#i ended up having to go to three locations to finally get it confirmed

[totallynotamushroominatrenchcoat]

I fractured my inner elbow so that's fuckn great

[smallpwbbles]

Strawberry shortcake and Hard things to talk about.

Got another Biolizard shadow au ic for y’all, I swear this was gonna be a short thing that just had fluff. I suddenly just started going off the rails and the lil devil on my shoulder egged me on to add angst.

Hope yall like it either way (gonna start putting these on A03 if I write a third thing and it ends up longer than this one)

————————————————————————

Amy concluded she was going to kill them when they arrived. She sat and stewed right in front of a large tartan pink picnic blanket adorned with many baked treats she had spent an entire morning slaving over to get everything to perfection. When she baked she didn’t do it half way.

It was getting to half past four, three o’clock she had told the blue hedgehog and had texted to Rouge as direct long distance communication with Shadow was practically non existent considering how scarce the beast hedgehog liked to make himself.

Many weeks of pleading and begging him to at least join one of her picnics had led to him finally relenting and agreeing on today's outing. The pink hedgehog's excitement was uncontrollable as she absolutely exploded in enthusiasm when he finally agreed. Rouge had to keep her grounded as her eager rambles about picnic locations and recipes to bake had overwhelmed the large hedgehog causing him to promptly leave with a chaos control.

Amy forgot how easily flustered the guy got when encountered with a reaction he had no idea how to respond to. She didn’t blame him for teleporting as quickly as he did, the confirmation of his attendance was all she needed to begin preparing for the picnic.

That was three days ago, and now she sat in a small secluded park outside of station square with her tasty baked treats getting stale by the second. So, yeah she was definitely gonna give those two a good hit with her hammer if they didn’t show up in the next 5 minutes.

Speaking of the devil, a blue burr dashed right up to her picnic blanket. Amy scrambled to keep her treats from flying off the blanket due to the wind generated by Sonic as he dusted himself off looking quite frazzled, it didn’t quell her anger at his tardiness.

“You better have a good reason for being more than an hour late” she chided, Sonic was picking at a branch that has somehow got lodged into his quills most likely on the way to the park. He peeped at all the delicious treats strewn about in front of him, it didn’t escape Amy’s notice the way his face scrunched up at her strawberry shortcake. With that attitude he was gonna receive a bonk on the head with her hammer regardless of a good reason for his current punctuality.

“Sorry Ames, had a bit of a blow up in Tails workshop, was making sure Tails was okay before jetting off” Sonic explained. Well that was definitely a good reason, she began to feel a little bad at her anger towards the blue hedgehog.

“Oh my gosh, is he okay?” Amy asked, her worry quickly eased by an adorable smile from Sonic.

“Yeah yeah, the explosion was just from a faulty invention of his, there was a heckuva mess but he’s all good” he gave a thumbs up to add to assurance

Amy sighed in relief, it was good to know the little fox hadn’t got himself hurt, Tails was usually the best with machinery but had the odd hiccup here and there.

Her relaxation was replaced with alertness as she watched Sonic reach towards her pound cake, Amy slapped the outstretched gloved hand which had Sonic bring it back to himself instantly. He pouted at her as he soothed his attacked hand, Amy only rolled her eyes at him.

“Don’t be rude! Shadow isn’t here yet y’know” she scolded, she loved to let people indulge in her baked goods but she believed proper etiquette was to wait for all her guests to be there first.

“Aww but we have no idea when he’ll even be here” the blue hero whined “it’s no problem if I have a piece”

“You’re a world renowned hero and can’t wait a little longer to have some cake?” she teased.

“I totally can! I just happened to not have had breakfast today, give a guy a break Ames” he protested “if was shadow instead of me you would of given him cake at the first chance”

“Maybe, but unlike you Shadow doesn’t gag at the sight of my strawberry shortcake”

“It’s not my fault it’s like the worst kind of cake” Sonic huffed. She was about to reach for the hilt of her hammer when the air began to feel hot, immediately she and Sonic braced themselves when a large field of energy popped just several feet in front of them. Just as quick as it was to appear the energy dissipated with a present Shadow replacing it. The chaos energy felt like static as it waved around the area for a moment before shadow coolly drove away the extra energy his chaos control generated.

The monstrous hedgehog searched the park for a moment before laying his eyes on the two tiny normal hedgehogs and Amy’s adorable picnic blanket under a large oak tree. It provided a nice shade from the glazing summer heat which Shadow quite liked so he began a tiny trek to the other two.

Amy had gotten used to Shadow's overwhelming presence quite quickly as did Sonic, she heard his heavy footsteps as he situated himself in front of the picnic. His large size provided additional shade from the sun which she greatly appreciated as she hadn’t expected the Temperature to rise as much as it did today. Shadow plopped himself down and awkwardly placed himself on his hind legs, his current position reminded Amy of a cat which was funny because she was sure he was only a hedgehog and lizard.

“Shadow! I’m so glad you're here” she exclaimed as she ran up to give his ankle a quick hug, he returned the gesture by placing his claws on her back gently “I managed to get Sonic here too! Isn’t that great”. The monstrous hedgehog turned to the blue hero and gave a nod of acknowledgement , Sonic returned it with a wink which Amy could have sworn had Shadow flustered for a second.

She left the ankle to return to the large blanket “I worked real hard this morning, I’ve got all kinds of tasty goods for us! I’ve got peanut butter cookie cups, rocky road, lemon drizzle, strawberry shortcake” she pointedly looked at Sonic at the last item, Shadow could only raise an eyebrow at the sudden hostility. “Oh! I also tried something new, they’re these coffee pasty knots, Rouge told me how much you love coffee Shadow so I wanted to give these a try”.

Shadows' fluffy ears perked up at the word coffee, he also couldn’t help the tinge of annoyance at his bat companion for letting slip his obsession with coffee beans. Rouge and the little hedgehogs in front of him were some of the few he trusted most, but he couldn’t help the need to keep things about himself to a minimum. He’d have a word with the bat about it later, as much as he dreaded it.

Sonic paid no attention to Amy’s list of pastries, face already stuffed with her iconic pound cake, he held two other slices in his hand. Amy commended herself for going the extra mile on the pound cake as she knew Sonic was an absolute sucker for it. She hoped he’d indulge in the other treats as she came prepared with the info that Shadow didn’t actually need to eat. It came in handy for a person like him considering his massive size and the amount of sustenance that would be needed to satisfy him if he needed to eat.

Luckily the chaos energy that inhabited every molecule of his body made the need for such a substantial amount of food non existent. Not to say he wouldn’t eat here and there, though Amy had heard he only ever ate bags of coffee beans. An odd choice of food to be consuming all the time but Amy didn’t want to judge, Shadow was an odd being in itself and she only really wanted to understand the guy. That’s what having him here for the picnic was about

Amy recalled months back when Shadow was consumed by his grief, he’d lost all he ever knew and loved to people who wanted to keep knowledge of his existence silenced. She remembered the news broadcasts that presented a monster in station square, lashing out at anything and anyone around him in reckless but anguished abandon. With hindsight she knew the fear of him was natural, but knowing his history as she did now, Amy just wanted Shadow's time on the planet to be wonderful.

She couldn’t forget, when she encountered Shadow staring upon what she later found out was his old enclosure on the abandoned ARK. He looked numb and far away, she had stood her ground and begged the giant from the depths of her heart to help the people of earth, she wasn’t sure why her words had seemed to have struck him as hard as they did but she was glad, his effort in stopping the eclipse cannon was palpable though he was greatly injured after the events and needed many weeks to recover.

She was taken out of her thoughts as Sonic began choking on what was probably his 4th serving of the pound cake, Amy rolled her eyes as the hedgehog hacked and coughed to dislodged the cake he was previously munching on. She ran over and gave him a few firm pats on the back that didn’t seem to do the job until a forefinger and thumb entered her view and flicked Sonic right on the back. It managed to dislodge the cake but the force of the flick had been too strong and sent sonic flying into some dirt a few feet away.

Amy felt bad, she really did, but she needed a second to hide her laughter at the sight, Shadow looked nonchalantly and quite a bit proud of his actions. Better for your face to be covered in earth than choking on a piece of her iconic pound cake Amy thought, she didn’t say it out loud as the expression Sonic had when he lifted himself out of the ground told her he wasn’t in the mood for teasing.

————————————————————————

Sonic was currently strewn lazily across Amy’s lap while Shadow had lay out onto his forearms not too far from them. Her treats had been significantly devoured by Sonic who decided to show what a glutton he could be today. She had clapped madly when she noticed Shadow pick up the coffee pastry between two enormous claws to give it a try, she couldn’t help herself as she hounded him on how it tasted. Shadow merely gave a “it’s good” in response which to her somehow translated to it’s the best thing ever and she squeaked in flatteration. He blushed heavily and she apologised for her excitement.

She stroked the blue hedgehogs quills, she adored the guy but she was bewildered at how he didn’t notice the amount of little twigs and leaves caught in his head, sleeping on a branch of a tree was all she got in response when pointed out the reason for their presence in his quills.

Shadow looked just as lazy as Sonic did, as he lay with his eyes closed. She appreciated how calm and relaxed the beast hedgehog looked, it was far cry from the rage filled monster he was months ago, he used to looked like the living embodiment of anger. She recalled when Sonic described his first encounter with the lizard hedgehog, it was like the air itself was boiling with Shadows rage as he and Sonic had a standoff in the centre of station square.

The ferocity at which Shadow came at Sonic on that day was terrifying, meeting again with Sonic upon prison island, she was met with the blue hedgehog recovering from an attack that Tails deducted was a poisonous sort of chaos energy Shadow was able to generate. It was no wonder how Sonic got captured so easily. Though she couldn’t imagine Shadow attacking any of them with such a move now, she knew he wouldn’t admit it but he clearly had grown to like the lot of them.

She turned her attention away from Sonic to look at Shadow, his nose would twitch every so often, probably all the pollen surrounding them giving him a bit of irritation, she noticed Sonic’s Hay fever acting up a few times during the picnic, she outstretched her hand to the nose as it was the closest thing of Shadow near her, he opened his eyes at the touch of her tiny hand on his nose and sat up a bit.

“I’m really glad you're here shadow” she expressed, his face turned absolutely red and he plopped back onto his forearms, greatly trying to hide his flushed face behind them as the assertion of Amy’s gladness for his presence warmed his heart a bit too much to handle.

“I second that” sonic exclaimed as he passively pointed his finger in the sky and then to shadow. Amy hoped the extra love would make Shadow absolutely beat red but Sonic's deceleration seemed to make the Large hedgehog think hard for a moment, he sat up completely, casting a shadow over the two little hogs and gave them a hard look.

“I don’t…deserve this” his deep voice rumbled out.

That had Amy puzzled, what did he mean by that? Though she realised she wasn’t going to get an answer by looking up cluelessly at him.

“Deserve what Shadow?” She questioned, the hard look he had melted into a look of regret and guilt,

“What I did I-“ he fumbled on his words for a moment, she knew conversation was hard for him but she was patient for an explanation of his sudden rejection of their affections “I hurt a lot of people, I hurt Sonic…you shouldn’t be so kind” he finally found the words.

She watched as he fidgeted with his claws, Sonic had sat up from her lap and looked pensive at the huge hedgehog. The atmosphere had gotten melancholic at the confession, it pieced together in Amy’s mind about Shadows usual behaviour, why he made himself scarce and his refusal to do anything with their group. The most Shadow would go out and do was the top secret missions with Rouge but that was mandatory due to his admission into GUN and Amy wouldn’t count that “getting outside”.

Even then the admission had been because GUN wanted to keep Shadow under some level of control, Rouge fought hard for Shadow to work with the defence force lest they decide to lock Shadow away or at worst put him down due to fear of his power. She knew Shadow hated it and the confession he just gave concluded the acceptance of such a job was punishment for events that transpired months ago.

The humongous hedgehog had come to some sort near peace at his currently life, but the lingering, persisting guilt of everything never left him, the guilt that his very existence got his family and many other innocent people killed, the guilt of his rage that he took out on the innocents of station square and Sonic who had done nothing but try and defend his home. But especially with what led to the near firing of the eclipse cannon, which could have destroyed the planet, the only thing that kept Maria as motivated as she was to get better and live on said planet. With him.

He dug his claws into his legs, the recollection of the events began to make his head hurt, Amy rose to her feet and beelined to a claw placed close enough for her to reach “Shadow, no no we really do love having you here! What happened to you was terrible, anyone would be as mad as you were” she asserted

“It doesn’t make what I did okay” he retorted, Shadow always made sure to keep his voice down, he possessed powerful chords due to his size but in the moment, he could feel his irritation rise, she wasn’t getting it.

“It doesn’t, you're right but you felt like everyone was against you, you had just woken up and everything was different and anyone you knew was gone!” Amy argued, shadow flinched at the reminder, it was true. His emergence from stasis was followed by his brain wracking to recollect everything that has previously happened, in that moment he could only remember panic, screams and a gunshot. It was a miracle he didn’t just tear Eggman in two when initially met with the scientist's presence.

Amy needed to be careful, she could feel Shadow beginning to growl resulting in vibrations being sent throughout the ground, it shook her up a bit but her resolve stayed strong. She didn’t want him to up and leave, thinking he didn’t deserve the bit of peace he was given today.

“They’re gone because of me, it was all cause of me” Shadow refuted, Amy didn’t know what to say, his pain ran so deep yet so fresh, to him the events hadn’t transpired 50 years ago, he was here with no people that even begin to comprehend that sort of pain

“Ohhhh my GOSH, SHADOW!” Sonic exasperated, Amy had forgotten he was still sitting on her picnic blanket as he rose up pointedly and marched over to where she stood with one of Shadows claws in her arms, “c'mon you’re waaaay smarter than this”.

Amy punched Sonic on his noodley arm, Shadow didn’t need the blue hedgehog being his cocky or passive right now, she wanted to handle the current situation delicately and Sonic was asking for a bonk with her hammer with that last response.

However he surprised her with the renewal of his last response, “you don’t seriously think I would have come out here if I knew you weren’t here?” Sonic asked

“You would have came for Amy…and the cake” shadow flatly responded as he looked down at the two hedgehog’s”

“I mean yeah” sonic sheepishly rubbed the back of his head “but I wanted to be here for you too, you disappear so often and it’s kinda really hard to find you usually”.

Shadow shrank at that, he may have wanted to keep to himself and be alone, but the declaration that Sonic made began to challenge the beliefs that he was better off in doing that.

“We really are glad you’re here with us Shads, Amy’s the most honest gal I know so don’t even try think she would lie, she know what she means when she says what she does” Sonic reasoned, Amy turned to him and let a warm smile melt on her face, she really did adore him.

“I’m not even mad about those fights we had back then, that move you pulled with your chaos energy was actually kinda sick I’m not gonna lie” Sonic admitted, he truly wasn’t lying “does that move work on robots cause it would really help me out when I’m giving Eggman's robots a good thrashing”.

Shadow was nonplussed, the blue hedgehog really just had a way of confusing the ever living chaos out of him, he couldn’t comprehend why the hero couldn’t hold a grudge. He first thought the blue hedgehog's kindness was all a charade,as for the first couple weeks as he recovered from his injuries sustained from the eclipse cannon incident, Sonic would visit from time to time and in the moment Shadow believed it was to gawk or just see how defeated he’d become. It hit shadow the reason was because Sonic genuinely cared about him.

It overwhelmed Shadow, the non-rational and impulsive part of his brain just wanted to pick Sonic up like a doll and shake him until it satisfied Shadow, he instead lay himself gently on the grass and screamed into the earth.

The trembling from the screeching Shadow did shake Sonic and Amy up a bit as the latter grabbed onto the blue hedgehog for balance, they looked fixedly at the monstrous hedgehog as he finished his muffled shouts onto the earth beneath him. He merely turned his large head towards the two afterwards looking fairly calmer which was much better than the meltdown he was clearly heading towards before.

“Do you feel better?” Amy asked as she unlatched herself from Sonic's waist.

Shadow's eyes swivelled about as he seemed to think the question over, he decided a simple nod would be best to answer.

Amy was glad to hear that, but she felt she was going to undo a bit of that release of emotion with what she was about to ask, though the time for the question seemed appropriate as she couldn’t image when she could next ask him given the chance

“Shadow… back on the ARK, when I found you and asked for your help, what made you change your mind?” She finally inquired, shadows eyes fully opened at the question, Sonic turned to her questionably.

“I mean! Um- you don’t have to answer that if you don’t want, I probably shouldn’t have asked anyway sorry!” She felt embarrassment fill her cheeks as Shadow sat up to look down at her tiny form. She wasn’t sure if it was an ignorant thing to ask, but the way Shadow stared down at her made her feel it was.

He looked away from her, she watched as his chest puffed out from a large inhale then deflated from the exhale he let out. “Someone…” Shadow hesitated for a second before continuing “on the ARK, before everything happened I had someone… a friend”.

Amy and Sonic watched as he carefully picked his words, she regret her question now as the memories Shadow tried to retrieve seemed so painful, yet he persisted “she was stuck on the ARK because of a sickness, but she really loved the earth, she made me love the earth” Amy noted how wistful he looked talking about this part of his life, “when the ARK was raided and she got…hurt, she asked me that when I got to earth, I’d do everything I could to protect it, because good people on earth deserved it… I forgot that” Shadow finished

“so when I asked…” Amy was jarred, beginning to fully understand the impact of what she thought was a small plea to the lizard hedgehog.

Shadow looked beat, it seemed such a confession had taken up most of his mental energy. Amy turned to Sonic who looked just as jarred as she felt, but then he spoke up “man shadow, that’s… a lot”.

Shadow grimaced, he agreed and yet again lay on his front, the poor guy looked like he wanted the earth to swallow him up, no doubt feeling a flurry of emotions at admitting such a thing.

“Hey I don’t know how much this means… but I think you're a good person Shadow” Sonic affirmed.

Amy watched Shadow turn to Sonic, his expression made her want to just explode as she swore she could see the yellow of his sclera grow a bit misty, she couldn’t confirm as he abruptly sat up and rubbed at his gigantic eyes before declaring “I’m gonna go”.

