#speaking of wanting to be him… I did a low effort cosplay already

[magical-xirl-4]

I’m not really sure why I’m so into Wolfwood it’s either I think he’s really sexy or I want to be him or both

[ikeromantic]

Adrift

A Mitsuhide Akechi fanfic - this scene occurs after the romantic epilogue. (HC post-epilogue fun). Approx. 1300 words.

Thanks to @yukina-otome for inspiring part of this scene with her adorable story Tricking a Kitsune

First: Mitsuhide and the Maiden

Previous: Old Friends, New Adventures

The still void stretched out for what felt like an eternity. Yet, when it ended, Mitsuhide was fairly sure it had only lasted a few breaths at most. The gloom around him coalesced into a night sky - similar, and yet strange. The stars looked washed out and distant, and the night itself felt too bright.

There was a fire burning across a path of black stone. It was shaped like a double-arch, yellow as gold, and under it a cherry-red. It didn’t flicker or dance like a flame, but held steady against the night.

His little mouse stood beside him, her mouth open. “Oh,” she said. “Oh no.”

Miyake started to laugh. He bent double, short of breath and gasping, but unable to stop his laughter.

Sasuke was wiping his glasses dry. He slid them onto his face and looked around. “I am afraid there was a slight miscalculation on my part.” He looked to the three of them and bowed low. “You have my apologies.”

“What do you mean, Sasuke? How did we - how did this happen?” The chatelaine sounded more exhausted than angry, though there was heat to her words.

The ninja’s expression didn’t change but his tone was remorseful. “I have been working on a way to trigger the wormholes. To allow passage at will, if we want it. I planned to bring . . . “ He took a breath. “We can talk about what I planned later. Right now, I just need you to know this was not the intended effect.”

Mitsuhide took a breath. “I assume this is your hometown?”

Sasuke nodded. “Our home time, anyway. We are quite a long distance away from my flat. And yours?” He glanced at the chatelaine.

“Yes, if it is still mine.”

Miyake finally got control of his hysterical laughter and straightened. He raised a trembling hand and pointed it toward the black-rock path. Two bright pinpoints of light were moving toward them. “What is that?”

“A car. Those are like very fast carts. It is traveling on a modern highway - a road. And beside it is a western fast food shop.” Sasuke gave the warlord and his vassal a firm look. “Stay off the road, and don’t speak to anyone just yet. Let the chatelaine and I do the talking if anyone asks you questions.”

Mitsuhide nodded. The words and what he was seeing were incomprehensible. He was confused and tired. This night, he wasn't ready to put forward the effort to understand life 500 years after his own death.

And he needed to understand the how and why of this place before he could do anything. Mitsuhide knew he was seeing only a small fraction of this world, and already he felt almost overwhelmed. Focus, he told himself. He needed to get back to Azuchi, and anxiety would not help him to that goal.

Miyake waited for his lord’s reaction and then followed suit. “You’ll be our guide then. Now, care to tell me where in the hells this is and how we got here?”

“First, tell me when we will be able to return. This is not a good time to be away,” Mitsuhide interrupted.

Sasuke sighed. “I . . . I’m not sure. I’d like to say with a slight adjustment to the variables we could return at the flip of a switch. But I believe the wormhole’s location and frequency are impacted by a wider variety of potential vectors than initially accounted for.”

“What he means is, he needs time to work on the math before he can try to get us back,” the chatelaine added when she saw the look on Mitsuhide’s face. “In the meantime, we need to get someplace safe to dry off, change clothes, and rest.”

“And get some food,” Miyake grumbled.

The ninja nodded. “Wait here.”

Mitsuhide watched as Sasuke carefully crossed the black-rock road and went into the brick building behind the strangely arched flames. It was a lantern, he thought, a smokeless lantern.

It took several minutes for the ninja to return. During this time, the kitsune warlord took stock of this place. He wanted to see the world that created his little one. The peace and wealth that could build a woman of such ideals and kindness.

This was not how he’d imagined coming to this place though. Here, in a clearing near a . . . highway . . . with Miyake in tow. Leaving chaos behind him.

In the distance, he could see the glow of many fires. And above him, he spotted a falling star. Only it wasn’t falling. It was moving fast through the night sky, blinking red and white.

The chatelaine spotted the object of his attention. “That’s an airplane. It has lights on it when it is landing or taking off.”

Mitsuhide nodded as if he understood, though most of what she said sounded like nonsense.

Miyake’s eyebrows rose. “An air . . . plane?”

“Right. It’s a flying, uhm, like a boat? They put people and cargo on it, and take them all over the world.”

“Could we take it home?” Miyake watched the lights progress across the sky.

She shook her head. “It doesn’t travel through time.”

“Too bad,” Miyake sighed.

Sasuke finally returned and guided them across the road. He stopped near the giant fiery arches. “If anyone asks, you are cosplayers. We are here waiting for our ride. Please say nothing about the wormhole or - or where we came from. The results would not be advantageous.”

Mitsuhide smiled. As if he needed to be told that the truth was not always the best response. “What is coz. . . cozplay?” The word felt strange in his mouth as if it didn’t belong there.

“Ah, roleplayers who dress up and pretend to be things or people they are not.” The ninja shrugged. “A bit like a theater troupe.”

“Not again,” Miyake sighed, earning a reproving look from Mitsuhide.

The four of them trudged through double doors. Perfect, flaw free glass. Mitsuhide did not react, but he was surprised. What kind of place had so much perfect, clear glass that they used it for doorways? He might have asked, but the interior assaulted his senses, distracting him from any question.

The inside was lit as brightly as noon, and smelled of grease and salt. People in strange matching clothes stood behind a long, tile table on one side. The other held tables and chairs, smooth and shining - not wood or stone, but something else entirely. It was to these that the ninja led them and told them to sit.

The few people inside were staring at the group uncomfortably.

“Cosplay,” Miyake said to them, waving. It was like a magic word, causing a sudden and complete lack of interest.

The chatelaine laughed nervously. “I didn’t think about how different we’d look here.”

Mitsuhide laid his palm on her lower back, rubbing gently in small, calming circles. “It’s alright, little one. We are cosplaying. We should stand out.”

She smiled up at him. “Right. Yes.”

Sasuke came back to the table with four cups filled with a dark liquid and a tray of some hot, chopped . . . something. It was not recognizable.

Miyake eyed it suspiciously. “Is this food?”

“Furaidopoteto and kōkusu. I’m lovin’ it,” Sasuke replied with a grin.

The chatelaine reached for a cup and took a long drink from it. “Oh! It’s so sweet! I don’t remember it being so sweet!”

Mitsuhide picked one up. The inside bubbled, almost like it was boiling, but it was cold. It tickled his nose when he smelled it. He took a tentative sip. The bubbles in it popped and foamed on his tongue in a wash of sweetness that was beyond even fresh honey.

He swallowed, coughing, and wiped at his lips.

The chatelaine giggled at the expression he wore.

“Why does it bubble?” Mitsuhide peered into the cup, curious.

“It’s carbonation. It has gas in it that makes the water bubble for awhile.” She smiled. “Did you like it?”

“It is . . . interesting.”

Miyake picked up one of the furaidopoteto and popped it into his mouth without hesitation. “‘S like ship rations. Salty. Crunchy.” He swallowed. “Pretty good.”

They polished off the food and most of the drinks by the time their ‘ride’ arrived. It was a sleek metal and glass cart. Ship. Box with wheels. Mitsuhide didn’t have anything to compare it to. He felt a sense of being adrift and estranged. It was only his little one’s hand in his that kept him focused.

These things were familiar to her and she trusted them. And he trusted her. Even when the ‘car’ sped up so fast that the night around them blurred into an unrecognizable smear of countryside, light, and the strange night sky.

Next: Fake It Til You Make It

[maladaptive-ninja-returns]

Into The Thick of It (2)

Loki x Female Reader

Chapter 2: The God

Series Summary: Her work as an agriculturist nearly takes the readers life is not for a stranger (and his weird looking dog) who later turns out to be the God of Mischief. Thrown into a completely different realm, you want to figure out a way home while trying to stay out of the way of this literal God. But fate has its own plans for the two of you.

Written for @tarithenurse and her #Taris1Kchallenge

Warnings: sexist remarks

Word Count: My jaw is selectively pounding now that my wisdom tooth is out and the stitches are in place. It feels so weird because its not like you can simply scratch an itch or around the itch in some way.

MASTERLIST in bio, darlings. Tags are open (check bio)

"How does this look?" Zaira is holding up a green dress that goes down to your toes in length. You give the deep shade a once over and turn back to your laptop. "Meh." Zaira tsks. "I mean-" you breathe and give your attention to your friend- "it's okay. For you. For me?" You shake your head and shrug before trying to discreetly get back to the screen. "Bullshit. You look amazing in green." You try to find the mouse on the screen. "Are you sure?" The question is bland. "Of course! No one can carry this like you! And for the sake of all things holy, stop looking at your death again and again!" Your brows furrow at the statement, turning back to Zaira, who still stands there with the green dress, except for one thing- the usual workspace of white and grey is now replaced with an eerily familiar dark forest with trees trying to touch the sky. "What?" It is nothing more than a whisper, this word erupting from your lips at the change in scenery. Your mind is at the edge of a realisation waiting to erupt when your hand feels an unwelcoming heat. The immediate reaction is to get your arm away from the laptop, or at least that is what you think you are doing considering the last saved spot of this occurrence in your memory. But there is no laptop. No chairs or tables.  Just a bonfire in front of you and your hands covered in blood and tied in ropes tearing through your flesh. And beyond that fire are figures in the dark chanting verses that are alien to your ears. But just as the chanting grows louder, you can feel a cloud of dread begin to loom of your heart; growing bigger by the second. Zaira! You are screaming her name but your voice isn't audible and you cannot see her anywhere either. Zaira!! You call out for her again when the figures seem to be getting closer to you, the anxiety in your chest beginning to hurt even more.  ZAIRA!!!

The loudness of her name in your conscience jerks you awake with the dread transported straight out of your hallucination. Still breathless and sweating from the nightmare, your head pounds at the sudden jump to the reality of finding yourself lying under a fur skin as heavy as you inside what seemed like a tent. From where you lay, the roof is a muddy beige colour dense enough to block sun or rain. Turning your head to your right, you can see a side table housing a copper goblet along with a copper jug. I hope to the Gods that water. I don't care if it's laced with poison at this moment. Turning to your left you are taken a little back to see familiar golden eyes staring from the copper jug back at you, so close that that saliva ridden tongue could lick you if it wanted. "Hi," you greet the familiar creature from the night of your nightmare, your heart still trying to dilute, resting by your side. The creature tilts its neck a little before you can see its tail rise up and swing from side to side. Such a doggo. You try to get up- with much effort, thanks to this animal duvet weighing just as much or maybe more than you- and breathe the cold air around you. Even though the anxiety of this recent incident is still looming around you in the corners you don't want to look at, it is a relief to feel the quiet around you. And the weird doggo looking at you seems to make those corners lighter, convincing your heart that it all ended not so bad at some point. Moving the fur duvet off you to get to the water on your side, you suddenly find yourself quickly putting the fur back on at the momentary realisation of something major amiss, bringing back all that anxiety that was watching you from the corners. "Where the fuck are my clothes?" you whisper right at the doggo despite knowing that poor thing can only swing its tail whenever you look at it. "They were tattered beyond repair." The voice immediately brings your duvet up to your chin before your eyes dart towards the entrance in front of you. No fucki-oh. A woman with skin paler than the pale described for Bella from Twilight stands at the entrance of the tent with a bunch of warm clothing. Her eyes carry a hint of grey and muddy green in them. She takes it upon herself to have already gotten permission to walk towards your side and place the clothes she has got in front of you before going back to secure the entrance. "You were fortunate to be alive in those deadly woods of the dark," she mentions while taking a thermos out of her dress and pouring the contents in the bowl kept on the makeshift table; all the while with her back towards you. You, still cautious of the eyes around you, slowly snuck the clothes inside the duvet to put them on. Only when putting them on, you realise the lack of a bra or panties; just a loose cotton camisole in their stead. ...okay. Maybe they didn't know my size. You look back at the woman busying herself around the tent. All you can see is the huge- and seemingly heavy- overcoat made out of an animal. Or maybe they...don't have the resources? Great, Y/N. Go be a judgmental b for the people who saved your life. The gown is a deep blue shade that neatly wraps around your shape and is put in place with the hooks, the last step being securing it all with the one string tied in what only you would call a bow. "So, it was you who saved me last night?" The woman brought you a bowl with steaming hot stew, bursting out in laughter on hearing your question. You stand there watching her immediately suppress the laughter as if she had been caught red-handed for a grave crime. "My apologies for what you just saw. It was not me who saved you." And before you can ask who it was, the woman gathers a wide bowl filled with water, a couple of hand towels and two bowls of what looked like homemade ointments, and walks out of the tent. You are about to go thinking about the materials that woman just took away when the only being you are familiar with, gets up from the bed, jumps down and struts out of the tent. "Wait...don't leave me," you whimper in a low tone, gathering a bit of strength to walk out right behind him. . The clearing in the forest has been turned into a camp with soldiers bustling in any direction you look. Swords, bows and arrows are being used for practice in one corner and the same are being mended in the other. Helmets akin to the ones Vikings wore can be seen on top of many heads. So can the undercut and braids. "Is this a cosplay fair?" you ask the one guy who passes by close to you. He is nearly the same height as you, but with a lush red beard and hazel eyes.  He- and his two friends- observes you from head to toe, almost making you realise how out of place you already look. "This is a war camp, missy. One where you have no reason staying." You mock a laugh at the audacity of this person. "I will decide the reason for my stay myself...boy." You start to walk away, trying to find any familiar figure in this quite realistic cosplay village. But last you remembered, there has been no such fair going on in the vicinity of that cursed town. A heated hand captures your arm and forces you to turn around. A wince comes out of you and flashes of that gory incident move before your eyes. Especially the face of that man. The Viking guy takes a step towards you, not letting go of your hand in the first wank. "Sigmund! Who is this wench with a quick mouth?" Sigmund, the taller of the three men, with bulky features and a sharp nose huffed. "Someone who needs to learn her place, Kare." "Aye," the last of the three speaks, "she does not look like help. Not in that silk she wears." Kare smirks through that unruly beard of his. "Why, are you that prince's mistress then, lassy? Is that why you came out from those royal tents, eh?" Kare turns towards his lads to laugh, who had slowly gathered now to watch the show, giving you something new to be anxious about. Agni, on the other hand, makes his way through this crowd to come and stand next to you, observing the situation. "Fucking dogs," you whisper under your breath- which you are trying your best to stop from trembling- and begin to walk away again but Kare is already hopping in your path. "Why in such a hurry, my lady?" He bows and turns towards his lads to let his words be heard by everyone "Give us unworthy lads a chance to find out how well you warm the royal beds, eh?" But the 'lads' seem to be having a sudden seizure. Either that or the joke did not seem to register. A sudden movement behind you and all the eyes staring past you assure you in your heart that it is the former one. "Your lads do not seem to find that funny, Kare." A voice not too deep but certainly somewhere right under the surface with a weight that can be felt in your bones, speaks from right behind you, freezing you where you stand. It takes some time for you to turn around and look at the source of the voice. And once you do, you realise how tall this man stands. His pale skin is radiant and his features sharp. You could draw straight lines just by referencing his cheekbones. His black hair- perhaps the only one with black hair in this cosplay fair- is neatly braided in braids at each side and the rest of the hair left open. What shampoo does he use? "I pity your mother and sister," this man continues, "for meeting your lads in an alley someday and being asked the same question." He does not stir his gaze from Kare, constantly piercing through that man's existence without so much as a smile.  "Apologies, your grace." Your grace?  You turn to watch Kare and his buddies drop their heads down and then it hits you. Your grace?!!! Your head whips around with the air of surprise as you watch this man in a new light. I mean, yeah, he kinda looks like a...'your grace'. "It is not me you should be apologising to." He doesn't even blink. He is as stoic as a boulder and everyone here revolves around him. "Apologies...my lady." The words bring you out of the trance that this man's face has created for you and you turn to watch Kare bow to you along with his 'lads'. "Ansa!" the man calls out for someone, finally turning to look at you. You have to catch your breath when those green eyes bore into you, the stare not too piercing and neither too soft. Just balanced. But damn the skies for it is making you lose your balance somewhere inside you. "Yes, my lord," the familiar lady comes out of the crowd to stand before him with her head low. "How is the weather today?" He simply puts the question. Within seconds you realise what the question really is about. You try your best to stand still in this chilly weather despite the sun high in the sky but it is as if he can smell the chill off you. "It's cold my l-" she realises it too, running to the nearest tent to grab a fur coat just like her Lord's and put it gently on your shoulders. "My apologies, my lady. Apologies, my lord." "Are the armies ready for the west front, Aren?" "Yes, your grace. Two battalions are ready to march to the mountains. They wait for my signal." Aren, a tall ginger with soft features gives a warm smile when you look in his direction. "Very well. Go for it then." And with that command, Aren walks to the space vacating in front of you, spreads his arms and transforms into an eagle to fly up and away beyond the nearest mountain. You are left with your jaw unhinged as you try to make sense of what just happened, turning towards the man in charge here; all the while pointing at the sky. "H-how?" "Walk with me..." that commanding voice a couple of minutes ago has transformed into a soft tone that captures a completely different personality of this man. "Y/N." "Y/N," he repeats the name as if to memorise it, and lets his arm gesture you towards the direction you are asked to walk. "I am Loki, of Asgard. Pleased to make your acquaintance." "Asgard?" you wonder the name out loud, confusion visibly dripping from your face. "There is no place by the name Asgard on the maps? Is this further north in the Alps? Wait...are we still in Norway or did we change countries?" The guards by the biggest tent make way for Loki and you to enter. Unlike the place you woke up in, this one houses everything fit for a king. From the bed to the cutlery. And everything has a colour theme going on for some reason. A real deep shade of green. Even Loki's fur coat carries blues and greens as if they had been specially plunged from the deepest corners of the oceans on earth. "Y/N-" he gestures you to sit down on the settee by the foot of the bed while he pours you wine in a goblet- "I have to tell you something. Be kind enough to hear me out before jumping to conclusions." You take the glass from his hand and sit down on the settee. Oh! cold hands! Is he okay? It's really chilly out there. "What?" You wait for him to start. Loki stands by the conference table and faces you, his hands working with each other as he looks at them before finally letting his gaze meet yours. "You are no longer on earth. You were transported to Asgard last night during the Pagan ritual, where you were conveniently made a sacrifice, and would have died if not for Agni hearing your prayers and tearing that scum apart." Silence. Loki’s features show no emotions when he narrates the reality to you. In fact, he waits for a reaction from your end, carefully studying those y/e/c eyes as they blink at him in unadulterated innocence, turn away to look at Agni and then come back to him. Ultimately, you take a sip from the goblet, letting the wine go down your throat, the involuntary reflex of tasting something not to your liking naturally coming over your face. Waiting for a few seconds, you bring the goblet back to your lips, this time gulping down the contents within a breath. "Okay." Loki looks at you with a focused glare before tilting his head a little. "Okay?" You nod. "Are you-" Loki pauses to come and sit down in the chair right in front of you but at a respectable distance- "okay with everything that I just told you? All the parts of it that do not make sense to a human?" You breathe in a lungful. "Oh, Gods! No. I am overwhelmed at this point. To even consider the fact that I am not currently on earth and that I was about to be raped by an eighteen-year-old cultist if not for your wonderful doggo and you, I am considering. Because now that I look at you I completely put you in the silhouette I saw last night. And I thought this was some adult dress-up show going on until a legit person just turned into an eagle and fucking flew away right in front of my eyes. I mean...it would take a good amount of CGI to actually make that happen just in the movies, forget real life. And if I am not on earth, the thought of getting out of doing mindless labour because your boss is an asshole is very appealing, mind you. Even though that means I have been thrown straight into a pit of testosterone-filled sexist Vikings who look like they will pounce on me the first chance they get. So...yeah. I am...I...uhh...have decided to shut my brain down till-" you simply shrug before breaking into nervous laughter and bringing the empty goblet back to your lips, raising it as far as it could go before it decided to release a drop into your desperate mouth. Loki blinks at you before breaking into a smirk that he hides from your eyes. It feels like he has watched you slowly crumble a little within the last few moments when all you did was talk. He has noticed those shaking hand movements and those trembling lips that force a smile to show they are doing absolutely fine. He has observed that shift of your fingers to scratch an itch on your exposed neck and that movement of turning that sole ring made out of iron in your index finger; hiding your anxieties in the rotations of that little circle. And now he watches you trying to dissolve the incoming anxious winds in alcohol. He knows this look too well. The look of fear; fear of the unknown. Loki raises his hand to you. "Allow me to refill that. With something better." You watch his hands and make a mental note of those long pale fingers and how good they would seem wrapped around anything. "Something better? I don't think Asgard could provide me with a Long Island Iced Tea or a Jeager Bomb. Or a Zombie." Loki simply chuckles and you find yourself stuck on that toothed smile of his. Is he the same guy who was dragging his soldiers in the mud like anything? Taking the goblet from you, he gets up and walks towards a little cabinet that opens up like a medieval bar.  "I sympathise with you being so far away from home. But I can assure you these...Vikings will not touch you or even think about pouncing on you ever." You furrow your brows and let your arms rest on each side while you tilt your head a little in question. "They know it better than to even think about what I claim as mine." You feel little chills go up your spine at his words, your legs going one over the other as you wiggle away certain scenarios from your mind. Damn! He should write dialogues for the entertainment industry. "Excuse me, sir," you press while raising your brow, "I may have fallen on your royal highness' land but that ain't making me anyone's property...considering this is your property." You cannot see it from where you sit, but the God chuckles at your audacity of raising your voice at him. He comes back to you with your drink. You notice that this time it is not the familiar red wine waiting for you in the goblet but something relatively darker and comparatively with a more medicinal odour. "No one will harm you. Agni will make sure of it. Isn't that right, beast?" You turn to watch Agni sitting right next to your feet, immediately wagging his tail at the mention of his name, contently growling as assurance. You notice how familiar this creature look to the Pitbulls back on earth. Give them pits some pointed skeleton for their backbone, a pair of horns and huge canines and these two breeds will be a copy of each other. "And we will find you a safe passage home once we reach back to the city." Home. unfortunately for you, the first thing at the mention of 'home' is the rush of crude flashbacks from last night of that horrid nameless town. No matter how hard you try to breathe in, the scenes keep on coming. Both Loki and Agni seem to sense the uneasiness creeping onto you. Your racing heartbeat and uneasiness of breath can be heard by them as clear as you can. "I hope you were not too attached to your clothes. I had to tear them apart to treat your wounds," Loki announces, gulps his herbal drink and walks towards the entrance of the tent. "Yeah, no problem. They were just clo-wait what? WHAT? You-" you get up and lower your voice for the fear of any third person hearing it- "you tore my clothes?" He nods with the most neutral expression you wanted to punch. "Yes. As you mentioned, they were just clothes. And nothing I haven't seen before. Now come on." You wonder whether to be relieved or angry with this one. Putting that thought on the back burner to simmer for a while, you gulp down the goblet without breaking any eye contact with him.  "Where are we going?" "To get you out of your clothes again," he states without skipping a beat and you have to question all the good you have thought about him till now. Son of a bitch! What an ass- "You stink. About time you took a bath."

