#hm. i wonder what things will be awaiting on my 20's

[alebrijediscordico]

....dear god they were right.

teen years are hell

[psychemeanscure]

PART 20 {After two consecutive parts with full Jang Taeyoung, yeah I do need a Sung Eunyoung indeed. Enjoy y’all}

That was the last thing she can remember before she went blackout. Approached by a couple of men after a newly ended meeting. She tried. Tossing her leader bag sling from own shoulder, running after their chase over her, pulling out the only pepper spray weapon she had. Yet, none of that paid way other than her being smelled by a chloroform in handkerchief, then history happened. They successfully taken her.

Regaining consciousness, she learned that her head was actually cloth with garbage bag. Peeking a possible person, she can see but failed as the bag was pure black for her to take chances. Hands tied tightly from behind, both ankles wrapped by metal ropes. Much the duct tape plastered on her lips isn’t helping, useless screaming as only muffled sound is heard. She gave up, as only heavy breaths left.

Until someone finally take it off the bag on her. Meeting the eyes of the person she expected it to be. ‘Veeros Alcaziar.’ Her raging mention in mind. It innocently looks at her surprised as if no idea as well. “It was you?” its disbelieving words even.

‘Cut the act, old hag’ a retort from her mind once again. She may can’t blurt it out yet her blazing glare says it so. “I never thought you’ll be the co-partner of that industrial company director who wasted my money. You see señorita, I invested a sum from that Xi industry knowing that it could profit my business carefully. They promised, I trusted them, and they just flee. I had no choice but to look for the other proprietor hoping to bring back mine. If only I knew you were the other person, I could have just settle to you properly. I’m sorry.”      

Sensing another of her muffling sound, the latter takes away the duct tape without care for she need to whimper in no time. “F*ck you.” Her convicting reply as the old Alcaziar only awed in snigger, revealing its true colors. Sighing as if disappointed on its own action. “Is my acting really that bad to notice easily?” it even snaps his own forehead as if remembering where he slips a word. “Ah! Right. Flee. Tsk, how can I say that when you just met him with your last meeting? What a bad actor I am.”

“Shut the crap out, Señor Alcaziar.”

Her cold stone response, as its evil grimace slowly showed up. “So you knew.” Does, the retaliating laugh resonate the illuminating room. The only hanged fluorescent bulb swaying from the ceiling makes it more irritating. “I thought I have to work too much threat with you but damn my dear Amilia--- oh scratch that, my little Sung Eunyoung-ie… You wholeheartedly offer yourself instead. So proud of you. So like your mother, just as wise as her.”

And it stilled her. For she admits she starts to get nervous by his presence. Given the mere mention of her mother, she knew a glimpse of Pandora’s box will reopen. “W-what do you mean?” her urging eccentricity. Responded by the clicking of its shoes, arms crossed with ascendency, fully welcoming her awaiting answer. “Hm. Alright, let us put it this way.”  Removing its usual cowboy hat he’s wearing by a near table, lighting up own tobacco while pulling out something on its shirt pocket, she acknowledged it. Strands of hair tailed neatly as she can only think of one person. ‘Eomma.’

She never expected the extent of obsession the geezer has, until today. Possessing a part from a deceased is too much considering years had passed already. Inhaling like he has been familiar for such a long time, he reminisces. “God, your mom’s smell lingers my senses over the years still. Such my favorite scent.” Its interleaved remark before turning back at her with the original answer she needed.  

“Have you ever wonder of your mom’s death was actually?”

Blowing the smoke of its tobacco close to her while she remained unwavering, he continued. “Cancer?” his questioning stance after proceeding with another as he shakes his head and takes her chin, up to level his gape.

“She was killed.”

Firm and self-assertive statement before letting go of its hold, opposite to how she’s already clenching her fist tightly from behind. Observant stares from the latter but just a stern look she does. Hot fire ready to explode into her, a little more and she won’t be surprised if she blasts out any time soon.

With a tilting of its head, the old Alcaziar continues. “Brave.” A compliment she did not bother. “You being jeopardize and all, I must say you applaud me with your calmness.” Him, leaning its face closely to her, “Now listen, my sweet little pea…” he speaks. And just like that, she spits him while it’s also too fast for his countered slap.  

It was a hard one. Hard enough to leave a reddened mark on her face. It hurts her, yes but she holds it in. Letting herself satisfy with her work instead. Her contoured saliva which successfully spread all over the latter’s face gives her pride for she thought it was her chance to fight back just to shiver by his touch after fiercely wiping its own face, cupping her face tracing every part of it like his own. 

“You only had me realize a while ago that you resemble so much of your mother that I keep stopping myself on hitting you, but just looking by your behavior right now you left me with no choice. The next time you will then I, your father won’t let it slide anymore.”

“You aren’t one to begin with, geezer!”

Dodging her cheeks from his hold, she retorted. “Father! Call me father!” as his domineering affirmation came after an irate throwing of its own tobacco. Eyes of obsession starts to ponder, jaws clenching with delusion. “Your mother died…  Isn’t because of the unexplainable rapid of her cancer but rather she stopped it on purpose.”

A series of sham speech begins to create. “All of it. Each reason, is always because of that Sung Chanhyung! The f*cking coño stole the love of my life from me! You understand that?”

“You have no right!” she countered.

“I met your mother first! And that alone, gives me a right. That crazy s*cker killed her!”

“No, it’s not for you are the crazy one who killed them!!!”

She can’t attain anymore. That with the mere mention of his father being accused, she exploded. Finally, as it’s too fast for another heavy slap to earn a cut on her lips this time. Yet, none of it matters for she’s occupied with one thought and only. As her brows furrows, connecting its illusive stories to reality. Half-truths or not, she can only sum up the emotions her parents felt back then. 

Threatened, deceived, betrayed. Just three things but left a large impact for their blissful family to fall apart. “Is that how the bastardo taught you?! That puto! Why am I surprised, even? He had brainwashed my wife what more with you.”

“She had never been yours!”

“She loved me! And that you should put in mind. We were in love until he came she became unwise, giving her all as sacrifice from that foolish man!”

“Wake up with your f*cking illusion now Señor Alcaziar!”

He’s insane! A very factual word that best describes the man in front of her. That’s for sure. How can she believe him even when she herself was the witness of the unconditional love her parents had for each other? She, who begged for the both of them to share their love story during bedtimes. She, who always wonder about how lovesick they are just by staring gazes. She maybe still a little kid then but for a young age she had once known what true love is. Her parents, was undeniably each other’s first love.      

“Eh. You, stubborn child. You’re being hard to persuade still, huh?” Hair being clutched by the senseless old man, she yelps. By its menacing impatience, she’s cornered. “You better kill me instead, Señor Alcaziar. You will never hear anything from me. Besides, I’m all that you need anyway. What stopping you?”

Her spoken counter finally. But yet until a deafening laughing mockery from the latter. “Oh! No, no, no. You can’t always be exact my kid. I guess I did, at first. I had only asked for you alone, but learning about you further I got to think twice after. Then at second, I thought. Why not a little gratification, right?”        

Seconds later, the once darkened room she’s in, becomes brighter. It relieved her somehow, little not knowing that it would fade away too fast as her eyes begins to go round in shock. She was frightened.

The sight of her foster parents, seen from the monitors of the LCD TV, tied up on a chair unconscious. And to the person whom she never expected to get harmed. Being kneeled helplessly across her, appearance being tormented from its usual dominancy.  A bleeding cut from the eyes streaming on its face, swollen lips that had break its original luscious form, but most specially… the part which worried her too much.

Its wounded stomach. 

“No…”

“No, no, no.”

‘This can’t be real.’ Her disbelieving pushing of her own thoughts as she shakes her head hoping that is was all a dream. But it’s not. Her shuddered eyes never left the figure in front of her. Twisting herself trying to get away from her own situation even if it means failing. “There you are, Mi niña.”

Not even the voice of the crazy Spaniard bothered her for all she could think of is him.

And like a sinking lioness, she bawled.

Into what just the hell happened?!

“Jang Taeyoung!”

[yeontanismypresident]

Our One and Only | 07

a/n: oof the long awaited chapter 7 of our one and only! i apologize for the late update, i just was not feeling motivated or inspired to continue this story. but recently i found some and i got this done! 

word count: 3.4k+

genre: idol!verse, hybrid!au, soulmate!au, angst, fluff

warnings: drug use, marijuana, fist fights aye, language

The only sounds that could be heard were the occasional shuffling, everyone’s soft breathing, and the purring coming from Jimin. Your hand was loosely running through his soft locks, delicately untangling the knots, waiting for one of the hybrids to explain their past. Taking in your surroundings, you noticed those who haven't spoken of their past avoided your eyes, as if they were embarrassed and that you would judge them. 

“You guys...do know I would never judge you, right?” you asked them, voice hesitant, not knowing if you wanted to know the answer. When the guys didn’t answer you, you chewed on your lower lip and furrowed your eyebrows. Did they really think you’d see them differently…?

Namjoon abruptly got up from his seat, startling everyone in the room, ran his hand nervously through his bangs, his ears flattening atop his head, and spoke, “D-does anyone want anything to drink? I’ll get us some water or s-something.” Before anyone could say anything, he briskly walked into your kitchen, cutting the conversation short. Your shoulders and head dropped, feeling as if you had messed things up between you and the hybrid. 

A whine from your left made you look over, catching Jimin's eyes as you did so. He was watching you with sadness, picking up on the change in your pheromones. You gave him a smile, albeit small, and glanced around the room to see Jin standing up. Cocking your head to the side, you gave him a questioning look to which he just gave you a reassuring smile. A few minutes passed by, you continuing to pet the cat hybrid’s ears and the others sitting there in silence. Just as you were about to speak, Namjoon and Seokjin walked back into the room. The elder kept a hand on the back of the younger one, making sure he wouldn’t try and run away again. 

“I guess it’s my turn to tell you where I came from…” Namjoon trailed off before going into his past.

--0--0--0--

As Jason was rolling a blunt, he yelled for Namjoon, “Get over here you filthy mutt!” The wolf hybrid held back a snarl, knowing it would just end up with him getting beaten. Stalking towards the man, Namjoon put on a blank face, keeping all of his emotions hidden. 

“Yes, sir?” Namjoon quietly asked, keeping his stare on the floor. He was taught to never look someone in the eyes. Otherwise the consequences wouldn’t be pretty.

The drug dealer took a hit before exhaling all the smoke, “I want you to go pick up my next order from the docks.” He handed the hybrid a wad of cash, telling him, “Now go. Get out of my sight.” Internally sighing, Namjoon obediently nodded his head and left. 

Walking through the dark alleys, the wolf’s ears twitched at every sound, eyes surveying the area for any danger. As he got closer to the meeting spot he thought of ways to leave this life. He had already tried escaping his owner’s house but that didn’t end well. One of the gang members had spotted him and shot him in the leg to stop him. Since he was trying to climb down from the window, he fell from the second floor. The member had dragged him back inside where he got the worst beating he had ever experienced. He could always try and just leave now, but he knew his owner had sent someone to trail after him and make sure he didn’t do anything stupid. The footsteps behind him and the slightly familiar scent told him that much.  

Before he knew it, he was standing in front of some grubby man. A rough voice broke him from his thoughts, “Do you have the money?” Namjoon nodded, handing it over and taking the duffel bag full of illegal drugs. He felt uncomfortable, hating how he had to be the one to handle them. 

Just as he was about to turn around and leave, a bunch of sirens sounded off, red and blue lights flashing. The bright lights caused him to squint his eyes, watching as multiple officers came out of the cars, guns held high. Fear paralyzed Namjoon as everyone else ran off, trying to not get caught by the police.

A kind officer walked closer, noticing how the hybrid had bruises and cuts littering his skin. His voice was soft and soothing, “Are you okay?” The wolf whimpered, dropping the bag and backing away. The man stopped where he was and put his hands up, “Hey, it’s okay. You’re safe now.” Somehow, the policeman knew he hadn’t wanted to do any of this, and that calmed Namjoon enough to allow him to put him in the back of the cop car. 

The man, who introduced himself as Officer Lee, took him back to the station where they let him clean himself. When he found out everything the wolf’s owner had made him do, Officer Lee and his coworkers went and arrested Jason. He then decided to adopt Namjoon, helping him get better and helping him achieve his dream. 

--0--0--0--

“I understand if you hate me and don’t want to be friends anymore,” Namjoon cowered into himself, tears falling from his eyes. You quickly got up and went over to him, pulling him into a loving embrace and petting his ears. His bushy tail slowly unwound from his waist and wrapped it around yours. 

With tears of your own, you mumbled into his hair, “I could never hate you Joon. You’re so strong and brave.” You cooed as he sniffled and snuggled closer into your arms. Jin smiled sadly, before speaking up. 

“Time to tell my past, hm?” 

--0--0--0--

“Do you know what species you want?” The employee, Hyun-Soo, asked as he led a woman and man through a door. All types of hybrids were running around the small yard, both young and old. 

The two gently smiled at the playing children as they followed the worker. The male was the one to answer, “No, it doesn’t matter to us as long as we can give someone a happy life.” Hyun-Soo hummed, grinning as a little girl with fox ears ran up to them. She waved excitedly before running off to play with her friends. 

