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maguro13-2 · 8 months

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Shattered Hero ~ Origins of the Ink Demon: Episode Maka Pt.7 (2/2)~ (Reuploaded)

[Huge Crisis Zone : Boss Area]

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Drats! No sign of this Eggman Negative fella and he must be here somewhere around the naval station. Where could this man possibly be?

[Boss (Neves) - Akihiro Honda]

Arthur (via radio) : Great! I'm beginning to pick up some radar signals. He has to be at the right spot, but I'm sure he might be hiding somewhere.

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Arthur, do you know where he is?

Arthur (via radio) : Yeah, I'm sure that it is your 20. We finally know where he is!

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Where is he? (behind him is the Egg Hammer Mega) It's right behing me, is there?

Arthur (via radio) : Correct! (Shinra turns and sees the mech)

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Oh, heck no! This is not my lucky day!

"HUGE CRISIS BOSS : EGG HAMMER FORTRESS"

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : So this is where you have been hiding! You were doing something to the inhabitants of Sonic's world, weren't you?

Eggman Nega : Surprise to see me, aren't we? Lucky for you, the Ifrit will awaken to gain power and immortality!

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : How are you gonna make the Ifrit Stronger?

Eggman Nega : Isn't obvious, according to the book, it states that the Ifrit can grow stronger by feeding him one precious meal to give him the power, a chao of course!

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Why you heartless scum! I knew you were doing this to the other Robotnik, you weren't going to rule the world to overthrow him, you were only craving on attempted murder and genocide! What kind of descendant from the future are you anyway!? You devil! (fires missiles at the Egg Hammer Fortress) Did it work?

Eggman Nega : Nice try, devil! But this Egg Hammer mech is built even stronger than the original in the forest!

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Damn! The missiles won't work on this guy! He's nuts! I don't know if my attacks with the walker will do any damage, but if I use the laser cannon, I'll sunk a battleship, just like how kids the Battleship toy game! It's like chess and checkers!

Eggman Nega : And now...It'll be checkmate for you once I crush you with this mech used by me! Lights out, devil!

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Oh man! I'm gonna get turn into a pancake!

*DBZ SFX : SWISH-SLASH!*

Eggman Nega : What!?

*DBZ SFX : EXPLOSION!*

Arthur : Sorry for the delay! But I'm afraid that killing a Chao population isn't yours to annhilate them.

Eggman Nega : Curse you!

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Arthur Boyle, dude! What took ya so long!?

Arthur : Sorry to break it to ya, Shinra. Because, Arthur Boyle is no more after I died in space where had to be resurrected into reincarnation since the Time Eater destroyed half of our universe which was a facade to the Shadow Realm. But this is the new Arthur Boyle, I am reincarnated into a girl! (shifts into Saber's voice) And this is the reason that the knight never dies! I live for real and remain as Arthur Boyle's reincarnation, Saber!

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Lemme guess...You've turned yourself into a girl, didn't you?

Arthur/Saber : Of course, which is why I've always wanted to become a girl one day. But hey, at least it's the 06.

Eggman Nega : Grr! You'll regret this! I will awaken the Ifrit and if it's the last thing I do!

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Eggman Nega! Wait!

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Blaze knew what were you doing on planning to take over the world, awakening a demon that will easily put the whole world in genocide, is that what you planned from the start at the future of Sonic's World?

[End the Game - Yutaka Minobe]

Eggman Nega : Of course, it will! I just needed to achieve my plans, but that blasted hedgehog foils everything I did! What does he have that I don't! I will mark the last laugh if it's what I do! (flies away)

[Law of the Shadow Army - Masamichi Amano]

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : Damn! I Never thought that Silver would want to overthrow Eggman Nega's plan on overthrowing the Robotniks. If that hadn't been for the Black Arms Invasion, then all of humanity will be done for if it means to the hero that caused a powerful, explosive shockwave that wiped out four-fifths of the population in Japan. Following after, a second explosion occured was in Tokyo, it was Inca's future relative, Kimial.

Arthur/Saber : True that, humans thought that were gifted with the despair from Sephiroth, but it turns out it was all just a part of a corrupt game. Demon Vibe might be responsible for the destruction in an exchange for galactic conquest, but the thing that other villains might be humanity's problem or the humans that are heartless their selves, It's not a big deal that I was involved of some kind of conspiracy after the Time Eater figured it out that the universe we lived was a facade to Shadow Realm.

Shinra (Devil Chaos Chao) : How pitiful. After all of that Fire Soldier crap about 1000 years ago, I'd foiled Demon Vibe's plan by destroying it's creation, the evangelist, I realized that the eight pillars that were us were only used not just our souls, but our hearts that would be the keys to open the door to darkness. Why I did spread the "Influence" that I caused for what?

Arthur/Saber : ...Shinra.

"Meanwhile at Sailor Senshi Headquaters..."

[Mistery - Seirou Okamoto]

Luna : Good evening, Senshis. We are gathered here to inform you to this newest mission and this time our location will be very different this time.

Usagi : Okay, so Tokyo might be safer this time. What's next for us? I bet it's a vacation

Luna : We have just received from Intel that a man from 200 years in the future has been capturing Chao from the famous for an extinction event and we identified the kidnapper that would be the demon's feeding freezny chef. He is Eggman Negative, otherwise known as Eggman Nega, an escaped criminal and archnemesis to a hedgehog and the princess of the Sol Dimension within Sonic's universe.

Usagi : Hey, that's the man in the picture during the Black Arms Invasion aftermath. He appeared a year before we were awakened about 15 years ago. By any means necessarily to him for capturing cute and cuddlesome creatures, does he have any involvements with Dark Nebula or a demon? I don't think that he wasble able to open his prison and instead awaken a demon that will destroy all life on earth. So tell me who took the Prison of Dark Nebula after a gang of inter-galactic gangs tried to steal a chest that was actually a piece of cake which was stole from that pink puff?

(the computerize orb shows a mugshot of Mizune)

Usagi : Mizune the Mice Witch. A master of treasure hunting and adoptive daughter of Mouser, the member of the 8-bits organization led by Eruka's long lost relative Mamu, AKA the Great Wart himself. So she's responsible for taking Dark Nebula's prison. Sneaky rat.

Ami : Of according to the info, local Nintendo veteran and founder of Smash Masahiro Sakurai claims that his own creation was frustrated and went on a rampage after King Dedede's castle had a break in by a gang of inter-galatic thieves that tries to take the prison of Dark Nebula from him, in which Meta Knight prevented Kirby from ever opening it. the Squeaks figuring out that the King has created copies of Dark Nebula's prison that are all shapes and sizes. Poor Kirby still wanting a taste of his snack and, who knew that stealing a cake from him would go on a bodacious rampage over a cake theft? I guess somebody else must've ate it. But I believe he might gets a taste of his cake another day.

Setsuna Meioh : And with it, all copies of Dark Nebula's prison are located in each of the location and the real that Mizune has it!

Usagi : So, where could Dark Nebula's prison would might end up at?

Luna : Let me show you where Dark Nebula's Prison end up might be.

(holographic images are shown from the computerize orb)

Rei : Get a load of this. Isn't that Meta Knight's ship?

Makoto : That's the halberd ain't it? How did it ended up in underwater like that?

Hotaru : Apparently, this ship that Meta Knight flew, has crash landed in the Secret Sea area 10 years ago after Meta Knight's false revenge plot was foiled by Kirby during that incident caused by the trickster Marx, who tried to conquer Kirby's homeworld in his plan of conquering Gamble Galaxy. But eventually, his plan failed and he was defeated along with the death of Galactic Nova. and it has been rebuilt and repaired by one designer that became a newest member to Meta Knight's group. One of the rebuilders that repaired the Halberd was Sir Halberd Knight, a new member that was added to Meta Knight's group.

Makoto : Who is the survivor?

Hotaru : It's this person named Tsugumi Harugori, a first-year student and former junior of a local high school that became the role of a massacre three years ago. Her classmates and teachers were slaughtered by Sephiroth and two unwanted perpetrators, Dark Meta Knight and a heartless named Shadow Star. Except for her two friends who were killed by Inky Albarn, the queen who framed the real Maka Albarn three years ago that started the same mess to the American Public and the attacks in Tokyo.

Usagi : So in order to access the Secret Sea to get to Meta Knight's Base, there five objects called the Star Seals that are inside within each of the copies of Dark Nebula's prison. And there are five of them located in each of the locations. This one's yellow, blue, green, red, and indigo. Hey, guys. you thinking what I'm thinking?

[A New Journey - Tomoya Ohtani & Takahito Eguchi]

Rei : Does that mean we're going to save the world, the Real World?

Luna : Indeed! This is an very important task for you all to protect our galaxy from the forces of true evil. the battle between Good and Evil are still a conflict in every story that everyone witnessed. After all, you are earth's only heroes!

Makoto : Yeah! You can count on us! We are the Sailor Scouts we put evil to justice on their knees! That'll show him who's boss!

Hotaru : I will be in honor to protect the earth at all costs.

Minako : This is will mark us forever superhero team, one happy family that is us, heroes together! We can save earth and without the DWMA's help!

(girls cheering)

Usagi : Stopping crime and the forces of evil. That's what superheroes can do for their selves. Maybe we would like to see to show the world what heroes can do. This global task force of Sailor Senshi will be our goal of defending earth from harm. Let's see for what our hearts can do for us.

"Our real adventure around the world begins now."

~ Act 7 : Let the World Adventure begins! ~

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palbabor-writes · 4 years

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Yōkai

Hawks Week 2020 - Prompt: Horror Tales

Warnings: Ghosts, spirits, blood, gore, adult language, death, mentions of violent crime

Word Count: 9403

The people here are strange. They’re a superstitious bunch for sure. Everything has an underlying reason. Don’t forget to toss salt over your shoulder when you walk into that crime scene, Hawks. It’s bad luck if you don’t.

Despite the strange mannerisms that surround him, they are right about one thing: there’s more to these killings than meets the eye.

Notes: I went with a whodunit theme for this fic with some healthy ghosts and haunts thrown in. As this is pre-All Might’s retirement, Hawks is the #3 Hero.

Yōkai

Yōkai are a class of supernatural monsters and spirits in Japanese folklore. The word 'yōkai' is made up of the kanji for "bewitching; attractive; calamity" and "spectre; apparition; mystery; suspicious."

The small island of Miyako is renowned for its turquoise waters, pristine coral sanctuaries, amusement parks, and sprawling mansions. All in all, it’s a trust fund tourist trap. Still, like most pristine and shiny things, there’s a seedier underbelly that’s scrapes against the rough, sandy bottom. Come at low tide and you’ll catch a whiff of decay and rot.

Miyako Island is another example of that duality that exists within everything. No matter how pretty the water, there are always dark creatures that lurk in the shallow shoals and coves.

Hawks isn’t looking forward to his new assignment on the island. He’s been called in by the HPSC and Miyako’s police force. There’s been a string of unsolved murders and, with the onset of August, tourist season is in full swing. Homicide is bad publicity during the best of times. But, combine the discovery of freshly charred corpses popping up in various buildings, piers, and alleyways, with mass hysteria and you’re going to have a big problem on your hands.

For eight open murder cases, there’s not much for Hawks to go on, and the data he does have is spotty.

Hawks poured over the notes as soon as he got off the phone with the HSPC, the luster of the new assignment fresh in his mind. He swiped through the briefings and crime scene photos that were attached in the long email from Miyako’s chief of police.

It looks like the trouble started in the poorer areas of town. No matter how bright the city lights shine, there’s always the common shadow of a downtrodden, overworked, and underpaid populous straining under the weight of “keeping up appearances.”

Who else would do the nitty gritty jobs that ensured that the tourist season stayed afloat, and, most important of all, profitable?

Sadly, it’s the blue collar areas that first experienced the horrors. The notes on these cases are borderline elitist, skirting close to xenophobic. The usual: ‘it was just something that happened when you crammed people in that close’. ‘What else did you expect’? ‘Most of the victims aren’t even from the island’. ‘They’re strangers, they’re not locals.’ ‘They’re not one of us’.

The word immigrant pops up in the documentation frequently and it feels like a slur each time it appears. There’s a slinking, cloying animosity curling behind the looping words.

It pisses Hawks off.

The only reason he’s been called is because the crimes have jumped over the poverty line. Now, two prominent members of Miyako society have been murdered. So, what’s the connection you ask?

It’s the state of the bodies.

All of the victims, rich or poor, have been mutilated. Something sharp was drawn across their skin, cutting and splicing, marring them, marking them. Then, as if to add insult to injury, they’d been set aflame. It must have been a scorching blaze. Something that leaves them so crisped and blackened that they’re more husk than human. In each case, it’s taken dental records to identify the deceased.

The Miyako chief of police is doing a review of the known peculiars with Hawks.

“They mirror the, uh, earlier crime scenes. As you can see, this one, she is, er, was a woman in her late 30’s-”

“She was 37,” Hawks supplies, his golden eyes running over the chart that the chief of police is showing him. He’s trying his best to hide his agitation, but his feathers still bristle, the red plumage flaring, refusing to lay against his back.

“Uh, yeah, a bad age they say.”

“What?”

“Oh, nothing. It’s just, it’s supposed to be bad luck. You know?”

“I don’t. Can we get back to the matter at hand, please?”

Hawks has to grit his teeth to keep his tone even. He’s really not liking the way these crime scenes are processed and he’s made his opinion known to the police chief and investigative team. Why now, he’d pressed, hours after flying in, sweat still clinging to his brow. Why didn’t the bodies matter when it was relegated to the lower socio-economic citizens?

He’s also critical and skeptical of the motives of this police chief. There’s something about the whole thing that feels...off.

But, now’s not the time to project that suspicion. He’s only just arrived, besides, he needs more information, more data. Despite his agitation, he gets why the HPSC sent him on this assignment. He’s known for doing things quickly. Plus, he’s usually calm, collected, and he’s got the clout to get things moving again.

He’s also observant. The HPSC both loves and hates this particular skill of his, but it’s to their benefit in this instance. His sharp eyes might spot something that’s been missed, they’d said on the phone with him as they handed off his assignment. If he played his cards right, they said, he could pull these murders from unsolved to solved. Oh, and the commission is thinking these murders might involve some agents from the League of Villains.

It’s not a confirmed connection.

