#plus an extra bonus thing that i haven't tried before

[ghouldtime]

COD Camp AU Part Two

Follow up to this post

Just assorted characters who I have ideas for in it. And before anyone comes at me like "oh but but Graves tried killing them" or "König is apart of KorTac and they're enemies with SpecGru" I'm aware. This is an AU for a reason :D That doesn't happen here, I'm pretending like they're all not trying to kill one another and haven't because I can

Kate Laswell (Camp Advisor)

She's one of the few who doesn't go by her callsign. Instead she goes by Larkspur, her wife's favorite flower. She figured it was a little less creepy sounding to kids over "Watcher"

Kate can usually be found near Price or simply checking around camp herself. She's usually the one responsible for safety inspections and reporting anything that needs to be fixed officially

While she's not fond of it, she usually is the one handling all the paperwork and "official" boring things. It's not the most exciting job but someone needs to do it

That being said, she can make quick work of it. She's handled more complicated things in her life than the headache that is dealing with legal documents

She'd rather be out and actually active than stuck behind a desk all day. Which is why she does try to get around to all parts of camp. She's jumping in where she can and is quick to lend a hand where ever she is needed

All the campers love her. What's not to love? Sure she's a little bit intimidating at first but she's simply so used to having to put on a stern face to convey how serious she is and to please listen to her (dealing with stubborn operators and military personnel alike will do that to you) that by now, it's a habit. But she's understanding, empathetic, and proactive - she's trying to fix problems and prevent things from going south before they can

Since she's often popping in on activities, lending a hand, helping where she can - many campers easily recognize her and are usually quite excited to see her. Especially when it comes to things like team events (Listen to her, she WILL give you pointers to beat the other team) or crafts. Kate has a variety of skills up her sleeves and she's got a knack for showing them off

Usually though, she's far more involved with the counselors than the campers. She's the one making sure that everyone is working as well as they can together and things are being done properly. If not, they're being reassigned. She's checking in to help maintain the natural flow - and making sure there's no extreme drama or any other things going on

Adjusting to camp life and living in closer quarters isn't something that many can easily adapt to and she knows it. Plus, sometimes campers can be a handful and a half and it can be exhausting mentally and physically. It's important for her to make sure the counselors are okay because EVERYONE needs someone looking out for them. They might be looking out for the kids but she's looking out for them and has their backs

Especially when it comes to interpersonal counselor relationships. That stuff is no joke. Resentment and drama can easily build and divides can form and the last thing she wants to have to deal with is that headache - plus, she does care about everyone's well being. Everyone can't be well if there's quarrels happening, especially behind the scenes.

If anything happens, she's the woman you can rely on and SHOULD. Go to her first. She'll always be the one to lend a listening ear and will do her best to solve it or at least put something towards it

Or just go to her if you want someone to easily hang out with and chat to. Especially if you'd like a moment of peace and quiet. The world can be loud and chaotic out there but her office is usually much less of a shit show. You'll get bonus points if you're bringing her extra cookies from the cafeteria (even more if you remember some for her wife)

She's the voice of reason, sensibility, and a whole lot of calm compared to all of the craziness going on. And she's super cool, how does anyone not like her. She's got SO many cool stories, she's great, I love Laswell <3

Bonus: Her wife is the camp photographer. She IS getting all those cute pictures and it IS going to be an album and it IS glorious

Nikolai (Camp Supplier)

Technically he's not apart of the staff that you'll find constantly at camp, but that doesn't make him any less important. In fact, he's the main reason WHY they can keep running and functioning as they do

He's Price's absolute go-to and is the one who is bringing things in. Whether that be dealing with the food shipments, the general equipment and maintenance things they need stocked, or really anything they need brought in - he's the guy

Usually he's in around very early mornings or very late at night, it's a rarity for him to turn up when it's normal waking hours, which is very much on purpose

Partially because unloading/loading is easier when not dealing with campers - partially because just sometimes Price has things that prooooobably wouldn't be Laswell approved and shouldn't exactly be around at camp. And partially because Price loves shooting the shit with his old buddy, having a smoke and a light drink before he has to bid Nikolai farewell as he gets back on the road

Also because if Nikolai is left to interact with any of the campers, he IS pulling the cool/fun uncle move and giving them things that he deems as child appropriate (like a knife) and teaching them how to use it

"It's good they learn now! When I was their age I could already name all the types of blades and knew how to work them too. Will come in handy one day, no?"

Not Laswell approved in the slightest. And as much as Price agrees, and as much as the campers think Nikolai is awesome (he is), Price really does NOT want to deal with being chewed out by Laswell.... again. Rightfully so but he's begrudgingly accepted that his and Nikolai's ideas of what kids these days should know aren't exactly the same as theirs

Nikolai is still very much one of the coolest guys to meet at the camp, though. While he's been politely told by Laswell to maybe back off from the campers and giving them "Fun ideas", she never said anything about the counselors

Unsurprisingly, Nikolai is incredibly popular with the counselors. You'll have to compete to get picked to help unload trucks and unpack on the days when he's coming in because EVERYONE wants to see him

He's got a great sense of humor that strays a bit more on the almost-dirty side and will instantly treat you like he's known you for your whole life. He's already got a hand clapped on your back and is asking about how school or... whatever it is you're doing is going

He'll happily give you advice and what you should do - or more correctly what he would do if he were in your shoes, but you know, that's just him. He'll likely end up talking about some story of his childhood which honestly is starting to seem like its own movie franchise with the amount of things that have happened

Overall, for the short time he's around, he's always a welcome face and you're probably going to be one of the people going "WOOO NIKOLAI!" whenever you see that semi truck. He's got a fanclub at this point

König (Maintenance)

A guy as big as him is perfect for maintenance. He already knew how to work with his hands from childhood where he grew up on a farm - his parents taught him. It's an important skill to be able to fix things, so he learned how to do it well

He can very easily pick up whatever needs to be moved or reach the tallest of places. Carrying planks of wood and fixing that one leaky pipe in the ceiling is easy as can be for him. He only really needs assistance if it's an area too small for him to fit

Which isn't very often. Usually it's things like "Billy tried doing a cartwheel but ended up face first in the wall. Anyways can you come fix it-"

It's easy enough for him. The campers usually have to vacate the area anyways when he's doing work due to potential hazards anyhow, so he works all on his own, as happy as can be

He's working on his own and is usually all alone 9/10 times. He's not very social and would rather keep to himself. Plus, kids have little filter. He'd rather take his space from them because usually if he's around them, the things THEY end up saying make him self conscious more. Even if he knows he shouldn't be, kids can be brutal

If you want to get in contact with him, usually walkie talkie is the best way. Cell service is as good as gone around most of the camp. Its that or try to look for him in areas where people wouldn't be

He's on top of things and keeps the camp in working order, luckily. Being as organized as he is and on-top of repairs means he can often be left with a fair bit of free time

Which he happily uses to go on hikes or to spend some time out in mother nature, enjoying the outdoors without pressure from anyone or anything

He's very much his normally quite socially awkward self which is why he'd prefer to stay away from others, but you can occasionally catch him mid-job. Please, don't bother him while he's working - unless he specifically volunteers you as tribute to help him (it happens when he needs someone to hold things)

Don't tell him what to do while he's doing it, though. He knows how to do his job and knows it well, which is ALSO why he doesn't like usually working with others. His own self-assurance can be misinterpreted as arrogance but he knows he's good at what he does, thank you very much

You're really not going to find him around others, except maybe the counselors and the older groups of campers who know how to actually treat others with respect. That's on rare occasions and usually it's only when he's practically made to be social

Still, you can absolutely get in his good graces and try to befriend him. Offer to help him out, get to talking to him about himself, and maybe politely steer any campers away who stare at him because he's a moose of a man - and maybe bribe him with snacks, you'll eventually get closer

He'll still not be the most chatty but you'll find he has a sense of humor (as dry and as terrible as it might be at times.. and maybe a bit snarky), and just maybe you'll find yourself hanging out with him at the art pavilion late at night, working on your own projects

He loves to carve, it keeps his hand and his mind occupied. And for being such a big guy, he's quite dexterous and has a lot of skill manipulating a knife. Maybe a worrying bit, but look! He's made you a carving of your favorite animal, maybe don't focus on the knife but rather the work that he's done (and is proud of)

Keep that as a token and you'll surely have good luck for the rest of the year. Maybe even better with him if you make him one in return

Bonus: He's unofficially banned from campfire stories. Not that he particularly wants to be there to tell him, he just might if some kids seem distressed or are begging. It's just like how his mom did for him when he was little, so surely he can do it! Except they're uh... they're the German kind. The ones that usually end with someone dying, tortured, suffering - the ones supposed to teach lessons and morals. He loved them so surely they must too - wait why are the kids crying? Oh god, he made it worse. (Banned for a reason, he's just confused and a bit baffled, he thought it was a happy one :( why are they sad?)

Phillip Graves (Equestrian Director/Barn Manager)

Sorry not sorry, I'm never UNseeing him as anything less than the utter cowboy energy he puts out. Granted, he's not from the rural countryside or a poor family. He's from an affluent family who happened to have a home in the countryside, there's a difference

He just goes by Graves because being called "Shadow" ended up with too many "oh, like the hedgehog?" 's for his liking

You're on one of three teams when it comes to him. You either love him, hate him, or love to hate him. There's absolutely no in between. He's an incredibly polarizing person with how strong his personality is

Most of the counselors simply do not like him because he's absolutely a snake in the grass and will do what he can for his benefit. It's himself and his interests first, others second. Usually that just means any and everything to do with the barn, he sees it as his priority

He's really only kept around because of how damn popular he is with the campers and parents alike - and the fact he really has money and brings a fair bit in for the camp. A lot of other staff don't like him, but you can't deny his charm or that he's actually good at what he does. He butts heads with many because he's.... himself, but he's easy enough to avoid on a general basis

Phillip is many things but lazy? Hell no. He's opportunistic. If there's an easier way to do something, he'll do it. But he'll still be working his ass off for it. He's someone where if he sees something he wants, he's going to take it. He keeps things running and his ambition keeps them two steps ahead

He's got wit, he's got charm, he's got a smile that can disarm - seriously, the man can lay it on thick like molasses and it works. He's ended up with so many campers having the innocent crush on him BECAUSE of how suave he is. Doesn't matter if you hate him, can't deny the initial strong vibe he has - even if he is a bit of a douchebag later down the line, especially if you're against him

He really doesn't care for all too many of the counselors outside of those who work directly with him. If you're working under him as apart of the barn staff, congratulations, you're apart of his crew - he's looking out for you (at least on a surface level), and he'll happily sink his teeth into anyone who comes after you with a smile on his face

