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amazingmsme · 4 months ago

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Come Out, Come Out

AN: happy digital circus release day! I couldn’t believe it when they announced the new episode date & it lined up with my first tadc fic! I had a harder time with this one ngl, so I focused most of my efforts describing the candy landscape lmao. Regardless, I still hope you enjoy! Here’s day 4!

Pomni had never expected to see Gummigoo again, especially not so soon. She tried to hide her excitement when Caine mentioned that today's adventure would take place in the Candy Canyon Kingdom, but she was uncharacteristically cheerful and excited.

So much as to vanish immediately upon their arrival.

It wasn't their first time back, and Pomni had since reunited with her friend, and was eager to catch up. And even though the other circus members were growing on her, she'd rather spend some quality time with Gummigoo...without them.

It didn't take her long before she ran into him. She filled him in on her adventures since she last saw him, and in turn, he told her about everything that's happened to him in the meantime.

As he talked, Pomni reached down and grabbed a handful of dirt, taking a dry, crumbly bite.

"What're ya doin' mate? Spit that out, it's trash."

"What? Everything's candy! It tastes like an orange pixie stick!"

"An orange what now?"

"It's a type of candy where I come from," she explained.

"Yeah, well there's better candy," he teased, chuckling when she shoved him.

"Hey! It's good!"

"Could be better. C'mon," he stood and brushed himself off, walking away. She jumped up, following behind.

"Where are we going?"

"To find you some real candy."

"Wha- this is real candy!"

"Well then, I'm showin' you where to find the really good stuff," he smirked, glancing at her from over his shoulder to make sure she was keeping up.

He lead her to a large candy rock mountain, coated in a rich chocolate with mint garnish acting as natural foliage. The dirt here was a dark cookie crumble, with larger pebbles that made it easier to lose your footing. Pomni watched her step as they continued their ascent, and Gummigoo caught her when she nearly slipped in a chocolaty mud puddle. The higher they climbed, bright colored crystals stuck out from beneath the sweetened earth. Pomni paused to catch her breath and allowed herself to take in her surroundings.

"Whoa... it's beautiful up here," she said, staring out at the view from the mountain. Tall licorice trees spotted the countryside, and in the distance, she could see a herd of gummy deer hopping through a meadow of cotton candy. In a nearby mint shrub, a small chocolate bunny nibbled on a leaf, twitching its ears in her direction.

"Sure is. I like to come up here to get away sometimes. That's when I discovered this," he said, leading her down a narrow rocky path to a cave opening. "Go ahead, look inside."

Pomni did as she was told and peaked her head inside the cave. She let out a quiet gasp, her pinwheel eyes growing huge at the dazzling sight.

Inside the cave were large candy rock crystals of all colors and sizes. Rays of light filtered in through the mouth of the cave, bouncing off the crystals to create a truly radiant display. She took a step inside to get a better look, and notices a light pink liquid trickling down the rocks and dripping from the ceiling.

"It's pink lemonade. Go on, try it," he said, walking up from behind. He cupped his hands beneath where it was dripping at took a drink. She did the same, sipping slowly.

"I think that's the best lemonade I've ever tasted!" she exclaimed. She stuck her head beneath where it was dripping and opened her mouth, catching the drops as they rained down.

Gummigoo chuckled and did the same, "Ain't it though? Always best when it comes straight from the source."

"I'll say," Pomni agreed, wiping her mouth when it began to run down her chin. "So what other secrets have you been hiding?" she teased.

"Don't know whatcha mean, I'm an open book. But, that reminds me! This place is perfect for hide an' seek."

"Really?" she asked curiously, grabbing a chunk of candy crystal off a larger rock. She took a loud, crunchy bite.

"Oh yeah, it can get pretty boring sometimes. It's actually pretty fun, and not as easy as you'd expect," he explained. Now Pomni was intrigued.

"It sounds like fun! Would you wanna play?" she asked sheepishly.

"Sure thing, I'm always up for a round of hide an' seek! Since it's your first time here, I'll let you hide first. Y'know, let yourself get acquainted with the cave," he joked. She giggled along, rolling her eyes.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means have fun an' get to hiding! Or I'll getcha!" he playfully threatened, holding his hands up in menacing claws. She yelped and took off running deeper into the cave. She wasn't sure what he meant by that, but she wasn't going to stick around to find out.

Pomni ran further into the cave as Gummigoo covered his eyes and began counting. She noticed a few decent hiding spots along the way, but she continued looking until she found one that seemed suitable. She finally his in a large crevice behind a thick, blue crystal. She pulled off a chunk and took a lick.

Cotton candy. One of her favorite flavors.

She stuffed the candy in her mouth, quietly sucking on it instead of chewing. Finally, she heard him call out, "Ready or not, here I come!"

She tucked herself further into the hole, her vision warping behind the large crystal. She could hear his voice echo off the cave walls, his steps getting closer.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are," he cupped his hands to help throw his voice down the crystal tunnel. He didn't expect an answer, but he wanted her to know he was coming. It was all part of the game after all.

As he came around the corner, he saw the bright colors of Pomni's costume reflecting off the crystals and followed them like arrows leading the way. He came up behind, jumping out from behind the rock and grabbing her by the arm, yanking her from her hiding spot.

"Gotcha!"

Pomni screamed in shock, the sound morphing into a giggly squeal when Gummigoo began squeezing her sides.

"Gummigoo! W-whahat are you dohohoing?" she asked as she tried to wrestle his hand away.

"What, didn't I tell ya what happens when you lose?" The tone in his voice indicated he knew that he didn't tell her, and was just rubbing it in. She gasped when his hands traveled up to her ribs, biting her lip to contain her laughter. It was a moot effort, really, especially when she tried to answer.

"Nohoho, you dihidn't!" she argued lightheartedly.

"Really? Must've slipped my mind," he taunted with an amused chuckle of his own. He squeezed and poked at her belly, enjoying the steady laughter and occasional snort.

"L-liar!" she managed to choke out before falling victim to a giggle fit.

"Well that's not very nice," he mused, notably not denying it. Instead, he continued to scribble over her soft tummy, evading her efforts to stop him.

"Okahay ohohokay, stohohop!" she pleaded, and he stopped as soon as she asked. She caught her breath, shooting him a mock glare.

"Thahat was mean," she said, playfully punching his shoulder. He flicked one of the jingle bells dangling from her hat in retaliation.

"That was just part of the game," he teased, shooting her a wink. She rolled her eyes, a smirk tugging at her lips.

"In that case, it's your turn to hide," she said, poking his chest to emphasize her point. He let out a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Well-" he started to protest, but stopped himself, letting out a defeated sigh. "Yeah, I guess that's fair."

She smiled and covered her eyes as she started to count.

#tickletober 2024 #tickletober #pomni #gummigoo #the amazing digital circus #tadc #tadc fic #tadc tickle fic #tadc tickles #ticklish!pomni

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bubblebear4life · 5 days ago

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A/N: Hmmmmmmmmmmm surprise fanfic ^w^

Infected With Giggle bugs

Caine is being a menace, and Pomni needs to get the truth about this silly behavior.

The tent was surprisingly peaceful today, or as peaceful as it can be inside The Amazing Digital Circus. The humans were off enjoying their own activities after yet another adventure filled with slime. Yes, slime. They'll never understand why Caine incorporates so much slime into their adventures.

One such member hums happily, snuggling deeper into the plush couch she was reading on in the lounge area. It's not often Pomni gets to actually relax from all the chaos that consumes her daily digital life. She takes a deep breath, enjoying the momentary silence.

A quick poke to her side caused the breath she was taking to catch in her throat. The jester turned to where the poke had come from, but she saw nothing there. She looks around, hesitating before returning to her book. Maybe she imagined it?

Suddenly, she felt a poke on her other side, causing her to jump and let out a small squeak. This time, Pomni heard what seemed like faint giggling coming from her right. However, when she turned to confront the source of the sound, she found she was still alone.

Pomni shook her head, the bells on her hat ringing along with the motion. "H-hello?" She called out, her anxiety beginning to put her on edge. What if it was a rouge NPC? Or Jax. The thought of Jax playing a prank on her made her groan.

Until that groan was replaced by another squeak and a slight giggle of her own when she felt a poke in her left side. Seriously, what is going on!? Pomni frantically searched the lounge for the culprit, but she couldn't find a living soul.

Pomni tapped her foot in concentration. Since whoever was messing with her didn't want to reveal themselves, she would have to force her hand. A rare smirk appeared on the usually jittery jester's face as she planned her trap.

The small girl shrugged, pretending that she thought it was nothing. She picked up her discarded book and returned to her spot on the couch. Although she appeared to be reading again, she was actually waiting for the culprit to strike once more.

And strike they did.

First, Pomni heard muffled giggling. She continued to act as though she hadn't noticed it. Then, from the corner of her eye, she spotted a familiar pair of dentures with large, floating eyes peeking out from beside the arm of the couch.

When she saw Caine's hand reach out to poke her right side, Pomni dropped her book and grabbed his hand, exclaiming, "AH HA!"

Caine gulped, knowing he was caught red-handed. How did he plan to escape his fate?

With the truth, of course!

"Why, hello, P-Pomni! Uh- wh-what brings y-y-you... here?" (Caine. Honey. That isn't the truth -_-') Caine chuckles making his teeth chatter with nervous energy. He taps the couch with his free hand, trying to seem casual.

Pomni saw right through him and got straight to the point. "Were you the one poking me?" She asked, leveling him with a skeptical stare.

"Me? Poke you? Now, why would I ever do that!?" Caine proclaimed, having the nerve to act offended.

He didn't plan to back down, huh.

Pomni huffed. It's obvious the AI is lying. The Ringmaster's expressive cartoonish eyes told everything as they flickered from side to side, looking anywhere but at her. "Caine. I'm going to give you one more chance to tell the truth."

"I've given you the truth, my dear!"

Caine had his chance. She'll have to get the truth the hard way.

Pomni tsked in disappointment, a rare feeling of playfulness and mischief overtaking her. She took Caine's other hand and pulled him over the side of the couch and into her lap.

The Ringmaster lets out a surprised yelp, staring at Pomni in bewilderment. "Wh- Pomni!"

Pomni didn't give him much of a chance to react before she formed her hands into claws and began tickling his sides. What was that, Caine? I couldn't understand you!"

Caine was completely taken aback by the timid jesters' behavior. And she's teasing him! Has the digital world gone insane!?

Nope. It was just Caine who was going insane from the tickling, causing tingling feelings all throughout his code, making him giggle. "Not the tickles! Not the tickles!" He cried out between hiccups, kicking his legs and lightly pushing at her hands.

He didn't want to accidentally hurt her- That's why he barely fought back. (Caine, you're lying again.)

"Wow, Caine. It seems you're infected with the Giggle Bugs!" Pomni giggled along with the AI, enjoying the silliness of the situation. Caine's crazy energy must have rubbed off on her from their time spent together. She has become fond of the Ringmaster over the past few... however long it has been. He tried. He really tried to understand and make friends with the circus members. Pomni couldn't stay mad at his goofy face for long. "Are you ready to tell the truth?" She asked, squeezing up where his ribs would be.

"Yes! It was me! I surrender!" Caine exclaimed loudly, admitting to his guilt. He snorted at the squeezing causing his jaws to turn a deep tomato red.

Pomni giggled some more, cooing softly at the adorable sight. "Alright. I think you've learned your lesson." She immediately stops the tickling, now simply holding him in her lap.

Caine pouts once he calmed down, closing his mouth and facing away from her. "Meanie," he mumbles.

Pomni smiles softly, patting his top jaw knowing he didn't mean that.

She knew he had fun.

#roman writes things #here's some food ya darn hooligans #lol #the amazing digital circus caine #the amazing digital circus pomni #the amazing digital circus #tadc fanfiction #tadc fanfic #tadc caine #tadc #tadc pomni #tadc tickles #tadc fluff #infected with giggle bugs #ticklish!caine

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thescarletnargacuga · 1 month ago

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Oh, hello! My first ask on this site, so I don't really know how to do this. My apologies ^^". Harlequin au has literally been eating my brain for weeks now! I've been reading your writing, and it's so inspiring! I hope to reach that level of writing someday. Anyway, I wanted to ask; we've already had Pomni protecting her little bean with teeth and nails, but what about Caine? I think it would be so interesting to see Caine in action, whether to protect Pomni or Cade, or both! (And English is not my first language; sorry for any grammar error.)

A/N: all I can say is practice! And read. The writing style of other authors will inspire your own, and don't be afraid to take constructive criticism

A/N: on to the request! How about protecting Cade and Anya?

