#i wanna bite his arms like a piranha

[ruebetweenthestars]

[tokillamockingbird427]

List of reasons Merrick thinks Hesh is a werewolf

1- Very very hairy. Clogs shower drains faster than he disarms bombs. 2- Bottomless pit for a stomach 3- Can talk to him just like you do Riley and Hesh won't notice or won't care 4- Glutton for any kind of verbal praise/affirmation. Bonus points if it's Elias or Logan telling him he's doing a good job at whatever he's up to 5- Sniffs??? Everything??? 6- Has an acute sense of smell to go along with the "sniffing things" habit. (He told me, quite guiltily, that he'd sniffed out my poptart stash. I would have been angry, if I weren't so impressed.) 7- Constantly getting his nails clipped, despite how much he seems to dislike it. (I have seen him run/hide from Logan at the mention of a manicure. He did not escape.) 8- Naps everywhere. I tripped over him in the goddamn hallway once. He said the floor looked comfortable and he didn't have the strength to get into bed. (He was outside his own room.) 9- Logan literally uses whistle/click commands on him. (Ex: The one they use to get Riley to disengage someone works on David. As does the retrieval/"come here" one. It's useful.) 10- Food motivated to the max. Hesh will kill a man (outside an op) for a french fry. (I admit I have used this to lighten my paper work load... it's just not my forte, but David is diligent.) 11- Actual puppy dog eyes. 12- Can and will get confused by the most simple camouflaging techniques. (I've seen Logan hide under a blanket from him. He only came out when Hesh started to get distressed.) 13- Elias's orders supersede anything else, even common sense. (Given I have a grasp on actual pack structure and not that Alpha/Beta bullshit, I understand this one: Parents lead. Elias is dad. Ergo, he's in charge.) 14- Offering/inviting him on a walk is the most exciting thing to him ever. I did it once, to understand his hype (wondering what he'd get up to on a walk) and he just enjoyed the scenery and occasionally talked at me. (Did chase a butterfly for 5ish minutes. So riveting.) 15- Not quite nocturnal, but he does sleepwalk. 16- Will bite when overstimulated, mostly when he's playing with Riley+Logan. (Has happened during sparing. I need whoever reads this to understand how confusing it is to be practicing hand to hand and then realize a grown man is latching onto your arm like a fucking piranha.) 17- Does the "mindless leg kicking" thing when he's asleep/dreaming. Also whines and growls. 18- Extra note, he just whines a lot in general. And not tone-wise "I don't wanna!" like a kid, but the literal noise. (I got after him for playing too rough with Keegan once, and he sat there whining and looking sad until I let him go.) 19- Speaking of Keegan, I'd say Hesh is obsessed with him if I didn't know better and understand that he's just treating him like he does Logan. Mother henning. (I'm not sure how to approach Keegan about him being adopted by a werewolf/into a pack.)

[toadstool32]

AT THE BEACH

i made a fanfic for my self insert here u can read it on ao3 or just click the read more idont care

WELCOME TO THE ANNUAL “DO YOU KNOW YOUR PARTNER BETTER THAN YOUR BROTHER” QUIZ! WHERE *YOU* THE PLAYER, COMPETE AGAINST YOUR BROTHERS TO SEE WHO KNOWS YOUR PARTNER BETTER! ARE YOU READY???

Karamatsu, floating in the sea with the help of a surfboard says “what do you mean partner” hes swaying confusedly with the sweet, sweet rhythm of the waves.

“LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT OUR SIGNIFICANT OTHER OF THE DAY, HOW ARE YOU TODAY DARI-CHAN?”.

Darling doggy paddles near the brothers and then floats in a lazy circle with the help of their donut float “Hm? Oh, I'm happy you guys invited me to the beach today! it's so fun hanging out with everyone, thanks for asking totty!”.

“Let's hang out later, yeah?” Todomatsu says in a normal voice while holding the toy microphone in his hands, “AND NOW LET'S LOOK AT THE BROTHER COMPETING TODAY! OSOMATSU NII-SAN INTRODUCE YOURSELF”.

Osomatsu comes up from the water gasping for air “BWAH! augh, Todomatsu you couldn't have introduced me first, could you? aah well, im Osomatsu! oldest of the bunch and besties with Karamatsu's boyfriend, pleased to be heeereee”.

“Eh” says karamatsu.

“Waa! Osochan that's so cool could you have stayed longer down there?” darling says.

“I definitely could! Do you wanna see?” says Osomatsu.

“SHUT UP, WE WILL START THE GAME! FIRST QUESTION PLEASE!”

Ichimatsu and Choromatsu then come up from the water holding up an erasable board, they hold it up and in it it's written "FOOD”.

“There! Now the first question in the quiz ‘DO YOU KNOW YOUR PARTNER BETTER THAN YOUR BROTHER’ is: what's their favorite food?”.

Jyushimatsu comes in splashing water everywhere while carrying a hourglass on his head that's counting down.

“You have one minute to respond!”

“Heh, My  darling doesn't like eating because they have stomach issues so they don't have the luxury of having a favorite food!” karamatsu says confidently.

“That 's true!” darling says while splashing water.

“Osomatsu nii-san what's your answer?”.

“Popcorn” he says smugly.

“That's truer!” darling says excitedly

“That's a point for osomatsu nii-san! and minus one for Karamatsu nii-san”.

“Huh, wa-waawa-wait a second await a secooooonnnd!!” 

A loud buzzer sounds and karamatsu gets swallowed by the water. A few seconds later he resurfaces covered in piranha bites .

“Oi what the hell is your problem!” karamatsu screams 

“Dont complain to the game master” todomatsu says.

“Like hell i will !! ” Karamatsu complains.

“Get him again”.

“Wait no” and he goes under once again.

“Bitey, bitey!” Jyushimatsu says next to darling while karamatsu gets rid of one fish that was stuck to his ear.

“Next question! Jyushimatsu it's your turn!” .

“Hai hai!, darling can you hold this for me” he says while handing over to darling the hourglass “do your best~” darling says now holding the thing on their arms.

“Im Jyushimatsu! i'm the fifth! darling and i play in the park sometimes!”.

“Wait, am I competing against all of yo-” Karamatsu starts.

”NEXT QUESTION! IS!: what is their favorite pastime?” Todomatsu continues with the game show host routine.

“Darling likes to draw!” karamatsu says first and a buzzer-like sound plays after. 

“Darling likes to stare at the ceiling while laying on the floor for hours!” A bell chime sounds indicating that jyuushimatsu gets it right.

“wait- '' karamatsu starts being circled by sharks  and then goes under the water causing a big splash while Jyushimatsu celebrates “yay yay! i got it right! did you see darling?” “i saw!” darling and Jyushimatsu start high fiving and yaaay-ing at each other. When karamatsu comes back up he's bleeding in places and holding on to the surfboard tightly “oi darling! you're an artist you LOVE to draw dont you?”.

Darling stops high fiving Jyushimatsu and looks at karamatsu. “Aah, well it's always nice to take breaks and clear your mind you know…” Jyushimatsu nods and Ichimatsu whispers to choromatsu “...doesn't that just mean he likes to laze around more?”.

“MAY THE NEXT BROTHER PLEASE SWIM BACK HERE” Todomatsu reminds everyone,

“Ah its your turn Ichimatsu” Choromatsu says to Ichimatsu. “Im going im going“

“i'll help you with the board Choromatsu” Osomatsu says.

“Introduce yourself please~”

“What a pain, we all already know each other here, im Ichimatsu, fourth brother…” he looks directly at where darling is floating lazily in circles “blink twice if you need help” he say.

“What” says Darling.

Todomatsu intervenes before things derail again “AND THE NEXT QUESTION IS: HOPES AND DREAMS!: what are their dreams for the future?”.

Everyone oos and aawws and karamatsu sweats nervously, 

“Karamatsu nii-san your answer?”

“Heh” Karamatsu starts “My darling enjoys the idea that in the future she could inspire others with her art!” He says this in a very shining way. There are sparkles in his eyes. It's kinda annoying.

 “Aa what the hell that's so cute…” Osomatsus says while you can hear his ribs breaking and with blood dripping down his mouth. Darling puts their hands on their face to cover a barely there blush.

Ichimatsu raises his hand to answer and breaks the mood a bit “Actually darling wants to be a cat that lives with a pretty older woman who will take care of him and feed him 3 times a day”.

Everyone looks back at Darling who's now fully covering their face and making embarrassed sounds.

“Uh, that's minus one point for Karamatsu nii-san…” 

A buzzer sounds but nothing happens, karamatsu just drowns himself for a bit and then resurfaces, on the way back to his brothers Ichimatsu high fives darling.

“Well, okay, the next one is an easy one for you Karamatsu nii-san, Choromatsu nii-san could you come up front?”.

“Hey who says I'm the one who will get it wrong here?!” Choromatsu says while swimming closer. “I know darling as much as any of our brothers” 

“Sure sure, ok so the theme for the question is!” Osomatsu and Ichimatsu hold up the board and show off the word MUSIC written there with a doodle of a cat that Osomatsu added from when he was playing with it earlier “what's their favorite kind of music to listen to? Karamatsu nii- san whats your answer”.

“Music that gets my dick hard” he says in a deadpan voice.

“EH? what kind of answer is that?” Choromatsu says, “That's an awful answer, Darling likes pop stuff like the kind of music that nyaa-chan sings!” and while thinking of Hashimoto Nyaa Choromatsu starts fangirling on the spot and todomatsus face sours, the buzzer sounds and mid fangirl sesh Choromatsu goes under the water.

“And that's one point for karamatsu nii- san” karamatsu does a pose and his sunglasses shine in the sun “and minus one point for us brothers, oi ya hear that chorofappynsky the first? you're lowering our score!” “yeah!” “boooooo” “lets kill him”.

“Darling, did you hear that! i got a point!” karamatsu waves towards Darling who has floated a bit away from the movement of the waves that the brothers are making “I saw! you can win this i believe in you!!” They are actually so cute together it makes me sick to write.

When choromatsu comes back up for air he's all like “HEY don't get excited for a single point!! and you!” he says pointing at Darling ”what kinda answer is ‘music that gets my dick hard’ that doesn't make any sense!!” Darling looks confused for a bit and then they explain.

“Well isn't Hashimoto Nyaas music your favorite? and it gets your dick hard so then *i* also have music that gets me hard” 

Karamatsu swims towards Darling and claps them in the back making Darling lose grip of the hourglass they were holding and sink into the water”aw man” they say “yeah! everyone has music that calls to our souls!” Karamatsu  says “and our dicks” adds Darling.

“You guys SO deserve each other” says Choromatsu in a way that doesn't make it sound like a compliment

RIght as choromatsu turns to go away, Darling whispers to karamatsu “But really we all know no one goes to a Nyaa concert for the music…”.

“HEY-”

“Ok everyone shut up it's my turn, Ichimatsu nii-san can you take over for the last question? thank you~” Todomatsu then swims into position while everyone gets rearranged.

“uh ok so the next theme for the question is…” Osomatsu and Jyushimatsu now hold up the board and it now says GRADES “...why would he even know that, what, anyway the next question is: how many classes did they fail back in  highschool? who even came up with these questions…”

“Kyaa that's so embarrassing! I don't even remember any of what happened back then!”

“Right then, shittymatsu what's your answer”.

“Uhh, none!” buzzer sound “One!” buzzer sound “THREE??” buzzer sound wait wait wait hang on how am i supposed to know this'' and down the water he goes.

“Todomatsu, what's your answer”.

“Hang on ummm” he types in something on his phone and then answers ”One every semester, so six total”.

“i'm not gonna ask how you got that one correct”

“Tehee!”

Darling covers their face in shame “ aaa that's so embarrassing….!!”

The brothers minus Karamatsu celebrate the win on the game and then a big wave comes on and drowns everyonewe

[monalisamartian]

Mona Vs Donnie in the dojo

Donnie kept his distance from the alien the tallest turtle keeping her at a bo staffs length away as they circled eachother.

Donnie: why do *I* have to fight Mona again?

Leo: because Raph dosnt wanna get his ass kicked again. 😏

Raph: not true...I let her win 😤

Mona was snapping her teeth at him like a piranha, the multiple rows of needle like teeth of her alien form always made Donnie cringe.

Donnie dodged as she lept at him with a scream as she almost sank her teeth into his arm

Donnie: can I add a new rule...no biting

Raph: it ain't that bad she don't bite that hard 🤷

Mikey: ewww I know you two where getting nasty in here 🤭

Raph slapped Mikey with a grunt.

Raph: not like that numnuts

[delcakoo]

AAAHEIAHEUWGWJASOFTHOURSS

could i request spa night/putting face masks on riki?

i love how all the reqs are won and niki <\3 SPA NIGHT LETS GOO ‼️

9:36PM — “stay still, riki.”

resembling a immature toddler, your boyfriend moves out of the way as soon as you bring the brush coated with thick mask closer to his face.

unfortunately, he looks adorable sitting criss cross on your bed; fluffy hair pushed back with a cat headband and forehead covered in the mask’s green substance. riki’s really been trying his best to let you doll him up how you wanted, but his patience is equivalent to one of a dog getting a treat, flinching and giggling everytime the cold paint meets his delicate skin.

