#Vlad is simple but only his motive | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

symphonyofthewrite · 3 years

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If These Walls Could Talk

Freaking GORGEOUS cover art by Junki Sakuraba on Instagram and Deviantart!! Definitely go check him out!! His art is incredible, and from what I can tell he’s really nice dude. He absolutely went above and beyond with this prompt. 10/10 would commission again. (And probably will once I save up enough money XD)

The wonderful art later in the chaper is by niuan_ on instagram!!

It wasn’t made/commissioned for this fic--(though I’ve since commissioned her to make cover art for me, so stay tuned for those!)--but when I saw it I couldn’t believe it!! That’s one of my favorite images in this chapter, and I couldn’t believe another artist made a piece for the same idea independently!!

I'll put the links to their profiles either in the replies or a reblog (since tumblr is dumb about links)!!

Also, FYI, I'll be using this post as my "reblog post" meaning I'll reblog this post with the later chapters of this fic, so they're all in one place. So if you want to read more of this fic, check the reblogs on this post, chances are more chapters will be there!!

Comments and reblogs are MORE than appreciated!! If you have a spare minute you will really make my week, and motivate me to keep writing!!

Fandom: Castlevania Netflix

Summary: Vampires do not have reflections, and castles do not have hearts. But Dracula is no ordinary vampire, and Castlevania is no ordinary castle. If castles can fight, maybe they can think too.

The series, and Adrian’s childhood, told from the perspective of the castle.

Chapter Summary:

“My mother’s name was Lisa, and she was mortal…She actually showed up at his front door. She found the castle and banged the door with the pommel of her knife…She was remarkable. She beat on the door until my father let her in, and then demanded he teach her how to be a doctor.”

Chapter 1: "Lisa”

“Is this how the castle felt to you before my mother first arrived at your door?”

The castle doesn’t like children.

Well, maybe that’s too strong to say. It simply isn’t the place for them. Its existence is a signpost: leave me alone. It is not used to having company—much less a family—inside it, nor is it ready to welcome for a crying, puking, giggling thing into the world. It does not intend to be a cozy place to coddle him into adulthood.

The castle itself pierces the sky, its turrets and towers the dripping stain of the sun’s blood across the moon.

The bare walls hold no colorful tapestries for a child to enjoy, no paintings of its many inhabitants to tell of—for there was only ever one (and maybe that ought not change. It is safe to say the castle doesn’t like change). The royal red and gold carpets are more suited to kings; not designed for spit-up, mud, and scuffing. ‘Don’t play with that’ would be a motto around here; so many contraptions either easy to break, or which could break the child. The fireplaces, while almost always lit, only ever coughed warmth onto the floor before them—they provided no snug space to curl up on a winter’s day. Even the mirrors here are empty, holding nothing but a reflection of the bare walls they sit upon.

There are certain people who were seemingly born as they are; they never owned toys, never crawled on the floor, never walked with clumsy steps—their footfalls were always this calculated count—never burped on their mother’s nice shirts, and surely never had anything so dull as a childhood. They were always just…here, on the world. There was no innocence, and no losing it. So it was with Dracula.

The very thought of Dracula ever owning toys, even in some nice cottage far away from here, with a doting mother and an absent father, with a funny last name like Cronqvist, defied sense to the castle. So no, no toys here, nor any simple charts for learning; the books divulged their secrets to more mature minds. Just blood and books, gold and gears, forgotten magic means, mirrors that reflect nothing, and a pile of prayers to a good God they used to justify their ungood, and ungodly deeds.

All these things—or their absence—do not make for the picture of a baby-proof home.

The castle has grown accustomed to being cold and dark, and listening to one master alone. It’s not a quaint place lovers look on and think we’ll raise our kids here someday.

Its master isn’t the ideal father either—after all, the castle only reflected its king. Its master knows only of blood and nails, fangs and wails, words too big for a child’s mouth, and worlds too dark for a child’s heart.

Can he be soft? Can he be gentle? Can he keep those claws, which have ripped out better men’s hearts, from piercing a child’s—his child’s…how could one who killed so many have a child?—skin? He knows many spells, but is there one that can turn those screams into laughter?

He has been soft before. Once. And that is with this woman.

Many women have walked the castle’s halls: shivering, shrieking damsels at his feet; cold and calculating queens; fragile bodies on the floor, that he broke with the same regard a child does a vase that matters to someone else.

Those ordinary people who do come often have pitchforks in their mouths, and fiery words in their closed fists. Curses stacked on the end of stakes, banging like the castle is the church bell signifying their own funerals.

It is for this reason that the castle does not like outsiders, does not open its doors easily. But it cannot deny anyone entry. Unlike the humans’ doors, which find his master guilty until proven innocent.

They always came at night. At night, when the loudest sound is your own breathing. At night, when their fires echoed loudest, and their shouts burned brightest.

They came when the flowers were closed, when only the most eerie and vicious of animals played with the skins of their prey, and the moon waxed the world in cold, drunk shine. The sun could not watch them, could not show their blood-struck hands in their full glory.

She came at sunset. When the sun still glazed her deeds in sanguine auburn, but was just deciding to turn its gaze and let the kids have their fun. Not quite day, when the sun would kill things like Dracula, but not quite night, when the hours are named after witches, and lust is strongest—be it for the body, or the blood within it. Somewhere in between death and life, violence and peace.

This woman came with a knife in her hand, yes. But a knife, at least, was not a sword. It was not a pitchfork, a spear, a whip, or a stake; all weapons that signify, if the fight wasn’t there, you were bringing it with you. Not a war-starved weapon, pointing with mal-in—and -con—tent towards the castle doors and all the things inside it. Not a thirsty thing. Something that by default faced the other direction. Something that can start a fight if it wants to, but doesn’t crave it.

The golden woman came at sunset, with a knife in her hand, and looked upon this thing, this castle that others called ‘ugly’, and ‘monstrous,’ and ‘grotesque,’ looked upon it with awe, and gasped in wonder.

She knocked. She didn’t bang her fists upon the stone, didn’t ram pitchforks and assorted insults against the innocent doors, like how-dare-they protect their master.

She knocked, and the doors opened before she could raise her fist a second time. Maybe, just this once, not because they didn’t have any other choice.

The doors—foreboding, menacing, and all the other spooky -ings one can think of—opened to a world strewn in light; the demon’s castle looked brighter, more beautiful, more alive, than half the churches she’d been to.

Her footsteps were gentle against the castle’s floors. Not a slow, forced gentleness, but also not a piercing, purposeful march. There was no apprehension to her footsteps; her feet carried her as if anxious to take her to as many rooms as they could.

At first her steps were the only sound, enough to fool some into thinking they’re alone.

And it became clear both that she was not alone, and not a fool.

But when she saw the demon, she put the knife away, and used her words.

She used her words to repeat those she herself had heard: stories. But not the kind that make monstrous men run at the doors with naughts and crosses, the kind pious people buried along with all evidence that the world wasn’t made of black and white.

Not all the stories told that this place was cold and dark and full of death.

Amongst all the stories about death, there were others that said Vlad Tepes brought this castle to life with science, forbidden knowledge, and a little bit of lightning. Stories that say there is life here.

And, in exchange for proof that these life-stories true, Dracula asked for a trade, a trade that would prove the other stories true too. He gave up the killing a while ago—(the castle has been in one place a very long time)—but he was still not used to giving for free, and definitely not used to getting for free. Vampires trade in blood and names, not diamonds and declarations. Vampires trade in things they can swallow. This castle, too, had been a gaping hole set to swallow the world and everything that entered. Never once had it given.

And she dared to say, that this place, its master, should learn to give, when the humans have done nothing but take from them—or try their best to. He ought to be the one to invite her in, to ask what she would like, to dispense pleasant words and kind actions, when the humans forgot they invented hospitality, and showed no invitation for him to even enter their homes.

But she didn’t come with a mouth full of garlic, and hands full of superstition. Her feet did not drill holes in the floor with their sharp toll, they wandered the scenic route.

She was used to being cheated. Dracula and his castle were too. But that was not why she was there. She was not there for cheap tricks, or death. She wanted something real. A little bit of the life the castle has to offer.

Her defiance wasn’t that of a terrified citizen, or angry queen, either; rather the calm resolve of someone who is asking for something they know in their heart is good, and knows they will get it. The kind of person who believes there is good in everyone, and that this good will ultimately always win, and who won’t leave until they convince this good to show its face.

The castle has watched countless men and women cower at the foot of count Dracula. Some, do have a measure of god-sanctioned defiance; they come with whips and scourges to defeat him. The castle and the king are bound together in their resolve against them.

Except one. Except this woman. One human whom both master and castle found themselves reluctant to deny, cast away, or kill, maybe even…taken with.

She may be human, but she was not like the rest; she did not light the night on fire with her thirst for blood.

So maybe, just maybe, they could let one ray of sunlight slip through the cracks.

She was also not devoid of life, and maybe that was the key.

‘Devoid of life’ was an accurate portrayal of the castle. Bats flying out of blackness is a good description of a cave, and caves don’t usually come with the brochure ‘teeming with life’, or ‘great place to take your kids!’. The castle had a soul-sucking quality to it; those who entered often found themselves leaving less alive than they arrived. It took after its vampire master. Those who didn’t actually lose their lives within its walls, often remarked upon leaving that the flowers bloomed brighter, the birds sang louder, the grass was greener, and that they missed the sunlight.

Sunlight. Such a base thing; vampires don’t need the light or warmth to be happy.

Sunlight. Such a base way to die; wanting to get out of the cold and the dark.

“Is this how the castle felt to you before my mother first arrived at your door?”

Castlevania was alive once. Once Dracula set the pumps, and its heart began to beat. He turned the gears, and its lungs inhaled. He forged the lightning, and it began to think. Once the books, full of unknown knowledge, jumped off the shelves to get the vampire king’s attention. He filled the bottles and beakers, and they bubbled, as if laughing at a joke only they shared.

They were both alive, once.

That waned, with time. The gears got arthritis, the books caught pneumonia, the experiments atrophied. The castle ached before she came.

And Dracula, alone in the halls, picking up books and putting them down again without so much as a polite glance through them, because he read them all before. Dracula looking into fractured mirrors that could take him anywhere, but deciding there wasn’t anywhere he wanted to go. Dracula, looking into old mirrors that don’t reflect him—like there was never anything to reflect, nothing alive here to begin with, and there isn’t a master for this castle after all. Nothing but a grave. Dracula sitting alone in his study, staring into the fire. No one to talk to. No sound but flipping pages and crackling fires—nothing alive. Alive but dead. This castle. Its master. Undead is the proper term.

The other women who came through here reflected the castle, or else the castle took the life out of them the moment they entered. Queens with malice-stained past, and cracked, icy future in their eyes. Just as cold as the walls. Subjects, humans throwing gruesome insults, silky flattery, or fluttering pleas at his feet. Just as empty as the mirrors.

Only one refused the castle’s bite. Only one walked in looking for life, rather than death. Looking for a thing no one thought existed here. Already presumed dead. Put six feet beneath the ground. But maybe it was here all along; maybe the light hid in the castle’s corners while the dark came out to play, and she just had to coax it out of its hiding places. Maybe the bell was ringing all this time, she was the only one who came close enough to hear it; the only one who came to put flowers on the grave.

Maybe when she felt the machinery pumping she knew the rhythm was a heartbeat. Maybe when she heard the gears clanking she knew it was the sound of inhaling and exhaling. Maybe when she saw the lightning, she wondered what it was thinking. Maybe she looked at these books, these instruments, and saw what the vampire king saw once; something alive. They weren’t dead yet—un- or otherwise. Just sick, and in need of proper treatment. She was a doctor after all. Maybe her first subject was the very books she learned from.

Lisa, who looked at this blotch on the sky, with Death in its towers, and darkness splattered on its walls, and thought that’s where I’ll learn to heal people. Lisa, who gaped in amazement at the beast of a building. Lisa, who didn’t shudder upon entering. Lisa, who didn’t scream when its master touched her, but turned to him with calm resolve, and told him she’d teach him to be more human. Lisa, who’s life eclipsed the undeath in this place.

And there was a trade that occurred that day. For Dracula’s immortal knowledge, Lisa would teach him how to live a mortal life. To travel the world as a man, to walks as a man, to eat and drink, laugh and cry, as a man. Immortality for mortality. They gave each other the world, as so many lovers promise to do. Vlad would make her immortal, and Lisa would make him mortal, with no exchange blood.

(Except to create a thing with both their blood running through it.)

So maybe, after all this talk of life, it is fitting that she wants to create life inside this castle.

Fitting, maybe. Fitting for her. But the castle is not mortal yet, and wishes it could protest that it isn’t the right size, refuse to try on the idea.

Dracula is apprehensive as well, for the castle and he are used to each other, they take after each other, because the cold, and the dark, and the death, and the alone does something to you after a while; you start talking to the walls. After the cold queens and quaking colleens leave, or leave their bloodstains the floor. After the beasts and their silver-stained bullets turn back into righteous men in the sun. After he simply outlives everyone else. When all the living things hate, fear, or else betray you, when all the living things can die, and you, who are undead, cannot, it’s the lifeless things that stand firm by your side. When the day ends and the shadows come out to play, when you’re the only one left, in the end you still have the walls. And then…the walls are all you have. And if you talk to them long enough you make a sort of pact, spoken or silent, with those speechless stones: ‘you’re the only one I can trust.’

Dracula speaks to them one day, says he wonders if he can do this, be a father at all, not to mention a good one. The castle cannot reply. But something deep inside the walls wonders if it might be nice to hear Dracula laugh. It might be nice to put on some different clothes. It might be nice for someone new to listen to from time to time. It might be nice to live again.

The castle is concerned. Used to doing things one way, being one way, and only hearing one voice. But that doesn’t mean it is unwilling, that it intends to kill the child.

It never kills anything—Dracula does that. It cannot do anything on its own, and that includes change.

The castle doesn’t like change.

…But that doesn’t mean it won’t.

And if its going to change, its master must change first. They must change together.

Vampires do not have reflections. But Dracula has a castle, and that castle will be damned if it isn’t his mirror.

Reflections are simple to change; put on some makeup, some war paint, a new change of clothes, get a piercing somewhere. Simple, yes, but not easy, to change completely, because that doesn’t mean anything’s changed inside.

The castle did not come equipped for child-rearing; there are no rooms full of toys and cradles and school supplies.

So if this is to be, they must build their son’s world themselves.

Together they set aside a room for the child’s arrival. Just one, single room. And the castle too knows, from the start, this room will be different from all the rest. They will put paintings on the walls, and banners in the halls; things to interest him, to tell him of his parents, at least, even if there are few other relatives to spend Christmas with. The carpets will be darker, instead of the stringent red, and they will make their words smaller, the books easier to understand. The rest of the castle is warm in color, but cool in atmosphere. This room will be cool in color, but warm in atmosphere. The fire will always be set in its place, and they will try their best to make sure the warmth reaches him; if the fire fails, they will knit blankets; if the blankets fail they will make him tea, or warm milk with honey; and when everything else fails they will hold him. If there are tears here, scornful stares will not greet them, instead, kisses and lullabies will be behind door number three. If this room lives, it will be because of something much softer than pounding metal and lighting.

If a child is to live here, they must change that reflection. Everything Dracula’s castle appears to be, this room will be the reverse. Separate. Something… other than the castle.

This room will bottle all the laughter had in this castle. This room will be made of and for living, not the death the rest of the place is steeped in. So much so that this room will not stand for bloodshed.

Lisa brings in supplies from her town; color and cloth, boards and brushes, needle, and thread, and paper; all the things one needs to build a universe.

It is Dracula who takes the paint, who changes the color to something other than the blacks and reds of the rest of the Vampire’s world, cementing on the walls themselves You will not be dark here, my castle. You will be kind to him, Castlevania. The castle doesn’t know its master to work with his hands like a human, but Vlad is not the same within this room either—this room is part of the trade. He doesn’t use magic, or science, as if he is telling himself with every hammer that they are going to change together, the way one does when talking to the mirror.

Lisa sits in a chair and stiches together cloth and fur to make little creatures, toys for the boy to play with. Soft things, not sharp. They are reflections too, littler, simpler ones, of the creatures howling and prowling outside the castle’s walls, or scurrying within them.

But it is the ceiling that is the crowning jewel of the room. Something they paint together—splashing it onto each other’s clothes and noses.

His parents love the stars. They often walk outside the castle walls, fingers knit into each other’s, to gaze at them. They are scholars at soul, and have charted the constellations. They want their child to be able to do the same, to watch the stars, even if he’s not outside. At the end of every day they want him to be sung to sleep by the symphony of the night.

For them, maybe, but to the castle, one of the most interesting things about this room, is the mirror. This is strange, as, while there are other mirrors in this house, they are nothing more than a silver decoration; they have no purpose here, unless they float in shards and possibility. This is an ordinary mirror. It does hold something now, however, and that’s Lisa—only giving more credence to the idea that she is the only living thing in this castle. The castle wonders if they think it will reflect the child, as if they are hoping he will take after his mother and the room.

The mirror, and the windows. In the rest of the castle, the windows are always closed, curtained, or too small to let any real light in. But here they are big, and inviting to all the wiles of the day. Dracula protested—fearing he would burn. Lisa insisted—hoping he would shine.

The mirror, the room, are empty now. The windows closed. The books and charts dormant as the rest. It is not dead, but it’s not alive either. Not even undead. Just a question. An almost.

The room lays on Frankenstein’s table; just one lightning strike—(or one child’s laugh)—away from breathing.

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incorrect-ikevamp-quotes · 3 years

Note

i saw your post about Charles and what his personality past and part in the story line so i was wondering if u could do the same for vlad? :)

Ah, well, I can at least let you know what I’ve seen so far? I haven’t delved too far into Vlad, and some of his general impressions can be confusing, so I’ll do my best to make it sensible and unbiased! Here you go lovely <33333

Fair warning, there will be mentions of a lot of JPN app content since Vlad and his boys aren’t around much in the ENG app yet.

