#also me struggling to spell silhouette like 15 times

[ohno-the-sun]

Oh uh forgot to ask in the previous ask (the one with the digital piece of candy and scurrying and stuff)

How do you draw art so good

Like

Is there a method you use or is that just the style you've gotten over time?

you've activated my trap card

I'm just gonna preface that this tutorial is from someone who was not professionally trained and didn't have a lot of free time for art, so a lot of the tips I have is short cuts I use to get the best results quickly

If you genuinely want to get better at art then please look at references and practice that is always the best

However if you are like me and only really do art for fun but want to go faster then these are for you pfppt

Overall I'd say my style is influenced by speedpaints I would watch when I was younger, I like analyzing how people do things and what makes something look "good" to me

I always recommend watching them because they will often have techniques you've never seen before or do things a certain way that you can try out yourself

I consume good art, it feeds me

but seriously it can be super helpful when developing your own methodology, or just generally trying something new

Usually it starts with me pulling some references from artists I really admire and sort of sketching out how they do the things I like

For example 8um8le has like super good anatomy and poses so I focused on trying to replicate how they do that

venemous-qwille is super good at color and pulling focus so that's what I focused on in my study of them

In general I'd say my process is sketch -> silhouette -> color -> shading -> render

I really don't like doing lineart lol

I'd say for the sketch the most important part is using references and just kind of fudging it until it looks correct anatomically/physically

General rule of thumb is spend time on areas of interest, and keep non important areas light (like the stitching on his pants)

I don't do lineart because I think its unnecessary for most paintings I do

I naturally tend to put more time and focus on areas of interest (like hands and feet) and if you use a brush with opacity for the sketch, those areas are naturally going to be darker in the final sketch

Of course this is gonna be different for everyone but it's what works for me

Sometimes I do a really really sketchy layer underneath my sketch/lineart, just so I know where everything is going

Use thumbnails! They are great to help figure out the general layout of things and what pose I wanna do

Next is what I call the "silhouette" layer

This is super important for me cause it helps me refine the figure and make sure the pose/anatomy looks correct, also depending on what color I choose for the silhouette helps guide what colors I'm going to use on top

This piece is a good example of how it works. The silhouette shows me how the figure interacts with the background, how the pose looks and if its any good

The silhouette layer doesn't have to be super clean, as long as it follows the sketch decently well and shows where the figure is then its fine

I also sometimes make the silhouette layer multiple colors to help guide shading and vibe

Next is the coloring layer. I usually make this a clipping layer on top of the silhouette layer, or I change the silhouette layer to alpha lock, either way it saves me time on coloring everything in

Sometimes I am super rough with the coloring too, using like an airbrush or my fav watercolor brush just to generically block in color where I want it

Works out cause most objects have like a bounce light to them from surrounding objects, so this is sort of a cheat I use to get that effect without all the work lol

Also don't be afraid to have the lower silhouette layer shining through, having multiple colors sort of subtly shining through the piece helps lots

Next is the shading layer, this is usually another clipping layer, usually set to "multiply"

The colors I pick here is usually within this range, any color works, just depends on the piece and vibes.

Since this piece is set in a sunset forest I choose a more desaturated orange for the shading layer

I know there's a whole thing about multiply layer being a crutch (and it kind of it) but it is a useful tool when you just want some darker values across the piece but don't want to go through the process of color picking every single darker shade

Also in my opinion it looks better than picking a darker color and setting it to a lower opacity, idk I just think the color has more "depth"

Next is the hardest to explain, sort of the vibes layer

Usually its just a layer of more concentrated color on top of the normal color and I fudge with the settings and values until I get a result I like

Next is the longest step, is the "extra" or the render stage.

Usually I add a background before this step so that if I need to merge the figure better with the background I can

If I render with a white background but he's supposed to be in a dark forest, its going to mess with the lighting severely

Also this is when I add more "vibe" layers on top to get the figure to match the background better

Backgrounds in general I recommend checking out @/derekdomnicdsouza on instagram he's got lots of great tutorials for breaking down backgrounds simply

I'd say general rule for the rendering layer is to focus on the areas of interest and spend less time on areas you don't care about

I even blur stuff out on the edges I don't want people to see, partially to save time on fixing mistakes in areas I dont care about (oop), but mainly to help draw the eye to the areas I do want people to focus on

Theoretically parts of the background should like mesh with the characters, parrallel lines are a no no unless they are directing a viewer to look somewhere, things that are perpendicular help bring things together

tbh I'm still not the best at layout and probably need more practice, but overall this is what I like doing

Overall this is what my layer set up ends up being

Sort of a sandwich with the lineart/sketch as the "meat" lol

Color and basic shading below the sketch, clean-up and rendering on top

I like this method cause it's super flexible if I ever want to try something different or try to replicate someone's style

I can make each step less or more messy depending on the end result and can add a lineart layer if need be. Also if there's a part that is straight up not working or needs to be removed its super easy to do cause I can just paint over it on the "extras" layer, color picking from the surrounding area to get the same vibe

Generally rule of thumb for my style is: get the initial layout of colors, form and shading to look good, then the rendering should be smooth sailing

Really the best advice I can give to get better at art is to enjoy what you're doing and become very very obsessed with drawing a silly little guy

You'll eventually get very good at drawing them pfptpf

[diyunho]

The Joker x Reader - “Incubus”

Incubus is a special type of metahuman that can enter people’s mind and the only one known to possess such abilities is Y/N. Captured by an underground agency and forced to obey orders, she has a new task today: to get inside The Joker’s head and find out where he stashed half a billion dollars after he pulled what everybody calls “the heist of the century”.

“Regression will begin shortly,” one of the doctors announces on the intercom. “Prepare for countdown.”

You lay on the cold metal table next to the Joker’s body: he’s medicated into a dreamless sleep, ready to have you purge his mind for the answer to the burning question: where did he stash half a billion dollars?

After being arrested two weeks ago, The King of Gotham refused to speak and disclose any information to the authorities; they tried everything: drugs, blackmail, best intimidation tactics and psychologists without success.

J didn’t crack.

Fed up with the puzzling mystery, CIA decided to use the top secret research facility operating under the grid where the infamous Incubus is held prisoner.

“A few reminders,” the flat voice echoes in the sealed laboratory. “Do not attempt to elude us, we have your little girl! If you aim to play us we’ll revoke visiting time.”

You blankly stare at the ceiling, upset they repeat the same rules when you’re forced to use your powers; the 15 minutes you’re allowed to spend with Mia on Saturdays is all you live for since they incarcerated both of you six months ago.

How you wish you could kill them but they found a solution to prevent you from rebelling.

“Please note that in case you plan to get inside our brains and compel us to stop breathing, your daughter will die. Confirm acknowledgement.”

“Confirm,” you bitterly reply because it hurts to have your child endangered; you could end them right this moment if it wasn’t for her.

Unfortunately, they found a way to subdue your terrific ability: the crew assigned to project Incubus carries portable heart monitoring devices 24/7; they resemble wrist watches and if just one individual’s pulse deactivates, it will set of the explosive in Mia’s collar. The 5 years old has no clue that what she believes to be a cute necklace is actually a device meant to eradicate her.

“Countdown to regression,” the clinician reports and the speakers carry his words around the room. “Five, four, three, two, one. Initiate!”

**************

You walk in the darkness, surprised you didn’t bump into memories yet: usually that’s the first thing you stumble upon when invading a person’s subconscious. He’s been under your spell for 10 minutes now and the void proves his twisted mind is probably worse than anyone thinks: The Clown is lost in the maze of his own insanity.

A couple more steps and you finally distinguish four doors ahead which means you’ll be able to analyze The Joker’s recollections.  

First Door

The little boy cries in the middle of the room and you slowly approach, wondering if you should interfere or just observe. But tears fall from those innocent blue eyes and the fact that he’s maybe your daughter’s age makes you decide.

“Why are you crying?” you kneel by the young Joker and he wipes his face with the sleeves of his raggedy shirt:

“My mommy died.”

“Did she? I’m sorry… Do you miss her?” you manipulate the conversation since warping his thoughts might lead to your quest: discovering where the money is.

“U-hum,” he nods and asks. “I don’t like it at the orphanage, I want to go home…”

“Perhaps I can help,” you pull him in your arms and he whispers:

“Who are you?”

“Your worst nightmare,” Y/N sadly concludes because it doesn’t bring her joy to distort an already broken mind, nevertheless she‘s here bearing a clear purpose. “It’s ok,” you hold the child and soothe him. “I’m sorry this happened to you.”

The little boy whimpers, clinging to the stranger showing him kindness then vanishes in thin air: you got rid of a painful memory and replaced it with a nicer one.

Now The Joker will remember that someone comforted him when in reality it never happened.

Second Door

The young man is standing in front of the burning cottage while the firefighters are struggling to put out the blaze. He’s covered in ashes and his lips are barely moving; you can hardly discern what he keeps on repeating:

“They’re still inside… they’re still inside…”

The 24 years old Joker is numb and all you can conclude he seemed so different back in the day.

“Who’s inside?” you inquire and he glimpses your way without realizes he’s in shock.

“My wife and son. I couldn’t save them… I didn’t make it to the second level, the flames were too strong…”

You bend over and grab the blanket resting at his feet, placing it around his shoulders.

“I’m sorry they’re gone, you did everything you could.”

He glares at the Incubus for a split moment before disappearing: you just lift the burden of a horrifying experience and now The Joker will remember that someone offered consolation when in reality it never happened.

Third Door

The man is sitting on the floor with his back against the padded wall, tightly confined inside his straight jacket. He keeps screaming, then maniacally laughing and sobbing in the same time while straining to escape the garment.

“Calm down,” you slide near him. “You’ll hurt yourself if you continue.”

The 27 years old tries to articulate a couple of coherent sounds before reprising his yelling.

“Stop squirming,” you cup his face and make him pay attention. “Look at me. Relax,” you caress his cheeks. “Deep breaths, ok?” you plead with the madman. “Sssttt, it’s fine…” Y/N stares in his eyes and the shouting gradually dies out. “There you go,” you brush your forehead on J’s prior to him fading away: you switched a terrible incident into better conclusion by mimicking sympathy when in reality it never happened.  

Fourth Door

You’re surprised to notice The Joker talking to shadows: a woman and a little girl judging by their silhouettes; he resembles the most wanted criminal lying 10 inches apart from you in the secured establishment pushing you to accomplish their instructions.

A recent memory? Does it mean he has another family?...

You want to come closer and the sight of the contours disappearing is intriguing; The Clown rubs his temples and you can tell he’s distressed.

“What’s going on?” you dig in his brain for responses.

“They took my Queen and my Princess!” he grinds his teeth with resentment.

“Do you know where they are?”

“Yes,” J grumbles and evaporates saying a baffling phrase: ”I have to find the perfect plan in order to reclaim what’s mine!”

So weird the memory dispersed before you misled the truth in your favor … What the heck is going on?!...

The Cell

No rooms left and you stroll in the murkiness again, angry your scheme didn’t lead towards a better result: oddly enough The King of Gotham failed to unveil extra hints that could have aid you in discovering where the fortune he snatched is.

“Hello sugar,” the raspy intonation halts you in your tracks.

Y/N detects the heavy bars forming this square shaped cell containing what she suspects to be a version of The Joker; it’s difficult to restrain her astonishment since she’s witnessing a rare phenomenon: nothing less than a mind prison.

Jackpot! If he buried something deep inside and locked it even from himself it could mean you reached your destination.

“It’s nice to have visitors,” the eerie apparition chuckles. “It gets lonely.”

“I bet,” you pout. “Why don’t you break free?”

He kicks the bars, enraged he has to explain:

“I’m sure a superior creature such as the lady joining me knows a mind prison can only be opened from the outside!”

He’s self-aware! This is absolutely unbelievable: humans are never conscious within the deepest layers of their psyche.

“You are correct: you can only open it from the outside,” you agree. “What’s your name?”

“Joker. What’s yours?”

“Y/N.”

“Duh, I know,” he snickers and lets his tattooed arms hang loose outside the bars. “You have a kid, right?”

He sees your doubt and his gratification builds up to new highs.

“Yes.”

“What’s her name?”

“How do you know it’s a she?!” you counterattack with a quiz.

Damn, this whole charade is getting more and more fascinating by the second!

“I know soooooo many things,” the entity yawns. “For example I’m sure you wonder how I ended up in here.”

No sign you would deny his rambling thus he enlightens the riddle:

“Some are born with certain “gifts”, some develop them after a traumatic experience. I’m the lucky recipient of the latest, although I was locked in here from day one. If I had someone shatter the seal and by someone I mean you,” he points his finger at the smirking Y/N, “I could help you run from the place you hate. Tell me I’m wrong, but aren’t you trapped also?”

“You’re sneaky, I’ll give you that,” you laugh at his attempts to influence your actions.

“And you’re too powerful not to realize what’s going on! Snap out of it!!!” he hisses. “Are you single sugar?” the anger building up makes Y/N frown.

“None of your business!”

“Humor me, I beg,” he emphasizes the words.

“Yes,” you scoff and his demeanor doesn’t lower your guard.

“Are you 100% certain you’re not married?”

“What’s this nonsense?!” you sneer at the stupid conversation.

“Maybe you don’t remember because you created your own mind prison where you chained crucial data in order to protect the ones you love after you were captured. What’s your daughter’s name?” he sulks and you grumble.

“Mia.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course I am; do you think I don’t know my child’s name?”

“And you think I don’t recognize my own wife standing in front of me??!!!!” he snaps at your hesitation. “Set me free! Set me free and I’ll show you! I can get inside your mind and unlock your cage: you’ll remember everything!”

“Who do you think you’re talking to?!” you growl at the absurd sentences: like his devious tactic would work on you!

“I’m talking to the Incubus, am I not?”

Your mouth opens in amazement since there is no way in hell he could know that.

“Do I have your attention now?” the beast reprimands. “Good! Here’s what you deliberately forgot: nobody knows that we’re married, it’s better that way; yet a woman with your capabilities is bound to attract unwanted attention anyway. When we got together, we had a deal: you’ll never get inside my head and you consented. No? Doesn’t ring a bell?...” he cracks his joints. “After they took you and Emma from me…”

“Who’s Emma?” you interrupt, more and more convinced there’s something fishy happening inside The Joker’s subconscious.