“it’s ticklish!” he squeals dramatically, gummy smile showing as he moves further away. you begin to giggle along with him, pushing him back on the bed and straddling his lap so he can no longer escape. he pouts at your new way of restraining him, arms hanging lifelessly in defeat. “y/nnnn,” he drags out, “i don’t wanna put anymore green shit on my face. it’s already perfect as it is.”

well, you couldn’t deny that.

however, you were also feeling determined. “too bad. i already put it on your forehead, so if we don’t hurry it’s going to dry and you’re going to look ridiculous.”

with that, you continue sitting on top of the hyper boy, carefully avoiding his eyes and lips as you paint his face a buttery green. riki’s pouting the whole time, reaching up to try and bite the brush like a piranha every so often. you had to admit that he looked ethereal even with his face green and stupid cat ears atop his head, so pretty with skin soft to the touch.

after a few more minutes of painting, it got more and more peaceful, only the sounds of the both of you breathing softly resonating around the bedroom.

you smile once riki’s face is entirely painted, looking down at your final creation. “alright, all do—oof!” before you can even put down the brush, riki’s grabbed your waist and thrown you back onto the bed, straddling you himself with a mischievous grin. “yah, what’re you doing?!” you complain from below him.

he snickers evilly as you pathetically try to push him off, grabbing the brush from your hand. “now it’s your turn to suffer,” he declares.

you pause, flabbergasted at the turn of events, “wh— if it was so easy to throw me off all along, why did you let me continue?”

he shrugs, “you looked cute when you thought you could pin me down.” you frown at that, watching as he dips the brush into the face mask’s paint. “now stay still, y/n.” he mocks your voice from earlier, lowering the paint brush to your face with another stupid, smug smile.

y/n - 0 riki - 1 💔😞

[aggimaginary]

The Bad Guys (my version) - The Bad Guys Going Good (chapter 4)

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A video camera from the Channel 6 Action News team was seen recording the outside of the Museum of Fine Arts, where the police were escorting the now handcuffed Bad guys towards the police van, with the team feeling completely heartbroken that they got busted after so many heists and crimes that they had gotten away with.

Tiffany was on the scene, announcing into her microphone, "The Bad Guys go bust! The nefarious sixsome has finally been captured, and I, Tiffany Fluffit, am first on the scene!"

As the chief was escorting the handcuffed Wolf towards the van, she seemed to be in shock that she had finally caught them, still grasping the emotions behind how she was feeling about this long awaiting moment, and commented, "Wow. You know, I-I just realized that I have devoted my entire adult life to putting you in jail. You are my purpose. Without you, who am I?"

When Wolf thought that the chief of police was gonna get so emotionally sappy, he thought wrong, as the Chief smacked him on the back, "Ah, I'm just kidding! This is the best moment of my life! It's the end of the Bad Guys!"

Wolf, however, was panicking, especially when he witnessed his friends getting dragged into the police van, despite the urge, and attempt, to resist.

Shark was the first to be pushed into the van, and cried, "No," but to no avail as he was pushed inside by the officers that brought him out.

Piranha was more resistant, struggling and squirming in the officers' arms as he shouted angrily, "Get your hands off of me," He hoped he could break free from their grip, but was hopelessly tossed inside.

Tarantula was stuck in a square glass container, since she was too small to be handcuffed, but it didn't contain her sass and anger as she declared, "Ooh, you're begging for a biting right now!"

Hornet was kept in a jar, since he was also too small to be handcuffed. He was fluttering in panic around the jar, trying to break free, as he has claustrophobia. This wasn't the first time he was captured and kept in a jar, "No, no, I don't wanna go back to jail again! I don't do jars too!"

While an officer dragged the handcuffed Snake inside, he turned his head and shouted towards his best buddy, "Wolf!" He hoped Wolf would be able to find some way to get them out.

Wolf couldn't help but feel saddened that this was it; they were all gonna be heading off to jail. Curse his tail for wagging when it did at possibly the worst moment that it could've happened. Why, just why did it have to wag?! Why was it that…Marmalade's words just…got to him?

Speaking of Professor Marmalade, Wolf turned his head and looked back at where a group of reporters were talking to the guinea pig, who was holding his Golden Dolphin Trophy, and Governor Foxington, who was trying to gain order from the reporters that were showering them with questions.

Suddenly, an idea formed into Wolf's head, as he smiled, thinking that he just might've found a way out of this.

Suddenly, he slipped right under the chief's hand and walked towards Diane and Marmalade, much to the shock of the gasping crowd, "Excuse me. Sorry to interrupt, I just wanted to congratulate the governor here. I got to say, you really got us pegged. We're just a deep well of anger and self-loathing-,"

Diane wasn't feeling amused, and commented, "Denial."

Wolf answered, trying to go all Clooney-like, "Sure. That, too."

"Narcissism," added the governor.

"Yeah, Yeah," answered Wolf.

"Emotional emptiness," added Diane.

"So we're on the same page," replied Wolf, with a George Clooney smile.

In the police van, Shark, Snake, Tarantula, Hornet, and Piranha, who was hung to the van's ceiling in handcuffs, were watching what Wolf was doing in utter confusion.

Shark was the first one to have the courage to ask, "What is he doing?"

While inside the jar, Hornet suddenly shrunk. He was hoping Wolf wasn't doing something he might expect.

Meanwhile, Wolf continued with, while pretending to look sad, "Sadly, we were never given a chance to be anything more than second-rate criminals."

Diane didn't seem to be buying this "sob story monologue" Wolf was displaying, but what happened next changed everything.

Wolf then started, "If only there was someone who could help the flower of goodness inside us blossom. Some icon of love and forgiveness, like, uh, I don't know, Mother Teresa."

The sound of "Mother Teresa" got Marmalade surprised, as he suddenly felt something… click. Perhaps maybe…

While the guinea pig was in thought, Wolf continued to ramble on, "Best thing is to just throw us in jail for the rest of our hopeless lives."

The police chief was more than happy to act on the last part of Wolf's speech, "Yeah, that's the plan," She picked up Wolf and was set to toss him into the van.

Wolf tried to fight back, using his feet to push himself up from the doorway, before the chief got a better hold on Wolf, and was just about to toss him into the police van.

Suddenly, Marmalade shouted, "Wait!"

That got the chief to stop, and Wolf, who flashed a smug smile of victory, feeling lucky, while he remained being grabbed/hung up by the police chief.

Chief Luggins was very confused, "Uh, beg… beg pardon?"

Marmalade then walked down the steps while holding his trophy, "Mr. Wolf may be a savage beast, basically walking garbage," He then halted his speech and said to Wolf, "Sorry, I'm making a point."

Wolf didn't feel offended one bit, "Do what you need to do, pal."

Marmalade smiled and then continued while putting down his trophy, "But how can we say they're hopeless if they've never been given a chance?" The guinea pig then turned around and faced Diane, "What if… what if we tried a little experiment, Diane?"

Diane listened closely as Marmalade explained, "As you know, my Gala for Goodness, the 'hashtag charity event of the year,' is coming up. If I can prove to everyone at that gala that the Bad Guys have changed, will you set them free and give them a clean start?"

The crowd was very surprised to hear this idea while the police chief was horrified to hear this. Our of shock, she dropped Wolf and commented, "What? Professor Marmalade! No, no, no, no, no, don't you see what he's doing?! He's playing you!"

Wolf got back up onto his feet while Marmalade then mentioned, "But it was my idea."

Wolf smiled and stated, to the police chief's face, "It was his idea."

Chief Luggins, however, was still deadset on arresting the Bad Guys as she brought up frantically, "But only because you made him have it! Madam Governor, you can't just let them go."

Diane knew that the chief made a good point, then turned to Marmalade, "Professor, I'm not about to put the safety of the city on the line for an experiment."

Wolf then saw the perfect opportunity to dish some "wise words" at the governor, "Excuse me, Madam Governor. I seem to remember that a wise person once said, 'Even trash can be recycled into something beautiful.'"

Diane, as much as she wants to be stunned that Wolf used HER OWN WORDS, to make a solid point, couldn't help but chuckle softly, knowing that Wolf was right, in a way.

So, she straightened up and then answered, "Okay. I'm game. But only because it's you, Professor."

Marmalade smiled giddily, excited to try the "experiment" out, Wolf was happy/relieved that he and his team wasn't going to be going to jail, and the chief of police was shocked out of disappointment that she wasn't gonna get to send the Bad Guys, whom she's been after her whole life, to jail, "No!"

Diane then picked up the Golden Dolphin, "We'll hold on to the Dolphin until the gala, just to remove any unnecessary temptation."

Marmalade was more than willing to let Diane take it, "Of course. Good thinking. That's why you're governor."

Marmalade then announced, "Now that everyone's happy…"

The chief of police crossed her arms and grumbled, "Not happy."

Marmalade continued, "…I, Rupert Marmalade the Fourth, will turn the Bad Guys into…the Good Guys!

The crowd all gasped in shock at what they heard, as the cameras flashed to record this moment.

Wolf turned his head at the fourth wall and winked, while the rest of the Bad Guys, in the police van, were completely stunned about what they just heard.

Wolf was able to pick the handcuffs off his hands and twirled them in his finger, "I think these belong to you," he gave them to the chief of police.

Chief Luggins, startled that Wolf EASILY got out of her handcuffs, "Hey!" She exclaimed in frustration as she watched Wolf enter the police van and took his seat.

However, just before the door closed, Diane, holding the Golden Dolphin, commented to Wolf, "Not everyone gets a second chance. Make the most of it, 'Mr. Poodleton.'"

Wolf nodded and did a "hat tip" salute to Diane, before closing the doors behind him. The police engine roared as it soon started to drive away, with the police cars following it while the sirens flashed and wailed.

In the police van, Wolf was chuckling, knowing his plan was going smoothly.

The rest of the Bad Guys, however, were still confused about what was going on.

Snake asked, "Wolf? What are you doing?"

Wolf, pretending to be confused, asked, "What?"

The rest of the team added, "Yeah!"

Wolf smiled and answered, "Oh, that. I-I-I'm sorry. I thought it was, uh, obvious. We're gonna go good!"

Only Snake, Shark, Piranha and Tarantula just became even more confused while Hornet was completely shocked and scared with his eyes widened in fear by what Wolf had just said.

Tarantula commented, "Uh, you totally lost me."

Hornet felt suffocating, not because of the close spaces of the jar, but he tried to calm down and pretended to be fine, "Um… yeah, I don't get it this time."

Piranha, thinking that Wolf had gone crazy, declared, "I told him to stop drinking out of the toilet!"

Shark, thinking Wolf had got a head injury and wasn't thinking straight, asked in concern, "Hey, did you get hit on the head?"

Wolf started to answer, "What? No, I didn't get hit on the head-,"

Shark then started to tell the team a story while spinning his right hand in a circle, "My cousin got hit on the head with an anchor, and after that, he only swam in a circle."

Wolf then started to clarify things, "No, no, g-guys, guys, you're not following me. We're gonna pretend to go good. Just a few days with Marmalade, and then we roll into the gala as Good Guys, and roll out scot-free with…"

The rest of the team realized what Wolf's plan was, replying together in unison, "The Golden Dolphin!"

Wolf smiled, "You got it. Since when do we not finish a job? The Bad Guys become the Good Guys so we can stay the Bad Guys. You know what I'm saying?"

The 5 Bad Guys started to cackle and laugh, realizing how genius the plan sounded. But Hornet just went along with it, but he wasn't so serious. He started to feel nervous about this plan. What if they will become good for real? What if it will happen again like the last time Hornet experienced all this good and stuff? No one even dared to notice how worried the little hornet was.

Snake happily commented while placing his fake arm on Wolf's shoulder, "Bad Guys acting good? It's the ultimate Bad Guy thing; It's fantastic!" He brought Wolf's head to his head while commenting to his best friend, "Wolf, you're a genius!"

The Bad guys continued to cackle and laugh, excited about putting this brilliant plan into action, and Hornet just made a small smile, hoping Wolf was sticking to his plan of pretending to be good, because Hornet doesn't want to go through that again.

Wolf then mentioned, "It's gonna be, like, the most relaxing con ever, like a vacation."

Piranha then got an idea, "Oh, oh! A con-cation!"

The Bad guys all laughed from the genius of how awesome this was gonna be, and how funny the pun was.

"Ooh! My parents met on a con-cation!" Shark said

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Well, I hope you like this chapter so far.  Special thanks to MasterClass60 for helping me with this chapter. I don't own anything except my OC, Mr. Hornet.

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[splendidlyimperfect]

I’ve never written for ATLA before but I rewatched it a while back and have a bunch of feelings about Zuko so here’s a bit of fluffy Sokka/Zuko angst. ^-^ 

Fandom: Avatar: The Last Airbender Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Relationships: Sokka/Zuko (Avatar) Additional Tags: Canon Universe, Fluff and Angst, Scars, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Stargazing, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Holding Hands, Enemies to Friends, Short & Sweet, Zuko's got baggage and Sokka wants to help, They're both adorable dorks

Summary:  Sokka finds out how Zuko got his scar.

-----

Sokka can’t sleep.

