#kel's bat problem

[searchforahero]

tiny tims from robin 1993 :]

robin (1993) #138, 138, 139

[mozzaremi]

got too silly, made omori magic au, that i'm calling MAGIKOMORI indodump in read more! (it's long)

Magikomori (Infodump)

The whole premise of the au is that the world of omori takes place in an alternate universe where magic is real

Magic and witchery have only recently become a viable career choice in this world, with magic academies popping up to help other witches to properly hone their craft in their efforts to make a living profit from doing what they love and are passionate about.

Both Sunny and Mari come from a bloodline of witches, making them generally talented in magic and spellcasting. Their mother isa witch, while their dad is just a regular guy who doesn't have the best outlook on magic users. 

Mari develop a people-pleaser side of herself that oftentimes is directed at her father, always trying her best to receive validation from him, resulting in Mari dropping all thoughts of becoming a professional witch in the future to instead focus more on her regular school studies and perfecting her skills on the piano.

Sunny, being the opposite, fully embraces the magic side of himself. The specific type of witch ability he's good at being illusions. He can summon lifelike recreations of entities from his dreams without much trouble. His summons are able to interact with the real world around them while also having a mind of their own. Although with Sunny being a less-experienced illusionist, he cannot control them or summon many at a time (he works around this problem by being able to conjure chibi versions of his dream entities into the real world).

While Mewo is still the pet of the family and she is recognised as Mrs. Suzuki's familiar. At the time of Sunny and Mari being toddlers, they would happens to accidentally cast spells and it was Mewo's job to reverse them and babysit the children when the parents were busy.

Other noteworthy magic users from the friend group is Aubrey. While she’s not from a family that's magically inclined, after seeing all the cool stuff Mari and Sunny are able to do with their witch heritage, saying that she became inspired to dabble in magic would be an understatement! 

The particular magic Aubrey specializes in is alchemy! She’s able to use spells to conjure, combine and transform items. One of her first successful alchemy attempts was being able to transform a simple wooden broomstick into a wooden bat 

The other magic user of the group is Basil. 

His family is part of an ancient bloodline of seers, and are able to see visions of the future. On top of that, Basil's lineage are bearers of a curse of being subjected to frequent nightmares, taking away any semblance of peace in their day to day life, leaving them with restless nights of poor sleep, night terrors, and insomnia. This curse also affects Basil's abilities to see visions, as it's hard to separate possible future events from a bad dream.

With the help of his grandma, Basil combats the curse by creating magical potions to suppress the nightmares and give himself a better night's sleep. 

Potion making becoming his speciality, he contemplates joining a magic academy to get a permit to sell his very own potions to the public! His brews range from tea- like elixirs that help with staying calm, helping with concentration, and clearing up general sickness (so basically like the stuff you can find at a regular pharmacy but make it magical)

Both Hero and Kel staying fairly faithful to their canon counterparts, both not having that many ties to magic, but still appreciating the craft! The brothers often contemplate on learning spells for their daily use, whether it's to help with chores or to enhance the taste of a special valentine's treat for a special someone! 

Now here's the deal breaker question... does Mari die in the au?

Well... yes and no. The accident does occur, but after Sunny pushes Mari, instead of freezing up, he attempts to cast a spell to save her from the fall, but instead he fumbles the spell so bad, that Mari phases between the world of the living and the dead, Sunny and basil being the only ones who can see her.

Their dad was already showing slight agitation from the witchery mischief that that family takes part in and the accident is the last straw for him. He leaves the family right after, convinced that the spell cannot be reversed and that mari was basically murdered by Sunny's hands and magic. 

Their mom tries her hardest to reverse the spell that might as well have been a curse. But without being able to detect mari, and with Sunny and Basil being the only ones to see her, it's their responsibility to attempt to undo the spell.

Instead of framing it as a suicide, Sunny's mom filed it as a missing person's case just so nothing bad happens to the two boys. Since magic has only been recently integrated into daily life, there weren't any good sources to turn to for help, so all trust was put into basil and Sunny to fix this.

Attempts to find a way to reverse their mistake were made with the two worried boys collecting countless books on spells and curses in effort to find a solution to their problem. After months of research, things were looking hopeless. Sunny, not being able to deal with the pressure, falls into a depressive state, barely leaving his own headspace while sleeping all day and night.

After the incident, he develops the headspace that we know, though with more magical elements sprinkled in, alongside Omori and his headspace friends. Omori is almost a stand-in for Sunny's own familiar, being able to effortlessly enter the real world and also disguise himself as his cat form. Omori would cause the young witch to procrastinate on finding the right spell to bring Mari back, ensuring that Sunny doesn't become too stressed or depressed when his attempts lead him nowhere. While not doing it out of any evil reasons to keep mari stuck between planes of existence, he just wants to protect Sunny and make sure that he gets some semblance of rest and peace in his life.

Basil's mental state also worsens alongside his best friend. With his best friend shutting him out and not having that much spare time to brew potions for his nightmares, all his time is devotedto finding a way to bring back Mari even without Sunny's help.

After the disappearance of Mari, instead of Hero becoming a chef or a doctor in the future, he chooses the career path of a detective, even purchasing a very expensive crystal ball to try to contact Mari if she were to be dead. Coincidentally he has no luck with being able to contact her, leaving Hero with some hope that he might find her someday. 

Aubrey still ends up becoming a delinquent, while also using her alchemy abilities for mischief. She forms a friend group of other delinquent magic users, causing occasional acts of misbehavior in faraway town.

She still owns Bun-Bun as her pet bunny, and while not having any magical abilities, Aubrey still refers to him as her familiar companion.

Kel is still... same-old Kel, still into basketball and a personification of a ball of sunshine. He still attempts knocking at Sunny's door to see him again, with things not going well until Sunny has to move. Kel also pitched in to get Hero the crystal ball for some closure, even being surprised as well when nothing came up. 

Being stuck between being dead and alive, after the four years Mari loses any resentment she might have had for Sunny and instead feels bad for her dear little brother. While Sunny can still see Mari, it's almost as if after Omori came into the picture Sunny started ignoring Mari's presence. Noticing this, Mari would attempt invading the boy's dreams to talk to him, causing all the headspace reset shenanigans.

When it comes to magic being used to cause other people harm, it all follows the "rule of three". Whatever energy a person puts out into the world, be it positive or negative, will be returned to that person three times. Being aware of this magical law does help with preventing any possible person using magic for evil. 

In Sunny's case, while it was accidental, he did cause his sister and his friends a lot of grief, so it all returned back at him, the negative energy being a lot of emotional turmoil. This feeling of physical and mental unwellness is what helped develop Omori as his supposed familiar to help him cope. 

The plot of omori would still play out as it normally would withthe main difference being that people think that mari went missing instead of her committing suicide. 

Bad and neutral omori endings are still plausible options for the plot. But in the good ending, once the friend group forgives Sunny and Basil for keeping up the lie of Mari's disappearance, they attempt to work together to undo the spell keeping Mari in limbo.

[woodchipp]

Currently replaying OMORI because I'm a masochist with my best friends @beevean and @the-crow-binary providing emotional support lmfao. Even despite how soul-crushingly boring it is, I think we're still having some sort of fun with this clusterfuck of a game

Highlights (and the misc. problems we've managed to spot) so far include:

I already knew that this game's length was detrimental to it during my first solo playthrough, but this playthrough is helping me put into perspective just how bloated OMORI is, even when it comes to an aspect like dialogue. For example, a single conversation between Space Boyfriend and the main cast took us approximately 5 minutes to get through, and it's not like the writing is gripping enough to make us give a shit about the characters or anything they're saying

Speaking of the dialogue, you can just see how hard it tries to be witty and Quirky™ the way Earthbound and indie RPGs like Undertale were. Needless to say, it fails horribly, and the end result of that was me having to fast-track some conversations because they were unfunny and weren't relevant at all

I got unintentionally (!) stuck in White Space for 15-20 minutes because I couldn't find the map the game needed me to find to let me open the door. Beev came to hate the repetitive 8-bit BGM the area had by the time I finally found the map lol. game_design.exe

Headspace's music is so ear-gratingly abysmal oh my god. I can only call it "dollar-store Kirby music" because that's the most appropriate description that comes to mind and I'm pretty sure Lost at a Sleepover gave Beev severe PTSD. Of course, the music of Faraway Town isn't any better: the "track" that plays in the first fight with Aubrey is less music than it is the result of an .exe file being put through an audio player. Sonic Chronicles might have some serious competition in the "worst video game soundtrack" category asdfghjkl

The plot of the Faraway Town segments is so cookie-cutter that it genuinely hurts to sit through. Character writing (or the lack thereof) aside, Sunny and Kel spend half a day loitering around the town and asking Aubrey's cronies where she is even though Kel could've easily gotten that information from Mikhael had he just indulged the latter's delusions of grandeur a little bit

Faraway Town's daytime sky is literally a scrolling JPEG of a cloudy sky. The battle backgrounds of the real world segments are edited JPEGs as well. Everyone's houses look exactly the same on the outside save for some of them being a different color. The developers spent six years and more than $200,000 on this game.

Sunny's fights against his fears are boring. You just need to wait until a particular turn when the game grants you a special skill you use to end the fight immediately. What was the point of designing these hallucinatory monsters if the player doesn't get to fight them at any point during the main route?

Aubrey (ostensibly) swinging a nail bat at Sunny is not treated with the same degree of realism as Sunny slashing her with a knife. Additionally, Aubrey rides away on her scooter just fine even though she's supposed to be bleeding

Mari's picnic baskets are inexplicably scattered all across the town and fulfill the exact same function as they do in Headspace. So much for realism!

I won two of the fights against Aubrey's goons even though I was trying to lose. gameplay.exe

Sunny is even more unpleasant than I remember. He doesn't respond to Basil - who is supposedly his best friend - when the latter talks to him, stays silent while (and after) Kel vents to him about Hero yelling at him and barges into the church despite Kel advising him to wait until the sermon ends. Why should I feel bad for him again?

Kel generally seems to treat Sunny like an actual baby, spelling out incredibly obvious things to the latter (e.g. that Sunny shouldn't be carrying a knife or walking in the road because it's dangerous) and making all of Sunny's decisions for him, to the point of not allowing Sunny to return into his own house until nighttime under the pretense of "there's so much to do! it's a brand new day!"

Finally, the "fight" against Sunny's fear of spiders comes completely out of nowhere since nothing triggered said fear during Sunny's adventures outside

Peak game, everyone.

And it's going to get way worse down the line!

[dannybobany]

you should like totally share any omori headcanons u have... in a no pressure way at all take however much time as u need way....

OOH OH OH OH ACTUALLY I HAVE QUITE A FEW THAT COME UP IMMEDIATELY IN MY HEAD

Immediately I think about my Basil headcanons because he’s my favorite

basil headcanons I have:

-Basil and Polly have a found family relationship and nobody can convince me otherwise (I HATE BASILS PARENTS <3 <3)

-Basil actually has some decent muscle on him from frequent physical activity out in the garden, I also headcanon that he and Aubrey do workouts together post good-end as a way to bond and rebuild thier relationship

-Basil is vaguely spiritual in a casual way..like, he believes in herbal remedies and many different luck or good-will superstitions, he’ll put out bushels of rosemary and light incense and hang a horseshoe over his door, stuff like that (it helps with the paranoia)

-Basil goes to coffee shops and orders the worst tasting most high caffeine drinks imaginable, like you’d expect him to go for something sweet but Basils not actually that into sweets since too much sugar gives him a headache, and he does get awful caffeine jitters of course but refuses to stop drinking coffee “it helps he focus” he says (it doesn’t)

-Basil can dance. If you can convince him to actually get out there he will TEAR UP that carpet like it’s nobody’s business, nobody knows where he learned that and the first time he and the gang all go to a party together Kel and Aubrey are just left flabbergasted watching him absolutely KILL IT to Rasputin on a Saturday night

That’s about all for Basil but I think I have some Sunny ones too let me think..

