Nathan sighs and shakes his head slightly.

“You want me to make you a smoothie? Or some matcha just the way you like it? I promise I’ll use the whisk and not a fork this time.”

No response.

“Although I’d like to do the Pepsi test on you with that and see if you really can taste the difference.”

“Honey.”

“You gotta admit, it’s a little pretentious.”

“My dad’s dead.”

“What?”

“Funeral’s on Friday. New York. That was Amy.” His face is impassive as ever. You however flip the fuck out.

“OH my GOD. Nathan!” You opt out of a crushing hug and gently place your hand over his heart instead. “I’m so sorry.” Your brow furrows. “What happened?”

“Heart attack.”

“Nathan, I’m so sorry.” You repeat, at a loss for words.

“Hey, if he didn’t want to die from a heart attack, he should have taken better care of himself.” Nathan pulls the rumpled sheet over himself and turns to face you. “C’mere. Let’s go back to sleep.” He beckons you to your little spoon spot with one grabby hand.

You don’t ask him if he’s sure, let alone ask him if he’d rather talk about it. Something like this is going to take your boyfriend months to process. You scoot back against him and kiss his hand.

“Don’t for a second think this gets you out of our 6am trail run, by the way.” He grumbles and kisses your shoulder.

You pat his arm, the one that crosses your chest and holds you flush against him. “You don’t think we could skip the hell trail, I mean the trail run, just this once? I mean, we should probably pack. We’ve still gotta helicopter out of here and plus the time difference in New York, Friday is technically only… fifty one hours from now. Your family probably needs help? With things— arrangements?”

“You don’t have to go with me.”

“Oh shut up, of course I’m going, you nut.”

“This is so fucking typical of him.”

“What is? Perishing?”

“Fucking up everything.”

“Yes. Very rude of him to die on this the morning of our trail run. What an asshole.”

“You think I’m kidding. I’m not kidding. He made it his life’s goal to be as much of a burden as he possibly could. Died as he fucking lived.”

“Hey now, save some of that heartfelt sentimentality for the eulogy.”

*******

“I’m not speaking. Absolutely the fuck not.”

“Nathan, come on. You have to say some words. They don’t have to be true, you just go up and say “He will be missed” and you can leave out the “just not by me” part. It’ll be over before you know it.”

“Can’t believe Amy would just assume that I’m going to do it and stick it in the fucking program.”

“Totally, who does she think you are? The only son of the man who died, or something? Pretty presumptuous of her.” You roll your eyes.

Nathan takes an angry drag from what is probably his twentieth cigarette of the day, and it’s only noon. You didn’t even know he smoked until you landed in New York and his first stop was at the Bronx Boulevard Bodega and Deli for a pack of Viceroy 100s.

“You keep staring at me like that and your face is gonna get stuck that way.” Was the only ‘conversation’ the two of you had about the revisited habit when he lit up in the back of the towncar on your way from his mom’s place to the church on Tinton Ave.

Cars honk and whiz by. It’s dry and exceptionally cold for April, you tug your black coat closer around your middle. Nathan doesn’t flinch to the temperature in his thin black wool blazer, still in agitated ponderance, still pissed off at his dead father. He’s been standing outdoors most of the day already. Excusing himself to his mother’s porch to chain smoke all by himself in lieu of making small talk at the pre-funeral breakfast with his mother, sister, and yourself.

You check your watch before tucking your arm back around yourself in a contained shiver.

“Service starts in ten minutes. You think we should head in?”

“Go ahead. I’ll meet you in there.”

“Seriously Nate, lets go.”

“Don’t tell me what the fuck to do okay, you’re not my mother.”

“Oh shit, you’re right I’m not. She is inside though. I can go get her if you want. She’s passing out programs right now for her dead husband’s funeral services, but I’m sure she’d be willing to stop the world and burp you, or whatever the hell you need that’ll make you stop acting like a child.”

“Fuck off, alright?” His Bronx accent gets thicker with each passing cancer stick.

“You know, it pains me to say it, but for as much as you hate your father…”

“Don’t.”

“I don’t have to, you already know.”

Nathan flips the lid of his cigarettes, curses, crumples the Viceroy box, and shoves it back in his pocket.

“Out of excuses are we?” You’re trying to be supportive, you really really are, but he’s being fucking ridiculous. You loop your arm around his, hoping he’ll be too upset and distracted to stop you from leading him into the church.

He lets you take him two steps forward before halting. “I haven’t been in there since I was fifteen.”

“Looks intimidating.” You nod at the tall dark grey stone walls and narrow strips of stained glass.

“‘It’s fucking creepy is what it is.”

“Are you… scared? Of seeing him?”

“Who? The lifesize bloody effigy of Christ the redeemer suspended from the middle of the ceiling? Yeah, a little. Did I ever tell you that my first nightmare as a child was thinking I was caught in a tropical rainstorm in my bedroom, but then, I look up, and its a fifty foot tall man in a loincloth and barbed wire crown floating above me, bleeding on me in these fat, red drops—“

“Holy shit— no, what the fuck? I’m talking about seeing your dad. About the open casket… fuck me. We’ll unpack that levitating son-of-god nightmare later.”

“I haven’t spoken to my dad in… I don’t know. I don’t even remember the last time we talked on the phone. I’m trying….to remember the last time I saw his face and… I….can’t.”

Nathan swallows hard and looks up at the overcast sky. He’s, choked up, his chin quivers angrily.

“Some holiday probably. If there even was a holiday in the last ten years that he spent someplace other than that hole on 165th.” He shakes his head and bites his lip in resolve. “I can’t do it, honey. I can’t go in there for him. I can’t do this this when he would have never—“

“Then don’t do it for him.” You squeeze the crook of his elbow. “Do it for your mom, who misses her husband. Do it for Amy, who is equally as fucking pissed at her dad but had to organize this whole funeral anyway, without any help.” You poke his chest.

Nathan grimaces.

“And most importantly, do it for me.” You peck him on his cringing lips, “because I am fucking freeeezing.” He kisses you again and you pull back and grin at the novel tang. “So that’s what Mac DeMarco’s ashtray tastes like, I’ve always wondered.”

He smiles for the first time in days. It’s a little one, but it’s there. “I’ll do it. I’ll go in, I’ll speak. For you. But, you owe me.”

“You still accept blowjobs as payment, I assume?”

“Yeah but the conversion rate in New York is much higher than in Norway.”

“Wow, how randomly convenient for you. The rich just keep getting richer, don’t they?”

Nathan gives your butt a tap to usher you inside. “That’s economics for you.”

END

[ecto-hazard]

i probably talked about this before but i fuckgig forgot if i posted it or not so here's the unnecessary grey opionon on writing "secrets" and "lore"

everythings an arg nowadays, especially in horror media, but IN MY OPINION theres a wrong way to do it and ppl dont really recognize this a lot of the time when they write stuff. i think a lot of that comes from oversaturated horror media just trying to make appealing stuff for kids and ignoring putting proper passion and thought behind it, but maybe a lot of people genuinely wanna learn how to write stuff that works better, and for those people heres the funny grey opinions on how lore works and how it doesnt

my qualifications

watched way too much game theory over my lifetime

watched way too many markiplier playthroughs over my lifetime

wrote lore focused shit like labtwow and ill even talk about my mistakes with it!!!!!!

gravity falls superfan back in the day

autism

here's my NUMBER ONE RULE with secret lore stuff:

THE STORY'S GOTTA MAKE SENSE WITHOUT IT

unless youre trying to get a HIGHLY curated audience, you'l probably find the average reader doesn't pause shit frame by frame to find hidden links in the static. if youre introducing details latr in the story that only keen eyed viewers would've caught onto, its gonna alienate the people who weren't looking for stuff like that because theyll think they lost the plot somewhere.

popular media example of this: FNAF 3 (and everything after basically)

what made the original fnaf 1 and 2 games good was that they were an engaging horror experience WITHOUT the bigger story. discovering the larger story about the murdered kids was entirely chance based, and wasn't required to have a fundamental understanding of the game. youre a night guard just trying to survive bloodthirsty robots. the story of WHY they're bloodthirsty was interesting, but wasnt necessary for understanding the danger youre in and focusing on getting out of it.

fnaf 3 threw a wrench into that preestablished system. while there IS hidden stuff in fnaf 3 that you can find on purpose if you know where to look for it, there is ALSO mandatory minigames between nights that shows how purple guy died and became springtrap. the only reason this works is because at the time the game came out, people were well aware of the Purple Guy from all the hidden stuff in fnaf 2 becoming basic knowledge at that point. if a new player played through the series back to back blind, and hadnt had the chance opportunity to see any of the purple guy minigames in fnaf 2, or even KNOW kids died at all from fnaf1, this whole sequence is just kind of confusing. That being said, things like mandatory cutscenes like this can be a good way to force people to learn lore stuff, if you want to write it that way anyway, but with the established games having chance based secret lore, its just sort of out of nowhere. i regard fnaf 3 as a good game overall, but its something that could be a problem

MY example of this. Labtwow in fucking space

almost no one knows what labtwow is here but thats fine. it was a game comic thing i ran in a discord back in like 2020. labtwow was an existential nightmare of lore, where some lore was only accessible if you were a "supervoter" (voted on EVERYTHING that round), some lore was only accessible if you lost the game, shit like that. getting little bonus story stuff for participating more actively with a game was a good way to get people engaged, but i shouldve been more careful about what sort of stuff i hid because it started to impede on the gameplay. A major twist was that the facility the game took place in was in space on another planet. One of the supervoter secrets revealed this, but it wasn't officially revealed in the main story till a bit later.

the problem this caused is that before the main reveal, someone wrote a response that involved going outside, and they lost that round. there's no way to prove why people voted what, but its POSSIBLE that the people who just so happened to already know that the story was set in space saw that response and voted it down. it wasnt a huge deal in the long run, but it just goes to show that different mediums for stories can be impacted by who has access to what information about the story. ideally, a reveal like this should probably shouldnt have been put in the supervoter secrets, but its hard to predict what twow contestants will write ahead of time, but the fact that they were in space was rather significant to the story, especially in the end game, so i should've paid more attention to it

thats like the main thing with lore to me. if its Secret lore, it should be like. secret. someone's enjoyment of a game or story shouldnt be impeded by the fact that they didn't find this hyperspecific detail hidden somewhere. finding secrets and stuff is really fun, but its not for everyone. some people just want to read something and let that be that. that said, if you wanna write an intesely lore based arg then by all means do so, just know that its not gonna be for everyone

[mbrainspaz]

what the hell was that Heather vs Muse scene? What was that? What was the dynamic between them even supposed to be? Why did her book inspire a serial killer? Why did she freeze like a deer in headlights when dealing with mentally ill people is supposed to be her whole job? What did he even want from her? He obsessed over her and then he was just gonna kill her like all the other randos? In her office?? In the middle of the day???? Why pretend to want therapy just to attack her? It kills me that the whole therapy sesh dialogue only existed to explain that he knew Taekwondo so that he could last 60 seconds longer against Daredevil than your average thug in another utterly underwhelming and cramped fight sequence. Gods the storytelling could not get any stupider.