It’s not like this is something new, but it’s getting really goddamn annoying to close his eyes every night and stare at the inside of his eyelids until eventually he gives up and goes to look at the stars. Every time he thinks he’s ready to fall asleep, his mind starts running in circles again – the war, his father, the failed attack, guilt, guilt, guilt.

At least the stars are pretty. He’s found a new place to watch them from – a little outcropping that hangs out over the vast expanse of the ocean. It’s tall and terrifying, and being up here makes Sokka feel significant, somehow.  

He’s lying on his back, staring up at the constellations, when he hears rustling in the bushes behind him. He’s immediately on edge, boomerang in hand, crouched and ready to attack.

“It’s just me.” It’s Zuko’s voice, and Sokka relaxes. A month ago, he would have kept his guard up and reminded Zuko about what a jerk he was. But Zuko’s been nothing but kind (and honestly kind of adorably awkward) since he joined them, so Sokka’s pretty sure he’s not about to be pushed off the cliff.

Continue reading on AO3

“What are you doing up here?” Sokka asks. It’s meant to sound like a demand, but it comes across as curious.

“What are you doing up here?” Zuko replies. He crosses his arms over his chest, then drops them to his sides, then moves them in front of him like he’s not quite sure where they should go. “I come out here every night.”

“Oh.” Sokka scoots over and gestures to the ground next to him. “I didn’t know, sorry.”

Zuko shrugs, moving cautiously toward Sokka and settling down on the grass. Sokka studies the scar that covers half of his face – ridged and red, interrupting Zuko’s otherwise smooth, fair skin. Then he realizes he’s staring and quickly looks away, focusing on the starry sky instead.

“It’s okay,” Zuko says quietly, pulling his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. He glances at Sokka, then gestures to his face. “Everyone stares.”

“I didn’t—that’s not what...” Sokka puts his hands up defensively, then sighs and drops them. “Sorry.”

Zuko shrugs. “I know it’s ugly.”

“It isn’t,” Sokka says quickly. Zuko makes a face like he’s raising an eyebrow, except he doesn’t have an eyebrow on that side, just marred, red skin. “It’s badass.”

“Badass,” Zuko says slowly, then shakes his head and rests his chin on his knees.

“Yeah,” Sokka says, crossing his legs under him. “Scars are cool. I got a sweet one when I fought off a dolphin piranha that attacked our fishing boat one time. Check it out!”

By the time embarrassment catches up with him, he’s already pulled up his shirt to show Zuko the round, bite-shaped scar just below his ribs. He sits there for a second, cheeks pink as Zuko stares at him, then quickly tugs his shirt back down and crosses his arms over his stomach.

“I don’t like my scars,” Zuko says quietly. He doesn’t elaborate, just stares up at the stars.

Sokka’s brain takes too long to catch up to his mouth, so before he can think better of it, he asks, “How’d you get it?” Zuko’s shoulders tense and Sokka mentally smacks himself. “Sorry, that’s not my—”

“My dad,” Zuko says.

The words sink in slowly, like they’re filtering through water, or in another language.

“Your... what?”

“My dad,” Zuko repeats, voice flat.

“That... how...” Sokka stammers, hands moving uncertainly in front of him.

“I spoke out of turn and he challenged me to an Agni Kai – a firebending duel.” Zuko’s voice is flat and something uncomfortable twists in Sokka’s stomach. “I didn’t want to fight him, so he...” He gestures to his face.

“What?” Sokka says, and he knows it’s not the right thing to say, but his mind is stuck on my dad burned my face. “How old were—”

“Thirteen.”

The silence that hangs around them is thick and uncomfortable, and Sokka feels like he can’t quite breathe. He thinks of his own father, of him teaching Sokka to fish, of hugs and laughter and stories under the sky.

No wonder Zuko’s so angry all the time.

“I’m sorry,” Sokka says eventually, because there’s really nothing else to say. Zuko shrugs, and Sokka’s brain finally catches up to the earlier part of the conversation. “Wait, scars? Plural?”  

“Mm.”

“From... your dad?”

Zuko tips his head noncommittally and suddenly Sokka feels way, way out of his depth. He’s never been good with emotional conversations – that's what Katara is for. Sokka’s just the funny one. But Katara isn’t here, and Sokka is, and Zuko’s trusting him.

“Do you... wanna talk about it?” Sokka says eventually. His voice feels out of place in the soft night air – there's nothing around them but trees and the stars and the dark.

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Zuko says, playing with a loose thread at the bottom of his pants. “It happened. He’s awful, and I’m...” He swallows. “I’m trying to be better than him. I know you don’t trust me, but—”

“I do.” The words surprise Sokka, but he quickly realizes that they’re true. Thinking about the pain Zuko’s gone through is enough to make everything slowly start to make sense. “You aren’t your dad.”

“I hurt people.”

“People hurt you.”

“That’s not an excuse.” Zuko says, and he somehow manages to sound grown up and like a small child at the same time. There’s a softness to his words that make it far too easy for Sokka to picture him as a scared little boy.

“Maybe not,” Sokka admits, and before he can stop himself, he shifts a bit closer to Zuko. “But you’re helping now. Doing the right thing, y’know?”

“Mm.” Zuko sighs, then flops onto his back, staring up at the stars. A strange sense of longing stirs in Sokka – a desire to somehow make this better even though he has no idea how.

He shuffles down next to Zuko, very conscious of how close they are. Zuko doesn’t move, so Sokka follows his gaze upward and searches the constellations until he finds the one he’s looking for.

“See those three in a row?” he says, pointing at a group of bright stars not far from the moon. The movement of his arm brushes his shoulder against Zuko’s. “That’s my favorite one – Nunki.”

Zuko frowns. “Uncle always...” He hesitates, shaking his head. “He said it was the Mulu-izi.”

“Huh.” Sokka drops his arm but doesn’t move awake from Zuko. He’s sure he’s imagining it, but it feels like Zuko’s leaning against him, just a little. “I guess everyone has different names for them. What does... Mulu...”

“Mulu-izi.”

“What does it mean?”

Zuko sighs, and this time Sokka’s sure he’s moved just a little bit closer. Their knees are touching now, and Zuko is so warm against him. “The lost child,” Zuko says quietly.

“Oh.” Sokka doesn’t say anything for a second, just listens to Zuko’s quiet breathing and the sound of the waves crashing against the cliff, hundreds of feet below them.

“What does ‘Nunki’ mean?” Zuko asks eventually.

“The Heart of the Ocean,” Sokka says. “My dad said it guides sailors away from danger. It shows them the...” He hesitates, trying to remember the way his dad had phrased it when he was little, sitting on his father’s lap in the middle of the night and staring up at the sky. “The true path,” he says. “Like... the way out of darkness, or something.”

“Very eloquent,” Zuko says, and Sokka can hear a tiny hint of a smile in his voice.

“Shut up,” Sokka grumbles, nudging Zuko with his shoulder. Zuko retaliates by kicking his ankle, and then they both move to shove at each other at the same time and their hands touch.

Sokka’s breath catches. He feels like he’s been shocked, and he’s immediately glad that it’s dark enough that Zuko can’t see the redness that rushes to his cheeks. He’s about to yank his hand away when he feels the tentative brush of Zuko’s knuckles against his – purposeful this time, not an accident in the dark.

For some reason, instead of pulling his hand away, he returns the touch, stomach twisting at Zuko’s soft exhale. They don’t move for a second, and then somehow their fingers slide together, and they both move until their joined hands are resting against Zuko’s bent leg.

A charged silence fills the air and Sokka isn’t sure what any of this means, but it feels right, somehow. He tips his head against Zuko’s and gestures up at the sky again with his other hand.

“What’s that one called?” he asks, voice surprisingly steady.

“Szak-khash,” Zuko replies, and before Sokka can ask him what it means, he squeezes Sokka’s hand and says, “A New Beginning.”  

[libraryscarf]

i was thrilled to write something for @fast-moon for the @noragamisecretsanta2019. i hope you like this silly little slice-of-life, and consider it a sincere ‘thank you’ for all you do for the fandom. <3

we fish you a merry christmas

“That kid doesn’t get out enough,” Daikoku mutters, glancing into the loft where two figures sit eyebrow-deep in a pile of textbooks. Hiyori’s been putting Yukine through his paces as the final year of high school bears down on her, and it wouldn’t surprise Daikoku if she were on the verge of springing a practice test or two on her captive student.

“Whatcha doin’, peeping Tom?”

The voice at his elbow makes Daikoku jump. The goblinish smirk on Yato’s face somehow makes it exponentially more punchable.

“You’re one to talk,” Daikoku snarls. “Has Hiyori forgiven you for your little photo collection yet?”

Yato blanches. “That’s—that’s water under the bridge.”

“Should I remind her of when her sleeping face was your lock screen?”

“Waitwaitwait, I’m sorry, please don’t, Daikoku, I’ll do anything--”

Daikoku grins. That’s more like it.

“Don’t you think he’s lookin’ a little anemic?” he asks, motioning with his head at Yukine, who remains miraculously engrossed in studying despite the disruption right outside the door.

“Anemic?” Yato repeats stupidly.

Daikoku’s eyebrows pull together. “Peaky,” he clarifies. “Pale. Wan. Feeble. Insipid.”

Yato bristles. “You calling my boy feeble?”

“He needs some fresh air! All kids do!”

“He gets plenty of that when we’re on jobs,” Yato says in a dismissive tone, before withering like a sunflower under Daikoku’s freezing glare.

“You call scrubbing strangers’ toilets and picking up after your littering ass, ‘getting fresh air?’” he rumbles menacingly.

“What are we saying about your littering ass?” Yukine asks, his head popping into sudden view around the door.

“Respect your elders!” Yato and Daikoku thunder in unison.

: : :

“So where are we going?”

“Somewhere.”

Yukine grimaces.

“You know, Daikoku, it’s not that I don’t totally trust your intentions and all, but sneaking me out of the house, away from both Yato and Kofuku is…well…”

Daikoku grinds his teeth so hard his jaw cracks like a gunshot.

“Kid, for the last goddamn time, I am not a—”

“There you are!” Hiyori trots toward them, a backpack slung over her shoulder and a big, floppy sunhat bouncing with every step. Her arms are bare and freckled, like she’s been spending quite a bit of time outdoors.

“I thought I heard someone yelling,” she says brightly.

“I wasn’t yelling,” Daikoku grumbles.

“You were kind of yelling,” says Nora, silently manifesting right behind Yukine, who curses with such vigor that Daikoku and Hiyori both “shush” him.

“Please don’t do that again,” Yukine gasps, clutching his chest. Nora pats his shoulder in apology.

The four of them continue along the same path for about half an hour, until quite suddenly an arresting view opens up in front of them. It’s a small, sparkling lake, the surface of it as flat and peaceful as a mirror. Rocks, slick with algae, line the shores. Except for the monotone rill of summer insects, it is absolutely silent. To Daikoku, the existence of this place feels like a great miracle.

“Wow,” says Yukine, appropriately awestruck. Hiyori’s eyes are round. “This is so pretty!” she exclaims.

“Lots of fish live here too,” utters a small voice to their left. The three of them turn to see Ebisu, balancing precariously on one of the slippery rocks nearby, a hand shading his eyes as he gazes pensively across the lake.

“I protect this place,” he states almost casually, his eyes fixed somewhere distant across the bright water. “That’s why it can still be so quiet like this, even in the middle of such a big city.”

Hiyori, Yukine, and Nora look to Daikoku, as though expecting him to tell them he’d known this all along. He hadn’t.

Then Ebisu slips.

“Oh!” he cries, as his legs shoot out from under his tiny body. But before he hits either the rock or the slimy surface of the algae, Daikoku springs into action. Plunging shin-deep into the water, he snatches Ebisu from the jaws of what would almost certainly be a nasty concussion.

“Young master!?” Kunimi explodes from the edge of the trees, his face the color of a ripe plum and his suit a wrinkled, muddy disaster. “How did you get so far ahead of me?”

“Your guidepost is shirkin’ his duties,” Daikoku mutters.

“He is still fairly new to his job,” Ebisu says, seeming absolutely unbothered by his own close call with disaster. “He needs a few centuries to get to Iwami’s level.”

Kunimi reaches the edge of the lake and doubles over, heaving with exertion. After he regains his wind, Daikoku strides back to shore and hands Ebisu off to his disheveled guidepost.

“You’ll be joinin’ us then?” Daikoku jerks his head back toward Hiyori, Yukine, and Nora. Hiyori, having seen Ebisu safely back to shore, kneels and begins unpacking her backpack. Yukine and Nora watch as she removes a canister of bait and unfolds a long fishing pole.

“Fishing?” Yukine says incredulously.

“Yeah,” Daikoku says, walking over and taking the rod Hiyori holds out to him. “You three really need some off-time. This is one of the best ways to blow off steam.”

Yukine, looking a touch green, eyes the squirming bait in the canister Hiyori has just uncapped. “Couldn’t we have just played ‘catch’ or something?” he says mournfully.

Daikoku glances at him from the corner of his eye. “You wanna play catch?”

Yukine turns pink. “No! Absolutely not! It was an example! A what-if situation!”

A grin tugs at the corner of Daikoku’s mouth. “Got it, kid.”