My general sense of Vlad is basically discount vampire Sasuke Uchiha.

What I mean by this is to say–according to what I’ve read so far–his clan/family were murdered by vampire hunters in cold blood when he was just a young boy. Presumably as a result of that traumatic event, he harbors a sizable enmity towards humanity and kind of lashes out on them in weirdly specific moments of violence. Another aspect of his motivation is something that’s mentioned within Comte’s route; which is that Vlad went through the timespace door on his own one day and allegedly saw a devastated future, where nothing remains of life on earth more or less.

I guess the reason I find him to be so perplexing is that he speaks about his actions in terms of efficiency, while most of the things he does just feel like unhappy outbursts (v often a product of unresolved trauma symptoms, I’d wager.) I also say this because he appears to have no larger pattern to his fury beyond the original event of his loss. Most of the human beings he attacks aren’t much of a threat to him and hurting them really doesn’t bring him any dividends beyond revenge.

For instance, he insists his disdain for humanity and insistence on controlling them is for the sake of ensuring they do not destroy the future–the horrifying wasteland he witnessed when he traveled through the timespace door. However, I’m not really sure how his current movements really speak to that goal? I mean sure, maybe he’s relying on Faust to create an immortal human so that humans will be forced to care because it will be their future too, but he doesn’t allow Faust to draw his pureblood blood for experimenting. (One can most certainly argue this was more about a lack of trust, and perhaps for plenty reason: Faust is vindictive enough to try to turn the tables and exert control over Vlad, or act on his own whims with his findings.) But if that’s the solution he’s waiting on, turning the rivals of the men in the mansion doesn’t really bring him any closer to that vision either? I mean, what good does it do to bring back Gilles de Rais–a prominent French serial killer? How would unleashing him on the populace help humanity “realize the error of it’s short-sighted and wasteful ways” and move to a brighter future?

Can’t help it, I ask these questions as I read.

In Comte’s main story, Comte hammers home that Vlad is not somebody to be taken lightly. One day when MC goes out to buy flowers, Vlad poses as a human florist to sell them to her–which is how Comte finds out he’s in France, and that he’s made contact with MC. When prompted, Comte describes him in a very particular way; and I think people really overlook this when they talk about their relationship. He says that Vlad is frighteningly pure in terms of the way he thinks and acts. The way I understood his description (given what I’ve seen of Vlad) is that Comte really does mean it point blank: Vlad is very simple in terms of why and how he does things. The issue with this is that nuance and context are lost on Vlad as well–and that’s where the problems start to flood in. Vlad is angry at humanity for what they’ve done to him. Baseline? That’s fair, they killed his damn family. However, Vlad thinks that by extension he has the right to decimate the general public and attack people completely uninvolved in his hurt.

And that isn’t right either–it’s ignoring so many factors here. He’s ignoring how much vampires use and toy with humans as pawns, it’s ignoring the massive power imbalance between him and his victims (this really isn’t a case of self-defense most of the time, nobody but Comte/Leo is a sizable threat to him), and he’s ignoring whether or not a person even did anything to deserve his retributive violence. While murder is never okay, it is perhaps more understandable when we see Jeanne’s frenzied and violent belligerence in response to a man who murders a boy’s mother for the sake of his own amusement/convenience. Vlad literally sees almost every single one of the rivals he created begin to heal/improve and murders them in cold blood because they are no longer of any use to him. That’s uh……..that’s a little messed, not gonna lie to you chief.

While part of me understands the efficiency here–he doesn’t want to leave any traces of his involvement, he doesn’t want any loose ends–it’s also just kind of foolish and cruel ultimately. From my understanding of the narrative, all the people he turned had some visible sign that indicated their origin to Comte. So even if he claims it was for the sake of concealment, it was more likely about his personal convenience. Which…..also yikes.

[Comte clearly does not trust Vlad to be reasonable, and I think there’s plenty of good reason enumerated above, but I actually don’t sense quite so much hatred? I think he’s just given up on the idea of Vlad growing up, even if he doesn’t like giving up on people. And considering Vlad’s behavior, I think it’s overkill to say that Comte just abandons him because he doesn’t care lmao. Even when Comte expresses real anger at the end of his own route, it was more because Vlad was fine with endangering MC’s life just to get back at him. I think Comte’s unhappiness with Vlad has more to do with Vlad’s treatment of human life as meaningless and worthless. It’s fascinating but also kind of sad? Vlad’s traumatic experience results in behavior that is a direct exacerbation of Comte’s trauma, and as such--no matter their potentially fond history--they can’t stomach each other.]

In Comte’s route, Vlad also has Shakespeare abduct MC and take her to the cathedral. Later on in the castle, we see an immediate display of Vlad’s shocking powers: he has the ability to manipulate people’s desires/thoughts. I’m not exactly sure how this works, but he is able to give MC visions of the mansion and Comte coming on to her–which shocks her into realizing it’s all just a dream. It’s not reality; it’s all manufactured by Vlad.

After that...weird introductory note...Vlad gives MC the rundown on his life together with Comte, which as always is subject to a question of bias. My assumption is that he did not lie, only because he was trying to convince MC that he was “right.” Furthermore, he does not omit the most damning evidence of his erroneous judgement, which suggests a continued inability for him to see where he went wrong.

We get a series of three flashbacks. The first is them as young kids. I don’t know if Vlad had already experienced the horrors of his family being destroyed, but this particular flashback focuses on Comte. His parents, in an effort to teach him that vampires and humans have no ability to co-exist, send away all of his teachers/mentors/nannies/the servants--pretty much everyone and anyone he was closely bonded to. Think about it this way: we can see that Comte is very sociable and affectionate by nature. He was living in a house full of people, all of whom cared about him and looked after him in their own way. Now the house is entirely empty. Naturally Comte is very very upset, and Vlad appears to try to cheer him up with little success.

[When I look back on this scene I don’t think I initially registered the sheer dissonance of Vlad’s reaction, versus Comte’s catatonic misery. There was a very solemn feeling to that memory, and the correct choice in terms of extending comfort is to hold his hand believe it or not. There is a sense that he feels very alone. When young boy Vlad enters one can argue that it was the proper thing to do; he was trying to cheer up his playmate and friend. But at the same time, I think I need to double check. Because I’m beginning to wonder if I was wrong. What if Vlad was happy to see someone as alone as him, and that joy is accordingly dissonant for that reason? He can’t see what Comte needs or how he’s hurting because he’s so glad he isn’t alone anymore in a way.]

The second flashback is the war nurse scene that I have spoken at length about. The important thing to focus on here is Vlad’s surprise that Comte would opt out of turning her out of respect for her wishes. The way Vlad frames the situation is starkly different from Comte’s. Comte sees himself as an outsider, somebody who invaded her life as a result of the timespace door and therefore has no right to suddenly change the course of her fate. He had no idea if she even wanted to live (considering the horrors she’d have to cope with and remember) or leave that time period at all, for that matter (considering the only thing keeping her going was helping the wounded/victims). Comte really was listening to everything she had to say, and he was taking her concerns and motivations seriously.

Vlad simply says: if you want her, take her. It’s as simple as that for him. And in one way that’s not entirely wrong--assuming Comte would have every intention of looking after her and actually cares a lot about her. But what’s being ignored here is her agency and the fact that they really don’t know each other that well? Something like that could begin and be rocky, if it doesn’t end in complete disaster. Worse, I get the feeling Vlad is perfectly fine with the notion of turning her and if things don’t work out, just kill her or get rid of her. Again, the simplistic thinking comes into play here: it ultimately comes down to Vlad being self-centered. He’s thinking only in terms of satisfying his needs, he doesn’t seem to have any concept of a larger pair or group feeling. There’s an inability to bend/be flexible for the sake of maintaining a greater harmonious feeling.

[For the record, I don’t think this makes him irredeemable? Only that it makes it very hard to live with him or love him, probably. There’s an inability to live at a joint pace? It’s always answering to what he wants without room for anything else most of the time, which to me is not living and it’s not love ;;;;]

Following their escape back to their own time, Vlad explains how he wants to use the door to turn geniuses and control humanity. He eventually wants to create a surveillance state, which would mean everyone is forced to move with his explicit approval, more or less. (He almost reminds me of Louis XIV, can’t tell if that’s what they were going for.) I have my doubts that his abilities could extend that far, but human history shows us that we are plenty susceptible to fascist and totalitarian rhetoric. In a shocking display of anger, Comte draws the line at controlling humanity and forcing them into a regime in which, and this is Vlad’s description not mine, “we (purebloods) would be like kings.” There’s definitely a concept of evolutionary superiority at play here, which echoes what I mentioned earlier; vampires seem to have this awareness that they’re apex predators in a sense, and enjoy the power that comes with that. Unfortunately, that probably makes for a fairly toxic/uncomfortable larger species culture, which is exactly what Comte and Leo hate lmao.

Vlad does not seem to find any issue with this sort of outlook, and asks MC to decide which of them--Vlad or Comte--is right. Who is more realistic, who best understands the future? As expected the MC replies that it's Comte, and Vlad goes from beseeching to big mad at record speed. He's p much that gif of the teddy bear that smacks its head down on the tables and then has the angry eyebrows.

This is where Comte intervenes, firing a warning shot that grazes Vlad's cheek and demanding he let MC go. In response, Vlad shoves MC into the turbulent timespace door--p much guaranteeing MC's death. (Essentially timespace is a void of sorts, a human being could never survive in that environment for long. Vlad fully knew this, and yeeted her anyway.)

So uh, yeah. Disagreement? Death. Moving on? Death. Nuanced approach to reality? Death. Beginning to think he doesn't really have a lot of patience or open-mindedness or any other kind of problem-solving approach.

He raises flowers and gardens like a fiend, and he openly plucks any single flower with a blemished leaf. Even if a single petal is slightly damaged, it will be removed and destroyed. So one could argue his extremism reflects a kind of perfectionism as well. No room for errors or troublesome dissent. No ugliness of any kind. I mean in all of his interactions with Faust and Charles this is the overt undertone. Don't ask more of me than I'm willing to give. Behave like good children, mommy's busy. Is that insubordination? boss music begins

One thing I actually don't understand very well is his decision making in Dazai's route. Dazai finds out about what Vlad's doing in a nanosecond when he senses MC is in danger, and yet Vlad makes absolutely no move to eliminate Dazai? He just watches from the shadows. Even when Dazai grills Charles about his loyalty to Vlad, no retribution.

My best guess for this specific situation is that Vlad does derive some level of satisfaction thwarting the future of human beings/former humans. Dazai--being somebody with no great desire to live, no rivals to speak of as far as we can tell, and no larger aspirations--is a life that is easily extinguished. There's no satisfaction in it. When Vlad's clan was murdered and he saw the future decimated, it could be that he felt humans had invaded and eradicated every potentiality that was important to him. Where he might have lived happily with his family, that future was ripped from his grasp. Where he might enjoy his flowers and the creation of an immortal for the rest of conceivable time, that too was ripped from his grasp with a desolate future.

So much about who Vlad is is about control, so it's very possible his lashing out is an extension of that. Dazai does not awaken any of the disdain he feels, and he does not succeed in overthrowing Vlad's control over Charles, so Vlad simply lurks in silence.

And last but not least, I've seen the preview to Vlad's newest birthday event story. The contents are incredibly revealing, in that MC wishing him a happy birthday and offering him a gift has him saying that it was "the best birthday ever." Granted idk if that’s sweet or just...beyond sad, but here we are. It’s only compounding my curiosity about the wound on his chest--I really do wonder if he was attacked and locked away by vampire hunters or hostile human beings or something. I say that only because that line speaks to a lot of isolation, and given how little he seems to care about turning people/subjecting them to his whims it feels odd. Why the isolation or lack of people who care about him? Is it a perceived lack where his actions alienated all the people who wanted to be close to him, or is it a more involuntary lack?

When she says let’s celebrate again next year, he seems a pleasantly shocked by the notion, and remarks “Ah yes, it’s a promise c:”. The preview was also mega horny: “You make me feel so loved, I don’t think I can be gentle with you tonight. If you enjoy it so much, then I won’t stop. I want to see you completely lost for me. I’ll teach your body what it means to be loved by a pureblood.” Aaaaaand pretty sure the CG was alluding to him licking the good stuff from her basement, though not entirely sure given it was only the preview.

The brief POV they give us is also very revealing:

“You always keep your promises, and I think I underestimate all the time how much you saved me. You are good, only you are good in this world.”

“Will we continue to make promises to each other in the future? Well in that case--you will always, always be mine, my vampire.”

Tbh he’s...v sweet? In his own way? Honestly he feels like a crabapple that is just so sick of the world and wants softe wife to take comfort in. While granted that’s not really my thing, I know a fanbase appeal exists for these types--so if that’s your thing, have at it!

So now that we have reached the end of my ridiculously long analysis (when am I ever brief, I’m so sorry. If you made it all the way here you deserve a cookie at the very least, if not the right to chase me with a bat) perhaps it’s more clear why I said discount vampire Sasuke Uchiha? “My clan is gone, every other second I’m going to be in retraumatization insanity, when I’m not I’ll be seeking power/hobbies, planning the demise of people who wanted the best for me, building a team to my advantage and unquestioned control, and eventually settling for a lifelong love who sees the best in me despite my more difficult moments and perceived hollowing loneliness. Not the most ideal comparison, but I will say if Vlad was not already named the historical figure, would have pointed and yelled Uchiha.

That’s all from me folks, hopefully this was a fun way to get introduced to him? And again, hope I didn’t alienate--I fully respect what people do and don’t enjoy o7

#asks #ikevamp #ikemen vampire #ikevamp meta #ikevamp vlad #ikevamp comte #ikevamp saint germain #ikevamp leonardo #ikevamp faust #ikevamp charles #ikevamp dazai #i hope this was helpful!#i had too much fun writing it jkahlgkjhgdf i love meta #but thank you for submitting <33333 #oh discount vampire sasuke uchiha we really in it now #rambles #not incorrect quotes

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vladdocs · 2 years

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"Crypto-portrait" of Vlad the voivode from the temple in Tarnava, Sibiu II. "Martyrdom of Ten Thousand Christians." According to the article "Dracula in Hermannstadt? Der Großprobstdorfer Flügelaltar, die Pest und die" Dracula-Kryptoporträts ". "Martyrdom of Ten Thousand Christians." In the painting the martyrdom of ten thousand Christians, which depicts the martyrs impaled on thorns, the headdresses of the depicted are also interesting, speaking about the position they occupied during their lifetime. Despite the fact that they are almost naked, only bré, the artist left hats on them, probably trying to indicate who they were trying to portray as martyrs. Three of the martyrs wear hats trimmed with fur, which speaks of their high position, zhupans, boyars, merchants from the guilds, one in a headdress made of red velvet with precious stones, similar to the king's headdress. The artist tried to make this figure similar to Christ and depicted him with a two-fingered finger, as a sign of blessing. And the figure in the corner is depicted in a miter, which says that something is a clergyman, a bishop, but they have no beard. There is an assumption that these headdresses in a number of similar images are simply mixed up in places, as in this image. The king is below without a beard, and above is a bishop with a two-fingered finger. There are assumptions that Akaki himself is depicted in the image of the bishop. The background, city, river, fishing boats are also interesting here. The author of the article notes that from the north the pictures are clearly distinguishable Fagaras mountains. The author of the article notes that the background of the picture is very similar to the picture of the crucifixion from Medias, saying that there is no doubt that it is the Transylvanian landscape that is depicted in the background. By the way, it is worth noting that the image "The Martyrdom of Ten Thousand Christians" is also on the walls of the Church of St. Margaret in Medias. The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian. Speaking of another depiction, the Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian, the motive itself, outside the altar, is quite popular. The painting depicts Sebastian himself, tied to a tree, on the left there are two arrows, and five observers. A kind of Asian-Mongolian appearance of the shooters' faces, as well as recursive characteristic bows, a topic that is not so rare, a kind of tribute to the memory of past aggressors. Sebastian's hands, raised up above his head and tied there, as well as feet superimposed on one another, right to left, indicate that the artist tried to connect as much as possible the image of the martyr with the image of Christ depicted in the painting from Medias, his head is bowed in the same side and the bandage is tied on the left and develops in the same direction as in the picture. It is also interesting that two figures, often present in the images of the same plane from Mediaash, are also present in this image - the figures of Pilate and Caiaphas among the observers. Here Pilate is depicted gray-haired and dressed in the Eastern fashion, holding a scepter in his right hand. Pilate acts here as the emperor Diocletian, who tortured and killed Saint Sebestyan. Less obvious, the author of the article writes, is the connection between Caiaphas and the second figure in the painting The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian. Assumptions are based on the presence of a standard set of figures in similar paintings. The city and the reservoir are also visible in the background; no attempts were made to identify the depicted city. To say that, judging by the simple church bell tower right behind the tower, the author believes that it might be a view of Medias would be too soon. But a building that looks like a fortress or a castle on a dais in the background is also interesting in this context. This building, according to the author, is most likely a fortified church. The gate of the tower with defensive walls, a massive square bell tower are clearly visible. The image resembles the churches - fortresses of Tyrnava - Boyan,

