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bebepac · 2 years

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A Piece of Heaven on Earth: Part 2

I am participating in @wackydrabbles prompt # 138: the things I do for love which will appear in bold.

This is also part 2 of my tribute piece. A Piece in Heaven On Earth. If you missed part 1: Here it is for your enjoyment: A Piece of Heaven on Earth: Part 1

The Book: TRR Pairing: Liam x Riley (eventually) Warnings & Ratings: Profanity, mention of character’s perceived death; Teen Word Count: 1997 Movie Inspiration: Just Like Heaven Song Inspiration: Here With Me by Dido

Summary: Liam encounters the mystery woman in the blue dress in the apartment again and attempts to learn more about her.

Original Post: 03/17/22 at 7:49PM EST

A/N: This is very special to me. So please be kind. I’m writing this as a tribute story to my Riley FC, the late Cheslie Kryst, in a way to deal with my grief which has almost been consuming my life. I started following her in 2019 when I was watching the Miss USA pageant. I rooted for her immediately. Not only was she from my home state, but she was just this bright twinkling light on stage, she was a minority, like me. So when I came to the fandom in January 2020 and started writing stories for TRR I picked her as my Riley FC because she embodied what I wanted my “Riley” character to be. Even in her untimely passing, I am still finding out more about her life and I have written her pretty accurately, even down to having depression. So I will say it again. If you need help please reach out.

Three Months Ago

TAYLOR

“Love you Taylor.”

"I love you too Riley."

Taylor smiled and went to the kitchen to check the lasagna in the oven.

“The things I do for love!”

“Maybe tonight we’ll be witnesses to a love connection!”

"We'll wait for them both to get here before we make the garlic bread, since they're running a little late. How's your salad coming along?"

"The best salad that ever salad-ed with tomatoes on the side since Riley doesn't like raw chopped tomatoes, and onions on the side because Liam doesn't like raw onions."

"It's kind of funny they both have texture issues with salad components, but I hope they like each other."

"I've only met Liam once, but he seemed like a nice guy. I just know his older brother Leo better."

Taylor suddenly dropped the dish she was carrying.

Maxwell laughed for a moment until he saw Taylor's terrified look.

"Something's wrong Max…"

Taylor called Riley, but her phone went straight to voice-mail.

"Riley's not answering."

"You just talked to her ten minutes ago. She’s probably just gonna wait to talk to you when she gets here."

"SHE ALWAYS ANSWERS ME MAX!!!! SOMETHING'S WRONG!!!!"

Taylor's phone began to ring.

"See she's calling you back."

Taylor glanced down at the phone; it wasn't Riley. It was her Dad, and from the sound of his voice she knew something terrible had happened.

"Dad what's wrong?"

She immediately burst into tears, as the color drained from Taylor's face.

"We have to go now Max."

"What's hap…."

"NOW MAX!!!! Riley was in an accident!!!!"

LIAM

Liam checked the clock. He had taken an afternoon nap, not setting the alarm, causing him to oversleep. In addition, traffic was backed up for what seemed like miles. He texted his brother's friend Maxwell to let him know he was going to be late for dinner. His blind date was running late too, Maxwell told him, which made Liam relieved. She was probably caught in the same traffic he currently was, since they were going to the same place. Liam saw the ambulance speed by him in the opposite lane with the lights flashing and the siren on, heading towards the nearest hospital, Mount Sinai.

It must have been a horrible accident.

Finally after twenty more minutes, he passed the wreckage. The accident was between a van and an SUV, and from the look of it, the SUV had gotten the brunt of the damage. The mangled remains of a BMW SUV was being put on a flatbed, to be towed away. On the back window of the decimated vehicle there was a little decal that said Dog Mom and it grabbed Liam’s attention.

Who is…..or who was this “Dog Mom?” Why was she consuming his thoughts, and why was he wondering what happened to her?

Was “Dog Mom” the one in the ambulance he saw blaze by a little bit ago, being rushed to the hospital? Or…….WAS "Dog Mom”, the unlucky soul, about to be put into the other ambulance, by EMTs that appeared to not be in a hurry,

lifting someone onto the stretcher completely covered with a white sheet? Liam was sad for a moment. Someone had died, and would not get to where they were going tonight, and someone would have to tell their family what happened to them, and that poor family would be devastated, a feeling he knew all too well.

Oh Liv…..

Liam drove slowly around the wreckage as the police officers directed traffic. Debris from the accident still littered the street, and was being cleaned up. Liam arrived at Maxwell’s home, and rang the doorbell. It looked like no one was there. He waited for a few more moments looking for movement around the house, when he received a text.

Dinner is canceled. An emergency came up. Sorry.

Liam stood there for a moment still holding the flowers, that even in the rain, he had stopped and picked up for his blind date. Feeling rejected, Liam left the flowers wedged in the door to keep them dry, and went home.

NICO

Nico had caught a glimpse of Riley as she ran out the double doors of the ER towards the staff parking lot in her blue dress. Late for something apparently as usual. Riley was never punctual, but it was part of her charm. She was worth waiting for. When she walked into a room, you took notice. He wasn’t prepared for the news he received not even thirty minutes later. That night... changed a lot of people’s lives.

“We have a MVA three minutes out. One critical, one fatality.”

“I heard from dispatch that one of them is Riley.”

“Our Riley?”

“Yes, Banks called it in.”

“Which one? Is Riley the critical, or the DOA?”

“I don’t know. Maybe you should sit this one out Nico.”

“I need to know!!! Is Riley the DOA?!!”

“Nico, sit this one out. Your feelings are going to get in the way.” Bryce commented sternly.

“How can our feelings NOT get in the way?!?!?! One of them is Riley!!!!! RB1!!!!"

When Nico heard the sirens of the approaching ambulance, he ran outside to meet it.

The ambulance backed up to the ER doors, and stopped. He quickly opened the doors, seeing the blue of Riley’s dress, and her wild chaotic curls. Her eyes were closed.

"RB1?"

Nico burst into tears when Riley's eyes opened meeting his.

"You can be mad at me later for that, but thank God you're still alive."

“Nico…..” Riley gave him a weak smile and reached out for his hand.

“You’re going to be fine Riley. We got you. I promise.” He softly kissed her hand.

"Bryce, I'm scrubbing in."

"Nico…."

"We're not going to lose her. Let me help."

There was a heavy silence as staff watched as one of their own was rushed back to the operating room, in attempts to implore every heroic measure possible to save her life.

The Present

"I'M NOT DEAD!!!"

"Well you're clearly not alive either!"

"Well if I am dead, why do my feet hurt?"

"I don't know? Do I look like the authority on paranormal activity?"

"Don’t be a smart ass! Think about it, a dead person wouldn't have aches and pains. Therefore, I can't be dead. That makes perfect clinical sense."

"Well taking that logic, when's the last time you saw a person that was alive, phase through objects like Casper the Cranky Ghost?"

"I'm NOT CRANKY!" She screeched.

"Says the screaming cranky ghost, who's a ghost."

She walked up to him fuming. "I'll show you who's a ghost!!!!"

She went to punch Liam, and he stood there un-phased. She attempted to hit him three more times.

"I felt the wind from that last one."

"Really?"

"Nope. Nothing at all."

Riley groaned in frustration.

"Isn't there a light you should be walking into, or considering your less than sunny disposition, infamous lake of fire?”

She smirked at him.

"You're so funny, you should take that act on the road, like away from my apartment? And for the hundredth time, I'm not dead."

"Then you'll have dinner with me. Oh, I forgot! You can't because you phase through objects. You take the saying 'food goes right through me' to a whole other level."

"You annoy me Liam."

"You annoy me more, person that doesn't know her name. "

"Ohhhh, I have yet begun to annoy you."

Riley cleared her throat and burst into song.

"A thousand bottles of Tahitian Treat on the wall, a thousand bottles of Tahitian Treat, take one down and pass it around, nine hundred and ninety-nine bottles of Tahitian Treat on the wall!"

Riley continued singing at the top of her lungs for the next three hours, following Liam all around the apartment.

"Don't you have unfinished business? Am I supposed to help you? God, can you stop!?!?!?!”

“I’m not done with my song yet.” She said in a matter of fact voice.

Liam groaned, while laying in bed, covering his head in the bed with the pillow.

She stopped singing for a moment.

“Look at the pillow, that’s my favorite pillow. Look at the back of it. There is purple fingernail polish on the pillowcase.”

Liam flipped over the pillowcase. Sure enough he saw the stain the woman mentioned.

“How did you know that?”

“Because this is MY apartment.”

“Why can you remember that, but not your name?”

“I don’t know. Maybe I am dead, and I’m hanging on to a life that’s not mine anymore...."

Liam sat up in bed to look at the woman. For the first time, he saw the sadness in her eyes.

And why are you the only person that can hear me, or see me, Liam? Are you sure you didn’t know me before?”

“No, I’ve never seen you. If I had, I wouldn’t have forgotten.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re very beautiful."

Finally a smile was back on her beautiful face of hers.

"Are you flirting with the un-dead chick in the room?"

"I wasn't done….and you’re a little obnoxiously grating in your song choices. What is a Tahitian Treat by the way?”

“It’s a fruit punch flavored soda. It’s one of my favorites. Again with the useless facts.”

“No, tell me more of whatever you remember. Maybe it will jog your memory about something we can use.”

He talked to and listened to her talk late into the evening, early into the next morning. She was funny, making him laugh at the random things she talked about while she sat on the edge of the bed.

“I found a dog collar in the cushions of the couch. Do you have a dog?”

She was silent for a moment and it was like all cylinders in her mind began to fire at once.

“I do!!! His name is Chance! He’s the bestest boy.”

“Bebe showed me this apartment, do you remember Bebe?”

She smiled like she was being held in a hug.

“She makes the best cupcakes. She’s a baker.”

“She baked cookies for me when I moved in!”

“She’s engaged to my brother, Jaiden.”

“I met Jaiden and your Dad. He doesn’t smile much does he? Kind of gruff.”

“And surly? Yes! That’s my dad.”

“And I have a sister! Her name is Taylor!”

Liam was excited, he jumped up, moving closer to the woman.

“And you, what’s your name?”

Her smile faded.

“Come on, we’re so close, try a little harder.”

She closed her eyes. He could tell she was trying hard to concentrate.

“Nicknames…. I had nicknames people called me. One kind of sounds like that little robot from Star Wars.”

“R2D2?”

“Sort of, but it was different. R……B….. I can hear it. RB1!!!!” She exclaimed.

“And Bebe said Rye was always about comfort. Your name must begin with an R.”

