#based on everyone's reactions

[lady-swanbell]

- Well, she sounds to me like a very attractive woman. Intelligent -

- She speaks French.

- I always loved the name Laura.

[incoherentchanting]

this shit is so funny

[c-kiddo]

waow

[soarrenbluejay]

Supervillains for a community. (Well, except those jerks over in Gotham, insular lot, but they’re they’re one problem) Of course they do- supervillains are a group defined by strong opinions and a willingness to see them through, often with a healthy dash of societal failures and trauma as a catalyst.

The fentons, while not active even on the online message boards, are well known and explosive when they do show up, full of fascinating insights and hours long rants on mad science on hair pin turns courtesy of that ADHD attention span. Bit of the cryptids you feel honored to bump into kind of deal. Besides, like a good quarter of the community as it aged, they’d settled down and had kids (not necessarily in that order) and taken it very seriously! Out in the middle of nowhere, where even the most fearsome government outpost members, the local branch of the IRS, quake before them in fear. Out of the way.

Reveal gone okay-ish, Danny moves to Gotham still to get some air bc now things are Akward and he landed that engineering scholarship which is loads better than any other college would give him with his track record. So- the mysterious Fenton children are finally crawling out of hiding! Everyone is psyched! And roll in to Gotham en masse to witness the fireworks!

Except Danny is Determined To Be Normal. He’s had enough of the throwing himself into harms way shit for a lifetime- he wants to be free to peacefully built Rube Goldberg machines and unintentional increasingly complex bombs to his hearts content. JAZZ, on the other hand- the coveted token Normal One, has finally snapped! She’s watched her baby brother she practically raised throw himself into danger over and over and could do nothing, and now that she’s exposed to this whole network of superheroes outside of small town Amnity, some of those uglier emotions are coming out. And boy is she pissed! And can’t afford to show it much while filing the paperwork to have Arkham legally razed to the ground!

See I love this idea of like, niches in superhero society. A villain the heroes know they can plop their kiddo down with for an exciting afternoon brawl while they take care of a particularly grisly case and come back to a few hours later ranting about some new life lesson and a new move they really want to try. A villain who has a functioning moral compass despite their somewhat batshit long term goal and you can contact to fuck with another villains’s plan so they can laugh at them and you can have an easy afternoon. One who pries up hostile architecture and fills in pot holes, idk man. Get creative here, there’s such potential!

So Jazz becomes a Training villain- someone the heroes know their sidekicks will walk away from in a fight 100% of the time, usually with some new lesson to ponder and only a couple of bruises. Sometimes even snacks!

She also absolutely ambushes mentors to check that they’re worth the kiddo, which they appreciate once they get over being jumped in a dark alley by a 7 foot Amazon trained force of nature. They are not used to being on that side of the jumping, it’s a little unnerving.

(Yes, she low key adopts Shazam upon checking in with him on cursory ‘is the main hero of this city and asshole’ checkin. Yes, the super clones get yoinked out from under Superman’s negligent thumb to go have a blast with Ellie. What about it?)

This however only encourages more assorted weirdos to crawl out of the woodwork. It’s not often one of their own forfeits their potential spot for the running of the coveted Most Normal I Swear prize, but when they do it’s bound to be good! But jazz is off hounding various heroes and punching the faces in of pedophiles and shit whenever there’s no cape within easy reach, and so is a mite bit harder to contact than Danny, who has innocently gotten an apprenticeship under a clockworker for access to their workshop and is gleefully going about doing nerdy shit with great abandon.

Plus this is Gotham. No one gives a shit if someone in the Mad Alchemist uniform and still smoking from their latest experiment pokes their head in a window to bother the local shrimp teen- none of the usual social rules apply, everyone’s crazy here! So everyone drops any and all attempts at masking and just acts their genuine unhinged selves, much to the alarm of the Bats and frustration of Danny.

Bc he cannot get these mfers to go. Away. Even liberal use of the creep stick has little effect when the interloper is calibrated for an opponent with super speed or laser vision or whatever, and he’s trying to maintain his guise as a Normal College Student Do No Investigate.

So he calls in the big guns. He’s not super active in the supervillain kids group chat ever since things in amnity calmed the fuck down post becoming King and then immediately using a loophole that says he will not take the throne until he is grown, as defined by finishing learning his trade a la the medieval standards Pariah set up. So he can just take his sweet ass time with his graduate degree and out of inter dimensional bull shit that much longer! Point is, he hasn’t taken the chance to rant over there in a while, so his Crazy friends are getting a lil worried.

The change to come over and shout at their batshit crazy but (mostly) well meaning parent AND see Danny? Score!