It's impossible to miss that half of it was awkwardly dubbed, too, so maybe they started out with something that made sense. Honestly her acting makes so little sense that I think in the OG version he drugged her. Even that wouldn't explain some of the dumb stuff she said. "Don't you care about all the people you killed? Huh? Do you feel nothing?" WHILE she's being cut open by a guy wearing a mask with bleeding eyes. "What the f*ck are you doing?"—Clearly dubbed, and yeah, this is said while he's approaching her with a knife. The dubbing saga continues with: "You've kidnapped me and then you're gonna what, SHOOT ME? HUHHGH?!" *Killer picks up gun* Girl... yeah. Probably. Take a hint. Then... then she just calls him a coward for wearing a mask. Rolled a 1 on the survival check.

I laughed even harder when the bad cops said 'Someone stabilized the victim.' Bro she's still unconscious and bleeding out. Daredevil didn't even wrap up her arm.

Muse wasn't even scary once Matt kicked his ass in the last episode. And why did he hate Fisk????? Why did Daredevil even go back to Muse's lair and go directly to his portfolio of paintings of his girlfriend?—Which he was only able to recognize because the paint was so thick they were practically sculptures (and done in a completely different style than all his murals), which was so convenient I had to roll my eyes. They even tossed in a flashback in case we forgot that he could TOTALLY recognize her face because he touched it 20 minutes ago. Just like he's touching the paintings! Wow. Just... if your plot hinges on a character whose whole thing is being a blind man (who can magically 'see' his surroundings but canonically can't read screens or stuff on paper) finding and looking at a bunch of paintings to immediately find the bad guy who just happens to be attacking his girlfriend at that very moment, drag that corpse back to the f*cking drawing board. Honestly between all the nothing sandwich plots, the spectacularly bad therapy scene, and the elbows-in-your-face CGI fight sequences this show should be studied forensically to track down everyone who murdered it. I looked up who was responsible for the writing and found out Dario Scardapane gave us at least some of Season 3 of Jack Ryan, which was one of the most nonsensically dull seasons of TV I've ever tried to watch, so that tracks. The credits mention almost a dozen producers and one 'staff writer', so maybe that was part of the problem. Said writer, Devon Kliger, hasn't done enough to pin him down, but imdb says he's currently working on Furby, the movie.

One last nitpick is that you've gotta expect all the MCU IP nods to other characters now that Disney has their grubby mouse paws on it, but honestly even those have gotten on my nerves in this show. 'OOh, we know who Kamala Khan is tee hee.' Okay try mentioning her once instead of a dozen times.

And all of this is exactly what I've come to expect from Disney. The squad of dirty cops that they're (i hope) setting up to get taken out by Punisher, and Fisk and Matt's acting are the only things making it bearable.

[sodapopcurtis-dx-asks]

Both Steve and Soda were exhausted. After each being bit once by a rat at least at some point during their cleaning up, and the long, boring days they both had, they were just sleepy.

“Hey, Stevie.” Soda piped up, the tiredness obvious in his voice because he spoke soft and sleazy.

“Hhm?” Steve looked over at Soda, staring at the blonde as he finished putting up cleaning supplies.

“...Nevermind, I forgot already.” Soda giggles, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He pulled himself across the station, grabbing onto one thing after the other to hold himself up so he didn't fall over. “I don't know why I'm so tired today.”

He was mumbling to himself, switching lights off and writing down his list as per usual.

Steve just laughed at him. Not a loud one, but it was noticeable. He made his way over to Soda, slipping an arm underneath Soda's and pulling him up. “Cccooome on, Pepsi-Cola. We still gotta get you to the truck.”

Soda giggled, humming in response. His eyes were already closed, but his smile was big and dopey. “Yeah, yeah, I'm comin'...” He yawned, lifting himself up and pushing himself forwards to start walking out of the DX.

Steve hurried after him, grabbing his arms to stop Soda from nearly ramming his face into the glass doors. “Jeez, Sodes. You sure you're gonna make it out?” He teased as he redirected Soda and opened the door for him.

Soda just huffed, pushing the door open even more for himself. “I got it.” He gritted, but there wasn't any real meanness behind it. He stumbled out of the DX, clutching onto the door as he waited for Steve. “You're the one who needs to hurry up!”

Steve scoffs, making his way out beside him. “Am I now?”

In between the mix of them fighting for the door and making way through, someone's hand flipped the Open sign to Closed.

“Mmmhm.” Soda grabbed onto Steve's wrist, pulling him off to the truck.

Steve protested, trying to pull away from Soda, but a sleepy Soda surprisingly has a stronger hold than a tired Steve.

And despite all the playing and struggle to get inside, they did manage to hop into the truck. Steve driving, of course. As Soda dozed off in the passenger seat.

[satansapostle6]

X

Josh Futturman has always had a crush on his beautiful coworker, the sharp, sexy scientist he thought he could only dream of talking to.

Warnings: Mature themes/language. Sexual content.

Part Four

Part Five: My Balls, Your Court

Josh knew that he had to make a move with Brynne, and soon. He knew this partly because for the last few days, Ray had continuously been telling him, ‘You gotta make the first move’.

The ball was in his court, and he needed to act quickly. So, he was trying to work up the courage to do so. After all, he knew for a fact that Brynne was single, but he also knew that women like that didn’t tend to stay single for long if they didn’t want to.

He knew that the annual Kronish Ball, a formal office party before Christmas, was coming up that Friday. So, he figured, that would be the perfect opportunity to ask Brynne out on a date, or at least hang out with her at the hall if he couldn’t get his shit together and ask her out. Ray was heavily encouraging this, and so was Dr. Kronish, for that matter.

That afternoon, Josh Futturman had finally worked up the courage to head up to the lab a little while before leaving work that day, when he found that there might’ve been a slight problem with that plan. As he headed towards the lab, he saw a couple of scientists leaving in a hurrry, looking shell-shocked.

“Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck,” the young woman breathed.

“It’s okay, it’s fine, we just have to fix it,” the young man told her.

“Hey,” Josh frowned as they looked at him, “What’s going on? Is Dr. Camillo in one of his moods again?”

The female lab assistant quickly shook her head, seeming terrified. “No. It’s Dr. Johansson,” she informed him in a hushed tone.

“Dr. Johansson?” Josh said in surprise.

“Yeah. Someone messed up a bunch of data, and now we have to start running the tests all over again. Set us back two months. She’s fucking livid,” the male lab assistant explained.

Josh said nothing, cautiously approaching the lab, half expecting a war zone. He walked in on Brynne scolding one of the underlings, presumably the one responsible for the mistake, sounding disturbingly like Dr. Kronish on the rare occasions where he would actually get angry.

“No, that’s not what I’m asking you,” Brynne stated, seething beneath her calm exterior. “Did you, or did you not, forget to check the input dates?” she demanded.

“I… Forgot to check the input dates,” the young man told her, barely able to look her in the eye.

“And how is that possible?” Brynne interrogated him. “Did the forms not specifically say to double check, triple check, fucking quadruple check, the input dates, because there might be some confusion on that?”

“Yeah,” he admitted, “They did.”

“And did Dr. Fernandez not specifically tell you to notify him before submitting the reports?” she concluded.

“Yeah,” the guy nodded. “He did.”

“Well then, why the fuck did you not do it?” she demanded.

Josh stood there awkwardly in silence, never having once seen her this angry before.

“I don’t know,” he murmured, avoiding her gaze.

“‘I don’t know’?!” Brynne repeated. “‘I don’t know’ is not an acceptable response for someone working in a laboratory! You’re curing disease, not making a fucking McChicken!”

Her voice had a terrifying echo throughout the empty room, and although Josh was paralyzed with fear, he now knew that Brynne’s rage was completely justified from what he heard.

“I’m gonna ask you again, because I hired you, and am therefore responsible if it turns out I hired someone completely incompetent. Now, why… in the hell… did you not have Dr. Fernandez check your work before you submitted it?” she prompted.

“I…” he paused, seemingly realizing how careless he sounded. “I thought it was good. So I just submitted it.”

“Unbelievable,” Brynne muttered, “That was careless, lazy, and above all, just arrogant. You cost us two months worth of testing, and thousands of dollars to restart the entire process, with one little careless mistake. You realize that, at a place like this, I can fire you for that?”

He was quiet for a moment, then responded.

“Yeah.”

“Now, I’m pissed, but you realize I could have you scrubbing the fucking toilets for Josh over there?!”

Josh gulped nervously, realizing he was now a part of the conversation.

“Josh. How would you like a day off, hmm?” Brynne asked, obviously a rhetorical question. “How would you like a nice day off, while Brennan here cleans up a whole building worth of shit?”

Josh just frowned awkwardly. “Uh… That sounds nice.”

“See, if I was an asshole like Dr. Camillo, you’d be scrubbing shit right now,” Brynne pointed out, “You’d be scrubbing shit for the rest of your career, and you’d still have to thank me, because working in Dr. Kronish’s lab is still a privilege. But I’m gonna be beyond fair, and have you personally run up to Dr. Kronish’s office and tell him why we can’t go public for another two months, if we’re lucky.”

“Alright,” he nodded, not having anything else to add.

Josh was suddenly pushed aside as Dr. Camillo barged into the room, fuming.

“Is this the jackass that fucked all the data to shit, and cost us another two months?!” he boomed.

