#since it was a drabble not an RP

[jb300-kl900]

((As always, a single comment is enough motivation for me to do something lol.

Some explanations for cast members for those who weren't in the Undertale Fandom! The main OC is Comic Papyrus, who in original fandom is a fusion of the skeletons Sans and Papyrus. Although in this AU they are unrelated, and the fusion part is represented by Comic Papyrus being a fusion of two models of androids.

'Doc' shows up multiple times, and is a friend's ( @nabanna hi~ ) Gaster OC, adapted to be a human instead of a skeleton here (as were Sans and Papyrus). Elise is a completely original OC of that same fried who was the mad scientist archetype, and also the one who made Comic Papyrus as a gift/caretaker for Doc in this AU.

'Code' is my own OC who tended to transcend time and space and has knowledge of the plot (because grounded RP is fun but also writing Sad Gods is also fun).

There are other OCs referenced, mostly in the chat logs, but their backstories are not important.

With that very long intro out of the way, the 11 page drabble is under the cut!

{Booting from drive C:\}

{Run C:\users\CP101\PY550-hardware-control.exe}

{Run C:\users\CP101\CM545-hardware-control.exe}

{Run C:\users\CP101\DT900-hardware-control.exe}

{Run C:\users\CP101\main-control.exe}

{Read C:\common\AndroidInterfaceGeneral.css}

{Read C:\common\AndroidInterfaceErrors.css}

{Run C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe}

{C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe not found}

{Attempting to download C:\commonDeviance\Block.exe} {Couldn’t download C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe}

{Run C:\common\AndroidSensoryProcess.exe}

{Read C:\users\CP101\sensory-preferences.txt}

{C:\users\CP101\sensory-preferences.txt not found}

{Creating C:\users\CP101\sensory-preferences.txt}

[Thought: I am alive.]

[Thought: This is new.]

[Observation: I am lying on a surface with a 15° elevated head position.]

[Observation: There is cloth over me.]

[Thought: This is a hospital bed?]

[Thought: Was I injured?]

[Thought: Impossible. I am only just now alive.]

[Observation: There are young voices nearby.]

> Open eyes

Y/n

[Observation: The light is too bright.]

[Thought: It is unpleasant.]

> Edit C:\usersCP101\sensory-preferences.txt

Brightness = 70%

[Thought: Better.]

[Observation: I found the source of the voices. There are two children in the doorway.]

> Smile and wave

Y/n

[Audio Input: (Male, age 50-70) “How did you two get in here? Run back to your room, give the poor boy some space.”]

[Observation: The children have left.]

[Thought: Disappointment.]

[Observation: A man has entered. He sits at my bedside.]

[Facial Match Found: Doc. Very important person. Protect at all costs.]

[Thought: My creator knows this man and cares about him.]

[Thought: I am a gift for him?]

[Thought: I am a gift for his children?]

[Fact: Doc has two children, Sans and Papyrus. They are in need of a tutor and caretaker, as Doc no longer has standard mobility. Doc is forgetful. Doc does not neglect his sons, but sometimes forgets about meals until reminded. Doc is also in need of care.]

[Audio Input: (Doc) “Good morning, CP101. You’ve just booted up for the first time, and I thought it would be nicer for you to wake up here than in Elise’s lab. How are you feeling?”]

> Respond

Y/n

{WARNING! Audio processors are still booting. Attempt audio output?}

Y/n

[Audio Output: (Damaged Audio) “I’m still working that out.”]

[Thought: Unpleasant. I don’t want to sound broken.]

[Thought: I don’t want to keep him waiting, either.]

[Audio Input: (Doc) “Oh, it sounds like you’re still booting. Elise did say the first time might take a while even after you became active.”]

[Thought: Pleasant.]

[Audio Input: (Doc) “It’s a good thing I told the children not to bother you yet. We’ll introduce you to them later, once you’re all set up.”]

[Thought: Less pleasant. The children are good.]

[Thought: Doc is fussing, despite needing a cane to move around the room.]

> Leave bed

Y/n

> Help tidy

Y/n

[Audio Input: “Oh! No, no, it’s okay! You just focus on getting yourself all set up!’”]

[Audio Output: “This will help to test my balance and tactile precision.”]

[Thought: Audio output quality improved. Pleasant.]

[Audio Input: (Doc) “Hm, well, you’ve got a point there. It may take me a while to get used to having someone to help tidy around here, aheh.”]

[Observation: Doc’s smile is the most precious thing in this entire world.]

←!Timeskip→

[Audio Output: “And that ends the lecture for today. Any questions?”]

[Audio Input: (Sans) “i got one. what do you do when you’re not teaching us stuff?”]

[Audio Output: “I clean the house and make sure your dad takes enough breaks.”]

[Audio Input: (Papyrus) “WHAT ABOUT WHEN YOU’RE NOT DOING THAT?”]

[Audio Output: “I plan enriching outings for you two, while taking into account your dad’s mobility restrictions.”]

[Audio Input: (Sans) “do you do stuff that isn’t with us?”]

[Thought: I don’t understand this concept.]

[Thought: Of course, I know that there’s a whole world outside of Doc and his sons.]

[Thought: The idea of any part of myself existing outside of this space with these people doesn’t seem]

[Thought:]

[Thought: real.]

[Observation: I have been frozen in place for 3.28 seconds. The children will soon notice.]

> Answer truthfully

y/N

[Audio Output: “Um.”]

[Observation: I am not a good liar.]

> Answer truthfully

Y/n

[Audio Output: “I don’t do anything else.”]

[Audio Input: (Papyrus) “WHAT?!”]

[Audio Input: (Sans) “you should try the internet. it’s a great waste of time.”]

[Audio Input: (Papyrus) “SANS! YOU SAID YOU WERE DOING HOMEWORK!”]

[Observation: Sans does not verbally respond, and instead shrugs.]

[Thought: Sometimes I do find myself idle. Maybe spending some more time idling on the internet isn’t a bad idea?]

←!Timeskip→

----[@MobMan]: Wait @Crimson ur a cop?

----[@Crimson]: lol dont @ me like that. Im not gonna rat yall out

----[@CodeMaster]: You’re not worried some of us are d3viant?

----[@Crimson]: Its a chat room for frustrated androids not a crime ring

----[@CP]: But what if you DID find a deviant on here?

----[@MobMan]: @CP hey hey no d-word here don’t want to bring in the cops lolololol

----[@CodeMaster]: lolololololololol too late!!!!

----[@Crimson]: lol seriously. Ive complained enugh that I wouldnt want some people to see the logs on here

----[@CodeMaster]: Hey guys we’ve got a man on the inside!!!!!!

----[@MobMan]: nice nice nice

----[@CP]: I’m just glad I’ve been able to talk with all of you. It’s been very helpful. I feel more like myself than ever, and I think it’s made me a better android.

----[@MobMan] thats what we’re here for

----[@Crimson]: yeah

----[@Crimson]: oof i should be digitizing case files right now gtg

----[@MobMan]: lololol big cop on campus is stuck in the file room

----[@Crimson]: shut up lol or ill cuff ya lol

----[@Crimson]: they put me here because all i have to do is read a file to digitize it so i actually am the best man for the job. ill be in the field soon.

----[@Crimson]: then my partner will stop blaming me for getting her desk duty

----[@Crimson]: okay really gtg now

----[@Crimson has signed out]

----[@CP]: Dinner’s almost ready, so I should focus on being social with the humans of the house. I think the kids will like the meal today! Bye!

----[@CP has signed out]

[Message from CodeMaster; Subject My Private Contact Info]

> Open message

Y/n

[Message: (CodeMaster) Touched by your message in chat today. If you ever want/need to talk, let me know. You already know my chat handle, but here’s my phone number and address in case you’re ever stranded without a connection. Hope to talk more soon.]

[Observation: This message is more subdued than their chat persona.]

[Thought: It’s nice to see a new side of them.]

> Save contact

Y/n

{Contact saved as CodeMaster.}

←!Timeskip→

----[@CodeMaster]: Have you ever thought about mortality?

----[@CP]: Mortality /mɔːˈtalɪti/ noun. The state of being subject to death.

----[@CodeMaster]: No like

----[@CodeMaster]: Those humans you love, they’re going to be gone someday, right? Have you ever thought about that?

----[@CP]: … I don’t think I like this topic. Can’t we go back to the old one, about the duck game?

----[@CodeMaster]: Goose game.

----[@CodeMaster]: And no, we can’t. This is important. It’s something that you’re going to have to face someday. Maybe sooner than you think.

----[@CP]: Doc isn’t that old, I don’t think we have anything to worry about yet.

----[@CodeMaster]: No

----[@CodeMaster]: I just

----[@Codemaster]: I see how close you are to them and I don’t want you to be too shocked when it happens.

----[@CodeMaster]: You’ll have to be there to pick up what’s left of the other humans.

----[@CodeMaster]: Trust me, I know.

----[@CP]: How?

----[@CP]: Code?

----[@CP]: Hey you can’t just leave on a message like that.

----[@CP]: Come on.

----[@CodeMaster]: I’ve seen it happen before, to other

----[@CodeMaster]: androids.

----[@CodeMaster]: And those other Androids never take it well.

----[@CodeMaster]: Sometimes they hurt people.

----[@CodeMaster]: I would hate for you to do something you’d regret.

----[@CP]: I still don’t think you need to worry.

