#no I am not writing down that if they suspected someone got corrupted they might ask them to take off their clothes to examine their body

[katyspersonal]

Abyss Watchers headcanons

> Them all having white hair and red eyes are the signs of a lot of exposure to the Abyss, like how Four Kings got white hair, people in contact with any darkness commonly show red eyes etc. + Artorias ended up with these features too, and black hair on his helmet was his own hair cut to decorate it, not unlike Ciaran's braid. This never caused the panic though, it is no more than like getting tan under too much sun exposure. The corruption carries different effects than just a bit of a recolor!

> Wolf blood gave them minor feral features, like fangs and tufts of grey fur in the spots where humans normally have the most hair. no tails though

> @val-of-the-north actually counted the corpses using colorful stones drops to not get lost! So, the amount of Abyss Watchers is only barely above 100! This is very little for a legion, but they were pretty strong at their prime so the number never shifted too far from this number

> The ~100 consisted of mostly the first of them and those who joined in early. They were mostly a pack of these people, very rarely losing members and very rarely gaining those who would grow into "true wolves". Even out of those who were accepted as Abyss Watchers rather than Farron Followers, most didn't fully assimilate. They remained visibly 'distinguished' ones, like Hawkwood who never grew to their common 10'00''+ height and so

> These rare new members were referred to as 'cubs'. The 'distinguished' people like Hawkwood were continued to be called so even after they fully trained, although it then had more affectionate connotation than referring to their lack of experience

> They offer people who have shown bravery and are deemed to have true warrior spirit within to come with them, however, it is quite hard to refuse them. It is very easy to get roped into madness by them by simply allowing them to surround the person and speak of the importance of combating the horrors, how Artorias tooooootally once succeeded etc. They do not even understand the nearly-hypnotic effect they possess, but it is explained by the gravity of the Abyss itself surrounding them due to their job. It horrifies, however humans naturally possess the darkness that finds kinship in it, the wish to fight it endlessly IS just one of the ways it entices and corrupts. Those who managed to avoid getting seduced recruited by them after confrontation do recall that something felt very wrong and otherwordly for a short time.

> 'Semi-hivemind' is the best way I can describe them tbh. There is usually a member who is unmistakeably singled out and seemingly 'leading the pack', and if this particular person was lost, the next strongest guy would get singled out instinctively.

> "True" Abyss Watchers hardly, if ever, need to verbally communicate with each other, instead understanding instinctively. When they do need to talk with anyone it is this 'pack leader' doing the talking, usually with some others accompanying him and performing actions if needed without any signals to do so. The 'leader', also, mostly speaks for them all as they share their thoughts and feelings ("Don't try to lie to us, we could always smell it in your blood", "We all remember your bravery", "We could almost feel you wagging your tail, if you had one" etc).

> And they can, in fact, sense more than average person due to the wolf blood! Blood pressure, heartrate, whether someone started sweating and so on. It is very useful when someone is trying to hide having gotten touched by the Abyss (reasonably so, because it is instant death). Or if someone pretends they totally didn't encourage less-infected people to evacuate the corrupted land before Abyss Watchers came to obliterate it.

> The best way to stay alive after being targeted for "mercy-killing" by them is to run into the Church of the Deep. Abyss Watchers are sceptical about 'purifying' ones with minor corruption, but they cannot cross into this territory without permission for several reasons. And so far those whom Deacons "treated" really seemed to be alright. Abyss Watchers didn't believe in efficiency of this method though and had a feeling that sacred body of water could not fit in everyone's even natural darkness, let alone Abyssal one. They absolutely loathe and pity the place though, but all they really could do was to wait to obliterate it when it'd inevitably drown in filth. (the big "told you so" day that never became their to claim lol)

> Anyone who feels attracted to them is under no pressure to kiss and cuddle all of them they're welcomed to try though if they dare lol . They share their feelings, so getting close even with one makes others happy by effect. Though if such things occur, usually it is the 'pack's leader' who claims this experience, let alone the fact he is the only one who will actually talk. But even then, at least several others will linger around

> If one of the "true" Abyss Watchers, the 'identical' ones, gets somehow separated from the rest for significant time, they might slowly reclaim sense of identity and even remember their name. Addiction to fighting the Abyss can't be helped though, so they will yearn to forget the brief moments of peace and rejoin the group

[wren--bee]

Three DAO fics

@ithinkthiswasabadidea inspired/encouraged me to share my fics so… I am doing that!

 These were written during my last playthrough of Origins, where I came to see a few things about my character differently. They’re three quickly written moments from within the game, with a heavy spin of my Mahariel’s journey and shifting relationship with Alistair, and a little headcanon in there too.

 (Theron Mahariel, Dalish elf, blood mage with rogue/dual wield abilities- heavily modded game. Romanced Zevran, had something of a queerplatonic relationship going on with Alistair at the end.)

 (I might do the same with my Alistair-romancing Cousland, but that would be written from scratch, since I didn’t write fics for her last time I played her!)

Moment one- Theron, the ogre, and Falon’Din (Tower of Ishal at Ostagar)

Preamble

 Theron’s vallaslin is of Falon’Din, guide of the dead. I didn’t originally choose it for any meaning, but by the time I was attached to it I was also attached to the idea of the god. But I never quite understood Theron’s relationship to death- it was something he was comfortable with, for sure, and he was good at bringing it about. But beyond that I wasn’t sure- until I got to the animation of Theron killing the ogre, and I saw… something. And things clicked into place. (It’s also based off something I saw someone post about the tower.)

Warning- bit gorey.

The fic

 They were dead.

 Theron knew it. He suspected Alistair did as well. The tower guards accompanying them probably had known it too- briefly, before not knowing anything at all.

 Theron wondered if the darkspawn knew, when their time came- did they feel the clutches of death upon them, look upon the one who brought it, and find a peace in the end, however unfair?

 Probably not.

 His ribs hurt. His blood burned. His arms ached, his magic spent, his gloves a strange combination of slick and tacky with blood- some of it his own. 

 One last push- a leap of faith, literally, Falon’Din’s name in his heart and his lungs, to give him long enough for what was needed before guiding him from this place- he nearly fell from his blades, hanging from where he had sank them into the ogre’s chest, but the impact instead toppled it and he clung to his daggers and to it, it’s heat and stench rolling over him.

 It was dead, too. But it still moved, body not entirely aware of that fact, and he managed to wrench one blade from where the throat and the chest met- 

 There was a brief moment as he stared into it’s eyes. They were dead- not in the way that he had killed it’s body, but in a way that implied they had never truly been alive. No soul to be guided to any resting place, only darkness and taint, but he felt a connection to it anyway, a closeness, an intimacy.

 He slammed the blade into the eye socket.

 A small but violent upheaval in the ogre’s body and then it lay still; a small geyser of blood, blinding and vile, nearly splashed into his own eyes. He used his hand as a shield, looking down into the dead darkspawn’s face for another moment.

 He had killed before, of course- although recently it had mostly been creatures corrupted or already dead and reanimated. There was always something… special about it. To end a life to preserve that of his people was a sacred thing- how many times had he guided animals to Falon’Din to nourish his clan? Or ended a threat? Those were lives, real and vibrant- and the darkspawn were not. 

 And yet. It still felt somewhat… right. To do what needed to be done- to end them, by magic or blade. 

  He managed to yank both blades free while Alistair lit the beacon- he’d die with them on his person, not buried in some corrupt creature, his blades from his clan, all he had left. He staggered off the giant body of the ogre- barely keeping his feet- and stumbled over to where Alistair had collapsed next to the beacon, now lit, their job done. Every movement hurt- in places it should not, inside his chest, lower down, all blurring together in one blend of pain that was more distant than it should have been.

 He welcomed that. He managed to slide down the wall next to Alistair who looked up at him. Blood clogged one eye- the Warden (his fellow Warden, his mind managed to recall, I’ll die here with a shem as my brother)- the Warden managed to grin.

 “Hey, we did it. Guess now we wait for the good news, huh?”

 Theron took in a breath to reply and pain- sharp and unwelcome- cut through the fuzziness. He coughed instead. Each cough hurt. Each breath hurt.

 Finally he had enough breath to respond.

 “Right. Just… just have to wait for word from Duncan, right?”

 “Yep. Keeping me out the battle again. Hah.” Alistair’s breathing didn’t sound great either- better than Theron’s. He tried to sit up to look down at the sh- the hu- at his fellow Warden. The attempt didn’t work. The pain flashed again and he flopped back down, only serving to move closer to Alistair, head flopping against the armour on his arm with a donk.

 That was nice. He wasn’t alone. It wasn’t his clan- but if they were both Wardens, it sort of was, wasn’t it? Yeah. That worked.

 He started to recite a prayer to Falon’Din in his mind- not trusting his voice to finish it- asking for guidance to the Beyond, for peace. 

 To find Tamlen there.

 He didn’t get far- or get lost in his thoughts- before Alistair’s voice intruded.

 “Hey. I’ll look good with an eyepatch, right?”

 “Oh.” He wouldn’t wear an eyepatch. He wouldn’t get the chance. They both knew that.

  “Sure,” Theron said. “Very… dashing?”

 “Extremely convincing.”

 “I’ll w-” Another caughing fit stopped Theron’s words. “I’ll work on it,” he forced out once it stopped. “I’ll convince you when you have it.”

 Alistair laughed at that. “Great. It’s a deal.”

 “Yeah.” Theron didn’t have the strength to nod. It was easier to close his eyes and just focus on each breath, to ensure the next happened.

 “It’s a deal.”

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

 Footnote-

 the post that inspired this was talking about how much more effective they thought it would be if the Warden and Alistair weren’t suddenly jumped by darkspawn from below, but were badly wounded from the fight up the tower. This was partly because in their first playthrough Alistair was knocked out on the way up and had an eye injury. That little detail got lodged in my head, and- yeah, it’s how I see things now. (I really wish I could find it again!)

Alistair’s Light

Preamble-

 This takes place after Alistair’s personal quest, and after taking the option that hardens him. It largely follows the in-game conversation.

The fic

They were relaxing at camp- for a given value of “relaxing”. Or “camp”, but it wasn’t as if they stayed in one place for longer than a night- all they needed was enough to keep them warm and dry. Warm and dry enough. 

 Evenings were the time Theron missed the clan the most. Instead of being busy travelling, fighting or doing something else to- in theory- further their goals he watched, and listened. Sometimes he talked. He served the role of Keeper for a clan he had not chosen and cared for more as a sense of duty than a sense of affection. 

 He was sat apart from the others- as was not unusual- watching the group while he ate. Zevran often joined him, or Alistair- Zevran was in conversation with Wynne, a situation unlikely to leave either remotely satisfied, and Theron idly wondered if he should interfere. She would judge, or he would make a point of winding her up, or both.

 He glanced around and caught Alistair’s eye, and his fellow Warden decided his actions for him by getting up and ambling over to join him, looking completely nonchalant to anyone not paying any attention. 

 He sat next to Theron but watched the fire. Theron glanced between it and Alistair, seeing Wynne and Zevran separate- the former looking irritated, the latter looking as unbothered by the world as ever- an act which likely fooled Wynne, who Theron considered to be far less observant than she thought herself.

 “Alistair.” Theron gave him an opening before taking another spoonful of the unappetising- but edible- attempt at stew.

 “You know, I’ve been thinking…”

 “Mm?” Theron made a noise around his mouthful, but when it didn’t seem to be sufficient he swallowed in order to speak. “What have you been thinking about?”

 “Back when we left Goldanna’s, you told me I needed to look out for myself more than I do. I’m beginning to think you were right. I need to stop letting everyone else make my decisions for me. I need to take a stand and think for myself for a change, or I’m never going to be happy.”

 Theron swallowed another mouthful of food. “Don’t let me influence you, Alistair.”

 “No, what you said made sense. You were right. I should be looking out for myself more. Or did I not understand you?”

 Theron bit back a laugh. The topic clearly meant a lot to Alistair- laughing about it was not going to help, despite the irony of Theron encouraging him to look out for himself more resulting in him seeking approval for doing that.

 “You understood me fine, Alistair,” he managed when he trusted his voice. “But if you did it because I said so that would defeat the point- you don’t have to do what I say.”

 “I don’t have to do it, I want to. What you said made sense. I should have done this a long time ago.” Theron- mouth full of food once more- was unable to reply immediately, but Alistair took his nod as enough and continued.

 “I just wanted to thank you. You’ve been a great friend through all of this, the one bright spot in everything that’s happened.”

 It was good Theron had swallowed before Alistair had finished. He looked at the human- his fellow Warden, his brother in arms. For a moment the lump in his throat was too much to speak past.

 “Thank you, lethallin. I’m-” Theron swallowed again, turning his gaze unseeing to the camp. “You’re a good friend too.”

 “Huh. What does that mean? If that’s okay to ask.”

 Theron nearly laughed again- glad to be fighting that instead of the warmth he had felt choking him up.

 “It means- brother. One of mine, my people.”

 “Oh.” There was a pause- Theron glanced at Alistair only out of the corner of his eye. Alistair seemed to recognise the weight of being included as a Dalish elf’s people- or at least, recognise that it had weight. After a moment he continued.

 “Thank you. I- that’s an honour.”

 “Mm.” Theron had purposely filled his mouth so he couldn’t say anything more; and once he swallowed the topic shifted, to his relief. He didn’t want to say anything more about it- in case he said too much.

 But the truth was Alistair was- he was- Theron wasn’t even sure. But he was glad to know him- glad that they were brothers in arms, Wardens together. This was a path he could never have chosen for himself and he knew that he would have been uncomfortable at considering a human close, meaningful, someone he wanted to- what, carve a life with? They were Wardens together, after all. That could happen- for whatever they had left of one. 

 “Lethallin” was correct. Theron was somewhat shamed at how ashamed he would have been at the prospect- feelings which still lingered a little, despite how he felt. He would never want Alistair to know that- that it felt like a tie to his past and his people being severed to look upon a human with such fondness. But- it was also a tie to a future, and perhaps-

 Perhaps that was okay. To have a future with Alistair as his brother at his side.

And then it was over.

Preamble

 I headcanon that (as Theron’s romance) Zevran knew about Morrigan’s ritual- and the cost if she’d played them false… or made a mistake. This takes place at the top of Fort Drakon.

The fic

 

It was Theron. He was, Alistair had considered more than once, the strongest, the smartest of them. The most quietly observant- honestly, the most terrifying, in a way that had made him thankful all over again that he’d never become a full Templar, that he’d never had occasion to meet Theron as anything but an ally. 

 He’d known- as they entered Denerim proper, as they forged through the city- that if they succeeded at all, it would be Theron. It would be thanks to him they’d made it that far, of course, but it would be him- if Riordin hadn’t made it (and he had not) it would be Theron who would find the moment, the weakness, the brief, temporary opportunity to strike- and it would be Theron who would take it.

 He hadn’t even realised it had happened until it was too late.

 He’d heard Zevran cry out- glanced over, seen the anguish and fear on the elf’s face, realised that he knew, before his own grief and fear took over. Theron was- he had killed it and he was struggling, fighting, unable to free himself from, from something, something that was happening, that held him in his grasp- and it tore Alistair apart to see it.

 It should have been him. He hadn’t been able to save Duncan- only avenge him, but there was no vengeance here. No anchor for anger but it lashed out anyway, curling back on himself-

 It should have been him! He had found something beautiful in Theron- a friend, a brother, family beyond blood or oaths, he had been the best thing to come out of all of this and Alistair had not saved him.

 He tried to approach- to do something, to intervene, dully aware of Zevran trying to do the same but they were both buffeted backwards by the waves of magical energy emanating from Theron-

 And then the shockwave of an explosion knocked them off their feet, all of them, heat and light and pressure that held him to the ground like weights- and once it rolled over him, it was replaced by the weight of emotion instead.

 He would have to get up. Theron had believed in him… but at that moment he didn’t see how he could. He didn’t want to look, didn’t want to check and see, didn’t want to hope for what couldn’t be—

 So he lay there, cold stone under him, numbness holding everything at bay while it could, hearing Zevran get up to do what he could not. Until finally sounds reached him and he managed to lift his head—

——————————————————————————

 No. No no no- Zevran forced himself up, bruised and sore and exhausted and unaware of it in the moment, knowing instead desperation and panic and a different, far worse pain. Theron lay, flat on his back- unmoving and still- it couldn’t, it couldn’t—

 He’d known, of course. The risk. To all of them but especially the Wardens- but Morrigan had said- it couldn’t be real—

 He managed to regain his feet, a moment of unsteadiness fooling him- he thought he saw movement-

 And Theron raised his head, lifting himself up, and Zevran broke into a run to reach him, falling to his knees to pull Theron into his arms. The Warden made a noise of pained protest but fell into his embrace, clinging back with arms that trembled against Zevran’s back. There were no thoughts- just relief, almost as painful as the prelude of grief had been, almost too much to bear.

 “It worked…”

 Zevran couldn’t reply to Theron’s choked whisper. He had thought he would lose him- that maybe he had lost him- and for now, for now it was enough that he hadn’t.

 For now they were alive. That was enough. It was more than enough. It was everything.

——————————————————————————

 Alistair couldn’t believe his eyes. If Theron moving and clinging to Zevran like a lifeline wasn’t enough of a clue, his mabari Da’Fen bounding joyfully around the pair was enough to bring it home.

 He looked at the archdemon. It was still- shifting as gravity took over, head lolling, but no movement of life. The darkspawn had broken the moment Theron had- well, Alistair had known from how the ‘spawn had reacted, fleeing. It was dead. He’d have put money on it. Theron had killed it.

 And he- he lived, they all did. 

 He climbed to his feet, feeling every ache in his body as if ignoring them during the fight had increased their power. He staggered, first few steps faltering, then breaking into a run, falling painfully to his knees next to Theron- unaware of how closely his actions mirrored Zevran’s–

 “You’re–” His voice caught in his throat but it was enough to get Theron’s attention- he pulled back from where his face had been buried into the crook of Zevran’s neck and instead turned to Alistair, green eyes bright and full of life, he was- he was–

 “You’re alive!” The words were barely more than a sob. Enough to elicit a smile from his best friend, his brother, and as he opened his mouth to speak Alistair reached for him- maybe to drag him into a hug–

 “Alistair!”

 The call cut through the moment. They all looked around- they were not alone on the rooftop. Eamonn was limping towards them- there was a small group of mages nearby, a few dwarves, Sten closest of all, sword still in hand, alert for danger even now–

 Whatever moment there was to celebrate the relief of their survival it would have to wait. Unlikely that they’d get another quiet moment like this. He looked back to Theron who simply gave him a small smile, and Alistair settled for letting his outstretched hand clasp his fellow Warden’s shoulder- a moment to really satisfy himself this was real- before climbing to his feet.

 He didn’t know what would come next… but he predicted that there would be little time to relax before a very different responsibility would be his, and his alone, to shoulder. He took a deep breath, straightened his back and turned to head towards Eamonn.

 This had been his choice- and doing it with Theron alive to support him gave him everything he needed to face the future. Whatever came next, he had that.

It was enough.

 It was more than enough.

 In that moment… it was everything.

[neo-shitty]

ahh congrats on finishing midterm!! sending u party toot thingies so we can toot party toot things together toot toot (idk what theyre called)

but for the firectors cut!! if i can be so selfish as to ask for two..