Her face turned sad and she began to cry; he wanted so desperately to comfort her.

“She said WAS when she talked about me? That means I am dead. I really did die, Liam you were right.”

“We’ll figure this out; I promise you. Maybe the reason I can see you, is because I’m supposed to help you. So I’m going to call you Rye for now, because we know that’s one of your nicknames, okay? RB1 is a little too weird. I don’t get it.”

“It’s weird, but has anything been normal since we met?”

“Nope.” Liam smiled.

And Rye smiled at him, his heart melted.

The next day Liam went out and for some reason, he kept thinking of that drink Tahitian Treat Rye had been singing so obnoxiously about. So he went looking for one. He had never seen them before, but there was this little bodega

around the corner from Rye’s apartment, and when he walked in and went to the drink section, and there they were so he bought two.

The man behind the counter smiled at Liam.

“We don’t get many people buying these anymore.”

“You don’t?”

“This young doctor used to buy them all the time. She loved them. She’d walk up here with her little dog all the time.”

“Sir, do you remember her name?”

“Yes, it was Riley. Riley Brooks.”

The word WAS, blared in Liam’s brain; he had wanted to be wrong about Rye.

CLICK HERE FOR PART 3 OF THIS TRIBUTE PIECE

#bebepac writes #a piece of heaven on earth #tribute piece #liam x riley forever #wacky drabbles #trr fanfic #trr fandom #choices fic writers creations #you will always be my riley

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mailboxmerchant · 3 years

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winning!Ranmaru Kageyama x Reader: What Have You Done?!

a/n: i just finished the most recent installment in yttd andn holy fuck,,,,,,winner! ranmaru just. holy shit! i love him so much. (also i guess you sort of take saras place? like shes there but youre ranmarus buddy instead and uhh hc that she got joe’s doll for a partner because i love thme) hgnghgh)\

also please leave requests!!! please!!!! for almost any character from almst any fandom!!!!!! please!!!!!!

also this is....a long one. probably gonna be a two parter! <3

“I’ll hold him back, just go! Reko...she....she’s-”

Watching with the others in the classroom as Kurumada held Ranmaru to the ground by his head, you looked down at Ranmaru’s pleading expression.

Before you could reach for him though, you were quickly ushered out by your panicked friends and allies.

Ranmaru....what did you...

◤...three hours prior to this...◢

“Keiji! I’m here! Please come out, everyone is so worried!”

“y/n....”

“Are you...there Keiji?”

A hand that clamped around your shoulder sent you into shock as you sprawled forward to the ground. “Waugh!!! Wh-who!?!?” You whipped yourself around to face a concerned looking Ranmaru.

“Heya y/n.” He said with a smirk and a wave. “Gah! Ranmaru, you scared me...!”

“Clearly.” He smiled as he offered a hand out to you. You gave him a pleased smile as you took his hand. “So....Keiji was a no-show, huh?”

“I mean, Sara was too worried to go alone so I offered to go in her place...but it looks like we should have followed Keiji’s instructions, huh?” You laughed dejectedly, as the missing friendly policeman’s absence was beginning to create a deep worry in the back of your mind.

The expression on your face seemed to clearly resemble your disappointment of not finding him, as a pair of fingers snapped out in front of you.

“Heeey? Earth to y/n, I asked you a question. You alright?”

You gave a curt, polite nod. “Sorry, yeah, what did you say again?”

Ranmaru sighed as he patted your back, “Man, you’re a mess today, eh? I asked....ᶦᶠ ʸᵒᵘ ᵍᵃᵛᵉ ᵃⁿʸ ᵗʰᵒᵘᵍʰᵗ ᵗᵒ ʷʰᵃᵗ ᴹᵃᵖˡᵉ ˢᵃᶦᵈ....” The last part was quietly spoken, but you heard what he said, and you knew what he meant.

“What!? You mean about what she about....winning?” Ranmaru’s uneasy expression meant that was exactly what he was talking about.

“We can’t! E-everyone has been...working so hard together, and with you all as our new allies-” “They’re not all your allies. We were made to get rid of you humans, but Maple told me something the rest of them don’t know. Why won’t you let me act on it?! I can save us, save you!”

“That’s enough! I can’t...hear you say that. Not you, Ranmaru, please.”

“You wouldn’t have to do anything, y/n, I swore I’d protect you. Reko, Sara, Keiji, everyone! I’ll kill them, and I’ll get you out of this horrible game!”

As if the idea of winning crossing Ranmaru’s mind at all hadn’t hurt enough to hear about, here was your partner for this entire floor’s length of horrors telling you he’d kill all your allies to save the both of you.

Ranmaru wasn’t wrong. You were tired. You wanted to go home. You missed your friends, and your regular old life. You adored Ranmaru, and even without knowing what to do after this could end, you wanted to have him by your side.

What am I thinking?!

“Ranmaru! I don’t want you to protect me. I want us to all escape together, and I could never ask you to betray our allies!”

Something about the way you delivered that line stuck with Ranmaru though. You couldn’t ask him? Then you didn’t have to. He’d help you, and he’d take all the responsibility too. All the guilt, the hardships, the terror? He could handle it...if it was for you. You and him were going to win, and you were going to live. And after all his efforts, maybe, just maybe, you could be his.

And with the seeds sown, Ranmaru’s mind began racing with ways to get every single human and doll eliminated before they could realize what was going on.

And that would begin with the lovely, unknowing Ms. Reko.

◤...present time...◢

“Oh...no....” Sara uttered, her breath entirely taken away from the sight before us.

The magnetic trap mechanism in the locker room had been activated while Reko was in it. “Reko, please, no...holy shit...” Q-taro mourned. Her grotesquely snapped neck was just barely holding her entirely hanging body to the ceiling by her collar.

Everyone was whispering their words of loss and grief. You couldn’t speak though. You instantly made the connection between Kuramada tackling Ranmaru and what he had said about getting here quickly. This was preventable. And actually....

This was your fault.

Ranmaru wanted you to win, and he wanted you to take him with you. You didn’t chastise him enough to stop this, and now Reko’s blood and tears were on your hands.

The quiet stip-step of shoes tapping on the concrete floor sprung you from your remorseful daze. “y-y/n...I swear...I didn’t-”

A louder, heavier pair of feet could be heard hitting the solid ground harshly.

“Bastard! You’ll pay for what you’ve done!! My trust, their trust, you’ve ruined everything!” Kurumada went in for a swing as Ranmaru barely dodged him, bumping his backside into your front.

“NO! It wasn’t me! I wasn’t even anywhere near this room, I was with y/n!”

“That was a whole goddamn hour ago, you lying piece a’ shit! You woulda been in the control room well after that!”

“Why would I kill Reko?! I had no motive to kill the humans, our tasks were erased and our connections were cut! I would never-”

“Bullshit. No motive? What was all that crap about winning for, then?”

Ranmaru fell silent.

“You...you thought I was dead. And you thought you could leave the transceiver on and cheer yourself on for winning the game, huh?!”

Ranmaru’s silence persisted, your stomach dropping further than you thought possible.

He took a slow inhale...

“Yeah. I did think you were dead, but now I see you’re just as big of an obstacle as ever. All you damn dolls. I’ll get rid of you all, and y/n and I are gonna win.”

“Ranmaru...”

“I didn’t think I’d get caught on the first try, I mean geez! I really hoped it’d be easier than this, that I could be stealthy, but apparently not...”

It was like his entire demeanor changed. His usual hesitance to speak, his more crouched and small frame, and his kind meekness were all completely stripped away, replaced by this malicious, devious darkness that seemed to emanate off his body.

“Well, well! Somethin’ fun’s happening in here, amirite?!”

“M-Midori!?” You cried out as his arm creepily slung around your shoulder. You backed away as Ranmaru stayed staring him down. “Ohh, what perfect timing. Midori...I have a deal for you, something to keep this game interesting.” Ranmaru sounded like a perfect copy of Midori, it was beginning to frighten you. Reko’s body still left all the survivors in shock, no one but the three dolls who were as lively as ever being able to speak.

“ ᴿᵃⁿᵐᵃʳᵘ...ᵖˡᵉᵃˢᵉ, ᵈᵒⁿ'ᵗ...“ You finally uttered.

“What might this deal be, my pathetic doll?” Scoffing at his comment, Ranmaru pleads with him, “If you could just please...kill the dolls. Leave me as the sole doll and I swear I’ll give you a show you’ll never forget.” You weren’t sure what made you sicker, the grin that was spread across both Ranmaru’s and Midori’s faces, or the dark tone Ranmaru suddenly took, his genuineness shining through. He would kill every survivor. You might really win, and you still didn’t know what to think about it.

The tension in the room was so thick you could slice through it with a knife. Everyone's eyes were trained on you, Ranmaru, and Midori. You felt sick, the energy of the room suffocating you slowly.

"I think I could do something like that."

As if it couldn't drop any lower, your organs practically just disappeared from inside you. "H-hey, you're not...serious, are ya?" Q-taro finally spoke up, the first of the survivors to actually something.

"Why wouldn't I be? This deal is of great benefit to me....and y/n it seems." Midori's tucked in smile sent shivers down your spine as he stared at you with his widened eyes.

"First though...the banquet has to happen."

The reminder brought the most sincere relief you'd ever felt in your life. You still had time to convince Ranmaru not to go through with his ridiculous sabotage plan.

The room calmed as everyone slowly and hesitantly made their way back to the graveyard. How was anyone supposed to work together after something like that...?

◤...to be continued (eventually)...◢

I HAD TO END THIS BECAUSE I WAS SLOWLY FORGETTING WHERE I WAS GOING WITh thIS SO ILL START WITH THE BANQUET IN THE NEXT PART TY FOR READING PLEASE REQUESTS MWAH ILY BYE BYE<3

#ranmaru kageyama #ranmaru #ranmaru yttd #ranmaru kageyama yttd #ranmaru x reader #ranmaru kageyama x reader #yttd x reader #x reader #yttd #ranmaru x reader yttd #yttd ranmaru x reader #kageyama ranmaru x reader #your turn to die #your turn to die fanfic #your turn to die ranmaru #ranmaru your turn to die

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grey-water-colors · 4 years

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Missing you Damian Wayne X Reader Part 4

Part 4 is finally here! I am so sorry for the wait. I have been super busy prepping for college and then moving in. This is the finale and I hope you like the ending. I’m thinking of writing a separate part for this, explaining how I wrote this. It would just be all the research and planning that I did. Let me know if that sounds interesting.