Fraundorf and Valea Viilor. When asked why these two paintings are presented on the altar together, so far no one has been able to answer. What will unite these two themes is that both are presented side by side on the altar. The author of the article believes that the answer can be found in the pamphlets of that period, printed and distributed in the last quarter of the 15th century. I mean a number of pamphlets, leaflets about the plague. Similar pamphlets depicting the torment of Saint Sebastian were circulated even in Nuremberg, for example, pamphlets by the artist Gantz Paur, circa 1472. These pamphlets also depict Saint Sebastian, only three shooters, and two observers. These pamphlets contained prayers that helped people get through difficult times and feel supported. Such leaflets were even betrayed the meaning of a talisman against the plague. Another similar pamphlet was found in southern Germany, dating from around 1500. Here, the images take up only a quarter of a sheet. The rest is reserved for text. Here is not only prayer, but also practical notes on the fight against the plague. On this pamphlet, the painting has two parts: on the left side, Saint Sebastian, three shooters, and from the observers, the emperor Diocletian is again presented in the form of a bearded gentleman in oriental clothes with a scepter in his hand. Again, there are similarities with the altar from Tyrnava. On the right side of the pamphlet depicts RU: «Крипто-портрет» Влада воеводы из храма в Тырнава, Сибиу II. «Мученичество десяти тысяч христиан». По статье "Dracula in Hermannstadt? Der Großprobstdorfer Flügelaltar, die Pest und die „Dracula-Kryptoporträts“. «Мученичество десяти тысяч христиан». На картине мученичество десяти тысяч христиан , где изображены мученики , насаженные на шипы, интересны также и головные уборы изображенных, говорящих о занимаемой ими при жизни позиции. При том, что они почти голые, только брэ, художник оставил на них головные уборы, вероятно, пытаясь указать на то, кого они пытался изобразить в роли мучеников. Трое из мучеников носят шапки, отделанные мехом, что говорит об их высоком положении, жупаны, бояре, купцы из гильдий, один в головном уборе из красного бархата с драгоценными камнями, схоже с головным убором короля. Эту фигуру художник постарался сделать схожей с Христом и изобразил у него двуперстное перстосложение, как знак благословения. А фигура в углу изображена в митре , что говорит, что то - священнослужитель, епископ, но они при чем без бороды. Существует предположение, что данные головные уборы на ряде сходных изображений просто перепутаны местами, как и на этом изображении. Король снизу без бороды, а вверху епископ с двуперстным перстосложением. Существуют предположения, то в образе епископа изображен сам Акакий. Интересен здесь и фон, город, река, рыболовные лодки. Автор статьи отмечает, что с севера картины явно отличимые горы Фэгэраш. Автор стати отмечает, что фон картины очень схож с картиной распятия из Медиаша, говоря, что нет сомнений, что на фоне изображен именно трансильванский ландшафт. Кстати, стоит отметить, что изображение «Мученичество десяти тысяч христиан» также имеется на стенах церкви святой Маргариты в Медиаш. «Мученичество святого Себастьяна». Говоря о другого изображении, Мученичество святого Себастьяна, сам по себе мотив, вне алтаря , довольно популярен. На картине изображен сам Себастьян, привязанный к дереву, слева два стрелка, и пятеро наблюдателей. Своего рода азиатско-монгольский вид лиц стрелков, а также рекурсивные характерные луки, тема , встречающаяся не так редко, своего рода дань памяти прошлым агрессорам. Руки Себастьяна, поднятые вверх над головой и там завязанные ,а также стопы, наложенные одна на другую, правая на левую, говорят о том, что художник пытался максимально связать образ мученика с образом Христа, изображенного на картине из Медиаша, голова склонена в ту же сторону и повязка завязана слева и развивается в ту же сторону, что на картине. Также интересно и то, что две фигуры, часто присутствующие на изображениях того же плана из

Медиаша, также присутствуют на данном изображении – фигуры Пилата и Каиафа среди наблюдателей. Здесь Пилат изображен седым и одет н восточный лад, держа скипетр в правой руке. Пилат выступает здесь в качестве императора Диоклетиана, мучившего и убившего святого Себестьяна. Менее очевидна, пишет автор статьи, связь Каиафы и второй фигуры на картине «Мученичество святого Себастьяна». Предположения основаны на присутствии стандартного ряда фигур на подобных картинах. На фоне также виден город и водоем, попыток идентифицировать изображаемый город не предпринималось. Сказать, что , судя по простой церковной колокольне прямо за башней, автор полагает, что то может быть вид на Медиаш, было бы слишком скоро. А вот здание, похожее на крепость или замок на возвышении на фоне также интересен в данном контексте. Данное сооружение, по мнению автора, является, скорее всего, церковью-крепостью. Хорошо видны ворота башни с оборонительными стенами , массивная квадратная колокольня. Изображение напоминает церкви – крепости Тырнава – Боян, Фраундорф и Валеа Виилор. На вопрос , почему же эти две картины представлены на алтаре вместе, пока никто не смог ответить. Что объединят эти две темы, что обе представлены рядом н алтаре. Автор стать считает, что ответ можно найти в памфлетах того периода, печатавшихся и распространявшихся в последней четверти 15 века. Имеется ввиду ряд памфлетов, листовок о чуме. Подобные памфлеты , с изображением мучений святого Себастьяна ходили даже в Нюрнберге, например памфлеты художника Ганца Паура, приблизительно 1472 года. На этих памфлетах также изображен святой Себастьян, только стрелков трое, а наблюдателей двое. Такие памфлеты содержали молитвы, которые помогали людям пережить тяжелые времена , чувствовать поддержку. Таким листовкам предавали даже значение оберега от чумы. Еще один схожий памфлет был найден на юге Германии, датировался приблизительно 1500 годом. Здесь изображения занимаешь лишь четверть листа. Остальное отведено под текст. Здесь уже не только молитва, но и практические заметки по борьбе с чумой. На этом памфлете картина имеет две части: с левой стороны святой Себастьян, трое стрелков , а из наблюдателей император Диоклетиан , снова представлен в образе бородатого господина в восточных одеждах со скипетром в руке. И снова ��десь просматриваются сходства с алтарем из Тырнава. На правой стороне памфлета изображено мученичество десяти тысяч христиан , только без распятия. То есть на данном памфлете оба изображения, которые присутствуют на алтаре храма Тырнава. Выходит, Себастьян ассоциировался с тем святым, который помогал людям во время чумы. Предположительно, страдания христиан, изображенные на картине «Мученичество тысячи христиан» также связанны со страданиями от болезни. А шипы символизируют чуму, проникающую в тело, как острие. Это может объяснить присутствие данных изображений на алтаре вместе. Данный вывод приобретает смысл, учитывая то, что в Трансильвании в 1510\11 была вспышка чумы, о чем встречаются записи, особенно о Сибиу. Подобный вывод подтверждает то, что не только дата создания изображений была поставлена верно, но и то , почему два нетипичных для алтаря изображения были помещены в тот период в храме. Вот , примерно, к таким выводам пришел автор статьи касаемо данных изображений. Осталось рассмотреть вопрос о том, может ли изображение одного из наблюдателей быть крипто-портретом Влада воеводы. Среди изображений представлен также алтарь храма святой Маргариты в Медиаш.

#Google Translated #vlad the impaler #Vlad Dracula #Vlad Tepes #history #wallachia #romania #portrait #Valuable portraits of Vlad Tepes

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phantomphangphucker · 4 years

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Ectober Day 30: Disguise - The Guise Of Change

When Danny died he really didn’t change much at all, and that was a problem. But ghosts only resembled their living selves rather than looking the same as they once did.

Danny’s well aware his disguise is flimsy at best, borderline non-existent at worst. The divide between his two halves was practically reliant on the fact that being half-dead was illogical and should be impossible. Like, literally and explicitly impossible; even in the opinion of ghost experts. Slapping on a jumpsuit and some colour changes does not a good identity-hiding costume make. He had felt a little jealous of Vlad in that regard. Put Masters and Plasmius next to each other and almost no one is going to think they’re even related. The face shape was pretty much the only similarity, but the shadows a ghosts glowing eyes could throw across their faces really changed the way their faces looked. Ancients, that’s probably the only reason his parents’ hadn’t recognised Danny Phantom’s face as being identical to their son's face. Same for the rest of his body honestly, his jumpsuit didn’t exactly hide his figure. If he lost his glow he would have probably be screwed. Utterly screwed.

Problem was, he couldn’t change his ghost form. That was literally just his body, his suit was basically a second skin. Hair couldn’t be dyed and if he wanted to wear a mask it would get constantly destroyed, and he’d have to carry it with him constantly. The chances of someone finding said mask on human Danny Fenton was too great a risk and absolutely would get him revealed in a heartbeat. And he wasn’t about to ask Vlad how the heck his ghost form looked so different from his human one. Even the guy's physique changed. Masters was a skinny man, Plasmius had a comically broad chest. But Danny’s not about to let that man think he’s learned anything from him. Vlad is not going to be his mentor in any shape, way, or form. Fuck that guy and his villainous ulterior motives.

So that had kinda left him in a bit of a pickle. So what did he do? Eh, what he usually does. Ignored the problem and hoped it went away, while also making his paranoia just that much worse. Did that usually work out for him? Hell no. It usually bit him squarely and directly in the ass soon rather than later. So whole ass, he expected to get bit; and probably by some stupid mistake or something ridiculously simple. Like someone taking a photo of him and accidentally turning on their phone’s colour invert. His parents’ tech messing up was always a possibility and had almost shattered his disguise more than once. To this day he is supremely glad that Dash is a bloody moron and that his dad is stupidly easily distracted. But standing in front of his mirror changing between his forms, he thinks he might just avoid that ass bite for once in his half-life.

Watching the muscle on his arm change, shrinking down in human form to the point where he’s borderline scrawny then bulking up in ghost form to the point where he thinks he’s got a more muscular look than Dash does. Even his bone structure seemed to be changing now. His ghost form had a muscular broadness that his human form simply didn’t. Even his hands got bigger in that strong man muscular way. It weirded him out a little actually. But his running theory was that all the fighting and his increasing ecto-level was all going to his ghost half, rather than his human one.

Sure he knows now that some of the other changes -like his fangs, claws, and tapered ears- were just him starting to develop into an adult ghost. His jumpsuit was going through its own changes naturally too, but that really doesn’t help him disguise himself at all. Plus the similarities to Dan’s jumpsuit, that he was starting to notice, was hard to feel happy about. At least he hasn’t started forming a cape or anything yet; even if that actually would help make his body look different between forms. Well okay, the pointiness did frame his muscles in a way that made them a little more noticeable. So he guesses it does help a little.

The wavy smoky look his hair was taking definitely hid its shape, he just seriously hoped it stays wavy thick smoke and doesn’t transition into full-on flames. Sure that would make his forms look even more different, but he’d rather his forms look similar than look like Dan. But... sighing and shaking his head at the mirror, Dan was his future self, that’s probably what he’s going to look like no matter what he does. Well, excluding the red eyes. ClockWork had told him how the eye colour change had been due to Core damage that the whole ‘tearing out his humanity’ thing caused. He used to tell himself that he wouldn’t wind up looking like Dan since future Vlad said Dan was a combination of Phantom and Plasmius. But nope, according to the much more trustable resource that is ClockWork, Phantom had cannibalised Plasmius in pretty much a psychotic bout of madness. Since apparently completely cannibalising another ghost can make you stronger and even steal their powers. Danny is never making use of that information.

Changing back human, another good thing was that none of the injuries he got ever scarred. Because no way could he explain all the kinds of scars he would have otherwise. Running a hand over his jaw, even his face was leaner in human form; and his cheekbones and eyes were a little shadowed/sunken like he didn’t quite eat or sleep enough, which he didn’t. He was starting to get facial hair in both forms though, at least it was kinda smoky in ghost form though. Running his thumb over the stubble, it annoyed the heck out of him how it was growing in as a pointy goatee and literally nothing he did seemed to change that. He’s pretty much resigned himself to the look at this point because he is not just shaving it off. He’s also resigned himself to Vlad making ‘approving’ and ‘mocking’ comments about it. Whatever, the guy can shove it.

Now, the only thing he didn’t like about the differences between his forms was that it wasn’t just his appearance. He actually was physically weaker in human form. He didn’t just look scrawny, he was scrawny. It was annoying as Hell and very often he forgot that he couldn’t lift something in human form that he could in ghost form. It almost annoyed him enough to make a damn point to workout in human form. Problem was, that would run the risk of his human form developing in the same way as his ghost one. He didn’t want to make his forms look even more similar. And Ancients, both Fenton and Phantom bulking up? Talk about suspicious. That would be just another thing for anyone suspicious of him to add to their lists of suspicious shit. So he’d rather put up with the annoyance and inconvenience of a weak human form. Hell, he wore baggy clothing to accentuate his skinniness.

Moving to flop down face-first in bed, changing between forms a bit just to feel his feet dangle off the bed slightly and then not at all. The height difference was something else getting annoying. He’s blaming that on him not eating enough, his ghost forms height had nothing to do with a good diet, unlike his human form. He honestly expects that as an adult there’s going to be a solid foot difference between his forms. Maybe more. Honestly? He’s just gonna have to get used to the differences. Even something as simple as rolling his shoulders or taking a deep breath felt so different between forms. But hey, it was worth his secret identity not being nearly as see-threw as glass. Now it was more like very foggy glass.

The personality differences he made a damn point to emphasis between his forms probably helped too, which used to be hard to do but now it just felt natural to be meek and timid while human then bold and carefree while ghost. Which Jazz worries wasn’t exactly healthy, for him to effectively be juggling two personalities, that he genuinely might have forcibly developed two personalities. Even his friends have pointed out how he’d act a little differently based on form even when it was just with them. But needs be musts. If he had a level of a split personality then so be it. Besides, being stronger made him feel bolder, being smaller made him feel like more of a pushover. That just seemed right and natural. Being tiny just makes people feel tiny. Being large in a muscular way just makes people feel imposing. That’s normal, right? Eh oh well, if it’s not then it’s not. He’s not normal in the first place anyway. And yeah, he wasn’t doing the whole superhero disguise thing even remotely normal or according to the movies and comic books. But fuck it, it seemed like it was going to work out for him, and he doesn’t have to carry around a suit or disguise crap. There will be no changing in phone-booths for him or wearing a jumpsuit under his clothing (which honestly? Talk about an easy way to get caught).

Hell, maybe those fictional heroes should be jealous of him. All he had to do was alter his molecular/genetic structure and the substance his body was made out of, not cart around a whole ass disguise and perpetually speed change. And now that his body was changing, well maybe he actually was lucky.

End.

#ectober #ectober2020 #ectober 2020 #danny phantom #phandom #introspection #secret identity #disguise #the quirks of being a halfa #fan fic #phan phic #my writing #have a fic suck my dick #phantomphangphucker #gothmoth #short

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itwill-comeback · 3 years

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• How do you keep half vampire kids from hovering to reach stuff you don't want them getting into? Simple, move the goal posts. You put the cookie jar on top of the pantry so that kids can't reach it, but obviously this doesn't stop adults, or anyone with a ladder, or anyone with floating abilities, so just stop keeping it up there. If you've gotta keep something out of reach to stop a kid from getting into it, maybe try explaining to them why they can't eat cookies whenever they want to and then just wait it out. They will probably try eating a bunch of cookies, but that will have the obvious consequence of them getting sick. Where a normal human kid might not let such a thing stop them from making the same mistake in the future, half-vampires recognize patterns and have very good senses, throwing up is like four times more awful for them, they probably won't eat half your cookie supply at once again.

• How do you stop them from getting past child locks? No one wants their kid to play with the cleaning supplies, but again half-vampires have great senses, they probably can smell the awful fake lemon and bleach scents from across the house, so it's pretty unlikely that they would want to play with the stuff. [Truly once they're older, any parent would probably do better to simply buy the scent free products.]

• Sensory Overload could also be a big issue with a half-vampire growing up, and parents would need to take extra precautions to help their kid through that sort of thing. Stim toys, not punishing their kid for being overwhelmed, Communicating With Them.

• How do you let a half-vampire toddler teethe? Buy peices of cheap leather that haven't been stained. Vlad canonically was born with a set of fangs, but we should assume that they fell out with his other baby teeth and that he grew in new ones along with his other teeth. That means that he'd need something to teethe on. Leather works for giving a half-vampire something to sink their incoming teeth into as well as give them a handle on their jaw strength. We can assume that they dont automatically inherit vampire level strength, but that it grows exponentially as they get older, meaning they'll need something to work their jaw on so that they don't snap cutlery in half with a bite. We can reason that Vlad didn't face this issue quite so prominently because he was raised on bagged blood and therefore was weaker throughout his childhood than any half-vampire who drinks from the source growing up.

• How do you teach them to hide their fangs without creating shame or giving them a complex? Start by teaching them to love themselves [which any good parent should already be doing, human kid or otherwise] and tell them that showing their fangs is rude, not hideous, not dangerous, rude. In the same way you teach your kid not to undress in public, fangs should be considered a rude thing to show others and strangers shouldn't be permitted to ogle them. Vlad understood the concept at a young age and only showed his fangs to Henry on accident when he smelled blood. To be fair, Vlad was probably hidden from most social excursions as a child for this very reason.

• How do you keep them from biting someone when throwing a tantrum? I'm of two minds on this issue, because on one hand vampire nature inclines someone to lash out with biting when threatened, on the other hand it's dangerous to allow a half-vampire to bite anyone who upsets them for fear of exposing themselves to humans. I think any half-vampire should probably have a drudge growing up [one that's actually old enough for them to drink from] but they should know that biting others is absolutely not allowed unless someone is looking to harm them.

• How does a human parent enforce anything? Well, it's not like a half-vampire won't realize quickly that they're stronger and faster than their human parent, but that won't necessarily predispose them to not respecting their parent. Most the time when kids disrespect their parents at a young age it's because the parents don't stop them from doing so. Striking children does more to relieve a parent's anger and stress than it does to change a child's behavior, a true motivator for kids is actually boredom. Kid's not listening? Stick them in the corner, make them face the corner, if they turn around or speak add three minutes to the time they have to stand there. Tell them that that's what's gonna happen every time they turn around or speak, tell them why they're standing in the corner, tell them to think about what they did wrong. Remember being a kid, how every day lasted forever? This holds true for minutes as well, every minute stretches on for an eternity, kids hate boredom with a passion.

