#me and Peppino shaking hands in this moment

[rainbowgetscreative]

Making pineapple on pizza /pos

[alextydaisuda123]

[FOR ECHO!]

Theo: Hey Peppino! I don't know if you'll be able to hear me, but I hope things get back to normal soon...and...well...May we have those quiet moments again to relax the stress of work, because you are a very good boss and.!..

And...

*Sobs* uh...

And...

... *holding Peppino's hand, shaking, holding back crying because he saw his "friend" in that state*

Peppino: Thank you, I heard you perfectly. I know how worried you are about me, but know one thing. Andrà tutto bene, te lo prometto.

[sauce-machine]

Perfect

My first Pizza Tower fic, and first fic in ten years. (Angst, Yelling, Mentions of abuse.)

“Are you-a serious?! Again?!” Peppino shouts so loudly one would think the walls of the pizzeria were shaking. It was loud enough for the rats in the back alley to scurry away, for Gustavo and Brick to fully turn their attention to the kitchen, and for his clone to slither backwards into a corner in fear.

Since the tower fell almost three months ago, the beings that inhabited that tower went to live in other places. Some integrated into the wild, others had families to fall back on. But not all of them.

Peppino’s clone would skulk around outside of the restaurant during hours, sometimes trying to get in, other times digging for food in the trash. At the mere suggestion that they take in the clone, Peppino would sputter and throw a fit. He wanted NOTHING to do with that clone.

That’s what he would say, until Gustavo finally wore him down.

The clone would only help with odd jobs in the back for some food, nothing more. It would stay in the back where customers wouldn’t be able to see it.

For the most part, his clone was pretty good at being told what to do. Sweep the floors, take out the trash, clean the bathrooms, fold the pizza boxes. It made things easier around the kitchen.

But every so often, his clone would get too ambitious. Accidentally knocking over orders, spilling sauce, minor mistakes in the eyes of the everyday working man.

But Peppino was a workaholic, with a temper that could explode at any given moment. And when his clone happened to drop an order flat on the floor, these were one of those moments.

“Fucking hell! The moment I turn my back to you, you mess-a everything up! What the hell are we going to do with you?!” Peppino shouts at it. His face is red and sweaty, not too far from his usual state.

Gustavo comes running in. “What happened?! Is everyone-a okay?” Gustavo asks. He immediately sees the pie face down on the floor. “I see, I see. Peppino, just-a give me the order and I’ll remake it-a.” Gustavo said softly. His eyes wander over to the clone cowering in the corner. It was almost a pile of mush at this point.

Peppino glares at Gustavo. “Gus! It shouldn’t even-a had the pie in its hands! If this thing would just listen to me--” Peppino argues.

“I think you’re being-a too hard on him. Look, Peppino..” Gustavo says as he softly gestures to the clone in the corner.

The mushy pile that is Fake Peppino gurgles a few things. “...Yrros..Yrros.. ...yrros m'I…” It says.

Peppino shakes his head. “No, enough is enough! I’ve-a had it! I want this thing OUT!!!” Peppino yells from the back of his throat, pointing sharply at the clone.

As soon as he does point, the clone jumps up and screams. It’s much more rattling and sharp than Peppino’s yell, and even more inhuman. It spreads its limbs out, holding itself up in the corner of the room. It lets out a hiss at Peppino as it jump’s into the air ducts.

Peppino sighs, but gives himself a weary smile. He claps his hands together. “Well! It-a seems to have-a gotten the message. Now, to fix that order..” Peppino says.

“Are you really going to-a let it suffer like that?” Gustavo asks.

Peppino rolls his eyes. Gustavo is his closest friend, in fact, many creatures and people consider Gustavo to be their close friend. He has a knack for befriending the weird, creepy, unsettling, and unnatural. And also Mr. Stick.

“That thing can’t-a suffer. It has no heart.” Peppino says.

“Oh, really? What makes you-a think that?” Gustavo asks.

“Because it wants to-a be me! I bet that moment I close my eyes tonight-a, it’ll sneak into my apartment and slit-a my throat!” Peppino loudly exclaims, making a knife cutting motion across his neck.

“It’s been-a months now! Don’t you think it would have already-a tried to do that?” Gustavo asks. He begins to clean up the mess on the floor, Brick slinks in to help.

“Maybe it’s-a waiting for the right moment. When I’m alone and don’t-a expect it.” Peppino mutters as he carefully places the toppings on the pizza.

Gustavo places a few dirty rags in a bucket of water, finishing up with the cleaning. “Oh, well, I hope you’re not-a too afraid.” Gusatvo says.

“I’ve-a got the gun upstairs.” Peppino says.

“And why do you-a have the gun upstairs?” Gusatvo asks.

