#This might the best pic I've ever taken in this game

[the-labyrinth-of-me]

Caught Alan doing a Sailor Moon pose

(or: I accidentally hit the melee button together with the pause button to go into photo mode)

[wraithsoutlaws]

Then & Now the (x: perfect drug) edition:

Inspired by the fandom to look back and celebrate the boys' journey as well as my own in terms of vp.

March 2021, ps4.

I never created Dagger with the intention to ship him with anyone, but by the time I got here on his file it felt strangely natural. He was still a very fresh oc but things began to click immediately and genuinely felt like it was meant to be. The development of him as a character began to happen side by side with this silly little ship and both ended up becoming really personal and special to me.

It's hard getting decent shots on ps4 with anyone. It's especially hard when it's a minor npc with extremely limited screen time available! You have no idea how many times I went back and played these two quests trying to get something interesting. Honestly I'm really grateful for my time on ps4 not only because it helps me appreciate what I can do now a little more, but I think a lot of my growth happened here, stretching the limited resources I had available.

July 2021, ps4

Learning how to work within the confines of totally vanilla photomode, getting creative with base game poses and skipping time to find the best natural light, etc. I'm still proud of these pictures, they capture an intimacy that I think is really special, and at the time were some of my favorites I'd ever taken, and even now I can note the growth between these and the first ones I'd taken.

April 2022, laptop

The first pictures taken on my laptop and my first time posing them with AMM/setting up a scene. I might like to retake these some day. I'm more critical of them than I am of my ps4 pics tbh but they're still an important part of my journey. Over time I noticed red lighting had become my comfort zone, or more specifically, a crutch! So I've tried really hard since then to improve on that and push myself in different directions.

February 2023

It took me almost a year to feel comfortable enough with posing to attempt some goddam kisses. I'm still not very good at these but at least I improved in other ways. Honestly, I struggle with these two at times because they aren't your typical outwardly loving, cute couple, and I'm usually very strict with myself to keep them as in character as I can. That can make it hard to think of couples poses/ideas, both cute and spicy, but. they can be lovebirds as a treat.

May 2023

Only recently have I begun to feel a strong sense of style in my own work. Playing with lighting and scenes, and trying to jam as much personality as I can into these slice of life pictures is really important to me and is one of my favorite parts of doing this. They can be sweet together but it's important you see the other side of that (the blood, the knives, drugs, etc. Also Dagger resting his ashtray on Dum Dum is one of my personal favorite quirks). I really try to put a lot of their life into pictures like this. I want to convey all the parts of who they are together, even if nobody else notices.

June/July 2023

Its pretty hard to articulate how important these two have become for me over the last couple years. I've been playing this game since release and haven't had this sort of steady inspiration or creativity for years. Even on the bad days, just thinking about them is enough to get me through as silly as it sounds. I've grown so much not only in VP but my own art (something I had all but entirely abandoned until I picked up this game). They've provided an outlet I've been searching for for a very long time, and I'm really grateful for that. It's kinda wild looking back at where it started, and seeing how far it's come. Sometimes I still struggle with my perception/the worth of my work but I can't deny the happiness its brought me either.

Including a couple other character ship pics under the cut c:

I'm always a little insecure about my ship pics specifically, I'm very bad at comparing myself with others! But I put a lot of love into these and I can see the improvement when I look at them over time. Regardless of anything, they were all made with lots of love and I hope that comes across.

[lemonandlime22]

Hey I was wondering if I could make a request for how the Obey me brothers Mammon, Lucifer, Beel, and Levi would react to an Mc who is easily scared of like horror movies and stuff. Thanks :)

Mammon, Lucifer, Beel, and Levi's reaction to an easily scared Mc

Warning(s): Cussing, a bit suggestive in Luci's to make up for its shortness ;) wtf am I doing, slander, not edited

A/N: np my man (gn) 👍. I'm exhausted while writing this so it's mostly crack and slander lol

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mammon

Bitch SAME!!

