#to an obsessive degree yes but oh my gosh i love how sweet he can be

[waitingfortheonetwosignal]

TWSTOBER DAY 16:

ROOK HUNT

Pomfiore's watchful archerer. Rook is one of my favorites tbh when I first saw him I thought he was... Odd... But then he became endearing

-> Day 15: Epel Felmier

-> Day 17: Vil Schoenheit

.

[lawlietscaramels]

Yandere ╾ L Lawliet

Because apparently I fell into a yandere stage and this is my tunnel out.

CW typical yandere stuff (stalking, obsession, overprotection, manipulative, worship, dependence, monopoly, killer)

　★━━─・‥…━━━☆

Yandere L is interesting because I think yes, he could absolutely be a yandere

canonically too

BUT only if you defined a yandere by "do they have the traits?" as opposed to "what do they do?"

so first: what KIND of yandere is the detective? top five traits incoming.

STALKER

Let's just get this one out of the way

He obviously to some degree "stalks" people just for his work, through cameras and policemen if not in person

he's a stalker guys. that's it.

so he wouldn't have a problem just turning up wherever someone who interested him was

again

and again

and again...

He's pretty hard not to notice because of his peculiar mannerisms, but he's also literally black and white enough to blend into the background.

So if he was careful (he is) it would take a while before you noticed you were seeing him everywhere you went. And by then you wouldn't be able to think of a time where he wasn't sitting quietly somewhere in the background.

L knows this.

he knows you're going to assume he just happens to live in the same area as you, or something like that.

I don't think he'd actually follow you into your home but he would go when you were out someday to set up cameras

and I think L would genuinely believe himself to be a good person

what if he goes away and you get in trouble? you don't always have a roommate, who would notice? well, now L will, and he is quite able to get you back to safety. but back to the stalkery.

oh man he's gone through your stuff. your closets your phone whatever. he wants to know about you

one day he might just arrange for a little... near accident somewhere you both frequent

and oh my oh gosh oh diddly darn

guess who just happens to be there to save the day

(L. it's L. notice him please?)

OBSESSIVE

There are two things that L is canonically obsessed with: work and desserts

but if he found a romantic interest that list suddenly has a third item: YOU.

especially if you bake him cakes or help him in cases. because then he ties those things he loves to you.

and I'll just quickly mention these traits are always a little bit in his personality but the order I'm writing in is the order they come out more strongly around you.

Obsession is also tied with stalking.

Some days he watches you and dreams about you smiling at him the way you smile at the rain and the sun and the world.

he imagines how everything will work out. you're a distraction to his work: he would have to find a way to integrate you into his life in a way that allows him to be close to you and not distracted. he imagines he imagines

you'd find a way to fit into him while he was sitting, your body pressed up against his torso, legs pulled up, head on his shoulder.

he could play with your hair with one hand. you could feed him sweets.

L is for the first time not in control of his own thoughts. it's new and unpredictable so it's completely terrifying to him, and for a while he'll slink away into the darkest recesses of society and draw away from you.

but it doesn't stop. it gets worse.

he can't look outside without wondering if you're looking at the same skies. can't eat strawberries without wondering if you like them.

so then he does a full 180 and will devote all of his available attention (some must be spared for work) to you. if you don't already work together or if he hasn't made contact during the stalking at all, this is when he does it.

he reaches out to see if you'll take him.

and when you do (it's not a question of if, see manipulative) he will calm down a fair bit.

but he is still, quietly, obsessed

OVERPROTECTIVE

what can I say?

gosh he just wants to keep you safe.

He's seen every bad thing about the world through his work, he knows bad things constantly happen to good people.

but. not. to. you.

L just won't let it happen. he can and will secret you away in a hotel room. never enough for you to become suspicious, to rattle at doors and windows. And you move with him, every couple of weeks, so it's just an adventure, dear.

also I think he'd use darling in a sweeter sense. dear or maybe doll is his yandere pet name for you.

He probably has several trackers somewhere on you. probably not IN you... probably...

also you know that nail polish they developed that changes colour when it comes into contact with common poisons in drinks? he makes you use stuff like that. for your safety.

hate hate hates that he can't be with you all the time. you tend to find yourself with reasons to stay at home when L's not around. once again see manipulative.

he does trust you, he really does. but he doesn't trust the world. men in particular are often disgusting. it's just true. he's seen it time and time again as a detective. who knows what scary things could be out in the world? and if they knew you were dating, that you had ANY relationship with the world's greatest detective? L's afraid he's putting you in danger. please just humour him and stay home for a week, dear. you can work on your baking.

if you started getting really rebellious, thought you were being chained up, whatever, L would let you go and do whatever you wish. He doesn't want you to feel like that! He loves you! he may or may not have organised for a brush with death for you so that you realise how right he is about the horrors of the world and want to stay home like he asks you so nicely to.

you're just so pure. so innocent.

there, there. he won't let them hurt you.

he'll even close all the blinds so the darkness of the world can't reach in to taint your beauty. isn't he the best?

MANIPULATIVE

IT'S CANON.

I can't think of any particularly specific examples but he lies about everything. Whenever he throws out a number (5%) it means he suspects someone over 90%

so he has no issues bending the truth

sigh if L's manipulative side is triggered it's triggered ALL the way. one one hand he hates doing this to you

but on the other it's for your own good and you're being stupid.

He will do ANYTHING to make you believe him. he will manipulate you into thinking he's being manipulative so he can get upset at your lack of trust in him so he's able to manipulate you

did that make sense...

can cry on demand.

but it's not all about making himself the victim, he will also just.. isolate you if you're starting to drift away from him. Suddenly your friends find other interests, your family are renovating the house or your parents won a radio prize for a vacation.

and L is the only one left. and he himself is distant until you cry and plead and apologise

the isolation thing is actually a yan trait itself and the scenarios above are also kind of training. but they're only a part of the bigger trait.

he will also manipulate situations and other people, not just you.

L just wants what's best for everyone

(coincidentally this always aligns with what is best for L.)

he's so smart though. it's really really difficult to realise he's manipulating you unless he wants you to.

WORSHIP

you're so pretty, the most perfect thing he's ever seen

you're an angel, really.

and people who don't respect you as such are going to get a subtle but clear message from L to STEP AWAY.

cold glares.

he will literally turn his head 180° like an owl to stare at them while he walks you away

they might end up fired. I mean someone who can't see what's right in front of their eyes doesn't deserve whatever job they have...

he just wants to spoil you sometimes and he has the resources to do it and more.

sometimes this gets a little suffocating but it's sweet. mostly.

it's nice to have time with your boyfriend instead of big, grand, empty rooms. L just doesn't have a lot of time. He does his job to protect you, protect you from everything in this world because it is all inferior to you.

I do not like to think about how he would react if you happened to meet Light...

