#even though we all know they're just making a fool of themself at this point

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

Is it ever explained in the game why the Mc doesn't have their memories post-resurrection?

Like they get the Fool’s body and the fool is like new beginnings and stuff ( I ASSMUE, Tell me if I'm wrong) , but is an actual explanation in the game? Like did they also have to give something up even though the didn't make the deal? Is it because they don't have their original body?

Spoil it for me idc I just wanna know

The Arcana Brainrot Essays: MC's Memories

Hi anon friend! I hope you don't mind the ramble that's about to proceed -

Not only is the magic system of the Arcana pretty vague, when it comes to MC inhabiting the Fool's body, we have six different canon routes and twelve different canon endings, all with different implications.

With MC not being present for the ritual that gets their body back, it's fairly safe to assume that MC is not bound by any deals at the time of the prologue (though there is plenty of space to argue otherwise, given how vague the details are). Many of the routes include other characters reckoning with the deals they made at the time, but MC's reckoning has more to do with the truth than anything else. The best explanation, and to my knowledge, the canon explanation we get across routes for MC's missing memories is "because of the resurrection." That's it.

Here's where I jump from canon stuff to the implications I picked up through the different routes, focusing on the how aspect:

Similar to what other creators have pointed out in the past, MC's amnesia bears a lot of similarities to amnesia caused by traumatic brain injuries or (in my opinion) trauma in general. Based off of the occasions where MC is able to recover their own memory of dying, it seems like in at least some routes, the memories are still in there. They're just suppressed by a mysterious something. Given how the memory loss is associated with strong headaches, how said headaches are triggered by attempts to remember or vivid references to the past, and how attempting to forcibly remember something has led to further damage in the past, MC does seem to be in the middle of a nonlinear healing journey. As several of the routes progress, we can even see MC being able to succeed at mental tasks with lower levels of difficulty when previously it would have resulted in a debilitating headache.

My personal conclusion from all of that is that MC's amnesia is the result of the sheer trauma of dying and then coming back. It's a mind boggling experience simply to process the facts of what happened - let alone the physical and emotional experience. The story picks up with MC having physically recovered enough to live independently, and continues with MC's mental and emotional growth into fully growing into themself (in the upright endings). In some routes, they're able to recall a memory of their own as the story progresses, in other routes, any knowledge MC receives of the past is from other perspectives. Which leads to one of the biggest questions: can MC get them all back?

Some of our best clues outside of MC's personal narrative are the two other characters involved with returning missing memories: Muriel and Julian. (Asra, we know, forgot the details of the ritual itself, but otherwise has all memories intact. Nadia's missing all memories since entering Vesuvia for the first time, but it's never clear how much she gets back.) Julian recovers his memories when he reverses his deal with the Hanged Man, choosing to live as a normal person again with MC so that he can piece together the answer to the Plague. In his case, all the memories come back at once, fully intact.

Muriel's situation is different. He doesn't have any memories missing, he just has the capacity to take away the memories of the people around him. At first, the method for returning those memories is a sensory trigger (myrrh), but as time goes on and the deal loses its effect, the memories seem to slowly return to the people around him. It's different from Julian suddenly having access to the full breadth of his memories again, but the overall effect is the same: the lack of memory is resolved to the point that "normal" functioning can resume.

So, what does that say about MC's case? In short - anything. It really is up to how you imagine your MC, their past, the specific dynamic they have with their specific LI, how their future progresses post canon, etc. There's canon examples of characters regaining their memories gradually over time, getting them all back at once as the result of a deal, or simply learning to move forward and embrace the chance to start anew. And these are just examples of the default apprentice - there are plenty of MCs with gorgeously fleshed out backgrounds whose stories are their own twist on canon, where none of this really applies!

In short, how MC interacts with their missing memories is largely dependent on who your MC is. As to why they're missing - it's written as being because of MC dying and coming back. Whether that's due to the nature of it being trauma/a traumatic brain injury, or whatever other reason you can think of, is up to you ^.^

Cheers friend!

brainrot

[petra-creat0r]

Deltarune: Fool's Fate Ch. 4 Secret Boss

Alright so I teased them in my Fool's Fate post talking about the different Dark Worlds and secret bosses of Fool's Fate, but here's the actual ref post of the little bun-bun bynuy Cherutti. My friend @mrchaosman did make me diner secret boss before I even knew I wanted to have Chapter 4 of Fool's Fate in the diner, but I think i can better utilize Flamy else where in the chapter. Likely as one of the main bosses, which represent the tarot card of The Lovers.