Warnings: WOO BOY THERE’S A FEW. Fighting. Cursing, like the F-bomb. Switchblades. Kidnapping. Trauma. Not as many as I thought, but be safe everyone.

Pairing: Damian Wayne X Fem!Reader

Word Count: 1265

Part 1 ~ Part 2 ~ Part 3

Big thanks to @oreosmama for the title!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patrol was slow, so Damian went back to the Batcave and train a bit before he went to bed. He knew school was going to be excruciatingly slow because Y/N was coming back tomorrow.

He saw Drake sitting at the Batcomputer watching for crime around Gotham.

“Drake,” he said coldly.

“Demon spawn,” Tim threw back.

It was quiet for a couple minutes while Damian started training and Tim went back to watching for crime, then a distress signal went off causing both of them to jump.

“It’s not Bruce,” Tim said as he picked up the signal to see who it was. “Damian don’t freak out,” Tim’s voice was strong but sounded scared.

“What? Who is it, Drake?” Damian had a feeling he knew. His heart was in his throat. He hoped it wasn’t who he thought it was, but the only reason Tim would tell him not to panic was because of Y/N.

“Y/N’s activated her emergency bracelet.”

“Fuck!” He shouted. He should have brought her home the minute he felt something was wrong the night before. He knew something wasn’t right.

“Father,” he called into the comms. “You need to get back to the cave as soon as possible. Somethings happened to Y/N”

15 minutes later Batman, Robin, and Nightwing were walking through the Zeta Tube and following Y/N’s signal. Tim, Alfred, and Barbra were back home helping to track her and be ready for when they got back.

They came to an abandoned building just outside London. An expensive car was parked out front.

~~~

Y/N woke up with the biggest headache she’d ever had. Her vision was spotted, and her ears were ringing. She tried to move but found she couldn’t. Her hands were tied to the chair she was sat in.

“So, she finally wakes up,” a familiar voice calls from somewhere she can’t see. “I really hoped I hadn’t killed you. You ran away before the first dose could fully work, but I got you this time around. I was worried I had given you too big a dose.”

A man who looked vaguely familiar walked into your line of sight.

“Wh- who are you?” your voice was groggy, like you hadn’t spoken in weeks.

A laugh and he turned around to pace the floor. “It doesn’t really matter who I am, it matters who you are.”

“Why would it matter who I am?”

“You’re a famous artist and singer,” He turned towards you with a sick smile. “Lovely voice by the way. You also happen to be dating the son of one of the richest men on earth, whether you like it or not, your worth a pretty penny.”

“You’re holding me for a ransom?”

Another laugh. “No. I’m going to sell you. Whoever wants you, but they have to pay the right price of course. I didn’t go through all this work for it to not work out.”

“You’ve done this before?” You questioned.

“Yes. I’d call it my job. I collect young ladies like yourself and give them homes. I go to galas and charity events and scout out people, then I get my target and from there it’s a piece of cake.”

It clicked in your head. “Your from the Hotel Event in Florence!”

“I scouted you out of all the pretty girls, you should feel special.”

You spat at him. “Your a bastard!” You struggled in your seat to try and get out. “I’ll never let you do this! Someone will find me an-“ You were cut off by a slap. Your head painfully snapped to the side and your chair tipping over. You landed on your side, and you think something broke, but all you could feel was red hot pain. Your head pounded and your vision exploded in colors. The drug was still very much in your system.

Your eyes widened at the sight of him pulling out a knife, his face turning red with anger.

“You’re getting on my nerves little girl. You’ll find I have a very short temper.”

He stalked closer while you still struggled and he raised the knife, but before he could do anything, the switch blade was knocked out of his hand by a familiar looking object.

Suddenly everything was in motion, shouting and then there were bodyguards fighting some people. You tried to focus on who was, hopefully, saving you. All you saw was a black cape, but that was all you needed. If Batman was here, then Robin wasn’t far behind. You felt someone cutting your bonds and when you were free you stood up or tried too. Your head was pounding, and your vision was spinning and soon you were falling towards the ground until someone caught you.

You saw a flash of red and the yellow of a cape. Damian was fighting, specifically the guy who had kidnapped you, but if Robin was fighting with Batman then who was helping you?

“Are you ok to stand?” a voice asked in your ear. You knew that voice, but never quite so serious. Dick was almost always making puns and bad jokes when you were around, which was 98% of the time.

You shook your head and Nightwing picked you up bridal style and started to carry you out of the building. Before you blacked out you locked eyes with Robin, then darkness.

~~~

That feeling when you wake up and you aren’t quite sure where you are is terrifying, and it hits you hard. Were you still in London? Are you back in Gotham? Were you safe?

You knew the answer to the last question, the familiar hand in yours told you that you were safe. You were always safe with him. You also knew you wouldn’t be let out of his sight for at least a month.

You opened your eyes and let them adjust to the light in the room. You were in the room you shared with Damian, technically it was his room and you just had clothes, toiletries, and some of your knick-knacks. You’d had your own room at Wayne Manor for a while, but you were almost never in it, so it was put to other use.

You looked over to see a sleeping Damian hunched over on the bed, one hand cradling his head and the other holding yours. When you were sure of where you were and that you were fully awake, you squeezed his hand to gently wake him up.

He stirred slowly and you smiled. Despite what you’d think, Damian Wayne was slow waking up. You’d heard from Tim that when he had first gotten to the Manor that even the smallest noise would wake him up and he’d be on full alert. As he had gotten comfortable with being there and slowly realized that no one was going to attack him in his sleep, he started waking up slower and slower. You thought it was cute and it made you feel warm inside knowing he felt safe enough with you to not always be on alert.

“Dami,” you whispered.

He looked up at you and just stared for a while, until realization clicked in his eyes.

“Beloved! You’re awake. How are you feeling?”

You gave him a small smile. “My head hurts a little, but I feel fine other than that. How long was I out?”

“It’s been around 14 hours. Alfred said you just needed to sleep off the drug the thug used.”

Your smile fell at the reminder of what happened, and you felt Damian squeeze your hand.

“I don’t think I want to travel anymore; I don’t think I want to leave the Manor ever again,” you whispered.

Damian climbed onto the bed to sit beside you and pulled you into a hug. You burrowed into his shirt and wrapped your arms around him.

“You’re going to have to leave eventually, beloved, but I’ll be with you the whole time.”

You nodded and felt tears stream down your face. “I missed you. I missed you so much it hurt.”

He held you a little tighter. “I missed you as well, Y/N. I always miss you when you’re not with me.”

“I love you Dami.”

“I love you too, Beloved.”

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@lostredrobin @random-fandom-girl-24

#Damain Wayne #damian wayne x reader #damian wayne x fem!reader #Titus the dog #alfred the cat #Alfred Pennyworth #bruce wayne #Tim Drake #dick grayson #nightwing #robin #robin x reader #barbra gordon #batman #BatFam #wayne manor

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fantranslatorbychoice · 4 years

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Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi Volume 6 Chapter 5 - The Tanuki's Marriage

T/N: Hey y'all, here's Chapter 5. I didn't notice at first that the sentences in the original text were separated into paragraphs and stuff so I am putting that stuff here today lol Oh well, hope you all still enjoy. Also you can try the recipes but at your own risk, I am not liable for any mishaps for following these recipes lol

Also if you like this translation, you can heart it, share the link, reblog, I just respectfully ask that DO NOT REPOST ELSEWHERE. This is my contribution to the scant English content of this fandom, and I worked really hard to finish this thing, it’s not like I just copy-pasted everything. I even had to build the kanji in Jisho one by one. Try it and you’ll see what I mean.

You can rave about this, rant about this, reblog, like, reply, but if possible please link back to this page. If you’re unsure how to do that, just copy the web address of this page. If you’re on a blogsite just insert the web address as a hyperlink as a link back to here. Honestly if this light novel was officially-published in English, I wouldn’t even be doing this right now... And if it did, I’d take this offline to support the publishers and Yuuma-sensei. Creators support creators, is what I believe in. I’ll prolly do 1-5 once 6-10 has been done, or however long I can manage to translate the raw texts, it can take a toll at times. As previously-mentioned in earlier chapters, if you stumbled upon this one, the two seasons of the anime covered volumes 1-5, so other than the extra details, you didn’t miss much stuff. Here’s chapter 5 now

