#they were vanilla and chocolate respectively. both good.

[spilling-blood]

Adventures in muffin pt 3

Cinnamon sugar muffin 🙏💜

[accidentcache]

like always

feat: canon divergent tomura shigaraki

warnings / cache notes: welcome back fall out boy sundays!!!! needed more 27au tomura. im sorry in advance. short, sorry not sorry, if this doesn’t make sense pls check out the 27au section on tomu’s mlist!! part of #dee's fob sundays !!

fob m.list // tomura m.list

are all the good times getting gone? / they come and go and come and go and come and go

it’s selfish, tomura thinks, to ask for more time. 

more time to figure things out. more time to tell you exactly how he feels. more time to figure out what clicked the wrong sensors in your brain. 

more time with you. 

you haven’t told him where you’re going. you haven’t decided when. the both of you know it’s happening soon, and you both have been preparing for it. you refuse to talk about it, while all tomura wants to do is talk. 

realistically, he should’ve known it was going to happen today. you woke up before him, not bothering to fix your side of the bed before climbing out. when he finally opened his eyes, your side was cold and the aroma of coffee was spilling down the hall. it’s just like every day, he told himself. you’re making coffee for twice, like you always do. once you drop off the cup at his door, you’re coming back to the room and climbing into bed with him again. just like you always do. 

you do, but it feels different somehow. you feel somewhat tense under his touch, stiffening slightly when he pulls you closer into his chest. he chooses to ignore it, memorizing your scent because it’s his favorite thing in the morning– you smell like coffee and dabi’s lingering cigarettes– letting his hands slide along the contours of your side. your breathing falls in time with his and the two of you fall back asleep for another hour and a half. 

like always. 

tomura doesn’t do holidays. it’s been well established, he doesn’t care for them; he indulges you every so often but it’s clear he’d rather be doing something else than celebrate something as little as… what was it you were making him celebrate this time?  last he tuned in it was something like a national ice cream day or something like that– he couldn’t remember. he reels back into the conversation just enough when you hold the spoon up to his mouth, offering him a taste while you drone on with the rest of the group. 

he doesn’t know how you managed to round everyone up for this kind of outing. you even got dabi to tag along, even though he was hanging around the edge of the group, but he was still hanging out, even piping into the conversation when he felt needed. 

tomura’s lips part as you bring the spoon back up to his mouth again. he can’t put his tongue– no pun intended– on the flavor. the color throws him off as well, it’s an off-white color– can’t tell anything other than that– but the flavor isn’t vanilla. it’s slightly savory, buttery in a way; he’s addicted to it in a way that surprises him. 

it tastes like those mornings where neither of you want to get out of bed. those mornings where it’s still dark outside, but one of the two of you have a mission or something to do around base that day; so you woke up early to get it out of the way. it tastes like those winters where the two of you would get those cheap hot chocolates at the mall and squeeze caramel into it to make it taste better– only for it to not work and the caramel just stays at the bottom and weighs down the cup. 

it tastes like those middle of the night kisses he gets from you sometimes. the ones that he swears to you that he sleeps through, but you always manage to wake him up when you do. he always pretends to sleep through it when you pepper his face in small, barely there kisses. 

he’s respectful enough not to take the cup from you and dig into it himself. 

you lift a spoonful to your mouth, cleaning off the spoon before tilting yourself to whisper in his ear. “you like it?”

tomura bites at the inside of his cheek, his eyes somewhat awkward as they meet yours. he hates how he can feel the dust of pink crawl into his cheeks due to your proximity– you’ve been way closer than this before. maybe it’s because it’s in front of the crew, or maybe it’s the way you’re looking at him– your eyes shine and your lips are wet and they stick together slightly from the sugar of the ice cream. 

“what flavor is it?” he rasps quietly. toga’s talking animatedly, taking the attention of the group with an over the top story from one of the raid missions she was sent out on a while back ago. your hand scoots next to his, your pinky wrapping around his and tomura feels that strange, painfully endearing twinge in his chest. 

“toffee,” you’re whispering back, digging another spoonful out and lifting it towards his mouth again. he accepts it, humming approvingly now that he can put a name to the taste. the corner of his mouth lifts to mirror your little smile. his pinky squeezes yours, and he reaches out to take the cup from your hand. 

tomura should’ve known it was coming. you were being so clingy, so affectionate. like an idiot, he leaned into it, swimming willingly in the wave of attention you so eagerly poured over him. he wasn’t thinking. 

you got lunch, like always. 

ate next to him in the main common room, sharing your little container of sauce for him to dip into as well– like always. 

you sorted through inventory like you always do on wednesdays, poking your head into the room used for group meetings where he was sat with blueprints and meeting plans, updating him every so often. sometimes you told him you were going out for a smoke with dabi, subtly asking him to join; but he refused. he gave you that little soft smile he normally gives you. nonethewiser, apparently. 

you climbed into bed with him, tucking the blanket over your feet like you always do. you hated how the duvet moved when the two of you slept, so you tucked it under your feet instead of under the actual mattress. 

you curled into him, your arm snaking over his waist and his gloved hand in your hair, holding you close to him. you were pressed so tightly against him, so warm– content. 

he wakes up late the next morning. later than usual. when his eyes open, he doesn’t see your body next to him. he doesn’t smell coffee either. it takes him about ten seconds to realize the room feels emptier than usual. when he sits up, the color drains from his face. 

every trace of you, including yourself– is gone. 

© accidentcache do not repost, translate or alter my work without permission. all rights reserved.

[boyfhee]

⋆ NOW WE DATE ! · psh

CHAPTER SEVEN · ruin our friendship

SYNOPSIS · everyone knew you were sunghoon's biggest fan— or so you claimed to be— it didn't take a scientist to guess after your nonstop gushing about him during enhypen's debut. now, they didn't know you found him 'so babygirl' not until you accidentally tweeted it on your main.

warnings · food mentions + written part under the cut ( 1.02k )

the weverse live went smoother than expected. 

well, it’s not like you had been anticipating some sort of commotion or whatsoever, but you did expect random bouts of awkwardness every ten to fifteen minutes because first, both you and sunghoon lie slightly towards the introvert side of the myers-briggs type indicator; and second, you both are aware of everything that has went down between the two of you in past two to three days. moreover, being awkward is natural when you’re meeting someone for the first time— which is not exactly true because you did meet sunghoon at the backstage of music bank from nine months ago when iris and enhypen were promoting their respective albums, but if greeting each other in hallways counts as meeting people then you probably have already met three-fourth of the industry. 

“i kind of imagined you as someone who prefers vanilla or something, instead of chocolate,” and you certainly didn’t expect sunghoon to take you out of ice cream just three hours before midnight. 

“i like all the flavours but nothing tops chocolate,” you say before eating another spoonful from your cup. “i even did a commercial for melona as a kid, although it’s not chocolate. you can still find it on youtube, i guess,” singing wasn’t really your forte, unlike acting. you’ve had quite an active childhood from the ‘job’ point of you, for you always had a few commercial shoots here and there every few months. your career as an actress didn’t blow up until after you had debuted in iris. even as a childhood actress, you only had minor to second lead roles except one in ‘crushed,’ which accounts for your first main role and also is the drama that brought you into the spotlight before debut. 

you feel sunghoon smile as he unlocks his phone to switch to another playlist— it’s for both of you since one of his’ airpods is with you and listening to music while having ice cream sounds like a perfect date, as friends, of course. though, you’d be lying if you claim your heart didn’t do a little something when sunghoon offered you his airpods. “why did you ask me to get ice cream with you, though?” 

“i just wanted to spend some time with you,” a pause. you stop on your way, albeit a few steps ahead of him, turning around to look at sunghoon’s flustered face that was adorned by the dim streetlights. a series of silence follows, a string of fluttering gazes along with heartbeats that could be heard clearly if they get any louder. before you could say anything, sunghoon stuffs his phone back into his pocket out of panic. “wait— don’t get me wrong. i mean, you’re cool and fun to be around so, you know— please don’t misunderstand,” 

and a soft chuckle falls off your lips. “jeez, hoon, you’re all good,”

the comforting silence never leaves, it’s rather amusing to the two of you. considering everything that has happened so far, from your silly tweet to him assuming you’re dating jaemin and everything that he ends up blabbering in front of you, anyone would end up getting awkward. fortunately, that isn’t the case for him. perhaps, the heavens are on his side, and maybe that is all he needs to muster up the courage to say his next words. “to be completely honest, ice cream was an excuse because i was sort of hoping we’d get to know each other better,” 

“yeah, i’d love that,” your voice isn’t much louder than a whisper, but you know your words reached him anyway. the smile dancing on his face holds numerous tales, if one could notice closely. “by the way, you still didn’t tell me the thing that could potentially ruin our friendship,” 

“i did, didn’t i? i texted you,” 

“and you want me to believe that?” you scoff, remembering his response. even if it was supposed to be a coverup, you did find yourself too stunned to react at that moment. “i mean, i won’t judge you for the things you like to be called and all, but we both know what you said back then was a lie,” 

another pause, another session of silence trailing around along with the slight tension lingering in the air. you look at sunghoon and he’s looking anywhere but at you. one second, his eyes are on the ground. the next, they’re traversing places with his lips pressed into a thin line. it’s when you realise how difficult it is to read his expression, an exasperated sigh falls off his lips. “okay, i think i’m being annoying, so i won’t force you, even though i’m—”

“you’re not annoying. also, i don’t think i’m ready to tell you so wait for me till then, and i promise i’ll tell you when the right time comes,” and it’s embarrassing how easily his words can fluster you. “besides, i don’t want to ruin our friendship yet,” even if you think you have a faint idea of what he might be hiding, you’d dare not get ahead of yourself because at the end of day, you and sunghoon are just friends. sure, you do like him a little more than friends but you’re almost convinced that it’s just a silly little celebrity crush. it’s not the first time you’re fawning over a celebrity, even if it’s your first time being so crazily interested in someone, but you like to think it’s a stage between strangers and friends, and nothing more. 

“oh, by the way, um, there’s ice cream on your lips,” he points the corner of his mouth with his index finger, hoping it would give you an idea, but when you miss the spot after a couple of attempts, assorting to your phone’s front camera to get a clearer look, sunghoon finds himself taking the tissue from your hand, proceeding to wipe the ice cream off your lips himself, completely and terribly unable to hide the blush on his cheeks. and the moment you tried to tell yourself that you aren’t in love, is when you realised you already were. 

PREV · NEXT · MASTERLIST

n : need me a sunghoon, like rn .... also visgenes...visions + engene....iris and vision? yk u see w ur iris and ability to see is vision do u see the vision here bc that's the best i could come up with

[whatdudtheysay]

Maid cafes ˗ˋˏ ♡ ˎˊ˗

❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎

Toji fushiguro x F!reader (Black female reader)

Context - Toji finally goes along with Gojo to a maid café he's been bugging him about.

Cw - smut , use of strong language (not proofread so sorry for errors)

Part 2

Toji regretted it as soon as they entered. Why? Well the welcome was enough for him to want to go home.

A pink haired girl in a maid dress, fluffy cat ears adorned her cosplay. Toji thought she was cute, sure but the whole place wasn't his style. He stuck out like a sore thumb in his black button up shirt and grey paid pants whilst Gojo wore lighter attire.

"Welcome to the sweet treats café!" The pink haired maid greeted the pair, bowing out of respect. "Oh, master Gojo, would you like for me to get your usual table?"

Gojo shook his head.

"No thanks Diane, a table for two on the balcony should be good."

The maid toji now knew as Diane nodded with a smile, leading them upstairs and into the balcony area which was less crowded.

"I'll get a server with you guys as soon as possible." Diane informed once they were seated, giving them one last sweet smile before heading back downstairs.

Toji sighed deeply, already regretting coming here. This was where the next hour and a half of his break would be spent. An overly pink decorated cafe with plushies and pink cats decorated.

"She's a cute one right?" Gojo hummed, flicking through the menu.

Toji just shrugged, taking his own menu and looking through the different cakes and sweets that were available.

"You fucked her yet?" Toji asked, focusing on some of the more basic options. I mean, how the fuck was he supposed to know what a strawberry matcha delight was?

Gojo almost choked on his saliva, looking around to make sure there weren't any kids.

"geez. You really have no filter." He rolled his eyes.

Toji raised a brow.

"And that isn't your business."

He got his answer.

He was about to complain more but the sound of heels clacking made him pause, both him and Gojo looking towards the stairs.

As told, a maid showed. But Toji didn't expect the so-called 'maid' to look like that. He practically froze. You were dressed in the light pink maid costume but the skirt looked a lot shorter, pink lace thigh highs hugging your legs, hands hosting pink and white lacy cuffs whilst your head held pink cat ears, long light brown french curls with some streaks being pink coming down to your back, tied back in a high pony tail.

For once in his life, toji was speechless, watching silently as you walked over.

"Ah, master Gojo!" You greeted, bowing slightly. Fuck your voice was the cherry on the cake.

"it's so lovely to see you again. And you are.."

Toji realised you were talking to him and that he'd been staring longer than he wanted.

"Oh." Gojo interrupted. "This is my co-worker, Toji."

You smiled wholeheartedly. "It's nice to meet you master Toji." You bowed slightly.

He cleared his throat, beads of sweat starting to build at his forehead.

"Feelings mutual."

"So," you started, bringing out your notepad. "What can I get for you both?"

"I'll have the tiramisu with a white chocolate glaze and a black coffee."

You jotted Gojo's order down quickly, your attention moving to toji after.

"And for you, sir?"

Toji's mind was going wild and he finally realised he hadn't even chosen.

Gojo just sighed and flipped toji's menu so it was closed, placing it on top of his.

"He'll get the chocolate and vanilla cake and the same drink."

You smiled and jotted that down before taking both menus from Gojo.

"Alright, thanks. I'll be up here soon with that."

When you were finally gone Gojo turned to toji with a shit eating grin.

"That whipped by a girl you just met? You're sweating"

Toji swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry.

"Shut up." Toji brushed off, using his sleeve to wipe the sweat off his forehead, Gojo laughing in return.