After he hands out the fishing rods, it grows quickly apparent to Daikoku that he has severely overestimated the hand-eye coordination, as well as the capacity for silent waiting, of two of his three charges. Hiyori does quite well, having accompanied several summer fishing trips with her father, but not so well that she manages to actually hook anything at the end of her line. Yukine makes miserable noises as he applies the bait to his tackle, then becomes ensnared with his own fishing line and must be untangled by Kunimi. Nora refuses the fishing rod outright, preferring to wade waist-deep into the water, vanish beneath the surface, and reappear seconds later holding a live, struggling fish in each fist.

“Do I win?” she asks calmly.

“This isn’t a—” competition, Daikoku is about to say, but before he can finish, something streaks past him and plummets into the water, churning up waves like a school of piranha.

“If I am to win, I must know the method and the stakes,” comes a voice from the edge of the trees, and Bishamon appears with a small retinue of her shinki.

“Why are they here?” Yukine whispers out of the corner of his mouth to Nora, who is attempting to stack her growing pile of squirming captives against an errant boulder, but mostly succeeding in creating a sort of fish Slip’N’Slide down into the algae.

Nana’s messy head surfaces from the middle of the lake with a splash, and its owner gives a muffled whoop. “Hugh guht wuh!” she crows, teeth clamped around a struggling trout.

Daikoku hauls Nora back from her sixth journey into the lake to capture more innocent fish and plants her firmly next to Yukine with a fishing rod in her hand. “We’re learning with these,” he says emphatically, then begins to shovel her hard-won pile of scaly trophies back into the lake, where they thrash away from the shore as fast as possible, shimmering like little bolts of lightning beneath the water.

“Well then that’s just cheating,” Nora says, pointing at where Ebisu stands at the very edge of the shore, hand held safely in Kunimi’s. The water right in front of him is boiling with eager fish that are nearly throwing themselves onto the rocks at his feet. He leans down, reaches into the foaming mass, and effortlessly pulls out a fish.

“Seriously,” Daikoku says in despair, “Why is everyone here?”

A pink head pops out from behind Bishamon.

“I told them!” Kofuku says gleefully, then launches herself at Daikoku, tackling both of them into the water.

: : :

“So when you heard me say, ‘I’m taking Hiyori, Yukine, and Nora on a quiet fishing trip to the lake,’ what you actually heard was ‘Tell everyone in our circle of acquaintance there’s a big competition at the lake; be there or face eternal dishonor’?”

Kofuku’s wet hair smacks into her face as she nods at Daikoku. “Yep! Pretty much!”

Yukine glares at her, utterly betrayed. “You said you could keep Yato off my case for one day.”

“And I did!” she chirps. Yukine looks pointedly at Yato, who, once he saw Hiyori was trying to fish, could not be persuaded away from joining her. So far all he’s managed is to lose his bait, break a pole, and frighten away every single fish investigating Hiyori’s line.

“Okay,” Kofuku corrects. “But I tried. You didn’t give me enough Umaibō!”

“I gave you fourteen.”

Kofuku shrugs. “He’s insatiable.”

Yukine gazes forlornly down at his fishing pole. “Well, I guess it doesn’t really matter. I’m not gonna be able to catch anything.”

Daikoku grunts. Then he snatches a piece of bait from the canister, stuffs it in his pocket, and steers Yukine away from the crowd of people at the shore. Yato and Hiyori glance up at them as they walk off, and for a moment it looks like Yato wants to follow, but Kofuku (occasionally, if not entirely reliable), throws her arms around his neck and knocks him straight into the water.

“Try here,” Daikoku says, once they’ve reached a quiet stretch of shore on the opposite side of the little lake.

Yukine still looks skeptical. To give him a little nudge in the right direction, Daikoku pulls the bait out of his pocket, picks off the lint, and affixes it to the end of the fishing line.

“Trust me, kid.”

After a few failed casts, Yukine manages to send his line out far enough for any questing fish to bite. He settles down on the rock, and Daikoku crouches next to him, both their eyes searching the ripples.

Several minutes go by. Daikoku clears his throat.

“So…how’s school?”

Yukine’s mouth twitches.

“It’s good. Hiyori’s kinda strict, but she’s really smart and knows how to explain stuff.”

Daikoku rubs his chin. “Great,” he mutters. “That’s great.”

Yukine snorts quietly. “You know, it’s okay with me if we just sit here and fish in silence.”

Daikoku deflates in relief. “Thank god.”

After a few more minutes of wordless waiting, Yukine’s shoulders seem to loosen.

“I think you were right about blowing off steam,” he admits. “This is…nice. Even if I don’t catch anything.”

The edges of Daikoku’s mouth soften. “It ain’t so much about the catching,” he says. “It’s more about the sitting.”

Not particularly profound advice, but Yukine nods solemnly, like it’s the truest wisdom he’s ever heard.

Then, a tug comes at the end of the line.

[aileruaa]

zetaflash: a first date?

hellooo i’m slowly getting to requests because I’ve been really busy! I never expected to receive so many requests and prompts LOL. I’m trying to fill them in accordance with Zetaflash week so let’s hope I can keep this up haha.

*

Bringing Bart to an aquarium for a first date was equal parts endearing and absolutely exhausting.

It just so happened that a couple of days ago, Eduardo’s father had received two complimentary tickets to the Central City Aquarium from a generous patron of the Metahuman Youth Center. He couldn’t go due to an influx of work, so he left them on Ed’s desk for his son to use.

“What are these?” Bart asked, picking up the tickets. He’d come over for video games and good company when the shiny tickets caught his eye.

“Oh, just tickets to the aquarium in Central City. You know, the huge tourist trap?” Ed replied, throwing his backpack onto the bed.

“Tourist trap or not, I’ve never been to an aquarium.” Bart sighed dreamily. He put the tickets down. “It seems crash.”

“Get out of here. Never?” Ed’s eyes widened. He wasn’t planning on going, because he had been there on a couple of school trips already, and it wasn’t exciting past a certain age.

“Well, I’ve been to Atlantis on a couple missions but I wasn’t allowed to leave the Bio-Ship ‘cause my body wasn’t suited for the depths or whatever.” Bart crossed his arms. “Lagoon Boy, M’Gann, and Kaldur got to swim around and all I was allowed to do was to keep watch.”

“That was probably for the best, dude. The pressure at those depths is probably insane.” Ed chuckled, picking up the tickets. Bart had already situated himself on his beanbag, fiddling with the controls. While Bart messed around with the settings, Ed realized this was the perfect opportunity to get Bart alone on a date, with little to no interruptions. He’d been dancing around the idea for a while, but he never had the time or the means to act on the feelings that had been budding in his chest for months, now. And while he wasn’t entirely confident that Bart felt the same way, their interactions definitely felt more than friendly at times. This was the golden opportunity to figure out if Bart had felt the same way- and he wasn’t about to let it go.

“Do you…want to go?”

*

The answer, of course, was a quick and enthusiastic yes. And just like that, their first real date outside of mission stakeouts and group hangouts was at the Central City Aquarium.

They were greeted by a big array of tropical fish as they entered. Bart was already on cloud nine, and they hadn’t even explored the place properly. As they passed by various penguins, eels, and crabs, Bart made sure to give each and every animal an energetic greeting and a proper look-over. He laughed and cheered at the various tricks displayed at the sea lion show, gleefully mentioning the time Garfield beat up Condiment King as a sea lion. He pat the turtles gently and commented sarcastically on their slow speed. He imitated the guppies’ facial expressions by bringing his cheeks together and puckering his lips. He imitated the penguins’ strange waddling, and all the while Ed couldn’t help but laugh at how silly Bart looked- and how endearing it all was.

“Hey, do you think the dolphins like being in the tanks?” Bart knocked on the glass as they passed the bottle-nosed dolphins. They were on their way to the special Underwater Beauties exhibit, but they kept getting sidetracked by Bart’s inability to walk past anything without making a comment. Ed grabbed his hand and guided him away from the glass, noticing the dolphin swimming away.

“No, but they probably don’t appreciate the tapping, either.” he said, pointing to the “DO NOT KNOCK ON THE GLASS” sign that Bart had overlooked.

“It’s nice to look at them and all, but I can’t imagine it’s super ethical.” Bart tapped on his chin thoughtfully, then turned to Ed with a mischievous grin.

“Let’s break them out. Be my lookout.”

“What? No.”

“Y’know, Prison Break-style? With your powers and mine, we can release them back into the wild. You and I can be the Robin Hoods of the dolphin world.”

“Bart, we are not-“ Ed lowered his voice, glancing around to see if any security guards were listening. “We are not stealing these dolphins from the tank.”

“Why not? Look at them, they’re too smart to be stuck in these tiny tanks.” Bart pouted.

“Even if we could somehow get into the tanks, they weigh like, 200 pounds. I can barely bench 180.” Ed rolled his eyes. “Plus, they’ve been bred in captivity way too long to be released back into the wild at this point.”

Bart sighed. “True.”

They passed by the dolphin exhibit into the stingray exhibit, where a group of children were sticking their hands in the water to touch the stingrays.

“Can we go do that?” Bart’s eyes lit up excitedly. Ed shrugged in agreement, but Bart didn’t even wait for his reaction to zoom to the station and plant himself next to a couple of elementary schoolers who had their hands in the tank.

“How do you do this? Do you just stick your hand in?” Bart asked the girl next to him. The girl giggled at Bart’s childlike curiosity.

“Yeah! They’re like dogs and they love being pet! But you have to be real still, or else they won’t come to you.”

“Oh man, I don’t know if I can be still enough for them to come to me.” Bart rolled up his sleeves and carefully dunked his hand into the water, waiting for one of the many gray stingrays to come. Ed walked over to Bart; he didn’t want to touch the stingrays but it was funny to watch them actively avoid Bart’s hand and swerve around to be pet by the younger children.

“You’ve gotta be still, hermano.” Ed said, leaning down.

“I am!” Bart’s vibrations made ripples in the water, repelling the stingrays.

“That’s not still,” The girl pointed out. Ed couldn’t help but laugh at Bart’s consternation.

“Stiller than that.” Ed rolled up his own sleeve and put his hand over Bart’s to calm the speedster’s shaky hand motion. As soon as Bart calmed his hand, Ed retracted his, not wanting to linger for more than he should have. He didn’t notice Bart’s ears turning red, however, because the moment Bart’s hand stilled, a stingray meandered its way underneath Bart’s palm to be pet. Bart’s smile widened and he stroked the stingray carefully.

“Finally!” he said.

“See, you just had to be a little patient.” Ed nodded.

“Ugh, but it’s all slimy and wet. Not the most pleasant sensation.” Bart got up with a grimace, quickly wiping his hand on his jeans.

“Makes sense, no?” Ed followed suit. But Bart was already on his way to the piranha area, attention grabbed by the “FEED ME” signs.

“Dude, I’ve always wanted to feed piranhas!” Bart said, grabbing a handful of piranha food and looming over the tank.

“Wait, be careful!” Ed dashed over, realizing Bart was leaning a little too close into the tank for comfort. “They’ll bite-“

It was too late. Bart released the food into the water, and a bunch of piranhas jumped up. His hand was close enough for one lucky piranha to latch on. Bart yelped, shaking his hand to get the piranha off his finger.

“Jesus, Bart!” Ed gently brought Bart’s finger up to inspect the damage. He was bleeding, but the wound was already fixing itself. The nip was strong, but was no match for Bart’s accelerated healing. An employee came dashing over, and Bart hid his hand away to hide the fact that his accelerated healing was already doing its job. After a rushed excuse, the two made their way into the big archway of tropical fish separating the rest of the aquarium from the special exhibit.

“Man, you have to be more careful. That was a close one,” Ed sighed.

“Sorry. First time feeding piranhas, got a little too excited.” Bart grinned sheepishly. He glanced at the hand Ed was holding to get them out of the area, and Ed noticed too, detaching himself from Bart.

“Well, good thing you heal fast.” Ed coughed, feeling his cheeks beginning to flush.

“So, uh, what’s next on the map?” Bart asked, trying to dissipate the sudden bout of awkwardness.

“Oh, it’s-“ Ed stared at the map. “The special exhibit, straight ahead. You wanna save this for later, or go now?”

“Let’s just go now. I wanna see what’s so special about this special exhibit.”

*

The room was dark, and sparsely filled- this was the part of the aquarium where patrons had to pay extra, and therefore it was a lot quieter than the other touristy areas. It was for good reason, however; it was a smaller room, but it was well-maintained and was truly magnificent. The luminescence from the jellyfish barely lit up the dim area, but it was enough for Ed to see Bart’s awe-filled reaction. They were surrounded by colorful, lit-up ocean creatures on all sides, and the otherwise pitch-dark room was filled with beautiful organisms. Bart’s jaw hung slack, soaking up the visuals.

“Do you like it?” Ed asked carefully, confused at Bart’s silence.

“Like it? Dude, this is so crash!” Bart exclaimed, piping down when an old woman shushed him angrily. He turned back to the tanks surrounding them. “They’re the prettiest things I’ve ever seen.”

“I’ve seen prettier things,” Ed murmured under his breath, staring at Bart’s dimly-lit profile. He’d seen this a couple of times already, so the magic was lost on him- but to Bart, this was a one-of-a-kind experience. And watching his crush look up at the colorful jellyfish was another experience altogether.

