#they technically ‘revealed’ that one character was planning it all but the killer was still a demon with no foreshadowing

[jackkin-memories]

slasher reveal ended up being a secret third option 31 dead 17 missing

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

Dangancember 2024 - Danganronpa Top 24 Class Trials: Number 20 Danganronpa V3 Case 5

//You guys don't know how much it hurts to have this one down so low.

//This trial is honestly, overall, EXTREMELY good. It has a good plotline, a good investigation, a good cast of characters, and is overall just very very engaging.

//So yeah, we're kind of out of the territory for trials that I consider to be straight up bad.

//But regardless, Case 5 of Danganronpa V3 is something I view very critically, despite the leaps and bounds it takes as a case. Here's why.

//As I did with my last post, let's go over everything that happens in this case, and then I'll start to pick it apart.

//So in the build up to this case, shortly following Gonta and Miu's deaths as part of a scheme masterminded by Kokichi, tensions among the group are as high as they ever have been. And they skyrocket when Kokichi not only reveals that the world outside the academy is in ruin, but that he's the one who masterminded everything, and proves it by controlling the now pilot-less Exisals, and kidnaps Kaito, locking him in the Exisal hanger.

//A few things happen between here and there during the chapter, but eventually, everybody remaining agrees to rally together and break into the hanger to rescue Kaito and confront Kokichi. But when they manage to break in, they find somebody's dead body crushed under a hydraulic press.

//The body in the hydraulic press is crushed beyond recognition, leaving only some blood splatter and remnants of Kaito's coat, implying that he may be the victim. However, it's not as simple as that.

//Clues like the electromagnetic barrier and discrepancies in the blood evidence suggest something deeper, and the group realizes that Kokichi may have staged certain aspects of the crime, but he might not even be the killer. It gets overcomplicated when somebody shows up to the trial piloting the Exisal, but due to being concealed in the hatch, it's unclear who it is, be it Kokichi or Kaito.

//Eventually though, the trial keeps going and it's discovered that Kokichi devised an elaborate plan to end the killing game. He and Kaito staged his own death to trick Monokuma into halting the game, by making it so there is no known perpetrator. What actually happened, and what got discovered, is that Kaito was forced to kill Kokichi in a mercy killing to ensure the plan succeeded, as Kokichi was gravely injured and dying thanks to being shot with a poisonous dart; with Kokichi exploiting Kaito's nature to get him on his side.

//Everybody in the trial, including Monokuma, goes back and forth with this case, until finally, Kaito emerges from the Exisal, and Kokichi's plan ultimately fails. Kaito is executed, but he dies of his ongoing illness before the execution could finish, and as a result, the execution is interrupted, technically meaning the students beat Monokuma and ruined the killing game after all.

//I know I don't make it completely easy to understand, but even if I had tried to put it more simply than this, this trial is still a clusterfuck.

//But in short, what you're trying to tell me is that the true circumstances behind this trial comes about as a result of the most erratic character in the game going crazy, and everyone agreeing they need to be stopped. They are met with a death as they go to confront him, but it turns out the character in question deliberately crafts this death to be an impossible mystery, which the other characters believe is done merely to screw them over. In reality, however, it is intended to use the trial system as a weapon for the character's personal gain.

//Yeah, I don't think I need to sugarcoat it. This is, beat for beat, the EXACT same as Case 5 of Danganronpa 2.

//Okay, the mystery is different, and the stuff that happens as a result of the mystery turns out differently, but come on! It's VERY CLEARLY the same structure!

//And unfortunately, it's not nearly as effective, because not only do I expect there to be some fuckery as a result of experiencing Game 2 Case 5, but the mystery itself is NOWHERE NEAR as difficult to figure out.

//One thing that made Case 5 of DR2 so damn brilliant is because literally anybody could have been the killer, and there was absolutely no surefire way to figure out who it could be. Even before the twist with the fire grenades was discovered, at least every character is accused at least once.

//For this case, the killer can be one of two people: Kaito or Kokichi. The other characters ARE suspected, but it's kind of pointless because you KNOW none of them could have crushed the body under the press, which is clearly the cause of death.

//And in a situation where it's supposed to screw with you, you're automatically under the assumption that Kokichi planned a ruse where HE is killed and not the actual killer, because you know that's EXACTLY what he would do.

//The problem with Kokichi compared to Nagito is that despite his overwhelming dominance deriding from the chaos he causes, Kokichi eventually becomes predictable.

//It's far more threatening dealing with Nagito because he rarely ever hides how he feels about things. When he likes something, he does crazy things for it, when he hates something, he shows it.

//But with Kokichi, you immediately take every action he does with a grain of salt, and you automatically assume that if he makes a claim, he probably means the opposite. And in this case, the setup where Kokichi and Kaito orchestrate the "perfect crime" and make it appear that one of them is the victim relies on the premise that they are trying to deceive the participants. However, by the time of the trial, the clues and circumstances strongly hint at the truth.

//Especially since it renders Kaito's plotline of being sick moot. They spend so much time covering it from Chapters 3 through 5 that it's one of those one's that they can't just brush to the wayside because they feel like it.

//Kokichi’s ruse as the mastermind could have been a compelling twist, but it's resolved too quickly and doesn't significantly impact the trial. While it raises tension briefly, the revelation that Kokichi is not the mastermind comes without much surprise or stakes for the larger narrative.

//And the trial really reflects on all these problems because the answers are often apparent, yet the game still demands a lot of steps to confirm them. The pacing of the trial drags on in sections where the we're already supposed to understand the core mystery.

//Also, I don't know if this is just me, and it's weird because these are genuinely two of my favourite characters in the entire series, but Kokichi and Kaito are, honestly, a really uninteresting victim/killer duo.

//While his actions in this case show his willingness to sacrifice himself for a greater purpose, the convoluted way Kokichi goes about it has very little emotional impact. Largely because his motivations and the extent of his manipulations are left somewhat ambiguous, and doesn't really give his character arc a lot of closure. Especially considering something that happens in Case 6 of the game, but we'll get to that in a little bit.

//As for Kaito, his noble sacrifice is meant to evoke strong emotions, but his victory feels...contrived. The trial’s resolution emphasizes Kaito’s moral "win" over Monokuma, but the convoluted nature of the crime, as well as how it...kind of doesn't change anything.

//And that, to me, makes this trial feel like a genuine waste of time! Chapter 5 of Danganronpa 2 not only resolved Nagito's plotline with a bang, but it was also the trial that revealed the full extent of why the Killing Game is happening, how and why Chiaki was the traitor, and wraps up a lot of the ongoing mysteries nicely. It also helps to segway into Trial 6, which...is another issue.

//I forewent mentioning this when I covered Case 6, because I wanted to save it for this one where the point would be more relevant, but there's one aspect about the trial that comes after this one that heavily ruins the emotional impact for me.

//And that's the idea that's hinted at, where Tsumugi as the Mastermind KNEW EVERYTHING Kokichi was going to do, because she had wrote it in the story as part of his character.

//Which makes absolutely EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED IN THIS CASE COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY POINTLESS!

//If Tsumugi knew these events would unfold, it completely undermines the organic feel of the trial, almost ruins Kokichi's entire character arc.

//Now, as mentioned before, it's unclear whether Tsumugi was saying that to save face, or if she meant it genuinely, because most of her confessions and statements during the trial have no grounds upon which she builds them. But in the case where she is telling the truth about this...

//...That's really fucking uncool!

//I hated when Junko did this in Case 6 of Danganronpa 1 too, but with Junko, it's a little more believable, and it doesn't completely ruin my opinion of the trial, because Case 5 was already supposed to be a shitty stand in for a case and not an actual case itself. But this is an actual case, and one that has a lot of emotional weight behind it, so what the actual hell was the point if this was all true?

//I mean, I guess that's kind of the idea that you're supposed to question what all of this bullshit was for if Tsumugi already had all of this written out, but then that just makes Trial 6 way more complicated, and...yeah, I don't think it's worth talking about any more than this.

//In general, the outcome of this trial is predictable even though it's supposed to be complex, Kokichi's mastermind bluff and his plan is underwhelming, the trial is mentally frustrating because it's so easy, Kaito and Kokichi BOTH suffer from missed potential, and Chapter 6 effectively renders the entire thing pointless anyway. And that is why I generally dislike this trial.

//But for the record, as I implied at the beginning, despite all this, and the structural overlap with Case 5 of the previous game, this case still manages to stand out in several ways.

//What truly sets this trial apart is its unprecedented twist that sets it apart from not just Case 5 of DR2, but every other trial in the series. Not only is the culprit unknown, but the VICTIM'S identity is also a mystery.

//As easy as it is to figure out, this is pretty unique, and it's emphasized with the exisal occupant’s alternating impersonations of Kokichi and Kaito keep the students, and the audience,guessing.

//But for me, the highlight of this complexity is the impact on the trial system itself.

//Kokichi’s use of an electrobomb in the hangar disables Monokuma’s surveillance, meaning not only do the students not know who the killer and victim are, or what happened, but MONOKUMA, the series' typically OMNIPOTENT antagonist, is COMPLETELY in the dark about what transpired!

This moment of vulnerability for Monokuma is both shocking and kinda funny, as he is now forced to JOIN the trial discussion, instead of simply oversee it, and collaborate with the students to solve the case. The sheer novelty of teaming up with the main villain to unravel the mystery underscores the trial's unique brilliance.

//And what I do like is despite how hollow Kaito and Kokichi's "victory" felt, one thing that this trial does do well with the concept of trying to screw Monokuma and the Killing Game over is itraises questions about what it means to "win" in a killing game.

//Kaito’s decision to sacrifice himself ensured Kokichi could not be used as a pawn by Monokuma, while Kokichi’s role showed that even his manipulative tendencies were rooted in a desire to defeat the system.

//Some killers and victims in the Danganronpa, with people like Peko and Gundham being stand out examples, do commit these murders for reasons other than simple bloodlust, but in general, for most of the cases in the series, motives are more black-and-white. But compared to them this one really tends to make you think about the nature of sacrifice and resistance.

//Kaito and Kokichi being the one's who ultimately made this work by working together is also very interesting, even though Kokichi kind of lured Kaito into doing it.

//The trial represents the climax of their very intriguing relationships as a wannabe hero and a wannabe villain. Throughout the game, Kokichi's cunning pragmatism and Kaito's uncomplicated optimism butt heads SEVERAL times, but in this instance, they collaborate to develop a scheme that goes against the grain. The joint sacrifice that they make really shows the pinnacle of their character arcs. Kaito is shown to a loyal and righteous person who is willing to sacrifice everything if it means stopping the killing game and protecting his friends, while Kokichi is similarly ready to die in order to achieve his objectives of weakening Monokuma and being the trickster that he was always destined to be.

//And I love this for them.

//And then Kaito's execution. Despite my own issues with it, this trial and this execution made for a satisfying enough conclusion. Kaito’s final moments, where he faces death with dignity and defiance, shows just how much he meant his rambles about his unwavering belief in hope and humanity. His refusal to let Monokuma win elevates his sacrifice to one of the most memorable in the series.

//But yeah, that's about all I have to say on this one.

//Case 5 of V3 gets points for being emotional, ambitious, and thematic, but ultimately, it is one of the lesser trials for me. Largely due to how it's relevance is ruined due to dialogue in the case that immediately succeeds it, combined with its parallels to Game 2’s Case 5.

//While this trial had the potential to rank very highly, these issues prevent it from reaching that level. As sad as it is to say.

[moutheyes]

time for some random thoughts!

I'm finishing three series this week—Miseinen, See Your Love, and Caged Again—and plan on doing a separate post for them, so this is just a space to get some thoughts down. I am looking forward to the Ossan's Love Thailand premiere tonight but will have zero brain cells online for the entire duration of the show. 👍

The YothaGun storyline in Perfect 10 Liners is hitting the spot, and PerthSanta are a big reason why.

If you asked me about anything that happened in the ArmArc part of the series, I wouldn't be able to tell you even though I technically watched all of it. Thankfully, the YothaGun section has me in a chokehold so far. The grumpy/sunshine dynamic is so strong, and Perth (Yotha) and Santa (Gun) are able to elevate the trope to something genuinely engaging, thanks to both their individual charm and their chemistry. I love how quickly Yotha warmed up to Gun, and how little he seems to be fighting against his feelings even if he's still awkward about being Seen; I also love how Gun's initial fascination with Yotha's personality seeded his growing attraction and romantic interest. The progression of their relationship feels natural, feels good to my sensibilities as a viewer.

Also, the little flashes of physical flirting, which Perth has always been so good at, have me vibrating out of my seat. You can just tell that Yotha knows how to reel someone in and make them feel wanted (it's his tactic at the bar, after all), and that makes me anticipate how good this couple will be when they finally put their hands and mouths on each other.

Last thing about this show: One of my favorite things in BL is a silly little ritual—the more mundane the better—and every time Gun happily does up Yotha's tie in the morning, and Yotha gazes at him with that fond quirk to his mouth, it hits so good. It's such a simple act, so domestic, so fitting for them (Gun wants to be helpful and friendly, and Yotha wants to be close to Gun), and until the scene in yesterday's episode, it was kept private between them, so performing the ritual on campus, in front of Gun's friends, was a great way to show just how comfortable they are with each other now, even if others don't understand their relationship yet.

Emi and Bonnie are probably going to ruin my life in Us the Series.

Man, that sobbing apology in the trailer got me good. I was already fully seated for this series but it must be reiterated that Emi and Bonnie look so good together. If the storytelling doesn't go off the rails (I think I can trust p'Fon and her team?) then I am ready to be fully consumed. May Sapphic Saturdays long continue!

The Boy Next World premiere was solid.

Is this considered a slow-burn for MAME? Only half-kidding, but the first episode was... nice. I'm not sure who the director is, but the style feels a bit different. It suits the mysterious, dreamlike quality of the storyline so far; I adored the moody blue lighting in Cir's apartment when he first returned home. Noeul is still channeling ADHD gremlin energy with the scatterbrained behavior, but Phu feels more childlike than Rain from Love in the Air. (I think it's the superstition?) However, I am really enjoying seeing Boss play a softer, less edgy character in Cir. Obviously their chemistry is going to be fire, so I just hope the series can continue building off its premiere. Also, I wanna know more about Jin specifically lol.

Petrichor has been really uneven, and I'm sad about it.

Love Tul, love the way Engfa plays Tul, love Tul's little work trio, but this show isn't keeping me on tenterhooks the way I want it to, even though so much shit happens in every single episode. The big reveal in Episode 6 felt shoehorned in, and the police corruption theme is well-trod territory; yes, characters like Big Tech and Daensiam are imminently punchable, but they don't feel like true foils for Tul, and the Real Killer was kept very well hidden up to this point, so even though there's a sense of danger, there isn't enough of the tension that I want from a crime thriller. Also, Thiwa has been woefully underused as a character so far. I'll stick this one out but I hope we reach a breaking point in the plot soon.

[tobiasdrake]

Oh, and then we have to deal with the fallout of the bad motive.

So, that First Blood Perk. Obviously the game wasn't going to let that actually be a thing, because it would deprive us of a core feature of the games: the Class Trial.

Honestly, I might have more respect for the game's whole "Rise up against Danganronpa itself!" thing if they had. If they actually let the killer claim the First Blood Perk and walk. Fuck you, no fun Class Trial will be had here!

That would be aggravating. But it would be aggravating in a way that feels truly resonant with the game's ultimate goal of tearing down Danganronpa brick by brick. The game is later going to say that the fandom is part of the problem and appeal to them to become part of the solution. So. Yeah. It does piss you off that we never got to play the fun trial game, doesn't it? Maybe you should think about that.

(Though I still wouldn't want the killer to actually be Kaede, especially with the crime scene clearly showing that she couldn't have done it. I'm not actually that impressed by "Your PC is the Blackened" after we already did "Your PC is the Mastermind" one game ago.)

But no. You knew they were going to cop out. I knew they were going to cop out. Despite insisting repeatedly at the end that they are making an unsatisfying Danganronpa experience on purpose, they are still trying to do that as a satisfying Danganronpa experience so they wouldn't dare deprive us of such an important feature.

So how do they cop out? Is it because the killer themselves don't know they're the killer and thus can't claim the perk? Could it be that the killer wants to weaponize the Killing Game to kill us all, like Hina and Nagito have tried in the past?

Nope. The killer decides she wants to get caught and die so that Shuichi can develop and grow as a character. That's it. That's the reason.

This is how Kodaka, recognizing that what he's about to do is a pretty shitty thing to do to an audience that he's spent time getting hyped for this character, tries to grease the wheels. It's not technically a Fridging because she wanted to die! She chose to sacrifice herself on the altar of Shuichi's growth! She climbed into the refrigerator and slit her own throat! That was her choice! So you can't be mad about it! She had complete agency over the reduction of her character to a footnote in the real protagonist Shuichi's personal journey! I didn't do it! SHE did it!

Whether these are valid reasons that make it Okay, Actually or if they're just overcompensating paper-thin excuses to justify an incredibly mean-spirited prank, that's up to you. I think you know where I fall on that dichotomy.

What's especially weird about the First Blood Perk is that it makes sense in retrospect. Trying to cancel the Class Trial makes perfect sense as something Tsumugi might do to conceal her own involvement in Rantaro's death and role as the true culprit. But it was offered well before any plans for killing were ever even a teensy-tiny thought in the back of anyone's minds.

So either Tsumugi is secretly an omniscient 4-D chess predictive grandmaster who knows every single thought that will ever pass through the minds of every single person in every single second of every single day only pretending to be an incompetent hack, or this was pure serendipitous coincidence. Something that seems complex and compelling but is actually a hollow, vacuous shell devoid of any real meaning.

Which is true? Eh, whichever you want to be true. The game's actually proud of itself for never committing to its own story, so there is no actual truth behind anything that happens. Even the reality show stuff ends on "But what if THAT was another lie and the REAL REAL real plot has never been revealed!? I'M SO CLEVER."

"This seems meaningful but actually it doesn't really fit quite right and in fact it might just be clever-sounding nonsense the more I think about it" is basically V3 in a nutshell.

[lonespektr]

SEPTEMBER 19TH HORROR WATCH

Influencer (2022)

Voice over in her influencer toxic positivity platitudes shit about growth or whatever while she is just doing the opposite of what she is saying

Occasionally spliced with her taking photogenic shots

Just noticed the poster might already be a spoiler

And YUP the first time we see her is in water

This is Thailand

The girl approaches protag and "scares off" a creepy guy and "opens up" to imply she was dater*ped by a guy like that

Now the girl had her on her bike

Supposedly this was a trip with bf but he bailed

But he did pay for it

Girl hides from a live stream shot

Girl is making fun of her for being terminally online but that is her job??? Like irl

She sells products and travel stuff

She doesn't have another job??

We don't actually see girl go inside the suite

Protag sweet wide open upon return

Her stuff got tossed and jacked

Passport gone, she's technically stranded

Called bf he blamed her for her stuff getting stolen

Very controlling

She said they should break up and he just ignored her and said call me in the AM when you aren't upset

Girl is taking a bunch of pictures of her with hey phone

Prevented her from shooting at their original location and no service once they got there (Island) one way off her boat

Sees tally's on a log eight days

This is literally her hunting ground

OMG she's telling her her WHOLE plan

Fucking savage

She said i'll give you four days

Ofc the girl laughs like it was a joke

Girl seems to be anti influencer specifically??

Says they are self centered

Protag finally admits lonely

Then to give us a "maybe she deserves it feeling"

The girl confirms sarcastically she is the center of the universe

WHOA title comes in late

Using the same voiceover i think

Now that girl stranded the protag

Did we literally get her name ever???

Girl took over her social media - not only do they look nothing alike the girl has a MASSIVE birthmark on half her face

Literally just went through all her old shit photoshopped her face onto old posts clearly an expert at Photoshop

5th victim real serial killer wall

Already hunting for accurate victim

Solo white girl influencer

Stalking

In a way we actually haven't left the main character cleverly - because the villain stole the protag's life

Kinda wild the protag slept on the beach and after she revealed her master plan

New victim knows she has a tail

She didn't really do a lot of research on new vic

Old vic was desperately lonely

New vic is a low key cultist??

She's tries a new approach after trying to lead

She backtracks as a submissive

Offering bait of a fancy place

Success

Problem

Girl didn't account for controlling bf

He did the rose petals thing

So now it's new vic and old vic bf n her in old vic's place (that's paid by bf)

Lolz how she going to get them not to talk to each other

The new vic clocked the girl (again) as they both obviously got their rooms broken into

The thing with all these is the first vic clocked all these things too, she just brushed it off as non sensical

"you're fucking creepy"

That's the trigger

Vic no 2 RIP just had the courage to stick to her instincts

We don't have clear motivations on why she's doing this

And unfortunately it comes off as bitches be crazy

Like everyone is just clocking an inherent wrongness to her but we don't know why she is doing it so it's just boadering on crazy people are dangerous

She still has to deal with the guy

There's activity on vic no 1's account..but she has the phone??

She's working several angles

He can tell from the posts she made it's not vic #1 clearly illustrating that she can't see things about people others can and probably doesn't bother to anti-social tendencies and that's why she didn't consider s bf would come after her (also she's cocky and doesn't do enough research)

It also very clear he just uses that line on women but that doesn't mean he can't recognize fundamental things she probably can't

*SA !!!