I wasn't sure about whether or not to put this in the top five because I don't think he'd see himself as inferior. his IQ is big. but you could still jump from his ego down to his IQ and fall for hours. he thinks you're more good than he is but he's under no delusions about your relative intelligence or anything.

but yeah, I think he's a worshipper.

Just... a quiet worshipper. all his yan traits are kinda quiet tho haha

L wants to give you the world. he would sacrifice anything for you.

he would take a bullet for you

his work makes this a good possibility. he'd prefer not to get shot but he'd still do it for you.

probably the most harmless of his yandere traits. this one comes out when he decides this is it, you are it, forever.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

really quickly a couple of the other traits L might have and express are:

dependence (mostly for manipulative purposes. he will cry if you ever fight. L is honestly quite dependent on you, he might die without you-- or more likely just force you back into his arms-- but he puts on a lot of an act, a puppet master pulling strings behind the stage. he wants to be seen as vulnerable, not just a stoic and brilliant detective. because which one is it easier to lose your heart to? and you must lose your heart. you stole his first.)

monopoly (when he has time, he needs you to have time for him and only him. he doesn't have a lot of time. will manipulate you into spending time with him but it's more of an occasional pest thing than anything. quite harmless. especially because he works a lot. you have plenty of time without him, which makes him sad, but he can't help it. and you wouldn't love him if he stopped you from seeing your family and friends...)

killer (yeah... not in the top five by any means but if someone tries to hurt you? god forbid, if they SUCCEED? you'll be stuck at home for a couple of weeks while L frets over you. and sometime in that couple of weeks.. well.. maybe that someone who hurt you finds themself in trouble with a gang. L's not doing the dirty work himself but he's behind it and you will never find out. if they only TRIED to hurt you L won't be able to justify killing them to himself, but they'll quickly find themselves in jail.)

YANDERE?

so back to what I mentioned in the first part: L is a yandere, IF you're only basing the classification on the fact that he has these traits and the ability to act on them

but as anyone who's watched police or court drama knows, you need more than means and opportunity:

you need MOTIVE.

this is where I can't base my thoughts on canon so much anymore. the only people who we really see L caring about the death of (spoilers‼️) are: the FBI agents (though not on a personal level); Ukita (pretty sure that's his name); and Watari (though L himself dies too soon after for this last one to be useful)

so. Ukita.

L probably wouldn't care enough for the guy to go yandere for him LMFAO but we do see him refusing to rush in and take action without thinking, something which a yandere might be more inclined to do if they cared about someone.

HOWEVER we also see he's trembling. like he's a little in shock about the death and what it means, but also he wants to do something about it.

a yandere urge, brought out by something bad happening to someone he cares about.

My point being?

L has the traits of a yandere, and has the ability to act on any of them any time. he's smart, he's rich, and he has the trust of the entire world (or respect at least)

but he doesn't act unless triggered.

and ofc because he doesn't have a canonical love interest, we can't prove either way what he would do for/to them.

but I think he is more deredere (love) than yanderu (sick).

anyway, L is smart enough to realise that the yandere doesn't usually win the game of love, and that the things are not things you should be doing for/to someone who trusts you. not things you should be doing to someone you love.

but sometimes, when his emotions are high and so is the danger to you or your relationship,

his control just slips

and you might just find yourself locked in a hotel room while he works on the Kira case.

SO IS HE A YANDERE?

no. I'd say that he's a kuudere.

cold, cynical, sarcastic sense of humour, views feelings as a weakness but DOES have them and will open up over time.

but oh...

wait...

according to the dere wiki...,

"Due to the way a kuudere acts, a yandere can easily pretend to be a kuudere when not acting insane."

...

so, what do we think?

　★━━─・‥…━━━☆

but hey that's just a theory... a DERE theory! aaand cut.

𝖎𝖋 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖑𝖎𝖐𝖊𝖉 𝖎𝖙 ˏˋ⋆˖⁺˖⁀➷ 𝖕𝖑𝖊𝖆𝖘𝖊 𝖗𝖊𝖇𝖑𝖔𝖌 + 𝖋𝖔𝖑𝖑𝖔𝖜

©lawlietscaramels. Do not repost on other sites, claim as your own work, edit, rewrite or “fix,” feed to AI or otherwise use unethically.

[ladylillianrose]

The Best Laid Plans a Max Richman/Zoey Clarke Fanfiction

Summary: 5 times Max tries to propose to Zoey and one successful proposal

A/N: So this idea popped into my head the other day, and since I had trouble sleeping last night....tada!! I hope you all enjoy this fluff!

AO3

I.

Max had it all planned out, a nice early dinner, a romantic walk along the beach to watch the sunset, and then he would ask her to marry him.

He had continuously checked the weather report, making sure that everything would be perfect. Sunny and 73 degrees, can't get much better than that. 

Max had the ring in his pocket, it had been hidden away in his drawer for the past three years. Once he realized that he was no other woman for him than Zoey, he'd asked his mom for his grandmother's ring. It had been waiting there for the perfect moment, and today it was finally here.

Max had been nervous all day at work, unable to focus on any task at hand. What if she said no? She wouldn't...would she? No, he was certain that she would say yes.

He got home before she did, thankful to have a moment to calm himself down.

He opened the ring box and looked at it, imagining it on Zoey's finger. He smiled, a sense of calm washing over him.

"Babe? Are you in here?" he heard Zoey call out.

Shit! He quickly placed the box in his pocket, before heading out to greet her.

"Hello, love," Max smiled, pulling her in for a kiss.

"Mmm, hello to you too," Zoey grinned. She tried to deepen the kiss but Max reluctantly moved away.

"Come on, we've got to get ready."

"Wouldn't you rather stay in tonight? I can make it worth your while," she teasingly ran her fingers along his buttons. 

Max counted to ten silently, attempting to steady himself. "You can make it worth my while, after dinner," he said, grabbing her hands before they slipped any lower.

Zoey pouted, "Fine….I guess I'll go get ready." She threw an extra sway in her hips as she walked into the bedroom to get ready.

Max breathed a sigh of relief and checked the weather again. Still sunny and warm, so far so good.

Dinner went by in a blur, Max was so nervous he couldn't even tell you what they ate. He spent most of the dinner checking his pocket obsessively to make sure the ring was still there.

As they left the restaurant, Max suggested they take a walk along the beach, hoping she wasn't becoming suspicious of his plan.

Zoey smiled, as she leaned on his shoulder, "That sounds lovely."

They made their way down to the beach, stopping to leave their shoes on a nearby rock.

As they walked hand in hand Zoey told him about the latest hijinks at work.

"Can you believe that Tobin actually got his ferret certified as an emotional support animal? She looks adorable in her little vest, riding around on his shoulder. Good thing Joan is too busy running the company to notice!" Zoey laughed.