“Like what?” Bart asked, turning. He hadn’t expected Bart to hear.

Ed wanted so badly to respond truthfully, to say, “You. You’re such a sight for sore eyes.” But he was just a teenager with no smooth moves or confidence in him whatsoever, so he responded with a simple, “Just…some things.”

Bart smiled. “Come to think of it, I think I’ve seen prettier things, too.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Like you.” Bart poked his finger into Ed’s chest playfully.

Ed raised his eyebrows, surprised as all Hell at Bart’s forwardness.

“P-pretty-“ he sputtered.

“I guess pretty’s not the right word, huh?” Bart said. “Handsome? Guapo, as Jaime puts it?”

“Wait, hold up.” Ed waved his hand in front of him, flustered. “I…”

“Oh.” Bart’s face fell; Ed could tell even in the darkness. “Sorry, I thought-“

“No, you’re not-“

“I just thought that-“

“I’m serious, you’re-“

“That maybe you felt the same way-“

“I wasn’t- wait, what?”

Bart looked up sheepishly. “I don’t know, I thought we had something going on and I wasn’t ever sure until you asked me to go to the aquarium. I thought this was a date. That you felt the same way about me.”

Ed opened his mouth, then closed it.

“Sorry, I’m making things weird, aren’t I? Let’s just pretend-“

“No, it is!” Ed grabbed Bart’s hand for the third time that day, this time with more force. “A-and you’re right. I do feel the same way.”

“Really?” Bart perked up again, relieved.

“Yeah. I just didn’t know if I could call this a date, or if you ever felt the same, ‘cause, y’know.”

“What?”

“You’re just super friendly with everyone.” Ed shrugged.

Bart huffed. “But I thought I made it obvious that I liked you. I gave you half of my giant cookie the other day!”

“I…didn’t know that was supposed to be a sign that you liked me.”

“Well, it was.”

“Now we know.” Ed smiled. This time, he didn’t let go of Bart’s hand; rather, he laced their fingers together.

“Yeah.”

The two observed the jellyfish for a few more moments before Bart got restless again.

“Ah, well, this was crash, but I kinda wanna get back to the piranhas for biting me.” Bart tugged on Ed’s hand. “Come with?

Ed laughed. “I don’t think I have a choice.”

[hyunsracha]

hurt — stray kids

word count: 4.3k

summary: a night at the seo residence with your best friends. what could go wrong?

warning: killer!au so um....there are lots! of deaths and it’s overall a very Heavy story w sensitive topics so if you’re sensitive i advise you don’t read this!!! 

It wasn’t uncommon for you to spend your Friday nights at the Seo residence.

He had the biggest house, and with the biggest house comes the most money, so his parents were usually out working. A perfect scenario for 10 teenagers to fuck around.

You usually spent your Friday nights binge-watching TV shows and buying $100 worth of Postmates with Changbin’s card when he went to the bathroom.

This was another one of those nights. You had had a shitty day and you wanted nothing more than to curl up with your 9 best friends and forget your worries.

“I say we watch really bad horror movies. Like, they’re not even horror movies but Netflix puts them in that category anyway.”

“No, that’s scary!”

“Jisung, don’t be a pussy.”

“Fuck you, Chan.”

It started off innocent enough, with horrible films such as Sharknado and Piranha. Then, Chan had the lovely idea of watching Scream 4.

“Isn’t this like...an actual scary movie?”

“Only if you’re a coward.”

“Well, maybe I am a coward!” Jisung pouted, crossing his arms over his chest. As much as he complained, he would sit and watch the movie. Jisung was like that. Probably the nicest person in your friend group; Jisung was ready and willing to give his spine for any of you at any time.

Tragic.

Scream 4 soon became Halloween, then Friday the 13th.

“Channie,” you had whispered to him halfway through Halloween, “What’s your sudden obsession with slasher films?”

He didn’t look at you, choosing to keep his gaze locked on the large television in Changbin’s living room. The light from the screen gave Chan’s wide eyes a glare you didn’t quite like; it pushed a shiver down your spine.

“No reason. Just felt like watching them, that’s all.”

You leaned back on the couch, Jeongin immediately cuddling into your side. Most of your friends were, for lack of a better word, cowards. Jisung and Changbin especially. Those two were currently wrapped up in each other, looking down at their phones to avoid peering into the holes of Jason’s mask.

You, on the other hand, weren’t afraid of horror movies. Especially slasher films. So what if a creepy dude in a stupid mask tries to stab you? You’re not an idiot. You could defend yourself.

After Friday the 13th was over, Changbin turned on the living room light. Everyone groaned at the sudden brightness that filled the room.

“No more! Please. Can’t we just watch something funny?”

“Like what?” Hyunjin asked, sitting up from his upside down position on the couch.

“Bubble Guppies!”

“Jisung….what?”

“It’s a fucking kid’s show and I’m terrified. I’m still a kid! I bet Jeongin wants to watch it too! Right, our little baby?” Jisung cooed. Jeongin rolled his eyes, but nodded anyway. You knew Jeongin didn’t like being babied. In fact, he hated it. But he also put up with it because it meant that his friends did things for him.

“First things first, though, I want a drink. Does anyone want anything?” Changbin opened the door to the garage. The garage is where Changbin’s parents kept all of their alcohol.

“I’ll help you carry!” Felix stood from his place on the floor, bringing his arms above his head to stretch them.

“Me too! I need to stretch my legs. Keep me limber so I don’t end up immobile when I’m an old hag.” Jeongin followed the pair out to the garage.

“Hey!” Woojin yelled, but they were already gone.

“I have to pee, feel free to start your kid’s show without me.” Chan stood as well, lightly kicking Jisung’s leg as he passed by.

The remaining six of you discussed what to watch next, with Seungmin recommending something dramatic, while Minho wanted action. With so many different opinions, it was hard to pick.

In the midst of your discussion, the door to the garage flung open. Jeongin and Changbin rushed into the living room, panic obvious on their features.

“Why are y’all running? And where’s my drink? I’m not watching Bubble Guppies sober.” Minho complained.

“He- oh my God, oh my God, oh my fucking God.” Changbin’s breath was labored, and he looked on the verge of tears. Jeongin wasn’t any better.

“He what? Where’s Felix?”

“He’s- I can’t- just come to the garage.” Jeongin’s voice shook as his spoke, his shaking hand gesturing for you to follow him. Fear now present in your bodies, the six of you stood to follow the two boys.

You would never forget what you saw.

Felix’s body crumpled against the garage door, an axe’s blade shoved into his throat. His clothes were covered in blood, and his eyes were still open, peering lifelessly into the souls of your group.

Your shrieks of pain were in unison, but your reactions were different. Jisung collapsed onto the floor, pulling his knees up to his chest as he began to shake. Hyunjin quickly followed, wrapping his arms around the smaller boy. Minho was frozen in shock, and Woojin’s face was just blank.

You stepped forward, slowly approaching the body of what was one of your best friends. You placed your hand on his cheek, getting some of the blood that had splattered onto his face on your hand.

“What’s with all the screaming?” A voice suddenly spoke. You jumped, whipping around to see Chan standing behind all of you. His eyes moved from your eyes to your hand before finally landing on Felix. You could hear the breath get knocked from his body as he fell to the floor as well.

“S-Someone call the police.” Your voice cracked as you spoke. You watched as all of your friends either pulled out their phones or ran back to the living room, confusion soon evident on their faces.

“What? Why aren’t you calling?”

“No signal.”

“It’s fucking 2019 what the fuck do you mean, ‘no signal’?”

“Like...everything got cut off. Someone wants to isolate us.”

How could that even happen?

“I’ll go and get somebody.” Woojin finally spoke, moving towards the front door to put his shoes on.

“Are you sure?” Chan was immediately at his side, seemingly snapping out of his daze.

“I’m one of the fastest, it shouldn’t take that long.” Woojin shrugged, still not showing any emotion. He opened the front door, giving the group one last long glance before running into the front yard. You all moved to the large windows on either side of the front door, watching in horror as there was a gunshot and Woojin’s body fell to the ground.

You turned the porch light on, exposing a trip wire that was connected to the trigger of a gun. Blood poured from Woojin’s neck.

“So no one gets out-” Seungmin started, but was cut off by Changbin.

“Or gets in.”

The group went back to the living room, everyone sitting down in a tight circle on the floor. You were all too scared to move; too scared of what’s just around the corner.

“What do we do?” Hyunjin spoke after a long moment of silence.

“Well, I don’t wanna sit here and wait to be fucking killed! We have to do something.”

“We can’t leave, Minho. Someone’s here, in the house, watching us.”

“Or it’s one of us.”

“Seungmin can you shut the fuck up? Two of our friends are dead, and you’re making jokes? What do you think this is, some shitty horror movie?” You were shocked. Jisung had never raised his voice like that at any one of you. He wasn’t looking up from his lap, but you couldn’t even imagine the look on his face.

“I’m not kidding, Sungie. It...it makes sense.” You trusted Seungmin’s instincts; Seungmin had always been good to you, and most of his guesses ended up being correct. Just the thought of one of your friends being behind this made your blood turn cold.

“So you’re just going to assume one of our friends is a fucking murderer?”

“I don’t want to! Why would I want one of my friends to be a murderer? I’m just saying...it’s possible.” Seungmin leaned forward in the circle to grab Jisung’s hand, but the older pulled it away before standing up. He stared down at Seungmin for a second before storming off.

“I’ll go.” Chan waved a hand before anyone else could speak, getting up to follow the boy. Another long silence followed. You leaned on Seungmin’s shoulder, resting your hand on top of his to assure him that you weren’t mad.

“If we just stay here together, we don’t die, right?” Hyunjin asked, not bothering to wipe the tears that were steadily rolling down his cheeks.

“I doubt it.” Minho replied.

“Thanks for the optimism!”

“Shut up.”

“S-Should someone go and get Jisung and Chan?” Jeongin was staring at the staircase, biting down on his lip as he worried for his friends.

“Yeah. I’ll go. Jeongin, come with me.” Changbin stood, holding a hand out for the younger to take. Those two went upstairs to find Jisung and Chan, leaving only four left in the living room.

Your eyes were slowly fluttering shut, and you looked at the clock. 02:36. How was it already so late? You could tell your friends getting tired too, as Hyunjin soon laid his head on your lap.

“Don’t fall asleep, Jinnie.”

“But I’m tired.” He whined. For just a moment, you forgot about all the bad shit that had just happened to you.

That moment didn’t last very long.

All of the lights in the room suddenly shut off. You assumed the power in the whole house went off, judging by the familiar screams of your friends. You heard thudding as Changbin came down the stairs, screaming at all of you to run. You were on your feet immediately, grabbing onto somebody’s arm and running off in a random direction. You didn’t know who you were with or where you were going, but hopefully you would end up safe.

Whoever you were dragging along with you suddenly fell, a low grown coming from their body as they hit the ground.

“Fuck,” you mumbled, bringing your other hand to their arm to pull me up. In that moment, the lights flickered on. Merely a few feet away from you, someone stood, their face covered by a black mask and their head and body covered by what looked like something you could buy from a costume store. You looked down at the floor.

“For fuck’s sake, Changbin, get up!” You were still pulling, but it wasn’t doing much.

“My ankle!” Changbin cried, struggling to get up. The killer stepped forward, brandishing a blade that they pierced into Changbin’s calf. He yelped, tightening his grip on your arm.

“My parents’ room, that’s where Jisung is. Go get him, he needs us.”

“Changbin, I’m not leaving you here to die!” You pulled on his arm again, harder this time, guilt washing over you as you watched his face contort in pain. The killer pulled his knife from Changbin’s calf, this time shoving it through his back. Changbin let go of your arm; a signal of surrender. The killer locked eyes with you through his mask. You’ve seen those eyes before; you recognize that stare. You just couldn’t recall who.

So you ran. You ran, trying to block out the sounds of your friend’s screams of agony. They didn’t even bother chasing after you. But you didn’t know where Changbin’s parents’ room was.

“Jisung!” You called out, sticking your head in random rooms.

“Minho, Hyunjin, Seungmin, anybody?” Where was everybody?

“Y/N!” You heard a familiar voice. Jeongin.

“Jeongin!” You ran to him, where he stood in front of a door at the end of a hall. You wrapped him up in your arms, the two of you shaking with sobs.

“Where is everybody?” You asked as you pulled away.

Jeongin opened the door, showing your friends- or what was left of them- all sitting in front of the bed. On the bed was what was once Han Jisung, though it was hard to tell with how mangled his body was. It was hard to tell that the walls were supposed to be beige, because now they were red. The only part of Jisung’s body that wasn’t fucked up was his face, like the killer wanted you all the see that it was Jisung that he had just ruined. His face had even been cleaned up, as you could tell from the smears of blood on his face that were reluctant to leave; determined to stay and show the world that precious, sweet Jisung had been completely destroyed. You never thought that you would see your friend’s organs, but they were put on display for you all to see, lined up above his head like he was a fucking art exhibit.

Once the door was opened, Minho immediately latched himself onto you, pulling you down on the floor with him as he sobbed into your shoulder. You wrapped your arm around him, staring straight ahead.