“Stu… I swear to fucking God,” Brynne Johansson warned. “Get the fuck out!”

“I don’t work for you! I work for Dr. Kronish,” he argued.

“Oh yeah? Go and fucking tell Kronish you’re pissing me the fuck off right now, and see what he says!” she suggested. “Do it! I fucking dare you!”

Josh and Lucas Brennan were both equally terrified for their lives as they watched Dr. Camillo rush out of the room with his tail between his legs. Brynne turned back to her employee, about past her breaking point.

“Brennan. Go tell Dr. Kronish what happened, specifically your part in it, and then go work on restarting everything,” Brynne exhaled slowly. “If I hear you disregard anything you’re told again, you’re fired. If I talk to Dr. Kronish later today and he says you never told him the full story, you’re fired. Understood?”

“Yeah,” Brennan nodded quickly, “Understood.”

“Go,” she barked, not wanting him in her sight for any longer.

Josh quickly stepped aside for Brennan as he quickly rushed out of the room. He looked over at Brynne, who just stood in the middle of the empty room, one hand on her hip, and one hand squeezing her temples in an attempt to soothe her approaching stress migraine.

“Hey, Josh,” she sighed, sounding exhausted.

“Hey,” he said awkwardly.

“What’s up?” she asked him.

Suddenly, Josh no longer felt like asking her out on a date.

“Sorry, it’s nothing important, if this is a bad time, I can just leave you alone,” he offered.

“No, no, it’s fine,” she assured him. “Sorry. I didn’t want anyone else to have to see that.”

“It’s okay,” he promised her, “I get it.”

“You must think I’m an asshole,” she scoffed, a sad bitterness to her tone, “I felt like Dr. Camillo.”

“No,” Josh shook his head immediately, “Definitely not. I mean, you’re tough, and everything, but… You’re fair.”

Brynne just nodded appreciatively, genuinely comforted. “Thanks. I… I’m just pissed we have to start all over again.”

Josh realized that this was one of the first genuine conversations he’d ever had with her; no flirting, no banter, just talking.

“Yeah, who wouldn’t be?” Josh agreed sympathetically. “Weren’t you scheduled to go public with everything after New Year’s?”

“Yeah,” she nodded, frustrated by her current predicament, “We were. Now, everything has to be pushed back.”

“Jesus,” he murmured.

“Anyways. Enough of that for today. Did you wanna talk to me about something?” she wondered.

Josh gulped fearfully, having no idea how to segue.

“Uh…”

He only got more nervous as she looked at him, naturally expecting an answer.

“The Kronish Ball! On Friday!” Josh managed, realizing he wasn’t making any sense.

Brynne just nodded, not understanding the relevance. “Oh, yeah. I almost forgot about that.”

“You’re going, right?” he asked her.

“Yeah,” she nodded, “I’ll be there.”

“Great!” he laughed, horrified as he realized there was more to that sentence. “Did you, uh… have a date?” he croaked out.

She shook her head, and he nearly jumped for joy.

“No, I was just gonna come on my own.”

“Great!” he blurted out again, not knowing where to go from there. “…Me too!”

Josh cursed himself as he realized that was all he knew to say. She just stared at him blankly, equally unsure of how to continue the conversation.

“Cool.”

“Cool,” Josh forced a smile that was really more of an awkward grimace, slowly backing out of the room. “Cool…”

The word was about to lose its meaning. Frantic to say something, anything at all, he opened his mouth before his brain had actually planned out what to say to her.

“My balls…! Your court?!” he yelled out an invitation, alarming the both of them.

He was mortified as he realized what he’d actually said to this woman, a distinguished scientist with a PhD. She just blinked, completely dumbfounded by his words.

“…What exactly are you asking me, Futturman?” she questioned. “I’m not sure why, exactly, but should I be contacting HR?”

“No…! Sorry!” Josh laughed, close to tears, “I just… Uh…”

He quickly realized it would sound worse if he were to just stop there, so he figured he was forced to correct himself.

“I was just wondering… Since we were both planning on going alone…” he had no idea what she was thinking.

“Yeah?” Brynne prompted.

“I, uh… Did you, maybe, wanna… go to the party, together?” he slowly stumbled over the sentence. “As, like, a date?”

He was horrified as she paused for a moment, her beautiful features seeming completely blank.

“Yeah, Futturman,” she chuckled, lightly brushing back her coppery hair, “Yeah, I would.”

“Okay! Great!” Josh exclaimed, in awe of himself. “Cool!”

“Cool,” Brynne nodded.

She stood there, watching in amusement as he slowly backed out of the room before racing down the hallway to celebrate, silently screaming as he pumped his fists in the air

-

Part Six

[tobiasdrake]

Digimon Adventure 01x29 - Mammon! Great Clash at Hikarigaoka / Return to Highton View Terrace

Previously on Digimon Adventure: Vamdemon went on a vacation to Japan but fucking forgot all of the children. We tried to Home Alone the place, as you do, but went too hard and accidentally brought the roof down. So we ended up playing cards in the basement until we could board a second flight.

Now, at last, the Chosen Children have returned to the campsite where this all began. The Eighth Child will be in Hikarigaoka. It's up to us to find them before Vamdemon does.

Discussing next steps at the campsite, Koushiro briefly lays down the time dilation effect that Taichi experienced.

Sora: You don't think Vamdemon has already found the Eighth Child, do you? Koushiro: According to my calculations, not even a minute will have passed between Vamdemon's arrival in Hikarigaoka and our appearance here. The flow of time between the two worlds is different. Yamato: The problem is, how do we get to Hikarigaoka? It's pretty far from here. Jou: But is today really the same day we were at camp? We were in the other world for months. Mimi: That's true. Even if the flow of time is different, we don't know for sure. Taichi: I'll go take a look at the camp! We shouldn't have been gone for that long!

Taichi would know. He was here, like, four days ago Digimon Time.

Over in the dub, they've backed off on saying Japan but they've also stopped dancing around proper nouns. They have arrived at an official name for their version of Hikarigaoka.

T.K.: We're back to camp where we started! Tai: We've gotta get to Highton View Terrace and stop Myotismon before he finds the Eighth DigiDestined! Sora: I wonder how much of a head start he has on us? Izzy: Not even a minute has passed between the time Myotismon left for Japan and when we arrived. Time flows at a different pace in the Digi-World. Matt: I'll say! We've been gone for months in the Digi-World and yet here in the real world it's the same day we left! Joe: But that's impossible! You mean all those adventures took less time than it does to, say, get a haircut? Mimi: Please, Joe! Don't exaggerate! Imagine getting your hair done in such a short amount of time! Tai: I'm gonna go take a look at the camp! I'm gonna see for myself how much time has really passed!

That's a pretty good Mimi Quip, I'll take it. XD

The actual Japanese district Hikarigaoka is now the fictional setting Highton View Terrace, which kinda sounds like a rich upscale neighborhood for fancy people.

Matt doesn't get to point out that "Highton View Terrace" is pretty fucking far from the campsite we're at, which is a problem for seven unattended children.

Taichi sprints down the stairs to go scout out the camp, only for the entire rest of the group to follow him down.

Taichi: You don't all have to come! Mimi: Maybe not, but.... Jou: I'm the group leader! Koushiro: We're all curious about what could have happened while we were gone. Taichi: But how will we explain if someone sees these guys?

Jou's line might seem odd after the last episode made such a fuss about Taichi being team leader, but he means that in terms of formality.

Taichi is リーダー riidaa, a loanword from the English "leader". Unofficially, the group has elected Taichi to the position of their leader.

Jou says he's 班長 hanchou, which we actually took as a loanword from Japan to become "honcho". It means squad leader, project leader, class president, etc. Jou-senpai is formally the responsible older kid who's expected to be in charge of these children, and it might be kinda weird if Taichi just showed up at camp without him.

In the dub:

Tai: One of you come with me, the rest of you stay there! Who volunteers? (everyone chases after) Tai: One volunteer, not thirteen! Mimi: I thought I'd keep you company. Joe: And we're gonna keep Mimi company. Izzy: I guess we're all pretty curious to find out what happened while we were gone. Tai: But how will we explain it if somebody sees our Digimon?

Officially, Mimi is the volunteer. She, alone, is going with Tai. Everyone else is going with Mimi. XD That's one way to do it.

Suddenly, a voice calls out. An adult voice. An adult human. An actual other human!

Voice: YAGAMI!!!

Taichi turns around to see a man running towards them.

Taichi: Sensei! Sora: It's Fujiyama-sensei! Taichi: SENSEI!!!

Overcome with emotion, Taichi runs out to meet Fujiyama, but Fujiyama's having none of this emotional reunion. He starts yelling at Taichi so hard that Taichi falls flat on his ass.

Fujiyama: YOU DUMBASS!!! Why are you loitering out here instead of packing your things!? Taichi: U-Uh well-- Koromon: What do you mean, 'packing'?

Oh shit, here we go again. Taichi clamps his hands down hard around Koromon's mouth. Fortunately, despite looking right at him with glasses, Fujiyama doesn't seem to notice that Koromon spoke.

Fujiyama: We can't keep camping out here in all this snow, of course. Everyone's getting ready to go home. Taichi: Oh, o-of course, hehe.... Fujiyama: What are those filthy things you're holding? Are they toys? Taichi: U-Uh-huh! Yep! Mochimon: Who are you calling filthy-- Koushiro: (covers Mochimon's mouth) Don't speak.

Credit to Gomamon, Piyomon, and Palmon who all freeze up and never speak or move in this entire scene. Also Patamon and Tsunomon who haven't done anything wrong.

The dub presents Fujiyama like a threat.

Fujiyama: Oh, kii~iiids!

He calls out, and we go to commercial with Fujiyama running towards them, like it's a cliffhanger. Then, upon return, they play peril music over his approach and also repeat his line.

Fujiyama: Oh, kii~iiids! Tai: It's our teacher! Sora: We are back in the real world! Tai: Mr. Fujiyama! (Tai races out to meet him and gets shouted down) Fujiyama: WATCH OUT!!! (Taichi falls) What are all you kids doing playing around here when you haven't even packed up your gear yet!? Tai: Well, sir, I can explain-- Koromon: Well, I'm Tai's Digimo-- (Taichi clamps Koromon's mouth shut) Fujiyama: Didn't you kids hear that we're closing up camp early because of the snow? Everyone else is all ready to go home! Tai: Sure, of course we heard! Ahaha.... Fujiyama: What are those dirty little toys you're carrying? Where'd you get 'em? Tai: Uhhh toys? Motimon: Who's he calling a dirty little toy!? That's not-- Koushiro: (clamps Motimon's mouth shut) We can't let anyone know you can talk.