So instead of Flamy, I made Cherutti. I had maybe a very basic concept, but I mostly came up with them in a day while on call with a friend on Discord while doing dishes. The part I ended up having the most struggle with when it came to her was her colors. (Well, perhaps until I have to write up their backstory.)

Cherutti's name is a combination of cherub, and putti, the plural of putto, or the little winged babies we often think of as cherubs that are seen in Renaissance art. (Fun fact, putti representing Cupid are called amorini!) Additionally, the way Cherutti's name is combined also sounds like "charity". Their last name is just a bastardization of "recipe".

I haven't thought of a text quirk for Cherutti, but I do know they'd use the orange soul mode, which I imagine would let the player run through and break attacks. Perhaps for a text quirk, Cherutti could talk in the bullet points of a recipe? Idk, I'm open to suggestions.

Cherutti is based on a damaged recipe card, likely a recipe for some sort of cake or confection considering they're from the a dark world set in the diner and their chapter would take place around Valentine's day in universe.

Backstory under the cut

Cherutti didn't used to be anything special. They were just another Resepi. A dime a dozen type of Darkner who would fly around the Diner World and deliver instructions for different kind of dishes and desserts the other Darkners would make as offerings to the Lightners. They were messengers, and Cherutti was just one in a crowd of dozens. She didn't even get to deliver the instructions to anything all that important. Just a tiny little dessert that barely anyone ordered.

Cherutti was fine with this though. They didn't need to be anyone special or do anything important. She was just happy to do her job. Though, every now and again they might've felt a slight jealously towards their fellow Resepies, they tried not to let it get to them. Instead just focusing on her job, delivering instructions whenever called upon.

One day though, Cherutti ran into a... strange someone. A man who offered Cherutti an offer that any Resepi would be a fool to refuse. The man offered to help her get on the Specials Menu. The Specials Menu was a big deal. It was where the cream of the crop offerings were displayed. A place were a Lightner could notice and decide to try out even the tiniest little dessert like Cherutti was in charge of. The smallest Resepies would be lucky to even get their offering on the daily part of the Specials Menu, with even that rotating spot getting swapped around between the more popular Resepies and their menu items. The place the man offered Cherutti would be a much, MUCH more permanent one though.

Cherutti accepted the man's offer, and at first everything seemed to be going great. It started with helping them improve the recipe instructions they were meant to deliver. An edit here and there to improve the formula and ensure more Lightners ordered it. Nothing to outrageous. Even the most popular Resepies' recipes would get little edits either to improve the dish or substitute ingredients. Then the man helped Cherutti get a daily spot on the Specials Menu, a small honor a small little Darkner like themself never even dreamed they'd achieve. Even if it was short lived, Cherutti felt on top of the world. they'd finally had a taste of richest cream this world had to offer.

And they needed more.

The next step of the man's plan required patience. He'd help Cherutti get on the daily spot of the Specials Menu a few more times before finally helping them onto a more permanent spot on that list. The problem with that was Cherutti was a very fast and brash Resepi. Even if she was humble and accepted her place before, her recipe was quick and easy, having little prep time. And now that they'd had a taste of greatness, Cherutti didn't want to wait any longer than they needed to. Additionally, the man had also revealed a great truth to Cherutti during this time. Both as a courtesy he gave all his followers, but also to try and tide the impatient Darkner over as he continued with his plan.

This only drove Cherutti's hunger further.

Even as Cherutti got on the Daily Specials more and more thanks to the man's help, they didn't want to wait for the profits the man promised would come eventually. In their impatience, they started to tweak their recipe more and more. Making even more edits, ones which often confused the Darkners meant to follow the instructions they were delivering. Their brash confidence and speed caused them to let letters get splashed or damaged as they found themself getting called upon more and more. Delivering instructions that with bleeding ink, half scribbled words, and torn edges. Cherutti barely even noticed the man had long since abandoned her at this point.

The turning point came when Cherutti got fed up by some workers who complained about not being able to read or understand the instructions she had delivered. Cherutti's offering had been requested and ordered about a dozen times by now, couldn't they memorize it? Fine, she'd show them how it was done. If Cherutti had to rely on others who were so incompetent, then they may as well do it themself! However what Cherutti didn't realize was such brashness would be their ultimate downfall.