His group can certainly be a bit cliquey, as in you're not sitting with them or eating with them UNLESS you're apart of the crew. But to be fair, they're usually eating breakfast significantly earlier than everyone else and eating dinner later due to the horses - and that's also a biiiit of an excuse for it

He runs a tight ship and keeps everything moving. There's no room for error or for skipping past the times on carefully laid out schedule when you have as many animals there as he does. He's got a game plan and has everything down to a T, it's fast paced, but it's how everything keeps functioning like a well oiled machine

Graves isn't lazy, no, he puts in his work. He leads best by example and knows no one will respect him if he can't show that he's WORTH that. Plus, it helps build comradery if he keeps himself involved. Not to mention, he's a firm believer in "if you want something done right, do it yourself"

Usually there's other instructors and counselors who help teach campers and manage that, he's usually doing more so day to day important barn duties and working with the advanced equestrians. He knows his stuff, but he's very "my way or the highway". He's not a lenient instructor but he'll get results. And if you know what you're doing, great, he won't be over your shoulder at every given second and will even compliment you if you do well

He's a douchebag, he's full of himself, and he's got quite the attitude and arrogance but that's not all he is. Just work hard and be in his good graces, or avoid him at all costs, and you'll live. The Phillip hating team is quite strong so you have allies if you do the latter option

At least he's usually rather nice to his own counselors and is looking out for them. You can absolutely get closer to him if you work under him and work hard. He notices talent when he sees it, as well as hard work. He's not above appreciating it or at least rewarding his team and making them feel valued enough to keep supporting him instead of flaking to others

You can hate him all you want but you cannot deny how much he loves his horse. She's a dapple gray quarter horse named Carolina and she's probably his biggest weakness. She gets the fanciest and best of EVERYTHING, he keeps her pristine and proper. He's got a whole stash of purple shampoos and hoof and hair oils alike for her. Even their tack is blinged out, her halter has actual gems set in them. Yes, it's overkill, but so is all he does

[gemini-sensei]

Today I am thinking about poly Eli and Demetri who have been working a lot recently. Demetri spends some overtime at his office job working on a project and Eli took on another class at the dojo. They want to make a little extra money to surprise their lovely little wife with a vacation away, so they're hard at work looking to make that happen.

Downside is that they come home later. Demetri is overseeing a whole group of people, so the reports he'd usually review in the morning, he stays in late to go over for that overtime bonus. Eli's new class goes over a few days and then he finds himself cleaning up or fixing things around the dojo, even running errands. Anything for a little more cash for his pretty wife. But sometimes they come home and she's already in bed, fast asleep, their dinner on the stove with a little ily note.

She'll wake up in the morning amd they're leaving, giving her quick kisses on the cheek and lips, telling her they love her to the ends of the earth before walking out the door. They hardly have time to talk, which is a real problem for Reader.

For weeks, she's needed to sit down with them. However, they come in needing a shower and go straight to the bathroom with little hellos to her, or they're drop dead tired and all they want is to go to be so they can get up in the morning and do it all over again. Weekends would be ideal if only Eli didn't teach those days. It's turning into a big mess and she doesn't even understand why.

Finally, she throws a wrench in this routine when they walk in and find a box on the living room table. It's not very big and there's a piece of paper on top. They sit down and Demetri reads the small note aloud:

I know you two have been busy, but so have I. There hasn't been a good time to talk to you and that's okay, I know you work so hard for us to live as well as we do. However, there's been something on my mind that I thought you two should know about.

I'm already asleep, but you van open this without me. I hope you like what I've been working on, it's taken a lot of time and energy so far.

Love, Reader ♡

With that said, Eli tries to open the box, but Demetri stops him.

"We should really wait for Reader," he tells his husband, feeling bad that they haven't been able to spend time with their wife recently. "I mean, this is obviously really important to her."

"The note said we could open it now, so we should just open it nlw," Eli argues. He has the box lid in his hands, ready to rip it off. "Plus, if we don't open it and she asks us tomorrow how we liked her surprise, she'll be upset we didn't open it."

Demetri bites his cheek, then nods. "You have a point there."

"I know I do," Eli smirks, then turns his attention to the box

When he pulls the lid off, they both peer into the box and are shocked by what they see. Inside are two baby onesies laid atop two rolled up baby blankets. On top of that is a string of ultrasound pictures and two pacifiers and two rattles around them.

The lid falls from Eli's fingers as he stared and Demetri takes out the pictures. They look at them closely, silently letting the surprise sink in.

"Oh my god, I can't believe it," Demetri mumbles.

"Well believe it," Eli tells him, picking up one of the onesies and reading the front of it that says MY DADS KICK ASS. He can't help but smile. "Reader wouldn't make this up."

"I mean I can't believe we didn't know," Demetri clarifies.

Eli looks at him, deadpan expression on his face. "I wonder why that might be."

They argue about the logistics of knowing versus not knowing before they turn back to the pictures and stare at them. It's another several minutes before Eli points out how they're labeled A and B, at which point he starts crying because holy ahit it's all sunk in and they're having twins.

Demetri has to hold him and calm him down, but Eli is just so happy and bawling, hugging the onesie to his chest. Dem won't let him go to their room where Reader is sleeping until he stops crying, so once he's calmed down, they get up and go get ready for bed as quietly as humanly possible. Eli carries that fucking onesie with him too.

Then once they're ready, they crawl into bed with Reader. Eli's so soft and needy, Demetri lays with him and holds him while he holds Reader, making Eli the middle spoon. He puts his hand over Reader's belly and for the first time he feels how different it is.

Instead of her normal pudgy fat that he loves to squeeze from time to time, it's more solid and firm. There's a roundness to her belly hidden under his hold sweaters and Deletri's punny t-shirts. He realizes she's hidden this little secret so well so that they could be thoroughly surprised, which is a far better one than they were going to give to her.

He falls asleep with his face buried in her neck, whispering "I love you" over and over again softly. Demetri doesn't fall asleep for a while, just watching over the two loves of his life, pleasantly happy with the idea of calling in one of his vacation days tomorrow so that they can all celebrate their twins and Reader.

[clatterbane]

About to try some of my own inaugural batch of homemade vanilla ice cream, made the lazy way using some of that commercial pouring custard!

Seemed like a good time now that it's firmed up well in the freezer, and my blood sugar has gone back down from a late supper.

Made using the ice cream freezer attachment that Mr. C also decided to pick up to go with the stand mixer. We hadn't actually tried it out yet (though I had vaguely been thinking about it), until he got a brainstorm the other day and picked up some ingredients including a couple of cartons of the vaniljsås, washed the ice cream maker, and stuck the base into the freezer.

He made a smaller low effort test batch last night, using just a carton of the custard and an eyeballed splash of cream. It tasted good, if a little light on the sweetness. But, the texture left something to be desired--especially after it froze up completely in the freezer afterward. Definitely good for a first attempt.

That still went fast enough that I decided to get the (still very cold!) thing washed and back into the freezer last night, to be ready to play around with it myself this evening.

So, I also went for a tweaked version of the same basic approach. Being the person I am, I worked with a couple.of ice cream recipe calculators on the web to get a better idea of ingredient proportions to aim for and why--and then just winged it with some packaged custard thrown in.

The base recipe I settled on:

150ml whole milk, warmed in the microwave at around lunchtime with 100g of extra sugar dissolved into it (then covered and stuck in the fridge to chill)

200ml custard (hey, may as well count that as milk plus some bonus stabilizers!)

Heavy cream to top the measuring cup up to a UK pint/close enough to 600ml total

Around 1/3 tsp. extra vanilla extract

Small pinch of salt

Still pretty simple, but that thinned it out some and brought the milkfat/sugar roughly into recommended ranges for mouthfeel and freezing qualities. Still a tad light on the sugar, but the finished ice cream tasted plenty sweet to me. It did also freeze a little hard, so I may need to play around some more.

It looked like a good quantity of ice cream mix for that size of freezer bowl, which does seem to turn out a decent two-person batch.

Some in the disconcerting interior color bowl, with some store brand sauce at the ready! That type is basically like runnier Nutella, and not surprisingly worked really well on the vanilla. Without palm oil, before self-righteous randos crawl up into my notes.

This did also freeze up a little hard and slightly crystally, which may have been partly because it could have used a few more minutes in the ice cream maker before I put it into that potato salad tub and froze if the rest of the way. I think it really was a little too soft, but patience really isn't my strong suit.

Mr. C ate a pretty big bowl before he went to bed, while it was still at the soft serve stage (after at least 45 minutes in our really cold freezer), and seemed to enjoy it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Next time up, I am tempted to go more complicated and try for a fairly simple blueberry cheesecake flavor, using some cream cheese and frozen berries.

I also want to try to make some serviceable good old American style sherbet, since you just can't find it elsewhere. Haven't eaten any for at least 15 years now. (The straight orange ice cream you can get here is pretty damned good, though. And I bet it would make at least as good a float with ginger ale or 7-Up.) I do suspect the whole texture thing may be trickier, without industrial ingredients and equipment.

Chocolate is another to-do, but at least it is way easier to find good plain chocolate ice cream without chunks of gluteny brownies and shit in stores here than it was in the UK.

In the somewhat near future, I also want to play around with some other sweeteners including erythritol to make something lower carb, but sticking to easier mode with all sugary stuff until I get more experience working with that. With all the milkfat and some protein to help buffer the carbs, ice cream is relatively easy on my blood sugar anyway. Seems to be a pretty common thing, at least for T1s. I may have actually overshot the insulin for that bowl, so it may be another little snack soon.

But, good investment--even if it did take us a while to finally start using it!

[2af-afterdark]

Now that all the devils plus Michael and Raphael have been revealed (and bonus Valefor, sorta) you gotta give us ur opinion on them/their kinks!!

I started answering this ask before I got the second one. Gonna cheat and combine the two~

Uhhh.... I made a list for the ones we already had a while ago. I have no idea where that list is now... It also may be outdated, so I guess I will make myself suffer again and give my (updated) opinions on these men after the game has come out.

First of all, I adore all of these men so far. They are all silly with a touch of dark undertones and dripping sexiness. I am down so bad for these men.

Gehenna

Satan - He's the boy. The man. Our chum. He is sooooo possessive. I love him. I love his design. He's not my top pick, but I could understand him being someone's favorite. His kink is spanking which I am sort of meh about, believe it or not.

Sitri - IF HE CALLS ME SOLOMON ONE MORE TIME!!! He started being a charming look, he's loyal, but I really hate that he won't get it through his head that MC is not Solomon. His and Satan's dynamic is interesting though. I find his kink kind of strange. I think it could be cute in the right situations, but otherwise it is not my thing.