P162 That is, the morning of the inn being closed for the day. Today in Yugao, is the debut appearance of the Kiseki beef shank made into beef stew. Since yesterday the meat has been soaked in red wine, and the ingredients for making Demi-glace sauce has been prepared. Because I have some ketchup and Worcestershire sauce that I prepared myself, I could successfully make Demi-glace sauce. Alas, Ginji-san handed over to me, with so much regret, his treasured but also very important red wine... "When we were given Kiseki beef, I decided that I wanted to make beef stew." Orio-ya is so generous, they gifted us so much with all cuts of the Kiseki beef. We couldn't eat all of these in one gulp so for sure it's all going to get refrigerated but, I was thinking that the beef shank is absolutely going to be made into beef stew.** I immediately pulled out the shanks soaked in red wine, and sauted them in the frying pan. After searing both sides, I added the red wine marinade with bay leaves and boiled them down. Ah, it's been a long while since Kakuriyo has been this peaceful, the fruity fragrance of the red wine... T/N: Yeah the tastiest part of any meat is the one that gets the most exercise and the nearest to the bones, but seriously, give it a chance to soften and it just has so much flavor. Just like the limbs of fowl, or pigs, the limbs just have so much flavor and collagen lol dang it no I can't be hungry now T_T Also marinating in red wine with bay leaf is a legit way to add flavor to red meat, if you're a meat eater you can try this. or if you want to kick it up a notch, use balsamic vinegar, either way it helps soften the tough meat parts. Of course, I can't guarantee if you'll like it, but I tried this once, it mellowed the beef taste and the annoying stench of the meat. But hey that's just my two cents lol try at your own risk P163 While the meat was boiling down in the red wine, I started cutting the vegetables that I'll add in the stew. White onions, garlic, and I added a lot of the seasonally-apt shimeji mushrooms. I sauted all of these in a pot, and added the boiled-down meat with the red wine and bay leaf marinade, and added more water before simmering these in a low fire. Slowly but surely, slowly but surely. It seems that it will be done boiling after an hour or so. "After this, hamburger. I will make a sauce for the hamburger." Not only beef stew, but I'm also deciding on cozying up today's menu with hamburger. I want to use the Kiseki beef in succession, and with the especially-made Demi-glace sauce I was also thinking that I want to serve Western-style hamburger here in Yugao. I promptly made a sauce for the ground Kiseki beef hamburger patty. A beef-only burger patty** without onions. Binders would be panko and cow's milk, sprinkled with salt and pepper and then mixed altogether, shaped into small flattened circles, and I have made the hamburger's shape. Yeah, this is 100% branded beef, a beef-only hamburger is somehow extravagant... With the ingredients that I normally have, the supply is always made affordable, and I want to serve a lot of Western-style food for the Ayakashi. "Aoi! This is terrible, terrible!" This time, it was O-ryo who flew inside Yugao. Normally it was Kasuga who does this. Why O-ryo? T/N: So historically, Japanese people didn't normally eat meat since it's an expensive product, and beef is the most expensive of all. Their burgers are normally beef and pork, or pork and chicken, mostly mixed meat so it won't be too expensive. I actually tried curry-flavored beef and pork deep-fried burger patty, it was actually good and crunchy. hwah... P164 I think she may be hungry, but it doesn't seem to be the case. O-ryo's face has gotten pale. "Kasuga, Kasuga is going to quit Tenjin-ya!" If she was extremely panicking, it's because of the sudden announcement. I couldn't understand where it all began, and I just blinked my eyes a lot. The simmering noise of the boiling pot echoes all around... "Wh.. What do you mean by that?" "That's the point! Really, Kasuga is going to quit? She’s gonna quit being a waitress, she's gonna leave?" "Wh..." Why? Before the inn's closing break, we ate amberjack shabu-shabu in our girls' night-out, we had fun while putting things together in the pot as we were chatting. "Kasuga.. Kasuga, she has decided to get married!" "Marriage, Kasuga, that Kasuga, who's she going to get married to?" "That girl, until now she hasn't told her personal history, but in reality she's unbelievably, an Ojou-sama!**" Speaking of the Ojou-sama that I met in Orio-ya, I remembered Yodoko Ojou-sama, I wonder if she's also an Ojou-sama from a rich family? T/N: Ojou-sama=お嬢様=a young girl or a daughter of a noble or a pampered upbringing. Yeah, I know right, even I was shocked. Oh well, we need a plot twist here lol And you think she's just a follower, but apparently Kasuga's got nobility in her blood. Ma, ma, maiya gwahahaha oh well who would’ve thought right? P165 "Kasuga, Kasuga is... The Emperial Court's Minister of the Right**, The Great Tanuki, Lord Ieyasu's youngest daughter!" "Whaaaat?!" Ehrm... My reaction was surprise, but it seemed that it was lacking as I had no idea what it meant. Simply put, she was the daughter of an esteemed person in Kakuriyo? O-ryo went "Ahhhhh come here right now!" and dragged me towards the main building. "A- Ai-chan! The pot is cooking, look after it! Mix it if it looks like it's about to get scorched!" "OK Aoi-sama!" Instantly, from inside the pendant Aoi-chan who already has her black-haired ogre-girl look jumped out. Wearing her personal apron, she tended to my precious pot. Immediately we went to the main building, and the excitement of every employee with the topic in question has pumped up. "That girl was somehow, unexpectedly, the Minister of the Right's daughter, wasn't she?" "Why is she a waitress here in Tenjin-ya?" I could only hear the hushed and surprised voices of the Ayakashi. "Oh well, anybody would be surprised. It's no match, the Minister of the Right's position is like a Hachiyo, an esteemed person. I had no idea and I pushed around and scolded Kasuga. I might get punished after this..." It wasn't only O-ryo who was worring about this. Even Akatsuki in the front desk, he also remembered, and for sure couldn't calm himself down as cold sweat T/N: It's like a left and right wing something, like two opposing factions in the government. Heh, too much political stuff, I don't even wanna touch that. Major spoiler alert: Our old pal Raijuu is a leftist. Ouch. P166 flows down his face. "Oh, I see." I was thinking of asking Kasuga's relative the Gesokuban Chiaki-san, but he wasn't in the lobby. The Gesokuban were in charge of the straw slippers and geta sandals of the guests, and their work is like bellboys that bring the luggage into the rooms, I often catch a sight of them before business hours. I have seen him call in a row the ogre kids who do a lot of different kinds of chores, and make a roll-call on them... "Say, Akatsuki, where's Chiaki-san?" "Ah.... Chiaki-san is with Kasuga in Odanna-sama's office. In relation to that, Chiaki-san is the Minister of the Right's younger brother.. If he was esteemed, I should have been more respectful to him..." Mortified at being too late now, Akatsuki had a distant look. Confirming about Kasuga and Chiaki-san's positions, they were from the North-west's Hachiyo, the Bunmon Tanuki. Kakuriyo's biggest and most difficult school to get into, "Bunmon Imperial University" is where the Hachiyo, who is also the University Director resides, and it seems that Chiaki-san is the son, and in turn Kasuga is the granddaughter. Incidentally, Chiaki-san's brother is Kasuga's father, which O-ryo and Akatsuki previously-mentioned has the position of the Minister of the Right in Kakuriyo. Talking about the North-western Lands, it is a college town, they have a prestigious university and large hospital institution, a research facility and a huge library, they have talented scholars and doctors, they have a lot of graduates that become government officials, it didn't engage in trade and commerce but the Hachiyo has great political powers, P167 it's a particularly unique place. But if that's the case, why were Chiaki-san and Kasuga working at Tenjin-ya? Also, why did she decide to quit working in Tenjin-ya now? "I'm.. Going to Odanna-sama's place." "Wait, Aoi, I'll go too!" O-ryo and I hurriedly left the front desk and climbed up the central staircase. "Hey, you two! Don't you dare disturb Odanna-sama... Oh well, I guess I'll go too" In the end, Akatsuki came with us too. The three of us went to the topmost floor where Odanna-sama's office was.

"Oh..." Outside the room, Ginji-san the Wakadanna-sama was standing with his arms crossed. When he saw us, he looked like he's saying "So, you've come?". "It's useless, guys, it's not work-related." "But... Ginji-san..." "I understand how you feel but... Hey!" I wasn't listening to anything that Ginji-san was saying, and we all placed our ears in the gap between the sliding doors, and eavesdropped P168 on the conversations inside. "Truly, your mind cannot be changed, Kasuga?" "... yes. I will quit Tenjin-ya, and I intend to marry into, the head of Hyourijou Castle in the Northern Lands." In such situations Odanna-sama's voice had always been calm and collected, even now when Kasuga has already reached a point where her mind cannot be entirely changed. "Chiaki, do you think that it's a good idea?" "...yes, Odanna-sama. With the marriage of the two, the instability of the Northern Lands, our North-western Lands can prove it and help hold the issues at bay. In addition to that, the chaotic Northern Lands can find a bit of stability." "...oh, I see." I wanted to hear more of Chiaki-san and Odanna-sama's conversations, but O-ryo suddenly raised her voice hysterically and shouted "Did she say Hyourijou Castle?!" "Hey O-ryo, shut up!" "But.. it's the head of the Hyourijou Castle of the Northern Lands!" "O-ryo be quiet!" Me and Akatsuki and O-ryo were suppressing our voices, when suddenly the sliding door opened with a rattle, and the three of us, like dangos, fell inside the room. "You lot..." P169 "O, Odanna-sama" Odanna-sama stared down at us with his astonished, red eyes. We tried to dodge it in any way, and the three of us just ended up wearing lop-sided smiles. "Aoi-chan, O-ryo sama, Bantou-sama" "Haha... So everyone eventually came, didn't they?" Even at Kasuga and Chiaki-san, the three of us smiled crooked smiles at them. "Say Kasuga, is it true that you're getting married to the head of Hyourijou Castle?" "O-ryo sama... Yep, that's the plan." "Even so! That head's an extremely old and senile, bedridden old man! You, are you going to get married to a senile old man who's about to die?!" O-ryo was very well-informed. Well, she did came from the Northern Lands. That's why her face was full of bewilderment. "It's not like that, O-ryo. The Hachiyo of the Northern Lands has finally been replaced." "...really?" "In the Northern Lands, the Great Old Sage who has been the Hachiyo for a very long time has retired. The next Hachiyo who took the position was the Old Sage's youngest grandchild, the Young Master of the Hyoujin** Tribe. Kasuga's marriage, is to that Young Master, Lord Kiyo." "..."

T/N: Hyoujin Clan- directly translates to Ice people Clan. Something. I did say previously in my earlier translations that direct translations will be minimized. Also if you’re interested on what Kiyo looks like, I’ll prolly post a photo here, he’s depicted in vol 8′s cover. Oh gawd, that’s a long way off but don’t worry fams we’ll get there somehow P170 It's impossible for me to know who that is, O-ryo who's acquainted with the dealings in the Northern Lands just looked puzzled, and Akatsuki just went blank. Behind us, was Ginji-san who, one way or another was the only one who looked like he had a full grasp of the situation. "Uhm, I...." Suddenly, Kasuga stood up, and only went to the entryway where the three of us were still lying down, and went in front of us. When I looked at her face she seemed like an adult, and in an instant, the cheerful and innocent Kasuga that I knew had gone off elsewhere, and I felt a painful sense of loss. Could it be that Kasuga, with regards to her engagement, in her heart she truly doesn't despise it? But from my point of view, I have no choice but to accept it. "When I saw these people's faces, somehow I felt hungry. Odanna-sama, what is good to eat on mornings like these?" "...Kasuga" Were we worrying that much, to that extent? Everyone understood that, and while we were in the middle of not saying anything, Odanna-sama wordlessly stared at me. I easily understood him without him saying anything. "Ka...Kasuga! If you want, let's go to Yugao. I'll give you something I made. For today, I made something called beef stew. I really want you to try it!" P171 "Beef stew?" "Yeah! I'll also give you hamburger steak that I cooked with it. It's like when Kasuga was in her Tanuki form, it's brown-colored cooked food. It's delicious--!" "..." Amidst the confusion they only got perplexed, and didn't even seem to hear that it was delicious. Everyone's faces only spelled "What is she even saying?". But the beef stew, it's definitely delicious!