He'd be lying if he said he wasn't though. You were too pretty for your own good. And even though he had just met you, he already wanted you.

After minutes of painful teasing from Gojo, you finally returned, tray in hand, your face focused on balancing it all, a giveaway that you weren't the most dexterous waitress here.

You placed the tray down gently, a proud look on your face.

"Phew.." you whispered, "Enjoy your meal!"

You then skipped off. Toji was slightly distracted though. Looking at the stairs every time he heard heels or shuffling of feet, hoping to see you, only to be disappointed by other maids or guests. Luckily for him though, the balcony area soon began to become more crowded, meaning he got to see you a couple of times, talking to different people and interacting with kids that ran by every so often. Distracted by your presence so much that he wasn't even sure as to what Gojo was babbling about.

"And then I said, Sarah, you can't just steal food from the work fridge all the time and- toji? Toji!"

"Hm?" Toji hummed, still looking at you taking orders from a nearby table.

"Dude. You're being creepy." Gojo pointed out, finally making toji look down at his plate again. "If you're that interested in her then get her number. We gotta get back to the office in 15 minutes."

Usually that would be easy for Toji but there was something about you that was different. For one, you weren't just one of the girls he'd sleep with when he went to different clubs or parties.

Gojo practically deadpanned toji at his reluctance before calling you over, toji's heart dropping to his ass.

You quickly wrapped up the table you were attending before skipping over to their table.

"Can I do anything else for you guys?"

"Well, we're ready to wrap up here, could we get the check?"

You nodded before clearing the table, taking the messy tray back downstairs. Once you were gone, Gojo faced Toji with a mischievous look.

"Get her number. Put it on my card." Gojo quickly said before placing his card down and leaving the table before Toji could even react.

Toji mentally cursed himself, the only option was for him to wait for you to come back up. He waited and waited. Seconds turned into minutes and minutes felt like hours. Why was he acting like this?

Eventually, you finally came back up again, an apologetic smile on your lips.

"So sorry for the holdup! Did master Gojo leave already?"

Toji felt his head blur before he snapped back into it.

"Yeah. Shit....uh, can you put it on this card?"

You nodded, taking the card from Toji, your fingers slightly brushing against his gave Toji a weird surge of electricity, watching as you tapped it against the card reader, waiting before a confirmation sound came from the reader, giving toji the card back.

"Please, let me walk you out." You offered. And you were too fucking cute to say no to so toji ended up agreeing, walking down the stairs with you to see that the place had become a lot more crowded. He guessed this was rush hour.

Just as you got to the doors toji bit his tongue before deciding to go for it.

"Hey..." Toji mentally slapped himself. He hadn't even gotten your name off of Gojo and you didn't have a tag. "Uh...can I get your number."

You stared at him silently, just blinking before snapping back to reality.

"Oh- of course, sure-" you stammered.

Toji offered you his phone, watching as you typed your digits into his mobile before handing it back to him.

Toji took his phone, staring at the contact, expecting to see your name but just saw the words "maid café girl".

He was about to ask but by the time he looked back up you were a few steps away.

"I'll see you, please come again soon-"

Toji just nodded, walking out and taking in a deep breath of air, tension finally being let off of his chest.

Guess he had something to thank Gojo for anyway.

⎯⎯ ୨ ୧ ⎯⎯

"Shit-" toji cursed, his hand moving faster over his erection, brows knitted together as he gripped the sheets.

He'd made a big mess of his aftermath on both him and his bed, some leaking onto the floor. He'd been up since he got home and now it was 1am in the morning and here he was, rubbing his hard cock with only you in his mind.

At first, his thoughts about you became a lot more lewd, leading to him getting an erection that wouldn't be ignored, instead giving him an uncomfortable ache. And once he started he couldn't stop, thoughts of you flooding his mind.

He wanted to fuck you from behind in your uniform and listen to how you struggled to take him. Or even better, fuck you on the counter of the maid café and watch as your pretty eyes rolled back as he sunk into your wet pussy.

Toji whined pathetically as he felt another orgasm coming up, grunts coming from deep into his throat.

Or maybe he'd make you choke on his dick, watching as your tiny hands tried to stroke what you couldn't fit in your mouth, your pretty eyes looking up at him pleadingly.

That was enough for Toji. He groaned loudly as his cum spurted out in thick ropes, making a mess on the floor. He finally sighed in relief, watching as his erection finally began to calm down. He laid flat against his bed, the cool sheets giving him comfort.

Once Toji finally got himself and his room cleaned, he laid in bed, staring at his phone before finally deciding to text you.

˗ˋˏ ♡ ˎˊ˗

[chuuyas-height]

The Cursed Batch (Wonka)

This is a writing for @gtgotcha4gaza

I'm sorry this took so long omg hopefully the donator will enjoy it-

This is a short story that revolves around the 2023 Wonka movie. This is a SFW work.

You can find this story on Wattpad and AO3

✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦

If Noodle had to pick her most favorite place out of the entire world, that would be Willy's factory. Like most kids her age with a sweet tooth, she adored being surrounded by sweets, chocolate, and the soothing smell of fresh cocoa. Compared to the faceless candy shops in her area that presented their mass produced and imported goods as top quality, Willy's creations were on a whole other level. He used unique and rare ingredients, always achieving a new, unique and improved flavor. Whenever he felt inspired, he would create. 

It was one of those days when Noodle passed the gates of the brightly colored building in search of her friends. Walking through the long corridor, she pushed a door that read “Experimentation Room” which she recognized as their usual hangout spot. Inside, she found the familiar image of Willy mixing several odd liquids of different porosity and color in a small pot. Meanwhile, the shorter man was running around, searching on shelves and cupboards for the ingredients requested. His short legs made for a comedic sight but Noodle managed to contain her giggles. She was glad Willy and Lofty overcame their differences. It seemed the one thing they both adored made them unite: chocolate. 

The two men were so absorbed in their work it took them a good while to notice the girl that stood by the half closed door and timidly observed their whereabouts. 

“Noodle!” called out Willy, “What are you doing there, silly? Come on in already!” His cheerful demeanor coaxed her to approach the wooden table the taller man had been hunched over. 

“New recipe?” Willy hummed in agreement. The same moment, Lofty approached, holding a glass vial which contained a bright blue liquid with an almost gelatine look and texture. Her curiosity got the better of her. “What's that?” 

Willy grinned. “That, my dear Noodle, is a secret ingredient known to bring happiness to anyone who ingests it.” Soon after, the whole vial is poured into the mixture and Willy is mixing the contents of the pot until the liquids develop a soft, minty color. “You'll have the honor to try it first.” He announced, and if it was any other day she would've been overjoyed, but her mother's stern words still rang in her ears. 

“I'm sorry, but mom said we're having guests over tonight and I can't spoil my appetite. She'll know if I have even the tiniest piece…”

“Oh.” The cheerful guy seemed to falter ever so slightly after hearing her words. Lofty on the other hand perked up and looked at Willy with longing. 

“Don't look at me like that. You're not having any.” 

“Why not?” The frustration in his voice was evident. 

“Should've thought about this before emptying yesterday's batch, little guy.” he teased, expecting the smaller man's flaring temper in return which didn't disappoint the slightest. 

“First of all, I am NOT short. My height is quite respectable, and second of all, it was just so tasty I couldn't restrain myself.”

