#soda streams stuff

[tranxendance]

Streaming

Lostbelt 7 FGO tonight come kill me

[heartfullofleeches]

[+18]

Alien would prefer to use a strap on his darling during the first few times doing penetrative sex on account of their weird tentacle dick and they're apprehensive about the effects their cum has on humans (it's 1000% safe, but Al's saliva temporarily becomes acidic when combined with baking soda so they feel they can never be too safe since a fair amount of their anatomy is a mystery to him.) Oral and hand stuff waves off most of their worries, but also Al is a virgin who's already been established to cum at the very sound of his darling's voice so full on sex with them would have Al overestimated before they even stick the tip in.

"You ever turn on a water hose on full blast and watch it flop around from the force of the stream? That's pretty much what my dick would be like inside you."

[moonstruckme]

may i humbly request our lovely steddie with a carsick reader on a roadtrip. i imagine it’s eddies poor driving that sparks it and i could so picture steve and eddie bickering about it but still being very sweet to reader until she feels better

ily feel free to change what you want or not write it at all! thank you either way <3

Thanks for requesting <3

cw: nausea

poly!Steddie x fem!reader ♡ 771 words

Steve is on to you. Glancing at you at first in his visor mirror and then by turning around in his seat, an uneasy set to his brows. You try to focus on the A/C blowing on your knees via the small plastic vent. 

Eddie swerves into the next lane, and your throat tightens. 

“Hey,” Steve says to him, agitated, “take it easy.” 

“What?” 

“You’re driving like you’re trying to kill us.” 

“If I was trying to kill you, I’d have done it back in Iowa.” Eddie gives Steve’s leg a jostle, firm but fond. “And if you’re gonna be a backseat driver, I’ll put you in the backseat.” 

You aren’t looking, but he must be too distracted to notice the car in front of you slowing until it’s close. Your body rocks forward as he puts on the brakes. 

“I’m gonna open my window,” you say weakly. The windows in the front seat of Eddie’s van have hand cranks, but yours in the back only has a latching mechanism that allows it to open barely an inch. It’s enough for a concentrated stream of wind to hit your face if you lean your head against the glass. 

“Baby, on the highway?” Eddie asks over the whistling of air. 

“You’re making her sick,” Steve accuses. 

“I am not.” Eddie glances back at you. “Am I making you sick?” 

“No,” you mumble. 

“Stop driving like a lunatic.” The range between the glare Steve pins Eddie with and the soft look he gives you is impressive. “Hey, try to look out the front window if you can, okay? Do you wanna switch seats?” 

“That’s okay.” You breathe in, focussing on the fresh air hitting your face. “I’m good.” 

“Is it the heat? Are you hot?” 

“She’s always hot,” says Eddie, earning him a shove. “Hey! No attacking the driver.” 

Steve frowns at you. “Do you want to stop? We can pull over for a while.” 

You shake your head, stopping when your nausea worsens. “It’ll pass.” 

“Okay. Look out the front window, honey.” 

You do. Eddie’s eyes continually dart to you in the rear view mirror. You meet them once, and he pouts. 

“You want some of my coke?” he offers. “It’s, uh, kind of warm, but…” 

“I’m okay.” You offer a wan smile. “Thanks.” 

Steve turns around again. “Are you sure you don’t want to pull over? We could use a stop anyway.” 

You lean into the wind blasting through your window, breathing deeply. “I’m fine.” 

Five minutes later finds you sitting on the curb of a gas station with your head to your knees. 

Eddie lifts your hair. The sun beating down on your neck is worth it for the cooling power of the breeze. He’s asked how you’re feeling about every ten seconds since you exited the highway. You’ve stopped answering in anything but hums and grunts. 

The crisp sound of a soda can opening is about the best thing you’ve heard all day. 

“Here.” Steve sits on your other side. “See if this helps.” 

Beads of condensation roll off the can of ginger ale, wetting both Steve’s palm and yours when you take it. You tilt your chin up to take a sharp, fizzy sip. 

Eddie grins when you exhale. 

“Good stuff, huh?” he asks hopefully. 

“It helps,” you agree. 

“I think we should wait a while before getting back on the road,” says Steve. “But when we do, I’m driving.” 

“Uh.” Eddie’s eyebrows raise. “No, you are not.” 

Steve gives him an unamused look. He mimics Eddie’s intonation. “Yeah, I am.” 

“No! It’s Eddie’s Van Halen. Eddie drives.” 

“Oh, grow up. We were going to have to switch out at some point between here and California.” 

“I don’t know what you were thinking, but I have a twelve-pack of Jolts in the back. I can go all night.” 

“Perfect, that sounds super safe. It was your driving that got her carsick in the first place.” 

Something dangerously close to contrition flashes across Eddie’s expression as he looks to you. 

You give him a sorry smile. “I’m feeling a lot better now.” 

His mouth tilts. “Yeah? Glad to hear it, beautiful. Hey, maybe when we hit the road again we can try something new. Obviously you’re a better candidate for the passenger seat than Stevie here, so you can play DJ.” He waggles his eyebrows. “We have an array of music in Eddie’s Van Halen, with vocal accompaniment by yours truly.” 

Steve huffs, an eye roll in audible form. 

Before they can start bickering again, you say, “Yeah, sure. A distraction might help.”  

Eddie grins. “That’s my girl.”

[struwberrii]

kenma headcanons ⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪

like the title says,, here are my cute kenma headcanons from my head that i just made up just now, hope you guys like ᕙ( •̀ ᗜ •́ )ᕗ (mostly relationship stuff)

⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪

hes super blunt and honest, a bunch of his classmates dont like him because he always tells it how it is

probably takes in stray cats sometimes and hides them from his family

lives in the same 3 hoodies

literally doesnt do anything if he doesnt feel like it, probably is behind on homework and stuff because of this

one of those people who say they don’t like the taste of water

HATES physical touch, but if you like it he lets you hug him or whatever you want

teaches you how to play his favorite games and also plays your games (if ur also a smelly gamer/j)

SLEEPER BUILD everyone always acts like hes so weak and scrawny like no he isn't the strongest but like he still played volleyball and practiced daily i KNOW he would beat me in a fight physically OR verbally and im literally taller than him (╥﹏╥)

i also feel like hed probably try and stay in shape after high school even though he doesnt have the best diet but i feel like hed still stay active yk?

probably writes you cute notes because he doesn't really know the words to say or hes scared of sounding stupid

loves doing small hands on things, like puzzles or lego building or rubix cubes

lays his head on your lap literally like a cat

loves when you brush/play with his hair

doesn't have the energy to argue over anything so he literally just lets you do whatever you want

if you suck at games he always carries you because hes just happy youre playing with him ദ്ദി(ᵔᗜᵔ)

gatekeeps you from his followers (they know he has a partner)

wears your cute hair clips to keep his hair out of his face while he games/streams

lives in fluffy socks

isnt very good at showing affection so he just showers you in little gifts and presents, even if its not super fancy or expensive gifts

i feel like he would give the warmest hugs

bluntly/genuinely compliments you

shares his food/snacks with you

probably has terrible vision and keeps his electronics way to close to his face

has the worst posture, you have to remind him to straighten his back, like it literally sounds like popping bubble wrap when he sits up straight

soda/energy drink addict

gets so aggressive on voice chat when hes gaming like hes airing out the whole server... EVERYONE is catching strays tonight

acts like he hates pet names but secretly loves it :3

[nineteenninety-six]

Abbot x daughter when he opens up about his prosthetic leg , quiet after a movie night? Please let me know if this is bothering you, I’m just scrambling my brain with what I would want with your talent

Pairing: Jack Abbot x Daughter!Reader

Warnings: mentions of death and serious injuries (Jack's leg). inaccurate army/military stuff etc.

Abbot x daughter when he opens up about his prosthetic leg , quiet after a movie night? Please let me know if this is bothering you, I’m just scrambling my brain with what I would want with your talent

When your mother died when you were twelve, your father had already been discharged from the army due to the incident that left him an amputee and things were awkward with him to say the least. You weren't very close to him having spent little amounts of time with him over the course of your life and so when he returned to live at home full time and your mother passed it took a long time and many hit and misses as you both tried to adjust to your new normal but it birthed a ritual that you looked forward to every single time.

Your pajama bottoms dragged on the floor as you shuffled into the living room where your dad sat waiting for you. You juggled the popcorn, potato chips, a can of soda and your dads beer bottle in your hands as you desperately tried not to drop or spill anything. Your father gratefully takes his beer and the popcorn from your hands as you reach him and you place the chips and your drink down on the coffee table before you relax back into the couch, pulling your blanket on top of you as you get comfortable.

"So, what's the film tonight?" You ask.

The two of you alternate on who chose the film and tonight it was his turn.

"1917." Your dad responds as he finds it on the streaming service."War movie."

"First world war?" You assume due to the title, "You want to watch a war film?"

"Yup." Your dad says as he flicks the movie on, "Now get the lights."

You huff, annoyed as you had just gotten comfortable but you do as he says knowing he wouldn't budge to turn off the lights himself. As you shuffle over to flick the lights off you can't help but ponder over your fathers choice of film. He wasn't a big war movie fan, mostly due to his own experience of serving so you were surprised when he suggested that film but perhaps since it was a first world war film, it was different.

You sniffled as the credits rolled, your tears finally stopping after they started when Lance Corporal Blake died before he was able to see his brother . You hadn't expected to be moved so much from this film and you looked over to your dad to discuss it but you found him spaced out, not paying attention to the film or anything else. Unseeing and empty.

You frown and shift so that you face him, "Dad?"

Your dad blinks, still staring emptily at the tv in front of you.

You grab his arm and give him a soft shake, "Dad? You okay?"

Your dad rapidly blinks and inhales sharply as he snaps his head over to you, "Yeah kid, I'm okay."

Your frown lingers still not convinced but you nod, "Okay…it's still early do you want to watch another movie?"

Your dad nods slowly, still lost in his head, "Sure."

You give him a pat on the arm as you stand up, "I'll choose this time, let me just get us some more drinks."

When you returned, your dad had finally come out of the stupor he was in but you knew that something was still weighing heavily on him.

"What's wrong?" You ask him, "Seriously. Was it the film?"

Your dad nods, "Just brought up some memories I guess."

You pause before you speak again, your voice gentle, "Of when you were serving?"

"Of my injury" Your dad's hands clenched around his beer bottle as he fought through the memories that were flashing through his mind.

"You don't really speak about it…at all."

Your dad shrugs, "It happened and then your mom died. Too much going on at the same time."

"Did you speak to anyone about it?" You ask mildly concerned at the prospect of him experiencing two massive life traumas simultaneously. 

"My therapist."

You were thankful that he had an actual licensed professional to help him.

"...Can you tell me about it?"

Your dad hesitated to answer, "I'm not sure kid."

You remain silent and don't push him for answers but eventually his shoulder relaxes and he begins to tell you the story.

"It was just a stand patrol of the area, a humvee ran over an IED, I was the closest medic and I ran to help…didn't realise there was a second one buried underneath the sand." Your dad's words are quiet  as he re-lived those memories, "I was helping a guy who was in the humvee, pulling him to safety when we stepped on the second one."

You stared at him with wide eyes, you always knew it was always going to be a traumatic story but you didn't realise how bad it was. 

"I don't remember much." Your dad continues, "I was thrown on my back, blood sprayed everywhere, then came the pain, so much pain that I passed out. Next thing I know I'm waking up in a field hospital and they're telling me they're sending me home."

"Oh dad" Your words are full of sympathy as you cuddle into his side, "I'm sorry."

"That was meant to be my last deployment anyway, I promised your mom I'd return home in one piece like I alway did." Your dad barks out a laugh, "You were still a kid, I had been away so long and you barely knew me and she hated that so it was my last tour. Despite everything, I like being at home with you and your mom, it was the start of our new life."

Your lips pulled into a frown, "Didn't last long."

"Not even two months." Your dad scoffed, "I was still in hospital, healing from god-knows how many surgeries and then suddenly I'm a widower and a single parent."

"Were you scared?"

"So scared" Your dad admits, "I had no clue on what to do with you or how to be a parent…almost sent you to live with your grandparents."

"I'm glad you didn't. You're a great dad."

Your dad raises a brow at you, doubting your words, "Yeah?"

"Yes." You insist, "The best. Not everyone would have survived what you went through— not just survived but you thrived. You learnt how to walk again, you raised me and you work at PTMC. You're amazing!"

Your dad smiles shyly as he fiddles with the label on his beer bottle, "Thanks kid."

You flash him a smile as you pull away and reach for the remote, "I was thinking either Pride and Prejudice or Notting Hill, what do you think?"

You dad snatches the remote out of your hand, "I was thinking neither. I don't want to watch romance."

You scoff and take back the remote, "Well I'm not watching any damn war movies again, plus it's my turn to choose now!"

"Watch your language," Your dad halfheartedly chastises you, "You can pick, just not a romance."

You roll your eyes but you click on a comedy film anyway, "Party pooper."

"Okay, film choice privileges have been removed for the next month." Your dad continues to speak over your protests, "Keep complaining and it'll be two months."

You snap your mouth shut, biting your lip when he throws you a smug grin but you know if you open your mouth again he'll increase it so you focus on the film and try your hardest to ignore his teasing and baiting looks and jabs but you can't help but mutter underneath your breath.

"Asshole."

…

"Six months!"

[gho-zzy]

Stuff from @syntheticcharmva stream, I did ask him if howdy is a soup, what soup he would be. Synth said cheddar and broccoli...I'm so hungry now..wyrm in my soup

shave ice, I miss eating shave ice.. melon soda howdy..

[whitecompri]

😆 Okay, here's a fun idea in mind:

Imagine hedgehog dads' trying to help the kids with their homework (particularly math), and they happened to be just as stumped as they are. And it results in utter chaos.