Peppino hated that question. Gusatvo knew the answer, why even bother asking it? He keeps it upstairs in case…

Because…

He just…

Peppino chose not to answer, and instead, just kept working.

The rest of the day was quiet. A few more customers coming in and out, nothing special. Closing time has come yet again. Another day, another dollar, until the rent is due. Again.

“Have a good night, Peppino.” Gustavo says while riding Brick out.

Brick does not squeak a goodbye. How odd.

Peppino waves them off. He has to count the earnings from today, then, he can finally go to bed and forget about this nonsense day.

DING!

Cash register is open.

“One, two, three, four, five…” Peppino begins counting.

Drip….Drip.…Drip….Drip.…Drip….

Where was that dripping coming from? Is it a leak? Better not be, just another damn bill to pay..

“Six, seven, eight, nine, ten…” Peppino continues to count.

Drip….Drip.…Drip….Drip.…Drip….

The sound is…getting closer? What if.. No it can’t be. That thing ran off, but still…

Peppino looks around for the source of the dripping. He doesn’t have to look long or hard at all, as he sees flesh colored ooze dripping from the air duct above him, and a single eye looking down at him.

“EEEEEYYYYAAAAAHHHOOOUGH!!!”

“!!!HGUOOOHHHAAAAAYYYYEEEEE”

The two of them scream. Peppino feels his heart shoot up in his throat. His entire chest beating like a drum, wanting to escape.

The clone immediately drops from the air duct and onto the floor, where it tries to run away, but instead backs itself into a corner.

“You!!” Peppino shouts. “You almost-a gave me a heart attack!”

The clone melts into a little pile of flesh again, gurgling apologies.

Peppino approaches the mass of flesh. “What-a the hell is the big idea, scaring me like that?!” He can really feel his anger rising now. “Am I going to have to beat-a some sense into you?! Is that it?!” Peppino yells at the clone.

His clone stops shuddering for a moment, it regains its usual shape. Tall, disproportionate, googly eyes, pink cheeks, all that it was missing was its goofy smile.

The clone’s hand reaches back to the kitchen, searching around for something. Peppino is left completely in the dark. “What-a are you-?”

CLANK!

The clone drops a knife in front of Peppino.

He stares at it.

“What it…Why?” Peppino asks.

“.tnemhsinuP” Utters the clone. It nudges the knife closer to Peppino with its foot. “.tnemhsinuP” it repeats.

“You’re-a going to punish me?! For what?!” Peppino hollers.

The clone winces and shakes its head. “.tnemhsinup yM. tnemhsinup yM.” It gestures towards itself with one arm, and sticks out the other one as if it’s waiting for something to happen.

Silence fills the pizzeria, an uncomfortable and heavy one. Peppino had no idea what the clone was getting at, but he didn’t want to say anything. For once, he was analyzing the situation before him instead of just acting upon it.

Until finally, he spoke. “You want-a me to-a punish you? Why?” Peppino asks.

“.azzip depporD..” The clone gurgles sadly.

“But why would-a that--”

“.tnemhsinup sa tuo hself ym fo stib tuc dluow daehazziP .rewot eht ni pu ssem dluow I nehW.” said the clone. Its eyes stared directly into Peppino’s, despite them always being a bit lopsided.

The clone steps closer.

"...pu ssem dluow I revenehw os ,tcefrep eb ot em detnaw eH .uoy fo enolc a ot teg dluoc eh tsesolc eht saw I" said the clone.

".pohC" It bubbled.

“Pohcpohcpohcpohcpohcpohcpohcpohcpohcpohcpohcpohcpohcpohcpohcp̸̰͉̯̲͈̒̈́͂̀́̈́͋̈́ơ̴̱͔̭̤͛̅̈́͒͒h̶̛̟̞̲͖͔̙̝̯͓͙̣͔̝͔̝̋͐̈́̆̅c̵̲͔͋̈́̿̀̆͌͘̕͝͝p̶̨̡͉̃̑̏̐͑̐̔ͅo̴̜̻̗͉̖̱͙͆̂̂̃̾͌͋̽͂̏͂̕͝h̵̢̙̜̻͕̕c̶̢͈̰̮̦̘̖͍̑̚p̴̝͕̠͈̭͔͈͖͚͖̩̟̓̍̀̈̍̕o̵̲͊͂̏͑h̸̞͇͓̘̞̲̿̂̅̚͝͝ç̴̐͛̃͛̄̂̂̌̂̃̑̚͝͠p̷̡͕͚̞͚̬̻̣̝͉̝̰͍̤̈́o̴̧̞͉̙̳͔̜̲͍̩̺͂͛́̿̅́͂͐̀̿̈́̏͜ḩ̷̼̣̺͍̾́̇̀̀͐c̶̹̮̆̄͗̓̑̃͘ͅp̴̨̧̥̬͇̪̫̰̬̗̰̫̝̜͝o̶͎̳͉̲̎̅͆̊͐̔̀͘̕͝ḧ̴̛̟͉̯̝͕̝́̎̉͒̓̆̾̓̆̆̅͝͠͠č̵̩̿͂͊̏̐̈́͝p̶͉̑̔̎̃͑͛̍̀̈́͑̓̀͛̚͝o̴̧��̪̤̟͉͖̪͚̹͖̞͇̒̈́̊͆̃͜͠h̷͇̩͇̟̗̤͎͍̬̐̋͊͐̌̒̽͊̾͛͌̔̔͘ç̸̧̺̫̹̲̠̝͍̩͌̐̆̈́̉̈́…” The clone kept repeating itself over and over until even it just kept repeating a garbled mess of backwards words and cries. It melts again into the floor, but the arm is still up at Peppino.