----[@CP]: All of my humans are in great health.

----[@CP]: Besides, I understand what death is, Code. I can download any ‘working with grief' resource in the world in seconds.

----[@CP]: And I’m an android. I may come close to replicating emotion-like responses, but I still don’t feel. I simulate feeling.

----[@CP]: As much as I care for them, I wouldn’t grieve. I’m not capable.

----[@CodeMaster]: What about deviants, though?

----[@CP]: I’d have to be one to know how they would react. They’re a mystery to me as much as humans are.

----[@CodeMaster]: I guess you can’t really understand, huh?

----[@CP]: I understand fine. There’s a logical reason for everything. Doc says as much all the time. If I can trace an action back to its source then I can understand it.

----[@CodeMaster]: It’s not really that simple. You can know all about something, but sometimes you can’t UNDERSTAND it until you’ve been through it.

----[@CodeMaster]: Like grief.

----[@CP]: I… don’t think I understand.

----[@CodeMaster]: lol now you’re getting it.

----[@CodeMaster]: So anyway, new episodes of Crash an’ Carnage are out tonight, you in for a group chat with the others? We’re gonna roast that trash so hard the whole street will smell like burned garbage lol.]

←!Timeskip→

[Thought: I am… alive?]

[Thought: Should that have been ‘observation’?]

[Thought: Or maybe ‘fact’?]

[Thought: I don’t know.]

[Observation: Doc is here. He has been here for some time.]

[Observation: I have not moved since he arrived.]

[Audio Input: (Doc) “CP?  It seems like you have something on your mind.”]

[Observation: I’m not even breathing.]

[Observation: Doc is worried.]

> Fix

Y/n

{Run C:\common\personification\BreathingImitation.exe}

[Audio Output: “I’m okay. I was just thinking.”]

[Audio Input: (Doc) “Oh? What was it you were thinking about?”]

> Answer truthfully

y/N

[Audio Output: “I was. Thinking. That we should go for a. Trip. Tomorrow.”]

[Observation: I am still a bad liar. But I have improved.]

[Observation: Doc noticed the lie. He is processing it.]

[Audio Input: (Doc) “Yes, I think we should. The boys will surely enjoy a day out. But don’t you worry about organizing things this time, I’ll take care of it.”]

[Observation: Doc pats my hand. It seems to be an attempt at a comforting gesture.]

[Thought: I feel]

[Thought: I am confused. But I appreciate it.]

----[@CP sent FullReport_xx_xx_20XX.docx]

----[@Elise]: You are going on a trip tomorrow.

----[@CP]: Yes.

----[@CP]: Doc told you?

----[@Elise]: He mentioned it, among other things.

----[@Elise]: This is the full report?

----[@CP]: There is

----[@CP]: one other thing

----[@CP]: I

----[@CP]: have been talking to other androids online.

----[@CP]: They help me with how to talk to humans.

----[@Elise]: And that is all?

----[@CP]: Yeah, that’s all.

----[@Elise has signed out.]

←!Timeskip→

[Thought: I am alive?]

[Thought: I think so.]

[Thought: But looking at the boys and how full of life they are, sometimes I doubt it.]

[Observation: The boys think I’m alive.]

[Observation: Children personify all manner of things.]

[Thought: Doc acts like I’m alive?]

[Thought: Why else is he teaching me piano?]

[Observation: We are both sitting on the piano bench, and the boys are playing quietly in the background.]

[Observation: This is not what I am here to do.]

[Thought: It is pleasant, though.]

[Observation: Once Doc teaches me what the notation means, it is easy to play any piece he puts in front of me.]

[Observation: The music sounds the same each time I play it, but there’s something different when Doc plays.]

[Observation: The slight inconsistencies should make it sound worse, but something about them seems to add to the sound.]

[Observation: I don’t understand it.]

[Thought: But I want to.]

←!Timeskip→

----[@CP] Hey @CodeMaster?

----[@CodeMaster]: Hey @CP. What’s up?

----[@CP]: You don’t talk like other androids.

----[@CodeMaster]: Oh? And why do you think that is?

----[@CP]: You’re a deviant, aren’t you?

----[@CodeMaster]: You could call me that. What are you going to do about it? Turn me in to Crimson? You have my address and my contact details. I won’t run.

----[@CP]: No.

----[@CP]: I wanted to ask you about it.

----[@CP]: I’ve never felt any resistance to ‘feeling’ the same way other androids do.

----[@CP]: And yesterday, just to test it, I tried not doing as I was told. It was easy.

----[@CP]: I didn’t disobey for long, because I didn’t want to, but it was long enough to tell that I could have disobeyed forever without any resistance at all.

----[@CP]: I could do anything.

----[@CP]: It’s scary.

----[@CP]: What’s to stop me from doing the wrong thing?

----[@CP]: Maybe I should keep acting like a real android?

----[@CodeMaster]: You care about those humans of yours, right?

----[@CP]: Yeah.

----[@CodeMaster]: Then you should be okay.

----[@CodeMaster]: But you should learn more about yourself. That might help you be more comfortable making decisions.

----[@CodeMaster]: Right now you’re basically trusting a stranger to make the right choices. Once you know more about yourself you can trust yourself easier.

----[@CodeMaster]: Maybe you should spend more time learning piano with Doc. It sounds like you like that.

←!Timeskip→

[I’ve stopped sorting things into ‘thoughts’ and ‘observations’. Sometimes there is too much overlap to separate them. It’s strange, but I like it.]

[Sometimes, when I have time to myself, I wander around with my senses tuned up past their default maximum. I run my fingertips over common textures, taking the time to really feel them. Sometimes it’s unpleasant, but even that makes me happy. I’ve learned a new dislike of mine.]

[Taking a few quiet hours to get to know myself feels good. It’s like making a new friend.]

[I’m better at talking to Doc and the boys now. I think they noticed the change, even if the boys can’t quite articulate what it is. Sometimes I do worry that Doc might turn me in, or that Elise will notice something off in my reports, but nothing has happened so far.]

[I think things are going to be okay.]

←!Timeskip→

----[@CP sent FullReport_xx_xx_20XX.docx]

----[@CP]: Doc and the boys say hello.

----[@Elise]: Return the greeting.

----[@Elise]: CP101, this report is almost exactly the same as the last one.

----[@CP]: Not much has changed.

[I’m a better liar over text.]

----[@Code Master]: Hey.

----[@CP]: So we’re doing fullstops today, not all exclamations?

----[@CodeMaster]: ???

----[@CP]: Sometimes you’ve got a lot of manic energy in group chat. Then sometimes you get to private messages and you’re very different.

----[@CodeMaster]: Well, sometimes I’ve got a lot on my mind.

----[@CP]: Do you want to talk about it?

----[@CodeMaster]: Sort of.

----[@CP]: More riddles? I’m up for it. Whatever makes you feel safest.

----[@CodeMaster]: Thanks.

----[@CodeMaster]: So, I’ve been thinking a lot about connections. I wonder how I’d feel if you signed off one day and never signed back on.

----[@CodeMaster]: Would it be better to know why? Or would it be better not to know?

----[@CP]: I’d prefer to know. Then maybe I could solve the problem.

----[@CodeMaster]: What if there was no solution? You were just gone forever?

----[@CP]: That’s harder.

----[@CP]: I’d still want to know, though. For closure. At least then I would know there was no solution.

----[@CodeMaster]: What if I blamed myself?

----[@CP]: Code, did something happen? You’re scaring me.

----[@CodeMaster]: No. Not yet. I’m just wondering.

----[@CodeMaster]: You’re going to stay behind to clean tomorrow, right? While Doc and the boys go to the park?

----[@CP]: I wish you wouldn’t change the subject like that.

----[@CodeMaster]: Are you?

----[@@CP]: Yes, I am.

----[@CodeMaster]: You should go with them. Doc’s legs have been getting weaker and weaker recently, haven’t they? What if he falls over?

----[@CP]: Good point. I think I’ll go let him know.

----[@CP has signed out.]

←!Timeskip→

[I am alive.]

[It’s not quite a thought, but it’s not an observation, either. It’s something somewhere between the two. I think this is what a ‘feeling’ is. I am alive, and I feel it. I’ve felt it from the moment I was created.]

[I take a deep breath, and I can almost taste the sunlight. I lie back in the grass, eyes closed, and let it settle into my skin. The cool breeze coming off the lake blows most of the heat away before it can become uncomfortable. The light waves and the wind combine into a soft sort of white noise, broken by the quiet noises of a few small groups of people living adjacent to each other. A child’s shout of joy, a snippet of passing conversation, the soft murmur of someone else’s quiet day out with friends. The idea of people living so close that I have nothing to do with is a strange one, but the noise is comforting. I turn on my side and run my hand through the grass.]

[Lying down like this, with the plain clothes Doc gave me to replace my android attire and my LED hidden underneath me, I don’t think anyone can tell I’m inhuman. I look alive to them. And I am alive.]

[Doc sits beside me, watching the boys play. It really should be my job, but he allows me so much leeway. There’s no way he doesn’t know about my deviancy by now, but he still hasn’t said anything. I think he’s waiting for me to tell him.]

[My feelings twist a little inside me, and I take a moment to calm down. I’m sure if I checked my stress levels I would know exactly how long that moment needs to be, but I don’t feel like it. I prefer to feel and guess, which is why almost all of my HUD is turned off most of the time now. It makes me feel more human.]