Why were you not crying? You had cried for Felix. You couldn’t already be numb, it’s already been a few hours. You can’t be numb to the deaths of your best friends, Y/N. What are you, a fucking sociopath?

“I love him, Y/N, I love him.” Minho cried. It was hard to tell what he was saying, but you nodded anyway.

Minho and Jisung were always close. They had been best friends for years, and about a year ago, Minho had confided in you and told you about his growing feelings for the younger boy. It wasn’t a big deal; Jisung had told you the same thing about Minho. That just made your heart hurt more for Minho. Having to see the one person you love more than anything in this world murdered...you couldn’t imagine.

You all sat there for a moment. You still couldn’t will yourself to cry, and you felt like a shitty person. Everyone else was crying, why weren’t you?

“You guys,” You started, your voice weak, “I was w-with Changbin. He fell and hurt his ankle and...I couldn’t get him up in time.”

The silence that followed was deafening. Everyone was staring at you and you felt like withering away. You felt so horrible. You couldn’t save Changbin, or Jisung, or anybody.

“Can I...have a minute alone?” Minho pulled himself away from you, crawling closer to where Jisung’s body laid.

“Minho, I don’t think you should be alone right now.” Chan spoke, standing up, presumably to bring Minho closer to him.

“Well, I’m not alone. Sungie’s here, too. So get out.” His voice was flat, deprived of all the joy he used to hold.

“Minho, no.”

“I said get out!” He started pushing; not hard, but with enough force to get his point across. Once all of you were out of the room, he slammed the door and locked it.

“Why- why did he lock it?” Hyunjin mumbled, twisting the doorknob. You shut your eyes tight, taking deep breaths to try to calm your nerves.

He wouldn’t. Minho wouldn’t. He wouldn’t, right?

Bang!

He did.

Hyunjin gasped. Chan sighed. Jeongin started to cry, as did Seungmin. You merely flinched at the noise, not even bothering to open your eyes.

“So what now?” You asked, looking to Chan for an answer. Everyone always looked up to Chan in a leader sort of way. And he always pulled through, giving advice that helped you all through tough times.

“I don’t know, Y/N. I just...don’t know.”

You thought of going back down to the living room, choosing to stay somewhere central where you could see most of the house. Chan went down first, followed by you, then Hyunjin, then Jeongin, then Seungmin.

You would think that going down a goddamn flight of stairs would be peaceful, but apparently, you were wrong. It was Jeongin’s scream that alerted you. You all turned around, expecting to see the killer but only seeing Seungmin coming down at you at full speed. He was falling fast, his head or feet hitting almost every step. He landed at the bottom of the stairs with a thud, and you swear you hear a snapping noise.

“Oh God. Oh my God, Seungmin!” You cried, practically leaping down the stairs to see your friend. You pulled him into your lap, your hands gently running along his face.

“Jeonginnie, c’mon.” Hyunjin was begging. Jeongin wouldn’t move from his spot, his eyes blown wide. It was like he was a block of ice.

“Jeongin, please. We have to stick together.” Chan was trying to get Jeongin to come down, too. But the boy wouldn’t budge. Chan moved up a step, closer to him, and that’s when he ran. All the way back up the stairs and to the right, away from Jisung and Minho.

“Fuck!” Chan quickly chased after him. Hyunjin sighed and sat down on the stairs. You always knew Hyunjin was a crybaby, and you usually teased him for it. But all of these tears made sense.

“D-Do you think I’m gonna be next?”

“Excuse me?”

“I don’t know. I’m sorry. I’m scared. I miss our friends.” You nodded, still staring down at Seungmin as you listened to Hyunjin speak.

Jeongin screamed again. You brought your hands up to your ears, beginning to mumble nonsense at yourself to block the sound.

You heard Hyunjin faintly, “Y/N, what are you doing?” But that only made you talk louder. You couldn’t do this anymore. How could you? How could you keep listening to the sounds of your friends dying and know that you couldn’t do anything to save them?

You only moved your hands from your head when Chan pulled them away.

“He’s dead, isn’t he?”

Chan nodded. You sighed, standing up from your spot on the floor. You walked back to the couch, sitting in the middle and pulling your knees up to your chest. Hyunjin sat on your right; Chan on your left. The three of you just sat there in silence, comforted by the sounds of your breathing. After a while, Hyunjin leaned his head on your shoulder, whispering so no one else could hear:

“I don’t trust Chan.”

Then the fucking lights shut off again. Hyunjin yelped, immediately grabbing onto your hand. You grabbed onto Chan’s, and you shut your eyes again.

And then you felt it. You assumed Hyunjin felt it too, judging by his scream. You jumped back once the warm liquid hit your face.

The lights turned back on, and you looked to your left. Chan’s head was pushed back and his throat was slit, covering everything around him in his blood. You two leaped off the couch. Hyunjin ran towards the garage, and so you followed him. You slammed the garage door shut after him, flicking on the light.

Felix. You had almost forgotten about Felix.

Hyunjin was obviously panicking, judging from the way his head snapped to every corner of the room, looking for a way out.

“Look! A dog door!”

“Hyunjin…”

“No, listen to me! If we open the garage door, he’ll hear us. If we go out this way, he won’t!” Hyunjin practically threw himself to his knees, crawling towards the door. You wondered if he could even fit.

Apparently he could. You stood a few feet behind him, ready to follow after him.

But then the door starting raising. You whipped around, looking back into those masked eyes from earlier.

“Hyunjin get out of the fucking door!” You cried out to him, but it was too late. The door was raising higher and higher, and Hyunjin was stuck. He collided with the top, his neck immediately snapping. His body hung lifeless, and you started to shake.

He was the last one. You thought you would get out of this with someone.

You turned back to where the killer was, only to see a blank space. He was gone.

You don’t know what snapped in you.

Whoever this person was, they wouldn’t live to see another day.

You ran back into the house, first going to the kitchen to grab a knife. Then you started roaming the halls, peering into every room and every corner. You had to come face to face with the bodies of all of your best friends, and every time you saw one of them, your soul became emptier and emptier.

You were heading back to the kitchen when you were pulled into a closet. The scare made you drop your knife. You started kicked, screaming into the person’s palm to try and get free.

“Stop screaming, stop screaming please! It’s just me.” You’d recognize that voice anywhere.

“Jeongin? But- but I thought you were dead. Chan saw you-”

“I got stabbed in the shoulder, but that’s it. I just passed out for a little while.” You were relieved. No, you were more than relieved. One of your friends did make it out alive.

“Okay. We’re gonna make it. We can find this guy. Right, Jeongin?”

Silence.

“Jeongin?”

You heard small sniffles in the darkness.

“Jeongin, what’s the matter?”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” He was full on sobbing at this point, so you brought him closer to you.

“You were always my favorite, Y/N. Always. You were so smart and nice and you never babied me like everyone else did.” You started to smile, but then you felt cold metal on your back.

“But if I let my favorite live, it would be obvious who killed everyone else, hmm?” The cool was gone for a moment, only to be replaced by a burning feeling. That feeling surged through your back, quickly spreading through your entire body. You always knew that being stabbed would hurt, but you didn’t expect it to hurt this much. You gasped, immediately crumpling to the floor.

“You’d be surprised how easy it was. You would think killing nine people would be difficult, but hah, you’d be wrong. It only cost me like $20 to get a guy to cut off all the signal in the house. Gotta love technology, right?” Jeongin didn’t sound like Jeongin anymore. He sounded cold; heartless. Nothing like the Jeongin you had known and loved for years.

“I bet you’re wondering why, right?,” He continued his little speech, “I’m so tired of being fucking babied by them. I’m almost 18 fucking years old and they treat me like I’m five. I bet this really fucking showed them, huh?” He chuckled, a dark sound in contrast to all of his little giggles you were used to.

By this point you were losing consciousness, and you were kind of glad. You didn’t want to live with this burning pain. Your body was getting colder; you guessed it was from all the blood loss.

“Chan even bought me a juice box once. A juice box, a fucking juice box! Isn’t that ridiculous? Right, Y/N? Oh wait, you’re dying. Sad. I’ll miss you the most. But I’ll probably forget you once I become famous. Because obviously I’ll become famous. The poor, innocent boy who lived through all of his best friends being murdered? And I’m cute. Win-win.” God, he sounded fucking insane.

You couldn't breathe. You figured this is what dying felt like.

“Oh, and yeah. I did stab myself. It fucking hurt. You must be going through some shit right now, huh?”

And then it all went black.

—

You thought you died. You really did.

Maybe you did. Maybe you were in Hell.

Waking up in a dark hospital room next to two people, one of which you thought you knew, did seem like Hell.

But in the other bed was Seungmin. You thought Seungmin was dead.

The other bed, which you assumed once held Jeongin, was now empty, which terrified you. You tried to sit up; the stinging in your back prevented you from doing so.

“Seungmin.” You whispered, bringing a weak arm up to shake the boy lightly. He had a cast on his arm and on his leg, and a few scratches on his face.

He stirred slightly, not yet opening his eyes, “Five more minutes.”

“Seungmin I swear to fucking God if you don’t wake up right now-”

“Shut up.”

Jeongin.

“God, how are you two not dead yet? I pushed you down a flight of fucking rich people stairs!” He stood in front of Seungmin’s bed, a harsh glare cast upon the boy in the bed.

“You won’t get away with this.”

“Oh yeah?” And he pounced. He jumped on Seungmin’s bed, wrapping his hands around the boy’s throat. You tried pushing him off, but you were weak and he was a lot stronger than you initially thought. Seungmin’s eyes were open now, and there was nothing he could do except gag as he stared up at what he thought was his best friend.

You started screaming. For a nurse, a cop, anyone.

Thankfully, a nurse entered the room, worried by all the noise. She gasped at the sight in front of her, quickly hurrying away.

“Son of a bitch.” You started pulling the needles out of your arms, pushing through the pain and standing up. You started pushing Jeongin again, this time with more force. But it still didn’t work. You ran to the other side of the room, looking for any tools that could help you.

“I don’t fucking think so!” You heard from behind you before you felt a painful thud on your head. You collapsed to the floor, a hand coming up to feel the back of your head. You didn’t have time to think before Jeongin hit you again.

And again.

And again.

Your head was bleeding; you were getting blood in your eyes. He was impossible to fight.

But you didn’t have to.

You watched the bullet pierce through his forehead, and you saw his lifeless body fall on top on you. Looking over his shoulder, you saw a police officer running towards you, and the nurse headed for Seungmin. The cop pulled Jeongin’s body off of you before extending his hand for you to take.

“It’s okay. He can’t hurt you anymore.”

But he could. And he would.

The thought of Jeongin would always hurt you.

[crackficsiguess]

The Void Swamp - Chapter 1

John looked into his STUPID FUCKING COMPUTER thoughtfully, he was trying to figure out how to fix his completely fucked speakers. After 10 hours of staring, he felt a very heavy breath on the back of his neck. “Somebodies wantin to steal christmas again” the man whispered, John turned around to see his love, the grinch, staring back at him. John looks at the grinch hopeful and asks “When do we start?” The grinch stares at John and sighs, “NOW!” He shouted very excited as he grabed John by the left leg and dragged him like a ragdoll outside to the void. “WHAT THE FUCK!? WHATS THIS!? WHY ARE WE IN A BLACK VOID” the grinch became very frustrated, he just wanted to steal christmas, but now he cannot for he is stuck in the void with what he considers to be his worst enemy, John. John, still being dragged by the leg, asked “Where are we goi-” the grinch interrupted with a massive “YEEEEET” as he span John around and threw him into the void.

John, now stuck in the void, began to sing “somebody once told me, the world was gonna roll me, I ai-” John got interrupted by a cosmic entity “I AINT THE SHARPEST TOOL IN THE SHEDDDDDDDD”. John stared into the void waiting for the cosmic entity to say something else, after five minutes nothing seems to have happened. “HIT OR MISS” John shouted as it echoed into nothingess, “I GUESS THEY NEVER MISS HUH!?” The cosmic entity shouted back. A silence only lasted a few seconds before a giant green ogre suddenly reveals himself to John. “WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY SWAMP!?” The giant ogre shouted at John as he grabbed him like a barbie doll, John looked around and then looked at ogre “We... umm... we aren’t in a swamp?” John said awkwardly fidgeting trying to escape the ogres grasp. The ogre stares at John as he fidgets and brings his face closer to John “Well that’s what you’d think, isn’t it little boy?” the ogre whispered. The ogre flicked his fingers at Johns head, knocking him out in the process.

The grinch sat on Johns old chair staring at his broken computer “hmmm.... eh I sorta miss the little shit, welp” The grinch thought to himself as he got his raincoat on and as he zipped the raincoat up very slowly he said to himself “steady... steady... that should do it, void protection.” The grinch opened the door and looked down into the emptiness of the void contemplating the concept of jumping “huh... the void sure seems.... FUCKING STUPID LETS GOOOOOOOOO” the grinch dived into the void and ended up going too deep into it, he became stuck. “Wait... no... FUCK IM STUCK GRINCH YOU IDIOT WHY DID YOU HAVE TO DO THAT YOU FUCKING IDIOT GREEN PIECE OF SHIT!” the grinch shouted at himself in the third person as he floated through the void, he took his raincoat off and began to rip it up “this shit was supposed to protect me from the void but OKAY THEN APPARENTLY NOT!” The grinch spent 10 minutes tearing up the raincoat and then eating it, after the last bite he said to himself “im gonna fucking sue”.