THE DRAGON'S ROAR

A HARLEQUIN AU ONESHOT

WARNING: distress, family dispute

~~~

Deep in the heart of the City of Circuits, the occupation of sentient puppets was bustling with activity. Construction, trading, and just general life was being lived in the newly repurposed city. Amongst the milling crowd were two smaller puppets, no more than five feet tall each, running and weaving through an active construction site.

Cade ran up a stack of bricks to swing from a beam of wood being hoisted by a mechanized crane. He trapezed himself over the heads of some of the workers and dropped to the other side. Landing in a ruck and roll, he kept running. "Come on, slow poke! You'll never catch me at that pace!"

A few seconds behind Cade, Anya ran around all the obstacles. Taking the long way through the construction zone, she weaves her way through the workers. "Pardon me, excuse me, very sorry. WAIT FOR ME!" She calls after her half brother.

Cade parkours his way to the top of a stack of crates and sits like he's been there for hours as his sister catches her breath when she finally catches up. "I'm telling you, Anya, you aren't taking full advantage of these new bodies. We're TEENS now! We can run faster, jump higher, and actually fight now!"

"You've had one lesson." Anya rolled her eyes and adjusted her teddy bear in her small cross body bag. She had to make sure he could see out. "That hardly makes anyone a warrior."

"Maybe not yet, but it does get you THIS!" Cade unsheathed his wooden training sword. "You don't need to cut something to make a strike hurt! Ha!" He stood on the pile of crates and swung his sword in a practiced figure eight. However, his motions made the stack away and he lost his footing.

Anya grimaced as she watched her brother fall with the crates. She checked on him when the dust cleared. "You alright?"

Cade kicked a broken half of a crate of his leg. "Yeah. I meant to do that, by the way."

"Suuuuure." Anya offered her hand to help him up.

Cade swatted away her hand and got up before his pride was further damaged. "Whatever. You need to hurry up and get training too. There's still a lot of marionettes on the loose."

"I am training. Mom is teaching me the art of artifact reading and the science of soul magic. You'd benefit from a lesson or two."

"Ugh, you know I don't do books. They're boring." Cade walked with her beyond the busier central hub of downtown. The crowds thinned the further out they wandered.

"There's power in knowledge. More than any blade." Anya lifted her skirt before she jumped over a large puddle.

"Ragatha teach you that too?" Cade idly dragged his training sword along a ruined wall.

"Of course. The world has many things to teach us. There's more to know than physical prowess-"

Cade yawned obnoxiously loud. "Uh-huh. I know. Souls. Ooooh. Magical. Mom barely uses any soul magic and she overcame every obstacle in her way. I'd argue the sword is mightier than the soul."

"But Caine-"

"Don't get me started. Dad talks a big game but all he does is teleport around like an unpredictable jackrabbit. I've never seen him do anything actually impressive."

"Cade, it's been a time of peace since before we were born. He hasn't had to use his powers. He was the first sentient puppet, he saw the human-puppet war, he saw the creation of the marionettes. That doesn't garner respect?" Anya clasped both of her hands on her bag strap.

Cade thought a bit longer before answering. "Sure...It's just, he doesn't do anything but work with the council and builds. Does that even require soul magic?"

Anya shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe. He builds things super fast. Like magic." She emphasized the last word with a smirk.

"Funny." Cade deadpanned. "Just wait until- what was that?" Cade stopped, sword held high. There was shuffling from the ruins to their right. "Who goes there!?"

A rat sprang from the debris and scurried away, causing Cade and Anya to jump. "Ha! Just a stupid rodent. Come on, let's catch it." Cade ran off after the rat.

"Wait! Cade! We shouldn't go too far out!" She called after her half brother, but he was already far ahead. Not wanting to be alone, she ran after him. "Wait for me!"

The rat race became another game of keep-up. The young puppets zig zagged through the maze-like ruins of the outskirts. The bustling and booming construction of the inner city grew faint.

The rat ran under a massive debris pile of an old mansion, shaking its pursuers. Cade hit his wooden award against the debris. "Dang it! Lost him! Oh well....ooo! Look at the size of this house!"

Anya came huffing up to Cade, "Why...do you...always...go so...fast? Where are we?"

Cade scoffed, "No idea, but check this out! It's almost as big as our house!" He climbed the partially collapsed west wing to the exposed broken staircase in the center of the mansion. "I think It would make a nice upgrade as a clubhouse, wouldn't you agree?"

Anya looked around tentatively, "I don't know... We're pretty far out from city center. I don't know if even the patrols go out this way. This is dangerous, Cade. We should head back."

"Danger? I laugh at danger! HAHAHAHA!" Cade exaggerated a defiant laugh.

Maniacal mechanical cackles echoed around them. Anya froze in place, petrified by the sudden realization that they weren't alone. Cade slid off the debris pile quickly, rushing to Anya's side. He had his sword drawn, held with both hands.

From the shadows came more laughter, broken and screeching. A tall, hunched, digitigrade figure lumbered into view. Then another. And another.

Six dog-headed, bipedal marionettes with blazing red eyes encircled the teens. The mechanical whistling and whirring from their bodies sounded like horrific cackling laughter.

Cade's soul shuddered in his chest. There were so many and they looked strong despite their rusted and withered frames. He spotted a weak support beam barely holding the second floor up over two of the marionettes. He grabbed a stone and chucked it at the beam. "RUN!"

The stone broke into the beam and brought down the second floor. The flying dust gave Cade and Anya an opening to escape between the confounded machines. Cade held Anya's hand, practically dragging her with him through narrow alleyways.

The half dozen marionettes dropped to all fours and ran after the fleeing prey. Three jumped to the roofs of rowed building and three stayed on the ground.

The mechanical barking and cackling of the marionettes made them feel only a step behind. Twisting and turning through the city, the teens met a dead end.

"Come on!" Cade climbed the broken wall and turned to help Anya up. To his horror, Anya's bag was grabbed by one of the marionettes and was dragging her back down. "No!" He threw himself at the marionette, bringing his hard wood sword down on its half broken head.

The marionette staggered and let go of Anya. She was in tears fiercely climbing away from the mechanized monster. Cade kicked away from the marionette he attacked and jumped to the other side of the wall with Anya.

They didn't even have a second to catch their breath. The marionettes clawed over the wall and snapped at the puppets. Anya grabbed her teddy out of her bag as she ran and squeezed its little hand three times.

The marionettes were closing in. Gnashing, cackling maws open wide, hungry for D.I.Es. One marionette pounced at the puppets. Cade caught it out of the corner of his eye and shoved Anya away. Its claws caught his leg and he stumbled. The young puppet was easily pinned, but he managed to keep his sword between himself and the marionette jaws. "RUN, ANYA!"

Anya crawled under an old iron cart that kept the marionettes at bay. Clawed hands reached for her as she squeezed the teddy bear's hand over and over and over. She couldn't watch Cade struggle against the marionette. She buried her face against the bear, screaming.

The clouds overhead darkened rapidly. Blue charge ran along the sky and gathered at a single point before striking the ground. In an explosion of blue light, all six marionettes jittered and shook in place. Their circuits fried and their fluid lines split open, leaking thick red fluid down their bodies.

The cackling stops. The machines fall to the ground, completely deactivated and smoking. Cade shoves off the marionette that was on top of him. Anya looked up to see Caine standing stoically amongst the carnage, not a speck of dust on his coat.

Anya runs to Caine and embraces him. "Thank you! Thank you!" She cries, black tears streaking down her cheeks.

Caine hugs her back, holding her until she was ready to let go. He looks up to see Cade wiping red fluid off his training sword. "Are you alright?"

"We're fine. We had it handled." Cade said coldly, kicking a marionette's head.

"You're not supposed to be out this far." Caine said firmly. "You're not ready to-"

"I just-!" Cade tried to start.

"You deliberately disobeyed me, and what's worse, you put Anya in danger!" Blue static rippled down Caine's body, his eyes flashing dangerously. "We are going home." He held Anya's hand and grabbed Cade's arm before blinking to the manor.

Upon arrival, Cade jerked his arm away and he marched to the training ground set up for him in the courtyard. He didn't look back.

Caine put a comforting hand on Anya's trembling shoulder. He was about to escort he inside when Ragatha came flying out the front door. "Oh my god, Anya! Baby, are you okay?? Caine rushed off in a hurry when you activated your beacon. What happened?"

Ragatha looked to Caine for answers, but he was focused on the direction of the training grounds. "Please, excuse me." Caine walked away, leaving Anya with her mother.

Cade was swinging his sword wildly at a dummy. He shouted his frustration with every swing.

"You know, enemies are typically easier to defeat when you don't announce the fact that you're attacking."

Cade swung around, pointing his sword at his father's throat. Caine didn't flinch. Cade glared at his father, breathing heavily. "Here to yell at me some more?"

"No. Your leg is still bleeding."

Cade looked down. His pant leg was torn open and there was a nasty gash down the back of his calf. Black blood seeped out slowly. "It-...it doesn't hurt. I'm fine." He grumbled and turned away to swing at the dummy some more.

"Why were you out that far, Cade?"

Cade scoffed, "Oh, now you care about why. It doesn't matter."

"You have very little combat training. Anya has none." Caine kept his tone even, but there was an underlying aura of anger. "Being out that far was reckless and stupid."

Cade swung his sword so hard, he decapitated the dummy. "You think I don't know that!? We were just having fun! Going on an adventure! As mom would say, shit happens!"

Caine bristled. "Your mother is also exceptionally experienced in reckless behavior, but she also does everything in her power to keep those around her safe. You want to put yourself in harm's way, that's one thing, but to endanger Anya like that-"

"IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!! I WOULD NEVER INTENTIONALLY ENDANGER HER!!" Cad got in Caine's face, enraged. "I WOULD HAVE FOUGHT THOSE THINGS TO THE DEATH FOR HER!! They were ambushed, we ran, you saved the day. Congra-fuck you-lations. You're the hero. Is that what you wanted to hear? An ego stroke?"

Caine and Cade stared each other down. Both silent in their rage. Until Caine swept Cade off his feet in the blink of an eye. Cade dropped his sword and Caine held Cade down with the end of his cane. Blue static pulsed through the cane and into Cade's body, mildly stunning him.

Caine's voice struggled to hide his anger. "There's a lot about this world you don't understand. Training takes time. You want adventure? You want to be the hero? Lesson one: be patient. Ambition left untempered leads to self-destruction." Caine lifted his cane and walked away. For the first time in a long time, he needed a drink.

Cade sat up, glaring after his dad. As he got up, he noticed his leg didn't ache. He looked to see the gash was gone, his leg repaired seamlessly. His face relaxed some. Silently, he picked up his sword and practiced the readied stances his mother taught him.

#the amazing digital circus #tadc #tadc caine #tadc fanfiction #tadc au #the marvelous mechanical harlequin au #tadc harlequin au #harlequin au #harlequin #harlequin cade #harlequin anya

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dragon-creates · 1 year ago

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Five Times Jax and Pomni Share Dreams of Their Past Lives (And One Time Where They Remember)

Read on AO3

Read Part 2 Here

1/2/3/4/5/6

Jax and Pomni know that they can’t actually dream in this digital world, nor can they remember who they were before coming here. But after retiring to their sleeping quarters each night, they begin to have dreams of people who they have never seen before, not the circus themed cast of characters within this realm, but real people! Why do they seem do real? Why do these dreams feel more like memories? And why do these people remind them so much of each other?

I can't believe how much the silly circus show won me over, and how much brainrot these two have given me. I won't update for I while as I have other wips for different fandoms I'm working on but I wanted to get the first chapter up to help motivate me. Anyways I hope you like this and check out the rest of my tumblr to see what I get up to.

Also yes the chapter titles are Taylor Swift songs because I'm weak.

Fearless

The air was crisp and cool, though not to the point where people were shivering in their costumes, neon lights were in every corner anyone could see, flashing the paths with pinks, purples and green, different stalls and rides were up, ranging from candy apples and sweets stand to rollercoasters and Ferris wheels and every single person were dressed as either monsters, characters or whatever their imaginations would come up with. Truly, the festival had set the perfect atmosphere for Halloween…well, everyone except for Penny.

She was a short young woman, 23 years of age with long dark hair that reached her waste and curtain bangs along her forehead, with pale skin and a bony structure (she hated that part about herself).

It wasn’t that she was forced to come here – she had heartily accepted when her sister Riley and her girlfriend Winter asked – but now that she was here, she wasn’t so sure anymore. Penny wasn’t really the bravest person around, she flinched at the slightest sound, she dreaded talking to new people who would come her way and had relied on her older sister to help her out for most of her life, but that didn’t mean that she wasn’t trying to overcome any of it. After all it wasn’t like she could control her anxiety, it was something she struggled with ever since she was little. But tonight, she wanted to prove that she was able to enjoy Halloween outside the comfort of handing out candy to trick-or-treaters from the safety of her home. So far, she really did like it, she had fun buying sweets and going on rollercoasters, and though it could be overbearing and loud sometimes, Riley and Winter would take her to a nearby café to help Penny catch her breath before doing something else.