⭐️ meet me where the flowers are

⭐️ thou shall not die

literally anything you wanna say about them pls maam i'll be happy w mere crumbs

(i actually went back to ur m.list and i really wanna reread these)

thank you so much! sorry it took me a day to reply, i was waiting for one final midterm (i was technically done with majors but this one subj just felt important to make me wait a whole damn day only to never issues the exam <3 i am fucking pissed) it's not selfish to ask for two! you could've asked for more and i wouldn't bat an eye.

meet me where the flowers are - hwang hyunjin

oh, the love of my life. i think i spent days trying to find the right word combination to open the fic. i wasn’t heading anywhere with anything and i had rows upon rows of opening lines until i finally found the right one. it took a while, i can even remember just letting it sit in my drafts, completely given up on. but alas, i came up with the right word combination and with a plot already ready, i got to writing.

three inspirations: the k-drama youth of may which i finished days before i started writing this, the song hain ka by bullet dumas, and my frustration towards the results of our national elections. i came up with this at a restaurant (haha i remember looking at a chair across the room and imagining hyunjin sitting there? yk, like in that scene?) but i think the ride there was the actual medium. it gave me time to think about all three of them and before i knew it, i was typing this down on my notes app.

i was mad then, hearing the news of the son of a dictator leading the race for presidency. i couldn’t fathom how people allowed this blatant repetition of history to happen. i heard of stories of corruption, abuse, torture and killings back when that man’s father was in power and they ousted him and his family for it. only to have the same damn hands welcome them back into power 4 decades later. fucking hell. but, as enraged as i was, this story wasn’t written out of hatred (maybe a little bit haha). this was born out of grief towards people i never got to know but people who nonetheless only had the country’s best interest in mind. they fought back and lost their lives for it. everything that they fought for, all for nothing. (im not gonna bore you with politics tho so!! moving on!!)

i watched youth of may not knowing that the story would take a similar turn. turns out 80s in korea and 80s where i’m from weren’t too different lol lots of governments enforcing martial law and justifying extrajudicial killings as part of their duty <3 the gwangju massacre was a lockdown on an area where the SK gov’t suspected NK spies resided. and it frustrates me how a room full of people could issue a few commands to kill off a hundred innocent people just because of poorly supported suspicions. same goes for my country back then. and while i was very fortunate to live in a region where the dictator had some sort of bias towards, i never suffered losing someone directly. but i’ve heard enough stories, watched too many documentaries to still live in this bubble of neutrality. 

then there’s ‘hain ka’ which translates into ‘where are you’. it’s a song written in my mother tongue making it more personal than literally anything else on my playlist. it tells a story of someone wondering what life would be like if the person they miss was still around. it breaks my heart every time i listen to it and it hurts no matter which way i listen to it. be it from the perspective of a friend suffering a fall out or a person grieving over someone who has passed away. YOU KNOW I’D BE HAPPY TO TRANSLATE THE WHOLE THING FOR YOU, that is if you want me to.

tldr; it’s a very personal fic, second only to ghosting. and it might be the first fic where i tackle a topic out of the ordinary fic scope. it’s borderline reality disguised in the form of fanfiction.

thou shall not die - kim seungmin

this is straight up chuuya brainrot disguised as a stray kids fanfic. i distinctly remember that this was inspired by me <dying on the dentist chair> and seeing my doctor’s sleeve smeared with my blood for the first time in the decade i’ve been visiting him. no, i’m not romanticizing my dentist or the act of going to my dentist. i was just shocked to see evidence of my bleeding be visible. the gauzes come and go but that smear would take bleach to remove and maybe a change of gowns before the next patient came in. it made me feel mortal in a way and like, i know i am, i’m just not actively reminded about it. i also know i nearly died a couple of times in that clinic but that was just the first time i paid any particular attention i guess. 

fic-wise, this drew inspiration from a lot of things. there’s the wheel from howl’s moving castle, fissures with monsters from game of thrones, chuuya and yosano’s abilities from bungo stray dogs. there is really no deeper meaning to this beyond wanting to kill off a strong mc that actually has a chance to fight back but their power has a limit and this is it? DID THAT SENTENCE EVEN MAKE ANY SENSE. 

god i just realized that both these fics are just people running out of time. i picture how mc could’ve lived instead of sacrificing themselves. if they waited a little longer to regain their strengths and had that miraculous 1 out of 14 million chance of winning the losing battle without another casualty, they would’ve. but that wouldn’t make a good story to tell 🥱 honestly, i haven’t thought too much about this bc i hated it : ] but looking back it had such good dystopia potential especially with their abilities. i wish i introduced the whole gang and how their powers worked but i haven’t thought that far into it, didn’t feel the need to.

[m-aster-of-spinjitzu]

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Akita and Zane talk after the battle in 'Awakenings'. The conversation... doesn't go as either of them expect.

Prompt: memories, from @ninjago-bingo​‘s warm board:D

Trigger warnings: implied self harm (one or two characters dig their fingernails into their hands), discussion and introspection about most of the crimes the 'Emperor' committed, a lot of talk and introspection about murder.

Word count: 4682 (I've literally been writing this for like a month lol, kinda disappointed it ended up fairly short:/)

"We have to talk."

The girl with red markings on her face - Akita, he heard Lloyd call her - unsheathes her short dagger, eyes narrowed to slits.

He glances around the throne room, hands pressed to his head. The memories were still trickling through; strange islands and a forest of snow, a dungeon and... a noodle factory?

"Alright," he says quietly. She bears the same red marks of the bear he can remember Vex convincing him was a criminal, many winters ago. That could only mean-

It wasn't you, he reminds himself. It was the scroll, and the actions of a power hungry traitor.

You gave the order, his now infallible memory supplies, and, honestly, he has no rebuttal for that.

"Alright," he echoes meekly, trying to muster some emotion into his voice. "I know-"

"No," she cuts him off roughly, her eyes scanning the room. It is just the two of them now - the samurai had fled once they had recovered from the strange trance he had put them in. Vex had been locked in the dungeon by Lloyd, who was helping any of the samurai who could not quite remember their old lives.

He had ruled for sixty years. Some of their families might dead, some by their own hands.

They know this. He knows this.

Irrationally, he wishes there was some way to fix this. A spell, or a way to turn back the clock; some way to yell at a younger Zane to just scout the cave-

There is no way backward; only forward, out of this winter - and, possibly, into another one.

He stares at the girl in front of him, taking in her tattered clothing, the ease with which she holds her weapon. She's not afraid to fight.

"I don't owe you an explanation, Emperor," Akita says definitely, forcing out the words. "But you will give me one, or you shall never see the light of day again. My brother-"

His heart lurches, eyes widening. Brother.

"Knows that the dungeon has many empty cells," she finishes sharply, barely contained anger flashing in her eyes.

He keeps the facts brief, concise. Once this is all over, he can dwell on them - agonize over what he should have done; use it to be better next time. Atone for his mistakes, even if he can never truly make up for them.

"A snake capable of sorcery used a magic scepter to blast me and a vehicle to this realm. I was sent here sixty years into the past, which is why it took my friends so long to find me. I was also holding a similar magic scepter - one which amplifies the holder's power, but if held for too long, it corrupts one's mind."

"I know what happens next."

How-

"I watched your message to your friends," she replies curtly, by way of explanation. "I did not know that you and the Emperor were one and the same. Continue."

"Vex interrupted a process I was using to try and fix a- vehicle, which caused me to lose my memories. He told me that I was ill. He said that he was a great friend of mine, and that this realm belonged to me. He convinced me that Formlings were warmongers, and that the rightful king had overthrown me. Just before he almost killed Lloyd, he said something that caused my memories to return."

She frowns. "I do not understand. How does one lose their memories so easily?"

Akita stares at his metal skin, her eyes widening as if noticing it for the first time.

"I am not quite like you-"

"I know," she interjects, eyes brimming with anger. "I am not a murderer."

"I was... created," he replies, quietly. "Out of extra materials. I can act like others, but I do not always understand emotions in the same way."

Akita frowns again, raising her dagger. Her voice grows a dangerous edge; sharp and cold. "You never realized that your actions were wrong?"

They're entering dangerous territory. Some part of him wants to derail the conversation; stick to the facts and leave his emotions out of this.

But he owes her an explanation - he owes everyone an explanation. He owes them so much more, if only he could give it to them; erase the past and leave their quiet realm in peace.

"Before I came here, I would never have done such things - if I had my memories, I would never have done such things. Vex convinced me that they were the only way I could defend my throne. I did not know that they were wrong. The moment I realized what I had done, I tried to help your side. The right side," he finishes, ignoring the temptation to stare down at the floor instead of into her blazing eyes.

An indecipherable expression crosses her face. "You never talked to another? One of your... army, perhaps?" "Vex gave all the orders. He just asked me for approval. I never left this room." "And you approved them," she muttered, but it seemed to serve more as a reminder to herself than it did to him.

"What was your life like, before you entered our world?" Akita asks suddenly, suspicion still coating her voice. He blinks, the question unexpected.

"My friends and I can control and create different elements," he began, hesitantly. Carefully. "We were taught to fight. We protect our city from those-" "You were built to protect those who cannot protect themselves."

"Those who cannot protect themselves," Zane finishes, guilt making his vision hazy.

He quickly blinks away the tears, all too aware of her persistent gaze.

"Two more questions," she says quickly, glancing behind her. "This room makes me uncomfortable. And so do you." The accusation is clear, but her eyes are not quite as cold as they had been earlier.

"What do you feel now?" Akita asks roughly, taking a step back. "You mentioned earlier that you do not feel emotions the same way that we do. Explain."

I could lie, he thinks, fleetingly. What if my feelings convince her that I am the Emperor even more than I am Zane? A voice at the back of his mind points out that he is - was - the Emperor.

He knows this.

He knows that he will have to acknowledge it once they are back home.

He knows that he cannot dwell on it now, or the winter will go on - inside his mind instead of outside it.

"I feel... guilt," he begins. "For the terrible crimes I have committed. Horror, at my own actions. Anger, towards that traitor. Relief - that I am no longer under his influence." An eyebrow touches her forehead, ever so slightly.

"How guilty?" It is almost a challenge, her voice rising in pitch threateningly.

"I will spend the rest of my life working to atone for my mistakes," Zane answers sincerely, resisting the irrational urge to squeeze his eyes shut. "However, I know that nothing I can do will ever undo them. But I can help others from people who- who... seek to manipulate them," he finishes quietly, a remorseful sigh punctuating the confession.

Akita says nothing; lips pressed in a hard line. Her blank, steadfast gaze meets his. The dagger clatters to the ground.

He draws in a breath sharply.

Picking it up, she squares her shoulders defiantly. "My people will know that... that there were two prisoners within these walls," she sighs, the weariness in her voice all too evident.

Yet he does not miss her glare; a barely contained anger that lurks just beneath the surface.

Akita straightens her spine, frowning menacingly as her hand tightens on the dagger.

He resists the irrational urge to take a step back.

"My brother and I will never forgive you," she snarls.

You do not have to, he would like to say. But he suspects that she already knows this.

"Come near either of us again, and I will make you long for death."

She shifts to her wolf form, baring her teeth - but when she stalks closer, he does not back away.

Suddenly, he is all-too-aware of the fact that the throne room is currently empty - bar the two of them.

He does not move.

It is not as if she could harm him - titanium is not easily damaged (yet, some part of him wonders if that is a blessing or curse), but they have faced enough villains for him to know how it works.

The villains die at the end; rightfully so.

Why should this be any different?

"You will pay for your crimes," Akita growls, shifting between her forms as if it is second nature. It probably is. "Emperor."

Her dagger clatters to the ground once again.

He does not move.

Why should this be any different?

---

"What's taking her so long?"

"Who?" The Samurai asks, the confusion on his face only amplifying.

"No- nothing," he mumbles, wincing. The adrenaline is wearing off - and with it, the fleeting distraction from the pain coursing through his chest.

Broken ribs? Probably. But he's got bigger problems to worry about - his minor injuries don't really matter when there's a warrior (because after all that she's been through, he thinks that she deserves the title - even if it's one she would never have wanted) seeking vengeance, someone who could tear apart this castle, brick by brick if she wanted to, alone with his brother.

His brother - who'd taken hers; encased her village in a tomb of ice, leaving behind no one but a teenager consumed with blinding anger - rightfully so, he admits, a bit wearily.

What happened to you, Zane?

Are you even... there? The person who used to stay awake with me when all I saw was the building crumbling before my eyes, night after night? The one who swore to protect those who couldn't protect themselves?

Are you still there?

"Can I, er, go inside?" he asks no one, trying not to breathe too hard. The Ice Samurai he'd been trying to help had vanished, most probably to try and get answers from someone else.

He owes it to these people to help them - if he'd just been faster, stronger, better, Aspheera could never have-

Not now, Lloyd!

He should probably open the doors - try and diffuse whatever fight they'd gotten into. Akita reminds him of Kai; both of them fiercely protective of those whom they care about, yet sometimes clouded by rage so thick they can barely see out of it.

But he's hesitating - there's always the possibility that her anger; prison of its own, might extend to him.

Not that he even has the right to condemn her for it, though.

Unwillingly, a fleeting thought presses itself to the forefront of his mind; beautiful white hair, a soft voice coated in honey-

Broken ribs, he reminds himself stubbornly, grimacing at the flare of pain as he draws in a breath sharply. She's gone, she's gone, and it's-

He bites his lip until the tang of iron fills his mouth, eyes fixed determinedly on the floor.

Not now, Lloyd!

Slowly, carefully, he pushes the door open. It creaks softly - but he doesn't think anyone hears it.

Oh, no.

---

"Akita?" a voice questions, hesitantly. He's half-leaning against the door, blonde hair almost completely hiding wary eyes all but squeezed shut in pain.

She stiffens, ignoring the part of her that learns to hunt, murder, the- the monster-

Blinking, quickly, she allows her mind to embrace the sharp, cold air on her fur, and her harsh, ragged breathing - until she can almost feel the shift in her heart, trading instinct for a different type of clarity, white fur for skin and hair.

Grabbing her dagger, she halfheartedly swipes it at the boy who makes her cheeks redder than they usually are, the boy who travelled across the ice seeking a murderer-

Well. He is in no condition to help anyone - they both know this.

But he does not have the right to interfere with this conversation - her feelings do not matter when his friend is-

"Leave us," she snarls, fingers digging into the hilt of her dagger. "What makes you think you have the right?"

Her voice grows colder, but she can't quite keep the tremor out of it.

"You did not find your village half-dead, or spend months mourning your brother," Akita snaps, frustration seeping into the words. Why does he always have to make everything so complicated?

"I know," he replies, hesitantly, eyes flitting between the room and the door. "But... this isn't the right thing to do, Akita."

"Do you think it was right for your friend to seize power from our rightful ruler? Do you think he was right when he imprisoned an innocent child for so many years?"

She doesn't bother to keep the venom out of her voice, ignoring the fact that the light brown of her skin has almost faded to white where she grips her weapon.

Taking a step closer, she bites her lip.

If he will make this his fight, so will she.

"The girl I told you about," Lloyd interjects. "H- Harumi." He forces out the name, as if the very mention of it ails him.

She raises her eyebrows. "What are you going to do? Distract me with stories about your girlfriend while he," Akita glares at the Emperor with a sigh, "escapes?"

"No," he replies softly. Brushing the hair out of his eyes, she doesn't miss his poorly concealed wince.

This is the friend he seeks?

There's a fragile silence, one of which she refuses to shatter. Nothing he can say will erase the horrific actions of this- this power-hungry ruler who has abused the gift he has been given; persecuted their lands, and forced innocents into lives ruled by fear and hatred.

"I- er-" Lloyd starts, visibly uncomfortable with saying... whatever it is he is trying to say.

She does not interrupt, but does not take her eyes off the Emperor, either. He has not moved or even contributed to their exchange yet.

Good, she thinks fervently. She does not need to force herself to try and feel sympathy for a man she has hated for so many long winters, one who has taken a piece of her heart and locked it away in a tiny prison cell.

"Did I ever tell you that- that... I watched her die?" he asks, aiming for a casual tone.

The hurt subconsciously laced into it makes something in her heart twist, as if it had been pierced by a shard of glass.

Outwardly, she does nothing more than raise an eyebrow.

For all the days they have spent trekking across the ice together, it suddenly dawns on her how little she actually knows about him.

"No," she replies carefully, dragging out the word. "Why?" "She-"

Akita can almost see his internal struggle - anger and fear and indecision and something she can't quite place her finger on meshing into another thing entirely.

"She- tried to murder," Lloyd flinches at the word, nails digging into his palms, "my friends. And I was forced to watch, helpless," he whispers, so softly that she has to strain to hear it.

"But when she- she died in a crumbling building, I- was... the one who caused it to fall."

"Your point?" she snaps; voice as sharp as her blade. He is the only thing standing between her and the Emperor; between the growing hatred she had allowed to fester for all this time, because one day she would finally make him pay-

Her friend visibly winces.

Too late does she realize her mistake, a fact that leaves her a bit sick to the stomach.

That's nothing compared to the bout of nausea that accompanies another realization, juts a second later.

How could I let my anger hurt another - one who did not deserve to receive it? Am I truly any better than the one whom I have condemned?

Well. The logical side of her mind points out that it is her choice to forgive, for such unforgivable acts; that the anger that had doused everything in its hue, every day, was to be expected-

"I apologize... for my conduct," she says quickly, forcing herself to meet his eyes. "You have never hurt me. I did not mean to hurt you." "It's okay- this- this isn't my fight anyway," Lloyd replies quickly, fingers wrapped around the door handle - but she doesn't even think he's aware of the fact. "I just- I just wanted to share something with you, something I wish someone would've shared with me, because-" He's rambling, words practically coated in a jumble of shaky nerves. "What is it?" Akita asks softly, losing a little of the stiffness in her tone.

"Murder- it isn't right," he repeats, hands pressed to his forehead. "But... it'll hurt you more than it will anyone else. I can't go a week without seeing her fall in my dreams, over and over again. I should've been glad, I guess... she'd hurt my friends and I so many times. But- but I'm the one with the nightmares, and all this- guilt. And I care- I care you, Akita. I know that I'll never understand how you've been hurt by- by the Emperor... just, think about how it'll affect you." Akita's eyes widen incredulously, but he's not done. "Just- don't let someone else make you hurt yourself." His voice is about a pitch higher than normal, but neither of them really register it. "Sometimes, the best kind of revenge is refusing..." Lloyd trails off, his eyes squeezed shut (a second later, he opens them again, blinking profusely), "to let anyone... make you hurt them."

Irrationally, she wants to break something.

That advice offers... an entirely new perspective. One that she had never thought of.

One that is- is unwanted, she insists fervently.

And now his fingers are pressing into his hands again, so tightly that she almost wants to yell - stop it, idiot, you're hurting yourself! - at him. "Because... it might haunt you lot more. And if they- they- really want to hurt you?" Both of them ignore the erratic, painful looking way his breathing starts to hitch just then.

"Don't give them... the satisfaction of it - by- your own hands."

Her mouth drops open.

No words come out.

What?

Out of the corner of her eye, she watches Lloyd slowly - a bit too carefully - push the door shut behind him. It creaks softly, but neither of the two left standing in the room really hear it.

She squeezes her eyes shut, far too many emotions almost crashing through her mind.

"You seek to rescue your friend. I seek revenge."

Blinking the world back into focus, her mind whirls and whirls; the storm unrelenting.

"I seek revenge."

What exactly did that mean to her?

She...

She did not quite know the answer now.

---

Akita does not speak for some time, her thoughtful expression plainly clashing with one of anger.

He does not speak, either, although it is for a different reason.

Lloyd's words have forced him to face the reality he has been avoiding ever since he smashed his scepter on the ground - ever since the decade-long winter had ended.

"And if they really want to hurt you? Don't give them the satisfaction of it - by your own hands."

"If they really want to hurt you."

There is only one whom Lloyd could have been referring to.

"You were built to protect those who cannot protect themselves."

Somewhere within his mind, he is aware of the fact that the second his memories returned, the staff lay in pieces on the floor; all of that corrupted ice shattering into nothing.

He is also aware of the fact that sixty years of tyranny will leave behind much more than an altered climate.

If they even get back to Ninjago, what will have become of his city? It took his friends decades to find him - what could have happened during all that time?

Friends. Does he even have a right to call them that?

He is not quite sure - or even sure if all of them will be as forgiving as Lloyd.

The Green Ninja had always strived to find the best in people - to believe that anyone could make up for their mistakes, that they would want to. It had been to his friend's detriment, once - yet Lloyd had never quite given up on the world, in the same way that many of them had. Maybe it was some sort of childish naivety - or maybe it was just in his nature to hope, even after all they had been through, that everyone had some good inside them.

Yet, he had never met anyone who shared his friend's mindset - or at least to that extent.

Kai knows what it is like to have a sibling kidnapped, taken from them for no rhyme or reason - other than the fact that a cruel ruler who seeks power and exploits those around them for it will stop at nothing to get what they want.

Cole knows what it is like to die (well, almost, his logic points out) - to be imprisoned within yourself; a husk of a person, unable to live your life to the fullest.

His mind flashes to the thousands of innocent villagers he had frozen in icy prisons, practically caskets-

Irrationally, his hands begin to shake.

He chooses not to focus on that.

Nya used to hunt down those who hurt others, he recalls - and then squeezes his eyes shut.

Is she not quite similar to Akita in that regard?

The realization leaves him more gutted than he thought was possible. Had he really become the very person his friends worked so hard to stop?

He clenches his fists, the titanium covering his fingers grating together.

At least I am no longer holding the scroll, he thinks, fervently. Before long, the memory of a clear, quiet night pulls itself to the forefront of his mind.

The echo of a whispered confession; a brief explanation mixed with tears and shaking hands. A voice usually so bright, silenced to the shaky murmur of "I watched her die, Zane, and it was all my fault, it's all my fault-"

It was then when he had learned of- of an alternate timeline, his processor had inputted seamlessly. Another reality, wiped from their minds and the press of time. One that only existed in the memories of two of his best friends.