• And obviously any parenting should be a more-than-one-person job, as the saying goes "it takes a village to raise a child" so naturally this would hold true for half-vampire kids, and they should be exposed to vampires and humans growing up, avoiding as much stigma as possible. Vlad lacks good vampire exposure for the majority of his childhood, and much of the exposure he gets in his teen years comes from vampires trying to kill him. This creates bias and actively hurts his perception of Elysia as a whole.

Half-vampire kids deserve to like both sides of themselves and that comes from liking both vampires and humans in equal measure. Raising them to think that either half is worse than the other hurts their perception of themselves and others.

#that last bit Cannot Be Understated #:: Nothing Above Us And Nothing Below (half-vampire theory)#me thinking about kids: mmm but make them Inherently Strange cause it hits in a similar way to being born with neurodivergence #me thinking about how neurodivergent kids hiss and bite at people #and need extra help socializing #and gotta be told religiously There Is Nothing Wrong With You You're A Good Person No Matter What #vladimir tod #the chronicles of vladimir tod #chronicles of vladimir tod

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yakocchi · 4 years

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(I’m the only one who knows Akihiko in this way...)

first i was like ...well i have 100+ tickets saved from that reading promotion so i was like might as well do the sebas route bc i’ve done everyone else’s but now i feel compelled to try rly hard on the election 😔 but the kiss avatars aren’t as cute as the hug ones from last year imo

i did one run on the first day in a hurry to get them all spent before the story fever was done (before i realized all the story fevers will be x3 whoops) so looking back through that rush... this route is not so bad esp. versus the others on the second half (dazai and count)

further rambling behind the cut bc woops i realized i started typing a whole lot omg tried to keep the spoilers (for sebas’ route) as pretty vague but in terms of spoilers for dazai, count, etc. it’s all over

sorry if you don’t like reading run-on sentence hell, but that’s how my stream of consciousness works orz

but i couldn’t help feel like this route was kind of trying its best in getting the reader interested in faust. isn’t as bad as it was in dazai’s route where i feel like some ppl end up just sitting there going “i’d much rather be with charles wtf” lul to me it was like they’re trying to invest some interest in him but are delicate in trying to make him not seem too irrational in his motivations and antagonistic or else they get into a Will situation in which nobody likes him... and then when the route finally comes out ppl are too mad to change their mind lol.

i just feel kinda bothered with the second half routes bc at times they feel like parts of them only serve to introduce the new characters. which is fine, but like... it takes time away from the actual love interest and it’s like “beh this didn’t happen with a good bit of the other characters” u know. i actually think sebas’ route is the best in finding that balance. i mean with the count it’s justifiable that vlad consumes a lot of “space” bc he is a convenient vehicle (a childhood friend) to further understanding why the count is the way he is. charles essentially appears out of nowhere and takes a pretty active role as a rival, which is new for a ikevam route... but as mentioned before has the unfortunate effect of readers perhaps siding with charles instead of dazai. whoops

well thinking about it there’s probably people who read the count’s route and went “well i think vlad might have an actual case here” in terms of the terrible future he foresaw or w/e .......but the writers probably caught on to that and that’s why they threw in the part where he throws the mc through the door where she could’ve died a terrible death. WELL people still choose to stan. somehow. I MEAN with charles he essentially tried to “axe” dazai by trying to “help” him so mc will be all alone for charles to love or w/e but at least that wasn’t violence. honestly i thought charles was going to go apeshit given how the route took a good chunk having charles toil about his past as a killer (as he was an executioner) and how he’s worried that mc will judge and dislike him if she ever finds out about that

ok well with faust and sebas, faust takes up more of a “devil in plain sight” role where you know he’s gonna do something sketchy as shit and either sebas and mc will fall for it. and it’s sebas who really falls for it first but it was for loooooove man. it was very dramatic (given how sebas has that dumb cliched backstory but i like that dumb cliche) but i mean the man’s gotta have a plot somewhere

i’m surprised that vlad doesn’t actually have a proactive role in this route, granted that his route is the very next one in the schedule. i guess writers knew people would be interested in him regardless so they essentially left him out. which is good, more time for faust.

but what really put surprised me is that they threw in another leo and count gay dads moment like the older routes have where the two of them are used to keep the plot moving so the main charas can go ichaicha try to take care of shit in the bg. i thought this one for this route was esp...... a choice. it makes me realize that their bond is something that’s really beyond a simple friendship? probably bc they’re both old purebloods, but even with that... the very few times the readers get to see the friendship between vlad and the count imo it’s always... strange. like i can’t really tell that they’re that close of friends? like yea clearly they were close somehow given that they built the magicke door together but still, it always gave me the “crazy friend but you stick with him bc he’s known you forever” vibe.

like that scene (in the sebas route) where the count finally comes back and leo is the first and only one to greet him at that time... it was very heartwarming in that “old bros” way. you can tell that they really have each other’s back, like that time in the count’s route where the count embarks on vlad’s castle and leo is like “(i’m not going to stop you but) if you don’t come back by dawn... i’m going to go get you. because i, too, cannot die” whew powerful. it’s a nice contrast from when the count was very down after an event in the past and vlad doesn’t really comfort him and actually is more like “you’re weak because of things like this” (not the actual quote but it’s the same gist) lol. like i know why he didn’t support him emotionally because at that point the count was totally not down for vlad’s plans but yeesh

another vague thing from the route... i like how while the count is unavailable, leo more or less takes the helm as the caretaker of the mansion residents. like it’s only a minor part in the grand scheme of things in the route but it’s clear that leo does have great compassion in his heart. in the dazai route too, he’s like the only chara that tries to set dazai straight (albeit for a single scene).

ok thats all i really wanted to say before this becomes some dumb leo woaw we love him essay thanks for reading this garbage lol

#spoilers #ikemen vampire #ikevam #sebastian

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adobe-outdesign · 4 years

Video

youtube

Little something for everyone while y’all are in quarantine. Part 2 coming whenever.

Transcript under the cut:

Five Nights at Freddy’s. Where do we even start with this one? FNAF is probably one of the most confusing games out there when it comes to trying to figure out what the hell happened in it. Everyone has their own opinions and interpretations, so I figured I’d provide my own.

Do keep in mind that I’m not going to cover every single part of the lore, as some of it’s fairly self-explanatory. Instead, I’m going to focus mostly on FNAF 4, as that’s where this Gordian Knot of confusion really stems from.

Be warned, this video’s going to contain something truly scary: OPINIONS. [scream effect] Yes, my views on the lore are much different than everyone else’s, so don’t get your springlocks set off just because my theories don’t align with yours. Because for starters…

[Why I don’t think Michael is the brother]

[Mob noises]

Okay, okay, hear me out. Basically, there are two main family in FNAF: There’s the Aftons, comprised of William, Elizabeth and Michael. Then there’s the - is this really their name? Really? okay - Emilys, comprised of Henry and Charlie.

However, in the books Charlie had a brother named Sammy. So the question is, is Sammy canon? And the answer is yes: During Stage 01, we see one of the kids disappear when left alone with Spring Bonnie, which parallels Sammy slash Charlie’s kidnapping in Fredbear’s by William.

This raises another question though: Who is Sammy in canon, then? And I’ll jut outright say it: He’s the Bitten Child. Yeah, I’m kind of amazed more people don’t realize this. The Fredbear Plush is implied to be possessed by Charlie, as its talk about putting the Bitten Child back together parallels the Puppet giving cake in Happiest Day, and the empty girl’s room indicates that the Bitten Child has a dead sister - her being the Plush explains why the Fredbear Plush cares so much about the welfare of this random kid.

Likewise, Charlie and Sammy were twins. The Bitten Child and Charlie have the same blocky sprites, and they both have brown hair and brown eyes.

Most importantly, the Bitten Child is spirited to look exactly like the Puppet. Given that he isn’t the one possessing it, the only way this makes sense if the two were related.

Finally, the Bitten Child freaks the hell out when approached by an employee in a Fredbear suit, and the Fredbear plush says that he’ll “know what happens if he catches you”. Many people believe this means the Bitten Child witnessed the children being murdered, but it’s too early in the timeline for that - Phone Guy says in 2 that the Freddy’s where the murders occurred was shut down and left to rot afterward. The restaurant in 4 is still open, meaning the murders haven’t occurred yet - given some other context, it’s likely they died in 1985.

The only other incident the Bitten Child could be reacting to… would be the kidnapping back in Fredbear’s, where William stole one of the twins while in a Spring Bonnie suit. And the only way he would know about it is if he was there during the kidnapping - which is enough for me to say with confidence that the Bitten Child is indeed Sammy.

Also, Sister Location has a lot of kidnapping references. [I kidnapped you.]

Especially in the Immortal and the Restless. Vlad represents William throughout the games - not dong much in FNAF 1, working the night shift in 2, being in the burning building in 3, and the hidden scene representing Baby not killing Michael who she thinks is William. And what is said every episode?

[The baby isn’t mine]

The baby isn’t his because Sammy literally isn’t William’s child; he’s Henry’s.

However, if the Bitten Child is Sammy, then that means this [Older Brother footage] cannot be Michael.

Now, I know all of you smart people out there are already thinking the obvious: The books are an AU. Couldn’t Sammy be the one kidnapped in canon, thus allowing Michael to still be the Brother? And to that I say: …Yeah. If you want to work with Michael being the Brother, then this is the best way to do it, and it’s entirely possible this is the correct answer. …But with that said, I’m not entirely convinced.

[Why Charlie was kidnapped and not Sammy]

For starters, there’s the simple question of motivation. Why would WIlliam be raising Henry’s kid? Killing kids is kind of his M.O.. Even in the books, he killed the child he kidnapped. The idea of him kidnapping and raising a kid is even brought up in the Fourth Closet… then dismissed because it would be out of character for him, which would be strange if he did exactly that in canon.

As established earlier, Sammy also remembers the kidnapping, which would make it weird if he was the one kidnapped and yet is just allowed to freely wander the neighborhood. What’s to stop him from telling someone else, or even just running away?

Moving on to actual evidence, the map in SL’s breaker room lists the FNAF 4 house and the minigame house as two separate observation areas. This could be to differentiate the two for the player, but I don’t know why they’d be separated in-universe unless they were two separate houses. This would also explain why the living rooms don’t look the same and why the grandfather clock is in two different locations.

Likewise, the Fredbear Plush has either a camera or a walkie-talkie in it to spy on Sammy. However, the private room also reveals that William has the FNAF 4 gameplay house bugged. He shouldn’t need to use the Fredbear Plush to spy on Sammy, given that he can watch him both through the house cameras and the (presumable) cameras in Fredbear’s - unless Sammy is still in Henry’s house, which would force William to slip a camera into the place discreetly.

Speaking of the minigame house, there are a few parallels between it and Henry’s house in the books. The house was connected to an underground location in the Twisted Ones, just like it’s connected to the Sister Location in canon. And one of the rooms contains a tiny toy animatronic - just like the ones Henry built for Charlie in the Silver Eyes.

Continuing on that train of thought, let’s look at that tiny Toy Mangle. Assuming the Toy Chica principle is in place here - that being that the literal toys in this game look the same as the Toy Animatronics - the Mangle here looks like the FNAF 2 version of Mangle, not like William’s Funtime Foxy, pointing to it being Henry’s creation and not William’s. The SL extras even reveal that Funfox was supposed to be purple at first, which doesn’t make sense if it was supposed to match the tiny toy version.

But perhaps one of the biggest pieces of evidence regarding this toy is in Mangle’s Quest. While walking, you can encounter a huge silhouette of the Puppet… which makes Mangle look toy-sized in comparison. This only makes sense if this room was Charlie’s, and the Mangle toy was hers.

This also makes sense considering that Sister Location didn’t exist at the time of 4′s release. Scott claimed you could solve the lore back then using only the first four games, and if this was Charlie’s room, you could do it by combining the knowledge of the Fredbear Plush with Sammy’s missing sister and Charlie from the novels. If this is Elizabeth’s room, the only way that could be would be if it was retconned into place behind the scenes.

Additionally, I don’t think Elizabeth’s death is the correct date for this room to be empty in 1983. Handunit says that CBEAR didn’t open until after Freddy’s closed, as it gave them the opportunity to move into the entertainment space without competition. I’d assume this also applies to the original Circus Baby’s Pizza World, which indicates Elizabeth didn’t die until after FNAF 1. Given that Michael still has eyes in FNAF 1, SL in general had to have taken place after it - it’s unlikely William waited 10+ years to finally send Michael to save her, so her death being after FNAF 1 makes more sense timeline-wise.

Meanwhile, Charlie died in the very first Freddy’s location, before the other murders. HW confirms the FNAF 4 location was this first Freddy’s, meaning that she died in 1983. This not only lines up with her death date in the Fourth Closet, but also explains why the room in 4 hasn’t been cleaned out; she only died recently.

This would also explain why Henry claims that no-one was there to save Charlie. It’s his restaurant; wouldn’t he have, like, been there and been watching her if he was the one who brought her in?

And finally, I do have one massive piece of evidence that I feel proves the idea that Charlie is the one who was kidnapped.

[Chica School Days opening]

I know, I know, stay with me. Each of Toy Chica’s husbandos in these cutscenes represent one of William’s victims and how he killed them, as proven by her talking about running over a dog which aligns with Susie’s death in both Fruity Maze and the novels. There are a total of six people she targets.

However, that’s the thing - there are six victims, one for each of the original five - and the Puppet. That means Charlie’s death has to be included in here. And yet, none of the deaths line up with what we see in the minigames… unless you assume Charlie was the one kidnapped. In which case, there is one that fits…

[Toy Chica talking about kidnapping]

There are six deaths, so Charlie must be included. If the only thing that lines up with her death is the kidnapping scene, then Charlie must have been the one who was kidnapped, not Sammy.

But that brings us back to the original problem: If Charlie was the one who was kidnapped, Sammy is still living in Henry’s house. Which means Michael is not the Brother.

[Why do people think Michael is the Brother?]

Let’s move on to explaining away some of the evidence for Michael being the Brother.

The first and most obvious piece is that we play as the Brother in FNAF 4. Michael lives in the FNAF 4 house, so he must be the Brother. Which is a fair piece of evidence. However, I do think there’s something that explains this: Midnight Motorist.

Yes, the reason this minigame has perplexed so many fans might be because they’ve been looking at the entirety of FNAF 4 wrong. Let’s start with the Yellow Guy, who’s likely Henry. Why? Well, he’s driving William’s purple car and yet isn’t purple himself, so he can’t be William yet must have a connection to him. Henry and William were friends and business partners, so the idea of this being a company car or one of them just borrowing it for the weekend makes sense.

Likewise, every minigame and cutscene in FNAF 6 pertains to one of the main characters. The Puppet minigame for, well, the Puppet; Fruity Maze for William slash Scraptrap; and Candy Cadet’s stories for Scrap Baby and Molten Freddy. Henry is the only main character who wouldn’t have something in-game pertaining to him unless this sprite is him.

Moving on, we see him interact with a green sprite. I’d wager this is Clay Burke, for no other reason other than the sprite is presumably color-coded because we know the character, and because Clay is a cop and therefore could easily kick Henry out a bar.

Out a bit from Henry’s house, we see a grave, and around the back of the house there’s a smashed window and an animatronic footprint. In the books, the Twisted animatronics specifically targeted Henry’s family, kidnapped people through aggressive means, and buried themselves during the day. Given that the Twisteds are just AU Nightmare animatronics, it’s likely one of William’s robots was trying to kidnap another one of Henry’s kids.

However, the kid being targeted doesn’t seem to be Sammy or Charlie. Henry’s wife is still present and this is a different house than the one in FNAF 4, suggesting this is early on in the timeline, as Henry got a divorce and moved shortly after the kidnapping. The kid that was targeted here was old enough to lock himself in his room and make a run for it, suggesting it wasn’t one of the two babies but rather the Brother from 4, who’s certainly enough of an Angsty Teen to lock himself in his room several times.

As we can see by the footprints and Henry’s blase attitude, it looks like the Brother escaped from the animatronic… this time. It’s likely William kept trying to kidnap him until he succeeded, locking him into his house once he was successfully captured after the Bite. The dialogue from the FNAF 4 trailer might actually apply to William; he brought home the Brother, he think he sees a ghost haunting him which is why he’s observing him in the first place, and he treats this whole thing like a sick game.

So with the FNAF 4 house out of the way, there’s only a few other pieces of evidence. The logbook shows Michael having drawn N. Fredbear… but given that the Nightmare animatronics were still in his house, it’s likely he would have seen then at some point during the night.

The logbook also indicates that Michael is Mike Schmidt from FNAF 1, with his pseudonym being a combo of his own first name and “Eggs Benedict”. FNAF 4 plays like FNAF 1 does, and you can hear one of Phone Guy’s calls in the background, meaning the Brother must have worked in the FNAF 1 location and heard Phone Guy’s messages. And while Michael does fit these requirements… there is one other character who fits them even better.

[Continued in Part 2]

#five nights at freddy's #fnaf #fnaf 4 #five nights at freddy's 4 #older brother #michael afton #outdesign posts things #the black box #now I'm going to hide from the angry mob that is inevitably going to form because I dared to suggest michael is just michael

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ayamari-no-goshi · 3 years

Text

Eidolon 5 | (T)

ff.net | AO3

Fandom: Danny Phantom (DP)

Summary: AU: What started off as the result of a simple act of rebellion ends up causing his life to spin out of control. How will young Danny cope with the results as well as a past that has a strange habit of coming back to haunt him.

Warnings: rated T for violence, mentions of death, kidnapping, and various other things

Parings: hints of Danny/Sam much later on

Notes: originally uploaded to Ff.net. Cross-posted to AO3 and tumblr

5. Unexpected Meetings

Something didn't feel right. Winston never left the front door open or even unlocked when he was home let alone when he was out. Danny, hesitantly followed by his two friends, cautiously entered the house hoping nothing was wrong.

