#the latter is straight up a lie actually

[jasper-unofficial]

i think the first ever bl every person watched should be publicly available information about everyone in the fandom. cause that will tell me more about you than any personal information or eventual tier rankings ever could.

[typingbunny]

I‘m obsessed with this

Him pressing her to the ground

His body covering her entire body bc he's so tall and broad, the feeling of his weight on her

The handholding that functions as pinning her down

His red ears (might be from the cold though)

The hand on her cheeks + kinda holding her chin just bc he can since his hands are so big

This is only a guess but convince me that he's not parting her legs with his resting one leg dangerously close to the warmth he "needs"

On that note: the ice melting during the kiss

His outfit is not only pretty but I bet fun to take off as well-

Warning: this is just smut, pure filth.

If you’re not 18+ this is your cue to leave 🚪

Zayne is the type of boyfriend that makes you ride him while looking into his eyes until you can’t hold yourself up anymore because it’s so intense and he’s reaching so deep.

He loves this view. He may be under you but don’t let it fool you to think you’re in charge. If he wanted to he could just fuck into you from this angle by slightly working his hips towards you and make you see stars. However at this point, how hazy you are already that would be just cruel … wouldn’t it?

This angle allows him a prime view to just watch you as you chase your high by using him as not more than a means to get that release you’re craving.

He’s obsessed with you. He tries to hide how much he really adores you because he doesn’t want to scare you away with how much he actually wants you, needs you, but he is sure you can feel his heart pounding beneath your hands as you straddle him regardless of his attempts to mask it. The heart cannot lie.

He reaches up and cups your perky breasts in his big, surprisingly warm, hands. They are so warm they feel like fire on your skin so much it feels like they are trying to burn themselves onto Zayne’s favourite part of your body. After idly caressing your breasts, Zayne changes up the soothing manner and opts for increasing the roughness of his touch as he alternates between massaging them gently to squeezing them harshly from time to time, a feeling that goes straight to your core.

The look on your face, that cock-drunk expression: mouth slightly agape, eyes struggling to stay focused threatening to roll back and you tearing up because of how good he is making you feel. Zayne has jerked off to your face more times than he wants to admit.

He gently cups your face causing you to ground yourself a little and make eye contact with him. His thumb strokes over your cheek in an adoring manner until it travels down to your lips. They are pink and swollen and for a second he thinks about sinking his cock between them, but not now. Now he wants you to cum for him while he is buried deep inside of you. Deeper than any other man ever was nor would for that matter because that is out of question. No matter the circumstances or consequences, Zayne would hunt down whoever tried to replace him. He could easily make it look like an accident. Sometimes his love for you scares him but that’s a price he is willing to pay.

“Open.“

He doesn’t have to elaborate, you know exactly what he wants as you start sucking on his fingers like a shameless whore. His whore. Only his. Forever. The little velvet box bearing an engagement ring, that has been resting in his part of the closet for a while being a token for that.

“Good girl.“

He takes his wet fingers out of your mouth and swirls them around your nipple and a tiny moan erupts from you. Zayne chuckles and you send him a playful glare. That glare doesn’t hold up long though because drinking in how sinful your boyfriend looks under you, you’re quickly occupied with trying not to cum but rather ingrain that image into your memory so you’ll remember it for the rest of your life.

Black hair pushed back, slightly tousled; most likely a result of your doings earlier when his face was buried between your thighs. His cheeks and ears are red, a telltale sign that he is either embarrassed or aroused. Right now it’s the latter. His forehead is covered in beats of sweat and his eyes are filled with something that can be only described as pure lust.

You’re brought back to planet earth by a cold pinch of your sensitive nipples and another moan escapes you. That crazy motherfucker used his EVOL and it felt good. Make lemonade out of lemons or whatever they say.

This was the last straw to your somewhat composure. Now you are clutching onto his shoulders to hold yourself up as Zayne continues his assault on your nipples.

“Zayne-”

Hearing you moan his name always does it for him. He can feel something in him snap, most likely his self control and his blood practically starts to boil.

“Come here.”

And then, with a swift motion he just scoops you up into his arms pressing your chest against his as he rocks you up and down the whole length of cock like his personal fleshlight. If you weren’t moaning and screaming you’d be in awe of how strong he is as he rocks you up and down hitting deeper than you thought was ever possible, muscles flexing beneath his perfect skin. In an attempt to get even closer to him you bury your face into his neck and let yourself be consumed by Zayne’s smell, that certain smell you call home. God the things you’d do for this man.

Clutching your thighs, his fingertips leave little marks that knowing Zayne, he will profusely apologize for tomorrow. Meanwhile you’re holding onto his shoulders for dear life carelessly leaving little crescent moons on his back.

He once pointed out, how much he actually enjoys you “leaving a mark on him”. First you thought it was a typical Zayne move trying to comfort you so you don’t feel bad about hurting him. But one day when you where looking for pictures on his phone for a little gift you were preparing, a photoalbum for your anniversary, you found an interesting picture.

It was Zayne in front of your bedroom mirror trying to photograph said marks on his back. You contemplated to tease him with the evidence but the mental imagine of big mean Zayne (that’s at least what others who didn’t know him thought of him to be) standing in front of your bedroom mirror trying to get the perfect picture was too adorable. What you don’t know is that once he got it, he just stood there in the middle of the room looking at the picture, 6’1 of lovey-dovey mush with a loopy grin on his face.

So right now you are basically clawing at his back amping up the scratches the more he moans and curses under his breath.

Once he can’t take it anymore and the only thing on his mind is breeding you as he cums over and over again deep inside of you filling you up until you beg him to stop, he embraces you tightly and flips both of you so he is on top. Your legs are wrapped around his waist and he feels your wetness all over him. Immediately his hands find yours, interlacing your fingers. What looks like romantically holding hands is his gateway to restrain you, holding them tightly pinned over your head so your tits are completely exposed.

His lips find one sensitive nub and he starts devouring you while looking up at you through his lashes, and you swear if he keeps that up you’re going to reach your high from this alone.

“Zayne please-

M-Move!”

He detaches from his favourite toy, his personal little make her dumb button so to speak, to look at you, a twinkle in his eye. For a second he imagines what it would be like to make you suffer a little bit and make you beg for it. Because he knows you would beg for him. Just like you have many times.

You’re so fucked out and desperate for him it turns him on so much it almost hurts and though he swears couldn’t possibly be any harder he feels another wave of desire wash over him, threatening to drown him. Not only does he accept his fate, the thought weirdly enough makes him beyond happy and he struggles to hide the smirk creeping up on the corner of his by now swollen lips as he goes in for a kiss and you can’t help but surrender yourself to.

“ Whatever you want my love.”

He leans down whispering in your ear, voice laced with desire, and something slightly … sadistic?

“Just remember, you asked for it.”

From that point on, only the gods above can help you and the bed frame …

I don’t know why but I picture Zayne to be less of a butt guy and rather a boobie guy maybe because of cardio lmao … 💭

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

mob student appreciation time ⏰

In Crewel’s Rich Fur Coat vignettes, Grim blames Yuu for something that he did to avoid incurring the teacher’s wrath.

TO MY UTTER SHOCK, two mob students actually speak up to defend Yuu. This is huge because mobs are typically portrayed as instigators or bullies, especially early on in the main story.

One tells Grim to not blame Yuu and that it’s bad to lie. The other one straight up declares that it was Grim who is responsible for the mess. Now, while the latter goes on to say that Grim blaming others will get the rest of them into trouble too (implying that the mobs are only defending Yuu for selfish reasons/to avoid being punished themselves), I still appreciate this little moment 😭

[idolomantises]

I find Sarcastic Chorus's video on why he's quitting Helluva Boss really interesting but I'm kind of baffled by the number of people straight up not understanding his reasoning for quitting. I think it's interesting how both his video and the online reaction to it is basically the consequences of modern fandoms treating art like its something to mindlessly consume and not worth analyzing and critiqing, or else you're consuming it "wrong".

Like his argument isn't that he hates the show or that he was forcing himself to criticize the show, in fact one of his main problems was that he couldn't be MORE honest in his reviews because of how fans would react to it. The problem was that when your job is to analyze a show, and it has way too many problems to ignore, and you're dealing with a hyper-sensitive fanbase that's hostile to criticism, you end up feeling exhausted or flat out disinterested in reviewing it.

I actually find it really concerning that fans are coping so hard with him quitting that they're framing it like its his problem because he was "looking for problems on purpose" when it was pretty obvious that it genuinely makes him kind of miserable trying to pick apart the show's issues. I remember when he was SO confident that Hazbin Hotel would be amazing and "prove the haters wrong" only for him to acknowledge that it was a complete mess. I'm honestly more confused by the fans who watch a reviewer and then get mad when he... reviews things. It's not even that they disagree with him, but the audacity to even point out very noticeable flaws in the product is enough to set them off and accuse him of being a clout chaser and a hater. Like do you want to see a review or did you just want to watch someone lie to you and blindly praise a series for 30 minutes, because i find it really odd that so many fans are insistent that he should've done the latter.

I also got pretty annoyed by this insistence that he wouldn't have turned on this show if he didnt criticize it and "turned his brain off" instead which is the same stupid excuse people gave for Hazbin's sloppy writing. and I just find that just... baffling? Hazbin Hotel and Helluva Boss, as extremely flawed as they are, are clearly shows made with the clear intention of being taken seriously. Ffs the crew calls Helluva Boss "queer Bojack Horseman". Helluva Boss tackles topics like abuse, trauma, classism, racism, toxic relationships and redemption and Hazbin Hotel tackles themes like sexual trauma and abuse, redemption and religious oppression. But the problem is that both shows do it so poorly that people genuinely think that it's meant to be slop content that you're just supposed to turn your brain off and listen to.

I'm not going to forget when these fans were treating Helluva Boss's season 1 like peak queer representation and writing and insistent that Angel Dust was this amazingly well written gay male character that people only hated because he was messy and imperfect. Honestly kind of funny that I was chastised for saying that Angel Dust is just a sex joke only for the show, the crew, the merch, and even the damn playbill reduce him to just that. Slapping on trauma (especially knowing that its more of a fetish than a genuine exploration on male sexual abuse) doesn't really negate the fact that Angel Dust is poorly written. Side note: his fans are way too unhinged and aggressive, its getting very weird.

So its funny to me that now that Helluva Boss season 2 completely nose dived and Hazbin Hotel is a sloppy mess that feels more geared for children than adults, that now people are being told they're not allowed to analyze these shows or even pay attention to their problems, and are treated like idiots for doing so.