Well an aporoximation

This sets up a strong juxtaposition that the girl just mimics life but doesn't actually know what it is or how to connect with people

Okay flash back

Vic no 1 + bf

Lol not this same guy chattin up

I'm not saying this guy wouldn't be able to point out the weather phenomenon he's obviously a busy body but they could have had him talk longer ro make it seem realistic

Wow vic no 1 bestie said bf can do better but like??? He's shitty, they are both shitty???

Bf found the trail of bredcimbs of doctored posts because he is also a media guy and can tell

Looks like she cleared out but she is still there

He got the drop on her

The writers are dragging both characters

They are both shitty

She's making a play

It must have been difficult to get that underwater shot

She got the drop on him

She's a bit like villanelle without the explanation

Ok the bestie is just the embodiment of fake ass fakers

She's keeping the vic 1 identity but trashing the bf identity

Back on the island

Surprised vic no 1 isn't dead

We got one big hint she was hiding some..talents but that's it

Found and buried the other two girls

Still got her shoes

Got a mean sunburn

Found her bf

Didn't kill her, left her, not surprising bro does she know how to get back?

We didn't need to know how exactly she survived but it wasn't a big pay off because honestly the only character we got a read on was the bf and he didn't matter

It's a month, the weather is good generally except rainy season (there's wayer), no predators, if you can fish you can figure it out for a month

But she was.. Emotionally in a shit place and isolation should have exacerbated that..

[spotaus]

yipppeeee!!!!

Skipping a bit, but yes!! A lot of why Nightmare trusts who he does and makes rash decisions across his rule (and why he can be so confident, and that his paranoia is usually silly stuff) is because of that emotional empathy!! I think he probably had several sessions with Ccino (or even Killer for that matter, though both of them are very convincing liars) where he basically played two truth and a lie to see if he could parse out and recognize how his magic was sensing lies vs. truths! So, by the time the more pressing folks, Cross and Error, come along? Night is very very confident he can tell the truth from lies, and recognizes that Error isn't lying.

Even though it's *technically* not the truth, considering he does have Geno and Fresh, but in his current mindset, those two aren't his family anymore, and Nightmare can recognize the grief and conviction and assumes his family might have died, so he ignores that nagging feeling of something being off because it's not a lie. (And he's like. 100000% blindsided with the Geno reveal- because??? Error has no family, what are you doing? WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT"S YOUR BROTHER????)

The bit about the payment really is so chill too, because Error's a very stationary monster (doesn't really feel a rush to go anywhere new, he likes this home!!) and Nightmare has been really reallly good about providing him with everything he could want or need, so it just turns into Error having the sweetest idea EVER. And ofc he recruits the other into it!! I like to think they meet up in the war room while someone (probably Dust, because he's the least helpful for romance atp) hangs with Night and distracts him. And Error and the others start planning and budgeting and brainstorming. And across the table Ccino gives Killer one of those looks like 'Don't you dare let them out of your sight' and Killer gives a look back like 'Duh'. And it's just so lovely of all of them and a good distraction from the chaos that's been happening at that point!

With Night that's 100% the energy I want to go for! He's very much willing to sacrifice himself (no shocker, considering his palm scar + the whole prophecy thing) for those he cares about! And, unfortunately, Error is exactly the demographic he was hoping to avoid influencing, because! Like your said! The Ccino thing! But he does well, and even though it still might not be the best anyone's ever done it (Night is NOT a parent, and Ccino can't raise a whole second kid) but Error comes out of it so so happy and confident and decently adjusted, so who is anyone to judge?

For Dream and Blue I really wasn't sure lol, but I feel like it'd just be the perfect pair of people to really manage it. Night wouldn't want to put that sort of responsibility onto his Knights (he loves and trusts them, but only one of them (Horror) had a semblence of a healthy childhood, minus the famine ofc. And 2/4 were criminals. Dream on the other hand? He and Blue care so deeply about the people, on a 1 to 1 basis, and like u said Dream can still feel emotions, so if there were any places his check-in crews felt were sketchy, he could pop in and figure out if it's just a kid acting up, or if something was really wrong and needed fixed! (Also I can totally picture that Night wouldn't be above asking for this one thing from Dream between his adventuring dreams, considering all he's done. He doesn't think Dream needs to pay any debts to him ofc, siblings help siblings, but it'd be nice to have support. So, Dream helps! And where Dream goes, Blue goes, because they are inseperable :] )

Mhm! I love the ideas of when a character in a place of power is made to put a vulnerability out there in the hopes that they can get to the people before their enemies turn them against them. With Dream's disappearance and his time in the camp, it's a ticking timebomb before people think Nightmare is falling ill, or unfit to rule, or try to stage a coup that will get a lot of people hurt unneededly. He trusts that his Knights can defend him from any physical attacks, so he has to hope and pray that the actions and the voices of the people he had helped so far were enough to carry him through. (And largely, they were!) (And yeah, it helps that Error is like super duper committed to lingering around. Like. He is THERE. In the same way Blue and Dream were so obviously a couple, Night and Error are the ones who show very little pda so everyone is just like 'kiss already!!!' when they've been courting for like. Half the year already lmao.)

And for those who disappear. Well, Night never ordered any killings. However, Killer is fairly trigger happy, and Dust hates flying rumors and loose ends. They have free will :]

Oughhh. This Dust bit is what consumed me earlier- So, I think that for his narrative I'm going to take a route that will follow more closely the idea that Dust's parents were decent people just trying to help him! (Very much going with the His Soul needed more Magic and so the magic was woven into a Spell itself, connecting to the Weather- so thank you for that!) So. Dust was raised outside of Nim's kingdom, probably just in the neighboring one. In an unassuming town, and, for the fun of it, let's say his family is like. The medieval equivalent of middle-class. Surviving, but not exhorbanently thriving. His parents loved him and his brother dearly, but Dust was weird. He was born... let's say early. His soul was missing a LOT of magic that he'd need to live, but somehow, through a lot of careful watchin, he lived. He wasn't sickly, but he was very very frail, and tinier than anyone expected him to be, especially when his parents were both taller. Then came along Papyrus when he was young. With his health being dangerous, his father wanted a back-up heir just in case, and so his brother, Phantom, was born. Perfectly healthy. And the brothers were super super close. (Think, normal canon Paps and Sans, where Dust is 'lazy' thanks to his obnoxiously low magic/hp while Phantom carries him around, jokes with him, treats him just like any other monster.) And when Dust is in his mid-teens, his magic suddenly starts declining rapidly. Like, his growth spurt just. Sapped what little extra magic he had that was keeping him out of a comatose state. And so his parents used emergency funds to get him help from a mage they'd been speaking to. Finding that natural basis of magic (storms) to ground Dust's magic somewhere and let him draw from it.

And it worked, and Dust survived. But anytime he'd be distressed, silently or not, it'd bring a storm to town. A storm which started ruining crops. Started flooding businesses. Sweeping away a few herd animals once. Ad Dust couldn't figure out how to control the latent amount of magic that had been gifted to him in order to make this spell a part of his being. No matter how hard he tried, it seemed that so long as there were natural storms, his emotions and magic would elevate right with it. His last straw was when his storm struck his brother with a lightning bolt, downing more than half his hp and leaving a nasty singe scar along his shoulder and arm bones. He couldn't stand to hurt his family anymore, and looked into the rumors of the neighboring kingdom. A place with no storms, no rains, nothing. That should be impossible, so it was definitely magical, and he swore to his family that he was just going to find work, send money back to them, and stop causing them so much trouble. (None of them wanted him to leave, least of all Phantom)

So he went, and he found that the moment he crossed the land border, that the storm which had been literally following him since he left his home? Yeah, it full-stopped. He still had immense amounts of magic for his little body, sure, but the storm was gone. His plan had worked. So he finds work, accidentally gets recruited by the black market (because they think he's a weak lil baby), proves himself and accidentally starts running a branch of said black market because he's strong, and he has a strong will to live and survive, and send things back home so his family knows he's safe.

And then, when Nightmare takes over and stops doing the rituals? At this point Dust has had time to do the proper training to control his magic, control the spell without the consiquences of the storms being immediate (only mustered through vague dampness in a room before). But when Night lets loose that good weather spell, and good chunk of the storms are because Dust is learning to put all of his practice into use. And he is a LOT of pent up emotion. He's just lucky noone with magic senses as good and Night were around him at the time to pin things on him. And by the time he's caught, he's much much better at consealing it, and it is indeed why he needs the 4 magic dampeners!!!

Anyways yeah. I think there should be a side-story where Dust goes to visit them, or asks Night to invite them to the castle, maybe both but the visit home first, and just. Dust insisting Nightmare come with (not much is important to him, but he fears if he comes back like he is, that if he gets rejected, he might not take it well. Plus he wants to introduce his King (his other little brother) to his family so they know he's been safe for a good chunk of time). And like. He gets there to town, and before they even get to the house, his brother is outside working with like. Sheep or something. And there's the start of a drizzle completely fueled by Dust's fear and happiness at seeing his little brother all grown up, for the first time in almost 15 years. And Phantom looks up, super confused at the light rain because it had been sunny before, and then he looks around and spots Dust and there's this moment of utter confusion, then recognition, then *Dust* approaches and they have this sad but happy reunion. Phantom ushers Dust (and Night, without much question) to the house and his parents are older, but still alive, and life just enters their eyes when they recognize their little boy. Their son. Alive and seemingly well. (Nightmare is glad he got to be there to see Dust with his family, and though he has this moment of worry, acceptance, that Dust might just choose to stay? Dust proceeds to tell his family how important it is that he stay with Nightmare, how much he's grown, how much he's been able to grow. Etc. (Also Phantom is Dust's best-man at the Dustedafterdeath ceremony. Because like. idc how unrealistic, these poly losers are getting married- Also Killer is jealous he doesn't get to be best man.)

Okay sorry I got really off-track there lmao- But!! I love the idea that Dust has this supportive family who he had to close himself away from in order to keep them safe, because they'd do anything to keep him alive and happy, and his self worth was NOT high enough to let them keep going like that.

Oh!! And I like to think Dust's soul has something wrong with it visually. Like. I think Dustedafterdeath all have weird souls. Geno still has his ripped apart lil sliver, I think Reaper's is a pure black (ironically the only part of him that can really be touched without technicalities) and Dust? I like to think that his is maybe his original soul (tiny and white) physically sown into a larger, spell-based mimic of a soul that is a dull sort of gray (also plays into his name, because sometimes he sheds his own dust from the magic having to recycle his cones faster, like humans w/ dead cells). So He's like. Super super not a fan of having it even remotely messed with.

Okay NOW I'm done!!!

You are SO right!!! Fresh wouldn't take the parasite trying to drag him back lying down. He thought his little brother was dead, he grieved for him!! He needs to hug his brother right this second, right now! Shut up parasite!!!

Oh the parasite would be so so confused (I love the idea of the shock from the storm spell-) and it's try to flee immediately because whatever that is is nasty, and owie, and ouchie, and evil! And Fresh is actively trying to fight against it. He needs to get to Error! (Probably a very visual and very outward expression on Fresh's end. Like, The parasite pulls him back and makes him move super unnaturally and he's so fed up that he like. Is just fighting for control and jittering and flinching and trying his best to convey to Error that this is NOT him. Because he hand Geno never told Error the full story! They wanted to protect him until he was older! And. And then he ran away when he was young.

And dude, yeah, Geno would be super cautious ur on point. Definitely thin, thin ice. They're only next to each other in the room because Error asked them both to be there (and also maybe Ccino and Nightmare) because they mean a lot to him. Geno would recognize it, and have to choose his battle very, very wisely. He can't risk excluding Dust, but he can't risk letting Error think that Fresh hates him.

Now that I'm thinking about it. It'd be SUPER funny if Fresh was so persistent in trying to get to Error, and Dust's magic hurt so much to ambiently consume? That the young spirit learns for the first time how to shut off its ambient magic consumption. And when it does it's like a switch is flicked and Fresh just like faceplants for a second, letting the weirdness of the lack of magic consumption process, before he ignores it and rushes to Error. (It's a problem for him to figur out later, to explain later, but for now it's gone and that means he can be near his brother again! The paraite figured it out like 5 years too late, but it happened-) And Fresh just bowls him over into a bear hug (and Error braces himself for it so it's less painful and explosive than usual, but even as he does start to feel it, he refuses to let go of Fresh, so it's a mutual hug).

Dust really did pull them with his magic swag <3 (especially if I keep this last bit in, because then he Supports Error, made Geno rethink his harmful habits, and speedran a learning curve that would've taken the parasite a century in the first 5 minutes of meeting Fresh-)

Waughhhhh Ccino looking out for Error!!!! This works so well too because. Well. Everyone in the castle was forced to grow up too soon. Night for.. obvious reasons. Ccino for... also obvious reasons. Killer being the true orphan of the group (gonna expand on this in a post later-). Horror having to work sooner in youth to help provide food. Dust and his weird magic issues. Cross being a literal child soldier. None of them got to be kids, and most of them hardly think about it! Nightmare and the others, though not intentionally, are treating Error like an adult already, because it's all they know. And here's Error, a kid, and Ccino takes the chance to make sure Error knows that he can be a kid. he can be silly, and pursue his interests, and. Ohhhh. Like you said he's not the mage *yet*. He has years before any sembelance of responsibility falls on his shoulders. he has plenty of time. And this time Error seems relatively well adjusted, with few pressures, and now a decent, multiple-person support system. He can focus on being a positive force in Error's life, andd still enjoy himself! (Almost like letting his own inner lil kid out! To listen to Error and maybe even learn from him? Invested in the idea that Ccino learns to crochet or smth from Error. A nice hobby for him! (I could see him being the king of making lil stuffed animals. Makes a Cat for Killer. Horse for Dust. Leaves them on their beds with a nice lil note like "Hi, Just Ccino, it's not a bomb :]".)) And yeag about Ccino just really, really making sure Error knows he's wanted, but also that he can leave if he changes his mind.

Okay I'm done but!!! Ough Ancha as always ur points were so so tasty!!!!

New Age AU (Error's Wacky Wild Plan)

Hi guys. So. Crazy Story. The crisis that stopped me from working on my banner art actually catapulted me into writing this drabble finally! (Also the wonderful @ancha-aus was also a life-saver and helped me hammer out a few plot points for this installment <3)

Currently my only context for this drabble is that Error is tiny, and ran away from home because Geno moved to Reaper's kingdom to make money to send back home, and Fresh spent too long away on his trip. Error was expelled from his magic academy and came home to an empty house, so he left! Now he's been on the road for about a month? Nightmare has been ruling for about 6-ish years now, almost 7.

(Hello @mutzelputz and @papiliovolens hi guys!!!)

     The town was bustling. 

   Error had been through a lot of towns since he’d left. Big ones, small ones, ones he was convinced weren’t even towns at all, just a few barns in a general closeness to one another who decided they needed to call themselves something besides the outskirts. Those people had been particularly hostile to his passing through.

   And, lately, they’d been really weird. People staring at him when he’d walk on the streets, or pass by shops. When they saw he had money from a different kingdom (he didn’t even realize he’d left his own, but he figured it meant he was on the right path) they’d squeeze their faces like they bit a lemon and hastily take his coin. Like it was cursed, or something. They were lucky it wasn’t cursed, honestly. He could probably figure out how to do that.

    This town, though, was filled so full with people that he imagined they couldn’t look at him weird if they wanted to. 

   People were riding horses, chatting in the streets, all sorts of stalls and merchants were peddling goods, and he was almost positive he could hear music lifting down the street over the general drone. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d run into a place so busy. He’d always been told to stick to the side, out of the way, out of danger. 

   He didn’t have to listen to that anymore. Though, he did skirt the crowds. The mass of people seemed all too willing to bump shoulders or elbows with each other in the early morning sun, and the last thing he wanted was to have his magic act up in a crowd. He’d done well so far. 

   Every booth, every merchant, every passerby seemed jubilant, ebbing and flowing. It was like some sort of party. 

   That was, until, Error spotted it.

   A big building, something that Error recognized only vaguely. 

   It was an amphitheatre. 

   Geno had taken him to see one once. Or, at least, the ruin of one. It hadn’t been too far from their home, and it was pretty abandoned and lonely. Plants had crawled up its walls, stones had fallen off in chunks, animals seemed to have deemed its high windows a perfect spot to build nests. It had been breathtaking, and ancient. 

   This one? Seemed perfectly in-use. 

   The walls were all in-tact, stones, an easy to look at grey, smooth and covered in little intricate carvings. Spells, he had to imagine, in some language he didn’t know. Curtains hung over the huge arched entrances, and heavy gates seemed to be lifted, the spikes at the base loomed over the heads of every passerby. 

   He couldn’t help but marvel. Was this a restoration, or maybe it was new. Some sort of imitation. Regardless, he found that his feet carried him to one of the entrances, which stood largely empty aside from some folks who looked strikingly like guards.

   Two of them stood, long spears in-hand. They both stood stock still as Error approached, and didn’t move a muscle as he passed them. They were strange, definitely different. Not at all the town guard he was familiar with. 

   The inside of the theatre was even more impressive. Rows and rows of stands seemed to line up either side. Huge tapestry hung from the high arches past those seats, and down the runways of the bleachers, all a bright teal and dark navy blue. They seemed fancy, and much newer than the curtains which had hung in the entrance. 

   Beyond the walkway where he stood, was a set of stairs which led down a level or so, before it leveled out into an open space. Sandy, and very flat. It seemed like there were people there, too. A much smaller crowd, but still a crowd nonetheless. 

   Error was almost amazed he’d not been stopped by someone yet. Whatever was going on seemed important, and so far in his experience, people did not like him sticking his nose into important business. 

   With that in mind, he decided he’d stick to the entryway for now. He leaned his bag up against the wall and watched from a position where the sun still shadowed his form. He was often grateful for his miscolored bones. It made hiding in the dark a whole lot easier. 

   It took a bit for him to really process what he was watching in the morning light. 

   There were four people sat on a sort of raised box toward the front of a stage. A huge stage, raised up off the sand with wood slats. They had a long-table before them, and quills and ink jars in-hand. Well, three were sitting. One was standing. But the point is, they were all watching the stage very attentively. 

   On-stage there was… basically nothing. Only a simple backdrop Error had to imagine was there at all times, because it looked like it was coated in sand, even from the distance where he stood.

   A person would enter the stage, the people sat on the box would speak to them, and then there was a flare of magic. Another. Another. And then they were dismissed. 

   It wasn’t until he really bothered to think about what magic was being cast that he realized those were extremely simple spells being used. Levitate, Create Water, Mimicry. Or Flame, Gust, Light. All just three easy spells, and then they were off-stage. That was taught magic. It gave him memories of his entrance exam to his school. He’d been way overqualified to get in, Geno taught him after all…

   But, no, this didn’t feel the same. There were plenty of people who seemed to stumble at spells they didn’t recognize, or who couldn’t muster a simple breeze. Then others who were very old and obviously skilled. Obviously they found the three spells to be child’s play. Like Error would. This was no entrance exam, so what-

   “Hey, pipsqueak, what are you doing there in the dark?” A voice startled him, and it took all of his willpower to avoid jumping away from its origin. 

   Error twisted rapidly, just in time to avoid the thrust of an elbow in his direction. 

   There was a monster there. Three, actually. Two lizards, both bright green and tropical, and one who looked more like a dragon. The green one closer to him must have spoken, because he laughed at Error’s flinch. 

   “Why are you bothering me?” Error shot back haughtily. 

   The lizard seemed to grin at the response.  

   “Oh, so we’ve got a feisty little small fry here? Thinks he’s scoping out the competition?” The dragonish one hissed, voice deep. 

   The other green one tittered a giggle, “So cute! I can’t believe the King really decided to let just anyone try out for Royal Mage.” 

   Oh…

   The lizard before him seemed to take this silence as a weakness, and reached out quicker than Error could react. A flick to the middle of his forehead. 

   Error winced and pulled away, back and into the arena. He grit his teeth and clutched his skull, where at the same moment the lizard jumped back and shook their hand in the air a bit. His magic had reacted poorly again, and while it was better than it used to be, it still stung like 5 wasps touching down and stinging the same point all at once. 

   “Little freak.” Was all the monster hissed, before he fled. His two friends moving on behind him in confusion. Approaching the line to the stage. 

   Error stood there in the sun for a moment, rubbing at his forehead until the pain was more of a numb static. 

   If anything, he appreciated the little run-in with those wanna-bes. Now he knew exactly what this was, and why it had felt so familiar to him. 

   The Mage Trials. 

   Geno had to go through them, and he’s been very thorough about his every single detail while doing it. Even though he was the best mage Error had ever known, he’d still stressed and wrote page after page of plans and spells and had placed them into a folder that felt thicker than an encyclopedia. Geno had always been the only one of them who bothered studying. Fresh couldn’t go to school anymore, and Error… Well, Error didn’t need to. 

   Thinking about it, Geno had been very quiet about it, but Error had looked into his folder a few times. Just out of curiosity. It’d been split into three rounds, something Geno had said was standardized. The first was a test of someone’s basic magic skills, the second were more complex spells which the mage has practice in, and the third, the one that had given Geno the most grief, was the personal spell round. In the last one, there were no restrictions to what someone could do, so long as they had done the work themselves, and that it mostly used magic. 

   If he was right, and he usually was, then this was the first round. Eliminating those with nothing but a hope and a prayer in their pocket before they got embarrassed before the one looking for the Mage in the first place. In this case, whoever this kingdom’s king even was. 

   In just a few moments, Error had decided. 

   This was how he’d prove himself. 

   The line was already starting to get longer, and he didn’t want to be here until nightfall in a queue. He dusted off his scarf, his shoes, his bag, and set off into the bright sun to secure his place in this contest. No prep. No warning. Just with his raw skill and what he’d learned so far. Nothing could possibly go wrong. 