Max chuckled, shaking his head as he listened to her. He missed working at SPRQ Point, sometimes. But he found his true calling in helping out schools and libraries with their STEAM programs for kids. He was a natural teacher, his job allowed his creativity to flow and the children all adored him.

A cool wind picked up as the sun disappeared behind a cloud. Max glanced up and frowned, those were some very dark clouds overhead. Then he felt the first drops of rain beginning. 

"Maybe we should head back," Zoey suggested.

"It's only a few drops. It's not that bad," Max replied, determined to not let a few raindrops spoil his proposal.

As if the heavens had decided to mock him, the rain began pouring down suddenly.  

Max rolled his eyes at the sky and grabbed Zoey's hand. They raced back to where their shoes were and jumped into Max's car.

"Well, so much for romantic walks in the rain," Zoey quipped.

"Yeah, I don't think they mean this kind of rain," Max dryly replied.

Zoey leaned over to kiss him. "Well, it was still a lovely time. We'll go walk along the beach another day."

Max sighed and nodded as he started the car. He could feel the ring burning a hole in his pocket, he needed to come up with a new plan, and soon.

II.

After the rain fiasco, Max determined that keeping the proposal inside was a much safer option. He decided to surprise Zoey with a trip to the California Academy of Sciences. She loved going there when she was younger and had talked about going back when they had the time.

"Oh Max, let's go to the Planetarium next!" She said excitedly holding the map. He nodded and grinned at her eagerness, and they grabbed a spot line to wait for the next show to begin. Max glanced at his watch, 15 minutes till the show started, plenty of time.

He took a deep breath, "Zoey, there's something I've been…"

"Oh my gosh, Max look!" Zoey pointed at something in front of them.

Max turned to see a couple standing in front of the Planetarium, the man was down on one knee and holding out a box to the woman. A small crowd had gathered to watch the events unfold.

"Yes! A thousand times yes!" They heard the woman shriek in excitement.

Everyone burst into applause, except Max who stood there looking gobsmacked. "You have got to be kidding me," he mumbled, annoyed.

"That was so sweet," Zoey smiled at him.

"Yeah, really romantic," Max tried to keep his voice light.

"It was. So, what did you want to ask me?" Zoey said looking at him.

"Oh umm...I was thinking I might want to grow a beard and was wondering what your opinion was," he replied.

"You wanted to ask me if you should grow a beard or not?" Zoey looked at him puzzled. Max nodded, hoping she bought the lie.

"I mean, I hadn't really thought about it before, but yeah why not. I think it could be a good look."

"You do?" He asked in surprise. 

"Oh yes, not like a full mountain man of course. But a little scruff could be very sexy," she smirked, running her hand along his smooth face. 

"Well, then I'm glad I asked that important question," Max replied.

Zoey looked at him oddly and shrugged her shoulders, reading the program about what they would be seeing.

Max rolled his eyes at himself.  Really a beard? That was the "important question?" There wasn't anything better you could have made up? Stupid couple ruining his plan, stealing his proposal idea. 

The happy couple walked by them, "Congratulations!" Zoey called out.

"Wasn't it just so romantic?" The woman sighed, smiling at her fiance. 

"It certainly was. Wasn't it, babe?" Zoey smiled at him.

"Oh yes, very romantic,” Max smiled tightly at them.

"Ooo, come on, the shows starting, " Zoey looped her arm through his and bid the couple farewell.

As Zoey enjoyed the show, Max began formulating a new plan, this one would leave nothing to chance.

III.

"No, I don't want to do the ring in her drink or food. I'll just give you guys the signal and then the violinist can come to the table and I'll propose then. It needs to be at the beginning of the meal….yes I know most couples wait until the end, but I'm not taking a chance with this. Yes, okay, thank you." Max hung up the phone, relieved that all the details were fixed with the restaurant. He and Zoey would go out to dinner, order their food and then Max would propose with the restaurant's violinist played nearby. It was the perfect plan.

Later That Evening

*sirens*

"How crazy is this?" Zoey said, huddled next to Max as they stood outside the restaurant.

"It's crazy alright," Max shook his head in disbelief.

"It's lucky no one was hurt in the fire," She replied. 

"Except the violinist's violin and the waiter's pride," Max reminded her.

"Well honestly, the violinist shouldn't have placed himself there. Maybe then the waiter wouldn't have tripped over him knocking over all those candles. I wonder why he was standing so close to the table near us," Zoey rambled. 

"Who knows, maybe someone had asked him to play nearby, " Max shrugged.

"Hmm, maybe. Well, I'm starving since we didn't get to eat. I think I saw a taco truck down the way," Zoey smiled at Max.

"Sure, tacos sound good."

"Come on, last one there is buying!" Zoey teased racing ahead of him.

Max chuckled, as he chased after her. He needed to stop trying to plan the perfect proposal. He would just carry the ring with him and ask her when the moment was right.

IV.

The park was crowded, though it always seemed to be that way for the summer concerts. Max and Zoey had forgotten about them when they had made plans to take a walk in the park.

At least the paths were clear, everyone was crowding over at the lawn to find a seat before the show started. 

They strolled hand in hand along the pond, quietly enjoying the way the water reflected the sun.

Zoey sighed and smiled as she looked at Max. "It's so peaceful here," she said. "As though we were the only two people here."

Max grinned, this was it, this was the moment. Palming the ring box, he knelt on one knee behind her.

"Zoey…"

"YO, ZO-DOG!" They heard a voice yell.

Zoey turned and saw Tobin walking towards them. Was that Abigail with him?

"Hey!" Zoey grinned and waved at the couple as they approached. 

Abigail smiled at Zoey as she leaned in for a hug.

"Hey bro, trouble with your shoe?" Tobin asked, looking down at Max who was still kneeling on the ground.

"Ummm yeah, just needed to tie it. All good now " Max replied. He slipped the box back in his pocket, before standing up.

"What are you guys doing here? I didn't even know you were seeing each other," Zoey commented.

"Oh yeah, we just started hanging out, outside of work and we just clicked. We're keeping it on the DL for now, but of course, you guys know all about that," Tobin tossed them a knowing wink.

"What? No, we weren't a thing when we worked together," Zoey sputtered as she blushed. 

"Sure, whatever. Anyway, we were coming to check out the concert, but it's some lame dad rock cover band so we decided to ditch. Figured we could go grab some burgers instead," Tobin replied.

"Ooo, burgers sound good right about now. You mind if we tag along?" Zoey asked. She turned and silently asked Max if that was okay with him and he nodded.

Abigail grinned and signed, 'Of course not. The more the merrier!' She looped her arm through Zoey's and they started to make their way out of the park.

"You okay, bro? You seem a little tense," Tobin looked at over at Max.