However, this was part of the night that she both desperately wanted and dreaded doing…the haunted funhouse. She knew what was in there, jump scares, clowns and nightmares to last for the next few nights to come, but she didn’t want to miss out, now when she heard about how much fun people have had in there. She just wanted to prove that she wasn’t this scared little nobody, that she was a person who wanted to have fun like everyone else, to enjoy the things that everyone else had fun with. So here she was, dressed in a hastily sewn purple rabbit onesie of her own making (she had made it in a time crunch when learning about the festival) into a terrifying funhouse that deep down, where she wasn’t lying to herself, she did not want to go in.

“Penny no,” she turned to see Riley, holding Winter’s hand as the other girl was texting someone on her phone, “You know what your anxiety’s like, you don’t have to go in there.”

Riley had quite a lean build with noticeable muscle on her arms, she had shoulder length dark red hair, brown eyes and pale skin. She was four years older than Penny, and while she did seem a bit intimidating, she was always soft and protective over her younger sister.

“He’s still not answering,” Winter murmured, shaking her head, “He was supposed to meet us an hour ago.” Winter was slightly taller than Riley, with dark black hair and eyes with a tanned complexion. The two women were dressed in a couple’s costume, Riley as Poison Ivy and Winter as Harley Quinn, they were also supposed to meet with Winter’s friend, but the mystery person still hadn’t shown up yet.

“Maybe he’ll show up while I’m in the funhouse?” Penny suggested as Riley sighed, “I’ll be quick in there, if I run then I’ll have less time to acknowledge the bad stuff in there!”

“Penny, I know you and I know that if you go in there, you’re gonna have a panic attack,” Riley took her little sister’s hand, offering her a pleading gaze, “Please just stay out here with us and we’ll meet up with Winter’s friend. We could go on the rollercoaster again; I know you really enjoyed that one.”

Penny smiled fainty, Riley looking out for her wasn’t anything new, but she didn’t want her sister to be burdened with her. It wasn’t right, Riley deserved to live her life, have fun with Winter and not worry about her scaredy-cat sister all the time, she deserved better than that.

When Riley turned to face Winter again, Penny pulled her hand out of her sister’s and ran into the funhouse, ignoring Riley calling her name the deeper she went in.

She took a few more deep breaths, she was doing! She was doing it and oh…oh she fucked up. There were multiple paintings of disfigured clowns peering down at her from the halls, the eerie sounds of deranged crying and laughing made her hairs stand on end, there were paths twisting and turning as they reminded her that she could get lost in this dreadful house and mirrors that not only showed her in different shapes and sizes, but also her terrified expression. Riley was right, this was too much for her, she didn’t even want to come in here in the first place why did she do this?!

A crazed laugh made her jump, looking carefully over her shoulder, she noticed a tall jester from down the hall, his yellow suit stained with red, and his mask had a twisted smile, hiding dark secrets that she didn’t want to find out. With a scream, she tore off down the hall, the jester chasing after her. She knew that were going to be actors, trained with scaring the guests, but it didn’t mean that she liked it! She really, really shouldn’t have come in here.

She skidded to a stop when she came to a dead end, her back pressing to the wall as the jester came closer and closer to her. She bit back a fearful yelp as he slammed a hand next to her head, peering down at her. She took a few more breaths, trying to keep calm. This isn’t real, this isn’t real, this isn’t real repeating the mantra in her head to help herself from screaming out…before fainting right into the jester’s arms.

“You have some nerve scaring her like that?! Aren’t you supposed to be trained with scenarios like this?!”

Penny groaned at the sound of a loud and angered voice, it sounded like it belonged to a woman and seemed very familiar.

“I am trained for your information!” A male voice retaliated, “I didn’t know she was going to faint!”

“Okay, Riley calm down, Jack be nice!” Another female voice entered the conversation, sharper and more direct than the other two, “What happened right now was an accident, we just need to wait and see if Penny wakes up before we call an ambulance, that was the procedure right Jack?”

“Yeah, yeah,” the male voice was quiet now, “I’m sorry again Winter, I genuinely didn’t know.”

Penny opened her eyes, squinting at the light as she sat up on what seemed to be a mattress. “Oh good you’re awake,” there was a woman she had never seen before beside her, wearing a white hoodie with a red cross on it, “My name is Lianne, I’m a paramedic for the funhouse in case something like this happens.”

“Penny! Oh thank God!” Riley rushed over to her, wrapping her arms around her younger sister and pressed a kiss at the side of her head, “You gave me a heart attack going into that house, and then hearing that you fainted?! Don’t ever do that again!”

Oh that’s right, she fainted, that explained why Riley sounded so angry when she woke up. God help which soul she was speaking to that suffered her wrath. “I’m okay Riley, you were right I shouldn’t have gone in,” Penny sighed, “I’m just tired of not being normal so I wanted to prove-”

“-You don’t have to prove shit,” Riley interrupted, “And you are normal, who the fuck made you think you had to go into a haunted house to prove that you’re a ‘normal person’?”

“Uh…myself?” Penny smiled awkwardly.

Riley shook her head and smiled, it was good to see that she wasn’t actually mad, just really worried, but to be fair worse had happened to Penny to make her sister go into ‘overprotective mode’. “Just don’t push yourself too hard again, okay?” she asked. Penny nodded again, Riley smiled one last time before her eyes furrowed and she turned away to face someone else, “And as for you!”

Penny looked up to see how her sister was talking to when her cheeks suddenly turned red from embarrassment. It was the jester from earlier! He was quite a tall man, with golden brown skin and eyes, with his hair in short dreads pulled up into a ponytail. His face with mixed with both frustration and shame, it wasn’t helping with Riley shouting at him.

“Don’t think you’re off the hook for scaring my little sister!” Riley growled, “I can’t believe you made her faint!”

“How did I make her faint?!” he retorted, “I’ve never had a reaction like hers before I didn’t know she was that scared!”

“That is enough!” Winter stepped in, grabbing them both painfully by the ear for a few seconds and then let them go, “Riley, go outside so I can talk with you, and Jack please apologize to Penny.”

Jack signed, turning to Penny as the girl flushed even more, she still couldn’t believe she fainted in front of him! “I’m sorry,” he said honestly.

“This is the friend I was taking about,” said Winter, “We were supposed to meet up, but he got called in since someone cancelled their shift last minute, but someone forgot to text us!”

“What are you taking about?” He reached into his pocket for his phone, “I sent you message before my…oh…I forgot to actually send it.”

Penny snorted, she tried to hold it in, but she burst out laughing instead, she couldn’t help it, the absurdity of the situation was just too much. She was so caught up in laughing that she didn’t catch the soft smile that Jack had at her reaction.

“Jesus Christ Jack,” Winter rubbed her temples, “What am I gonna do with you?”

“I have a few ideas,” Riley glared at him.

“Okay, you!” She grabbed Riley’s hand, “Come with me, Jack, keep Penny company while I have a chat with my girlfriend.”

“What?!” Penny and Jack said in unison, but Winter had already slammed the door.

“I should, um,” They whipped round to see that the paramedic was still here, having witnessed the entire interaction, “I should go tell my boss that there’s no need to call an ambulance.”

With that, she rushed out the door, leaving the two to stew awkwardly with one another. Penny’s rapidly beating heart wasn’t helping either, she really didn’t want to have another fainting episode again. It didn’t help that this Jack guy was really handsome. Huh? Why did I think that?

“So…” she spoke up, gulping as Jack turned to her, his eyes focused as though he were studying her, like a bug being examined, “What’s the jester like life? I mean! What's the jester life like?! Not the other one, forget about that. In fact don’t talk to me at all! Or do! Don’t let me tell you what to do, I mean, you’re not the one spouting out word vomit!” Jack raised an eyebrow at her, Penny shoved her reddening face into her hands.

It was then Jack’s turn to start laughing, messy chortles escaping his mouth at her bizarre sentence, leading Penny to pout at his reaction. “Sorry toots,” the laughter died down once he saw he face, “I thought you were funny, didn’t mean to offend you. And to answer your question, the jester life is pretty good.”

“You think I’m funny?” she asked. It wasn’t the first time someone laughed at her, but not because they found her humorous.

“Yeah, not everyone can ‘spout word vomit’ and make it cute,” he told her.

Penny blushed. Okay, first he found her funny and now he found her cute, she really hoped he couldn’t hear how loud and fast her heart was beating. “Um, sorry for fainting on you,” she murmured, “Surprisingly it was not the lowest moment of my life.”

“You’re sorry for fainting?” He raised a brow at her again.

“Well it led to my sister yelling out you,” she told him, “I’m sorry about that as well, Riley can get pretty overprotective over me or our mom.”

“Yeah, Winter warned me about that,” he replied, remembering the way he tried to not tremble at her fiery gaze. “If looks could kill.”

“Tell me about it,” Penny nodded, her eyes scanned the costume he was wearing, now having a face attached to it made it less frightening. The way the fabric was stitched and how the everything on the piece was placed, it looked less like something from a Halloween shop and more something homemade. “Did you make this?”

“Huh, oh this? I wish,” he said, “I actually had it commissioned, sure it cost a bit more, but I wanted it to feel a bit more real, you know, to scare people and that.”

“Yeah, well it definitely worked,” Penny giggled, “As someone who does commissions for others as well, its nice when someone reaches out for us to make something.”

“Us?” he titled his head.

“I’m a costume designer, well, studying a course in costume design at college,” Penny explained, “I noticed how your outfit was made and it instantly clicked in my brain.”

“Oh really? Did you also make that rabbit suit you’re wearing?” he asked as he pointed to her onesie.

Penny rolled her eyes, “Not my best work but I had limited time when Winter and Riley asked me if I wanted to come to the Halloween festival. But hey, its warm and cozy for the season!”

“I think it looks cute on you,” he smiled and winked at her. It was a friendly wink, nothing behind it, but it still made Penny’s toes curl. “How about we start over, I’m Jack.” He held his hand out to her.

Penny took it in her own and shook it, “I’m Penny. So, how do you know Winter?”

There was a nervous flicker in his eyes, but he blinked it away before Penny asked anything else, “We meet as freshmen in high school, she was a few months older than me, but she took me under her wing, and we’ve been friends ever since. I met Riley as well when they started dating but I have a feeling I might be on her bad side now.”

Before Penny could say anything else, there was a crash and a scream before Winter and Riley rushed back into the room, slamming the door behind them. “We forgot this was a haunted funhouse,” Winter trembled, her and Riley’s faces paling.

Penny and Jack shared a glance, stifling their laughter as the couple pulled themselves together. “Anyways,” Riley brushed herself off, “We should head home and tell Mom what happened.”

“Right,” Penny nodded before turning back to Jack, “Hopefully we’ll see each other again, but somewhere else cause with all due respect I’m never stepping foot in this funhouse again.”

Jack chuckled, “That’s understandable, and sorry for scaring you again.”

“That’s okay, at least we finally met,” Penny grinned.

“Alright, home time for you miss,” Riley pulled Penny up, giving a final glare towards Jack before leading her sister away.

“It was nice to meet you, Jack!” Penny called back to him.

“The pleasure’s all mine!” Jack called back, giving Winter a hug before she chased after the sisters.

In the car ride back home, Penny found herself smiling. Jack was nice, granted she wished it didn’t take fainting for them to meet but she was glad she did. “So,” Winter turned in the passenger seat to face Penny in the back, “Sorry that it was under these events how you met Jack, hopefully you were okay with him.”

“I’m not,” said Riley, focused on the road.

“Just keep driving mama bear,” Winter rolled her eyes before turning to Penny again.

“I was okay with him, we actually got on pretty well,” she admitted, “I’m glad I finally met him.”

Winter smiled and turned to Riley to smirk at her, “So, it looks like ‘big bad Jack’ won over your little sister.”

“Must you taunt me?” Riley groaned.

“But that why you love me so much,” Winter teased kissed her loudly on the cheek, “It was my taunting that drew you to me.”

Riley tried and failed to repress a lovesick grin. Penny chuckled at her older sister and turned to face out the window again, counting the stars that passed. Hopefully she would meet Jack again.

Pomni woke with a start. What on this digital earth was that?!

Ever since she arrived here, she never had actually dreams before. Whenever she ‘slept’ it felt like she was switching off, like a button on a computer game and blacked out before she was ‘switched on’ again.

But that dream, why did it feel so real? She remembered the concept of dreams, how anything random would happen and the little control you would have over them. Maybe she was a lucid dreamer in her past life and that’s why this one had more will power in it?

She thought back to that Penny girl, she acted so much like her, the nervousness, her fear of mostly everything and her reaction when she went into that funhouse. Although now, she would gladly take that funhouse over this ‘Amazing Digital Circus’.

Then there was Penny’s sister, Riley. Despite how threatening she was at first glance, the protectiveness she had with her sister and the loved-filled eyes for her girlfriend made her feel a bit safer than she ever felt here.

Did Pomni have a family before the circus, did she have an older sister that would protect with without a second thought? Did she have a family that worried about her, wondering what happened to her?

Then she thought of Jack. She thought about him interacting with Penny, how cheeky yet sweet he was with her. And the way he looked at Penny. She felt herself blushing. In a way, his laidback attitude and mischievous grin, he reminded her a little bit of Jax…

She shook her head, she was being ridiculous, regardless of what Ragatha said when she came here, this was just and only a dream. Besides, it probably wouldn’t happen again, and things would return to its usual format here, just switching on and off again.

She sighed and shoved off her bed sheets, mentally preparing herself for whatever sanity Caine had up his sleeves.

Its not like anyone else was having these types of dreams, right?

That would be the case…for anyone who wasn’t Jax.

The rabbit was currently at the breakfast table, he Gangle and Kinger waiting for everyone else to arrive.