.

   Finally. 

   Error felt like it had been hours in the warm sun before he was finally up next. 

   He’d been watching, of course. Watching as the people before him were passed or failed. It was just as he’d expected, and he couldn’t help but be a bit giddy as the two green lizard who’d bothered him earlier both failed. Though their dragonish friend had passed, it was still enough of a victory for him.

   Along with that, he noticed that the three people sat were all in robes of nobles. Something the wealthy and lofty would think to wear in a blazing hot arena all day. The one standing, though, was wearing all black. A hood was over his head, but Error thought he might be some sort of cat-monster. Very stone faced, very still. The only time Error had seen him move was seemingly to veto whatever choice the other three were making. He thought it was interesting. 

   That didn’t matter, though. 

   Based on what he’d seen, these people wouldn’t have any qualms with his magic. He was much better than half the people who’d already been passed, and knew he could keep him calm up on the stage. It’d be just like his entrance exam. 

   He watched as the monster who’d gone before him, a skeleton who was twice his height and twice as animal-ish, bowed gratefully to the people on the boxes, the evaluators, and exited. She’d passed fairly easily, Error thought. Though, her focus seemed elsewhere based on how shaky the hold on her last flame had been. 

   “Next!” 

   The call was shrill, and Error had heard it over a hundred times already today, but this time it bounced in his ears as he lifted himself up the steps and strode onstage. 

   If he’d thought about it, he would’ve tried to find a place to stache his bag, but it was too late for that, and frankly he didn’t trust it not to get stolen once it was out of his sight. Not with how busy the city seemed. 

   When he was stood in the center of the stage, he looked out across the way to the evaluators. They seemed closer up here than they did when he was on the ground. Interesting. 

   “First spell,” The person on the far left called, though Error could tell now that it was a voice projection spell. So they didn’t strain their vocal chords, “ Levitate.”

   That was simple. One of the first spells he’d been taught as a kid. 

   His eyes skimmed briefly, there had been a few props on stage that he only noticed once he was closer that were meant to be used with this sort of spell, but Error wasn’t for that. Instead, he muttered the words under his breath, outstretched a hand, and felt his magic reach out around him. Beyond the stage. 

   There… There was a barrier of some sorts, pushing back against his magic, between himself and the evaluators. He furrowed his brow and urged his magic forward. He didn’t have to break through it. He just. Had to- His magic felt like it was looping and wriggling like a worm through the dirt, but when it broke through on the other end, it felt so much more clear. He could feel a potent magic there, something raw and wet, like the air before a storm. 

   That didn’t matter, though. None of it did, because he was on a mission. His magic finally found its target, the stacks of ink bottles which the middle evaluator had just before their parchment. The magic latched on, and Error finally allowed himself a grin as he tugged his hand upwards. They floated calmly into the air, three of them, and did a quick spinning motion, before settling back down just where he’d found them.

   He didn’t catch the looks on the threes faces, but he had to imagine they were priceless. He was more focused on letting the spell dissipate and preparing for the next. 

   It took a moment, before, “Second Spell,” They said, “Create Water.” 

   Another easy one. 

   Error held his hand out again, though this time his palm faced the sky rather than the ground. At the mutter of his words, he could feel the water manifesting. Tiny droplets leaking from his fingers and into the air above his open palm, where he let it gather into a nice, easy sphere. 

   It hovered, and for this one he could see the nods from the three evaluators. The fourth, the cat monster, didn’t move an inch. A good sign. 

   Error, after a breath, moved the orb of water and simply set it on the stage floor. If he had to release it, he didn’t exactly want to get his clothes wet. That orb tended to shoot outwards when he released it, and the water would go everywhere. 

   “Third spell,” They must’ve been contented with his simply setting down the water, for they continued, “Flame.”

   Ah, one of his favorites. He was never very good at it, of course, but it was certainly very fun. If nothing else it’d be a taste of his raw power.

   He rolled up his hanging sleeves, quickly using strands of string to wrap them in place, before he picked back up the water orb in one hand. With the other, he faced his palm toward the side of it, and spoke the words for the flame spell. 

   The heat gathered in his wrist, and all at once shot out of his palm, like a cannon blast. The heat was intense, and Error laughed quietly to himself in pure elation as the fire did exactly what he was hoping. All at once, his glasses fogged, and a burst of steam blew past his face, off to the exiting side of the stage. He’d evaporated his orb, no longer needing to risk someone seeing him fumble with it and soak himself. 

   He let the fire die after a few second, and quickly grabbed the hem of his scarf to wipe down his glasses from the fog left behind on their surface. 

   The moment the red rims were back on the bridge of his nose, the voice spoke up again. 

   “Name?”

   Error cleared his throat, before calling back his name in response. Just the first one, the last one didn’t matter anymore. 

   There was another few breaths of quiet, before, 

   “Age?”

   Error hadn’t heard them ask anyone else for their age, but he figured they’d noticed. How strong and talented he was at such a young age. 

  He puffed up his chest when he announced, “Twelve!” to the arena. 

   There were a few muffled murmurs from the line, but Error was too busy grinning across the way at the evaluators as they seemed to talk amongst themselves. 

   He was ready to hear the word that would mark him to continue. The next part was tomorrow, after this round was concluded and the king arrived. He’d heard about it in the line while he was waiting. 

   One of the evaluators lifted their gaze back to him. Opened their mouth.

   “Disqualified.”

   That.

   Huh?

   Error must’ve visibly glitched at the response, because one of the evaluators seemed to flinch. Ever so slightly. 

   “How come?!” Error called back, reservations immediately fleeing his mind.

   How could they disqualify him? He hadn’t heard them do that to literally anyone else so far today. 

   The evaluator on the far right spoke up, “Too young. Now please move off the-”

   Error might’ve let his mouth speak before his mind, if he hadn’t seen the way the mysterious cat monster seemed to slink forward. A simple tap to the evaluator’s side and they stopped mid-sentence, attention drawing to the person. 

   He waited with balled fists. Hoping, against it all, that this person was using his mighty veto powers to get him his passing review. 

   “The Knight wishes to speak to you further.” They said, when the person, the Knight, took a step back. “Exit the stage.” 

   Mm. 

   This was his chance. This was his moment. He was being allowed to move on, he was sure of it. It had to be. 

   He practically scrambled off the stage and down the steps, and found that the Knight had closed the distance very quickly. He gestured silently for Error to follow him off to the side of the arena, seemingly outside of the voice spell’s range, as the noise of magic and calling for the next viewer seemed all muffled and contained. 

   Something Error noticed about the guy, now that he was right beside him walking along, was also that he wasn’t a cat monster. No, he had some sort of mask shaped like a cat. Black spots painted on black fur, with piercing white eyelights hidden in the darkness cast by his black hood. A cloth mask covered the lower half of his face, so Error would’ve had no idea what kind of monster he was, if he hadn’t left his hands uncovered. They were grey and grimy, but they were most certainly bones. 

   The other thing he noticed, was the magic. That damp, airy magic was no-doubt from this guy. It practically enveloped the both of them until they were stood in the shade of the wall separating bleachers from arena floor. 

   “You said you’re twelve?” He finally asked, shifting on his feet to look at Error. 

   The last thing he noticed, which only happened once he was able to look past the aura, was that. Well. He was a bit taller than this guy. Not by much, but there was certainly something stark about having to look a bit downwards to meet his eyelights. 

   “Yes, I am.” He claimed proudly, still convinced this was to be his ride to the top.

   The knight seemed to skim him with his eyes. Surely taking in Error’s clothes, his bag, his glasses, the weird bones. Though, it didn’t feel pervasive. 

   “Impressively strong for a kid,” He praised loosely, “And probably talented in spells if the nerds were any indication.” 

   His voice was quiet and raspy, but Error had no problem listening to it. This strong and very cool guy who was called a ‘knight’ was praising him. This was much better than getting yelled at by his professors. Much. 

   “Does that mean I passed?” He asked impatiently. 

   He needed this. He needed this. 

   The guy’s eyelights lingered on his face a bit, and it was then that Error finally noticed how virtually unreadable this guy was. Impossibly quiet, posture unmoving, all facial features shrouded in shadow and covered by masks?

   “I’m not sure what kingdom you’re from, but you’ve got to understand that the folks up there didn’t say no because you’re bad. They said no because the king made a new decree. “No soul under the age of 16 shall be put to work under the crown.” They’ve gotta take it seriously, just like everyone else has to follow the new rules about their own shops and businesses.” He said evenly, eyelights never leaving Error’s face. “You’re a couple years too early is all.” 

   It felt like he’d been shoved into a ditch, and he could already feel his right hand starting to tremble with the beginnings of a glitch. He was furious! How could they possibly say no to him because of some stupid rule about his age? 

   “No!” He exclaimed, trying to bite back the distortion on his voice, “I’m not going to just walk away. If I could just move on to the next round, they’d see I’m different! I’m not some weak little baby!” 

   He clenched his fists, driving his jittering one forcefully into his pocket. 

   The knight didn’t even flinch at his declaration. 

   “They’ve already seen that.” He said easily. “Listen to me. Error, right?” 

   Error hesitantly nodded. 

   “Error, ‘m sure that if my Lord saw you in action, he too would agree that you are very strong and resourceful.” The knight said, and Error hated that it sounded earnest. “But, he set that law into place for very good reason. If by any means those folks back there were to let you through, to pass you, and you made it before the king next round? They’d have committed treason, and I’d have their souls on the end of my bone in three seconds flat.” 

   His voice was hard and serious, and Error held strong as a loud crack echoed out beside the knight. A bone raised from the ground, sharp and jagged on the end, absolutely radiating magic. 

   “Do you really want their blood on your conscience, just so that you get sent away by the King anyways?” The knight offered. 

   Error hunched his shoulders a bit, and he felt his static worsen as he let his eyes linger on the bone. Yes. He muttered inside his head. He wanted to scream it at the man before him. Tell him that this was his one golden chance to prove himself. 

   But to who? He would ask, and Error wouldn’t be able to say it. It’d be a wasted sentiment and wasted time and wasted lives just for his temper tantrum. 

   “...No.” He bit out meekly. 

   He stood there, feeling a familiar shame creep up his spine. The knight made no move to leave, though he did let his bone disappear. The ground looked untouched from where it had split out of. Just more sand. Sand that was getting into Error’s bones. That he’d have to clean out later. Swinging in his hammock, lonely and moping. 

   “Heh,” The chuckle was almost inaudible, and Error was almost ready to let his distress turn back into rage, but, “Better kid than I was.” The Knight mused into the open air.

   He seemed to shift his stance again, and Error took a half step back. 

   “You’ve got your life ahead of you, kid. Don’t let this keep you down. Take the road less traveled by or whatever.” He said then, waving a hand loosely before him. 

   Error stared at him, trying to even his breath, before he had an idea. 

   “The other two rounds will be here, right?” He asked, voice still harshly stuttering and screeching. The Knight seemed unbothered.

   “Yeah. Planning on sticking around to watch?” The knight questioned, though it felt more like a warning. 

   Error nodded in agreement without hesitation. “If these geezers can get the job, I need to see what kind of tricks they have up their sleeves.” He agreed. 

   That earned another little chuckle, before the knight looked back to the stage. 

   Up in the center was a new mage, a human who seemed to be making a pretty wild wind that was whipping the sand around, bothering the people in line behind him. Error heard the knight make a scoffing noise, before turning back towards the stage.

   “Go hang around somewhere else for a while, why don’t you? I have to go make sure those nerds don’t pass that guy.” 

   Error didn’t even get to say a farewell before the Knight was off. 

   It seemed like every stride he teleported a bit further, building speed until he stopped cleanly up on the pedestal. Just in time for the sandstorm to die down. 

   Error didn’t want to walk away from this, he didn’t, but staying would only waste his time. It only took a few more seconds, to watch the knight nudge the evaluator and hear the muffled call of ‘fail’ ring out across the arena before he was turning tail and moving out of the sandy paradise, back into the bustle of the living city. 

.

.

.

   It was impossible to miss it. The sounds of celebration as the monarch entered the town. 

   Error could see the royal carriage from his perch, an old temple tower that had at some point lost its bell. It seemed untouched, birds nests and cobwebs, so he’d set up a hammock and a little makeshift shelter inside using his strings just before night fell. 

   He’d snatched some food from the town as dusk was setting in, and he’d been comfortably whittling away the dark hours, working hard on his plan. 

   With the King officially in town, that meant the second round would be starting up shortly, taking the numbers of who would be in the third round down by hundreds. He hoped the king was stingy about it. He hoped that dragonish monster would stumble on his spell and turn someone into a frog. 

   The thought humored him, and he cackled quietly to himself from his makeshift room. 

   The sun was high again, and he was only a part of the way through. His spells required a lot of his magic to be woven into them, and while it was much much faster than what he’d heard was the usual, it was still difficult to make. 

   Weaving the blue strings from his sockets, to his fingers, around his fingertips, and into the shapes he needed. It was monotonous, and boring by all accounts, but with every strand there was a new flow of power. A new pump of adrenaline into Error’s soul as he recognized his creation becoming more potent. Intent, intent, intent, every loop and knot was filled to the brim with it. His frustration sat at the core. Much more volatile and destructive than his usual intent, but it would serve him well if he wanted this plan to go well. Around it was his determination. The strings woven in with a sense of stubbornness which refused to let go, like a snake swallowing its prey whole. This would compress the first layer into a proper state. Let it coil and coil and coil until it burst. It’d be big, and loud, and send out that message he so desperately needed to be heard by the king. 

   Skipping the second round would probably hurt him in the long run, but… That knight had said he’d have to kill those people if he showed his face in round two. So, he’d just appear in round three instead, and make up for missing the second one. A final act, of sorts. 

   He’d have to be at this all day to make the time crunch. The orb was hardly as big as his palm, not nearly big enough. Though, he had wasted time making the shelter and finding food. He’d just have to skip a couple meals to make up for it. He didn’t really need to eat that much anyways, he’d known that for years. He just tried to make an effort when he smelled something tasty. 

   He knew he could manage. 

   It was late in the night when Error finally started on the outer layers. Those which would be filled with his patience, so that the potent insides would not be sensed as he moved with it among the many magic users. 

   The town had begun to line the streets with torches and party as the stars arrived. No doubt celebrating those who would be at the third and final round tomorrow. The ones who would be competing to become the new Royal Mage. 

   To Error? Every single moment down there was dedicated to him. They just didn’t know it yet. 

.

.

.

   The morning came, and Error only had a few more layers. 

   By the time the sun was almost in the center of the sky above, he had finished it, and carefully tucked it into his backpack. He unraveled the strings and carefully wrapped them, shaping them, changing them into a thin net with long ends. This was shoved into his jacket sleeve, the ends clutched tight in his hand. 

   It took him hardly any time at all to get to the arena, and he was early. 

   Good.

   He settled himself up in the stands, as close to the stage as he could get. Many people seemed to be staying outside the arena, sticking to the streets, but there was still enough of a crowd in the bleachers that Error had to be careful as he worked his way along the edges. He needed to be closer. Closer…

   There. 

   He stood at the railing behind the stage. 

   From here, he could see the line to the left, and he could see the people who had finished lingering on the other side. None of them spoke to each other, only standing about, icily, waiting for the rest to finish so they’d know which of them was chosen, and who was not. Error had to imagine that these folks were just as lame and boring as the seniors from his old academy. No fun at all. 

   He waited, so, so patiently, for the next few people. The last few. 

   Though he couldn’t see the spells themselves, he could certainly feel the pressure coming off of them. The control that they’d need to balance it. How much it might’ve drained their energy to do it just once. He was attuned to that sort of thing, he had to be. 

   His assessment was that all of these last few folks weren’t bad, but they were no match for Error’s raw talent. 

   Each spell cast seemed to tick away at Error’s patience, until it finally happened. The last mage went on-stage. It seemed there had been 15 of them. 

   He’d have to make 16, then. 

   It felt like a blur as he jumped the rails and let his strings carry him across the open space, much to the shock of the few who had been watching the competitors from around him. The blue lines snatched at the wooden supports of the stage, and he swung right over top, landing a bit messily in the center of the stage.

   He didn’t have time to look at everything. All he knew was the crowd was much larger than last time, that there was a shout of ‘Hey!’’ from somewhere to his left, and that the box across from the stage now held only three people. Monsters. One Error recognized, the knight in shadows who’d spoken to him. The other two he didn’t know, but he had to assume the one in the middle, tall and imposing, and dark, with an eyelight the same colors as the tapestries, was the King he was looking to impress. That was all he needed to know. 

   “M’lord, my name is Error!” He called out across the sand, and in one motion he shrugged the bag off his shoulders and used his strings to tug the orb out of its canvas body. “I want to prove that I’m more capable than any of the adults who just went before me! I could be your mage!” He would be the mage. 

   The orb sat cradled in Error’s hand for only the briefest moment, before it was inside the little net he’d made. He swung it in circles. Again. Again. Again. 

   He had to be fast. He had to do this quick.

   Error spent one last moment, extending his reach through his strings, muttering words and igniting an intangible spark. 

   For a brief moment, he watched as the King seemed to ease forward. A hand now raised, seemingly calling off his knights, who had been almost in motion. 

   He released the orb directly upwards, momentum carrying it up. 

   Up.

   Up.

   Into the blue sky. Practically into the sun. 

   Error watched it rise above him. 

   Only. 

   “Shit.” 

   His calculations must’ve been off. He must’ve added a layer too many, or maybe he released it a swing too soon. But he could tell that it wouldn’t clear the top of the arena. 

   Maybe if he had a few more seconds he could’ve used strings to boost it. He could’ve sent a magic gust to lift it further. 

   Not the case.

   He watched as the orb detonated, just like it was supposed to. 

   The wave moved horizontally through the air, and swept across the air above the arena so quickly that it sucked the sand from the top layer and threw it against the tall walls. Error’s footing slipped, and he stumbled to his knees on the stage as the wind whipped and tugged the heavy curtains into the air current as well. 

   It was an almost invisible force, Error had to imagine anyone without a solid grasp of magic would entirely miss it as it spread out. 

  He winced as it finally reached the edges of the arena, where he had just barely managed to fall short of clearing. 

   As the magic passed over the stone and mortar, he saw as it fell. Not in chunks, but crumbled like dust into fine particles. The upper half of every arch at the top of the grand amphitheatre, turned pitch black, then wasted away. 

   He hadn’t meant for it to come in contact with anything. It wasn’t supposed to do anything but harmlessly wave over everyone’s heads. As a show of his strength. That was all.

   Error could only think back to when this had happened before. When he’d accidentally exploded Geno’s favorite mug while metering the strength of his strings. When he’d broken the wheel of a carriage passing through the woods with a wayward slingshot blast. When he’d broken all ten of the large windows in the lecture hall of the academy when he failed to complete a spell the way it was written. When he’d done it too well.

   As he rose to his feet, he half expected the nagging voice of his older brother to be there, chastising him for not being more careful, before taking him home and making him dinner. 

   It wasn’t that, though. 

   He watched out across the sand. The king had his head tilted only slightly, looking up at Error’s lofty mistake. At the clean cut where stone now met unbothered air. His knight, the one in all black, was leaned ever so slightly towards him. They must’ve been speaking. Or, at least, the knight was. 

   About Error, he had no doubt. 

   He stayed in place, watching, swaying a bit with the residual force of his own spell lingering in his fingertips. Every instinct which told him to run and to hide were smothered and stamped out by the ligering fact that he had nowhere to go. Without his brothers, there was no one to help him. He knew it. 

   Even in front of this crowd. These mages. This King and his knights. He couldn’t bring himself to move offstage. Some part of him, deep down, childishly wanted the King to announce that he was impressed. To parade him offstage and let him experience what Geno had. Let him know why Geno left. 

   The King’s single eyelight swam back over to look at Error in the silence. 

   Error felt like the world had stopped. 

   It hadn’t.

   There was a clattering of armor and rustling of fabric, suddenly loud in his ears, and he had no time to react as everything came rushing in all at once. 

   Hands. Heavy, gloved hands. Two sets, two hands each wrapped one of his upper arms, and immediately lifted him off the ground. Into the air. 

   Pain flooded into his bones from his soul, like twin lightning strikes, trying to singe the bone and the magic in its core. The pressure wasn’t much, his mind knew that, but his body usually didn’t listen to him. He tried desperately to hold it in. The rampant part of his magic that had been hurting him since he could remember. That made it hard to touch anyone. To shake hands. To hug his brothers. 

   “Let go!” He pleaded, though he wasn’t sure if his voice made any sense. Fresh always told him they couldn’t tell what he was saying when his voice got too bad.

   More pain. He kicked his legs at the open air, and tried to muster control over his strings, just for a moment, but he couldn’t. He couldn’t focus. 

   And all at once it stopped. 

   Error’s feet were on the ground again, though that promptly became his knees again as he swayed and wavered in the sudden aftermath of his active magic dying down. Receding back into his soul. Because it didn’t need to ‘protect’ him anymore.

   He spotted then, as his vision returned to something aside from the gloves or the sky, that the King was no longer in his throne. In fact, there was a heavy, encompassing, magical weight behind him now. Somewhere very, very close-by.

   He took a deep breath, grounding himself. 

   “We are taking a recess.” Announced a booming voice. Very nearby. It was deep, and felt almost the same as the projection spell from two days prior. Then, more quietly, “You will leave the boy to me. Go ensure no one was injured, then manage the crowd. I’ll make my choice tomorrow at sunrise.” 