Seems we were gone a bit longer in the English version than the Japanese, as all the other kids have already packed. They're waiting on us.

A minor plot change but a lateral one. Though it's kind of funny that Japanese Fujiyama seems angrier at the kids than English Fujiyama, despite the English kids actively delaying the rest of the class's return home.

Koromon and Mochimon screw up so hard they get all the other Digimon in trouble too. Takeru and Yamato clap hands over Patamon and Tsunomon's mouths even though they haven't done anything.

Yamato: (whisper) Pretend you're stuffed animals. Tsunomon: (muffled protests) Taichi: Th-these are plushies! Fujiyama: I can see that. Mimi: Someone threw them out here and we found them! Jou: Y-yeah! They were in a remote region deep in the mountains where no one ever passes through! We went through a lot of trouble before we finally got them! Fujiyama: How did you even find them in the first place if they were in an area people don't pass through? Taichi: Th-That's just how hard-to-find they were! RIGHT, EVERYONE!? Kids: RIGHT!!!

Oh, these kids were definitely doing drugs. They are being way too suspicious right now. if I were Fujiyama, I'd be seriously wondering right now whether Kids These Days use plushies to conceal bags of narcotics.

In the dub:

Matt: Pretend to be stuffed animals. Tsunomon: (muffled protests) Tai: Oh, THESE toys!? Well, you see, they're stuffed. Fujiyama: Yes, Tai. I can see that. Sora: Uhhhhh we found them here. Joe: Yeah! That's right! You see, we were hiking up an uncharted trail when we came across these stuffed toys that someone had thrown away! Makes perfect sense if you ask me! Fujiyama: Who in their right mind would hike up an uncharted trail just to throw away seven stuffed animals!? Tai: Exactly our point! And that's why we think that littering is crazy! Right, gang? Kids: RIGHT!!!

"That's why littering is crazy!" Tai making a desperate and futile bid to present himself like a Good Kid (TM) by inserting PSAs into his bad excuse. These kids were doing even more drugs and I'm about to search that Koromon.

Fortunately, Taichi's had enough time to think of something.

Taichi: S-See? (holds up Koromon) You remember my little sister Hikari wasn't able to make it? I wanted to give this to her as a souvenir. She loves this kind of stuff. Fujiyama: Oh... She had a cold, right? Taichi: She did, but she's better now; I made her an omelette. Fujiyama: YOU did!? Taichi: !!! Koromon: !!! A-- Taichi: (hand over Koromon's mouth) B-Before camp, I mean! Ehehe....

Wow, Taichi fumbled the ball fast. I would have thought an ace striker would be better at ball control than that.

Fortunately, the plan still works despite Taichi nearly screwing it all up.

Fujiyama: A souvenir for your sister, huh? Well, after you've all finished packing your things, meet up in the parking lot. Kids: Yes, sir! Fujiyama: (runs off) Don't take too long! Kids: Okay! Koromon: But how do we get to Hikarigaoka? Taichi: Hehe, I've got a plan.

Phew! We survived encountering our first adult in our return to Japan. Sympathy bid to sow doubt and make him feel guilty for suspecting us takes the win.

In the dub, Tai continues to try and sell his anti-littering PSA.

Tai: But, being the good citizens that we are, we cleaned up the mess! And now I'm giving the toys to my little sister Kari as a present! She wasn't able to come to camp, remember? Fujiyama: Oh, yeah. She caught a cold, didn't she? Tai: Yes, but she's feeling much better now because I went home and made her an omelette. Fujiyama: And when did you do that? Koromon: WHEN I-- Taichi: (clamps Koromon's mouth shut) Uh, when? That's a good question. Uh, right before I left for camp! Ahaha! Fujiyama: It's nice that you're thinking of your sister, Tai. But don't overdo it. Those toys are filthy and belong in the garbage. Right kids? Kids: RIGHT!!! Fujiyama: (runs off) Meet you at the bus! Kids: OKAY!!! Koromon: I'd like to get his gear together and throw him in the garbage can! Tai: Well, then you won't be littering, at least!

Tai is really proud of that 'littering' bit. Proud enough to again not talk about the logistics of reaching Highton View Terrace.

I appreciate English Fujiyama for pointing out the flaw in Tai's alleged intentions. Actually no? Do not pick up strange plushies from the wilderness and take them home with you? Insects will make nests or hives out of them if they get the chance. Those toys belong to nature now.

That said, it's more believable that Fujiyama accepts Taichi's backpedal than Tai's. Tai explicitly says he "went home" to make the omelette. That's a statement that should have blown his cover story wide open.

Meanwhile, in Hikarigaoka, the Vamdemon's inner cicle makes their plans. But the harsh light of day is not good for all of them.

Tailmon: So, the Eighth Child is near here? PicoDevimon: Yes. Isn't tha tright, Vamdemon-sama?

The both of them seated on the edge of the roof, they look back to see Vamdemon trying to remain inside a shrinking shade. His voice pained as he speaks.

PicoDevimon: What's the matter, sir? Vamdemon: I will wait in the world of darkness until that ball of light disappears. Take care of the rest, Tailmon.

He tosses the eighth Tag and Crest to her.

Tailmon: Leave it to me, Vamdemon-sama!

Then, groaning with pain, he flees inside and slams the door shut. Too late, PicoDevimon tries to follow after.

PicoDevimon: Whoa, wait for me!

PicoDevimon slams facefirst into the door and comically bounces to the ground.

In the dub, Gatomon chimes in with some silence-breaking observations while the camera's panning over the city.

Gatomon: The human world is so cluttered. All these creatures crammed on top of each other. DemiDevimon: The Eighth DigiDestined lives nearby! What's next, Myotismon? Myotismon: Agh! Unfortunately, until the sun goes down, I must remain hidden in the shadows! Begin the search without me. Here! (tosses the Crest) Gatomon: (catch) I won't let you down, Lord Myotismon. Myotismon: (runs through the door) I need to be alone! (closes it) DemiDevimon: I'LL COME WITH YOU-- (smack)

Myotismon doesn't use the same flowery language as Vamdemon. He just says "I need to stay hidden while the sun is out." That's fine. It's kind of odd that Vamdemon's describing it that way, when it's not like he doesn't know what the sun is. He has to hide from it in the Digimon World too.

In the Japanese, the flowery language does serve a purpose. Specifically, Vamdemon's over-description of the sun makes for a fun bit of wordplay. Do you know what the Japanese word for light is?

It's hikari.

He needs to hide in the shadows from hikari, while we search for the Eighth Child. How poetic.

This wordplay, of course, does not translate to English well so there's no reason not to have him just say "I'm hiding from the sun."

Back at camp, the Chosen Children prepare to smuggle their Partner Digimon on the bus.

Taichi: Listen up. Don't ever open your mouths in front of other humans, okay? Gomamon: We understand! Palmon: We should just pretend to be dolls, right?

Gomamon, Palmon, and Piyomon remain the MVPs of understanding how to stay undercover. Koromon, on the other hand....

Taichi: (slowly peaks out of bushes to see the kids gathering around the buses) Koromon: WHOOOOAAAAAAA TAIIIIIIIIIICHI-- Taichi: (clamps Koromon's mouth shut) I just told you not to talk! Koromon: (whispering) But there's so many children! Piyomon: I didn't know there could be so many human children! Sora: You can't be surprised by just this many. There are thousands more children all throughout the world. No, make that millions. Gomamon, Piyomon, and Palmon: EHHHHHHH!?!? Piyomon: There are millions of Soras!?

Piyomon imagines an entire flock of Soras. Sora wigs out and breaks the fantasy.

Sora: THERE'S ONLY ONE OF ME!!! Takeru: When we get to the city, you'll see tons more adults and children too!

This is going to be an adjustment. The Digimon have a lot to learn about this strange, foreign world they've been Isekai'd into. At least it was voluntary for them.

The dub takes Taichi's instructions and gives them to Joe.

Joe: Remember: Don't talk in front of anyone else, okay? Palmon: Don't worry! We can just pretend to be adorable stuffed animals. Tai: (slowly peaks out of bushes to see the kids gathering around the buses) Koromon: Whoa, look at all the kids! Tai: (clamps Koromon's mouth shut) Didn't we just say not to talk out loud! Koromon: Yeah, but look at all the human children! Biyomon: We never knew there were more human children than you. Sora: This is nothing. Why, just in this city alone, there must be tens of thousands of kids just like us. And when you add the rest of the kids in the world, there must be millions. Gomamon, Biyomon, and Palmon: Huh!? Biyomon: You mean there are millions of Soras!? (Biyomon imagines a flock of Soras) Sora: THERE'S ONLY ONE OF ME!!! T.K.: She just means there are more kids our age. But there are tons of different people in the world.

I like this version of Biyomon's misunderstanding better because I think Sora does a better job setting it up. Saying there are lots of kids "like us" queues up Biyomon to think she means millions of Soras more effectively than just saying there's lots of children.

But it still works in the original too. It especially makes sense that Piyomon might leap to that conclusion when you consider her frame of reference as a Digimon. Just as you can have an entire village of Pyokomon, why not a village of Sora?

Piyomon is experiencing culture shock.

Suddenly, Mimi spots two of her friends by the bus. She erupts with emotion, knocking Palmon to the ground in her haste to reach them.

Mimi: Ehh!? MI-CHAN!!! (breaks into a sprint) I MISSED YOU!!! Mi-Chan: Eh? I was with you earlier.... Taako: What's wrong? Mi-Chan: I don't know--

Before Taako knows what hit her, Mimi wraps her up in a hug and spins her around.

(If Fujiyama is around, this is only going to exacerbate the likelihood of drugs. I'm telling ya. Search that Koromon.)

Mimi: TAAKO!!! How are you!? Taako: (annoyed) Come on, Mimi....

The others, still hiding behind the bushes, watch Mimi weird out all of her friends.