“Then your punishment is to watch me try it all by myself.” he stated before bringing a small piece of chocolate past his lips. He didn't expect so many flavors to burst in his mouth, his tongue not knowing which one to pick up first. A trace of vanilla, a hint of salted caramel and the bittersweet aftertaste of mint were the main tastes battling for dominion in that singular piece of chocolate and once the short lived delight was over, Willy felt obliged to have some more. The content humming that escaped his throat was the only evidence of how much he enjoyed it and the jealousy on Lofty's features was visible. 

~~~

Although her visit ended quicker than she would've liked (as per her mother's orders), her time there was proven to be no less fun, despite the shorter duration. She also unwillingly noticed how Willy scarfed down the entire bar of chocolate by the time she had to leave. She was mostly amused by Lofty's refusal to speak to him for that exact reason and she had to keep herself from laughing lest she resurgened the shorter man's anger. Like always, Willy prepared a basket for Noodle to take home, filled with several chocolates and sweets, saying she should treat her guests as well. And like always, Noodle jumped in the man's arms for a hug. But something felt out of place. Willy had always been a tall guy, but Noodle could've sworn she used to come at least up to his chest. She shrugged it off, thinking it was merely her mind playing tricks on her and left, but not without giving Lofty a hug as well. 

The next day she was pleasantly surprised when her mother announced she was baking an apple pie and that she'd like her to deliver it to Willy, as a thank you for the treats he sent. So there she was, skipping through the busy streets of her town, pie in both arms and a big smile to conclude the merry image. Before she knew it, the all too familiar walls passed before her in a flash and she was about to traverse the production room which was supposed to be the final obstacle between her and her friends. 

It was supposed to be, but it wasn't. 

She didn’t expect to find her friends in such a predicament but there they were, Willy leaning against a wall while trying not to knock over any of the precious cauldrons with the sugary substance, mainly because he was nearing about 20 feet in height. And crazily enough, his body was still expanding. Lofty, who seemed even smaller when compared to Willy's current stature, was standing on his shoulder and trying to reassure him. Their previous bicker appeared to be the last thing to occupy his mind at the face of his friend's problem. 

Noodle couldn't hold the gasp that escaped her mouth nor stop her eyes from turning beady at the sight. The shock was so great her arms buckled and the pie was met with the cold floor. The man that was perfectly normal sized not even a day ago now towered over the entire room like a mountain. 

“Noodle? Is that you?” 

His voice betrayed his anguish and frustration as his body kept steadily enlarging bit by bit. His clothes thankfully remained intact but the fear in his eyes made her heart shatter. 

“Willy? W-What happened?” she asked reluctantly. 

“I don't know! It was so sudden it caught us by surprise as well…”

Instead of being the one surprising him, he ended up surprising her. The gears in her head turned hastily as the girl tried to connect the dots for her friend's sake, who was now drowning in despair. “Was it something you ate…?” she questioned. Willy appeared to be in thought for a moment but hastily shook his head. “No way. All I ate was chocolate.” 

Noodle wasn't surprised by his revelation but she still wondered how he could eat so many sweets yet never gain a single pound. Then, it was almost like a light bulb switched on inside her head. She turned to Willy with a questioning look. 

“What did you put in the chocolate?” 

Willy had to think for a second, but Lofty took the lead and started stating the ingredients one by one. After naming nearly twenty ingredients that Noodle had never heard of before, Willy seemed to perk up at the mention of one in particular. 

“...Liquid stardust, Unicorn's milk, Giant's size–”

“–Giant's size?!” Willy exclaimed wide-eyed. “I asked for a Giant's smile, not Giant's size!”

The room fell silent. 

For Willy, the situation felt hopeless. As for Noodle, she was incredibly disheartened by her friend's predicament and aimed to find a solution in her little mind. And then, it suddenly dawned on her. 

“If a chocolate made you grow, then another chocolate might make you shrink.”

Willy's head rose, his eyes lighting up at the prospect but the hope in them immediately dwindled upon remembering his still increasing size. At this point his top hat had nearly reached the ceiling and his expanding body could barely fit in the small corner he tried to fit into. 

“It's hopeless. I'm in no position to make chocolate in this size. I'm simply too big.” he mused, plunging into despondency with every inch he gained. 

Noodle and Lofty shared a glance, apparently having the same idea. Lofty cleared his throat, indicating he was about to speak to their giant friend. 

“Well, this was an error on my part and I am terribly sorry. I therefore am much obliged to create an antidote for your predicament with the help of the little lass over here.”

Noodle almost rolled her eyes at the last part, as it was unfitting for someone who barely reached 3 feet to call her “little”. She wanted to say something sassy to the shorter man but refrained as she noticed the way Willy's face regained some of its usual warm expression. 

“You'd do that for me?” he asked with a smile on his face. As for Lofty, he coughed and removed his gaze from the giant before him. “Of course, we are colleagues,” he said in a rush, “now if you don't mind I have urgent work to do!” 

Noodle and Lofty raced through the chaotic remains of the Experimentation Room, where Willy, now an oversized giant, sat in an awkward position, his head almost scraping the ceiling.

“We don’t have much time!” Noodle exclaimed, her eyes darting around the room. Willy groaned, his voice rumbling in the distance, “Please… hurry…”

Lofty scribbled down a quick recipe on a piece of paper he found lying around. “Our main ingredients are shrinking berries,” he muttered, “and something to stabilise the formula. Got it?”

Noodle nodded. “On it!” She sprinted to the factory’s greenhouse, returning moments later with a handful of tiny purple berries. Meanwhile, Lofty fired up a small pot of melted chocolate on a portable burner. 

“Start with the berries!” Lofty ordered, his hands moving fast. Noodle crushed them, their juice oozing a vibrant violet, and quickly mixed them into the sizzling chocolate. The room filled with the scent of sweetness and ripe berries.

“We need something to balance it!” Lofty said, grabbing a vial from a nearby counter. He poured in a few drops of an amber liquid, essence of balance, he called it and it was apparently a rare ingredient that would neutralise any extreme effects. The mixture hissed and swirled, turning a deep shade of indigo.

“Done!” Noodle exclaimed as Lofty quickly stirred the mixture, making sure it was smooth. They poured it into a small mold, cooling it with liquid nitrogen in seconds. At last, the chocolate was ready. Noodle climbed up onto one of Willy’s enormous hands and held out their creation. “Here, eat this!”

Willy, carefully trying not to drop the child in his palm, managed to grasp the tiny chocolate between two fingers and popped it into his mouth. At first, nothing happened. He’d plunge into another depressive episode if he hadn't eventually begun to shrink. His massive limbs receded, his body shifting to becoming more like his original size. In minutes, he was back to his usual lanky self, sitting in the middle of the dishevelled room.

The former giant sighed in relief, glad to be back to his normal size. “It worked!” he exclaimed, not believing his eyes. He feared he'd grow big enough to bust through the ceiling! Noodle, happy to see her friend back to his cheerful self, she jumped in his arms hugging him tightly. “I'm happy you're not a giant anymore, Willy. You got us worried back there.”

The man smiled fondly, wrapping his long arms around the girl in his grasp. “Thank you for helping me out.” his gaze shifted to meet Lofty's eyes as well. “You too.” he added. The shorter man merely nodded, acknowledging Willy's appreciation. After a moment of silence he opened his mouth to voice something but was interrupted by Willy, who somehow read his thoughts. “No, we're not making another batch of that cursed chocolate.” 

Lofty frowned but sealed his mouth nonetheless. 

[jades-typurriter]

Wife Swap

This was a bit of a chain of inspiration; me and Bowsiosaurus, who have crushes Vanilla and Toriel respectively, joked about switching girlfriends, and then vee drew this rather out of the blue to follow up on it. Vee THEN wanted to pay me to write a story to go with it, but I was feeling motivated anyway after seeing how this came out, so I asked ver to help me design Posie instead. Anyway, this is RIDICULOUSLY self-indulgent. Please enjoy the boundary between realities passing over the two of us at a party!

Jade and Bowsie stood in the living room of a mutual friend, holding plastic cups of fruit punch and catching up about their new relationships. It was a casual affair: a few friends who all happened to be in town at the same time, some movies, bags of popato chisps—chips? no, no, chisps, it was hard to tell for a second—lining the countertop along the side of the room.

“We met when she moved into the apartment next to mine,” the serpent explained as Jade stretched, letting out an appropriately catlike yawn. “A lot of the time we were getting to know each other was me making excuses to help her with things, if I’m being honest.”

“Well, hey! You don’t have to be a man to get to a girl’s heart by being gentlemanly.”

“She does like to call me that…”

“Tori’s little helper, huh?” she teased.

“G-grawawawa!!”

“Heehehehehee! Okay, okay. What sort of stuff does a lady like Toriel even need help with? She seems pretty capable.”

“Well, um! I really like helping her in the kitchen. I’ve learned a lot about baking from her! She also does a lot of community service type things. Did you know she used to be a teacher?”

“Oh? For what grades?”

“Little, little kids, uh, kindergarten and stuff.”

“Oh, wrow,” Jade mrowed, “that’s a fun coincidence! Vanilla has a daughter right about that age.”

“You and moms, huh.”

“Oh, shush,” she snickered.

“It’s true!”

“It is!! It is.”

“So, has dating someone with a kid been complicated?”

“Oh, not at all! Cream and I get along really well, actually. I sit down with her and, like, have tea parties with her little chao. She’s such a sweetheart. She made some cookies for me last week!”

“Uwa!! Well, if you’re getting along well with her, that must be a good sign for Vanilla.”

“I’d like to think so, yeah! If the family likes you, you’re so in.”

“Mhm, mhm.”

There was a lull in the conversation for a few moments. Bowsie looked absentmindedly over ver shoulder at someone messing around at the snacks table. It looked like they were trying to pick something up with a fork instead of just grabbing it with their hand, which was odd—it was all finger food! Or, wait, did the host spring for a chocolate fountain? Had that been there the whole time?? Jade took a sip of her punch, and Bowsie turned back around when she leaned in conspiratorially:

“Alright, so, apart from the obvious—what do you like about her?”

“Grawa??”

“Like!! Any little habits, cute things you’ve noticed. I know she’s an older woman and I know she’s twice your size, like, believe me. I’m shaking your flipper about it. But like other than that.”

“Um… okay, h-her, her ears are really nice…”

“I suppose I’m obligated to shake paws with you on that too.”

“Heehee, yeah, I guess so!”

“So, do we just both have a thing for big floppy ears and we didn’t know it?”

“No, no, it’s more like! Well, her fur is soft all over, but it’s really nice to just touch her ears, y’know?”

“Ohhhhh, yeah yeah yeah. Petting girls is just like a blessed experience.”

“Yeah… It’s like…”

As vee continued the thought, something began to change in the back of ver mind. Literally. Whatever was going on crept over the room from behind them, continuing from the snack table. Ver long, fishy tail began to shorten, fluff sprouting along its length as it seemed to roll itself up like a snowball—and like a snowball it sat, puffy and cute, at the small of ver back. The fins on ver head lost their perkiness, flopping down the sides of ver face, which was also pulling back into itself, snout disappearing in favor of a pink, Y-shaped nose.

The fins lengthened, and more fur began to grow in place of the scales there; soon enough, they stretched all the way down to ver butt, nicely framing the new tail. The tie around ver neck stretched in odd ways: the ribbons at the sides reached around ver neck, pinching itself into the links of a necklace, for which the knot of the tie became a big, bejeweled pendant. From ver tummy sprouted something a lot like the fur cropping up elsewhere, but much tidier—a dress, appearing seemingly from nowhere, sporting cuts at the hips and a hem in the front that matched ver (previous) underbelly pattern. Between the neckline and the pendant was, suddenly, some notable cleavage, and a feather boa cascaded over ver shoulders, seemingly from nowhere.

“She’s just such a cute little thing,” Vanilla continued, swirling the red wine she now held in her paw. “She really thrives on affection! Rubbing her ears is one of the easier ways to do it… she can’t get enough of laying her head in my lap and letting me scratch right between them.”

As the serpent spoke, Jade distantly realized that it was getting harder and harder to tell what vee was saying. It was getting harder and harder to see ver. Maybe the punch had more alcohol in it than she'd realized? She struggled to listen more closely; her ears burned, as if in embarrassment, though she still couldn’t make out any specific words. She felt like she should be flustered by what her friend was saying, but she wasn’t sure why… Slowly, the sensation came into sharper focus, drifting away from feeling exposed and closer toward a sense of scandal, like she was more shocked that this was the subject of public conversation than the subject matter itself. Nervously, she attempted to change the subject:

“Yeah, yeah, totally!” She began, taking the tried-and-true “smile and nod” approach for when you can’t hear someone in a crowd. “So, you were saying earlier about how you help Toriel around the house, right? Do you ever have to help her deal with computer stuff?”

“Oh, dear, you know I’m no good with computers.”

“Well, you know you can ask Annie for help any time you need!” Jade continued, seemingly unable to reconcile the sudden difference in tone. “She’s taught Vanilla a few things before. That’s one thing that’s sorta weird about the relationship, is just, the total difference in skills 'cause of how far apart we are in terms of age…”

She was interrupted by the lengthening of her own snout. The changes approached her from the front—she had been facing the opposite way as Bowsie, after all. Her kitty nose flattened, vanishing beneath the fur of her face and becoming two simple slits; her canine teeth became more pronounced, sticking out from under her upper lip. Her fur began to turn white, spreading from her nose over her face and down along her neck, and the hair that framed either side of her face became less and less fluffy, more and more orderly, until it was two solid masses of fluff: floppy, lop-goat ears that now grazed her shoulders.

Her loose top, once propped up by a single shoulder and a chest full of fluff, became a sleeveless gown, held in place by a chest full of… well, chest. A very full chest, as a matter of fact. Her hips widened, and she grew a head or two taller—she would have towered over Bowsie like this, but Vanilla was actually a fairly tall woman. Her paws grew to match the scale of the rest of her body, and the fluff around her neck receded to reveal a luxurious string of pearls. At her hip, Anodyne—hitching a ride in the phone in her pocket—slowly morphed from silicone transistors and diodes to brass gears and springs, taking the shape of her beloved heart-shaped locket.

Toriel and Vanilla stood in a reputed ballroom, sipping from crystal wine glasses and gossiping about their adorable new partners. It was a rather big-name event: Mobians and monsters who had made reservations months in advance, live music, hors d'oeuvres lining the pristine tablecloths of the refreshments along the side of the room.

“Sorry,” Toriel said, blinking hard over her bifocals, eyes refocusing on her gal pal at the end of her snout. “Where was I a moment ago?”

“You were talking about the age difference between you and Bowties, Tori,” Vanilla chirped.

“Oh! Yes, that is right,” she said, the conspiratorial smile returning to her face. “Now, I am only saying this because you were talking about pressing your partner’s buttons—how naughty, by the way! One of the cutest things about Bowsie, though, is the way that he falls all over himself at the slightest advance.”