   The second bit felt quieter, an edge to the tone that Error didn’t quite like. Considering he must be the boy in question. 

   It was a moment, a few muddled ���Yes, my king’ s, before Error found a pair of boots stepping before him. His head swam as he looked upwards. 

   The King, he figured that had to be him, was dark. Very dark. Like a living, dripping, shadow. Magic seemed to be all he was made of, an aura radiating from him. Dripping off his back into long slimy worms, twitching as they sat near the ground. He wore a fancy cape, too. One with huge gold clasps on his shoulders, one was shaped like the moon. 

   Error looked to his face last. In hindsight, something that could’ve been very, very bad. He was met with a dripping face. Skeletal. The place where his right socket should’ve sat was covered in that dark substance. The other hollow, with that bright cyan orb staring right back at him. 

   “Can you stand?” His voice came easily, and Error braced himself. 

   Could he?

   He had to, he didn’t want to be touched again. 

   Error took another breath, and managed to rise silently to his feet. 

   “Good,” the King said once he was standing, “Follow me.”

   It was an order he didn’t dare refuse. 

.

.

.

   Error found himself in an odd position. 

   He’d been given time to sit and recover from his magic’s outlash, and now he was sat in a room beneath the bleachers of the arena alongside the King and that knight he’d met before. The other one was guarding the door, he thought. 

   It’d been silent for a while, and it was almost expected when the silence was finally broken. 

   “You said your name is Error, correct?” The King asked, and Error gave a nod of yes. He forced himself to meet the King’s gaze.

   “Dust says that you’re only 12, and our people disqualified you in the first round. Is that right?” 

   Error nodded again. 

   “And Dust even explained to you why you were disqualified?” 

   Another nod. It seemed he’d at least made an impression on the knight. Dust. 

   The King tilted his head ever so slightly to the side, eyelight holding Error’s tightly. 

   “Then, I’ll ask, what brought you to think this was a good choice? To try and become Royal Mage above any cost it might bring?” The king asked, and Error was surprised to find it was a shockingly gentle tone. “Your home, your family, your life. You are so young, why put it all on the line like this?” 

   Oh. 

   It was almost funny. Was this whole thing because the king was some sort of charitycase? So disillusioned by his perfect life that he couldn’t even think of the hardships any random kid could go through? He almost grinned at that, barely keeping his mouth from twitching in a mix of frustration and humor.

   “I wanted to prove myself,” He muttered, “And besides, becoming the Royal Mage would be great.” 

   He waited, waited for the King to inhale, to say something, before, 

   “I’m an orphan.” He spat, finally. “Family abandoned me, house is left behind, expelled from school. I don’t want to keep wandering.” 

   It was basically the truth. This was his big break. His one last chance before he became a hated little vagabond. Maybe even a criminal. Maybe he’d have to go on the run for the rest of his life, live as a nomad. Join a caravan. Those people got stopped a lot though, kingdoms didn’t like them. He’d probably explode some city’s bakery by mistake and get put in jail for-

   “Wait!” Error suddenly exclaimed, breaking free of his thoughts, “Am I in trouble? Am I going to jail??” He asked then. 

   His worries slammed to a grinding halt and he stared wide-eyed at the two before him. Geno had always told him not to go making his big stuff near town, because if the guard caught him he wouldn’t be able to bail him out. He’d end up in jail. Of course, it’d never happened back then because he was always fast enough. Always smart enough to get out of dodge when he broke something or made poor decisions. Here? Here he hadn’t run when he had the chance. 

   The King stared at him, his one eyelight nearly mirroring Error’s in surprise at the question. 

   “I mean,” he started, “You’re young. If I wont let you work for me, I wouldn’t dare put you in prison either.” The King stated, “Though, you did do quite a bit of damage to the theatre.” 

   Error watched him break eye contact finally and look over his shoulder to the Knight stood there. He’d been silently watching Error too. 

   When he had no insight, The king seemed to heave a sigh, and the shadowy extra limbs which draped around him twitched. 

   “You’re sure you have no family? No home?” the King asked him again, and Error nodded.

   The king muttered something under his breath, and shot the Knight another look. The knight shrugged. 

   “I… Will not employ you. Though, I do see talent in you, Error.” the King said carefully, a bit slower in his words than he had been up until now. Almost… unsure. “I will, however, extend to you the title so that you may conduct…” He waved a hand before himself, as though searching for a word, “ You may conduct independent research. If you accept, of course.”

   “You would be free to resend your acceptance at any moment, no strings attached, and may take any work you complete along with you, and any pay you receive would be given to you after your 16th birthday, if you stay that long.” He added, “I’ll have to rewrite the contract, but-”

   “I accept!” 

   Error couldn’t help himself. He was so excited he could puke. The last thing he’d expected was to pull this off. This shitshow of a scheme actually got him the job? He could scream. He could jump up and down for joy. He didn’t, he sat eagerly and tense in his seat instead, but he could’ve. 

   The King seemed to hesitate, for a few breaths, before relaxing. He stood, and offered a hand out slowly to Error. 

   Error stood too, grinning. He could manage this one. He could do it. 

   It was brief, but he grasped the King’s hand and shook it firmly.

   “Dust, will you help Error locate his belongings, and escort him to wherever he is staying tonight? I’ll send Cross to swap with you a bit later. We’ll reconvene in the morning just before sunrise.” 

[jojikawa]

Sangwoo x Killer!Fem!Reader

TW// if you know enough about killing stalking to be attracted to Sangwoo then there’s no reason for me to put a trigger warning.

MASTERLIST

✧『Fandom』: Killing Stalking

✧『Character』: Oh Sangwoo

✧『Word Count』: 3,746 words 19,661 characters

✧『Summary』: After meeting you, Sangwoo really began believing in love. First, he would aimlessly seduce unsuspecting people he developed a connection with for a kill but then he began to only do it to satisfy his urge to kill. The confidence he’s built up to that point about his love for you comes crashing down when your true intentions are revealed.

You had been dating Sangwoo for a few years now. The way it happened was unexpected actually. When searching for a person he wanted to kill, he thought that you’d be an easy target.

You were small, petite and your personality was a bit shy so in reality, no one would really notice when you’d stop coming to school, right? Yeah, you typically ate alone. No one would look for you.

Oh, how Sangwoo was mistaken. Killing you wasn’t easy at all. Any time he was able to convince himself he wanted to, he wasn’t actually able to go through with it. You were too kind, too warm, too pretty and you were nothing like his mom. It’s not worth killing you if you didn’t resemble his mother at all.

So, he continued to date you and be a real boyfriend. Technically, he was loyal but he would pretend to seduce others to take care of that pesky looming feeling of wanting to kill someone. He would do what he needed to and was in time for the date the two of you planned the very next day!

Everything about you was so gentle, his primal sense of being a protector would kick in at the very thought of you and he would turn into that jealous boyfriend that would say things like “You’re mine.” and “Only I can do that.” without realizing it until you told him how adorable he was.

Sangwoo wasn’t only confident but he was extremely self-aware of what he was capable of doing. He has been so sure of himself all of his life but you just knew how to get to him. You could get under his skin very well.

Whenever the two of you fought, it felt like only he would lose, even if you were the one crying. You could make him feel so horrible and he would go the extra mile to make things up to you by treating you to your favorite dinner or doing a couples’ activity you had been bugging him about.

It was so foreign to him. He didn’t know if you two were in a toxic relationship or if it were two toxic individuals in a good relationship. The two of you weren’t really meant for dating, right?

He didn’t know exactly what to do at this point. He didn’t kidnap you but still, he’s never let anyone live this long.

Then “it” happened.

“I love you, Sangwoo. I don’t want to break up with you.”

“Why not? I can’t ever make you happy.”

“You do make me happy.”

The feelings he had stored up could never be suppressed ever again. He loved you.

“I love you too.”

Without realizing what he had done, he brainlessly agreed to make living arrangements with you. He just—couldn’t say “no.” to you. This would make his killing a lot harder but he still had time to get it out of his system.

His place was usually kind of bland but having you in there and doing decorating together sounded like a treat. He really needed to get rid of that lingering blood smell. Surely, it’s not too bad? You wouldn’t notice, right? He hoped.

Damn, you made him so soft.

You were supposed to be moving in with him in the next week and a half or so, he needed to get to work fast.

Then a little parasite named “Yoon Bum” appeared.

Of course, a stalking little rat like him had to get in the way. Unfortunately, Yoon Bum really ignited that abusive captor within him. The abusiveness that you had suppressed and made him forget about with your kindness and loving nature.

When Yoon Bum confessed his love to Sangwoo, it only made him more angry and harmful towards the smaller male. Why would he want to come in between the two of you? Because you were a hot young couple?

No, he tortured Yoon Bum. He wanted to make him suffer for trying to ruin this moment in his life. Sangwoo loved you and wanted to be with you. Would you want to live with him if there was a pervert peeping inside and trying to break in?

You were too small and precious. You would surely decline after that. He had to end this man.

Sangwoo did his worse to Yoon Bum and finished up his killing in those short days. He got rid of the women’s clothing that was laying around from his previous victims and kept the good quality ones for possible gifts to you in the future. He didn’t want you to think he was cheating after all.

It had been a few years in the making but you were finally ready to kill Sangwoo. It was like love at first sight when you met him. He was the first person that you actually felt something for. You didn’t know why. Maybe because he was cute? Not only that but his possessiveness and mannerisms as a boyfriend were the perfect storm for the tragedy you had imagined.

You had been putting on this front for a long time now but once you had finally made your way into his home, you wouldn’t have to hide it for much longer.

It was true, you were small and petite compared to the big man himself, Sangwoo, but that didn’t mean you couldn’t win.

No, you wouldn’t shoot him or poison him or do anything to him in his sleep. You wanted him to be aware so that you could see his face as his world crumbled.

You had convinced him to let you live with him successfully and he was now setting the stage for his own death.

Little by little, Sangwoo would come to your parents' house, where you had been living, and take boxes you had packed in his car and drive it to his house. It was early in the morning, around 10:39am when Sangwoo had arrived again to take more boxes.

When he say you, you hadn’t yet changed out of your pajamas, making the conversation much more enjoyable because of how adorable you looked when you were tired.

“ ‘Woo? What are you doing here so early? You know I get up in the afternoon!” You giggled, standing in the doorway. You just watched him make enough room in his trunk to fit as much as he could.

Sangwoo just blushed. He liked that you called him “Woo” sometimes, instead of “Sangwoo.”

“I know but I got wrapped up in cleaning and I don’t want to be late so…” he trailed off as your eyes met. You weren’t standing in the doorway anymore. You were in front of him now. He didn’t see or hear you move this close.

You placed a hand on his cheek that he melted into. Your hands were so soft. “Thank you for doing this.”

“N-No problem.”

With your free hand, you grabbed his face and brought him down closer for a kiss. The two of you kissed passionately and when you had pulled away, he had still been waiting for more. This made you giggle again.

“Since this is the last of it, I can ride with you.” You told him.

His heart dropped. This was the last of your belongings, huh? He had done everything in his power to get Yoon Bum to behave well enough to have you inside until he was ready to dispose of him, but it still made him nervous.

What if you saw Yoon Bum? No, he couldn’t let thoughts like that penetrate his mind. You wouldn’t see the stalker. You would be fine.

Sangwoo fought a pit of anxiety waging war in his stomach as he drove you to his house. You were smug, wrapped up in one of your favorite blankets, dozing off next to him. By the time you had arrived, you were fast asleep again.

While you were asleep, he had put all the boxes in the house, putting the essential marked ones in the room the two of you would share. He made Yoon Bum stay in the basement and threatened him a bit so that he wouldn’t make noise.

You had woken up when you realized the car stopped and Sangwoo came to carry you to the room. Drifting in and out of sleep, you felt him pick you up and take you inside.

From the basement, Yoon Bum could hear different noises as he leaned against the stairs that led to the basement.

Female giggles, laughing from Sangwoo, movement, creaks.

Yoon Bum knew Sangwoo was dating someone and in secret too, despite seeing him with many other females during the day. You were the only reoccurring girl he saw Sangwoo with. Or at least, from what he could assume from the noises up there. He heard the lewd ones too.

“You know, I crave you a lot.”

“You do? How so?”

That was the last thing the broken boy heard before the loud, sweet sounds of the two of you making love together. Sangwoo has a high libido compared to the girl he was with but she would satisfy him every time.

Sangwoo was laying down on the couch with you on top of him. You straddle him with your naked lower halves being concealed under the blanket.

You had his huge length inside of you as he bucked his hips up and down. Whenever the two of you had sex, he found it very hard to keep up the “loving boyfriend” persona.

He would lose himself in your tightness, sometimes becoming almost animalistic. He would growl and grip your waist. He would grip every part of you hard enough to leave marks.

Alas! You enjoyed the roughness. The pain was very desirable, in a good way, and the man was very good at making you cum.

He never wanted you to leave.

You traced circles on his exposed chest as you bounced up and down. Your fingers lingered up with his neck. His skin was moist and shiny from how hard he was trying.

Too bad.

“Do you love me, Oh Sangwoo?” You asked in the most seductive tone you could replicate.

“Yes.”

“Say it.” You commanded, lightly pressing the tips of your fingers on either side of his neck, almost as if you were choking him. He liked to choke you too…

Now…

Now was the moment you had been waiting for! His cause of death could be…strangulation!

Well—No.

Your actions were interrupted when you had heard shuffling in this basement. Naturally, you were ecstatic at being in such a position of power, you were almost started. You couldn’t tell if it were actually excitement or just plain old anxiety. Sangwoo could realize what you’re doing before you were ready and in self-defense, he could kill you.

“What’s that?” You asked, innocently, turning your attention to the basement door in the distance. It didn’t seem to be secured properly and in a real sense, you were afraid of doors hanging open like that.

Sangwoo stopped thrusting, a little annoying that Yoon Bum has to make his presence known at a time like this but he wasn’t worried.

“Probably just the wind or rats.” He told you before readjusting you by your waist. “Rats!?” You exclaimed, almost falling off of him but he kept his grip on you.

“It’s fine! Can we just…” he trailed off, biting his lip and thrusting extremely hard, making you yelp. This turned him on so much.

Sangwoo went so hard that you began losing composure, letting go of his neck and grabbing onto him for support. He quickly came inside of you, coating your walls with his thick liquid.

You slumped on top of him, releasing and laying there on his chest with his arms around you.

He loved how small you were. He wanted to be together forever. He had to be very careful about his urges. If he killed someone and couldn’t cover it up enough for you, you’d leave him. If you left him, he would be broken once again.

Sangwoo wrapped his arms around you and held you close. It wasn’t long before he helped you get cleaned up and the two of you resumed your normal chatter.

This broke Yoon Bum. Being the witness of an act like this. It tore him apart.

For the most part, he was able to hold himself together but he would lose it little by little every day. Why?

Well, the two of you would do it almost every other night. During the day, you’d go off somewhere. Yoon Bum just assumed you went to school.

Sangwoo was able to convince you that he was “sick” so he wouldn’t always go with you. That’s when he would abuse Yoon Bum regularly.

You decided that you were ready to attempt to kill Sangwoo a second time. After getting home from your daily errands, you serenaded him again. You got him to have sex with you again and this time you really went in with the sweet-talking. You were self-aware of the effect you had on him. It was very cute.

He melted with every word and gesture. You could feel the member in his pants throbbing and twitching at everything you did but what would happen next was something not even you were prepared for.

You took the knife you had taken the time to nicely sharpen for him as you straddled your lover, raising the knife up quickly.

You let out a graceful “Aha~ ♡” leave your mouth before plunging the knife downward.

“NO!!”

You gasped. Sangwoo’s eyes weren’t closed and his face wasn’t flushed at your loving touch. It was pale and his eyes were wide as saucers. He stopped your attack by grabbing your wrist.

Once realization hit, you could see the hurt look washing over. He looked like he was about to cry.

The voice behind you that had screamed during your attack was a weak-looking boy who had been hanging out of the basement doorway.

You tried your best to force the knife down and due to his own shock, Sangwoo allowed himself to let you lower the knife into his skin. The pain caused him to snap back to reality. He pushed you off of him, causing you to fall bottom first onto the floor.

Sangwoo jumped up, pulling up his pants but remaining shirtless. You had his shirt on with no bottoms.

You didn’t expect him to defend himself against you with ease but you suspected that when you failed, he would kill you, namely in self-defense.

You pulled yourself to your feet and readied yourself to fight him. “I can’t believe you’re cheating on me.” You said with a smirk on your face. “With a scrawny guy, no less.” You had only gotten a short look at Yoon Bum. You couldn’t afford to take your eyes off of Oh Sangwoo.

Sangwoo remained silent for a moment. He looked at you with dead eyes and a sad frown. Then he said:

“I didn’t cheat.”

You tsk’d. “I didn’t peg you for a liar either.” You played with the tip of the knife. Yoon Bum could already tell that you were more of a monster than Sangwoo. You then lunged at Sangwoo with the knife in your hand.

Knifeplay was your favorite thing in the world. You love it more than sex. You loved it more than Sangwoo. It was the number one thing you were good at. You fought him with your knife and his ability of brute force couldn’t solve every problem. You were too smart and small. He couldn’t catch you.

Yoon Bum watched in horror. Was this good or bad?! He felt like he had to do something. Maybe if he could hold you down…

You found it odd that Sangwoo didn’t fight back. Normal people would be fearful at a time like this. If he continued to let you cut him up, he would die.

“Why…aren’t…you…fighting…back!” With every word, you swiped at Sangwoo, who didn’t make an effort to really protect himself.

“Because I love-“

He was cut off by you suddenly falling forward. You dropped your knife which Sangwoo quickly collected. Yoon Bum had grabbed your legs from the floor. He didn’t seem to be able to walk.

You growled, wiggling your legs until they were free and kicked Yoon Bum.

You stood up, pulling the oversized shirt you were wearing further down to cover your exposed lower half. The only thing you had done was confuse Sangwoo.

He was so in love with you. If you were anyone else, he would’ve killed you by now but all he wanted to do was embrace you. His brain wasn’t even letting him question your acts.

You had to run.

You bolted for the door but the moment you even began to gain momentum, you felt two strong arms wrap around your waist and pull you back.

“No!”

You tried to remove his arms but you had been lifted up off the ground. You tried to make as much of a ruckus as you could. Kicking and making it so hard for him to control you.

Sangwoo took you back to the couch and placed you there. You tried to escape again but he trapped you with his body.

“I want to break up. I’m not your girlfriend!” You yelled out, hoping it would trigger a response from him. His face didn’t change much. Maybe it got a little sadder, though. Why were you acting like this? What did he do?

“(y/n). I love you.”

“I hate you, Sangwoo.”

He wanted to cry so badly. He had been hurt by everyone in his life and the one person he was in love with was hurting him too. It broke him. He wasn’t himself anymore. Not the Sangwoo that Yoon Bum would experience and not the Sangwoo you would experience. He seemed, emotionless.

“I didn’t cheat, (y/n). I promise. Please, stay with me. I’m nothing without you.”

“No, you’re disgusting and I hate you.” You tried to put on this front that you were upset at him cheating on you but you didn’t know how long you would be able to keep that up.

“I’m sorry.” His eyes became glossy. Tears fell out of his tired-looking eyes. You wanted to drink his tears. “Without you, I would be dead. You give my life so much meaning. You have to understand.”

“Then who is the scrawny loser and why did you lie about it.” If he truly fell for your facade then maybe you could try to kill him again…

“He’s from my school. I’m punishing him, b-but you can’t tell anyone.”

You loved this. Now you were in a position of power. It was time for another act.

Your eyes began to well up with tears. “Sangwoo…I’m sorry for attacking you. I-I thought you didn’t love me anymore.”

“I could never.” Sangwoo embraced you and your fake cried into his shoulder. “If you were gone, I wouldn’t be able to live. I would kill myself.”

“Really?”

When he pulled away, you sealed it with a kiss. He kissed you back. Sangwoo was so weak-minded. You could tell that trauma turned him into a blank canvas and you were the painter.

Sangwoo let you in on what he had been doing to Yoon Bum. You liked it. You enjoyed the chaos of the household. You also found the persona Sangwoo took on when he’d abuse Yoonbum. It turned you on and the interactions would result in hot steamy sex.

You had developed a genuine connection with Sangwoo due to all the chaos. Instead of resenting him, you had been fawning over him. Your urge to kill him turned into the urge to protect him and kill others instead. Like a cute Yandere.

You were so good at manipulating that in the end, Sangwoo still felt like he was in the wrong. His sadistic personality came out while in the basement but alone, in your shared room with him, it was like he hadn’t changed much. He was a little timid than you expected him to be.

He was still cut up from the fight the two of you had and you offered to help him. “Sangwoo~” He entered the room, almost immediately. His behavior reminded you of a big dog. If he had a tail, it would be wagging.

He had bandages all over his face and arms. They seemed to be sloppy as well. “May I help you with your wounds?” You smiled innocently. You already had a chair out that he sat in. His posture was poor because of how much taller he was than you when you were both sitting.

You took cotton swabs and dipped them inside of the peroxide. He watched you work with your hands. You were so good with your hands, even if they were small. You placed a hand on his cheek with fewer scars and started tending to the worse one.

He would flinch here and there but he was relatively quiet. While doing your job, you noticed that he would zone out a lot. You’d need to get his attention over and over for you to get areas like his chest and forearms and before you could finish he tried to make a move on you by kissing you.

You would’ve let him but knowing him, kissing would just lead to sex because his sex drive was insane!