Just when he thought we finally got used to this place, he had an actual dream last night, not the usual shut down he received every night. He remembered every detail from the lights of the festival to the noises supplied from the funhouse and that Jack guy in the jester costume.

There wasn’t much he got from the dream about him, just that was someone who worked to scare people and make money out of it, honestly it seemed the ideal career path he would take if he weren’t stuck here.

But what made that dream so memorable for him was that Penny girl. The way she would shyly peek through her hands, to her kind smile and her knowledge with costumes, and of course he couldn’t forget about her fainting spell. Talk about an unexpected surprise.

Although, she did seem sweet in a way, whoever this Jack guy was he hoped that he was smart enough to see her again. Jax sighed, what was he talking about? This was a dream, plain and simple, yet here he was acting as though he knew this Jack person.

Just leave it he thought bitterly its stupid anyway.

“I’m gonna check where the rest of them at,” he told Gangle and Kinger, “Zooble probably lost one of his arms again, so I might as well hide it if that’s the case.”

“Wouldn’t you rather help them find it?” Gangle whimpered.

Jax huffed out a laugh, “And where’s the fun in that?”

He got out from his chair, only to bump into another body, almost losing his balance, “Hey, watch where your-”

He looked down to see Pomni sitting on the ground, probably from him bumping into her, her red and blue eyes widening when she realised what she did.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” she burst out, “Usually I sit next to you whenever we eat, and I didn’t see you sitting up but I’m still really sorry either way I shouldn’t have done that-”

“-Not the other one, forget about that. In fact don’t talk to me at all! Or do! Don’t let me tell you what to do, I mean, you’re not the one spouting out word vomit!”

“I’m really sorry!”

Jax snapped out of his trance, looking down at Pomni again, her eyes looking both sad and apologetic. He signed, reaching down to pull her up by the end. “Relax pom-pom, it wasn’t like you planned to do that…unless?”

“What, no, of course not!” she yelped.

Jax laughed, the newbie was easy to rile up.

“Shut up Jax,” Zooble moved past him to get to their spot, “Let’s just get breakfast over with before we need to deal with the headache Caine is gonna give us.”

“Whatever,” Jax slumped back into his seat, Pomni gently placing herself upon hers as Zooble and Ragatha did the same.

The way Pomni acted just then, the way she was quick to flush and stutter over her words, and the fact that she was so nervous about everything as well. It was all just like Penny.

No, don’t, don’t be stupid Jax. Jack isn’t real, Penny isn’t real, so don’t bother comparing her to Pomni.

With that, he let himself continue with his food.

But it wouldn’t be the last time he or Pomni would make these comparisons, and it definitely wouldn’t be the last time they had these ‘dreams.’

See you next time, let me know if I've written them well, this is the first time writing for this fandom. And who knows, perhaps next chapter the sillies might actually go on a date? 🤷

#the amazing digital circus #tadc #pomnijax #funnybunny #pomni x jax #pomni #jax #female oc #ragatha #gangle #kinger #zooble #caine #dragon rambles #my writing #fanfic #fanfiction #ao3

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clemblog · 9 months ago

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Caine’s Lesson - Part 12

•

All the residents of the ranch were tucked up in bed sleeping. It was a quiet night. Initially. Around 3am, thunder would cut through the quiet night, heavy rain starting to patter down on to the buildings. It would get harder and harder, slowly starting to seep through the cracks in the building.

Pomni woke up to the feeling of rain dropping down the side of her bed frame.

“W-What..?” She grumbled, rubbing at her eyes as she woke herself up. She wasn’t the only one awake. Several Candy Kingdoms sat awake, doing their best to deal with the rising amount of water. She didn’t think it was supposed to rain in this part of the Candy World..? It was always so dry and desert like- Well. As dry and desert like a candy based world could be-

Something was wrong and her gut feeling told her it was something to do with Caine. Hopefully this storm would pass.

It didn’t.

She had to watch as all the small progress the citizens had made get washed away. She had to watch as moral over all dipped and all the progress she’d helped everyone make disappeared like that. It sucked.

Pomni was upset.

She was angry.

She was frustrated.

Again.

So, she got on Jingle and she went for a ride the next morning. She wasn’t sure where she was going, she just needed to think.

But she forgot one thing. She had a strong varied community of friends who cared for her and her well being. So, if a certain gator was a mere few steps behind her, it wouldn’t surprise anyone in the slightest.

“Poms! Poms!” Called out Gummigoo, finally getting a look at her.

“Gummigoo?! What are you doing out here-?” Murmured Pomni.

“I could ask you the same thing Y’know~“

“Right- I’m just thinking- Caine… He caused this, I know he did- I just- wish their was a way I could get to him to make him stop-“

“Hey, hey. We’ll figure something out, alright?”

“…I guess.”

The two would continue on in their short adventure out, Pomni not quite ready to turn back and head home just yet.

They’d almost reached the edge of the place, Gummigoo about to suggest turning back when Pomni abruptly stopped.

“Hey- Ya all good?” Frowned Gummigoo, gently, watching as she jumped off her horse.

“Yeah- Y-Yeah- Just thought I saw something.” She murmured, squeezing inbetween some rocks nearby.

“Wait up Poms!” Called Gummigoo, running to catch up with her.

Gummigoo rounded the corner to find Pomni stood in what looked to be a crack in the horizon. It was bleeding a dark pixel blue aura into the atmosphere and it seemed like something was behind it. But that must’ve been impossible- Right?

“P-Poms? What is this-“

“I-I don’t know- But I think this might be our only chance to try and get to Caine-“

“…Are ya sure that’s a good idea-?”

“…No, it’s an awful idea but if we don’t, who will?”

“…In this together?”

“In this together.”

The two held hands and pushed forward into the entity. It began to crack like glass but it was squishy and flexible, suddenly engulfing them in the blink of an eye.

•

“When do you think Gummigoo will be back with Poms?”

“I’m not sure- But I trust them both to be back soon enough.”

“Yeah. You’re right. Whatever happens, they’ll be okay-“

•

Pomni blinked and found herself back in the fake exits Caine had created. But wait- Gummigoo was here too! He seemed a little off, blinking for a few moments before looking down at her.

“P-Pomni..?” He whispered.

Pomni gasped at this, eyes widening slightly. “You remember?!”

“I-I do- A lot of memories crashing together- But I do-“

“Oh gosh, maybe you should sit down for a second-“ Frowned Pomni, glancing around before pulling out one of the office chairs for him to sit into. He carefully plumped himself down as she did so. Pomni noticed his skin was still candy themed and gummy but it was less smooth and more scaly now that they were in a realism based adventure.

“A-Are you doing alright?” She asked, eventually after a few moments of silence, listening to Gummigoo take deep breaths.

He looked down at her and smiled gently.

“Alright as I can be Poms. Give me another few minutes and I’ll get moving so we can kick some [—-]!”

Oh. He could swear now-

Pomni snickered at this.

“Wow- Never thought I’d hear that from you-“

“Well, strange things happen when your reality breaks Poms~”

“Right, right-“

The pair soon stood up and began to push their way through the many exit doors. Instead of the first panicked atmosphere it had had when Pomni first charged through this place, it felt safe, relaxed knowing that she was walking through with a friend. They were off to confront someone a little insane and even more terrifying considering what had happened to Gummigoo the last time the pair had interacted. But they were doing it together so that made it better.

They eventually found another crack which was also leaking a blue pixelated aura. The blue reminded Pomni of the asset room herself and Gummigoo had fallen into all that time ago. She turned to Gummigoo.

“I-I’m gonna be honest- I have no idea what’s gonna happen once we enter this-“

Gummigoo chuckled at this.

“I figured, but hey! In this together. We’re in this together, what ever happens we’ll figure it out. Alright?”

“Y-Yeah. Alright!”

The two once again linked hands and stepped forward to push through the crack.

•

Pomni opened her eyes to the sound of smooth jazz playing along with the pater of rain. Things were a lot darker here than they’d been in the candy adventure or the circus. She glanced to look at Gummigoo whose cowboy hat had been replaced with a fedora and now had a loose tie around his shoulders.

“Uh- Where do you think we are-“ He frowned, glancing around.

“If I had to guess, some kind of office?” She shrugged. There were three desks sat around the room with a varying number of papers and office equipment on it. The one in the centre had a typewriter and a rotary phone on it. The windows in the rooms all had shutter blinds on it which were half open. Before she could take anymore details of the room, the door swung open.

“Rookies! There you are, you better have finished those files I told you to do-“ He grumbled, staring the pair down. He was certainly an older man who was seemingly made of clock parts. His face resembled a pocket watch, the hands stuck in the position of a moustache whilst the rest of his face was made of scrambled numbers to make a set of eyes, a nose and a mouth. He too wore a fedora and instead had a detectives jacket and bow tie in replace of a tie like Gummigoo.

“Uh- We did it sir!” Eeked Pomni, quickly pointing to a random pile of papers and hoping that was correct. He moved over slowly, giving Pomni to take a look at his badge.

Head Detective Pockatch.

What a unique name.

Though, Gummigoo was also kind of a unique name if she thought about it-

“Indeed you have.” Tutted the man, standing up with the files in hand as he turned back to the pair. “An excellent job indeed. Now, if you could just-“

Detective Pockatch was interrupted by the door flying open again!

“Oh! Detective Pockatch! It’s horrible! It’s awful!” Cried out the voice of an elegant sounding lady. She had the figure of an antique record player. Her head being the horn itself with small record eyes and huge eyelashes. The rest of her figure was covered by a big flowy red dress, which matched the small hat she had strapped around the top of her head.

“Madam Tick! Whatever is the matter!” Frowned Detective Pockatch. “What on earth has you bustling in here like this!”

The poor lady became inconsolable as she told her story. Apparently she’d turned up to work at the local jazz club and had found her boss dead on the main stage.

“Alright rookies, rest time is over, you’ve got to get investigating!”

This… was going to be interesting…

Part 13

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snoopy7c7 · 1 month ago

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First post of the new year and it's funnybunny related. What a great start off ^^

This one is a personal attack on the behalf of @dragon-creates . Just for you. This is based off of @endomentendo AU of an AU XD An AU swap with Pomni as Mary Ann and Jax as The White Rabbit. Enjoy reading <3

The storm that brewed from outside the walls roared. A candle lightly dimmed on the desk as a hard working rabbit sat contently, writing away. While the wind howled from outside, the rabbit had no effect as he focused intently on his work. Muttering to himself, he kept himself busy in the heat of the night. He was so deep in his studies that it was when he heard a loud BANG did he jump with a start. The table shook slightly as the candle tipped over, catching fire to the rabbit's studies. “Oh fritter biscuits!” he cried as he quickly tried to put out the fire. Unfortunately for him, his work was soiled. Setting his now burnt work down, he scowled slightly as he shot a look over to the door. That maid is no doubt the reason behind that loud noise! he thought angrily. “That's just great,” he grumbled, “I'll have to start over again. The King will have my head for sure.” He began marching over to the door, planning to give that maid of his a piece of his mind. As he reached for the handle though, another loud bang sounded throughout the house, this time coming from the storm from outside. It made the rabbit jump slightly as he looked towards the window. “Boy, I haven't seen a storm like this in a long time.”

His ear twitched as the door knob jiggled slightly. Turning his head back to the door, he tilted his head. As he slowly reached the handle, the door suddenly burst open. It happened in a blink of an eye. His arms were suddenly filled by a warm and trembling body, followed by terrified sobs. Looking down he saw her, in his arms. His hands hovered above her slightly, clearly unsure of what to do or what to make of this sudden reaction. After a moment he slowly says, “...Ms Penny?” That was the nickname he had given her. And oh how that made the girl coil even more into his chest. She was now grasping at his waist, sobbing into him. What could have made her so upset? Did it have something to do with the loud noise from earlier? Did she make it? Did something happen? Was she okay? All these thoughts raced through his head before her voice broke into his thoughts. “M-Mr. R-Rabbit?” “Yes?” he said slowly. “M-May I p-please stay with you until the st-storm's over?” she choked out. The way her voice sounded made his chest hurt so much he could just explode. He looked down at her, eyes full of concern. Finally he found the strength to gently lay his hands on her back. His anger for his lost work was long gone as he softened his gaze and gave her a gentle squeeze. This brought her trembling to an immediate halt as his voice full of warmth replied, “That you may.”

They stood in the door frame for several minutes, just clinging onto each other as if they were two souls bonded. When she finally pulled back, he was finally able to get a good look at her. She was looking down, cheeks red from the crying. Her uncovered eye was stained red, dark circles accompanying her distressed state. What should I say? He thought. But it would appear his mind had other thoughts as he subconsciously reached his hand to cup the side of her cheek. Tilting her head up, she finally met his gaze. She blinked slowly through her salty tears for a moment before leaning away slightly. “I-I’m sorry.” she mumbled, breaking out of his embrace slightly, “It was improper of me to burst in like that.” That’s when she looked past him and noticed the burnt papers on his desk. “Oh no,” she exclaimed as she walked over to his desk. Turning to look after her, the little maid reached out slightly to the corrupt work before pulling her hand back to her chest. After a moment she spoke, “...I did this, didn’t I?” Jax stood silently before registering what she was saying. Shaking his head he replied, “What? This? No, it was just an accident.” Walking over to her he picked up the burnt papers hastily as he stuffed them into a desk drawer. Fiddling with his monocle he turned back to her. “The storm outside startled me is all.” She didn’t meet his gaze as she fiddled with the tips of her hair. Looking back at her he cleared his throat, “So it’s uh pretty rough out there today. Suppose we’ll be trapped here for a day or two.” No answer. “For supper today I think a nice hot soup will do us good.” No answer. His ear twitched slightly, getting anxious. She asks to stay with me and now she’s not saying anything. He thought to himself This girl is more of a puzzle to figure out than my own work! Then she mumbled under her breath, “I don’t like the storm.” Looking back to her he said, “What was that?” “I-I don’t like the storm.” she whispered again. The bandage over her eye seemed to stand out more in this light as his chest suddenly heaved. Pain? Why did his chest suddenly feel heavy with pain? Looking over to the couch in his study he awkwardly said, “Let’s uh have a seat, yeah? Surely you don’t want to stand for the whole storm.”