One that resulted in poorly concealed winces, seemingly arbitrary flinches, Nya throwing out any dresses she owned and Jay practically shaking with fear when he was asked to do certain chores. One that resulted in scars that ran far deeper than those of venom or sword. His memories had been useless then, too, his mind points out. How could he have let two of his best friends suffer for weeks on end, when he was able to upgrade or encrypt his memory drive at any time? When he was a n- robot, and should be able to recover memories that had been deleted or erased? The others could never be afforded that opportunity - yet, he had let the team down when it mattered most. If he could not be there for others, try to help them protect them from a force unable to ever be completely defeated, would he ever even halfway fulfill his purpose? He had pondered all of those questions - had ignored the pang in his heart when many pieces of the figurative puzzle clicked into place, for many weeks afterward. He had almost immediately vowed to be better - to ensure that his purpose did not go unfulfilled.

His purpose, he thought bitterly, as he squeezed his eyes shut. What had become of it now?

Another question to ponder, he supposed. And the realization that Jay - one of his brothers, one who was always equipped with a weapon and a joke too - would forever know what it was like to be kidnapped, held hostage, simply because a power-hungry figure cared less for another than anyone ever should.

Akita's brother had been scarcely less than a child - after his imprisonment. How could he have strayed so far from his original goals - how could he have strayed so far from what he had supposedly fervently stood for?

---

Lloyd's words still ring in her ears, his weary tone not quite matching their crazy implications.

She rubs her temples, frustrated. This was definitely not what she had come here for! She had come for vengeance - vengeance for the terrible crimes the Ice Emperor had committed, against her village, her brother, even her-

But what was the point of revenge if she was the one left scarred? a small voice in the back of her mind points out, doing nothing but adding to her indecision.

I cannot do this, she insists fervently, thinking of her brother's worn face - and the years he had spent imprisoned; a lone figure silently mourning a sister he did not know still trekked the ice.

Just as she had been mourning him, she thinks sadly. The pang in her heart may have lessened since she had realized that he was still alive, but it was still horrifying to think that he had lost decades of his life - she had lost decades of hers, too, in a different way, she muses - saddened, alone, imprisoned.

But is this what he would have wanted? For her?

He had always been the calmer, logic-based one. She was always running into fights, the one fueled by emotion and anger.

Well. She spares a moment for the future.

The Emperor would leave their world - possibly, to haunt another. She would remain here - with her brother and her village, the woods and the towering peaks of the mountains.

I only have this one chance, she reminds herself firmly. She fixes her eyes on the strange blue ones of the Emperor, and sees a future ruled by that one decision.

Her gaze flits towards the doorway, and she sees a future there, too.

She sighs, dropping her eyes to the ground.

But Katuru would want me to- to-

Be happy, she realizes, jarringly.

Taking a deep breath, she bites her lip.

"Will taking your life make me happy? Will it make up for the years of pain we have endured at your hands?"

Her voice rings out, hesitant yet determined.

"I wish it were so," she confesses wearily, ignoring the ache in her hands. She's been gripping the hilt of her dagger for so long, the blade's almost pierced her skin. "Alas, it is not."

The Emperor meets her gaze, but not completely - out of guilt? Fear? Anger?

She does not have the time to ponder meaningless questions.

"I despise you with every fiber of my being, you coward," Akita snarls, some of the anger she has become so accustomed to bleeding its way into her words. "But I will not tarnish my hands on someone as worthless as you, when you presently pose no threat to me."

The words spill from her mouth, but she almost wants to stuff them back inside at that very second.

This isn't why I came here! This isn't what I was supposed to do-

Another voice cuts through the one in her head, a weary confession from someone she knew nothing and everything about.

"Don't give them the satisfaction of it - by your own hands.

The next words she utter fill the room - steady, unwavering.

"Leave our world, and never return. Never. You have treated my people as if you are a monster, yet you say that you are sorry. As if you could ever care - after everything you have done to us!"

Akita sheathes her dagger, indecision still weighing heavily on her mind.

"I hope that you are as haunted by your time here as we all are," she spits, walking towards the door. She does not look behind her, but packs as much bitterness as she can into the last word she utters before the door closes behind her.

"Emperor."

---

A/N - I know this wasn't great, but honestly, it was really interesting to write and challenged me to think about certain things quite a bit. If you did read it, thank you so much!:D

[bagadew]

The Great Ace Attorney Playthrough: The Adventure of the Unbreakable Speckled Band (Part 1)

Last Time: With a little help from Susato, the lady in pink, we discovered that Miss Brett poisoned Dr Wilson with Curare, a fast acting poison that’s only effective when introduced into the blood stream. In a last ditch attempt to avoid justice, Miss Brett destroyed the evidence right in front of the court, but fortunately my man Hosonaga was on hand with new evidence he’d taken from the crime scene, meaning that all we had to do was catch the thief of a rare golden coin, and tie Miss Brett up with her own words! At last I (Ryunosuke) was acquitted!

...only to find out in the lobby that Miss Brett has managed to privilege her way out of any consequences and was gone like smoke in the wind. (Also Kazuma used his sword in a way I found very hot, and I think I’ve accidentally doomed him to death or moral corruption.)

I’m 90% sure The Speckled Band is a Sherlock Holmes case, and I’m 49% sure it’s one of the ones I’ve read. I’m guessing this is where we’ll meet The Great Himbo Detective Herlock Sholmes then!

Well I guess that answers that then.

(And yes, I have read this one)

HERLOCK!

And he’s voiced by Professor Layton maybe???

Ooh, this seems like a Study in Scarlet, are we doing a Study in Scarlet guys?

Herlock has a magic gun!?!

Also I’m not digging this Japanese scripture and talk of it being penned by ‘the victim himself’. Kazuma what did I tell you about leaving my sight?

Wait... I could have sworn I just saw Hosonaga dressed as a sailor...

Oh balls, am I about to be accused of murder again?

Honestly I can’t take you anywhere Ryunosuke

Well Ryunosuke, you remember how you went to a lovely restaurant and got arrested for a murder you didn’t commit?

Well, it’s just like that but substitute restaurant for ship.

Also I’m not liking how little I’ve seen of Kazuma...

Ryunosuke we really need to have a talk about you just saying what people want to hear.

ITS FUCKING KAZUMA ISN’T IT?!

:(

Nononononononono

I knew this was coming, you knew this was coming, Ace Attorney law dictated it was coming as soon as it set Kazuma up as both my mentor and best friend.

But even so, I thought they were just empty threats! I didn’t think they’d actually follow through! Or that we might at least enjoy Herlock Sholmes ad his magic gun together first.

I realise I’m stalling here, but maybe if I just don’t click I’ll not have to see his body.

Sailor Man, I understand that you’re very upset, we all are, but I need you to understand that I’m grieving here.

The man I love took one look at the morally compromised shits I’m normally into and decided he’d rather die than join them! And yes I know I’m still stalling and not taking this as seriously as I should because I still don’t believe it!

See, me and Ryunosuke are on the same page!

I didn’t Susato, but the problem is that you and I have only just met and I’m not very convincing!

:(

Kazuma you legend! I refuse to believe you are dead until I see your corpse.

Now Ryunosuke’s all: I can’t believe they tossed your case around that much. I thought I was going to die.

And Kazuma’s telling me he’s just amazed I fitted inside his trunk in the first place.

Kazuma you can’t be gone! Who else will condescendingly tell me to go to France and ask rather than translate a French label for me?

Now Kazuma’s telling me (Ryunosuke) that I’m going to have to live in his cabin for the next 50 days.

Also we’ve got to keep this from Susato because we’re breaking the law and Kazuma doesn’t want us to take her down with us.

Lol, every day I get shoved into the wardrobe by an uncaring Kazuma!

Oh, that’s what the message said!

God knows what the steward thought Kazuma was keeping in his wardrobe though

:(

See Ryunosuke, this is why we think before we speak.

I don’t envy the real killer when Susato gets hold of them.

From what I can find out it’s a locked room mystery, and the cause of death is still undetermined, so I’m guessing something like poison then rather than an obvious thing, like being stabbed with his big sword.

On one hand, I really hope it wasn’t something like Curare, because I don’t want Kazuma to have gone out like that, but on the other hand poison would explain why the killer didn’t need to be in the room when he died and why Kazuma didn’t strike them down with said big sword.

Ok, so Kazuma, legend that he was, got up every day at the crack of dawn to do sword training. And Susato, who I’m begging to suspect is incredibly hardcore, go up before him so she could go and wait for him outside.

Now that’s interesting.

The two of them seem like they were pretty close, so there’s a good chance it’s just that she’s so familiar with Kazuma’s habits that she can tell the second something’s off, or it could be that there’s some other reason we need to work out.

If that’s correct that means Kazuma was killed in the small hours of the morning.

You know up ‘til now I’ve been assuming Ryunosuke was knocked out or something, and that’s why he was unconscious in the wardrobe, but now I’m starting to think he might have just been sleeping in there.

:((

Wait why’d Kazuma write in Russian?

Like I’d buy that he might know it, but I don’t buy that’s it’s what he’d write in in his finger moments.

Well that proves my innocence then, all we need to do is get some witnesses to verify the ‘go to France and ask’ moment from the last case

Oh ok, I didn’t manage to screenshot it, but it seems that I (Ryunosuke) didn’t put myself in the wardrobe. That’s very odd.

I can see a vent up there, so maybe someone gassed us and then got in while we were asleep and set up the crime scene.

Kazuma said I should come, next question

Ryunosuke, with some of the words that come out of your mouth I don’t think you should be throwing stones.

Love?

Apparently not.

This is going to be something ominous isn’t it...

I’m starting to feel like Kazuma knew he’d never see England.

Kazuma how many toes did you tread on?

Oh fucking hell!

You can’t die and be heading down a dark moral path, that’s not fair!

Yeah, I want to know that too.

Ah

So my poison/drugging theory seems to be holding up. Apparently Kazuma bought me something to eat, I climbed into the hiding wardrobe, and then it’s lights out from there.

Given that I didn’t wake up when Kazuma was killed I’m going to say that also back that theory up. Even if it was silent I feel like Ryunosuke would have woken up if someone was going round the cabin knocking ink bottles over and killing Kazuma.

No, don’t blame yourself Ryunosuke!

It’s my fault really, if I was going to  find Kazuma hot I should have made sure I could manifest inside my switch and protect him!

Ah, of course! Isn’t her dad a professor of pathology? And she seems like the sort of person who picks things up pretty quickly!

In other words, if this is a poisoning, she could be the perfect person to be partnered up with.

:(((

Susato is fully prepared to kick our ass if we try and leave, and as the woman who got up before Kazuma, I think we should listen to her.

:(((((

I say we team up as an investigative duo and catch this bastard!

Yeah!

SHE FUCKED US UP!!!

Susato didn’t come here to play! Especially when we might have killed Kazuma!

(Editors note: this isn’t a bad screenshot, Susato genuinely made Ryunosuke’s vision go blurry)

I know we need to investigate, but my god this woman’s got a fist to match her convictions.

You know when I first met Susato I was a bit afraid she was going to be the inverse of Maya to the point of being meek and shy.

Now I see what a fool I was.

Susato might be prepared to politely follow the rules, but woe betide you if you break them.

She’s even named it!

Again I know this is bad for us but GO SUSATO!

(God damn it you can’t all be my favourite characters)

Her own special martial arts form Ryunosuke!

And just like that she regathers her composure and carries on as if nothing had happened!

I like how she’s still just standing over me.

Ok Ryunosuke let’s go!

(Seriously though we don’t want her as an enemy)

Ah of course, Kazuma stuck the seal on the wardrobe, and the fact Herlock Sholmes (the himbo detective) had to pull it off means I didn’t leave!

No one respects poor Ryunosuke...

So it seems that Susato doesn’t believe we’re innocent just yet, but as we’ve presented the possibility of doubt before her she will let us investigate this room.

Given the buck wild nature of the last trial she was involved in, I honestly can’t blame her for not ruling this possibility out. After all if this was something a witness in a trial had said I’d be thinking the same thing.

Susato’s going to be watching us to make sure we don’t disturb the crime scene, which again is fair.

I’ve got to say, I’m really digging Susato’s cautiously suspicious and sensible nature. It feels like a good counterbalance to Ryunosuke’s beautiful but naïve outlook on life.

I bet if Susato had stowed away onboard a ship you wouldn’t catch her immediately confessing as soon as a sailor started to press her.

Who am I kidding, Susato would never have got into this situation in the first place.

*sob*

Ok so far we’ve got:

A) Half a pink kimono fastener on the floor next to a brick red mark

B) One disturbed table, with the remains of our roast chicken dinner on the floor

C) The terrible knowledge that Kazuma spent his last night on earth hungry because he didn’t like chicken

D) Kazuma’s precious katana, that he loved dearly and that he’d apparently managed to persuade the government to let him bring to the UK.

Oh yeah, drive the knife in why don’t you game!

Why do I feel like Ryunosuke’s about to get roasted?

There we go.

(It’s what Kazuma would have wanted)

DON’T JUST GO WITH IT RYUNOSUKE!

Back to investigating, we’ve got a ransacked shelf, and Kazuma’s London diary.

Just, you know, to rip my heart out...

It looks like the final entry’s incomplete, which means Kazuma was probably writing it when the incident happened. Unfortunately Susato is violently insistent that we respect the Kazuma’s private thoughts after his death, so we can’t read it.

We’ve got the inky Russian(?) on the floor which none of us can either recognize, nor read (including me)

(Sorry to any Russians reading this by the way, I can only assume you’re screaming that this isn’t Russian, but I’m just going by what the Great Himbo Detective said in the cut scene.)

Ok, so the sailor who’s been guarding us got very flustered when we asked if everything was normal last night, meaning that either he’s been skiving off, or everything was in fact not normal last night.

Oh sweet, it seems that Ryunosuke and Susato both read detective novels, and while we’ve shot down the possibility of using the needle and thread trick to unbolt the door from the outside (side note: I must remember to try that later), I feel like both they, and the player who immediately started trying to rattle off facts about Curare, have had a bonding moment.

Ok, I think that’s this half of the room done, let’s go and check out that vent I saw earlier.

So the vent connects to the room next door. That means if the grate could be moved we have a way in and out of our crime scene!

HERLOCK SHOLMES!!!

I mean, he’s quite hard to miss Ryunosuke

(I think Ryunosuke might have an Apollo complex short)

Understatement of the century

Her and me both Ryunosuke, it’s The Great Himbo Detective!!!

WE’RE TALKING TO HIM!

AND HE’S BLANKING US!!!

Herlock Sholmes I understand that you’re in a critical point of your investigation, but you need to understand that Ryunosuke, Susato and I are sad and need to see your magic gun.

YEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSS!!!

IT’S LIKE HE HEARD ME!!!

OH GREAT HIMBO DETECTIVE CHEER ME WITH YOUR WITH YOUR ECCENTRIC ACTS THAT ARE RELATABLE TO MY AUTISTIC ASS!!!

OMFG HE’S SO INCREDIBLY WRONG!!!

I hope this is the way all of his deductions go from now on.

Also I’m sorry Russia and the Russian language, I should not have believed what the man, who on reflection was sold to me as the great himbo detective, said.

Susato’s buying it!

Susato look into my eyes and tell me Ryunosuke could ever make it as a soldier.

No, please do!

And the bullet flies a mile wide!

I’m still upset about Kazuma, but I’m somehow also having the time of my life

SUSATO YOU KNOW I’M FROM JAPAN!!!

SHE TOOK ME OUT!!!

AND MY GOD AM I HERE FOR IT!!!

Ryunosuke’s finally snapped!

What I find amazing is that the Sherlock Holmes Herlock Sholmes stories clearly exist, basically unchanged in this world. So either Dr Watson Wilson was either lying through his teeth to spare his friend’s feelings, or he is the stopped clock is right twice a day person who Herlock actually hit the nail on the head for, and therefore he believed everything that was said.

‘On rout to foreign climates’ that’s how ships work Herlock!

Exactly!

I’ll say one thing for Herlock though, you can’t beat him down!

How am I both Ryunosuke and Susato in this scene?

Yeah Naruhodo-san! I thought you read detective stories!

Quick Susato! Get him to sign a copy!

Um... has no one told him yet...

I’m also curious about the fact that he still believes Dr Wilson’s in London. Either there are two Dr Wilson’s, or something weird is going on here.

Look at his hat Ryunosuke, it contains all the information you need

He got his own name wrong!

Hosonaga, I don’t know if you can hear from wherever you are on this ship dressed as a sailor, but there is a fight and you are rapidly losing!

(Also to be fair to Herlock, as someone who’s been playing a lot of Hitman recently, looking inside the wardrobe already means he’s doing a lot better than literally every character in that game.)

Ok so it was Russian then and I no longer have to apologies!

Do you think Herlock has ever been to Russia?

Ok Mr ‘is this cow a cat?’

:(((((((

HERLOCK THAT LOOKS NOTHING LIKE ME!!!

Ok everyone, we’re also on the lookout for a missing Russian Ballerina along with Kazuma’s killer. I don’t know how, but I wouldn’t have been told about her if she wasn’t relevant

I can’t believe we’ve finally found the vindictive part of Ryunosuke’s beautiful personality!

We’re finally reading Kazuma’s diary!

Oh fuck, Kazuma was bitten by an adder

Wait, if that was the case why didn’t he dispatch it with his big sword? We’ve seen him do precision work before, so that can’t be it.

Either way, I think we really need to talk to the person in the room next to mine.

Also: Herlock Sholmes gets seasick!

Did she just break my cuffs?

My mistake she’s just showing some tough love to get me to buck up!

Let’s go team!

HOSONAGA!!!

“What are you doing here?” “I think that should be my line” This feels like that meme of the two Spidermen pointing at each other

I wouldn’t be so sure Susato. Hosonaga seems a lot like me, a bunch of disabilities held together by sheer force of will.

He still has a job!

(Or his superiors are just trying to send him as far away from Japan as they can)

HELL YEAH HOSONAGA, LETS PUNCH THE RULES UNTIL THEY SQUEAK!

(Also your superiors are definitely trying to ship you out)

Oh...

That would explain Kazuma’s whole vibe.

Although something about this feels wrong. No disrespect to Hosonaga, but as determined as he is he doesn’t exactly have the physical prowess you’d associate with stopping an assassination. I know I haven’t exactly seen him at work yet, but something about this feels like he was set up to fail.

Now the thing is, that while he can cut it as a waiter, Hosonaga isn’t exactly built to fit in among sailors. It’s not going to take a genius therefore, to work out who Kazuma’s guard is, especially if he’s been around Kazuma from dawn till dusk. That’s probably why his killer had to kill him in his cabin, and it’s also why they probably drugged his food (which means they didn’t know him enough to know he didn’t like chicken)

:(((((((((((((

On the plus side though, it looks as though Hosonaga believes in my innocence.

Come on Hosonaga, remember when you bought Miss Brett to us!

Hell yeah Hosonaga!

Hosonaga heard my call! He heard that he was losing his place as my second favourite character and came back swinging!!!

Determination Ryunosuke!

Also probably hacking up a lot of blood, that does wonders to unnerve people in my experience

Now, I should present Kazuma’s diary here... but...

Yes, everything is as it should be...

He’s digging it!

Oh no he took it as an insult!

Sorry Ryunosuke, that’s the crime scene thief’s now

Ok let’s do this properly then

Yeah boy!

LETS DO THIS TEAM!!!

Ryunosuke, do you remember nothing about this man?

Hosonaga didn’t come here to play!

Ok, we’re moving on out (except not right now because I’ve still got a couple of things to look at before we go)

I think Ryunosuke might be a bad influence on Susato...

Also I feel like I’ve pegged Susato wrong regarding the rules. Susato’s just very good at keeping up the appearance of following them.

Come to think of it, the fact she’s a judicial assistant, despite women apparently not being allowed in the Japanese court other than to testify should have clued me in.

Susato Mikotoba: Breaking the rules in front of you, but in a way you don’t notice

(Also the bell pull’s not working, but I think we all expected that)

Susato I’ve been living in a cupboard!

Don’t pity me!

Ok, so I’m not quite sure when Ryunosuke and I started thinking as one, but we’ve all agreed it’s happening now

Ryunosuke do not get caught in the mousetrap!

Susato can see right through me (Ryunosuke)

Umm...

This is the Phoenix Maya dynamic inverted, and I am living for it.

Susato: Now this is an emergency button, it’s very important you do NOT press it!

Ryunosuke: *lunges for the trigger*

It feels amazing being the wayward partner!

Our rout into cabin 2’s blocked by approximately 1 ton of sailor, so for now Susato and I will have to dick around avenge Kazuma out here in the corridor.

It seems that last night’s log is mostly blank, so I’m guessing I was right about the sailor on duty skiving off.

Hmm, so the person in the next cabin’s probably quite important then. Given what just happened with Miss Brett that’s not a good sign.