"Nope, fine. Everything is just fine," Max ground out.

"Well, come on then!" Tobin ran excitedly ahead to catch up with the girls.

Max shook his head, he was beginning to feel like the universe had it out for him. He sighed and went to catch up with the group. Maybe a public proposal wasn't the way to go, too many things could go wrong or interfere. A more private proposal, just the two of them at home, that was the ticket.

V.

It was movie night, they had maintained the tradition even after they started dating. Though once they became a couple there were a few times they had to rewatch the movies because they got too distracted during them.

It was Max's turn to pick and he had decided on,  Big Trouble In Little China . He got everything set up, making sure the popcorn and wine were ready, so they could start as soon as Zoey got home. She'd been working long hours this week, she deserved to have a night where she could just kick back and relax.

Zoey came wearily trudging through the door and dropped her purse, letting out a sigh of relief.

"Welcome home, love," Max greeted her with a kiss.

"Mmmmm," she replied.

"Go put on your comfy clothes and then come sit on the couch. I've got everything ready, so you can take it easy," he told her.

"You're the best boyfriend ever," she smiled at him. Slowly she stumbled to their bedroom to change. 

Max put away her purse and keys and poured her a glass of wine.

She emerged in her PJs and Max led her over to the couch. She snuggled up next to him and took a sip of her wine.

Max hit play and they started the movie.

Zoey was enjoying the film, it was ridiculous and totally 80's, but it was the kind of fun she needed after the week she had.

She glanced over at Max and grinned, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"What was that for?" He smiled at her.

"Because I can," she replied, reaching for more popcorn only to find an empty bowl. 

"I'll go make more," Max said standing up.

"You don't have to," Zoey protested.

"I want to," Max replied, placing a soft kiss on her lips. "Just relax, I'll be right back."

Max threw a bag of popcorn into the microwave, as he watched Zoey from the corner of his eye. She was leaning on her hand against the armrest, totally absorbed in the film.

He smiled, this was everything he wanted in life, right here at home. It dawned on him that this was the perfect opportunity. He raced into the bedroom and retrieved the ring from his drawer. 

He walked back out just as the microwave dinged. He poured the popcorn into the bowl and made his way back to the sofa.

He set the popcorn on the table and knelt on the floor next to Zoey's side of the sofa. 

"Zoey, there's something I wanted to ask you," he started.

Zoey let out a small snore, causing Max to look up in surprise. She had fallen asleep…. Max shook his head and chuckled to himself. Poor Zoey, she was more tired than she had let on.

He set the box down and scooped her into his arms.

"I was watching that," she sleepily protested, snuggling against him.

"With your eyes closed?" Max teasingly asked.

"Hear better that way," came the mumbled reply.

"Mmhmm, and the snores?"

"I don't snore!"

"No, you're right, my mistake. Must have been someone else snoring."

"Hmph," Zoey responded.

Max gently placed her in their bed and tucked her in. "I love you, Zoey."

"I love you too, Max," she sleepily replied.

Max smiled and headed out to put away everything. He picked up the ring box and sighed, someday he'd get the chance to ask her, and it would be absolutely perfect. 

+ 1

Zoey jiggled her leg nervously under the table where they sat.

"Zoey, are you okay? You look pale..er than usual," Max asked her.

"No, I'm fine. I'm actually really happy*," Zoey replied grinning at him.

"Oooookay," Max said looking at her oddly.

Mo had invited them to hear him perform at a local bar's open mic night, so they went to support him.

"When do you think Mo is on?" Max asked.

"Mmm, I don't know. Oh, look here he comes," Zoey pointed to the stage.

"Hello, everyone. I'm Mo, but I am not the one who will be dazzling you tonight with my voice."

Max looked at Zoey confused, and she shrugged her shoulders in response.

"Instead, my good friend, Zoey Clarke, has a very special performance for you all," Mo grinned and gestured for Zoey to come up.

Max stared at her as she stood up and tossed a wink at him as she made her way to the stage. Mo handed her the microphone, "Thank you Mo. Hello everyone, I'm Zoey Clarke, and Max, this one's for you."

Zoey blew Max a kiss and began to sing.

I had no choice but to hear you

You stated your case time and again

I thought about it

You treat me like I'm a princess

I'm not used to liking that

You ask how my day was

You've already won me over in spite of me

And don't be alarmed if I fall head over feet

And don't be surprised if I love you for all that you are

I couldn't help it

It's all your fault

Your love is thick and it swallowed me whole

You're so much braver than I gave you credit for

That's not lip service

You've already won me over in spite of me

And don't be alarmed if I fall head over feet

And don't be surprised if I love you for all that you are

I couldn't help it

It's all your fault

You are the bearer of unconditional things

You held your breath and the door for me

Thanks for your patience

Max watched, stunned as Zoey sang to him. She began to make her way off the stage still singing, as she walked towards him.

You're the best listener that I've ever met

You're my best friend

Best friend with benefits

What took me so long

I've never felt this healthy before

I've never wanted something rational

I am aware now

I am aware now

You've already won me over in spite of me

And don't be alarmed if I fall head over feet

And don't be surprised if I love you for all that you are

I couldn't help it

It's all your fault

The music stopped as Zoey stood in front of him smiling. She slowly lowered herself to one knee. "Max Richman, you are the love of my life, my best friend, and I can't imagine spending another moment without you by my side. Will you marry me?" 

Max slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring box. "That was supposed to be my line," he grinned. "Yes, Zoey Clarke, I'll marry you!"

Max pulled her up, slipping the ring on her finger before capturing her lips with his.

Around them, everyone in the bar cheered and congratulated them.

They pulled apart flushing and breathless. 

"I guess the universe was trying to tell me something after all," Max grinned. 

Zoey looked at him confused.

"I'll tell you later."

"I'm just glad everything went smoothly. You have no idea how worried I was that something would go wrong or ruin it!" Zoey told him.

"No, you're right, I haven't a clue how that feels," he laughed and pulled her into another kiss. 

A/N: Song is "Head Over Feet" by Alanis Morissette (Listen to it here https://youtu.be/4iuO49jbovg)

*Episode 1x07

[mrneighbourlove]

Shadow Hunt: Ch 1. Setting up the Players

Clara sat back quietly onto the seat of the psychiatrist’s chair, taking slow deep breathes as instructed by her doctor. Work had been dragging on her, and with the anniversary of most of her friends’ deaths at the hand of the being known as Vul’kar tomorrow, she was feeling incredibly depressed.  “Can I have another pillow?”

