#we're almost done with the investigation.....

[catboyebooks]

continuing the investigation in komaeda's room. nanami suggests they check to see if there's anything stashed under the bed, since people often hide things under their beds. hinata thinks "yeah, like porn" but checks anyway. no porn, but there's a plastic shopping bag containing a gas mask and rubber gloves. they look like pretty legit equipment, likely obtained from the military base.

for the sake of being thorough hinata looks around under the bed some more and spots what he thinks is a piece of paper, but it's actually a round piece of aluminum foil. the two of them don't put it together right away but i'm near-certain this is the seal that would have been on the poison bottle.

komaeda also has a bookcase in one corner, and nanami tells hinata he should go through it himself because what if there's private boy stuff in there or something. i take it this is also why it was up to hinata to check under the bed. while sorting through the books looking for anything that might be a clue, hinata comes across the hope's peak files komaeda received from beating the final dead room. though he didn't question it at the time, hinata now doubts that this file was solely about him, especially now that he sees it's a pretty hefty volume. he also hopes komaeda might have been lying about him not being talented.

as soon as hinata starts looking through he sees that komaeda was indeed lying — there's stuff about everybody in here, not just him. he flips through till he finds his profile thinking maybe he's got a talent after all, but nope, his profile clearly says "reserve course." hinata starts angsting about his talentlessness all over again, and also wonders why he's the only reserve course student here on the island.

nanami notices him going through the file and asks to see it. she finds her own profile and comments that it's disappointing, there's nothing in their profiles that gives them a hint as to what memories they're missing. she thinks these must have been written before they actually started classes at hope's peak. nanami seems to be implying it's a waste of time going through the file more closely, which, yeah, i bet there's stuff in here she doesn't want hinata to be seeing. hinata suddenly notices something, though — looks like a particular classmate of theirs has his info missing from this file. there's nothing in here about a byakuya togami.

monokuma shows up just then to laugh at them and ask hinata if he thinks twogami is the traitor based on the missing info. hinata says, well, it's not just that. he was in a previous killing game too, wasn't he? seems a lil sus. monokuma says hinata's drawing the wrong conclusions and he'd better actually read the file if he wants to figure it out.

looking through it another time, hinata stumbles on a profile that's mostly blank. no photo and question marks left in most of the information fields, just a talent listed, "shsl imposter." monokuma confirms at this point that the "byakuya togami" they knew was a fake. the profile is deliberately mostly blank because the imposter has no identity of their own (and i may as well use they/them, because their gender identity, if they have one, isn't known — this more or less explicitly comes up and now i'm recalling why nonbinary twogami headcanons were popular. it does seem to be essentially canon actually.)

hinata feels a bit betrayed at the realization that "togami" lied to them, but nanami says the imposter didn't really have a choice because, well, being an imposter is their talent. she says having a talent can be restrictive, because if you're recognized as being skilled at a particular thing, you're expected to do said thing whether you want to or not. monokuma backs her up and says hinata's lack of talent is actually rather liberating in that sense. (hinata isn't happy to hear this from him.)

i know this post is getting super long and i'm sorry but there are two other things of importance here. first, about the bit back in chapter 1 where twogami alluded to having a dark past, making one think he's talking about the dr1 killing game: monokuma doesn't seem to actually know what imposter was talking about there (nor care) but figures that having no identity of your own probably sucks, so maybe that. tl;dr it was a red herring. second, about the identity of the traitor. monokuma says one of the student profiles is a fake he created, since there were only meant to be fifteen of them on this trip, and there's no way they could tell which profile is fake just by reading the file. nanami asks if that means komaeda wouldn't have been able to figure it out either and monokuma replies "...probably."

[inky-goddess]

Some progress shots for my ap art class project.

[thefanficmonster]

Never Beating the Allegations

Colby Brock x Reader (Female)

Warnings: Swearing

Genre: FLUFF, Friends to Lovers, Idiots in Love, RPF (Real Person Fic)

Summary: A compilation of Colby and Y/N being far too obvious with their feelings for one another for the entire world to see. Basically, a YouTube documentation spanning several channels that marks the history of this goofy relationship

"It's fucking nighttime already, dude! We're running two hours behind schedule!" Sam complains through a smile, shaking his head at Colby who's trailing behind him with bags full of snacks. "All because someone spent those two hours scouring a store!

They're currently in Canada following the filming of a couple investigations for Hell Week with Kris and Celina. As Sam said, they were supposed to be two hours along the road back home already - a very tiny portion of their roadtrip back, seeing as how they didn't get to buy plane tickets on time. So, they settled for a two day roadtrip and the adventure it would bring on.

Colby, not at all bothered by Sam's accusations, smiles at the camera, "I promised Y/N I'd bring back signature Canadian snacks for her. There is no chance in hell I go home empty-handed. She'd kill me." As if to prove he is serious about his quest, he lifts the two heavy looking bags for the camera to get a better shot of them.

Sam's smile falters, replaced by a highly offended frown, "So you're telling me we're not gonna eat any of those snack on the road?" Colby - folding with laughter, mind you - shakes his head. "Are you fucking ki-...."

* * * * *

"I'm almost done!" Y/N calls out from her spot in front of the mirror where she's been stuck for the past thirty minutes trying to even out her winged liner.

A groan comes from a far distance but is still picked up by her phone microphone and is heard by the audience of Y/N's Instagram live, "You keep saying that!"

Not ten seconds later, the door is thrown open, provoking a laugh from the girl. She lowers her hand and takes her attention away from her reflection to pay her roommate proper acknowledgement. "Give me a second, sheesh! Can't a girl make herself pretty in peace?"

Although he never enters the frame fully, the live chat is already flowing with cheers of Colby's name. Whether it was wishful thinking or an educated guess on their part is a mystery. Regardless, they're entirely correct, their suspicions confirmed when they hear his voice and see his arm come into frame, his hand cupping Y/N's chin to tilt up her face.

"You're always pretty." He says, causing her to roll her eyes. At that, he boops her nose with his pointer finger before withdrawing his arm, "You have five minutes to wrap things up."

Y/N's gaze lingers on him until he's out of sight. She shakes her head and catches the camera's eye in the mirror reflection, "The audacity on that man. Tsk

* * * * *

@_y/n_dragonfly Fuck Valentine's Day @_colbybrock

Needless to say, the comments went wild, running with this post on Y/N's Instagram as unofficial proof of the ship the fandom seems to hold so near and dear to their hearts.

Hope dies last, after all. Maybe one day their ship might set-sail.

* * * * *

"Ok, so, update..." Colby chuckles, looking away from the camera he's currently holding blogging style to make sure he doesn't trip on anything, "We were supposed to go grab food before starting the investigation, but then...." He flips the camera to show the backyard of the abandoned house they'll be exploring tonight, "Y/N found a trampoline in the backyard."

As the camera focuses, both Sam and Y/N come into clear view - the former laughing at the latter who's too busy to care. She's too occupied having the time of her life on this raggedy looking trampoline, reveling in childlike joy as she hops around.

Colby sets the camera on the tripod Sam had left nearby, wanting to capture this wholesome moment, even if it didn't make it into the final cut of the video. Though he doesn't see why it wouldn't.

After adjusting the camera, he turns to find Sam has joined Y/N on the trampoline, far more hesitant than she is, though.

"You guys are ridiculous." He remarks as he approaches them, shaking his head with a bright smile on his face.

Y/N lands on her knees so she can be at least halfway at eye-level with her friend, offering him a beckoning hand, "Come be ridiculous too. Don't be a bore."

Colby scoffs and rolls his eyes. Still, he accepts her hand but instead of using it for support to climb up to join his friends on the trampoline, he tugs on it. Y/N lets out a little yelp as she's enveloped in his arms. Her legs instinctively wrap around his waist, unwilling to have a rather unpleasant encounter with the ground.

"Colby! Put me down!!" Put her down he most certainly doesn't, instead opting to spin her while securely holding her in his arms, eliciting mock terror-filled screams from her.

Eventually, he does get persuaded into joining her and Sam on the trampoline.

And the whole fiasco eventually makes it into the final cut and onto the internet.

And, inevitably, in edits.

* * * * *

It's an innocent, wholesome TikTok they filmed in the garden of the Conjuring house. Yes, the Conjuring house, no biggie.

Sam is the cameraman who much to his relief didn't even need to orchestrate anything. He just pressed the record button on his phone to capture the tomfoolery going on. The lighting is perfect, provided by the few remaining rays of sunlight before dark befell them. A little lighthearted fun was more than needed before they'd have to go back in the house to chat with spirits for the night.

The video captures Y/N in her natural element - dancing goofily with the pair of headphones they use for the Estes method on her head. The caption under the video reads: 'When the spirits drop a sick beat' and is quite the perfect depiction of the trio's dynamic.

Sam documenting the chaos. Y/N being the chaos. And Colby observing her chaos with heart-eyes from the sidelines.

Although Sam hadn't originally noticed his best friend's awed gaze accidentally captured in the video, the fans most definitely noticed. And, as per usual, they ran with it.

*sigh* These two are never beating the allegations.

@benbarnesprettygurl @jessy-shine @mushycore @richardsamboramylove55 @smuttiest-smuttt @honey-bees-13 @rei-ito

[evilcarrington]

SURPRISE BABY -C.STURNIOLO

in which…. you find out something shocking through the estes method when you investigate a haunted school with your best friends.

warnings: mentions of spirits, seeing spirits, tormented, pregnancy, being pushed.

MOST OF THIS IS ALL FICTION NOT BASED ON THE VIDEO.

you and chris have been friends since high school. you were close with his brothers nick and matt. but lately, you and chris have been friends with benefits. it all started with a drunken night you shared.

today you've been feeling off, sensing strange sensations in your belly. you brush it off as nerves. since sam and colby invited you to explore the abandoned school they just bought which was the farar school.

you were filming a video for their channel. you thought it could just be because you were nervous as you never done anything like this before.

as you enter the abandoned building, an eerie atmosphere envelops you. the halls are dark and musty, filled with whispers of the past.

suddenly, you see something that makes your heart race. in the corner of your eye, a small figure darts past. turning quickly, you catch a glimpse of a little girl in an old fashioned dress. she disappears around a corner, her giggles echoing softly.

chris notices your startled expression. “what's wrong?”he whispers. you point towards where the girl vanished, but she's gone. chris squeezes your hand reassuringly.

“there was a little girl standing over there. did you not hear the giggles?” you whispered to him.

he shook his head. “no i haven’t. are you sure it’s not just in your head?” he asked you.

you rolled your eyes. “i know what i saw chris.” you said.

as you continue through the school, more spirits appear. in an old classroom, you see the ghostly form of a pregnant woman, her hand resting on her swollen belly. she looks at you with sad eyes before fading away.

the strange sensations in your own belly intensify. you can't shake the feeling that something is trying to communicate with you. chris notices your discomfort and suggests heading to the car, but curiosity keeps you moving forward.

after a while you guys were in the gym, you gather around the spirit box, its static crackling with anticipation. suddenly, words start coming through: “baby.” “mother.” “birth.” you exchange puzzled glances, but before anyone can comment, a shadowy figure darts towards the boiler room.

the shadowy figure disappears into the boiler room, leaving stunned. “i just seen something go into the boiler room.” you said as you got up. everyone got up along with you.

curiosity overcoming fear, you cautiously approach the door. chris grabs your arm, his eyes wide with concern. “maybe we shouldn't.” he whispers, but you gently shake off his grip.

as you walk in, a wave of cold air hits your face. the boiler room is dimly lit, shadows dancing on the walls. suddenly, the spirit box in sam's hand crackles to life again. “protect.child.danger.”the disembodied voice warns.

your heart races as you step further into the room. the strange sensations in your belly intensify, almost as if responding to the spirit's words. in the far corner, you spot a small, huddled figure. as your eyes adjust, you realize it's the same little girl you saw earlier.

she looks up at you, her eyes filled with a mixture of fear and hope. “help us.”she whispers, her voice echoing in the silent room. before you can respond, she vanishes, leaving behind a small, worn teddy bear.

as you pick up the bear, a vision flashes through your mind - a pregnant woman, terrified, hiding in this very room. the realization hits you. something terrible happened here, something connected to mothers and children. and somehow, you're now a part of it.

you turn to your friends. “guys.”you say, your voice shaking, "i think we need to dig deeper into the history of this place. something tells me we're not just dealing with ghosts anymore."

sam furrows his brows “but why are you the only one seeing these spirits? it’s like they're targeting you specifically.”

colby nods in agreement, “yeah, it's weird. maybe there's some connection we're missing?”

as you ponder this, a dark, shadowy figure suddenly comes behind you. you can feel its presence behind you. before you can say anything, you feel a forceful push, sending you stumbling forward. chris grabs you just before you hit the ground.

nick was getting worried. “we need to get out of here. this is getting dangerous.”

you all quickly exit the boiler room, your hearts racing. once outside, you take a moment to catch your breath and calm down.

