#the first thing before the cut is my art ^^

[iilmunchkiin]

"Behind the Scenes"

Below the cut includes unused panels, art and extra info about the comic! Including the storyboards and some words from yours truly! [CW]: spoilers for comic above (duh...), triggering scenes, disturbing imagery and death. ヾ(≧へ≦)〃

There was supposed to be an extra panel with Starlo desperately clutching on Ceroba's clothes after the "Your fault" scene before sliding off and kneeling in front of her, however it killed the pacing so it was left scrapped.

Extra panels I made during Starlo's breakdown, looking back I probably should've went for a similar approach like the one below this this since it gives off the feeling of doom due to the dark background making it gave emphasis to Starlo, but the current one gives off helplessness cuz everything looks so empty so it's all good. I was experimenting with the composition and give it a more manga-like appearance... which is what I was aiming for! I'm glad how it turned out! (❁´◡`❁)

Alternative face for Starlo in the content warning. Fun fact! The thing on his hat was supposed to look like a heart rate, was trying to show how much panic he was feeling with an increasing heart beat. No one noticed unfortunately but I dunno how to make it more obvious... ¯\_(ᵕ—ᴗ—)_/¯

My manager @trgr-mmaki messaging me during an... unfortunate moment.

Some more concept art and storyboards I made on paper, the amount of research I did for this was... a lot would be an understatement. I had to study the stages of decay and looked at pictures of it. Yes... pictures...

Another detail was the fight, flight or freeze response I was trying to implement here. Fight - Starlo Flight - Martlet (get it cuz she's a bird?) Freeze - Ceroba

I wanted to draw more, but I was already working on this comic for a weak and I was getting burnt out so I had to cut corners.

Originally, Martlet was supposed to be in this scene along with Clover's soul in the jar however there weren't enough space for the text so I had to cut them out. Here's what it would look like if I went with the original draft compared to the final.

Sketches

Thank you for being so patient with me and for liking my AU! It's still in development but I'm in love where it's going so far. Being completely honest, I wasn't planning on making it an AU in the first place but with all the love and support I got, it motivated me!! Thank you to everyone who's been helping me and giving me ideas, and to all of you who are still waiting!! Y'all are the best!! (´▽`ʃ♡ƪ)

I don't know where to put this but I'd love to do more behind the scenes stuff like this, or even scrapped comics and updates on future projects! lmk what you think (￣y▽￣)╭ hihihihi~

"Rotting"

Post that started this: Link

[gallusrostromegalus]

As someone a bit too young to have seen Bleach the first time around, AEIWAM is still consuming a crucial portion of my brain cells. So imagine my surprise when I looked up Tousen, the reason you started this behemoth of an alternate universe, on TV tropes.

Among other shocking revelations...

WHAT DO YOU MEAN, HE JOINED AIZEN OF HIS OWN FREE WILL IN CANON???? What do you MEAN, TITE KUBO, that the reason your Tousen wants to destroy the Shinigami is that his crush died of DOMESTIC VIOLENCE???

Who is this man and what has he done with my eternally suffering Tousen?

You understand why I had to take custody of this poor bastard.

I can respect what Kubo was going for- Aizen was right in the fact that Soul Society does suck, and the extended canon is that Tousen's crush was killed by her husband, everyone knew it, and nobody would prosecute the husband because he was a Noble. Canon Tousen is, more or less, suffering from the same kind of rage-based brainrot that is unfortunately so common these days- the idea that because a system is imperfect, or ever corrupt, that it's a good idea to tear the whole thing down/restart the universe (the real Path Of Least Harm is of course, the much more complicated and frustrating work of Dis-and-re-mantling the system piece-by-piece without leaving vulnerable people to fend for themselves, but that isn't as emotionally satisfying or fun to draw as senseless destruction, but I digress).

but his arc is only barely on the page at all, mostly after his death and contains one of the blandest and most obnoxious tropes- fridging- and the whole thing falls flat. It also fails to explore the FASCINATING angle of disability and tbh, racism in soul society- two VERY fucked up things that would very much justify his rage. But it's shonen and the series was deep in production hell at that point, and tousen was far from the only victim. I still don't know what the fuck Gin's deal was.

ANYWAY,

Notable changes between Canon!Tousen and AEIWAM!Tousen and some art under the cut:

Kakiyo is Kaname's adopted sister, and despite looking nothing alike, since they re-incarnated in soul society at the same time, they regard themselves as twins.

Kakiyo does kind of a lot in the plot before her demise- she's responsible for introducing Kaname and Komamura, teaches Zaraki and Yachiru how to read, and unintentionally helps Aizen by recommending him to be promoted to third seat in the 5th division, because she and Kiganjo were thinking about starting a family soon, and Aizen would make a good stand-in for her while she was on maternity leave.

She also gets to do a bunch of stuff after she dies too!

The characters in Tousen's name approximately mean "Necessary Scholar" and make an allusion to a legendary scholar from China who came to Japan to find the elixir of immortality for the emperor. He returns with an elixir that stops the emperor from aging, and the emperor kills him so he can't make anyone else immortal (the emperor doesn't age, but he's still vulnerable to stabbing, and gets stabbed). I thought that was an extremely fun literary allusion so I'm leaning into it- before he becomes a Shinigami, AEIWAM!Tousen took over the library run by his ans Kakiyo's adopted godparents, and ran a children's literacy program. he has a special interest in information sciences and educational methodology. even among nerds, he's a mega-nerd.

Kakiyo meets and marries Gosuke Kiganjo, who goes back to West 51 to meet his beloved's brother and the weird giant monk that runs the library with him. Kaname is immensely fond of Kiganjo, and has no qualms being the best man at their wedding. He and Gosuke are good friends for the first few years of the marriage, until Aizen gets his claws into Gosuke and slowly drives him insane.

In AEIWAM, Tousen is cursed into going along with the plan by Aizen. Aizen was just going to make Kiganjo kill him, but Gin is getting impatient with Aizen's hogyoku progress, and persuades Aizen into cursing Kaname into compliance instead with a Forbidden Bakudō: Kyuunodo — Ningyō Kugi Saiyaku (人形釘誓約, Puppet Nail Covenant)

I do keep the canon!Tousen's reputation for being pedantic, unecessarily critical and generally kind of boring. The reason for AEIWAM!Tousen's reputation is different: He is kind of a pain in the ass, because he is in Horrific Pain and Deeply Traumatized and that makes people irritable to say the least, and he deliberately cultivates a reputation for being Boring to keep people far, far away from him- and hopefully, far from Aizen as well.

An underrated bit of Canon!Tousen is that Suzumushi is not his zanpakuto. Suzumushi was Kakiyo's zanpakuto, and we see him take the sword from her coffin in the manga. Which is insane because it means HE ACHIEVED BANKAI WITH A ZANPAKUTO THAT WASN'T EVEN HIS. Dude is SEVERELY underrated as a swordsman. In AEIWAM, Suzumushi is still Kakiyo's zanpakuto, and only BARELY clings to life on the last reserves of the Spiritual power Kakiyo put into her before Kaname finds her. Suzumushi persuades him to take her up, enter the academy and bring Kakiyo's killer to justice (Suzumushi has fallen to Aizen's illusion and doesn't know who the killer is). She kind of glosses over how they bond, but she more or less crawls into his soul and supresses Kaname's native Yume-kon that would have been his own Zanpakuto spirit if it had been allowed to awaken. She did make an entirely new Shikai and Bankai for him- the chime that makes people lose conciousness is entirely new, the AOE of Just A Shitload Of Swords was Suzumushi's original Shikai. The Bankai of a space where anyone not touching the sword experiences no sensory input? Suzumushi made it first and foremost as a refuge for Kaname when the pain of the curse became to unbearable.

The biggest difference, of course, is that Kaname lives through the Aizen Arc and gets a Happy Ending: Once he wakes up after the battle, he is free, and chooses to marry the wolfman he's been in love with for centuries. Here's some art of them, finally home:

[ohburgee]

𝐑𝐮𝐧𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲

soft-yandere!dragon x princess-fem!reader

tw: kidnapping, murder, violence, obsession, yandere themes / soft theme (don't mind this on tw just remind) an: I'M BACK!! how are you all my gees well another soft/fluff yandere I miss writing soft ones and this is a simple yandere story so yeah, the dragon is inspired by Alduin. Mhm, he is my favorite dragon in video games also loved the lore of Skyrim <3 Also, this is the first fantasy story I have written here.

Walking around in your castle's garden, the beautiful and breathtaking flowers around those blossoming pink, purple, and other colors made you feel at peace.

You pick one by one some different flowers and put them in your small basket after picking you get up and walk out of the garden and see your personal maid waiting outside the garden.

"Your Highness," she said and did a low bow and you smiled and walked towards her and gave the basket to her as you both walked inside the castle and saw your future husband, to be the king.

"My princess where have you been, I've been looking for you," he said and walked towards you and took your hand and kissed it.

You look at him sternly you don't want him, as he is too much of a show-off person, and never wanted to marry him due to the royal rules.

"Let's talk about our wed-" you cut his words "I don't have the mood to discuss that, please will you excuse me," you said as that shows disrespect but you don't care and walk past him and walk away from them.

You try everything to tell your father but he doesn't listen and says that it's a good way for your royal family and you try to your mother to convince your father but she said the same thing to you and you feel everyone is not sided with you.

As you keep overthinking to find a way to stop and the only way is to run away, you don't want to leave your family even if they don't listen to you but still love them.

...