He acts a big game

saying he'll protect you an shit

but I will give it to him

he does try

and by try I mean he also jumped at a jump scare and basically tackled you into the couch.

Both of you avoid horror movies like the plague.

He has accidentally taken you to see horror movies in theaters a few times tho,

first time was cause he just walked into the wrong theater and didn't notice till like halfway through

second time was cause he didn't watch any trailers or know a damn thing about the movie,

thought it would have been a nice hangout idea to surprise the both of you.

Overall, he did tease you about it at first until he got jump scared by a trailer and screamed like so loud only Cerberus could hear. After that he shuts up, he doesn't judge you tho.

Lucifer

Asshole finds it adorable.

Ya know that pic he has of Mammon being scared?

yeah he has like 10 of those but with you instead.

He puffs his chest up a bit with a smug lil smile every time you cling to him when you absolutely shitting bricks

I honestly can't say much else other than he's just a dick about it

but what can I say

mans likes it when you shivering and whimpering with your face either in his chest or the crook of his neck

Overall, at least he doesn't let his mostly bratty brothers scare you to much

Beel

Honestly didn't rly notice

he just thought you wanted to cuddle when you jumped into his arms

but when he does eventually realize that your timbers were in fact being shivered,

he'll do his best to protect you and keep you away from anything scary like the good boi he is.

If he can tell a trailer for a horror movie is playing or anything like that, he'll pick you or just guide you away or just cover your eyes before anything scary can happen.

Overall, big boi doesn't judge you one bit, he might help you get over your fears if your willing, but if not that's fine, he enjoys being able to protect and help you.

Levi

Gremlin thinks it's the funniest shit ever

and will 100% make fun of you

pls

throw smth at this crusty bitch

do it for me 😔.

Likes to do an ol' switch-a-ru on ya

he'll ask you to come over to his room for the nice to play something soft and like Minecraft or Stardew valley-

I have no clue if Stardew valley is actually that type of game, I've never played it

-then start up like Five Nights at Freddy's or Little Nightmares or some shit like that to freak you out.

Tho he's not a complete monster

he lets you cuddle into his bathtub bed with his fav plushies and Ruri-chan body pillow.

Overall, he's a dick like his big brother, in fact, he's a bigger one. He judges you big time, even secretly records your gaming nights and posts them on the Devildom equivalent of like Tiktok or YouTube.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[dizzymoogle]

Hello! You've got probably the best collection of FFXV stuff I've ever seen! So I figured if anyone might know where to find some specific pieces of concept art it would be you. On the wiki's concept page there's a couple Niflheim pages (like one with Ravus, one with the Emperor, one that's Loqi and Caligo) and since I've been trying to replicate some of their outfits I've been desperately trying to find that specific source book. No such luck... so I've set aside my considerable social anxiety to ask someone I've come to consider as FFXV's biggest fan ^^ If you've happened to see the ones I'm talking about I'd really appreciate any help finding them!

(Also I really have to say I love all the love for Prompto! He's the best boy and after playing his dlc I've been unable to say no to any of his photo/rest requests bc I love him :') I always loved his outwardly cheerful and relatable attitude but the dlc cemented him as a favorite for me)

I went to take a look at the concept art on the Wiki page, are you by chance referring to these pages?

If so these pages are in the book "The Art of Final Fantasy"

It came with this:

You can find the book for sale by itself possibly on Goods Republic, or on the Japanese version of Mercari. (you would have to use a proxy service like Buyee to purchase it that way though)

As for their outfits, I have pics of them here:

I don't know if that's what you're looking for but I have taken pics of their models in game.

Prompto is a very special character to me, and his DLC is still to this day one of my favorites. I can't say no to him as well when he asks for photo ops etc in game lol I'm always glad to see when he's grown on people :D

And thank you for the kind words!

[donghyuckkies]

Hi there!

Seventeen, Ateez, and Shinee for the ask game if you haven’t done them already?

