#because I know someone is going to see it and inevitably get pissy because I don't fucking care about dono posts

[catcatb0y]

Auuughhh I won't go on a rant, but literally just hearing a family member- WHOM I HAVE ACTIVELY TALKED SHIT ABOUT TRUMP TO AND THEY AGREED- casually profess that someone in the family is cutting them off because they voted for Trump...

It just brings back all of the feelings I've had about this election.

I'm pissed off that they care so little about the future of human rights. I'm pissed off that I felt bad about distancing myself from them. I'm pissed off that the majority of the Republican Party has the dicipline and dedication to vote for someone they dislike, A CONVICTED FELON WHO SMUGGLED OUT GOVERNMENT SECRETS, and yet all the left can do is share the Suicide Hotline and say "Remember to donate to these other causes." Some of whom voted, others who professed they were 'staying out of it'.

I'd rather there be a second, useless capital raid than live with the fact that millions of people did nothing to contribute to the crumbling of American democracy. That millions of people actively participated in its slow demise.

I feel stupid for watching half a dozen other countries valliantly kicking out their shit ass right wing parties and yet America put a convicted felon on its highest seat. A man who attempted treason and smuggled out classified documents.

I feel so overwhelmingly pissed off right now.

[inadvisablebutinevitable]

it’s been like 3 months since tsc and I still can’t get Jean Moreau out of my head.

Jean and his hopes, Jean and his fears, Jean and all the little things he never let cross his mind that come to him unbidden in the middle of the night as he stares at the ceiling of a room too bright. Do you think the big open window that forces him to know the time of day prevents him from sleeping? Do you think he looks down at himself before bed to change his clothes and has a brief moment of sheer panic when he sees a blue t-shirt instead of the usual black? Do you think hearing the traffic outside his window is jarring to him? Or is he used to white noise in the nest?

do you think Laila asked him to try on a turtleneck shirt that first horrible day they went shopping? She was only thinking of how handsome he would look in it, how Jeremy would react to seeing Jean in something so casual and comfy. Do you think she was shocked when Jean stormed out of the change room and threw it at her? Do you think she ran forward to go off on him for being so rude but stopped when she heard his laboured breathing and saw the claw marks on his neck. Do you think it took Jean the rest of the day to convince himself he wasn’t being choked?

do you think he catches himself one day wishing that Elodie had been a Wesninski? That she had a mother who loved her enough to steal her away and go into hiding so that she would never belong to anyone that would do her harm? Do you think he doesn’t quite dismiss the thought fast enough to stop himself from wishing that he too, had been a Wesninski? Do you think he’s especially pissy to Neil after that and Neil just thinks he’s being an asshole like Kevin?

Does Jean ever see Riko in his teammates? Does the metal grate of the helmet ever disguise a striker’s face a little too well, so Jean ends up apologizing to a very confused Derek after a drill for not properly utilizing Raven techniques? Does he ever see a racquet swing up above his head and he just freezes as he waits for the inevitable crunch of breaking bones? What about when it’s him and a striker and the stairs to the change room, and he tries to get as far away as possible? Does he ever say “yes captain” in Japanese to a shocked Jeremy?

what if he messes up during a game because he subconsciously passes to players wearing black instead of the bright Trojan red? What if Laila loses him in the mall because he fell into line with someone wearing black and Wymack wasn’t there to hold him back this time? What if the first time a coach ever raises his voice at him he responds in Japanese? What if he cuts himself with a knife and for a moment he swears Riko is in the room? What if Neil speaks to him in French and he calls Neil “Kevin” out of habit? What if Jeremy is rambling on about exy and Jean calls HIM “Kevin”? What if Cat buys him a magnet and he finds himself wanting to ask which city it’s from?

just… Jean Moreau. He will not get out of my head.

[epickiya722]

Constant mischaracterization is really super common esp for shonen protags, bc they have this thing where they need to stick to a certain unchanging mold (usually one of power fantasy for male projection) and their first impression needs to fit that mold and anything else is completely forgotten.

And that usually leads to men getting pissy as soon as the story progresses bc these characters will inevitably change too.

Ex: if Yuji's first impression is that he is strong and punches people, that will be the only thing they ever care about him doing, and if he doesn't, then he failed as a protag. Same with Naruto. Same with Ichigo. Same with Saitama. And by that, Izuku's first was that he was an emotional guy that cries, and this will remain the only noteworthy thing about him, and since crying makes you look "weak" and "annoying" then he'll be a weak and annoying protagonist until the end.

And it's complete bullshit.

Those same people who will only recognize a protagonist for one trait will be the same people to go "Can't they do anything different" even though said protagonist has more qualities they can look at as well as going through a change.

"He cries too much, he's annoying." Oh, but when Izuku is boxing the shit of someone, they're all hush about. He's not crying, so where's the praise at? Looking for it, I'm looking... yeah, I don't see that praise. Oh, wait! I forgot that when he was all depressed and dirty and neglecting himself those people were like "he's so badass". Badass and going through a depressive episode, hello??

I actually hate people calling JJK 265 Yuji's yap session because I know "yap session" some people use it like "oh my gosh, get to the action already". Some people were once again hating on that chapter because "Yuji wasn't punching". Like, he wasn't even introducing punching people. He wasn't introduced messing around with an oujia board with Sasaki and Iguchi!

Honestly, let's move away from "I want this character to fit this mold". All these dudebros and powerscalers seriously have this one track mind that unfortunately blinds them from actually getting into a story.

Like, do they really think "protagonist" means "a character that only is meant to punch, kick, fight and get super strong"?

No! It means the leading character. The character whose point of view the audience will follow for the story. And usually they go through change and maybe even display relatable traits so the audience can not only relate to them but to the story as well to get some understanding of what is being told.

It really just seems boring as hell to have a protagonist not display emotions and do other things.

[fictionalcharactersaremypassion]

Final chapter of Caught! I was gonna make this a little more fluffier but I kinda struggled with the conversation between them. However, don't worry, as I said I made this into a series on ao3 so I'll be posting oneshots whenever I have ideas/get a prompt

@callivich

@zutaralesbian

///

Colin was no prince fucking charming.

Didn’t care about romantic shit, never had and didn’t think he ever would. He fucked plenty of girls, uninterested in committing to anything more. Didn’t need ‘em. Wasn’t like he didn’t have pron magazines at his disposal if he was horny enough.

But that makeout with Fiona Gallagher was the start of something new in his life. The bar was new, just on the edge of the South Side so it would attract more of those North Side yuppies to the business. He went there with a purpose; plenty of naive, unsuspecting people who would either leave their valuables within reach, or the ones that were desperate to get some of the heavier, good stuff but didn’t want to risk their reputation by buying from a location where someone they know might see them.

With his pockets loaded in preparation for the dealing he’d inevitably do, Colin set out to make some earnings. Around fifteen minutes, he lost count of how many beers he chugged. His head was foggy, his initial reason for coming there forgotten because there’d been a hot as fuck girl near the counter. She looked familiar but than again, he’d fucked almost all the girls that lived around the Southside so he didn’t question it.

When they’d had to part, breathless and pink-cheeked, Colin caught a proper look of the girl’s face, and was startled to realize who’d been making out with. She was just as caught off guard as he was, which should have been the end of things right then and there. Milkovich’s didn’t fuck with Gallagher’s.

But somehow, he’d found himself being pulled into the bathroom where he proceeded to have the best fuck of his entire life.

And that encounter led him to now; standing in front of the bathroom mirror, fixing his fucking hair and making himself look all presentable and shit.

“Where the fuck are you goin’ so early?” Iggy muttered groggily, shoving past him to take a piss.

“None of your fucking business,” Colin threw the comb down on the counter, stalking out of there. Mickey had gone back to sleep, or tried to. Really fucking sucks for him that the bathroom was connected to his room.

“Jesus, hurry the fuck up and get out!” His brother snapped.

Colin just flipped him off on the way out, nearly running right into his sister, who looked murderous.

“Why the hell were you screaming?” She hit him on the shoulder. “I was trying to sleep!”

“Blame Mickey,” Colin shrugged.

“I’ll fucking blame you both.”

“Don’t be so pissy, Mands,” he swept past her, snatching a hoodie off the back of the couch.

“Where are you going?”

“Oh my God,” Colin said agitatedly, “do I owe this house a fucking explanation when I wanna go somewhere?”

“Since when do you go somewhere this early?” Mandy shot back.

“I have a fucking life incase you didn’t know,” he snarked.

“News to me,” Mandy turned on her heel, heading towards the fridge. He rolled his eyes, sliding the hoodie onto him.

“Ay, you meetin’ up with somebody?” Iggy came out, rubbing his eyes. He grinned slyly. “You meetin’ up with a chick?”

“Fuck off.”

“That’d mean a chick was actually interested in him,” Mandy deadpanned on her way back to her own bedroom.

Colin glared at his sister’s back, not noticing Iggy wiggling his eyebrows.

“So it is a chick. What’s ‘er name?”

No fucking way was Colin having this conversation with him. “Go back to sleep, Ig.”

He sauntered over to North Wallace just in time to see Fiona locking the door of her house.

“Ay,” he called. “Good choice on the jeans, Gallagher.”

She quirked a brow as she opened the gate up. “You care about what jeans I’m wearing?”

“Sure,” he shrugged. “They make your ass look great-” Fiona broke out into soft laughter.

“Knew there had to be a catch.”

They walked alongside each other, hands shoved in the pockets of their hoodies to keep them protected from the freezing cold. A couple minutes of silence passed by before Fiona broke it.

“Mickey doing okay?”

“He’s fine,” Colin said, truthfully appreciating her concern. “He thought he was gettin’ kicked out.”

“Shit,” she breathed. “You set him straight?”

“Can you really be set straight if you’re sucking dick?”

Fiona rolled her eyes.

“Just fuckin’ with you,” Colin snickered. When that died down, he said, “He’s good now. Had to knock some sense into his head. He thought I was gonna tell Terry.”

She gave him a look that clearly said see what I mean?

“As if I’d tell that bastard anything,” Colin scoffed. “Don’t know why Mick would think that.”

He stopped walking when Fiona raised a brow at him. “You can’t see it?”

“See what?” The fuck was she talking about?

“You and Iggy have always done what Terry’s told you. Mickey’s not blind,” she told him, her expression serious. “You can’t blame him for thinkin’ that way.”

“I’m not like Terry,” Colin said, offended she’d even make that comparison.

“You called him a fag,” she pointed out.

“Well, yeah,” Colin shrugged. “It was a hell of a lot nicer than anything Terry woulda said.”

She wasn’t amused. “You need to cut that shit out, Colin. I’m serious. Mickey doesn’t need to hear that from you and I’m sure as hell not gonna have Ian hear it. He hears it enough living here.”

If she was just any other girl he’d fucked, he would’ve bailed on her right now. Nobody was gonna tell him what to fucking do. But a lot had changed in the time he’d gotten close to the eldest Gallagher; hell, it felt like a lot had changed since he’d spoken to Mickey.

But Colin was still a Milkovich and he couldn’t be expected to change into a completely different person at the drop of a hat. “You know how my family is, Fiona.”

“And what?” She said challengingly, hands on her hips. “That means you gotta be like ‘em?”

“Not what I said. Just sayin’ I’ll try but you gotta give me time. Took me a long ass time not to give a shit in the first place. You’re damn lucky Frank doesn’t care. You see how easy it is not to care when Terry’s making you come along on fag bashes.”

This made Fiona go quiet. “I guess I see your point,” she said grudgingly. “Just try not to say it around my kids, okay?”

“You think they haven’t already heard it?”

“Colin,” Fiona glared at him.

He mockingly did the scouts honor sign. “I promise,” he said, half sarcastic, half sincere. “Just give me time, okay?”

Fiona’s eyes studied his face for a solid five seconds. “Fine, but you better fucking try. I’m not stayin’ with your ass if you don’t.”

“Yeah, yeah. I hear ya.”

Around fifteen minutes later, Colin was doing the unfathomable: sitting across from his date while she ate her french toast.

It felt fucking surreal. He didn’t do these kinds of things. Once the fucking stopped, he was out of there. This thing with Fiona was different. Colin was drawn to her; her laugh, that smile, everything.

It was uncomfortable as fuck at first- having these feelings. He wasn’t the kinda guy to have feelings and sure as hell not the kind of guy to seek a real relationship.

But than again, something changed in the past couple of months to get him to this moment.

“You good?” Fiona’s voice brought him back to the present and out of his thoughts. She’d stopped eating, her gaze lingering on him.

“Uh, yeah,” he scooped up a bite of scrambled eggs.

Fiona nodded slowly, soaking up the syrup with her french toast. “This is kinda weird, isn’t it?”

They’d talked more once they realized they both wanted more out of this, but this was a hell of a lot different than any of their usual encounters with each other.

He set his fork down. “Might surprise you, Gallagher, but I don’t go on dates.”

“You mean none of those girls you fucked ever took you out?” Her brow quirked.

“Nah, but it wasn’t ‘cause they were unsatisfied or anythin’,” he smirked.

“You know that for sure?”

Colin flipped her off, and a laugh bubbled out of her. It was a real nice sound too.

“You better know what you’re getting into,” he said once it tapered off, “I ain’t gonna be no prince charming or somethin’.”

“Well, lucky for you, it’s not your attitude I like,” she replied with a grin.

“It’s my dick, isn’t it?” He said smugly. A woman at a nearby table made a face of disgust, glaring at him but neither one of them noticed.

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.”

“I don’t know,” he said, one arm over the back of the booth, “you seemed pretty happy with it last night.”

“I was also drinking. A lot of things look good by then.”

“Whatever, Gallagher,” Colin stabbed some cubed potatoes, dipping them directly in her syrup.

“Hey,” Fiona moved her plate. “You have your own food.”

“I’m paying for it so it’s all my food,” Colin said, eyes dancing with amusement. “But I’ll generously let you have the rest.” She rolled her own eyes.

“You’re a real fucking sweetheart.”

“You said it,” he shrugged.

Fiona scoffed out a laugh, shaking her head. “Well, for the record, this isn’t the worst date I’ve ever been on.”

“Are you saying you have horror stories?” He said with interest, propping his elbows on the table.

“You sayin’ you wanna hear them?”

“I do like misery,” he said with mock thoughtfulness. He leaned back, getting himself comfortable. “Let’s hear it.”

“It’s not many,” she said, a smile emerging. “But I did have one where his mom came along.”

Colin’s eyes widened a little. “You’re fucking joking.”

“I’m not. She sat a couple tables away from us, kept interrupting our conversation and made sure he ordered some vegetables,” she said with a heavy sigh.

He couldn’t even try to stop the laughter from flowing. “Oh my God!”

“Fuck off, it’s not that funny,” she groaned.

“No, it’s fucking hilarious,” Colin threw his head back, a grin stretching across his face. “Who the fuck brings their mother on a date? How old was this guy?”

“Older than me by a few years,” she said with a grimace.

He chuckled. “Lucky for you, our mother ran out on us years ago.”

“So did ours,” she said, taking a drink of her coffee. “Unmedicated, high and jumping from one bed to the next.”

“Sounds like our mother, besides the unmedicated part,” he said. “She was just always high and drunk.”

“All while they expect you to clean up their messes,” she grumbled.

“Ain’t that the fucking truth. Me and Ig practically raised Mickey and Mandy ourselves. Jesus, it was tough for a while. Tryin’ to potty train Mick, make sure Mandy wasn’t crawling near any of Terry’s shit while Laura was passed out on the couch and Terry was out somewhere,” Colin said with a shake of his head.

He’d never be able to talk about it with anyone else. This was the Southside and all, but not everyone got his situation which was worse than your average family out there. But Fiona? She got it; she was living similarly with the struggles of having Frank and Monica for parents.

“Ugh,” she said sympathetically. “I know what you mean. I’ve been takin’ care of them since I was nine, but Monica can some swoop in and get their hopes up and fucking leave again. Did Laura ever do that?”

“Nah,” he said. “Wasn’t much of a runner. She just wasn’t really there to take care of ‘em if you know what I mean. Don’t think any of us would care if she came back, though. She’s as good as dead to Mandy.”

“That’s how I feel about Monica sometimes,” she admitted. “But then she comes back and makes you feel like she cares until she dips again. Somehow feels worse than all the shit Frank puts through, you know? At least he’s consistent.”

“Consistent pain in the ass,” Colin rolled his eyes. “He tried conning some drugs outta Iggy the other day. He wasn’t brave on the other end of Ig’s assault rifle.”

Normally, a girl would be a little freaked out if her father was almost shot, but Fiona thought this was funny. “Yeah? I owe Iggy a beer for that one. Tell him I’ll take him out soon.”

“Just you and him?” Colin said, going for nonchalance when in actuality, the thought of her going out alone with his brother made him feel fucking weird.

“What, you jealous?”

“You fucking wish.”

“Fine. Maybe I’ll find out what Iggy’s like after a few drinks,” Fiona licked her bottom lip to wipe off the syrup there, but all it did was unintentionally distract Colin.

His eyes darkened. “You better fucking not.”

“Yeah?” Eyebrows raised, an innocent look to her that he didn't buy- she was teasing him.

He leaned forward, voice lowering. “I don't plan on sharing you.”

“That so?” She whispered. She was captivated; a slight uptake of her lips, lust gleaming in her eyes. “What are you plannin’ on?”

Right then and there, Colin knew that Fiona had him in her grasp. There was no escape, but he'd never want one anyway.

“Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't you, Gallagher?”

