#did he forget I'm IN that server while he starts looking for other games

[shadow-and-purgatory]

Screams part 2

[staytiny-dreams]

dating streamer! beomgyu (c.bg x reader)

pairing: choi beomgyu x gn! reader

genre: streamer! au, fluff, tiny bit of angst but not really

warnings: some parts focus on covid-19 pandemic if that's a trigger for you, i think that's all but lemme know if you think i missed anything

wc: 3.4k

note: so tired at 3am i accidentally hit the post button when it wasn't ready so if you've already seen this, no you haven't. i'm unsure how it turned out so let me know, i've also never formatted it like this before so any feedback on that lemme know too, and... look forward to the other members versions <33

squeals leave beomgyu as the tension rises, the anticipation of the jumpscare he knows is coming getting the better of him

the chat speeds by

“i thought you were supposed to be good at horror games”

“what happened to beomgyu has no fear”

“we told you you should play fnaf beomie!”

“took you this long to play fnaf?”

beomgyu whines at all the ‘i told you so’ comments

“come on guyssss im so late to this how am i supposed to know you’d be interest-” he cuts himself off with a guttural scream as freddy finally makes his long awaited appearance

seeing the bamtoris laughing at him in the comments he pouts at them

“chat you distracted me okay, i let my guard down because of you!”

his pc pings with a notification and the text to speech reads out “themarcotoyourpolo says ‘HAH you are such a liar beom you would’ve screamed either way’”

when beomgyu was seventeen, he spent his time like every other teenage boy did

playing video games

but sometimes his best friend would come over and he’d pull himself away for a few hours

only to sit with you and watch streamers play other games

honestly you didn't mind when beomgyu played games when you were over

he was entertaining to watch

really entertaining actually

“hey gyu, don't you think you’d be a good streamer?” you suggested one day jokingly.

you both giggled at the little game of ‘yes and’ that followed, planning out an entire future together where beomgyu was rich and famous, and you lived in a mansion together that was just a haven for video games and your friends, but after your little tangent, the thought was dismissed as quickly as it came.

or so you had thought.

a week later, sitting across from each other at the cheapest your favourite restaurant in town, beomgyu brought it back up again.

“do you really think i’d make a good streamer?”

“why are you actually thinking about it?” you snorted, taking a sip of your water thinking he was joking again, but when beomgyu didn't say anything you tilted your head up at him.

“oh shit are you actually thinking about it?” beomgyu gave a noncommittal shrug and picked at his food, staring down at his plate. he refused to look at you until you knocked the table in front of his plate lightly.

“beomie,” you started as he stared at you with wide eyes, “i could watch you play for hours.” you don't think you could ever forget the way his smile took over his face at your words.

and that led to the next few months spent with you and beomgyu on call for hours a day

playing mostly minecraft together although occasionally he’d branch out to other games

you hit all his milestones together

he still remembers the day you first got a double digit view count

excitement flooded through the both of you as the kind soul who raided you spams your comment section

the same day, beomgyu also hit ten followers, prompting you two to make his discord server

whenever you were too busy to join him on stream beomgyu would whine and complain like his life depended on it

more often than not he’d actually end up cancelling the stream for that day

one day you didn't feel well but you decided to sit on call with beomgyu while he streams so that he wouldn't cancel

beomgyu chattered on as he normally does, yelling about how, “beomgyu never dies,” but he noticed that today you were not reciprocating that same energy.

in fact you had been so quiet that he wasn't even sure you were still alive on the other side.

“(y/n)ie are you alive over there? (y/n)? marco?” he asked and ever so faintly he heard a weak ‘polo’ sound throughout his headphones.

“one moment, chat,” he said to his 20 something viewers before deafening on discord and muting his mic.

he wriggled his phone out from where it hid in his pocket, opened your contact and called you. it dialled almost four times before you picked up.

“i’m so sorry, beomie i fell asleep. i really didn't mean to but i-” he cut you off before you could go on.

“are you okay (y/n)ie?”

“to be honest beom, i don't feel very well i-” cutting you off again, beomgyu announced that he would be coming over to cure you before promptly hanging up and ending stream leaving both you and his chatters confused.

turns out, curing you meant bringing you his mothers soup and watching youtube in bed with you until you fell asleep. your burning forehead left patches of sweat on his chest, but he couldn't find it in him to care.

from then on you had a system in place where you would check if the other was still there by calling out “marco”

and if the other person was okay they’d call back “polo”

sometimes you regretted this system on days beomgyu decided you were too quiet and abused the marco-polo system by continually calling out marco like a broken record

a little while after beomgyu turned eighteen, the pandemic started and so followed lockdown

it was a really hard time for beomgyu

you were supposed to be starting college together that year, along with your close friends from high school soobin and taehyun

but now all classes were online and he wasn't allowed to see any of his friends

going from seeing you everyday to never took a toll on beomgyu that he didn't expect

he just hated knowing you were only a few streets away and he couldn't just walk over to you whenever he felt like it

beomie :>: are you looking at the moon rn and wondering if i’m also looking at the moon rn?

ynnie <3: beom we called for six hours today

beomie :>: i know right, i miss you too :((

ynnie <3: omg fine get back on disc lets watch a movie

but with his ray of sunshine by his side, he eventually found his footing in this apocalypse

a lot of his time was spent on call with you

working on your respective assignments

watching your online lectures on 2x speed

any other free time was spent streaming

since everyone was stuck at home, due to his frequent streaming schedule

and infectious energy

beomgyu’s audience quickly grew

going from 1000 followers when lockdown had started to hitting 3000 followers within a few months

taking your advice, he also became more active on his other social medias

even posting clips of his streams on tiktok

a few of which went viral causing his channel to grow substantially again

he also started a youtube channel for those shorter games

or ideas that required more editing to execute than a stream would allow

one day, while checking his twitter dms his eyes almost fell out of his skull

he dialled you immediately

“(y/n) (y/n) (y/n) (y/n) (y/n) (y/n)!”

you took a deep breath in, prepared to repeat his name back to him in the same tone, but you didn't get the chance.

“do not copy me, we do not have time for that, this is a code blue, (y/n), code blue!”

“what on earth is a code blue?”

“big creator dmed me (y/n), come on, we’ve discussed this!”

“we’ve never discussed a code system in our entire life.”

“what that is such a lie, you just never listen to a word i say!”

“well sorry beomgyu if you talk so much nonsense that it's hard to keep up,”

“nonsense? you take that back!” he screeched, but you could only giggle at him.

“i will literally never do that. come on gyu, what’s the code blue?”

“oh, yeah! j-hope messaged me (y/n). he asked if i wanted to join his friends' discord and play among us with them.” you squealed for him, excitement rushing through you.

“oh my god, oh my god, oh my god! beomgyu, what did you say?” suddenly beomgyu felt sheepish, realising he’d just been sitting there with the message open, too busy bickering with you to have responded.

“oh um… well, nothing yet i called you first…” now this time you screeched.

“you left 20 million youtube subscribers, 1.5 million twitch followers jung ho-seok on seen? beomgyu!” you scolded. beomgyu didn't know whether to be afraid or laugh, but his endearment got the better of him and he burst into giggles at your tone.

“don't laugh at me mister, text him back right now and tell him you’d be honoured to play with them!” and as he began to type out a reply to his senior, all beomgyu could think about was how he couldn't wait to have you in his arms again.

joining such big creators in playing among us put beomgyu in contact with even more big creators and had his channel blowing up

he met many new friends including someone who would become one of his closest friends

huening kai

as covid restrictions were eased and tightened again, beomgyu made sure to see you any time he could

but due to social distancing laws, he wasn't able to tackle you in his affection the way he wished

at the end of 2020 the second wave of covid set in

your anxious mother decided that you were not allowed to leave the house until the pandemic was over

beomgyu struggled with this news

his weekly outings walking six feet away from you - but still with you - were helping him hold on to his ray of sunshine

but with your assurance that you'd spend even more time on call with him and watch all his streams, he was able to keep his mood-maker demeanour in front of his fans

“so what are your plans for valentine’s day, (y/n)?” beomgyu asked, already knowing your answer.

with february 14th approaching, beomgyu was kicking himself for not having said anything sooner because your mother still wasn't letting you out of the house and beomgyu wanted to say what he had to say in person

“what do you mean gyu? you know i’ll still be stuck at home.”

“hm… well, maybe we could do a minecraft date, like a valentine's day special.” he suggested tentatively.

“like for your stream?” you asked and he shrugged.

“we don't have to stream.”

“but beom, aren't our friends all having dinner at soobin’s that day? don't you want to join them?” you reminded him and he simply shrugged again.

“don’t want to leave you all alone on valentines day (y/n)ie.” your face felt hot. you loved your mother to pieces, but sometimes her self imposed covid restrictions really got on your nerves.

and then march came, and for the first time in twelve years you feared you wouldn't be able to spend beomgyu’s birthday with him

“mum please, i’ll do anything,” you begged, “legally four people are allowed at an indoor private gathering.”

“and what if someone there has covid (y/n)? you have asthma it could really affect you!”

“it’s only going to be gyu, soobin and taehyun. you know all of them, you trust them! plus we’re all going to test before we go!”

“and what about transport, (y/n), what if you catch it on the bus?”

“i’ll take a taxi.”

“and what if the taxi driver has it? or what if you get in the car with a bad driver or a kidnapper?”

“mum! where is all this coming from? please. it’s beomgyu’s birthday, i can't miss beomgyu’s birthday. i swear i will never ask to go out again. just please let me go see him tomorrow.” tears welled up in your eyes. you hated fighting with your mother, but you couldn't let beomgyu down like that.

but the fight was all worth it when you knocked on soobin’s door the next night and beomgyu opened it.

he pulled you inside and slammed the door shut before squeezing you tight to his chest.

“you're here?” he asked, voice muffled as it was buried in your shoulder.

“happy birthday beom,” you smiled, arms tight around his stomach.

he pulled away from your hug and before you could joke about how your mother would never let you see the light of day again, beomgyu pulled down your mask and pressed his lips to yours.

two seconds passed where you stood still, wide eyed in shock before you registered what was happening and jumped into action.

one of his hands still held your mask, and the other came down to your cheek which you’re sure must’ve been burning him from how hot your face felt. you followed his lead, grabbing his shoulder with one hand and pushing your other through the hair at the bottom of his neck.

too soon, beomgyu pulled away, resting his forehead against yours.

“i’m sorry (y/n). i wanted to wait, until after lockdown, i wanted to talk to you first but i saw you and i just-”

“i love you beomgyu.” you cut off his rambling and he let out a flustered laugh.

“i love you too (y/n), i love you so much.”

due to covid still ongoing and your mother’s strict rules, you and beomgyu decided to take things slow after that night

there were no more meetings in person as you kept your promise to your mother

nothing much in your relationship with beomgyu changed due to your agreement to take things slow

he flirted a little here and there but there were no new pet names or anything of the sort

beomgyu continued to focus his energy on streaming and you continued to focus on your studies

beomgyu’s streams always providing the perfect background noise

but don't tell him that you don't devote a thousand percent of your attention to him at all times

luckily as 2022 approached, your mother began to let beomgyu visit your home provided he wore a mask in common places and if he had any symptoms he did not come over

and in april 2022 most legal restrictions were lifted

with your second booster vaccination, your mother lifted your house arrest

it had been over a year since you confessed your feelings to each other and your 20th birthday approached

you both had a big discussion about giving your relationship a real try

beomgyu now had almost half a million followers on twitch

after grinding for two years, he now had a rather large fan base

you expressed that you were a bit worried about having your relationship public to them

beomgyu didn't quite understand your concern as you had been participating in his streams and been a prevalent figure on his social media since the beginning

however, respecting your wishes, you both worked to keep the romantic nature of your relationship between yourselves and your close friends.

while beomgyu seemed to have found his schtick after 3 years of streaming

playing horror games on stream and co-op games with you for his youtube channel

and the occasional vlog

the friends he had made playing among us, huening kai, ho-seok and jungkook had begged him to join a minecraft server and stream with them

so with your encouragement

and his conditions that his partner and best friends also join the server

beomgyu joined the bighit smp started by kim namjoon

it was only a few months after you officially started dating

just before his 21st birthday and both of your fourth and final years in college

when beomgyu came to you with his proposition

“move in together?”

“is it too soon? i know we've only technically been dating a few months, but-” you cut beomgyu off with a hand on his mouth.

he stared at you wide eyed for a split second before his expression changed. luckily, you recognised the suspicious sparkle in his eye and removed your hand from his face before he could lick it, leaving him pouting at you.

“don’t look at me like that,” you giggled but his pout only deepened and he reached over to grab the hand that was previously on his face.

“so? what do you think? you wanna live with me?”

“hmm… i think…”

“(y/n)…” he whined, dragging out your name.