Cherutti ended up falling into the fire they had tried to throw the cake into, damaging not only them, but their recipe as well. At this point, there was no way anyone could read the instructions on their little card, and everyone doubted what use a burnt Resepi could contribute. Cherutti's desert was only permanently banned from the Daily Specials, but also removed from the menu entirely and Cherutti herself was cast out. Forced to spend the rest of her days among the soot and ash, still scheming their eventual rise back onto that coveted Specials Menu.

That is until, a puppet and his friends find their way into the diner world during the loveliest time of the season.

-----------------------

Hoo boy! I came up with most of that on the spot and worried it was sounding too much like Spamton's at first but eventually I think I steered it into something of its own! Originally I think I was just gonna have Cherutti get forgotten in the recipe box as the rest of the Resepies were moved to a cook book but I like this little story of impatience and self destruction more.

I've already got an idea for the next Fool's Fate secret boss, I just need to draw him. I might hold off on them for now though so I can make something for Grimm's Chaos Clash using my Studio Dark World. We'll see. I might just end up using the takes-no-guff journalist to kooky krazy wizard for that. Doggone could work for the tourney, right?

I'll likely go with the studio one. Just need to come up with an item to base off first...

[allthemusic]

Week ending: 20th October

Well, we're back to more standard fare, a week off from Westerns and TV themes. In fact, looking purely at the name of this song, I have absolutely no idea what to expect, which is the kind of entry I enjoy writing, honestly.

Hey There - Rosemary Clooney (peaked at Number 4)

Oh, okay, this is sultry and lazy and kind of jazzy, like the sort of thing you could imagine being sung to you in a smoky jazz club. Even just the sax and brushed drum beats at the start are a fantastic vibe.

And then the lyrics: Hey there, / You with the stars in your eyes, / Love never made a fool of you / You used to be too wise. So off the bat, it's about somebody who used to feel haughty about love, but is now in love? This is one of my favourite romance tropes ever, and Rosemary is selling her role as an observer magnificently, with a sort of jaded, seen-everything tone.

Once we get past the opening lines, it becomes clear that Rosemary is also playing a sort of advisor role, warning the friend she's addressing that You had better forget him / Him with his nose in the air, / He has you dancin' on a string, / Break it and he won't care. It's such a keen image of a guy who isn't being necessarily outright cruel, but is certainly uninterested and maybe a little callous about his admirer's feelings.

Despite this concern, it's also kind of scathing to the friend, calling them out for how they're on a high-flying' cloud, and pointing out how Though he won't throw a crumb to you / You think somebody he'll come to you. And later on, Rosemary all but says that they're not listening to her, asking if they'll take her advice, Or are you not seein' thinkgs too clear? Are you too much in love to hear?

Honestly, it's giving me excellent "unrequited lesbian love" vibes. I know that was almost certainly not the intended message to take from this, but I can only imagine Rosemary, hopelessly and frustratedly pining for a friend who's in turn hung up on a guy who doesn't even like her. Compelling, even if it's unintended!

But yeah, even without this, it's a fabulous song, and it turns out its from the musical The Pyjama Game, where it's sung by a male character (with the pronouns switched) into a recording device, warning himself to forget his love interest, who's on the opposite side of a labour dispute at a pyjama factory. This kind of makes me want to go see a version of the musical, honestly. Knowing its somebody singing to themself changes the vibe entirely, in a way that's almost as compelling as the narrative I made up for the song!

And throughout, Rosemary is selling the song just as much as she needs to, hanging back carefully and not over-doing it. Her performance here is great, and I'm not at all getting tired of the song.

Well, this was fun. I love a song that tells a story, and this one suggested, like, three different stories. It was like each time I listened different lines and aspects of it popped out at me. I like the version where Rosemary is singing to a friend, I love the version where she's singing to somebody who's a bit more than a friend, and I also kind of love the version where she's berating herself. This song belongs in more rom coms. It's the same kind of classy "classic rom com using older music" vibes as the way they used In the Wee Small Hours in Sleepless in Seattle, honestly.

Favourite song of the rom-com-worthy bunch: Hey You

[ringaroundtheroses]

There was a clock chime in the distance. An echo of something much louder by the time it hit this particular time rift. An impossibly loud sound meant to reach across the known timelines in  a sort of warning. This timerift however is a broken one left out of TBD maps. It's an ancient and distorted mess with not a single soul documented surviving whatever disaster ended up destroying the place. All that's left are fragments of a memory.

To say this place was forgotten by all would be a lie. There are a few who know the deepest secrets of the broken time rift. Though it isn't anywhere near common knowledge and you'd have to go far out of your way to find the place. Or well, it used to not be. That was until the director themself demanded every inch of this place be turned upside down.