“Our daughter, her name is not Mia, you just replaced it after you were both kidnapped in order to sever all connections with the past. Can’t blame you: it’s a great strategy given the circumstances: create a mind prison, hide everything connected to protect me and her. Last thing you needed was for them to find out we are actually acquainted in the most intimate way. That would have been a disaster! Do you know why I stole half a billion dollars and let them catch me? I knew that if I do that they’ll use everything possible under the sun to make me spill the beans. When all fails, won’t they flaunt the last ace in their sleeve? That’s how I got here sugar, it was the ultimate goal. I can’t function without my girls so I came to get them!”

“Listen here,” your menacing attitude takes over. “Who do you take me for?! Your fictional tale is starting to piss me off so I advise you to quit before I make your neurons crumble to pieces!”

“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear it,” the feral beast sniffs the air. “You always kept your end of the bargain and never got in here before to poke the past. I respect that, sugar. Now I had no choice besides letting you in.”

“Stop it! Stop your lies!! You’re nothing more than a projection of The Joker’s mind!”

“Ahhhh,” the evil grin flourishes behind the silver teeth. “I am so much more than that. Do you want to get out of this facility? I suggest you set me free and I will prove I’m telling the truth!”

“Bullshit! What can you do anyway?! I can kill everyone and run, but my daughter will die!”

“Not if I help: you can make them stop breathing and I could keep the hearts beating until we get the key that unlocks Emma’s collar! It’s a dual team mission.”

“Her name is Mia! How do you know about the collar?!” the dumbfounded Y/N mumbles.

“Weren’t you listening? I know a lot of things!”

“Even if we assume you aren’t lying, how will you keep their hearts beating?!”

“Set me free and I’ll show you! SET. ME. FREE!!!!!! Or we are fucking doomed! Set me free!” he punches the bars. “Set me free and I’ll open your mind prison! You’ll realize each word I uttered is genuine! You’ll remember all of it! SET! ME! FREE!!! What do you have to lose, huh? Nothing! Do it!! Do it!!!!”

“How could you get inside my mind?! I’m a metahuman!”

“Goddamnit! SET ME FREE AND I’ll SHOW YOU!!!!! Do you want your daughter to perish in this place?! Do you???!!!”

You definitely are beyond skeptical; still… at least he’s correct about this: you have nothing to lose; you approach with caution and part the bars enough for the trapped entity to squeeze outside.

“Thank you honey,” he clumsily bows and before you can react he snatches in his arms and kisses you.

Y/N feels this electrifying sensation taking over, stupefied to understand what it means: she just unleashed another Incubus. And she always thought she was the only one!

You gasp for air and open your eyes, processing all the recovered memories rushing through your brain: your own mind prison was opened as promised.

You tilt your head to look at The Clown and he grabs your hand, panting:

“Are you ready sugar?”

**************

People keep falling to the ground, each step bringing you closer to your freedom. Emma’s face is buried in your neck as you jump over corpses on the way out of the underground laboratory:

“No peeking!” The Joker scolds and her little hands hold you tighter while obeying.

“Ok daddy.”

“Don’t be scared,” you kiss her cheek and continue the rampage towards the exit.

Screams intensify around the three detainees escaping their faith: the adults can’t afford any weakness or grant mercy to the ones that showed them none.

In the end, what is more terrifying than one Incubus that could plunge the world into complete darkness?

The answer is simple: two of them.

 Also read: MASTERLIST

You can also follow me on Wattpad and AO3 under the same blog name: DiYunho.

[mellz117]

Hello all and welcome to part 4 of my playthrough of KH2 on the PS2. If you haven't seen the previous entries please go do that.

[ _1_ ] [ _2_ ] [ _3_ ]

To recap: The Wonders of Twilight Town are boring as hell. We spoke to Namine again, Roxas finally realizes his life this week is a lie and starts to remember his life in the Organization. DiZ is racist against Nobodies but we already knew that. Roxas and Axel fight, I wanted to cry. Roxas meets Sora in his sleeping pod before disappearing, I wanted to cry.

And the adventure continues

I wanna know how Sora wakes up in the real world when Roxas merges with him in the virtual one. How in CoM does Sora go to sleep in Castle Oblivion, the whole-ass chamber and then some get transferred to Twilight Town, Roxas meets him in a virtual version of the mansion, and Sora wakes up in the real mansion in KH2? Nomura please explain this series. Is Final Fantasy ever this convoluted?

Donald and Goofy call out to Sora and we're once again reminded this is a Disney game. I don’t know why but the fact that Disney owns the original Kingdom Hearts characters bothers me. It means, unless DISNEY gives the OK, Sora will never be in Smash Bros. and that makes me sad.

I don't know much about comas but after a year of total inactivity, wouldn't your muscles atrophy like, A BUNCH? At least is wasn’t 7... OR VENTUS WITH A WHOLE DECADE WTF?

Again WHY COULDN'T JIMINY JUST KEEP EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED IN CHAIN OF MEMORIES WRITTEN DOWN IN HIS JOURNAL INSTEAD OF A CRYPTIC MEMO TO THANK NAMINE?

The trinity trio wanders out of the mansion, loot some chests, and find their way to the back alleys of town.

Hayner is rude RIGHT outta the gate, wow. Ok I remember that Pence actually met Roxas in Days, and so to me he seems to recognize Sora through his memories of Roxas despite the two sharing like, one visual similarly: blue eyes. But KH3 to my understanding reveals that the virtual versions of characters affect the real version so I dunno!! WHAT IS THIS SERIES?

"Have you finished the summer homework yet?" Olette asks Sora and his two ANIMAL COMPANIONS as if seeing two anthropomorphic animals is fucking normal in a town comprised entirely of humans and exactly one moogle.

Sora doesn't have any homework. For over a year he's been away from home and his mom couldn't make him go to school. I wonder how she's doing? Does she miss her son? Kingdom Hearts and parents don't gel.

I like how.. When Pence describes this cloaked figure who was looking for the trinity trio, as having big, round ears, they have to think about who it could possibly be. They’re not too bright.

Why is “sofa” capitalized? Also they weren't even sitting on it, neither of them were!

HAYNER IS A RUDE BOY! He tells us so ask Seifer about the town, as we are new. Bruh, if you’re this rude to us I’m sure how much worse Seifer and his posse are.

Seifer is immediately confrontational. “You here to pick a fight with us?” and Sora’s all like “No, we’re new here.” and DONALD FUCKING DUCK! INSULTS SEIFER AND NOW EVERYONE’S READY TO THROW DOWN! THANKS TO THIS DUMB FUCK DUCK!

But thank Christ big chungus appears out of nowhere and stops the children and two adult furries from causing a scene.

This dude is WAY too into the Struggle tournament. Seifer has an unwanted faaaaan! Bro, go away, you’re creeping on a teenager.

I wanna fight Seifer.

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I'm not working on this like I should be. I'm going on vacation soon and since we're all in quarantine I can't really do anything fun so this is the opportune time to catch up.

Moving on! We make our way to the train station and oh no, we're ambushed by Dusks! Because of COURSE we are. Who could've seen THAT coming? /s

I- I like how, even after hearing his voice, and seeing his fucking mousey silhouette, the gang STILL might not be sure this is their stupid rat king. One brain cell between the three of them, I swear, and Goofy is the primary carrier, and it only sometimes works.

Why do we need to purchase tickets to travel on a magical train embarking to an ethereal plane of existence? I guess it's the principal of it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I HAVE A MIGHTY NEED TO HUG THIS BOY. LOOK, HE'S CRYING!

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Pence is so cute. I didn't care much for him when I was younger but he's such a cutie. 

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I HAVE A MIGHTY NEED TO HUG THIS BOY. LOOK, HE'S SAD!

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It's fat cat Pete. For like ever, I had no idea he was a cat. Wonder what Maleficent saw in him to ally with him.

The trinity trio laughing about killing (or at least taking part in killing) Maleficent. "She's toast!" this sure is early 2000's dialogue...

Heartless everywhere! "You mean the worlds aren't at peace after all" well, no sweetie. It takes time for things to recover from horrible events. *looks at current state of the real world*

So like, I had no idea Yen Sid was a Keyblade warrior??? I had read about that in his Wiki page when I googled if any Keyblade warriors were left handed. (Ven might be, but more likely ambidextrous) But I guess being Mickey's teacher would imply his Keyblade wielder roots but whatever, I didn't pay attention when I was a teenager.

Yen Sid's decor is baffling. What are these bookshelves? What are these BOOKS? They're huge!

Good on Yen Sid for using singular “they” pronouns in 2005.

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On to our change of wardrobe. Without a doubt Sora's best look in the whole series, in my humble opinion. Lookit my handsome boy. 

And Sora learns about drive forms, blah, blah, blah, powerful forms, gotta sacrifice something like in Duel Monsters, in this case an ally.

Yen Sid is so boring.

All seriousness and tension is just broken as soon as Goofy’s name is uttered, at least Sora and Donald have normal names wtf.

It’s interesting how like, 15 years later, Union X explains how Maleficent was able to return after her defeat. Something about, as long as someone from your original time remembers you and you have a physical object to represent you you’re able to basically some back from the dead. Right? Am I right on that? I haven’t played it but I’m hanging by a thread on this loop.

Sora’s hard work down the drain...

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Hollow Bastion! And of course there’s trouble. Heartless, Nobodies, and Yuffie, oh my!

A problem sequels have to work around is when the protagonist needs to relearn their abilities. KH does a well and good job with this one. In CoM, it’s a different battle style, in KH2 Sora’s been asleep for a hear prior.

Also, Merlin “leant” Sora some magic spells? How does that work? Like, once you learn it you can’t just... give that knowledge back...?

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How old is Leon? He has no right being this pretty.

Another ambush by Nobodies. Give it a rest, would ya? Battle ensues, Leon deals the final blow against an enemy, and as the camera usually does, zooms in on the victor and we get a nice slow-mo crotch shot of Leon. Thanks, game... Then, Xemnas’s very sexy, very manly voice echoes across town and the organization appears before our protagonists. I’m weak.

Demyx’s laugh, dude. I love it. Sora is ready to throw hands with anyone in his way. Honey, you’re barely out of a magic coma and this dude is like, two whole feet taller than you. Not to mention very fit.

I’m done thirsting over Xemnas...

After a few taunting words, the new villains depart, Donald attempts to give chase somehow? Where you gonna go? They disappeared behind dark corridors. It seems Goofy is still holding onto that shared brain cell.

The Bastard

I like the majority of the Organization. Xigbar is definitely one of my favorites based on this next scene alone. He’s so snarky and full of shit. I love it. He’s great. He was definitely a stoner at some point.

I’m confused though. “He used to give me that same exact look!” the Wiki says Xigbar’s talking about Ven but I always thought he was referring to Roxas? Did Braig and Ven have a history? That’s implied in Days (which released before BbS) IDK dude. I’m surprised I’ve gone this long without spoiling myself too much on BbS. Like, a few story beats here and there but a lot of it isn’t gonna be known until I play it.

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The dialogue for KH2 was so different from the first game. It dates itself so much in comparison.

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Xiggy stands like this for 7 whole seconds parting with a condescending “Be a good boy now!” before disappearing. I love this fucker.

Leon, who’s been sitting on the sidelines this whole time, joins Sora and the others after the real threat is gone. We chitchat for a little bit and say our goodbyes. It’s time to leave this place and move on to one of two available worlds.

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At the Beast's Castle. After fighting a hoard of Shadows, the least intimidating enemy in the series (although the demon tower in kh3 is quite frightening nlg), the Beast himself makes his appearance, takes out the Heartless that suddenly stop multiplying upon his arrival, disgracefully shoves his supposed friends aside, and takes his precious rose to the west wing, which is where it SHOULD HAVE BEEN IN THE FIRST PLACE. ADAM WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!

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No joke one of the funniest actual gags in the whole series is:

*Donald Duck manhandling Cogsworth*

Cut to Sora saying "I'm glad you're OK." to Lumiere

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OK the minigame where you gotta light the magic torches, why do we have to make sure Cogsworth  has enough strength to keep the lever down when we have two perfectly capable companions that can hold it down instead? I remember this sequence being a lot more annoying when I was a teen.

Xaldin's voice makes me feel things. Ahhh he sounds so tired lol. He peaces out and we fight the Beast. I remember getting him to calm down being harder.

"Xaldin used my anger to control me!" Says Beast. He angers very easily so this must have been a cinch. Xaldin's been obsessed with him since Days so I would imagine this intel would come in handy.

More fodder to fight and on to the boss. Phase one is just an angrier version of the Darkball Heartless. Phase two is just skinny Ganon. I like its design though.

“Belle, I’m sorry. I wasn’t myself, being all rude and overall kind of a jackass to you and my servants” Except that’s kinda how you’ve always been lmao. Just because you couldn’t choose not to be an ass here doesn’t change that this IS in character. Still gotta work on that a bit.

“You don’t have to apologize” No, no he still does.

They all reconcile and the Trinity Trio departs until Xaldin shows up again to wreak more havoc.

Time to move on to the next world.

[brenli]

[28]

Tagged by: @goddamnitkastle​ (YAYAYAY ANOTHER ONE!)

1. how tall are you? 5′3″

2. what color and style is your hair? Dark brown. A couple of stray silver strands. When the light hits it right you can see natural auburn-y red highlights/tones in it, especially near the ends. I wear it long, down to my lower back, usually parted in the middle (sometimes on the left) and with bangs. Usually blunt-cut across my brows, but I'm not as good about trimming them as I ought to be so they usually end up growing out long enough that I need to brush them off to the right.

3. what color are your eyes? Brown

4. do you wear glasses? My cat-eye specs are basically part of my identity at this point.

5. do you wear braces? Nope

6. what is your fashion style? I have contempt for this question that likes of which you cannot believe. XD I guess in the most general sense it's rock-chic. Rock/metal girl elements mixed with glamorous or feminine elements/silhouettes. But this is MASSIVELY boiling down my massive wardrobe and I've certainly had moments of departure from the rock-chic umbrella depending on how I'm feeling. I dislike strictly adhering to specific style labels; I find it stifling.

7. full name? Brenda Lee Larson. My maiden name is cooler to be honest; I only changed it because I was more interested in sharing a surname with the Honey and I know I can still use my maiden name for other things.

8. when were you born? July 24, 1987

9. where are you from and where do you live now? Technically born in Coupeville on Whidbey Island, WA, USA and spent the first 4 years of my life bouncing around different naval stations because my family was about that Navy Life, but the majority of my formative years Spokane, WA, USA so my assumption is that would be more accurately where I'm "from." (Hawaii is where my heart wants to say I'm from though as that's where my earliest memories take place~) After some years spent CA (first in the Bay and then in LA), I'm currently living just south of Seattle, WA. So. Basically I've been wiggling around the West Coast my whole life, including going so far west I ditched the mainland for a spell.