I think the problem is that I kind of think fans also notice the lowered quality of writing in both shows. because why aren't people actually defending the writing and character progression? instead of "Sarcastic Chorus is wrong because his criticism is incorrect and misses these points" its "Sarcastic Chorus is wrong because he should have shut his brain off and treated these shows like its cocomelon for adults"

[arc-misadventures]

The Beach: Co

Jaune: Ahh... Man I needed a drink after... after all of that... But, damn a cold drink under the hot sun on the beach; This just feels perfect.

Jaune: ...

Jaune: Shame though, I would have preferred a scotch on the rocks, than some simple fruity beverage. But, we are in the public so...

"Click!"

Jaune: Hmm...? Is that camera?

"Click!"

Jaune: Oi! Who's taking photos of me without my...? C-Coco?

"Click!"

Coco: Hello, Bunny Boy, looking good there~!

Jaune: Thank you, Mocha. You're looking...?

Jaune: Like a, E-Cup?

Coco: Right on the mark, Love~!

Jaune: Okay, first off: Your tits look fantastic~!

Coco: Thank you~!

Jaune: Secondly: The hell? I thought you were a, B-Cup why the hell were you hiding those delicious looking melons?!

Coco: Because, it's hard to coordinate an outfit with, E-Cup boobs.

Jaune: ...

Jaune: True, basically everything that, Glynda wears inadvertently flaunts her breasts. But, lie to me, Mocha why wouldn't you want to flaunt those?

Coco: Because, they're for your eyes only~!

Jaune: ...

Jaune: E-Excuse me?

Coco: I also wear a binder to help me coordinate an outfits, it also helps me see my feet so I can paint my toenails with open toe high heels.

Jaune: That is true, my sister often made me paint their toenails, because they can't see over their... larger assets...

Coco: Have you now~?

Jaune: ...

Jaune: Shit... Okay, I'll do it for you, but the feet better match the hands! Because, my sisters didn't do that, and it annoys the hell out of me!

Coco: Oh, Bunny Boy, you think I wouldn't do that~?

Jaune: Of course not, you have style, Mocha~!

Coco: Oh aren't you so sweet~!

Jaune: But, why are they for my eyes only...?

Coco: Because, if a girl looks at my large chest they will feel envy, and hatred towards me for having such large assets. But, if a man looks at me, their mind will be filled with lust, and depravity. They will look at me like I am a stack of meat with fat tits. I prefer the former more than the latter.

Jaune: I can see that...

Coco: But, when it comes to you, Jaune. I want you to look at me like that. I want you to look at me with thirst, desire, lust in your eyes~! I need you to gaze upon me, and undress me with your eyes. To imagine your hands grabbing them, squeezing them in your large muscular hands. I'll admit, it's often been a fantasy of mine where you rip my shirt off, tear my bra off my body, and manhandle my tits like mounds of clay in your bare hands~!

Jaune: Oh that... fuck that's hot...

Coco: Why do you think I fantasize about it, Love~!

Jaune: But, you're gay. A lesbian. Having the hots... sexual fantasies for me, a gay... That's pretty straight of you, Coco.

Coco: Well... I'm actually bi.

Jaune: Really, you are bisexual? I've know you for years, Coco, and not once have you ever given a guy so much as sides way glance.

Coco: Okay, I'm not really, bisexual. I'm night five percent gay, but I'm five percent straight for you~!

Jaune: Five percent straight for me; Really?

Coco: Can you blame me~? We have know each other for years, you've been there for me threw thick, and thin, through broken nail to torn dress. You were the first person I came out to, and when I fear rejection, and hatred, you instead told me it was okay if I flirted with your sister~! Only a man who absolutely trusts you would let a friend date their sister.

Jaune: W-Well, I thought you, and Saphron would be a cute couple...

Coco: Well, Spahron may be cute, but she can't coordinate an outfit for the life of her. But, you can do that at the drop of a hat. You showed me how sexy I could be with even the most pathetic of outfits.

Jaune: To be fair, bar being skimpy one can't really look sexy dressed as a clown...

Coco: True. But, Jaune... I'm not five percent straight for you, Jaune. I'm in love with you, Jaune. I may flick the bean to you, Jaune, but how many people dream of waking up with their lover holding them lovingly in their arms? I dream these dreams with you, Jaune. So, would you care to live out these dreams with me, Jaune~?

Jaune: Wow... holy... That... that's certainly... okay... Are you sure you're only five percent straight for me?

Coco: Well, maybe.. six percent?

Jaune: Mocha you tease.

Coco: So... would you look like to play with my girls~? Because, I'll admit, after seeing you in a speedo, and you're 'little friend' I've been dreaming of being of you being inside me~! And, I bet you've been thinking about being sandwich between me the moment you saw them~!

Jaune: ...

Jaune: Will we do some... fashion shows, this time showing of your pretty 'little' ladies~?

Coco: As many as you want~!

Jaune: Alright, shall we go to your place, or mine.

Coco: Mine. I have a hotel room high up in a sky scrapper, I've always wanted to do on a balcony~!

Jaune: Oh, spicy~! But wait, didn't you come here with, Velvet? Won't she be upset if she catches us in the act?

Coco: Well if she does, then we'll just have to invite her in on the action~!

Jaune: There's my nighty four percent lesbian~!

Coco: So, shall we make it ninhty three percent~?

Jaune: Now that's a challenge~!

///

Here's the, Coco story I mentioned about writing, @lar-mx

Link to ART

[meracyn]

hiii tysm for doing my req!!! mochi anon btw <33 i was trying to send an ask a few days ago but it wouldnt send thru so i hope it does this time 😭 can you write shuichi crush hcs? all fluffy fluff fluff (⁠.⁠ ⁠❛⁠ ⁠ᴗ⁠ ⁠❛⁠.⁠) thank youuuuuuuuu

୨୧ adoration ! ⋆

synopsis oh no. the ultimate detective has a crush!? or no- it isn’t..totally not. right? warnings cursing, a bit suggestive (miu + jokes) author’s notes HI LOVELYYYY THANK YOUUU for requesting again!!! and yes yes OFC I CANN these are so cute<3

GUYS HES A MF FIRETRUCK WITH HOW RED HIS FACE GETS ESPECIALLY SINCE HES PALE ASF IM CRYING

ok now back to being professional, my bad chat

at first, shuichi would probably not realize how he feels—or maybe he does, but tries to deny it. can he actually call it..love? he needs to be sure first, he’s afraid of anything bad happening, or he’s confusing this feeling with another emotion

thinks a lot about it. remembers days such as the day you two met and becoming friends, when all of a sudden his mind wanders off to how it would feel like to hold you in his arms, whisper sweet affirmations in your ear as you stir awake, to kissing you—

wait what? kissing!? boy does his entire face turn red as he’s shocked that his own mind thought of such thing. shuichi breathes a sigh of relief though, knowing that you aren’t near him at the moment, or else it could’ve gotten worse..

tends to stare at you more, paying attention to your small habits and body language, during his (unknowingly) lovesick phase shuichi becomes eager to learn more about you– thinking of ways to court you as you deserve. should he look for help online or ask his friends? somehow, he chose the latter.

“just ask to hook up and once you’re bangin’, say it with pride!” — miu advised while laughing

“i don’t know. why did you ask me?” — with a deadpanned expression, maki said

after asking more around (that’s a lie, he got too embarrassed to ask others and went straight to his bro, his last hope) kaito was the only one who had a good idea. what was it?

“you don’t need to do anything big to impress them, shuichi. talk to y/n and ask them out on a date, if you can’t say it out loud, write it on a note and put it in their locker, if they agree, make sure they have a good time and bam! confess”

aka the ultimate yapper

it takes him a while to gather the courage to ask you out, but shuichi has no rush—he’s content with just having this little (massive. that’s what she said) crush on you. he’s the type to giggle n shit if you ever compliment him or just pay attention to him in general

writes down notes about you– with things he wishes to say one day

[ratboyvince]

The Magnus Protocol - Glitch theory

In light of the current theory/assumption that in The Magnus Protocol, the audio glitches when the characters lie, I’ve been re listening!! And I’m going to be using this post and others to explore what this means for our beloved characters

The glitches aren’t on the transcript, sometimes there will be a direction like (uncertain) or (unconvincing), but thats the best i can do you for, otherwise you will have to take my word

First though, quick clarifications: what exactly is a lie in this context? - this is fairly obvious but i am including it for the avoidance of any doubt what i have gathered is that, in this theory we are assuming a lie is a character saying something they KNOW is not true in attempt to wilfully deceive someone

It is NOT:

A joke, or sarcasm

Believing something but being wrong

Finally, a lot of the lies i have so far are ones that are known to known to be untrue, what i will do is have a list of the blatant lies SO FAR to make my point, to work as support for the theory on this post then leave out any following ones to avoid making it excessively long.

The rest of them will be under the cut and more on a thread, sorted by episode. If i miss any, feel free to say!!

BLATANT LIES (theory support)

1.

Teddy: Colin was just saying how much of a BLAST he’s having (GLITCH) isn’t that right?

Lena: oh really.

Colin: Aye, sure (GLITCH)

Teddy: And how he’d love to take the after party to the Pub (GLITCH)

2.

Gwen: Sam? You okay?

Sam: um. Yeah. (GLITCH)

3.

Sam: cinnamon swirl. Please. (GLITCH)

4.

Gwen: Wait. Did you get me a coffee?

Sam: yeah. (GLITCH)

5.

Celia: Sorry, sorry, there was an emergency at home (GLITCH)

EPISODES 1-11 (where applicable) UNDER THE CUT

Episode 1

Teddy: Nahh, we’ll stay in touch, right?

Alice: Course…(GLITCH)

Alice either did not intend to keep in touch with Teddy, or genuinely just does not believe they will.

* saying she’ll miss him was NOT a lie, so it’s probably the latter

Episode 3

Sam: right, right i get it. Consider me *scared straight* (GLITCH)

He wasn’t taking Alice seriously, underestimating how serious it actually was (maybe even as light payback for her not taking him seriously)

Episode 5

Lena: I am certain that if he finds his current assignment unmanageable he can request assistance (GLITCH) or resign, of course…

She knows what the deal is with Central IT (whatever “the deal” may be), and just refuses to help. Maybe even sets up a little hostility between Lena and Colin?

Episode 7

Alice: listen, if you need to step out for some air-

Celia: no, I’m fine, really (GLITCH)

Celia was infact, not fine, probably because she recognised Chester’s voice as Jon “The Archivist” Sims himself and she’s freaked out

Episode 8

Gertrude: well I’m…sorry, but I don’t think gerry can help you. (GLITCH)

—

Gerry: -And then i left

Sam: and that’s all?