The bats, however, are getting awfully suspicious about this one kid that villains from all over the country are flocking to, especially young and upcoming ones as of recently! And he’s acting his engineering course- all the worst rogues are known to have flown through their PhD studies prior to Cracking. They seem to have a real problem on their hands with this Fenton guy.

[egophiliac]

his magic is so PINK and FLUFFY and PRETTY! I love it!

I'm ready to process the Diasomnias now, buckle up

[sillydegu]

Welcome home Laurel

[devildomcuties]

Obey Me: Rough Days[Demon Brothers]

thank you for sending in this request ♡

🕷 pairing: demon brothers x gn!reader

🕷 genre: established relationship, 18+

🕷 summary: Some days are rough.

🕷wc: 2.6k

🕷 warnings: depression (and symptoms), food mention/skipping meals, some smut, this is mostly based on my personal experience (I've been on medication for 11 months now so that's why there are mentions of getting help).

🕷 date: August 3, 2024

Lucifer

The Avatar of Pride had noticed your change in demeanor lately. He had studied you from afar, unsure how to gently approach the subject.

He knew that sometimes your mental health wavered, sometimes it skydived, and sometimes it seemed like dark clouds hovered over your head. Sometimes it was seasonal, but this seemed to go past the Winter Blues.

“Do you want to go to lunch with me?” he asks one day when you’ve gotten out of bed long enough to join them for breakfast.

“Not really. I don’t feel like leaving the house,” you answered as you pushed your food around your plate before excusing yourself to go back to bed.

Later that day, Lucifer knocks on your bedroom door. He lets himself in and sees you reading a book. 

Lucifer doesn’t speak as he sets up your lunch. You follow him with your eyes, as he pats the seat beside him. 

Slowly, you sit beside him, thanking him for bringing you lunch. He simply kisses your forehead and tells you about his morning. 

Once lunch is over, Lucifer joins you in your bed. You curl up beside him, his arms wrap around you. 

“I love you,” he whispers as his fingers lace yours. You smile at him, hiding your face in his chest for a moment.

You kiss Lucifer. He cups your face gently, his fingers caressing your cheek.

Lucifer goes at your pace, never moving his hands too low unless you guide them. His lips stay on yours until your fingers thread in his hair, urging him to kiss his way down to your neck.

He kisses every part of you that you allow, clearing your mind for a moment. It won’t fix how you feel inside completely but it is what you want at the moment.

Lucifer is slow with his movements, his hands caressing your body, his lips kissing your skin softly. You like being caged in his arms, feeling protected by him as he looks down at you.

“I love you,” he whispers as he holds your gaze. “I’m here for you.”

You nod, too emotional to speak. You kiss him instead, hoping it can convey your feelings, wash out the voices that poison your thoughts, hoping the flame that fuels your depression will go out, even if it’s just for this moment.

Lucifer cups your cheek, “I’ve got you, darling.”

Another kiss is placed on your lips. Lucifer holds you close, swearing he’ll do whatever he can to help.

Mammon

Normally Mammon would be enthused to have you in his bed. However, lately, he’s noticed you stay in bed for days, normally only moving an inch or so.

He doesn’t pressure you to get out of bed, but he does have his brothers check in on you when he has a photoshoot to do.

Solomon has even stopped by and offered to take you back home, but the thought of leaving Mammon soured your thoughts even more.

The days were rough. You slept all day and stayed up all night, and the days just blended into each other. Sure, sometimes you had enough energy to shower and eat, maybe even attend classes but it wouldn’t be long before you were back in bed, silent.

It was hard to put on a smile, to pretend you were fine and thriving. 

You could just hide in Mammon’s bed until he came home.

“Hey, Treasure,” Mammon greets you. He runs a hand through your hair, leaning down to kiss your temple. “Did you have dinner?”

“Not yet,” you answer as he helps you out of bed and onto the couch. He brings in some snacks and some of your favorite Devildom foods. He puts one of your comfort movies on before he pulls you onto his lap.

Today was a rough day. He can tell you showered and changed out of his other shirt into a freshly laundered one. Levi had given him your status report before Mammon joined you in his room.

You were able to function most days, though it seemed like you were just going through the motions. Sometimes you’d be in RAD and your thoughts would wander, and soon you’d be sniffling and wiping your tears before heading back to Mammon’s room.

“I appreciate you being here for me,” you tell Mammon as the credits roll. Mammon smiles before he kisses your cheek.

“I would do anything for you, Treasure.”

Mammon kisses you softly. He lets you take the lead when you deepen the kiss. His hands don’t wander too far unless you take them there. He knows you’re not fragile, he knows you’re capable of functioning even when you’re in deep like you have been recently.

Your lips leave kisses on his neck, then his bare chest when you unbutton his shirt. Mammon moans your name softly, his hand gripping the back of your neck before he kisses you again.

Levi

Levi watched you from his desk as you looked at your reflection in the mirror. You had cried silently when you realized it was time to go to RAD.