Pomni hesitated before slowly walking over to the couch. Sitting down she shifted uncomfortably as Jax sat on the other end. It was silent again for a few moments. Then Jax spoke, “Look, if there’s something you wanna talk about, you could always just say it allowed.” She brought her knees to her chest as she wrapped her arms around them. Rubbing the back of his neck he sighed. “I was never really good at this sort of thing.” When she didn’t reply he continued, “It always just seemed easier to keep to myself and my studies. What’s the point in saying anything when you’re the only one who will listen to yourself?” He looked out the window as drops of rain hit the window. “I made a mess.” Jax turned back to Pomni. “Huh?” “In the kitchen,” she said looking down, “I made a mess.” “What happened?” he asked. She hugged herself slightly, sinking into the couch more. “W-Well I was preparing for your 4pm tea. A-As I was on my way is when I heard the loud thunder and well-” She drifted off, clearly growing emotional again. Instinctively, Jax reached his hand out to her before pulling back slightly. What good is all this knowledge when I can’t help the only real friend I have in this crazed world? He pondered to himself. Then a book came to mind. “Wonderland’s Guide on Storms, Weather Patterns, and Unnatural Phenomenons. Ch 14 paragraph 5 line 3. “During storms, whether it be rain, snow, chocolate, tea, puppies and kitties, the chaos of it all spreads the further out you go. But the closer you get to the center of the storm, there is quiet. It is as if there isn’t a storm at all.”.” Pomni was looking forward as Jax continued, “When you’re in the midst of the storm’s strongest area, it can be pretty unsettling. You wonder if it’ll ever calm.” Looking over at her, he found himself moving closer to her. “But even in the eye of a storm,” he said, his voice naturally lowering more softly and soothing, “There is quiet.”

Blinking slowly, Pomni was finding herself calming down. Shoulders were loosening up from the tension. Letting go of her legs, they began to slip down to dangle off the couch, not quite reaching the floor. Then her hands began to slip down to her sides, the back of her hand brushing up against Jax’s. They both flinched away slightly, not expecting their hands to meet. Meeting each other's gaze, the little maid couldn’t help but break into a small smile and giggle to herself. Jax couldn’t help but contract her contagious giggle as he chuckled to himself. The howling of the wind picked up from the outside as another loud BOOM thundered from outside, shaking the house slightly. And no sooner than it did, did Pomni react on instinct, crying out in distress as she instantly threw herself around Jax’s waist. Jax fell back onto the couch as she clung onto him tightly. His heart must have been going a hundred miles a second as he could feel his face grow very hot. But he could feel her own heart race from beneath his chest. Sitting up slightly, he arched himself more as he brought his arms around her, pulling her closer to his chest. On instinct, he rubbed comforting circles around her back as he placed the other hand over her head. “You’re not alone anymore Penny.” he whispered. His eyes widened slightly as he could feel his ear twitch. Where did that come from? I wasn’t thinking that. He said to himself as his heart throbbed. But that’s when he felt her trembling breath on his chest. Looking down to take a look at her he could see a very small smile as her tears streamed down her face. “Thank you.” she said softly. This made the hard headed rabbit smile slightly. Another low rumble shook the house from the outside as she tightened her grip on him. Jax hesitated slightly before saying, “I’ll hold you as long as the storm goes on, okay?” Her one good eye opened as she looked up at him. She responded by letting out what sounded like a relieved sigh, turning her head to rest comfortably on his chest. The storm continued from the outside, making such a ruckus. Pomni would react each time it was loud with fear and distress. But as the storm continued on, she found herself reacting less and less each time. In fact, she found herself being soothed by the beating heart of Mr Rabbit each time the storm’s loud noises shook the house.

Jax felt his own composure grow rather calm as he listened to the storm from outside the walls. Suddenly he heard soft sighs coming from her. Looking at her again he realized she had nodded off to sleep. He couldn’t help but let out a half relieved, half annoyed sigh. Looks like I’m not getting any work done for awhile. He thought. He found himself admiring the girl for a few moments. She seemed way more relaxed then earlier and it brought comfort to himself, for some strange reason. Then something drew him to look back out the window. The storm was still raging on. Suddenly a fire burned deep from within Jax as he scowled out the window. Something about this storm disturbing Ms Penny bothered him. The storm’s loud noises must have had something to do with her past and how she ended up tethered at his doorstep all those months ago. It enraged him. Looking back at her he couldn’t help but gently bring her closer to his heart. She shifted slightly as she sighed soundly, a smile resting on her face. His cheeks burned as he couldn’t stop looking at her. What followed next, it definitely wasn’t what he was thinking. But he leaned down as he kissed the top of her head softly. Pulling back slightly, his eyes burned into her as he declared softly, “I promise I won’t let anyone harm you ever again.” He felt his body relax, leaning back into the couch. The sound of the rain began to grow fainter as he stared out the window. There was a moment where everything was quiet but he could see rain come down hard in the distance. He chuckled to himself before finding himself dozing off. Soon, he too, had fallen asleep, still holding onto Pomni closely as she did the same.

#the amazing digital circus #tadc #tadc fanart #tadc jax #tadc pomni #funnybunny #jax x pomni #digital wonderland #pomni x jax #tadc au

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theboywithburninghands · 9 months ago

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Okay this is probably the last time this is gonna happen BUT I have a third chapter of Arranged Marriage Funnybunny for you. I have ZERO idea if it's up to snuff, but I tried and I have results. Oh, but fair warning, some dark subject matter is discussed, since the time period the story is based around sucked for everyone. Be careful, okay? Oh and uh @fernstarsblog and @variberii you wanted to be tagged so here you go if I did it wrong I'm sorry uuuuuughghghg T/W: Discussions of abuse (no actual abuse just overpanicking anxiety and discussions of the backwards-ass laws in place), era-appropriate sexism, tobacco use Primum Peccatum Ch. 3: The One Thing We've Got

The mustang skidded to a halt in front of The Shutnyk estate. Pomni shakily dismounted the horse, losing her footing on the stirrups and falling onto the cobblestone of her mother’s garden. She knew she was in for a world-class punishment when she got into the house, but, truth be told, she didn’t much care. Her plan to join the clergy failed. She had sobbed herself dry and ran herself sick. She was too exhausted to be angry anymore. She just wanted to wash up and lay down. Surely tomorrow she would feel a renewed sense of rage at her situation. Tomorrow she would scream herself hoarse at her imbecile parents again, and that repugnant Krolik family and their son. But for now, she just wanted rest.

The mustang shook his harness, snorted, and cantered off into the night. Pomni watched him go until he had reached the main road, turned with a whinny, and galloped westward towards The Gray Church. She then turned and plodded towards the house. Her shoes chafed her heels, rubbing the previously dormant blisters angry red again. Her father would no doubt sit her in his study and reprimand her for hours about how disloyal and ungrateful she was. He might flog her. Perhaps she wouldn’t even be allowed back into the house, and be forced to sleep outside, the mosquitos draining her of all her blood and poisoning her with malaria. It was what she deserved… How could she return home after the way she acted, the things she said..?

She felt the metallic, salty taste of tears hover in her throat before the front door opened, casting a shaft of lamplight across the stone path. Pomni covered her face with one hand and squinted her eyes at the sudden intrusion of light.

“Pomni..!”

She waited for the inevitable shouting to begin. She expected a sharp hand across her face as soon as she lowered her hand.

“Ms. Pomni, are you quite alright?”

The person silhouetted in the doorframe was neither her mother nor her father, it was-

“Zooble!”

The caretaker of the manor walked carefully down the porch steps, reaching Pomni and hovering their hands out as if to catch her in case she fell.

“Goodness sakes, Miss Pomni, you look…”

“Awful.” Pomni finished for them.

“…I was going to say ‘a state,’ but now that you’ve said it, yes, you look awful.”

Pomni managed a weak smile. Zooble’s dry wit managed to somewhat ease the tension.

“Mother and father are going to be so angry with me…” she sighed.

“Indeed. But they’re out looking for you right now. I’m the only one here at the moment.” Zooble replied.

Pomni let out a groan of relief. At last, a tiny sliver of luck…

“I know it’s late, Zooble, but could you draw me a bath…? I’d like to at least not dirty my bedclothes…”

“I agree. I don’t enjoy the idea of you bringing that fetor hovering around you into the house…” Zooble said. “I’ll warm some water for you. You can stay in the foyer to avoid any more bugs… But ONLY the foyer.”

“Thank you… Truly, thank you.” Pomni sighed. She could have hugged them for their kindness, but if they were correct about her stench, then perhaps not. She followed Zooble into the manor, removing her shoes and sitting on the bottommost step as they climbed the staircase up towards the bathroom.

“…Zooble?” Pomni called.

Zooble turned to look at the bedraggled girl halfway up the stairs, their claw still on the banister.

“You said… my parents were out looking for me” she continued.

“I did.”

“…Did they say anything about… a search party? Or any other person or shapeperson helping them look for me?” Pomni inquired.

Zooble thought for a moment. “…To my knowledge, no. They spent a good quarter of an hour bickering before taking off in the carriage.”

“…I see. Thank you.” Pomni said before turning back to the front door. Zooble looked at her a moment longer before heading up the stairs to fill up the washtub.

—

Pomni spent the wait for her bath gazing anxiously at the front door. She expected to hear the hoofbeats of the family horses, Maple and Juniper, and the clattering of the carriage’s wheels at any moment. Her livid parents would burst into the room, see her sitting barefoot and stinking on the bottom step, and then…

That moment never arrived. Zooble had the bath heated and perfumed in a half an hour at most. How they managed to work so quickly was a mystery, but one Pomni hadn’t the energy to ponder.

Getting the chance to immerse her insect bites and the blisters on her heels in warm, frothy water was an experience Pomni might have equated to The Allfather’s embrace in The Hereafter. Absolutely transcendental. She felt herself nodding off while submerged up to her nose in the bath, kneading shampoo into her scalp and thoroughly scrubbing with the loofah to keep herself awake. She picked a few bits of twig and other grime out of her hair and behind her ears. As much as she would have liked to remain soaking a bit longer to ensure her welts would disappear by morning, she didn’t want to be awake for her parents’ return. So she reluctantly dredged herself out of the bath, toweled off and slipped into the nightgown Zooble left hanging on the bathroom door.

She entered her bedroom. It was sparsely decorated, exactly how she liked it. Just the red-orange mahogany wardrobe, her canopy bed with frilly white bedclothes, and her library book perched upon her nightstand, her oil lamp placed beside it. Her window overlooking the garden was thankfully closed. She sometimes forgot to shut it in the warmer months, which inevitably led to hunting down every mosquito and gnat that bumbled into her room with a swatter or a shoe.

She drew the bedclothes aside and climbed into her bed. She truthfully hadn’t expected to sleep in here tonight, given her outburst and escape attempt, but she hadn’t expected any of the events that would transpire when she woke up that morning. It was difficult to fathom that all of this marriage nonsense only happened this evening, it felt like a lifetime ago.

Before she had a chance to muse on the subject any longer, however, her eyelids drooped and exhaustion ushered her effortlessly into slumber.

—

A thunderous knocking at the door roused Pomni from her sleep. Panic briefly flared in her belly, believing it to be her parents, returned from their search, demanding entrance into her room so they could punish her. However, she saw the whitish glow of daylight filtering through her curtains. She slept the entire night.

“Pomni! Buongiorno, Pomni!” her mother called from the opposite side of the door. “Hurry and put on your clothes, dear, the Kroliks will be here any moment!”

She heard footsteps retreat down the hall towards the staircase. Pomni scratched the sand out of her eyes, managing to pry herself off of her mattress and look about her room. A gaudy red dress hung on her bedroom door along with some new red pumps and stockings laid out neatly in front of her wardrobe. She heard her mother and father talking heatedly downstairs, something about whether or not someone had reminded Zooble to polish the silver.

The Kroliks… Oh, blazes. Her father did say something about meeting with them yesterday. Had she slept through to the afternoon? From how exhausted she was, it wouldn’t surprise her.

She slid out of her bed, plodding over to her wardrobe and opening one of the doors, examining herself in the looking glass hanging on the other side. Her hair was sticking up in odd places due to sleeping on it damp, but her mosquito bites were practically unnoticeable. She checked her heels. There were some raised, tender areas where her blisters had been, but they no longer hurt unless prodded.