I dragged Kasuga to Yugao. Before business hours, everyone else went back to their work posts, and it seems that I'll be taking care of her hunger. When we got to Yugao, Ai-chan has diligently looked after the pot for me. "Thank you, Ai-chan, you did a great job--" "OK--- I wanna eat something swee--t!" "As your reward, I'll give you some test-trial manjuu. Ah, that manjuu's a secret. We haven't given that to anyone yet." P172 "Yaaay!" Ai-chan with her manjuu, and her cup of milk, immediately sat on a chair and took her break. Now then. The time for the beef stew's ingredients to boil down has been sufficient. To this I'll put in some parboiled potatoes, and add more Demi-glace sauce, and add some seasonings while I mix it from time to time. Kasuga sat on the counter, and lazily propped her chin with her hands. "Kasuga, just wait for a little bit. The beef stew still needs to be boiled down some more. While it's doing that, I'll make you a little something to eat, OK? Have you eaten an avocado?" "...Avocado? I've seen one in an illustrated encyclopedia, but I haven't eaten one." "Hee hee. It's something like the ones in Utsushiyo, but in Kakuriyo, the Southern Lands where there's plently of heat they have started to grow it and other similar vegetables too. You might be surprised when you first try it, but once you get used to eating it you'll get hooked. It's because avocado is called 'the butter of the fields'." Butter isn't really something special in Kakuriyo, so she might not understand anything. But Kasuga's interest seemed to be deep, and her eyes got round with wonder. While the stew was boiling down, I went ahead to make something. Avocado and persimmon, the sweetness is entirely Japanese. P173 Firstly, the in-season persimmon's skin was peeled off, and the flesh cut into cubes. The avocado was also cut from the sides, the two halves were rotated on the round seed's axis, and between the half with no seed and the half that has the seed attached to it, the one without the seed was used. Doing that was quite fun. The lovely light green flesh of the fruit appeared. I quickly scraped the flesh off, and also cut those into cubes. Along with the persimmon cubes I cut a while ago, I served all of these in a glass bowl, and in true Japanese fashion mixed these altogether with a citrus dressing. Alright, it's nicely done. I served this with a spoon and placed it in front of Kasuga. "OK Kasuga, this is Japanese-style avocado and persimmon. Please try it." "Wah, it's pretty. Green and orange. I really love persimmon too, so I'm going to eat it now--" Instantly, Kasuga's face naturally fell into a smile. Holding a spoon, she took a huge bite, and tried the avocado that she was deeply interested in. "Wow, this is amazing. Feeling the avocado's texture for the first time, it's a fun and soft food, isn't it?" After this, she bit into the avocado and the persimmon at the same time. "Its seasoning, the persimmon's sweetness, its taste is really like a side-dish for rice." "Is that so? The persimmon's sweetness and the avocado's mellow texture and taste suit it well, and if it's just the persimmon it's going to be too sweet. The citrus fruit juice, along with toasted sesame seeds and soy sauce dressing give it a Japanese flavor and taste." P174 While Kasuga was eating a lot of the side dish, I took out the hamburger patties that I made that morning, and I pan-fried those in a shallow pot. When the surface looked brown enough, I poured in about two to three ladles of the beef stew, and simmered this for five minutes. And again, in a smaller frying pan I made a runny sunny side-up egg... "Kasuga, between white rice and bread, which one would you like? Beef stew goes well with either one..." "Hmmm.. Definitely it's rice." "OK, I get it. Even I too, like Western food with white rice, it's good enough." Along with the hamburger patty, I have asked Ai-chan to heat and cook some simple stir-fried foods and serve them in dishes, such as this beef stew. Par-boiled broccoli were also added as a fluffy touch. I added some cream and swirled it around with a spoon, and lastly I topped the hamburger with the runny sunny side-up egg. The white rice was also shaped into a sphere, and plopped it over a plate, like Western style. I placed all of those on a festive four-legged tray, and brought it to Kasuga's seat. "Alright. Tea house style, moon-viewing beef stew hamburger steak is served--" "Wooow. That really smells good. A while ago, the wafting smell made my stomach growl. There's also a fried egg on it-- And tonight's also a full moon, isn't it? It really looks like the Full Moon's spherical form." "Hee hee. Since it's already autumn, in Utsushiyo it's a time where anything with fried egg is "something for full moon viewing" and it's always added in a set meal." P175 In the food industry, a hamburger steak with a fried egg is called a moon-viewing burger, among others. When adding a runny fried egg, it always make it seem even more delicious, it's a mysterious and puzzling force. "And it's really a tanuki-colored cuisine, it is." "It's a fact that tanuki-colored cuisine is the model of deliciousness. If I could, I'll eat it for lunch.” If it was me, I would eat the beef stew with left-over toasted bread crusts on the side. Yep, it's enough to fill the stomach. I pried apart the meat with a spoon, and it crumbled off. I took a bite of that beef stew. Oooohh, the meat! The meat!! It's soft and moist, there's no stench, the thick and rich Demi-glace sauce really ties everything together. This is really over-the top extravagance! "Wow, wooow! What is this, this is soooo good Aoi-chan! The runny egg yolk, the hamburger and the stew eaten altogether, it's already the best. So many flavors all packed in one bite" Having one bite of the whole thing, the corners of Kasuga's mouth stretched wide, and her Tanuki ears went plip-plopping a lot. This time she bit into everything, including the large carrot chunks and the shimeji mushrooms. "Hmm... crumbly---" P176 Cooking food with Kakuriyo's state of the art Youkai-fire platter and spiritually-powered pot allows the fire to pass through the vegetables' core, the sweetness and deliciousness of the vegetables get trapped inside, and is suitable for cooking stews. "Aoi-chan you've already given me hamburgers before, but this is the first time that I've eaten beef stew. For me, I really enjoy foods like these. It's because foods like these have a rich taste and depth. I have read about these in a book, but I couldn't imagine how these would have tasted like." "Kasuga, you've read something about beef stew from a book?" "Yep, the library in the Land of Bunmon had so many books. There's also a book on the history of Utsushiyo's culture. It was a book that was about Western cuisines, when we. Were. Young. We had so much fun having wild imaginative ideas. Since I was a child, I was raised surrounded by so many books.” "..." We? Kasuga ate some more hamburger, and slurped in some more beef stew. After this she ate more white rice, and took in some beef stew again. All of the flavors blend well together in one bite, "Ah, it tastes good--", it makes the body weak. Seeing Kasuga's satisfied and fluffy face, I was delighted. While I was eating nearby, I initiated by saying that "The stew also tastes good with bread", and started eating as such. P177 In my case the umami envelops the bread, there's a resounding crunch, this has become a devilish food. Together, the bread crust that's always looked over, it has become an illusionary steak. "Phew, my stomach's all full!" After all that, our luxurious lunch has ended. Who would have thought that before business hours, we're already full and satiated? But for sure, without a doubt our strengths came back because of the food. "I'm glad that my stomach's gotten full. When you said that you were hungry, it was a surprise. Everyone was shocked. Back there when Kasuga said it out loud, it was of a large extent." "Ahaha. Well it was an important conversation with Odanna-sama, and I was already hungry for a while, it was because of Aoi-chan." "What are you saying? When I saw you, you didn't particularly appear to be hungry when you were talking with Odanna-sama." Uhm, yeah, that was a lie. "After that, just when it was about to get really serious, Odanna-sama pushed me to appear as "The I-wanted-to-help" person. "Really, Odanna-sama somehow made you do that? He's always dignified and composed, he doesn't give me that impression. In front of Aoi-chan, he's expected to be different." "Ah, when you see him that way, his movements are considerably mysterious." "Odanna-sama, he's really wrapped in mystery, isn't he?" P178 Kasuga and I, when talking about Odanna-sama, I realized that the meanings of "mysterious", were quite different. I recalled what my situation was, but after learning about Kasuga's circumstance the clarity has slowly gotten dimmer. "Say, Aoi-chan, are you going to get married to Odanna-sama?" She deliberately asked that question. I normally handle such questions lightly, but with Kasuga this time, it's a heavy-handed question. Her situation and mine's, they're a bit similar. "I'm not going to get married. I still have Yugao to tend to right now." Saying that, somewhat I couldn't understand why my body, in my chest, I felt so much discomfort. What the heck is this. "But Aoi-chan, you don't dislike Odanna-sama anymore?" "Well, uhm, hearing you say "dislike', it's not the answer anymore but.." "If that's the case, you like him now?" "Uhm, that is..." My eyes started swimming. Kasuga was determined to get into my head, and she looked at me quietly. "It sure doesn't seem to be that way. But I, do not know anything about Odanna-sama." That was more or less my refusal. Not really, I do know something about Odanna-sama. Contrary to what he looks like, he's a mischievous prankster, P179 and he's unsophisticatedly kind, when I see him make his moves, his strong drive leaves me wondering why... he has supported me in very important times, he's also become trustworthy, I've learned a lot being with him. And yet, I still don't know a lot about him. Odanna-sama's inner self that he holds dearly inside, I mostly don't know about it. I don't know anything about that, and he doesn't easily say anything about what he likes. Like myself for example, if I told someone that I knew nothing about "I like you", I still think that despite doing that, I still know nothing about them. "That is why, I would want to get to know more about Odanna-sama... But he's not telling me anything." "...Hmph" While Kasuga was grinning at me, I was drenched in cold sweat. What the heck, I feel like I wanted to run away... "Hee hee, that's good, Aoi-chan. It's very unnatural of you, but with time, as expected, you bestowed a great deal to Odanna-sama." ".. Kasuga?" Kasuga looked up at Yugao's celiing. Those eyes, they seem hollow somehow. "Kasuga, Kasuga getting married, you really don't dislike it?" I placed my hands on Kasuga's shoulders, and asked her earnestly. P180 It seemed that Kasuga has already been resolute of her marriage, and I wanted to ask what her true intent was. "Marriage to the Hachiyo of the Northern Lands. That is not a politically-motivated marriage." Kasuga continued to stare up at the ceiling, I only saw her flit her gaze to me once. Between those brown-colored bangs I could only see her eyes, she doesn't appear to be a mere waitress at all. Over there, she's already sharing the burden with the North-western's Hachiyo, being the daughter of Kakuriyo's Minister of the Right. A holder of many positions and degrees and ranks, but nevertheless a single Tanuki girl. "A politically-motivated marriage cannot be helped. If I do it by myself, so many risks and significances can arise. Bunmon Tanuki, are scheming creatures. Because Tanuki are extremely weak, it's the only way to live this long." Kasuga pointed to her head and suppressed a laugh. "The Hachiyo of the 'Land of Bunmon' is the Institutional Director Baba-sama**, and in each land the Tanuki under her command are sent out to gather and collect information and intel. Wherever you go and whichever way how, the Land of Bunmon will never be at a disadvantage. For example, my dad. He steadily accumulated power and influence in the Imperial Court, and eventually became the Minister of the Right. And then there's Tenjin-ya's Chiaki. That is my father's younger brother, he may be my uncle but when he was employed back there, he was an outstanding investigator. Odanna-sama likely knows the Tanuki's circumstances, and he must have deliberately hired Chiaki, I think." "... uhm.. Tanuki's circumstances?" "And now, I am going towards the Northern Lands. How I'll do that, I only have my T/N: Baba-sama, basically Kasuga's granny is the Hachiyo as well as the Institutional Director aka the President of the Imperial University in Bunmon. I am still wrapping my head around this. Honestly I am still confused and doubtful as to why I am even translating this sh** when I'm still actually learning Nihongo honestly I hope my translation even make sense to you all srsly I have no idea what I'm doing lol but rly send help pls T_T P181 intent to do so and nothing else. With that, gradually, bit by bit, leaping into the innermost parts of each land, the steadily increasing influence of us Bunmon Tanuki have been exposed. .. And that, is the way of the Bunmon Tanuki.** "..." That was an incredible story. Also, it's a really frightening tale. But with that reasoning and explanation of the circumstances, I am just as clueless as before. I wonder if Kasuga is fine with that. "Kasuga, have you fully grasped what marriage is? It seems that your fate was to be born under a Hachiyo's household but selecting your marriage partner, can you be honest with that?" "...Aoi-chan?" "I am, in a way worried and troubled about Kasuga and what could happen. Is it possible, that, if Kasuga is being forced to get married, then I..." For me, that has always been the case. But Kasuga hid her face in her sleeve and stiffled a laugh. "Aoi-chan. Everyone's like Aoi-chan, but I'm a girl who does not go against my destiny." ".. what?" Kasuga's speech, her explanations allowed her thoughts to pass through, and in some way she sounds like an earnest adult. With that gaze, and voice, and words. T/N: LOL I wanted to translate this part as "And that, is how the Bunmon Tanuki do." Srsly it's the direct transliteration of the original text lol if you understood the reference, Hi-five y'all P182 "I think Aoi-chan guessed that wrong. I didn't say that I was reluctant to get married. Rather, I was only anticipating it. Kiyo, is not someone that I didn't know." Kiyo. For sure, that's the name of the new Hachiyo of the Northern Lands. "Kasuga, you know the person you're going to get married to?" "Yep, I know him well. Because he's my childhood friend." "Childhood friend?!" "The last time that we met, I was still a small Tanuki. That being said, he's my first love." "Whaaaat?" Kasuga placed her index finger onto her lips and said "It's a secret". That was a shocking revelation. Surely, she did say something about her first love when we had the girls' night-out. "That's amazing, Kasuga. You're going to get married to your first love." ".. hee hee. Well, somehow he might not like me..." Kasuga's foolish demeanor, is a bit self-deprecating. But soon after that, a shadow fell over her facial expression. "I did have worries, it was a painful thought...That I didn't not want to get married**. When I leave Tenjin-ya, I'll be very very sad." Until now her calm voice has been OK, but her voice has started to shake a bit. With a face that's almost into tears, Kasuga broke into a smile. Her expression, it's easy to see that she's trying to hide her flurry of emotions, T/N: I told you guys, there's inception raised to the nth power with the double triple quadruple negatives srsly I can't even rn O_o P183 but I was emotionally welling up with what I truly feel inside. I see. Kasuga wasn't against her marriage at all. She's surely marrying the Hachiyo of the North. And therefore... she won't be staying at Tenjin-ya any longer. "Thank you, Aoi-chan. You gave me delicious food to eat. Aoi-chan's cooking, not only strengthens the weak body, but also fills an Ayakashi from the inside." "Ka, Kasuga..." "Aoi-chan, you're awesome. You came from an overwhelmingly unfavorable condition, and now this is where you've come. It's by your own strength." "..." "As for me, what will I do? My only plan is getting married to a Hachiyo, I only have myself." Eventually, Kasuga went back to Odanna-sama's office, she has to return and continue their talk. It's Kasuga's courageous attitude. As for me, I couldn't comprehend the entirety of her complicated heart, I could only fill up her hungry stomach and nothing else.