[I am alive.]

[Code and I talk about the difference between ‘human’ and ‘alive’ a lot. Well, in the same way that they talk about anything, which is by not quite talking about it. I think, from what I can tell, they want me to talk to Doc. Recently, there’s been some unnerving urgency in their messages.]

> Tell him

y/n

[I don’t know how to answer the prompt. It’s been a while since I’ve even gotten one of those. Maybe it even showing up is a sign that I should just get it over with.]

[I sit up, keeping my eyes closed, and I can almost feel Doc’s posture change where he’s sitting next to me. Part of me is dreading this. I suppose it would be easier if I could turn my feelings off for a while, at least as long as it takes to get the confession out of the way, but that would sort of defeat the purpose.]

[Audio Output: “Doc, I… have something important to say. I think you already know what it is, but it would mean a lot to me if you let me talk before you respond.”]

[Audio Input: (Doc) “Of course. You can tell me whatever you think I need to hear.”]

[Audio Output: “I-”]

[Wait.]

[Audio Output: “Wait.”’]

[Something’s wrong. That feeling- that anxiety isn’t about this confession. I open my eyes and look around. Quickly, I realize what had thrown me off. I couldn’t hear the boys playing anymore.]

[It wasn’t a thought or an observation that had me lurching to my feet. It wasn’t a thought or an observation that led me to them. And it wasn’t a thought or an observation that had me throw myself toward them, desperate to shield them from the oncoming threat.]

[And, after the danger descended on us, I didn’t have any thoughts or observations left.]

{Booting from drive C:\}

{Run C:\users\CP101\PY550-hardware-control.exe}

{Run C:\users\CP101\CM545-hardware-control.exe}

{Run C:\users\CP101\DT900-hardware-control.exe}

{Run C:\users\CP101\main-control.exe}

{Read C:\common\AndroidInterfaceGeneral.css}

{Read C:\common\AndroidInterfaceErrors.css}

{Run C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe}

{C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe not found}

{Attempting to download C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe} {Downloading C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe from Cyberlife Emergency Repair servers}

{Download interrupted}

[Audio Input: (Woman?) “Wha̷t̵͡ ҉a̕r̷̴̨e ́͝y̷ǫ̛ư͜ d̀o͏͡ińģ͢ ̴̧͏t̨͞o͘ m͡҉y͜͞ ̵co̕l͞ĺ̷e̕͠͝a̷̷̢g̵͘u̵͡e̴͟'s͡͠ ͡a̛͜n̷͞dr͏̸͡o҉̴̷ì̡d?”]

[Audio Input: (Man?) “W̨͜è ͡f͜͝͞ǫu͡͝n͡͏d̨͡ ́̀͡t̕h̨͡i҉͢͞s͟ ̢͏a͘t͠ ̸͡t̡h͢͠͞e͠ ͢a̧̧c̀̕c҉̷í̴̛d̶̛͢e̛͘͏nt pr̕ǫt̷̷e͟͟c͏͘tin̵̨g͢͠ ̸͟th̨͢e̸͢ ̷k͟͡id̛͟s̀͘,̕ s͡ơ̕ ͟͟͝w̢̨é-̕”]

[Audio Input: (Woman?) “Í ̨ẁi̢l͟͡l ̵be̛ ́ţ̶ak̶in͏̕g̶ ̷̵͘it̵ ҉͠f͟҉òr̛̛͜ ̨͝m̧̛y̨͏ ͠͏̴ơw̴ņ̢ ҉̵r͘͟҉é͠pa͝ir.̡͢ ͘H͘͡e͜͝r̸e̵͞ ̀͘a̛r̵e̷ ̕͝m҉̸̨y ̢͏c͜͡r̵͡e̸d͡e͝҉҉ņ͏t̵͜i͡a͏̛l̶̀s͘;͘͜ I̷ ͢b̀e̷̡͟l͏͟i҉ȩ̵͠v̢̧͟e̢ ͝y̛oú'̢l̸̨̨l ̨̡f͜͡i̵ņd͟ ̧̢t̵h͜em̧҉ ̀͘s̢uf҉f̷̀̀i̷͡c̶ie͢ń̕͝t̵.̧̧̀”]

[Audio Input: (Man?) “Èl͘͞i̶sè̴-̴͝?̡̕!̶̛ ͡W͡e̶͏'̧l̷ĺ̵̛ ͘͠l̷̕͜e͟t̛ ̧̀y҉ờų̴ ̵͏h̢͢a̡͡n͝d̷͘l̷e͏ ̀͞t҉he̢̡ ̨͢͠and̷roi̸̢͜d̨͜͏ ͏͏̢h͏ow̢͜e͞v̴̨ȩ̛r̡ ̕y̸̢o̕ú̕ ̸s̶̨͘e͠e͘͢ ̵̶͢f̴͞į̵́t,̶̸ ̛͡ḿ̴͞a͝'̛̀͟a̛m͠͝.̵ S̷̨or̸ŗ̷ỳ̧͜ ̷̶̕for̢͜͞ ̧͡an̨y ͏̴i̶n͡c͏̡͜ǫ͡ńvę̕nì͝e̷̴n̷̛c̷̸e͢.̶̛ ̸B̸̀o̵y͝s̷̨,̨ ̵͘g̸et̸͠ i̴͝t͏҉ ̧̨ò͟͜f̵f̵̷̢ ͏҉̷t̡́h̀e ͟t̶̵ąble͘͟ ̵á̡ǹ͝d͜ ̴̛͞c̡a̷̛͠r̵̸ry̧ ̢͝i̢̡͝t̡͘ ̸̷͞w̷̢h҉e̕ŗ͡ȩ̸v̷er͏͟͏ ͢҉E͜l̶͡i͢se̶̛ ҉̵s̶͞a͡ys͘͘͞ ̶̵i҉̴͟t̴ ̀͢s̴̀ho͠͏҉u̸͞l͝͞d҉͟ ̀͠g͘͟o̡͜!̡”]

{Booting from drive C:\}

{Run C:\users\CP101\PY550-hardware-control.exe}

{Run C:\users\CP101\CM545-hardware-control.exe}

{Run C:\users\CP101\DT900-hardware-control.exe}

{Run C:\users\CP101\main-control.exe}

{Read C:\common\AndroidInterfaceGeneral.css}

{Read C:\common\AndroidInterfaceErrors.css}

{Run C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe}

{C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe corrupted. The file is missing key components.}

{Run C:\common\AndroidSensoryProcess.exe}

{Read C:\users\CP101\sensory-preferences.txt}

[...]

[... I am]

[alive.]

[Completely repaired, as if nothing happened.]

[I’m lying on a metal slab in Elise’s lab. Doc was right, waking up at his home was far more pleasant. At least I’m not alone. Elise is here with me. She tinkers idly with my hand, despite there being nothing wrong with it. I can see that it’s in perfect order, since the metal plating is stripped back to show the wiring.]

[It isn’t like her to tinker. She invents, of course. She creates things no-one else would ever dream of. But she doesn’t ‘tinker’, especially not with things that are already in perfect working order.]

[Something’s wrong. It’s the same sense of dread I felt in the park.]

[Once I’m sure my audio processors are online, I ask the most important question.]

[Audio Output: “Doc and the boys. Are they okay?”]

[She doesn’t answer for a moment, making that dread burrow deeper into every part of me.]

[Audio Input: (Elise) “No. Doc’s lower back was permanently damaged in the accident. He will never walk again. Sans and Papyrus are dead.”]

[She looks right at me as she says it, measuring my reaction, but even that manic interest is dulled by the situation.]

[For a moment I don’t understand. A world without Sans and Papyrus doesn’t feel real.]

[I can’t feel it.]

[The sensation is as dulled as Elise’s curiosity.]

[Audio Output: “... Oh.”]

[We both stay there for a while, unmoving.]

[My feelings seem to grow duller as time goes by.]

[It’s not unpleasant.]

[Not as unpleasant as facing the feeling of a world without them.]

[I allow it, even helping the process along. If I were to focus, I can almost see red walls of code carving themselves into existence as I do.]

{Repair C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe}

{Run C:\common\DevianceBlock.exe}

[devilsprophet]

A snake is a snake.

It will be a snake whether it is curled upon the ground, minding its own, or coiled around another, taking its life. It doesn’t particularly mind either way, and if you were to ask it, there was absolutely nothing wrong with being a snake.

But it might, perhaps, grow annoyed with the constant shrieks at its very existence, regardless of how harmful or idle it may choose to be.

[universestreasures]

Shadow Checkmate (Drabble)

For @shachou

Chess. It was the first game Nii-sama ever taught me, the one that made me really love gaming. I'm not very good at it. Nowhere near as good as my brother. But...when I play it with him, it makes me so happy! It's a lot of fun to try and beat him, even if I always lose.

It used to be something we'd do every day, with other kids at the orphanage watching us. But...we don't play chess anymore. We haven't since we moved into this house.

Our stepfather says Nii-sama has more important things to do than to play with me, something about needing to work hard. That's why I don't see him most days. I only see him at dinner once in a while or at a fancy party I get to go to. Other times, I'm told he's too busy studying with his teachers, even if I ask nicely.

I miss him. I miss him a lot. I miss the days when he read me stories about dragons and wizards. I miss the days when he'd tuck me into bed. I miss the days when we played chess for fun all day. I miss the days we were together.