Gerry: Yeah I’m afraid so! (GLITCH)

Gertrude and Gerry know more than they’re letting on, and intentionally not sharing.

*Gerry not remembering most of it being true, means that while he’s probably leaving something out, there’s more he genuinely is lost on

Sam: I…may have given you a quick google

Celia: then…yeah. I’m doing a favour for Georgie. (GLITCH)

She Is Not Doing A Favour For Georgie - the research (teleportation, time travel, different universes) is more personal!

Episode 11

Sam: you keep glancing at the door

Alice: ah. It’s nothing (GLITCH)

—

Alice: it’ll be nothing! I’m just jumpy (GLITCH)

Alice is dismissing her anxiety following the trip to the institute.

Alice: “What have I told you about thinking?“

Sam: “Don’t.”

Alice: “That’s right.” (GLITCH)

Probably meaning that Alice is starting to doubt her own ideas, but is just pushing that uncertainty away because that’s what she does and she’s still more comfortable in ignorance, even if she doesn’t think it’s exactly RIGHT to ignore.

[amxrany]

!! CHAPTER 7 / DIASOMNIA ARC SPOILERS !!

We are making up for the fact that I haven't posted in a long time so let's go (Cater's Dream):

The group lands In Heartslabyul, where Leona bitches about Grim trying to choke him while Grim complains about Leona's hair slapping him in the face. Sebek agrees with Grim and tells Leona to tie his hair. But Leona's just starting a fight with Idia now because he gets to stay in his room while the others do the hard work. Idia ain't backing down either cuz he's the one making the cheat codes to make it easier for them to navigate the dream.

Deuce is just standing there, frozen. When Ortho asked him if he was alright, he actually exclaimed that he enjoyed the dream hopping. He's just gushing about how fun it feels while Silver just maintains a straight face, but he's glad Deuce is enjoying the dream hopping.

Dream!Ace makes his appearance and is surprised to see everyone. That's when Deuce makes a horrible lie that they came here to have tea (even Leona wasn't buying it 😭).

Dream!Ace asks Deuce if he saw the message the Housewarden sent on Magicam, which was odd since Riddle didn't seem like the type to use that for instructions. Deuce also calls Dream!Ace out for not wearing their dorm uniform but Dream!Ace just told him that it wasn't mandatory to wear it.

Well that's something odd for Riddle to do, this is where we get the feeling that Riddle isn't the Housewarden in this dream. Ortho asks if he can see what the trial looks like and to their surprise Dream!Ace said that the Housewarden is chill with outsiders watching the trial, even livestreaming it sometimes. That's when Dream!Ace runs off, with Deuce chasing after him.

The group follows after the two and we suddenly run into Dream!Deuce, who we knock out. But for some reason, Dream!Deuce still remained the same; in which Ortho thinks that it may be because the dreamer doesn't see them as a threat or Malleus doesn't realize that there's two copies of the same person running around.

We then reach the Heartslabyul Courtroom where the other members are in. Riddle also gets revealed here (it's basically him if he wasn't the Housewarden).

Then Cater makes his entrance by performing skateboard tricks in the courtroom and high-fiving Trey (who's still the Vice-Housewarden) in the process.

Cater's surprised with the amount of guests present today (but it was mostly towards Leona lmao), but Deuce tells him that he invited them for a tea party; in which Cater got really excited about and proceeded to post it on Magicam. Deuce's surprised that Cater's the Housewarden all of a sudden, but Leona said it isn't hard to find someone who wants to be a Housewarden because it's a nice feeling to be in power. Idia agrees, cuz who doesn't like leading rather than following?

Anyways they're holding a trial against someone who commited a crime during crocquet. It's basically just referencing Alice in Wonderland down to a T with Cater not being in the mood to hold an actual trial and just going straight to the verdict and Dream! Riddle serving as their guillotine (in a sense) with his UM. But Dream! Trey convinces Cater to hold a full trial since they have guests today.

Cater tells Deuce to bring in witnesses; the latter not knowing what to do, grabs Yuu and Grim and makes them go on the stand. When questioned, they both answered that they don't know anything. Cater tells the jury to takes and bruh Dream! Ace literally narrates the whole trial even saying that the witness doesn't know anything 💀.

Another witness is asked, so Deuce is now dragging a sleeping Leona to the stand 😭and Silver wonders if that's how he looks like when Sebek drags him when he's asleep. The questioning starts, but the still asleep Leona just mumbles about Ruggie getting him lunch and Cater just goes, "WRITE THAT DOWN, WRITE THAT DOWN!".

A third witness is called and Deuce chooses Silver. When questioned, Silver answered that he was having tea because it wasn't his unbirthday. That's when Dream! Trey's like "Cater isn't also your unbirthday today?", which Cater replies with, "That's true...IT'S PARTY TIME"

(good to know Riddle is still the insane boy we know in this dream)

The mood switches quickly, with the room changing colors and Cater getting pizza for everyone. We even get DJ RIDDLE???? IN THE HOUSE????

Everyone's just confused as to what's going in this dream. But Leona points out that this might be better than reality, which Deuce tries to retaliate but fails. That's when Idia replies that Heartslabyul in the previous years was a lot worse than Cater's dream. Both third years explained that Heartslabyul back in the day was absolute chaotic, but it all changed when Riddle became Housewarden. Leona adds it's still possible for the dorm to fall back to chaos if it still hasn't accepted the changes Riddle has done because they were so used to chaos that the sudden change may seem maddening.

Leona also speculates the possibility of Trey and Cater using Riddle for their own gain, which upsets Deuce as he tries to defend his seniors. But he once again fails under the arguments of Leona and Idia, making him also doubt them as well. But Cater suddenly appears, inviting them to eat. They try to leave, but each one of them slowly falls into temptation. With Trey, Riddle, and Ace aiming after Sebek, Silver and Deuce respectively; Cater goes after Leona, tempting him with tea. But Ortho comes in with a warning shot, who tells the group to snap out of it and that they're being tempted.

Unexpectedly, Cater becomes the darkness alongside the other Heartslabyul members. Everyone realizes that the Cater we were talking to was just a clone.

For some reason, the shadows just kept on coming. But then, the REAL Cater shows up, he was just going to show his clone something he saw on Magicam and he just proceeded to walk into black goop all over the place.

Cater sees Dream! Riddle and tires to get him to calm down, but seeing him as the darkness starts triggering Cater's memories. But what makes Cater remember everything was when Dream! Riddle uses his UM on Grim and Deuce.

Cater wakes up, and helps us defeat the darkness. Ortho shows him the video, and he tells Idia that the drawings he made were cute. He also asks Deuce about the others, in which the latter replies that they're still sleeping. Deuce also asks Cater about how he feels about Riddle, and if he preferred the previous housewarden. But Cater immediately shuts him down, saying that yeah he may have some issues with Riddle, but he has no intention of taking over the dorm himself; so he's fine with the way things are right now.

Lmao Cater's pissed at Leona and Idia for trying to stuff ideas into Deuce's head, but Deuce still trusts him regardless (awww)

Cater's also conversing with the other, calling Sebek "Sebek-chan" and Silver "Silver-kun" (Sebek did not like this). He's then asked to change out of his clothes, but he gets one more photo op as commemorations. We actually get to choose as to whose dream we're going to next, whether it is Ace or Trey. Cater wanted to reunite the freshman altogether so they decided on going to Ace's dream next.

Cater looks at his dream self and mutters why does he have a dream like this when being a housewarden isn't really his thing, which Silver overheard. But Cater tells him to keep it a secret from Riddle (now what does this mean).

And that's the end of this update, we're going to Ace's dream next so I wonder what will be in store for us there....

And before I forget this is the groovy for Cater's SSR

Can't wait to see you guys in the next update!

Next: Ace's Dream Previous: Deuce's Dream

(Note: This post is a summarized version of the update, info and pics comes from @/LBucchie, @/MostroLoungeVIP, and @/acesuuu on x/twt, give them some support if you can)

[sleep-i-ness]

6 Café Confrontations (Anthony Lockwood x Reader)

SERIES MASTERLIST | LOCKWOOD & CO MASTERLIST | GENERAL MASTERLIST

After the whole ordeal the day before, Kipps refused to let you out of his sight, tailing you to work and taking up a permanent position in the corner of the café. You kept his mug topped up with tea, giving him a look every time he tried to sneak money into the pocket of your apron, although you knew already that he would somehow win this battle. He hasn’t had to do this in a while; it’s been long enough since you left that the sweaty nights of tossing and turning had become a thing of the past. But you appreciate it nonetheless, even if you think he’s being rather overprotective. It’s not as if your dreams could follow you into the day.

Arif took one look at you when you’d come to open and shaken his head, eyes creasing at the sight of your dark bags and the slump to your shoulders. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what happened when Kipps hovered over your shoulder, giving him a weary smile that told far too much, and you hated the feeling of déjà vu that washes over the entire day. Much like before, Arif kept you busy with bussing tables and manning the register, not allowing you the opportunity to dwell on the itchy feeling bruised into your flesh. 

And so, you spent your day swept off your feet, darting between customers as you carried a slightly dented tray filled with mugs and various pastries. At least now you have the skill to avoid customers, rather than crashing straight into those who decided to suddenly stop in their path to stare at something interesting they’d spotted. They still irritate you to no end; what on earth could be so astounding outside the window that they needed to come to a complete halt in the middle of the café?

A polite cough interrupts your musings as you lie down the double espresso and almond croissant in front of the man in the bowler hat, who’d spent his entire time ordering trying to get a good glimpse down your shirt and made sure to use your name at the end of every sentence.

“Sorry, sir,” you smile, all teeth, as you turn to face whichever customer had decided that the coffee wasn’t made to their liking or whatever the problem is now. You really hate customer service sometimes, especially on a day like this when half of London chose to descend on the shop, undoubtedly because it had been mentioned in some article or TikTok as a “hidden gem”. Not that you aren’t happy that Arif was getting the business he finally deserved.

And you freeze, smile flickering slightly. “Lucy. What a pleasure. Can I get you anything?”

She nods a hello at you, casting her gaze quickly over your uniform, but whatever conclusion she comes to doesn’t show on her face. “I’m just here to collect some doughnuts; not sure if the boys rang ahead or anything.”

If they had, you hadn’t been the one on the phone and you purse your lips. “I’ll have a look for you; Anna’s been on takeaway orders today, so she’ll probably have written it down somewhere.”

“Anna?” Lucy frowns, and you catch Kipps’ stare as you head to the counter, Lucy trailing behind.

