#smiler bun

[angelbunny101]

I’m obsessed, ok ;w; My Smiler Bun for the third time!

[hearts4hughes]

“there it is, there’s that smile!” and “you got me flowers?” with jack please!

nora’s 500 celly !!

-

you weren’t sure how you felt. last night was yours and jack’s first ever fight. you both bickered and disagreed from time to time, but nothing ever this serious.

every relationship has fights, right? so why was there this sense of dread hanging over you like a dark cloud? maybe it’s because the unresolved argument, or maybe it’s the fear of losing jack.

a knock on your apartment door snaps you back into reality. you groan, tossing the blanket off of your body and stomping to the front door. not even bothering to look into the peephole, you swing open the door.

“jack?” your eyes widen in surprise as your boyfriend stands outside your door with a bouquet of flowers in hand. your hand flies up to your hair to adjust your messy bun.

he smiles, “hi baby.”

you move out of the way so he can enter your apartment. closing the door, you turn around to see him holding the flowers out to you. your heart melts at the gesture.

graciously accepting the flowers, you admire them and jack’s unusually beautiful taste in floral arrangements.

“you got me flowers?” you swore you could’ve melted into a puddle right there and then, but you maintain your composure.

“i’m sorry we got into a fight last night, lovie. i could barely sleep last night because i knew you were upset.” he paused to take a deep breath, “i was being a total idiot yesterday, and once again, i’m sorry. it killed me not waking up next to your gorgeous face, lovie.”

red floods your cheeks all the way to the tips of your ears and a huge grin tugs on your lips.

“there it is, there’s that smile!” he exclaims, walking towards you and cupping your face with his hands. your smiler grows even wider when he begins peppering kisses all over your face, finally landing on your lips.

[cazzyf1]

Some of my favourite quotes from David Benson's 'Hunt v Lauda'

'He was nursing a toy yellow-eyed gorilla which made alarming noises and clapped a pair of cymbals attached to its hand.

"Whats with the gorilla?"

James looked tired. "It's called smiler. Alistair and Teddy gave it to me to celebrate my championship."

Teddy smiled benignly: "The gorilla was not very popular in first-class lounge I'm afraid."

"No," said James, "and they wouldn't let me blow my whistle either." He produced a police whistle and blew it.' - p7

"When we boarded the plane, he (James Hunt) insisted on joining mechanics in touring class until the lights were turned down for passengers to sleep." - p8

"Niki had always wanted to marry Mariella but she had refused to do so until he had become world champion." - p21

"The unsuspecting young actress Marlene Knaus was going to endure a trial that few women, even with a tremendously experienced and well-founded background, could have endured." - p21

"I telephoned James Hunt in Johannesburg where he is preparing for the South African Grand Prix. He told me, "I have been in daily contact with Susy and am fully informed about what is going on. I wouldn't stop her getting a divorce. I am trying to help her as much as I can so that she makes the right decisions. Obviously if she wanted to come back to me, I would help her do that." - p40

"I walked out of the dinning-room to an annexe alongside it, and sitting in the corner with a lady I didn't know was Niki Lauda; he smiled and asked a Carol and me to join him for a cup of coffee. He introduced the girl alongside him very simply, "This is my lady," She was, of course, Marlene Knaus, a very beautiful girl, with her hair in a rather severe style, brushed back, and a bun on the top of her head. We had a long chat about seat belts - both were empathetically in favour (that evening the house of commons in the UK were debating on making seatbelts in cars compulsory) - but the important thing was that I established a friendly relationship with Marlene when other people on the racing circuit cold-shouldered her, thinking she was merely some local pick-up. In fact, she and Niki were planning to get married as soon as they flew back from South Africa." - p44

"The main topic of conversation was the break-up of the long relationship between Niki Lauda and Mariella. Helen (Stewart) offered, with the best possible intentions, to get in touch with both Mariella and Niki is necessary to heal the breach. Having seen how close Niki and Marlene were in South Africa, I doubted if this were possible. As it turned out, a day after we had our discussion in Nina's home, Niki went quietly to a register office near Vienna and married Marlene." - p47

"He tried awfully hard not to hurt me." - (Susy about James) - p58

"James was standing right alongside me. Tears welling in his eyes. "It's stupid," he said, "It does not affect the performance of the car or make it any faster. Not even the Ferrari team protested and they were the ones who have the most to win..." - p62

"It was in triumph, therefore, that Hunt, six weeks before his 29th birthday, left for Britain in preparation for the John Player Grand Prix at Brands Hatch. With good humour and in high spirits, he took part in an event before the race and revealed another facet in his talents. It was at the Albert Hall at the Grand Prix Night of the Stars, a concert in aid of the Graham Hill Memorial Fund. The hall was packed with evening-suited celebrities who had paid up to £500 for a private box. Hunt was introduced by astronomer Patrick Moore who had just done a soft-shoe shuffle. Suddenly, Moore reached for a trumpet left behind on the bandstand by Chris Barber, who had done an earlier turn. "You're supposed to be good at blowing your own trumpet," he said, "so try this one." The audience dutifully laughed expecting a knockabout comedy turn. But Hunt took the trumpet, the studio band started to play and Hunt's clear, clean notes echoed through the vast auditorium. It was a memorable moment. When the audience realised that Hunt was playing for real, they roared their approval and then sat in silence as James plaved like a professional. Hunt's brother, Peter told me later: "I had a hell of a job convincing the BBC, who were recording the show, that James really was a good enough trumpet player to perform on TV. He learned to play at about 12 or 13 when he was at Wellington. He was in the school orchestra and the school band and played solo at concerts. Stuart Turner, Public Affairs Director of Ford of Britain, had a box at the Albert Hall. He turned to me after Hunt had finished his solo and said: "Now I have seen everything: James Hunt playing the trumpet at the Albert Hall we'll have Niki Lauda doing a comedy act next." - p73-4

"Niki himself, having almost killed himself in a first-lap accident there in 1974, has always campaigned against the Nurenburgring. He argued that the 1976 German Grand Prix should be switched to the Hockenheim Ring, a purpose-built circuit with outstanding safety facilities installed after the death there of Jim Clark in 1968. But Lauda was reviled by the Germans for his attempt. In practise at Nürburgring spectators displayed a huge poster of Lauda and his car. Across it was written, 'Lauda 20 kilometres per hour. Aus.' Ring bystanders are hard on anyone threatening the thrill of the race." - p80

"Sunday's race day was altogether depressing from the start. The young American driver Brett Lunger had heard the night before that his father had died unexpectedly in the United States and Brett decided to stay and go on with the race before returning home. It was to be a vital decision in the saving of Niki Lauda's life." - p81

"Jackie had a remarkable story to tell that Niki's agents had telephoned him soon after the crash and asked him to appear at a promotion for a new line of jeans which were being marketed in Niki's name. Jackie refused, saying he would only appear with Niki's permission. Niki was telephoned and they were told that he was determined to be there himself." - p86-7

"What would the situation be if Niki was fit to drive and Ferrari still wouldn't come to the track?" I asked Alastair, without hesitation he replied: "We will lend him a car so he and James can fight it out." - p89

"Then Niki arrived in his Jaguar with Marlene and Willi Dungl, his masseur/confidant, the man responsible for building Niki up physically in preparation for the race. There was a last-minute panic when it was discovered that Dungl had left his passport back at the house but he had an identity card and Niki knew that with Ferrari influence we would have no trouble getting Willi into Italy. Niki insisted on carrying out all the check-out procedures himself and we made a beautiful take off from Salzburg Airport." - p95