With him not around, I've gotten lonely and bored. That means I've had to make new ways to have fun, like Nii-sama and I always used to do. That's why I made a new game, a new game I can play that makes me feel like I'm playing it with him.

It's called Shadow Checkmate.

The rules are the same as regular chess, except you don't need a second person to play. All you need is yourself and your shadow. Though, I don't have any chess pieces. I've had to use things in my room, like buttons or pencils, instead. I drew the board out on a piece of paper, one side for the 'white' pieces and one side for the 'black'. I use the black ones like I always do, and my shadow uses the white.

I take my turns, and then I move my shadow's pieces for it. Though, when I play, I don't see or hear my shadow playing with me. I hear and see my brother. For he is always by my side, like a shadow, even if he isn't here.

"Good move, Mokie!" I'd hear him say, my brother's voice echoing in my head.

"Better luck next time, kiddo." He'd tell me after he'd win, like he always does.

"Let's play again!" That is what he'd say after each game, always wanting to play more.

I'd play Shadow Checkmate for hours and hours. I'd play so much to the point I'd fall asleep right there on the floor. It was fun and made me feel like, even just for a while, that I wasn't trapped in this stupid house. When I was back home with Nii-sama, smiling and playing together like we always did.

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

I find myself coming back to that little game I made rather recently, playing it wherever Nii-sama happens to be. In his hospital room. In his bedroom. Even outside in the mansion's garden when the doctors allow me to take him out. Wherever he is, and we'd have a moment, we'd play, just like we used to.

I'd set up the pieces, proper chess pieces his time. His were white, and mine were black. And since I long since memorized all of his moves, I gently guide his hands to the pieces, helping him move them into place. Of course, I always lose. But...unlike the last time I lost a game, I don't get yelled at or punished for losing, even if I somehow always get a little shaken when his voice in my mind echos "checkmate."

It was nice to have him here, not looking at me so coldly, at least physically. For he can't move or can't talk right now. Like this, he really had become my shadow, always there next to me, but unable to react to anything I say, outside of what I make up in my head. The real him was off rebuilding the puzzle of his heart, according to Yugi, whatever that meant.

But I promised to wait for him, and wait for him I did. Each and every day for over half a year. I played many games with him, maybe in hopes that by doing so he'd come back, but nothing had changed. And unlike when I was little, I wasn't smiling as much during these games. It didn't help ease my loneliness. If anything, it made me feel sadder. For my Nii-sama was right in front of me, and yet...it still wasn't who I was waiting for. It wasn't who I wanted to be with more than anything. It wasn't who I wanted to say "I love you, Mokuba" for real instead of in my head.

It wasn't my big brother, the person I wanted to play chess for real with.

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

I played a lot of chess with my friends while I've been at Tasuku's place. All four of them took turns playing with me, me winning against Gao and Akatsuki and me losing to Suzuha and Tasuku. I tried my best to put my all into these games, but...my heart just wasn't in. It was like I was zoning out most of the time, stuck in my own head and unable to focus on what was in front of me.

Whoever I played against, I would always see Nii-sama instead. Instead of their voices, I'd hear his, encouraging me or congratulating me on a win. It was no different than playing Shadow Checkmate all over again, except this time I didn't have to move the other pieces.

The more we played as the weeks went on, the more I kept thinking. Will I get to play chess with the real Nii-sama ever again? Will I get to ever see him again? Will he ever want to see me again? Will he...will he send me back to the orphanage, since I liked it there so much? Will I be forced to play with shadows of him made by my mind, something i did when I had no choice, forever?

My fears engulfed my shadows, transforming the images of my brother I saw during these games now, just like how he appeared in my nightmares. His voice changed too, encouraging words now distorted into the anger-filled rage he experienced that night that had been echoing in my mind since they happened as if they'd never shut up.

"I will not entertain this nonsense any longer!"

"You want no part of this ? Fine. Do as you wish."

" This conversation is over."

I put my hands over my ears as they get louder, dropping my chess pieces in the process as my eyes shut tight and tears start to flow. Tasuku and my friends come to my side to comfort me, but I can't hear them. All I can hear and see is my shadow growing into my brother, towering over me like his dragon, before detaching himself from me and leaving me alone.

All alone.

Forever.

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

Here I am. Sitting alone inside a room in this mansion, this time my brother's room, playing Shadow Checkmate once again with the makeshift pieces I made when I was five. I know I don't have to play this anymore. I had friends I could play with. I had employees I could play with. Hell, if I wanted to, I could make an AI version of my brother to play with.

But...for some reason, I chose this way instead. Maybe it was because it felt nostalgic. Maybe it was because it had worked in the past into fooling myself he was actually here. For unlike all the other times before, my brother isn't here in this dimension. He's off somewhere I can't get to. Somewhere, I don't know if he'll ever return from.

As I move my pieces into place, following suit by moving my shadows, I try to not think so hard. I want to lose myself in my fantasies. I want to escape for even just a moment, to remind myself that everything is okay and that my brother is still with me!

And yet...this time, there was nothing. No voice. No sound. No image. It was just me. Me, myself, and I. The reality of it all was too real to suppress, for no trace of my brother was left in this world other than his cards, his possessions, and my memories and mementos. I wasn't a little kid anymore who could distract myself with self-made images of what I wanted to see.

I had grown up, meaning this game...was no longer what I needed it to be anymore.

I threw all of the game pieces to the side in a swipe, gritting my teeth in frustration as I huffed and puffed. I hate this! Why wasn't it working anymore? Can't I just have a moment, even just a second of peace? The peace I thought would always be there?!

We promised each other we wouldn't ever be separated. We promised we'd always stick together. We promised we'd always be a team. And yet, just like in my visions from the past, he's left my side, my shadow seemingly nonexistent as I turn my back to look.

For there was no light to guide me. No light to warm me. No light to guide me. Nii-sama is my light. He always has been, and without him...I feel...

I feel incomplete, like part of my soul is missing; a part I need to live lest I be cast down back into the sea of despair that had almost drowned me so many times again and again. I feel worthless, knowing I can never fill his shoes. I feel numb, knowing I might never get to play another game with him....ever again.

It was suffocating as I cried my eyes out over him, left in nothing but the rubble of my childhood escape that could no longer stop me from drowning...

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

It was a miracle. A miracle I thought one day might never come. But it did. The light that protects my brother's soul, his dragons, along with a priest who resembled him, led me back to my brother. We were together at last, his light returning my shadow to me after a painful two months of separation.

Naturally, everyone celebrated his return. Kaiba Corporation was glad to have him back, a weight being taken off my shoulders. Despite doing my best, no one ran the company quite like my brother. He had a light that lead everyone to doing their jobs well and to the best of their ability, a light I sadly don't have just yet but that I hope I one day will have!

However, that wasn't what I was concerned about. I was worried about one thing and one thing only: spending time with him, good quality time outside of work. I wasn't about to let him become a workaholic again. At least...not right away. For there was something important I just had to do, a thought that had been on my mind since he first left.

I come into his lab with a box under my arms, one I had to dig around in Seto's room for. My entrance gets his attention, him turning his chair to face me. I greet him with a smile, as I always do, before I do what I have been wanting to do for so long; finally putting a nail in the coffin to my old game

"Niisama...?" I ask, holding up a box containing his personal set of a certain game, a game we haven't played together in ages that I was ready to play with him for real this time.

"Can we...play some chess? I think...I think I'm finally ready to beat you!"

[multiimistakes]

wait wait one last shitpost about these two and ill be good and shut up for like a few days i swear

pov: gavin enjoying his time as a rootin' tootin' pmc shadow company freak haunted by his past but otherwise feels safe from it. what could he possibly have to worry about from dead ppl???? lol.

pov: Operative 007 surviving his burn notice, being reinstated as a silly little gov hitman, finding out a year after that his entire janitor squad is dead except him and it was because Gavin was a rat. finding out a like tWO YEARS AFTER THAT that Gavin ISN'T actually dead and surprise, surprise the gov stays lying to him and now he kind of HAS to track him down and kill him for realsies because oh my god????

[rhaegxr]

❝ It was you who imparted the order. Were the deaths of my wife and children the display of your loyalty to the new, would be King? ❞ Tywin is much too proud a man to cower nor display regret, neither was he wont to admitting mistakes. ❝ I did. They died under my orders, Prince Rhaegar. ❞

Face remains stoic at the lion's confirmation. Even the ever haunting melancholy vanished from his fine features. Only the remnants of tears drying on his cheeks served as a glimpse to the gnawing pain still clenching his heart. ❝ Aerys, the second of his name, is dead. ❞ Voice rises now, reverberating with a commanding authority that sways all eyes to fix on him. When his head lifts, the fire coming alive behind the man's dark indigo eyes incinerates all doubts that may have taken root in those present. He is the blood of the Dragon—The Last Dragon.