[darkdevasofdestruction]

Eternal Love ~ Diavolo x Reader

Today was supposed to be just an ordinary day of school, until I was informed by Lucifer that Diavolo wants me to attend the council meeting as well, so who am I to deny such a gracious invitation?

Apparently, we were supposed to discuss the plans for the school’s festival, and they picked me to be the leader, which should be pretty fun!

“That sounds like fun! Thank you for trusting me with something as big as this! But...What do I have to do? Is there anything fixed already, or do we brainstorm and come up with the most exciting thing?” I asked, giving the prince a cat-like smile of excitement. “We change ideas yearly, so I’d like to hear all your thoughts and ideas that come into your mind.” Diavolo asked us, which made us all ponder.

After discussing the official problems, like budget, what each class wanted to do, if there were any problems, or two classes who wanted to do the same things, any objections, we started coming up with ideas.

“How about a band? I’ve seen you during Karaoke nights, and Asmo’s voice is amazing! Besides, you’re all thousands of years old, I’m sure all of you know how to play at least one instrument. And Levi, if you don’t want to take this as a Guitar Hero type of game, and are too socially anxious, you can make the band’s costumes!” I suggest, which made the brothers talk between themselves. “I wanna be the vocalist! And we gotta sell lots of merch...How much are we gonna charge for admission?” Mammon got incredibly excited, which made Lucifer sigh and shake his head. “Well, that settles it. The idea is rejected.” he muttered, making me sigh as well. “Great...No more music...But how about a play? Doing little plays is quite a thing down there in the human world. What do you say?” I asked, snapping my fingers in realisation. “Ohh, I bet that would be fun!” Asmo chimed in, along with his brothers. “And it means we can cosplay! I’m all in!” Levi grinned in glee. “Sounds like fun! Y/N, you’ll be in charge of putting together the production.” Diavolo nodded at us, giving the approval. “That means I am allowed to come up with the play’s script? And the roles? What to do with the background, music, costumes, magic effects and all that?” my grin widened even more, as did his. “Of course! Have fun, that’s the most important thing! By the way you’re so enthusiastic, I’m sure the end result is going to be great. Do you already have an idea?” he asked, which made me nod vigorously. “Y/N, what are you going to work on first? Also, you’re going to have to give all of us an assignment.” Lucifer pointed out, but most of it got overlooked. “I’m going to write the script! I am inspired by a beautiful story from the human world, written a century ago, but only published recently. Is that okay?” I asked, trying to hold on to my excitement. “Ohhh! Is it a tragic love story, like Romeo and Juliet?” Asmo asked, jump behind me, and hugging me. “Yes, much so much better! It has romance, it has fantasy, it has adventure, it has tragedy, it has despair, it has sorrow...It has everything you can think of, all thread together in such a wholesome story!” I explain, which made Asmo take a hold of my hands, waltzing together messily. “I love it! Let’s do it! Can I be the prince charming?” he giggled, which made me stop and smirk. “I...Had something else in mind. Diavolo, do you want to be in our play?” I let out a low chuckle, which seemed to make him widen his eyes. “Of course! I would be honoured to get included in it!” he grinned, giving a mirthful laugh. “Sweet, then it’s settled! I will do my best to work on the script and give everyone their roles, come up with some music, special effects, the background decor and costume ideas. Now, you’ll have to excuse me, I have to go have a talk with Simeon.” I smirked mischievously as I skipped out of the council room, not caring about Lucifer’s protests, since I wasn’t officially dismissed.

The whole night I spent revisiting the book I had in mind that would be the influence for the script, and started writing on my laptop everything, while listening to Eurielle’s many angelic songs and sending them to Simeon, so he would know what to do.

Needless to say, I was nothing short of excited beyond borders of imagination, clearly never having expected to be able to take part in something so great, as to create and take part in a play of such caliber...There’s no way I won’t make this anything more than perfect, that’s for sure, especially since this book has been so close to my heart and soul for a long time now.

And so, days passed, Simeon agreed to be the harp player, since he’s an angel and nobody could best him, and the narrator was Solomon, who would help me and Satan with the magic effects.

I would be the female protagonist, while Diavolo would be the male protagonist. Barbatos would be the one to sacrifice his life to save Diavolo. Satan was going to be the frenzied werewolf, while Lucifer will be the enemy hound turned ally that would fight alongside Diavolo.

Belphegor will be the evil king, and Beel will play the role of his most loyal servant, while Asmodeus shall be the girl’s father, and Mammon would be one of the Gods, the Judge of the Dead, Master of Doom.

This left Luke to be one of the enemy werewolves, while Levi, who would have as few lines as possible, considering he would be too busy with the costumes, would be the owner of the Hound.

And so, we began rehearsal for the play, earning lots of praises from everyone for writing something so great in such a small amount of time, while also keeping it short, making sure nobody would forget their lines and timings by mistake.

“You’re doing very well, Diavolo! But try to be a little less stiff, okay? Try to relax, it will make things more natural.” I started massaging his shoulders as soon as I gave everyone a little break. “Sorry, I guess I’m a bit intimidated since you are a natural at this.” he chuckled lightly, offering me a thankful smile. “Hmm...I wouldn’t say I’m a natural, per se, but I read the original book a few times before, and I wrote the script. Or maybe it’s because I’m a human...I don’t know, it’s always been easy for me to act.” I shrugged, dragging a chair to sit in front of him. “That much is obvious. Look at them, you inspire all of them to learn their lines and come up with the best version of themselves. It’s very rare when I see everyone working together so diligently...Thank you for you effort, Y/N.” Diavolo took ahold of my hands, squeezing them lightly. “No need to thank me, Dia...I’ve always dreamt of doing something like this, but I never really had an opportunity to do anything more than 1 minute skits. This is a dream come true...So really, I should be the one thanking you instead.” I chuckled, tilting my head slightly. “I’m glad to hear that, then. There is no doubt in my mind that the festival is going to have more success than it ever has before.” he grinned, making him look something like a Golden Retriever puppy. “And you don’t even know about my Trump Card. Well, in truth, nobody really does...Except for Simeon, but I have a reason to that, so you better be eager and awaiting for that.” I winked at him playfully, which seemed to get him in an even more curious and cheerful mood. “I certainly can’t wait until we perform on stage.” he nodded, making me take a deep breath and smile softly. “Yeah...Me too.”

I said that, and yet, time sure flies so fast that I barely realised today was the day of the play, and Asmo and Levi were helping me into my costume, doing my hair and make up, while the others were in their demon forms - Except for Diavolo, of course - and so, we went backstage, checking that the lights were perfect, the background decor was in check, Solomon had his lines written down, since he will be backstage, yet his voice will resound throughout the room regardless.

“Is everyone ready?” I clapped my hands together, grinning and biting my lip, trying to keep my nervousness in check. “I’m a nervous wreck!” Levi whined, and yet, he was thankful he didn’t have to do too much on stage. “I can’t wait to get up on stage and SHINE!” Asmo chimed in, pushing Levi to the side. “Diavolo...Are YOU ready? You are the protagonist, after all. You have the most lines, the most interactions with everyone and so on.” I look at him with a gentle smile. “Y/N, Diavolo has been doing public speeches for centuries and longer, I doubt he’d be as anxious as others are...Or you, that is.” Lucifer gave a side smirk. “Don’t speak for others, Luce~!” I thrilled playfully, earning nothing more than an amused scoff. “I am more excited, than nervous, but Lucifer isn’t wrong.” the prince chuckled softly, giving me a nod of thanks. “Very well, then, the play is going to start now. Solomon, Simeon, it’s your cue.” Lucifer pointed out as Levi and Satan raised the curtains just as Diavolo got on the stage, and was surrounded by fire and some magic-made enemies.

Diavolo’s make up made him look as if he had been fighting long and bravely, and yet, he and his army lost, his father was defeated by the enemies, and now, he was trying his best to escape with his life.

“Diavolo, the son of the Leader of Men, was the sole survivor of the attack from the Dark Lord, the feared Belphegor, the once God of Valar, who turned evil and stole the Sacred Jewels, the ones who gave immense power to Elves, the pure Silmarils, and so, he was able to easily wipe out every village of men, dwarves, dunedain, trents and elves alike, with no such thing as discrimination. And so, the brave Diavolo ran away from the place he once called home, that was now nothing more than fire, ruin and ashes flowing in the sky, and found himself in another place altogether. It was the realm of Elves, the most beautiful and gracious beings alive, and here, in Doriath, he ended up in a glade, filled with so many colourful flowers, illuminated by the silver light of Mother Moon...And there he saw her.” Solomon narrated the story, and then stopped for a few seconds, allowing him, Satan and myself to mutter some spells so the background will change, along with the holograms and the lights.

There was nothing more than darkness, for just a split second, which allowed me to jump up on the stage, and thus, a gentle light appeared, with me in the spotlight, as I did a small dance, while surrounded by holographic forest critters and a unicorn.

“There, his eyes found her, a maiden more fair than any he has seen before, and he was unsure whether he was being cheated by some spell, or if what he was seeing was reality, for the pain he felt was no more...And he was wondering whether seeing her cured if of all wounds. Blue was her raiment, as the unclouded heaven, but her eyes were grey, as the starlit evening; her mantle was sewn with golden flowers, but her hair was dark as the shadows of twilight. As the light upon the leaves of trees, as the voice of clear waters, as the stars above the mists of the world, such was her glory and her loveliness ; and in her face was a shining light...And so, Diavolo fell in love with the Elleth dancing in front of him.” Solomon continued the story, which was my cue to stop dancing.

“What is this I am seeing? A mortal ranger, wounded, seeking refuge in Doriath, the Realm of Elves? You must be rather bold, are you not?” I stopped dancing, and approached him, circling and interrogating him. “I had nowhere else to go, My Lady, for the Dark Lord, Belphegor, has laid waste to my home and my family. I am the sole survivor, yet my heart burns with sorrow and need to wreak vengeance upon the enemy who took my father’s life so cruelly.” he explained, regaining his senses and breath. “I see...So Belphegor has started his rampaging once again...It truly is a pity that life cannot be without death inflicted before its time. Very well, then...I shall welcome you in my home, so you can feed yourself and have your wounds treated.” I nodded at him, motioning for him to follow me, only for him to stop me with his questioning. “My Lady...May I know the name of the fairest elleth in the world?” he asked with such a gentle and sweet tone, that it made my heart skip a few beats. “My name...Is Luthien.” I answered, looking down for a few seconds, before turning away once again. “Y/N...Y/N...Such a beautiful name, for such a beautiful woman...And your voice rivals any nightingale. You are a wonder among wonders.” he spoke out, making me widen my eyes and blush, flustered, turning around to face him properly. “You should not speak such sweet words without telling your name first, stranger. It would be nothing less than disrespectful, especially should my father be informed of this folly of yours.” I spoke a bit harshly, yet the jesting tone was obvious in my voice. “My name is Diavolo, my dear, and from the moment I laid my eyes upon you, I fell in love with you. You will have to forgive me for being so bold and rash with my words, I am but a simple mortal man, yet my heart will know no more joy unless you know my feelings for you.” he spoke, kneeling in front of me, which took a lot of effort not to blush more than I already was. “Raise up, brave warrior, and let me heal your wounds, both the flesh ones, and the ones your heart felt so far, for I seem to share the same feelings as you do.” as so, I put my hands over his, and humming a little song, I made a spell to remove the dirt and make up from him, so it would look as if his he had his wounds treated.

The lights went down once again, the background changed to that of a kingdom, and Asmo, wearing a crown, as he was the Elven King, sitting on a throne, and of course, he was shining, beautiful, glorious, just as he always is.

“You think you are worthy of my daughter’s heart? How foolish! You, nothing more than a mere human, whose life is hanging by the thin thread of a spider that could be so easily severed, even by something as insignificant as an illness? I commend you for your braveness, so I would not say, foolishness! I shall allow you to stay here, but you are a mortal, and your place is not here, among the elves!” Asmo’s voice was serious and booming, which was something not many would expect from someone as soft and adorable as him. “My Lord...With all due respect, but my heart belongs to your daughter, and no power in this world is strong enough to erase my love for her. I beg of you, Lord Asmodeus, allow me to marry your darling Tinuviel, and if you need me to prove my worth, give me any task, and it shall be done!” Diavolo kneeled in front of the throne of the lord, who frowned in displeasure. “Tinuviel...? Now you went as far as to give my daughter the nickname of a Nightingale...You heard her angelic voice...You are truly undeserving!” he leaned forwards in the throne, slamming his fist on one of the armrests. “Father, please, hear him out! His love for him is as true as the beauty of the stars, and so is mine for him! You will doom me to an eternal life of sorrow, should you not accept him, so father, please be reasonable!” I fell to his feet, hugging his legs, and I was sure Asmo’s face softened with conflict, as he put his hand on my head, as a way to make me raise my gaze. “My daughter...You, an immortal, fell for someone who will die before you can even realise you were courting him. However, if you are so sure of your own feelings for him, then I shall give him a task, to prove himself worthy of you, my darling. Listen carefully, Diavolo, for I will only say it once - Should you succeed in getting back at least one of the Sacred Jewels, I will allow you to wed my wife.” he spoke, which made me jolt to my feet in an instant. “But father...! The Three Silmarils were all stolen by the Dark Lord Belphegor, the very foe who destroyed his family and village! You are dooming him to sure death!” I gasped, letting a few tears fall down my face. “If that means I will be allowed to marry you, then I will do anything you wish me to. I thank thee for this opportunity, and I shall depart at morn, at the earliest hour.” Diavolo nodded, sharing a look with Asmodeus, which made me throw myself at the man. “No, Diavolo, don’t go! You will perish, if not by the Dark Belphegor, but by his lackey, Sauron, or one of the countless orcs he’s making! You cannot succeed...Not on your own!” my eyes were wide with fear, and he only smiled softly, kissing my forehead gingerly. “Have faith in my, my darling nightingale, for I shall return to you, no matter what. I vow on my pride as a human, so wait for me, and if I shall not return, I beg of you to sing me a wonderful requiem, but not to mourn for me. I love you, Y/N.” he spoke, before leaving off the stage, and so, the lights went off once more.

The stage became now an elvish stronghold in the middle of a wasteland, where Diavolo met Barbatos, Leviathan, Lucifer and a few more generic elf-holograms, and they talked about how to get inside the enemy’s garrison.

“And so, Diavolo arrived in the wasteland, the territory of the enemy, only to stumble upon an elvish stronghold, where he met Barbatos, another Elven King, Leviathan, one of the sons of the Elven Lord who once created the Silmarils, and his loyal Hound, Lucifer, the most powerful Hound, dating from the First Ages. Prophecy has it that only the most powerful werewolf could ever defeat Lucifer, so Leviathan knew that he could trust his companion. While Lord Barbatos agreed to join Diavolo’s cause, as he once swore an oath to Diavolo’s father, to aid his kin if in need, so they took a few warriors and went to the enemy territory disguised as nasty orcs. Leviathan, however, was very much against their quest, as he believed the Silmarils belong to him, legacy from his father, so he took Lucifer and went after them.” the white haired wizard spoke out, letting the scene unfold before him.

“Are you with me, brothers? I will be honest, my quest is a selfish one, and by taking the Jewel, I will be allowed by Asmodeus, the Elven King, to marry his daughter, the fairest maiden to exist. However, I am sure that no matter what, as soon as the Jewels are out of Belphegor’s posession, the world will have less peril and ruin.” Diavolo spoke out, which seemed to impress the Elven King. “As per the oath I swore to your father long ago, when we first fought side by side in wars, I shall aid you in any quest you will find yourself, young Diavolo. To hear that my old and dear friend met his doom by the hands of the Belphegor’s lackeys is nothing short than an insult! I am with you.” Barbatos spoke out, patting Diavolo on the shoulder and taking a few trusted men by his side. “You cannot take the Silmarils from the Dark Lord, Diavolo, no matter with how many men you march to his garrison. The Silmarils belong to my family, for my father forged them, and they gave power to the Two Sacred Trees of Valar! You have no right to take them, no matter the affections your mortal heart holds for some elleth you don’t deserve!” Leviathan frowned, at them, but Diavolo didn’t heed any of his warnings. “I am sorry, Leviathan, but this must be done. I shall not allow Belphegor to wipe more innocent lives from Arda, out Earth!” Diavolo spoke with much confidence, fire and conviction, leaving the place, while also igniting a fighting spirit in his men. “Not fair...That’s not fair! How could they even think of doing something like that?! Lucifer...We must stop them at all cost! And did you hear that? That stupid, wretched human wants the hand of the daughter of King Asmodeus! Ha, as if! But imagine...If we take the Silmarils, and I give the King only one, without him knowing that I possess the other two, he will surely let me wed Y/N, and we will create a strong alliance this way! Everyone will bow down to me, the Mighty Leviathan!” he chuckled darkly, motioning for Lucifer to join him as they ran away after Diavolo’s party.

“What nobody was aware of, however, was that Y/N, afraid for her paramour’s fate, fled from home in search of Diavolo, to aid in the task he was given - And yet, just as she arrived on the enemy’s territory, she was found by Lucifer’s keen sense of smell, which allowed his owner to kidnap her and imprison her in a tower, guarded by Luke, one of the most powerful werewolves in Beelzebub’s army. As she was left alone, in a cell, she pleaded to Lucifer to let her escape, and it seems he, for once in his long life, felt pity for the elleth, and decided to aid her.” Solomon continued the story, and so, the stage changed to the prison tower I was held captive in, with Luke, dressed very uncharacteristically evil, was guarding me, and Lucifer’s eyes bore straight into my soul.

“Why would one, so strong and great as yourself, aid the cause of evil? Leviathan, a once proud elf of benevolent will...His heart became darker than the nightly abyss. Look at what he is doing - Trying to cheat my father, to deceive him, only for his own selfish desire to quench his thirst for power. He is miserable, that one, but he is more pitiful than ever. I wonder, my poor Diavolo...Have you seen him? Is he still alive and well? Oh, how I miss him so, and fear for his life, for he is fragile, and brittle, nothing more than a human resembling the first Snowdrop of Spring. May the great Eru Illuvatar watch over him, for I cannot but mourn and sing for his glory the way I am now.” I grabbed the bars of the cells, letting tears fall down my face as soft sobs escaped my throat. “Tell me, Y/N...” Lucifer spoke, for the first time in ages, as he crouched down to my level, and said, in a softer voice, as to not alarm the enemy. “Are you willing to do anything to save your beloved mortal? You speak of my master’s pitiful state, and yet, you do not see yourself and the misery in which you wallow as we speak. I can sense your magic is strong, and you could aid the one you hold so dear to yourself. Should you lend me your power, I will be able to properly defeat your enemies and help your reunite with him. Will you accept me, Elleth Princess?” his voice was velvety, as with one hand he raised my chin up, to look into my glistering eyes. “Yes.” was the only answer I gave him, as he raised with a smirk, piercing poor Luke with his glare.