John woke up to the sounds of feet splashing around in water as he was dangled upside down, being held by the ogre “WOW” John shouted as the ogre got frightened and dropped him into the water “HEY WHAT WAS THAT FOR!? IM ALL WET NOW!” John shouted angrily at the ogre. “WET!? WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY WET!? THIS IS MY SWAMP!” The ogre argued as he kneeled down to look at John in the eyes “You are not wet, you are cleansed” the ogre said calmly. “What?” John asked, slightly confused “This is my swamp, I am the cosmic god known as shrek, you have been cleansed by the onion piranhas” shrek announced as he stood up fast and spread his arms out making a T-Pose. John stared at shrek T-Posing and asked “What the fuck are you doing?” Shrek looked down at John “You need to T-Pose too! The onion piranhas will eat you if you don’t!” he whispered as he tried to make his mouth movements unnoticable. “Oh... I... uh... I guess I don’t wanna die then” John shrugged and began T-Posing beside shrek, the onion piranhas began to sing as the majestic view of a giant ogre and a tiny human T-Posing in a swamp  near the sunset came before them.

@tv-jars :))))

[zephfair]

Day 28 AU ficlet dog walker

Day 28 Dog Walking AU

This is another very weak fill; I’m sorry. Only four more to go, but I’ve been putting more work into them so I hope to have them up by Friday.

Ichigo didn’t mind his part-time job, per se, but it definitely wasn’t his favorite. He wasn’t particularly fond of dogs, but answering the ad to become a dog-walker gave him extra spending money as well as the chance to be outside more.

It wasn’t awful. It was just the dogs themselves that made it difficult. Muffy, Buffy, Luffy and Huffy were the prize Chihuahuas of the Byakuya Kuchiki family, and every single one of them was a menace. Together with the two Shiba Inu belonging to Rukia, the daughter of the Kuchiki family, they kept Ichigo’s hands full.

They went in six different directions simultaneously. The Chihuahuas tried to fight anyone and any other dog that came within range. They loved to bark and charge at bicycles. They went batshit over joggers. They tried to kill Ichigo at least once a week in a concentrated effort of tripping, biting and attempted mauling. They managed to work up the Shiba Inu into a state nearly every day. And they peed about every two feet in order to mark their territory—which incidentally was every single inch they could see.

The only times they acted calmer was when Rukia’s fiance stayed with them, and his big dog, a mix of a dozen different dogs but definitely including pitbull and retriever, was so laidback and sweet. He merely panted at Ichigo and tried to sneak kisses when Ichigo wasn’t looking. He loved everyone and everything and put up with the unruly behavior of the tiny dogs with good-natured amusement. Ichigo would have taken him home in a minute.

As it was, Ichigo had to strap on harnesses, avoid piranha-like teeth, ignore the vicious growls and grumbles, untangle the leads, and get them all out the door. When the weather was cold, Byakuya demanded fuzzy coats on the dogs, and when it rained, Ichigo had to brave more chomping to pull on raincoats with hoods.

He really needed to demand a raise. In the meantime, he took leisurely strolls to the Byakuya-approved dog park with the manic mutts and cleaned up after them.

Of course the dogs didn’t always cooperate, but Ichigo figured it was good training for strength and endurance. And picking up after them taught...what? Patience? Humiliation?

The worst/best part of his day was getting to the dog park. Just outside the entrance to the park was a garage specializing in motorcycles, and every single time they trooped past, one of the mechanics was always outside smoking.

It actually made Ichigo wonder if the big blue-haired bastard even worked, since he also seemed to just happen to be standing outside the garage bays.

Ichigo was afraid it might have something to do with the very first day he’d been trying to wrangle all the dogs and had gotten tripped up in the tangles of leashes and little dogs yipping past his ankles. He’d wiped out right in front of the garage and twisted himself to avoid falling on any animals. Then he’d lain there and gotten nipped by one and licked in the face by two others.

Uproarious laughter from the open garage door made him struggle quickly to his feet, but he’d refused to look around. Ichigo had just clicked and cursed at the dogs and gotten them mostly all moving in the same general direction, down the street and away.

The next day it was drizzling, and Byakuya’s housekeeper presented Ichigo with a note that contained explicit instructions. He had to wrestle the dogs into rain coats, never mind that he didn’t even have a hood on his own jacket. The housekeeper silently offered him an umbrella, but seriously, how was he going to use that along with the leashes of seven dogs.

And he found out that picking up after them was worse in the rain, especially when the one Shiba Inu almost strangled him when the leash got around his neck while he was bent over and it pulled him onto his ass in a puddle.

So he was dripping, sore and frustrated already when he tried to get the dogs to the park.

Unfortunately, one of the motorcycles was just leaving the garage, and the owner tested its engine with hard revving before they screeched out.

The dogs went insane, the Shibas running around his legs, twisting the leashes. The Chihuahuas had banded together to declare war and rage against the machine. They vibrated and lifted into the air with the force of their homicidal barks. The mutt just sat down and scratched his ear.

More laughter came from the garage, and this time, Ichigo spared a second to glare in its direction as he called out to the dogs and tried to get them moving again before his anger turned to mortification.

That went on for weeks, and Ichigo lived for the days when he could hurry the dogs past the garage without anything more than a catcall from the hot blue-haired mechanic.

Ichigo wasn’t sure when he’d started thinking of him as “hot,” but it might have been on one particularly steamy day when the guy happened to have his overalls unzipped low and shrugged his arms out of the top. He just also happened to not be wearing a shirt underneath the overalls, and Ichigo had had to apologize to Muffy repeatedly when he stepped right on her paw because he was so distracted.

Then one day, the mechanic wasn’t standing up by the garage bays but was working on a bike in the parking lot. Ichigo covertly admired the muscles bunching in his back since he had his overalls pushed down and only a tank top on.

The dogs saw him and immediately spotted new prey, pulling so hard against the harnesses that the leads jerked in Ichigo’s hands. When they swarmed toward the man, he stood up, unfolding himself slowly until he loomed over the tiny dogs.

The man hissed at them, fucking hissed like a 6-foot something giant cat, showing teeth and everything. The dogs skidded to a halt, barreling into each other, and one yelped.

“How’d you do that?” Ichigo asked in wonder.

The smile also showed a hint of teeth. “You just have to let them know you’re the alpha. And you won’t put up with their shit.”

“Yeah,” Ichigo bristled at the implication that he was less than an alpha, whatever the hell that meant, “well you sound like a big cat.”

The guy walked up to him, right through the pack of terrified dogs, the smallest of which got behind Ichigo. He leaned over to Ichigo’s ear and said, “Meow.”

“You’re a freak. Come on, guys,” Ichigo turned and tried to make a dramatic exit that was completely ruined by the dogs behind him trying to scurry away while Zabimaru stood still in front of the guy and wagged his tail enthusiastically.

Ichigo left a note for the Kuchikis suggesting another dog park, even though it was halfway across town.

Fingers crossed, he found out the next afternoon that Byakuya was stuck in his ways and insisted on him taking the darlings to the same park they ruthlessly terrorized. Ichigo girded his lions and obeyed.

At least the sun was shining, and the dogs seemed more interested in sniffing out the fresh air after the rain than chasing after debris and garbage. He got them down to the last block without as much hassle as before and really hoped they would just march on past the garage.

A low but piercing whistle drew his attention to the garage where the cat man was standing and smoking. Two of the Chihuahuas started barking, but the others all ignored him except for the mutt who offered another tail wag.

“You’ve got them trained now,” he yelled. “Maybe you could hook ‘em to a wagon, let them pull you.”

Ichigo switched around the leashes so he could free up a middle finger to give the man and proceeded without further comment.

That summed up their interactions for a while. They guy would stand and watch, sometimes taunt them. Ichigo would either ignore him or occasionally favor him with an obscene gesture, if the dogs really had him frustrated.

When it got cooler, Ichigo had to wrestle and dodge teeth and hold onto squirmy bodies to put on little fuzzy sweaters.

The mechanic hooted with laughter when he saw them coming. “You ever do anything besides walk these ‘dogs’?” he called out.

Ichigo was offended by the air quotes.  “What do you think they are?”

“Rats in coats,” he said promptly. “The big red one’s not too bad. But I’m not a dog person.”

“You’re definitely a cat,” Ichigo agreed, and the guy just grinned at him.

Ichigo worked on witty comebacks that night, but it figured that the mechanic wasn’t there the next day. Ichigo was able to take a deep breath and didn’t have to hunch his shoulders as he let the dogs pull him past the garage.

They even had a relatively uneventful time at the dog park, and they were all calm enough to walk home without incident. Ichigo got all the dogs unhitched and the water bowls filled and left.

He was walking down the street from Byakuya’s building when a motorcycle zoomed past then braked hard and did a U-turn much to the displeasure of the cars coming the other way.

It pulled illegally up to the curb where Ichigo was walking, and idled until he reached it. “Wanna ride?” the blue-haired mechanic asked as he took off his helmet.

“No,” Ichigo almost shouted when he saw who it was.

“You don’t like bikes?”

“Yeah, no, I just don’t like you.”

“I’m hurt.” The mechanic turned off the engine and sat there holding his helmet. Ichigo thought that he didn’t look very wounded. But he was looking Ichigo up and down. “So you’re not just the dog nanny?”

“I’m a dog walker,” Ichigo corrected then wondered why the hell he even cared.

“Whatever,” the mechanic reached behind himself and unstrapped another helmet before offering it to Ichigo. “You sure you don’t wanna ride somewhere? You like coffee?”

Ichigo blinked at he non sequitur but said, “I like coffee.”

“Get on. I know a good place.”

Ichigo’s reluctance had more to do with the broad back and the narrow hips he’d have to hold on to rather than any innate fear of motorcycles. Not that he trusted the man any more than the sleek, sexy machine he rode so carelessly.

The guy threw him the helmet and Ichigo made his choice, strapping it on then scrambling on behind. He tried to find a safe handhold, but the way the guy revved the engine then pulled right into traffic made Ichigo give up propriety and hug his arms around the mechanic’s waist.

He took him to a place Ichigo didn’t recognize. When they walked in, it was decorated very … cutesy, Ichigo would have to say, and looked like something Yuzu would have enjoyed, definitely not the kind of place the big mechanic would frequent.

But two of the servers greeted him by name, and the mechanic waved them off and showed Ichigo to a table.

That was when Ichigo realize there were cats all over the place. Cats on the chairs, cats on the couches, in the window and it clicked. “Oh my god, is this a cat cafe?”

“You’re quick,” the mechanic said snidely. One of the biggest, fluffiest cats walked right up to him and rubbed across his shins, then stood up and butted his leg. His long fingers stroked the cat’s head and scritched its chin. Ichigo looked on in wonder.

Especially when all the other cats seemed to realize the mechanic was there, and started swarming toward him. Soon there was a ring of meowing cats trying to get to him and totally ignoring Ichigo.

“What, do you carry catnip with you all the time?” Ichigo asked in amazement.

“It’s my natural animal magnetism.” He stepped over to Ichigo but the cats didn’t follow. In fact Ichigo watched in horror as several of them laid their ears back and hissed at him, the biggest fluffy one actually batting at him with its paw.

“Why don’t they like me?”

“You smell like those mongrels.”

Ichigo sniffed himself stealthily but the mechanic saw and laughed at him. “Gonna have to wash the stench of dogs off you.”

“Why’d you bring me here? To get me scratched?” Ichigo watched the cats almost fighting for the guy’s attention, and he was just a little bit jealous.

The mechanic shrugged. “They’ve got good coffee. And desserts. Now sit.”

Ichigo was the only one who obeyed, then his face reddened, and the mechanic laughed and slung himself into a chair opposite. As a server bustled over and took their order, Ichigo found out his name was Grimmjow, he loved motorcycles, and his sister was the owner of the place which was how he knew about it.

Ichigo almost laughed when the fluffy white cat with black ears and neck perched in his lap, vibrating with the force of its purrs, and Grimmjow petted it automatically. “You look like a bad Bond villain,” Ichigo joked.

Grimmjow smiled slowly. “I would be a very good Bond villain,” he said and gave an evil laugh that did things to Ichigo’s spine.

“I believe it,” Ichigo buried his embarrassment in a delicious piece of cake. “This is really good actually.”

“Told ya so. I just keep telling Nel that they’ll get more clients if they change the place up a little. It’s a bit frou-frou,” Grimmjow made a hand motion Ichigo didn’t understand. It was only slightly confused by the yellow tabby kitten that had climbed up onto Grimmjow’s lap but not stopped and continued to his shoulder. It poked its nose in his ear.

“You’re going to have a cat for a hat,” Ichigo told him.

Grimmjow shrugged carefully so not to dislodge the kitten. “Teaches them climbing skills.”

“I’m sure you’re an excellent teacher. Do you also teach them how to kill?”

“They’ve got that down already. Cats are apex predators.”

“In tiny fuzzy bodies.”