“Of course.” Doctor Kai Neighbour gave a light smile as he got up to select another pillow from his cupboard. Doctor Neighbour had only been working as a professional for six months, but he was the leading psychologist in Hyrule. Sure, this only came about due to most of his predecessors being killed in wars, or having traveled to Danjur to seek asylum from all the death, but Doctor Neighbour was absolutely dedicated to helping all walks of life in Hyrule. No matter if they Moblins, Hylians, or Lorleidians, he wanted to be a neighbour to them, someone they could trust. Everyone had difficulties after all. Handing Clara the pillow, Doctor Neighbour took his seat with easy care. “More comfortable?”

“Yes. Thank you.” Clara relaxed with a few more breathes. “Doctor Neighbour. It’s been getting more stressful. The days are going by harder and harder knowing that my friends are all gone. I don’t know why I’m still sad about this.”

Doctor Neighbour gave a light nod of his head. He too lost people he cared for during the eclipse. “Grief is something that might never go away. Its hold on us being an overbearing force in our lives. We have to accept that, and we have to know that its normal to still feel sad. To be numb to your friends’ deaths wouldn’t be good now. You know in your heart that you care for them, and they’ll be with you.”

“But what do I do now? If it’s not going to go away, how do I cope with it?”

“Do you have any friends that survived the eclipse?”

“Yes… but…”

Doctor Neighbour made sure to not fully interrupt her as she spoke, clueing in at the appropriate time. “Anyone to go to? Old or new friends?”

“I was in a chess league with Prince Ralnor as a teenager. But he’s so busy helping the king. And I heard he’s married and has a child.”

Her psychologist could only smile, and softly clapped his hands together. “Our worries come from a place of possibilities, but possibilities we never achieve due to the worry of only the worst outcomes. And we won’t ever achieve the positive outcomes if we don’t take the chance to reach out to them.”

Clara was still somewhere in the middle of assurance and worry. “Are you sure he wouldn’t tell me off?”

“Clara. I’m sure if you took a deep breath, take that confidence I know you have, and knock on his front door, he’d be more than happy to play a game of chess and catch up with you.”

Clara appreciated her doctor’s positivity. His never give up thinking and to always try made her feel better now. “Alright. If you think that’s what it takes.”

“I’ll even write a note making it mandatory.” Doctor Neighbour smiled another on of his soft smiles.

The meeting lasted half an hour, and after talking about work and saying goodbye, Clara took her bags and walked up to the castle palace. When a guard asked what her business was, she simply showed the doctors note. She couldn’t believe it actually came down to that. Making her way through the palace with a guard escort, she took a deep breath, and searched deep for her confidence. With a steady smile, she knocked on Ralnor’s door.

“Ukuri! Let papa answer the door!” The moment that girl started to hobble around, Ralnor knew she’d be a handful. Picking his daughter up, he quickly placed her back in a crib. “Stay there.”

When the Prince answered the door, Clara was surprised by how much he had grown. They hadn’t seen each other in plenty of years. He still had that long golden hair like his mother though. She instinctively brushed the hair out of her face. “Hello Prince Ralnor. I’m not sure if you remember me. But we used to play chess together.”

“Clara.” Ralnor mimicked her hair gesture with his finger. “You still do that thing with your hair when you’re worried.”

“Oh gosh. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Its been ages, hasn’t it? What have you been up to all these years?”

“Well, I started using my teaching degree and ran a chess club for students, as well as anyone in Castle Town who was interested.”

“I heard. In the Brazzer Corner.”

“Yes. Its…. Its all gone now.”

Ralnor didn’t show a lot of emotion, but he understood it and picked up on it well in others. Clara was clearly hurt by the destruction Vul’kar rained upon Hyrule. Her presence here most likely meant she was looking for a friend. Her nervousness deduced this may have been a last resort. Shyness perhaps? The prince didn’t see why he couldn’t give her his time. He did remember how she was one of the few Hylians to be kind to him without an ulterior motive. “Would you like to come in Clara? I have some water if you’d like.”

Clara wasn’t one to hide her emotions. The fact she was actually let in felt incredibly gratifying. “Thank you. That would be very kind.” She took notice of the little one in the pen, reaching up. “Oh my goodness. She’s adorable.”

Ralnor finished pouring the glasses of water, looking proudly at his daughter. “Yes, she is. My little Ukuri, pride and joy of my life. She has her mother’s charms.”

“I’m sure she’s lovely.”

Ralnor took out an old, but richly engraved wooden chess piece collection, carefully setting it on the table. “Would you like to play? For old times sake?”

Clara felt her heart flutter, excited to play chess with an old friend. “I would. I’m sure you haven’t gotten rusty.”

“Not at all. It’s my favourite hobby.”

“Well, I’m sure your daughter can be a good referee.”

Taking their seats, the two of them played a long, yet fun game of chess, slowly catching up over lost time. Clara carefully moved her bishop to take Ralnor’s rook. “So, how did you and your wife meet?”

“My father always did want Covarog to have a Gerudo wife. Cass disagreed heavily with being forced into any relationship, even with a crown Gerudo prince. To appease my father, I proposed a relationship instead. With time…” Ralnor calculated his move and moved his knight into position. “… we formed an organic love with one another.”

“That’s very sweet Ralnor. I told you that you were likeable years ago.”

“It’s all about confidence now, isn’t it?”

“I suppose it is.” Clara moved her rook into place. “Check.”

Ralnor’s lips curled into a light smile as he moved his king into a specific space. Clara took a pawn with her queen. With this move however, Ralnor slipped his knight into place. “Check…” He watched Clara scan the board. Ralnor placed all his pieces perfectly. And she was so close to winning to. How’d she miss that? “… and mate.”

“Wow. You beat me.”

“Well, I should after years of practice. Not a child anymore now.”

“And without mothers help too. I’m sure Zelda would be proud.”

“Well, she did pay a lot for those lessons.” Ralnor shook Clara’s hand in good sportsmanship. “Good game Clara.”

“Good game Ralnor. I do hope we can do this again.”

Ralnor carefully put his chest board away, with all the pieces placed in cushioning. “I do as well. With all the recent events in the past few years, it has been difficult to find some quiet time for one’s self.”

His daughter cried out to him, wanting attention. Going over to her crib, Ralnor picked Ukuri and rocked her back and forth in his arms against his shoulder. “Really though, it was good to see you again Clara. I should really feed her and get her to bed. Not too awake myself either.”

“I understand. I’m sure that you have a private school in mind, but I’d be honoured to teach Ukuri when she’s old enough to start taking school. That is, if you’d ever think of enlisting your children into public schooling.”

“That’s something my wife and I would have to discuss; however, I will consider it as an option Clara. Do have a goodnight getting home. Would you like an armed escort?”

“Oh, please, that’s not needed. I should be fine getting home on my own, thank you.” Clara gave Ralnor a soft hug, surprising the prince. “Thank you for sharing the evening with me.”

“It’s no problem at all. Good day now Clara.”