Muttering a spell, I proceeded in putting a protective shield around Lucifer, that grated an improvement in his powers, and so, he was easily able to take down Luke. However, sensing danger, Beelzebub, the Dark Lord’s most powerful vassal, came forth to attack him, in the form of a werewolf, knowing the prophecy, the only way of defeating the Great Hound Lucifer.

But it was in vain, for my power, combined with Lucifer’s, meant for nothing short of greatness, and so, we were able to defeat him.

“Beelzebub, you have been defeated, and so, you must free all the prisoners you have taken! There is nothing more for you to do, except to obey!” my voice was firm, and clear, and with a growl from the defeated lord, he begrudgingly freed the prisoners, before he became one himself. “You will not escape this place with your lives still your own, you silly elleth! You think anyone can defeat the Dark Lord? Never! Belphegor is undefeated!” Beel’s dark, booming voice echoed throughout the dark prison tower. “We seek not to defeat him, but deprive him of most of his power. And we will succeed, without question, nor fail.” I spoke with grace, sure of myself, until Lucifer guided me away from the cell. “Maiden, you must flee. Enemies are making their way here. Take this passageway and be reunited with your lover. I will make sure not even one of these disgusting orcs may come and hinder your path.” Lucifer said, staying on high alert. “I will eternally be grateful for your aid, Lucifer. I wish to see you soon, and well.” I nodded at him, running away, and the scene cut with Lucifer getting ready to fight some holograms, while Beel was able to flee by transforming into a fly and getting out through the barred window.

“But not everything turned out as great on Diavolo’s side, as he, too, was ambushed by enemies, and his whole little army was taken captive, and executed one by one, until only Diavolo himself, and King Barbatos remained. Enraged by this folly, just as the human was about to get mangled by the great werewolf executing them, the Elven King managed to break the shackles and wrestled the beast with all his might, until both of them perished, and thus, successfully completing the vow he swore to his father.” Solomon continued on the narration, as the stage showed, for just a little bit, the heroic act of Barbatos sacrificing himself, allowing Diavolo to escape with his life.

“Go, and complete the task you set yourself on! Be successful, and reunite with your lover once more. There may came a day when you will die, but I assure you, today is not that day. I have already foreseen your greatness.” were the Elf’s last words, as Diavolo thanked him, and the scene was cut once again, to where I and Diavolo are reunited at the gates of the throne room.

“Diavolo, my darling, you are alive! I prayed and prayed for the great Eru Illuvatar to shine his light upon you and protect you from harm...And here you are, alive, and in my arms once more! I cannot but weep in joy, seeing you before me, my beloved Diavolo!” I cupped his face, examining him for any wound, before kissing his face, not caring that the height difference was making it pretty difficult. “Y/N...! My beautiful nightingale, what fareth thou in this terrible place? You should be safe, at home, with your father, not on this plagued wasteland of death, in the heart of the very enemy we fear the most!” he was shocked, and afraid for my well-being, but before I could reply, a long tail swept him away from my embrace, throwing him to the ground, and the enemy was revealed none other than Leviathan, who wore an evil smirk on his face, looking down at the mortal. “You...! How dare you do such a thing! First, you imprison me, wanting to use me for my father’s power and title, and now, you try to destroy the one being I love the most in this life? Unforgivable! You will never be welcomed back to Valinor, not matter how much you beg and grovel on your knees!” I threatened him, but he only seemed to laugh mockingly. “How adorable of you, some weak elleth, to think that you could come between me and my aspirations. You truly believed some mortal would be able to take the great Silmarils, feat that so many armies of Elves failed to do? You have lost your mind, Y/N! But here, with his death, you will have no more reason to be here. I heard your voice is truly magical...If your voice was to put to sleep the whole place, stealing the Silmarils would be an easy feat, and so, I will be the most powerful an Elf can get!” Levi spoke out, his long tail swishing left and right, as I ran to Diavolo, holding him to my chest as I healed his wounds...Only to notice a figure rushing towards us, and it was now my turn to smirk, as the enemy was trampled to the ground, easily destroyed. “Lucifer, you have returned so fast! The enemies proved to be no match for your might, did they?” I grinned brightly at him, as he only scoffed in amusement. “And your paramour seems to be doing great now that you’ve healed him. It seems that my former master became driven by evil more than I anticipated...It truly is a pity that he turned this way, but there was no way to live the way he did.” Lucifer spoke, and so, the place went dark, so the stage would change to Belphegor’s throne room, him, wearing a crown.

Taking a deep breath, I started singing a spell, just as Leviathan previously suggested, which put to sleep every living being in the place, and so, Diavolo was able to cut away one of the Jewels from his crown. He continued with the second one, but misfortune seemed to follow us, as a little piece from the crown fell on the Dark One’s face, waking him up from his slumber.

“You...! You, puny worms, truly think you could defeat me? Steal away the Silmarils from my possession, and walk away, unscathed?! How impertinent of you! You shall be tortured for an eternity, and even longer than that!” Belphie’s growl resounded through the place with an even graver tone, thanks to Solomon’s magic.

Diavolo took my hand, and we started running, the light flashing, to make it look as if we were going for a longer pace, until we arrived at the gates, guarded by none other than Satan, a werewolf bred specifically to kill Lucifer, to complete the long-foreseen prophecy.

“Satan attacked Diavolo, and before he, or Lucifer, could retaliate, Satan bit off the hand that was gripping the Jewel tightly. As Diavolo ell to the ground, gripping his hand and wailing in agony, the purity of the jewel emanated a strong light in the werewolf’s belly, which set him on a frenzy. He was berserk, clearly lost his mind, and there was nothing that anybody could do to reverse the process. This feat of luck, however, allowed the maiden to call out to the mighty Eagles, who flew them back home. Together, they spoke the tale of their adventure to King Asmodeus whose heart softened by everything they have been through, and despite not completing the task, allowed the two lovers to marry.” the sorcerer spoke the tale, that seemed to be the happy end...

The scene cut to just a few weeks later, the background showing the Kingdom getting destroyed by the Werewolf Satan, and Diavolo and Lucifer going to bravely destroy it, but unfortunately, the triad ended up perishing altogether.

“The story that was fated to have a happy ending, became drenched in blood, as both her beloved Diavolo, and her trusted companion, Lucifer, died together to prevent the rampaging Satan from destroying anything more in his path.  The girl, who was waiting by her father’s side, was worried beyond belief, as her father embraced her, trying to sooth her concerns, as Diavolo was a strong human, and had Lucifer by his side... But not long afterwards, a ravaged Diavolo, barely dragging himself upwards, grabbed Asmodeus’s hand, putting the Sacred Jewel that he extracted from the Werewolf’s belly.” Solomon continued the story, as the music turned even graver.

“No...No...! Diavolo, my darling, hang on, please, I will heal you! You cannot die! You cannot leave me like this...After everything we went through! We weren’t even given the time to marry...!” I sobbed, holding Diavolo’s body to my chest. “My beautiful Y/N, all I did, was for you, and now, I am truly worthy of even daring to ask you to marry me. It is selfish, I am aware, but I am but a mere mortal, and thus, as my life ends, I ask you to please hold me in your heart and memory, as dear as I hold you. I love you, Y/N” he spoke with his last breath, before going limp in my arms. “Y/N, my sweetling, I’m so sorry this happened...” Asmodeus knew no words were going to stop my wailing, take away my sorrow, or mend my irredeemably broken heart, and only held me, as I screamed to the sky, cursing fate, and the Illuvatar, the stars, the moon and the sun. I cursed everything in existence, even time, for taking away the one I loved the most, until the scene was cut by the lights, and we could hear the audience gasping, some of them lightly weeping, some even cursing as well and telling their pity.

“There was nothing more her father could do to bring back the joy in his darling daughter’s life, and with his heart broken, just like hers, he allowed her to leave his home, and watched her walk away, to the Halls of Mammon, until he could see her no more, and the horizon was overshadowing her unseeable form.  So, she arrived at the Halls of Mammon, the Judge of Death, the one who was stoic and unmovable in front of everyone, never wavering from his judgement of anyone’s souls. The walls were covered by tapestries woven by his wife, depicting life as it is, from the beginning of times, until the present. Y/N laid on the ground, singing the song of her ill fate, of how she will never be able to meet her beloved once more, not even to properly say goodbye to him, feat that would break her heart even more.” the scene revealed only myself, in the Halls of Mammon, in front of the stairs to his throne, as Simeon’s harp started slowly mellowing everybody’s senses, giving them a sense of amplified sorrow, as if the play so far didn’t already play with their heartstrings.

“Oh great Mammon  High among Valar I come to you in sorrow And with a broken heart Long has been my journey That led me to these halls But now I kneel before thee As grief my spirit calls I seek a man named Diavolo  Whom I bid await me here I pledged that I would find him Before he leaves this sphere This man of whom I speak He gave his life for me But thence my soul grew weak And at last it too broke free So borne upon an urgent breeze I travelled to this place Where only one thing could appease The torment I now face Oh tell me I am not too late To see my love once more For that would be too cruel a fate I beg him be restored That we may take a little time To bid our last farewell And remember all we shared erstwhile Such joy no one could quell For never was a greater love Than that within our hearts Once born, forever binding us E’en though through death we part”

My voice was powerful, mournful, my face wet from the river of tears streaming my cheeks, and I am sure I shocked all the demons present, for sans a few basic, simple songs, I never showed them my skill in singing, nor that my voice was, as Simeon described it, pretty angelic, so adding the harp was nothing short of heavenly.

The scene ended with me, dying, as I laid on the stairs of the throne, and through the silence, as the lights were slowly dimming, I could hear Mammon sniffing and trying his best not to sob.

“I cannot let this be the end of you and your fateful love story. With the power that has been bestowed upon me, I shall change this dreadful fate, into one more wonderful, as you deserve. You have fought and braved such a storm to be together, and death will not be the place of your eternity.” Mammon spoke, his voice wavering, barely able to keep himself straight.

“The Great Mammon, for the first time in his eternal life, felt his heart moved by the elleth’s song, feeling pity for the fate of the two lovers, so ruthlessly torn apart, so he allowed himself a tiny bit of self-indulgence, for as soon as the fair maiden’s life ended, from her broken heart, he restored both her and Diavolo’s life, yet this time, he awarded her mortality, so she would be able to live her whole life together with him, in happiness, as they deserved.” Solomon’s words were the cue for the scene to change back again, to the glade where he first laid his eyes upon me, and we were embraced in each other’s arms, gazing at each other with love.

“Why ever would you give up your immortality, my darling Tinuviel? You were immortal, had the time on your side, and your father, and people, there for you. I do not understand, my sweetling, so please explain to me.” he asked, looking down at me, brushing away a strand of hair from my face. “I would rather spend one short life time with you, then be teased with a few years by your side, that would pass for me similar to blinking, and then realising that you are in my life no more. Life without you is meaningless, my beloved Diavolo. I love you, and this time, an untimely death is not going to keep me away from letting you know my feelings loud and clear.” I spoke out in a soft voice, getting on my tip toes and pulling him into a loving kiss, which he reciprocated. “I will love you forever, with all my heart, my beautiful Y/N.” he said, as so, the curtains were closed, indicating that the play was over.

The audience started cheering, whistling and clapping loudly, as I motioned for everyone to come on stage so we could give the final courtesy to them, as a thank you for watching our play.

As we got off the stage, Asmo jumped on me, kissing my cheeks, and continuously praising me for how amazing I was. “You, my darling, were truly the star of the play! Why did you never tell me you had such an angelic voice?! Honestly, we should definitely go to karaoke and have you sing more!” “Sure, Y/N’s voice was a shocking surprise for everyone, but we have to applaud how amazing Lord Diavolo’s performance was as well, don’t you think?” Lucifer mused, earning an agreement from the butler. “And let’s not forget that Levi’s costumes were absolutely amazing. And the magic was amazing.” I pointed out, clapping for everyone. “Everyone was completely awesome today. Thank you for doing your absolute best...You managed to make my dream come true, and I’m very happy.”

And so, we all changed into our comfortable clothes, and went to celebrate at Diavolo’s castle, drinking and eating things we ordered from Hell’s Kitchen, setting off some fireworks, doing karaoke and all that...

But for some reason, I was feeling rather...Off, so I went out in the garden, taking a nice and relaxing stroll through the flower-guarded path, until I reached a nice gazebo by a pond and I sat down on the grass, dipping my feet in the cool water, looking up at the moon and letting my thoughts wander.

I wasn’t sure for how long I was there, alone, until a voice woke me up from my trance, and Diavolo sat down next to me.

“It’s not safe for a human to go wandering carefree in Devildom, you know?” he spoke jokingly after a few seconds of silence. “I am in your gardens, aren’t I? I find this the most dangerous, and yet, the safest place in Hell.” I let out an amused breath, which he seemed to mimick. “You wouldn’t be wrong to believe that. Why did you leave?” he asked, looking at the reflection of the silver moon’s on the mirror sheen of the water. “I needed some fresh air, I guess. And you?” I asked back, doing the same as him. “I noticed you weren’t around, so I went to look for you.” he smiled softly, leaning back a bit. “Thank you for your concern, but I am fine. Go back there and have fun. You earned it, after the amazing performance you put there. You were absolutely terrific.” I tilted my head to give him a small smile. “But there is something on your mind, isn’t it? You can talk to me, if you want and feel like it.” I tried to encourage him, as he nodded to me. “You are unbelievably perceptive for a human, aren’t you? No wonder you managed to get Lucifer’s brothers to finally get along. I was just thinking why you chose me to be the lead of the play. I wasn’t expecting that, to be fair. I thought you’d choose Lucifer, or Satan or maybe even Asmodeus...But you didn’t, and I’d like to know your reasoning.” he asked, his voice going softer with each sentence he spoke. “...I wonder if anyone noticed how lonely you are. You try so hard to have the brothers, and others, forget that you are a Prince, and act with you normally, to include you in their activities, so chat with you leisurely...And yet, they all get intimidated by your status. I know what it’s like to be an outcast, and it’s the last thing I’d want you to feel like. I know you like to have fun, so I thought that maybe, for once, you would have enjoyed playing the mortal, while I am the immortal one.” I chuckled softly, hugging my knees, I was met with more seconds of silence. “I was right when I said you would be an amazing influence on us. You are right in everything you said. I’m grateful. If I think about it, it has been a long while since anyone said such nice things about me, without wanting to gain something...Especially since I am a demon. The Demon Prince, nonetheless.” he explained, making me sigh, shifting my gaze to the moon. “I...Well...I think I drank a bit too much champagne, so I guess telling you this won’t hurt, in the long run, anyway. You don’t even have to acknowledge anything I say. Just play it off as a tipsy rant or something...But honestly...You are amazing. You are the kindest person I’ve ever met in my life. I know it’s very short compared to yours, but it’s much more meaningful and impactful to us. You have showed me nothing but kindness and understanding, lots of opportunities to have fun with events, and pranks, jokes, trips...You looked out for me all the time...Especially when Lucifer almost killed me...Which wasn’t few times, really. And you try to bring everyone together, no matter their race or ranks...You are like a big golden retriever who just wants hugs, attention and affection...And your smile and laugh is to die for. If only you’d see the way your eyes sparkle when you’re happy, or feel the warmth of your embraces and how soothing they are. I picked you for more than one reason, Diavolo, and I’m pretty sure it’s obvious now.” I chuckle lightly, not caring about the consequences of my words. “I...Am speechless. Nobody managed to stir such feelings inside me since I first saw Lucifer as an archangel, and this tops it. I cannot but thank you...But now it seems like you’re the one who has things on her mind.” he pointed out, wiping away a stray tear going down my face. “My performance on the stage was so great because those feelings of mine were genuine...But reverse. I am going to die before you even realise it, and just a little later, you’re going to forget me. There is no place for my feelings, no matter how I look at it. I’m mortal, and you’re not. I’m a simple, ordinary human, while you’re the Demon Prince. I will never even be close to being as great as you are. I’m selfish, I’m a jerk, I’m mean, I’m jealous, I’m not talented, I’m not smart, I’m not beautiful...I’m nowhere close to your level, no matter how much I try to get better. Soon, I will have to return back to the human world, and you will still be here, becoming the best Demon King the Devildom ever had...” I shook my head, smiling sadly. “How long have you felt this way?” he asked softly, putting his arm around me, pulling me close to his chest. “A long time...And it only got stronger since then.” I sighed, leaning my head on his chest. “I’m glad to hear that...Because my emotions from the stage were as true as yours. Every word I spoke up there, is true. For a while now, I have been thinking about you and how we could make this work without any of us having to suffer like Beren and Luthien from your story. You are the most unique and beautiful person I’ve met, and I don’t mean only your looks, but your personality and heart as well. I hate it when you bring yourself down and compare yourself to me, because everyone has their own traits that make them who they are.” Diavolo’s voice was gentle and heartfelt, making me raise my head to look at him, searching for the truth in his eyes. “Did you know that this story was written as a tribute to the author’s wife, whom he nicknamed Luthien? The author, Tolkien, fell in love with her when she danced and sang for him in the glade, and since then, he has been very much in love with her...Going as far as to have her nickname, Luthien, written under her name on her grave stone. If that isn’t true love, I don’t know what is.” I smiled softly, feeling my heart skipping quickly. “Humans are truly capable of the most incredible things. They never cease to amaze me, no matter how much time passes. In your short, mortal lives, you are capable of unbelievable potential and wonders. You praised me so much today, but trust me when I say it, I could go for ages complimenting you, and I wouldn’t run out of nice things to say about you. Y/N, trust me when I say it, I love you, and I promise you that your feelings are safe with me, and I won’t let you die. I know a way to make it work.” Diavolo said, putting his hands on my face, as his eyes held only love. “If you’re certain you are okay with it, and aren’t afraid of any consequences, then I can say with no fear that I love you as well, Diavolo. Endlessly.” I grin at him, chuckling lightly as he leaned in, sharing a loving kiss, yet this time, the emotions were flowing much more powerfully than on the stage.

It was true, it was pure, it was ethereal, and definitely, it was eternal.

[writingpaperghost]

There is a Me Who Can Become Strong (Chapter 13)

Chapter 13: Defined Destiny

In the wake of Christmas, the Riders are forced to get used to a new normal. Emu deals with losing his friend and the secret he is once again forced to keep alone. Then, he finds himself in the possession of a new, strange, blank, Gashat.

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/32857183/chapters/83270452

When Nico next sees Yuko after Christmas, it’s once the new year’s come around, when Yuko pops into Taiga’s clinic, one evening. Her hair’s no longer dyed blue, instead now being a bright green and she’s leaning over Taiga’s shoulder, watching him. One would think that Taiga would be annoyed by this, but if he is, he doesn’t say anything.

The moment Taiga notices Nico, he turns in his chair and tells her, “Get your friend out, now,”

Yuko pipes in, “Not like he could make me leave,”

Taiga grumbles, “Says the one who looks like a low-effort Snipe cosplayer.”

Gasping, Yuko dramatically put a hand on her chest, “How dare! If I was cosplaying – which I’m not – I would not be a low-effortcosplayer.”

At that comment, Nico cackles, then looks at Yuko, “Come on, Yuko, we can go talk,” She gestures at Taiga, “Taiga’s just being a grouchy old man.”

Once Nico’s brought Yuko back to her room, Nico sets about reorganizing the theory board. After a few moments, Yuko speaks, “Hanaya told me about what happened to your friend, since I already knew about the Kamen Rider thing and everything.” There’s a pause, before Yuko continues, “I really think, that if you’ve already gotten your rematch, you should really quit while you’re a head.”

Nico stops what she’s doing, frowns, and turns to face Yuko, “Why would I do that?”

“Because this is dangerous,” Yuko answers, “Because your friend died and you could too.”

“I can’t,” Nico insists, “I know what I’m doing, but Yuko… I need to know what’s going on.”

Frowning, Yuko shoves her hands into her coat pockets and makes her way over towards the door, “I’m really regretting telling you about this.”

---

The new year’s come, and Emu’s started a new internship, a surgery internship, with Saki supervising. He’s sure he could have gotten a worse supervisor, but it’s definitely odd for him. Not that he’s exactly had an easy time focusing recently. Even when he was doing something that he could normally focus on so easily, like playing a game, he would eventually lose focus.

All he could find himself thinking about was Kiriya – the way his body was glitching and the pixels… It would only lead him to thinking about that day six years ago, the bodies of the Next Genome Institute scientists on the floor, glitching and pixelating just like Kiriya. It was horrifying and while he knew he wasn’t responsible for what happened to Kiriya, not like with the scientist, it wouldn’t stop coming to his mind.

“Emu?” Saki’s voice snaps him out of his mind. He blinks, remember what he’d been doing. Right, he’d been practicing a surgical procedure. And then he lost focus again.

“Sorry,” He apologized, “I… don’t know what happened.”

Saki watches him for a moment, purses her lips and responds, “I know you’re still bothered by what happened to Kujo,” That was one way of putting it, “But you can’t let your emotions interfere with treating a patient.”

He knew she was right, but it was hard not to think about it, not to get distracted. He was at least eighty percent sure he and Kiriya counted as friends, and it hurt to see him die. After six years ago, he’d thought he wouldn’t have to deal with that feeling again, but Christmas had brought it all back.