“Well, we have foxes, wolves, alpacas, lions,” Hyun-Soo started to list off all the hybrids they currently had, but the female had stopped listening, instead staring at a young boy, who looked to be seven, sit all by himself. He had a sad expression as he watched the others interact with each other. The sight caused her to frown, not understanding why he wasn’t with the other hybrids, and she voiced this. 

She pointed over to the small boy, “Why is he all alone?” Hyun-Soo and her husband looked over to see what she was talking about. 

“Ah that’s Seokjin,” The shelter worker said, his voice holding sorrow. He sighed, “He’s a hamster hybrid and the only one here. The other children prefer to be with those of their species, so he’s always alone.” 

The male looked over at his wife, saw her saddened eyes, and asked, “Can we meet him?” Hyun-Soo grinned and took them over to the little boy. The child looked up with eyes filled with wonder as all three adults kneeled next to him.

“Seokjin, this is Mr. and Mrs. Kim. They want to chat with you, is that okay?’ Hyun-Soo softly asked him, getting a small nod in response. The worker left the three to talk, going over to mess around with some squirrel hybrids. 

Mrs. Kim smiled gently and took a seat next to Seokjin, “Hello, Seokjin. How old are you?” The boy held up seven fingers, looking at them shyly. The two humans continued asking Seokjin questions about himself, trying to get to know the young boy. They ask one final question as they stand up, “Seokjin, honey, do you want to come home with us?” 

“Really? Can I?” the hamster exclaimed in shock, eyes big and hopeful. When they both smiled and nodded, Seokjin grinned and hugged them tightly. 

--0--0--0--

“Seokjin-ah! Come down here, please!” 

The 20 year old hybrid came bounding down the steps, stopping in the living room where both his parents were sitting on the couch. In his mother’s hands was a white, thick envelope. With his sharp eye sight, he could faintly see his full name as well as the logo for BigHit Entertainment. His heart stopped, eyes widening in recognition. 

He slowly made his way to them, his voice shaky as he asked, “Is..is that…” Seokjin trailed off, his nerves preventing him from continuing. His father gave him a reassuring nod and smile as his mom handed him the envelope. His fingers shook as he tore it open and took out the letter. Quickly reading through its contents, he dropped it and covered his mouth as his eyes began watering. 

“What did it say, sweetie?” Mrs. Kim’s tender voice caused the first tear to fall. 

Seokjin choked out a laugh, “I got in. They liked my audition! They want me to join!” His parents beamed and brought him into a group hug, congratulating him and expressing how proud they were.

--0--0--0--

“I didn’t have a hard time like the others, but that’s my past,” Seokjin mumbled and leaned back in his seat. The two hybrids that have yet to explain their life looked at each other, trying to decide who should speak next by having a conversation through their eyes. The red fox hybrid pouted in defeat before straightening and wringing his hands out nervously. 

Before Taehyung can even begin explaining his past, you can hear the code to your front door being punched in. The hybrids became frigid and their tails moved in annoyance. Confused as to who it could be, you shifted uneasily. Jimin placed an arm around your shoulders, pulling you into his side protectively. Eyes widening in realization, the only person you remember telling the code to was Hyuk, you watched as said man walked through the door. 

He went to move closer, though decided not to when a growl sounded, “Y/n…” The way he said your name, desperation thick in his voice, caused your heart to clench. Even though he was an asshole, you still hated to see him almost breaking down.

“Hyuk, leave,” you said, rising from your seat and making your way towards him, your friends following your lead. He glared at the hybrids behind you, his eyes softening into a pleading look when they met yours. Taking a closer look, you noticed how dead his eyes looked, the redness surrounding them shocking you. 

He stuck his hand out, as if to reach for you, but stopped halfway, his voice quiet, “Baby, please, can we just talk?” Ignoring the growls coming from the seven men, you took one last step and finally reached him. You didn’t want to appear weak or afraid, no, you wanted to seem strong, like the break up hadn’t hurt you. Which to be fair, you honestly hadn’t suffered much, slowly losing your feelings towards Hyuk the minute you met the seven member group. Which was still confusing to you, but you could dwell on that later. 

“Hyuk, you said we were through,” trying to be calm to compensate for the others, you kept your voice even and peaceful, “There’s nothing to talk about.” The maknaes had triumphant grins while the hyung line were smirking, though their expressions were wiped away into snarls when they heard the words that fell from your ex-lover. 

Tears blurred Hyuk’s vision, resulting in him looking pitiful, and his voice broke in between words, “Baby, I didn’t mean anything I said. It was all in the moment! I was hurt that you would rather go after the pe- him than stay with me, your boyfriend.” One of the hybrids, the voice sounded an awful lot like Namjoon’s, corrected him with a quiet ‘ex-boyfriend’. Said man glared at the wolf hybrid while scoffing, “Excuse me?” 

“He said, ex-boyfriend, meaning you’re not her boyfriend anymore. She doesn’t need you,” Jungkook said, his tone full of confidence as he moved so he was standing right next to you. Jimin followed his lead, grasping your hand tightly in his when he was by your side. 

Seeing what Jimin had done, Hyuk sneered at him, “Let go of her fucking hand or else.” Eyes widening, you gripped the cat hybrid’s hand tighter, afraid of what would happen next. Jimin gave your fingers a short squeeze, giving you a reassuring smile before turning to face Hyuk with a blank stare. 

“Or else what?” Jimin questioned him, raising an eyebrow to further provoke the man. He knew he shouldn’t irritate him, especially not in front of you, but he really couldn’t stop himself. Maybe it was in his instincts, to protect his mate and get rid of any threats, or maybe it was just because he was tired of this guy acting like he was some hot shit that could do whatever he wanted and get whatever he wanted. 

Hyuk balled his hands into fists, his jaw taut with anger, “Or else I’ll fucking remind you where you belong, you filthy pet. That’s all you are. You’re a pathetic little animal that should only be used as a sla-” Before he could finish his speech, Jimin had pounced on him, claws extracted and growls rumbling from his chest. You screamed in horror as you helplessly watched Jimin throw punches at your ex, yelling at him to stop. When he didn’t, you sought help from the other men in the room. 

Glaring at the other hybrids through your tears, you begged them to do something, “Please, stop him!” Finally coming to their senses, Jin, Hoseok and Jungkook rushed towards the pair on the floor. Looking back to the scene, you saw Hyuk was now on top of Jimin, hitting him over and over. Jin grabbed him off of the small man, holding his arms behind his back, while Hoseok and Jungkook made sure Jimin didn’t go after Hyuk. 

“I’ll fucking kill you,” Jimin snarled, spit flying from his mouth as he continued to struggle out of his friend’s hold. You sobbed at his words and turned away from the sight before you, hiding your face in Yoongi’s chest as he hugged you, his tail around your waist. He mumbled gentle words to you and placed kisses on the top of your head, effectively calming you down.

Namjoon stepped forward, his alpha presence making Jimin whine and finally stop fighting his friend’s grip, his tail lowering between his legs and ears pinned to his head. “Jimin, enough. You’re scaring her.” Namjoon’s comment made the cat hybrid whimper and try to get to you, though Hoseok and Jungkook wouldn’t let him. The wolf Hybrid glared at Hyuk, his words coming out in a slight growl, “As for you, I think it’s best you leave.” Hyuk was about to protest, but when the others growled threateningly at him, he scoffed and left without a word. 

“Baby, I’m so sorry,” Jimin sniffed and rubbed his eyes, “I didn’t mean to lose control.” 

Pulling away from the panther, you fling your arms around Jimin, “I was so worried about you.” He whined and hugged you closer to him, nuzzling into your neck and breathing in your scent. The smell of vanilla and roses calming him down. He placed a peck on your pulse and leaned away from you to stare at you, eyes filled with love and sorrow. 

The two of you start to lean in, but before your lips can meet, the sound of someone’s stomach growling breaks you apart. Looking around, you notice they’re all staring at you with amusement. Right as you’re about to ask them why they’re staring at you, your stomach growls louder, causing your cheeks to redden. Oh... it was my stomach, you thought. 

“How about we order some takeout? We didn’t really get to eat our dinner…” Jin trailed off, hating how he brought up what everyone wanted to forget. It was silent until Hoseok walked past you, placing a quick kiss on your cheek, stating he would order some food. 

Jungkook hopped up and down and then ran to the couch, “I call choosing the movie!” You giggled as Jimin pulled you along with him, tugging you down in between him and the bunny hybrid. 

All eight of you spent the next two hours eating and watching movies. By the time the second one was ending, you were falling asleep, your head on Jungkook’s shoulder. All of the hybrids cooed as you mumbled in your sleep and cuddled closer to the young man. Jungkook blushed as he felt your hot breath hitting his neck, shivers down his spine. Taehyung walked over and carefully lifted you up, carrying you to your bedroom. Seokjin, Yoongi, Hoseok, and Jimin followed, huddling up to you when the fox placed you in the middle.

“Yah, Y/n-ah! Come on! Before they catch us!” 

Giggles tumbled past your lips as you ran behind Jimin, squealing when strong arms grabbed you around the waist. Jungkook’s laughs sounded in your ears, cheeks blushing when you felt your face being smothered in kisses from the man. “Kookie! Lemme go!” 

The bunny squeezed you tighter against his chest and yelled out, “Never! You’re mine now!” Laughter rang through the air as he started to tickle you. Struggling to escape his grasp, you didn’t notice Taehyung creeping up behind you with a bright grin. Until he was pressed up against your back, tail wrapping around your right thigh, his fingers trailing up your sides and tickling you with his friend. 

“I’ll save you jagi!” Jimin screeched, running full speed towards the three of you. When he got close enough, he tackled Taehyung off of you. Out of nowhere, Hoseok appeared and stole you from the bunny hybrid, standing in front of you protectively and growling playfully. 

Cold hands gripped your wrist and spun you to face them. There, standing extremely close, was Yoongi. His eyes were sparkling as his face neared yours. Your breath hitched and your eyes glanced down to see his own rosey lips. He licked them, smirking when your pupils dilated even more. Leaning in, you closed your eyes just as your lips tou-

Jolting awake, you looked to your right, seeing Hoseok cuddled into your side his tail tickling your thigh as it swayed every so often, with Yoongi cuddling him from behind, his tail wrapped tightly around your wrist. Turning your head to the left, you saw Jimin cuddled with Jin. Not seeing the rest of the boys, you untangle yourself from the hybrids and left the room. You could hear purring coming from one of the guest rooms next to yours, and looked in to see Jungkook and Taehyung cuddling, fast asleep. Walking further down the hall, you saw a faint light coming from the kitchen. Quietly stepping inside the room, you saw Namjoon sat at the table, just staring at it absentmindedly. 

“Joonie?” you asked, voice soft so you don’t startle him. He looked up at you and motioned you to take the seat next to him. When you get close, he tugs you to sit on  his lap, tail wrapped protectively around your waist. 

He nuzzled into your neck, licking it a little and scenting you. The feeling of his tongue caused shivers to run down your spine. Namjoon smirked, “What are you doing up baby girl? Couldn’t sleep?” Nodding, you rested your head on his shoulder, snuggling into his warm embrace.

“Can I ask you a question?” you slurred, sleep gradually creeping up on you. He hummed, giving you permission to continue. Looking up at him, you softly wondered, “Why do I feel so connected to you guys? Even though I’ve only known you for a short time?” 

The hybrid below you became tense, tail tightening around you and ears twitching. It was silent for a few moments and for a second you didn’t think he would answer you. Namjoon pecked your forehead, “I think that’s something we should talk about when everyone is present. Let’s head back to bed, shall we?” 

Knowing you weren’t going to get anything else out of him, you allowed him to guide you to the other guest room where you huddled close to him. The warmth emitting from his body lulling you to sleep. 

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[emiwrites3reads]

Hybrid, chapter one

Seris Summary: Reader is part shapeshifter part which, she runs away from her cultist family before they try to sacrifice her familiar, Whisper to some deity she never bothered to learn the name of. She no longer wants to be part of that life. Doing so, she finds herself looking for a job. Her last resort is Lux, a night club that was all the way at the bottom her job list.

Warnings: cult stuff mentioned, sacrificing mentioned.

Characters: in the tags

Chapter summary: applies for a job at Lux, before she even starts the job she runs into some trouble with her past.

(Cat for reference)

______________________________________________________________________

“Whisper! Even McDonalds denied my request” you say looking to her grey tabby familiar. The feline chuckles and puts his paw on the next job on your list. You let out a stiff sigh and look to your cat. He looks amused. “Really? I guess your right, it’s my only option”

You grab your stuff and slip on your favorite band t-shirt. You check to make sure you look semi-decent and fix your hair. You doubt you’ll need to look that fancy for this night club. The people there might not even wear clothes half the time.

“Let’s head out” Your cat turns into mist and manifests into a tattoo of a cat paw on your wrist. It glows your favorite color and then stops, turning to a solid black. You do this every time you leave to a non-pet friendly place. Other times you grab a harness and leash.