And it seems like I’m not allowed to visit whoever it is without an invitation... which might prove tricky given as how there in there and I’m out here

Ah good, a Western Gentleman, that’s just what we need!

Hmmmmm

These guys left their post for a while didn’t they?

Either that or there’s something (or someone) they’re keeping off the records.

This might be a bit of a wide shot, but that mousetrap makes me wonder if the crew has some sort of secret pet squirrelled away somewhere. It doesn’t entirely add up what with them putting traps down, but with everyone in Ace Attorney having something to hide it’s all I can think of now.

Bif Strogenov’s left to report to the captain, nows our window to violate some privacy!

HERLOCK SHOLMES!!!

Shot down!

Herlock that thing’s tiny, I don’t think anyone’s in there!

It moved!

Guess I’m eating my words!

Herlock???

Ok, we’re not allowed to look inside the case, or indeed anything, but fortunately we have HERLOCK SHOLMES THE GREAT HIMBO DETECTIVE!!!

Deduce away Herlock!

Herlock... are you about to tell this man that he’s also the Russian Assasin? Are you going to do this round the whole ship until you get it right?

Wait this is working!?!

Herlock Sholmes is Susato’s one blind spot and Ryunosuke’s one point of clarity

CHOOCHOO!!!

THIS IS AMAZING!

He’s not entirely right though...

(Editors note: I completely managed to miss capturing 90% of the ? icons)

I FUCKING KNEW IT!!!

HERLOCK LOOK AT THIS MAN’S NOSE, LOOK AT MY FACE! NOW LOOK AT THE MAN IN THE PORTRAIT!

However, the newspaper in his pocket and the little ! icon seems to suggest there’s some connection there.

(Editors note: I also managed to miss every ! icon)

And there is a crime being committed, but it’s not to do with the case.

Yeah, it probably just contains one of those pets we’re not supposed to have.

So... a baby?

So do a lot of people Susato

Ok, so The Great Himbo Detective is actually really good at making observations, it’s just how he applies them that’s shit.

I wonder if this is what Dr Wilson did for their partnership, but he just cut out the bits where he said things like: Herlock these people have completely different faces, maybe there’s a different reason they’ve got the paper?

Ryunosuke normally: The fact Hosonaga’s working in this restaurant clearly means he’s struggling financially!

Ryunosuke around Herlock: You can’t just say the first guess that pops into your head!

HERLOCK BUSTED US OUT!!!

(Ok he’s also the reason we were in handcuffs, but still)

Olay!

What! Noooooo!

‘Course Correction: Hold it Mr Sholmes!’ What a title!

Important news just in: Ryunosuke can’t grow a beard

A part of me says that he was about to use the sheers to cut up that paper, but there are obviously other copies around the ship, so unless he’s planning a sheers rampage that can’t be right.

Hello!

Wait a second... with that reaction to the paper... is there a Russian Ballerina in there?

WE DID THE HERLOCK SHOLMES COOL SPIN AND CLICK!!!

Also look at Ryunosuke’s little cocky smirk!

He’s really getting into this!

And I couldn’t be more proud!

We’re tag teaming it!

Herlock I swear to god if you tell me she’s that assassin

WHAT DID I JUST SAY!

(Editors note: Got that one!)

I sure am Susato!

Keep telling yourself that Ryunosuke, we can all see the truth

Ah, so the nose was fake too

That makes a lot more sense now!

Well she did disappear with a priceless tiara

He said, rubbing his hand in glee

This is definitely the start of a beautiful friendship!

Damn straight I do!

Bingo

For some reason I pictured it as being pink though, I don’t know why

Anyway so, while Nikolina does need money it seems that she didn’t steal the tiara. Apparently it was given to her as a present.

Also Nikolina is only 15, and has run away by herself for reasons currently unknown. I’m starting to get the feeling that the crew (or at least the two we’ve met) might have been looking out for her.

Oh yeah, the moving travel case!

Given the rules regarding pets, I wonder if that’s what’s in there? It would explain the attitude of the sailors we met.

Is it the Russian Revolutionary Herlock? You have to tell us if it is...

He’s learning!

Yep, she’s looking at the pet rule sign, now show me the pet!

Whoooooooo!

Yeah, I’m pretty sure the guys on the door were covering for her (and probably her pet too)

Hmm, so Nikolina’s running from someone, so she decided to disguise herself to be safe and has been a jumble of nerve ever since.

Can I see...

Bless you Nikolina, but you’re not the best at keeping secrets. I’m pretty sure the crew have collectively decided to just look the other way and let the traumatised 15 year old have her pet.

HE CUFFED ME AGIAN!!!

I wonder if Nikolina’s beloved pet’s a snake?

Can I just...

:(

Fine...

No, everyone must see my badge!

HA!

:(

:D

Ok now let’s go back to actually playing the game!

So, because she’s a jumble of nerves, Nikolina hasn’t been noticing much about what’s been happening around her. However I think she’d have probably noticed signs of danger, like loud noises, so I’m a little curious as to why she didn’t pick up on the sound of the tableware being sent to the floor.

From what I can gather about her ‘never dancing again’ whatever happened probably has something to do with the ballet.

Either that or she’s worried about being linked with her old life if she goes back on the scene under another name.

That’s a good point actually, while people are funny and I can get her wanting a memento of her life, that’s an incredibly distinctive memento to have.

It must have some sort of emotional significance, I think she said it was given to her by an Earl, so maybe her father?

Hmm, that’s a pretty distinctive thing to try and pawn Nikolina.

Yikes! So the Novavich Ballet’s got really unethical working conditions. (Which probably shouldn’t be too much of a shock given the time period.) Now I understand why Nikolina’s so keen to never put herself in that situation again.

Yeah, I thought that was the case.

Huh?

Oh yeah... that is odd

Ah, so that’s why everyone was so on edge!

Right...

(I feel like this would carry more weight if we hadn’t just been flashing our badge at anyone who looks our way)

Now onto the most important question:

HERLOCK NO!

Susato is me (but personally I’m hoping for a kitten)

Ok Genius, what sort of animal is it?

I’ll eat your funky hat if that’s true Herlock

Important information 2: Never trust Herlock with a pet

Please let it be that we were Kazuma’s pet

Wait no, I’m an idiot. I’m obviously supposed to ask about the speckled band

Wow she changed quick!

She’s leaving to talk to the captain, is this our chance to meet her friend!?!

Booooo, we’ve been chucked out!!!

[sirowsky]

The Flowers Always Know

Description: When a mad scientist uses you as an experiment while you’re on holiday, the Heroics only just manage to save you. And in your recovery you become very close to the leader of the group. (Slow burn)

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Language.

Link to Masterlist

Comment: Reader explains her actions at the house, and makes her intentions clear concerning the mole/s within HQ.

Chapter 31

  A few days later, you were finally given permission to start talking again, and you’d think it was some royal visit, based on the number of people in your med-chamber.   The Moreno’s, all of the Heroics, everyone on the medical team that had worked with you, either now or earlier, plus Dr. Kane, Dr. Pearson and Dr. Parker, as well as Mr. Allen from Management, and right in the middle of the crowd – Velma. She could’ve stood there all alone and it still would’ve felt like a royal visit.   But you knew why they were all there.   The incident at the house had affected all of them in some way, and they all wanted the answers that only you could provide.   Marcus was sitting on his usual spot at the side of the bed, holding your hand and meeting your eyes, silently asking you to tell him what happened.   You made a few sounds with your throat, just to prepare it for being used again, before you started.

  “There are traitors at HQ, and just in case any of those people are in this room right now, let me tell you this: I owe you a trip to another dimension, and when I find your cowardly fucking ass, I’ll break your neck before I hurl you over there, and if you’re lucky, Dr. Prince has already died of starvation and won’t eat your fucking corpse.”

  The energy of the room shifted twice. First as everyone wondered who these traitors might be, and second when they realised that you were dead serious about your threat.

  “Prince had help in more than one way. He had access to my recent medical history, and he was wearing a device on his belt identical to the Inventor’s. He even joked about how he couldn’t have gotten out of prison without help from sympathizers. Now, I know that only medical staff have access to my charts, but they, in turn, have no access to confiscated weapons or materials, so whoever helped the mad doctor, there’s a good chance it was more than one person. And you’d better believe I intend to find these people and make them pay for nearly destroying everything I care about.”

  There was acid in your voice as you spoke, and it was potent enough to even make Marcus subconsciously lean away from you a tiny bit. But he was also the one most keen to find out exactly how you’d saved them all.

  “What happened, hermosa? How did you do it?”

  You felt your anger lessen as you saw the look in his eyes. The painful memories sitting like daggers in the corners of them.

  “I was desperate beyond measure. I had just sat and laughed at myself in the car for driving like an old lady because I was irrationally afraid that the smallest bump would somehow disturb the baby. I came home, expecting to tell you the news and celebrate with you and Missy, and then I walked in to…”

  You sighed and closed your eyes as the memories stabbed your own eyes too. You flooded the room with the dense energy that your abilities conjured, and allowed the images to play out around you, hoping that sharing them would make them feel less controlling over you.   You could feel Marcus’ current react with his desire to protect you from draining yourself, but he held himself back. He knew that you wouldn’t do this unless you really needed to.   He watched the projected image of himself and Missy, strapped to those chairs, and then his gaze returned to you.

  “He had it all figured out. He would have succeeded. The only mistake he made, the one thing that I could exploit, was the fact that he didn’t actually know me. He had no idea how far I would go, how willing I am to sacrifice myself for the people I love.”

  Marcus flinched and his hand tightened around yours.

  “But… while I was willing to sacrifice myself, nothing could have made me do that to my unborn baby.”

  Amaire had scanned you after you were first put on life-support, to see if the embryo somehow could have survived, but found nothing. So, after you’d written those words to Marcus, he’d insisted on another scan, and everyone had been shocked to discover that it was back. Marcus had been trying to get you to just write the story out for him, desperate to understand how his baby could be alive, but you’d insisted on waiting until you could talk to him.

  “It was seeing Missy’s pain that gave me the solution. With the help of the absolute power of maternal instinct, my abilities became clearer to me. Suddenly, I knew that I had enough strength to force the barriers between worlds open, not just to pull energy through, but material as well. And that also meant, that I could hide a little something away in a place where no one else could ever get to it. A place that was empty, but safe. It was still inside me, just not on this side of reality. Tethered to me through my soul, but safe from any damage done to my body. And that tether is what saved my life, too, because it allowed a small amount of energy to creep back through the connection, feeding me just enough to keep me alive. And since there wasn’t any actual damage to my body this time, all it took was just gathering up enough strength to wake me back up.”

  You looked at Missy, sitting at the foot of the bed, staring wide-eyed at the projections around her. You’d never used that ability again after the last time, and neither you, Marcus or Amanda had ever talked about it, to anyone, so no one else had known that you could do it before now. Well, Claire might have known, you suspected that the twins were actually telepathic, but if she did, she’d never mentioned it.

  “It was you, angel. It was my love for you that made it possible.”

  She turned her head away from the images, to look at you, and you smiled at her. And slowly, as though her limbs weren’t quite cooperating, she crawled up the bed to flop down on top of you in some sort of halfway dismembered hug. You held her close and rocked her just a little while you felt her sob into your chest.   No one moved or made a sound as they watched your memories play out while you spoke. There were tears in nearly every eye in the room, but Marcus was crying in earnest. He was still so raw from such a long time spent in darkness and pain, that even the joy of having everything he’d lost returned to him, wasn’t enough to chase the echoes away.

  “I’m sorry it took me so long, honey. I’m so sorry you had to suffer like that.”

  “I… I can take it. As long as you’re still here… I can take it. You’ve had to suffer so much worse.”

  He made a monumental effort, not to break down right there, and he was helped by Anita coming over and putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder.   But you weren’t done.

  “All of you in here, except for Allen (no offense), are people I consider to be friends, or at the very least – allies. So, let me be clear: if I find out that anyone of you were involved with getting Prince any part of the information that led him to be able to do this to us, I will make good on my threat. Don’t think that any amount of history or former friendship will earn you any mercy whatsoever. This was fucking unforgivable.”

   You took a breath and tried to soften your features, while everyone squirmed a little uncomfortably at the sincerity of your statement.

  “That said, I know that without Miracle and Crushing, I might not have gotten into the hands of our excellent medical staff quickly enough. And you’ll always have my gratitude for that.”

  Miracle, of all people, ended up being the first one to speak, and in his own childishly petulant way, he actually made you feel better.

  “If everyone had powers, no one would be special. Well, fuck that. I’d never play ball with anyone who had those kinds of ideas. My specialness is not for sale.”

  Marcus turned to look at him and offered him a genuine smile, for once, which caught Miracle off guard and he was suddenly preoccupied with staring at his feet and mumbling something about ‘it’s just common sense’.   Crushing suddenly cleared his throat loudly, and most of the room jumped a little.

  “I’m with you. Come find me when you’ve scared these little chickens out of their hidey-holes, and I’ll happily hold them down while you break their necks. I’m glad you’re okay, dove. Marcus isn’t the only one on this team that cares about you, I hope you know that.”

  “Thank you, Crush. I truly hope I can trust you on that.”

  You felt fairly certain that none of the Heroics would’ve been involved with Prince. They had no reason that you could see to want to help someone like him, but in your life, you’d been forced to learn that people were strange and capable of much more than appearances ever showed. So, you intended to keep your eyes on them until the moles had been found.   Amaire then decided to call time on visitation, and ushered everyone out. But Allen had some concerns.

  “These are serious allegations, miss. You’d better be sure about what you heard, because once we start an official investigation, that means that peoples privacies get violated, their rights infringed upon. If there really are traitors under this roof, then the safety of the entire world is potentially threatened, and that is something that we will not take lightly.”

  “I’m sure, Allen. Start by finding out how the hell he got out of that prison.”

  “We will, but you can’t be a part of the investigation, you realise that, right?”

  You did, but you had every intention of investigating anyway.

  “I expect to be consulted on matters that concern me.”

  “You will be, and I’ll keep you updated on the investigation, I promise.”

  “Careful. I’ll hold you to that.”

  “I expect nothing less from you, my dear.”

  He turned to leave, but as he reached the doors, you decided to remind him of something.

  “Allen. Since we don’t know how high this corruption goes, I can’t trust you to be above it. So, while you scrutinize everyone else, I’ll be keeping a close eye on you, and if I find anything that suggests that you might be trying to sabotage the investigation – you better hope I don’t find you.”

  Allen looked shaken when he stepped through the doors and disappeared, and Marcus was concerned.

  “Querida, please don’t turn this into your own personal crusade.”

  “It already is. Whoever did this to us has, as of yet, gotten away with it, and just because Prince is gone, it doesn’t mean we’re safe. You know he’s the kind of guy who kept records, and probably made sure that there would be someone around to continue his work if something happened to him.”

  “Yeah, I know, but that’s not what scares me the most right now.”

  “Then what does? Because a fucking mole inside the Heroics HQ scares the living daylights out of me.”

  He sighed and bowed his head, clearly feeling that this was something that should be obvious to you. It was to Missy. She untangled herself from you so she could sit up, and spoke while she wiped the tears from her cheeks.

  “He means you, alma. You’re what scares him the most right now. You’re pregnant, and only just recovered from another coma, and you’re talking about revenge and fighting and putting yourself in danger.”

  “We’re already in danger.”

  “Yes, but we just got you back. Please, alma… please just be careful, for once.”

  “Hermosa, we all have so much more to lose now, than we’ve ever had before. Will you please at least acknowledge that?”

  You forced your mind to stop running at the problems and dangers that you perceived around you, and just absorbed their words.

  Fuck. You were being a freight-train again, building up speed to the point where you wouldn’t be able to stop for a long damned stretch. And they were right, you weren’t considering how this all affected them, right here and now, you were too focused on trying to protect them.

  “I’m sorry. Being pregnant, if anything, is only making me all the more protective.”

  “That’s not a bad thing, mi amor, just try to remember that we feel the same towards you.”

  “Right.”

  It wasn’t that you didn’t understand their perspective. It was just that ever since the incident, you’d been in a perpetual state of maternal protective instinct, and it was still the most powerful thing inside you. Simply put – there was no shutting up Mama. She was loud and equal parts angry and scared, and all you could do to pacify her was to stay on target, stay vigilant and ready.

  Something was coming. Your gut was telling you that something bad was coming, and your gut had yet to be proven wrong.

 Authors’ Note: I love criticism, don’t be shy to let me know if there’s anything you like/don’t like/have questions about.

@blueeyesatnight​ @farfromjustordinary @allmyspideys @hrk-fic-recs @strawberryperegrine @lucrezia-thoughts @computeringturtle @sarahjkl82-blog

[a-student-out-of-time]

Twisted Sister Aftermath Review Part 1

Hai hidey do everyone, it’s your friendly neighbourhood Review Anon here! Another Arc has come and past us and as such it’s time to review it! Hopefully I don’t end up with 5k worth of words here and have three megaton submissions here (and from now on I am not going back to using asks, why the heck I used asks beforehand is beyond me) Speaking of, I have a question, do you want me to go back and review previous arcs? Probably won’t do this until we have any kind of break or hiatus so to not break flow? But that’s enough time being wasted, we have the Twisted Sister Aftermath Arc here, and this review isn’t going anywhere so let’s get right into it!

Relationships and Reflections

So, when we last left off, Hajime passed out from inhaling too much smoke while saving Tsurugi from the bomb explosion and as it turned out he has been asleep for a good 8 hours! Its Monday but despite that the school is shut, which is understandable given that we had criminals running around and a serial killer attacking the school the previous day, Hope’s Peak seems to be more sensible than my previous school which didn’t shut down even when one of the main buildings got flooded (long story there). But the good news is that nearly all the criminals were captured by the QC and the police and are back where they belong. The bad news is that 3 criminals are still at large. 2 of them are petty criminals that have nothing to be concerned but there is one criminal who IS a big concern. You have 3 guesses who that person is and the first 2 don’t count. Yep, its Maverick Storm alright.

So, time for a bit of a confession here, Maverick as a character…isn’t all new to me. For some of you old timers here there was a blog called ‘Despair Kids’ which started out as Class 78 asking questions and then it evolved into an AU with lots of OCs, so many that it got too overwhelming and I lost interest in it. But there were a few I generally liked, and Kyoji’s and Maverick’s characters really stood out to me. When I started to read the enormous backlog of this blog, (I wish the best of luck to all newcomers and try to not binge it, even if you are a fast reader), and Umeko showed up during the Practical Exams arc, I got a sense of Deja vu, as I recalled hearing that character’s name before. But I didn’t think much at the time, not helped by the fact that Umeko was a pretty minor character in the Despair Kids, even when Maverick was on his self-imposed challenge to kill all of his class, Umeko evaded him by just dimension travelling to another universe, so her character didn’t have much impact. But as soon as I heard Kyoji and Maverick mentioned I thought ‘Oh…OH IT’S THE SAME PERSON WHO MADE THOSE CHARACTERS!’. And as mentioned, I really liked those OCs anyway so that as well as using Another characters really got me invested into this blog. And with all that said, let me reassure you guys that Maverick is a bastard with a capital B. The stuff he gets up to in Despair Kids, where he was a member of Despair, but secretly plotted to overthrow Junko, even the other Mods/Role-players were disgusted by it. Now Maverick is probably going to be going through some changes as the Mod’s OCs in this blog aren’t the same as the characters from the Despair Kids. To give some examples Kyoji’s backstory doesn’t mention Mikan, Kyoji isn’t into Mikan, he’s more into Miaya, Maverick got jailed etc. So, I won’t be surprised when Storm starts pulling shit, probably not as bad as Despair Kids as he isn’t under Junko’s thumb here…but hard to tell at the moment. But yeah, you have been warned, I consider Maverick a villain as bad as Junko and Mikado, and you will soon see why.