When you were done, he would just sit there, looking at you like a stray animal or a dog that’s waiting for its owner to give them a snack. He would do this a lot. Most of the time, you’d entertain him, but if you were watching TV or doing one of your hobbies you’d ignore him. If he got tired of waiting for your affection, he would do odd things like taking your hand and placing it somewhere like his chest. Sometimes he would place your hand on his cheek and nuzzle into it. He would take anything if it were from you.

Unfortunately, genuine love between psychopaths was brewing. Although you hadn’t killed anyone yet, you seemed to be more of a threat to Sangwoo. He was a murder and abusive but somehow he showed more humanity than you ever could. Yoon Bum would be the one suffering from both sides...

[hopeymchope]

How would you rank the 18 Class Trials from THH, DR2, and V3 from worst to best?

This is... virtually impossible for me, lol. Comparing the trials from each game to each other?

How about I just rank them within each game? That'll make it a little easier for me to deal with...

DR1

6) 5th. It's driven by lies and ultimately rushed to its end before the characters can draw any solid (pointless/meaningless) conclusions. So of course it's last for this game, and it’s probably last for the entire series as well. If there are any saving graces to this trial, it’s the surprise when your closest ally is willing to let our protagonist die... and that this trial contains the fake/bad ending route.

5) 3rd. Although the main culprit is pretty obvious from the jump, it requires some surprising twists to explain how everything got to be the way it turned out. But did I always find those twists plausible? Errrrm... not really. 

4) 2nd. Pretty good trial that's hurt for me by the fact that there'd barely be any need for a trial at all if a certain third party didn't dick around with the evidence for no reason. Also, the dual nature of Toko is an incredibly predictable reveal. Without those two aspects dragging it down, though, this could easily go higher.

3) 1st. Sure, the major hint given and, subsequently, the eventual culprit are pretty obvious, but this one establishes so much about how the trials work and how much the details you observe will matter that it’s still pretty fun that first time around. The initial surprise of the first victim makes for a great way to keep you invested in the trial experience. This trial is damn near iconic now, so it feels almost mandatory to respect it.

2) 6th. DR1 still has the best "final trial,” easily. SO MANY great reveals, and they all totally work for me. Nothing rings false or disappointing, and it also features Makoto finally coming into his own and taking the lead. I nearly labeled this my top pick for DR1, but...

1) 4th. It's easily the most emotionally dramatic/satisfying for me, and there’s something weirdly inspirational for me about Hina’s incredibly harsh stance during it. This one GOT ME IN THE FEELS, and in part that was because I saw so little of it coming. After the more predictable elements of the first and third trials, this felt like the writing was firing on all cylinders. 

DR2

6) 2nd. You have to accept a couple leaps of logic to make this trial keep flowing, and the fact that trial is ultimately reliant on someone noticing a candy that’s very small and hard to see while the person is also in a stressful situation and they are groggy from being drugged/asleep and it necessitates the person retaining this seemingly useless detail inside their brain .... that’s always bugged me.  The “escape route” conversation even retroactively raises questions about the first trial. Oof. On the upside, the reveals it brought us about Fuyuhiko and Peko were incredibly important, satisfying, and legit surprising turns. And it’s pretty cool how it’s basically a two-for-one combo trial because you have to solve the Twilight Syndrome case before you solve the current case. 

5) 3rd. Other people have pointed out the leaps of logic and missing pieces of this trial, but at the same time, the candlelight hanging is so intense and the ultimate reveal of the culprit is such a brutal turn that I have to give it some props. The culprit’s primary plan is ultimately one of the most ingenious in the series, IMO, and definitely one of the most twisted/fucked-up, which earns it some points. 

4) 4th. This is probably the single murder case in the franchise that I understood the absolute least about when entering the trial, for better or worse. On the one hand, that made it really fun to see the mystery gradually unfurl, but on the other hand, it made it tough for me to provide the right answers at certain points in the trial, leaving me fumbling. A big part of those issues was how it was initially hard for me to wrap my head around the nature of the funhouse via the provided 2D graphics... but once I eventually got there, I had to respect the creativity that went into devising such a “weapon.” Also, it can be hard to tolerate Komaeda in this trial. He’s even more of a know-it-all-but-reveal-none-of-it jackass than ever before, and his turn towards overt cruelty towards the others (and Hajime in particular) left me raging. The culprit reveal is good, but the motive does beg the question of why he didn’t just come forward from the jump.

3) 6th. There are a lot of great reveals in the final trial that totally reframe how you see the characters, and some of them are deliciously twisted. There’s also a ton of great dialogue provided, and in retrospect, it’s actually sort of neat to have one endgame mastermind reveal in this franchise that doesn’t involve the “They were hiding among us this whole time” trope. All that plus the surprise return of our surviving heroes from the first game! However, this is also where they officially reveal a core element of DR2 and its setting that I've never liked. This knocks the trial down a few pegs for me. Of course, by the time you reach the trial, I'm sure 99% of players have already figured that particular "twist" out. There’s adequate evidence to predict it in the first freaking chapter, and I know this because I DID predict it in the first chapter of my initial playthrough... which further hurts the supposed “reveal” of the island’s true nature when it comes around. 

2) 1st. Probably my favorite of the “first trials,” there are lot of components that go into this one. There’s a combination of two premeditated killers plus one spur-of-the-moment accidental victim, there’s a satisfying (though admittedly maybe too easy) reveal of the killer being one of the most unpleasant people to be around during the first chapter, and I really dig how audio became a very important component of the mystery due to the total blackout. This is also the part of the game where we learn just how twisted Komaeda really is, which is HUGE both in terms of its immediate shock factor for a total newcomer and in terms of its impact on the game as a whole. Of course, since it’s a “first trial,” it can’t be too complicated... but they still manage to confuse so many of us with “MEAT ON THE BONE” :P

1) 5th. Again, I will almost always give the most emotionally intense one the top slot. The “traitor reveal” is obviously THAT MOMENT in DR2. I also love how this one used the strange internal logic established early in the game RE: Komaeda’s luck to develop the eventual solution. And forcing us to make use of evidence gathered in multiple locations outside of the immediate site of the body/murder? That more complexity of that type that I see relevant to a trial, the more I appreciate it, and this one has loads of that stuff. Although I guess the investigation isn’t technically part of the trial itself... but it’s still very relevant to it. 

DRV3

6) 4th. I found this whole trial to be just... extremely predictable. Maybe it’s because I was so far into the series that I’d gotten used to its tricks by this point, but this was the most predictable trial for me since the first one in the first game. The whole looping/rollover map setup of the VR? Obvious. The murder weapon? Obvious. Our culprit’s ongoing confusion at everything discussed? Obvious. There were only a couple of points I didn’t have already figured out when I walked into the trial room, and those turned out to be basically irrelevant (such as the bottle of poison). The eventual motive is at least a surprise, but I also found it hard to accept that this culprit would really kill people over it. Overall: Super lame. 

5) 3rd. Another double murder trial, and once again one murder overshadows the other. The séance murder is definitely clever. Sure, you know the culprit pretty early on, but the methodology is the good part. However, the real fascinating one for me is the art lab “locked room” murder. Going into the trial, I couldn’t fathom how they were going to explain that one, and I found the answer both smart and satisfying. It’s funny to imagine how many times the culprit had to try that stunt with the lock before it actually worked, heh. This is probably the best of the three “double murder” mysteries in the series, but the trial isn’t as emotionally affecting as the 3rd trial in DR2 to me. Moreover, the trial loses points for the most infuriating Hangman’s Gambit of the series and especially for the motive reveal. When the killer’s motive can be boiled down to “they’re basically just a psycho serial killer,” it’s not very interesting.

4) 6th. The first part of the trial, which deals with re-assessing the first case? It’s pretty damn on-point. That leads to the mastermind reveal, which... isn’t great, really. It’s not a terribly interesting character to make the mastermind, they have no interesting motives or characterization to unevil, and they’re ultimately just a pawn behind another, off-screen group of masterminds. But then things get uproariously funny to me. The metatextual stuff is just so goddamn ridiculous. It’s frustrating and annoying how much of our not-mastermind’s explanation is clearly full of lies and half-truths that we’ll never have complete answers on, but that’s also part of what makes it all fascinating. We get to swap protagonists like four times! There’s a fake-out Game Over! These are really cool things. But it all leads down the road of our protagonist arguing that fiction does affect reality (yes, good), that fictional people can still matter (definitely) and that... fictional lives are equal in value to real ones? Uhhhhh slow down there, champ. That only works for YOUR universe, where fictional people can be made out of living, breathing individuals. But in light of the metatextual stuff you’re surrounded by, you kinda sound silly AF right now?

3)  2nd. Look, this is still incredibly irritating to me. Also, if you go down the alternate “lying” route at one point, you are forced to accept that these piranhas were somehow trained to only eat dead things, which is just... so deeply dumb.  But what is good is the entire ropeway conceit (which is a very significant part of the trial!) and the idea of the partition inside the tank. This was a murder with an elaborate, intelligent plan that is very well-executed. And the motive reveal? It’s one of the best in the series! I respect that stuff. (If I had the right to toss the execution in as part of the soup, I’d say that it’s also one of the series’ best. Let’s call it the icing on the cake.)

2) 1st. The writing that made this trial work is undeniably clever. The way the narration told us exactly what was happening without really telling us what was happening? It was a masterstroke of both great writing and perfect localization coming together. When it becomes clear during the trial what is about to happen, it’s a huge shock. The transition to another protagonist with the lights flickering out and back on is beautiful. Even the core concept of a protagonist who was willing to step up and try to kill the mastermind immediately is just deeply interesting. And obviously this one made my emotions run high. HOWEVER! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Kaede Akamatsu was a more interesting, unique, and compelling protagonist than Shuichi Saihara ever was. Ultimately, the protagonist-swap, no matter how well-written, was a mistake because they shifted us from a unique character with an interesting new perspective to a character who is, in many ways, “Makoto Naegi with even less self-esteem.” Yes, I know he has aspects that make him distinct as his own person, but there’s still just too much there that feels like we’ve done it before, and he never fully escapes from that. It feels like a massive waste and a huge missed opportunity to ditch Kaede like this. Now, if they had just done the protagonist swap in reverse — making us start out with Shuichi before flipping things over to Kaede — we could’ve had ourselves something amazing here.

1) 5th. I know I decided that I couldn’t rank all among each other, but if I did do that, I feel confident that the 5th trial in DRV3 would rank very high indeed. You go into the trial unable to even determine who the victim was due to the fact that two people are missing and there was nothing left of the body that spoke to an identity. Going into it, you naturally figure that one of the two missing parties has to be the victim and the other one is probably the culprit. But even with just two friggin’ suspects, the amount of turnabouts in the case that made me rethink all my assumptions was insane. Sure, the explanation for how the person inside the Exisal can maintain “character” is pretty damn thin, but once you get past that, I don’t think there’s a single false note in the trial. It even breaks unprecedented ground by continuing into another Non-Stop Debate after everyone has already voted. And of course, it culminates with a lot of intense emotion. Even the execution is emotionally satisfying! ..... although I’m not sure if I should count the execution as part of the trial, but hey, still. As far as Dangan trials go, the fifth one in DRV3 is basically a masterpiece.

[chongoblog]

Zero Time Dilemma Review/Ramble

Okay, so if you’ve been following me, you know that I’ve gotten into the Zero Escape series, famous for 999 and Virtue’s Last Reward, streaming both games. I recently took the time to experience the last game, Zero Time Dilemma by watching cutscenes rather than playing it proper mostly because A) I heard it was REALLY dark and didnt want to risk it on Twitch and B) I wanted to experience it more freely like while I’m at work.

After experiencing it. I have......feelings about it. And because there’s MASSIVE spoilers involved, I’m making it its own post under the ReadMore below.

tl;dr LOADS of bullshit, flawed execution, and stupid decisions, but still REALLY enjoyed it

Okay so a LOT of this is going to be complaining, and like I said in the tl;dr I still legit enjoyed this game, so I’m gonna make this a compliment sandwich by saying something nice now, loading up on complaints, then ending with more compliments. Carlos is good. So is Sean. Sigma being voiced by Matthew Mercer actually makes him more interesting imo. I REALLY like Phi’s new design and the way they build on the initial concepts brought up in VLR more accurately portray the ideas that started all the way back in 999, that being the idea of taking thoughts across timelines, just like the player. From the beginning, the theme/gimmick was always “what if your character remembered information when you savescummed?” In 999 that began as flashes of information, and in VLR the characters’ consciousness actually time traveled at the very end. ZTD now uses the idea of the consciousness traveling across time and space and RUNS with it. I also think that Delta has a cool design.

I’ll be nice again later, but now for the things I Did Not Like.

Emo Moody Junpei makes sense from a writing standpoint, but that doesn’t mean I have to like him. Maybe I just got spoiled since Evan Wilson did a spectacular job with his deliveries in 999 and in ZTD it seems like his soul got sucked out. Not the fault of the delivery as much as it is the writing. Eric is bad, and I feel like that statement isn’t controversial. I don’t think anyone likes Eric, and if you do, then sorry for shitting on him so much, but god I just don’t like him. And the abusive childhood thing doesn’t give me a drop of sympathy, but then again I’ve always hated the writing trick that “this person is shitty and pathetic but it’s because abuse!” (see also Mikan). Diane is boring (sorry).

But I fuuuuuckin HATE Mira. I hate Mira so much. Like, at first I thought she’d be alright, yeah she’s definitely The Boob Character™, but I liked Lotus well enough and Alice grew on me significantly, so I don’t see why Mira won’t. Then she’s like “surprise I’m a serial killer”. Now if they just made her a serial killer, it would be kinda boring so I’m glad they TRIED something new. I just think the result was bad bad bad bad bad bad bad bad bad. Like....”hmm I never felt any emotions so when my mom told me they were kept in hearts I just ripped em out of people :)” is some garbage I’d write in middle school when I felt especially edgy. Also yeah seems p ableist. I won’t go too deeper into Mira, since she’s a sociopath and I don’t know enough about the actual disorder to put a candle to the real thing, but....bleh.

I won’t touch on THIS aspect for too long because I’m aware that it had barely any budget and it wouldn’t have happened without a kickstarter (don’t know the details), but the animation is just....so stiff. It really takes away from the dramatic impact some scenes are meant to have. But even IF the animation wasn’t stiff, I still am not a big fan of the darker and moodier direction it went. Although that’s moreso down to personal preference. Final note about the presentation (which is by far the game’s weakest aspect) is that I noticed multiple points in the sound mixing got to nearly Sonic Adventure 2 levels of being unable to understand what people were saying.

Alright. Now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for. Let’s talk about Delta. This is going to make up a MAJORITY of this post so strap in.

Delta is a meme. There’s no other way to say it briefly. He’s just such a huge fucking meme. Almost everything about him, from his plan to his “complex” motives to his backstory to his powers. I mentioned liking his design, but fuck it. That’s a meme now too. Delta is the stupidest part of the game, and as much as I kind of love it, I also need to complain about it.

First let’s talk about Delta’s plan (because it starts with the nicest part of this segment). His motives are “complex” which is actually greek for “he’s probably either a liar, an idiot, or both”. I said there was nice things, so I’ll start with those. The very ending’s “ah ah ah. I never killed any of you in this timeline. If you arrested someone for crimes of another history, there would be criminals everywhere” was something I actually legitimately enjoyed. Yeah, intent was still there and he’s still a bastard (plus there was kidnapping and non-consensual drugging involved so kind of a stupid take), but I still thought it was a fun attempt. And also the “I had to make sure I was born” thing is a mindfuck, and I love those. Basically the first retort is “well I’m alive, right? So I don’t need to make sure I was born with powers because I WAS born with powers, which means it happened in another universe. So I don’t have to.” Only to then realize that we’re just in the universe where he DID do that but then the only justification is “someone had to” right? Wrong. Let’s talk about the rest of his “complex” motives

So I give a pass to “I had to make sure I was born”, but now we see why he had to do this whole deal and what he declares at the end of the game. That there’s some religious fanatic who intends to blow up the world and completely end humanity. And he released Radical-6 in the VLR timeline hoping that it would kill the terroris only killing 4 billion people instead of 6 billion people. In the timeline at the end of ZTD, he says that they had used this experience to hone the skills of the Shifters that way they could use their newly honed take down the religious fanatic WITHOUT Radical-6 and save the world.

What?

Now......before I tear into this.....I have ONE nice thing to say. The “unleash radical 6 and kill 4 billion vs let a terrorist end humanity” gambit IS cleverly foreshadowed with the radical 6 decision game with Q Team. But also wouldn’t that have made, like 1800 times more narrative sense to give that decision game to team D who KNOWS the impact of radical 6, or team C who he explains this plan to later on? Damn, even my nice thing was backhanded. Alright let’s REALLY tear into it.

FIRST of all, this is the exact same plot of Virtue’s Last Reward. Only difference is that somehow Akane and Junpei are just as skilled at this technique as Sigma and Phi despite the latter going to do Moon Training (granted the moon training was also to give them enough of a jump to go back 45 years). Speaking of Virtue’s Last Reward, this game also reveals that Delta is Brother, the leader of Free the Soul. A group of religious fanatics. So I wouldn’t be especially shocked if the religious fanatic is working with Free the Soul. But for the sake of this argument, let’s just say they aren’t with FtS. How in the Flavor-Blasted FUCK does he know this? Did somebody Shift back from that timeline and then just get Mind hacked (and we’ll fUCKING talk about Mind Hacking dont you worry)? How would that be the only piece of information known about the end of the god damn world? And if there IS more, then why the fuck wouldn’t you tell them the information? How does he know that it’s inevitable when apparently a god damn snail can unleash Radical-6?

I call bullshit on the “religious fanatic” thing. Wanna know why? Because at this point, Delta had already founded Free The Soul. He started this shit in 1938. At this point in time, he and the rest of the Free the Soul had already kidnapped Alice’s dad to create clones of his dead brother. He was pushing for a new world order and then in the VLR timeline, tried to PREVENT this whole thing from happening by sending Dio to the Moon. So if he actually gave a shit about “honing their abilities” then why would he do everything in his power to stop it? There is ONE out that there can be, but it’s something not even HINTED at (and I’ll talk about this later), but I think that "religious fanatic” is a big ol’ lie that he made up to try and save face when he was faced with a consequence, but even that explanation makes no sense since he’s like “lol shoot me if u wanna I wont mind hack you”

And let’s talk about mind hacking. Let’s fucking talk about Mind Hacking. Adding Mind Hacking was stupid, completely pointless, out of left field, and actively makes Delta a worse character. For those that don’t know, Mind Hacking is an ability that only Delta has (and I guess the player character technically but that’s a whole meta thing from VLR that doesn’t get followed up on) where you can read people’s minds and also fuckin control them. Why? Why was this necessary, ZTD? You wanna know what I thought was really neat? When I saw that different timelines produced different X-Codes. I thought “oh shit, I know this is Game Stuff, but the sheer foresight of the villain to do that? That’s some Moriarty shit.” It would require some insane explanations, but we’ve had enough sci-fi that we could imagine with enough advanced tech, you could set up systems that could use conditionals to give certain responses based on certain outcomes. Like if someone dies after the decontamination room button is pressed, then the central computer outputs a different X-Code than if it’s after the initial vote. Just make up a new tech that accounts for Shifting (plus the QUANTUM COMPUTER you have RIGHT THERE) and you could make a villain with so much calculated foresight that he’s just a god damn genius. But no. Mind hacking. None of that interesting stuff, just “lol I read ur mind idiot”. No outwitting anyone, just “lol get mindhacked eric u scrub bang bang”.

Honest to god, honest to FUCKING god, do you want to know how cool the final cutscene would have made Delta look if he walked out and just KNEW what happened in another timeline because of his plans. Like everyone recognizes him as Delta and he just goes “ohoho I see you had a fun time in my other timeline” using that deduction alone. But nah, he’s just like “yo I just mindhacked y’all, nice experience y’all had” I hate mind hacking so much. There’s no part of his plan where he NEEDED to mind hack in order to succeed that could have been written without mind hacking.

Now there’s a bit of a missed opportunity here that could both make mind hacking relevant, made his motive not shit, and also maybe even developed him into a SUPER interesting character! I know this is a bit fanfic-y, but hear me out. Make Delta a VICTIM of the stable time loop/bootstrap paradox. For those who don’t know, the bootstrap paradox is when time travel makes certain events happen seemingly out of thin air since they are their own cause. Basically it’s this clip from Milo Murphy. This is something that seems like it’s KINDA there in the subtext, but if they actually dove into it, they could have a GOLD mine.

What if we keep the mindhacking, and before he even MAKES Free the Soul, he mindhacks someone who experienced the events of the “religious fanatic”. But not just anyone. An experienced SHIFTer who made it their goal to stop this religious fanatic. After hundreds of attempts, they still fail. Delta sees this and determines it to be inevitable. So he’s having fun, cursed by the knowledge of an inevitable apocalypse. Then he meets Akane, Phi, Sigma, or Junpei after they had undergone the events of VLR and ZTD. He learns that particular timeline. A bleak future, yes, but one single future where humanity is alive. He sees two futures, one in which all of humanity dies, and one where he is the leader of a religious cult that wipes out 4 Billion People with a deadly pandemic. And the idea of being that person disgusts him. He despises it. But he’s completely resigned to fate. He knows that things must go precisely as he’s seen at the price of humanity, too frightened by such a burden to even take a toe off of the predetermined pathway. His motive is that he’s so tightly bound to fate and so afraid to let it slip that he has no choice but to commit the atrocities, despising himself for it every step of the way, but considering it better than the inevitable alternative. It would give a purpose for the mindhacking powers, it would give him a solid motive, and it would make the ending SO much stronger, showing the contrast between a group of SHIFTers confident that they can change fate and the man who is completely resigned to his own. Fuck, I might steal this character concept because I REALLY think this idea would work to make an interesting villain!