Also, a photo of Seungkwan just for you!

omg hello that seungkwan pic is lowkey making me blush 😳😳😳

seventeen:

favorite member / bias line kwan > chan > cheol

which member I’d fight (& why) chan cuz he just has that "it's on sight" effect on me

favorite song(s) so so so many of them ;A; here's a playlist i made of my faves

favorite thing about the group they're literally sooooooo in love with eachother and work together so well as a cohesive unit despite the amount of members it's really amazing. like they each have such distinct personalities and i'm sure it must've taken a while for them to learn to appreciate eachother but it's one of their greatest strengths cuz they all contribute their own colours to create amazing works of art. they're another group who continue to raise the bar for kpop groups when it comes to performances with their steady vocals and insanely detailed choreographies. there also isn't a single weak link in the group, like regardless of units each member is a strong dancer and singer. i was late to the carat live but i don't think i'll ever leave cuz i love these boys so much <3

something i’d like to see from them more vacations for them please

ateez:

favorite member / bias line woo > joong > hwa

which member I’d fight (& why) woo and joong lol i feel like i could take them and also would enjoy it

favorite song(s) one again i have a playlist here of my faves

favorite thing about the group they're just so??? dumb and lovely and cute??? and their concepts fucking slap lbr similar to skz they've really got a handle on their sound and it's so uniquely theirs. like they're still pretty young so ofc there's going to be releases that might be more "commercial" in sound as they're trying to expand their audience (imo this was fireworks and deja vu, and maybe even thanxx and inception) but even then they still stick to their style and i love it so much! they're just really cool and fun

something i’d like to see from them moooooore spooky edgy space pirates pls omg

shinee:

favorite member / bias line jonghyun > key > taemin

which member I’d fight (& why) taemin cuz who wouldn't fight taemin

favorite song(s) yes you've guessed it: i've got another playlist here

favorite thing about the group they were the very first group i stanned when i got into kpop back in 2012 and omg they've never let me down we ignore 2013 title track everybody in this house trough the years they've consistently been releasing my fave albums. and don't even get me started on how much i love these boys outside of their musical talents! i'm just so incredibly proud of them and will cry if i think too much about all the things i've been through with them. they've also just been pushing the boundaries of kpop and raising the bar for the industry since debut (which btw was the best debut in kpop fight me). on top of that they each have incredible solo careers! (oh and never forget that their first solo albums were all connected to eachother in design and titles ;A;)

something i’d like to see from them literally nothing but good things for them please they deserve all the love and admiration and happiness in the world

[chaeryybomb]

skz && the little habits they do for their s/o

pairings: skz x reader

genre: headcanons, fluff

warnings: none

a/n: fhjdjfj this is like the first kpop fic I've written in months. I'm still on hiatus for writing so my requests are still closed but I just wanted to post so here this-

##CHAN: chan sends you good morning and goodnight texts everyday. it doesn't even matter if he's on tour and you're on the other side of the world, you will always have a good morning text when you wake up and goodnight text before you sleep. chan is oddly punctuate and it lowkey scares you. you try your best to send him goodnight texts but you know he doesn't sleep so,,, but nevertheless, chan never fails to send you a text every morning and every night because he wants to be the first and last person you speak to every day (●´∀｀●)

##MINHO: sends you selfies of him. I wish I can say they're normal selfies but they're not, they all have a weird filter on. he'll be like "y/n look they have a new filter" and it would be the most weirdest filter you've ever seen. but his selfies are the highlight of your day! (even if you're reluctant to admit it sometimes) whenever you're down, one funny picture from him is enough to make you laugh. sometimes he'll send you selfies before he posts and ask "which one is weirder?". your gallery is literally filled with selfies of him with some weird filter, and if you're lucky enough he might send you a normal selfie-

##CHANGBIN: recommends any song that reminds him of you. it goes from classical ballads to heavy edm music. anything song that reminds him of you, it's put in the "y/n vibes" playlist. literally it can be the most random thing you ever did and he'll still be like "this song reminds me of that time you slip and fell onto the ice" "changbin why". has a whole ass playlist dedicated for you. he either sends you the song or he'll tell you that he added a new song to the playlist. some of the songs are,,, questionable but you feel really understood and honestly can't be annoyed by it. he gets so excited after you listen and even more excited when you send a song for him. he doesn't tell you but he secretly has a bunch of songs written for you that he hope he can show you one day :')