-I headcanon Sunny as trans FTM… am I projecting? Maybe a little…

-Sunny is a really sore looser when it comes to games, do not play monopoly with Sunny he won’t even look at you for days, and don’t even THINK about Mario kart with this guy

-Sunny has high tolerance for horror content and is constantly consuming some form of horror media, everyone hates when it’s Sunny’s turn to pick the movie on movie night because he will find the goriest stuff imaginable (he knows Basil and Kel are wimps, he thinks it’s funny)

-Sunny can be incredibly insightful out of the blue, like you’ll say something to him about a problem you have and he’ll drop the soundest advice you’ve ever heard (he and Mari got that from their mom)

-post good-end Sunny sleeps with a nightlight to prevent sleep paralysis

That’s all for sunny right now but I’ll probably have more later …

Here’s some miscellaneous headcanons for other characters:

-Hero plays table tennis

-Aubrey hosts a monthly “rage night” out behind the Othermart where all her friends get together and break stuff, they drag out wooden crates and old furniture and occasional a personal item they’d like destroyed and just smash it with bats and pipes and whathaveyou

-Aubrey was the one who shaved the side of Kim’s head, Kim’s mom was not happy

-Mikhael secretly loves baking, he just won’t admit it because he knows his siblings will tease him for how he’d been acting

-Kel goes to party’s, accepts drinks, then pours them out when nobody’s looking and pretends to be drunk when he isn’t

-Kels first car was an old station wagon, surprisingly he’s an incredibly responsible and good driver, he’s also everyone else’s chauffeur for several years until the rest of the teenagers in town get thier licenses

I think that’s all I got for now- but that was fun!!! Thank you for askng!!

[louve-garoue]

Incorrect Quotes OMORI made me thought of and Yes I know that most of them must have been done like a billion time but I don't care

Kel: Let me see what you have Sunny: A knife. Kel: No!! Aubrey: Oh My God, why does he have a knife ?!!

Basil: I was just trying to protect you! Sunny: How, by putting me into more danger ??! Basil, smiling nervously: The plan... had holes ?

Aubrey: Why does Sunny have a knife ? Kel: He felt unsafe ? Aubrey: Well now I feel unsafe! Kel: ... Aubrey you have a nailed bat Kel: Also you're right, I'm taking that thing away from him

Hero: Why didn't you just said she tripped ?! Made more sense than the truth and it's not like Sunny had any kind of motive! Basil: *Chuckles* Basil: Yeah, okay. See, Hero, the problem with that... is that it's an Excellent Idea that I wish I had thought of 4 years ago

[acacia-may]

Hearts In Tune (Holiday Kelbrey (OMORI) Fic)

Description: Big and exciting changes in the lives of her friends and the fast-approaching holidays force Aubrey to confront her own dreams for the future and her feelings for a certain someone that she had long tried to run away from. After years of insisting she was happy being alone, she never expected it would be Sunny who ultimately called her bluff.

When she decides to take his advice and be more open about her feelings for Kel, however, she ends up with more misunderstandings and more problems than she would have anticipated…

Relationships: KELBREY (Romantic Kel x Aubrey) CENTRIC. Sunny and Aubrey Platonic Friendship is also included as well as Sunny, Aubrey, Hero & Kel Friendship. Mentioned Relationships: Sunny is engaged to be married in this fic, but it doesn't specify to whom, and Hero finding love again & having a girlfriend is also mentioned but it doesn't specify who he's in a relationship with. Past Romantic Hero x Mari is referenced.

Characters: Aubrey (POV Character), Kel, and Sunny. (Hero is mentioned quite a bit but doesn't have any dialogue, and Basil decorates as proof of life).

Genre: Romance, Slice of Life, Friends to Lovers, Some Hurt/Comfort, Developing Relationship, Misunderstandings, A little Attempt at Humor, Holiday Fluff, and Warm & Fuzzies

Word Count: 7,000

Rating: T for a brief sequence of legal drinking. This story takes place several years after the Good Ending of OMORI so the characters are all aged up. There are no other warnings and aside from a brief moment of Aubrey's insecurities, only lighthearted fluff & fuzzy feelings here.

Warnings: Major Spoilers for OMORI! A brief sequence of legal drinking. Some misunderstandings. Kissing.

Link to original post on AO3.

A/N: The title of this fic is a reference to the song "Aubrey" by Bread which is also referenced in this fic. 💖

Full text of the story is below the cut. Thank you for reading!

With a heavy sigh, Aubrey stared down at the earrings Kel had just given to her. If she hadn’t had too much spiked eggnog at their annual holiday party, she would probably have had a better appreciation for them. She had never seen earrings in the shape of baseball bats before, and Kel had been so excited to give them to her. But… Aubrey sighed. Looking at them now made her chest grow tight and a lump form in the back of her throat. Even after all these years, was that really how Kel saw her? Was she always just going to be “bat girl”?

Aubrey supposed that there were certain things in life that a person could never really come back from and, if she had to guess, picking a fight with somebody in church with a nail bat was one of them. It was a wonder that she and Kel were even still friends after that, but it had been over a decade since then. She had changed. Her feelings towards Kel had also changed, but maybe she had been wrong to think that his feelings towards her had changed too. They still bickered and teased each other, but at the end of the day, she knew they cared about each other—at least as friends. It seemed wrong to hope for anything more than that, but that didn’t stop Aubrey from hoping, as much as she didn’t want to admit it… And that made it her fault—her fault she was irrationally upset over a pair of earrings, tipsy from too many glasses of spiked eggnog, and sitting alone in the cold on the deck watching the blinking icicle lights wondering if she’d be alone like this forever.

The idea of being alone had never used to bother her—or least she had pretended it didn’t, but then Sunny had gotten engaged, and, surprising as it was, it had gotten her wondering: would that ever happen for her and did she even want it to? She knew she wasn’t the only one. As happy as everyone was for Sunny, these big life events of friends had a way of making a person take a step back and wonder “what am I doing with my life?”

If Aubrey had to guess, Hero was likely the most affected. With the exception of possibly Sunny who was much more quiet about such things, Hero had the most domestic dreams of anyone in their group…or at least he had had them before Mari had passed away. In a rare moment of vulnerability, Hero had once told Aubrey that all of his dreams of settling down and having a family had died with Mari and he couldn’t even imagine that life for himself anymore, but Aubrey wasn’t sure that was entirely true—and not just because he had been sleep deprived and a little inebriated at the time he had told her.

Even so, he didn’t talk about it, and she certainly never brought it up, but it had been “the year of weddings” for Hero as many of his friends from college had all started settling down and it was clear it had taken its toll on him. Aubrey was sure that Hero had to be wondering “what am I doing with my life?” and “will this ever happen for me and do I even want it to?” more so than even she was. Perhaps he was completely desensitized to it by the time Sunny had announced his own engagement, but Aubrey doubted it. Hero had done what he always did—congratulate Sunny with a hug, pop a big bottle of champagne, enthusiastically tell him how happy, excited, and proud he was of him, and celebrate with him for hours. Then, he picked up multiple extra, extremely long shifts at the hospital in the following days. No one had seen him in two weeks—not even Kel.

Aubrey could tell Kel was a little worried about his brother, but he had been so busy himself that Aubrey wondered if he was just letting it go by necessity. Aubrey couldn’t be sure, but she wondered if Kel was also going through some sort of existential crisis or introspective evaluation of his life and his dreams for the future thanks to Sunny’s big news. Up until this point, she had never known if Kel even wanted to settle down one day. It was something they just never talked about, but ever since Sunny had gotten engaged, Kel had started saying things like “when I get married, I want to have a huge wedding with tons of people” or “when I get married, I want to have a buffet so people can just eat whenever they want” or “when I get married, I want to give everybody bubbles instead of rice because I think it’ll kinda hurt to get hit by rice.”

It was strange to hear Kel talk so nonchalantly about getting married one day. Aubrey supposed she should have expected it or at least expected that it was something he wanted, but what surprised even more was how it stung a little to imagine it, to imagine Kel settling down and spending the rest of his life with someone that wasn’t her. Aubrey sighed. But it wouldn’t be her…She was “bat girl.” She would always be “bat girl.”

Aubrey’s attempts to resign herself to this fact and pretend it didn’t bother her had all been complete and utter failures. It seemed that every time she even got close to a relationship with somebody else, she always found herself reaching for the phone to call Kel or thinking of a silly story he had told her recently or wishing he was there with her instead. Needless to say, none of these “almost-relationships” had gone anywhere, and after a certain point, Aubrey had to admit that she didn’t want them to. Kel was the person she wanted to call with happy news, the person she turned to whenever she was sad, the person she wanted to share everything with. She knew—no, she had known for a long time, that Kel was the one person she wanted to be with. Sunny’s engagement had just been the final nail in the coffin, forcing her to realize that not only did she want a relationship, but she wanted a relationship with Kel.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Aubrey bit her lip and stared down at the bat earrings.  She knew that was never going to happen. She was too cold, too harsh with him—too “bat girl.”

She sighed again, shaking her head and burying her face in her hands. “What is wrong with me?”

Aubrey hadn’t realized she had said those words aloud until she heard a voice humming beside her. She jumped—practically dropping the earrings and the cup of eggnog she was holding. Calming herself with a deep breath, she turned to find Sunny taking a seat next to her on the deck with a twitch of a smile.

“Sunny, you can’t sneak up on people like that,” she sighed. Sunny nodded apologetically. Aubrey wondered how long he had been standing there, but she decided not to ask.

“Are you okay?” Sunny asked quietly with a slight tilt of his head. Aubrey’s face flushed, but she nodded, shrugging her shoulders.

“Yeah…I just needed some fresh air for a minute.”

Sunny blinked at her, and Aubrey fidgeted. He was always so unreadable, but if she had to guess, he probably saw through her lie. He was one of her best friends after all. Shifting uncomfortably in her seat, Aubrey decided to change the subject. “Congratulations again.”

Sunny’s face seemed to light up as he quietly mumbled with a bright smile, “Thank you.”

“Do the holidays feel any different now that you’re engaged?”

Sunny pursed his lips thoughtfully but shook his head. “Not really.”

“You’ve got a big year ahead of you though. Lots to look forward to with the wedding and everything. Must be nice…” Aubrey’s voice trailed, and she felt Sunny’s gentle hand on her shoulder.

“It’ll be you someday…” He paused, then quickly added. “If you want.”

Aubrey chuckled, but her face felt warm. Was she really so transparent? “I don’t know, Sunny. I’m not sure all that domestic stuff is for me.” Despite her attempts at a shaky laugh, she could tell from the look in Sunny’s face that it had not completely masked the twinge of sadness in her voice. “Can you imagine ‘nailbat girl’ settling down?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t be silly,” Aubrey snorted a shaky laugh, but she swallowed hard as she caught sight of those earrings. It seemed that Sunny had also caught sight of them—tilting his head curiously before he asked in his quiet and matter-of-fact way.

“Is this about Kel?”

With flushing cheeks, Aubrey choked, “What? No. Why would it be about—?”

She stopped abruptly, met with Sunny’s blinking eyes. There was no way he was going to believe anything she said except the truth, so she merely sighed—tightening her grip around those earrings. She swallowed hard, then quietly asked, “Does everybody know?”

“Kel doesn’t.”

Aubrey sighed. She supposed that was something at least—a small comfort given the circumstances, though she suspected that was only because Kel was oblivious or just didn’t want to see it.