10. what school do you go to? I WORK at a school currently, Cornish. Freelancing as a house manager for 3 of their 4 venues. The 4th one never seems to put on any events that require one of us from the house management roster, otherwise I'd work gigs at that one, too. XD

11. what kind of student are you? Some of you who make these questionnaires clearly cannot think beyond life-after-schooling and it shows. XD I was an above-average student for the vast majority of my years in schooling but I started falling off a little toward the end, largely because I was very keenly aware of what areas of study pertained to me and my interests/goals, and I had no patience for areas of study that did not. I left before it got too bad.

12. do you like school? I liked the parts of school that spoke to me~

13. what are your favorite school subjects? Literature/English was always the major go-to throughout all of my years of schooling. I was in Choir up until highschool; this was when Theatre became available to me and I wasn't able to participate in both, so I parted ways with Choir and focused on Theatre all the way up through my last years of schooling. Other subjects of interest, in highschool: Photography, Psychology, Forensic Science, World History. In college: Creative Writing, Journalism, Japanese.

14. favorite TV shows? The major ones have been racy period dramas The Tudors and The Borgias. I grew up on Star Trek TOS and as such it has a very dear place in my heart despite it not being a racy period drama. XD I also am quite invested in the Netflix MCU with Daredevil and The Punisher being my two favorite shows (Frank is my everything!). More currently I've been expanding my Sanada-san filmography-binge thanks in large part to @anagraves​; I recently finished the 1993 Koukou Kyoushi and am through episode 10 of Konna Koi no Hanashi. What I've been learning from this - Hiroyuki Sanada knows how to break hearts whether he's being soft and vulnerable to cold and cruel and anything in between, but that's exactly why I love him.

INB4 "you post Snow White everything so why isn't OUAT on here" I do enjoy OUAT a lot, but I don't know if I would consider it a favorite show overall. I'm more fond of the earlier seasons than the later seasons and it's that ambivalent feeling I have for the later seasons that make the show not a favorite - but still very good overall.

It's also at this point that I should probably explain what my blog description does not - my blog started running a Snow White-themed queue LARGELY as part of an inspiration-drive for a Snow White AU project that I haven't actually touched in a long time. I REALLY should do something about that; I just keep getting pulled in other directions and now it's years on and here I am with what's basically a Snow White queueblog. XD If I can ever get my dumb head in gear and FINISH what I've started, that would honestly result in the queue being mass-posted and then probably altered to suit whatever the next project would be. That's always been the intention, anyway.

15. favorite movies? While I'm still feeling the chilly gaze of my Snow White queue, my favorite Snow White movie thus far is Mirror Mirror. I think it's massively underrated and that makes me sad.

As far as Disney is concerned, while I have a HUGE amount of respect for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, my favorite film growing up was Beauty and the Beast (and my Rococo-loving ass does adore the live action remake). Surprise??? XD More recently, Moana is the film of my heart; it's the closest Disney has gotten to making a Princess culturally-relevant to me as a half-Filipina so my tropical islander ass is just utterly enamoured with Moana. ((Listen Disney if you ever decide to make a super fun colorful precolonial Philippine film THE PERFECT PRINCESS EXISTS FOR THAT, I submit for your consideration - Urduja!)

Because of my rather open-door childhood with regard to media, my earliest favorite movies are actually Nightmare on Elm Street and Nightmare on Elm Street: Dream Warriors. Freddy is my Nightmare King Murder Boyfriend and I'm prepared to face judgement for that. XD

Fondness for Star Trek TOS has resulted in an affection for the AOS movies~

But a movie that speaks to me very much is What Dreams May Come.

Currently I've gotten re-ensnared into The Last Samurai, in correlation with the most recent AU project. Because I am hopeless, Grumpy Samurai is Best Samurai, and I've been spending time manically fretting and pretending that because Ujio drops before the gatling guns are brought out, maybe he SOMEHOW managed to survive in SOME way and he can have tons of cool battle scars. Right? ... RIGHT???

16. favorite books? If manga counts then it's Angel Sanctuary. Hands down. No contest. It's easily woven itself into my life in the form of fanfic that is/was well-received within the fandom, and a weirdly HUGE list of AUs that somehow burst out of nowhere. (Currently all of it, AU work included, can be read via my FF.Net account under brenli. I have a placeholder page on AO3 that's currently empty but may end up holding all my content there as well, in time. If I can ever make the time.)

I was and am really into Sue Harrison's Ivory Carver series, particularly My Sister the Moon.

It was part of my middle school/junior high reading curriculum but I honestly DID really like The Diving Bell by Todd Strasser. Even if the cover art of Culca coming up out of the ocean looked A LOT like me and resulted in my class calling me Culca for the entirety of our unit on that book. It's fine. Culca is a badass queen of pearls and seawater so I'm happy to be associated with her~!

Every now and then I remember a book that clearly really resonated with my as a child if I still remember it, but the problem is that I don't remember the title or the author, or even any of the characters' names. It was about a Roma girl who lived in the American south - I wanna say Tennesee? - who was discovered for her talent playing guitar and singing country music. The book essentially details her struggle between her traditional roots as a Roma person, including the arrangement for her to be married young, and her interest in pursuing music as a career but feeling alienated by an industry and a society at large that is wealthier than her and has a different culture from her own. The book ends with her running away but it isn't made clear what her ultimate fate is. To this DAY it bothers me that I don't remember the title or the author because I honestly go through periods where I want to reread it. And yes, this was the kind of stuff I was reading as a child. XD I also read My Sister the Moon for the first time when I was like. 11 years old. If you're familiar with the content of that book then you're aware that certain scenes are really not 11-year-old friendly, but. If I can watch gratuitous 80's slasher horror at age 4 then I can read about a young woman surviving sexual abuse at age 11.

17. favorite pastime? Writing at this rate, honestly. Which probably speaks more to my inner tortured artist than anything else. XD

18. do you have any regrets? I feel like everybody has at least one regret and anyone who says otherwise is either very very young, or lying. XD It's not about whether you have regrets, it's about not letting them hold you in the past.

19. dream job? Telling stories, in any and every way attainable to me.

20. would you like to get married someday? I already am~

21. would you like to have kids someday? Absolutely not. I don't feel like my life is conducive to childrearing, and INB4 "you're never truly ready" and "you make it work" the key factor here is I'm not WILLING to become ready and I'm not WILLING to make it work. That's how I know my life is not conducive to childrearing. XD (I'm at that age where tons of people are asking me this and feeding me words meant to encourage me to consider and it's honestly EXHAUSTING by this point. I can't wait for when I'm menopausal maybe people will finally shut up about it because I'll be past my prime~)

23. do you like shopping? I mean, yes, but I usually avoid it because I'm aware of how impulsive I am.

24. what countries have you visited? I'm tempted to say that Hawaii should count because it's so far away from the mainland. XD But honestly I've never been outside of US territory. It's in the plans to try for Japan during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. I'm not sure if we'll make that goal but if not, I figure it won't hurt to continue saving up anyway and making a Tokyo trip post-Olympics. Prices will be cheaper post-Olympics, anyway, so~

25. what’s the scariest nightmare you’ve ever had? At the risk of raising weird red flags I've gone through periods where I'll have reoccurring nightmares about being actively pursued by someone who very obviously intends to do harm. It happens often enough that the Honey wonders if I'm mentally suppressing something. XD I did have a standalone dream though, where me and the Honey were asleep in bed and then I become aware that someone's broken into the house and is approaching our bed. I'm walking through every possible option in my head with my eyes shut; if the Honey and I both lunged at the attacker we could possibly overpower them just because it would be two against one. But I know that I can't possibly wake up the Honey and make him aware of the situation without the attacker immediately acting and resulting in at least one of us being injured or killed. I realize that I have no choice but to try and take the attacker by surprise by myself and hope that is enough. I make peace with that. I can feel the attacker leaning over me. I suddenly lunge at them in full primal adrenaline-filled rage.

I wake up.

26. do you have any enemies? I guess that I have a few, yes, but honestly at this point I've gotten probably a little too used to being vilified. Barring physical assault or turning the animosity on innocent third parties in my life, I am prepared to weather the metaphorical lashes.

27. do you have an s/o? I have my Honey~

28. do you believe in miracles? I believe in miracles that aren't the overt surface-level wish-fulfillment-from-above which I think most people expect a miracle to be. I think that sometimes luck plays out via a slim-to-none chance and that can be a miracle. I think that sometimes a person works very hard at something or for something and when they achieve it, that can be a miracle. I think that the butterfly effect is a double-edged sword, but sometimes that little flutter of a butterfly's wings is a miracle.

Tagging: @yacky-jackie​ @halorecoil​ @anagraves​ @benevolentqueenofstars​ @lesbomancy​ @candybunnieholic​ @lemonedscream​ @tinathefish​

[athyrabunlord]

LLSHP 14 - Farewell

Arc1: [Chapter 1] [Chapter 2] [Chapter 3] [Chapter 4] [Chapter 5] [Chapter 6] [Chapter 7]

Arc2: [Chapter 8] [Chapter 9] [Chapter 10] [Chapter 11] [Chapter 12] [Chapter 13] [Chapter 14]

Arc3: [Chapter 15] [Chapter 16] [Chapter 17] [Chapter 18 - sanguinem pudicitia (TBD)]

Interludes: [Carbonado (1)] [Carbonado (2)] [Of Feathers and Wind] [Delphinus (teaser blip)]

[Brief note about School Term] [other LLSHP AU stuff] [YohaMaRuby concept arts] [ChikaYouRiko concept arts] [KanaDiaMari concept arts] [Hogwarts Staff]

[FFN link] (up until ch14!) [Pixiv Link] [Translated to Chinese by plin2290]

A/N: Sorry this took over a month! The last chapter was a horrible cliffhanger XD;; Well, issues IRL make it hard to write. Yoshiko’s state of mind is hard to portray as well sigh. Anyway, this is the last chapter of Arc2. Before moving onto Arc3 (which is also the last arc of this story), I will be writing another Interlude, to fill in some blanks and to transition into Arc3. As always, thanks for reading and the support! Hope you’ll enjoy this chapter! Words: 5,717

Yoshiko could only stare in horror as the wand pieces slowly fall from Hanamaru’s loose hands, landing with a soft thud that echoes rather loudly in her ears. The brunette just stands there, her gaze lost and her face pale.

Even though Immobulus has lifted due to the broken wand, Yoshiko still couldn’t move. Numb, she glances between the girl and the two halves of the now useless wooden stick.

“You foolish human.”

Hanamaru’s eyes widen a fraction when a dark-colored spell strikes her in the back. Like a marionette with its strings cut off, she slumps sideways in a heap.

Snapped out of her daze, Yoshiko hurries forward and gathers the petite girl in her arms, though she keeps her wand warily pointed at the smirking Yohane.

“Hanamaru-! Hanamaru!! Can you hear me? Hanamaru!”

After a few frantic shakes, Hanamaru languidly opens her eyes and moans in pain. Her gaze is unfocused and her breathing is rather shallow and strained. “C-Cold… cold… nngh…”

“Hanamaru!”

Yoshiko grasps for her hand, blanching at how cold her skin is. When she gently caresses Hanamaru’s cheek, she notices how alarmingly hot it feels in contrast.

“What did you do to her!”

“Hmm, something similar to what I did to that blonde girl, except this time it’s a bull’s eye.” Yohane appears quite pleased. “Good to know it does work.”

Yoshiko recalls the Moonstruck incident, of how Mari was unable to utilize magic and had taken a while to recover her strength. Wandless and now hit by this unknown Curse, what does this mean for Hanamaru?

Though filled with rage, Yoshiko could not utter any incantation to attack Yohane. The winged girl tilts her head and smiles prettily, her gaze condescending as if daring her to attack and scorning her for her weakness.

“You’re useless, both of you.”

Yoshiko trembles in anger, her magic sparkling at the tip of her wand yet her parched throat still refuses to cooperate.

“It’s okay though. I was once just as powerless as you are, so disgustingly useless.” There’s pity, perhaps even sympathy in Yohane’s soft voice, and it sickens Yoshiko to her core. “But then I learned and grew up. You see, the two of you are hindered by mortal emotions. The same goes for Lily and the Kurosawa heiress. They brought their own downfall.”

“How dare you-!” Yoshiko snarls, this time successfully firing a Diffindo at her adversary. However, just as expected, Yohane blocks the Severing Charm with her wing. None of the feathers are ruffled, remaining as impeccable and glossy as ever. She continues speaking as if a potentially fatal spell hasn’t been sent to her.

“I must say I’m disappointed in Hanamaru. She has such potential! I thought she was worthy to be by my side. Alas, it appears that she has chosen you,” Yohane narrows her eyes, her tone dropping to a venomous octave. “How dare a little demon betray her master!?”

Maybe it is instincts, or her intangible connection to Yohane, for Yoshiko senses her intent the moment Riko’s wand is pointed at Hanamaru. Frantic, Yoshiko pushes the defenseless girl behind her and spreads her arms wide just as Yohane fires the terrible Curse.

“Crucio!”

She screams.

It’s pure agony.

Nothing can compare.

Her nerves are on fire.

Her mind is blank and she couldn’t think.

Not even to pray for the pain to stop.

It only lasts a few seconds, but the aftermaths still cause excruciating stings to travel up and down her limbs. She is vaguely aware of being half-curled up on the ground, her wide eyes staring at the spinning ceiling. As she struggles to breathe, she barely hears Yohane’s contemplative voice.

“...it’s freakish hearing my own voice screaming. Perhaps I’m not as detached as I thought, still hindered by mortal emotions. I’ve spoken too much to you already because I took pity on your ignorance...”

Quivering, Yoshiko manages to roll onto her back and peers weakly at Hanamaru’s prone form. Is this it? This is what Chika, You and Riko had felt, struck by this torture Curse? Riko was right in Obliviating them back then. It’s better off not remembering anything if only to escape such agony. But how about Riko? How will she recover… if ever?

Tears slide down her cheeks in streams, though she isn’t quite sure why she is crying. From the pain? From self-pity? From… guilt?

Even though Yohane is the one ultimately making her friends suffer, Yoshiko feels just as much blame. And, in a way, her existence causes Yohane to become the way she is too.

What should she do?

What can she do?

Before Hanamaru broke her own wand, Yoshiko’s goal had been to save her but how could she do that now-?