Like I mentioned, this is KINDA there in subtext (with him quite frequently saying “life truly is unfair”) and this could be an interpretation of the character, but if ZTD had explored that theme, then holy hell what an interesting character Delta would be.

But even WITH this fix, holy hell, this plan is stupid. Because guess what, dingus. You just created like 30 new timelines that all end in annihilation.

He coulda said ONE line about “even if there is only one history that ends nicely, that is solace enough”, that might have been dark, but still powerful. You know, add some depth. But instead, he’s just like “hmm hmm shoot me”

And the Q Twist? I’m honestly not as mad at it as I should be. On one hand, it does that cute thing where there are little bits of foreshadowing so when you rewatch it, you notice little bits like shadows and stuff, but on the other hand, there are PLENTY of points where either the camera just straight up lies to you and doesn’t show him when he should be there or Delta’s just been fuckin SHMOOVIN on his wheelchair around the room constantly to stay out of the camera and everyone’s just been kinda chill with it. Maybe if they had been more careful with the camera it could have delivered a TOUCH better. Like, even if the shots are a bit off, that’s noticeable enough to be part of the hint, no? I don’t have as much to say about this, mostly because this post is getting long as fuck so I’m gonna wrap it up so I can move on with my life for a bit.

So even with ALL OF THAT, I still enjoyed playing the game. That’s right, compliment sandwich time. The three wards all being one ward was a really neat reveal. The fact that you can shoot Delta in one scene is creative with its replay value. I’m glad they touched on the philosophical idea of what happens to the people who made it out from the coin flip only to get SHIFTed into the exploding lab, and exploring that idea was fun. I absolutely lost my mind at the idea of the gun to sigmas head had a random chance of firing and then seeing it elaborated on in the dice scene directly after it. Gab is a good boy.

Cant wait to play AI

[facets-and-rainbows]

Blue Exorcist 10th anniversary book Q&A session

The 10th anniversary book has a section where Katoh answers 100 questions submitted by fans on Twitter, so here they are translated/paraphrased! May contain manga spoilers up to the recent flashback arc, so be warned.

(Note that I’m playing it very fast and loose here because there are A HUNDRED OF THEM, so not exact wordings, but it should capture the gist. Lemme know if there are any you want elaborated on)

1. Katoh likes the feel of traditional drawing more than digital but is impressed with how far digital has come

2. Meph THOROUGHLY ABUSES spacetime to watch all his shows and ensure that he gets all the merch he wants

3. Did the girls take all of Yukio’s school uniform buttons in middle school? Yes, they did (apparently it’s like A Thing for girls to ask for a button from their crush at middle school graduation, based on some sad movie from the 60s where a guy who got drafted as a kamikaze pilot gave a girl one of his uniform buttons to remember him by)

4. Rin's tail is about a meter long

5. There are tons of servants working at Mephisto's mansion. Belial is in charge of them

6. Katoh borrows from all sorts of neat real locations when making settings

7. Katoh identifies with pretty much all the characters the most! Except Lucifer.

8. Demon designs she's proud of include the impure king and hachirou, pretty much anything that was the main one in an arc

9. Katoh lists a bunch of her favorite musical artists/music she’s listening to recently: King Gnu, Official Hige Dandism, Kenshi Yonezu, BAD HOP, Sakanaction, Keyakizaka 46, Hypnosis Mic, Aimer, B’Z, Queen Bee.

10. Awww the rabbit manga that characters are often reading isn't just Robo to Usakichi, it's an even older one that she drew as a little kid

11. She likes industrial style interior designs

12. Rin and Yukio alternated who got the top bunk growing up, because they couldn't agree on it lol

13. Katoh cares a whole lot about panel layouts and speech bubble positions, might even be her favorite part of the process (it shows!)

4. Katoh does NOT have a mashou, lol

15. Rin has probably been practicing in secret so he can learn to carry stuff with his tail

16. Izumo probably got into shojo manga around 1st grade, her mom had some around the house

17. Specialty dishes: Rin - lots of stuff but especially nabe Yuri - stuff you can throw together quickly Shiro - stuff he learned from Yuri and/or cookbooks, alongside teaching Rin Yukio - Does. Not. Cook.

18. Can't pick a favorite place she's been on research, but there's no place like Japan

19. Kinzou's band isn't currently meeting because demons, but he's probably still thinking of new songs

20. Hardest characters to draw: anyone with detailed flowing hair. Hardest to write for: Lightning and Gedouin. She had to go read books about serial killers specifically for material for Gedouin, lol 

21. Suguro actually gets a dorm room to himself, though allegedly Yukio is technically assigned as his roommate, lol. Didn't end up that way what with Yukio being a teacher and also Rin’s whole...situation

22. Shiemi makes some of her own hair accessories! Cute

23. Katoh doesn't mind if you include stuff with fan letters but check with the editor first

24. Time for making each chapter: Planning/storyboarding: 1-5 days. Sketching: 3-5 days. Drawing/inking: the rest. Just...the rest of the time

25. Neither Suguro nor Izumo have dated before and neither is currently dating. But that's probably just because things were hectic for them! It could happen

26. Yukio breaks 5 or 6 pairs of glasses a year, someone get this kid a strap or something

27. How many spare glasses does Yukio have? Check the fanbook lol it's in there (dang it Katoh)

28. The demon she wants us to pay the most attention to is Lucifer. Because plot.

29. What's under the Order's big meeting table? It's a BOTTOMLESS PIT and if you fall in it you DIE that's what makes it COOL (laughs)

30. What are the job requirements for the angelic legion? Literally just Arthur liking you and inviting you to join

31. She WANTS to do more character profiles but just hasn't gotten to it

32. Rin's tail feels like a cat tail, texture wise

33. The "red Assiah fire" is literally just actual fire nothing special

34. Rin's current hair color is light blue fading to white at the ends

35. Thoughts on Rin's growth: she likes that he stays positive in awful situations and she also thinks it's very main character of him to face the past instead of avoiding it

36. Mephisto didn't purposely surround Rin with stuffed animals when he woke up after going crispy. Mephisto's bed is just Like That

37. Kurikara was based on a cool sword she found in a sword book, but that one was technically just a ceremonial sword. The symbol on it us a Sanskrit letter kaan (sp?) associated with Fudou Myouou

38. Kuro can communicate with normal cats and hangs out with them often

39. Sometimes Shiemi's skirt is extra fancy around the hem what's up with that? Apparently it's an optional accessory that comes with the skirts help I haven't noticed this and don't know any fashion terms in any language

40. When coloring, Katoh always tries to have an overall theme in mind ("emphasis on blue" etc) so it comes together in the end

41. Yes the twins are genetically related to Shiro because of Goro (she says they're like his nephews but I say GENETICALLY at least they'd be indistinguishable from his children)

42. Strongest mom of all the strong moms around here? Yuri! Did you SEE her give birth??

43. Are you careful about your own health Katoh-sensei? Not particularly! Her mom has had to bring her food at work sometimes! Don't do this at home kids

44. At the dating events Shura goes to, does she drink cocktails in moderation? Yeah, she probably downplays her normal drinking habits at these things. But normally she's down for just about any kind of drink

45. Lucifer just really likes oysters okay

46. How many pages of manga does Katoh draw in a day? If she's being good about self-care: three. Maximum number ever: TEN

47. Mephisto is one of those folks who can eat like a garbage compactor and never gain weight. Possibly because his body resists that sort of change the same way it resists aging etc

48. First food Rin cooked: fish burger type patty. Yukio's favorite things Rin cooks: fish simmered in soy sauce, yellowtail with daikon radish. It's fish all the way down

49: Did Rin ever get more monthly allowance from Mephisto? It doubled! He gets TWO 2000 yen bills now (rip) [T/N: That's uh, that's USD $37.26 a month or 33.10 euro]

50. Why isn't Rin more popular with the girls? He gets nervous talking to them, plus he's too oblivious to notice even if he DID have some fans

51. Why change Suguro's hair? She gets bored with keeping everything the same, and she wanted a visual representation that he was getting serious and going into kind of a training arc

52. Things Katoh pays extra attention to when drawing: trying to capture the feel of whatever she's drawing (like "that looks warm and soft" or "I bet that guy stinks" cough Lightning cough)

53: Does Rin take after Yuri more? (He's got her eyes!) Katoh tried to draw Yuri so she looks like both twins. Personality, too - Yukio has her smarts and Rin has her optimism

54: Do you ever wanna be like Mephisto? Well she'd like to be able to get away with just ANYTHING EVER, but no, let's not be like Mephisto

55. Konekomaru not only carries around a cat toy in case he meets any cats, he MAKES cat toys to carry around based on what he thinks the cats would like

56. How'd you come up with Shima? Go read the fan book!

57. Do the kids have Twitter/Instagram accounts? Rin - probably not. Konekomaru might be on some social media. Paku and Izumo are totally on instagram

58. Is there something Rin makes that you wish you could try? All of it! That's the whole idea! He's good at cooking!

59. Will we ever have a (G-rated) reveal of what ALL of Mamushi and her family's tattoos look like? Maybe! She'll think about it

60. Does Arthur have a repertoire of different hairstyles? Not really, he just puts some of it up on the top. Heck he might even have people to do that for him

61. If you wrote a shojo manga what would it be about? She'd have to do a lot of research before even coming up with a story, since there are so many style differences between the genres aside from just the subject

62. The other two of Mephisto's top 3 favorite foods: Cup ramen and....f-fried bubblegum?? Is that a THING???

63. Where do you start when drawing a character? Usually the outline of their face but if it's a complex pose/composition she'll start with whatever's in the foreground (like hands)

64. If Katoh could have a familiar, what demon would she choose? Mephisto. As the all-powerful author, she might actually be able to command him as a familiar!

66. If you swapped Yukio and Rin's relationship around what would change? not much, you'd pretty much have Rin going to the Illuminati and Yukio going to the past

67. Top 3 foods/souvenirs to try in Kyushu? Well she doesn't know what’s good CURRENTLY but when she was there she always used to like burdock tempura udon, hakata torimon (a kind of manju with white bean paste inside), and Chikae style cod roe. today I learned Katoh went to high school in Kyushu

68. Katoh listens to music a lot while she's storyboarding, then when she and the assistants are all drawing and inking they put various videos/movies and stuff on in the background

69. For all his hitting on girls, is Shima actually popular with the ladies at all? He's got enough girls in his life that he probably COULD find a girlfriend if he really wanted, but the double agent thing tends to get in the way. He still wouldn't be as popular as Yukio though (side thought/translator’s note: Shima would be proud of being number 69.)

70. Katoh has the ending planned out in a big-picture way, but there are still a few details here and there that she's fretting over

71. It's cute when the boys put their ties over their shoulders when they're working on something! Where'd that come from? She just figured a tie might get in the way and that seemed like a realistic way to get it out of the way

72. Looks like Yukio is getting some facial hair! What about Rin? They're both about the age for it, but maybe Rin can't grow a beard yet. Maybe a little peach fuzz here and there

73. Katoh's favorite blue exorcist merch? There were some exorcist licenses a while back, and the exorcist pins. Basically it's really cool that these little accessories she drew ACTUALLY EXIST NOW, LIKE YOU CAN HOLD THEM IN YOUR HANDS

74. Okay realtalk how long do we have left, I don't want the series to end yet? We're solidly in the second half by now but it's not, like, ABOUT to end yet

75. Katoh would be a Knight meister, based on what characters she likes to play in games and such

76. How many people in the whole exorcism cram school? More than you think! She doesn't give a number but apparently licensed exorcists also attend classes for new meisters, etc, so there's a wide age range attending

77. How's Arthur feel about, like, studying Taming on the way to becoming Paladin? He's at least mostly accepted that you have to use demons to fight demons effectively

78. Konekomaru started wearing glasses in his first year of middle school, so like 7th grade (more recent than I thought!) He has one spare pair, in contrast to Yukio lol

79. Katoh's current obsessions? Ghost/scary stories! She's even been going to live readings of them recently

80. Media Katoh consumes for inspiration? A wide range of foreign teen drama, horror/suspense, shojo manga, light novels, anime, etc. Special focus on things where two boys are in conflict or there are brothers involved

81. If they weren't exorcists what jobs would they have? Rin - chef. Yukio - doctor. Shiemi - uh, florist?

82. Inspiration for the design of True Cross Town? Katoh and her assistants gathered up a bunch of references, picked out stuff they felt matched the tone, and mashed them all up together

83. Did you use any references etc for the school/exorcist uniforms? She says she probably should have but she just kind of made them up before publication

84. Favorite part of drawing? For color pages, picking out a color scheme. For black and white, drawing in all the little details (though she doesn't always get time to lately)

85. Once again confirms the demon kings' weird hair is a representation of their horns. ADDS THAT PEOPLE WHO CAN'T SEE DEMONS CAN'T SEE THE WEIRD HAIR

86. Now that Yukio's at the Illuminati, where's he gonna get his Jump SQ and spare glasses? Well he probably never planned to stay for long, but hey it's a big ship and they might have an optometrist and/or newsstand there

87. Do you base the demon characters on any references etc? Not really, she just gets a general idea of popular demon designs and then makes up her own in her own style

88. Merchandise Katoh personally wants to have made: stuff that an adult could just use in their day to day life. Also, it's not gonna happen, but if her favorite figure brand made AoEx figures she could die happy

89. If Beelzebub's host body was a beautiful woman, how would Shima react? Would the womanizing win out over the bug phobia? Katoh replies that Shima would probably just faint from being near a girl that pretty, before the bugs even got involved

90. Will the twins ever get to smile and eat dinner together again?? We'll just have to wait and see!

91. What do you check at a "scenario check"? what's a scenario check man I dunno They check for people being out of character or the setting feeling off. They had a lot of these checks for the anime, but they also do them for the drama CD, games, and all that other stuff where multiple authors are involved

92. Why does Shura use baldy as an insult for people who are clearly not bald? She feels like they have some kind of metaphorical, mental kind of "baldness" and she's calling them out on it. Whatever that means

93. After Blue Exorcist ends, what do you want to draw next? She has SO MANY IDEAS, SO MANY

94. Did Katoh make up the Shinto chants that, for example, Izumo used against Gedouin? They're assembled from bits of actual Shinto prayers according to what feels right in the scene

95. Yukio reads the Jump SQ, right, and, just hear me out here, he likes gag manga, right? Does this mean he reads Salaryman Yukio? It's something he would read, but let's say that in the AoEx universe there's just a very similar manga that he finds oddly relatable

96. What do Yukio and Shima do in their free time on the Dominus Liminus? oh my god you guys this ship has so many amenities.  Yukio probably spends time reading in the library, which they totally have. There's also, like, a gym, and a movie theater, and a THEATER theater, all of which are free. Shima probably hangs out at the pool (!) and goes to the movies, and hits on illuminati girls, lol

97. Easiest character to draw? The ones with boring simple hair, lol. Lightning gets an honorable mention for ALSO not having eyes in most shots, but Rin wins--he was specifically designed to be easy for Katoh to draw because that's what you want in your main character

98. How do demons understand gender? They just possess whatever feels like the best match to how they feel in Gehenna, whether that's a man, or a woman, or a rat, or whatever

99. Where do you start when you're coming up with a story? She starts with character design and how the characters relate to each other. Currently she's just continuing an existing story, so she works on splitting up the overall plot into episodes and fleshing it out with scenes and information about characters

100. When do you feel most happy? She honestly feels like she lives a very happy life overall. Mentions noticing a lot of little things, like how nice her cats' heads smell when she cuddles them or taking a nice cold refreshing drink of water. There's happiness in everything. aww.

[saimotass]

how i’d rewrite v3

warning: long post

chapter 1:

everything is essentially the same with one key difference

when voting ends, shuuichi is revealed to have abstained, leading to his death alongside kaede’s

thus resulting in a double protag switch, with kiibo becoming the protag

chapter 1 results in three deaths

this establishes the arc number, makes things interesting by killing off three of the seemingly most important characters, and gives leeway for the rest of the cast to shine

chapter 2:

the motive is the same, and maki gets hoshi’s tape

however, maki refuses to trade with him and he gets angry about it

because he’s always wanted to feel like he was worth something, and there’s someone standing in the way of letting him know if there’s anything outside waiting for him, he kills maki

however, after that, he watches his tape and realizes that he’s completely alone

he leaves the crime scene as is, and kokichi tries to throw the trial because he has maki’s tape and has revealed her as the SHSL assassin

kokichi attempts to make it be that maki committed suicide as a means of escaping her past, but he also posits that maybe she was framing hoshi since he was already a convicted murderer

hoshi, having nothing left to live for, confesses, and kokichi gets angry, citing that it would have been so much more interesting if he had fought his fate

maki and hoshi die in a fiercely antagonistic, ultimately self-destructive mess

chapter 3:

there’s a similar motive, and it’s established that there was a pair of relatives in the cast, but one of them is dead

miu has already cemented herself as being pretty isolated from the rest of the group, and people suspect that she and kaede were twins, based on them knowing that kaede had a twin sister

other guesses include rantarou being related to tenko or kirumi, and shuuichi being related to korekiyo or tsumugi

angie decides to hold a seance so that they can figure it out and reunite them

himiko offers to help and it’s during the seance that himiko is killed

this is a 1 victim chapter, subverting the expectation, and also making sense since 3 people died in chapter 1

during the trial, people start to suspect miu, but korekiyo starts acting weird

korekiyo has a meltdown completely out of nowhere, and believes himself to be possessed by the spirit of shuuichi

he reveals that shuuichi was his brother, and that he was vengeful towards the group for not stopping the killing game (making his, kaede’s, and rantarou’s sacrifices be in vain)

he also claims that shuuichi was trying to target the mastermind, but when himiko volunteered herself to help, he ended up killing her instead

korekiyo is voted, despite a couple people claiming that shuuichi would be the true culprit

korekiyo is executed, and in retaliation for monodam having killed monokid and monosuke during the prior executions, monotaro and monophanie kill him

chapter 4:

virtual reality is still part of the motive

angie has a breakdown, having lost the one person that was most receptive to her teachings about atua

miu and tsumugi are shown to be very close after the last few chapters due to their self-isolated nature

angie snaps and tries to kill miu, but tsumugi steps in in her place, killing angie as defense

the world glitches, and miu goes missing for a bit, leading people to believe that she was the victim

when they get out of the game, miu is still alive, and so people believe her to be the murderer

it’s revealed that miu caused the glitch in order to save tsumugi

kokichi’s been part of this too, having noticed how close they were and putting pieces together, as well as eavesdropping and coercing info out of miu

kokichi ouma, revealed as a magnificent bastard

miu begs everyone to vote for her, but tsumugi confesses, and she is executed

during tsumugi’s execution, monotaro seems like he’ll be next to die, but monophanie sacrifices herself for him, in line with this chapter’s theme

after this trial, miu and tenko start hanging out, having lost their closest friends (tsumugi and himiko respectively)

chapter 5:

everybody hates ouma: the musical

after it was revealed that he manipulated the events of both chapter 2 and chapter 4, literally everybody suspects him of being the mastermind, or at least a traitor of some sort

he decides to try and enlist miu to help hack into kiibo to make him a minion of his

miu goes along with it, thanks to some masterful manipulation tactics on ouma’s end (he’s good with words, the shit)

kiibo’s software goes blank for a bit, but he eventually gets better thanks to an unforeseen software update

(during the time that kiibo’s offline, we play briefly as the other cast, who are all either preparing to confront or already confronting ouma by this point)

ouma is also shown to be causing injuries to himself, hoping to die by his own hand and cause a trial where nobody knows the real killer, taking everyone with him because they’re all so bad at playing the game

ouma is the victim and nobody knows who killed him, not even monokuma

everyone is hesitant to admit that they confronted him, but only gonta, kaito, and tenko confess to having fought him physically

miu and kiibo work together to reveal that kiibo was still recording during the time he was offline, and they show ouma inflicting injuries to himself

everyone believes that ouma committed suicide, but just before everyone goes to vote, gonta confesses

gonta delivered the killing blow accidentally, not realizing his own strength

over the course of the game, gonta and kiibo had gotten close, and gonta got so angry seeing kiibo malfunctioning that he killed ouma on accident

tenko and kaito both then claim that they killed him, not wanting gonta to die

kiibo has to convince them that voting for gonta is the right thing to do

gonta is executed, and it seems like monotaro is safe, but right at the end of gonta’s execution, monotaro commits suicide

chapter 6:

after talking to monokuma during the previous trial about rules and what to do if the results of a trial were unclear or ambiguous, they realize that the mastermind broke a rule back in chapter 1

the rule being that someone killing more than 2 people isn’t allowed

when kiibo’s attempting to find out who the mastermind could be alongside kirumi, miu, tenko, and kaito, they are given class files for each student

nowhere in either korekiyo or shuuichi’s files do they mention a brother, while in kaede’s, her twin sister is mentioned

after gathering evidence and demanding a retrial of the first case, kiibo confronts monokuma, believing that korekiyo is the mastermind, having hidden his death after causing the deaths of kaede, rantarou, shuuichi, and himiko

it’s revealed that shuuichi was actually the one faking his death, and that he is the mastermind of the killing game

danganronpa is still a show, but shuuichi passes it off as an experimental documentary on how people can be forced to kill, based on a real life set of video games

he confesses that he fabricated his relation to korekiyo, but that it worked well, as korekiyo was a traitor, having worked with shuuichi on his experiment

he also reveals that kiibo was made solely for the experiment, as a camera and an audience surrogate, making him essentially a conduit for amateur sleuths to solve real life murders on TV

this breaks kiibo and we play as the other four survivors to help him

it’s revealed that the show technically hasn’t even aired, and that shuuichi was planning on killing all of them in order to survive to share his findings with the world

shuuichi is thwarted, and the survivors all agree to die alongside him if it means destroying the video

kiibo initiates self-destruct, but after seeing that the others are safe in a bunker, accepts his death and kills himself alongside shuuichi

epilogue:

the survivors are kaito, tenko, miu, and kirumi, subverting the theme number of 3

it’s revealed that rantarou had memories of surviving two other experiments led by shuuichi, explaining the v3 -- this was the 3rd version of his game

the footage is destroyed, and the four survivors walk away from the rubble, unsure of how to assimilate back into society having pretended that nothing happened

[emachinescat]

The Rich Girl Next Girl (Just Tried to Kill Me)

A Psych Fan-Fiction

By @emachinescat ​

@febuwhump ​ day 7 - poisoning 

Summary: Shawn will never complain about being ‘barely poisoned’ again after he’s ‘fully poisoned’ by a woman he’s investigating - via her poisoned lipstick and an non-consensual kiss.