A golden and bronze aircraft soared across the sky. It left a vast shadow underneath that its searchlights cut through with ease. A few dozen timecrafts swarmed around the massive aircraft or flew close to the ground below. Many, many more officers traverse on foot to look into every possible hiding spot.

After hours upon hours of searching they continue moving forward with no signs of stopping even for a quick rest. The chine of the distant clock has struck many times over. The rift was not actually that large. It was vast of course, 

 but mainly empty of places a cookie could hide. Even so they seem no closer to their goal than when they started. 

On the main aircraft there were surprisingly few beings left. Most sat at a round meeting table but two stayed near the front to man the ship while one person stood at the head of the table. The table shows an updating holo map that shows every place that has been searched. Most of the people sitting at the table are updating their notes or thinking over their search. They all seem to be in some sort of bad mood. Either sad, serious, frustrated, or some combination of the 3. The leader of the table seems especially  to be in a bad mood. Their face has quite a dark look to it and they seem to be fighting the urge to stab someone very hard. Luckily their rather large scissors are laying beside them on the floor and not being used as stress relief on any of the people around them. They smiled a bit wider and clapped their hands.

They project their voice, "It seems! Like we are at an impasse here. Can someone, ANYONE, explain why we bother to pay these incompetent fools when it seema they can't even complete simple tasks?"

A man sitting next to them nervously raises his hand. His expression was one of the more sad ones with an air of exhaustion the others didn't have. 

The leader pointed at him, "Ah! Yes! Hero, go ahead."

Hero's voice sounded like he was crying a lot recently, "We don't pay them Tk."

Tk clapped their hands together, "Oh right I forgot! Well remind me to not pay them in the future then."

An older man farther from the 2 cut in, "Can we stay on topic please? Complaining about the officers won't help us find them any sooner."

The child next to him looked up from her notebook, "I second that notion! Negativity isn't helping anyone here. "

Tk scoffed, "I'm not being negative OR off topic! I'm simply making an observation. This rift is the last and yet they've found nothing. They're obviously not trying."

A man next to Hero muttered under his breath, "At least they didn't chase away our own."

Tk stiffened. Their until now unshaken smile froze on their face. Their head snapped over to focus on him.

"What did you just say?" 

He startled, obviously not thinking they’d hear him. He tried to look away from them with a guilty expression.

"Sparkling what the fuck did you just-"

A girl across from the older man stands up. Her long blonde hair was a mess like it hasnt been combed in days. 

She interrupted, "She said 'at least we didn't chase away one of our own' and I for one think he has a point!"

The man butted in sternly, "Butter Pretzel, sit down."

"No! I won't sit down as they keep going on like this isn't all their fault! We aren't the ones who ran off the boys. Why the hell are we all pushing ourselves to fix their mistakes!?" 

Tk moved a step closer to Pretzel but was stopped before they got any further. Hero grabbed their arm and shook his head. Tk rips their arm away from him but doesn't move further. The older man stood up to glare at Butter Pretzel. She didn't move towards Tk either. Sparkling looked between them but didnt move to get anymore involed. The others not in this fight looked like they wanted to be anywhere but there. Well, except for the person next to Butter Pretzel and the ones driving the craft. 

The one next to Butter Pretzel  looked on in amusement. In general they seemed the least miserable out of the group. Whether they were emotionally detached from whatever search going on or they had some reason not to worry was not clear. The pilot was happily whistling in the front.The elderly man was wearing a headset and couldn't hear any of the commotion from his seat. His young assistant was similarly focused too hard to look back at the table. The silent tension was broken by the person next to Butter Pretzel.

"Ah so am I the only one who picked up on the fact Madame Pretzel wishes we leave the boys to rot in some desolate timerift or...?"

"That's not what I-"

Tk butted in, "Thank you for pointing it out Rougefort, I was thinking the same thing. How deplorable of you Pretzel! The poor boys shouldn't suffer because of my mistakes."

"Stop putting words in my mouth you damn bastards!" 

The older man glares, "Watch your language young lady there are children present!" 

Butter Pretzel practically snarled, "You guys can't keep defending them like this! Am I the only one here who cares that they could be dead and it would all be their fault? Attacking me won't change that fact!" 

Pretzel's grip got hard enough to make a small crack in the table.The children in question were wathcing this whole exchange with wide eyes. The other adults were now simply ignoring the quarrel to contuine their tasks. One of the few still taking notes on the map pauses. 