It’s not uncomfortable in there. Whisper is basically on a floating island. He tells you its a forest with a meadow and it’s pretty big. You two can still communicate through telepathy like this.

~~~

Your uber drops you off at the night club. The music is shut off and so are the lights as it is the afternoon. There is still a security guard at the front. You walk up to the place, studying it’s glorying. The large sign must look so divine at night.

“Hi sir, may I go in to ask about a job position?” The officer speaks into his walkie-talki and gives you a nod. He opens the door and you step inside. You’ve never seen such a night club. There is a grand piano in the middle, comfy booths, and a big dancing area. Your eyes land at a bar where a fairly attractive man and woman sit awaiting you.

Maybe they are both prostitutes as well, Whisper says in your mind. You ignore him and walk up to the two.

“Hi, I’m Ms. Black, I’m interested to see if you have any job positions,” You say as well-mannered as you can.

“Depends, what positions can you do?” The woman says with a smirk. You almost choke on air.

“Uhh, what?” You simply reply.

“This is a nightclub sweetheart, we don’t have many waitress positions opens, plus guys still want to get in your bed” He says. This is not how you expected it to go. You nod and start walking out. You start going up the stairs when Whisper pops in your mind.

Don’t give up, go back and tell them, not ask

“Umm actually, are you sure there isn’t anything else opened?” You turn. Whisper is right, you can’t just give up. The two study you and take glances at each other as if they are speaking as you do with Whisper. The man then turns to you and smiles.

“I’ll open one up for you, how about… bartender?” He grins. You gladly except.

~~~

You put on one of the most revealing things you ever wore. A crop top and booty shorts. Both black. You don’t even recognize yourself in the mirror. You turn to see Whisper looks with the biggest and most humanly grin a cat has ever done. “I need the money… “You say to yourself. You pull out your phone and call an Uber.

When you get there, it is 8 pm. Your boss, whose name you found out was Lucifer is waiting for you. This time with a girl with blonde hair and doesn’t look like a hooker. A detective.

“Detective Decker wants to ask you some questions” Neither you or Whisper are happy about this. You follow the woman over to a table, incredibly self-conscience of how you look.

“Where were you Tuesday night, 5:00 am?” She says clearing her throat. Whisper seems very silent.

“Sleeping, I didn’t get up till 11:00 am that day, I stayed up till 3:00 am that night” You answer. What are you being accused of?

“Do you know a Tommy marshall?” She pulls out a picture of a man. It’s a boy maybe your age, 20’s. He has curly brown hair and blue eyes. You study him. You’ve never seen him before.

“No” You simply state.

“Were you ever involved in any ritualistic activities” By this time, Lucifer is right above her shoulder. You freeze, unsure of what to say.

Just tell the truth, Whisper says.

“Yes…. but I left that, my parents…. Were umm-- they liked that sort of thing,” You say, very uncomfortable. Lucifer’s curious eyes fall on you. This pecked his interest, he was just bored of it before.

Do you think they did it? Whisper says.

“Do you know who did it…. The poor boy… I- I hope you find who did this, I’ll help in any way I can” You say. Decker looks to Lucifer. She knows something else.

“Your DNA was found at the scene” You stare, shocked. You know who did this. The only thing that could is magic. Your parents. They could alter the scene using magic and replace any DNA. At least if you need to go on the run, it’s fairly easy. But you don’t exactly want to spend the time 100 years as a wolf.

“How?” You say, you can tell Lucifer sees right through you. This is the last thing you need. You have to keep cover. If a mortal finds out witches exist, not only your parents would be after you, but the whole council.

“You know how this goes, stay in the state” She says and starts walking away. You get up, standing while unsure of what to do with yourself.

“You know how your DNA was there don’t you?” His tone scares you. He thinks you killed that boy. You have no motive, but rituals can be just as fitting. You bite you tounge.

“I didn’t do it if that's what your thinking, it has to be my parents, at least my mom,” You say. Your dad, biological dad is a shifter, who also is dead. The dad now could care less for you.

“Why would she do this? Hm?” He says. His eyes have a slight shade of red. They would scare any mortal. But your not one. “What is it you desire?” He adds.

You hear a high pitched ring. You ignore it the best you can. You look at Lucifer who looks baffled upon imagination. He seems to try to get a closer look. “How are you not affected? What are you?”

“Human” He sees through that lie.

“My family are all witches, that’s how my DNA is there, they did a spell” You sigh. It’s your only choice. He would have killed you if you didn’t tell him. You still have to kill the hybrid part a secret. You're not supposed to exist, with your dad being a alpha shifter and all.

“A which? Now that's enticing! You have a familiar still I bet? That’s why you ran, I knew I recognized your last name!” He says spinning around in circles. Your family has a reputation. They don’t think you should depend on a familiar so they sacrifice them.

“And i’ll have to be on the run if my parents don’t get caught….” You say. Something sparkles in his eyes.

“Want to make a deal?” He smirks. The more and more you talk, the more you think he’s the actual devil. You shake your head, you don’t want to fall into this trap. Who knows what he might have you do and you don’t want to get into any more trouble, you also don’t think you should go with this job.

Get out of there, there is an angel on his way from the silver city who won’t take too kindly to you.

“I have to go” You start to rush up but he grabs your arm. You hear the flapping of wings and see a dark-skinned man behind Lucifer. He doesn’t look happy but Lucifer looks thrilled.

“Ahh brother” While he was distracted you took that chance and run. Lucifer turns and tries to go after you but you turn a corner and run down an alley where you turn into a rat, which is extremely painful. Turning into small animals hurt, or new ones, and when you turn to fast into an animal you haven’t been before. Luckily, he didn’t see you. And since your in a animal form, he probably thought you did some spell to disappear.

You hate being rodents. At least the ones like mice, rats, and moles. They feel so disgusting and you hate the instincts that come with them. So you turn into a hawk once Lucifer left.

You fly to your house but don’t go inside as there are police going in and out. They must have gotten a warrant. They aren’t going to find anything. At least you hope. You land somewhere on the ground far away and turn into a cat that looks like Whisper. You need to see whats going on. You walk out of the trees around you and greet an officer by rubbing against his pants. “Dan, leave the cat be” You see Decker come over. She picks you up and carries you into the house.

“Lucifer, I think this is the pet you were talking about her having” Crap, you try to scramble out, especially since you see the angel from before looking at you with daggers. You barely manage to move an inch.

“How did you know she had one?” Dan says, coming from behind. You whisper sorry and use your claws to get out but she still doesn’t let go. You don’t dare bite her though. You don’t want to end up in a lab.

“She told me about him, wonder if it has any evidence on it?” You glare at the two angels. You bite Decker and she lets you go in a fit of pain. You run but Lucifer’s angel friend picks you up. He has a much stronger grip. He also isn’t nice about it. Ohhh he is going to be having a bear after him someday.

“Should we crate it?” The dark angel says. You hiss and try to move. But his grip threatens to break your ribs. You're already going to be sore from all the shifting in the morning if you can escape then.