Not that he was able to think all that much about it, given they were quickly alerted to a new patient in the CR, which needed their attention. Their newest patient was a famous surgeon, a man named Kazuki Shirakawa. Emu had never heard of him, but judging by the way Saki’s eyes had widened, she did.

So you know, no pressure or anything. Emu wasn’t too worried, between him and Saki, they could probably handle whatever Bugster appeared. That was their job, after all. Yet as they entered the patient room, they realized it wasn’t going to be quite so easy.

“I had suspected I had the game illness,” Shirakawa said, “Though there is no need to operate on me.”

“You’ve been infected,” Saki reminds him, pulling out her Gamer Driver, “It’s our duty to help you.”

Like a lever had been pulled, Shirakawa gasped and a Bugster began to appear. This time, it was Alhambra, who quickly declared, “This time, I’m Level 5!” Being a higher level than Salty had been, this might be a bit harder than they initially expected.

Grabbing their Gashats, Emu and Saki transformed.

Mighty Action X!

Taddle Quest!

Level up! Mighty jump! Mighty kick! Mighty-Mighty Action X!

Level Up! Taddle meguru! Taddle meguru! Taddle Quest!

Behind them, Saki catches the director on the other side of the window, gesturing to them to take the fight out of the patient room. So Saki using the stage select to send them to a quarry.

Axe in hand, Emu wastes no time in slashing at Alhambra, followed by Saki slashing with her sword. Despite their attempts, Alhambra dodges their attacks, countering with an ice spell. He hadn’t known that before – meaning that when a Bugster reaches a higher level it can learn new skills.

As the two tried to break and pry themselves free of the ice, they hear what sounds like Kuroto laughing. Looking up, they see a new Rider they’ve never seen before, white and black colored with red and blue eyes. On his waist was the device they’d seen Kuroto use. At his side was a Rider using a Gamer Driver and the Proto Mighty Action X Gashat.

“Para-DX, Brave,” Kuroto says, “I’m afraid the Beta is over, and we no longer are in need of our test players.”

“What does that mean?” Saki grunts, managing to melt through some of the ice with her Gashacon Sword’s flame mode.

It was the other Rider who spoke, “It means we’re taking back your Gashats,” It sounded like the other voice that had once come from Gemn.

Nodding, Kuroto agrees, “Yes, Ex-Aid is right. You’re Gashats will be returned to me at once.” With that statement, Gemn summons the Gashacon Sparrow in his hand.

At the sight of Kiriya’s weapon, Emu freezes. Then, like a switch in his mind flipped, he finds himself pulling out the Drago Knight Hunter Z Gashat. How dare Kuroto use Kiriya’s weapons, after he killed him?

Drago Knight Hunter Z!

Do-Do-Drago Kni-Kni-Kni-Knight! Dra! Dra! Drago Knight Hunter! Z! Para-DX!

Breaking what remained of the ice, Emu rushes towards Gemn, sending a powerful attack at him. Ex-Aid had the foresight to step away while Emu was transforming, so the only one caught in the attack was Gemn.

A cloud of purple smoke erupts from Gemn and then he gets right back up. Cackling, Kuroto declares, “I’ve surpassed even death!” His health bar, it was empty. It had been empty the whole fight. Ex-Aid seems surprised at Gemn’s declaration.

But Emu ignores it. He attacks Gemn again. While in the midst of their fight, Kuroto calls out to Ex-Aid, “Ex-Aid, go help Alhambra with Brave,”

Ex-Aid doesn’t immediately respond, almost seeming like it took him a moment to register what Kuroto had said. He nods and runs towards where Saki and Alhambra were fighting. Then, Emu hears a familiar Gashat.

Giri Giri Chambara!

It only served to make him more angry.

Gemn presses a button on the Buggle Driver, a tone ringing out.

Critical Dead!

A large amount of humanoid, shadowy creatures, almost like a horde of zombies, appears. They begin to grab at Emu and for a moment, he’s a little scared. This was new and Gemn was already bringing surprises from the moment they started this fight.

Then, Saki tackles him out of the attack, right before the shadowy horde exploded. As she reaches to deactivate both their transformation, he can hear Ex-Aid cheer, “Wow, Kuroto! That was so cool!”

Then, they’re back in the CR.

Saki’s staring at him crossly, “Intern,” And Emu knows he’s in trouble, “What were you thinking, trying to fight Gemn like that?”

Normally, getting lectured by Saki was scary. Or at least, it should be scary to Emu, but right now he isn’t really Emu, is he? Would Emu have gotten so upset like that? It’s hard to say as Emu never had any friends, so he couldn’t have lost any but… If nothing else, he was upset, whether or not that was in character for Emu.

“He killed Kiriya,” He answers, coldly.

“I told you earlier,” She reminded him, “You can’t let your emotions interfere with your patient’s treatment.”

Rolling his eyes, Emu counters, “The treatment he doesn’t want?” Then he scoffs, “Besides, you did the same thing with Graphite. Only focused on fighting him no matter what trouble it caused everyone else. Who are you to talk?”

She takes a deep breath, before holding her hand out and looking him in the eye, “Intern.” She speaks just above a growl, “Give me your Gashats.”

Emu meets her eyes, “Why should I?” At the glare she gives him, he scoffs and digs them out of his pockets, “Fine, whatever.” It’s not like he hasn’t managed things without Gashats before.

---

“You’re already working on a new Gashat?” Mu sounded amazed when he peered over at Kuroto’s desk, seeing a strange blank Gashat. It looked like two Gashats fused into one, with some kind of knob on the back. To be fair, there were three Gashats on Kuroto’s desk, another like the one he was working on currently, and one that looked like two fused together, but without the knob. But Kuroto was only actively working on the one.

Kuroto nods, “Yes, when it’s finished it’ll allow the user to switch between two Gashats, as well as being a higher level than anything we have now.” He holds the Gashat for a moment, before sighing slightly and setting it down, “But it needs data, so it may not be ready for a while.”

Mu doesn’t ask why Kuroto decided to make a strongerGashat, right after finishing Dangerous Zombie. Instead, he just watches Kuroto, while seated on the couch. After a while, Kuroto got up and left the room, stretching in the process.

Then, Graphite teleports in, quickly noting the Gashat on Kuroto’s desk. “Another one already?”

Nodding, Mu explains to Graphite what Kuroto had told him. For a while, Graphite’s gaze would always fall back to the Gashat, for some reason or other. Mu wasn’t sure, nor was he really sure he wanted to know. Still, he was a bit worried about Graphite’s odd behavior, “Is everything alright?”

Blinking, Graphite looks back at Mu, then at the Gashat. Finally, he responds, “I… You said the Gashat needs data? Bugster data?”

“Yes?”

Graphite picks up the Gashat, “I have an idea.”

Pursing his lips, Mu nods, “I won’t tell Kuroto,”

With a small smile, Graphite nods and teleports away.

---

“Mr. Shirakawa,” Saki begins, “Why do you refuse our help?”

Sighing, Shirakawa explained, “While I may be infected with this ‘Game Disease’ I also have an inoperable pancreatic cancer.” He seemed terribly resigned about the entire thing, “Even if you were to cure me of this disease, I would die anyway.”

Saki’s not sure what to say to that.

---

Emu’s outside of the hospital, sitting on a bench. He’s not really sure what to think right now. Maybe… maybe Saki was right. After all, during that fight, he’d only been focused on Gemn. He couldn’t even say what had happened with Saki in her fight against Alhambra and Ex-Aid.

Nor did Saki really deserve what he’d said, no matter how accurate it was.

It was times like these where Emu wondered why he was so insistent on achieving someone else’s dreams. Because where Emu had always been so good at being kind and caring to other people, he could barely keep from wanting to strangle people, some days. And today… his anger at Gemn for killing Kiriya, and then taking that anger out on Saki…

Maybe he was no good at this doctor thing. Sure, everyone in Pediatrics thought he was great, but that didn’t really mean much. After all, it hadn’t been his dream until achieving Emu’s dream had become his own dream. At least, if he wasn’t a doctor, he wouldn’t have to worry about his emotions interfering with treatment. Or at least have no obligation not to let them.

“You’re moping,” Emu shoots off the bench, spinning around to face the startlingly familiar voice. Standing by the bench was Graphite, in his human form.

“You’re dead,” Emu counters, wishing that he had even one Gashat to work with. “We killed you.”

Graphite rolled his eyes, “You’re fighting Alhambra again right now, aren’t you? And on Christmas you fought Salty.” He walks to Emu’s side, “We Bugsters get better easily. You should know that.”

Turning to better face Graphite, Emu narrows his eyes, “What do you mean?”

Shaking his head, Graphite pulls something out of his coat. It was a blank grey Gashat, two fused together with a knob on it. He holds it out to Emu, though Emu only eyes it warily. Sighing, Graphite shakes it a little at Emu, “Take it,”

Still, Emu’s not entirely convinced, “What’s this?”

“A Gashat,”

“It’s blank.”

“Yes,” Graphite says, a tone almost like what one might use when explaining something to a child, “It needs Bugster data.”

That didn’t really answer all that much, “Then why are you giving it to me?”

“You’re a Bugster, aren’t you?” Graphite eyes him with a calculating look.

Emu gasped, “How did you know?” The look Graphite gives him tells him he won’t get an answer, so he shakes his head, but takes the Gashat anyway. He examines it for a moment, turning it around in his hands, before saying, “I don’t have a game, you know.” Yet when he looks up, Graphite’s already gone.

---

The bright side about how the Stage Select function of their Gamer Drivers worked, meant that it was really easy to figure out when one of the stages was in use. Nico noticed that the forest stage was activated, figuring that Emu and Saki were fighting whatever Bugster they’d briefly fought earlier. She wasn’t so much interested in the Bugster, though, as she was Gemn. She needed to figure out what Kiriya had found out that had gotten him killed.

As she enters the stage, she can see that Saki has already transformed to Level 3, fighting Alhambra. She saw a black and white Rider and then the purple and black Rider that was using Proto Mighty Action X. Notably, he was using Giri Giri Chambara for a Level 3.

“Gemn!” She calls out, catching the attention of the white and black Rider. That meant that this new form was probably the product of Gemn’s new Gashat.

Gemn looks over at the other Rider, “Ex-Aid,” He said, “Go help Alhambra again, I’ll deal with Snipe.”

As the other Rider, Ex-Aid, joins Alhambra in fighting Saki, Nico doesn’t let it distract her much. She pulls out her two Gashats. “Alright, what was it that Kiriya figured out?”

Bang Bang Shooting!

Jet Combat!

Jet! Jet! In the sky! Jet! Jet! Jet Combat!

“Now why should I tell you that?”

This new form of Gemn’s is strong, way stronger than her Level 3. Not to mention, how he used Kiriya’s Gashacon Sparrow. Nico wanted to know what Kiriya learned and now she also wanted Gemn gone. It’s hard to block his attacks when they’re close up and she can’t get away to get an advantage.

Out of nowhere, Alhambra freezes her and Saki, following the attack with a blast of fire. Gemn attack Nico, knocking her out of her transformation, while Ex-Aid attacks Saki, doing the same. As Gemn towers in front of them, ready to use the Gashacon Sparrow to attack them, it’s clear they needed help.

Nico didn’t know why Emu wasn’t here, but she hoped he showed up fast.

“Stop!” Both Gemn and Ex-Aid turned to the voice, Emu running towards them.

“Emu!” Saki gasps, “Why are you here?”

Emu’s holding a strange grey Gashat in his hand, a fact that didn’t go unnoticed by Gemn. “How did you get that?”

Instead of answering, Emu just grabs the knob on the Gashat, twisting it back and forth hesitantly. When he rotates it the first time, nothing happens. When he rotates it to the other side, though, there’s a flash. A red, blue, and purple cloud erupts from Emu as he clutched the Gashat.

“Kuroto, what’s happening?” Ex-Aid gasped, glancing over at Gemn.

“It’s a blank Gashat,” Gemn explained. The cloud that emerged from Emu soon was absorbed by the Gashat. Now in Emu’s hands was a blue Gashat, with a yellow knob. On one side was a game called Perfect Puzzle, on the other side a game called Knockout Fighter. Gemn finishes his explanation, “Although, it seems to have found it’s data.”

Emu rotates the knob to the side labeled Perfect Puzzle.

Perfect Puzzle!

Dual Up! Get the glory in the chain, Perfect Puzzle!

A picture appears behind him, depicting a blue Rider, unlike Emu’s previous forms. It moves closer to him, merging with him and giving him the armor. Around him, all sorts of power ups spawned.

Once more, Ex-Aid gasps, “What the hell? He can do that?”

Gemn growls, “A bootleg game,”

Dodging out of the way of Gemn’s incoming slash, Emu pulls up a sort of grouping of items. He arranges them, combining strength items with speed items. Taking the power up he just created, somehow merging the items together, Emu kicks Gemn, sending him backwards. He dodges out of the way of Gemn’s next attack, speeding to behind him and landing several punches.

Taking a step back, Emu grabs the Gashat out of its holster and rotates the knob to the other side.

Knockout Fighter!

Dual Up! Explosion hit! Knockout Fighter!

Like before, a picture of his rider form, this time red with large fists, appears. It replaces the blue armor. Emu quickly punches at Gemn, who barely manages to dodge out of the way.

Ex-Aid slashes at him with his Gashacon Breaker in sword mode, though Emu blocks it. He knocks the weapon away and punches Ex-Aid sending him backwards and causing his Gashat to eject.

“Kuroto!” Ex-Aid quickly scrambles to stand up and get farther from Emu, almost hiding behind Gemn, though a distance behind. “Why is he so strong?”

“Because he’s Level 20,” Kuroto growls, “How dare he-“

Running up and tugging at Gemn’s arm, Ex-Aid says, “We can’t stay right now…”

Grumbling, Kuroto nods and the two, plus Alhambra escape.

Emu removes his Gashat and drops his transformation. He feels… tired, that’s for certain, but he thinks it’s more from giving the Gashat data. That definitely was the draining part. Not that he could tell Saki or Nico that.

He examined the Gashat for a moment. He’d never… well he’d never thought he’d even had a connection to a game. The idea that his data could contribute to the creation of a Gashat had never crossed his mind. But here they were, not one, but two games, though in one Gashat.

Then Nico breaks him out of his thoughts, “Where the hell did you get that Gashat?”

“Uh…” Emu squeaks, “Well… I think Graphite may still be alive and gave it to me.”

Neither of the two looked impressed, Nico crossed her arms while Saki unamused responded, “You realize that we killed him?”

“Well yeah,” He agrees, “But we killed Salty and Alhambra too.”

Nico huffs, “Whatever, I’m going home.”

[konpithepuppy]

[TRANSLATION: POTATO 04.2021]

7 MEN SAMURAI CROSS TALK + RECENT MEMO

Scans not mine

Neither an English nor a Japanese native speaker

Feel free to correct me, thanks

WHO IS NO. 1 IN TERMS OF ACTING ABILITY!?

For the purpose of checking out the acting ability of the 6 members, different patterns of "smile" were shown. At the end of a heated discussion in the round table discussion, a member who is good at telling lies was revealed!? (The interview was taken in the middle of February.)

Reia-kun is a professional in acting to deceive people

Yabana: This time's theme is "acting ability".

Sasaki: (in loud voice) WHAT!

Nakamura: No, he didn't mean "act here now" LOL. You run into the conversation too fast. Recently, for a project for YouTube, we did a prank on Bana-san (Yabana), right?

Motodaka: We did a cosplay where we shouldn't be recognized. During that time, I desperately covered everyone with my body so that everyone's disguise will not be caught by Bana-san's sight LOL. It was an acting where I used my whole body.

Konno: And us, who are being covered, were disguising ourselves with all our might. It was fun!

Sugeta: Rinne even changed his pants on the spot LOL.

Nakamura: Yabana, how suspicious were you at that time?

Yabana: I think [I got suspicious] when I saw Taiko's face laughing happily LOL. It's obviously that that is his face when he trick people. With that, Taiko's acting level is quite low.

Sasaki: That's what I also think LOL.

Nakamura: Speaking of YouTube, we always have a birthday surprise plans for the members, but for some reason, we didn't pull anything for Katsuki's and Konpi's (Konno) birthdays.

Konno: Yeah. Honestly, I thought, "Have they forgotten about my birthday?" and I got sad LOL.

Motodaka: I am not saying to prepare us 2 different surprises, but why did you not prepare anything?

Yabana: No, you don't know? Perhaps the reason why we are talking about this now might probably because we've got something for you too, you know?

Sugeta: Yeah, this might be a foreshadowing, you know?

Motodaka: There's definitely none LOL. Our birthdays passed a long time ago already. If you insist, Reia's birthday is coming soon, right? LOL

Yabana: When you make it look like there's a surprise but there's none at all is the saddest pattern of prank LOL.

Sasaki: Who might be in the 1st place in acting in private among us?

Yabana: It is probably Reia-kun. He often deceives people, he is an expert in acting!

Nakamura: I myself think so too LOL.

Sasaki: Didn't you fool HiHi Jets and Bi Shounen all along?

Nakamura: I did, but I can't remember what it is about. They are pure so they believed for around 2 years in the proper lie I said to them LOL.

Motodaka: Reia is good with acting in times like that. Me too in the past, he told me, "the staff are very mad" with a facial expression that looked real and I completely believed him.

Nakamura: Fufufu...if you look closely, I am doing the face saying, "I am lying." On the contrary, Taiko is usually bad when telling lies. His feelings are shown on his face immediately. It is easy to understand his face like "Is that an emoji!?"

Yabana: A speech bubble saying, "I am telling a lie now" is faintly coming out from him LOL. That's why when he talked at the beginning of my prank video, I noticed about it immediately.

Motodaka: Rinne is also easy to know if he is telling a lie, right?

Konno: His feelings totally show in his behavior.

Nakamura: Yeah, yeah. He is bad at acting lively especially when he is feeling down LOL. He obviously couldn't talk.

Yabana: It is like he is saying, "I am having a problem."

Sugeta: ...I agree with you LOL.

Sasaki: Konpi is also easy to understand, right? When he fools others, he will certainly look at my eyes and will grin.

Konno: I want to make the 2 of us the suspects LOL.

Nakamura: When Katsuki tricks people, his ears immediately turns very red LOL.

Yabana: His ears are a lie detector, right? It turns very red like it is going to explode.

Nakamura: If there is someone he likes, he will be exposed immediately. She will be like, "This person probably likes me. Since his ears are super red." LOL

Motodaka: What~ I don't like that. Somehow or other, I think it is something you can't falsify LOL.

Sasaki: On the contrary, Yabana is good with lies . He said he was interviewed in the street by chance for 「Getsuyou kara Yofukashi」recently, but that one is also an acting, right?

Nakamura: The truth is that he can't play intruments too, right?

Yabana: Hey, stop it! To the readers, what they just said are both lies, okay?! LOL Or rather, I have not deceived people or lied to anyone!

Everyone except Yabana: That's a lie~!

Nakamura: 7 MEN 侍's best actor is not me but Yabana-kun~.

Yabana: Stop~that~! LOL

Influenced by the acting coaching of Koichi-kun for the DREAM BOYS

Nakamura: I really like the performance of Taiko when he is on stage.

Yabana: I know. Well, he is in character, but suddenly his aura of being a stupid brat was gone and becomes a human being LOL.

Motodaka: Yeah, right. When he was on stage, he became able to speak good Japanese.

Sasaki: ...I hate you all! LOL

Yabana: I also like Rinne-kun's acting in「DREAM BOYS」. There's a scene that (Domoto) Koichi-kun enthusiastically coaches, and as the result of Rinne steadily absorbing the advices, Rinne is turning into Koichi-kun day by day LOL.

Sugeta: I think since he presented a really good example, so I was influenced naturally. I was thankful. Rinne likes Katsuki's acting in 「Nounai Poison Berry」.

Konno: Ah yes, that was a good one.

Everyone except Konno: You haven't seen that, right? LOL

Sugeta: Konpi has not seen any of the members' stage plays until now, right?

Konno: That's just a coincidence LOL. Because during the showing of 「Oretachi Oenya!!~」where Taiko and Rinne appeared, wasn't it exactly during our preparation for 「~The Happy Prince」?

Nakamura: If you say so LOL. Katsuki's acting and Konpi's acting in 「The Happy Prince」were also good.

Yabana: Yeah, right. Serious acting suited them. Also, Konpi's appearance when he sat on the chair and turned round and round LOL.

Konno: Thank you! I had put all of my acting into that scene LOL.

Sugeta: Bana-san tried different acting patterns in daily special corner of「DREAM BOYS」. I think that was really good!

Yabana: I change my hairstyle depending on the day. And then, I match my acting with my hairstyle like, "Today I will go for a mood that looks slightly weak," or "Today, I am in all back hairstyle so I will go for a character that seems strong," and I am changing my acting a little by little. I also changed my costume a little by little, for some reason, all the cast laughed at me on the day where I appeared in tank top...LOL.

Sugeta: Coz you are skin and bones LOL.

Konno: Yeah, right. You are so thin that you look pitiful LOL.