After a boring hour staying in the dining room and after dinner, you went straight to your chamber and locked yourself inside.

You lay in your bed looking at your ceiling with some stars art around as you silently admire it, you wish you just disappeared.

You suddenly get up and look at your terrace as the cold breeze wind flows inside your room and you decide to run away and stay at your former nanny.

You secretly send a letter to her, telling everything about the marriage as you don't want to be and the plan to run away.

You walk away from your bed and take your well-prepared bag, you have been planning this for days and find the right time and it's now.

You slowly open your door and peek out to see if there's someone or some knights around and proudly there's no one outside as you walk out to your chamber and walk away.

After you walk downstairs and head to the back door of the kitchen room before you go, you check if someone is walking and see none, might the knights have their own time or break time.

You finally got out of the castle and headed towards the stable to get your horse, you took your horse and rode out of the stable and quickly went to the back forest behind the castle, you secretly made a way there so that knights wouldn't see you.

After a few travel with your horse, you travel through the forest it is dark but the moon keeps it more bit light through the road when suddenly you hear a loud thud from the ground and you look up to see the trees move and you look confused, you wanted to check it but you don't want to delay your journey... So after a minute, you decide to look for it.

You slowly ride through the forest and you stop your horse let go and walk towards where the sound came you see a human, a man, set down behind the tree and you look widened to see it's bleeding as it keeps covering the wound from his hand. Wait how is there a loud sound and it's just a man?

You walked towards him and slowly approached him and he quickly took the attention to you and looked up to see you looking at him.

"I'm sorry but you look in a bad condition right now," you said softly trying to calm him down he shrugged and hissed at his wound "Let me help you," you said softly as you approached him and checked the wound, the wound is bit worst and you look around to find something to heal it and found a leaf that you remembered your nanny use for your wound, quiet rare plant but good for healings.

You take a few leaves and take a small bottle from your bag and pour it on the leaf and you look at the man, as he staring at you.

"Will you let me?" You ask nicely and he looks like trying to process everything then he nods his head and you slowly walk closer to him and take his hand from his wound.

You put the leaf around the wound to cover it as he hissed in pain and you slowly pat it and pour small from the bottle and you scratch your dress to make a cloth and wrap around his waist where the wound was.

"There it's good, not move for a while taking a rest," you told him and he nodded his head, "Where you come from, did someone try to kill you?" You ask wanting to know where he went from.

"There's no need to know, and thank you," he said well that was a bit rude but he still had gratitude to thank you for helping him, you sat in front of him and asked another question.

"Well, at least you have something to go to?" He looked at you sternly like why you asking questions, "Look I don't want to leave you here, since you are in bad condition and we are in the middle of the forest" you said looking around hoping no predators were around.

"You look like a princess," he said and you looked at him as the moon glints on you see your face clearly, "Well uhm... Look I don't want to get married I don't want it I never dreamed of being a married woman," you told him and that was bit stupid as you said that in front of a stranger, really.

"I just want to live a peaceful life and do what I want and have some freedom," you said to him as you hugged yourself.

"It's just I don't want to, also living with that bastard is worse" you added as he just looked at you trying to breathe and you slowly got up and reached your hand to him.

"Come I'll bring you to my nanny it's safer to stay there than here" You got up and offered your hand to him as he slowly got up from the ground and you guided him and led him to your horse.

After a few minutes of travel, you reach your nanny's village and stop in front of her house and you find her outside waiting for you.

"You're here I'm so glad you are safe" She walked towards you and hugged you and you hugged her back and smiled.

"Oh dear, what happen to him?" She notices the man behind and she quickly approaches him and guides him inside the house.

After treatment, your nanny told him to rest and he followed her words and you approached your nanny.

"How long are you going to do this?" She asked and you sighed patting her shoulders "They're going to look for you, I know your father" she added and you nodded your head.

"Just have some little freedom," you said and smiled as you both sat at the table talking.

...

The dark shadow dragon, the so-called destroyer, after he purposely stabbed himself to fake and pretend he was hunted to gain your attention.

He had been stalking you after that happened when you saw him in the middle of the forest too he was for real wounded at that time in his dragon form he wanted to kill you but you didn't do anything that could make him mad instead you stared at him.

He thinks you have been seeing something in your imagination or hallucinating he can read your mind.

Suddenly his reaction made him shocked as you approached him and touched the wound from his wing behind and saw glints of light then disappear and the wound healed.

Then you both looked at each other him being confused and you worried but felt glad you helped this dangerous creature.

"I hope I saved you," you said softly then walked away from the dragon and disappeared, he wanted to chase you but heard a man's voice and quickly flew up, fly away and he will remember what you did.

He didn't expect a human to heal him and never be scared of him even in his true form and you, you are the first and only person to be like that.

He was impressed, captivated, and after days he couldn't stop thinking about you, how fearless you are, like it's very rare to see it like a gem of ruby, those are the colors full of braveness.

After he finds out you're getting married and you don't want to and tries to run away twice but fails. He watches you walking around your castle.

And finally, he decided to take you, to take you away from your family and go with him away from them, he was planning this after you healed him, and he became more captivated by you.

He found out that the royal Edfield was the one who arranged the marriage and the son of King Edfield, the marriage was for alliances, and he knew the son, the prince of Edfield was a coward.

He stabs himself pretending to look like he was attacked and transforms himself into a dragon he sees you riding your horse and he feels thrive as he expects you to run away again, and he acts to fall into the forest and lands behind the tree and transforms into his human form and wait for you to come.

Then finally you are there looking worried and approaching him and healing him, the way he saw you the same day when you healed him. He was captivated, fascinated he wanted you, he wanted you to stay with him.

He doesn't know how this feels and words keep ringing in his mind but he wanted you, and he will do everything to get you and kill and destroy if anyone tries to get in your way.

After that, you healed him and took him to your nanny and he heard the talking between you and your nanny. You really wanted to go away and he will do it for you.

...

Morning came and you and your nanny ate breakfast after that you carried a small bowl with some carrot soup and helped him eat as you slowly let the spoon into his mouth.

As his eyes stared at you, you caught his eyes watching you and quickly looked down to the bowl and continued to help him eat, after finishing you told him to lay back and walked towards the kitchen to wash.

You suddenly heard your nanny calling your name and she looked at her confused, "The prince is here" she said and you looked scared and a bit defeated, you quickly got out of the house and saw the prince smiling when he saw you and ran towards to you and hug you but you push him away from you.

"Please come back to me," he said trying to be caring, and you were disgusted and walked backward away from him.

"Come on let's go back," he said and started grabbing you and your nanny tried to grab you back but the prince pushed your nanny and that made your anger boil up and pushed him and he grabbed you again harshly taking you to the carriage.

You try to get off his grip but he is gripping it hardly and makes it bruise your wrist you look at your nanny on the ground as you start to cry then a loud thud comes and you both look up and see the shadow dragon, the destroyer, many people and kingdoms feared him.

His yellow fire eyes stare at you and the prince starts to raise his sword the dragon flies down towards the prince and you finally get off his grip and fall on the side ground you watch as the dragon attacks everyone as they try to hit the dragon with swords but not working.

When you ran towards your nanny and helped her get up from the ground you watched everything chaos as the dragon throw fires on them.

When all the knights are dead and the prince is left alive he crawls away from the dragon the dragon takes him and traps him in his hand as the prince keeps begging for mercy.

"You are clever and most coward prince" the dragon spoke in his deep, husky voice just like the man you saved, wait where is he?

You look towards the house and look back to the dragon as he still keeps the prince in his hand.

"The princess doesn't want you, so why force her," the dragon said as the dragon's face turned to you, "How about I say your kingdom is in ashes now" the dragon added and the prince's eyes widened and started yelling at the dragon.

The dragon suddenly didn't hesitate to crush the prince's body and blood splashed around you looked scared and a bit relieved since the marriage is no longer.

The dragon's head turns to you and you make yourself a cover for your nanny the dragon slowly approaches you both and the head stops near your face as his fire-looking eyes look at you, your eyes suddenly catch the wound from its belly behind and your eyes widen.

"Yes, that's right my dove" You turn to him your eyes look terrified but you are surprised "You are the man I saved, you are a dragon," you said and the dragon swayed his tail towards you and grabbed you slowly away from you're nanny.

You try to struggle to get off but the tail wraps around you tightly but not harshly, "The prince is Dead, you are free now" he says as his eyes stare at yours and you stop yourself struggling.

"Well thank you, as much I don't want blood I also want him dead," you said feeling confident as you said, the tail slowly put you on the ground when you think he let go of you but suddenly grabbed you by his hands.

"I'll take your little princess with me," he said and started to swing his wings and fly away from the village, you looked shocked and tried to stop him but he didn't listen and flew away.

"Where are you taking me," you asked the dragon you didn't mind struggling yourself or you might fall you both now in the high sky, and you left your nanny confused and terrified.

"I'll take you with me, don't worry you want freedom right, you want to runaway far away from here," he said and you realized how he knew what you wanted and you started to get confused.

"Let's go on a long journey together my dove, and I'll show you what's freedom," he said as he bit started to fly faster and you decide to go with this dragon, he might not want to kill you.

You want to stay with your nanny for the rest of your life as a normal person and leave the royal but this with the dragon is better, he can take you away from them and fly all over the world, if the dragon doesn't want you dead but hearing those words want you to be with him.