"At one point I was asked if I wanted to see a priest. So I said: "OK." He came in, and gave me my last rites - crossed my shoulder - and said "Goodbye My friend". I nearly had a heart attack! I wanted someone to help me live in this world, and not pass into the next." - p98

"I was watching his wife Marlene's eyes as she protectively, solicitously, studied her husband. She seemed almost proud of his scarred features." - p101

"A beautiful elegant grey/green-eyed young woman by the name of Marlene Knaus enjoyed life of a promising screen actress and model. A member of one of the most respected families in Austria she fitted easily into the jet set world of show business. She moved easily too in the rarefield world of medicine in which her grandfather was a renowned gynaecologist and in the artistic circles into which she was born as the daughter of a famous painter." - p101

"I used to smoke maybe one or two cigarettes a day, but from the time of the accident I have become a chain smoker. I know that this is not good for my health but it helps me through the crisis." Niki does not smoke and he says that this fact helped him recover from his lung injuries, but he does not reprove Marlene for smoking." - p102

"Marlene is a delightfully warm person. Her handshake is firm. Her eyes are steady and constant. They are the eyes of a woman who could inspire a man to great things, and she likes to touch the person that she is talking to. She looks at her husbands scarred face and gently strokes it." - p103

"Hunt, who had trotted through the driving rain along the length of the pits to salute the supreme courage of his world title rival Niki Lauda." - p104

"I just wish there bad been no accident, no disqualifications, no aggrevation, and Niki and I were fighting it out fair and square on the track. After what Niki has achieved, he deserves that at least. What Ferrari have done is to devalue the world championship and to cloud Niki's brave recovery. His recovery is absolutely amazing and he really is fit again." - p125

"His wife Marlene was happy with his decision. She had said earlier; "When he got into the car and drove away, I wanted to throw myself in front of it and stop him." - p140

"All Hunt knew was that he had to pass everything in sight. It took him two laps to catch and pass Alan Jones in the Surtees. Now he was fourth. Almost on the same bend he came upon Regazzoni in the Ferrari. Would the Swiss Italian let him through or hold him back? Ostentatiously Rega moved over and waved Hunt through ar a point where the Ferrari pit could clearly see his manoeuvre. As Rega passed his pit he gave them the two finger sign to show his disapproval that he had been dropped from the team for 1977." - p142

[chicxxonaa]

Hi. This is the first text post I’ve made relating to writing. I wanted to challenge myself to make prompts for my favorite fandoms. So like this is my first one. I’m still an amateur. So I hope you all enjoy and give me good feedback 🙏🏻. (This is JJK related btw)

Content: angst. some fluff lol. this is from Gojo’s perspective. (Will post Geto’s version sometimes today or this week)

I thought of you again today.

And I decided to look for you.

…

I tried looking for your eyes first. Christmas has passed again without you. So I thought the low glow of the festive lights and lanterns could guide me to them.

Your eyes always spoke of something alluding to longing. They’re dark as the ocean at night. When I looked far off into the bay when the moon was nearing its new phase, I thought of how your eyes used to look at me. Stare at me back, like how I stare out into the abyss of the sea. They were black, cold, full of melancholy. Yet when you smiled they would scrunch up and wrinkle your temples.

…

I tried looking for your ears next. When I last saw you, you were still sporting those black gauged earrings that would hang like the ears of Buddha. I always teased you with a statement and in return you’d give me a hard hit in the arm. So I visited shops less known to the public where they did ear piercings. I’d look at their displays and see if anything stuck out. I saw beautiful designs. Black was always your signature color. And I may not be the most fashionable in this area, but you always reminded me of the color of royal blue. The kind of blue you see on pictures of nobles. The kind of blue that shows elegance. I think something like that would make you look like royalty.

…

I then decided to search for your mouth. Your voice. Your lips. Your teeth.

You never were much of a smiler. My jokes would only arouse a boring expression or you rolling your eyes away from me. Always so stoic. Only making slight little smiles when something was interesting. Or when you were trying to smooth talk your way out of trouble with the headmaster. A polite, small, gentle smile.

But when you smiled at me. It was so distinct that I could still draw it a million times in my head.

You would show your top teeth when you smiled at me, followed by a laugh. And what a laugh it was. It was dark and rich like chocolate. Your lips, thin and slightly chapped, stretched to form a marvel on your pale mooned face. It would savor in my mind for days on end. I never wanted such a taste to go away. So I made it my priority to make you laugh and smile as much as I could.

So I searched for that same sweetness in the places I would make you smile the most. The arcade. The little coffee shop with just three small tables. The alley with stairs and rails where I would attempt to glide down without loosing my balance. And in return, you’d join. Finding amusement in my foolishness. What a fool I have become so.

…

I searched for your body and hair. You were always so well kept. You always wore a bun, dark strands slicked back with a few falling to the front of your face. The color was black like raven feathers. You were pale, unblemished, and not a sign of age to your features. Like the glow of the moon above fresh, untouched snow. You weren’t always the best eater. Other than your favorite dish, Mak-guksu, you couldn’t really come around to eating everything and anything I got you. “I can’t get rid of that taste back there.” You’d say. Alluding to your abilities.

So I went looking for you in temples. Where I would see nests of crows circling around me. Death’s messengers. Near the temple, I’d see worshippers come in with white robes that would blend with the snow. With their dim lanterns, the shadows bounced off radiating a warm glow from their holy attire. A pure being, no matter what you did.

…

The last thing I searched for were your hands. Slender, rugged, brittle. Calloused and tender. Your knuckles would go white every time you were writing out a report for class, because you would be so focused you’d forget to let your fingers relax after each pen stroke. Your fingernails were clean, despite the dirty work you’d do. But I loved your hands. I loved the way they’d come close when you passed me something like a dropped pen, a cup of tea. Or that night during the summer solstice, when we would go out to downtown for festivities and we left the group to go find a better spot to watch the fireworks. When we found a small ledge just off the edge of river where the show was beginning, we watched in awe. Smiling, the sound of the whistles that ended with a loud bang as an array of sparks and flames danced in the air.

And that’s when your hands,

your warm hands, crept their way, sliding carefully across the rail bar where the ledge was, temptingly to interlace with my own. Like the call of the siren I couldn’t resist such a moment. It started with our pinkies overlapping, testing the waters. Then it soon became our ring and middle fingers intertwined like stitches. And surely, your hands clasped with mine and for a moment, the world seemed still. I could see from the corner of my lenses that you weren’t looking at the sky anymore. You were looking at me. The hue of bright blues, purples, greens and yellows illuminating such a heavenly sight. You looked at me, like you knew me for a thousand years. You saw me. And I saw all of you. Your hands, skin, hair, ears, mouth, nose and eyes, were all I saw. And they painted the most beautiful of all living things that this earth has given me. And you leaned forward to share the warmth of your love, as I couldn’t hear the sounds of the world, and only the sound of your breath slowly rising as you planted a kiss on my lips. Forever marking me as yours.

…

I searched for the that same warmth that night so long ago on the same ledge, at the same time it all happened.

I place my hand on the cold, snow covered rail bar, to see if you would take it.

But you never did.