Palmon: Really, Mimi? Taichi: I kept telling her that time hasn't passed here, but she still doesn't listen! Koushiro: I understand your feelings but we need to focus on getting to Hikarigaoka quickly. Taichi: Alright.

In the dub, despite the fact that Fujiyama-sensei's name was not altered, Mimi's friends do get new names.

Mimi: Hey, it's Michelle! (breaks into a sprint) I've missed you so much! Michelle: You missed me? You just saw me ten minutes ago. Terry: What's going on? Michelle: Mimi's weird! Mimi: OH, TERRY!!! (hug) Michelle: She's wigging out. Terry: Too much caffeine! Palmon: Oh, Mimi. Tai: She'll give us away! I told her no time has passed since we went to the Digi-World! Izzy: Forget Mimi! We have to find some form of transportation to Highton View Terrace. Tai: I've got an idea!

Okay, I was not prepared for Terry to in fact accuse Mimi of substance abuse. Tame though it is. XD I also really like Michelle accusing "Mimi's weird!"

The dub's generally harsher tone of voice works great for this scene.

There's a lateral shift here too. Taichi formulated the plan he's about to put into effect shortly after the tense conversation with Fujiyama-sensei. But Tai acts like he only now thought of it.

This connects well to the previous scene, as the dub had replaced Taichi coming up with the plan with the punchline to the litter gag. So Tai is, in fact, only just now thinking of the plan.

What doesn't connect is when Michelle says she saw Mimi ten minutes ago. In the Fujiyama scene, he said, "Didn't you kids hear that we're closing up camp early because of the snow? Everyone else is all ready to go home!" That was, at the time, a lateral plot change. In the original, everyone was still packing, but in the dub, they were already waiting on us.

So. Which is it? Have we been gone for long enough Earth Time that the rest of the campers were already packed and ready to go by the time we got back? Or has less than ten minutes passed since the Chosen Children first decided to go up to that shrine in the first place? Reminder that the snow we're evacuating from fell like a minute or two before we went into Digi-World.

Taichi puts his master plan into action: Asking for permission from an adult.

Taichi: Sensei! Fujiyama-sensei! Could you drop us off somewhere on the way? Fujiyama: Drop you off? Of course not! I have a responsibility to make sure you all get back home. Taichi: Oh, come on! Don't be like that! Please! You just have to take us to the housing complex in Hikarigaoka. Fujiyama: Hikarigaoka? Why there? Taichi: Uh... Well... I used to live there! I just felt like seeing it again. Other Kids (sans Mimi): (run up) Please do it for us! Fujiyama: You kids too? Other Kids (sans Mimi): That's right! Driver: Hikarigaoka is pretty close to the route we're taking. When we get on the Kan-etsu Expressway and interchange to the Tokyo Gaikan, we'll be passing through Ooizumi. That's within walking distance to Hikarigaoka. Taichi: (to the driver) Perfect! Then can you drop us off there? Fujiyama: Hold on! I haven't given my permission yet.

The route that the driver gives are real directions. It's about a two-mile walk from Ooizumimachi to Hikarigaoka, so the kids will be doing a bit of urban hiking but it's totally doable.

In the dub:

Tai: Mr. Fujiyama! Can you have the bus drop us off somewhere? Fujiyama: Have the bus drop you off? No can do. The rules say I have to take you straight to your homes. Tai: Please, Mr. Fujiyama! I'm begging you, sir! Could you just let us off somewhere near Highton View Terrace? Fujiyama: Highton View Terrace? Why do you want to go there? Tai: Well, we used to live there and we were feeling nostalgic so we thought we would visit our old hangout. Other Kids (sans Mimi): Come on! / Please! / We'd appreciate it, sir! Fujiyama: But it's against the rules. Driver: You know, I think we drive pretty close to Highton View Terrace. Let's see, first we take the freeway to the parkway to the throughway and-- Oh! That's the wrong way! Oh, yeah. Here at the roadway. Highton View Terrace is within walking distance. Tai: (to the driver) Great! Then that's where you can let us off, mister. Fujiyama: Whoa, hold on! I didn't give the bus driver permission yet.

At least the kids have finally figured out that Highton View Terrace isn't where they're currently living.

The real Japanese directions to Hikarigaoka are replaced by a wordplay joke about the way Americans name their streets. I'm cool with that change; I don't think many early 00's American kids were well enough versed in the urban geography of Tokyo to have gotten the original line, so this is a fine place for a gag.

Of course, there's no way in hell any responsible teacher would sign off on dropping these children off at a random highway intersection. However, Fujiyama's already demonstrated a vulnerability to sob stories. It's time for someone else to step up and strut their family tragedy.

Yamato: Sensei, please do this for us! We really want to see the place where our family used to live together, before the divorce. Takeru: (starts crying) Yamato: Takeru! Takeru: (dramatically hugs Yamato's legs) Onii-chan!

In the dub:

Matt: Please, Mr. Fujiyama? You'll break T.K.'s heart if you don't let us go. It was the last place we all lived together as a family before my parents got divorced. T.K.: (starts crying) Matt: T.K..... T.K.: (dramatically hugs Matt's legs) Oh, brother!

I don't remember if this is the first time we've changed tracks from Matt and T.K. being half-brothers, but I think that interpretation is officially dead. Unless the implication is that their mom cheated on Matt's dad and T.K. isn't his, it'd be logistically hard for them to live together with Matt's parents as half-brothers.

Suddenly, Jou storms up, ready to clinch this.

Jou: Sensei, please do this for us! Let us get off at Hikarigaoka! I will take responsibility for escorting them all home afterwards. Fujiyama: Well... I guess it will be okay if a sixth-grader like you is with them, Kido. Be sure to call your parents and let them all know about this. Taich & Jou: We will! (both bow respectfully) Jou: Thank you so much! Taichi: Thank you so much! Fujiyama: (walks off uncertain) It's fine, it's fine.

Similar to Matt and T.K.'s parents, I don't remember if this is the first time the dub's acknowledged Joe being older than the rest, but here it is.

Joe: Mr. Fujiyama, please let us off at Highton View Terrace. As an upperclassman, I'll take responsibility for getting them home. Fujiyama: Well, I guess if a reliable kid like you is going, Joe, then it's okay. However, call your parents and tell them where you are. Tai & Joe: Deal! (both bow respectfully) Joe: Thanks, Mr. Fujiyama! Tai: You're the greatest teacher ever! Fujiyama: (walks off uncertain) Yeah, yeah....

As soon as he's gone, Taichi congratulates the team on a job well done.

Taichi: Yahoo! Hey! How long are you two gonna keep that up? (Yamato and Takeru separate with huge shit-eating grins) Jou: What's going on here? Yamato: It didn't seem like he'd let us go unless we pulled out the waterworks. Jou: THAT WAS AN ACT!?!? I was desperately trying to get Sensei's approval because I thought it was true! Taichi: Now, now! It all worked out, so forget about it!

In the dub:

Tai: Yahoo! Hey! How long are you gonna keep that act up? (Matt and T.K. separate with huge shit-eating grins) Both Brothers: (giggle for five straight seconds) Matt: Hey, if we didn't come up with something sappy like that, he never would have let us go. Joe: You mean that sad story was just an act!? I was crying my eyes out so much for you guys that my glasses started to fog up! Tai: Joe, calm down before you have an asthma attack!

And Palmon despondently watches Mimi board the bus with Mi-chan and Taako.

Mimi: Ahahaha, is that so? Palmon: (dour) Aww, Mimi's forgotten about me. WAIT FOR M--

Sora and Koushiro jump Palmon, with Mochimon and Piyomon both clamping her mouth shut together. Her status as a plushie MVP is tragically revoked.

The dub cuts Palmon's sadness from this scene, turning it into a laugh line instead.

Mimi: Ahahahahaha!!! I missed all of you so much! Palmon: I hope she's not gonna act this way with every kid that she meets! Heeeeey--

Without Palmon suddenly realizing she's been abandoned and screaming for Mimi to wait for her, the part where Sora and Koushiro suddenly have to silence her feels out-of-place.

The kids board the bus to return to Tokyo. Along the way, they check to ensure their equipment's still functioning in the human world.

Koushiro: (checking his laptop) It's okay. It's still working properly in this world. Taichi: That's good.

Sora takes out her Digivice. It's showing a big centralized red dot for the seven of them, which bodes well.

Sora: The Digivice is also working. Fujiyama: What are those things? Is that what's popular with kids these days? Jou: NO, IT'S REALLY NOT A-- Fujiyama: Let me have a look. Taichi: YOU CAN'T!!! Fujiyama: Don't be stingy. After all, I'm letting you guys get off at Hikarigaoka. Sora: Y-yes, sir.... (hands over her Digivice) Fujiyama: Those are good manners you have, Takenouchi. You're an obedient kid, unlike some others I know.

Sora blushes from Fujiyama's praise and hides her face. The dub follows the script right up until Fujiyama shows up.

Fujiyama: What's up? Is that the latest toy all you kids are into? Joe: NO, IT'S JUST ONE OF THE OLD ONES THAT WE ALL HATE!!! Fujiyama: Let me take a look at it. Tai: UH, IT'S BROKEN!!! Fujiyama: Maybe I can fix it. Here, give it to me. I'm pretty good with electronics. Sora: Yes, sir. Fujiyama: Thank you, Sora. Unlike other children, you really listen to your teachers.

Tai comes up with a stronger attempt at fending off Fujiyama, but he's got an answer for it all the same. Meanwhile, Joe embarrasses himself with a hilarious failure of a claim.

Koushiro and Taichi discuss what's happening.

Koushiro: It's fine to just let him have a look at it. Taichi: I felt like we were being attacked by an evil Digimon or something. Koushiro: (skeptical) Fujiyama-sensei is an evil Digimon? Taichi: Evil! Evil! I mean, when you forget your homework, he snares you with his tickle atta-- Fujiyama: I heard that last part.

Fujiyama-sensei doles out intense punitive tickling to Taichi while terrifyingly stone-faced.

In the dub:

Izzy: There's no harm in just letting him take a look at it, Tai. Tai: For about a second there, I thought Mr. Fujiyama was an evil Digimon. Izzy: I think you've spent way too much time in the Digi-World. Tai: Think about it! If he were an evil Digimon, every time you failed a test, he'd scream out his attack, "HOMEWORK BLASTER!!!" Fujiyama: Actually, it's more like Tickle Blaster.