Disturbed. Peppino always felt a bit disturbed at the sight of his clone. But this time, he didn’t feel it towards the fake, but instead himself.

What the hell did Pizzahead do to this thing? All it does is act like a weird dog, sniffing things, occasionally eating restaurant equipment and the odd rat. His clone didn’t deserve that, nobody did.

Peppino looks down at his clone’s hand, and takes it. His clones shudders, morphing and changing against its will in a fit of unbridled anxiety and fear. This thing is just like him..

This thing is him..

It acts like him, it mimics his speech patterns, it even cooks like him. Which makes Peppino wonder if his clone suffers the same way he does?

“Mio dio… When the hell did I become-a so heartless?” Peppino sighs as he gingerly puts his other hand over his clone’s. “I’m not gonna hurt you, compango.”

“?ognapmoC” his clone uttered softly.

Peppino kicks away the knife between the two of them and sits down. “Now, I don’t-a know what-a Pizzahead did to you in-a that tower. I almost-a don’t want to know… But rest assured, I will never-a do that to you, capeesh?” Peppino says. He explains it sternly, like a father talking to his kid.

His clone slowly regains his form, building up from the pile of flesh it once was.

“I’m not-a exactly used to having you here yet. If I’m-a being honest, you still kinda freak me out. But, I’m-a sorry for yelling. I’ve let-a my anger go unchecked when it comes to you. You didn’t ask to be brought into this-a world, so why should you be punished for it?” Peppino says.

He notices his clone poking at his hand. Peppino takes it and gives it a firm but loving squeeze. “I’ll be more-a patient with you from now on.” Peppino says.

For the first time in what feels like a while, his clone smiles again. It was that moment, Peppino learned to appreciate his clone’s big dopey smile.

[cosmica-galaxy]

You know, madcom self oware au is great but do you wanna know another hyperfixation id like to see develop in a similar fashion, Pizza Tower, hear me out (warning, i never played the game)

Either Peppino would be put off by the sudden feeling of warmth and airiness as he enters the tower or he would be too stressed to think on it too hard and just brush it off as a side effect of the tower. Perhaps a bit of both but eventually he gets used to it the further he gets through the tower, even calming some of his anxiety when he feels like he's about to explode. Whenever he's in a tight spot and his fight or flight response suddenly turns to freeze there's always something pushing him onward out of danger. Like it's holding his hand, guiding him.

The further he goes the more apparent it becomes to him that that warmness he's feeling isn't normal. Whenever he gets hurt a significant amount of times he swears he could hear someone swear, he later blames it on his adrenaline and moves on. It wasn't till he reached his look alike's abandoned restaurant, incoherent scribbles on the walls, he didn't pay them much heed, something he regrets but he had a mission to accomplish. Though someone did put a temporary stopper in that, him, or rather a version of him. It screeches upon seeing him, crawling and scratching the walls as it ran straight towards him at a speed that matched his own, taken by surprise Peppino coldent doge in time as it lunged at him. Though against all odds he did not feel its teeth clamp down on his exposed neck it just locked itself around him… Menacingly, slurred speech spilled from his doppelganger's mouth, one word being persistently used than others. Peppino in his tired haze tried deciphering it, and when he did a chill went down his spine. It didn't want to kill him, no, it wanted to get closer to the warmth.

It all made sense now although this thing, or whatever they were, controlling him didn't seem to have any bad intentions, it's proved itself to be trustworthy seemingly keeping his well being into account. Though the thought of there being an alternate motive was still on the table, what could you want? Eh, otherwise he sees no reason to fear it, though he is a bit embarrassed, the prospect that someone was watching him made him shrink in on himself a bit, he doesn't like being watched, especially by something that he can't see.

…

He's running, running for his life again for the hundredth time this afternoon, down the winding stairs of the tower with every of its residents trailing behind him, the structure crumbling all around them as they make their exit. The moment his feet made contact with the obnoxiously green grass he could feel the warmth fleat oway from his body. It was like having ice cold water dunked on you, the sudan change forced him to his knees.

