#maybe he will join kawasaki

[marcmarquezz93]

Miller is trying to collect them all.

[adlery]

CAUGHT YOU!

WINDBREAKER : HAYATO SUO X BIKER READER

→ When he caught you're joining street racing

→ Note: Fluff, a bit angst, reader join illegal street racing, GN!reader, OOC MAYBE???, love foolish reader

→ Tw: none (cringe)

→ Adlery's speaking: My boy is so divine🧎 but wtf is this... it's so bad (crying with my 2:00 am writing💀) suddenly got this idea HFSJKDKS... If I missed something on note, do tell me! LUVYUU BYEISS

- you and Suo have been dating for months now, obviously he knows you owned a classic Kawasaki motorcycle ever since you came up on the date riding it for the first time.

- he's really interested and even asked a lot about the vehicle. Who gave you? How did you get? Do you always ride it? Man even joke to be your passenger princess

"Perhaps, I could be your passenger princess from now on, Y/n-chan", he gave you the carefree smile. And you, someone who heads over heels for him, already taking it seriously.

- of course you offered him a few of time a ride to school or basically a couple of late night drives when both of you're free.

- You even let him drive and fortunately it went well (it's Suo we are talking about. He's trusted)

- sometimes, you stop by near the beach as you spend time with him in peaceful silence while sitting on the motorcycle seat

- But lately, he noticed that you've been looking a bit worn out at school and sometimes skip a patrol (with permission)

- as your boyfriend, the suspicion grows more when he notices your knee has a bandage and some bruises when he is secretly peeking through the door of the classroom while you're alone, treating those with ointment.

- Suo once, ask you about it but you simply reassure him with a bad excuse like you accidentally hit your knees on the table, bla bla bla... He didn't buy it obviously but he just nodded and said he trusts you

- hell no, he's not dumb so he thought to waits for the right time to ask you again and seek the truth

- But the universe loves him, so he gets the answer beforehand

- This happened when Umemiya informed the first year to watch the town near the night since a fight will happen and once again, you're not coming as you told umemiya you're sick, so your boyfriend is a little relieved to know you're taking a rest

- after settling down, he finally decided to pay a visit to your house and try to call to inform you that he will come but it was declined. Strange.

"Declined.. huh", the suspicious came back to him as he plastered an unreadable face. Kiryu who noticed his change reassured the male that maybe you don't want to be disturbed or need some time

- Then they walk away from the place, following Tsugeura who is hungry after the small fight, which leads them to the sidewalk of the main street to go to the restaurant.

The atmosphere is full with the group voices but Suo, until Sakura spoke up to him, "Oi, you seemed less talking today", he raised his eyebrows, a small blush rising on his cheek due to embarrassment after the question he's worried:(. The eye patch male glances at him, giving the reassurance smile, "Nothing, just worried about my lover, they are sick right now so I thought maybe I should buy them a medicine after this"

- But suddenly, various motorcycle noises come from the street when a race is about to begin not too far from them.

"What the hell, making noises at night, disturbed the people", Nirei pointing out with annoyed while the others shows agreement with his words

- Suo is an observing guy, of course he's not leaving his eyes towards the group of bikers due to his bad feeling and that's until his eyes suddenly darted on a familiar vehicle... The colour, the sticker he knows that you had shown him you bought, the similar helmet colour and literally the figure of the biker... It's you.

- Now his curiosity answered, he's not amused nor happy about it as he stopped on his track, making the first year's stop and facing their way at him.

"Suo-san, you good?", Nirei sweatdrop as Sakura noticed the strange feeling came from Suo, "Oi, what are you looking at?" This makes the male break the silence and smile at them, unfortunately his smile does not reach this time, "Eh nothing..."

- You are doomed

- the next day you went to school, extremely exhausted but it was worth the shot last night that you won the bet and conquered the race

- and there he is, looking at you from across the corner of the classroom, he wants you to talk, to tell him all of it, right now.

- he approached you with his usual close eyes smile but his tone is off

"Good morning, Dear", his sweet voice sending you shiver, it's not like he's not used to talking like this before but you know something is wrong, so you just smile back at him, trying to mask the exhaustion facial.

"Morning, Suo-kun. Umm...about last night...I'm sorry I declined your call...i- was a bit sic- Woah!" not before you finish your words, he pulled you out of the class as your eyes widened, "Hey- Suo... Wait" he brings you to the stair that is empty from other students and finally let go of your hand. His arms crossed, you know he wants you to speak so you are guiltily looking down, "Hmm... Dear, I suppose you have something to explain about last night" he took your chin and tilted it up to face him, you gulped and had the nerve to give him a sheepish smile "Um... Well... I guess... You caught me"

He sighs, he doesn't want to make the issue big, so his tone is turning more soft and gentle, "I did... Why did you join that?", you can't help but break the eyes contact from him, trying to put the sentence, "I... I'm sorry... But it's one of my likings.... No other reason indeed", again, he sigh and shook his head left to right, "You hurt yourself the other day, Dear", this instantly making your head turn up to him, "Oh! That... Let me be honest... It was an accident and no worries..haha" You give him an embarrassment chuckled, "Just a little fell", your voice turns ghostly at the end.

- He finally accepted it, that's your choice but as your lover, he, always puts a note on you to be careful, and not too carried away with the race (you take it with an open heart:D)

- After that, You show him the wound and he gives a proper treatment and change your bandage, plus with a sweet gift of sarcasm remarks

- ever since that day, you're willingly skip some of the race if Suo tells you not to because he needs your help- or it just an excuse for you not to go there again

- when you want to have a race, he texts you to come over to try some of his brand new tea or anything else. When you were about to go out at the specific time before the race, he called you to help him patrol the town and what do you do? Clearly, You obeyed and passed the race because he's your priority.

"Ah Dear, the brand new tea I bought has arrived, come here please", without wasting your time, "Coming!" , the guy next to your vehicle is dumbfounded seeing you leave the way about to started race without any words, yeah... Suo is the cause.

- When you can't come to spend time with him, He playfully used the chance and recapping how you abandoned him only for the race before (he's joking) so the results he will hear his house bell ring and you are standing there Infront of him after the door open

"Ah you come" a big fat grin drew on his face as you roll your eyes, "That's not fair, you always used those mistakes to make me feel guilty!", he then abruptly connected his lips on yours resulting in you to follow along, you sigh after the kiss break, "Well don't blame me, I want to spend time with my lovely dear. Isn't that sweet" He put a close eyes smile, making you chuckled lightly, "I'm not blaming you then"

- You both then went inside and had alone time together<3

©Adlery : Like and repost are so much appreciated 🎀

[highwaytothedangerzone502]

Foxtrot Alpha Alpha - Chapter 2

Pairing: Hangman x Female OC

Word Count: 1505

Warnings:

Summary: Hangman learned his lesson a long time ago to never show his true feelings when someone's words or actions hurt him. To do so showed weakness that could be exploited, and Seresin men couldn't show weakness. Of course, there was an exception to every rule, and Jake's always came in the form of women, three in particular: his mom, Juliette Kazansky, and the girl whose name he could no longer bring himself to speak. She was the girl that got away; she was his biggest 'what if' and his biggest regret; she would forever be the ghost that haunted his dreams. Jake believed that's where she'd stay, for he would surely never see her again after what he did.

Or so he thought.

Notes: This is the sequel to India Lima Yankee; I'm using the same callsign for the Female OC as in Ghost Story because I just really like it, but they are different characters; chapters in italics are flashbacks.

Chapter Songs: Man I Feel Like A Woman Out of Sight Out of Mind

****

Hangman

People packed into the Hard Deck, not unusual for a Friday night. But unlike most of the patrons, Hangman found himself and his brothers-in-arms dressed to the nines in their whites and, in the case of Phoenix, Juliette, and Halo, their cocktail dresses. They'd gone out to celebrate Juliette's big promotion at work. Of course, she couldn't drink being pregnant, but Juliette apparently didn't need alcohol to have fun. She happily sang at the top of her lungs when Rooster played the piano or at karaoke with whoever would join her (mainly Phoenix and Fanboy), although Jules put all other singers to shame. She hustled unsuspecting pilots at pool and joked around with the Daggers like they'd grown up with each other. Rooster kept a careful eye on her. Hangman noticed his comrade had become extremely protective and concerned about Juliette since she passed out Christmas morning, a side effect of the pregnancy. The doctors assured them it'd been a one-off, but Rooster, traumatized by an unspoken tragedy, refused to wholly believe them.

Hangman knew this. Hangman understood Rooster had every right to be protective over Juliette and that he himself had no rights at all, but he couldn't help the jealousy that rose up in him every time he noticed the longing gazes the couple exchanged, how Rooster would watch Juliette with the softest of smiles as if he wasn't even aware he did so, the way Juliette leaned into Rooster whenever he stood next to her. They were so helplessly, madly, head-over-heels in love with each other, and as happy as Hangman was for them, it still hurt. Hangman had fallen swift and hard for Juliette, although he'd never admit that. Jake understood he could never compare to Rooster. Bradshaw had a history with Juliette, and Hangman didn't. He was just the resident playboy with the reputation of never wanting to settle down, whose one true love was the open sky and his career. Juliette had made him question those beliefs, and he hadn't felt that since-

"-ghost. Blasted past me on the freeway like the devil himself was after them and disappeared in the blink of an eye, they were driving so fast," Coyote said, interrupting Jake's train of thought. He took a swig of his beer, keeping a carefully calculated expression of nonchalance despite his meandering mind.

"Or maybe you were driving like you're on a Sunday drive, like you always do," Payback jested.

"This stranger wouldn't happen to have been on a red and black Kawasaki, would they?" Juliette queried, her eyes glittering with intrigue.

Coyote cocked his head in surprise. "How'd you know?"

"It's Princess," Hangman said, shooting her a playful smirk. "She knows everything."

"As much as that is usually true-" Jules began, returning the compliment with an appreciative smile- "it was a hopeful guess. If you'll excuse me for a moment!"

She slipped out of her fiancé's arms and darted through the crowd, leaving the Daggers confused. Hangman bit back his amusement at Rooster's puppy dog eyes trailing after her, obviously restraining himself from following. Jake's attention was diverted to the pool table when Phoenix called out his name. He acquiesced to her request to join, grabbing a pool stick. She teamed up with Bob while Coyote joined Hangman. The pairs used the ever-trusty "Rock Paper Scissors" to decide who went first. Phoenix, as usual, won.

Right as Hangman bent over to hit his shot, a familiar guitar riff and voice broke out near the karaoke machine. Cheers went up, especially from the Daggers, as the sound of Juliette belting out to 'Man, I Feel Like a Woman.' Hangman failed to remember ever knowing she played guitar, but he'd add it to the list of ways she kept surprising him. The Daggers would've moved closer to cheer her on, but the crowd prevented that endeavor. Rooster managed it, but he also didn't appear to give anyone blocking him a choice, shouldering his way through to get to Juliette. His piano skills soon joined the guitar, along with a second female voice harmonizing with Juliette. Could it be the mystery person Juliette raced out to greet?

Hangman sang along at the top of his lungs, thoroughly enjoying the song and the killer cover by Juliette. When it ended, she received a well-deserved ovation. The crowd parted for her, Rooster, and their mystery guest. Only when they rejoined the Daggers did Hangman wish he'd caught a glimpse of the person beforehand to prepare himself. The face that haunted his dreams appeared before him, wearing eyeliner sharp enough to kill a man and red lipstick that surely received its striking color from the blood of her enemies, namely him. For the first time, Hangman purposefully faded behind his wingmen, desperately needing a moment to catch his breath and gather his wits. He locked eyes with Coyote on the way, and a silent understanding passed between the two friends.

"Well, I'll be damned," Payback said, smiling at Ghost. "Where the hell have you been?"

"You know I can't answer that," Ghost chastised teasingly.

"If she tells us anything, she'll have to kill us," Coyote remarked. His voice immediately garnered her attention. For Ghost, she had always figured that wherever Coyote was, Jake most likely wasn't far away.

Still, Ghost's voice held nothing but sincere happiness when she said, "Hey, Coyote."

"Hey." He strode up to Ghost and gave her a rare hug. "Good to see you."

"You as well." She scanned the room, her eyes finally landing on Hangman. Then, curtly, she nodded and said, "Seresin."

"Blackwood, as I live and breathe." Shooting her his hundred-watt smile, he looked her up and down, admiring the black dress hugging her curves. "You look good."

"How do you all know each other?" Juliette asked. The question sounded casual enough, but he saw her analyzing the situation before her, picking up on the tension he tried so hard to hide. For better or worse, that analytical mind of hers wasn't limited to engineering and designing aircraft.

"Stationed with most of these guys at some point," Ghost answered. "Went to school with Coyote, and as you already know, Top Gun with Rooster."

"What about you and Hangman?"

"Old acquaintances," Jake said casually before Ghost could even open her mouth to answer. Juliette stopped her questioning like he knew she would. She remembered what those words had meant for her not too long ago. Still, Hangman would prepare himself for the interrogation from her later because it would undoubtedly be on its way.

Coyote wagged his finger at the two girls. "Where did you two meet?"

"In passing at Top Gun, but we didn't actually talk until a month or two later by happenstance," Juliette said, grabbing her water and taking a few gulps. "Not much bonds girls quicker than having each other's back when a creep starts following one of you in a store."

Noticing her friend's drink, Ghost said, "Please tell me that's vodka. You're celebrating a huge job promotion!"

"If I could drink, I would, but I can't." Juliette slung her arm over her friend's shoulders. "Girl, I have so much to catch you up on, but for now, long story short? Rooster and I are engaged, and I'm expecting twins."

Ghost's mouth fell open, shock etching itself onto her face until Jules's words fully processed. Then, the pilot let out a joyful scream and hugged Juliette tightly. "Oh my God, I'm so happy for y'all! When are you due? When's the wedding?"

"Thanks! I'm due in August, and the wedding will be sometime next year. Still deciding on a date. Obviously, you're invited." Juliette sat on an empty bar stool to get off her feet. Rooster stood behind her, and she leaned against him. Hangman watched Jules and Ghost shoot the breeze. 

Coyote stood beside him, mumbling the question loudly enough only for Hangman to hear, "You good, man?"

Not wanting to worry his only ally in this situation, he lied, "Yeah, I'm good. Wasn't expecting this. Did she say she was-"

"No. I had no clue." Coyote had stayed in touch with Ghost, but he never said much, if anything, about her, understanding Hangman would rather talk about anything else but her. Hell, Jake would rather face an angry Juliette than utter Ghost's name, and that was saying something. Even speaking her last name made his heart constrict painfully in a way it hadn't in years, the last time being when they'd parted ways, never to speak again until now. 

Hangman glanced at the clock, estimating how much longer the group would be here. Dismay settled in. It was only nine o'clock, and the Daggers were far from ready to leave. They'd be going until at least midnight. Hangman, typically the last to leave, couldn't be the first tonight. It'd look too suspicious with Ghost's arrival. No, he'd have to play it cool until some of the others departed. Then he could make his escape. How difficult could it be?

****

Tags: @lgg5989 @shanimallina87 @polikszena @summ3rlotus @icemansgirl1999 @supernaturaldawning @thedarkinmansfield @lyannaforpresident @lapilark @getmyprettynameoutofyourmouth @simpofthecentury @shadeops21 @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy @double-j @bradshawsandbridgetons @majdoline @catsandgeekyandnerd @peachiicherries @multifandomcnova @fandomsstolemylife00 @bookloverhorses @mak-32 @midnightmagpiemama

Chapters: Chp 1 Chp 2

If you're on the tag list, it's because I copied from the India Lima Yankee tag list. If you don't wish to be tagged for this story, just let me know! If you're not on the tag list and want to be, comment below :)

[wytfut]

In honor of "Turk"

Found out this morning, a huge jolt to my realm, my old roommate and best man in my wedding has stage 4 inoperable/untreatable brain cancer. This isn't about me, but I'm still a student of life, and trying wrap my head around this piece of information.