This version of the tickle gag doesn't work as well because Tai doesn't queue up Fujiyama to launch his tickling assault. He overhears Tai comparing him to an "evil proper noun he doesn't recognize" and decides to start tickling him, apropos of nothing.

While the kids are still trying to reach Hikarigaoka, Tailmon searches the district.

With the Crest around her neck, she moves through the district, waiting for a child's presence to cause the Crest to glow. But it never does.

Tailmon: It's not reacting at all. What does this mean? Isn't the Eighth Child supposed to be around here!?

In the dub:

Gatomon: You can't turn over a rock without finding a kid under it in this world, and yet I still haven't found the Eighth DigiDestined!

Gatomon's line doesn't convey how she intends to find the Eighth DigiDestined. Which is kind of important information, because a Crest and Tag glowing to indicate that their associated child is nearby is something of a new mechanic.

It's not entirely new. We've used the glow from the Tags to find their associated Crests and seen those Crests do some shit in the presence of the child and Tag. So the Crest and Tag together glowing to identify a child feels like it's rooted in established metaphysics.

But it's still nice to have her explain that this, using the Crest as a radar, is what she's doing.

She also has a brief altercation with a dog, who she fends off by whipping the dog in the neck with her titular tail.

Ultimately, Tailmon is forced to report her failure back to Vamdemon at his new lair: The basement of a parking garage.

Vamdemon: You couldn't find the child? Tailmon: Yes, sir. At the very least, the child doesn't appear to be in the vicinity of Hikarigaoka. Vamdemon: PicoDevimon.

A still art frame of PicoDevimon descends, with several Tags and Crests around his legs. He neither moves his lips to speak nor flaps his wings as he slides onto the screen. I guess they didn't have the budget for him today.

PicoDevimon: (telepathically I guess) What are these? Vamdemon: I've made copies of the Eighth Child's Tag and Crest. PicoDevimon: (levitates offscreen to the right) Vamdemon: The one you have is also a copy. Tailmon: Then where's the real one!? Vamdemon: (reveals his fist, clutched around the Tag's cord) Here, in my grasp. Even though those ones are copies, they will still react when the Chosen Child is nearby. Do everything you can to find the Eighth Child! Tailmon & PicoDevimon: Yes, sir! (they both bow, including PicoDevimon who is no longer paralyzed by the finance department) Vamdemon: Children... I will do everything in my power to eliminate you!

The misadventures of still-frame PicoDevimon cracked me up in this scene. But in any case, Vamdemon's flexing his Big Fucking Nerd credentials once again. The Digimon World's #1 expert on Chosen Children lore has fabricated fake Crests that can reproduce the tracking effects of the original.

Which he also has in his possession, of course. Can you really call yourself a Chosen Children stan if you aren't repping their merch? Of course he went out and yoinked one of those Crests for himself. He was trying to complete the collection through the entire PicoDevimon arc!

...I can't wait to see what the dub does with still-frame PicoDevimon.

Myotismon: What do you mean, you couldn't find the Eighth DigiDestined!? You have failed me! Gatomon: Please don't hurt me, Your Evilship. I swear he's not here! Myotismon: SILENCE, GATOMON!!! DemiDevimon: (levitates down onto the screen with a sort of whirring vrooming sound effect) Myotismon: I have made several copies of the Eighth DigiDestined's Tag and Crest. DemiDevimon: (levitates offscreen) Myotismon: The one you have is a copy too. Gatomon: So I'm a copycat? Myotismon: The original's with me. Even though they are only copies, they will still become activated when the Eighth Child is nearby. This time, make no mistakes. You must find that child. Gatomon & DemiDevimon: Gotcha! (they both bow) Myotismon: And when you do find him, then he must die!

HAHAHAHAHAHA They cut his line because he has no lip flaps HAHAHAHAHAHA

And gave him a little wooshy sound effect.

He is just. He's just full-on DisplayModelDevimon HAHAHAHAHA

The Chosen Children finally arrive in Hikarigaoka.

Koromon: Is that the Hikarigaoka housing complex? Taichi: Yeah! Piyomon: WOW!!! You used to live in that huge castle, Sora!? Sora: It's not a castle. It's divided into smaller rooms inside and a lot of people live there. Piyomon: Did you used to live in Hikarigaoka too, Sora? Sora: Mmhmm. Taichi: Sora and I were in the same class. Sora: Yep. Taichi: Third Elementary School, Class 1-2. Yamato: I was in Fourth Elementary School. Jou: H-Hang on! Then you weren't lying to trick Sensei!? Yamato: It's true that we lived in Hikarigaoka. Takeru: Yeah. I remember a little of it. Jou: I went to Fifth Elementary School here! Mimi: I lived here in kindergarten. Jou: Huh!? Koushiro: So did I! But only for a little while. Taichi: That means all of us used to live in Hikarigaoka! Koushiro: This can't be a coincidence.

Nor can it be a coincidence that Big Fucking Nerd Vamdemon began his search here. He has no reason to believe that the Eighth Child is presently in this place. He doesn't have, like, a huge blinking radar telling him "Hikari There".

He's here because this is the place that the Chosen Children came from. Hikarigaoka is the point of origin; The source of Chosen Children. The ancient lore knows that the children come from Hikarigaoka. But it doesn't seem to know that they moved.

In the dub:

Koromon: They were nice to drop us off here. Tai: Yeah! Mimi: There's the Highton View Terrace Tower! Izzy: The tallest apartment building in Japan! Joe: Terrific. I'm afraid of heights. Tai: That place isn't so hot! Sora: That's true. The heat never worked. I used to live there. Biyomon: Wow, Sora! You lived in that castle! Sora: Yep! Tai: I lived near here too. A block away in another building. Sora and I went to Westside Elementary together. Matt: Hey, I went to Westside Elementary! Joe: You're kidding! You mean that you guys were telling the truth when you said you used to live in Highton View Terrace! Matt: Yeah, we really did live here before my parents broke up. T.K.: That was a long time ago when I was a little kid. Joe: Strange coincidence because I used to live here too. Mimi: I lived here too before we moved! Joe: Huh? Izzy: Me too! Just for a little while; It's a long story. Tai: So at some point we all lived at Highton View Terrace at the same exact time! Izzy: This can't just be a coincidence; There's gotta be some meaning here.

Oh! There's a "Japan"!

Rather than compare schools, everyone just agrees that they lived here once in their lives. Tai somehow leaps to the conclusion that they're all talking about the same timeframe. This is not a conclusion Taichi reached, despite being a little better founded in the original when they're talking about being in elementary school (and, for the younger pair, kindergarten).

We lose Sora explaining what an apartment building is to Piyomon, echoing Agumon's similar confusion back when he and Taichi were in Odaiba.

We do, however, gain the "That's not so hot!" "Yeah, the heat never worked" bit, which got me. XD

The kids are interrupted by the sound of dozens of wings fluttering overhead. High up above them, Night Raid bats scour the city. At the same time, armed with weaponized cosplay, Tailmon and her mercenaries spread out through Hikarigaoka.

I realize that shot looks like half of her forces are fleeing into the mouth of a colossal Tailmon kaiju but the perspective was wonky and that was the best I could get.

Over in the dub, I think the shots of silhouetted Digimon mercenaries spreading out through the city confused the dub team because Tai suddenly yells this when he sees the bats.

Tai: It's Myotismon's army! RUN FOR IT!!!

Followed immediately by silhouetted figures running through the city. Then we get that shot above of Gatomon soaring overhead while the silhouetted figures spread out, and she says:

Gatomon: They can run but they can't hide from Mammothmon!

Which feels like it's meant to imply that the silhouettes are the kids fleeing for their lives from the Night Raid bats. And that Gatomon is then intentionally sending Mammothmon out on a rampage to force them out of hiding.

That's a pretty major change.

While Tailmon and her mercenaries scour the city, one Digimon isn't creeping around.

This massive mammoth Digimon, Mammon, goes on a full rampage. Stomping vehicles and smashing whatever's in his path. He picks up a biker's motorcycle with his trunk and hurls it.

Biker: (just sees his bike suddenly soar through the air overhead) MY BIKE!!! Who did that!? (whirls around to see the mammoth) Was it you!? HOW DARE YOU RUIN MY BIKE!?!?

Dude is bizarrely chill with seeing a violent armored mammoth in the streets.

(In fairness, this is Tokyo. It ain't their first rodeo with Godzilla shit.)

His boldness doesn't last, however. When Mammon roars at him, he throws his helmet at it and runs for his life. Mammon swats the helmet back at him, striking him in the back of the head and knocking him over, then stomps over him to continue their rampage.

Biker: (crying) WHO LET THEIR ELEPHANT LOOSE!?!?

Mammon continues his rampage, smashing cars and streetlamps while people watch on in confusion.

Bystander: Why is there an elephant in Hikarigaoka!? Girlfriend: It's probably for a movie or something! Bystander: Oh, very convincingly made. It looks like a real monster.

Happy to report that media has poisoned the survival instincts of people not only in the U.S. but in Japan as well.

Over in the dub, the biker remains audacious as ever.

Biker: (just sees his bike suddenly soar through the air overhead) MY NEW MOTORCYCLE!!! (whirls around to see the mammoth) HEY!!! Respect other people's property, you big walkin' shag carpet! Mammothmon: (roar) (Biker throws helmet and flees; Mammothmon knocks it back, knocks him down, and stomps over him.) Biker: T_T HEY!!! Whoever owns this elephant should know there's a leash law around here!

Meanwhile, both of the other civilians are complete fucking chuckleheads.

Girlfriend: Oh look, honey. A wild elephant on a rampage. Bystander: They must be filming a movie or something.

I support equal rights dipshittery.

While Mammon continues his entirely pointless and confusing rampage, Tailmon is as lost as I am about what he thinks he's accomplishing here.

Tailmon: What is that moron planning to gain by causing all this chaos!? I should not have recruited that Digimon.

Another bystander is forced to flee his car, moments before Mammon steps on and crushes it.

Driver: WHAT THE HELL IS AN ELEPHANT DOING HERE!?!?