He peaked into the study where he had last seen his guardian, and although it still looked like a tornado had gone through it, no one was there. That, combined with the fact that the car was missing, told him that Winston had left the house in a hurry. It was possible that he had just gone to the meeting and locking the door slipped his mind, but he had never known Winston to ever do that; he was too cautious.

"Danny… did you find anything?" Tucker asked cautiously as he and Sam came to the door. "Whoa, what happened to this room?"

Danny looked back at his friends for a moment as he tried to step over the mess. "He was looking for something that I assume was pretty important when I left. Hold on a sec," he requested as he looked for a safe place to step, "he doesn't want people in here."

"Really?" Sam asked in an irritated tone.

"Hey, it was the only condition he had if I invited you over."

"You're concerned that something might have happened to Winston, yet you worry about that. It seems to me that you need to get your priorities in order."

He just shrugged as he continued to carefully make his way through the study. Everything looked practically the same, save for the mess, except for the random paper and an envelope that seemed really out of place on the desk. Curious, he grabbed them and made his way over towards the door.

"Wh-what is it?" Tucker asked after he showed them what he found.

"Letters…. I think," he replied as he got a better look at them. He was just about to open them when something fell in the kitchen. The three friends looked at each other for a moment before they started to creep towards the source of the noise.

When they rounded the corner, they saw a man mumbling to himself while picking up what appeared to be a cup. At first, he thought he could be a robber, but the more he looked at the man, the more he thought that was impossible. This man appeared to be around Winston's age and was wearing a suit. Unless this person was crazy, it seemed very unlikely that he was a robber.

"Hey!" he called out as he ignored his friends' warnings, which caused the unknown man to jump. He quickly regained himself. "I don't know who you are, but don't you know that breaking and entering is illegal?"

The man smiled in a manner which caused Danny to involuntarily shudder. There was something off about his expression. "I think that the term you want is unlawful entry, but it amounts to the same thing, I suppose," the man told him in a rather carefree manner. "Yet, I could say the same thing to you."

"Yeah, but I live here. You don't."

The man's eyes lit up for a moment with… hunger…? … which was almost instantly replaced with a more neutral expression. "Would that make you young Daniel then?"

"And, what if he is?" Sam asked, startling both of them as she and Tucker moved behind their friend.

The man examined the newcomers for a moment before he slapped himself in the forehead rather dramatically. "Oh dear me, where are my manners? I'm Vladimir Masters, and after your guardian called to reschedule his meeting due to an 'emergency', I was sent to make sure that everything was okay here. And, needless to say, that when I saw that the door was open, I was concerned and decided to take a look." He then raised an eyebrow after giving a quick look around. "Yet, I'm surprised to see that you're here without Mr. Wolfe."

"Wh-what do you mean 'emergency'?" he stuttered after the man had finished. "Everything was fine before I left…"

Before an answer could be given, Tucker gently pushed Danny back and glared at the older man. "I think a better question is: what is Vlad Masters, a billionaire and famous businessman, doing here?"

"He's what?" both Danny and Sam demanded at the same time.

Tucker looked at them in a rather surprised manner. "You seriously don't know? He's one of the most famous people in the world and one of the richest."

The three of them glanced back at the man, who was trying not to look too pleased with himself. "Ah, apparently I've made more of an impression on the world than I thought I did," he told them in an attempt to sound modest. "But, to answer your question, one of my companies is involved with custody battles, so I do hear about situations like this. While it's true that I usually don't personally get involved, your case, Daniel, interests me."

His eyes narrowed as he listened to the man. Something was feeling more off by the moment. "Why me?" he demanded. "What's so special about me that someone like you came here?"

Vlad's eyes widened in feigned shock at his words. "Surely, my boy, Winston would have said something about me to you. I mean, I was a good friend of your parents."

"Wait… you knew my parents?"

"Of course! We met each other in college and remained good friends afterwards. It was such a shame when I found out about their disappearance…" He paused for a moment and looked at the boy with a strange expression that he really didn't like. "In truth, if things would have gone the way that your parents had wanted, I would have become your legal guardian."

He would have become what? Danny was absolutely certain his parents, even if he didn't remember them, would never let him go with someone so creepy. Although his story sounded believable, there was something that he wasn't saying about the situation, and whatever this 'something' was, he was fairly certain he didn't want to hear it.

"Back up," Sam demanded of Vlad. "It almost sounds like your accusing Mr. Wolfe of illegally taking care of Danny."

"Is that what it sounds like?" Vlad asked her. Unlike the previous times he spoke, his voice dropped the pleasant tone he was using. "It would be a lie to say that I'm not displeased about how things have turned out, however as much as I hate to admit it, there is validity in his claim. If it wasn't for that blasted letter, we wouldn't be having this conversation."

HIs grip on the papers in his hand tightened. "What do you mean? What letter?"

Once again, Vlad gave the boy an appraising glance. "Apparently, he hasn't told you anything. No matter, within a couple weeks, it should be made clear, even if he still decides to keep you blissfully ignorant." He then glanced at his watch and sighed. "It looks like I've stayed here longer than I planned. I will call your guardian later tonight to see if the emergency, which you clearly have no knowledge of, has been solved." A nod of his head was all that he gave as a farewell before he exited the house.

…

"Well… that was certainly weird…" Tucker stated after Danny had made sure that the front door was locked and that Vlad was nowhere to be seen. "Is everything okay? And what was he talking about when he mentioned the 'custody battle'?"

He sighed as he walked into the family room and sat down on the couch. His friends followed him as they exchanged worried expressions. "He… Winston… told me that the state had lost some of my adoption papers," he said as he absentmindedly looked at the papers in his hands. "He had said that it wasn't that big of a deal even though the state would be coming to pay a visit. Yet… it suddenly sounds like it's so much more complicated…"

Sam gently touched his shoulder as she sat next to him, "It'll be okay. And, if worst comes to worst, I'll try to convince my parents to hire someone to defend you in court. Now that I think about it, they've mentioned that man before, and they really don't like him. If my dad won't do it for the 'good of the cause', he'll certainly do it to get back at Mr. Masters."

"Do… do you really mean that?" He gently smiled as she vehemently agreed. "Thanks, Sam."

Tucker coughed, which caused them to look at him rather awkwardly. "Sorry to interrupt your moment," he told them as he also sat down, "But I have another question, and it's really bothering me. When he said that Mr. Wolfe was keeping you 'blissfully ignorant' do you think that he meant the legal stuff or something else? 'Cause, I honestly think it was the 'something else'."

"You know, I've been wondering that too…" Sam agreed. "A lot of what he said made me think that he was referring to something that was more complicated than just a custody battle."

"And that's not complicated at all," he told her with the most sarcastic tone that he could muster.

She just rolled her eyes. "You know what I meant. It's like he has ulterior motives for not only visiting your house but for being involved in the legal stuff too."

He sighed as he tried to get make sense of the strange visit. For some strange reason, it just seemed like within a couple weeks his entire world decided to become a complicated mess, not even counting the paranormal events. Speaking of which… He glanced down at his hand that had begun to feel a bit weird. It was that same feeling that had occurred before that event.

Worried, he quickly excused himself and ran to the bathroom. As he tried to lock the door, his hand passed right through the doorknob. No… it couldn't be! He stumbled backwards, hoping that he could back away from whatever was causing the problem, but it was to no avail.

Fear gripped him as he slid down the wall and stared at his hand. It was exactly how it looked the other day: a pale shadow of its former self. The only difference was this time was that part of his forearm was affected too. There was no way that he could pass it off as a dream this time either. What was he going to do about this? Heck, he didn't even know what this was!

"Danny?" a voice called out after knocking on the door. It was Sam, and from what it sounded like, she was worried. Had he really be in here that long?

"Crap!" he whispered to himself as he stood up. The door wasn't locked, and there was no way that he was going to let either of his friends see what was happening. Yet, luck didn't seem to be on his side seeing as he fell before he could cross the small room.

"Danny?" Sam asked again. "Are you okay in there?"

"I'm f-fine!" he answered as he tried to stand, only to no avail. A glance at his legs told him why: the one had somehow managed to sink into the floor. "Okay… and now everything's ten times worse… Come on!" He tried pulling on his leg only to find that it was stuck. It just had to be a joke. There was no way that all of this was happening to him: it was just impossible.

"Sam, you can't go in there!" he heard Tucker warn their friend as the doorknob jiggled.

"Bite me!" she snapped back as the doorknob turned and the door opened.

For a moment, nothing was said as the three friends looked at each other and registered the impossible situation before them. "Um… this isn't what it looks like…?" Danny told them meekly before Tucker fainted.

xxxxxxxxxxx

Winston was not entirely sure what he should do. For the past half an hour, he had been having a stare down with an entity that he had been hoping that he would never have to see again. The reason was that it brought chaos and destruction everywhere it went, and it seemed to be after the last known surviving member of a family it personally tried to destroy over a decade ago. And, what made it worse was that he had no idea where that person was, even if he had seen him just before he had left the house.

Though, this staring contest felt off. The ghost that was floating not even fifty yards away seemed distracted as if it was waiting for something, and, from what he knew of it, this was incredibly unusual. In the past, although it did have a tendency to gloat on occasion, it tended to go straight towards its goal in a manner that showed careful planning. Yet, he knew that if he tried to get away, it would definitely stop him probably even before he managed to get back into his car. Oh did he wish that he had some of the Fenton's inventions with him, but with what the ghost had done, that was impossible now.

"I'm surprised, Plasmius" he said after a few more moments, hoping that he could possibly talk his way out of this, "you were never this statuesque before. What changed?"

The ghost looked at him carefully before it smiled carefully. "Oh, I assure you that nothing's changed. Do you really think so little of me to assume that I've lost my touch?"

"Then why keep me here? There's nothing that I have of value to you nor do I pose any threat!"

Plasmius' smile grew larger after he spoke, which sent chills down his spine. "Is that really the case?" it asked as it floated just a little closer. "Then tell me, how does the boy fare? If my calculations are correct, isn't it about time for him to come into his birthright?"

Winston felt his blood grow cold. So, all this time, it did know that he had custody of the boy, and not only that, it knew exactly where they lived. He had walked into a trap! It was just trying to get him away from Danny. How could he have been so stupid?

"And, where are we going? Hmm?" the ghost asked as it watched him move closer to his car. "You wouldn't be trying to head back to young Daniel, would you?" When the only answer it received was a glare, it chuckled. "Oh, you don't have to worry yet; I won't take him from you tonight. No, that would just be too easy and not as rewarding. Instead, I'll gain hold of him in a way that will not only humiliate you, but will also tear away his trust in you, if you continue to keep silent."

"You… you monster! There's no way that I'll ever let you do that!"

"Really? The signs have begun to appear, and if you're not careful, the shock of that change will be too much and he'll have no choice but to come with me." It then vanished only to appear inches from his face. "I mean, just today, his eyes turned this brilliant shade of green, the exact shade of ectoplasm, when my… associate… spoke with him not too long ago."

"Bastard!" Winston snarled as he tried to punch it in the face only to end up hitting his car instead. Laughter came from behind him, which only enraged him more. "What did you do to him?"

"Me? I haven't done a thing yet, but mark my words, I will get a hold of him. Just keep close watch on him for now, since you won't be able to for much longer. Ta!" With that final word, it once again vanished from site causing him to do spin around to attempt to find it. Yet, after a few moments it really seemed like it was gone for the time being.

He sighed in momentary relief that he managed to get out of the meeting unscathed. But, now that it made it clear that its goal was Danny, what was he supposed to do? With the current situation with the state, there was no way that he would be able to move, and on top of that, it appeared that the ghost somehow had the ability to track them. And, what had it meant when it mentioned an associate? There was just too much information to mull over from this meeting to understand it in the moment. He would have to wait until he got home… and hopefully, Danny had managed to find his way back already. If not, hopefully he'd head back soon. With that thing around, no place was safe for him.

….

"Danny…? Are you home yet?" he called out once he entered the house. There was no reply, but he did hear noises coming from one of the rooms. He called out again as he tried to figure out where they were coming from.

Suddenly, a figure emerged from one of the doorways. He was taken aback until he realized that it was just Danny's friend, Tucker. "Oh, you're home!" he said in a relieved voice. "We thought it might be that Vlad guy again…"

"Vlad guy…?" he repeated as looked around. "Wait, where's Danny?"

"Uh…" Winston stared at the boy as he tried to answer him. "He's… currently in the bathroom. Sam's with him. He… uh… isn't feeling well…" Worried, he quickly moved towards the bathroom, followed by a rather surprised Tucker.

"Danny?" he asked softly as he slowly entered the room. The scene he entered would have been comical if he wasn't so worried. Sam had been massaging his back but stopped abruptly as he entered and adopted an expression that was somewhere between embarrassment and normality. Danny was hanging over the side of the bathtub with a blanket draped over him. He weakly smiled as he looked at him before turning back towards the tub.

In that brief instant that Danny had looked at him, he had seen the boy's eyes turn green. So, the ghost hadn't lied about that. Maybe it really was happening… but, he would debate with himself over what to say to Danny, once he figured out how to help him get better.

#Eidolon #danny phantom #danny phantom au #dp #dp au #my writing #danny fenton #sam manson #tucker foley #vlad plasmius #fanfic #fanfiction #fantasy #supernatural #phandom

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queen-of-my-goofball-army · 3 years

Text

Sibling Day!

Hi everyone! This is the first request that I had for one of my fics that I wanted to write. It wasn't an official request but rather something that came up in conversation with the creator of Kai, one of my best friends in the entire world, @bio-hazard0us. She wanted a sibling day with Kai and Mitsu and that's what she got! I am still open for requests and I have only gotten one other one so if anybody has any ideas I'd love to hear them!

Kai: Hey tiny, I have a free day tomorrow with no homework. You. Me. Sibling day. I’m on my way to Vlad’s to get the requested day off-campus. I laughed a little bit at my brother’s familiar pushy nature. It was true, since he had started dating Katsuki it was rare for him to get any spare time with me apart from his boyfriend.

Me: Sounds good! I don’t have anything spectacular planned either. Really all I was going to do was study for Dadzawa’s next test on Thursday. I sensed you’re a nerd teasing comment coming back my way and I stretched my arms above my head the words blurring together.

“And you’re done for the night,” Denki told me pulling me back from the chair that I was sitting at knowing that I was working myself towards exhaustion.

“This is even starting to look more nonsensical to me so I can only imagine what it’s doing for you right now.” He pulled me back from the desk and carefully sat me over in my beanbag chair. He had texted me earlier on in the night wanting just some company while he studied. I knew that he was trying to get better grades without using Ari as a tutor.

“Thanks, Denks. I am getting really tired of just looking at words right now. This was nice though. It’s been a while since it’s just been you and me.” I reminded him and he just hugged me tightly to him. I smiled softly at my best friend that had always been there when I needed him to be.

“I know and I’m sorry that I’ve been spending so much of my spare time with Ari. It’s hard to explain how it feels when I’m around them other than soulmates.” I smiled softly at my best friend nuzzling his cheek lightly.

“You’re fine! I know how it is when you’re spending too much time with your partner. I’ve been neglected Kai as well he’s getting super on my case about it. It doesn’t help that now he’s dating Kats so it’s hard for us to get us time. He’s making a sibling day tomorrow.” I mentioned it to my best friend who leaned his head against my shoulder.

“It’s been a while since you’ve done those with him. I’m surprised that he hasn’t kicked open your dorm door yet demanding that you spend time with him yet. He’s probably too busy sucking face with his own boyfriend.” I lightly shoved him making a playful gagging sound that was way too over-exaggerated. I heard a soft knock at my door.

“Milady, it’s fifteen minutes until lights out time.” My boyfriend reminded me from the front door and Denki sighed before he extracted himself from my side.

“Always have to be such a buzzkill emergency exit Iida. See ya tomorrow Mitsu!!” He gave me a mock salute on his way out the door a light spring in his step. I watched him cross the way to the B dorms and couldn’t help but smile at him.

“He’s probably going to go and spend the night with Ari. Either he’s over there or they are over here.” I laughed a little bit at my boyfriend’s thoughts.

“I can’t really blame them, my knight, they are still in their honeymoon phase as a couple. It has to be difficult to spend time together as well since they are in different classes. The only class that they have together is lunch.” Tenya sat down next to me and I instantly snuggled into his side lightly. He kissed my forehead gently.

“I know it’s just shouldn’t he worry about getting caught?” I laughed a little bit hugging my boyfriend’s body towards mine.

“You haven’t known Denki nearly as long as I have but you’ve probably realized by now the sheer chaotic energy that he has. If he wants something he’s going to do everything within his power to get it. Besides he has permission from Dadzawa anyways so it’s all good.” I laughed a little bit as my boyfriend just smiled down at me.

“You always call him that outside of class, is that because you’ve known Shinsou for so long?” I nodded my head with a small laugh.

“Yep! He’s always been like my second dad so that’s why I squished his name. It’s super difficult for me to not call him that during class especially when I’m tired. Sometimes I’ll catch myself and Denki will have to kick my chair lightly. I was helping him study for the test on Thursday.” Tenya parted my hair softly between his fingers.

“You were helping him study?” I nodded my head with a small smile realizing that my best friend had forgotten his phone which was still in the bucket.

“He wanted my help, I think he’s trying to do better in school impress Ari. He has the motivation now. He wants to be the kind of hero that can protect his partner and I love that for him. He might be an idiot but damn it if he isn’t my lovable idiot. I’d do anything for him so of course, I offered to help him.” Tenya just smiled softly at me nuzzling my cheek.

“I’m just glad that you’re happy milady. It’s a good look on you.” I beamed back at my boyfriend taking a deep inhale of the calming scent that always surrounded him.