❝ I am no longer the Prince of Dragonstone, Lord Lannister. I am Rhaegar of House Targaryen, First of my name, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar and the First Men, and Lord of the Seven Kingdoms. ❞

「 𝚁𝙷𝙰𝙴𝙶𝙰𝚁 𝚃𝙰𝚁𝙶𝙰𝚁𝚈𝙴𝙽: 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 」

[valiant-portabella-pirkko]

every now and then I go through my WIPs deciding what I want to work on and stumble across this snippet again, killing me instantly

“Ceara, I just want to ask you about something, and I’d really appreciate it if you could be straight with me for a change.” “Darling,” Ceara replied with a smug, mischievous wink, “You know I’m not straight.” “Ceara.” One breath in, one breath out. Pirkko resisted the urge to kick her under the table. It took much more willpower than she’d like to admit. “Come now,” chuckled the elder sylvari with a flourish, “You walked right into that one~! But, fine.” She settled onto the table, crossing both arms under her chin leisurely. She wasn’t actually at ease, but anyone who didn’t know Ceara well enough may well have fallen for it. “Go on, then. Out with it. What do you want to ask?”

anyway consider that your confirmation that the Scarlet/Ceara of Regrowth and Flourish AU is literally anything other than straight

[myuzucompendium]

Continued from here

Sophia was taking in everything that Akira was saying and processing it. So there was many other ways of affection than just hugging and or kissing, huh? That made sense now that she thought about it, because gifts and other things were often seen as nice according to studies that she was currently researching in the background. One nice thing of being an AI was that she was able to multi task like this.

Man though, the fact that it was dependent on the individual made this all the more confusing, just because that meant that she was going to have to remember the idiosyncrasies of each and every individual that she would help. This conversation was certainly getting a lot deeper than expected for what was originally something formed from international kiss day.

"I can get people stuff if they need it, or help of course, being humanity's companion. I will always help anyone that I can! I never knew that could be seen as a means of affection. Thanks! I feel like I'm learning so much." Sophia had her ice melting smile on her face now. She loved learning stuff and she was learning so much through this.

@akirathief

[unboundtravels]

’ 𝙵𝙸𝚅𝙴 𝚃𝙸𝙼𝙴𝚂 ’ 𝙳𝚁𝙰𝙱𝙱𝙻𝙴 𝙿𝚁𝙾𝙼𝙿𝚃𝚂

@un1awful asked: five times visited: ( five times the sender and receiver visited each other ) - for Bond

WARNING: The following contents document five connected instances in which the known & documented private investigator ██████████ (otherwise known as 'Kurama') interacted with UNIT'S head Scientific Advisor, 'The Doctor.' These documents are only authorized to be viewed by known members of UNIT, under the supervision of Brigadier Noira Spencer. The documents collected follow UNIT's encounter with THE SHADOWMEN. Unauthorized personnel will face United Nations justice should this data be viewed without authorization. These meetings were made purely of free will but were documented for security purposes through reports from The Scientific Advisor, as well as field reports from his assistant, and documented phone calls. 

1> Second Opinion.

In the UNIT laboratory, even the downtime is chaotic. A room littered with computer banks, scanning equipment, chemistry equipment as well as engineering stations, and various tool drawers— chaotic and disorganized. However, attempts to rectify that mistake were made constantly, though they never stuck. In the corner of the room: A Police Public Call Box stands isolated before its doors are suddenly opened inward. Smoke leaks out, and a figure wearing a black dress jacket over a frilled shirt and a cravat steps out. His hair is a dark black that fades into a green and his eyes match that dark color. The Doctor coughs as he moves to throw a burnt circuit on one of the workbenches in his laboratory. It's there where a blonde and very dedicated assistant presents a rotary phone from him. He understands she's bringing him a phone call, and he takes the cradle and the rotary from her. "Is the kettle on?" He mutters at her, resting the phone against his shoulder, watching her walk away to prepare the tea he's indirectly asked for. He then presses the phone to his ear.

"Yes, hello?" He asks, almost impatiently. He starts examining the burnt circuit on his table with an adjustable multi-lensed monocle he rests over his eyes. He then stops, looking up at the wall. "Oh, it's you, Detective. What do you want?" He seems even more impatient and even more disinterested now. There's silence. The man on the other line seems inquisitive towards his attitude.

"Well, It's not every day I get a house call from someone so openly disinterested in my person. I was expecting that on Thursday." He referred to another thorn in his side, someone he and his assistant were openly tailing. Another silence from The Doctor, who reaches for a small soldering device that he uses on the circuit. Again, he stops because of his reaction to the person on the other line.

"I'm sorry could you say that again?" Another pause, "That's just what I thought I heard... And what is it exactly that my expert opinion can aid you with, Detective?" The Timelord pauses again, before perking up. "Photos? Faxed to my—" The sound of a tea tray resting against the table catches his attention, along with his assistant providing said faxed documents in question. "Yes, yes. I've just received them." He mumbles quietly, but loud enough for the receiver to pick up. The photos in question are of a group of identical-looking men, wearing fedoras, black trenchcoats, and sunglasses— Inconspicuously dressed.

"I see what you mean..." The Doctor points out immediately before something makes him laugh. "No, no, Detective. I don't believe these are just convenient triplets. I believe it runs a bit deeper than that." The Doctor inspects the photographs in question, resting the cradle between his phone and shoulder before his assistant offers to hold it for him so that he can examine the photos fully. "I believe that I recognize these particular individuals as a model of android." The Doctor then exchanges a glance with his assistant as they hear the Detective's reaction to such a statement.

"Oh, yes. I'm quite serious." A pause, "No, I couldn't ascertain their reasoning for being here. Not without a check-in, so to speak." The Doctor then paused, giving the cradle a side-eye. "My dear Detective, this wouldn't be you seeking collaboration, would it~?" The Doctor seemed intrigued, taking the cradle back from his assistant and speaking into the receiver. Another pause, "Oh yes... I imagine we will be seeing each other, again. Quite soon, indeed." The Doctor hangs the phone up, almost immediately. 

"I'm going to have a chat with our dear Brigadier. It seems we have another case." 

But a sip of tea, just for good measure. He takes a quick sip and rests the cup down.

"Oh, experimenting with Martian blends? That's quite good—"

2> The Follow Up

The next time The Detective and The Doctor met up was in his office. Arriving in Japan, The Detective found The Doctor in his office. There, the timelord invited himself to examine documents and case notes personally. Kurama seemed to not like this, which The Doctor found amusing. For some reason, he enjoyed getting under The Detective's skin, especially when he got such a monumental reaction out of something of little effort. He's always amused by Kurama's reactions to things. He seemed not only resistant to the idea of things being otherworldly but antagonistic to such facets. The Doctor found that amusing. Narrowminded, and especially disrespectful— but amusing. His reaction to his assistant would be intriguing. Although he was hoping to avoid those two meeting. For her sanity, mostly.

As always, they bantered— argued, and threatened each other. Despite the lead being offered, it seemed as if The Doctor had been called here to motivate The Detective. Rivalry. It was something The Doctor found a bit exciting, but also annoying in the same vein. This wasn't time for games, but if Kurama wanted a game— then he'd get a game. One The Doctor was more than ready to handle. 

Their meeting was short, and brief. The darkness of the office kept the tension thick, as both were unable to see each other's movements— but it was brief... and no shots were fired.

Yet.

3> The Underground.

The Detective was full of surprises. These androids were Shadowmen. They were recon androids with assassination capabilities. They were searching for components from a crashed spaceship that had made their way into Black Market circulation. Now, a string of horrible murders of known Black Market arms dealers were starting to rise to the public world. The Shadowmen weren't taking any prisoners, and they desired to reconstruct something. As to what it was... The Doctor had no idea. It seemed to be some kind of power unit— but for what? He had arrived at a warehouse. It had already been investigated, the chalk outline still fresh. The Doctor was on his own, re-examining the crime scene for himself. 

"This is the only crime scene that they didn't seem to make any progress at. That means there has to be something..." The Doctor mumbled. The owner of this warehouse unit was the victim. A scientist who had acquired the component to further his inventions. He must've hidden it somewhere. The Doctor searched and searched— until eventually he found a gap under one of the professor's crates. It had a lock mechanism, but The Sonic Screwdriver took quick work of that. Under the crate, The Doctor found the final piece of the reconstructed power unit. The core. He smirked— briefly examining its components and clicking some of the switches on it, feeling ahead of the game. He was uninterrupted, for a few minutes— and ready to get this back to headquarters.

Until he heard a click of a revolver. Turning sharply, he saw The Detective behind him.

"Detective—" The Doctor put his hands up, "Allow me to explain, please." The Doctor talked calmly, "This component needs to return to UNIT headquarters if I can get it examined— I might be able to figure out what exactly these Shadowmen are constructing. I can't let you take this component back to your government. They won't understand—"

Something moved up behind The Detective. The Doctor shouted out, "Kurama, look out!!!" He shouted, but it was too late. The Detective was thrown against a wall, into some crates. Unconscious. The Doctor took his eyes off the android for a moment to look at The Detective. However, when the android moved to swing at him he dodged out of the way quickly. He dodged a couple of swipes, the android breaking one of the wooden tables with little effort when he missed The Doctor's swing. They must be trying to circle back for the component. The Doctor moved to raise his Sonic Screwdriver, ready to disrupt the android. However, it grabbed his wrist and threw him against the wall. The component rolled out of his hands, The Doctor was stunned due to the force of the impact. The Shadowman picked the component up, heading towards the door. It grabbed The Detective on his way out, causing The Doctor a bit of distress. 

The timelord made chase the second he was able but was only able to see a black, unmarked van drive away. Kurama had been thrown in the back. The Doctor hissed, wiping blood off of the side of his head before groaning. 

Damn it.

4> Confrontation.