And someone finally dials 110, the Japanese emergency number for the police.

Caller: I'm calling the police! (Nothing but static crackles through his phone) Caller: IT WON'T CONNECT!!!

Remember how the sheer presence of Vamdemon and his forces in Hikarigaoka last episode were making phones go haywire? Yeah, have fun dialing out.

Over in the dub, Gatomon has suddenly reversed course and is no longer cheering Mammothmon on.

Gatomon: What's that big-eared freak trying to do? Destroy the DigiDestined with everything else too? We never should have brought that type of Digimon along for this!

This is a little confusing because minutes ago she was like "HAHAHA You can run but you can't hide from Mammothmon." But now, to shore her up with her Japanese counterpart, she's at "Ugh so destructive Mammothmon sucks".

The driver fleeing squishy death takes this opportunity to quip.

Driver: If that's a car, it's got an awful lot of trunk space!

And, since phones going haywire was a plot point that they removed for some reason, the caller has what may or may not be the same problem?

Caller: I'm gonna call the cops! (Nothing but silence) Caller: Augh! My phone's dead!

Meanwhile, despite Tai freaking out earlier, the Chosen Children are non-urgently taking a fun trip down memory lane.

Taichi: I remember this place. I often came here to buy candy and juice! Mimi: I used to come here too! Jou: This sure brings back memories. Yamato: Takeru, you might not remember but we used to play around here a lot. Takeru: I do feel like I know this place. Sora: How long did you live in Hikarigaoka, Koushiro-kun? Koushiro: I don't think I even stayed here for a year. Probably a couple of months. Taichi: That's pretty short. How come? Koushiro: I don't know.

Fortunately, there's one kid among us with a longer memory than the rest.

Jou: Hehe! I can answer that for you! Sora: You can, Jou-senpai? Taichi: But you didn't know Koushiro back then. Jou: Even so, I still have a good idea of what happened. To make a long story short, the reason Koushiro's family moved was because of a terrorist bombing! Sora: A bombing!? Koushiro: There were terrorists? Jou: You guys might not remember this, but there was a terrorist bombing here in Hikarigaoka four years ago. So far as I know, they still haven't found the bomber. My parents said they didn't want to live in such a dangerous place, so we moved to Odaiba. Sora: THAT'S RIGHT!!! It was the same with my family! I do remember them saying something about a bomb! Taichi: Now that you mention it, I do think that's what happened.

A terrorist bombing four years ago whose bomber has never been caught, huh? Here in Hikarigaoka? Interesting....

In the dub, the kids are as chill as in the original. Which is weird given that they're supposed to be running from Myotismon's forces.

Tai: Say, do any of you remember this place? I bought candy here. Mimi: It was my favorite store. Joe: Oh, sure. Mine too! Matt: You probably don't remember this place, T.K., because you were too little, but Mom and Dad used to take us here all the time! T.K.: Maybe some candy will help me remember! Sora: You're awfully quiet, Izzy. Didn't you like living in Highton View Terrace? Izzy: I don't remember. Sora: How long did you live there? Izzy: Just for a little while. About six months. Tai: Wow. Why did your parents move away? Izzy: I don't know.

Very close to the original with no notable changes. Then comes Joe's time to explain the bombing.

Joe: You're kidding! Well, if you don't know then maybe I should tell you why. Sora: What do you mean, Joe? Tai: Yeah, Joe. How could you know why Izzy's parents moved away from here? Did you know them or something? Joe: No, I didn't know Izzy back then but I did see what happened. His whole family packed up and left Highton View Terrace because of a terrorist bombing. Sora: Bombing? Izzy: Did you say terrorist!? Joe: Maybe you don't remember it, but about four years ago, the story was in all the papers. It was one of the worst terrorist attacks of all time. They never found the group responsible for the bombings, so a lot of families got scared thinking it could happen again and moved out. My parents figured it had just become too dangerous to live here anymore so we moved out to Odaiba. Sora: Now that you mention it, I do remember. A lot of my friends moved away after that. Tai: Now I remember. My parents acted scared that whole time.

For lacking the context of the OVA, they do a pretty good job with this one. There's still a couple errors, however. The story doesn't need to be in the papers. The "bombing" happened right outside everyone's balconies. It wasn't just in the neighborhood but out in the street directly between their housing complexes.

Also, they blew up an unoccupied street late at night. Calling it "one of the worst terrorist attacks of all time" is a bit much. Can you feel how pre-9/11 this is? But, of course, the dub team doesn't know any of this context.

It is a little weird that Joe was peeping on Izzy's family departing enough to know it was them, and that Sora only mentions her friends leaving. All of them left. None of them currently live here.

Also, I guess we can say Odaiba but not Hikarigaoka. Maybe they just thought the latter was too complicated of a word.

Suddenly, the kids see cop cars go by.

Mimi: What's going on? Taichi: Could it be Vamdemon!?

A possibility that Tai is much more certain of than Taichi.

Mimi: What's going on? Tai: Where there's trouble, there's Myotismon!

You hear it here, folks. A nerdy vampire Digimon is responsible for all crime in Japan. I was not aware that Dracula was the yakuza Kingpin, but I'll believe it.

The Chosen Children race to the scene to find the trail of destruction Mammon's leaving in their wake.

Taichi: That's one of Vamdemon's Digimon! Koushiro: (already on his laptop) That's Mammon.

Time for the rundown on this destructive dipshit. Mammon is a Perfect-stage Vaccine-type Ancient Beast Digimon. He's from the Nightmare Soldiers line; An evolution for Garurumon and for Hanumon, who won't be seen in the anime until 02.

The name Mammon comes from "mammoth", same as their English name Mammothmon. The dub likely extended it because "mammon" has a different meaning in a society where Christianity is the predominate religion.

Narrator: Mammon. A Perfect-stage Digimon who has enormous ancient power. His special attacks are Tusk Strikes, where he fires his two tusks, and Tundra Breath, which releases a cold blast from his nose.

In the dub, this is quite reasonably handled by Izzy.

Matt: A monster Digimon! Izzy: (already on his laptop) He's called Mammothmon. He's a fully Digivolved Digimon with the strength of a wooly mammoth. He shoots missiles he calls Tusk Crusher and has a chilling attack called Freezing Breath.

Before the kids can do anything, a cop car pulls up.

Officer: All of you! It's dangerous here! Get to shelter!

Inside the car, he futilely tries to use the car radio to request backup but all that comes through is static.

Officer: Hello? Hello? I need urgent backup! Hello!? That's weird....

Mammothmon hears him, turning around and growling.

Taichi: He's seen us! Officer: Hurry and get out of here!

The officer shouts at the kids to get to safety and then speeds off in his mostly empty squad car, abandoning these lost children to their wooly mammoth fate. Fucking ACAB.

No change in the dub, except there's no static feeding back through the radio. It's just dead.

Mammon roars at the kids, and the fighting's on.

Taichi: HE'S COMING FOR US!!!

With admirable enthusiasm, Koromon and Tsunomon leap out of Taichi and Yamato's arms to the front of the group to fight him.

Yamato: DON'T!!! He's Perfect-stage! You two can't fight him. Piyomon: (rushes forward) Let me handle this! Sora: Eh? PIYOMON!?!?

This is the same in the dub, except Matt continues using the terminology "fully Digivolved".

Evolving to Birdramon, Piyomon fires off her Meteor Wing at Mammothmon. The shots land all around him, with one fireball glancing off his tusk and ricocheting into a series of phone booths. Sora gasps in horror, and the camera fixes for a moment on the bombed out phone booths.

Mammothmon slams his tusk into a nearby bus and hurls it at Birdramon. She deftly maneuvers out of the way - lobbing projectiles at flying opponents remains difficult - leaving the bus to crash into the ground and explode. This time it's Koushiro's turn to gawk in horror at the wreckage of the bus.

Birdramon gets in too close. Mammothmon slaps her with his trunk, then follows up while she's stunned with his Tusk Strikes.

A glancing hit to her shoulder sends Birdramon plummeting from the air.

Of note: Mammon doesn't have dialogue in either version. He's another non-speaking beast type of Digimon, and the dub didn't change that this time around. Nonetheless, the dub Mammothmon manages to call his attack when firing "Tusk Crusher".

Sora: BIRDRAMON!!! Takeru: KAIJU!!!

Bit of an odd proclamation from Takeru. Kaiju is one of the more well-known Japanese words these days. Literally meaning "mysterious beast", kaiju are most commonly associated with colossal city-destroying monsters such as those found in the Godzilla brand.

Seeing two Digimon fight like this has stirred a recollection in Takeru.

Takeru: Two kaiju! Taichi: What are you talking about, Takeru? Yamato: That's it! I remember now. A long time ago, Takeru insisted he saw kaiju but Mom scolded him for it.

Over in the dub, T.K. oddly puts the emphasis on the quantity of monsters rather than the fact that there were monsters.

Sora: BIRDRAMON!!! T.K.: There were two! Matt: What!? T.K.: There were two monsters! Tai: What are you talking about, T.K.? Matt: Oh man, now I remember! A long time ago, T.K. was insisting that he saw two monsters and my mom was upset at him for it.

I don't know why we're all emphasizing the number two like this, when it's the monster part that's important

Yamato flashes back on the day Takeru tried to tell their mom about the kaiju.

Takeru: I really did see kaiju! Natsuko: Kaiju don't exist. You were just dreaming. (bitterly, seemingly to herself but audible enough to hear) And whose fault is it that you can't even tell the difference between dreams and reality!? Takeru: ...but....

Okay, that took a turn for harsh. Takeru touched a nerve and I'm genuinely not sure if she's mad at him, at Yamato, or at her husband who she later divorced.

Just a brief glimpse into the broken home these boys come from. Yamato isn't in the room with them, but he is seen lurking behind a door.

The dub dials back Natsuko's hostility.

T.K.: But I really did see monsters, Mommy. Nancy: T.K., there's no such thing as monsters. You were just imagining it. Or maybe it's a dream. T.K.: But Mom, I really saw them! Nancy: Now that's enough! I don't want to hear any more of these crazy stories.

She still refuses to believe him, but she isn't bitterly fuming at an unspecific member of her family. The dub's never been comfortable talking about the divorce.

Yamato: ...that's why I couldn't said anything. Koushiro: When did this happen? Yamato: Around the time of the bombing.