She found her hairbrush in the wardrobe and combed her hair down until it was no longer protruding in odd places, a reasonable imitation of her usual bob cut. She looked at the outfit her mother had chosen for her and let out a long exhale through her nose. Red and blue were her favorite colors, but they were more suited for paintings or flags, not dresses. That ostentatious red dress, with its puffy sleeves resembling half-deflated balloons, looked like something one might wear to a masquerade party at most. Only it was missing the sweet anonymity that a mask would grant her.

Pomni already felt anger bubbling up inside of her again. So it was time to meet the man she was being pawned off to. As a financial favor for his already wealthy parents. A man that she’d never laid eyes on. She could vomit. In fact, she might, right in front of everyone. Maybe that would make this Jax lose interest.

She thought about putting on one of her usual dresses and going downstairs, but she presumed that she was in enough trouble already after fleeing last night. The only reason she was back here at all was that awful shapeman with the huge teeth. Some ruffian not even Zooble knew about forced her to ride back to this sham. If she ever saw him again, she would take that cane of his and-

She heard the front door open and her father speak.

“Ah, welcome, welcome Sirs and Madames! I’m positively tickled to have you here! Come inside!”

They were already here.

Pomni hurriedly grabbed the dress and pumps and rushed to pull them on. This was so unfair, she didn’t have enough time to stew in her anger! She managed to get into the dress, pausing a moment to see how she looked in the mirror. She looked… like a child, wearing her mother’s clothes. Her head poked out of the dress like a puffball mushroom. Outstanding. Truly, she was the envy of Thumbelina.

There was another knock at her door, quieter this time to keep up appearances in front of the guests.

“I haven’t put my face on, yet.” Pomni grunted.

“Va bene, but be quick. They’re waiting for you~!” Mirella sang.

“I am truly blessed this day, ” Pomni sneered, although her mother took no notice of her sardonics, heading back downstairs to speak to their guests.

Pomni took her time doing her face. Nothing special, some powder, foundation, a thin eyeliner and blush. She never wore lipstick. The texture made her feel nauseous.

Pomni took a deep breath. She briefly thought about leaping out of her window and making a mad dash for the pier. In these shoes, she’d probably snap an ankle as soon as she hit the cobblestone. She spritzed herself with some perfume, bit down hard on her tongue to keep from screaming, and exited her room.

“Ah, here she comes!”

Mirella stood a few paces away from her daughter’s room, no doubt on her way to hurry Pomni along once again. Beside her stood a beastwoman, a tall, dull orange rabbit humanoid in a soft pink sundress. Pomni met her eyes for a moment and immediately glanced away, feeling her scalp begin to itch.

“Pomni, this is going to be your new sister-in-law! Her name is Kaylee!” Mirella explained. “Isn’t she beautiful?”

Pomni kept her tongue between her teeth, waiting for frustration to subside enough for her to follow the insipid social guidelines. She curtsied, glancing up at the beastwoman for as brief a period as she could.

“How do you do..?” she said glumly.

The beastwoman curtsied back. “Charmed to meet you, Miss Shutnyk. Oh, and if you’ll pardon me, Mrs. Shutnyk, my name is Kali. ‘Kah-lee.’ Don’t worry, it happens all the time.”

“Ah, my mistake. Oh, look at you, Pomni, you’re gorgeous! I knew that dress would bring out the blue in your eyes! Turn around, I want to see lolhow it fits your body!”

“Mother…” Pomni pleaded.

“Don’t be so shy, Pomni, just one little spin!”

Pomni bit hard on her tongue again and spun in a quick circle, her arms rigidly at her sides.

“Oh… it looks perfect! My little fashionista! Pomni, come meet the others!”

Mirella led Pomni downstairs into the foyer. Four rabbit beast men stood in a semicircle chatting, before they all glanced up at Pomni. The largest of them had blue fur, a veritable wall of a beastman in a black tailcoat, gray trousers and tall, brown boots. He smoked a briarwood pipe, chewing the end contemplatively as he looked up at Pomni. The three others were much trimmer than the blue one, but were dressed similarly, waistcoats complementing their fur color, tight trousers and tall boots. One rabbit was hot pink, another charcoal gray, the last one forest green.

“Well…” The green fellow in a brown tailcoat suit eyed Pomni with noted interest.

All four pairs of their yellow eyes fixated on Pomni made her want to collapse into vapor. Mirella trotted downstairs with ebullient energy,

“Here she is, gentlemen! Your newest member of the family! Pomni, this is the family patriarch and your soon to be father-in-law, Mr. Drexl Krolik!”

Mirella motioned to the largest rabbit in the room, the one with blue fur. He took his pipe out of his mouth and expelled a short plume of smoke.

“H-How do you do..?” Pomni said, curtsying again. She heard the green rabbit give a rather unsubtle snort.

“How do I do?” Drexl echoed. “I’m doing rather well. It’s splendid to finally put a face to a name.”

He offered a paw. It was about half a size larger than Pomni’s.

“Oh, Pomni, I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you. Beastfolk usually greet one another with a gesture called a ‘handshake.’ All you nee-”

Pomni held out her hand and shook Drexl’s paw. His grip was unsurprisingly firm, but Pomni squeezed his massive hand with all of her own strength in kind.

“I know what a handshake is, mother. We learned about it when I was six years old.”

The green rabbit let out another snort.

“Ah- Yes, er… anyway, these three gentlemen are Jax’s older brothers.”

The three rabbits behind Drexl all came forward.

“My brood,” Drexl said, motioning to the pink, gray, and green rabbit. “Altonicus, Osvaldo, Boone.”

“Greetings, miss. Everyone calls me Alton.” Altonicus said, shaking Pomni’s hand with both of his paws.

“How do you do..?” Pomni replied.

Osvaldo, the gray rabbit, merely nodded and shook Pomni’s hand.

“How do you do..?” Pomni repeated.

The green rabbit, Boone, put his hand out.

“How do you do?” “How do you do?”

Pomni jolted a bit as Boone parroted her salutation at exactly the same time as she did. He grinned wolfishly and put his hands into his jacket pockets. Pomni felt her face grow hot.

“Now, has anyone seen Jax? I could have sworn he was here just a moment ago…” Mirella asked.

“Ah, he requested that he’d like to meet Ms. Shutnyk alone. For… ceremony’s sake, I believe.” Alton spoke up.

“He always did get cold feet with an audience involved.” Boone said with a chuckle. Drexl sniffed.

“He’s in the library.” Osvaldo said.

Pomni chewed on her tongue. The library. The first thing he decides to do is invade one of her sanctuaries uninvited. She loathed him.

Kali left Mirella’s side and went to join Alton, who linked arms with her fondly. They must have been married. Pomni wondered if their marriage had also been arranged…

“Well don’t be shy, Pomni! Go and say hello!” Mirella prodded.

Pomni looked at her mother and swallowed. Her mouth and throat were drying out.

“Mother, about what I said last night… I’m sorry.” she said abruptly.

“Oh dear, what happened last night?” Boone inquired, tilting his head with curiosity. Osvaldo rolled his eyes.

“Boone, hold your tongue.” Drexl grunted, not even turning around.

Mirella smiled. “Oh, darling, water under the bridge. Zooble told me that you came back right as we left to look for you. But enough about me, go see Jax! Go on, shoo!”

Pomni turned and walked across the foyer to the library. As she passed the entrance to the dining room, she saw her father and Zooble discussing something privately. She met both of their eyes. Her father stared a moment then turned his gaze away. Zooble simply nodded. Pomni nodded back. She was in their debt…

She reached the door to the library, steadied herself, and entered.

The library was a small, sunny room, the East wall lined with windows that looked out onto the back garden. It brought in plenty of natural light, to the point of almost not needing the oil lanterns placed here and there. Oak bookshelves lined the west wall, the door to the dining room right beside them in the Northwest corner.

There was the soft clink of something glass behind her, and Pomni turned. In the Southwest corner, leaning against the wall with a book in one hand and the other in his waistcoat pocket, was another rabbit. Purple, unlike any of his brothers, and a good deal slimmer. He wore a gray waistcoat, slightly lighter gray trousers and black boots, with a crimson ascot tucked under his chin for an extra shock of color.

Jax glanced her up and down. He, like his brothers and father, had yellow eyes and a wide set of teeth. His smile must have been enormous, but at the moment his affect was flat as a board.

“Are you going to say anything?” Pomni asked, putting her hands on her hips.

Jax looked at her for a moment longer. “Do you want me to?” he replied.

“No.” Pomni turned away, staring out the window at the back garden.

The honeybees enjoyed her mother’s azalea bushes. It was always a pleasure to simply sit and watch them work, gathering pollen from the pink-red blossoms, when a book wasn’t maintaining her attention. This could be the last time she ever watched those bees on those flowers… just another tiny moment of hundreds taken from her by her parents’ imbecilic idea…

She spun around to look at Jax again. He looked up from the book he was reading, or pretending to read.

“Just so we’re clear, Mr. Krolik. I didn’t agree to any of this. I don’t know you, I don’t pretend to know you, and I don’t pretend to know your family. If I could find any escape from marrying you, I would in a heartbeat.”

Jax looked her in the eyes, which made her begin to itch all over. She maintained eye contact for as long as she was physically comfortable before looking back out the window at the azaleas. Jax looked back down at his book, licking his finger and turning the page.

“What? Are you dumb? You have no response to any of that?!” she demanded.

“You told me to say nothing. I’ve said nothing.” Jax replied, not taking his eyes off of his book.

“You-” Pomni bit her tongue. It was so tempting to grab that book, HER book, out of this hand This… This ingrate was who she was trapped with for the rest of her days?!

Jax closed the book with a loud clap, sliding it back on the shelf. He then turned to look at Pomni.

“You’ve met my family,” he drawled.

“I shook their hands. I wouldn’t say I met them.” Pomni retorted.

“I was told you dislike being touched. That was brave of you.”

“And who told you that?” Pomni demanded.

“Your mother. She’s quite amiable.”

“Then marry her and leave me in peace.”

Jax chuckled, and Pomni felt a deep need to drive her fist into his stomach.

“I appreciate your wit. I’ve been told that you humans often lie to put up appearances to avoid risking your reputation. Clearly, this doesn’t apply to you.”

He took a few steps closer, Pomni taking an equal number backwards.

“Don’t come any closer.” Pomni hissed.

Jax sighed, tucking his hands into his pockets. “Listen, Miss Shutnyk. I understand that you’re incensed. But a marriage is a marriage. Our families have made the proceedings.”

“I’m well aware. Why do you think I tried fleeing to join The Gray Church? It was to avoid being wed to a stranger!” Pomni retorted.

“That I didn’t know. You continue to impress me.” Jax grinned for the first time. His smile was indeed enormous, stretching almost wide enough to cover half of his face.

“You continue to make me feel ill.” Pomni snapped, but Jax’s smile remained unfettered.

“I assume you’re frightened that you’re going to lose your autonomy completely, yes? That you’ll be treated like a prisoner that cooks and cleans and looks after the children we must inevitably have.”

“Please stop talking.” Pomni replied.

“Is that what you want? I don’t think it is.” Jax shot back, keeping that confident smile.

Pomni felt something inside her burst. Anger rushed through her body. She marched forward, grabbed Jax by his waistcoat and pushed him into the bookshelf, knocking several books onto the floor.

“What does a mooncalf like you know about what I want?! You don’t know the first thing about me! I bet you’ve never thought about anyone else in your entire life!”

Jax, initially taken aback by her sudden burst of fury, regained his smile.

“You don’t know the first thing about me either. I’m hurt that you think I’m some kind of narcissist. Now, would you please let go of my coat? I’m rather fond of it.”

Pomni looked him in the eyes before letting him go, turning back to the window. Jax dusted himself off and picked up the books that fell off the shelf, neatly tucking them back into their places.

“As I was saying… you’re worried about losing your autonomy. Well, let me offer an olive branch by saying I don’t intend on taking it from you.”

He dusted off his paws and slid them into the pockets of his waistcoat again.

“To our families, this is business. Nothing more, nothing less. They don’t care about how we feel. So let me assure you right now, I’m not going to touch you or make you forfeit anything you care about. We don’t even have to share a bedchamber once we get our own house.”

Pomni glared at him. “I don’t want to marry you at all.”

“I don’t want to marry you either. But like I said before. There’s no way for us to get out of this, so we might as well make it painless. Correct?”

Pomni looked down at the floor. Was he being… serious? Or was this another cruel joke life was trying to play on her? “...How do I know you aren’t just feeding me lies? You’re telling me what I want to hear so I’ll be glad to marry you, and then you can mold me into the perfect little housewife.” Jax frowned. His hand fiddled with an object in his jacket pocket. “You really are a presumptuous little thing, aren’t you?”

“What did you just say?!” Pomni snapped.

“Ms. Shutnyk. I’m well aware I can’t make you trust me. But think about this. If I wanted to make you a perfect housewife, I wouldn’t need to hide it.”

Jax walked past Pomni and looked out into the back garden as well.

“If I desired, I could tell you that you were going to have seven children, and if you so much as hesitated to acquiesce, I could hit you. Starve you. Probably worse. And why? Because the law allows it. Did you know that there’s a law in place that makes it just about impossible for a woman to initiate a divorce? It states-”

Pomni interjected.

“It states ‘In order for an appeal for divorce issued by a man’s wife to be legally viable, an officer of the peace must witness the husband engaging in physical or mental abuse of his wife or child.’ Section 3, Subsection 5, Paragraph 2. You’ve forgotten that my father was your father’s magistrate.”

Jax smiled at her. “Of course. So, when I say that I don’t intend to make you perform any wifely duties apart from wearing a ring and living alongside me, I’m being truthful.” Pomni stared ahead for a long time.

“...Prove that you’re being truthful.” she uttered after a time. “How can I prove that, Ms. Shutnyk?” Jax asked with a tilt of his head. His long ears bobbed with the motion.

“Lie with me. You’re going to tell my parents and your father that we’ve had a long, insightful discussion. We’re going to say there was more to one another’s character than we initially thought, and that we can’t wait for the day of our marriage. And then you are going to walk out of my house, and not return until the ceremony. Our parents have everything planned already, so there is little further to discuss.”