[alyjojo]

Thinking of You - September 📬 2024 - Taurus

Whole of their energy towards Taurus: Page of Wands rev

Feelings: 3 Wands

Intentions: Strength rev

Actions: The Sun rev

Character Card: The Catalyst 🥸

I’m not sure what kind of relationship this is, could be anything, but you don’t talk anymore and haven’t for some time. They’ve been waiting on you, Temperance shows they’ve been very patient, it’s been a minute. In their actions - well, inaction - they’re losing confidence over whether they’ll even talk to you again because it’s been so long. 3 Swords rev is them feeling unsure if they can bridge the gap of time, or if you’d even want to. They wait on you, that’s the intention, and probably what they’ll inevitably do. If you move towards them, they won’t hold back, but for some reason they feel like moving towards you would be foolish. They consider it, often.

With The Catalyst being rev, this shows a necessary inner change, a transformation from the inside. Needing to grow up basically, with Page of Wands rev showing immaturity in lack of experience. This could be a parent or grandparent you haven’t seen in ages, if so they still see you as whatever age they last remember you. Could also be your own kid and that’s switched around a bit. Or you knew them as a kid. Maybe they were the ones that were immature when you knew them, and they want to catch up and get together but they just don’t know how that would go. They don’t seem to have faith it would go well. They’re still waiting on you, “whenever you’re ready” is the sentiment.

Messages:

- Wise Spirit 🦉

- I just don’t know what to say.

- Indecisive

Possible signs:

Leo, Sagittarius & Aries 🔥

If you’re dealing with:

4 Wands rev can be family, an unstable relationship with them or someone romantic, general unease in your home or neighborhood even. If you come from a certain area it could affect your relationships with others from different areas, you don’t even know where you stand with some of these people.

Aries - deeply in love with you 😍 tries to let you know all throughout the day, even when they’re busy doing other things (aka often) - they could feel some separation anxiety

Taurus - ending something before it even begins out of an abundance of caution or maybe paranoia

Gemini - devastated you’re not friends, or haven’t come around/been around; whatever happened they never saw coming

Cancer - alone and mad they’re alone 😤

Leo - has no desire to heal something because that would be what you want and they don’t want what you want just because YOU want it - even if it benefits them (and it does)

Virgo - pissy something isn’t happening like they expected or planned

Libra - stressed tf out about love & relationships, whether it’s you or not, the anxiety is through the roof 😰

Scorpio - doesn’t care that they hurt you, stabbed you in the back, would probably do it again tbh, maybe just leave them alone 👀

Sagittarius - going back to prison - for someone - breaking silence in order to have a new start, for others

Capricorn - a genuine person that loves you deeply, showing up as a soulmate, could be the one if you’re together romantically ❤️

Aquarius - I’m seeing a choose your own adventure that leads to death and you’re like ugh, you don’t want to pick the other story but you don’t have much of a choice…cake or death? ☠️

Pisces - someone that’s crushing on you at work

[ssweetart42]

A Double Edged Sword

Chapter One: I'd Rather Be Invisible

Din is asked to transport someone who has some unusual abilities. Astral Travel, Distance Viewing, Slow Burn.

This is my first offering and I am such a noob I'm not sure what the protocols are. This is a slow burn and I want to thank dev1lm4n for encouraging me.

Word count: 3k

You had only been there 16 months. You’ve done your best to steer clear of the more populated areas. Outside of going in for supplies occasionally, you didn’t engage in conversations with people. You did the best you could to go un-noticed. When you arrived you specifically asked Magistrate Karga if there was a place you could settle where you could be mostly isolated. He has known people from all over the galaxy and didn’t find that request such an odd one. 

At first it was pretty peaceful but the longer you were there and the townspeople grew increasingly curious….. you felt it all closing in on you again. Worse yet the Magistrate was fielding all kinds of requests from his people to ask you to find somewhere else to live. You could feel the tension rising and you knew you needed to find a place you could truly be alone. 

Karga had approached Mando with the issue he was having and asked if he would be willing to relocate you. Mando had an encyclopedic knowledge of planets in the Outer Rim and Karga really didn’t want to drop you in the desert somewhere. He really was a decent guy. Plus with Mando being a man of few words who kept to himself he figured who better to transport an Empath. 

“Yeah I saw this coming a parsec away” you grumbled as Karga and Mando approached your little cottage. To their surprise you were already packed. The Magistrate was trying to stutter step some kind apology, but was  relieved that he didn’t have to do any convincing. You dropped your head and look up at him through your lashes and said “You didn’t think I could feel this?”, and added “Look, It’s not your fault.” 

You grabbed your heaviest bag and shoved it in the Mandalorians’ arms like he was a pack animal saying “Well you’re the strong silent type.”, “Make yourself useful.”  You started up the path towards town seeing no reason to prolong the inevitable. Mando cocked his head to the side looked over at Karga and gave him an exasperated sigh. The Magistrate raised his eyebrows, shrugged his shoulders and remarked “Well Mando, she’s not wrong.” 

Being abrasive was one of your more endearing defense mechanisms. You had gained quite a bit of ground on you way out of there when Mando and the Magistrate started after you. Mando says to Karga under his breath “What have you gotten me into?”.

“I heard that” you shout from a good distance up the path. Although “Heard That” wasn’t exactly accurate. It’s more like it’s in your head like you can feel it as the thought is being formulated. 

You didn’t mean to be so pissy but this was probably the 10th place you had been urged to vacate in the last few years. It was gettin’ old. 

You get to the Razor Crest and stand at its side waiting for The Madalorian to lower the ramp. He is momentarily surprised by the fact that you knew just where you were going until he recalled his conversation with Karga about how people had become uneasy around you because as he put it “She just knows things.” You board the Razor Crest and Mando stows your bags in the cargo hold and tells you “You’re gonna have to find a spot for yourself back here.” And turns to leave you to it. You holler up at him as he climbs the ladder to the cockpit. “I could sleep between two boulders if I have enough room to lie down.” “Good” is his curt response. 

Frankly you could hardly wait to be off world and out of reach of those thousands of minds that invaded yours. You chuckled to yourself thinking how easy it would be with only one stoic Man of steel around. You wagged your head back and forth as you thought it and realized you were being a bitch again. “Hell I’m even sarcastic to myself.” You quip. “What?” you hear booming from the cockpit. “Nothing.” You counter. “Just talking to myself.”, and then THOUGHT to yourself “It’s the only way I can get intelligent conversation around here” Then you heard it. A chuckle. A chuckle from the Tin Man. 

But did he hear you?. “Did I say that ….out loud?” You ask yourself. You couldn’t even be sure. It didn’t really matter. It was your way to isolate yourself so talking to yourself was pretty common.  All you knew was that if he HEARD you  then you would have to be more careful. 

You got your sleeping area arranged and you decided that it was time to confer with your pilot about your destination. You climbed the ladder to find a spot to the right and slightly behind the Mandalorian. You offer a weak apology for being such a smart ass but then you reason “It’s better than being a dumb ass any day” You get a nod of agreement but you feel a slight grin. Your pilot asks where you want to go and is surprised to discover that you have no idea. Clearly he wants an explanation and you start by asking him how wants you to address him. “Mando is fine,” he says and you answer “If that’s what you prefer.”, It is”. He is indeed a man of few words. 

“Ok” you start. “Our Lovely Magistrate seems to think that if anyone knows what can be found in the Outer Rim planets it’s you.” He simply nods.  You continue “So what I need to find is a place where I can pull up a chunk of dirt to plant a garden and a couple of boulders I can lie down between.” Oh Boy, right back into smart ass mode. “Sorry” you whisper. “No need to apologize” Mando says. Damn he heard me again. “But most importantly,” you add “No people”. Your words just hang in the air. 

You hear Mando mulling it over “Is that safe” he says but thinks to himself, Does she really want to be alone? “It’s just easier.” You explain as you let out a long sigh. “That sounds like defeat” comes from the Mandalorian. “Well I guess I’ve just had enough”. You realize that you just responded to a thought. An unspoken comment. It finally occurs to you that almost half of what passed between you was unspoken. You decide it’s time to shut up and hope you get away with that little slip. Apparently you didn’t. 

“Please Explain” Mando prods. “What?”, “Why I feel the need to isolate myself or why I’m answering questions you haven’t asked yet?” You get another monosyllabic response “Both.” You take in enough air to tell the tiresome story you hate telling. “It’s a long story, Let me sum up.  My Father was Hiraeth, 100% Empath. My Mother was Human, 0% Empath.”, “ After 3 years with a man who knew every thought that popped into her head she couldn’t take it anymore.” “She left, taking me with her.”. “So when my abilities started to become apparent she had me doing little tasks like finding people that were lost and healing people that were sick.”, “The problem was having had so little exposure to my Fathers race I had no training.” I have little or no control over it, I don’t know how to shut it off and I feel the pain of people that I heal and the anguish of people that I cared about or even anyone who just stood too close to me."  

"I always ended up hurt or sick myself.”, "and any person within my range that had a nasty thought about me, hit me right between the eyes, ‘maybe she’s a witch’, ‘Maybe she’s a ghost.’ Even ‘Maybe she’s a Jedi” Their thoughts were sharp and painful. "I was just a kid and I didn’t understand.", " In my teens I discovered that it was a huge disadvantage with the opposite sex.", " There was this whole ‘get out of my head’ argument that I couldn’t control one way or the other. I finally said “Enough already.” By the end of your life story you had sunk down in your chair feeling awash in the darkness that always accompanied those memories.

The silence is only broken when Mando responds “Shit” slow and drawn out. Yes you actually heard that one. “Yeah, Shit is right”. You go quiet again trying to swallow the pain you feel. In an effort to squelch that line of conversation. Mando, ever the voice of reason says “Well”, “I’ll let you focus on where you want to be and then you describe it to me.” It strikes you that this is uncharacteristic behavior. This is a thoughtful and well considered idea. The only Mandalorians you had ever known in your life were warlike, reactionary and cold. This one seems…kinda warm and he actually has a brain in that bucket. Another chuckle from the Mandolorian. You snap your confused gaze in his direction “Thank You” he says. “What?” You ask, louder than you expected. He turned his chair to face you and with a nod of his helmet repeated “Thank You”. 

“What the hell is going on.” You are unaccustomed to having people read YOU. “I can see I need to explain” He began. “My adopted kid has powers.”, “ He doesn’t really speak but makes himself understood.”, “ He has healing powers and he can levitate things.” “The time I spent with him has changed me.” I discovered that if I reached out with my mind to him, I could understand him better.”, I didn’t even realize it was happening but I found for the first time in my life rather than my only instinct being to hunt and kill it was being combined with a drive to protect.” 

He went quiet for a minute but then told you that he had noticed this happening little by little but when you came onboard, he was picking up some of your thoughts. You had to admit to yourself that was a little unsettling.  “Don’t worry,”, He said “I won’t abuse my powers” in an exaggerated fashion putting his hands up and wiggling his fingers around like a porg. “Ooh very scary” You tell him. He threw his head back and laughed. You could feel the Childs influence on him. This was NOT the run of the mill Mandalorian. 

He stifled his jovial attitude as his memories turned a little melancholy. He told you that the kid was with the Jedi in training right now and he hoped to see him again soon. He wasn’t sure that the Jedi had the right idea when it comes to attachments. He is convinced that most of the kids powers are born out of love.

You shake your head taking all this in. This guy is deep. “Shit” you say to yourself and once again he surprises you. “Shit is right” he says with a nod. You decide it’s best not to question all of these occurrences.

You could feel the mood lifting the further you got from Navarro. You get the impression that Mando is also experiencing the relief that you are starting to feel. You wonder to yourself if this would somehow compromise him or distract him from the task at hand. Your worries were unfounded as you find his focus is snapped back into stoic Mando mode. When it comes to what needs to be done, he doesn’t play. 

He prompts you by asking how you would search your mind for this place you need to be. You explain your process and how you need to close your eyes, breathe deep and just SEE. “I just need to focus on the environment I need to survive.” “Well, Go ahead.” Mando says “That chair reclines and there’s a headrest”. You hesitate but he adds “The sooner you do this the sooner we’ll have a heading.”

You lean back and start taking deep breaths. There is so much less psychic noise in the atmosphere being here on the Crest rather than in a populated place. You find you can easily focus. You begin to see green and you feel as if you’re flying over a valley. As Images start flowing in. Mando asks you to describe what you see. 

He notices your responses are stilted as if you’re not all there. You tell him about the valley and how there are some trees and some grasslands. Your speech is slow and deliberate. You are doing your best to block out any distractions, as you are getting occasional flashes. You shake them away and re-focus. Mando helps by asking specific questions. “What do the trees look like?” and as fly by you see that they are fluffy looking. “More like deciduous trees rather than evergreens”. “What else do you see?” He asks. You see some rock formations and areas where water flows from springs through the valley making ponds. 

He inputs all the information you’ve given him and searches an outer rim parsec. He narrows it down to three planets that are the closest to your current location. One is too heavily populated to be a peaceful place for you, one has an atmosphere unfriendly to oxygen breathing beings. Leaving only one in this parsec to check out.

Mando calls you over to see if it resonates with you and notices you’re a little unsteady on you feet. “Are you alright?” Mando asks. “Oh that’s just another benefit of no practical training”, “it takes a lot out of me.” Mando offers you an arm to steady yourself and you feel a sense of relief. He shows you what his scans have come up with and repeats the name of the small planet. “Farweh”  

It tickles you that when he says it, it’s almost as if he’s saying “far away”. “Sounds perfect." you say but Mando asserts “We’ll have to make sure it feels right….The gravity is a little different.”. Different Bad?” You ask. “No”, he assures you. You’ll just feel lighter.”. Maybe that explains the ease that you felt flying there. “Well” you assure him “It sounds like it’s worth looking at. 

You realize that you are lingering too long. Hanging onto his arm you notice that he is….warm. It’s almost intoxicating. It’s comfortable. Right up until he turns his head to face you and you can feel his gaze. “Sorry” you tell him. “I’m still a little wobbly.” You decide you’d better settle back in the reclining chair as you are still in this half floaty state from your little trip. You chalk up the effect you felt standing too close to him as ‘Distance viewing hangover.’ Yeah, That’s it. 

You feel the need to lean back for a few to regain your equilibrium. All too soon the same pull that drew you in before is back but at a more calm pace. You try to snap yourself out of it but you are being pulled in again. The flashes you were getting before are back but are more persistent now. You have no choice but to allow them in.  There must be something you need to know. You keep seeing a face. It’s not scary, it’s a kind face. It’s a beautiful man with eyes you could drown in. You can feel that he is somehow vulnerable and there is a touch of sadness in the depth of his eyes. 

You are drawn to him. He seems to be taking you into a deeper state. Your breathing is deep and regular and you feel….receptive. Something in your heart wants to reach out and wrap your arms around this vision but that’s not possible in the astral plane. It’s not unpleasant so you allow yourself to drift.  

You become aware that questions are being asked of you “Why do you hide?”, “Why cover yourself in these shrouds?”  all of this communication is happening in your head , You don’t speak the words you just think them. “They help me…blend in.” .….“ It gives me a barrier.”….. “It makes me feel…protected.”, ”It shields me.” This presence that has joined you here has heard what you are asserting about your shroud but is still waiting for the real reason. “I’d rather be invisible.”  

This response seems to disappointing to the man who inserted himself in your consciousness and he slowly fades away. With your vision receding now you find it much easier shake yourself back to a more aware and present state. As you ‘come back’, you become aware that Mando has been waiting for you to come around. He has turned his chair to face you manspreading in his seat, arms crossing his chest. 

The mood is almost somber. His gaze is trained on you and turn to meet it. “Can you explain that to me?” He questions. “What” You weren’t sure exactly what he meant. “You were….gone.”, ‘ “For all intents and purposes.”, “ Do you actually GO somewhere?”. “Well, n-not all of me.” You do your best to explain. "With astral travel you have to SEE rather than open your eyes.”, “ You have to feel rather than touch.”, “A physical action can pull you immediately back to your body.” He seems like he’s pissed off about something. He huffs and swings back around to face the front of the cockpit.  When his focus is off of you, you are relieved. You’re drained from your activity. You can’t really make sense of his level of annoyance. You draw your shroud around you like a cocoon as you wonder what you did to piss him off.  There’s no point in trying to make sense of this now. You are too drained. Seeing you wrap yourself up, Mando huffs “What is that thing a blanket too?”  You tuck you toes under the hem of your shroud and it renders you…..comfy.   “Mm Hmm” is your last conscious utterance. You welcome the oblivion of sleep.

[oatmealcrisp-freak]

A big part of what makes my heart go ow about the kusuke and kusuo thing, besides the

-sniff-

the trash

is that in Kusuke’s flashbacks it seems to me that Kusuo idolizes his big brother. 

If he sees Kusuke doing something, Kusuo wants to do it too. Ride a bike? Do good in school? Build a neat robot? Kusuke does all that and Kusuo mimics him. Overimitation or being a ‘copy cat’ by and large seems to be performed automatically as a fundamental part of how baby learns. Kusuo’s just being a kid and learning from someone he looks up to.

It could be an effect of the POV characters (clearly this is a fundamental experience for Kusuke while Kuniharu and Kurumi, well, not the most observant are they?) but the only time I recall we’re really shown him imitating his parents, maybe, is when he buys the mirin. Given how bratty his dad is and how vapid his mom can be, which with that ‘I’m second place’ bit it could be said he picks up on pretty early, I don’t think it’d be surprising if Kusuo latched onto Kusuke as the ‘reliable adult’ in the house, and therefore the figure to learn from and look up to. 

However Kusuo’s never taken well to being patronized so when Kusuke lashes out at him, it inevitably ends badly and in turn, of course, feeds the flames.