Some folks may read this and become very uncomfortable. As I'm not following "normal" trends with this type of situation. I mean no harm, and actually don't believe many will actually see/read this installment, including Tom. And thats ok... Nothing wrong is being printed here.

In my opinion, tributes to the "gone/lost" are fine. But the person that is being spoken about, doesn't get to hear it, let alone in person..... maybe we should change our trendy ways and speak up while everyone is still around?

He is alive and getting therapy to learn how to get his balance back as of this writing.

And as it is.....

Tom "turk" "turkey" Kohn. His name came about due to a character on TV then who used the term Turkey a lot in his vocabulary. How ever that came about, the name stuck for years. Maybe not so much now... I've heard him called Professor recently, by others who worked with him before retirement. Later in his career, he got a job in another department.

Tom and I shared an apartment at 33rd and Vine I think for 2 and half years.

Tom started at Lincoln Hoot and Hollar construction department about 6 months after me. Fresh out of the "seabees"..

Our boss (who was terrified of climbing poles) attempted to teach Tom and another new guy how to climb .... on the job.

Couldn't keep Tom off the poles, and the other new guy, we couldn't keep on the poles. Tom was probably one of the best lines men I ever knew, and the best bucket truck operator.... nothing he couldn't do phone work wise, and do very well.

From what I remember we hit it off very well. His sense of humor just fit me. Within a few months, we got an apartment.

Tom is a Crete guy. Went to high school there. And then joined the Navy. This was back at the tail end of Viet nam... and was stationed in Thailand.

When he got out, bought a brand new 73 custard colored blazer. A very proud owner he was.

He also owned a Honda 100, and I owned a 73 Norton 850. When we'd ride together, it was sort of a Mutt and Jeff affair. He later bought a very nice, fast 74 Kawasaki Z1 900. He made up for the years lost on his toy bike.

We shared tons of info between ourselves, including beliefs, and ideas.

Probably one of the most honorable people I know. There is no way I can put myself on that same shelf.

Lots of humorous stories come to mind.

We were both pranksters. I'd throw a cold cold water surprise on him when he was in the tub. And he'd get me back. We both loved the scream of shock.

Somewhere there was Vaseline on a toilet seat.... can't seem to remember that story clearly.

Borrowed his blazer during a blizzard (1974?). I buried it in a snow bank and hand dug it out. Returned it home, and never told him. He got in a day or so later, and noted the alternator wasn't charging. Popped the hood, and the whole engine compartment was stuffed with snow and Ice..... all to ..."what the hell?...." Honestly, although very funny, I had no idea that actually happened.

Tom being shorter, I just couldn't help myself. Could be considered mean. He used to drive our boss around in a pickup. Toms job was to get the pickup and warm it up. I took blocks of wood and tapped them to the peddles, to help him reach the peddles (same thing done for little kids to reach the peddles when learning to ride a bike). Just trying to help out. He didn't really need them.... lots of laughs, and he took it in stride.

He was frequent at "lil Bo's" with his hi school buddy Dave who also was fresh out of the military. Those 2 could drink hard in those days being fresh out of the military.

One night I decided to hang out with them at Bo's, which is a scary thought, as I've always been a fly weight for drinking.... and tried to match drink for drink with them. By the time I got into the car to go home, I was blotto. Dave had drove, and it was a itty bitty Fiat, that I folded myself up to fit in the back (no seat).

We got home and Tom decides he's hungry and grabs a frying pan and what appeared to be a full bottle of oil to cook something up. By this time, I'm dizzy and wondering what I've gotten myself into. I walk by the stove looking at the bubbling smoking heated oil..... and I run for the toilet.

I was dating my Wife in this piece of time.... and eventually got engaged. Tom and I parted ways, and he moved in with Dave.... in the Meadowlane/Bethany area.

Tom was my best man, and tormented me throughout the ceremony, under his breath. I still giggle.

Tom started dating a wonderful girl from his past.... Pam, and they married. Although Toms bachelor party wasn't anything extra abnormal, I remember it well.

I can still remember bits of their wedding at the Havelock Methodist church.

From this point on to the past couple of years, we didn't stay in touch much. But would see each other at work. And everything was cool. Our paths had just separated... life moves on.

During this "vacant" period of separation, Tom got married to Pam. Bought a nice acreage south of Lincoln in the Norris school district. Raised a Son and a Daughter. Was a boy scout leader, and was on the Norris school board. He was a busy man.

Now that we are both retired, we see each other more than the past 30 years. 2 Winters ago he entrusted me to restore his old Z1, which he had kept all these years.

I was very surprised on both counts. I enjoyed the project.

He's a member of the geezers club, so we see each other fairly frequent now.

This entry is obviously missing huge chunks of a long period of time. But I feel justice, as these are hi lites remembered. I know everyone that knew Tom has their own stories, that more than likely bring a smile to their faces...

This is my Friend Tom. A best friend from years ago.

[yumizurueleonora]

1, 19, 40 for the writing ask!

1. Which of your fics would you keep the basic plot of but rewrite completely?

Oh boy… If we’re talking ProSeka, then Vivid Snow, Dulling Leaves. It was my first fic in the ProSeka fandom and I was just getting on my feet after being in a small fandom where I wrote a lot of short ideas because people were hungry for content. It’s just… not the best imo and the way I wrote Harumichi was my knee-jerk reaction after reading Nocturne Interlude.

If we’re talking other fandoms, then definitely Chariot Arcana, Rank Up! It was such a good idea, but I wrote it three entire years ago and my writing skill wasn’t good enough to do justice to the idea.

19. Share a no-context snippet from a WIP

(Okay this is cheating a little because I can’t find a non-spoilery snippet from my current WIP so this is a short thing I wrote for inspiration)

That day is so… vivid in An’s memory.

She can remember it like it was yesterday.

It’s burning hot out. It’s the end of June, and she’s ready to get home.

She’s holding her dad’s hand as they’re walking back from the store, holding some ingredients for dinner and a fruit smoothie that An had bought to cool off.

And then Arata and Souma are running down the street together, and An’s about to run to join them and say hi. Maybe offer them a sip of her smoothie.

But before she can take off, everything changes.

And suddenly, everything’s a blur.

The crunch of metal and the sound of Souma hitting the pavement are still so loud in her head.

And she’s running.

Her dad’s barely a step ahead of her, and he pushes through the crowd to kneel next to Souma.

Souma, who’s covered in blood. She can’t tell if he’s breathing.

She tries to push through the crowd, tries to get closer, but suddenly someone’s pulling her away.

She can’t get any closer, no matter how hard she tries, and then she sees an ambulance approaching and her dad is dragging Arata away and she finally manages to break free from whoever’s holding her back and running over to her dad and Arata.

Arata’s screaming, barely coherent, but his struggles are in vain. He can’t keep going much longer.

And after a few more seconds, he’s completely silent.

It’s so quiet. So… dark.

But the screams keep echoing in her head, and then she can feel something.

Someone’s hand is grabbing her.

She tries to pull away, but their grip is too strong.

And then she turns around, and it’s…

It’s Souma?

He’s covered in blood, lying on the ground, and he’s gripping onto An’s arm.

His eyes are so wide, but they’re lifeless.

He’s… he’s…

Then An turns around, and suddenly she sees the same scene with her dad and Arata.

She turns away from them, and it’s Aunt Nagi and Uncle Taiga.

Away from them, and it’s EVER.

Away from them, and Kotaro and Ms. Kawasaki.

Away from them, and it’s Akito and Toya.

And then she finally shuts her eyes, but even that doesn’t stop it.

Because she hears it.

“An-chan… It hurts…” Kohane pleads, and she cracks an eye open slightly…

And she wakes up with a jolt.

She can’t breathe.

She reaches for her phone, and the next thing she knows, she’s dialing a number.

There’s a groan, and…

“This better be fucking important…”

An sighs with relief.

“…Up for some Wii Tennis?” She asks, and there’s the sound of someone scrambling from the other side.

“An-chan? You okay?”

“I had a really bad nightmare. I guess I just went scrambling for my phone on instinct and called whoever came up.”

Arata sighs.

“I’ll be right over.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. I was just joking about the Wii Tennis.” An responds.

“Yeah, yeah…”

40. Write a 9-word fic.

(This was the hardest one to do by FAR)

Toya’s breath catches. There’s… so much blood. It’s terrifying.

[camstardust]

aw thanks for the tag <3

name: cam

pronouns: he/they

star sign: Cancer

siblings: one sister and a brother, both older than me

pets: I NEED A CAT 😭

fandoms: doctor who, good omens (not much, unfortunately my hyperfixation is fading), larry stylinson, swiftie

favorite color: dark shades of every color, especially dark red

Favourite song: I CANNOT CHOOSE, DINOSAUR SECOND, UNDECIDED FIRST.

Favourite authors: i don't read much but probably Neil Gaiman or Alice Oseman

Hobbies: making bracelets maybe, i don't do much, but I'm a theater kid if that counts

favourite fic type: i like the smuts and the fluff

Favourite Holiday: none, they don't hit the same anymore

Any partner: yeah, i have one and they're amazing :)

Fun Facts: when I'm bored i send my partner raccoons pics saying THAT'S SO USSSS cuz they're a raccoon. One day I'm going to have cats with my partner and they are going to be called Karma, Chewbacca, Gato Gay, Kawasaki and chachamaru (they chose the last one, i think it's an anime character but I'll call it with the most ridiculous nicknames). My favorite movie is My Policeman. GO AND WATCH IT IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL KSHEISHSUEGDUSGS

tags:@skeelly @mickeywheeler @dinosaursatemymom @dinosaursatemydad @still-lost-in-space @atwtmvftvtvsgavralpsss @mqstermindswift +anyone who wants to join of my moots or literally anyone <3

I got bored so here's a little get-to-know-you tag game I think could be fun :3

Name(s)

Pronouns

Star sign

# of siblings & fun facts about them (if you have any)

# of pets & their names

Fandoms

Favorite color

Favorite song

Favorite author (of anything readable-- books, fanfics, zines, webtoons, whatever!)

Hobbies

Favorite fic type

Favorite holiday

Do you have any partner(s)? (romantic, qpp, anything!)

Fun facts about you / anything extra you wanna share!

────────

Name(s): Loki (highly preferred), Elye

Pronouns : they/them mostly, he/she okay too

Star sign: Pisces

# of siblings: I've got 2! An older sister and a younger sibling. The fun fact about them is that they're also both queer; in fact, my mom is too. The only non-queer person in my immediate family is my dad.

# of pets: 4 cats! Phoebe & Frankie are our girls, Lenny and Murray are our boys :3

Fandoms: MCU (kind of), BSD, OFMD, Ranboo (does his fanbase count as a fandom?)

Fav. color: Don't have one

Fav. song: Aurora Borealis by Lemon Demon

Fav. author: Alice Oseman

Hobbies: singing, acting, drawing, writing, procrastinating

Fav. fic type: Fluff, definitely. I am a sucker for well written coffee-shop and flower-shop aus, too. Smut's fine, but only if it's romantic. I can't do angst if there's no comfort.

Fav. Holiday: Hanukkah or Halloween! I love autumn and winter

Partners?: Yes! I have a girlfriend (queerplatonic) who I love very much, and a boyfriend (romantic) who I love very much :]

Fun facts:

- Even though I'm a cat person, I really, really want a dog.

- I actually used to play sports. Because I don't do gendered leagues anymore, I don't play, but I've been looking for mixed/gender-neutral/queer sports teams. Baseball and basketball specifically!

- I started questioning my identity in 2019; I'm no closer to finding a label now than I was then. The difference is, now I don't want a label. I just am. :]

tags: @neonganymede @cha0ticlesbian @x-chiara @exceleo @brinnybee @autistic-katara @gandalfthemorallygrey @ohboyanotherlokiblog @roachandrenfri @ourflagmeanslokius @exceleo @edettethegreat @swiftlyspidey

[dededaio]

Waddle Dee Town is such a fun town and I’m happy that Meta Knight and Dedede are there (even though I feel its a shame Kirby couldn’t interact with them). I’m curious to know, what would you think the Dream Friends would do if they’re there?

to be fair you can wave to dedede and he waves back which is all direct interaction i needed between them

that said:

taranza would help out waddle dees with watering and gardening flowers. maybe would help create grass sculpture things of his friends.

magolor would join forces with weapons-shop dee to add alternate *skins* to copy abilities regardless of evolution

animal buddies would just. chill. they deserve to chill. maybe clawroline will be kinda shocked that they are a thing lmao

adeleine!! if she was in this town i'd imagine she would setup "artist studio" where you could get alternate kirby palettes (think spray paints). i would also add something akin to celebration pictures from star allies, where in exchange for *sketches* you can find on levels, she will be able to turn them into full paintings.

susie and chef kawasaki (technically not a dream friend but whatevs) would help to expand waddle dee cafe into full blown restaurant. why susie? ice cream portion obviously + additional merchandise.

gooey would sleep in kirby's house

marx and dark meta knight are not allowed in waddle dee town

[lgg5989]

MavDad: Home For Good

A/N: The next installment of MavDad! Thank you to everyone for reading! As always please leave ideas for more chapters in the comments or send me an ask (I think those are turned on?)! 

MavDad Masterlist

Also on Ao3!

---

For the third time that day Mav hung up the phone after calling his CO. They had been in a back and forth for the better part of a few hours. Mav was requesting a permanent position as a test pilot since his return to Top Gun did not go over well last time. His CO wouldn’t hear of ‘grounding’ the best pilot he has on active duty. 

Mav was adamant in his need to be stationed stateside, “Sir, with respect, this is about more than just me. This is about my family and the fact that I almost left Bradley without a dad, again, sir,” Mav said, reminding his CO of the close call he had almost 9 months ago. 

“Well Maverick, you have a distinguished flight record, there isn’t a reason they wouldn’t want you,” he sighed, “I still can’t believe I am doing this but report to Lemoore at the end of your scheduled leave. They have something new they have been requesting a pilot for.”

“Thank you, sir,” Mav said into the phone, disbelieving that he actually got what he had been wanting. 

“So long Maverick, try not to piss any more Admiral’s off, yeah?” his CO said with a friendly laugh.

Mav chuckled, “I’ll do my worst, sir.”

Everything was going according to plan, he got the new posting, he’s going to be home more, now he and Carole just had to find a way to tell Brad. 

—

If Mav was being honest with himself, this conversation could have gone a bit better. His plan went to shit because he was nervous to tell Brad the news. So in Mav style, he blurted it out over dinner that night. 

“I requested a change of station,” Mav almost shouted, a whole two seconds after they sat down to eat. 

Carole looked at him. Mav gave her a guilty look, he should have asked her about this before doing it, “I requested to be stationed stateside, they’ve transferred me to Lemoore, to be a test pilot.” 

“Why did you request the change of station?” Brad asked. 

“Well after what happened on the last deployment,” he sighed deeply, “There’s just too much at stake, I can’t ask you to risk losing a dad again.” 

Brad locked eyes with Mav, “We don’t want to lose you either.” 

“I know buddy, I know,” Mav sighed.

Carole took a deep breath before joining the conversation, “...Anddd, you and I are going to move there to be closer to Maverick.”

This was the part they were both worried about, Brad was 13 and had made some good friends at school. Starting a new school could be hard, especially if you were about to go to high school in a few months. 

Brad furrowed his brow, confused, “Okay, I assumed that we would.” 