The young women waved goodbye and took her time getting home. The sun set slowly onto the country of Hyrule. The reconstruction of castle town had been slow, but most of that was due to the city expansion plan. Building the area much larger than before, as well as having defences around the city and castle for greater protection. Two times the city was battered by destruction in the last few decades, so architects under the orders of the King and Queen wanted to make sure that the city could be organized effectively for a large population under evacuation quickly.

Her new house was right next to what would become a moat canal. The area had to have its construction completed before filling it with water that connected from the river. Going through her bag, she looked for her key. Every house on the block needed a key. For some reason, King Ganondorf was obsessed with the rule all new houses needed keys. “Stupid little silver- where are- there we go.”

Opening the door, she took a deep breath. Her house was oddly cool walking in. Setting her bag down, she took a sharp right into her kitchen. It was a small house, with narrow 90-degree angles. Grabbing her cupboard door, Clara heard her cat bounce up the stairs as she looked inside decide what she’d have one her late-night sandwich. The creaking of her steps gave it away, as well as a light purr.

Grabbing the kitty kibble, she poured some out for her cat to eat. Clara was ready for bed, so after eating her sandwich, she threw her clothing off and walked up the steps. More 90-degree turns up tight corners, she took a direct left at the steps, entering her bedroom. At least she was able to afford a nice big bed. Part of her wondered why she got a queen-sized bed if she never had anyone with her in it.

Crawling into bed, Clara relaxed, feeling the heavy blanket over her body. Her head turned slightly to hear her door creaking open. From this angle on her bed, she couldn’t see her cat come in. Closing her eyes, she tried to get comfortable. That was when she felt some weight beside her, pressing into the sheets. “Molly?”

Turning her head towards where the weight was, she saw only her closet. It was dark, but when she looked down, Clara thought she saw the imprint of a hand on her sheet. That was when she felt a shift at the edge of her bed. And it was subtle, but as she turned her head, she saw the blanket slightly move, a shape getting closer to her. Her brain was firing like crazy. Clara couldn’t help it, but a reaction of her unconscious curiosity got the better of her, and her eyes looked down at under her blanket.

In front of her was a man in thick, black latex all around his body, bar a tiny zipper keeping the mouth closed. She could only see the man’s eyes looking into hers. They were full of ill intent. Psychopathy. As she let out a scream, the figure reached out with a black hand covered in blood for her neck. He pinned her naked stomach with his knee as he started to choke her.

Carla felt her oxygen being choked out as the latex man choked the life from her. Reaching for a night candle, she smashed the candle stick against his head. The man let go of her temporally, allowing Clara to get up. Before she could get off the bed fully, she felt her back spike in pain with the sound of a sickening slice across her back. Clara gasped as she fell to the floor. Getting out the door, she looked across the hall to the bathroom, where she found her cat Molly, gutted and left smashed in the door.

“No. Please, take what ever valuables I have. Please don’t kill me!”

She turned to see the man crawling towards her, like a beast on all his hands and feet. His head never bobbed, entirely focused on her struggle. He was a gimp, his body tight and black as death. Raising the sickle in his right hand, Clara couldn’t stop him from stabbing into her leg. With a twist of his wrist, the maniac curved the sickle, and cut Clara’s right leg completely off from the kneecap. She whimpered, trying to scream when he crawled on top of her, holding his bloody hand over her mouth. His other hand trailed her naked body, the cold against her skin. Clara felt terror like nothing she ever felt in her life until now. She whimpered loudly when she felt a tongue trail the back of her neck. The man got a taste of fear, and was satisfied. Her terror was replaced by simple, effective, and life ending pain when the maniac took his sickle, and from between her legs, cleaved upwards on her body.

It was a slow end as Clara couldn’t even scream, overcome by shock and agony. She barely felt her body dragged to her window, the killer still crouching low as he dragged her mangled body. As her insides fell out, her mouth barely made an audible help, seeking sanctuary with her friends.

~

A man was walking in the cold morning of castle town. He had a morning routine every day. Run around the full area of the town square, go through the alleys, down to the empty moat, up the tall stair way, then back to his house. As he ran through the moat, he felt something drop on his head. It wasn’t supposed to rain was it? Looking up, he saw a nightmare come to life. Crows gathered around the body of a mutilated woman hanging from her bedroom window by her intestines. He screamed with absolute terror; his legs frozen with fear by the sight.

~

Ralnor received a knock at the door from a guard. He was preparing Ukuri for breakfast when he was interrupted by loud knocks. Grumpy he was interrupted, he opened his door in a huff and a cold face. “I’m very busy right now, so what-”

Ralnor stopped when he saw how pale the soldier was. “S-s-sir. I’m so, so sorry.”

The prince felt an awful feeling in his gut. “What is it soldier?”

“There was an incident down in the town. That friend of yours that was here yesterday. She’s…” The soldier could barely get her sentence out. Ralnor already calculated the dreaded words that would come next from the reaction of the women in front of him, but he still wished she didn’t speak them. “She’s dead my prince.”

Ralnor clenched his fist. Why? Why did this happen? “Get one of my sisters to look after my daughter. And give me Clara’s address.”

“Sir. I don’t think you want to see her…”

Ralnor gripped the soldier by the collar, glaring deep into their eyes. “I didn’t hesitate in giving my order. Now you shouldn’t hesitate in carrying it out.”

The soldier gulped, but the fear in her eyes didn’t waver. “… Very well. Prepare yourself Prince Ralnor…”

Ralnor received the address and quickly made his way down. Townsfolk surrounded the house, with local guards keeping people out. There were a few people crying from the agony of the news, and one investigator came out, puking into a bush. The prince hopped of his horse and showed his royal identification. “Let me through. I won’t ask twice.”

The investigators looked at each other, wondering if he had the authority to propose such orders, but there were no arguments. “We’re all taking a break. We moved the body from the window onto the bed, but warning my prince… it’s graphic in there.”

Ralnor slowly made his way in. Blood was smeared on the door way and trailing down the walls. The prince’s eyes followed the first blood trail to the kitchen. The freezer, kept cold by Zora ice, had bloody hands prints all over it. Opening the door, Ralnor flinched at the sight of a poor beaten in cat with a human heart stuffed in its mouth. Whoever did this wanted to take his time, send a message. Be some sort of sick artist. The cat’s wounds were horrific. It most likely suffered for a while, which meant the killer had time to kill it before Clara arrived home, and to do this with her heart, he had the time to be creative after her death.

Closing the fridge, Ralnor turned to go up to the steps. Making the first turn right, his mind raced seeing Clara’s leg against the wall. Pausing, Ralnor turned right again to the upper hall. His eyes rested on the massive pool of blood, mixed with other bodily fluids.  The carpet was stained, a darkness that would have to be utterly ripped from the foundation. Choosing to go right, he saw fur and blood smearing against the bathroom door. That must have been the point of origin of the cat’s death. Walking to the bathroom, Ralnor took note how clean it was compared to the rest of the house, save a little pile near the door. Looking at the toilet, he noticed some blood stains on the toilet seat. Taking a gander inside the toilet, there was wet blood. Did the killer wash his hands inside the toilet bowl?