“i think we’ll need to find a place with an extra bedroom, so you can stream in there and not in our room.”

living with a horror streamer

most days of the week it's fun

a substantial income

your boyfriend’s always home

your boyfriend is practically fearless… in theory

okay maybe he’s only fearless when it’s fictional media

even a little bit of clout, not that it matters to you

as you always have, you tend to join beomgyu and your other friends when they play minecraft in the bighit smp

as well as being in all of beomgyu’s vlogs

since you moved in together, you decided it was best to come clean to bamtoris (his fans) about your relationship

they were very supportive

due to your presence in his channel from the beginning, there were some long time shippers who were more than pleased to hear this news

and maybe a little cocky, plastering ‘i told you’ so posts all over their socials

yes, the beomy/n truthers were very pleased

of course there were those who were convinced he was dating other streamers

or those who shipped him with his other friends, soobin and taehyun

and just general psychos who simply hated you because he wasn't dating them

nevertheless you both saw the relationship reveal as a success

so sometimes you go and sit with beomgyu while he streams, just as you used to sit on call with him

but this particular wednesday night was a tough one

you’d been up late the night before working on your final project for college

then worked from 7 to 5 even though you were originally rostered for only 7 to 12

your head was pounding

and tonight, despite the soundproofing you had installed on the walls of the office

his shouts still reached your tired ears and made your head ache

you tossed and turned for a while, not wanting to ask beomgyu to quiet down as he was clearly having fun

but, after an hour of not being able to sleep you decided you were being stupid

beomgyu would never be upset with you for not feeling well

so you rolled out of bed, padded over to his door and knocked lightly, then cracked the door open

the light from the hall spilled into the room and caused beomgyu to look over at you with a smile

his hair was fluffy and his face was lit up by his screen and his purple leds and he just looked so soft

and before you could say anything, your face crumpled

and a few tears slipped down your cheeks

immediately muting his mic, beomgyu threw his headphones off and ran over to you at the door.

“baby, what’s wrong?” he asked, pulling you into his arms and you laughed at yourself.

“sorry, this is so stupid, i dont even know why im crying.” you mumble into his chest.

that night beomgyu ended his stream early and laid in bed with his arms wrapped tightly around you, whispering how much he loves you

and how whenever you wanted him to be quiet or even end stream he’d do it in a heartbeat

but, if you're not sick, busy or streaming with beomgyu, you're still watching his streams

and sending silly comments

you are simultaneously his favourite and least favourite chatter

your comments always make him laugh but are often at his expense

“themarcotoyourpolo says ‘poor baby, so scared of a big teddy bear’”

“you know what (y/n), get your ass in here, we'll put the headphones on you and see how confident you are then!”

but knowing you're in his chat has always given him comfort

and made him a smidge happier to be there

if beomgyu ever had zero viewers it'd be because you died and he knew that

even then if you ever wanted him to turn his computer off and hang out with you, he’d come running

at the end of the day, whether beomgyu’s screaming at his computer screen or peacefully cooking dinner with you, he is the love of your life and you wouldnt change a thing

[iwanttobepersephone]

So I sent this message to @findingcrow

And I ended up explaining literally all of the emojis. Here they are (in order of explained, not order of how they were put). I spent 3 hours explaining this and it's a LONG post, so, sorry lol

👯‍♀️-The twins are just a pair of dancers, and I love the vibes of Scar and Grian dancing together in the desert

🫧-The bubbles are because their love has the same vibes as the way a child loves bubbles. The child thinks bubbles are pretty and fun, but often pops them due to a lack of understanding of their fragility

⚖️- The scale is a symbol for justice, something that Grian had the intention of bringing to the server, and yet, in the end, he hated following through with it (killing Scar)

🪬- The hand is called a hamsa, as far as I'm aware, and is a symbol for protection and guidance, something that Grian offered to Scar throughout the entire time they knew each other

✨️- The sparkles are about how attractive and nice their love seemed to Grian, how shiny the prospect of loving Scar was

💌- Well, to me, it feels like keeping his love hidden inside him, leaving only hints of its existence. You cannot read what's inside the envelope until you open it, but the heart implies it was sealed with love. He hides his feelings in the envelope like a letter never meant to be read

💃- Ok, so, the dancing one is the same as the pair dancing

🌌- The galaxy is about his home, as I like to think the Watchers live in sorta in space-ish. I think a lot about Grian routinely going up on the roof in any season of the series and just, staring at the stars. "Oh wow," he'll say, "it's so much more beautiful looking up than down"

🫀- I tend to use the real heart for situations when my love feels, well, *real*, more so than the typical cartoons heart can express. When it feels almost as if the other person is less of a loved one, more of a part of me, like we've become so very intertwined that I can never forget them. I think you can guess why that applies to Scar and Grian

🎭- The drama masks are, once again, about how he hid his feelings. "No," he said, "I'm not in love. He's just my partner in crime." It's also about how he acted out a personality that fit his needs, too. He always wanted to win, and Scar was a part of that. "I made a deal, I have to live up on it" while he's actively helping kill people, knocking down the number of who he'll have to kill once he's red. In the end, all his actions were for his own gain, but slowly the facade he put on them of being for Scar became real, the mask became his face

🕯- And the candles, well, "the light of the server." A candle in the dark. A fire, something so fierce and destructive, becoming passive and helpful. Something so necessary for some. Plus, they're often associated with magic and rituals, a tool for manifestation and summoning and communication. But a fallen candle, a flame forgotten before bed, it can become destructive again. That's what burns down houses, what takes lives. And if it doesn't lose control, it burns, and burns, and keeps burning until all of itself has melted, until it's nothing

⚔️- For the swords, I thought mostly of when Grian attacked him. Y'know, "YOU TRAITOR!". #1, I like to think of it as him putting his sword to Scars throat, so swords are obvious there. #2, he also was guarding himself! He trusted Scar, showed him parts of himself he never showed anyone else (maybe even revealed he's a watcher?????), and then Scar KILLED HIM! As part of a stupid game! (Yes I'm aware of the irony there it drives me insane I can rant about that themes about that for so so so so long and the guilt Grian feels for being the cause the games Rzaurskr74us4s4ua). So, obviously, he started to guard his heart, like swords across an entrance

⚰️- Coffin is 2 things, first, the way their love died as Scar did. I like to think that Grian tried to bury him a little, Scars final resting place was also the resting place of their love (at least, the final resting place of SCARS love). The second thing is that Scar would sell coffins, remember? But he never got one. He never got what he gave, but he did get everything Grian had

🎠- So, the horse isn't JUST a horse, it's a merry-go-round horse. Y'know, from a carousel? So, in all the seasons, their relationship kinda follows the same main story-beats, right?

•Early betrayal/beginning of a grudge

•They're forced to make up, even if just briefly

•Help each other out with something

•They fall out again

•They die (sometimes being the CAUSE of the others death, even if indirect)

It happens again and again.... like how a carousel goes around and around and around. You CHOSE to get on the carousel, Grian, and you can't get off until it's over, you know that, Grian

🏜- Anywas, for the desert, well, they're the desert duo

🦙- For the Llama, don't tell me you forgot about Pizza!

🌓- Ok the half moon, Let's see how effectively we can put this into words. So it's 2 sides of the moon, right? It's the same thing at its core, the moon, but two entirely separate appearances, light and dark. It's the same thing at its core, a game, but two entirely separate experiences, the player and the creator. 2 sides of the same coin sorta deal, yeah? They both play the game, too, and in my mind, Scar sorta creates the game, too, in his own way. Would Grian have ever stuck around the game the way he did if Scar weren't there? Scar kept things interesting for him, kept him from getting bored. Grian bent and created new rules to make sure Scar had fun, the game was created just as much for Scar as it was for Grian. And again, Grian plays too! Grian has plans blow up in his face, Grian faces punishments of breaking the rules, and despite what the other players may say, Grian lost, too. It's the same thing at its core, a game, unwinnable, but malleable

❤️‍🩹- The bandaged heart is a bit more on the nose,

I like to think both Grian and Scar were, in some way, hurt when they met. Maybe Grian had become used to the ultimately selfish love of the watchers, and had trouble believing that any other sort of love could exist. Maybe Scar hated his namesake, and wished he could hide it. (Examples, I can't quite decide on what I wanna do with it, lol. But as they grew closer, that changed. Grian began to believe in selflessness, and Scar began to find beauty in every part of him. They bandaged each others wounds and healed each others hearts

🧨- So, the dynamite is also pretty obvious, I feel like, like it's Grian. Now I COULD do some sort of deep meaning, pretty easily in fact (blowing up in the emotional way instead of the physical way, losing control of his emotions, once again circling back to "YOU TRAITOR"), but that's really not what I had in mind when I put it there

🏳️‍🌈- The queer flag.... do I need to explain that

🕰- So, the clock is a really cool one, because Grian knew from the very beginning that this would never last. Somewhere, in the back of his mind, he had a timer in the back of his mind, constantly ticking, for when it was all gonna end. It was only ever a matter of time, but he pretended it wasn't. He pretended it would last forever. Maybe, if he hoped for long enough, the clock would stop ticking, but it didn't

⏳️- Now, the sand timer has, once again, a very similar meaning. It's a timer till the end of it all, the knowledge that it will always run out, *always*. But he still joins the games, over and over again. He flips the hourglass over and restarts the timer. The sand will keep pouring, it will never change, it will end the same, always

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

If You Can't Dance 3

Warnings: dubcon, noncon, other possible triggers. Proceed with caution.

Note: this is what you get when you encourage me. Please leave any and all feedback! 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

Part of The Club AU

You login for the day with your usual set up. A mug of peppermint tea, your favourite sweater, and your gaming chair set to the most ergonomic setting. You connect to the company's shared server and go through the verification. It's tedious but necessary. You're certain there will be many tedious tasks to come as the merger looms heavy over the newly absorbed startup.

As your Teams pops up, you scroll through your tasks and prepare to start your usual squinting hunch at the screen. You grab your glasses and put them on. You really need to start wearing those.

Bing! You have a message. Oh, jeez, it's Jensen. Your manager, at least for the time being. You don't know what his new job will be in the unified structure. So many questions but you're more concerned with the backend.

'Morning, how's it going?'

He's casual and approachable. At least, from what you can tell over virtual text and the occasional video call. He checks in now and then so you assume this is just the same.

'Alright. Getting started for the day.'

The three dots pop up then disappear, then a new message appears.

'Did you enjoy last night? Didn't get to say hi, you looked like you had fun tho.'

'Oh. I guess.'

'It was nice to see everyone. Anyway, business. Meeting at nine for coders. Invite coming.'

You stare at the screen. Great. You hate team meetings. You always have to give and update but you don't have much to say. You do your work and it's right there for them to see. Why do you need to explain it?

'Got it.'

You send your response and ignore his reaction; a thumbs up. You put a timer on, knowing better than to trust yourself. You go back to your usual, trying to settle in with your minty brew. Last night has put everything off-balance.

Slightly agitated by the spontaneity of the event, you join the Teams meeting and try not to look at yourself among the five rectangles on the screen. Jensen's glasses glare in the camera and you take your own off, hoping to escape behind the blur of your vision. G is there too, the only other coder you've worked with in the company. He's a strange guy, quiet, and no one knows his full name. The other two, Marc and Dharshi round out the group. All of you sit silent, waiting.

"Oh, uh," Jensen unmutes as he seems to remember he's on a call, "alright, guys, I'll try to keep this short. There's a lot to do but I really didn't think that this message should come through an email."

You check your mug, cold and empty. You have a bad feeling about whatever message he's referring to.

"So, I know we've been doing work from home for a while, but, uh, with the new company, we're being asked to consider a more hybrid model. No decision has been made yet but next week, you are all required to report to the new headquarters so that we can meet our new coworkers."

"What?" Dharshi exclaims as Marc scowls. G just stares blankly, you think, it's hard to make out clearly. You probably look just as dull.

"I know, I know, I'm trying to get us down to only a couple days a week in office," Jensen explains, "right now, there's no decision made but we do have to try. There's a different culture with Blue Forest but I think we'll be okay."

G hangs up and Jensen sputters. Dharshi and Marc let out odd noises and you just sit there.

"Oh, must be a bad connection," Jensen laughs nervously, "so... uh, I'll follow-up with G and see you all Monday."

No response. Jensen fills the void with his usual managerial spiel; let me know if you need anything, yada yada. The call ends and you're left deflating in fractured safehold of your home office. Maybe you will all be too awkward and they'll just decide to keep you hidden away. You can only hope.

Oh and don't forget, you still have to go get your car after work.

🐞

Monday comes too fast, your weekend fading into a marathon of Fortnight and nature documentaries. You pull out your most acceptable outfit. Another long skirt and a turtle neck with oxford boots. Hmm, it's more Anne Shirley than business casual.

You drive into the heart of the city, the GPS guiding you to the modern office building with its transparent walls and sleek black structure. You grab your laptop bag, a messenger with butterfly patches sewn onto it. At the door, you're stopped and let in after verifying your Employee ID. You're told to go to the front desk to get your new credentials.

After you get sorted, you're sent down the hall to a conference room. You pass several offices and people you don't know. Your new coworkers. You grip the strap of your bag as a woman pops out of Room 1161B, the very one you were told to go to. You stop short as she smiles at you, her frilly blouse tucked into a sleek white skirt.

"Oh, you must be a new one, I'm Catarina," she offers her hand and you just stare at it. "You'll be in here for the Tech Orientation. There's tea and coffee, some pastries, and full catering will be available at lunch."

"Thanks," you mutter and peek into the empty room.

"You're so early," she praises, "sorry, I didn't catch your name. I need to check you off the list."

You enunciate the syllables clearly so you won't have to repeat yourself then turn into the room. You look around at the tables. Not the traditional long intimidating tabletop but several throughout the space. You don't know where to sit, if you should choose a particular seat, so you go to the waiting urns by the far wall.