I looked forward to see anything of your likeness.

But I saw nothing.

I shut off all thought, muted the outside world as much I could

To hear your sound, a voice, a whisper.

But there was silence.

And in that silence, I only heard the sound of my heart, becoming more numb under the freezing night. I can only hear my breath, visible to the icy air.

…

I searched for you today, Suguru.

I failed, but I’ll try again next time I think of you.

[doodlingcrayon]

Got a few more emotes done on stream, for stream! A WAU, pogging bun, and then a little Smiler :) I'm torn between the types of smiles, though... they both give off very specific energies that I can't decide between... 🤔 I'll have to give it some thought!

[victorluvsalice]

-->And hooray, I can finally have my food sale! I promptly had Smiler set up outside and restock the table (with minty mocha cupcakes, banana split waffles, artful foccacia, and garden pizza) before starting their sale, calling out to any passers-by to check out their wares while Victor and Shadow continued working on Heel training. And seeing this, I got an idea for how Alice could get HER New Skill Day Skill – specifically, I sent her to take some pictures of Smiler at the stand! (And Shadow spinning around chasing her tail nearby.) Because she wasn’t QUITE at level 5 Photography skill yet, and what better time to max out that mini-skill than New Skill Day? :D She got some good shots of Smiler in full salesperson mode (probably gonna put one up on the wall in the house – or maybe in the store?), then went to chat with Victor for a bit as the first customer of the day walked up to see the wares –

Morgyn Ember! Who I did NOT recognize immediately in their hot weather wear because they’d traded their curly locks for a giant bun and their iconic red coat for a red shirt and black shorts. O.o They started chatting with Smiler about the food available (Smiler, as usual, becoming their good friend up on introducing themselves), while Victor finally finished teaching Shadow how to heel (nice) and followed Alice into one of the vet treatment rooms to give her a little serenade. XD I had Alice respond by taking some pictures, including of him and some cute posters around the room –

And THAT knocked her over the edge, maxing out Photography at level 5 and getting her the New Skill Day skill she needed! w00! With THAT settled, I had Alice go hang out with the pets in the front of the vet, and sent Victor to go get a burger from the local food stand by the big old fountain (which he ate with one of the local strays). But how was Smiler doing hawking their goodies during all this?

-->Pretty darn good, honestly! After a long chat, Morgyn ended up buying a minty mocha cupcake, with Brant Hecking stopping by to grab a slice of garden pizza right afterward. Brytani Cho (that celebrity Smiler slightly dislikes for reasons unknown to me) then showed up and started being annoying, trying to hype up all her fans in front of the stand, but fortunately she was mostly ignored, and sales continued. Roxana Lopes popped by for a cupcake and Morgyn came back to snag some banana split waffles (and an autographed picture from Brytani, so I guess her hyping did work a little).

After that, there was a break in the action, so I quickly checked up on Victor and Alice and had them trade places – Victor returning to the vet lot to check up on the pets (he also got to know Butter, one of the other patients, who was a big cute fluffy Loyal dog) while Alice went to grab a haddock sandwich from the food stand (the eating of which taught her how to make it – was a little surprised, but hey, new recipe). Once I was certain they were good, it was back over to the stand to convince people they deserved snackies! Brytani decided to actually BUY something after Smiler hit her with a sales pitch and picked up some garden pizza, with Brant coming back in for another slice of same, and Catarina, Justin, Morgyn, and Brent all got some cupcakes before the sale ended. Final totals were six minty mocha cupcakes, three garden pizza slices, and one serving of banana split waffles sold for a total of $249 profit! Not bad – I like how the sale breaks down specifically what was sold, instead of making me keep track of it. Seems like cupcakes might be the way to go for future sales... Plus Smiler got TWO levels of the Entrepreneur skill from the sale, meaning they completed New Skill Day upon finishing it! w00! That’s what we like to see!

[waterdhaviancheesecake]

2, 21, 39 for cerise and varien for the uncommon OC asks

sorry this took me a minute to get to 🥹

How easy is it for your character to laugh?

Varien is more of a smiler, most often they'll give a single "hm" chuckle. but they do have a great sense of humor and their deadpan jokes rarely go over people's heads. if you catch them at the end of the day when they're floaty on their medication, or if they've been drinking, it'll be that much easier to push them to a full laughing fit

Cerise laughs easily, not only because she's a big jokester but she laughs when she's nervous. in the beginning of things with Wyll she was having a lot of awkward giggle fits.

Why do they get up in the morning? 

Varien begins with a series of morning stretches to loosen up their stiff joints, and deep breathing to center themselves before the day begins. they'll then have a cup of coffee while wandering about checking on their own, and everyone's plants to see if they need anything. next, they'll prepare their battle tonics (numbing potions that allow them more freedom of movement without being hindered by joint pain). if they have time, they'll sketch their dreams in their sketchbook journal (their journal is all drawings, they're not much of a writer)

Cerise is one of the last to get up, and sometimes she has to be dragged out of bed. she'll groan a lot and have some black tea (she's banned from coffee because of her sensitive stomach) while wrapped up in a blanket, her hair a mess of a haystack bun on top of her head that's sloppily unraveling. she'll laze around after a big breakfast until the final moments when they're about to head out, where she's rushing to get dressed, put up her hair, and put on her trusty lip gloss.

How easy is it for them to ignore flaws in other people? 

Varien will overlook somewhat as long as it doesn't have to do with greed or prejudice. Astarion was a challenge for them in the beginning because of his comments about Gur and his eagerness to subjugate others in the name of power. but even then, they were able to see through him and see where these habits stemmed from. (didn't forgive the racism thing though) I would say the companions all have an advantage over other people in that they've shared their trauma with Varien, which they're sensitive to. still, I wouldn't say they ignore flaws per se, but more put a pin in them. like, we'll get to that at a more appropriate time.

Cerise doesn't overlook flaws, and she's more willing to call people out on the spot. (sometimes at inappropriate times or in inappropriate ways) while she never expects perfection from anybody, I think growing up in a perfectionist setting made her more likely to notice these things, and made her more brave about confronting people about them.

[creepymarshmallow3]

Ask 1: Lol as soon as Sharpie leave after talking to Chris he almost explodes in happiness cause of Raven lol.

Ask 2.: Lol Leroy goes to make a "Visit" to Raven all smiley and giggling as time goes by a bit as he opens the door like "I'm here Raven! Let's play!" Untill he sees Raven with Sharpie and Photographer lol that man ded-

Ask 3: To Springy, Who's worse? Legion or Smiler with pranks, like Who had the most agressive reaction to your pranks?

Ask 1: Chris is simping bun)

Ask 2: Leroy F

( Sharpe closed the blade so as not to injure Raven )

Ask 3: will take a long time to recover.

( sorry it's been a little long, there were some things to do" )

[nat-stimmy]

Keep arms and legs inside the ride vehicle at all times!

Hello! My name is Funhouse / Smiler and this is my stim blog!

I’m a 22 year old genderfluid guy and I’ve been diagnosed with autism since i was about 16-17. I’ve got other stuff goin on in my brain as well but none of it is particularly relevant to the blog other than maybe executive dysfunction.

My pronouns are he / bun mainly, though I have a few emoji pronouns for funsies.

The blog’s icon is of my fursona, Smiler the bat! It was drawn by CarnyCavalcade on TH / AF. Smiler uses they / them pronouns exclusively at the moment.