[pandora-writes-one-piece]

The Meet-Cute - Zoro's Story - 10

Source for pic

Trouble 10

Word Count: 4546

Tags For The Whole Story: Fem!Reader; Protective!Zoro; Soft!Zoro; Sexual Tension; Teasing; Flirting; Mature Audiences (I'll always tag the NSFW chapters); Modern Day AU; Reader is being stalked; Fear; Paranoia; Angst; Rom-Com Vibes; Mild Gore-like Descriptions; Blood; Reader in a terror-like state; Dead Animals Mentioned; Fluff; Romance; Banter; Manipulation; Miscommunication; Frustration; Reader is very clumsy;

Special Warning: English is not my first language, I apologise for any possible spelling or grammar mistakes.

Summary: After moving away from the hustle and bustle of Grand Line City to help your father around the property following a horse-riding accident - and in the hopes of healing your broken heart after your asshole ex-fiancé cheated - you settle into the country calmness of the Calm Belt. You and Zoro are slowly returning to your easy friendship filled with banter and flirting and you actually begin to glimpse a future with the green-haired cop. But then you start to receive weird gifts. They quickly escalate to manipulative texts. And now you're stuck in a spiral of terror and there's no way to get help because the Stalker, whoever he is, is threatening something other than just your life.

Notes: I feel like this story just keeps going from bad to worse! But bear with me, please! I hope you're enjoying reading this as much as I am writing it. Chapter 11 will be NSFW and will end with a cliffhanger, just a heads up!

Masterlist

Just in case people missed this, I can't stop raving about @laidenbreecatchall art for Zoro! Just look at him! *sigh* Okay, back to the story:

This can't be happening. It can't. It's all a bad dream, and you're bound to wake up soon, drenched in sweat and tears. It has to be a nightmare. 

Because the alternative is too terrifying. 

“Tremble for me, Kitten.” He purrs against your ear, his breath sickeningly hot, as the fingers he has wrapped around your neck squeeze with a gentleness you wouldn't associate with a psychopath. “I get so turned on by seeing you scared.”

Gross. Sick. Disturbing. 

Why does nobody come to your aid? The club is packed, doesn't anybody sense your distress? You try to move your head around in the vain hope of making eye contact with someone - anyone - but he just squeezes tighter. His chuckle is low, and somehow, you still hear it perfectly, even with the loud music thumping away in an infernal rhythm. 

“Nobody is coming to help you, Princess. To everybody else, we look like a couple.” The hand that's gripping your wrist, holding it tight against your waist, pushes further, and you feel him pressed against your back. “To everybody else, you look like you're mine.” 

He moves his lips, placing wet kisses along your neck as you sob softly. There's barely enough strength in you for more than that. You're terrified. Fight or flight instinct? How about frozen in fear? And what does he plan to do to you? Kidnap you? Abuse you? Kill you? 

You try to turn your head to the side to get a glimpse of who he is because you can't shake the feeling that you've heard this voice before. You know this man. But the movement only makes him squeeze your neck tighter, and the only thing you glimpse is a black beanie. 

“Not yet, Princess. You're not ready to see me yet.” He tuts softly and inhales your hair with a lewd groan. “Now… you know why I'm here, right? You misbehaved. You let the cop stay the night; you let the cop touch you; you let the cop kiss you.” He growls as he delivers the sentences, and his hand grips your wrist tighter. You're starting to lose feeling in the tips of your fingers as he seems to be cutting off your circulation. “I don't want to do this, Kitten, but I need to punish you. You need to learn.”

He sounds upset. Almost as if he's actually sorry he has to do this to you. 

“But first…” He removes his hand from your neck, but it's as though a phantom limb is still pressed against your throat. The power and terror he exerts over you are unthinkable and terrifying. Then, you feel a weight in your pocket, and he sighs against your ear. “Here's your phone back, Princess. I got it from our kitchen drawer.” Our? “You can't shut me out. You won't change your phone again. Got it?”

You stay still, feeling dizzy and lightheaded. Your heart is thumping in such an insane rhythm that you wonder how you're not having a heart attack right now. 

“Do you understand?” His free hand climbs your nape and grips your hair. When he pulls, you gasp and nod stiffly. “Good girl.” Another purr makes your ear vibrate, and you tremble from the heat of his breath against your skin. 

His feverish touch travels from your nape to your neck, then to your clavicle, his nimble fingers gathering the fabric of your clothes as he exposes the flesh of your shoulder. Another involuntary shudder makes you tremble as you plead silently for one of your friends to come find you. 

“You will do as I say and stop indulging the cop. Sever the connection, Kitten, or I will. And you won't like it.” His lips hover over your shoulder, and the hand on your wrist keeps squeezing. The bite of the bracelet is harsh and unforgiving, making your blood run cold. 

“It would be the simplest thing. He gets called to an emergency and simply gets shot…” The stalker's chuckle sounds unhinged. “Boo-hoo. Another cop killed in the line of duty. No one would blink an eye.” Your lower lip trembles, and your heart constricts. He’s capable of hurting Zoro. And if Zoro dies, it's your fault. “But you'd know why he died. Do you want that, Kitten?”

“D–don't hurt him.” You whisper, and it's unlikely he heard you over all the loud noise of the club. Even so, for you, it seems as if the music is coming from a faraway place. 

“That is entirely up to you.” He sighs, and you close your eyes. “Your punishment, Princess.” Then, his massive gloved hand covers your mouth as he sinks his teeth deep into your shoulder. You feel a sharp sting of pain traveling down your arm and back. Tears sting your eyes and your sobs drown in a muffled whine against his hand. The pain is blinding and hot, and you're pretty sure he's drawing blood. 

A stark realisation hits you just as he removes his teeth from your flesh, his tongue collecting droplets of blood as he eases the sting. 

He's marking you. 

“Mine.” He growls, and a tear rolls down your cheek. 

You feel helpless, violated, and terrified. 

“You won't disobey me anymore, Kitten. You won't misbehave anymore, and more importantly, you'll get rid of the cop.” His hand leaves your mouth as he fixes your clothes to cover up the bite mark. “Or I will. Don't forget it.”

His other hand releases your wrist, and you let out a ragged breath as your fingers twitch from lack of circulation. 

He's still pressing against you. 

“You're almost ready. We'll be so happy together, Kitten.” Your head slumps forward when he presses his lips against the back of it in a mockery of affection. “Don't disappoint me anymore.”

Then, just as swiftly as he approached you, he leaves. You turn quickly on the spot, trying to get a glimpse of your tormentor, but you only seem to catch a sliver of white. 

Was it hair? Clothes? The reflection of the lights? 

Or just your tears playing tricks on your mind? 

With trembling fingers and uneven breaths, you dislodge the bracelet that seemed to mould into your skin. The redness is daunting - it will bruise. Another whimper makes your lower lip tremble as you try to keep your wits about you. 

You need to calm down. You need to act like nothing happened. 

Zoro will be here any second now, and the stalker's threats were very clear. He'll hurt Zoro. He'll get rid of him if you don't push him away - whatever that might mean, so your plan to tell Zoro everything just went out the window. 

You need to keep him safe. At all costs. 

“Miss, your drinks are ready.”

A gasp leaves your lips, and you nod at the bartender. You’re still massaging your wrist, trying to alleviate some of the redness, but it's not disappearing. It's just getting worse. 

The way your heart is beating out of sync is a testament to how scared you still are. You need to compose yourself. New plan: take the drinks to the table and immediately excuse yourself to go to the bathroom. Then maybe you can leave, claiming to be sick. You can't disguise the bruising on your wrist, though. Thank heavens the bite on your shoulder is hidden. 

With a steadying nod, you pick up the tray of beverages and make your way to the booth. 

Leave the drinks. Bathroom. Excuse. Home.

It's simple. You can do it. And then you can work out a plan. Maybe you can make an anonymous tip to the police about your stalker. Would that work? Or beg Ichiji again for protection? Even if you have to grovel? Maybe ask your father where he stores his rifle and take matters into your own hands?

You try to ignore the fact that just the stalker’s presence left you frozen in fear. It's highly unlikely you can fight for yourself. Who are you trying to kid? 

Leave the drinks. Bathroom. Excuse. Home.

You repeat the words like a mantra, but as soon as you set the tray on the table, you feel a touch on your waist, making you immediately flinch and hide your arm behind your back. 

“Hey, Troublemaker.”

“Zoro!” The moment your eyes fall on his, all your resolve crumbles. He can help you, you know he can. 

“Get rid of the cop… Or I will.”

“He gets called to an emergency and simply gets shot.”

No. You can't tell him anything. 

Not yet, at least. Not before you have a foolproof plan to protect him. Can his captain help? Surely he can. You just need time to think this through. You need to shake away the fear and think with a cool head. 

“Are you alright?” Zoro's eye scans your face. It's most likely still red. Your eyes still feel watery, and you're sure he's picking up on those signs. Zoro's hand still lingers on your waist, so you shuffle away from him and force a smile, your arm tucked behind your back. 

“Yes, Zoro. I'm fine. Did everything work out with the bomb threat?” You step away from him and distribute the drinks with just one hand, your jaw clenching with the fakest smile you've ever produced. 

“Not really, it was a freaking mess.” He sighs, scratching the back of his neck. “Most of the time, these things are fake. Someone wants attention and pulls one of these, thinking it's funny. This time, it was a real threat.”

A small gasp leaves your lips as you lock eyes with Zoro again. A real bomb? But… Does that mean it wasn't the stalker who planted it? Or does it mean it was him, and he's just showing you again how seriously he can play? 

How easily can he hurt Zoro?

“Another cop killed in the line of duty.”