“Good,” Aubrey mumbled. “I’ll try to be more subtle.”

“No.”

Aubrey’s brow furrowed, and she whipped around towards Sunny in surprise. It wasn’t like Sunny to argue or really even talk much at all. She tilted her head. “What do you mean ‘no’?”

“You should tell him.”

“Sunny,” Aubrey groaned with a somewhat affectionate sigh. “I know you mean well, but it’s never going to happen, so…” Her voice trailed off, and she ran her hand through her hair. Her head was starting to ache from the haze of alcohol reminding her exactly why she never drank. As her blurred vision came back into focus, she caught sight of the earrings again, and her insides twisted. “I’m just ‘bat girl,’ remember?”

“No,” Sunny repeated a little more forcefully though the look on his face was kind and gentle. He, somewhat awkwardly, patted her shoulder with his hand, making Aubrey chuckle breathily in spite of herself before Sunny’s mouth twitched into a slight, affectionate smile.

“You’re strong, but you’re soft too—kind. You really care about your friends, even if you don’t show it all the time…but you have shown it to me and to Hero too. You’re even soft with Basil sometimes.” He let out two heavier breaths which Aubrey knew meant he was chuckling lightly at the thought before he sighed. “But with Kel… I know you care about him, but…you don’t really show him that part of yourself as much.”

Aubrey could only blink at him. It was one of the longest speeches Sunny had ever spoken to her in one sitting, but even more than that, she knew it was all true. She loved her friends, but it had never been easy for her to be vulnerable—to be soft with them and with Kel most of all.

Sunny was right. She was more openly kind and affectionate with him or Hero or even Basil than she ever could be with Kel. Perhaps, she scared of opening up to him most of all because she knew that he was the one who could hurt her the most, because he was the one that she cared about the most. He was also the one who had left her behind.

Even all these years and all these apologies later, the weight of him leaving her alone and their friendship falling apart after Mari’s death hung heavily like a dark cloud over their relationship. She knew it wasn’t entirely Kel’s fault, and she wasn’t blameless herself. They had apologized to each other and tried to make amends for everything that had happened a very long time ago, and she didn’t hold it against him anymore. Still…she could feel herself gripping tightly onto the walls she built around her heart so she would never be hurt like that again. And even now when what she wanted more than anything else in the world was to open up to Kel and let him in, she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

“You really think I’m too cold to him…?” she asked quietly though she was sure she already knew the answer. “There’s not really anything I can do about that now, is there? I hit him with a nail bat in a church—there’s no coming back from that.”

“If Kel can forgive me and Basil, he can forgive you too.” Sunny paused with a slight smile. “But…that’s not really what I meant. I just meant…he’s probably afraid that if he asks you out, you’re going to say ‘no’… You’re one of his best friends…He wouldn’t want to risk messing that up unless he was sure you were interested.”

Aubrey scoffed with a snorted laugh. “You think Kel actually wants to date me?”

Sunny shrugged. “He thinks about you all the time.”

“You’re a mind reader now, Sunny?” Aubrey teased with the twitch of an affectionate smile, but Sunny just shrugged again and took a deep breath before he started singing, a little monotone but it got the point across.

“‘And Aubrey was her name…’”   

As Sunny started humming what Aubrey could only presume was the rest of the song, her brow furrowed. “What?”

“Kel listens to this song all the time… Hero lent him the record. It’s a love song to a girl named Aubrey...” He paused then added, “It’s sad.”

“Sad?”

Sunny nodded and started singing quietly again, “‘For a love that wouldn't bloom…For the hearts that never played in tune.’”

Something panged in Aubrey’s chest. There was something hauntingly beautiful about it. The hearts that never played in tune…was that really her and Kel?

“It’s sad,” Sunny repeated, his face falling. “Whenever Kel would listen to it, I’d feel guilty for being so happy.”

“Oh Sunny…” Aubrey wrapped her arm around his shoulder and gave him a side hug. “You don’t have to feel guilty about that. We’re all really happy for you—Kel especially. He wouldn’t want you to feel guilty for being happy. Nobody wants that.” Aubrey sighed, staring down at her hands. “And you know, Kel might just like this song. It might not mean anything. I mean locking himself in his room and listening to sad music is kind of Hero’s thing, isn’t it?”

Sunny shrugged, but Aubrey was sure that having been both of their roommates he’d have to concede that she was right. “Hero has been listening to this one song recently too… It goes ‘She’s got a way about her…’”

Aubrey’s brow furrowed. “Is it love song?”

Sunny nodded. “A really pretty one.”

“Do you think…?”—she stopped—“Do you think he’s still thinking about Mari?”

With a tilt of his head, Sunny thoughtfully pursed his lips—his brow furrowing in concentration before he finally admitted, “I don’t know.”

“You know he has that one friend of his…” Aubrey tilted her head at Sunny with a knowing smile, sure he would know exactly who she was talking about. “I know it’s probably not ever going to happen, but I always thought they’d be really good together.” Aubrey paused as Sunny shot her a pointed look. “What? You don’t think so?”

Sunny blinked at her. “No, I think so… She’s wonderful. I’ve had multiple recurring dreams about their wedding… and only some of them were in Headspace.” He paused. “I added her there, and they’re married with three kids now.”

“What?”

“It was a beautiful wedding,” Sunny continued. He either didn’t hear her or didn’t acknowledge that he did. “Captain Spaceboy cried… so did Basil… He did all the flowers. And the ghost of Mari was there…She was really happy.” He paused and turned to look her squarely in the face. “But you just changed the subject. This isn’t about Hero.”   

Aubrey huffed but affectionately rolled her eyes. “I don’t want to talk about me and Kel, Sunny. It’s not going to happen.”

“But that song…” Sunny began to protest, but Aubrey caught him off with another huff.

“I don’t care what songs Kel is listening to. It’s just a song. It doesn’t mean anything.” She tried her best to shrug it off, but even without that knowing look on Sunny’s face, she knew it didn’t sound convincing. “I mean…by that logic, Hero would have a girlfriend or want one, and as I much as I wish he did, I think that’s just about as likely as Kel wanting to date me.”

When Sunny didn’t respond, Aubrey’s eyes narrowed. Curiously, she tilted her head at him. Sunny, it seemed, had completely zoned out—staring intently at something over Aubrey’s shoulder.

“Do you hear that?” he asked. With a deep breath, Aubrey tried her best to focus. There was a low roar of chattering and the clanging of dishes coming from inside the house and some holiday music playing in the background. Before she could ask Sunny what specifically he was talking about he added, “The piano.”

Aubrey whipped around to follow Sunny’s line of vision through the window into the house. She couldn’t hold back her gasp or the breath that got caught in her throat as she stumbled in disbelief, “Hero?”

They hadn’t been expecting him. After all, he had told them a week ago that he had to work late tonight and likely wouldn’t be able to make it to the party, but there he was seated at the old piano in the living room which had been thoughtfully decorated by Basil with evergreen garlands and holly. His hands were gently gliding up and down the keys playing Christmas music for the first time in years.

While Hero had often played carols for them when they were younger, Aubrey couldn’t remember the last time she had heard him play piano at all. She had always just assumed it was one of those things he couldn’t bring himself to do without Mari. Sunny had told her that he knew Hero still played sometimes, particularly if he was asked or just to keep up a little bit of practice, but Aubrey couldn’t remember the last time she had actually seen Hero sit down at a piano and start playing on his own. More shocking than that, however, was the look on his face as he played. He kept glancing up over the top of the piano at something in the corner of the room that wasn’t visible from the window with a bright, beaming smile across his face. For the past decade, his smiles had been tight, metered, and bittersweet. They hadn’t ever reached his eyes, but now…Now he…

“He looks happy,” mumbled Sunny with an expression almost as stunned as Aubrey felt. As they glanced at each other, she knew they were thinking the same thing. Neither of them could remember the last time they had seen Hero look that happy. Something ached in Aubrey’s chest. She hadn’t realized how much she had missed his smile until she had seen it again after all these years. The look on Sunny’s face said he felt the same way.

“What do you think he’s…?” Aubrey began to ask though she wasn’t entirely sure how to word her question as she tilted her head, shifting and fidgeting trying to get a glimpse of whatever it was Hero was smiling at.

Her attention was suddenly pulled away from Hero to Kel who came bursting through the sliding door onto the deck with a bright smile on his face. Aubrey felt her face flush and a swooping sensation in the pit of her stomach as he met her eyes. Did his smile widen just a little when he did?

Despite her best attempts to convince herself she was just seeing things, her mind suddenly went blank—empty except for a wistful, lovesick ‘Oh…’ she felt deep in her bones. He had such a lovely smile, and his dark eyes were so warm and so kind…

When she heard Sunny somewhat playfully hum beside her, her blush deepened. She realized she was staring. With a sigh, her mind filled with a string of curses, mentally kicking herself. What was wrong with her today?

Swallowing hard, she looked away abruptly before Kel could see that embarrassing redness in her cheeks. Luckily it seemed he didn’t notice as he practically bounced up and down in excitement.

“Hey guys, guess what,” he exclaimed exuberantly. “Hero’s here, and he brought a girl with him!”

Sunny gasped, covering his gaping mouth with his hand as Aubrey’s eyes widened, blinking in disbelief. “No way…” she mumbled, but Kel nodded.

“No seriously. It’s…pretty unbelievable. I mean he called first and asked if it was okay and I said ‘sure’, but I guess I didn’t really get it until he walked through the door with her and…”

“Someone we know?” interrupted Sunny, seemingly startling Kel. Sunny glanced at Aubrey who offered him a pensive but knowing smile. They both had someone specific in mind, and the toothy, lopsided grin that curved across Kel’s face as he nodded in response seemed to imply that he had been thinking of the same person.

“Yes,” he answered practically beaming at them, and it was all Aubrey could do not to race for the doorway back into the house. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself—gently reminding herself that they needed to play it cool and not make a big deal out of it. Unfortunately, it seemed Kel did not get the memo on this point and sped through the sliding doors.

As Aubrey turned to do the same, she felt Sunny’s hand reach out to stop her. It clutched onto hers with a gentle squeeze, and she turned to look at him perplexed. He didn’t say anything but the look on his face—the smile tugging at his lips said more than enough. Aubrey fidgeted, knowing exactly what Sunny was thinking, knowing how her words had so immediately come back to bite her.

“This doesn’t mean anything,” she huffed, but the bright red blush on her face implied otherwise.

*-*-*

Despite her continued insistence to the contrary, the truth was it did mean something. No, she didn’t think it was a sign from the universe that she needed to actively pursue Kel or confess to him, but she did decide that she should probably take Sunny’s advice and be a little softer and a little more openly affection with him. Over the next week, she made a conscious effort to treat Kel more like she might treat Sunny or Hero or even Basil. She tried her best to be more openly supportive and didn’t tease him for the stupid things that he did. That last one was growing increasingly difficult as Kel seemed to be doing more and more outlandishly ridiculous things as the week went on to the point where Aubrey almost wondered if he was acting that way on purpose. The thought made her insides twist. Had Sunny told him about their conversation?

Aubrey swallowed hard—pushing the thought away as she tried her best to focus on what Kel was saying now.

“Gosh, I can’t believe I had my sweater on backwards the whole time,” he laughed. “I am such a scatterbrain sometimes.”

Aubrey sighed, but she bit her lip and shrugged her shoulders, trying her best to reassure him. “That happens sometimes. It’s okay.”

She could have almost sworn she watched his brow furrow just barely before he mumbled, “Uh…okay, I guess.”

After a few moments of awkward silence, Kel asked, “So uh…you looking forward to the holidays?”