“It doesn’t look to have any evidence on it, but we can use it to bring her in if she’s as close to it as you said it was” Oh no. You really need to get away. You take the risk and bite the angel, which does nothing. You bite again, with more force and taste some blood. He drops you in shock, one that you actually share in the fact you made him bleed. You race into the woods and turn human and release Whisper. He knows what to do. He walks around some as you go off into the woods. You don’t think you can turn anymore, you could risk breaking some limbs.

~~~

The next morning once you get back you get a call. You are relieved. Witches get worried if their familiar isn’t around for a while and their magic can act up, that is if they are alive. “Yes?” You say, you don’t need to fake the worry.

“If you want your cat, we need you to come in, doesn’t look good that you disappeared yesterday” Decker was on the other side. You didn’t waste anytime. You took some ibuprofen, even though they barely work for your shifting pain. You race out the door and call an Uber. It comes in 10 min and takes 45 min to get to the LAPD.

You walk in and Lucifer walks you to the questioning room. The new captain, pierce is there along with Decker. They don’t look to happy. There seems to be something going on between them.

Decker is quick to start. She asks the same questions, gets the same response. Then Pierce comes in and asks the same, making sure I don’t change up my story. Since I didn’t, they are discussing my fate outside. I know if I’m desperate enough and they try to aresst me, I’ll turn into a fly or something right in front of them, and let me tell you, insects hurt a lot.

“Amenadiel walks to speak to her” I hear as the door opens. It’s Lucifer and the angel from before, who I now know is Amenadiel. They turn the camera off and walk over to you. Lucifer is carrying the crate Whisper is. He doesn’t look happy, you’d make it up to him by going on a hunt with him.

“Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you right here and right now” Amenadiel says.

“Cause it’s illegal and your surrounded by cops?” You say sitting back, crossing your arms. Your still a little afraid of him, but since he doesn’t seem to have silver on him you should be fine.

“You think I care? I can stop time” He says. Lucifer leans against the wall, wondering what you’ll do. You simply shrug.

“Can I have my cat back now?” You say with annoyance in your voice. It’s the best way to hide your fear. He already wants to kill you and you barely know each other.

“I didn’t know the Blacks had a daughter, we would of slaughtered you as soon as your were born!” He says. You chuckle, no one was supposed to know. If they did, everything would be after you.

“An angel would kill a baby?” You say as menacing as you can. Angels didn’t use to scare you. But when one nearly killed your mom, who always scares you, that changed. Of course you were kinda hoping the angel finished her off. You were hiding then so they couldn’t see you.

“No, I’d kill a witch,”He growls through his teeth. He turned to Lucifer who if he had popcorn, would be eating it. He looks so entertained. You hope Lucifer doesn’t hate your guts.

“Fare enough” You get up and take the crate from Lucifer who looks stunned. You open it up and a angry Whisper jumps out. You pick him up and walk out. Decker looks in and sees Amenadiel. She looks even less happy. She walks in past you and goes in, slamming the door. None of the cops gave you any trouble.

[kapitan-rusakov]

The Distribution of Justice

I had been celebrating the birth of my first child when the King’s men had approached us. They inquired as to why we were deep into our cups, and we cheerfully told them the wonderful news, that I had just become a father. They seemed so innocent, so pure of heart, such model soldiers at that time. They bought us a round of drinks and toasted to my newborn baby girl...but after we had drained our glasses, we noticed something extra at the bottom of our glasses: a coin. “Well gents, it seems you have accepted the King’s silver. You are officially in the Royal Navy now lads.” the tallest man snickered. His long red coat, his black, tree-cornered hat, adorned with gold trim and some kind of insignia, it was burned into my mind. I flew into a rage. How could he do this!? As I lunged for his throat, everything went black.

“Greetings to you lot. Greetings to you beggars, vagrants, drunkards, and scum. Your poor life choices and humble birth has afforded you very little in this life. Here, however, you have a chance to gain glory and honor by serving in His Majesty’s Royal Navy. If you work hard, and obey me…” he guestered to a few well-dressed men behind him, “...and my officers, you just may become something more than the filth of England. Disobey, and we shall break you the way superior beings have broken the filth for millenia: with lash, pain, torment, and discipline. If this doesn’t suit you, there is always a second option. Does anybody not want to serve in His Majesty’s Navy? If that is your decision step forward.”

One man did. One man took a step forward. We did not recognize him, but he was dressed in rags and smelt of cheap ale. “I-I-I-I would like to take the second option, s-s-s-ir” he choked out. The tall man smiled, and snapped his fingers. Two of the well-dressed men, the ship’s officers as I understood them to be, grabbed the poor man and threw him overboard. The tall man said nothing, and kept us standing there until we could hear his screams of protest no more. Then he smiled.

“That, lads, is the second option. If you choose to stay, know this: you will be bound to every plank on this vessel until you are dead or not needed anymore. Is that clear?” We all replied “Aye-aye!”. The tall man flashed us another sinister grin. “My name is Captain Walter Davies, welcome aboard the HMS Hound, sailors.” He turned and left for the same door he had entered through, and the Officers began to bark orders. That had been my introduction to the sailor’s life.

The days turned into weeks, the crossing was filled with hardship and pain. Our destination was Port Royal, but we hadn’t been told what awaited us there. Captain Davies wanted to make it there in four weeks, but we all knew that was impossible. Not only were we fighting the winds, but the tyrant Captain had skimmed on our provisions. While he ate salted pork and drank brandy, we were fed hardtack, a strange, thick oatmeal, and given watered down rum to drink. We toiled for hours, trying to make his deadline, but our inexperience betrayed us. There wasn’t enough hardened sailors to properly instruct us of our tasks, and the result was far from what the Captain had expected. One man fell from the mainmast due to an improperly tied knot, and another had his legs smashed by an improperly stowed cannon, which had come loose and rolled into him. Both men were tossed overboard with such contempt it was insulting. The man with the smashed legs screamed for what seemed like hours while our vessel left him behind. While we grew weak with hunger, the Captain and his men started to gain more flesh on their frames. By week seven we hardly had the strength to rise from our hammocks. The surgeon informed the Captain that we needed more to eat in order to keep the ship sailing. He relented after hours of arguing. It was the seventh week when we spotted what would be our salvation.

A sail was spotted to our east. She was flying colors Captain Davies did not recognize. It was a white banner with a blue “X” stretched out to the four corners of the flag. He had us beat to quarters, in landsman terms that means we made the ship ready to fight. Despite our weariness we readied the cannon and waited. The HMS Hound was a 6th rate Frigate, however, she only had 20 cannons to her name, all were 6 pounders. Captain Davies had armed her to deal with smaller vessels, but the ship that chased us appeared to have 28 cannon. We could not make out the poundage, but they were long guns, the same used by navies around the world for their range and penetration. We waited for two days as the mystery ship approached us cautiously.

It was my watch on the third day, and through my spyglass I noticed a man standing at the bow He was wearing clothing from a culture or part of the world unknown to me. His boots had curled up, pointed toes like those worn by the Ottoman Turks. His pants were not the tight fitting breeches or sailor pants worn by most of the Great Powers’ Mariners, they were loose and had a dyed, linen shirt tucked into them. The belts were of standard european fare, as was his red coat. The most peculiar things, however, were his sash and his hat. The sash was a rich green and patterned. While we had all heard of the beautiful silks that came from the Far East, but this seemed to be even more exotic. His hat was fur, and folded up on each side of his head. The only two adornments was a brass ship in the center of the front fold, and a feather tucked behind the same fold, sticking straight up. Before I could get a look at his face, a single cannon fired from the bow of the vessel, and their flag began to be brought down. I called for Captain Davies, and he wrenched the spyglass from my hands. The flag was changed, and raised again. The new flag was black, with a heart pierced by a cutlass, and an hourglass placed below that ghastly symbol. Drops of red blood from the heart were shown leaking onto the hourglass. Captain Davies swore, and before he could bark order, the man on the enemy vessel shouted through a speaking horn:

“Strike your colors Englishman! You have no chance, we are well armed and well provisioned! Surrender and no harm will come to you and your men! Should you choose to fight, you will be shown no quarter!”

Before Captain Davies could respond, one of the men had already begun lowering our flag. Davies drew a pistol and shot him before he completed his task. It was as if a floodgate had been released, l and before the man hit the ground, my fellow sailors drew our weapons with intent on taking control of the ship. However, the enemy vessel was already upon us. As the men from the other vessel threw over grapples, we abandoned our arms and fell to our knees. Captain Davies and the Officers were shouting as we were boarded by scraggly, unkempt barbarians. Davies drew another pistol and fired at the man I had seen on the bow, but his pistol misfired, and exploded in his outstretched hand. The strange man drew his own blade and walked up to Davies, grinning smugly. Davies attempted to draw his sword, but was stopped by the sound of pistols being readied to fire. The Officers and Davies dropped to their knees, and we expected to meet our end…

What followed was most unusual. We expected to be killed outright by these foreign corsairs, but they merely bound our hands and legs and took many of us away for questioning. I watched many men be dragged away, whimpering and pleading for their lives. When they were brought out, their bonds had been cut and they were sent to the quarterdeck. I was trying to understand the corsairs’ intentions when I was seized and brought before the man I had seen on the bow. The man had taken up residence in Captain Davies’ cabin. He sat on a chair while smoking a pipe, his feet lazily placed on the fine table, and his arms were stowed behind him. He introduced himself as Captain Rusakov, and questioned me about our voyage. I explained to him how most of us were not seamen, that we were actually landsmen pressed involuntarily into service. I told him of the night in the tavern, of the hardship and cruelty suffered beneath Captain Davies. He listened intently, only pausing to relight his pipe and drink from a flask produced from a coat pocket. After I had shared my tale, he stood up and one of the corsairs offered him a knife. I closed my eyes, fearing I had offended him in some way, but felt the bonds containing my hands and feet loosen as the knife cut through them. He stood me up and smiled, before leading me out of the cabin. I was stowed with the other sailors and Captain Rusakov signaled his men. They began to cut my fellow crew members free and bring them to the quarterdeck. It was only then we noticed Captain Davies and his Officers were all tied to the Mainmast. Two corsairs brought over a large barrel and Captain Rusakov climbed on top of it while clearing his throat. Then, he started to speak:

“English sailors! I have questioned many of you, and received the same story! While you were drinking at a tavern, out in a fishing boat, or celebrating your child’s birth…” he glanced at me as he spoke before turning to the rest of my men, “...the Captain and his men stole you away from your homes and forced you into servitude! Then, while you scrounge for food like beasts, he eats like a king! The unceremoniously tossing of injured and dead men overseas like spoiled cargo is the most heinous of crimes ever committed at sea! We all hail from a far off land, a crew of many religions, races, and talents! We sail as free men, and would like to offer that same opportunity to you lot!”.

There was a cheer from the men, but before it got out of hand, he raised his arms as a signal to quiet down.

“However, we need to address the offenses done unto you by the tyrant captain! Before we decide how to handle the transfer of goods and men from this vessel, we must distribute justice unto the captain and his officers! The officers shall face the punishment of humiliation, and the captain shall receive our most painful lesson…” as he said this, Rusakov showed us a sinister sneer before hopping off the barrel and whistling to his men.

The Officers were stripped nude of all but their socks and hats, then tied up as pigs. While this happened, the former Captain was relieved of his clothes save for his shirt and breeches. His feet and wrists were tied to separate ropes, and he was propped up on his knees before Captain Rusakov. He removed the pipe from his mouth and blew a cloud of smoke into Davies’ face.

“Normally, we’d take your cargo and leave. We’d petition your crew to join us and leave you be. However, you treated your men like slaves on a plantation. You treated them like disposable beasts of burden. This crime cannot go unpunished. The Captain’s role is to guide his men to glory and riches, not beat them into submission.”

He blew another cloud of smoke into Davies’ face. He coughed and started sputtering as he started to weep. Before fear overtook him, Davies spoke in what sounded more like a condemned man than a ship’s captain:

“Please sir, let me go and I swear to Christ Almighty I’ll be a better Captain! Give me the chance to change my ways! Just please don’t kill me!” He cried as tears rolled down his face.

The foreign Captain laughed as he inhaled and exhaled more smoke.

“We aren’t going to kill you, man. We are going to make an example of you. One that your underlings will never forget.” He produced a black hood from his belt and draped it over Davies’ face before clapping his hands twice.

At the second clap, a group of corsairs pulled on the ropes and Davies was dragged to the starboard side of the HMS Hound. He was suspended by his feet, with his head pointing to the water. I had never seen this kind of punishment before, and ignorantly thought they were going to drown him. I looked at some of the more experienced men, and saw their faces go pale. There were no cheers, and all was silent. Captain Rusakov snapped his right hand, and the rope holding Davies above the water was let go, plunging Davies into the sea. As the splash of the former captain hit the water, another group of corsairs began to pull on the rope that I assumed was tied to Davies’ hands. They pulled in short, quick tugs. I failed to comprehend what was happening, and then I heard it. The sound of something...no...Davies’ body scraping against the bottom of the HMS Hound! I will admit here that my nerve was lost, and I had to vomit overboard at this sudden realization. Just as I finished emptying my stomach, I saw Davies’ body come from the water, where it was unceremoniously lowered onto the deck. His clothes were torn, and his arms, legs, stomach, and back were bleeding from many cuts. He lay there motionless for a few moments, before two more corsairs tossed saltwater on him. Davis screamed and wretched as the pain overtook him. He neck snapped back and his body writhed in agony. After Davies slowly fell silent, Rusakov turned to us, and spoke softly.

“Has justice been dispensed? Are you lot satisfied with this?”