You had washed your face after, fixed your hair, and changed your clothes. Now you were practicing your smile in the mirror, hoping it would make you seem more ‘normal’.

“We can skip today,” Levi tells you as you sigh heavily. You shake your head, you have skipped too many days already. One more and Lucifer would be asking what was going on.

For Levi, it was normal to not leave his bedroom for days at a time. They’d see him sneaking snacks or water from the kitchen here and there but at least they’d know he was taking care of himself.

You had masked well to appear okay in front of everyone but Levi could tell you were in a slump of some sort. He’d noticed the way you had slept more and more, forcing yourself out of bed when it was time to go to RAD.

“Come here,” Levi pats his lap, and you go over to him. He wraps his arms around you, holding you tight. “We don’t have to go today. I’ll talk to Lucifer.”

“But-”

“Nope,” Levi shakes his head. “You need a day to yourself. We need to get you someone to talk to. A professional who can help, or perhaps a doctor.”

You sigh, you know he was right but the thought of speaking to someone made you nervous. Would they understand?

“Let me take care of you today,” Levi continues. “I’ve got you.”

You nod, allowing Levi to lead you to his bathtub. You cuddle into it while he calls Lucifer and explains the situation. Lucifer will make all the arrangements for you while Levi stays at your side.

Satan

Your pile of books sat unread in Satan’s bedroom. Books you’d been excited about laid shut in your ‘to read’ pile. Meanwhile, Satan had made his way through his pile and was working on a second stack.

He noticed it a while ago. Sometimes he’d get the urge to ask if you were okay, but he didn’t know what to do if you weren’t. Satan knew what it was like to feel the way you do, and he leaned heavily on his brothers to help him through his rougher days.

You didn’t want to “burden” everyone, is what you had said when he finally asked. Despite his assurances that you weren’t a burden to him or his brothers, it didn’t matter. You insisted it was just a slump, a little bump on the road, but it didn’t seem to go away.

 Satan stayed by your side but his heart sank every time you lost interest in one of your hobbies. 

“Would it be okay if we talked to someone together?” Satan asks one day as you lay on his bed. You’ve been staring at the ceiling for a while, the voices in your head shouting at you.

“Hmm?”

“I’m worried about you,” Satan admits as he sits beside you and helps you sit up. He clasps your hands in his, looking you in the eye. “I think it would help.”

“You think it would help?” you ask, biting your lips worriedly.

“I think so. I’ll be right beside you the whole time. I promise.” 

You smile softly. You had been wanting to take the first step to get help, but you didn’t know how to go about it, afraid to go on your own in fear of being judged. You missed your hobbies, you missed reading and writing, you missed feeling okay. 

Satan holds you close. He kisses your nose, your cheeks, and finally your lips. 

“I love you,” he says as he touches your hands, kissing each before he kisses you again.

Asmo

Asmo could only stare in awe as he walked into your bedroom. He had come over to ask permission to give a tour of your room for his livestream later but now he realizes he should clean up first.

“Don’t. I’ll get to it,” you say from your bed. Your heart sinks as you take in the mess of your room. You had been bunking with Asmo the past few days because your bed had been lost in piles of clothes; some clean, some dirty.

A few snack wrappers littered the floor, and your trashcan overflowed with discarded notebook paper. 

Asmo drops the shirt he had picked up. He nodded as he approached you, taking your hand before he led you out of your bedroom to his.

You sat on his desk chair while he went to the bathroom. You could hear the water running, filling the bathtub. Sweet fruity aromas filled his bedroom, and Asmo reappeared with a gentle smile.

“Come take a bath,” He says as you walk over to him. You step into his bathroom. Candles light your path to his large tub. Bubbles nearly overflow as you step inside after getting undressed. The hot water soothes your tight muscles as you sink until your shoulders are submerged.

Music plays softly as you close your eyes and Asmo leaves you to your own devices. He goes to your bedroom, cleaning up as quickly as possible. He washes your sheets, cleans your clothes, and puts them away for you.

Solomon pops in to clean your mattress and freshen the curtains. He’s heard from Asmo how you’d been struggling lately, and the two worried about you. 

The two of them planned to talk to you tomorrow morning over breakfast. At first, Asmo had thought you were in a slump, or perhaps the season had given you the blues but as the months continued, he noticed more and more changes.

Today he just wanted to freshen your space. He loved having you in his bedroom, but he knew now it was because your own space was cluttered and messy. He wanted you to have your space if you needed it; if you wanted to be alone.

“Asmo?” you ask as you step into your bedroom, wrapped in one of Asmo’s warm pink bathrobes. 

“Hey hon,” Asmo greets you as you take in your clean bedroom. You nearly cry as you see your bed for the first time in a while. You hug Asmo tightly, thanking him for the kind gesture.