Aubrey nodded. “Yeah. It’ll be the first year I don’t have to work on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. I finally have some seniority around the hospital.”

“That’s awesome,” Kel replied with a smile. “Hero has to work Christmas Eve this year, but I think he has Christmas Day off. That’ll be the first time he’s off on a holiday, I think. It makes sense that doctors and nurses have to work on all the holidays, but it kind of stinks sometimes.”

Aubrey sighed. Kel did not have to say that again. While she loved her job as a nurse and found it very meaningful and rewarding, it was a bummer to have to work holidays. Up until a week ago, however, she would have almost sworn Hero felt the exact opposite. He was often purposefully picking up shifts on major holidays if he wasn’t working already, but now that he was bringing someone home for Christmas, Aubrey was sure he felt differently and was grateful to be off work on Christmas Day for the first time ever.

“You should stop by on Christmas, you know? Our extended family won’t in town until Día de Reyes this year, so it’ll just be us and you know my mom is going to make way too much food.” With a bright smile, Kel chuckled, but Aubrey sighed.

“I don’t know… I don’t want to impose.”

“You wouldn’t be imposing. Besides, Hero is bringing a girl home—don’t you want to see that?”

Aubrey sighed again. The honest answer was yes, but she didn’t think it was her place to barge into their family’s holiday celebrations.

“It’s all anybody’s been talking about. Heck, it’s all I’ve been talking about,” laughed Kel. “I mean it’s really big, right? Hero putting himself back out there.”

“Has he said anything to you about it or just…?” Aubrey’s voice trailed. She was trying her best not to pry.

“No. He’s really secretive or just—I dunno—shy or something, but she’s really great. I’ve…”—he paused, fidgeting with his hands—“honestly been hoping for this for a long time.”

“Me too,” Aubrey admitted. “So has Sunny. We used to talk about it all the time when we were away at college—hoping that the two of them would eventually go out. Sunny said he has actually had dreams about their wedding.”

Kel laughed, and the way his face lit up—bright and warm, made Aubrey’s face flush. She could only hope he didn’t notice. “That’s awesome! Too bad Sunny’ll be out of town this year and miss it. But that just means you have to come for Christmas now. Then you can tell Sunny all about it and how happy they are.”

“I…I don’t know…” Aubrey stumbled. Yes, she had been trying to be much nicer to Kel but agreeing to spend Christmas with him and his family, especially for the main purpose of prying into Hero’s business, seemed like a step too far. Kel, however, seemed determined, and he suddenly took her hands. Even though they were gloved, she was still so shocked by the gesture that she practically jumped backward in surprise.

“Please…” he whined, dragging the word out far longer than it needed to be.

Aubrey’s face blushed a deep red, but luckily, before she could say anything, it was their turn to order at the Burger Boys’ food truck they had been waiting in line at for the last twenty minutes. Aubrey sighed. She had not expected this walkthrough Christmas light display to be so busy, but she had to admit she was glad there were so many food vendors there. They had been waiting to eat until the rest of their friends arrived, but after Sunny, Basil, and Hero all had to cancel at the last minute, they decided to just eat without them.

“Yes, uh…hi!” Kel began to order. “I’d like two fish tacos, a spicy chicken burrito, and a chimichanga. And…whatever she wants.” As he turned towards Aubrey, she resisted the urge to press her palm to her forehead.

“Uh…” stumbled the food truck worker. “This is a Burger Boys. We only sell…uh…burgers here…”

“Wait…what? No way. I thought this was a Taco Time.” Kel laughed before motioning over his shoulder. “Oh that’s over there…my bad.”

Aubrey gritted her teeth. She had known Kel for most of her life. There was no way he was this stupid. Had her affection for him really blinded her this much?

Kel blinked as if waiting for her to tell him off for making them wait for twenty minutes in the wrong line or for her to tease him about getting the lines mixed up in the first place. And, sure, on another day she might have motioned to the big, glowing, neon sign that said “BURGERS” in bright red letters directly above their heads, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that that was the problem—that she had been too harsh with him all this time so instead she just shrugged her shoulders as Kel asked her, “Hey Aubrey, do you want burgers or tacos?”

Aubrey’s stomach rumbled, but she managed a tight smile. “Whatever you want, Kel.”

Kel blinked at her but ultimately, thankfully, decided, “Burgers are fine. We’re already here.”

When they got their order and finally sat down at one of the folding picnic tables to eat, Aubrey caught Kel staring at her with a curious expression. “Hey…Aubrey…is everything okay?”

“Yeah, everything’s fine,” she quickly replied. “Why?”

“No reason…” Kel mumbled turning his attention back to a packet of mustard he was trying to open on his hamburger. It quickly exploded all over his coat, sweater, and the table. “Shoot!” he muttered as he quickly tried to clean it up. Aubrey huffed—reaching up to wipe off the mustard that had splashed onto her cheek, but she held her tongue. “Sorry,” said Kel with an apologetic shrug of his shoulders.  

“Don’t worry about it.”

Kel stopped wiping up the table and stared right at her. Keeping his eyes transfixed on her, he reached for his soda, took off the lid, and poured the whole thing directly onto his coat.

What the heck?

Unable to even process what had just happened, Aubrey could only blink at him in astonishment. Quite without thinking, she immediately reached out to hand him some napkins, but Kel swatted them away with his hands.

“Oh come on!” he exclaimed in exasperation. “What is wrong with you?”

“What’s wrong with me?” Aubrey shot back—the words tumbling out of her mouth before she could even think to stop them. “You just poured a whole soda on yourself.”

“Yes, I did, and you didn’t tell me off or laugh or tease me or say, ‘Gosh Kel you’re such a moron’ or ‘Why in the world would you do that?’ You’ve been acting weird all week. It’s freaking me out. I’ve been trying to do more and more ridiculous things hoping that I’d get some sort of normal response from you, but you’ve been acting…” He paused as if he couldn’t think of the right word before finally deciding on, “really weird.”

“Hold on…” interjected Aubrey. “You’ve been doing these things on purpose? So your backwards sweater and making us wait in the wrong line and trying to order tacos at a burger truck…and that thing with the mustard—?”

“Oh that was an accident, but the other ones were on purpose,” Kel admitted. Then, he sighed. “Look, Aubrey, are we fighting or something? ‘Cause whatever I did, I’m really sorry. Could we just hash it out like normal? You’ve been really quiet, and—I dunno—it just feels wrong.”

“You think we’re fighting? You think I’m mad at you?” Aubrey shook her head in disbelief. “I’ve been trying to be nice to you, you goofball.”

“Thank you! Yes!” exclaimed Kel, throwing up his hands. “I’m a goofball. It feels really good to hear you say that again.”

Aubrey sighed. Kel was unbelievable.

She shook her head and buried her face in her hands. “Kel…” her voice trailed. She didn’t know what she wanted to say. “This…isn’t a joke.”

Kel’s expression softened, and he reached across the table to take her hand. “So something is bothering you…” he said in a quiet voice.

With a sigh, Aubrey shrugged her shoulders.

“You want to talk about it?”

No, thought Aubrey, but she knew she didn’t get that option, so she took a deep breath. “I…I’ve just been really worried that I’m too harsh with you. We bicker and tease each other, but that doesn’t mean I don’t—”

She stopped abruptly. A flush of rose filled her cheeks as she pursed her lips. She thought of Sunny, engaged to be married and happier than she had seen him in a very long time, and she thought Hero putting himself back out there after all this time, even when they had all thought it was impossible. But mostly she thought of Kel—his warm kindness, his unwavering loyalty to his friends, the way he always tried to make her laugh whenever she was feeling down, and how he’d stop the world to make someone happy again, even if that someone was her. Maybe Sunny was right after all. He deserved to know.

“Kel…you’re one of the nicest people I know. You’re kind and cheerful and you always choose to see the best in people…and you go out of your way to try to make them happy—to make them laugh or smile, because that’s when you’re happiest too. You…have a really big heart and have been such an incredible friend to me. I feel like I don’t show that—or say that enough.”

As he tilted his head at her, Kel’s dark eyes widened in surprise. His jaw fell slack, but he somehow managed a breathy chuckle and a teasing, “Wow…tell me what you really think of me.”

Despite the blush in her cheeks, Aubrey let out a breathy chuckle before she somehow mustered the strength to look him in the eyes. “I think you’re really great, and I don’t want the fact that we bicker or tease each other sometimes to hide that. You’re…”—she paused and stared down at her hands again—“really important to me. I just wanted you to know.”

The next few, silent moments were some of the longest of Aubrey’s entire life. She couldn’t bring herself to look at Kel, let alone even begin to imagine what he must be thinking, but after what felt like an eternity, she felt the picnic table shift as Kel got up from his seat, walked over to her, and pulled her into a tight hug.

“Thank you,” he said. “That’s one of the nicest things you’ve ever said to me.”

“Not the nicest?” she quipped, her voice shaking as he pulled her against his chest. He didn’t answer that—just held her for a long time.

Even so, it wasn’t long enough before he let out a long and heavy sigh and whispered in a quiet, serious voice, “You know, don’t you?”

As he pulled away from her, Aubrey tilted her head at him in confusion. He looked flustered—almost guilty.

“This is exactly why I wasn’t going to tell you,” he began sheepishly rambling. “I didn’t want to make things weird, but I guess it was pretty obvious, huh?” He paused, chuckling as he rubbed the nape of his neck. “Look, I appreciate all of this Aubrey, but you don’t have to use the kid gloves with me. I’m okay. Like I said, I wasn’t even going to mention it. I mean, I know it’s not going to happen, and I didn’t want to make things awkward for you or anything so—”

“Kel.” Aubrey bit her lip. He looked almost relieved when she interrupted him. “I don’t…what do you think that I know?”

Kel paused and audibly swallowed, but he shrugged. “How I feel about you.”

The sincere look in his eyes made Aubrey’s face burn—her stomach erupting with butterflies, but somehow she still couldn’t believe it. “What? What do you mean?”

Unexpectedly, Kel’s face fell, and Aubrey’s insides twisted at the pained look in his eyes. The helplessness of his stumbling, “Please, Aubrey…That’s…not fair…just forget it,” was enough to make her heart ache.

Still, she somehow managed to say what was probably the worst possible thing she could have said at the moment, “No.”

“No?” choked Kel, and Aubrey’s face flushed.

“Sorry. I…I didn’t mean it like that,” she quickly added. “I just…I know I’m not hearing you. I…I can’t be. You’re…you’re the one that doesn’t…” She stopped.  “I—I’m…just ‘bat girl.’ That’s why you got me those earrings, right? Because I’m the girl who picked a fight with you with a bat in a church, and there is no coming back from that.”

“Aubrey…” Kel sighed, almost as if he didn’t know what to say. “Yeah…you’re right—you are the girl who picked a fight with me with a bat in a church…and also in the park and at our secret hangout spot by the lake…”

His voice trailed, but he expression softened. “But you’re also the girl who sat out by that lake with me for hours the summer after we learned the truth and several years after that. The girl I could talk to about anything, even things that were too difficult to say to anyone else because I knew you’d never judge me. You’re the girl who I always want to make laugh because even though you don’t smile all that much, whenever you do, it feels like everything is going to be okay. You’re the girl who always teases me but I know you’ll always be there if I need you. The girl I always want to call if I have good news or bad news or any kind of news at all—the girl who is one of the best friends I’ve ever had, who I think about all the time—when I’m at work or on a run or listening to this song that makes me think of you…even when Basil drags me to some craft fair in the middle of nowhere and I find those earrings…”

Kel sighed. “That’s why I bought them—because I was thinking about you, because I’m always thinking about you…And not because you’re ‘bat girl’ but…because you’re Aubrey…and I…I uh…”

He stopped, but the light flush of red in his cheeks said everything that he couldn’t say. Aubrey swallowed hard. Her hands began to tremble. She had no idea what to say—what she even could say to follow up all of that.