Amy was about to argue as she felt he could use more endearment, she was stopped as Sonic placed a hand to her shoulder “no prob Shads! Why don’t you take some Amy’s snacks with you, you don’t mind do you Ames?” he offered

She realised what he was doing, Shadow did look like he needed some time to himself and Sonic was giving him the perfect out, “oh yeah! Of course not, would you take some for Rouge please, not sure when I’ll be giving her a visit so it’s better if you take them” Amy explained as she left Sonic's side to procure a few treats into a plastic container she brought in case either Sonic or Shadow wanted some cakes to take home. She placed the container into a giant outstretched claw that Shadow bent down to offer.

He rose back to full height and eyed the two little hedgehogs, said two hedgehogs enthusiastically waved as Shadow took a few ground shaking steps away from the picnic spot, he glanced a look back at them and responded with a shy wave of goodbye before promptly chaos controlling to whatever location fit for him to decompress.

Amy felt herself relax, she wanted this picnic to be as perfect as possible and while she hadn’t intended a vent session for Shadow she was actually quite glad it had. It seemed if anyone needed that today it was him, she sat back into her blanket and let out a sigh. However the feeling of relaxation began to get nibbled away by a feeling of confusion, she looked up to see Sonic with an annoyingly large grin, she felt something that would irritate her was about to come out his mouth.

“Man your cakes were just the best today Amy” he complimented, maybe she misjudged, that was very sweet of him-

“Shame Shads didn’t eat any of the strawberry shortcake, you sure it’s just me that hates the stuff?-“

The swift swing of her hammer upon his head promptly shut him up before he could continue on with the slander of her strawberry shortcakes.

————————————————————————

Rouge was having a quiet evening all things considered, she sat In her living room sipping chamomile tea from a mug adorned with the quote “another day another slay”. The peace was not long lasting as she felt a few quakes hit her building before she heard creaks and cracks coming from the top of the roof of the apartment building.

That would have been alarming to most people but Rouge had roommates of sorts, one being a homicidal robot with a dry sense of humour and the other being a 35 foot lizard hedgehog who adored the robot's dry sense of humour. She knew the commotion was caused by the latter, she had asked him to not teleport directly on the roof so it caused minor irritation to her when he had just done so again.

She made her way out of the apartment to find the set of stairs that allowed access to the roof, Shadow wasn’t one to just forget her boundaries so she hoped everything was alright with the monstrous hedgehog.

When she opened the old squeaky door that led to the cooling air of outside, she was met with Shadow curled up into a near ball, he needed to curl as the roof didn’t have much space for him to occupy when he spent his time there, the strength of the apartment complex held out well with his weight surprisingly. His quills and scales were a little bristled so she could assume the outing she badgered him to go on may have gone sideways.

She had hoped getting him to interact with others would open up the gruff exterior he led on with, but during the months she had spent with Shadow, it opened her up to many sides of the lizard hedgehog he had yet to share with anyone excluding Omega of course. He obviously didn’t owe anyone information about himself but nonetheless she felt it would be good for him.

Rouge apprehensively approached the massive being in front of her, he was breathing softly and had his arms held to himself, something she noted he did to self soothe, “Hiya hun” she called. He rolled over to address her, looking absolutely exhausted. Whatever limited social battery she saw him with this morning was practically begging for mercy at this point.

“Picnic go well? Did you have a good time?” She asked, she didn’t mean to mother him but she couldn’t help the sense of responsibility she had over him now, the gigantic face displayed to her scrunched up in thought before he let out a noncommittal noise that sounded like a “eh” to her.

Rouge deduced he was nonverbal at this point, he tended to become so when he was overstimulated. “No prob hun, you wanna talk about it tomorrow?” She asked.

His eyes silently thanked her for the out in any more talking, he gave her a firm nod that indicated there would probably be a lot to talk about tomorrow, that was fine. She sipped a bit of her tea and looked at the sun setting before them, “do you want me to stay?”

Shadow thought it over for a moment, he was really tired of talking and interaction but for some reason, Rouge asking to stay with him after today's events felt different, he looked at her and gave another firm nod. The bat flapped her dark purple wings and landed atop the beast hedgehog's head, he could manage that, he didn’t mind when it was Rouge hanging out on his person.

He thought about the first time she had offered to stay with him, it was past dark and she had no reason to be up on the roof with him. He wasn’t wondering that now.

[islmeg]

PRIVATE, NOT SECRET

where: yuuji and nobara meet megumi's girlfriend, which he hadn't talked about. genre: pure fluff or crack maybe. no warnings. a/n: fem reader! I love my boy megumi so much, he's such a pookie MUAJSAJSDJ. In here megs isn't yuuji's roomate. BTW, this is my first work so I would be so happy if you interact, xoxo. unedited. 1.1 k words.

"Should we go for Fushiguro?" Nobara asked, looking at Yuuji, who was walking next to her, passing through the halls of their school. The pink-haired boy nodded with a big smile that characterized him so much. "Let's go get him!" He said, enthusiastically. The two of them were walking towards where their black-haired friend's bedroom was located to offer him to go out with them to eat something at a cafeteria. Despite the fact that the boy was quite cold in the majority, going out to gossip with him was always a lot of fun. So they both went happily, on the way to where their mate was.

They were already at Megumi's door, ready to knock on the door. They did so, patiently waiting to see their friend open the door. But instead they heard a female voice saying, "I'll be there in a sec!" The two looked at each other. It was a bit shocking. They had never seen the young Fushiguro with any girl. And hardly anyone in particular. This was something that had quite frankly surprised them. The brown-haired and the pink-haired looked very intrigued. When in a tense moment, the door opened slightly, and in the crack of the open space, a girl was seen.

Doe eyes, her hair falling slightly into her eyes, and an enthusiastic aura, she looked so…different. In a good way. In an interesting way. She looked different in the term, she looked completely different from Megumi, both friends were excited. And while the two were looking at each other as if they were communicating telepathically. The girl looked at them in confusion, but the words came out of her mouth, "Hello! You are Nobara and Yuuji, aren't you?"

Hearing those two names, the boy who was inside the bedroom got up quickly going to the door. "The one and only" itadori said, with a big smile on his face. But from one second to the next, the blue-eyed boy took the girl by the hand and put her behind him.

"I see you've already met my girlfriend." he said to Itadori and Kugisaki. Which opened their eyes wide, shocked by the confession. They expected the boy to flatly deny that the unknown girl in his bedroom was anything of his. But he accepted it easily. Which caused both of them to gasp, "What!?", to which the girl behind the black-haired man just laughed. The two friends assumed they became a couple recently, since they didn't know anything yet. Which was not quite correct. "Come forward!" Said a voice that came from behind Megumi, who, with no other option, let them both go into the bedroom, sighing as he rolled his eyes.

The four of them sat on the living room couch, and after a little silence, Nobara and Yuuji bombarded the girl with thousands of different, inaudible questions. To which she smiled, not understanding anything, eyes wide open, until the questions ended. "I didn't understand anything…" ____ whispered, still in shock, to Megumi, who told the other two, "Calm down, it's better if go to a cafe or something." The girl next to him smiled widely and took his hand. "Come on!", the three getting up behind her. Itadori and Kugisaki already liked her, her aura was soft and happy. However, they still had thousands of questions.

When they finally arrived at the place, the questions did not wait. "How long have you been together?" Nobara asked first, she and Yuuji were staring at the couple. "We have been together for 1 year and 7 mon-". The, "WHAT?!" of the other two was probably heard even outside the cafeteria. The girl just laughed, she knew that it was probably a big surprise that his friend had a girlfriend, and even more so that they didn't know after almost two years in the relationship. And her confirmation was the two of her boyfriend's friends' in front of her, who were speechless.

"How come you never told us about your girlfriend, Megumi?!" Kugisaki said to the black-haired man, still without fully processing everything that was happening. To which he only replied, "I thought you already knew." Which made the other two explode with claims and shouts, to which the couple only looked eachother askance, making the girl bursted out laughing. The other two continued without stopping the claiming to the blue-eyed one. He just rolled his eyes, until he heard, "Or do you have a secret relationship?", from the girl on the other side of the table.

It was a common thing for people to think, they weren't screaming about their relationship all over where they went to. But they did not have a secret relationship. When they went out, Megumi would always hold the girl's hand, always trying to protect her. Give her small kisses on the forehead from time to time, dates, hugs. It was clear they were in a relationship. It was, however, a private relationship.

The girl next to him shook her head. Still laughing from the barrage of questions from earlier. She knew that private relationships weren't that common, and they didn't always work out either. But in the case of her and her darling boy, it was the simple fact that he wasn't the type to tell his personal business. And that was something she understood very well, that's why she didn't see not showing off their relationship everywhere as a bad thing. Megumi was grateful for his partner's understanding.

Fushiguro spoke again, "It's a private relationship, not a secret one." To which his girlfriend just nodded with a smile. "I'm glad, secret relationships always end badly." The short-haired girl whispered to them both, to which the girl laughed and the guy chuckled.

But that moment didn't last long, when they saw Itadori calling someone. And seeing the name on the screen, they couple looked at each other and tried to take the phone from the boy. There was only one person they didn't want to know about their relationship, Gojo. Why? The answer was simple, Megumi's tutor had met ____ when they were friends. And he always said that they would end up together, which they flatly denied. And they knew how unbearable he would become when he found out. But it was too late.

In the blink of an eye, the albino boy was at their side. "Hello!~" he said, approaching them, which scared them, since they hadn't seen him. Megumi rolled his eyes, and the girl grabbed her boyfriend's hand, and ran off the place. "It was a pleasure Yuuji and Nobara!", she said, as she walked out of the place quickly, next to the black-haired guy, who was only laughing slightly.

The other three who stayed inside exchanged glances, and then, Gojo said, "They don't know I already knew."

© by islmeg on tumblr.

[jtl-fics]

Fluent Freshman - Part 22

PREVIOUS

Y’know how sometimes you have something that you need to do or something that you know is going to happen but you just keep…putting it off? Like you know at some point it is going to happen but you put it off over and over and over and over again? You’re getting increasingly anxious every time you put it off because you know it has to get done but you also know that the longer you wait the worse it is going to get. Finally, FINALLY, the anxiety is just a little too much and you end up having to deal with it.

You finally deal with it and the whole ordeal takes maybe five minutes tops and it was in no way shape or form worth the level of anxiety that you put yourself through. Like you worried about this for a good and long while and it wasn’t even that bad?

That is currently how FF feels about being stabbed by Andrew Minyard.

This is what he was so worried about that he had lost sleep, had nightmares, had lost weight, and had exacerbated his stress ulcers over.

Getting stabbed wasn’t anywhere near as bad as he had thought it was going to be. Maybe it was the fact that it was just a single stab wound instead of the Psycho levels that he had been imagining (Wow, showers were going to be so much less stressful now that he didn’t have to confirm Andrew Minyard’s location before triple checking the lock). Maybe it was the fact that he is PUMPED full of adrenaline from his fights against Jackson and Romero but the stab wound didn’t even really hurt at the moment.

This isn’t even the worse thing that had happened to him this year!

That honor still goes to the joint winners of when his Step Family and mother found out that he had a full-ride to Palmetto and when he had tripped up the same step on the stairs at school three times in a row as people watched and laughed.

(Maybe also the solitary congratulations from his Grandma in regards to his graduation but FF doesn’t let himself think about that, won’t think about it.)

He wouldn’t necessarily call being in a state of ‘stabbed’ a pleasant time but Andrew was being so NICE about it.

“Stop trying to sit up you fucking idiot!” Andrew shouts at him.

Well….Andrew’s version of nice.

(This is the same version of nice that he had misunderstood for months at this point. Maybe FF is just enough in shock from the stab wound in his stomach that he’s starting to grasp the basics in the difficult language of Andrew Minyard’s niceness.)

Andrew had gotten off the phone with 911 and then started pulling off his own jacket before draping it over FF’s upper body, wedging his phone between his shoulder and his ear, and then Andrew started to apply pressure to his stomach wound.

Ow.

That is not a great feeling. This stabbing may eke out past the great triple trip of March 2010.

“No, take back your jacket. You’ll get cold if you don’t have it on.” FF argues because his own jacket is barely doing the job. Maybe it’s the cold pavement of the alley, maybe it’s the blood loss, or maybe it’s the cooling sweat he’d worked up but he is shivering pretty badly.

A thought occurs to him as he feels the weird wet stickiness of his own blood sticking to Nicky’s shirt. “Can you help me get my jacket off?” He asks looking pleadingly at Andrew, “It’s my dad’s. I don’t wanna mess it up with my blood.” He clarifies when Andrew looks at him like he’s a lunatic.

Except his second call must connect right then because Andrew’s answer is non-sensical to what FF had asked, “Neil, let Roland know the police and ambulances are en route.” There’s a brief pause and the pressure against his stomach increases as a muscle in Andrew’s jaw jumps. “Smith got stabbed.” He says and he looks angry, angrier than FF had ever seen Andrew when he’s talking to Captain Neil. There is another pause, more than likely Neil saying something or asking a question, “No, it wasn’t them.” Andrew grits out and the pressure on FF’s stomach hurts, “Just get out here, I need help with smith and making sure these two assholes don’t go anywhere before the police come and grab them.” He says before he pulls one hand away from Smith’s stomach (wow he really is bleeding isn’t he?) to hang up the phone.

Andrew’s gaze turns back to him fully, “You’re not moving an inch Smith, your jacket can be cleaned.” He hisses. “Now stay still and don’t fall asleep.” He orders.

Andrew seems stressed so FF complies. He can’t help but notice how Andrew’s hands seem to be shaking as the press down on his stomach. He kind of wishes he had a pillow or something for his head because he’s starting to feel a little dizzy. Andrew’s jacket would be safer from his blood if it was a pillow instead of a blanket. Still, FF would sooner die than spit on any of Andrew’s current efforts to make him more comfortable.

He looks at the knife sticking out of his stomach. Well, he might die regardless of whether or not he spits on Andrew’s efforts.

He needs to take his mind off this.

“Should we take it out and pretend the Dundee knife stabbed me instead??” FF asks letting his mind go to the first thought in his head so that he could be distracted from his own mortality. “I think it’s still under the dumpster over there.” He moves to point one of his hands towards where the knife had remained throughout this entire ordeal.

Andrew’s knee pinned his arm before he could move it, “Stop moving Smith.” Andrew reminded him before moving his knee. “We have to leave the knife in. You’ll bleed to death otherwise.” Andrew reminds.

“I guess that’s true, so do we just say that Romero got a handle on your knife and stabbed me?” He asks fighting his own shivers since he’s a little worried that any shaking on his part would just make the stab wound worse.

“I stabbed you Smith.” Andrew says looking at him with a furrowed brow.

“Yeah, I know,” FF agrees, “but we’re not going to say THAT to the cops.” He says and shock really is one HELL of a drug because he thinks he might have actually given Andrew Minyard an incredulous look with his atrophied face muscles. It’s either Shock or the knowledge that even if he irritates Andrew, what’s Andrew going to do about it?

STAB HIM?

“You’re going to lie to the cops?” Andrew asks, “I STABBED you Smith.” Andrew repeats.

“Yeah, I know!” FF repeats back, “You stabbed me on ACCIDENT.” FF makes sure to use the same intonation that Andrew had used to emphasize the word Stabbed. “Jackson wanted to stab me on PURPOSE. You saw that knife Andrew.” He tries to gesture towards the knife again but again Andrew’s knee pinned his hand.

He could use his other one but the reminder to stay still is enough.

“I still stabbed you.” Andrew says removing his knee again when it’s clear that FF wasn’t going to try and gesture again.

“Well, if I was going to get stabbed by anyone, I guess I’m glad my first time was with you.” Andrew let’s out a bark of a laugh that sounds more like it was punched out of him than anything, “Honestly, I don’t think Jackson would have given me his jacket afterwards or try and help me keep my blood in my body.” He says and it feels like a victory (not a both hands in the air victory cry level victory but it was close) when Andrew’s face settled into one of faint amusement.

“Probably not.” Andrew agreed, “He doesn’t seem big on Aftercare.” He says.

FF doesn’t know what that means but nods like he does, “So, Romero got a hold of your knife during our tussle and he’s the one who stabbed me. Okay? That’s the story I’m going to stick with no matter who asks me.” He looks Andrew in the eye.

“Alright Smith,” one of Andrew’s hands leaves his stomach and clasps around his shoulder and FF can’t help but notice how neither of Andrew’s hands are shaking anymore. “We can lie to the police.” He squeezes FF’s shoulder.

“Nice.” He says and lets his head fall back onto the concrete. He hears a siren in the distance and hopes it’s coming for him.

They sit in silence for maybe 30 seconds before the door slams open and only Andrew’s hands on his stomach and shoulder keep him from shooting straight up in a panic. Captain Neil seemed to take in the scene at lightning speed but it was Andrew who spoke first, “You left Aaron and Nicky with Roland?” He asks.

“Yeah I did,” Captain Neil confirms and FF can see the moment that his eyes land on the knife handle jutting out of FF’s stomach, “Andrew, what are we going to tell the police?” Captain Neil asks and FF could already see Neil crafting a lie to cover Andrew. That’s one of the things that FF likes about Captain Neil and Andrew’s relationship. He thinks it’s nice that both of them have someone who no matter the circumstances would be there with a shovel to help bury a body. He even thought it was nice when he thought it’d be his body!

“The second guy stabbed me.” The lie comes out smoothly which is good because he is planning on committing to it and Captain Neil blinks and looks at him, “He got hold of Andrew’s knife during the tussle.” He adds.

Captain Neil looks to Andrew, “You said it wasn’t-“

“I guess Smith can lie to a liar.” Andrew interrupts.

Captain Neil’s eyes widen before a wicked grin spread across his face that made FF just a little uncomfortable but only because Andrew’s grip on his shoulder suddenly tightened and his nostrils flared the way they did before the two usually started speaking in Russian.

He can handle being stabbed, he cannot handle being in shock and pretending that he doesn’t know what the two of them are saying to one another.

“Can you tell Nicky I’m sorry I got blood on his clothes?” He asks and both Captain Neil and Andrew’s gaze snap away from eye-fucking each other. He looks down and the clothes are black and they haven’t moved the knife so the wound is plugged still but yeah there’s definitely blood seeping into the shirt, not to mention the hole. “Could you tell him I’m sorry about that?” He asks.

“You are going to tell him yourself Smith.” Andrew hisses, “You are going to be fine. Do you understand me?” He asks before turning to Neil, “Can you bunch your jacket under his legs, it’s better to keep them higher than his head and heart?” He asks.