“Shit.” You exclaim, and Zoro nods while reaching for a beer from the tray. After a sip, his expression softens, and he reaches for your waist again. 

“Come here. We can talk later - we need to talk later - but for now… just come here.” 

Your heart thumps louder than the music, and you feel your phone vibrating in your pocket. He's still watching. 

“It would be the simplest thing…”

You take a step back to avoid Zoro's touch, your smile faltering as you try your hardest to keep a neutral expression. 

“Trouble?” Zoro reaches again, and it's like your chest is exploding as you avoid his touch once more. “You're running again.”

The faintest flicker of pain darkens Zoro's gaze, and you bite your lower lip just to keep it from trembling. 

“I'm not… I… I have to go to the bathroom.” And before he says something else, you rush towards the dimly lit corridor that leads to the bathrooms, but before you can take refuge inside, you hear Zoro call your name. 

He’s following you. 

You pretend that you don't hear him and press on, hastening your step. 

“Wait!” He calls you again, and you raise your hand to push the door open, unshed tears are already pricking the back of your eyes. Would it be simpler to just tell him everything and hope for the best? 

“You'd know why he died.”

You can't tell him. 

“Trouble, stop!” Zoro nearly growls, his hand wrapping around your injured wrist in an effort to stop you. Instant pain shoots up your arm as you let out a hiss and a grunt. Stopping and turning towards him with a pained expression on your face, you almost let out a sob. 

Zoro releases you instantly, his hands shooting up in a defeated position while his brows scrunch, searching your face for any clue as to why you reacted like this. 

“I barely touched you.” Then it happens fast, and you don't have time to react. 

Zoro's eye lowers as his gaze settles on your bruised wrist. You see it widen, his pupil dilating as realisation washes over him. 

“What the fuck?” The music seems farther away in the bathroom corridor, yet it still vibrates low, making your chest thump in the same rhythm as the electronic tempo, but the buzzing in your ears doesn't come from the loud noise. 

You've been caught. 

“Who the fuck did this to you?” Zoro takes a menacing step forward, and you can physically feel the way the air shifts. You have no time to react when he grabs your arm again - avoiding the bruised area - and inspects it, revulsion and fury contorting his expression. “Tell me, Trouble. Now.” Zoro's tone brooks no arguments. He sounds deadly serious. No. He just sounds deadly. 

“I–” You take a deep exhale and try to release your arm from Zoro's grasp, but it doesn't budge. His eye jumps from your face to your arm like he can't stand the sight of the bruise, but can't stand to look away either. “It's nothing, Zo!” You force a laugh, and it sounds fake and high-pitched. “I bumped into someone earlier and almost fell. The guy grabbed my wrist to keep me from falling, and the bracelet dug into my skin.” Another fake laugh. “You know how clumsy I am.”

That was believable. You think. 

Zoro's jaw clenches and unclenches, and he snaps his neck, rotating his head as he also takes a deep exhale, a gesture meant to calm himself down. 

“Lie to me one more time, Trouble…” 

“I'm not–”

“You are! That's not an accidental bruise! Stop trying to fucking gaslight me. What the fuck is going on? Who the fuck do I have to kill?”

Shit. Fuck. Shit. 

Bzzzz. Bzzzz. 

“You're being dramatic, Zoro, it really is nothing, I–” 

“You stop showing up, you look like a ghost, you don't eat, you're scared, jumpy, you run from me and avoid my touch. Yet yesterday, you clung to me as if I was your lifeline.” Zoro takes another step forward, and now he's almost flush with you. 

Safety. He's safety. 

Bzzzz. Bzzzz. 

“And now this? Let me in. Tell me what the fuck is going on.”

You can't. 

“Zo…”

“There you guys are! Come on! We're going to sing happy birthday to Nami before Luffy raids the fridge and eats the cake by himself.” Usopp says, without really realising he’s intruded on a private conversation, but you couldn't be more thankful to him. 

You take the opportunity while Zoro's distracted to actually run away from him, confirming his earlier affirmation that you're running and not caring one bit. 

He can hate you all he wants. He can even be hurt with you. 

You just can't bear it if he actually ends up hurt. 

Or worse. 

Dead. 

-*-

The thumping music stopped just for Nami. The DJ got the birthday melody playing, and the whole club is celebrating your friend's birthday, even the ones that don't know her. 

You can't stop a small smile from spreading on your lips: everybody loves Nami. 

You somehow managed to lose Zoro amongst the hordes of people - he's big and bulky, so that gives him more trouble to manoeuvre around the crowd - and as soon as Nami blows out the candles, just after she and Vivi share a sweet kiss, you hug her and make up a quick excuse to leave the party early. 

Then you flee the club without another thought. Not even caring if you don't have a ride home or if you didn't say goodbye to your friends. 

You just need to get away from Zoro and his questioning. 

The slight night chill and the difference in temperature make you shiver, though another buzz from your phone assures you the tremble comes from something other than the cold. 

Yet, before you take two steps, his voice makes you stop. 

“Stop running from us.” It’s Zoro. “Stop running from me.” He sounds exasperated and conflicted. 

Your shoulders slump forward as you inhale deeply. He's relentless, and he will get to the bottom of this if he keeps pushing. And you can't allow that. 

Even if it will destroy you. 

“Tell me what's wrong, Trouble.” You turn to face him, and your knees wobble. Zoro's eye is full of anguish. He runs a hand through his hair and paces forward - everything in his posture is desperate. “I don't know what else to do to help you. I've tried being tough, I've tried giving you space, I'm trying to be understanding… Trouble… meet me in the middle. Please.”

You can't do this. You can't. He looks so broken, so helpless. And this could be easily remedied if you just told him what's going on. 

But you can't. Because you know the Stalker will kill Zoro. And you can't bear that. You'd rather be scared and trapped for the rest of your life than risk Zoro's. 

Zoro sees you struggling and takes full advantage of it, trying to sway you by cupping your face as he forces you to look at him. 

“Let me in.” He pleads with a whisper. 

Closing your eyes, you open your mouth to speak, but it's as if your voice was stolen. The lump in your throat grows, and so does the pain in your chest. 

There's no other way. 

“You got it all wrong, Zoro.” Your voice sounds foreign and affected. Still, you now focus your gaze on Zoro's scar. Not his eye, you can't bear that. “I'm not interested. I never was.”

Zoro's hands twitch slightly as his brow furrows, but you barely give him time to process your words before you deliver more pain. 

“You just can't take a hint, can you? I'm trying to get away from you, but you keep pushing. I don't care for you like that, Zoro.”

You have to close your eyes to keep away the moisture and to prevent acknowledging Zoro's pain.

“Gosh, stop being clingy and needy. Leave me alone. That's all. I'm fine, I just need you to give me space.”

Zoro's hands part with your face torturously slow. You don't look him in the eye anymore, clenching your fists to prevent them from shivering violently. 

But you stand your ground. 

You need to push Zoro away. He needs to be safe. Even if your heart is shattering. 

“Bullshit.”

“What?”

He stopped touching you, but he didn't back away. And as your eyes raise to meet his, you can see steely determination where before was only despair. 

“You heard me: Bull. Shit.”

Bzzzz. Bzzzz. 

Fuck. 

“I'm dead serious, Zoro. This was fun and all, but I'm done. Leave me alone.”

You turn on your heel, trapping a sob behind clenched teeth and fighting back tears. 

“Is this how you want to play? I can see what you're trying to do, Trouble, and it's bullshit.”

Bzzzz. 

You shouldn't read it. 

Yet you do. 

Unknown: Try harder, Kitten, or I'll make him go away permanently. 

“I’m not playing at anything. You don't matter.” The words leave your lips in the form of a whisper, but they linger in the air as if they were poisonous gas. Your insides twist and turn, and you feel nauseous. 

“Say that again, Trouble.” You barely hear him, not only because of all the ringing in your ears, but also because his hurt is drowning the words. 

Bzzzz.

No, no, no. You can't. 

Bzzzz. 

You have to. 

“I said–”

“Turn around and say it to my face.”

A sob claws its way up your throat, and you swallow it back down. You need to keep it together for now. 

With a slow turn, you face Zoro's disbelief, willing your heart to slow down, trying to keep your own emotions at bay before you collapse in tears. 

“You don't matter.” You repeat the words, and the way Zoro's face turns from disbelief to pain is immediate and heartbreaking. “I was just having fun, but I didn't expect you to become so obsessed with me.”

You aimed to hurt, and it worked. 

Zoro takes a step back as his eye faces the ground. The way his chest rises up and down with heavy gasps almost brings out the tears you're trying so hard to suppress. 

“Goodbye.”

You turn and hasten your step, wanting to get away from him as fast as you can. 

“Fine.” Your steps waver for a second when you hear Zoro’s voice, before you return to your uneven stride. “Fine! I'll back off. But I know you're lying to me.”

He doesn't say anything else, and you don't want to acknowledge the pain you heard in his voice. The pain you caused. Because your own pain is unbearable and immense. 

And now you've pushed away the one person who would help and protect you unconditionally. 

Bzzzz. 

Unknown: That's my good girl. The punishment worked. You're almost ready. 

-*-

Fuck, fuck, fuck! 

Zoro grits his teeth as his eye follows your shrinking form, watching it disappear into the dark horizon. Every freaking instinct tells him to follow you, but you've just pushed him away with everything you've got. 

‘You don't matter.’

“Fuck!”

“Hey! What's going on?” Usopp places his hand on Zoro's shoulder, and he sighs, running a desperate hand through his hair. 

“Nothing.” Then Zoro spots Kaya buttoning her jacket. “You leaving?”