“I’m pretty sure I’m the moron, here,” she teased with a light, self-deprecating chuckle. “I honestly had no idea you felt that way. This whole time I thought I was… that you were… that after everything…” She sighed heavily. She was completely butchering this, but thankfully, Kel cut her off with a playful laugh.

“Seriously? It was pretty obvious. Everybody knew about it. Heck, even Basil called me out on it at the Christmas party.”

“Really? Sunny called me out then too. Do you think they planned that?”

 Kel shrugged. “Dunno. I mean, Hero mentioned it a couple of times too, so maybe they’re all in cahoots.”

“Well they didn’t show up today, so it wouldn’t surprise me.” Aubrey paused with an affectionate roll of her eyes. “Though to be fair, I think they were exaggerating…I mean I don’t think we were that obvious…” She twisted her mouth to one side. “I mean, you didn’t know how I felt about you either.”

“And how’s that?” teased Kel with a lopsided grin.

Aubrey’s face flushed, but when she looked up into Kel’s eyes, they were so kind, so affectionate, and so sincere that she realized… “You…you really don’t know?”

With a helpless shrug of his shoulders, Kel smiled just slightly at her, and she reached up to gently cup his face in her hands, then leaned forward and kissed him. It was a brush of their lips—they were in a public place after all, but it was enough to make Aubrey blush bright red.

When she pulled away from him, she mumbled, “Does…uh…that make it clear enough?”

“I’m not sure I really got that,” he quipped with a bright, bantering smile. “You wanna try again?”

“Not here,” she laughed, playfully patting his cheek as he leaned towards her again.  

“How about when you come for Christmas?”  

Aubrey stopped. “That was a real invitation? I thought it was one of your purposefully ridiculous things.”

“No, that was real, and the offer still stands if you want it.”

As Aubrey met Kel’s eyes, a smile spread across her face. She reached out and took his hand, giving it a gentle, affectionate squeeze. “I’d love to.”

Kel laughed before he playfully poked her in the arm. “But just one thing…you’re gonna have to leave your bat in the car.”

As Aubrey laughed in spite of herself and tried her best to stifle it, Kel winked at her. With an affectionate roll of her eyes, she playfully tapped him on the back of the head. He really could be such a moron sometimes, but he could also be a confidant, a pick-me-up on the worst day, her best friend, and the person that meant most to her in the world. She supposed Kel could be a lot of things, and as he had pointed out, she could be a lot of things too. But as Kel’s face softened into a warm, affection smile and he intertwined their fingers as they began to walk together through the Christmas lights, Aubrey knew there was one thing that she would never be again...and that was alone.

[sissa-arrows]

That french show "j'irai dormir chez vous- Algérie" received so much (negative) attention, when they posted the teaser it was already the most number of views the show had gotten, but a lot of people expressed their deception after watching the whole thing and many speculated the episode was made specifically to tarnish Dzayer's image.

Antoine had been to Kabylie and Ghardaïa , hadn't met police there, when he went to our Sahara close to the borders he was asked to have a local guide, he refused so instead of kicking him out, the police proposed that a civil followed him from afar to ensure his safety , he did not refuse, he then wanted to get a permission to adventure outside of the city that was refused.

The security agents had all been dressed in civil and calmly talked to him, they shouldn't have been filmed yet he filmed them, they explained that they weren't worried about the city or its lovely people, that it was safe but they wanted to be extra safe, the country is just opening up to tourism and receiving so much hate, it also has troubled borders, so while it is safe tourists (even Algerian) need to be accompagnied with a guide in the Sahara, a lost or dead journalist would not do good to the country's image.

With all that in mind, Antoine really said: oh i get it now you want to keep me safe to give Algeria a good image, no problem i'll give you a completely different reason to worry. And it become a subject of trends between all those journalists outside who has a job to criticize everything relateed to the country, they need to earn money after all.

All of this doesn't bother me, French ppl who come here have the tendency to bring out the worst in us, we are used to it, the police should have been more subtle or told him off right off the bat, altho you do imagine that they'd still be criticied no matter what (if they didn't care and something bad happened , if they were more stern, or laid back) But the realiy is that this whole fuss is made because a white man ws stopped in a third world country.

It's easy to reverse the situation, if i, an Algerian had been to France to film an emission and the police stopped me from going to a certain place alone, worried about my safety, and filmed it, i would be the one criticized for being irresponsible for not cooperating. But when a white man does it, he he is denouncing corruption and toxic behavior , while he sounds objectively completely insane (not to mention offensive with his offhanded comments on M'zab women and the Kabylie status) Even though we all know how are people can be treated aboard, it is always assumed it is our fault, but never the fault of the more responsible white man on backwarded countries.

Also just one thing, the security wasn't aware he was a jornalist at first and Algerians are also stopped when they want to wonder alone in the desert, it doesn't have to do with nationality, although yes french channels are usually kept abay, it doesn't have to do with colonialism as much as their more recent behavior . Also there has been a case of a european tourist dying in the desert last year, i assume security was blamed then.

(sorry for info dumping ;-; the previous anon made me think, i didn't know where to put this)

The first time I wandered alone in the Sahara with my grandparents we wanted to cross the border with Mali, we had the paperwork and all but the border agents said no. They said only my grandpa could cross the border but not my grandma or me. The feminist inside me got angry and then the border agent was like “My sister, the Malian authorities told us there was potential terrorists near the border and that it wasn’t safe for women right now that you could get kidnapped. So sit down I’m not letting you cross the border.” The feminist inside me immediately calmed down 😂

But yeah all of that to say that if he was in the Sahara it 100% makes sense that the authorities were watching over him. Some places are protected too and only Kel Tamasheq/Touareg can go there. There’s also the area around Tindouf and the border with Western Sahara…

Anyway thank you for all the informations!!

[aubreysheadspace]

Hello, I hope you are having a wonderful day! Are you able to write a platonic x Rw Aubrey of Reader joining the Hooligan’s and being besties with her, as well as her being protective of reader from anyone that threatens or hurts them. (As well as hugging and bonding over their rough home situations.)

For more context, Reader was apart of the friend group, being the youngest by one year, though they were a little distant due to shyness and anxiety, as they had a rough home life with an alcoholic parent. They were closest with Mari, Sunny, and Aubrey, but still good friends with Basil, Kel, and Hero.

I hope you have a great day!

REALWORLD AUBREY WITH READER JOINING THE HOOLIGANS (PLATONIC)

thank you!! I hope u have an amazing day!~ this is such a bittersweet idea <3 hope u enjoy!!

here’s part two and part three!

AUBREY

AUBREY’s known you long ago from when both of you were still in the friend group

and since you joined the friend group, SUNNY was no longer the baby of the group since you were the youngest by one year from SUNNY, AUBREY, BASIL, and KEL while you were younger than HERO and MARI by 4 years!

like with everyone else that was younger than her, MARI would treat you like a little sibling. SUNNY would relate to you about being shy and anxious and would be there for you.. but would understand if you wanted to be left alone, and AUBREY would try and be another big sister to you!

AUBREY would always be a bit sad when you’re a bit distant to everyone, especially her. but now that MARI is gone, she grew distant of everyone else because she though everyone was moving on from her death too fast, except.. you

when you decide to join the HOOLIGANS, AUBREY was genuinely a bit taken aback..

she genuinely thought you moved on from the old friend group like she thought everyone else did

but hey, unlike everyone else you were actually trying to reconnect with her at least

she also remembers that you were shy and anxious, so she knows it must’ve taken you some courage

so fuck it! welcome to the HOOLIGANS!

you have KIM and VANCE being nice enough to share some candy with you, as long as it isn’t taffy

ANGEL ranting about how absolutely amazing his master, the MAVERICK, is and how he can get so many girls to you

CHARLENE, or CHARLIE, understands if you’re a bit shy.. she’s like that too! there will always be comfortable silence when you’re around her

and of course, AUBREY, who is a bit overprotective with you the most!

she knows you well, she knows that you’re a bit weak.. but not in a mean way! and due to both of your guy’s home life, she understands you

if you ever run into some trouble, AUBREY will not hesitate to start a fight with the HOOLIGANS right behind her

some kids at school have decided to take advantage of your shy and anxious nature by picking on you. you try to block out most of the harsh words they were saying towards you, but it was hard. you could feel your heart racing, a lump in your throat, and an aching in your chest.

that is.. until you heard a familiar, strong feminine voice call out to the kids and immediately rush over to where you guys were at, automatically saying threats to them

"wh— HEY! who do you think you are, messing with them?! you’ll be messing with my fists and the end of these nails on my bat if you don’t get the fuck outta here! anytime i see you around [READER] again, i won’t hesitate to destroy you."

and she’s honest, she’ll kick their asses. and she also instructs the rest of the HOOLIGANS to do the same if they see those kids around you

they got your back! they’re treating you like them now! like the saying, "if mess with them, you mess with all of us" or something like that

and of course, AUBREY treats you like a little sister. she’ll be the badass older sister that you never had, who deeply cares about you

if you both are alone and with your permission, she’ll drop the tough guy act and talks to you about her problems since she’s known you for a long time

and she’ll gladly let you talk about your problems with her as well, but she won’t force you at all if you’re too scared to of course, but keep in mind she’s horrible at advice

since you both have terrible home situations, she’ll take you out for the rest of the day. hell, she’ll even take you to church to find peace with her, only if you want to of course

and finally, AUBREY would speak for you if you’re too nervous to speak to anyone at any point. just tell her what to say and she’ll say it without a doubt.

[styloplumes]

Yellow hyacinths ☆ Basil x Sunny

Notes: Basil x Sunny, rivals to lovers, school Au, no spoilers

Yellow hyacinth meaning: Jealousy

Basil. That was the name of the flower boy. He had always loved plants, growing all kinds of them and treating them with upmost care. The plants and flowers he grew were his friends. Of course with knowing so much about them he knew the meanings associated with them. He would assign everybody he met with a certain plant that he thought would fit them. "Cacti are very sturdy and resilient by nature. They don't need much care and can survive even in impossible conditions! I guess what I'm saying is... that even you can take care of a cactus Kel!”

Yellow hyacinths

That's the flower he associated to his former friend and classmate. Sunny. Sunny was a good student, he had good grades, played the violin and overall was very well liked. Mari was his older sister, she had a good reputation as well and they were known to play the piano and violin together.

They all used to be friends. Basil and Sunny were best friends as the two bonded easily due to their more introverted demeanor. Unfortunately the friendship didn't last long.

Basil and Sunny had grown somewhat of a rivalry. At first it was not really a problem, just a little simple rivalry between friends.

But then the rivalry escalated. Sunny had started to brag and go on about his academic success and even said things such as the friend group would be better without Basil anyways. Basil had not liked the rivalry that was happening between them and tried to get Sunny to stop. Maybe he was mad at him? He really wasn't sure anymore.

Despite not wanting to, Basil decided to end his friendship with Sunny to prevent any future problems with him and his friends.

Basil had separated himself from the group. He never said anything he just left. He didn't want to be a burden to them with his and Sunny's troubles. 'They shouldn't worry about something so silly.' That's what he kept saying to himself.

But it's not like his friends would just let this go unnoticed. 'Maybe Sunny and Basil had an argument.' That's what their initial thought was.

But when they went to talk to Basil about it he just made up some excuse or avoided them completely. It's not like they could ask Sunny about it either, he just pretended Basil never existed.

Hero and Kel were on a mission to get Basil back in the friend group while on the other hand Mari and Aubrey were trying to convince Sunny to tell them what happened.