There’s nothing solid about it, besides the body mutilation and burned corpses. But both are known habits of two members of the League. They’re shadowy leads, more steeped in hearsay than fact. All the same, one is rumored to have a fascination with blood, and the other, has a proclivity for using a bright, blue flame. It’s a hot heat, perfect for cremation and these bodies have all been practically, well, cremated.

“Have you met the other heroes that will be assigned to work with you?”

Hawks snaps out of his head and nods at the tall, balding police chief. “Amano and Matsuura? Yeah, we’re supposed to take a look at the first locations as soon as this...meeting...is concluded.” Hawks hopes the police chief can hear the air quotes he just put the word meeting in.

“Good, good. I saw your additions on the later cases. I really feel that we should look a little harder into those. One was a member of the city council. He was beloved by the city and-”

“If I’m looking for a pattern, there’s a higher probability that the killer was sloppier in the earlier cases. New habits and all. I’ll get to the councilman when I get to the councilman. Again, this string of murders started in the lowlands. While I realize that doesn’t get you the most publicity, and I hear a re-election is coming up for your position as chief of police this fall, I’m not going to pick at certain elements of this and leave others by the wayside.

You gotta’ problem with that, take it up the HPSC. But, listen, they’re a lot meaner than me and they’re not going to like that you’re obstructing my investigation. You asked the commission to send someone down, and, lucky you, you’ve gotten yourself stuck with me.”

Hawks flashes the police chief a bright grin, his teeth gleaming as his eyes crinkle to crescents. The man stammers for a moment, his face flushing under Hawks’ false joviality, then he tosses a bulky manilla folder on the desk.

“Why you...I heard you were an arrogant son of a...no, no.” The chief sputters, his teeth clenched, anger bared behind the grinding of his jaw. “You’re right, we’re so very grateful to the number three hero taking time out of his busy modeling schedule to lend us a hand with these murders.”

“Ooh, you saw that spread in the sports magazine? Nice use of color right? Loved that new set of watches I’m sponsoring.”

Fucking prick. Hawks is used to this kind of irate reaction, hell, it’s pretty expected now. He’d heard it so many times he has it memorized. Yeah, yeah, he’s twenty one, a kid who’s too big for his boots. He has no idea, no real world experience. Did you hear how he talked to me? The audacity.

Let this guy try to report his snarky attitude, it’s not going to get his low level wannabe bureaucratic ass anywhere.

“I’ll get my agency to send you a signed copy. I had no idea you were such a fan! Lemme grab these files, got some work to do. Catch you around, sir!” Hawks pantomimes a salute, a serious expression making his eyes narrow. Fuck this dude. He’s got bigger fish to fry.

Closing the door on the police chief’s mottled expression, he meanders down the stairs of the police precinct, his wings still arching and rustling his temper. You’d think this case didn’t matter to these buffoons. The sheer implication of Hawks’ presence should clue them in. The HPSC doesn’t do anything lightly. Nah, these killings could be related to the League. Plus, his background checks on the victims had revealed some startling discoveries.

All of them, down to the nineteen year old restaurant hostess, were involved in minor villain activities. Some had smuggled drugs, some laundered money on the side, one was a known broker. They kept climbing the ladder of severity. It was worrisome.

While the chances of the LOV’s involvement was low, the commission was still searching for their hideout. He’d caught wind of some of the activity revolving around that ongoing mission. He wasn’t assigned to it, but he liked to keep an ear to the ground.

Association with the LOV or not, these homicides kept bothering him. There’s something he’s not seeing. He dislikes the sensation. It makes him tense, ill at ease. Once he steps outside the police headquarters he launches himself into the sleet grey skies.

It looks like rain.

If he’s wanting to glean as much as he can from those early crime scenes, he better hurry. Hawks doesn’t like rain. It makes his feathers feel bogged down and dampened. Unfortunately, it has the same effect on evidence. Rain can whisk the little details away, slicking and drifting as it washes down to the vast sea. It can easily snag vital clues on its meandering path, erasing as it goes.

******

The first murder took place on the fourth floor of a shabby apartment. The victim lived in the 19th unit and was a 43 year old male. He was a well known loner. So, it was a shock to discover that he ran a pilfering ring. The ring wasn’t a small scale enterprise either. No, this went deep. It connected to three other islands and the Japanese mainland. There’s no way this guy was a simple recluse. If anything, he was nothing short of a criminal mastermind.

His body had been left in an odd position. It was likely staged, purposeful.

He was discovered by his landlord. Rent was due and it was unusual for him to be late with the payment. So, the landlord let himself into the 19th unit. It’s a small wonder no one reported the smell earlier. Apparently, it was putrid, acidic, gut churning. A mix of tarnished copper and old, rotten meat.

In all likelihood, he was murdered elsewhere and dragged back to the unit. Nothing in the room, besides his corpse, was scorched. The victim was splayed on his small bed, but the placement was strange. His feet were resting on his ashen pillow, shoes still on his feet. Meanwhile, his head was at the foot of his bed, pointing northward.

Hawks and one of the assigned heroes, a friendly guy named Amano, are going over the case file with two members of the forensic team. Apparently, one of the team members hadn’t been part of the original investigation clean up and bagging. As Hawks and Amano are sharing the crime scene photos, asking the forensic team questions, the taller of the two, gasps, clapping a hand over his lips.

Hawks tilts his head at the man’s reaction, his feathers automatically feeling for his pulse. It’s elevated and the guy appears to be truly bothered. It’s an upsetting picture, to be sure, but this is his job. He cleans up blood and guts for a living. Surely, he’s seen worse.

“You ok?” Hawks’ asks, his amber eyes shifting over the man’s face.

“F-fine. It’s just, well, look at him.”

Hawks takes the photo back. Did he miss something?

“What about him?”

“Look at the direction his head’s facing.”

“Uh,” Hawks examines the position of the hazy sun that peeks through the rain clouds outside the window. “North?”

Now the other forensic team member gasps. What the hell? What does facing north have to do with anything? It’s a cardinal direction. What would they say if he was facing the West? Again, are these people deliberately trying to bog his investigation down?

“I don’t see what, uh, relevance that has.” Hawks tells the two, looking over to Amano. The hero doesn’t seem to be bothered by their outburst. He just shrugs at Hawks’ frank stare.

“It’s supposed to be bad luck, but yeah, there’s not-” Amano begins, finally placing some clarity on the forensic team's outburst of paranoia, but he’s interrupted by the taller, jumpier man.

“Not just that. You collect iron in your blood if you sleep facing north. It brings death.”

The guy said death like it might summon the fearsome spector down on them at any moment. Amano coughs, his hand covering a badly concealed smile. “Yeah, sure. Facing north is bad luck, and, I guess it can bring death, too. Learn something new everyday...”

“Worked pretty well in this guys case,” Hawks muses, arching an eyebrow at the jittery forensic team. “You guys see anything else? Something a little more, I don’t know, pertinent?”

They don’t get much further with that crime scene.

Amano tags along for Hawks’ review of the other two cases. His agency runs out of this area and he was one of the first responders. He’s not got a lot of extra information, but he knows the people and they know him. It takes the edge off, lets the locals open up a little more.

The next case is in a home. Well, home feels generous, it’s more like a shack. Apparently, the victim liked to collect cat figurines. Like, really, really liked to collect cat figurines. There’s over sixty of them, they’re scattered around the place, tucked into nooks and crannies. It feels like a thousand little eyes are watching the two heroes as they canvas the space. It’s creepy. Hawks dislikes the sensation. His feathers keep lifting, feeling, spreading out.

The woman had been found at her kitchen table. She was propped into a chair, sitting, like nothing in the world, save her crisp remains, was amiss. The only way you could achieve a staging of that caliber was to wait for the body to enter rigor mortis.

That takes time.

Full rigor sets in around 5 to 12 hours after death has occured. Whomever did this must have had time to spare. And they weren’t worried about being caught during that time. No, they were too busy planning out the dramatic effect of their crimes.

Once again, he feels like he’s missing something.

One body was left pushing a garden cart. Literally, the man was found, early in the morning with his hands tied to a wheelbarrow. He was posed mid task, his arm lifted, reaching for someone, or something. Trouble was, the guy didn’t work as a gardener. No, he was a low level broker. Someone darting under the criminal radar. He’d eluded the police and heroes for months. Looks like his luck ran out.

The eighth body, the congressman, was discovered at a popular wharf. This crime scene is still in the process of being cleaned up, so there’s a flurry of people bustling around. Amano, and the other hero, Matsuura, who’s also been assigned to Hawks’ investigation, are talking with witnesses, gathering information and scheduling interviews. This kind of hero work is never ending. Hawks is grateful they’re willing to take on the grunt work.

As Hawks is kneeling, peering over the ledge of the pier, looking down on the blackened wood and debris, a loud cawing breaks out. It echoes on the wind, coiling and lifting. It’s a funny sound. Like it’s far away and dulled. It makes Hawks’ wings fan out, overstimulated and brittle. The heroes and crime scene investigators debate on the origin of the noise. It doesn’t help that there’s no bird that’s wheeling above them. No, the skies are dark and empty, with a light misting of rain starting to drip onto the lashing sea.

“What is that?”

“Is it a gull?”

“It’s creepy. There’s nothing even flying around. But, it sounds so close.”

“I think it’s a seabird. It’s gotta be, sometimes they fly out here looking for fish.”

“I’ve never heard a seagull sound like that.”

“There are other birds besides seagulls, idiot. It could be a pelican-”

“It’s a crow,” Hawks’ supplies, standing and turning back to the clutch of people who are quickly gathering up their supplies, doing their best to get the important pieces of evidence protected from the rain.

“Huh? Did he say a crow?”

“Oh, damn, that’s a sign of death.”

“No...I think it’s illness, not death.”

Hawks’ walks to Amano and Matsuura, he tells them he’ll meet them back at the police headquarters. He needs to start his interviews if he wants to even have a prayer of snagging a bite to eat. He’s been subsisting off coffee since he flew in and his stomach is rumbling, loudly.

The investigators are still debating the meaning of the crow caws when he takes off. His wings beat powerfully beside his head and he lifts above the grey storm clouds, coasting high, past the skyline.

Despite the strange mannerisms that surround him, they are right about one thing: there’s more to these killings than meets the eye.

Things feel off in every crime scene. Were their belongings really left that way? Or, have the details been staged? Plus, the murders keep escalating. The particulars are spreading out and deepening as they interweave. The major connecting thread is still the state of the bodies, but even that is starting to feel vague. Hawks shudders a bit of excess moisture from the tips of his wings. Fingers crossed, some of these witnesses and relatives of the victims will have a little more substance for him to chew on.

******

Oh, they have something alright.

It’s more hushed rumors and strange folk tales. God, the sheer frightened gullibility of these islanders is wild. The whole place feels so backwoodsey, lost in a bygone era. There’s always a prayer or blessing that needs to be uttered. Or, some supernatural logic that he needs to look into. Did you consider the devil, Hawks? He hides in the details, you know?

It’s fucking weird.

Hawks is treading in unfamiliar waters with this tripe. He didn’t grow up with any of this. The HPSC certainly hadn't offered him a course on Japanese islander folk traditions during his childhood. Still, these people, for the most part, seem well off, educated, cultured even. Some aren’t even from this island. But, they seem to be infected with the same disease: ghosts, oni spirits, and bad omens. It’s a whirling circle of nonsense and Hawks’ wants off this ride.

“I got a call from her.”

“From the victim, your sister?”

“Yeah, it came in at 4:49 am.”

“Ma’m, that’s not possible. The coroner noted that rigor mortis had set in by 2 am”

“She sounded faint. It was like she was underwater, but it was her. She screamed at me.”

“She screamed at you?”

“Yeah, it was this low scream. Kinda, like a gasp? Like she couldn’t breathe. It kept getting louder and louder and louder. It hurt my ears. They felt like they were ringing, pounding. Then, the line just went dead. I can still hear it, that scream. Every time I close my eyes, or whenever I least...I-I can still hear her.”

“Do you have your phone records?”

Hawks is trying to make sense of it all, but it’s like they’re talking to each other before they come into the interview room, telling each new interviewee to up the ante.

See if you can spook the number three hero. Go on, it’ll be fun.

There’s a slew of strange occurrences. Disembodied voices, knocking on windows, doors opening on their own, quiet voids of cold that they step into. Ghosts keep popping up.

Then, there’s the oni spirits. They have red faces and they lean in close, their fangs reaching, gnashing, grinding. One woman, who was married to one of the victims, burst into tears, her terrified sobbing turning into a frantic wail.

She had seen an ogre in her back garden. It was pushing a cart and the cart was on fire. Hawks’ checked his notes as he patted the woman’s back, trying to help her move through a few breathing exercises. One of the victims was found propped, pushing a wheelbarrow, could it be…

No. It’s another dead end.

This woman didn’t know that dead man, the one who was pushing the cart. She didn’t even live on the same side of town. Ugh, this is endless. It might be easier if he did apply these delusions to his investigation. At least that way he’ll feel sane.

Some of the victims had been acting suspicious, paranoid, on edge before their deaths. One of them had gotten a phone call in the middle of the night and ran off. The next day she was found dead in her home, burnt and drifting into ash.

“So, she got the call and just ran out the door?”

“Yes. But, she let it ring four times.”

“You said that already. I’m not sure-”

“She picked it up after the fourth ring.” The aunt of the victim is looking at Hawks expectantly, her blue eyes wide, starting.

“I don’t-”

“You know what that means...don’t you?”

“The hidden significance of picking up a phone on the fourth ring? No, no I don’t.”

They never fully expand on their weird theories. They’re normal comments to them. He debates looking up the meaning of the number four on his phone, but he tamps down the urge. It doesn’t pertain to the case. It’s useless drivel, a waste of time.

An adult man shows him this ugly, ugly drawing of a cat. It’s pulling a flaming cart. Hawks doesn’t even want to touch the paper. The man keeps pointing back at it as he goes over his neighbor’s timeline.

This particular witness is connected to the city councilman. The one that was oh, so important to the police chief. It’s a high profile case and it’s being taken seriously. Yet, here’s this supposedly credible witness, flashing a childish scrawl up to his nose, asking him to look for the phenomena, like it’s a normal request to ask the number three hero to look for nonexistent demons.

‘There’s gotta be more to this’, he tells Hawks, his voice broken, fervid. ‘Something, something has to be there, after all, the councilman was murdered for a reason’.

The man with the drawing is right about that, at least.