“Yeah, I'm taking Kaya home, we have an early day tomorrow.” Usopp looks around and spots your disappearing form. “Where's she going?”

“What did you do?” Kaya interjects, hands already placed on her hips with a menacing scowl to back up her tiny, aggressive stance. Usopp’s brow raises at his girlfriend, and then he mimics her stance, his gaze also demanding answers Zoro doesn't really want to give. Zoro grits his teeth again, trapping a growl against them. He's so pissed, he can't even think straight. 

“I didn't do anything!” He answers, exasperated. “Fuck! Usopp, can you give her a ride home? She just fucking left.”

Usopp nods, and Kaya jogs a little, trying to catch up with you before you gain more distance from them. So Zoro starts walking towards the club again before you come back, wanting to avoid another confrontation. 

“Thanks.” He pats Usopp’s back and goes inside to say goodbye to his friends and grab his stuff. 

This shit’s not over. You may think you've pushed him away with your performance, but all you did was reel him in more. Zoro had his suspicions, but now he's sure. 

Someone is messing with you. And though his brain is telling him that someone is connected to Lucci and the store clerk, his heart is trying to push that possibility away. Because that fucker is dangerous, and Zoro's hoping against all hope that he didn't set his eyes on you. 

Or Zoro’s going to have to murder someone. 

Zoro's jaw keeps clenching as he drives towards the station. Even though he has the night off, he can't stay still. He's going to present his suspicions to Captain Mihawk and then forge a plan to protect you. Even if he has to drag your ass to the station and lock you in a cell. 

He'll fucking do it. 

Anything to keep you safe. 

You're not going to spend another fucking day terrified of something you won't even tell him about. 

‘You don't matter.”

Like shit, he doesn't. You can lie to him all you want. 

He'll never give up on you. 

-*-

It's barely after midnight when Usopp and Kaya drop you off at home. They have to get up early in the morning, so they couldn't party  late, and you told them you weren’t feeling very well. 

Neither of them pressed because they could clearly see the tears you were trying so hard to fight back. And you're sure they both know that you're crying because of Zoro, seeing as it was him who told them to give you a ride. 

They just don't know that you were the asshole who brought the pain to both of you. 

As Usopp’s car disappears down the driveway, you bolt the lock on the front door and place a chair against the doorknob, knowing deep down that it won't keep the stalker away, but still aiming for a sense of safety you know you won't achieve. 

You do the same to your room, discard your club clothes, and finally look in the mirror to see the mark he left there. Your eyes widen as your trembling fingers run over the bruise: you can clearly identify the teeth marks, there's still caked blood around the wound and it's already turning a dark bruise colour.

You choke back sobs as you disinfect the wound and dress in your pyjamas. Outside, the weather seems to match your mood as you start to hear the gentle pitter-patter of the soft rain against the window. 

You feel drained and exhausted. You were, once again, pushed into a corner. Never have you felt so trapped, helpless, and lonely. All the earlier fight, the will to try and find ways to get out of this predicament, left your body along with the hurtful words you delivered to Zoro.

‘You don’t matter.’

Gosh… he’s everything! But if it takes breaking you both apart just to save him, then you’ll do it over and over again.

Tomorrow is another day, and maybe after some serious consideration, you’ll know what to do.

As you curl up in your bed, trying to stay awake, but already knowing you'll succumb to exhaustion after having cried your heart out, you glance at your buzzing phone before closing your eyes. 

Unknown: Such a good Kitten. My beautiful Princess. My love. Sleep. I'll watch over you. 

-*-

You wake up with a jolt, feeling that something is amiss. You look around, your eyes darting to every shadow and every corner because your room feels wrong. Yet, you find everything in the same place. The shadows are still, and the room is quiet. 

Your heart thrums against your chest, and you take a deep breath to try and calm down. It must've been a nightmare. 

Patting your nightstand, you grab your phone. 01:15. It's still so early. Why did you wake up so suddenly?

And then you notice it. At first, it's just a red blur standing in your nightstand, but then, as you focus your wet eyes, they widen in fear, and you clasp your hand over your mouth. 

There's a single red rose in the nightstand. He's been in your room. 

He was near you. 

A sob disturbs the quietness of the night, and almost immediately, it gets drowned out by a loud thunderclap. And then, you see something else. 

Trembling fingers reach out, and you grab the small paper: it's a photo. And when your eyes adjust to the image and your brain processes it, you stay frozen in place, your breath held in suspension as more tears flood your eyes. 

It’s a polaroid of you sleeping. Your brows are furrowed, and your cheek is wet, but what steals your breath is the huge, veiny, tanned hand that's gripping your hair in possession. The word ‘mine’ is scribbled in red across the picture in a distinct claim. 

He was in your house. 

He was in your room. 

He touched you. 

And you didn't even notice.

Taglist: @rosidaze @beachaddict48 @armiliadawn @jintaka-hane @sprinkklz @baby5555 @hopelesslover06 @mars-mizuko @sleepykittycx @nerium-lil @eustasscapitankid @ren-ni @jqperi @lycoriskalmia @daydreamer-in-training @iloveyoushanks @thegalaxysedge22 @kyllium @keiva1000 @chibinasuu @my-name-is-heartache @laidenbreecatchall

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[gethoce]

I know it has been a while but I've been very stressed out and still am but I really wanna wrap this up somehow regardless.

First of all WOW to think that Valfrey would be number 2 in total propaganda! Sure, a lot was just me, but bunch of other people came in and ended up drawing her and making me feel included despite me struggling to socialise!

I was hoping I could draw the characters of everyone who showed their support at one point or another to celebrate, but as things stand I can not realistically tackle such a task. Just know that I am very grateful and have not forgotten. Maybe I'll be able to pay back your kindness someday. </3

(My honest recap of the tournament as a whole under the cut)

As some may know, I didn't join the first tournament. I was way too worried it'd just stress me out to be put into a competitive situation. So why did I join the second tournament? Mostly to finally participate in one of these Kirby community events. Put myself out there for once, jump over my shadow and attempt to socialise a little. So how did it go?

Uuuuuraaaargh…??

Trouble started already when I posted my character intro. I chose Valfrey because she is my favourite OC even though she isn't even my own most popular character. I didn't expect her to do well given how most posts that included her largely flopped. Since I didn't have much time and felt pressured to post my intro quickly I used existing art and quickly wrote some summed up information about her. Perhaps I could have done one of these cool intros some people drew up but I felt like I'd not be able to do that without ending up even more stressed. While I didn't expect the post to do well it was… still a little disappointing that it didn't really get attention. Panicked I drew up the icon featured in this post which also flopped so I stopped using it as my icon not too long after. Curse this insecurity.

The next hurdle showed itself when I noticed that my intro post didn't get reblogged by the tournament blog either. I was on the list of participants but the reblog didn't come. I decided to just wait and hope that it's just stuck in the queue somewhere. … so I waited. And waited…and waited… until it was clear that my post could not have been in the queue. I was frankly too nervous about contacting the mods, but thanks to the help of an amazin friend they were contacted and my post was finally reblogged.

That was also when people finally began to interact with Valfrey in my inbox too. It may have been a coincidence but I felt like the reblog might have helped.

ROUND 1 …

I fully expected to lose immediately. There was little hope in my heart in that regard. What I wanted to do was have a good time sharing my work and interacting with others. I did not have a good time during round 1. First of all I was too nervous to even look at the poll initially. I just didn't want to see it. It was pretty late for me when it was uploaded anyway (I live in Europe, that is public knowledge) so I decided to go to bed after posting some art.

The next morning I checked the tournament discord server. I was told people have said nice things there about me and Valfrey before and I thought maybe there is something new to improve my mood a little. Things were pretty tough irl as well so I was looking forward to a little pick me up. … There was… certainly talk about me and Valfrey. But not the kind that would bring me any joy.

First of all I want to be clear here… DO NOT HARASS THE PEOPLE I AM GOING TO TALK ABOUT. I'll just call them A and B. I just want to talk about my experience and hope that people will be more mindful in the future.

So, that not so beautiful Monday morning I stumbled across this conversation on the very much public discord server between A and B. A was apparently nervous because I had not yet responded to a message they sent me. Again, I live in Europe. It was night time for me. On a Sunday. For some reason neither of these two even considered time zones. One speculated that I was probably “getting flooded by asks” because they thought I have “a huge following” while the other thought I might be sick. The latter seems a bit more charitable at least but come on… I have things to do. Like sleeping at night. Just so you know the message A sent me was the only one I got that night. I have a niche blog within a niche fandom. I do not have a huge following, especially not the kind of following that would “flood me with asks”.

And then… oh, and then… B decided to hype up my opponent's OC… and tear down Valfrey afterwards. They basically called my work uncreative. This is something I do have absolutely no tolerance for. I dont even care which OC you are talking about, mine or anyone else's, this is unacceptable behaviour. Even if you do not like an OC, not all thoughts need to be expressed. You won't ever catch me badmouth anyone's OC even in DMs. You can compliment one OC without tearing down another.

I couldn't bring myself to answer that message for a few days and then finally told them that I am uncomfortable with what was said on the server and didn't want to continue interacting and blocked both A and B.

The next three rounds thankfully went rather smoothly. There was Artfight in between so I had less time to work on tournament stuff. Mostly narrow wins for Valfrey! Good fights and all. I even became comfortable enough to look at the polls sometimes. Not enough to look at the notes but still.