“lets take a break from filming”sam suggests, “we all need a minute to process what just happened.”

after a short break, you decide to continue with the estes method on the stairs, hoping for some answers. chris and nick puts on the headphones while the rest of you gather around.

chris, wearing the noise-canceling headphones, starts to speak. “baby. y/n. pregnant.”he says, his voice monotone but his expression confused.

colby's eyes widen. “what why are you saying y/n? what does she have to do with this?”

chris continues, “baby... y/n... pregnant... it keeps repeating.”

nick suddenly starts speaking words that come thru the noise canceling headphones he has on. “y/n. chris. babygirl. hurt y/n baby.”

matt exchanges a worried glance with sam. “guys, this is getting weird. maybe we should take a break?”

sam nods, his face pale. “yeah, let's stop for a moment. y/n, are you okay?”

you nod, but your mind is racing. the words chris and nick heard, combined with the strange sensations you've been feeling all day, are starting to paint a picture you're not sure you're ready to face.

colby breaks the tense silence. “look, i know we came here for answers, but this feels... different. maybe we should call it a night?”

as the group debates what to do next, you can't shake the feeling that something significant is about to change in your life. the abandoned school seems to hold more secrets than you initially thought, and you're not sure if you're ready to uncover them all.

as the night wraps up, you all gather to say goodbye to the camera. sam and colby thank everyone for joining them on this intense exploration, promising their viewers a video filled with unexplained phenomena.

once the cameras are off, you pull chris aside. “hey can we talk?” you whisper, your voice trembling slightly. chris nods, concern evident in his eyes.

as you and chris walk towards the car, nick and matt stay behind for a second giving you two some privacy. you take a deep breath. “chris. i think. i think we need to get a pregnancy test.”you say, your words barely audible.

chris’ eyes widen, a mix of shock and worry crossing his face. “are you sure?”he asks, his voice equally low.

you nod, recounting the strange sensations you've been feeling and the eerie messages from the spirit box. “i don't know what's going on, but after everything that happened in there.i think we need to know for sure.”

chris nods slowly, processing your words. “okay, let's do it. we'll stop by the pharmacy on the way home.” he says, his voice a mixture of concern and support.

your mind races with thoughts and questions. the events of the night replay in your head, each ghostly encounter now taking on a new significance. you can't help but wonder if the spirits were trying to tell you something all along.

“hey, are you alright?”chris asks, noticing your distant expression. you give him a weak smile and nod, but inside, you're a whirlwind of emotions.

the drive to the pharmacy is mostly silent, both of you lost in your own thoughts. matt and nick silent.as chris pulls into the parking lot, he turns to you. “do you want me to go in, or…?”

you take a deep breath. “let's go together.” you decide, needing his support now more than ever.

inside the store, you both nervously scan the aisles until you find the pregnancy tests. chris picks up a few different brands, unsure which one to choose. you settle on two, figuring it's best to be certain.

back at your hotel, you head straight to the bathroom, your heart pounding. chris waits outside, pacing nervously. the minutes feel like hours as you wait for the results.

finally, you emerge from the bathroom, tests in hand. chris looks at you expectantly, his face a mixture of fear and anticipation. you look down at the tests, then back up at him.

“they're both positive.” you whisper, your voice barely audible.

chris's eyes widen, and he takes a step towards you, pulling you into a tight embrace. you both stand there for a moment, the reality of the situation sinking in.

“what are we going to do?”you ask, your voice muffled against his chest.

chris pulls back slightly, looking into your eyes. “we'll figure it out together.”he says, his voice more steady than you expected. “whatever you decide, i'm here for you.”

you nod, grateful for his support. as the initial shock begins to wear off, your mind drifts back to the abandoned school. “do you think..do you think the spirits knew?”you ask, remembering the pregnant woman you saw and the messages from the spirit box.

chris runs a hand through his hair, looking thoughtful. “i don't know. it's hard to believe, but after everything we experienced tonight.who knows?”

you sit down on the couch, feeling overwhelmed. chris joins you, taking your hand in his. “we don't have to figure everything out tonight," he says gently. "let's just take it one step at a time.”

you nod, leaning against him. as you sit there in silence, your mind wanders to the future. you think about the little girl you saw in the school, wondering if she was trying to tell you something.and you think about the new life growing inside you, a secret told to you by spirits before you even knew it yourself.

[shhhsecretsideblog]

I squat between your spread legs as you push. Your huge, bare belly tenses around your womb with every effort you make to birth the head of our baby.

The cool mountain air and smell of spring leaves might have been calming if this was at all intended. We came up here to get labor Kickstarted, not to have the baby for God's sake. I should've turned us around when you started clutching your belly. I should've turned back when I realized there was no way your cargo pants were damp from sweat. But what could I really have done? We've had several false labors so far, you're stubborn as hell, and this labor progressed faster than either of us were told. Not even one damn hour and you're already crowning.

Your back arches suddenly, the head surges forward with a gush of fluid into my waiting hands. Your effort sends the shoulders and the rest of the big body into my hands. In less than a few moments they begin to cry loudly.

I can hardly allow myself to feel elated. We're in the middle of the wilderness with a newborn, you exhausted and no cell service. It takes all of me not to lose it at this moment.

I just need to get down the ranger cabin to get help. Despite your protest, I hand you our baby and lift you to your feet. I support your weight as best I can. You hold our new baby with one hand and rest your other arm around my shoulder. The walk is longer than it was coming up and the afterbirth is taking way too long to come out in comparison to how fast your labor was.

"It hurts..." You mumble and I try to pick up the pace.

We finally make it to the ranger cabin and your loud groans are more than enough to make the ranger investigate.

"My wife just had our baby, the afterbirth is stuck or something please help!" I yell.

The mountain ranger nods and runs to our aid. Your moaning even louder now and your knees begin to give. The mountain ranger rushes to help me usher you and our newborn into the cabin. We lead you to a couch and you immediately plop down with your legs spread.

The ranger aids our baby first, then he examines you. His face goes rigid as he palms the still swollen skin of your belly.

The mountain ranger turns his gaze to us and then looks again at your still large belly. "You sure yall were only having one baby?"

Just when he says it, your water breaks again.

We all look at the puddle on the floor, the breaking of the second waters almost comically timed.

“What… no… that’s not possible… mnghhhhh!” My sentence is cut off as another contraction squeezes my belly and everything inside. There was no way it was twins; they would have seen two babies on the ultrasounds, they would have heard two heartbeats… it just wasn’t possible. And yet, the moment the ranger asked the impossible question I could feel it - movement. There was still movement inside my big belly.

“Oh god, babe… I can feel it. I can feel another baby. And they’re coming down… hoooo”

Your face was white as a sheet as you looked between the newborn in the ranger’s arms and my squirming labouring body on the couch. Despite your obvious shock, you bent down and held my hand and stroked a dampened strand of hair behind my ear. “I guess we’re having twins then. Its okay just breathe through the contractions, just like you did before.” You try to coach me through yet another birth.

The ranger quickly called an ambulance but given our location it wasn’t going to be here for at least 45 minutes. The baby in his arms was crying and wouldn't settle. You tried, swaying the infant in your arms and cooing softly, but to no avail.

“Give her here.” I breathed heavily after an aggressive contraction. You handed me the newborn and put the babe straight on my chest and she latched immediately. She was hungry.

“You’re a natural.” You smiled with affection at your new family.

I started to whimper and groan when the next contraction hit. You offered to take the babe but I didn’t want to let her go, she was happy feeding. The unfortunate side effect of breastfeeding triggered more contractions. The noises I was making quickly turned primal as the head of my daughter's sibling pushed into the birth canal. I needed to move, the sofa was putting too much pressure on my pelvis. I threw my arm out towards you and shuffled painfully on the couch. You seemed to instinctively understand what I needed; to squat. You helped me off of the sofa to drop into a deep squat, my back against the edge of the couch, my knees jack-knifed apart. You squatted in front of me and held me steady, I grabbed onto your shoulder with my free hand, the other supporting the suckling baby.

“Ooooohh it’s coming down…gnnnhhhh!” I grunted suddenly and the baby shifted further. “Mnnnghhhh c-can you see it?” I panted.

“Not quite honey, oh wait! Yes. The top of the head, I can see it. Do you need to push?”

“Mmmm n-not yet…. Trying to wait… let the baby come down b-bit more… oh god it’s so big!” I cried out. “How did I not know there were two in there!?”

“They were obviously very good at hiding.” You tried to joke, not dwelling on the frightening fact we were coming out of these woods with two babies.

“Hoooo okay… okay…. There it is-mnnnghhhhhh!!!!!!” The baby and my body decided it was time and I found myself pushing. Hard.

The ranger came and took the baby from my arms when I started pushing, you stayed poised between my legs for the second time that day ready to deliver a baby.

“I can see hair, they’ve got hair! Keep going darling! Push!!!” You cheered, watching the bulge get bigger as the baby parted my lips.

Bracing my hands on my thighs I grunted and mooed with every push, bringing the surprise baby to a full crown in next to no time. “Get it out, get it out!” I cried, my body already exhausted and sore from the first birth and doing it all over again was too much for me to bear.

“It’s coming, just breathe, and push. Slowly darling, gentle pushes.” You instructed as your hand cupped the full crown.

I struggled to calm my breathing, my body trembling with the efforts of labour.

“Hey.” You said softly, “you’re doing brilliantly. You got this.” And you leaned forward to kiss me. A reassurance washed over me, your comfort and support and love all conveyed within the kiss.

I felt calmer, more in control, when the next contraction struck and I gave it my all on the next push. The head flew out with a gush of fluids and before you could check for a chord the rest of the baby slipped out into your waiting hands.

“A boy! We’ve got a boy!” You exclaimed with a tear in your eye, pulling the baby up and placing him straight on my chest.

“Hey little guy…” I said as I took in the first glance of my newborn son.

The ambulance arrived 20 minutes later, checking all three of us over and delivering the placenta, before taking our new family to the nearest hospital.

[these rp asks are giving me life!!! More like this please!]

[lovingksuki]

✰ SECRET ADMIRER

— highschoolers bakugo x fem!reader

synopsis: an anonymous love letter appears in your locker on valentine's day. surprised, you and your best friend start an investigation to uncover who was that person observing you from afar. meanwhile, a flushed bakugo tries to ruin your plans on the undercover alongside his shitty-haired buddy

cw: sfw; mostly fluff; lil angst; very insecure bakugo; romantic comedy; puberty; silly jokes; little swearing.

a/n: this is part one of three. let me know if you want this mini series to be continued :) and pls be patient since english is not my first language hehe ;;

word count: 1k

"oh c'mon! what if there's a heart shaped letter in your locker? you never know..."

"there's not."

"you can't be so certain about it. my girl is never looking her surroundings, who knows if someone got their heart pierced by an arrow?" mina pointed.

"shut up, every year the same thing..." you rushed and right after turning the corridor you captured by distance. "ok. maybe you were right." you said finding the metal compartment half closed.

then you grabbed the red paper in her hands, paying attention to the almost dry daisy taped lazily on the front; glanced around not spotting anything or anyone suspicious about it, then turned to your best friend.