“Oooh,” the rabbit tittered, “Not just younger, but less experienced?”

“That is understating it!”

“How flattering, though!”

“Well, sometimes I wish it were less of a momentous occasion when I change my clothes. It can be frustrating when your partner needs to stop and collect himself when you wish you could simply get into things. But, yes, I suppose all the attention is nice… It makes me feel pretty to be able to knock someone flat like that again!”

“Oh, hush, Tori. You look as good as ever! You haven’t aged a day as long as I’ve known you.”

“And neither has our taste in partners, hmm?”

“Goodness!!”

“It is true!”

“It is!” Vanilla giggled. “It is.”

Thank you for reading! If you'd like to see more of my writing, feel free to take a look here and here.

[edenisme]

Mostly I’m just annoyed the splatfest teams have been so unbalanced. I love Shiver and gg to team money (you guys were fighting hard whenever I saw y’all) but 9% is pretty indicative of the larger problem.

Team Fame had 9.10% and Team Bigfoot had 8.69%. When less than 10% of your player base wants your option (no offense team fame love you guys) then you are not picking good themes/good teams for it.

3/8 splatfests have had one team with more than half the votes:

Ice Cream Splatfest - Team Vanilla: 55.04%

Taste Splatfest - Team Sweet: 56.84%

Deserted Island - Team Gear: 58.28%

That’s 5/8 splatfests with massive popularity disparages. 2 of the remaining 3 were NOT EVEN SPLATOON ORIGINALS—they were the pokemon and Zelda collabs (zeldafest has most even teams to date for those curious). The chocolate splatfest was almost equal to the pokemon percentages, with 24-33-42 and 25-33-40 respectively.

This would be less of a problem if it weren’t for the mirror matches. When more than half your players are stuck in mirror matches (and even more in the case of Fame and Bigfoot skewing the splatfest so badly) the splatfest itself becomes disheartening. While I love getting to play the game regardless, a not insignificant number of players don’t want to be stuck in mirror matches all weekend when they don’t give any clout/points for their team.

This also impacts tricolor, as the mode needs all three teams to have a real match. With less than 10% popularity, both Team Love and Money (+ Nessie and Aliens) get stuck in mirror matches regardless of who is most popular until the minority team can be found. And everyone makes jokes about only seeing these teams once or twice when it happens, so you can see how the average (and casual!) player will suffer if this isn’t addressed.

Tl;dr Splatfest teams have large popularity disparages and this causes excess mirror matching/unbalanced splatfests. Splatoon devs need to start doing polls ahead of time or something it’s really bugging me.

[bapydemonprincess]

Mey Rin and Grelle are too hyper, too excited about this for common sense.

They've finally tried Boba Tea for the first time... and they LOVE IT!!!

So of course, they want to take their beloved Sebastian out, to try the new yummy beverage for himself!

And of course, from what they tell him, and from what he already knew of this, it does not sound like... well.. his cup of tea. (buh dum tsh)

But finally he gives in to their please, as they insist that surely one of the flavors will appeal to him!

Grelle remembers there was a brown sugar flavor, vanilla, and even coffee too, so perhaps one of those will fit the mild and picky palate of their Sebastian!

They arrive and it takes a bit to decide.. for Sebastian alone, of course, while Grelle and Mey repeat their former orders from last time of a chocolate and strawberry one, respectively.

Sebastian briefly gets stressed to the point of once again saying he'll just hang with them as they drink..

But again the girls yammer on, and even the woman behind the counter has joined in, insisting on the same flavors mentioned previous are good starters to try out.

And while Sebastian is certainly not too much into cold coffee as well, he figures it'll be the best bet, and finally orders.

And of course despite the small size choice, it's still intimidating...

And now that Sebastian thinks on it, he doesn't recall ever having tapioca anywhere before either...

The girls and Sebastian all sit in a booth and the girls carry on, seemingly noticing at first that their man isn't trying the boba!

Until they are....

At this point, utterly stressed and uncertain and flustered and annoyed, all over a dumb thing as a drink...

Sebastian takes a big first sip.

And the familiar taste of cold coffee washes into his mouth, as well as the new taste... and disgustingly slippery and round taste of these tapioca balls.

"Well??" "How is it??"

"It... I... uh... ugghh- UCK-"

With quick reflexes and experience, Sebastian grabs the nearest napkin, and spits out the contents from his mouth in it.

It's messy, the taste is still slightly lingering, the girls are frozen in shock as if they were suddenly brought back to reality from a daze.

And Sebastian turns red and wipes his mouth with another separate napkin before trying to escape the booth.

"'m sorry- carry on- I have t-"

"Sebastian???" "Love are you okay??"

"I'm fine- It just didn't sit right- it's just-"

Mey Rin is shooting up to stand.

"Um, how 'bout a water, they have a fridge over there with water- I'll get you one!"

"No- No- you don't have to, dear- I'll uh- I'll find a way to drink the rest of-"

"No, you're not!"

Grelle cries immediately snatching the coffee boba tea out of Sebastian's shaking grip.

"Grelle-!"

"It's alright, we can toss it! We can afford to do that, c'mon!"

"But- that's- it's-"

"Mm-mm, I don't want to hear your "it's a waste" speech, now calm down and just breathe, while Mey Mey gets your water."

And she's up as well to go throw the drink away.

Sebastian can't look at them or anywhere anymore, he buries his face in his hands, and then goes further to run them through his hair.

He does indeed breathe, and tries to not yell at himself repeatedly over and over... too much.

But it was JUST tapioca. The taste wasn't so bad as far as I could tell. It wasn't that bad overall, it's just- it's just- IT- UGH- WHY??

"Honey, c'mon, let's go out now," Mey Rin's firm but gentle, reassuring voice reaches him.

She's standing there, looking at him, holding the promised water bottle in one hand, and her own boba tea she left on the table in her other hand.

Grelle is beside her too with hers as well.

They've both decided they know it's time to leave.

And Sebastian doesn't question, though he still beats himself up over this encounter, there is relief pouring in.

As they head out he takes the water, a soft thank you on his lips.

And the girls surround him on both sides, Mey wrapping her arms around his arm as he takes the first swig of fresh, clear water and sighs.

Grelle taking his other arm, and knowingly patting his shoulder.

They're heading back home, where this chaotic day all started.

But Sebastian, despite blushing and frowning to himself, still puts the water away and then clasps his girl's hands, holding them the rest of the way home.

No more needs to be said.

[autism-autobot]

Based on the results of previous polls:

Bumblebee and Blades went to the local county fair with their respective teams and had a blast and a half. Bee suggested that they go on the rides and then eat, which sounded good to Blades. They started off by going on the bumper cars, where Bumblebee discovered that Blades had long since forgotten how to drive, not that the cars were easy to control already. Blades ended up hitting the same corner repeatedly until Bumblebee could hit him in just a way that he got unstuck. Blurr and Sideswipe were also on the bumper cars at the time and gave the couple hell out there. They played a bit too rough for Blades's liking. Afterwards, Bee and Blades went on a few more rides until the duo ran out of tickets.

Blades and Bumblebee walked around for a while before deciding on ice-cream as a fun fair treat for them to share. They couldn't choose between chocolate or vanilla so they just got both an mixed them together in lovely swirls. Bee let Blades talk his pretty little head off while contently licking his spoon clean with each scoop. Blades went on and on about various topics and his thoughts on each; it had been quite some time since he was able to rant without interruption. Bumblebee always made for a good listening audio receptor. Blades only ever stopped to have some ice-cream for himself, which prompted Bumblebee to talk about all that he had been wanting to say. Tales of fights and victories were illustrated in detail, with regular assurances that everything would turn out alright in the end. Generally Bumblebee would let his team share such stories, but today was about them, and Bumblebee liked to indulge in storytelling too, on occasion.

The happy couple went without a care in the world, until they began to notice the lack of interruptions and grew suspicious. They tried to ignore it for a while, but even then they sat a bit on edge until they heard the beeping of Bumblebee's com link.

Fixit: *"Decepticons have been spotted in the-"*

Bumblebee: *"Yeah, we'll get right to it Fixit. Out.*

Bumblebee: "(sighs) I knew this couldn't last forever."

Blades: "That's okay. At least we got to have fun!"

Bumblebee: "Yeah, we did. Talk soon okay?"

Blades: "Okay, bye Bee!"

Bumblebee: "Bye Blades!"

[lilisouless]

Look, Show!Wesper will never be book!wesper

(I know you hate long post, but would you make an exeption for Wesper?)

It´s a vanilla jelly you get from a supermarket vs a fine restaurant´s chocolate pudding (ps, i got hungry writing this and actually stopped to eat a jello from)

I am also aware that the desition of having them hooking up very early on instead of the build up wasn't just pragmatic choices, i really think them being a same sex couple had an influence on that desition, is a consequence of how netflix often treats their lgbtq rep, which is why i get why a lot of people got very upset , specially being lgbtq themselves

Not to say how many scenes will be lost or won't have the same impact.

Now, that being said , there is something on Show!Wesper potentially coming. Is not just the angst, if netflix writers notice what they have done, they could build something interesting

You`ll see, i said before many times that Leigh pairs up often people with similar or complementary issues. The difference between Wesper with Kanej and Helnik is that their problems aren't related to each other

With Kanej, we know their similarities with the touch and how they affect their relationship, not to say anything that their moral conflict, Inej still believes in salvation for Kaz but Kaz can hardly show his good side because is dangerous for him that people know there is someone he loves more than himself. Inej represents a kindness and faith Kaz believes must be left behind, Kaz represents for Inej that people who do bad things can still have good on them , which is something she applies to herself

And Helnik speaks for itself, Nina represents everything Matthias was supposed to destroy, Matthias is part of people who wants to kill her kind. Even without that, Nina is not the concept of the perfect woman behaviour Matthias was raised with and reminds her of this over and over, reminding Nina she is loud and sometimes goofs too much, something her trainers often told her, also got bullied on the orphanage, all this things makes Nina think she is "too much" and people may get tired of her (see her speech to Inej, the best reflection of her insecurities were there) Matthias would eventually realize he actually likes this things about Nina (and letting her know it,a huge step on making amends) and thats why he was so cruel about it.

In both couples, they manage to turn their relationship into something with only joy, but there was pain at one point or another,there were part of each other´s problem thats what i mean.

With Wylan and Jesper that doesn't happen , and this is not a way to say they are better or less important because of it, is just stating a fact and the reason why Kanej and Helnik often think about each other on specific terms while Wesper think about the whole team , but making important highlights on each other. They have meet each other for less time,they are not important on each other`s lives from the begining like the other two, most of their relationship build up is seen on the book with little previous information other than Jesper being send to recuit Wylan and sometimes flirted with him to see what happens (which was pretty ambiguous but you get it). They have a similar conflict individually but the other is not part of it, they mostly bond because of it and are more a companion than a participant on their respective problems. As much as Jesper bitchs on Wylan, he is hardly the reason of his insecurities and Wylan is not related to everything that was going on with Jesper

Now my point: Show Wesper does have a shot on making each other part of their problems, not a whole (that was never a think with Kanej and Helnik...well,on the books anyway🙄) but like i have said before

-Jesper´s loved ones are either leaving or distancing themselves from him,Wylan is the closest person he got at the end of the season. Wylan in exchange has no one, he has no friends outside of Jesper ; sure he has some friendly interactions with other characters but they aren't friends. This means Jesper and Wylan and , maybe unaware, pushing for the other to be their "person" their stability: Jesper offers Wylan a key on an impulse and Wylan decides to move in inmediately.

On the book they find their stability on each other as well, but that was the result of a healthy outcome, knowing each other and deciding that staying together was both what they wanted and the best for them in more than one sense, is not a problem,its a resolution.

On the show it can turn into a problem because becoming someones person its an untold compromise if you and that person have unresolved issues.

By this point i`ll drop spoilers from the book, so if you only watched the show i suggest to not open the cut

Jesper doesn't know Wylan is a merchant son, Jesper hates when people hide information from him, when they consider him untruswhorty or leave him out. This doesn't sound nice if your person is hiding a big deal from you,specially someone you have been vulnerable with. And remember that Jesper in the book , when Wylan stoped talking to him supposedly, his reaction was thinking "he doesn't want to be associated with criminals anymore" and was quite bitter about it. This was Jesper not only not in a relationship with Wylan, they were hardly friends and didn't consider their mutual atraction outside of a phisical thing, "why bother getting attached, he will leave when all of this is over" .

So Show!Wylan , acording to Jesper , may as well be one more of the people who don't trust him or will leave too. Thats how Wylan becomes part of the pain. If this guy,he got so attached only saw the barrel as his playground all along and will go back to his privileged life where Jesper doesn't belong and leave him alone. Its also very unlikely that Wylan explains to him that his dad tried to had him killed, he never says that on the book since the only thing he confess to Kaz was that he couldnt' read,Jesper having a loving father himself which he has a dificult but still loving relationship with, will not even think that Wylan`s dad won't have him back, even if Wylan tells him that.

Also, Jesper always felt like he didn't deserved the people in his life and on the show Wylan hasn't shown to be aware of his gambling adiction or his drop of university, he may hide that from Wylan out of fear he will be judged (and deep inside, feel like he deserves said jugdment)

On Wylan´s side, its harder but not impossible. Jesper on the show already knows he can't read, but lets see this: Jesper thinks Wylan is either a colelge drop out or from the streets, Wylan may think is not the same someone who was never taught to read from someone that had all the resourses to learn and still couldn't.

Wylan doesn't reason "my dad never loved me for real" he thinks "my dad used to love me until i failed him" ,so if the love of his father who knows him from birth faded away very easily, why this boyfriend he has known for one months at most would be diferent? Add that Jesper forgot their first meeting, Wylan may think "sure, he will get over me quickly" considering how fast they got together and making rushed advances, you know "easy comes, easy goes" way of thinking.

So, a soc spinoff can build a whole double abandonement issues conflict for those two. Not book!Wesper but can help to flesh them out and making their relationship not just be the happy side couple, they can still have the grown together wesper had on the books while adding something more.

[eternal-echoes]

Hey!! I’m a catholic too, I never skip a sunday mass and I pray daily. I had a question about your views on abortion, gender and sexuality.

For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged:

and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

Matthew 7:2