And then round 4 came around and you all know what happened. Some third party scumbag botted trying to get Valfrey to lose for unknown reason ruining the whole thing for both me and my opponent, who dropped out not long after and honestly I kinda wished I had too given what was waiting for me at round 5. I mostly kept quiet at the time believing in the ability of the mods to handle the situation. A lot of drama happened that I merely observed, not all related to the sabotage. I didn't think me chiming in too much would improve the situation so I didn't. It was very unpleasant overall and without going into too much detail I wished it could have been different. I honestly thought my opponent could have won against Valfrey naturally and was looking forward to it so I could catch a break but it wasn't meant to be.

Round 5… oh boy round 5… I really admired my opponent so I made sure to do some art after missing out the last few times! It was a tough battle and I was amazed to see Valfrey holding her own against such an incredible OC. I was certain her opponent would win in the end, they were leading by just a few percent and I was fine with that. (I had been ready to call it a day for a while, really just wanted to get past round 3 so I could avoid the second chance bracket.) 

And then it happened again. Another sabotage against Valfrey. I still don't know why that happened and don't think that speculating based on nothing is helpful in any way, but part of me at least wanted to give it a good try to make it through the replacement poll out of spite towards the scumbag who attacked me twice. I still fully expected my opponent to win, that OC is just that great and very much rightfully popular, but we managed to win in the end!

I kind of wished I had just dropped out, however. My opponent hasn't interacted with me since and I'm afraid that event may have soured their view of me, which deeply saddens me. I don't know if there was anything I could have done to prevent this from happening after the sabotage occurred, but this wasn't a victory I could really celebrate. 

Now to the grand finale… This time things went smoothly with the new system. Valfrey was actually leading at the very beginning much to my surprise. I predicted my opponent would win the tournament from the start so seeing Valfrey do decently meant a lot. Of course we lost in the end. A win would have been pretty cool but I was always fine with losing. Burnout hit me hard at the time though so I went into hiatus for a bit to recover.

The whole tournament was immensely stressful for me a lot of the time. At least some instances didn't need to happen. One thing I haven't brought up yet that bothered me was the mischaracterisation of Valfrey. Early on most of the time she was paired with Sir Uther as his “Sleep Paralysis Demon”, her actual lore being brushed aside. They actually hardly knew each other and the demon thing was supposed to be a one time joke. It felt like she was merely an accessory to this other OC which kinda hurt to see.

Then there were the times she was referred to as a “reaper” and towards the end as the creator of the suns… I don't really use the term reaper in my lore at all. A few times I did say it in response to others using the term though so maybe that's where that came from. Then the sun thing… Perhaps I didn't do a good enough job explaining her lore, but she only created a few suns, not all of them. For the record, she is considered a valkyrie and the primary focuses of her character are: warrior poet, samurai, duality, souls and most importantly she is the Underworld (Yomi) personified. The sun thing is like a thing she did a long time ago and doesn't really think about much anymore.

Also a few times people thought she was a man which, considering her lore, was more funny to me than anything.

Anyway, in conclusion… things didn't quite go as well as I was hoping but other things positively surprised me! Largely a mixed bag. If I ever get to participate in another community event I hope it'll go more smoothly!

Hello again all! After the riveting finale of last year's tournament, we've spent a few months collecting a selection of fun stats into our final 2024 Tournament Review!

From which participant had the most propaganda posted, to the total number of votes cast across the event, to which canon Kirby species was most represented, we hope you'll enjoy this send-off for the 2024 tourney!!

. · ͙ * ̩̩͙˚ ̩̥̩̥ * ̩̩̥͙ ✩ * ̩̩̥͙ ˚ ̩̥̩̥ * ̩̩͙ ‧ ͙ . . · ͙ * ̩̩͙˚ ̩̥̩̥ * ̩̩̥͙ ✩ * ̩̩̥͙ ˚ ̩̥̩̥ * ̩̩͙ ‧ ͙ .

★ POLLS WITH THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF VOTES a selection of the highest performing polls that attracted the most public attention

Mama D vs J: 848 votes

★ Dawn vs Starry Dee: 749 votes ★ Fylass vs Clark: 741 votes ★ Astro vs Noir Fontaine vs Techie: 592 votes ★ Sir Meteor vs Life: 554 votes

★ CHARACTERS WITH THE MOST PROPAGANDA characters who had the most propaganda posts for them, either from their own creator or from other artists

Fecto Flora 155 posts

★ Valfrey 112 posts ★ Sir Uther 108 posts ★ Noir Fontaine 98 posts ★ Dotty 95 posts

After applications closed at the end of April, the tournament ran from May 10th, 2024 to October 28th, 2024, just a few days shy of six months! During this time...

★ 143 competitors joined the tournament and made friends ★ 1,813 Propaganda posts were made by the community supporting those competitors, and reblogged to the @kirbyoctournament blog ★ 202 polls were made pitting your favorites against each other ★ across those polls, 43,165 votes were cast ★ and of all these, winners starstruck dee and Rope MF received 1179 votes and 699 votes respectively over the course of the event

★ RANDOM STATS

★ 36% (52) of entered OCs were of the "orb" species, with 33 of those taking up the mantle of "knight" specifically. far and away the most represented species ★ Waddle dees were the next most common entrant, with 17 OCs. ★ Ripple Fairies were the least showcased non common-enemy/custom species type, with only a single representative! ★ Of all OC names, "S" was the most common initial at 16 OCs, a statistic we do feel is influenced by the frequency of "sir" before names. Removing those, it was the letter "A", with 13. ★ The least successful initial was the letter "J", with all but one of their 4 representatives (75%) falling in the first round.

★ PROPAGANDA WITH THE MOST CHARACTERS INCLUDED most tournament characters included in a single piece (or single series) of propaganda

★ Tournament OCs Part One and Part Two by @ivynajspyder with a total of 60 competitors

★ 55 competitors Havent You Noticed I'm A Star? by @giantchasm ★ 29 competitors and 2 non competitors (total 31 characters) Congrats To Fecto Flora! by @ceoofmetagala ★ And an honorable mention with 13 competitors and 15 non competitors (total 28 characters), Stargate Commemorative Piece, by @moonverc3x

During the tournament, creators and fans of all kinds arrived to showcase their best skills in support of their own ocs, their friends, and even brand new favorite characters they had found. While it's of course impossible to pick just one stand out piece -and we strongly recommend you check our full propaganda tag to see many more of these incredible works- here are some notable and unique highlights suggested by the Kirby OC Tourney community!

★ Propaganda Hijack; Music cover by @boa35 ★ Vote Dotty; by @cauliarty ★ Vote Flora; by @metagalacafe ★ Valfrey icon; by @gethoce ★ Friendly Talk; by @sacrificecage

★ Dont Stop Rope MF Now; Animated music video by @mint-termsandconditions ★ Just another Astral; by @aseuki ★ Tea Time; by @quanblovk ★ Nighty Knight Mod; by @windstriker427 ★ Tournament armours; by @rosiegardenlove

★ Havent You Noticed I'm A Star; Animated music video by @giantchasm ★ Motifs and Symbols; by @kirbybecomesastarwarrior ★ Surprise propaganda; by @poppybros-jr ★ Go Life!; by @shippyo ★ Not In The Lead; by @hnm-tech-support

★ Noir's Field Trip; Masterpost of art, comics and asks by @desultory-novice ★ Space battle; by @pinkestmenace ★ Only In Passing; by @what-is-love-babey-dont-hurt-me ★ Wolfbell's Illustrated Roleplays; by @zombiecicada ★ Not Over yet; by @a-stardusted-sky

. · ͙ * ̩̩͙˚ ̩̥̩̥ * ̩̩̥͙ ✩ * ̩̩̥͙ ˚ ̩̥̩̥ * ̩̩͙ ‧ ͙ . . · ͙ * ̩̩͙˚ ̩̥̩̥ * ̩̩̥͙ ✩ * ̩̩̥͙ ˚ ̩̥̩̥ * ̩̩͙ ‧ ͙ .

And with this, we officially conclude the 2024 Kirby OC Tournament event!

Over the next few days we will reblog a few final propaganda posts we received notifications for since October. We also have a new pinned post with an FAQ regarding the tournament and when things may be picked up next!

Thank you for coming along on the ride with us, for sharing your creativity and supporting OCs, and for helping us to make this into a wonderful and enriching community event!

See you around!

[according2thelore]

A bit too early for valentines day, but is it really a thing in America where kids would make valentines and give them to their classmates ?

Because the thought of lil Sammy coming home (or to the motel room) covered in glitter and absolutely vibrating with excitement over the huge glitter covered heart shape card he made during arts and crafts for Dean is absolutely adorable!!!

hi, anon!

alas!! when you sent this, you were right, it was early for valentine's, but because i have been fighting for my life against my studies in my corner of the world, it's now perfectly in time for valentine's day!! i'm so sorry!!

i looked it up, and apparently they do this in a few different countries (mostly handmade cards), but i know the US is absolutely one of them!