“I feel a lot better. I think I just needed a little bit of a break away from it all. I’m feeling more like myself after the cultural festival was well. It’s been a lot for me so far even just within these last three months. I went from mentoring under the man that I spent my entire youth looking up to, to losing him in the blink of an eye. It was hard to come back from that and I still cry thinking about it.” I put my hands into the pockets of my favorite sweatshirt. The perks of being still the same height that I had been both vertically and horizontally was that I was still able to fit into large children’s clothes. This was something that I had carried with me that was my favorite piece of hero merchandise. My Miss Joke hoodie went everywhere with me when I wasn’t in class.

“I know that it was a lot for you. I’m just glad that you eventually came around and came to me when you needed some help. I think that I’m going to let you get some rest though for tomorrow. It sounds like your brother and you have a sibling day planned?” I nodded my head kissing him gently before he rested his forehead against mine.

“The first one on our own in a really long time. I think it’s the first of this year officially because usually when we hang out Kats is around. I think it’s good that he’s taking a day just to spend with his favorite sister.” I joked and Tenya just laughed a little bit at me nuzzling his nose against mine with one last parting hug before I was left on my own. I picked up the picture that my mom took of Kai and me on the first day. He had me braid his hair that morning and we had gone to school in our selective favorite hairstyles. I took my hair out of its ribbons putting them next to me on my bed. Grabbing my Sir rabbit I snuggled underneath my blankets. The morning sunlight streaming through my window caused me to smile brightly. It was a sibling day! I had always looked forward to these when I was younger. I went through my closet humming a little bit to myself. I picked up my gray and white striped shirt and matched that with its pink skirt counterpart picking up my baby pink hair ribbons and brushing out my hair into the familiar Tohru Honda style that I felt most comfortable with by now. I heard the shave and a haircut coming from my door and knew instantly that had to be my brother and I flung my arms around his neck.

“Oof! Tiny, hey, it’s okay, you startled me and you’re a lot stronger than you look.” Kai caught me with practiced ease and hugged me tightly right back.

“Your damn right I am. I just missed you that’s all. I feel like I’ve barely seen you in the last few weeks.” He kissed my forehead with a small smile on his face fingering one of the ribbons in my hair shaking his head.

“I buy you one set of ribbons because of a joke that I thought was funny and I create a monster.” I stuck out my tongue at my brother grabbing my greek sandals and baby pink cardigan to tie the whole outfit together.

“These were the set of ribbons that you bought for me. It was just a simple joke but I grew to love the style. It suits me. What do you have in mind for today?” I asked my brother who looped his arm through mine and I closed my door.

“You’ll see when we get there I want to keep today a surprise for the most part. All I’m telling you is that it’s our favorite places when we were kids. I felt like going down memory lane when I was telling Katsuki about all of them earlier on the week.” I smiled softly at him tilting my cheek to rest on his shoulder even if I had to stand on my tiptoes in order to do it.

“Hero mini golf?!” I asked him excitedly and he just laughed a little bit at me pushing the hair behind my ear that was sticking out.

“We’ll see tiny, you always used to kick my ass at that game when we were little kids but I might have the room on the schedule for it.” I walked next to my brother hanging off his arm as he nuzzled my cheek with his.

“Not my fault that you were always a sore loser Kai. I don’t make the rules of mini-golf other than having fun there are no rules.” I joked and I saw Hitoshi and Litzy sitting on the couch him leaning against her and Eri on her lap watching Elena of Avalor.

“Hey, guys! Having your own sibling day?” I greeted them and Eri looked towards me with a bright smile on her face.

“Hi, miss aqua!” She greeted giving me a tight hug and I picked the little girl up dropping my brother’s hand for a second.

“Hey, there kiddo! I’m here as well.” Kai waved his hand a little bit awkwardly next to me and Eri smiled a little bit nervously at him.

“Hi, Mr. Kai.” I saw my brother’s heart melt at the small smile that the girl was giving to him and I softly handed him the little girl that we had helped save together.

“We are actually! Are you both heading out?” Litzy asked me and I saw her brother leaning against her shoulder lazily texting Django.

“Yeah, I wanted to do the things that we used to do when we were really little kids together. At least all the stuff that we still can do.” I smiled softly at my brother as he put Eri back down on the ground before taking my hand in his.

“Are you two going to that ice cream shop?” Hitoshi asked me from the couch and I smiled softly at him leaning against the furniture.

“I don’t know and if we do yes I will bring you back some of the sugary cold goodness that is themed to Dadzawa. I promise.” I promised the purple-haired hero in training and I saw him slowly start to smile at me.

“We’re not waiting until everybody and their mother wants ice cream. Just be lucky that she loves you troll hair.” I heard Hitoshi mutter oh thanks like I haven’t heard that one before and led my brother out of there before it became a full-blown insult argument.

“Why must you always pick a fight with him?” My brother just sighed a little bit blowing the fringe out of his hair.

“Because as a kid I just felt like he was always trying to take me away from you, you know? It was that possessive side of me that was like no I want you to just stay with me always. It wasn’t until you met Pikachu that I realized how twisted and fucked up that was. Now I don’t know how to go backward from here and how to make him start to even like me.” He explained a little bit to me about how he had thought about my best friend for all these years.

“Kai…” I cradled my brother’s cheek with a small smile on my face. I thumbed lightly at the small burnt patch of skin that was right underneath his left eye.

“I know it sounds stupid but for a really long time, it was like you were the one person that mattered to me. So when you met Hitoshi the year after you first met me it was like, do I even matter?” I had never thought about the fact of me meeting my best friend a year after I met my brother. It did make so much sense all of the sudden and the way that he grew up…

“I am so, so sorry Kai… you know that I love you right? More than anything? I know that sometimes I forget to say it because I feel like why should I say something that is as obvious to me as breathing. You’re more than just my brother to me. You’re the most important person in my life. More than Hitoshi, more than Tenya, more than anybody else. I could never, ever replace you with anybody or anything. I might have other friends now but none of them read me as well as you do. I can even fake a smile enough to get Hitoshi to leave me alone. Not you. You have never once fallen for one of my fake smiles when I’m too tired and my brain is too fuzzy to deal with anything at that moment in time.” I reminded my brother and he just looked down at me his eyes filling up with tears and he wrapped his arms around me tightly.

“You shouldn’t need to apologize for me being a possessive asshole. I just wanted to wrap you up in bubble wrap and tell everybody to stay the fuck away from my sister sometimes. I was like that a lot when you first started dating orange juice. Your fake smiles suck ass anyways, I don’t see how anybody falls for them. You only do them when you’re about to keel over.” I rolled my eyes softly at my brother as his arms just held me there. I couldn’t blame him for the extended hug. We hadn’t hugged in a really long time.

“I know I need to figure out a better coping method at some point. I’d rather just be happy and have fun today.” Kai just smiled softly at me kissing my forehead before pulling back from the hug and fixing the fringe on my bangs.

“Alright, you pick the first song.” He tossed me his phone which I carefully caught taking one of his headphones. We had always played this game in public ever since we were little kids. It was a game that our mom started where she gave us our first set of MP3 players when we were in elementary school and one of us would pick a song and the first one to crack lost that round of the game. I scrolled through his phone before a small smirk appeared on my face. My brother had a soft spot for 80’s hairband rock and roll and this was certain to make him crack.

“Gunter gileben glauchen globen… alright I got something to say.” My brother gasped at me for my cruel and unusual punishment.

“This has got to be the most not fair thing that you have ever done to me. That should be against the rules mom raised us on old school awful bands.” I stuck my tongue out at him putting my hands in my pockets to stop myself from doing the air guitar. It was extremely hard to not bop my head to the familiar beat of the heavy metal song but I could see my brother’s resolve slowly but surely start to crack at the seams.

“Rock of ages, rock of ages, still a-rollin', rock n’ Rollin…” My brother cracked at the sound of the familiar lead-in and I watched the color slowly start to drain from his face.

“In my defense, that song as a first try was absolutely one hundred percent uncalled for. I call practice round.” I shook my head waving my finger at him teasingly. He would never admit to the fact that he actually didn’t hate the music that he was raised on, actually just the opposite. I had it on good authority that he surprisingly loved a lot of my favorite artists.

“You can’t call a practice round after the fact Kai so sorry hun. You still cracked at the chorus.” I teased lightly and he just sighed a little bit taking his phone from my hands with a mischievous glint in his eyes that swore I would receive the wrath of my brother when I heard a familiar piano rift through the headphone in my ear.

“Oh no, no, no, no, I hate you so much right now this is not right…” I whined and my brother just laughed in that familiar soft way of his.

“You shouldn’t have played dirty then if you know who you’re playing with.” I sighed just hoping that I wouldn’t crack too early.

“Yesterday was a good day, it’s after midnight and I’ve got you on my mind, Come with me and never go away every day we will find yeah. Just the same way you love me…” I bit my lower lip to refrain myself from belting out the familiar love ballad at the top of my lungs. The internal part of my brain was also at the moment cursing our mom for playing Journey so much when we were children.

“Just the same way you love me…” I sang softly and my brother smirked snapping his fingers in a winning motion.

“It’s one to one now loser.” He lightly stuck his tongue out at me and I sighed petulantly pouting kicking a rock on the ground.

“I actually wanted to talk with you though. We can play more towards the end of the day and I think it’s best to end on a tiebreaker for later. I’ll just remember what we already picked, hard to forget since they’re such cheap shots.” I looked over at my brother finally taking him all in. He looked good, happier than I had seen him in a really long time.

“Kats is treating you good?” I asked him and watched as the scarlet blush went across his cheeks as well as the small nod.

“Yeah. He’s amazing, I never really thought that I’d actually find somebody that made me genuinely happy. I thought that I’d have to fight the guys after you off with a stick before that happened.” I laughed a little bit at my brother as he closed the gate behind him that left the school.

“You never had to fight them off with a stick. I’ve always been too much of an airhead and too driven for people to come up to me. I think I just had a certain type that I didn’t even know that I had until Tenya. You’ve always gone for the hot-tempered tsundere’s though.” I poked his still bright pink cheek and he sighed a little bit. “Says you, Miss Tamaki is the best host.” I flushed a bright pink at the memory lightly bumping his hip with my own.

“Oh shut it, I still say that the goofball type is the far superior archetype. I mean it’s hard to top it at least for me.” My brother just laughed a little bit at me resting his cheek against my head bending down slightly.

“Face it tiny you’ve always been the easy type. They just have to make you laugh and your putty in their hands. It’s your type.” He shrugged it off and I felt the flush of embarrassment across my cheeks biting back an insult that I thought was way too harsh and beyond light teasing.

“Fine, you win this round of bickering since I don’t want to take it too far.” I put my hands up in surrender and my brother blinked a little bit at me.

“How are things going with orange juice? Any better?” I nodded my head with a sad smile on my face. I knew that my brother had given up a lot of his own free time to make sure that my relationship was working and it broke my heart.

“It is better than it was a month ago. Sometimes I still worry that I’m bothering him and he’ll have to come and talk to me himself and bring me out of my own head. It’s scary how much I love him, Kai. He’s it for me.” My brother laughed a little bit at me nuzzling my hair with his cheek. It was always so easy to communicate with my brother about the minimal things in life that were bothering me. He was the nonjudgmental type at least when it came to me.

“I could tell that he was it for you the first time that I saw you two holding hands under the table and talking trying to look all discrete and shit. You really suck at lying to me tiny so of course, I was able to see right through that. I was just glad that you stopped mooning after Pikachu if I’m being entirely honest.” I rolled my eyes with a soft smile at Kai's scoffing. I heard a familiar ping on my phone and saw that it was Tenya making sure that I remembered my sunscreen and snacks in case I got hungry throughout the day.

“He’s definitely the mother hen type of partner. Exactly what you need in a boyfriend though because you suck at taking care of yourself.” I sighed a little bit because he was way too right. I did forget to take care of myself especially when it came to remembering to eat and take breaks.

“I’m glad that I got over my unrequited love and the same thing with Hitoshi. As much as it brought the two of us closer together all three of us are happy in our own relationships now. I couldn’t be happier with Tenya when things are working mainly when I’m not too scared to communicate.” I sighed a little bit and he kissed my hairline.

“It’s fine to be scared. I want you to remember that. It’s alright to figure out things by yourself. However, it’s not okay to completely ignore your partner and their needs. I know that you’re still learning that somebody would actually want to be with you sis and recently life hasn’t been very kind to either of us.” I nodded my head twiddling my fingers together in the familiar nervous fashion. I saw us standing outside of the familiar breakfast place that we had always gone to when we were kids.

“Come on tiny, I called ahead and made reservations yesterday. Hopefully, this place is still just as good as it was when we last came here when we got accepted. Not that their menu or your favorite thing ever changes.” I lightly pffted at him hearing the familiar laugh that always made me laugh right along with him.

“Oh, you! I remember you two, it’s nice to see you both again. How’s high school treating you both?” Since we had been coming here for so long and it was a small business they always remembered who we were.

“It’s going well ma’am thanks for asking.” My brother told her for me and I sighed gratefully at the fact that he was always so open about doing little things like this for me when I was too nervous.

“I saw you both on the news recently when that hero passed away. I’m so sorry for both of your losses. That must have been very hard for both of you especially you Mitsuki.” I nodded my head but smiled softly. It was something that while it hurt, got easier every day. I would always miss him but I was at least able to get sleep without nightmares and I was going to therapy now where I could talk about my feelings and emotions.

“There has been a small change to our hero menu but I think that you’ll like it.” She winked at me leading my brother and I to our favorite both towards the back and I looked to see what had changed.

“I’m not changing my order. It’s the same thing that it’s always been Plus Ultra pancakes…” My brother trailed off when he saw what was right below his favorite order and he tapped to where the pancakes were. I looked at them and saw my brother’s favorite but right below that was something that I had never seen before. In a place that was unanimous for never changing their menu they actually had.

“Bright side of life pancakes…” I felt tears suddenly well up in my eyes not able to stop the tears from flowing.

“He would have been happy, I remember him telling me that sometimes he would come here and get the All Might pancakes.” I smiled sadly at my brother as he ran a finger over my knuckle to remind me that it was okay to cry. Even if you were in public it was still alright to get emotional over things like this. I took a picture of the menu and texted it to Mirio with surprised emojis.

“I think he would have been happy too. I still miss him, so much. But it’s become something that at least I can easily talk about.” Kai nodded his head understandingly and the waiter came over to take our drinks. I flipped to the drinks and saw that there was a new lemonade.

“She’ll have the green apple lemonade.” My brother smiled at me as if reading my mind and the waiter just nodded.

“I’m so proud of you tiny. I know that you shut down for a little bit there but so did I. I’ve been talking to Jin a lot more and he’s a good listener.” I blinked a little bit in confusion before the idea of it all made me smile.

“He’s a good person despite his history. He did the right thing leaving after what happened with Kats. I didn’t know if I could trust either him or Violet before but now I can’t think of any two adults that I’d trust more other than Dadzawa and Dadzashi.” My brother laughed a little bit at the familiar pet names for the two people that had helped raise us to be heroes.

“I still remember when you first found out that Eraserhead was Hito’s father.” I laughed a little bit at the memory of an excited seven-year-old me practically vibrating.

“I was a sucker for the underground heroes when we were kids. I never got behind the hype of the overly popular ones other than All Might or Miss Joke. It was a bit of a pain to shop for me and mom had to do a lot of it by going to people that would make specific things. You were always the easy one Kai. If it had All Might’s brand on it you wanted it.” I lightly teased and my brother just scoffed at me knowing that I was right.

“As if you didn’t turn into a jumping bean whenever you saw Nighteye on something.” I laughed a little bit tucking a lock of platinum hair behind my ear.

“I had the excuse that very little amount of Nighteye merchandise was made. You had absolutely zero because his merchandise is literally everywhere. I love you Kai but it’s the truth.” My drink came and I felt tears come to my eyes at the fact that it came in a glass that I would get to keep.

“It’s a new thing that we’re starting where we have specialty glasses made for our drinks that the customer can keep. You two will match.” I smiled softly at the fact that even close to eleven years later my brother and I were still matching in every way, shape, and form.

“Cheers sis, to sibling days.” I clinked my glass with his taking a small sip from the drink. My eyes widened at the tart but still the good flavor of the lemonade.

“Trade?” I offered and he nodded taking a sip from the side of my glass and I tried the familiar blend of strawberry and blueberry lemonade.

“Have you finished Mic’s English assignment yet? I still have no idea what I’m going to do for mine yet.” I sighed a little bit nodding. I had finished it late last night. It wasn’t due until the week after next since it was a big project.

“It was really hard for me, I’m going to have Mirio read it before I turn it in. Writing about who inspired me to be a hero was obviously very hard for me.” I told him and he sighed along with me running a hand through the end of his ponytail.

“I’ve never even met All Might and now it’s nearly impossible because he’s no longer an official teacher right?” I shook my head. He was still a member of the staff but just couldn’t teach us as All Might anymore.

“I could have you meet him if that’s what you want! It might be good for you Kai. You helped me to meet my hero, it’s only fair that I repay the favor back to you.” I reminded him and I watched his eyes go wide and a small blush of admiration across his cheeks.

“You’d really do that for me…” I laughed at my brother nodding my head taking his hand in mine. I would have to talk to Midoriya since he was the one that was closest to what was once our country’s number one hero.

“Of course I would Kai, you’re my brother, my best friend, and the person that I would do just about anything for. If it means that you’ll get to meet your hero then so be it. I’ve met mine and I want for you to experience that same thing. Especially when your hero is as awesome as All Might.” I joked and my brother sighed a little bit smiling softly.

“I truly have the best little sister in the entire world.” I rolled my eyes softly at him. He still never let me forget that he was technically a goof five months older than me.

“What do you want to do after this?” I asked him and his eyes positively sparkled at the seams. I could see the bright expression on his face.