“I don’t want your blood on my hands, so I’ve made my choice,” Yohane says suddenly and stretches her wings wide.

Under the dim light of the Chamber of Secrets, surrounded by darkness and faint silhouettes of wall carvings and ornaments, Yohane truly looks every inch of the charismatic fallen angel that Yoshiko once aspired to become. Shadows begin to descend upon them, hovering closer and closer as they follow Yohane’s command.

Shivering, Yoshiko notices that her breaths are coming out in white puffs, for the temperature around them has dropped drastically. Before, her body was seized in fatigue but as the cloaked figures glide towards her, she understands that it is sheer terror that paralyzes her.

Dementors.

“Consider this my last concession towards you two.” Yoshiko could not see the winged girl’s expression but she could hear the complacency in her tone. “They should be familiar, no? Don’t worry, it’ll be painless, and it’ll be over within moments. Your souls shall forever become part of them, and thus part of my legion. Is that not wonderful?”

Yoshiko twitches feebly, her hand desperately reaching for Hanamaru’s. The brunette’s hoarse whimpering feels like continuous stabs to her heart, especially because she couldn’t do a goddamn thing to protect her.

Her vision flickers in and out of focus until only tunnel vision remains. Instead of the ceiling, she’s watching her memories flash by one by one in reverse.

And only the bad ones.

Riko lying motionlessly in the basement of the Hut; the werewolf’s trapped body; the tendrils oozing out of her hand and slashing at Kanan’s Animagus form-

“What’s she doing again?”

“Some black magic ritual… seriously, what’s wrong with her?”

“Junior high students shouldn’t be doing stupid stuff like this.”

“She calls herself a fallen angel, hahaha! Probably watches too much anime!”

Yoshiko holds up her head high, ignoring their whispered conversations, snickers and any odd looks. Her classmates are the foolish ones. They have no idea what she’s capable of! Ku ku ku, she’ll show them! Compared to the series of misfortunes she’s experienced, bullying means nothing!

...yeah, it doesn’t affect her at all.

“Now now, there is no such thing as magic, angels and all that. Tsushima-san, you must have been hallucinating. Cups don’t move on their own.”

The psychiatrist’s patronizing smile only irritates Yoshiko. Alas, the ten-year-old could only glare at the adult, who shakes his head at her lack of response.

“You’re a bright kid, from what I can see from your assessments. I can only hope this is a phase and you’ll grow out of it.”

Yoshiko huffs. Oh she’s tried to be ‘normal’ like every other kid, but the feeling of ‘wrong’ is just so pervasive that she has to trust her instincts. She’s not hurting anyone, so why can’t she just be herself?

“What did you do?”

The matron’s panicked voice makes Yoshiko want to flee too, but the six-year-old could only sit there and stare at the empty space where the stool’s leg once stands. She then tilts her head and claps her hands proudly.

“Look, I have special powers! Hehe, I really am an angel!”

Her smile drops at the matron’s somber expression. Did she do something she’s not supposed to do? But she’s been a good girl, following rules and always on her best behavior…

“W-Why are you crying?!”

“Uuuaaa! Yoshiko-chan is going to disappear! Uuuaaa!”

“What!? No I’m not! What makes you think that?”

“Y-You said y-you’re going to -hic-  return to the -hic- sky! I-I’m not an angel, so I can’t -hic- go with you!”

“What? That’s silly. You’re silly, Zuramaru.”

“What -hic- do you mean?”

“When I return to the sky, I’ll bring you with me, duh! So stop crying already.”

The pudgy-cheeked brunette rubs her eyes and beams up at Yoshiko. “Promise?”

“Promise!” The two small five-year-olds lock their pinkie fingers, giggling as they resume playing at the monkey bars and slide.

Right, Hanamaru’s always believed in her… but, is this her memory, or Yohane’s? Yoshiko doesn’t know anymore. She reviews the memory in a detached manner, both fascinated and saddened by the scene before her.

The petite brunette was always by herself at the playground, engrossed in the thick books she brought every time her grandparents dropped her off by the bench. The other kids would only give her curious glances but not once invited the quiet girl to their games. Yoshiko decided to approach her one random day, having failed in recruiting any of the other kids. None of them believed that she was an angel, so maybe this girl would?

“Whatcha reading?”

The ochre-eyed girl jolts and peers at her shyly, probably not expecting anyone to talk to her. After Yoshiko takes a seat beside her, she relaxes slightly and gives her a friendly smile. “An encyclopedia zura!”

“En-sy-klo-wut?” Yoshiko leans close, frowning at the big paragraphs and terms she couldn’t even pronounce, let alone understand. At least, those colored pictures look cool!

“It’s like a collection of information about various subjects zura,” the small girl looks happy at her interest. “Would you like to read with me? I’m on the chapter about the Earth’s core zura!”

Shrugging, Yoshiko then found herself spending the rest of the day with this girl, who had the weirdest dialect. It was fun though, looking at the pictures and learning about stuff like volcanoes and earthquakes and tsunamis. Through the girl’s helpful explanations, Yoshiko now understood why these natural disasters happened, and how land only made up a small portion of the world.

“Wow, so we live… on a planet… that’s mostly water?”

“Yup! The oceans are huuuuuge zura!” The girl spread her arms wide, her eyes sparkling. “And deep too! There are many places people haven’t explored yet! Look at this zura!”

Yoshiko stared at the odd-looking fish on the page. It was bony and, frankly, ugly. At least, next to the toothy monster called ‘Anglerfish’ or something, this deep-sea fish looked more dignified. After reading a bit more, she became more attached to this odd ‘living fossil’. Apparently, its kind has lived in this world for millions of years! How incredible!

“I’ve decided, this SHIIRA-KANSU is gonna be my little demon!”

“Littoru...deh...mon?”

Yoshiko flustered. She wasn’t prepared to introduce the concept to the girl yet. She thought of herself as an angel but she’s also considered the possibility of being an angel trapped in the mortal world. That was why she needed to recruit followers and minions, her little demons, to help her return to where she should be.

The question was, how could she explain all that to this girl without getting shunned like everyone else did?

To her surprise, the brunette gave her a big smile. “That’s pretty cool! Tell me more zura! I like good stories!”

At least, she seemed to think it was a story. Only a fine line existed between fiction and nonfiction, so there was hope to recruit her! Grinning, Yoshiko spent the rest of the afternoon running around the playground with the giggling girl. They made up more and more aquatic characters to join the coelacanth, drawing them in the sand with sticks. “Shiira~” “Kansu!” “Shiira~” “Kansu!”

They danced and chanted. It was the most fun the two little girls ever had.

Hanamaru was her first friend.

Whether this memory was hers or not, this feeling of pure joy was real.

Yoshiko could feel strength and a bit of warmth returning to her body. By concentrating her mind on this positive feeling, her senses are no longer muddled and she could think again. She doesn’t remember the specifics, and she certainly doesn’t remember where and why the Dementor attacked them when they were so little.

But she is certain of this feeling. Her first friend, and now…

She painstakingly sits up and grasps for her wand. “I may have fallen, but I’m not as far gone as you are.”

Yohane quirks an eyebrow, unimpressed. “Oh?”

Yoshiko smiles serenely.  “I will protect the girl I love, and rid you from her world.”

The fallen angel scoffs and flicks Riko’s wand. A Dementor raises its bony, rotten hand towards Yoshiko, and she could feel those depressing memories resume clawing at the edges of her vision. She takes a deep breath and focuses her thoughts on Hanamaru and Hanamaru only.

Her hand is surprisingly steady as she points her wand at the atrocious creature. “Expecto patronum!!”

There’s a burst of light, causing the Dementors to reel back with raspy shrieks that sound more like sandpaper dragging against another. A silver fish, just as bony yet noble as the one from the illustration, elegantly swims across the air. Wisps of light flutter behind it like waves and the tidal wave of its magic forces the Dementors to retreat. The coelacanth gives chase, its relatively small size belying its tremendous power as it shoots across the air like a torpedo.

The silver waves around it give off an illusion of a hungry shark chasing after its preys. The Dementors, seemingly anxious to avoid getting in contact with the light, have no choice but to flee entirely.

The coelacanth then swims towards the small ball of fur, gently enshrouding the unconscious bat in a veil of silver light. Wordlessly, Yoshiko uses a Charm to summon Lucifer towards her and gingerly places her little demon beside Hanamaru. The brunette’s breathing has evened out and she is no longer trembling.

As if in a trance, Yoshiko holds out her hand towards the approaching coelacanth, the tip of her finger touching its translucent head. It is surreal, that she’s finally able to cast a corporeal Patronus and actually fight off the Dementors.

“Thank you, Shiirakansu.”

The Patronus is conjured from the memory of her feelings for Hanamaru after all.

“H-How? How are you able to cast the Patronus-?” For the first time since their encounter, Yohane’s composure has cracked. Fear flickers in those narrowed red eyes as she raises the sakura wand defensively. “How could you, when I can’t-?”

“I don’t know,” Yoshiko murmurs, still wrapped in the sensation of floating even though her feet are rooted on the ground. “But… maybe, it’s because I love her.”

Yohane’s expression contorts to something that could only be described as Devil-like, so full of hatred and murderous intent. She flaps her wings, sending powerful gusts towards them as she springs into the air.

Before she could make the next move, the coelacanth suddenly charges towards her. The Patronus tears through Yohane’s left wing despite being impenetrable under all those spells earlier. At the same moment, it feels as if a sledgehammer strikes Yoshiko in the left chest.

She collapses on her knees, clutching her heart, while Yohane plummets to the ground and groans in pain. She could feel her strength waning, similar to how she almost lost consciousness from when the Dementors appeared, yet it also feels different in a frightening way.

Something drips onto her hand and it takes her a moment to register what the dark liquid is.

Blood.

Yohane looks just as shocked as Yoshiko, glancing between her damaged wing and the blood trickling out of the latter’s nose. Tendrils of black magic attempt to fix the gaping hole in her left wing but to no avail.

“... if either of us gets injured, the other cannot escape unscathed either huh…” Yohane’s voice is rather shaky, her face pale as if unable to accept such revelation.

On the other hand, Yoshiko feels strangely calm as she stares at the blood in her palm in morbid fascination. She’s supposed to be a matured Horcrux, an entity that was once just a quill pen, yet she was given a chance to experience a human’s life.

Since she’s not a human in the first place, why be fearful of death? Now, she has the power to protect Hanamaru, so she has nothing to be scared of anymore. If wiping out her existence can defeat Yohane, to cause the Fallen’s downfall, then that’s a rather cheap price to pay. This way, her friends would no longer suffer, and there will be no more danger to Hanamaru and the others.

This way, she could atone for Father and Mother’s deaths.

Grim determination fuels her exhausted body as she raises her wand once more. She pours all of her magic into her Patronus, causing it to shimmer even brighter than ever.

“Farewell, datenshi Yohane.”

“No...no! Don’t come near me!” Yohane snarls desperately, dissolving her feathered wings into a black mist of raw magic before directing it to intercept the coelacanth’s dive.

The collision causes a terrible explosion that sends the two girls flying. Yoshiko barely registers crashing against the wall, no longer feeling pain or any other senses for that matter. Her consciousness is starting to drift away again.

Before that blissful oblivion could claim her, Yohane’s distorted voice reverberates in her mind and squashes her hope for ending this once and for all.

“We’ll meet again. Yoshiko. Next time, I won’t be so careless. Next time, I won’t be so soft… I will reclaim you, one way or another.”

Yoshiko passes out with a wry smile on her face.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

She wakes up to the sensation of terrible fatigue weighing down her limbs.

Opening her eyes alone seems to drain her, and she musters all her willpower to keep her mind from floating away. The acrid smell of blood no longer fills her nostrils; instead, she is soothed by the fresh scent of clean linen and sweet fragrance of potions. Though her vision is limited, she deduces that she is in the Hospital Wing.

Ah, she is still alive, somehow.

“Y-Yoshiko-chan!”

She feels oddly detached even as Ruby appears in her vision, followed by Chika and You with Mari and Kanan close behind. She should feel relieved and happy to see her friends, yet there’s a void in her emotions. Perhaps she’s simply tired from everything.

She should be disconcerted by her lack of emotion, but she isn’t. She doesn’t care about herself anymore, really, but she doesn’t want her friends to worry either. She closes her eyes wearily for a few moments before opening them again, vowing to at least try to act normal.

“Can you hear us?” Ruby gingerly reaches for Yoshiko’s hand, smiling when the latter weakly squeezes back. “Y-You recognize us, right?”

Yoshiko nods slowly, unable to speak due to how dry her throat feels. Noticing her discomfort, Ruby hastily helps her sit up and summons a glass of water.

“You’ve been unconscious for a whole day,” Mari says grimly, and the bags under their eyes imply they probably have not slept since.

Though touched by their concern, Yoshiko’s mind couldn’t seem to grasp at that gratitude and soon she feels like a hollow husk again. She drinks the water mechanically, if only for the sake of being able to speak.

“...where… Hana...maru…”

Kanan gestures at the neighboring bed and, with Ruby’s help, Yoshiko is able to see Hanamaru’s sleeping form, tucked snuggly under the blanket. She looks unharmed, and the small cut on her cheek must have been long healed by the school’s matron.

Under Yoshiko’s questioning gaze, You elaborates with a shaky sigh. “Chika-chan and I found you two in the abandoned lavatory. When we left St. Mungo’s and returned here, we looked all over the school for you, but neither of you was in your House’s Dorms. The Room of Requirement aside, we could only think of that lavatory and…”

“You were both covered in rubble and have many bruises and cuts all over,” Chika leans forward, her eyes damp. “T-There was blood on you, but Madam assured us that you’re both physically fine. S-She healed your wounds.”

“And where… she-?”

“She was here until moments ago, summoned away by a staff meeting. We promised her to look after you two. We also found your bat. Madam healed it as well…” You trails off, pointing at creature hanging upside down on the chandelier. Lucifer keeps its distance, though it does let out a scratchy bark as if in greeting.

Yoshiko smiles and is puzzled when the feeling of relief stays. Then again, Lucifer is connected to her like nothing else.

They’re both Horcruxes after all, Lucifer being a failed experiment and her being an unwanted but successful one. Yoshiko cringes and bites down on her lip to repress the urge to throw up. The others exchange worried looks at that.

“Just what h-happened, Yoshiko-chan?” Ruby then holds out the broken halves of Hanamaru’s wand, her voice wavering. “Madam almost wanted to send you to St. Mungo’s because her Diagnosis Charm d-detected traces of a powerful Curse that was cast on you.”