Sasaki: Reia. For me, Reia's acting on stage is also good of course, but I think his acting on television is overwhelmingly good. You do understand me, right?

Konno: Yup. That's exactly about the drama「Gekikaradou」(TV Tokyo) he is appearing in currently, right?

Motodaka: In a sense that he can do whatever he wants is very Reia. I think it is a great thing that he was able to properly reflect himself to his character.

Yabana: The "yey🎶" in that drama is also like Reia's humor, right?

Sasaki: Well, but the usual Reia that we see is close to his character in Dream Boys.

Yabana: We think, "When will we be get beaten?" so we are constantly scared of him.

Nakamura: You are kidding LOL.

Sasaki: Let me ask just in case, since you are moving towards dramas, it doesn't mean that you are throwing away stage plays, right? Please make this clear.

Nakamura: Of course! LOL. Don't say weird things, I want to challenge acting in stage plays from now on too!

Motodaka: Which reminds me, the stage play where Rinne is starring (「Hidamari no Ki」) is starting soon, right? It starts in March, right?

Sugeta: Yup, you're right. By the time this magazine issue comes out, the Tokyo performance have started already.

Nakamura: Doesn't that look super interesting? I also wanna watch it soon.

Motodaka: More than anything else, I am sincerely hoping that the play will start safely. This is what everyone who got an experience with stage play thinks.

Konno: Rinne is lucky so he will definitely be okay! I believe in that!

Sugeta: Even though you said that, you surely won't come and watch, right? LOL

Konno: No, I will go. I will watch you!

Sasaki: This one is an acting, absolutely LOL.

Konno: I am coming~ LOL.

RECENT MEMO

Sugeta Rinne:

I see off my younger sister, who is taking the national examination, at 6 this morning.I want her to do her best that she can use all the effort she exerted up to this day. Not only my sister, but Rinne and my younger brother also got a charm from our papa. Rinne's charm is a prayer for the success of the stage play.

Konno Taiki:

The selfie project in ISLAND TV is difficult. Every time the day I'm in charged gets closer, I become desperate. I already ran out of idea during the 2nd time we did it LOL. I want to take applications of the poses that the fans want us to do!

Yabana Rei:

When I met Tatsumi (Yudai)-kun by chance last January, he gave me a New Year's money. I was moved at how kind senpai he is. Someday, I also want to give New Year's money to my juniors and be respected LOL.

Sasaki Taiko:

I finally purchased a drum set. Since I do not know which one to buy, so the drummer who I am acquainted with and I admire came with me to the store. I am really thankful that he recommended me the items that match with my style of beating the drums!

Nakamura Reia:

I watched at home the movie「The Letters」where Yamada Takayuki-san is starring. I am glad that the story is very deep, and more than anything else, Yamada-san being immersed in his acting is so great that I was drawn into [the movie] the whole time!

Motodaka Katsuki:

I went fishing for the first time with my brother who is 4 years younger than me. My brother caught a large number of fishes that I can't imagine that it was his first time. The total amount of catch we had that day was 77 horse mackerels! It was so delicious when I made it into namerou (finely chopped fish with miso paste) that it disappeared in no time.

[b-e-h-o-l-d-e-r]

Ghost in the Shell (2017) review

I came into this movie with an open mind. Despite every fibre of my fanboy teenage ghost rejecting this alien reincarnation. I even set aside the whitewashing criticisms to just see if the movie can achieve something significant in spite of it.

Within roughly 5 minutes, this movie assured me I was going to be treated like a lobotomised baby. I shit you not, within seconds of a beautifully rendered manufacture sequence we watch two introduced characters in a room blatantly tell us what "ghost in the shell" means in the most uninspired way imaginable.

I wish I could tell you that this was just me getting off on the wrong foot but throughout, the movie is so uncertain in how to portray the themes, symbolisms and spiritual/ religious references that make up the brain in GitS' cyberpunk action body. The script just glitches between lame exposition by talking heads and still reflection in its precise composition but the two hardly work together.

It's like the film can't find its centre and as a result is neither a compelling action sci-fi or a meditative exploration of its philosophies. If this were Aaronofsky/ Gilliam or Bay/ Snyder perhaps (for better or worse) at least this movie would have a distinct direction to go in but instead it sits in the middle and suffers at both.

Hell, I'm sure many fans would be happy if this just took the Dredd approach. If they just accepted that the fans know the backstory and the non fans don't need it and made this simply about the Section 9 anti cyber crimes team doing their job, kicking ass n taking names, it would at least have a better chance of success amongst its primary demographic.

Instead Hollywood thinks big and wants to initiate a new franchise, origin story and all, n crams so much bullshit to try and get new audiences into it that Section 9 itself gets pushed way back in the corner. Audiences spend more time getting to know the Majors mum/s than they do with any her team.

They ditch the cerebral plot of the '95 anime whereby Major Motoko Kusanagi working within Section 9 are tracking a hacker who turns out not only to be an AI secretly created by the government to assassinate political targets but has become sentient, claims asylum and ends up merging consciousness with Major Kusanagi by the end.

Here we get Major Motoko Kusanagi of Section 9, pissed that many innocent people were murdered in experiments to create her and super shitty that her entire identity was a lie and she's actually a bratty anti establishment punk.

After all is said and done, what we get is Robocop-Lite (and thats the reboot mind you). All the nuance, intrigue and head scratching ideology that we got in the shorter length '95 anime is reduced here to identity theft and yet another unremarkable corporate business villain to cover it up. We've seen this shit SO often. I'm beginning to think Hollywood just doesn't know how to do it any other way. They weren't all bad mind you, Robocop, Total Recall, The Matrix, these are all great films but GitS in its initial reception really broke the mould and here to see it put back in the cage of "been here, done that" is so incredibly disappointing.

As far as anime/manga Hollywood adaptations are concerned, the bar is INCREDIBLY low. I'd argue the only good one amongst them is Edge of Tomorrow/ Live Die Repeat. Aside from that, every otaku since the 90's is used to being made fun of in the result of America trying to morph them into something that works amongst their style of cinema. Japan has made some great adaptations partly because they don't feel the need to repackage the story.

This GitS remake tries desperately to be on the fans side by copying much of the '95 movies look (with varying degrees of success, some scenes are very accurate in their reproduction but the hair in this film is more reminiscent of X-men (2000) and seems cosplay-ish at times).

There are few scenes lifted from the original but most get twisted to accommodate the new storyline, at which point I ask why bother? Half measures don't tend to turn many heads and whilst paying homage by really making the effort to be exact duplications in some ways is applaudable, you're giving yourself less room to do your version of it. At least then, whether the film turns out to be shit or not, I'll respect that you tried to do your own thing.

ok, casting. this argument has already been done to death and I've just about run outta energy already on the whole Scarlett Johanson thing but a few things that never seem to come up: first of all, acting wise, I gotta say it's all much of a fucking muchness isn't it? Kusanagi does not outwardly express much so its mostly a headgame for an actress with the chance to throw in some subtleties in the voice acting.

I don't really like Scarlet Johansson's performances but that its preposterous for anyone to come to the conclusion that her resume would land her this gig is a bit of a stretch. Do people realise how rare it is to find an A-list celebrity that has an extensive list of both highly demanding physical action blockbusters and subtle minimalist detail performances? Of course they are going to cast her. Before anyone throws ME personally into somehow being against ethnic minorities in blockbuster films (which would be absurd for anyone who knows me) '95 GitS director Mamoru Oshii also gave his stamp of approval.

They really tried with the marketing to dodge the bullet by just not bringing it up but it's really not dealt with well in the film and leads to some pretty fucking awkward moments for a racial debate charged audience to watch.

I would have preferred the role to go to a Japanese actress but remember, this is Hollywood and if a studio is gonna push bringing THIS film out, you bet your bottom dollar that they're going with someone that is a household name in America.

The only internationally known Japanese name out there right now is Rinko Kikuchi (who to date has 2 American films out there, both not big successes). I love most of her films and there ARE a few other Japanese actresses I would love to see in the role but Hollywood studios are not gonna bank on the success of Japanese films. Hell, the fact that they put Takeshi Kitano in bit part in this movie is as far as they are willing go to get in on that market. Few seem to point at his casting as some kind of justification and I laugh quite hard. Seriously, you're gonna give this guy (who's acted AND directed in over 20 brilliant films) a few minutes of screen time and applaud that as some kind of cultural milestone?

Which brings me to the big casting shame that NO ONE is fucking talking about because they're so caught up with the Johansson shit. Aside from Kusanagi, there are 6 Japanese members of the Section 9 taskforce. How many are Japanese? Kitano, yes. Who else? Saito. Did you remember him? He's the guy that snipes the helicopter at the very end of the film. You see his face for like 10 seconds. Pretty big step in casting mulitculturally, right? Don't get me wrong, the cast IS incredibly multicultural. We got actors from all over the world pretending to be Japanese:

A Danish guy as Batou A Chinese guy as Togusa An Australian as Ishikawa A Zimbabwean as Borma

Why keep the names?! Just call them whatever, it doesn't matter. You don't give them anything important to do anyway. Have a mulit-ethnic team but when they're all speaking clearly in their national accents and supposed to be portraying Japanese characters, THAT'S what should really piss people off because THESE roles could have gone out to Japanese people and it would not have even been a risk for the studio.

Ultimately, the one real positive thing I have to say is a great job for the WETA production team on some fantastic animatronics and moulds...that's pretty much it. Shame it couldn't be in a better film.

- dug out from the depths of https://letterboxd.com/Do_oM/

[kaibashadow]

Story: “A Good Deception”

Recently, Shuichi Saihara, the Ultimate Detective, has been having trouble solving a difficult case that he came across. There is so much evidence he found already to strongly suspect and narrow down the culprit of this particular case to be one of his classmates, but he can’t figure out who that might be. After staring at the pictures of his fellow classmates on the wall and pondering about everyone’s statements on where that person (or robot) was during the time of the incident for quite a long time, there is only one person who he knew he could trust. And that’s only because that person was his alibi throughout the entire day.

Kokichi Ouma.

Shuichi knows that he can’t solve this case by himself and that he needed another person’s help to see if they can formulate any new ideas or find some new facts that he had previously missed or never even thought of. The Ultimate Detective is indeed quite aware of how smart and cunning Kokichi really is, however, he isn’t sure if his companion would either help or just hinder the case.

Despite this, Shuichi is desperate to gain some new perspective by now and knows that time is of the essence. The longer the case stays open, the more time goes by as possible theories and evidence grow colder with each passing moment.

After carefully contemplating about the issue at hand and planning on how to obtain Kokichi’s help, he immediately spares no second into setting foot to find the talented trickster.

- - -

Shuichi eventually finds Kokichi up to his usual antics. He stops the shorter male from doing what he was currently pursuing and turns his back away from him. The detective knows that Kokichi is peering at him, curious to see what is on his mind. Shuichi tugs on his hat as he sets his plan into motion. With as much confidence he can muster, Shuichi carefully eyes his classmate and speaks to him at once, “Show me how to lie.”

Kokichi momentarily becomes surprised to hear those words come out of Shuichi’s mouth, but shortly after, he then bends down as his teasing smile quickly returns to his face once again. Kokichi is generally intrigued at the detective’s request as he often wants to spend more time with said detective whenever he can. With this interesting proposition, Kokichi decides to cancel his latest scheme at that very moment and go with Shuichi.

- - -

Once they enter the detective’s room and he has Kokichi’s undivided attention, Shuichi makes it very clear that this practice was only to help him with his detective work and only for this case in particular. He suspects that at least one or a few of their classmates might be lying about when and where they were at the time when the incident occurred. Shuichi talks and goes over the case with Kokichi, leaving no detail out. Shuichi even describes everyone’s facial expressions and body movements when he questioned them regarding to the case about their own statements, noting a few odd behaviors that some of their classmates did.

Kokichi listens intently to the facts about the case and notices Shuichi’s keen eye for pointing those things out. He can see that the detective has grown a lot since he first started and proceeds to commend him on his efforts so far. He walks over to Shuichi and places his hand on the detective’s chin. “You’re getting better all the time,” he praises him in a soft-spoken manner, caressing the area of the skin underneath the other’s bottom lip.

Shuichi gazes into the shorter male’s eyes, almost wanting to spend his time just being in that exact moment with him.

Quickly shaking away his confusing thoughts, he remembers that time is of the essence, especially with a case like this. He couldn’t afford to waste any more minutes and needed to solve this as soon as he possible. He internally sighs at the thought before he goes back to wearing his usual serious expression. He asks, “Can you help me with this, Kokichi?”

Kokichi lets go of Shuichi, understanding his question. He grins at the detective. “Well, to understand the mind of a liar, you would have to become a liar yourself,” he easily explains as if it were that simple to do.

Shuichi gapes his mouth slightly open almost in disgust at how nonchalantly Kokichi said that statement. He did previously ask the supreme leader to show him how to lie, but the thought of actually becoming a true liar himself leaves the detective in shock. Shuichi notices that Kokichi never once showed any signs of hesitation or had any moral thoughts cross his own mind prior to speaking those words aloud.

Despite this, Shuichi knows that Kokichi is right. There are many liars out there in the world besides the person right in front of him. He shouldn’t be surprised that their classmates are also capable of telling him such lies as well. Even he knows that he lies from time to time himself, but not as excessively as Kokichi.

But, to do what Kokichi stated, that would mean Shuichi would have to go against the very principle of what makes him a detective; because of this, said detective narrows his eyes with skepticism, but he tells himself that it’s for the good of the case. He proceeds to ask Kokichi, “And how do you propose we do that?”

Kokichi eagerly grabs Shuichi’s hand. “C’mon! I’ll show you!” he exclaims, dragging the detective along with him.

- - -

When they reach the destination in Kokichi’s room, Kokichi lets go of the detective and walks into his closet. He brings out two different folded outfits and happily tosses the white one over to Shuichi. “There! Go ahead and try it on for yourself,” Kokichi tells him. “I’ll put this one on as well,” he says while holding the black outfit. “Oh, make sure you put everything on,” he says, enunciating one of those words in a slight enticing manner while he sinisterly grins, having some kind of idea in mind.

Shuichi decides not to question it and heads into the bathroom to try on the outfit. Once it is in place, he looks at himself in the mirror and sees that the style, the color, and the fabric of the material is similar to the uniform that the supreme leader normally wears. He also notices a dark purple wig and purple eye contacts that accompanied the outfit as well. He puts it on, not knowing what to expect. After he blinks a few times and gets used to the feeling of wearing contacts, he looks at himself in the mirror once again, finding that the hair and eye color looks exactly like Kokichi’s.

Shuichi walks out of the bathroom and finds a smiling Kokichi wearing a similar outfit to his own dark uniform. He also sees that Kokichi is wearing a wig and eye contacts whose colors also match the detective’s as well. He raises an eyebrow towards him and questions, “What exactly are we doing?”

“We’re cosplaying, duh!” he gladly answers in a matter-of-factly tone. Kokichi pokes his own cheek and continues to speak, “I’m the Ultimate Detective!” Then, he points towards Shuichi. “And you’re the Ultimate Supreme Leader!” he happily shouts with a giddy expression on his face. He links his arm around Shuichi’s and makes them both look at their reflections on the huge mirror in his room. He chuckles softly with his signature laugh. “Nishishi. With this, we would be messing with everyone’s minds and turning all of the world’s logic wayyy upside-down on how they all supposedly view us!” He leans closer towards Shuichi and snickers. “Neeheehee. Now you can lie all the time while I’ll be the one figuring out the cases and making all the deductions on what you’re lying about.”

Shuichi can easily see that the lighthearted trickster is clearly amused with the idea. The detective has to admit that even he is a bit impressed with this setup and wonders where, when, why, and how Kokichi ever found the time to do this, but he tables the thought for another time and respectfully declines the offer. “Even when we switch outfits, it’s still not easy being you.” He smiles genuinely towards the smaller male. “I need someone who’s good at spotting out people’s lies like you to help me figure out what happened and who might be lying about this case.” Shuichi removes his arm from Kokichi’s and walks back to the bathroom to change back to his own uniform.

Kokichi quickly changes back to his uniform as well in his room and patiently waits for Shuichi. Once he sees him walk out of the bathroom, Kokichi decides to challenge him from across the room. “And how do you know that a talented liar such as myself isn’t going to lie to you as well?” He puts his right hand on his hip and places his left forefinger on his chin. “After all, being able to detect other people’s lies and calling them out is an art that’s hard to teach.”

Shuichi slightly clutches at the air, knowing fully well that Kokichi is up to his usual antics once again. However, he isn’t planning to back down now. He answers Kokichi’s question in a sure tone, “Because I know that you’re curious to know who the culprit of this case might end up being too. You can’t figure out who did it, can you?”

Kokichi rests his hands behind his head and beams widely. “Did I get caught?” He quietly laughs. “Well, you got me! I knew I shouldn’t have ever underestimated your abilities as the Ultimate Detective!” Kokichi happily compliments Shuichi. He raises his hands up midway and forfeits. “Okay, okay. I surrender.” He places his arms by his side, strides on over to Shuichi, and smiles at his taller companion. “I’ll help you out.” He leans his face towards Shuichi’s and offers in a low tone, “Let’s go over the case one more time, shall we?”

- - -

Shuichi and Kokichi spend the next few hours going over every aspect of the case. They both take turns asking each other questions of what might have happened and they both keep shooting down those theories with a lot of fact-checking. However, there is something bothering the expert liar about the entire case.

Kokichi has a neutral expression across his face. Shuichi could tell that during these rare times, Kokichi is either being serious or telling the truth about certain situations. Kokichi meets Shuichi’s eyes and inquires what is on his mind, “Are you sure that that is everyone’s statements in those exact words?” He tilts his head towards the small black notebook on the desk.

Shuichi nods and hands him his small notebook that he carries around during investigations. He watches Kokichi as he flips through the pages and reads every single statement.

Kokichi glances back up and tosses the notebook back to him. “Well, if that’s the case, then most of these people are lying to you,” he answers with certainty.

Shuichi raises his eyebrows at the new revelation. He initially suspected that at least a few people might not be telling the truth when he heard their answers, but he didn’t think that a lot of their classmates would lie to him as the trickster made it out to be. He feels the need to ask Kokichi, “How are you so sure?”

Kokichi explains to him, “Because I heard from the other day that a whole lot of them were going to the mall together as a group, so if all of them are claiming that they don’t have an alibi, then they’re wrong. Unless they all just happened to cancel their plans on that day and never saw anyone as they said in these statements, then they probably lied to you.”

Shuichi places his fingers on the brim of his black cap, trying to think that if Kokichi is telling the truth right now, then why would they all say that they don’t have a single alibi? Were they all involved with this situation in some way? He contemplates on the thought a bit. Hmmm…This case became even more complicated than I initially thought it would be, Shuichi ponders to himself.

The detective looks back at Kokichi. “Could you tell me who you saw then when they had that conversation?”

Kokichi shakes his head. “No, I only heard a lot of different voices at the time, but I couldn’t be sure who was in there since they were all talking so quietly. I didn’t even bother going inside the room to see what they were all discussing about or to see who was in the room.” He lets a sly grin appear before saying his next statement, “But I did hear one person’s voice that I definitely recognized no matter how far I was away from him.”

Shuichi carefully notes the last word in that sentence and cautiously decides to ask whom Kokichi was referring to. “Who was that?”

Kokichi’s grin never loosens up. Instead, it becomes even wider as if he is enjoying prolonging his response to add dramatic effect to the answer of that question.

“Kaito Momota.”

As soon as those words left Kokichi’s lips, Shuichi becomes instantly shocked. His eyes pop wide open, and he considered that the supreme leader was probably lying right now. The detective was about to counter back with words of his own saying that it couldn’t be him when suddenly, he remembers in his own mind and in Kaito’s statement in those exact words, “I-I was alone. I was very much indeed quite alone at that time. All I did was stay in my room for the duration of the entire time... So I saw no one… Because I was alone… Where no one could see me…”

Shuichi believed Kaito at the time because they really were close friends, but now, he isn’t so sure. During that statement, Kaito was slightly fidgeting and being quite talkative. But, he didn’t answer Shuichi in his usual positive, upbeat tone. It sounded more like he was hiding something the more time the detective thought about the conversation. Kaito did keep insisting that he was alone the entire time, but knowing the taller male, it’s quite rare to see him all by himself at all. Shuichi failed to mention Kaito’s behavior to Kokichi when he was describing everyone else’s behaviors prior to this point because he thought it was not relevant to the case. But now, Shuichi has to suspect his best friend for giving a false testimony, even if he didn’t want to believe that someone like Kaito would ever lie to him.

Shuichi has a stern look across his features. Now, he is going to have to question his closest friend once again as well as every single one of his classmates and figure out who is probably lying to the detective. He glances at Kokichi and says to him in a calm, but powerful tone, “You’re coming with me. We’re going to ask everyone again about the whereabouts of where each of them were during the time of the incident.”

Kokichi smirks at the Ultimate Detective’s determination and places his hand near his face as if he was about to salute him. But, instead of congratulating him, the smaller male warns Shuichi, “Be careful of who you might be planning to accuse. You never know what kind of clever word might set off an unsuspecting herd.”