##HYUNJIN: takes random pictures of you. his phone is FILLED with pictures of you. he always brings his camera whenever y'all are out on dates because he wants to capture every moment with you. he thinks you look pretty in every angle and just can't resist snapping a pic or two (or more fjdjfjd) literally all your Instagram pictures are taken by hyunjin himself. you always beg him to delete the pictures because you think you look ugly in them but he always refuses. I mean, you're literally the epitome of beauty, why would he want to delete them??? secretly you do it to him too cause two can play this game! both of your phones are filled with each other pictures okay and hyunjin is always staring at your pictures when he misses you before he decides to call you

##JISUNG: is always playing with your fingers. whenever the both of you are together, his hand is always in yours. when you're walking, he laces his hand with yours and swing it side by side. when you're sitting next to each other, he reaches over to grab your hand and start to fiddle with your fingers. this is why you're always together, his hand is literally glued to yours at this point. when you're having movie nights with the boys, he holds your hand under the blanket and subconsciously start to rub circles on your palm with his thumb. you always ask him why and he tells you he just wants to do it but it gives him a sense of comfort

##FELIX: buying you your favourite snacks. felix will always remember what your favourite snacks are. literally from chips to candy to your favourite soft drink. if he ever sees them when he's out for shopping or for a walk, he will literally buy it for you (lowkey an excuse to see you). even if he's in another country, he'll buy a bunch of snacks that he knows you will like. bonus points he cooks your favourites for you. this is why he's always at your door with a bag filled of snacks. you tell him that he doesn't have to do it every time because you feel bad but he tells he does it cause he wants to. and if you're a foreigner, you can bet he makes food from you're childhood whenever you're homesick. he's literally the sweetest boy

##SEUNGMIN: he likes to buy you small trinkets. seungmin remembers anything you want to buy, even if you mention it once or spare a glance at something. you can bet it's gonna be your next birthday present. I think seungmin has good memory, if there's ever a place like a store or restaurant you wanted to go, he takes you there like the next day. you're always shocked when he presents it to you because these are the things you don't mention often. he surprises you almost every time. of course, he doesn't want you to feel in debt towards is what he always tell you. but you can't help but feel like that so sometimes you would surprise him with little gifts from you! he's not the only observant one in this relationship

##JEONGIN: is always carrying your bag for you. it was habit he developed from school when he would wait for you after clubs and stuff, he'll casually take your bag from the class for you. now whenever y'all are out on dates, he'll would automatically move to take your bag from you. like he'll hold it for you when you go to the bathroom and then hold the bag for you for the entire date. at first you would be confused but jeongin would just grab your hand and continue walking as if it was nothing. when you mention it to him, he doesn't notice that he would always do it. "huh I guess it turn into a habit," he would tell you. you don't mind that he carries your bag for you since he doesn't mind either. he likes to flex that he has the strength to do so because he's been working out with his hyungs fhjfjd

[dredreadsdrawing]

Oc-tober Day 7: Fear

Hoohoo i suck at shading :'0 The second pic was the firdt concept art I drew of these gals. Then came the pencil sketches and lastly the one on top.