(Is he showing his dad or is he showing Kusuke, standing behind his dad that look he made one just like big brother’s too? The angle with Kusuke standing behind his dad’s shoulder and Kuniharu being just barely in frame might imply the latter.)

Further, Kusuo says he doesn’t like Kusuke foremost because Kusuke doesn’t like him. And because of that he’s creepy. 

After Kusuke acts even the slightest bit affectionately, ‘cooperatively’ fixing the limiter, as opposed to pissy, Kusuo expresses hope that maybe Kusuke HAS changed a little before course correcting right back into skepticism. It’s like he doesn’t want to get his hopes up. 

The entire thing seems to say that if Kusuke wasn’t a pervy jerk Kusuo would, more than having no problem with him, regard him affectionately, with respect, etc, probably in vein of how he acts with his mom. With Kusuo you get what you give tenfold. Give sincere affection with no ulterior motives and get in return a person who will do his absolute damndest for you in return, even if he’ll never, ever tell you and will tsundere over it.

However, give violence?

Get violence.

Except, post reunion, he doesn’t beat Kusuke up does he? Probably a mixed bag of not even wanting to touch the pervert combined with

If Kuniharu and Kurumi had paid just a little bit of attention to pick up on their eldest’s distress over being ‘beaten’ and explained that Kusuo isn’t competing but is imitating his big brother because he looks up to him- 

(you know, parenting their kids...)

But that didn’t happen and instead we got monkeys who have anxiety, to put it extremely mildly.

It’s the what ifs that get me the most in this damn thing, there’s so much grief resulting from a cavalcade of missed opportunities and ignorance. But Asou manages to make it gotdang hilarious. Impressive, incredibly.

[renthony]

My county is listed as "high risk" on every covid information website, including the CDC's.

You wouldn't know that based on how many of my friends have gone back to normal activity, though. 🙃

I'm fully vaccinated, but haven't yet got the booster shot that was recommended by a friend in the medical field. I live with immunocompromised people and am terrified to risk their health. I haven't left the house for anything non-essential in ages. The only people I see are my partners and my kids.

Online events are petering out. Nobody wants to go to the trouble of accommodating those of us still at home. Not now that it's old and boring and not a fun novelty anymore.

People eager to get back to normal are accusing people still staying home of being "science deniers" and "anti-vaccine" when the truth is that we have no way of knowing who around us had actually gotten THEIR vaccine, versus who still has plague germs to breathe all over us.

"Why don't you trust the science? Why don't you trust your vaccine?"

I do.

But I don't trust my neighbors. My supposed community. Every single friend I have seen complaining about wearing a mask, who resents having to take basic steps to keep my disabled family safe. It's THEM I don't trust.

I feel like I'm fully insane, and I legitimately don't know what's reasonable caution versus paranoia anymore. I don't feel like I can trust anyone outside my household, and every day I wake up and think that I'm probably going to wither away and die in this apartment before anything gets better.

I don't know how to cope with this shit anymore. I deleted Facebook because it was an endless stream of "look, life is moving on without you." Someone inevitably got pissy at me every time I posted a status about covid and how shitty I feel about being left to rot while the world goes back to normal. Only a few people even noticed I left and, of those, only one has reached out to me to ask if I'm okay and safe. I feel isolated and miserable and alone.

I'm going fucking nuts, y'all. Covid wrecked EVERYTHING and I have!!! No!!! Coping mechanisms!!!!!

I don't even know if I have FRIENDS anymore.

[asmo-baby5]

Asking First

MC asks the brother and undateables on a date first before they can.

Lucifer-

•is very pissed MC asked first because now he somehow has to relinquish control over the date to them.

•His pride is seriously hurt because how dare a human ask him on a date first?

•he was planning on asking them at the same time, he was just too slow....

•stays cool and composed as he obviously accepts their offer.

•has to play one of his records at full volume in his room later to settle down.

•Despite somehow coming to terms with the fact MC planned everything and wouldn't tell him a single detail, he takes charge of the date.

•he covers all bills and leads the way despite the fact he technically shouldn't know where MC was headed next.

•he's the right hand of Lord Diavolo for a reason, he knows everything.

Mammon-

•"Hey now, Human, the Great Mammon is supposed to ask ya first!"

•outwardly pissy and upset MC asked him first.

•inwardly freaking out because MC ASKED HIM FIRST.

•Unfortunately his bright red blush causes all of his sharp words to become dull.

•MC finds it incredibly endearing he's so upset they asked first.

•they still take complete control and won't tell Mammon a thing about the date until the day of.

•the anticipation drives him crazy and he goes on a spending spree right before to blow off some anxiety.

•gets in trouble with Lucifer and almost has to miss the date, but is granted permission to go because MC stood up for him.

•is still incredibly pissy they won't tell him anything but is incredibly into the secrecy.

Levi-

•A mess.

•Just a complete stuttering and blushing mess.

•"theres no way youd want to go out with a yucky shut-in Otaku like me."

•will try to shut down the idea entirely because he believes MC is making fun of him.

•immediately changes his mind when MC gets upset he'd even think of them like that.

•has to know every little detail of the date so he can mentally prepare.

•MC is very supportive and gives him every detail he asks for, most times more than one.

•he is on edge in the days leading up to the date and can't sit still the day of.

•can't game cause he can't sit still that long and can't watch anime cause he can't focus on the words.

Satan-

•Loves the idea.

•The two normally alternate who prepares the date anyway so nothing gets boring or predictable.

•he has absolutely no problem with MC asking first either.

•fully trusts them to prepare an entertaining and productive day for the two of them.

•spends the days leading up to it trying to reason out where MC could be planning on going.

•never ever gets it right because MC knows what he's thinking and if he had managed to get it right they will change it last minute to keep him on his toes.

•he adores them for making sure to keep him engaged yet docile for the entire day.

Asmo-

•He is, of course, used to being asked on dates all the time, but its actually the first time MC has ever asked him first.

•its an understatement to say he's elated.

•offers to help plan the date.

•pouts when MC insists it is a day where they will completely treat him and he is not allowed to treat them.

•spends the days leading up to the date trying to convince MC to let him pamper them too.

•they keep refusing.

•he decides to make the time after the date ends his time to pamper them because then they can't complain or resist.

•if MC ever takes control of their dates again he always make sure to have something prepared for after to thank them for loving him so fully.

Beel-

•of course!

•could not be more excited!

•does not think much of MC asking first until he realizes that their dates usually consist of major restaurant visits and he is the one to always pay because he asks them out first.

•frets every single day up to the date because he doesn't want MC to spend so much money on him but he also doesn't want to butt into their date plans and make them mad.

•he tries to eat more a few days before so he'll maybe eat less on the day of.

•he even almost enlists Belphie to sneakily check MC's wallet and make sure they have enough grimm to cover the large bills they will inevitably have.

•almost cries from relief when he finds out MC had a major savings account filled with extra grimm from their part time job. It had more than enough to cover his many large meals.

Belphie-

•its not like its the first time, he rarely asks first anyway.

•MC's dates are always the best, even if they are very similar each time.

•they know exactly what he likes and knows that he doesn't tend to like a lot of change so they stick with what works.

•almost always an evening date so he can sleep all day and maybe have some energy for it.

•evening dates also let's them both fall asleep against each other without being scolded for sleeping so early.

•the date is never too far from home so whoever fell asleep first (more often than not that being Belphie) can be carried back without exerting too much energy themself.

Diavolo-

•too excited.

•can hardly contain himself and almost kills MC in a bone crushing bear hug from his excitement.

•he finally had a free day and spending that day with his favorite human ever sounded amazing.

•and he didnt need to prepare anything for it at all?

•perfection.

•will be a ball of sunshine for the whole time leading up to it so MC wouldn't change their mind.

•works extra fast and hard so he can get all of his work done in preparation for the date.

•overworks himself and the date ends up being MC taking care of him all day and cuddling with him all night.

•he's upset they couldn't go anywhere, but he got to spend the day with MC regardless so he isn't too upset.

Barbatos-

•is unsure at first.

•he is way too busy to allow himself to indulge in a fantasy.

•also feels horrible if someone else is taking care of him instead of the other way around anyway.

•MC insists they will keep it very low-key so he can still do necessary work as it comes up but still spend time with them.

•he reluctantly agrees to this.

•is pleasantly surprised when it turns out MC had spent a month learning from Luke so they could bake him his favorite cake and brew his favorite tea just the way he liked.

•it was just a small tea party in the garden of the Demon Lord's castle, but it felt like a magical excursion because of what MC had pulled off for him.

Simeon-

•sweet baby is so excited!

•ask him out on a date first and he will literally melt because that means MC loves him back.

•like Satan, he will leave everything to MC because he trusts them.

•is pretty calm leading up to the date because he has full confidence in them and has full faith that this date will do nothing but build their relationship.

•he is a perfect gentleman and will open doors and pull out chairs.

•he offers to take a commemorative photo for them but doesn't save it correctly so MC takes an even better candid shot that is sure to make the two of them laugh and reminisce later down the line.

•He refuses to let MC pay for everything but MC refuses to let him pay so they compromise and split all bills on the date.

Solomon-

•"you think I'd go out with you?"

•is a complete little shit about it to hide his embarrassment at MC asking him first.

•freaks out when they take him seriously and start to walk away.

•"wait no, of course I will."

•he's just a bit of a control freak and would hate leaving all preparations to them.

•seriously, MC cannot prepare anything without him being right behind their shoulder and either nodding or correcting the plans.

•the date just cannot remain a surprise when Solomon is literally helping to plan it all.

•MC doesn't really mind though because he looks really cute when he gets all serious about something.

•he gets very serious about almost everything when it comes to them so they get to see his cute face very often.

•they go to the human world to make sure the brothers wouldn't follow them and bother their date.

•stay in the human world for a few days and just find complete peace being in the other's presence.

[missyasf]

Game Of Hearts

| 1 |

↳ Summary: Your life is in monotonous tones of grey, day in, day out. Nothing matters besides your sister, the only thing you remember is seeing fireworks before waking up to Tokyo abandoned . Soon enough you are properly introduced to the deadly Borderlands where you must fight for your life in Games to survive. When things can’t possibly get worse soon division arises and rivalries are made. No matter what though, you are constantly plagued by a blonde who, no matter how hard you try, just can’t seem to go too far without.

↳ Pairing: Chishiya/Reader

↳ Genre: Angst, smut, thriller

Word Count: 11k

___| Next

Trigger Warning: ⚠️ much like the manga/Netflix adaptation this will be a dark fic which includes mentions of prostitution, attempted murder, child ab*se, sexual harassment, heavy grief and attempted suic*de among other things. Additional warnings will be added for chapters when triggers are brought up. Please read with caution if these are triggers for you or just skip all together! 

Side mention: This could be considered a prequel to the current Alice In Borderland. I’m writing based off the Manga bc I was a glutton and couldn’t wait no spoilers will be present as of...

Escapism

noun

the tendency to seek distraction and relief from unpleasant realities, especially by seeking entertainment or engaging in fantasy ♡ 

You had known all about this during your short lifespan, as a child you’d often play pretend with your sister that you were movie stars living in a five star hotel rather than the shitty busted up apartment on the wrong side of town. Escapism came in, many forms. It was often a way for people to cope psychologically, simply because sometimes, facing the reality of your situation can be too much for one person to handle mentally. 

Or at least, that was the topic of your lecture today in class. The human mind always fascinated you. Even at the young tender age when your mom died and you watched your once cozy little family fall apart piece by piece until nothing was left in its wake. 

It was your fascination that drove you now for most things, why? Why, why, why? You always wondered what the motive was behind someone’s actions, not only thing but you wanted to  understand them better, to try and sympathize. You were already fairly intuitive in nature. It wasn’t difficult to read people. In fact your line of work made it easy, you’d watch a man who would be excited to be with you reach for his left finger as if used to touching something. A wedding band perhaps? 

The lowlife cheater was fairly common in a whore house after all. Or the man who had been pissy this morning behind you in line because you had decided to try something new on the menu and you weren’t fast enough, obviously because he was tardy and woke up late, his shirt unbeknownst to him was button the wrong way and his tie loose and even the way his hair fell were all signs of being late to work. 

It was the little things you noticed in people’s facial expressions, the way they moved and spoke. You could read people like a book, and sure sometimes it was useful. But you often wished you weren’t so perceptive. It drove you mad knowing when a potential love interest was no longer interested through a simple text or a friend not wanting to talk by their tone. Sometimes you wished you could just blot it all out, still, you lived like this day in and day out, you were used to this kind of thing and honestly. Friends? Love? Your gaze dropped a little to your feet, the pumps you were wearing a jet black and the heel too high for any respectable woman to ever wear. 

...It wasn’t like you ever had any of those in your life and you had struggled to come to terms with the fact that you could survive without that kind of support. Still...it made you envious, the couple happily holding hands on the sidewalk. The group of friends all laughing at a table while they studied. Oftentimes these feelings are muted, but when you’re faced with something you’ve always craved, those muted feelings suddenly become hyperactive in your mind. 

It’s pathetic, honestly. 

“How dare you! You disgusting slut!” 

In this moment however, you were brought back to reality at just what was happening, you squeaked loudly as you dodged the shoe the woman had thrown at you. This was all a regular occurrence, you had a lot of regulars who weren’t the most amazing people but hey, money was money. But along with them they also left a trail which their wives and girlfriends always followed. And then they always blamed you instead of their partner for leaving them for a prostitute despite you never having agreed to anything such as that.

It really wasn’t your fault, you were just trying to make a living while juggling with keeping up your own education, paying your fathers debts, rent and still somehow getting food on the table. What part time college job could provide that?

Prostitution wasn’t a job you would’ve gone into willingly but given the past and your trauma that was already laced in it you had been learning that sometimes because of the trauma we experience, sometimes people go back to that same trauma and actively participate in it as a way of feeling like they’re in control. 

That whatever happened before, would never happen again if you were in control. You weren’t sure if you qualified under this category, trauma came in many forms but the one most used as an example in your class was that a study showed that women who were assaulted often develop a kink for consensual non consent as a way of coping with what happened, except this time, it’s in a controlled environment where it can end the moment they want it too. 

Again, you weren’t sure you fell into this category, but you often wondered if your line of work was intertwined with your earlier memories when you were younger, if anything it brought comfort to you. Much of it, blotted out now simply because your mind couldn’t take it. Trauma expressed through amnesia was also much more common than many thought, and it’s so small, so easy to miss. After all how can you be aware of something if you have no memory of it anymore?

“Security!” Your manager screeched, two of the bodyguards were already between you and the feral woman who was ready to gut you clean as she screamed hysterically, her husband...your regular....at her side trying to get her to calm down only for her to come to her senses and slap him clean across the face. You didn’t condone violence, but he did have it coming...

You weren’t about to justify cheaters, you couldn’t imagine the hurt someone had to feel that not only did their partner cheat on them, but it was with someone...like you...You had been trying not to put down your job occupation, sex workers were just as valid as anyone else...you knew you would’ve thought this way if it was anyone but you in this position. 

You sighed as you ran your hands through your hair, watching the couple get dragged out of the tight space of the brothel, “Jesus christ....didn’t you say you stopped using perfume because of this?” Miki, your manager sighed as she crossed her arms. You didn’t want to say your manager was your friend but she was the closest you had as you’d often complain to her about most of your problems. Sex work often attracted broken people, it wasn’t something she wasn’t used to. 

“Yeah, but apparently he never got around to washing his clothes…” You wiped your mouth on the back of your hand, “Lipstick stain,” You glanced down at the ruby pink color that stained your skin now, “Fuck...that did hurt.” You rubbed your sore cheek that was still throbbing from where she had first slapped it when she ripped the door open of the room where she got to see with her own eyes you riding her husband. 

It had happened so many times now you weren’t even embarrassed about someone walking in let alone a partner. Miki gave you a lopsided smile as she patted your shoulder, “Guess that just pays for being one of the best here. Did you at least get paid.” 

You nodded, “Yeah, I always make them pay in advanced but I was hoping to get a tip afterwards...He was a lawyer so you know he had good money.” You sighed, crossing your arms, you were well aware of his partner because a lot of the time he didn’t even come in for sex anymore. It was funny how humans work. 

He often felt his wife was overbearing and you had suspected some sort of verbal abuse by the way he talked about her constant screaming. Truthfully, you don’t think he ever intended on cheating with her. He just wanted someone to talk to without being judged, you could relate with sympathy to that, but he unfortunately chose to walk into a brothel instead of a therapy clinic and this truly was the only inevitable outcome. Still, you hope if for anyone’s sake, he gets that divorce for himself. 

 “Hey I think I’m gonna call it a day. I need to get back to Nanami, she was wanting to talk to me about college applications.” You sighed as you rubbed your neck, ever since she had graduated high school she had been chomping at the bit to start applying for college, maybe to just get out of the house and into a dorm. You couldn’t blame her and if she did that it would lighten your load a little. 

Guilt washed over you at the thought as Miki chuckled, “They grow up pretty fast huh? My brother was the same way, except the moment he found out I was a sex worker was the moment he called me a whore and we haven’t talked since. That was probably about five years ago,” She crossed her arms as she sighed, “Crazy how the things we do for the ones we love, never appreciate our effort...I’ll see you tomorrow then?” 

“If I’m not bruising.” You offered a weak smile as you nodded at her before going back to your room to get changed. Truthfully, you much like anyone else, often wished you could go to a world where reality wasn’t a concept any longer. Where you could lay out in the sun for the whole day and just soak up it’s rays with no worries or trepidations. 