These are not random crimes. The MO is too similar. Every single victim was involved in some sort of villainous activity. Yeah, the guys correct on that one sane theory of his: ‘There’s gotta be something there’. But, whatever it is, it’s not this cat thing.

Hawks calls a halt to their interview and glumly munches on his cold chicken sandwich as he waits for the next witness to be called in. His head is pounding and he’s praying for some new development to fall into his lap, at least that way he can conclude things and get the hell off this island.

******

The 9th victim is an outlier.

He’s high up in social circles and he was a popular man. He’s also been accused of money laundering, tax evasion and fraud. He was acquitted on all charges, but his past never did stop nipping at his heels. However, that’s not what makes him an outlier.

No, that’s reserved for the state of his body.

Most of the victims have been burned to a crisp, leaving nothing behind, save bone and gristle. You can still see this guy's face and defining features. He’s a little charred, but it’s almost like the flames stopped right before they got past his chin.

They transport his body to the morgue and Hawks finishes the combing of the crime scene, setting up a new batch of interview times and creating witness reports. He leaves just as the sun is dipping under the horizon.

******

It’s late now, and the cool sea breeze blows in through his open hotel windows, soothing across his crimson plumage. It’s his first evening off in over a week. He’s still working though, typing his reports into his laptop.

He’s forgone his usual coffee this evening. He wants to try and see if he can catch a full eight hours tonight. God, what a fucking delicious treat that would be. Eight hours? That’s the real ghost here.

He shuts off his laptop and flops himself across his bed, his wings tucking into his side, burrowing his shoulders into their reassuring warmth.

He slips into the lull between realities, his mind whirring, the case resting heavily against the forefront of his thoughts. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that he can’t distinguish between dream and actuality as he drifts off.

There’s something there.

It keeps to the edge of his vision, a dark shadow that leeches the color from whatever it touches. He can feel it watching him. It shifts quickly when he cocks his head to get a better look, sliding across the blank expanse like quicksilver, fluid and slick.

He looks away from the edges of his dreamscape and turns. He blinks in surprise. He’s at one of the crime scenes. It’s the one with the man in the wheelbarrow. There’s a crowd pressing around him and that dark figure is blotted toward the back, lurking, watching. The people around him murmur and whisper, too soft to hear. They don’t seem to notice him. They also don’t appear to have faces. They’re just blank voids, with soft notches where eyes, noses, and mouths should be. Unthinking, Hawks reaches for one of them and his hand slips through the air, weightless and heavy in the same motion.

When he blinks again he’s in that lady’s shack, the one with all the cat figurines. That wraith is sitting at her kitchen table. It’s not moving and he doesn’t feel particularly threatened by its proximity. Still, he dislikes this whole thing. If he can touch it, maybe he’ll wake up.

He’s stepping forward when he hears a soft mewl. There’s a black cat on a shelf. It’s tiny and lithe. It jumps in front of him, a low purr rumbling from its chest. It looks up at him, orange eyes fastening on his amber ones. Odd, he thinks, that woman only had figures. No living cats were evident in the house.

The cat chirps four times. It’s a light, high pitched sound that makes his ears ache. It almost sounds like a phone. The cat lifts its tail and turns, padding soundlessly into the next room. Intrigued, Hawks follows.

Now, he’s walking down a street. The cat is still in front of him, weaving in and out. That purr of it is loud and sharp as it vibrates around his ears. He keeps trying to get the feline’s attention. He pspsp’s at the dark cat, clicking his tongue, but it doesn’t respond. Hawks is distracted, not paying any mind to his surroundings, wholly focused on the feline.

The voice startles him.

It’s rasping and deep and it’s calling his name. Not his hero name, no, it’s saying his real name, over and over.

KEIGO TAKAMI.

Keigo Takami, he thinks, stumbling over words that make him, him. It sounds strange now, foreign. He hasn’t heard that name in such a long time. How did…

The voice is coming from behind him now. He whirls around and is face to face with that man. The 9th victim, the one whose face you could still see. He’s charred and battered, and blood is dripping in long rivulets from his gaping skin, pooling onto the ashen sidewalk.

His eyes are wide, searching but not seeing. The pupil and iris are both milky white, rolling around in the cavities of his sockets. Then, his mouth pops open. It’s horrifically wide, like it’s caught in a scream. His teeth are crumbling before Hawks’ eyes, black pearls that slide from the man’s lips and clatter around his feet.

Hawks is stunned, unsure, but, fuck, he can’t move. He tries to flap his wings, knowing that they’ll tug him away from this horror that’s in front of him. Except, there’s no whoosh of air, no lift. There’s nothing. What? How...

His hands bat at the emptiness along his back. Where are they? What is this? His fingertips press along his shoulders, searching, desperate. His quirk, it’s...it’s just gone. He’s frantic now and that makes him clumsy. His feet tangle under him and he falls. Grounded, his legs instinctively begin to push away from the shell of a man in front of him.

The figure moves with him. Hawks keeps scrabbling away, but the man is even closer now and his bare feet are disintegrating with each shuffling pad forward. Still, he keeps on. Hawks tries to move again, tries to shift, but he’s been cast in stone. He can’t look away...he can’t…

The man is almost upon him now. His fingers are crumbling, the ash they create is making him choke. He can’t breath, he’s wheezing, unable to pull oxygen through his trembling lips. Hawks’ lungs are burning...

Then, Hawks’ wakes up.

He’s sweating. His skin feels hot and his wings are flared. The feathers are quivering, searching. They bring him back bits and pieces. There’s someone sobbing two rooms over, someone is sleeping below him, their breath warm, he can almost feel it, pushing in and out, in and out. There’s a phone ringing. How many rings? What if it’s four...

Stop, stop.

Hawks tucks his wings back, ignoring the sounds, the sensations. The plumage wraps around him and he ducks his head into the darkness that they blanket him in. He’s comforted by the reassuring, solid presence of his quirk. He thought he’d lost it. His shoulders still hurt from his flailing motions. What is going on? He’s never had a dream like that. It felt so...so real.

No. It doesn’t matter, he tells himself. He doesn't believe in this stuff. It’s not real. There’s no such thing as ghosts.

He tries to lay back down.

He’s cooled off some, but his wings keep flapping, he’s stopped trying to fight them. His quirk is going into overdrive. This hasn’t happened to him in years, not since he was a kid. He tosses his pillow over his head, trying to stifle out the noise his quirk keeps drowning him in. He’s tired and overstimulated. Each breath stings and he tries to count, to walk through the steps that have been with him since childhood. Just be still, Hawks. It doesn’t matter.

The sun is peeking over the horizon when he finally dozes off, his head heavy, fogged with exhaustion.

******

Hawks grabs two nitro coffees the next morning.

He practically inhales the dark liquid, hoping it will let him evade the haze of tiredness that thrums through his veins. It’s a slow day, thank God. There’s nothing of note that occurred the night before. Everything is pacing along its planned trajectory. There are no new bodies and the last interviews go by without any mention of spirits or the paranormal.

Matsuura offers to take him for some lunch. Hawks, always eager to expand his palette, eagerly agrees and the two men head into the city. It’s a weekend, so the streets are crowded. People recognize Hawks and he chats with them, grateful for the welling of normalcy that the interactions bring. He’s signing an autograph when he catches sight of movement in a darkened alleyway.

It’s not a particularly noticeable shift, but something about it feels strange. Hawks hands the freshly signed soccer ball back to the gang of kids around him and tilts his head toward the motion. He blinks. What the fuck? That’s not possible.

It’s the man from his dream. He’s walking, steps heavy, sluggish and he’s moving into the alley. The 9th victim? But, but how? What?

His wings react to his agitation and he hones in on the spot, reaching, snatching at anything he can sense. His fierce wings never let him down. They’re versatile, practiced and perfected. Feathers detach and shimmer into the midday sun, ducking around corners and onto rooftops, feeling.

There’s nothing.

No heartbeat, no footsteps, no voices. Hawks’ eyes had slipped closed as he felt for the man and he snaps them open again, his avian pupils dilating, constricting to a fine point. He turns to Matsuura and tells the hero he’s going to check something out. His wings lift before Matsuura can answer and he flaps into the air, the sea breeze assisting his ascension.

The rooftops are empty and Hawks scans the streets below, his wings rustling as he pulls himself along. Maybe it was a trick of his mind? Did he really see that guy? That’s a stupid question, how could he have? That man is dead. It’s gotta be his tired psyche. He didn’t sleep well, plus this case has been on his brain so much that he’s even dreaming about it.

He lands on a nearby roof, his boots hitting the tiles roughly. Hawks closes his eyes again, sending a few more feathers out. The man, if he is real, will take this path if he is using the alleyway as an escape. There are no other routes available to him.

He’s still attuned to his scattered feathers when he hears the cat hiss at him. His eyes open and he sees the animal. It’s a black cat.

It’s across the street, lingering in an open window, its back arched and its fur standing on end. Hawks narrows his eyes at the aggressive display. There are way too many cats on this island.

As he and the cat continue to engage in their silent staring contest, he hears a scritching sound coming from the street below. Hawks follows the noise, leaning over the edge of the rooftop. A child is playing below. She is sketching something into the concrete with bits of multicolored chalk.

It looks like...huh?

It looks like some kind of cart, but, why...why is it on fire? She is busy tracing the licking flames, a yellow piece of chalk clutched in her small fist. She’s humming a mindless song. It sounds like some kind of dirge. It’s soft and melancholic, following a minor tune. A shiver creeps up Hawks’ spine, but he ignores the pebbling of his skin, shaking his head.

Curious, Hawks wheels down, tapping along the street. He keeps a little ways away from the girl, he’s not wanting to startle her. His long fingers reach behind him, into his utility pocket that sits on his belt. He tugs out a small sticker sheet. He always keeps little trinkets in his pockets. It takes real effort to put people at ease and Hawks prides himself on his ability to steadfastly maintain that part of his image. He kneels on his haunches, dropping himself to a friendlier level before calling out to the little girl.

“Hey! That’s a pretty picture.” His voice is all light and honey and he has a bright smile on his face.

“Oh!” the little girl chirps, beaming her own grin back at him. “Thank you!”

“Tell me about your drawing.”

“It’s a Kasha.”

“Hmm, I don’t know what a Kasha is. Can you tell me about the Kasha?”

“They come to take away bad people.” The little girl replies, going back to her sketch, perfecting her lines and colors.

“Oh! There’s a kitty in your drawing. Is the kitty a Kasha too?” Hawks asks, noticing the calico cat that’s attached to the handles on the front of the cart. It looks angry, vengeful. Strange for a kiddo to draw something so eerie.

“That’s the spirit of the nekomata, silly. Don’t you know anything?”

“Haha,” Hawks laughs, a genuine sound that makes him throw his head back, his hand bashfully scratching the back of his head. “Guess I don’t, huh? Do you like to draw...ghosts?”

“Not really. If I draw them they won’t-”

A distant voice is calling out a name. It’s female and coming from a house a few feet away, no doubt the girl’s mother or sister. The little girl calls back.

“Coming mama! I gotta go, mister.”

“Here,” Hawks begins, detaching a smaller feather and drifting the little set of stickers over to the girl’s chubby hands. “Thank you for answering my questions,” he smiles. She coos and snatches the sparkly sheet, the sunlight catches the glitter that adorns the stickers. He tickles her cheek with his detached feather and she laughs.

Her mother calls again and she starts to run off, her yellow shoes pounding on the street. Belatedly, she pauses before rounding the corner and bows low, a quick thank you slipping from her mouth. He waves back and smiles as she walks into her home, the door clicking behind her. Once he’s alone in the alleyway his grin drops and he stands, looking down at her drawing.

It’s so freaking odd. Sure, sure, these cases are in the news. But the drawing looks...familiar somehow.

Oh, that’s why.

That man he interviewed, the one connected to the congressmen, had drawn something similar. Even then, back in that dark interrogation room, the strange figures looked like something he’d seen before, but where?

That nagging feeling is back. It pulls at the back of his mind. What is going on?

Hawks pulls out a small notepad and replicates the girl’s drawing, noting the colors and positions of the nekomata. As he sketches, his wings arc above his head, lifting and lowering meditatively.

******

He comes back to the police precinct, his hands tucked deeply into his pockets. As he walks toward the chief’s office he runs into Amano. He’s the elder of his two assigned heroes and a font of knowledge about the island and its inhabitants. Maybe he’ll know something more about this doodle that keeps cropping up.

“Hey, Amano, you seen any weird drawings around town? Or, at the crime scenes maybe?”

“Weird? Like how?”

Hawks pulls out his notepad, flipping to the page with his sketch of the cat pushing the burning cart. Amano chortles, one gloved hand coming to cover his mirth.

“What is that? It looks terrible.”

“I’m not much of an artist, I'll give you that one. In my defense, it’s based on a kid's drawing, so cut me some slack here, man. She said it was supposed to be a kasha and a nekomata?”

“Oh! Yeah, I can kinda see that now. I know what those are. According to legend, kasha appear during rainstorms. They steal corpses out of their coffins. Some of the older folks say they collect the souls of the damned. You can’t get the souls back if the kasha get them, they’re taken to hell, or eaten, depending on what version of the story you’re listening to.

I mean, they’re all just old wives tales. We used to tell them on camping trips. They’re bedtime stories, something to scare kids into being good. Ooo, misbehave and you’ll get taken to hell.

Eh, that feels kinda strong when I say it outloud, hopefully people don’t tell their kids stuff like that. Anyway, it’s not real.” Amano pauses, his head tilting at Hawks’ serious expression. “Isn’t it a little early to be getting into ghost stories? It’s summertime. Besides...”

Hawks tugs his phone out of his jacket pocket, flicking through the crime scene photos as Amano elaborates on how ridiculous this ghoulish conversation is. Normally, Hawks would agree, but there’s got to be...oh...OH.

There it is.

His finger stills over the glass of his phone. It’s tiny, basically a scrawl, but it’s there. He flicks through some of the other photos, swiping through the different locations, searching. Ah-ha! Again, there’s that scrawl. This time, it’s almost cropped out of the photo. Still, there are two crime scenes with the scrawling of chalk.

It’s a tiny drawing, so tiny he looked right over it originally, but now that he knows what he’s looking for, it’s there, plain as day. It’s a drawing of a tiny cart with a cat pulling the handles, lugging the wheels forward.