Aw.

Andrew is just so nice.

He can’t BELIEVE he thought Andrew wanted to hunt him for sport.

He’d apologize for thinking that but he thinks it’d be better to just let that particular misunderstanding go unmentioned.

Captain Neil bunches his jacket up and puts it under FF’s legs before he goes over to check on Romero and Jackson. In the corner of his eye he sees Captain Neil pause at the sight of Romero before moving over to Jackson.

“Why is he in these?!” Neil asks baffled.

“It’s a weird sex alley Captain Neil! I don’t know WHAT to tell you!” Yeah he’s definitely going into shock. The sirens are getting closer though so he’ll probably be okay.

***

The cops all have a bit of a laugh about Jackson’s cuffs until Neil tells them exactly who they are taking into custody. Neil could admit that he’s a little irritated with Andrew that at no point did the man clarify that the people who FF and Andrew were dealing with were Romero and Jackson.

Those are his father’s goons.

“They were here for me.” Neil says to the police officer and Andrew’s hand tightens in his, “They tried to take Smith because he’s my friend.”

They had decided on their story before the cops came. FF had no idea who any of these people were and was just defending himself. He’d gone out to catch his breath in the alley when Jackson had shown up. Neil had asked how in the world FF had handled Jackson on his own but FF must have been getting kind of loopy from blood loss because all he said was, “He told me to sing so I did.”

Neil can find out the full story later.

The important part is.

“Jackson went after Smith but Smith won the fight.” Neil says looking at where the cops are trying to decide how to get the fuzzy pink handcuffs off of Jackson to get him in the far more secure police issued handcuffs.

“Your friend said that you and he took out Romero together. That Romero is the one who stabbed him with your knife.” He says.

“Yes.” Andrew answers simply and Neil squeezes his hand as a reminder, “I went out to grab a smoke and Romero followed after me. Romero got hold of one of my knives in the struggle and stabbed Smith.” Andrew says with his usual deadpan affect.

“Yeah that’s what your friend Smith was saying too.” The officer says. “Well, I’m sure the FBI will want to talk to you all further but for now it’s a pretty clear cut case of self defense and no one but your friend has any serious injuries.” The officer pats Neil on the shoulder and Neil manages not to shirk away from the touch. The officer retracts his hand, “You guys are free to go tonight.” He says and turns back towards the car where a dazed Romero is in the back seat.

“Where did they take Smith?” Andrew asks since they’d been shepherded away from Smith the moment the ambulance had come. They hadn’t been able to ask which hospital Smith was going to be taken to so they could go and get updates.

“Lexington.” The cop answers, “Go on and see your friend. He seemed pretty loopy he kept talking about some beauty contest thing when he was getting loaded into the ambulance. I’m sure he’ll be a riot on painkillers.” The cop goes for a joke but it twists something in Neil’s stomach to think of FF so out of it that he’s talking nonsensically.

He feels Andrew’s hand stiffen in his and knows he’s not alone.

“Thanks.” Neil says before they head towards the front of the club. The club had been emptied out when the cops had come so Roland was babysitting Aaron and Nicky for them while they talked to the cops and FF was loaded out to the hospital.

In a way it’s almost a blessing that Nicky and Aaron are both so blasted that they aren’t comprehending any of what’s going on. They’ll have to drop them off back at the house before they go to the hospital. They’ll beat Wymack there easily even after the interrogation and drop off.

FF had asked them to call Wymack to let him know what was going on “I gave him the rights to make health care decisions for me if I’m incapacitated.” FF had said so Neil texts Wymack the hospital and the address after Andrew rattles it off for him.

“I don’t like that you hid it from me.” Neil says in the car.

“They wanted to kill you.” Andrew won’t apologize.

They still hold hands on the drive back to the Columbia house.

Andrew takes care of getting Aaron into bed while Neil helps Nicky.

Nicky who looks at Neil with a loopy smile and Neil hurts knowing that tomorrow when Nicky finds out about tonight and how he was too blasted to do anything to help FF.

Andrew and Neil reconvene in the Maserati and make their way to the hospital before either of them realize the issue.

“What is the name of the patient you’re looking for an update on?” The receptionist asks.

Both Andrew and Neil freeze.

Fuck.

MASTERPOST FOR ALL PARTS OF FLUENT FRESHMAN AU

NEXT

Per your requests:

@i-have-three-feelings​ @blep-23​ @dreamerking27​ @andreilsmyreligion​ @belodensetdust​ @rainbowpineapplebottle @yarn-ace @iwouldlikesometea @lily-s-world​ @obscureshipsandchips​ @booklover242​ @whataboutmyfries​ @sahturnos​ @pluto-pepsi​ @dreamerthinker​ @passinhosdetartaruga​ @leftunknownheart​ @aro-manita-muscaria @hologramsaredead​ @Chaoticgremlinswishtheycouldbeme @tntwme​ @tayspots @nick-scar​ @crazy-fangirl2524​ @blue-jos10​ @stabbyfoxandrew​ @splishsplashyouropinionistrash​ @sammichly​ @the-broken-pen​ @bitchesdoweknowu​ @very-small-flower​ @ghostlyboiii​ @its-a-paxycab​ @bisexual-genderfluid-fan​ @cheesecookie​ @theoneandonlylostsock​ @foxsoulcourt​ @blueleys @adverbialstarlight​ @elia-nna​ @can-i-just-stay-in-the-corner​ @nikodiangel​ @foxandcrow-inatrenchcoat​ @hallucinatedjosten​ @satanic-foxhole-court​ @vexingcosmos​ @chalilodimun​ @insectsgetcooked​ @angry-kid-with-no-money​ @queer-crows​ @lillyndra​ @themugglemudperson​ @readertodeath​ @apileofpillows​ @mortalsbowbeforeme​ @hellomynameismoo​ @next-level-mess @youreonlylow​ @interstellarfig​ @notprocrastinatingatalltoday​ @percyjacksonfan3​ @queenofcrazy27​ @bsmr261 @ghostlyscares​ @spencellio​ @adinthedarkroom​ @harpymoth​ @sufferingjustalilbit​ @anxietymoss​ @oddgreyhound​ @ohno-myhyperfixation-itsbroken​ @ken22789​ @atiredvampire​ @isoldescorner​ @not--a--pipedream​ @azure-wing​ @bushbees​  @roonilwazlib-main​ @crumplelush​ @foldedaces-paperbirds​ @thesenseinnonsense​ @let-tyrants-fear​ @ketchupandfries​ @legowerewolf​ @deadlydodos​ @but-we-respect-his-craft​ @cariniqe​ @zanypersonapricotbiscuit​ @lesbian-blackbeard​ @lesbiansupernatural​ @silvermasquerade​ @thepeachfuzz​ @minniemariex @kazoo-the-demjin​ @gaypomegranate​ @ji-nk-ies​ @neilimfinejosten​

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

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

[stop-talking]

Honestly? I'm not surprised the FNAF movie is delayed.

They're DEFINETLY struggling to come up with a plot for the next movie. They planned to make three movies if the first went well, but they didn't really leave themselves much room for a sequel.

What do I mean by that? Well...

• The driving conflict of the first movie, that got Mike to work at Freddy's in the first place, was the custody battle with aunt Jane. But they fucking killed her off. (In the movie, it seems like it's possible she still may be alive, but in the book it's pretty much confirmed she's dead.) Abby sees her "lying in a puddle of ketchup" or something when golden freddy comes to get her. And I have a direct quote from Mike.

"You know," he said, "I think my aunt has finally decided to move on." I mean... she kind of did, Mike thought. (Pg 317)

• Oh, and also in the book, it's said Mike gets a nice new job as a contractor after the events at Freddy's, so it's not like they can pull the "Mike can't find a job so he HAS to work at another Freddy's location!" thing again.

• AND, they resolved his storyline with Garrett. He's found the killer, and watched him die. (Even if we know he's not dead). Mike realized Abby is much more important than his dead brother and he no longer torments himself with thoughts of Garrett... so I don't think he'd go poking around in another Freddy's location to "figure out what happened". He knows what happened. And he's finally over it.

• It seems like they TRIED to give themselves something to work with in the end credits. You know, the "C O M E F I N D M E". But honestly? It's not all that helpful. There's no clear way to tell who it's addressed to or who it's from. Everyone seems to agree it's Garrett speaking to Mike as the puppett, but honestly? That doesn't make sense to me.

• I've already explained that I don't think Mike is interested in learning more about his brother's death. He knows who killed him, and watched that man die. Mike is as "at peace" as he's ever going to get. Besides, I don't think Garrett is the puppett!! At all!!

• In the movie, Mike says he feels closer to Garrett at Freddy's. I think that means his soul is LITERALLY there, in THAT Freddy's location. Why else would he say that? Just because there are ghosts there killed by the same man? Also, in the novel, Mike literally sees Garrett's ghost in the pizzeria and it leads him to Springtrap. Finally, the "It's me" messages that keep appearing near Mike. Who else would be writing that shit? It's not just a little Easter egg for the audience. It has to be someone Mike knows. Garrett. (Also I think there's a strong argument to be made that Garrett is co-posessing Golden Freddy with the little blonde boy)

• SO THEN, WHO IS SAYING "COME FIND ME," AND WHO ARE THEY TALKING TO?

Honestly? No clue. But I think there are a few interesting directions they could take things.

1) From Mike's dad, to Mike.

In the movie they sort of imply Mike's dad offed himself, but in the book they reveal he just walked out on them. So he's still out there somewhere, and they could totally reveal he had some kind of connection to Freddy's and William, and it would explain why William drove all the way to goddamn Nebraska to kidnap some random ass kid.

2) From springtrap, to some unfortunate soul dumb enough to set him free

In the games, he was locked away in a bricked off room for like 30 years before being set free, but I don't think these movies are going to have that big of a time skip. Probably a year at most. So I could see the next movie starting with some idiot freeing springtrap.

3) Okay yeah I cant think of anything else.

And I know I'm not a professional screenplay writer but those bitches are anxiously struggling too!! In every interview where Josh Hutcherson (Mike) has been asked about a sequel, he says they're still trying to figure out the story. No shit!! They didn't give themselves anything to work with.

• So basically, Mike has absolutely no reason to go back to another Freddy's location, and the little secret message at the end is almost too vague to be useful.

So, what DID they leave themselves to work with in the next movie? What plot points remain unresolved?

• For one thing, they didn't even give William a fucking motive for killing kids. Or for luring security guards to their deaths. This version of him seems to have a much better understanding of remnant and possession that his game counterpart, but there's no reason given for that either. In the game, he does it all for his dead son. He wants to "fix" him. But they didn't set up any hints to that in the first movie. Mike talked to Vanessa about HIS dead brother, so I feel like if the whole "dead son" thing was the case, she would have mentioned she lost a sibling too.

• Or maybe William would have brought it up at the end when he was getting mad at Vanessa. The "mess YOU created!!" scene. He probably would have said something like, "You know why we have to do this, Vanessa." But he didn't. There's literally no known motive, and it'll be kind of hard to set one up without any breadcrumbs left in the previous movie.

• Mike was TOTALLY falling for Vanessa in the books. Yeah, I know, a lot of people feel FNAF isn't a place for romance, and SCHMELLY isn't a very popular ship... but that doesn't change the face he almost kissed her in the novel. (Also in the book she threw his EMPTY PILL BOTTLE into the river, didn't actually toss bro's meds! So she's a little more likeable!)

"Vanessa and Mike grinned at each other, and Mike felt something zing inside of him. It was a palpable 'wow' feeling that was much more intense than his casual appreciation of her beauty. And the zing felt like it was going both ways. The look Vanessa was giving Mike was one he hadn't ever seen before... not directed at him anyway. Her reciprocation of his feelings was so strong that he felt himself leaning toward her." (pg 186)

(They didn't kiss though, Vanessa blushed and looked away and changed the subject.) Still... now they have to address their little romantic subplot in the next movie as well.

• Vanessa. Just as a character. There's a lot to work with there. Personally, I think it would be interesting to use her coma to tell a story. You know, have her flashback to there's childhood with William and at Freddy's. (Honestly if they don't do that they're dumb and missing a huge opportunity. Why else put her in the goddamn coma?)

• Also, in the novel, they heavily implied she's... a robot? Apparently, her eyes drastically change color and Mike notes she flips from "girl mode" to "cop mode" on a dime. In the movie she just looked bipolar.

"Yeah Abby, let's use the tables for the fort! 😄"

"Mike if you bring her here again I will SHOOT YOU. 🤬"

• But yeah apparently she's a robot. A robot so convincing that even hospital nurses and doctors can't tell. With no explanation for how William could have built that. Or why there's a photo of her and William where she's clearly a child. Did he build a child robot that grew up into an adult woman robot? Or did he build two robots? Or did child Vanessa die and he replaced her with a robot? Who knows!

"Mike watched, mesmerized, as Vanessa's irises deepened noticeably in hue. They went from their usual soft, almost greyish-blue to a deeper indigo. The shift was so pronounced it almost looked computer-generated. It was also enormously disquieting. Mike felt like he was watching a human turn into..." (pg 184)

• So for the next move, Mike has no motive to go visit Freddy's, William has no motive in general, and Vanessa is a robot. The script practically writes itself, am I right??

And then there's the way Scott Cawthon likes to incorporate fan feedback into all of his projects.

(Ex: People complained FNAF 3 wasn't scary, so he made FNAF 4 horrifying)

• I have no doubt he's going to incorporate the fanbase's favorite characters into the next movie. (Ness, Doug, Maxine, Jeremy) Which honestly just complicates the plot further, adding more stipulations to the script.

• Bringing Ness back would be easy? Mike and Abby could have a scene in the diner, I guess, but it's also sort of unnecessary, and I'm not sure MatPat would agree to another cameo. He's retired.

• Bringing Doug back would be more complicated. He's aunt Jane's lawyer... but they fuckin' killed her off. So. Doug is not needed.

• Jeremy could come back? Maybe? He's really a background character... It's not stated whether or not Mike was friends with him outside work, or kept in touch with him after being fired.

• Maxine is a lot more complicated. The actress who plays her, Kathryn Sterling, said herself that she was originally supposed to have a bigger role in the film but it got trimmed down. And THEN there's the way she was stuffed into a purple Freddy suit, which a lot of fans theorize is supposed to be Shadow Freddy. On her TikTok, she basically confirms this, hinting to her character coming back in the next movie and being more important.

So in the next movie...

1) Mike has to somehow have to end up tangled back into Freddy Fazbullshit even though he has NO desire to... (Remember the way he looked at Abby when she asked if they could visit them??)

2) They have to reveal or at least hint towards Vanessa being a robot

3) Mike & Vanessa romance subplot??

4) William needs a fucking motive for killing people

5) The audience needs to be able to tell who "come find me" was said by AND who it was directed towards

6) Bonus points if they can cram in more youtuber cameos & beloved characters from the last movie like Jeremy and Doug

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

So yeah. It's a lot to consider when writing. And the clock is ticking, because kids, especially little kids like Garrett's actor, grow up FAST. And ghost kids aren't supposed to grow up. Ghost kids are supposed to be dead.

I do want to say though, that despite the plot holes, I LOVE the FNAF movie. I've watched it 20+ times. It's genuinely one of my comfort movies. I'm excited for the next movie, but I'm also sort of expecting it to be late 2025 before we get to see it.

Scott is notoriously picky. He turned down, like, 8 scripts for the first movie before settling on the Mike storyline. I don't mind waiting, especially considering how difficult this next movie is gonna be to write. Also if you read this whole rant?? Damn?? Kiss me on the mouth rn.

[escapingrealtiylovinginsanity]

Joe Velasco Part 2 

Part One (Here) Part Three

Joe was ramrod straight with tension. He was trying to keep from pacing like a territorial animal in the space in front of the room you were giving your statement in, but it was hard. His mind had been racing since Bruno had called, and his body was telling him that there were things he should be doing. So many things, his brain just couldn’t seem to supply him with what those things were. He was frustrated and angry, and even though he had seen you and knew you were in one piece, fear clenched in his stomach. And if he was forced out of one more room, he was seriously considering decking someone. 

He didn’t care how irrational that was. He had been a detective with the gang unit for two years and SVU for three. He knew that the victims of assault were more likely to disclose all the information when they were questioned alone. They often felt like they may be judged or looked at differently by their friends and family and in turn often held back necessary and critical information. While he didn’t want to believe that you would feel that with him, he knew that statistics said you would.  

Joe also knew how annoying it was to have extra people in the room while getting a statement. They often talked over the victim, smothered them to the point they didn’t want to talk, or worse started to victim blame their own loved ones. How many times had he cut off worried partners, led angry fathers out of the room, or denied friends or family access to victims because they made his job so much harder? He was usually unapologetic in it too. He was in the right after all. This role reversal and the raw emotion building in his chest at the inadequacy of not being able to do anything, had him promising that he would go into the next situation like that with sympathy instead of irritation.  

He looked back into the window to the room that you were in. You were half slumped in your chair talking to Bruno and Finn. The right side of your face was badly bruised in black and blue splotches from the bottom of your jaw to the top of your cheekbone. There was a cut on your eyebrow, and your bottom lip was busted open just shy of the lower right corner. Joe knew that there was no way that it could be your only injury and the way that you had been favoring your left side only confirmed it. You shifted uncomfortably and looked away clearly unsettled by a question asked. Joe was luckily, or perhaps unluckily, saved from the urge to rip open the door and storm into the room by Olivia and Carisi coming up next to him subsequently blocking the door. 

“So, you and the lab tech that got attacked are together?” Joe nodded stiffly, “You know you have to stay out of this case or risk the validity of it.” Joe had the urge to punch the matter-of-factness out of Carisi. While the other man’s tone was firm, not condescending it rubbed Joe’s raw nerves the wrong way. He had the pull to call the center where you had been attending your training and demand the security surveillance that he knew they had. To locate the man that had hurt you and beat the hell out of him until he was unrecognizable. Only then would he pull out his gun and end the poor bastard's pathetic life. He had never felt more willing to pull the trigger of his gun.    

“I know,” He grumbled coldly, “I’m just waiting until she’s done giving her statement so that I can take her home.” He could feel Oliva’s heavy gaze on him as he continued to look in the window.  

“Velasco you are on mandatory leave for a few days.” 