Her red hair was pulled into a rushed bun and her pencil was littered with chew marks. She looked at Butter Pretzel then to Hero. They seemed to have a silent conversation consiting of nothing but their eyes. Eventually he  gives in to her looks and speaks up softly.

"Its not. We don't not care Pretzel just...saying it doesn't help. All this fighting isn't going to help us find them any faster. What can help is Timekeeper's resources and skills. Once their home safe we can have this conversation but can you guys jsut stop? I can't, I can focus like this. please."

"Hero you of all people- You know what?  Fine. I'll ignore it for now, but I'm not going to let them order me around here. I'm out. Call me when the boys are found."

She storms off without another word deeper into the ship. Timekeeper stared as she left. They sat down in their chair after a moment, still frowning. Hero and the others still trying to do work all visibly relaxed. The older man watched her go as well and seemed to be ready to follow after her. Rougefort shook their head at him.

"Let her go dear. She just needs to cool off a bit then she'll return."

The older man looked unconvinced, "I know but with her strength cooling off could lead to breakign something important in a rage."

"It'll be fine. Sit down and you'll see."

The older man sat down wearily. Rougefort reached out and squeezed his hand with a small smile. Timekeeper finally blinked after a few moments but still seemed a bit lost. However, it wasn't long after they finally got a notification of something new. The clock chimed once more in the distance as the map reflected a red mark. The aircraft pilot turns around in his chair and whoops.

"They found something!"

Everyone at the table looked over to him and his assistant at once. Both pilots seemed ecstatic. The table erupted into noise. People leaped out of their seats or yelled out questions. The main pilot shouted over the noise.

"Alright, alright! Be quiet! I don't know what they've found but we're going off course to the edge, get ready to land soon folks." 

With that, they took off toward the edge. and hopefully towards the boys.

[thefullmetalgirl]

Hiya Again! I Wanted To Request Another Bodyguard Scenario! (If That's Okay With You Of Course! I Ask A Lot For These) Maybe They're Fighting A Homunculus And The Bodyguard Is Injured And When One Of The Homunculi Is About To Send The Final Blow Greed Saves Them? Then After When Patching Up Their Wounds As They're Talking He Surprisingly Kisses Them And Then It's All Awkward And Ling's Super Jealous? (Only If You Have The Time Of Course)

Haha sure I love doing your requests. Hopefully I don’t keep you waiting to terribly long and that it’s actually worth the wait of course.

“Damn it, how reckless can you be,” Greed scolded as he wrapped gauze around their arm. The blood from the wound slowly spreading across the white fabric it touched. “You could have died!”

“It wouldn’t matter if it did,” the bodyguard argued, scowling. “That’s the point of a body guard, to protect your life with mine.”

“And what would Ling say,” Greed retorted, not looking up from his work. “I doubt he would want you dead.”

Truthfully Greed didn’t feel angry so much as scared. He had almost lost them to Pride after Ling’s body guard came up with the brilliant idea to lead Pride away from them by taunting him. Pride immediately saw through what they were trying to do of course and played along.

“You humans are all the same,” Pride said nonchalantly as his shadows casually sliced away at the bodyguard’s skin like he was cutting bread. “You think sacrificing your own life by getting me angry will save your friends. It’s to easy.”

Greed remembered how the body guard tried fighting off the shadows as they led Pride further away from the group to buy them time but to no avail. Despite their weapons, Pride continued to get hits on them. He didn’t even go for a killing blow either, just continued cutting and cutting until their body looked more like an open bloody wound then an actual person. Pride wasn’t trying to kill them, he was toying with them.

“You’re to cocky,” they panted, barely able to stand as they shook on their feet as they became weaker from blood loss. “That’s going to be your downfall. One day, someone will knock you down from your high horse and you’ll never see them coming.”

“Typical human,” Pride sighed. “I’m starting to get bored with you. Maybe I should just kill you now and be done with it.”

As Pride readied his shadows in preparation for a final attack, Greed came up behind him and slashed at his back. Pride’s eyes flared with annoyance as his attention immediately shifted from the bodyguard to Greed.

“Maybe you should listen to your elders, Pride,” Greed taunted as he raised his ultimate shield’s claws in another attack.

“I’m disappointed in you Greed,” Pride replied, dodging the attack and aiming his shadows like spears in response. “You’re fighting your own kind to protect a foolish human.”

“Yeah well, that human is my bodyguard,” Greed retorted with a smirk. “Meaning that they’re mine and as you know, I don’t tolerate people damaging my stuff.”