“My coworker; she’s just clocked out actually, so we’ll just hope that she left a list of orders for pick-up.” You grab a sheet of paper laying beside the phone which is covered in Anna’s unintelligible scrawl and sigh. As always, Anna appeared to have spent her time writing pretty lines of poetry rather than putting down anything of note, but you can hardly begrudge her for it. Being by the phone is by the far the most boring job in the store, other than closing, but you’ve done the latter so often that it’s a chore of muscle memory now.

You cast your eyes over her writing, looking for anything that might say Lockwood, Anthony, or Portland Row, but apart from a few strange squiggles, nothing looks quite right. “Sorry, Lucy, doesn’t look like they did. I can see what I can scrounge up from the cabinet, but it’ll be the day’s leftovers rather than your usual.”

“Fine by me. It’s on the boys and if they start complaining, I’ll remind them of it.”

You smile and grab a paper bag from the shelf. “Unfortunately, we’ve got mostly powdered left, and they’ll be pretty dry by now. If you want, I can set aside the last jam one in a separate bag for you.”

Lucy grins, and part of you notes that that was probably the first time she’s genuinely smiled at you before, and she looks quite pretty when she does. Her face is normally settled into a light sneer around you, although you don’t get the impression it’s because she thinks you’re below her. Then again you don’t get much of an impression from her anyway, other than the fact that she isn’t your biggest fan.

“Everything alright?” Kipps appears from nowhere, startling both you and Lucy and shattering whatever fragile amicability is starting to build.

“Yeah, Lucy’s here to pick up some doughnuts,” your mouth tilts, “and Lockwood forgot to order ahead.”

“Classic Lockwood.” Kipps rolls his eyes with a snort, and you catch the glare slipping onto Lucy’s face before she smooths it away. Someone’s protective.

She leans against the cabinet, and you have to bite your tongue to stop yourself from reprimanding her as you would the small children who press their sticky fingers against the glass and panted at the sight of sugar. “He also wanted to know if you two would stop by for dinner.”

“For dinner?” You grimace, not at the thought of having dinner with them – well only slightly – but more because of the strangeness of the invitation. Wasn’t one night in your company enough for them?

“Dinner?” Kipps echoes, and you glance over to see a similar expression as to your own, eyes widened, and one eyebrow quirked up.

Lucy shrugs. “I assume he wanted to have a bit more of a discussion than we managed last night.”

Your palms are sweaty, you realise, fingers white where they clench around the tongs, and so you let it clatter onto the counter to wipe your hands against your apron. Kipps flinches ever so slightly at the sound, head snapping in your direction.

“I don’t think that’s-”

“We could do dinner,” you interrupt, plastering on a better smile than the one you mustered for that customer earlier. “I’m off in half an hour so we can head up straight after.”

“Sounds good, do you mind if I hover around until then?” Lucy gives you a softer look than the complete glare she’s been sporting moments earlier, and there’s something tired about her. You can appreciate that Lockwood isn’t always the person you want to be around, and so you nod.

“Take any table you’d like. D’you want tea or anything?”

“I’m alright, thanks.” She grabs the paper bags you’ve left to one side for her, puts a fiver in their place, and takes up a perch at the table in the corner. How strange. The entire interaction feels like something out of an odd dream, although it does make sense as to why Lockwood would want to have dinner with you both. It would probably be more of a meeting than an actual dinner though.

--

“Good evening, good evening,” Lockwood beams as he holds the door open, Lucy, Kipps and finally you traipsing into the hallway, shivering slightly. He’s made you wait a good few minutes on the porch in the cold, and it got to the point where you were seriously considered huddling for warmth before he finally made it to the door.

As you diligently kick off your shoes and knock them to one side, using the bookshelf to steady yourself, you feel a hand caress your cheek and flinch. Not obviously, mind you; you have gotten used to the echoes in the building over your last few house calls, but it still catches you off guard at times. You glance up at the odd group in the hallway and spot Lockwood’s eyes fixed on you.

“Can I get your coat?” He’s at your side as you let go of the bookshelf, feeling yourself wobble before his hand catches your elbow and steadies you without a word. When you stand back upright, Lucy’s watching you; you can see her head tilted towards the two of you out of the corner of your eye, and the look on her face makes your stomach drop.

You nod, allowing him to help you out of the heavy wool, something you’d picked up for a bargain at a car boot sale when you’d got your first ever paycheck and it had seen you through far too much at this point. His fingers brush against your neck as he clasps the collar, fire trailing in their wake and you don’t know what to say as he continues to just watch you, even when hanging your coat on a hook. You don’t know quite what you’ve done to deserve Lockwood’s undivided attention, but it unnerves you in a way that you can’t quite put your finger on. Heat begins to crawl up the back of your neck at his direct stare, much like last night’s, ensnaring you in their odd fire. You swallow, throat bobbing as you wait for him to say something; you can’t stand the anticipation as his eyes remain fixed.

Until he breaks away at Lucy’s complaining.

“Could you not have got here any quicker?” She grouses, shaking for good measure. “It’s freezing out there.”

“Sorry, sorry,” Lockwood replies rather flippantly, and you aren’t quite sure what is up with his constant repetition. If you didn’t know better, you would assume he’s nervous. “George is busy with dinner, and I didn’t hear you until I’d come up from the basement. Come to the kitchen and I’m sure we can warm you up with tea. Did you get the doughnuts, Luce?”

She presses a crumpled bag into his hands, and you hide a smile at the other still peeking out of her pocket.

Lockwood’s face falls as he rifles through the bag. “Only powdered?”

“Well, someone forgot to ring ahead and so this was all they had.”

He looks so forlorn that you almost feel sorry for him, which is ridiculous, especially over something so trivial. And, as Lucy said, entirely his fault. But, even still, the pout he wore on his face bugs you as you head to the kitchen, hanging back as Lucy and Lockwood fall into a well-rehearsed chatter, tossing around half-hearted jibes which have even Kipps smirking. There’s something stilted in the way they’re holding themselves, an odd stiffness that you’ve never noticed in their interactions before.

George is already grumbling about the amount of people in his way as he cooks, and why Lockwood had decided to bring you all there is beyond him. You chuckle, peeking over his shoulder at the pots on the stove before backing away at his warning glare, raising your hands in surrender.

“Anything I can do to help?” You ask once you’ve reached a safe distance, out of spatula reach. With the way he’s wielding the kitchen implement, you wouldn’t be surprised if he decides to use it as a weapon on anyone who gets to close.

“You can sit down. All of you.” He snaps and turns his back. Okay. Something had definitely happened whilst you were gone, and you don’t blame Lucy one bit for running away to Arif’s. You’d done the same in the past.

As the others hustle into seats, chairs screeching against the tile, you hesitate, hovering at the edge of the counter. “Do you want me to set the table or anything, George?”

He opens his mouth before thinking better of whatever he was going to say, for which you’re grateful, and takes a deep breath. “Yes, that would be lovely, thank you.”

You dart to the cupboard he motions at, finding a stack of slightly chipped and faded floral plates, which you count out slowly, all borne of desire to avoid whatever conversation is going on at the table behind you. There’s a bite behind words, a hidden sneer that you really cannot be bothered to deal with, and perhaps you should have listened to Kipps.

As you rifle through the cutlery drawers, jolting to the side as George nears with a sour grunt, the conversation behind you quietens to a whisper and you strain to hear, but to no avail. All you catch is Lockwood murmuring and Lucy’s hushed ‘No!’ of outrage in response. When you spin around, plates in hand, Kipps and Lockwood are locked into some kind of stare down and Lucy looks just so totally over it all. And when Lockwood is the first to look away to give you a smile, Lucy huffs and rolls her eyes.

[scoobydoodean]

I’ve seen a lot of your posts about cas having communication issues and it being a character flaw, and a lot of it with dean specifically which causes a lot of the conflict in their relationship. Do you think his communication problem is a result from him not being human and not fully understanding how to communicate as one, or that it has to do with how strongly he grows to care for dean so he hides things with the mindset of protecting him. I started wondering about the latter just because it seems like in season 5, once he is fully on their team, cas is very blunt and straightforward with his thoughts and feelings, often being shown as one who does not lie very well, but it changes after the season 5 finale. It makes me wonder if that’s when cas really fell for dean so it started holding him back from truly communicating with him. Or maybe you have a different opinion on the reasoning altogether, I was just curious on your take

I think it's a combination of things. One is absolutely that he (I personally think in a somewhat misguided way) wants to protect Dean (and his friends more broadly). In 6.20, Cas talks about coming to Dean's house and almost asking him for help, but being unable to bring himself to ask when he thinks of how much Dean has been through and realizes that Dean will uproot his life to help him.

CASTIEL: Raphael was stronger than me. I wouldn't survive a straight fight. So I went to an old friend for help. But watching him, I stopped. Everything he sacrificed, and I was about to ask him for more.

Cas doesn't want to put Dean through another apocalypse. And when he initially agrees to work with Crowley and Crowley suggests bringing Dean into the loop, Cas reiterates that Dean is to be left alone.

CROWLEY: We'll need expert help. CASTIEL: From whom? CROWLEY: From experts, of course. I know of two eerily suited 'Teen Beat' models with time on their hands. CASTIEL: No. Not Dean. He's retired, and he's to stay that way.

The thing is, trying to protect Dean isn't the entire picture. Season 6 is riddled with Cas slowly making concessions, and one of the very first ones he makes is turning a blind eye to Crowley forcing Dean to work for him. So it isn't all about protecting Dean. Excluding Dean is also about trying to prove he can handle all of this by himself, and feeling shame if/when he can't or when he has to make moral compromises to achieve his goals. Crowley digs into Cas's hubris in 6.20 when he says:

CROWLEY: Everything you've worked for -- everything that Sam and Dean have worked for -- gone. You can save us, Castiel. God chose you to save us. And I think...Deep down...You know that.

Crowley paints a picture of Sam and Dean needing protection, but also of Cas being needed, and being powerful enough to do it all on his own—telling him he is special and worthy and deserving. Hubris is never far from lack of self-esteem. Buttering Cas up like this works because deep down, Cas does not feel secure and needs to believe that he is worthy and righteous. He seeks that feeling of worthiness from God, from the other angels, and from Dean at various points throughout his life.

One of the places we get the shame angle from Cas is in 6.03 when he first tells Sam and Dean about civil war in heaven and explains why he never reached out for help.

DEAN Cas, why didn't you tell us this? CASTIEL I was ashamed. I expected more from my brothers. 