“Already planned on it Captain.” The lack of argument made Olivia equally suspicious and concerned. Joe finally turned to look at the pair, “You really think I would leave her alone? While the guy that attacked her is out there. While she is the only witness to the rape that could put him in jail for the next fifteen to twenty years.” His voice got deeper, angrier. “I have no intention of giving him even the slightest chance of getting to her again, though I would love for him to try.” Joe’s hand rested unconsciously on the gun strapped to his hip. The words hung heavy in the air as he turned back to the window.  

Sonny was the one who broke the icy silence with a sigh, “I don’t blame you, but how about you keep those thoughts to yourself okay?” Joe didn’t bother to respond. Sonny opened his briefcase and fished out a piece of paper. “Here,” Joe barely glanced at the offered paper. 

“I don’t need that.”  

“Actually, you do. While NYPD doesn’t have a no-dating policy, they do require couples to sign a relationship disclosure. It’s a safeguard when it comes to legal issues including court-”  

“I don’t need it because we already signed one.��� Joe cut off Carisi’s impending lecture. 

“You did?” 

“Yeah, six months ago. All the proper paperwork has been signed and filed. NYPD’s ass is officially and legally covered from liability.” Olivia and Carisi share a disbelieving look. SVU was close-knit and secrets were hard to keep in the unit. Keeping a relationship or hookup under wraps for six months was unheard of.  

“Joe, I never got a relationship disclosure from you.” 

“That’s because I gave it to McGrath.”  

 。°。°。°。°。°    

“Can you give a description of what he looked like?” Finn asked.  

“Not really,” You respond without much thought. You were starting to feel beyond exhausted, and the dull pain had turned throbbing. You felt like one big, irritated bruise. 

“Any little thing can help. His race, age, anything that you would be able to recognize him by?” Bruno prodded. You were shaking your head before he had even finished. “Just think about it for a minute. Tell me what you do remember about him.” You sigh heavily through your nose, rubbing at your eyes. You try to oblige him. Normally talking to Bruno was a treat, he was smart and had a wisecrack for every occasion. Right now, you wished he would stop talking altogether.  

“He was white. Maybe mid-thirties? He was wearing a black sweatshirt and navy baseball cap.” You watched Bruno start scribbling on his notepad. A snapshot of the man’s face above you flashed through your mind. A numb feeling took over you and left you chilled to your core. You pulled Joe’s shirt closer around you his sent wafting to your nose in a comforting embrace. “He had blue eyes, like really blue. And...” You pause.  

“And?” Finn prompts gently.  

“He had a tattoo on his neck.”  

“Which side?”  

“Right,” You shake your head at yourself, “No, wait it would be his left.” The picture in your head started to get fuzzy around the edges. “I-I don’t remember what it looked like. I swear I saw it though.” You admit. “I’m sorry, I guess I don’t make a very good witness. It all just happened so fast.” 

“You did great.” Finn disagreed, “Sometimes it just takes a while for it all to come back. Traumatic experiences are hard like that. Memories can come back in bits and pieces.” 

A few minutes later they were telling you that you were all set. Finn opened the door, and you stepped out. Once again Joe was waiting for you at the door. Olivia and another man were standing with him, and you pause unsure if you should interrupt. Their conversation looked serious. Joe makes the decision for you as he comes over to you and wraps his arm around you. You melt into him. You still feel cold from the inside out, and his body heat and the familiarity of his strong body bring you warmth. “I want to go home now.” Your voice sounds whiny and pathetic even to your own ears. 

“Of course, mi amor. I’ll get us a car-” 

“Didn’t you take the bike today?” Joe looked at you strangely like you were the one being weird. When he just stares you furrow your brows tilting your head in question.  

“Yeah...” The word is drug out almost comically long. “Cariño, you shouldn’t be riding... right now.” It was clear to you that he had edited himself midsentence.  

“Seriously? It’s only a few blocks. We could be back at the apartment by the time it will take you to find us a ride.” Joe looked ready to object and the others seemed uncomfortable with the idea. “Or I could just walk it, but I am not taking a cab. It’s ridiculous.” You don’t know why you were arguing with him. Logically it was more than reasonable for you to take a car. The bike would jostle your injuries and leaning for turns would be a painful endeavor. Later, months later, when you were trying to make peace with the day you would realize it had come from a lack of control. You wanted to feel like you had some power and were able to make your own decisions. 

Joe conceded under duress as he led you out to the motorcycle. He put the helmet on your head tightening the strap before forcing you into his jacket. You regretted your decision in the time it took you to get on the seat. It was one of the longest, most painful rides you ever had. You were almost in tears by the time he parked. You struggled to get down and wince grabbing your ribs. The breath had been pulled from your lungs harshly leaving a sharp pain. Joe for his part said nothing as he waited for you to gather yourself. When you find were able to catch your breath he wrapped his arm around you. The gesture was made to seem like it was out of affection and not helping hold you up as you limped to the elevator. However, when you finally made it to his apartment Joe closing the door and locking it didn’t bring you the relief you had hoped it would. 

I couldn’t seem to write anything for a few days there, but I finally got this part done! xoxo  

[padfootdaredmetoo]

Okay okay the rambling got slightly out of hand (because TANGERINE IS🔥) and it’s a bit self-indulgent but here we go🫠🍊😅

Can I please request a Protective!Tangerine x fem!civilian reader where they had run into each other multiple times throughout their time on the train, they run into each other (literally) on the way to their seats (she’s super apologetic and he’s super flirty, making her super flustered), then maybe again because her seat is near Tan and Lemon’s, then again when they’re both at the snack cart, at the bathroom, etc… They just keep running into each other and each time a lot of flirty ensued and they have A LOT of chemistry. They end up having a more ehm ~intimate encounter~ on the train before all the danger started to really unfold. When everything goes down with all the assassins, Tan finds her hiding, scared out of her mind, not knowing what’s going on, and he picks her up and he & Lemon get her (and themselves) off that train to safety, and then kisses her goodbye. A few weeks later, Y/n realizes she’s pregnant, but has no way to contact Tangerine, all she knows about him is that he and Lemon are assassins that go by fruit names (shsh). After a few months of trying to find a way to contact them, she finds a way… She finds a place to send them a message, pretending to have a job for them, but when they show up, there’s no job, they just find a sheepish, and very pregnant, Y/n. And after finding out that she is indeed carrying his baby, Tangerine brings her with him and Lemon to their safe house, and they fall even deeper in love🥺🍊

Hey Babes!

This request kept me sane this past week. I may have written multiple parts.... I couldn't help myself. I hope you enjoy it!!!!!! <3

Part one: Train shenanigans, finding out she'd knocked up, and locating fruit assassins.

Part Two: the after-math, sweet concentrated fluff

Tangerine Master Post

Warnings: Non-descriptive violence and sex is implied. The reader has a rough home life, freaks out when realizes she's pregnant and gets a bit depressed.

So far Japan was a complicated but lovely trip. Everything here was so different, and yet the people and interactions you’d had were fantastic. After three weeks you were tired and excited to finish your trip in Tokyo. 

This trip was originally planned for your friend, who just happened to back out last minute over some guy she’d met. You’d already spent a fortune on the non-refundable trip, no way you were letting it go to waste. It was strange being so alone. Normally you were surrounded or running after friends and family, but here it was just you. 

It was uncomplicated and peaceful. Not something you’d gotten a lot of over the years. Standing on the bright platform with your headphones in you caught a couple of men out of the corner of your eye. Clearly, they were having some type of argument that was blocked out by the music you were listening to. They were helping hold up their seemingly very drunk friend up.

The tall man in the blue suit flicked his cigarette and you watched him look you over. He gave you a wink before the train blew in through the platform. 

Moving to find your seat someone gently bumped into the back of you as you tried to place your bag on the shelf above the seats. “Oh - S-sorry!” 

“Ah, you again. Here, let me, love.” The man with the blue suit and mustache grabbed your backpack and got it up on the ledge. His accent confirmed that he was indeed traveling. He caught you staring causing your face to flush, and an awkward silence fell between the two of you. His stance made you feel like he was enjoying every second of your flustered attention. 

“Thank you!” You said finally gaining the ability to speak back. 

“You need anythin’ else just come find me.” He gave you another wink before returning to his friends sitting close to you. You took your seat and watched him make his friend switch seats so he could stare right back at you. You put your headphones back in and looked out the window. You paused the music you had playing to see if you could hear what they were saying. 

“You fucking serious? We’re bloody working.” His friend hissed. 

“It’s like I got a compulsion or something. Look at her, can't help myself.”  He let out a sigh. 

“Need to talk to someone. Serious.” His friend said and your heart sank. Just another flirty guy, you put your music back on and hoped you could avoid him the rest of the journey. 

Some type of commotion broke out at their booth when their friend woke up. You still avoided them despite feeling his eyes land on you every now and again. Between your phone blowing up with family drama, and being overwhelmed by traveling alone, the last thing you needed was a fuck boy adventure. A fuck boy named after a fruit? You shook your head. 

As the trip progressed you watched as things got heated between Lemon and another guy you’d never seen before. You decided that this was a perfect time to go find a washroom and a snack. Walking through the train you began to get the idea you’d gone in the wrong direction but kept forward enjoying stretching your legs. 

You reached the part of the train where the snack trolleys get refilled. You hoped it wouldn't be rude to pay here rather than wait for her to come to your car. The door opened and the very man you were avoiding appeared. 

“And whatever she wants, thanks.” He handed the lady a wad of cash and she smiled at you.

“You don’t have to-” You flushed again feeling slightly aggravated. 

“I insist” He guided you forward, all your attention brought to the warmth of his hands on your hips. He stepped behind you towards the door. “Do me a favor, Babes? Take your time going back to your seat, eh?” 

“Um sure?” You said looking at him. There was something very offputting about the whole scene and yet all you wanted was to get to the bottom of the mystery. Why pay for your snacks? What type of business were they on the train for? Why was that other man arguing?

He disappeared and you took your snacks along with his change. You did as you were told, tucking your snacks into your purse, and spending some time freshening up in the bathroom. When you were back in your seat, both of them were gone. 

You snacked and started to read a book. Eventually, you watched the train become emptier and emptier. 

Tangerine finally passed your seat. You looked up from your book to see his ragged appearance. He was clearly in some kind of fight. He stared at you and you felt your skin get hot. This man was all the things you should avoid but still, you got up and handed him his change. 

“Thanks,” You said in an unsure tone. 

“Not a problem.” his hands lingered on yours for a moment longer than they should have. “Not a problem at all.” 

You smiled not sure what else to say. With a nod, you went to turn back to your seat when he grabbed your hand pulling you back to him. “Fancy a trip to the loo?” 

“Toilets? What could you possibly need me for?” You played stupid trying to buy yourself time to think of what the fuck was going on. 

“How ‘bout I show you?” He pressed a kiss to the back of your hand, his eyes devouring you. Should be illegal for a man to be that confident. And yet he’d caught you in his web. He guided you down the train keeping you close. You loved every bloody second of the attention he paid you. 

There weren't any real consequences? You’d both part ways once the train stopped in Tokyo. This was just a quick vacation fuck nothing more. While he had you, deep down inside you were starting to feel like you’d been ruined. He pulled a reaction from you that you’d never had before. Rather than thinking about it too much, you decided to enjoy him while he was here. A tender reckless moment in your life story. 

___________________________________________

This was beyond fucking stupid. Things had surely settled though. Lemon said he’d got the briefcase. No point in wasting an opportunity. He talked himself in and out of the situation before working his hardest to impress you. 

Why? Because you looked like you needed a nice time. Or was it because he wanted a nice time? He didn’t care. You were perfect meeting him for what he was with every thrust. Cleaning you up he realized it would almost be difficult to say goodbye. He was tired of this life. 

He walked you back to your seat enjoying how dazed you looked. Wishing more than ever he could take you for dinner, spoil you rotten with the cash burning a hole in his pocket. 

Unlucky for him things took a different direction. Pulling you from him permanently. The case was gone, shithead was still fucking dead, and Ladybug wasn't their diesel. He gave a disgruntled sigh as he realized there was someone unknown and very dangerous on this train. He needed to get Lemon and himself - and you - off this train as soon as possible. Before something crazy happened. 

The train emptied out and the journey got more and more complicated. After Lemon died and killing the diesel. He slid to the floor pinching the bridge of his nose. He said a soft prayer that you’d had the sense to get off before Toyko.

Lemon was gone. He’d killed some teenager. Everything started to hit him. Didn't matter though. Everything in his life was over. 

It was always him and Lemon. Everything they did, they did together. No point in carrying on - 

“There you fucking are - fucking looking all over for ya. - Your birds a right mess -” Lemon nudged his shoulder with his knee when he didn't respond. 

“You were dead.” He whispered, his throat tight. Eyes starting to get misty.

“Nah, just asleep” Lemon gave him a look, and they both silently decided to never speak on it again. “Your birds’ having a bit of a meltdown though. Reckon she could use a friendly face.” 

“She’s still on the train?"

“You fucking concussed? Obviously why else would I bring it up-” He didn’t wait for Lemon to continue and he started in the direction his brother pointed. Seeing you made his heart twist. You’d wedged yourself in a cupboard, quite an impressive spot really. 

“Come here.” He crouched down holding his hands out to you. You shook your head, squeezing your eyes shut. You were terrified and trying desperately to get your body under control. 

“Really, all the bad guys are dead. Just me, Lemon, and our friends left.” He said softly.  You looked at him with red eyes and he noticed the blood splattered across you. He remembered the first time he’d watched someone get shot. Slowly you grabbed his arms and you jumped when he picked you up. He liked the way you fit against his chest. How your body settled against his, eventually you fell asleep in his arms. He liked how Lemon was sitting across from him. Judgment was clear on his face, his very much alive face. 

Lemon went for a walk as the station approached. He woke you up with enough time to ensure you’d be okay on your own. 

“What the fuck was that all about?” You whispered, eyes wide. 

“Got hired for a job that was actually a different job set up by a big crime lord. Look, don't worry about it.” He looked at your face at a loss for words. When he went through this type of stuff, he had Lemon beside him to help reason with everything. You’d be out there on your own. “It’s not going to make any sense. Just try to push it from your mind. Enjoy your vacation and go home. This was just a crazy side quest. Don’t let it hold you back.” 

You nodded thinking about what he’d said. He knew full well you’d be running in circles over this for a while. He kissed the top of your head before realizing he was doing it. He got you off the train, taking a deep breath. He kept his arm around you holding you to his side while he sorted a cab out for you. 

Watching the car pull up he grabbed your face kissing you one last time. Probably not the best thing to do to a traumatized woman, but you kissed him back. Your heart rate beating fast, skin flushed. 

He opened the door for you and put your backpack in the boot. With a nod, he stood on the curb lighting a cigarette as you sped off into the early morning. 

His heart gave a twinge and he looked over to the happy sight of his brother making amends with Lady Bug. with a few last curse words you all parted ways. Lemon already had another job lined up, somewhere in the UK. 

____________________

You considered therapy. You considered trying to hunt him down. You decided on laying in bed for a few days. You missed out on the last of your scheduled tours. Not upset about the wasted money. You kept your phone off, without the energy to deal with the world. Various consequences of that trip on the train were becoming more and more obvious. 

On the last day of your trip, you finally caved. You bought a pregnancy test and collapsed in defeat on the bathroom floor. 

Such a mix of feelings. You extended your trip by another week and went to work trying to locate the other half of this mess. You wanted him - to know - to help - you just wanted him. 

You tried everything, looked everywhere. His tracks were covered, and tickets were bought by a company that had no internet presence or phone number. With a name like Tangerine, the phone book wasn't an option. 

You went back to your apartment. Dealing with your family was a painful experience that ended in you having a lot more alone time. They’d told you to clean your own mess up. You'd had the sense to leave before your father's temper resulted in physical harm.

Further devastation left you in a depression that stopped your hunt altogether. 

Thankfully you worked from home saving you from any office drama. Being shut up wasn't ideal, but it gave you time to research everything. Your friends vanished overnight. No matter how alone you felt there was the glaring truth that you were indeed not alone, nor would you ever be again. 

While drinking a cup of tea you wondered if you called the transit station if they would give you the credit card info the ticket was bought with. Somehow, they did. 

You looked at the phone number scribbled on the piece of paper. Your parent's harsh words and the look on your friend's faces reappeared in your mind. Maybe you should let this go. 

You still dialed the number determined to do what you felt was right. 

“Hello, how can we assist you today?” A female voice answered. You realized this was the company he worked for and you thought about some of the things they said on the train.

“I have a grab-and-snatch job. With the added bonus of erm - unaliving someone?” You said awkwardly. 

“Okay, do you have an account with us?” 

“No, a friend of mine recommended you for your reputation.” 

“Excellent, and did you have any recommendations for who you would like to work with?” 

“Tangerine and Lemon, the two responsible for the Bullet Train job in Japan.” 

“Interesting choice. The Twins have an opening next month.” 

Twins? 

“Erm - anything sooner?” Your hand rested on the obvious and quickly growing bump.

“How long should the job take?” 

“Half hour tops?” Enough time to tell him that it’s his, for him to disappoint you by denying it’s his then fading out into the world. Half an hour tops. 

You sorted out the last of the details and she scheduled you in for the weekend. 

“Before I present the job to them, how much is the job worth?” 

“Um - 50 million?” You panicked. 

“Oh, that’s above their rate so it shouldn't be a problem. It was nice working with you.” The line went dead and you took a deep breath.

Fucking fuck - 50 million? You groaned, why did everything involving him have to be such a mess. 

____________

Tangerine looked at his brother in disbelief. 50mil for a snatch-and-grab with a bonus if we kill a dude in a red hat with purple trousers? Other than his horrid taste in fashion what did he do to deserve death? An obvious and important question Lemon had overlooked in the debrief.

“This is why I handle these things you never fucking listen.” 

“Look it's in and out - up to the hotel room - in the room grab the case - and out. See a man in a red hat and shoot him. Or we leave him be and take the 50mil. You just hate it when I’m in charge. That’s what all this is about - “ 

Tangerine decided to avoid the rest of the conversation. No named buyer, no deposit, no former account. This is a big fucking red flag. Giant fucking trap. 

He rubbed the back of his neck, listening to Lemon prattle on he decided to just go along, without the energy to fight him. 