There was silence. No man said a word. Rusakov raised his right hand again and snapped, and, once again, Davies was pulled up and over the water. We could all hear his screams. The shrieks intensified when Rusakov clapped his hands again. Davies’ protests were silenced by the water and they dragged him under the ship again. Once again, we all heard that terrible sound. He was brought up again and dropped on the opposite side. Davies was motionless, taking short, ragged breaths. Rusakov walked over and tore the hood off, revealing the horribly damaged face. An eye had been scraped off, kart of his cheek was torn free, and we could see his teeth through the wound. Again, Rusakov asked us:

“Has justice been dispensed?”

I stepped forward, walking towards the crumpled man. Two corsairs moved to stop me, but Rusakov waved them away. I looked at Davies, and with all the rage I could muster, drew back my fist and drove it into his wounded cheek. He grunted and breathed in more ragged gasps, and I was satisfied when he spat out a few teeth. I nodded and walked back with my men. Captain Rusakov smiled and whistled again, signaling his men to bring Davies below decks.

The surgeon tended to his wounds as best he could, dressing his cuts with bandages and using slaves to ease his pain. Davies and his officers were then placed in a small, single-masted launch with some provisions, a compass, and a map to Port Royal. In an ironic twist, it was only three days away from our current position. We stripped the HMS Hound of all her goods, then set her aflame before sailing away with Captain Rusakov. As we watched her burn, we all felt relieved.

We made port in Nassau, where I was able to barter for transport to England, and eventually made it home. After reuniting with my beloved wife and daughter, I caught wind of some news. The local taverns had just heard a story of a scarred up captain arriving in Port Royal with his officers, all were nude except for their socks and hats, and the captain was so disfigured that many of the barmaids fainted upon seeing him. He carried a note in his sock that had details of the crimes committed at sea. The last they heard he was dishonorably discharged from the Royal Navy, and the Officers were to spend the rest of their careers in the bilges. The Distribution of Justice had served its purpose, and taught me a lesson I’ll never forget: The Captain’s duty is to guide his men to glory and riches, not beat them into submission.

[nanigma]

Leon Fanbook Translation: Famous Lines

Link to the Takumi Fanbook

Introduction

Profile

Another part down. Wasn’t as work intensive, but still took just as long as the other one due to fewer opportunities to work on it. But I think I like how I got it done and hope you enjoy reading it. 

Another note: Unless someone has any serious objections, I’ll be skipping over the Chronicle section of the fanbook. It’s really just the most barebones summary of what happens in each game chapter, with no new information or even commentary added. Pretty much just padding imo. That way I can get the more interesting sections that much sooner! Tell me if you think otherwise though.  

Before we continue, here is the same note as usual: As I am currently without a real income, I would very much appreciate it if you could throw me a couple bucks via my ko-fi account (link on my blog page). It doesn’t have to be a lot, just what you think my translations are worth really.

My comments in italics

I will be using the Japanese names

Pages 10-11

Famous Line[s]

Iconic Lines playback

We've brought various iconic lines of Leon from Conquest, Birthright and even Revelations. Let us bring back the fine lines he walked, his passion during intense battles and his reminiscences.

“... I have my own way of doing things. That's all.“

Conquest Chapter 14 – Singing Voice of Paradise Although it was an order from his father, King Garon, Leon, who felt executing every dancer in the city to be unreasonable, skilfully managed to let them get away. What happened in the end ran directly counter to what Garon wanted, but without openly doubting the King of Nohr or behaving like a sycophant Leon did what absolutely had to be done.

Sorry for the angle

“... What an eyesore. I won't show any mercy to the likes of you. Cowards of your ilk are a disgrace to our noble Kingdom of Nohr. Now at least show some dignity as you die...“

Conquest Chapter 26 – Treason The words Leon threw at Macbeth, gaze filled with scorn as he finished him off. The Nohrian Tactician had been abusing his position by concocting various schemes, laying out despicable traps for Kamui's group and getting in their way on numerous occasions. Removing this “coward“, who ended up begging for his life until the end, was done to restore Nohr's pride.

“Despicable fools... turn to dust already!!“

Conquest Chapter 18 – Princes of Black and White Leon left quite the impression with his words against the traitor Zora. This is the scene where he demonstrated his „cold hearted“ mask quite clearly. His anger was mostly directed at himself rather than his subordinate, for having trusted someone like that even for a moment.

Zora’s scheme was bad, but considering he was following Garon’s orders can he really be called a traitor??

Page 11

“... So I trust you recognize me then, big brother.“

Chapter 1 – Nohrian Brethren Leon's competitive side showed itself quite clearly in these words. Although Marx reassured him that he simply chose mastery of his magical talents over mastery of the sword, Leon personally felt alienated from the brother who saw his own strength wielded in his blade. As such his desire to have his own strength be recognized seeped through.

“This country will surely become a wonderful place. That's the feeling I get.“

Conquest Endgame – Light Fading Into Dusk After all the fighting had ended, these were the words he said to Marx, who was sworn to become the next King of Nohr, and the rest of his siblings. While they would remember the days of suffering and war, as well as the comrades who supported them throughout, now they could await the beautiful future lying in store for their country.

Pages 12-13

“Traitors are a disgrace to Nohr. Death shall be your redemption...“

Birthright Chapter 18 – Prince Leon of Nohr When confronting Kamui, who was leading Hoshidan forces to infiltrate Nohr, Leon threw angry words at them and challenged them to battle. His speech was supposed to convey his hatred for the Hoshidan-aligned Kamui having betrayed the siblings they grew up with.

Page 13

“Listen. None of you have a grasp on his real power. … He is on an entirely different level.“

Birthright Chapter 18 – Prince Leon of Nohr After stepping aside himself, these are the words of advice he gave to Kamui, who was now headed towards a confrontation with Marx. Only because Leon has some ability with the sword himself did he know just how unassailable and completely out of reach his older brother truly was. However, he understood that Kamui needed to continue on their path and so he told them about Marx's meeting with the Rainbow Sage.

Glad someone aknowledges Leon’s abilities with the sword. It still goes ignored too often.

“... I lied, sister (brother). I lied about hating you. The truth is... I always thought you...“

Birthright Chapter 18 – Prince Leon of Nohr Seeing as he normally puts up a very cold act, Leon is very bad at openly expressing affection. So here his true feelings for Kamui simply bubbled up and overflowed.

“When I look at someone as despicable as you... I feel a strong sense of disgust.  Now, you disgrace. Are you prepared? Turn to dust already!!“

Birthright Chapter 25 – The Traitor's True Identity No matter the situation, he simply cannot forgive any cowardly deeds. His completely merciless attitude is undoubtedly the reason he came to be commonly known as „cold blooded“ among the Nohrian ranks.

“Ahhh, too close! Your faces are just too close!“

Birthright Chapter 25 – The Traitor's True Identity Although the amount of tension in Leon increased with every moment the final battle drew closer, conversing with his trusted retainers surely lifted his heart.  

Pages 14-15

“... Hurry up and go already. The real Duke Izana is just past here. And moreover... you'll find that foolish Hoshidan princeling there as well.“

Revelation Chapter 10 – Voice of the Gods While his attitude towards the traitor Kamui remains cold, Leon was still swayed by the sincere words of his sibling. After dealing with the cowardly trap himself, it would seem he vented out some of his frustrations on the Hoshidan prince before leaving.

“Hm? The Hoshidan royalty is all here as well? Then what was that kind of performance just now? My... how pathetic. Well, I'll at least credit you with having the devil's own luck.”

Revelation Chapter 17 – Black Flame Both Marx and Leon rushed to support Kamui's group in the difficult fight they had been forced into. Leon then made a biting comment about the difficult time the group had in repelling Macbeth.

People usually harp on Takumi, but Leon can be quite the rude little shit himself.

“Appearing and disappearing as they please... what a disturbing fellow.“

Revelation Chapter 18 – The Unseen Kingdom What Leon said after jumping down to the bottom of the Infinite Chasm, fighting the Touma army for the first time and encountering an unsettling enemy he had never seen before. The fight that now began marked the start of him coming to learn truths even he had been entirely unaware of.

“Here, hold on!“

Revelation Chapter 20 – The Seed of Doubt Having come to acknowledge each other, this is the scene where Leon and Takumi first open up to the other. With Leon coming to Takumi's aid as he was about to lose his life, as well as Takumi kindly thanking him, the tension between the two had been resolved.

Cough

Page 15

“No way.. ! A puppet, you say!? So that's why father became like that... Damn, that Hydra, just what was he thinking!?“

Revelation Chapter 19 . The Ruined Town Now that he knew the father he respected had been nothing but Hydra's puppet all along, Leon's bitterness and sadness seemed to overflow in his exclamation. After already having come to be suspicious about his changed father's strange conduct, Leon finally arrived at the truth of the matter.

“Good grief... you are always making us worried big sister (big brother). It can't be helped... Then I [shall trust you] as well.“

Revelation Chapter 21 – The Way Forward Although Leon was the first to give a warning about not trusting Rontao's plans, the overly kind and pure Kamui ended up falling into the trap due to being too trusting. But even if Kamui keeps placing their faith in others, he will stay at their side, sharing his wisdom and fighting alongside them in order to help them proceed on their path.

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

And that’s it for today. Nothing big to explain I hope. If you have any more questions, feel free to shoot me an ask. 

The reason I didn’t translate the Illustration notes this time, is that you can find them on the Fire Emblem wiki quite easily if you want to know more about them. 

Again, without any objections I will next focus on the Relationship section of the fanbook, which I am sure you are all very excited about. Hope to see you again with another update soon. Until next time, take care!

[writer-and-artist27]

How about 3, 5, 7, 9, 13, 16, 17, 18, and 20? For the fanfic ask meme?

:DD Friend, you are wonderful. Thank you for the ask!

Anyways….

3. What part was most difficult?

For Civilian Pianist, what always gets to me is writing any angst scenes, just because of how my heart really empathizes with all the tension and so on. The second half of Kannabi was especially hard for me to write at the time, because the fan in me really wanted Team Minato to come out all okay, no injuries aside from the faint grazes for the sake of everyone being happy. This is also why I was so sensitive during the Satoru Arc, because some of the feedback that came back, especially after writing such an emotionally difficult arc, was so negative and upsetting to the point I ended up nearly snapping with the Announcement. 

This is why Chapter 52 of CP is taking so long, because writing Tomoko’s long-awaited confession to her loved ones about her vow of silence is hard, more so with college weighing on me as always.

The same can be said for The Sea and Stars, since the differences between Tomoko and Kei really become more obvious in later chapters and how they react to things. 

5. What do you like best about this fic?

I always love writing fluff and teenage floundering when it comes to CP, because the hugs and eventual kisses between the main couple really warm my heart when I have bad days. It just kinda shows that the ninja world has its soft side too.

For S&S though, I just enjoy being able to work with Lang and Os when brainstorming for this fic. Catch Your Breath already has so much crammed into each chapter, whether it’s character development and worldbuilding, and trying to put my own twist to it with Tomoko’s civilian perspective really is a nice challenge. Not to mention, giving the CYB cast some well-deserved love and appreciation. 

Not that Lang and the other fans have been doing so already, but still. :) I’ll always see S&S as my letter of appreciation to Lang and Os, and to fans of CYB and CP. 

7. What’s a reference you made no one has picked up on yet?

What really gets to me in general is how barely anyone really comments on the humor, fluff and other emotional twists I put in The Sea and Stars, or comments in general, aside from some nice people, sob, because there’s just so many sides of kid!Tomoko I get to show off that wasn’t shown in CP originally. Example being her large duffle bag in Chapter 16, since that was an obscure reference to K-On! and how Ui, Yui’s younger sister, tried to carry tea to the main characters despite suffering from a fever. The girls at the time naturally panicked, and I drew from that scene when writing the duffle bag, because I know Tomoko would be more than willing to do the same thing.

9.) Favorite line(s) of dialogue?

For CP, taken from Chapter 49. It’s more mental feedback than dialogue, but I think it counts:

Aaaah!

What in all heck are you supposed to do when your best friend and apparent love interest asks to kiss you?!

Past memories don’t prepare you for the absolute real thing!

Tomoko-chan, just say it, or I’m taking control here.

Hisako, please don’t.

You’re seriously tempting me, though. Just letting you know.

Dear lord, someone save me now.

Hehe. 

For S&S though…Chapter 9:

The civilian in front of her blinked. “…Um, did I say something wrong?”

“…No,” Kei said flatly, leaning back on her cushion with a sigh. “I’m just… surprised? Shocked? All of that?”

“Uhhhh…” Tomoko responded, lowering her hand.

“Then again, if it worked in Macross…” Kei muttered, putting a hand on her chin. “It could work…”

“Ummmm…” the civilian started turning an embarrassed pink while inclining her head. “What’s Macross, Kei?”

The ninja blinked while glancing over at her. “Mecha anime where the universe is saved through singing, I think.”

A pause followed.

Tomoko turned a bit redder as she shook her head. “W-Well, I’m not trying to save the universe, and I don’t have a mech, Kei,” — and then a lightbulb seemed to go off in her head — “Though if mechs existed in the Narutoverse, how many missiles would it take to blow up the Ten Tails statue and Madara…?”

Tomo does have a morbidly curious side. :>

13. How many drafts did the work go through? 

Hm. I don’t really count off drafts because I try to write as much as I can for a chapter, then if I hit a block, I consult someone, and then keep writing. Usually once I finish a chapter, I read it over, put it into Microsoft Word to check grammar, call up either Leo or Josh on phone, or Lang on Tumblr, as well as Os and Abalisk occasionally, and then just post it up on FFN without thinking on it too much. Usually end up going to class or sleeping after that.

16. If you used a beta, what did you agree or disagree on?

It’s interesting that you say that because to be honest, almost every close friend I’ve talked to has been a beta in my mind. I don’t have an official beta, like how Lang can count on Os, but the people I interact with help a lot. Leo, Josh, another friend who I’ll call “Ash”, since I’m not sure if she’s okay with me mentioning another name and so on, Lang, Os, and Abalisk. Those 6 people really help me out when I’m floundering. Most of the time, they give suggestions, and I end up taking them into consideration. I’ve never had full arguments for this kind of stuff.