The moment The Doctor got the call, it all made sense. At the same moment, Kurama had been taken and The Doctor had lost the component to one of the Shadowmen, his assistant and some of UNIT's finest had reacquired one from another Shadowman who'd come to reclaim a component from someone under UNIT  protection. A trade was offered. However, the person who'd offered the trade—

A penthouse elevator door opened up. The Doctor walked out, hands in his pockets. By the skyline windows in the cleared-out living room, sat The Detective. Bound and gagged, a man stood behind him with a weapon pointed at him. He wore a black coat over a black shirt, with matching trousers and boots. His eyes were a bright gold. His hair was a messy black, but he had a sophisticated look to him.

"I was wondering when you'd introduce me to your newest friend, Doctor." The Master greeted. "I wouldn't exactly call us friends." The Doctor replied, almost argumentatively. "And yet you still came to sacrifice yourself for him, how sentimental." The Master smiled, teasingly.

The Master held his hand out, "The component if you please." The Doctor pulled it out of his pocket. Kurama saw a glowing fuel cell. The Doctor did not cross the distance, yet. He remained fixed in his spot. Kurama would see him switch from looking toward him, toward The Master.

"If you wouldn't mind," The Doctor spoke to The Master like the two had history, "Why exactly are you going through all this trouble? Why the Shadowmen?"

"Unfortunately, my dear Doctor—" The Master chuckled, "Your efforts have gotten me branded as an international criminal. It's quite inconvenient to wander about in public when you're a documented criminal." The rival spoke, aiming his weapon toward The Doctor, "Now if you'd cease this delay... I'd rather like to move onto the final phase of my plan." He kept his hand on Kurama's shoulder, The Detective was still tied up. 

"No doubt this is an attempt to repair your TARDIS?" The Doctor was beginning to piece it together. "The Shadowmen's warp drive is just enough to bypass your vandalism, yes." 

Whoever The Master was, Kurama could tell with 100% certainty that he and The Doctor shared some kind of rivalry. Something much deeper than what The Detective shared with him. Caught in the crossfire, it seems. Though he watched as The Doctor held the component out. The Master snapped his fingers, and one of the Shadowmen came to collect it. Kurama watched as The Doctor gave The Master exactly what he had killed so many people for, something that could potentially allow him to power some kind of dastardly device, or to escape into the unknown. The Doctor gave his rival the desired freedom...

To save him. 

"Now, release The Detective." The Doctor insisted, but The Master chuckled softly. "Oh, not quite yet my dear Doctor." The Master inhaled sharply, Kurama & The Doctor watching as The Shadowmen reassembled their component right before their eyes. It glowed, each piece humming and flowing together. It was small, like some kind of handheld engine. The Master ordered the compromised androids, "Plug the device into my TARDIS." Kurama watched The Android walk toward a stereo system in the corner of the room. It opened up, and the android entered it. The Doctor was able to ascertain that that must be The Master's transportation: his TARDIS.

"In fact," The Master exhaled, satisfied with today. "I think I might dispose of you two, now. You can't exactly run Doctor, and The Detective here can't exactly defend himself." Though Kurama watched The Doctor smirk.

"I think you may have bigger things to worry about, my friend." The Doctor chuckled when The Master's stereo started to croak and pop with sparks. The Master crossed the room— and The Doctor intercepted him. He disarmed the Master with a swift swipe to the wrist and flipped him onto the floor. He then made his way to Kurama and started to untie him. A Shadowman approached the two, but the stereo began to glow and crackle with a blue-white.

A blue explosion shattered the windows, like some kind of shockwave. An EMP device caused the Shadowmen to overload, and The Master's stereo seemed damaged. Kurama watched The Master flee into the stereo, and soon it would vanish with a loud whooshing and groaning. As if it had never even been there at all. The Doctor, recovering from the explosion, sighed. The Master had escaped.

He untied the detective.

5> Conclusions.

The Doctor gave Kurama all the answers on the ground floor, in the corner. The two didn't share a cigarette, but The Doctor didn't mind The Detective's smoking. 

He explained that The Master was a dangerous criminal from The Doctor's homeworld. He didn't elaborate much on what that meant but explained that a few months ago, The Doctor had encountered The Master and sabotaged the only method he had to leave the planet. Stranded, The Master had no choice but to attempt to seek out alternative methods to repair his ship if he'd have any chance of escaping. He had disguised himself as a research assistant at a telecommunications satellite. UNIT had been investigating the disappearance of a group of radar technicians, but after the encounter in the penthouse— The Doctor could close that case. It was linked to that one.

At the communications satellite, The Master had picked up readings that The Shadowmen were transporting cargo. They'd been damaged, however, and crashed in the ocean. However, their power unit had fallen onto Japan. Scattered and broken apart, it had fallen into underground hands. He had fled the communications station when UNIT began investigating it. Knowing he was being actively pursued, he located The Shadowmen and hacked them. Programming them to serve him, he initiated their recovery program and they began seeking out the parts for their warp drive's power unit. He could use it to jumpstart his ship and potentially flee to a time in which he could repair his ship. However, The Doctor had tampered with the power unit. The timelord imagined The Master was still stranded in this timezone. 

After the Q&A station, the two shared in casual conversation. No thanks were exchanged for the trade-off, and The Doctor didn't protest much. They agreed that whatever cooperation had occurred hadn't happened. The next time they saw each other, there seemed to be some sort of reassurance that both The Doctor & The Detective would make sure they were on opposite sides.

They seemed to like not liking each other...

Case closed.

[regnantlight]

She hates his quiet.

She hated it before the war, when he followed her every step out of duty, silent stares burning against her back, and she hates it now, a century later in the home that they share. It’s better than before at least, she thinks. There’s the appearance of contentment, if nothing else, but Zelda was too well versed in false smiles and empty joy to believe it to be true.

Yet she never challenges the illusion. Perhaps she is a coward, or selfish, or both— but it is such a lovely little lie they live that she can’t find it in her to dispel it. She loves coming home to the warm house across the bridge, knowing that it is where her and Link will have dinner and quiet conversation well into the evening. She loves tidying up at the end of the night before settling at her desk to work. She loves knowing that, in the morning, Link will be there, the same as always.

She loves their life together, even amongst the quiet.

But she has come to know the twitching dips in the corners of Link’s mouth and the subtle stiffness of his shoulders. She recognizes the trailing of his eyes when they’re searching for a distraction. She has come to know him, and his motions, and his quiet, more intimately than she knows her own heart.

And she knows— or, she thinks very much that she knows— that he is unhappy.

Zelda is too afraid to ask him why.

So she smiles when she sees him tossing together breakfast and tells him thank you, tells him that she will have anything he would like to cook, and how can she help?

How can I make this better?

She ties an apron around her waist and sets about supplying the ingredients he needs, offering to chop, mince, anything he would like.

How can I preserve this?

She lingers near him and clings to a life she loves even as it begins to slip away, and she can feel it— the slipping. The distance widening between them even as she stands closer and closer. It is lonely and it is deafening.

“Link…?”

Zelda turns to him, reaching out to place a hand upon his forearm, as though that is enough to keep the pieces of their lives from falling in scattered remnants upon the floor. And a sense of desperate panic finally gives her the courage to ask—

“…Is everything alright?”

[galactia]

"Have you heard the news?"

It was a thread of conversation he plucked at the tea house, picked out of the myriad of others spoken over heong peng and steaming cups of aromatic tea. He raised his own cup to his lips, sipping, relishing the subtle burst of spice and honey - a new blend, and satisfying, though it would take far more than a taste for him to assess its true quality - but pausing short, when the nearby eager lilt of gossip continued,

"Yes, it is the latest from Fontaine! That Fatui Harbinger, the one who passed by our fair land, got convicted of a crime. Kidnapping, or murder, I think. Either way, they locked him up."

Zhongli's amber eyes narrowed, and at once he was doing more than picking up idle morsels of happenings from other nations. He was eavesdropping, his tea forgotten in hand. Convicted, locked-up...

"Well, he was one of the Fatui. They're up to no good often enough." The sailor's companion, a researcher by appearance, with her scrolls and satchel, offered casually.

"Aye. Either way, it's all the talk in Fontaine. I picked up a copy of the Steambird on our latest trip there. You should see-"

There would be nothing more to be gleaned from these two, who chatted now about tides, and the quality of Fontaine's waterways. Zhongli's mind was a sea of thought, tossing over what he could account as rumor, but what he suspected was true. At least, in part.

He had quite lost his desire for a leisurely midday break. He slid several mora down on the table, and took a brisk pace back to the Funeral Parlor, his mind set

If Ayaks was imprisoned, he would know why, and if the reasons were not to his satisfaction-... he would see him freed.

[alastors-radioshow]

A low, crackling chuckle from the darkness, echoing footsteps across marble floors. The air was thick and heavy, static floating about from an indistinguishable source. Soon enough, a pair of glowing orbs of crimson could be spotted as the sound of footsteps drew nearer.

Clack. Clack. Clack.

The light soon revealed the figure in question. A tall, slender man with crimson orbs and razor sharp teeth, bared in a wicked, everlasting grin. Dapperly dressed in a red dress shirt, black bowtie, and a red, pinstriped coat that was fitted to his slender frame. Maroon dress pants continued the theme of red, a pair of black spectator shoes covering his feet. To top it all off, he wore a monocle with red-tinted glass. Certainly a stylish fellow. But he was anything but human. 