“I would do anything for you, doll. You know that,” Asmo whispers as he cups your face gently. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” you state as you press your lips to his. Asmo holds you close, his hands on your hips as he presses you to his chest.

You guide his hands to the bathrobe, untying it to let the soft fabric pool at your feet.

Beel

Beel had been glad when you had joined him for breakfast. You had gotten ready for the day, and he hoped you’d accompany him to lunch at the new cafe that had opened near RAD. The line had been around the block for days, and Beel finally managed to get a reservation made for the both of you.

Beel’s excitement had been contagious at first but as the hours passed, you suddenly didn’t want to join him for lunch anymore. You didn’t want to leave HoL, much less be around a large group of people.

Belphie had volunteered to join Beel, and after some assurance, Beel left with his brother.

Guilt overwhelmed you as you lay in your bed. You tossed and turned but couldn’t sleep. Your thoughts were loud, and you worried you had disappointed Beel.

You knew he wouldn’t hold it against you but the thought of leaving your bed made your stomach knot.

By the time Beel came back home, you were wiping your tears. You were frustrated with yourself. You hated feeling like this, feeling trapped in your mind, and being completely consumed by thoughts that haunted you every waking moment.

Beel handed you a box of a meal he thought you would enjoy. You thanked him for thinking of you and shared it with him.

After lunch, he lay in bed beside you. His large hand rested on your hip, his fingers drew circles on your skin.

“You know I’m here for you, right?” He asks gently. “For whatever you need?”

“I do,” you nod. “It’s just a rough day.”

Beel hums, his hand lacing with yours. His touch soothes you and gives you something else to focus on for a moment. 

Soon Beel will fall asleep for an afternoon nap, and you’ll be alone with your thoughts.

Tomorrow was a new day to try again.

Belphie

At first, Belphie was amazed that you could sleep longer than he could. The both of you would often skip meals to sleep, but when it continued for months, he began to worry.

You were usually more energetic, you rattled on about your interests, and you socialized with his brothers often. Now, it would be a miracle if he could get you to shower or have a meal. Sometimes he had to help you wash your hair, or bring you back from a dissociation.

Belphie wanted to help you. He wanted to ease your mind, but nothing he tried seemed to work. So, he stayed at your side for the most part. He knew there were days you could function more than others. You could go to RAD, do Diavolo’s events, and then go home and cook a meal, but then you’d be incredibly drained. Physically and emotionally.

“I just don’t know how to help,” Belphie finally confides in Lucifer. 

Lucifer nods, he promises to talk to Solomon and Diavolo.

For now, Belphie watches you lie in bed with his favorite pillow tucked under your head. You’re not asleep, but you seem to find the wall particularly interesting.

Gently, he reaches out to rub your side. You don’t move away from his touch, but you don’t speak either.

Belphie hums a lullaby, one you used to beg him to sing before bed. He wonders what goes on in your head when you dissociate, what it is that has its claws dug into your brain. He wishes there was something he could do to help you, but sometimes you need something other than love, though it helps a bit to have the support.

It’s not easy dealing with depression. It’s a battle more often than not. It affects you differently every day and Belphie wants to be at your side through it all, to give you his shoulder to lean on.

You lace your fingers with him as he cuddles into your back. He kisses your shoulder before he continues to hum the lullaby. 

Belphie will always be your support.

[djevelbl]

GUESS WHO I'M DRAWING NOOOOWWWWW~!!!!

[jtl-fics]

Fluent Freshman - Part 30

PREVIOUS

Ichirou Moriyama had long been someone Riko had spoken about and therefore someone Kevin knew of.

First reverently as he talked about how someday his brother would come for him and how he’d watch Riko’s games. Then Ichirou never showed up once and the anger set in and mentions of his brother would result in especially bad days.

Kevin’s only saving grace at the Nest near the end was that Ichirou had been as uninterested in him as he was in Riko.

Neil was the one who had handled any communications with the new Master of the Moriyama family and Kevin was grateful for that. His stomach still twists when he found out what it would cost him to have the closest thing he would ever really have to freedom since his mom’s car accident but Kevin could hardly fault Neil since Kevin has no idea if he would have been able to even open his mouth and speak to negotiate with Ichirou. He certainly wouldn’t have thought to bargain for Neil and Jean’s lives.

So he was going to make sure the Neil had the best possible chances to get on a great team not just because he had every faith that Neil could be on the national court but also Kevin wanted him on the national court. Neil was his partner and his friend.

This was his last year that he could help as directly as this so he and Neil were still putting in the hours in their evening practices. It was also the last year that Neil could rely on him to assist in getting everyone up to snuff.

Ichirou Moriyama was going to be stopping by at some point and Kevin had decided that the best way to handle this information was to focus on something life affirming.