"i got a feeling you're part of this." spurred.

"whoa, i was joking just now! even i am chocked. who's the sender?" the pink colored girl held her hands up in protest.

"i don't know, there's only my name." you stated carefully sticking the little flower out.

"let me search for a hint." mina took the letter from your hands suddenly, mumbling while quickly skimming through the words looking for something useful. she gasped before smirking at the content and then continued mumbling.

"enjoying yourself!?" you sighed waiting.

"mkay, done." handed the letter. "nothing between the lines. who wrote this sure is smart enough to not leak their identity."

"that's for me to decide. you ain't the smartest kind." you chuckled.

"hey!"

"more like the pretty girl type."

"you sly thing! you received a love letter, who's the pretty girl again?" both laughed at the statement and headed out to the cafeteria. "not reading it?"

"can't think when i am this hungry. we should hurry."

at the lunchtime the subject was the same. you two were discussing with your mouths full, sitting by yourselves on a table far enough from eavesdropping.

"hear me out. there's this line that seems to be rewritten over and over, it's a bit tattered." you mentioned. "it says: 'i'm still hesitant about what you think about me' and thanks to the pressure they put on paper seems to be 'afraid of who i am' underneath."

"adds a lot of nothing to our investigation. that's what everybody would say in a confession, i mean, nobody likes being dumped." pinky pointed out unfazed.

"yeah but, i don't think it's meaningless, what if this person is truly insecure about themselves." you pondered.

"or they're just ugly." mina chewed on her meal.

"i don't think that's the case... remember when you told me that thing you read about pretty boys' handwriting?" you brought up.

"did you actually believe that!? was just a discussion in a girl's meme forum." the pink one remarked.

"but there's some truth behind it. if you consider that people with a smaller hand can grip on a pen better when writing, also means the ones with big hands tend to have a sloppier handwriting!" you stated confident about your theory.

"girl, you're tripping... does this mean we're going across the school measuring boys' hands?" mina smirked unconvinced.

"precisely."

꒷꒦꒷꒦꒷꒦꒷꒦꒷꒦꒷꒦

"what a fucking waste of time..." said raging.

"dude, calm down. at least you poured your feelings out..." eijiro reassured his bestfriend trying to point out the bright side of things.

but while he's the bright side, katsuki was the dark side. they say a good relationship is based in balance, in this case it makes total sense.

"you even checked if she read it?" asked the red haired.

"when she and mina walked by me at the corridor they were whispering and giggling like little lambs. probably laughing at that letter though." pouted.

"you're being paranoid, they're always like that."

"they're up to something..." bakugo murmured.

whilst the two struggled to put up with the 'plan cupid', the other two were constructing the 'plan pretty boy's handwriting'.

"as i was saying, a pencil has six inches approximately, we're looking for a hand as big at least. if we measure our hands we can compare with theirs without them noticing." stated grabbing a pen off her case.

"you're truly a genius. i refuse to accept you failed strategic test last week." mina complimented.

"i was in a really bad mood that day... anyway!" justified while traced her own hand in a empty page of mina's notebook. "fifteen centimeters. do yours and we're good to go!" demanded agitated.

when looking for friends of theirs, the girls pretended to just have a walk around the school.

"what if it was a girl?" mina asked suddenly.

"i doubt. how many girls with large hands do we know?" claimed.

"mmm... asui-san?"

"you've got to be kidding...!" pulled her phone and dialed quickly a number. "hey!" you smiled. "no, nothing really urgent, i just wanted to ask... are you perhaps in love with me?" questioned without any filter.

"girl you gone mad?" mina whispered holding back a laughter.

"uh, ok. anyways, thank you. we talk later, kisses!" you hung up. "see? that's not her."

"woah you're so straightforward! it scares me sometimes..."

the boys exited the restroom still discussing, but when the blondie heard a certain voice he stepped back. pulled eijiro's tie to hide behind a pillar with him. "shut it!" mouthed.

"i just wanted to ask... are you perhaps in love with me?"

"uh, ok."

his face started to burn as he became more anxious. could only hear a few words, enough to bring the boy into complete state of panic.

after the girls left he released his breath.

"stop overthinking! she just received a love letter, of course she's curious!" kirishima said.

"i didn't say anything, shitty-hair!"

"your face shows!" sighed. "seriously, how can she be so oblivious? just look at you! you're terrible at hiding."

"i- i... she doesn't even talk to me that often..." katsuki pitied.

"bro, you're not the friendliest around here. but she doesn't seem to be afraid of you." kiri pondered. "have you ever tried to smile?"

he looked at the red spiked guy and opened a shy smile.

"a bit more."

every time bakugo tried to put on smiling face it looked creepy. "be more genuine." said eijiro.

trying his best, but even with so much effort... his buddy analyzed. "ok. it looks absolutely terrifying."

"shit."

[coulsart]

About the Unknown

I have a theory. A game theory. And we're going to ignore the fact that delving into this would put me on the Unknown's shit list IMMEDIATELY. It’s fine.

Disclaimer: I do not know what’s canon, and they kept it intentionally vague. Everyone’s valid to have their head canons and this is just the explanation my brain conjured up.

"The Unknown was believed to be a mysterious evil so heinous that investigating it almost immediately invited death. At least that was how the story went. And there were many stories. One story was of a woman in Greenville who disappeared without a trace on stage in front of a room full of witnesses. Her friend disappeared weeks later while trying to investigate what happened. The police were stumped. They had no clues or leads, and that mystery created the perfect storm for amplifying and spreading an urban legend." An excerpt from the very beginning of the official lore page

I want to focus on a few key words here. It was believed to be heinously evil. There were stories about disappearances. Said mysterious stories spread and amplified the urban legend.

The Unknown gains power from people's beliefs and thoughts about it. Not too unlike Pennywise from 'IT'. But there's a catch.

People theorize that it might be an alien, a curse, a cult-created abomination, or just a really elusive serial killer... but it is all of those things. Because people believe that it is.

It doesn't have control over what it is. It's a horrible hodge-podge monstrosity of many things, seemingly mashed and twisted together violently. It likely started as something completely different, or nothing at all. Maybe a vague presence that only observed. But people could feel the presence. And while neither good nor evil, the peoples' minds conjured up visions, explanations of what it might be. Some imagined it to be a man lurking in the shadows. Watching and stalking them. And so the Unknown's body began to form. First as a man. Even still, with this new body, it was inherently off. Uncanny from the start. The Unknown was at its core so far removed from humanity that it still could not pass as one of us. So it would linger in the forest, only venturing to the threshold between town and woods.

Maybe an unfortunate camper happened upon it at night. This shadow in the dark, distinctly the shape of a man. But what does one think first, encountering a strange man in the dead of night? All alone and isolated in the deep woods?

"He's going to kill me with a knife, or an ax!"

And so it did. Because they believed it would.

It only snowballed from there, after the body was found, only a few paces away from their untouched tent. There was no evidence left. No DNA, no footprints to follow. Just a bloodied body, with a skull cloven almost completely in twain; by what was suspected to be an ax. So the theories began.

No one could explain the lack of evidence left behind. It was too perfect, too efficient. And what were the chances of a normal man doing such damage in only a single swing?

More murders followed. At first, people started disappearing, their bodies later being found in the woods, not far from the first victim. They grew increasingly more mangled, to the point that authorities began to question whether it was done by a man, or an animal.

The people became afraid. Paranoid that this insane ax murderer would tire of the woods and enter their homes at night, while they were resting peacefully in bed. The fears were beginning to surpass that of just a serial killer. The Unknown was beginning to become more of a boogeyman figure to them. No human man could have committed such gruesome killings.

People began to disappear from their homes at night. Then the streets. Then the cafe and theater. Then... sometimes in broad daylight. Its territory only grew. Its abilities more and more vast and unpredictable. The theories only escalated... and throughout its rampage, the Unknown grew increasingly monstrous. Its humanoid body twisted and contorted to fit the peoples' beliefs. But nothing was erased - only added on. Which is why it existed in the horrific state that it did.

A body can only fit so much substance inside without tearing itself apart. Without becoming an deformed, unstable, and agonizing vessel to pilot and exist in.

Human beings did this to it. Human beings made what it was. They assumed the worst of it, and it became that.

So naturally, it became hateful and bitter. It loathes humans. They did this. It lives in constant agony and isolation because of them... only for the crime of observing and existing in their vicinity. That's why it killed the ones who dive deeper into its existence and theorize about what it is. They kept making it worse. Inflicting more pain upon it and twisting its body further and further.

It mirrors humans' own words to them. Snippets of conversation, pleas for help. It does not truly have its own voice. It only has what others have spoken about it, and around it.

But its feelings towards human beings are clear, based on its words. Especially in its memento mori. "The terror. The horror. Terribly frightening, isn't it." The way it parrots their words in this case almost seems vindictive and sarcastic. These are all things that human beings have said about it.

Thought outside of what it's been made into became increasingly difficult. Yet, somehow, the Unknown is vaguely aware of this fact: it could have been spared this horrific existence, had human beings chosen differently.

And for the Unknown, it only got worse when the Entity stole it away. It begged and pleaded for help - ironically, seeking it from that which it loathed most. A human being. It was torn from our world and plunged into the never ending loop that are Her trials. All for the sake of feeding Her appetite for suffering and torment. And it isn't only at the survivors' expense. It is at the expense of the Unknown as well. It suffers just as much as they... if not more. They at least have companions to rely on - with varying results, of course. It has nobody.

All hope for it healing is lost. The survivors have no reason not to think it a ruthless, horrific monster. And in turn, it has no reason not to hate and slaughter them.

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

[audliminal]

It's Just a Game, Right? Pt 3

Masterpost

"You still good?" Sam's voice crackles through the walkie talkie, as Danny flies erratically through and rooms. Danny ignores it for the moment, focusing on his current task. Their distraction plan had certainly worked, but now Danny has to maintain his balancing act, keeping the giw agents engaged without actually getting himself hurt. "Danny?" Sam asks again.

"Real great timing, Sam." Danny mutters, changing his tragectory to straight up. He's on the roof in moments, and allows his body to slip back into tangibility without dropping his invisibility.

"I'm getting a workout for sure, but they haven't hit me yet." Danny says, the moment he has the walkie talkie in hand.

"Good." Sam's relief is clear. Sam was the least enthusiastic about this arg idea from the start, but this current plan, with Danny acting as a distraction had driven her almost frantic with frustration. "We're almost done filming, so you can probably start trying to lose them. And let us know if you need help."

"Yeah? What, are you gonna go ghost and come distract them too?" The joke comes out a bit harsher than intended and Danny immediately winces. "Sorry. Sorry that was supposed to be a joke."

Sam doesn't immediately respond and Danny hears footsteps on the stairs, so he jams the walkie talkie back in its holder and takes off, making sure to fly away from where his classmates are working.

Moments after he drops back into intangibility, the door to the roof slams open and three giw agents rush out, already taking shots in his direction. By now their strategies are familiar though, and Danny is already making evasive moves as he flies off.

"Straight lines are boring anyways," he snickers, dipping down, so he can fly directly through the floor of another building, and then shooting straight up for a moment before continuing on. "Though it would be nice if their damn sensors could stop improving..."

On the other side of town, Danny's class has just finished recording footage of their school with untreated tech. Tonight, Wes and Tucker will start adding the dozens of layers of encryptions and hidden messages that they've been layering their project with.

A surprising number of people have already followed their channel, but so far they've only broken through around two layers of the content they've posted, and certainly haven't even come close to finding the encoded file drops, where they've actually hidden the bulk of the information.

That's the reasoning for this latest idea. As far as the plot of their series so far, the green-tinted, garbled footage won't make any sense. So, if they can get this out there without getting caught, it might help queue the people investigating their videos to dig a little more in search of an explanation.