I do view abortion as homicide and I personally would never do it but I do not feel in any way in the position to judge a woman for wanting to do an abortion just like I wouldn’t judge somebody killing in case of self defense. I am not God and the most valuable thing He gave us was choice and free will and as a catholic I feel obliged to respect that in my neighbor. Same goes for LGBTQ+ people. Jesus never even mentioned the theme of sexuality or gender identity and always put love in front of the abrahamic law during the entirety of the gospel. What right do I have to judge others? What right do I have to think I’m right and they are wrong? I am cis and heterosexual, I would never abort in any scenario but in no way I can afford to be judged with the same measure I would judge others by telling them I was right and they were wrong for coming out as transgender or gay. I am sinful and ignorant, I’m not God, thus I have no right to judge.

In this very same way I’m not judging you, God has laid a path for us all and I’m sure you are doing a great job walking on yours, carrying your own cross. I’m sure you had a kind of upbringing that brought you here and made you who you are but you remind me a lot of who I used to be and I just felt the need to tell you I changed on the very moment I realized being religious wasn’t enough to be saved.

May God bless you! I will pray for you and I’m sorry if I crossed some boundaries writing this to you (also because as I said I’m ignorant and I might totally be wrong… if you think I am please pray for me so that God might lead me closer and closer to the Truth).

I wish you’ll spend a Merry Christmas!

Hello, Anon, thank you for your polite question. I will answer as best as I can.

As Jesus said,

“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments." - John 14: 15.

We can't just say we love God but break His laws He has explicitly stated in the Bible. Loving God is in His terms, not ours.

The thing about morality is that objective. It's not just an opinion, what will be wrong for me will also be wrong for another. It's not a matter of preferring vanilla ice cream over chocolate, if me and another person do it with full knowledge that it's wrong, then we've both committed a mortal sin.

Since you already believe that abortion is homicide, then you must believe it's also homicide when other people do it. Yes, we're called to love and respect our neighbor, but that does not mean we're called to approve of their sinful actions. All of us are still children of God when we commit sin, our actions doesn't negate our dignity. But being children of God doesn't negate the intrinsic evil of the sinful actions that people may decide to take. While there are different circumstances that may have driven a woman to abortion (i.e. poverty or desire to indulge in promiscuous lifestyle without consequences), and we as Christians can never assume that she's beyond forgiveness, we can never just declare that abortion isn't morally wrong or intrinsically sinful. It would not be loving to support someone commit something that would lead them to Hell. For a Christian to truly love someone is to will the other person's good. And that means saying no to what will lead them to Hell and guiding them to what will lead them to Heaven. In other words, we Christians have a duty to forbid promiscuity and promote chastity.

As for homosexuality and transgenderism,

it's important to remember what constitutes as sinful acts and what does not. Neither homosexuality or transgenderism are considered sins because those are not actions, especially since those do not fall under one's agency. What the Catholic Church teaches about people with same-sex attractions is written in the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

The Bible has been clear is condemning homosexual acts.

“‘Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable." - Leviticus 18: 22

"Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." - 1 Corinthians 9-10

"for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine." - 1 Timothy 1: 10

As a Catholic, we use the Bible as our guide along with the traditions of the Church in leading holy lives.

If you know any one who has same-sex attractions, I encourage you to share with them couragerc.net. It's a Catholic ministry that helps Christians with same-sex attractions lead chaste and holy lives.

In the case of transgenderism, the Catholic Church does not consider it sinful. The Catholic Church simply affirm the truth,

"God created man in his own image . . . male and female he created them" - Genesis 1: 27

No one is born in the wrong body because God doesn't make mistakes. People are fine just the way they are even though they do not adhere to the world's standards of beauty or socially constructed gender stereotypes. The body and soul are not separates; together they make up one substance.

We humans are integrated beings. That means our souls don’t reside in a round glowing ball in the middle of our chest. Our bodies aren’t something to detest, something that holds our soul for now but isn’t important. We are one being. So just as much as your soul is you, so is your body you. What we do with our bodies matters. You don’t just hurt my nose if you punch my face, you hurt me. If someone uses my body sexually for their own gratification, it’s not just my body that is affected, I am affected – my whole personhood has been hurt by being objectified.

Emphasis are mine. Read the full article here.

Transgenderism, or gender dysmorphia, is a mental health issue. It's in DSM-5. The correct treatment for mental health issues is therapy. We don't give liposuctions to anorexic girls who think they're fat because they're not in fact fat, so we shouldn't cut off perfectly healthy breasts on girls who think they're boys trapped in the wrong body, because they're not in fact boys. Being a girl means having XX chromosomes and being a boy means having XY-chromosomes.

It's true that Jesus has never specifically mentioned homosexuality and transgenderism but Jesus has never explicitly said not beating your spouse either but that doesn't mean He approves of it. When Jesus said, "But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart." (Matthew 5: 28), He was already speaking out against all sins against marriage here.

All of us fall short in following God's standard of morality, but that doesn't negate our intrinsic worth of being made in the image of likeness of God. We're judged by the same measure but we're also loved by the same God who wants us to keep striving to live a holy life even if the road is lonely and full of hardships. We can never judge someone as being unworthy of repentance and Heaven because only God knows that. But God did give us a moral code found in the Bible and expounded by the Catholic Church to tell us how to live a holy life according to His plan.

Anon, if you have anymore questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

[mishasminion360]

Young Joel Miller x bakerOFC please, do whatever you want with it….

Where’s that Diego Luna dabble btw?? 👀😶‍🌫️

The Sweetest Thing

Pre-Outbreak Joel Miller x Baker fem!reader

Warnings: Fluff sweeter than buttercream frosting; one swear word; possibly a smidgen of angst at the end, if you reeeeally think about it.

Summary: All the cakes and pastries aren’t the sweetest thing you encounters in your bakery that day.

A/N: Oh, my sweet anon (and I totally know who you are 😝), thank you for this lovely request. I hope you enjoy the sweet result. P.S. Sorry about that Diego drabble. As you know, life got away from me. Way away.

Men always look so damned sheepish when the step into a bakery. It’s as if unless they have a gal on their arm with a sizable sweet tooth, there’s no good reason for them to be setting foot into such a place. Bakeries are too feminine; sugar and sweets are too girly, pastries are too dainty. Butcher shops? Now, that’s a man’s domain. Blood and guts and meat are manly things.

It’s an outdated belief you thought pop culture phenomena such as “The Great British Bake Off” would have put an end to. Boys wear pants, girls wear dresses. Men go to butchers, women go to bakers.

This guy is dismantling an age old stereotype, but sure looks nervous as hell doing it.

“‘Scuse me,” he drawls, approaching your counter with hands in his pockets. “I’m lookin’ to get a cake.”

“Well, you’ve come to the right place, partner.”

His brown eyes scan the assortment beneath the glass to the right of the counter. Cakes in all shapes, sizes, and designs.

“Looking for any kind of cake in particular? A certain flavor, I mean.”

“Well, what all have you got?” he asks, turning those eyes—a shade of brown as rich as chocolate ganache—on you.

“Pick your poison. I have the usual suspects—chocolate, vanilla, and marble—or some more adventurous flavors, such as lemon, raspberry, red velvet, banana, orange cream, cinnamon and spice. Et cetera, et cetera, and so on and so forth.”

He purses his lips in an impressed whistle.

“Well, I certainly hope they aren’t poisonous,” he chuckles. “But I’m not picky. What do you recommend?”

“That depends. What’s the occasion?”

“It’s, uh, a birthday,” he mumbles. “Could be the last if I fail to bring a cake home for my daughter. She’ll have my head.”

“Ah, so it’s the little lady’s special day, huh?”

“Actually, it’s mine,” he admits as a pretty pink hue fills his cheeks, as if it mortifies him to confess to turning another year older. “But the cake is mostly for my kid’s sake. I’m on a diet myself.”

“Life is much too short for diets,” you chuckle. “Now tell me, what does your girl like?”

“Well,” he shrugs. “This kid loves her peanut butter.”

“Noted. And what does her dad like?”

“Oh, I don’t….it’s like I said, about that diet and all—“

“And I said life’s too short for such a thing,” you reiterate. “Especially on birthdays. So, what does he like?”

He’s momentarily caught off guard by your abruptness, but it earns you a smile. And boy, it’s a smile you won’t forget anytime soon.

“The old man is partial to chocolate.”

“A gentleman with a taste for the classics. Nothing wrong with being a little old fashioned in the modern age.”

“Just plain old, I think you mean.”

“Not at all, but how old are we talking?”

“36.”

“Not old at all.”

He laughs at that, and you like his laugh just as much as his grin. “Tell that to my bones.”

“I think they heard me,” you say proudly. “I have a very commanding voice.”

“Certainly commanded my attention.”

“Now, I think it was more those flavors I listed that got your attention. Speaking of which.” You withdraw your notepad from your apron and jot down his order. “One peanut butter fudge cake should suit you both nicely.”

“Well, who doesn’t love Reece’s, right?”

You shoot him a look of feigned insult. If you were wearing pearls you’d clutch them for dramatic effect.

“With all due respect, sir, Reece’s is a peddler of cheap, manufactured candy-like substances. I am an artist.”

He clutches his chest in mock dismay. “I do beg your forgiveness, Picasso. I did not mean to offend, and I am humbled to be in the presence of such culinary greatness.”

“Let my cake do the humbling, won’t you?”

“I’d be honored to put ol’ Atkins on the back burner for your masterpiece.”

“That’s quite the compliment.” Now you’re the one blushing. “So, when do you need the Sistine Chapel by?”

“Well, I’m on site until 6. I can probably get here by 6:30. Is that okay?”

Hm. “On site”. Construction, maybe? Hardworking man. Manly man, but not. Man who loves cake. Man who loves his daughter. Ring finger sans ring, you can’t help but notice.

“I typically close at 5, but one of the perks of being the boss is that I can make my own hours. I don’t mind hanging around a bit longer. Especially to fill such an important order.”

“You’re sure?”

“Your kid will kill you if you don’t return with cake, right? I’d hate to hear about that grisly murder on the morning news. And as good as my desserts are they’re nothing to die for.”

“Let me be the judge of that,” he smirks. “I’m expecting to get humbled, remember.”

You agree that the bill will be settled upon his return. He jots his number down on a slip of paper, just in case you have any questions. You only have one and you ask it before he can step through the door.

“If this is a birthday cake then I’m going to give it the birthday flare. So, to whom shall I be wishing a happy 36th?”

He gives you that smile again. “It’s Joel.”

“Happy birthday, Joel.”

“It’s starting to feel like it, yeah.”

“So, 6:30?”

“On the dot. You got my number, so just call if you’ve got any questions.”

“I do this for a living. I think I’ve got it handled.”

“Right. Then….call if you’d like to talk about anything else.”

“Don’t forget about—“ Me, you want to say, but luckily you manage to shut that shit down before you live to regret it. “You’re cake.”

“As if I could,” he assures you, heading out the door. “Nothing short of the end of the world would keep me from coming back.”

And nothing short of the end of the world would prevent you from baking the best cake he’s had in all his 36 years.

And his daughter, too, of course. You hope a little peanut butter fudge will help make this a birthday neither of them would ever forget.

@grimeylady @rav3n-pascal22 @mamacitapascal @insomniamama1 @pedrosbisch @emmaispunk @lv7867 @reonlouw @hawaiianmelodies @pascalsky @pascalpanic @heythere-mel @healingstardust @delorena @pedropasxal @caesaryoulater @fangirling-alert @fromthedeskoftheraven @axshadows @dragon-scales88 @spacepastel-blog @spideysimpossiblegirl @pbeatriz-blog @hauntedmama @mswarriorbabe80 @horton-hears-a-honk @wild-at-heart-kept-in-cage @a-trial-run-on-paper @oonajaeadira @foli-vora @dhadiirah @felicisimor @practicalghost @luz-introvertida @amneris21 @hb8301 @tanzthompson @littlemisspascal @dobbyjen @supernaturalgirl20 @alexxavicry @harriedandharassed @trickstersp8 @neganwifey25-blog @twistedboxy @emiemiemiii @energeticspookyshark @thevoiceinyourheadx @pedr0swh0r3 @anamiad00msday

[sapphire-heart-tippy]

The Elf Servant and Water Fairy!

(Bel and Tip are fairy boys and Vanilla got shrunk down to fairy size!)

JanAUary: Fantasy AU (but this au is here to stay!)

The Elf Servant and Water Fairy! (a “short” fanfic) (you don’t have to read the writing! You can just enjoy the drawing instead! The one shot fanfic is just for my own enjoyment pretty much, anyway ^^”)

Warning: this fanfic contains ooc (out of character) content. I've said this in another post a while ago, but it's pretty much its own stand alone thing if I were to change Vanilla and Dio's names.

“Ice!” King Dio, the vampire ruler of Brandopolis calls to his servant. The very tall elf man with long, wavy, chocolate brown hair turns to face his king,

“Yes, sire?”

“When you go to town today, be sure to pick up plenty of supplies for baked goods. I want you to make plenty of desserts for the ball this weekend.” The vampire king grins, showing a hint of his pointy fangs. Ice nods and gives his king a polite bow,

“As you wish, my lord.” 

Ice slings his satchel over his shoulder with a small sigh. He gently rubs the snout of his ghastly looking black horse, he lovingly named Cream. The elf servant kisses the white heart shaped marking on the forehead of his horse before mounting his stead and riding off into town. Cream trots carefully because he’s towing a cart behind him. Creamerton, this is the town Ice was born in before he was hand picked to be the loyal right hand man of King Dio. The delightful smell of baked goods is around every corner. Everyone in this town is always smiling and enjoying life… everyone except Ice was. When Ice was a child, his parents left him on a doorstep, never to return for him. As much as Ice loves the town he grew up in, a lot of rotten memories resurface of being abandoned, outcasted, and hurt. A lot of people weren’t very fond of Ice because of how inattentive and clumsy he can be, as well as a little off putting considering the fact he doesn’t care much to make conversation. 

As Ice and Cream trot into town, a few of the residents take notice and whisper to one another. He has gotten a lot more respect after being dubbed King Dio’s royal right hand. Not everyone in Brandopolis, or Creamerton for that matter, dislikes Ice however. Some people wave to him and give him warm and welcoming smiles. Ice nods and waves back to them. The elf man pulls Cream to a stop at one of the shops and ties him to a post. Ice dusts off his laced purple dress, fixes his circlet, and brushes his beautiful chocolate brown hair to cascade down his back. They inhale and walk into the shop, preparing themself to speak to other people. 

“Ice! There you are.” A large elf man with a big dark brown beard, peppered with grey and white hairs smiles at the young elf. He pats Ice’s back, “I was wondering when you’d arrive. Come here, come here.” He gently presses Ice’s back to follow him.

Ice is brought to a counter,

“Mr Elote, these…”

“Yessir, these are the freshest ingredients I have to offer. If anyone’s going to nab the best, it’s going to be Vanilla.” Elote pats Ice on the back, “Oh! I apologize… I keep forgetting King Dio gave you a new spoken name. After all, it is you who holds the ice crystal of Brandopolis.” Ice touches the crystal that rests upon his forehead, safely lodged in the circlet he wears around his head,