Amano is still talking when Hawks looks back up. Hawks butts into his elaborations, not caring that he’s interrupting the man.

“Ok, so they take evil doers away? Spooky. Question for you. You got any theories on why it’s cropping up all over town?” Hawks lifts the phone to Amano’s face. Amano takes the device and examines the strange markings, his brow creases, but he hands Hawks his phone back with a small smirk on his lips.

“It’s just talk, man. People do all sorts of superstitious things around here. Don’t look too hard into it. You believe what you want to, I don’t know. If that makes sense. Like those old sayings: ‘Don’t clip your nails before bed’. ‘No whistling at night’. It’s just something to say.

Superstitions are weird like that. Kinda like why you don’t have a fourth floor in a hospital. The number four looks like the word for death when you write it out. It’s bad form. It’s asking for trouble. So, don’t put a fourth floor, and boom, no problems with death.”

Hawks hums at Amano’s explanation. Ok, that superstition about the fourth floor, yeah, that one he had heard about. Amano claps a hand on Hawks shoulder and tells him he’s going to call a few more witnesses in. Hawks nods distantly, his mind whirring, processing. Despite Amano’s assurances, something still feels off.

******

He’s got a night shift.

It’s only for one evening, so it shouldn't fuck up his sleep schedule too much. Hawks has already decided that he’s going to circle back to all of the crime scenes. He’s not used to being out of the loop, or being the one that people are looking at quizzically.

He’d shown the drawings to the head investigator and the man had given him a blank look before asking Hawks if he needed some time off from the case. If he’d been asked that question a few days later, Hawks might have taken him up on the offer.

It’s been five days since he had that dream, but he’s still seeing that man. He’s determined to haunt him, to flit on the side of Hawks’ vision, drifting around like a dead leaf in a breeze.

He saw him at a bus stop the other evening. His dark hair was plastered to his face, burnt skin sloughing off his shoulders. He looked like a walking horror and Hawks had brought himself to an abrupt stop, staring at the figure below. The bus pulled up to the stop seconds after, the sleek metal shielding the man from view. By the time Hawks lifted himself higher, the man was gone.

He saw him in windows, peering sightlessly out of the glass. He spied the man walking home from the train, trailing long streams of ash and smoke behind him. He never makes any sound. He’s not alive, so why would he? He had spoken to him in his dream, called his name, but after that? There was nothing.

The vacancy of his presence is what startles Hawks the most.

There’s nothing to feel, nothing to sense. It’s just this vast, blank, emptiness. For someone with a quirk like his, it’s deeply unsettling. Hawks’ life revolves around his ability to sense, to feel. The plight of the dead man makes his chest hurt with its loneliness and abject barrenness. Is that what it’s like to die? You drift into this void, alone? He doesn’t seem to have anywhere to go. Is this his routine? Is he trapped in an endless loop, playing out his final movements? How long does he have to participate in this charade? Is this some kind of purgatory for him?

Distracted by his thoughts, Hawks spots a different man down a dark street as he flies overhead. It looks like he’s pushing a creaking wheelbarrow. Wait. A wheelbarrow? He looks again, wheeling back through the night sky, but there’s no one there now. No, the street is desolate, not even the gleam of the moon can brighten the winding sidewalks.

Is this really a ghost? Do these visions even exist? Hawks has never given the topic of the paranormal much thought. It’s always been an outlier, untrue, and untested. A pseudoscience. Well, ghosts or not, whatever is going on, Hawks needs some rest.

The rest of the night passes uneventfully and Hawks collapses onto his bed, drifting to sleep as soon as his golden head hits the pillows.

******

After a goodnight’s sleep, it does get a little easier.

He feels like his mind has cleared, the cobwebs brushed to one side, for now. Despite the clarity, he’s still seeing something. The man hasn’t gone away. No, even the daylight sun isn’t able to banish him. He saw him in his hotel lobby this morning, waiting for an elevator. By the time Hawks zoomed over, he was gone, the only evidence of his presence is the rising numbers on the illuminated floor panel, clicking up, toward the 4th floor.

That night, while getting a late night coffee, Hawks, long since given up his avoidance of caffeine in the evenings, spies something a little more sinister. As he’s paying the friendly barista, he notices someone lugging something across the road. It looks like it’s heavy, dragging against the street. They’re struggling to hoist it and it’s looking more and more like a body to Hawks’ frazzled nerves. He can’t be sure if it’s the specter that’s been lurking after him, but he’s not taking any chances. Again, Hawks is fast, but it’s not his speed that’s letting him down here.

Each and every time, there’s just nothing there.

Is he freaking haunted now? Is that a thing? That crazy dream hasn’t returned, so that’s one, fleeting, plus. Wait. Does thinking about the paranormal bring it into existence? Is that how ghosts work? Ugh, if he’s going to be plagued, he might as well read up on this shit. What the fuck is going on? Is it the town? Is it the pressure of this case? Is it him?

As he takes himself, and his coffee, up to his hotel room, he ponders the strange predicament he’s landed himself in. He can’t fit all the pieces together. It’s too strange, too abnormal. He wants to lay down, try to get a little sleep. But, a hero's work is never done. He’s got another report to type up and another set of interviews to schedule.

As he sits at the small desk that faces the window, he hears a strange cawing. It sounds close, almost like it’s right outside the glass. It’s not the call of a seagull, no, it’s that crow again. But, crows aren’t indigenous to the island. He’d looked them up after that discussion on the wharf. No crows have been spotted on the island in over 50 years. The last known specimen was an old bird, living in the Miyako zoo. It died over 3 years ago.

Hawks pulls himself to his feet, scraping the chair legs against the floor. He opens the window and pokes his head outside. He can smell the salty aroma of the sea. It tickles his nose and makes him take a big inhale of air, filling his lungs with the crisp aroma. The crow can still be heard, shrieking into the night. There’s a soft, familiar, beating of wings, too. He cranes his head, scanning the blackness, his wings are lifted as well, but there’s no bird. Per usual, there’s no movement, and no creature is flapping its way into the night sky.

He closes the window and the cawing echoes to the other side of the room before fading away. Annoyed, he takes a sip of his coffee. Hopefully that’s the last he’ll hear of it. He’s got enough ghosts fucking with him, thank you very much, he’s not wanting to add a disembodied crow to the role call.

******

The next morning Hawks is on a patrol.

The murder cases have stagnated again. While this, on the whole, is good news, simply because there are no new bodies, he still can’t get that damned drawing off his mind. It feels like things are slipping away from him, pulling out with the tide and into the vast realm of the dreaded: unsolved cold case.

He’s frustrated, no, he’s not frustrated, he’s pissed.

He feels like he’s letting the whole town down. He’d been called out here to do a job, but what good has he really been? Sure, the townsfolk are weird, the police chief is an ass and the lead detective pretty much has Hawks written off as a conspiracy theorist nut, but he was sent here to do a job. He’s good at sniffing things out. He’s good at being a hero. He’s not good at waiting, and that’s all this case has turned into, one long stint of stagnation and thumb twiddling.

Hawks glides across the bright sky, the sun reflecting warmly on his ruby red feathers. His eyes and wings are alert, feeling for any disturbances. He’s rounding onto the main street when he sees him.

It’s a living, breathing man. Hawks can feel his heartbeat, it’s pounding against the man’s breastbone. Only problem is, he shouldn’t be in the realm of the living.

The 9th victim ducks into a large bank, his familiar dark hair gleaming in the sun.

Hawks maneuvers to land immediately, his wings tucking against his back and dropping him to the earth at an alarming speed. He startles the small huddle of pedestrians on the sidewalk, but he’s too intent on catching his quarry to smooth any ruffled feathers. He races up the steps of the bank, one broad, gloved hand yanking the glass door open.

There he is. He’s talking with someone. Hawks can almost hear what he’s saying, he just needs to get closer…

“Sir? Can I help you?”

It’s a bank employee. He’s wearing a crisp blue suit and his eyes are wide behind his horn-rimmed glasses. Hawks pauses at his question, then slides past him, but it looks like it was just enough time for the 9th victim to evade him. He’s walking now, disappearing from view, stepping down a back hallway. It looks like he’s following someone…

Hawks turns back to the bank employee, his wings vibrating with annoyance and impatience. “I need to talk with that man, he’s wanted in a murder investigation. My name is Hawks, my hero number is-”

“Oh, I know who you are. O-of course, please, do what you need to d-”

The bank employee’s voice fades as Hawks lifts himself, pulling over the heads of the people waiting in the lobby. A few feathers dash out, feeling, searching.

Where did he go?

Hawks reaches the hallway in record time, his wings folding as he paces over the marble flooring. There’s not much back here, but it does lead to a large, closed vault. Damn it all.

“Sir, sir, SIR! Can we help you? I am the bank manager. You’re not permitted to be back-”

“Sure, you can help me. I need access to this vault. There’s a man, you can check your security cameras, he just walked-”

“I do not have access to the vault. You will need to make a formal-”

“Whaddya’ mean, “you don’t have access”? Then find someone who does. Two men just...Damn it…”

Hawks phone is ringing, he tries to ignore it, but it persists, vibrating and chiming against his leg. The bank manager is bristling, his mustache quivering as he babbles on about warrants, and how heroes can’t act like cops. It doesn’t matter if Hawks is the number three, he can’t ignore protocol. He needs to come back with a warrant, or get out…

His phone’s ringtone continues to slice through the tense air and Hawks, after the 9th, exasperating, ring, lifts it out of his pocket, glancing at the caller ID: it’s the HPSC. Fuck. He accepts the call on a final, shrill note.

“Hawks, here.”

“You need to come back...there’s been...All Might...Kamino...attack…”

An intermittent static keeps breaking over the phone line. It’s a crackling sound, snapping and rustling, it makes his skin crawl. It almost sounds like someone is whispering something, just below the faint hissing. “What? The line is breaking up-” Hawks lifts the phone, ah, there’s no bars in here.

The bank manager is still carrying on, heedless of Hawks’ inattention. “And so, I am within my rights to ask you to-”

“I’m going to need you to wait here and don’t move. Yeah, yeah, sure thing buddy, I don’t have a warrant, but I can make things pretty rough for you if you don’t do as I say. You don’t want to be involved in this case, believe me. Now, do what I asked and stay here.”

Lifting his wings, he flies across the lobby again, swiping a quick text to the police chief, if they hurry they might be able to catch this un-dead, dead guy. He jets himself onto the sidewalk, scattering a gaggle of beach goers.

As he re-dials the HPSC’s number he hears it again. It’s the call of that crow. It startles him and he almost doesn’t lift the dialing phone to his ear. God, this has gotta stop. He scans the sky for any physical sign of the screeching bird. It’s close, cawing and shrieking into the wind. It’s different from the other calls it’s made. It sounds angry, desperate, trying to reach him...trying to tell him something...

The line picks up and a voice repeats the familiar greeting of the HPSC.

“HAWKS, here,” he says, vexed, eyes scanning, looking for the disembodied crow.

The person on the other end asks for him to hold, and a few seconds later the head of the HPSC is answering, her soft voice both grating and reassuring to Hawks.

“Hawks. You need to return to Tokyo, immediately. All Might has been attacked by All for One. There are developments that we cannot discuss over the phone. Leave whatever intel you’ve gathered for the Miyako police chief and get back here. This is a national emergency. We need all hands. I don’t need to tell you, but the implications of this are dire. Hero society as we know it will be forever changed. I repeat, drop whatever you’re doing and get back to headquarters.”

The line clicks and that static sound rises again. There’s a garbling, muttering sound that’s rising from the hiss. It’s saying his name. KeigoTakamiKeigoTakamiKeigoTakami.

Then, all is silent. The voice is gone, the cawing is gone. A deep feeling of dread washes over him. It makes his feathers flair, plumage spreading and flexing. All around him, voices are chatting, laughing, living. They have no idea, blissful in their ignorance. Everything is, no, nothing is ever going to be the same again. God, All Might. If he can’t recover, if he dies...

Hawks lowers the phone, his eyes wide. Suddenly, all these ghosts of his don’t feel so important now.

Notes: @hawksweek2020

Beta edited by @albinoburrito

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chiaki-translation · 4 years

Text

ACTOR’S CIRCUIT: Event Translation Ch8-10

I’m back~ Anyway, I really forgot that my school’s starting tomorrow, but to be fair it won’t really change my schedule so much. The classes are all online and I don’t have a lot of classes this semester so I think I’ll still be able to keep up with the translation for now~ I might get slower in the middle/end of the semester though, but that’ll come later. Anyway, the last few chapters ended with a cliffhanger, so I’ll be uploading the epilogue in about an hour or so. Enjoy~

ACTOR’S CIRCUIT Ch1-4 / / Ch 5-7 / / Ch8-10 / / Epilogue

Disclaimer:

A3! is owned by Liber’s Entertainment

Azuma:

We’re really lucky to pick the mini car with no task earlier.

Taichi:

Right!

If we continue this way, maybe we can actually win!?

Azuma:

Ah, the next one seems to be the last checkpoint.

Turn right on the next junction.

Taichi:

Okay!

Spectator A:

Oh, the second one is here!

Aaron:

It’s you guys again…

Fuh, our path of destiny overlaps so many times…

There’s no place for us to fall behind in our evaluation.

Azuma:

Doggy-kun, let’s use this chance to pick the task from the mini car.

Taichi:

Yes.

Aaron:

You guys, listen to what other people say!

Taichi:

Eh, Azuma-san, this checkpoint…

It gives us 2 choices!

Azuma:

2 choices?

Taichi:

The task if the navigator has a driving license and the task if the navigator has no driving license.

Also, if we choose the task for the navigator who has a driving license, it said that we will get some extra points!

Azuma:

I see. So what should we do.

Taichi:

Uh, we don’t know what kind of task will come up…

Aaron:

It seems that you’re caught among the lost thorn.

If you’re that worried, I’ll go ahead and choose first.

Our task is… “say a line towards your victory” huh.

Isn’t it too easy.

To all the spectators who have gathered here today, listen to me!

The gale’s reverberating through the earth, towards the words of our victory!

Moderator:

Aaron and Jack pair, task cleared!

Points have been awarded!

Taichi:

Woah! He got another easy task!

But anyway, his pair didn’t come out of the car at all?

Azuma:

It was like that earlier too.

Maybe he’s just too absorbed in navigating.

Aaron:

We will be the one to reach the victory land first.

I’m going to look forward to see you guys got defeated.