Inspired by the 6 × 3 video from the classic HARDSTOP LUCAS (if you know him). 😎 🫡

Hope this idea works! If you don't wanna do it, that's fine too. Just a funny idea that I NEEDED to get out there, lol! Have fun! And thank youuu! ❤

Daddy Homework

Pairing: Sonic x Reader; Shadow x Reader; Silver x Reader; Scourge x Reader

Genre: Fluff, light comedy

Rating: G (General Audience)

Warnings: None

A/N: Thank you for the request! I loved the idea, I thought it was a great fit and very funny. I had never seen this video before, and I thought it was really funny too, lol. I hope you like the result!

Sonic

It was late afternoon, the final rays of sunlight streaming through the kitchen windows. The blue hedgehog was leaning casually against the counter, taking a sip of his soda. His ears twitched toward the front door as he heard it creak, signaling someone’s arrival.

Almost immediately, the door creaked again as it closed, followed by small footsteps entering the house.

Slightly turning his head, his green eyes scanned the kitchen entrance, seeing the little blue hedgehog walk in slowly, looking tired, with her backpack on her shoulders. She slipped the straps off, tossed it beside a chair, and, with some effort, managed to sit on the chair—which was taller than her.

“So, kiddo? How was school?” Sonic asked, walking to her side and pulling out a chair.

“Tiring... It’s so boring having to sit in a chair all day...” She crossed her arms.

“I know how it is... But just relax, it’ll be over soon.” He gave her a light pat on the back.

“Dad, can you help me with my homework?” she asked quietly.

“Sure thing. Just show it to your old man—shouldn’t be anything too tricky.” He laughed, leaning an elbow on the table and setting aside his soda as she reached for her bag, pulling out her pencil case and notebook.

She carefully opened the notebook, flipping through the pages until she found the lesson, then handed it to her dad, who smiled and scanned the page.

“All right, let’s see...” Sonic began to read. “An isosceles triangle is a type of triangle that has two equal sides and—hold on, what? Congruent? Equal angles? Formed with the base?” He furrowed his brow, tilting the notebook as if that would help him understand, his confident grin fading as he read. “Huh... where’s the good old math?”

He looked at his daughter and raised an eyebrow.

“What’s up, Dad? You’re an adult, right? You should know this stuff.” She crossed her arms at him.

“I’m an adult with tons of knowledge and experience in many fields, just not triangle puzzles. By Gaia, I don’t even know what that is. I thought math was just adding, subtracting, dividing, and multiplying!” He crossed his arms back at her.

“But that is math, Dad—it’s trigonometry!”

“To me, that just sounds like a snowboard trick. My thing’s speed. I wasn’t made for tough stuff like this. If it were a simple addition or subtraction problem, I’d handle it no problem.” He handed the notebook back to her.

“Can’t you at least try? This assignment is going to count for a grade!” she sighed in exasperation.

Sonic paused for a few seconds, looking at his daughter intently before taking a deep breath.

“All right...” He ran a hand through his quills, frowning. “What do I know about triangles...” He tapped his finger against his temple, closing his eyes tightly, thinking, impatiently tapping his foot on the floor.

Suddenly, he snapped his fingers, opened his eyes, and dashed off, leaving his daughter confused and staring at the spot he’d just been.

She opened her mouth to say something, but before she could, Sonic reappeared in front of her, holding a small decorative pyramid ornament made of metal.

“How’s this?” He flashed a sly grin.

“And how are you planning to solve my homework with that, Dad?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Just use a ruler and add the sides, right?” He tossed the little pyramid into the air and skillfully caught it.

“Of course not!” She took a step forward, pointing at the notebook.

“Sweetheart, solving puzzles is way outside my dad skills...” He flashed her a grin.

“They’re asking for angles, Dad… A-N-G…”

“Okay, no need to spell it out, I get it...” He puckered his lips at her, gripping the pyramid in his hand and setting it on the table, pulling out a chair as she sat across from him.

“I got something that might help...” She rummaged in her backpack and pulled out a round ruler marked with angles.

“Now that helps...” He took the ruler and placed it next to the pyramid, squinting as he inspected the measurements.

“So?” asked the little hedgehog innocently.

“Ninety degrees?” He raised a confused eyebrow, studying the ruler more closely. “Write that down—ninety degrees. And if your teacher gives you trouble, just say your dad helped.” Sonic sighed, handing the ruler back and folding his arms.

“You’re giving up?! We didn’t even really start!” she exclaimed, slapping her hand on the table.

Just then, you entered the kitchen, drawn by the commotion.

“What are you two up to?” you asked, standing at the table and observing the small pyramid now in place.

“Dad was trying to help me with homework… and totally failing,” Sonic pouted at you, then turned to you.

“I wasn’t totally failing—I can’t fail at something I haven’t really tried yet!” He folded his arms again.

“Let me take a look at the assignment...” You picked up the notebook and scanned it, your eyes widening. “Your age and this? Are you really supposed to be learning this already?” you questioned your daughter, who nodded.

“Look,” you said, leaning close. “We start with the law of sines…” You showed her precisely how to complete the exercise.

Sonic’s mouth dropped open as he watched you teach your daughter. Then a small smile spread across his muzzle as admiration glowed in his eyes.

“...Exactly right. Now, to finish, you’ll find the result—2√3, perfect!” You smiled at your daughter, praising her. She looked thrilled.

Then you looked at Sonic, and the intense way he was staring at you made your cheeks flush hot.

“W-what?” you asked, looking away.

He stood and came to your side, wrapping his arm around your waist.

“That was amazing.” He winked at you.

“Well... everyone’s got their areas of expertise, right?” You scratched your neck.

“My area of expertise says I’ve just fallen even more in love with you...” He offered you a knowing side smile. “I’m so lucky to have someone so smart in my life...” His voice dropped lower.

Just then, your daughter broke the spell.

“If you two are gonna kiss, wait until I’m gone—I don’t wanna see any of that.” She said firmly, her ears drooping as she packed up her things.

“Oh, my bad, kiddo...” Sonic chuckled and gave you a quick kiss on your forehead. “We’ll continue later...” He released you, grabbed his soda, then crouched beside your daughter to ruffle her quills playfully.

“Wanna go for a run? Not that you’ll beat me, but it’ll be fun.” The little one gave a mischievous smile and nodded, and in an instant, the two of them were gone, leaving only a blue blur behind, their clothes fluttering in the rush of speed.

You sighed and closed your eyes, shaking your head. It was amazing how he still made you blush, even after all this time together—and it was one of the things you loved most about him.

Shadow

It was early on a weekend morning; a gentle breeze rustled his black quills as he focused on the task he had chosen for the day: cleaning his motorcycle.

Shadow carefully wiped the metal parts, his red eyes scanning for any specks of dirt on the vehicle.

He heard small footsteps approaching across the yard and didn’t even have to look to know it was his daughter—he knew the sound of her walk too well.

“Dad?” she called softly.

“Hm?” he responded, placing the cloth on the handlebar and turning to her.

She came closer and handed him her open notebook.

“Can you help me with my homework?” she asked as he took the notebook into his hands.

“Sure... Come, let’s sit over here.” He guided her to sit at a small wooden table nearby, placing the notebook down and beginning to look over the assignment.

“So? You know the answer, right? This assignment’s even messing with my sleep,” she said worriedly, fidgeting with her fingers on the table.

“The powers (-2)^4 and -2^4… are they the same or different...?” He read the question quietly, then brought a hand to his chin, narrowing his eyes. He took a few seconds to think before clicking his tongue.

“Dad? You don’t know the answer?” the little one asked.

“It’s not about not knowing... The real question is... what’s the point of this in your life?” He looked into her eyes.

“I won’t pass the school year if I don’t know it,” she raised an eyebrow at Shadow, who just closed his eyes and sighed.

“You don’t know how to do it, do you? I thought the Ultimate Lifeform would be able to solve something like this easily...” she crossed her arms at him.

“I was created for many reasons, but solving math questions was definitely not one of them...” he said, picking up a pencil and trying to scribble something in the notebook.

“Why are you answering it then?” she leaned over slightly, trying to see what he was writing, eyes widening when she saw him doing some absurd math.

“Dad, you’re adding both numbers? That’s not how it starts!”

“I’m trying...” he gritted his teeth, grabbing the eraser and rubbing out his scribbles.

“That’s just scribbles, Dad... not the answer,” she raised an eyebrow at him.

“Tell me how to start the question then...” He dropped the pencil on the notebook, crossing his arms, waiting for her to respond.

She scooted closer, pointing at the problem.

“Dad... this is raised to the fourth power... that means you do two times two four times... not two times four!”

Shadow looked at her with his mouth slightly open, processing her words for a few seconds, then raised an eyebrow.

“I don’t get it... if I do two times two four times...” He discreetly counted on his fingers. “It all comes out to four...” His red eyes looked at her in confusion. She just put a hand to her temple.

“No, first you do two times two... then you do two times four!”

“Whoever made this wasn’t very smart... There should be a better way to visualize it... How was I supposed to know this is how you do it?” He raised his hands in disbelief.

“By learning math?” she crossed her arms at him.

“Math never helped me protect the world...” He crossed his arms right back, grinding his teeth.

Watching the two of them at the little table outside, seemingly locked in a long debate, you raised an eyebrow and slowly walked outside, stopping beside Shadow and looking closely at what they were doing.

“Homework?” you asked, noticing how Shadow’s shoulders instantly tensed up at your approach.

“Yeah... but Dad’s not really helping much...” the little one said softly.

“Ah, sweetie, Shadow is terrible with anything school-related.” You giggled softly, watching your daughter’s surprised expression.

“What do you mean?” she asked, stunned.

“Your dad never turned in a single homework assignment in his life when he was living on the ARK.” You placed a hand on his shoulder, feeling him tense up even more.

“...I thought we agreed never to bring up that detail about my life again.” He muttered lowly, blushing slightly under his fur.

“Sorry, but she had to know, Shads...” you whispered.

“Whoa... I had no idea Dad was the Ultimate Slacker...” she said, amazed, staring at Shadow.

“Well... I can help,” you said, pointing at the notebook.

The little one began writing, while Shadow silently followed along with his eyes.

He raised an eyebrow as he watched the simple steps being completed.

“There you go, the answer’s 16 and -16, perfect.” You praised her, and she happily took her notebook and ran back inside.

Then, you turned your gaze back to Shadow, who sat with his arms crossed and eyes closed.

“Don’t be upset, Shads.” You smiled, walking up behind him and placing your hands on his shoulders. This time, he relaxed under your touch.

“It’s just a bit of math... nothing you’ve ever needed before in your life...” He nodded briefly.

“...Would you teach me?” he asked softly, making your face light up.

“Of course! I can give you private lessons anytime you want—it might be helpful to know the basics.” You hugged him from behind, resting your chin on top of his head.

He let out a quiet ‘hmph,’ though a small smile began to form on his muzzle as he enjoyed being close to you and the idea of spending more time together.

Silver

The white hedgehog was humming softly, content, as he gently poured water from his watering can over the garden. His golden eyes sparkled with pride as he admired all the green and blooming plants.

After finishing, he set the watering can down, placing a hand on his hip to take in the view—until, from the corner of his eye, he spotted a little hedgehog standing at the door, watching him.

Silver turned his head slightly, now seeing his daughter clearly. He smiled warmly and floated over to her with his powers.

“Hey there, little one. What’s wrong?” He landed in front of her, noticing the worried look on her face.

“Dad, I need help with my homework...” she said, hugging her book. Silver’s eyes lit up.

“Great! I can help you—let me take a look.” He smiled, carefully taking the book as she showed him the homework page.

“Okay... Solve the complete quadratic equation using the quadratic formula... 2x² + 7x + 5 = 0...” He stared at the equation for a few seconds, scratching the back of his neck.

“Dad?” the little one asked.

“Uh...” He furrowed his brow at the page. “I’ve never seen anything like this in my life...” he admitted softly. “Bhaskara is... what, exactly?” he asked in a whisper.

“The guy who made this up... or something like that,” she shrugged.

“Hmmm...” He rubbed his chin, pouting in concentration. “But... doesn’t this equation already have an answer?”

“I think it wants the value of X, Dad, not the value after the equals sign...”

“Ah, right...” He shrank into himself a little, clearly intimidated by the equation. “In the future we don’t have anything like this... Math’s really different over there...” he murmured.

“That’s true... I guess I never thought about it...” the little one crossed her arms, thinking.

“But I can still help... let’s go.” He smiled, taking the pencil she handed him.

The hedgehog sat down on the ground at the doorstep, the little one doing the same, both examining how to begin.

“Alright... if I have two X’s... let’s say I have...” He looked around and smiled as he spotted two small stones, placing them in front of him. “If I have two stones with this little number here...”

“Dad, I don’t think that’s how you do it...” she raised an eyebrow at his method.

“Relax, sweetie... In the future, math works like this... I think.” He looked away. “Anyway... moving on, how about...” He tapped the pencil to his chin.

“How about we just start with the formula?”

“You mean that... Baskada thing?”

“Bhaskara.”

“Yeah, that one... Well, I wish I knew what that formula actually is...” He gave her a sheepish grin. “There’s gotta be another way to do it...”

“No, Dad... there’s not.” She shook her head. Silver pouted.

“Not even... if I try using my powers?... Even if it probably won’t help...” he laughed.

“It’s okay, Dad. Thanks for trying to help...” she said softly, reaching to take the book back.

“Wait, I’ve got it!” Silver said suddenly, excited, turning around and heading inside. The little one followed, hopeful and curious.

He found you at the kitchen table, reading a book calmly.

The hedgehog sat in front of you, beaming, and placed the book in front of you. You looked up from your book, curious, then saw the workbook.

“Homework, huh?” You smiled.

“Can you help?” Silver asked, as the little one stopped at his side.