...

He couldn't get that warmth out of his head, the longer he thought about it the more sentimental he became, something or someone out there seeking to help him made him joyfull. There aren't many that will give out their services without gaining something in return, something he's very familiar with. Part of him wishes he could feel that reassuring warmth again, but maby it was for the better. What were you, would he want to know… Although he will never cross whatever you are again he will forever know you as…

The ghost of Pizza Tower

…

Until the sequel comes out :Pizza Tower two, the search for more money:

*PUTS THIS ASK IN MY MOUTH AND SHAKES IT AROUND EVERYWHERE* YES!! YES TO ALL OF THIS!!! I can imagine how Peppino must've felt throughout the whole tower. He was primarily alone, I mean he had Gustavo and such with him throughout most of his Journey, but he was still facing up the big bads all by himself. But that warmth is constantly with him all the way through the tower. It tells him where to go, what to do, how to find something, and imagine if the Player was very good at the game. Like this wasn't their first rodeo. Peppino is so confused at how the "feelings" he gets are nearly almost always right. There WAS a secret here, there IS a topping here, ect. It gets to the point that he starts to listen to the Player's inputs almost automatically. Once they are up halfway through the tower, Peppino fully trusts what this otherworldly force is and allows it to guide him through the tower. The bosses are practically nothing to Peppino, I mean he may get hit once or twice, but the overall battle is a total breeze. Still, Peppino is wondering if the warmth has something to do with the presence of the being. His theory is confirmed when he gets to the freezer level, in which he's cold, but not freezing or frozen like Gustavo is during Pizza Time. He's literally in a t-shirt, tank top, and pants with black shoes. How is he staying so warm? It HAD to be the entity that he can't see that's following him around everywhere. Then during the final battle, his adrenaline is maxed to the fullest limit while the being is with him every step of the way during the fight. The heat surrounding him repels the rain and fuels his desire to pummel his rivals into dust. If he had to say something else, he could swear he would periodically hear a voice from somewhere cheering him on to kick their asses. To which he obliges. Once it's all said and done and the tower collapses, and Peppino suddenly finds a chill resting on his shoulders that he can't seem to shake. Hours, if not days, after the tower falls...Peppino is persistently thinking about what happened in the tower and what that entity was. Why did it help him and why was it so...warm? Why is everything now suddenly so much colder without them? Were they attached to the tower and once it collapsed they just...simply cease to be? Did they help him even though they knew it would result in their own demise? Peppino feels a feeling similar to grief or sorrow as the more he thinks about it, the more he feels horrible knowing that something out there cared enough about him to "die" to protect his way of life. Maybe he should visit the ruins of the tower sometime...maybe if he's lucky...they're still in the rubble somewhere. Then he'll get to feel that warmth again. -- This AU is inspired by the original Madcom Self Aware AU by Saltymongoose here on tumblr! Go check it out if you like madcom or self aware concepts!

[cosm1nya]

Past-a Tower AU | fanfic

Part 1

The tower finally fell. Everyone watched it. Since Peppino didn't kill all enemies, they somehow managed to escape, while his final fight, and now are walking all around the city.

Peppino was exhausted, was sitting on the ground. Gustavo talked with him and Brick watched them calm down. The rest of the group were talking together about the whole thing. Only Noise stood further, all wet from the rain. He was shaking from being cold and the pain from his fights.

Peppino, after a while, came to him.

-Hey Theo! How are ya?

Noise didn't respond.

-Noise? Hey, you okay? Hey... Are you crying...?

He was sobbing and shaking a bit.

-Leave me alone...

Peppino put his hand on his shoulder.

-Hey, what's wrong...?

-Go away!

Noise walked away, he didn't want to talk to him now. But Peppino tried to keep up with him. He put his hand on Noise's shoulder again.

-F*ck off...

-Theodore. What is wrong?

Noise stood still, still shaking for a bit and sobbing. After few minutes, he suddenly ran towards the ruins as fast as he could.

-Theo-!

He started searching through all what was left from the tower. He looked in every place. Peppino ran to him.

-Noise...!

Noise walked for a moment when Peppino came, then he froze.

-Noise...? Hey...

Peppino tried to put his hand on his shoulder one more time, but Noise suddenly fell on his knees.

-What are you... OH

Noise started crying heavier as he held destroyed mask that belonged to Noisette.

-Oh God. I'm so sorry... I-a...

"Oh God. No...No, no, no..! This cannot be happening... I... I forgot about her... I... Forgot... This can't be....I... I didn't save my friend... I... It's all my fault... God....why?" Peppino was overthinking everything, as always.

Peppino also started tearing up as Theo stayed silent, still crying.