Cas was not successful at playing sheriff and whipping heaven into shape. He thought God was behind him because God resurrected him, but things didn't work out in his favor instantly. Raphael appeared as an adversary. So maybe God wasn't really behind him. Maybe Cas wasn't actually that special after all. Season 6—as much as it features a fallout between Dean and Cas—is also a fallout between Cas and God, as Cas slowly realizes that God is not watching him and cheering for him (anymore), starts to resent him, and then tries to replace him.

I think when I look at the show more broadly past season 6 and the other instances where Cas hides things and tries to do everything on his own, those instances tend to carry these same themes of Cas desperately wanting to protect the people he loves, but also being desperately insecure, looking for other people from God to the angels to Dean to give him validation. Cas tends to try and gain that validation through missions/ quests that make him worthy and deserving. And the idea of needing help with those special, holy missions feels like failure, because then he wouldn't have done it all on his own. When his missions fail or he isn't able to do it all on his own, it chips away at him slowly but surely. Cas all but tells us this in 12.19 "The Future". He talks about a range of failures he's recently suffered—some of them involving not being able to protect Dean or save Dean, some involving the larger holy mission (to protect humanity from cosmic threats) and he says he was trying to do it all on his own and that he shut Dean out because he needed a win on his own.

CASTIEL: Well, I didn't mean to add to your distress. I – Dean, I just keep failing. Again and again. When you were taken, I searched for months and I couldn't find you. And then Kelly escaped on my watch, and I couldn't find her. And I just wanted I needed to come back here with a win for you. For myself.

I also think the way Cas approaches these sorts of discussions—first saying the win is for Dean (just like in 6.20 when he says he did everything for Dean) then admitting that the win is actually for himself—he's also revealing that he has trouble admitting to himself that hubris is ultimately a part of his motivations when he does things like this. He tends to tell himself he is just trying to keep his friends safe or that they need him to prove himself, but deep down, it's that Cas is insecure in ways that have little to do with his friends, and everything to do with his upbringing and being uprooted from his life and not knowing how to feel worthy without a mission to serve because serving the mission is what he was brainwashed to believe made him worthy and deserving for his entire existence. After leaving the heavenly cult, he replicates the experience of using The Mission as a means of receiving praise from others as confirmation that he is worthy. (Which would be why one of his visions of paradise in the 12.19 draft script is himself shirtless looking poweful with his wings on display and Dean thanking him).

All of that said... I do also think Cas is sometimes just impatient. I mean in some ways, this connects to hubris, but I think keeping people informed about his whereabouts probably does sometimes feel like a chore to Cas. If it's something he truly believes he can handle on his own no problem, he sees involving his friends and dealing with their questions as an inconvenience, and he's very sure that he is going to succeed and be back before they ever know he was gone. And sometimes he's right. But he is also sometimes very very wrong, either misjudging what he can accomplish on his own or failing to account for the unexpected. Then he gets himself into hot water and Dean is upset (or the angels in some cases), and that means Cas fails the mission and still feels insecure and loops back to looking for another mission that will prove he is worthy and deserving. The problem being... you can't rely on other people to give you your self esteem and also need to actually be self aware about your own limitations. And all of that is neat.

[tokiro07]

Ichi the Witch ch.25 thoughts

[Let Sleeping Gods Lie]

(Topics: speculation - Gokuraku/Bakugami/arc progression)

Phew...I was a little worried that Ichi was gonna have to fight Gokuraku for a sec...I mean, I did wanna see it, but giving them a common enemy is a much more dramatically interesting method of exploring Gokuraku's abilities and endearing him to the main group

Gokuraku's ability to see through Uroro is not only a solid character moment for him, but it also serves as a great transition into the next phase of the arc - the introduction of its villain

Killing With Kindness

The reason that Gokuraku doesn't trust Uroro is because the way he talks and schemes is reminiscent of the Magik Bakugami, the local deity of the Bakugami country. We then cut to the residents of the country and get a brief glimpse of their "joyous" lifestyle

It'll probably be given more depth next week, but based on the lanterns strewn about everywhere, it gives the impression that it's an "everyday is a festival" sort of place. Just the fact that the citizens are shocked by the possibility of a Human Hater in their country shows how peaceful their daily lives are, which they attribute to Bakugami

The guide who brings Desscaras and Kumugi to meet Bakugami says that Bakugami grants humans "blessings and joy," and refers to it as the Blessed Slumber Magik. I don't know what sorts of blessings Bakugami bestows upon its people, but it seems pretty clear that it isn't called that because the creature itself sleeps

As Gokuraku says, Bakugami is cute on the outside, but is vile on the inside, which we see is literally true when we're shown a human-shaped Magik hiding in a World-Hater shrine within Bakugami. The Bakugami that the people know is a fake, an illusion...

A dream?

Are the blessings that Bakugami gives its people just mirages, their dreams brought to life? Or is it more simple than that and it just grants them pleasant fantasies in their sleep?

Ostensibly the people of Bakugami were subterranean, and only were able to move to the surface because of the Magik's intervention, but is that really true...? The residential district is listed as being in the Bakugami Mines, and its infrastructure is embedded into cliff faces. That's a real form of architecture, but given the name, I have to wonder if maybe they never left ground at all

Is it possible that the very sky above them is nothing more than a beautiful hallucination, that the sunlight they believe they live under is simply a glorified lightbulb?

Or were they truly brought to the surface from underground, but the part that was manufactured was their suffering? Did Bakugami conjure a reason for them to crave the sun and open air, and trick them into leaving their fossorial home to prepare them for its nefarious goal?

Regardless of how its tricking people, it's clear that Bakugami is a deceiver and that Gokuraku is the only one who can see the truth. The question now is: how did Gokuraku learn it?

Eye-Opener

The obvious answer is that Gokuraku experienced Bakugami's true nature firsthand, whether he simply witnessed it happen to someone else, or had a direct conversation with it that included Bakugami saying something to the effect of "no one will ever believe you"

In the former case, I would assume that his family or a friend was driven to ruin by Bakugami's actions and Gokuraku simply realized the truth from there. Maybe they starved to death from being trapped in Bakugami's illusions and simply didn't realize that they weren't actually eating anything, or they walked off a cliff thinking they were walking towards something they wanted. From there, when Gokuraku tried to blow the whistle, people either just straight up didn't believe him or were outright prevented from seeing/hearing what he had to say because of the illusions

The latter scenario isn't mutually exclusive with the first, though, as Gokuraku may have gone to confront Bakugami with the truth and then been taunted. It's also possible that Bakugami made some offer to Gokuraku that made it clear that Bakugami had ill-intent or simply couldn't fulfill. Again, maybe Gokuraku lost his family and Bakugami's method of fulfilling Gokuraku's wish to see them again revealed the truth

Either way, Gokuraku's familiarity with empty and deceptive promises is most likely what primed him to see through Uroro's snakeoil pitch, and may even inform why Gokuraku treats Magiks the way he does. Not only is he hateful of them in general due to bad experience, he already has it on pretty good authority that they lie. No matter how much they plead that it's impossible for him to acquire Magik, to him that's an obvious trick to get him to leave them alone, because it's the kind of thing that Bakugami would do

That doesn't quite explain the way he talks to the Magiks, sounding so flirtatious when he does so, though. My initial guess was that he wanted to be friends with them and just had kind of a warped personality, but if he refuses to trust them because of a harmful stereotype that he's formed in his mind, that kind of puts a damper on that theory. It's possible that it's just how he talks and there's no greater explanation, but I do think it would be interesting to get a bit more detail on that

Regardless of how Gokuraku feels about Magiks as a whole, the important thing is that he's the only one who knows that Bakugami isn't what it claims to be, and might even be aware that Bakugami plans to sacrifice the nation to the World Hater. Armed with that knowledge, Gokuraku asks Ichi to help him take Bakugami down, even at the risk of making the country his enemy

Ichi may not immediately agree without more information, but given that the plot doesn't advance without him, obviously he's going to take Gokuraku up on his request sooner or later. The question then becomes: what happens after Bakugami gets acquired?

Wake Up, Sheeple!

If the Magik Bakugami is the patron deity of the Bakugami country, then someone from Mantinel attempting to acquire it would undoubtedly cause an international incident. It's still unclear whether Mantinel is some kind of government body or just a culturally important organization, but they're obviously representing a different country right now, so a foreign attack on a religious figure would definitely be grounds to spark a war

This might even be a part of Bakugami's plan, to get the presumably smaller country of Bakugami crushed by the bigger one that Mantinel is based in, though I'm not sure Nishi wants to go that political this fast

Regardless of whether Bakugami is plotting to engineer an international incident or some kind of mass sacrificial ritual, though, there is one surefire way to prevent the people of the country from retaliating against Ichi or Mantinel: proving that Bakugami is a fake

I see this going one of two ways: the ol' Columbo subterfuge route where they trick Bakugami into revealing itself, or Bakugami will reveal itself of its own accord to maximize the country's despair and Ichi and co. will swoop in to save the day

Or the political unrest and Ichi's arrest warrant will be a major recurring plot point for the rest of the series, who knows?

But really, who cares about how it'll affect petty things like the setting or the plot? No, there's one more pressing question about Bakugami's defeat: who is going to actually acquire Bakugami?

Gimme The Prize

The most straightforward answer is that Ichi is going to acquire it after Gokuraku accepts that he literally can't do it, and he'll give up on wanting to become a Witch because his goal of defeating Bakugami will already have been accomplished. However, it might also be interesting to have Gokuraku actually succeed in becoming a Witch, as that would open up a lot of questions about the lore and the advancement of Witch society

My personal hope, though, is that Kumugi will be the one to acquire Bakugami. I love the idea of the weakest member of the group being the last hope or the only one who matches a specific requirement. I do think it's narratively too soon to give Kumugi that spotlight since she hasn't been around long enough to really capitalize on her feelings of inadequacy, but I'm confident that that's where her story is going somewhere down the line, so I'm going to keep suggesting it until it happens

Whatever Nishi chooses to do, I'm confident it'll be a solid character moment for everyone involved, and a much needed triumph after the failure to acquire the World Hater in the previous arc

Until next time, let's enjoy life!

[mooncalfed]

whimper (i)

insomniac Simon Riley learns to exist in the dark

[ fem!reader - inexperienced!reader - slow burn]

He rings in the second night of leave the same way he has for eight years now - a sharp inhale, eyes flying open, heart racing, a moment of weightlessness before crushing anxiety.

On the pillow to his right are a pair of folded sweatpants and hoodie. They lay largely undisturbed because they belong to a man that has learned to lie still.

He sits up, puts on the hoodie and slips on the sweatpants before sliding his phone and keys from his bedside table into the pocket of his sweats. He vaguely notes that there is a hole in his pocket but also remembers that he has noticed this eleven times and has yet to do anything about it.