Carole and Mav were surprised. Mav looked at him, “You’re not mad that you have to start at a new school?” 

“No, we all get to be together, why would I be mad about that?” Brad said seriously. 

“Well alright then, we are going to move in a few weeks once we find a house,” Mav told him. 

“Okay, can I help pick the house?” Brad asked with a sly smile, “I want a big room.” 

“Of course!” Carole said, “We can all look together.”

They finished dinner discussing what they all wanted in a house, where Brad would be going to school, and what Maverick would get to fly. Maybe the conversation didn’t go so poorly after all, Mav thought. 

—

A few weeks into the hunt for a new house they came upon the perfect one. It was a three bedroom, two and a half bathroom beauty. The outside was red brick and the small bits of siding were painted a soft pastel blue. The bedrooms and full bathrooms were located upstairs, the downstairs was an open concept with a large living room and kitchen. The garage was plenty large for Carole’s car, Goose’s old Bronco, and Mav’s Kawasaki. 

Carole and Mav got the loan from the bank and put the old house on the market. As the trio were packing up the old house, they all took a few moments the reminisce on the good times had there. 

As Mav was packing his stuff up, he thought back to when Goose and Carole had bought the house before Bradley was born. He remembers racing over to meet them to see his nephew for the first time. Carrying Brad up the stairs to bed when he fell asleep on the couch. How him, Goose, and Carole would watch football on the Sundays they were on leave, kicking back and drinking beer. Seeing the picture Carole had taken of him and Brad in the backyard he thinks of the newer memories, the dinners spent together, teaching Brad baseball, hearing the piano through the house for the first time in years. 

Carole sat on the porch swing, a steaming mug of tea warming her hands. Looking at the peeling white paint on the swing, she thought back to the quiet afternoons spent reading to Bradley, and how much nagging it took to finally get Goose to hang the damn thing all those years ago. He almost fell off the ladder he was using to hang it, she smiles at the memory. It makes her sad to leave their home, but just because they were leaving doesn’t mean the memories couldn’t come with them. 

Bradley was enjoying one last afternoon on the swing set that his dad had built him. He thought back to learning how to play catch with Mav in the yard, the birthday parties his mom threw him, and the afternoons spent playing with his mom in the sun. He was going to miss this house, but maybe some change would be good for their family. 

Once the last box was packed into the moving truck, and after saying goodbye to the house for the last time. The three of them piled into Goose’s Bronco, a few boxes stacked in the back, and headed towards their new home.

---

A/N: Tomorrow’s Chapter: A New School

[rayeverydangday]

Get it with a Kirby Back, Guarantee! Chapter 4

Notes: Okay, one more than I’ll do the rest in the morning. I’m very sleepy :P

It was being held. It hadn’t been out of its containment since it couldn’t remember. And even then it was still in a prison.

But it still had power. And this penguin had a desire. One to be strong, to be feared, to have fun. It liked this. It could work with this. The so-called king had locked himself away from everyone. Perfect.

It meant its power was working.

“Oh dear.” Kirby’s eyes opened at the voice. Their head hurt as they got up from where they laid. They were on the beach and the snail had followed them along. His eyes shifted cautiously towards the salty sea. Kirby rubbed their eyes, “Why did Dedede hit me?”  They thought the two were on good terms now. Was it because they ate his peach daifuku?

The snail shifted a little. “Well his majesty has been sort of on edge since NME got destroyed. “ He shook his head, and mumbled, “Always… just…” he sighed.

Kirby was confused. “What’s NME? Never more eat?” They asked, worried.

“What… ? Don’t you remember?”

“No, why is everything different? Why are the Waddle Dees odd? Why are we by the sea? And who are you?” They felt little tears prick at their eyes.

The snail seemed nervous, “Well, I’m… Escargoon. And I don’t think you're Kirby. At least not ours.”

“Huh?”

Escargoon thought for a bit, then said, “Maybe we should ask Meta Knight! He’ll know what’s going on.”

Kirby smiled at the mention of a familiar name. “Yeah, let's go.” They did a somersault and followed Escargoon towards the castle.

~

Bandanna Waddle Dee did not like how similar all the Waddle Dees looked. They looked almost robotic. He remembered when the waddle dee clones had been made from the copy machine and filled Dedede’s castle with life and help. Here they seemed to be just helping, as alive they were not. He would try to talk to a few but they would just give him blank stares.

He stopped trying and just called for Kirby. The boy named Tuff had a million questions for him, as here it was not every day a waddle dee talked.

“Do all the Waddle Dees talk? What’s your Dreamland like? Are we there? What's your universe’s Cappy Town like?”

“Well, uh…” he stuttered not knowing where to begin.

“Who else is in your world?”

“Oh, uh, well there Chef Kawasaki-

“Hey he’s here too!”

“Oh how lucky! His cooking is some of the best in Dreamland.”

“Really? It kinda sucks here!”

Before Waddle Dee could reply, Tiff piped up and said, “Oh that reminds me! Maybe-” A flash whooshed past her and headed straight towards Meta Knight.

The Knight pulled out his trusted sword, Galaxia, only for it to be met with a blade similar to his own. He looked up and came face to face with his own dimensional double, whose eyes glowed green.

“Meta Knight! Wait!” Tiff shouted. The Green eyed Meta Knight broke away from the stalemate, and backed up in front of Tiff and the other kids. He was soon joined by two other knights, who Bandanna Dee recognized as Sword and Blade.

“What tricks are you trying to play, demon beast?” The other Meta Knight said. He had a thick Spanish accent as he spoke.

“Demon beast? I am no such thing.” Their Meta Knight said.

“Then why have you come here?”

“For our Kirby.”

“Your Kirby?!”

“Wait! I meant-“

Bandanna Dee chirped up, “Hang on!” Everyone turned to him. “We’re here because our friend is somewhere in your dimension and we’re trying to find him!”

“Yeah! Is everyone in this dimension rude?” Dedede asked, crossing his arms. The other Meta Knight turned to Tiff.

“It’s true. They brought our Kirby back safe and sound.”

“Poyo!” Kirby did a somersault and patted his chest reassuring the knight. Meta Knight turned to the group and sighed. “Very well. We shall help you in your search and make sure you are not lying”

Sword and Blade grunted in agreement.

Waddle Dee saw Meta Knight simply nod. Knowing he would do the same if some doubles just randomly appeared.

“Great, now that that’s settled… Can we meet my double?” Dedede said. The group got very quiet and turned towards the king.

“What!? It’s only fair after we met Kirby’s and Meta Knight’s.”

~

Dedede had been staring at the little black box for hours but it felt like minutes. He didn’t know why he liked it so much but there was just something about it-

A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. “What is it?” He yelled harshly.

“Your Majesty, you have guests…” Waddle Doo’s rough voice pierced the silence in the air.

“Tell them to get out!”

“But your majesty I think-“

“I SAID NO!” He didn’t know why his temper flared but it made him punch a nearby wall. A wall that was almost entirely made out of hard concrete.

He looked at the damage he’d done, a crater like hole, and then at his fist. It didn’t even hurt. But it looked a bit more gray than usual.

Waddle Doo must have heard how his temper had flared suddenly as he said, “R… Right… I‘ll t-tell them.”

The sound of little feet running away could be heard. But Dedede didn’t care about that. All he cared about was testing out his new strength.

previous / next 

[makerofmadness]

Kirby Clash Team Unite! Chapter ☆7: All Resolved!... or Not?!

“And, and? What happened after?”

Chef Kawasaki bent over the counter with a sparkle in his eyes.

“Well… nothing,” Beam answered, “we got back into the balloon and had a safe ride back to the village.”

“I meant what happened to Landia and Taranza. What happened to them after?”

Having wrapped up the battle in the Empyrean, Team Kirby, who had returned home to the village, were resting up at Chef Kawasaki’s tavern. The big-hearted Chef Kawasaki, to reward Team Kirby for their endeavors, had declared that they could have all they could eat for the day. Then, as he brought plate after plate of delicious food, he barraged the Kirbies with question after question.

“So Landia just flew away with Taranza in his mouth, and you don’t know what happened to them after? But I’m guessing Taranza won’t be getting up to anything for a while, will he?”

“And it’s all thanks to Sword’s attack!” Hammer said, stuffing his face with hot roast chicken. “Even if Taranza can get up to trouble again, he probably won’t be doing anything bad ever again.”

“That’s right. He should’ve known he had no chance of succeeding with us around!”

Team Kirby were super happy to have come out victorious.

As if throwing cold water on the current warm, happy atmosphere came the cold voice of Meta Knight, sitting behind the counter.

“Thanks to Team Kirby, peace has been returned to the Dream Kingdom… but you don’t seem to be happy about this, Pink Kirby.”

“Huh? Uh… no,” Kirby answered swiftly upon suddenly hearing his name being called.

Meta Knight was right.

Kirby hadn’t joined his friends talking around the table, instead being dead silent. This was unusual for Kirby, as he was usually quite cheerful.

“Sword was acquainted with that Taranza guy,” Beam said, “I bet he’s been having mixed feelings about this whole situation.”

“But Sword, you shouldn’t be worried. Even if you knew him, if he’s doing something wrong, we’ve gotta stop him.”

“Uh… yeah, I know. I’m glad we were able to stop Taranza… but…”

Kirby didn’t feel any better.

After seeing Taranza’s voice, his face, Kirby couldn’t help but worry.

“I won’t let you get in my way!”

Taranza’s eyes were dark, as if he were possessed by something.

Why would he control the residents of the Dream Kingdom and make them go on a rampage?

What was his goal?

They were able to take out Taranza for now, but he didn’t think that meant everything had been resolved. He didn’t feel that it was likely that nothing was wrong with the current situation yet…

The conversation was cut short by Doctor.

“By the way, everyone, that fight left behind a pretty big mystery.”

Beam nodded.

“You’re talking about those stone tablets, right?”

“Yeah.”

Doctor looked around at his companions.

“If it weren’t for those stone tablets, we wouldn’t’ve been able to beat Landia.”

“There were words written in them, but we couldn’t read them.”

“Yeah. We know a ton of words, but we hadn’t seen any of the ones on the tablets before.”

Doctor suddenly lifted his glasses.

“I think those might’ve been words from an ancient language…”

“Ancient language?”

“From a long-forgotten ancient civilization… like, a really ancient one. By that I mean, those stone tablets must’ve been created a very, very long time ago.”

“Landia was carrying them, right?” Beam pondered, stopping eating. “Maybe he had them under his big wings, and that’s why they fell out and tumbled down when we attacked him.”

“Was Landia guarding them then?”

“Maybe so, maybe not. I think-”

Doctor was about to give his thoughts when the tavern door opened, and someone new entered.

It was Magolor.

Magolor quickly ran up to the Kirbies’ table with a smiling face.

“So, I heard you’ve defeated Landia and Taranza, huh?? Awesome, just as I’d expect from Team Kirby!”

“Thanks, Magolor.”

Doctor seemed miffed at being interrupted, but turned to Magolor without making that apparent.

“The weapons we bought at your shop really came in handy.”

“Really?! Wonderful! I made sure to gather the most top-of-the-line gear for you! Glad to see it paid off!”

Magolor happily bustled about when, suddenly, he hung his head in dejection.

“I’m glad you managed to defeat the bad guy, but… I’m sad I may never see you guys again…”

“Huh? What makes you think that?”

“I mean, Taranza isn’t making people go on rampages anymore. That means the age of hunters is over!”

Magolor spread his hands in the air.

“Team Kirby is over! You guys are gonna leave the village, aren’t you?”

“What?! No way!!” the team retorted, seeming almost offended.

“Even if the danger’s gone, our friendship’s still gonna last. Team Kirby’s gonna go on forever!”

“Then what’re you dudes gonna do? Like, there’s no one to fight.”

“Well, umm… we could go rescue people in danger, and help people carry heavy bags and stuff!”

“Those aren’t things we need Team Kirby for, though. Pink Kirby, I know you used to be a traveler. Aren't you gonna go back to... wherever you came from?”

Kirby was visibly taken aback.

He had so much fun going on adventures every day in this world, he ended up forgetting all about it, but he had to go back home. To his home world- Dream Land.

He didn’t know how to get back home. However, he couldn’t just stay in the village forever.

Now that peace had returned to the Dream Kingdom, there was no longer a need for Kirby to stay there. Somehow, he had to find a way to get back to Dream Land.

“Sword doesn’t travel anymore. He lives in the village now. It’s not like he’d ever need to go anywhere. Right, Sword?”

The other three looked Kirby in the face.

Upon seeing those faces so identical to his own, he was overwhelmed with emotion.

However, he managed to get it out, plain and simple:

“I gotta go home.”

“Sword?! You’re really gonna leave?!”

“...yes.”

“Why?! You don’t like it here anymore?!”

“No way! I love the village, and everyone in it!”

“Then why-”

“But I’ve gotta go back home. I’m sure my friends are really worried.”

Kirby thought of Waddle Dee. Kirby had just disappeared from the library. No doubt Waddle Dee was searching every corner of Dream Land for him. A lot of time had passed since then. Waddle Dee was likely still thinking about Kirby, still devastated…

Kirby, unable to remain still, jumped from his chair.

“Sword!”

His pals tried to yell at him to stop.

“I’m just going out for a bit,” Kirby said, “see you guys later!”

Kirby hurried out of the tavern.

~

Kirby headed toward the Gem Apple Tree.

Today, as always, Bandana Waddle Dee was standing guard.

“Oh, Kirby!”

Bandana Waddle Dee waved his hand with energy.

“I heard you gave the bad guys what was coming to them! Everyone’s been overjoyed about peace returning to the land. I knew you guys could do it!”

“...thanks.”

The time had come to say goodbye to Bandana Waddle Dee.

At the thought of this, Kirby couldn’t help but feel sad.

“Kirby, what happened?” Bandana Waddle Dee asked, immediately noticing this. “Everything’s peaceful now, but you don’t look like you’re happy.”

“...I have to go home.”

Kirby sat next to Bandana Waddle Dee on the small stone wall.

Bandana Waddle Dee stared fixedly at Kirby’s face.

“Do you know how to get back home?” he said.

“No, I still don’t. I think I’ll have to go out on a long journey to find it.”

“That means…”

Suddenly, large tears welled up in Bandana Waddle Dee’s eyes.

“I’m going to miss you so much!!”

Bandana Waddle Dee rubbed his eyes.

“Well, guess it can’t be helped,” he said in a jokey voice, “you’re gonna be traveling again.”

“...Waddle Dee-”

“I’ll be fine! I mean, you have a Waddle Dee in your world who’s just like me, right? We’ll always be close to each other...”

Bandana Waddle Dee, seeming unable to hold it back any longer, let the tears spill, drop by drop.

“...no. No matter how similar we look, the me of your world is not the same as me. I’m not gonna get to see you anymore,” Bandana Waddle Dee said, sobbing convulsively, “I hate this. I’m gonna miss you. Please, Kirby, stay here forever...”

“Waddle Dee…”

Kirby gently held Bandana Waddle Dee’s hand when, suddenly, voices could be heard yelling.

“H-Hey, what’s wrong!?”

“Pull yourself together! What happened!?”

The yells came from the village gate.

Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee exchanged looks. Bandana Waddle Dee’s tears withdrew from his surprise.

“What’s all the fuss about?”

“Let’s go see!”

Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee broke into a run toward the gate.

~

Broom Hatter had fallen to the ground, groaning in pain.

Wearing a large hat on his head, Broom Hatter worked in cleaning paths with his favorite broom. He nagged to any litterers that crossed his path, but otherwise was usually pretty sheepish, and had quite the pacifistic personality. However...

Now he was suffering, covered head to toe in cuts and scratches.