But sooner then later everyone had to face their fears. Even you, you supposed. But no matter how hard you fought your demons, they always came back tenfold. Again, you supposed your story was no different from tens of thousands, and yet you all live on regardless. Maybe it’s you who should be the one seeking therapy. Pulling on your jeans and the cropped top over your head before pulling the jacket over your arms and grabbing your bag. 

The walk home was as quiet as ever, your hood over your head and earbuds any unwanted attention, it wasn’t too late at night, only eleven PM and your work had just been getting started but that had ruined the night for you and besides, you had already failed a test today, you could use the sleep tonight. 

Occasionally you’d hear the sirens of  a cop car passing by or a bystander shout, nothing out of the ordinary in this neighborhood. Walking up to the apartment complex you pulled the key from your bag as you unlocked the door. Quietly stepping insides as you shut the door before locking it once more. Your nose wrinkled at the smell of stale air mixed with rotten...something…

If anything, you were always lacking in something, you had been so busy most of the day that you never had time to clean anything leaving the house in a horrible state. Not that you thought this was much of a house. 

Walking down the narrow hallway you opened the rickety door with a missing lock as you gave a brief smile to the small clump of bedsheets. Your sister was curled up and on her phone, eyes darting to the door with a hint of fear before she jumped up, “Y/n! You’re home earlier from night shift already!?” 

You offered a smile as you set down your bag and nodded, sitting down on the mattress that laid on the floor as you replied, “Yeah, a coworker needed the extra hours so I let them cover for me tonight. Besides, you wanted to talk about college applications?” Your sister was under the impression your late night job was bartending at some hole in the wall downtown, where in all actuality you just went there to drink a few days and talk to the loud and sometimes obnoxious, but good hearted bartender who loved talking about his nerdy underaged friends that couldn’t do anything beside stay and drink soda. 

It wasn’t that you didn’t think your sister would accept you, if she knew what you were actually doing. Fear, most times came in many different forms and this was one of them. You simply didn’t want to be judged, even by her. So nobody in your life truly knew who you were, and therefore, how could you hold the expectation for people to accept you into society if you were already self sabotaging yourself? 

All philosophy aside, you were simply a lost soul, looking for your way in the cruel reality called life. 

“Yes!” Nanami was chipper as always as she squealed, clapping her hands, “I…! I was thinking about applying to the university you attend! Maybe I'll get a grant and move into the dorms there? I already applied for several jobs, I’m just waiting on a callback!” 

You offered a small smile as you hugged your knees to your chest, “I think you’d like it there, there’s lots to do around campus. But what will you go in for? The only advice I can offer is be sure it’s what you want to do.” 

Nanami’s face faltered a little as she hummed, “Well...I thought maybe working with animals? I’d love to be an assistant surgeon in veterinarian? I know it’s a pretty...sad job but...I really like the idea of being able to heal such innocent things.” Your smile tugged into a gentle one at your sister. She was too tender for this world.

It had been your goal sense the day your mother died that you took care of your sister, it didn’t matter what happened to you. You could rot for all you cared at the end of the day, all you wanted was to look up and see your sister's smile and her happiness in life blossom. She more than anyone deserved it. 

“I think you’ll be great at it.” You encouraged as you rested your chin on your hand, always happy to see her bounce in excitement as you yawned, your body was used to your demanding schedule but it was always more than happy to welcome a few extra hours of sleep.”

Hearing the door loudly slam close caused you both to jump, Nanami hurriedly crawled back in bed, pretending to be asleep as you frowned. Your dad must’ve come back home from wherever he was. 

“Y/n! Just stay here! Can’t you talk to him later?” Nanami looked scared, she always did when he was around. But you weren’t about to stand down to the bastard any day of the week, you offered a weak smile as you replied. 

“It’s fine Nami, I’ll be just a few minutes.” You replied, you knew that she knew, that was probably a lie. But you’d try your best, for her sake at least. But somebody had to put this guy in his place occasionally and it was always you. It results in a lot of screaming sometimes, other times he’d break down in tears or on a bad occasion you’d get shoved to the ground, a few times hit. Nothing major. 

Walking out of the room you leaned against the wall of the entrance of the hallway watching your father stumble around in the living room, “Did you finally talk to the loan company?” You called out as you asked, not in a forgiving mood tonight. He had said he’d do this for two weeks in a row. The company that sank your whole family into the ground. The reason your mother couldn’t take it anymore and put a blade to her wrist. 

Your father stood up, looking a little wobbly, obviously drunk, “Now listen here little girl I don’t have shit to own to you or anyone else.” You sighed as you tucked your tongue into your cheek, annoyance flowing inside you as you straightened up. You weren’t going to be bullied into being scared of this guy. 

“Actually you do,” Your smile twisted into something more sharp, more bitter and sinister as you walked forward, “See, if you hadn’t of gotten involved in something shady like loan sharks we wouldn’t be drowning in debt and mom wouldn’t have killed herself because of you and both your daughters wouldn’t hate you. I know you drink away all our money in some pathetic attempt to escape from the cold reality that you fucked up your whole life and watched your family slip from your fingers while not even trying to do anything other then put us in further shit,” You closed your eyes as you tilted your head, “But the least you could do, is admit that. You owe us at least that for being a total fuck up.” 

You opened your eyes to find pure rage brewing in your fathers eyes as you smiled once more, this time a false sense of sickly sweet tone to it as you shrugged, “Or you could live in denial, at this point, there really isn’t anything you can do to get anyone back ♡ ” 

You had turned around, planning to tell Nanami that maybe she should go sleep over at a friends house today but you never got the chance, suddenly being slammed into the wall and flecks of spit hitting your face, “I am your fucking father! I deserve respect from you and your worthless sister! Do you know how much I provide for you both?” 

Anger splintered through your veins as you grabbed onto his wrists, his fingers digging into your neck as you squirmed, “Like fucking what!? A shitty broken down apartment that your vacant from because you’re too fucking ashamed of yourself to even look at us sober!?” 

Much like years in the past you weren’t surprised to hear Nanami cry as she rushed out of the room at the sound of you both screaming, “Stop!” She cried out, trying to break you both up, “Stop! Don’t fight! Why…! Why can’t we all just get along!” She sobbed only for your dad to shove her down making her curl up in defeat. 

Alarm bells were triggered in your head at the sight of Nanami on the ground, she had never actually gotten hurt while in your sight and it was triggering something deep inside you as you watched him stalk up to her. Your hands shaking and rage boiling in your mind as you grabbed the closet thing you could find. An empty beer bottle on the table. 

Your vision blurred and you don’t quite remember what happened other than glass shattering over his head and the brute force of you shoving something before blood was stained on your hands. 

How did you end up sitting against the wall? Why was there….blood on your hands…? Your fingers trembled at the metallic sticky substance. All you could hear were Nanami’s sobs and cries as she frantically pushed herself away from the body slumped on the ground. 

“You…! He…!” Nanami’s eyes brimmed with tears as you heard a loud boom making you jump, your eyes darting to the open window where….fireworks, big and bold crashed and crackled before you felt like you were sucked into a vortex making your whole vision black out. 

Your head felt fuzzy and there was ringing in your ears as you groaned, curling up into yourself as the darkness beckoned you closer before you forcibly opened your eyes. You were laying against the hardwood floor. Beams of light streaked through the window and you could see dust particles in the air against the shower of sunshine that streamed in. 

...Wait...Light? The thought had perplexed your head enough to make you push up from the ground, memories pulling into your mind as your breath became shallow, suddenly looking to the side where...you slumped against the wall. It must’ve just been a bad dream….your eyes flickered to Nanami’s curled up figure...a really vivid dream…? Something wrenched in your gut as you rubbed your eyes. What happened? “Nami…!” You whispered, forcing your muscles to move despite their protest as she whined. 

After another moment she reluctantly opened her eyes, flickering around before she suddenly scrambled up, taking a deep breath as if realizing what had happened before, looking towards where your dad once was she frowned, “...I...What…” She seemed just as perplexed as you and if her face was anything to go by, last night had obviously happened, “Is dad…” She looked at the absent place of the floor. 

Leaning against the wall your eyes darted around the room, “I guess so…” You silently felt relief at knowing your dad was still very much alive as you leaned back as you closed your eyes, trying to remember what had happened before everything went dark...oh..! The fireworks...had it been a celebration last night? Your brows pinched together, something felt...off...getting up you opened the door to the apartment walking out. 

“Y/n? Y/n! Hey! Where are you going!” Nanami called out, quickly chasing after you as you frowned, cars were parked odd and there was no one out on the street...as in...at all...Something was very wrong and you couldn’t figure out what. 

“Wow...it..must be a slow day…” Nanami felt a sense of discomfort at the lack of life as you both walked down the side walk, it didn’t just feel like a slow day it felt, apocalyptic. As if humanity just left on it’s own leaving nothing but an empty city behind. Cars were parked on the curb and a few even left in the street.

“No, it’s like everyone vanished...This is really weird.” You wrapped your arms around yourself as you frowned, looking around as you came closer to where typically it would be a booming part of the downtown but it was empty, just as everything before. 

“Well, maybe it’s a national holiday?” Nanami rubbed her head, trying to make sense of the situation just as much as you, surely everyone wasn’t...gone...right? She looked around as she bit her lip, second guessing herself at all the cars that were vacant, “Hey Y/n.” 

You paused as you looked at your sister, curving an eyebrow as she offered a weak smile, “What if everyone got raptured away like they talk about in christanity?” Your expression flattened as she giggled, obviously getting a rise out of you as you crossed your arms. 

Raptured? Where? To heaven? “Wouldn’t it be fire and brimstone then if that was the case?” Nanami pouted at your words as you shrugged, snickering yourself at her expression, the tables now turned as you sighed, “I don’t think there’s anyone left in Tokyo...I mean, it feels like...we’d have seen someone by now...right?” 

“Well…” Nanami frowned once more, a little disturbed at your words as she spoke, “There’s no way everyone could be gone I mean, where would they go? And how could we miss something like that...Maybe the police found us and now we’re under some weird simulation.” 

Chills spilled down your spine as you shoved her making her whine, “Don’t say that! That makes me feel all weird…! I didn’t…!” You cut yourself off, you didn’t what? Murder your own dad in cold blood...you looked down at your hands, they were free of any blood but it still felt like something like sin lingered. Like no matter where you went, it would always be stuck to you.

You didn’t like this, not one bit. Briefly you felt the urge to go hunt down your dad, he was a deadbeat but you would never...you’d never kill him....Right?

“Well…” Nanami hummed her eyes scanning ahead before they jumped to the mall that was up ahead, “Hey…! If nobody is here...maybe we could make use of it! Come on! Let's go!” You yelped at her grabbing your arm before dragging you ahead. Cars were all parked and yet not a single person exited through the mall's entrance. Something just felt off! You wrapped your arms around yourself as you warily looked around the empty mall, “Nanami I really don’t like this!” You looked around, concern bubbling inside you as she ran ahead into the store, digging through the section of clothes as she giggled. 

“Relax! I doubt any of this is real and even so…! Who’s going to stop us!?” She shrugged as she bounced in excitement, “Oh my god! I had dreamed of something like this happening! Now we can do whatever we want! Go wherever we want! Y/n!” She gasped with a smile, “Now we don’t even have to worry about money!” 

“We don’t even know if this is permanent.” You looked around warily, not partaking as she began plucking off the racks, “Regardless of what this is, I don’t like it. I want to go back home, our home. This just doesn’t…” You shook your head, “This just doesn’t feel right.” 

“Well you can feel that way!” Nanami clacked her tongue as she gave a childish smile, “But I’m gonna go through this whole store and get a new wardrobe so feel free to sit on the bench and tell me what you think looks good!” 

Looking away you sighed, unable to pinch the anxious feeling you had away as you sat down reluctantly as Nanami went into the changing room. Well...at least she was smiling and she was happy...With each outfit Nanami tried out and giggled, you giggled with her and maybe things weren’t so bad after all…

“What a perfect day.” Nanami hugged you close as she sighed, yawning as you looked up at the sky in awe, you had seen a single star while living in Tokyo before, but now it was filled with constellations and millions of stars that stretched for miles. You could stare at it for days and days. The sun had just set a little over half an hour ago and you were ready to retire and find something to eat at the apartment. 

You and Nanami had tried going to the food court but much to your dismay everything had been...rotten...soiled and ruined, meaning there was no point in trying to find anything there and you were getting really hungry despite devouring bags of chips you had both got at the convenient store, another thing that stood out to you was that there was no electricity...at all..

Looking back up to the sidewalk something caught your eyes...was that…! Light!? “Hey! Nanami look!” You shook her making her squeak as she looked up ahead, “It’s the hospital! They have electricity there which means there’s other people! Of course! Why didn’t we think to check essential areas!? Come on! Lets go! I wanna figure out what happened.” 

“Alright! It sucks that this is already over but at least I can finally charge my phone, the battery is pretty low.” Nanami nodded in agreement as you both made your way up the road. 

The walk wasn’t too far and you felt excitement fill you at the sight of the hospital all lit up as you walked into the entrance, a frown slowly setting on your lips once more as you walked past the receptionist desk and…! Oh there’s other people! 

You felt relief wash over your as you ran up, there were at least seven other other people here at least! “Hey! Guys oh my god. I thought everyone was gone! What’s going on?” You asked, smiling bright in relief that you and Nanami weren’t the only ones left behind. Was this some kind of evac point or…?

Silence ensued and you slowly began to frown as you felt everyone stare at you as if you were insane, “Um…” You wrapped a hand around your arm, suddenly feeling as if everyone knew something you didn’t, “What’s going on…?” You furrowed your brows as you tilted your head, unsure of why everyone was looking at you like this. 

Somebody looked like they were going to talk to you, a guy relatively around your age but a woman stopped him- his girlfriend maybe? “Stop, the less that know the better chance we have.” She said quietly though you still heard just enough. Fear twisted inside you as you took a cautious step back...The...the less you knew? 

“Wow, you guys are assholes,” A girl suddenly whistled out, she was sitting in a waiting chair, a cowboy hat on her head paired with distressed jeans and...a bikini top? Strange but you’d roll with it if it meant getting answers. She stood up as she offered a smile, “Akari, nice to meet ya’. You folk must be new to the Borderlands huh?” She jutted her bottom lip a little as you frowned. 

“Um I’m Y/n and this is my sister Nanami...?” You introduced yourself despite feeling confused as you raised a brow, “Borderlands…?” You echoed, what was that supposed to be? Other than Tokyo?

Akari gave a nod as she let out a brief chuckle, as if amused by your confusion but you sensed she had no real ill will unlike....your eyes checked to the couple that stood off in the corner on their own, “That’s what they call it here,” She nodded in affirmation as your eyes darted back to her in confusion, “To be frank with ya’, I don’t have a damn clue what's going on. Nobody does. But ever since you crossed the threshold there’s no going back, so I’ll be brief. We’re all considered outsiders here and we participate in games at venues such as this to extend our stay.”

Nanami and you looked at one another confused as Akari waved you over to the table in front of a TV, “Here, you’ll wanna put these on, it’s for the game.” She explained as you carefully picked up the metal bracelet, something about it felt ominous as you reluctantly put it on, jumping at the way it latched together and there was no getting it off now, “Word of advice, just don’t panic and you probably won’t die.” 

“What?!” You screeched as Akari smacked your back, panic evident in your voice as you turned around to face her making her laugh again, this girl was insane! She had to be! “You’re…! You’re joking!” 

Akari wrinkled her nose as she tilted her head, “Ah shit, I wish I was- Oh…! There’s the last player!” Just on que everyone turned to look at who had arrived, someone heaving breaths with their hands on their knees as if they had sprinted. You were mildly worried at why he seemed so scared but you had a feeling that was the least of your problems right now.

“Y/n what’s going on…?” Nanami frightened grabbed your arm as she hid a little behind you due to all these immensing strangers that looked like they were ready to feed you to the sharks, literally. 

The guy walked past you both as he put on his bracelet, your eyes sharp as you watched it latch together automatically, your gaze jumping to everyone's wrists to notice you were all now wearing one. The TV suddenly lit up. 

Game 

You squinted your eyes a little at the sight of the screen, just what were you about to unwillingly participate in…?

Difficulty: 5♣

“The game you will be participating in is, Monster under the bed.”

A playing card? Monster under the bed? Your brows furrowed as you looked at Nanami who shrugged a little despite her concerned expression, looking just as confused as you. You could’ve made a joke out of this, surely it would’ve been easier. Maybe everyone would bust out laughing and you’d be at the end of a poor joke but...somehow you felt that wasn’t the case. Thus paying very close attention to whatever was on this screen, 

“Everyone will be sectioned off into pairs by the number chosen on your bracelet, when the doors to the ward open you will have three rounds ten minutes each to figure out who is the monster under the bed that must be returned to its own, once the ten minutes is up you must hide before you are found. If the selected pair that is the monster is chosen correctly it’s a Game Clear.  If the monster is not found by the end of the third round or if the pair fails to hide it’s a Game Over.” 

Rules: 

Once the doors are open you and your partner must find a hiding spot by the time limit

Both partners must be hidden. If one is exposed to the monster it’s a Game Over for both partners

There will be an X marked on the ground to place the monster of your guess onto. 

You will have three rounds of ten minutes each to find the monster.

Any attempt to remove bracelets results in a Game Over

If the monster is not found by the third round a Game Over.

The only Game Clear condition required is for the monster to be returned by the third round.

What…

What!? 

“Now the game will commence, you have five minutes to figure out who you have been paired up with before the doors open.”