The detective already knows what the Ultimate Supreme Leader is saying. He has already committed the risks into his own heart: the risk of defamation of his own character, the risk of losing his own life, and even, the risk of losing friends and allies. Even though he knows all of this, this isn’t going to stop him from being what he is truly meant to be: someone who won’t rest until he uncovers the whole truth.

“Let’s go,” Shuichi commands Kokichi while walking out of the room.

- - -

Shuichi and Kokichi try walking around in their school, trying to locate where any of their classmates might be. This was very strange for the Ultimate Detective to note. Usually, the hallways, the dining room, the classrooms, or some of the other rooms in the entire school would be bustling with people chatting or doing some kind of activity. However, all the sounds were quiet… way to too eerily quiet for both boys to definitely notice.

After a few more minutes of searching and not finding anyone, Kokichi suddenly laughs maniacally while bending down and holding his stomach, making Shuichi turn and face him. He is kind of a bit worried to ask but also curious to know what is on his mind.

The supreme leader soon regains his composure and stands back up. Kokichi closes his eyes and happily asks Shuichi, “Are you sure you want to solve this case? I mean, nobody died or whatever!” He chuckles to himself at the thought before continuing, “I don’t really see why it’s that important to solve the mystery of this random case that you opened. Like, all you saw was this strange file on your desk one day, and nothing about the facts made any sense to you.”

Shuichi catches sight of Kokichi’s tone and words. He covers his mouth and closely scrutinizes the supreme leader. New thoughts appear on his mind as he continues to ponder and gaze at Kokichi’s current actions. How did he know about that? Was it possible that he was just tricked all this time? Did he fall into one of Kokichi’s traps? What this all Kokichi’s doing?

Kokichi rests his hands behind his head. He beams towards the taller male. “You’re thinking way too hard about this, Shuichi,” the supreme leader points out. He takes a deep breath and relaxes his tone. “Just take a breather and just step back into line. You can figure this out.” He winks at him. Kokichi takes a few paces towards the taller male. “C’mon, I’ll show you where they really are,” he reveals and beckons with his arm to have him follow.

Kokichi walks past the confused detective, leaving Shuichi alone for a few moments while he collects his own thoughts. Why does he know where everyone is right now? He continues to think more carefully about these new facts before he asks himself this, “Was this whole case never real in the first place?”

Shuichi tries to figure a few things out at that moment, but he still isn’t completely sure about what just happened. The detective tells himself that he won’t know the truth until he investigates further and asks Kokichi what is going on. With that thought in mind, he turns around and quickly picks up his pace to follow the Ultimate Supreme Leader.

- - -

Kokichi leads him to a set of doors and gestures with his hand for Shuichi to go in first. The detective was about to ask him what was going on when the leader puts his forefinger vertically across his lips, nonverbally telling Shuichi to not say anything. Kokichi cocks his head over to the door and gently pats him on the back as if he is saying that he would be right behind the taller male the entire time.

Shuichi gives up trying to talk with the person who tends to lie a lot and stares at the handles of the doors. He hesitantly waits a few moments and wonders if anyone is really in there. He doesn’t hear a single sound except for his and Kokichi’s breathing. He wants to know where everyone is, but he also wants to know why did Kokichi bring him over here to this place.

Thinking that Kokichi won’t ever tell him what’s on the other side until he actually opens the doors and steps inside, Shuichi takes a deep breath and places his hands on the two doorknobs. He turns both knobs simultaneously and pushes the doors.

At first, he was greeted by darkness, but then someone switches the light in the room and reveals all of his fellow classmates in party hats. They all yell and cheer out, “Happy Birthday, Shuichi!”

Shuichi looks super surprised about all of this. He had somehow forgotten that today was his birthday, and he feels his face redden at his own embarrassment, but then it quickly turns into a wide smile. “You all did this for me?”

The room greets with elated students just beaming at their classmate. All of his classmates, his friends, are there to celebrate his birthday today. And they all managed to surprise someone like the Ultimate Detective on this day. Shuichi blushes at the thought and produces a cute chuckle from his mouth. He walks over to each of them and thanks them for the surprise party.

- - -

The more time passes and the longer the conversations with his classmates were, Shuichi eventually pieces out exactly what had happened and how everyone in the room was able to hide and pull off this party altogether without letting the birthday boy know about their plans.

Shuichi walks on over to Kokichi who just happens to be holding a Panta in his hand while standing by himself near a wall away from everyone else.

Kokichi places his Panta on a nearby table as soon as Shuichi reaches him. The leader smirks at the detective, being able to read Shuichi’s genuine smile and gambogeish grey eyes as he carefully watches him. “So, you already figured it all out, huh Mister Detective,” Kokichi playfully teases.

The detective nods as he begins to summarize the whole plan. “It all started some time ago, probably like last week or so. Everyone here knew that they all wanted to throw this huge surprise party for me, but they weren’t sure how to plan it or make sure that I wouldn’t become suspicious enough to know what they were doing. That’s when you came up with this clever idea on how to surprise me.”

Kokichi smiles brightly at the detective and slightly tilts his head to the side. “Oh, and what is this ‘clever idea’ that you’re talking about?”

Shuichi continues to talk to Kokichi, finding himself smiling even more when he explains exactly how did they all pull this stunt off without a hitch. “Kaito told me that you volunteered to hang out with me all the time these past few days, claiming that you were very good at keeping a detective like me preoccupied and distracted for all this time while everyone else was setting up for this party. At the time, I just thought you wanted to hang out with me more often than usual and I didn’t even think more about your true intentions.”

Kokichi raises his arms behind his head and grins. “Well, it’s not a lie. I really did want to hang out with you more!” He smirks at the detective and says with a low tone, “And I always get what I want.”

The detective slightly blushes at the thought and continues to converse more with the supreme leader at that moment before Kokichi could even notice. “You even created this elaborate unsolvable case that involved everyone’s cooperation about their testimonies, even Kaito’s.”

Kokichi snickers childishly and openly states, “Well, of course I had to write down that idiot Kaito’s line out for him. I even made him practice in front of me a bunch of times and had to tell him what to do in order to not screw this up!” He beams a look at the tall gel-spiked purple haired male across the room before returning his eyes back towards Shuichi.

Shuichi feels content in his heart after hearing about them teaming up with each other for something like this, but it would be better not to bring it up to either of them in a casual conversation. He gazes at the supreme leader in front of him and continues on with his explanation. “You snuck the case file on my desk one day without my knowledge, knowing that I would be looking at it for a while and wondering where it came from. You somehow knew that I would be interested in picking up a case like this, and you made sure that I would be spending a whole lot of time looking for any clues and asking for everyone’s alibis during the said incident. You also knew that I would be asking for your help in particular simply because you have a smart mind and you were with me the entire time, which in turn, verifies your alibi.”

Kokichi chuckles at the detective’s deductions. “Nishishi, well that last part was exactly right, but I get bonus points from you thinking about me in that way!”

Shuichi happily smiles at Kokichi. “And while you were keeping me distracted these last couple of days and on this day in particular, everyone else was setting up for this party. They all made the preparations here and when they all told me that they were all mostly alone during the time I asked for their whereabouts, they were lying to me about that. They all went out together as a group to go shopping for supplies and gifts at that exact time. And you made sure that while they were gone, you were with me the entire time to distract me and make sure that I didn’t get suspicious about any of them.”

Kokichi places his hands behind his head and has a carefree laugh. “Neeheehee! Well, don’t look at me. I didn’t influence any of them to lie to the Ultimate Detective about anything.”

Shuichi knows very well that that was definitely a lie, but it was all for a good cause. “Everyone trusted you today to play your role into diverting me away from this place so that they can finish their final preparations and surprise me.” Shuichi’s content smile flashes across his face while he thinks about how helpful, meticulous, and how thoughtful the trickster in front of him was when planning all of this. “I’m really glad that you came up with this, Kokichi. Thank you.” He holds out his hand towards the boy to show him his gratitude for his participation with this surprise event, finally being able to see the supreme leader eye-to-eye.

Kokichi takes Shuichi’s hand and shakes it, both hands feeling warm at the touch. There was no way Kokichi could try to hide that. As a final diversion to steer away his own feelings from the detective, he grins at him and happily exclaims, “Happy Birthday, Saihara-chan!”

Shuichi’s smile falters at the sound of the suffix at the end, knowing fully well that Kokichi is still being Kokichi no matter what day it is.

- KᴀɪʙᴀSʜᴀᴅᴏᴡ ♥

Fan Art Sources:

1.     [0:00] 井ノ上 [pixiv.net] - (User might have deleted artwork)

2.     [0:01] 壱紀 [pixiv.net] 

3.     [0:02] うなぎ [pixiv.net] 

4.     [0:03] still [pixiv.net] 

5.     [0:03] ???

6.     [0:05] 巣鴨 [pixiv.net] 

7.     [0:06 – 0:08] Official Sprites from Danganronpa Wikia page 

8.     [0:09] ゆづる [pixiv.net] 

9.     [0:10] Chiwi [pixiv.net] 

10.   [0:11] なでか [pixiv.net] 

11.   [0:12 – 0:17] みきもと@ティア125は01a [pixiv.net] 

Edited: July/August 2018 Uploaded: September 7, 2018 Shuichi Saihara & Kokichi Ouma - A Good Deception

[osakaso5]

Riku Nanase Birthday Photobook Rabbit Chat Part 5: All Their Gratitude. 

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Iori: It's midnight. 

Tamaki: Hbd, Rikkun

Mitsuki: Riku! Congrats!!! 

Yamato: Congrats. We're going to spoil our center again this month. 

Nagi: Congratulations, Riku!!! Now that you have graciously accepted the baton from me, you will surely have a HAPPY birthday. 

Sogo: Happy birthday, Riku-kun. I hope you have a great day. 

Riku: Wow!!! Thank you, everyone!! I'm so happy!! 

Tsumugi: Congratulations again from me, as well! I hope you have a lovely day..! 

Riku: Hey, manager! Everyone's dressed up as Tenn-nii! lol

Tsumugi: Kujo-san!? 

Iori: We weren't sure of what to do at first, but if there's anything Nanase-san loves, it's Kujo-san... 

Mitsuki: Some of us   put in no effort. 

Tamaki: Tenten doesn't wear glasses, Yama-san. 

Yamato: Don't rob me of my identity. 

Sogo: I can't let TRIGGER see me like this... 

Nagi: I just took a great picture of you. Shall I send it to Kujo-shi? 

Sogo: Don't!!! 

Riku: I'm sure it'll make Tenn-nii laugh, Sogo-san! 

Sogo: I feel like Kujo-san will just make fun of me... 

Mitsuki: At least you sorta look like him, I think it suits you. 

Yamato: Why did you type that while looking at me, Mitsu? 

Iori: Wasn't there anything we could've done about Nikaido-san's low quality cosplay? 

Yamato: My face looks nothing like his to begin with. 

Riku: Oh yeah! Since you're all dressed up as Tenn-nii, you should try acting like him! 

Nagi: What!? 

Iori: Ah... The patron demon of unreasonable requests rears his head once again. 

Tsumugi: I'd like to see you all impersonate him! lol

Tamaki: Ask Ban-chan. He's good at that stuff. 

Riku: Please just do what I say! lol

Sogo: Right, this is Riku-kun's birthday, after all... We should at least try. If it'll make  you happy, then I'll do my best. 

Yamato: Sou's getting as shaky as the pictures Tsunashi-san always takes. 

Riku: Now, start by saying: "Do you want to become a fallen angel with me?"

Mitsuki: Say what!?  lololololol

Nagi: Spoken like a true middle schooler. 

Riku: Hurry up! 

Iori: Good grief, let's just get this over and done with! 

Tsumugi: I'm so excited..! 

Riku: I'm evaluating their performances... 

Riku: Hmmm

Riku: Now I'm picking the best one... 

Riku: The winner is... 

Tsumugi: The winner is!? 

Riku: Sogo-san!! Congratulations! 

Tamaki: Huuuuh, why So-chan? 

Riku: Because he looks the most like Tenn-nii!!! 

Mitsuki: lololololol What was the point of making us act like him then, lolololololol

Iori: You really are a demon. 

Riku: What the heck, Iori!? I'll make you say the line again! 

Iori: Ugh... 

Yamato: What are you doing, Sou? 

Sogo: Nagi-kun  appears to have filmed  our impersonations so  he could send them to Kujo-san, so I'm deleting the data. 

Nagi: NOOOOOOO!! My precious data!! 

Tamaki: So-chan just protected the world from chaos

Mitsuki: Oh yeah, Iori started looking at the clock every five minutes about three hours before this, lol

Tamaki: Why? Was he measuring time? 

Nagi: He must have been anticipating Riku's birthday. 

Riku: Really!? 

Iori: You're imagining things. I was just counting the tiles on the wall. 

Yamato: What a lame excuse (lol)

Iori: You're the one who kept fixing his wig constantly, Nikaido-san! 

Mitsuki: Old man, lololol

Yamato: But Mitsu and Sou were fussing around asking people if they needed more tea, too (lol)

Tamaki: Lmao @ Mikki & So-chan Was I the only one who kept his cool? 

Sogo: Didn't you sleep with Riku-kun in his room last night, Tamaki-kun? 

Riku: I thought it was because you had a bad dream and were feeling lonely, but was  it actually because of  my birthday!? 

Nagi: How cute, Tamaki. The two of you  remind me of an afterschool afterschool special. 

Tamaki: You came over to sleep in Rikkun's room later, too!!! 

Nagi: *evil grin*

Tsumugi: All of you couldn't help looking forward to Riku-san's birthday, then! 

Riku: I'm so happy, you guys..! 

Iori: While I am glad all this has made you happy, continuing this conversation while all of us are still dressed up as Kujo-san feels awfully surreal, so I'd like to get changed already... 

Mitsuki: True, lolol And we've prepared a lot of other stuff for you, too! 

Nagi: It is about time to show you what we are made of. 

Riku: What is it!? I'm pretty satisfied with just seeing you all cosplay  Tenn-nii, though! lol

Yamato: That would be too anticlimactic (lol)

Sogo: We've got a present for you. 

Riku: Don't tell me it's tabasco!? 

Sogo: Huh!? No, it's something that'll make you happy. 

Tamaki: At least you realize that tabasco wouldn't make Rikkun happy. 

Tsumugi: Now, Riku-san, it's about time you get ready! 

Riku: Ah, you mean for the usual!! 

Choices/outcomes:

1. I'm sure that costume will suit you!

Riku: Really!? I'm a little worried! 

2. Are you ready, Riku-san?

Riku: To tell you the truth, my heart's racing, but I'm okay! lol

3. Time to get changed!

Riku: I was really excited to see what kind of glasses I'd get! 

Tsumugi: Everyone, are you finished with the preparations? 

Mitsuki: We're good! Looks like Riku's gonna have the glasses propped up on top of his head! 

Riku: Let me act cool just this once! 

Yamato: What's so cool about wearing glasses on top of your head? 

Riku: I thought it'd make me look like Yaotome-san..! 

Iori: Are you trying to become Yaotome-san? 

Riku: He's such an adult man, I think he's cool! 

Sogo: I know what you mean, Riku-kun. Few men would look as good with a pair of sunglasses and some champagne as he does. 

Mitsuki: As much as I'd love to keep talking about him, let's bring out the cake before this becomes all about Yaotome! 

Tamaki: I'll help

Nagi: Behold, the cake that I, Mitsuki, and Tamaki have made. 

Yamato: All you did was taste test it, Nagi. 

Nagi: That is an important task X-P

Iori: And all Yotsuba-san did was put the candles on top. 

Sogo: But they have been set up very artistically. 

Iori: Artistically..? 

Mitsuki: Ta-dah! Here's your special cake! 

Riku: Wow! It's huge! There's so many fruits! 

Riku: Let's all eat it together! 

Nagi: It is best for us to do everything as a group. 

Riku: So let's do exactly that, Nagi! 

Nagi: Yes. 

Tsumugi: How wonderful..! 

Riku: Ehehe! 

Riku: Speaking of wonderful, please do that thing now! 

Riku: Where you tell me you love me! 

Iori: I thought you wouldn't remember that... 

Riku: Of course I do! You have to be especially sincere, Iori! 

Yamato: Our birthday boy's cocky as usual (lol)

Mitsuki: Iori, show him you're a man! 

Tamaki: Fight. 

Iori: Arent you all going to be saying it too!? 

Tsumugi: Everyone, please tell Riku-san you love him! 

Riku: Pretty please! 

Mitsuki: Alright, time to man up! 

Nagi: YES!

Sogo: Here we go

Riku: !!!!!! 

Riku: I really love you guys, too!!! 

Riku: And Iori, your face is all red!! Like a tomato, lol

Tsumugi: You finally got to hear it, Riku-san! 

Riku: Yeah! 

Riku: Even Iori said it properly, so I'm all satisfied now! lol

Iori: I won't do that again. 

Tsumugi: I'm glad you had a fun time today. Please let us celebrate you again next year! 

Yamato: Riku's trying to get Ichi to feed him strawberries right now (lol) 

Tsumugi: Huh!? lol

Sogo: Riku-kun and Iori-kun really are good friends. 

Nagi: I think MEZZO" is on par with them, though? 

Sogo: R-really..? 

Riku: I got to see Iori looking all embarrassed, so this was a great birthday! lol

Mitsuki: The things people do for birthdays... 

Tsumugi: Well then, it's about time for your  birthday messages to Riku-san! 

Nagi: I shall begin. I am grateful to be able to celebrate your birth with everyone once again. Please, let me stay by your side and watch as your smile grants happiness to the people of the world. 

Mitsuki: Happy birthday, Riku! We can only be ourselves because you're pushing us forward as the center! Keep showing us just how incredibly cool you can be, Riku Nanase! 

Yamato: Congrats, Riku. Even when I can't help doting on you, it surprises me how mature you can act. You've been really cool lately. 

Tamaki: 'Grats, Rikkun! Let's keep playing games and hanging out. Sometimes it's like you're my little bro,  but sometimes you act like the older one. Let's stay healthy. 

Sogo: Happy birthday, Riku-kun. Reading the Riku Photobook made me remember how charming you are. We're so proud of how  kind and strong you are.  I hope to keep working  with you. 

Iori: Nanase-san, happy birthday. I wasn't sure if I should tell you this when you're acting so cocky, but I'll do it anyways. 

Iori: Just by standing at our forefront, you've taken us so far. While you usually act spoiled, on stage you are more brilliant, strong, and dignified than anyone else. Please, continue to show us your strength. 

Yamato: Ah, Riku's about to cry

Tamaki: You made him cry again, Iorin

Iori: How is this my fault!? 

Sogo: Riku-kun, do you have a hankerchief? 

Nagi: "I, I dooooon't", he says. 

Tsumugi: Riku-san, are you alright!? ><

Riku: I'm fine

Riku: It's been rough sometimes

Riku: I've thought about quitting, too

Riku: But you guys were right behind me, giving me support and strength with your voices. Letting me know that I belong here.

Riku: I'm glad I became an idol

Iori: We couldn't do this without you. 

Yamato: You were pretty much born to be an idol, Riku. 

Mitsuki: Wow! Even the old man's getting sentimental. 

Nagi: Even the old man is getting sentimental. 

Yamato: S-shut up... 

Sogo: Yamato-san's face is turning just as red as Iori-kun's was earlier. 

Tamaki: Tomato: glasses edition 

Tsumugi: Riku-san, you're also being celebrated on social media..! I was wondering if you could say a few words for them ><

Riku: Yes!! 

Riku: This is the second time you've all celebrated me. I'm very happy to spend this day with the members that I've fought with, cried with, and laughed with! 

Riku: The last time, I thought I might be the happiest person on Earth, but now I think I might be the happiest person in the universe. I want to share this feeling with you, even if it's just a little fragment of it. 

Riku: Usually it's embarrassing when people tell me they love me, but now I can say this! I really love all of you, too!! I'm really glad I got to meet you! 

Translator’s notes..? 

next up: banri’s birthday rabbit tvs! 

[italicwatches]

Comic Girls - Episode 05

It’s kind of rude to just claim the one working bathroom for two hours for a shower without checking with anyone first, right? That’s not just me? I’m not going crazy here?

Anyways anime. Comic Girls, episode 05! Here we GO!

-We begin with a gorgeous ocean, and clear blue skies…Is it a beach episode? It’s the girls on a boat! Koyume has dragged them all here for summer fun! This may be difficult, considering the others are what you might call indoorsy.

-Opening!

-To the beach proper! Koyume is super enthusiastic about her bikini! Look, look, everyone! Oh they’re looking. They can’t stop looking. I think you broke Kaos.

-…Koyume please stop turning the entire beach gay. You’re causing a ruckus.

-Also the other three didn’t bring swimsuits because…Well…Like I said, they’re indoorsy types. Do you know what Kaos’s typical summer memory is? Closing the blinds tighter so the room stays darker and cooler, aiming a fan directly at her face, and drawing all day. Fine, they’ll go rent swimsuits!