The battle lasted quite awhile, even with Greed, Fu, Lan Fan, Edward, Alphonse, Heinkel, and Darius all fighting against Pride, he still managed to be one step ahead. It wasn’t until Hoenheim stepped in and used his alchemy to make a makeshift prison out of the Earth so Pride couldn’t use his shadows that the battle finally ended.

Now Greed was patching up the body guard at an inn since the bodyguard insisted that they didn’t need to go to a doctor because they’ve ‘had worse’. So as a compromise, Greed got a room and bought some medical supplies to help patch them up despite their protests to do it themself.

“Ling would understand that I’m doing my job to protect him,” they argued, bringing Greed’s mind back to the present as he continued to wrap the gauze around their bloody arms.

“Actually I’m upset that they almost got themselves killed,” Ling argued inside Greed’s head. It felt like he was crossing his arms with a slight pout, or at least that’s what his mood felt like to Greed.

“Are you sure about that?” Greed asked the bodyguard. “Because Ling just said the exact opposite.”

“Then his feelings are clouding his judgement,” the bodyguard concluded, wincing slightly as Greed finished tying the bandages off.

With a scowl, Greed opened the med kit and pulled out more bandages to deal with the gaping scratches on their stomach and sides. “Do you have any idea how much we care for you? How could you say that.”

“Because his feelings really are, he’s getting reckless,” they replied, Greed could feel a small wave of hurt radiating from Ling at that statement. Almost like they had punched him in the gut. “I’m surprised that you’re doing this. I would think a homunculus like yourself would be more objective to this.”

Now it was Greed who felt like he’d been punched in the stomach. Did they really not know just how hard it was for him? How hard it felt to keep his growing feelings from swallowing him whole so he wouldn’t hurt Ling?

“You really think he’s the only one with feelings for you,” Greed spat out, adrenaline starting to pump through his veins. “I care about you alright! I care a lot so don’t you dare think of sacrificing your life like that.”

Whether because of the heat of the moment or his heart beating at ninety miles an hour he didn’t know but before he could stop himself, he found his lips smashing against theirs. His hands gripping their hair as he kissed them.

When he realized what he did, his eyes widened and quickly broke away. The bodyguard’s face looked shocked and a bit dazed as if they couldn’t believe what just happened. Greed couldn’t really believe it either as he felt his face flush crimson. He finally kissed them. Sure, he had felt it when Ling kissed his partner but it didn’t feel the same, kinda like wearing something secondhand or drinking after someone. It didn’t compare to actually doing it yourself. This time, he initiated the kiss and could control how he kissed them and moved his hands the way he wanted them to as opposed to how Ling did.

“What the hell was that?” Ling threatened in Greed’s head. He could feel Ling’s anger and jealousy radiating inside him. Greed had to struggle to keep Ling from taking over, at least not yet.

“I’m sorry,” Greed started quickly. “Don’t want you to think I’m some kind of homewrecker. I mean sure I’m greedy but I’m not going to steal you from my best friend. So uh..just forget that happened alright sweetheart.”

“I don’t think I can forget that,” they said softly, almost like they were in a daze. Their fingers going to their lips as if they still couldn’t believe it. “You..care about me? I used to think you were a monster for taking over Ling’s body but…you just…”

“Yeahhhhh I might have a slight crush on you,” Greed admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. “Course, you’re with Ling and he’s currently pissed so I’ll let him take over for a bit.”

“Greed…” they started to say but Greed was gone.

“Damn it Greed!” Ling exclaimed when he finally came to, his hands forming fists like he wanted to punch something. “I should have known that would happen.”

“Ling…I’m sorry,” the body guard replied, a slight blush forming on their face as well. Seemingly ashamed that they didn’t try to stop Greed…or maybe because they didn’t want to. Ling couldn’t really tell.

His face softened when he saw his partner, though, gently embraced them as he tried not to touch their injuries. He really missed moments like this, being able to hold them whenever he wanted, caress their face, kiss their lips, all of those little things.

Truthfully he couldn’t really blame Greed for falling for them. He didn’t like it but with the way Ling felt about his bodyguard, how could anyone not fall for them as well if they felt what he felt. He loved everything about them, their smile, their personality, their stubbornness, their eyes, if roles were reversed, Ling wondered if he would be tempted to do the same with Greed’s partner.

“Don’t be sorry,” Ling murmured, still holding them in his arms. “Any guy would be a fool not to fall for you.”