Zagan - I originally didn't think much of him, but after meeting him... HE'S SO FUCKING CUTE!!! His design is still pretty lackluster, but there is a special kind of love for character's who are so shy they have trouble speaking. I'm a couch potato, so I can't understand being aroused by physical activity. Lol

Leraye - I AM SO SORRY BUT HIS DESIGN STILL SUUUUUUCKS EVEN THOUGH I LOVE HIM!!!! He is a puppydog of a man and I love him! I will fight to protect his smile. His kink isn't my thing, but it is relatively harmless. It's not like a squick for me or anything.

Paimon - Not my cup of tea. He's fine, I guess, but I find reading his lines to be frustrating (I know it's the visualization of how he speaks, but reading it bothers me in a way hearing it doesn't). I also just didn't find his personality to be too memorable. He was... there. Not bad, not good. His H scene is the one I actually dislike (mirror? no thank you). A shame, because blood is hot. An amazing kink, honestly.

Belial - I loved him the moment I saw him and meeting him in the game only confirmed that (eyes are my design weakness -- both extra or lack of, so the bangs killed me). He is just amazing. I have adopted him. When he tries to speak even though it is painful, I weep. I would hold him just to feel his warmth and share mine with him. His kink is said to be recorded music, but his H scene was about body writing. I, too, love body writing. I understand him.

Astaroth - I haven't actually met him yet. He is the only member of Gehenna I have yet to met, not even pulling him in the gacha >.> I wish I had more so say, but I simply know nothing about him (other than he is still hot as shit). If he wants to whisper dirty things in my ear though, I am all for it.

Ppyong - Friend shaped sunshine of my life. I would die for this little ball of joy. Please, I need a plush of him immediately.

Jjyu - A funny little motherfucker. I would give him chocolate.

Tartaros

Mammon - I cannot believe how much of him I got right (sort of) personality-wise. He is so fascinating. And his tiddies be huge. I love him. He is loved. His refusal to cover his massive chest is a blessing. As someone blessed with all the ass and no tiddy, I appreciate an ass man. Plus he'll let me grope him back? What a man!

Bimet - What a catty, unpleasant man. I have no desire to interact with him at al- NEVERMIND! SAW HIS H SCENE AND IT REWROTE MY BRAIN CHEMISTRY! I NEED THIS MAN IN MY LIFE RIGHT THE FUCK NOW.

Eligos - His design makes me weak. I want him to be a josou seme so badly. His desire to be a sugar baby makes me want to throw money at him. I am very normal about him. His kink is... after reading it, I wonder if I have that too, or if I just like the anesthetics.

Valefor - He looks like a knight, but I have yet to meet him. He's hard to place since he was revealed by accident originally. Not a whole lot to say about him, but I am a sucker for the knight and his leige trope. His kink... as long as I get to hold him and hug him, I guess it works? I don't really understand it but it seems fine.

Avisos

Beelzebub - Uhhhhh..... I just pulled him so I am learning about him now. So far, he's weird. Just a weirdo.

Bael - Someone please get him some therapy. He needs it after the shit Beelzubub puts him through. I want to hold him gentol. I want to make dinner for him while I chain Bell to the desk and make him actually do his own work. Please do not sniff me >.>

Stolas - A little nerd. A dork. I want to pick on him. Not sure how his kink works when he's in hell...

Amon - I know nothing about him. I do not know how his kink works when he's already in hell? idk

Naberius - I read what his favorite food was and my desire to know him vanished. Fan of petplay though. Also, his chest be buxom.

Hades

Leviathan - I am fascinated by him. Genuinely. He's stories are so interesting to pick apart. It's also interesting that almost all of them have elements of dubcon. I love that he's prideful and envious. I will choke him <3

Foras - I still need to learn more about him, but I love his design. He's so pretty. Please do not perceive me.

Barbatos - Not my cuppa when it comes to his design, but he's fine otherwise. Don't actually know much about him.

Glasyalabolas - Ignoring his kink... What an interesting man. I need to know more about him.

Abaddon

Asmodeus - Uhhh.... Assuming it's the Love Unholyc one, he looks good. He will suffer from being the first devil ever, so he has the most simple design. Can't wait to see what his kink is. Can't wait to see how they deal with the fact that he once fell in love with a human and has an entire line of descendants.

Dantalian - I don't like his look. I don't like school stuff. BUT FUCK IF HE HASN'T BEEN ONE OF THE UNITS CARRYING MY ASS! Also, I love his mini-comic. He's such a babe, just not the babe for me. Also, his kink is fun to play with.

Phenix - What a little freak (affectionate). I love him as much as I thought I would. Everything he says drips sexual tension and he's just living his best life.

Ronove - I read one fucked up line from him and fell in love. What a gremlin. What a menace. I adore him. His kink is... yeah. I could be convinced to join him for some dubious surgery. I have seen and written worse.

Niflheim

Belphegor - Not revealed.

Bathin - He sure is there. Just hanging out. His kink is life goals but not sexy.

Gusion - Sir.... are you okay? I don't think you're okay. Love the tired businessman vibes though. That is such a mood. Not keen on his personality though. I feel like he'd be the kind of person that annoys me, but is the one I want to work with because he gets shit done. Attraction to smart people... I guess? As a himbo lover, I cannot relate.

Andrealphus - Did you notice he isn't in the game yet? Like, you see him in two loading comics, but he's not in the gacha. It's weird. He also wasn't in the voice announcements. He's just... there but not? Still a great design though.

Paradise Lost

Lucifer - I have seen him twice in other devil's comics and I would die for him. I still think the horn on the back of his head is dumb though. He is such a deadpan character, but has some funny moments. Dacryphilia? It can be hot.

Marbas - I love him. I adore him. I will spoil him rotten. He is my healer and his introduction in chapter 4 is just beautiful and painful (not for him but the way he interacts with others). I would gladly tie him up 👀

Morax - This man... I am worried for him. His desire to be hurt makes me wonder if he and Dantalian don't share the same kink....

Buer - I know nothing about him! His kink is... whatever. I don't get it though.

Heaven

Gabriel - I am so normal about him. Absolutely normal. He is a terrible person and I am into it. I want to tie him up, brush his bangs aside, and kiss his stupid face.

Michael - AHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAH! I'm in danger. His design is so cool but his kink is.... no.

Raphael - I'm so bored by his design. There's nothing wrong with it, but t's pretty basic yanki vibes. Also, his fetish is kind of... Meh? Being defiled? I can think of a few ways to take that. If he's more into the getting dirty part, I am out.

Humans

Minhyeok - A friend. A dude. I feel bad for him just sitting there.... waiting. I am not attracted to him, like, at all. He's a freak surrounded by even freakier freaks. He loses. Sorry, dude. Also, I am insulted that he taught me the scientific name for a panty fetish.

Solomon - I saw him once. I want to see him again. His design is just sooo jfibvbbvwogoiroi! Help!

[zenjestrr]

So, for those Baldur's Gate questions, how about: 1, 2, 10, 21, and 39.

Tell us about your Tav! Name, class and subclass, race, pronouns. Do you have a headcanon for where they’re from? Their family? Are they a Dark Urge? Or did you choose an Origin Character? Was it an easy decision? (1) I'm gonna talk about the ones that have made it to Act 2, I have like a million that haven't even left the nautiloid yet cuz I just played Barbie's Dress Up in the CC and quit lol

Zeneeva: Blue Dragonborn (they/them) that started off as a Paladin of the Ancients and went Oathbreaker after reviving Mayrina's husband with the wand. I ended the game as a Paladin 3, Fiend Warlock - Pact of the Blade 6, Gold Dragon Sorcerer 3 (honestly only grabbed Draconic Sorcerer for the aesthetic tbh). This was my first full release character that I beat the game with on Tactician. although tbh I really only went Tactician because I was using a mod that let me bring the whole squad with me so it was my attempt to compensate for having access to like 10 goons every battle lol. I have no real headcanon for this character. but the fact that Tav is from Baldur's Gate and Dragonborn specific dialogue choices imply having a clan makes me believe that they grew up in a tightknit Dragonborn community in the city. I also made them a Guild Artisan (for optimization reasons since there are none of the companions have this background so it's an extra source of inspiration and the skill bonuses are nice), so maybe their family had a crafting business or something that they helped out with idk. maybe they went Paladin of the Ancients as an adult because they saw how shit animals were treated in the city and decided to defend nature. I will replay this character once support for this game is finally done and Larian implements their final patch

Zenuuja: Dark Urge half-orc (she/her) Spore Druid/Monk. She started off as a Druid and then as she had some uhhh...."accidents" tried to control her urges better by going Monk (this is the RP reason, meta reason is I want my final build to be Spore Druid 2, Open Hand Monk 6, Thief 4). She is loosely based off of my Bhaalspawn from Baldur's Gate 1 & 2 (named Zenuuva) who has a half-orc kensai/mage. I wanted to go druid back in BG1 but classes in the old school Baldur's Gate games were race locked so only humans and elves could be druids. so I went with an axe throwing battlemage build instead. She will reject the urges as best as she can. I already know the Dark Urge plot and backstory so I won't fill that in here so I don't spoil people who want to experience it. I guess I sort of headcanon her as blood related to my BG1 character in some way.

Xabal: (he/him) started off as a Rogue and is now an Assassin 3, Gloom Stalker 3 and will eventually be Assassin 3, Gloom Stalker 5, Champion 3, Great Old One Warlock 1. Reason: Assassin is to help with surprise attacks and round 1 bonuses. Gloom Stalker up to 5 for all the insane bs Gloom Stalker Rangers get plus extra attack and Misty Step and all that. Champion for the crit bonus since half-orcs do triple damage on crits instead of double and that one point in GOOlock because when you get a crit it basically applies an AoE Fear effect and the Fear status is busted in this game. I made him to see how Minthara is like so the tieflings had an accident. He's also installing brain worms like eye drops. RP-wise the only thing I know so far is that he thinks the world fucking sucks and views death as a mercy if done quickly and he was a career assassin before the events of the game.