But enough about a character who hasn’t officially shown up yet, let’s focus on a reformed villain and that is the new and improved Kanade! I feel mixed upon this new Kanade as part of me wants to love her as in this state she is so sweet and innocent, which is what people probably thought of Kanade when they first saw her in SDAR2, and I did at first, my thoughts about Kanade at the time were ‘It’s almost as if Hiyoko and Mikan are siblings, let’s hope Kanade doesn’t go crazy like Mikan did’ and that statement aged like milk. When Kanade became suspiciously smart and helpful during the Class Trials I was kinda sus because normally with the Trial Point Getters there is normally some logic to why said character is good in the Trails, like Koroko being a Psychologist can analysis people’s feelings and deduce who the culprit, and Syobai’s background means he has to use his brain quite a bit, but Kanade is supposed to be a Guitarist in a Pop band, she shouldn’t be this good. But my theory was she was lying about her talent, because that’s nothing new in Danganronpa, but ho boy was that a mistake. But at the same time as much as I want to hug this new Kanade, I’m also hyper conscious that the mindwipe might not be a permeant solution as well Junko got mindwiped in the OG timeline and we all know how well THAT ended. Then again, the relapse didn’t fully occur until Yasuke decided to kill Ryoko so as long as nobody tries to strangle Kanade, we should be good. It also means that Hibiki gets the little sister that she thought she had back, and you can tell this a new stage of development for her. Hibiki has grown as a person since back in July but while that part of her character development has finished, a new part starts as she tries and rebuild a proper healthy relationship with Kanade because Hibiki wasn’t completely innocent in the reason why Kanade became a monster. Granted, a lot of it was Kanade being twisted to begin with but had Hibiki been kinder and not been a total bitch to her, I don’t think Kanade would have gone fully down the deep end as it seems her psychopathic behaviour is more of a nurture rather than nature thing. Something I believe will be explored a bit more once Junko enters the scene because well…Kanade is basically Junko on easy mode. The real deal will be a lot harder to handle. And naturally Kyoji has offered to take care of her…I don’t know why Kyoji has turned into the guardian of reformed little girls, but it’s a welcome surprise to be sure. I just hope Kanade doesn’t get wrapped up in Storm’s schemes because given that Kyoji is his arch-enemy…

We can make sure Kanade is a good girl now but there’s still the small issue that she escaped from jail and the police are looking for her so one needs to fake her death. This is a joint operation by Kyoji and Nikei as Kyoji cloned some of Kanade’s body parts and left them near where a bomb went off to give the impression that Kanade got killed during the Prison Break, and judging from Tsurugi’s reaction, it seems to have worked. Speaking of Tsurugi, he is resting and due to his injuries is desk bound for a couple of weeks and receiving care from Mikan. Mikan caring for Tsurugi helps in two ways, as firstly being the Ultimate Nurse, she would be qualified to help make sure nothing serious happens to Tsurugi and Tsurugi doesn’t know that Mikan is part of the Quantum Crew and working with Kasugano, so it means someone is near Tsurugi who can relay information to Kasugano and co. That’s two girls with ties to Kasugano that Tsurugi has interacted with and he doesn’t suspect a thing. Okay to be fair with Akane when he first met her, she was an independent force and wasn’t working for Kasugano at that point but my point still stands. Not much to talk about our police boy here aside from Mod confirming that Tsurugi x Kouhei is going to be a thing in this blog. To be fair everyone could see the sexual tension between those two and that’s why people felt funny when Kanade mocked their relationship as they wanted to ship the two but it meant siding with a demonic guitar child. But said demonic guitar child is no more so no need to worry about shipping! And as for Nikei, he is writing up an article detailing Kanade’s demise as to throw the media off Kanade’s scent and then it’s just waiting for all the media hype around Kanade to die down and once that happens, she can be transferred to one of the many care facilities that Kyoji knows. How many does he know at this point? And while we are on the subject of Newsie here, it’s time to discuss a growing friendship, and possible relationship that is developing between him and Akane.

I had my suspicions for some time by their interactions but it was Akane’s and Nikei’s interactions in this Arc which solidified my viewpoint on their relationship. And that is Akane is more or less a foil to Mikado. Think about it for a second. They weren’t founding members of Void, they both grew up in hellish orphanages, got out of said orphanages thanks to Utsuro, ended up meeting the man himself at some point and inherited his Divine Luck at various points, though Mikado only succeeded in a Bad Ending. But at the same time, they both have different motives for going after Utsuro, Akane wanted to thank him for what he’s done for her and when she did successfully meet him, dutifully served under him, even when Junko came and corrupted them both. And while Utsuro had his crippling trust issues and constantly worried if Akane would betray him at some point, the fact that he gave Akane Divine Luck after she took mortal damage protecting the other survivors from Monokuma, showed that at some level he did care for her. Mikado desired the Divine Luck for his own personal benefit, burned down several orphanages to trigger another encounter and upon meeting with Koroko, hatched a horrible plan to ‘revive’ Utsuro, then Mikado would kill him and steal the Divine Luck for himself. Only reason it backfired was firstly because Mikado (both real and AI) didn’t realise Utsuro gave the Divine Luck to Akane, who was then later used to create Sora, and secondly Syobai betrayed him by siding with the Kisurugi Foundation. Their clashing roles can be no better illustrated then with their relationship with Void’s leader, Nikei. We don’t know how Nikei reacted to Mikado initially because it’s still a lot of unknown factors until the Onmake mode comes out canonically, but while wary at first because of how extreme Mikado’s plan was, was probably willing to trust him. And then as Mikado undermined him and usurped the role of leader from Nikei, that relationship quickly soured and a rotting despairing sense of hatred and revenge grew within Nikei, eroding away his humanity (from reading LINUQ’s blog, where he goes into detail regarding the various characters from SDAR2, he states that Nikei used to be a lot more warm-hearted before Mikado came along, but his hatred for the wizard made him much crueller) And it got to the point where the lines between Nikei and Mikado got blurry, and I’ll say that Nikei ended up being no different from Mikado in the end. And thus, he died a broken hateful mess. Now as for Akane, she and Nikei got off on a bad note; she kicked Nikei in the stomach, he responded by almost blowing Akane’s brains out, fun stuff like that. But once the misunderstanding and proof that Akane was good arose, a friendship of sorts started to develop between the two. The first signs we saw of this is *sigh* Oncoming Storm Arc. Among the hot pile of shit that Arc was, one of the VERY, VERY few good parts about it, was that when some Anons unintendedly hit a trigger phrase for Akane, which was mentioning older men, she went into a panic attack and out of all the people who could have comforted Akane during this moment, it was Nikei who did so. And now in this arc, we are seeing that Nikei is a bit more open with Akane then he is with other non-Void members of the Quantum Crew. He’s not taken the news that he snapped back to his old self during the Massacre timeline well, and bemoans that it shows he hasn’t changed, but Akane reassures him he has and that the timeline can serve as a lesson to improve oneself from and mentions she had trust issues initially but thanks to Utsuro, she is very much a people person now. And of course, we get the cute wholesome scene of those two cuddling each other, can someone please make fanart of these two cuddling, we need it. Mikado brought the worst out of Nikei and eventually led to his death, whereas Akane brings out the best in Nikei and would possibly help him into living a full refreshing life. Sora is more or less the third wheel in this relationship.

Annnnddd…I have talked for way too long. That’s part 1 of the review where I talk about relationships regarding all the characters but when we come back its when the plot comes back in when Class 77-B gets debriefed on the truth and a shocking new discovering on Time Travel is revealed. Stay tuned as we won’t be away for long! - Review Anon

[currentfandomkick]

Miraculous Team and the Batboys- Mundane Monday and Plot is Connecting Maybe

HEY so thank you all for waiting, puppy plus work being mobbed is hell, so this took forever to get brain power to write... oh well.

--

Marinette was on guard when she came into class. Her meeting of the “End Gabriel Agreste” Club with its core four members—herself, Chloe, Nino and Sabrina—went well. They were now 15% away from their goal.

Apparently Felix snatched up 3% on his own and gave it to MDC while she was away. Apparently it was his way of a peace offering… or a bribe not to kill him on sight. She wasn’t sure which… yet.

Properly awake and with her favorite drink (blend of dark roast, cream and a tiny bit of Energy Mayhem Special) she was good for the day. Everyone had their usual orders in their seats.

She raised an eyebrow when she noticed a text from Red Robin on her phone, currently a rose and bird emoji label.

RR: So, scale of one to ten, how bad is it if I accidently figured out your partner?

Marinette took a deep breath at that, checked the classroom (Nino was off with Kitty Section debating how to fix the ‘off’ bit of the rift in Rose’s latest song—something about it not ‘punching right’ and Luka being busy with his other band, Chloe and Sabrina were currently fighting Bustier in her office, Alya was conspiring with the Girl Squad on Lila’s end since she wasn’t in, Max and Kim were obviously eavesdropping on that conversation while Nathaniel was off in his own world). Damian still hadn’t come in, and Adrien wasn’t in yet… she wondered if her Chaton was going to sleep in for once.

LB: Please tell me you haven’t told your team

She kept her breathing steady, not letting panic overtake. That would alert people she didn’t want knowing, to looking, which leads to suspecting and rumors and theories and she’d like to avoid that entirely—especially since she still can’t really lie.

RR: I have a feeling you would kick us all out if I did, so I haven’t.

Marinette sighed, tension leaving her shoulders.

LB: Good. Keep it that way as long as you can, okay?

RR: They’re detectives, once they have the pieces they’ll put it together… also, why is your team so easy to figure out?

Marinette winced at that.

LB: Dumb Magic Rules.

Like the one that training a wielder young will prevent corrupting them to use it for personal gain. Like the one where a Guardian cannot be a True Guardian until they connect to the entire Box or Set of kwami. Like the one where Fu can’t give up being Guardian until she’s fully fledged… and that means until she can reclaim the Nooroo and Dusuu and heal Dusuu’s miraculous. That when she does—when she does Fu is gone.

She kept her breathing steady. nothing that they wouldn’t see as Typical Marinette Fretting Over Orders… not that they knew she had those cleared for the month.

“Good morning Dupain Cheng.”

She put her phone away easily, quick to keep up Typical Marinette (no plotting or superheroing here, just Typical Marinette, Baker’s Daughter and Keeper of Secret Drink Menu).

“Hi Damian, how was your weekend?”

“Annoying.” She winced at that. He didn’t exactly have friends here, and time differences are a horrible strain on them… Maybe Ladybug should keep an eye on him… just in case. “I hope yours was adequate.”

She was really wondering who taught him French today… he was being less him and more… stuffy than usual.

“I just needed some time away...” Honestly, she needed a lifetime away from Bustier and Hawkmoth… Lila was manageable (now).

“I am glad you were able to then.”

She was wondering where her deskmate went and why he wasn’t looking at her… Maybe she overdid it last week? She—no. She is stopping her analysis brain from going off and---

“Hello Marinette,” grinned obviously Not-Adrien. Seriously—how did they all fall for it back then? Body language, facial tics, accent—its all wrong.

She narrowed her eyes, not aware that Damian was doing the same beside her.

“Aw, didn’t you miss me?”

Nino came over then, scrunching up his nose as they both could tell Fake Adrien Agreste from the real one with ease now.

“What are you doing here,” Nino was definitely tired… He was not applying his sleep schedule quiz results at all. She was so lecturing him… lunch. She could pencil it in for lunch after wrecking Felix for taking Adrien’s place for the day.

“Oh, good to see I-Love-You Girl isn’t the only one that grew a brain since I last saw you all.” Felix raised an eyebrow at Damian, lingering. Plotting. “You’re new.”

“American Transfer, leave him out of whatever’s going on in that thing you call a brain.” Marinette was not going to deal with an akuma over this. Nope. She was not dealing with that again—or a series of Akuma… God she was going to kill Felix personally if he did. Chloe was untouchable as the Mayor’s daughter, but him? She could take him down again.

“And where’s my bro?”

“Your precious Ladybug,” He sneered, “didn’t cast whatever she did last time, and he’s home sick since his allergies are acting up. I figured it’d be as good a time as any to pull our old switcheroo to keep his Father-Farthest away.”

Marinette twitched at that. She knew she was forgetting something… She sent a quick text to Red Robin.

LB: Why didn’t you tell me it was Mr. Pigeon irl, not video!

RR: …you thought I figured it out from a video?

Marinette rolled her eyes openly at her phone, ignoring Nino as he threatened Felix with his own brand of Bro Shovel Speech.

LB: detectives, most of our battles are caught a decent amount on video, and most of Paris knows that Mr. Pigeon makes him sneeze. Really not a hard recon.

RR: I think you are overestimating my willingness to watch amateur video at length when I can outsource.

Marinette huffed at that.

LB: So you trusted them to not miss major clues when you were all working on different things and would miss key connections?

RR: we’re on the same page as a team. Plus, I get better info filtered with my apps

LB: Magic Fucks Things Up

RR: I’ve noticed.

She looked up to see Damian staring ahead, and wondered if she did something, or didn’t or—NO! Bad Marinette—no going down Rumination Ruin until its time to sleep. She needs daytime for Plotting, Nighttime for Anxiety and Regrets to run wild.

She kept her attention forward when class began, pointedly Not Talking To The Gremlin but not busting him either—she wasn’t going to get Adrien in trouble. Bustier may not notice the abuse signs, but a few other teachers had, and were given the ‘heads up’ by Nino and Chloe and Sabrina.

Lila was the only one unaware of the switch when she left during lunch to drop off a few deliveries her parents asked her to handle when the rush hit. Mostly to one elderly home, and one to her favorite Rescues Only center.

(if she was seen cooing at Lord Murder—yes she knows that’s a Bad Name but the giant kitty amputee was named that years ago before she was found and stubbornly refuses all other names. So, Lord Murder (Never Lady, she hisses at that) it was.)

She blinked when she saw Damian walk in on her checking the Lord Murder’s prosthetic.

“Hey Damian.”

“Dupain Cheng.”

Marinette nodded in acknowledgement and hoped he didn’t catch her calling Lord Murder “the lord and master of murder, the most deadly kitty in existence, and yes, clearly the most cunning of kitties to manage to scratch Mean ol’ Jean with the new paw when it doesn’t even have claws, because you are The Lord Murder, kitty of cuteness and wrath to all unwanted bath times.”

He was watching her then. “Lord likes you.”

Marinette raised an eyebrow, as yes, her favorite rescue (sorry Chat) likes her. She’s the one who argued them into letting them try out prosthetics and handled the funding (officially as MDC) and may have gone overboard on checking everything from the fits and materials and… yeah, okay, she could admit that the giant fluffy Norwegian Forest home in a millisecond if it wasn’t for the health code violation (soon… Gina mentioned she might stop renting out her old house soon as the current group was only a quick temp and she didn’t want someone else living there that wasn’t like family… and something about her Lost Son using it for the moment. Maybe she could convince Maman and Papa to let her do house sitting is she breaks out the Kitten Eyes.)

“Yes. Yes she does.”

Then Lord slow blinked at Damian. She wasn’t sure if she sould be offended or worry her favorite might be adopted by someone else, or glad that it was a serial pet adopter that actually took care of their pets and would be just as nuts as her about making sure Lord Murder was happy and healthy.

“I see she likes you too.”

She could feel Tikki dying in her bag… yes, she was being… awkward. She got it…

“Anyways, I should get going, still have a delivery to do and all so…”

She didn’t, she just really had no idea how to broach the Awkward that was Damian Greyson at the moment.

“See you tomorrow.”

That got him to pause. “Tomorrow?”

“Uh, gymnastics for the rest of the day, making up for what I missed so…”

“If you see the Other Grayson, tell him he is not to hug you.”

Marinette raised an eyebrow. “I…” Brother, father, maybe cousin or legal guardian or friend of his father’s. Too many possibilities, too much to spiral on that she can’t right now. SO.

“O. okay then.”

“Good.”

Marinette waited for him to leave the room, looking at a Too Amused Lord Murder.

“Don’t you start with me, I know I’m a mess on a good day. And no, I’m not overthinking this time Lord, I’m planning, there’s a difference… And no, its not an Alya Plot.”

Those went sideways too fast.

She left with ease and froze at the text from Red Robin.

RR: Can we meet up tonight? No traces that way.

She sent a time and place and –If no akumas happen.

--

THANK YOU ALL FOR WAITING. it has been a hellish time at work and extra shifts and war-zone lately on top of Precious Puppy Bonding and Care. As always, edits when I can get there and any comments or things you'd like to see expanded on more, leave a comment and I'll try to work it in if it flows.

As you can see, Plot Lines are converging soon.

Big Question though--what kind of Lila Exposed By Class do we want/are angling for? I can go legal or social backlash, blacklisting from Agreste brand, or some combo, or keep it a background element as I don't like how cannon Lila is written and the characters altered to make her bad lies work, so...

Other inquiry--do we want Dick to see Marinette take down someone (probably trying to rob her) on her way out of her gymnastics place on her way home using a few Obviously MIxed Gymnastics and Specific Brand of Martial Arts that feels oddly familiar to Nightwing who tells Red Robin and for him to groan as 'Coffee Angel, Why!' and then the next day its 'oh. Coffee Angel is also That Woman's Granddaughter. It all makes Sense now.' (as i hc Gina as probably busting a few drug, weapons, and human trafficking rings on occasion as how she met Jason back in the day) OR for him to only see the end as Nightwing and stare as she took them down and used her earbuds as 'makeshift handcuffs' while she's calling Sabrina as "I'm fine, no dodged their hits and yes i didn't get gassed this time... yes I'll let the medics look me over and no i'm not going to vanish before they get here unless Akuma, Yes if that happens i'll go to the hospital after--Look, i think i saw a shadow just move. I'm going on Akuma-mode now so... Thanks!" before running to meet up with Red Robin and have it take meeting Gina and looking between Gina and Marinette and how she responds to Jason trying to spar with her and then it clicks? I can go either way, but... Tim figures them out quick and straight up says at one point "I mean, Queen Bee after Style Queen, inverse colors... I've seen the multiverse, I had her pegged after seeing her in the bakery last week." All while Not Telling The Bats as Marinette's team doesn't even know and he has a feeling (correctly) she'll react Badly if she isn't the one to tell him before he comes clean, and ears her bolting as 'no support, team leader, and often absentee and likely disabled mentor, civilian life was a wreck for two years and her civilian safety net is only JUST reforming... hm. That's Famil--Oh.... well... wait until trust is there and let her move on that front, try not to set her off and offer help in what she'll allow--or risk pissing off the demi-goddess of creation and his Coffee Angel. Which he'd like to avoid, please and thank you.

Yeah, Tim is definitely going to Project on Marinette in this.

Also, I see Jason or Dick as Getting Marinette is InvolvedTM next... and Damian being the one to confirm the suspicions.

Prefer Jason Big Brothering or Dick "New Sister Mode Engaged" to suspect she's a temp hero? (Jason via Have You Seen Her in a Spar--and it's Gina's Granddaughter vs Dick 'Her Moves are Too Familiar, Maybe Ladybug uses her as a Body Double and trains her?' as the first Suspicion Arisen among the Bats.

[chocoholicannanymous]

Plan M (Leverage)

a Leverage series finale AU

As always, I own nothing. This one’s due to the layout of my season 5 DVD set, I kid you not, and what that made me expect from the series finale.

I’m posting this under scraps and snippets, because it kind of is - it’s either a oneshot or the start of something bigger, and it’s totally unchecked. It’s also my first attempt at writing Leverage, and I’m not sure I can live up to the excellence of the source material.

Plan M 

Alec listens to Parker panicking over coms and tries not to join her. Oh, he'd like to, but someone's going to have to keep it together if they're going to make it out, and looks like he's someone.

“Parker. Parker! I need you to take out your earbud, Eliot's too. Okay? And then smash'em.”

“What about the others? What if they're in trouble and need us?”

“If you don't think they can hold it together while we make sure Eliot survives, then I don't know who you've been spending the last couple of years with.”

If he's wrong about what's going down then there'll be time to apologize later. If he's right... Well, if he's right then ain't nobody going to need no apologizing.

Once Parker agrees Alec takes out his own earbud and crushes it with a pair of pliers before turning on Lucille's internal communications system. Once he's made sure Parker's found the giant first aid kit – Alec had started stashing one in Lucille, in every version of her, after the first time Eliot had ended up bleeding for them – and has patched up Eliot somewhat he starts throwing out orders.

“Right, get back into the cabinet where you found the first aid kit, yeah? Feel the upper right corner, front? There's a thumb-print pad.”

Three people are keyed into that pad, three out of five. Maybe it'd have been different once, but when Alec'd put in that secret compartment after DC that's the choice he had made. The three of them together, for better and for worse.

He directs Parker through removing the canister with acid – slowly, carefully – and dropping all three earbuds and their dismantled phones into it before replacing it in the compartment. Next he talks her through remote-triggering a virus in his system to corrupt and erase everything. Once that's done he feels himself relax a little. Things are still bad, only now their chances of getting out safely has gone up a couple of points.

“Okay, good. Great work. Now, please tell me you have a doctor lined up. Someone you haven't shared with the rest of us.”

And this is why he's secretly happy it's Eliot lying there shot instead of Parker. Okay, part of it – Alec's pretty sure he'd be nowhere this calm if it had been Parker bleeding out, plus Eliot would agree that it's better him than Parker or Alec – but. Between the two of them – hell, between all five of'em – Parker's the one most likely to have secret resources. Be it a secret identity unshared, or a warehouse slash safehouse, a stash of money for easy escape, or a doctor. They've all got some backup-plan, and Nate's got a dozen, but Parker's the one who doesn't advertise. And right now that's what they need.

“Hardison? I don't understand.”