Your mind was blanking as you watched everyone look down at their bracelet, hurriedly you lifted your arm as your mind blanked 2 looking back at Nanami her lips were already quivering as she sniffled lifting her arm in defeat as your lips dropped open, 5.

“Hey! Guess you’re my partner!” Akari grinned as she wrapped an arm around Nanami who sniffled, “Oh…” She looked between you both, “Oh! Oh don’t worry! We’re not the monster so I’ll make sure your sister lives! You should go find your partner.” 

Your hands trembled unsure of what to do before you went to hug Nanami, “Whatever happens just stay calm okay! I need to go find my partner now!” You whispered, kissing her cheek as she sniffled while nodding. 

Everybody was shuffling around looking for their partner now, you passed by a few people, 4, 1, 3...did you even have a partner…? You scanned around, your throat tightening a little in panic, there had to be a mistake! There were only 8 people surrounding you- you yelped at the tight grip that suddenly held your arm forcing you to turn around to be met with a white hooded figure, a lollipop handle hanging and earbuds in before sighing, “So it appears I’m stuck with someone useless.” The man concluded as he stood up making you back away a little as your lips parted somewhat indignantly. 

How...how rude! You looked up, unable to fully make out his face but you could tell you didn’t like him one bit, “I’ll…! First of all I’m not useless! I’m just trying to understand what's going on! This is insane! We aren’t actually going to die from this, are we!?” Pushing his hood down you were immediately met with a snide gaze and cat eyes that leered at you like you were nothing more then dirt beneath his feet, long blonde hair pushed behind his shoulders and his bangs hanging low, suddenly a viscous side smile appeared on his lips, “Apparently so, otherwise I wouldn’t have watched half my last game get their brains blown out and the other half hung.” 

You reeled a little away from the blonde, your face dropped in semi horror, unsure if this was just a sick joke or he was serious. You searched his face a thousand times over, but for the first time in your life, you couldn’t figure out what his goal was. You couldn’t figure out anything about him, except he was exceptionally cold, “Well I don’t suppose I have much choice to doubt you,” He said with an annoying sing song tone as he rattled his wrist that showed the bracelet with a matching 2 on it, “My name is Chishiya, just stay out of my way and we’ll both live.” 

How arrogant! You scoffed as he walked past you, not the least bit bothered at your offense as you whipped around, glaring at his back. How come out of everyone you got stuck with the most…! Pompous! Arrogant! Ugh! You crossed your arms as you followed behind him, stilling secretly sending daggers into his back with your eyes as everyone shuffled into the ward. 

Hospital beds were scattered around the room, a few closets and one large vent at the bottom right corner of the room ahead. 

“Wait, what is this?” The first person to speak was a fair thin older gentleman, he appeared friendly as he observed the room around him, everyone looked around in confusion as you noticed what he meant. 

Any possible hiding spot was covered by either sheets of metal or locked tight...How were any of you supposed to hide if…!? The rules mentioned nothing about solving puzzles to gain access to a hiding spot!

“Forget that,” Another man said with a sneer he was broad and a bit older, well into his late twenties at least, perhaps a gym coach? Or maybe a wrestler of some sort? He looked like he could break you and nearly every other person in this room like a twig, “We need to figure out who’s the monster. “ He cracked his knuckles as you leered a little away and nobody spoke for a second. 

Of course, who would out themselves as the monster, more importantly, how does one even know they’re the monster? You could immediately feel tension rise as the previous, more patient man spoke, a little more collected, “How about we just check one another's’ watches! If anywhere it would show us on that! One pair should work on solving these puzzles here so everyone has a place to hide” 

“Unless the monster is among us and it sabotages us so we all die by the time limit.” The girlfriend crossed her arms as she darted her eyes around. Truthfully you didn’t know what to believe, the wording on the soundbox was rather confusing as to just what were you looking for. Was the monster supposed to be in the group or it’s own entity?

“If that were the case it would’ve showed up on our watches, which it didn’t. So that won’t work.” Chishiya spoke matter of fact, his tone cool as his eyes gazed across the room before he walked away from the group inspecting various hiding spots granted you didn’t think he was about to help anyone but himself, if anything you were at least lucky that him securing a hiding spot meant it was one for you as well. 

You looked at everyone in confusion, some arguing while others scattered to look for a hiding spot as the clock ticked down. You breathed in relief at the sight of Nanami and Akari both going for a bed to hide under. Your gaze finally found Chishiya’s form before following him, unsure of what you were supposed to do, if anything outside trying to figure out just what the monster even was. 

You glanced up at the digital clock that stood above the entrance you had just come in from, it was already a minute in before you searched the floor where you found a red X in the center of the room, that must’ve been the...what? Offering spot? You cringed a little at the idea. Looking forward you peered behind Chishiya’s shoulder deciding to not think about that, it seemed the metal sheet that had wrapped around the bed and was sealed to the ground was locked by some sort of metal device…? Contraption? Lock?

“Isn’t hiding under a bed a bit obvious…?” You frowned as you crossed your arms, unsure as you looked behind your shoulder once more to where accusations were already being thrown in the group. 

“The vent is a decoy to make you waste time, I already checked,” Chishiya replied, his fingers nimble as they rattled the metal, “And even if someone were to accomplish it in the time limit it’s the most obvious spot the monster would first check. Next would be the closet given it’s at eye level and the first thing one is drawn too when they walk into a room.” 

Your lips parted a little in surprise at his assessment...obviously he wasn’t just overconfident, “And why this spot?” If he had really thought about all this in less than a minute then...did he have a reason for this spot? You now found yourself, slightly less annoyed and a little more curious as to what was going on in his mind. 

“If the monster were to check a bed it would be after his eyes are drawn to the closet. Next in that line of sight would be the vent directly across it, which would be his next place to look if not his first and vice versa. The beds are all staggered throughout the room making them less conspicuous compared to the other hiding places, the bed on the far end of the room would be no good.” 

Your brows furrowed in curiosity at his assessment as you watched Chishiya blow a piece of hair from his face, wiggling out one piece of the knotted metal, “It’s too far from the entrance where as the one in the middle is by average the one most people would start with, where as the first? It’s almost too soon in the start to look there thus making it the safest.” 

“It’s them! They’re over there conspiring!” You both twisted around to watch the broad man point an accusing finger at you both as your eyes darted from him to the clock on the wall, which read at six minutes. A few other pairs, relievingly so was your sister had started working on a hiding spot while a few others stood around and argued. 

Your face coiled a little as you replied, not appreciating the accusation to such a baseless accusation, did they not realize the longer they argued the less time they had to secure a hiding spot? “Someone who’s terrible at playing the minority would often be the first to point fingers. There’s only six minutes left before the first round is over and we need to hide. But if you want to talk about this then sure,” 

You stepped closer as you crossed your arms, scanning over him before continuing, “Let’s talk about the chances of you being the monster, ever since you first came in you’ve been all twitchy and acting like something is wrong. Even when we first got paired up, you seemed a little panicked. Anyways,” You turned around as you spoke, “How do we know one pair is a monster and not one single person?” 

“Eh,” Akari sat on the bed that her and Nanami chose as Nanami fumbled to work out the puzzle, she had always been good at those! You felt assured as your heart beat frantically at the idea of them not being able to get a hiding spot in time, “Let’s all calm down,” She gave an awkward laugh, “This isn’t a hearts game, we shouldn’t divide our trust. This is a team building after all which means this game should be making us work together, the last thing we need to do is throw that away on our own accord.” 

“...Team building?” You frowned as you murmured having not been aware that this was some sort of game category...Hearts? Clubs? The memory of the playing card flashing on the screen appeared in your mind again, right...was that to stand for some kind of game genre? If Clubs stood for team building then...there should be no reason that the monster is any of you. Why would they even suggest that to begin with?

Then...what was the monster? 

“One minute remaining.”

The lights suddenly began flickering, “Got it.” Chishiya yanked the last piece of metal undone as he pulled the sheet of metal off, everyone was now scrambling and the few who had not done their puzzle were now panicking. Getting down you crawled under the bed, your back flat to the ground as you inhaled sharply as you noticed the lights beginning to dim, “This is...uncomfortable.” You mumbled, trying to ignore being pressed shoulder to shoulder with a man you didn’t even know besides him having a god complex, “We should’ve went with the vent.” 

“By all means, if you want to try and get yourself killed already. Go for it.” You turned to look at him, dark endless cat eyes meeting you as you harshly glared at him, why was he so condescending!? 

You were about to snap back something before you realized it was completely dark and the door slammed open causing you to jump. Was your heart always this loud? You could see the heavy boots step against the ground making you unsteadily inhale, swallowing as you closed your eyes. You could only place your trust that Chishiya hadn’t picked a horrible spot. 

More importantly your mind was plagued with worry for your sister, you had been so caught up you hadn’t even tried to help her yet...did she even…! You heard a sudden loud scream from two people causing you to stiffen as you looked up at the bed frame lined with wooden planks. You could only cower back down at blood suddenly painting the floor.

Your stomach suddenly churned as you covered your mouth. So he wasn’t lying. Chishiya however looked just as nonpulsed as he did when he first told you himself, his eyes blankly staring up at the bed frame as if this was just a regular game of hide and seek as people screamed as they were torn apart. 

Or that’s at least what you assumed it was. 

After an agonizing few minutes the doors finally closed and the lights flickered back on making you breath in relief as you waited a moment, could you even bear to face what was waiting on the floor? You winced a little before something caught your eye. What was with all this extra wood stuck in the frame? 

Chishiya had already gotten out from under the bed and before you suddenly heard a few girls scream, your sister among them making you puff and breath as you scrambled from beneath the bed.

Standing up your mouth agape at the horrid sight of the female and the broad male that had been too focused on accusing others, they didn’t have...enough time...it looked like they had been completely mutilated, blood pouring on the floor and the smell made you want to gag as you looked away. 

“Well, now what do we do.” Akari scratched her head, also not looking phased that two people had just been brutally killed. Your eyes stayed placed on the bodies before they slowly trailed to your hands, the memory of blood staining them still fresh in your mind. 

“Well we have to figure out where the monster is?” The girlfriend of the couple spoke up, she looked around somewhat suspiciously, “But I’m not sure where we could find it? Maybe it has to do with the bracelets? Maybe there’s a clue hidden.” 

“Oh what about in the cabinets?” The collected man from before offered as he went to search the cabinets, your frown furthered as you glanced around. Everyone was now getting along, still on edge but along at least. 

Chishiya only leaned against the wall, his hands in his pocket as he rolled the lollipop in his mouth, his gaze the same steely one it was before as if he had done his job in securing his temporary salvation and was now done. 

Or maybe he just didn’t know what to do? It was obvious his strength didn’t lie in teamwork, clearly. But then again, you weren’t sure what was going on, you couldn’t get a read on him. Crossing your arms you stayed beside him, your eyes briefly washing over your sister who was working Akari to dig through a desk together. 

“Cabinets and drawers are too obvious.” 

Chishiya’s eyes flickered to your figure, his expression just as cold if not...a little smug maybe? He said nothing in return as you continued, “If we’re looking for a monster, it’s obvious it’s a metaphor for something. Inanimate most likely,” Your eyes flickered around the room, inhaling sharply, why did it feel like the answer was right in front of you? 

Think…! You glanced at the clock, only six minutes left. The rounds were really short…! “It’d be something small and inconspicuous, something that’s in plain sight….but easy to miss...and the game said it was a pair which means there’s more than likely two.” 

“Three,” You glanced at Chishiya as he spoke, pulling the lollipop from his mouth, that permanent smug look on his face as he answered, “Two is what they want you to think and if you spend a round searching for each like they hope it’s game over by three.” 

You rubbed your neck as you frowned, “It’s already the second round and we haven’t even found one…” You glanced around before you suddenly perked up, “Wait…!” Getting back down on the floor you laid on your back as you pushed yourself under the bed, “Chishiya! Help me get this thing out!” 

Within a moment the blonde appeared as well, his eye sharp and keen as they noticed straight away what you were tugging at, “You think this is the monster?” 

You looked at him as you raised a brow, “We have less than four minutes left on our second round, you have a better idea?” Chishiya said no more but helped regardless, successfully with the both of you maneuvering it around from beneath the wooden boards you managed to get it out. 

Holding it up you looked at it, “It’s a poppet doll.” You turned to face him as you smiled in accomplishment, “They’re typically used as curses to place upon people in folklore. If anything is a monster, this would be it.” 

Excited at your first victory you pulled out from beneath the bed as you waved it up, “Hey guys! We need to start looking for something similar to this! If not a replica.” Everyone huddled around you examining the doll before the microphone sounded, “One minute remaining.”

Everyone had immediately scrambled back to their hiding place as you ran to the red X, placing the poppet on it, that's the reason that had to be there right!? You’d just have to see, hurriedly you ran back to your spot under the bed. Making it just in time as the lights flickered off. 

The door slamming open once more as you slowly inhaled, it had to work right? If not...then you were at a loss for what to search for and you were utterly screwed. 

The boots stomped against the floor past the bed as you closed your eyes, unable to calm yourself. After a moment you heard a screech and something rip open before screams followed making you jump. Chishiya’s eyes were on the feet that stood by the closet that had been obviously ripped open. 

You heard the sound of something wet and a gurgle before a body slumped to the floor and you could hear begging before something got snapped in half causing you to close your eyes once more...Did you make it angry!? Was that not it? Fuck. You had never felt this stressed before as it roamed around, passing in front of your bed as you tensed.

Was this your last moment alive? Truly? 

Much to your relief, the door closed once more before the lights followed, flickering on, relaxing a little you sighed as you reluctantly got out from underneath the bed with Chishiya to see what had happened. Much to your horror it was the man who had been so kind this whole game and his partner. 

The monster didn’t check anywhere in the first round, yet he did this round? You tried to block out the bodies slumped in the corner as you glanced at the red X, the poppet doll gone. 

“Why- why were they killed!” Nanami’s eyes began to water as she grabbed her head, “This makes no sense!” 

“If it accepts the doll that means we only need two more. What happened to them is irrelevant.” Chishiya stuffed his hands back into his pocket as you glared at him sideways, not appreciating his careless tone. You could deal with it, but you didn’t want your sister dragged into it. 

Grabbing your chin you thought about it for a moment, “Well...the game said to return the monster to its own and…” You glance down at the X, was there some kind of unsaid rule that if you didn’t get all three of them on the first try that it would start hunting down players? “How would a mother feel if they only returned one of its children?” 

“This thing doesn’t have feelings,” The girlfriend of the partners replied coldly, her eyes like steel of her own as she clung to her boyfriend, “It’s as he said,” She waved to Chishiya, “It doesn’t matter, we’ll be like them if we don’t figure this out.” 

You glanced around the room, “Tell me this, if it doesn’t matter, then why did they give us all these different hiding spots?” Everyone was silent, all eyes on you as if your question didn’t make any sense, your eyes flickered to the clock that was nearing eight minutes, you didn’t have time to monologue, “No think about it. The monster never intended to look for us- that was never stated in the rules. So why did they give us all of these choices if we only needed one per pair? My point being, if we found one poppet in our hiding spot then...You get where I’m going with this? Chishiya.” 

He glanced up at you acknowledgement as you curved a brow, your lips threatening to tug into a smile as you tilted your head, “How confident are you in solving that vent?” 

He glanced back down and for the first time, you watch a cocky wide smirk twist onto his lips, “You’re lucky to have someone as smart as me here to be able to open it.” You tucked your tongue into your cheek as in annoyance as he sauntered over to the vent already getting to work, “As for everyone else, we need to open up as many of these as possible to find the other two.” 

Everyone immediately scrambled to get to work, with only seven minutes on the clock this was...going to be difficult. First Nanami and Akari searched all the opened spots as you worked on another bed. Rubbing your head as muttered, “Shit...I never was good with puzzles.” You awkwardly hung your head in defeat temporarily, briefly letting your eyes shift to Chishiya who was fiddling with several locks, his gaze sharp and you couldn’t even imagine all the calculations going on in his mind. You were somewhat envious of what it would be like to be that perceptive to anything adhering to logic and solution. 

“Aha! Found one!” Akari yanked the poppet from the top of the closest as Nanami covered her mouth, looking like she was gonna throw up being so close to so many dead bodies. You ignored the grisly sight at the second victory of the poppet doll. Akari quickly placed it on the X as you began to work on the puzzle once more, looking up at the clock. Oh no...Oh no there was only three minutes left!

“Chishiya! Hows that puzzle coming along.” You called out, trying not to sound alarmed but you could see the clear cut annoyance on his face as he continued working through the locks, “If you’d like to help while struggling on a novice lock feel free.” He replied condescendingly, not appreciating the pressure. 

You rolled your eyes with huff as you finally managed to get it undone, feeling triumphant as you searched under the bed but there was no luck, “There’s nothing here!”

“Or here!” 

Several people called out as well as you rubbed your head, standing up, “If the only other place that hasn’t been searched is the vent then maybe there’s only two? It did say a pair.” You felt a lump of anxiety well in your chest at the sight of the clock ticking close to a minute and half. 

“Should we really take the risk?” The boyfriend asked as he rubbed his neck, concern on his face as he looked around, “If we’re wrong then we’ll all…” 

You hadn’t even thought of that…

“...! Hey.” You turned to Chishiya who seemed to be trying to get your attention making you immediately come over, if he was asking for you it’d have to be for something important given there was nearly less then two minute on the clock, “Hold this right here.” He immediately pushed your hand onto the lock right where he wanted it, “This is a two handle mechanism meaning that there needs to be two people unlocking it. Push down and out at the same time.”

“Hide! Everyone needs to hide now!”