Was there something about the character creator that just couldn’t capture your Character? Please tell us about their hair, facial hair, tattoos, piercings, disabilities, their trans or intersex body, or anything else you’re comfortable sharing. (2)

I was already familiar with the CC because I played EA. if anything experiencing the CC of full release allowed me to be more creative since this CC is way more expansive than what we got before. I can never truly make someone that looks "like me" exactly so I tend not to try. especially since we cannot alter the dimensions of the faces in this game. the closest I got was this lil guy:

but this still doesn't exactly look like me but out of all the available options it's....close enough kiiiind of not really

Honestly kudos to the art team, the Dragonborn options are fucking fantastic. it's why I went Dragonborn even though, without mods, the Dragonborn are objectively the worst race in the game from a pure minmax perspective (maybe tied with Humans idk)

Do you have a favorite member of the Goblin Camp? Is it the same as your Character’s? (10)

if it means anyone in the Goblin Camp, not just the actual goblins then

Zeneeva's favorite was the ogre guard cuz he was charmingly stupid. Zenuuja liked Abdirak the Loviatar Priest ...it's quite obvious who Xabal likes the most based on what's going on in the pics

What are your Character’s thoughts on the strange artifact that was in Shadowheart’s possession? Did it jump to your pack because you changed her out of your party? (21)

Zeneeva was curious but not curious enough to pry. Very much a "if it's important I'll find out" sort of mentality. Shadowheart literally never left the party (she was the romance option). plus I was using a Party Limit Remover mod for this run so nobody did. Zenuuja was too focused on her dank urges to really worry about Shadowheart's spiky d20

Xabal got super annoying about it after it flared up at the goblin camp but it's still in Shadowheart's possession at the moment. Since this run is going evil (and I will go the evil route with Shadowheart's story) she's not leaving the party, especially since the evil route has less companions to choose from than the good/neutral routes (Wyll and Karlach leave you and you need to convince Gale to stay, although I didn't recruit Gale this run so I'm curious to see how that plays out)

What does your Character think of Raphael? (39)

Zeneeva: did not trust him. told him to fuck off Zenuuja: initial reaction was to reject him but wonders if he can fix her murder hobo thoughts Xabal: not against working with him but not eager to do it either.

[let-me-iiiiiiiin]

dnd lock-picking mini game. You roll and add/subtract until the total is equal to 20. You can use any dice, but you get only 10 tries for each pin (you need to get to 20 for like, every pin. the difficulty depends on how many pins there are). I play-tested and the d4 kicked my ass nine ways to sunday, so I had to come up with extra mechanics If you finish the round early, you get to keep the number of leftover turns as a "bonus"-- say, you finish the pin at turn 5, so you get a "5" bonus (which can be plus or minus). in the next turns if you get 15 or 25 for example, you could instantly make it 20 and finish the round, getting even MORE bonus. If you finish the round and STILL haven't gotten the pin, you need to restart the round. You CAN restart the round before finishing it though, because nothing is more annoying than losing effort to something that will let you down With magical locks you can't keep the round bonuses with you. You need to spend them in the next turn or they're gone, baby, turned to dust. (Although I think more fun things could be done for a "magical" lock-picking game If you have proficiency with Thieves' Tools, you get to add your proficiency bonus to the rolls, whenever, but only once per roll. I think each round should take ten seconds in-game so the rogue can do crazy fast lock-pick speed-runs. that would be cool

[goosetrainer]

Experimented a bit, here to report.

Tried: Hisuian Goodra, Skeledirge, Ceruledge, Mimikyu, Galarian Slowbro, Iron Hands, was gonna try my luck with Farigiraf but then I noticed its moveset does not include decent defense boosters, so I gave up preemptively.

Of these, the only one who succeeded was Skeledirge, but it wasn't much easier than with Bellibolt. Will leave the build down here just for the sake of completion :)

(I'd still like to try with some other poison types if I have the time - particularly looking at Muk, Swalot, Glimmora, Revavroom, Overqwil)

Skeledirge lv.100

Tera type: Fire

Ability: Unaware (hidden)

Item: Shell Bell

Nature: Modest (/Quiet/Rash will do)

IVs: max HP, def., sp.atk., sp.def.

EVs: 252 defense, 252 special attack, 4 HP

Moveset: -Torch Song (level up) (PP Up recommended) -Fire Blast (level up) -Sunny Day (TM) -Slack Off (egg move, see Slakoth & Hippopotas lines)

Usage:

the cool thing about Skeledirge is that its hidden ability, Unaware, makes it ignore the opponent's stat changes, meaning that you only have to worry about Rillaboom's raised attack when he wipes your stat changes, which is when he also locks your ability for one turn. Great typing makes it immune to normal and fighting type moves (3 moves in Rillaboom's set, including the one that paralyses!), resistant to grass, and only neutral to flying. Acrobatics is one of the least powerful of the bunch in this fight, so yay us. Given all of that, Intimidate-having NPCs are less important (yet still useful for that single turn), Arboliva is actually beneficial since we're not getting attacked with grass moves so often and it brings some extra healing, and paralyzing/burning allies are even better.

The trick is to increase Skeledirge's special attack via continuos Torch Songs, but only after the player-side stat wipe. We still have to use Torch Song to bring his health down enough to trigger that, so start attacking. IMPORTANT do not terastallize as soon as you can, wait a minute. Once the shield is up and you see Rillaboom reset your stat changes and nullify your ability, play safe by using 1-2 defensive cheers, then hold your horses and start building you special attack up by using Torch Song 6 times. This is the critical part, because since Rillaboom is shielded and you're not terastallized, you're inflicting less damage and thus healing less with Shell Bell. When you find yourself in the 100-130 HP left range, use Slack Off to heal. Probably gonna be 2 times. Once you have the +6 special attack bonus, Slack Off once again if you're around half life or less, use Sunny Day, and ONLY NOW terastallize. The reason we didn't do that before is that by becoming a pure fire type we lose immunity to a lot of moves and, while Boomburst isn't that worrisome, Low Kick hits Skeledirge quite hard, and Body Slam does that plus chance of paralysis. And we want to keep the number of wasted turns to a minimum.

Once that's done, no need to set up anything else, start Fire Blasting. You basically won't need to heal anymore too, since you're now dealing big damage >:) the worst that can happen is you fail because of accuracy, and that CAN make you lose the battle, but less powerful moves weren't enough when I tried. Middle risk high damage strategy. You could try to spam Torch Song and bring Blast Burn(TM) to use for a last-turn-only damage burst, but I haven't done that so I can't vouch for it. Overheat sounds good but you'd still have to use more Torch Songs after that to make up for the loss of special attack.

TL;DR: Torch Song, until Rillaboom nullifies your stat changes, then 2x Hang Tough cheers + 6x Torch Song interspersed with Slack Offs when low HP (100-130), Sunny Day, terastallize after Sunny Day, then Fire Blast until end.

Pros: -available in the game natively -no need to change the tera type -less dependent on allies, so less time spent on resetting -you'll be done setting up before the shield is down, and it's a bit easier to survive after that Cons: -hidden ability and can't be found in tera dens (yet), so you either need an ability patch or to know someone who can breed you one -starter, so maybe you have it maybe you don't. -still pretty slow to set up -once terastallized, can be paralyzed -dps strategy relies on a low accuracy move, could be necessary to try more than once

Mari's NOT SO LAST MINUTE (wow) Tera Raid Guide #5 - Rillaboom

It's Bellibolt again. I wanted to be more creative but it works and it recycles an old pokémon, so why change? Also busy

It's a bit ~close~ (you need not lose time selecting your moves and it requires a bit of NPC hunting) so if I have time in the next days I'll see if there's something better. In the meantime, reminder that I'll let anyone borrow my own pokémon if you can't train your own (need Pokémon Home)

Bellibolt l.100

Tera type: Electric

Ability: Electromorphosis

Item: Magnet

Nature: Modest/Quiet

IVs: max HP, def, sp.atk, sp.def

EVs: 252 sp.atk, 252 def, 4 HP

Moveset:

-Acid Spray (TM)

-Parabolic Charge (egg move)

-Electric Terrain (level up) / Reflect (TM)

- ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯

If it looks familiar, it's because it is the same Bellibolt from the Walking Wake/Iron Leaves guide, literally just took it out of the box and tried it and it worked. Just swapped Light Screen with Electric Terrain.

Usage:

Rillaboom has mostly physical attacks + one special move (Boomburst)(not so dangerous, low special attack). Wipes your stat modifications the turn after his shield went up, wipes his own the turn after the shield went down.

The biggest threat is the fact that he has TWO (2) attack-boosting moves, Growth and Bulk Up. By the end of the fight he'll have them used ~4 times... which brings us to the important part of the fight

RESET FOR THE RIGHT NPC ALLIES

-favour pokémon with the ability INTIMIDATE. One is necessary and technically sufficient, two is ideal, three is an unicorn but if it happens it's good! (They are: Tauros, Staraptor, Arcanine)

-optional: Dudunsparce, Umbreon and Drifblim can apply paralysis/burn status and it helps, either with the occasional free turn or the very welcome attack debuff. In theory Sylveon has Charm but I can't recall seeing it use it...? If you got an Intimidate mon but none of these, it should work just fine, try your luck.

-IMPORTANT if you get Arboliva RUN AWAY and retry. Rillaboom already generates Grassy Terrain on turn one making his grass type move the most dangerous, no need to prolong that suffering for the rest of the fight.

What you're gonna do is: Electric Terrain on turn one (gets rid of the Grassy Terrain, making Drum Beating weaker and helping with at least one Parabolic Charge's damage) OR Reflect (protects against all physical moves but no offensive boost for you). Only use one or the other, don't waste turns in my experience Electric Terrain worked better but maybe it's just me.

Then the usual 3x Acid Spray - you will die in the middle, after the first or second Acid Spray, don't panic. IMPORTANT if you manage to get all 3 done before dying, but end up with less than half life, DO NOT TERASTALLIZE. You'll just die the next turn and lose your terastal. Rillaboom is very fast, if your Bellibolt's nature is Quiet his speed is more than double yours, don't think you can heal at this point! Let yourself faint.

Terastallize when you're sure you'll survive, and go with the 2-3 Parabolic Charges that you need to break the shield.

Now, this point is a bit weird, there's a chance of the game bugging a bit with the order of action but use either Acid Spray or Parabolic Charge. [Technical rant here: in theory Acid Spray is the one you should select - Rillaboom will get rid of his own stat debuffs before you attack, meaning that his special defense goes back up to neutral again and you start getting it down on the same turn, but sometimes for some reason you attack first and he resets his stats after, and if he attacks on the same turn you find yourself with less HP on Bellibolt, and neutral special defense on Rillaboom, it's weird. Keep an eye on what happens during the previous turns and act accordingly I guess.]

In any case, the post-shield fight will have you alternating Acid Spray - Parabolic Charge - Acid Spray - Parabolic Charge, etc. Rillaboom's attack will likely be at +3 at this point, so you can only really spare one turn at a time to mess with stats before you need to heal. Two Acid Sprays should be enough, but if you have the time and the life you can use it a third time. Much more likely that you'll only have the time to do that only twice though, and then finish with 1-3 Parabolic Charges, it should hit hard enough by then.