Kukukuku…!

Taichi:

Ah, they’re gone!

Azuma:

Getting to the goal earlier doesn’t guarantee the victory, it’s alright.

Calm down, let’s try to think which one we should choose.

Taichi:

Yo, you’re right!

Azuma:

Let’s see… Why don’t we try to go for the extra points?

The other 2 groups don’t seem to be able to choose this one.

Taichi:

You’re right, Kazu-kun and Tsuzuru-san don’t have driver license after all.

Alright… Then let’s pick the task with the extra points!

The task is… “Driver change”!

Azuma:

I see. I guess it’s impossible to do if any of the participant doesn’t have a driver license…

Taichi:

Azuma-san, are you alright with driving…?

Azuma:

Eh…?

Taichi:

You said you prefer to be in the passenger seat previously, so I thought maybe you don’t actually want to drive…

Azuma:

…Thank you for your concern, Doggy-kun.

But I really don’t hate driving.

We can’t proceed if we don’t do this task, I just don’t have the incentive and motivation to drive recently and I’m getting used to it.

That’s why, it’s fine.

Taichi:

Azuma-san…! Then, if Azuma-san wished for it, I’ll gladly take the passenger’s seat for you!

Azuma:

…Fuh…

Taichi:

Azuma-san, are you a bit nervous…?

Azuma:

It’s been a while since someone leaves the driving to me.

…Just a bit.

Taichi:

The passenger’s seat is great, but being in the driver’s seat feels good too right!

There are views that you can’t see unless you’re in the driver’s seat, you can see everyone who rides with you and the places you’re going to, isn’t it so exciting!

I felt it when everyone was riding with me during the trip back from the training center recently.

That feeling, is something that I won’t know if I didn’t get my driving license.

Hehe… I started because I want to get popular, but I think I’m really glad that I get my driving license!

Azuma:

Fufu, I see.

Taichi:

Ah, but if you don’t like it, don’t force yourself!

Azuma:

I don’t hate it. I really just didn’t have the chance.

Somewhere in my heart… Maybe I’m actually looking for the chance.

Thank you, Doggy-kun.

…Alright, let’s go.

Moderator:

Nanao and Yukishiro pair, Goal Line!

Task cleared! Points have been awarded!

Taichi:

Yeay! Goal!

Aaron:

Kukuku… You’re late, MANKAI company.

As expected, this eden of victory, we are the first one who step on it, the Scarecrow.

Hahaha, engulf yourself in the fire of regret!

Taichi:

Uhh! But it doesn’t mean that we already lose!

Azuma:

Ah, everyone’s here too.

Kazunari:

Goal!

Misumi:

We’ve arrived~!

Tsuzuru:

Good work.

Kazunari:

Azu, you’re so fast!

Tasuku:

By the time we realized, we were quite far apart.

Misumi:

Everyone, I’m glad we all can clear the tasks~!

Taichi:

Perfectly! But my team, we got the task to change driver on the last checkpoint--

I got Azuma-san to drive!

Kazunari:

Seriously!? That’s nice!

Tsuzuru:

So Yukishiro-san’s driving. I’m quite curious too.

Tasuku:

So you’re really able to drive when push comes to shove.

Azuma:

Fufu, it was quite fun.

Tasuku:

If you find it fun, why not you drive once in a while.

Azuma:

…Until now, it’s not that I’ve been avoiding driving, somewhere in my heart, there’s a feeling compelling me to try driving again.

But there’s a portion where I pull away because of my family’s accident, I feel that if it’s not needed then I don’t need to do it.

Even more so because there are people who will drive me around here.

Tasuku:

Right.

Azuma:

But, after driving again since so long, I think it’s not bad to drive once in a while.

Tasuku:

It’s great if you can think that way.

Azuma:

Yeah, I think so too.

Announcer:

The points have been calculated.

We will be announcing the result shortly, please gather around.

Moderator:

We’ll start the announcement…

The winner of Veludo Race is…

MANKAI company, Nanao Taichi and Yukishiro Azuma pair!

Taichi:

Azuma-san! We did it---!!

Azuma:

Yeah, we did it.

Like what Doggy-kun said, I was able to see the views that I wasn’t able to see from the passenger’s seat, it was fun.

Taichi:

…Hehe, I’m glad!

Kazunari:

So coolz! Congratulations the both of you!

Misumi:

Amazing amazing! Congratulation!!

Moderator:

The spectator’s evaluation of your performance is pretty high…

Also, adding the extra points you got from changing drivers, Nanao and Yukishiro pair’s victory is determined!

Aaron:

Damn you…!

You’ll lose next time…! I’ll remember this!

Moderator:

The two of you, please come up to the stage!

Nanao-san, Yukishiro-san, congratulations on your victory!

Then, please come over here to receive the trophy!

Azuma:

Thank you so much.

Taichi:

Thank you so much!

Amazing! The trophy is really big!

Azuma:

I wonder if the dorm has a place where we can display it?

Taichi:

When we’re back, we have to find a place carefully!

Moderator:

For the victorious MANKAI company, we’ll have you to perform a performance after this, thank you for your enthusiasm!

Taichi:

Let’s deliver a performance that suits the race theme!

I’m happy that a lot of people will be watching!

Azuma:

Please enjoy the show.

Director:

Everyone, good work for the race!

You guys were so cool!

Also, Taichi-kun and Azuma-san, congratulation on your victory!

Azuma:

Fufu, thank you.

Taichi:

Yeay, we did it!

Director:

It will be the stage performance after this right. I thought you would be able to take it easy after the race, but just one more hurdle, do your best!

Kazunari:

Leave it to us~!

Misumi:

I’ll do my best~!

Director:

(The tension was pretty high during the race, so everyone seems to be in a good condition now.)

Tasuku:

Then, we’ll be going.

Tsuzuru:

We’ll go first.

Director:

Good luck!

Sasahara (Kazunari):

This will be the new driver joining our team from today onwards, Amano.

Amano (Taichi):

I’m Amano! Pleased to work with you!

Sasahara (Kazunari):

He will be participating in the next tournament too.

Yasuhiro (Tasuku):

Nice to meet you. Let’s do our best, new member.

Amano (Taichi):

Yes!

Sasahara (Kazunari):

I already introduced myself earlier, but I’m Sasahara, the chief engineer.

Nice to meet you.

Yasuhiro (Tasuku):

I’m the mechanic, Yasuhiro. And then over there is our racing driver, Naruse.

Naruse (Azuma):

…

Amano (Taichi):

Naruse-san, as a fellow driver, I hope we can work together from now on!

Naruse (Azuma):

…

Amano (Taichi):

Ah…

Yasuhiro (Tasuku):

That guy’s always like that. Don’t mind him.

He doesn’t try to get used to the people surrounding him… The lone wolf type.

Amano (Taichi):

I see.

Sasahara (Kazunari):

That’s that, but there’s the driver change in the middle of the race, it’s impossible not to exchange any words at all…

Amano (Taichi):

…

Amano (Taichi):

Naruse-san! Good morning!

Natuse (Azuma):

…

Amano (Taichi):

Naruse-san, let’s go and eat breakfast together.

Naruse (Azuma):

…I won’t go.

Amano (Taichi):

Naruse-san, let’s go and train together!

Naruse (Azuma):

…Do it yourself. I’ll do it by myself.

Amano (Taichi):

Naruse-san! Do you need help with anything today?

Naruse (Azuma):

You’re so persistent every single day.

I don’t need any help from you.

Amano (Taichi):

But! I heard that we will be exchanging drivers in the middle of the race, me and Naruse-san it is.

That’s why even just a bit, I thought it will be good to interact with you.

Naruse (Azuma):

I have no interest in you.

Amano (Taichi):

But I have! Please tell me more about you, Naruse-san!

I will never give up after all!

Naruse (Azuma):

…Hah…

Amano (Taichi):

Do you have anything today?

Naruse (Azuma):

Then, I’ll leave this to you.

Yasuhiro (Tasuku):

Oi, did you see that?

Sasahara (Kazunari):

Yeah, Naruse is talking to someone else like that, he even ask for assistance…

Yasuhiro (Tasuku):

Fuh, you’re moved by his persistence huh.

Naruse (Azuma):

Shut up.

Sasahara (Kazunari):

Hahaha. But I really have a good feeling from you right now.

Naruse (Azuma):

Huh…

Amano (Taichi):

With this, let’s do our best in the next tournament!

Amano (Taichi):

It’s finally the tournament day…

Naruse (Azuma):

Are you nervous.

Amano (Taichi):

Uh, just a bit…

Kurata (Tsuzuru):

What? It’s the lone wolf Naruse, it’s rare to see you talking to someone else.

Naruse (Azuma):

You guys…

Amano (Taichi):

Ah, that’s the rival team…!

Shiarishi (Misumi):

Oi Naruse, why don’t you show me your terrible one-man race again?

Naruse (Azuma):

Fuh… I have reliable comrades, so I’ll be fine.

Amano (Taichi):

…!

Shiraishi (Misumi):

Hee. Why not you let me see your skill then.

Kurata (Tsuzuru):

Then, during the race.

Amano (Taichi):

Naruse-san…

When you’re talking about reliable comrades… Are you maybe talking about me?

Naruse (Azuma):

Who knows.

Come on, the race is starting.

Sasahara (Kazunari):

Goal!!

Yasuhiro (Tasuku):

They did it!! It’s victory for our team!

Kurata (Tsuzuru):

Damn it…

Shiraishi (Misumi):

God damn it…!

Amano (Taichi):

We did it!

Naruse (Azuma):

Fuh… Ah, good work.

Director:

Everyone, good work! The stage performance was amazing too, I’m glad.

Taichi:

I did my best!

Tasuku:

Good work.

Azuma:

Good work today.

Doesn’t it feel nice.

Tsuzuru:

More than anything else, the audiences seems to be enjoying themselves too.

Misumi:

The race and the acting too, everything’s fun~!

Kazunari:

Right! It’s super lit!

I took a lot of pictures too, let’s upload them to Insta and the Blog!

Taichi:

Ah, right!

I have something to ask from you, Azuma-san…

Azuma:

Something to ask from me?

#a3!#a3! event #a3! translation #a3! act! addict! actors!#azuma yukishiro #taichi nanao #takato tasuku #kazunari miyoshi #misumi ikaruga #tsuzuru minagi

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notleowaite-blog · 5 years

Text

— ♔ In the past, people were born royal and for LIONEL “LEO” CÓNRAD HENRÍ MIKASA-WÄITE the THIRTY-FOUR-year-old CROWN PRINCE OF LUXEMBOURG, that is a tradition HE intends to keep. To others, HE looks an awful lot like AMANO SHINJI and has been painted as THE IDEAL HEIR but behind closed doors, HE is HOT-HEADED AND RUDE but also FAIR AND HONEST. It has also been said they are NOT BETROTHED

Hey guys! So I told myself I won’t make a second muse but– well, shit happens lol I adore this fucking fc, read his bio here

He has a resting bitch face and always looks as though he’s ready to take you on. But, he’s actually a cinnamonroll that has a bubbly/happy-go-lucky personality once you get to know him.

He has a mouth that’s dirtier than, a sailor. He also has a reckless daredevil streak to him that appears when the coast is clear.

In front of the press, media, or public in general he has this persona he puts in front. He has this elegant, chivalrous, and downright charming personality that he gives to everyone when the cameras are on.

He spent most of his adolescent and teenage years in Japan with his relatives from his mother’s side.

He can speak Luxembourgish, French, German, and Japanese fluently. Conversational with Mandarin, Malay, Hokkien, Korean, and Tagalog.

He has a German accent when he speaks in English. He’s doing his best to get rid of it. ( I learned to type with an accent for him guys, appreciate this shit ahahaha )

When he ran away from home, he did everything he wanted to do with his freedom. He dyed his hair, got tattoos, dated the girls he wanted, and even got a normal life and job. He still misses that life and would have even wished to stay like that.

During his stay at Japan, he got fake documents and was called Miyamoto Kotaro. He worked as a soba delivery man and occasionally cooked. He would’ve loved to open up a shop/cafe there one day.

His favorite past-time is surfing the internet and cooking.

He would’ve liked to be a chef if he weren’t the crown prince.

He has military background and is skilled in martial arts. He’s also knowledgeable when it comes to guns.

He hates anime.

But he’s used anime as a front when he was staying in Japan. Everybody knows that the crown prince of Luxembourg was no weaboo/otaku. He still has a couple of anime merch with him since even if he hates them, they hold some memories.

He hates–loathes his step family.

That’s all for now! If you guys are interested, I have his connections page here up and running~ or just hit me up with a pm so we can plot

ain’t gonna lie tho btw, I put in more effort to his bio and blog theme than with Elios lololololol this bitch from my main fandom i loveeeeee him jidfbkjadsknsd

#wor.intro #// I've been dying to fucking use this bitch #the double life as a soba delivery man #I swear to fuck #This bio has been written for like a year or so #god I can;t wait to play this bitch #sdbfjldskjbk #I'm a bit pissed that tumblr #downgraded the pic #it was hq af #now it looks a lil bit shitty lol #but he still handsome even in shitty quality #Leo HC

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helmes-deep · 6 years

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Get-to-Know Me Tag

Rules: Answer 30 questions and tag 20 blogs you would like to get to know better (or don’t – it’s up to you!)

Tagged by: @obsessivecompulsivee Thanks for tagging me!! I hope you’re doing well and not going crazy over all that’s happening to Sue x Sean right now loool :’3

Nickname(s): Wakari/Akari?? I don’t really have a nickname in real life :v

Gender: Female

Sign: I don’t do star signs, but I fall into the Scorpio zone

Height: 5′3″ (oh my word, you and I are the same height!! :o)

Time: 12:13 AM

Favorite band(s):

Regular: Switchfoot, NEEDTOBREATHE, Colony House

K-pop: B1A4, SEVENTEEN, BTS, Royal Pirates

Favorite solo artist(s):

Regular: Swimming with Dolphins, Bleachers, Phangs

K-pop: Ailee... and Taemin and Seungri???

Song stuck in my head: “She’s Mine” by VAV

Last movie I saw: The Girl Next Door (2004); it was cute and funny enough :pp

Last show I watched: Two Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Place (I’m currently obsessed with Berg x Irene, lol)

When did I create my blog: August 13, 2015. I think I had my account a few months before that, but I was only lurking. Guess my blog’s been actively running for almost 3 years (2 and a half, to be more exact) then :o

What do I post: K-pop, Naruto, TV shows, memes, music, and whatever else I want to lol

Last thing I Googled: “august 13 2015 to today” for the “when did I create my blog” question. Apparently, it’s been 953 days since that date...