The villagers that ran over were just stunned, it was too much for them.

“Broom Hatter, what’s wrong? Wake up!” Kirby called out.

“I-It… It got me…” Broom Hatter said frailly.

“Who!?”

“Mias… mor… os…”

Upon hearing that name, the gathered villagers let out shocked screams.

“Wh-What!?”

“No way, not that thing again!!”

Miasmoros was one of the many hooligans rampaging around the Grasslands region. Normally, it was always lurking in the swamp, and it never did anything bad. However, when things started getting rough around the Dream Kingdom, it creeped out of the swamp and started attacking the travelers.

Spitting venom out of its large mouth, it attacked by leaning over people with its large body. It was unknown how many people had been hurt by it up to now.

Knuckle Joe shook his fists.

“That poison-puking pinhead… How could anyone do this to anyone!?”

“But…” Sparky said tearfully, “didn’t Team Kirby take down the fiend making people turn violent? That’s what I heard...”

The citizens nodded together.

Right then, Doctor, Beam, and Hammer, having noticed the disturbance, came running in.

Suddenly, the citizens surrounded Team Kirby, yelling.

“Didn’t you guys stop the culprit?!”

“Even though we had all celebrated… Was it all just a lie?!”

Team Kirby was about to be mobbed. Then, Doctor silenced the clamouring crowd.

“Be quiet! First things first, we need to get Broom Hatter medical attention.”

Everyone shut their mouths and attentively watched Doctor, the one person capable of medical treatment. Doctor coated Broom Hatter’s wounds with medicine.

“What happened to you?” Doctor asked while applying bandages. “Don’t spare a single detail.”

“Oh, it’s horrible…”

Thanks to the medicine, things seemed to become much, much better. Broom Hatter, having finally regained his composure, began to explain.

“Since I had heard you guys had gotten rid of the bad guy and all those people rampaging had gone back to being nice, I thought it was safe to leave to visit my friends in the neighboring village. I was just passing by the swampland when…”

Broom Hatter quivered so much that his hat fell off.

“It jumped out at me! It caught me off-guard, but I immediately remembered. Yeah, people said that Team Kirby had returned peace to the land. That meant Miasmoros should’ve been nice… or at least that’s what I had thought. So, I decided to call out to it. I was like, ‘hey, Miasmoros! How’re you doing?’ And then…”

Broom Hatter held his broom up high to show.

“It just looked at me and started spitting out poison all of a sudden! I was panicking. I jumped, but some of it got on my precious broom, and now my broom’s melted. Look, see?”

Indeed, the bristles of the broom had been dyed green, and partially dissolved.

The citizens, who had been listening intently, all had things to say about this.

“How horrifying!”

“Did you say anything to make that guy mad? Like, ‘hey~, Mr. Poison Jerkface~’ or something like that?”

“I would never!” said Broom Hatter. “I was just trying to be friendly, but then I got attacked for no reason!”

Broom Hatter took a deep breath.

“I barely made it out alive. I don’t even know how many times it got close to catching up to me on the way. I was in total fight-or-flight mode… mostly flight. I kept tripping, and got scraped all over. I’m lucky to have gotten away!”

“But wait, that means…”

Burning Leo was absolutely enraged.

“So things really didn’t go back to normal!!” he shouted. “The culprit was dealt with, they all should’ve come back to their senses, right? But they didn’t. Peace didn’t come back to the Dream Kingdom after all. Should’ve known it was too good to be true.”

“What the heck, Team Kirby!?”

The citizens, again, surrounded Team Kirby.

Of course, the Kirbies didn't know what was going on. Certainly, they had defeated Taranza… so why didn’t the rampages stop?

“...there must still be some remaining effects from the mind-control spell,” Beam said confusedly, “but the effects should fade bit by bit. I bet Miasmoros will be back to normal in a few days, I’m sure of it!”

Everyone seemed skeptical. Even Beam himself didn’t seem so confident in his own words.

“Anyways,” Doctor said, “we’ll just have to wait and see. Sure, we beat the Master of Puppetry, but we can’t let our guards down. Everyone, be careful when leaving the village.”

The village people exchanged worried looks.

~

The next day, then the day after that, and then again on the day after that.

Far past when those thugs were supposed to return to being peaceful, the rampages gradually grew worse and worse, more and more violent. Every day, victims were carried into the village. They all said that they had suddenly been attacked while walking in the Grasslands.

“It just wouldn’t respond to communication!”

All of the attacked travelers told the same story.

“It just attacked me without a word spoken. It had this blank look in its eyes, and it moved really awkwardly… like it was being puppeted by something.”

The village inhabitants, remembering, refrained from leaving as often as they could.

The number of visiting travelers decreased daily.

At this rate, the village was turning into a ghost town.

~

“-Well, I guess the only possible answer is that we failed to get rid of Taranza.”

Team Kirby were in the middle of a meeting in Chef Kawasaki’s tavern. The main person driving the discussion forward was Doctor.

“But how?” Hammer pouted. “We defeated him, didn’t we?”

“Yes. He lost consciousness and fell limp. I thought it would take several days for him to recover, but I guess I was wrong.”

“Did he go see a really good doctor? And they treated him super quickly?”

“I think…”

Doctor spoke in a serious tone.

“Taranza faked his defeat. He tricked us, didn't he?”

“I don’t think so...”

Beam groaned.

“Sword’s attack was really strong. Taranza got hit pretty hard. There’s no way he was just playing dead or something.”

“Sword, what do you think?”

Upon being asked, Kirby thought back to the fight and answered:

“I think he wasn’t faking it. Tarzana doesn’t do that kind of stuff…”

“Well then, what does it mean?”

“Say what you want, doesn't matter!” Hammer yelled. “If Taranza’s still controlling people, we’ll just have to fight him and take him down again!”

“...what about Sword?”

Doctor looked at Kirby.

“You said you were going to leave the village, yes? What are you going to do?”

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m gonna join everyone in the fight!” Kirby answered clearly. “I was only going to leave because I thought the Dream Kingdom was safe. Turns out it wasn’t. I’ve gotta keep fighting!”

“Great! I was getting worried there!”

Hammer jumped at Kirby.

“Knew you wouldn’t just leave us!”

“We would be much less powerful without you,” Doctor said bluntly.

“It’s not just about power, Doctor,” Beam said, “if Sword left... well, we’d miss him a lot, wouldn’t we?”

“I-I’m not talking about-”

“C’mon, Doc, be honest. We’re happy to have him fighting with us again.”

“W-Well, apart from that…”

Doctor cleared his throat.

“My main concern is about those stone tablets.”

“Oh, those things, from when we defeated Landia...”

“Yeah. I thought about it carefully after that, but…”

Doctor looked around at his companions’ faces.

“There were four stone tablets. And, when we brought the four together, they emitted a strong light and displayed tremendous power.”

“Yeah. It was really surprising!”

“This is just a guess, but…”

Doctor spoke in a hushed voice.

“I think the stone tablets may have the feelings of ancient heroes hidden inside.”

“Ancient heroes?”

“Yeah. I theorize that the souls of the heroes are contained in the stone tablets, and they responded to our wishes by lending us their power.”

Kirby thought back to when he held the power tablet.

Kirby wasn’t able to read the words written on the tablet, but he had felt a strong power flowing out of it, and it got him pumped up.

That… was the feelings of an ancient hero…?

“Well, I don’t have any evidence of that. It’s just a theory.”

Doctor said, as if hiding his embarrassment, and looked at Kirby.

“If we don’t have all four, I’m sure the tablets wouldn’t react. In other words, well, that tremendous power was a symbol of our friendship!”

Doctor continued and hit the table.

“That ball of light that rained down from the sky, I think I’m gonna call it the Team Meteor!”

“Team Meteor?”

“Yeah! It was born from our friendship, from us as a team. That meteorite that came down from the far reaches of the galaxy is where I get the ‘meteor’ part from. It’s a meteor of teamwork, so it’s the Team Meteor.”

The Beam, Hammer, and Sword Kirbies exchanged looks. Kirby didn't understand all too well, but he raised a hand.

“I think it’s good! It has a nice ring to it!”

Beam and Hammer, seeing it, also raised their hands.

“Yeah! It’s cool!”

“I don’t really understand, but I like it! Team Meteor!”

“That settles it then.”

Doctor nodded his head, seeming satisfied.

“The next fight’s definitely gonna be much harder than the last. We’re definitely gonna need Team Meteor. By that I mean…”

Doctor solemnly informed them.

“If the four of us don’t combine our power and bring together the stone tablets, we have no chance of winning. That’s what I was worried about. If Sword had left, we wouldn't be able to summon the Team Meteor.”

“I see.”

Beam nodded his head and looked at Kirby.

“But there’s no need to worry now. Sword’s chosen to fight alongside us.”

“That’s right!” Kirby shouted with enthusiasm. “We’ll gather up those stone tablets and use Team Meteor again!”

The tavern door opened and Magolor entered.

“Yo, dudes, listen up, got some terrible news to tell you!”

Magolor approached, seeming quite excited, and joined the Kirbies at the table.

“Terrible news? What?”

“In the plains up north, some kind of mysterious hole has appeared!”

“Mysterious hole?”

“Unexplainably weird things have been happening all over the place recently. Apparently there’s some kind of dimensional rift up north that leads to another world! I heard that someone from there came through the hole and is now causing trouble in our world!”

“Wait, what!?”

Team Kirby’s looks changed.

“Even at the best of times, the violence never ends. And this time it’s a threat from a whole other world?!”

“What’re they like? What kind of threat are we dealing with?”

“A young woman riding in some kind of mech thing she called her ‘Business Suit.’ She seems crazy strong, way too strong for the hunters around there to handle.”

“Wait, Business Suit?!” Kirby exclaimed, surprised. “It’s Susie! From the Haltmann Works Company!”

“Wait, hold up. Sword, you know her?”

Doctor gave Kirby a suspicious look.

Susie was the executive assistant and secretary of the Haltmann Works Company who had once tried to mechanize Dream Land. Riding in a mech developed with the advanced technology of the company, she had caused a lot of trouble for Kirby and his friends. She had a post-battle change of heart and had left Dream Land, but…

“Susie’s showed up in this world?” Kirby mumbled. “What could that mean?... There’s no way, did Susie get lost in this world like I did??”

Beam gave Kirby a worried look.

“What happened, Sword? Do you really know who this otherworldly invader is?”

Kirby was so lost in thought, he didn’t hear his friend’s words.

“Susie… in this world… rifts opening to other worlds… Oh! That means...!”

Suddenly, realizing something important, Kirby jumped up.

If Susie came through a rift leading to another world, that likely meant he could use the hole to get back to his home universe.

Kirby had finally found a way to return to Dream Land!”

“Woohoo! Magolor, tell me more about the rift thing, tell me everything!”

“I didn’t hear that much, so there are a lot of things I don’t know about it. If you want to see the hole, you better head over there ASAP. ‘Cause the hole opened out of nowhere. It might close just as suddenly!”

“Got it!!”

Kirby, panicked, fell out of his chair.

“I’ve gotta get there before the hole closes up!”

“Sword!! What’s got you all excited all of a sudden!?”

Beam and Hammer grabbed Kirby by the hands and held him back. Kirby struggled until he could free himself from their grasos.

“Let me go! Beam, Hammer, Doctor, goodbye. I’ve gotta hurry!!”

“Sword, calm down already!” Doctor said. “You seem very interested in this dimensional rift, yes? But that’s not something that has anything to do with us. We’ve gotta go defeat Taranza”

“Oh, right…”

Kirby, finally remembering his role, reseated himself. However, his mind was nagging at him. Right now, while they were dealing with this, the portal to Dream Land had a chance to close at any moment…

Hammer looked at Kirby, who had gone completely silent.

“We’ll go deal with that lady later. We should probably deal with Taranza first.”

Kirby looked down without saying a word.

In truth, he just wanted to hurry north and jump into the portal right away. If he lost this chance, he’d possibly never be able to get back to Dream Land for the rest of time.

However, without Kirby, the Team Meteor couldn’t be summoned. Defeating foes as formidable as the likes of Landia and Taranza would be nearly impossible.

“What should I do?”

Kirby thought about Dream Land.

It was a similar world with similar people living in it, but this world was not Dream Land.

Kirby loved the Dream Kingdom, but the place he wanted to return to was Dream Land.

“But… But without me, they…”

“Sword? Is something wrong?”

Kirby’s friends stared at him with concern.

Kirby looked up and gave a pleasant smile.

“Uh, nothing! Nothing’s wrong! Anyways, uh, let’s try to come up with a strategy for fighting Taranza!”

Seeing Kirby with his usual smile, the other three looked relieved.

“Good grief, Sword! Don’t just scare us like that!”

“First you just suddenly try to leave, then you just won’t talk, you really got us worried there.”

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!”

Kirby, by all means, couldn’t do it.

He couldn’t just abandon his friends, forsake the entire Dream Kingdom, and disappear into thin air.

“There’s probably another way to get back home!”

After telling himself that, Kirby got back to talking to his pals.

“Let’s head up to the Empyrean again,” Doctor said, “but before that, we should probably go make a few upgrades to our gear. We’ve gotta buy the most powerful gear we can get our hands on…”

“Well then, leave it to me!” Magolor said, smiling. “If you need the strongest gear possible, I have just the thing for you: the Platinum Set! You could search to the ends of the planet and still wouldn’t be able to find anything stronger! If you’re going to fight strong enemies, you’re totally, totally gonna need it!”

“Ok, we’ll take it.”

The Kirbies nodded their heads.

“How much is it?”

“Well, you see, you guys and I, we’re really close. The set actually costs over a hundred Gem Apples, but I’m going to give you all a special discount! You can have it for ninety-nine Gem Apples!”

“Ninety-nine!?!”

Nobody had that many Gem Apples.

Magolor continued with a cheerful look.

“The weapon costs ninety-nine Gem Apples, as does the armor! That totals up to one hundred and ninety-eight Gem Apples! Quite the bargain if I do say so myself!”

“O-One hundred ninety-eight…”

The quartet was on the verge of fainting.

“...everyone,” Beam said dizzily, “how many Gem Apples do you have?”

“I just spent some yesterday, so… I’ve only got nine.”

“I have seven.”

“I have ten.”

The Kirbies were at wits’ end.

“This is ridiculous! Five hundred ninety-eight is way too much!”

“I see. If that’s the case, you’ll just have to make do with your current gear. I know it will be tough, but give it your best shot, Team Kirby!”

Magolor giggled.

...then…

“HOLD UP!”

A loud voice was heard as the tavern door swung open.

A group of villagers came in. Behind him were Burning Leo, Knuckle Joe, and Broom Hatter.

“I overheard you guys talking!” Bandana Waddle Dee said, approaching the Kirbies with a tense look.

“Huh? When did you-”

“You were all so loud, I could hear you from outside. Anyways, about the Gem Apples.”

Bandana Waddle Dee looked at Magolor.

“The Gem Apples belong to everyone in the town, so we have to distribute them equally. I can’t just give the Kirbies a ton of them.”

“Yeah,” Magolor said, “you can’t just pick favorites!”

“But!”

Burning Leo pushed Bandana Waddle Dee aside and moved to the front.

“I’m willing to give my share to the Kirbies as a present. There’s nothing wrong with doing that!”

“...what?!”

The Kirbies were shocked.

The villagers that had gathered continued on from what Burning Leo said.

“I’m giving my share to Team Kirby!”

“Same here. Now, since I have two hundred, I’ll give you all of them!”

They clamoured incessantly. Bandana Waddle Dee raised his voice:

“If you put everyone’s Gem Apples together, we have seven hundred ninety-two Gem Apples, enough for four people to spend one hundred ninety-eight each! Magolor, are you alright with this?”