Jax Krolik smiled once again. It was uncanny, certainly, but something about it was… interesting, to Pomni. “Then come along, ‘Mrs. Krolik.’ We have a lie to spin.” He offered a hand. Pomni looked at it like a foreign object.

“What do you think you’re doing?” she demanded, quirking an eyebrow. “Well, we have to make it somewhat convincing.” Pomni rolled her eyes and took his hand. The two of them exited the library, motes of dust flickering in the beams of sunlight.

#the amazing digital circus #funnybunny #jax x pomni #tadc pomni #tadc jax #tadc zooble #tw abuse discussion #i hope to fuck this came out okay im so sorry if its offensive in any way pls dont kill me #oh no cringe #i feel like im gonna barf

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spyderlondon · 7 months ago

Text

The Amazing Pokemon Circus: Chapter 2

Art by @mangotangerinepastry ❤️

Pomni stumbled backwards a bit as she landed on the ground and before Ragatha was able to reach out to grab her, the Alcremie ended up knocking into a Cinderace that was teasing an Eiscue. She fell onto her stomach with a grunt, her eyes swirling in her dizziness, "Oh... I wish I was warned..." She mumbled a bit as she put a hand to her head, trying to keep the contents of her stomach inside of her stomach.

"HEY! WHAT GIVES?!" The Cinderace yelled out at the dizzy Alcremie with an annoyed glare before turning his glare to the two pokemon that entered within seconds before and after the fairy type, "Weren't you two just supposed to find a lost item, not rescue?" He sneered at them.

"Oh, chill out, Jax!" Ragatha glared right on back as she handed the said item to the pokemon that gave the circus the mission and sent them on their way. She looked back at the Cinderace while crossing her arms, "Pomni here needed help since she just recently was placed into this dimension and has no idea what is going on."

Kinger carefully helped the Alcremie up, "You okay?" He asked her with a light worried look on his face, looking her over for any signs of injury or sickness.

"I-I'm okay..." She mumbled as she gave herself a moment before standing straight and looked around the area that she was now suddenly inside of. She rubbed her arm, uncertain of how to feel about everything quite yet but for now, it'd be a good idea to get a feel of the place.

Ragatha was right, this really was a circus tent with the entire circus layout. The top of the tent had a couple trapezes set up with nets placed underneath to catch any falls, there was also a long pole in the middle of the tent to keep it from collapsing as well as a lookout at the very top of the pole in case anyone wanted to relax up high. There were also a few silks and hoops connected to silks that were there for anyone wanting to practice their flexibility as well as a few other random items just scattered about to act as props for juggling or anything else. There was also two bulletin boards with numerous little scraps of paper on them- it seemed like they were just recently torn off.

There were also a few pokemon here and there that she assumed also went out and did missions like Ragatha and Kinger did. There was a Falinks who had their different small parts separated a little as they chilled near a pillow fort with Kinger doting on them as if they were his pet which didn't seem to bother the bug type much; then there was an Eiscue that was on the ground looking down at the broken ice face broke when she was knocked to the ground, leaving with a much smaller ice head that seemed to have frozen tears attached to it, but was the most interesting, at least in Pomni's opinion was how instead of the usual bluish coloration, this Eiscue had a reddish coloration which meant that she was a rare shiny; and last but probably least was the Cinderace, Jax as Ragatha called him, that she bumped into when she first came into the tent- he was currently arguing with the Indeedee.

The Alcremie rubbed her arm as she watched all the other pokemon do their thing before deciding to speak up, "U-Um-"

"BOSS! They're back!" She was suddenly interrupted by a loud, childlike voice shouting nearby which made her yelp and jump in surprise. A Swirlix seemed to pop out of nowhere as he called out to someone he called boss. The little puffball seemed to notice her after a moment, "Oh! You're new! Boss! We have a newbie here too!"

Pomni tried to move away from the from him in her unease but didn't seem to notice the apple core that was suddenly appeared behind her and ended up tripping on it, "Ack!" She yelped in shock as she fell again but this time two thin arms caught her and lifted her up in the air.

Her eyes widened in surprise as she looked up at who stopped her from falling, only to see a large transparent head that had a lot of little colorful dots as well as a rainbow top hat that floated above his head weightlessly. He had no eyes on or a mouth or anything a face should have but somehow she could tell that he was looking down at her by how his head was tilted and was smiling in a perplex manner by him giving off some sort of vibe- it was strange. "Are you alright, my dear?" The floating head questioned.

"U-Uh... yes, I am-" The Alcremie answered with a frown as he put her down- what pokemon was he...? She knew she's seen his species in a book before but she was drawing a blank, "W-Who are you? Wh-What are you...?" She questioned with a stutter as she looked him over after backing up a little. He was extremely colorful, looking almost like a clown- he had thin limbs that were a mix of pink and blue while his feet and hand were white; his ankles had two pompoms on them- blue on the left and pink on the right- and another white pompom on his pole like chest as well as two others on his shoulders but this time it was pink on the left and blue on the right. His torso was mostly yellow with pink and blue stripes going around the body. His torso and large dotted head was separated by a large white ruffle collar. He wore a rainbow ringmaster's coat with the inside and collar being black.

The large pokemon had used his psychic powers to force Jax into a cage as a sort of time out for all his pranks before turning back to face her, "Oh! My name is Caine- the ringmaster of this wonderful Pokemon Circus!" He spread out his arms to proudly show off the circus tent, "As for what I am..." He lowered his arms, "I'm a Blacepheon. You probably never heard of my species aside from passing rumors because of how rare we are to even been seen in any dimension other than our own." He explained with a light shrug. He looked her over, "I suppose you're a new human to this dimension?"

"I-I... yes?" Pomni confirmed, her tone laced in confusion, "I don't even know how I got here... or why I can't recall my name or what I looked like... I just know I *was* human before and some of my memories..." She trembled as she felt fear running through her.

The air around Caine seemed to shift into something more sympathetic as he floated to the ground and landed on his feet, "Now, now, dear..." He placed his hands on her shoulders to calm her a bit, "All of that is perfectly normal. Nobody can remember any of that when they enter this dimension, think of it as a clean slate." He waved off casually.

"Yea, a clean slate where we still have most of our memories and our same personalities." The Cinderace scoffed from inside the cage, "In a place with no escape. Sorry, toots, you're stuck with us." He crossed his arms.

"Shut up, Jax, she's already freaked out enough." The Falinks deadpanned as they sent the rabbit pokemon a glare with all of their eyes before looking at Pomni who was twitching nervously, "But he's right, we haven't found any way of getting out of here and, judging by how long Kinger has apparently been here, there is no way back home." They sighed in defeat.

"Did somebody say something about an insect collection?!" The Slowking popped his head out of his pillow fort.

Ragatha put a hoof to her face and groan, "Will you all stop giving the newbie more reason to panic?" She sent everybody a look before moving over to the twitching Alcremie and replaced Caine's hands with her hooves, "Hey there... It's okay, Pomni... Just take some deep breaths... In... out... in... out..." She guided her with a soothing tone. She waited until the girl in front of her seemed calmer before speaking, "Better?"

"Y-Yeah... Thanks." Pomni murmured, her panic subsiding, and she just seemed exhausted from the long day she ended up having out of nowhere.

The Indeedee gave a sad smile at how the Alcremie looked, "Here... Why don't I show you to your room?" She offered while handing her the big apple she had in her treasure bag, "And here, eat this along the way. You need all the energy you can get."

Pomni nodded tiredly as she followed the older pokemon while munching on the apple.

-----

"We weren't supposed to get any more humans..." Caine mumbled to himself after he entered the cave where a certain psychic pokemon lived, "We were told that he and I would get only a certain amount of humans each. I was at my max- unless..."

"Unless you had one of the human turned pokemon go feral." The Lunatone finished the sentence for him, having heard him as he entered her cave, "That Mr. Rime had turned feral the day before that Alcremie's arrival. You were down one human, a replacement was given." She turned to look at him- or well, she would have but her eyes were glazed over and she only saw fogginess.

The Blacepheon grew a bit agitated, "More are cursed to be here if I can't keep them satisfied or help them find a way to leave?" He questioned as he tapped one of his hands against a leg, "I'm sure he's loving that." He hissed, pacing, "He always enjoyed seeing others suffer..."

"He hasn't lost any yet." She informed him.

"WHAT?!?" He shouted in disbelief, "HOW?!" He seemed to stop and stare at her with his lack of eyes but it was clear his face was one of shock.

The Lunatone said no more to these questions. Simply going silent to meditate like she was doing before he entered.

Blacepheon groaned in irritation but took his leave as he tried to figure things out on his own, he wanted to help the humans leave. It was unfair to them to be trapped with no clear explanation why.

-----

A flash of purple could be seen near the cave for a split second before it flew off through a portal.

#the amazing digital circus #the amazing pokemon circus #tadc caine #tadc pomni #tadc kinger #tadc ragatha #tadc gangle #tadc jax #tadc bubble #tadc zooble

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thelastdiamondpiratealchemist · 1 year ago

Text

The Digital Virus

A strange digital virus has been spreading around the Amazing Digital Circus like wildfire; Pomni, the newest cast member, is unfortunate to catch it.

(This was my first TADC fanfiction.)

A strange digital virus has been spreading around the Amazing Digital Circus like wildfire; Pomni, the newest cast member, is unfortunate to catch it.

Pomni walks by herself down the red carpet hallway; she soon grunts to herself, her head feeling suddenly fuzzy, and well… It’s a little glitchy, too.

As Pomni continues down the hallway, her glitching intensifies. Her footsteps become unpredictable, causing her to stumble and trip over her feet. She tries to regain control, but her limbs move uncontrollably as if puppeteered by an invisible force.

Her voice, now distorted beyond recognition, emits incomprehensible sounds. It fluctuates between high-pitched squeals and deep, guttural tones. The once melodic and enchanting voice that captivated audiences now fills the air with an eerie cacophony.

She squeaks as she covers her mouth with her hands, her eyes turning into dark squiggles. Was she finally Abstracting?!

Did she finally lose her mind enough to turn into that monster that Kofmo turned into?

“Pomni?” a familiar voice, Ragatha, called out to the Jester girl. Pomni clears her throat and slaps herself across the face, halting her glitching.

“Heeey, Ragatha…Good morning?” Pomni lop smiled as she let out a nervous laugh.

“Pomni… what’s happening to you? Are you alright?” Ragatha gives Pomni a concerned look, her eyes scanning the glitching jester.

Pomni tries to sound cheerful despite her distress, but her voice still wavers in pitch.

“Oh, you know how it is, Ragatha. Just a little digital hiccup, nothing to worry about!” She quickly stifles another glitch as her arm twitches involuntarily.

“Are you okay? You seem a little nervous?” Ragatha arches her eyebrow, and Pomni throws up her hands in response.

“I’m fine!” Pommi laughed awkwardly. She looks over her shoulder while she tries to think of a lie or something, “I think I can hear Caine calling me, so uh…See you later!”

Pomni ran off before Ragatha could say another word; the red yarn-haired doll curled her lips into a frown as she placed her hands on her hips.

“She’s being more paranoid than usual,” she shakes her head.

Ragatha decides to follow Pomni at a distance, concern filling her heart. As she trails behind, Ragatha notices Pomni’s glitches becoming even more pronounced. Pomni’s step creates a wave-like distortion in the air around her, causing flowers to bloom and wither in rapid succession.

Ragatha quickens her pace, determined to catch up and offer her help. But as she reaches a corner, Pomni disappears. Confused, Ragatha looks around, only to find an empty hallway. Panic starts to creep into her thoughts, and she wonders where Pomni could have gone so suddenly.

“Pomni, wait!” She called out, and she looked around at her surroundings.

Just as Ragatha is about to call out for Pomni again, she hears a faint giggle from a nearby door labeled “Janitor’s Closet.” Curiosity getting the better of her, Ragatha approaches the door and slowly pushes it open, revealing a sight beyond her wildest imagination.

Inside the closet, she finds Pomni surrounded by a swirling vortex of glitched code. Her limbs move in an erratic dance, pixelating and reshaping with each movement. Pomni’s once vibrant color scheme flickers, shifting between saturated hues and monochrome tones.

“You’re not ‘Okay’…” Ragatha pointed out, making Pomni flush pink slightly.

She was never a good liar.

“I…I don’t know what’s happening…” Pomni admitted, looking at her glitching hands.

“I…Sorta do, we get ‘sick’ sometimes around here,” Ragatha admitted.

“How? We don’t have to sleep, eat, or anything else!”

“Well, it’s more like a ‘virus’ corrupting your code… That’s what Caine said anyway,” Ragatha further explained.

“But why me? Why now?” Pomni asked, her voice trembling with fear.

“I don’t know, Pomni. Viruses can be unpredictable. Maybe it’s just bad luck.” Agatha sighed, a solemn expression on her face.

“I don’t want to be like Kofmo,” she whispered, tears welling in her eyes. “I don’t want to turn into a monster.” Pomni’s glitching intensified, the vortex growing more prominent and more chaotic. She felt like she was losing control over her own body.

“We won’t let that happen. We’ll find a way to fix this, Pomni. We’ll find a cure.” Ragatha placed a comforting hand on Pomni’s shoulder.

“Thank you, Agatha.” Pomni looked into Ragatha’s eyes, finding solace in her friend’s determination.

After a half hour searching, Caine and his assistant, Bubble, came to visit his Cast; he was taken by surprise seeing Pomni’s body glitching.

“Huh…I wasn’t expecting to see this!” He exclaimed. Pomni winced at how loud the “chattering teeth man’s” voice could be, “My dear Pomni…You have quite the virus!”

“Can you help me?” Pomni asks, her eyes turning into squiggles again.

“….”