“Yes… indeed. Um… thank you for everything, Mr Elote.” Ice and Mr Elote carry crates of ingredients to the cart Cream has behind him. After the two elf men place the last crates into the cart, Elote dusts of his hands and chuckles,

“Always a pleasure, Vani- uh- Ice!” The two elves shake hands happily. Elote sighs and wipes his brow, “I find it quite amusing that you and my son, Cinnamon- er Fire as they call him now, are both royal servants of the great King Dio.” Ice nods, about to speak, but Elote’s brows frown. The older elf man is visibly troubled,

“But um… I admit… I’m very worried about him. I know you both never really got along very well but… how is he doing, lad?”

“Oh, Cinnamon…” Ice mumbles and looks to his lower left. He looks back down at Elote, “F-Fire. Ahem, Fire has been doing well… although, he has been training for battle more intensely than any of us other gem holders.” The brunette returns the look of concern Cinnamon’s father gives him. For a few moments, there’s a fog of dread between the two men. Elote shakes his head then smiles helplessly,

“I’m certain he’s just being cautious. After all, he’s always been quite the hot head, am I right? Ahahaha!” Elote laughs heartily, “It was fate that he would be the holder of the fire crystal, lad. Alright… you take good care of those ingredients now, dear boy. Whip ‘em up some tasty treats this weekend.”

“Thank you, Mr Elote. Thank you for everything.” Ice nods then climbs back atop of his horse and they trot back to Dio’s castle. 

That evening

The 4 gem holders are all kneeling in front of King Dio’s throne. The vampire glances over each one of them and speaks,

“Azalea of Foxville, holder of the earth crystal…” A young elf woman with curly bright red hair looks up at King Dio.

“Tawny of Shoebill City, holder of the sky crystal…” A young elf person with short blonde hair looks up at King Dio.

“Cinnamon of Creamerton, holder of the fire crystal…” A young elf man with long jet black hair looks up at King Dio. Dio looks at each of them, then smiles with a small, barely audible chuckle at the final person before him,

“And Vanilla of Creamerton… holder of the ice crystal.” Dio covers his mouth daintily and giggles, “Now, yet again I am amused by the fact that two people from the same place are holders of these sacred gems.” He shakes his head with a smile, “I want you four to continue your elemental training. The Warriors of Stardust are closing in and I don’t want our beloved land to be soiled by their nastiness.”

“Yes, King Dio.” The four of them speak in unison.

“Very good…” Dio looks at his nails, “All of you are dismissed except Ice.”

“But, sire.” Fire speaks up. Dio raises an eyebrow,

“What is it?”

“Whatever it may be, I could aid you with. Ice is far too uncoordinated and clumsy, your grace. They have no business attempting to handle delicate tasks, or any task you may hand to them.” Fire tells the vampire king. Ice gives Fire a very offended look. Dio is unamused by this and turns to look at his nails once again,

“That’s not really your place to talk, Fire. I suggest you be on your merry way. I give Ice menial and tedious tasks because he is such a good little servant boy. You needn’t worry your little head about his bumbling nature. You are dismissed.” 

“I… yes, sire.” Fire grits his teeth, then gives Ice one last glare before leaving. Ice turns around, giving Fire a disgusted look.

“Ice.” Dio gets the elf man’s attention.

“Yes, my lord.” 

“I have a little task for you, but you must do it tomorrow at dawn. When the sun rises, you do as well, no exceptions.” Dio commands Ice.

“Of course, sire.” Ice nods.

The next day

At the first light of dawn, Ice quickly gets ready for the day ahead of him. The elf packs his things and brings his beloved horse, Cream, with him. This journey should be a short one, but a very important one nonetheless. Ice gently touches their circlet as they trot into the forest,

“Steady, Cream.” Ice pets his horse.

The brunette looks at the map Dio gave him and follows each direction to the letter. Soon, they make it to their destination. Ice’s milk chocolate brown eyes widen at the sight before him. They hop off of their horse and gaze in awe at what they behold.

Before Ice, is a beautiful meadow with a small waterfall and little pond with the most crystal clear water he ever laid his eyes on. Butterflies, a vast variety of wildflowers, birds chirping, and a little rainbow from the mist of the waterfall in the morning light. Ice’s hands cover his mouth at the gorgeous sight.

Soon Cream nudges Ice’s back with his muzzle,

“Oh! Right, right.” The elf takes out a little empty potion bottle that Dio gave to him for this task. The brunette kneels down and looks at the water. It’s so clear that he can see the very shallow bottom. They turn and look at the small waterfall, which is about 4 feet tall at most. Ice inhales and starts trying to bottle some of the water.

Suddenly he feels a tickle on his ear. Ice scratches his ear and shakes his head.

The elf feels his other ear being tickled, so he scratches that one too. His temple tickles, his neck tickles, the top of his head tickles.

“Augh!” Ice scratches his head and ears, “What is that?! What’s going on?!”

He opens his eyes and sees a little floating blue blur of light on his nose, it tickles. Ice swats at it,

“Go away! Jeez, what a clingy bug.”

“Hey, I’m not a bug!” A high pitched voice in his right ear speaks. Ice turns to face the voice. He’s met with the floating ball of blue light, only when he squints… it looks like a tiny person! Ice gasps and backs away, crawling backwards and leans his back up against the small rock wall,

“W-w-what?! What is that?!” they point at the entity.

“What am I?! How about, ‘what are you’, big boy!” The tiny creature laughs at him. The creature flies around his face, making Ice swat his hand,

“Stop that! It… tickles.”

“Oh?” The entity lands on Ice’s knee and looks up at him.

“Y… you have bug wings. You are a bug! A bug with a body like an elf…?” Ice looks cautious and confused.

“You ever heard of a fairy, big guy?” The little fairy sits on Ice’s knee criss-cross style. 

“Fairy? No that’s… they’re not real. That’s impossible- I have to be dreaming.” Ice rubs his eyes only to be face to face with the blue light ball, “Ewaugh!”

“What’s your name? What brings you here?” The fairy asks him.

“What? Oooh no. No you don’t. You fairies are tricksters. I’m not going to trust a fairy… even if I am dreaming.” Ice shakes his head.

“Hmph.” The fairy flies into his face and pokes his nose, making Ice squint. Fairy dust gets into his nose and he sneezes. The fairy laughs at him, swiftly flying around in circles. Ice looks up as the fairy flies away into the sky. The elf sighs and rubs his head… noticing that his sleeve is a lot bigger than it used to be… and his circlet falls over his face,

“What the-?! Huh?!”

Ice realizes that he’s shrinking. “No. No no no no NO!!!” Soon the elf is as small as the little blue fairy. The fairy daintily lands on the fallen dress and in the middle of the circlet,

“Hmmm… now where did you go?”

A little lump under a piece of the dress’s fabric starts moving.

“Oh! There you are.” The fairy glides over to the spot. Ice crawls out from under the fabric and looks up at the fairy.

“What did you do to me?! What did you do?!” Ice looks at his hands and arms, then all around at the place surrounding him and the fairy. Ice covers himself up out of embarrassment, realizing he’s nude now. The fairy giggles at him, making his cheeks heat up,

“It’s not funny, you horrible horrible being!” 

“Oh, relax, elf boy,” The fairy crosses his arms and looks all around the lake and waterfall, “It’s a temporary spell. It’ll only last until the sun goes down.”

“Sundown?! No… No no no, I have to be at the palace before sundown.” Ice curls up and covers both his body and his face.

“Hm? Palace?” The fairy tilts his head, “Are you royalty?”

“No… I’m just a servant. Well…” Ice sighs and rests his head on his bicep as he lays down with one arm between his legs, “I’m the king’s favorite servant… oh and the uh, holder of the… nevermind.”

“Holder of what? What is it?” The fairy kneels down to him.

“Nothing! Just… please, fairy person, please turn me back to normal.” Ice begs the fairy. 

“No can do, Mr elf guy… I’m afraid, just like I said before, the spell lasts all day.” He tells Ice, “Oh well… But hey, it’s not so bad being this small, especially when you can fly like me!” The fairy flies around while Ice lays there hopeless. The fairy laughs and flies around, then lands in front of Ice,

“Hey, come on now! What’s the matter?”

“I’m the size of a wasp and in my birthday suit in front of a stranger, what do you think the matter is?” Ice growls. The fairy pouts,

“Hmph… well, I guess I could help with the birthday suit thing. Stay right here.” 

Ice sighs, feeling like he’s about to cry any moment now, but remains composed as best as he can. 

“Alright, I’m back! Stand up.” The fairy holds up a violet flower petal and smiles at him.

“What’s that going to cover?” Ice stands up, covering his intimate area with both of his hands.

“You’ll see.” The fairy drapes the flower petal over Ice. In one quick motion, the petal is turned into a little mini dress over Ice. 

“Huh?!” Ice looks all around at the little purple flower petal dress he is now wearing, “This is…”

“Beautiful? I know! Oh and don’t worry.” The fairy lifts up his dress a little to reveal his behind is covered up, “It comes with undies underneath!” He giggles then covers himself back up with his flower petal dress,

“I’m Tippy Tulip by the way. And you would be…?” Tippy asks.

“I’m… Well… They used to call me ‘Vanilla of Creamerton’. But King Dio has given me the name Ice. So Now I am called ‘Ice of Creamerton’.” Ice tells him.

“Oh, that’s so… cool heehee!” Tulip giggles.

“Look, Tulip. I really need to take a bottle of that water back to the palace. It’s very important to King Dio.” Ice tells him. 

“Hm? Oh. Oh…” Tulip’s wings droop and his expression turns sour. He crosses his arms with a pout, “I see. Your king must’ve sent you here to meet me on purpose.”

“What are you talking about?” Ice asks, touching his new flower petal dress.

“Pfft… He wanted you to ask me to bless the water, but I guess he omitted the part where I come in. Which makes no sense!” Tulip rolls his eyes.

“Wait… what? Bless the water? Why? What does that do?”

“You ask so many questions! Don’t you know anything, Ice?” Tulip giggles then approaches Ice, “Whoa… you’re uh… you’re pretty tall.” Tulip looks up at him with awestruck eyes. Ice,

“And you’re pretty…”

“I’m pretty?” Tulip grins. While Ice tries to backtrack, Tulip laughs and bounces around, hovering and landing on different parts of Ice’s elf dress on the ground. 

“Wait! That’s not what I was trying to say!” Ice huffs and waves his hands around, feeling his cheeks burn. Tulip flies back over, face to face with Ice, noses almost touching, then speaks,

“What’re we waiting for? Let’s get you some of that water so I can bless it!” He takes Ice’s hand and tries to pull them, “Hnnngh! This isn’t any use… you’re too heavy. Hmmm… Oh! I know!” 

Tulip spins around in circles trying to touch his own wings. The fairy boy grabs both of his own wings and pats them down, making fairy dust. 

“Alright, let’s see if this still works.” Tulip claps his hands together, making the fairy dust cover Ice.

“Hey!” Ice watches Tulip. Ice sneezes a few times, then flies backwards! Tulip floats over to Ice,

“Now you can fly! Haha! But you gotta hurry, you can only fly for a short time, Icy.”

“Incredible! I’m… I’m actually flying!” Ice hovers for a bit, only to land on his face, “Ough!”

“Hahahahaha! You’re funny!” Tulip lies next to them, “Okay, so you said you needed to get this pond water into a bottle? Where’s the bottle?”

“It should be in my satchel- oh no.” Ice turns and sees the now giant satchel lying next to his old dress, “If my satchel is huge then the bottle will be too. Do you think you could shrink the bottle down too?” Tulip’s brows frown and xe shakes xis head,

“I can’t. I’m sorry.” Xe looks up at the satchel, “I only know the spell that can make people smaller, and uh… this is the first time I’ve actually used it, eheheh!” Tulip rubs xis neck, “B-but, I can go get the bottle and bring it back down here.”

“Okay, well it’s a long, skinny bottle with a blue cork on the top. It fit neatly in the palm of my hand. Heh, I suppose you’d also fit neatly in the palm of my hand if I were back to my original size.” Ice chuckles.

“You want to hold me like that?!” Tulip spins around.

“W-wha-!? No! No, I said I could if I were back to my elf size!” Ice waves his hands around.

“I know, I was just teasing you, Icy. You’re fun to mess with.” Tulip smiles then flies up into the satchel. Ice’s bag moves around, Tulip bumbles about all while trying to find the bottle. Ice hovers around and does a few flips, playing with this new temporary flight of his.

“Oh! I think I found it!” Tulip’s voice is muffled. The blue fairy boy flies up, struggling a little bit to hold the bottle, “You weren’t kidding. This bottle is the same size as me! Only it’s a little bit taller, I’d say, heehee.”

Tulip rolls the bottle down the satchel. Ice tries to stop it but ends up getting cartoonishly flattened by it,

“Augh!” 

“Oops.” Tulip glides down to Ice and helps them back up, “You okay?”

“Ow… how am I still alive?!” Ice looks at his hands.

“Well, due to the spell I cast on you, you have limited fairy powers. We can’t get crushed or stomped on, that’s not how we die! It still hurts though, especially when people think we’re bugs… but you all shouldn’t be killing bugs anyway.” Tulip pouts. Ice turns around,

“Alright then, let’s go ahead and fill up this bottle, shall we?”

“We shall!” Tulip flies over and helps them with filling up the bottle. 

Meanwhile

“Sire!” Fire rushes into the throne room catching his breath, “King Dio!” Fire kneels and pants, sweat beading down from his forehead, “I just got word from lookout. The Warriors of Stardust are headed this way.”

“I see…” Dio narrows his eyes and looks away, pondering, this certainly isn’t good. Not only will we have to postpone the royal ball, but my entire kingdom is in danger. The vampire stares into Fire’s eyes, “And what of Ice? Has he made his return yet?”

“N… no, my lord. Ice has been gone all morning. There is no sign of him anywhere. He was supposed to be back hours ago.” Fire speaks with great concern.

“This is indeed a troubling matter.” Dio taps his cheek, shaking his head, “Very well. Alert the other two. Continue training. When would you say the Warriors of Stardust will arrive?”

“The latest they will arrive would be sunset.” Fire bows his head. Dio’s expression bitters, he scowls and rises from his throne,

“No good.” As Dio walks beside Fire, he motions for his servant to stand. Fire does so and sighs,

“I’m sorry, my king. We will do whatever we can to protect this land.”

“As you should. It is written in the prophecy that the element holders will protect this sacred land from any interlopers who wish harm upon it. I have faith in you all… We just need Ice to make his return so that you all shall use your element crystals to defend my kingdom.” Dio says. Fire nods,

“Yes, my king.” 

As Dio leaves, Fire rubs his forehead and wanders off to a window,

“Oh, Vanilla… where the hell could you be at a time like this?”

Meanwhile

“Well, this sucks!” Tulip puffs out his cheeks, “How in the world are we gonna carry this monstrous satchel back to the palace? Can’t we just bring the stupid water I blessed?” 

“Are you kidding? I don’t want to leave my stuff here!” Ice gives Tulip an incredulous look, “We have to find some way to-”

Cream’s snout is right above Ice as he snorts hot air onto the tiny man. Ice looks up,

“That’s it! We can use my horse!” Ice climbs up on the satchel, “Cream! I need you to put this satchel strap in your mouth and carry us back to the castle.” 

Tulip flies up and sits next to Ice. They are soon picked up by Cream’s mouth, but that’s when Ice realizes something, 

“Wait!” He turns around to look at the ground, which is very very far away. Ice trembles and clings to the satchel, “Oh dear… we’re so high up.”

“Hey, it’ll be okay. You can still use my fairy dust to fly. It’s no big deal!” Tulip dusts more of xis fairy dust onto Ice’s body. The brunette squints and rubs their eyes,

“Hold on a second! We still need to get my circlet! It’s very important that I have that with me at all times.” Ice turns up to his horse,

“Cream! Put us on your back please, I need you to grab my circlet as well.” They point to the ground. Cream rolls his eyes and sighs, then slings the satchel with the two small gentlemen onto his back. Ice holds onto Tulip as tight as he can in fear of falling. Cream walks over to the circlet on the ground and picks it up in his mouth. He whinnies and snorts to alert Ice that he now has the piece of jewelry.

“Th-thank you, O noble stead!” Ice chuckles, noticing he’s holding Tulip like a pillow, “O-oh! I’m sorry.” They release xem from their grip.

“Ow?” Tulip pouts and rubs xis arms. 