“Wh-What?! Are you all serious about this?! Gem Apples are really valuable, and you’re willing to just give them away??”

“We’re all putting all our hope in Team Kirby.”

The villagers all nodded their heads at Bandana Waddle Dee’s words.

“I’d give anything to see the Dream Kingdom go back to the peaceful way to was before.”

“I can’t fight, but I wanna help Team Kirby in any way I can!”

“Keep at it, Team Kirby!”

Surrounded by the villagers, the quartet blinked a few times.

“Thanks, everyone!” Hammer shouted, jumping up. “I promise, we’re gonna take down Taranza for good and get the Dream Kingdom back to normal!”

The Beam, Doctor, and Sword Kirbies nodded strongly.

“You can count on us. All your hopes won’t be in vain!”

Each of the four raised a hand and shouted:

“We’re TEAM KIRBY!!!”

Previous Chapter

Table of Contents

Next Chapter

[deafeninggardenerpanda]

Six people met at Daroach’s Café; Daroach, Meta Knight, Magolor, Kirby, President Dedede, and Waddle Dee. Kirby was brought here by Meta Knight's sudden call, and both Kirby and President Dedede, as told by Meta Knight, brought their now unsealed gears. A tag hung on the door of the café reading, "Closed Today," so there was no need to worry about customers coming in. President Dedede glanced at Meta Knight and complained.

"What does this mean? You said your name is Meta Knight? You look like an aristocrat, what’s in it for you?"

"I'll explain everything, but first, the gears you have ... " Meta Knight was saying before Magolor interrupted him.

"The gears, put them in the box!" Magolor presented a box with a lid.

"Why did you prepare a box? For what ...? " Meta Knight asked. 

"The gears are dangerous now that the seals have melted off. The magical power in them will burst out and destroy stuff around us!" Magolor shivered in fright. "I don't know if something will happen if the three gears are gathered in one place, so I brought a box to contain them."

"I see, then let's put the gears we found in the box," Daroach said. He tossed his gear into the box.

"Put your gear in the box, too," Meta Knight told President Dedede.

"What? Don’t be ridiculous." He hugged the gear protectively. "I had a hard time getting this gear, I'm not giving it to anyone!"

"The gear might go haywire if you don’t put it in the box!" Magolor’s expression was serious. President Dedede replied nervously.

"B-but, it’s mine. Magolor, you know how hard it was to get this ... " 

"Ah! Danger!" Magolor shouted. President Dedede jumped up in surprise.  

"W-what!?"

"Just now, the gear shone brightly! That must be the signal!" 

"Eh!? Eh!? What—!? " President Dedede threw the gear in a panic. Magolor quickly caught the gear with the box.

"Now, put your gear in Magolor’s box as well ... " Meta Knight told Kirby, however, he closed his mouth when he saw Kirby’s face. His eyes were shining, and his mouth was about to drool. 

"All three gears! With these, the deluxe lunches for 100,000 people are ours!"

" ... Put the gear in the box, quickly."

Kirby didn't hear. His head was full of deluxe lunches for 100,000 people. "Chef Kawasaki's deluxe lunch! Has everyone had it!? It's amazing, on a big plate, hamburger steak, fried shrimp, and omelet rice are set, with a huge heap of potato salad ...! "

" ... Kirby, please listen to me ... "

"Let's eat it together! If everyone can't finish it, I'll finish it! It’s okay, I don’t mind!"

" ..... I'm telling you to put the gear in the box ..... "

"Yeah! 100,000 servings, 100,000 servings~! " Kirby cheerfully tossed the gear into the box. Magolor closed the lid.

"With that, crisis has been averted! The magic has been contained, no need to worry anymore."

"Then, let's move on." Meta Knight put the photo on the table. President Dedede inspected it.  

"What is this? Are these supposed to be characters ...? " 

"They’re ancient characters. It seems to be an explanation of the machine found in the diamond mine." 

"I can’t read it." 

"It's difficult to decipher, but I can understand some of it by looking in this book." Meta Knight placed the thick research book next to the photo.

"What’s it say?" Kirby asked. 

"It’s a warning."

"Warning ...? " 

"The discovered ancient machine is a fearsome thing that brings both wealth and misery simultaneously. It’s terrifying."

" ... Eh?" Kirby, President Dedede, and Waddle Dee were shocked. 

"That’s what it means!?" President Dedede said. "Doesn't the ancient machine make everyone happy? That’s what it said in the newspaper." 

"Only the aristocrats will be happy. The ancient machine has the power to turn stone into expensive treasure, which will make the aristocrats rich, however, on the other hand, a stench will fill the town and eventually cause it to fall to ruin. It holds two opposite powers."

"What did you say ...!? " President Dedede was as pale as a ghost. "That's completely different from what was written! Wasn’t the wizard who stopped the machine evil!?"

"The opposite. It was probably a wise man with the right heart who pulled out the gears. Moreover, I assume he was unable to destroy them due to some sort of special power they have, so he sealed the magical gears and hid them instead. That way, the machine would never move again."

"This is serious ...! " Kirby jumped up and shouted. "We have to tell Mr. Fugo as soon as possible! He can't start the machine!" 

"No, Fugo knows exactly what he’s doing," Meta Knight said. "He should have had an expert in ancient characters on his side and succeeded in deciphering the full text long ago." 

"Huh ...? " Kirby was wide-eyed. 

"In other words, Fugo has been planning to do this from the beginning," President Dedede said, furious. "To make money, he didn’t care about what would happen to anyone other than himself!?"

"He is that kind of person." 

"Unforgivable!" President Dedede yelled and swung his fists.

President Dedede is selfish and self-indulgent, but he has a stronger sense of justice than anyone else. Fugo’s belief that it didn’t matter if other people suffered for his own benefit—he couldn't forgive him at all.

"We have to stop this," Kirby said. "We can't give Mr. Fugo the gears!" 

Meta Knight nodded. "All of you, if you’ll lend me your strength, our hearts will be stronger as one. Let's work to stop Fugo's evil, together."

" ... Together ... huh," President Dedede offhandedly mumbled. Suddenly, his mouth warped into a snarl. He narrowed his eyes and glared at Meta Knight. "That’s funny. Why do you, an aristocrat, want to join hands with us?"

Meta Knight turned to President Dedede. "What do you mean?" 

"If the ancient machine moves again, won’t the aristocrats profit? Doesn’t sound like a bad day for you." Meta Knight’s sharp eyes flickered toward him. "Even so, you’re trying to join hands with us ... Maybe you’re planning something, too? Planning to drive Fugo out of this town instead of yourself, so you can rise up ... "

Crack ...! 

There was a loud noise. President Dedede jumped when Meta Knight hit the floor with his cane. Meta Knight snapped back.

"Don’t look down on me! I am an inhabitant of Diamond Town before I am an aristocrat! Are you going to sit back and watch this town perish in silence!?"

President Dedede recoiled under his intensity. " ... H-huh!  You’re a solid guy, for an aristocrat. You believe in what you say." It was then ...

"A-ah ... um ... Lord Meta Knight ... sir ... " Waddle Dee said quietly.

"Hm? What?" 

While everyone was talking, Waddle Dee has been staring at the photo that's been sitting on top of the table the whole time.

"This photo ... there’s something written on the bottom of it." 

" ... Hm?" Meta Knight brought his face closer to the photo.

"Here, down here." Waddle Dee stretched and pointed.

Meta Knight looked carefully. "I see. You’re right, that looks to be the case," he said. "There are small characters underneath the sentences I have deciphered."

"What!? Is it a big discovery!?" President Dedede came over and said.

"No, I doubt it." Meta Knight pointed. "Look. There are very few characters and what’s there is distorted, like a scribble. It’s probably just some sort of rough draft." 

"I-I’m sorry, I messed up ... "

Looking at the dejected Waddle Dee, Meta Knight added, "But, it's great you noticed the little characters I overlooked. Let's decipher it, just in case." 

"Decipher? How do you do that?" When Kirby asked, Meta Knight showed the thick research book he brought.

"I'll look it up in this book. I can look at the shapes and arrangements of the characters and look for similar strings." 

President Dedede leaned over the table. "What, that’s so annoying! So much work!" 

"Yeah! It might be a little too difficult for President Dedede," Kirby said cheerfully. "You can rest, I'll decipher it!" 

" ... What!?" President Dedede frowned. "There’s no way the ancient characters are gonna be deciphered by a lil’ brat like you!"

"I'm good at this kind of thing. Are you going to take a nap over there, President Dedede?" 

"Don't be stupid! You won’t be able to do it without me!" President Dedede rolled his arms, motivated.  

"Let’s do our best, everyone!" Magolor was enthusiastic. Daroach looked displeased, but there was no choice but to look into the book. 

Deciphering the ancient characters was difficult. The meaning changed greatly with even the smallest difference. Murmur, murmur, hum, hum. Everyone faced each other and exchanged opinions. 

"Hey, look. This string is ... " 

"It's similar to this. That means this says ... "

"No, wait. The length of the line is different. This one, instead ... " It was an arduous task, but little by little, they began to uncover the meaning. 

... Of course, Kirby and President Dedede were unable to keep up. They grew so tired they fell asleep on the floor. Waddle Dee suddenly raised his voice. 

" ... Ah! Lord Meta Knight, this string is possibly ...! " However, Waddle Dee's discovery was loudly interrupted by Daroach. 

"What are you doing, Magolor!" 

Meta Knight and Waddle Dee both looked up in surprise. Before they knew it, Magolor had slinked away from the table and was approaching the door. He firmly grasped the box containing the gears. Magolor laughed as soon as Daroach noticed him. 

"Bravo, bravo! Thank you all for your hard work, you guys! Thanks for collecting the gears for meeee~! " He quickly opened the door and ran outside. Everyone was frozen in place, too stunned to move by the sudden event.

"W— ... wait a minute!" The first to react was Daroach. 

"Wait! Magolor!" 

Daroach and Meta Knight quickly ran after him. Kirby and President Dedede, who were sleeping comfortably at the time, were trampled. 

"Ow ow ow ow—! " 

"What are you doing, you little—!? " The two jumped up in surprise.  

"There’s an emergency, President Dedede! Kirby!" Waddle Dee shouted. "Magolor ran away with the gears!" 

" ... Eh!?" Kirby and President Dedede looked at each other. 

"What do you mean!?" 

"That guy, he was planning to take the prize money for himself this whole time!?" 

Magolor laughed loudly as he ran. Kirby and the others desperately chased after him, but Magolor was surprisingly quick. Their view of him got smaller and smaller.

"He couldn’t be trusted after all!" Daroach shouted in frustration. "We were fooled, Meta Knight!" 

"Ah, that's right." Meta Knight jumped into the car parked in front of Daroach’s Café. Daroach jumped in as well and took the passenger seat. "Let’s go!" 

"Right! Step on it, Meta Knight!" Daroach shouted and shut his eyes tightly. The steam car accelerated sharply and immediately reached its maximum speed. They thought they could catch up with Magolor in no time, but—— 

"I won't let you! Ha!" Magolor turned around and threw a capsule that broke and spewed out clouds of black smoke. Meta Knight slammed on the brakes. The two coughed as they inhaled the fumes.

"Cough ...! I can’t believe it ...! "

"Magolor ...! " 

When the smoke finally cleared, Magolor was gone. 

Kirby and President Dedede weren't standing still, of course. 

"The chase is on! My Great King DDD XX, come to me!" President Dedede started running toward the factory where the plane was stored, but Kirby would not be defeated.  

"It’ll be my Warp Star that catches Magolor!" 

"Wait Kirby!" Waddle Dee stopped Kirby before he started to run.

"Ah, Waddle Dee! Come on, let's go together!" 

"Yeah ...! " Waddle Dee was carrying the photo of the ancient characters and the heavy research book with him. Kirby was surprised.

"You’re going to bring that!?"

"Yeah! I'll leave the flying to you, Kirby. I need to decipher this!"

"Waddle Dee ...! " They had to hurry and chase after Magolor. It would take them much longer if they had to carry the heavy book all the way to the plane, but Kirby nodded when he saw Waddle Dee's serious expression. 

" ... All right. Let’s take it!" 

Waddle Dee didn't miss any small details. He could find something important from even the smallest clue. Thanks to that, he had been able to find and repair many machine failures up to now. He would surely notice something important that everyone else overlooked. 

The two carried the heavy book, ran to the apartment, and boarded the Warp Star, together. 

"Let’s go!" With Kirby in the cockpit and Waddle Dee in the seat behind, the Warp Star took off.

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[silvokrent]

Long Live the King - 2

In their defense, it was an accident.

Or: The kids are convinced that they killed Dedede and Escargoon. From there, everything goes downhill fast.

It was a testimony to cosmic indifference that while your own world could be ending, the world at large spun on.

There was something surreal about the looming castle, and the utter lack of regard from the sentries posted along its parapets. One or two Waddle Dees gave them a cursory glance as Tiff and Tuff crossed the drawbridge, but otherwise paid them no mind.

The normalcy of it was suffocating.

It was a shared sentiment, apparently. Tuff shrank closer to her side as they passed by a squad in the middle of morning drills.

“Do you think we should have waited a little while, before we came back?” he asked under his breath.

“And have our absence overlap with theirs? It would look suspicious.” Tiff shook her head. “Besides, we’re supposed to be pretending nothing’s different. Remember?”

He screwed up his face. “I wish I didn’t.”

“We’ll be fine,” she said, with the kind of surety clearly intended for someone else’s benefit. “Just give it a couple days. As long as we stay calm, no one’s going to—”

“Oi! You two!”

They flinched.

“‘Stay calm,’ huh?” he asked through clenched teeth.

“Shut up.”

From the direction of the courtyard hurried Waddle Doo, the brow of his single eye furrowed. There was a notable urgency to his steps. “Sorry for the abruptness,” he said, as he skidded to a halt, “but have either of you seen His Majesty or His Excellency?”

She could feel the beginning of a cold sweat on the back of her neck. Not trusting herself to speak, she shook her head.

Tuff recovered first. In a passably offhand voice, he asked, “They’re missing?”

“I’m afraid so.” He folded his arms, his eye downcast. “The king wasn’t in his chambers when I went to rouse him. I thought he might have joined Escargoon in the dungeon to do the early broadcast, but they weren’t down there, either. And none of the guards reported seeing them during their shifts.” His gaze flickered back to them. “You’re sure you didn’t pass them when you were…”

Tiff didn’t like the look of renewed consideration he was giving them.

“Hang on, what were you doing out so early?”

“Taking a walk,” she answered. Not technically a lie. “I’m really sorry, but we don’t know where they are.”

After all, it’s not like they’d actually seen where their bodies ended up.

It took every shred of willpower to not sag with relief when Waddle Doo redirected his gaze to a point beyond their shoulders. “Well, all right,” he replied, a tad distractedly. “I just figured since—well, it doesn’t matter. If you do happen to hear anything, please pass that information along to my guards. Have a good morning.”

As he trailed off in the direction of the fountain, Tiff caught a snippet of him muttering under his breath: “This isn’t right. This isn’t like them…”

She waited until he was well out of earshot before she broke the silence (and even then, the words came out as more of a whisper). “That was unlucky.”

“Yeah, I’ll say.”

“You think that could be a problem?”

Reflexively, Tuff ran a hand through his hair, frowning. “On second thought,” he began, “maybe we should head down to the village for a while. Kill some time.”

Tiff fixed him with a rather waspish stare.

“What?”

And then it clicked.

“Oh. Bad choice of words.”

“You think?”

The morning came and went, and with it, the number of places for them to loiter without looking conspicuous.