Since the train he’d been less and less motivated, 50mil would be another stack of money on the pile. If anything it wouldn't be a bad way to go out. 

“Lemon?’ He asked. 

“Wot?” he said fittling with the remote. 

“If we actually get 50mil for this -” Tangerine struggled to finish the sentence this had been their life for such a long time. 

“Retire,” Lemon said immediately as if reading his mind. The two of them hadn’t been the same since the train. Both of them flew a little too close to the sun that night. Not to mention there were rumors, stories, names, and all sorts of business in the works. Shady business behind the scenes. Tangerine was sure this wasn't the end of the Bullet Train fiasco. 

They got dressed picked up their requested goods from the concierge and moved up to the selected room. Going up in the elevator something started to prickle at the back of his neck. Hair raised on his arms. Something significant was going to happen.

He took the key from Lemon and moved into the room first just incase. It was a massive space. Sitting in the common area was a woman on a couch.

_____

Posting part two now!

[komaedailoveyou]

Florist!Nagito x Reader — Like a flower craves for the light of the sun.

#. — an unfinished fanfic so far, more chapters tba in the future!

#. contents! — f!reader , slight komahina, slight chiakixreader, angst with a happy ending, alternate universe, no deaths or violence, depictions of BPD, smut, but, a LOT further into the fic, slowburn, nagito is a florist, reader is socially inept.

#. word count! — 3.8k .

#. <

" Are you sure you're fine with this? I mean, you've never lived alone like this in years, Nagito. " Hajimes gaze flickered over to his friend who was currently sat in the front seat of his car, his hands perched in his lap, his grip on the wheel tightened, before he went back to focusing on the road, he wasn't the best at expressing it, however he was worried for his friend.

" Oh, Hajime! No need to worry over little old me... I've been meaning to get out of your hair for weeks now! " Nagito smiled softly, looking over at the now-focusing Hajime, he studied his face for a second, he wasn't sure if he looked angry or not, his eyes didn't look all too happy, but, then again, it wasn't his place to comment on it.

Chiaki, who was sat in the back of the car, behind Nagito, looked up from her switch which she had been playing on, she was more of a listener in their conversations, but she spoke up, her voice was quiet, and unenthusiastic, but the two knew she was unable to do more, and it wasn't her fault. " You're pretty far from your shop though...How will you get there from.." She leant forward between their gaps in seats, trying to read where the location on the satnav said, but she couldn't make it out. She hadn't worn her contacts today, and her vision wasn't the greatest from all the screen staring she did, especially at later hours when even the sun wasn't out to help them " your new apartment?"

Nagito shook his head, letting out a short chuckle. " You guys are worrying far too much about me! Trust me, I've looked at many places, and this one was the best one. I'll catch the train over to the flower shop, simple as that. " Nagito tried to ease the tension which was building up in the small vehicle.

" I wish you'd told me before...you know! A week ago! " Hajime commented, passive aggressiveness seeping into his words as he stopped at a traffic light, now looking to make eye contact with Nagito now. " If you're not one hundred percent completely sure, we can turn the car around, You can keep staying at my place, it's really not a big deal to me." Hajime and Chiaki both knew he meant more than not a big deal, he meant to say he would want Nagito to stay, Chiaki sighed to herself, Hajime really had to get better at this kind of thing.

" I'm serious about going, I have to be independent at some point, I promise, I'll still visit on the holidays, so you won't die of loneliness! " He spoke in a joking manor, not sensing the serious tone in Hajime's voice.

Without even a beat passing, Hajime replied " You better. " he took a breath. " You know it-"

" Focus on the road Hajime. " Chiaki looked up at the green light in-front of him, and the three of them remained silent until the engine of the car stopped, just Chiaki's fingers hitting her controls and the dumb pop song quietly playing on the radio.

They arrived outside of the block of the apartments, and they looked up at them, Nagito had a suitcase in hand with all the essentials he knew that he would need to live, the other two were empty handed as Chiaki left her console in the back of the car, hidden under a blanket, just in-case.

"...It's big. " Hajime commented

" Its big. " Nagito confirmed, repeating his words. He couldn't deny he was a little afraid of being all on his own, but another part of him was glad that he'd finally taken a step out into the rest of his life after so long, this felt like a new chapter, or at least a new paragraph, he didn't read all too much, not enough to link that metaphor to his situation. He took a deep breath. " I guess that means I'll have plenty of nice neighbours to look after me then, huh? No need to worry guys!" He hummed.

" I mean...I wasn't *that* worried..." Chiaki mumbled, she thought Nagito was a nice friend but she knew she could just text him whenever, plus, she didn't live with him, or see him constantly, so she wasn't exactly in distraught, she was more there as an emotional support for Hajime.

" Don't go depending on everybody else there, they might kick you out. " Hajime tried his best to joke, he...deep down knew he wouldn't complain if that were to happened, as horrible as that sounded. " Remember, I'm always just a call away, So is Chiaki. " The girl flashed a thumbs up as he brought her into it, probably just so that he didn't seem to desperate.

" Well! The building isn't going anywhere, no matter how much we look at it, so, I should probably go in now, thank you for-"

" We can walk you to your room! Just to make sure you don't get lost. " Hajime cut him off.

" That's so kind of you, As long as I wouldn't be inconveniencing you, then..." Hajime would've told him he was never an inconvenience, however, he knew that Nagito just wouldn't believe him, he tried his best to convince Nagito over the years, but, his words just weren't enough for him.

Chiaki reached her hand into the pocket of Hajime's jacket and pulled out his car keys, Hajime tensed up slightly, he hadn't expected to feel Chiaki so close to him, so when he did, it was just a little bit of a shock. " You can feel free....I'd rather wait in the car..." Chiaki unlocked it, and walked towards it with short steps.

" Bye Nagito, I'll remember to text. " She put up her hand and waved for a second, before ducking into the car, Nagito smiled and waved back, he hadn't the time to respond before the girl had already hidden inside of the car, she just wasn't good with goodbyes, although, Hajime was on the other side of the spectrum of not being good with goodbyes.

" Are you sure she actually even wanted to come? " Nagito laughed, turning back to Hajime.

" Of course she did! You're her friend as much as mine!" Hajime frowned a little at him, he knew how much Chiaki cared, even if it was a little less than him.

" alright, alright! " He took a step towards the main entrance of the apartments, looking back as the wheels of his suitcase clacked against the floor, taking Hajime out of his thoughts. " Let's get going, yeah? " he said, as Hajime walked forward uncertainly, this was really it. He wasn't dying or anything, but, it still felt like a bit of him was about to become a lot more unreachable than before, it was just a big change which he most certainly hadn't prepared for, he just kind of assumed Nagito wasn't going to move out at all, maybe he was more naïve than he had thought.

Nagito walked into the apartments, he had received the key two days ago, he would be on the fifth floor, in room 505, he dug his hand into his trousers, where the key was, and he played with it as he walked, making a jingling sound. Since he didn't plan on walking up all of those stairs with his suitcase, he decided he'd take the elevator. He'd just hope it wasn't broken.

He pressed the button on the side of it, and waited for it to come down to the ground floor, where he and Hajime stood in an awkward silence. He'd thought that Hajime was acting a little odd, but, he wasn't sure if commenting on such a thing would be in his place.

There was a DING! as the elevator doors opened, Nagito and Hajime were about to walk in, however, somebody walked out, they were very fast paces, as if they really had somewhere to be, They awkwardly squeezed between the two men, and made their way out, Nagito looked at them for a split second before turning, and stepping into the elevator, with Hajime at his side. He pressed the little "5" icon on the panel inside, and the elevator begun to move.

"....If you ever get bored of this place, my doors always open. " Hajime lowered his voice, he didn't want to seem like he was pressuring him.

" I appreciate it, you can visit whenever you'd like as well, although, my couch may not be as comfy. " Nagito replied, in almost the same tone, with a smile.

The elevator doors opened, and Nagito stepped out first, Hajime was slightly behind him, despite knowing he would be the fifth door along, Nagito still read every number on the front of the doors as he passed by them, or, maybe it was just he felt like he needed something to look at, so that his nerves didn't eat him alive. Hajime had gone back to being quiet as they both walked towards room 505.

Before he could even count the seconds, they were both stood in-front of it, Hajime wanted ever so badly to convince Nagito to just stay with him, but, he knew that Nagito had made up his mind, and there was nothing he could do in this situation which would change that, and he hated it.

Nagito put the key into the door, unlocking it, before turning to Hajime for a final time. " Thank you for walking me here, and, Thanks for letting me stay with you for so long, Now I wont be there to bother you anymore, so don't worry! " He smiled, like he was happy, like he felt relieved that he thought he was freeing Hajime of a weight, but Hajime felt the opposite.

" Whatever you say. I'll miss you. I can come and help you unpack if you'd like..?" He offered him, he must have sounded a little pathetic, but that was the least of his current problems.

Nagito shook his head. " Chiakis waiting for you, I don't want to be holding you up, besides, I'll be okay, please, don't fret over me. " Nagito asked, like it was a request, but Hajime knew he couldn't just free himself of the worry which he was feeling.

" Alright...um, goodbye, Nagito. " Hajime said, swallowing the lump forming in his throat, he was not about to cry right now. He stepped forward, and wrapped his arms around Nagito, caging his arms in, so Nagito couldn't even return the hug to him, he just wanted to hold him before he left.

After far too long of a hug time, Hajime let go, and after a few more pleasantries, he started to walk back to the elevator. He looked back over his shoulder, and Nagito was just closing the door after stepping inside.

He was right, he really ought to get back to the car, and go back home.

Nagito looked around his brand new apartment. It was pretty nice, he thought. The living room and kitchen were combined together, but the overall space for them was pretty big, there was a table in the back third, and a sofa in the more forward third, with a TV facing it, in the middle, there was a door to the bathroom, where there was shower attached over a bath tub, and a door to a bedroom, which had one bed, a set of drawers, and a wardrobe. The kitchen had two main countertops, an oven, a microwave, a dishwasher, and also a washing machine, even thought that wasn't a kitchen appliance, it still fit in there.

Nagito put his suitcase down, and went to sit on the couch, he sank down a little bit on it, but, he couldn't have expected the best furnishings in the world, he was just happy with what he got. He had drawn in a long breath, and looked around the room, it wasn't spacious, yet, it didn't feel homely. It just felt like a room. He knew over time that would change, as he got used to it, as he made his own special touches to it, but, it made him feel rather strange. He had wanted to be on his own, to feel like he was the one finally in control of his own life, to not be constantly calling for somebody whenever something went wrong .... he wanted that chance, to not be worthless, just for once in his life. Yet, all he found now, was that he was missing the homeliness of Hajime's house, the warmth, the smell of cinnamon, the way the house hugged him whenever he walked into it. He had taken all of that for granted, god he was just awful wasn't he?

He tied his hair up into a ponytail, before standing up, and clapping his hands together lightly. He needed to start unpacking, then maybe he would feel better, or at least he would be too preoccupied to be busy being a stain.

He dropped to the floor, unzipping his suitcase, and he started to take out his belongings. This wouldn't take that long, as he didn't have much stuff, for Nagito, it didn't take much for him to live, he was a very simple guy. First, he went to the bedroom, as that's where most of his stuff would be going. He first focused on hanging hid clothes up in his wardrobe, as that would take a bit of time, he had quite a few variants of flower shirts, which were a little ugly, but, Nagito saw the charm in them, Ugly didn't mean bad, it just meant unconventional. Nothing was really ugly, Nagito thought. Nagito slept shirtless, but he put his pyjama pants underneath his pillowcase, so he could put them on later. Then he set a hairbrush, some perfume, and an alarm clock on the desk next to his bed, that, and a little plush cat which Chiaki had gifted him when Hajime wasn't looking, just before she'd left. He made sure to set his alarm to 6:30AM, so he'd have enough time to wake up, get ready, eat, and then head out for work with enough time for him to a little lenient if anything were ever to come up.

Inside of the drawers, he put in his socks, his boxers, and any other miscellaneous clothing items which didn't fit inside of his wardrobe, and before he knew it, he was finished with a whole room! Next he went to the kitchen area ... he didn't have much to put there, besides some detergent, and some soap, as well as oven-gloves, a few pans, and two trays, three plates, as he didn't think he'd make anymore friends than the two he already had, and some cutlery. He hadn't brought any food with him, however, he planned to go out and buy some food after he was finished with setting up his apartment. What he did bring, was a vase! He was going to think overnight on what flowers he should bring for this new living space. Hajime had a pollen allergy, so he wasn't able to have any flowers there, so he was overjoyed that now he could display some wherever he pleased. He placed it in the centre of the table.

Next, he went to the bathroom, where he put down some more soap, his hair and body washes, his towels, his toothbrush and toothpaste, and a bottle of bleach, as well as some more perfume.

His suitcase was practically empty at that point, and around an hour had passed, Nagito wasn't the type of person who would rush around if he really didn't need to. He stretched his arms up above his head, before dropping them back down. He was aware he had barely gotten inside, but, he was feeling rather peckish now, He was restless, so, he decided that now he would go out and shop for food to stock up his cupboards, then get adjusted to his new living area later on! Truth be told, now that he had already unpacked, he was a little bored. He just didn't have anything to do there, it was just a new home, the overall excitement dies off pretty quickly.

Nagito grabbed a few shopping bags, and made sure he looked good enough to be seen by members of the public, before taking his first step out of his new apartment. He walked back down the hallway, and to the elevator, looking at it, and sighing, of course this had happened.

In the slim time that he was able to get into his room, and sort things out, the elevator had miraculously broken, which meant, from now on, he would have to take the stairs.

The day had been going pretty well for you, up until your assistant, Peko, had called you to tell you that you didn't have enough material for the dresses which would need to be finished in two days, you'd thought you were just about done with them, just needed to do the finishing touches, but no, life can never be that simple for you, can it? You have this motto, totally never heard before, that anything that can go wrong, will go wrong, not just in the fashion world, but just in general in your life, you always seemed to have the worst luck imaginable in every given circumstance, you tried your best to stay positive about it, but god, sometimes it was difficult.

Luckily, in the area which you lived, there was a shop where all of the materials you needed were sold, unless they were hyper-expensive, then you'd have to order them online, as you don't live in a bourgeoisie area, hell, you'd hate it if you did.

You weren't some world famous fashion designer, you just made clothes, and the clothes sold, you didn't have some massively big name, but you made enough money to keep on pursuing your passion, even if you weren't rich enough to quit and move away to some honeypot site. Like you'd want to do that anyway, even if you weren't the best, you generally enjoyed creating fashion, and getting your own art there, it filled you with a joy you hadn't found in many things, if it was your calling, that one thing for you, you weren't completely certain of, as of yet, you didn't feel like you had a thing, just like, you were pretty good at it.

You were wearing a maxi skirt and a blouse out to go to the shops, you were just about to get into your lounging clothes until the call, but now you were walking down the street, walking quickly, but making sure you didn't bump into anybody. You didn't know many of the locals well, but it were better to not start off on the wrong foot, if you had to start off on any. You were quite a shut-in, you just stayed in and created, other than that, you didn't really have a reason to leave, unless you had to meet with somebody, which didn't happen all that much.

You were in and out of the shop in a matter of minutes, you knew where everything in there was, so you could just grab your materials, pay for them, and get out, you didn't like to be in stores for too long, this was mainly because they made you feel awfully claustrophobic, and you really weren't a fan of that, even on less busy days, it made you feel slightly iffy.

Upon exiting, you looked up, and saw that the stars were out, greeting you, it was already pretty late, you would most likely have to pull an all nighter, after realising this, you sighed. Fashion could be cruel sometimes, more often than not.

If you had more time, you would've happily cast your gaze up into the beauty of the moon for a bit longer, but unfortunately you were pulled away from her grasp.

You started to walk away from the shop, back to where you lived, meandering through the people who passed you by, whenever you did happen to pass one, you always got caught up, wondering what in their own life led up to this very moment, it made you grateful for being able to live, weirdly enough.

You got caught up in the idea of getting caught up, because when sewing, you never had the time to think, as you had to focus fully on the task at hand, so when you were outside, you were more prone to getting pulled into the world of your marvellous brain. Or, that's what your mother called it, you'd definitely not say that.

In-fact, you were so caught up, you hadn't even realised that you'd walked straight into somebody. You cursed to yourself, god, you were so unlucky, of course this would have to happen to you. You looked down at the floor for a second, a tad embarrassed, before looking up to see who you'd collided with, you had already stepped back away from them upon the sudden contact, but you couldn't help but gasp as you saw who you'd bumped into.

You could've sworn you had just accidentally ran into an angel, you had never seen a boy so pretty. You couldn't take your eyes from him as you tried to cough out an apology, despite the situation, you had already been horrible and talking to people to begin with, which was part of the reason why you loved your current job.

He had the prettiest white hair, his skin pale to match, and he just looked absolutely perfect, like he were a wax model, and not a real human being. A surge of inspiration was running through your bloodstream, a muse.

You had only just seen him, but you were certain, you had never seen anybody like him in your life, not even in any cartoons, or animated shows. You weren't sure if maybe this was some cruel dream, if he wasn't actually a real person or not, but you didn't have the time to be worrying over such a trivial matter.

Your eyes met his green ones, he looked surprised, you were staring at him rather intently without even realising, god, you must've looked so stupid.

" I'm so sorry, I should've been looking where I was going.." You finally managed to squeak out, you had to keep your cool. " I really need to get going, though, if I ever see you again um...- I'll pay you back! I promise!"

You hadn't given the taller man the chance to reply as you skirted around him, quickly walking off. You wished you had managed to hold s longer conversation with whoever that was, but your work really was a more pressing issue, and anyway, you doubted you'd ever actually see him again.

[oddballwriter]

Unexpected Addition Part 3: Next Move

Summary: And with the group of mysterious artifact thieves making their next move, you and the boys make a plan and head off to get to their next location and be steps ahead.

Warnings: Marc is still a bit snarky and makes some vaguely rude comments to the reader. There’s some fluff with Jake at the end. 

Author’s Snip: Okay okay okay. I can see that this series is the fan favorite. I’m sorry for neglecting it. /gen And I’m sorry for trying to feed you vampire reader propaganda. /j /lh I will say that actually reading over the past two parts helped make this one. If I’m being honest I don’t really remember what my reason for not making part three was??? Maybe I really was hyper focused on Dwelling in the Night. I hope this suffices. Maybe not, I don’t know.