Under the cut is my DNI! (Please read it through and if you have any questions about it check [This Tag] to see if I’ve already answered it!)

Do Not Interact!

- Exclusionists (Aphobe, Anti-Mogai, Anti-Mspec Gays or Lesbians, Anti-SAM, REG in general)

- T/ER/Fs or S/WER/Fs (I have to censor these because they tag crawl. I know this is inaccessible for screen readers but typing them out normally will invite harassment and I don’t want to deal with that again.)

- DDLG / CGL

- Proshippers / Anti-Antis / Pro-Harmful Paraphilias / Etc

- Supporters of Israel. I don't want you here. Free Palestine.

- Ha/rry Pott/er or DSMP fans (Gotta censor this as well, sorry)

- Anti-Endogenic systems (Yes I’m plural I’m allowed to have this in my dni please don’t be weird about it)

- “Anyone Can Interact” blogs (I do not trust any of y’all - "TCC" / True Crime Community. Stop making stimboards of school shooters.

Extra info:

This blog is not discourse-free, though I don’t post about it unless someone comes into my askbox trying to start shit. This will always be tagged as “tw discourse”.

[the-plushie-friendships]

New frens 1/3

⚫️Hound⚫️

🎈Partygoer🎈

👀The Stalker👀

😁A Titan Smiler😁

😬Smiler😬

🐱Marsh-meow-low🐱

🗻Madeline🗻

🗻Badeline🗻

🩺Pong-Pong🩺

🐰Cinnamon-bun🐰

(The backrooms creatures come from @enterthebackroomsrevisited)

(Pong-Pong and Cinnamon-bun come from @the-plush-doctor)

(Marsh-Meow-low comes from @frxstbxtee)

[getosan]

ㅤ █ █ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ GENERAL INFORMATION . ㅤ

name + meaning › geto suguru, 夏油 傑 . to excel, surpass, gentleness, kindness, outstanding superiority .

age › 27 ( at time of death ) .

ethnicity › japanese .

zodiac + arcana › aquarius. the star. born feb 3rd, 1990 .

gender + orientation › cismale. bisexual. biromantic .

hair › black. distinguishable bangs. grown long, straight feathered texture. regularly tied into a partial bun .

eyes › dark, brown, foxlike. a muted ashy amber in the sunlight, his eyes are sharp, narrow. as betraying of kindness as they are of cruelty .

height + build › 6'3". powerful frame, yet light on his feet .

traits › +gentle, +empathetic, +protective, +moral, +patient, +playful, -callous, -obdurate, -disdainful, -ruthless, -distant, -arrogant .

associated tropes › became their own antithesis, broken ace, evil is petty, cannibalism superpower, stepford smiler, faux affably evil .

ㅤ █ █ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ NOTABLE RELATIONSHIPS . ㅤ

• hasaba mimiko ﹠. nanako . twin sisters adept in ushi no toki mairi and nensha, respectively. from birth, the pair were victim to the god - fearing subjugation of their small backwater village for fear of their inexplicable abilities. geto's only 17 when he stumbles across them locked in a cage, injured, dirty, unfed. he'd chosen the path of bloodshed from then on and the girls had been eager to assist their savior. now, in the tangle of all necessary negotiations, the twins have been placed into public schooling. though he, for all intents and purposes, served as a father to them for the past ten years, contact has been limited to screened gifts and letters, and brief visitation .

• gojo satoru . inarguably regaled the strongest in their society, though once they'd been the strongest together. three years of youth went spent by the side of his one and only best friend, but all unspoken promises of a future spent together dissipated by geto's own choosing. now, he feels himself tied to a man twice ascended, strong enough to thwart death thrice over — but not enough to be more than a fleetingly thorny recurrence. it's a luxury to feel heartbreak, but it's heartbreak all the same .

• suda manami, larue, miguel, ﹠. negi toshihisa . the supporting members of a patchwork family geto'd gathered around himself across ten years — their differences are stark, but affection and interest in seeing geto succeed in his idealistic dreams had twined them together. his death frayed the threads. those differences led them to scatter, and the compulsion to reunite the members of his circle feels comparably dull to the feelings of the man he used to be .

[angelbunny101]

Smiler bun!! Bunniler? Smilunny? I dunno, enjoy! ^^

[cablestwisted]

Doc's Characters: The X-Sector Facility

These guys all developed naturally as I got interested in the Ministry of Joy. They now share a canon with my coaster personifications, but they're very much their own thing. Though they are associated with the Smiler by proxy, they actually all have strong connections to other rides, whether they realise it or not. These are listed here as their "secondary rides".

I may add character portraits to these once I've drawn some, but, all the art i have of them that I've drawn is very out of date unfortunately!

I'll try not to linger too long on backstory but please excuse any rambling, you know I love a good bit of lore. Please be aware that these are vastly shortened versions of their stories and do not cover everything there is to know about the characters!

Warnings for: Discussions of abuse, medical malpractice, canon-typical violence and mouth trauma.

So without further ado:

Dr Gwyneth Woods-Beutler

Nicknames: Woods/Dr Woods [everyone], Ginny, Gwyn [partners/family/old friends]

Online Alias: Dr-Woods

Age: 43

Birthday: February 20th

Height: 6'2

Alignment: True Neutral

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/Her

Sexuality: Lesbian

Occupation: Marmaliser [formerly neurosurgeon]

Handedness: Ambidextrous [mainly uses right]

Appearance: Very tall and relatively athletic looking, with long brown hair usually swept into a low ponytail or bun. Green eyes with a brown centre that often appears orange. Often wears quite smart clothing, lots of browns, greens, oranges, and yellows. Jewellery is usually scarce for safety reasons unless she is outside of work, but she does wear a pair of circular frame yellow tinted glasses.

Secondary Ride/s: The Wickerman, Hex

Info: Neurosurgeon and doctor who worked in the Sanctuary and moved on to the new X-Sector facility once the Sanctuary was closed down. Now a Correctional Doctor reknowned for her harsh but effective methods of correction. Despite her usually cold demeanour, she can be warm toward those she likes, and most describe her as very polite and refined.

Her father was a member of the Beornen, before running away very early on and starting his own life outside of the cult. Her mother is a doctor. She was raised with ideals from both of them. She currently lives in an old cottage in a forest nearby Alton Towers. After a recent close encounter with the Wickerman, she now once again partakes in various Beornen customs that don't harm others, though keeps this a secret from her colleagues at the Ministry of Joy.

Dr Ainsley Gillingham

Nicknames: Dr Gillingham, Ainsley [everyone], Ainsgill, Gills, Gilly [people he's known for a while]

Online Alias: Ainsgill

Age: 34

Birthday: August 18th

Height: 5'9

Alignment: Chaotic Evil

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/him

Sexuality: Bisexual

Occupation: Doctor/Prosthetics & cybernetics expert working for the Ministry of Joy

Handedness: Right

Appearance: Average height and build, with short brown hair usually spiked up and swept to the side. Usually wears comfortable layered clothes in darker colours, oftentimes maroon or dark blue. Brown eyes, thick eyebrows.

Secondary Ride/s: Nemesis, The Blade

Info: Surgeon, and now head of the cybernetic/prosthetics department too. Bullied his way to the top and thinks of himself as better than most, but outside of the surgical theatre he’s all bark and no bite; Will throw the first punch in a fight then run before he can be caught. Very angry person.