They made a point of avoiding the main road and central plaza, but Cappy Town wasn’t, in the grand scheme of things, a big place. There were only so many alleys and side streets they could hang out before an inquisitive Cappy spotted them and waved. (Or, as was nearly the case, dump a bucket of mop water on them from a second-story window.)

The final straw came for Tuff when they were walking in front of Kawasaki’s restaurant, and the sound of laughter froze him in his tracks.

“Honey and Iro,” he said, and sure enough, the pair darted into view a few seconds later, kicking a ball back and forth. They hadn’t noticed them yet.

He grabbed at Tiff’s sleeve. “They’ll ask if I want to play,” he mumbled, “and I really don’t think I can say no and explain why…”

Her eyes darted back and forth, before settling on the red sliding door.

Tuff followed her gaze, and stiffened. “Oh, no,” he said, “I already puked once today.”

“No one goes in there! Look, unless you can think of a better place to hide—”

“There’s a reason no one goes in there, Tiff—”

“His cooking’s gotten better. Now move.” With a firm shove, she steered them inside.

The second the door slid shut behind them, they leaned back into the lattice, and sighed.

“—scared me half to death when he burst in. I nearly sliced my hand off while chopping the potatoes! Poor little fella looked so put out when I couldn’t tell him anything.”

“I suppose I’m not surprised. Waddle Doo has been captain of the guard for years. He must feel like he failed them,” said Mayor Len.

Whatever momentary relief Tiff had felt evaporated. Thank every higher power she could name that Kawasaki, Len, and Hana were too engrossed in their conversation to have noticed them yet.

“And he had no idea where they could’ve gone?” Hana asked, lowering her glass.

Kawasaki shrugged. “If he’s checking here of all places, then I think he’s getting desperate. Personally, I think he’s blowing things out of proportion. They’ll turn up, sooner or later. Besides, Waddle Doo can’t afford to worry—he’s already two hairs shy of going bald.”

Len’s mustache twitched, as if he were suppressing a smile. (At the warning look Hana shot him, he quickly schooled his expression.)

“Did you offer to help him?” she inquired.

“Well, I was gonna get him something to eat, but he ran out the door before I got as far as, ‘Do you want that for here, or to go?’”

Hana prodded at her plate with a fork. “I hope you’re right about this being nothing. I was starting to get used to things being uneventful around—”

The abrupt clatter of the door startled them.

Kawasaki turned. “Welcome to—”

The entryway was empty, save for the cool breeze blowing through it.

“I could have sworn…” With a shrug, he crossed the room and closed it.

“That…was…too…close,” said Tiff in between gasps.

Whatever Tuff tried to say in response, it came out as a wheeze.

The pair collapsed on the side of the path that led away from the village. In the distance, she could make out the alternating yellow, orange, and blue thatching of the roofs, sprawling below the hills. A few curls of gray smoke rose from one of the chimneys.

With a groan, Tuff threw himself onto the ground, and rolled over. “So much for keeping things quiet,” he said, partially muffled by the dirt. “How long do you think before everyone knows?”

“Word here travels fast.” She settled on the ground beside him, drawing her knees up to her chin. “All the Cappies will probably be talking about it by the end of the day.”

“We just need to lay low.” He turned his head, just enough to catch her eye. “Right?”

“We haven’t given people a reason to suspect us,” Tiff mused, more to herself than anything. She reached down and scooped up a handful of gravel, gradually letting it slip through her fist, and disperse into the wind. “And that’s assuming everyone thinks their disappearances are more than just disappearances.”

“If Waddle Doo keeps raising the alarm, they might,” he huffed.

She opened her mouth to assuage his concern—and it occurred to her that she didn’t know how. Instead, she wrapped her arms around her knees, letting the silence hang between them.

“Should we warn Kirby?” Tuff asked suddenly.

She glanced at him out of her periphery, surprised. “Why?”

He rolled from prone to supine, and crossed his arms over his chest. “Well, what if they do start to think that whatever happened to them wasn’t an accident. You remember how all the Cappies reacted when a few sheep vanished—but this is Dedede and Escargoon we’re talking about.”

“You think the Cappies will accuse Kirby of eating them?”

“No.” His lips twisted. “But maybe they’ll start looking for answers—”

“—and when they can’t find any, they’ll start making some up,” Tiff quietly finished. “Scared people don’t need a reason to blame something; they just need something to blame.”

“Exactly.”

“That’s all hanging on a pretty big if,” she reasoned, “and it would take a while before things escalated to that point.” She let out a long breath that did nothing to settle her unease. “I think, for now, it’s safer if we don’t tell him. The less we involve him, the less danger he’s in.”

“So, we keep our distance,” said Tuff, not bothering to hide his unhappiness.

“We keep our distance.” Reluctantly, Tiff stood, and offered him her hand. She hauled him to his feet, and he began to brush the gravel from his clothes. “Let’s head back to the castle. At least there we won’t have to worry about answering too many questions.”

If she subscribed to the idea of karma, she might have wondered if they ought to stop tempting fate.

Apart from the echo of their footsteps, the corridors were mercifully empty. Granted, it didn’t do much to settle Tiff’s nerves, but it was preferrable to upkeeping pretenses around other people.

“We still have our passports, right?” Tuff asked.

She tossed him a funny look. “I think so. Not that we’ve ever used them.”

He laced his fingers together behind his head. “Hypothetically speaking,” he began, “if we needed to leave the kingdom for an extended vacation…”

“How extended?”

He gave a nervous laugh. “Forever.”

“We’re not leaving the country.” Though Tiff wasn’t about to admit that the thought had occurred to her, too. “Where would we even go?”

“Maybe Kit Cosmos has room on his island for two more,” Tuff said, as he dropped his gaze to the floor.

“The last thing we need to do is something drastic.” For now. “We have a plan, and we’re sticking to it. Besides, what would our parents say?”

A door creaked, and he lifted his head. Immediately, he tensed.

“I guess we can ask them ourselves,” he stammered.

Ahead of them, one of the castle’s many side chambers opened, and out of it filed a rather motley procession: Ebrum, Waddle Doo, and (strangely) Chief Bookem. Ebrum’s hands were folded behind his back, his expression pinched, as he murmured something to Waddle Doo. The other shook his head as they turned in step and continued down the opposite end of the hall, deep in conversation.

Bookem, on the other hand, made to leave in their direction, and his eyes lit up when he saw them.

“Afternoon, kids.” He gave a friendly wave as he approached. “Staying out of trouble, I hope?”

Tiff straightened, trying (and failing) to steady her heartrate. “Of course.”

“Good to hear,” he said. “Your father’s got enough on his mind as it is.”

Curiosity got the better of her, and she asked before she could stop herself, “What was that about?”

At that, Bookem grimaced. “Ah. Nothing good, I’m afraid. I’m surprised you don’t know. Well, since you’re bound to hear about it sooner or later…” He sighed. “Dedede and Escargoon haven’t been seen since yesterday. Waddle Doo has asked for my assistance in coordinating search parties.”

The two of them swapped a look. “What’s that got to do with Dad?” Tuff demanded.

Both brows shot up in response to the question. “As cabinet minister, Sir Ebrum assumes responsibility of the kingdom, should either of them become missing or indisposed.”

It was easy to forget, with how often they were the ones dealing with Dedede’s antics, that their father was a politician. Frankly, Tiff could have thought of a thousand less jarring ways to be reminded of that fact.

“If he’s in charge now,” Tuff asked, “then does that make us royalty or something?”

That elicited a small chuckle from Bookem. “It’s temporary,” he reminded them, “so don’t get used to the idea. He’s just keeping things in running order until they return.”

In spite of herself, Tiff saw an opportunity to investigate, and she took it. “So, you think they will come back?”

“Oh, sure. Don’t let the captain’s paranoia get to you; they’re probably fine. Wouldn’t be the first time they’ve gone off and caused trouble, now would it?”

“What do you think happened to them?” Tuff asked, with a look that spoke volumes of his regret asking in the first place. Thankfully, Bookem seemed to misread it as concern.

He stroked his beard. “We haven’t ruled out the likelihood they got lost. Now, if you ask me, they’re just trying to stir up a commotion because they’re bored. Wouldn’t put it past them. Although…” He frowned. “It’s a possibility, albeit an unlikely one, that we're dealing with foul play.”

With an extreme amount of effort, Tiff swallowed down the panic in her throat. “Really?”

“Well, I did say it was unlikely,” Bookem said. “Figure if something bad happened, it’s because a monster got its hands on them.”

“Not a person?” Tuff prompted.

“There’s only a handful of people I can think of even capable of doing of something like that, let alone trying to in the first place.” He scratched at his chin, eyes narrowed in thought. “Well, I suppose Doron would have company for a change. Provided we don’t execute whoever did it, of course. But try not to lose sleep over it,” he said, when he registered the looks of identical, dumbstruck terror on their faces. “We’ll have this resolved in no time.”

He began to stride past them, but not before tussling their hair. “Leave the worrying to the grownups.”

Only after he rounded the corner, and the sound of his footsteps went with him, did Tuff finally speak.

“At least we’ll get food, and who knows? Maybe Kirby will come down to the station and visit us once in a while.”

“We’re not going to jail, Tuff,” Tiff snapped. She lifted a hand to fix the top of her braid, and only then realized it was shaking. She grabbed her wrist with the other hand, frantically willing it to stop. “We just have to wait for things to settle down.”

His voice was surprisingly small: “…They will, right?”

It was no use. Tiff let her arms drop back to her sides. “Of course they will.”

They had to.

[amcrvnthxne]

( cindy kimberly. 25. cis woman. she/her. )  the story of DISNEY FAIRIES now lives in the soul of VIDIA BATARI, aged TWENTY-FIVE years. they’re a NEWCOMER, having been in woodvale for TWO YEARS in the WEST as a SINGER / STREET RACER. and yeah, they definitely have the vibes of VIDIA with the powers of AIR MANIPULATION, don’t you think?  ( eva, 25+, she/her, cst. ) @folkloremsintro

ABOUT

tw: fire, death

rather expectantly, her parents were never quite the stable, healthy folks you’d see in a well-to-do household, their many travels leading to vegas when vidia was around seven years. it would be the last place they settled as a family, their lives already on the fringes by then. Her mother was a housewife, dedicating her life to her husband and daughter’s happiness and never her own. It always struck vidia as a terrible way to exist, a form of entrapment she never cared for. her father, a militant pilot who praised diligence and traditionalism over all else, as his father before him, would see his ideals crumble after years abroad. somehow, he’d become a lesser man, a lesser person than he once was and he’d grown angry, in time. at himself for his weakness, at others for not seeing his fading greatness — at his inability to just be as he once was, with his mind unraveling, decaying at the seams. a pathetic drunk, an abusive husband to a wife that’d given up everything. barely much of a father. that was his legacy. he would die in a fire of his own design, a bittersweet image that still haunts vidia to this day.

following this, vidia and her mother fell into something of a spiral, with her mother seeking comfort in equally terrible men and vidia herself seeking acceptance and a home in other forms — be it in friends up to no good, the streets, or eventually some semblance of a music career. it was racing, specifically, that would result in her string of lockups on account of the associated crime that came along with her newer passion. and it was her status as a fugitive of the law after taking the fall for someone else, an ex in fact, that eventually led vidia to slip into the scenic town of woodvale, having mistakenly believed it was her ticket to temporary salvation while evading the worst of the punishment. her being stuck now seems like far worse a sentence than anything she could rightly conceive.

ABILITY

aerokinesis — she can shape and manipulate air, however, the stronger the current, the more energy and stamina it requires. the speed and pressure of this air is also affected by her physical state and she cannot create air from nothing, only manipulate what surrounds her. fire and electricity may hinder this skill further, and as her hands are the driving force behind this talent, she is useless when they are bound.

HEADCANONS

before realizing there was no way out, vidia invited her mother to join her in woodvale in an effort to ensure the woman’s safety and keep an eye on her. as before, vidia serves as her ungrateful mother’s meal ticket these days, securing funds for her whenever possible and still caring for her to some extent despite the woman being holed up with some filth of a man near the west side of town. vidia also visits when she can, though her mother doesn’t appear to mind one way or the other lately, blaming the girl for her predicament

on the chance she doesn’t have a race or performance for the evening, she'll typically make use of her time nursing a drink at the bar unless she happens upon some quick scheme or side job for cash, which her natural greed would prevent her from refusing most often. she is also ridiculously poor most of the time, on account of her pouring her funds into her vehicles or her mother rather than the usual living expenses, so refusing is typically a one-way ticket to starvation

gambling, while her usual choice in crime, is one she’s actually fairly terrible at if it doesn’t involve a vehicle of some sort. a lot of her connections in general are related to criminals and various criminal actions committed

vidia holds something of a biker grunge sense of style — ripped skinny jeans and plenty of fishnet, barely-there dresses, exposing vintage tanks and tees. she owns far too much leather and lace and enough plaid to make a statement, often accompanied by vintage ring sets and dangling necklaces. she believes in immodesty and surely it’s apparent

vidia is something of an insomniac. and given her tendencies to wander about at night rather than sleep, keeping to goodness knows what, her internal clock is terribly off balance. a good portion of the time, she’s late to most things during the day due to her eternal struggle to actually get out of bed when necessary

plums are her absolute favorite food and they might be the only edible thing she keeps in her kitchen regularly enough, when she can afford it

she has an arrow tattoo positioned near her right wrist, extending a partial length of her forearm. a set of angel wings in 'tramp stamp' form also decorate her skin. she also has far too many piercings. ears, naval, tongue — you name it, she's likely spiked a hole through it at some point

her usual vehicle is a hennessey venom gt, rated one of the fastest cars in the world. sporting a brilliant shade of imperial purple, it’s an easy mark to make in the streets. as an alternative, as it’s a little less conspicuous, she’ll ride through town on a kawasaki ninja zx-14r. also in a custom, darker byzantium hue, its right side is decked out in stardust

WANTED

bring me your criminals, your petty thieves, your outcasts

other disney fae naturally, maybe even the dragon from her stories

those who would use her mother against her or just use her past against her in general

fellow musicians or the band she might regularly perform with

bar buddies, party friends, drug dealers, fellow terrible influences

former flings, exes, even weirdly undefined romances still in play if you will

open to whatever you’d like, honestly

[whatudottu]

Because I've held this off for too long, once again it seems that @nukeli has beaten me to the punch with colour schemes. Damn my procrastination or whatever, but I only just realised that I didn't put any mention of the 'fodder' classes (Vehicons, Insecticons and I suppose Autotroopers since I'm including them) and wanted to put down my thoughts before writing this up.

An added bonus here is that certain character have different alts (based on character changes and even the heavier focus of 'robots in disguise' that these Decepticons are after) so it's not just me ranting about colour schemes.

Yes, this was why I was complaining about the wiki altmodes, so deal with the vehicles I found instead. May or may not be due to me using images as references haha.

The Autobots (you are here)

The Decepticons Part 1

The Decepticons Part 2

Going in order of my notes, we begin with Cliffjumper. He’s obviously a 1970 Dodge Challenger and what colours I’ve given him are on the image below. Nothing much to say about a definitely dead character other than I didn’t just wanna make him blue.

Next on the list is good old Doctor Ratchet. I’ve had it in my mind ever since Nuke’s one post that SG!Ratchet was like Medic from TF2, so I guess I took it and ran.

To play an opposite to regular Ratchet, he comes across as affable and friendly but is really just doing the things he loves to people he hates. Autobots, Decepticons, hates everyone. He despises Optimus Prime too, but he can’t do anything unless he wants to be cooped up in his berthroom reattaching his limbs for it. Believe him, he tried.

As for altmode and colours, I spent way too long finding that he resembles a Mercedes Benz G-Class ambulance that I was ticked to find out he wasn’t at all. I special looked for the green coloured ambulance because Synth-En, duh!