The rest was confused, why did Peppino and Noise go there and not come back for so long. Vigi decided to go check on them.

-What is goin' on there?

Noise looked back at him, with sadness, pain and anger in his eyes. Vigilante noticed the mask, that was ruined and had bloodstains.

-Oh my... I'm so sorry...

Peppino whispered to Vigi:

-He searched through all of it...! Even i-if she died... Her b-body would be there... It couldn't j-just wanish.

-Yeah, that's strange... I even found my gun, a person should be much easier to find!

The rest of the group came to them after a little while. They stood there in silence, some of them sobbing quietly. They took off their hats. Noise was still on the ground, crying.

They stayed there until midnight.

[phantomdoofer]

Trigger warning for: blood, gore, graphic violence, trauma, and PTSD. Even though I'm placing this after "Ricordi", this does not occur at any one point in the timeline, this is just something Peppino experiences frequently.

Una favola della buonanotte

Peppino pointed his shotgun at the wounded Talpa, trying not to shake as he spoke. "D-don't move! I'll blow your f-fucking head off!"

The Talpa held up it's hands on front of it's face. "Please! I'm just a soldier! Don't hurt me! I promise I don't want to fight anymore!"

Peppino lowered his shotgun. He just wanted to sleep. His thoughts were crawling, but his better nature took over. Maybe? He reached behind him as he approached the Talpa. "How-a badly are you hurt? I've got a medkit-"

The mole leapt off the ground, swiping at Peppino with its claws. Peppino yelped and leaned back as it gouged a set of furrows in his nose and cheek. He fell on his ass, defenseless, his shotgun dropped to the side.

I'm dead.

Suddenly the Talpa flew to the side, shot through the chest.

As the body landed, Peppino saw a look of mad glee on its face.

One of Peppino's squadmates helped him up. "You Ok?"

Peppino was shaking. "Y-yes. It's just some scratches." He touched the bleeding wounds gingerly. Not too bad. "Thank you, fratello."

The soldier shook his head, and handed Peppino his shotgun. "You're too soft sometimes, Pep. You can't trust any of these guys. They'll gut you with a smile."

"I know. I'm-a so tired, I wasn't thinking. I just..." Peppino sighed. " I didn't want to kill him. I just want to go home."

The soldier patted his shoulder. "We all do, Pep. We all do." He shouldered the rifle he carried. "Now, come on. Let's get back to the squad." He started to walk away. Peppino stood for a few moments, thinking. I can't do this anym-

Suddenly Peppino was flying through the air. He felt shrapnel tear though his vest, his arms and legs, imbedding metal and wood in his skin. His helmet flew off. The landing knocked the breath from his body. His ears were ringing. Blood ran down his face, his arms, his body, from dozens of wounds. He gasped in pain, and sat up. A huge, fiery crater was in front of him. A bomb! Dirt and leaves, blood and bone and flesh rained from the sky. Bombs exploded all around him as the bombers overhead turned the forest into a firestorm. Screams echoed around him as soldiers tried to find safety where there was none.

Peppino looked down. He was covered in blood and bits. His face was splattered. Something fell from the top of his head to the ground. He stared.

A bit of his friend's face stared at him in silent surprise.

"Ah. Ah. Ahh. Aaaah! AAAAAHHH!" The scream rose up from his chest like a demon escaping Hell. He screamed until he ran out of breath. Then he screamed again. He crawled backwards, trying to get away.

Hands were on him. His squadmates. Their faces were distorted, bloody messes, shredded corpses yelling at him as blood and limbs rained around them. "We gOtTA GO!" they yelled in twisted voices.

Peppino cried and shrieked and thrashed as the ghouls dragged him away.

Peppino woke up screaming. His voice was raw. He'd obviously been doing it a while.

He curled up into a ball on his couch, crying. He shook violently. More than twenty years later, the nightmares had lost none of their terror. The blood was as vivid as ever. The eye never stopped staring.

The faces of his friends, his brothers, drifted across his mind's eye. Their faces were accusing, condemning. Why did you get to live? We didn't. Why did you get to be special, you damn coward?

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry you died. I tried. I tried to save you. I tried so hard. I couldn't stop it. The blood. It wouldn't stop... Perdonami. Ti prego, perdonami! Per favore..."

Visions of splattered brains, bits of skin and bone, the smell of burnt flesh and gunpowder floated across his memory, as he ran, and ran, and ran, until incredible pain pierced his chest and he watched as his lifesblood flew away from him, and his last friend called his name, the cheerful voice raw with terror, as the sound of bombs and bullets and screams echoed...

"Mi dispiace. Mi dispiace. Ti prego, perdonami. Mi dispiace tanto..."

Peppino quietly wept to himself until morning.