Yoshiko lowers her head, almost wanting to hide somewhere so that she could be alone and not deal with all this. She still doesn’t fully understand most of what happened down in the Chamber of Secrets. Or, rather, she cannot accept anything even though deep down, she knows that it’s the truth, as painful as it is. For someone who just regained consciousness, she is surprised by the clarity of her memories.

I can’t forget even if I wanted to huh?

One glance at her friends’ anxious expressions convinces her otherwise. She owes them that much.

“...it was the Cruciatus Curse...”

Under their horrified faces, Yoshiko begins to retell the events in the Chamber except she omits some facts. She cannot bring herself to reveal Yohane’s identity and the whole matter of Horcrux; instead, she just vaguely mentions that the enemy is a Slytherin descendant whose face was hidden from view by a mask. She wants to talk to Hanamaru first before sharing the whole story with the others. Hanamaru probably doesn’t want anyone to know that she’s been under the Imperius Curse, if she even remembers that part.

Besides, if that Curse really did work like Muggle hypnotism as Yohane said, then what were the instances that Hanamaru was under its influence and wasn’t?

Yoshiko doesn’t dare to think how this would affect their relationship.

Being a matured Horcrux or whatever, she has these human feelings. She does love Hanamaru, she has no doubt about that, and honestly, this is the only emotion that’s keeping her from breaking down in self-pity and self-loathing.

Hmn, what would her friends do if they know what she really is?

In the end, even here in the world of magic, she is still an abomination. How ironic.

“... and somehow my Patronus Charm worked on the witch’s feathered wings and, I lose consciousness afterward so I don’t know how and who got Hanamaru and me up from the Chamber.”

Silence greets her after her condensed story, and Yoshiko notices that her friends appear to be absorbing her tale. Mari looks understandably concerned about Hanamaru’s health, having been hit by that unknown spell before, while You and Chika have a murmured conversation about how the lavatory looked undisturbed, meaning someone must have closed the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets before their arrival.

Only Yohane could have possibly done that as a Parseltongue. But why did she not take her or Hanamaru when she fled?

Yoshiko rubs her temple. There’s no point in figuring out her motive. It’s more important to decide on what their next step should be, considering everything that has happened over the span of merely two days.

It was all too much.

“So… where is Dia-san? Is she still at the hospital with Lily?”

At this, Kanan actually growls and might have changed to her Animagus form if Mari hadn’t kept a vice grip on her shoulder. The blonde’s scowl, however, is just as dark as the ponytailed witch’s.

“Riko-chan is under magically-induced coma to help heal her mind,” You says dully, her hand whimsically patting Chika’s back when the latter leans against her with a sad frown. “It’s the most the Healers could do, considering how m-many times she was h-hit with that Curse…”

Yoshiko swallows hard, feeling nauseous again. There’s nothing they could do except believe in the Healers.

“And Onee-chan is…” Ruby’s subconsciously tightens her grip on Yoshiko’s hand. “She’s considered the prime suspect behind what happened to Riko-san.”

“What?!” Though fatigued, Yoshiko gladly embraces this burst of anger since it is better than that quagmire of depression.

“The Professors all spoke on Onee-chan’s behalf, the House of Slytherin and other students too. But, from the official s-side of things, we all do seem very suspicious. We just happened to be near the Shack and at Hogsmeade during the Moonstruck incident, and then how Onee-chan discovered Riko-san in the middle of nowhere, and now y-you and Hanamaru-chan, in the abandoned lavatory...”

Kanan’s fists are clenched. “And the fact we all seem unwilling to divulge details. Of course we can’t, we don’t know what we say may or may not affect Riko-chan. Each of us has already been questioned by the investigators, but just as expected, they suspect that we’re not telling the whole truth.”

“But Dia protected us. She took any blame and redirected any suspicion towards herself. She is not a Minor anymore and is treated as the heiress and a full Pureblood adult who will eventually be granted a seat in the Wizengamot, so they could not exactly arrest her without trial. We think it’s only due to the Kurosawa name that the Ministry officials are prevented from using the Veritaserum. È solo che è così ridicolo!” Mari then continues to mutter in Italian, which is most likely swear words.

“At least, our family name is able to protect her to an extent,” Ruby lets out a quiet chuckle. It’s a rather disconcerting, cold sound. “But it’s not for Onee-chan’s own good, but for the sake of our family prestige.”

“Those fucking geezers. They didn’t take Dia’s relationship with Rikocchi well.”

“Even though the carbonado necklace is damning evidence,” Kanan pauses thoughtfully. “Come to think of it, I don’t think Riko-chan’s parents said anything about it…”

“Either way, our family is trying to suppress as much news as possible, while keeping Onee-chan under house arrest. In fact, she’s already been withdrawn from Hogwarts for an undetermined time.”

Yoshiko stares at Ruby blankly. The younger Kurosawa gives her a slight nod, though the gesture seems to be more for herself than for her friend. Yoshiko then glances at Mari, You, Chika and Kanan, who all share the same helpless and weary looks.

The world out there is not nice. Hogwarts has been like a shelter for the teenagers, for the students, but the society is cruel and unforgiving to those who step into adulthood. Magic is a wonderful thing, and they’re supposed to be having and enjoying their first year at Hogwarts, yet…

The Christmas Banquet almost feels like a long time ago, even though it actually only took place two months ago.

“So… it’s come to do this, huh?”

Mari exhales shakily. “For the next while, we will be monitored closely - we would still have freedom as any other students, but meeting up in the Room of Requirement or anywhere else would be impossible now. This is already more than we could’ve asked for. It’s only Dia’s… sacrifice and the Professors’ words that prevent us from being under constant escort and daily detention-”

“But we didn’t do anything wrong! Why!? Why should we be punished?!”

You and Chika nod in agreement, but Kanan shakes her head grimly. “We still broke the rules. We left school grounds outside of curfew, for starters. It’s… the school’s way of trying to protect us, to keep us out of trouble from now on. As horrible as it was, the fact that you and Maru were discovered unconscious and injured is the leverage that the staff used to convince the Ministry otherwise. We are the victims.”

“And we really are!” The angrier Yoshiko feels, the more tired she becomes and all she wants to do is pass out and hope that everything would be back to normal by the time she wakes up. Alas, she knows that would never happen, and thus she struggles to stay awake. “I still can’t believe they’d do that to Dia-san…”

“Me neither. But, this will only be temporary. I’ll definitely figure out a way to help Onee-chan.” In spite of her meek countenance, Ruby’s voice is hard like steel.

Chika gives her a supportive pat on the shoulder. “Of course, Ruby-chan. We won’t let things stay like this.”

“That’s the spirit,” Kanan also pats Ruby’s head while You gives her a salute. “For the time being, we need to focus on recovering and get things back in order. From what you’ve told us, Yoshiko, it sounds like the enemies will be keeping a low profile for a while too.”

“We will be ready next time,” Mari’s grin is predatory. “They’ll regret in underestimating us.”

Normally, Yoshiko would have joined them in their resolute vow and rely on this positive energy to recuperate spiritually. However, she could only think about what would happen when this so-called ‘next time’ comes.

Yoshiko forces a small smile on her face. No, she’s already made up her mind. Her fate is inconsequential as long as she can bring down Yohane and the Fallen. As long as her friends are safe.

As long as Hanamaru is okay...

“...mnnn…”

“Maru?” Being the first to notice the slight movement, Kanan hurries to the other bed to check up on the brunette.

“Hanamaru-chan! You’re a-awake!” Ruby smiles tearfully but glances between her two friends, uncertain whether to leave Yoshiko’s side or go check up on the other girl.

“Ruby, I want to see her.”

“But Yoshiko-chan, you’re still-”

“Please.”

After sharing an understanding look, You and Chika help her get up and keep her supported as they all gather around the brunette. Mari quickly sends off her Patronus to alert the matron and proceeds to cast a simple Diagnostic Charm on Hanamaru in the meantime.

“Just low on energy but overall she seems okay,” Mari sighs in relief. “Of course, we should wait for the matron for a proper check-up.”

Ruby glances at Yoshiko, as if waiting for her to speak first but the latter shakes her head and gives her a weak nudge. Though puzzled, Ruby nods and turns towards Hanamaru.

“How are you f-feeling, Hanamaru-chan? Can you hear me? Do you r-recognize us?”

Yoshiko stares at the petite girl closely for any sign of discomfort. Hanamaru appears groggy still, her body limp as Kanan gently helps her sit up and lean against the pillow. Smiling feebly at them, she is about to say something when she begins to cough.

“Could I… water-?”

Similar to earlier with Yoshiko, Ruby hastily summons a glass of water and holds it towards her friend.

However, she almost drops it at Hanamaru’s reaction.

“M-Mirai zura!”

“Eh?”

“The glass just flew! How did you do that zura?”

Yoshiko could feel her heart dropping.

Ruby’s face is pale and Chika’s eyes are wide in shock, while Kanan and Mari exchange nervous glances. You lets out a strained chuckle. “Aw, come on, Hanamaru-chan, that’s just the Summoning Charm…”

The brunette tilts her head, her ochre eyes glimmering with fascination. “Charm? You mean magic? Ooh, so this is how you cast a spell zura!”

Yoshiko could feel her throat clog up.

“H-Hanamaru-chan, do you not r-remember us?” Ruby holds her friend’s hand desperately, her voice shaking.

Hanamaru blinks and winces a bit, looking even smaller on the big bed and under the thick blanket. “I-I… no… t-this is the first t-time I’ve met you all zura…”

Yoshiko could feel her heart clench in pain, comparable to that of a Cruciatus Curse.

“Maru, what do you remember then-? D-Do you,” Kanan swallows hard, gazing at the smaller girl hopefully. “At least remember how you got here?”

Mari wraps a comforting arm around Ruby’s shoulder, pulling the frozen girl against her. “This is Hogwarts, the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You seem to know the concept of magic at least…”

“Erm, yes, I-I got a letter and…” Hanamaru shrinks even more, the previous sparkle in her eyes now replaced by confusion and anxiousness. “I packed many luggages-? M-My grandparents d-didn’t want me to leave b-but they said they a-also understood z-zura. Oh, I live in a temple, so we weren’t too surprised that a school of magic exist zura! Well, it was still shocking but a-according to the witch w-who took me t-to buy supplies and my wand, w-we took the news pretty well zura, compared to other Muggleborns, um…”

She looks at them helplessly, her small hands gripping the blanket.

“W-What happened to me zura?”

Yoshiko could fee her eyes sting as she leans on the bed, nearly hyperventilating. She could feel You and Chika attempting to support her but she can’t find the strength to even try anymore.

Then, a familiar hand is caressing her back as if to ease her ragged breathing.

“Are you okay zura? M-Maybe you should be resting?”

Yoshiko peers up at Hanamaru’s soft smile in disbelief, her heart cracking from the girl’s unconditional concern.

You should be the one in distress! Why are you comforting me-? Why… why did this happen? Why you? Why?!

She allows herself to be pulled into Hanamaru’s arms as tears slide down her cheeks and sobs shake her body. She burrows her face against the crook of the brunette’s neck, indulging in her scent and warmth for one last time.

After all, in a way, this is farewell.

[bongaboi]

Beneath the bling: Lakers championship rings feature many special surprises

Beneath the bling: Lakers championship rings feature many special surprises

By DAVID WHARTON STAFF WRITER JAN. 15, 20215 AM

Coiled snakes and small etchings, like hieroglyphics. Jewels whose exact carat weight holds a secret meaning. You can spot all the clues, if you look closely enough.

The ring that each Lakers player received for winning the 2020 NBA championship is mostly gold and diamonds, glitz and audacity, but there is something subtle lurking beneath the gleam.

The jeweler responsible for the design wanted to document a basketball season unlike any other, a year marked by more than wins and losses. In the space of one — albeit very large — ring, Jason Arasheben has concealed visual references to the death of Kobe Bryant, a global pandemic and social unrest. He calls them his “Easter eggs.”

“We had a lot going on last year,” says Arasheben, who owns the tony Jason of Beverly Hills. “It’s not just how many diamonds you use, it’s how you tell a story.”

Professional sports bling has been a tradition since the early 1920s, when the New York Giants baseball team handed out rings as an alternative to the pocket watch chains, cuff links and engraved tie clips that previously had been given to players.

Simple and stylish was the rule for many years until the New York Yankees went big and brash in the 1970s, igniting an arms race that now has teams in various sports trying to outdo each other — more gold, more gemstones — season after season.

The Lakers will not disclose how much they spent on this latest salvo. With 180 grams of yellow gold and 804 jewels in each, the rings could be worth more than $20,000, setting a new benchmark in extravagance.

If this raises some eyebrows at a time of hardship, team executives believe the players deserve a special gift for persevering through the season. Arasheben wanted to give them a sort of time capsule, an effort not lost on star forward LeBron James.

“It was just a culmination of what we’ve been through,” James told reporters after getting his ring. “So many ups and downs, a lot of adversity.”

And a lot of story to tell.

The helicopter crash that killed Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others on Jan. 26, 2020 had the team reeling, struggling to comprehend the loss of an icon who had retired only a few seasons earlier. Before the shock wore off, the coronavirus shutdown brought the NBA to a lurching halt.

By the time games resumed and the Lakers defeated the Miami Heat to win it all in mid-October, there wasn’t much time to make rings for the start of a new season. Team executives called Arasheben. Though best known for such celebrity clients as Drake, Jennifer Lopez and the late Michael Jackson, the 44-year-old jeweler had worked with the Lakers before.

“It made sense because he gets the pulse of this team,” says Linda Rambis, executive director of special projects and confidante to co-owner Jeanie Buss.

A flurry of discussions ensued, ideas flying back and forth.

Some design elements were entirely conventional, starting with a purple-and-gold logo on the face, framed by block letters spelling “World Champions.” The right side, or shank, featured each player’s name and jersey number. The left shank listed the Lakers’ playoff opponents and results of each series. This boilerplate information out of the way, Arasheben set to work on smaller touches with larger meanings.

The purple “L” in the logo was fashioned from 17 amethysts, one for each of the 17 championships in franchise history. They weighed .95 carats, a nod to the 95 days that players had spent inside the “bubble,” a Florida complex where all NBA teams lived and competed when the season resumed. Yellow diamonds in the basketball-shaped background totaled .52 carats, equaling the number of regular-season victories.

“It was like a puzzle,” Arasheben says. “We had to be creative in how we built things in.”

There was room to coil two snakes — an homage to Bryant and his “Black Mamba” nickname — behind the jersey numbers. The shanks, shaped vaguely like basketball hoops, got a mesh background. With each addition, it seemed Arasheben or the team would think of something else.