You peruse the collection of tea bags. Chamomile, green, Earl Gray...

"Ah, pardon, could I trouble you for English Breakfast if they have it?" A voice nears before the footsteps reach you. The shadow stops beside you, the voice frighteningly familiar. You grab a bag of the English Breakfast and hold it out without looking over. It can't be, what are the odds? "Oh..." he says your name. The accent, the recognition, he knows you and you vaguely know him. Jonathan.

"You work here?" You wonder as you continue to shuffle through the packets.

"Yes, and I assume... you do too. Now. You are among the newly acquired?"

You nod and put down the box of teas.

"Is there something wrong? You don't like the selection?"

"No peppermint," you shrug.

You sidle along and grab a paper cup, instead pressing the spout for the large jug of cold water. The man fills his cup with hot water before tugging on the string of the tea bag, steeping it as he nears you again.

"It's rather a coincidence," he preens, "are you excited to start?"

You know you shouldn't be honest so you do your best to lie, "yeah."

"You certainly sound it," he laughs, "well, please, have a dessert... and a seat. We'll be all out before you know it."

"Thanks," you surpass the plate of tarts and croissants. You sit at the table nearest the corner and stare at the cup of clear water. You should've known to bring your own tea.

[cheesy09]

[CN] Kiro's Absolute Match Mind's Quest (Part 2)

🌸 Warning: This post contains detailed spoilers for a date that hasn't been released on the EN server yet! 🌸

Note: This date explores some very suggestive themes, so if you do not meet the game's required 16+ age rating, I'd suggest to avoid reading this date.

Part 1: HERE

[CHAPTER 5]

After successfully communicating with the organizer of the charity match, I shared the news with Kiro that I was going to join the cheerleading team.

Of course, he was surprised and delighted. We agreed to supervise each other and continue our "hellish training".

There were more fulfilling things to do in the long summer. While the exercises were obviously boring, they made my mood warm up every day.

In the blink of an eye, it was the day the baseball game started.

MC: Savin, have you seen Kiro?

Savin: He seems to have been called to the other side. Do you want me to find him?

MC: No, I'll go find him myself!

Savin nodded and gave me a thumbs up.

Savin: With the way you look today, I guarantee that Kiro will be looking straight at you!

I laughed twice, pulled on my cheerleading skirt with slight embarrassment, turned around and walked quickly in the direction he pointed.

-

Though this charity competition wasn't such a high-key event, many influential figures were invited, and the backstage area was bustling with people.

MC: Sorry, excuse me, thank you... Kiro! I'm here!

I waved my hand energetically. Kiro looked around after hearing the sound. His eyes lit up instantly when he saw me.

He walked quickly through the crowd and came to me, his eyes full of amazement.

Kiro: Today you, you....

MC: How is it? Youthful, right?

I smiled, raised my pompom and struck a pose.

Kiro: Very youthful!

Kiro: I can't believe you actually hid such a cute appearance and are only showing it to me now. No wonder you refused to let me come watch you rehearse yesterday.

MC: Hehe, of course the surprise must be discovered on the same day the surprise is happening!

MC: Originally, I wanted to wait a little longer and let you see it during the performance, but I was afraid that it would be too late to perform the ritual for you.

Kiro: Ritual?

MC: Did you forget?

I took out the prepared marker, took his hand, and wrote my name one stroke at a time on the inside of his wrist.

MC: You said during the game, that writing the names of important people on your wrist will bring good luck to the game. I remember that.

This is another reference to Kiro's Heatwave Date :>

Kiro opened his mouth and then smiled.

Kiro: Mm, I'll definitely live up to this mark.

He gently held my hand, folded our palms together and covered the handwriting.

Kiro: Then, we agree that we'll be each other's witnesses later on, and that we'll both stand in the most dazzling place.

-

After the lively opening ceremony, the music sounded again.

MC: Three, two, one, GO!

The girls on the cheerleading team jumped briskly onto the sports field with neat steps.

Almost instantly, I locked onto those pair of eyes I wanted to see most in the sea of spectators.

Blue, bright, and only mine.

Whether I was jumping, catching a throw, or even turning my back, I could clearly feel that line of sight firmly locked on me.

My heart felt as full, as if it was filled with air, but my body was lighter than the clouds.

Did Kiro feel the same way on stage every time I looked at him from off stage?

Accompanied by the rapid drum beat, the once extremely difficult movements during practice no longer seemed to be difficult at this moment. I supported my teammate's hand, stepped hard, turned around, flipped, and froze in the final step.

Woah--

I knew that the applause on the field at that moment may not have been because of the cheerleading performance, but a warm up for the next game.

But I also firmly believed that the handsome young man with blond hair and blue eyes in a baseball uniform who stood up to applaud - all of his cheers were only for me.

I took a breath to calm down and watched the players from the two teams appear one after another.

The captain on the left was Carol. He was standing next to Kiro while watching the cheerleading performance. When our eyes met, he smiled and winked at me;

And the captain on the right was of course, Kiro. He tried his best acting like a big star, but the moment he saw Carol making a face, he couldn't hold back from giving him a smack in the face;

MC: Pfft...

I suppressed my laughter and watched the two teams shake hands with each other.

The other members of the cheerleading team all left the field, leaving me the only one still standing on the field. Kiro looked at me with slight confusion.

At that moment, the referee handed the baseball to me.

Referee: Please kick-off the game, miss.

MC: Okay.

Kiro: .....!!

Hmph, how unexpected!!

If there were a comic-like dialog box above my head at this moment, it might have been an extremely big and extremely gorgeous dialog box that I could show off to everyone.

This was the second surprise I had prepared for him.

Kiro: MC...

For the first time, Kiro's eyes were extremely wide. If the referee hadn't order the athletes to get into position, he might have rushed in front of me by now.

In the end, Kiro walked to home plate and raised his bat.

I held the ball in both hands and took a deep breath.

MC: I hope...

I hope the next word didn't need to be said. All of my hopes were in my hands.

I raised my hand, twisted my body as much as possible, and swung the ball hard.

Boom!

-

Referee: Strike out!

Referee: After the end of the first half, there'll be a ten-minute intermission.

Unknowingly, the seventh game had concluded, leaving the score between the two sides very tight. Although this was just a friendly charity match, the competition's intensity was not low. While Kiro's baseball abilities were good enough, he hadn't reached a level where he could crush his opponents.

What's more was that he was facing against Carol.

I clenched my hands and looked at Kiro not far away.

The halftime break was very important, and he was discussing follow-up tactical arrangements with his teammates, a serious look on his face.

When Kiro entered working mode, his eyebrows seemed to be three points sharper than usual, and his blue eyes were astonishingly bright.

Even though his teammates were all leaders in various fields, at this moment, they all listened to his explanation with conviction and admiration.

Six or seven minutes passed, and since the tactics were almost planned, everyone dispersed to take a final break. Kiro also smoothed his sweaty hair and hurried to the bathroom.

MC: Huh?

When he raised his hand, I realized that the name I wrote before going on the field had been smudged by sweat, leaving only a few strokes remaining on his wrist.

[CHAPTER 5: Interweaving Emotions]

The sun shone brightly and the lawn on the court was coated with a fuzzy halo. The cheerleaders were in uniform and exuded youthful vitality under the dynamic music.

Obviously they were all wearing the same uniform, and their formations changed at an almost dizzying extent, but Kiro's eyes never strayed from the girl's body for even a second.

Carol: Hey...

She smiled brightly, and the dangling pompom in her hand was the finishing touch, making her entire body sparkle.

Kiro couldn't help laughing along, turned on his camera, and zoomed in a little bit to try and capture his Miss Chips in the fast-paced dance.

Carol: Kiro, it's all so blurry and you still want to take pictures? Where can I see your partner here?

Carol: .....

Carol: Hey, Bro!

Kiro felt a heavy tap on his shoulder. He subconsciously turned his head and saw Carol, who was seated with him in the stand-by area, raising his eyebrows in depression.

Carol: I've been talking to you. Why are you just looking at your sweetheart?

Kiro: She's performing, so of course I've gotta watch her at all times.

Kiro said, his eyes falling on the girl again, the smile in his eyes never disappearing.

Carol: Then the two of you really match each other.

Carol: When you were practicing, she was in the same state as you, with almost the same expression. Looking without blinking - yes, just like that - and smiling from time to time!

While Carol was describing in shock, there was a bit of envy in his eyes.

Carol: Tsk, no wonder you didn't admit that I was your "soulmate" before. The compatibility between your souls is rare in this world~

When Kiro wanted to respond to his opponent, he found the girl on the court looking at him for a moment, and he quickly straightened up and waved.

After a while, he turned back to look at Carol, who looked even more "haunted", with a hint of apology on his face.

Kiro: Uh... what did you just say? Soulmate?

Kiro quickly went through every detail of his and the girl's daily life in his mind, and unconsciously felt sweetness in his heart.

Kiro: Almost, but the word soulmate isn't good enough.

Kiro: In my heart, she is MC. She is my favorite person.

Kiro: As long as I look at her, I know what's in her heart. Whether she is happy or sad.

Kiro: That's why I'm eager to bring her the best things in the world!

Kiro: But you won't understand, even after I've told you all of this.

Kiro: This is a unique connection between me and her. Go ahead and envy it~

The more Kiro said it, the prouder he felt. Because no matter how good the pronouns were, he couldn't explain the girl in his heart. She was so unique that even the most beautiful words used to describe her would feel a bit inferior.

But as he talked, Kiro noticed that the person beside him remained silent and he turned to look back--

Carol was very dramatically covering his ears.

Carol: Wow, I'd love to see you show off your affection, but isn't this "dog food" a little bit much?!

Kiro: You even know the term "dog food". It's very local~

T/n: The term "狗粮" (dog food) is Chinese slang used to refer to PDA, i.e. public display of affection :>

Kiro smiled and bent his eyes, the little pride in his heart swelling like a balloon. Just as he was about to continue being arrogant--

The music on the field stopped and the performance ended.

Kiro immediately stood up and moved his wrists and ankles, his eyes filled with determination. Then, he turned to Carol and raised his eyebrows provocatively.

Kiro: Chat's over, old classmate. Now, you have to be careful.

Kiro: Because I won't let her down.

Kiro: Today's victory will belong only to "us".

[CHAPTER 6]

Two minutes to go.

I clenched the marker in my hand and looked at the bathroom door anxiously.

The moment Kiro appeared, I immediately rushed over and pulled him into a corner of the stairwell.

Kiro: ...?!

MC: The wording is blurry. Let me make up for it.

I couldn't help but uncap the pen and write more seriously and vigorously than last time. Kiro laughed and carefully wiped off the wet water stains on my wrist.

Kiro: You seem to be extra superstitious today.

MC: I can be as superstitious as I want.

MC: And I have even more superstitious tricks.

I stood up on tiptoes and fiercely kissed Kiro's lips, almost knocking his teeth in my haste. He smiled and gently accepted the tip of my tongue again.

One minute left.

Please, please, pass all my luck today to him through this kiss.

I didn't know if there was such a god in the sky that could grant my wishes, but I would still stubbornly pray for it.

As long as Kiro was fighting everything in this world, I would make this wish.

Thirty seconds to go. An announcement was made outside reminding the players to enter.

I pressed against the tip of his nose, and said word by word.

MC: Because I've see how hard you've worked this month, I really want you to win.

MC: It doesn't matter if he's an MLB super rookie. You're still my superhero.

I kissed those most beautiful eyes in the world again, and then pushed Kiro towards the arena.

MC: So, you can definitely win.

-

MC: Although Carol's "Fire Team" was about to strike out with a beautiful outfield ball to send the game into overtime...

MC: Kiro, the ace player of the "Sunshine Team", hit a perfect homerun, base, and hit in the tiebreaker!

I deliberately emphasized the word "homerun", leaned on the sofa, took a sip of beer, and continued reading.

MC: "Then, in the defensive round, Kiro made another critical hit, completely ending the game and winning the final victory."

MC: "All income and prize money from this competition will be donated to the Youth Sports Development Foundation..."

Kiro: Why are you still reading the report? The game ended long ago.

Kiro's voice sounded from above my head.

After the game, Kiro and I were really tired, so we simply declined most of the subsequent interviews and activities and went home to lie down.

MC: It hasn't been that long. It's only been half an hour since we got home, of course I'm still very excited. Here, look.

I showed Kiro the screen of my phone with a smile. There was a photo of the victors, hugging and celebrating.

--And this time, I was also among the victorious group, firmly captured by the image.

MC: I emphasized to Xiao Zheng and the others that this photo was very important and had to be taken!

MC: This way, we can make up for the regret of not having a celebratory photo at Hitachi High School last time!

Kiro: ! Quick, send me a copy!

MC: Sent, check~

I not only sent him this photo, but also some other photos of the game, as well as bits and pieces of training over the past month.

Kiro: So many...

He slowly looked through them one by one in amazement, and I leaned on his shoulder, smiling contently.

MC: Is it a lot? I still think it's little.

MC: If I were a photographer, I'd take a thousand time-lapse pictures during your competition and pick them slowly!

Kiro: Hahaha!

While we were looking through the photos, we casually drank a bunch of beers. Suddenly, Kiro's cell phone rang and he clicked on the screen.