Characters | Pairings: Shawn, Juliet, Henry, Gus, Lassie | Shawn/Juliet

Words: 3,199

TW: non-consensual kiss

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It was the beautiful ones you had to watch out for.  

She was tall and dark haired, with green eyes that twinkled like twin emeralds, and high cheekbones and plump lips colored with the most devastating red Shawn Spencer had ever laid eyes on.  She had squeezed into a tiny black dress with an open back and plunging neckline, with legs that seemed like they would go on forever.  She wore closed-toe, diamond-studded, four-inch heels that perfectly matched the color of her lips.  

Somehow Shawn had managed to charm her into asking him to be her date to a charity gala at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, and he was very well aware of the many eyes on him as he moved through the crowd with her on his arm.

Well.  It would be more accurate to say that he was on her arm, because she was most definitely in charge, had been from the moment she’d picked him up her limo and she’d already had another, better tux waiting and pressed for him - and had refused to let him in the car until he’d made the switch.

She wasn’t only a total knockout, though - she was also a local celebrity, a socialite, born into enormous wealth but not the heir to the bulk of her late parents’ fortune.  That honor went to her older sister, who had, just a week ago, gotten into a terrible accident on her yacht.  Part of her had been recovered on the deck after the explosion.  The Coast Guard were still looking for the other part in the ocean.  They weren’t optimistic.

So now Aria Thorton, the twenty-seven-year-old millionaire goddess, was Shawn’s date to a high-end charity event, and they were the center of attention.  

Shawn should have been in heaven.

There were three things that dampened the occasion, though - for one, she thought he was a billionaire from two counties over named Chaz Hemsworth (no relation to Chris or Liam, but his rugged good looks and fabulous hair had made many people think he was).  

Then there was the fact that she was the SPBD’s number one suspect in her sister’s supposed-accident-but-Shawn-had-revealed-that-it-was-murder-yet-again case.  Hence, why she thought he was Chaz - he was undercover with the help of the police department, much to the chagrin of Lassie and Jules, because he was the best person for the job.  (Well, he had barged into the case and presented himself as Chaz Hemsworth, and she had been interested, and now he was the best chance they had since he was already on the inside and it was a time-sensitive case - just like he’d planned it).  

Oh, and the third thing was definitely the worst of them all: His actual girlfriend, the aforementioned Jules, was here too, acting as Lassiter’s date and ready to provide backup.  And she was pissed.  

Shawn forced himself to focus on the case, though.  Technically, he’d already solved it, put all the final puzzle pieces together, just half an hour before the gala.  But by that time, she was already at the luxury hotel the SBPD had reluctantly put him in as part of his cover (“Any snacks or room service ordered will be paid for by you, Mr. Spencer, not this department,” Chief Vick had warned with that iconic raised eyebrow of hers.  And no, she wasn’t going to sink funds into a ticket for Mr. Guster - Shawn had thrown himself into this investigation alone, so Gus would just have to sit this one out.  Needless to say, Gus had not been pleased.).  

Now, there were just a few more loose ends to tie, a few more t’s to cross and i’s to dot and little squiggly fancy things to add to capital S’s - namely, he needed to do the reveal.  And since Lassie and Jules would be at the gala anyway, it would be the perfect time to do the reveal (and he’d get to live it up as a male socialite for a few more hours).

He waited until he’d tested all the hors dourves (Why the hell had no one told him caviar was fish eggs and not really fancy boba, and that it did not taste good in even the fanciest of cocktails?), but as soon as the moment was perfect, he called everyone’s attention to him by accidentally-on-purpose smashing his cocktail glass with a knife a la the Princess Diaries, jumped onto the nearest table, and presented his case.

As he revealed the truth of the tragic death of Selena Thornton, and how her sister had taken freaking Skill Share lessons on yacht safety procedures so that she could backwards engineer them to arrange an accident for her sister and swoop up her portion of the inheritance, he noticed something odd - Aria didn’t try to get up, she didn’t argue or yell something like, “That’s ridiculous!” or “You have no proof!” or even “I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren’t for you muddling, hunky psychic!”  Instead, she opened her shimmering handbag, calmly applied some sort of thick balm to her lips.  Then she pulled out her lipstick and reapplied it.  Maybe if Shawn hadn’t been so focused on his wrap-up, he would have noticed that the lipstick was the same shade, but that it came from a different tube than when she’d reapplied earlier.  Later, in his hospital bed, he would kick himself for missing that tiny, crucial detail.

He finished by announcing, “And remember, folks - this murder reveal was brought to you by Skill Share.”

And then he was getting off the table, and Jules was preparing the cuffs while Lassie held Aria, and the rest of the rich guests were sitting in stunned silence or otherwise whispering among themselves, already spreading the gossip for the next Tabloid, he was sure.  Then, out of nowhere, the formerly docile homicidal heiress lashed out, slamming the pointed heel of her left shoe - it looked like the heel had been shoved into a pencil sharpener - into the top of Lassie’s foot, buried the elbow of her perfectly tanned right arm into Juliet’s stomach, and broke away from the detectives.

Shawn thought she would turn tail and run, try to escape, but to his shock (and confusion), she lunged straight for him, zooming forward in those ridiculous heels with a speed and grace Shawn couldn’t even achieve with sneakers.  He braced himself for an attack, got ready to defend himself, even as Lassie and Jules recovered and dove for the sabotaging socialite.

They were too late.

What happened next was the literal opposite of what Shawn had anticipated.  She crushed her body into his, grabbed his face the way they do in every rom com ever, and pressed her lips against his in a kind of tender but still somehow aggressive kiss.

For a moment, he stood in shock, trying to process what the hell was happening.  Was she glad he’d caught her?  Did she look forward to being stripped of her wealth and going to prison for life?

Then he realized that as pleasant as her soft lips were against his, he had not authorized this transaction, and even though she was a rich, drop-dead gorgeous socialite, she was also a sister-killer, and his girlfriend whom he loved very much was watching, and he pulled back.  She held on, forcing her lips on his even as he tried to squirm away from her touch.  Her expertly manicured fingernails dug into his skin, and left scratches on the side of his neck when Lassie and Jules dragged her off of him.

Shawn stumbled back, neck stinging where she’d scratched him, lips tingling where she’d kissed him.  He could taste her lipstick - it didn’t taste like cherries like he’d thought.  It didn’t taste good at all.  He wiped his mouth with his sleeve and spun on Aria Thorton, who was now being wrestled into cuffs and passed off to waiting police officers.  “Hey, I know I’m irresistible,” he said, trying to fight off his growing discomfort at the kiss - any other time, he’d probably be thrilled to have a beautiful woman throw herself at him and surprise him with an attack-kiss, “but I’ve got a girlfriend.  And she’s way more hot and bad-ass than a homi-sister like you.”

Jules turned to him and there was a little smile on her face that told him maybe he wasn't as deep in the doghouse as he'd thought.  “Homi-sister?”  

“Yeah,” said Shawn, rubbing absently at his chest.  He needed to change out of this tux.  It was too hot, and it was too tight.  “Sister-murderer.  Like homicide, but for sisters.”

“Sororicide,” Lassiter corrected.  

“I’m sorry, Lassie, when did you take on the role of Scooby Doo?  I can only keep up with one fictional dog at a time, man.”  Beads of sweat popped up on his forehead.  A muscle twitched in his upper arm.

“It’s the actual term for killing one’s sister,” Lassie sneered derisively.

Shawn opened his mouth to retort, but he coughed instead.   And suddenly he couldn't stop coughing, and his chest was being squeezed, and the muscle in his arm jumped again, this time painfully, and he promptly deposited a disgusting mixture of fourteen varieties of hors dourves on Lassiter’s shoes.  A strong hand grabbed his upper arm and kept him semi-upright even as Lassiter groaned, “These are $400 loafers, and they’re rentals!”

“Shawn!”  Juliet’s face had gone white, Shawn noticed through tears and haze as she surged forward and gently lifted his chin with her delicate hand.  

He struggled to answer her, but his chest was so tight, and his left calf muscle contracted then, and all that came out was a strangled cry of pain.

“Call an ambulance - now!”  Lassiter’s voice was far away, though Shawn could have sworn that the head detective was standing right by his side, keeping him from face-planting in his own caviar and cocktail sludge.

Vaguely, over the sound of screams and murmurs and cries of alarm, he heard Juliet’s voice, scarier than he’d ever heard it before - he’d never been so convinced she was about to murder someone before - growl, “What did you do to him?”

He never got the chance to hear if Aria Thornton gave up her dark little secret.  His eyes rolled up into his head, and, muscles twitching and lungs scrambling for air, he passed out.

***

He woke up to pain.

It was a slow process, getting his eyelids to cooperate, but he could feel a soft hand in his, and he would know it anywhere, and someone was crying.

When his vision had cleared enough for him to make out more than just blobs of color, he saw Juliet sitting slumped in a hard plastic chair by his bedside.  Sure enough, it was her hand in his.  But she was fast asleep, her neck crooked back at an awkward angle and small, adorable snores wafting out of her slightly parted lips.  So it wasn’t her who was crying.

His gaze dragged languidly to the right, and everything made sense.  Gus was in the chair next to her, quietly sobbing into his hands.  Poor bastard.  

Shawn spoke, his voice raw and trembling and the effort seemed to squeeze every bit of air out of his already starved lungs.  “G-Gus?”

Gus’s head snapped up, he leaped out of his chair, and in a loud voice reminiscent to an all-black hallelujah choir, he exclaimed, “Shawn!”

Juliet startled awake, her hand instinctively squeezing his, and he saw the worry in her stormy blue eyes as soon as they landed on him.  She smoothed his sweaty hair from his forehead.  “Thank God you’re awake.  How are you feeling?”

Shawn didn’t answer immediately, but let his eyes wander around the room, confirming what he already knew.  He was in a hospital - a private room - and there was a heart monitor beeping above him and an IV lead ran from his hand to a pole, where two different bags were feeding his veins with who knew what.  He took a moment to remember what had happened and shuddered internally when he thought of the kiss of death.  

It took everything he had in him to speak again, but he had to know where he stood, “S-so, more than b-barely poisoned this time?”

Juliet laughed, a short, manic sound of mingled relief and exasperation.  “Yeah, a lot more than barely,” she agreed.

Shawn didn’t get to enjoy his moment of validation, because his left pectoral muscle spasmed, knocking the air out of his lungs and sending bolts of agony through his chest.  It was like the muscle was twisting itself into the most complex pretzel known to man.  An agonized guuuh burst from his mouth and he grasped at his chest, as if trying to tear the pain away.

Gus was panicking now, tears still streaming down his face, and Jules looked stricken.  Shawn was certain he was actively dying now and tried to call for help.  The door to his room burst open and distantly, beneath the mound of pain that had erupted in his muscle, he heard his father’s voice.

“Jules - it looks like it’s his chest.  Massage it.  Remember, small, gentle circles.  Gus, pull it together, you’re just making him panic.”  And then he could feel Jules gently massaging the screaming muscle, and Gus hiccuped into relative silence, and his father was there, seated in a chair on the other side of the bed.  He grabbed Shawn’s hand - the one with the IV - and for a wild moment, Shawn was convinced his father was going to rip it out like he had the last time his son had been poisoned.

But instead, he held on firmly to Shawn’s hand and said, “Squeeze as hard as you need to, pal.  Ride it out.  It’ll be over soon.”

The heart monitor was screeching now, and a nurse ran in just as the spasm was beginning to ebb, leaving the entire muscle feeling weak and squishy like play-doh.  She injected something into one of Shawn’s IV bags and checked his temperature and fed him ice chips and told him to try to rest and be patient, that it wouldn’t be long until the spasms would stop.  She might have told him her name at some point, but he didn’t hear.

Whatever she’d given him made him sleepy, and he felt his twitching, tense muscles relax the tiniest of fractions, and the last thing he saw before falling asleep was his father’s face leaning over him.  He must have been hallucinating, because he could have sworn that his father’s eyes were red and puffy and that there were tear-tracks down his face.

***

The next time Shawn woke up, he was still sore, and his muscles still gave the occasional, defiant twitch, but he wasn’t in blood-curdling agony anymore, so it was a definite improvement.  This time when he woke, no one was crying, and his dad had washed his face, but his eyes were still rimmed with red.

“What happened to me?” Shawn asked, his voice weaker than he could ever remember.  “What the hell was in that lipstick?”

His dad chuckled humorlessly, not because anything was funny but because it wasn’t crying.  “You figured out it was the lipstick, then?”

“I’m psychic, dad, remember?”  Shawn had put the pieces together the first time he’d woken up, but he’d been too out of it to realize he’d made the connection.

Henry didn’t dignify that with a response.

“I can’t believe you went to a millionaire’s gala and almost died, Shawn!” Gus chided irritably.  “If I had been there -”

“You would have hyperventilated and passed out on your plate of hor dourves,” Henry finished dryly, and Shawn couldn’t help but grin.

Juliet was the one who brought the conversation back around to his question.  “She refused to talk, so we took her purse and had her fingernail polish, lip balm, and lipstick tested for toxins,” she informed him.  “We thought that she might have done it when she scratched you, but it was the lipstick that was poisoned.  The lip balm was actually a protective buffer between her lips and the lipstick so that the poison wouldn’t reach her skin.”  With a heavy sigh, Juliet revealed, “It was VX poison.”

“What’s that?” Shawn asked.  “It sounds like something from a spy thriller.”

“It’s a nerve agent,” Gus supplied.  “It can be made into gas, but it’s base form is about the consistency of gasoline.  It’s super fast-acting, especially when inhaled or ingested, even in small amounts like with you, and it causes muscle spasms, respiratory issues, nausea, headaches, fever, and a whole lot of other nasty symptoms.”

“But there’s a cure?”

“Atropine and pralidoxime,” Gus answered promptly, and Shawn resisted the very strong urge to tell his best friend to, for the love of every 80s movie they’d ever loved, get a hobby.  “Both were administered the second the results came back.  It was a close call, but thankfully they were administered on time - though it was touch and go for a bit.  The nurse gave you another dose of a muscle relaxer the first time you woke up.  The other drip is saline.”

“I guess the real question is how the psychotic rich girl next door got ahold of poison like that in the first place,” Shawn muttered, head swimming and eyes burning and body feeling like it had been run over by a monster truck.

Juliet answered promptly: “Lassiter was finally able to crack her.  Turns out she’s also got some contacts in the black market.  She had that tube of lipstick custom-made and infused with VX two years ago in case any of her many boyfriends cheated on her.  Surprisingly, she hadn’t used it until you came along, but when you exposed the truth, it was her way of getting revenge.   She knew there was no way she was going to be able to escape, so she decided to take you down with her.”

“Damn,” said Shawn, faintly.  He was drifting off again, but he was so happy to be alive, to see his friends - even his dad, imagine that! 

“Go back to sleep, Shawn,” Henry ordered.  “It’s going to take a while for you to heal, and you’ll need all the rest you can get.”

Not knowing what had come over him, blaming the poison and trauma for the words that spilled unbidden from his lips, he found himself asking, “And you guys will be here?  Next time I wake up?”  

Gus grinned and leaned over to give Shawn a one-sided fist bump, and Juliet kissed him delicately on the forehead.  His dad ruffled his hair in a manner that could almost be construed as affectionate if he wasn’t careful.

“You bet your ass we will.”

Overall, Shawn reflected as he allowed sleep to claim him, being fully poisoned fully sucked, but it was kind of nice getting a glimpse of just how much his friends and family cared. 

They could find other opportunities to show their love in the future though. Shawn had had enough of poison, barely, fully, or otherwise, for a lifetime. 

[dream-a-little-bigger-x]

Chapter 15 -- Perfect Harmony | Charlie Gillespie

Summary: Emily Fox is a talented 17-year-old with a passion for all things music. Her dream is to become a successful singer-songwriter one day. But to achieve that dream, she needs to get into one of the most prestigious music schools in her district – it’s all been part of her plan since she was six. Sadly enough, those schools cost a ton of money that her parents don’t want to invest. They don’t even want her to pursue her dream. So, now Emily’s hustling, working at the music store to save up to get into college. That’s until she meets Charlie, an annoying seventeen-year-old boy with the same dream as her. The only difference is, he’s just doing it. He doesn’t need a fancy college to pursue his dream to become famous with his band. He just writes his songs and books small gigs here, there and everywhere. Will meeting Charlie defer her from her dream college, or will he actually help her achieve the dream?

Pairing: Charlie Gillespie x OC (Emily Fox)

Warnings: mentions of death, sexual assault

Important note: the characters of Charlie, Owen, Jeremy and Madison are based on the characters they play on the show and i do not own their names, only OC are mine. The songs aren’t mine either, they’re all from the show except for one.

Chapter fifteen 

~|Emily Fox|~

I don’t think I have ever run this fast. Not even in PE class when I was graded for it. But I have to get to my house as fast as possible, knowing Madison would still be there waiting for me. Uncle Mitch probably would’ve told her to wait. When I arrive, I find Madi sitting on the porch in front of the red door, playing with the bracelets around her wrists. My heart breaks at the sight of how sad she looks. “Mads, I am so, so, so sorry!” She looks up at me, the sadness vanishing into pure anger as she gets up from her spot. “What was more important than hanging with your best friend?” she asks me. I can’t answer. I don’t dare to. Not honestly at least. “I’ll tell you, your stupid band and your stupid boyfriend you never bothered to tell me about!” I flinch at the loudness of her voice and the truth brutely smacking back into my face. “Since when do we keep things from each other, Emily?” “I’m so sorry, Madi. I just—” I take a deep breath to try and find the correct words. “You what? You just forgot about your best friend?!” “No, Mads, of course not!” “Then what is it?!” Madison never gets angry at me. Ever. “I just didn’t know how to tell you about something I didn’t even understand! I joined a band when I have never written or sang songs with anyone else but Uncle Bobby, and I don’t even know how this thing between Charlie and me happened. I just wanted to make sure either of those things is what I wanted before I told anyone!” “Oh, but you go and flaunt your little relationship and play a gig at Brianna Holly’s party. Brianna Holly’s party, Emily!” She has a really good point. “I thought you’d rather die than go to Brianna’s party, but I guess you’d rather ditch your best friend instead.” The volume of her voice has diminished, and she sounds a lot more broken and hurt now. “Madi, that’s not—” “Save it, Emily,” she cuts me off, and pushes past me. Ever actually felt your heart break? Because that’s what I’m feeling right now. I can’t believe I never told Madison about Charlie or Sunset Curve. That’s about the stupidest thing I’ve ever done. It even beats ever trusting Jake. “Muffin,” I didn’t even hear the door opening through the sadness filling the air around me, “Come inside.” I turn around and walk into Uncle Mitch’s open arms as he guides me inside and towards the living room. “I’ve done something so stupid,” I cry out in between sobs whilst Mitch goes off to make me a hot cocoa, I assume. “I should’ve never kept Charlie or the band from Madi. She’s my best friend. I share everything with her, all the time.” “Why didn’t you share this thing?” Uncle Mitch asks from the kitchen. “I don’t know… I wanted to make sure that it was what I wanted before I told anyone?” “You told me,” he points out, but I shake my head. “I told you about the band, you figured me and Charlie out with your love-dar.” I can’t help but chuckle at the memory of last night. “Technically, no,” he captures my attention with this, “I knew something was going on when you talked about the band and talked about this Charlie kid you wrote songs with. You couldn’t stop smiling and your eyes just sparkled,” he walks into the living room again with two cups of hot cocoa. “Besides, you don’t think I didn’t notice the both of you sneaking onto your balcony, did you?” My eyes widen at his confession. Uncle Mitch is all-knowing. Nothing ever gets past him and I should’ve known. “You were careful, right?” I nearly choke on my hot beverage. “We just hung out, Mitchell!” He raises one hand in defense. “Just making sure, Muffin.” I shake my head at him. He’s unbelievable. However, it did make me forget about the fight I’d just had with my best friend. Or at least for a moment until it dawned on me again. “Hey,” his voice makes me look up again, “Any clue what you’re going to do about Madi?” I shake my head glumly. “I doubt she’ll ever talk to me again…” “Then don’t give her the chance to talk. You talk or something else that might capture her attention…” I raise my eyebrows at him. He’s onto something, but I doubt he’ll tell me straight up. Mitch is all about the mysterious hints rather than revealing his thoughts. He’ll get you thinking about an answer instead of giving it away. But it does put a thought in my head of which I think is what he means.