Do I have any other blogs: Nope!! I have a few saved urls in case I want to change my blog’s name, but everything I reblog is just crammed into this one, single blog loool YOU CAN EITHER HANDLE ALL OF ME OR NOTHING AT ALL LAWL :PP

Do I get asks: Sometimes/every now and then, but not regularly

Why did I chose my URL: I named myself after the character Akari Mizunashi from the beautifully written and illustrated manga ARIA by Kozue Amano. Then I combined it and “rhymed” it with “baka” (the Japanese word for “idiot”) lol.

Following: 438

Followed by: 250

Average hours of sleep: 5-10 hours, depending on the day :v

Lucky number: I don’t have one, but my favorite number is 13

Instruments: I've played the piano for 10+ years. I mostly play classical, hymns, or whatever else I want to by ear. There used to be an audio post on here with my personal piano cover of a K-pop song, but since it was on private, I think it got removed when I switched back to my old url :///

What I am wearing: one long-sleeved shirt, one long-sleeved pajama shirt, one large gray sweater, a pair of black leggings with zippers, and a pair of socks :’3

Dream job: Teacher and/or writer

Dream trip: South Korea or Japan?? I also wouldn’t mind sight-seeing around America, probably somewhere in the Northeast

Favorite food: C H O C O L A T E~!! ♡♡♡

Nationality: American (USA! USA! USA! haha)

Favorite song: I have many favorite songs, but one of them is “Enough to Let Me Go” by Switchfoot from their album Hello Hurricane (probably my favorite album of all time). It’s such a great song about love and self-sacrifice.

Last book I read: It’s not exactly a book, but I just finished reading the manga Oyasumi Punpun by Inio Asano recently. Super-sad and depressing, but it’s such a good, good, and amazing story. Currently reading 12 Rules for Life by Jordan Peterson and 1984 by George Orwell with my book club right now.

Top 3 fictional universes I wanna join: Naruto (lol, is that even a question??), some periodic drama set in Asia, or some inter-space, futuristic universe?????? IDK: I don’t really think about living anywhere else lol; I guess I like living where I am now :PP

I’d like to tag: @jungkookkiiee @valeriellavivie @chandeuls @codename-nyx @nxttyzzz @the-rare-laynicorn @mrsdarkness07 @nymph-adora

Just some new followers I’d like to get to know better!! As always, you only have to do it if you feel comfortable with doing so~!! :33

#tagged #thanks so much for this!!#I hope your Sue x Sean story is going well!! :3

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crestfallencomic-blog · 5 years

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My Journey to Crest Fallen

Glenn-Paul Nehlsen

HUM 125-065

Keith Jensen

December 5, 2019

My Journey to Crest Fallen (Works Cited page for the comic at the end)

My journey began in December of 2018, when my therapist recommended that I take a break from my normal routine and go back to college. I had not thought I could make that work, so I enrolled in the testing program at Oakton Community College, where I was being considered for an apprenticeship program for a new career. When they received my transcript from Harper College, where I had attended school from 1991-1992, the deal fell through due to a dismal GPA caused by two classes I had failed to withdraw from, after I could no longer attend the school (after being a victim of a psychological attack by an administration member). After contacting Harper College in order to fix the problem, it became clear that I would have to retake those two classes before I could continue considering the apprenticeship program. I was also wary of leaving my profession as it afforded me a good salary and freedom, despite my desperate need to break from it.

Shortly thereafter, I discovered that I was about to lose my occupational license due to a tax issue. They told me I either had to make arrangements to pay or pick another career. What I heard was “If you do something else, you’ll never have to pay”. As it turns out, that phone call occurred on the same day I learned I would no longer be considered for the apprenticeship program and on the same day the Admissions Department at Harper College told me that, since I had enrolled in 1991, I had no other prerequisites than to sign up for and pay for my classes, if I could manage only late-start classes for that semester. All the stars had aligned and pointed a path of finishing my degree at Harper (and facing my past from there).

I took a leap of faith and registered twelve credit hours of late-start classes, all of which were heavy in both reading and writing. However, I dove in and tackled each class. It was hard work but also fun, at least enough fun that I continued with Summer term classes. I was excited to learn that I had earned the top score in each of my classes, but it also rekindled my interest in creating writing. I was lucky enough to be engaged by a professor who made learning a fun adventure instead of a dreary responsibility. Your creative writing flexibility in your class assignments allowed me not only to learn new material and advance toward my degree, but also to therapeutically express my repressed emotions caused by my traumas, helping me to heal and grow.

For a brief time, after having met an interesting guy, I thought it nearly impossible to balance school, bills and love all at the same time. Luckily for me, he has been amazingly supportive in my quest to educate myself and helps keep me motivated, when all I really want to do is lay in bed and snuggle, instead of getting my work done. Through this work, and through my expressions, and with the help of some great friends and talented professors, I found myself healing on multiple fronts. I have finally been able to forgive many of my tormentors, and I have even forgiven the college for the monster it had harbored long ago and found a bit of a home at Harper. Such a level of ability for forgiveness not only drives away depression, but also can bring about elicit moments of ecstasy. It was only after this that I knew my calling would keep me in school for some time to come.

Which brings be to the drawing end of my third term back in school, and my next creative assignment. This time, I tried a new medium—one that I’d thought I lacked too many skills to accomplish—a comic book. It would involve the monomyth theory by Joseph Campbell. The idea for comic book’s theme originated from a simple joke between my boyfriend and me. Being from Southern California, he had never seen snow in real life. During a particularly warm post-snow day, he had asked me why there are spotty little patch-piles of snow that hadn’t melted. I quipped back that those were the sinful flakes that could not yet get back into Heaven. Thus, the project began.

The adventure begins with the protagonist, Blue Entity, being summoned to adventure by the herald, Green Entity. The following pages set up the back story of his family and the fact that he has died. It is not until the flashback, however, until we learn that any return to this realm comes with it a cost in some kind of pain. We also learn that this was not the first time Blue had set out on the adventure and returned. In fact, Blue forgets each descent upon his return. Unable to help Blue anymore, Green leaves him alone. At this time, he receives wisdom from above, as the golden rays speak to him, allowing him to remember the many steps he has already taken. The flashback begins.

In it, he sees his initial refusal of the call to adventure, experiencing for the first time the drawing of unconditional grace. Eventually, his desire to see his still-living family wins and he is able to transform into a true form of himself—a snowflake—as he is, his wife tells, truly one of a kind. He dives downward through the cloud cover, his first threshold, but only after figuring out Green’s (now the threshold guardian) riddle that only love can truly transform. He reaches the belly of the whale, which is his old town and his favorite restaurant, frequented in his honor by his loving and ever-grieving family. But the winds of chance and change never allow him to reach his destination, Blue being blocked by nearly endless obstacles. Eventually the winds blow his way and he, as a snowflake, strikes the restaurant window adjacent the table where his family is currently dining, always at the same table, his favorite seat. After he sees them, his thirst for the adventure has been quenched enough that the pain of the journey really starts to set in.

He slides down the glass, landing in a yet-unmelted snow pile. While there a fire, which stung of ice instead of flame, encircles him. A malevolent voice uses his weakened state to tempt him into falling further, begging him to let go and join with him and offering to reunite Blue with his family in both this life and the one that will follow. As much as he desired to be with his family again, Blue knows that accepting the offer would mean losing his own soul, and possibly assisting in the future taking of the souls of his loved ones. Knowing that another return and another attempt would leave him too weakened to resist the malevolent voice again, he resigns himself to a fate shared with the flakes still in the snow pile, sacrificing himself and his quest for the sake of love. Instead, he is appreciative of the golden rays for bringing him to view his family for one last time, this representing an atonement.

He dies a symbolic death only to be resurrected and rewarded for his many leaps of faith. He re-emerges from the pile fresh, strong and new. The winds blow him up as his family exits the restaurant. Blowing off their hats, the winds allow him to land on the cheek of his loving wife, who is now old but had never remarried. He melts on her skin, they unite and she passes away. The final panels reveal, to those who may have missed the smaller details, that many years have gone by since the journey began. They reveal that his child has grown and has produced a grandchild. Finally, they reveal that he and his now-deceased wife have returned to the above realm together. These represent the apotheosis and the ultimate boon.

The passage of time throughout the comic is shown in various ways. The amount of snow on the ground is always changing. The sun is at different times of the day, the setting of it representing the passing of a lifetime. The height of the talk bubbles above the tabletop distinguishes the relative age of the speaker, be it child or adult. The television inside the restaurant changes in technology, each time playing a different movie, each representing a later era. The final one comes from the move, Doctor Strange, as is an homage and a final reveal that Blue has chosen to fall many times for years on end. The re-welcoming back of both Blue and his wife (Red) shows their refusal to return to grace and, in fact, devote themselves on a similar quest to watch their child and grandchild(ren) grow, suggesting that this may be a cycle that never ends, or at least not for several generations before they return to grace and return to the greater cycle. They never go through the five stages of the return. At least not in THIS issue.

My boyfriend just told me how late it is. So, it is time for me to finish this assignment, go back upstairs and rejoin my regularly scheduled life.

This comic book clearly deals with a lot of spiritual imagery, which has once again been uniquely helpful to me. Also, with the assistance of my spiritual advisor, these moments have helped me bridge the gap, at least inside my own heart and soul, between science and faith. I am finally being able to understand the ending of Inherit the Wind, where the main character, holding a book about evolution:

weighs the volume in his hand; this one has been the center of the whirlwind. Then Drummond notices the Bible on the Judge’s bench. He picks up the Bible in his other hand; he looks from one volume to the other, balancing them thoughtfully, as if his hands were scales. He half-smiles, half-shrugs. Then Drummond slaps the two books together and jams them in his briefcase, side by side. (Lawrence)

In learning to understand both science and spirituality I can become a master of both worlds and find my freedom to live. And, with that, I will point out that while my comic book does not go through all stages of Campbell’s monomyth; however, this explanation does. I will leave them up to you to discover them…

WORKS CITED

Amano, Hugh, and Sarah Becan. Lets Make Ramen!: a Comic Book Cookbook. Ten Speed Press, an Imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a Division of Penguin Random House LLC, 2019.

Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. New World Library, 2008.

Capra, Frank, director. It’s a Wonderful Life. Liberty Films, 1946.

Chechik, Jeremiah S., director. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Warner Bros., 1989.

Derrickson, Scott, director. Doctor Strange. Marvel Studios, 2016.

Lawrence, Jerome, and Robert Edwin Lee. Inherit the Wind. Dramatists Play Service Inc., 2009.

Pak, Greg, and Fred Van Lente. Make Comics like the Pros: the inside Scoop on How to Write, Draw, and Sell Your Comic Books and Graphic Novels. Watson-Guptill, 2014.

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radical-rad1986 · 5 years

Text

10/30/19 Rewatch

10/30/19 Rewatch (Japanese) 08 - The Day the Angel Flew

Van’s little “They’re becoming friends/getting along” smile is adorable.

… Did Hitomi have a vision that her pager would get Amano’s text?? Or is her pager like our cellphones and it's just so much her normal she’s dreaming about it?

I think it's interesting that Van either doesn’t notice or comment on Folken’s metal arm.

That’s actually super mature of you Van.

Because Aston has a whole country to take care of against the big bully Zaiback, Millerna. If you’d get out of your little fantasy world you’d see that your country is in a shitton of trouble.

Really Merle, you should know that about drag-energists.

Flying dragons must not be extinct bc Snake Guy recognizes the shape, which is pretty distinguishable from a land dragon… which also cannot fly.

Yeah Millie, right.

I’ll say it again: I believe that this is the first time Allen has kissed Millerna. Look at her reaction: She goes still, breathless, brain to mush. She’s kissed him at least a few times - she has no hesitation to do it and annoy Hitomi at the same time on the roof earlier.

That’s a LOT of energists.

… I repeat, Hitomi’s dress fabric should not have ripped like that… and so straight… damn.

Wow. Van got lucky with that kick. Atlantean lucky?

Go Van, having the frame of mind to remove your shirt. This time. “Hey Merle, grab that for me will ya?”

The eye/surface reflections are really well defined in the high-def version. The dragon’s eyes, Escaflowne’s energist, Hitomi’s eye…

… Did Van fly all that way/for that long? It was bright daylight when the graveyard scene happened, but it's dark and the moon is out, Merle is even sleeping, when Hitomi thinks “You’re an angel.”

#Rad rewatches E 2019

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libraryofrewrita · 6 years

Text

Chapter 18: Finding Predictabul

"What are you saying, Hovernyan?"

"The curse that was keeping me in the shed for all of that time eventually wore down enough for you guys to get me out and if you were able to see Pallysol when he wasn't a statue, the same might apply to him and the others!"

Hovernyan was shaking with excitement at the thought of reuniting with his friends once again and he quickly shoved the milk caps into Lucas's hands.

"These milk caps will tell you where to find the place where Nathaniel and Kenny first met the Yo-kai, which is where their statue is also located. I imagine Gin and Kin did this just to shake the two up, but not anymore!"

Hovernyan was feeling giddy over the whole idea and as the kids looked over the milk caps, a concerning thought crossed their minds.

"Hovernyan? We only saw three of these Yo-kai-turned-statues in our time period."

Hovernyan turned his head, a brief moment of fear in his eyes.

"Which ones?"

"Gnomey, Faux Kappa, and Pallysol before we realized that he was cursed."

"Wait, so you don't remember seeing Predictabul or Mermaiden in your time period?"

The kids shook their heads and Hovernyan said,

"Well, see if you can find out where those statues went as soon as you get to your time period. Since they're just cursed Yo-kai, it's unlikely that they suffered from weathering or breaking."

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to discuss a few things with a friend of mine who was lucky enough to not get cursed. He's been a pivotal part of helping me fix the timelines and well...I need to make sure he's okay."

Hovernyan looked worried as he said that, almost as if he was afraid that the curse would end up striking on his friend if he didn't go see him at that moment and he quickly left the group to track down his friend.

"Let's summon Miradox and get back to our time period."

After they used the charms with their normal clothes and Nate and Katie put their necklaces and Yo-kai Watches on, they properly summoned Miradox with the Model Zero and the group went back to their time period.