“I know, and I wish I had all the answers, and time for them, but truth is I don't. Eliot don't. I'll tell you everything I can once he's safe. So, you have a doctor? Because if not we need to get in contact with Vance. Now.”

That makes Parker go quiet, just like Alec knew she would. Bringing Vance in means Eliot lives, but they lose him anyway. Because Vance'll help, but he won't do it for free. Not when it'd mean getting Eliot Spencer served on a plate. Not when Alec and Parker would go with him, even into hell.

And it would be hell.

“Parker?”

She's got someone, and Alec releases a breath he didn't even know he was holding. Good. That's another hurdle passed. As he follows Parker's directions he counters with his own. The secret compartment holding the canister of acid also contains a set of bags. Five, even if only three people can access them, because he still hadn't given up hope then.

Parker leaves four of the bags in the duffel they'd been kept in, only taking out Alec's. She'll sort them through later, safely getting rid of what they can't use. She only protests a little at taking the money and ID:s meant for Nate and Sophie, but she knows as well as he does that at least Sophie's got her own backups out there.

“Don't call anyone. Okay? Not Archie. Not Sophie. No one. Just make sure Eliot is fine, and then head out of the country. Vancouver if you can make it, there's a key to a safety deposit box in your bag, if you can't... Anywhere you think is safe. I'll find you. I'll cover your tracks and then I'll find you.”

“Alec? Why can't I contact Sophie? What's wrong?”

He debates what to tell her, because it's such a long and ugly story, but in the end he tells her the truth. There is no other option.

“Nate wasn't honest about this job. It isn't about a medical patent, it's something else. It's... Well, the details don't matter, not now anyway, but he's looking to steal information. Part of it's because it'd pretty much provide a list of which bad guys to after, but I've realized it just as much about getting one over on Sterling.” Nate and his hubris. Deep down Alec has always feared that one day  it'd get them backed into a corner they couldn't get out of. Oh, he hadn't really thought it'd happen, not with the four of them keeping watch, but what you believe and what you fear at 3 am are different animals.

“And before you ask, yeah, I knew. He promised me he'd tell you before anything real went down, and I was stupid enough – flattered enough – to believe him. Only it didn't go like that.”

The truth is that had Parker and Eliot known they'd have played it differently, and Eliot wouldn't be bleeding in the back of Lucille right now. Probably.

And that's just as much on Alec as it is on Nate.

He hated keeping the secret, but he still did. He still believed that Nate knew best, that Nate would look after them. Now... Now he suspects Nate will look after himself, and Sophie, and the rest of the team will only come into consideration if protecting them won't threaten Sophie.

Alec can, reluctantly, understand that. After all, it's sort of what he's doing now, isn't it? He's protecting Parker and Eliot at Nate and Sophie's expense. Doesn't make what Nate's done any more right though.

Doesn't make what Alec has done more right.

“I'd never have gone along with it if I'd thought either of you would be in danger, I need you to believe that, Parker. I would never. You two are the most important thing in the world to me, I would risk that.”

He knows he has though, and it kills him to think he could have stopped this. Eliot's been shot, protecting Parker, and Alec just isn't okay with that. He knows Eliot is, that it's his deal with the universe – his life for theirs, if needed – but it wasn't going to happen like that. It was going to be the three of them, looking out for each other, and now Alec's fucked that up.

If he makes it to Vancouver and they're not there he won't blame them. If he can't find them? He'd deserve it. Because while Eliot's deal was to protect them Alec's deal – Parker's deal – was to protect Eliot. And now Eliot's bleeding out in Lucille because Alec was distracted by Nate's flattery.

He'd thought this was Nate teaching him, showing him how to be a mastermind. How to make sure he could keep them safe. Making plans that didn't need adjusting, that wasn't too involved and elaborate. How to make plan A the working one. Instead it's... it's plan M. Only a plan M where it's not Alec, but instead Eliot.

No. He won't think like that. Not now.

As he pulls to a stop Parker jumps out and runs up to his window. She's hard to read on a good day, which this is definitely not, and Alec can't even begin to figure out what's going through her head right now. He just knows that it's probably better than he deserves, seeing as he's still in one piece.

“You take care of him, okay? And yourself. Be safe, and smart, and don't let anyone get in the way of you getting out alive.

“I love you.”

He pretends not to notice the tears in Parker's eyes as he drives off.

The hunt's on now, Alec knows it, and he's pretty sure that if he could just get his rapid heartbeat to calm down he'd hear sirens all over. He needs to shake them, obviously, but not really. What they tried to pull is too big for the other side to let go. They'll be hunted until they're found, and so Alec needs to be first found and then, but only then, get lost. He's thought about options before – of course he has, because hello? They lost their first and second office due to people coming after them. The chances of it not happening again were never that great. (Alec mourns the brewpub for a second. It might not have been the office he'd have chosen, but it was never about that. The brewpub was for Eliot, and Alec hates that he's losing that.) Anyway, after that he wasn't going to pretend like they didn't need fall-backs.

He flicks through scenarios in his mind, one after the other, discarding them just as fast as he can remember them. They're not bad plans, they're not, it's just that they're very Alec Hardison. They'd work against just about anyone they've ever gone up against, except this time it needs to work not only against the police and Interpol and Sterling. It needs to work against Nate as well.

In the end he decides that only one thing will work against Nate: the kind of plan Nate himself would come up with. Luckily he's got one of those in his back-pocket. (Okay, not actually in his pocket, but almost. Kind of.)

It takes running a red light or ten, but Alec picks up a police tail. Great. That's step one. Next he heads for the docks, speeding more than a little, praying all the while that he can do this. This plan really needs Parker, or Eliot, or both of them. It's made for the three of them, like they promised it'd be, but Alec can adapt. He hopes to hell he can.

As Lucille goes over the edge Alec sends up a prayer to a god he doesn't believe in, fixes Parker and Eliot's faces in his mind and allows Parker's voice to echo through him.

“Better or worse, we change together.”

[paperclipninja]

Lucifer post-ep ramble 5x01

Hi there, long time fangirl, first time Lucifan. After devouring all 4.5 seasons of this magnificent show in an impressive/alarming (all a matter of perspective) amount of time, I have very quickly found myself well and truly obsessed dedicated to all things Lucifer. And when a show grabs me like this one has, I tend to have a lot of thoughts and feelings that I can’t help but share, and so the post-ep ramble was born. It will probably contain many words, it may or may not be particularly coherent, there will definitely be over-analysing, but I thought I might indulge in re-capping the season 5 eps as I re-watch, so this is the first ramble off the rank. 

‘Really Sad Devil Guy’ (A+ ep name btw) kicks off as we’re still scrambling to pick up all our heart pieces after the season 4 finale, which is why Mr. Said Out Bitch (aka Lee Garner) being in Hell is such a cracker of an opening. Lucifer just waiting below deck on Fishizzle II (wth happened to Fishizzle I??) to greet him with his trademark ‘hello’ made me disproportionately happy, mostly because he was on my screen but also because his encounters with Mr. SOB are always great and this was no exception. Getting an insight into ‘life in Hell’, the way the characters in the Hell loops are played by Demons and Lucifer in action as the King was fab at this point in the series. And does anyone else have a visceral reaction to Lucifer stopping that bullet? I know it’s brief, I cannot explain it, it might be the command he has, the fact it’s awesome, but it makes me FEEL things. Just me? Cool.

I think what really strikes me in the way Lucifer just has to pop in on Mr. SOB upon hearing of his arrival, is the fact that he is a link to Lucifer’s life on Earth. They’ve existed in the same places there, breathed the same air, it’s a way for Lucifer to make that connection to his home more tangible. And when he realises where Mr. SOB’s hell loop has them moored, at Marina Del Ray, the way Lucifer says 'Los Angeles' with such yearning makes those heart pieces I had started cobbling back together really begin to ache. What this episode pulls off so brilliantly is the way Chloe and Lucifer remain connected despite being apart, and it’s all set up when Lucifer tells Mr. SOB, ‘You know, there's a good chance I know who's on your case. To them it's only been a few months, a blink of an eye, but here it's been much much longer’.

What’s happening ‘below deck’ in Hell (sorry...or am I?) is of course mirrored at the crime scene, where Maze is still calling Ella Ellen (never change Maze ILY) and Ella is banging on about Lucifer not responding to her DM’s and texts and it’s all so on brand and the thought of her sending Lucifer a clip of a parrot dancing to techno and him finding it funny is just too perf. Maze having Chloe’s back from the get-go and telling Ella to ‘read the room’ just shows how far this Demon has come. And of course Chloe saying that she hasn’t even really thought about Lucifer since he left...(spoiler alert: she has).

Seeing Maze and Chloe out drinking and dancing, somehow they're kinda dorky together and I love it, but it’s also really clear that they’re both leaning on each other pretty heavily and being there for one another and honestly, I love literally every combination of characters on Lucifer, you put any two together and the dynamic is 100% their own and these two are up there. It’s so weird seeing Amandiel running Lux, I big L LOVE Amenadiel but it’s just...wrong. Plus hats off to D.B. because his delivery of ‘No one sells drugs in my place...without me getting a piece of the action’, not gonna lie, I was THROWN.

So are we assuming that the number of months Lucifer has been gone = the number of times Chloe has rocked up to work with a hangover? Lol at the sunglasses but also, you do you Chloe, whatever you gotta do babe. Just like Amenadiel running Lux is like watching a slightly off AU version of the show, so is seeing Maze and Chloe as partners at work. Don’t get me wrong, Maze clearly supporting her and when they’re interrogating a lead, seeing Chloe and Maze have such a groove that they’re finishing each other's sentences and communicating without talking, I dig it. But I love that while it’s great, it still doesn’t feel right. Because that there is why this show is so clever, as an audience we crave the return to the way things were just as the characters we are watching do.

Linda being a completely OTT mum is so fab. I could write an entire essay about my Linda love. Her adamance that ‘Charlie’s special’ and Ella’s ‘every child is special in their mum’s eyes, huh?’ sums it up perfectly. Did I mention I adore Ella? I definitely get the distinct impression Ella is doing a bit of self-reflection, her comment about being drawn to the bad boys for some reason clearly foreshadowing, but also her reflecting that she deserves a good guy for once (just not this ep when there is a bad boy/potential suspect to be hooked up with). I am curious to see the ‘darkness’ Ella has alluded to in earlier seasons being explored further and feel like this is sowing the seeds and I’m also waiting for a significant Linda/Ella D&M at some point. But clearly not this point, because 'science lesson Wednesdays...I checked your schedule and that's your day off' Linda is NOT about deep and meaningfuls (or anyone who isn’t a 2 month old baby), you need to DIAL IT DOWN friend.  I love that it takes Trixie pulling some funny faces and Dan offering some sage parenting advice as he returns the self-help books (love the irony there) for Linda to begin to chill a bit.          

So Dan has gone all new age with his oils and self improvement and you know what? I love it. And then of course we have Amenadiel needing to help make the world a safer place, he just needs to make sure for Charlie ya know and ugh my ovaries. I must say, I was relieved to realise that the club life had not in fact corrupted the delightful warrior we all love after all - it’s all a ploy to catch a REAL BIG TIME drug dealer (nooooo I can feel the second hand embarrassment already...)! Amenadiel setting up the ‘drug bust’, telling the dealer, ‘looks like gooood drugs’, oh you dear sweet naïve Angel you. We of course discover that the bust is, well, a bust, because the ‘drug lord’ is actually a kid trying to offload his mum’s pain meds *insert facepalm emoii here*. But rather than ridicule or be angry, Dan is so understanding and supportive of Amenadiel and once again offers up advice and I really am so into this friendship on every level and the care and openness it models.

Meanwhile, the genius parallel between what is happening on Earth and in Hell really takes effect as Chloe and Maze go undercover (I mean, they are a glam couple lbh) to the poker game while Lucifer is at a game hosted by the same suspect in Mr. SOB’s ‘exquisite’ Hell loop. His exclamation that it’s exquisite reflects that Lucifer and Mr. SOB are not that different, that it’s the kind of place Lucifer might manifest as well, but I also feel that Lucifer could be admiring his own Kingdom’s handiwork at creating LA with such accuracy from someone’s subconscious. He allows himself to be absorbed in it, ‘City of Angels, I’ve missed you’, and I can’t help but get the impression that hearing Lucifer call LA this for the first time is confirmation that his Heaven, or place of Angels, is in fact there with Chloe.

Chloe remains firmly in the forefront of Lucifer’s mind this entire episode, with him asking ‘what would she do?’ and wanting to replicate the life he had with her at the precinct. But of course he is soon reminded of his reality, as he tries to get more information from Mr. SOB who is being useless. Lucifer incorrectly calling him ’Detective’ shatters the illusion that he is any closer to Chloe, and this is impressively emphasised as he erases the LA cityscape to reveal the Hellscape. For a moment he’d let himself believe he was back there. Back home. His, ‘you’re not her’ making some of my heart pieces fall out once again.

But then the messenger arrives, ‘Lord Morningstar, there’s someone you should meet’ and lo and behold it’s guy who just got hit by car up on the Earth-side of this investigation and I.am. loving. it. Also, did Lucifer put out a Hell-wide memo that if ANYONE arrives from LA they are to be bought to him so he can send messages to Chloe through their bodies??? NO REALLY I'M FINE. Having a Demon possess the dead dude’s body to pass on the tip from Lucifer was just TOO MUCH. His, ‘hey is that Mazikeen?’ made me actually lol but also, look how far we’ve come! Chloe doesn’t even flinch when the dead guy wakes up possessed to pass on Lucifer’s message. I’m so proud. 

'It's safe where you stored it' caused me way more amusement than was perhaps intended, but Ella, Maze and Chloe together, trying to figure out what it meant, it's such a great moment and the comedic timing is gold. Also, the fact it actually helps the case, ugh, Chloe and Lucifer are still connected and working together even though they are not on the same plane of existence and I’m just going to need to curl up for a minute because feelings.

You know who else is having a lot of feelings in this ep? The Devil himself. After he is satisfied he has passed on the message, he’s done with Mr. SOB, sending him, ‘back to your torture. And me to mine’. Any remnants of my heart are now once again shattered all over the floor in case you’re wondering. Lucifer doesn’t even try to hide the fact that being away from Chloe is so painful, almost revealing more than he ever usually would when Mr. SOB asks if she’s ‘somebody important?' to which he replies, 'more than you could ever know'. 

He only just stops himself before telling Mr. SOB her name, when he realises he's trying to manipulate him. And I'm so glad, Lucifer so sparingly uses Chloe’s name, it's always significant when he does and I feel like he reserves those moments for only between them. But Mr. SOB really does sum it up when he observes, ‘you just seem like a really sad Devil guy’, BECAUSE HE IS A REALLY SAD DEVIL GUY (can we just take a moment to appreciate how not at all scared of Lucifer Mr. SOB is, he doesn’t even refer to him as THE Devil, just ‘Devil guy’. It’s kind of nice that he sees and accepts him as both Devil and human without really questioning it). 

The parallel continues as Chloe and Lucifer are talking to a sister and brother  and the way this highlights the place they're both in. It's just brilliant writing and execution. Chloe is talking to Meg about her brother’s death and both her and Lucifer's yearning for one another is palpable. At the same time, Maze telling Chloe that they don’t need Lucifer and kissing Chloe highlights Maze’s desire for connection and love. She wants it so badly and the way she shuts down when Chloe suggests they stop working together breaks my heart.

When Lucifer takes Mr. SOB to the root of his Hell loop, yes, it’s about Lucifer projecting his own guilt and lack of self worth onto him, but his assertion that, 'it is inevitable sooner or later you're going to disappoint them all over again. So you'd rather stay away for all eternity’, really feels as though it carries multiple meanings. As a self-referential comment, is Lucifer talking about Heaven or Earth? Is it his fear of disappointing and letting down Chloe and the other humans or is it his belief that he disappointed his family? And if Angels self-actualise does that mean he was never 'stuck' in Hell at all and could have returned to Heaven? I certainly feel there is some sort of realisation occurring here. Or could be completely over-analysing it. Why not have both 🤷‍♀️

You know the line that just up and got me though? ‘Whose hell is this anyway? Are you sure this is my hell? You just here torturing yourself’- Mr. SOB calling Lucifer out is A MOMENT. And I can’t help but wonder if a part of it is Lucifer wanting Mr. SOB to come to terms with his own guilt, wanting to help him because he knows he’s not evil and he is trying to reconcile his own guilt too. If he can help Mr. SOB face and let go of the guilt then he has a chance of it too. And that’s when Mr. SOB challenges Lucifer, pointing out that he missed his chance, ‘but what about you?’ 'The self-centred simplicity of you humans never ceases to amaze me...I am here out of responsibility, I had to protect humanity, I had to protect HER', the delivery of this line, the frustration of being misunderstood, of ppl thinking that he acts for himself when his very reason for being back in Hell is for others, I can feel it through the screen.

The dead guy we saw get shot in the kitchen appearing at that moment with news about ‘the Detective’ and then cutting straight back to the shoot up in the house, file under: how to brilliantly edit. “Lucifer” appearing; the whistle, the casually strolling in, the ‘hello bad guys’ = I was FOOLED. I mean you have to admit, the ‘thought I'd give you a hand' pun was well played, classic Lucifer, very convincing.  My shipper heart was SO FULL for the split second Lucifer and the Detective kissed, until Chloe realised that something was off and her open eyes told us something was up. The cut back to Hell and seeing Lucifer still standing there with Mr. SOB...you may have heard my ‘noooooooo’ from wherever you are. ‘She’ll be just fine without me’...said every Devil who has a dick twin brother who’s going to try and destroy, nay STEAL, his life and love of his life ever.

Michael, you're an evil bastard but damn you nailed that villainous smirk over-the-shoulder pose in the final shot. Whatever you have in store, I will no doubt revel in your awfulness and be confused about whether or not I hate you. 

[angstmongertina]

A Little Wager (BoL&S)

Honestly, I almost appreciate the hiatus that they gave us in BoL&S, since it means I had time to replay and start working on some fic ideas that I’ve been toying with. I still want to write something for the last night before they arrive in Undermount, but I’m glad I was able to finish SOMETHING, at least.

Mal and Imtura are actually just so much chaotic energy and I love them.

AO3 Link

Mal and Imtura were up to something.

There was no other explanation for it. Too many times, she had seen them together, talking in low voices, glancing about with nervousness and cutting off whenever Csilla or Tyril got within earshot. Mal would linger by the wheel of the ship, Imtura slouched over to accommodate his height, as they sailed, conversing in voices so low that the winds couldn’t carry them. They would sit together by the campfire before turning in, murmuring softer than the crackling logs. If she weren’t completely convinced that there was nothing between them, she might have suspected that they were interested in each other.

As it was, they were managing to be suspicious enough that even Threep noticed, though in typical fashion, his investigation was easily bypassed through the bribery of fish, a fact that the nesper recounted to her with far more pride than it warranted.

In the end, it was simply a matter of timing. Days had turned into weeks after leaving the horrifying shores of that island behind them. They arrived back onto solid land, Imtura bidding a long farewell to her crew, and off they had set for the elven city of Undermount, yet another place she had heard of only in tales at the temple. Then again, the entire trip had been an exercise in firsts and unusual circumstances—she would never have guessed that her first trip out into the world would have brought her to these individuals, not lead to her traveling through all of Morella. They camped in open fields and wooded camps, trading off watch and sharing duties with slowly growing efficiency and the help of Csilla’s seemingly endless patience.

It was one such evening that she found her opportunity, settling in earlier than typical but she was hardly going to complain after days of hard travel she was not familiar with. The two elves had disappeared into the woods, debating the best methods for identifying firewood, when she caught the suspicious pair together once more, heads bent toward each other as they set up their tents. As she watched, Imtura snorted, tossing some quip over her shoulder that had Mal wheezing as she slid one of the poles into place.

Before manners and good sense could remind her that it was a conversation they could very well wish to keep private, she marched across the camp, coming to a stop beside them with her hands on her hips. Threep, as if sensing her intent, or at least the potential for some excitement, emerged to perch on the log beside her.

“Can we help you, Priestess? And I don’t mean in getting out of cooking duties.”

“What are you whispering about all the time? And don’t try to hide it. We’ve,” she indicated Threep, who sat upright with all of the primness he could manage, “both seen you.”

To her annoyance, they traded an amused look, Imtura’s with some amount of what she might almost call encouragement if that actually made any sense. She frowned, barely resisting the urge to stamp her foot, though judging by the expression that crossed Mal’s face as he sat back on his heels, her temptation did not go unnoticed.

“All right, Priestess, calm down. Let’s not get your smallclothes in a twist now.”

Imtura audibly snorted, though managed to look contrite about it when she glared. “It’s nothing that exciting, I swear.”