As Ralnor walked out and opened the bedroom door, his analysis of the situation was forgotten immediately. He didn’t see the corpse of a random stranger, or even someone who worked for his family. He saw his friend. Clara laid on the bed, her body split open down the middle down up to just above her belly button. Her left breast had been cut open, where her heart was removed. The guts that had fallen out were stabbed into the wall in shape of a symbol Ralnor couldn’t make out. Her intestines were removed from her body by the investigators, but Ralnor could tell she was hung by them. The look in her eyes and face, the fear, shook Ralnor to his core. She died terrified.

Ralnor bit his lips in fury. Who would do this to her? Why would anyone do this? They killed her like a monster. She didn’t deserve this fate. Clara was a teacher; she never would have hurt anyone. By the gods, why did this happen under his watch? He should have insisted that she had a guard escort her. No. The killer was waiting inside. Her fate was sealed with or without Ralnor’s assistance. His teeth broke the skin of his lips, and blood dripped. Wiping his mouth, Ralnor shook subtly. After being powerless as a child to stop Kanisa from being kidnapped, after being a puppet to Vul’kar, letting that demon posses his body, and being so sick of the hidden depravity that made Hyrule stink, the Prince had enough. His friend’s death would not stand.

“Clara. I’m so sorry this happened to you. But I swear to you, I will look for who did this. I will find them no matter where they have hidden. I will make them suffer more than you ever did. And then I will kill them.”

_________________________________________

Next Ch. 

[babycharmander]

Tagged by @sethnakht!

Rules: choose any three fandoms (in random order) and answer the questions, then tag 10 people you want to know better

Three fandoms:

Portal

Coco

Grim Fandango

The first character you loved:

Wheatley!! While I played Portal first (and played it at least like, twice before moving on), the first character I truly fell in love with (platonically) was Wheatley. He embodies several traits I love in fictional characters, he’s a cute robot, he struggles with a lot of problems and has a lot of depth to him... and he’s hilarious. What’s not to love about him?

I think Miguel? I like how one of the first things we see him doing in the movie is kissing is great grandmother, sharing food with her, talking with her and playing with her, etc, even when she can’t remember who he is and doesn’t talk much--it immediately cements him as being a good kid, even if he can be selfish and does stupid, impulsive stuff, as kids do. (Also I can deeply empathize with characters that are shown to be grossed out by romance, so that helped too. XD) He’s not my favorite, but he’s the first character in the movie I really liked and I still love him a lot.

Glottis! Another character that embodies a lot of stuff I like in a fictional character. He is a lorge friend and a cinnamon roll that smells like diesel. He is sweet and hilarious and how on earth can you possibly not love him.

The character you never expected to love so much:

ghhhh ALL OF THEM??? (except Henry) All of the characters in the Portal games are so wonderful oh my gosh, and they all have way more depth than you would expect, even ones we never even see, or ones who don’t talk. I mean, heck, the PANELS have personalities. All of these characters are Very Good A++++ and while I do have a preference to all of the robots (GLaDOS, Space Core, Rick, Adventure Core, etc), of course, I still love Chell, Cave, Caroline, Rattmann... SO MANY GOOD CHARACTERS AAAA

Héctor oh my gosh. I have to admit I did not trust him at first! Which I think was Pixar’s intention--he’s portrayed as a scrappy trickster goofy sidekick in the promotional material, and in the movie he’s introduced with shady music and doing shady stuff for reasons we don’t understand yet. I enjoyed his character though, even if I didn’t fully trust him--when he first confronted Ernesto (”Those were MY songs you took!”) my initial reaction was “what? no way, no way this scrappy skeleton wrote these songs.” And then like, minutes later, you find out who he truly is... and then like after the movie I was slowly getting hit by all the fridge horror of realizing why he was acting the way he did earlier on in the movie before we realized his motivations, and oh gosh my poor tol dead son. So yeah, Pixar successfully fooled me into thinking that he was gonna be the silly sidekick and then proceeded to punch me in the gut with all of the feelings for this sad skeleton dad.

Manny! I kinda thought he was gonna be a dull, cynical protagonist at first, but nah he’s an absolute dork who wants so badly to be cool and I love him. my smol dead son who is actually older than me.

The character you relate to the most:

Wheatley. %| hi yes I am a dumb screwup whose vocal processor runs faster than her main processor, who has been a massive jerk at times without initially realizing it, who dealt with a lot of bullying that led to a lot of pent up anger, and ... yeah.

Oof... Kindof a mix between Héctor and Miguel here. I can relate to Miguel’s being stuck in a situation where he really wants to follow his dream, but his family wants him to stay in the family business. I also heard a lot of that “stupid fantasy” talk from my dad when I expressed my desire to get an art degree. I can relate to both Miguel and Héctor as artists--getting lost in creating things, experiencing the joy of sharing what you make with others, etc. With Héctor though I can relate... a lot to his situation with Ernesto, minus the murder part (and minus stuff getting stolen to that degree, though my situation did involve some of my art getting stolen, but that was the least of the problems honestly). Please do not ask me to elaborate on this.

Probably Glottis. XD; I am also a dumb idiot who obsesses over the things I like and talks about them too much. Though I can also relate a bit to Manny having a crappy desk job.

The character you’d slap:

Wheatley.

Ernesto.

Nick Virago.

Three favorite characters (in order of preference):

Wheatley, GLaDOS, Space Core.

Héctor, Imelda, Miguel.

Glottis, Manny, Meche.

A character you liked at first but don’t anymore:

N-none... that I can think of???

...No-one?

Yeah I got nothin’.

Three OTPs:

Wheatley + Space Core friendship gives me life.

Héctor/Imelda is one of the few ships I actually, genuinely like. I’m not a romance person but I really love this couple.

Manny/Meche. I don’t like it as much as I like my real OTPs, but they’re a canon couple and they’re happy together.

I tag... @jaywings, @silverstreams, @nonanalogue, @vgjustice, @drundertalescum, @netbug009, @pengychan, @im-fairly-whitty, @bazzoka-bazz, @judgechaos, and anyone else who wants to do this.

[hentaihunblog-blog]

Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi Episode 9

New Post has been published on https://hentaihun.com/blog/2018/05/29/kakuriyo-no-yadomeshi-episode-9/

Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi Episode 9

I would be lying if I said this didn’t turn out to be an anti-climatic episode. Maybe I was just too excited for it, but I definitely felt this was the most rushed episode to date. Everything happened so fast, so it honestly didn’t give us a lot of time to process it. But I have to laugh because the rescue played out exactly as one of the many scenarios I imagined while I waited for this episode to air. (I am not ashamed to admit I am obsessed with this show).