Notes: Unimportant information but I was listening to the Mandela Catalogue Heaven Says remix on loop while writing this.

I’ll shut up now. Enjoy! And don’t be afraid to request.

Word Count: 1,144

It had been some time since the last move of this mysterious group that was collecting paranormal and macabre artifacts. It was honestly a longer waiting game than any of you, including your gods, would have liked. Too still of water sometimes meant that something was happening and you all just hadn't become aware yet. But lo and behold, you manage to catch fresh word of some ritual artifacts in Africa and China just got nabbed.

"They're still moving in the same direction!" you screamed out in joy when you unlocked the flat's door, carrying a bunch of things in your arms. Marc was the one fronting at the time, originally enjoying a televised game of baseball until you started screaming like a mad woman. "What in the world are you screaming about? Who's moving in the same direction?" Marc grumbled, you quickly answered with "The group we've been waiting for. They're finally making a move!" in a joyful voice as you shuffled around to lay out a few things to definitely show and explain to him some master plan that you managed to cook up.

"Can this wait or...?" Marc asks. You glance towards him, having your giddy smile fall at the comment. "Marc, this is part of our mission," you say, "And if my theory is correct then no, it can't." you add.

Marc just shrugs it off and walks towards where you are, where you have a printout of two articles, a map of the world, and a pencil in hand. "Alright. Start talking, and keep it short." Marc prompts. You nod and begin.

"So I already mapped out the spots they already hit before we stopped them. Well, I noticed that they were going in a certain pattern. England, France, Russia, Romina." you explain and list off, though Marc could tell that you had now put a cap on what most likely would have been similar enthusiasm to when you first explained this to Steven. Nevertheless, you go on, now drawing out spots on the map, "But now that China and Africa just got hit by them, that confirms my theory that they were going clockwise and still are.". You do take a moment to comment "It's kind of dumb to still move in the same pattern that you were before though.".

"Maybe they were just betting that laying low would do the trick." Marc suggests. "Then that means we're going to be a few steps ahead of them now." you reply. "That's my girl." Marc could hear Jake praising you from inside his head. Well, at least that means that he's listening to the information, if he's not busy ogling at you that is.

Marc focuses back in on you and what you're saying. He was distracted for a little bit of the rest of your explaining but from what he could gather it was along the lines of that they will continue going in a clockwise path around the world. At some point, the words clear up and you say "So, their next location will be Japan. I mean, that place would basically be their candy store, there's a lot of paranormal and spiritual stuff there.".

Marc thinks over the theory and next location, scanning the marks on the map with his eyes. He quarks a brow when he notices a hole in the theory for Japan being their next stop. "What about India? Don't they have a lot of spiritual stuff there too?" Marc questions. You look at the country printed on the paper saying "Oh, yeah! I knew I missed something in my briefing.", you pick up the article clippings you had printed out. "The theft in Africa and China happened a while ago with China being the last place to be hit. There was a similar time frame with the two of them and the rest of the other locations. So they're most likely already there and in the midst of planning on how to get things there. It would be best to beat them to their next location on their route. In the meantime, we can make our own plan and finally have a way to take them down." you explain, "Like I said, we'll be a few steps ahead of them." you comment.

For a second, your arm almost moves to boop Marc on the nose, but you stop the motion before your finger can actually make contact, "Did they get all that?" you ask as you switch the motion to seem like you were going to point at his head in reference to Steven and Jake. Marc nods, ignoring the habit and pretending that the point was what you were trying to do originally.

"So, I'm guessing that we need to book and pack now and then catch the earliest flight to Japan?" Marc asks, to which you confirm with a nod.

After a long few days of booking, packing, flying in the crack of daylight, and traveling, you finally made it to your hotel in Japan. To say that the two of you were severely tired and jet-lagged from the trip was an understatement. Marc barely noticed the fact that in the room there were actually two beds. He must have started for longer than he thought he did because you interject, saying "The second one is for you and Steven, and Jake if he wants some space." you add before lying down on the other bed.

You figured that after you laid down to sleep of your lag, Marc did the same because after being pretty much unconscious for who knows how long, you're waken up by the weight on the bed shifting and arms wrapping around you. Turning around, you hear Jake's familiar voice say "It's just me, bella durmiente.". You feel his stubble on your neck as he nests his head between the gap while he gets into a spooning position and puts the covers back over you and him.

"In case I want some space my ass." Jake comments with a soft laugh, "Like I'd want to not sleep in the same bed with you when I have the chance." he says as he kisses your shoulder. You smile and roll onto your other side so that you can now face towards him and bury your face in his warm chest. "I know this is a mission and we're meant to plan out how we're going to get a stake on these people, but we can use getting info as a way to see some places." you mention. You feel Jake's chest vibrate as he hums in approval of the idea. "That would be nice." Jake says, "More time for bonding and also having some really nice dates." he remarks.

"We'll see..." you say through a yawn just before falling back asleep with Jake following suit after.

[toffee-rambles]

SDV Green Rain Dialogue Compilation

I haven't seen anything like this yet, despite how intriguing this event is, so I pulled all the related dialogue lines from the game files! There's three types of dialogue: one for the first year, one for the day after, and one for the following years.

This is quite long and major spoilers, so it's under the cut. All villagers, listed alphabetically, as well as a vague note on where they spend the day (which is lacking in some parts because I didn't get to see everyone on my run, feel free to confirm/correct any locations)

Abigail [Home?] "GreenRain": "I want to go exploring, but I can tell my Mom is kind of worried. I don't want to add to her stress.", "GreenRainFinished": "And just like that, everything's back to normal. It's like magic!$h", "GreenRain_2": "Have you seen all the crazy trees around town? Everything looks so different… I feel like we're in a fairy world.",

Alex [Home] "GreenRain": "What's going on out there? Any action?#$e#I gotta stay here with my grandparents…$s", "GreenRain_2": "I tried to go for a run this morning, but the plants have gone crazy! I couldn't get very far…",

Caroline [Home?] "GreenRain": "I've never seen green rain before… It must not be too dangerous if you made it here!", "GreenRain_2": "Ah, the special rain is back! This year, I'm going to make the most of it!#$e#This calls for a cup of green tea!$h",

Clint [Saloon] "GreenRain": "It's situations like this where a person's true character is put to the test.#$e#I'll keep Em… I mean, I'll keep everyone safe from the toxic rain!", "GreenRainFinished": "Well that was a dud. And here I thought it was finally my chance to be a hero. Oh well… Back to the grindstone.", "GreenRain_2": "I feel bad admitting it, but sometimes I wish there was a real disaster, not just some dumb green rain.#$b#Something to shake everything up, you know?#$b#Not that I want people to get hurt…#$b#I just want to feel alive… To feel like I have a purpose…",

Demetrius [Outside, in a hazmat suit] "GreenRain": "Don't mind me, @. I'm just collecting some samples. This may be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!$7#$e#Erm… If you see my wife, can you tell her I'm okay?$7", "GreenRain_2": "The rain appears to be harmless, so I'm taking less precaution this year.",

Dwarf "GreenRain": "I can't see the color green very well.#$b#I guess it's part of living underground for so long.",

Elliot [Saloon] "GreenRain": "Let's not get in a tizzy, now… Gus! I propose a round of drinks to settle the nerves!%noturn", "GreenRain_2": "Ah, yet another unique day in the valley. Stimulating, to say the least!",

Emily [Saloon] "GreenRain": "There must be a meaning behind this… Nature is trying to tell us something.$3#$e#What, though? I can't tell… It's hard to read. I feel a strong presence, though…$3", "GreenRain_2": "Can you feel it? The forest is singing! The trees are dancing with joy!",

Evelyn [Home] "GreenRain": "George, dear… Is this the end? It's been a good life, but I'd like to see Alex find his way before departing…$s%noturn", "GreenRainFinished": "Oh, my dear… I'm so glad everything ended up okay. And my flowers look healthier than ever!", "GreenRain_2": "The flowers seem to love this rain…",

George [Home] "GreenRain": "There, there, honey… Don't you worry.%noturn#$b#Even if it is poisonous, I breathed in more noxious gas in one minute back in the ol' coal mines… And I'm still kickin'!", "GreenRain_2": "Looks like the young folks will have to do some extra weeding after this one…Heheh…$h",

Gus [Saloon] "GreenRain": "I saw the weather report last night. It really gave me a scare!$s#$e#Are there monsters out there? What's happening?", "GreenRainFinished": "I'm glad that's over. Running the saloon is enough to worry about, I don't need exotic weather in my life!", "GreenRain_2": "sniff… These rains have a particular smell. Have you noticed? Almost like freshly minced herbs…",

Haley [Saloon] "GreenRain": "I don't think I've ever set foot in this place. It's actually kind of cozy!$h#$e#Oh, I'm not worried about the rain. I'm sure it'll pass.", "GreenRain_2": "Wake me up when there's a pink rain… Or better yet, a pink cake rain!",

Harvey [Saloon] "GreenRain": "I brought some medical supplies, just in case. Be careful out there!", "GreenRain_2": "The first time this happened, we were all worried that the rain might be dangerous.#$b#But what if it's actually healthy for the body? Who knows… The plants seem to respond well to it, at least.",

Jas [Marnie's Ranch] "GreenRain": "I'm scared…$s", "GreenRain_2": "I hope the rain doesn't turn my dress green…$s",

Jodi [Home] "GreenRain": "Are you alright? We've never seen anything like this before…$s#$e#I wish my husband was here. He'd know exactly what to do.$s", "GreenRain_2": "Vincent got up early to go play in the rain. I just hope they're right about it being completely harmless!",

Kent "GreenRain_2": "Heh… The rain is a blessing. A reminder that there will always be forces greater than anything conceived of by man.#$e#That's actually a comfort, @.",

Krobus "GreenRain": "The flow of water has been unusually strong today… what's going on up there?",

Leah [Home] "GreenRain": "Where did all these plants come from? It's a surprise, but I'm not complaining…", "GreenRainFinished": "I guess everyone in town was scared of that strange rain? I had no idea… I just thought it was incredible!$h", "GreenRain_2": "Imagine if this rain lasted all summer… The plants would take over the entire valley!",

Leo, only after moving to the town "GreenRain": "I like this weather… it's so humid. It reminds me of the forest back home.",

Lewis [Saloon] "GreenRain": "I just got off the phone with the Governor… Apparently this rain is supposed to be completely harmless. Just an unusual phenomenon of nature.#$b#Still, some of the townsfolk are panicking, which is never good…", "GreenRainFinished": "Well, that was quite the excitement for our little town! I'm just relieved that everyone is okay.$h#$e#If this ever happens again, I think we'll all be a little more relaxed. It's not the end of the world!", "GreenRain_2": "I guess we can expect these unusual rains every year. I think everyone is a little calmer knowing that it's just part of nature.",

Linus [Mountains] "GreenRain": "All these strange trees will be gone tomorrow… it's one of the mysteries of nature.", "GreenRainFinished": "How did the moss harvest go? Hehe… My bed is a lot softer now.", "GreenRain_2": "I've already gathered enough moss for the entire year. How about you?",

Marnie [Ranch] "GreenRain": "You're not worried about this rain? That does put me at ease a little…#$e#I just hope the cows tucked themselves in…$s", "GreenRainFinished": "Well, looks like we all got scared for nothing… The rain was totally harmless!", "GreenRain_2": "The animals seems to enjoy this rain… I think it's putting extra nutrients into the grass.",

Maru [Home, basement] "GreenRain": "I want to go collect samples with my dad, but my Mom is insisting we stay here…", "GreenRain_2": "This is a rare opportunity to study a unique phenomenon… every moment counts!",

Pam [Saloon] "GreenRain": "It's a sign from the Almighty… We're doomed…%noturn$s", "GreenRainFinished": "Well, I guess the end-times haven't come just yet, kid…#$e#Ah well, back to the ol' nine to five…", "GreenRain_2": "I think these rains are a show of force… a warning.#$b#You could say it's from nature, from Yoba, whatever you like… but that's what I think.#$e#What I mean is, we can't get too cocky. Or else, instead of a green rain, maybe we'll have a blood-red rain… See what I mean?",

Penny [Saloon] "GreenRain": "Are you alright? We're all wondering what's going on…$3", "GreenRain_2": "This strange weather is a good opportunity to get the kids interested in nature!$h",

Pierre [Store] "GreenRain": "Gahh, no customers! Any more of this 'green' rain, and my ledger will be in the 'red'!$s", "GreenRainFinished": "Well, I'm glad things are back to normal. Seems like it was all overblown… just like everything.", "GreenRain_2": "Glad to see you, @. What's a little toxic rain when you have seeds to buy?$h#$e#I'm just kidding. The rain seems to be completely harmless.",

Robin [Home, basement] "GreenRainFinished": "I hope Demetrius is happy with the 'samples' he collected. Seems like his little science project is more important to him than his own wife. Hmmph.$6", "GreenRain_2": "There's all kinds of good wood out there today. Better get chopping, huh?",

Sam [Home] "GreenRain": "Whaa! Is it acid? Will it burn through the roof and sizzle us alive?$8#$b#I gotta keep my little brother safe!$7", "GreenRainFinished": "Seems like there's no damage to anything… That was a strange one. How are you holding up?", "GreenRain_2": "You notice how warm this rain is? It feels alive…",

Sandy [Store] "GreenRain": "I heard there's a rare weather event in the valley.#$e#I wish it rained here sometimes…$s",

Sebastian [Home, basement] "GreenRain": "My mom's freaking out, but I'm actually kind of enjoying this. I bet the frogs are going wild out there!$h#$e#I'm gonna stay here to try and keep her calm, though.", "GreenRain_2": "I was hoping this weather would come back. It makes me appreciate the summer a little more.",

Shane [Marnie's Ranch] "GreenRain": "I don't have to go into work today, so I'm not complaining…", "GreenRain_2": "Oh, there's some kind of weird weather today? I didn't notice.",

Vincent [Home] "GreenRain": "Mom! I wanna go outside and play!%noturn", "GreenRain_2": "%Vincent is covered in moss.",

Willy [Saloon] "GreenRain": "Aye… I hope these weird rains don't bother the fish… It could ruin me life!", "GreenRainFinished": "Well, the fish seem as healthy as ever. In fact, I swear they've been biting with extra vigor!", "GreenRain_2": "If the fish like these rains, then I like 'em, too.",

Wizard [Home] "GreenRain": "Though the unusual rains may be alarming, there is nothing to fear on this day.#$e#In fact, it is a day of great joy for many living things.", "GreenRain_2": "Nature is a powerful force, not to be trifled with.#$e#Excuse me, but there are special matters I can only attend to on this day.",

[marbarmars]

I think I finally made y’all wait long enough (and procrastinated on writing this long enough) so you finally get Salem posting part 2!! I also changed up her design a lil very recently! It’s not much though, just more curl to her hair and a gemstone on her hat that resembles a gemstone on the Shadow Queen. I have the art on my art blog too, but here it is! I made the background myself too based off of a completely new location in my TTYD lore :3

So without further ado, lemme describe what it would be like if Salem was in TTYD!

Salem the Shadow Siren: Sidequest

Before chapter 4, if you talk with some NPCs, they speak of a lanky ghost-like creature that travels alone and seems to be afraid of its own shadow. It’s supposed to be vague for now but it’s foreshadowing to Salem. There will be a mandatory cutscene between Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 which you will see Salem physically for the first time in the Rogueport Underground. She’ll mutter to herself about how cruel her mother is for looming over her like this. Salem asks nobody why can’t she just live in peace and that the end will come soon. She starts rambling to herself about a garden she needs to keep up with in Petal Meadows. It will be then, mid sentence, that Salem notices the player. The room turns pitch black and then Salem is gone. You will have to remember this information after you get Vivian, because her veil ability is needed to make Salem comfortable enough to appear in her first secluded location in Petal Meadows. If you decide to pursue her, that's when the sidequest truly begins. Your second encounter with Salem in Petal Meadows will leave her shocked, as she is very scared of Vivian. Sadly your partner does not know much about Salem, but the physical similarities does confirm that Vivian and Salem are both Shadow Sirens, and thus related. Salem is scared that Vivian will try to drag her back home, or get Beldam to drag her back home. Confusion ensues on how Salem knows the Three Shadows, but Vivian hardly heard about Salem. Despite her kind nature, the lanky siren pleads to not hurt her plants and leave. A choice prompt will show up >Okay, we’ll get going. >Where is your home? If pestered enough about where Salem used to live she will get upset with you, and dim the lights. When you can see again and Salem is gone. Picking the first option will just make this go quicker. There is a note on the ground that tells you that she has a garden to tend to in Keelhaul Key. And no, you can’t actually hurt the pretty flowers Salem planted, that would just be rude. :( As you progress through the game new garden locations will open up, backtracking, yada yada yada. She sticks around for longer each time you see her, and you learn more about her. There’s a point where a battle is initiated, but Salem doesn’t attack, and after a few turns she flees. If Goombella uses tattle, her stats will be illegible, and not much is known about Salem. Once you have access to the Palace of Shadow…if you have successfully done all of Salem’s encounters, she will send Mario an email to meet her at her favorite place in the world: Shrinking Violet Summit. (There’s a new pipe that opens up that will lead you directly to the place, and it’s not very big either. This is more just to see how beautiful the place is and set up something important. This time you won’t need Vivian to have Salem appear in the room she’s in, she will be there waiting for you to talk to her. And if you do, she will thank Mario (and Vivian) for helping her gather the courage to open up. She’s aware that you opened the Palace of Shadow, and decides to tell you everything. The Mother she keeps talking about, is in fact the Shadow Queen. A long time ago, the demon decided she wanted to raise an heir to inherit her power and rule the world in case anything bad happened to her. That’s how Salem was born. In truth, she is over 1000 years old, and was there to witness the Shadow Queen sink the ancient Rogueport and create the Crystal Stars.  She did not however, witness the four heroes defeat her mother and seal her away. For the longest time, being the Shadow Queen’s daughter did not feel right. She was created to help drown the world in darkness…but she saw the light, the beauty of Earth. Salem decided enough was enough….and ran away from the demon. The Shadow Queen let her live…Salem does not know why. (It is revealed when you face SQ there is further context that she wanted Salem to orchestrate her return to prove that letting her live despite her traitorous actions was the right decision, not Beldam.)