Breaking in after the Doctor comes our local wrecker Bulkhead. I don’t have much of a read on this guy, other than the fact that I thought it’d be a cool idea for him to lose a lot of his memories after ‘TMI’, ya know, from the Synth-En recipe? Certainly not set in stone, but it could very well contribute to my accidental theme of memory (which only has some small links in the posts I actually created).

With the help of my car enthused cousin I have given our not so loveable mech a Terradyne Gurkha, a little more military than the wiki’s off-roader Lamborghini that I’m too annoyed to bother to look at. I thought that the military origins and the black colour scheme sorta allude to something something mindless military man. yada yada.

Following him is our ever wonderful Optimus Prime, or maybe Lord Prime? Haven’t thought too much about that. What I have thought of is this master manipulator who mayhaps also be a little bit delusional idk we’ll decide in the car.

I always loved the idea of a smiling SG!Prime, as if there’s still hints of this benevolent leader that the original has, but it’s warped and meant to add fodder to the war, encouraging mechs to fight to their deaths all in the name of not only the Autobots, but their Prime. Also as a warped version of the original, I wanted Shattered Glass Optimus to be deluded in the fact that Megatron will change, change at least, to submit to the real leader. Ain’t happening. That’s sorta there with Ratchet too, but well, you read Ratchet’s piece didn’t you?

SG!Prime is consistently purple and black, and whilst I have found a Peterbilt Semi Truck with that wonderful colour, it comes with white instead. Think about it, this typically evil colour paired with often innocent white, that’s like perfect for what I’m going for.

Fitting that he’s next, it’s time for Prime’s Second In Command Ultra Magnus. I’ve... really got nothing for him. Maybe he’s still by-the-books but like he finds loopholes just to commit atrocities? I don’t know.

I’ve given this boy a Mack Trident alt instead of Prime’s Peterbilt, just for differences sake.

After Magnus, we got our little bug Bumblebee... or is it. Because I wanted to change his colours a bit without going into Beast Hunter territory, I wondered if bees come in different colours and, low and behold, they do!

As for the boy himself, I think he was one of the bots manipulated by Prime himself to join the cause and, given his almost rewritten personality, has only lived through to this point in the war by sheer luck. This mech is an absolute menace, feral and powered by the need for Prime’s approval, tearing others with denta and servo more often than with stingers and blasters.

Now you’ve noticed I haven’t been using his name? That’s because he’s now Blue Band (I just realised he’s still bb haha)! He gets his name from the Blue Banded bee, and I found a Chevrolet Camaro to match.

In line with BB’s younger status, feast your eyes on Shattered Glass Smokescreen! Oh boy isn’t he a delight. His hero worship has essentially turned him to a prime (pardon the pun) candidate for Optimus to form into his perfect super soldier, who already would die for this deranged mech even before laying optics on this grand Prime.

So, he’s an absolute suck up, a straight up spoiled brat that has it harder than Blue Band for Prime’s acknowledgement, and is actively showing off and bragging that he’s Optimus’ favourite (he’s not, he just encourages it because that’s the easiest way to get Smokey to do what he wants).

Almost to reflect that (perhaps another pun) I found this gaudy Chameleon Chevy Corvette that absolutely SCREAMS show off.

Regrettably partnered up with him after the passing of Cliffjumper, Arcee has run out of patience. Not everything she does is motivated by Airachnid (what kind of character would that be? not a fun one) but she does often enjoy killing those connected with her. After Tailgate, she’s gotten a little mad, but her effectiveness otherwise increased so others never bothered to ‘fix’ her.

Having lost both of her partners, when she absolutely hates another (read; Airachnid and Starscream because he still kills Cliff) the best kind of revenge is putting her opponents in her own pedes. Oh, that mech’s growing attached to one of his comrades? Slice and dice them before their optics. Oh, that femme is finally coming out of her shell and making friends? Gore out their spark and hope that humans don’t decide this would be the perfect time to practice what they preach and save the life of that same mech with a hard to perform surgery that may or may not have been lost to time.

Okay so she’s obviously a Kawasaki Ninja (haha that’s kind of fitting) and I was tempted to make her pink like other Arcee iterations, but look at this fancy stuff right here. He hoo glowy look pretty!

Almost in leu of an Airachnid archetype, Wheeljack comes in. Though still quite the wrecker and ever the bomb enthusiast, instead of actively celebrating his impacts and going solo to stop the rust settling in, he’d rather be offed whilst mechs are distracted by his pretty explosion and lay forgotten in the dirt.

I may have accidentally rooted the unintentional memory theme deeply with the wreckers (Breakdown included) and maybe just took it and ran, giving everyone else a little connection, but Wheeljack is probably the most explicit in this idea. He hates nicknames (which i super Ratchet uses to mock him here in Shattered Glass) because that’s like... naming something you’re going to keep to quote that specific fic which, honestly, I can’t remember. Wheeljack split from others to stop them from remembering him and put himself closer to a situation where he can die alone, as morbid as that sounds. No grand death, no stupid death and no straight up suicide (generally that’s a VERY impactful kind of death) so just a mediocre end is what he’s been looking for for a little bit too long.

As for his colours, I apparently have no taste and should not have a car because I really like what this image has going for it. This C3 Corvette is probably one of the few cars that fits the straight up box of a sports car that Jackie’s got, so I’m sticking to it, so no, don’t show me the wiki I’m ignoring it this was too painful to give up dang it!

Okay, finishing off the bots, I have the Autotroopers. Sure, I’m not using a reference of a car to show off the colours, mainly because there’s also going to be flier troopers too, maybe... surely... definitely. Most depictions of them are white, you know, goodie goodie, and I’m tempted to just laze around and do just that. Instead, I think a goldish colour would be fun.

Aside from sharing a key colour with Ultra Magnus, essentially a war lawyer, which is perfect for subjects made to obey, a nice glimmering finish almost feels like they’re all manipulated by Prime to believe in the Autobot cause. I suppose the special devision, if there is one, would be a nice Prime purple, sorta like if it’s Optimus’ personal guard if he actually had any belief they would do their jobs.

Oh boy this is so long...

[rebelwrites]

Chapter Three: A New Home and Revelations

Summary // Chapter List / Masterlist

Join The TagList Here 💜

A/N: feedback is always accepted especially with this as I’d love to know your thoughts.

As Brooke walked through the airport she was glad to finally be able to stretch her legs. She had never been that good at flying so now it was over at least she could take a breath and somewhat relax. To the world she looked like a confident twenty one year old exploring the world but inside she felt like the scared little eight year old she once was.

Finally after scanning the arrivals hall she saw a couple holding a sign with her name written on. It took her a second to start walking towards them but as she did she felt a sense of familiarity about them, like she had met them in a past life. Taking a deep breath she pushed the feelings aside, smiling at them as she walked closer.

“Brooke right?” The woman smiled softly at her.

“Yeah that’s me” Brooke nodded as the guy took her suitcase from her.

“I’m Chris and this is my wife Laura” he smiled.

They quickly sensed that Brooke wasn’t in the mood for talking as they walked through the airport.

The drive to her new home was quiet, which she was grateful for, all she wanted to do was eat and take a nap. It had been a long flight, but she had a feeling that she wouldn’t be able to get a nap for a while.

Looking out the window she watched the trees and scenery as she headed to her new home. Soon enough the car came to a stop at a large set of metal gates. This was it, this would be home for who knows how long. She watched as Chris spoke to the guys guarding the gate. Pulling her headphones out she paused her music to listen to what they were saying but it was all in whispers so she gave up. The sound of a familiar rumble in the distance caught her attention. She knew that sound anywhere. As they drove into the property Brooke was shocked this place was huge, there were bikes racing about and a lot of fit guys. Maybe this place wouldn’t be so bad after all.

Once the car was parked she climbed out of the car, stretching her back, feeling the soothing of her bones cracking.

“Come on, first stop is meeting the president” Chris said as he hauled her suitcases out of the car.

“Is this some kind of democracy? Like you have your own President” Brooke said raising her eyebrow. Where the hell as she.

“All will come clear” Chris laughed holding his lighter out to light Brooke’s cigarette as well as his own “I have a feeling you are going to fit in perfectly”

Soon enough they were standing in a room that looked like an office, Brooke looked around seeing all of the pictures lining the white walls. Wherever she was, it looked like a big family.

"Prez this is Brooke her family sent her to live with me and Laura" Chris said nodding at the blonde who smiled, awkwardly waving a small wave as two more guys appeared.

One of them definitely caught her attention, and she couldn’t help but smirk. His golden hair, bright blue eyes and bulging muscles covered in tattoos. He was definitely a god and definitely Brooke’s type. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad living here with the eye candy she thought. Before mentaly scolding herself for practically drooling over the blonde god.

She was in a complete world of her own so she didn’t realise that the other guy was staring at her rather intently.

“Urm mate take a photo it lasts longer” she sassed “in fact scratch that I don’t know what the hell you would do with it.” All the guy could do was smirk which annoyed her.

“I mean the sass is there” he chuckled as he studied her face a bit harder. “Wait, it can’t be. Please tell me this isn’t a joke”

“Urm” Brooke said, extremely confused as everyone stared at her. To make matters more confusing everything and everyone seemed so familiar. Like she had been here before. There was something about this place that felt like home.

“Please tell me you actually brought her home” the dark haired guy said on the verge of tears.

"sorry don't know what you are on but I've never been here in my life" Brooke snapped as she fiddled with her lighter in her pocket.

“Yeah it’s definitely her Bro” Blonde god grinned.

“Can someone just tell me what the fuck is going on” Brooke huffed. She always hated being kept in the dark. Before she could process what was going on she the air was squeezed out of her in a bone crushing hug.

“I think you need to take a seat as we have some things to explain” Blonde god said, the power that radiated off him made Brooke want to submit to his every word. “Where have you been all this time?”

“Long story short, living in London, like causing trouble. Caused said trouble and my adopted parents sent me to live here and now I’m hella confused and I don’t like it” Brooke said as she played with her thumb ring, the one this she always did when she was nervous.

Around two hours had passed and Brooke learned that the dark haired guy was James, her older brother and blondie was Xavier. She was part of this family before she was kidnapped when she was around eight. Which tallied up with all her memories of the foster homes and that time she didn’t like to think about let alone mention. Every question or piece of information the boys have her made her head spin even more. She had so many questions but had no idea where to start. Whether it was from the confusion or lack of sleep she felt her eyes get heavy before everything went black.

The lads watched as Brooke’s knees gave way, without a second though Xavier was by her side wrapping his arms around her waist so she didn’t crash onto the floor. Adjusting his grip he laid her on the sofa that was in the office. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. The last time her saw her she was the shortest sassiest little eight year old known to man. He was honestly speechless as the woman laid in front of him.

“I can’t believe it’s her” he mumbled as he ran his hand through his hair. “I didn’t think we’d see her again” he took in her features but a couple of things caught his eye as her jacket slipped off her shoulder revealing some nasty scars, most of which looked like burns apart from the six inch scar that was definitely from a knife. Anger ran through his veins as his blood boiled, this was his bumble bee and he was ready to find the bastard that did this to her and make him pay for laying his hands on the girl.

“Xav” James called “now isn’t the time to be thinking about revenge okay, we need to take things slow this is a lot to take in”

“Yeah you are right” Xav sighed, pushing himself to his feet. Before walking out of the office, he needed some air.

“Xavier please tell me my eyes aren’t deceiving me and that was actually Brooke I saw go into your fathers office” hi mum smiled.

“Yeah mom it is” Xavier nodded.

“And you aren’t happy about that no?” She said softly knowing the internal battle her son was having.

“I couldn’t protect her mom” he sighed not making eye contact as his mind filled with the events of that day “that day was the worse day ever, I told her I wouldn’t let anything happen to her but I didn’t follow her and she’s been through god knows what”

It was Brooke’s eight birthday party, the compound was buzzing with excitement, as they were getting everything set up for the princess of the club.

Xavier barged into Brooke’s room to find her sitting on her bed colouring some unicorn.

"Bumble you wanna to come down to the pool with me and James" Xavier grinned watching her green eyes light up causing her to drop her crayon.

"get out of my room then you big oaf" she giggled trying to push him out of the room.

Xavier grinned even though he was 5 years older, everyone knew he would do anything for Brooke, their bond was like no other and she always went to him is she was upset or needed a cuddle after having a bad dream. Within five minutes he felt a small hand grab his before being pulled towards the pool.

“Last one there smells” Brooke shouted already running off, with her panda bear safely tucked under her arms, before reaching the edge of the pool, dropping the panda on the lounge chari and jumping into the water, not wasting any time.

The hours passed and the place was filled with giggles as the three of them messed about in the pool, until Brooke was growing tired and climbed out of the water.

"I'm going to go for a walk" she grinned pulling her dress over her wet bathing suit and grabbed her panda.the bear she took everywhere since Xavier won it at the fair for her last year.

"OK B stay where we can see you" James smiled as he tackled Xavier dunking him under the water.

After about 20 minutes that’s when there was an ear piercing scream that could be heard around the compound making everyone freeze. That was Brooke’s scream. The boys clambered out of the pool so fast running over to where the scream came from but they couldn’t see anything and were soon ordered by their fathers to go wait in the clubhouse.

Xavier sighed as the memory replaced in his mind.

“I should have followed her, I should have been there to protect her. I broke my promise to her” he said blinking back the tears that had formed.

"Hey you didn't know son" his dad said putting his hand on his son's shoulders.

"The thing is she doesn't even remember us, that’s what’s killing me more than anything, she doesn’t remember her family” Xavier snapped as the tears threatened to fall. "I'm going on a ride" He muttered leaving the room. He needed to clear my head, he was future president of the Blackstar Mc and he couldn’t let people see him like this. See him so weak.

One thing caught his eye as he stood on the main steps to the club house. A perfectly white kawasaki ninja pulled up the drive but he didn’t recognise the bike nor the number plate. He was so caught up over the bike he didn’t even realise that James was now by his side.

"Xav we need to talk" James said. Xavier knew what this was going to be about. "I'm talking to you as my best friend and not how a future vp would to his future prez right" he said running his hand through his hair.

"Ok bro fire away" Xavier nodded, sparking his smoke.

"I know how much you are tearing up right now, but we all are. We just found Brooke after so many years” James said “but I know that look Xav, that’s your I want this girl to be mine look”

“I can’t help it” Xavier sighed.

"I know bro, I know" James sighed "I just want to say I am fine with you being with her and couldn't think of a better person to be with her, but please protect her and don't freak her out because there are a lot of things we are going to have to explain to her." Xavier knew where James was coming from at the end of the day she was his blood.

[ptw30]

Happy Birth-week! Maybe the prompt motorcycles/hovercycles like a race or a getaway scene? I’ll leave the pairing up to you and the setting. :) (Lol at first I thought you were asking for short stories for your birthday and I was like “sure!” XD)

Title: The Family Business

Pairing: Gen 

Summary: The Voltron Paladins - a team of thieves, smugglers, and outlaws - are hunted by cartels, the FBI, and Shiro's father. Yeah, life isn't easy, but the team has each other. And that's all that matters.

---

Shiro stepped on the clutch and shifted, sending his Dodge Charger—which he affectionally called the Black Lion—soaring through the almost empty streets of Daibazaal.

“You know this is your fault,” he said. A quick glance in the rearview mirror showed two black sedans chasing them. “You said we should take all the triggers.”

In the passenger seat, Allura typed furiously on her tablet. Dressed in a tight white and pink cold-shoulder top that cut just below her tighter-than-tight jeans, she looked more like a pop star than a high-profile thief. Her curly ponytail hit Shiro in the face when she shifted in her seat to look behind them.