*****

They found themselves in the alley where they first summoned Miradox and started to discuss how they were going to rescue the cursed Yo-kai.

"If Hovernyan is right, then the Rock-Away Extract should have a better effect on the cursed statues here than in the past."

"But you're forgetting that we have to track down two other statues. We have no clue about where they could possibily be, other than that they used to be in Harrisville long before we were born."

"Looks like we're going to have to take another trip to Harrisville to ask around."

As tempting as it was to go to Harrisville through Mirapo to save a lot of time, they knew that they had to plan things out carefully.

"First thing tomorrow, we talk to Mr. Goodsight about getting the Yo-kai Watches upgraded and seeing if there's a way to at least get them back to A Rank as soon as possible. It won't do us any good if it turns out that one of the statues is stuck behind a Watch Lock Door that's higher than a D Rank, not to mention that we're going to have to fight stronger Yo-kai if we're ever going to stop the Wicked Yo-kai."

*****

The next day...

The group walked into Timer's and More and thankfully didn't have to wait too long for Mr. Goodsight to show up.

"I figured you two would show up! I want to take a look at your Yo-kai Watches for a minute, if that's alright."

"What for?"

"I might have found something to make dealing with Ranking a lot simpler!"

Surprised at what he said, they handed the Amano and Kodama Models over to Mr. Goodsight and watched as Mr. Goodsight took apart their Yo-kai Watches, placed a miniture floating and glowing orb in the middle of all of the gears that made up their Yo-kai Watches, and put the models back together before handing them back to Nate and Katie.

"What exactly does the orb do?"

"Oh, that is an excellent question. You'll still have to battle Yo-kai for your upgrades, but the good news is that all I have to do is give you a list of the required Yo-kai that you have to battle to get to the Rank you want and after you track down and fight all of them, the orb will make your Yo-kai Watches act like they're at the Rank you wanted to get to. For example, if you battle the six Yo-kai required to get to B Rank, it will let you open C and B Rank Watch Lock doors, find C and B ranked Yo-kai, etc, etc. Of course, it would be only until you can come and get an official upgrade from me, then all you have to do is wait for me to get your Yo-kai Watches to the proper rank."

"So, what you're saying is that the orb you put in here will act as a temporary upgrade to our Yo-kai Watches in case we're not able to get to you after we met a certain requirement for the Rank we wanted to get."

"Pretty much. At least you would be able to stack the upgrades instead of having to constantly wait to figure out if it's a good time to upgrade your Yo-kai Watches or not. Just go fight all of the Yo-kai you need for the Rank you want and come see me for the offical upgrades."

"Where did you get these orbs from? Did you just have them laying around or something?"

Mr. Goodsight shook his head.

"Of course not. If I had them earlier, I would've placed the orbs in your Yo-kai Watches and just given you a list of Yo-kai to fight for whatever upgrade you wanted."

Given that Mr. Goodsight upgraded their Yo-kai Watches for free and since they knew that he had been around when their grandparents were around their age, Nate and Katie knew he would survive not having to constantly upgrade their Yo-kai Watches one upgrade at a time.

"Where did you get the orbs, though?"

"Oh, Steve Jaws was planning on mass producing the Yo-kai Watch after the whole Mckraken incident, but there are currently some...complications. You see...since you two are the holders of the only Amano and Kodama models, the only known models of the Model Zero were rumored to have been hidden away, I only have the blueprints for the Model Zero, which are starting to turn unreadable at this point, and there are no known blueprints for the Amano and Kodama Models, production can't get off the ground unless Steve Jaws has a model to work with."

"What does that have to do with the orbs?"

"It was supposed to be a feature in his production model. Since he knew that I knew you two well, he just asked me to put the orbs in your Yo-kai Watches and report on your progress with the orbs just so he knows that the idea could work."

"Why didn't he just ask us if he could borrow one of our Yo-kai Watches if that was the case?"

"Oh, I told him that your Yo-kai Watches had to be heavily guarded at the moment. Didn't give him a lot of details about why, of course."

He glanced at the Model Zeroes on their wrists and if this was under normal circumstances, he would be curious as to how they had gotten their hands on them, but he fully remembered the letters that had accompanioned the broken Yo-kai Watches and the time they had walked into his shop sixty years ago and gave him a spicy pepper in exchange for the watch bases that went to the creation of the Model Zero. Honestly, trying to understand time travel gave him such a headache at times, so he never bothered to say anything about it. He just gave them a list of the Yo-kai they had to fight to get to Rank A when they asked about it and watched the group as they left and gave their goodbyes to him and sighed softly.

I really hope they can make things better.

*****

"Okay, for the Rank C upgrade, we have to go to the Old Mansion and fight Helmsman, Lafalotta, and Slicenrice. Next, for Rank B, we head to San Fantastisco and fight Chummer, Chansin, and Ben Tover. Finally, for Rank A, we head to Nocturne Hospital and fight Nird, Espy, and Goruma."

"Seems simple enough. We're already in the area, so let's go do the Rank C fights at the Old Mansion."

*****

After they fought the required Yo-kai for the C Rank, they went to Nom Burger to discuss how they were going to free the cursed Yo-kai.

"Well, Pallysol will be easy to free since people rarely go to the area he's in. Faux Kappa might be a bit difficult to explain his disappearence in case people do actually use him as a landmark, but I don't know...maybe time travel shenanigans will come up with a solution. The really hard ones will be Predictabul, Mermaiden, and Gnomey."

"I get the first two, but why is freeing Gnomey going to be difficult?"

"Because he's been in our grandparent's house for decades and our grandmothers would notice if he suddenly disappeared?"

"Okay, we'll just have to save Gnomey for last until we can come up with a reasonable explanation for his disappearence to our grandmothers, unless you're hoping that time travel shenanigans will help us out with this problem as well, Nate."

Nate just rolled his eyes at the comment as he ate his burger and tried to remember where the nearest Mirapo was.

*****

"Are you telling me that a small bull statue just disappeared from the shrine and somehow ended up at Excellent Tower eleven years ago?"

"And that Mermaiden is currently in a cave in San Fantastisco?"

They used the first Mirapo they came across to fast travel to an active Mirapo near Mount Middleton just to avoid having to explaining themselves to anyone wondering how they had gotten to Harrisville without anyone noticing them. To futher avoid talking to people, they sent their Yo-kai companions to try to figure out any information about where the statues might have gone and they did have the information, but it wasn't what they had expected to hear.

"Look, we had to convince the hiding Yo-kai in the area to tell us where Mermaiden went. It was just pure luck that we came across the story of Predictabul's statue being at Excellent Tower."

They had the information they needed for the missing statues, but they had no clue where to start from there. They were closer to San Fantastisco and could also get the next Yo-kai they needed for the B Rank upgrade, but they weren't sure if there was an active Mirapo in that area. On the another hand, they could warp to Breezy Hills and walk to Excellent Tower since it was close by, but have to spend a lot of time on the train to get to San Fantastisco since they were on opposite ends of the train lines. Granted, they had already knew that it would take a while to free the cursed Yo-kai, but still.

"Guys, why don't you just ask to spend the night here in Harrisville? This way, we can work on freeing the cursed statues and if it starts to get late, we can continue the next day."

How the idea hadn't occured to the kids that actually had relatives in Harrisville, they had no clue, but it was still a good one. Even if they didn't get permission, nothing could stop them from just warping to Harrisville Station and going to San Fantastisco the next day either.

"Well, let's free Predictabul first, just to see if the theory holds up. No use in getting all fired up for a plan if the one component that's required is busted."

"Nate, did you have to quote Space Wars at a time like this?"

"I wasn't quoting Space Wars, I was pointing something out. There's a different."

"Yes, with the exact wording of the space rebel's line before their team tested the secret weapon that was supposed to put an end to the tyrantical empire once on for all."

"Okay, you lovebirds, stop bickering. We have Yo-kai statues to uncurse and limited daylight."

Nate and Katie stopped speaking out of embarrassment, both at being called lovebirds by Whisper and because they knew he had a point.

*****

After they got to the area of Spring, which was where Excellent Tower was located, and boarded the elevator to the top, they located the Predictabul statue and Whisper carefully sprinkled the Rock-Away Extract onto the statue and the group noticed a bright glow surrounding the statue.

*****

Predictabul's Flashback:

"Are you two looking for something by any chance?"

He sat on the steps of the Temple of Virtues as he looked at the two boys walking by for the third time. The two boys stopped and turned to Predictabul, seeming surprised to notice him.

"Yeah, we dropped our books in this area and we would like to find them before it rains and gets dark."

"Follow me, then."

Predictabul stood up and floated up the stairs, watching the two boys follow him into the temple. When they got there, Predictabul went to one of the statues and opened a loose side, allowing them to look through his collection of lost things he had found near the temple.

"Look through these and see if you can find what you're looking for.

"For Enma's sake, how many times do people lose their stuff around here?"

"Oh, you'd be surprised. I try to use my powers of clairvoyance to reunite the objects with their owners, but they're kinda weak. I want to get stronger so that my powers can get stronger and allow me to help people better."

He stopped speaking when he noticed the boys looking at him.

"Sorry, that must sound stupid..."

"No! It's not stupid at all! But why haven't you battled with anyone? Surely you can ask someone to battle with you so that you can get stronger."

Predictabul looked to the side and said,

"Oh, it's because of this silly debate going on. I ask for a battle, they ask me if I liked Soul or Spirit Donuts better, I say I'm neutral about it, they ignore me, and they move on without battling me."

"Well, if you're willing to, we can be friends and you can train with us. We have some Yo-kai you can battle with and they're neutral about the whole donut debate too."

Predictabul looked up at the two boys and smiled.

"Of course! I'm Predictabul, by the way. I knew something good was going to happen today!"

"I'm Nathaniel and this is my friend Kenny. We're going to be a great team, Predictabul."

*****

The bright light died down as Predictabul shook his head.

"Huh...has it been sixty years since I became a statue already? Hello, Nathan, Katie, Lucas, Whisper, Jibanyan, Komasan, and Komajiro."

"Question, how did you get up here and how do you who we are?"

"While I was still cursed as a statue I had a vision of us meeting here when I was able to move. About eleven years ago, I noticed the curse was starting to wear off and remembering my vision, I set out to fufill it. It was annoying having to move little by little at night since that was when the curse doesn't affect me, but it was worth it in the end."

"So, we take it that you know why we're here?"

"Yes and I'm looking forward to seeing your grandfathers again in the proper time period. I missed them so much."

Out of pure happiness, his Yo-kai Medal suddenly appeared in Nate's hand.

"I was planning on giving that to Nathaniel and Kenny when I got back, but my vision tells me that they'll get my medal soon enough."

With a smile, he told them that he was going back to Harrisville and the temple since it had been decades since he was able to properly walk around his home and he missed the place to be honest.

"Wait, did your vision mention anything about the other cursed Yo-kai statues?"

Predictabul tilted his head to the side before answering,

"You'll free all of us, if that's what you're asking about. However, I must warn you that Mermaiden will be the hardest statue to free."

"Why...?"

"Here's some advice...be prepared to battle."

"Oh, boy...how bad is it?"

"Just be prepared."

With that said, Predictabul disappeared into a puff of purple smoke, leaving only the three kids and the four Yo-kai.

"One statue down, four to go."

Previous Chapter: https://libraryofrewrita.tumblr.com/post/179086777069/chapter-17-the-yo-kai-statues Next Chapter: https://libraryofrewrita.tumblr.com/post/181116269639/chapter-19-mermaiden-rescue

#yo-kai watch #yo-kai watch au #rewrite #au #booktwo #chapter 18

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100wordanime · 7 years

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Yes, this post has been inspired by Darling in the Franxx’s Zero Two, unfortunately she doesn’t get a place on the list due to the uncertainty about how her character will develop from here.

Certainly she has all the traits of the characters below so far. Obsessively possessive of her chosen ‘Darling’, not entirely needing consent though does appreciate the thought, and willing to cut other people out of their ‘Darling’s’ lives if necessary. I’m pretty sure you can guess some of the names below but as always, I’d love to know who you would have included on your list. Which anime character do you think loves their ‘Darling’ to death?

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Please note: There will be spoilers below.

Honourable mentions: Zero Two of course.

Number 5: Misa Amane from Death Note

There is no surprise that Misa made this list. The cute, sweet idol obsessed with Kira. She latches onto Light and promises to be helpful. She’ll follow his every command and do as he says. But no, he cannot date anyone else and no he cannot even pretend to be with other girls. Why? Because she’ll kill them in an instant and does not care that they may bring the police down on both of them. Misa was never one for a strategy. She went straight after what she wanted and what she wanted was Light’s absolute loyalty. And while Misa never did get Light killed, that was more good luck than good management. If it hadn’t been for her he would never have had to go through the whole confinement thing which would have made life a lot easier for him later.

Number 4: Haru from My Little Monster

Now, Haru is an interesting character and a lot of the time his bizarre actions are more a lack of understanding of norms than actual malice, and yet threatening to rape a girl the day after you met her is kind of extreme. The fact that these two end up being an adorable couple is kind of terrifying when put in that context, mostly because Shizuku spends a lot of time putting some very clear boundaries in place, particularly when he did punch her (technically an accident but still not cool). However, while Haru becomes far better at moderating his behaviour as directed toward Shizuku, Kenji Yamaguchi, who also kind of likes Shizuku, is not so lucky. At one point Haru nearly pushed him off a flight of stairs and was only stopped because he was distracted by Shizuku and another time Haru made it clear that his change in behaviour only applied to Shizuku. Not exactly an amazing example of reform or healthy relationships really. Fortunately though, no deaths in the show. It is a romantic comedy despite the serious doses of ‘what’ going on in Haru’s character description.

Number 3: Creed Diskenth from Black Cat

The guy is just obsessed with Train. That’s literally hit entire motivation and reason for being. He follows Train within the Chronos organisation and when Train leaves he completely loses it. The fact that Train left after being influenced by a friend (possibly closer than a friend) truly infuriated Creed and so Creed killed her. And then made sure Train knew that he had killed her. A lot of the time it is unclear is Creed is trying to kill Train or confine him or just mess with him but basically Creed is pretty stable as a character (as much as possible for a villain), until you throw Train into the mix and then he is a complete and utter psycho. I guess it never really occurred to him that Train legitimately did not care about him at all until he killed Saya. And even then, Train didn’t actually care about Creed. He just wanted to destroy the person who destroyed Saya. It didn’t matter that it was Creed. Again, Creed doesn’t manage to kill Train but he does come very close on multiple occasions.