“What’s the task?” You marked your page and set your book down. “A quadratic equation? It’s been years since I’ve done one, but I think I can help.” You said cheerfully.

“Thank you, you’re a real lifesaver...” Silver laughed, crossing his arms on the table. The little one did the same.

“It’s nothing. If you want, I can teach you too.” You smiled.

“Sounds great to me. Math in the future is... not exactly like this.” He scratched his neck, glancing away.

“I know, alright, let me see what I can do.” You analyzed the question, grabbing a pencil and beginning to explain to both of them how the equation worked, making small pauses to remember things before continuing.

However, Silver was actually more focused on you than on your explanation. He was watching you with a soft gaze, following every movement you made with his eyes, a little smile on his face.

Then he let out a long sigh, catching your attention.

“Everything okay? You seem lost in thought...” You laughed, watching him blush and his eyes widen.

“N-no, it’s nothing! I was just... admiring you...” He looked away, scratching his arm.

You chuckled softly.

“Thank you, Silver. You're adorable...”

He smiled gently, then suddenly stood up from the chair.

“I-I’m gonna make us a snack... I’ll be right back!” He fumbled a little trying to get out of where he was, quickly heading to the cabinets, looking for ingredients.

Now it was your turn to admire him, watching every agile movement and the little smiles he gave.

“Mom...?” The little one called, breaking the spell and bringing your attention back to her.

“Ah, sorry, here, you just have to do this and you’ll finish the equation.” You said quickly. The little hedgehog giggled softly, clearly enjoying the cute interactions between her parents.

Scourge

The hedgehog was sprawled out on the couch, his muzzle fur covered in chip crumbs as he munched away. Every now and then his hand reached into the bag for more snacks, bringing them lazily to his mouth.

He shifted a bit, stretching his back, enjoying the calm of the house at night. In the armchair, you were curled up reading a book, also savoring the peaceful moment.

That was until the sound of a bedroom door upstairs echoed through the house. The familiar creak made Scourge flick his ears back. He licked his fingers and tossed the snack bag aside. His blue eyes followed the sound of tiny footsteps coming down the stairs, already spotting two little green-furred hedgehogs whose eyes sparkled mischievously upon seeing Scourge.

“Dad!” the older one called out, coming down quickly, followed by her younger sister.

“Whaddaya want?” he asked, stretching and sitting upright to look at them.

“...Help us with homework?” the older one asked with an innocent look, showing him her notebook, the younger mimicking her with hers.

“Uh...” Scourge looked at their notebooks, scratched his neck, then glanced over at you. “Hey... think ya could gimme a hand here?” he asked. Slowly, you lowered your book, observing the three—but didn’t even have time to answer.

“Dad! We want your help this time. Mom helps every time!” the older one insisted, crossing her arms and staring at Scourge. His ears turned sideways, clearly uncomfortable. You let out a husky chuckle, enjoying the scene and his interaction with the girls.

“...My help, huh?”

“Yes...” both said in unison.

“You sure? 'Cause askin’ a stranger on the street might be smarter...” Scourge laughed at his own joke, but his smile faded when he noticed the girls were still serious, arms crossed.

“We don’t care if your head’s empty...” the little one said.

“Hey, watch ya mouth—I’m still ya dad...” he pointed to himself, making the two exchange confused glances.

“Anyway... you heard my sister, we don’t care, we just want your help...” The older one placed the notebook in his lap, waiting for his next move.

Scourge sighed, thinking for a moment, scratching his cheek before clicking his tongue.

“Aight, screw it. I’ll help ya two.” He extended his hand, opening the notebook to the last page.

“This one... just this one left...” The little one pointed to the question.

Scourge cleared his throat before reading aloud.

“What’s the volume ‘n total surface area of a rectang’lar prism with... what—5, 7, and 9 cm?” He paused, trying to make sense of what he just read, then furrowed his brow. “What the hell’s that even s’posed to mean?” He looked at the girls.

“Dad, you’re supposed to know that!” The older one crossed her arms.

“Pfft, yeah right. D’you see me lookin’ like someone who loves math?” He raised an eyebrow at them.

“No, but I thought you’d at least be useful for helping.”

“You’re really gonna keep throwin’ shade at ya own father?!” He gritted his teeth.

“Of course! How can you be the leader of a gang, become a king, fight a bunch of strong people... and still not know how to do basic math?” The older one waved her arms, trying to wrap her head around the fact that Scourge just didn’t know how to do that question.

“I never had to know nothin’ about volume or area... or whatever them scribbles are in that notebook... My brains ain’t about stupid numbers, alright?” he muttered, clearly getting irritated.

You let out a quiet giggle, continuing to read but clearly listening to the conversation.

“You laughin’ at somethin’?” Scourge raised an eyebrow at you.

“Nothing, I was just reacting to a funny part in the book...” You winked at him, returning to your reading. It was pretty obvious the book wasn’t the reason for your laughter.

“Tch... Aight, ya little punks...” He grabbed a pencil and started scribbling something—an absolutely horrendous scrawl. “Done and done. Daddy left a lil' note for the teacher.” He grinned smugly.

“Dad... I hope that’s not a threat...” the older one said in disbelief, taking the notebook from his hands and reading the note. “Teach my daughters something that’s actually useful?” she read aloud.

“Whaddaya think? Just saved ya from homework ‘til the end of the year...” He leaned back on the couch, hands behind his head like he’d saved the world.

The little one huffed, grabbing an eraser and rubbing out the note he’d written.

“I’m not showing that to the teacher...” she frowned.

“Daddy... can you help me?” the younger one asked quietly, holding up her notebook.

“This homework’s already meltin’ my brain...” he sighed, taking the notebook—only for his face to light up with a huge smile. “Six times three? Easy, kid. That’s twenty-one—write it down.” He handed back the notebook, puffing his chest proudly, feeling like father of the year.

At that moment, you lifted your eyes and stared at him in surprise, then raised an eyebrow. The girls looked at Scourge with the same mix of shock and confusion.

“Scourge...” you said softly. “Twenty-one?”

“What? That ain’t right?” He scratched his head, starting to count on his fingers.

“Dad... It’s eighteen...” the older one said with her mouth agape.

Scourge’s eyes went wide, his muzzle visibly flushing even through his fur. He looked away, crossing his arms.

“I-I knew that! C’mon...” He squeezed his own arm, then suddenly got up and left, muttering, disappearing into the kitchen.

You watched Scourge carefully, then turned to your daughters.

“Let Daddy rest his brain. I’ll help you.” Smiling, you closed your book and placed it on the coffee table.

You already knew Scourge would probably stay sulking for quite a while after that scene. But you were also determined to comfort him later and make sure he wouldn’t stay upset about it.

[mommaboyhalo]

The brain rot has gotten so bad. Here's some dungeons and daddies characters and what I think their favorite pop/soda would be.

S1 gang

Darryl: he don't fuck around about Dr pepper.

Henry: sparkling water. The occasional LaCroix. Says ginger ale is too sweet.

Glenn: look at this man. You cannot tell me he's not guzzling diet coke like it's his lifeline. He has at least one diet coke merch piece.

Ron: if asked his favorite is cherry Pepsi. His real favorite is crystal Pepsi and he is the only person who misses it.

Jodie: Starry. He insists it tastes nothing like sierra mist. He mixes Skittles in it like a fucked up boba.

Scam Likely/ Actually: actually thought scam was dying the first time scam drank a carbonated beverage. Cannot drink soda.

Walter: Dr pepper and thinks all soda is Dr pepper. Because Darryl would bring him a cup every time they ventured into the realms.

Paeden: thinks carbonation is icky but if he had to choose a flavor it would be coke.

S2 gang

Grant: drank so much monster in his youth he got kidney stones and now isn't allowed soda or energy drinks per Marco's request

Terry: strawberries and cream Dr pepper. Doesn't like actual Dr pepper but will drink this stuff till he gets a tummy ache abt it.

Lark: grape soda. That shit that tastes like purple? He loves it. Also don't leave him alone with sweet tea.

Sparrow: owns a soda stream and actually uses it. Doesn't flavor it at all tho. Sometimes put a lemon in for "flavor"

Nicky: Not much pop tastes good in the sweltering heat of hell but he is able to raid Glenn's fridge at any time. Which is stocked with an ungodly amount of diet coke. Not his favorite but he'll drink it.

Lincoln: also under the carbonation ban but he will fuck up a rootbeer if given the chance. He loves rootbeer floats.

Scary: Vanilla Coke. Wants a freaky amount of vanilla syrup added to it when they order from sonic.

Normal: Grape soda out of convenience. Hasn't tried much else but Lark has a stash of it in the basement. After a long day at school he'll go down and say "I need a drink, something strong" and be given a grape pop.

Taylor: Mountain Dew. Look at him. Look at him and tell me he wouldn't drink mountain dew out of a wine glass.

Hermie: Mountain Dew code red. But if given the chance he will carbonate straight Red-40 and drink it like water.

O-Dads

Willy: Crystal Pepsi. Thought about his first decree on the throne of god making it a thing again till he found out it was also Ron's favorite.

Bill: Coke but he thinks it's just a mixer for Jack Daniels and doesn't realize people drink just coke.

Barry: one time Bill let him have a cup of his coke and he threw up because he chugged it. Thinks all soda is poison and isn't convinced Bill didn't try to kill him.

[tranxendance]

Relatively happy with the stream layout now I guess

[tanyapiankova12]

The Ultimate try not to pee dice challenge!

Rules: role a dice and match up the number to the category. Then in that category role again and find out what you have to do. You can end the game when you get told to do so or by simply wetting yourself. There is a punishment for peeing and leaking (for which you will role too). BTW the category worsen is basically really hard challenges or new rules. I’d recommend reading first then trying. You will need water and probably a timer!

Categories:

Drink

Wait

Exercise

Challenge

Worsen

Relieve pressure

DRINK

Drink 1 cup of water

Drink 1/2 cup of water

Unlucky! Drink 3 cups of water

Drink 2 cups of water

Drink a diuretic (tea, coffee, soda)

Drink a diuretic and a cup of water

WAIT

Wait 5 min

Wait 10 min

Wait 5 min completely still, no moving even if you start peeing (you’ll have to stop the stream by yourself teehee)

Wait 20 min

Wait 30 min

Wait 40 min

EXERCISE

Do 30 jumping jacks

Do 15 squats

Squat for 1 min

Jump in place 40 times

Stretch and spread your legs for 30 seconds

Do 10 sit-ups

CHALLENGE

Listen to water sounds for 3 minutes

Sit on the toilet fully clothed for 2 minutes

Press on your bladder for 30 seconds

Stand still for 4 minutes

Run warm water over your hands for 2 minutes

Put on tighter clothes or take off all of your clothes altogether.

WORSEN

You can no longer cross your legs or hold your crotch.

You have to put on tighter clothes or just layer them

Put a piece of ice on your bladder, don’t continue until it melts

Listen to running water sounds for the rest of the challenge.

Between rounds, drink 1 glass of water.

No potty dancing!

PRESSURE RELIEF

Release for 10 seconds in the toilet. If you go over, you have to drink 1 glass of water.

Release for 15 seconds in your pants. If you go over, you have to wait 10 min.

Put on short shorts or a short skirt and leak for as long as you like, but if the stream touches the ground, you have to do this challenge until you completely lose control.

Get a bottle cap and pee in it. If you overflow, drink a glass of water

Instead of relieving the horrible pressure like the others, listen to water sounds for 2 minutes.

Pee! Or not. If you want to keep going with the challenge, then skip this and roll again. You can pee right now in your pants, or run as fast as you can to the toilet. You’re freeeee!

PUNISHMENTS FOR LEAKING WITH PERMISSION

Tape your undies to you (you can’t take them off for the rest of the challenge)

Double the water and waiting time.

Nothing!

Half the water and waiting time.

Go to pee.

Drink 1 glass of water.

PUNISHMENTS FOR PEEING

Stay in your clothes for an hour.

Try this challenge again or with a a friend

You can’t use the toilet to pee for 2 days. You have to pee yourself. You can go in public and stuff, but you can’t pee in the toilet. It has to be an accident too, like you have to hold it till your breaking point.

You can only pee when you start leaking for 2 days. You have to hold it till you basically start having an accident. You have to relax and start peeing your pants, then without stopping the stream pee in the toilet for 15 seconds. After 15 seconds finish in your pants. If the stream stops before you can take off your pants, start over.

Try not to pee for a day. Just straight up not pee. Hold it until you just burst.

Nothing you’re lucky.