TL;DR: Electric Terrain/Reflect on turn 1, Acid Spray x3, die and resurrect anytime during the Acid Sprays, terastallize, Parabolic Charge until end of the shield, Acid Spray > Parabolic Charge > Acid Spray > Parabolic Charge > Parabolic Charge spam

Pros:

-it's literally a returning build. Reduce Reuse Recycle!

-no transfer required from other games

-immune to the secondary effect of Body Slam (paralysis)

-idk check the last time's pros

Cons:

-bit slow, bit too close with the time limit

-heavily dependent on NPCs 😞 sorry

^this attempt was won, just took a screen before the last attack to show how close it was. Also notice that I have Light Screen instead of Reflect, lol! I used Electric Terrain that time, instead.

[nighttimelights-prompted]

ah, i’ve got one last anon i haven’t replied to yet - to that anon who sent in the headcanon voice about the Sans I write from Speakeasy Soul, i’m seeing if i can do a little something special to reply to you. let’s just say for now that i like where your mind is at~…

[jellyfishloveletterghosts]

My Stranger Things A/B/O Fics

Harringrove

Omega Steve/Alpha Billy

First Impression -  Alpha Billy meeting Steve for the first time at Tina's party. (Steve is sad and Billy is a flirt)

Smoke -  Billy is ditching class for a smoke break when Steve comes along.

Giants Blood -Highborn Omega Steve finally realizing Alpha wildling Billy has been courting him. (Aka Game of Thrones au, no GoT knowledge needed)

You’re Extra Special, Something Else - Billy and Max escape Neil and move to Hawkins, where Billy sets his sights on Steve Harrington. (The longest A/B/O I have and the one that got me started writing in the harringrove fandom.)

Flirt Like A Bird - Billy wants to woo Steve, he tries a couple of options that haven't gone well. He tries a new tactic.

Track In a Crowd -  Billy and Steve find each other by scent at a party. (With a side of Carobin and musician Billy and model Steve.)

Everything I Do Is To Bring Me Closer To You - Billy has wanted Steve as his mate since he was young,  he has a long way to go before he can make his dream a reality. (Bonus Magic au Prince Steve and Knight Billy)

Beauty and The Beast -  Mr. Harrington takes a rose and instead of paying the price the beast of the castle demands himself, he sends his son in his stead. Billy is not sure what to do with an omega who not only does not cower away from him like everyone else but also seems to think he is a slob and keeps trying his patience. (Plus magic Steve)

Come On Alpha - Steve is tired of waiting for Billy to make a move, so he takes matters into his own hands.

Benefits of Surviving - Billy finds Steve at the gate when the demobats attack. It would be a happier affair if they weren't trapped and Steve wasn't on the brink of a heat.

Alpha Billy/Alpha Steve 

Find Comfort In Me - Billy needs a comfort omega after surviving Starcourt. Steve is absolutely not who he expected Hopper to hier. He didn’t even know Steve was an omega.

Need an Alpha to Pop a Knot  - Steve's an alpha who has never popped a knot, not until Billy comes along. 

Alpha Steve/Omega Billy

You’re My Bitch -  Omega Billy fucking alpha Steve and the one time he finally lets Steve knot him. (The one time I write Billy bottoming it’s surrounded by bottom Steve.)

Omega Billy/Omega Steve

Omegas Like Us Have To Stick Together -  Steve presents at the mall and bites and cries when any alpha or beta gets to close. Luckily Billy shows up more than willing to help when the end game is getting to keep Steve.

Beta Billy/Omega Steve

You're Here, Nowhere Else I'd Rather Be - Billy didn't think Steve would come back and if he did he didn’t think he would be the same but here he is in the barn looking pretty as ever no scent of an alpha lingering or bonding mark in sight.

Kegboys 

Alpha Billy/Omega Steve/Alpha Tommy

Two for the Trouble - When Steve presents it changes things and drags Billy and Tommy into the shenanigans surrounding the upside down. (If you happened to read it here on tumblr, you may want to check it out on Ao3 there’s a bonus third chapter I never posted here.)

Steith

Alpha Keith/Omega Steve

I Don’t Have Anyone To Call -  How it all started, or Keith finds out Steve is an Omega with no alpha to call on when he's upset and offers to help him out.

Or What? -  The first time Keith helps Steve through his heat.

I Chose You -  Steve is pregnant and Keith nervously points it out.

Steddie

Alpha Eddie/Omega Steve

I Can Taste You On My Tongue - Steve is posing as an alpha in college but it turns out he already knows his dorm mate and it gives him one place he doesn't have to hide.

[deexchanel]

little girl in a box.

word count:

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x BlackFem!Reader

Warning: Swearing, mention of killing😬.

Summary: Bucky and Y/N comes home from their date to find a sweetheart in a box.

A/N: this haven't been my week so im using fanfiction to be a distraction.

Y/N and Bucky walked up the stairs to their apartment in Bucharest. They were holding hands, engaged in a conversation.

"I was thinking, what if I made shrimp alfredo?" Y/N asked as their hands sway back and forth. Bucky looked at her confused.

"What's alfredo?"

"Oh my god, you never had it before?"

"I mean in the army they boiled everything. It wasn't really lavish."

"Everything boiled sound so nasty."

"I know right but I managed. What's going to be in it?"

"Shrimp and pasta with Alfredo sauce. I think you're going to love it!"

"That's fine with me babe, as long as it isn't soup."

"Same." Y/N laughed letting go of his hand so she could unlock the door. Normally they would go through the window. But just for one night, they didn't want to be paranoid. Just to have one normal night.

Bucky stopped in his tracks staring at a medium size box that had big holes poked in it. "Y/N were you expecting something?"

"No." Y/N with hesitation getting worried that this might a setup. Bucky pulled her behind him protectively then proceeded to nudge open the box. The box top fell off and a pair of brown doe eyes stared back at them. Bucky hardened face expression soften as he saw a beautiful little girl in the box.

Whoever left this beautiful child in the box was a horrible person in general. The little girl sat up looking at the couple nervously. Bucky squat down so they could be eye level.

"Hi princess... I'm Bucky and that's my girlfriend Y/N. Would you like to tell me your name?" Bucky said softly then pointed at Y/N who waved giving a toothless smile. It was like Bucky's dad instincts kicked in as he felt the need to protect the little girl any way he could.

She shook her head as a way of saying she didn't want to talk. Her body was skinny seeming that she haven't ate in a couple of days. She looked no older then 4. Y/N squat down to help ease her nerves.

"How about we go in and get you something to eat?"

The little girl looked at Y/N scaredly and instantly held her arms out for Bucky. Y/N sigh knowing that whatever happened in this girl past, she was scared of women she didn't trust. Bucky picked her up gently not wanted to hurt her with his arm.

They walked into the apartment and Y/N quickly started to prepare dinner. Bucky sat on the bed while the little girl sat on the side of them. He tries to start conversation again with her.

"Can you tell me your name now?"

The little girl looked around before speaking softly,"Melanie.."

The pair looked at each otherin shock, he got her to talk. There wasn't any technology in the room so they best way to stay entertained was to have conversation.

"Well Melanie how old are you?" Bucky questioned.

"Five." She said but held up three fingers making Bucky smile in amusement. He helped her by raising up another finger.

"How old are you?"

Y/N giggled while fixing their bowls. Nobody have ever asked him that. Bucky laughed since its been a long time since someone asked him that.

"Well doll, I'm 106."

Melanie made a funny face turning her head to the side. Y/N came over with three bowls in her hands. Bucky grabbed the bowls passing one to Melanie, while holding the other ones as Y/N sat down so she wouldn't spill it.

"Can I eat all of it? I've been good all week." Melanie moved some of her hair from her face with a a sadden expression. Y/N felt so bad for her, this wasn't right.

"Baby you can eat all it. I can make more if you want some okay?"

"Okay." Melanie smiled digging in her food. Bucky and Y/N shared a look. He was angry that she went through horrible things at a young age.

After dinner, Bucky washed and put the dishes away while Y/N laid down on the mattress. Melanie kept picking her head up to see if Bucky was coming.

"He's coming honey, he's washing dishes."Y/N laughed softly realizing what she was doing. "You tired?"

Melanie shook her head, rubbing her eyes,"No."

"Yes you are. Come here?" Y/N asked nicely but Melanie poked out her lip. She was sitting in the middle of the mattress near Y/N's knees.

"Noo, I'm waiting on Bucky."

"Here I am princess." Bucky grunt getting on his knees behind her. Melanie looked happy as he picked her up, walking on his knees to get to this spot on the mattress. Y/N laid on her side, watching them in admiration. 

Melanie was very brave and didn't take long getting used to the couple. Food was a way to her heart so the trust came quickly. She was snuggled between Bucky and Y/N while they cuddled her enjoying their sleep.

-----------

2:48 a.m.

People smashing through the apartment windows starled them awoke. Before Bucky could reach for his gun, a man punched him in the face. Y/N quickly grabbed Melanie holding her into her chest then gets up grabbing the emergency bookbag.

The couple agreed that if this was to happen then find the best way out possible. They would find each other no matter how far away they was. Bucky did one on one combat with the man that broke in.

"GO Y/N!"

She nodded rushing to the door making sure to keep a good grip on Melanie. When she opened the door a man stood their with a gun pointed directly at her head. Melanie start to cry with all the commotion going on. Tears start to fall out of Y/N's eyes, thinking this was it.

"Go back in now or I won't hesitate putting one between your eyes." The man sneered putting the cold gun on her forehead. Y/N turned around going back into the apartment. Bucky closed his eyes trying not to lose it as he saw his family being held at gun point.  He was being held at gun point as well but he was hoping that his girls was able to get away.

"So Winter Soldier, you really thought you could get away." A man laughed turning on a light revealing his face. It was Rumlow holding Bucky at gun point and the man that held Y/N at gun point was Pierce. Bucky chest heaved up and down as he was getting angrier.

Melanie little face was turning red from how hard she was crying. Pierce rapidly pointed another gun in his other hand at Melanie's little forehead.

"NO!"Bucky jumped forward but Rumlow put the gun on his forehead making him stop. Pierce took the gun off safety pressing it harder on Melanie's forehead which makes Y/N sob harder.

"Shut the little brat up!"

"Melanie baby, stop... stop crying we're okay. Bucky's okay." Y/N lied hoping she was to stop crying. Melanie cries turns into sniffles looking at Y/N hopefully.

Y/N nod her head crying,"We're okay baby."