"Halt, ghost scum!" The booming voice below Danny is immediately recognizable as his dad, and he just rolls his eyes and groans, without slowing. The good news about his parents joining the hunt is that they'll likely distract the giw's own efforts. But it also means they're gonna be extra annoying when he gets home tonight. It's the kind of trade-off that Danny will take every time, but he reserves the right to be annoyed by it.

Danny's parents, like everyone else, are far from happy with the giw's occupation and quarantine of Amity Park. Jazz should be heading off to college in a matter of months, but instead she's going to be stuck here. Jazz hadn't even bothered sending off applications this year - a matter than had been the target of much distress by their parents, and the first thing that got them to really stop and think about what the giw were doing.

Recently, they'd even considered shutting down their portal, but unfortunately that had proved more complicated than would be reasonable. So ghosts continued to drift through, and Danny continued to swiftly catch them before the giw or his blundering parents could show up to cause problems. Most days he managed to get the ghosts captured and himself out without serious injury but, well, even if his parents had stopped developing new weapons, lately, the giw had only ramped up their efforts.

And Danny was stuck in the middle of it all.

"We're done and out, Danny. Please tell me you haven't gotten yourself hurt." Sam's voice comes through again, startling Danny away from his thoughts. He glances back behind him, and is relieved to see no signs of chase behind him.

"Yeah, we're good. My parents showed up with some real clutch timing. Maybe if we're lucky, they crashed into each other and they're out a vehicle or two."

"Yeah, if we're lucky." Sma laughs. "Meet up at the arcade?"

"Sure thing." Danny says, ducking into a nearby store and dropping his ghost form safely in the bathroom.

[ailithnight]

*Whoops. Forgot to title and link previous chapters. Fight me, I just woke up.

A King in Arkham

Chapter 3

Chapter 1 Chapter 2

"Tim. Tim you have to get me copies of this footage." Tim is not surprised by the request. In fact, the 'Sure' is already on his tongue when he pauses, a thought creeping into his head, seeded by the notification Tim really hopes Jason isn't paying attention to in the bottom corner of the computer.

"One condition."

"Fuck you, I knew you'd want something. What? You want my cookies? Coffee? For Red Hood to go on camera singing praises for Red Robin? I'll fuckin do it. Just send me the god damn clips."

"Nope, nope, and tempting, but no."

"Name your price, Replacement. I'll pay it."

"Swear you aren't going to go rush in and extract the kid until we're done investigating him."

"What!? Fuck that! I told you was pulling him out next chance I get!" Tim lets himself groan in annoyance.

"Look, anyone that could do that-" Tim gestures to the part of the screen where they'd pulled up The Joker's medical reports following the incidents, showing pictures and descriptions of just how thoroughly Daniel had beat his ass 3 weeks in a row, "without getting so much as a scratch or fucking bruise in return, has got something going on. There may well be a reason they sent him to Arkham!"

Jason's eyes narrow at Tim as he all but growls, "No reason is good enough to put-"

"A fifteen year old in Arkham. I fucking know that, Hood. But we still need to know exactly who we're dealing with when we get him out. What his deal is. If his dangerous. What the hell was so wrong with him that someone thought it was a good idea to stick him in there to begin with."

"He could get hurt while we're sitting on our asses trying to satisfy fuckin Bat paranoia!"

"He took down the Joker! Clearly he can take care of himself."

"Then who has been hurting him!?"

"Maybe him fucking self!" Tim knew he was pushing it. The green growing stronger in Jason's eyes was proof. But he needed to buy them some time before Jason made thing exponentially harder by storming the castle. Still, now he needed to calm Jason down before he went into a full rage. So Tim held up his hands placatingly.

"A few days, Jay. Just give us a few more days. I'm already almost through the Arkham reports, and there are only a handful from Chicago and Oracle is probably going to announce any minute now that she got through the communications blackout around his home town. We just need a bit more time to sort out intel so that we actually know how to help him once we get him out."

Finally, after a tense 34 seconds, green fades back into blue and Jason let's out a heavy sigh.

"Fine. But I get to tell the Bat about Daniel's discipline slips. Wanna see his fuckin face when I do."

"Deal." Tim hurriedly puts a comm in as Jason watches with narrowed eyes.

Batman.

Red Robin. Ready to fill me in?

Not yet, you're about to be busy. I isolated a pattern earlier. Exactly 15 minutes before the locks malfunction, there's been a strange power surge. Always written off. But the surge doesn't seem to be coming from the grid. And like I said, exactly 15 minutes later is when the locks malfunction.

Jason huffs as he catches on. Apparently he hadn't thought to question why Tim was so desperate to buy time before.

Robin responds, since he's on stakeout with Bruce. Mostly because Bruce won't let him watch the asylum alone. Much as the kid hates it, the rest of the family agrees. It's only a matter of time before someone in max security manages to take advantage of theses malfunctions. So far Croc is the only one who had, though thankfully he's not one to start shit on his own. But with Joker, Scarecrow, and TwoFace all inside; any one of them, or god forbid all three, could make for a real bad situation.

Tt. So you can tell before a malfunction happens.

Think so. Last power surge was 8 minutes ago.

And you are only telling us now, why Drake?

Codenames.

Cause he spent those 8 convincing me not to go get our kid out yet.

6 minutes. See if you can stop things before they start.

I'm not far out. Want me to join you?

Tt. I doubt we'll need your assistance, Signal. We shall be done before you get here.

No wait. Signal, head in. See if you can get a read on 26B.

You think he might be meta?

Hood?

Jason glares at Tim betrayed.

"I wanted to see his fuckin face."

Tim just waves him off.

"They need to know. You tell them or I do."

Boys

Jason scowls, but relents.

He put the Joker in the infirmary on his 1st, 7th, and 15th days there. All 3 times took no damage himself. Feral child had to be pulled off and still didn't stop struggling till the clown was out of sight.

All 3 assaults followed by panic attacks, though whether about the Joker himself or what Daniel had done to him, we don't know yet.

The comms were silent for a moment.

A 15 year old...

Did what you've never had the balls to old man.

...I've fought the Joker.

Daniel hits first.

Hnn

I will admit, it is impressive that he can take the Joker down alone. Perhaps he will make for a worthy brother after all.

4 minutes.

We're moving in. Thank you Red Robin, Hood.

The fuck are you thanking me for?

For helping. And giving us time to work this out.

ETA 7 minutes out. Be with you shortly.

.

The advanced warning proved invaluable for Batman and Robin. After alerting the chief of security of their supposed pattern, he had guards already in motion when the doors swung open. Batman took a perch to watch for max security escapees while Robin assisted the guards in keeping inmates corralled. Many didn't even bother to leave their designated areas, having already seen the Bats in the building.

No sign of any max security inmates. Normally, Batman would find this concerning. And while he did file it away to ponder later why no one from max security ever seemed to make it out of that wing, for today he counted the blessing that he would not have to try to keep Robin safe while dealing with someone like the Joker.

Batman tracked motion through the crowds, watching as a black mop of hair moved, seemingly otherwise unnoticed, through the sea of people. He thought to move in to direct the person back towards where people were being herded to, but the small figure merely walked towards the B wing and entered one of the far cells. That gave Bruce a sneaking suspicion of which patient that was. He moved to get a closer look as Signal swooped in.

"Where is he?"

"I believe he just went into his cell. This way." Batman led Signal to the cell he'd seen that tiny person enter. It was indeed 26B and there was indeed a small, too small, frail looking boy lying on the bed there. A red blotch had appeared under his left eye even though Bruce was certain there had been no injury there as the boy had crossed the hall.

Signal froze beside him, breath stuttering. The boy briefly glanced at them through the corner of his eye, mouth twitching into a brief frown. Then his eyes turned back to the ceiling and his face smoothed out. Bruce couldn't help but reach out.

"Hello." The boy said nothing. Signal opened and closed his mouth, seeming to try to say something, but unable to get words out. Batman wondered what he must be seeing. "You seem hurt. Do you need help?" Eyes flickered back to him and away just as quickly.

"Nothing you can help with Mr. Batman." And oh, how Bruce hated the kid's voice. So quiet and so so hollow. Bruce's mind flashed to his children, imagining any them speaking with such emptiness. His heart clenched, wondering what could have happened to this boy to have snuffed the life out of him so young.

Duke found his voice again, just as the doors buzzed and swung shut again.

"What are you?" Bruce frowned, looking at his latest. Who was looking, as Bruce tracked his gaze, not at Daniel but at the space just above him. Daniel himself seemed to take interest all of a sudden, breaking away his upward gaze to roll his head and look at them. Confusion plain on his face, the first hint of life shining dimly in his eyes.

"Signal? Signal, what do you see?" Batman asked. Robin materialized beside them. The daytime hero stepped forward, then back, light sparking and fizzling around his fingertips.

"There's something in there with him."

Daniel looked back up, where Signal still had his gazed trained on something Batman couldn't see. Even Robin seemed confused, though he no doubt trusted Signal's meta sight.

"Don't worry," Daniel murmured, "S'just a ghost. She can't hurt you."

This 'ghost' seemed unhappy either with the teen's words or this turn of events. Daniel's head snapped back to the side again, causing Batman and Signal to wince while Robin watched stoically. 4 red scratches appeared on Daniel's right cheek, as though he had been backhanded by someone with clawlike nails. A light chill brushed through him and Signal tensed, then relaxed, his gaze finally turning from the emptiness above Daniel to the boy himself. Batman took that as a sign that the... entity, was gone.

Daniel did not react to the obvious abuse from an invisible assailant. He mechanically turned his head back, once more dead and glazed eyes returning to the cracks in the ceiling of his cell. "You should go now. The guards will come around soon to make sure I'm still here."

Bruce wanted so badly to say 'Don't worry, we'll get you out of here.' But Batman was more restrained than that. He would get the child out. But he would have a plan first. For now, Bruce placed a hand each on the shoulders of Duke and Damien, guiding them away. Only when they were back outside did Bruce let them go. Only when they were perched on a rooftop half a block away did Batman pause.

"Robin, report."

"No escaped inmates and no sign of any from maximum security."

"Good. Signal, any information on what you saw in there." Duke rubbed at his eyes.

"A ghost, I guess? I don't know. It was weird. She didn't really have an aura. It was more like, an absence of aura. Like she was a black hole, drawing all the light in."

Even behind the domino, Bruce could tell Damien rolled his eyes.

"And what of the patient, Thomas? Was he not the one you were sent to look at?" Batman bit back the reprimand for codenames, more interested in Signal's response. Signal seemed to think for a moment, then shook his head.

"He definitely had a pretty distinct aura. It... felt powerful. But it looked weak. Dim. When the ghost... struck him, it flared up a bit, but died back down almost instantly. I... I get the feeling he was holding it back. Almost like he was afraid of it. Of himself."

"Hnn. Good job Signal. Robin. You two are welcome to head back to the cave. I'll take the rest of this Arkham shift."

At that moment, the comms crackled to life.

Actually B, you may want to come in, also. Arkham should be fine. And I found why they sent the kid there.

[mediocre-shark-tales]

Colby Brock x Reader

WARNINGS - Ghost hunting, Angst, and fear.

Summary - You, Kris and Celina are the guests for the next ghost hunting video with Sam and Colby. You all are ghost hunting at the Winchester mystery house. You and Colby are almost as close as Him and Sam. Secret feelings are way to obvious but you two are oblivious af. The girls and sam want to help you two come together tonight.

Masterlist

Feeling the wind in my hair brought joy to my already adrenaline pumping body. I was currently following Sam, Colby, Kris and Celina on my lovely blue motorbike. We were all getting together to ghost hunt at the Winchester mystery house today. Kris, Celina and I met a while back at their first ghost hunt together with Sam and Colby. Of course Celina had ghost hunted with them a total of 2 other times. It had been my 6th time with them, and us three hit it off pretty well. I met the boys when they invited me to go investigate the Waverly Hills Sanatorium. The fans knew me best for my biker videos on TikTok, I blew up the most for the ways I handled crazy and angry drivers. I was calm and struck back fast with great comebacks, easily shutting anyone up. The favorite currently was the one time I half pulled my hand gun when one guy got to ballsy.