I've already got a Quickie summary of this story in my writing blog explaining who these characters are and what's going on, link HERE. So for this piece, I'll write the scene I drew lol. In it, only Kylee and the Wrath kid are left, but before they get a showdown, God gives them one last mercy. A night without worries. Anything they want, they will grant. Btw, I have decided on official names for these gals. Kylee the fangirl and Paloma the patient ghost.

~~~~

This was it.

Tomorrow, everything was bound to come to an end.

It felt unreal to Kylee. How far she's come, her numerous near death experiences, how nice their room was. God really knew how to treat em when they weren't being careless.

Still, God's assurance of a last peaceful night was a load off their shoulders. A blessing, you might even say.

Chevre left the scene immediately, deciding to spend their last day as a ghost doing their own kooky things. They felt robbed for not dying sooner to do it.

That left Kylee and Paloma, the original duo, to spend the night alone. Just like the good ol days.

They tried the hot tub, snacked on expensive sweets, watched Kylee's favorite episodes of her favorite shows, and had a great time.

Just like normal girls their age would spend a sleepover.

When it got super late, the magic of the tranquility was wearing off. Reality settled back in. Tomorrow was the end. No more fighting, no more floating. The ghosts would be reborn and someone new would be God.

A child. Both contestants left were underage.

And they had to fight eachother to the death. Kylee and Paloma agreed that if she won, she would pick older candidates next time. No kid should go through what she's gone.

Circling back to the competition, they talked about their opponent and his many helpers. They'd seen how ruthless he was. Opportunistic and never one to hesitate. He was a tough rival for sure.

Kylee got quiet for a bit, and Paloma squeezed her shoulder.

"Come on, cookie. Let's sleep early."

They snuggled onto the bed. Two had been accommodated for them, but they were used to sleeping in the same one. It was their piece of comfort.

After settling down, Kylee worded her next question carefully. She had already asked it before, when she first saw Paloma as a ghost, but it didn't hurt to have the answer retold.

What was it like to die?

Paloma stiffened. Her eyes softened. Her voice cracked a bitter smile.

"It hurts. Especially when you start struggling back. But once it's done, all you get is wave after wave of relief. Like when you ace a test you didn't study for." She laughed. It ended breathily.

Kylee didn't like her expression. She had seen it come up a lot in the past few days. And she knew exactly what it meant. She brought Paloma closer and held her face. Looking into her eyes, she asked as quietly as she could.

"... have you regretted it?"

Paloma shivered. Her eyes burst. She whimpered, and Kylee immediately brought her to her chest, letting her cry. Not a single tear stained her shirt.

"I was... So sure I did the right thing..."

"You did..."

Kylee remembered those first days. How surprisingly proud she seemed to have taken her own life. To be done with life and humanity. But as time wore on, her sentiments changed.

"I couldn't help it... I wondered... What would have happened if..."

She paused as sge choked on her words. Kylee gave her a pat. "It's ok..."

"No, it's not!" Paloma got up, her face a darker shade. "We could have been a team. We could have stuck together for as long as we could. Or- I could have been in your shoes right now. I could have been the one that made it to the end. Instead of putting all this pressure.... For you to do the right things."

Paloma was calming down, she rubbed her eyes. Kylee helped brush a tear from her cheek.

"I'm sorry I died so fast."

The words stung. Kylee wasn't taking this.

"Don't say that! If one of us is the bad one... It's... Me."

Kylee rubbed her arm. Paloma shook her head. "Not this again, Kylee-"

"I was a jerk. I admit it. I knew what was going on with you but I never stepped in. Really, Palo," Kylee started hyperventilating. Paloma rushed to embrace her. Their roles had effectively switched.

"If I had reached out to you sooner... If I was more involved... Someone better..." Kylee took Paloma's hand. Together, they squeezed them.

"If I was someone like you..."

"Stop it..."

So many what ifs lingered in their minds. So many paths they could have taken. Together.

But here they were, stuck. One as a ghost and the other possibly becoming a deity. About to fight for the right to be.

"Atleast... I got to show you my favorite stores. .." Paloma laughed at the memory of Kylee dragging her around unwillingly.