A roll of the shoulders, a quick, snatched yawn, and he is walking quietly to his front door.

He grabs his mask, a simple black surgical one for the witching hour, and slides a beanie over his head.

He slips out of his apartment without so much as a shuffle and takes quick stock of the corridor. Empty, cool, silent. Same every night, but vigilance pays dividends for someone like him. The locks on his apartment click into place and he shoves his hand in his pockets before melting into the night.

It takes four hundred and twenty-seven steps for him to arrive at his destination.

It’s a small coffee shop slash bar that opened a while back. Between his deployment to Bosnia and Peru, if he remembers correctly. It’s tiny and open at all hours for some inane reason, but he is thankful for the routine respite it offers.

There is no one on the street as he nears the shop. As he walks in he notes that there is no one in the shop, either. It isn’t out of the ordinary, but he briefly wonders about the financial viability of a place like this before he realises he doesn’t give a fuck.

He marches straight to the corner booth that gives him a perfect view of the entire store. Back to the wall, entrance at eleven o’clock with the kitchen doors at two o’clock. The owner hasn’t come out from the kitchen yet but that’s okay, because there’s a routine that needs to be followed and he is a few minutes early.

The clock above the drip coffee machine reads 3:07 and with each minute that passes he finds himself winding tighter, stomach clenched and fingers curled into fists in his pockets. He runs his thumb along the length of his apartment key, feeling the cool metallic teeth warm up as his flesh presses harder and harder against its grooves.

He counts his breaths, two beats in and five beats out. In through the nose and out through the mouth.

He’s at breath twenty-five when you walk in.

Huffing from the cold, you stumble in far less gracefully than you usually do. He notes your gloved hands and thick coat and it occurs to him that it is rather cold outside. He has a difficult time noticing these things anymore, rarely cares.

He sees your bag on your shoulder and a clump of your hair trapped under its strap and wonders whether you will bother pulling it out before you set down your bag, or whether you will slump into a chair and just wince when your hair is caught by the material. He’s seen you do the latter far more often.

You rustle for something in your pocket and he watches with a pulse of amusement as you pull out a rubber, your phone, and a hair tie all in the same gesture. Those items are placed on the table you always choose - the left side of the shop, directly opposite the coffee machine, back to the window, two tables away from the entrance and two tables diagonally away from him.

It bothers him that your back is to the window. It disturbs him deeply that it doesn’t seem to phase you, that you put yourself in such a vulnerable position and seem to actually like that.

You pull out the chair and your bag slumps to the ground. He flicks his eyes up just in time to see you grimace when your hair is snagged by your bag. He smirks.

The next bit, he knows by heart.

First comes your drawing pad. Then, your two notebooks, one blue and soft-bound, the other black and hard-covered. Then comes your wooden case of oil pastels, which is placed underneath and followed by a smaller green box of pencils. You rearrange your phone so that it is on your right, and then flip it so the screen faces down. The rubber is set on top of that, and then your hair is tied up into a loose but high ponytail.

You take a deep breath, and he finds himself mirroring you. 

Fists clenched, stomach tense, jaw trembling.

You look up and smile.

“Hello Simon.”

He breathes out.

[gogobluedynamite]

I'm very much mentally debating on revision the arcs Substitute Shinigami to Soul Society or just leaving the be going straight for the arc after (Bount Arc or, mayhaps, a rewriting of the first movie...since the Valley of Screams is apparently canon)

The thing is, I feel the Substitute Shinigami Arc and all the way to the Soul Society Arc is actually fine. I did think about trying out alternative approaches and maybe even some changes because of what we know now (if anime watchers had seen the revival anime, boy howdy!)

...Wait. I don't think I've ever given the reason for this project. Well, it comes down to what I believed to be the main cast of Bleach: Ichigo (duh), Rukia (double duh), Uryu, Orihime, Chad, and maybe Renji.

Not sure about anyone else, but the ones whom I thought to be part of the main cast (namely Uryu, Orihime, and Chad) verrrrry often gets pushed off to the side in favor of the other Shinigami.

Look, I get it. I love the Gotei 13 (Byakuya and Yumichika, my husbandos, and Rangiku and Unohana, my wifus), but...come on.

So, I actually called my project the Six Heart Project (as it's the charas I believe are the main cast). I want to give more attention to these six characters. Obvy, Renji is more of an antagonist for most of the start arcs up until the end of the Soul Society arc.

All this to have a poll asking if I should just go on ahead to rewrite stuff after the Soul Society arc or include the Soul Society arc and everything else before for a soft reboot. If I do the latter, I might need some assistance on how to improve the arcs, if there is anything to add or remove or work around, all that. Extra eyes and brains would be appreciated cuz my brain is somewhat overworking itself trying to figure it out.

Obvy, I will give credit.

Not gonna lie...I honestly don't wanna deal with ships...because they are nerve wrecking.

[the-last-f2p]

Yandere promts day 16

16. “Don’t lie, angel. you know what happens”

Featuring: Jing Yuan

Note: Dr ratio will be tagged here probs :>

TW: Implied kidnapping, this kind of written in a different confusing-ish pov.

"Y/N, look at this one!" Yanqing smiles brightly, brazenly holding up what has to be the twentieth sword today "It's half-price."

"So how much is it now?" You ask, trying not to feel bored and enjoy this moment.

"100 000 shield." Yanqing manages to murmur awkwardly.

"Next one." You say in a deadpan way.

This idea of a shopping trip had been pitched by Yanqing after seeing you cry as soon as Jing Yuan walked out of earshot. It took a while like a while while and a lot of begging but you two managed to get it on the rules that:

You're only allowed in the artisanship commission

You and Yanqing are to stay together

Yanqing thought it was great because you gotta get out. You thought it was great because you got a chance to run. It's a win win.

"Okay this one is just 10 000 shield."

"Eh-Y/N? Wh-fuuuccckkk!"

You had 'joked' about running away a couple of times today but he didn't think you were being serious!! Oh my Aeons, the general's gonna be so mad at me.. Yanqing mentally cries.

Just find them before the general does.

Easier said than done.

It must have been ten minutes. At the most. And you crashed straight into something someone. They were tall and fluffy? (probably from the amount of hair). And they were very familiar...

To re-quote Yanqing "fuuuuuccckkk!". It's Jing Yuan.

"Y/N? Aren't you supposed to be with Yanqing? Don't tell me you-... And to think I trusted you."

something about you figuring it out, JUST LIE. "No we got separated, it was really my fault though I thought-"

"No."

"Pardon?"

And then Jing Yuan laughs. It's very breathy and quite unsettling since he was trying to be seirious two seconds ago, "Don't lie, Y/N. You know what happens." He smiles at you, but there's an unertone of something. Anything.

There's only actually a couple of things he could do, incessant physiological and physical torture OR nothing. Hopefully it's the latter.

[sophsicle]

hello lovely!!

apologies in advance bc this is not an ask but i simply had to share this story.

so im an in-house and broadcast camera op intern for the ottawa senators. last game our crew meeting was delayed and so they guys were just chatting and shooting the shit killing time. for context, the crew i’m on is about a dozen 30-50 year old straight white men and me, a 23 year old, purple hair, she/they, bisexual. needles to say i’m the odd one out. they like to give me shit (playfully of course) so i tend to keep my head down unless im looking for an ego hit. so as they’re chatting i go on my phone and mind my own business. one of the guys eventually says to me “tell ur boyfriend i say hi” (hilarious i know) to which i tell him im just reading. when he asks what, i realized i can either lie and make smth up or…i can be honest and say “hey king so im actually reading a fan fiction about harry potters dad and his friends if they lived in the modern day, weren’t wizards, we’re basically all gay, and were NHL prospects” since im apparently insane i go for the latter.

so long story short that’s how i ended up explaining not only the plot of KYD and sweater weather, but the lore of the marauders, and just fanfiction in general to some of the guys on my team. so KYD has officially reached the show. idk whether to say congrats or sorry so i’ll leave u with both.

i am currently being the worst at responding to literally any messages

but this story was hilarious and i needed u to know that

shout out 2 u for showing ur coworkers the true purpose of hockey - fanfiction

say hi 2 bb tkachuck 4 me

xx

[wooahaeruby]

Chapter 22: Stupid Prizes

Chapter Word Count: 4,886

TW (Not really)

1) Jeonghan is an idiot 2) Seungcheol is awkward 3) I'm still losing my sanity like last week

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“ Sit down, we need to talk.” 

You’ve never had a chill run down your spine that felt so paralyzing. Your feet were rooted in place and you could feel your heart beating out of your chest. Seokmin and Jeonghan’s stern expressions didn’t falter, unreadable. It left you feeling uneasy.

Joshua was the first to move, keeping a firm, neutral expression as he sat on one side of the adjacent couch. You hesitated, clasping your hands together, feeling just how clammy your palms were. There was a shake to your hands that you couldn’t ease but this unavoidable conversation was going to get done sooner or later. Each step towards the couch was heavy, but you managed, slowly sitting down on the other end of the couch. 

You didn’t drop your head, only avoided the piercing gaze your boyfriend and best friend sent towards you. From the corner of your eye, Joshua looked much more relaxed, but the mental wall he put up to preserve himself was seen in his eyes. If he was nervous, he did well not to show it.

“Is there anything the two of you want to tell me?” Jeonghan asked, no humor or teasing lilt in his tone. 

Pushing down on your legs with your clasped hands, you were trying to stop your legs from bouncing. 

“Nothing? From either of you?” He continued, going to sit up and lean his elbows and forearms on his thighs. “What is it that Soonyoung says? ‘Silence is an admission of guilt ’?” 

Seokmin hummed, low and steady, crossing his arms over his chest. Jeonghan let his eyes run over you before flicking his eyes to Joshua, the latter’s hand tapping almost silently on the armrest. His jaw was tense and his shoulders were rolled back in some attempt to look wider if that was possible.

“I don’t know what you are talking about, Jeonghan.” Joshua spoke up next, tone even but cautious. 

“Oh you don’t?” That playful spark lit behind Jeonghan’s eyes, a slight widening of his eyes and a smirk tilted the corners of his lips up. He looked at Seokmin and they shared a look, another unreadable moment. “Seokmin, I believe they think we are stupid.” 

“Wouldn’t be new from Mouse, but Shua? That’s just rude.” Seokmin’s lips twitched, trying to hold back a smile then turned his head to look at the aforementioned man. “One of our own…that’s cold, Shua. So so cold.” 