This guy had cut me off for whatever reason, probably pissed that I was able to weave around him without any trouble but Idk. He came out with a baseball bat pointing at me. So I unzipped the conceal carry pocket that sat on the strap of my backpack and half pulled out my bright blue Glock 19 from Gen 4. He saw it and was quick to shut up and get right back into his car. So I zipped my my pocket back up and continued on when the light turned green. Of course this was caught on my 360 cam so I could set the video up perfectly for TikTok.

I also started a YouTube channel where I road around and either had great dialogue or went to Moto events. Recently I had also added some behind the scenes of videos I was apart of on other channels. This was all done with the agreement from whoever I was with at the time. I always made sure to post a few days after their video dropped.

Anyways, I was now right next to the window where the girls sat in the backseat. I waved and reached out for Kris's hand before slowing back down and returning to following the group. Finally within the next few minutes we were pulling into the Winchester house drive. I could see Sam begin recording the inside of the car, I'm sure he at some point zoomed in to see me in the background of the car close behind them. The most telling sign being when the whole car, besides Colby driving, turned around and began to wave to me. So of course I waved back.

Once we were inside, I parked beside their vehicle and began to discard my helmet and all other safety gear. Seeing as we didn't have to go far I didn't put all of it on. Mainly just the helmet and some safety pants, I allowed myself to ride with just my t-shirt so I could feel the cool breeze. I stuffed my safety pants, gloves, and keys into my backpack. Then stuffed the backpack into my helmet before setting it in the back of Sam and Colbys car for safe keeping.

Then we all walked up to the front of the house where we were given a quick run down of how our night was scheduled. Once that was done we got set up to record the intro of the video. The girls and I in the middle with a boy on each side. I stood closest to Colby with Celina between Kris and I and Sam on the far side by kris.

Of course both Sam and Colby did their typical intro talking about hell week and such while Celina, Kris and I just stood smiling. We gave some short "Hell yeahs" and similar exclamations while Sam talked about how the Winchester house was one of the scariest place at least some magazine said so. After that we went ahead and began to walk up to the front of the house. Colby had his arms up like he was some real estate agent showing off a luxury house.

"Colby you do this we're too scared!" Celina yelled out earning a giggle from me as Colby yelled back "No you gotta do it!" Kris volunteered to go in first, Once inside fully she looked back saying "It smells like death." I laughed. "Sounds so fantastic." I responded in a sarcastic tone.

Celina was quickly spooked by a manakin dressed liked Sarah Winchester. The room was decorated like the funeral of her husband. We continued to walk around slowly taking in the first main room of the house. I definitely had that strangely spooky vibe to it. Celina tried to get a 'sign' from a hand sanitizer dispenser at one point. But it gave her nothing which she then said "Its Dry, dry" Which I was quick to sarcastically respond with, "Just like how I was with my ex, drier than the Sahara desert." Which earned me a full blown break out in laughter from everyone as Sam brought the camera up much closer to me. "You said what y/n?" I smiled into the close up camera. "I said what I said and I meant what I said." Which earned more giggles from everyone.

We continued on until we were in front of a piano where Kris was about to play it, however we suddenly heard the sounds of the guest arriving which obviously scared the hell out of us. Celina even remarking how she almost shit her pants.

Quickly we went over to meet the guests and get right back into recording. First we were to meet Crystal who was an empathic medium. When we started recording she began to tell us what she saw and felt when it came to Celina. She could see ghosts but she was also a very special person who should be protected at all costs. We all agreed about that and Crystal then looked at me giving me a weird face. "There is something different about you, I believe you are very gifted person maybe even empathic in some way. I don't know how to read this well, I've never seen something like this. I do want to say its nothing negative its all positive. I just don't know to the extent what it is, maybe you just have tapped into this power yet and that's why it's so hazy for me." I looked into the camera with wide nervous eyes and then looking back we all moved on to sit with Crystal as she told us about her understanding of this house.

When we finished up talking to her, that when the guides began to take us on a tour around the house. This way we could better understand the lay out and also get another more informative rundown of the history behind everything in the house. We started with the Daisy Bedroom which was still prominently effected by the earthquake she had been stuck in.

As we moved on, Colby stuck closer to me and we began to chat a bit. "I'm glad to have you join us again y/n." I smiled at him. "I'm always happy to come hang with you guys, especially when you bring Kris and Celina along. This is the fucking dream team right here." He laughed at my statement before speaking again. "How long you gonna be around here this time? I know sam and I are staying for a few extra days as like a mini vacation. I think kris and Celina were going to as well to catch back up with us." I nodded and thought about it. "Yeah, I think I could see about extending my stay. Might have to switch rooms since they probably already have my room booked for after when I was planning to leave." Colby smiled. "If you end up needing a place to stay you could always bunk it with Sam and I. We got a suite so two beds and a pull out couch bed." I nodded and gave him sweet smile. "Okay Ill let you know if I need a space."

We continued our walk until we entered an area in a hallway were a few hallways connected to each other. The guide told us about Sarah and her height which lead to jokes about Celina being Sarah Winchester again. However as we continued through the house with the guide, it was constantly brought up and overly stated by the boys about the corresponding numbers. They would react in strange ways when anything was 7, 11 or 13. At one point they earned a reaction from Kris who said. "Colby and these numbers man? I don't know what this means." Colby was messy with his lips looking off into the distance which we all laughed at. "The fuck does that mean Brock!" I exclaimed.

Later on we had entered this room when all of a sudden Celina asked about a dog. She was telling us about how she had envisioned a small dog like what Sarah's dog was. While she explained it, I heard a sound behind us. I seemed to be the only one who noticed and I stared around the room trying to see what or where it was.

Kris noticed my quiet stare and asked what's up. "I just heard something but it hasn't happened again, so maybe a fluke." They all looked at me strangely before we just moved on. Finally we had finished everything that required a guide or other person in the house. So we went outside to get the final run down of our time allowance and a few other necessary things. Once they had left, we turned the camera back on and Celina started talking.

"I know that ghost hunting is really hard, so I got us all a crystal to protect us." As she handed them out we instantly began to laugh as she gave us all penis crystals. "These are shafts of protection, put it in your pocket and it will keep things from getting inside of you." With that she looked directly at Sam. "Yeah sam you need this for sure." I said.

After a little bit more talking, we went inside to the first room. We set up flash lights across from each other in the room. I stood next to Colby with the other three on the other side of the room. We started off with Celina asking questions.

"Sarah if you're here can you turn on one of these flashlights?" then she counted down from 3. However nothing happened making her sigh. We continued to ask questions however we were left in a heavy silence. After a while of this it was decided to try the Onvoy. Colby held the box and turned it on, stoping mid sentence to hear the tune it does when it turns on. I smiled as the others joked, kris even said "I love that, it's like a retro game." I stood near Colby again as he spoke to the camera, pointing at the box. While he spoke I copied his movements behind him, making fun of the poor guy. I could see sam smiling behind the camera, moving to make sure I was in shot too. Colby hadn't noticed so I made myself known when he finished saying "Something has to literally tap this for it to go off." So I said the same thing right after him, getting in front and kneeled down closer to the box.

Everyone laughed as Colby chuckled and then responded with "Are you copying me?" We had a small laugh before continuing on with the investigation. Finally we started getting answers with he machine, even the flashlight turned on a few times. Finally we started realizing that the spirit did not want us here, Celina asked if they wanted us to leave and it was almost an instant yes.

I felt a chill go up my back and seconds later kris would say she was freezing in here. Celina on the other hand was hot and feeling as if she was going to throw up. So we decided to take her outside, we wanted to give her time to herself. But in seconds she was running back in for us telling sam to turn on the camera and come with her.

She then told us how the sprinklers instantly turned on when she walked outside, so she leaned over this railing only to realize she felt completely fine now. I smiled at her after she finished talking. "You need to run outside babe, I will literally carry you all the way honey" Celina laughed and gave me a hug while Kris joined us in front of the camera and started talking me up. "For those of you who still don't know y/n like the rest of us. She is quite the hot mama, but not just that she built like the goddess Athena. Ready to go to war, She could probably outfit most of the guys watching this." I giggled but quickly disregarded kris. "No I would probably get shown up pretty easily Kris, You know I just like the physique that comes with muscles." Celina spoke up next. "Yeah those abs and biceps got you looking hot af y/n! Slay Queen!" We all laughed again. But then kris looked at Celina and they seemed to have the same idea. This time Kris spoke it out loud. "I'm sure there is a great guy out there just waiting to snatch up a goddess like you y/n" Unbeknownst to me they were not staring at the camera but directly behind it at Colby who may or may not have blushed a bit.

After the skit we all began to head to the next investigation area. The Witches Cap. When we got there and began to record, Celina pulled me and kris aside. First she handed kris a new slightly larger crystal penis saying "Here I got you one, cause things are getting a little more intense." She began to hand out a new one to everyone except me. One she looked at me she gave me devious smile. "You y/n however get something a little more special." Opening her back pack, she pulled something out. I couldn't see it yet as she hid it away from view still. "I know your don't need anymore protection with those muscles you got on you. So instead I thought I would give you something a little different." She opened up her arms to give me an apple, however it was carved out of rose quartz and the stem was a silver metal. Hanging around it was a silver chain necklace with a rose quartz heart wrapped with a bit of silver wire to keep in on the chain. "I thought you need a little help with your love life and Rose quartz is a good stone for that." I smiled and held the apple in my hand while removing the necklace to look at it too. "Thank you so much Celina! I hope I can pay it back by getting myself a man." She smiled and hugged me before we returned to the investigation. Sam held the camera and recorded Celina and Kris being goofballs with the crystal dicks. So I walked up to Colby and asked if he could help me put on the necklace. He said yes and gently began to help me move my hair out of the way. Once clasped he carefully lifted my hair out of the chain before coming back to the front.

"You look so gorgeous tonight y/n" I blushed thanking him. "You look pretty handsome tonight too Colby" He blushed as well. We heard some giggles and glanced over to see the others recording and laughing at us. "Awe look at the two love birds." Colby quickly tried to change the topic and get back to the investigation. Which kind of hurt but I knew that he was out of my league and I shouldn't get my hopes up.

As the investigation continued, we were now in Sarah's room. We had been lead in here by Celina who had seen the ghost of Sarah but also could feel her almost leading her. So now we sat down with a motion detector and rem pod out as we tried asking questions. I was sat between Kris and Colby, however Kris and I had locked arms and sat closer as stuff kept getting creepy. The spirit box had been pulled out at one point, things were being said answering our questions until it said my name a couple times. That when it really got creepy.

For some reason both Kris and I had looked to our right where this entrance to the room was. In that split second we both saw what looked like a person standing in the corner. We both freaked out and I moved back quickly on instinct, Colby grabbing me to calm me down subtly.

Sam decided to ask kris first who was in what seemed like shock as her instinct was to laugh at whatever that was. Kris even showed where and what we saw for an example. Soon after we decided to leave the room. However as we got to the 7-11 stair case, I heard something call out for me this caused me to stop and look around. I tried to find any reason for that voice. I didn't even notice that the group was now out of sight. However I soon heard them yelling for sam to turn the camera on, as Kris and Celina said they just heard a voice. I could hear them say they assumed it was me only to realize I wasn't behind them anymore.

I wanted to laugh at this however I heard another voice, I looked towards where I had heard it only to see the pitch black figure of a man with what looked like a long gun of some sort. He was standing maybe 3 feet away from me. This caused me to scream and seconds later the man disappeared. Tears were already falling from my eyes as this jump scare sent me into my fight or flight mode. Except some sort of malfunction must have happened in my brain as I quickly squatted down hiding my face in my arms.