Salem has known Beldam for a long time, and feared her loyalty to her mother. But she wasn’t aware that Marilyn and Vivian were created. She lived in fear of Beldam finding her and dragging her back to the Palace.

The partner Mario brought out will ask if Salem will come with them to confront the Shadow Queen. But….despite everything, she says she can’t. Salem is afraid to fight. But, she won’t leave you empty handed, and will give you a Jelly Ultra as a sendoff gift to help with their fight with her mother. (Which fun fact, that would be the only one you can get for free without needing to make a recipe! So she gives you something really valuable for all the trouble!)

The even cooler part is, she has one last email to send after Mario defeats the Shadow Queen. She asks him to meet her at Shrinking Violet Summit again, and with a newfound determination…Salem learns that she needs to stand up for herself. She will forever live with the regret of not facing the Shadow Queen herself…but she will try her best to make things right. She asks Mario if he would like to fight her, and reveals that she’s pretty tough. People used to fear her…instead of her fearing everything.

Waboom! Surprise she’s a superboss! You’re basically facing a Shadow Queen EX, with some differences in Salem’s attacks. But if you can defeat her, she will become recruitable as a post game partner!!

I can’t believe I’m saying this but I’m gonna have to make a part 3…this was even longer than my last post about Salem SOBBB

But this next part will be about what she’s like as a partner, and finally addressing her likes, dislikes, personality, etc.

I will see you tomorrow at noon folks :3

[ashleymasenado]

QSMP Reader Insert One-Shot: It's a Deal

Summary: You were one of the residents of Quesadilla Island running for presidency; at least, you were. Halfway through, you had decided to drop out due to some other runners having similar campaigns to yours. But after listening to them better, something about them makes you uneasy, so you decide to get back into the run…with one of the few people you would ever trust.

Hi everybody! Alexa here! I'm feeling quite optimistic about this little bit I'm writing today, even though I've told myself quite a few times to wait for when I'm getting to the real fic, but that's not important right now. What's important is that I get this out before the final elections on the QSMP, because that's what this one-shot is all about. And man, if you guys have time to read this, might wanna grab a snack and a drink cause this is lengthy; probably one of the longest solo pieces I've tried writing.

Anyway, this is a female reader insert, as those are easier for me to write and because we don't have much girl power on the QSMP. But, if you are not a girl who is reading this, feel free to change things up for your own preference. I am a fifteen-year-old Christian teenage girl, but I know I have to respect and be thoughtful of others. This takes place after the third debate (Day 106). As for what you're up to, well—you'll just have to find out.

Major spoilers if you're not following the QSMP, or if you're still catching up on it. I'm sorry if anything is not entirely accurate to the timeline of the QSMP; I've checked the characters' pages on the QSMP wiki yet they're not entirely up-to-date on events. This is actually the first one-shot in a collection of two or three, because I had to get this out soon with the recent lore on the QSMP being absolutely crazy and getting darker and deeper, and the elections being close to wrapping up. I hope you don't mind what I did to get this out soon, everyone. I just hope I did a good job.

Will also be posted on quotev.com, fanfiction.net, and archiveofourown.org, on my account with the same name: Ashley Masenado, except for fanfiction.net with the username being AshleyMasenado15.

I hope you all enjoy, and remember—stay safe, and stay weird.

——————————————————————————————————

I can't believe I'm doing this…

You pursed your lips together as you walked through the woods, far away from the town, one hand in your pocket as the chatters grew quieter and farther away from you as you walked. You shuffled around your fingers, trying to stay calm, as you went over the crazy plan in your head again, over and over, to make sure you had it.

This plan was crazy. You were going crazy, and you absolutely hated it. For a while, you always thought you were the only sane one left on the island—until now. But this—this idea changed that thought. There was no turning back—but now you wished there still was.

Your steps came to a halt as you glanced around your surroundings, then raised your left hand to look at the screen of your Portable Minecraft Guide (PMG). You pulled up the map to check your location, and your icon confirmed that this was exactly where you needed to be. Pulling up the inventory tab, you rummaged through one of your backpacks for the three item kinds you would be needing: lava buckets, water buckets, and a flint and steel.

Your plan was simple: create a Nether portal with the bucket method to get Cucurucho's attention so you could negotiate with it. Normally you wouldn't break the rules on purpose; you had strong morality boundaries after all (unlike a majority of the people on the island). But you had no choice. You had missed the chance and had to come up with this in desperation, especially after what had happened near the end of the debate today. The chaos had prevented you from even getting a chance to see Cucurucho, so this was your best and only shot. You were not going to waste this only chance.

Letting out a deep sigh, you began to build the portal as the afternoon sky gave way to night. The cool breeze cooled the heat on your face, calming your heart from the nerves of today's events. As you poured one lava bucket down, followed by a bucket of water following your exact calculations, your thoughts drifted to the past events that you were around for since the beginning of Quackity's QSMP. Some were fun and fueled your resolve for adventure and to solve the mysteries of the island, while some were quite…depressing. Ordo Theoritas had been reestablished, the Nether portals at the end of the train tracks were a huge discovery, Quackity's mysterious disappearance (which you were still trying to solve today), many eggs had died (including your own, which nearly destroyed you and you were absent for a week, even needing therapy once), and the beginning of the elections of presidency for the island.

That was actually where you were now. Out of pure curiosity you had actually opted to run for president; and being the "do-it to-it" person you were, you went for it. After a bit of hard brainstorming and plenty of rewritten drafts, you had the perfect campaign: a program designed to protect the eggs and the people, and everyone and everything on the island. Cellbit, whose primary goal you knew was to leave the island—you knew he was going to be against the idea. But that didn't bother you, even if he was a good partner outside the elections.

As the elections had gone further with the first debate, you grew bold enough to share your further ambition to bring down the Federation, as they had done nothing to stop the problems of the Binary Code Entity and its attacks on the other eggs. It had been the cause of so many deaths, of people and eggs alike, and all they did was sit back and watch? Well you had had enough. If this so-called government wasn't going to do anything about your problems, you would. You would make sure of that.

At least until the very next debate. After you had heard the proposals of Bad and Baghera, you had decided to drop out of the elections as they had similar ideas to yours, and you figured since they were older than you and had more experience with these things. And besides, you figured with your lack of self-control that you'd probably go mad with power the moment you started your first day. It was probably for the better that you had dropped out. Thanks to some negotiations with Cucurucho and having the official paperwork signed, you were out of the run for presidency.

What some people didn't know, was that not long after the second debate, you were having second thoughts. There were many things you knew that the others did not, and these things worried you. Had you made a mistake to drop out of the elections? Maybe. Especially with Bad's proposal, which you had reflected on more after reading back on your draft for the QSMP newspaper (you were the main editor as it gave you something to do after you lost your egg). You didn't want something like that to happen again; you couldn't let it. You would not let it. If anyone was going to actually make things better on this cursed island, it was going to be you.

As the heaviness of the load in your hands began to lighten, you stopped pouring and put down the empty bucket. The portal was finished and now it only needed to be lit. You stared at the flint and steel in your hand, seething through your teeth at the thought of the crime that was about to be committed. Standing in position and gripping the tools tight, you flicked the flames and the deed was done. Now all you had to do was wait.

As you stood there waiting for Cucurucho to come by and give you your news, you thought of the strange nature of this white robotic bear. Ever since your first interaction with it, you had thought it to be an A.I., due to its use of a soundboard to communicate, having no desire for itself, and its constant presence to ask questions to the reidents as surveys. You were very wary of Cucurucho, especially after its first jumpscare on you. You nearly had a heart attack that day. No joke; you had to pump your fist on your chest plenty of times and your child had to calm you down since you were even laughing your head off with insanity.

As time went on and you were noticing patterns in its behavior, you began to understand it more—at least, you hoped it did. Cucurucho was only doing its duty, given to it by the Federation. It was only doing what it was told, even if it did have some… interesting methods to getting the job done. It reminded you of yourself in a way, with your "get-right-to-it-before-I-get-too-lazy" attitude. Except you weren't the kind to use force to get your work done, so of course there were some major differences. At least you didn't laugh in someone's face when they were about to lose the last of their hearts.

A flash of white caught your eye from the trees in the left, and you immediately stepped back as Cucurucho came running. In a single click it destroyed the portal, one block at a time. Not a single trace was left, not even a particle. As soon as the portal was out of existence, it turned around and faced you with that same eerie smile, plastered on its white mask for hours at a time. It sent a chill down your spine whenever you saw it; it was like a prison it couldn't escape. If you still didn't think Cucurucho was just some AIR (Artificial Intelligent Robot, as you called it), you would have felt a little sympathy for it.

"Hello," it said, its iconic leather-cover notebook in its left hand. The feather pen was stuck in-between the pages, serving as a bookmark for where it could write when it had to communicate with the residents beyond its limited soundboard. Its white long-sleeved shirt, white pants, white fingerless gloves, and white socks and shoes were spotless as always, somehow completely free of stain. The white mask sported the usual shiny black eyes and button pink nose, and the unmoving mouth where the soundboard played its repeated words held the same old smile. "You have committed an illegal act. Please, follow me."

"Yes, Cucurucho, I know I did, but I only did this to get your attention," you muttered, holding your hands up in defense as it tried to walk away. "I just wanna talk alright? It's really important, so please just listen."

To your surprise, the bear stopped in its tracks and turned around, returning back to you as it had walked away a few paces. It opened its book and wrote down some quick scribbles, then handed it to you to read.

I'm listening; what is it you need? The text read; inwardly you sighed with relief. You didn't think this plan would have actually worked, and yet it did. You figured it was now best to move on to the next phase, so you explained that you wanted to get back into the elections, and you needed Cucurucho's help for it. The bear was quiet the whole time, completely still as you talked. Halfway through, you realized the danger of the current situation and frowned slightly, looking around to see if anyone was listening in. Internally you sighed and rubbed the bridge of your nose, reprimanding yourself for not thinking this entirely through.

"We're not safe talking about this out here," you said, turning around to the direction of your house. The bear had put the book away, its paws now empty as it stood there; perhaps contemplating its decision in the matter. "Would you mind if we have to go to my house? I think we're close enough to it."

"No."

"Okay cool," you said, as you began to walk towards the direction of your home. You turned around to check if Cucurucho was following, and you kept going as it stayed three blocks behind you. As you went, you kept your map window open to make sure you were taking the most inconspicuous route, even making sure no one was following you by checking behind you every minute of the way. Normally you wouldn't call yourself paranoid, but things on the QSMP were making you more and more afraid of the island everyday.

Ever since the death of your egg child, you had been feeling less like your old self. You had become more tense, more wary of your surroundings and especially very careful with who you made friends with. You even stopped frequently hanging out with people, which you used to do plenty before to make more friends and be more socialised. Sometimes when some players would come by to ask how you were, they would be answered with an "I'm fine" and a chill wave. But in reality, sometimes you forgot how to smile a genuinely happy smile.

It took a bit of a long walk and a bit of quick sidestepping to avoid some of the player residents, but you and Cucurucho finally arrived at your little wooden cottage in the larger cherry blossom biome, near a quaint little village where you had built your house. It stood on top of a hill where the sun could shine into your windows. You opened the door to let Osito Bimbo in, then after you closed it you flicked on the lights with your redstone-powered lever that went all the way to some lanterns up on the ceiling.

Your living room was simple, yet enough to make one feel right at home. The red couch on the right side of the house was enough to seat atleast five people, and it was clean and inviting. On the right armrest was a jukebox with a chest labeled "Non-Copyrighted Relaxation Music" on its right side. A window with shutters was on the left wall, the shutters having been pulled up so the sunlight could flow in and warm the room enough; albeit with nighttime coming through, it was more of the sunset coming in. A ceiling fan whirred on in the middle of the ceiling, surrounded by the warm glows of the lanterns above. At the far side of the room were the stairs leading to the upstairs, with the bedrooms and the guest rooms. A hallway to the far left of the room lead to the dining room and the kitchen, where you lead Cucurucho into. You gestured for it to take a seat at one of the chairs at your table, while you went into the kitchen to prepare some refreshments for the both of you.

"Hey Cucurucho," you called from the kitchen while you poured pre-prepared hot water into two little teacups. "Jaiden told me you like tea a few days ago. You want some honey in your green tea?"

"Yes."

Nodding, you took out two of your green tea bags from the second top cabinet, dipping them into the cups and stirring a tablespoon of honey into one of them. You quickly stirred it and carefully made sure to evade the steam quickly lifting from the cup, as to not burn yourself from it. While the cups cooled on the counter, you took out a few home-baked Fita crackers from another one of your storage cabinets and put them on a plate, then put them aside to make room for the cups. After you brought and distributed them on the table, you took one of your discs from the shelf in the living room and played it in the jukebox near the table, then took a seat as you took your cup to sip your tea.

With the comfy music, you took some time to collect your thoughts while you looked around the dining room. The place was rather homey as intended, nice and simple with a long wooden table and wooden cushioned chairs. It took up most of the dining room, but left enough space for people to walk around the table, especially when you needed to serve visitors their refreshments. Lanterns hung from the ceiling from reinforced iron chains, bathing the room in a warm and comfortable glow.

You put down your cup and chewed on some biscuits, then after another sip you took a deep breath and braced yourself. Gently clapping your hands, you turned your attention back to the white bear, who seemed to have not budged from its seat except for having opened its book on the table and the cup in front of it being noticeably half-empty.

"So, Cucurucho," you started, holding out your hands in a hopefully professional manner. "Like I said, I wanted to talk to you about the elections. I would like to get back into the run for presidency."

"Why?"

You shuddered inside; this was new. You didn't think Cucurucho could have its soundboard updated to include new vocabulary, especially since you were used to hearing its usual "Good morning" , "No", "What are you doing?" and its eerie monotone "Hahaha". But maybe it was always there and you just didn't get an opportunity to hear it before.

"I want to get back into the presidency because I am concerned about the proposals of some of the candidates. Not only because of what they plan to do, but also because I am wondering if they will actually do it. Many running candidates often tend to forget about their promises because of their want for power. Once they have the power offered to them, they often forget about what they've promised and only care about themselves. Do you follow me?"

"Yes."

"Well, I'm not going to be like that. I've decided that if there's a fat chance that these candidates won't do what they've promised to do, then I'll do it myself, as I've always told myself all the while while I was in the run for presidency. Basically, I'd like to get back into the run for presidency because I want to help the island, and everyone in it, in my own way. What do you say?"

There was another reason you wanted to get back into the run for presidency, but it was one you would rather prefer to keep to yourself. Not only did it make you uncomfortable to think about, but it reminded you of terrible things that only further motivated you to get back into the run. You couldn't let something like that happen again, especially not with Bad and Foolish. They were some of your best friends on the island and the QSMP itself, and there was no way you would let history repeat itself over.

H̷͙͘ö̵̼́w̵̡̾ ̶̝͐c̵̦͝a̸̫̚n̵̞̊ ̷̥̏y̵̻̍ö̷̹́ū̴̠ ̷̭̿b̵̫̚e̶̱͌ ̷̖͠s̷͝ͅo̵̝̓ ̸͇̌c̷͚̚ǎ̵ͅl̴͍͗m̴̲̀ ̷̭̈́ȁ̵̼b̷̧̈́o̵̾ͅu̴̙̍t̶̲̀ ̴̣̋j̶̝̈́ú̸̹s̷̯̋t̵̙͐ ̷͙̊t̴̹̊ă̸͇k̷͚͊ī̶̧n̵͚͘ĝ̶̭ ̸͇̔s̵̤͠ỏ̸͓m̸̜̆e̵̱͊ō̶̫n̸͓̎é̶̩'̸̫͒s̶̔

"̸W̸h̴a̶t̴ ̸h̴a̸p̷p̶e̴n̵e̵d̸ ̷t̷o̴ ̷t̷h̶e̸ ̵B̴a̷d̴ ̵B̶o̶y̴ ̸H̸a̸l̵o̴ ̴I̴ ̵u̸s̵e̶d̴ ̷t̸o̷ ̶k̷n̵o̸w̴?̴!̷"̷

"̸I̴ ̶t̴r̷u̵s̸t̸e̶d̶ ̴y̶o̴u̶

Deciding not to dwell on the past, you looked up and noticed that Cucurucho's notebook was in front of you with the words written inside: "Please wait while I discuss this with my workmates." From across the room, Cucurucho had pulled up a window on its PMG, which you figured was where it was talking with its fellow workers of the Federation. You decided to be patient and think of what you could request to Cucurucho in case it would need you to do something to fulfill your requisition. You carefully closed the notebook with the pen inside as a bookmark and slid it back to the bear, chewing on the rest of the biscuits on the plate while leaving some for Cucurucho.

After only a few minutes, Cucurucho turned off the window and carefully took out a page from its notebook. Your eyes widened as you never thought Cucurucho was allowed to do such a thing. But you figured it was best to say nothing, so instead you opened the chat on your PMG and began to talk with your friend Foolish. The QSMP members were put into an all-members group chat where if a single person messaged, everyone would immediately be able to see it. Luckily, the QSMP admins had created something new for the players: a personal chat similar to the private messages in Minecraft, except without the /msg command which made things a little tedious. You were especially grateful for this new function, which you used plenty of times when you weren't busy building.

Hey Foolish, what's up? You put in the personal chat for Foolish Gamers, his profile picture of him in his shark hoodie and doing a silly face in his selfie. This always made you giggle and actually made you feel a little better when you were feeling down, especially since you all liked to joke about Foolish being a comic relief during all of these hard and angsty times.

Nothing much, just hanging out with Leo rn He typed, an adorable little peace sign emoji following after. An image of Leo with a poppy doing a little dance came on, which you immediately reacted with a little red heart for Leonarda exclusively.

She actually misses seeing you around He texted. Asking when you gonna be able to come see her again

Tell her I said I'm sorry that I can't like, come over cause of how busy I am with my house You replied, with a little sad face emoji with the little teardrop. I do miss seeing all the eggs, Leonarda especially

Cucurucho's usual "Good morning" made you look up from your PMG at the white bear, who gestured to two pieces of paper it slid across the table to you. Curiously, you tilted your head at it then looked down at the paper, and what you saw made your eyes widen.