But in terms of agreeing or disagreeing, I don’t know what I can say to that. Leo is the closest person to me that disagrees with me on things, but it’s really on the brainstorming of the Danganronpa Crossover I’ve been planning for S&S, and he’s the self-proclaimed Danganronpa/Sci-Fi expert. Said disagreements don’t last that long though, since they’re more of things to consider and not force. 

17. Did anything surprise you during the writing?

Really, the fan reception and reviews. I was not expecting CP to nearly overshadow S&S, nor how reviewers overall were really nice to me with the longer time intervals between updates. I guess the past Announcement and reception to the Satoru Arc were really the only negative things, and even then, the CP and S&S fanbases have been kind overall. That’s the nice thing. I can’t help but feel touched every single time someone says they felt happy or some other emotion from my writing, because it shows my floundering is paying off and I’m helping someone!

18. Were there any alternate versions of this fic?

Of CP? Look no further than The Sea and Stars! 

Aside from that… Well, there is the Danganronpa crossover I’m still brainstorming/working on. And what I mentioned in a previous ask. There was a time where I considered writing Tomoko as an actual ninja, paired with a nicer, more Leo-like version of Satoru and Josh’s own ninja going by the name of Sho, but since it required all three of us to work on it, and Leo’s own apathy to it, we never really did finish. But the ideas stayed. :)

20. What did you learn from writing this fic?

For both stories mentioned above? Emotional reactions to various situations, including those of war (including PTSD and how one might approach it); how to properly respond to feedback and criticisms (especially when it comes to mean reviewers); and how to avoid ableism. The last one I attribute specifically to Os, since writing the aftermath of CP’s Kannabi meant addressing that issue, and their advice really helped. 

[longforgottenunofficial]

Death is a Cabaret, Old Chum...

Time to get our noses out of the Ancient Near East and back into the Victorian era, where we find more direct sources of inspiration for the Haunted Mansion.  Back HERE I discussed briefly the Cabaret du Néant, with a link HERE to Cory's treatment of the subject, which is largely given over to quoting a lengthy passage from Bohemian Paris of To-day (J.B. Lippincott, 1900).  It was written by W. C. Morrow from notes by Edouard Cucuel (the book also includes Cucuel's sketches).  It's very good, very interesting, and a valuable source, but buyer beware; it's a second-hand account, and in places it's inaccurate.  However, there are descriptions of the C du N published in other sources too, plus a lot of photos. There is little doubt in my mind that the Cabaret du Néant was a direct source of inspiration for the Haunted Mansion.  My reasons for thinking so will emerge with a fresh description of the Néant experience, drawn from several sources, as well as a closer look at the special effects used in the Néant show.  I do not think these tricks have ever been explained accurately, so if you think you know the Cabaret well enough already—think again. A bit of background.  The pub originally opened in Brussels in 1892 as the "Cabaret de la Mort" (i.e. the Cabaret of Death), but it soon moved to the Montmartre district of Paris, where it was renamed the "Cabaret du Néant" ("néant" = nonexistence, obliteration, nothingness, death).  The Montmartre district was THE place to be if you were an artiste in the second half of the 19th c.  It seems like all of the important Impressionist painters lived there or hung out there.  In the 1890's, it was bursting at the seams with cabarets and theaters, including fully-themed nightclubs.  Practically across the street from the Cabaret du Néant, for example, were the "Cabaret of Heaven" and the "Cabaret of Hell," side by side.  The waiters dressed as angels in the former and devils in the latter.  Guess which one this is:

The famous Moulin Rouge cabaret is still there, but otherwise these pubs and theaters are all gone. . . . Come to the Cabaret.

Shall we pay a visit?  Oh, do let's.  The street façade of the CdN is like a house dressed for mourning in traditional French fashion, with austere black and white coverings, although there is a skull and crossbones on the front door.  There are two large, iron, torch-like lamps throwing yellowish-green light down on all who pass by.  That kind of colored light makes people look shockingly sick and corpse-like, so we're already getting in the mood. The unsmiling doorman is dressed exactly like a croquet-mort; that is, a professionalpall-bearer or undertaker's assistant.  The same is true for the waiters inside.

The doorman leads you through the low, narrow front door and down a short, dark corridor.  He opens some black drapes, allowing you to enter the first room.  It's dark, lit only by candles.  A chandelier in the center of the room is constructed of (real) human bones and nicknamed "Robert Macaire's chandelier," Macaire being a sort of all-purpose villain and bogeyman in France.  Upturned coffins serve as tables, with small thin candles available for illumination.                      

The walls are decorated with skulls (which serve as dim lamps), sculpture, and posters with grim slogans such as "Life is a folly which Death corrects," "To be or not to be," and "Requiescat in Pace," as well as No Smoking signs, price lists, and notices that candles are available for 10 cents.  More importantly, there are paintings all over the walls depicting death and carnage.  Battle scenes, a guillotine in action, and in later times, a painting of an automobile with a demonic driver, running people down—at least I think that's what this is:

It's similar to a cartoon that appeared in Punch, in 1903:

(hat tip to Craig Conley)

By the way, this was actually a common theme among cynics and satirists in those days. These new-fangled automobiles were extremely dangerous, to the point that they betrayed a contemptible indifference to human (and other) life. They were depicted as instruments of death, glamorous only to the foolish and the callous. Here's a wonderful example from Puck. Behold the demon, "Speed Mania":

(Puck 68/1756, Oct 26, 1910)

Anyway, back to the Cabaret. Upon entering the room, you are met with "Welcome, moribunds," or "Welcome, weary wanderer, to the kingdom of Death," or "Enter, mortals of this sinful world, enter into the mists and shadows of eternity," or some other greeting striking the same tone as "Welcome, foolish mortals."   Better get used to it.  You and your friends will be continually addressed as "mortals," "coffin worms" (asticots de cercueil), and "Maccabees," the latter term being a slang expression for anonymous cadavers found floating in the river.  In an account from 1931, it says that the staff at that time received guests by chanting a mass for the dead.  The staff are all instructed not to smile or do anything else to break the solemn atmosphere, much like HM butlers and maids.  That includes the waiter, who seems to mean it when he says "Name your poison."  The mixed drinks and the beer are all renamed after deadly microbes and bacteria of various diseases.  The waiter will plop them down before you, saying something like, "Drink, coffin worms.  Drink these loathsome poisons filled with the deadliest germs." A man in clerical garb eventually enters and gives a lengthy speech in morbid detail about the horrors of death, progressing from the variety of gruesome and agonizing ends awaiting individuals to the miserable fates of mankind in general. Here the place gets interesting. As he commences this portion of the lecture, the speaker points to a painting depicting a battle scene.  According to Morrow, it begins to glow, making its details clear (remember, it's pretty dark in there).  Then the glow fades away, and the painting has changed.  The human figures in it are now all skeletons.  The same thing happens with a painting of a guillotine chopping away.  When the glow fades, the figures are now skeletons.  Another painting shows a festive ball.  Glow and fade.  Now the dancers are all skeletons. In my earlier treatment I quoted without objection Albert Hopkins' explanation of this effect (written in 1901).  He suggests that the paintings are transparencies with one scene painted on one side and another on the other, the second one becoming visible when illumined from the rear.  I now think that explanation is inadequate.  It doesn't really account for the effect as described by Morrow.  The paintings light up and then fade back down, revealing a skeletonized version of the same scene.  How would you do that with a single, two-sided cloth?  The effect could be produced, however, by having two paintings layered very close to each other, much like the panes in a double-pane window.

The skeleton one is in front, painted on a thin cloth or on theatrical scrim.  The "normal" one is in back.  The paintings are already moderately illumined from the back when folks come in, showing the back painting through the transparent front one.  The lighting is further turned up during the lecture, at the appropriate time, and then faded down and extinguished, leaving the front painting visible for the first time.  This would be perfectly do-able in the 1890's (the CdN was fully electrified). In that earlier post, I drew a parallel between the CdN changing-painting effect and the attic wedding pictures and portrait hall paintings of the HM.  If the above explanation is acceptable as a more satisfactory accounting for the effect as described, then the parallel between the Cabaret du Néant and the current Disney versions is extremely close indeed. If you bought a drink while in the first room, you got a ticket entitling you to enter the Chambre de la Mort.  You now take your puny candle and follow a man in Capuchin monk's garb single file through an arched doorway (painted to look like stone), down a narrow flight of steps, with green and yellow lighting once again, making everyone look cadaverous.

At the end of the steps is an antechamber where you wait your turn.  The show repeats about every half hour, and only 15 or 20 are admitted at a time.  To amuse yourself while you wait, you can look through holes or niches in the brickwork at gruesome tableaux, "studies of cholera patients, of persons buried alive, and similar cheerful subjects" (NYT Apr 9, 1894).  Morrow (Cucuel) speaks of "bones, skulls, and fragments of human bodies."  At last a cowled figure with only his eyes visible comes in and produces a large iron key, unlocking the spiked iron gate at one end of the room and opening it with a harsh grating sound.  The monks mournfully announce that you have arrived at the Gates of Death, and in you go.  There is an item inside, near the entrance:  "By a clever arrangement of mirrors one sees one's self on entering reflected lying in a coffin" (NYT '94), which seems like a good idea since you can then see for the first time what you yourself look like under greenish-yellow lighting. This part of the Cabaret du Néant show is justly famous.  An upright coffin is visible in a narrow doorway at the far end of the room, which was hung in black in early years but later on left exposed, having been painted to look like stone vaulting.  Also in early years, a pretty young lady was already in the upright coffin when you came in. She would smile and wink and then grow silent.  While the monk guide kept up his groaning soliloquy about death and decay, she turned into a decaying corpse and finally a skeleton, right before your eyes.  The process was then reversed, but instead of the young lady a fat old man returned.  He would leave the coffin, and the monks would ask for a volunteer from the audience who would like to experience death.  In later times they went straight to this phase and skipped the earlier stunt.  Not missing a single detail, the Cabaret folks have a harmonium and an iron bell offstage somewhere, providing dirge music and solemn tolls at appropriate times. There are a lot of pictures of this trick.

I especially like this last set because it really shows the excellent trompe l'oeil work in this chamber, transforming blank wall into convincing arches and stonework through skillful use of the paintbrush.

The trick is done, of course, using the Pepper's Ghost illusion, which requires only a big sheet of glass and careful manipulation of the lighting.  But here again, I think Albert Hopkins' explanation is inadequate.  He's got a simple two-chamber set up, turning the coffin occupant into a skeleton and back again.  With this arrangement, the sense of gradual transformation would be enhanced through the use of colored light.  The light on the volunteer goes from normal to greenish-yellow before fading down, while the skeleton is gradually lit up.

Below is a simplified pair of diagrams.  When the coffin-with-occupant (#1) is illumined and the coffin-with-skeleton (#2) is dark, the audience sees only the first.  When coffin 1 goes dark and coffin 2 is lit up, you see only the second, but it looks like it's in the place of the first.  This is simple, rudimentary Pepper's Ghost illusioneering.

The problem with the Hopkins arrangement is that it does not account for the descriptions of the effect.  Morrow describes a slow dissolving of the face into a corrupt state of decomposition before finally becoming a dried skull:

Her face slowly became white and rigid; her eyes sank; her lips tightened across her teeth; her cheeks took on the hollowness of death,—she was dead.  But it did not end with that.  From white the face slowly grew livid...then purplish black.... The eyes visibly shrank into their greenish-yellow sockets. ...Slowly the hair fell away....The nose melted away into a purple putrid spot.  The whole face became a semi-liquid mass of corruption.  Presently all this had disappeared, and a gleaming skull shone where so recently had been the handsome face of a woman.

Well, Morrow is giving a flowery, second-hand description based on Cucuel's notes, so maybe this is all exaggerated.  But the 1894 New York Timesaccount also describes a three-stage process, although the stages are different: man, skeleton, vacant.  The shroud on the volunteer "by some trick gradually melted away, so did the flesh, or rather the man in the coffin, and a skeleton appeared in his stead.  There remained another experiment to be witnessed, namely, the crumbling away to dust of the bones." There may even be a photograph of the intermediate, rotted-corpse stage as described by Morrow:

The CdN gang may have had a much more sophisticated set-up than Hopkins describes. One possible way to add a step to the transformation is with two sheets of glass and a third, intermediate coffin.

For an alternate method, still using only a single glass, see the remarks by "John b" in the Comments (Aug 4, 2013). It involves rotating, back-to-back coffins. The only problem I see with it is that it would be hard to use genuine audience volunteers that way. You'd probably need stooges.

Why so fancy?  By the 1890's, Pepper's Ghost trickery had been in use for thirty years.  The Cabarets of Heaven and Hell, across the street from the CdN, used it in their floor shows.  Various traveling ghost show exhibits and theaters made heavy use of it, and Professor Pepper himself kept flogging it at the Royal Polytechnic Institute where he worked. 

Furthermore, there was no shortage of Victorian spoil-sports eager to inform the public how the illusion was done:

It stands to reason that showmen would be searching for clever new ways to use what was now an old-hat illusion, something to bring back the "how do they do that?" element.  The CdN boys seem just the kind who would tackle such a problem.  Besides, two-sheet Pepper's Ghost illusions were known, even if this illustration doesn't show them making any particularly good use of it.

Originally, the coffin gag was the end of the show at the CdN, but in 1900 or 1901 they added a whole third room, set up like a small theater, with another Pepper's Ghost illusion onstage.

This one was played strictly for farce, to judge by descriptions and photos.  The poor volunteer could not see what the audience saw:  ghosts moving around, mocking, doing stupid bunny tricks, acting in a lewd and lascivious manner (this is Paris, after all).  "[T]he solemnity which the lecturers invoke is of a most mock sort, and the audiences are continuously convulsed with laughter" (NYT 1896).  Time to go.