<<Previous/Next>>

[dreamytum]

The thing Thistle was talking about, featuring pizz//head

He stared down at his enemy, for once he was the one in control. No more hair brained schemes, no more being grabbed by a man twice his size. Reduced to mere inches.

"He-Hey Spaghetti!... No hard feelings right?..." The pizzaheaded man smiled nervously.

P3ppino felt his control slipping, mouth watering, fingers ready to grab something. Someone. A little payback wouldn't hurt. Especially in the form. Of a snack...

"P-P3ppino! Put me down!! Don't you forget who has a laser pointed at-... At...." His eyes widened as he stared, he was headed right for his mouth ....

He was quickly shoved inside, he shuddered at the idea that this is only the beginning. He heard a sudden pleased hum around him as a tongue started licking him all over. He squirmed and tried to pry the man's teeth open, this stopped being funny the moment that Italian opened his mouth.

"LET ME OUT! I PROMISE I WON'T DO IT AGAIN. I PROMISE!" he shouted before being unceremoniously licked again.

He suddenly felt himself being sucked back. No not now, please not now! Not like this! His struggling intensified the farther he went. He wasn't laughing anymore.

P3ppino swallowed and sighed, staring at his hands. He just did that. He ATE him. He could still taste him, he was like greasy, cheap pizza. He really wasn't that much trouble now, was he? Tucked away until he feels like letting him out? As much as he enjoyed the idea of one less person to put up with, he wasn't a monster. Maybe tomorrow. He'll let him out, tomorrow.

P1zzahead heard the sound of a heart, Peppino's heart. Loud and quick, it's no wonder he's always so anxious. He hated how tight this was, but at the same time. Dreaded what came next. He slipped inside, first his legs, then his arms, and then him. It was dark, wet, loud.... He felt the world tumble and shake as he fell down. P3ppino had lied down for the night.

"Why are you like this, what did I ever do to you?.." P1zzahead asked, so desperate for an answer to P3ppino's "unprovoked cruelty"

No response. P1zzahead frowned and kicked the walls, "Hey are you listening?! I'm asking you a question!"

P3ppino rolled his eyes. He could hear P1zzahead all too well, but he really didn't want to humor him and his whining. "P3ppino! Come on! Please?.." P1zzahead whined pitifully as he heard gurgling start to rumble around him and shake him to his core

P3ppino sighed annoyed and pat his gut, "I did this because you need-a to learn a lesson." P1zzahead crossed his arms and huffed, some lesson this is. Soaked in gross juices and in a small space, it's like a soggy loud pocket. And P1zzahead hated it, he spoke up once more.

"Ok but why this?! Why not tie me to a firecracker or hit me with a hammer? Heck you could put me in a jar! Why this?"

P3ppino sighed, "it's-a because it's the only-a thing I could have think of ok? Something just took over and I just...."

He groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose, he really didn't know why he did that. He just suddenly got hungry and now. P1zzahead is inside him, and he's not even being calm about it. He gave his stomach a firm pat, "Don't worry, I'll-a let you out in the morning. Now quit whining.... Geez...."

P1zzahead wasn't very happy about this, so all this was because that stupid Italian got hungry. He slumped against the wall, suddenly he felt something rub the wall from the outside. It was, comforting almost.

"Night..." P3ppino mumbled as he closed his eyes

P1zzahead reached into his hammerspace and felt he had his mini crossword book in there. He rolled his eyes and smiled a bit.

"Sleep tight, Pep......"

[asksafpepandbruno]

Sunrise

The morning after the confession.

In the early morning, moments before the sun rises, a shapeshifter yawns as he wakes from his slumber.

He's not used to feeling a low rumble under him as he woke up, nor is he used to hearing a constant beat, thumping right under his head.

Bruno cracks open his eyes and it takes a second to remember what happened yesterday: The confession, the kisses, and Pep...

Well, he let him sleep here. With him. For the first time and maybe even more now that they're dating.

It's nice being on him again. Being this close. Feeling his chest rise with every breath. Hearing his heart beating that constant rhythm.

He lays his head back down and listens. It's a pattern. A melody. He'd join in with his own; make music with little chirps, but he doesn't want to disturb his sleep.

His eyes extend a bit to look at him. Pep looks so peaceful. It's the second time now that he's slept on him and unlike the first time, he wanted him on here. On him.

There's a something a bit different from now to the last time he woke up like this and it's the warmth around his body. Pep's arms are wrapped around him in a hug as he sleeps.

He'd love to let himself stay in his arms a bit longer, but the sun's almost rising and he hasn't let himself miss seeing it.

As much as he would like to watch this with Pep, he probably shouldn't wake him up. He needs the rest, especially after last night.

Bruno slowly slinks down, careful to not wake him up—

"Bruno?" Peppino mumbles just as he's about to get up from the bed. He sees him move around his hands, trying to find him. "Why are you up this early?"