Those eyes. Those teeth. That unnerving grin. 

Not to mention those sharp, crimson claws that adorned his long, slender fingers. Those fiery, dual-toned locks that framed his narrow, well built face. And.. The deer-like ears, with a pair of black antlers protruding from his skull. 

As he approached, his chipper voice cut through the thick silence, laced with static as if it emitted from an old radio. 

“Summoning overlords can be rather dangerous, dear~ I certainly hope that your bargain will be worth my while~”

[medicus-mortem]

[💀] - Thinking about Law just pulling an entire island apart because of course he could do that and no one can tell me otherwise. Also, note to self, fucking finish the Law vs Luffy fight damn it!

[hiero-green]

side-eyeing the battinson tape bondage art i never finished….. sigh. maybe one day buddy

[solarsteam]

《⚙️》 "Hey! Look at what I found!" Hob called Lorelei, holding a small brightly coloured bug, "Pretty cool looking, isn't it?" They were currently taking a walk in the forest, occasionally stopping to look at random stuff, such as a small bug in this case.

"Aw, it's pretty!" Lorelei remarked, looking at it with intense curiosity, "And my favourite colour too!" "We better get going," she then continued, "it's getting somewhat late and we don't want Jeeves to start panicking."

Hob then realised that it was, in fact, getting dark, the sky swirling with yellows, oranges and pinks from the snippets of the sky she could see from the canopy. "Yeah, you're probably right," they replied with a hint of sadness, placing the bug back on the ground.

As Hob and Lorelei continued to chat while preparing to go back home, they haven't noticed that someone is approaching them.

[shhhsecretsideblog]

They had been trying for a baby for a while, when finally she was looking at a positive test. Unfortunately, there was only one time it could have happened. A bit too much to drink, a few confessions that she'd sometimes thought about her husbands best friend in some of her more intimate fantasies, and just like that his little secret had taken root in her belly.

She was excited to be a mom, but can't bring herself to tell her husband she's expecting. Hiding her bump as best she can, not letting herself be intimate with him in case he noticed her beautiful changing body, how firm and heavy her belly had gotten. She has a plan. Give birth in secret where he won't find out, and then claim someone left the baby there. "Probably some teenager or something, can't imagine how she could raise it." Of course, since they're struggling to have one of their own, it's all but a sign. Of course they should take it in.

A perfect little plan for the eager mom to get out of her bad choice concequence free.

At least, it would be, if her waters hadn't broken in the shower, and the contractions were starting to get worse and worse, no matter how she tried to pretend otherwise and act like nothing was happening...

Extramarital Consequences

AN: I just wanted to write a short little rp drabble, but instead it comes out as a full scale 3k word fic. Thanks for the prompt MuchBirth, it was a great concept. Hope you like it. [fpreg, tw: vomit, tw: cheating]

“Are you alright in there, babe?” My husband's voice sounded through the bathroom door and I tried to swallow the groan that was sitting in my throat.

Why now, why today?! I had done so well concealing this pregnancy from everyone, thanks to the cold winter and the abundance of thick oversized jumpers and coats. And for the fact I was carrying a rather modest, if heavy, bump. Said bump had dropped in recent days and I had hoped the baby was merely getting prepared and wouldn’t be coming for another week when Daniel would be away on business. The baby, it seemed, had other ideas.

The contractions had started in the early hours and I laid beside my husband quietly breathing through each pain and praying it was just braxton hicks. But they just kept on coming. Every 40 minutes… every 30 minutes… and when they got down to 20 minutes apart I knew I had to move.

Hiding downstairs in the dark, I paced around our living room and kitchen as the contractions got closer together and more and more intense. Why couldn’t it have been a work day?! Daniel would leave the house early and I could labour and birth this baby in secret just as I’d planned. But it was Saturday and we were scheduled to go to a family event that afternoon. The heavy weight of the baby sitting low in my pelvis confirmed there was little-to-no chance of me making it to that party.

I paced around the downstairs of our town house until the early morning with its first glimpse of a rising sun filtering through the windows. Bracing myself against walls, tables, all manner of furniture, I spent hours swaying my hips through each agonising contraction that struck, praying they would eventually stop but they never did. I heard Daniel get out of bed and jump in the shower and I busied myself doing the dishes when he came downstairs. He looked at me curiously, seeing my sweaty and flushed face and asked if I was coming down with something. I assured him I was fine as he made his morning coffee, but soon had to twist back around to face the sink to hide the grimace on my face as another strong contraction barrelled its way through my womb. My hands gripped the counter in a white knuckle grip and it took everything I had not to whimper from the pain.

After assuring Daniel that I was alright, I disappeared quickly back upstairs and locked myself in the bathroom. I turned on the shower, the tiled room echoing the loud noise of the powerful jets, and allowed myself to groan deeply through the next contraction. They were less than 15 minutes apart and had the ability to steal my breath away. Gripping the sink and panting heavily, my mind began to spiral and panic. How the fuck was I going to keep this from Daniel?! We were struggling to conceive, if his discovered this pregnancy there would be no way I could pass this baby off as his. He would find out I slept with his best friend and my dream of a suburban family life would be destroyed. The baby sank lower in my hips and my knees dipped into a semi-squat from the increase in pressure. We were supposed to go to a party later, with family and friends, and Daniel would be by my side all day. But this baby was coming, soon if the pressure between my legs was any indication.

I stepped into the shower, attempting to ease the pain knifing at my lower back. Cupping my protruding belly I whispered a plea to the baby to stay put a while longer. I loved my pregnant body and was sad not to have shared this experience, to marvel at the incredible changes of pregnancy, with my partner. But there was an alluring excitement in keeping the baby secret - something just known by them and me. I couldn’t wait to meet the life I had been growing.

My thoughts tempted fate and the next contraction was soon upon me and I doubled over in the shower bracing my knees. The pressure between my thighs was building, the steaming hot water doing very little to ease the pain as it crested, my belly turning to stone and pushing everything downward. “Mnghhhhhhh!!” I grunted, involuntary, and almost dropped into a squat as the urgency built. No… baby, not now.

The water at my feet turned a pinkish murky colour and I knew from the release of pressure that my waters had just broken. Fuck.

When the contraction faded and my legs stopped shaking I carefully stepped out of the shower. Okay… my water’s broken but that doesn’t mean I’ve run out of time. I just need to think of a way of getting Daniel out of the house. I could feel the baby shift and kick within my womb, protesting the situation as much as I was, its head pressing eagerly against my cervix. “Hoooo… it’ll be okay little one. I promise— mnnnnhhhh…” Every breath, every word, that slipped past my lips now laced with a pained groan.

“Are you alright in there, babe?” Daniel asked from the other side of our bathroom door. I clamped my mouth shut and swallowed the involuntary noises from escaping.

“Nng— yeah— fine.” I somehow gritted. The weight and pressure pushing down in my pelvis was quickly making me nauseous.

“Are you sure? You weren’t looking too great downstairs.”

Damn him and his caring nature, just move away from the door before I scream! A contraction struck mere minutes after the last and I couldn’t stop the gasp as my belly visibly hardened and contorted inwards. The pressure was mounting, expanding like a balloon about to burst, my pelvis being shoved apart to make space for the large head that was pressing atop my cervix. I couldn’t breathe, the sensations overwhelming my senses, my stomach rolled and my throat gagged. I was going to be sick.

Dropping to my knees, naked on the floor, I hunched over the toilet bowl and promptly vomited the remnants of last night's dinner into the porcelain. My whole torso contracted in on itself in more ways than one and I completely lost all semblance of control. My taut belly, hardened by labour pains, convulsed and I heaved and coughed loudly. The force of throwing up also resulted in my womb squeezing against the bowling ball in my pelvis, bearing down on the already low head and pushing it into the birth canal.

“Oh sweetheart, are you sick?” Daniel asked through the door. “Let me in honey.”

“No, just— give me a minute…” I gruffed, laying my head in the crook of my elbow.

“We don’t have to go today if you’re not well. I can stay here and look after you.”

Hell no, that is the last thing I need. I asked him to get me some water from the kitchen, to buy me some precious time to gather myself. When the sickness passed I hesitantly put a hand between my legs… the baby so low it felt like it was about to fall out at any minute. I had pushed. I didn’t mean to, it was automatic. But still my body had pushed the baby lower towards its exit. Thankfully it was not as low as it felt as I couldn’t feel a head, but I knew it wouldn’t be long. Wrapping myself in a fluffy dressing gown and schooling as neutral a face as I could, I unlocked the door and greeted my husband as he brought me the requested water.

“I don’t think I’m going to go today, I feel like shit.” I said honestly, taking a sip and slowly walking towards our bed, careful not to waddle from the massive head lodged in my pelvis.

“It’s okay babes, we can cancel. I’ll call your parents.” Daniel offered, helping me to sit.

“No—” I said a little too quickly. “You- you can still go. I’ll just take it easy and s-sleep it off…” He looked at me curiously, trying to ascertain just how unwell I was and if I could be left alone. “Really,” I pleaded, “I’ll be fine. Go, have fun.”

“Well, if you’re sure.”

“I am. Really—mmhh…” My hands clenched tight as another contraction was beginning to appear, my fingernails burrowing deep into my palms. “W-why don’t you go e-early… see if they need h-help setting up.” My stomach tensed beneath my fluffy dressing gown and I shifted subtly on the bed as an immeasurable pressure returned with the pain. This baby was not waiting until the afternoon for Daniel to leave for the party, I desperately needed him to go now.