[bloodyinkandquill]

Lord Pwnatious “Moneybags” the III x Reader

gods i love this little nepo baby ass hole so much, IN HER STREAM YESTERDAY SODA DREW THEM AND OUGH I LOVE THEM, anyways let’s see how i do with writing them lmao

- Let’s set one thing straight, if you wanna date them you’re going to have to be high enough class in their eyes, they are very classist (soda herself said they’d only date someone high class)

- Pwnatious is a bratty asshole, but somehow they’re your bratty asshole, not to Subspace levels but they constantly boast about how they’re the epitome of a noble, and especially of a Blackrock noble, they have a lot of faction pride, and their ego is huge, they’re the opposite of humble but it’s alright, they’re less brag-y around you since they know you already know how great they are

- They grew up in high society and it definitely translates over into the way they view relationships, they originally only viewed them as a way to increase your own social standing and power, after all that’s what their parents did, so when they eventually met and fell in love with you they were completely thrown for a loop, they’d never had expected they would end up with someone because of actual romantic feelings, not that they mind it was just a shock to them

- In terms of how they show affection it comes out in a very regal and high class way, from expensive gifts and dates, to reserved touches and words, they seem so pompous about their affection but it’s just because they aren’t sure how to properly convey their love, their parents only married for status, and were never around so they never had an example of how romance is shown to others, it’s awkward and stuff at first but as time goes on they learn how to portray their feelings eventually

- With that they take you on the fanciest dates, but as your both assumedly wealthy you likely pay for yourself on most occasions, specially occasions like spawnday’s are one of those exceptions, you have been to just about every posh restaurant in Blackrock and Crossroads together, but you two have a favorite you’re more likely to go to, they also bring you as their plus one to high class events and you do the same, fancy parties with small finger foods and big dresses type events, you stay together arm in arm as expected, but if you’re actually secretly gossiping and making fun of others there no one has to know

- Pwnatious isn’t stingy with their money per say but they don’t get you gifts all the time, when they do they’re always beautiful and expensive, their favorite gift they’ve ever given you was this small glass statue, small as in fits in your tow hands small, of a teapot, after all their entire family symbol is a teapot, shown by the one they wear on their head passed down by one of their parents, it has real jewels imbedded in it as well, it’s beautiful and one of a kind

- When it comes to love language theirs is words of affirmation, especially being on the receiving end, hearing you compliment them and tell them that they’re the best and amazing makes them feel so wonderful, though they’re ego is already so large it’s a bit redundant, they will of course compliment you back but they have a hard time articulating good compliments, they want something unique to say not anything basic inphernals hear all the time, so be patient if they’re trying to compliment you, they’re doing their best

- When it comes to touch they don’t mind it but they want it to be in a formal way, so no big hugs out of nowhere, and rather then hand holding they prefer locking arms with you, they also enjoy leaning their horns against your own, it makes them feel safe and comfortable, but their favorite way to physically show love is to dance with you, soft classical music playing as you two sway back and forth is one of their favorite things in the entire inphinity

- When it comes to pet names they don’t use them all that much, maybe one or two here and there but they aren’t big on them, they think most of them are too improper or not fancy enough so they use them very sparsely, and if you use them they very much prefer similar ones to what they use, something more fancy sounding and regal

- While Carnage is technically only their body guard he’s more of a parent then their actual parents, so with that even if he’s not programmed to he finds himself looking out for you as well, partially because they requested it partially because he knows that you’re important to their master and want them to be happy, so you’ve got an unofficial Biograft guard thanks to your partner

- You didn’t meet Pwnatious’ parents for a while after you started dating, they’re always so busy and hardly home there wasn’t a good opportunity, you finally did at a dinner with them and began to understand why your lover isn’t so fond of them, sure they are their parents doesn’t mean they like them all that much, especially since they’re largely absent

- While they prefer to wear their teapot as a sign of their wealth and family, they are alright not wearing it around you more so then anyone else, especially because it allows them to see you properly and they love admiring you, and it does mean they can kiss you when they have it off, but if you kiss the spout of the teapot they will short circuit, you’re pretty sure you see steam coming out of it from how hot their face is afterwards

- With kissing, similar to touch they’re no all willy nilly with it, they like it in private peaceful moments, and they adore it while you’re dancing together, while their kisses are usually short and sweet if they are longer you run the risk of their sharp teeth, especially the golden tooth, cutting your lips slightly, they don’t do it on purpose but when it does happen they do find it slightly attractive, not that they will say that though

- They have to repaint their left horn every so often since they enjoy how it looks with the painted pattern, so if you offer to help they won’t say no, as it does make it far easier then doing it in a mirror, it’s a soft moment, one of venerability, for once they don’t talk about how great they are, or how much money they have, it’s just you two basking in each other’s presence as they let you touch the single most important place on their body, after all if you loose your horns you lose your life, so trusting another inphernal enough to touch their horn for an extended period of time takes a lot of trust and love

imma nap in so tired, let me get this posted then i’ll nap and hopefully i won’t wake up to like 30 requests lmaooo

[specific-dreamer]

my baby, my baby (you’re my baby)

Summary: darry visits his dad and rants. he also cries. </3

Darrel loves each of his kids (and stray kids) equally. No matter how hard Steve tries to pry it out of him, he does not have a favorite.

He loved when Johnny came over for dinner and he’s able to convince the kid to spend the night, he loves when Soda and Steve came home with new stories about their day at the rodeo, he loved when he came home from work and Ponyboy would rush to tell him about the book he’d just finished, he loved attending Ace’s recitals, and he loved when Dally comes over just to sit in their company when he could’ve been causing a ruckus around town instead.

He is, however, a little more partial to his first born than the others. No hard feelings, he still loves his other kids, but Darrel Junior was his first child; the reason he’s the father he was a father, so he’s always going to have a soft spot for him no matter what he does.

Besides, it doesn’t hurt that Junior is the only one who visits him and Karen on a normal basis. Darrel huffs to himself has he sits on top of his grave. Since dying, he’s somehow gained an internal watch, so he knows it’s 3:47pm exactly; when Junior visits it’s usually around 4pm.

Junior’s early today though, Darrel thinks to himself hearing footsteps approaching. There’s not much else he can do but wait for Darry who bends in front of Karen’s grave and leaves her a flower first. If he were alive, Darrel’s heart might’ve clenched. Karen’ll be sorry he missed Darry, but she’s watching over the other boys right now; it’s alright though, Darrel will fill her in when she gets back.

Darry’s head was bent too low for him to get a good look at first, but now that he’s turned towards Darrel’s grave he can see the tears streaming down his face. If he still needed oxygen, he’s sure his breath would’ve caught.

“Hi, Dad,” Darry’s says taking a seat on the ground. Darrel can’t help but notice he’s got his knees pulled to him like he’s trying to protect himself.

He frowns and pulls himself to join Darry on the ground. Hey, kiddo. What’s the matter? He knows Darry can’t hear him, he learnt that the hard way a while ago now, it still brings him a little bit of comfort though.

Darry sniffs. “I don’t know how you and Mama did it.”

Did what?

Darry gestures in the air, “This parenting shit- stuff, I meant stuff, sorry.” Darrel laughs a little; his baby’s twenty years old and still apologizing for cussing.

If he’s honest, Darrel isn’t even sure how he did it. It was in large part thanks to Karen, of course, she kept him steady whenever he floundered. Junior also helped too, though. He doesn’t like to throw the word around, but for all intent and purposes, Darry was a perfect first child.

“The other night,” Darry continues. “I guess Ponyboy had a nightmare or something, I don’t know, but I heard him asking Soda why I hated him.” His voice breaks at the end and Darrel is forced to watch as Junior sobs into his arms.

It’s futile he knows, but after a moment of watching he hugs Darry anyway. Almost as if he could actually feel the hug, Darry stiffens before looking up and staring straight through Darrel. Spooky, he thinks.

“I don’t hate him, I promise.”

I know you don’t.

“I love him a lot, but it’s like he purposely grates my nerves. He knows I’m stretched thin and it’s like he’s trying to see how long until I snap. And that’s not fair! I don’t know how to be a parent, I don’t how to raise a fourteen year old!”

Darrel isn’t sure when it happened, but a flip was switched as Junior started to rant angrily. He doesn’t leave the cemetery too often, but when he did he noticed the two often riled each other up; it was never one sided. He can’t exactly correct Darry though so he hums instead.

“Daddy, you know when you first, um,” he winces. “left, Pony didn’t talk for a week. Okay, that’s fine, I can handle that, but he stopped eating too. I tell him, ‘Pony you have to eat something, you can only go so long without eating before you die from starvation.’ And I kid you not the only thing he says to me that entire week was ‘You’re not dad, Darrel, you can’t tell me what to do’. I never said I was! I just didn’t want him to die too, is that so bad?”

Darrel blinks. That was a lot, and he’s not really sure where to start processing it. He sighs airlessly, It’s not bad. You were worried about him and had his best interests at heart I get it. Is he eating now at least?

Just as fast as it came, the anger seems to leave Darry all once as he lies back on the grass with his hands over his face. “I don’t even know if he eating for real, yet. I’m not home enough to know; I eat my breakfast in the dark, go to work, come home when everyone’s asleep, eat dinner in the dark, go to bed, rinse and repeat.”

Darrel winces. Even he didn’t work those kind of hours and could’ve handled them. Darrel liked his solitude every now and then, but not Darry. No, not his Junior; his Junior is a people’s person through and through, there’s a reason he won boy of his year.

Rubbing Darry’s ankle he says, I know you’re working your ass off, but I’m real proud of you, baby. I know it don’t look it now, but it will all pay off.

There’s a pause, and if he wants he could trick himself into believing his boy heard him, before Darry says something so quietly Darrel has to strain to hear. “I know it’s wrong, and I try not to, but sometimes I wish I let them get taken. I love them, really I do! But Soda wants to drop out of school and Pony hates me and he thinks I hate him back, and don’t even get me started on Dallas— I don’t think there’s a been a weekend where we haven’t haven’t argued or he hasn’t been in jail. I’m trying my best, but I keep screwing up and that’s not fair on them.”

He breaks into sobs again, this time so strong his whole body shakes. Darrel can’t even do anything to comfort him, his stupid ghost body isn’t corporeal. The best thing he can do is stroke Darry’s hair and hope he knows his daddy is here for him. He hates seeing his kids cry and he’s never been more angry that he’s dead.

Between sobs Darry says, “I wanna leave. So I can’t mess anything else up.”

No, sir. You’ll get the hang of things soon enough, it’s a new adjustment and y’all’ve just gotta find your footing. I know it’s hard, but y’all will find it.

“I’m not gonna,” Darry protests. His baby is red in the face and breathing real hard, but Darrel is thankful is eyes are finally starting to dry. “I want to leave but I don’t want to leave them.”

So, what are you gonna do, Junior?

“I don’t know,” he answers. “I wish you were here, you’d know what to do.”

Darrel winces. Actually now-

“Well, never mind. You wouldn’t be dumb enough to get in this situation to begin with.”

Harsh, but he’s probably right. Darrel watches as the gears turn in Junior’s head. He loves all his kids equally, yes. But Darry’s always been his favorite to watch because when he isn’t focused he wears every emotion on his face. He can see exactly when Darrys made his mind up long before he stands up and dusts off his pants.

“You drive a hard bargain, but fine I’ll stay.” Darrel barks out a laugh as Darry checks his watch. It’s 6:29pm, he’s been here for nearly three hours. “Shit, I said I’d make dinner.” Somehow, when Darry looks up he’s staring Darrel in the eyes. “I’ve gotta run, but I’ll see you later.”

Alright, stay tough out there. I love you, kiddo.

Darry’s eyes widen a minuscule amount and he grins as he ducks his head. “Yeah, I love you too, daddy.”

[smoshyourheadin]

Sunshine and Soda Cans

Part 3 - Refreshing

“oh my god tell me EVERYTHING”

angela runs up to you as she hears your keys in the door, practically tackling you for information.

“okay! okay! so, well, we were editing, and then we streamed, and then i drove him to his apartment, and we kissed, and i dont know!” you retort, flopping down on the couch. “also wheres that ice-cream?” you ask her with puppy dog eyes.

“oh shoot yeah! ill grab it,” she scurries off for a minute, and returns with two bowls of vanilla ice-cream topped with strawberry slices. “here you are m’lady”

you hiss as your skin touches the cold bowl

“okay, so, how did it happen? was it good? do you think he likes you?” she begins to spew questions at you.

“one at a time jelly, jeez! okay so , it happened when we were outside his apartment, yes it was good, and i think so? maybe? i hope so at least.”

“well,” she says with a huf “if he doesn't like you he’s missing out!”

you giggle at her, and turn on tangled for the hundredth time this month, it’s your guys’ favourite. you curl up together under a blanket, and drift off.

the weekend goes on pretty smoothly, you and angela just hanging out. then monday comes around.

“cmon (y/n/n) wake up! we’re gonna be late!” you feel the mattress dipping, and rub your eyes.

“huh-“ you reply groggily, and then you realise whats happening

“ANGELA STOP JUMPING ON MY BED!” you laugh at her energy, as she flops down beside you. managing to hoist yourself out if bed, you throw on a sweatshirt and linen pants. on the way to the office, you guys stop at coffee bean for smoothies, which angela almost spills everywhere.

walking into the office, you spot spencer and give him a sweet smile. but he freezes up and just walks away.

what?

you shrug it off, and continue on through the day.

at around 2, you’re about to start shooting an aitah video with spencer and, obviously, shayne. but spencer is being really avoidant, not looking at you while kiana tells you about the shoot. so you chase him up just before the shoot, because you don’t want that tension on screen

“spencer hey,” you jog up to him in the kitchen as he grabs a mt dew kickstart. “whats up? why are you being weird with me? have i done something?” you look into his eyes as you ask him, and you can see his sadness.

“no, i just, i don't know…” he starts to trail off “i just feel like i forced you to kiss me when you didnt want to and i feel really shitty about it and i-”

“hey,” you gently grab his hands “it’s okay, it was nice. i liked it” you smile, and kiss him on the cheek, turning away to go get ready for the shoot. you feel the heat in your cheeks.

during the shoot, you and spencer share the chunky knit blanket as shayne reads you some of the most outrageous stories you’ve ever heard, and you wonder how people online are comfortable enough to say this kind of stuff

afterwards, as you begin to leave, spencer catches up with you.

“(y/n)!” he shouts, catching up with you at your desk while you pack your bag “so um, i was wondering, and obviously feel free to say no, um, if you’d want to go to the fair with me on friday night?” he looks nervous, almost as if he feels he shouldn't ask you.

“yeah, yeah that’d be nice” you smile at him, and his eyes light up at your statement. he thanks you, and says he’ll text you about it later. walking outside, you meet angela and hop in the car.

“what’s got you in a good mood? you’re only ever this quiet when you’re happy. what happened? DID SPENCER-” she begins to interrogate you as you pull out of the lot

“yes, it’s to do with spencer. he asked me on a date.”

angela gasps so loud you swear she could break glass.