“That is for me to know and you to find out. Drink your sugary beverage and quit asking me probing questions.” I smiled softly at him shaking my head looking at my specialty cup. It had a chibi version of my favorite hero as well as the motto that he lived by.

“How was the Studio Ghibli museum?” Kai swiftly changed the subject to one of my favorite topics of conversation. Last week one of my dates with Tenya had led to me doing something that had been on my bucket list since I had first heard about it.

“It was so amazing oh my god! I wish that I could have taken pictures. But, I did buy you something.” I reached into my Loungefly backpack that I had picked up themed to Miss Joke and grabbed the object. My brother’s favorite movie had always been Castle In The Sky, he loved the idea of pirates ever since we were kids so growing up he had always wanted to be a member of the Dola Gang. I had picked out a handful of favorite items that I told my boyfriend that I would buy since they were for my brother.

“Holy hell, these are awesome! I love them…” My brother trailed off looking at the two main figurines that I had picked out for him. One of them was of the robots that are on Laputa and the other was of Patsu catching Sheeta.

“I’m so glad! I had to demand Tenya that I buy them myself since they were for you. I’m so glad that you love them. I was a little bit nervous. I got the Howl and Sophie version of that figurine for Denki. He loved him too.” I showed him the picture of everything that I had picked out for my dorm room and he stopped at one of the items.

“You bought a Baron?!” I nodded my head showing him a better image. It had been the most expensive purchase that my boyfriend had made.

“I tried to talk him out of it but he insisted on buying it for me especially after I told him how much I was obsessed with the character when I was a little girl. I also picked out Fio’s airplane! Ever since Shizuko built her’s it’s inspired me.” I showed him the mobile that I had bought. I often spent an extended amount of time just gazing at it.

“I still can’t believe that she actually built the fucking thing. Did she ever figure out what she��s doing with it?” I nodded my head with a small smirk. I had been so excited for her when she had told me about it and now I couldn’t wait to tell my brother.

“Apparently, somehow Goro Miyazaki got wind of her little invention and he wants it for the museum! He wants to put it on display!” I cheered and my brother’s eyes widened comically before the muttered holy shit left him.

“What did her parents say about the whole situation?” I sighed a little bit shaking my head. This was the part that wasn’t pretty.

“They told her that she couldn’t do it. That it would be just sitting there collecting dust. I think that it would be incredible though, like can you imagine? Shizuko worked so hard to make that machine and she did it. It should be shown to the public don’t you think?” I saw my brother nod his head and he whipped out his phone and instantly started texting, probably our favorite techie in question.

“She said that she’s actually going through with it. They want it on display next week. She’s going to have dismantled and reassemble it there. I’m going to offer to help her. I mean it’s a free pass to the museum grounds. Denki is helping her as well. This could be her big chance, to meet the man behind the magic.” I smiled softly at my brother. He had always stood by Shizuko and whatever she wanted to do. I think but was because he related to her and the way that she struggled to be heard by her parents. He understood that and the fact that he did never failed to break my heart.

“I think that she’d really appreciate that Kai! It’s a great idea, I think Django is probably going to help her out as well. He’s been wanting to go and get some Kiki’s Delivery Service merchandise.” I laughed at the memory of the Romani-American goofball that had stolen the heart of my stoic but loving best friend.

“Do you think that the man himself might see it?” I shrugged because anything at all was possible. Shizuko would probably faint if he did see it but it would be absolutely amazing for her. I couldn’t think of a person that was more deserving to meet him than her.

“He just might! He goes to the museum often even if it’s just to the gardens. I can’t think of a single person that is more deserving to meet him than her. Other than PJ his films are what keeps her going. It’s why she hasn’t lost the light of childhood that she carries in her eyes.” My pancakes appeared at the table and I looked at them wide-eyed. They looked absolutely delicious and I grabbed my fork instantly taking a bite from them.

“’S good!” I encouraged the waiter and Kai just laughed a little bit at me shaking his head. He tried his own familiar All Might pancake nodding his head at the familiar flavor.

“Thank you Pip from Enchanted, hasn’t mom told you hundreds of times to not talk with your mouth full,” I smirked a little bit at my brother waving my fork feeling the joke that was coming on.

“About the same amount of times that she has told you to watch your language.” I taunted and he just rolled his eyes at me with a small smile on his face.

“At some point, you just stop listening to her and it just becomes white noise. Especially when it’s me and it’s like talking to a brick wall.” I laughed at my brother shaking my head at him before cutting into my breakfast of sugar. We ate our food in the familiar companionable silence that we were used to doing back at home. It was easy for me to just sit quietly in the company of my brother since it was something that I had grown up with.

“I’ll pay.” He told me and before I could open my mouth and protest he had already laid down his credit card.

“I am taking you out on a sibling day, thus I get to pay for everything that you want.” He reminded me and I made a mental note for me to take him out the next time so that I could pay him back somehow.

“Come on tiny, we’ve got people to do and things to see.” I laughed a little bit at the familiar word backward that we had picked up from our dad. That had been one of the older ones from when we were smaller children and we had been going on a road trip when our mom had lightly teased him that it could be taken out of context.

“Next stop is the train station since we have to travel for a little while to reach our next destination.” He told me and I blinked a little bit in confusion but gave my student ID to the machine and it let me through the turnstile.

“I started watching Fruits Basket with Katsuki, mostly because he walked in on me watching the first episode when Kyo appeared.” I smiled softly at the fact that my brother was able to share one of his favorite shows with his boyfriend.

“I haven’t gotten around showing it to Tenya yet mostly because he’s never really watched anime, not even Miyazaki. So we’re starting off slow and I need to share with him more of the world that we grew up with. I’ve only been able to show him Totoro and Kiki’s so far.” I sighed a little bit since I had taken a huge handful of steps backward. My brother saved me a seat next to him and rested his cheek on my shoulder.

“I think that starting with the master of animation is a good idea especially if he hasn’t seen any anime ever. He loves you though tiny so I’m sure that he’s having just as much fun as you are with him. Did you have to explain a lot of the exhibits at the museum to him?” I nodded my head with a small laugh since I had to do a lot of explaining when my boyfriend took me to visit the museum of my special interest.

“All he really did was look at me all soft like the way that you tease me he does. I think that my next one might be Castle In The Sky. I have a feeling he’d really like that one.” My brother smiled softly at me entwining his fingers with mine.

“He does look at you like you hung him the moon and stars. At first, I really didn’t get it, it made me uncomfortable. I didn’t know whether or not that I could trust him. But then he followed through and I learned that this guy isn’t going anywhere and he clearly loves my sister so I might as well face it. She’s not going to be the pure and innocent baby anymore. And no I did not mean that as an insult before you get all sulky on me.” I smiled softly at my brother because for a time I was worried about the way that Katsuki would treat my brother despite me knowing that he was different.

“I was afraid for a small amount of time that Kats would hurt you as well. I know that his bark is way worse than his bite and everything but I was still a little bit weary. You two were so competitive at first it was tiring to keep up with you two when I would train you both.” In hindsight, I should have known that they would both be super chaotic when you put them together at first.

“I’m still not sorry about that and I blame him for picking a fight with me. It was not something that I wanted to do. Plus he got super sick due to me and I still feel awful about that…” I rubbed my brother’s back gently with a small smile on my face.

“But he still forgave you and look at where the two of you are at right now. I’m so proud of you Kai. I know that you’ve struggled a lot when it comes to self-love and why you want to be a hero but you’ve still come so far. You’re making friends of your own free will! Look at your relationship with Ari, I never told you that you should be friends with him. I encouraged you to befriend Shizuko because I felt like she needed another person fighting for her in her corner. But with Ari, you did that all on your own.” I saw my brother slowly start to relax into the comforting touch.

“They’re a really good person. I can totally see why Pikachu is so smitten with them if I’m being entirely honest. I saw him cuddling Ari before I left the B dorms to go and get you and I swear my heart melted.” I laughed a little bit at my brother because just about every time I saw them cuddling my heart melts.

“I can totally see that. They usually cuddle on our couches to the point where I think Kats is low-key jealous because he’s constantly bitching about it. You should come over to my side more often.” I teased lightly and the colors flush across my brother's cheeks.

“I’ll think about it…” I smiled softly at my brother. I knew that come tomorrow I’d see him and Katsuki on the couch opposite what was already becoming our class's number one OTP. I felt the train come to a slow and gentle stop and my brother instantly led me up the stairs making the broad hand gesture.

“The hero museum…” We hadn’t been here since we were really little kids. It was something that we would do whenever we had done something really good in school. I used to love coming here with Kai because it was mostly themed to All Might and his little eyes would light up.

“Come on tiny, it’ll be great just you wait. There’s something in there for you too! I checked and there are two new exhibits.” He led me to the front of the line and paid for the two of us to go in after showing them our student IDs and getting the hero in training discount. I had thought that the clerk was looking at me a little bit suspiciously like they recognized me or something. My brother quickly led me into the familiar front room where all the exhibit halls were. The floor was the familiar All Might colored and my brother seemed to be waiting for me to realize that something was different so I looked around and felt tears come to my eyes.

“It’s a permanent exhibit here now. You might need these.” He handed me a packet of Kleenex that he had brought with him from home in the familiar Miss Joke packaging. I took my brother’s hand and went through the entrance with all the other children that were wanting to see my hero.

“Welcome everyone to the Bright Side Of Life exhibit!” The worker introduced us standing at the front of the auditorium.

“We’re here to honor a hero that was long overlooked throughout his life, Sir Nighteye. Once the sidekick of All Might he created his own agency that was dedicated to helping the police save children from bad situations. He loved the smiling faces of children and they were what originally made him want to become a hero. For our exhibit, we have the last interview that he ever gave before he passed away. You will see three young heroes in training that worked with him on his last job as well that go to UA Mitsuki Haruka, her brother Kai Haruka and Mirio Togata.” I blinked in confusion before the information settled into me. I remembered that he told me about this interview that he had come up right before our fight against Overhaul. He told me that he rarely did interviews but this one was different and he knew it. The lights went dark and my brother put his arm around my shoulders comfortingly as I saw my hero.

“Why is my catchphrase to always look on the bright side of life? Well, it’s a song from a British comedy troop Monty Python. I’ve always loved smiling and jokes despite my usually cold exterior when I’m doing hero work. This song got me through a lot of bad times so when I hear from a fan that it helps them out as well that just means that I’ve done my job. It’s only been my catchphrase for the last six years. Before that, I didn’t have one.” I felt tears come to my eyes and we weren’t even a full minute into the interview yet. This was going to be really hard for me to sit through.

“Hero work to me isn’t all about the guts and glory. It’s about the feeling I get when I save a child. When I first see them smile at me and thank me for getting them out of that situation. That was what I loved about being All Might’s sidekick was that I got to save the lives of children.” His smile as he looked down at the photograph that was sitting on his desk all warm and soft brought a tear to my eye.

“My fan base is small but they’re loyal. They’re always there when I need them to be. I got extremely lucky I think. Two of my biggest fans turned out to be two of the strongest heroes out there. They work for me now and I couldn’t be happier to see them. Why don’t we go and visit them right now?” The interview led him down the hallway to his training grounds where my brother and I had been training.

“Good work Kai! Your sister is going to try for a water whip in the next few seconds so I’d block it.” I laughed at the memory and how petulant I had been.

“Oh sure, you’ll help him meanwhile I have to do this on my own?!” The auditorium of people laughed at me along with the hero that was the focus of the interview.

“I helped you yesterday Mitsu, you’ve got to do things on your own sometimes!” I saw Mirio watching the two of us with this look of pride as my hero went down the stairs to sit by his protege.

“This is my protege Mirio Togata, he’s a third-year and he brought Mitsu a few months ago. How’s she doing Mirio?” My friend smiled at the hero who had changed both of our lives growing up. I saw his grin at me.

“She’s amazing!! She’s going to be a super awesome hero once she gets older, I mean she is right now but I just have a good feeling about her.” I saw Midoriya fighting along with us and Sir smiled softly at my classmate and friend.

“Midoriya is the newest recruit around here he just got here last week but he already shows amazing promise for the future. I know that he can be a great hero, all four of them can.” The video faded away until it had stopped on his smile.

“We have a lot of Sir’s personal items for our exhibit that we were able to get our hands on so we’d love for you to tour around!” The worker explained and Kai took my hand softly squeezing it and leading me through the front doors.

“Alright tiny I know that you can do this. I’m really proud of you Mitsu and it’s going to be really exciting for you!” He comforted me and led me through the front doors to the exhibit. The first thing that I saw was a collage of all the different pictures. I froze when I saw one of me and my first day when Mirio had insisted that the three of us take a selfie.

“Hey, you’re the water hero in the video!” I looked down slightly seeing a small girl in front of me with a gap between two of her teeth.

“That I am sweetheart, it’s very nice to meet you.” I got down on her level as she fumbled with her pamphlet and a blue gel pen.

“Can you sign my pamphlet?” I laughed a little bit and my brother just smirked a little bit at me kneeling next to me.

“Not even a full hero yet and you’re already signing your first autograph. I’m Kai, I’m her brother.” He introduced himself to the girl and she fumbled with an orange gel pen.

“Can you sign it too Mr. Kai? You have a really amazing quirk! I saw you both on tv when you were fighting Chiasaki.” I smiled sadly at the small girl signing my name and doing the watermark that I was already fond of underneath my name.

“Of course…” My brother signed his hero name underneath mine with a small smile on his face. I leaned against his side a little bit as the little girl went skipping to show her mother what she got from us.

“That was unexpected…” I squeezed his hand softly and he leaned firmly against my side. He knew that it was only the beginning and even though I was dreading this part of being a hero I knew that it was mandatory.

“I wasn’t expecting that either but it made me really happy. I think that there’s a line forming though little brother.” I teased lightly and I saw a small boy coming in front of my younger brother. Kai knelt down so that he could sign his playbill.

“I have a dangerous quirk as well…” The young boy admitted and my heart broke looking at him. Kai just smiled kindly at him.

“Do you want to be a hero as well?” The little boy nodded his head and I got down to look at him as well. I gave the little boy a low high five.

“I know that you can do it! Being a hero isn’t about the quirk that you have, it’s about the heart that you have.” He pushed a lock of hair behind his ear with a small smile on his face. Kai put his arm around my shoulders comfortingly.

“I didn’t think that I had it takes to be a hero either. I didn’t understand what it takes to be a hero either until I met this one’s hero. He taught me so much about being a true hero. It’s not about the vanity of it all but the things that you’re able to do in order to save people.” I leaned against my brother’s side as the little boy looked up at us with tears in his eyes.

“Thank you very much, Mr. Kai!” He went back to his mom animatedly telling her about what he had just experienced.

“Do you want to see the rest of the exhibit?” I asked my brother who nodded his head and retied his hair into his ponytail the streaks of green in his hair showing off and matching my streaks of blue.

“I do if that would make you happy. This is something that I wanted to do for you. I know that I dragged you through All Might’s exhibit here way too much when we were children. This is your turn to do the same thing to me.” I laughed a little bit fingering the end of my skirt and one last small boy came up to me.

“I have a water quirk as well!” He showed me a little bit of what he could do with his quirk and I got down to his level.

“That’s amazing! I don’t meet a whole lot of water quirk users they aren’t as common as they once were with so many varieties out there now. I’m glad though. That means that you’re going to work hard and one day become a hero right?” He nodded his head as I signed my name with my watermark across the bottom of it. I tried to make it look similar to my quirk as his older sister picked him up.

“He really loves your work, this is his fifth time coming to the museum when I’ve babysat him this month. I always let him pick where to go and this is what he always says. You’ve really inspired him. He didn’t think that he could ever be a hero until he saw you skidding past on your water on the news with the USJ.” His older sister told me and I bowed before the little boy hoping that one day he would become a hero and would join the small number of water heroes that we had.

“That’s great! I’m so glad that I was able to inspire you. I can’t possibly understand why because that’s the first time that somebody has ever told me that but thank you for your love and support either way.” I thanked him and my brother just took my hand with a small sigh.

“You don’t know why tiny come on, you’re one of the most inspirational people that I have ever met.” I sighed running a hand through my long platinum-colored hair.

“Kai, I know that but you’re my brother and you're supposed to say those kinds of things to me.” My brother put his arm around my shoulders pointing the painting in front of me.

“Hey, I recognize that artwork!” He reminded me and I looked at the picture next to it. I felt my heart melt and tears come to my eyes. It was my painting that I made when I was ten.

“That’s my painting…” He kissed my cheek with a small smile on his face. I linked my finger through his with a small smile on my face.

“It is tiny! That’s your signature right over there.” He reminded me and I laughed a little bit at my best friend.

“I had such bad handwriting back then, I can’t believe that’s the painting that bubble girl picked for this exhibit.” My brother leaned his cheek against my head with a small laugh. He slowly walked me to the next slide when I saw him fighting alongside All Might.

“I remember this fight, it was one of the first when they had to save a quirkless child…” I felt tears come to my eyes because that was so much of me when I was younger. I sympathized with the girl in the video and saw a lot of myself in her especially when I was younger being quirkless myself for a really long time.

“You watched that fight so many times, you still were watching it even when I got there. I could see why though you saw yourself in the girl and wanted to be saved by your hero. As much as you were like Nausicaa growing up you were every bit the little girl that you always were.” I stuck my tongue out at my brother and he lightly pinched at my cheek.

“Oh like you didn’t watch the same All Might fight thousands of times once you found your favorites. It’s no different.” I mocked and he just shrugged it off not even ashamed to admit the fact that I was right in every way. “Here’s his old costume!” He told me and I looked over at the old suit and tie that he used to wear back when he was a sidekick and had yet to find his own sense of style.