Bucky felt like he let his girls down. He was so angry that he wanted to kill both of them but he couldn't move. "I'll go back and do whatever. Just p-please leave my family out of this."

"That's what I wanted to hear! Cuff him!" Pierce exclaimed letting the guns drop from Y/N and Melanie. Y/N shook her head not wanting Bucky to leave and endure all the things they worked so hard for him to forget.

"Bucky no!”

"Shut it bitch!" Pierce snapped at her holding the gun to her head again making her jump. It was killing Bucky for not being able to help.

"I'm sorry Y/N. I love you." Bucky sigh putting his arms behind his back so Rumlow could cuff him. As Rumlow did, Redwing flew in dropping a disk on Pierce's forehead electrocuting him. Sending him unconscious.

Bucky ducked as Rumlow shot the gun towards him making the girls scream. Sam flew in the window taking out the extra gaurd that stood by the refrigerator. Bucky stood up swiftly so he could take out Rumlow.

He smirked aiming the gun towards the girls," I guess nobody's getting what they want." Rumlow shot the gun at the girls. Y/N used her body to shield Melanie. Bucky stared in horror as he tried to get to them but Steve's shield covered them from the bullets.

Bucky turned around angrily at Rumlow pulling out the secret gun that was in his  waist holster. With no hesitation, Bucky shoots him between the eyes. Rumlow body fell to the ground.

Y/N came from behind Steve's large frame. She walked over to Bucky and pulled him into a hug without crushing Melanie's little body. Bucky rubbed his hand through Y/N hair and kissed Melanie's forehead. They didn't have anything to say, they were just grateful to all be alive.

"I'm so sorry to ruin this moment guys but we need to go. Their supposed to be bringing in reinforcements any second." Steve said placing his shield on his back.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y. bring the jet back around." Sam pressed his finger on the com.

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

On the jet, it was quiet but peaceful time for them to rejuvenate. Bucky couldn't sleep so he watched over his girls who were sleeping.

Melanie slept on his chest with his metal arm holding her up so her face could implant into his neck. Y/N was cuddled up with his arm wrapped around her. He kissed their foreheads every other second for his comfort.

"Thank you guys." Bucky said to Sam and Steve who were sitting in the in the front seats of quinjet.

"Just gald you guys are safe." Steve pat his hand on Bucky's shoulder.

"Plus we were able to kill two birds with one stone. Bonus but glad we could help."Sam said making Bucky smiled. He looked at his girls, very content with life.

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

horrible writing.

I wrote this bout a year ago. I don't like it, but i just needed it as a distraction.

stay slutty my friends

[bbq-hawks-wings]

I want to express an unpopular opinion. I hope for your understanding, because such things don't like to listen. Why does everyone think that Hawks is a bird? I couldn' fit my logical arguments into the askbox :( (about how he sits on a pole "like a bird", supposedly likes jewelry and so on). Even his quirk is called Fierce Wings, not a Hawk, not a Red Bird. Do you remember the names of the quirks of Hound Dog and Tsuyu-chan? We haven't evidence to believe that Hawks is behaves like a bird.

I do believe very much he’s a bird, and if you would let me friend, I would love to try and prove it to you because I think the evidence is overwhelming. I’ll make a TL;DR at the end but I’d really like to take the opportunity to perhaps teach others at least one method for literary analysis since it can be a really dry and boring subject to learn in school but is SO useful not only for getting good grades but getting into colleges as well as interpreting both entertainment and genuinely important information like the news, history, laws, and scientific papers. Using fiction - especially such a rich, engaging one like HeroAca - is a great way to try it out without the pressure of a grade. I don’t have the qualifications to teach in any formal capacity, but as a “peer” tutor I hope I can be helpful.

I’m going to put everything under the cut from here because this is going to get LONG, but I promise the TL;DR at the end will be very easy to read. If you liked this sort of unofficial tutorial please let me know. I’d love to help make “academic” skills like this more accessible for those who might benefit from it and enjoy it, but it doesn’t make sense to put in all that effort moving forward if I’m garbage at it.

Before we get too into things, I want to lay out a few notes to keep in mind as we go.

I will only be using the official translations from Viz’s Shonen Jump website when available. Fan translations are more than close enough to casually enjoy and follow the story, but professional translators are paid to know and get various nuances correct and some of the trickier cultural background behind certain phrases (for example, the phrase “where the rubber meets the road” might make zero sense in a foreign language if translated literally, so an equal cultural phrase should be used instead) that give more exact information. Rarely is this too important, but sometimes it helps, plus it supports the source material.

If you’ve followed my blog for a while you might know I’m very fond of doing this kind of thing in my spare time and that I’m a huge fan of YouTube channels like Game/Film Theory, Overly Sarcastic Productions, Extra Credits, and Wisecrack that do this kind of thing with popular media as well. If you like this sort of content, may I encourage you to check them out after this to see how else you can apply these kinds of analytical skills to things that aren’t homework.

My writing style tends to meander, but I do my best to cut out the fat and only include relevant information so even though there’s a lot of information here, please know that I’m trying to be thorough and explain things to the best of my ability. If I seem to go off on a tangent, I’m trying to set up or contextualize information to explain why it’s relevant and then come back to the point. In other words, please be patient and bear with me as I go.

Now, to start, I want to explain at least my method for analyzing a text/piece of media. There is a set order and number of steps to take, and it’s as follows:

Read the material all the way through.

Come up with a hypothesis about something you’ve noticed when reading it. (In this case, it’s “Is Hawks actually supposed to be a bird?”)

Collect as much relevant information as possible and test the evidence to see if it supports the hypothesis we’ve made.

Step back and look at everything again with those points in mind.

Determine if we were right or wrong with the evidence we have.

If we were wrong, go back to step 3 to figure out what fell apart and see if we need to go back to step 2.

If that sequence sounds familiar it’s because it’s the scientific method! Aha, didn’t think we’d be pulling science into all this, did you? Don’t worry, we won’t be putting numbers or formulas anywhere near this discussion - the scientific method is just a way we can observe something and test if what we thought about it is actually true; and it applies to almost everything we as humans can observe - from the laws of the universe, to arts and crafts, to philosophy and religion, and so on! When you think about it that way, whole new possibilities can open up for you when it comes to understanding how the world works.

So with that set let’s (finally) begin!

Steps 1 and 2 are already done. We’ve read the manga and want to prove that Hawks is a bird. (We’re going to try and prove he IS a bird because in the context of the series there’s a lot that *isn’t* a bird and less stuff that *is* which will make our job easier.) So now, we’re onto: 

Step 3 - collect data and see what conclusions we can get just from our evidence.

Now, to pause again (I know, bear with me!) there’s a few different kinds of information and considerations we have to keep in mind as we collect. There are four kinds of information that are important to know about in order to determine if it’s good data that will help us with the testing phase in Step 4. The kinds of information to keep in mind are:

Explicit information - this is information that is directly spelled out for us. For example, Hawks says, “I like my coffee sweet.” and his character sheet says “Hawk’s favorite food is chicken.” That’s all there is to it, and it’s pretty hard to argue with. This is the easiest type of info to find.

Implicit information - this is info that isn’t directly spelled out but is noticeable either in the background or as actions, patterns, or behaviors that can be observed. For example, Hawks has mentioned in at least three very different places his concerns over people getting hurt while he tries to get in with the League:

Chapter 191 when confronting Dabi about the Nomu he says, “You said you’d release it in the factory on the coast, not in the middle of the damn city!”

Chapter 191 again in a flashback with the Hero Commission he asks, “What about the people who might be hurt while I’m infiltrating the League?”

Chapter 240 when discovering how much influence and power the League has gained, “If someone had taken down the League sooner, all those good citizens wouldn’t have had to die!”

Hawks never says in so many words, “I never want innocent people to get hurt under any circumstances!” but the pattern of behavior and concern is consistent enough to form a pattern and clue us in that this is a key part of his character to keep in mind.

Peripheral information - this is information that isn’t directly to do with Hawks or maybe even the series as a whole but is still relevant to keep in mind for his character and the questions we’re asking. This may include extra content that isn’t the “series” proper, but is still an official source like interviews with Horikoshi, etc. but it can go even further. For example, while we try to prove that he’s a bird, we should have some knowledge about what makes a bird a bird, some specific and notable birdlike habits/behaviors/features, etc. This is just to show how wide-ranging we need to cast our informational net.

Contextual information - this will be important when we get to Step 4, but it’s good to keep in mind now. This is when we compare evidence against the broader scope of the series and consider the circumstances under which we find the information. For example, if I told you, “Harry kicked a dog.” you might think “What a jerk! What decent person kicks a dog?”; but if I said, “Harry kicked a dog while trying to keep it from biting his kid.” suddenly it re-frames the story. “Is the kid ok? Why was that dog attacking? Harry put himself in danger to keep his kid safe - what a great dad!”

I’ll go chronologically to make it easier to follow my evidence as I gather and give references as to where I found that information. I’ll go through the manga first, and then any peripheral sources that are either direct informational companions to the series (like character books or bonus character information sheets) and interviews with Horikoshi. Please note the categories these details fall into may vary based on opinion/interpretation, but I did my best to list them out for reference.

Chapter 185 - Explicit Type: Feathered wings - regardless of the specifics of his quirk it’s undeniable his wings are made up of feathers which is a distinctly birdlike quality. There are many mythical creatures and even dinosaurs that also have feathered wings, but this is our first big piece of evidence.

Chapter 186 - Peripheral Type: Large appetite - birds have an incredibly fast metabolism because flying takes so much energy. They’re constantly eating. Plenty of young men are big eaters, but it was specifically pointed out and works towards our hypothesis so we’ll keep it in our back pocket for now.

Chapter 186 - Implicit/Peripheral Type: Fantastic vision - Hawks senses the Nomu coming before the audience even is able to make out what’s headed their way. It could be implied his wings caught it first, which might be the case, but he looks directly at the Nomu and brings Endeavor’s attention to it. Birds have fantastic long-range vision, especially birds of prey that mainly swoop in from high in the air to ambush highly perceptive prey. Also good to add to the pile.

Chapter 192 + Volume 20 Cover - Implicit/Peripheral type: Wears jewelry and bright colors - birds are well documented to be drawn to bright colors and are known for decorating their nests with trinkets. Scientists actually have to be careful when tagging birds with tracking bracelets because they can accidentally make him VASTLY more popular with the ladies by giving him a brightly colored band to the point they can’t resist him! Male birds are also known for having bright, colorful displays for attracting and wooing mates. While Hawks isn’t the only male character to wear jewelry in the series, he’s the only one (to my recollection) that wears as MUCH jewelry so often both during and outside of work. It may not be obvious, but the illustration on Volume 20 is actually an advertisement for his line of (presumably) luxury jewelry. In other words, Hawks on some level is synonymous with style and flair to the point he can make money by selling jewelry with his name on it.