“How do you recognize all of the challenges we went through last year, and then all the bright spots?” Rambis asks. “It was just us wanting to have all of those elements in the ring.”

The work suited Arasheben, a man with a backstory of his own.

The boy loved to draw, doodling portraits, copying the blueprints his architect father brought home. His parents had a different sort of future in mind, telling him: You’re a good talker. You should be a lawyer.

Pre-law classes at UCLA failed to satisfy Arasheben’s artistic bent; they also put him in debt. A friend told him about wholesale stores in the fashion district, so he pooled his money and drove downtown to buy silver trinkets and brightly colored, plastic butterfly hair clips, cheap stuff he could get for $8 a dozen. Back on campus, fellow students stopped by his table and paid well over cost.

“The very first day,” he recalls, “I did $100 in sales.”

These profits paid off tuition with enough left over to hang out at nightclubs where, as an avid NBA fan, Arasheben recognized players among the regulars. They all seemed to be wearing what he recalls as “over-the-top, monstrous” jewelry, which gave him another idea.

Despite an utter lack of experience in the business, he began sketching ornate chains and bracelets, incorporating names and personal details of certain players. Slipping into the club’s VIP section, he approached them, straining to speak over the pounding music: “I’d love to design jewelry for you. In fact, I happen to have a drawing right here.”

They almost always shooed him off, waving away the paper he held in their face. But in 2002, the late New York Knicks star Anthony Mason took a look and liked what he saw. It was both a defining moment and a problem because Arasheben had no idea what to do next.

Stalking the jewelry district, walking from shop to shop, asking questions, he found someone to make the monogrammed bracelet for $50,000. Not only was the profit margin healthy — he says Mason paid $60,000 — the work was creative. Arasheben networked at the NBA draft and All-Star game, meeting other players.

Forget law school, he thought. I want to get into jewelry.

Most teams rely on such established jewelers as Tiffany or Jostens for their rings, so there was no reason to think Arasheben could break into the business. But while selling custom pieces, he made friends with the Buss family that owned the Lakers. Wrangling a meeting with the late Jerry Buss, he told of starting from nothing, a story that seemed to click with Buss, who had built a fortune in real estate.

“I really had no business making their rings,” Arasheben says. “He gave me a chance.”

Things went smoothly at first; the team liked his design of 14 diamonds and white gold in 2009, evoking the white uniforms that players wore on Sundays to honor broadcaster Chick Hearn. Arasheben satisfied Bryant and guard Derek Fisher, who asked to have each player’s face etched on the shank.

But after years of making a few pieces at a time, it was tough producing a batch of 200 or so for players, staff and others. With sleeping bags strewn across the factory floor, Arasheben and his crew worked around the clock.

“We were taking shifts,” he says. “I think we delivered the last ring 30 minutes before the ceremony.”

The team rehired him in 2010, which led to orders from European soccer teams and the Dodgers when they won the 2017 National League pennant. Arasheben made rings for the Golden State Warriors as they captured three NBA titles in four seasons.

“We knew what we did like and we knew what we didn’t like,” Warriors forward Andre Iguodala says in a team video. “From there, we said ‘Use your imagination.’ ”

After the 2018 championship, some Warriors players wanted a blue face, some preferred white. Arasheben engineered a reversible face with diamonds on one side and sapphires on the other. At the team’s ring ceremony, video shows Iguodala demonstrating the switch to others on the bench, telling them to give the face a twist.

“You’re supposed to?” teammate David West asks.

Coach Steve Kerr tries it and blurts: “Oh my god.”

The 2020 Lakers ring posed a different problem as Arasheben kept adding features. Around the rim, he put tiny etchings of the Larry O’Brien Trophy and jersey numbers for every player on the roster that season, even those waived or assigned to the G League before the playoffs.

The left shank had room for a small NBA logo, featuring the silhouette of former Lakers great Jerry West. On the right, Arasheben fit the team’s mantra that season, “Leave A Legacy,” along with the player name and number and snakes.

Still, he needed more space.

The first championship rings, the ones handed out by the New York Giants in 1922, were relatively simple. Brushed gold, a single diamond, nothing to set the world on fire but the timing was right.

“Pocket watches were going out of fashion,” says John Odell, a curator at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. There was no need for jeweled fobs or watch chains because “no longer was it stylish to show off a little bling across your belly.”

The new trend began with relatively tame signet rings, then graduated to something in the neighborhood of a high school class ring. More size translated into more detail; legendary football coach Vince Lombardi took charge of the design for his Green Bay Packers in the late 1960s and made sure to include a crown from his family crest.

There have been a few small quirks in recent years. After a squirrel bounded across home plate during the 2011 playoffs, the champion St. Louis Cardinals included a tiny image of the rodent. Two years later, the Boston Red Sox — known for their unshaven appearance — stamped a beard on the inside of their rings.

But glitz and bulk have dominated since New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner splashed “NY” in diamonds across the face of a large ring in 1977 and an even bigger one in 1996. The Lakers noted the trend in 2000, engraving “Bling Bling” on their shank. Three years later, the Florida Marlins spent a reported $20,000 each for a design encrusted with hundreds of diamonds.

“Overtly ostentatious,” Odell calls it.

Team owners were spending far more than the modest allowances the NFL and Major League Baseball afforded its winning teams. As weights topped three ounces, the rings had become so large that Jostens suggested wearing them “on your middle finger may be more comfortable in terms of balance.”

Arasheben acknowledges the trend is “getting a little ridiculous. It’s getting to the point where you’re just going to give the players a diamond plate.” But that didn’t slow him down with the Lakers this winter.

“Other manufacturers have tried to outdo us,” he says. “This year, we tried to outdo them one more time.”

::

There were 71 days between the title-winning game against the Heat and the ceremony the Lakers wanted to hold at their season opener in December. Most of that time was spent on design.

When Arasheben finally ran out of space, he reached back to an old trick with the detachable face. Same solution for a different problem.

“This time,” he says, “we needed to create more real estate.”

A 45-degree twist reveals a secondary face underneath, bearing images of the 12 retired jerseys that hang in Staples Center, including the one with a microphone instead of a number for Hearn. Bryant’s two jerseys — he wore No. 8 and No. 24 during his career — are accentuated in a darker color. As further tribute, a snakeskin texture serves as the background.

This gimmick also left space to reference last spring, when Americans took to the streets, protesting the death of George Floyd.

Pro athletes in basketball, baseball and other sports staged walkouts. James helped form More Than a Vote, an organization that has fought voter suppression and drew more than 42,000 volunteers to work at polling stations for the November election. Arasheben used the underside of the face to etch the word “Unity.”

“We wanted something the players could show their grandchildren,” he says. “Something to remember.”

The rings were handed out at an unusual ceremony last month, the stands empty because of coronavirus restrictions. Players stepped up, one by one, to podiums at midcourt while family members spoke from the videoboard above. “I know this has been a very difficult year for everyone here,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said.

Still, James called it a “pretty cool feeling” to celebrate with teammates, a chance to look back on all they had been through. “So many story lines,” he said.

And only one ring to tell them.

===

David Wharton is a feature sportswriter for the Los Angeles Times.

[fatheroffive]

Hello, Mr. Uno

1. I love your name. It reminds me of another mistreated man, Benedict Arnold. 

2. Can I give you a hug?! I saw your father, whom from now on I will refer to as Sperm donor, for that’s all he really is. I felt so sad.

3. Your children are just delightful, by they’re also workaholic perfectionists. They’re pen pals with Lance Gobbo, who is the same. I see you, you love them so much!

4. Again, about your sperm donor, you gave him life again, and he abuses you again. THAT’S the thanks you get?! 

5. You’re so handsome in your Benedict form. Those glasses, the clothes you wear, and your hair. It makes you look so handsome.

6. I see you always trying to be fair and equal. I remember you giving Constance something really expensive she wanted and so the rest of them got more stuff that they wanted to match it, since what THEY wanted was all cheaper. Meanwhile, your sperm donor got you garbage, LITERAL GARBAGE when you were a kid. 

7. Also, what else happened to you during your childhood?!

8. How do you plan to parent differently?!

9. How do you feel about brats who cry that their parents are abusive when they’re not. I know a child who does this. Her name is Sabrina. Her parents spoil both her and her sister Lottie, but when she’s punished for doing something wrong, she deems them to be abusive. How do you feel about this?!

10. Who’s your favorite child?! I know you don’t show it to them.

11. Lance reminds me of your children.

12. Your children go to the same school as the Decendants of the U.S.A. I remember when Constance told Antonio politely to “Leave that man (Shylock) alone”, and Sarah, Shylock’s descendant slapped him and hurt her hand because she slapped the mirror. 

13. Your children are super smart. I heard that they’re even on the same league of intelligence as Giovanna, descendant of the idiotic Gratiano. Bruce is the smartest of them all. He’s in Mensa, right?! He is even better at chess than Giovanna is. 

14. Lenny will make for a great future lawyer. Already he is beating Portia Jr. in half of the debates he has with her on the debate team. He also beat Daniel in being a good lawyer in Mock Trial club.

15. Isabelle is an excellent public speaker and has a high vocab. She is also the best in spelling .She even beat Giovanna and Lance. Poor Lance, although he beat her in the math challenge.

16. David is a human calculator. He is amazing at math.

17. You encourage their talents. What happened when you showed your sperm donor a talent?! 

18. What was your mother like?!

Bye, I hope you answer. 

Sincerely, one of your biggest fans.

I would appreciate it if you didn’t compare me to other people with my name.

No you cannot hug me, do not call Pappy a “sperm donor”, and I do not want your sympathy.

I don’t know who Lance Gobbo is.

I would prefer to not talk about that.

You mean outside the silhouette? They are not “forms”. My silhouette is a covering over my body that gives me powers and keeps me safe.

I’m fair and equal? I’m never either of those things and I’ve never gone out of my way for anyone. The Delightfuls just get what they want because I don’t have the time nor the patience to argue with them otherwise. 6.2. Pappy didn’t give me literal garbage. I got hand-me-downs from Monty. Different thing entirely.

Nothing I want to tell you.

Differently from what? Now? Pappy? Other people? In any case I don’t care. I parent the way I parent and that’s that.

I think they need a few moments in my Delightfulization chamber.

I don’t have a favorite. They’re all equally annoying.

Again. I don’t know who Lance is, nor do I care.

These “Descendants” kids go to Gallaghar Elementary? News to me. 12.2. No. I don’t know any of these people you’re talking about.

I know my children are smart. I made them that way. 13.2. No. Bruce is not in Mensa. My children do not have time for any extracurricular activities. They come home, do their homework, chores and help me plot to take down the KND. Any extra time they have, I garuantee you isn’t taken up with extra school activities. 13.3. They’re all equally good at chess.

Lenny isn’t in any Lawyer clubs. I would be proud of him if he became one, but as I said he doesn’t have time for clubs.

Who is Isabelle and why are you telling me about her?

They’re all great at Math. I programmed them to all be excellent at school for a REASON.

I really hate that you make so many assumptions about my relationship with my children. I tell them what to do and they do it. If I told them to go jump off a bridge they’re programmed to do so. I don’t have to encourage anything.17.2. That’s none of your damned business, you brat!

Neither is that!

((I appreciate getting things in my inbox but please discuss crossover headcanons with me prior to asking Ben about specific events within them. Also please ask about events from his childhood/with Pappy before stating them like they’re fact. These things make me feel like you’re trying to force your headcanons on me.

((My Father’s Delightful Children are ran by myself and @asklenard-knd​ and all headcanons are between us. I’ve never heard of this Descendants of the USA thing you’re talking about. I will not add them into my headcanons unless it’s RPed out by myself or Olive to place any of this into his universe.

((I also find the term “Sperm Donor”, as used here, very offensive. Pappy was abusive, yes, but in Ben’s eyes he is still his dad. I come from an abusive home where I didn’t have my mother for most of my life as well and just as Canon Ben I can’t see my dad as anything less than my dad. “Sperm Donor” is a term properly used in reference to a male that leaves before a child is born and never has any contact with the child afterwards.

((The blond girl of the Delightfuls is canonically named Ashley and that is the name Ben and myself use when referring to her.

((Father is only mildly less abusive than Pappy was to him.There are many many signs in the show that say he physically abuses the Delightfuls on a regular basis. It’s shown that he always puts them down and talks bad about them and doesn’t care if they hear it. It’s also shown that he had a standard of them that’s higher than what’s logical or appropriate. He punishes them for things that aren’t their fault. He has an explosive temper and they are SCARED of him. He buys them things and does special stuff for them, not for them or to make them feel special, but to keep his conscious from affecting him. He doesn’t really care about them the way he should through the whole series. He’s a bad person. Don’t make him look like a good one. He’s going through a redemption arch here on my blog but he’s never going to be fully good. He’s always going to struggle with the idea that he’s ever been wrong. He’s going to always have a sever temper. I will never label him as good. Never.

[athyrabunlord]

LLSHP 7 - Unbreakable Vow

Arc1: [Chapter 1] [Chapter 2] [Chapter 3] [Chapter 4] [Chapter 5] [Chapter 6] [Chapter 7]

Arc2: [Chapter 8] [Chapter 9] [Chapter 10] [Chapter 11] [Chapter 12] [Chapter 13] [Chapter 14]

Arc3: [Chapter 15 -  Under The Black Lake (TBD)]

Interlude: [Carbonado (1)] [Carbonado (2)] [Of Feathers and Wind] [Delphinus (teaser blip)]

[Brief note about School Term] [other LLSHP AU stuff] [YohaMaRuby concept arts] [ChikaYouRiko concept arts] [KanaDiaMari concept arts] [Hogwarts Staff]

[FFN link] (finished the interludes!) [Pixiv Link]

A/N: (๑˃ᴗ˂)ﻭ That’s right, an update so early instead of bi-monthly lmao *cries* Anyway, there’s a lot of information and HP jargon in this chapter, but hopefully they’re self-explanatory enough within the scenes. Any feedback is greatly appreciated and thanks for your support! Note: I’ll be editing previous chapters and finally upload on FFN or AO3 to avoid those Keep Reading issues. For the time being, if there’s a problem loading this chapter, I’ve uploaded on pixiv [here] too :’D Words: 5,647

She jolts awake with a strangled cry.

Her eyes dart about in confusion. The sky is high above her, and what is this warm and furry thing beneath her? It seems to be moving, no, carrying her on its back? Where is she? What’s going on?