“I loved his old costume. It was something that I associated with him but I do love his new costume more because I feel like it suited his personality a lot more. It was bright and boisterous a lot like his true personality. I feel like he buried and hid a lot from me even after he learned that he could trust me. I miss him so much Kai…” My brother nuzzled his cheek a little bit further into my hair squeezing me against his side.

“I know tiny, I miss him too. But he’ll always be with you in your heart as cheesy as that sounds when you say it out loud. I think of it kind of like Mufasa with Simba. Remember who you are…” I laughed a little bit at my brother lightly shoving him.

“I still love that movie and you will leave it alone. I know that you’ve watched it to death but I also know that if you had to have a favorite Disney movie that would be it.” Kai just heaved a heavy sigh as if I had just figured out that he wasn’t nearly as tough as he made himself out to be.

“Just don’t go spreading that shit around, Katsuki already teases me enough as it is for watching Fruits Basket. Even though he watches it with me now.” I smiled softly at the idea of the grumpy Pomeranian growing adjusted to having my brother in his life.

“I’m glad though that you two are getting along so well. It puts me at ease. I used to really worry about you that you’d never find love. I know that you were always secretly lonely especially in middle school when I started making other friends than Hitoshi. It wasn’t something that I planned on happening but I suddenly became somebody that people wanted to be friends with. I think a big part of it was making friends with Denki on the first day of school. He’s a bit of a social butterfly.” I joked and Kai just sighed a little bit but I could tell that he understood.

“You’re super social too, you just get overly anxious about things that don’t even really matter. You let your brain get ahead of what you actually want otherwise you’d be pretty normal. I started off being really mad at you, I thought that you forgot about m on purpose. But you never truly forgot about me. You just got busy which is different. I realized that you deserve to have your own life away from me. I learned a lot through you mostly that it’s okay to grow up. We grew up together but remained children. And that’s how it’s always going to be tiny. I’ll always be there for you whenever you need me.” He reminded me and I felt tears come to my eyes as he lightly thumbed them away.

“Cry baby…” I stuck my tongue out at him lightly swatting his lower arm glaring down at my shoes with a sad smile.

“Come on Kai, we still have more things to see around here!” I dragged him to the next section of the Nighteye exhibit which talked about how he had created his own agency. Even though I was already extremely familiar with his story it was still one that inspired me. He had come from being a sidekick to doing something truly amazing with his life.

“And so will you tiny, you’re already going to take over his agency with Mirio.” I looked at my brother realizing that I had said that aloud.

“Are you sure that you don’t want to join us, Kai?” My brother shook his head smiling softly at me leaning his cheek against my hair.

“No I’m alright, I’m sure. I would much rather maybe work with Katsuki one of these days. I don’t think I have the emotional strength to constantly save children from bad situations.” He squeezed my hand with a small smile on his face.

“Wow, already planning your future with our favorite tsundere?” I teased and he just sighed a little bit a bright pink blush on his cheeks.

“Well I-shut up!” I laughed at my brother as he followed me to the next booth over that had all the different types of merchandise that he had sold while he was alive.

“I can’t possibly judge you hun, I have done the same thing with Tenya so I don’t have a leg to stand on.” He laughed a little bit at me squeezing my hand. Kai snuggled a little bit further into my side moving one of the locks of hair out of my face.

“At least you two have been dating since you first started the school year. Me and Katsuki have been dating since last month.” I looked at my brother with a small smile on my face. I couldn’t believe that my brother had actually found happiness, even if it was with the last person that I expected it to be.

“Well you know as much as I do that I have problems in my relationship too that we’re working through. He makes me a better person and I’m so happy around him.” Kai smiled softly at me leading me to the last of the major exhibits here. It focused on various clips of him saving children when he became the sunshine hero.

“There we are again tiny!” He told me and I smiled softly at the moment on the screen. It was him, Mirio, Kai, and I getting ice cream together taking a break from the stuffy office work. I walked out of the room and something in the gift shop caught my eye.

“Can I peak into the gift shop really fast?” He sighed but nodded his head as I bolted for the gift shop and found the pillow that I was looking for. This was a new item. It was in the shape of a sun and had his glasses on them.

“Hand it over tiny, I’ll get it for you.” I sighed dejectedly wanting to pay for it myself but not wanting to break out into a heated debate in the middle of the gift shop.

“Do you see anything that you want Kai?” My brother paused looking at the All Might pillow that was in the bin next to the Nighteye ones. They were also a new design, they must have made them to match one another.

“I want to get that one.” I laughed a little bit at my brother biting back the teasing jab that I had inside of me.

“I’ll get it for you then. If you insist upon buying me everything then I want to buy you at least one thing. Hand the pillow over.” He tossed me the pillow and I laughed a little bit at my brother taking it up to the register to buy it for my brother.

“Here you go Kai, one more thing to add to your ever growing collection.” He mimed his hand with a higher pitched voice only changing my name instead of his.

“I know that I have a problem, it’s not my fault that there is hardly any merchandise for him. Where to next oh navigator? Back to the train?” My brother tapped his foot a little bit checking his phone for something.

“How about mini golf?” I cheered dragging him out of the museum as he fumbled a little bit with how fast I was going.

“Tiny slow the hell down I can’t keep up with you when you get like that.” I stopped outside of the train station my brother heaving for breath.

“Geez, you get so excited about the weirdest things. It’s just miniature golf. You always kick my ass anyways.” My brother leaned against my side waiting for the train to appear and I just sighed a little bit apologetically.

“Sorry, I guess it’s just been a while since I’ve felt this happy. I put on a brave face and a smile but it feels more forced now I guess. When I’m not around Tenya it’s just like oh there’s a person coming I’ve got to put on that fake smile and tell them that I’m fine.” Kai tucked a lock of hair behind my ear and I saw him sigh a little bit.

“You don’t have to do that shit around me. I hope that you know it’s normal to not feel happy all the time. I know that you’ve been through a lot lately but you’ve not been coming to me for help. Did you eventually decide what you’re going to do therapy wise?” I nodded my head with a sad smile on my face. I had already scheduled my first appointment for it on the first official day of summer break.

“I decided that Mirio made a really good point and that I can’t keep living like this. I need help Kai. I know that I do. It’s been four months and I’m still not getting any better. I’m still stuck in mud and I can’t get out.” Kai bundled me up in his arms making quiet noises to try and comfort me. He was always the person that could do the best job at getting me out of my own head. It wasn’t the easiest job in the world, especially lately but I still loved that my brother was able to do it so effortlessly.

“I’m really proud of you. I’ve been thinking about seeing a shrink myself for my own anger problems. I want to be better. I want to be able to see you with your other friends and not feel this burning sense of possessiveness. It’s not healthy. I’m already working on making more friends in my class. Mostly with Ari’s friend Honenuki. He’s a good guy.” I laughed a little bit against my brother’s chest at the memory of the boy that looked so unique.

"Litzy has a major thing for him, they’ve only met a few times though. I hope that she gets over her shyness around him really soon. I think that they’d be super cute together.” My brother pulled back from the hug just doing one more quick once over to make sure that I was alright physically.

“He likes her too, a lot. Ari teases him about it all the time. For somebody that spend basically the better part of four weeks mooning after their partner they sure are cocky.” I laughed a little bit at how self assured the partner of my best friend had turned out to be.

“Part of me hopes that Litzy will get to have her quinceanera for the entirely selfish reason that they’ll get together in the process.” Kai leaned against me waiting for our train to approach the station and I felt the familiar gust of wind. This was a much faster train then the one that we had taken to get here. I always loved sitting on the bullet train and watching the world go by.

“Come on tiny, I know that you hate having to stand on these trains. Let’s go snag us a pair of seats.” I followed my brother to the back of the train sitting down next to him. I leaned my head against his shoulder once we were seated kicking my legs back and forth.

“I heard that the mini golf place has a new course themed to Nighteye. Do you want to see it or would you rather be surprised.” I muttered softly be surprised next to him. I can’t really say that I was surprised with all the new things that were going around for my hero. There was a reason that people said we don’t even know what we have until it’s gone.

“It seems that everybody is doing things for him. It makes me a little bit angry if I’m being entirely honest.” I blinked in confusion at my brother as I watched the world go by outside of the window with rapt attention.

“Why? I mean I’m not exactly surprised. People never appreciate the underdogs while they’re here. It’s just something that I’ve become accustomed to. I’m just glad that he’s getting the love that he so deserves now. Besides, that hero mini golf course has a bunch of courses for different heroes.” I shrugged it off like it was nothing but Kai just leaned against me.

“I think it’s because he worked his ass off. If I hadn’t have been such a big All Might stan I might have joined your side across the road. After knowing him as well as we did it just seems like the world’s biggest coup out. I know that you’re happy because you get to celebrate his life but to me it just is offensive. It just seems like they’re milking his legacy sometimes. That segment at the museum wasn’t what I was expecting it to be. They barely even mentioned the things that he did in his life only how he died.” I hadn’t really thought about it at the moment but my brother has usually made a decent point. He had always seen things through a more cynical pair of glasses while I was the more optimistic type.

“I don’t think about that but you’re probably right hun. I’m sorry that you’re feeling that way. I wish that people celebrated him when he was here too. But I’d rather it be the way that things are. I was his biggest fan and that makes me happy. I was there before everybody else. That makes me the trendsetter.” I joked hearing my brother’s soft laugh.

“I love you Mitsu.” I smiled softly. He hardly ever used my real name it was almost always the nickname that he gave me when we first met ‘tiny’. He only said my name when he reminded me that he loved me.

“I love you too Kai. More than anything.” Kai took my hand in his and I felt the familiar comfort from my brother coming off him in waves. The bullet train came to a steady stop and I stood up dusting off the hem of my skirt as we walked to the mini golf course.

“Alright prepare to go down this time, I’m ready.” My brother threatened and I rolled my eyes already picking the Miss Joke designed ball and putter.

“You best be ready to eat those words, this game is one of the few that I’m confident at. I love playing miniature golf. We start at the Thirteen?” My brother nodded his head going first and made it through the hole. I saw his eyes light up with a bright cheer.

“Hole in one! I got a hole in one, suck it.” I rolled my eyes at him softly chuckling at him. Leave it to my brother to be absolutely obnoxious over the littlest of things. I putted my ball watching it go the same route that my brother did before sinking into the hole as well.

“What?!” I heard my brother’s indignant squawk but unlike him, I would not a show-off about this. I grabbed my ball walking along the sidewalk to the familiar next hole.

“That was just round one tiny, I will beat you at this game.” I softly laughed at my brother retying my right ribbon.

“We’ll just see about that, now is not the time to get cocky Kai.” I watched him put the ball through the right of Miss Joke’s laughing emoji eyes. I heard the familiar laugh that went along with it as he skipped over the hole.

“Aw, man!” I laughed a little bit at my brother moving to stand next to him and I went through the middle of the bright smile. I watched as the ball softly rolled to the hole.

“You went a little bit too hard through the left side. I’ve learned that when playing this hole your best bet is to shoot it through her smile. True you won’t get the laughter sound effect but you will get a hole in one.” I taught my brother watching as I saw him angrily try to get the ball into the hole. I shook my head at the familiar impatience levels that he had.

“Also this is not the game to play angry.” I teased him twirling a lock of hair that was sticking out of my ribbon.

“Yeah yeah tiny, move along.” I chuckled lightly at him as he finally made the shot that he wanted. I walked down the pathway seeing the next shot. I felt a tear come to my eye when I saw the group in front of us make the shot and the notes of Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life come out of the speakers.

“I didn’t know that they were going to do that…” I handed my brother a tissue and he just dried his eyes and went for his shot. He went through the ramp and out the other side into the hole on his first try. Seeing my brother smile softly at the sky.

“Thanks for everything…” I smiled softly at my brother pushing his foot lightly out of my way since he was blocking my path to success. It went up the ramp and out the other side of the sunshine and saw that it also went through the hole on its first try.

“Can I take a picture of the course?” I asked one of the workers and he nodded his head as I took the picture editing it and posting it with crying emojis to my Instagram.

“This next hole is new too! It’s a FatGum one!” I told my brother excitedly since I had been following the hero since I met him when we went after Chiasaki together.

“Really?!” My brother sprinted to catch up with me as he went first and it stopped just before the hole and I saw the lines of irritation go over his face.

“Don’t let it get to you little brother. I might miss this shot too.” I reminded him as I made the shot stopping even farther back and shot him the look you see expression.

“See? Sometimes I miss the shot too and you don’t see me throwing a childish fit.” My brother put his arm around my shoulders with a small smile.

“You’ll still beat me at this round anyways. It’s just how it works sometimes.” I watched my brother make his shot and he went into the hole. I went after him hearing the sound effect that made me smile. They had recorded his voice saying great job. I knew that Ei would love this course so I sent him a picture of it with exclamation marks.

“How is Kirishima doing by the way? Has he made a move on Mika-chan yet?” I shook my head with a heavy sigh.

“It looks like they are going to be pining after one another for quite some time brother of mine. At least you’re not best friends with one of them.” I joked and watched as my brother went first into the Best Jeanest course.

“No but I talk with Mika a lot, she’s cool.” I laughed a little bit at my brother knowing that was the closest thing to a compliment that the shy girl was ever going to get from my usually surely brother.

“Can we get ice cream after this?” I saw my brother nod his head and I cheered with a bright smile on my face. We would have to get back onto the bullet train to go to the hero ice cream shop close to school. It was hard to believe that it was now early afternoon. We had gotten an early start to the day but still, it felt like the day had flown by and it left me wishing that it hadn’t. I made a mental note to start doing these siblings' days more often. I made it through the Best Jeanest course in three tries. The holes started to get tougher from here on out. I almost never got a hole in one doing the All Might course which was the last one.

“Whoever loses has to buy it. I’m only saying that because I am for sure going to lose since you’re kicking my butt right now.” I chuckled at my brother as we went to the Eraserhead course, another newer one it looked like. It was right before the older All Might course. It made me really happy that Dadzawa was getting the respect that he had worked so hard to earn. It made me happy that this place was still making new courses and scrapping the ones that were no longer relevant. I was relieved to see that they had replaced the Endeavor one with a Hawks one. I saw next to it one for the bunny hero Mirko one next to it.

“This one could be difficult…” My brother thought to himself before just taking his best shot and going through the right ramp that would lead him to the hole in one shot.

“Kai! That was awesome, I don’t think that I’m going to get a hole in one in this one despite my admiration for this hero.” I bit my lower lip trying to go through the right wing that would lead me to get a hole in one in the Hawks course.

“Come on baby, come on baby, come on baby…” I muttered watching it spiral around before deciding that the luck was on my side and it went into the hole.

“Barely went through it Kai, you were all in that one. I thought that I wasn’t going to make it.” I walked with my brother watching a younger family at the Mirko course. The younger brother was trying to get it through the proper ear that would get him to the other side.

“Does that remind you of somebody?” I jokingly asked my brother who heaved a heavy sigh running a hand through the base of his ponytail.

“Can it tiny.” I laughed at my brother as the little boy made it through the right ear and got a hole in one as his parents picked him up encouragingly. My brother went next as my phone buzzed and I got a series of surprised emojis from Ei.

“Tiny, your turn to try, I made it there but not a hole in one. I should have known not to trust the rabbit.” I laughed at my brother and went down the left ear that caused me to go straight to just outside the hole.

“I think I can trust the rabbit. There are very few females in the top ten heroes right now so I’ve got some mad respect for her. Thanks, Miro!” I thanked the hero giving her a thumbs up and my brother just chortled with laughter at the fact that I had just thanked a miniature golf course. He went through the end at the second try and I just lightly putted through it.

“Now we have to do this beast, this looks like a nightmare happened. I think Hitoshi would still get a kick out of it though. There are so many paths how do you know which one is the perfect one. And of course, they had to make it above the water on purpose just to screw me over.” I listened to my brother’s ranting and laughed a little bit as he overanalyzed the hell out of the course in front of him. He eventually decided to aim for the perfect ramp that he thought would take him to the end course before the bottom opened up and I let out a shocked laugh when his ball went straight directly into the water.

“OH, YOU SON OF A BITCH!” He ranted and I couldn’t help but fall into hysterics of laughter. This was just too priceless.

“Alright laugh it up tiny, this is highway fucking robbery.” I glared at my brother jerking a thumb behind me at the parents with kids behind us. I watched all the color drain even farther from his face.

“I’m sorry about my brother ma’am. He gets really irritated with this game and didn’t know that there were children behind us.” I lightly smacked my brother upside the head in a chiding fashion and he just huffed a breath sitting down at the end of the course to wait for me obviously stewing his own fumes right now. I made the shot that would allow for me to stick the landing on the other side and smiled brightly when it didn’t wind up like my brother’s shot in the water. My brother just smiled softly at me as I made the final shot.

“Good job tiny, but can you get through the All Might course.” He taunted and I saw the familiar behemoth course.

“I’ll let you know when I get there.” I sighed a little bit angling my ball to go right through the middle and let out a sound of surprise when it did.

“No way!” My brother got excited right as the ball went into the proper hole at the end of the course. I gave my brother a tight hug, usually, this was the course that put me into the water because I would do it in the wrong fashion.

“Good job tiny! I’m proud of you.” Kai cheered for me as I crossed the course and got my ball. He handed in our cards to the worker and we went on our way back to the bullet train to get some ice cream. This time we spent it in companionable silence. That was the best thing about my relationship with my brother it led to me being able to not have to talk if I was getting too tired. He ordered my ice cream for me and we went back to the UA dorms.

“I’ll see you soon alright tiny? I promise I’ll eat lunch with you more often and drag Katsuki with me.” I laughed a little bit at my brother.

“I’ll hold you to that, thank you for today Kai. It was amazing!” I thanked my brother taking my new stuffed animal and he just shrugged it off.

“It was nothing, now go give that to Hitoshi before I never hear the end of it.” I balanced my best friend’s ice cream and handed it to him with a wink on the way back to my own dorm room for some much-needed downtime after all the excitement of the day.

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