The lights were beginning to flicker as everyone scrambled to hide, stress evidently put on your shoulders now more than ever. You could only hope he was right with your life on the line, “Now!” You pushed down on your side, the lock sliding as you pulled out, pulling a piece of metal holding up the lock directly out as Chishiya did the same with his side. 

The lock fell off as well as the metal of the gate of the vent, you immediately with no hesitation leaned inside it was dark and hard to make it out anything besides the steep drop off. So he was right, this was a waste of time for a hiding place. 

Looking down you caught sight of wood before laughing in relief, “It’s here! Wait shit! Chishiya! It’s too far down in the vent, you’re gonna have to lower me down to reach it. Time?” 

“Forty five seconds.” You felt unfamiliar hands on your hips lifting you up as you were lowered down, “We have time.” 

You squinted trying to see as you reached down, “Lower me further! I’m not quite in reach,” Your muscles began to ache in your shoulder as you reached harder, growling in frustration, “Time!?” You were lowered a little further, the wooden poppet brushing against your fingers. 

“Thirty seconds! Could you go a little faster?” 

“Could you lower me a little quicker- Ah! Hey did you almost let go!?” You snarled back, grabbing the poppet doll, giving a good yank as it lodged in between the crevice it was in, “Get me back up! I got it. Time!” 

“Twenty seconds.” Chishiya called back, pulling you up as you gasped, pain from the metal jabbing into your stomach evident as you were met with a darkening room. Setting your feet firmly on the floor your eyes flew to the flock fifteen seconds and your spot was all the way across the room��.! 

“Where are we supposed to hide!? We can’t get all the way there in time!” You hissed out running to the X as you dropped the poppet down. The lights shut off as the final five seconds counted down and before you could do anything you were shoved to the floor as you squeaked. Your body throbbing in pain and your mouth immediately covered as you were met with the coverage of a bed but neither one of you were bold enough to try and scramble beneath it as the doors slammed open. 

Fuck.

Your whole body was tense as your eyes squeezed shut, you were just a little ahead of the X here, if this is all the poppet dolls...they’d have no reason to go further into the room...unless...Your hand squeezed tight around the wrist of the hand that covered your mouth as you tried to calm yourself at the loud thudded footsteps. 

It was quiet for a moment before you heard more walking before the doors closed. 

“Game Cleared”

The lights turned on as you fell limp against the side of the bed, Chishiya’s hand removed from mouth as you pushed your hair from your face, closing your eyes as you breathed in relief, “Holy shit.” Was all you could mutter to yourself, you had never been more grateful to breathe air in your whole life. 

“I guess you weren’t that useless after all huh.” Chishiya clacked his tongue as you turned your head to look at him, raising your brows as your face contorted into something between insult and amusement. 

You’ve only known this man for a half an hour and yet...something about his words, if you dug down deep past that smug expression of his, was this a compliment? Looking away you pressed your tongue into your cheek, trying to keep from smiling, “Yeah, and you’re still conceited and arrogant but, I guess you have a good reason to be.” You glanced back at him again but you could hardly hold his gaze, something in that brief moment was electrified between you both as you laughed somewhat sheepishly, closing your eyes as you looked away once more. 

What the fuck was even wrong with you? If this was back before today you would’ve totally kicked this guy in the balls and went about your day.

“Y/n!” You straightened up at the sound of Nanami’s voice, your expression brightening as you stood up, quickly running to her as you hugged her tight, “I can’t believe that just happened…” She whispered to you as she pressed her face into your neck. You couldn’t either but, you were thankful you had survived this game. Whatever it was. 

“Come on, let's get out of this room.” You tugged on her arm, no longer wanting to be in this death room despite knowing it was all over. Pulling her out you paused at the sight of the TV and a...register…? You bracelet unlocked as you took it off, tossing it on the table as you tilted your head. 

“Congratulations Game ''Clear ``.''

“...Now issuing visas to those who survived the game…?” You furrowed your brows as you glanced at Nanami who rubbed her head in confusion. You grabbed the receipt as you looked it over with a frown before picking up the 5 of clubs playing card along with it. Odd. 

“It’s how many days you’re allowed to stay now! Almost a whole week, that's a good score for a first game!” Akari called out as she patted your back making you jump a little. 

Almost a whole week…”Until we have to play again to...continue our stay?” You raised a brow, deciding not to ask what happens if you refused. While you had many questions, you had a feeling you knew the answer to that one. 

A part of you couldn’t even believe this had happened, or was it all still a dream. 

“Hey…! Sorry for all of that in there,” You turned to see...oh…! It was the boyfriend of the partner, the gifrlfriend stayed behind looking brooding, “I’m Ryu and that’s my girlfriend Hiroko I was...ah…” He faltered a little, rubbing the back of his neck as his gaze flittered to his girlfriend who was glaring him down, “You should stop by the Beach- I...I think you guys would make good additions! Bye!” He hurried not even finishing his original sentence before scurrying off making you furrow your brows at what he even meant. 

“The hell?” Akari raised a brow as she watched the guy run off, “Seems to me he wanted to chat more…guess we know who's really pulling balls in that relationship.” 

Nanami suddenly snickered, covering her mouth as she giggled, “Hey Akari! Why don’t we stay together! We did really well in the game together!” 

“Awh shit, if you guys really want me too!” Akari offered a quirky smile as you laughed, you had no problems with someone staying behind with you. Looking past Akari your smile faded a little at the sight of a white hoodie exiting the entrance. 

“Hey- I’ll be right back!” You pushed past the both of them who paid you no mind as you pushed out of the exit and down the stone steps, not sure why your feet were making you chase after such an egotistical man but…!

“Chishiya!” You called out, making the man pause, he turned around, pulling the earbuds out as he glanced up from his hoodie, raising his brows in acknowledgement, “Um…” Why did you even chase after him…? You stepped down the last step as you wrapped your arms around yourself. 

It was silent for a moment as you berated yourself internally for why you seemed so speechless all of a sudden. Chishiya however didn’t seem to mind, his eyes absent now as he stared up at the hospital, “I used to do my clinical rotations here.” 

You were broken out of your silent thrashing of internal humiliation as you raised your brows, lips parting in curiosity as you asked, “You were a doctor?” 

“No,” Chishiya snorted, that amused calico look of his on his face once more as he looked down at you, “I was a medical student. Training to be a doctor but that obviously didn’t happen…” His lips curved into a frown, his eyes cold once more as they looked back up at the building, “I came here tonight to see if anyone I knew would be here.” 

“Oh…” You looked away, feeling somewhat awkward and unsure of how to reply to him as silence took over once more beside the occasional rustling of the wind in the tree’s, the urge to speak overtaking you to the point you couldn't resist, “Chishiya...I…” You looked away, feeling somewhat bashful, “We...made a really good team back there.” You forced yourself to look up at him as you offered a bright yet subtly shy smile, “If you want...you could stay with us…?” 

Chishiya pulled the lollipop stick from his mouth, letting it drop to the ground as he spoke, “No thanks.” You turned to him in surprise as you frowned a little, you shouldn’t have expected anything less…

“Oh...I understand.” You offered a weak smile as he turned his back on you and began to walk once more, “I just have one more question,” You called out causing him to pause, “...Do you by any chance know about a place called the Beach?”

Note: Whew...! As a lurker in the Alice in borderland fandom I saw a lot of people complaining about the lack of Chishiya fics so I decided to volunteer myself and take on for the team to write a series for this little blonde fucker so PLEASE let me know your thoughts and I hope you enjoy!! Also

[that-was-anticlimactic]

sk8 headcanons because i am Bored

autistic langa likes frozen fruit a lot—strawberries are his favorite—because he likes the cool texture

reki has lip freckles that really stand out after he’s been in the sun a lot ! there’s like four or five of them :)

just thinking about “all those friday nights / under the lights / under the bleachers together / you and i were meant to be something more than a faded memory / till you and i / something divided us” but matchablossom,,,

“but i’ve already lost it once / what i already won / i’ve lost too much now to care / but i know that something’s still there” ,,, matchablossom,,, ahhhhh

miya and shadow being besties,,, shadow being miya’s parental figure and miya being his adopted nb child,,,

shadow being the first person miya comes out as nonbinary to,,,

adam going to jail,,,

reki having a stuffed animal collection and letting miya name some and then realizing that miya never had a stuffed animal growing up so reki gives miya one of his older ones that he loved as a child and then buys them a new one too… and miya asks reki to name it for them because sentiments,,,

after seeing the girl he had a crush on kiss someone else, shadow takes out his feelings on the only thing he knows how to—skating at s but he’s not in a good mind and he feels sick because he thought he thought he thought he had a chance and he doesn’t pay close enough attention and gets hurt and miya calls him an idiot and patches him up and shadow feels like a kid again but it’s kind of nice to have someone else actually help with his wounds instead of just attempting to wash them and then cover them with makeup by himself,,,

joe and shadow bonding over hating the feeling of loneliness so they make up for it the only way they know how which is being loud and being extra because they don’t feel as lonely if they’re loud

reki, miya, and cherry = adhd club

cherry and reki drawing together… and reki teaching cherry how to be more loose and carefree when he draws and cherry teaching reki how to add more structure to his art,,,

langa stealing and wearing reki’s headbands,,,

langa with glasses

reki’s sisters doing cherry and joe’s hair,,, or even reki, langa, and miya doing their hair and shadow just watches and takes pictures and reki puts cherry’s hair in fishtails because he had practice with his sisters and cherry secretly likes it (and so does joe) and miya and langa just. completely messing up joe’s hair and putting hair clips in it and langa attempts a ponytail kind of like how cherry does his hair at s (and no cherry did Not find it very attractive shut up)

shadow being a scrapbooker and having like ten scrapbooks from his life,,,

shadow not being as good of an artist as cherry or reki but he does it because he enjoys it and when cherry and reki find out they invite him to draw with them

the crew / sk8 fam all going to shadow’s house and doing a couple scrapbook pages together and it’s a mess but it’s them and it’s one of shadow’s favorite pages because he’s never scrapbooked with anyone before

langa is just naturally beautiful and photogenic so the art squad always asks him to model for them if they want to draw people

joe has depression because i want him to

and shadow has anxiety

because i do Not want any of them to be neurotypical

yeah so joe has depression, shadow has anxiety, cherry has add and anxiety, miya had adhd and separation anxiety, langa is autistic, reki has tourette’s and adhd and depression ✌🏻

when miya gets old enough, shadow gets them a part time job at the flower shop

miya likes a lot of pillows

langa sleeps with no pillows (unless reki is partially his pillow)

thinking about after reki’s second beef with adam,,, joe after he tells adam off and they’re away from the crowd, he passes out because let’s be real—there is absolutely no way he didn’t get injured and the worse one is probably a broken nose and a huge gash at the back of his head with like skin peeling and stuff like need stitches so the gang all goes to cherry’s and they help patch reki up

somewhere in that time the love hotel gets brought up and by extension getting hit by the car and getting beat up and joe and shadow are on the verge of slamming their heads against the wall at reki’s nonchalantness

and reki’s p injured so he’s laying in the couch with his head resting in langa’s lap,,,

joe tells everyone embarrassing cherry stories from school like all the time (but joe was a foolish child so cherry gets revenge)

miya likes crime documentaries

joe unironically watched supernatural and that’s part of the reason why he and cherry broke up

(maybe joe just thought dean was attractive—sue him!)

lol wait what if cherry sued adam to pay for reki’s medical bills since they inevitably had to take him to the hospital

cherry constantly tells joe that he will sue him

joe may unironically watched spn, but cherry unironically watched glee

langa wrote destiel fanfiction once upon a time

langa wrote cas bakes dean a pie--

miya is carla’s favorite (after cherry)

cherry and langa with weighted blankets also

sometimes reki steals langa’s but only if he stays the night or langa brings it over and usually if he “steals” it, it’s them sharing it or reki needs the comfort of the weight if he’s not having a good time mentally lol

joe with depression,,, i just think about that a lot sometimes,,, sometimes cooking feels meaningless and, like langa, he only feels something when he skates but it’s only this temporary feeling of joy and life,,,

and shadow with anxiety,,, over-compensating his anxiety by being shadow at night and being over the top and sometimes mean because internalized ableism,,, and if he pretends he doesn’t have anxiety then maybe he won’t feel it late at night or when everything seems to go wrong during a shift at work and he keeps dropping flowers because his hands are shaking and girls don’t like guys with anxiety, right ??? so shadow thinks that he CAN’T have anxiety :/// poor dude

miya with separation anxiety pushing people away before they get attached because if they push them away before they become friends, then they wouldn’t be able to leave them,,,

langa always bouncing his foot in class and all the time because it’s his main form of stimming (look at that boy and try to tell me he doesn’t bounce his legs like there’s no tomorrow i dare you) and sometimes it makes his legs sore and cherry and joe once recommended using a heating pad if it got really sore and langa does sometimes and it makes him happy

reki with ts having anxiety when he has to speak in front of the class / do presentations because he’s hyper-aware of his tics,,, so he always meets langa’s eyes and watches langa the whole time and langa sometimes mimes taking deep breaths which really helps but honestly just seeing langa makes reki feel like he can do anything (because he would do anything for langa)

cherry doodling to stim as a child and always getting in trouble for it because teachers used to like get pissed when students doodled (or maybe they still do and it’s just always been pissy teachers and not specifically teachers when our parents were kids) and eventually cherry got fed up with getting points docked for doodling so he started writing lists and stuff and been realized he had impeccable handwriting (also joe let cherry doodle on his hand during classes they had together so cherry wouldn’t get in trouble)

cherry once had a dream that he was rachel berry and joe was finn uhh *insert last name here* from glee and joe had a beautiful voice when they sang duets in his dream so he managed to convince joe to sing in reality and turns out joe cannot sing and cherry’s glee dreams were never the same (look i am tired lol)

joe likes being the strong one in the group and he enjoys being able to mess around / show off by just casually picking people up (he also does it as an expression of love because they’re basically hugs depending on how he holds you) and one day cherry is like… done with it ??? and just strolls up to joe and just throws him over his shoulder or something and joe combusts because he did Not know cherry can do that and no his face isn’t red shut up he doesn’t find this attractive what’re you talking about

miya wants a sword and keeps trying to convince everyone to get them one for their birthday but no one will agree because ‘they’ll hurt themselves and everyone else it does not matter that all your favorite characters have swords that does not mean You should have one’

langa is the kind of person that puts peanut butter on a cheeseburger

reki’s love language is a mix of gift giving and acts of service, but he tends to lean more towards giving gifts. his receiving love language is words of affirmation but he does Not know that yet (langa does—hence his constant “you’re amazing, reki”—and eventually so does the rest of their gang lol)

shadow likes theatre

miya has internet friends,,, so does cherry,,,

joe posts those affirmations on his story all the time

reki’s texts are sometime hard to read because a) his hands get injured a lot and b) tourette’s but langa (and soon the others) learn how to read reki texts

langa sleeps with a fan on for white noise

shadow was worried (and feeling a little left out but if he doesn’t acknowledge it, then that emotion is not real… that’s how that works, right???) since he was in the hospital when reki skated against adam the second time, so when they all went back to cherry’s to tend to reki’s numerous wounds and also celebrate friendship, miya kept shadow on a face time call the entire evening

langa has an android phone

reki is super comfortable with periods because he lives with five girls—he also usually has a couple of pads and tampons on him at all times because he’s the older sibling lol

langa wears socks with sandals,,, so does shadow,,,

shadow’s feet get cold easily so he wears fluffy socks a lot

cherry keeps his fingernails at the perfect length to dramatically tap them against the table (also to freak people out by doing that)

miya is Not a morning person

miya also likes having the windows to shadow’s car rolled up because their hair gets in their face otherwise but shadow likes them down so it’s this constant struggle

i still stand by cherry suing ad*m and using the money he won to pay for reki’s medical bills (… and shadow’s… and langa’s if he needs any)

i just feel like many people have reason to sue ad*m

ponytail langa rights

joe had really bad acne as a child and teen and cherry helped him feel less self-conscious about it and helped him embrace having acne and that’s one reason why he exposes so much skin as joe because it’s a reminder of personal growth <3

also joe has acne scars on his chin and cheeks

joe has cherry’s calligraphy all over his walls

ik i already said so in reki with ts headcanons but he doodles pictures for everyone in the sk8 fam and they all keep each and every one and shadow even puts them in his scrapbook

let langa punch adam 2k21

let reki punch adam 2k21

actually they All deserve to punch adam 2k21

miya’s favorite movie is coraline

langa can’t snap his fingers

joe and cherry always argue over whether even numbers or odd numbers are best

miya does esports

joe was in marching band and was in drumline

cherry stays up late to look at the stars and he had those plastic stars taped to his ceiling as a child

reki eats tomatoes like apples and it makes joe want to cry

okay if the atla & and the sk8 characters became internet friends… these are who i think they’d be internet friends with…

cherry: katara

joe: suki

langa: sokka

miya: aang

reki: zuko

shadow: toph

note: suki, joe, miya, and aang are all actually besties. aang is the kind of person that would usually annoy miya but they just can’t dislike aang no matter how much he may want to and they somehow find themselves attached

but suki and miya would also get along really well because I know they would and aang and joe would just have fun and like it’s what they deserve so they are interchangeable / all besties

also sk8 characters if they were benders...

cherry: fire or waterbender,,, cannot decide

joe: earthbender

langa: waterbender

miya: firebender

reki: resident nonbender

shadow: earthbender

[spinster-sisters]

Asshole. CS

TW: Dom! san, Sub! reader, Pillow humping, stepping, generally very derogatory and lowkey rude, possessiveness. Im gonna put this here cuz i dont know where else to but this is not an example of a healthy relationship, no it is toxic or abusive, it is implied that they are just two very different people who shouldnt be together.