A little ping made you look back onto the open window, with a message from Foolish saying You still there bud? with the little sad face with puppy eyes. You giggled for a second, then replied with Yeah, but I gotta go now though. On the next message you said Sorry bud Then a little wave emoji, brown for your skin color from your Asian heritage. Bye you texted, putting away the chat window without waiting for an answer. You glanced back at the paper on the table in front of you, your heart dropping once again as you picked it up with the utmost delicacy.

The papers were but pieces of a contract, written down with Cucurucho's iconic feather pen. Despite being written with a feather quill pen, it was very neatly in the Courier New font, as if it were written on a computer and printed. The Federation's logo was in the upper-left corner, as it always were in the bear's notebook (you noticed this logo a while after it would ask you to answer its surveys). You didn't know the Federation was now starting to print contracts for the residents, which was making you nervous, frightened even. Quietly you opted to ask Cucurucho when they had started writing these for the residents, albeit it only answered with an ominous "I don't know. Maybe". With a frown, you began to read through the paper's contents, remembering to read through the fine lines so as not to miss anything majorly important. The contract read as follows:

The rest of the paper read about an agreement to keep everything about tonight confidential: the meeting, the agreement, every single little detail. Not a word was to be uttered to anyone about what had occurred in this little cottage in the woods, on top of the hill above the village. You wondered how Cucurucho had been able to write this all down if it really wasn't an A.I. Perhaps it had had some help with its fellow members of the Federation, as it had been talking with them in a private chat window just a few minutes earlier.

Speaking of the Osito Bimbo—it was making you nervous; like, somewhat jittery in your seat as you tried not to let your heart pound so hard. It had been staring at you from its side of the table, never moving from its spot except for a few notably missing biscuits off the nearby plate. The cup was empty as well, which made you wonder if Cucurucho had been eating silently while you read as you had not heard a thing.

"So let me get this straight," you said, rubbing the side of your temple to get rid of a small headache and straighten your thoughts. "If I can fulfill the guidelines talked about in this contract, I can get back into the elections—back into the run for presidency right?"

"I don't know. Maybe."

"Mmhmm, right. So this is only effective until July 31 huh? That's plenty of time for such simple items, but I'm not asking for harder work."

Carefully you read the contract's fine lines over again at least three times before nodding and putting down the paper to face Cucurucho. Its black eyes stared back at you as if it were waiting for you to make a move first before it would, and you already knew what it was waiting for. To seal the deal and get you right to work.

You stood up, locking a firm gaze with the white bear as you held out your hand in agreement. This was it—the point of no return. "I've made my decision," you alluded. "I accept your offer, and I understand that there's no turning back from here. From here on out, it's a deal. I'll do my duties well and I'll make you proud."

Cucurucho stood up as well and took your hand in a rigid grip, the touch feeling cold despite the warm feel of the fingerless gloves. With a simple handshake and a quick signing, the deed was done, and the deal was sealed.

"I hope you enjoy the island."

"I will, thanks," you muttered as Cucurucho quietly left its seat, pushing back in the chair to the table. You figured it had other duties to attend to after this, so you knew it was time to bid goodbye for now—yet somehow you knew it would always be watching. Showing it the way out from the front door, you waved to it goodbye and good night as you tiredly stretched from the doorway. After it disappeared behind the trees below, you closed the door and went back to the dining room.

The papers still lay on the brown table, a stark contrast in the color scheme that was somehow pleasing to the eye. Your brows furrowed in worry as you picked it up, knowing there was no turning back now from this. You had to do it. For the island's sake, and your friends. Even if you had to explain a ton of things later down the line.

Deciding this needed to be secure, you sealed the document into a spare plastic bag and looked around for a good hiding spot. Your paranoia was making you worry about the thought that someone could come in here while you were gone and steal it out of pure curiosity, then your secret would be out and no one and nothing would be safe. It took you a while to find a secure location, but after that you figured you could rest easy. You pulled up the Settings window on your PMG, then logged off the QSMP for the day.

Back in the real world, you took off the VR helmet and shook the spare strands of hair out of your face. A quick stretch did you good, and then you opened your face cam to talk to your chat. You had been streaming on YouTube for atleast a few hours, and you needed some food and a quick nap; that sounded good enough. And the people in the chat definitely needed some of that too.

"Alright guys, I'd say this is a good time to end today's stream," you said to the camera, smiling for your viewers. You quickly read a few comments asking what was next for the lore, and you said there wasn't going to be too much major stuff except for what had just transpired, so they didn't have to expect much to happen except for stuff-gathering for the rest of the month if you could help it. Some joked that it was a bit like Jaiden's lore on the QSMP, and you couldn't help but agree that it was a bit similar in a way.

"Please note however that everything you have seen or will see in the QSMP is all heavily improvised roleplay, so please do not send any hate to the content creators for any action of theirs you find displeasing. Thank you, God bless, and have a great day."

From there, you ended your stream with your brief ending screen, then you stood up to prepare yourself for the rest of the day. Now out of role play mode, you couldn't wait to see what would await you in the QSMP the next day.

[kenyatta]

NOT LONG AFTER she started, Uber deactivated Barbosa’s account out of the blue. So she switched to renting one on Lyft from the same guy. Now she drove as “Shakira.” When the Lyft app prompted Barbosa to confirm her identity by scanning her license, she texted the guy she was renting from: What now? He sent back a photo of Shakira’s ID. Oh. She was real. He paid Shakira a fee each week. Driving without a license, under the table on a tourist visa, loaded Barbosa with stress. One night, Barbosa picked up a passenger at 2 am and he tried to kiss her. She had to fight him off and left him one star on the app; she didn’t want to risk calling the cops. Another time, she was pulled over for having her lights off. Barbosa froze as the officer strode up to her window, worried she might get her car towed and end up in jail, or even—who knows?—deported. She showed the cop her Brazilian driver’s license, and said she’d left her American one at home. He let her go. In WhatsApp groups, and while waiting for riders at Logan Airport, Barbosa chatted up other Brazilian drivers also renting accounts. They traded tips about driving without papers, the nuances of the fuzzy don’t-ask-don’t-tell status quo in a country that hasn’t passed comprehensive immigration reforms in more than three decades. Far from an ICE officer on every corner, she heard, if you kept your head down, didn’t drink and drive or pick fights, you could manage. [...] One of her customers left their wallet in her car. She followed the woman’s convoluted instructions to return it, driving to two far-flung locations over two hours. Miffed, at one point Barbosa opened the wallet. She looked at the woman’s license, blonde with blue eyes. Barbosa snapped a picture. She thought the woman might tip her or at least say “thank you” for having wasted two hours, unpaid, to do her a favor. Instead, the woman was rude and short, giving Barbosa the push she’d been looking for. “I said, yeah, now I’m going to use this.” Over the next few weeks, she would click through the driver onboarding process on both Uber and Lyft, reading over the steps to create her own account, mulling the risk. Finally, lying in bed on Christmas night, the first one she’d spent without her family, it was time: She opened her phone and scrolled to the blonde woman’s license. Barbosa uploaded the license to the Uber app. She used the woman’s name but her own insurance and registration. She entered her own iCloud email and phone number and set her own picture—brown hair, brown eyes—on the driver profile. She made up a Social Security number, submitted the application, and went to sleep. The next day, Uber approved the account. Like that, Barbosa was in business for herself.

[cinderthefallenmaiden]

RWBY Beyond Predictions: Vale

Spoiler warning: This post contains spoilers for V7-9 of RWBY and RWBY V9 Animatic as well as the two team CVFY Novels

Last we saw of Cinder was when she left the site of a destroyed Atlas/Mantle with Salem. At the time I thought the two of them were heading straight for Vacuo.

However, the RWBY V9 Animatic paints a different picture. According to Oobleck and Port who have recently fled Vale, Salem has set up shop in the vicinity of Vale and the city is gone. The usage of the word gone rather then destroyed is interesting to me. It paints the picture that while presumably waiting for Tyrian to prepare Vacuo for their arrival and locate the Summer Maiden, Salem and presumably Cinder attended to other matters in Vale.

Why are Salem and Cinder in Vale?

I think It is a safe assumption that they returned to Vale at the very least to search for the allusive Crown relic. Another possible reason is because the situation in Vale had changed. Salem has a mysterious informant in the area of Beacon who may have caught wind of something that Cinder and Salem needed to investigate on their own.

Who will be our POV Character?

This is a bit of a toss up between Cinder and Salem for me. It would be insightful to get into Cinder's head now that she has for want of a better word exercised the demons of her past. On the other hand so much of Salem's goals are still shrouded in mystery. We think she wants to end the world but are Ozpin and Tyrian reliable narrators?

The case for why both Ozpin and Tyrian are unreliable narrators for understanding Salem's endgame

Tyrian:

1.) Tyrian reveres Salem as a kind of death goddess to be worshiped and is probably working under an assumption that supports that

2.) If Cinder is the only one who knows the truth about Salem's true aims, I find it kind of hard to believe she would consider Team Remnant's attempts to stop the end of the world as misguided

Ozpin:

1.) Ozpin hasn't had a heart-to-heart with Salem since before the messy "divorce" and that was before the Great War so quite possibly well over 80 prior to V1.

2.) Due to a combination of the GOL's words and his own experiences Ozpin can only see the very worst in Salem so assuming her goal is the end of the world is kinda a given at this point.

3.) It's quite possible that Ozpin views Salem wanting to end the world as a foil to his own desires of stopping Salem and being granted eternal rest by the Gods.

Why not Tai or Glynda?

I think the writers have planted the seed that Glynda is MIA but are in no real hurry to confirm what happened to her. As for Tai I think he is another end game character who's involvement is going to be kept close to the chest.

Is the Crown in Vale?

I highly doubt it. However, for the sake of playing devils advocate lets say it is in Vale what would that accomplish for the story? Well other then shortening the series by one to three volumes not much comes to mind. Sure, this could make it so Vacuo is the final arc but why make a mad dash to to wrap up what remains of the story in just one to two volumes?

Past RWBY Beyond Perdiction Links

[christa-tomlinson-romance-author]

To the Victor

A GhostSoap fic Part 1

Pre-relationship - Omegaverse - NSFW in later parts - mentions of omega trafficking - Dubcon in later parts

“Soap, how copy?”

Silence.

“How long has it been since he stopped answering?” Ghost asked.

The barest hint of worry flashed in Price’s steady blue gaze before he answered.

“An hour and ten minutes. We’ve sent our contact in to recon.”

They were there to break up an omega trafficking ring. But their intel was thin, the headquarters was in a building with hundreds of innocent civilians. The ring was headquartered underground, but they didn’t know where the access spots were. They also didn’t know where the omegas were kept and didn’t want to risk hurting them in a fire fight. Lastly, they needed to capture the leader to make sure the ring didn’t simply reform in a new location. Basically, they were stumbling around with zero visuals on this mission.

Soap had volunteered to go in – gather as much info as possible and report back. But something had gone wrong.

Comms crackled to life before a hushed voice started speaking.

“This is Alfred. Base, do you copy?”

“We do.”

“I have a visual on Soap. He’s alive.”

Upon hearing that, Ghost’s fingers flexed once with relief. But the tension didn’t leave his shoulders. Soap was alive, but he wasn’t safe. He hadn’t liked the plan with Soap going in where he couldn’t be there as overwatch and no one had eyes on him. But Soap had been adamant and Price had made the final call of approval.

“He’s about to be sold off,” their contact said.

Price’s eyebrows shot up, disappearing beneath his hat.

“Say again?”

“Have visual confirmation on Soap. He is alive. They’re preparing to sell him.”

They couldn’t allow that to happen. With the warren of tunnels beneath the building, whoever bought Soap could smuggle him out in any one of multiple directions. If that happened, they might lose him for good.

“I’m going in.”

“Ghost, we don’t have enough intel for an infiltration,” Price said with frustration clear in his voice.

“We have money, right?”

“Yes.”

They’d been given a suitcase full of cash to use as a possible way to gain entry.

“Then I’ll go in, buy Soap, and get him out of there.”

“I was going to have Peterson do that. He’s more suited to subterfuge.”

Ghost gave the captain a hard look. He wasn’t trusting anyone outside the 141 with Soap’s safe return. Soap wasn’t his omega, but as an alpha and a lieutenant, he couldn’t help but feel that the young sergeant was his to protect.

“Fine. But you can’t go in armed.”

Ghost started unstrapping and unbuckling his armor, weapons belts, and thigh harness. “Wasn’t planning to.”

After he’d dumped all of his gear, Price gave him a knowing look.

“All of it.”

Ghost clenched his jaw. But he pulled out the three knives he had hidden on his body. “There. That’s it.”

Once he put the knives down on the table, someone handed him a leather pouch. Ghost looked inside to see a fat stack of bills.

“That’s two hundred thousand,” the operative said. “Hopefully his price won’t go higher than that.”

To look less military, Ghost pulled his uniform shirt over his head, leaving him in the tight, short-sleeved black tee he wore beneath and his black tactical pants. He secured the leather pouch to his belt.

“Get in, get Soap, and get out. We’ll worry about infiltration after.”

“Roger.”

He had to take off his usual comms. The same operative who’d given him the cash passed him a watch.

“Use this for communications. There’s a mic here.” He tapped the bottom of the watch. “Comms are on. Hit this button to turn them off.”

Ghost nodded and turned to go but Price called out to him.

“Simon?”

Ghost turned back to his captain. “Yeah?” he asked impatiently.

“You’ll have to take that off too,” Price said with a nod toward Ghost’s head.

End Pt 1

Pt 2 - Pt 3 - Pt 4

[ionlymadethissoicouldleaveanask]

Fun

2142 Hours, April 3, 2544 (Military Calendar) /

Planet Miridem, Rampart System

The ground shook beneath Frederic-104’s feet as he ran. A Covenant Wraith rumbled nearby, its powerful repulsor lifts shaking the ground and shattering glass as it traversed the ruined city streets. His visor was cracked. There was a small hole in the bottom right side letting the acrid smell of soot and ash pour into his typically sealed armor. It was, against odds, a refreshing change from the sterility of a vacuum-tight climate-controlled armor system.

The radio crackled twice, indicating a faulty connection. It was likely that they didn’t have many satellites left in orbit to transmit their frequencies at this stage of the battle. John-117’s voice finally managed to force its way through the white noise.

‘Blue Two, status?’

The team leader’s voice was tight. Stressed. Fred couldn’t blame him. Things were not going well on the ground. Blue Team, made up of John, Fred, and Kelly, were trying to rendezvous with Yellow Team in order to exfiltrate Doctor Halsey. So far they’d managed to contact Arthur and Solomon, but they’d had no word from Sheila yet. Sheila, who was personally escorting the doctor.

“Southeast sector is clear,” Fred reported. “Blue Three reported she needed some help with an armor group nearby, and I’m almost to her location now.” He rammed a new magazine into his BR55, consulting his motion tracker to confirm that he was no more than a few seconds’ run from Kelly’s position.

‘Solid copy, Blue Two. Good hunting.’

Fred didn’t bother with an answer. He was already coming up on Kelly’s position, and was practically within spitting distance from the enemy column. Two red dots appeared on his motion tracker a fraction of a second before his eye caught the enemies they represented. A pair of grunts, seemingly separated from their unit, trundling down the shattered city sidewalk. They were directly between him and Kelly. A single squeak on their comms would send their nearby fellows scurrying their direction, making their elimination more tedious and time consuming.

So, he’d just have to make sure that they didn’t squeak.

In two seconds Fred was upon them. He shattered the first Grunt’s skull with a powerful strike from his left first, while simultaneously removing his combat knife from its sheath on his chest and plunging it through the second Grunt’s throat with his right hand. Then he was off sprinting again before either of them hit the ground.

“That was quite the show,” Kelly remarked ruefully as he slid into cover beside her. “You get extra points for the presentation.”

Fred said nothing in response, but a grin quirked the corners of his mouth. “What are we looking at?”

“Full armor compliment. One Wraith, two Elites, a handful of Jackals and a dozen Grunts. What’s your recommendation?”

Fred answered without a moment’s hesitation, having expected the question. “Pick out a rooftop and take down the Elites, then pick our way down the hierarchy. That Wraith isn’t going to be able to turn sharp enough to pose a threat, and all it will take is a couple of grenades after we’re through with the ground forces.”

Kelly nodded. “Right, that’s probably how we should do it.” She then turned her head to one side and tilted it on an angle, giving him the same side-eye she did whenever she wanted to manipulate him into doing something unwise. “But how do you want to do it?” she asked.

At that, Fred did falter. He considered her question for a few seconds in silence, then answered, “Split up, and attack them on foot from either end of the column. Toss a couple of grenades for a distraction, then take them down individually in hand-to-hand.” He looked up and flashed her a grin despite knowing she wouldn’t be able to see it behind his visor. “Get a little exercise in.”

Kelly laughed. “I knew you were going to say that,” she said, bumping his shoulder with her own. Then she reached into the rubble behind her. “I got you something.”

“I’m not sure this is the-” Fred began, but she cut him off with one raised finger.

“You’ll love it, I promise,” she said. Then she took his right hand and fit something over top of his gauntlet. It was a piece of Covenant armor, taken from an Elite if the three-fingered glove attached to the armor were anything to go by.

Fred studied the piece of alien metal, its color glowing over top of his own muted blue armor. “What am I looking at here, Rabbit?” he asked skeptically.

“Make a fist,” the other Spartan replied in lieu of an answer to his question.

Curiosity continuing to mount, Fred did as he was told. When he formed a fist, he felt some sort of button press beneath his thumb, and an energy blade the length of his forearm emitted from the alien device. A broad grin spread across Fred’s face, and he took a couple of experimental swipes with it through the air.

“It’s just my color,” Fred said with a smirk in Kelly’s direction.

Then, his companion produced a pair of grenades. “Let’s do this one the fun way,” she said, the grin on her face evident in her voice. Fred looked from the grenades to the energy blade, then flashed his eyes at the mission timer. They were set to rendezvous with Yellow Team in ten minutes.

They had time.

“I don’t deserve you, Rabbit.” 

“You’re right,” Kelly answered. ”But I like you anyway.” She lifted the first two fingers of her left hand and made a swiping motion across the bottom of his helmet, pantomiming a smile. Then she pressed those same fingers to her own visor directly over her mouth.

“Alright, Petty Officer,” Fred grunted, rising to his feet and trying to ignore the blush warming his cheeks. He took one of Kelly’s grenades and fixed it to his belt. “Let’s go have some fun.”