I heard the sounds of the others running as some yelled "Holy SHit y/n! We are coming!" I think it was Colby who screamed for me as the others began screaming for me as well. It was easy for them to find me as there was only one direction to go. When I looked up I saw them a few feet away running to me, Sam holding the camera still recording as they saw my tear stained and still crying face. Colby knelt down to help me stand back up, his hands quickly came up to wipe my tear stained cheeks as Celina asked. "What happened!?" I gave myself a second to calm down as Colby gave me a hug. Once I could speak, I pulled back and began to talk. "So I heard this voice and stopped to try and see what maybe made a noise that sounded like a voice. However I found nothing only to realize you guys were so far down the hallway I could no longer see you but I could hear you. I was about to go catch up when I heard the voice again. So I turned around and saw this male black figure with a gun maybe 3 feet from me. It just scared the shit out of me and I guess my instinct was to curl up into a ball." I joked at the end trying to keep myself cool still.

Eventually we decided to keep moving on to the next investigation area. Colby stayed with me this time, his arm around my shoulders as he kept me near him. I was thankful for this cause I was definitely a little shook after that.

When we got there the boys began to tell us about the numbers they kept bringing up. Explaining how numerology works and why these numbers were so important. They explained how the numbers worked with the house, and then even went on to tell us what all of our numbers were and what they meant. Celina was 'the protector, Kris was 'the Teacher', Colby was 'the psychic' and Sam was 'the guide'. All of their numbers and descriptions were so on point with them. Once they had finished the boys looked at me with a slight amazement in their eyes. "Y/n your life path number is the exact same at the one this house was built on. You are the number 22 which is the master architect." Everyone gave a sound of astonishment as the pieces started to come together and make sense. Forgetting about this number being mine but the fact that the house was built on the number of the master architect? That's insane.

Sam continued. "On top of the whole house also being a life path 22, in our group we now have 3 spiritual outliers. 11, 22, and 33 Life path numbers are said to have higher psychic abilities." WOW was all I could say. Sarah Winchester was for sure the smartest woman I had ever known. There was too many things to be coincidental anymore, this was her way of sending a code to the future.

Soon we had moved on again, now we were back outside where it was cold as balls now. Kris, Celina and I huddled together while we waited for sam to go grab what he needed to give us. When he came back he gave each one of us a 'robe' so we could dress like Sarah Winchester. Celina got a green one, Sam had Red, Kris got Purple, and Colby had a blue one. I got the silver or grey one, I can't really tell.

We all then drew sticks to see where each one of us would have to start from and find our way to the 'witch's cap'. Sam got the farthest, I got the second worse option, Celina probably got the third worse in my opinion, kris and Colby were about tied for the best option among us all.

Once I got the text that I could start, I began to try and remember my way back to the witches cap. Each of us had been taken to our spots but we were only allowed to stare at the floor all the way their, that way no one could 'cheat'.

I could feel that I was almost too easily getting lost. Every turn I took and hallway I followed seemed to lead me back to the same room. I had ended up back in my starting room one too many times. This was strange, but It made me remember that this is a paranormal things sometimes. Ghost or spirits like to confuse and distort peoples sense of direction. I talked to the camera about my idea, telling them that they would just have to trust me that I was feeling lost even though they might not see it that way.

Eventually I finally made it to a new part of the house, but now out of the corner of my eyes I would see that damn shadow figure. One time I heard a loud running, which ended up being caught on camera while I whipped it to the direction I heard it coming from. "What in the holy fuck was that?!" I whispered out more scared than ever.

I could feel myself tearing up again a little, everything was becoming almost over stimulating to me as I once again began to get lost. I was now stuck in this new room as I tried to find my way back to that stupid witches cap. I'm sure by now at least half of the group had found that room. Only Sam was left by now I bet, besides me of course. Come to think of it I haven't seen any of the others, not even heard them.

Unbeknownst to me they actually had all made it to the room and were waiting for me. Sam, Kris and Celina were sure I was fine but Colby was slowly losing that assurance as he began to worry about my safety. He told them, "I'm worried because we haven't heard or seen her and she has been messed with the most tonight. Like the spirit box said her name, she saw that figure and heard voices. Who knows what else they might do now that she is alone." With his words the others began to worry as well.

Back to me I was now much closer to making it all the way to the witches cap. By now the figure seemed to show up in my vision more often. I heard more noises and voices. I could feel tears cascading faster down my face, I was beyond scared now. I felt like I was being targeted by one ghost, as the voices were all the same. The figure was the same every time, with the same build and gun in hand. I was now jogging trying to find the room. I still felt lost until I entered one specific hallway.

I was finally just a straight shot to the room, I could hear the worried voices of my friends in the distance. I let out a short whimpering cry as I bolted for the room. When I turned into the room I could see all of their shocked faces. My mind was on one track as I ran right into the arms of Colby who instantly reciprocated the hug. He was quick to try and help me calm down, realizing pretty quickly that I was silently crying into his chest.

Sam of course had the camera running while Celina gently took the camera I had from me. Kris was rubbing my back while Colby held me close. His hand was petting my hair while the other held me around my waist. He whispered to me. "Shhhh it's okay y/n. You're safe, I'm here. shhhhh" With his help I was able to slowly come down from the adrenaline and fear. It was then that I explained everything I had just went through from the beginning. I told them that I hoped my suffering was able to catch something on the stupid camera. I explained that there were at least 3 sounds that should have been more than loud enough to be heard.

Colby kept me close and in his arms as I explained, he didn't even let me go when we finally moved on. For now we would be sitting around Celina while she tapped into her psychic side. She explained before how she would see a little movie in her head. So we all became completely quiet to allow her time to meditate. Colby had his arm still around my shoulders, he held me close to keep me from getting targeted again.

While she told us what she was hearing and seeing, I stayed still in Colby's arms. It was as if I was frozen in place, however what finally broke me out of it was when it felt like she was talking to me. "y/n, things are going to change for you in the paranormal world, but you will greet it with open arms. Something bad will happen soon, keep him close." However when she said 'him' she enunciated it differently. As if she was trying to tell me with out really telling me who 'he' was. I could feel Colby stiffen when she told us something bad would happen.

After that she finished talking and allowed all of us to talk about the things she said. Everyone was more focused on the part about me, as it sounded like she was telling me the future. My near future was not looking the brightest. Finally we all packed up and began to head out. The boys went off to record their ending while the rest of us got ready to leave in the car. I began to put back on my riding gear and helmet.

I was ready to go when they came back over, the girls and I participating in some small talk. Colby gave me a back hug and I could see the sly smirks from the the girls. I knew exactly what they were thinking but I turned my attention to Colby as he spoke. "are you okay?" I nodded. "Yep now that I get to go back, sleep, and eat I am more than okay." He laughed with me agreeing that anyone would be more than okay knowing they could relax like that.

He then asked. "Would you like to get dinner together?" I smiled. "Sure I would love that. What kind of food you thinking of?" He then also adorned a sly smirk. "how about a quick run to jack in the box?" I instantly adorned a wide smile. "You know what makes me melt Brock." I told him. We laughed and the others all poured into the car. While I hopped on my bike and soon we were all off back to the hotel. When we got back the others decided to head back to their rooms, leaving me and Colby alone. Little did I know all three of them had given Colby a pep talk. They had told him this was his moment, saying stuff like he had done well protecting and comforting me all day now he needed to take that next step. They even said if they don't find out we are dating within the next few hours then he would be on a friend zone time out. Whatever that means.

However I didn't know any of this, I was completely oblivious thanks to my love for my bike. He waltzed over to me in the parking lot. "So my car or your bike?" he asked me. I smiled and pulled my back pack around. Smirking as I pulled out my passenger helmet. He smiled and took it form me putting it on. He slid on the passenger seat behind me, I grabbed his hands and put them around my waist, smelling as I told him to hold on tight. With the last word I clicked a button and my visor came down as I began to prepare to drive off.

The ride was fun and calm, his hands around my waist making my blush sometimes. I was definitely glad to have my motorcycle helmet to block the obvious blush.

When we got to the food joint, I parked in a nice spot where I could see my bike from the window. We quickly went inside giggling to each other like little kids on their birthdays. We ordered and were now waiting for Colby's name to be called. It didn't take long and we were finally walking outside with the food bags. We decided it would be more fun to eat outside while staring at the stars and moon together. The food was good and talking was nice. However when Colby went to go throw away the food some man came up to me. His beeline-ing for me instantly sent a chill through my system. I was instantly reminded of Celina's words. "Something bad will happen soon, keep HIM close." However by the time I thought about calling Colby back the guy was up close in my personal space. This caused me to back up a bit as he spoke venomously. "Oh don't back up pretty lady, I just wanna chat for a bit." I shook my head. "Not interested." he instantly grabbed my arm and began to pull me back. I started to pull away, this brought us to a stand still as we seemed to be at the same strength level. Thanks to my constant gym attendance and love for the grind.

Finally Colby returned, removing his hand from my arm roughly and pushing the guy back. "Don't touch my girlfriend, just move on!" He yelled at the guy. The weird man instantly got apologetic toward Colby. 'Oh sorry man, didn't know the bitch had a man." Colby got angrier at that. "Leave right now before you saying anything worse and get kicked the fuck out." He sounded like he had growled it out. The man instantly began to speed walk away, Colby turning around to check me over.

"Are you okay y/n?" I smiled at him nodding "Yeah, you know Colby I think this was one of things Celina talked about." Colby seemed to have a realization at this. He agreed, that this sounded a lot like what Celina had said, also that we would definitely tell the group later.

Suddenly I remembered something Colby had said. "So am I your girlfriend now?" Colby blushed and scratched the back of his neck. "Well I wanted to ask you to be my girlfriend in a more romantic way." I giggled and gave him a kiss on the lips. "Well I think this was a pretty interesting way to finally get what I have been wishing for."

That night we returned to the hotel and Colby joined me in my room. We cuddled together as we watched Disney movies and finally fell asleep in each others arms. Pf course we got a round of cheers from the others in the morning when they learned the good news. Of course the predictions from Celina were also crazy.

Even after all the targeting from ghosts, Colby and I still found a way to have sweet cute moments together. Forgetting about all the hardships we each had experienced today.

[thescarletnargacuga]

Time Capsule fic request!

Someone entered the capsule and is in love with Pomni (he actually is a chill and overall nice guy) and later on him and Pomni becoming best friends (maybe he plays the flute and they perform duets a lot)

Caine get jealous but has trouble saying he’s jealous until he overhears the new person confess to Pomni. Caine has now a choice to make…confess to Pomni and whisk her away from this new guy or let Pomni be taken from him.