“I’m just saying it isn’t an unknown flavor combination.” Kevin argues.

“Kevin there is something very different about vanilla protein powder in chicken stock and Chicken and Waffles.” Aaron says from his spot behind Kevin in Wymack’s car.

“There shouldn’t be! It’s all the same flavors, just liquid!” Kevin turns in his seat to point at Aaron, “You should put on your seatbelt, what if Wymack crashes?” He says for the third time since the car ride had begun.

“That’s my problem, not yours.” Aaron says and his eyes have been locked on the roof of the car since the car ride began which was rude but Kevin had learned to expect nothing less from a Minyard.

“It will be my problem when your corpse breaks my neck as you fly forward!” Kevin hisses.

“Coach, could you do me a favor-“

“I’m not going to crash the car.” Wymack interrupts eyes on the road and hands at 10 and 2.

“God forbid you do something nice for me.” Aaron gripes crossing his arms.

Kevin decides to change his target.

“Coach-“

“Kevin, you’re not putting any protein powder into Smith’s soup. That’s final. Do you want to mess up his Grandma’s hard work to follow the Doctor’s recipe exactly?” Wymack asks.

No.

No Kevin does not wish to mess up Grandma Smith’s hard work.

He just…

A Food pyramid flashes in his mind.

…thinks he knows more than the hospital dietician.

“It’s not that Smith’s Grandma made bad soup.” Kevin says because the woman was a talent in the kitchen even if she might use a bit too much butter. He’d let her know but Nicky refused to translate and she’d smiled so warmly at him and touched his face so gently… “I think she was led astray by bad science and Nicky wouldn’t translate for me.” He says, “If she understood English she would have understood and agreed with me.” He says because he did manage to get her finely chop a bunch of carrots to put into the pasta sauce so that Neil would get some veggies.

She was a reasonable woman who understood the importance of good nutrition.

“I don’t know about that.” Coach says and Kevin wonders what he means by that.

They’re close behind Andrew’s car and Kevin can see two parking spots next to one another near the front except Andrew pulls into the spots in a way that means it is almost impossible for anyone to get into the second spot unless they owned a tiny smart car.

Andrew often parks like that to make sure no one dings the Maserati.

“That little shit.” Wymack grumbles as he continues to drive.

“Aren’t you going to let us out at the entrance?” Kevin asks.

“Who am I, your driver?” Wymack grumbles and does not slow down to let them out  at the hospital entrance. “You’ve been bitching about not getting enough exercise and eating too much fat this weekend, consider this just some of the exercise you’ve been wanting.” He says.

Kevin leans back in the chair.

He does NOT pout. He merely frowns with his lips puffed out and feels as if he has been treated unfairly.

He uses this time wisely.

He thinks about Neil and Andrew’s ‘secret’ conversation.

Kevin still doesn’t know Russian, has no plans to learn it because he does not want to know 80% of what Neil and Andrew say to one another, but Kevin has always been great at understanding tone and it’s not that hard to understand that they were talking about FF when he ‘Kapitan Neil’.

He thinks about what might stress Neil out about FF (never once does he consider that FF being in the hospital with a stab wound may be the thing that stresses Neil out, not when there’s an explanation that involves Exy).

FF might choose to leave.

That would not bode well for Neil.

Kevin has already signed but Neil needs the next few years still to make sure he can follow through on his deal with Ichirou.

FF is a great defensive dealer.

Kevin still doesn’t really understand how he can seemingly just appear on the Court to intercept passes but Kevin has been informed that all of his plans to figure it out are ‘medically unethical’ and ‘likely to get him thrown in prison’.

Nicky patting his face pityingly and saying, “Your face is too pretty for prison.” had been when he stopped looking at how he could buy electrodes.

His follow-up search to find out that no prison in the United States currently had an Exy court as a facility had him drop the outline of his research into his recycle bin and right click to delete permanently.

Since Kevin cannot find a way to replicate that particular talent of FF’s then they just need FF to stay.

He also quite likes the steady freshman. He’s probably not ever going to be National Court level like he and Neil are, but he would be a solid Dealer on a good team. Kevin wouldn’t even mind playing with him professionally.

They park the car far in the back of the lot and Wymack grumbles at a different nice car that is taking up two spots. Kevin climbs out of the car and they start their way towards the hospital.

Kevin considers jogging in circles around Aaron and Wymack as they walk just to burn off more of the lunch they’d just had but decides against it.

Maybe a different nutritionist will be on staff today and will be able to back Kevin up on his plan.

***

Captain Neil and Andrew are quickly followed by Nicky and his Grandma both of whom look nervous but some of that seemed to dissipate when they saw him.

“Are you okay?” Captain Neil asks.