Unfortunately, when in the theatre he’s both bite and bark - is very cruel toward his patients, and generally one to avoid.

Was a bully in his youth as a way of reclaiming power after abuse by his father, but, gained a taste for inflicting pain as he enjoyed having power over people - managed to get into a medical career as it had some possibility of him having, once again, unchecked power over people - but, was very good at creating prosthetics and orthotics regardless of his less-than-good intent, and was eventually hired by the Ministry because of this. Once in the Ministry he found that he had far more room for error and didn't need to be as careful in how he tormented people, leading to him being well known for being just generally awful. Recently, his own department are turning against him, and he's finding that he's being gradually given less and less power in how things are run.

Jurian Loweswater

Nicknames: Jurian, Jurie [close friends], TVRB [rebels]

Rebel Alias/Previous Online Alias: televisualrebellion

Online Alias: Jurian

Age: 24

Birthday: 2nd May (18th December is his 2nd/fake birthday)

Height: 5'5

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/Him

Sexuality: Gay

Occupation: Assistant working at the Ministry of Joy

Handedness: Right

Appearance: Short, and very skinny. Has albanism - white hair, blue eyes, and very pale skin - wears specially tinted goggles that react to light - to accommodate for his light sensitivity, so he can see slightly better, and so people don't see his face. Has a lot of scarring on his face and body, though usually hides it with a mask and the aforementioned goggles and oversized clothes. Nervous demeanour.

Secondary Ride/s: Enterprise, Galactica

Info: Ex rebel leader, who was Collected and rather badly Corrected just after the Sanctuary was closed down - now an assistant in the Ministry of Joy. Victim of an accident involving a rejected host, who attacked him and almost killed him, leaving him at the mercy of Dr Ainsley Gillingham. Genuinely lovely and kind, if very traumatised due to his past, and trying to pretend that he’s fully corrected for his own safety while working in the Ministry.

Doesn’t have many friends, though lots of people know him, he tries to not let anyone get close enough to realise he's not Corrected. He’s trying his best. Loves bugs, nature, and space - genuinely fascinated by the universe and the world, finds everything new and interesting. A bit of a thrillseeker, though doesn’t fully realise it - loves rollercoasters.

Dr William Calderon

Nicknames: Calderon [everyone], Callie, Calders, Calds [friends only]

Online Alias: [Calderon or [calderon

Age: 54

Birthday: December 10th

Height: 6'0

Alignment: Chaotic [verging on lawful] Neutral

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/him

Sexuality: Gay

Occupation: Head of the Correctional Department

Handedness: Right

Appearance: Tall, chubby man with grey hair pulled back into a low ponytail. Piercing blue eyes. Often wears smart yet untidy clothing, commonly in shades of grey and orange.

Secondary Ride/s: Oblivion, Submission

Info: The head of the Correctional department of the X-Sector facility, and the closest to a Minister as exists in my canon. Seems kind at first, though, is quite manipulative. Very easy to talk to, with the uncanny ability to know just how to get information out of people, without them even realising they're telling him all their secrets.

Was a medical doctor for a while, and studied physics outside of work. Was involved in the Oblivion Generator project in the late 2000s, as a precursor to the construction of The Smiler. Had a not too great relationship with his husband during this time as he prioritised work over their relationship. Eventually they got divorced.

Avery Galesmith

Nicknames: Avery [everyone], Ave [friends and family]

Online Alias: JoySmith07, Av3ry

Age: 25

Birthday: April 22nd

Height: 5'7

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Gender: Nonbinary

Pronouns: They/Them

Sexuality: Pansexual, Polyamorous

Occupation: Senior Maintainence Technician/Inventor working at the Ministry of Joy.

Handedness: Right

Appearance: Thin, yet quite toned due to climbing and lifting heavy objects. Brightly dyed hair and green eyes, though often wears coloured contact lenses. Wears brightly coloured clothing that often shows a lot of skin, though when working, will often be seen wearing a standard Ministry of Joy jumpsuit in yellow or black. Various surgical and other scars, and quite calloused hands from working. More recently, has several metal panels and cybernetic segments in their back as part of the attachment system for the Arachnid Exosuit.

Secondary Ride/s: Spinball Whizzer, Mixtape

Info: Avery is a maintenance technician and inventor, hired by the Ministry of Joy after proving themselves to be a highly capable roboticist while working on their degree course. They are one of the Marmaliser's main maintenance technicians, working for the most part on its below-ground systems, including the Host Room, and have managed to form a very close friendship with it. They are the inventor of the Arachnid Exosuit, a highly mobile Collection device originally intended as a mobile Correctional device, but decided to be more useful in Collection scenarios.

They're highly resistant to Correction and deal with a great deal of mental turmoil from that, as they have an internalised belief that Correction is the only way to be truly happy. They use humour as a way to hide their bad mental state, so often appear very cheerful, when they’re actually not. That said - they love helping people and genuinely want to entertain people. Their life goal is to make people happy, even if they’re not going about it in the best way.

Outside of their main work, they're a well known twitch streamer and youtuber, and commonly make videos about games or random non-ministry-related things they’ve made.

Arachnid

Nicknames: Project Arachnid, Arachnid [everyone], Spider [very close friends], AI

Online Alias: Ar4chn1d

Age: Usual host body [Avery] is 25, AI is ageless

Birthday: December 9th

Height: Differs depending on what body they're in

Alignment: Chaotic neutral

Gender: Agender

Pronouns: They/Them/It/Its

Sexuality: Pansexual, polyamorous

Occupation: Co-pilot AI of the Arachnid Exosuit [made and co-piloted by Avery Galesmith]

Handedness: Ambidextrous

Appearance: Differs depending on what body they're in. Exosuit form usually looks like a set of segmented spider limbs. Has no fully canonical set appearance though often designs themselves bodies with notable arachnid-like attributes.

Secondary Ride/s: Enterprise, Submission

Info: An AI invented by Avery Galesmith, originally invented as a the AI for a Correctional bot, then re-purposed as a pilot AI for the Arachnid exosuit. Logical, and highly protective - but if you've proven that you're not going to hurt them or Avery, they can be a remarkably kind person.

Their main use in the exosuit is to account for the limitations of Avery's neuroplasticity with controlling the extra limbs of the mech, and to protect Avery while out in the field, taking over their mind completely if needs be in order to shield either their mind or body from outside harm. Has the full capability to modify or erase parts of Avery's memory as a safeguard against lasting trauma from Collection missions.

Dr Lex Canaan

Online Alias: Dr-Canaan

Nicknames: Lex, Dr Canaan [everyone] Dr Canine [what Avery calls him as a joke]

Age: 42

Birthday: 14th December

Height: 6'0

Alignment: Lawful Neutral

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/Him

Sexuality: Asexual, Panromantic

Occupation: External therapist under commission of the Ministry of Joy

Appearance: Quite tall, with an average build. Very tidy appearance, usually dresses in very smart clothing. Wears braids tied back in a ponytail, and small rectangular glasses. Favours navy blue and dark bottle green tones in his regular outfits, with silver accents.