“Hey, Mads…” I start when I see her at school the next day. She simply huffs at me. “I know you don’t want to talk to me, and I get it. I’ve been a terrible friend, but please, let me make it up to you? I have a little surprise for you tonight.” She looks up now, eyebrows risen with the scowl still on her face. “Come to the Music Store at 8pm tonight and you’ll see.” “Maybe,” she simply replies before leaving to get to class. At least that’s something.

“How are things between you and Madi?” Charlie asks when he and the boys meet me at the music store at closing time. He kisses my cheek before getting to his spot at the counter to sort through the invoices again. “Terrible… She’s really angry at me and didn’t really talk to me at school today…” The boys all give me a sympathetic look. Charlie probably told them about me bailing on Madison yesterday. “But! I asked her to come to the store at 8.” I reach into my backpack to grab my songbook. “I worked on a song for Madi last night and I was hoping you guys would help me surprise Madi with it?” They glance at each other before installing everything for an early rehearsal. Sorting invoices and cleaning up we’ll have to do later. I show them my lyrics, and they help me out with a melody and a beat. We rehearse it for about an hour until the bell over the door rings, signaling someone entering. My heart beats faster, hoping it’ll be Madison. “So…” she starts once she’s in front of us. “You wanted to show me something?” She still has that same scowl on her face. “Yes!” I walk up to her from behind the keyboard and grab her hand. “I wrote you a song last night and the boys helped me out with a killer melody. It’s not perfect yet, but I hope it’ll make you happy.” She lets out a small smile, but immediately hides it again, as I lead her towards a chair in front of our setup. I walk back to my keyboard and shake my hands nervously. “It’s called Flying Solo,” I tell her before starting to tap the soundboard to create a fun beat, just like we’d rehearsed. I then press the ‘loop’ button, so it keeps playing, and I can start playing notes on the keyboard. “If I leave you on a bad note Leave you on a sad note Guess that means I'm buying lunch that day” I glance up at Madi to find her nodding her a little. “I know all your secrets You know all my deep-dish Guess that means some things they never They never change We both know what I, what I What I mean When I look at you it's like I'm looking at me” The boys join in with their instruments now, bringing in the rocky sound we love using, and sing along during the chorus. “My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you” “Hey!” The boys yell, making Madi jump slightly. “Yeah, yeah.” “Hey!” “Yeah, yeah” “My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you” I get out from behind the keyboard and walk up to Madison, kneeling down in front of her and grabbing her hand in mine. “Yeah, you know who I'm likin' way before I liked them, duh 'Cause you liked them first And if somebody hurts you, I'm gonna get hurt too That's just how we work, yeah, that's just how we work” A smile cracks through her angry façade. She’s warming up finally. “It will never change We both know what I, what I What I mean When I look at you it's like I'm looking at me” I pull her up from the chair and lead her towards the band. First, we jam a little with Jeremy. “My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you” We now walk up to the drums together, Owen smiling at us from behind them. “Hey!” “Yeah, yeah” “Hey!” “Yeah, yeah” We walk over to Charlie, who offers me one of his beautiful smiles while still singing along with me and the boys. “My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you” I pull Madison away from Charlie now whilst they still play their instruments. “I’m so sorry, Madi. I know I shouldn’t have kept all of this from you and I don’t have a decent reason why I did, I just… I can’t have you angry at me. Will you please forgive me for being stupid?” Her smile widens, and my heart finally calms down. “As long as I’m allowed to be your roadie, your tour photographer and your marketing manager all in one,” she offers with that teasing grin of hers that always makes me the happiest. I glance over at the boys, awaiting their response. Charlie smiles, “Welcome to the crew of Sunset Curve!” Madison shakes her head and wags a finger at him, confusing the hell out of all of us. “No, no. She’s not joining your band. You’re joining hers. Y’all need some rebranding with your new lead singer.” Charlie gives me a questionable look, asking for some assistance. “Yeah, I’m going with what she said.” Charlie’s smile widens again as he shakes his head at the both of us endearingly. We pick up the pace again and continue with the chorus one more time. This time, Madison and I dance together too. “My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you Hey, yeah, yeah, yeah Hey, yeah, yeah My life, my life would be real low, zero, flying solo without you” The music slows down as I pull Madison closer to me, our foreheads touching while I hit the final high notes. “You” I wrap my arms around Madison’s neck for the tightest hug she’s ever gotten. Over her shoulder, I glance up at Charlie, who’s already looking at us with the most precious smile. “Thank you,” I mouth, which earns me a wink.

Madison stays for the entire band practice and even helps cleaning up with the boys. I swear, they’re doing my job for me and I’m getting paid for it. To be fair, there’s no one I’d rather spend time with than these four people right here. “Emily and the Foxes!” Madison suddenly exclaims loudly and excitedly when we’re almost done. The band and I look up at her in confusion. “Your new band name!” “Oh! Because we’re foxy?” Jeremy questions, wiggling his eyebrows. Madi and I glance at each other. She has a questionable look on her face, almost as if she’s scared for his health. “No, Jere,” I reply, “Because my last name is Fox.” “Oh! Right!” He snaps his fingers and then points a finger gun at me. “I like it!” Owen chimes in and runs his fingers through his hair. “When’s your next gig?” Madi asks us as all of us rejoin in the middle of the store after the cleanup. Charlie comes up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist, and pressing his lips to my cheek. “I was thinking we could do Open Mic Night next week?” I suggest and place my hands on top of Charlie’s. “It’s basically where I fell in love with your music.” My cheeks flush at the confession. “And with Char,” Jeremy mumbles, earning a high five from Madi. “Don’t encourage him, Mads,” I tell her with a shake of my head. “Anyway,” she goes on after shooting me an apologetic look, “Do you want me to promote you guys on social media and stuff? I’ll make you an Instagram account and everything?” The band exchanges some glances again. “Uhm, yeah, sure?” I reply after a silent agreement from the boys. “Some exposure won’t hurt. We’ll talk about the setlist another time. Uncle Mitch wants me home before midnight.” I pat Charlie’s hands, and he lets go of me so we can grab our backpacks. “Can we ask your Uncle Mitch to sing that song about Hollywood with us?” Jeremy ask as all of us exit the shop together. None of us really respond besides an airy laugh. I sometimes wonder what’s going on in that head of his. All I know for sure is that I love these guys so much. All of them. I doubt I could get through a day without seeing them anymore. They changed my entire life.

Taglist: @parkeret​​ @lukeys-giggle​ @hannahhistorian92​ @gingerxarmy​ @marinettepotterandplagg​ @lovesanimals​  @thequirkybookaholic​ @calamitykaty​ Lemme know if you want to be on my taglist for this story/any of my other works!

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

Omg I just thought, and I highly doubt I'm the first to think this, but do you think Rakepick's personality shift was due to the curse Riddle put on the DADA position? 0:

Also you have THE MOST beautiful cat I've ever goddamn seen

As much as I would love it for there to be some kind of tangible explanation provided for such an abrupt shift in her character, I really don’t think that’s how the DADA curse works.

 If we look back on all of the examples of the Curse taking effect...well, there’s Quirrell. He became a Death Eater but both Snape and Dumbledore were onto him from the beginning and he literally had Voldemort sticking out of his head, so it was basically a given that his days were numbered. Lockhart had the same problem, to the point where Dumbledore not only knew he was a fraud, but hired him specifically because he knew this would expose him. If it hadn’t been The Basilisk, there would have been some other kind of terror that Lockhart would have been expected to defeat (Hogwarts is just that kind of school) forcing him to flee the way he did. Remus is a teacher who theoretically could have stayed, but it was already playing with fire to bring him on when Snape was around. Sooner or later, Snape would have sabotaged him somehow even without the existing circumstances, would have revealed his secret, because that’s just the kind of person Snape is. Barty Crouch Jr was never planning to stay longer than a year, his purpose at Hogwarts was to get Harry to Voldemort at the end of the Triwizard Tournament. Umbridge? Yeah, she was never gonna last. Everyone hated her, she didn’t fit at Hogwarts, and her timeline there was tied to Fudge’s timeline in the Ministry - both were going to end when everyone learned Voldemort was back. Next came Snape, and it was actually a combination of factors that led to him losing the job. Naturally, his killing Dumbledore changed the game, as both he and Dumbledore knew would have to happen. But he could have easily stayed as DADA teacher...except he became Headmaster. Whether Snape himself asked for this, or it was Voldemort’s idea, who knows. Finally, the Carrows were only ever going to last until Voldemort was defeated, which happened to be a year. 

Examining these cases makes it very clear that the Curse doesn’t create abrupt circumstances that force a teacher out. Rather, it reminds me of a theory about how backwards time travel would compensate for the potential of paradoxes. Say you went back in time and tried to shoot your own grandfather, preventing your existence. One theory suggests that it would be physically impossible without appearing to be. Suggests that you would simply be unable to do this. Either the gun would jam, somebody would see you and stop you, your grandfather would survive the bullet wound, or he would die - but surprise! It wasn’t your biological grandfather. Just the worst stream of bad luck that a potential grandpa-killer could have. In other words, the timeline will naturally correct itself no matter how hard you try, but always in ways that are organic, that would have always happened. I believe that’s how this Curse works. Hence how people have figured out that the job must be jinxed, but it’s treated as an urban legend or popular theory, not something that anyone knows for a fact. Technically, even Dumbledore doesn’t know for sure that it’s true. Because if every case was like Rakepick, people would start to gather evidence beyond just stuff that could be a string of shocking coincidences. Rakepick having to leave the post does make sense, based on what happened. It’s just that what actually happened is very confusing and still doesn’t make any sense. 

SIDE NOTE: My kitters appreciate your kind words! They’re being camera-shy right now, but they always like it when a human shows appropriate adoration of the superior feline race. 

[themanicgalaxy]

SPN 7X15 Repo Man

boy we gotta FUCKING SPEEDRUN these episodes

GO TO SCHOOL THEY SAID IT'LL BE FUN THEY SAID

Who's Mrs. Havelock?

ah a Wiccan

brave, but not used to it?

interesting character

Lilith?? L I L I T H ?

YOU FUCKERS CAN SIMPLY EXORCISE HIM CAN'T YOU??

ah he signed off

good for Jeffrey

lmao

"you were mugged"

"thanks I think"

Ah and this is back

boy that's weird as hell

it feels like "oho remember KRIPKE?"

I feel like ratings were dipping and they tried this

but no you need Cas

oh no

oh no right you "don't hit the same town twice"

LUCIFER'S TONGUE DAMN LUCI HAD AN EMO PHASE

heh she runs a wiccan shop

that's neat

ah she has a friend, took precautions already

I LIKE HER

"technical difficulties" heh

ooo but it hit the rest of the season, get em Robbie

damn he's in a support group?

aww doggy

man poor Jeffrey

ah shit and he still walks with a limp

ah the flicker out

come on man he's a normal guy

the victims chosen, in an order?

"it was his job??"

damn, he needs help they really fucked him up

"we just don't read like we used to"

no job, no health insurance

mental break jeez I'd bet

"never tell, never" "I know that now"

"It's happened to friends of mind" jesus

ah jeez is Jeffrey gonna die

I just want him to not die

ah he makes Sam hallucinate like he did before, with all the horror

god I hope the dog makes it

ah ok then, just have sex in the library

"in my discontinued periodicals"

well it certainly looks satanic

Jeffrey lookalike??

ah shit he got Dean

"leave your name number and nightmare at the tone" LMAO

ah he got a reaction out of Sam

"the rapier wit, the wittier r*pe" jesus christ

...it's jeffrey

did...he...summon the demon

"I know this handwriting" "you know this handwriting" oh that was neat

just...threaten her

ah he listens to his worst instincts

ah it's literally just Jeffrey

Jesus fucking christ Jeffrey

serial killer jesus christ

what the fuck JEffrey

"ah I had a kill list but never did it until a demon possessed me"

HE CUT OFF HER KID'S EAR?

blood of the exorcist jesus christ

"new plan"

ah Sam's just Losing it

"you were desperate to save the world back then" yikes

"fell in love with a demon that possessed you" what

"oh you sick son of a bitch" that was fun delivery

THE DOG TOO??

heh the other guy

this is a very...strange reunion hug

this..feels weirdly read into

ah there's the "homosexuality is bad actually"

ah talent scout,

pushes them over the edge

demon trap again

and we exorcise him again!

"Act like they're normal" huh

ah shit he let lucifer in

...I think..Sam's more codependent than he thinks or wants to be

GOOD MORNING VIETNAM

1. Ok so the "mental health is really just people being evil" no didn't like that

2. Also the like...homosexuality is for demons and psychopaths undertones, didn't like that either

3. I did like the "scouting out demons to get them to hell" think. I don't remember if it makes sense in story but it's interesting to think about, to see the "power reveals" thing in action

I would like to see a what happens when they leave a scene for real, not psychopathy, just for real

4. I think Sam's more codependent than he realizes, and he hates being alone more than he thinks. He let Lucifer in at the first sign of panic. I mean yeah it's also he wanted reassurance but still, I think it's interesting to look at.

5. in true Kripke fashion, the girl character was REALLY cool, and she will never be seen again. Wiccan shop owner who is booksmart but not used to the Evil, raising a kid, helps out. I think it's cool

6. Dean's relationship with mental health also briefly shows up here. or his...bad one. Don't talk or else you get chucked to the loony bin

yeah I kin him ok leave me alone

[mysterylover123]

Top 10 Reveals I’m Excited for in My Hero Academia

mysterylover123

Now first let me clarify what I mean by reveals: There are basically two types of reveals in the story, the Mystery and the internal reveal. Internal reveals are when a character learns something the audience already knows. There is a lot of hidden information I want the characters to learn about, as well as mysteries even the fans don’t know yet.

Also spoilers up until the most recent manga chapter!

#10. JUST WHAT IS BAKUGOU’S HERO NAME?

The fandom has written approximately 20,000 different meta on the question of just what Lord Explosion Murder’s real hero name will eventually be. Recently, Katsuki confirmed that he does indeed have one and has “someone he needs to tell”. Whozat? What is the name, dammit? The answer to this one is probably coming pretty soon, since it’s been brought up in-universe, but we’re all getting pretty impatient to finally learn what it is.

My theory: A play on Bakusatsuo/Ground Zero, or a play on Kacchan that connects the latter to his future goals. The person he wants to tell is...Jeanist! (sorry, Bakugou).

#9. THE LOV’S POWER-UPS

This one’s an internal reveal. Namely, the League has Overhaul’s bullets, the Meta Liberation Army, Gigantomachia and an army of high-end Nomus....but no one knows about this besides the PLF. The kids at UA don’t know. The Pro heroes and cops don’t seem to know, the public as a whole has no idea what a nightmare is brewing behind the scenes for them as the League plots and plans. It’s about time they all learned just what a powerful, dangerous force they’re truly up against in spectacular, horrifying fashion.

My Theory: The League will use their resources (the bullets) to wipe out the Top 10 Pros by erasing their quirks in fights with all their warriors, but the UA kids interning with the Pros will hold their own, showing some hope for the future of heroism.

#8. HAWKS=TRIPLE AGENT=JEANIST KILLER

Another internal reveal, though mixed with a few audience reveals. Namely, did Hawks actually kill Best Jeanist or is this some kind of a bluff? Hawks’ status as a triple agent is something that can serve for some pretty dramatic revelations later on in the narrative - mostly for Endeavor, Tokoyami, and Dabi, learning about his various statuses and having a big “You? No, it couldn’t be!” moment. This one will probably also come soon; he’s been teetering on the edge for way too long. 

My Theory: Hawks’ reveal will come during the aforementioned LoV attack arc, and this will initiate the reveal of Kacchan’s hero name. Basically, the first 3 all tie together into a potential future arc that may be coming up sooner than we think. And tie into the next one...

#7. DABI=?

This one is a big mystery, and one that pretty much the entire fanbase has a solid theory on the answer to. Basically, if Dabi is not somehow Toya Todoroki then we’ve all got nothing. The most prominent LoV member to have received no backstory flashbacks in the MLA arc and no real name during the Hideout Raid, the mysterious firebender is a giant enigma...and yet everything about him dovetails nicely with the theory of him being a re-animated version of the allegedly dead Todoroki sibling. He even looks like Toya, so odds on this one are pretty high.

My Theory: The Toya reveal could come out in this very next arc, given all the Nomu/long lost friend drama of the recent chapters and the Todoroki angst arc of the previous ones. Otherwise, it’ll probably wait for a while to finally be unveiled. And the impact on Endeavor and Shoto will be devastating.

#6. WHAT ARE THE OTHER 5 QUIRKS?

Unlike the Avatar state where we know all the powers ahead of time, Midoriya’s future quirks inside of OFA are a complete mystery. Aside from Super Strength and Black Whip, what are the other 5 wielders’ powers? The fact that we have no answers on this one at all yet is really baffling to me, because DIDN’T ALL MIGHT AND GRAN TORINO KNOW NANA’S QUIRK?!!?! Why hasn’t All Might told Deku what quirk he’ll be getting from her yet? We need this information, dude! Also why does one of the silouhettes look like Bakugo? Are you an immortal timelord Kacchan?

My Theory: I think Nana’s quirk must be related to Tomura’s (Maybe a reversal of decay, like a healing power?). As to the other 4, those are complete mysteries. Maybe super senses, some kind of shield, an elemental power, and a wildcard quirk?

#5. TENKO=TOMURA=NANA SHIMURA’S GRANDKID

This is a great big internal reveal that I’m really impatient for more information on. Namely: 1. All Might needs to tell Deku that Tomura is Nana’s grandson. 2. Tomura needs to find out that his grandmother was All MIght’s Master, and 3. to find out that her spirit exists within Midoriya. All of this needs to go down, because that big fight between Tomura and Deku we have to get eventually is going to need some more personal stakes, and anyway why doesn’t Deku know this yet already? Tell him All Might! He needs to know!

My Theory: All Might will tell Deku, who will let this info slip at a crucial moment when fighting Tomura, calling him “Tenko” maybe at some point; this reveal, which Deku will cop to, will send Tomura into a self-searching spiral.

#4. WHO IS DEKU’S DAD?

It’s pretty much grand Shonen tradition for the protagonist to have a completely absent dad, whose identity becomes a major reveal later on in the story. Deku’s dad is perhaps the most absent father in all of fiction, as we have almost zero information about the guy and Deku never even thinks about or mentions him. There are many, many prominent fan theories about who he is, and technically just a brief picture, appearance and characterization would do the trick, but most fans are convinced he must be someone important.

My Theory: Dad for One theorist here. Plenty of evidence/potential reasons it could be true to work with. All for One has some kinda plan that relates to Deku and OFA, and the reveal will come then. 

#3. UJIKO=TSUBASA=AFO’S DR=DEKU’S DR?!?

One of the biggest reasons I’m a Dad for One theorist is because of AFO’s doctor being Deku’s doctor from Chapter 1. Ujiko, the mad scientst of the League, is Dr. Tsubasa. He took his relative, Kacchan’s childhood friend, and turned him into the winged Nomu that kidnapped Deku during the Hero Killer Arc. Right now he’s turning Tomura into a butterfly or something. Deku and Kacchan need to learn about this connection, and dole out some sweet justice to this guy. (BTW is it my FMA eyes or does he look a lot like the gold-toothed doctor?)

My Theory: Dad for One hired him to supervise Midoriya, and deliberately picked Tsubasa as an experimentation subject to punish him for picking on Deku (which is also why he’s so cool with going after Bakugo), and Deku and Kacchan will find out by seeing him during a future LoV confrontation.

#2. WHO IS THE UA TRAITOR?

The golden question, indeed? Who, exactly, is the UA traitor? Is there a traitor? How did the league find them if not? Is it confirmed there is a traitor, most likely? And if so, who is it? There are so many prominent theories as to who it could be and how this would impact the story; I’ve read decent arguments from all over the board for every single possible candidate, and while there are plenty that have some solid evidence, only one really appeals to me from a characterization standpoint.

My theory: I’m down with the Uraraka traitor theory, because I love the idea of what it could do with her character, the ways it could affect her relationship with Deku, and the possibilities of the Toga/Ochaco parallels. Of course, I’ll be happy as long as it makes sense and crafts some good drama.

Hon Mentions: Eri will learn Nighteye died (she still doesn’t know); Other characters learn Todoroki’s backstory; Kirishima learns he and Mina fought Gigantomachia; Just freaking tell him you like him already Uraraka

#1. DEKU HAS OFA

This seems like a strange thing to list as a “Reveal”, since Deku got OFA in Chapter 1. But when I say this, I mean Other characters learn about it. Obviously, Kacchan already learned and that was great. So think of the possibilities of other characters finding out! In order of who needs to know: 1. Inko, 2. Tomura, 3. Mirio, 4. Todoroki and his family, 5. Uraraka, Oddly enough, the series could probably progress with nobody but Tomura out of that list learning the truth, but still, the possibilities of the drama worth exploiting from the 9th wielder reveal are almost endless. It’s a bomb under the table waiting to go off to craft neat conflict in the future.

My Theory: Tomura and Ujiko know about OFa. They’ll tell PLF and go on a hunt for the 9th wielder among the likely candidates at UA; the first years and Lemillion, Nighteye’s intern. In the process they’ll figure out it’s Deku and the truth will be revealed to all pertinent characters, making Deku the target of PLF trying to harvest OFA for their own control.