It was in the middle of Yugao's business hours. "What's wrong, Aoi-chan? Your face seems out of it, and you only keep sighing." "Are you sighing because there's not many customers?" P184 "It's not that. But yeah, that too." It was our frequent customers Juujirou-ojisan and Tsubame-obasan, the Ayakashi couple who lives in Gintengai, and for today had their feast of the beef stew topped with fried egg. The two were locals who didn't stay at Tenjin-ya, but goes into the baths and later to Yugao to have their meals, once a week. "Yet I was surprised. It seems that the Hachiyo of the North has been changed. It's in the newspaper extra delivered to Gintengai. The Hachiyo looks extremely young, it's the hot topic among everyone." Juujirou-ojisan slowly pulled the newspaper out, and opened it in front of me. "Ah! Can I look at that for a bit?" "Oops" I hurriedly borrowed and opened Juujirou-ojisan's newspaper that he was reading, and I eagerly looked at the newspaper publication's colored photo. On the picture, wrapped in a pure white kimono, and holding a Buddhist ringed staff made of ice, was an ephemeral-looking young man. "This boy..." As expected, he was still young. With regards to Ayakashi he's probably older than me, but based on what they look like, he looks about 15 years old. It's probably because Ayakashi live very long lives, when one is said to be very young, then the Hachiyo is probably very young indeed. That boy was Kasuga's first love. P185 Also, he is Kasuga's prospective husband. He's.. He's a handsome youth... "Would it be alright if that boy becomes the Hachiyo? Kiyo-sama is sickly, it's said that he's practically always in the University Hospital in the Land of Bunmon." "It can't be helped. There aren't any other successors among the clan of Hyoujin, you know." Snow lady, snow man, icicle lady and other generic names were used for the members of the Hyoujin clan's Ayakashi. Among the entire group, O-ryo surely fits in well. But O-ryo looks like an adult, remarkably... The ties of that one clan is so strong, it's peculiar that when one becomes the Northern Land's Hachiyo, they have to come from the pedigree line of the Hyoujin Clan's head, but they couldn't gain the support of the entire populace. "The previous generations of the north were majestic, but the successors were raised to be lazy and always sick and bedridden. It's a good thing that a strife between the foolish heirs erupted, other than the youngest grandson Kiyo-sama, they should all just die." "You're believing those rumors again! I'm sorry Aoi-chan, there has been unsettling stories among our people." Tsubame-obasan slapped the drunk Juujirou-ojisan's behind, and after a bit has left the restaurant. I sent off these regular customers, and finally Yugao's business hours has ended. The newspaper that they left as it was, I worried about it from time to time.

End of Chapter 5, Volume 6. Previous - Intermission 2 Next - Chapter 6

References:

Wonderful site for the youkai references

Other stuff I used to do this: Kodansha Kanji Learner’s Dictionary (you can buy here, I’m not sponsored btw). I was about to buy the older edition but then the newer one came out 2013 so I bought that instead. Worth buying since I was able to find nearly all of the words I needed just by stroke pattern alone.

Merriam-Webster's Japanese-English Dictionary (the red-covered 1996 version is apparently out of print right now). This is what I have been using for a very long time, I bought it when I was still a fetus (yes I am old so what lol), and after so many years, when compared to newer editions, I still prefer this one since its entirety is Japanese-English, the English to Japanese gloss are just 16 pages tops, so you get more Japanese words for your buck. But that’s just my opinion, maybe other people prefer the Jap-En x En-Jap IDEK.

Basic online dictionary, Jisho. Knowledge of verb conjugations and other words are necessary since not all have entries.

If you can read Japanese, you can buy the whole set in Amazon Japan, they’re shipping worldwide now, I think.

#Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi #kakuriyo no yadomeshi light novel #kakuriyo no yadomeshi light novel english fan translation #kakuriyo no yadomeshi volume 6 chapter 5 #kakuriyo no yadomeshi volume 6 chapter 5 english translation #kakuriyo no yadomeshi light novel translation

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artistic-mathematics · 4 years

Text

Daphne/Velma one-shot. Prompt from... myself, because I literally can’t with myself. Rated G. (Short summary: Velma tries to come to terms with her emotions at two in the morning.) AO3! if you prefer reading it there, of course. Thank you, again, to @apapercheesecake for being my proofreader and emotional support. <3 If anyone else wants to send me prompts, PLEASE hmu. Help me revive this fandom, lmao.

Do you ever look up at the stars and wonder if I’m looking at them as well?

She’s aware that it’s well past midnight, but she doesn’t care. Velma sits at her desk, as she’s done for hours beforehand, staring out of the window right above it. The Milky Way is beautiful. Mysterious. Sometimes, she can barely believe that the Earth is a part of this sea of light and wonder.

Tonight, though, a sadness hangs in the sky. There’s a certain… something. The usual spark is gone, replaced with a feeling of… gloominess.

Maybe quarantine has finally gotten to her, surrounding her like a bad omen.

Or maybe it’s her own melancholy dragging her down.

I am not upset, she accuses herself, but even as she does so, she subconsciously wipes a tear away, feels the path of tears that had dried long ago on her face. I’m not! she tries again, to no avail.

New tears begin falling down her face.

So much for being not upset.

“Shut up,” she says out loud.

There’s no one else around. It’s two in the morning. In the back of her mind, she knows she should sleep. Sleep her anxiety away. Sleep all of her worries away.

Even nowadays, however, sleeping seems like a trap, one concocted by Fred in terms of how well it works. Whenever she tries to rest, she’s thrown into a terrible world—one where she stands, frozen, as her friends collapse around her. Where she sees a flash of bright ginger hair fall with them, and she realizes the sun would never rise again—

She shakes her head, and glances back up at the infinite universe beyond her reach. I wonder if she still cares?

She. Daphne. Just her name makes Velma feel a little nervous. Jittery. She feels her chest ache with longing.

She can’t remember the last time anyone made her feel like that, because there wasn’t anyone.

Daphne always made her feel loved. Beautiful, even, when Daphne was the pretty one—so why is it that the other girl is suddenly ignoring her?

She’s not.

Deep down, she knows Daphne isn’t that kind of person—but it’s been almost three months since receiving her last text message. She’s aware that Daphne is terrible at responding to text messages, especially since the other girl is actually popular. She’s seen the absolutely ridiculous amounts of notifications Daphne receives every day, from trashy girls who just want a status boost in the community to pushy jocks who are only after her money… and her body. She’s probably getting way more messages than usual, she reasons, now that no one has anything better to do.

She doesn’t understand how Daphne deals with it, considering that Velma wants to chuck her set of encyclopedias at every single one of those fake, spoiled brats.