MC: What's up?

Kiro: It's Carol. He said he's going back to the United States tomorrow morning and wanted to treat us to dinner tonight.

Kiro: Do you want to go?

MC: Hm... after all, he is your friend, so I do need to be there.

MC: But I'm still so tired now...

I pointed at Kiro's baseball uniform and then at my cheerleading uniform.

MC: See, we haven't changed our clothes since we laid down here.

Kiro: Shall we take a shower then?

MC: Let's rest for ten more minutes, shall we?

Kiro: Hmm... No, I'll get sleepy if I lie down any longer.

MC: But right now I'm too lazy to move even a finger--

Before I could even finish speaking, my body suddenly rose into the air, and Kiro picked me up.

Kiro: It's okay, you don't have to move.

-

MC: Wait a minute, Kiro. I seemed to have missed something.

Perhaps it was dopamine, controller of excitement, or perhaps it was the gradually brewing drunkenness. While Kiro was helping me unscrew the liquor, I suddenly pulled him back.

Kiro: Eh? Is it a bath towel, or a change of clothes? Should I go get it for you?

MC: It isn't...

I hesitated and couldn't answer, so I just took two more steps towards him.

MC: It's... something about you.

Kiro: [still clueless] About me? What is it?

I still couldn't answer, but my instincts drove me to seek out for him.

Not on his sleeves, not on his fingers, not on his chest...

The hormones caused by teen sports mixed with alcohol filled my nasal passages, making my head dizzier.

MC: It seems like... It seems like it's here.

Finally remembering, I gently licked the corner of Kiro's mouth.

MC: Yes, I remembered, you missed the praise.

As I spoke, I rubbed his neck again and again, and his center of gravity grew unstable for a moment. I tipped Kiro slightly and we sat on the ground together.

The showerhead slipped from his hand and fell to the ground. The inverted water rolled twice, and fine water droplets began to scatter unscrupulously.

Kiro blinked, and his breathing became a little faster.

Kiro: ...MC, are you drunk?

MC: ...Am I? Maybe so.

MC: Anyway, don't change the subject! You anyways missed it. You didn't say it.

I reluctantly pried open Kiro's lips, as if wanting to get the treasure that a brave man deserved after going on an adventure.

MC: I've praised you for being so amazing on the field, but you haven't praised my performance yet.

MC: Hurry up, or else the peacock who spread their tail and got no response will be angry...

Kiro suddenly raised his hand and lifted up his team uniform.

My hand that had initially been loosely clinging to his arm failed to grasp it, and my entire body suddenly fell into his arms.

Kiro: Don't be angry.

His breath touched my lips, and his voice mixed with the gurgling water.

Kiro: It was an oversight on my part. I should've really praised MC.

Kiro: How about using my entire body as your prize?

MC: Really? It's all mine?

I blinked in surprise and confusion, and my hands suddenly fumbled away indiscriminately.

From his eyes, to his nose, to his cheeks, to his Adam's apple...

Kiro's body continued to heat up under my touch and caress, and the heat captured in my palms spread to my body along my fingertips.

He kept maintaining a posture that allowed me to ask for anything. Only his rapid breathing and tight muscles guided the smoothest path.

Guiding me into opening this gift that was mine.

I couldn't help but confirm it again.

MC: Is it all mine?

Kiro: It was yours from the very beginning.

MC: Huh, if it was always mine, it can't be considered a prize for my hard work today, right?

Kiro: .....

Kiro: I found that Miss Chips is very logical when drunk.

His Adam's apple rolled, and the corners of his mouth curled up helplessly.

Kiro: Then should I tell you some hidden rewards?

He grabbed my hand. But this time, the rhythm of the body was completely dominated by him.

It was like an unimagined arrangement of a familiar piece of music, and the unaccustomed rhythm made it impossible for me to resist.

I could only be passively guided by him, and go with him to open doors that I'd never touched before.

The salty sweat mixed with alcohol filled my mouth with the taste of summer.

Kiro: Particularly dazzling...

I seemed to hear Kiro's dazed murmur, and I opened my eyes in a daze.

MC: ...what did you say?

Kiro: I'm talking about you on the court today.

His eyes were hidden behind his wet bangs, like the most bewildering ocean.

I was immersed in this ocean, but I knew it was about to set off a giant tsunami.

Kiro: And you now.

Unknowingly, the water had flowed along the floor tiles.

Translation Masterlist: here

[howdidiendupshippingthispoll]

Round 2, Bracket 2, Side D, Fourth poll

Nine and Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer [NineJuice/SatelitalLove], 17776/20020 vs Takumi Tonooka and Itaru Chigasaki [Tonoita], A3! Act Addict Actors

Story of Tonoita:

I DIDN'T EVEN LIKE TONOOKA UNTIL LIKE EARLY 2022. THIS MAN HAS BEEN IN THE GAME SINCE 2018. OUR FIRST INTRODUCTION TO HIM IS HOW HE LITERALLY RUINED ITARU'S LAST YEARS OF HIGH SCHOOL AND WAS THE REASON WHY ITARU CAN'T TRUST PEOPLE ANYMORE AFTER THAT AND CLOSES HIMSELF OFF.

AND YET. GOD.

Listen, I'm not an enemies to lovers liker. And exes to lovers is the kind of thing I like when I make them exes, not when they're canonically exes (they never canonically dated but like come on. they're basically exes). So why did I start shipping them?

I have these Twitter roleplay accounts for a3, a handful of them, and while roleplaying a different character in the series, I joined this little server of roleplay where we'd talk about stuff and plan out events and whatever, and one of them was roleplaying this fourth character (Citron!) mainly, but also had a Tonooka account, you might be able to see where I’m going with this.

We had this friend who had the Itaru roleplay account who really liked to roleplay this other Itaru ship (with a guy called Chikage), and sometimes he'd forget to do the replies to other ongoing roleplays. so my Citron/Tonooka friend dm'd me about it since they felt kind of left out whenever that happened, especially if there was an ongoing thread with Itaru and Citron, and I was like yeah I get it. I liked Chikaita a lot but it wasn't my go-to Itaru or Chikage ship, so I was like “uh huh nods”, and we got to talking about Itaru ships, and they mentioned Tonoita.

They really liked Tonoita, who is kinda unpopular in the general fandom because he caused Itaru a lot of trauma, and Itaru's like the number one or two most popular chara in the whole game, so a lot of people didn't like him. But my friend liked him a lot and told me so much about him, and literally he only appeared in one event story in the entire game at that point but I was listening so intently, and then I was like “mhm nods i understand”, and hey u can come to me about Tonoita whenever u want in case you feel judged or whatever.

BUT THAT WASN'T THE KICKER.

I was still kinda neutral about it but I didn't dislike it, but the aforementioned Itaru rp friend went inactive, so after a while, I was like “What if I make an Itaru account instead?” so I did! and then, fuck, I literally still have the roleplay bookmarked. My friend was on their Tonooka account goofing off about whatever shit and I posted this stupid reaction pic of the press x to doubt guy and then Tonooka fucking REPLIED. And then we had the usual exes banter. And then it became real??? LIKE THEY STARTED CRYING AND SHIT?? AND APOLOGIZED TO EACH OTHER?? AND COMMUNICATED WITH EACH OTHER??? AND THEN LIKE. AGREED TO AT LEAST BE CIVIL TO EACH OTHER AGAIN? WHICH TURNED INTO BEING FRIENDS AGAIN?? AND THEN THEY STARTED DATING AGAIN?????

AND THEN I JUST WENT SO INSANE ABOUT IT THAT THEY'VE NEVER LEFT MY HEAD SINCE, LIKE, THIS WAS IN EARLY 2022. SO IT'S BEEN A YEAR AND I'M STILL VISCERALLY INSANE OVER THEM BECAUSE OF THIS ONE THREAD THAT STARTS WITH A PIC OF A STUPID MEME. MY GOD, I HATE BEING OBSESSED WITH THEM BECAUSE LIKE I CAN COUNT ON ONE HAND THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO LIKE THIS SHIP (I KNOW LIKE. 2 PEOPLE AND I HAVE LIKE 200 TWITTER MUTUALS.) THEY ARE SO MESSED UP. I CAN FIX THEM.

NaviMind (90)

Once upon a time, one of my now-friends was posting stuff about them, I didn’t like it, but then I looked at the tags And she was tagging it as frEAKIN… DAIN… BALLAS… I DIED, YO. I couldn’t live with the fandom knowing the pairing as that so I conferred with my beta and we came up with NaviMind and MasterGuide.

Then I started interacting more with the fandom and started accidentally converting people to this pairing like it was a religion. KEEP IN MIND that I didn’t ship them yet??? Like actually I was talking about canonical things and the people I texted were like “It’s my OTP now” 😭😭😭😭. My record time from me meeting someone to converting that person was a few hours. Literally, I had a NaviMind aura, it was a passive effect.

Then afterward I actually started imagining super angsty things about them and I wrote about their friendship, and I thought it would be much sadder if they were in love but couldn’t be together because of Bain’s paranoia and Dallas’ refusal to admit his feelings. They’re already best friends in canon, I write it to where Dallas can’t live without his guy… yeah, I have the most fics about this duo. I’m still strong even though it’s been over a year.

[greentrickster]

@greenxlady #pffffft #i know very little about callyn but i'm beginning to like her #she seems a bit like maya #also i'm sure miles was a wonderful server

Yay! ^U^ Callyn and Lility can be roughly summed up as follows:

Callyn, aka my main character in FFXIV, didn't have a lot of personality until my friend Blue started playing FFXIV as well and made Lility. By the time he did, I'd been playing for several months and had Callyn past level fifty (max ranks for any class in this game is sixty for free to play, ninety if you're subscribed) for most crafting/gathering classes and the same for Bard, White Mage, and Black Mage, with some of my other combat classes in the mid-thirties and all of them at least started. (Every class and job in this game is individually leveled.) Unlike me, however, Blue went, "Time to become the world's greatest Black Mage" and put all his energy into that. So while she started behind Callyn in that class, Lility quickly surpassed her. Thus was born the idea that Lility was going to be the Greatest Black Mage Ever, and Callyn was going to enthusiastically support her friend's dream and also do Literally Everything Else, so Lility could focus all her energy on black mage-ing. Which, considering that there are twenty combat jobs and close to that number of crafting and gathering jobs in this game, is a lot.

It's a bit of a Fullmetal Alchemist situation, where everyone assumes tall, elegant Callyn is the Warrior of Light (aka the main character), but it's actually adorable little Lility, and neither of them will ever let you forget this. Callyn is a warrior of light (and now Edgeworth is too), Lility is the Warrior of Light!

#i'm trying to imagine what the incident could have entailed and phoenix is probably doing the same #but miles will probably attempt to take this to his grave #too bad there's evidence #very good-looking evidence might i add #he looks great in that outfit

As a Black Mage, Lility has the destructive powers of ice, fire, and lightning at her fingertips at all times, and the responsibility to use them wisely. As a person who is really quite fond of explosions, she... doesn't always do that. Fun fact: fire spells meant to destroy your enemies do not, in fact, provide a superior cooking heat than conventional fires. But b'golly if that stops Lility from trying every now and then. It's okay, though - one of Callyn's many jobs is carpentry, so she can fix most cases of Lility-induced structural damage!

Miles, in a typical story, would probably be the voice of reason to their chaos, but he has a 2% understanding of the societies, cultures, and world of Eorzea in general, so more often he's just the straight man to their hijinks. They're both kind people at heart, however, and have been helping him find and keep his footing for most of the time he's been in this new world while also doing their best to help him follow leads on ways to return to his old one, so all in all there are worse people he could be hanging out with. ;)

(And Phoenix agrees with you, all the walking and riding Miles has been doing since he got to Eorzea has done wonders for his already very shapely legs, not to mention - hoo boy - swordsman arms!)

[pumpkin-spike18]

✨Weekly Progress 2024 #22-23✨

#22 would've come out last week if I didn't forget my planner when I packed for traveling.

Weekly Progress #22

Updated tumblr tags

Thumbnailed, sketched, refined sketched, lined, and finished [fan project #2] illustration

Submitted forms for [fan projects]

Made work plans for P-M and SFB

Basic o2a2 outline

Fixed SYVNH bug

Generated sprite pieces for P-M and SFB

Fleshed out o2a2 outline

Weekly Progress #23

Coded P-M sprites

Updated itch page images

Made new BWBOK schedule

Copied P-M script into Renpy

Scripted P-M s1-s3

Answered BWBOK comments

Drafted [fan project] posts

Designed P-M GUI

Wrote 100+ words for SFB

A Sky of Falling Birds

As I mentioned before, SFB is my next big project, which I plan to submit for BAF VN Jam. That's... 7/1.

It's okay, I still got... 20 days.

There's a lot of work left to do and not much to show off at the moment.

Pre-Make

Or Pre 🕰 Make (P-M), I haven't completely decided on how to advertise the title yet. It's a "small" project that I came up with back in 2020 and still haven't finished. I thought I'd dedicate a few days' time to it and see how far I'd get. There's still a bit of work to do, but much of it is done.

The art's quite old and the story telling was the original test I did for SYVNH's looping mechanism so it won't be anything novel. The screenshot above is from this game. If he looks a little familiar, don't worry. That's not your imagination.