"We didn't even buy anything. You just had us people watch the entire day."

"But you had a good time anyways, didn't you?" The smiles are back. Paloma tilts her head and rests it on Kylee's shoulder.

"I did..."

While her death was premature, she had to count the small blessing that was her ability to stick to Kylee as a ghost. She got to see more than the bubble she knew. She got to make friends. And...

Kylee couldn't help the kiss she gave Paloma's forehead. Paloma's face burst and she laughed.

She got to feel so loved.

"Okay, Ms. God, settle back down. Tomorrow is... A big day."

Kylee snickered as she laid back down, Paloma following. After another small silence, Kylee's big mouth continued asking.

"If I win... What kind of life do you want?"

They hadn't touched the topic of Paloma's reincarnation.

The reality of her living without Kylee was too much.

Still, now that it was a serious possibility... This was a talk they needed to have. Paloma moved away a bit.

"Well, you're so creative Kylee, I'm sure you'll give me the best life..."

"But... I want to know what YOU want!"

Paloma was stunned for a bit, touched. Kylee really cared for her opinion. The selfish onlooker she first met was long gone.

"I'm being honest..." Paloma looked away. "I want whatever you give me. I trust you."

Kylee's stomach sank. She felt the weight of the world on her shoulders, now more than ever.

Paloma looked back at Kylee's serious expression, and she laughed some more. This was too serious for their last night together. "Stop worrying about it, cookie." She laid back down ans snuggled to her side. "Worry about surviving tomorrow. Only you can guarantee me that happy ending."

Kylee's gut sank further. It was the truth, but the pressure was on. She watched Paloma close her eyes and over time, drift away, her sleep as sound as when she was alive.

But Kylee couldn't follow, couldn't even stand to blink. Her anxiety was at an all time high. She had to win. She had to make it up to Paloma. She would be a good god, and rule like her girlfriend would.

Kylee's eyes watered again, mourning prematurely the departure to come. She looked to the ceiling. She would make Paloma happy. She knew her favorite foods, her favorite books, her favorite everything. She would give her the world on a platter, make her have the most fulfilling life. From wealth, to friends, to health and romance. Romance.

Yes.

Kylee was a multishipper. Kylee knew people could mesh well with more than one person. She could find Paloma another lover, a better one!

She would be fine.

Her stomach's knots stayed in place, no matter how long she repeated that phrase.

Yeah, Paloma would be fine.

But Kylee wouldn't.

Kylee had gotten what she wanted.

She would be alone now. Free from societal conventions. Free to do what she wanted. Free to people watch, free to bend wills, free to mess around and turn her ideas into reality.

She will find her own happiness. Somehow. The sentiment felt hollow in her chest.

Panic set in again.

What was she doing? What had she done?

She turned and looked at Paloma's face once more.

If she didn't win... There would be no more world. No more Kylee. No more Paloma.

These were her only options. Stay alone forever, or lose everything.

For the first time since the start of the game, she felt afraid of the outcome.

[forkanna]

[AO3 LINK] [EF LINK]

NOTE: NaNoWriMo is in full swing! I told you I would try my best to update while it's going on and I will, even though it's obviously not as frequent as other months. Enjoy!

Yeah, I have no idea what went on over at the Chau residence. They took a few pictures of me on their phones to at least have examples ready, but it would have been pretty annoying to stick me in the back of the car — and besides, Stephen made a really good point that I might shatter if they dropped me, so after that nobody much wanted to take responsibility for schlepping the stone girl around.

But I got the general synopsis of what I missed from listening to their chatter. And thank GOD I finally had some entertainment, because lying around in an empty house all by yourself when you can't move is just about the most boring fucking thing ever.

Knives had her mom translate for her, since she can't speak Chinese, and asked her father if he knew any way to undo a spell, or curse, or mutation, or whatever the fuck this was that made people turn into rock-people. At first he said something a teensy bit racist that nobody would repeat, and then he asked for how the symptoms started. When they explained that it started from a feeling, and showed him the pic of my stomach, he kind of figured out what she would need.