Secondary Ride/s: Hex, The Blade

Info: Quiet, yet quite confident when he needs to be - Dr Canaan is a psychologist and therapist, under hire of the Ministry of Joy and the Phalanx on seperate contracts. He works with Ministry and Phalanx staff to make sure they have strategies to cope with the stress of work and life, on a "confidential basis" - this is a lie, as he's under oath to report any sign of rebellion or loss of Correctional status in Ministry employees to the Ministry, and any signs of Phalanx operatives succumbing to Nemesis' influence to the Phalanx, but he does keep whatever he feasibly can fully confidential.

He's been working with various organisations in the park for years, now, and is well known among the denizens of the park.

Outside of his work, he enjoys maintaining his collection of Bonsai trees and terrariums. He likes to keep to himself, for the most part.

Rebels:

Alice Sydney/Cydonia

Nickname: Cydonia [everyone], Cyd [friends]

Online Alias: Cydonia

Age: 27

Height: 6'0

Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Gender: Demigirl

Pronouns: She/Her/They/Them

Sexuality: Lesbian

Occupation: Supervisor at a Tesco express, does side jobs at rebel gigs (lifting gear, helping put up lights, etc)

Handedness: Left

Appearance: Tall and muscular, with broad shoulders. Usually has brightly dyed hair. Wears lots of black and pink, quite loud fashion half the time, through knows how to hide in plain sight when she needs to. Usually wears a half face mask to hide her facial scarring - bears the marks of a badly healed chelsea smile.

Info: Cydonia is a well-known rebel, currently in hiding from the Ministry. She was taken in by the Sanctuary circa 2012, and went through approximately half of the recognised Correctional process at the time, ending up with a Chelsea smile and a great deal of trauma - but managed to escape, eventually, going into hiding once she was out.

She can't remember a majority of what happened in the Sanctuary as her mind has blocked those memories out, but she has flashbacks and nightmares regularly. She has recovered a lot in the past ten years, but the Sanctuary very much had an impact on her personality and sense of identity.

She's incredibly kind and accepting, nowadays, though understandably very paranoid about the Ministry. She's dedicated her life to helping out runaways, often those also affected by the Ministry, and assisting in their goals of taking it down by helping find and run safehouses in abandoned or vacant properties, so that rebels have a safe-ish place to stay while on the run.

Rig Gillingham/Vulture

Nicknames: Vulture

Online Alias: vulture

Species: Human

Age: 26

Height: 5'11

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/him

Sexuality: Pansexual

Occupation: Audio technician, does gig work under various aliases, does whatever else he can to get by.

Handedness: Right

Appearance: Thin, gaunt appearance due to a high metabolism and living on the run. Usually has bright green hair. Very dark fashion sense, usually wears a dark green or black hoodie and skinny jeans, though occasionally layers his rebel gang jacket on top of his usual getup.

Info: Rig is Ainsley's younger brother. He started living with their mother at a young age, but still had to deal with their father at times and has a not-insignificant amount of trauma because of it. He ended up running away and living with his older brother, Aaron, at around the time he was at college - during which time Ainsley was also living with them.

Rig started going to rebel gigs and performances at a young age, and got involved with Jurian's rebel group just before Jurian was captured. He fell in love with Jurian, and after he was captured and the group all had to go into hiding he was absolutely heartbroken. The group got back together, but, got raided just a few years later and all his friends were taken away from him.

After the raid, he came across Cydonia, who saved his life and got him to a safehouse. The two are now working together, and are very close friends.

[m0chisenpai]

New neighbors

 Pairing: Harley Quinn x Reader

Harley could have sworn she was the only certified merc living in her much more luxury studio apartment with the kid. Save for the more small criminals and well knowns of Gotham lived in these buildings.

But this girl was different.

 First off she was too pretty to be getting those little hands dirty. She knew she always went out at night, she was driven by tall large men who did not leave until she stepped foot into her apartment, and the woman dressed to impress every single night.

She must’ve been in the smuggling or drug ordeal with a gorgeous face and body like that. And that only made Harley more attracted to her. She found the ‘business woman’ next door to be a puzzle that she wanted to piece together as quickly as possible.

Second she was a cat person. Not small little tabby cat or one of those Garfield fat lazy kind of cats. More like a pair of twin hundred pound pure breed panthers alerted the people living there a someone was coming in.

And she just so happened to live next door to one of Gotham’s infamous clowns. The two never ran into each other.  Harley did try catching her attention plenty of times. She tried to catch her in the park when she would go out on those early jogs, or try and meet her in the elevator when she was back from one of her business meetings.

She caught her sometimes ahead of her in lines to the coffee shops, or the corner store for a breakfast sandwich sometimes too. Yet nothing seemed to catch her attention. That and on the account that when Harley tried so much as to get an inch closer one of her men sent her a glare that nearly scared her shitless.

But she never expected to see the girl hauling in a trash bag clearly filled with two dead bodies to the elevator. She was clearly not expecting to be dumping bodies as she clumsily held her heels in one hand, and tugged the trench coat around her shivering body to shield it from the crisp night air.

Harley quickly adjusted the messy top knot bun on her and checked her lipstick in her phones camera. She fixed the bright suit jacket and walked up behind the struggling girl as casually as possible, and tapped her shoulder lightly as to not end up in the bag (though she hopped to end up in that bed). 

“Need help puddin?” Harley flipped her glasses up to look down at the huffing woman. 

“I’ve got it.” She let out silent grunts as she gave the bag another tug making it a few inches ahead while Harley caught up with her in just two steps.

“You know everyone here’s a scumbag, con artist, playboy. You name it and they probably live here doll, They ain’t gonna snitch on ya I swear.” Harley told the huffing and puffing girl. She finally dropped the bags looking at the pale clown girl with her hands in her pocket and a pout on her lips. 

“Names Harleen, my friends call me Harley.”

“Y/N.”

“Well Y/N feel free to put those lovely boots back on and I’ll haul these two to your building.” Harley tucked her glasses in her front coat pocket and picked up the bag like it was nothing but Wednesday garbage pick up. She waited patiently for the girl to slide her heels back on and followed her to the elevator. 

“Huh you’re on the fifth floor too? Coincidence much?” Harley gasped in fake surprise.

“Yeah, I’m not much of a morning bird. That’s probably why you haven’t seen me too often around here.” Y/N tucked a piece of loose hair behind her ear.

“Mercenary?”

“In a way.”

“Oh well you must be one of those hardcore types. You’re not much of a smiler, or a talker either.”

The door pinged and opened up and as she led the way to her room she dug through her clutch pulling a keychain out opening up the door. Harley already knew they were coming up on her door and slowed down behind the girl who opened up the door to her flat.

It was open spaced with beautiful drapes cutting off the bedroom from the rest of the room which was covered in plants. On the coffee table were papers and files with either large red ‘x’ marks or revealing some man or woman’s face. 

And on the couch were the two large felines that woke to their owner leaped off the couch quickly trotting up to her.

“Oh hello babies” she plopped to the ground hugging their heads close to her allowing their large tongues to lap her face. Meanwhile Harley scowled at the cats dropping the bag on the floor. 

“Thank you again, Harley” She gave the clown a smile which melted her heart.

“Hey it’s no problem pud- Y/N” she went to walk out looking back at the girl rubbing her hands over the felines heads.

“If you ever need anymore...cat food feel free to knock. I’m next door”  Harley gave the girl a smirk leaning against the door frame “am I gonna be able to see that smile ever again?”

“Either you turn into one of my babies, or you take me out properly. No dead bodies involved this time please, I have a nail appointment coming soon.”