The Beauty Which Only Beast Knows

My other big focus for this month, we're hoping to finish it for Otome Jam... which also ends 7/1. I've a loose schedule for achieving that, but the team's health is the top priority so we're playing it by ear. It may take a little longer to finish up.

Other!

O2A2: Because I couldn't sit still!! I started planning for O2A2 2024! It'll be another entry into the kill series, but I hope to include some point and click elements to it. Last year I finished 9 VN projects, something I don't want to do again-- but!! I don't want to only finish one project this year!! I've been skipping and fomo-ing all the jams in the first half of the year. Well, no more! I'm going to get some work done this summer!!

Fan Projects: I don't think I need to keep my involvement in fan projects a secret anymore! I took part in the D. Gray Man 20th Anniversary Project, which we actually started work on late last year! I also took part in the Narumitsu Big Bang 2024 event, which... also started work late last year 🤔 Huh, I was really busy back then. Maybe that'll teach me to sign up for too many fan events... (😂 no ofc not!)

Misc: I finished some tedious updating work that I promised myself to do a while back. I'll admit I make my blog easiest for me to navigate, first and foremost. But if there's something that's bothering you, or have an idea to make navigation better, feel free to let me know through an ask! I also updated all of my itch io pages' images. They were originally linked from discord, which changed its policy and broke all direct image links. Thankfully, I had everything labeled in a private server so I could easily retrieve and reupload to update the pages. Yes, I should've done that long ago. And I'm sorry I just... didn't;;

[st0rmyskies]

Thought I'd share on tumbl a HSH-related question I got on the server that was fun to answer.

In theory, how petty would each of the boys be if someone in the house pissed them off? Things like touching others' stuff, moving shit, throwing stuff away they shouldn't have or like teasing that went too far.

Behold, answers below the cut for length.

Time - When he gets pissed off, his pettiness manifests as the Silent Treatment. He's perfectly happy to stand in the same room with someone, hell even right next to them, and not say a damn word. Not look them in the eye, not even look at them. He can keep up said treatment indefinitely; rumor has it that he still gives his brother (Wind's dad) the silent treatment to this day after well over two decades of living apart. It's enough to drive some people Wars nuts.

Wars - Speaking of everyone's favorite prima donna, he's the type to go out of his way to call someone out on their BS. He will loudly and repeatedly verbally berate someone for pissing him off. "Oh dear, there's a dish left in the sink? Don't let Wild see that, who knows what he'll slip in your next meal." "Out of shampoo, are you? Stay away from Legend's, he'll kick down your door at some obscene hour of the night to put a curse on you for it." Etc etc. If there's one thing Wars is good for, it's running his mouth.

Twilight - Everyone's favorite bumpkin is slow to anger. Like, really slow to anger. I'm honestly not sure what you'd have to do to get on his bad side, but his reaction to being pissed off is to distance himself physically (i.e. running away from home in the first place). He's likely to go out for a nice long walk and come back later to "confront" said roommate. "Hey, what you said before wasn't cool, let's talk about it."

Sky - Our little cupcake. Our sweet baby angel. Has the most terrifying Resting Bitchface. And he will stare at you from across the house, not saying a word, just searing directly into your soul with a gaze that could cut you in half. Seriously, you'll feel those eyes on you in your sleep. Lucky for those who piss him off, he's very open to hearing out apologies and generally doesn't rag on people for their mistakes like Wars does.

Wild - He's much too sweet to get annoyed with people, honestly. He's the kind of person who would get bumped in to in the kitchen and apologize for being in the way. If you did do something to piss him off, he'd probably confront you and default to that terrible too-angry-to-handle-it crying, which has most people tripping over themselves to apologize right away.

Champion - Similar to Sky, he's got the stone cold stare down pretty well, but Champion is also one for subtle threats of bodily harm. Staring at you from across the kitchen as he snaps apart a pair of restaurant chopsticks, or while he's cutting up something at the counter, or starting the blender (bonus points if he's blending something red). For more grievous offenses, he might play more blatant mind games, like making it seem like you misplaced your keys, or things could go missing from your room.

Four - Less subtle in his antagonism, Four will also go to the lengths of the silent treatment in addition to refusing to help a friend who has wronged him. And these boys need Four's help pretty fucking often. He's not going to refuse when something really important is at stake, like somebody needing a ride to the hospital or similar, but forget that curling iron you needed fixed, Wars. Yes, he saw you sneak the rest of his leftovers, fuck you.

Legend - You'd better clean your hair out of the drain after showering and hide your comb if you know what's good for you. If you don't, the sudden jabbing pains that wake you up in the middle of the night are going to continue until you fess up to stealing some of his candles for a romantic evening at home with your cowboyfriend, Champion.

Hyrule - He's going to stew, he's going to avoid eye contact, he's going to use only the minimum amount of words with you that are necessary. And he is going to run his mouth to Legend, or any other close friend who isn't involved, until he's red in the face. But he's not one to approach things directly; he usually cools off on his own and comes around eventually

Wind - If you do anything to piss him off, kiss your internet privileges goodbye. Indefinitely. You can also count on sabotage of most of your electronic devices, from changing passcodes to fucking with your charging cables juuuuust enough that you won't get any juice while they're plugged in.

[piastrinorris]

edancy for this ask game because its me and of course i'd ask JHBSDKNJF

wouldn't expect anything less, bby <3

when I started shipping it if I did: shortly after joining the server and seeing the eddie x nancy channel, even if i was too overwhelmed by it to ever really contribute LMAO. but yeah, i'd never really thought of it as a pairing until i started reading you guys' works.

my thoughts: i love them to bits. i've been rarepair shipping for years, but being out of fandom so long made me forget how much i loved it until edancy sucked me right back in.

what makes me happy about them: they're so opposite but so complementary? like i'm watching brooklyn nine nine rn bc the final season is finally available in the uk and they're literally just stranger things' peraltiago.

what makes me sad about them: well, eddie's dead. so there's that. but also the fact that there was prime chance for nancy, while talking to wayne, to have learned things about eddie that she could have asked him about and we could have gotten more of his backstory? AND the same thing that makes me sad about every eddie ship, for a small town that seems all up in everybody's business, i wish there'd been some kind of allusion as to how they perceived each other growing up. especially with it being canon that nancy used to play d&d with the party, surely they'd have encountered each other looking it up in middle school??

things done in fanfic that annoys me: honestly i've only ever read fics written by people who are in the server bc you guys' characterisation of them both is the only one i trust, lol.

things I look for in fanfic: again, since it's a rarepair, literally any lmao. but i do skim the fic just to make sure the characterisation of nancy is just right. there's a lot of people out there who do her dirty.

who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: pretty much anyone with either of them, except b*lly, j*son, and i don't ship st*ncy unless platonically, either.

my happily ever after for them: again i accidentally helped make this part of road trip canon lmao, but the two of them travelling the world together, kicking ass n taking names. deciding to elope somewhere just bc they feel the moment's right.

who is the big spoon/little spoon: i don't really see them as "spooners" necessarily, i think they typically cuddle with nancy laying her head on his chest.

what is their favorite non-sexual activity: i just really, really love the idea of them essentially doing parallel play together. eddie strumming on his guitar while nancy reads. nancy plotting where she wants corroded coffin to tour next so that she can tag along while he busies himself writing his next campaign.

[mrskodzuken]

pairing: Kozume Kenma x f!reader

genre: SOFT. AND. PURE. FLUFF.

wc: 975

warnings: alcohol, some product placement ads (lol; not sponsored by Tanduay and Sprite), slightly suggestive cheverlu (c/o the English translation to APO Hiking Society's "Yakap sa Dilim"), Kenma being so sweet to his s/o, a bit ooc-ish?

note: this fic was inspired by my last week's *coughs* spicy *coughs* interaction with my second visiting (fifth overall smh) Kenma anon here on my blog. Then the song "Yakap sa Dilim", originally sung by APO Hiking Society, came into my mind because it's so damn seggsy tbh *fidget fidget* At first, I thought of doing a bit smutty fic to complement the song but... siiigh, I'm still nowhere as good as by the likes of my other moots who write smut almost on a daily, weekly basis. Plus I have a good, if not great, imagination when it comes to writing fluff, so... ^^;;

another note: that part about Y/N mixing her alcoholic drink with clear soda and experiencing full-blown redness and itchiness from head to toe while drinking was based on my experience drinking alcohol straight away. And no, I'm not always drinking on a regular basis, just whenever there are family get-togethers and like New Year's Eve parties.

another ANOTHER note: this is my first entry for @lumpiang-toge 's Piliin Mo Ang Pilipinas server collab event. Huuuuuuge thank you for beta-ing this @/lumpiang-toge @love-amihan @imo-chan-imagines @kousukii @manjirosday @abuliawrites I LOVE YOU ALL MWAH <3 *headpats*

see also: listen to the original version of "Yakap sa Dilim" by APO Hiking Society here-

[00:45 am]

——— 💙💖

"...and that's all for tonight's streaming! Make sure to follow me on all my social networking sites, they're on the description below! Well then, this has been your favorite gamer cat boy Kodzuken, logging out!"

Kenma then removes his headset and closes his stream, stretching and yawning a bit in his gaming chair, before standing up and heading towards his and your shared (bed)room.

"Y/N~ Y/N, are you still awake? Y/N-" he opens the door to your room, only to find it silently empty.

Hmm... where did she go? Kenma then searches the kitchen. "Y/N?" And the bathroom. "Where are you?"

He taps on his phone and checks his contact list for a possibility of you being online at the moment. And sighs. Nothing.

"Y/N! Y/N-chan, where are you?"

"Kitten, I'm on the back porch!"

Kenma finds you sitting on the porch, chin up, your eyes watching the numerous stars twinkling, shining, across the wide clear night sky, and smiling.

"I just finished my stream earlier and was checking up if you're awake or not but-" He sits in beside you and snuggles a bit but then notices a slight flush in your cheeks, and spies your hands cradling a glass of familiar reddish liquid. Beside you stands a half-empty bottle of Tanduay Ice, its opened bottle cap sitting askew on the lips.

"How long have you been drinking, Y/N? And straight-up drinking a bottle of Tanduay Ice Red Mirage?"

You turn your slightly flushed face at Kenma, a goofy smile escaping your lips, and raise your glass. "Not about half an hour ago, and don't worry about me getting all red and itchy all over my body from too much drinking! I mix it up with some Sprite to lessen the alcohol intake!" You fish out a 2L bottle of Sprite, also half-empty, on the ground, to prove your point.

Kenma sighs exasperatedly and smiles back at you. Lovely and stubborn you, who isn't the type to back down from an argument and stuff.

Shit.

You gently place your drink on the wooden floor and suddenly stand up and walk. "Ah, you want something to drink? I can get you some can of beer if you-!"

You feel the grip on your wrist as he grab your hand before you go inside, and look at him.

"Kenma-"

"Please stay."

Kenma then brings your hand near his face and tenderly kisses your palm, looking you in the eye, the action making you more flushed but not because of alcohol. He smiles at you again.

"I love you, Y/N."

Steam runs off your ears, your face a full-blown tomato face. "I-I-I love you, too, Kenma!"

The former Nekoma high school volleyball setter and now-YouTuber can't help but softly chuckle. Kenma can't really resist teasing and making you blush.

Because he finds it very cute. And endearing.

He hangs his head down a bit. "Sorry... I forgot about our date earlier.”

"Eh? W-why are you saying sorry...? I should have known you'd have a busy day yesterday! Two 4-hour streams, company Zoom meetings, a date with Kuroo-san in the office-"

"-it's a meeting with the Japan Volleyball Association for an upcoming proposal, stop calling it a 'date'!"

Your boyfriend then pulls you closer and wraps his arms around your waist, his head being buried on your chest. You could hear his muffled sigh and voice from within while he speaks.

"I'm such a terrible boyfriend to you, kitten. How can I make it up to you?" While looking at you, pout on his lips, his golden cat orbs a puppy-like glance at your face.

A look that sends your heart aching with cuteness.

"Hmm..." You pull away from Kenma's embrace and grab your phone to scroll and tap on something. A smile creeps across your face as you place your phone back from where you got it earlier.

The first few notes of your favorite song start to play in the background. You offer your hand at a slightly confused Kenma.

"Would the great Kodzuken care to dance with me?"

Hoping that you lay your head on the pillow

Your body, I'll cover like a blanket.

Problems you will forget

As long as we embrace in the dark

He accepts it, grinning, and finds himself swaying his body alongside you, your hands around his neck, his hands perching on your waist.

Don't stop if you feel like you have to cry unexpectedly

Hoping what you feel is relaxation

If you want, we can take a cigarette first

Before we embrace in the dark

"I'm so lucky I have met you, Y/N. I really am~" He places a kiss on your forehead before nuzzling your cheek, his nose wrinkling a bit. "You still smell of Tanduay Ice, kitten. Hope you won't experience an incoming hangover later."

"Kenma!!! I won't, silly! And I'm also lucky that I'm here, cuddling with you, dancing... it makes me happy!" You kiss his cheek and hug him closer.

This is something that we have been waiting for

We're right at this moment embracing in the dark

Oh, the satisfaction from the quick, stolen moments

While we embrace in the dark

"I love you, Y/N..."

"I love you more, Kenma..."