“OHMYGOD FINALLY!! I THOUGHT HE WAS IGNORING YOU THIS MORNING BUT HE WAS PROBABLY JUST NERVOUS OH MY GOSH IM SO HAPPY FOR YOU!” she bounces in her seat, rattling the car. you laugh, leaning away from the hyperactive puppy of a best friend you have.

over the next few days, you and spencer start hanging out a lot more and get a lot closer. you find yourselves sharing longing gazes across rooms, staying up late into the night just talking about life, and discovering things about each other you didn't know. each moment you spend together feels like a lifetime, the bond between you two deepening with every laugh. and then you realise something. you wanted to spend all you time with him.

fuck.

friday evening rolls around, and you’re sat at your desk finishing an edit, and waiting for arasha to bring you a coffee, when spencer walks over to you. his hair is messy, and he’s wearing a plaid shirt tucked in his worn in dickies, with a denim jacket over the top. he looks beautiful.

“you ready to go?” he says, cocking his head slightly

“just give me a minute, im just finishing up this edit and arasha’s bringing me coffee. but feel free to hang out here while i finish up!” you say looking up at him with a smile.

you finish the edit, and arasha walks over with courtney and shayne, and coffee in her hand.

“sup lovers! (y/n) here’s your overly sweet coffee,” she sets it down on your desk, then taking a sip of her own “so, big plans tonight spencer? you’re dressed up…” arasha says slyly, raising an eyebrow

“i mean if taking (y/n) on a date is big plans then, i guess so” spencer smiles at her

“HA! I KNEW IT! IAN AND YOU OWE ME 10 BUCKS EACH” courtney fist pumps the air, and shoves shayne in the shoulder

“ugh why do you always have to be right! you suck!” he dejectedly pulls a 10 dollar note out of his back pocket, and she pinches it with a “thank-you!”. you just look at them all, mouth agape.

“you placed bets on this!?” you look at courtney in shock.

“i mean, obviously. i knew you liked him, but we placed bets on how long it would take for anything to happen. my guess was a month and a week and hey, here we are”

“huh, weirdly specific but… go you!” you smirk at her, standing up to slide your jacket on.

“well, if you’ll exuse us, we have oversized bears to win” spencer smirks and holds his hand out for you to take, as you walk out the office together.

“awh,” tommy says, walking up to the three of them who were lingering near your desk “they’re so cute together!”

“sup nerds, what are we talking about?” ian jumps in

“ian give me my 10 dollars, spencer and (y/n) are going on a date as we speak” she grins at him

“ughhhhhh, fineeeeeeeee. you’re the worst court”

you and spencer hop in the car, and drive off to the fair, and as soon as you arrive, you run and buy a tub of cotton candy.

as you walk around, arms linked with spencer, you drag him to all the shitty games that you’re convinced are rigged.

“what!! no i definitely hit that one!” you stomp your feet like an upset child at the coconut shy, frowning because you didn’t get the giant giraffe teddy.

“watch this” spencer says confidently, and you gawk at him as he hits all the targets perfectly.

“how the hell did you manage that!” you say in amazement

he just laughs and passes you the giraffe “years of playing video games sometimes pays off”

you take the giraffe, and decide to call it amanda. so obviously, you send her a picture

//

amanderp 😚

———

you: [picture of you and the giraffe]

you: guess what i named it

amanderp 😚: giraffey?

you: nope, meet amanda ;)

amanderp 😚: omg i love you!! can she live at your desk? i want to meet her 😆😆

you: of course! i’ll bring her in on monday :))

//

you and spencer continue to sort of just walk around, giggling with eachother. as the night comes to a close, you get on the ferris wheel.

“its so pretty up here” you look out across the fair, the lights dancing over peoples faces as you sit at the top.

“yeah, makes you realise how pretty other things are” you turn to look at him, and he’s already looking at you. he looks at your lips, then back into your eyes. you close the distance between you both, pressing your lips together sofly, bringing your hand up to his hair and gently running your fingers through his curls. you break it apart, foreheads presses together, and he giggles

“hey whats funny!” you pout, sitting up and looking him in the eyes

“you taste like cotton candy. you taste like you. just overly sweet.”

you cant help but smile, leaning on his shoulder and lacing your fingers together. he looks down at you, and in that moment, you became his sunshine.

——————————

a/n: AHHH ITS FINISHED!! thank you all so much for the love on this series, it was so fun to write and it’s been so nice seeing your guys’ comments 💛💛 requests are open <3

[alexetbishop]

THE SUN AND THE MOON

Pairing: Kate Bishop x Demigod!Reader

Summary: Kate makes a visit in your universe after weeks of not seeing eachother.

Word count: 2.5K

Pure fluff. Kate is such a dog mum. This is taking the sapphic long distance experience on a whole other level. Reader is a daughter of Apollo.

a/n: there might be a prequel of this on the workings. It's still an abstract idea but I already got something laid out.

————————————————————————

"Okay, I'll come and pick you up tomorrow morning at 10:00. And if I find you two doing cheeky stuff again you can say bye-bye to your personal multiversal taxi." America warned Kate as she was opening a portal right on the fire escape outside your bedroom window.

"Just to clarify, we were just making out." Kate points out. "We were half naked but only making out." She adds mumbling to herself. She took a step forward, finding herself in your universe. "Whatever. You own me so many pizza balls for this." America grumbles before closing the portal.

You were sitting at your desk, music was blasting through your headphones as you were finishing up an assignment on your computer.

Kate opened your window and jumped inside your room. She smiled as she saw you concentrated on your work. Her backpack slips out of her shoulder, hitting the hardwood floor. She sneaks behind you and takes your headphones off.

"Whatcha listening to?" She whispers in your ear. You jump on your seat and turn around.

"Oh my god!" You whisper shouted. "Kate? What are you doing here?" You stood up from your chair, a smile plastering on your shocked face. You weren't supposed to see her until next week, so this was certainly a very nice surprise.

"Hi, baby. 'Was just popping by. Wanted to see what my beautiful girl was up to." She shrugged as her hands found your waist, immediately connecting your lips in a sweet kiss. When you draw back you notice she has cuts and bruises all over her face and probably on her body too since her suit was all ripped and a bit bloody. You tilt your head. "Did you come here because you wanted to see me or because you want me to be your personal nurse again?"

"Both?" She raised her eyebrows and made her famous puppy eyes at you. You shake your head and chuckle. "Take off your suit." You step back, crossing your arms under your chest. "Eager, are we?" She teases as she peels off her archery suit, throwing it on the floor. Now she's left with a black tank top that accentuates her muscular form and some boxers that had purple hearts on them. Of course she was wearing something like that.

You roll your eyes. "Just stay still." Your hand reaches her jaw, where a fresh and deep cut was glaring at you.

You took a deep breath: a golden aura began to shine around your body. Kate felt your warmth streaming from your fingers to her jaw. In a matter of seconds the cut disappeared. "Who did you fight this time?" Your hand moved to her forehead. "Just some thugs that were trying to steal some kind of dangerous substance. It was a pretty cool fight, actually. I knocked out three guys with only one shot." She says proudly. You smile at her being all cocky of her actions. "That's amazing, love."

As your hands were moving all around her body, healing her from every single bruise and cut, she rambled on and on about her mission. You had to force her to stay still because she was moving around trying to demonstrate how she back flipped and knocked a guy out kicking him in the nuts with her left foot.

Once her skin was smooth again you removed your hands and returned to a normal non glowing human. "Thank you, princess." She smiled at you and gave you a quick peck on the lips. "You knows you're always so hot when you do that. Literally and figuratively."

You chuckled and sat down on the bed, reaching for a bottle of soda on your bedside table and drinking it to get your full strength back.

Kate crawled on the bed, laying on top of you. Her arms cradled around your hips and her chin rested on your midriff as she gazed up at you with her dazzling angel eyes.

"I missed you." She whispers and leans her head forward. She starts to leave a trail of butterfly kisses from your collarbone to your lips. You can't help but giggle at that sweet action.

"I missed you too, Katie." Now her face is right above yours. Your hands find the small of her back and caress her there, your touch is as soft as a feather while you draw heart shaped figures on her bare skin.

"Lucky misses you too." You could feel one of her calloused hands sliding up your back and reaching your neck. "He's always so excited whenever I say your name." She then lets go of you, and goes to retrieve her phone that was in her backpack. "I've got a few videos of that, actually." She crawled back next to you, opened her gallery and pressed play on a video of Lucky being all happy and stomping around as his tail was wagging like an helicopter. You chuckle at the adorable sight.

For the next few minutes Kate proceeds to show you every single video of Lucky she had. (even the ones that you had seen a million times already) "Wait! I almost forgot." She reached in her backpack, taking out a small folder. She opened it and inside there were dozens of pictures of her, Lucky, and a couple with her team too. "I printed some more pictures for you." You melted. Kate knew you couldn't have a phone (being a demigod was really shitty sometimes.), and every time she made sure to print a lot of pictures (and yes, some of them were spicy too). You, in the other hand, were more prone to writing. So while you had an album full of pictures, she had a folder with all your letters and poems.

You couldn't help but to lean forward and kiss her on the lips. "Thank you." You looked at the pictures for a few moments and then looked up. "I got something for you too." You stretched your arm to open the drawer of the bedside table and took a small notebook, handing it to her. "It's a small scrapbook I've been making for the past couple of weeks." There's all kinds of things: poems, flowers, pictures and small things that remind you of her.

The corners of Kate's mouth reached her ears. "You're amazing, princess." She took the scrap book in her hand, starting to open it and flip through the pages. You stopped her. "Nah uh." You put your hand over hers, shutting the scrapbook closed. "That's for later. When you're back home."

Kate rolls her eyes. "Fine." She carefully puts the scrapbook in her backpack. She crawls back to you, fully laying on you and burying her face in your neck. She starts giving you little kisses on the same spot. "Come with me." She says in between kisses. "Come back to my universe."

"Katie, you know I can't." You sigh. Being long distance was certainly not easy. Especially if you both live in different universes, and don't have any type of communication besides iris messages, that you discovered can work between universes, but those can last just for a couple of minutes. (One time you left the "call" go on for the whole night. You had to toss 15 drachmas to pay for it. The inflation has reached the mythical world too apparently.)

"Please." Her soft voice was humming against your skin. You wanted to. You wanted to be with her, be close to her, falling asleep in eachothers arms and waking up to Lucky jumping on the bed and licking your faces. But you had your family to take care of. You were the oldest of the family. Your mum worked all day long, leaving you to take care of your two little siblings. And also you had college. You had missed the whole first semester due to the whole "disappearing into another universe thing" and now you had to catch up.

"I promise that I will, just not now. I have so much going on right now. I can't just disappear again after being away for months." You made her look at you, cupping her cheeks. "You promise?"

"I promise." You whisper, a small smile tugging on your lips.

She leans in and kisses you. She wants time to stop. Tomorrow morning she'll have to go back and it's going to be another couple of weeks until she can see you again. So she doesn't dare to pull away from you. She wants to be in your arms forever.

Soon her tongue slides in your mouth, sinking into you. But it's not enough. Touching you isn't enough. Her hands move up and down your sides, squeezing your waist over your sweater. Or better, her sweater that you stole the last time you went to visit her. Her fingers graze your stomach and slides her cold hands under the soft fabric. Your skin perks up, a shiver running down your spine to Kate's electric and intoxicating touch.

"Katie..." You whisper when her lips detach for a millisecond. She just hums against your mouth, her hands sliding upwards. She knows you're not wearing a bra underneath.

"Darling..." You say again a bit louder but she continues. And right when her fingertips are about to reach your breasts, you stop her. She leans back from your face, her hands don't move, they're warm, now having stolen the heat of your body. She's looking at you with her mouth agape, she's slightly panting, her pupils are blown out and tendrils tickling your now rosy cheeks. "We can't do that right now."

She furrows her eyebrows and she's about to ask why when someone knocks on your bedroom door. "Y/N?" It's your mum. You totally forgot that on Sundays she only works in the morning. Shit. She tries to open the door. This is the only time you thank the gods for having a crappy and old apartment. The handle of the door is almost broken, so it's pretty hard to open it unless you know the right mechanism to not tear the knob out.

"Quick. Hide somewhere!" You tell Kate as she panics and jumps out of the bed. She looks around and then she hears a click. The handle slightly turns and the door opens. Kate crouches down and slides under your bed right before your mum walks in your room.

You quickly put all the pictures that were next to you on the bed under your pillow and smile innocently. "Hey, mum. What's up?"

"I've made tea, do you want some?" She asks.

"Uhm- no. Thank you. I'm fine." You fold your arms under your chest.

"Are you sure? You've been in here for the whole day. You need to take some breaks from those books." She points at your messy desk.

"Yeah, I know. I'm taking one right now. You know, laying in bed and- looking at the ceiling." Kate has to hold in a laugh for your lame response. "It's very relaxing. You should try it."

"Alright." She says reluctantly. She takes a step back when she notices Kate's backpack on the floor next to your bed. Fortunately her suit was on the other side so she couldn't see it. "What's that?" She points at the black backpack.

"Oh. That's uhm- Will's. He left it here yesterday." You lie. But it was pretty effective because Will actually came to visit you the previous day. He would never own a backpack like that but your mum buys the lie and nods. "Hm. Okay. Well, if you need anything I'll be in the living room. Your siblings want to see Cars again." She states and closes the door behind her.

"Okay. Cool, thanks. Have fun!" You hold your breath until you can't hear her footsteps anymore and pat the side of the bed. "Coast is clear." Kate rolls out from under the bed and lays on your bedroom floor, a smirk on her face. You sit criss cross on the edge of the bed and look down at her. "What?"

"You're right. It is relaxing watching at that nice and smooth ceiling." She mocks.