For a while neither groups were successful until finally Mari convinced her little brother to tell her and Aubrey what happened.

Sunny explained the rivalry but brushed it off as no big deal and that Basil was better off not in their friend group.

This was shocking news to them. Sure they had assumed Basil and Sunny had a fight but they hadn't expected Sunny to say something so harsh.

Aubrey was getting ready to swing her bat at Sunny but fortunately Mari stopped her. While that was going on Hero and Kel found Basil watering yellow hyacinths in the school garden. Even from afar they could see the faint sadness on Basil’s smile.

They slowly approached their friend careful not to startle him. They made sure to be in a position where Basil couldn't run off again like he usually would. "Hey Basil! Nice flowers, they look great as always thanks to you!" Kel started. "O-oh hello and thank you Kel." This was their chance, Basil actually spoke to them, now they can use this opportunity to ask him about what happened.

"Hey Basil, what's been going on with you and Sunny? I mean you guys are best buds right?" Kel didn't hesitate to get to the point. He and the others wanted to know what happened and get their friend back.

"W-what happened between me and Sunny, well uh don't worry it's nothing to worry about!" This did not convince the two brothers as they knew Basil would try to come up with some excuse to get away from telling the truth.

"C'mon Basil! We just want our friend back. Please tell us so we can resolve the problem. We hate seeing you guys fight, and it's not a small playful fight like the ones me and Aubrey have. This is serious!"

Basil paused with uncertainty. He couldn't bear even thinking about his friends being sad for a problem of his. Hesitantly he told Kel and Hero what happened between him and Sunny.

After he told them everything he felt like he managed to get a huge weight off his chest. "Don't worry Basil! We'll make sure everything will go back to the way it was."

It was at this time that Hero and Kel spotted Mari and Sunny, Aubrey was behind Sunny  and the tip of her bat was on Sunny's back as if she were escorting him.

"I thought I'd find you guys here. Don't worry I gave Sunny one of his big sister's scoldings, I think he's learned his lesson and is here to apologize."

Sunny mostly looked embarrassed by this whole thing but he also seemed to be somewhat apologetic despite his flustered expression.

"We're going to leave the two of you alone. I believe there's something Sunny would like to say." And with that the friend group departed from the garden so that it would be just the two boys. Basil and Sunny.

Sunny looked over at the flowers Basil was watering. Basil had looked over to where Sunny's gaze went. His flowers.

The yellow hyacinths

Basil bent down and picked a few to form a little bouquet and gave them to Sunny. "These flowers don't mean something very nice yet somehow they're how I feel about you." Even though Sunny hadn't known the exact meaning of the flowers he could still feel the insult.

Even though it didn't seem like it Sunny really did want to apologize but Basil isn't making this any easier for him.

Sunny looked around at the garden and saw some roses. Red roses. He walked over to them and carefully picked a few, making sure he didn't damage the others.

Then he walked back over to Basil and held them out.

"Basil I'm sorry and I know this is a dumb apology but I really am sorry and there's a reason why I started this whole rivalry." He gently placed the little bouquet of red roses into Basil's hands.

Basil stared down at the flowers. 'Red roses. Sunny apologized and gave me red roses.'  He didn't know what to say. Did Sunny really just confess his feelings? The whole reason for this rivalry is because Sunny didn't know how to express the way he felt towards Basil?

All the flower boy did was give him a hug, Sunny was a bit surprised but returned it. After they separated Basil made a flower crown out of the yellow hyacinths and red roses and placed on top of Sunny's head.

"They look nice on you." A small blush could be seen on Basil's face as he said that. Sunny was blushing too, both from his cheesy confession and the flower crown Basil gave him but he was able to hide it better.

It was already after school and the sun was setting so Sunny took Basil's hand with his and with that the two walked down the faraway town street together.

Little did the two know that their friend group was watching the whole time.

MY TIME (Omori masterlist)

Main navigation

[ryhmus]

ROWAN interactions with other members of the group

OMORI; "You were a mistake, ROWAN. You endanger the Dreamer with your reckless intentions."

ROWAN; "Speak for yourself you damned hypocrite. How's what you you want from him any better?"

KEL(Pre-reconciliation); "Hey, what's your problem with us? Why are you such a big jerk?"

ROWAN; "I don't no problem with any of you guys... It's only that monochrome freak you call a friend and the phony he replaced me with."

AUBREY(Pre-reconciliation); "...I should hit you after what you tried to do to OMORI."

ROWAN; "Try it when you can actually hit harder."

HERO(Pre-reconciliation); "I don't like how you cheated to beat us. That's not fair."

ROWAN: "World ain't fair pal, just roll with it."

MARI(Pre-reconciliation); "You're being very rude, I think you should apologize to my friends and my little brother."

ROWAN;(Recoils in fear) "No! No! get away, get away from me!"

BASIL(Pre-reconciliation); "I understand you've been through a lot to be this way, but maybe we can..."

ROWAN; "Don't you dare compare me to yourself. I will never let you replace me, never. Don't you forget that, faker."

ROWAN;" You ready for an adventure, buddy?"

FLOWER;"As long as I'm with you, I always am.~"

Aubrey (Pre- reconciliation); "You broke my bat you fucking asshole!"

ROWAN; "Well try that stunt again and I'll make you wish that nail bat of yours was the only thing I broke."

Hero (Pre-reconciliation); "You're a psychopath."

ROWAN;"...Nicest thing anyone's ever said about me..."

Kel (Pre-reconciliation); "Hey...I was wondering, instead of working with those D.R.E.A.M. guys and doing bad things for them. Why don't we just be friends and work together, whaddya say?"

ROWAN;"*Aggressive stare*"

Kel;"O-kay...I'll take that as a no..."

ROWAN;"You got something to say or are you just gonna sit there and quake in your shoes?"

Basil(Pre-reconciliation);"..."

ROWAN;"Hmph, I thought so..."

CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR CHAPTERS 17

Aubrey (Post-reconciliation); "Hey, ROWAN you ever think about joining me and my gang?

ROWAN;"Me? in your gang? I don't think I'd fit in well. But I'll think about it."

Kel(Pre-reconciliation); "How much do you think you can lift? I bet twenty bucks you can't lift that boulder over there."

ROWAN;"(Chuckles darkly to himself) Easiest twenty buck ever...~"

Basil(Post- reconciliation);"So I was curious about something...How much about gardening do you know?"

ROWAN;"For starters, I recommend not over-watering those petunias you have in the front yard as much as you do, they need only a little bit of water."

Basil;"Ah, that explains why they haven't been doing that well. Thanks for the advice."

AUBREY (Post- reconciliation);"Hi ROWAN you want to come to have tea party with me and MR. PLANTEGG later?"

ROWAN; "As long as I get to pour the tea this time."

ROWAN;"Hey, you okay HERO? I'm truly sorry about what happened to on the hospital."

HERO (Post- reconciliation);"I...I'm fine...You tried your best...we were just too late to help."

ROWAN; "I won't let it come to that again. Hero didn't deserve to be murdered like that. I refuse to lose any more of our friends to people like Dr. Yen."

KEL (Post- reconciliation); "Wanna see how many ice cubes I can fit in my mouth before I get brain freeze? My record is five."

ROWAN;"Hell yeah! mine's ten."

BASIL (Post- reconciliation)"H-hey...um. No hard feelings about the weed whacker thing?"

ROWAN;"It still kinda stings from time to time...and I also kinda deserved it too."

MARI (Post- reconciliation) "I'm happy you're finally getting along with everyone. I just wish you'd get along with my little brother as well."

ROWAN;"OMORI and I will never see eye to eye ever again. And I think we both prefer it that way."

BONUS

STRANGER;*Summons his SOMETHING* "If you do not turn back from the way you are going and reconsider your actions, you won't like the consequences that come with them."

ROWAN: "Am I supposed to be intimidated by that pathetic little thing you got? Please, I was made to kill SOMETHINGS bigger than that. You sure YOU don't want to reconsider?"

FACECLUSTER; "*Unholy screeching*"

*Overdue starts to play in background*

ROWAN; "What the fuck is that thing?!"

[searchforahero]

batman: the widening gyre #6

[phoenixyfriend]

Bare Your Teeth, Soldier: Chapter 2

Read on AO3

Hey the Suddenly Omegaverse AU is back! This chapter is about 7k words, and contains a lot of pointless nonsense (bickering).

This fic is rated Mature because, while the content does not enter explicit territory, there is a lot of discussion of reproduction, genitalia, and so on (in this chapter, it is in Anakin's 'class notes').

Please read the chapter warnings before you proceed, just to be fully informed of what you're getting into. IMO it shouldn't be a problem if you read the first chapter, but everyone's standards are different.

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

Anakin leans over to whisper in Obi-Wan’s ear. “Why is there a sunken couch thing?”

Obi-Wan does not appreciate this. In fact, he swats at Anakin like a fly that is inconveniently harassing his head. He manages to land a limp smack to Anakin’s cheek. Anakin bats his hand away in turn.

Depa turns to stare at them with a fascinated, head-tilting smile. “Boys?”

Obi-Wan blushes, though it’s hard to see behind the beard. Anakin grins. Score!

“We were surprised by the depression in the corner of the living room,” Obi-Wan says. “I can’t think of any suites that have those in our own Temple.”

Depa makes a considering noise, expression going odd. “None?”

“Are they common here?” Anakin asks.

“Nearly all terrestrial rooms have them by default,” Depa confirms. “They’re nesting divots.”

They’re… what.

The confusion and shock must be more than obvious. Depa smiles wryly. “I see this is one of those things that must be part and parcel of the secondary dynamics that you don’t have in your own human lines.”

“Nesting?” Obi-Wan parrots. “I’m… no, we don’t.”

“It’s human-standard, so the default is for the divots to be present, but they can be covered with boards or converted to a different furnishing. Humans may have the highest population in the galaxy, and thus the greater fraction of the Jedi, but we’re not fool enough to assume that Kel Dor or Iktotchi will have any use for it. The quartermaster has relatively easy ways to modify it on hand.”

Anakin wanders over to peer over the edge. It’s not a sunken couch like he’d thought, but a square depression with regular holes along the edge, maybe twelve feet across each way. There is no additional rise at the rim, just a straight right angle from interior wall to floor, and he wonders how often a mouse droid falls in and can’t get out. “What’s usually done with it?”

“For nesting species, the modifiers adjust the sides to slope and curve the shape to be circular instead of square,” Depa explains. “For those who don’t, I believe it’s usually either covered up to expand the empty floorspace, and then used for storage, or is furnished with seating. The ‘sunken couch,’ as you said.”

So the squareness is for those who don’t nest. Anakin can feel how baffled Obi-Wan is at humans being the ones who need this.

“There are also smaller, circular nesting divots in all the bedrooms,” Depa adds, and Anakin feels himself twitch. “Those are usually covered up and used for storage of winter gear and the like, since they are sloped by default.”

“Covering would be good, yes,” Obi-Wan says. He keeps looking at the square that Anakin’s in right now. “Couch for that one, you think?”

“I was thinking I could add a desk and use it as a workshop,” Anakin admits. He puts a hand on the edge, trying to gauge the height and figure out if it’s a good level for his projects. “Easier to get under large projects instead levitating them onto a desk, less chance of it rolling off and damaging something if it’s level with most of the floor already.”

Obi-Wan makes a face and heads over to the bedrooms.

Depa just watches them both, radiating amusement.

“I think it’s big enough to keep droid repairs to the personal rooms,” Obi-Wan decides. “Take a look.”

The rooms are basically the same as the ones back in their own temple, save for the seven-foot ‘nesting divot,’ which is vaguely insane to Anakin’s mind. It makes the room feel smaller, to have to keep part of it set aside for… the nest.