“Then why are you so reluctant to discuss it whenever Csilla or Tyril are around?” She gasped, staring from one to the other with wide eyes. “Are you planning on committing some kind of crime?”

“You think we’d be more willing to discuss getting in trouble with the law with a priestess of the light around than with an adventurer? You’re probably not wrong about Lord Grump but the kit’s a good sort.”

“‘Lord Grump?’”

He shrugged. “I know, I know, it needs some work. Haven’t gotten a chance to brainstorm proper names yet.”

“We’ve noticed, Mal the Magnificent.”

Groaning, he visibly wilted. “One time. I try out a title one time and I never hear the end of it.”

“Get used to it, buddy.” She winced on Mal’s behalf; the elbow Imtura jammed into his side looked like it hurt. “Anyway, as much as I hate to break up this session of poking fun at Mal, that discussion can continue when our fearless leader comes back while this one can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s about her. And her little grumpy shadow.”

In spite of herself, her lips twitched at the face she was certain said grumpy shadow would have made if he knew what his latest epithet had become. But if they were talking about him, then surely that meant…

“Are they…?” She turned to glance in the direction that the pair in question had disappeared off to. It did make sense, in some way, given how Csilla seemed to be the only one who could get him to relax. “They’re, ah…” What did the priests call it again? “Are they having relations?”

Mal snorted and shook his head. “You can just ask if they’re having sex, Priestess. And no. We don’t think so. Not yet, at least, otherwise someone in the camp would surely know, which means everyone in the camp would know. As for when… That there’s the golden question. Literally.”

Golden question… gold… She looked from one to the other, wearing almost identical grins, and gasped again. “You two have a bet!”

The smile on Mal’s face twisted into a grimace. “A little louder, please? I don’t think they heard you over in Whitetower.”

“Sorry!” She stepped closer, lowering her voice. “Am I right? I’m right though, right?”

“Congratulations,” he returned, deadpan. “You’ve done it. Truly, a deductive marv— Ow!”

Imtura shook her head with faux sympathy, as though she hadn’t just elbowed him again, even harder than the last. “Ignore him, Nia. He’s just upset that the so-called Lord Grump is gonna be getting more action than him soon.”

Laughing at the incoherent sputtering that that received, she squatted beside them. “So what did you say?”

“Are you asking me what I bet?” Beside her, Mal wheezed again, this time as a hand clapped him on the back, hard. “Look what you’ve done, you scoundrel. Corrupted a nice young priestess of light with your gambling and your stories. Next she’ll be wanting to join a thieves’ guild and break into some rich man’s estate.”

“And that’s a problem how?” The question was more croak than coherent sentence, but when she peered at him, this time with genuine worry, he waved her away. “Those stuck up assholes have it coming.”

“To you, maybe. Not to a priestess of light.” Imtura shook her head. “Honestly, the brains of some people… But back to your original question. Mal has ten gold that Tyril’s enough of a mess that it won’t be until we get to Whitetower, or even after we manage to beat the Shadow Court. I think he’s not giving Csilla enough credit. She’s determined, that’s for sure.”

“So you think…?”

“Oh, he’s still an oblivious idiot. Probably not until after we reach Undermount, at least.”

She pursed her lips while Threep made what she could only describe as a nesper’s equivalent of a scoff. “Foolish, both of you. That only holds true if you are expecting him to make the first move.”

When only silence followed his proclamation, he blinked, tail twitching so violently it nearly hit her in the face. “What?”

“Nothing. Just didn’t take you sophisticated beings for gossips is all.”

Despite his diminutive form and position on the ground, the look Threep gave Mal was impressively contemptuous. “Being companions of the elves meant we were deeply entwined in their lives, social and otherwise.”

“Meaning you were all a bunch of nosy busybodies.”

She cleared her throat before Threep could snipe back. “He does have a point though, doesn’t he? I would not put it past Csilla to say something first.”

Before Mal could say anything, Imtura cocked an eyebrow at her. “Would you care to add something to the pot, then?”

For a moment, she hesitated, then, glancing at Threep once more, who gave her hand a nudge, shrugged. “Why not? Five gold on Csilla making the first move before we even reach Undermount.”

Mal whistled, low and long, and made a note on a scrap of parchment, on which he had already written his and Imtura’s wagers. “All right, then. We’ll see what happens.”

“See what happens?”

They all jumped as Csilla stepped into view, closer than Nia was expecting, her companion nearly fading out of the shadows behind her. The woman gave them all a curious look, pushing her hair behind her ear, while Tyril frowned, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Nothing!”

Her response, louder and quicker than normal, was enough to draw a raised eyebrow, but thankfully, Csilla said nothing, instead directing Tyril to set down the wood to start a fire. “If you’re certain. Anyway, we’ll get a fire going so you can start cooking soon, Nia, and Imtura and Mal can finish putting up the tents. Though I suppose if you two don’t finish, it’s your own loss; I’ll take first watch with Tyril while you figure it out.”

In spite of herself, she turned, catching Imtura’s eye as the other woman raised an eyebrow, and burst into laughter.

[thanksjro]

The Transformers #23- Chaos Theory Part 2: Everything Ever is Whirl’s Fault, and He Didn’t Even Do Anything This Issue

Before the war, Orion Pax is watching the news. Turns out Nominus Prime got blown up earlier in the day, as Blaster reports from the scene of the crime. We get our first mention of the Militant Monoform Movement as we take a gander at all of Orion’s awards.

Turns out Orion went to college. Wonder what tuition’s like at the Institute of Higher Programming.

An incoming storm messes with the reception, and in walk three guys looking for trouble Whirl. Whirl’s currently in custody, seeing as Orion doesn’t take too kindly to beating suspects within an inch of their life.

General rule of thumb: anyone calling Whirl “popular” or a “friend” is either trying to kill him, or has made the attempt in the past.

So these guys are trying to get Whirl out of jail, using the power of persuasion and being generally threatening. Orion Pax is too much of a good egg to be swayed by such tactics, however, so they’ll have to up the ante.

In the present day, Optimus is having a brooding session in the engine room- I’m only assuming it’s the engine room- and Ratchet checks in.

I suppose “frazzled” is a word we could use, Ratchet, sure.

Optimus feels as if his decision on whether Megatron should be executed or imprisoned for the rest of time is going to be biased either way. Dang, almost sounds like putting it to a vote with the leader of the Autobots would be a better way of handling this, huh Optimus? It’s almost as if you’re compromised here, and we need a little friggin’ democracy going on.

Ratchet asks why he hasn’t consulted the Matrix on this whole situation, breaking out the quotation fingers whilst referring to its wisdom, but Optimus ain’t too sure about all that either. When Optimus first got the Matrix shoved into his body, that shit hurt. It hurt a LOT, and he’d interpreted that as a sort of warning that carrying it was a huge responsibility. Way bigger than taking care of a dog. Now he’s questioning whether or not he actually wants the responsibility.

Hey, if you’re having second thoughts about being Prime, you ought to give Bumblebee a little more room to work and be the leader of the Autobots like you wanted him to be, and maybe consider handing the Matrix back over to Rodimus-

Oh who am I kidding? His martyr complex would NEVER let that happen.

Back in the past, Wheelarch and Springarm are waxing poetic about how cool their new boss Orion Pax is. He’s strong, and heroic, and making a difference in the world, and he’s got just the most beautiful blue eyes-

Anyway, they arrive back at the precinct to discover where all the criminal scum have gotten to- Orion already bagged ‘em.

You know, I think tying suspects to poles in the ground in the office section, packing the room so tightly they can’t even sit or stand comfortably… I think that might be a touch illegal, Orion. Unethical, if nothing else.

A bit later on, Springarm wants to know just what the hell that was all about. Orion’s been thinking about Megatron’s writing, and how he thinks the Senate is institutionally corrupt, and that visit from Whirl’s “friends” is starting to make him think that maybe the guy had a point. It bothers him.

Springarm turns to his faith when he’s feeling bothered by deep questions like whether or not the world government is is enacting a caste-system in an attempt to control the populace.

This just in, the future space pope is a goddamned atheist. Perhaps this is why interfacing with the Matrix hurts him- it relies on a mutual respect between itself and its Prime, and there ain’t nothing less respectful than thinking of the thing as a literal ornament.

Orion thanks Springarm for the advice, but he’s going to work through this without spiritual guidance.

In the present, Optimus meets with Rodimus, and asks a question he’s never been able to ask before: how did it feel to interface with the Matrix?

Well dang, Rodders, tell us how you really feel!

It should be noted that Rodimus does have some level of faith in the gods, the Matrix, the Knights of Cybertron, and several other Cybertronian legends and myths- which sort of makes the MTMTE Knight Quest look like a bit of a crusade, doesn’t it? Does believing in the Matrix let it bond more seamlessly with the bearer? Methinks it just might.

Back in the past, Orion Pax gets back from patrol to find the precinct has been broken into, and his two motorbike boys aren’t doing so hot.

Oh man, Valve’s going to be pissed.

Moving real stealthy-like, Orion moves to the holding cells, where he catches those guys from earlier trying to spring Whirl from jail. Well, two of them anyway. The third guy is behind him, and shoots him in the back.

Luckily, Orion’s old body-frame includes a backpack, and this move doesn’t kill him. He sweeps the leg of his assailant, shoots Whirl in the leg so he can’t escape, then runs to his trophy case to grab the fancy gun someone gave him. Wonder what it was for.

Alas! It’s not loaded. Which you ought to expect from an award gun, unless you loaded it yourself before you put it in the case. Which he didn’t, clearly.

Three versus one, and the solo act doesn’t have any weapons. What’s a guy to do?

This is deeply silly. I adore it.

Thinking quickly, Orion drags Springarm’s headless body into a closet. This isn’t necessarily a smart move, but give it a second. As the three thugs discuss murder-based puns, Orion prepares to enact a Roberts’ writing essential.

Corpse desecration.

Riding his coworker’s lifeless body through the precinct, he runs down his attackers, stabs one of them in the throat with one of his arm cannons in front of all the ‘bots currently in the cells, and goes to find Whirl.

Whirl, who knows to get going while the getting’s good, warns Orion that the Senate has eyes everywhere, and if he so much as touches Whirl his whole life is gonna get turned upside down and inside out, and not in a fun way. And he’d know.

Smash cut to the Grand Imperium, home of the Senate, where everything is blue and gold, fear tactics are at play on the political stage, and everyone is suffering from a nasty case of same-face syndrome. Senator Proteus is about to enact the Clampdown, a strict rule of martial law that will, under the guise of protecting the people and weeding out terrorism, in actuality allow the Senate to hoard power like a bunch of dragons.

Then Orion shows up, after fighting off the entirety of the Senate security force, while carrying a one-legged Whirl.

Got a nice shot of some bird ass, and Orion’s honkers are halfway out. I wonder if this particular chunk of fan-service was specified in the script, or if this is purely Milne.

Sentinel calls off the dogs, and Orion has his say. He throws Whirl on the floor, introducing him to everyone as the cause of every problem ever. Well, not really, but pretty close.

Orion, you can’t just say a guy caused two people to die and then not expect to have to deal with the repercussions of pummeling his psyche at some point down the road.

Orion goes on to mention Megatron, bringing up his writings and how they revealed to him the dark, ugly underbelly of the Senate that he’d been blind to until that point. This is still the guy who arrested drug addicts for using and tied them to a pole, by the by. He’s less than 48 hours into this Megatron kick, and still got a lot to rectify within himself.

Orion coins the term “Autobots”, reclaiming a friggin’ slur the other races in the galaxy have taken to calling the Cybertronians.

I wasn’t kidding.

The Senate members are starting to get rowdy about being called out on their bullshit, and have Orion removed from the building, but not before he can ask Megatron’s three questions:

1. In whose interests do the Senate exercise their power?

2. To whom is the Senate accountable?

3. How can the populace get rid of them?

No answers are given, as he’s taken away. He did use Megatron’s name, by the way. His full one, with the “of Tarn” attached and mentioned where he worked. Smooth moves, Orion. Now Megatron’s going to be targeted for politically-charged murder.

In the present, Optimus Prime’s made a decision on what exactly to do with Megatron- and his decision is to let Megatron decide his fate, because freedom is the right of all sentient beings, and part of that is getting to choose your fate.

Megatron picks death, like, immediately.

Optimus gets the Matrix back from Ratchet, who he left its care in- he wanted to be sure that he was still the person he had been back when he made that speech to the Senate. Glad your crisis of self went well, Optimus.

Back in the past, Orion Pax meets with a senator in front of the Ark-1 memorial, very secret-like. See this senator’s seen all the nonsense that goes on in the Senate, and he’s about had it. Forget what all Megatron wrote about, it’s way, way worse in reality. He can’t prove it, but the attack on Nominus Prime was an inside job, so that the Senate could get their hands on the Matrix and figure out how it creates life.

I know, it’s crazy.

Things will probably pop off very soon, so the Senator’s taken the liberty of modifying Orion Pax’s chest cavity while he was passed out receiving repairs.

So the guy made a little hidey-hole for the Matrix in Orion’s body, so that he could one day be Prime.

Hey.

Hey, Senator.

Consent is sexy, man. Don’t be like that.

[magiccallie]

So I wrote down my thoughts as i watched through most of Season 2 of Scooby Doo Mystery Inc, and would like to share them, major spoilers below cut

Notes of Season 2 of Scooby Mystery Inc Shout out to this jock bully(?) who upon encountering a monster threatening a girl, did no hesitate to take on said monster, recuse said girl, and protect her as they escape Fred really needs to talk to someone about his new parents, who are now living in his house with him???? The house of the man who took him from them?????? Bronson might not be exactly straight looking at how he acted around the old mayor vs the new one, but *shrugs* Jock Strikes again, is this gunna be the twist? That''s a really douchy twist to pull a stunt like this Love how-I mean this is just the plan. He wanted girls too so he set up the same scenario. Is this extra set up by the parents to get him to trust them that is some next level douchery/ Scratch that on Bronson, omg Oh shit starting with a furry attack this is going to be a weird episode the gang's meta knowledge coupled with their sure willingness to go along with tropes and shit makes for great dialogue oh *oh* this is the episode where we get a peak to see just how big the picture is, love the lore building. knew this episode was gunna be good is that a demon? the furry isnt the mosnter??? ummm...weve been getting hints, are things getting real? so we've established motive for why someone whould want this plavce closed, but actually tangent but dont a lot of these monsters that they encounter seem like, weirdly powerful and mobile for costumes oh there's the furry that red aura is a...the things that happen around it are something deeper it seems. fascinating. is the red just representative of fire hallucinations? those seemed a bit real in effect for hallucinations... this guy, like my manager, needs to hire a little more staff occult magic book falls from the library to gang, and no one is as concerned as they should be nazi robot nazi robot get BJ on the phone Cassidy is the kinda retired PC that the players can strive to be Shit is getting real quick isnt it. Wait is that a seal. does Cassidy die? I know about a certain other death that makes me sad, but i dont want Cassidy to die too this episode is a rollercoaster of odd events weird hologram disguise for Paraclese is nifty Seeing the tragic fate of past groups is...well obviously sad oh dear, she does die huh its super low key, but it plays at the terrifying corrupting ordeal of the eldritchstuff really well with the lore notes bear troubles oh that badge...is that where they buried him? that's...kinda grim they have stealth suits and killer nazi robots? why have the evil guys not won yet? there is a bomb and they are not evacuating. There is a BOMB and they are not evacuating oh the bear can talk, how dare i assume that a bear is incapable of speech the bear is a twunk, scratch that, still a bear, is...he doing a christiphor walkin impersonation? aaand that’s enough for tonight, starting fresh later We're back, 13 more episodes oh so were getting into why i don’t like astrology Enigma machine omg. sorry, im a sucker for bits like that i wanna have long white hair too, i could rock that look How does Paraclese still have an accent after all these years? It is like destiny's Rasputin and just a stubborn superiority complex? something about visiting villains you can talk to in a prison is-ohp thats just all of um huh, cameo episode- err, anyways, it just paints a delightful scene about the relationship of the protags and antags and villainy as a whole in the world well this is horrific, throw some brownish red stuff around and it would be a silent hill scene update: still gay Thirteen more episodes and they have the disk...that does not bode well for what is going to happen the writer's willingness to reference other hannah barbara characters/shows is great oooo anticaptilism, BF is scoring points excuse me???? cyborg dragon girl???? he cant even call her by her name through most of the episode wtf??????? see now im at the point i gotta ask, is this a real ghost thing, or a fake ghost thing? ah i understand now youd think he would be more willing to explain to th-there we go so the animal companians are more suceptible, but they all have the risk Paraclese talking about these cattle is every gm talking about their homebrew monsters omg writers wth was that conclusion for the cattle im dying sk-ska zombies. ska. zombies. i can pick it up oh like the dancing plauge but worse, nifty these ghosts are rude boys, like, thats actually one of their names. And just caught that it the band name is skatastic oh they mentioned the dancing plauge, thank you wtf 101 the 'lighthearted' tone of this episode speaks dark tidings about the horrors to come aaah, hex girls, omg oh damn, update again: still hella gay bards duels be like, but for real loving this more and more young me is crazy about having the hex girls interact with a magicy thing like the disks, the rest of me is concerned at the events that are taking place scooby agrees, and his dog girl friend...well that was something Ricky displaying increasing regrets is not going to do good things for his lifeespectancy ohp then he drags in the other two well, i didnt see that coming for the criminal identity this little girl just had her mom ditch her for a stranger that robbed them, the heck i should probably eat dinner at some point, or like, anything at somepoint... calling it now, this guy is a circus performer/stunt driver, and if he is the random hired british poolboy it is a fake accent he's lureing women away with emotional intemacy. thats funny in itself, btu that they accept so readily still isnt normal oh and apparently kinks, lured with kinks so hes going to be the librarian dude then?? maybe? k, so at least i got that o.o O.O, well, that was quite the lead up and explanation food on plate, depresso in heart, ready to continue so they have to know right? like, this is a planned trap since Fred is 'the only one who knows where it is' doesnt explain Fred though, or how the fake acts "jeepies you found my scarf" oh there it is, they are after the info from him and its all fake, not some hell vision to show why he has to suceed Fred knew first? good on him plastic surgery, holy crap, next level villainy here holy shit they're all in puragoty thanks to the corrpution?????? Going back to early about the horrifying nature of all this. it is just so immensly sad watching them go through these bits. Cool, but sad. Velma demonstrating why thinking and understanding are not always good in eldritch horror games so he's got a guilt complex? heart felt talk with Mayor Dad awwww, poor Velma doesnt think she's pretty guessing...well id say the wife of Enrique but that seems too easy some how, stiill shes the only offered suspect beside Enrique himself thus far *deep sigh* i will never guess any culprit i bother to write down correctly would be a real move of the writers to Uzumaki the town two day deadline given, props to velma for having the foresight to model the disks in a digital format incase theyre lost mad max mystery machine sounds like a doom metal synth wave fusion song things are going too well... How many giant evil doors will this lair have? alchemy. of course. should have guessed. is...is this the episode where Marcie...oh no oh at least shes trying good on her, she's going down in style and flame... oh. ya know, even knowing it was coming and talking it up a sentence before, not a happy event this is a nifty dungeon last episode, hell of an opening/recap wh-what fghaseguk this went batshit didnt it. i wish i had the willingness to write at unhinged as these writers one more media that i am surpised didnt end in a poly relationship this climax is eerily familiar to the live action movies at times and then they all died and went to heaven aww Rickee and Cassidy *and* Velma and Marcie, aww, my heart will heart to think about that one for long, but awwwww Miskatonik University, or however the heck it is said. i thought it was going to be a one off joke but wasn't expecting that.

[experimentalmadness]

Interrogation

Back with more OC nonsense. Jacky’s little double act is found out and Harvey’s brought in as part of the interrogation. Remember when I said we only write Harvey as a fundemantally kind person in this house? Well...take a look. And if you’re curious about this OC and the fic that precedes this one check out her tag! Anyway if you’re liking my little drabbles reblogs and likes mean the world. :) 

***

Jacky always imagined the police interrogation rooms would be much colder, more impersonal. The room in the GCPD precinct almost felt like a regular office space. It even had a small, barred window overlooking the street. She could see the monorail line. The bakery was about three stops off of Grand Avenue and Miri would be opening soon. Funny, how that was what came to mind first. 

All those years of careful consideration. Living on the line. Over now. And all she could think of was if Miri was going to be able to handle the morning rush without her to man the registers. 

The door to the interrogation room banged open and Harvey Dent, flanked by two officers came inside. “Case number 0114, Miss Jacqueline Ripley held on suspicion of attempted murder.” 

Jacky had never heard Harvey at his work, never seen him in court, only heard the campaign speeches and the play by plays afterwards over a drink, or while watching a game. One of the officers took out his handcuffs to chain her to the table, which she fully expected. No need to make this nightmare go on for longer than it had to. Jacky put her wrists together and held them up. 