Number 2: Yuno Gasai from Future Diary

I can already hear people asking, why is Yuno not number one on this list. And certainly, if we were just going with being crazy, Yuno is definitely a good contender. Still, in terms of loving their Darling to death, Yuno’s got some fierce competition. Mostly because I’m not entirely certain how much Yuno actually is in love rather than just obsessed with Amano. On the other hand, she’s one of the few people on this list who did in fact kill her Darling, even if it was in another timeline. So, basically, she swears to protect him in the death game, but mid-way through she tries confining him by tying him to a chair. Afterwards we learn that previously these two were the last two left standing and she killed him in order to be the victor and then she’s killed her past-self, inserted herself into that life, and done the whole thing again. You just have to wonder if she expected it to end differently the next time.

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US – Bluray

Number 1: Road Kamelot from D Gray Man

It absolutely had to be Road. She is a truly sadistic character who is, unfortunately for Allen, obsessed with our white haired exorcist friend. Mid-battle she can go from attacking him with kisses to shoving a spike through his eye in about the space of a heart beat and she sure doesn’t care about anyone near Allen, unless she thinks she can torture him by hurting them. Her obsession runs deep and she’s more than once allowed him to live when she could have killed him, but that doesn’t mean she hasn’t had a fair go at inflicting quite a bit of pain on him. D Gray Man Hallow saw her assisting him from her doll form, though whether that will continue or whether she is just leading him to yet another disaster is anyone’s guess unless we get another continuation of the anime (or, you know I could eventually read the source material). Either way, Road was the first character I thought of for this list. She is ice cold, completely obsessed, and has a real taste for pain.

Thanks for reading.

Karandi James

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Another way you can support the content here is by buying a copy of ‘Thoughts on Anime 2017‘ as an ebook. It contains a selection of reviews, features and top 5 lists from 2017 and while the content is available free on the site, this is a great way to give a one off show of support for the blog. It is available for $3.99.

Finally, you can use the affiliate link to shop at Play-Asia.com if you are interested in anime, soundtracks, figures or games. Should you use the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

Tuesday's Top 5: Characters Who Love Their 'Darling' To Death Yes, this post has been inspired by Darling in the Franxx's Zero Two, unfortunately she doesn't get a place on the list due to the uncertainty about how her character will develop from here.

#anime #Black Cat #Creed Diskenth #D Gray Man #DARLING in the FRANXX #Death Note #Future Diary #Haru #Misa Amane #My Little Monster #Road Kamelot #Top 5 #Tuesday&039;s Top 5 #Yuno Gasai #Zero Two

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cipher0quilo-blog · 7 years

Text

Translucent reality- KHR fanfic

I wrote something... i’m still god damn confuzzled. Disclaimer: KHR is not mine and will never be, the wonderful Akira Amano does. Thank her for creating it. Warning: Bad grammar and spelling... SWEARING... a lot... depends . ----------------------------------------

The soft, stable clicks of the clock's hand led me to question my mental stability everyday. The buzzing of the silence progressively increasing my curiosity.

I may be slightly smarter than the average, slightly more patient than the average but lying on your back all day, having no prospect of progress on anything at all. No action, no movement but eating, sleeping and... and taking a number 2 or 1 in diapers were just... pointlessly irritating.

Annoying, waste of my time, aggravating, mocking, infuriatingly painful... provokingly maddening.

Anything to take me away from this damn crib, from this room would be wonderful, fantastic and god damn magical.

Would be my thoughts everyday.

Well, until I finally thought of practicing how to speak, stand, walk and finally... finally pinch off my diaper and take a good look at my genitals.

Which in turn, led me to think of how stupid I was to spend several months pitying myself and my sorry state. Numb muscles from my arm stretching to slap my forehead in annoyance.

I sighed, exasperated.

"What a hassle"

Oh my god... who was that? Am I going crazy, am I finally insane?

It took me a couple of minutes to realize who said that and capture a pair of stiff, trembling hands flip up quickly. Said hands held up towards the ceiling for 5 long majestic minutes.

I could speak.

Holy honey sugar god of the magical candy land.

I mean... I could swear now... i mean, i could communicate to my mommy dear. Now... now to move onto strengthening my muscles. To check if i was still a male. To slowly rip the diaper.

Of course i was still a male. I mean what sort of god would put a 16 year old male in a female body?

2 months later --------------

A fucking sadist, of course. Would you look at that... down there. There's no ding dong. There's no sausage. No wiener.

Somebody help me. Dear lord, life is precious and insanely beautiful but at times it's equally as disturbing.

It's painful.

Even if i was just reborn as a girl now, it feels like my male genitalia was harshly cut off.

I-i could just ignore it. I guess?

No big deal, right?

I questioned myself. Reassuring myself. Yea... i would be fine...

I'm just gonna go through my life as a girl. Not like losing my penis was a big deal.

Existential crisis, resolved? Yea, probably. I could just have a sex change.

Is there one at this time anyway? I haven't exactly figured out what year and day i was in. If there wasn't one and i'm way back at the past.

I'm gonna have people call me daddy. I swear i will let their existence remind me that i was a guy before. Because there was no way in hell i was gonna go through hormones, puberty, romance and all those magical stuff as girl. I'd be gay.

There's no problems with gays but I'm completely straight. Will always be. Yea... i would.

Now to get back to reading.

Picking up the old looking book and sloppily opening it. I finally realized. That the words were in another language. A language that I vaguely remembered studying at year 7-8. It was in Italian. And I barely remember the language.

Now you may retort back to me by saying that 'isn't' it lucky that you know even a little bit of it to start off on?' Now, my young ducklings, yes it is.

You remember the time i told you that i have patience that's slightly above average? Well my beautiful munchkins. I won't be able to wait that long.

The world i'm in becomes so much more beautiful every time i blink. Note the hatred and sarcasm laced in this thought.

Shit just keeps getting better because all my fucks have already been freed and to be honest, i need an alternative. So i'm gonna throw shit at life. As. much. as. possible.

Where is my mother? I need a change of diapers.

2 more months ---------------------

It took me 2 more months to figure out what date it was. From the books, from the news and from the gossip.

It took me 2 months to notice i was an orphan. I just had my own room because the orphanage was quite spacious. Quiet and old, though brand new and noisy at the same time. Beautiful but ancient.

14 bedrooms and 9 children. I get paranoid each time the clock ticks and somebody walks down the hall, the wooden floorboards creaking eerily.

They nearly scared me shitless when they opened the door to check if i was sleeping. I swear the person responsible for this orphanage was doing this on purpose. Opening the door excruciatingly slow to scare the crap out of me. Which, let me tell you, actually did. I cried so much just to get sweet sweet revenge.

You see, i read books most of the time, Alessia, the person responsible of the orphanage, checked up on me. Gently reminding me to go to sleep worriedly. I would, after an hour or 2 when it was 12 p.m.

Now i would describe Alessia to be a little better than an average looking girl, brown hair and green eyes. I would say she was beautiful in her own way though.

Alessia's troubled expression would meet mine every night. It would harden even more each night.

Finally, she thought of a plan. And well, as you know. It was to scare me. I think she was planning to just scar me 'slightly'.

She didn't know it would loosen my bowels and shit would come rushing out. Her face contorted in disgust as the smell floated around the air. It just wouldn't stop flowing same goes for the tears. Both my ass and my eyes burned.

I remember it so vividly, even the feeling. It scarred me enough to sleep at 10 p.m. and it scared Alessia enough to be careful around the halls. Which just made it worse. Or she was doing this on purpose because she figured out i was crying just to get revenge.

Story time over though, Alessia established before this incident that i was some sort of genius for knowing this much. Alessia barely even knew how to read and write. Though she tried her best to teach me.

January 1st, 1607.

It's so god damn far back and it just gets better from there.

Cecilia Silvano. The start of the name came from my mother but the rest was all Alessia.

I was born in May 16th, 1606. Approximately 6 months old. My parents? I don't have a father she says. I have a mother she said. Typical, i would think. Though i was just kindly accepted in the orphanage because of my mother. She gave birth at the streets with the help of Alessia, fortunate enough to stumble through her. And, i was born at the streets out of some sort of miracle, at the cost of my mother's life.

I really didn't know how to react to that sort of revelation. It wasn't typical, i would think. It was painful to feel but there was nothing to react to . I didn't know her, she didn't take care of me but just the thought of her going through the birth, begging Alessia to accept me and weakly mutter her last name just to give me something to know the me here as... just made living here so much more painful.

Everything wasn't so sappy and harsh in the... 'future'. The place where i used to live. Well, developing countries still go through this but...

Everything was given to me and when i went through that 'questioning my existence in this world' or 'what's the meaning of life' phase , i foolishly thought how there was no point in life when there was people who would wish for food, for clothes... for a family just like mine.

I realized that but i refused to accept the reality in front because somewhere... somewhere, there was just something better. Anime... worlds, you know? There was nothing to reassure me that that was true. So... i didn't want to live.

And i never got through that phase until this revelation. I wanted to live that life again, so desperately. I was in a safe haven. That was utopia. I thought i was strong.

Being exposed to this much pain and the poor ways of living in this time was just too much. I thought i could handle it. But i couldn't...

I sighed exasperatedly. Another existential crisis. Great.

I'm thinking about depressing things again. Jeez, i just promised to myself that i'll live this 2nd chance of mine to the fullest. I would make a change. To help people out there through the pain, you know?

I still do love procrastination. So i'll just do what i can to selfishly live a life i can tell myself was 'good' enough.

That's not the point now though.

I GOT A LOOK OF MYSELF.

And god damn i was good looki- Cute.

Alessia would always comment at how my hair was colored abnormally.

Soft white hair that would glisten when exposed to the sunlight and light blue eyes that scared the living daylights out of Alessia once. She said it was glowing in the dark. I didn't know how to respond... So i told her it was just 'cool'. I had pale skin, my face was just adorable and i was simply contemplating at how beautiful my mother is to be able to make 'me'. Overall, i looked like a fragile doll.

...I have anime hair.

Oh yes i do.

I got dem power.

Next thing i know. I'm actually in an anime.

I will majestically turn into a magical girl and kick ass .

Wearing a white button up shirt and light blue overalls that looked worn out, i trudged down the stairs.

Waking up from a baby crying their heart out was irritating. I heard the source downstairs so i grumpily decided to check what it was.

I heard the soft hums of Alessia's voice. Trying to calm down the baby. I strode towards her uncomfortably. Gently yanking at her dress.

She quickly looked at me with panic stricken eyes and i sighed. "Pull some funny faces, Alessia. The kid'll calm down." I said tiredly.

She quickly complied, trusting my words .

The crying gradually became quieter replaced by soft gurgles and adorable giggling. If i get strong enough i will hold onto this child.

Alessia relaxed. Though her posture was still stiff.

"He was abandoned...", She spoke up, her hands trembling with what you'd think would be anger. She was scared. For herself if this child was someone important or for the child itself.

"Unlikely Alessia. Just relax and do what you do best. Smile and take care of people. Because if you're afraid, the kids will wonder and mirror you. Since they are still children." I softly replied.

She quietly laughed ," I'm older than you but you're smarter. I've experienced more but you're wiser. Why is that..."

" You're not expecting me to answer?" I asked, eyeing her, half lidded. Alessia gently rocked the baby and lulled him(?) to sleep, "... No. Because it may just be a simple reason."

She smiled warmly down to my figure.

I returned the expression though a little stiff.

True... It is. I was given a second chance in life and i'm living through it.

Standing next to this 15 year old women, i nodded.

" Do you know his name?"

She sadly shook her head, her hair bouncing as she carefully adjusted her hold of the baby, "Unfortunately, no. I just saw this child abandoned at the path. I couldn't just leave him if we have this much space in the house."

A frown slowly crept on my face though i would, i say, i was internally smiling, "Are you planning to name him...?"

"Yes... I very much do. I thought you were about to disagree of this idea. There's not much food to give to all the children in the orphanage and now we have to have room for one more. We... we can handle it, i'm sure." She reassured me.

" I mean, i would have, even though i worry that you don't eat much already but you seem to favour this child quite a bit." I responded, amused.

She giggled, "Anyway, do you have any ideas for this child's name?"

I slowly raised a brow. I do. Maybe?

I laughed inside. A smile threatening to split my face as i thought of the name of my sister's favorite anime character.

Giotto Taru, was it?

From the anime Katekyo hitman reborn.

I chuckled, Alessia patiently looking at me with twinkling eyes.

The name's too weird though.

"No. I'm horrible at naming stuff..." I answered, a small pout on my face.

She sniggered, "How cute."

I blushed slightly, "Alessia stop, i dislike compliments like that. I would accept good-looking and handsome but... just no,"

She eyed me weirdly.

A little panic electrocuted my body as nervously spoke up, " So have you thought of a name, yet?"

Alessia held her gaze at me but she finally let go and smiled, "Yes. I've thought of a perfect name."

I smiled. Typical. Always creative, she would've been a brilliant student in school. " Giotto Taru. His name is Giotto Taru. "

Giotto Taru? ...

I choked from my spit and elegantly tripped. I floorpalmed. The floor majestically smothering my face, smelling like a musty toaster.

That's probably just a coincidence... I looked at the child, calming my breathe. "Are you alright? Was it too bad?" She panicked rushing towards me, trying not to wake the baby. Now that i get a good look at him... He does have a little strand of blonde hair.

Definitely a coincidence.

" I-i'm fine... just, why Giotto Taru?" I shakily questioned.

" W-well, when i checked his eyes. It was an abnormal color like your hair. I-it wasn't white but it was light sunset orange. It just looked so mesmerizing and gentle. I felt as if i was sort of accepted? Which is weird because why would a baby accept me. I mean, Giotto means Gentle ruler... s-" Alessia stuttered.

The noise of my body hitting the ground interrupted her panicked speech.

I'm not familiar with the series but i'm familiar with my sister's fan girl rantings.

Maybe this was just a big coincidence. Or I just jinxed myself and shit just got real. I swear if I see life... I will forcefully fill you with my own faeces . -------------------------------------------------------------

Sorry, i had to get off the couch... I'll go back to it don't worry. It's too precious. Hope you enjoyed it, i guess...

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