Apparently, the house was quiet for so long because they had to go back to that place where Scott got the Soft and head to "Giant World", whatever that means. When they came back, they had another potion that was supposed to do something else. All I got was its name, not what it was supposed to do.

"So once Knives takes the Micron, we'll all stand watch," Steph was saying. Being a little older than everybody but Wallace — when did he show up? — she had kind of elected herself in charge. Also, nobody else wanted to be in charge, anyway. "Take turns. Like, I'm not sure what we can do, but we have to be ready just in case…"

"How long do we think this is gonna take?" Wallace asked, glancing at his trendy chronometer. "I'm supposed to meet up with Mobile at the new club where the Rockit used to be. Supposed to be a lot more catered toward our particular tastes now."

Knives's bottom lip quivered. "You don't care what happens to Kim, do you?"

"In an overall sense? Sure I do… but you guys didn't even remember my birthday. Tit for tat, you know."

"Hopeless," Stephen sighed. "No wonder Joseph hates you."

His trim eyebrow went up very slightly. "That catty bitch hates everyone. Can we get down to business? Kim's life hangs in the balance, just like my punctuality. They're both pretty important. Besides, I'm the only one here who can feed Knives any chi once she's through the gates; you need me as an E Tank."

"Fine!" Huffing, Knives grabbed the potion and downed it in one gulp. There were a few gasps, and Steph said something about "but we weren't through planning!" but it was too late; she had taken the plunge. And I was kinda glad, because at least now I would get to find out what the hell they were talking about, since they were leaving out so many details due to not bothering to include me in their conversation.

Not that I could talk back, anyway. But I could hear.

At first, we thought nothing had happened. Then I could tell something was weird. Everybody in the room was getting taller! Wait, that wasn't it… Knives was getting shorter. And shorter… she was shrinking right in front of my eyes.

"Hurry!" Stephen hissed, and Steph picked her up and sat her on my stomach once she was about toddler-sized. She kept going, slipping down my stomach when she was about the size of a Lego figurine, and then I couldn't see her anymore on the other side of my boobs.

At first, I thought that was it; that she had disappeared, and I felt a panic that I couldn't properly express while held suspended in this pavemential state of being. What the fuck had they done to my girlfriend?! But then I saw Steph bend down and do something else, holding her hand against my stomach.

"Hurry up… oh God, I hope Wallace knows how to use that thing."

WHAT thing?

"Me, too," he sighed as he pulled on the red fingerless glove. "Seems simple enough."

Shit. That thing. And I couldn't even scream as he slapped me in the forehead.

                                                          ~ o ~

When I woke up, I didn't know where I was. I mean, I was definitely nowhere I had ever been before, and I kind of accepted that much… but still, why was the sky all pink? Why was the ground day-glow blue? Why was the path leading into the far distance so gold and shiny? Why was everything moving a little, like I was actually living inside a heat haze? Just freaking psycho crap.

And there she was.

"Knives!" At first she didn't turn around, but when I shouted again, she finally did — and took a huge leap backward.

"AAAAHHH! A GHOST!"

"A what?" Looking down, I saw that I was half-invisible, and my legs disappeared into a wispy thingy. Reminded me of an actual cartoon ghost, but the tops of my legs were still pretty distinct. "Oh. Well, that's annoying."

Her hand reached out, drew back again, and then reached forward to touch my legs… and she passed right through. She shivered as she whispered, "Whoa."

"Yeah, um, don't do that again."

"Okay. Oh, Kim! I'm so glad you're okay! Kind of!" She moved to hug me, then remembered and drew back again. "Oh, oops. Sorry."

"It's okay. God… I'm such a mess, I didn't mean to make everybody… well, anyway, it's too late now. What are we doing here?"

"Huh? Oh, right! You know, that whole thing you told me about? We have to fix that or we can't reverse this, since we didn't get to it in time. So I took the Micron because I'm the one with the most training, and my dad has this thing in Brazil he has to take care of so he can't."

"What? I mean… damn, how long do you think we might be in here?"

Looking apologetic, she whispered, "He said… maybe a couple years?"

"YEARS?!"

"Or not! It could only take a few hours, if we don't get hung up on the Rubik's Cube."