“Thank you, officer, but those won’t be necessary.” Harvey took a seat, pulling out a tape recorder and manilla folder from his briefcase. 

“All do respect, Mr. Dent, but the state we found her in warrants—”

“I’ve dealt with worse.”

The officer just shrugged and pocketed the cuffs. “We’ll be just outside,” and Jacky knew the warning was for her to not do something so stupid as to attack Gotham’s favorite DA. 

They left, the door clicking so loud it set off bombs in Jacky’s brain as she stared opposite of the man who was doing everything in his power not to look up at her. He fiddled with the recorder and opened his files, tapping his pen against the steel tabletop. “For the tape, suspect was found near 1st Street and Quinn in the Cauldron at approximately 3am with a Mr. Robert Young,” he flipped through the file, “Mr. Young was taken to Eliot Memorial with multiple contusions, fractures, and internal injuries. Suspect has given a full confession to Commissioner James Gordon at 5:15am. Are the following statements accurate, Miss Ripley?”

“Yes.”

“And you have waived the right to an attorney is that also correct.”

“I have.”

The recorder clicked off. “Are you being coerced? Officer Franklin has a history of taking cuts from Falcone, Jacky, I can make a call.”

“Harvey…”

“Get someone from legal aid down here in twenty. I can say you won’t talk to me.”

“Harvey, no.”

He turned on the recorder again. “For the record, Miss Ripley, again, are the following statements accurate? Was your confession coerced in any way by any interrogating officers?” 

He nudged the recorder closer to her. That was funny. She’d lived through a lot in her fairly young life already, seen a lot of nasty things, done plenty to make her numb to most, but it was that little motion--out of everything--that broke her heart. She leaned over the table so her mouth was hovering over the recorder. “My statements are accurate, no coercion.”

Harvey slammed another hand down to pause the recording, inches from her face. “Damnit Jacky!”

That was fine, he yelled in all her nightmares, too. Sometimes he hit her, they’d fight, she’d lose. In some dreams he even turned into the Batman—back when she thought they might have been the same person. Now he just sat back, eyes trained on the pages in his folder. “I’ve been doing this a long time, Harvey.” 

He ignored her, clicking the recorder back on. “You came upon Robert at around 2:45am by your statement, walk me through the events leading up to your confrontation, for the tape.”

Jacky leaned back in her chair, tilting her head back to watching the fluorescent lights on the ceiling. “I get calls for odd jobs at least once or twice a month. Robert had been selling--let’s call it information for the record—to Penguin, er, Oswald Cobblepot. That means I do it special.”

“What does special mean?”

She already had the shovel in her hands she might as well keep digging. “My employer likes to send a message. You think it’s easy beating a man to death? Normally it’s quick and clean jobs—”

Harvey was quick to shut off the recorder again. “I only need the details of this case.”

“But I’ve done—”

“You are looking at five to twenty-five years on this charge alone, Jacky. The police only have evidence following this particular case, do you understand?”

She always thought he’d stop looking at her like that after he knew. That those earnest eyes would go hard and distant. Why did he still look at her like she was his friend? Like she was someone he was still going to save? Didn’t he get it yet? The charade was over. She’d had a good long run, but the secret was out, it was time for the DA to do what he was supposed to do: clean up Gotham’s streets and put people like her away so things could be better for everyone. 

Jacky squared herself in her chair, slicing off another small piece of herself as she met his gaze. “I’ve killed a lot of people, Harvey.” 

“No,” he said, simply, certain, like she had just told him the sky was purple. “Off the record then,” he closed a hand around the recorder, knuckles going white under the pressure, “Are you protecting someone? Does Falcone have anything over you? I know that night at the shop—”

Jacky couldn’t stop herself from laughing. “There’s no protection racket, Harv! No coercion, no set up! No frame job! Do you haggle with any other suspects like this? Asking them if they were all put upon? You’re Harvey freakin’ Dent. How many nights I spent hearing about how you threw the book at a killer? A dirty cop? A mobster? Here I am, buddy, take your shot.”

Was nothing she said getting through to this idiot? When was he going to drop the act and treat her the way she deserved? Instead he just checked his watch, and ran a hand through his hair. “Right about now I’d be coming into your shop.”

“I’d ask if you had any exciting cases today,” Jacky continued, replaying the routine effortlessly in her mind. She’d slide him the coffee, he’d give her one of his signature grins that would carry her through the rest of the day, she’d make some smartass remark, he’d double it, they’d make plans for the evening or tomorrow, and Jacky would pretend to be the woman who was lucky enough to be friends with a man like him. “Guess I’m getting the news early.”

He covered his face with both hands, elbows leaning against the tabletop. He sucked in a breath and straightened up at once. “Get a lawyer, Jacky,” he snapped.

“Don’t need one, I’m guilty.”

“If you can get the DA’s office any pertinent information on Falcone’s operations I can look into getting your sentence reduced.”

“That doesn’t seem fair to me, you offer that to every other hired killer who sits in this chair?”

Harvey slammed a fist against the table. “You are not a killer. You’re not. I know you, Jacky.”

If she reached across the small expanse to take his hand the cops waiting and watching outside would be all over her in seconds. Not that she would anyway. Her hands twitched in her lap. All he had to do was walk her through the next steps, verify the case, make sure her rights were being recognized and leave. “I am a killer,” she whispered, hoping this time it registered. That it stuck. “I am a good sister, a pretty decent hitwoman--well used to be I guess, and right now a bad friend.”

She might as well have taken out her pistol and shot him with each word she said. Here it comes, she thought, the big bad lawyer all the rest of Falcone’s men would never admit they feared. She almost wished he’d haul off and hit her. 

“This city…” he sighed, running another hand down his face as he stared out the barred window. “It has a way of beating down the best of us. You can’t let it. We can’t let it.”

The bars on the window played a pattern of interlocking shadows across his face. She was prepared for his hatred, for all of that righteous anger she’d seen him direct at the sickness and corruption in Gotham. She hadn’t been ready for his disappointment. 

“So here’s what we're going to do Jacky. I’m going to switch on this recorder again, you’re going to tell me how to nail Falcone to the wall and you’re going to get five years. You’ll make good in Blackgate. Take any classes they offer, do everything right. Get out for good behavior in two. And you're not going to let the worst side of this city win. Got it?”

This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. 

He reached across the table and took her hand, pulling it towards him, covering it with both of his. “You do this with every convict?” He was being a hypocrite and she wasn’t going to be the reason he went corrupt. He squeezed her hand, she kept wishing he’d punch her instead. 

“The whole spiel? Yeah, I do, actually.” He had the audacity to give her a small smile. “There’s enough people in this city that think there’s no other way. There’s always another way. Jacky, c’mon look at me.”

“Didn’t think I was part of the saving crowd. Thought you’d hate me.”

“Oh it’s going to take the full two years for me to stop that,” she almost laughed at his words. His hands around hers kept her steady, pulling her up out of the water that had been over her head for years. 

“But what I want to know, Jacky, is who convinced you you weren’t worth saving?”

[isa-ghost]

Corruption AU

*Galaxy brains*

Catch me tempted to start a whole AU based off my theory that Chase got corrupted at the end of Dark Silence and is living through slowly changing and growing sick and discovering freaky powers he didn’t have before and realizing this is what his comatose best friend went through before the August 3rd/March 5th operation was hijacked by Anti.

Oh god this might be a temporary muse but god am I about to blow it up real quick anyway. There’s details on it below the cut.

Henrik is the one who put Jack in the coma and regrets it deeply. Half-possessed by Anti in the moment he did it, he knew Jack would die unless he induced a coma to stabilize him easier than blindly trying to figure out how Anti his possessed self was killing him.

He wasn’t gone for 9 months but rather 2. In-game the time Jack flatlined was March 5th, 2018 and Henrik reappeared May 3rd, 2018. He has barely revealed any info about what happened in that time, but any time he’s opened up about it to the other egos, Jack’s comatose body, or in vlogs on the channel, he gets extremely anxious and can’t elaborate. He’s trying to coach himself into healing enough to tell the story so it won’t happen to others.

It wasn’t one big operation from August 3rd, 2017 to March 5th, 2018. Jack was in the hospital on and off suffering severe affects from Anti’s constant assaults on him. Anti hijacked the August 3rd operation and March 5th operations. He might’ve hijacked a few in-between but nowhere near the level of chaos and damage on those two days. (I haven’t decided yet lol).

Henrik saved Chase’s life after a suicide attempt soon after his divorce was filed (Bro Average) and is very protective of him, but stretches himself incredibly thin between caring for Jack, watching over Chase, and dealing with his own trauma.

Obviously Chase took over the channel for Jack in his place. The community is suspecting he’s him and not Jack slowly, which he’s somewhat worried about, but hasn’t seen any anger about it yet so he feels like it won’t be a big horrific reveal if he ever gives up the facade and comes clean. It was hard enough watching Henrik’s vlog announcing Jack’s coma.

Being that he’s running the channel in Jack’s place when that’s (one of many things?) what Anti wants to do in order to gain more power, Anti attacked him (Dark Silence) and this is how/why Chase is slowly suffering the slow corruption Jack did from October 2016 to now.

Chase blacked out for a very long time after Dark Silence but beelined for Henrik when he came to his senses. When he found Henrik, he started to grow unstable again and broke down about being cornered by Anti and not knowing what was happening to him now before completely snapping again. Henrik had to fend him off, restrain him, and then had a minor trauma-related meltdown because his best friend is going through what he did on August 3rd and March 5th. Little does he know, this is going to progress far beyond just two one-off traumatic possessions and a two month kidnapping.

Anti lurks around constantly in between times harassing the community or toying with Jack’s comatose body on occasion. He’s watching and very much savoring the downward spiral Chase is in. A majority of what’s happened since May 2018 has been Chase glitching and acting strange rather than Anti, hence the camera/screen glitching more often than his physical body. The remaining fractions of cryptic/glitchy videos has been Anti hacking into the channel and reminding the community he’s lurking. After each time he’s done this, Henrik and Chase have had to reset all passwords to Jack’s social media that they’ve been using to make sure he’s kept out.

Sometimes Chase doesn’t feel/realize/see the recording getting meddled with by himself until well after its uploaded and he sees the community panicking about it, other times he’s well aware it’s going on and is acting that way on camera on purpose because he’s experiencing corruption affects or having blackouts. He‘s ashamed of himself for letting the community see what’s happening to him. Little did he know Anti had cameras record what he did to Chase and uploaded it to the channel so they all already know something is deeply wrong with Chase. He doesn’t have the will to go into detail about everything and clarify, so even though he’s upset about all the different speculations and theories about what’s going on because most of them are incorrect, he’d rather leave them to their own devices because the truth is complicated and messy and would be way too much to explain in a video or post.

Not only Chase, but Henrik keeps in close communication with the community. He keeps them up to date on Jack’s condition, how he personally is doing, how anniversaries and birthdays go, if Anti makes any appearances off-screen around them, his progress with finding Marvin and small updates from Jackie.

Jackie and Marvin are Henrik’s best friends since before Henrik met Chase. They all met through Jack. The coma struck all three of them with different kinds of grief. Jackie stopped heroing for a while and has kept a pretty low profile. He’s too distraught to fight as hard as he usually does and he’s also terrified he’s next on Anti’s list. He Probably Is. Marvin has completely vanished and nobody has heard from him. The truth is, he’s wiped himself off the radar to practice every type of magic he can find a way to learn about. He’s relentlessly training himself to avenge Jack and keep Anti away from the others.

Jameson is a sort of wild card buzzing around wherever needed. He typically hangs around Henrik, who saved him between operations on Jack. Anti attacked him the moment he was created to get him either on his side or out of the picture so he had less loose ends to tie up. He mutilated Jameson’s throat and left him for dead (though Jameson was created mute, the subtle throat scar he has is a common misconception people have when they first meet him). Jackie and Marvin found him, brought him to Henrik, and he was saved. Now recovered, he’s slowly taught Jackie, Marvin, and Chase BSL (Henrik already knew it in case of disabled patients), and floats between places doing whatever he can to help. He knows minor medical assistance from Henrik and helps him with Jack sometimes, he guards Jack’s hospital room (he’s got rapidly developing time powers and he’s not afraid to use them), practices said developing powers on his down time, and just generally does whatever small things he can to make life easier on the other four.

Jackie and Marvin had no idea Dark Silence happened until they both (at separate times on their own) found Anti’s footage on the channel. They’ve sunken even deeper into the grieving/coping methods they developed after Jack went into a coma.

Quit the Game to Win, most (if not all) of the X Scary Games, 1 Video series, any other videos we’ve had random, strange, fiery panic-worthy behavior and glitches from since May 2018 are all Chase. If someone were to watch the videos consecutively, Chase’s deterioration would be a lot more clear, a lot more scary, and a lot more heartbreaking.

So far Chase’s side affects are small glitches, mood swings, nose bleeds, ears ringing, nightmares, random blackouts (usually in which he does cryptic shit or uncharacteristic and unnerving behavior during), headaches, paranoia, and several other (mostly mental) symptoms.

For now, Henrik and Chase are waiting things out. Both of them are very stressed, scared, and tired.

Might edit this (will reblog if I do) or just straight up reblog it with more info if I think up more,,,, if I ever touch this AU again?? Idk it was spontaneous and usually my muses like that don’t last long. XD But I’d be happy to keep this an occasional writing prompt thing or something... Hmmmmm...

Also if you wanna send me asks/write/draw about this AU ever, feel free! Just tell me and tag me! :0

[histeetharenotsoft]

honestly i have no idea how i’m supposed to make it to ep 165

because 162 killed me, like 3 times

spoilers below the cut!

ITS GERRY!!!!!! MR KEAY I MISS YOU

but this is the first time we’ve actually Heard him, not secondhand or with spooky ghost echo, just as a normal voice on a tape. and i just want to hug him so much because ohhhh boy he has no idea what’s going to happen and also i am love him

“do i get to hear them?” “perhaps. if you live long enough.” shut up gertrude shut the fuck up don’t just mention gerry dying so casually its Rude

hmmm i might write a fic where jon, sasha and gerry are somehow all the archivist because I Can Do What I Want

ooo here we have more fire in the archives foreshadowing

did. did gerry’s chair scrape when gertrude raised her voice. like he flinched. someone hug this man

and then his voice goes all quiet when gertrude is lecturing him and Mary Keay Can Catch These Hands

“you are occasionally useful despite your foolishness” wowwww gertrude. what glowing praise. don’t just say that to his face come onnnn

but “useful” though. “useful”. i know we already know gertrude is an ‘ends justify means’ type character but goddamn if that isn’t just a perfect description of her relationships with people: categorised by their use to her plans and nothing more

“the network of sinister tunnels that snake beneath the archive” gertrude definitely knows about the tunnels lets be real. she’s just protecting jurgen leitner stupid idiot motherfucking jurgen leitner goddamn fool book collecting dust eating rat old bastard shithead idiot avatar of the whore

what i wouldn’t give for gerry to have canonically beaten up jurgen leitner more than once. that’s going in my triple archivist fic

“what happens if we fail” oh. oh no. oh no whats gertrude going to say

“i suspect death puts us beyond their power” hmmm. seems like a fair point but i feel like the end would come up with some fuckery because this universe is a bastard and doesn’t let anyone get the rest they deserve. this isn’t really important to the plot (at least I Hope Not) but the thought of eldritch fear gods being able to reach us after death... chills

“[actual death] is preferable to lingering in a world they control” oh no that’s not good for jon to hear

“they might even stop death entirely.” hmmm. HMMMMMM

“and taxes?” “taxes i imagine will continue” hell yeah jonny get his ass (’him’ being capitalism). also i know the coronavirus lockdown isnt exactly an apocalypse caused by eldritch fear gods forcing themselves through into our world, but considering the shit thats been going on? yeah i imagine taxes would continue

“could it be undone?” “no, i don’t think so” oh no. oh no jon. jon nooo. he’s just playing it over and over and god he must be feeling so guilty and helpless. he also gets a hug. and another. and then three more. then one more but it lasts for like an hour before i have to phase back into my own dimension

TIM AND SASHA i’m still not prepared to hear their voices i love they

sasha is so competent she’s incredible and i am in awe of her

hell yeah tim is drinking his respect woman juice

“jimmy magma. joany magnum? jack magnet” asjdfhakjfhakjhfk tim you’re the best

“what if we kill him” Fuck Off Jonny You Can’t Do That

SADHJA WAS GOIJNG YO QUIKT I AM SJDFHKJLASLKFDJGKSDJHF

holy fuck we got canon timsasha. also “you’re not the love interest”??? sasha was a lesbian. source: me, also a lesbian. who can Do What She Wants

“you might be the character they drop after the pilot” sasha no dont say that!!!! as the character who was dropped after the pilot (ok season not episode but still) i have determined that is Illegal. and yes i know sasha was killed off for entirely valid reasons and not just dropped but shhhh i am hurting

“i dont have anything keeping me here” oh sasha. oh you sweet summer child. i wish that was the case. i really do

oh hey sasha knew about tim’s brother? martin told tim about his CV? THE S1 ARCHIVE STAFF WERE FRIENDS AND I MISS THEM A LOT BECAUSE GODDAMMIT THE S3/4 STAFF DIDN’T FOUND-FAMILY LIKE THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO

“no such thing as the real you”? “it’s all just masks”??? jonny stop stop im already dead you dont need to kill me again

(god i fucking hate that i get the stanislavsky bit. i only did drama gcse but the exam was terrible because none of the exam board’s practice questions were even anywhere close so no one was prepared and i spent so long revising all these pointless notes on how to answer the difficult questions and i regret it So Much and any reminder of that fucking bullshit exam i had to do Fills Me With Rage

“if you get eaten alive by improperly filed statements, me and martin will avenge you... we’ll burn this place to the ground.” god i am in pain. not only do we have more archives arson foreshadowing but we also have this line that hits like a punch in the gut because they didn’t avenge sasha, did they?

“i find it highly unlikely this sasha ever even existed at all” “i’m unforgettable” shut up shut the fuck up is this allowed? IS THIS ALLOWED???? because it fucking shouldnt be. it’s murder jonny time lads!!!

is. is jon crying. oh no

and then he gets fucking posessed by the cabin?? i love how the format of the statements has changed its very interesting

The One You Love The One You Love The One You Love

jonmartin are so in love that even eldritch fear cabins can’t not see it. jonny really said “you can read their relationship as platonic... but i am going to do my goddamn best to make that hard for you” huh

and fuck, this statement. it’s so creepy and i love how we cant distinguish which entity it is, because does it even matter any more? the list of 14 was a human creation anywhere, i think the ‘different parts of a body’ metaphor l*itner used is makes more sense now. it doesn’t matter which part of the body is attacking you, it matters that you’re being attacked in the first place so figuring out which part it is isn’t really a priority any more

but i think it’s mostly stranger and spiral? i also get very vague corruption vibes from the description of the planks because “they are warmer, softer and more yielding than the timber they present”? ugghhhh. corruption has often been associated with this kind of ‘wrong’ warmth (think jon amherst) and it also brings to mind that episode where the guy nails meat all over his walls and the rot makes the statement giver’s ceiling collapse. but then there’s the lonely there too, because yes jonmartin have each other but jon says it himself: “it will not let you feel the warmth of joy this love may claim to gift”. just try tell me the concept of being unable to find happiness in love isn’t Lonely, even if it’s not entirely true

but yeah basically i love the merging of entities present in this creepy statement

“our tomb” huh. the pov changes here, it’s gone from talking about jon in second person, to talking as jon in first person. so if jon wasn’t possessed by SpOoKy CaBiN like i thought (because if he was, why would he suddenly switch like this? it doesnt make sense)... then what was making that statement? my instinct is to say it was The Archivist or rather, The Archives talking about jon but like a separate personality, which... yikes

“[this will be] my chrysalis. it is time that i emerge.” monster jon? monster jon. this line gave me chills because damnnnn i love me some good eldritch!jon

“i wanted to leave and hunt down elias” hell yeah jon go and brutal pipe murder that bastard its what you deserve

martin has packed bags already and he brought tea and i love him so muchhhhh

and jon’s smile is AUDIBLE he loves martin so much my tiny heart can’t handle it

“we got this.” “apparently so 😍 “ just tell me you can’t hear the heart eyes in jon’s voice. oh wait. you cant

LET MARTIN BURN SOMETHING ITS WHAT HE DESERVES

“we can’t fight the world, martin” “says you” afkjhasfkjhadkjghdakjghakdgf

to summarise:

get ready for me to type out the same summary for all 40 episodes because jesus fucking christ. jonny’s writing never fails to make me Feel All The Emotions at once. i give this one a spooky sentient cabin out of 10