In the end, the one who came to her rescue was Oodanna, who made the quick decision to skip the important Hachiyo Night Meeting, prioritizing Aoi’s safety first. He was able to track her down thanks to the Ogre Fire, that was later revealed to serve as a familiar spirit of a sorts, and eventually its fire will die out soon. Byakuya was left to take care of the rest in his steed.

What’s incredible though is how fast he was able to get there. I don’t know how far Youto is from the Eastern Lands, but it’s certainly not simply a few blocks away, aha… Anyhow, she was there for quite some time, having passed out for the second time, only to wake up to realize the place was flooding. What a terrifying way to wake up. With it firmly locked shut, there was no way she was going to get out of there without the Tengu-Fan (which was fortunately retrieved).

During her plight, she remembered more of her past, and her interaction with the Mystery Akayashi. Once again, they are really doing a great job of sending us mixed signals. In fact, by the end of the episode they had me 100% convinced that it was Ginji… After-all, he to some degree, spilled the beans and much to my surprise, Aoi didn’t catch him. Well I guess to be fair, she was still unwell and feeling woozy, so she wasn’t really paying much attention. Regardless, with him knowing so much of the specific details and his guilt eating away at him, it must be him. …Or so I thought.

All of that was thrown out the window when I collecting the screencaps, and caught sight of a very tiny, but crucial detail: The cut on her hand. Although we did not see any long black nails, (which had prompted me to assume it most likely had been Ginji’s hand) we know from the first episode when Aoi handed Oodanna the lunch, his nail broke her skin that time too. I swear to god, if it turns out it really is Oodanna, then god damn it, that means my suspicions of Ginji serving as a red-herring would be right and show that I am not a maniac who over-analyzes everything.

So now I am back to being torn between the two again, the only other thing that’s preventing me from concluding Oodanna being the Mystery Akayashi is the voice. I swear they must be overlaying it with both of their voices because I am pretty sure I heard Ginji’s voice— but I don’t have a lot of confidence in my hearing, so my take words with a grain of salt.

Darn it this mystery is taking over my life!!!

But one of the things I found rather interesting is how Aoi seems to be a lot more self-conscious around Ginji than she is around Oodanna (probably because she has him in the Friend Zone). She was flustered about her bedhead, she often feels at ease around him and is thankful for his support. And if he does turn out to be the one who saved her when she was little, I am sure she is bound to feel a bit more attracted to him, perhaps perceiving him as her knight in shiny armour due to being the one “saved” her. But as I mentioned last week, I also find it rather strange why she is in such a state of denial when it comes to thinking Ginji may have been the Mystery Akayashi. Maybe there is a part of her that wants him to be the one, but it afraid she may be setting herself up for disappointment.

It turned out at least one of the culprits were the petty dramua from Tennji-ya Inn, forcing the Chief Chef to feel the need to take responsibility for their actions by resigning and leaving the inn, but to everyone’s surprise, Aoi wasn’t going to have any of it. She has yet to taste the chef’s Tenjin-ya full course meal! She says not being able to eat his full-course meal is would be the worse! Only after she gets to experience his dish he can quit.HAHA! Aoi and her priorities! However make no mistake, that doesn’t mean she has forgiven the dramua. If anything, she will showcase her scary side and have them work as her servants.

However despite the little shits from the kitchen claiming responsibility for imprisoning her, and almost killing her in the process, Oodanna and Ginji recognize that they weren’t the only ones after her at the time. Ginji shared how the enemy used advance techniques, paralyzing him while they spirited Aoi away. In fact they believe the ones who attacked her in the courtyard most likely was involved in this incident as well. As it stands, there are a range of suspects, from it being potentially one of their own employees, someone higher above them, or Orio-ya (and based off Ginji’s reaction, I suspect he is his rival he mentioned in the past), or another one of the leaders from the other regions. With that in mind, if it does turn out that Orio-ya is Oodanna’s rival who Ginji used to work for, it could be that Orio-ya is targeting Aoi as a way of getting back at Oodanna would “stealing” Ginji away or for similar reasons along the lines of losing something because of him. With Aoi as Oodanna’s bride, she seems to be perceived a a valuable target used to get under his skin. And Oodanna choosing the Hachiyo Night Meeting over her only validates that he cares about her deeply, and as result she becomes one of his weaknesses.

However Aoi’s memory of seeing the blond zashiki-warashi offers a critical clue that perhaps Ginji and Oodanna may indicate this may even turn out to be a bigger problem than initially anticipated. The question now is who is she affiliated with, and why after seemingly to have blessed Aoi prosperity with her business, is she contributing to putting her in harms way? Could it be she is allies with Orio-ya? Or she is an entirely different party to be concerned about?

I do want to quickly note, the first time we have seen Orio-ya was at the end of Episode 1, discussing about the arrival of Oodanna’s Human bride with a tengu. At the time, they mentioned “the day of the ceremony is approaching” (why yes I rewatch the entire show often enough to remember these things, and I regret nothing!) Whatever that is, I am going to guess that could have potentially been the subject of the Hachiyo Night Meeting. When Byakuya returns, perhaps we will get some answers of what we missed, if he was allowed to participate at the meeting in Oodanna’s steed in the first place.

Of course we mustn’t forget the VIP guests of the day! When I said this episode was rushed, I wasn’t kidding. A lot happened. After being rescued, Aoi only had a few hours to work with to prepare for the Royal Couple’s dinner, and had to do it with a high fever, but she managed to pull it off without a hitch. Although Oodanna offered to take care of the Royal Couple’s request, wanting her to rest as much as she could, but respected her wishes when she stubbornly refused.

Through the words of encouragement from Ginji and Oodanna, they suggest to her to just cool her usual simple meals, and so for their main course, she ended up making stewed pork belly, which brought about memories of Ritsuko’s local dish from her hometown in Nagasaki. Another albeit small thing that she and Nui appreciated was the home-made mayonnaise, something that was hard to come back in her days due to the war. Goodness all those dishes looked delicious, absolutely drool worthy. Now I am hungry… Although I must admit, the King appeared a lot more different than I imagined. It was cute seeing the two interact, they were clearly in love with each other, and enjoy eating out and experiencing the local delicacies.

Lastly, it was so sweet to see Aoi being taken care of by the others for once. She always makes them food, but this time having almost died and suffering from a high fever, they all did a little something to take care of her. Even Ginji was surprised to see them do thing for others for free! And oh my gosh, it was so adorable how Aoi responded when presented a Dorayaki he had prepared for her. Apparently it’s not something that can be found in this realm, but he had it. Her angry face when she was eating made her the cutest darn thing.

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