Chapter 20 Volume Cover - Explicit Type: Hawk emblem on the watch face - If the name “Hawks” didn’t give it away, he’s very clearly trying to align himself with more avian qualities if his merch has bird motifs. In other words Hawk = “Hero Hawks” and “Hero Hawks” = bird.

Chapter 192, 244, clear file illustration - Peripheral Type: birdlike posture. Chapter 244 isn’t quite released yet on the official site as of writing this, but when Hawks swoops in and beats the kids to the punch apprehending the criminals trying to subdue Endeavor, his hands are clenched in a very talon-like manner similar to a swooping eagle. When walking with Endeavor in 192, he holds his resting hand in a similar fashion. On the clear file illustration he’s not only perched on his tippy toes in a pose that has been famously called “owling” (remember that trend/meme, y’all?) but his wings are slightly outstretched to catch the breeze to keep from falling over which a lot of birds can be seen doing when they don’t have great purchase on a surface in a place that’s a little windy. The fact that he seems to gravitate to high places like birds are often seen doing might also be a noteworthy indication.

Extra sources:

Hawks Shifuku: Horikoshi describes Hawks as a “bird person” and says that his initial design was based off of Takahiro from his old manga. 

Takahiro’s design:

Current character design: The banner image on my blog was commissioned from a friend of mine who doesn’t follow the series. When I showed her reference images of Hawks, you know what she said? “Oh! His hair is feathers!” Even his eyebrows have that fluffy/scruffy texture to them that his hair has. The markings on his eyes can also be seen on him as a young child in Chapter 191 which means it isn’t makeup meant to tie in a theme or look. He has those dark, pointed eye markings like many birds do. So on some genetic level he resembles a bird.

Step 4: Testing our hypothesis with the gathered evidence.

There’s already a lot of compelling evidence that already closely aligns him to birds which is promising. However, to really prove our point we should try to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt he is a bird. To do that this time around I’m going to see how the series treats people with animal-based quirks and see if it’s consistent with the way Hawks is portrayed.

You bring up Hound Dog and Tsuyu, and they’re fantastic examples. Let’s start with Hound.

He’s pretty straight forward - he’s like a dog. He has a dog face, has dog-like tendencies, and dog-like abilities. Superpower: dog.

And in Tsuyu’s case - quirk: frog, just frog. She’s stated explicitly to have frog-like features, frog-like tendencies, have frog-like abilities, and even comes from a “froggy family.”

So with these two very explicitly animal-like characters the common theme seems to be “If they’re considered to be like a specific animal, they have to physically resemble that animal, act like that animal at times, and have abilities like that animal.” Let’s see if another animal-quirk character matches up and then put Hawks to the test.

Spinner’s quirk is Gecko. Based on our criteria, is he a gecko?

Does he look like a gecko, even vaguely? 

Yes, he’s covered head to toe in scales, and his face is very lizard-like.

Does he occasionally act like a gecko? 

Unclear. We haven’t really seen any evidence of this, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t. For the sake of our argument, we’ll just say no and move on.

Does he have gecko-like abilities?

 Yes! Though most of his abilities are limited to things like being able to stick to walls, it’s still gecko-like in origin and qualifies.

Spinner hits clearly hits ⅔ criteria and our standards seem pretty consistent, so let’s see how Hawks stands up.

Does he look like a bird? 

Not all of his features may explicitly scream “avian” at first, but upon closer observation and with his clear previous inspiration this is a resounding yes.

Does he act like a bird? 

Many of the mannerisms and behaviors he displays can just be chalked up to him being a little eccentric, but with the sheer number of them that also parallel birds in some way this is also a pretty convincing yes.

Does he have bird-like abilities? 

While most of the emphasis is on his wings and what they can do, it does seem that he not only possesses things like heightened senses which could be attributed to avian abilities but he also very much possess high intelligence and incredibly fast reaction times which birds are also known for.

Even if we only gave Hawks a “maybe/half a point” for those last two, he still meets the 2⁄3 that Spinner did. So we have another question to ask: Does a character have to have an explicitly named “animal” quirk to be considered to be/resemble a specific animal? Let’s look at Ojirou and Tokoyami for reference.

Ojirou’s quirk is just “tail,” but he’s been described by his peers and classmates as a monkey and does seem to share some more monkey-like features. It isn’t lumped in with his quirk because the only notable monkey-like quality he possesses is a tail. He doesn’t have fangs or an opposable toe - he just has a tail. For quirk classification as far as hero work goes, that’s the only important thing to note.

Tokoyami, on the other hand has an entire literal bird head, but nothing else. He has a beak, feathers, and even in illustrations of him as a baby he had fluffier feathers on his head. Even with only those details, he just screams “bird!” However, his quirk is classified as “Dark Shadow” because that’s what sets him apart for hero work.

Back at Hawks we see his quirk classified as “fierce wings” but like Ojirou and especially like Tokoyami, the emphasis on his wings is what sets his abilities as a hero apart. Otherwise, he’s just a guy who looks and acts a LOT like a bird.

But astute observers may have noticed I’ve left out a detail that’s more or less a nail in the coffin on the whole matter, so let me ask a question: Tsuyu in particular has something else of note that solidifies in our minds that she is, indeed, a frog - she explicitly calls herself a frog. Could we say the same about Hawks?

Chapter 199 - Explicit Type

Bingo. Hawks has known himself for as long as he’s been alive. He knows his habits, his impulses, his family/genes, and so on. If he calls himself a bird, are we going to call him a liar? In fact, he calls himself a bird not once, but twice!

That’s pretty much it. With the evidence stacked to that degree, I’d be hard pressed to NOT believe he’s a bird.

That was a long amount of text to get through, so if you’re here at the end thank you for sticking out with me to this point. I really appreciate it. This is more or less the process I use when analyzing anything and everything whether it be HeroAca related or not. Maybe it’ll help you if you’ve struggled with literary analysis, or at the very least I hope you got some enjoyment out of it.

TL;DR If Hawks looks like a bird, walks (acts) like a bird, is based on a bird (character), and calls himself a bird, he’s probably a bird.

[tartrazeen]

Here's another thing that was missing from Danganronpa - the main games at least, because I haven't played any of the fan games I've heard are out there:

The Ultimate Trendsetter

I still like the idea of an 'Everyone Operating In Full Knowledge of What This Is' DR4 (or v4, I guess), and this is building on that. And I'm being coy with what I'm calling this character type 'cause I don't want to instantly give it away, but basically, this is the Ultimate Rulebreaker. 'Rule' can extend as far as social norms, setting records, or actually inspiring some new trend of some kind. It gives options, but it's mostly to hide the literal 'kills by breaking the rules' thing they've got going on.

Their personality could be anything - brash and inspiring like Kaito, deceptively polite yet lethal like Celeste, or completely blasé until it's Go Time like Chiaki. Doesn't matter, because they can be anywhere on the villain-to-hero scale and it won't change that they'll be an antagonist.

Ideally, this is also someone who's already done the impossible to throw the player off the scent of their tactics. I'm thinking 'Returning winner from the last season, who won as the blackened in the very first trial'. Groundbreaking, right? Technically that makes this DRv5 or DRv4.2, because that's all 15 other students gone after just one round and right when it's the most difficult to get away with something (so many witnesses and people investigating).

They character should be pretty open about it too: "I simply went after the loneliest one before anyone had built any friendships with each other. That way, no one came looking for them until it was too late to tie any clear circumstantial evidence to me. That's usually what nails everyone else - reliable witness accounts. :)"

Let's say this one's the first trial. I think my other theory about the Ultimate Danganronpa Hater and Critic covered the fourth and fifth trials, and my one about hiding the victim's body could be third case shenanigans, but this one's got a definite set-the-tone Case 1 vibe.

So!

Dead kid at the end of a hallway, very openly in plain sight.

The hallway's been clean. The person's been very clearly laid out, suggesting they were moved from how or where they fell. There are obvious signs of death, but to draw from the canon, let's say there are multiple incisions over their body that the Monokuma File confirms is the cause of the death. No weapons or objects are around them.

The victim should be someone who's had some bite to 'em. Narratively, this is gonna be the group's warning to not let the excitement of being on the show overshadow the threats around them.

Extra points if someone from the Investigation side tries to pull off a 'perfected' version of an almost successful murder from their qualifier game, or someone from the Blackened side calls the killer out by recognizing a tactic that they themselves pulled off, except done much more carelessly. No really, extra points: there's some bonus prize in there for any Blackened that makes it to the final two or for any Investigator who wins by killing this time. Good God, after those stupid Truth Swords from DR2, it could even be some stupid Pen Versus Sword motif with Ultimate Might up for grabs as the championship's title. That's exactly what a show that's 56 seasons in would do.

Hell, if you wanna go hard into the "Trendsetter won in the very first round" idea, these are all winners of an earlier game here to play in the Ultimate Championship finals - so everyone's on the same level of knowing what to do, having seen it happen, having seen what works and what didn't, and a solid mix of people who won as the blackened plus those who won by cracking cases. Should be fun to see who won by getting away with murder working alongside those who won through investigation (and hey, that'd incorporate my little Fuyuhiko theory too).

Anyway!

This victim went too hard bragging that they were gonna win, maybe even motivated to get the bonus prize (as a winning Investigator from their qualifier), but surprise, surprise, they're dead first.

The investigation has people searching for the original kill site, the murder weapon, and any opportunity people may have had.

The Trendsetter's going to be helpful in reminding everyone how deceptively difficult the first round will be. True, this is when they have the most witnesses, but they have the least idea of who everybody is and nobody walked in without examples of how to strike. And this person moved fast, whoever they were, which is smart because they now have a series precedent for everyone losing in the first round to a blackened student. Nothing's guaranteed anymore.

Somebody finds a knife. Somebody else finds a sharp chisel. Somebody else finds a decorative spear. All these weapons are in different corners of the school, all have blood on them, and there's not a drop of blood elsewhere in those locations. If we keep to my growing Tartra-verse canon and have the Ultimate Danganronpa Critic here, they might point out how the spear seems like the most likely weapon to fit with this "obvious callback to Mukuro's death in Season 1."

That's the first layer to crack: what's the murder weapon? With the maximum number witnesses in the smallest amount of available space during the first round, it's too risky for someone to drag a corpse from any of those locations to where it is now (plus there's no drag marks in the blood that's pooled), but it's just as risky to bring a weapon from where these three originally were, kill the victim, then sneak it back while it's covered in blood. And a whole spear? No way. In fact, it's looking like that blood was planted to throw them off. They don't even know if it's the victim's blood - that's also risky to carry, so maybe it was the killer's own blood.