"Rubik's-" Only then did I catch on. My eyes narrowed in utter disbelief, waiting for her to yell "PSYCH" or something, but she didn't. "Wait. You're talking about all that bullshit I spewed at you when we first started hanging out again, aren't you?"

"Yeah! I mean, I'm ready for the rhino and the warthog, I'm pretty sure, but the rest I'll… have to… what is it, Kim?" she asked when she could tell I was even paler than a spirit already would be.

"It was all a lie. I mean… a joke, but I didn't expect you to actually believe me, and I never got the chance to tell you any differently because you ran off." Sighing, I turned away slightly, not wanting to look at her right then. "If this isn't some kind of crazy fever dream, or rock-dream or ghost-dream or whatever, and you're actually trying to fight your way through my body… then I think you're wasting your time. I have no idea what's about to happen to you in here."

"Well, that's okay," she said instantly. "We'll just figure out what the challenges are if they're different. I'm even stronger than I was before, you know; I kept up my training since all that happened at the Chaos Theater. Knives Chau is buff and knows her stuff!"

Gritting my ghostly teeth, I hissed, "Don't you get it? I want you to leave. Stop trying to help me, I'm obviously more trouble than I'm worth. Just… just go."

For a few seconds, everything was quiet. Then I saw her walking down the road into the distance. I was relieved for just a second; relieved and sad. At least Knives would be okay.

Then she called back to me, "You coming, or are you just gonna hang around here in the middle of your stomach?"

Once I caught up, trying not to let my pleased smile be seen by anyone, I asked her, "Stomach?"

"Sure. The portal is in your belly button; the only way in past the stone. Well, we could have tried your ears or nose, but the journey to your heart would have been a little longer, and we couldn't be sure of the path. This seems like a straight shot."

"Oh. Well… I mean, um… I don't really get this. Why are you trying so hard for me? I suck as a girlfriend, and I suck as a friend. All I did was kind of… hang around you and be grumpy all the time. Then statue-ified myself. "

That got her to stop walking and blink at me a few times. "You really think that's all you gave me, Kim?"

"Well… yeah."

"Don't be dumb. You were so sweet."

"ME?!"

"Yes, you," she giggled as she resumed, setting a swift pace. Not that I minded, since floating alongside her didn't seem to make me any more or less tired. "Sure, you tried to bury it under like, your whole 'cool' attitude, but I've… never had anybody make me dinner before besides my mom. And you were always there to talk to and you really listened to my babble, and we could always play games or watch TV, and you were so awesome about not rushing me with sex stuff… held my hand. Kissed my cheeks. Made me feel important to you, even though I could tell it was really hard for you to do that. Gosh, Kim, who wouldn't love you?"

For a few minutes, all I could do was float alongside her. Something about this inner-spirit state I was in prevented me from crying, but I definitely wanted to be. Was kind of frustrating, actually, needing that emotional release and being unable to have it. But I certainly had no words to follow up hers with.

When we got to the outer gates, it looked like a giant walled city, and the multiple colours of the doorframe reminded me of Fruit Stripe gum for some reason. Anyway, as I had been worrying about… there were the guards. Giant mutant animals that just barely weren't copies of villains from an old cartoon I loved when I was little.

"Oh wow, okay," she breathed, whipping out a couple of her huge daggers. "Do you know their weaknesses? Because like, if I can stand on that piece of wall and stab down with my weapon continually-"

"Did you say… you love me?"

"What? Oh, um… yeah, I think I did? Is that okay?"

My noncorporeal eyes nearly bugged out of their invisible sockets. She started to look even less sure of herself, glancing back and forth between me and the enemies. So I quickly said, "Yeah, yeah. It's great. I mean, uh… sorry. Just never had anyone… say that to me before. Damn."

"Hmmm. Didn't know a ghost could blush."

"What?!"

"Kidding," she giggled just as my hands went up toward my face. "Come on, let's get this done. I want to help you."

Humming to myself, I tilted my head up in their direction. "No idea. But I have this vague feeling that if we kick one of their asses, they'll both go down. Well, if you do. Not sure I'll be much help like this."

"Might as well try it!" Then she started sprinting for them. "HEY YOU GUYS!"

That… was not how I would have handled it.

                                                          To Be Continued…