(They don’t even deserve to have encyclopedias thrown at them. Those idiots are worth as much as the Twilight series. They do have one thing in common, though; they should all burn in a fire.)

With all that in mind, there’s no possible way Daphne could be ignoring her, so why is Velma so scared?—and why is it that she can’t convince herself otherwise?

She grits her teeth, tries to will the negativity to just leave her alone. She wants to feel good about herself, feel good about her relationship with Daphne.

But I can’t.

Daphne is the sun and Velma… well, if we’re going with this analogy, I’m basically Pluto. Small, insignificant, distant. Demoted and degraded because people saw who I really was.

If Daphne is the sun, then maybe she’s distancing herself for a reason. If drawn too close, a tiny dwarf planet like Pluto would burn up.

Burn up or not, I’d try to get closer anyway. I’m… I think I’m addicted.

She reminds herself of the last time she felt this way, the last time she depended on someone like this. How she spent so much time with them, just studying and understanding and giving, only to find out that she had been associating herself with someone so ridiculously fake.

Like a fake planet—wait, am I that fake too?

Her thoughts come to a full stop as she tries to process the idea—what if she, too, is just as fake as Daphne’s so-called “fans”? There is plenty that Velma has concealed within the deepest recesses of her heart. She’s passionate about anything related to logic or pure fact—that’s what she’s known for, after all.

Her actual feelings, however, she keeps hidden. She refuses to talk to anyone about her raw emotions, except the obvious exception. Even then, the other girl has to catch her in a particular vulnerable state of mind. She wonders if hiding her feelings makes her a terrible person. Daphne has always been open to her, but it’s never been the other way around. It makes her feel vulnerable. She detests the idea that it could happen again. That someone might take advantage of her if she opens herself up.

That, she realizes. That’s why I’m so afraid. She’s terrified that people will keep coming and leaving, taking pieces of her as they go. Hundreds and thousands of people, ripping her into shreds and snatching what they can, before eventually they no longer need her and there’s nothing left of her.

Being with Daphne makes all of those unpleasant thoughts go away. Velma feels so hopeless alone, like she’s lost in the middle of space, so she clings onto Daphne like a rope thrown to guide her back to the spacecraft. Without Daphne, she drifts further into the unknown, into the darkness, into the black hole that is her own mind, plaguing herself with the doubts of years long past.

She shakes her head to clear her mind, before suddenly jolting. In her stupor, she hadn’t noticed her phone ringing. She glances down to see Daphne’s name lit up on the screen.

Oh!

The girl immediately swipes to answer the call. As soon as the screen changes, she turns speaker mode on.

“Hi Daph,” she says. She immediately curses herself for how wobbly her voice sounds.

There is a slight pause on the other end of the phone, before Daphne’s voice fills her ears.

“Oh! Hey Velm! I knew you weren’t asleep, because you never sleep at this time, but you didn’t respond to my other eight phone calls—”

“Wait, what?” She frantically checks her phone notifications to see that she indeed has eight missed calls. “Oh, I’m so sorry, I was… I spaced out.”

Another pause. “You never space out.” The tone is accusing, but the volume is gentle. Quiet. “What’s going on? Is something wrong?”

“N-no.” She hears Daphne sigh. “Okay, fine, yes. I just… I miss you. It feels lonely here. For once, books can’t solve my problems.”

She’s almost impressed by how smoothly the words leave her mouth. On any other given day, she wouldn’t have relented so quickly, even to the other girl.

I must be really out of it.

“It’s fine, really,” she adds, in hopes of reassuring Daphne. “How are you doing?”

There’s some rustling before Daphne speaks again. “I’ll tell you when I get there.”

“Get wh—Daph, no, we’re in the middle of a pandemic!”

“Open your back window for me!”

“Daphne Blake—”

The phone beeps and Velma heaves a sigh. Having Daph over would be nice, she tells herself, just as the knocking begins. She looks over to see Daphne grinning through the glass.

After Velma’s pulled Daphne through the window and knocked both of them onto the floor in the process, she begins her interrogation. “Okay, explain,” she hisses, standing up.

“Explain what?” Daphne says innocently.

“Why are you here?”

The taller girl stands up as well. “Well, for starters, I haven’t responded to your texts in three months, and I feel like giving you a phone call and apologizing wasn’t going to cut it.” Okay, fair. “Also, you always respond to your calls within three rings, no matter what time it is. I figured something was wrong. Then you told me, surprisingly, told me about how you were lonely and said books weren’t helping without me needing to pry, so I knew something was definitely up.”

Velma stares at her and Daphne shrugs.

“And judging by your face, you’ve been crying as well.”

“As if you needed to add that after perfectly analyzing my entire afternoon and evening,” Velma says, crossing her arms. She hates how Daphne read her like a book.

“Well, I’m a mystery solver too.”

“A damn good one.”

Daphne smiles. “I learned from the best.”

“You flatter me,” she responds, trying to scowl at Daphne for her ridiculousness. Daphne has always been a master mystery solver—it was just a fact.

Despite it all, Velma finds herself smiling back. Daphne’s smile has always been bright. Contagious. Pretty.

At least one thing hasn’t changed.

“You missed me.”

She raises an eyebrow. “It’s not hard to guess that, considering I told you that.”

The smile twists into a smirk. Normally, on any other day, she would be flustered, even a little annoyed. Instead, Velma’s reminded of just how lucky she is. She gets to see all of Daphne, not just the bits and pieces she chooses to show to the public eye.

“So you admit it,” is all Daphne says.

“I don’t know what your point is, but don’t get used to it,” Velma responds flatly. She’s still grinning, though, because she can’t help it. It’s been too long since she’s last seen Daphne and she’s excited.

So excited, in fact, that she’s barely able to restrain herself when Daphne raises her arms to offer her a hug.

“Daph, social distancing.”

“You literally opened the window and pulled me inside your room and you’re only now worrying about social distancing?”

She feels her face heat up. “I couldn’t just leave you outside!”

“And I couldn’t just leave you here while you were all mopey and sad!”

“I am not mopey—”

“Velm, I love you, but please before my arms fall off—”

Her heart begins racing and the tears begin falling. Fast. She loves me, she repeats to herself. She loves me.

“Wait, no, Velm, please don’t cry!” she hears Daphne cry in desperation. She tries opening her mouth, tries pouring her heart back out to Daphne, but she’s sobbing loudly to respond. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have—”

She feels herself panic enough to choke out “it’s not that, Daph.” Thankfully, it’s enough. The taller girl gently guides Velma to her bed, coaxes Velma to lean on her. Daphne slips a hand around her waist and kisses her head. Murmurs galaxies upon galaxies of tender, reassuring words. Subconsciously, she returns the hug and she holds on tight, holds onto that life-saving rope.

It’s warm. Safe.

She leans into Daphne’s touch, takes a few deep breaths. She inhales, catches a whiff of Daphne’s signature perfume, and nearly bursts into tears again.

“I’ve got you,” Daphne whispers. “Take as much time as you need. I’m here, I promise.”

Velma nods into Daphne’s shoulder.

“But afterwards, I owe you another thousand apologies and a well-worded explanation.”

She chuckles at this. “That seems fair.”

When even her hiccups are gone, she speaks again.

“I’m ready,” she tells Daphne. “Thank you.”

She feels Daphne smile against her hair before launching into a lengthy explanation. Velma is barely paying attention, however. She doesn’t care about what happened. She’s just glad that Daphne is back.

It may be far away and insignificant, but even Pluto has seasons. And winter is finally over, she thinks.

“I’m sorry,” Daphne repeats again, snapping Velma out of her trance.

“Do me a favor and stop apologizing,” she says, pulling away to glare at Daphne. As the other girl opens her mouth, presumably to apologize for apologizing, Velma pulls her into a kiss.

Daphne raises an eyebrow when they part. “I thought you were worried about social distancing.”

“I was being stupid,” Velma admits. “Even the size of the universe is trivial compared to my love for you.”

Of course I think about you when I look at the stars. You are all I think about when I look at them.

#velma x daphne #velma dinkley #daphne blake #scooby doo #my fanfiction

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fandom-necromancer · 4 years

Text

1420. I don’t want to lose this. I don’t want to lose you.

This was prompted by an amazing anon! I hope you enjoy, I certainly had fun writing it!

Fandom: Detroit become human | Ship: Allen60

[Prequel] [Part 2]

I have a partner now.

Joseph sat on a bench outside the precinct enjoying his break in the last sun before it would disappear behind clouds for most of the winter. He held his phone loosely in hand, texting with his mother. He had initially thought he would just settle a few things about her birthday and get back inside, but them she had asked about whether there was something new going on. It had been the first thing coming to his mind that didn't involve him telling her about his latest gruesome case. And he couldn't have expected her response to be so, well... lengthy.

>Oh, Josey, I'm so happy for you! Finally you found someone! Told you love would find a way! >Who is the lucky woman? >Or man, you know I don't mind! >Oh, you have to bring them with you when you come over! >You know I always wanted to see my boy happy before I leave this earth! Ah, I'm rambling again, but I'm really happy for you! >I will let you get back to work now! See you next week! >Don't you dare come without your partner! >Love you, sweety! Stay save!

Well... That certainly would be a problem.

'Hey, Sixty', he addressed the android as he walked back into the office. 'Would you be up for another err... undercover mission?' 'Sure’, the incredible workaholic android was quick to answer. ‘What gang hideout is our target this time? Or do we crash a weapon handover?' 'Yeah, kind of', Allen trailed off amused. 'Err... the target is my mother's house and we are indeed likely to crash her birthday.'

Sixty just looked at him. Allen would be damned how much emotion the android could put into a complete and utterly neutral face. He just sighed, sitting down on Sixty’s table and threw him the phone with the open chat. ‘Knock yourself out.’ The android still stared at him, phone in hand, shook his head and began reading. 'How the hell did she think you meant... romantic partners?', he finally asked as he had read the short conversation.