CHOICE

A TIME CAPSULE SHOWTIME ONESHOT

AU credit @mangotangerinepastry @the-amazing-digital-time-capsule

WARNING: hurt/comfort, jealousy, alcohol, chain smoking

~~~

Pomni danced across the stage, around the flutist she was dueting with. While the flutist stayed mostly in place to maintain control of their breathing, Pomni spun and kicked and swayed. The melodies from their individual instruments flowed together like musical ribbons in the wind. A truly awe inspiring performance.

Caine stood in the shadows just off stage, smiling dreamily at Pomni. The music was almost as beautiful as she was. He did his best to catch as many performances as possible. The focus and poise demonstrated by her was captivating.

The music ended with both performers striking dramatic poses, holding them for the applause. Then, they took their bows and exit stage right. Pomni smiled when she saw Caine.

He had been lightly applauding with a returned smile in his eyes. "Very well done, Pomni." He praised quietly as he walked past her to the stage. He straightened up and threw his hands out, stage voice on. "Wasn't that wonderful, ladies and gentlemen? Let's hear another round of applause for our intrepid orchestral duo!"

Pomni and the flutist had big drinks of water and put away their instruments as Caine introduced the next act. Pomni propped her leg up on a bench and stretched her hamstring. "Ugh, almost gave myself a cramp on that last spin. I don't know why I can't just play. I shouldn't have to dance around like a monkey."

The flutist shrugged. "Audiences demanded it. You know how it is." He locked up his flute case. "Hey, uh, since we're waiting for Gangle to finish, I was wondering if I could talk to you about something." He rubbed the back of his neck anxiously.

Pomni put her leg down and straightened her jacket. "Sure. Everything okay?"

"Yeah, can we..." The flutist looked around. "Speak privately?" He gestured further backstage where they wouldn't be seen by anyone that came through the staff door.

"Okay..?" Pomni followed him to the secluded corner. She anxiously swung her arms at her side. "So, what's up?"

The flutist took a deep breath. "There's something I've been meaning to tell you..."

Pomni froze, eyes widening a little. Oh no.

Caine exited the stage as Gangle entered in a flourish to give her performance. "Jagoffs." He muttered under his breath. The audience deadpan stares always bore into his skin when he did the announcements. He could feel their judging eyes and disdain for those they saw as beneath them. They sickened him.

Looking around he didn't see Pomni, but her violin was still backstage. She wouldn't have left without it. He heard quiet voices coming from the back, barely over the music from Gangle's performance. He walked over with intent to investigate, but paused when he heard the flutist.

"...I enjoy being your friend, and I hope to stay as such even if you say no, but I wanted to tell you that lately I've been feeling- or rather hoping, that we could...be more than that?" The flutist nervously fidgeted in place, struggling to maintain eye contact.

Pomni cringed. Not from the confession, but from how awkward she felt dealing with this kind of conversation. "Oh....um....heh....."

"It's just, I think you're really cool and smart and- and pretty. You're the most amazing woman I've ever met." The flutist was blushing, grateful for the low light. "There are not a lot of options for dates, but maybe we could go for a walk in the botanical gardens? Later today, maybe?"

Caine's mind could barely process what was happening. This wasn't happening. It couldn't. The way Pomni looks and talks to him led him to believe....was he seeing something that was never there?

Pomni gulped. "Listen, I really like you. You're a good performer and an even better friend. You're fun to be around."

Caine heard enough. He couldn't stand listening to another word. Of course it had been wishful thinking. She was interested in someone less broken. Who could blame her? He stormed out the staff door, slamming it hard.

Pomni jumped at the sudden sound and looked around the crates that hid her and the flutist. There had only been one other person around the stage. "Caine?"

~~~

"Fun to be around. That's what she said!" Caine moped as he downed his drink, sitting at Kinger's bar after hours. "I'm fun! Certainly leaps and bounds beyond someone with a flute shoved up their nose every day!"

"Mmhm." Kinger nodded as he idly polished a glass. "And you overheard their whole conversation?"

"No! I wasn't going to stick around and listen to her fawn over him!" Caine tossed his cigarette butt into the ashtray and immediately lit up another. "I don't care if she likes someone else-"

Kinger looked up from his glass, deadpan expression in his eyes.

"Shut up." Caine pointed at him. "I just wish she wouldn't lead ME on while she was at it!"

"What makes you say that? Pomni's a nice girl, I doubt she'd intentionally-"

"THAT'S JUST IT! She's not! Her feminine whiles are too much for me. The way she talks, the way she smiles, hell- even the way she stands while talking to me at any given time, about any given subject, screams interest." Caine finished his drink and tapped the glass on the bar for a refill.

Kinger obliged. "Caine, you're being ridiculous. I've seen the way you two interact. I doubt she's interested in the other guy. You should've stuck about for the but that was obviously coming."

Caine grumbled and drank. "I was kidding myself ever thinking she'd..." He trailed off, holding his head in his hand.

Kinger almost rolled his eyes. "When you're done having your pity party, go talk to her. You care about her don't you?"

Caine didn't answer, his frown only deepened.

Kinger sighed. "Look, whatever choice she made, that's her choice. You must respect that."

".....I do. But I can still be sad about it."

"Fair enough." Kinger could sympathize with heartbreak better than most.

~

Caine's condition did not improve over the coming days. In fact, it worsened. He avoided Pomni at every turn, and spent his off hours drunk off his ass at Kinger's bar and chain smoking like a chimney.

"Filler....up...." Caine slurred, pushing his glass towards Kinger. His head laid on the bar, a half burned cigarette between his teeth.

Kinger took the glass. "I'm cutting you off."

Caine gave a pathetic whine. "Not now...I've almost forgotten how much I....how much I...." Tears spilled out from his teeth.

Kinger wiped down his bar. "If you would just talk to her-"

"I CAN'T!!" Caine spat out his cigarette, scattering ashes. "She won't- she'll just-"

"Stop making assumptions." Kinger said sternly, cleaning up the ashes with some annoyance. "Have you really forgotten the Anniversary Ball already? The way you two danced was like nothing I saw before. And, come on, the bush incident is rather infamous." He chuckled.

"....the....what?" Caine lifted his head slightly. It's dense structure makes his neck droop. "Bush..?"

"Wow, you must be really far gone to not remember the bush. How disheveled and covered in dirt you two were? You're lucky all the guests were too drunk to care."

Caine's bloodshot eyes widened. "You-"

"Oh yeah, we noticed. Plus, Gangle told us all about how she found you. I applaud you, really, gutsy move to do that at an event as important as the anniversary ball."

Caine didn't know how to respond. His memory was fogged by the intense alcohol consumption, but he could just make out the vision of having Pomni beneath him. Her pulling him closer by his tie. His heart racing.

"That was....I don't know what..." Caine grew frustrated and closed his teeth. He held his head in his hands, unsure if he was about to cry again or throw up. The volatile mix of nicotine and alcohol in his system wasn't helping.

Kinger shook his head. "You should really-"

"Meh, meh, meh. I'm Kinger and I know everything about women." Caine childishly mocked. "Just stop. I'm not here for advice. I'm here to pretend I can't feel how much everything hurts."

"I was just going to tell you to look to your right." Kinger nodded to the side.

Caine looked, seeing Pomni sitting on the barstool next to him. "GAH!" His heavy head flew back and dragged his drunk body backwards off his stool. He laid on the floor, dizzy.

"Had enough to not run away this time?" Pomni stared.

Kinger served Pomni a Roy Rogers with a maraschino cherry on top. "Sorry about him, Pomni. He's having an...episode."

Pomni smirked. "Thank you. I'll handle him." She sipped her drink.

Caine rolled over, slowly getting to his knees and even more slowly climbing the bar to get back on his stool. He was hardly capable of coherent thought, let alone fast movements at this point. He thought for a second to summon BUBLE's teleport, he certainly wouldn't have felt it, but the way she looked at him was enough to convince him to stay. He'd missed those eyes.

"You've been avoiding me." Pomni's smirk faltered.

"You've noticed." Caine rubbed his bloodshot eyes.

"Didn't take much. You're not as subtle as you think you are."

Caine felt the hit to his ego all the way in his chest.

Kinger was struggling not to laugh as he cleaned glasses.

Caine dragged his hands down his face. "....why are you here?"

"You overhead me talking to the flutist, didn't you?"

"...yes." Caine eventually admitted.

"Did you hear me turn him down?"

"N- huh??" Caine's head did not like him looking at her so suddenly.

Pomni sipped her drink. "Yeah, I wasn't interested. We're still friends. He's a good guy, but my romantic intrigue lies elsewhere."

"You like someone else..?" Caine couldn't process her words. Too many thoughts were happening at once.

Pomni smiled. "Oh yeah. He's tall, handsome, runs a circus. You might know him?"

Caine stared. One eye blinked before the other. "....I run the circus."

Pomni's drink came out her nose, and Kinger couldn't hold back anymore. Both of them broke into fits of laughter. Kinger pounded his fist on the bar. Pomni coughed and held the cocktail napkin to her face.

Caine was taken aback. "What's so funny?"

"You- HA! You actual dumbass!" Kinger was crying with laughter.

Pomni wiped her face and coughed the rest of her soda out of her wind pipe. Her nose burned. "Caine," She giggled. "Of course it's you. I'm telling you: I like YOU. Honestly, I thought you already knew that."

"But, I haven't done anything. I haven't made the move yet."

Pomni gave him a sympathetic smile. "Times have changed. You don't have to make the first move. Though, if you insist, I'm waiting." She leans against the bar, giving him an inviting look.

Caine sits up, ramrod straight, and looks at Kinger. "Uhhh-"

Kinger put his six hands up, still half laughing. "Don't look at me. You're on your own with this." He wiped up the mess Pomni made and turned his back.

Caine swallowed hard. He wasn't sober enough for this. "Pomni, I... I'm sorry. I was- I AM such an idiot."

"Good start." Kinger said from the sink.

"I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU WEREN'T HELPING!!" Caine snapped.

Kinger's shoulders shook as he chuckled.

"Go on, Caine. I'm listening." Pomni put her hand on his.

Caine could feel his heart hammering, his head swimming. "I can only ask for a chance. Will you allow me...to take you...on a date?"

Pomni grabbed his disheveled shirt and pulled him in to kiss the side of his lower jaw. "Yes."

Caine was stunned. "I love you." He drunkenly drolls out.

"Slow down, tiger." Pomni laughs.

[cloudmancy]

I have no desire to get you in trouble but I would be curious to hear your thoughts on the new episode and the preview because I also have.. thoughts and I'm interested in what other people clocked as not great or kinda.. idk. other people's concerns, because I have had a lot of them and I never see people really talk about those things

they're doing a new format this season where they film a bunch of rp episodes in a row then take a break when there's a battle so the crew can get the battleset ready, so I understand the dissonance. but the tone of this episode from the tone of last episode was SO jarring. I was ready to chew drywall at the end of episode 17 but we head into the episode 18 fight and at the end all I can say is... damn! that sure is a battle that happened. the entire fight felt really low-stakes even though objectively a few of the bad kids were in mortal danger, but the mood at the table was so relaxed and chill and there was almost no roleplay at all... which drove me so crazy

>no rp except for fun silly party stuff (no callbacks to the adaine elven oracle in a storm thing? after all the fun setup last time??)

>fought 8 different antagonists and none of them said a word

>nobody questioned why or what oisin's grandma or all those dragon were doing there they just started taking them out one by one like raid battles in world of warcraft

>cassandra/nightmare king showed up only to not make any impact or get a single word in

>dos2 lady vengeance fight did the floating boat/ballistas/dragon fight better SMH

and then after all of that we're headed straight into ANOTHER battle episode judging by the preview... and it's against the rat grinders and porter/jace! let me out I want PLOT & DIALOGUE fhjy cannot end like this (5 hours straight of battle where they just kill everyone that moves). there's 2 eps left so I really hope they do the last ep as a 4 hour long roleplay only epilogue episode because as we've all seen ending campaigns on a battle leads to frankly really rushed character and world decisions. it's ultra disappointing too because I loved this entire season so much so far. the setup and buildup and plot points and mystery of fhjy is the best they've ever done it in dimension 20 period

ep 18 fhjy battle was a letdown to me... not giving the party an rp episode after 3 hours of loredump + going straight into a final battle without being able to interact with the world after gaining info is bad. they should've had a chance to process everything they learned about house sunstone, porter's plan, the rat grinders being used as ascension fodder, whatever the whole deal behind ambrosia and lucy frostkettle and why they needed a helios cleric in buddy IN ROLEPLAY. I don't want all this stuff explained to me after the battle by brennan or in some throwaway lines in the adventuring party - I want the bad kids to talk to people! I want them to investigate! I want fig to pull some BS with porter knowing the full extent of all his plans. it really sucks for us as an audience too to be hit with all this lore and get approximately 0 time for it to sink into the implications of how the worldbuilding was shaped by it or realizations of "ohhh that's why that happened at the beginning of the season" before we go straight into killing everyone.

with the way this is going I don't have any confidence they're gonna be able to actually empathize at all with the rat grinders too before they start lopping heads off because in battle episodes everyone kind of just. becomes numbers and an objective to take out except for pet favourite npcs of the cast. and they've mostly been interacting with the rat grinders as nuisances all season 😭 I'm PRAYING to be proven wrong and the last 2 episodes of this are fantastic but it's not looking good folks

[mooredanxieties]

It takes one to know one

Article: The FBI isn't just hunting psychopaths, they're head-hunting them too, offering competitive pay and benefits in the hopes of using one demented mind to catch another. Sure, we're familiar with the stereotype of the FBI profiler, swaggering onto a crime scene, fitting the pieces together like a master puzzler with his 1000-piece jigsaw. In reality, these profilers should be likened to harridans reading a cup of spent tealeaves- passing off their active imagination as incisive fact.