“Better than those furry pocket pets you walk.”

“They’re not my fault,” Ichigo argued. “It’s just my job. Although Zabimaru is cool.”

“Dogs are dumb.”

“That cat on your lap is licking its own balls,” Ichigo pointed out.

“Wouldn’t you, if you could reach?”

Ichigo immediately blocked out all notions of Grimmjow and balls. “I don’t need to know about your free-time hobbies.”

Grimmjow laughed. It startled Ichigo but the cats didn’t seem to mind. They finished their coffee and pastries, and one of the servers pressed two takeout containers on them, with the assurance that the owner would insist if she hadn’t been away.

Ichigo reached out to help Grimmjow peel cats off him, but they hissed at him again and he narrowly missed getting scratched. Grimmjow just chuckled and told the cats to move, and they did, eventually, so they could sneak out of the cafe without anyone trying to follow.

“Which way you headed? I’ll give you a lift.” Grimmjow hefted the spare helmet and offered it back to Ichigo.

“Home,” Ichigo said. “But I don’t mind walking. It’s not far.”

“Come on, you get enough walking with those monsters.”

“Nah, it’s okay. I don’t want to take you out of your way.”

“Well, fine, if I can’t convince you.” Grimmjow moved closer and looked down at Ichigo from the scant couple inches that separated them.

Ichigo wasn’t sure what he wanted, but he stood his ground, damned if he were going to back down.

“Let’s do this again sometime,” Grimmjow said unexpectedly.

“What could top this? A zoo?” Ichigo asked sarcastically.

Grimmjow shrugged. “I wouldn’t mind. Or dinner. Or I can take you for a ride. On my bike,” he grinned.

“That might be, I, uh, okay.” Ichigo bumbled but stood his ground.

Grimmjow leaned in and Ichigo held his breath. Grimmjow just turned to his ear and said lowly, “Talk to you tomorrow when you come through with your parade.”

Ichigo pulled back so he could see Grimmjow’s grin clearly. “Are you just going to make fun of me every day?”

“Was planning on it,” Grimmjow agreed. “It’s my daily entertainment.”

“You’re a dick.”

Grmmjow reached out and put his thumb on Ichigo’s lower lip, pulling it down gently. When Grimmjow didn’t move any more, Ichigo did, calling his bluff and kissing him. Only Grimmjow’s thumb was still between them, but once he moved it and opened his mouth, things went much better. Ichigo clutched his back until a honking horn from the street made them break apart, but not before he definitely felt a lick of hot tongue on his bottom lip.

“Interesting,” Grimmjow said, studying him.

“Er, you didn’t want me to...” Ichigo trailed off in humiliation.

“No,” Ichigo’s heart sank until Grimmjow rubbed his cheek against his and whispered directly into his ear, “I just figured it would take a lot longer for you to loosen up and admit you wanted me.”

“You’re so cocky, how do you even fit your ego in your helmet?”

Grimmjow smacked a kiss on his cheek. “It’s not the only thing I got that’s big. If you’re not coming with, I’ll go. See you tomorrow.”

Ichigo watched him ride away, his heart racing and his lips still tingling from the kiss. He had to admit, he certainly wasn’t expecting to catch a cat but he definitely didn’t mind.

* I joke about Chihuahuas with the greatest love because my baby was one. She was also the angriest terror on four legs and lived as long as she did merely out of spite. She was the best. She hated me, hated other animals, hated people. She was an inspiration. :*)

[clairethecutepup]

Chapter 4: Hellscape-Goat

Click "Keep reading" for current chapter and author's commentary.

After a few days, it’s time for the goat-fighting tournament. Rocko's standing inside the pen they gave him, and he’s waving his tongue and “baaa-ing,” again. It kinda looks like the fair, almost: there’s a table where they take the money everyone gambles, there’s a bunch of seats for the audience, they’ve got vending machines and food stands, a merchandise spot, and the pens and stage for the goats. Rocko keeps trying to fight with the goats next to him-- even though they’re not supposed to, yet!

"Hey, man..." Cio talks to Rocko, from the door, "Save that energy for the field..."

He jumps back when Rocko slams into it, while Faxie yelps from Cio’s overall pocket. Leena and Sparky look at each other: Leena frowns and Sparky is super scared. Ryuketsu isn’t reacting ‘cause he’s sleeping in a nearby chair. I’m starting to get scared about Rocko being let out of there…

"O-Okay," Cio gulps, "you do you, man..." He looks at us, “Is it me, or does it seem like he’s getting angrier lately…?”

“No, it’s not you,” Sparky looks at Cio, “I’m starting to think this might not be the best idea right now…”

“But Sparky,” Leena raises a finger, “Grayson says that they do a lot of things to make goat-fighting much better here, than it would be in the wild and so on,” she nods and puts her fists on her hips, “Grayson is very smart, so everything he says is always true and we can trust him.”

“I dunno, man,” Cio watches Rocko, “Grayson might be smart, but he can’t actually predict things… I thought he’d be right about this being some kind of ‘outlet,’ but it’s starting to feel more like it’ll be a bloodbath instead,” he looks at all of us, “Do you think it’d be too late to tell ‘em we--?”

The speakers play a trumpet sound, so it's time for everyone to go where they’re supposed to.

Sparky bites his lip, “I-I’d say, ‘Yes’...” 

“Maybe it will not be so bad,” Leena puts an arm around him and Cio, “Do not forget about Grayson, guys.”

Well, Grayson is one of the smartest people I know, but Rocko is really mean and scary… I dunno what to really think. I guess all we can do is hope that this’s another time where Grayson’s right… Cio wakes Ryuketsu up; while Leena, Sparky and I go sit in the stacked seats for the audience. Ricky and Grayson are here, too, and they’re beside Sparky; while I’m sitting in between him and Leena. I really hope Rocko’s not giving Cio and Ryuketsu a hard time…

We hear the speakers start talking: "Ladies and gentlemen, are you ready for another exciting tournament of goat-fighting?" 

"Whoa, ho, there, Mike," another guy talks, "don't be so 'bigoted' toward those who may identify as neither! We don't wanna be known as those jerks who exclude 'basketballs,' 'piranhas,' and whatever else from our competitions! But seriously, folks, we love y’all the same, no matter who or what you might be-- as long as you've got money to spend here, anyway. If not, exit's right over there."

"Oh, come on now, Larry, we're here for the goat tournament, above all else. Otherwise, everyone would all be at our local mall instead."

"Well, we need more than your standard admission and gambling fees, to keep the wives in their fancy diamond rings and lamborghinis. Let’s just say, I’d rather have a goat break my scapula, than break the news we’re not getting a new car this year.”

"Speaking of, let's start with our first competitors: Torrlantcio Volpe's entry, 'Horned Harbinger,' against Matilda Schautten's entry, 'Hammer Time.'"

Matilda has an easier time bringing her goat into the arena; while Ryuketsu pulls and Cio pushes Rocko, but Rocko really fights them…

"Uh oh, it seems like one of them is getting a bit of cold feet," Mike says, "Or ‘hooves,’ I guess you could say."

Larry asks, "Guess his, 'Baaa,' is worse than his ram, huh, Mikey?" 

"Or, rebellious phases aren’t just for teens, seeing how hard of a time he's currently giving his handler and owner-- oooooh, he's sent that kid back with a swift buck to the gut."

"Jeez, if that's how he treats his owner, we may actually need a body bag for ol' Hammer Time down there..."

"Well, hopefully we won't be able to finally have a casualty or even fatality count, but I'm sure it'll all be fine in the end."

"We'll just have to see, now that they're finally in and all set to begin! I say we should do a quick prayer for Hammer Time, just in case his opponent is as fierce as he's making himself out to be!"

"Alright, lock horns..." The referee raises a hand, while watching Ryuketsu and Matilda do that with the goats, "Release, and go!"

The referee moves his hand down and blows into his whistle, while the goats pull away from each other. They keep ramming into each other, but Rocko manages to eventually knock down Hammer Time. Then Rocko runs after him, when Hammer Time tries running away.

"--And it looks like 'Horned Harbinger' has won this round!" Mike finishes.

"Uh oh, looks like he didn't quite get the memo..." Larry says, "He's still determined to make 'Hammer Time' become 'Hammered Down'!"

The staff members run to Rocko and try to stop him. He looks at them and seems to be thinking, before he runs past the two trying to jump him. Rocko runs at Hammer Time again, but jumps onto his side this time. Hammer Time falls on the fence, while Ryuketsu runs in to help out. Rocko climbs over Hammer Time, and jumps off him and over the fence, before Ryuketsu can catch him. Rocko runs to us and-- uh oh…

“Holy smokes!” Larry yells, “This is the first time one of the contestants challenged the audience instead!”

Leena grabs me and runs one way; while Sparky, Grayson and Ricky run somewhere else. Leena and I get away, and I look past her to watch Rocko charge into the box-thing that Larry and Mike are in. Now, they’re out of it ‘cause Rocko’s chasing them. Luckily, Leena manages to get us on top of some vending machines that’re next to that small bathroom building. I dunno how helpful they’ll be, though, when he managed to knock down a tree… Jeez, Rocko’s sure causing a lot of trouble: he’s chasing people, ramming into things, and doing other bad things! 

“Guys, come on,” Cio runs up to us, “we have to stop that maniac!!”

We really do-- especially when Rocko ran away from the tournament and into the rest of Wolfuchs! Does this mean we really did create: “The Goat of Wolfuchs”...? Some cars swerve (and crash) when Rocko runs around in the road; and people are running away screaming, or leaping in and on whatever they can to get away from him. It’s not really easy for any of us to catch him, though… A swerving car hits Ryuketsu and sends him into some trash cans, while Rocko’s head sends Ricky into another car’s front window. Leena tries jumping on Rocko, again, but she’s got a better grip this time; but Grayson and Sparky get too close and kicked away. Cio then gets chased up a nearby street light, and Rocko tries to ram him off but can’t. Maybe he just hates me and Leena more, so that’s why he can’t hit hard enough to knock the light over, like he did the tree? 

Uh oh, he definitely hates me more than Cio ‘cause he’s focused on me, now!!! I gotta get out of here!! 

Leena yells, “Run, little buddy, run!” 

I try, but he’s faster than me: he hits my back, really hard (ow…), and I’m suddenly in the sky! While I’m spinning and falling, I hear some lady scream my name, before some guy yells out that he’s got me. I suddenly get caught by someone: it’s Suto! Uh oh, looks like I caused him to drop his grocery bags, so he could save me… I really hope we can get more of whatever it was.

“Well, that’s an interesting way to give, ‘dropping in,’ a whole new meaning…” he smiles at me, “Where did you come from, little one?”

He’s with the rest of the Akaitsuki siblings: Kira, Kubi and Hoshi. I guess it was their turn to shop for us ‘cause they’ve all got bags.

Kira asks, “Are you alright, Claire?!” 

I gotta warn them about Rocko!

I point at him, “Go’!”

Kubi asks, “Hey, what the heck’s that goat’s problem?!” 

“Well, whatever it is,” Hoshi shrugged, “we can’t just stand around and let it wreck our town! I also wouldn’t want the cops to decide on taking it out…”

Suto hands me to Kira, before he and the other two run toward Rocko. Kubi jumps where Rock can see him.

He waves his arms, “Hey, over here!” 

After Rocko sees him, Kubi lowers his head and aims it at Rocko, like he would. I think he’s trying to tell Rocko he wants to fight…? Rocko charges at him, but Kubi dodges and grabs one horn, while Hoshi jumps in and grabs the other one. They hold Rocko in place, until Suto runs over and stops beside Rocko, before reaching under him to grab one front leg and a back leg. He pulls Rocko onto his back and stands above him, while holding onto Rocko’s front legs. Rocko’s completely stuck, and Hoshi and Kubi help out by holding onto his hind legs and horns. Phew, looks like we finally found someone that can keep Rocko from hurting anyone else! … But what do we do now, if even fighting is a bad idea for him? Hopefully, they can help with that, too.

[End Chapter 4]

******

Author's Notes:

Interesting fact, some places in the world do have goat-fighting (or ram-fighting) as an actual part of their culture: right off my head, there's Africa and Vietnam, if I recall correctly. Personally, I find it to be a more preferable pastime to the likes of dog-fighting or cock-fighting, seeing as goats don't really need... "aggravating" to start ramming everything in a 5ft radius. Plus, the goat/ram version of animal combat allows for fleeing and isn't meant to be to the death. The only part of it I'd disagree with are any pulled-out horns, sometimes done so the kid's head would be forced to grow bigger and "better" ones. I'd also like the extra steps Wolfuchs takes to be implemented: padded horns and all, to further ensure the phrase, "blood sport," is more exaggeration than anything.

Also, I just love the part where Suto catches Claire, something about that interaction just seems so nice. And, you just gotta love how big, strong Ryuketsu can't stop a goat, but three smaller guys can. Then again, they know a bit more about animals than he does. Another interesting fact: Suto preformed an actual manner of pinning an unruly goat, where you yank them onto their back, before you stand over them and hold their front legs. However, you should really only use that whenever it's absolutely necessary, as it's quite distressing for the goat because it forces submission... Yet, no sympathy for Rocko here on that, obviously.