GAH! i LOVE this idea!!!!

art class is one of sam's favourites, because he doesn't really have to worry or be annoyed by learning the same things over and over again. if a teacher wants to talk about primary colours for the fourteenth time, sam has access to the art supplies on the table and can draw to his heart's content and not even have to listen. it's not like math or english or science where sam has to learn about fractions or proper nouns or the planets in the solar system for the eightieth time.

sam, aged six, approaches valentine's strategically. he knows his first grade class is in art period for exactly fifty minutes, so he plots out exactly how he wants to spend his time. there's construction paper and coloured pencils and markers and little plastic tubes of glitter and crinkle-cut scissors on the table.

sam is locked the fuck in while the teacher turns on the radio to her favourite jazz radio station, and other other kids are gossiping about who has a crush on who and how claire isn't making one for jenny because they're not friends anymore after she stole her sparkly hair band.

he copied the words he wanted from the class dictionary onto a piece of notebook paper right before class, so he pulls it out and copies out in the best script he can: Happy Valentine's Day.

mia vasquez, the nice girl that sits next to him in all of his classes because their last names are alphabetically right next to each other, is a lot better at using scissors than him (mostly because sam's hand is much better at maneuvering a knife) and cuts out a heart for him. at the end of his class, he is so proud. it turned out practically perfect.

when he sees dean waiting for him next to the front door of the school like he always does at the end of the day, he's too nervous to give it to him right away. before dean spots him, sam hides the card under his jacket that he's holding in his arms, because he's afraid the card will bend if he puts it in his backpack.

he's practically vibrating with excitement the whole walk home, smiling so wide that dean calls him 'dopey' and asks if any pretty girls gave him valentine's cards. sam says that his friend mia and him gave each other one at the end of the day, and dean teases him about it the rest of the way back to the motel.

sam's about to present dean his card, almost bouncing on his toes he's so thrilled to present dean with his card, when dean walks over to their bed.

dean slaps his backpack on the bed and grumbles as he reaches in and pulls out handful after handful of little pink slips of paper, covered in hearts and foam stickers of baby cupids.

sam's excitement sputters out. dean's gotten valentine's from the whole school, it looks like! and fourth grade valentines, too! sam's card feels lame by comparison. he moves his coat to hide his card more.

"what's that?" dean asks, when he notices the peek of red construction paper in sam's hands. sam quickly tries to hide it, but dean's too quick, snagging it out of his hands. sam's paralyzed, and his hands won't move even as dean flips it over in his own hands.

"some girl gave you this?" dean asks skeptically, annoyed. sam's about to snatch it back, when he flips the card open. his mouth falls open, eyebrows go up, and the tips of his ears turn pink as he mouths along to the paragraph sam left on the inside.

"do you like it?" sammy asks, nervous.

"do i like it?" dean repeats, incredulous. "sammy, this is great, man!"

sam perks up. suddenly, he's so excited again, just like he was on the walk home. he's practically shaking with excitement as dean exclaims over the card, asking sammy if he actually drew the doodle of the two of them on the inside cover.

glitter sheds on the motel carpet as sam walks dean through what everything on the card means. the three hearts on the cover represent him, dad, and dean. the tiny fourth heart at the top is the impala. the note on the inside is written in blue, dean's favourite colour. the little squiggle in dean's doodled hand is an army figure, and sam's holding the other one. sam even drew dean in his favourite shirt, see?

"thanks, sammy." dean says, and he props the card up right on the motel table, where the sun catches the glitter and splashes little red dots of light all over the carpet. "this is the best valentine's ever."

sam babbles about how he made the card while dean shovels all of the other valentine's he got from classmates into the motel's little trash can. dean's got all the valentine's he needs. they keep the candy, though, and that night, trade small chocolates back and forth while they sprawl on their bed, watching i love lucy reruns until they fall asleep, fingers still sticky with melted sugar.

twenty-three years later, sam's digging through dean's nightstand in the bunker, when he finds a little dented, tin altoids box. among the keepsakes in it, there's a folded up piece of red construction paper. when sam smoothes out the well-worn creases, it's a child's doodle of the two of them, stick-figure dean holding a shorter stick-figure sam's hand. Best Brothr Brothers Ever. the top reads. sam had no idea dean kept it--thought it had gotten lost or thrown away by the time dad had moved them a few more times--and sits on the floor for a long while, finger coming away with pieces of old glitter, carefully preserved and kept close.

EEK!!! this ask was SO fun, anon!!! thank you so much for sending it, and i hope you get to see this! i'm still not sure if anons get notified when folks reply. if you do, happy early valentine's day!!!

-lizzy <3

[scalene-4]

for somebody that didn’t really use a cellphone until age 12 and didn’t own an iphone until senior year of high school, i’ve certainly made up for lost time. unless i make a conscious effort to face reality on its own terms for the first 10min of being alive on a given day, i usually roll over and grab this stupid thing to look at what other people are up to on instagram or scroll twitter and bear witness to the terminal polarization of society itself play out in real time.

i have to admit, if it were anyone other than elon musk (a nasty petulant man child of a person who seems to have obsessively dedicated his energy and platform to making life miserable for people like myself after his famous pop star ex left him for a trans woman) who had done it, i would genuinely think that buying twitter and changing its name to “X” was a hilarious and ascended move. like anything else elon does, it comes off as the bloated and out of touch result of never being told “no” in your life.

having unfiltered access to social media fundamentally altered me as a person in a really weird and kafka-esque manner. before senior year i was shy and watched the social dynamics of people in my class play out from the sidelines, disappearing into worlds of my own creation with my siblings and close friends once the school bell rang. i was a quiet kid and felt like nobody liked me or saw me, so why would i want to engage socially with the greater Point Loma High School Bubble once i wasn’t physically forced to? of course, these feelings were largely cope as like any other human being i just wanted to feel part of it all and i hadn’t yet realized that channeling this feeling of alienation into art was my greatest superpower. i saw the feeling as a personal failing of sorts, empirical evidence that i didn’t belong because something in me was broken and fundamentally unlikeable. secretly, i wanted really badly to be seen as popular and regarded by my peers, something i probably have never fully reckoned with as my adult life has largely been defined by the pursuit of becoming a famous musician. the roots of that go further back though and that will be a post on here for another time — at this point i’m an angsty 17-year-old completely cut off from the various social dealings of my classmates once school is out and i’m home with my guitar or a pen and paper or a lump of clay.

that all changed once i got an iphone 4S in the fall of my senior year. i immediately downloaded instagram and twitter and snapchat, wasting no breath in making up for lost time. i found that many of my classmates were quick to follow me back and engage with me on those sites, and i quickly became addicted to twitter in particular. the refreshing of the interface and pace of conversation and the way all of our adolescent drama played out for all to see in real time was basically kerosene for synapses yet to be fried on various psychoactive substances. i started making new friends at school from twitter, popular and attractive friends. i didn’t notice it at the time, but my previously regimented and passionate pursuit of excellence in songwriting and my instrument began to fade into the background as i was going to more parties and snapchatting girls and generally becoming a bit more full of myself with each passing day.

i like to joke that if i’d found tumblr at that age and had used soundcloud for discovery instead of just posting half baked acoustic demos to impress my classmates, i probably would have realized i was trans a lot earlier than i did. i tell myself that things play out the way they’re supposed to.

as time went on and the people from my phone began to see who i was in real life, i think whatever charm i was somehow able to conjure initially faded as i grew ever more confident in behaving like the exact kind of person i hated. i got too drunk at every party, i acted snide towards friends of mine i deemed to somehow be lower than me on my imaginary social ladder, i checked twitter every 45 seconds and i treated anybody foolish enough to date me like a disposable accessory. and the thing is, i wasn’t even really popular by any means. i think people kind of just put up with me because i was around.

i can’t blame my phone for this shift because it was simply the catalyst for igniting teenage insecurity into an unstoppable inferno of cringe behavior and self-centeredness. the nature of a tool depends entirely on the hands making use of it, and unfortunately those hands happened to also belong to a tool. thankfully about a week into college i fell in with a wonderful group of friends who immediately put me in my place and to this day we’re all still pretty close. they saw the lonely girl behind the toolish exterior and something about her was worth loving, even if she said dumb shit sometimes.

like i said just now, i don’t blame technology in principle for amplifying the worst parts of human psychology and behavior. i think those traits are things we need to reckon with in an existential sense, and we’ll always be inventing new things that enable our worst selves. however, i think right now in particular that dynamic is functioning at its most sinister in terms of our greater society.

we have just elected a convicted felon slash rapist slash racist slash wannabe dictator, someone who by any objective account had a messy and disastrous first attempt at the presidency and has wasted no time in round 2 sowing fear and hatred and platforming bigotry. so many people agree this man and his underlings should be taken down, but thanks to social media being the forum for these conversations most if not all attempts at collectivizing and strategizing seem to devolve into a mushy goo. no one can agree on who’s leftist enough or what constitutes bulletproof moral standing — my own community can’t even agree on who’s trans enough. no one wants to say it but i feel like all of this is largely due to the way these platforms incentivize negative engagement, and shrink our scope by addicting us to instant gratification. it’s a far quicker serotonin boost to dunk on some teenager with therian lesbian (it/she) in bio than to dismantle oppressive institutions over time collectively. we’re all hooked on feeling like we’re right and more importantly, like someone else is wrong.

i love the one meme where the left is arguing about whether or not a dog is allowed to play basketball or not, while a dog runs around the court dunking on all of them.

rich people will always have access to healthcare and abortion and be free to express their sexuality however they’d like (just look at how grindr activity spikes at any given RNC event), their decadent lifestyle directly subsidized by us peasants and our phone addictions. i think it is absolutely fucking insane that so many of us regularly acknowledge and joke about the fact that we’re being watched and our activities online are recorded and farmed and sold to advertisers. our going back and forth on x dot com about which pronouns are real actively and materially makes money for these people. our attention spans are so short that they can just keep introducing new events to milk our stupidity for capital and widen the gap as the world around us literally burns to death.

i think the whole luigi thing was a psyop sometimes.