Rolly Crump and Yale Gracey were professional magicians, as noted in an earlier post, and they did research into things like the history of Pepper's Ghost.  There can hardly be any doubt that they knew about the Cabaret du Néant, which is mentioned in any decent survey of Pepper's.  Earlier, Ken Anderson had incorporated a Pepper's Ghost illusion in his proposed haunted house walk-thru, using a 45º angled glass pane, much like CdN:

Eventually, this horizontal version of Pepper's would be used in Phantom Manor to make Melanie appear in the Endless Hallway.  By the way, the CdN coffin gag was reproduced very closely, except it wasn't at Disneyland but at Knotts Berry Farm:

Besides the technical gimmicks, the CdN used a winning recipe of horror + stage magic + laughs, essentially the formula used for the Haunted Mansion.

Some time in the 1930s the Cabaret moved to a different location on the same street (#64 instead of #34) and continued to operate there for a long time. In November of 2012 we made a major discovery: The Cabaret du Néant was still open in September of 1969, in other words, still operating when the Haunted Mansion opened.

As a postscript, I should mention the apparent discrepancy between the photos of the coffin gag, in which the coffin looks like it's standing right in the doorway, and the actual set-up, which had it much further back.  It's simple:  these are staged photos, intended for post cards and publicity.  They moved the coffins up for the photo shoots.

Originally Posted: Tuesday, August 24, 2010 Original Link: [x]

[diyunho]

The Joker x Reader - “What Makes You Happy”

You do so many things for The Joker and what you usually get back is attitude. Very frustrating to deal with, especially after his latest stunt. Makes one wonder if it’s really worth it…

“Take whatever makes you happy,” Max points out towards all the riches in the warehouse as a reward for helping him. His two sons were captured by the SWAT team and you used everything you’ve got to get them out of jail; it was very hard since they were taken to Belle Reve but you managed anyway. No choice because you had only one goal in mind: to get your Joker back.

He is actually tight up on a chair in the back of the huge room, busted lip and a few bruises. Max thought The Clown Prince of Crime was responsible for his sons’ bad luck and captured him, refusing to release the prisoner no matter what. You don’t really mess with Max; he owns Los Angeles. That’s why you took it upon yourself to work something out.

“Whatever makes me happy?” you repeat, distrait.

“Yes. You know I mean it when I say it.” It’s true: Max is actually one of the few mob leaders that has what it’s called honor among thieves and you are counting on it.

“I want him!” you point towards your man.

“You want him?! Are you serious?! He’s an asshole!” Max snaps, not understanding what the hell is wrong with you.

“U-hum,” you nod your head, being the first one to admit it.

“He makes you happy?! Must be the worst boyfriend ever!”

“You can say that again…” you sigh, glaring at J that pretends not to notice your presence. Always such a cheer.

“You can literally have anything you want in here: money, diamonds, gold, weapons,” he tries to renegotiate. “Take your pick, as much as you want, whatever makes you happy,” Max punches his fists together, sucking on his cheeks.

“I want him,” you insist, really hoping you don’t have to start a war between LA and Gotham; this is precisely what you are trying to avoid.

“He’s a jerk !” Max raises his voice, annoyed you are so persistent in your request.

“Yeap,” you frown, wondering why in the world you are so stupid.

“Why do you keep on hanging in there by his side?! Jasper (that’s his oldest) always had a thing for you - it’s no secret. I would love for you to be my daughter-in-law. Just give up on this hopeless case, hm?” You scratch your neck, debating, yet still…

“Max, you said whatever makes me happy. I returned your sons, didn’t I?”

“You did,” he huffs, upset you twisted stuff in your favor.

“I don’t think J’s at fault here,” you try to defend your boyfriend, even if you are 70% sure he was involved.

“Of course not,” Max sarcastically replies. “Forever innocent, right?”

“Please?” you interrupt, getting nervous a bit. “I just want him, nothing else you have in here.”

The Joker pouts, stretching in his chains; he can probably hear the conversation and would love to comment but doesn’t since he wishes to get out of there also.

“Seriously, Y/N, you have to reconsider your relationship,” the mobster growls and signals you to go for it. “The son of a bitch doesn’t deserve you!”

“I know…” you bite your lip, realizing he’s 100% correct. “Thank you,” you touch his arm, grateful he didn’t back out on his word.

You walk towards J and stop in front of him. Ahhh, he seems pissed. Why not?!

“Hi baby,” you smile, dropping on your knees in front of him, starting to unlock the chains.

“Hi,” he grouchily mutters, cracking his shoulders.

“Did you miss me?” you inquire, avoiding his gaze.

“You left me here for a week !” he blurs out and your hands stop. “What took you so long?! The Joker can’t be treated like this; they’re all dead!!!! And NO, I didn’t miss you!!” he hisses, enraged.

“You will do nothing,” you calmly reply, continuing your task. “LA is our main business partner. For once, just swallow your pride and let go. I fixed the mess so don’t ruin it for us, OK?”

“Whatever!” J grumbles, already having some ideas on how to get revenge.

“Did you get into a fight? What happened?” You are 95 % sure The Joker initiated trouble, Max wouldn’t have hurt him. Since J is who he is, the LA boss is aware what killing or damaging the King of Gotham would bring upon his gang.

“I got into a brawl with Jasper,” he sniffles, not excited to admit.

“Did you?!  I just returned him and his brother yesterday! That’s why they chained you?”

He doesn’t answer and you finally set him free. My God, does he seem bitter or what?! He lingers in his chair; surely wants to clear something up:

“I hate Jasper, he wants you for himself!”

“Are you…for reals?!” you pucker your lips, keeping it down. “We dated years ago, when we were in our 20’s. Does it…does it indicate you were involved with the boys ending up at Belle Reve?!”

“Maybe…” he snarls and gets up, pacing with you following closely.

“Jesus, J ! Do you know all I had to do to get them out of there in order to trade them for you?! Belle Reve is no county prison!!!”

“That’s your problem, not mine!” The Joker barks.

“Wha’ ?!” You are stunned; truly unbelievable!

A few henchmen open the heavy metal doors and you are outside at last. You grab J’s hand and he doesn’t squeeze it back.

“Hold my hand, baby, “ you urge him , aggravated by the whole crap that could have been easily avoided if not for his whims and jealousy.

“No, I don’t want to!” he almost yells.

“Hold my hand J !”

“NO!!!!!”

You let go and he continues to march towards the car where Frost awaits. You stay behind, disappointed and take a deep breath, returning to the hideout. The gigantic metal door is still opened and you sneak back in.

The Joker realizes you are not by his side anymore and looks behind to see what you’re doing.

“Y/N ?!?” he shouts when the door closes behind you. He gets exasperated and returns to the gate, banging his fists against it.

“Get back here, Princess !!!!”  J screams, not understanding why you’re acting up.

The small window at eye level opens up and Max’s face pops up.

“What do you want?”

“Give me back my woman!” your boyfriend commands, mad to the maximum.

“I can’t give her back: she’s not a hostage, she’s a guest. Y/N doesn’t want to talk to you so get lost!”

“Excuse me?!” J gasps, amazed by the insult.

“You heard me: beat it ! Unlike you, she’s welcomed here so she can stay if she wants to.”

“You can’t talk to me like this! I’m the King of Gotham !!  I will…”

“Tell someone that cares,” Max cuts his rant. “I am the King of LA; this is my territory. Disappear!”

“Give me back my woman! NOW!!!!” J is getting furious.

“Go away, son ! Before you regret it.”

“I’m not your son!”

“Thank God!!” and the little opening gets slammed shut. The Joker feels all the veins in his body about to burst open from the outrage building up inside him. He basically runs to Frost.

“Welcome back, sir!” Jonny attempts to talk.

“Shut up! I need a tank, ten grenade launchers and as many mercenaries as possible! Like, 5 minutes ago!!”

“Ummm… What for, boss?” Frost gets uneasy.

“We need to get my Doll out of there!”

“Is she…held against her will?” Jonny indirectly addresses the issue, already realizing what he’s up against.

“Nope, I fucked up, “ your boyfriend peacefully admits for a change. “So hurry!”

“Sir, this place’s a fortress: they have a lot of men and they can always get more since we’re on their ground.”

“Who the hell asked for your opinion, huh?” J criticizes his trusted henchman, holding his green locks in place because it’s pretty windy.

“Boss, I don’t think we should start a major conflict due to the fact that…”

“Goddammit! What’s wrong with everyone today?!” J loses his temper, irked like never before. “Just do what I say and don’t question me!!!” Frost dials on his cell because he has no other choice.

“Sir, I am working on what you want, but in the meantime, can we PLEASE try another approach?”

“Such as?” The Joker grinds his teeth, unconvinced.

****************

“Y/N? Are you awake?” Max knocks at the door. He allowed you to use one of the bedrooms since you’re exhausted.

“Yes, come in,” you invite him. No matter how tired you get, you can never sleep during daytime.

“These are from… that person,” he hands over the huge bouquet of flowers, huffing.“Knocked at the entrance and yelled to give them to his girl. I really shouldn’t have done it; I don’t like him.”

Just one glance and you know: there is a 0.1% chance the flowers are from J and 99.9% chance they are from Frost. How do you know? Because you recognize his style: every single time Jonny gets flowers for his wife, he gets a bouquet for you too, knowing The Joker doesn’t ever bother with such nonsense.

Your man sees the gates opening and you coming out with the flowers and grins, triumphant. His smirk quickly turns into a grimace of stunned vexation when you toss them to the ground, stomping on them and kicking them all over the place, then go back in before he can react.

***************

Jonny won’t stop texting you, basically begging at this point for you to get out of the fortified warehouse. Apparently J is putting an army together to snatch you out of your hiding place; he even got a tank and grenade launchers coming to him by nighttime. He wants a war that makes no sense. But when does anything make sense when he loses his marbles?!

And it’s true you avoided a huge clash between the LA and Gotham clans. It was your hard work, tenacity and strategic flair. About to get blown up to pieces by your impulsive Joker. Uhhhhhhh, why did you pick him for whatever makes you happy?! So idiotic. And dumb. And moronic. And foolish.  You should’ve picked money and diamonds. ALL OF IT. Joke’s on you. Again. 100% on you.

*****************

J sees the gates opening and you emerge outside, grumpy as you can be, looking at the ground instead of acknowledging his approach.

“Are you done now?!” he yanks your arm, dragging you after him as you struggle to keep up, crabby to a whole different level. “Hold my hand!” the order demands and you don’t comply. “I said hold my hand, woman!”

You squeeze his fingers and still stare down at your feet. Frost notices the scene and gets his ass in the car, praying shit won’t go down. The Joker finally slows down a bit then halts, panting from the ordeal of your mutiny. He steps in front of your body and you avoid gazing in his eyes.

“Give me a kiss!” he growls.

“No!” you have the boldness to fight his desire.

“I said give me a kiss, I don’t want to repeat myself,” J licks his lips, mad you’re so feisty.

You reach over to give him a quick smooch.

“What the hell was that?! I said I want a kiss, not a mosquito bite!!”

You sulk even more and he places your hands around his neck, then his arms slide down on your waist, waiting. He comes half an inch apart from your lips and…Nothing.

“Today would be nice!” the Joker retaliates and you don’t really have a choice but to kiss him. For some reason, your fingers easily find their way to his hair, unconsciously caressing it in the process. He truly doesn’t want to purr but finds it impossible to hold it in. Makes you 78% weak in the knees, about 100% lost in his blue eyes and now you can’t even calculate percentages anymore. All his fault.

“Why do you aggravate me, Pumpkin?” he groans like he’s in a great deal of pain and you have the balls to answer.

“Because I love you and I do everything for you and you don’t love me and you just…” you whimper when he lets go of his embrace and has an outpour of words for you.

“ I don’t love you, hm???!!! Are you blind and deaf on top of it?”

You seem confused. Yuck, he has to explain. The Joker hates to explain his feelings: he doesn’t understand some of them himself, maybe about 63% . (Oh, how nice, you can calculate percentages again.)

“Every time I don’t kill you when you piss me off- and I must point out that’s on daily basis- it means that I love you. Every time another woman tries to get my attention and I don’t even care because I only have eyes for you, it means that I love you. Every time I take you on a “date -dinner-robbery” night and I am not out there creating chaos for Batsy because I know he gets bored without me, it means that I love you,” and J hauls you towards the car again, soooo upset he had to clarify his actions. “ I say it and show it all the damn time! Like I said, you’re just blind and deaf, getting old for sure since you’re pushing 40!” Only he could make something that was meant to be sweet into…THIS. “Why are you crying now, hm?!”

“You’re…you’re old, “ you wipe your tears because even if his declaration was so messed up you got the point anyway and your heart is about to explode with ecstasy. “You’re older so you’re pushing 40 more than me,” and you continue to bawl while he scolds you again.

“You have such a nerve, woman!” J shoves you in the car, irritated. “Wait here, I’ll be back in a sec!” he changes his mind before entering the vehicle.

You and Frost get anxious.

The Joker stomps back to the fortress, kicking the door with his right foot.

“What do you want now?!” Max opens the small window again, rolling his eyes at the green haired menace.

“Are we still on for next month? I want to close that deal.”

“Pffttt, yeah, of course. Make sure you show up for the meeting, Joker! And tell Y/N she can come and trade you in at any time, “ Max mumbles through his clenched teeth.

“Whatever makes her happy,” J punches the metal gate, his arrogance rubbing the mobster the wrong way.

“She should’ve taken the diamonds!” Max closes the opening, being done talking to The King of Gotham.

Your boyfriend is 110.53 % certain you will never do that.

Yes, he can do percentages too.

Sort of…

 Also read: MASTERLIST

http://diyunho(dot)tumblr(dot)com/post/153664676321/joker-x-reader-masterlist

[bl-tl]

[DJ-TL] Raike! + Extra [DONE]

Raws: @just-felt-like-doing-it

Translation: BL-TL @ TUMBLR

01 Rai Family

03 Good work! I’m counting on you tomorrow too, okay~? Please don’t play too much and sleep in, alright~?

You always say something unnecessary. Who are you talking about~?

Yeah yeah, I’m so sorry. Well, take care~ Alright~! Good work~! Good work today~ ★

Haa... it’s already 3. It’s gotten so late again. I wonder if the children will sleep properly...

04 From early morning to late night Even I’m impressed I can keep up

Everything is in order to ‘Protect’......

––I’m home~

...Haa... angels.

05 It’s cause I have this that I can keep going.

If it’s to protect these children I will do anything–– Raike!

07 ––Kuniyuki, wake up. It’s morning, Kuniyuki.

Mm~? Where am I... heaven? I can see cute angels...

––If you want, I can make it so that you never wake up again? Aww, Hotaru~ it’s just a joke ★ (But you really are cute ♪) Kuniyuki never learns...

08 Come to think of it, did you guys eat the sweet bread you said you’d buy in the morning? Yeah! We ate it! Kuniyuki... did you get thinner again?

Really? Ahaha, I shouldn’t get any hotter than this. You have another ‘full shift’ today right? ...Are you sleeping properly?