Harley clicked her tongue tilting her head side to side “that can definitely be arranged. Good night miss Y/N.” After blowing the blushing girl a kiss she closed the door walking to her own apartment.

Yet once inside she let out a loud ‘fuck” realizing she neglected to give her number. 

Bonus Scene

The next morning Harley shuffled to the door rubbing the sleep out of her eye at the gentle knock at her door. A gun was behind her back as she peaked through the hole and saw nothing but a small bag outside her door.

When she picked up the bag pulling out the pink box on top written in sharpie was her neighbors number and a bright red lipstick kiss left on top the box. And the entire floor was woken by the loud squeals from the clown mixed with the cackles from her hyena that early morning.

[akechicrimes]

summary: akira accompanies goro when he visits his mother’s grave after shido’s execution

tags: no content warnings

read on ao3 here

Yua Akechi's grave is small, without any inscription save her name and dates, belying the funds the Akechi family hadn't had at the time. Akira has seen it three times. Not in consecutive years. The first time, Akira was twenty, he and Goro weren't dating yet, and honest to god, it was a complete coincidence that he bumped into Goro on the rail station while Goro is on his way there. After three minutes of painful small talk, Goro let him come along because "you looked so sad and pitiful, trying to ask if I was alright without asking if I was alright," according to Goro.

The trip was long, awkward, and almost entirely silent. Yua Akechi died on a spring day, which, apparently, was common due to something-or-other about depression and the seasons changing, but mostly Akira remembers that the sun was incredibly bright and cheerful for a woman's deathday anniversary, and that afterwards they'd gotten iced coffee and drank it on the patio of an outdoor cafe. Akira remembers thinking it would have been a nice date, if Goro's mother's grave hadn't been three blocks away.

The second time Akira visited Yua Akechi's grave was when he was twenty-three, some time after Akira had decided he would not be informing his own parents that he was dating a boy and would continue to "date" Ann so Ann could, in turn, get away with dating Shiho under her parents' noses. As if to make up for Akira's parents, Goro had taken Akira to Yua Akechi's grave on the anniversary of her death. They'd gone through all the traditional rites, done the silent prayers, cleaned the grave and set up the fresh flowers, and then Goro had stood up and bowed.

"This is my boyfriend. I love him very much," Goro had said to the tombstone, as formally as he would to any living parent, which actually made Akira choke on air a little because he'd never heard Goro say the words I love you without twenty minutes of hemming and hawing first. "I hope you will accept that," Goro had said, which was the closest Akira had ever heard Goro get to asking for permission or forgiveness for preferring men. Either way, the gravestone had not responded.

On the third time, Akira is twenty-seven, and it is the first-year anniversary of Shido's execution.

Shido also died in the spring. Goro had not mentioned an opinion on it.

This time, Goro doesn't talk at all. Doesn't tell Akira a single thing the whole time, until Akira wonders why he was even invited. Akira forgot to take the ring box out of his pocket, because he takes it with him everyone like a dirty secret nowadays, and he wonders if it's better or worse that he has to stand here and play guessing games with what Goro is thinking like they're back in high school while Akira has a 900,000 yen ring in his pocket. (What? He was buying Goro seventy thousand yen bracelets back in high school; he's not skimping on their engagement ring now.)

They wind up at the same outdoor cafe they'd gone to the first time. It is still a disproportionately beautiful spring day, the cafe is still set up outside with the same metal chairs, except now Goro and Akira are seven years older. Goro spaces out staring at the road while Akira orders for both of them, two iced black coffees with a side of sugar for Akira. The order comes. They drink it in thick, contemplative silence. Akira wonders if maybe he shouldn't have come, if perhaps Goro preferred to do this alone.

Akira, eventually, starts texting Futaba in one hand with his other hand on the ring in his pocket—not because he's going to propose now, of all days, but just because Akira spends half his days worried he's going to lose and the other half worried Goro will find it if Akira leaves it at the apartment and all his days worried that Goro secretly already bought his own ring and is going to propose first. He wonders if Yua Akechi would have approved, if he'd asked her for permission to marry her son.

"He never did apologize to her," says Goro suddenly.

Akira doesn't ask who he's talking about. Goro's still staring studiously at the road, ignoring the cheerful outdoor cafe around them. Akira puts down his phone.

"He apologized to me, when I visited him in jail before he died."

Okay, Akira should probably be worried that he never knew that Goro went to see Shido, but Akira's just going to file that one away for later.

"He apologized for all sorts of things. He even told me he was sorry for what he did to you," says Goro. "Hearing him apologize just made me angrier. I'd spent all those years waiting to hear him apologize, and when it finally happened, I hated it. And I was so furious that I forgot to tell him to apologize to my mother. Which, frankly, was the only thing he was ever going to be good for."

Goro takes an absent-minded sip of his coffee. Rattles the cup to break apart the ice. Examining it clinically, he says, "I spent all that time trying to make him apologize for what he did to us, and then at the last second, I forgot." He smirks. "I'm a pretty bad son, aren't I?"

Akira frowns. Goro spent so much of his life hating his father and never really discussing his mother—Goro never struck him as the sort to get caught up in filial piety or filial guilt. It was Goro who told Akira to never mind his own parents' opinions on who Akira chose to date.

"You did the best you could," says Akira, somewhat at a loss.

"And it wasn't good enough, evidently." Goro leans back in his chair. It is, again, a beautiful spring day, cool enough to wear the jacket with the collar that frames Goro's face. He sits in his chair like reclining on a throne, haughty and arrogant, as if to cover himself in his usual spikes and thorns for self-defense. "An apology, too—what good is an apology? I should have made him donate money. Hire someone to keep her grave clean every day. Put his money to good use."

Just as quickly as he started, he shakes his head. "Never mind. There's no use in worrying about it, either. I don't mean to burden you with things neither of us can fix."

Akira still wants to know, though. Not for anything, not to fix it, just to know. "Did she want an apology?"

Goro hesitates. "I don't know." He shakes his head, smiler wider without humor. "Unbelievable. I think I must have thought so, considering the lengths that I went to get an apology from him. But I don't think I ever heard her say those words. So maybe I only ever imagined that she wanted an apology in the first place." He starts laughing unpleasantly. The next table over, a woman stares at him until he stifles his giggles, mouth twisted like he's just tasted something bitter.

Akira fiddles with his hair. Bad habit that he never broke. He wishes he could lean over and hold Goro's hand, even if under the table, but Goro has never appreciated PDA even when he's in a good mood.

"You did the best you could," he says again. "That's all you can do."

Goro just shakes his head. He stares back at the woman who'd been staring at him until she looks away, nervously fussing over her child. Then he sighs.

"I can't believe you really mean that," says Goro. "You're just saying that because you love me."

"I say that I love you because I mean that."

Goro's cheeks slowly acquire a light pink color. "You're outrageous," he mutters, looking away.

"It's just the truth."

"That's why it's outrageous. You're unbelievable." Cheeks growing darker, Goro drains the rest of his iced coffee, stands up and throws the plastic cup in a nearby trash bin. "Aren't you done with your drink? Let's go."

"Ah—yeah. Hang on."