“I don’t like that silence,” poor Pomni shuttered.

Caine scratches his chin, deep in thought. Bubble, his assistant, stands by his side, analyzing the glitched code swirling around Pomni.

“I’m afraid this virus is unlike anything I’ve seen before,” Caine finally responds, his voice sad. “But fear not, Pomni. We will find a way to fix this! You need a little TLC!”

“TLC?” Pomni and Ragatha exchanged glances.

“Tender, love, and care!” Caine points out three fingers from his hand, his right hand briefly detaching from his wrist. Caine continues, “You see, viruses in the digital world can be quite tricky to combat, but with the right approach and care, we can help you recover.”

“But we should confine you to your living quarters so this virus won’t spread!” Caine added, “We don’t want a pandemic to break loose!”

“N-No…I guess not,” Pomni nodded, feeling relief and sadness at being isolated, but she understood the importance of containing the virus.

Ragatha, seeing the conflict in Pomni’s eyes, placed a hand on her friend’s shoulder. “We’ll be here for you, Pomni. We’ll visit you daily and ensure you’re not alone.”

Pomni’s glitching intensified momentarily but gradually calmed down as a small smile formed on her pixelated face.

After Pomni returned to her room, she lay quietly on her bed, her body and voice still glitching wildly; she decided to close her eyes as she tried to get some “sleep.”

Eventually, she found herself walking up, Caine’s face only inches apart from her face; Pomni yelps as she falls out from her bed and lands flat on her back as she grunts.

“Oof!” She grunts, rubbing her backside before sitting on her knees. She then realized the Ring Leader was dressed in a nurse’s outfit.

Pomni felt even more of the color draining down her face once she noticed two balls shoved down the nurse’s dress resembling a woman’s breasts, mainly because of how large they were.

“Why are you dressed like that…?” Pomni asked, hesitating, wishing what she saw was a “Digital Hallucination.”

Caine chuckles softly, adjusting the nurse’s hat on his head.

“Oh, this old thing? I thought I’d cheer you up in your recovery process, my dear Pomni! Laughter is the best medicine!” He reaches out a hand to help her up from the floor. Pomni takes his hand, still feeling uneasy about the situation.

“I suppose so, but isn’t a nurse’s outfit a little… unconventional?” Pomni blushes and looks away, flustered by the Ring Leader’s peculiar outfit choice.

Caine shrugs and adjusts the nurse’s cap on his head.

“Well, sometimes unconventional methods are necessary when it comes to viruses. Plus, it will make you feel better, my dear.” He said.

“Alright, if you say so, Caine. Just promise me one thing – no more surprises like this, okay?” Pomni couldn’t help but smile nervously despite her embarrassment.

“No promises there!” Caine laughs as he adjusts his red ball “boobs,” Pomni clears her throat again, wondering why Caine placed them there in the first place.

Caine had also placed a pillow onto his backside, making his glutes look bigger than it was.

Pomni’s body glitches out before she can speak again, her voice changing to a higher pitch.

Caine’s eyes widen with amusement as Pomni’s glitching continues.

“Oh, my dear Pomni, you’re quite the entertainer even in your glitched state! Maybe we should incorporate this into your act at the circus!” He chuckles, twirling his nurse’s hat on his finger.

“I…uh… I’m not sure about that, Caine. It’s a little embarrassing, you know?” Pomni blushes, unsure how to feel about being a spectacle even when she’s glitching, “Can you help me feel better? Is there a pill, vaccine maybe…?”

“I don’t know what those are,” Caine admitted, Pomni groaned inertly, “Bubble?”

“Yeah, Boss?” Bubble appears, wearing a stethoscope around its neck.

“Let me barrow you ‘Heart Hearing Device.’” Caine added that placing the stethoscope’s earpieces into his nonexistent ears, he took the cold metallic diagram and placed it against Pomni’s heart, but it was facing backward; the “bell” was pressed against Pomni’s chest.

“Pomni, I can’t hear your heartbeat!” Caine exclaimed, Pomni winches, “There must be something w-.”

“It’s backward, Caine,” Pomni quickly interrupted, pointing her red gloved hand at the stethoscope, her anxiety almost bubbling.

Caine blinks, realizing his mistake. Caine blushes deeply, realizing his mistake; he quickly adjusts the stethoscope, placing the smooth part of the diagram against Pomni’s chest. He closes his eyes and listens intently, trying to hear any irregularities in her heartbeat.

This time, he hears the faint but steady sound of her heartbeat.

“Ah, there we go!” Caine exclaims, his face brightening; he places the stethoscope onto different parts of Pomni’s chest.

“Caine…H-“ Pomni was cut off by Caine’s hand covering her mouth; she let out a small squeak,

“My dear Pomni, you just need to relax and let me do my job,” Caine says with a mischievous smile. Pomni’s glitching intensifies as she tries to speak but is unable to. Caine removes his hand and looks at her with an eyebrow raised.

“What were you going to say, Pomni?” he asks, a hint of amusement in his voice.

Pomni blushes and looks away, not sure if she should continue. But with a deep breath, she gathers her courage and speaks up.

“I…I think it would be best if you took your hand off my mouth, Caine,” she says, her voice barely above a whisper.

Caine’s eyes widen in realization, and he quickly removes his hand, a sheepish expression on his face.

Meanwhile:

“So, Newbie has a virus? I knew it.” Jax rolled his eyes as Ragatha explained the situation.

“Yeah, people get sick, Jax!” Ragatha pouted, “And we need to be careful; there is a chance of this virus spreading to all of us!”

“Please don’t say that!” Kinger coward, clutching his hands together, visibly shaken by the thought, Kinger looked around anxiously as if expecting the virus to manifest in front of him suddenly.

“Don’t worry, Kinger. We’re all in this together. We’ll find a way to stop the virus from spreading and ensure everyone stays safe.” Ragatha placed a reassuring hand on Kinger’s shoulder.

“And how do you propose we do that? We’re just circus performers, not scientists.” Jax crossed his arms and looked skeptical.

“How do we know you don’t have it?” Gangle asks Ragatha nervously.

“I don’t, only time will tell…” Ragatha admitted, watching Kinger and Gangle panic as Jax remained calm and Zooble, well, remained like…Zooble… “This is gonna be a long day…”

Back with Caine and Pomni:

Caine tried everything he could to cure Pomni’s virus, watching as her body glitched again.

“Agh…!” Pomni felt pain briefly shooting across her small frame; Caine thought for a moment.

“Since laughter is sometimes the best medicine, maybe….” Caine began to suggest.

“N-No tickling, Caine.” Pomni shakes her head. Caine secretly places a feather back into his back pocket, smirking mischievously.

“Who said anything about tickling?” Caine replied innocently, his eyes gleaming with amusement, knowing his secret attack failed as Pomni arched her eyebrow.

“So…The virus started this morning, correct?” Caine asks.

“Yeah…”

“I think I figured it out!” Caine snaps his fingers.

“You do?! What is it?!” Pomni asked, her voice breaking. She covers her mouth with her hands, her lower half glitching and sparking.

“You’re new here.” Caine said, “So… You’re not as immune like the others.”

“But why would being new make me more susceptible to the virus?” she asks, her voice filled with confusion and concern. Pomni nods, her glitching intensifying as she tries to control her body.

“Well, you see, Pomni, the longer you’ve been in the digital circus, the more you become acclimatized to the viruses that float around here. It’s sort of like building up an immunity.” Caine sighs and rubs his chin, deep in thought.

“So, because I’m still new and my code is not quite adapted, the virus was able to affect me more severely?” Pomni’s eyes widen, a glimmer of understanding in her glitching gaze.

“Exactly. Your code hasn’t fully integrated with the circus yet, so it’s more vulnerable to outside influences like this virus. But I’ll figure out a way to help you, Pomni. I won’t let this keep you down.” Caine nods.

“Thank you, Caine. I appreciate your help and support.” Pomni smiles gratefully, the glitching in her voice momentarily subsiding.

“Of course, my dear Pomni. We’re a family at the Amazing Digital Circus and stick together through thick and thin!” Caine returns her smile, his eyes filled with determination.

Before Pomni could speak again, her body glitched and shook violently, causing her to stumble and fall to the ground. Caine quickly rushes to her side, his nurse’s outfit slightly disheveled.

“Pomni! Are you alright?” Caine asks with worry, helping her back up.

“I… I don’t know,” Pomni stutters, her glitching worsening by the second. “It’s getting harder to control.”

Caine furrows his brows, pondering possible solutions. Suddenly, an idea sparks in his mind.

“Bubble! Bring me the Debugging Tool!” Caine calls out to his assistant, who quickly scurries off to retrieve the requested object.

“T-■e w◇h♤?” Pomni couldn’t even speak anymore; her eyes widened with fear.

Caine rushes to Pomni’s side, a determined look in his eyes. He gently takes her hand in his and tries to calm her down.

“Don’t worry, Pomni. We’ll figure this out,” he reassures her. “The Debugging Tool is a special device that can scan and analyze your code. It might be able to pinpoint the source of the virus and help us find a way to stop it.”

As Bubble returns with the Debugging Tool, Caine takes it from him and examines Pomni’s glitched code. He connects the device to her digital interface and begins the scanning process.

Pomni watches with anxiety and hope as Caine works diligently to analyze her code. The glitching starts to subside slightly, giving her a small glimmer of relief.

After what feels like an eternity, Caine finally finishes the scanning process. He disconnects the Debugging Tool and looks at the results, his expression turning serious.

“Pomni, it seems this virus is deeply embedded in your code,” he explains. “It will take some time and effort to delete it.”

Pomni’s heart sinks at the news, but she remains determined. She nods and takes a deep breath.

"I u♡ders♧and, Ca€ne. Wha《eve● it ta×es, I w*n| to get r^d of this virus,” she says.

Caine smiles a mix of pride and compassion in his eyes. He pats Pomni’s hand gently, offering her reassurance.

“That’s the spirit, Pomni. We’ll work together to find a way to eliminate this virus and restore you to your full potential.” Caine’s voice is calm and comforting, instilling a sense of hope in Pomni’s glitching heart.

“I hope this virus doesn’t spread to the others,” Pomni thinks.

“Caine, don’t you dare tickle me!” She snapped, feeling something tease under her left arm.

“Alright, no tickling, I promise. We’ll focus on finding a solution instead.” Caine chuckles mischievously but holds up his hands in mock surrender.

Thank you, Caine. I trust you’ll do whatever it takes to help me.” Pomni lets out a sigh of relief, her glitching calming down slightly. “Can we do it now…?”

Caine nods and starts planning out a treatment plan for Pomni. With Bubble’s assistance, they gather various tools and programs that might help resolve the virus. Caine explains his approach to Pomni, ensuring her trust in him.

They begin by executing a diagnostic program on Pomni’s code, scanning for anomalies or corrupted segments. The program reveals several areas of her code infected by the virus, causing glitches and instability.

Caine and Bubble work to isolate the infected code and develop a specialized antivirus program. They carefully inject the program into Pomni’s code, targeting and neutralizing the virus.

As the antivirus program runs, Pomni’s glitches diminish, and her movements become more controlled. Her voice returns to its normal melodic tone, and her color rapidly returns.

“How do you feel?” Caine asks,

His eyes filled with anticipation.

Pomni takes a moment to assess herself, a glimmer of hope in her glitching gaze.

“I… I feel better,” she says, a genuine smile forming. “The glitches are subsiding, and I feel more stable. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Pomni. I’m glad we were able to make progress. But it’s not over yet. We must continue monitoring your code and ensuring the virus doesn’t resurface.” Caine smiles warmly at Pomni’s response, relieved to see her improving.

Pomni touches the sides of her face, pushing her fingers into her cheeks, feeling the familiar smooth texture. She takes a deep breath, savoring the relief of being free from the virus’s grip.

“Now that we have eliminated the virus, it’s time to strengthen your defenses,” Caine says, his tone determined. “We’ll update your security protocols and install firewalls to prevent future attacks.”

“How do you expect to do that?” Pomni asks, curiosity evident in her glitch-free voice.

Caine leans back in his chair, taking a moment to think before responding.

“We’ll start by analyzing the virus itself,” he says. “We’ll dissect its code and understand how it was able to infiltrate your system. From there, we can create stronger defenses and fortify your digital walls.”

Pomni nods, understanding the seriousness of the situation. She knows that she could be vulnerable to future attacks without proper defenses.

Caine continues, “We’ll also implement regular security updates and conduct periodic scans to ensure your system remains clean and protected. Additionally, I’ll educate you on potential warning signs and safe coding practices to minimize the risk of future infections.”

“Will I have more virus in the future?” Pomni asks worriedly.

“Yes, it happens to even the best of us!” Caine crossed his arms onto his chest, his false ball breasts bursting at the pressure.

Caine quickly puts his arms back down, realizing his mistake. He clears his throat and continues, trying to ignore the awkward moment.

“Well, there’s always a possibility of encountering viruses in the digital circus, Pomni,” he explains. “But with the strengthened defenses and your increased understanding of safe coding practices, we can minimize the risk. And if any viruses sneak in, we’ll be prepared to identify and eliminate them quickly.”

“I understand,” Pomni nodded, trying to focus on the situation, ignoring Caine’s false chest bursting.

“Anyway…I will let you rest now. When you feel 100 percent, join the others on your next Adventure.” Caine spoke, quickly teleporting from Pomni’s room.

Pomni watches as Caine disappears, feeling a mix of gratitude and anticipation. She knows that she still has a long way to go before fully recovering, but with Caine’s help, she feels hopeful. She takes a moment to relax and let her glitching subside, feeling the relief of being virus-free.

As she lies in her digital bed, Pomni thinks about the future. She knows that she needs to strengthen her defenses and be more vigilant in protecting herself from viruses.

She’s determined to learn more about safe coding practices and stay updated on the latest security protocols. She doesn’t want to let another virus bring her down again.

With renewed determination, Pomni closes her eyes and drifts off to sleep, knowing she’s in good hands with Caine and the Amazing Digital Circus. She looks forward to the day when she can join the others on their adventures with a more vital, virus-free code and a brighter, glitching less future ahead.

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