All three weapons are ruled out. Nobody found any other weapons, so they're stuck there for now.

The second layer to crack is where the victim was murdered. If the killer couldn't drag anything away without getting caught, then where the victim died probably held special significance. Thing is, the only thing 'special' about this hallway is... well, it's a hallway. It's long and empty, and according to everyone else, far enough away from the others to avoid hearing anything, but there's nothing unusual about it otherwise.

That's right around when someone should ask why the victim was there themselves. They would've had to go there willingly, because the thought of being lured somewhere during these finals seems ridiculous. Were they trying to set up a trap for someone else? But who would the trap be for if that hallway was so far from everybody? It'd make running from a long-ranged weapon difficult - like a bow and arrow or throwing knives - because there's no corners to hide behind, but surely everyone would assume that and avoid walking down it in the first place. The best guess everyone can make is that the victim was following someone else to sneak up on them, but quickly became the prey.

Drama starts. Team Investigation starts accusing those bloodthirsty Blackened for automatically knowing how to kill somebody trying to murder them first in some warped fight or flight reflex, and Team Blackened starts accusing the Investigators of all chasing the bonus prize by getting away with any kind of murder. I'm not expecting any kind of friendship from these folks, but absolutely a kind of mutually beneficial alliance that every Battle Royale gets into. It's easy here at first because there's that divide of "who won and by what method".

I wouldn't be surprised if the Ultimate Trendsetter was behind it either, having convinced (or implied) that if all the Blackened work together, at least two of them could survive to the end and win the bonus. It'd trigger a counter-alliance among the Investigators, who'd very quickly realize (by having the Trendsetter again imply) that if they didn't band together right then, they'd be on their own against a newly unified Team Blackened. Whether or not the Trendsetter was telling the Investigators the truth, Team Blackened would either already honestly exist or be deceived into needing to exist now that Team Investigation was locked in.

This all 'implies' that the Investigators are the only ones who'd kill somebody that won as an Investigator (again, because Investigators don't get a bonus prize unless they kill this time). At the same time, it 'implies' that that's the perfect cover story for the Blackened, as if a bonus prize - they don't know what it is - would magically be enough to ignore the real prize of winning Danganronpa at all.

In other words, no dice on the murder site.

Finally, they start going through each other's alibis. The Trendsetter's sounds rock solid - they were in their room trying to get some rest. Any snarky accusations of "Resting up so you could murder us?" is met with, "No, I'm sick. I have a cold. And I'm on Team Blackened, so I can't get the bonus prize by killing." Some others on Team Blackened - and only on Team Blackened - can vouch for this account, which leads to more, "You're all covering for each other," claims. That one's snubbed off as extra ridiculous because everybody knows accomplices can't win unless they're the ones actually killing. It looks more and more like Team Blackened has no incentive here, while Team Investigation is lawlessly prize-hungry. The two cliques click even further into place.

The thing is, this is a competition. Right now, if they don't solve this case regardless of what 'team' they're on, one person is going to win at everyone else's expense. Team Investigation bites the bullet on working with their very smug enemies by doing what they do best: investigating.

Each person on Team Blackened explains how they got away with murder to mine those stories for clues - things to look out for in this case. Team Investigation narrows in on those patterns for everyone: an open kill is no good because these need to be sneaky, and nobody kills someone that'll make them the obvious murder suspect. Killers either try to frame someone else or play off the victim's trust (even if it's only a temporary truce) to get them alone.

Well, no one's been framed for this. The problem is that it seems like a ghost did it. They can rule out suicide because it's the first round of the finals and the victim really wanted to win. But when it comes to the other pattern - trust - they hit another wall. The victim would've been someone who won by investigating until the end of the season, and who was openly declaring an intent to kill and get the bonus prize. Team Blackened wasn't going to work with anyone like that, and Team Investigation wasn't going to be anybody's accomplice. That should technically mean nobody trusted the victim enough to talk to them and build up any kind of friendship.

... Which sounds really, really, and suddenly familiar.

They ask the Trendsetter how they won their round. The Trendsetter reminds everyone about their alibi and how no one stood to gain anything by lying to corroborate it, then re-explains.

Let's just commit to the Ultimate Danganronpa Critic being here. :P The Critic points out that while nobody could trust someone on Team Investigation because of the bonus prize, by that same logic, everyone could absolutely trust someone on Team Blackened. That makes Team Blackened the suspects again, which is about to cause more drama before the Critic says, "We also know that a Blackened won their season in the first round before by targeting someone who was lonely and before anyone could become friends. So our killer is probably someone who helped make sure the victim had no one on their side, even if they were doing pretty well at that by themselves."

This is when both teams start discussing when the cliques were made. Sure, there's a bonus prize, but the Critic runs through all the other 'prizes' Monokuma's promised in the past. Is that what they're naturally aiming for? Or did someone convince them that the other team was aiming for it, just to keep everyone scared? And as they dig and dig, they realize the Trendsetter was the one who put the 'two teams' thing into motion.

The Trendsetter handwaves that by saying Monokuma's also had millions of dollars as the prize before, and anyway, the thought would've occurred to everyone eventually. People just like being in groups - it happens. Except the Ultimate Danganronpa Critic points out that every season where someone won by investigating, it was because everyone eventually worked together as a group. The ones who refused were usually the ones who died first - or, in the Trendsetter's case, won immediately. When it comes to why the victim was in that hallway, there was a way to lure someone down it after all: the same power of friendship that brought the Trendsetter here for the championship.

The Trendsetter's going to entertain this. If they're the suspect despite such a strong alibi, how did they kill the victim from their bedroom? The Monokuma File said they died from being stabbed all over their body, and the killer wouldn't have been able to leave with a blood-covered weapon (or blood-soaked clothes) without being seen putting those three weapons back or returning to their room.

The Critic's got answers for that too: those weren't the murder weapons. The killer could've prepped those as false evidence while they were investigating and could take their time walking around to those corners of the school. As for how the victim got stabbed, the killer left that part up to their accomplice.

The Trendsetter's about to explain the thing about accomplices again when the Ultimate Danganronpa Critic goes full Byakua-Is-Smarter-Than-You and Nagito-Is-Admiring-You about how they never said there wasn't an accomplice, just that the accomplice couldn't win as the Blackened, and how they're so delighted to see something completely new after 56 seasons and be there to see it firsthand! The accomplice in this case was the one person completely unaffected by the killing game: Monokuma himself. Those stab wounds are impossible for someone to pull off from their bedroom, but completely possible to trigger remotely - say, for example, by skewering someone with a bunch of spears. This means that 'homage' to Mukuro's death was not the Critic exaggerating.

This is ridiculous, the Trendsetter will protest. Monokuma can't interfere with any of the students, so there's no way anyone can ask him for help. The Critic'll point out that no one would need to ask. Once a rule was broken, Monokuma would send those spears out automatically. The only thing they need to prove now is which rule was broken.

The Trendsetter's gonna be all kinds of upset about this. For one thing, even if that's what happened, why is the Critic singling them out as the suspect? Why not anybody else? But the Critic assures everyone that once they figure out the rule that was broken, they'll have the proof they need to know who was behind everything.

The group - working together - goes through the list. For the championship and especially these finals, almost every rule that was previously in effect is back in play, minus any that contradict each other. This includes classics like "The game will continue until only two students remain (à la Rule 6 from DRv3)," "Destroying any property without permission is expressly forbidden (like Rule 10 from DR2)," and of course, "Sleeping anywhere other than the dormitory will be punished accordingly (just like Rule 3 of DR1)." The Critic puts the question to the group: the victim looked pretty laid out on the floor, didn't they? What if they weren't moved anywhere so much as they...

... laid down?

Oooooh boy, the Trendsetter is not gonna be happy about that one (and neither's the Ultimate Danganronpa Hater). First question: someone had a forbidden nap and that suddenly makes it a murder?! The Critic says yes, because if it was only a rules violation, they wouldn't be having a trial. The victim had to have been set up. So now that they know how the victim died, they can finally reveal the murder weapon.

(Cue the too-stupid-to-live one going, "Huh?!?!?! I thought the spears WERE the murder weapon?!?!?!" Like an idiot. Worse - like a casual.)

The Critic asks Team Blackened - everyone who vouched for her - why it wasn't strange for the Trendsetter to be going to sleep while the rest of them were still awake. When they repeat that the Trendsetter had a cold and needed sleep (cooperating, finally), they start digging into any proof they had that the Trendsetter was sick at all. Some coughing maybe, but nothing extreme. The nap, certainly. Definitely the cough syrup the Trendsetter'd been drinking.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

A murder weapon that no one would suspect, that wouldn't leave any blood, and that could knock someone out if they - for example - both drank from the same spiked bottle as friends. After all, even if there was a bonus prize for killing and it was only for Team Investigation, no one here was just going to drink something handed to them. Unless, maybe, whoever was handing it to them drank it too, to prove it was safe. And the Trendsetter did go right to bed at the same time the victim was comfortably on the floor.

With such a tucked-away hallway, it was unlikely people would stumble onto the body right away, and it wasn't as if anyone would come looking for the victim with everything that was said. Just like the Trendsetter's previous game, there was likely going to be a lot of time that passed before the evidence could be tied back to them, but what sealed their fate was true to the spirit of Danganronpa: witness testimony - and for the very alibi the Trendsetter themselves had set.

That stupid 'you must sleep in your rooms' rule has bugged me as being useless for so damn long, on top of that 'you cannot destroy property without permission' rule. The whole point of this is to use those rules to someone's extreme advantage, and in my mind, the Trendsetter won their first round by asking Monokuma for permission to destroy a surveillance moniter, then covered it up like an hay target and swapped it in ahead of the Ultimate Archer's next bit of practice. They were gonna wait for as long as it took after they got close enough to learn that person's schedule, and it was just the right amount of time for them to be far enough away while still getting the first and only kill of the season.

Hell yes, Monokuma would go for that. Shit would be hilarious af. The rules were available to everybody. But without the same convenience of having someone known to regularly impale something with sharp sticks, the Trendsetter picked a different rule to break. With that, they might've set a trend for winning on the first round, but they clearly couldn't keep the Ultimate Streak. :)

100%, the Critic would be saying that out loud lmao, before going to back to whether this still counted as a Mukuro homage or something between Sakura and Sayaka.

There's also no way that they, having absolutely been on Team Investigation, wouldn't bring home the ending that should've happened for DRv3's last trial: the detective will finally be the one that does it.

Bonus prize acquired. :D