Yamato's line as we return implies that he saw the kaiju too, but was afraid to speak up about it way back when after hearing what came out of their mom's mouth. As if he were afraid that bringing it up might further damage the fabric of their parents' marriage. So he kept quiet and eventually forgot he ever saw it.

All tragic context that, again, the dub doesn't want. So Matt legitimately never saw it.

Matt: I just assumed he imagined the entire thing. Izzy: So when did all this take place? Matt: It was right after the terrorist bombing. Sora: This is where it happened! Joe: Right on this footbridge!

Nonetheless, Sora and Joe are chiming in a bit early to identify this footbridge as the site of the bombing. So early, in fact, that we're still standing at the street corner we talked to the cop from and not on the footbridge.

There we go, a bit of an awkward teleporting cut later and we're on the footbridge for some reason. Birdramon got her second wind and has returned to the fray.

Jou: This is... Where the terrorist bombing happened.

As Jou says this, Taichi flashes back on the OVA, when he stood under this same bridge.

Taichi: This bridge....

The kids sprint downstairs from the bridge they inexplicably teleported to, as more and more they start to remember.

Mimi: This is the same thing that happened back then!

Another ricochet of Meteor Wing off Mammon's hide blows up the bridge, right where they had been before they moved.

Jou: It's exactly the same! A fireball destroyed the bridge! Yamato: No! The one shooting fireballs back then wasn't flying! It was something else! Taichi: You're right! There was a fight between... something and something else!

They're vaguely remembering the OVA battle. Yamato's right; It was Greymon shooting fireballs at Parrotmon. Mass deja vu is a hell of a thing.

In the dub, they talk through Taichi's OVA flashback.

Joe: This is really strange. Does anyone besides me feel like they can remember the night of the bombing? (flashback starts) Others: Yeah! / Uh-huh! / I do! Tai: I feel like I was there but somehow I forgot! Izzy: Gee, that sounds like repressed memory. Tai: WE'VE GOTTA GET OFF THIS BRIDGE!!!

Tai's sudden attack of precognition is as good an explanation as any for why they suddenly fled the bridge they inexplicably climbed up onto in the first place.

Mimi: I'M HAVING DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN!!! (Ricochet of Meteor Wing destroys the bridge) Joe: THIS IS JUST HOW IT HAPPENED!!! Back then, a giant ball of fire destroyed the bridge! Matt: Something is definitely different. I remember the firebreathing monster didn't fly; There had to be another one! Tai: You're right! There were two monsters fighting but they were different than these two!

Again, for having to recap the events of an OVA I'm pretty sure they hadn't seen, they're doing a decent job of making it work. Matt's line is nonetheless janky because. As with the Takeru flashback, Matt seems to be trying to prove a second monster's existence.

While the kids are discussing, Birdramon once again gets in close to try and melee the hulking Perfect. Grabbing his snout with one of her talons and wrestling.

It does not go well.

Sora: BIRDRAMON!!! Birdramon: Sora!

Sora sprints to where her half-frozen firebird partner landed, followed closely behind by Taichi. Her Crest of Love activates when she gets close, super-evolving Birdramon into Garudamon.

(Probably should have led with that. I understand the Digimon are trying to resource-manage. If I evolve, then I can go back to my Child base afterward and then evolve again next fight. But if I super-evolve, I'm basically out of commission for the next couple days. What if someone needs to super-evolve tomorrow and we're all burned out?

We have four Perfect-capable Digimon and right now three of them are burnt out to Baby-stage. As of this super-evolution, we are now defenseless against any future Perfect-stage Digimon until the others recover.

But when the Analyzer says "That dude's a Perfect", we should still probably try to match his level. At the very least, we should get Ikkakumon and Togemon in on this, rather than letting Birdramon try to solo a Perfect. This was a terrible idea.)

Mammon fires off his Tusk Strikes while Garudamon's super-evolving. She throws herself on top of Taichi and Sora, shielding them from the blast.

Taking cover beneath Garudamon's hand, this is the last piece Taichi needs to remember the OVA.

Sora: Garudamon! Taichi V.O.: What I saw back then...

Flashing back, Taichi remembers taking cover with Hikari, shielding her in the same way as Sora, but with a different monster towering over them.

Taichi V.O.: It wasn't a kaiju. The one who saved me back then was... Greymon!? Taichi: That's right! It was Greymon! Yamato: That's it! Koushiro: I'm sure of it. Jou: Yeah!

In the dub:

Tai V.O.: The firebreathing monster I saw... Greymon! It was Greymon and another Digimon! Tai: Sora! It was Greymon! Group: Right! / Greymon!

Garudamon mounts Mammon and giddyups him while Taichi remembers the OVA more clearly.

Taichi: A Koromon came to my house that day. That Koromon turned into Agumon. Then he became Greymon and he fought with another Digimon!

We see a flashback to Greymon and Parrotmon's brawl to give the dub team something to work with, and then Tai takes a crack at it.

Tai: The day Koromon came to my house! And Digivolved into Greymon! He was fighting with a birdlike Digimon! After the fight, they disappeared.

Hitting all the major points.

While they're talking, Garudamon finishes the fight. She hoists Mammon high up into the air and drops him from great height onto his back, then follows up with Shadow Wing. The firebird projectile slams into the defenseless Mammon, killing him. Mammon dissolves into pixel dust.

Once the fight is finished, Garudamon reverts to Pyokomon and falls into Sora's arms.

Taichi: The two disappeared after the fight. Koushiro: That's right. Jou: So that's why it was labeled a terrorist attack. Taichi: So that's why Hikari knew about Koromon. She met him back then. Patamon: She met you? Koromon: It must have been a different Koromon. Though, when I met Taichi for the first time, I did feel as if I've somehow always known him.

Koromon referring to how all the Partner Digimon laid eyes on their Partner Children and instantly knew who they were, way back on File Island.

He is not Hikari's Koromon but there's still some connection to that day in Hikarigaoka.

The dub puts a commercial between Mammothmon's death and this scene. It's a good place to put it, and that means it doesn't feel redundant when Tai mentions the disappearance again so soon after stating it before.

Tai: After the fight that day, Greymon and the other Digimon disappeared. Joe: And the police called the fight a terrorist bombing. Izzy: Exactly! Somehow, the Digimon were involved all along! Tai: That's why my little sister already knew Koromon! Kari met him back on that day! Patamon: You met her? Koromon: It must have been a different Koromon! But I did have a strange feeling when I met Tai that we had met somewhere before....

Close but not quite, Koromon. You'd always known him, but you'd never met him. That will make more sense when the series delves into the lore behind their Partnerships later down the line.

Suddenly, the sound of police sirens in the distance means we need to skedaddle.

Jou: This is bad! They'll ask a ton of questions if they catch us! Koushiro: Yes, they won't let us go easily. Taichi: LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!!!

Like any responsible citizen, the Chosen Children flee the police to avoid being connected to the crimes they, uh, are technically partially responsible for. Birdramon caused a fair chunk of the damage here.

In the dub, this is perfect timing for one of Dub Joe's neurotic breakdowns.

Joe: Listen, it's the cops! They'll ask a ton of questions! They'll blame us for all this! I'm too young to go to the Big House! Matt: STOP IT, JOE, AND START RUNNING!!!

XD That's a good one. It's a mild exaggeration of what he was already saying, in a situation where freaking out is entirely valid. This episode's gotten good mileage out of the Mimi and Joe gags.

Taking shelter in a park, the Chosen Children discuss what they've learned and apply it to their search.

Koushiro: I've been wondering about this for a while. Out of all the children at camp, why were we the only ones chosen? But now we've found a clue to solving that mystery. Mimi: The incident four years ago. Koushiro: Yes. All of us are linked by the fact that we already encountered Digimon four years ago. Yamato: Then it must be the same for the Eighth Child! Koushiro: There's no doubt about it! The Eighth Child, too, would have witnessed that event! Jou: What if Vamdemon's already found them!? If the Eighth Child saw the incident, then they should be in Hikarigaoka, right? Mochimon: That's not true. Since Mammon was wandering around this area alone, the others must still be scattered about and searching for the Eighth Child! Taichi: We're going to find them first. The Eighth Child. One of our nakama!

Nobody's bringing up the obvious suspect but it's nonetheless a huge step for their investigation.

In the dub:

Izzy: You know, I always thought it was kinda strange that out of all the kids at camp, we were the only ones chosen to go to the Digi-World. And I knew it couldn't just be coincidence. Somehow, we were all connected by some common event. Today, I discovered what that event was. Mimi: We all took French in school? Izzy: No, four years ago we were all living at Highton View Terrace at the same time and all of us saw those two Digimon fight. Matt: Then the Eighth DigiDestined saw the Digimon too! Izzy: Right! So the person who's the Eighth DigiDestined had to have been there as well! Joe: What if Myotismon found the kid already!? I mean, he's been searching the city all day. And if the child lived here four years ago, maybe it's still here! Motimon: I don't think so! Mammothmon wouldn't be making all this commotion if they had already found the Eighth DigiDestined child. Myotismon is still searching; I'd say the child is still out there or maybe he moved like you guys! Tai: We'll find him! Before Myotismon! The Eighth DigiDestined... He might be someone we know!

Tai lays it on a little thick there at the end. And we have a Mimi gag that I'm going to put in the "harmless" category. I don't like it, but I don't dislike it either.

The episode closes on Taichi's renewed resolve to find the Eighth Child before Vamdemon.

Assessment: Man, this is a major lore episode. But also kind of a retread. The benefit of the dub is that for an English audience, this is all genuinely new information. For the Japanese audience, we're finally seeing the Chosen Children learn things that we've known since the OVA. This episode is for the characters to play catch-up.

Mammon is something of a nothing antagonist, here just to give the episode some conflict and spark the revelatory parallels to Parrotmon and Greymon. Even Tailmon is like, "Why is this guy even here?" which was hilarious.

A few errors on the dub's part but this is one of their better eps. They manage to hit most of the major beats successfully and there's a lot of charm in their presentation.

There's still some things that get missed such as the tension in Yamato and Takeru's childhood home or that weird moment when the dub thought the kids were fleeing Myotismon's bats. But they're few, and there's a lot of good to be found here too.