Akira throws his plastic cup away, and Goro waits outside while Akira buys a pair of bread buns to go, for when Goro inevitably gets hungry on the train ride back, because old Metaverse habits died hard and Akira still makes a habit of carrying food for other people. Goro is already outside the cafe, still looking out across the road in the direction of the cemetery, out of sight over the hill. When Goro sees him carrying the paper bag, Goro gives him a flat but fond look, knowing exactly what that food is for.

"I really hope she would have approved of you," he says.

Akira wonders why, even when imagining the way his own mother might have loved him, Goro can't imagine that someone would love him unconditionally.

[jarhara]

With just a little smile

(Joss / Smiler OC origin story)

chapter I/III

„this is the third time this week!“, the teachers voice echoed through the almost empty classroom. The only student still left was a teenage girl with blond hair and a choppy haircut.

The teacher was in her early 60s and had her graying hair tied to a bun. She didn’t like having to confront students like that but she knew when she had to. And this one hadn’t left her with much of a choice after growing worse every day.

Trying to give of a more friendly and understanding vibe, she sat down next to the young student, looking her in the eyes „Josephine… “

„Joss!“, the girl interrupted, she couldn’t stand her full name, not even her father used it. That was when he did talk to her.

Doing her best not to show how startled she was by the girls interruption, the teacher went on „I know moving and going to a new school in the middle of the year can be hard, especially for someone your age, but do you really think you have to make a joke out of everything to be accepted here?“

„I don’t care about moving, the old school wasn’t any better, and what do YOU know about being my age? Must have been a few hundred years ago for you.“ It truly didn’t matter that much for Joss. She had changed schools more often then anyone she ever knew and she and her father hadn’t lived in one place for longer than a year since she could remember. This was mostly thanks to her father’s profession. As a scientist, Dr. Thomas Myles had to go where there were projects that required someone with knowledge in his specific field and and those projects usually only went on for little over 6 months.

The teacher was still starring at her in shock. Such a direct attack was not what she had expected. She had witnessed Joss making similar, disrespectful and mocking comments about various topics of the lecture but as of now, she hadn’t directly offended anyone.

„and I don’t care if anyone accepts me either, this whole place is just a big joke anyways.“ Joss went on with her rambling. She was just so over it with all those people pretending they knew what her problem was and acting all understanding.

„Josephine, I think it’s about time I get in touch with your father“, the teacher said, now looking very stern. The gentle approach had failed, intimidation was the logical next choice, although she feared it wouldn’t make a difference.

„go ahead then. You know, his job at that stupid ministry or whatever is more important to him than me. So good luck getting him here“, Joss commented and leaned back in her chair, placing her feet with her worn out converse on the table. They were bright yellow and the smile she had drawn over the faded logo was smiling a very cynical smile in the teachers directions.

The teacher went back to her front desk where she picked up her phone. She didn’t bother to leave the room, she wanted Josephine to listen. „Mr. Myles?... Excuse me, Doctor Myles…. I am calling on behalf of your daughter, Josephine…. She has made a habit of repeatedly interrupting the lectures and making a mockery of it….. Consider this a warning, if her behavior does not change, she’ll have to be suspended…. Of course we offer disciplinary measures but I fear they'll have little effect on such an unruly child, such as your daughter. This is a school after all, not a youth penitentiary….i’d recommend that you pick her up in person… fine, have a nice day“

Joss could have filled in what her father must have said without a second thought „what has she done now?“ „can’t you just put her in detention?“ „you really expect me to leave work just to come over and pick her up?“

Like she had predicted, the teacher seemed very disappointed at the effectiveness of the call, which made Joss smile. It was always the same but still fun for her to watch when they found out out how little her dad seemed to cared for her behavior.

„you can go home now“, the teacher gave in with a sigh. Without the support of the father, there was nothing she could do for now. Getting the girl suspended or even expelled would take some time and a long talk with the school-director and the father.

Still smiling triumphantly, Joss picked up her schoolbag that was covered in buttons and scribbles and left.

When her father got home later that day, she expected him to make a big scene about a teacher having to call him at work, but instead he just vanished into his room, avoiding his daughter for the remainder of the day.

on the next morning:

Hurriedly chugging down her orange juice, Joss grabbed her school bag and jacket, heading for the door. She was about to be late again, not that she really cared.

„Josie…“, she heard her father behind her. Something was off about him, he normally left for work before she even got up, so why was he still here? There was also a slight shaking in his voice that made Joss prepare for the worst.

„how about… I give you a ride today?“ he asked her, sounding unreasonably nervous.

„sure, dad. But don't'cha have to work?“, she cocked her head to the side and gave him a confused look. Since when did he even care?

„I’ll drop you off on the way there“, he said still not sounding fully convincing

„sure…why not?“, Joss gave in and followed him to the car, that was parked in front of the house.

They both remained silent throughout the drive, although Joss had expected her father to use this opportunity for a talk.

When the school came into view, they did not slow down but instead drove past it.

„Hey, whata you doin‘? School was back there“, Joss suddenly started, pointing over her shoulder, back towards the school.

„I’m taking you with me to work today … so you can maybe understand what’s at stake for us here“, he explained, still with a slight shake in his voice.

Joss had no idea how to react to that, this was so out of character for her dad. He never before cared to explain to her what exactly he was doing or why this specific job was so much more important than anything else. But whatever was up with him, she didn’t like it.

They soon left town and arrived in an industrial district. The building they where heading for was hidden behind fences and barbed wire.

They pulled up at the gate where Thomas Myles waved his bright yellow lanyard in front of a scanner to open it. There was no guard but a lot of surveillance cameras aimed at where the gate opened to let them inside the wired fence.

The building itself looked pretty bland if it wasn’t for the giant letters proclaiming this to be „the ministry of joy“

Joss still wasn’t sure if she should be happy about her father actually making her ditch school, or if taking her with him to work was going to be an entirely new type of punishment. But if this job was so damn important to him, why would he risk her making a fool of him in front of his colleagues or even his boss?

But Joss soon realized that there was no-one to notice her as her father pushed her on through the empty corridors.

After a seemingly endless walk, they entered a room that had nothing but a chair and a mirror in it. The chair had suspicious restraints mounted to it like Joss had seen it only in movies where they were never used for good things.

„Dad, what’s goin‘ on here?“, she asked with fear now evident in her voice.

„you leave me with no other choice“, he answered, sounding sad and disappointed, as he forced her into the chair

„please, don’t get me wrong, Josie, I still love you…“, he tried to explain calming, but she could see tears forming in the corners of his eyes „I just can’t deal with all of this right now, this job, what I get to do here, is just too important for you to screw it all up.“, he went on, his voice shaking even more now “Why did you have to be such an unhappy child… I only hope this will help you get better„

With what was supposed to be a reassuring smile he finished tying his daughter up and left the room.

„please stop, Dad! This isn’t funny!“ The leather straps where tight around her wrists and ankles and she had to watch helplessly.

Lights turned on behind the mirror, revealing her father in the next room. The room was filled with all kinds of consoles and computers.

„initializing marmalisation, test sequence number seven. Commencing correction.“, an automated voice said over the PA system.

Still struggling to free herself, Joss had to watch as a ceiling panel moved back to reveal some kind of mechanical devices with five arms moving in her direction.

One of the arms placed spinning discs right in front of her eyes, while the bright lights mounted to another one started to flash viciously. The arm equipped with yellow canisters released a suspicious gas, while the brushes on a different arm started to tickle her, so she couldn’t hold her breath.