“Can both of you stop playing games and say what you want before you give Mouse a panic attack?” His other hand motioned towards you.

You let out the breath that you didn’t realize you were holding, tipping your head back and swallowing the lump that rested in your throat. When you set your head and gaze straight, you opened your mouth and it all came tumbling out.

“I have feelings for Joshua but I still have strong feelings for Jeonghan.” Word vomit. You never experienced worse word vomit than this moment. “I was going to tell you in private, definitely not in the presence of these two idiots, but then you sat us down and I’m panicking that I lied. Now I feel like I’m going to throw up because I feel guilty and ashamed because I didn’t know what was going on and it was eating me alive. And Joshua kept telling me that you were the one that kept pushing him to spend time with me so I only thought it was to actually keep me entertained then the flirting started and- God- Hell, I’m not even sure if it was because I was lonely or because I have actual feelings and-” 

“Mouse-” Jeonghan was up in a moment, making his way over but you waved your hands to keep him away. 

“And I don’t want this to mess anything up because I don’t want to break up with you and I don’t want to lie and say that I don’t have feelings-” 

“Mouse, stop-” 

Your breathing was ragged and the second your eyes met Jeonghan’s you could see the guilt and regret in his own eyes. 

“I’m sorry- I only wanted to mess with you a little.” He took your hands, kneeling before you. “Mouse, I set it all up. All of it. Seokmin was in on the whole plan.” 

Another breath was held tight in your chest, squeezing his hands tightly. Your shoulders were tense, you still felt sick to your stomach. 

“I want to punch you in the face right now.” It was all you mustered to say but Jeonghan only smiled, using his thumbs to message your palms. “I really want to punch you and Seokmin in the face.” 

“Yeah, no, can we backtrack for a moment?” Joshua’s voice was laced heavily with confusion. “Let me get this straight, Jeonghan, you asked me to hang out with Mouse for two weeks, when in reality you set this all up so we could what? Figure out we liked each other? And you got Seokmin to help you?” 

Jeonghan rolled his eyes and moved to sit on the coffee table, never letting your hands go. “Alright well, the full thing didn’t go as planned but more or less, yes. I knew you had feelings for Mouse, it wasn’t that obvious but it's hard to hide stuff from me of all people. So…one thing led to another and I just wanted Mouse to have company but also have you open your blind ass eyes and see what was right in front of you.” 

“It was funny to watch honestly.” Seokmin chimed in happily. “You both were trying so hard to act like you weren’t catching feelings but it was so obvious.” 

You made eye contact with Joshua for a moment before both of you were whipping your heads away, focusing on anything but each other. Seokmin and Jeonghan laughed but you weakly kicked your boyfriend in the shin, watching as he dramatically whined and held the offended limb. 

Joshua huffed and went from tapping his hand on the armrest to standing up behind the couch. He paced for a moment before throwing his arms up. “And what? Now that the metaphoric air is cleared, what do you want to do with this information? You know I like your girlfriend and she, vaguely, kinda, returns the feelings, do you want to rub it in my face that you have her? Gloat a little?” 

“Huh? Oh no, none of that.” Jeonghan dropped his dramatics, smiling wide – mischievously wide – and snickered. “I want you to date my girlfriend too.” 

You locked yourself into Seungcheol’s office of all places. 

Placing yourself down on one of the couches, you curled your legs up to your chest, refusing to listen to the nonsense from outside. 

“ Mouseeeeee! ” Jeonghan whined , knocking on the door to the office a few times. “ Mouse come out, come on! ” 

“No! Leave me alone.” You huffed. “I need to think.” 

“ I said I’m sorry! ” 

“And you can’t just spring all that onto someone, Jeonghan!” 

“ Dude, give her some space.” You could hear Seokmin whisper through the door before another whine left the older man. 

Now you were sitting by yourself, thinking of who the best option to talk to was. Seokmin, the person you’d normally go to, was currently a traitor and you were also mad at him. Seungcheol was never an option, neither was Junhui, Soonyoung, or Mingyu, they couldn’t keep a secret to save their lives. Seungkwan would ask too many questions and would more than likely judge you, Vernon isn't the…best at advice. While Chan and you had got close, you weren’t so close that you’d reach out for a conversation like this. Minghao and Wonwoo would be your best bet, maybe Jihoon but… 

Letting out a groan, you pouted at the wall. This was a mess. 

“Okay,” You huffed out, picking at the skin around your nails, “Run through the facts. Jeonghan goes out of the country for two weeks, he teams up with Seokmin to get me and Joshua close to one another. But both of them knew Joshua had romantic feelings. They forced- Heavily suggested he take me out for the last two weeks to what? Get me to have feelings for him?” 

It was completely bizarre, migraine inducing even. 

“And now Jeonghan just ‘ I want you to date my girlfriend too’ ? Who the fuck does he think he is? Not just springing that on Joshua but me? Trying to set me up with his friend?” 

The questions were never ending, pain pulsed behind your eyes. The sickness in your stomach thankfully eased but it only turned into annoyance. 

“How would this even all work? What the fu-” 

“ Hey Cheol- Wait don’t-” There was panic in Jeonghan’s tone, hearing him rapidly approach the office.

The doors to the office jiggled but didn’t budge thanks to you actually locking them earlier. 

“ Why is my office locked?” Seungcheol’s voice was right outside and the door shook again. 

“ Okay, well, it’s a long story but Mouse locked herself in there.” 

“Locked herself- What did you do this time?” 

Hearing Jeonghan gasp, you rolled your eyes. “Me?! Why blame me?!” 

Only a knock came now and a sigh from Seungcheol. “Mouse, open the door.” 

“Tell Jeonghan to go away, I’m not talking to him currently.” 

“Seriously dude, what did you do?” If Jeonghan went to say anything, silence was only followed by footsteps. “ He is gone. Can I get into my office now?” 

Standing from your spot on the couch, you trudged your way over to the door and unlocked them, cracking the door open to see for yourself if Jeonghan was actually gone. Your eyes were met with Seungcheol staring down at you with a raised brow and a tired gaze. Stepping aside, you pulled the door open and let him in, peaking out once more when he entered before closing the door. 

“Are you going to hide in here all night?” He didn’t turn around, lumbering over towards his desk and taking a seat. “If so, use your magic girlfriend powers and have Jeonghan order us food, I’m starving.” 

Oh…that was a good idea. 

“Pizza?” You asked. 

He tilted his head side to side in thought. “Twenty-four hour McDonald's is just down the street?” 

“Ohhh,” You nodded, taking your phone from your pocket. “Chicken nuggets.” 

A list of ‘demands’ was sent over text to Jeonghan, really only consisting of both yours and Seungcheol’s food orders, along with a pint of your favorite ice cream in the freezer and to simply give you space. To both your surprise, it wasn’t long before Seokmin was slipping in, an apology written all over his face, before handing off the bag of fast food and a blanket for you. 

“So…” Seungcheol leaned back in his desk chair, chowing down on some fries when he peered over to you, wrapped up in a blanket with your nuggets. “Do you…wanna talk about it?” 

“It’s complicated, and you won’t like it.” Ducking your head down, you nibbled on a piece of chicken. “Plus, I don’t want to hear or see you judge me or them based on the situation right now.” 

“That bad?” He frowned and you shrugged. 

“Jeonghan and Seokmin…did something manipulative, which wouldn’t have been the worst situation, but they took it too far, mainly Jeonghan did, and it’s fucking up my head.” You sighed, dropping your shoulders. “That was the worst description.” 

“I’m guessing it involves Joshua?” 

“Yeah. And I don’t want to talk to them right now until I can wrap my head around the whole situation.” 

He nodded, quietly eating his food, rocking some side to side in his chair. “Is it…like breaking up with Jeonghan worthy?” 

That’s been a question floating around in your head. 

It wasn’t that you wanted to break up with Jeonghan. What he did was wrong and hurtful, he placed you and Joshua in an uncomfortable position, exploited emotions you didn’t expect, and made it some sort of prank, joke? You didn’t know. It made you feel like you didn’t have any choice in the matter… You were disappointed in his actions, definitely needed space from him, including Joshua and Seokmin in that. More than that, once you cooled down enough, you’d be needing a proper conversation between you, Jeonghan, and Joshua.

“I don’t think this is worthy of that, but definitely a strongly worded conversation. I’m disappointed in Jeonghan’s actions, it was unexpected and unappreciated.” 

“Sometimes…Jeonghan doesn’t think before he acts. Or he doesn’t realize how fucked up his head is when he does something. I’ve seen him do some pretty questionable things when he sets his mind to it.” Seungcheol cleared his throat. “And I’m not saying that you should go easy on him if it was really messed up, but he’s never had a normal relationship with people in general. Kick his ass for all I care, just make sure he can still do his job.” 

“I know…” Finishing off your food, you hugged your legs close to your chest. “Would it be too much to ask for a ride home from you or someone else?” 

“Can I finish my food?” 

Deadpanning, you pinched the bridge of your nose. “Yeah, you idiot. You can finish your food.” 

When Monday came around, Seokmin was standing at the door to your office with one of your favorite pastries and a steaming coffee. He had a weak smile on his face, eyes shining with remorse, following you into the office to place the items on your desk. 

“Tell him to stop texting me.” You didn’t look at him, taking a few things from your bag and placing them on the desk surface. “I’ll reach out to him when I’m ready.” 

“I will.” His voice was quiet as he loitered near the doorway. “I wanted to extend my apology to you. I’m really sorry.” 

Turning on your computer and monitor, you sat at your desk, taking the moment to look at him properly. His hands weren’t shoved in his pockets like usual, now clasped in front of him, even nervous if you had to place a word to it. His shoulders were slumped but his eyes held your gaze and he was biting at his lower lip anxiously. 

“I know. I don’t fully forgive you, and I’d like to keep the space I’m asking for. I’m mad and disappointed with both of you and I don’t want to take my anger out on any of you.” 

“I understand.” He nodded, stepping back, out the door. 

“And I’ll be finding my own way home.” 

Seokmin hesitated, “Can I at least have Sona get you after work?” 

You knew it was for his peace of mind so you gave in, nodding at the suggestion. “As long as there isn't too much on her plate for her to do it, Seokmin.” 

He was hurrying down the hall not long after your conversation. For a Monday, your work was light, working through assignment after assignment with a bored and unexciting demeanor. If you were honest with yourself, you weren’t really paying attention. Once an assignment was done, you’d sit, scrolling through everything with unfocused eyes before sending it in and starting the next.

By lunch, you were ready to clock out. You had checked your email, cleared it out, and reorganized a bunch of files on your computer. With nothing else to do currently, you actually did consider clocking out early and going home. 