"Shut up." You dangle down one foot and lightly kick her on her hip. She fakes a hurt face and pouts. She stands up and now she's the one looking down at you. "So, I gather you haven't told her yet?" You shake your head. You did want to tell your mum about Kate. But you know she would freak out. She's... very protective, to say the least. The first time you heard of camp half-blood or the term 'demigod' was when you were 15. You didn't even suspect anything since monsters wouldn't attack as you weren't as powerful as some other demigods. So she took that as an opportunity to keep you safe next to her. But the time comes for everyone and one day, after a big fight with her, you sneaked out, walking all the way to camp. And it wasn't a nice little promenade at all with monsters attacking you left and right every single step.

You only reconciled after the whole thing about your dad getting transformed into a teenage boy. Now you were on pretty good terms again, but her protectiveness hasn't ceased that much.

"I want to. I really do but... She'll definitely ban me from going to see you." You look down. "If she even finds out that in those months I've been in another universe and not at camp she'll probably get into a coma." You scoffed.

"Yeah, but you're an adult now. You are way capable to make your own decisions." Kate sat down next to you and wrapped an arm around your shoulder.

"I know. But the past months we became so close, more close than we've ever been and I don't want to ruin that again." Your eyes are fixed on your lap. You stop the urge to take your fingers to your mouth and bite your nails. Kate sees you getting anxious and she places her hand that wasn't around you over your hands. She speaks with a calm and smooth voice. "Hey, get those bad thoughts out of your head. In the first place, you didn't ruin anything. And secondly, I'm okay with you taking your time. I won't push you to do anything you don't want to." She kisses your temple and then presses your forehead against it.

You lean into her touch and exhale deeply. Then you turn your head, your eyes fix on her collarbone, the sun necklace you gave her is shining on her toned skin. You had a matching one, but with a little moon charm instead of the sun ("That way, it's like we will never be apart." Kate said when she gave it to you.). Then your gaze travels along Kate's features until you meet two oceans rumbling in front of you. "I really love you."

She smiles. "I love you too, baby." She pauses and her sweet smile turns into a cheeky grin. "So no head?"

You chuckle and shake your head. "Can't risk having my whole family hearing your pretty sounds." You peck her nose, making her scrunch it in an absolutely adorable way. "Those are only for me I'm afraid. I can propose some cuddling with a little make out session if you'd like." You suggest.

"Okay. That's fair." She nods in agreement. "Let's get started then, we have so little time and I have to tell you so many things." She climbs on top of you and gently pushes you down the bed. You giggle and your lips press together.

You stayed up all night. Talking about random stuff, taking breaks to make out, and chat again trying to maintain your voices and giggles as quiet as possible.

And it's in these moments where you understand that whatever happens, you won't ever let go of eachother. Because despite the distance you need eachother. The sun and the moon will always need eachother.

[sable-dream]

Five Tips, Tricks and Hacks For Cold Weather Therians!

It's summer (in the northern hemisphere) and I'm missing my snowy Ural mountains habitat - so I've decided to put together a list of stuff that I've been using to cope! :D

#1 Fake Snow

You can buy this pretty much everywhere online - but I've actually been using a DIY recipe! It's just baking soda + shaving foam but it gives you a nice crumbly texture and is even cool to the touch! :D This YouTube Video includes a couple of recipes that include common household ingredients!

#2 Cold Baths + Showers

These are self explanatory! As well as being refreshing, they also give you an excuse to nest in fluffy blankets afterwards - which helps if you long for your fur (even in the heat). These can be paired with bath bombs - I've done pine before to invoke forest-y feelings! DIY Bath Bomb recipe

#3 Frozen Foods

Obviously ice cream is a go-to here, but snow cones, popsicles, and ice cream sandwiches are all excellent! Ice cubes by themselves are also great in a pinch, and frozen fruit is another cheap option (stick it in the freezer overnight and boom homemade frozen snack!). 5 Minute Ice Cream Recipe Video

#4 Paint (Or Draw) A Cold Landscape

This really helps if you want to get into a more 'chill' (lol) headspace. I prefer to paint traditionally but digital art is also great! Two Bob Ross tutorials if you'd like them: Snow Fall ❆ Grey Winter

#5 Watch Videos, Movies, Or Documentaries With Cold/Snow Landscapes

If it's hot outside sometimes all you want to do is lie there and watch videos shot in places with subzero temperatures. You can find these on literally any streaming platform, and here's some youtube links for free documentaries: Frozen Worlds | Our Planet ❆ Mountains | Hostile Planet ❆ Animal Winter Wonderland | BBC Earth ❆ Canada's White Wolves | Real Wild ❆ (And a bonus Winter Ambiance)

[midnight1nk]

EPISODE CONCEPT #7

What if... SMG4 takes a vacation?

[more below cut]

For context... c'mon, can't a guy catch a break? :) Time for a vacation! [Also available on AO3 + Wattpad]

Let's hope Four doesn't waste all the bajillion dollars I just gave him. Am I right, @bowlolol? (yep it's part 2 of concept #5 - link)

"No regrets."

Four zips up his suitcase with an exhausted yet satisfied "hmph". He sat the case up to its wheel, facing the Crew. "You guys have always been telling me to take a break from editing, especially because of WOTFI and Marty months ago. It's about time. Besides, I just finished editing the video I've worked on for the past week." 

Four pulls out his phone and presses the "Publish" button on the YouTube studio, making a video public. "And...there, I should be good for the whole vacation," he said. "I mean, who wouldn't want to see a 10-hour complication of Kermit clips!"

Puppy-eyed Mario falls to his knees, putting his hands together. "SMG4, please take Mario with you!"

"Sorry, Mario, but the giveaway only had one ticket to give out. It was such a good deal too!" His finger points over to the pile of empty RIZZ soda cans in the corner of the room, it admittedly took forever to find the ultra-rare can with the QR code. "Totally worth it."

Mario went over to Four, pleading him to sneak the Italian Funnyman(TM) in his suitcase. In the meantime, Meggy was on a video call with an old friend.

"Thanks again, Auri, for being SMG4's guide. Just make sure he doesn't lose his suitcase like I did," she said.

Auri giggles. "Of course, anything for you, partner! I'll be sure to meet him at the port. Guy with the blue "S" cap, right?" Meggy nods in response, Auri does a salute. "Alright. But I hope his ship gets here before the storm does, heard it was going to be really rough."

"Yeah, SMG4 can get a bit seasick. Well, we're just about to drop him off by the docks. I'll talk to you soon, Auri!"

After Auri says goodbye, they hang up and Meggy turns to see Mario being dragged around by his grip on Four's ankle. She asked, "Ready to go?"

Four gave her a thumbs-up. "You bet!"

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

The Crew waved Four farewell as he did the same as he was on board the ship heading towards Port Aurora. Once the ship was out of sight, they all went back to what they were doing, content with the fact that Four wouldn't be in front of the screen all day. Well, everyone except Mario, who was staring up at the ceiling of his bedroom out of boredom.

Don't get him wrong, Mario is happy for Four. Ever since the 'perfect' incident, each of them was secretly weary of Four spending too much time editing a video. Not that they could stop him completely, he's a YouTube content creator after all. So, they would occasionally go up to him and ask him for something or straight up to take a break. Mario remembered he did it one time, when he asked Four for milk. Sure, it wasn't the most solid plan but it was at least something that distracted him for a bit. What other plan was there anyway?

Ask him for a cup of sugar? Pfft. That's pretty lame excuse, even for Mario.

Mario groaned, getting off from his bed. Four finally takes a break but without him around, the poor plumber is left alone, bored. There wasn't really anyone to go along with his funny shenanigans. So, he tried it with his other friends.

Luigi ended up having to clean up the mess he made at the flower shop. Melony was busy working on her second book. He got bored listening to Boopkin's stories. Three was also busy, running the cafe and streaming. Saiko was in band practice with Kaizo.

Then, there was Meggy. From what he could tell, Meggy was unsure if she could keep her red beanie. Unsure what to do with her life anymore. He couldn't blame her, after Western Spaghetti and what Mr Puzzles did. It was a lot to take in. It'll be best to give her some space, away from his silliness.

So, he tried doing stuff on his own, like reacting to some Nintendo memes in the game room. But it didn't feel the same. Tari was also there, focused on a gaming session with Belle and some other online friends. 

However, seeing how Mario drooping in his chair, Tari paused her game. "Sorry guys but I need to do something real quick. Be right back." She mutes her microphone and heads over to her friend. "Hey, Mario? You feeling okay?" 

"I'm just so bored," the red Italian said. "Wish SMG4 was here." 

"Oh, Mario, it's only been a couple of hours. He won't be back until after 3 weeks." 

"ONLY A COUPLE OF HOURS?" Mario shouted, his eyes shot open. Panicking, he went to shake Tari by the shoulders. "Tari, someone is messing with the time gods! It's the end of the world!"

Tari, being used to Mario's energy, simply grabbed his hands in reassurance. "You really miss him, huh?"

"He is Mario's best friend." He calms down, his eyes starting to water. "We have done a lot of stuff together."

"Hmm, do you want to hang out with me?"

"Thanks, but it won't feel the same."

She takes a moment to think, her pointer finger on her chin, until an idea comes to mind. "Why don't you send SMG4 a video postcard?" Tari asks, capturing Mario's curiosity. "I'm sure SMG4 misses us too, so maybe you could send a video of our friends. Around the Showgrounds. You could ask him to do the same in Port Aurora. That way, you guys will still be in contact."

Mario's eyes sparkled, jumping with enthusiasm. He shakes Tari's hand, thanking her, before running out of the game room. With a camera in hand, he goes around recording everything he can and the first person he went to was Luigi, of course. Mario apologized about the mess but he is willing to make it up to him by helping out doing some labor. Luigi was happy at the offer.

While Luigi handled customers and arranged flower arrangements, Mario was going around doing deliveries. It was the best part, after all, steering the wheel while making airplane noises. Nearly crashing into several cars, y'know the usual. But then he passed by Meggy's house. Wanting to cheer her up, he asked Meggy to come along.

Meggy shakes her head. "I don't know, Red."

"C'mon, it'll be fun! Certified Mario promise." 

 "Well, okay..." She complies with a note of hesitation.

Mario let out a "yippee" and carried her to the delivery truck like a sack of potatoes. As Mario drove, Meggy was reading off the list for him since he's not a fan of reading. Her finger stopped at a particular address. "Wait, 'Wright'? As in, Phoenix Wright?" 

"Oh, yeah. That was the lawyer guy you're a fan of, right?" 

"Can we go see him?" She asked, sudden enthusiasm simply blooming from her.

Mario was surprised by it but he smiled, gladly changing the route for her. Stopping at a tall office building, Meggy and Mario went in and searched for Phoenix Wright's office. At the reception desk, they saw the man himself, talking to two younger lawyers in red and yellow. 

The secretary, seeing the duo, called out to Phoenix. "Ooh, looks like someone got a nice bouquet!"

Phoenix, seeing the familiar faces by the desk, excused himself from his co-workers before greeting the M&M duo. "Hello Mario, Meggy! It's been a while. Do you guys need more legal help?"

"No, Mario's just here to help Luigi out." Mario holds out the bouquet, red roses as the order said.

Phoenix grabs it from his hands and examines the card attached. From reading it, he grew a fond smile on his face. "Thanks for the delivery," he said.

Like a polite student, Meggy raised her hand. "Um, actually, I could use some advice. Between friends, if that's okay."

Phoenix tilted his head, gears turning in his mind, before he giver her a nod. "Sure, why don't we take a walk?" He said before turning to the secretary, handing the flowers to her. "Truce..."

"Don't worry, I'll let them know," Trucy reassured. "Just be back before we need to meet for lunch."

"Oh, yeah," Phoenix chuckles. His face then turned serious, almost grim. It was enough to know it was supposed to be mocking. "Wright, I reserved this days ago and you're here drenched in rainwater. This is what happens when you're late," he impersonated with a mid-Atlantic accent before returning to his normal self. "Alright then, take the wheel. We all know how Apollo was last time."

"HEY!" A shout can be heard from another room. "That wasn't even my fault!"

Phoenix and Trucy shake their heads. He guides Mario and Meggy out, and to a nearby park. Mario had some packages to deliver nearby so he left the other two to walk alone.

"So, what's in your mind?" He asks.

 "It's just..." Meggy sighs, trying to tie her thoughts to something cohesive. "A lot has happened."

Meggy goes on to explain what happened after the Nintendo lawsuit. The 'It's Gotta Be Perfect' incident, Western Spaghetti. Mr Puzzles, Leggy. With the Crew, every day is another adventure but it's starting to take a toll on her sometimes.

"Everything I am was because of One-Shot Wren," she explains. "Splatfest, Desti. I idolized him so much that I didn't know what to do with myself after what happened. I get where he was coming from, I do. But he hurt my friends, me. It's like I lived through a lie, my entire life. I just don't know what to do anymore."

"I see." He nods emphatically. "Y'know, you remind me of a friend. He, too, idolized someone, put them on a pedestal. I think it was because he knew what he lost, and he wished he could have it back. Like you, he pursued the same career his idol had, following every guideline to a 'T'. When he discovered his idol was nothing but a cruel man, he felt lost. What else can you do when you are just a pawn in someone else's game?" 

Phoenix pulls out a golden locket from his blazer pocket, clicking the tiny latch open. "So, he went to rediscover himself. What it means to be a prosecutor, was what he told me. He found that answer, pursuing the truth. He taught me a lot of things, and I guess I did the same for him."

Phoenix hands the locket to Meggy, to finally see what was inside. It was a small family portrait. Other than Phoenix, there was another man around the same age, his face more sharper and with warm gray hair. Then there were two teen girls, one with a raven black ponytail, and another girl that Meggy recognized as the secretary she just met. What caught her eye was the gold rings both men wore.

"Wait, you're married?" She asks, handing the locket back.

Indeed, there was a golden band on his ring finger. He laughs. "Not a lot of people suspect the infamous Turnabout Terror being married to the city's Chief Prosecutor. Yes, before we got into law, we were childhood friends."