-As ever, Kaos ends up looking small and innocent and adorable. While Tsubasa boldly goes for a tiny bikini with zero shame and shows off her muscles! Such bold muscles! Okay, so what’s Ruki going to wear? Ruki doesn’t want to. They already picked out your swimsuit, go go go. …I think she pulled a runner. Actually she just couldn’t dare come out, even though Kaos likes what she sees.

-Okay, out to the beach!

-Why are all three of you just sitting there.

-Well, in order: Tsubasa thinks those cliffs would make for a great background for an epic battle. Ruki is seeing all these swimsuited couples and getting ideas for a beach chapter. And Kaos just doesn’t want to go anywhere near that much water. I told you, they’re indoorsy types. So Koyume finally abandons them…

-And makes new beach friends out by the water! It’s her intense power. As opposed to Kaos’s ability to be a small Disney princess. She’s summoned a small crab army. Crabs, attack the interlopers stealing their Koyume away! …No? Kaos you need to learn to use your power for evil.

-But soon enough they’ve got Kaos out in the water with an inner tube, and…Kaos that’s not love you’re feeling, that’s a jellyfish stinging your foot. The sea has claimed her for its own! And finally they even get Tsubasa and Ruki to ditch the sketchbooks and come have fun in the water. Fun like playing with a beach ball…Which leads to Ruki despairing over her lack of, shall we say, bounce. And when the others try to comfort her, now she’s just surrounded by bounce. Yes. Bounce.

-Also Kaos is getting thirsty. Thirsty enough that she eats a beach ball to the face. But yes, they get up to all kinds of fun! Playing in the water, playing in the sand, playing with water guns, eating frozen treats…Until finally, the sun is low in the sky, and it’s a wonderful, gorgeous view. The clear warm sky, the glow on the water, the sound of Ruki’s sketchbook being carried away by the tide…Wait what was that last part???

-Finally it’s back to the dorm, where as soon as Tsubasa and Kaos get back…It’s a dark room and some vintage gaming action, as the others are out shopping. Tsubasa gave no fucks, and Kaos was just plain scared of going to fancy fashionable places. Speaking of, cut over to Ruki and Koyume, who are trying stuff on, and Ruki doesn’t much like wearing sailor outfits herself…But she certainly enjoys watching another girl strip out of one. God dammit Ruki, stop saying the quiet part loud. Even the employee heard it.

-But okay, fancy clothes bought, and Ruki’s super enjoying having someone to hang out with that actually has fucks to give. They should go get some fancy pasta! Cut back to Kaos and Tsubasa, who are eating instant ramen in the dark bedroom. The contrast is…shall we say…profound. Then it’s back to Ruki and Koyume, who have their fancy pasta…As a couple enjoys a fancy drink together with two straws. …I think that’s the first time we’ve actually seen a guy the entire show so far, outside of manga sketches.

-And it has Koyume realizing her difficulties of getting anywhere in her shoujo manga dreams without enough experience…Ruki tries to perk her up by talking about her own success, but, well, that also means admitting she has never laid with anyone. Or even gone out with anyone. DESPAIR. And at the same time, she’s so thinly stretched that trying to have a relationship between school, manga work, and basic human existence…There’s no more room left.

-But you, Koyume, you might just be able to pull it off! Is there anyone you like?

-BIG SPLASH IMAGE OF TSUBASA IN CASE YOU DIDN’T GET IT YET

-S-She, um, that’s, she doesn’t know any…You know Tsubasa pretty well by now, Ruki thought. And then all of Koyume’s passions just start spilling out. Just go on a damn date with her you dork. …So Koyume’s panicking now.

-Episode 05: Amisawa-san, Do You Cosplay?

-And we’re back! They’re waiting for the train, and Koyume’s trying to be all “but I can’t love girls, I’m a girl!” Koyume, again, let me introduce you to the hot new trend of yuri. It’s like all the shoujo manga you admire, and the erotic manga Ruki writes, but instead of the guy, it’s another girl. Also, Tsubasa’s been getting asked out by girls ever since middle school. She’s about as dense about it as a neutron star, but…

-Also Koyume’s idea of a date with Tsubasa is being lost in a terrifying cave when the noble hero in her cosplay cape shows up to save her. I mean everyone’s into something…

-Back at the dorm, Tsubasa and Kaos are still playing fighting games. Tsubasa is letting out her chuuni side…When Tsubasa is attacked by Nyaos long enough to lose the round! And that turns into an argument which turns into wrassling which turns into OH GOD THE DOOR’S BEEN OPENED IT’S TOO BRIGHT yeah so the others are back.

-And now Ruki has to shove Koyume in there. Go on, do it. But Koyume panics. Again. …Cue the landlady, with two tickets to the amusement park that expire, tomorrow! Whatever will she do? Oh, if onl—KOYUME WILL TAKE THEM wait what does she do now? …You really have no self control, do you, Koyume.

-To the park! After Ruki’s slick way of backing out of the offer, and Kaos’s…Well…She tried. Give her a pat on the head for effort, the little moeblob. Anyways the point is Koyume and Tsubasa are here on a d-d-d-d-d-dato, and Koyume doesn’t know what to dooooo. Oh god this poor girl. …Also NATURALLY Ruki and Kaos are secretly here to observe and possibly coach if need be. They will get these two together if it kills them! (Also good lord how much did the landlady spend on getting everyone into this damn amusement park just for some young love to bloom?)

-Soon, Tsubasa is treating Koyume to ice cream. And a cute ear headband. And a stuffed animal. And snacks. Name whatever you want, and she’ll make it happen! Um, er, how about just a nice picture of that mascot character? TSUBASA WILL TAKE HIM DOWN WITH ALL OF HER MANLY MIGHT

-Tsubasa

-Tsubasa that’s not how it works

-That’s not how anything works

-Tsubasa no

-Tsubasa yes. That poor mascot worker clearly got punched at least once.

-But what now? Now, Koyume’s able to relax a little and take the lead as she loves this place…But where will they go? The haunted house? A thrill ride? Or…That’s a terrifying rollercoaster. Tsubasa quietly clings to Koyume’s sleeve. I know the fear of loop-de-loops, Tsu—

-SUDDENLY LANDLADY

-SHE WAS HERE THE WHOLE TIME

-HERE TO OBSERVE THE DATE

-Anyways Tsubasa has a panic, Ruki finds she loves rollercoasters when they go on after the pair to observe, and Kaos just breaks. I’m afraid we need to replace her with a new one. Oh hey, there’s a cosplay area! Complete with someone dressed up like Tsubasa’s protagonist! Really well, too. They should totally get a picture! And the dark hero…Panics and flees?

-…Wait. Hold on a tic. I need to roll back. Timestamp 17:22, aaaand comedic reversal of the video footage go go go Okay, back to timestamp 12:45. The flashback to when Tsubasa was asked out back then! Hrm, short bob hair, more black than brown…Okay, got what I needed. Forward MARCH!

-Back to the present where the dark hero takes off her wig and it’s…Bright brown hair tied back. Okay, so it’s not the girl from the confession, which was my first thought. That whole bit I just did was pointless. Pointlessssssss.

-Especially when the landlady comes up and recognizes Miharu and Mayu…And oh. Oh. It’s two of the girls’ editors, isn’t it. Yep Mayu there, in the fancy dress, is also known as Amisawa-san, Kaos’s editor. And she just fuckin’ OWNS IT when she has nowhere else to go. I suppose that’s all you can do.

-Back to Tsubasa and Koyume. When Mayu has been shanghai’d into the observation effort…As Tsubasa and Koyume end up having a real talk, and Tsubasa totally expected Koyume would have a boyfriend. Look how cute you are, anyone would totally want you! She could find someone for you right now! But Koyume…There’s only one person Koyume wants…Come on, Tsubasa. Get it. Get what’s going on. Understand what this dear bishoujo in front of you wants you stupid idiot!

-Nope, it’s their turn on the ferris wheel and they both just fall back into easy patterns. YOU STUPID IDIOTS. Of course, now they’re up in the middle of the air on their own in a tiny carriage, the entire world shrinking to just them…Koyume, you love her just accept it already you stupid dork. But, when the conversation turns to manga, all of the doubts that Koyume pushes down with her sparkly genki attitude just come spilling out. The fear that she’ll never make it, that all of her effort is for naught, that she’s doomed to failure…

-And then Tsubasa reaches out, takes her hand, and just keep moving forward. You already have so much fun drawing, and that’s all that really matters. Just keep moving forward. She’ll be waiting for you on the other side, however long it takes…

-So by the time they come back down they’re talking about how unlike herself Koyume was and the others hear it and DID YOU FINALLY CONFESS?! Wait have you four been there the entire ti—LANDLADY DEMANDS YOUTHFUL LESBIAN ROMANCE Also by the time they all leave, Kaos is feeling all unsure again and finally Mayu has to haul her up and learn from your friends how to be confident in yourself you stupid moeblob. abababababa

-Credits!

-Aftercredits? Wait…That’s a terrifying ghost at the haunted house. Like a Ringu girl. And she’s…Crying?

Dammit Koyume, you were so close. Well, maybe next time. Unless we end up learning more about the lives of the adults around these four stupid idiots. That’s possible too. Or…What the hell was with that after-credits scene…? …We’ll figure it out next time, in episode SIX of Comic Girls! Wait for it!

[jimtheviking]

Okay, so, The Last Jedi.

Spoilers, of course, but a jump to save you from them.

TL;DR - I loved it, and if you didn’t, it’s your opinion, but opinions can be demonstrably wrong.

The Good: Almost all of it. I mean, yes, there are flaws - poor strategic decisions on all sides; weird choices of side-characters, and moments of terrible dialogue - but those are all Star Wars staples, so I can’t really fault them.

Let’s get the best part out of the way first: Jedi Space Goddess General Princess Carrie Fisher Leia was absolutely everything I had hoped for, and her Force powers were so great. I mean, she was obviously going to make a saber and kill Kylo in Episode IX, because she was a Full On Jedi Master, and this was such a great way to demonstrate it. And it was so beautifully shot, too. I won’t lie, I cried.

Speaking of beautiful shots, Holdo’s Last Ride was amazing. The only other time I have ever felt silence in a movie theatre was in Rogue One, when the Death Star takes out the beach on Scarif. The scene was amazing and it was powerful and it demonstrates why you need precise calculations before you make the jump to lightspeed.

Luke. I mean, just all of Luke. From his Creepy Monoclime Planet Exiled Jedi Master Trickster shtick lifted entirely from Yoda to his Gross Farmboy Drinking Milk From the Teat thing to his cosplaying Han Solo while he Force Projected himself to fuck up Kylo Ren and buy the Resistance time to escape, he was just everything Luke ever was. And yes, people will be upset about the whole ‘he was gonna kill Ben’ thing, but you know what? That is exactly what Luke would have done.

Let’s remember, this is not just Luke “I don’t doubt that my dad is still alive and is still a good person because I feel the conflict inside him” Skywalker, it’s also Luke “Plan A is to threaten to murder everyone in Jabba’s Palace, Plan B is to Actually Murder Everyone” Skywalker. It’s Luke “I will kill the shit out of the Emperor because he is Wholly Evil and I can feel it” Skywalker. It’s Luke “I have spent the entirety of my formative years fighting a low-intensity conflict against indigenous people and then jumped into a guerrilla war against a repressive government and so I have zero qualms about killing anyone” Skywalker. It’s also Luke “Oh man, I panicked and I really can’t kill him, despite the fact that he’s Pure Evil, because he’s my family and damn what the Jedi Code says” Skywalker. That whole scene - and the Roshomon way of telling it - was perfectly Luke. He let the Dark Side take him over for a moment, and then returned to the Light. It’s what he does. And when he went to confront Kylo, he did so in the most Luke way ever. Kylo was never in any danger - he knew he couldn’t kill him, because evil or no, Family is Family - but Kylo demonstrated his inability to do anything but be angry and without any focus but that anger.

And then that last moment, before he becomes One With the Force, when Binary Sunset is playing. That was the second time I cried during the film.

Speaking of the Dark Side taking over, let’s talk Rey and how she became a Sith for a minute there and had her own Failure in the Cave while fighting alongside Kylo Ren. Because that was what we saw there - not Kylo going to the Light, like Rey thought, but Rey going to the Dark and stopping, saying ‘Aw, hell no, you father-murdering bastard.’ She took Luke’s “You didn’t even TRY to resist it!” moment on Ach-To to heart and fought against it, and that makes her a Jedi. Rey is going to be an amazing Jedi and I love her a lot. She had her moment in this film, the Test, where she was either going to be Good or Evil and chose Good, despite the fact that doing what she thought was good would have been evil. Knowing that Kylo is irredeemable, still making the effort to save him, and then understanding that she can’t do that and leaving him behind is the most important choice she’d ever make.

Also, Finn? Sweet, loving Finn? Self-Sacrificing, finally part of a family, full of love Finn? I really love him. He got that he can’t just Do What He Wants, and that he needs to think outside of himself and Rose was a huge facilitator in that.

Speaking of Rose, she was amazing and I want to see more of her in IX. I love her hero worship of Finn, followed up by that ‘oh son of a bitch, I’m gonna have to tase you’ moment. And then her just being, generally, a ball of sunshine and positivity and understanding that Pointless Heroic Sacrifices are just that - Pointless.

And then there’s Poe. Amazing, lovely, perfect Poe, who is probably the shittiest Commander ever, and it is empirically demonstrated in this film, as is his Lesson Being Taught. And let’s be real - if you think that Poe was a decent Commander, then really you don’t understand how things work. Leia pointed that out pretty explicitly - they’re dead, not heroes - and Poe didn’t get the lesson until the End Was Near. Now that he does understand that, though, Commander (I hope) Dameron will be a great Leader, and not just a Hero. (The difference being, Heroes do what they ask others to do - and we know Poe has no fear of dying, so he goes on without a care in the world, expecting momentum to pull him and the rest of the squadron through - but Leaders order people to do what they must to succeed, and know that a moment’s glory isn’t worth an eternity of defeat. No points for Heroic Last Stands, after all)

(Actually, let’s divert for a sec - if Poe were commanding at Hoth, and not Leia, the Rebellion would have died in the snow. It would have been a last stand worthy of a thousand songs, with X-Wings and Speeders, completely drained of tibanna for their cannons, desperately crashing into AT-ATs, and pockets of soldiers selling every inch of ice so dearly that the Empire would have had to re-dye their boots because the blood wouldn’t come out, but it would have been a crushing defeat nonetheless, because Heroes Don’t Retreat.)

Finally:

I cry.

The Bad: Too much Kylo Ren. I mean, jesus, I get it, he’s the New Vader, but come the fuck on, man. He’s just so unlikeable, even as a villain. I mean, I know villains are supposed to be unlikeable, but he’s got all the likeability of a sack of wet garbage (I’m sorry, Daisy, I know you like him, but damn, girl, you gotta get better taste in fictional men) And I mean, the Reylo tease was just so damn much and I did not care for it at all.

The Ugly: The Casino World seemed a bit too long for my liking - yes, it was needed to get the Master Codebreaker so they could infiltrate the Dreadnought, but god damn was there ever so much of it. Maybe it’s just because I already know that Capitalism Is Bad, but it could have been 15 minutes shorter.

Supreme Leader Snoke. Not that he gets killed by Kylo - that part makes perfect sense, and is, again, the ramming home that Kylo is the Anti-Luke - but the fact that he existed at all. What the hell was the point? This was more on JJ Abrams’ shoulders than Rian’s, because Abrams didn’t actually give Snoke a backstory (or a good name) but still.

Also, while I get that RoseFinn might be A Thing that they push in IX, and that Mortal Peril Heightens Emotions, I still want my StormPilot, damn it.

The Many Deaths of Captain Phasma had better become A Thing in IX, too - no explanation, just Phasma showing up in increasingly decrepit armour, charred and cracked, and constantly trying to fuck Finn up. That would be great. She’s another one of those JJ characters - like Snoke and Lor San Tekka - who could have been really cool, if only JJ could actually write compelling characters that have substance to them. This will make her at the very least the Anti-Boba Fett - a mysterious badass who keeps on coming back and doesn’t require an explanation, because fuck you, this is a space western with laser samurai and starfighter dogfights. And at least she’s more interesting than Fett (who teenage and early 20s Jim loved)

Overall: I can’t decide if this is better than The Empire Strikes Back or not, but it’s definitely better than Rogue One, which puts it solidly in number two position on my list of Star Wars films.

[paragonrobits]

Can I ask for some Eridan/Vriska teaming up in a pirate FLARP against some foes if possible?~

“'We invite anyone who has the courage, the nerve, and thesteel, to plumb our dungeon of doom!'” went the note sent to everynaval FLARPer in the region, signed with only two signs, in lightblue and violet; respectively, the signs of the scorpion and thewaterbearer. “'If you have the might to win, dare... the MAUSOLEUMOF NIGHTMARES!'”

And Vriska smirked as dozens of unsuspecting rivals, each of themcontesting for a highly ranked spot in the regional FLARPingcontests, went straight into the vast labyrinth floating upon thesea, assembled from dozens of ships sunk by Eridan and Vriska, andthen raised up and mashed together. Trolls went in and then...

Well, they wouldn't come out. Their bodies did, most of the time.Sometimes. The point was to get bodies to feed to Spidermom andisolate lusii to feed to Feferi's lusus, but in any case the dungeonworked amazingly. Lured by the promise of treasure, people delvedinto the dungeon and ran afoul of the many, many horrendouslyunfair traps.

Years later, those who survivedthe Mausoleum would speak in hushed whispers of the horrible trapsthere. A sphere of annihilating energy housed in the mouth of astatue in a room set up to make you think you were supposed to openup the statue to solve a puzzle. A host of puzzles, dozens of them,each of which Eridan had flawlessly calibrated to kill whoever didanything in them, leaving behind their loot. No one ever got morethan a few rooms in, ever.

It would go down in troll history(which, to be fair, was on borrowed time at this point) as the mosthideous unfair, horrifically unbalanced and just plain meanpuzzle dungeons ever conceived.Even worse than the creations of 'What A Jackass' Jolstoni, themeanest puzzlemaker in all Alternia, who had taken the creed of 'allpuzzles should be super murdery' to a logical extreme, at least untilsome unknown fuchsia got bit by a cube puzzle he made.

Vriska yawned, slouching down thesteps of the dungeon's secret inner workings, going through secretpassageways to the treasury where they kept all the sweetloot they'd accrued from theirmany fallen foes. “What's up, fishface,” she said, clapping himon the back with her kickass robot arm. “I was thinking that maybetonight we could-”

Eridan held an arm out.Dramatically. His cape fanned out, covering her view of the treasury.(He had to stand on a table to block her view, so he clearly had goneto some effort ahead of time.)

“Uhh,” she said.

He lowered his arm. Vriska gaspedin horror.

There are many unspeakablyhorrible sights on Alternia. The pits where the culled are sent todie in their trials. The courts where the doomed are sentenced. Anyplace remotely near a fuchsia, at least until Feferi was born. Emptyfood preparation blocks. But there is nothing worse than the sight ofan empty treasure chamber atleast to a pirate-themed FLARPer.

“Our treasure trove,” Eridanbegan. “Has been stolen!”

“...Uh, yeah, I worked thatout,” Vriska said, giving him a look.

“Look, I've been up here fortwo and a half hours waiting for your dumb ass to get up and see thistravesty! Least you could do is let me get out my cool dramaticspeech.”

“You were up here for two and ahalf hours and that's the most you came up with ahead of time?”

“OKAY SHUT THE HELL UP andlet's get going, we have a treasure to reclaim.”

“HELL YEAH,” Vriska said,running off into a completely different room, popping off her arm andthrowing it at Eridan. It incidentally managed to smack him in theback of the head. She came back a few minutes later, dressed in asuper cool pirate-themed outfit that so happened to look exactly likeher ancestor's favorite outfit. Eridan was already dressed in hisoutfit. Also, she'd swapped out her robot arm for a giant pirate hookwith a built in cannon.

They high fived. They immediatelyregretted this, because you really don't want to high five someonewhen your hand is now a giant hook/cannon.

A short while later, becauseEridan had also prepared a ship ahead of time, their ship set out.They tended to go through a few dozen every perigee, and simply stolenew ships from defeated foes; this one had been looted from an armadaof trolls all arising in response to inflammatory comments Eridan andVriska had made regarding the latest editions of FLARP's needlesschanges to rules they didn't care for. (This sort of thing was prettycommonplace on Alternia; an entire planet of children from a speciesprone to wild mood extremes, without any adult supervision and withmysterious interferences to make them more bloodthirsty? It wasunavoidable.) This ship was the only one to survive; Vriska blamedEridan for being too trigger-happy with his weird ancestral lightningthingy. Eridan blamed Vriska for mind controlling people intoblasting each other without even waiting for a sick cameraopportunity.

This one had been renamed theRevengence Rising, forreasons that Vriska was unclear on. Eridan would only say that he sawit in a dream, borne to him by the terrible things he saw in hisdreams, and swept off dramatically.

The Revengence didn'tso much float as it insinuated itself through the water, slicingthrough the tides and the occasional smaller ship that ran afoul ofthe giant underwater ramming blades beneath it, raising a pink-huedflag. The pink of tyranny had only one meaning; there would be noprisoners, just as a true heiress left no survivors. Both Eridan andVriska were considering changing the flag's color, because since theyknew Feferi so well, they couldn't quite reconcile that with... well,her. (They chose to decide that Feferi was just super weird.)