FF goes to open his mouth but a nurse interrupts, “He decided to go on a walk in his current condition. I thought we were quite clear that you needed to stay in bed. Stressing yourself is why you collapsed in the Cafeteria like that.” His main nurse chastises.

“Sorry, it won’t happen again.” FF promises because it won’t. He’s planning on asking for a medically induced coma to escape the consequences of his actions so leaving the bed is the last thing he’s going to do. His dad’s trust for him can have money taken out for his medical needs and there has never been a greater medical need in his entire life than right now.

“What happened?” Andrew demands stepping next to Neil.

How does one explain getting a job offer from the Yakuza (Yakuza or Mafia)?

“I wanted to go for a walk.” He answers because he had and that’s easier to explain.

“Why did you meet Ichirou Moriyama?” Andrew asks again in German.

Well dammit.

FF finds himself at a crossroads.

Does he tell the truth? That he’s an idiot and didn’t realize the man was reaching out to Captain Neil? That he went and had an entire conversation with the man who owns Captain Neil, Kevin, and Jean Moreau? That afterward he tried to stand up and fainted which is how he got taken back to his room?

He thinks he has enough lies going on between his own and his grandma’s and he needs to relay something from Ichirou Moriyama.

“Lord Moriyama wanted me to tell you that he no longer needed to speak with you Captain Neil.” He relays just like he said he would and he sees Captain Neil tense.

“Smith.” Andrew says his name.

He also doesn’t want to talk about it any further.

“I’m fine, but I don’t want to talk about it.” FF closes his eyes as he answers back in German. He feels exhausted now and wishes that he had just requested a coma earlier so that he wouldn’t be in this situation. “Captain Neil, you left your phone here and it’s been pinging. Sorry I read one of the texts.” He gestures vaguely to his side table.

None of his guests speak for the next few minutes as the nurses finish reminding him to stay still, that he’s lucky his stitches didn’t break, that he’s on thin ice. He’s tired and he’s hungry so he’s curt with them in a way he’ll regret later but right now it’s just a lot when he can still feel Captain Neil and Andrew’s eyes burning into him.

Then Nicky proves to continue to be the nicest friend he has when the nurses leave and he feels Nicky’s hand take his and squeeze. “Hey, how are you really feeling?” he asks.

FF takes a deep breath, “I have...no idea.” he says. “I’m sorry.” he adds.

Nicky squeezes his hand again, “Hey, Aras made you some soup and we kept it away from Kevin. You’re probably a lil’ cranky because you’re tired, hungry, and in pain. You don’t need to talk about it right now okay?” Nicky says.

He’s really lucky to have Nicky as his friend.

He squeezes Nicky’s hand back and valiantly does not cry. He squeezes his eyes tighter to keep them from slipping out, it’d be embarrassing to cry here like this.

“Thank you.” He says voice quiet but doesn’t open his eyes, knowing what will come out if he does.

His Grandma comes to his side again and strokes his face. Her fingers wipe away the few tears that did slip out despite his best efforts but he thinks she did it so casually that maybe no one noticed.

It hasn’t been a good day, but Grandma’s soup has always been something that makes him feel better. He just wishes he could be alone for a minute with just her to witness the next few minutes.

Nicky, bless him, must sense that because he squeezes his hand tightly before letting go, “C’mon, let’s give Smithy and Aras a moment okay?” He says.

FF doesn’t open his eyes until his Grandma whispers, “My little Rotisserie Chicken, they’ve stepped out.” She says.

“He offered me a job in the Yakuza.” He blubbers immediately. “I don’t even know if they have dental.” He spills one of his lesser concerns.

“Oh honey, let’s eat some soup.” She soothes stroking his face.

***

Neil feels bad.

FF was pale, shaking, sweaty, and despite his grandma’s best efforts Neil had seen a tear slip from his tightly closed eyes.

He looks to his side and sees Andrew’s own hands tightened into fists.

“C’mon, let’s give Smithy and Aras a moment okay?” Nicky says and drags them out of the room through the sheer force of his ire. It’s moment like this that Neil really does understand why it is that FF prefers to spend his free time with Nicky over any other of their group.

They get out of the room and down the hall before Nicky starts in. “You two are the KINGS of not talking about shit so, for now, LEAVE it.” He hisses in German in a bid to keep the conversation private from anyone walking past.

“We need to know what deal he and Ichirou came to.” Andrew says in the same language.

“You’re going to find that out from Ichirou probably once he crazy murders Romero and Jackson in the next couple days!” Nicky cries dramatically, “Smithy probably doesn’t even know the full details because he’s in a lot of pain because he’s been STABBED.” Nicky points a finger at Andrew but wisely does not poke him with it. “Do you think he ACTUALLY went on a walk? Ichirou’s men probably took him since they couldn’t find YOU Neil.” Nicky points at Neil and, again, wisely does not poke him with it.