“Right, um. Cream! Take us back to the castle!” Ice points up into the air. Cream whinnies and starts trotting into a random direction. After a while, Cream stops in his tracks, turning his head every which way. Nothing but dense forest lies ahead. Ice stands up and spins around, losing his breath from worry,

“Oh no.” 

His brows frown and he can’t catch his breath from anxiety, “We’re lost.” He sits back down with his hands over his face. Tulip crawls over to him,

“Relax, relax! Look, we’ll find your way back home, okay? There’s always a way out. Didn’t you bring a map with you?”

“Y-yes, I did! I did. It’s right here in my satchel.” Ice crawls into the satchel. After a while, he pulls out the rolled up map and directions from the bag, “Okay, so all we have to do is follow this back home.”

“That’s easy enough, Icy! Let’s get to it!” Tulip stands up and puts his hands on his hips. Suddenly, quicker than the blink of an eye, Tulip is attacked by a yellow and purple blur. “OOF!!!” 

Ice gasps and watches as two balls of light battle each other in the sky. The yellow and purple ball of light baps the blue ball of light a few times before taking him down to the ground. Ice quickly grabs onto Cream’s mane and is gently lowered to the ground. 

Tulip is being pinned down on the ground by another very angry fairy, who’s slapping Tulip’s face. Ice rushes over to the two fairy gentlemen,

“HEY!!! GET OFF OF HIM!!” 

The furious purple and yellow fairy whips his head around to face Ice with the most sour scowl. Ice gulps and backs away a little bit.

“And who is that?!” The purple haired fairy yells and gestures to Ice. Tulip rubs his face and shoves the other fairy off of xem,

“Ungh! It’s none of your business!” Tulip hisses, “C’mon, Icy, let’s get going. This jerk isn’t worth our time.”

“Uh…” Ice puts a finger up, very confused. The purple haired fairy gets in between Ice and Tulip with a frown,

“Oh no, you don’t, Tulip. You still owe me and I’m gonna get what I deserve.” They are fuming. Their wings flutter with irritation and their pointy ears are pinned down in anger. 

“I told you, it’s elf garbage, Campanula. It had no real value to it.” Tulip turns to Ice and points xis thumb at the other, very nettled fairy, “This is Campanula Bellflower by the way… and he’s a huge JERK!”

“ME?!” Bellflower’s wings flutter, causing fairy dust to fall, “You’re the one who broke my priceless elf jewelry!” They adjust their little flower stamen tiara, “And don’t introduce me to some random-” He does a double take at Ice. Bellflower’s dark brown eyes widen and he stops in his tracks, “Random…” His cheeks heat up as he makes eye contact with the very attractive elf gentleman. The purple haired fairy’s wings flutter a bit as he fidgets with their fingers,

“H… hi, I’m Bellflower. Campanula Bellflower. Hi…”

“Uh, heheh, hi?” Ice awkwardly smiles and waves to them. Bellflower looks him up and down then turns to Tulip,

“Friend of yours?”

“Yeah.” Tulip crosses xis arms and narrows xis eyes at Bellflower. He giggles and covers his mouth,

“Wow… wait.” Bellflower looks around Ice, walking in circles around them, “W…where’s your wings?”

“Oh, I actually cast a spell on him because he was being mean to me. He’s actually an elf boy.” Tulip tells him.

“An elf boy?!” Bellflower gasps, “Oh wow! Wow wow wow!” Xe flies around Ice in circles, “You were being mean to Tulip? Well, good! Xe deserves it because xe breaks things that aren’t xis!”

“Shut up, Bellflower! At least I’m not the one wearing flower genitalia on my head.” Tulip smirks.

“Ugh!!!” Bellflower grunts in frustration then tackles Tulip yet again. The two fairies tumble around and attack each other in a cloud of colorful fairy dust. Ice dashes over to them,

“Hey! Quit that! Stop it! Knock it off!”

Bellflower and Tulip are slapping and biting each other until Ice shoves them both away,

“That is ENOUGH!” He growls, “I need to get back to the palace by sundown so this stupid spell wears off and I need to deliver the fairy blessed water to the king! They’re all probably wondering where the hell I am right now!” Ice furrows his brows at the two bickering fairies. Bellflower and Tulip both stop fighting and listen to the elf. They both turn to look at each other. Bellflower is awestruck,

“Palace?! Wow… I didn’t know I was in the presence of… royalty.” His eyelids hood and a smirk curls upon his plump lips as he approaches Ice. Tulip rolls his eyes,

“Oh boy…”

“So… the palace, huh? I hear the king is absolutely loaded with jewels and gold from every corner of the land.”

“O-oh, actually I-”

“Tell you what, I’ll help you get back to the palace before sundown if you promise me some jewelry from your king.” Bellflower looks Tulip up and down with a sneer, “That way, I guess I could let go of this little grudge and I might forgive this little twerp for destroying something precious to me.”

“Oh for the love of- it was a piece of TRASH, Bellflower!” Tulip yells at xem.

“You’re a piece of trash, Tulip!” Bellflower yells back.

“Guys! Enough! Seriously. I’m going to need all the help I can get anyway…” Ice jogs back over to Cream, “Okay, now we just need to get back on my horse and get out of this damn forest.”

“Oh! Oh! Do you need help?” Bellflower clasps his hands together and grins, “I can carry you!” Tulip shakes his head and rolls his eyes with a sigh. Bellflower hovers over to Ice and wraps his arms around the back of him with a dreamy sigh. Quite suddenly, both Ice and Bellflower fly up into the sky and land on Cream’s back, next to the satchel. Tulip follows them and sits criss-cross on the saddle.

Bellflower bats his eyes at Ice,

“So? How are you enjoying being this size, elf boy?”

“I’m not exactly enjoying any of it, to tell you the truth.” Ice dusts himself off, “So… what exactly is the deal with you two anyway?” 

“Hmph!” Bellflower flips xis purple hair behind xis shoulder, “We used to be friends. I showed Tulip my latest collection of treasures I took from the elves. He saw one of my most favoritest and prettiest items yet, then he started playing with it! Before I knew it, it snapped in half!” Bellflower pouts.

“It was a hunk of junk, Bel!” Tulip points at xem, “I told you that it was nothing more than a flimsy little piece of scrap metal!”

“You don’t get it, Tip! You wouldn’t understand what it’s like to have something special to you.” Bellflower hisses. Suddenly a large raindrop crashes down on Bellflower, completely soaking him from head to toe. Tulip impishly laughs at him, then a large raindrop lands on xem as well. All three of them look up at the sky. Bel gulps,

“That’s not good.” He looks at Tip, “Hey! You’re a water fairy, aren’tcha?! How about you do one of those water umbrella thingies and stop us from getting soaked?!”

“W-well-!!!” Tip frantically looks around, “I-!!! … I never learned how to do that…”

“What?!” Bel snarls at xem, then gets pelted with raindrops, “Aaaaugh!!!” All three of them try to cover themselves from the heavy rain. 

Bel flies up and pulls Cream by two locks of mane to navigate him in a certain direction, “We have to get out of here NOW.” Cream whinnies then gallops away while Ice and Tip hold onto each other. Bel scans the ground, narrowing his eyes, suddenly he pulls Cream’s locks of mane to bring him to a stop. Cream skids to a halt, his hooves scraping the ground, causing mud to mound up. 

“C’mon, everyone get inside!” Bellflower tries to use his wings, but the rain is too much, “Augh!” Tulip pulls Ice’s arm, rushing to the top of Cream’s head, 

“Icy, we’re going to have to jump. We can’t fly because our wings can’t withstand the rain.”

“What?! Why can’t you guys just give me more of that fairy dust so I can float down?! I-I could carry you both to the ground!” Ice gulps, very afraid of heights.

“That… that’s a great idea!” Tulip says, patting xis wings for more fairy dust. Bellflower watches the two of them interact, feeling left out and bitter. He makes his way over to them and pats his wings as well to add fairy dust onto Ice. 

“I have it taken care of, Bellflower.” Tip sneers at him.

“Well, maybe he needs more of it!” Bel hisses. Ice takes the other two gentlemen by the waist, startling them a bit and making them blush. They both look up at Ice, who looks determined to get them all out of the violent rain. Ice inhales,

“Ready?”

The other two nod. 

“Here we… GOOOOO!!!” Ice jumps off of Cream, floating for a split second, then falling to the ground. They all scream and hold onto each other. Ice does everything he can to stay in the air! Finally, they slow down and gently land on the ground. Ice tries to catch his breath. Tulip is clinging to him, xis arms and legs wrapped around him. Bellflower is dreamily holding onto Ice with their head on his chest. Bel blinks a few times then gasps and points at their door,

“Get inside! Quick!” 

“You live in a tree?” Ice asks. Bel opens the door on the stump of the tree,

“Yeah?! So?! Get inside!” The three of them rush inside as Bel closes the door. The three gentlemen stumble inside and try to catch their breath. Bellflower fumbles around looking for a lantern to light. Finally, he finds a little lantern to set ablaze, setting off a chain reaction so the entire house is lit up with beautiful twinkling little lights. 

To be continued… (I lost steam writing this fic, but I’ll edit and reblog it once I finish it!)

[sketchyonlooker]

< A live camera feed comes into view. >

A small yellow-and-green shop with a single red door comes into view. The word Game in English lettering can be seen above the entrance. A familiar spiky-haired silhouette briefly peeks through one of the shop windows, only to vanish before other people noticed. Outside the normally empty surroundings were more than several dozens of people, all of them wearing Duel Disks, making a rough attempt at a line. Many of them looked solemn or determined while others looked excited; all of them were trying to put their best face out there because they knew this event involving the most famous of Duel Monsters stars was bound to have a lot of media floating around. This small group of duelists participating paled to the number of spectators that came to watch. Lingering outside the large empty block that surrounded the shop, the spectators excitedly pointed at familiar faces in the line, minor celebrities when it came to the world of Duel Monsters. Some looked skyward, expecting the Kaibas to make an entrance that way. However, a good number of the spectators weren't duelists at all but those who smelled a business opportunity. Hence why there were hawkers and food trucks set up around the block, each one taking advantage of the duelists with their own Duel-Monster-themed culinary creations.

-----

An ice cream waffle cone stacked with chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry scoops was being handed over to a kid from a food truck. Even in the cold, it was popular with the children because each scoop was decorated to make them look like Kuribohs with different cheery expressions. The fact it sold cappuccinos as well, decorated with a foam art of popular Duel Monsters, also meant the parents could get their fix of Duel Monsters-themed foods and drinks too.

-----

A fluffy omelet rice on a paper container is seen, being shown off by the cook in the food truck. It is decorated by a cutesy image of the Dark Magician Girl giving a starry wink made in ketchup. In the background, a teenage girl with short black hair and wearing a Duel Disk could be seen with her hand raised like a maniac's, bills clenched within. Her most flamboyant feature is the bright blue witch's hat she wore. "I'll take three!"

-----

"Get your official Kame Game Shop Tournament hoodies here!" said a hawker showing off various hoodies on several tables. The most popular ones, evident from the dwindling piles, were the purple Dark Magician sweaters and the white-and-blue Blue Eyes White Dragon sweaters; they both had images of the respective monsters up front and a Kame Game Shop Tournament 2023 at the back. There's even a crimson red Red Eyes Black Dragon hoodie, though the large pile remaining made it clear that it wasn't nearly as popular as the other two. "Show your support! Are you Team Mutou or Team Kaiba? Or maybe you want to show some love for the underdog?" A woman with spiky-looking sidebangs passing by glared at the man with irritation and disbelief. Thick-winged eyeliner added a weight to her glare. "You have the balls to say your stuff is official when the Game Shop is right there?" The hawker pauses and then cheekily winks, "Is the Game Shop selling hoodies? And do you see any other people claiming to sell official hoodies like me? Since you only see me, mine's gotta be official by default, right?" The woman's eyebrow twitched, "Do you really think that argument will work if Mutou or Kaiba demanded compensation?" The man shrugs and grins, "well, if they ask for compensation, wouldn't that make my stuff official then?" "I'm pretty sure that's not how it works," said the ravenette, her previous indignation turning into amusement despite herself. Not everyday, one meets someone so thick-skinned. She glances over at one of the red Red Eyes Black Dragon hoodies with pursed lips. Seeing an opportunity, the hawker adds, "Besides you won't lose out buying my hoodies. Good material woven very well. Good for yourself or a gift!" He then looked conspiratorially to the left and right as if searching for any onlookers, "I'll let you buy this for 25% off. Just because it'll be kinda sad if Wheeler sees a sea of white and purple but no red, right?" A pause. "...That would be pretty sad, wouldn't it?" Cha-ching.

[stackofstories]

Nico was on his haunches. Slowly, he stood and took in the people under the strange jolly roger.

It took everything within Nico to not scamper over to Rebecca.

A little voice in his head, the same voice that told him to dodge, alerted him to the obvious. If their unusual appearance didn't give it away these people were bad news. They had his full attention.

"Who put these brats in our way?" screamed a guy in a yellow furry jacket with SNACK written in bold black letters. "Is this the welcome we get from Joker? Mama won't be pleased if his citizens don't respect their betters." Spit accompanied each word out of his mouth. Was he always so angry? Snacks usually lifted moods.

"Yeaaaah," chorused two sets of quintuplets, or were they decuplets? It didn't matter. There were ten kids his age wearing Pepto Bismol pink. Half of them were leggy brunette girls, and the other half were beady-eyed, purple-haired boys.

The youngest of the strange group was a girl around Rebecca's age. She stuck her tongue out at Nico. Nico would have stuck his tongue out as well if it weren't for the three extremely tall people hovering around Snack, the decuplets, and the girl.

The man in the middle, if he could even be called that, looked like a half-melted ice-cream cone. His beard appeared to be made out of vanilla ice cream and his body, large and round, was made out of goopy chocolate.

To the right of the ice cream man was a woman. She was slender and wore a white, wide-brimmed hat and a pale pinstriped dress with a wine-colored sash. Nico couldn't see her face. There was an air around her that Nico didn't like. But, all of them put together weren't nearly as bad as the man completing the trio of extremely tall people.

Towering over his gang, he was the most ordinary-looking of the group. A ragged, fluffy scarf covered his mouth and he wore tight leather pants and an open leather vest. His muscled arms were folded. His eyes were an intense crimson.

Nico gulped. He wasn't sure what exactly it was about this unassuming giant of a man, but every molecule in his body told him to run in the opposite direction.

"They are of no concern to us," the man said. "We have an appointment to catch and if we miss it, that makes us late for merienda. We will not be late."

"Big Brother," they chorused and followed him. Nico read Charlotte on the man's wide and proud back as he turned around.

With each step away from him, Nico could breathe, and he found his courage.

There was no way he was going to let them get away without first apologizing. Rebecca was owed that much.

"Hey!" Nico called. "Say you're sorry for bumping into us!"

"What?" Melty hissed with a dark scowl. "You must be stupid, brat! I'll show you!" he pushed his siblings out of the way only to be stopped by the slender woman pulling her nodachi from the black scabbard hanging at her waist.

Nico's eyebrows raised. He had never seen a sword as long as hers.

"What's this, Amande?" Melty growled.

"Shirauo hungers for blood," Amande interrupted, stepping forward. "Katakuri, I will take care of this brat."

Katakuri half-turned. He inclined his head. Once more, Nico was under his unfortunate gaze. "Do what you wish," Katakuri said continuing on his way.

Melty's scowl darkened, but he did not protest. Nico was given the chance to see the back of all of them and he was relieved. If he had faced that man, Charlotte Katakuri, he was certain that he would not have survived.

His relief was short-lived. Amande took a dainty step forward and with a single slash of her sword, Nico flew backward through a wall. A brick wall.