Come on and lie down by me in bed

Let's savor the good times together

To our love that we hope for

While we embrace in the dark

As the song ends, you find yourself yawning, sleepy. He notices this.

Kenma kisses your forehead again, snuggling you at his side. He yawns also. "Maybe we should go to bed now, kitten. It's getting late."

"And we can cuddle while we sleep?"

"Mhmm~ yes, we can! C'mon... but first, let's brush your teeth and get rid of that alcohol smell..."

"Kenma!!!!"

DO NOT REPOST/EDIT WITHOUT PERMISSION. PLAGIARISM IS A CRIME, KIDS. LIKES ESPECIALLY REBLOGS ARE HIGHLY APPRECIATED. ALL WORKS © angrymongol01/kirakirasaku - 2021.

My Masterlist

[thatonewannabedragon]

Before reading this go watch Mikey's pov of AOS, then come back here. This fic is a sister fic to both Mikey's: A Sleepless Night (Which I also suggest reading first) and [Flower Emogi] that I made. Btw Mikey uses many pronouns: he/xe/it/ce/ve/bug and Ellios uses he/they. While this isn't cannon in AOS it is cannon complient.

Art of Survival is a fanmade Last Life-esque server, with a few modified rules (such as reds being able to keep their alliances with non-reds).

Crimson Adoration

[Ellios' pov of of the events of A Sleepless Night, in which Ellios had failed getting the boogy kill in time.]

Walking home in this silence is nearly as painful as failing the curse was.

The gentle thrumming of his now red life coursing through Ellios' being helps numb the pain. He doesn't really know where he and Mikey are, but somehow the dogs know, so he follows them.

He lightly scratches at the bandages that cover the now red skulk covering themself. Being red feels too warm. It's uncomfortable. Ellios feels both too aware of everything and still kind of numb. Although this feeling, whatever the name of it is, is still better than the other option.

He wouldn't be able to live with himself with Mikey’s blood on his hands.

Breaking out of the funk for a second Ellios realizes they're falling behind a bit. He shakes himself a little and within a few quick strides he's caught back up.

Before he knows it they are already back home at the hobbit hole.

Its warm light reflects like a beacon across the lake. It's a comforting sight, one that Ellios briefly smiles at before the tension washes back over him. He forgets to duck under the door as much as he should and his horns scrape against the ceiling. It's a painful sound that Mikey flinches at, he's unfortunately used to it at this point though.

He sits at the edge of the bed, curling his tail around themself. Mikey is taking care of the dogs and very much trying to ignore him. Ellios fiddles with a frayed edge of a bandage, he really needs to rewrap them soon…

Ellios looks back up at Mikey who's still giving the dogs attention. They deserve it, they've been at the tavern for a while now.

He takes a deep breath and readies himself, he needs to try and fix this. Even a little bit.

"I didn't want to kill you…" he starts. The only sign Mikey gives that he's listening is a quick flick of the ear. Ellios will take it.

"I- I thought about it." Any calm he had quickly devolves into something more desperate. "I nearly did, there was this- this moment where I felt like I might."

Ellios grips his claws into his arms painfully, "...but you looked so pathetic. Not in a bad way! I couldn't do it. So I had to stall…"

He winces at himself. That really didn't come out like they wanted.

Mikey turns around at them, looking a mixture of anger and exhaustion on xem, "You knew... You knew we wouldn’t make it! You knew you'd run out of time before we got home!"

Ellios breaks eye contact and digs his claws into his palms instead, the feeling more grounding. Despite their similar exhaustion he still feels the red in him spike for a second before dying down.

He takes a deep breath before turning back to Mikey.

"I- I didn't know but I hoped."

Ve scowls back before turning back to the dogs and Ellios unclenches his hands.

"I'm sorry."

Mikey lets out a long sigh, its body relaxing with it, "I'm not angry at you." "I'm angry, but not at you. It's not your fault."

Ellios understands. Mikey’s anger is the frustration of being trapped in a game of death, at the whims of curses you cannot control and people who want- or have to kill and take what little you have. It's out of care and love. He feels the same in that regard.

There's a pause. Ellios picks himself up off the bed, remembering to crouch this time, walks over to Mikey. They hesitate for a second before gently laying his hand on Mikey’s shoulder. "It's not your fault either, y'know."

Mikey turns around and Ellios lifts his hand off xes shoulder unsure what to do. Bug looks them up and down and smiles sadly.

"I don't want to lose you."

Oh.

Ellios quickly wraps Mikey in a hug. They stay embraced in like that for a while, the silence no longer painful but comforting. He smiles. This is the way things are meant to be. This is the one thing they can control. Despite being in this death game he doesn't think he'd give this away for the world.

Then Ellios remembers a talk he had earlier that day.

“You won’t lose me. And besides, we could- well. Lamb said he wants to put his life altar here. And if that’s not a sign, I don’t know what is.”

Mikey freezes for a second pulling back from the hug and looking up at Ellios, who internally panics for a second before seeing that Mikey is looking back up at them with surprise and excitement..? "You want to do a life trade?"

Ellios rubs the back of his neck, “I mean- Do you want to do a life trade? It’s your life…”

"Of course I want to give you a life!" Mikey says while attempting to shake them. Ellios can't help but giggle at that. “But are you sure you wanna be tied to me like that? It’s a big commitment.”

Ellios shrugs, tilting their head at Mikey before sitting back down on the edge of the bed. “I mean, it’s not like we’re getting married- what’s that look for?”

Mikey is giving the biggest smile with chaos in his eyes, he's not even trying to mask it. "What look?" Ellios laughs with their words, he loves that smile, "That look. What are you about to suggest?"

Giggling, Mikey hops up on the bed, sitting down criss-crossed and facing Ellios. “Well… We could get married. Lamb said that the life altar isn’t just for killing. Any sort of life exchange. It could be a wedding.”

Ellios full of laughs, slightly surprised but not really. It was only a matter of time before this happened. “Are you proposing to me right now?”

“Do you want it to be a proposal?”

"Well,” Ellios takes Mikey's hand, curling their fingers together. The size difference plus the differing hand shapes/types make it tricky for a second, but they make it work. “If it was a proposal, I wouldn’t say no.”

Mikey lifts his hand to vir mouth, planting a kiss to Ellios' knuckles. Ellios feels like they're melting. “Then I guess we should contact Lamb to officiate.”

Ellios pulls Mikey down onto the bed. Despite the excitement, the exhaustion of today is really starting to hit. He wraps around bug in a way that's both comfortable on the smaller bed and still satiates the feeling to protect Mikey.

Once again that comfortable silence is back. Ellios thinks about how they'll soon be connected. It will be a relief to get rid of this thrumming red warmth, even temporarily. For now it's satisfied so Ellios shifts to keep an arm around Mikey. His soon to be husband.

Sleepily he hums to himself and says, “Who gave Lamb the credentials to marry people anyways?”

[jackalopesao3]

How I wish Lesson 8-8 would have went:

It's always bothered me the lack of options we have when Lucifer threatens us so I decided to write something. I've been meaning to write this for a while and the inspiration finally struck. This is not beta read.

💫 MC is GN 💫

Warnings: mild language maybe, intimidation, slight pain

“So ya know as long as you don't have a partner I guess I could maybe go ahead and pair up with you for a little bit,” the white-haired demon suggested with a bit of blush on his cheeks.

MC resisted the urge to roll their eyes at Mammon and quickly downed the champagne they were drinking.

“Mammon, why not just admit that you want to dance with MC?” Satan teased with a knowing smirk.

MC sighed and set the champagne flute down on a tray as a server walked by, tuning out of the conversation as their eyes swept over the dance floor. By this time, Levi had joined in and they heard the words “tsundere” and “LMAO”. Leviathan was the only person MC had met in their life that said “LMAO” out loud. It was hard to believe that this was the same demon that almost killed them a couple of weeks ago. If it wasn't for Lucifer, they would have surely been dead and on their way to, hopefully, the Celestial Realm.

Lucifer. MC grimaced at the thought of the demon.

“MC, come dance with me. Now.”

MC felt their spine stiffen as he appeared in front of them. “Speak of the devil,” they grudgingly thought to themself.

“No,” MC replied simply. They did not want to play these games with Lucifer today. If he thought that MC would just roll over and -

“I do not believe I offered you a choice,” Lucifer said and firmly grasped MC’s wrist, pulling them onto the dance floor.

MC glared at Lucifer, their eyes boring holes into the back of his head as he led them through the throng of dancing couples.

“Do you know how to dance?” He asked, turning around to face MC.

“Do you know how to take ‘no’ for an answer?” MC shot back at him, feeling the anger they normally managed to quash starting to come bubbling up to the surface.

Lucifer let out a dark chuckle at that, one hand taking MC’s in his own while his other encircled their waist. He stretched his wings out to their full length as his eyes pierced through MC.

“Do not test my patience, MC,” he warned, warm breath fanning over their neck.

MC clenched their jaw in annoyance but nodded stiffly.

Lucifer pulled them in close as he took the lead. It had been a while since MC did any type of ballroom dancing but they were able to match his pace. They would not let this demon intimidate them.

“In general, there are all sorts of reasons why one might ask someone else to dance,” Lucifer began.

MC narrowed their eyes.

“I don't remember you asking me,” they hissed as he spun them briefly and pulled them back against him.

Lucifer only smirked and continued, “For example, they might be interested in them, they might want to touch them, or they might simply be doing it out of politeness.”

“None of which is why you asked me. Get to the point,” MC growled refusing to wince as he lightly dug his nails into their back - a warning.

“Or it could be because they want to have a private conversation,” he whispered into their ear as he turned with them before adding, “What is it you're plotting with Asmo?”

He suddenly dipped MC before pulling them up, grip tightening around their hand and their waist. MC flinched at this, their body tensing up as the demon leaned in closer to them.

“Let me make one thing clear: I respect my brothers’ freedom to do as they wish. However, if I ever sense that you’ve become a threat to either Diavolo or us...then I will show you absolutely no mercy. Understood?”

His grip tightened even further and MC tried desperately to wrench their hand from his own. It hurt. Lucifer was holding them so tight that they couldn't move their upper body. MC saw red.

Ever since they were forced into this exchange program against their own free will they had been bullied, intimidated, and belittled by these demons. Not that most of them hadn't come around and ended up becoming good company but MC had just had enough. They raised their foot and slammed it down on top of Lucifer’s. MC used his surprise to wrench themself free from his grasp.

Lucifer’s anger flared and MC could see the dangerous aura radiating around him. Just as he was about to grab them by the throat, Solomon cut in between them.

“Pardon me. Well, looks like a new song has started. I'd love the chance to dance with MC. Might I cut in?” The sorcerer asked, looking between the two of them and hoping it was enough to stop whatever storm had been brewing amidst exchange student and demon.

MC let out the breath they were holding and shot Solomon a grateful look.

Lucifer took a moment to answer, quelling his anger towards the exchange student that he was just about to squeeze the life out of. He could not murder them. It would cause Diavolo’s exchange program to fail but he would not forget this moment.

“...Fine. I get the feeling that you've gotten the message and you understand what I'm telling you, MC. I'm glad we got to have this little talk,” he spoke with a quiet kind of fury that betrayed that last sentence.

“Likewise. Message received,” MC replied in a cold tone, looking into his eyes with a hardened gaze.

They felt a bit smug when he turned and walked away with just a slight limp for only a split second before wondering if they had just dug themself an early grave.

“...You look pale and Lucifer looked like he was about to murder you. What happened?” Solomon’s concerned inquiry brought them back to the present.

“Just Lucifer being, well, Lucifer,” MC replied, not wanting to divulge too much information, “Thank you for coming to my rescue there.”

“No need to thank me. Think nothing of it. This is the Devildom. When it comes down to it, you're human, and that makes you different. Never forget that,” Solomon replied, leading them into a new dance.

His grip was much gentler and less controlling. MC was grateful for that. They had enough manhandling for one night.

[cherryeol04]

Stray Kids Playing Minecraft~

A/n: I hope you all enjoy, and if you liked, please leave a like! 💖💖💖💖

Tags: @straysrachaa @lordseochangbin @channiesmixtape @starryseung​ @felixsanxchatbot @jisungsjheekies​ @mrbangchannie

Chan

- doesn't know almost anything about Minecraft the first time around but he plays with you to make you happy

- you have to baby him for a while

- BUT THEN!

- He goes and learns about the game in his free time

- and then he pleasantly surprises you now that you he doesn't suck anymore

- and most peculiar of all

- he got really interested in redstone

- boi can make some INVENTIONS

- His house is like, fully automated - farm and all

- it makes you jealous but also very proud

- a pretty big pacifist

- shears, veggies and bread is all he needs

- he still big soft baby but he smart baby now

- also, would totally run around with a pumpkin on his head if you could still wear them in the latest version

Lee Know

- would kill everything that moves

- would hoard all the meat and refuse to give you any

- deforestation at its finest

- king of surplus

- playing with him is actually playing by yourself cuz he goes off on his own

- builds himself a goddamn empire!