Those are just an exaggeration of my total working hours, it’s nothing to worry about. You know how I’m the type to go all-out with things, right?

Go on, get to school now! Have you got money? Buy another lunchbox for dinner on the way back and eat it.

I’m counting on you, Kunitoshi! Keep the weird guys on the streets away from Hotaru! Got it! ...There’s no one weirder than Kuniyuki so it’s fine.

––Now then. I should get ready too.

09 Hotarumaru... Kunitoshi. Just be patient a little longer.

We’ll move away / from this cramped place / to somewhere where you can study comfortably––

––Alright. This is the end of the morning lessons. Now it’s time for everyone’s much awaited...? [Grade 4 Class 1 Teacher / Ichigo Hitofuri]

Yeah! School lunch, school lunch! Aizen-kun, it’s not ‘Yeah’ but... Ye-s! Good. Well done.

10 By the way, what did you have for breakfast, Aizen-kun? Erm, I had chocolate bread.

Sweet bread...? What about last night? Ehh, I had a karaage lunchbox. What about Hotaru? Lunchbox?! Kunitoshi! Don’t say anything unnecessary.

What’s so unnecessary~! ...! Come to think of it, I haven’t received the reply for the parent-teacher interview with you two...

Oh right, we haven’t told Kuniyuki ye... Let’s go! Kunitoshi, it’s our turn to serve the school lunches! Eh?! I’m not... Wait a moment! I’m not done talkin...

Sorry teacher, excuse us! Hey! Wait, Hotaru!

––This is... concerning.

11 Hey~ Hotaru~ What are you mad for~? Kunitoshi talks too much. You should’ve just ignored that!

It’ll only make Kuniyuki lose face. What do you mean by lose face? Is that bad?

What! They’re buying food on the way home?! That’s no good! That will only lead to delinquency! Note: Ichigo-sensei ...Kunitoshi really is stupid.

(Staaaaare) It was definitely correct to follow them out of concern, I must visit their house and ask the parent questions...!

...What you doin’?

I-I’m still in the middle of work right now! Ah! It’s Kunitoshi and Hotaru! Wait, Hakata...!

Ah~! What are you doing! Buying food on the way home isn’t good! Geh ★ Hakata! Aah, the loud one found us...

12 Sorry for surprising you. Is that today’s lunchbox? What are your parents doing?

He’s working, it can’t be helped.

I understand that, but aren’t you lonel... He’s doing his best every day! He’s doing his best without sleeping, just for us!

Eh... ah, wait a minute!

...Haa, I give up.

Huh... Kiyomitsu?

13 Good morning. Heading to work now? [club Shinsengumi host / Okita Souji] Okita-kun...?! (T/N: Hakuouki’s Okita)

Y...yup! U-umm... I’ll come see you again today! Ahaha, thank you.

I’m glad you always come see me but Kiyo should work for Kiyo’s sake, okay?

I’m off now, let’s both do our best.

......Yeah.

14 Good morning.

Yes! Thank you for calling! This is Otokonoko Paradise ★ Yes! We have lots of cute ones here! If you tell me your preference I’ll be sure to introduce you to a nice one!

Morning~ Kiyo-chan ♪ Sup~ You’re damn late! Shut up Yasusada, I’m in the middle of a call, lower your voice. Morning~ Morning Sis~

You’re the one who insisted on Law**n’s cafe latte. That’s cause Law**n’s tastes the best.

Ah, sis. I got eyelash extensions at that place you told me about. (Cute?) Oh~ it’s nice. Cute, cute. ♪ By Mink? Yup~ Kiyomitsu-saaan! You’ve got work~!

15 Kiyomitsu-san, you’ve been requested for 120 minutes. Alright, is it Jijii? No, it was a rather young voice.

Akashi! We’re almost out of Mon*min~ Alright . And Midare-san, give me your shifts for next week before you start? Sorry, I don’t know yet. I’ll mail you after I check with university and brother’s health.

I understand, I’ll be waiting for it.

Yes! Thank you for calling! This is Otokonoko Para... Ah yes, you’ve arrived? If that’s the case...

Ah~ I’m sorry, we don’t allow drives here~ Yes, so if you could safely enjoy the conversations here. Hah, what time is it now? I wonder if the kids ate properly...

That’s weird... / why is the clock warped Oh no... what is this / I feel dizzy––

16 Eh?! Akashi?!

Are you alright?!

Ahaha, sorry. More like, Midare-san’s so strong! This much is okay~ since brother trained me. Midare-san’s brother is a real enigma.

Hey. [Sanjou Corporation / Amusement Department Director / Iwatooshi]

Good morning~ ♪ These are gifts from my brother. Share it with everyone. Wao. ♪ Mikachi’s own selection? He has great sense. ♪ Yeah, though he’s normally out of it.

Hey Akashi! The calculations for yesterday were wrong! Eh? Really? I’m sorry. ––Hey.

17 ––I think Akashi might be in trouble.

I’m home~ Good work~! ...Am I the last? That’s right~ good job working so late.

You’re really clearing those debts~ I don’t need a ride today. Ah, are you going over there? That’s not it.

Also... can you only do early shifts from now on?

18 ...What are you saying so suddenly–– The owner decided it today. That’s why it’s already set.

That’s so one-sided! What do you think I’m doing the full shift for... I know you want to make money but Don’t you think you’ve made a lot of mistakes lately?

I apologise for that, but! ––Have you even seen yourself in the mirror lately?

Seeing that mummy-like face is downright depressing.

19 How infuriating!!

What’s with that so suddenly! / Well of course your opinion might be more important than staff like me, but! / How could you swap me out just because you don’t want to look at me!

I’m there at night because the pay is good! / I only drive you around cause it gives a bonus! / To say you don’t want to see your overbearing face either! How annoying!!

Ah... welcome home, Kuniyuki... What are you guys doing! What time do you think it is?! You have to sleep early for school tomorrow!!

We were sleeping... until just now. But... the neighbours were so noisy.

(Ah ♥) ...?!

20 Kuniyuki! Stop it! What are those retards thinking, getting heated up in the middle of the night! There are children trying to sleep here!!

Kuniyuki!! Forgive me, wait just a little longer.

Let’s move to a better place soon, I’ll do my best.

Kuniyuki... aren’t you kinda hot?

Hm? Hot? Oh well, I’ll put the cooler on. That’s not it... Kuniyuki’s the hot one. You have a fever, right?

What are you saying, that’s impossible.

As you can see, I’m perfectly fi...

21 Hey! Kuniyuki?! N-no! Kuniyuki! Kuniyukiii!!

––Ah~... it feels like it’s been a while since I slept in a futon properly...

Mm~... 10:40...? / I can sleep a little mor...

Oh no! I’m late-

22 Why are you guys here?! What about school?! We can’t leave you alone after you collapsed, Kuniyuki! We called your work and told the school we’re resting from a cold too. What are you saying! Hurry and get ready!

Don’t worry about me! No!

Stupid Kuniyuki... I thought your heart would stop...

Ho...Hotaruuuuu!

Oh no, I can’t get enough, you’re too cute. I could die like this... Don’t die!

...Does Hotaru want me to work where I can return at night normally? That’s...

23 ...? Who’s that? When we finally got some lovey-dovey time ...Must be my friend

Hotaru~? I’m here~? Huh? Why are you alive, Akashi?

(Kiyomitsu-san?) Eh? Eh? Why?

Kiyomitsu my friend. Stop that. Isn’t that horrible of you?

If you’re alive come with me for a bit.

I think my fever’s gotten worse so I’ll gratefully decline... Just follow me!

Alright, can’t be helped...

24 So like... didn’t you want to avoid the mummy-like face? ...I meant you should do something about it before I had to see it, duh.

That’s why you told me to only take the early shifts? How kind of you.

...To be honest, we don’t have enough staff right now and without Akashi the store would’ve been troubled too. Rather than having you stagger around for long hours, I’d rather you working the early hours properly. In this one-man industry where you shouldn’t care about how much others make or how well the store does, why do you care so much? The person who picked me up from the mud... told me so.

Well, that’s only on the work side. Personally... it was because Hotaru was lonely. ...Since you have family, spend more time with them.

Otherwise–– you’ll end up like me...

25 ...What are you looking at? Creepy... Nah~ I was just admiring the effect of eyelash extensions. I didn’t say it cause it was embarrassing, but... I realised why Kiyomitsu-san is so popular. Hah?! Listen to me properly!

Hello, sorry for dropping by out of the blue.

I’m Ichigo, Hotaru-kun and Aizen-kun’s teacher. It seems like you’re too busy to come to the parent-teacher interview, so I came to pay a house visit.

––Eh? / This person is their teacher...?

26 Do you have a moment? He seems like the real delicate and unreliable type.

Huh... go ahead. What parent-teacher interview? I haven’t heard of that... ...Ah, I see. I’ve been so busy they couldn’t say it.

I made these kids worry about me... / I’ve caused them trouble.

––And? What did you want to say to me? Heh, how rare. Most parents ask ‘Did my child do something?’ instead. Huh? There’s no way my kids would do anything bad, that’s a given. Haha... true. That was rude of me...

––That means you’re aware of what I’m going to say, right...? ...What’s with this guy, his aura suddenly changed...

Looks like he wasn’t just a delicate man... No? I have no idea what you’re on about.

27 U-umm, teacher! You’re mad at us buying food on the way home right?! We won’t do it again! O... okay?! Kunitoshi! Don’t say anything! That’s not it, Aizen-kun.

Let’s see... I saw them buying lunchboxes at the convenience store... it’s not healthy for growing children. Ah, so it was about that. Sorry for making you worry.

...But is that how it’s written in the teacher’s manual? You seem to have a strong sense of teacher’s justice, is it fun forcing it onto others? ––Huh?

It’d be nice if everything went exactly as the textbook says. But reality isn’t that nice, if I don’t work desperately I can’t protect what I could’ve protected.

It might be nice to have dreams and ideals, but shouldn’t you try to face reality a little more?

...wi... cuses...

28 Shut up with your pathetic excuses!! I’ve got 11 big and small under my wing! I know what I’m saying! Forget about health and raising for now! I’m asking if you don’t feel anything imagining lonely kids carrying lunchboxes!

Teacher must have done well raising 11 of his own.

(Hah?!)

S-s-s-sorry! I-I got too heated up... I don’t know what to say...! (Sensei’s from Kansai too, huh?) No no, you showed me something good, don’t worry.

It’s true I’ve made them lonely.

I’ve just told my work that I’ll be finishing in the evenings from now on. Eh? Then-

29 I wonder why I didn’t realise something so obvious earlier.

That there’s nothing more important than these children.

Yes, that’s true.

You’ve done very well.

30 The next day.

Sorry for dropping by so late.

I made a little too much curry.

Please have some if you’d like.

31 Is it okay for a teacher to do this for a student? It’s not okay as a teacher but as a neighbour to one’s kids friends...

What a funny teacher.

Hey! Don’t go in without permission! Kunitoshi! Hotarumaru! Let’s play! Yeah! What’s that?! Game of life! Get rich quick!

Sorry! I’ll take them back with me immediately. ...No, it’s fine.

It’s been a while since I’ve seen the kids have this much fun.

32 It’s nice having some bustling life around for once. Why don’t you come in too, teacher?

Yes... then I’ll take you on your word––

END

[Bonus Chapter]

03 *This story is a side continuation of ‘Raike!’ Kuniyuki~ we’re staying at Awataguchi’s place today~ Don’t cry if you get lonely!

Eh? Wait a sec! What happened to our fun dinner together? Eat by yourself.

...Could this be the so-called rebellious phase... Did I raise them wrong...? [Already crying.]

...Can’t be helped, I’ll just fill my stomach with whatever tonight.

04 Eh?

Ichigo... sensei?

What are you doing in a place like this?

05 Leave the children to the adults! Don’t worry!

So let’s talk about education tonight, as adults!

––Huh?

That’s why I’m saying this as a teacher! I don’t think I’m saying anything wrong!

That’s why the other teachers all say my beliefs are old and stubborn... I just don’t know what to do.

...Hey teacher, isn’t that something you shouldn’t be saying about yourself?

06 Could it be that you have no friends, Ichigo-sensei...?

I... I sometimes have tea with the grannies and gramps in the neighbourhood...?

(Ah, this is the real annoying type...) I know... I know my ideas are from another era... It would be easier if I relaxed a bit, but I wouldn’t forgive myself...

Since you did barge into your student’s house like this. Most teachers these days would find us too bothersome.

But I couldn’t leave it alone Especially in your case–– ––Hah?

07 Ever since then I’ve been thinking what would have been the best move. After thinking and thinking... before I realised it

I couldn’t get Akashi-dono himself from my head.

––Eh? Wait a second, what kind of strange atmosphere is this? I almost got swallowed by the fluffy background.

Is he drunk? Ahaha, you really are enthusiastic, teacher.

Better get him to leave before he makes a mistake–– For now, why don’t you have some water- Aahn ♥

08 Those damn idiots next door why can’t they read the atmosphere! Could this be the rumoured noise disturbance?!

This is definitely not good for the children! I’m going to talk to them! Eh? Wait a minute!

The neighbours are in the middle of it so if you go now it’ll be dangerous!

Eh? Ah!

Ow...

09 S-Sorry! Pft ★ Ahahaha!

Aah, sorry. I didn’t expect an accidental kiss at this age.

You should think of it as a dog bite and forget it too, okay sensei?

Don’t talk about it like that. You might not have liked it but I... I’ve always wanted to be touched by you––

...Stop it, Ichigo-han–– Don’t get lost in the moment- It’s not that!

10 I’ve always been troubled! I know it’s wrong to feel this way about a student’s parent!

And it’s the first time I’ve ever felt this way before... I don’t know what to do.

Hmm. ...If that’s the case, What’s with this person? He really is interesting. You better prepare to be held by me–– I can’t get enough of that face––

11 ...Sensei’s young.

You’re hard already. ...Uh!

Becoming like this from just my voice... are you sure you didn’t just want to get off? H... How rude! It’s because you... kissed me...

Hmm. How sensitive, could this be your first time? That’s... right...

Hya! That’s a nice sound.

Why don’t you moan louder than the woman next door? That’ll... cause trouble... Nngh!

Eek! Nnh!

12 A... Akashi-dono... enough... Already? What’s this? You wanna stop after all?

No... umm Well, it’s not like I can stop at this point.

I’m gonna hold you for real... so get ready, okay? ...Yes...

13 Then let’s first get rid of all this.

Because sensei said such cute things I’ve gotten quite excited.

Here, touch it. ...Take responsibility, won’t you? Eh... ah! I’ll take care of sensei’s too.

Ngh! Ah! Mm... that’s good...

14 ...Let’s do something better. Nnngh!

N... no, that’s... Why don’t you like it? You seem to be feeling it real good. That’s why...! I’m... going to come...

It can’t be helped, alright... but instead of ‘no’ say ‘oh god’? B-But-

Ah... geez Oh god...!

What a cute person. Listening to me so obediently.

(T/N: He wanted him to say ‘akan’ instead of ‘dame’, Kansai dialect blah)

15 Nghh! Does it hurt? I hear sideways is better for beginners though.

Where did you get that information from... ah! Ah~ ...from the professionals at work. Just what kind of... nngh!

Well, we can talk about that later. I’ll make sure to have some manners at least...

Can you endure a little pain? ...?!

Eh? Umm, I’ve been waiting this whole time?! Does that mean your girlfriend... Eh? I don’t have one. (I have my hands full with children as is.) Then why

Eh? Sensei, don’t you know? If you put a condom in your wallet you’ll save money.

Pft... haha! Akashi-dono is also quite cute. What are you laughing for? If you do that-

16 You might bite your tongue. (SFX: thrust)

Guah! Sensei, you have to relax...

Don’t... call me sensei... After we finally... connected...

How romantic. Then call me ‘Kuniyuki’ first.

17 ...Kuniyuki...san

I have always... Wanted this to happen with you––

Hyaa?! Sorry, I can’t handle this, Ichigo-han... I might come already.

How silly... Ichigo-han What would you do if I become serious about this...?

18 (Ah... We did it...) Ah... um, Kuniyuki-dono, I had one thing I wanted to ask you.

Would you move in to my place with your children?

Huh? What’s with that!

I’ve always been thinking about it. It’d be the best choice for them. Don’t worry, it’s an old building but it has a lot of rooms.

D-d-don’t tell me the reason they went there today is... Like a test run ♪ What’s with that?! END

Credit to BL-TL @ TUMBLR if using.