He laid in the rubble. Dazed didn't even cover what he was feeling. Coughing up a dust cloud, he sat up and brushed the dirt and bits of brick clinging to his shoulders and clothing. So, he was a lot sturdier than he expected, which was both good and cool.

"Whoa!"

Nico tucked into a ball and rolled to the left as Amande dived forward. Her sword dug into the ground with deceptive ease. It might as well have been cake.

"That could have killed me!"

Amande's droopy fish eyes were unmoved. "You say that as if that's a bad thing. People mightier than you have been slain by my sword. You should be honored."

"Well, I'm not! I'm feeling very unhonored right now."

Dodge! pounded in Nico's head and he was doing his best to follow the single command. Sometimes, he dodged. In most of the cases, he did not. He could not. His clothing was torn with thousands of rips and he was covered in a hundred crescent cuts. Knowing when to dodge didn't help when he couldn't keep up with Amande's insane speed. If he blinked, she already surged in front of him. Smoke from her cigarette billowed in his face, her sword gleamed in the sun.

Panting, Nico was on all fours doing an awkward scuttle away from her. "If I die, I just want you to know that smoking is terrible for your lungs. It'll kill you."

Amande didn't so much as blink. She swung her sword and once more; Nico tumbled through the air into a stone building. Distantly, he heard the citizens of Carta, screaming and running away. Groaning, Nico rubbed the back of his head.

"Is this all you have to offer?" Amande asked, displeasure in her voice. "I grow tired of this cat-and-mouse game."

"You could let me go and find a better opponent?" Nico suggested.

Amande's eyes widened. "Yes, you're right," she agreed.

Nico's eyebrows knit. Amande turned away from him and she walked toward Rebecca's body. She wouldn't.

"Don't touch her!" Nico yelled.

Amande loomed over Rebecca. Her pale hands wrapped around the handle of her sword. Nico swore he heard the air sliced.

He had been behind Amande, but in his next breath, he was a barrier between her and Rebecca. Amande's sword dug under his collarbone. She twisted the sword further in. His blood draped the shining metal. Amande's expression was unchanged though her eyes brightened with sadistic joy.

She was one of those types. She liked to inflict pain for the sake of it. Nico hated her.

"You care about this girl," Amande said. "That's good. Very, very good." Leisurely, she cut into his flesh, slicing down his torso inch by torturous inch.Nico shrieked nearly choking on his spit. Stopitstopitstopit. “I won't kill you. No. I'll save that for later. I will chop the girl up limb by limb and make you watch. Then, I will kill you at the height of your agony. After all, what is the point of killing another if their life ends instantly."

"You will not touch her," Nico hissed through tears.

Amande's lips curled at the corners. She yanked the sword from him. Then she threw him aside.

Her bloodied sword rested under Rebecca's neck. "Watch me," she said. She pushed the edge in and Nico let out a chilling screech.

Over the next few days, the battle came to Nico in spurts. He remembered the knell ringing shrill in his ears.

The ground under him growled with every bloodied step he took. Any sign of greenery stubbornly poking itself through the cobblestones shriveled black, and the air was cold. Frost and shadow crept over stone, toy, and person.

Still, Amande with her long neck did not look concerned with the change. "So, you are a devil fruit user. But you are young and you will learn your place."

Nico blinked. She was in front of him. He was too slow. He flung through the air with the force of her kick and he skittered across the stones before he came to a halt.

Absently, he touched the shallow hole where Amande's stiletto heel had been and he got to his feet. She came to him and he was prepared to meet her.

He thrust his right arm in front of him, his palm was wide and open. Slowly, he made a fist.

Amande, so tall and proud, dropped to her knees and clutched her sides. Her great sword clattered at her feet. Her trembling increased tenfold, but it had nothing to do with the cold. It was her bones. Nico felt all two hundred and six bones. They were his to do with as he pleased.

"What's the matter?" Nico asked. "I thought you liked pain. Maybe I'm not doing it right. You said there was no pleasure if the pain was drawn quickly."

With every minute wiggle of his fingers, he started to crush Amande's bones into dust. He began with her baby toe, then moving onward.

"Stop this! Stop this at once!"

"You know," Nico continued, "I think I'm getting the hang of this."

There were three sounds in his ears. A bell sound, his heartbeat, and the cracking sound of Amande's bones laced with her wet, gasping begs for death.

"Kill me, please, kill me!"

Nico laughed. Death was mercy. She did not get mercy until she paid for crimes. Nico demanded justice.

His hand was halfway closed. Amande's femurs and below were no more.

"Big sister Amande!" ripped through the air.

Nico paused.

Confusion bled into the cold and dark justice coursing through Nico. He had heard the horrified, maddening tone before, but when he looked down all he saw was the baby brunette girl in her pink dress rushing to Amande's side. He did not understand why he was disappointed. This girl's large brown eyes like chocolate pudding pinned Nico to the spot as tears spilled down her chubby cheeks and forehead?

"Big sister," Nico mumbled.

Cruel Amande was a big sister?

"What are you doing here? Stupid girl, go to Katakuri!" Amande commanded as she tried to shake the girl off her side and move in front of her. "Run, I'll hold him off, just go!"

"But, Big Sister, I can help-"

Nico held his head. A low, terrible moan escaped him. The air changed. Plunging to freezing temperatures, it was heavier and it carried his desperation and anguish. He missed Bianca so much. Responding to him, the earth between his feet split open and wobbled.

The girl screamed once more and clung to her sister. It was her saving grace.

Amande was a big sister. Nico couldn't take her away, though she deserved to join the nebulous, dark space of the underworld where millions of the dead chattered in his ear ceaselessly. He walked by Amande and her sister. He kept his mouth shut only glancing at them as he stole Amande's sword.

He found Rebecca. She was under the umbrella of a shadow.

Nico gathered her and the sword in his arms. He sank into the shadow, focused on getting back to the only safe place he knew, Rebecca's cabin. He didn't question how he got there so fast.

Gently, Nico placed Rebecca on the bed. He brushed her pink hair back. There was no ringing in his ears. Rebecca was safe.

Nico blacked out.

Stuck between the waking and dream world, Nico wasn't sure what was real or how long time had passed. Toy Soldier appeared before him, his cold wooden hands tight on his shoulders and he was talking to him. Trying to be comforting and not panicked. Rebecca's name clawed up Nico's throat, but he couldn't remember how to speak.

He felt somethings crawl up his body. Little, round people with threading needles held high in the air. Then, red-hot pain. Nico thrashed as he was punctured repeatedly. He was split into two and sewed into a whole. He was tethered to the blackness and shrouded in flames.

There was Rebecca's sweet voice. She whispered a story in his ear about the king of pirates. He was the only pirate worth mentioning. The best of them. He acquired wealth, fame, and power, but he cared about none of that. He only cared about his crew and adventures. When he was captured, he went to his death with an enormous smile and a cry that sent droves of people to the seas. Regret filled Nico. Why hadn't he met the king of pirates?

There was a shadow of a freckled woman holding a crying baby.

In a glittering palace of jewels, there was a man on an obsidian throne. He was long and lean like a sword and he was pale as bleached bone. His eyes were cruel and kind by turns. There was a pulse of familiarity attached to the man. Where had Nico seen him before? He tried hard to remember. Who are you? He wasn't able to ask.

It's not time yet.

It was the last push he needed.

Nico's eyes opened, and he inhaled.

[unikittybigbrightworldau]

Citizens of Ice Cream Land

Now, we’re venturing out into all my fanmade lands! Here are the citizens of Ice Cream Land.

Ice Cream Land is ruled by King Dairycone and Queen Snowcorn, who are hybrids of German shepherds and ice unicorns like their kids. Dairycone is benevolent and caring, and he almost never gets angry. However, he’s known for having an easily breakable heart. Queen Snowcorn doesn’t talk often, and she’s very timid like Crystalline and Germafrost. They’re both as quiet and relaxed as life in their kingdom typically is. They’re sensitive to loud noises, and they can get overstimulated pretty quickly. Things have lately been hard for them due to Crystalline’s sudden passing. They’re especially worried for Germafrost, since he seemed to take it the hardest and suddenly disappeared.

Prince Neapolitan is Germafrost’s younger brother. He’s a huge night owl, so he often has trouble waking up in the morning. It sorta bugs out his parents, since they’re also rather punctual and try to get him to bed on time. He can be quite dramatic, and he speaks with much emphasis. He’s also pretty assertive. He likes to go outside the castle and hang out with people, such as Floela, whom is a close friend of his. He is an enthusiast for mythical beings and creatures, and he attends an annual mythical creature convention. He emphasizes with Germafrost’s feelings over losing Crystalline, so he wants to be a shoulder his brother can lean on. Neapolitan has his own vehicle, which is a snowmobile. He sounds like Zim, or Kaos from the Skylanders series. 

Princess Crystalline was Germafrost’s older sister. She was very sweet, as well as shy like him. As timid and soft-spoken as she was, she was also super encouraging, and she was better at talking to others than Germafrost. The two of them were very close. She joined Germafrost in his games of soccer, or as Gelatarians call it, chip-ball. She encouraged him to follow his love for it, which is why he loves it so much. Once, a team of ice harvesters came to visit Ice Cream Land, and Crystalline befriended one of them. While she and Germafrost were out together one day, a falling pillar from an unsteady building crushed her. She succumbed to her injuries soon after.

Dawn and Jamison are Piano's parents. In Ice Cream Land, the living desserts' names usually come from what flavor they are, or what dessert they are. Dawn, a wedding cake-flavored ice cream creature, is one of the rare instances where that isn't the case. She's brainy, theoretical and passionate, but she gets upset when things don't work out the way she wants. She's super into physics, calculus, math, dessert chemistry, and computers. She desperately hoped that Piano would be her lab partner, but she learned to respect what her daughter wanted to do. Jamison is a longtime concert pianist, which inspired Piano's name. He has played in piano bars, nightclubs, restaurants and big hotels. He is kind and fatherly towards others.

Floela is a hybrid of a sled dog and a snowy owl. She has an open mind and is very free-spirited. She is a huge sweetheart who's super forgiving. She looks past everyone's negative qualities. She has a bad sense of direction, and she's also kind of insecure. She's allergic to pollen. Floela and Neapolitan are very good friends, and they attend the mythical creatures convention together. Floela is also a huge lover of butterflies, and she's got some feeders for them built on her home. She lives on an ice floe in Milkshake Lake.

Coco is a chocolate ice cream who’s known for being very chipper. She is serene, soft, and often filled with bliss. She is sensitive to bright and flashing lights. She’s quite fond of jazzy elevator music. She runs a cozy restaurant in Gelato Village called Bliss, where she sells hot chocolate and cheese bites. 

Bananilla is a mix of banana and vanilla ice cream. She's a tranquil, laid-back person who's easy to talk to. She enjoys snowboarding along the ice cream scoop hills. She's quite observational as well. She's another friend of Neapolitan's who likes to play outside in the snow with him.

Randall, or Randy, is another rare case of not being named after your flavor/dessert. His flavor of ice cream is bubblegum. He also doesn’t have a lot to say because he’s usually got a wad of gum in his mouth. Because of this, he’s got a really strong set of jaws. He’s a bubbly fellow who’s bubbly in a peaceful, breezy sort of way.

Marshscotch is a combination of a marshmallow and a butterscotch square. He's squishy, bouncy and loves to climb things. It doesn't matter how high he goes so long as there's ground below his feet. He doesn't like being picked up. He and Neapolitan are also friends, and they've gone bobsledding together.

Mintfoot is a mint chocolate chip ice cream. His state of mind is as cool as the breeze. He doesn't let anything in life bring him down, and he lives his life in the best way he can. He's a friend of Germafrost's and likes to play chip-ball with him.

Toffee Chip is a vanilla ice cream with a bunch of toffee chips on his head. He's clever and good at coming up with plans. Other people see him as one of the smartest people they know. He's pretty slow, though. Even though he wasn't named Toffee Chip when he was born, it's his name, and he loves it.

Cottonette is a cotton candy ice cream. She's airy, charming and whimsical. Like many Gelatarians, she loves puppets and ventriloquism. She was part of the Young Puppeteers' Society in school. Despite how she might appear, when we first see her, she mentions that she's 31.

Sprinklehead is the closest thing Ice Cream Land has to someone who'd be comfortable living in the Unikingdom. He's a strawberry ice cream who's decorated with a bunch of sprinkles. He's energetic, colorful and adaptable, but he's got a breaking point, too (or a melting point, as he'd say).

Dough is an ice cream sandwich. He can get irritated and scornful when he's overwhelmed, or when someone disturbs the peace. He can be joking, but he's not always aware of when the joke is taken too far. He shovels snow for folks in his area.

Caramella is a caramel square. She's a serious confection; she tends to take things rather literally. Often times, she feels the need to correct people. She likes to keep things practical and factual, but she knows how to loosen up and have fun.

Wafflecone is, as his name would imply, a waffle cone. He doesn't like it when there are too many things happening and prefers to live an easy life. He's got an imaginative mind. He loves to make toys for people of all ages, and he works in his cousin's toy store.

Judge Fudge is a fudge square and a judge. It has walnuts baked into it. It hears proceedings in Ice Cream Land's courthouse. It's known for its problem-solving skills, its readiness, and its aversion to frivolity. It carries out the laws that the king and queen create and tries its best to keep things comfortable and cozy. And yes, its gavel is a popsicle.

Browncake is a mix of cake batter and brownie batter ice cream. It's courteous and enthusiastic about having a good time, but like most people in the kingdom, it doesn't like to be loud or get too crazy. It's a playful sweet who likes to bounce about in Sorbet Fields. It also keeps its fellow Gelatarians safe from sickness, since it gives them medicines for spoiling, discoloring, graininess, freeze burn and more. Browncake will often tell people what it prefers to be called, as that fluctuates for it day to day.

Olivia is another ice cream who isn't named after their flavor. Her flavor is peanut butter. She is also friends with Neapolitan. Olivia isn't that emotional or expressive, but that doesn't mean she's not happy. She's just in a perpetual state of calm. She's quite tough like a nut, and she shows a sense of determination. She enjoys playing ice hockey.

Sunday is an ice cream sundae who works in the palace. She looked after Germafrost and his siblings whenever their parents were busy. She washes towels, blankets and the laundry. She is intelligent, speaks her mind and has a good heart. She sometimes can be feisty. She can also repair furniture and fix holes in the walls.

Iceberry is a snow cone who is part of the Ice Cream Bowl Palace Guard, who keep Ice Cream Land and its inhabitants out of danger. His weapon of choice is a spear, the head of which is an ice cream cone. He spent much of his time outside as a kid, so he likes to be outdoors. He's spirited and colorful. Sometimes, though, he mistakes certain harmless things for danger, such as raves (which aren't commonplace in Ice Cream Land).

The Milkman is a cow with lots of thick fur. He's generous and calm to other people, and he radiates a huge sense of sweetness. Milk flows through streams and brooks throughout Ice Cream Land, and The Milkman harvests it from them. Then, he filters all the bad stuff from it and delivers it to people across the kingdom in large buckets.