- and no one knows where it is

- if he catches you inside his house without permission: shoot first, ask questions never

- mobs fear him, not the other way around

- will give you items cuz you're a charity cause

- actually shares when you both go mining though

- but let's face it, he's just OP

- would try to get all the cats

- totally to chase away creepers

- not because he wants an army of them or anything

- gets annoyed that he has to constantly fish because the cats keep taking them but won't be tamed by him

- he totally did not search for mine shafts just for name tags to name his cats

- DO NOT HURT HIS CATS

- or he'd cancel you in-game and irl too

Changbin

- would be super excited to play Minecraft with his friends

- he would be the first on the server to scout out the land and get resources

- however, no one warned him about night fall

- and all the creepy, scary things that spawned

- changbin lives in the ground now

- he dug a hole at the base of the mountain to take refuge during the night and never looked back

- normal person? No way! He was a mole now!

- the best at mining and interior rock design

- he would only resurface to seek out food and animals

- it was Changbin who stole all the cows and sheep, so you couldn't find them for felix

- he would have three large pins just next to his mountain

- lots of cows, rainbow sheep and pigs with saddles

- " uh...so I found these pins of animals and like...no house?"

- "What?"

- "I think the magical Minecraft fairy spawned it into the world?"

- "It's super weird. But I'm gonna kill some cows for their leather"

- "DON'T YOU TOUCH MY COWS!"

- and to your shock, a secret door in the mountain opens and Changbin comes running out

- the door made courtesy of Chan

- "He's got a diamond sword already?!?"

- it's the last thing you scream as he kills you for being near his cows

- and after a round of feeding and breeding, he disappears back into his hole

Hyunjin

- would only be about building

- he would be the first one to have a diamond pickaxe just so he could mine cobblestone faster

- would also get efficiency V just so he could speed run through the mines

- would wander through different biomes for days to collect clay so he could make concrete

- and while you're busy actually playing the game, he would beg for you to pick flowers on your trip so he can dye the concrete different colors

- his first house would be a mansion

- but he would give up half way because he kept falling off the roof and dying

- would forget he is actually playing the game and would get scared when night falls and mobs start spawning in his unlit house

- not like you didn't tell him countless times to put down torches

- but he kept saying they ruined his aesthetic

- but now he keeps dying because mobs are literally waiting at his spawn point, killing him over and over and over again

- and he begs you to set the time to day and kill the mobs for him

- but you just laugh uncontrollably at him because karma really is a bitch

- but in the end, he ends up making an entire city, and invites the others to come and play on the server.

Jisung

- would be just like Chan

- a pure ass baby when it comes to playing minecraft, but super eager to play the game

- his first spawn would be in the middle of the night (because of server)

- and you would try to tell him to not leave the safety of spawn, but he just wouldn't listen

- "Listen, Y/n, I know what I'm doing! I'm a pro at this!"

- and he would run confidently into the night, like the actual idiot that he is

- he wouldn't get too far before he was attacked by all the mobs and got killed

- "Well that was just rude!"

- "Oh my god Jisung, I told you not to do it."

- "Well how was I supposed to know they were going to kill me?!"

- and you can only shake your head at his stupidity

- he would eventually wait until daytime, but unfortunately all of his items would be lost due to despawning

- it's not like either one of you were equipped to go and retrieve his items

- zombies sucked man! And skeletons are the worst!

- but with a new day comes a new adventure and you both head out to find a place to call home

- Jisung would run the entire way, even though he had no food to keep his hunger up

- he also wouldn't be paying attention to where he was going and would fall into a hole

- a very BIG hole

- 'J.One fell from a high place'

- "Really Jisung?"

- "I couldn't see it!"

- playing with Jisung would be a very challenging task, because he would never learn

- because by the time he had diamond armor and ready to fight the wither, he would have fallen from fifteen cliffs, twenty holes in caves and three ravines

- "Jisung if you die one more time I swear to god!"

- 'J.One fell from a high place'

- "That's it! I quit!"

Felix

- You would be so hyped to play with Felix

- You've seen him play other games, so you knew he'd be great at minecraft

- Getting the server had been his idea, the easiest way everyone could play together

- First day of spawn, Felix would already be listing off the things that you would need to accomplish

- wood, cobblestone, iron, seeds, sheep

- it was all just so overwhelming

- by the time you make your first complete set of wooden tools, felix would have iron tools already

- he'd been ten feet underground, digging for more resources while tasking you to find the animals for food, wool and feathers

- easier said then done

- and when he resurfaces and you don't have animals, he would simply sigh and go do it himself

- which would upset you because you would spend hours looking for just one god damn cow

- meanwhile, Felix would take five steps in one direction and come across hundreds of cows!!!

- WHERE DID ALL THESE COWS COME FROM?!?!?

- he'd travel the whole map just to find a jungle to get coco beans

- seriously though, how did he find the fucking jungle?

- it like doesn't exist

- except it does and Minho most likely lives there with all his cats

- Also, there's pandas!!!!!

- Felix would try and tame a panda, even though it's not possible

- When not trying to show off, Felix would be in his crappy little hut (cause hyunjin was still making the city), making cookies and cakes because why wouldn't he?

- at least he shares, unlike someone.....

- Felix would be absolutely unstoppable at the game, while you struggle to get to iron level armor (while trying to keep Jisung alive)

- Felix would have just a big ego

- it's okay though. One strike from Seungmin's sword and he'd be put back into his place

- Revenge is a dish best served Seungmin.

Seungmin

- the worst of the worst

- he would be the one to pretend to not know the game

- but really, he would be a minecraft expert

- read: troll

- every chance he would get, Seungmin would try to do something to ruin your day

- don't ever go mining with him. EVER!

- he would be the one to lead over a creeper to you in a ravine while you're trying to mine diamonds, right next to a lava pool

- the first one to explode wouldn't do any damage, thankfully

- "Don't you dare bring a creeper over here!"

- "I wouldn't."

- somehow, you wouldn't be convinced

- but you decided to trust him

- y/n clown

- you're just mining away at the diamond when a big explosion happens

- and you notice two things

- 1. the diamonds and the surrounding area were blown up

- 2. you were now in the pool of lava, dying

- meanwhile, Seungmin was running away, cackling like the evil little shit that he was

- the holy terror, that's what they would call him

- he would purposefully go out and fight creepers just to gather their gunpowder so he could make dynamite

- no one was safe from him

- except Minho

- because no one knew where he was

I.N.

- Jeongin would spend at least two days researching things for the game before actually playing

- he would want to have some knowledge before walking into hell that was the Stray Kids server

- it's okay though, because everyone loves Jeongin

- really, he wouldn't need to do a thing

- diamond armor, enchanted? check

- enchanted weapons? check

- his own cat and dog? double check

- everyone would do anything for this baby

- but Jeongin isn't one to mooch *coughJisungcough*

- even with all his presents, he would still start with the basics of punching a tree

- while others have found this skills in cooking, mining, falling into holes, redstone and building

- jeongin would be more interested in potions and enchanting

- YOU'RE A WIZARD INNIE!

- Jeongin would quickly master potion brewing

- even if it meant battling the scary blazes in the nether

- huh, so that's why Changbin was screaming so much

- he would be hired by Minho to make him potions of breathing so he could go claim an ocean monument

- Jeongin would only do it if he could help

- surprisingly Minho agrees and for the first time in 84 years, everyone gets to see Minho's character

[howdidiendupshippingthispoll]

Round 1, Bracket 1, Side D, Eighth poll

Takumi Tonooka and Itaru Chigasaki [Tonoita], A3! Act Addict Actors vs Dallas and Bain [NaviMind], Payday: The heist and Payday two

Story of Tonoita:

I DIDN'T EVEN LIKE TONOOKA UNTIL LIKE EARLY 2022. THIS MAN HAS BEEN IN THE GAME SINCE 2018. OUR FIRST INTRODUCTION TO HIM IS HOW HE LITERALLY RUINED ITARU'S LAST YEARS OF HIGH SCHOOL AND WAS THE REASON WHY ITARU CAN'T TRUST PEOPLE ANYMORE AFTER THAT AND CLOSES HIMSELF OFF.

AND YET. GOD.

Listen, I'm not an enemies to lovers liker. And exes to lovers is the kind of thing I like when I make them exes, not when they're canonically exes (they never canonically dated but like come on. they're basically exes). So why did I start shipping them?

I have these Twitter roleplay accounts for a3, a handful of them, and while roleplaying a different character in the series, I joined this little server of roleplay where we'd talk about stuff and plan out events and whatever, and one of them was roleplaying this fourth character (Citron!) mainly, but also had a Tonooka account, you might be able to see where I’m going with this.

We had this friend who had the Itaru roleplay account who really liked to roleplay this other Itaru ship (with a guy called Chikage), and sometimes he'd forget to do the replies to other ongoing roleplays. so my Citron/Tonooka friend dm'd me about it since they felt kind of left out whenever that happened, especially if there was an ongoing thread with Itaru and Citron, and I was like yeah I get it. I liked Chikaita a lot but it wasn't my go-to Itaru or Chikage ship, so I was like “uh huh nods”, and we got to talking about Itaru ships, and they mentioned Tonoita.

They really liked Tonoita, who is kinda unpopular in the general fandom because he caused Itaru a lot of trauma, and Itaru's like the number one or two most popular chara in the whole game, so a lot of people didn't like him. But my friend liked him a lot and told me so much about him, and literally he only appeared in one event story in the entire game at that point but I was listening so intently, and then I was like “mhm nods i understand”, and hey u can come to me about Tonoita whenever u want in case you feel judged or whatever.

BUT THAT WASN'T THE KICKER.

I was still kinda neutral about it but I didn't dislike it, but the aforementioned Itaru rp friend went inactive, so after a while, I was like “What if I make an Itaru account instead?” so I did! and then, fuck, I literally still have the roleplay bookmarked. My friend was on their Tonooka account goofing off about whatever shit and I posted this stupid reaction pic of the press x to doubt guy and then Tonooka fucking REPLIED. And then we had the usual exes banter. And then it became real??? LIKE THEY STARTED CRYING AND SHIT?? AND APOLOGIZED TO EACH OTHER?? AND COMMUNICATED WITH EACH OTHER??? AND THEN LIKE. AGREED TO AT LEAST BE CIVIL TO EACH OTHER AGAIN? WHICH TURNED INTO BEING FRIENDS AGAIN?? AND THEN THEY STARTED DATING AGAIN?????

AND THEN I JUST WENT SO INSANE ABOUT IT THAT THEY'VE NEVER LEFT MY HEAD SINCE, LIKE, THIS WAS IN EARLY 2022. SO IT'S BEEN A YEAR AND I'M STILL VISCERALLY INSANE OVER THEM BECAUSE OF THIS ONE THREAD THAT STARTS WITH A PIC OF A STUPID MEME. MY GOD, I HATE BEING OBSESSED WITH THEM BECAUSE LIKE I CAN COUNT ON ONE HAND THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO LIKE THIS SHIP (I KNOW LIKE. 2 PEOPLE AND I HAVE LIKE 200 TWITTER MUTUALS.) THEY ARE SO MESSED UP. I CAN FIX THEM.

Story of NaviMind:

Once upon a time, one of my now-friends was posting stuff about them, I didn’t like it, but then I looked at the tags And she was tagging it as frEAKIN… DAIN… BALLAS… I DIED, YO. I couldn’t live with the fandom knowing the pairing as that so I conferred with my beta and we came up with NaviMind and MasterGuide.

Then I started interacting more with the fandom and started accidentally converting people to this pairing like it was a religion. KEEP IN MIND that I didn’t ship them yet??? Like actually I was talking about canonical things and the people I texted were like “It’s my OTP now” 😭😭😭😭. My record time from me meeting someone to converting that person was a few hours. Literally, I had a NaviMind aura, it was a passive effect.

Then afterward I actually started imagining super angsty things about them and I wrote about their friendship, and I thought it would be much sadder if they were in love but couldn’t be together because of Bain’s paranoia and Dallas’ refusal to admit his feelings. They’re already best friends in canon, I write it to where Dallas can’t live without his guy… yeah, I have the most fics about this duo. I’m still strong even though it’s been over a year.

[huntertheblackwolf]

The Morning After

(2.8k) It was difficult towards the end, cause I didn't know what to do, but I did it! So yay! Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy!

Chapter IV: Dinner

  Gasps and soft moans surrounded the two as the man with slick back hair let the sounds go freely. 

  "Fuck. Ri-right there~" he finished with a soft moan, as he was grabbed by the waist and lifted against the wall. The man in front him started to thrust faster, grunting in his ear and sighing. Wrapping his legs around Hunter, Soryu continued to let out soft moans as Hunter tightened his grip on his hips. Slamming him down, Hunter started to nibble on Soryu's neck, before opening his mouth wide and- 

  'Awkward, but whatever. It's normal.' Hunter thought as he looked away from Soryu and to the server coming to the table. 'I just wanna take a nap already.' 

  "Hey Hunter, isn't that the guy from-" Conner started whispering a question to him before shutting up as something stabbed him on the side as Silviya glared at him from the corner of her eye. Smiling towards Baba and Ota, she started to speak. 

  "So, how do you know Mr. Ichinomiya?" She asked as Conner looked on, the server distributing menus to the occupants. 

  "I broke into his house." Baba answered before grinning. "I'm only playing of course! I bumped into him late one evening while exploring the neighborhood. He helped me out in some aspects revolving around money and business, and well, here we are!" He said with a flourish. 

Giggling, Silviya looked at Eisuke. 

  "Is it true?" 