He wonders what nesting consists of, to require floor adjustments like this as a standard thing. Probably a lot of pillows and blankets. Maybe the architecture is designed to preemptively keep mess isolated to the one area. Like… it’s a lot easier to keep pillows in the thing if it’s got walls that are lower than the floor, right?

Do people keep babies in these things? Maybe it’s to keep babies from climbing out? Not for Jedi, obviously, but like… way way way back in human history, that was why? And it stayed a thing?

But there’s also an entirely normal bed. Is nesting supposed to be separate from sleeping? Or is that just there for the assumption that they’ll prefer beds over nesting? Do all rooms come with both, and then get adjusted? Or is there a purpose to having both a bed and a nest?

“So, covering that up and adding a second desk for droidwork,” Anakin decides. “And I guess I’ll see the quartermaster about getting a tool cabinet.”

“Is that your primary role when not at war?” Depa asks.

He does not jump at her suddenly being right behind him. He doesn’t. He’s more aware than that. “Uh, no, just a hobby. I’m too useful at, you know. Stabbing things.”

“Anakin,” Obi-Wan says, sounding as aggrieved as ever. “You know very well that you are not only useful for stabbing things.”

“I dunno, Master. Stabbing is like… my main thing.”

Obi-Wan puts his face in his hands and visibly tries not to groan.

Anakin grins, and looks to Depa. “I broke him.”

“I can see that.”

--

(The Temple should be safe. Should feel safe. But without the troopers, and with almost nobody here actually knowing them, it just feels wrong.)

(Anakin shouldn’t find the weight of greaves and vambraces so helpful. Obi-Wan hates that he’s finding solace in the reminder that their pasts are real.)

(They don’t have anything else. Their only reminders are the clothes on their backs and their sabers. They do not have Qui-Gon’s river stone, or their cut braids, or their droids and troopers and friends.)

(But they have their armor. They have their symbols. They have something that tells them they are what they remember.)

(The Jedi here don’t know what to make of that.)

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

(Continue on AO3)

[woodchipp]

"her actions have shown [how much she cares]" not being backed up by any of her actions throughout the game aside, this summary gets even funnier if you take a closer look at what kicks off the plot of One Day Left - Sunny, Kel and Hero confronting Aubrey at her house.

I have Things to say about that scene, both in terms of how it relates to Aubrey and to the game's writing in general.

Right off the bat, the game uses a milder version of "hell" right before inexplicably making Aubrey use the word itself. Something like

AUBREY: ...! AUBREY: Wh-What are you guys doing here?! AUBREY: GET THE HELL OUT OF MY ROOM!!

would've worked just as fine, in my opinion.

This game had three editors, by the way.

When pressed, the first thing Aubrey says about the incident at the lake is a straight-up lie in an attempt to diminish the severity of her wrongdoing. No, her watery eyes aren't going to convince me she's genuinely sorry.

1) Here it is again. Instead of owning up to her behavior at the very least, she continues trying to make the incident seem less severe than it actually was.

2) You "didn't mean to" push Basil into the lake even though he was obviously standing right at the edge of the pier? And you knew he was incapable of swimming? You're a fuckwad.

Accident or no accident, he was in active danger of dying. You chose to argue with Kel on the pier since that was more of a priority to you than trying to save your close friend.

And then she tries to reduce the severity of what she did for the third time! Sure, she does seem to apologize afterwards

but then immediately falls back on deflecting blame, which makes the apology come off as insincere.

Really, I would've preferred Aubrey being upfront about being a prick. Her incessant attempts to blame everyone and everything but herself for her choices don't make her complex because the game speedruns her redemption and we don't get to see her growth, which is also why said attempts become very grating after a certain point.

Aubrey isn't the only character I take issue with here, though.

1) Hero. My dude. Your own brother accused Aubrey of nearly killing another friend of yours. Aubrey confirmed said accusation. And you still dismiss it as a harmless squabble like the ones they had in their childhood days??

Either he's also stuck in his childhood mentally or he's just - and I'm not going to mince words here - a moron.

2) I love that Hero's reaction implies he still doesn't seem to take Kel seriously. You'd think he'd try to be more mindful of his little brother following that furious outburst, but nope. He still seems to view Kel as a rash little child he has to rein in.

One could argue this is meant to show that the charscters are flawed, and in a better story, I'd actually be inclined to agree. I like the idea of Hero struggling to move on from his role as the group's "dad", and I'd have liked if the story forced him to understand he can't keep playing their dad with a situation much more complicated than a "typical Kel and Aubrey fight". Likewise, Hero's perception of Kel as an impulsive, bratty kid persisting to the present day and causing friction with Kel himself would've made for an interesting conflict.

Of course, this isn't a better story, so after Kel and Aubrey's reactions, Hero's shallow peacemaking is promptly (and conveniently) forgotten when he notices the last bunch of missing photos.

Peak writing, everyone!

This game took six years and $200,000, by the way. No, I won't stop mentioning that.

My sister in Christ you are literally wearing her fucking headband. You were also given some of her other clothes, it seems.

If Aubrey's problem was about having nothing to remember Mari by, it's null and void to me because she clearly does have more than just the photos. Not only that, but this also comes off as the game trying to use Aubrey's grief as an excuse for her treatment of Basil, which is disgusting for reasons I shouldn't need to explain.

(oh, and Sunny's just Standing There. he doesn't contribute anything to the conversation at all. he could've been removed from this scene altogether and nothing of value would be lost. the main character of all time, truly)

[the-bugs-under-ur-skin]

Yandere Kel, Aubrey, Sunny, Hero and Basil jealousy HCs - Omori

the whole gang is here. i honestly love writing jealousy hcs, they’re very fun! thanks for all of the requests, i’m glad you guys like my blog! :)

[yandere Kel x reader]

-Kel is so bad at reading the room, it’s crazy

-if someone was flirting with you, he wouldn’t be able to immediately tell

-but when he does he’s completely ready to throw hands

-he’s more vocal about it when you both are actually dating, straight up threatening the guy in front of you

-he’ll also act overly loving towards you

-of course, some things would change if you’re relationship were still platonic

-mostly just less kissing, though

-other than that, it’s still a lot of flirting and arms around shoulders

-also hands around necks if the guy flirting with you doesn’t take the hint

-he’d also feel bad if he got jealous because he thinks that if he got jealous that means he wasn’t being romantic enough

-Kel is still very childish, but he does make an effort by going on more dates and being more clingy

-but other than someone explicitly trying to steal you away, he probably wouldn’t get jealous very often

-he mostly just focuses on what you’re doing, not what the people around you are doing

-but he would never hesitate to sock someone for you

[yandere Aubrey x reader]

-definitely gets jealous very easily, all you have to do is get along with someone else

-she doesn’t even trust her own posy

-Aubrey constantly fears that you’ll leave, but would always try to hide it

-but when she gets jealous she won’t hesitate to scream and shout at whoever she’s irritated at

-it doesn’t matter who is making her jealous she’ll always swear and threaten them

-and of course,, you know,,,

-*spiked bat noises*

-yeah, she’ll definitely beat whoever into oblivion

-if she’s jealous of someone you’re close with, she’ll tell them to scram but will go after them once you’re gone they’ll be dead

-hopefully you don’t connect the death of your friend to the jealous rage of your gf

-or if you do, don’t call her out for it

-she’s one of the worst when jealous, not only will she be ruthless to the person she’s jealous of, she’ll also keep you away from others for awhile

-she’ll start to invite you to hang out once it’s late out or go out to more secluded areas of the park

-you don’t mind, right? i mean, you are all hers after all...

[yandere Sunny x reader]

-*silent yet intense glaring*

-he also gets jealous often since he’s very lonely and your attention was one of the most (if not the most) amazing things to ever happen to him

-so when you give that to someone else, he’ll take it as a challenge 

-Sunny is probably the most unhinged when jealous

-he’s very willing to use weapons in broad daylight and he’ll also get the messiest

-also a bit of verbal fighting will be mixed in

-he’ll probably taunt them just to make them try and initiate the fight

-but one thing’s for certain, he’s not backing down

-he won’t really speak to you directly about his jealousy, but will hold your hand for the rest of the day

-hold him please, it’s all he needs right now

-also help him hide the body because you don’t want your boy going to jail

-he’s also the one to get jealous the most, hands down

-like, he isn’t the most insecure of the group, but he’s the most insecure of the group who lets you talk to others

-it’s kind of funny, he always tries his best to let you have friends but he ends up scaring them all away (on purpose, too. no way he just accidentally cut you’re friends with his knife)

-but believe me, he isn’t trying to scare you away

-he’s actually doing the opposite! he’s getting rid of people who want to ruin your relationship

-so please don’t leave him... please?

[yandere Hero x reader]

-Hero will absolutely shove in their face how close you both are

-”hi, i’m s/o boyfriend/best friend” and then continue the conversation like that didn’t even happen

-Hero will also try to act like he’s the cool and charming one, just casually sliding in and showing that he’s yours and you won’t take anyone else

-but he really does just come across like an insecure maniac

-if they’re some sort of catcaller or flirt, you better believe they’re about to get a few punches thrown their way

-he’s one of the more protective of the group even if he isn’t as intense as Sunny or Aubrey

-but he would appreciate it greatly if you bandaged up his fists afterwards

-he always tries to get you out of there, not wanting any negative attention on you

-he’s also the most embarrassed about getting jealous and will apologize to you after for getting so worked up

-it doesn’t really change too much though because he’s definitely just going to jealous again and then he’ll act the same way again

-but he’s also the best at holding it in, he’s always so close to not getting in a fight every time he gets jealous

-he’s probably the best to deal with though, because he’ll try to make up for his jealousy by pampering you and giving you some of his home baked food

-he really does just adore you more than he’s ever adored anything in his life, so it’s only natural that he’s going to think that everyone is just trying to take you away and keep you all to themselves

-but don’t worry darling! you know Hero would never let anyone take you away from him

[yandere Basil x reader]

-Basil is the most insecure but i’m sure y’all already knew

-he also definitely doesn’t have the guts to confront whoever is making him jealous so he just has to sit back and watch in horror

-and it’s even worse if he isn’t dating you!

-he can’t even run up to you and get you’re comfort because you wouldn’t even understand why he’s jealous

-but if you are dating, he’ll give you such a tight hug that you can’t breathe

-he’s absolutely terrified that you’re going to leave him forever and that he can’t do anything about it

-sometimes when he gets jealous from someone and he’s right next to you, he’ll hold you’re hand very tightly to try and hint that he wants you and him to get out of there as quickly as possible

-sometimes you’ll even get a quiet “...can we go please?”

-but that’s usually if you’ve been out for so long that he’s basically drowning in jealousy

-Basil does frequently get jealous, the only thing is that he basically always keeps you inside

-and if there’s no one to get jealous of than there’s no problem, right? :)

-i bet you that he sometimes will get himself jealous with his own thoughts though, so i guess you’re never safe :/

-probably the worst for you to deal with honestly 

-like, with everyone else, they’ll usually bother the person that’s making them jealous the most

-but since Basil is so scared of confronting them, he’ll just focus all of his jealousy on you

-that means you have to sit through all of Basil’s crying and begging for you to never leave every time you try to get up from wherever you and him are sitting

-and honestly, it’ll probably stay like that for awhile

-just him clinging onto you for dear life, acting as if you’ll disappear at any moment

-and it’ll stay that way until he feels better, and then you both can go outside again!