("The sun's almost up,") he answered as he gets on the ground and starts to shape himself to his humanoid form. After a few seconds, he stands, now having long limbs, a round body, and his favorite face.

("Do you want to watch it with me?") he cheerfully asks before looking at Pep, who looks like he's having a hard time keeping his eyes open.

Peppino's still tempted to sleep in more. It's cozy—not as much now that Bruno isn't on top of him—but given that they fucked for a couple of hours, a good chunk of him just wants to keep laying in bed.

Still, he wants to at least join him this time. If not to make up for the last couple weeks, then it's just so he could be with him as the sun rises.

He feels his thin blanket being laid on him and he hears Bruno speak, ("Didn't realize you were still tired. We can watch it together on a different da–")

Peppino pushes the blanket away and shakes his head, "No, no, I'd like to join you, just... give me a minute. Part of me's still asleep."

He felt his soft lips on his cheek and any tiredness he felt was immediately gone. Before he could even react, Bruno ran out of the room, giggling as the ribbons waved behind him.

Red bloomed across his face, making him all warm and fuzzy. He sits up and lets out a soft chuckle.

He's gonna have to get used to that.

Now a little energized from the kiss, he gets up and starts to stretch a bit. Joints pop as usual and there's still an ache at his lower back, but it's not as much as it could've been. 

Going to his drawer, he grabs a shirt and some shorts. As he puts them on, he takes a glance at the window. No light shining through the blinds yet.

Peppino goes down to join Bruno.

The sun rises as it always does; its rays brighten the area and the cool morning breeze is making him regret not putting on something longer.

He can tolerate a bit of air. Seeing his eyes light up is worth it. World's a lot brighter now.

[silver-soliloquy]

So I actually do have very late notes from last week’s reading! Uh, oops, I’m really slow at translating notes into semi-coherent form apparently

XXXVI

o   Carnival time!

o   Dumas seems to be going for a ~demonic debauchery~ angle here, but tbh costumes and confetti and flowers and parades seem like a pretty good time?  okay

o   Why won’t Edmond get down from his fancy window? I want someone to throw an egg at him

o   Albert finally gets some flirting in!  Well done Albert!  Franz’s fond teasing is both hilarious and adorable

o   Franz apparently really wants us to know that Albert’s peasant costume is really hot?  OKAY THEN FRANZ

o   I’m kind of curious about how much regional variation in dress there was that you can specifically do costumes of peasants from specific areas and expect them to be recognized?

o   “I AM IN LOVE” Albert declares after like 3 days of chucking flowers back and forth with a girl, what a nerd

o   Franz is also “a true Byronic hero” apparently? I am a little skeptical of this, he’s not extra enough

o   Admittedly it’s been a while since I read any Byron, I should maybe brush up since they keep referencing him ALL THE TIME

o   If anyone knows of any articles and suchlike on the relationship between the French and English Romantics I would really love to read that

o   I love that Robin Buss keeps calling out Dumas’s timeline inconsistencies in the footnotes, it’s both hilarious and informative!

o   “he himself would prefer not to be in Paris when the count was there” thus proving that Franz is the smartest person in this novel

o   The whole scene with the moccoletti is absolutely gorgeous, and I love that the carnival ends with as sudden a mood shift as it began—from horror at the execution into revelry and then into darkness and melancholy just like that

XXXVII (the roman numerals are getting kind of ridiculous)

o   FRANZ WHY DID YOU LET HIM GO BY HIMSELF, YOU KNOW HE’S THE MOST TROUBLE-PRONE PERSON IN EXISTENCE OF COURSE HE WALKED RIGHT INTO A TRAP

o   Okay so I’m assuming Edmond arranged for the kidnapping, but was his plan actually just to loan Franz the money or was he actually counting on Franz knowing that he knew the bandits so he could go play the savior without having to suggest it himself?  Your chessmastering gives me a headache, Edmond

o   The thing where he pretends to be surprised that Peppino remembers him saving his life a whole WEEK ago seems…significant

o   I’m glad Teresa is still having fun at parties, although I have a lot of questions about how her life is going as the mistress of the bandit king

o   I feel like Edmond definitely meant for Albert to have to sit and ponder his fate all night, given his penchant for absolute-last-minute saves

o   IS VAMPA IN ON THIS WHOLE BIT OF THEATRE??? EXPLAIN YOURSELF EDMOND

o   Albert is entirely too chill about this whole affair and I can’t stop laughing

o   Franz asking the head bandit for book recs before he goes: EVEN MORE HILARIOUS

o   Okay so by Edmond’s messed-up theories about a person’s reaction to imminent death revealing their True Character, I think Albert did pretty darn well there?  Obviously he didn’t have to wait till the exact moment of death before being saved like poor Morrel (what the hell Edmond), but if this was intended as a test of Albert’s character as well as a way to get him in the count’s debt he should’ve passed with flying colors!  And yet Edmond still can barely deal with shaking his hand :(