Neil’s stomach twists.

Maybe Neil should invest in a phone clip like Wymack thought the implication that the Moriyamas came to where his phone was leaves him wanting to skip it like a stone straight into the ocean. Too bad going to a beach still makes his palms sweaty.

“So what WE are going to do,” Nicky does a quick circle to point at the three of them, “is we are going to be good friends and help Smithy because he’s stressed, in pain, and needs friends not INTERROGATORS.” Nicky waves his arms in exasperation.

“Who are Neil and Andrew interrogating?” Aaron asks and Neil looks to the side to see Aaron with Kevin being pulled along by the scruff by Wymack.

“Smithy.” Nicky says.

“Why?” Kevin asks.

“Because Ichirou came and talked to him.” Andrew explains.

Kevin goes pale. “Why? I thought he was going to talk with Neil?” Kevin asks looking at Neil.

“He probably came here following Neil’s phone, which he left. So he grabbed Smithy to talk to him.” Nicky says, “Ichirou seemed impressed and pleased with whatever they talked about but Smithy is a little fragile after all of this so,” Nicky stepped into Kevin’s space, “Leave.” He pokes Kevin’s chest once, “Him.” He pokes Kevin’s chest twice, “Alone.” He pokes Kevin’s chest a third time.

“How would he even have an understanding of who he’s talking to?” Kevin asks looking sick. “No one has mentioned anything about the whole thing with the Moriyamas right?” He looks at the rest of them and Neil knows none of them would mention it.

Nicky rolls his eyes with his entire body.

“Kevin, do you know how many languages Smithy is fluent in?” Nicky asks.

“Uh…quite a few?” Kevin responds looking thrown.

“Yeah, one of those languages is French. Which you KNOW because he’s corrected your pronunciation before.” Nicky reminds Kevin and the Son of Exy blushes slightly.

“What does that have to do with this?!” Kevin squawks.

“Kevin, how many conversations have you had RIGHT in front of Smithy in French as you talked with Jean?” Nicky asks.

“None!” Kevin hisses.

“Can you say that for sure? You know how it can be with Smithy. Aaron over here has basically almost fucked his girlfriend in front of Smithy before because he didn’t realize he was there.” He juts his thumb towards Aaron.

“Hey.” Aaron scowls not happy to be reminded of that. “He needs a damn bell.” Aaron grumbles.

“I’ve talked about it in front of him and you never told us?!” Kevin exclaims.

“It’s Smithy! He’s not going to tell anyone!”  Nicky argues.

Which is very true.

FF is just not that kind of guy.

“So we are ALL going to be good, supportive friends to Smithy and hopefully he gets out of here today despite the whole shit show with Ichirou and we get him back to Abby’s where he can rest up in her guest room with his grandma.” He points at each of them with a frown.

“But-“

“Kevin, leave it for now.” Wymack finally steps in to the conversation. “How’s he looking?” He looks to Neil.

Pale, tired, pained, and trying not to cry either from pain, stress, or fear Neil does not know.

“Bad.” Neil answers.

Wymack sighs, “Stay out here. I’m going to go check.” He says.

They watch as Wymack enters into FF’s room.

Kevin is still spiraling from the realization of all the different conversations he could have possibly had in front of FF thinking French would act as a barrier.

A thought crosses Neil’s mind, “Wait, Smith doesn’t know Russian right?” He looks to Andrew because he and Andrew have said quite a few things to one another when FF was there.

“No, he said he isn’t learning it here.” Andrew shakes his head. “Even if he does learn it Smith would just leave if he was uncomfortable.” Andrew shrugs.

They have all seen a ‘Smith 180°™‘ before when he’s walked in and has seen Aaron and Katelyn or entered a room where Nicky was talking to Erik or Matt was talking to Dan. Neil has even noticed one or two when him and Andrew may have been in a less than private place.

It was nice to have someone who would just see them like that and leave it alone instead of betting on it, trying to take a picture, or gagging like it’s disgusting.

Wymack walks back out after a minute in FF’s hospital room, “Let’s give Smith and his Grandma a couple more minutes.” He says and Neil’s heart sinks.

***

Wymack wasn’t quite sure what he walked into.

Smith’s Grandma was wiping his face and feeding him soup which is about what he expected. What he hadn’t expected was what FF was saying to his Grandma.

“….didn’t even wash his hands Gran. What if none of them wash their hands? I can’t work in that kind of environment!” FF babbles as he takes another spoonful of soup from his Grandma.

Smith’s Grandma looks up and sees that it’s just him at the door before continuing in English, “Sweetie, you don’t need to accept the job offer from the Yakuza.” She soothes.