Her head throbs horribly, forcing her to curl up. This movement causes her to fall off onto the ground, though she barely feels the pain. It’s nothing compared to that agony in her chest.

She tearfully peers through her bangs, noting a massive canine is hovering above her with its jaws slightly agape. She recoils from terror and waves her arm feebly to see if the wolf would back off.

To her shock, dark and wispy tendrils of magic whirl around her arm and shot out towards the wolf, which hops away with a startled growl. She could feel herself hyperventilating now as uncontrollable magic continues to ooze from her body.

Snarling, the wolf paws at the ground and bares its fangs at the tendrils. It is then that she notices someone else behind the creature, a girl who looks vaguely familiar but her cloudy mind hurts too much for her to think properly.

The petite brunette is shouting something and would have run towards her if the wolf hasn’t blocked her way. Yoshiko, is it? Is that my name? Am I Yoshiko? The girl desperately repeats the name again and tries to move around the wolf to get to her.

“No! Don’t come near me!” The dark strands of magic lash out, but the wolf jumps in front of the brunette just as the tendrils solidify and slice into its flesh. With a pained yip, the canine morphs into an older girl with long ponytail, holding a bleeding arm.

The blood and the transformation surprise her so much that the swirling black haze around her dissipate a little.

“Petrificus totalus!”

 A spell shots through the haze and strikes her fully. Her limbs lock in place and she falls backwards rigidly. In spite of being rendered immobile, the shrouds of inky magic continue to seep out of her body. The more she panics, the wilder these sentient tendrils become.

“Yoshiko-san!” She recognizes that voice too, but her inability to place a name and face to it freaks her out more.

Just what’s going on? Why can’t she control her body?

“Yoshiko-chan, please snap out of it!”

Prone on the ground, she can only stare blankly at the sky, though her limited view is misting over with all that intangible magic shroud.

Someone… help me…

“Yoshiko-chan!”

A girl with a soft smile flashes in her mind and it matches with this voice. The brunette from earlier.

Zuramaru…?

“I am sorry, Hanamaru-san, but I need to Stun her now. Stupefy!”

There’s a streak of red light and she knows no more.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

“So where are you from, Yoshiko-chan?”

“It’s Yohane!”

“Yo-ha-ne? What is that zura? Can you eat it?”

“... is that all you think about, eating?”

“Yes! I love the tea and cakes Grandma makes, and the sweet yam Grandpa likes to grill in the yard zura~ Oh, here!”

“What’s this, some sort of bread?”

“Yup! Noppo-pan! I love sharing it with you Yoshiko-chan!”

“It’s Yohane! Grrr, call me by my real name, silly mortal.” Nom nom nom. “But hnff, I’ll forgive you since this offering is yummy. Why do you want to know where I’m from?”

“You’re always here whenever Grandpa and Grandma drop me off. I live over there, in the temple zura! How about you?”

“Ku ku ku, I came from the heavens, y’know!”

“A-Are you an angel then?”

“Nope, I can’t fly anymore cuz I fell… so I’m a fallen angel!”

“Oh… so what’re you gonna do then?”

“Isn’t that obvious? I’ll return to the sky!”

She climbed onto the very top of the monkey bars and pointed upwards. The small brunette gazed at her in awe, clapping with her tiny hands and ochre eyes sparkling. However, a moment later, tears well up and trickle down her pudgy cheeks.

“W-Why are you crying?!”

“Uuuaaa! Yoshiko-chan is going to disappear! Uuuaaa!”

“What!? No I’m not! What makes you think that?” Panicking, she hopped down from the bars and scraped her knees and palms from the landing. Ignoring the pain, she hurried towards the sobbing girl and hugged her.

“Y-You said y-you’re going to -hic-  return to the -hic- sky! I-I’m not an angel, so I can’t -hic- go with you!”

“What? That’s silly. You’re silly, Zuramaru.”

“What -hic- do you mean?”

“When I return to the sky, I’ll bring you with me, duh! So stop crying already.”

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Yes, someone was crying and there were whispered conversations around her. Silence took over and she felt like she was swimming through a murky swamp. Unfamiliar images glided past her yet instilled a sense of nostalgia as she trudged by. A distorted voice was saying something but she couldn’t make out what.

All she knew was to move towards the light. It was a mere dot in the distance, but having a destination, a goal, kept her mind focused. She doesn’t know how long she’s struggled forward, but eventually she summons enough strength to shout out.

“I’m… Yoshiko. Yoshiko Tsushima!”

The indistinct voice becomes louder. “And who is Yohane?”

“The fallen angel of course!”

“Who is the fallen angel Yohane?”

“Yohane is me!”

The voice, sinister and airy, giggles. “No, you will never ever be Yohane.”

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Yoshiko gasps hoarsely as her eyes snap open. She frantically sits up and looks around her, her ragged breaths the only thing she can hear in this silent room. Upon seeing the covered Mirror of Erised at the corner, she realizes that she’s in the Room of Requirement. She reaches into her pocket and freezes in fear when she couldn’t find her wand. The green scarf, charmed by Dia to stop her peculiar trances, is not around her neck.

Feeling vulnerable, she grips the cushion beneath her and surveys the room again with cautious eyes. It’s actually a lot more spacious than she thinks, for there is an open area behind her filled with rows of bookshelves, lab benches and cauldrons.

And there is someone coming towards her!

She lunges for the tea cup on the nearby table, hoping to use the broken shard as a last resort. Alas, she gets frozen in mid-motion and curses inwardly at her naivety. Of course, whoever brought her here must be a witch or wizard.

“Please calm down, Yocchan.”

“Lily-?”

Nodding, Riko gazes at her carefully and only lowers her wand after she appears certain of something. Now able to move again, Yoshiko presses her hand against her chest, which aches a little, and slumps back against the cushions with a huff.

“Does it hurt?” The Ravenclaw doesn’t wait for her response and pours a translucent liquid from a pot.

“Um, what happened and why am I-?”

“Drink this first.” Riko’s voice is flat, leaving no room for argument. Even then, Yoshiko remains skeptical and does not move to accept the steaming potion.

“N-Not until you tell me what happened, Lily,” she tries to use her commanding, husky voice, though her throat is too parched for any sort of effects.

The older girl furrows her brows. “I will, but you need to drink this first. This potion… it’ll help in calming you.”

“Calming me? I think I’m pretty calm right now-?”

“It’ll also make you feel slightly weak, since it would suppress your magical power for a period of time,” Riko raises her voice just as Yoshiko is about to protest. “As a precaution, so that you will not go out of control again.”

“Out of control? Just what do you-”

“Why don’t we talk first, Rikocchi? She can drink the potion as we go along. I’d do the same if I were in her shoes,” a silhouette seems to have appeared out of nowhere, stepping out from the shadows with light smile.

“M-Mari-san?” Yoshiko has many tutor sessions with Riko, and has talked to Mari on a few occasions, but for some reason she feels very intimidated now that she’s alone with these two Ravenclaws.

“In the flesh~ Now, I’ll need you to answer something first before we start talking. What do you remember? And please don’t lie,” there’s something predatory about the senior’s feline-like gaze. “I will know if you do, capisce?”

Yoshiko gulps, feeling even more nervous now. Perhaps drinking the potion doesn’t seem so bad? She helplessly glances at Riko, whose demeanor is unreadable as she sits on the couch opposite of her. Mari is standing behind her housemate, her arms folded and draped on the backrest.

“Well, there were a lot of images…? Memories, maybe, before I woke up but I honestly don’t remember. They’re all so vague,” Yoshiko rubs at her temple, feeling a prickle in her head as she tries to recall. “And before that, I thought I was flying - ah, You-san lent me her broom, and then I found Zuramaru by the Lake and- wait! Where’s Hanamaru? Where is she now?”

Before she could spring up from her seat, her movements are locked again by the same spell, and the more she tries to struggle, the harder the body-binding spell becomes.

“Hanamaru-san is fine, Yocchan. Please drink this potion now.” Perhaps it is the slightly panicked gleam in those amber eyes, or the fact that a faint, shadowy veil of something is seeping out of her own arm, but she obediently drinks the potion with haste.

The liquid isn’t as bitter as she imagined, and it warms her chest and makes her rather dazed in a pleasant way. When she glances down again, she is relieved to see nothing around her arm. Just for a good measure, she prods at her own limb and notices nothing out of ordinary.

“What… was that?”

Mari’s humorous tone has a frigid edge to it. “We’ll get to that in a bit. So, yes, you were talking to Hanamaru-chan, and you fainted for some reason. Kanan heard her cries for help and was carrying you two back towards the castle when you, well, for the lack of better word, went bonkers. Dia arrived in time and dispatched you. She took Hanamaru-chan and Kanan elsewhere to treat their injuries, and left you with us.”

“To treat-? T-They got hurt? Because of me-?”

Yoshiko really couldn’t remember anything, no matter how desperately she tries. Mari’s cheerful giggle has never sounded so menacing until now.

“Oh yes~ Hanamaru-chan got a few scrapes here and there but she’s mostly fine, just rather shaken up and understandably so. While Kanan… well, she’s lucky her arm stays attached to her body~”

“Mari-san. It’s not Yocchan’s fault,” Riko says severely.

The blonde stares at Yoshiko’s bewildered face and sighs after a few tense moments. “I know, I know. It’s just, I’m worried and, no, you’re right, sorry. Let me try that again. Yoshiko Tsushima, we’ve been watching you since Day1, back on Platform 9 ¾.”

“You what?”

With a Cheshire grin, Mari morphs into a familiar golden cat and paws at Riko’s scarf as if it were an ordinary pet. Yoshiko blinks once, twice and again. What the freaking hell just happened?! One moment Mari was a human, and now she was this cat? No wonder the cat’s chartreuse eyes always seem so familiar, so human! No wonder it always gives her advice and understands her words, because it’s been a human all along!

“W-What sorcery is this!? No, that’s not the point - you’ve been spying on me since the beginning? And I’ve told you so many things about me, about the orphanage-!”

Truth be told, Yoshiko feels rather betrayed.

Ears flattened, the cat leaps behind the couch and instantly changes back. “You’re understandably upset, but I promise I have never shared what you’ve told me to the others. Your secrets stay with me. That’s why I’ve revealed my secret to you just now, to make things fair - I’m an unregistered Animagus, so don’t tell anyone else, alrighty? Then again, after what happened, you’ll find out eventually now that we’re bringing you into the loop.”

“Why should I trust you?” Yoshiko glares at Mari, whose characteristic smirk is nowhere to be seen now. She averts her gaze towards Riko, who gingerly sets her wand down onto the table.

“Yocchan, we will explain what we’ve been doing and why. You can decide whether to trust us or not afterwards.”

Yoshiko winces under the older girl’s patient tone, feeling inexplicably sheepish. Even though her mind is still a mess, she understands enough that the Ravenclaws are trying to help her and seem to have the answers to her issues. And really, here alone in the Room of Requirement without her wand, she doesn’t have a choice but to at least listen to them.

“Alright. So, go on, on my first day, back at the train station-?”

Riko takes a deep breath and takes out a black feather from her pocket. “Do you know what this is?”

“Is that the one I gave you when you first became my little demon? Hey, come to think of it, I’ve been missing a lot of those since coming here to Hogwarts…”

Mari points at one of the benches at the lab area, where small orbs light up upon her gesture. There are many similar black feathers, some ruffled and some as sleek as quill, placed neatly in some sort of order on the table. Each appears to be quarantined via a silvery veil.

“Err, okay, I don’t think some of those are mine. Did you get it from a shop like I did or-?”

“No. We either got them from you, or we found them at various places. Let me ask you again, Yocchan, what are they?”

Yoshiko trembles a little from Riko’s austere voice. “They’re just accessories! Y’know, I do rituals with them but mostly just to go along with my hairdo-”

“What ritual?”

“M-Mari-san should know! I think I’ve shown her one time, when she’s in her cat form.”

It could just be pretense but Riko truly doesn’t seem to know what she’s talking about, so Mari didn’t lie about keeping her secret. “Rikocchi, those so-called rituals are just third-rate ‘black magic’ Muggles are fond of but have no special effect whatsoever.”

“Hey, don’t call it third-rate! I’ll have you know that-” Yoshiko trails off when Riko sighs wearily and covers her face with shaking hand as if to regain her bearings.

“So does this mean they’re created without her knowing or what? Just how…” The older girl mumbles to herself before leaning back against the couch and gazes solemnly into Yoshiko’s eyes. “Yocchan, these feathers are what we call ‘Horcrux’.”

“Hor-what?”

“A Horcux is a Dark object that contains a piece of the creator’s soul, for the purpose of gaining immortality. After all the tests we’ve run through, these feathers seem to have similar properties as a Horcrux would have.”

Yoshiko stares blankly at the two Ravenclaws. “... you’re saying, somehow, I’ve… split bits of my soul, into those feathers-?”

“That’s the most plausible conclusion we’ve arrived at. However, one thing disputes our theory - it is impossible for you to create a Horcrux, let alone so many.”

“D-Duh! That sounds like a really fancy spell that a First-Year like me couldn’t have possibly known,” Yoshiko says shakily, though a small voice at the back of her mind reminds her that she somehow repelled the Dementor when she was only a little girl, using an advanced spell as well.

There’s a chilling gleam in Riko’s amber eyes. “No, that’s not the main reason - in order to create a Horcrux, you must commit a murder.”

“I haven’t killed anybody!” Yoshiko blurts frantically, “No way, I-I haven’t, I couldn’t have p-possibly-”

Mari interrupts her firmly. “Don’t worry, we never said you did. That’s why Rikocchi says our theory doesn’t work because you are not evil - we all know that. We’ve been observing you since you’ve arrived at Hogwarts after all.”

“Y-Yeah, I may be the fallen angel but I would never k-kill anyone.” Yoshiko sighs in relief when both Ravenclaws nod in agreement, though Riko still looks tense.

“Regardless, these feathers are Dark objects and are similar to a Horcrux - we’ve detected spiritual presence just likes yours, Yocchan. We’ve been researching this for a long time, and to this date we still have no answer.”

“... who’s ‘we’ exactly? And why the research? Isn’t it too much even just for curiosity’s sake?” Yoshiko tries to remain calm and ignore the fact that her soul might possibly be damaged. Everything intrigues her, not in a good way, and to be honest she feels better not knowing any of this. The old saying ‘ignorance is bliss’ really applies here.

“Dia-san, Mari-san, Kanan-san and I form this research group.”

“Oh, that makes sense I guess… wait, not You-san or Chika-san?”