-and then of course he’ll get jealous again, because this whole thing is just one never ending cycle

[white-tulips]

you know how the emotions chart in the game reflects how kel (happy) hero (sad) and aubery (angry) responded to mari's death, aubery becoming a nail-bat toting delinquent & bullying basil, hero falling into depression, and kel trying to keep everyone's spirits up? i like the idea of them all shifting on the emotion chart post-confession. i haven't put nearly as much thought into angry kel or sad aubery, but i really like the idea of hero in particular being Happy: refusing to acknowledge his own emotional turmoil to try to keep everyone together like they all agreed and support everyone (especially sunny and basil) because he's Thee peacekeeper, and he can't make the same mistakes he did last time, and really isn't that what mari would want, and-- christ, how long have they been dealing with untreated psychosis? and, god, how long have they been suicidal? no matter what... they did, he can't lose them, absolutely not like that.

i like to imagine that with sunny and basil in particular he's so transparently convinced that Something is going to happen if he personally isn't Responsible for them, bc like. let's all sit down and reflect on how a lot of ppl in this fandom view ppl with mental illness, and moreover how ppl in real life-- especially those in medical/psychiatric fields-- view and treat people with mental illness, particularly psychosis of any sort

oooooooooo anon this is some interesting stuff

I'm very very interested in the concept of angry Kel, I was talking about that a bit the other day

and ooo..... you know, I think there's a lot we can do with sad Aubrey actually. my thoughts are a bit rough and hazy but, if her situation at the end of the game is taken into consideration I think it makes sense. she's been angry for so long, and she just got her senses slapped back into her right? and just as things are starting to look up, the rug is pulled out from under her again. it's possible she could slip back into anger, but... she's been using those kinds of emotions as a mask, or like a way to cope, but deep down she's always been confused and sad, and learning the full truth might be the breaking point? I don't know exactly but, I think there could be smth to work with here

your idea for Hero is interesting too. I can really see him as a "fixer" type of person. having to push everything he's feeling aside, not even thinking about what he's feeling, in order to solve problems and not allow things to get worse. I really like the last point you bring up regarding people in medical fields handling people with mental illness. it stirs up a lot of thoughts about how Hero could potentially view Sunny and Basil through not only the eyes of a concerned friend, but also a doctor (in training) viewing patients that need help. honestly the dichotomy there is really intriguing

[peppermintbee]

OMORI has poor writing (Part 1)

OMORI stans, just block the #omori hate tag now because I’m going to use it to vent my frustrations with this game. If you love this game, I am not going to try to convince you otherwise. I am glad you enjoyed it so much. I am glad it means a lot to you. I’m not here to take that away from you. I honestly wish I felt the same way!

However, if you are like me and finished the game feeling disappointed, underwhelmed, and maybe a little frustrated, then I am here to say you are not alone. OMORI--while having the right set pieces for an interesting game--is a narrative mess.

I’m splitting this into two posts. This first post is about problems with the plot. The second is about problems with the message/moral. 

(Note: I use “OMORI” in all-caps for the game title, and “Omori” in title case for the character name.)

Spoilers and criticism below.

Part 1: Plot Writing Lies

There’s a book by Brian McDonald called Invisible Ink which is about how to write a compelling story (you can read this great book online for free here). There’s an explanation of the writing “lie” that I find myself frequently thinking of. A “lie” in this context does not mean something is literally untrue, it means something FEELS untrue, unrealistic, improbable, or unlikely. For example, if a character gets shot in the leg but manages to do parkour, this is a “lie” since it seems unrealistic for that to happen. If a character witnesses their beloved parent’s death and shrugs it off, it’s a “lie” because that reaction seems highly unlikely.

In OMORI, the plot is held together by multiple little lies that--try as I might--I just couldn’t bring myself to believe.

1. Sunny’s friends care about him, and vice versa

A major theme of the game is how friendship can overcome any obstacle. Friendship gets Sunny over his fear of heights, spiders, and water. Friendship is what Sunny remembers before the final boss fight, and allows him to face his guilt and defeat it (and prevent him from committing suicide). With the photobook and dialogue you are reminded over and over and over and over and over again that Sunny’s friends love him unconditionally.

However, I just couldn’t bring myself to believe it. The childhood memories are cute but shallow, boiling down to simply hanging out and eating treats. Plus, Kel and Aubrey fight constantly, with Aubrey even physically hitting Kel when he steps out of line. Hero and Mari behave more like babysitters than true friends to the younger kids. 

But at least the other kids interact with each other. Sunny, on the other hand, showed nearly no affection or consideration towards his friends. He floats through the memories like a ghost--he could have been completely absent from all the photos and it would have made little difference. I was ready to accept this as Sunny being an unreliable narrator and not thinking he was a good enough for his friends, but this never contradicted. Instead we are given even more memories where Sunny just silently exists there being “cute.”

[Sunny enriching the lives of his friends by LARPING as a cat.]

Because of the lack of meaningful interactions between them, there was nothing in the game that made me think that these 12-15 year olds would have a strong enough bond that would survive 3-4 years of no contact after finding their friend hanged. In fact, that discovery only drove them farther apart. The only person who I could believe actually had a close bond was Basil, who almost literally filled that trope of being the friend who would help you bury a body (or in this case, help Sunny cover up the accidental manslaughter).

The writing fix for this would be simple: instead of showing us the same boring birthday and beach scenes over again, give the kids memories of overcoming some age-appropriate adversity together: heartbreak over an unrequited crush, anxiety over homework, sports injury, lost dogs, divorced parents, running away from home, bullying, etc. Set a precedent of the friends supporting each other through good times AND bad times. Without such backstory, Sunny’s friendships allegedly giving him the courage to overcome his guilt feels like a lie.

2. Sunny abandoning Basil in the bathroom scene

One of the most confusing moments in the game was Sunny’s negligence when Basil has his first breakdown in his bathroom. This part of the game is player-controlled, which is a strange writing decision because all you can do is click on Basil and various bathroom amenities over and over which completely saps the urgency out of the scene. When you try to leave, Basil begs Sunny to stay, but (due to a lack of player options) Sunny walks out without a word. With no option to talk to him OR get help for him, it makes Sunny seem exceptionally cruel to Basil. In fact, I was starting to wonder if the game was setting up for some sort of twist that Sunny DIDN’T care about his friends, which would fix some of the confusion in point #1. However, as we know, that is not the case. Therefore, Sunny’s negligence/apathy towards Basil’s pain feels like a lie.

The writing fix would be to make it MORE clear that Sunny is intentionally running away from Basil. Make it a cutscene, or, give a false choice such as “Leave Basil? Yes / Yes”. After Sunny leaves, Kel should make some remark about Sunny looking odd, “You look sort of shaken up, is there something you want to tell me?” then hit it home with Sunny shaking his head. This would make it more clear that Sunny is intentionally hiding Basil’s state, as opposed to just being a bad friend. As it stands, it just felt like a writing mistake.

3. Basil and Sunny working together to stage Mari’s death as a suicide

This is the plot hole that I see the most complaints over, but it’s so big I have to address it. Accidentally pushing Mari down the stairs I understand, but the rest is too absurd. Below are some of the “lies” that the writing tries to get away with:

That Sunny and Basil wouldn’t just claim she slipped and fell.

That either boy would even come up with this sick plan.

That they wouldn’t back out of this idea during the multi-step process (carrying her downstairs, outside, getting the jump rope, tying a noose, putting it around her neck, stringing her up, hiding the evidence... This is a series of multiple decisions, not one quick accident like the initial push.)

That it’s not the image of Mari’s death that traumatized Sunny, but the image of what they chose to do to her body that traumatized them. I understand the image of Mari hanging is more dramatic, but they literally did it themselves so why is that more haunting than Sunny killing her?

That Mari’s true cause of death wouldn’t be immediately obvious to the parents, the police, the friends, EVERYONE. (I’ve seen fans try to get rid of this plot hole by hypothesizing that the parents knew and covered it up, but the evidence of this is circumstantial at best. The father saying, “You’re not my son,” is unreliable since it happens in Sunny’s headspace. Divorce is common after the death of a child, and, at the very least, Sunny’s mom doesn’t show any evidence of knowing what happened. The way it is written, only Sunny and Basil know the truth.)

The ridiculousness of this twist is so extreme that it completely broke any immersion I had left. Frankly, the reveal that the happy, loveable Mari committed suicide is a far heavier and more realistic twist than a crazy murder-cover-up story is.

Additionally, it seems like Basil was only written into this scene in order to make Sunny the true victim of what happened. After all, Sunny may have pushed her, but it was Basil who came up with the demented cover up. (This is apparent from just the photos but the datamined Truth Album confirms it.) By having Basil come up with the plan, the game splits the guilt between the two of them to make the kids easier to sympathize with. It’s problematic because if Basil was not in the scene, there would be no way to justify what Sunny did to Mari. So why is what they did easier to accept when they worked together?

Fixing the writing lie: Sunny lies and says that Mari slipped. Remove Basil from the scene, and instead have Sunny confide in Basil which forces Basil to become a co-conspirator and burdens him with the terrible truth.

4. Sunny’s friends forgiving him and Basil for what they did to Mari

Last but not least, the story heavily implies that Hero, Kel, and Aubrey will forgive Basil and Sunny for what they did to Mari. I found this to be almost as unbelievable as the staged-suicide stunt.

It feels like a lie since the group’s friendship is never established as anything beyond shallow hang outs from 3+ years ago (see point #1).

It feels like a lie because this is hot off the heels of Aubrey being so distraught over Mari and the following fall out that in the last three days she 1.) attacked Sunny and Kel with a nail bat TWICE, 2.) Stole Basil’s photobook, and 3.) Shoved Basil in the lake. This trauma is still very fresh for her.

It feels like a lie because the complexity of the staged-suicide is so extreme, one would be hard pressed to forgive ANYONE for doing that, be it friend, foe, parent, sibling, lover, etc.

I’ve seen fans argue that the ending is not about forgiveness, it’s about telling the truth, and I want to believe that. Really. If the ending was about Sunny starting his redemption arc by telling the truth no matter what the consequences are, that would be a meaningful lesson. But the writing does not support that. The ending headspace segments are focused on assuring Sunny that his friends will support/forgive him no matter what. To do this, the game shows us the shallow photobook memories (again) to show how much they allegedly care about each other. Then, when fighting Omori, Sunny remembers these quotes from his friends, which directly correlate to their unconditional support:

KEL: Friends... Friends are supposed to be there for each other.

AUBREY: I hope you can find some peace... or you know... some happiness.

HERO: We made the mistake of leaving each other when we needed each other the most. This time... we’ll stay together.

BASIL: Maybe one day... things can go back to the way they were before.

The really direct evidence that this ending is about getting forgiveness is this quote from Basil in Sunny’s headspace:

[BASIL: “AUBREY, KEL and HERO are good friends. You have to trust that they’ll forgive us.”]

This is one of the last scenes before Sunny tells his friends the truth, proving that obtaining forgiveness from his FRIENDS is in fact the leading motivation for Sunny’s actions.

Fixing this writing lie is easy. Instead, adjust the writing to be about telling the truth, not about how much the friends will still love Sunny. Have headspace Basil say, “Even if they don’t forgive us, Aubrey, Kel, and Hero deserve to know the truth. It’s the only way to make things right... or close to it.”

Conclusion

OMORI is undeniably a cute game with a strong visual identity, and has a premise that could make for a very compelling experience. However, the sloppy plot and weak character writing cause the potential of this game to be squandered. There are other issues as well that I chose not to cover for the sake of time, such as the poor pacing of the dragged out dungeons and the bizarre, unrealistic behavior of characters in the “real” world. 

However, there are a few more glaring problems with OMORI that I have to address: In part 2 of my critique, I break down what may be the biggest problem with OMORI’s writing: the message.

[ Link to Part 2: OMORI’s Message is Mishandled and Distasteful ]