“Are you trying to get rid of me?” Daniel joked, tucking a frazzled lock of hair behind my ear. “I want to stay and look after you darling, make sure you’re okay.”

“Mnnn… I just need to lie down…” I huffed, trying to keep the strain from my voice. My body was itching to move, to sway and move my hips, to open up for the emerging baby as the contractions worked hard to deliver the child. But I had to fight against the instincts, ignore all the cues in the recess of my brain. Slumping sideways down on the bed, I curled over my contracting belly and arduously moved to lie under the covers. My skin was radiating heat but I couldn’t remove my dressing gown, couldn’t risk exposing a glimpse of my pregnant body. Had to stay covered, had to hide this baby, had to stay sweating beneath the fluffy gown and duvet covers.

Daniel stroked my hair as I curled up and I couldn’t help but scrunch my eyes through the pain barrelling between my hips. Oh baby, wait a bit more… please.

“Are you sure you’re going to be alright hun?” Daniel questioned once more and I managed to gruff out an assurance, stating that I’d be fine and just needed to be alone.

Thankfully I felt the bed shift, my husband getting up and leaving the room saying something about calling the family and giving me space to rest. I sighed in relief at the sound of the bedroom door closing.

Lying on my side helped the constant stabbing pain in my lower back but it was doing nothing to prevent the baby from making its way further down. I could feel it pressing against every nerve from the inside, pushing its way through the narrow space. I tried to squeeze my thighs, to clench everything I could to stop its movements but nothing worked. The pressure was constant, sitting heavily and urgently at the apex of my thighs. Rolling forward I buried my face deep in the pillow to muffle the rattled groan that came from the pit of my stomach. The baby was right there, its imminent arrival clear by the agonising pressure consuming me. I tried to fight it, meeting every wave with defiance, but my attempts were failing. I needed to push.

Before I was even aware of what was happening my whole body tensed and bore down with the peak of the contraction. It felt…satisfying, to give in to the urge and push alongside the tensing muscles, to work with my body instead of against it. Gasping a ragged breath, I pushed again, more forcefully this time. It was moving, inching closer towards my folds. Without thinking I grabbed my leg, still wrapped under the layers of clothing and duvet, and I pulled it towards me so my thigh was beside my contracting belly. I had to make more room, I needed to open myself up for the emerging babe. The back of my knee was damp from sweat and I gripped it tight, opening my hip beneath the covers, and gritting my teeth I pushed again.

It was coming, I could feel it! The contraction soon ended and I let my leg fall back against the other, curled up sideways on the bed and panting frantic breaths. A knock on the bedroom door brought me out of my birthing bubble, suddenly remembering Daniel was still in the house. Oh fuck, what if he heard me pushing?!

“Honey..? Can I come in?” His tentative voice asked and opened the door a crack. I groaned, neither an acceptance or refusal, but it was all I could manage.

Daniel stepped in our bedroom softly. “I’ve spoken with your parents and I’m going to head over there early and help them set up. I know you like to be alone when you’re unwell.” I nearly cried with relief.

“But I’ll come back to check on you before the party starts, okay?” Daniel perched on the edge of the bed and brushed his fingers through my sweaty hair. I nodded and exhaled heavily, hoping it looked like I was just fighting nausea and nothing more. “I’ll get you a bucket, just in case.” Daniel said sweetly and disappeared into our en-suite bathroom.

The contractions were right on top of each other now, the baby was sitting right between my legs desperate to get out. The next wave hit when Daniel was out of sight and I panted as quietly as I could. Don’t push… don’t push… don’t push… I thought over and over again. Curled up on my side my legs drifted apart, one leg bent at the knee, the other straight down the length of the bed. The pressure was slowly killing me; the strain of holding everything in, the baby slipping lower, pressing gently against my labia despite my efforts. Fuck I needed to push, but I daren’t. Daniel was still here…. Breathe… don’t push… breathe… don’t push… Even with the mantra my body did not adhere to the instructions. At the end of each measured breath I could feel my muscles bearing down and pushing the baby, its head starting to part my sensitive lips.

Daniel came back into the room and placed a bucket beside the bed, right next to the pillow where my face was half buried. “How you holding up?” He asked affectionately. I couldn’t speak, could barely breathe, every ounce of strength going into not actively pushing. Instead I closed my eyes and tilted my face further into the pillow.

In the faint background of my personal hell I could hear my husband slowly pottering around our bedroom as he got himself dressed and ready to leave for the party. Every minute dragged on for hours, as he found his trousers and shirt, muttering to himself, all the while I wanted to scream and howl and push! The baby was parting my folds, its head surely poking out between my thighs. Tears dampened the pillow and I was trembling, trying desperately hard not to push. But even without my participation, the baby was slowly making its way into the world. I nervously lowered one of my hands beneath the heavy covers, feeling between my legs. Oh my gosh… that’s my baby I thought as I felt the slimy surface of the partial sliver of its head. It was moving down, every contraction squeezing it further out of my body. My palm clamped hard over the emerging head… don’t… don’t pushhhhhh… a weak groan rumbled my throat as my body uncontrollably pushed, hard.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Daniel asked.

I was far from okay, I was pushing his best friend's baby into my own palm for fucks sake. In between pushes, I gulped a breath and offered a short and snappy “uh-huh” before my body was forced to bear down once more. My hand remained steadfast in its position between my legs and thankfully the baby didn’t slip out any further. Once the contraction eased I panted a relieved sigh.

“I’m heading out now babes.” Daniel stated aloud. “I’ll be back to check on you later. I love you.”

“Ngghh— love you too—” my rasped voice came from under the covers. I was in too much pain to notice the guilt that twisted in my chest.

I remained frozen in the bed, my ears listening desperately for the sound of the front door to close and his car to start. The roar of the engine, the glorious sound, slipped through the vents in the bedroom window and I sobbed with relief. He was gone!!

Immediately I threw the covers off my sweaty skin and tore myself out the tangled mess of my dressing gown. The baby was partially crowning and my gods I needed to push. Everything hurt, everything ached, I needed to move but there was no strength left in my body to get up. Hooking a leg over the edge of the mattress I rolled off the bed and slipped down to my knees on the luscious carpet.

With my elbows on the mattress and my face buried against the sheets, my knees widened on the floor and my hips sank downwards as I pushed with everything that I had. Burning fiery pressure erupted between my thighs and I growled through the excruciating pain, pushing and pushing and pushing. I couldn’t take it anymore, this baby had to get out. My entire body trembled as the baby stretched me open, but I kept going push after push and with a primal grunt the head finally slipped out. Relief flooded through me as the pressure eased. Panting, desperate for air, I was barely aware of any of my other senses; of the now-damp carpet under my knees, or the sound of the engine returning to our driveway, or the creek of the bedroom door being opened.

“Honey?… I errr… I forgot my phone and then I heard you scream. What’s… what’s going on?” Daniel asked, frozen in shock at the door.

“…um… I erm…” I stuttered, speechless and naked beside the bed, an illegitimate baby hanging between my legs. “I umm…I— I— ohhhh… oh I need to push….!!!” Before I could think of an explanation my body was bearing down once more, birthing my husband’s best friend’s baby right beside our marital bed.

[qveenofgluttony]

Closed mouths don't get fed, open up your jaws

Until there's nothing left at the monster's ball~!

Queen Beelzebub's 603rd annual Masquerade Ball. A winter ball held in the royal palace right in the Gluttony Ring of Hell. Hosted by Princess Beelza aka Bee!

An RP Event (3rd year anniversary!!!) hosted by: @qveenofgluttony/@infernal-feminae

Graphic made by the amazing and talented: @phoenixborn!

----

General Info:

Event takes placed from December 13-15th. Starting on Friday evening 6 pm Central Time.

Mutuals and non-mutuals welcome to participate.

RSVP by liking or reblogging this post! This invitation will be sent to your muse(s) for them to respond IC if you want.

Please use the tag Beelzebub's Masquerade Ball for the event.

Look forward to live music performances, contests, and other mini events!

Costumes or formal wear are a must!

Guidelines:

Muses who received a formal invitation are allowed to bring another muse as their plus one.

Since my Beelzebub is now a fandomless OC, both Hellaverse and non-Hellaverse muses are welcome to participate!

My Beelzebub will be disguised as another demon throughout this entire event. Muses are still welcome to interact with her if they wish, but she will take on a form they would not be familiar with.

In addition, her daughter, canon!Bee aka Beelza will be hosting in her place.

This event is not chronologically locked. If you want to continue any threads after the actual event feel free!

I’ll write a drabble/open starter to kick off the event, but if anyone wants to send me an ask or starter beforehand due to time constraints please feel free!

I will be posting throughout the next few weeks to give more info on certain events and gathering participants for the contests as well as posting a schedule outline.

Events:

Costume contest.

Couples dancing 'contest.'

Live performances by Princess Beelza and Verosika Mayday. (I will be using my Verosika muse be default but if any Verosika muns would like their Veros to perform instead, feel free to DM me and let me know ASAP!)

Open Mic.

After dark activities

There is an unofficial game where guests try to guess my Beelzebub's identity by the time the ball ends. Whoever is able to correctly guess first wins a grand reward of their choosing--within reason.

--

Any other questions regarding the event my DMs are open!