“What do I even do?! What’s the etiquette? Do I send a letter refusing the job offer? Do I email him thanking him for the interview? Was it an interview?” FF asks.

Wymack shuts the door and he’s sure FF hadn’t even noticed him.

Yeah the kid needs a couple more minutes

MASTERPOST FOR ALL PARTS OF FLUENT FRESHMAN AU

NEXT

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The  requests to be added to the tag list keep being spread out across a few  different areas. If I missed you please just ask again in the replies I  promise I just missed you.

As stated before if you’re up here and I spelled it right but you didn’t get a notification there might be  something switched around in your settings that won’t let me tag you properly?

[robo-dino-puppy]

horizontober 2023 | 31: future

[pivsketch]

he wasnt expecting that from the most innocent-looking and benign guy in wrestleclass. despite it all, they still end up as friends

[astralleywright]

Ashton in Jrusar is so funny bc they're like. clearly a massive loser. its just that everybody else in Bells Hells is an even bigger loser and also doesn't know this city or really cities in general so whenever anything happens they just all turn to him like "Ashton 🥺 what do we do" like a bunch of baby ducklings who imprinted on a mangy street dog. and then Ashton takes them to a guy he knows who he has to bribe before they'll actually tell him anything or even just. not immediately kick him out of their establishment. and then this person tells Ashton they're proud of him and amazed he actually has friends now and he's just like fuck i know right. and the rest of the Hells are increasingly confused and concerned but they just keep it pushing and ask Ashton questions like, "have you ever had a bounty put on you before?" to which they're like "yeah I probably have one on me right now"

[fiona-fififi]

"Why doesn't their side call out the bad behavior they accuse us of??"

Because they've blocked all the crazies on their side and aren't seeing it. Just like you're not seeing all the bullshit on your side because you've blocked all the crazies over there, too.

Also, they ARE calling it out. You just have everyone on the other side blocked, so you aren't seeing the callouts.

Like jesus fucking christ, can we stop generalizing giant portions of fandom based on the behavior of the worst fucking people in them?? Because I promise you, whether you are seeing it or not, there are really fucking shitty people in ALL corners of fandom.

[akkivee]

but i mean if kr can do it, then i-

[danielnelsen]

ok so i absolutely think there should be consequences and reactivity for sleeping with other people if you’re romancing someone, but just from a game design perspective, i have come across a bit of an issue

so i slept with the emperor (no reaction), then two nights later i slept with halsin (positive reaction), then two nights later i slept with mizora (possible breakup). and i think that last reaction is completely reasonable, but this series of events, in that order and so close together, definitely sets a precedent

[zeb-z]

Bad has so many reasons to be cautious, even paranoid, as anyone else on the island. From Federation nonsense to Dapper being kidnapped to the whole purgatory nonsense to whatever fuckass suit of armor “old friend” was setting up cameras in his house. But it compounds on his regular overly aware paranoid self to this state of hyper-paranoia. And as a demon who can and usually will lie, cheat, steal, and use sneaky underhanded tactics, he expects the craziest extent because he thinks of it, realizes it’s possible, and would use it himself. We saw this very obviously in purgatory - when he thought greens desperate last ditch effort to balance the scale was a super planned out tactic to tip the scale, so he did it first, all the hardcore base hunting, the spawn killing, there’s a reason every other tactic he used usually followed a main channel qsmp post with updated rules - all usually things he was surprised no one else thought of. But then this also piles onto the fact that he has to have things go his way, all the time, and that he’s argumentative as all get out, which led to the debate between him and Bagi yknow. Especially because he’s not just doing it for the sake of being right, he doesn’t think he’s paranoid, but that he’s exercising the right amount of caution.

So like. Listen dude. Yeah he’s got reasons to be paranoid. But his thought process around building vaults for separate cookie caches like they locked up the risus pills, only to scrap it because it’s not perfectly impenetrable, is extreme. His character has hardly been a leading example in someone who has reasonable reactions to things. And even when there isn’t his own children’s livelihoods potentially on the line, he has a need for control, and the most control he has is if he keeps the cookies in his inventory at all times. If he makes himself the sole point in which the others can get ones in a case of emergency, then he can control the variables. The problem is he’s unreliable about himself when he’s at his most rational and healthiest, and he’s far worse with the current memory and health issues he’s been mostly unaware of.

I dunno it’s like. There is never going to be a purely impenetrable base. And it’s not just a case of “Bagi just hasn’t lived through __ yet!”. Bad’s own logic about keeping the cookies on him at all times is flawed under his own logic, because Bagi is right - if someone has enough drive to break into separate secured cookie caches purely for the downfall of eggs, they more than certainly have enough drive to find a way to kill Bad and just take them from his inventory, or to just kill the eggs themselves. All it truly does is give Bad a sense of control, and soothe his paranoia.