o   PLEASE DON’T HURT THIS NICE KID, EDMOND

XXXVIII

o   “I wanted to demonstrate something to those bandits, namely that while people fight one another in every country in the world, only the Frenchman jests as he fights” okay this was hilarious until I thought about “the besieged were running out of cartridges but not out of witticisms; in this whirlwind of the sepulcher in which they found themselves, they laughed” and now I might be crying a little bit

o   Franz is finally realizing that leaving Albert alone with the count is a bad idea!  Well done, Franz!  One near-death experience per vacation is plenty

o   NOW PLEASE GO BACK TO PARIS WITH ALBERT AND KEEP AN EYE ON HIM, THE COUNT’S ~PLANS~ ARE CLEARLY NOTHING GOOD

o   “Worried about the rendez-vous!  I never!  Are you mad, my dear Franz?”  ALBERT THE LAST RENDEZVOUS HE LET YOU GO ON ENDED IN YOU GETTING KIDNAPPED AND ALMOST MURDERED.  THAT WAS LITERALLY LAST NIGHT.  DUDE.

o   Nooooo Franz don’t leave :((((

XXXIX

o   Yay Paris!!

o   YAY MORE FRIENDS!!

o   I…still do not really understand what Debray’s job is, but he’s sure entertaining

o   *lowkey ships Debray/Beauchamp*

o   WHY DID CHATEU-RENAUD AND FRANZ FIGHT A DUEL THOUGH, I NEED MORE OF THIS BACKSTORY

o   How does Franz still think of himself as The Reasonable One when he apparently gets into duels with his close friends for flimsy enough reasons that no one can remember what that was even about later oh my god

o   I love how Albert solemnly swore not to tell anyone about Franz’s hash adventures at Monte Cristo and then turns around and tells literally everyone he knows at the first available opportunity

o   I don’t actually have that much to say about this chapter except that I love all the banter and teasing SO MUCH, these kids are all so delightful and I hope we see much more of them

o   Okay so Edmond is still clearly very fond of Maximilien in his weird creepy way, and he seems surprised to see him but he doesn’t really react to fact that his friend’s kid is friends with his enemy’s kid? I’m interested that that didn’t get more of a spotlight, since that seems like it’s going to be an Issue with Maximilien later in the book?

XI

o   Edmond does surprisingly well with being thrown into the Baby Dandy Bffs crowd first thing in the morning, that seems like kind of a weird way to introduce someone to ~society~ but our Count is unruffleable as ever!

o   “how do you go without food and sleep for that long????” “oh, drugs” EDMOND THAT IS NOT HEALTHY WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS

o   Wait so that was Haydee whose freedom Edmond bought with the giant ridiculous emerald, right?

o   Edmond quit trolling poor Maximilien

o   “They did not know whether Monte Cristo was play-acting, but everything that this man said, despite his eccentricity, was delivered in such a simple tone that it was impossible to suspect him of anything” OH BOY

o   Edmond sure is Weird about Haydee

XLI

o   Albert has Notre Dame de Paris fanart on his walls oh my gosh what a cutie

o   Hi Delacroix!!  This is about the time he was bopping around Morocco fueling everyone’s interest in Orientalism, right? (thanks a lot, Delacroix)

o   Dauzat’s Orientalism travel art isn’t actually that bad, he seems more interested in intricate architecture and really big rocks than creepily exoticizecd people.  And he did Sinbad fanart! (although not till the 1860s I think)

o   On the other hand, probably I’m just relieved that he’s not Jean-Leon Gerome levels of terrible, I really hate that guy

o   ANYWAYS ART HISTORY NERD TANGENT OVER

o   Wait no it’s not, the class-as-costume thing from carnival getting lampshaded in the portrait of Mercedes is super interesting—also that Albert apparently either doesn’t recognize the style or doesn’t know his parents’ history?  Either way there’s so much disguise in this book I just want to take note of Mercedes’ original identity represented through her poor Catalan clothes being taken for another disguise

o   Also it’s just really cute that Albert keeps a portrait of his mom in his room

o   …Antoine-Jean Gros is the same one as Grantaire’s ex-teacher, yes?  Is there room for crossovers here because I would like Grantaire and Albert to be friends please

o   Okay so the thing with Albert’s family’s coat of arms and his nobility on his father’s side—did I miss something about Ferdinand or did he just totally make all this up after he got rich and titled??

o   Mercedes is still the best!!!

o   THIS GUY IS SKETCHY, literally everyone screams at Albert as he cheerfully ignores them

o   Nothing to add to the last chapters except that Edmond apparently thinks it’s really entertaining to torment his servants, nice