Your relationship with San wasn't a good one. From the moment you two got together you have been arguing about every little thing, and while the good moments were absolutely perfect the bad was far worse. Many of your friends were surprised you were still together. But despite all the fighting and miscommunications, San was still the only man you could look at, and that was infuriating.

Honestly, the two of you had tried to break up multiple times, but each period wouldn't last more than a week, because nobody else knew you like the other. So inevitably you would find your way back to each other.

Tonight was one of the bad nights. Your mutual friend Yunho was throwing a huge party at his apartment. The trouble had started before you even arrived. The plan was to get ready at San's place at ride over together, but at the last moment, you had decided to get ready at your own home, simply because San always rushed you. You figured that this way he could leave whenever he was ready and so could you. However, San did not see it that way.

You had just stood up from your vanity, having just finished applying your makeup, but a text alert brought you back down to sit.

"Your impossible" was all it said. This made you scoff. It was from your boyfriend. San had always told you that you were too indecisive and flaky, that he never knew what you wanted and it made it impossible to please you. It was probably true, but he was not without faults himself so you still found it annoying.

You chose to leave him on read before making your way over to the party. You were still simmering with annoyance over his attitude while you drove. Eventually, you landed at Yunho's building. You don't know exactly how your friend was able to afford the place as it was pretty big for only him and his roommate, but it certainly allowed for fun gatherings.

You were buzzed up and not too long after you were at Yuhno's door. Only seconds after knocking, you could hear the music and talk from outside, the door swung open to reveal the tall man.

"Hey!" Yunho cried, pulling you in by your arm. Yunho rarely drank more than one or two beers at his party so he could keep everyone in line, so it wasn't a surprise when you found him still completely sober.

"I almost thought you weren't going to make it!" The tall man spoke swinging and arm over your shoulder for a side hug. You smiled into it.

"Yeah sorry, I was running a bit behind," was all you said.

"When San showed up without you I thought you had canceled," your friend spoke while pulling away from the hug.

"Yeah, well plans change" you replied. You had thought you hid the contempt well enough but Yunho knew you too well. He gave you a questioning look but you changed the subject.

"Where is he anyway? You asked. Yunho only pointed into the living room. Your mood only darkened. There were tons of people but you could still see your boyfriend clear as day sitting on the couch with at least three girls hanging off of him. This was one of your problems with San. No, he had never cheated on you, if they tried to kiss him he would push them away, if they made a suggestive comment he would brush them off, but of they flirted with him? He ate that shit up. He said that it shouldn't matter because at the end of the day your the one who gets to fuck him, but the fact he would just sit there and let them feed his ego was pissy as all hell.

You frowned deeply, not even trying to hide this one, and turned the opposite direction into the kitchen for a drink. You could feel the judgment coming of Yunho in waves, but he said nothing. When you reached the kitchen you found the first bottle of whatever and poured yourself a tall glass of whatever. You weren't about to let your boyfriend ruin your night, even after he ruined your mood. So you opted to ignore him all night.

It had been a while. After you finished your drink and allowed it to take effect you moved back into the pandemonium that was the living room. Here was the source of the music and the majority of the talking. You danced lazily to the music, not paying any attention to anyone just allowing yourself to unwind. The pounding base felt nice in your head and along with the buzz of the alcohol you were more than content.

Soon an arm slipped around your shoulders again. This time it was Mingi. Yunho's roommate. You weren't as close to him as Yunho but you could easily call him a friend.

"What's up?" You called over the music, stepping out of the dancing bodies to talk.

"Just coming to say hi, where's san?" He asked taking a little look around.

"Don't know don't care" you replied leaning against the wall. Mingi laughed a little.

"You two at it again?" He questioned with a quirk of the brow. You returned the laugh.

"Call it whatever you want, I don't want to talk to him tonight," Mingi sighed with a smile.

"You two are impossible," Mingi walked away after finishing his comment but his choice of words soured your mood again. You dared to look around for San. Once you found him it made it worse.

It seems like two of the girls had lost hope because the last one remaining was laying it on thick. She was sitting so close their legs were pressed together and her hand was dragging up and down his arm.

You scoffed and turned away before a thought hit you. If he was able to entertain other people then why can't you? With that idea in mind, you set out to find a cute boy to mess with.

It wasn't hard, within minutes of putting yourself out there a guy who clearly wasn't close enough with anyone here to know your situation had approached you in the hallway on your way to fill up your drink.

You both stood in the hallway against the wall for a bit, he was hopelessly eager so flirting with him was a breeze. Slowly you made your way into the living room once again and made yourself comfy with the new boy. No, you weren't as obvious as the girl hanging off your boyfriend, you were too good for that, but it was clearly enough to have him hanging on your every word. At some point, you glanced up and made eye contact with Yunho who only threw you a curious look but you only winked at went back to your nameless boy.

You spoke for a bit longer, playing into him as much as possible as he showered you with compliments. You were happily basking in the praise when a sudden presence made itself know in front of you. You turned, and low and behold, it was San.

His perfect features were screwed into a glare fixated on both you and the boy. You almost let your giggle show when you look behind his perfectly shaped body to see the girl he had been entertaining looking lost and confused exactly where he left her on the couch.

Your satisfied smirk must have shown on your face however because soon your boyfriend's cold fingers wrapped around your chin hold your chin up to face him. He crouched down so you two were eye level.

"You think this is funny?" He asked in a dangerous tone. He only used this voice when he meant business but tonight you were standing your ground.

"Very funny," you replied, managing to hold your smirk even with his hand clamped on your cheeks.

"What the fuck man? Let her go," the boy finial voiced only after recovering from the shock of the scene before him. He reached out to pull Sans hand away before you stopped him.

"You can leave now," you said, not looking away from San. (not like you could) but still very clearly talking to the boy. You could hear the confusion in the silence. Before he spoke again.

"Wait what?" He asked stupidly.

"You can go, I'm done with you for now," you spoke.

"Wait this is crazy what are you-"

This time San in all his severe and intimidating glory turned to the boy and cut him off.

"Hey dick head, I think my girlfriend told you to leave us alone." He spoke with an edge. Having finally got the message the boy got up and left. And San's piercing gaze returned to you again, his hand finally dropping to let his forearm resting on his knee.

"So I'm your girlfriend now?" You asked with contempt. Crossing your arms, and swinging one leg over the other.

"Oh shut up" San replied scoffing.

"I'm just wondering if you told those girls that, that you have a girlfriend. Or maybe it's that you did but they just didn't care because clearly, you enjoyed all the attention they were giving you" the words rattled out of you in quick succession.

"Clearly you're broken up about it. Throwing yourself at any guy who will give you the time of day," he spits back, "if I remember correctly you were the one who didn't want to come together as a couple," he reminded in a scathing tone.

"Only because you are a controlling asshole," you spat back equally as resentful.

"And you're a paranoid drama queen I guess we all have our problems." He shot back. Eyes narrowing even more.

"Well maybe if you have such a problem with it I should go find that guy and fuck him. If I am so annoying then how about I go be someone else's problem!" you almost screamed at him beath heaving slightly when you finished. San stared at you unreadable for a moment.

He stood abruptly, taking you roughly by the arm and pulling you to your feet. He wordlessly dragged you through the crowd.

"San what the fuck let go!" You tried to pull free but failed. Moments later san had dragged you into Yunho's room and slammed it shut before locking it. Your boyfriend turned to you with eyes darker than you had ever seen.

"Never fucking say that again." He spoke dangerously calm. He took two quick steps twords you before slamming his lips onto yours. You reacted quickly, returning the kiss with as much anger as you could. Yeah, you wanted him to fuck you, but you weren't about to let him forget how pissed off you were.

In moments your dress had been pulled over your head and you were pushed onto the bed and Sans body trapped you there. He reconnected your lips. Your kiss was anything but sweet, your teeth were clacking and your lips were swollen. San pulled back once or twice to bite at your bottom lip and pull before it snapped back into place. His hand wound its way into the roots of your hair and yanked.

With your head now pulled away and a dull ache radiated out from your head you groaned and rolled your hips into his feeling him harden through your underwear.

"Your such a needy slut." he spoke with venom while nipping and sucking at your neck, determined to leave as many visible marks as possible.

"Like you aren't?" You scoffed running your nails down his forearms, leaving your own mark on him.

"Shut the fuck up. Do I need to remind you whos in charge here?" He punctuated this with a particularly hard bite on your shoulder. You winced.

"No, I can tell there's no need. I just need to remind you whos slut you are don't I?" He asked in a patronizing tone. "Because your all mine baby, and I am not going to let you forget it."

In a moment he flipped your bodies over and pushed you off him to stand on your own feet in front of where he sat on the bed. You stumbled a little in the process and had to brace yourself on his shoulders. He looked at you unimpressed.

Your arms crossed and your brow furrowed.

"Strip" he commanded easily. You were only in your bra and panties but clearly this was too much for his fully clothed self. You glared.

"You first," you said indignantly. After a beat and a long stare San's hand shot out and clenched your ass hard. You couldn't help the yelp that escaped you.

"Unless you want me to spank you so hard your ass turns purple you should start undressing." He let go of you.

You knew he would keep to that promise so you slowly began to unhook your bra.

"Don't keep me waiting" he spoke in a warning.

You pulled the garment off your shoulders and slid your panties down.

"Finally you learned how to behave" he spoke with indignation. You humpfted unhappily.

"Does my slut, want me to touch her?"

"I think that much is clear," you mumbled.

"Speak up," he demanded.

"Yes!" You groaned. He glared at you for a moment.

"I don't think you deserve it," he replied. Instead, he reached behind himself and grabbed one of Yunho's pillows, and tossed it at your feet.

"You want to get off? Use that." Your stomach filled with dread.

"There is no way I'm doing that," you said, trying to convince yourself as much as him.

"Then I guess your not cumming tonight" he spoke flatly, staring you down. You stared at him in disbelief.

"Go on," he insisted. You felt your resolve slip as the ache in your core grew. Slowly but surely you knelt down and straddled the pillow. In the moments you sat down you were already dreading this. It was far too soft and smooth to gain any kind of fiction without some serious work. You already felt humiliated without having done anything yet.

"Look at me," San directed from the bed. Your pink face turned to look at him. He looked damn good as always, practically glowing in the bedroom haze. You couldn't help but clench the plush between your thighs. One more expectant look from San made you move.

After the first drag of your pussy against the pillow you almost cried at the lack of sensation. It was unfair how little feeling you got from it. But in San's eyes, you could see that that was exactly what he was looking for, the desperation.

You began moving your hips again. You were rutting your pussy against the pillow as fast as you could chasing the tiny bit of relief that came each time. You were already panting from all the work, grunting each time your clit dragged against the too soft fabric.

Slowly the pleasure was starting to build and you could feel the wetness pouring out of you dampening the cushion bellow you. Now that it was wet the material was a bit rougher so you got a little more of the friction you desired. Your eyes meet your boyfriend's dark gaze.

"Not so big now are you? Humping a pillow just because I told you to. Acting like my good little slut. Whose slut are you?" The filth spewed out of Sans mouth leaving you breathless, you were hesitant to admit defeat so you stayed silent. After a beat, Sans boot lifted from where it was planted on the carpet and dug into your thigh dangerously close to your sopping pussy. You whined as he stilled your movements. He pushed you down by your thigh keeping you immobilized on the pillow.

"I said, who's slut are you?" He asked in the sickest sweetest voice, leaning down slightly forcing the eye contact you wanted to break. When his boot dug even harder into you, stinging in the process you finally felt your resolve crumble.

"I'm your slut," you said barely above a whisper.

"Didn't quite catch that babe," he encouraged.

"I'm your slut," the words came out much more forceful this time to the point you almost shouted it. As soon as they were out of your mouth you burned in shame, looking away from the growing smirk on his face.

"All mine," the words slipped out almost absentmindedly. He reached out at cupped your burning cheeks and titled your head up.

"Come here baby,"

You obeyed him eagerly. Your hips ached a bit from the exertion but you stood perfectly still and waiting in front of him. San eyed your body up and down, reaching out to feel up every inch of you. He took special care to play with your thighs, messaging them in his strong hands for a moment. You keened happily in his touch, letting him play with you however he wanted. It helped some to ease the burn but that wasn't his goal. His hand slipped between your legs and slid between your folds.

You realized a shaky moan in response, almost jumping away as you were still so sensitive. But you stayed put.

"My little slut is being so good, letting me toy with her pussy like this." He cooed at you, fueling your blushing face. His finger ran up and down your most sensitive area sometimes stopping to pinch your clit or cup your heat entirely, but never slip inside. That he was avoiding. You felt so empty knowing he was right there, so close to filling you up but still not doing it.

You whined wantonly.

"What's wrong sweetheart," he smirks at you.

"San, please fill me up?" You begged.

"My baby wants to get fucked like a slut?" He asks, one finger prodding your hole but still not entering. You cried out in desperation.

"Yes! Yes please!"

"OK baby," he finally replied in a soothing tone, but the retracting hand made you quiver, you were so needy but you had yet to be given any kind of release and it was killing you.

"Hands and knees, baby"

You scrabbled onto the bed to do as you were told, presenting your ass to him as well as you could with a slight arch to your back. You could hear his low chuckle behind you. You felt him stand up momentarily and heard the familiar sound of a belt buckle to show he was finally undressing. You wanted to look at him so bad but you didn't want to take even the slightest risk right now.

Finally, he climbed onto the bed behind you, cupping your ass tenderly in both hands with a small squeeze.

"So pretty, and it's all mine" you heard him speak. You mumbled in agreement with a nod. You breathed heavily in anticipation, waiting to finally feel something.

In one unexpected movement, San sheathed his cock into you. Your cries were so loud you were sure they could be heard over the pending music in the next room, but you didn't care. It felt so nice to be full.

San was never one for preamble so it only took a moment for him to start to pound his cock into you at an inhuman pace. The sound of the music was now being completely drowned out by the cries from you, the grunts from San, the slapping skin, and the obscene wet sound coming from your pussy.

San knew his way around your body so well, it only took a moment for him to find that special spot inside you that had you spiraling, your front half collapsed onto the bed, muffling the sounds coming out of you. It only lasted a second though before a rough grip took hold on the back of your head. San yanked you up by your hair keeping your mouth free to spew filth.

The pain in your scalp returned as your boyfriend leaned down to whisper in your ear through his own panting breath, still nailing into your hole.

"Don't you dare, keep your head up and let them hear just how much of a slut you are for me." He spoke deadly serious. Your reply was a loud cry of his name that echoed around the room.

His focus returned to fucking you to tears, which is about where you were as you felt the first pricks of wetness in the corners of your eyes.

San was speaking again,

"Whos are you baby? Tell me who is it that's fucking you this good?" He practically shouted the words at you, his cock was sliding deliciously in and out so quickly that before you could even register his pull out he was slamming back in dragging your walls as he went pulling even more wetness out with each thrust. Your eyes were rolling back but you answered somewhat absently.

"Yours San, all yours" after the words left your mouth the first time you couldn't seem to stop, constantly spewing the word "yours" over and over again. San began repeating his reply as well with a little more force,

"All mine."

San removed his hand from your hair but you kept your head up however difficult it was when he was fucking you like that. Instead, both of your boyfriend's hands took hold of your waist, and with this newfound grip, he was pulling you back to meet his thrusts. Each push now had even more force behind it and you could feel your release fast approaching.

"San-" you tried to speak but lost the words in your mouth.

"I know baby, my little cockslut is going to cum all over me isn't she?" You cried out your affirmation when your words failed you.

"Go ahead sweetheart, cum while a fill your pussy up even more."

You finally came and came hard. It was by the will of God you kept yourself upright as your orgasm washed over you, especially with San still keeping pace although it began faltering as his orgasm crashed around him. You felt the sticky cum shoot into you in ropes coating your inner walls, making your orgasm even more fulfilling.

After a moment San stops moving. You could feel him begin to soften inside you but you were still clenching hopelessly against him. Your arms finally gave way and you came crashing down. San kneeled above you catching his breath before falling onto the bed beside you. He dared to pull you close to observe your face.

A sudden smirk arose on his perfect features.

"I won,"

"You asswipe."

[fruitcoops]

Remus gets injured in a game. I have literally read everything you have written but i'm not sure if you have wrote one like this. If you have, ANOTHER PLZZ

Hello anon! I wove this together with a couple different prompts, listed below:

1. Coops argument

2. Prompt 21: “You need to eat something”

3. Remus gets in a fight with Snape

4. Protective Sirius

5. Coops going home grumpy after losing a game (see link)

Sweater Weather credit goes to @lumosinlove! TW for fights, blood, bruises, arguments, and someone getting called a wh*re

Snape’s cheek gave easily beneath Remus’ fist, which was a tad bit surprising. He wrapped his other hand in the neckline of his jersey, yanking him back in to land another punch to the side of his head—that would leave a nasty bruise in the morning. Stars sparkled in his vision as Snape got a lucky shot in and he doubled down, ignoring the thin line of pain that trickled down his chin.

“Break it up, boys, that’s enough!” The referee’s whistle blew as he and another pried Remus’ hands off Snape’s jersey; someone took him by the shoulders and pushed him away from the fight. Pots.

“Say it again!” Remus shouted at Snape as the refs and their teammates continued pulling them apart. “Say it again and I’ll knock your fucking teeth in!”

James’ hold on him faltered for a second as another person skated over and tried to join the melee. “Cap, no!”