"Ah, well congrats! You seem to have a nice family."

 "I do. And don't think we don't have our hardships. The point is, Meggy, it's not too late to rediscover who you are. If you want to continue with Splatfest, do it. If you want to continue doing law, do it. But do it for yourself, not to prove something to anyone. Like I said, the truth can help you a lot when you want to find it."

"Thanks, I really needed this," Meggy says, giving a firm nod. The spark that once was lost in her soul started to come back once more.

Mario comes back to get Meggy, and both say goodbye to the lawyer. Meggy soon learned about the postcard idea Tari proposed and wanted to help Mario out, thinking it was a great idea. After the deliveries, they went along filming postcards for everyone.

Luigi and Shroomy prepare a giant flower float for an incoming parade. Melony and Swag presenting the publishing gathering of her newest book. Boopkins having a friendly hangout with Hatsune Miku, talking about anime. Tari and her friends are in a gaming tournament. Bob trying, and failing, to get rich at a nearby casino. Saiko and Kaizo performing in a live audience.

After gathering all of the film, Mario went to go edit them in Four's room. Four, being a content creator and all, would surely have the best editing software.

Pulling the app up, Mario noticed Four left a project open, labeled "video3_draftdraft(unfinished)".

"Huh, a 10-hour compilation of Kermit clips..." Mario concludes by skimming through the video. Not thinking too much about it, he shrugs. "Ah, classic SMG4, he forgot to save and close out." Mario went ahead and saved it, dragging the file to the 'Complete' folder Four had. The outlier, the rest of the files in that folder were either labeled "final" or "(ready)". 

"All done," he proclaims with a thumbs-up. "Now, time to do the postcard."

After editing the videos into a single one, Meggy came to check in on how he was doing. Overall, it looks awesome. Except for one thing...

"What do you guys want?" Three asks. Of course, he could be annoyed but he was more confused by the comedically large camera Mario held. "And what's with the giant camera?"

"We're gonna send SMG4 a video postcard!" Mario said before Meggy chimed in, "It's almost complete, we just need something from you."

Hearing this, Three smirked. "Well then, I'll gladly make a clip all about me!"

"SMG3, be serious," Meggy says. "This isn't time for you to gloat, you can do that any other time. It's more than a postcard, it's to show that we care about SMG4 as his friends."

"Friends?" SMG3 repeated, his smirk fading away to a new mix of expression, bashfulness and denial. He looks away, crossing his arms. "Uh, no. No, we aren't friends."

Both Meggy and Mario shared a suspicious yet amusing brow. Yeah, sure. "So.... can we film?" Mario asks.

"No."

Mario and Meggy blinked, surprised. "What? Why?"

"Because I said so."

Knowing Three, perhaps too well, Meggy knows he's hiding something. "Well, if you want to, you can just film it yourself and send us the clip. We'll leave you be, c'mon Red."

Three watched as M&M duo walked back to the Castle before being back in the cafe. Nearby Eggdog barked, warning him that it was almost time for his stream. "You're right, thanks Eggdog." He patted Eggdog's head. "Pfft, sending a sappy video to SMG4. As if!"

He went ahead to stream Mario Party for tonight, the usual routine. After thanking the chat for the subs and donations, he logged off and pulled out his notebook to write about the day. Just as he turned to a blank page, his finger stopped at a particular page and he stopped to see what it was. It was the drawing he drew at the end of WOTFI 2023, of him and SMG4 sharing a coffee together. Three's face softens.

It's such a phenomenon, isn't it?

Rivals, friends, none of it matters when it comes to Four and Three. They would always cross each other's paths, bounded by a cosmic link. And yet, the roles they play were already set in stone the moment they landed in the Mushroom Kingdom. Good and bad, light and dark.

Two sides of the same coin.

It was always one pressing the other, to keep on their toes. Three supposed that was the thrill of it all, his life ever more exciting. He always wondered if Four felt the same way. If he suspected that it was the case, then it would be even more proof that they can keep up each other's pace. Three knows Four, and Four in return. It's what essentially saved Four from the 'perfect' incident.

Other than Four, no one else could truly understand. Even with Four, there are secrets Three hoped they would never see the light of day. It was the role he was chosen part, and the show must go on. If he revealed all of himself to the rest of the world, surely people wouldn't be happy about it. Hell, people already despised him for not being threatening anymore. How far was he truly going to go for them? For Four?

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, he supposed he could do a clip.

Indeed, take after take, he tried to make a video he was satisfied with. But no matter what he did, his words weren't right. His silence wasn't right. Naturally, he was frustrated at that fact but he pushed himself to give one last take.

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

Looking over their shoulders, Three's eyes chased after the mouse cursor. He already sent the video to Meggy, trusting her more than Mario. Three already knew Mario would tease him for what he essentially said to Four. Regardless, he kept an eye on the M&M duo editing the video, occasionally warning them to not look at his clip. To not even think of listening to it.

After saving the video, Meggy exported the final video to Mario's phone. "And, I think we're done!" Task completed, Mario and her share a high-five.

Three reminded, "You better delete my clip from your messages, Squid."

"Don't worry, I got it," Meggy reassured, rolling her eyes. She shows her phone screen as proof that she has in fact double-deleted the video. 

"Yippee! Mario can't wait to see Four's reaction!" Mario cheered. When Mario sends the video to Four, a warning pops up on the screen, No signal. "Meggy?"

Meggy looks over the phone Mario shoved in her hands. "Hmm, that's strange. There should be a signal on the island, let me call Auri."

It took a couple of rings but Auri finally responded. "Meggy! I'm so sorry," Auri apologized, his voice sounding like he was about to cry.

"Auri, calm down," Meggy instructed with patience. "What happened?"

"I promised I would find your friend. But when the ship arrived, I was running late and he wasn't at the port when I got there. I tried looking everywhere, but I've lost him."

"Hey, it'll be alright. Maybe he went off on his own," she reasoned, but it was clear that she was starting to get stressed out.

"I'll call the hotel." Three pulled out his phone and dialed the number Four gave to them, putting it in speaker mode.

The receptionist answered, "Hello, this is Hotel Aurora. How can we help you?"

"Hey. Listen, we're looking for a friend who booked a room in your hotel. His name's SMG4."

A pause, the muffled sound of the keyboard typing in the background.

"Sorry, sir, but we don't have anyone under the name SMG4."

"What are you talking about?" Mario jumped in, confused. "He was the winner of that giveaway the Rizz Soda company had."

"What giveaway? We hadn't received anything from any company about that."

Meggy, Mario, and Three all looked at each other, their eyes widened at the implications. It's only been a few days, where in the world is Four?

The Showgrounds went into complete chaos. The Crew tried contracting Four with no response. They contacted the cruise that took Four over sea and according to their logs, Four never got off that ship. Meggy asked Auri for a team to search the island.

Waiting was agony. But what else could they do?

Mario apparently did, suggesting to use the tracker on Four's phone. It worked last time when Mr. Puzzles planned with Puzzlevision. After contacting the phone company and requesting Four's last location, they couldn't believe what they heard next.

Four's phone was in the Mushroom Kingdom. As if he never left.

The Crew immediately contacted everyone they knew to create a search party. Bowser, Shroomy, the military, FM & X, Wario, Waluigi, the Anti-cast, all of the Mario recolors. All of the volunteers as well as the Crew gathered outside the SMG4 Castle while Meggy stood on a stage with a megaphone.

"Alright, everyone. SMG4 could be here in the Mushroom Kingdom but the tracker couldn't pinpoint where it is! We need to split up to cover more ground. If anyone finds him, contact us and tell us where he is." Meggy scans over everyone's worried faces. She takes a stable breath, someone has to be a pillar. "Just be careful out there. We'll get SMG4 home."

The crowd scattered, each going their own way, but Meggy pulled Mario aside. "Red, I know it might be impossible but there's a place I want to check out," she explained and held up her Splattershott. "Want to be my backup?"

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

BOOM

Meggy and Mario busted in through the office door, a trail of unconscious patients on the floor behind them. Ugh, the Meme Rehab. They didn't exactly have a choice but it was better to be safe than sorry. They glared at the man who was now cowering in the corner of the room. 

Meggy goes over and picks him up by the collar. "Alright, Mr. Niceguy, where's SMG4?"

Mr. Niceguy merely stared back, confused. "SMG4? But I haven't—"

Meggy slaps him, interrupting. "Don't play dumb! Tell us where you're hiding him!"

The doctor lets out a high-pitched scream. "I swear I don't know where he is! I swear it on my mother's ashes, please don't hurt me!"

"Uh, Meggy." She turns to Mario, who's pointing out at all the containers filled with other patient's brain lobes. "Mario thinks he's telling the truth. No SMG4 lobe here."

"The red guy is right, I would've done another lobotomy on him if he came back. I swear that he didn't, though."

Meggy sighs, exasperated. "Great, another dead end. I'll let the rest know then." She lets the doctor go, to send a text to the search party's group chat. 

"He was such a great patient," Mr. Niceguy, mutters. "Well, if he wasn't so weird."

Mario and Meggy shared a confused look, then to the doctor. She asks, "What do you mean by weird?"

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

Hearing a ding from his back pocket, Three saw Meggy's message of Four not being in the Meme Rehab. As much as it seemed uplifting, It only made Three's concerning suspicions grow larger. Walking down the path, he spotted something familiar. He ran and picked it up, it was Four's phone. Turning it on, he saw the dozens of abandoned calls and messages, dating all the way back to the day SMG4 supposedly left for that vacation.

Looking ahead, he saw a figure on the horizon, a dot of blue, and his blood ran cold. He begged each and every star, hoping Four wouldn't be back here. But he was. Three sent a quick text to the group, telling them that he found him and where, before he ran towards that dreaded place.

Four was standing by the edge of the Pit of Peach's Castle ruins, looking down at the demonic gateway.

Once Three managed to get closer, he slowed down his pace to a halt, afraid that one wrong move would scare Four into falling in. "SMG4?"

Four doesn't say a word but he slightly tilts his head, listening.

Three huffed in disbelief. Is Four serious right now, he asked to himself. "What, you're not gonna say anything? Where the hell have you been? Everyone has been going around like headless chickens, they thought you got kidnapped! I thought..." He stops himself, wanting to say more, but genuine worry wins within him. "What are you doing here?"

A beat. A roll of thunder rumbling overhead.

"You guys shouldn't be jumping to conclusions," Four said, his tone unusually calm. "I'm fine, SMG3. I actually had a great time during my break. It helped me with a lot of things."

Three approached him slowly as light rain started to drizzle. There was another ding from his phone but he shut it off. "C'mon, let's just get out of here."

"I've been thinking back at all the stuff I did. What I chose." Four shakes his head with sorrowful regret. "No matter what I do, everything goes wrong."

Three's arms reached out. "Four..."

Once Three's hand was hovering over Four's shoulder, Four gripped his arm. Within a blink, Three was flung into the air and slammed, the impact causing the ground to crack. Three groaned, thinking that Four might've broken his back, until Four picked him up by the throat. Three's hands immediately tried to pry himself free but Four's grip was firm. With enough strength, Three looked at Four and he felt his heart sink.

Four's eyes, they were pink.

A familiar goo enveloped his eyes, the pink plunging into the dark void. His expression was blank, before it suddenly formed new eyes. Jagged and irregular, glowing white. It wasn't Four anymore. He wasn't even human. One eye was shaped like a triangle and the other was circular. After a blink, a wicked grin crept on Four's face.

"I should've saved the USB over you," Four said, his voice becoming an eerie echo. "It would've made things a lot better, wouldn't you agree?"

Three choked, "Four... don't..."

By Three responding at all, Four frowned, his eyes cycled into different ones. "You have no idea how many hours, weeks, I sacrificed for that perfect video! And then, you had the audacity to say we're friends, you just wanted to save your own skin," Four snapped. After a second, Four took a breath, returning back to his triangular and circular set of eyes. "But that's about to change, and everything will be perfect."

Maintaining his grip, Four holds Three over the edge. "Goodbye, SMG3."

The unnatural strength gathered in his arm, Four tossed Three into the pit, and with that, time seemed to slow down. From the corner of his eye, Three could see the satisfaction beaming off of this man. It isn't Four.

But it was too late. There was nothing Three could do other than to meet his demise.

Suddenly, a force grabbed him by the side, and was pulled out of the way to solid ground with a thump. Three placed a hand over his head and sat up, to discover that the force was Mario. The red plumber looked exasperated, more of worry than anything else.

Four asked, surprised, "What?"

There was a flinch in his eye, as if it was sensing something from behind. Then, when time slowed once more, he dodged the paintball that raced towards him, missed by a hair. The paint, along with the goo covering him, was gone. Four spun around, a trail of pink light from his eyes shimmered like a comet, until he landed in a defensive stance. He moved like a glitch. As the trail faded away, he growled at his newfound threat.

The terrified Crew ran over the hill, Meggy leading them with her Splattershott. "SMG3, get away from that thing!"

She takes another shot. Effortlessly, Four manages to dodge that shot as well. He glared at Three, a silent promise that he'll be back, before escaping. A clash of thunder strikes the ground and the Crew loses sight of him. As Mario helped Three up, the Crew finally reached to them.

"SMG3, did SMG4 look different to you?" Mario asked, concerned.

"Yeah, his eyes were pink. The goo...." Three said, still stunned by what occurred. But he shakes his head,  confusion and frustration taking over. "Can someone tell me what's going on?! Why the fuck does SMG4 have that goo from the incident?"

The Crew looked at each other, unsure what to say to Three. What can they say? Meggy, mustering up the strength, took a step forward. "There's something you should know."

Recalling everything from the interrogation in the Meme Rehab, the surgeon explained that during the lobotomy, he discovered something unnatural in Four's body. It looked like goo. When he tried poking at it, the goo grew eyes and screeched. He felt like his ears were about to bleed so he quickly finished stitching Four's head up. His curiosity, however, got the better of him.