  He smiled, "To some degree, yes." He answered as looked at his menu as did everyone else. Choosing what they wanted, Hunter having what Silviya was having, the server wrote down their order and left. 

  "So how did you meet Kisaki, Baba? You both seem like childhood friends." Conner asked, grinning. 

"I was given a proposition to help me from getting bored by Baba, but I thought he was just old and crazy and I just ignored him. He did pipe my interest though and so I listened to him after thinking about it and after he brought some art pieces of mine. It also helped that the Boss approached me for an art commission for Tres Spades. He spoke about some business relationship and I was hooked. That's how I met these people." Ota answered, smiling at Conner and Silviya who were invested in the story. They smiled back and then looked towards Eisuke and Soryu. 

  "And what about you two?" Silviya questioned as a server started to serve them wine and their dinner. "Oh," she said, stopping one of them, "Just a glass of water for me and him," she said pointing at Hunter, "and  lemonade for him" she finished, pointing at Conner who nodded. 

  "Well, we actually became schoolmates and friends after going to boarding school together when we were teenagers. We separated, but after 10 years, we met up with each other again and here we are." 

  "Oh, that's nice!" Silviya said, taking a sip of water. 

  "Are you three related?" Ota continued, seeing now that they didn't like each other. 

  "Hmm? Oh no! Actually," Silviya said, grinning. "We're not even related by blood, but we still consider each other family as we grew up together, fought together, and loved together. You don't have to be sharing the same bloodline to be considered a family." She paused, taking another sip of water. 

Conner continued. "We actually have two other brothers back in America. Sam and Phil. They're related to me by blood. We're actually triplets! We just don't look the same that's all. Other than that, Silviya and Hunter aren't related to us, but ya know, like Silviya said, we're family." He finished, shaking her by the shoulder. 

  "Well, why aren't your other brothers here with you then?" Eisuke questioned, as he looked over to Conner. 

  "Someone had to stay behind to guard the house and care for our pets." Conner answered and Silviya opened to add on. 

  "I also wanted to see if Sam can care after our company without my guidance. After all, when I'm gone, I want someone I can trust to take over." She said, grinning wildly. "Also with the fact that we're the only ones capable of getting Hunter out of his shell to have some fun at least." 

  "Actually, this is the first time since that week in the casino, the one where we were kicked out, that Hunter has joined us tonight." Conner pondered. "So, thanks for inviting us Mr. Ichinomiya. We appreciate it!" He grinned. 

  "Wait, kicked out? Why?" Baba questioned, the food finally arriving, looking exciting for a story, Ota looked excited too. 

  "Well-" Conner started before being interrupted by plates being set down. Thanking the server, Conner began his story with Silviya's help. 

"50 percent of the blame lies with me. I was playing a lot of casino games and I just kept winning! So, some of the other players got upset and accused me of cheating, when they kept constantly losing." Conner shrugged his shoulders. "The dealers believed those players over me, without proof of course, and called security over. I argued and then proceeded to get kicked out when they wouldn't hear me out." 

  "The other 50 percent lies with me." Silviya continued, seeing everyone invested in the story, except for Hunter, as he continued to enjoy his meal. "I uh. I got physical with someone's bodyguards. Before y'all say anything! The girl started it, I didn't! She insulted me and normally I would have let it go, but I was drunk. I was high on energy and life! I swung at her and her bodyguards jumped in, resulting in them taking the hits. I got mad and started to swing everywhere, until I noticed I knocked out two of them, almost going for three! Security got there one time though and they kicked me out with Conner in tow. After that, we ended up in a nightclub." Silviya finished as she took a bite out of her food. 

  "And where was Hunter in all of this?" Soryu asked, looking in disbelief at the three. 

  "Hm? Oh! He was-." Silviya paused, thinking for a minute, before speaking again. 

"Well, I do know that right after Conner and I were kicked out, Hunter was there and that he followed us to the nightclub. I just don't remember where he was before we got kicked out, now that I think about it. Do you?" 

  "Nope." Conner answered quickly, too focused on eating, before glancing at Hunter. 

  Everyone looked at Hunter, who was now done eating his food and sipping his water. 

He looked up at them and shrugged. 

  "Hunter? Where were you?" Conner asked as Hunter responded by signing. 

  "Uh, he said that he was exploring the hotel, found some interesting stuff before getting bored and then going back to the casino to find us. Saw that we were getting kicked out and followed." Conner answered for Hunter. "That's all that happened on his side." 

  "Exploring? Again Hunter? You know we're safe in that hotel! You need to relax." 

Silviya said in a huff, before smirking. "Are you sure you just weren't looking for someone to mess around with? I mean, in that nightclub, you did-" Silviya's eyes widen, quickly clambering her mouth shut and averting her eyes to her plate. "Uh. Forget whatever I was saying." She chuckled as she started to sip her water again. 

  "No, no, continue Silva. You were saying?" Smirked Conner as he looked towards Silviya, who narrowed her eyes at him. 

  "You know what I meant." She rolled her eyes. 

  "Yeah, but I wanna hear it come from your mouth." 

  "Too bad. It's Hunter's business anyways. It's not our right to spill." 

  "Ugh- I hate when you're right." 

  "Yeah, I know. Cause I always am." 

  "And cause you always turn into a major bit-OW OW OW. OKAY! OKAY! I'M SORRY!" Conner yelped as Hunter pulled at his ear. Letting go, Conner began to rub his ear and Silviya started to laugh, before she was whacked on the head gently by Hunter. Rubbing her head, she glared at him. 

  "What was that for?" Silviya asked as Conner nodded in agreement. Hunter glanced at them from the corner of his eye, before closing them and slightly nodding towards the rest of the guest. 

  "Oh, right. Haha, sorry about that." Silviya said, grinning in embarrassment. "We tend to get distracted." 

  "It's fine." Ichinomiya answered. "Did you enjoy your meal?" He asked as he signaled the server over as he saw everyone finish their meal. 

  All three nodded and Silviya smiled. 

  "Yes, it was wonderful. Thank you." 

  "Oh, it was nothing. I wanted to thank Hunter for pushing me away. It was unexpected. So thank you." He smiled at Hunter who had opened his eyes. He nodded at Eisuke and waved his hands around. 

  "He says not to worry and it was a reaction to protect you. Oh! And he says thank you for dinner." Conner smiled at Eisuke, who smiled. 

  He then turned to Silviya and Conner. "I also wanted to apologize to you two. I thought my employees knew the consequences of not doing their obligations. Instead, they let it happen. This won't occur ever again and I do sincerely apologize that it happened to the both of you." He said, slightly bowing his head. 

  "Oh dude! You're fine man! The swelling has gone down and it'll go away soon. You're all good!" 

  Silviya playfully rolled her eyes. "What he means is that we accept your apology even if it wasn't your fault. I mean, you didn't punch Conner and it was the managers' fault anyways. So no worries man, you're okay." She smiled at him as the server came to the table with the check.

Eisuke smiled. "We hope this doesn't affect your view of the Tres Spades then. 

Hopefully, your vacation goes smoothly as well." 

"Oh yeah, of course! The hotel is awesome! The bar and parties! And the nightclubs near the hotel." Conner answered. 

"And the shopping districts!" Silviya continued. 

Chucking, Baba and Ota smiled at them as they started up a conversation with the two. 

Soryu, who was busy listening, looked up to tapping.

Hunter slid him a napkin, as he looked up to Soryu and tilted his head towards it. 

Grabbing the napkin and reading it, Soryu looked at Hunter and nodded as he stuffed the napkin back into his jacket. Eisuke looked on as he spoke with the server, paying for the check. Hunter yawned as he looked away from Soryu and leaned towards Conner, laying his head on his shoulder and closed his eyes. Hearing the muffled conversation and his brother’s heartbeat, Hunter relaxed slightly, but was still attentive to his surroundings.

“Is he tired?” Baba asked as he nodded towards Hunter.

“Nah, he’s fine, just tired of interacting with people. Silviya answered as she looked towards Hunter, reaching over to lightly ruffle his hair. “So, don’t worry about it. He’ll be fine when we go back to the hotel.”

“What will you all be doing tomorrow?” Eisuke asked, as the server came back with his��card.

“Probably go shopping and-” 

“And go to some arcadas! Don’t forget about that! Gotta win one of those anime claw machines! And buy some figurines for Phil, remember that.” Conner interrupted as he stroked his chin, being careful not to disturb Hunter.

“Right! What about Sam then?”

“We’ll know when we go shopping. Some of these stores are probably full of hidden treasures. Remember when we went to Mexico and Sam found that talavera pottery, some Día de los Muertos figurines, and alebrijes sculptures in Puebla? He really liked that! We’ll probably find something cool that he might like.”

“I guess you’re right. If we can’t anything for Sam tomorrow, then we’ll try again elsewhere. We are staying for a couple of more weeks, so where’s the rush.” Silviya smirked and Conner nodded.

“How long have you all been staying in the hotel?” Eisuke asked as he sipped his wine as the others looked at the three.

“Probably for like a week and a half? Probably two? Somewhere around there.” Silviya asked as she grabbed her jacket. “I’m in charge, but honestly because we’re so far from our ‘deadline’, I guess you can say, about going home, that I’m not really that organized as of right now. It’s a vacation, meaning it’s a waste to be on time on stuff that’ll eventually happen.”

Conner nodded as he went to grab his coat, Hunter slowly getting off of him. “I mean, we’ll do anything on a whim if it entices us. Hunter normally doesn’t do anything with us, but he’ll come along. He just likes to do things on his own. We actually don’t know what happens with him when we don’t force or take him with us.”

“Which is fine cause we trust him!”

“And if Hunter, on any day, wants to do anything, we’ll go along with it.” Conner continued.

 Hunter, who was buttoning up his jacket, lightly butting his head against Conner.

‘Cute.’ Eisuke thought as he gazed at Hunter, quickly looking away, not wanting to get caught staring. “I think it’s time to go. The restaurant seems to be closing in 10 minutes.” He said, grabbing his own jacket, the others doing the same. The group made light conversation as they got ready to leave. Leaving the restaurant, Hunter trailed behind, making sure his siblings didn’t forget anything like usual. Walking towards the exit, Hunter joined them in the limo that pulled up.

“-wanted to have fun, ya know? Hopefully, Conner doesn’t fuck it up.” Silviya almost muttered.

“What does that mean?”

“Remember when you brought those girls over to a party at the hotel from last year?”

“Yeah, but-”

“And how they almost ruined the party for us when we discovered that they had warrants when the cops came?” She stated, cocking her eyebrows. 

“I-” Conner sighed, “Yeah, I remember.” He mumbled out as he made room for Hunter to sit.

“You all seem to have fun whenever you’re out.” Ota commented as Baba nodded as he looked towards Silviya.

Hunter tuned out the group conversation as the car started to drive away. 

Arriving at the hotel, Hunter got out, his siblings trailing after him. Stopping, he let them lead first, always being comfortable with following and being behind. Soryu, having received a phone call on the way to the hotel, stayed in the lobby to finish the conversation. The large group continued their own conversation all the way to the elevator and on it. Silently, Hunter looked over his siblings.

‘Good. They’re having fun.’ He closed his eyes, waiting for the elevator to get to their floor. ‘They’ll be going shopping and leaving me alone tomorrow.’ With a ding, Hunter opened his eyes.

“Thank you for dinner Mr. Ichinomiya! It was wonderful!” Silviya chirped as they got off, Conner sharing the same sentiment.

“Of course. It was a joy to have all of you there.” Eisuke replied as he nodded towards them.

“And it was nice to meet all of you of course.” She continued as she and Conner shook hands with everybody, Hunter waving his hands towards them instead.

“It was wonderful hanging with you all. Maybe someday we can do this again.” Baba said to them.

“That would be fun actually.” Silviya said as Conner nodded exhilaratingly.

Eisuke coughed slightly, catching Hunter’s attention. He lowered his voice for only Hunter to hear and spoke softly, not wanting to catch the others’ attention.

“Thank you again Hunter. For saving me. I hope you enjoy your stay at the hotel and I wish you well. I hope to see you again, under better circumstances of course.” He chuckled softly.

Hunter’s eyes softened a bit as he gave a slow nod, before turning expressionless again.

Hearing his siblings giving farewells, Hunter waved towards Eisuke and the others, before following his siblings towards the rooms as the elevator doors closed.

His siblings, who were ahead of him, turned towards him.

“Goodnight Hunt-Hunt! I hope you sleep well man!” Conner said, waving goodnight towards his brother. 

“Night Hunter. We’ll probably be in the shopping district when you wake up, so don’t worry about us. Even though we know we already know you were socially drained, thanks for still coming with us.” Silviya said, grinning towards Hunter, who simply nodded. Waving goodnight to Hunter one more time, Silviya and Conner entered their room. Blinking his eyes, Hunter entered his own room and looked at the clock.

‘11:27.’

Nodding his head, Hunter started to undress, preparing to sleep, even though he wasn’t tired.

‘Today was a good day. Hopefully they have fun tomorrow again.’ He thought as his body hit the bed. He brought out his Nintendo Switch from the top of the nightstand, planning to at least make some progress with his videogame, before going to sleep.

‘Today was kind of fun though.’ He admitted to himself, like a secret little thought, before being consumed by his video game and not giving today anymore thoughts.