“Move, Pots.”

“Loops won the fight, it’s done. Let’s just keep playing.” James shoved both their chests hard enough to send them back a few inches, but Remus’ blood boiled as he ground his mouthguard between his teeth. He glanced up at the clock—3:16 left in the third, Snakes up by two. Their win was almost guaranteed and Snape was still pulling this bullshit.

He skated quickly over to the bench and mumbled his thanks to Hestia as she pressed some gauze to his lip and ice to his cheek. “Lupin, you’re in for the rest of the game,” Coach Weasley said, tapping him on the arm with his playboard. “Anything broken?”

“No, Coach.”

“Then get your ass back out on the ice and score some points. We need some speed.”

He could feel the fury rolling off Sirius as they wove through the Snakes’ defense, shooting again and again to no avail. Frustration built up in every nerve—he was worried about the win, of course, but mostly he was pissed. Pissed at Snape, pissed at James for pushing him, and pissed at Sirius for butting into the fight.

Remus scored a final goal just as the buzzer sounded. Hissing filled the stadium, even though it was a home game. Snape smirked at him as he skated past and the only thing keeping him from dragging him right back in by his greasy hair was the possible suspension.

The shower was cold, because of course the fucking shower was cold. Remus shoved his stuff in his duffel and waited outside the locker room, silently fist bumping the guys as they left. God, he hated losing games. It was inevitable, but it always felt shitty.

“How’s the lip?” Sirius asked when he finally came out, bag slung over his shoulder.

“Fine. What the fuck was that?”

“What was what?”

“You butted into my fight. Nobody asked you to.”

Sirius’ eyebrows rose. “Re, he called you—”

“Yeah, I know what he called me,” Remus snapped, practically slamming the door to the parking lot closed. “I was there.”

The only reason you’re on this team is because you’re the captain’s whore, Snape had sneered. He bit the inside of his cheek as his anger flared at the memory. “I was just trying to help,” Sirius grumbled.

“Well, you didn’t. You proved his fucking point.”

“I didn’t prove shit!” Sirius scoffed as they got in the car. Immediately, Remus felt claustrophobic.

“I had it handled, Sirius!”

“You’re still bleeding!”

Remus ran his tongue along his lip—sure enough, the salty tang of blood filled his mouth. He swore under his breath and held his sleeve to his lip; his cheekbone throbbed and he knew it would be swollen in mere hours.

“Here.”

“I don’t need that.”

“You’d rather stain your sleeve than accept a tissue from me?”

“It’s a black sweatshirt, it’s fine.” Sirius muttered something. “Care to share with the class?”

Sirius sighed as he turned off the freeway. “I said it was your idea to keep these here in the first place. I don’t know why you’re being all pissy with me. We’ve lost games before.”

“I’m pissed because you don’t think I can handle myself in a fight.”

Sirius took his eyes off the road for a half second in shock. “Excuse me? Why do you think that?”

“I just told you!” Remus said, exasperated. “Snape was being a dick, so I punched him. I didn’t need your hero complex to swoop in and save the day.”

“Re, I didn’t even get a hand on him. Pots—”

“Oh, I’m pissed at him as well,” Remus snorted, staring out the passenger window at the blurry lights against the dark. “If someone calls me a whore, I’d rather get the message across that they can’t do it again.”

“Would you rather have gotten a penalty?”

“Yes.”

“That is unbelievably selfish.”

Remus laughed without humor. “Y’know, it’s really funny that you’ve never had this conversation with Logan, the king of the penalty box. Is it because he’s not a delicate flower like me?”

“Wh—” Sirius clenched his jaw and took a deep breath. “I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about, Remus. I have never seen you as a—a delicate flower. For your information, I have chewed Logan out on multiple occasions.”

Remus gritted his teeth and trained his gaze firmly out the window. He heard Sirius sigh next to him and it took every ounce of willpower to keep his composure. The next ten minutes were dead silent and deeply uncomfortable, which was a rarity with them; even after losses, they would talk through the errors or try to lighten the mood.

Both of them closed their doors a little harder than necessary when they got to the house and Hattie trotted over hesitantly when they came inside. “Hey, Hatters,” Remus murmured, crouching down to her level and holding a hand out. She licked his cheek and let him bury his face in her thick fur—Sirius scratched her ears as he walked past. “Did you have a good time while we were out? Huh, baby girl?” He looked up and saw the tail end of Sirius’ eye roll. “What?”

“Nothing.”

“Don’t bullshit me, Sirius, it doesn’t work. I’m giving the dog a hug because I’m still pissed at you.”

“There is literally no good reason for you to be pissed at me!” Sirius finally said, tossing his keys into the bowl by the door. “Holy shit, Re, I don’t even think you’re mad at me!”

“Oh, yeah? Then who am I mad at, oh great and wise captain?” Remus practically spat, shouldering past him into the kitchen and wrenching a cabinet open. “Please enlighten me.”

“I wish I knew!”

Remus slammed the bread down on the counter and glared at him. “Then maybe you should shut the fuck up if you don’t have anything to support your claim.”

“Acting like this is a goddamn debate club isn’t helping. Your lip is bleeding again.”

“Fuck.” Remus ripped a paper towel off the roll and dampened it, holding it to his lip with a wince. Sirius opened the freezer and dug around for a moment with another paper towel. “I don’t remember you getting hit.”

“This is for you, you stubborn fucker,” Sirius said as he walked over and pressed it gently to the side of Remus’ face. “Better?”

“…a bit.”

The tension on Sirius’ face began to fade; he just looked concerned as he pulled the ice away and checked the bruise. “Your eye might swell.”

“Yeah.”

“Do you actually want to talk now, or should we yell a little more?”

Remus sighed and felt his anger abate. He was beyond exhausted, and still upset, but having Sirius nearby was like balm on a burn. “I don’t know.”

“I’m going to make some sandwiches. Hold this.” Sirius tapped the ice towel and moved to the abandoned loaf, grabbing some peanut butter and jelly as he went.

“I’m not hungry.”

“You need to eat something.”

“I’m fine.”

Sirius glanced over his shoulder and gave him a look. “I know you, Re. You’re not going to feel better unless you get some food, and neither will I.”

“I hate it when you’re reasonable.”

“No, you don’t.”

Remus’ lack of response was enough of an answer. The pain stretched to his forehead and he grimaced, prodding his lip cautiously. Sirius whistled for Hattie and spread the leftover peanut butter from the knife onto a clean spoon, holding it down for her to lick. A smile tugged the corner of Remus’ mouth. “Cute.”

“I can be cute on occasion.”

“You’re always cute.” There was a beat of quiet. “I’m sorry.”

“You’re forgiven. I’m sorry for yelling.”

“Not for interrupting the fight?”

“Nope.”

“That’s fair.” Something tickled at the back of Remus’ throat. “I fucking hate Snape.”

“Me, too.”

“Surprisingly enough, it feels pretty shitty to be called a whore. Who would’ve thought?”

Sirius turned and faced him, sleeves rolled to his elbows. His eyes were soft. “You know that’s not true, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Remus. What he said wasn’t true. You have nothing to prove to anyone on the team, least of all to me. You earned that spot on the roster fair and square, and Snape’s just freaked out because there’s another player who could grind him into the dust without breaking a sweat.” He stepped closer and leaned on the counter next to Remus, leaving a few inches between them. “I don’t think you’re a whore, if that means anything.”

Remus laughed softly. “Of all the people out there, I think you’re the only one who could reliably make that assumption.”

Sirius didn’t smile. “You’re my best friend and also my fiancé. The sex is a great bonus, but my favorite part of being with you is just being with you.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Remus muttered, though the sharp edges began to smooth in his gut. He closed the distance between them and laid his head on Sirius’ shoulder. “Love you.”

“I love you, too. Can I take a look at your lip?”

“Sure.” Remus peeled the towel away and Sirius bent slightly, poking the area around it. “Ouch.”

“That’ll probably take a week or so to heal. He got you good.”

Remus pouted. “No kisses for a week?”

Sirius did laugh that time, bright and sunny enough that Remus nearly made his lip bleed again with the answering smile. “I said nothing about no kisses.” Warm lips trailed from his unbruised cheekbone to the edge of his mouth, leaving tiny tingles in their wake.

“I really am sorry about what I said. You were right, I wasn’t angry with you, and I had no right to go off like that.”

Sirius shrugged. “It happens.”

“It shouldn’t.”

“Then let’s agree to talk first, bite heads off later, okay?” He held his pinky out and Remus linked it with his own, kissing it quickly.

“Deal. Are the sandwiches done? I’m starving.”

Wordlessly, Sirius handed him a sandwich and hopped up to sit on the counter, scooting over to make room for Remus to join him. They ate quietly, swinging their legs as the calmness of the kitchen crept back in once more.

[alyjojo]

Love Reading 💙 - January 2023 - Capricorn

Singles:

Overall energy: Temperance

How you will meet: 2 Wands

How they will treat you: 4 Cups

Long-term Potential: 4 Wands rev

You seem to be seeing more than once person, overall you’re pretty independent and dating around, not committed to anyone in particular. Whoever this person is, is a pretty solid catch, but they’re very rule oriented, disciplined, someone important at their job. Very work focused. They seem to be patient with you, for awhile, but inevitably they’re going to lose their patience because you’re just not on their page, or that’s how they feel. Whatever your relationship with money is specifically, is not theirs, and they see you as reckless & sneaky, which they’re not about that. They want someone also career oriented, responsible, disciplined, etc., maybe they saw you this way initially. Long term, it’s not working out, and if you’re living together or talking about it, that’s not working out either, the relationship as a whole isn’t stable and doesn’t seem like it can be, you’re just incompatible. It could be talks of moving in that end up being more of a wake up call, like no way.

Messages -

Their side:

- Facial Hair 🧔‍♂️

- I need a BREAK from this.

Your side:

- Reckless Spender

- Hiding finances 🤫

Signs you may be dealing with:

Aries & Gemini

Couples:

Overall energy: King of Pentacles

Current: The Hermit

Challenge: The Fool

Potential: 4 Cups

Well you’ve both got one thing in common, you put other people before each other. This is probably an ex you’re stuck on, if even that, could just be someone you’ve dated once or twice. You could be considering calling them up and trying to get things moving between you again. You’ve spent time apart with The Hermit, and have realized some things separately, but where you want to try again, they have probably found someone else. King & Queen of Cups, this could be their person, and there could be a baby involved too, or their new person is just a good looking & decent human, or they have kids, and you’re kinda pissy about that. If not a new person, then one of you may be forced to move back in with parents or something like that, if so their Mom may not like you, or vice versa. Either way there doesn’t seem to be any hope for reconciling with this person, even their messages say they’ve moved on, whether literally to someone else or just emotionally done, and your Oracle card shows it’s probably for the best.

Messages -

Their side:

- I’ve moved on.

- What other people say matters too much to me.

Your side:

- Butterflies 🥰

- My friends are more important than you.

Oracles -

Their side: If you plant seeds of caring and kindness, before you know it you’ll have a garden.

Your side: Avoid people who negate who you truly are at your core.

Signs you may be dealing with:

Taurus, Cancer & Scorpio

[rose-blooms-red]

Kamino. Test. CC's and Rex. Rex fails

ik you prob wanted heavy angst but...my heart hurt thinking about it sdjkhfskjdf so here ya go XD inspired partly by @thefoundationproject's Train up a Child which you don't have to read to understand, but I highly recommend regardless,

[read on Ao3]

Rex’ika is a miserable little ball of despair on the bed and Ponds slips in behind him with an ease born of practice.

“Ponds!” he shrieks, indignant as he tries to wriggle out of the hug Ponds has wrapped him in.

Ponds huffs, tightens his grip and bonks his head against the back of a polycotton fluff head full of a nexu kit’s hissing rage.

Rex struggles only once more before going grudgingly limp in Ponds’ arms, uncurling from his ball of self-deprecation and anger as his shorter legs tangle with Ponds’.

The rest of the Shebse have long learned that Ponds’ hugs are inescapable, that his holds are even more so. Ponds like to think that maybe one day Rex will stop using that as a cover to explain his acceptance of them.

One day, Ponds thinks and ignores the ever-looming threat of a one day that his Rex’ika might never get to see if certain people have their way.

“You’ll get there,” he offers, because if he leaves it up to Rex’ika they won’t mention it at all. If he leaves it up to Rex’ika none of this interaction would be happening.

Ponds curls around his Rex’ika and isn’t surprised when all he gets is a wet scoff and another attempt to struggle before Rex’ika returns again to limp acceptance.

“I failed,” Rex argues, frustrated and a little miserable, sounding even smaller than he did the first time Ponds met him what feels like forever ago. He’s grown a lot, that little bundle of potential and spite and pissiness that always failed to hide the way he shone, the affection and care and fierce protectiveness.

“You didn’t fail,” Ponds retorts, and it’s true. Ponds had watched the tape, same as the rest of the Shebse, same as 17.

Rex didn’t fail, he just couldn’t find the way to the answer how he wanted to. Had to compromise and follow someone else’s plan that led to more lost points than Rex’s would have if things had fallen the right way, if the team had been more willing to work together.

It’s the point of the exercise. But it’s not the thing Rex has come away from it with.

“It was a good plan,” Ponds tells him, because it was and Rex’ika needs to know that.

“It still didn’t work,” Ponds’ stubborn little brother sulks, and Ponds hums, because that’s true too.

Rex is Ponds’ but he’s also Cody and Wolffe’s, some stubbornness was inevitable, some bullheaded blindness was guaranteed. He won’t appreciate Ponds telling him what he’s missing though. He has to figure it out all by himself, Rex has started thinking, for it to count.

One day Rex will remember he can ask for help. One day Rex will figure out how to stand alone without putting as much distance away from Ponds and the rest of them to do it. For now, Ponds’ Rex’ika is just beginning to try and grow alone and finding all the wrong ways to do it.

Ponds really wishes this stage would be shorter, it’s only just begun and already he finds it a little frustrating, a little awful, harder than he thought.

“I love you,” he tells the little brother who still thinks he has the world to prove to the galaxy, “but sulking is Wolffe’s job, not yours.”

Rex huffs, wriggles a pointy elbow around like he’s gonna dig it into Ponds’ side. Ponds tightens his grip and props his chin on Rex’s shoulder and the hissed invectives are definitely all 17 and Wolffe’s fault, or maybe Fox’s. He reassess, probably Fox’s or 17’s, but he’ll blame Wolffe for it anyway.

“Language,” he singsongs and Rex’s pout is audible.

“You’re the one skipping training,” Rex grumbles and Ponds shrugs nonchalance.

The others are covering for him, it’s fine. And if Ponds wasn’t here reaching out then nothing would ever happen.

Rex’ika always waits for Ponds to reach out first, it’s just how these things go.

“You done sulking?”

Rex huffs, shoulders raised even as he nods.

“Good,” Ponds hums and lets himself keep Rex in a hug for as long as he can make this last, “you ready to use your brain now?”

“Kark you,” Ponds’ Rex’ika grumbles and then, quietly, “yes.”

“Run me through it then.”

Rex groans but does and Ponds hides his smile in polycotton fluff hair. One day Rex will learn how to stand on his own without pushing people away, Ponds hopes. Both for that day to come and for Rex to make it there.

Ponds is patient, he can wait, and maybe it won’t be as heartwrenching as he fears.

Ponds is made up of hopes and wishes and knowledge, this is just another one he will hold close and coveted.

Rex talks through his mistakes and his successes and finds the threads he missed and the things he needed to do.

Ponds listens and finds the seeds of who Rex will be buried within every word.

[jgnico]

Oooohh gege better be careful if real world politics are going to be explored or used in the narrative . Especially when looking at the history of china and japan in the last 70-80 years. But heian period japan had a “close” relationship with china back then so maybe it will mention that more?

aside from that I like world building. I was bummed out when yuki said only people in japan had more curse energy compared to other countries. I took that as gege is probably only going to focus in japan and not explore how curses in other countries are handled. I was kind of disappointed but I won’t criticize akutami too much for that. It’s good in itself for jjk to be a contained story in a single country as the main focus. World building vs plot progression writer’s ordeal.

Because china was mentioned it gave me an idea on who kenjaku could be😂.

Xu fu

I don't think Gege's necessarily gonna shy away from talking about the impact that Juju Society would have on global politics, especially when you can't really keep what happened in Tokyo/Shibuya under wraps for long. Someone's gonna demand answers eventually and they've already brought up the inevitability of the US getting pissy if they found out about Sorcerers/Curses existing while Japan (or at least, a group within Japan) kept that potential a secret. Knowing the US government, they'd def want to weaponize either of those avenues if they were to learn about them. (Or, ya know.... use it as a thinly vieled excuse for war, which is a favored past-time over here 🙄)

I'm all here for further world-building, especially if that means we learn more about how the higher-ups/the clans would handle --and possibly try to counteract-- the steps that Kenjaku is taking, whatever those are. Right now there's so much up in the air on both sides, but eventually somethings gotta drop.

As for Yuki saying that Japan has a concentration of CE, I also took that as the story staying localized to Japan, but it doesn't fully rule out the possibility of Sorcerers or Curses existing outside of the country, they're just extremely rare. It does make me wonder if we'll ever get introduced to any of those sorcerers besides the tribe in Africa and Miguel. Fingers crossed.

I could see Kenjaku searching for the elixer of life, getting on a boat one day and vanishing into the great beyond. I would like to know more about Kenjaku's past & what he was up to before/during the Heian Era though, so if this is the potential set-up for Gege talking about that while also touching on the repercussions of Kenjaku's plan, then consider me invested.