Taking a sample of Four's blood, he examined it under a microscope and observed tiny black specks plaguing the red blood cells before consuming them. Becoming one.

 "It never left," Meggy explains. "That goo has been taking over SMG4 this whole time, reacting to his emotions. He said that, at the rate that it was going, there won't be anything left of him." Her last words faded into a mutter.

Three's eyes searched Meggy's face, unable to process what she just said. "Wha...what are you saying?" He asks, Meggy responds with only visible hesitation. 

"Meggy." She refused to look at him so he grabbed her by the arms. "What are you saying?"

Meggy takes a breath, her mind trying to find a way how to put it delicately for Three. But in every way she sliced it, it just wouldn't be fair for this man. She had to tell him, the way it has to be.

"SMG4... is dead."

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

He wanted this to end. Begged for it. He wanted someone to shake him by the shoulders, to wake him up. From his nightmare, from this sick joke. This level of cruelty, he wanted it to stop.

This was no nightmare.

It has been a week since the Crew last saw "SMG4". It was best for it to stay that way, but they knew that thing would stop at nothing to take its vengeance. While the rest of the Crew was preparing the Castle for a grand meeting with the search party volunteers, Meggy was on the other SMGs. Other than the Crew, they were on an expedition and the first to receive the news. Currently rushing back to the Mushroom Kingdom from essentially dropping everything immediately.

"This storm is affecting us a lot more than what we were expecting," SMG1 reports. "But, we promise you that we are on our way. Just stay put."

"Okay then, bye." Meggy hangs up. With a shaky exhausted breath, her hands held her head. Tari, noticing Meggy's distress, walks over and brings her into a side hug.

Boopkins asks her, "Well, what now?"

"Once SMG1 and 2 are here, they can handle it."

"And do what? Use their meme powers to scare the goo away?"

Saiko exclaimed, "Bob!"

Paying no mind, Bob points at Meggy. "You said it yourself, that goo basically went full 'Venom' and took over SMG4! If he is dead, it's going to find a new host."

Boopkins says, "Bob, you're not suggesting..."

"Oh, I'm very much suggesting." Bob pulls out a rocket launcher out of thin air. "It's time to obliterate that son of a bitch."

"He's right." 

Everyone else, besides Bob, pans over to Meggy in shock. "What?"

"Now that I thought about it, SMG4 hasn't been himself ever since the incident," Meggy said. "It's more than just trauma. Sometimes he's strong out of nowhere, or how he got good aim back at WOTFI. He's been acting strange this whole time, I just couldn't see it."

The rest exchanged guilty looks, perhaps they were really to blind to notice. And Four paid the price.

"We managed to save him the first time but..." Meggy looks over to the door to Four's bedroom. "It was because Four was still in there."

Melony asks, "And, what if..."

Meggy shakes her head. "No. He's really gone. I think, to save everyone, the goo has to go. For good. That's what he would've wanted."

The room filled with silence, it was almost suffocating. Four's behavior, the debate was did they see or did they wish not to see? Either way, this was the price and they agreed that death would give mercy to Four's soul from the pain and suffering he had to endure.

Without anyone noticing, Mario slipped into Four's room, he needed to talk to him. The room was dark except for some sunlight peeking through the closed curtains. Just like outside, it was silent here. Other than Mario was Three, curled up in Four's bed, refusing to face the door. His hair was in a loose and greasy mess, and he wore a light gray hoodie. It was one of Four's.

Mario walked over to him, passing by plates of food pilling up on Four's desk. Untouched. He sat on the edge opposite where Three lay, who was unfazed of the mattress shifting by the weight.

"...SMG4 isn't dead," Mario said. A beat. He elaborates, "Mario doesn't know how, he just does. SMG3, you're his partner. You guys are cosmically linked. You must've felt it if it broke, right?"

SMG3 stayed silent in response. Mario took a breath, steadying himself on what he was about to say.

 "They're planning to go after him and..." His voice starts to quiver. "They can't kill him! I can't! I didn't ask to kill my best friend, SMG3. I... don't think I can."

Silent, once again. Mario lets out a sigh and stands up. "I just don't want to lose another friend." He leaves Three alone in the room, the soft click of the door closing behind him.

What Mario couldn't see were the silent tears that rolled down Three's face. The news of SMG4's death. The world completely changed, like someone pulled a rug from under his feet.

And nothing was the same again.

The minute they returned to the Castle, Three had beelined to Four's room. Perhaps because he was still in denial, he tidied the room up. Four was never exactly an organized person anyway. Three made his bed, dusted his shelves, and threw out the food takeout bags. He held on to that hope, that Four was gonna come in at any second and be normal again. That everything will be fine again.

That he'll be back.

Even when tears started to form in the corners of his eyes, he refused and refused and refused goddamnit. He'd known Four for years, he had been his long-time rival for meme's sake. Four was stubborn, and resilient. The sight of his determination shined brilliantly in Three's eyes, it blinded him as a rival but admired it as a friend. So, why? Why was this the thing that stopped Four?

Those thoughts spiraled in his mind as he folded up one of Four's hoodies. From its touch, Three remembered when his partner wore it, that tender smile on his face. It was always reserved for Three. One memory was all it took for Three to terms with this undeniable fact, breaking into an uncontrollable sob and burying himself in the hoodie. Back then, when he had control over the YouTube Remote, he asked to take Four's place.

This was what he asked for. And there he was, a complete mess.

After that, as the rest of the world was, he went numb. His friends came and went to check up on him. Food, condolences. They begged to say something, anything.

He didn't.

Sitting himself up, he looked down at what he clenched in his fist. It was a small USB that appeared identical to the pod Four landed in the Mushroom Kingdom with. Blue and white, fashioned in a bracelet. Ever since their pods flew away, these USB keys were left behind. During the confrontation at the Pit, Three somehow yanked it off from Four's wrist.

Being isolation, it gave him time to think and one question remained, where did this goo even come from, before the 'perfect' incident? That keyboard, it must be a lead. It doesn't matter how many precautions he had to prevent something like this from happening, he needed to find answers. He already failed Four once, this was the only way he could make it up to him.

With what Mario just told him, he was running out of time.

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

"Hey, Gary. I know this is out of the blue, but I need a favor."

In the depths of the Dark Web, a light passes through the underground labyrinth. Three, a flashlight in one hand, fidgeted with the drawstring of Four's hoodie. No one must know where the realm's Archives are, much less that he was one of the Meme Guardians who had access to it.

"Is this about your cafe of yours?"

At last, he reached to a stone-bricked door, moss creeping through the cracks, and his hood was pulled off to allow himself to be scanned. With a confirming beep, the door rolled itself open and a computer covered in dust awaited for him inside. He swiped some of it off with a sleeve to find a small rectangular keyhole.

"No, not this time. I need you for a mission, you're the only one in the Dark Web I can trust."

Taking it off around his neck, Three held his black and indigo USB key, strung as a pendant. He inserted it into the keyhole and twisted it. The room suddenly awakens in light, rows of digital manilla folders circled at the ready.

After Three pressed a couple of buttons and scanned his photo, the database became a hurricane, narrowing down from millions. Only a few dozen closely matched the input he put in. He picked up each and every folder, his eyes skimming past unnecessary details until it came to one.

A folder, dated back years ago, long before he was a Guardian, perhaps held a start...

CLIENT NAME — Winston [REDACTED]

AGE — [REDACTED]

PRODUCT — Failed Lab Subject #18

He read through the shopkeeper's notes, how a man asked for a transmutation device that is compatible and adapts to biological matter. "The new evolution" was what he said. The buyer claimed that was a personal experiment on plants, Three highly doubts that it was.

From one file to another, Three chased a lead of this "subject #18" into a spiraling rabbit hole. A laboratory, unsanctioned experimentation. A weapon. All to lead to one name:

Project Horus

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

Everyone in the Castle stood around the table, a sense of mourning settling in. Who knew it would have to come to this?

"How did the goo even get to SMG4?" Tari wondered. "I thought it went down with Peach's Castle."

Luigi responds, "Someone must've brought it back, maybe the keyboard wasn't needed."

"Well, SMG1 and 2 better be here soon and fix this mess." Saiko stepped up, "Forget the kingdom, the whole world will be in danger."

"As if they were there the first time," Swag said, being reminded of the 'perfect' incident. He pulls out a grenade. "I'd say let's blow that goo to smithereens.

Then, they all started to jump in with their own suggestions, shouting over each other that their idea was better. Bowser offered his airship, Steve his buckets of lava, the military their tanks. Bob with his (illegally-obtained) weapons, Saiko her hammer.

But when the question came of who was going to be the one to finish Four, they beat around the bush.

Mario looked at all of them in disbelief, a pit forming in his stomach. It just couldn't be real. His best friend, one he had known for years, was gone. And here they were, debating how to kill the shell that was once Four.

Meggy could feel his pain and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Red, I'm..."

The doors of the Castle burst open, distracting everyone from their argument. To their surprise, "SMG3?"

Indeed it was. Three, abandoning the hoodie and loose hair, marched in with a fresh new look. He wore a purple belt holding his black overalls, and his iconic gloves inverted in color. On one arm, he wore a red and white checkered band while the other had a simple stubbed black band. Gary was close behind him with a cart full of weaponry.

"None of those are gonna work. That goo mutated from too many experiments that it's practically invincible." Three goes over to the table and leans on its surface with his knuckles.

"How would you know that?" Bob asked.

"The goo was created by a secret government experiment to explore and survive the Great Beyond," he elaborated. "Or am I wrong, Chris?"

They all turn to Chris, then back to Three. Bewildered but it was clear that they demanded an explanation.

Swag steps in defensively. "Hold up, you can't just accuse Chris of anything! Besides, there's no..." But he looked over at Chris, who was tense. "Chris?"

"I'm not accusing Chris of anything, calm down," Three says to Swag. "He might've known about the experiment but he didn't do any of that stuff himself."

Though he was reluctant, Chris sighed in defeat. He confessed, "It's true. I remember when the whole base was in total chaos when the subject managed to break out of its containment chamber. Project Horus."

"After that, it got captured and experimented on twice. A lab in the Dark Web, and Mr Puzzles," Three adds. The Crew freezes with a note of recognition in that name. He changes the subject, "We're not going to be here all day pointing fingers on who's going to be the one to kill the goo. I'll do it."

Meggy intervenes, "SMG3, I don't think..."

"I was SMG4's Meme Guardian partner. It's only fair that I'd be the one to take it down." He looked over to Mario and lowered his head apologetically.

Chris asks, "If the government couldn't even control it, what makes you think you got a chance at this? You barely made it last time."

"SMG4 was the one who gave it to us," Three replied as Gary tossed him a black and red rifle.

The Dark Web lab's weapon, dubbed "The Ultimate Virus", has a single "bullet" powerful enough not only to kill any entity, but it erase their existence entirely. This includes erasing any memory of it from everyone who interacted with said entity, in this case, the goo since it's all that remained.

Why remember the monster that killed Four?

Though, it is useless by itself, without two particular keys. Well, except if you happened to be lucky. Inserting his and Four's USB in their designated slots on each side, the rifle sparked to life. Its miniature lights glow red, ready to fire in Three's command.

Three's eyes masked with determination, vengeance. "Whoever wants to join, prepare yourselves because there will be no coming back."

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

There were a few who would know about this place. Passing from the Showgrounds and through the woods, there is a flower field on a nearby cliff, overlooking the sea. It's quite calm, the only company other than oneself was the sound of the whispering breeze and the waves kissing the rocks below. Right above, there was a spectacle of stars.

Three twirled one of the white lilies between his fingers, his cap laid next to where he sat. As expected like an old friend, the wind blew through his ponytail that was tied with a long white ribbon. A finger delicately trailed on its petals, his face in utter turmoil and loss.

"SMG3, are you sure you're up to this?"

Four was the one who brought him to this place. Three had a nightmare one time and was brought here to help with his nerves. Ever since then, this was their secret spot. At least, it used to. Now, it all belongs to Three.

"My partner is gone, Gary. If I can avenge him by killing Horus, then I won't regret anything."

The goo, "Horus" was the name the Dark Web lab gave, was the one who took SMG4 away from him. Three could put the rest of the blame onto Mr Puzzles. Or Winston, whatever his damn name is. Perhaps, in another timeline, he would've given Mr Puzzles a chance to redeem himself. Three used to be like him, after all. But to go this far, this has to end. He has to end it.

He had contacted Gary for a favor, to bring in the best of the best of his inventory for his friends to defend with. With the material strong enough to withstand Horus, they'll be fine. However, there was a doubt, lingering in the back of his mind. One he wasn't willing to show to the Crew.

"SMG4, if you're still in there somehow, show me a sign," Three said. "And I won't shoot, I promise."

He let the wind take the lily from his hand and watched until it flew far, far away. After putting on his cap that hid his ponytail, he got up and walked back into the Showgrounds. The Crew needed a leader for tomorrow, after all.

.・-: ✧ :--: ✧ :-・.

His pink eyes stared above, fascinated by the stars shining ever so brightly. You get tired of the same old red tentacles roaming around in this pit. Not that what was left of Peach's Castle helped his boredom either. But the stars, he didn't know why he was so captivated by them.

Horus supposed this was the consequence of waiting in one place.

Suddenly, he spotted some movement and narrowed his eyes, trying to make out what the object was. Though it was impossible, he thought it might've been a falling star. It didn't seem to present any threat. He curiously waited until he was able to catch it. It was a white lily. His eyes flashed blue.

"...Three?"

But he shook his head and dropped the lily, eyes returning to pink. No, he needs to focus on what's important.

The host must live.

✧-✧-✧

[ To be continued... // PART 1 // PART 3 ]

That's right, my dear fellows, this was part 2 of Concept #5 all along [*insert villain laugh here*]