Fact Check: Drunk Iowa Driver's Alcohol Level Was Nearly Eight Times Legal Limit Article: Florida Woman Busted For DUI Tells Cop, "This Is What I Get For being a bridesmaid" Press Pass: South Carolina Man Attacked Grandmother Over Bizarre Chick Salad Mix-Up Press Pass: Open Gown, A Universal Hospital Indignity, Leads To Indiana Man's [unreadable]

Another Shrike In the Nest?

by Frederica Lounds

As reported before by Tattlecrime, the FBI maintains jurisdiction in the case of Garret Jacob Hobbs, the Minnesota Shrike. But as days turn to weeks, desperation has begun to take hold amongst the investigators. An embarrassing truth is beginning to emerge: There are no new leads on the whereabouts of the Shrike's seven missing victims. As families await any word at all about their lost daughters, the case looks as though it has stalled. Tip lines are open, but they have so far yielded little to nothing. Where lie these poor women who deserve a proper funeral? When approached for comment on the investigation, things with Graham took a surprising and dark turn. Upset at the probity of the questions at hand, Graham threatened, "It's not very smart to piss of a guy who thinks about killing people for a living." A statement like this calls into question the very mind and method of Will Graham and his FBI apologists. This is a man who skirted normal FBI... Read More

It Takes One To Catch One?

PHOTO EXLUSIVE - INSIDE THE LEEDS HOME

Exclusive photos of house where the Jacobi family was slaughtered.

The Jacobi home nestled in a sleepy suburb of Chicago that was startled awake by the shocking murder that has changed the area forever. Residents that have lived in the area for almost twenty years have said that they will now consider moving. See the disturbing exclusive photos inside.

Insane Fiend Consulted in Mass Murders by Agent He Tried To Kill

by Freddie Lounds

FEDERAL MANHUNTERS, stymied in their search for the Tooth Fairy, have turned to the most savage killer in captivity for help. Hannibal the Cannibal has gotten a call from a very special visitor- none other than Will Graham himself. I saw it with my own eyes, Graham coming form the main entrance to the Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane on a recent afternoon. This mysterious visit had this reporter curious to its nature. What could Graham, who was almost a victim of Lecter himself, have to discuss with the Mad Doctor? A bit more digging lead me to face to face discussion with Will Graham. Needless to say he was evasive. But I was able to suss out that Graham has begun working for the FBI again on the Tooth Fairy investigation. And he was in fact visiting Lecter to help him get information on the Tooth Fairy murders. Is this really where to FBI has sunk? Hiring a man with questionable stability to get information form a clinically insane psychotic? If this is where the FBI has been able to take this investigation, this reporter is worried. Worried for the family left behind by the Leeds and Jacobi murders. And worried for the next family on whatever deranged list the Tooth Fairy has made. For surely there will be a next family. There have been three so far the the Tooth Fairy shows no sign of stopping. And frankly- what's to stop him? Certainly no local police agencies. Certainly no the FBI who have done nothing to further the investigations since they took over several months ago.

CANNIBAL KILLER FEEDS THE FEDS

[alt] FBI IN BED WITH THE DEVIL

[alt] TOOTH FAIRY INVESTIGATION BUNGLED BY FEDS?

Desperation Leads to Partnership with Cannibalistic Killer The recent apparent partnership between the FBI and Hannibal Lecter has this reporter wondering if there is anyone with whom the FBI won't partner. One wonders the validity of whatever information can be gleaned from someone who is so clinically insane as to devour those around him. How much can Lecter be trusted not to give misleading information to protect perhaps a fraternity of killers with whom he would most definitely be a member. And what does Lecter get from all this? Special privileges? Or maybe just the excitement of getting inside information on the violent nature of the Tooth Fairy crimes. This would no doubt a source of great pleasure for someone so diabolical in nature. I wonder how this makes the families of the victims feel. To know that Hannibal the Cannibal is drooling over the bloody remains of the lost loved ones. Is whatever little information can be provided by this this 'expert' killer worth making the victim's families continue to suffer?

[maykitz]

If you're white you really shouldn't be encouraging people to watch a video of a Black woman getting murdered by police. You shouldn't have to actually watch a Black woman getting killed on video to understand how horrible it is. I'm Black and I'm just tired of people trying to act like our deaths are some sort of show or spectacle to consume.

i'll try to explain my stance on this delicate matter thoroughly and i mean this as gently as possible because i know you're coming from a place of hurt and compassion. but think about what you're saying here. if (almost) no one watches the footage, then what? who decides what's on it? who owns the narrative? do you want to grant exemptions to a few reliable(?) narrators who can watch the video and then tell everyone else what they saw? we're talking about a homicide case with major public interest and a not insignificant amount of coverup from varying sources, not least of which is the police department itself. it's actually paramount that the public have access to the evidence and use that access. you can rely on descriptions, sure, but who's to say they're accurate? even unintentionally, every description only tells you what the writer thinks happened, it will never replace seeing something with your own eyes and forming your own opinion.

besides that, i strongly disagree that viewing evidence to be able to assess the situation as truthfully as possible disrespects the victim in any way. no dignity is taken from her when other people see what led up to her death, whether that be on the news or on tiktok. we're not talking about a lecherous bystander recording of her body or anything. and nobody actually watches these videos to learn that killing [black] people is bad, i don't understand the popularity of this strawman. the crux of every single discussion of police brutality has never been questioning whether killing is per se bad, but whether this specific killing was justified due to special circumstances and especially the victim's own behaviour. the question of special justification is what all the victim blaming is poured into anew every single time. and body cam footage can not only answer this question but actually provide evidence for it like nothing else can.

people who watch material like this to titillate themselves are few and can and will get their kicks anyway. the vast majority of views on these recordings are concerned with investigating the facts before speaking on them, which is undeniably a good thing. an essential thing, in fact. how is the public discourse supposed to respond to the inevitable claim of self defense from the first hand account of the cop if everybody respectfully declines to view the first hand account of the body cam? or can only refer to the second hand account of someone else's description? you're conceding the investigation to people whose interests lie in shifting the blame onto the victim, out of racism or fanatic loyalty to the police force or whatever reason.

still, i agree that sharing these videos around on social media shouldn't be done if they're reliably permanently available somewhere. but as well meaning as you are and as much as i emphasise with your desire to protect the victim, people very much do need to see facts to form an opinion. you do have to prove that the cop killed her unprovokedly und frivolously. you're not protecting her dignity or her status as the victim by asking that everyone just says yes & amen and believes whatever some unspecified source of video description has concluded from viewing the evidence. criminal cases can't be discussed on the basis of a game of telephone. and that does mean the victim's final moments will be seen by many strangers. i'm sorry.

[rottenpumpkin13]

Angst idea

Hojo finally has enough of Sephiroth acting too normal and “emotionally human” because of Genesis and Angeal, so he decides to drive a wedge between them. To do this, he films a lab session where he questions Sephiroth heavily about his friendship with Hollander’s brats. Sephiroth lies to Hojo and tells him that they mean nothing to him and that he is just using them to please PR because the public likes them together. He doesn’t know he is being filmed.

Hojo leaks the video and Genesis and Angeal see it when the Turks investigate. PR is outraged. Even the president is pissed that Sephiroth has caused such a ruckus for the public.

Sephiroth doesn’t know what to do.

To confess to them that he was lying would mean revealing the truth. That he was afraid of Hojo and his anger towards the man all along had been a way to mask his deeper anxiety. They would all know his greatest weakness. Perhaps it’s better to say nothing.

But maybe “Hollander’s brats” can see the hints from the video. The way Sephiroth tries to sit up perfectly straight to hide any shaking. The way his eyes dart down when Hojo raises his voice. The way he flinches slightly when Hojo moves closer to him. The way he’s paler than normal under the lab lights. How he sounds cold and empty, almost as if he’s disassociating. They’ve never seen him like this before.

And maybe they realize at last that their best friend has a very dark side to his life that he never speaks of.

WELP. There's the hurt! 😭 *slaps the comfort down on the counter through my tears*

- - - - - - - -

Sephiroth braced himself for the backlash that would inevitably follow the leaked video. He knew Angeal and Genesis would be furious, considering everything he had said about them, invalidating their friendship.

The day the video was leaked nearly killed him.

The weight of their potential anger consumed him, overshadowing even the relentless scrutiny from the media and the rest of the company. It all meant nothing to him.

All he could think about was their reaction. Genesis and Angeal. The only two people he cared about in the entire world. And he was about to lose them.

After enduring a day of meetings and interrogations, Sephiroth's anxiety peaked when his attempts to reach his friends went unanswered. Genesis had turned his phone off, and Angeal's went straight to voicemail. He didn't get the chance to see them that day due to the chaos that consumed his schedule after the video was leaked.

With a racing heart and trembling legs, he made his way to Angeal's apartment, desperate to hear anything from them. He'd even endure their shouting at him if it meant he could see them.

He knocked twice, meaning to knock a third, but the door opened alarmingly quickly.

Angeal and Genesis stood in the doorway , their faces stunned. Sephiroth was overcome with relief. They didn't seem angry or hurt, only concerned as they asked him if he was okay.

Collapsing into their arms, a wave of emotion washed over him, pulling his body down to the ground as tears streamed down his face.

They rushed to his side.

"Sephiroth, it's okay, we're not mad at you," Angeal's voice was gentle.

"We know," Genesis added, his expression softening as he met Sephiroth's tear-filled gaze. "Actually, we're not entirely sure what we know, but we're certain you didn't mean any of that BS."

Angeal rested his hand on Sephiroth's shoulder. "We noticed how uncomfortable you were on camera. You're not to blame for any of this, okay?"

Sephiroth's apologies came in broken whispers, barely audible through his sobs, and repeated over and over as he struggled to convey his regret and remorse.

"There's no need to apologize," Genesis reassured him as he rubbed circles on his back. "You haven't done anything wrong. It's okay."

Angeal and Genesis shared a glance before Angeal tried: "We won't pressure you to tell us what happened, but can you confirm that Hojo was behind this?"

A trembling nod from Sephiroth confirmed their suspicions.

"Hmm, I had a feeling," Genesis murmured, his gaze meeting Angeal's in silent flicker of rage.

Angeal took Sephiroth's hand, his grip firm and reassuring as he pulled him back up. "Come on. We can talk about this. We'll figure out our next steps together, got it?"

Sephiroth nodded, feeling relieved.

[arwenride]

Ok real quick before the next episode drops:

I know we're all having a very fun time poking fun at Sam for being in his conspiracy era and at Alice for almost literally putting her hands over her ears and going "la la la la" to the horrors-- it is very funny and so far the "ignorance is bliss" strategy seems to be working for her-- but if we look back at TMA, ignorance has never been a guarantee of safety.

It's not that Alice is wrong when she says curiosity gets you killed. We see several examples of it in TMA, like Jon in season 3, Daisy's partner and the coffin, or Melanie looking into war ghosts. But there are also examples of the exact opposite-- people who have done no investigating at all and are just in the wrong place at the wrong time, or are trying to keep their heads down and still get sucked into everything.

The biggest example is Jon in season one. That man played dumb for all he was worth, but it didn't protect him from Jane Prentiss, Elias, or the Eye. Naomi Herne went to her boyfriends funeral. Katalina Gorka took the subway home. Lucia Wright went on vacation.

And there are some occasions, like Basira going after Maxwell Rayner, where knowledge of the fears saves lives.

So, even though Alice is partially correct, I suspect that her strategy of hiding her head under the blanket to avoid looking at the monster isn't going to protect her for much longer. After all, the blanket never did anything.