They soon came across theirquarry, a ship low in the water from the weight of its treasures, anda very big ship at that, too. It had to be, to hold all thattreasure. Vriska seethed at the sight of it, her one good eyenarrowed and her fangs scraping against her lower lip. “I am gonnakick their ass! I am gonna kick the boat's ass!”

“Boats don't have those,”Eridan pointed out.

“I am gonna build it an ass soI can kick it!”

“Use shitty wood, otherwiseyou're gonna make it look better than it really is.”

“Shit, I wouldn't have thoughtof that. Good save.”

“It's what I do,” Eridan saidsmugly.

“Hey!” Vriska yelled into amegaphone, directing it at the ship. “HEY, YOU! TREASURE STEALINGASSHOLES THAT STOLE THE TREASURE WE STOLE FIRST!”

There was a pause. The enemy shipwiggled with activity. “What?” A faint, reedy voice called back.

“I said HEY YOU!” Vriskayelled.

“WHAT?'

“I SAID... goddamit, are weeven close enough for them to hear us?” Vriska turned to thelowblooded troll closest to them on their crew. “I said, are weclose enough for that?”

Karkat Vantas, roped into thisarrangement as a result of a complicated bet involved a largepineapple and the world's second-nicest hat he was trying to barterwith Equius for reasons unknown, rolled his eyes. “I don't goddamnknow. If they're constantly yelling about what you said, GEE, I DON'TKNOW, that's probably a pretty solid indication, huh?!”

“You're the worst cabin boyever. I don't know why Terezi recommended you.”

“I thought Terezi swore to killyou and eat all your shoes,” Karkat said.

“Eh, inbetween vows to make mesuffer for my misdeeds or whatever, she yells at me about how greatyou are. It's weird and sickening.”

“Oh. Wait she did... she didwhat? She talks about... me?” Karkat fell to the ground, staring atthe moons. “Inbetween acts of vowing horrible revenge? Oh... that'sthe most romantic thing I ever heard... I need to write poetry aboutthis.”

“God, this is sickening,”Eridan said, wrinkling his snout.

“Hell yeah,” Vriska said,shaking her head and unconsciously putting her arm around Eridan'sshoulder.  “Just plain weird.”

Eridan put his arm around herwait, with no conscious thought on his part. “This flush pining isjust embarrassing.”

“Yeah.” A small pause. “Didwe forget something?”

They looked up, and saw the shipsignificantly closer. A purple blood waved to them; Vriska judged himthe leader of the crew, if only because he had the biggest andfanciest hat. In pirate terms, he was so obviously the Leader. “So,uh, you were trying to say something to us?”

“Yeah!” Vriska drew hersword, and with her other hand, extended her harpoon. She got backinto character, as Eridan did the same. “I, the dread MarquiseSpinneret Mindfang, demand that you return my stolen treasure hoard!”

“And I, the fearsome pirateDualscar, demand your land-cursed BLOOD!”Eridan shouted, drawing Ahab's Crosshairs and pointing it in a waythat indicated he had every intention of just driving it intopeople's chests like a spear.

The captain considered it. “No.”

“Give us the treasure,”Vriska threatened. “And then we'll kill you!”

The enemy crew stared across thedeck. From the floor, Karkat said, “Don't you mean, 'or'?”

“We know what we said!”Eridan snarled. “And get below decks, you could get hurt if there'sa fight!” He paused, and trying to save face, quickly added, “And!And, uh. If you get hurt or somethin', Terezi will wear my skin as afancy cape! I don't want to become a cosplay!”

Karkat groaned and rolled belowdecks. “I'm going, I'm going!”

The enemy captain shrugged. “So,it's a fight you want, huh? Then, it's a fight you'll-”

“DIE DIE DIE!” Vriskascreamed, catapulting herself across the two ships, heedless of apotential fall into the sea. She landed with a sword right in thecaptain's neck, her hook through the first mate, and she twistedaway. Purple and blue bloodrained down around her, and with a swish of her long coat, she raisedher robot arm as her arm cannon unfurled, blasting out a flurry ofshots that tore open the side of the ship.

“You shits stay here and trynot to be failures,” Eridan said to his crew, and dove into thesea. A moment later, he erupted out from the other side of the ship.In his native element he was far faster and stronger, and leaped highinto the air, landing with each, Crosshairs down and through thechest of the first unwary crewtroll. He twisted aside, putting thebody in the path of a sword blow coming his way, and a blast from theCrosshairs toppled the mast over, onto another grouping of enemycrewtrolls.

Vriska was laughing now, swordand cannon akimbo, and Eridan laughed too, the both of them moving ina fierce frenzy through the crew. Swords and shields clashedtogether, bows strung out and fired only to hit crewtrolls used asliving shields, and as soon as Eridan was able to aim (though hepreferred the thrill and martial honor of a melee), they were wipedfrom the world, along with several portions of the ship.

Cannon blasts, piercing lightfrom the Crosshairs and the sheer ferocity of the pair, fighting backto back, ended the first in short order. Most ship boardings are overfast, and this was done in a matter of minutes. When it was done, theship was listing, too many holes in its side to keep on from... well,taking on water. Vriska and Eridan stood, back to back, cape and coatflapping in the breeze as they posed with their weapons crossing. Oneof the enemy crewtrolls, in exchange for his life, took a photo ofthem.

“So, uh, are you gonna dosomething about the ship?” That crewtroll said.

Eridan blinked. “What aboutit?”

“It's sort of sinking. From allthe damage you did,” the crewtroll said, with just a hint ofreproach.

“...Oh shit~!”Eridan and Vriska said. Vriska ran to the side and called out to hership, “Towing cables! Ready the hooks, you know what to do!”

Several modified cannons, on thebroad side of the ship, opened up and fired; massive hooks slammedinto the side of the ship and chains reeled it in, towing the largership closer to them and supporting it. It wobbled ominously, butdidn't sink.

Vriska sighed in relief. “Ourtreasure, and more importantly, my reputation, are saved!”

Eridan checked a small watch.“And it's not even second breakfast. God, butthis is gonna be a slow day, isn't it?”

Vriska twirled him close to her.“Day's still young, fishface. Bet ya we can get into more trouble~”

[anacchi24]

Just Another Tag game

Tagged by @pokkipo and @too-many-goddamn-fandoms, thank you both~! :3

Rules: Always post the rules. Answer the questions asked, then write eleven new ones. Tag eleven people to answer your questions as well as the person who tagged you.

Pokki’s Questions

1. Do you have any OCs? If so, what are their name(s)?

I have several OCs, to be honest. 4 Hunter x Hunter OCs (Ruronuelle, Ariabelle, Sakura, and Serena) and 1 Servamp OC (Ayano Yurika). I also have other OCs from my original stories but I’ve never written anything about them yet xD //shot// My favorite ones are Ruri (Ruronuelle’s nickname) and Yurika, though <3

2. What’s your favorite eye color?

Brown. Any shades of brown. I just love how they glow when sunlight shines upon them :D

3. How would you name your kids? Or, if you don’t want kids, what are your favorite names?

Welp, this is a hard question xD I wanna say Trois but I can already imagine all the horrible nicknames the child could possibly get because I’m pretty sure most Indonesians don’t know hot to spell Trois correctly

4. What’s your favorite quote?

”There's no shame in falling down! True shame is to not stand up again after such a fall!” Midorima Shintarou (am currently trying to apply this to my actual life lol)

5. What’s the last anime you watched?

Servamp, episode 10, English Dub. It’s still sad, but it’s slightly funnier than the sub imo

6. Do you like cosplays?

Wearing them? Nope. Seeing them? Heck yes! I know several cosplayer and actually went to a con with one and boy, that experience changed my whole view for cosplayers. It’s amazing how they can put so many efforts into one outfit and heck, most of them aren’t even paid for doing it! It’s always nice to see people act on their hobbies~

7. Do you have a crush on someone? (A real person or a fictional character, it doesn’t matter~)

Did you mean: crushes? Because I’m currently in love with Mahiru, Chiaki, and Trois xD <3

8. How many siblings do you have?

One biological sister, one self-proclaimed twin, and several online siblings lololol

9. What would your ideal date be like?

An in-home date where we have a long movie marathon while eating pizza and potato chips or go outside for stargazing during the night.

10. Do you like your handwriting? Why?

Not really because they’re inconsistent. They always change and a friend of mine always teases me about them (his handwriting is like 10x better than mine. Not that I’ll ever admit this in front of him ‘cause that’s the same as admitting my defeat huff)

11. Now, say something positive about yourself!~  c:

Oh boi, this is the hardest one of them all. Uhm... Errr... *five whole minutes of thinking later* Ehmm.... maybe how I can low-key do anything if I actually try? Though the only things I’m really interested and take pleasure in doing right now are drawing, sleeping, and writing (just a bit, tho, still no finished work yet) lololol

Avi’s Questions

1: What is you’re favorite series and why? (Could be anything from TV shows, books, anime, ect..)

To be honest?? It all differs according to the form of media lololol xD My fave anime is Hunter x Hunter, manga is Servamp, novel is Illana Tan’s 4 seasons (not really a series since the plot are all different but the characters from each books know each other and that’s just smart), TV shows: How I Met Your Mother and Voltron: Legendary Defender.

Speaking of Voltron, I just finished both seasons today and I’m so disappointed that no one had forced me to watch it sooner because man, that shit was so awesome and I love Pidge. and Keith. And Shiro is so cool man, they’re all so awesome aaaaaaaaaaaaa-//shot

2: What is your favorite weather and time of day?

Light drizzle like it’s raining but not pouring, just the water gently hitting on the ground, y’al get what I mean, right? xD And I like night the best in a whole day. Idk why, but I’m more productive at night lololol

3: Favorite Fictional character? Why?

*puts a bunch of characters from KnB, Servamp, and EnStars* YOU CANT MAKE ME CHOOSE A FEW OF THEM, MUCH LESS ONE. FITE ME ON THIS. //slapped// xD

4: Favorite video game? Why?

I don’t play video games that much but I’m gonna say Outlast just for the sake of (not so) good memories lol

5: What are your hobbies?

Drawing, surfing the net, refreshing Tumblr and Facebook, playing Enstars, listening to music, drowning in self-hatred :D 

6: If you could pick one fictional world to live in, what world would you pick and why?

I’ll take Hunter x Hunter :3 I’d like to be a conjurer :3

7: Favorite animal?

HEDGEHOG HANDS DOWN :D

8: Do you have any pets? If so, what are their names and what are they?

I used to have a virtual pet hedgehog named Hyde but it died ever since EnStars took all of my attention :’D

9: Do you have any original stories? Tell me something about them!

All the past stories I tried to write were romance stories that are too embarrassing to tell, so I’ll just tell you about a new story I just came up with today! The main character is a girl who is pretty much done with her life. When she decides to commit suicide and jumped off from an old abandoned building, she ends up getting caught by a wizard who was practicing flying in his new stolen broomstick. This guy is actually a thief and is a fugitive of a magical government and now they think the girl is on his side. There are still a lot of things needed to be thought about for this story so that’s all I can tell you about right now xD

10: If you have any ocs, who was your first? If you don’t have any, who was your first favorite character and why?

As mentioned above, I have several OCs but Ruri was my first one (which is also why she’s one of my favorites) :3

11: You have three wishes, what would you wish for?

1. for the happiness of the people whom I love and care about, 2. A permission from my parents to live on my own, 3. A chance to travel all over the world with my self-proclaimed twin <3

Now, here are my questions~! :3

1. Do you draw? If yes, how many years has it been since you’ve started?

2. Do you write? If yes, could you copy paste a line from your latest work?

3. What is/are your nickname(s)? If you don’t have any, can I give you one?

4. When is your birthday? If you’re not comfortable with it, then what is your favorite day of the whole year and why?

5. What are the 5 things that never fail to brighten up your day or put a smile on your face?

6. Why did you join Tumblr?

7. IOS or Android?

8. In the scale of 1 to 10, how much do you love yourself?

9. Are you the type who pours the cereal before the milk or the milk before the cereal?

10. How is 2017 treating you so far?

11. Do you like pigeons? XD

Tagging: @catslab @petrichor-note @stirlingphoenix @freezingdreamer @shibakamiko @wonderfulchaos69 @tsubeki @empress-of-purgatory @pocket-luv101 @shiroekoyuki @liablackpandora

[jacquisrandomwritings]

The Genetic

Warning!! This story does mention blood and killing!! If this causes you distress, or you do not wish to read, then please pass over!! Thank you!!

She breathed heavily as the elevator doors closed. Soon, she would be at “6 Feet Above.” She quickly hid her weapons in the backpacks that had become the only things that had saved her countless of times. She then started to bandage up any cuts or holes that were exposed. Once cleaned up, she pulled out the needle that she so desperately need. She jabbed it into her leg, injecting the vibrant purple liquid. Her hands started to spark slightly, making her sigh. She watched as the sparks dispersed.

Ding! She looked forward, awaiting the faces that stood on the other side. Unaware of the dangers that were lurking beneath them. The doors opened, and she was in a dark room. She stepped out and looking around. It looked to be a maintenance room. She found a few more first aid kits and plenty more of those needles. She took all of them. Better to be prepared, she thought. She looked around more, surprised a maintenance office carried ammo. She decided to question it later and took every last bit of ammunition.

She then slowly walked up to the door that had light shine from behind it. With the silent count to three, she opened it. Her eyes took a few moments to adjust, but she soon found herself in a large lobby. Yet, it was empty. “Where is everyone? Did they already evacuate?” she muttered to herself. She carefully stalked around the large room, soon finding a poster in waiting. NEW THEATER!! Come and watch our movie marathon!! She snarled at the thought of this corrupted man making innocent people be bait.

She quickly followed the instructions, and went to the theater. When she arrived, a few bored looking teens were waiting by the doors. “Man!! I just want to go in,” one complained. “It’s against policy. Plus, all of us need the money,” another said. “It sucks. Everyone in the whole building is in there. Even the people working at the snack bar,” the first said, grumbling a bit afterwards. She slowly walked up, catching a few of their attentions. “Whoa. You in a cosplay or something?” one asked, making all of them look at her.

“Tell me,” came her hoarse voice, “Is the ‘whole’ building in there?” she asked. “I guess not since you’re out here,” one of them said, “Nice costume tough. The fake blood almost looks real.” She snarled slightly as she thought. “What is the exact number of people in there?” she asked. “I don’t know. How many people live here in Geneva?” the kid retorted, looking down at his phone. She grabbed him by his collar and pulled him close to her face, having him see the dangerous look in her eyes. “How. Many. People. Are. In. There?” she asked.

“3452,” he quickly said, paling. She released him as she cursed to herself. “I need all of you to help me,” she said. “What the hell is wrong with you?!” one of them shouted. “Do you want to live?! Then listen to what I have to say you fuck head!” she shouted. All of them immediately cowered and nodded. “I need all of you to guide everyone to the closest escape route. Or whatever you have to get out of this building,” she said. “The Escape Cruise?” one of them said. “Yes. Guide them there. Then get yourselves on and leave. Understood?” she asked.

They nodded, and she walked into the theater. Everyone was invested in the screen as the movie played. She needed everyone’s attention so she can get them safely out. She looked up and found the projector. With sparks coming from her hands, she steadied her fingers and shot a small, yet powerful bolt of electricity to the projector. It short circuited, then turned off. People started to complain as the sparks from her hands disappeared. With a quick snap of her fingers, she was in front of the screen.

With small movements with her hands, she got a spotlight aimed at her, and turned it on. “Everyone!! Listen up!!” she called. But no one could hear her. Only a few actually noticed her. She growled, then pulled out her shot gun. She aimed it at the ceiling, then shot. Everyone screamed, then quickly turned to the source. “Shut up and listen!!” she shouted. Everyone did so, very scared. “Everyone needs to get out. Head to the Escape Cruise. It’s not safe,” she said. “Why do you say that?” and variants of it were shouted and said.

She fired another shot, getting everyone to quiet down. “How many of you know, about the ‘6 Feet Below?’” she asked. The collective response was confusion and questions. “I came from there. It is over run by, by monsters. People crossed with DNAs of animals. Their genetic coding reworked and changing them to horrifying, and dangerous beings. All of this done by ‘our’ mayor. So everyone needs to get out. Live. Because they are coming,” she said. “Why should we believe you?!” someone shouted.

Just as she was about to explain, she heard the horrified and painful groan. She turned in time to see the half-human, half-animal stalking towards her. It then decided to pounce. She quickly shot it with her shotgun, putting a huge hole through its chest. “Believe me now,” she asked, not even bother to wipe the blood off her. There was only silence. “Anyone who knows how to get to the Escape Cruise, help everyone else get there. Now go!” she shouted. Everyone quickly started to pile out and run.

She rushed through the crowd and out into the lobby to watch everything and protect the people. Officers helped out as well. But she knew that they had no idea what they were about to face. A long groaned echoed suddenly, catching her attention. She carefully turned around to find her nightmare slowly crawling towards her. A large suit with a wielding mask and miner’s light was painfully crawling towards the crowd. On its back, a tube sporadically was waving around. She slowly approached it, noticing a doll in its hand.

She nearly dropped her gun when she recognized it. “Lil’ Kitty,” she muttered, carefully kneeling down. The suit lifted up the doll, a long moan escaping from it. She held her shotgun in one hand as she reached for the worn-down doll. As she did, her hand lightly touch the large glove of the large suit. Suddenly, visions of her when she was younger flashed through her mind. She was at the orphanage. The only one left. Then she was taken away. That’s when the pain first began. When everything changed in her.

She was forced to live in 6 Feet Below. She was force to control these powers given to her. But, there was something missing. She was sitting alone, in a corner and crying. The scientists let her run around free that day; and it was their worse mistake. Some of the animalistic humans had found her and were ready for lunch. It would have been that way, if it wasn’t for a large figure saving her. The only other things seen was a wielding mask, a bandage, and the doll. Everything else was blurred or blocked out.

Her natural vision returned, and she looked at the suit. “Big Brother,” she muttered. She placed her gun down, then went to work on fixing the tube. She got it secured and patched up a few bit on his suit. She then grabbed her gun, stood up, and backed away. With very heavy footing, and slow building effort, it was finally up and standing. “I thought,” she started as the suit looked down at her, “I thought you were gone.” It let out a mechanical groan as it gently cupped her face. She placed her hand against his, sighing slightly.

A hiss caught her attention, making her turn towards the crowd. Two of the humanoid creatures were stalking up to the officers. She quickly pulled out her crossbow, and fired at them, shooting them through the heart. They fell limp on the floor as the officers turned around. The crowd was soon out of the lobby, and into the loading area of the ship. She went to go follow them, but stopped. She turned to the suit, then held out her hand. “Come on. We’re getting out of this hell hole,” she said. It let out a low groan, very hesitant.

“Don’t worry. I know how to take care of you,” she said, smiling. It the grabbed her hand and followed her. They followed the crowd, making sure everyone safely got onboard. Then she and the suit joined them. The boat engine started up and slowly moved along. It took a few minutes but they were finally far away. They were safe. Safe from the horrors on what rested underneath the paradise. She was considered a hero among them. So when the ship docked, and everyone was slowly let off, each gave her their thanks.

As soon as most of the pedestrians were off, police arrived. Questions were asked, but the citizens could barely answer them. Eventually, the police went up to her. She answered all of their questions as best she could, all while holding onto the suit’s hand. After all the questions were answered, they started to file everyone to the nearest shelter. She stayed behind to make sure everyone was safe and taken care of. Just as she was about to follow them, the police stopped her. “I’m sorry, miss. But you can’t take, that, with you to the shelter. Or your weapons,” they said.

“Then take me somewhere else,” she said. “Miss. We don’t even know what that thing is. Or who you are,” they said. “I’m not leaving him behind. Not again,” she said. “Miss. You have to go to the shelter with everyone else. You need medical attention,” they said. “I’m. Not. Moving,” she said, making the officer shiver. Just as they were about to speak again, a large semi-truck with a trailer rolled on the scene. “Hey! You’re not authorized here!” an officer shouted as the driver stepped out. It was a thin man in a long trench coat with sunglasses.

Out of the passenger side was a tall, buff women. The two of them walked up to the duo, smiles on their faces. “So. You’re the Genetic,” the man said. “Excuse me?” she asked, tightening her grip on the suit. “You came off boat, did you not?” the woman asked with a deep Russian accent. “Yes, I did,” she said. “Along vith him?” the large woman asked. “Yes,” she said. “Then you are the Genetic. We’ve know about you for a long time. If you would come with us, we will explain,” the man said.

“Alright,” she said. Both were shocked by her sudden agreement. “That fast?” he questioned. “Any chance I get to explain what the hell I am, then I’m taking it. Plus, I know you will let me take him,” she said. “Alright. Smoke, get her in the back,” he said. The larger woman guided the two to the back where a set of doors were shut. But once the door opened, all inside stopped and looked. The large woman pulled down the ramp, then let the two in. The girl walked in, followed by her large companion. Once in and secured, the door shut and soon the lot started moving. To where though?