Pain flickers in Riko’s gaze. “They used to be, but not anymore.”

Yoshiko gulps, and Mari pats her housemate in comfort. “Before that, let me add something - we suspect that your mind blanks out randomly due to the creation of these feathers - something must be in the Forbidden Forest. So for this reason, Kanan in her wolf form would patrol the area, sometimes with Dia. I would scour through the Castle grounds in my cat form. That’s how we’ve found many other feathers.”

“I see…” She glances worriedly at Riko, who is staring at her lap and whimsically wringing her fingers. Mari squeezes the younger girl’s shoulder again in encouragement.

“Everything started a year ago. I came to a possession of a black quill that conversed with me. It taught me a lot about my family, blood purity, magical core, and many other things you can’t learn from books alone. We Sakurauchis hail from an Ancient bloodline known for the research of the Origin, so I suppose that’s where my natural inquisitiveness came from… ha ha, no, that’s no excuse for my stupidity.”

“Lily…” Yoshiko desperately wants to comfort the older girl. Riko has always been her composed, flawless tutor, but now she just looks like a lost teenager on the brink of breaking down.

“That quill called me Lily too,” Riko smiles faintly, though there is no humor in her eyes except guilt. “Overjoyed by all this knowledge, I shared this discovery with my two best friends, Chika-chan and You-chan. As per the quill’s tales, we’ve gone exploring many previously unknown places in Hogwarts, such as this Room of Requirement and more. To make our trio’s adventures more official, the quill suggested we form the Unbreakable Vow, which we stupidly did. This magical vow had us swear not to divulge this secret to anyone who is not a student and outside the group. That’s why, even to this date, I cannot reveal any of this, any of our research, to the staff, my family, or anyone else.”

She shakes her head as if to scoff at her foolishness. “Chika-chan always dreamed of having a grand adventure, and You-chan was always ready to go along with any idea she and I had. Together, the three of us, we had learned so much and had so much fun together, enjoying these secrets that only the three of us knew. But, during one of these a-adventures...”

Her voice cracks and Yoshiko is aghast to see tears welling up in her eyes.

“To m-make a long story short, we f-found ourselves surrounded by cloaked strangers who knew powerful Dark magic a-and… t-they… C-Chika-chan and Y-You-chan protected me a-and basically became guinea pigs for their spells… particularly, Curses that affect that mind. Something happened then that forced the attackers to Disapparate. I-I tried my best to help Chika-chan and You-chan but… in the end, to preserve their minds, I h-had to...”

She bites her lips and clenches her fists. “I Obliviated them. I wiped their memories of the time we spent together, everything… somehow, we’re still friends now, but it’s not the same anymore, and it never will be. I p-practically killed them, didn’t I?”

Mari moves to hug Riko then, though the latter is admirably trying to contain her emotions. Yoshiko could only stare in horror, trying to absorb what she just heard. She’s so deep in thoughts that she doesn’t notice that another person has joined them until the familiar deep voice speaks up.

“Riko-san. Do not push yourself. I will continue the story.”

Yoshiko instinctively flinches under Dia’s gaze, and grins weakly when the Head Girl nods in greeting. Good, Dia doesn’t seem angry at her or anything, and her attention is wholly focused on Riko anyway.

Mari scoots aside to give Dia room as the latter sits down beside Riko. “How’s Kanan doing?”

“You know her. Even if she is in pain, she remains stubborn, but she should be fine. Hanamaru-san is with her,” she adds when she notices Yoshiko’s unspoken question. She gently pulls Riko towards her shoulder, allowing the younger girl to rest there.

“As one of the oldest Pureblood Families, the Kurosawas have been under scrutiny by many for centuries and that includes Dark Wizards. I have had my share of assailants wanting to kidnap me or obtain samples of my blood, presumably for experiments on blood purity. Such attacks have stopped since coming to Hogwarts, until it resumed again last year. Back then, I barely knew of Riko-san’s group so I did not make the connection between her story and these attacks. But now, since we have discovered similar feathers on my attackers, they must be the same as the ones who attacked Riko-san’s group. I suspect that, as the heiress and a young adult, my magical core is at its prime while remaining malleable, thus making me the ideal target for whatever Dark experiment they have been committing.”

Dia’s voice softens then. “On the other hand, Ruby would have been a candidate as well, except her Sorting into Hufflepuff and her lack of a typical Kurosawa’s qualities must have deterred these unknown hostiles.”

“That’s why you’re always so cold to Ruby,” Yoshiko hopes her tone doesn’t sound accusing, but she’s quite upset for her dear friend’s sake. “Because you want to protect her, I get that, but do you have any idea how much she-”

“I know. But this is the only way I know how.”

Yoshiko grits her teeth, uncertain what to say. Dia truly cares about her little sister, that much is obvious now, but isn’t there something they can do about this messed up situation?

“So let me get this straight - something must have happened to me when I was younger, or even the moment I was born, that’s why memories of my childhood are so vague. This something makes me go weird, empties my mind and or attack people with that dark shroud thingy. Feathers with whatever Dark properties are created somehow, and this is related to the attackers who went after Dia-san, and Li-” Yoshiko pauses and decides it’s better not to use that nickname even though Riko consented it back then. “Riko-san’s group. You’re all in this together, to research these feathers and find out what secrets hide in the Forbidden Forest, but you’re not allowed to tell the Professors or anyone else about all this. Did I miss anything?”

“No, you have understood everything perfectly, Yoshiko-san.”

“Sounds like I’m a key player in this eh? Why didn’t you just tell me everything from the start?”

“We did not know if you’re trustworthy or not,” Mari quirks an eyebrow, “there is a necessity in keeping secrets and distance. Once we get to know you better, we do not want to endanger you either.”

“A-After what happened with Chika-chan and You-chan, I didn’t want anyone to be hurt because of me again,” Riko murmurs flatly, her fingers curled around Dia’s scarf. “I only allowed Dia-san, Kanan-san and Mari-san to join because of their situation as well, but…”

“Well, you need more comrades, doncha?” Mari winks, her voice playful as she fondly caresses her junior’s hair. “And there’s no way Kanan and I are leaving Dia alone in this either.”

“But now you’re part of this. For that, I’m so sorry, Yocchan.”

“Why are you apologizing? I mean, yeah, it’s gonna take a while for everything to sink in but, if by the end of this, I can find out about my past and a remedy for those weird things happening to me, then I’m in!” Yoshiko gives her a small grin, and adds inwardly. Anything to make me normal. I do want to stand out, but not as a freak. No more.

“Yoshiko-san,” Dia speaks in the most stern tone she’s ever heard. “By joining our group, you are indirectly tied to Riko-san’s Unbreakable Vow. If you were to divulge our secrets to those outside of our group, your action would cause Riko-san to break her terms.”

“W-What would happen then?”

The older Slytherin’s eyes narrow and her arm tightens imperceptibly around Riko’s shoulder. “She will die.”

“I-I was just wondering that’s all!” Yoshiko squeaks. “But technically I can tell Hanamaru and Ruby right? I mean, you’ve brought me into the loop, so they could be too, without breaking the er terms.”

“Hanamaru-san has unfortunately become part of our group after what happened earlier. She has a right to know, as a witness and someone who shares your childhood no matter how brief a period. I have spoken to her already about the crucial details, and I am certain Kanan-san is filling in the details as we speak. As for Ruby, I would request that you do not involve her.”

Yoshiko frowns and swallows her protest. “...fine. So what now?”

“After what happened, we will need to monitor you, for a while at least. While you recalling your memories would help us a great deal, it would not be wise to do so forcefully. The Pensieve perhaps… no, it is best not to chance it. We will discuss this matter further at a later time. For the time being, we will train you.”

“Huh? For what?”

Dia looks exasperated by her brilliant response. “Now that you are part of our group, you will need to be able to defend yourself. Of course, we will do our best to ensure you would not fall in harm’s way, though you still need to become stronger and better.”

“That’s awesome!” To be under the tutelage of the Head Girl is a great honor. Soon, she’ll be able to kick ass just as she dreams of.

“How can you be so cheerful? Do you not understand the situation you are in?”

“Well, I was terrified and so very confused earlier… and frankly, I still am. But you know what? At the end of the day, nothing shall stop the great fallen angel Yohane-sama~” Yoshiko makes a pose and points to the three older witches. “There’s no use moping or thinking! Ya gotta take actions if ya want to get somewhere!”

Dia sighs, Mari returns her grin, and Riko gives her a tiny smile. Yoshiko relishes in this sense of purpose and is about to proclaim more goals when the door creaks open.

“Kanan!”

Mari hurries over to the tall Gryffindor, who greets her with an one-armed hug. Yoshiko feels her rush of excitement deflate at the sight of the sling and bandages on Kanan. It does look quite serious and, due to the Unbreakable Vow, she couldn’t go to the Infirmary for proper treatment. That would invite too many questions that they cannot answer.

Before Yoshiko could apologize, a small form practically bulldozes her and makes them collapse in a heap on the carpet. It takes her a few moments to realize that Hanamaru is sobbing on top of her.

“Y-You’re awake… y-you’re okay zura…”

“She’s so worried about you but I couldn’t let her come here until we make sure you’re, well, back to normal,” Kanan elaborates in a friendly voice, seemingly relaxed to be talking to the person who almost sliced off her arm, as unintentionally as it had been.

Yoshiko looks around the room, her gaze lingering on each witch before returning to the crying girl in her arms. “I’m sorry.”

“What for? It is not your fault,” Dia says kindly. “It concerns us just as much as it does you.”

“Right, but I still want to apologize.” She awkwardly sits up while cradling the brunette against her. “K-Kanan-san, I’m sorry about hurting you and thank you, for protecting Hanamaru.”

The ponytailed Gryffindor simply smiles at that, accepting her words. Only a tidbit of jealousy remains, and it’s nothing compared to the magnitude of gratitude she feels towards Kanan now.

If she had truly hurt Hanamaru, she would not know what to do with herself.

Kanan will protect Hanamaru, at least until Yoshiko becomes strong enough to do so.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

“It’s hic… all my fault hic…”

“Are we still on that?”

Yoshiko stiffly walks beside the sniffling brunette, and each and every single one of her whimpers stab into her chest. She’s frustrated by her inability to comfort Hanamaru, so she simply allows the latter to grip her hand rather painfully.

She deserves this pain, and it’s nice to hold onto that petite hand in her own.

“It’s all because hic… I started talking about the Dementor hic…”

“Hey now, you wouldn’t have known I’d go crazy. I mean, I’m actually glad all this happened, otherwise I would’ve continued to be kept in the dark! I’m the one who should be sorry. I dragged you into this.”

“We’re in this together, Yoshiko-chan. I don’t want to be hic... left out. I want to help you zura.”

Yoshiko smiles. “Thanks. You’ve always stood up for me, haven’t you? My memories are blurry and in fragments, but you stayed on my side even after the other kids at the playground mocked me. Well, nothing’s changed, I’m still a freak-”

“You aren’t! You’re my heroine!” Hanamaru exclaims, startling her so much that she almost drops the former’s hand. “ I actually thought you were an angel back then, the way you protected me zura.”

“Erm…t-thanks?” Yoshiko blinks down at the shorter girl, noting how unwavering and pretty her eyes are in spite of her tears.

Also, her face is really close.

“Oh!” Hanamaru notices their closeness as well and recoils, her cheeks red. Yoshiko knows her face must match the other’s girl’s, judging by how warm it feels. At least, the somber atmosphere between them has finally lifted. They resume walking in silence, each sneaking glances when they think the other isn’t looking and blush when their eyes meet.

Just before they arrive at the entrance to the Hufflepuff Dorm, Yoshiko speaks up quietly. “So, we’re doing the right thing aren’t we?”

“Yes. We can’t keep this a secret from Ruby-chan.”

Just before they left the Room of Requirement, Yoshiko had spoken up against Dia again about Ruby. After a lot of back and forth, and some support from Mari and Kanan, she managed to convince the older Slytherin to at least allow Ruby to participate in their self-defense lessons.

To their surprise, Ruby has been waiting for them for who knows how long. “Hanamaru-chan, and Yoshiko-chan too! Where h-have you gone to? I went over to the Lake because that’s where I thought you’d be, but I-I only found your glasses and books…”

The two girls hastily move towards their friend, each placing a hand on her shoulder to calm her. “Thanks, Ruby-chan. Um, many things happened zura.”

“That’s putting it mildly, Zuramaru. We’ll update you as we go but first, we want to show you something - come with us.”

Though puzzled, the pigtailed Hufflepuff guilelessly follow their lead. Hanamaru and Yoshiko exchange a look and walk just a bit closer to their trusting friend. While they omit the majority of the truth, such as Riko’s past, they reveal that there are unknown attackers going after Dia and Yoshiko and, due to a sensitive circumstance, they cannot go to the officials or others for help.

“T-There are still people going after Onee-chan? I thought that had stopped,” Ruby peers at them anxiously. “But why Yoshiko-chan?”

“Fufu, because the great fallen angel is too amazing-”

“We don’t know why yet zura, but either way it’s good that we learn to defend ourselves.”

“R-Right. S-So where are we going?”

“The Room of Requirement.”

“You’ve found it?”

Yoshiko looks away sheepishly from Ruby’s awed expression. “Well, I had help…”

The trio come to a stop at the seventh floor, opposite of that memorable ugly tapestry. Ruby freezes at the sight of Dia standing there and subconsciously clings to her friends’ sleeves.

“Onee-chan-? But why-?”

Yoshiko and Hanamaru share another look before gently pushing her towards her sister. They stay a fair distance away to give the Kurosawas some privacy. From the corner of her eye, Yoshiko is warmed to see Ruby smiling happily at Dia, whose movements seem awkward at first but she eventually pats the smaller girl’s head.

“Things will get better now, won’t it zura?”

“Yeah, I sure hope so. There’s so much we don’t know yet, but that’s why we’re gonna train to become better, so we’ll be ready for anything.” As for the possibility of my soul being damaged... well, that’s merely another challenge for the great fallen angel, that’s all.

“Mhmm. We only have one another now, but I believe we can trust each other. This group is a nice group, isn’t it zura?”

Yoshiko finds herself grinning at the brunette’s soft smile. “You’re right. Everything will be fine now that we’re all working together. Hanamaru, I promise I’ll do everything in my power so you won’t have that kind of horrible experience again. That’s Yohane-sama’s own version of Unbreakable Vow to you.”

“Hehe, right back at you, Yoshiko-chan! That’s my version of the Vow too zura.”

And neither realize they haven’t let go of each other’s hands.