think about it: wouldn’t it be in the ruling class’ best interest to knock off a mid tier ceo in a time of growing social unrest and awareness of the evils of that class? tiktok made it impossible to ignore the genocide israel has been committing on palestine for the better half of a century. even if we don’t always use them responsibly, we have open forums from which to commiserate and collectively realize that life doesn’t have to be this unfair. if i were a billionaire oligarch and could afford to do any insidious thing i wanted, my billionaire oligarch friends and i would absolutely sacrifice a lower tier one of our own in a staged event to placate the masses. when brian thompson was executed like a dog in the street we all pretended that it was this massive instant of social awakening and class consciousness, but really what happened is it gave us all means to sit on our laurels and pat ourselves on the back because Someone Else Had Done It For Us. notice there wasn’t a copycat killer! nothing happened! there was a highly publicized chase (the evidence every step of the way looking extremely convenient and staged) and then it turned out they found a guy and he was hot, and once he was imprisoned that was kind of the end of it. CEOs continue to leech off of us and destroy the planet with no fear of retribution, while the rest of us go online and tell ourselves good job.

tools are what we make of them. i think in this crucial time we’re experiencing, this rapid fall to fascism that is ALREADY TAKING PLACE, we either need to learn how to use the tools we have responsibly and intentionally, or perhaps make use of new or different ones. i feel every day like true class consciousness and organized uprising is within our grasp, yet we keep shooting ourselves in the foot while they laugh. i hope with all of my heart that the next brian thompson (would be awesome if it was elon) faces justice at the hands of the people, truly. no frills or discourse or fancam edits, just cold lead karma and an awkward gmod ragdoll pose on the ground.

regardless, it’s about to keep getting uglier and while i reserve no love for these disgusting rich pigs i’m trying to have a greater sense of patience and empathy for everyone else and even for myself. no one’s looking out for us anymore and it’s clear they never were; now that us faggots and trannies have lost our value as a photo op the democrats aren’t coming to save us. i have faith in and love for the people around me and hold a firm belief that we will have each others’ back once the chips are down.

i also wonder how much of my data has been sold in the time it took to type all this.

[joetamy]

I love Doma, so much- besides his character alone, imma post things I like about his design. Cause I can ùwú If you wanna see my simpus supremus post, read more under the cut! 🙌

Ahem... LOOK AT THE SIZE OF HIS HANDS ! ! He's huge! This is a me thing maybe but that's very✨pleasant✨ Other than that, the design for his hands are so elegant.. yet strong- he has long nails as the upper two, which- slayyy~

The blood-like pattern is visually appealing, honestly just such good design. If you want to make hands more interesting, have some kind of detail like this to draw your eyes to them. Gah... GAH 🔥

His range of expression! And just.... his face- For someone with no emotion, he sure has studied expressing whatever he wants accurately. Surprise, joy, sympathy, sadness, determination- you name it, he can fake it. And as is the point of his character to some extent, he has beautiful eyes. Both in shape and color. 🌈

His eyebrows are wonderful, it's not often creators make a character this attractive and then give them a set of nice and thick eyebrows. I feel it's so common to think of it as unattractive but.. honestly- I disagree. I have had thick eyebrows my entire life, and I am extremely grateful for that. Anyway, this next one is just.. demons in general from Demon Slayer. But! Their teeth, they are so large. Every demon with these kind of teeth just... they seem so- idk- comfy looking. It's odd, but very appealing! (I checked in with some friends and they agree! Demon chompers are very nice to look at!

HIS HAIR! For real, long long ago, when watching the hobbit and lord of the rings, something flipped in me in regard to what I find appealing on men. Long hair. There is a reason I love Tolkien's elves ahah. And it's just the same with Doma. 🥰 Regardless if it is beautiful, smooth and soft or jagged and wild- it does not matter. Men suit long hair so much more than they think, it makes me so happy whenever a character is given long hair. And I mean LONG, not that "barely touching the shoulders" bs. That's not long, that's medium.

It actually pains me when someone draws a man who has long hair- with short hair. Like.. slay, live your dreams. But come oooon- let the 10% of men with long hair in fiction keep it, plz- I beg. (not actually that serious, do what makes you happy <3) With some help from two of my friends, I'd like to point out his build and how he visually reads vs. his behaviors! While Doma is quite a big guy, with broad shoulders and a very tall frame. He acts and is drawn very innocently! (Note: Slim waist alert 🔥)

He is often drawn in a way that makes him seem quite harmless. He sits in a way that makes him seem smaller than he is (Especially during the upper moon meeting), he's often smiling, laughing and otherwise messing around. He also somewhat slumps his shoulders sometimes. All this really makes his behavior stand out, since it is such a contrast to how he makes himself appear. He talks down to people in such a casual way, he's creepy at times, intimidating- and that gets multiplied by 100 when he no longer acts all aloof and sweet.

On top of all this- he is very muscular, but he wears a baggy turtleneck and very loose pants. Which is anotherfor him to seem far less intimidating visually.

This has all been manga so far, but here's an honorable mention to the anime. This scene was so well done. He is smiling softly through the entire scene, but does not express as much as he does while being upper two. His voice range moves but not along with his expression, which make it feel as if something is off and I love it.

Sidenote, the voice actor they picked for him- chef kiss 💕 Some of this might be a reach, or personal conclusion of course. But when I have an interest, why not share it. Maybe some people will agree, maybe some won't. Either is fine! And feel free to tell me what you agree or disagree with, or just what you like about this guy. I am happy to hear 💖

[askyofexplodingstars]

“Why am I grinning? I guess I've been unusually happy lately...”

vibe song to go w this 💜🖤

[techno-foxx-comixx]

Springfest yippie

[sysig]

Moving out of concept art and into what’s Actually Done! Showcased here are a couple expressions for both pets so far with their dialogue balloons - mostly pulled from NPC references, but I did get a screenshot of my pet in-game using it in reply, not just in Kinzchat! So cute <3

They’re both introducing themselves here with the names I’ve given them, but I really wanted the process to be as Webkinz-like as possible, with a few extras :)

Which started with being able to pick pet pronouns! Thinking about it now, Webkinz doesn’t ask for player pronouns, does it? :0 But I wanted that to be an option too! It was...something of a process to go from one set of adjustable pronouns to three, especially as I haven’t played with any Ghosts that give you the option to assign both the character(s)’ and player’s pronouns! I had to give it a fair bit of thought of what to check against and how to not have them interfere with or overwrite each other (which did happen early on lol), but I got it! Only took a couple hours of frustrated-sleepily hammering away haha

These screenshots were taken pretty much back-to-back - the only thing changed here is what shell is being used, and shell-checking has come in soooo clutch here ahh, thank goodness ♥ Many and big thank-yous again to @cherryistired​​ for helping me troubleshoot menu shell-switching! Exactly what I needed, am very grateful :D

My original concept sketch of this process was perhaps a little overconfident in what I could accomplish for my first time playing in code lol; I have seen custom pronoun-setting though! And I think I probably could do that, but multiple pronouns... Again, I think I could, but... The name of the game was limiting my scope (lol) to see how many Different things I could implement in short order, so I’ll gladly take my three sets of pronouns and pet names vs. player name and go haha

It’s also a bit funny to look back on this little Diamond - I really haven’t drawn her much! Kind of loosely following Webkinz’ style, her face looks especially silly I think haha

I’ve also got my main menu balloon looking rather fabulous imo ✨ Technically there’s two - More and Back - and most of the features are Very Much in the Coming Soon To A Ghost Near You phase lol, but they’re all {bracketed} up to be filled in as I get their assets made :D There’s still a few placeholder pieces here and there - especially since I haven’t gotten to inter-Ghost communication just yet. Everything in its own time!

I ended up having a lot-a lot of fun with naming and renaming, I went a little silly with Just How Many reactions the pets could have to their names haha

They’ll refuse to be named after any of the Hosts directly, and they’ll give you a side-eye if the name is Close To but not Quite a match haha

The mischievous expression has gotten an awful lot of use already! Although I’ll probably change the “Nu-uh!” expression to something else once I have an alternative that fits better - I need that gradient-to-mad expression set so bad!

And although they won’t accept NPC names, you can name yourself after a Host, and they’ll react! :D There really is so much flexibility for Easter Eggs like this ahh, it’s fun!

All told, I ended up playing the most in Bootend, Menu, Nameteach (hgh), and String, although I’m realizing now that maybe a lot of the stuff I put in String belongs in Word...? It’s all been OnFunctions anyhow, and it’s organized in a way that makes sense to me but is perhaps not as intended lol - nothing says I can’t go back in and move some stuff around, as long as it continues to function properly haha. I’ve kept my error log neat and tidy!! As many times as I’ve broken something, I’ve fixed it thereafter! :D It’s a very satisfying process ♪

[seriousturd]

Random old grayscale doodles

Including my probably favorite Ellis expression I’ve made from a forever unfinished BMB comic:

[dreadful-luck]

GGS TEAM PAST!!!

[bumblingbabooshka]

Tuvok: The Monastery Years

[marblerose-rue]

completed my sophomore year of college :-) (and now im gonna sleep for the next 2374039475347 years)

[chibishortdeath]

Some attempts at a design for Selena :3. The second image is inspired by the wedding in Haunted Castle, but I changed Simon’s outfit cause idk I just can’t picture him being comfortable in a suit.

The last two of these are way more headcanon-y lol. They’re under a cut mostly in case my headcanons and story ideas change d(^^ ). One of them was inspired by a Kikuo song I was listening to while drawing lol, the song “Let’s Go to Heaven”.