“So then I am to assume you would have left the nuclear warhead triggers in the hands of not-quite-professional businessmen.”

“I didn’t say that.”

“No, you’re saying that you would have left them in the hands of nefarious criminals.”

“As opposed to non-nefarious criminals?”

Allura laughed. “Well, we aren’t exactly law-bidding citizens.”

The car wheels squealed when Shiro eased up on the accelerator, cut the wheel, and then tore down the nearest alleyway. The shadows of night wouldn’t conceal their taillights, and when the Black Lion rocketed onto the street, the sedans still clung to his bumper.

“I’m just saying that stealing a trunk-load of military grade explosives by having Lance and Keith start a fight in the middle of black-market weapons depot might not have been the best course of action.”

“Then what would have been the best course of action? Trying to steal the triggers after Zarkon used them to start World War III?”

“Of course not. I’m just saying—”

“And you know Keith and Lance weren’t acting. Lance actually did take Red for a ride the other day and put a scratch in her chassis.”

Shiro let out a heavy sigh. “Can’t you just let me live in ignorance?”

Allura laughed and leaned over to press a kiss to Shiro’s cheek. “At least they worked it out of their—Quiznak.” Allura’s tablet let out a warning beep. “Red Paladin, Blue Paladin, we’re going to need your special brand of street cleaning.”

As the Black Lion passed a main thoroughfare, two motorcycles roared to life—a red Kawasaki Ninja ZX-14R and a blue Yamaha YZF R1. The two racers wore protective jackets and helmets that matched their bikes, though the red racer’s jacket had black and yellow accents, while the blue racer’s uniform boasted red and yellow stripes. The motorcycles tore down the straightaway toward two more sedans that suddenly screeched to a halt in the middle of the street, blocking their path.

Shiro narrowed his eyes. “Does the Blue Lion have a red chassis now?”

“Yes! Keith defiled my baby!” Lance bemoaned across the team’s channel.

Keith huffed, and the Red Lion swerved to evade gunfire. “Stop whining and help me take these assholes out.”

“‘Stop whining.’” The Blue Lion hopped the sidewalk and used the streetlights as cover. “Well, if you hadn’t hurt my precious girl—”

“Your precious girl just got a new coat, something you hadn’t even bothered to—”

“Guys!” Shiro yelled, but Lance was already shifting gears. “Chill, Shiro. We’ve got this.”

Sure enough, Keith and Lance came to the middle of the street and wove between the car blockade. Two subsequent explosions sent the cars rocketing into the sky. The Black Lion poured it on then and zipped underneath the elevated cars, which eventually landed upon the chaser sedans.

“Good job, you two!” Shiro praised. “Now get to the rendezvous point ASAP and lock it down.”

“Yes, sir!” Keith’s crisp voice sounded over the connection, followed by Lance’s mocking tone once more. The twin motorcycles zoomed ahead and disappeared in the labyrinth of city streets.

Shiro could practically feel Allura’s penetrative stare give way to a self-assured smirk. “They make a good team.”

“As long as they don’t kill each other.”

“Oh, give them a bit more credit, Allura.” He waited a beat. “Keith would make it quick.”

“If Lance didn’t talk him to death first—and if that cartel doesn’t catch us.” Allura tapped on her tablet. “Green Lion, Yellow Lion, status report.”

Instead of a voice confirmation, a loud explosion echoed through the connection. Allura shot up in her seat. “Pidge! Hunk!”

A few loud hacks, followed by fits of coughing, and Pidge sucked in a deep breath. “I said not to denotate until we were a safe distance away!”

Shiro heaved a relieved sigh and heard Allura do the same.

“Oooh. I thought you said, ‘Let’s go for crème brulee,’” Hunk said between coughs.

Shiro could imagine Pidge throwing up her arms. “That doesn’t even make sense.”

“Hunk, Pidge, report,” Allura repeated, shaking her head. Shiro stepped on the gas for one final burst of speed, and the Black Lion entered the private airport.

“The facilities have been destroyed, Allura,” Hunk replied. “The rest is up to you and Shiro.”

So it was. Once Shiro spotted the Red and Blue Lions outside of a private hanger, he directed the Black Lion inside the massive area—devoid of any planes—and threw the car into park. Allura tossed him a nervous grin, which he returned, and they exited the car.

Only Keith and Lance occupied the hanger. No shelves, no airplane, no grease. Off to the side, a simple garage door lifted with eerie screeches that echoed through the empty space. Once it stopped, a rather tall man with slicked back hair, sunken eyes, and a thick chin entered the hanger between Lance and Keith. In a black suit with a purple tie, he looked like a wayward stockbroker, strides long, haughty, and loud. His eyes narrowed as he stopped before Shiro and Allura, arms spreading in a regal greeting.

“Ms. Altea. As always, a pleasure.”

“I assure you it most certainly is not,” Allura replied, manicured fingers clicking on her tablet.

Zarkon turned to Shiro without missing a beat. “Shiro, I appreciate you joining us.”

“We do agree there,” Allura snapped. “It is the only way you will survive, Zarkon.”

“Ironic, is it not? To think I am standing here with my former partner’s daughter who has taken my son as her own partner, despite knowing the history between our families.”

“Shiro isn’t a two-timing, egotistical psychopath like you,” Lance spat.

“But somehow he’s still entered the family business,” Zarkon retorted with an all-too-delighted grin.

Rather than replying, Shiro hit the car remote and popped the trunk. He lifted the back to reveal the triggers. “Here’s what you wanted from the Olkari Cartel, right?”

An amused, almost proud grin crossed his features. “I will need to inspect the merchandise.”

“Yeah, about that.” He slammed shut the trunk. “You’re not getting anywhere near these devices.”

Zarkon’s gaze was anything but tolerant. “We already agreed upon terms.”

“Yes, we did, but now I’m changing them. Ms. Altea, would you like to do the honors?”

“Thank you, Mr. Shirogane.” Allura stepped forward and handed her tablet to a suspicious-looking Zarkon. “That is a live feed from Langley, the ‘Other Matters’ subdivision, which you run.” She paused. “Ran. Our operatives Yellow Paladin and Green Paladin took care of your stronghold. Call it a retirement gift.”

“I thought we were calling it a ‘going away’ present,” Keith asked, arms crossed across his chest.

Lance giggled.

Keith rolled his eyes. “What?”

“You cannot get rid of me that easy,’” Zarkon growled. “No judge or jury in the world will convict me, not with my record. And no one will believe you—my son who became an international smuggler and his partner, the daughter of my former partner who died under investigation.”

“Yellow and Green transferred all your dark files to the Federal Bureau of Investigation before making the big kaboom,” Lance laughed. “Seriously, man? We have everything and we know everything.”

Zarkon’s thick fingers curled about the tablet. “You have to know this is futile. You can sell those triggers you stole to another foreign power. You can leave the country, hide in some remote island, and look over your shoulder for the rest of your life, but I will still find you. And I will end you.” He stared directly at Allura with demonic glee. “Just like I did your father.”

Allura didn’t even flinch. “Good luck doing that from a prison cell at Leavenworth.”

“FBI!” a booming voice echoed through the hanger. “On the ground now!”

A SWAT team stormed the front opening while a tall blond man came in from the back. He wore in a tight suit with a purple tie, dark slacks and a FBI jacket. Four female agents, all wearing similar garb to the lead agent, covered him from the entryway.

“I said on the floor, now!” the agent yelled at Zarkon.

Keith went down first, having gone through a similar situation before. Lance followed and muttered about this not being the greatest plan after all. Zarkon tried to rebuke the orders, but the familiar FBI agent—Lotor, Shiro noticed—wouldn’t have it.

Eventually, Zarkon met Shiro’s gaze once they were both handcuffed and lying face flat against the cold concrete.

“This isn’t over,” he threatened.

“Yes, it is,” Shiro insisted. “It was over the moment you decided your greed was more important than family.”

---

Shiro didn’t know how long he’d been waiting in the interrogation room, though he figured he would be the last one the FBI questioned. Pidge would be the first as the youngest, followed the soft-hearted Hunk, the smooth-talking Lance, the sharp-edged Keith, and then the regal Allura, if Lotor wasn’t intimidated. Then, and only then, would Lotor pay a visit to Shiro.

When he finally did, he wore a tired but true grin. “Special Agent Shirogane. I told you to get a team you could trust to have your back when I couldn’t be there. This was not what I had in mind.”

Shiro’s handcuffs jingled as he sat back in his seat. “You don’t like my choice of team members, Special Agent Sincline?”

Lotor sighed dramatically and dropped his tablet to the table, tapping the edge and bringing up five pictures. “An X Games Motor X gold medalist who was raised by smugglers and the silver medalist with whom he does not get along. At all. A red hat hacker who isn’t even old enough to graduate high school. A chef turned motocross mechanic. Oh, and the daughter of my father’s former CIA partner, whom he killed. That’s who you decided you could trust?”

Shiro tossed Lotor a teasing smile. “Jealous?”

“Of course,” Lotor replied, crossing his arms. “We’ve had each other’s backs since forever.”

“Since we were twelve.”

“Just because we weren’t together since diapers doesn’t change the fact that we grew up together. We went to Quantico together. And now I only get to see you for clandestine meetings and the occasional coffee.”

“But it’s good coffee.”

“You’re my brother, Shiro. I’m supposed to protect you.”

Shiro knocked his shoulder against Lotor’s knee. “And you do. You handle the bureau. I handle the criminals. If I didn’t trust you with everything, this couldn’t work.”

“Do you trust them with everything?” Lotor motioned toward the blackened two-way mirror. “Not one of them said anything. Just asked for water—or in one case, iced tea. Sweetened with lemon.”

“Lance…is high maintenance,” Shiro laughed, “but in the best way.”

Lotor huffed. “He asked for it to be sent to Pidge.”

“Of course, he did.”

“And Hunk asked me to make sure Lance was given appropriate bathroom breaks, and Keith asked if Lance was gagged and then asked if he could be.”

“Sounds about right.”

“Allura, however, asked me for pictures from our teenage years.”

Shiro blinked. “…I’m not sure how I feel about that.”

“But they all asked about you.” Lotor clasped Shiro on the shoulder, firm and supportive. Lotor truly was his foundation, unwavering and firm. “I’m glad for you, Shiro. You deserve to have a family again.”

Shiro undid his handcuffs with a trick Keith taught him and reached up to cover Lotor’s hand. “I miss you, too, brother.”

“Hm.” Lotor held him a second longer than necessary, almost as if refusing to let Shiro go, but he eventually relented. A serious countenance overtook his face, and Shiro sat up straighter in response. Back to business.

“I’ve spoken with the higher-ups,” Lotor explained. “I’ll be in contact when Father goes to trial. You and your team might need to come in to testify, but right now, I suggest you find some place to lie low. Maybe a Caribbean island. A nice seaside Mexican resort. Disneyland. Stay off the radar and away from anyone Father might have worked with. Be safe.”

Shiro blinked. “That’s it?”

“That’s it. Unless you’re ready to come in from the cold.” Before Shiro could debate that question, let alone respond, Lotor flipped a switch. The two-way mirror went from black to transparent, revealing Shiro’s team on the other side. While four of his team members sat around a small table—Hunk was teaching Keith to pay some card game while Allura braided the longer strands of Pidge’s hair—Lance held a hand-drawn sign, scribbled on a yellow notepad, against the mirror.

Can we please have our Special Agent Shirogane back now?

Shiro thumbed toward the mirror. “Does he know I’m on the other side of this wall?”

Lotor’s eyes were narrowed; a look of confusion overtook his face. “How…did he get a marker and paper? That’s a monitored room. No one’s gone in there.”

Shiro simply shrugged. If his team was anything, it was resourceful.

Lotor crossed his arms and stared into the room, eyes resting upon the one person sitting on the right side of the table, talking to Hunk and Keith.

“Allura Altea. She’s…good to you?”

Shiro eyed Lotor. “Yeah. She’s my best friend. I trust her with my life.”

“But do you trust her with a picture of your teenage years?”

“I certainly can’t trust you.”

“That hurts, Brother.”

“You should have thought that before you showed Allura my awkward teenage years.”

Lotor rolled his eyes. “Don’t be so dramatic. It’s not like I showed her the pictures from comic con.”

---

“So…that’s it?” Hunk asked, watching as the black, non-descript FBI vans drove away. “We help to take down a dirty counterintelligence agent—”

“And blow up part of the CIA’s own headquarters,” Keith added.

“Only the bad part,” Pidge pointed out. “We left the rest still standing.”

“Yes, but that means we must lie low for a bit.” Allura walked toward a private jet on the tarmac. “Coran has been scouting new jobs for us and believes he’s found an interesting one. Shiro, how would you feel about visiting your childhood home, if you catch my drift?”

Shiro smiled. “Tokyo’s nice this time of year.”

“Smashing!” Coran greeted, lowering the stairs to the private plane. “Come along, Paladins! I’ve stocked the plane with all your favorite snacks along with the latest episodes of Riverdale and Legends of Tomorrow.”

Lance raced up the stairs. “Score! Dibs on the couch!”

“No!” Hunk whined. “You can’t call dibs until you’re on the stairs! Everyone knows that.”

Pidge raced after them while Keith turned to Shiro. “I’ll save you a seat and a pack of gummi bears.”

“Thanks, Keith.” Shiro stopped Allura at the end of the stairs, taking her hand in his. “Hey. If you ever need to talk about anything, I’m here. You know that.”

Allura’s eyes trembled as they stared into Shiro’s. Tightening her grip, she looked away. “Thank you, Shiro. I know this mission was not easy for you, either. It must have been difficult arresting your father.”

“Yeah, well. Lotor technically arrested him, and we’ve been preparing for this day for a long time.”

“As have I, but…we’re never really ready for it, are we?”

Shiro’s heart ached, especially when he remembered the look of disdain Zarkon sent him as Lotor led him to the FBI van. However, it was nothing compared to what Allura must have felt when she received the call about her father.

“No, I guess we aren’t.”

Allura hummed. “It won’t get better. I’m not sure there is a better, but Zarkon will finally stand trial for his crimes. For that, I am grateful.”

“Me, too.” Shiro held up his phone with a picture of Allura with braces and short hair. “I’m also grateful for my new wallpaper.”

“Takashi Shirogane!” Allura’s hand shot out toward his phone, but Shiro managed to duck and head up the stairs. “Get back here! You’re going to tell me who got you that picture.”

“I’ll never give up my source.”

She caught up with him just inside the plane and playfully knocked him against the wall. “Hunk, Pidge, or your brother? It was your brother, wasn’t it?”

“It was actually Coran. He showed it to me the first time we met, along with every other baby picture he has of you.”

“Of course, he did. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have an uncle to kill – I mean, fill in with our latest job.”

Shiro smiled, knocking her on the shoulder, and then headed to take inventory. Pidge and Lance took up the long couch, already halfway through the snacks, while Hunk sat in a reclining chair just to right next to them, his lap full of delicious treats. Keith lounged upon a loveseat and left a spot open for Shiro, while the seat next to it remained empty for Allura. She’d join them in a few.

As they took the skies, Shiro wondered not for the first time why Zarkon and Honerva took him in and taught him right from wrong, just to pervert those morals themselves. But he dismissed the thought quickly as he threw an arm about Keith and pulled him close. While he would forever regret the cycle of events that brought him to the world of drag racing and smuggling, he would forever cherish the family he found there –

Shiro’s phone vibrated with a message from Lotor.

Forgive me.

The cockpit’s door swung open to reveal Allura, a bright smile upon her face, her cellphone in her hand. “You cosplayed at comic con!”

– most days.

The End

---

Thanks for the prompt and birthday wishes!