Pulling your phone from your bag, you stared at the notifications that piled up over the last day. Once you had gone home from the night at the penthouse, Jeonghan had been texting you nonstop. He had apologized, begged and pleaded, and tried to explain himself over and over no matter how much you left him on read or didn’t open the messages. To your partial joy, he did stop, but his last text was a jumble of multiple apologies in one long text. 

Your computer screen lit up and you dropped your head disgruntledly on your desk beside the keyboard. 

‘ Jeonghan told me what happened. - WW’ 

“Great…” 

Standing up, you went over and closed your office door and shut the blinds, a worldwide signal to not enter without knocking. You sat back down and grabbed your phone, calling Wonwoo. 

“ Shouldn’t you not be calling me at work?” 

“You and I both know I have nothing to do.” 

He hummed through the phone, you could hear the clicking of his mechanical keyboard. “ Personally, I think Jeonghan is stupid for what he did.” 

“I think he is stupid, and Seokmin too.” Slumping back once more, you stared up at the ceiling. “I’m so lost on what to do. What did he tell you?” 

“ He said that he and Seokmin planned it for a while. That the last two weeks were going to be Joshua’s wake up call, which apparent succeeded, then they wanted to fuck with both more but it ended up with you being mad and he just rambled after that.” 

“Did he tell you that he told Shua that he should date me too? Like I was some sort of object and not a person?” 

“ Oh,” There was a pause, even the keyboard clicking stopped. “ He didn’t say anything about that.” 

“Yeah, expected that one.” That didn’t make you feel any better. “Now do you see why I’m not talking to him? It just felt…gross. And don’t get me wrong, I know he is fucked up in the head, but come on? Really, dude?” 

“Yah, don’t let him use that as an excuse.” The shift in tone from Wonwoo was unexpected. He sounded annoyed for you, not at you, maybe even angry. “ Jeonghan is a grown man that can make smart, informed decisions for himself. He messed up bad and he deserves whatever anger or emotions you are feeling.” 

“I know, I know. I am mad, but I’m getting confused with my feelings for Shua and it’s clouding my head.” 

“Better question, how do you feel about a relationship with more than one partner? If that’s what Jeonghan is suggesting, then that is also a question you need to ask yourself.” 

Opening your mouth to reply, you stopped yourself, thinking over the question now that it was out in the open. Really, you didn’t have an opinion on the topic because you’ve never thought about the idea of having more than a singular partner. You knew some people in college had polyamorous relationships that turned out well, but also knew it relied heavily on communications from all parties. You weren’t opposed to the idea, honestly the idea was nerve wracking since it was unknown territory. 

“I don’t want to mess up one relationship to figure out another.” 

“ Now you are making excuses for yourself. How do you feel about Joshua?” 

“In comparison to what? Hannie?” 

“ Yes. In comparison to Jeonghan, what could Joshua provide that he can’t?” 

“ Who made you the love expert?” 

“ Shut up and answer the question or I'm hanging up.” 

“ Fine- Fine! He just-” You groaned, sinking down in your seat. “He is so much more calm, we don’t have to do anything, we could just sit and watch movies or cook together. He doesn’t need to go over the top like Jeonghan but I like that as well. They both…make me feel all gross and warm and fuzzy-” You probably sounded like a love sick teenager. “But what if something happens between all of us and things don’t work out? Imagine the mess it could be-” 

“ You are thinking of worst case scenarios, Mouse. Those two might be mentally… questionable, but they know how to talk when it comes down to it. Both of them are good listeners, the best out of everyone here, and can admit with some push that they are wrong.” 

“ Hey, whose side are you on?” 

“ Neither, I’m telling you the truth that you already know but don't want to say out loud.” 

“I hate that you’re right.” 

“ Best part of my day, Mouse.” You could hear his faint, airy chuckle. “ Sona will be picking you up after work, but don’t put off talking to them too long, we have to deal with them if you do.” 

“Yeah yeah, let me get back to work.” 

“ Have fun doing nothing for hours on end.” 

It took you until Friday morning to muster up the mental capacity to text Jeonghan. 

The message was simple, telling him you were going to have Sona drop you off at the house, you were going to make dinner for everyone, then you both would sit and have a very long conversation about what was going on before talking to Joshua if it came to that. 

The reply back was near instant, Jeonghan once again apologized, said a majority would be home after nine, and that you could talk and he would listen as long as you needed. 

You had already planned on leaving work early, having discussed it with Sona to bring you to the house. Wonwoo would be home and you weren’t going to pass up an opportunity to sit in Pandora, play video games, and maybe talk about what was going through your head. You were mainly going into the conversation blind aside from a baseline of explaining how you felt but you were unsure of how to bring up the relationship and the changes that can happen. 

By noon, you were gathering your things and your overnight bag and clocking out. On your way towards the elevator, you stopped at Seokmin’s office, knocking on his open door. He perked up and raised an eyebrow at you all packed up. 

“I finished, clocking out early. I’ll see you later.” 

He gave you a small goodbye before you were leaving the office, seeing Sona pull up to the curb the moment you stepped outside. 

You dropped everything into the backseat and got yourself situated in the passenger seat, kicking off your heels. Sona didn’t say anything, only pulling off and wasting no time in getting the trip going. Over the last week, you had filled Sona in on the situation, needing an ear outside of the thirteen of them to vent to, and she was disappointed. While they were her bosses, the joke of ‘what is said in the car, stays in the car’ was put in place and she called Jeonghan and Seokmin idiots for their plan. She called Jeonghan an even bigger dickhead for objectifying you in regards to the Joshua situation. 

It was halfway through the trip, staring out the window, when Sona spoke, relaxed in the driver’s seat. “I’m guessing you finally texted him?” 

Sighing, you curled your legs up to your chest, “Yeah, we are gonna talk tonight or tomorrow, I dunno.”

“Are you going to be stress-cooking?” 

Mocking her tone, you huffed. “I need to make meatballs for thirteen guys that actively work out and don’t eat enough to sustain their physique. Apollo is the only exception because he will eat everything in sight if we let him. Of course I’m going to stress-cook over the situation and them!” 

Peering at you slumping down in the passenger seat, Sona only laughed, tapping her hand against the wheel. “We love the SVT new mother hen, Mighty Mouse.” 

“Not you too!” Now you were really sinking further into the seat, seeing the gates to the property come into view. “You said you wouldn’t call me that.” 

“Never made me promise though.” The mocking tone had you rolling your eyes. 

When the car finally came to a stop, Sona reached into the back and grabbed your things, placing them in the front seat once you got out, easy for you to grab. You went to close the door when she called out. “If you need any help kicking their asses, I can always quit.” 

She gave you a wink and you rolled your eyes once more, closing the door and waving her off. 

The house was quiet when you entered, kicking your heels off at the door and dropping your things on the dining room table. You wasted no time in pulling your hair up and out of your face, pulling your earbuds from your purse and slipping them into your ears. The moment the music started playing, you were moving, pulling out the ingredients you had Mingyu add to the delivery list. 

You were undisturbed though the chopping process, getting all the vegetables ready before you were forming the meatballs on a baking tray. A large stock pot was already simmering with homemade marinara sauce, the open kitchen smelling divine from it. The idea was to make enough for them to eat tomorrow since it probably wouldn’t last the next few days.

In the moment it took you to get the tray in the oven to semi-cook the meatballs and turn back around, Wonwoo was standing on the other side of the island, staring blankly at you with a can of soda in his hand. A beat of silence followed, simply staring at each other, before you took an earbud out and turned back, stirring the pot of sauce. 

“Need something?” 

“I was asking you if you ate lunch but you didn’t hear me.” Wonwoo shuffled over to your side, peering into the pot just before you placed the lid on. “So I texted Jihoon to pick up burgers in town since he should be home in half an hour.” 

“I have to stay up here for when the-” 

“Oh, I already moved the console up here.” He motioned over his shoulder towards the living room, the TV on and controllers set on the coffee table. 

You scoffed, laughing as you set a time on your phone and taking your other earbud out. “Unbelievable.” 

Wonwoo only shrugged, grabbing two more sodas and a bag of chips from the cupboard, making his way over to the couch. You weren’t far behind, flopping down beside him, not even caring that you were still in your work clothes despite cooking in them earlier. He was already setting up the game, It Takes Two, seeing as you never finished it last time. 

“Are we having a heart to heart while playing?” The teasing lilt to his tone had you tucking your legs up to your chest and pouting. 

“Would you be mad if I said yes?” 

Wonwoo snorted, a grin spreading on his lips. “Not mad, but I can’t promise I won’t patronize you.” 

Once the game started back where the two of you originally left off, you were talking. Wonwoo was helpful even if he was making fun of you throughout the entire conversation. Even when you got up to get the tray from the oven and put the meatballs in the sauce to continue cooking on low, you didn’t stop, but neither did Wonwoo when he asked questions. 

With how engrossed the two of you were in the game and talking, both of you nearly missed Jihoon coming in before the bags of food were tossed on the counter and he landed himself on your other side. Then Jihoon had to ask what the conversation was and that ended up with him being dragged in, all of you moving to the floor to eat on the coffee table. Jeonghan apparently had come clean about everything when Wonwoo supposedly called him out on it. 

Jihoon’s opinion surprised you, he was of the mindset that you try out the situationship between Jeonghan, Joshua, and yourself. He went on a tangent about how he agrees that Jeonghan was – and you quote – a fucking moron , and that you should most definitely give him a piece of your mind for his audacity. Wonwoo made a joke about Jihoon being the true woman protector , saying Mingyu and Seokmin were nothing compared to the rage that Jihoon can show sometimes. 

“All I’m saying, Mouse, if I were you, I’d use whatever skills you have in fighting and just,” Jihoon swung a right hook in the air, a pout to his lips as he spoke, “And hit him for showing disrespect the way he did.” 

“Both of you and Seungcheol are bad influences, he also told me to kick his ass.” Laughing, you covered your mouth with a hand, swallowing the food in your mouth. “Minnie has been bringing me coffee and pastries every morning because I was mad at him too.” 

“Wait-” Jihoon raised a brow, leveling you with a confused glance. “You told Seungcheol about this?” 

“Okay well- Not everything , but the night it all happened he came back to the penthouse and I locked myself in the office to think.” 

“No wonder he has been in a mood all week. He has been giving Jeonghan hell all week but won’t say why and Jeonghan said he didn’t tell him. None of us did.” 

Frowning, you gave a shrug of your shoulders. “Eh, I wouldn’t place it on the situation. Cheol couldn’t care less about my relationship issues with dumb and dumber.”

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