Allen shrugged. ‘Guess she understood what she wanted to hear.’ ‘Wanted to hear?’ ‘Hey, I never exactly managed to stay in a relationship, okay? With my work being dangerous and me spending so much time away from home… It isn’t easy. I think the longest relationship I had been in had been for four years and I really thought it would stick. But then it didn’t and well… I gave up on that. Doesn’t mean I still want it, but I learned to stay alone. It’s not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. I mean it can get lonely from time to time, but you get over it. Also spares you the heartbreak.’ Sixty still just stared at him, his face not showing if he had put any thought into what Allen had said or if he even listened. ‘And how is that important?’ ‘Listen, my mother was always one to think you can only be happy in a relationship and that I am suffering terribly staying single. She just wants to see me with someone, you know? She means well, though. So, when I tell her the word “partner”, the first connection isn’t colleague. Should have known to word it better.’ ‘And why should I accompany you to your mother’s birthday?’ Allen sighed. ‘Well, for one I’m tired of having to explain to her why I still didn’t find someone and listening to her ramble on that I’ve missed the chance to have a family and all that. And second, I guess it would make her happy. She isn’t the youngest anymore and even if it is just pretence, maybe she won’t worry as much. I know it’s shitty to ask you for it, but it would only be a few days and just a role to play, I assure you. I mean you can say no, if you want, I can make up something.’ ‘You won’t have to’, Sixty declared then, handing the phone back. ‘I’ll play along.’

So, they found themselves sitting in Allen’s car parked in front of his parent’s home. It was a small house with a big garden at Whitmore Lake, roughly an hour’s drive from Detroit. Allen found himself hesitating. It was Sixty, who made him jerk out of it, as he excited the car and got the flowers from the backseat. Allen sighed, taking his mother’s favourite chocolate and a gift card from his side. ‘Here goes nothing…’

They rung the bell and his mother opened almost instantly, laughing at him and hugging him for a greeting. ‘Ah, you are early! Nice to see you arrived safely!’ She released him only for his eyes to fall on Sixty. ‘Oh! You didn’t tell me he was an android!’ She stopped herself only to go pale. ‘Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean you any offense, I was just surprised!’ Knowing how Sixty handled criminals who gave him special treatment because of his identity, Allen watched him warily. But the android surprised him by smiling at her, handing over the flowers and politely shaking her hand. ‘Most people are surprised, I’m used to it’, he brushed it off. ‘I’m Sixty.’ ‘Oh, it’s such a pleasure to meet you Sixty, please come in! Just excuse me for a moment, will you?’ As soon as she turned and waddled down the hallway, Sixty gave Allen a pointed stare, pushing his shoes off. It changed promptly to bewilderment, as the prior to this polite and gentle elderly woman managed to shout in a commanding tone that left no space for arguments: ‘Wallace! Get your old ass in the car and look for something an android can eat! I’m not leaving my guests hungry!’ Sixty just watched as a tiny man jogged past them, got in the car and drove off. Allen just laughed shrugging. ‘I think now you got to know my mom.’

It was all in all a pleasant day. Sixty was a master at faking their “relationship”, engaging in conversation eagerly and telling his mother how Allen and he met each other. He kept it simple. Met at work, had a few cases together, liked each other’s company. It was so convincing, Allen would have believed it. The android had slapped his back a few times companionable and they had hugged to make it more believable. Thankfully, the one time, Sixty had been brave enough to quickly kiss him on the cheek, Allen had flushed so red, his mother had just taken it as embarrassment because they watched, not because he had been kissed by someone who very much wasn’t his romantic partner in any way. She had then made it into a monologue as to why he didn’t have to hide anything long enough for Allen to compose himself without any attention.

It stopped being a pleasant day as his mother led them to his old room as evening came. His old room they hadn’t changed much. His old room that was still outfitted with only one bed. ‘Err… I hope this isn’t a problem? We don’t have another mattress unfortunately, but you could always-‘ ‘No, no, Mrs. Allen, not a problem at all! Joseph likes to cuddle.’ Thankfully, Allen was the one turned to the room, not his mother, because again, he was red as a tomato. Sixty was right, he liked to cuddle, but not with- His mother laughed loudly at that, patting Sixty on the back. ‘Have a good night you two!’

As soon as the door was closed, Allen fixed a grinning Sixty. ‘God, don’t tell me you are fucking enjoying this!’ ‘Come on, it is quite amusing!’, the android pointed out. ‘Besides, I can always just enter stasis standing.’ ‘So that my mom wakes us tomorrow morning and finds your mannequin-ass standing in the corner? Why couldn’t you take the couch?’ ‘Because that wouldn’t be convincing! Also, you do like to cuddle.’ ‘That was one time and only because I fell asleep and thought you were-‘ ‘Come on now. There’s nothing wrong sleeping in one bed with a friend. It’s just one night.’ ‘Fine.’

They got to bed, dressed in pyjamas they had taken along. Allen lay on his side, back to Sixty’s, carefully trying not to touch him. ‘Captain, if you are tense like this you will never fall asleep. Just relax, I won’t tell anyone.’ Reluctantly, Allen obeyed, relaxing but cringing at the touch all the same. This brought up memories he didn’t want to think back to. Yes, he liked to cuddle with someone. Yes, he had always wanted a relationship. No, this would never work, and no, this was just Sixty playing his part! Could his overactive imagination please fuck off? He finally fell asleep later, but maybe he should have just faced another birthday of his mother listening to her scolding him for not having a partner.

The next morning, he woke up slowly. His mother had not woken him up and in fact, the moment he came back to consciousness he thought he was at home in his own bed at first. He had his arms around a warm body, his own pulled flush and he smiled at the thought, nuzzling deeper into the other’s neck. Until he froze as there was no smell. No smell at all, that body in front of him wasn’t human and this wasn’t his home. He was at his parent’s house with Sixty. He had hugged Sixty in his sleep. Shit.

Only then he noticed that the android likely was still in stasis. Otherwise he would have done something about his inappropriate behaviour. So maybe, he could enjoy this for a little while longer? He relaxed, but it was a stupid thought to have. They just played a role here. Still, when was the last time he had something like this? And Sixty was in stasis, he wouldn’t notice.

Except that he did. Allen was truly mortified, as he heard the android whisper: ‘I don’t want to lose this. I don’t want to lose you.’ Sixty had been awake the whole time? Allen panicked, trying to get his arms away, but the android grabbed his wrists to gently hold them in place. ‘Please. I had been awake since you first hugged me two hours ago’, he said. ‘This feels nice. Can we stay like this for a while?’ This had to be a dream of some sorts, Allen was sure of it. ‘Wh-What do you mean?’, he stumbled, rigid and overwhelmed. ‘I know this is fake, but I feel like I don’t want this to end. I never thought to like or even need this and being an android on top of that, chances of having this are very slim. Especially with a human. I knew I admired you before, but I didn’t even know something like this is possible. I know when we leave this place it will be over, you said yourself you accepted being alone. I would like to keep this moment a little longer.’ Allen just lied there unable to find words. He had never thought this was how their whole charade would end. He had never thought Sixty would like to stay like this… ‘Who said it has to be over when we leave’, Allen said, regretting it already. Surely Sixty would turn around every moment laughing at him like the idiot he was believing him. But no, Sixty’s grip on his wrists hardened for a split second, before the android turned around to face him surprised. ‘I thought you didn’t want another relationship’, he wondered. ‘I don’t want another heartbreak’, Allen disagreed. ‘But I’m willing to try it with you. At least you won’t leave me because I spend too much time at work.’ ‘No, I wouldn’t… You are really willing to try this?’ ‘Sixty, I already said I am. And with you I would even think it could work.’ He smirked at the android. Now that they were on equal terms, he actually liked the idea a lot. ‘As long as you want to try it with me.’ ‘I would love to.’

[> next part]

#detroit become human #dbh #Allen60 #Captain Allen #Sixty #RK800-60 #Did I mention I'm a sucker for people finding love in unexpected places #and sixty being badass until it comes to feelings #and the there is only one bed trope #well now I have #also RIP wallace the npc

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maracujatangerine · 3 years

Text

31. Positions

CW: institutionalised slavery, dehumanisation, conditioning, box boy universe

“Position 1. Position 4. Position 7. Position… hmm… 15. Position 3.”

Lydia watched, mouth ajar, as Cecilia gave the orders and Coriander flowed like water from one stance to another. Each movement was incredibly graceful and almost instantaneous, it was like the young man didn’t even have to think about the positions, but just instinctively knew which one was the right one.

“Position 6, position 9, position 10.” Some of the positions made Lydia’s blood run cold, they were too obviously intended for control and punishment, like position 6, with wrists held up together, so that someone could bind or chain the pet, while others looked pretty and more like a part of a dance, like position 14, gracefully standing turned to the side with arms stretched out like a yoga warrior pose.

She bit her lip. Was it right for her to let Ceci order him around like this? But Cecilia was an experienced pet owner, if she said that it was okay it was probably okay…

Lydia studied Coriander, he was flushed, and his breath was coming a bit faster with exertion, but he looked… proud, almost happy. Some of the party guests passing by their corner of the big hall watched him appreciatively, but none of them looked particularly surprised.

“Seriously, Lydia.” Ceci had said. “You didn’t even know about this?”

“Well, I knew about one and two, for standing and kneeling.”

“Huh.. well, come on, Cory-boy. Show your mistress what you can do.”

And then the dance had begun.

Cecilia paused and gave Coriander an apprising look. Then, she said. “Position 34.” She gave Lydia a sly wink and a grin, as if she should know what it meant. Coriander looked as confused as his owner. “Position 30. Position 26.” At each command, Coriander looked more and more distraught, shaking his head helplessly. Lydia thought she could see tears in his eyes. When Ceci said “Position 20” and the pet genuflected on the carpet, head lowered over his bent knee like a knight in an old painting, Lydia steeled herself to say.

“Thank you for the demonstration, Ceci, and well done, Cory. Perhaps we should let Coriander catch his breath and then go for some food at the buffet?”

And thank you all for all sorts of comments and feedback, reblogs and likes! ❤️💐🙏 I am blown away. You are lovely people! Furthermore, I have over 150 followers now! That is pretty amazing and I’m super excited about you all wanting to tag along with Lydia and Cory. 💕

(For fans of Brutus, I can tell you a little secret… He will be back!)

Thank you @haro-whumps for the excellent List of Positions. I would like to submit my suggestion for position 14, if you are still updating the list?

If anyone else want to run with my version of the pet party concept from my last post for your own story, feel free to do so! (And please tag me so that I get to read it! 😍) It is inspired first of course by other ideas in the Box Boy Universe and also by a real life art performance made in 1974. It is honestly pretty disturbing and violent, but if you want you can read more about it here: Marina Abramović, Rythm 0

(I am ridiculously satisfied that I accidentally got my Party Pet post as no. 20 and my Pet Party post as no. 30… 🥳 I knew I was going to have both titles, but the number of chapters in between was a fluke.)

Tag list: @cupcakes-and-pain @whump-em @whumpzone @wh-wh-whu @neuro-whump @carnagecardinal @cowboy-anon @whump-me-all-night-long @redwingedwhump @myst-in-the-mirror @haro-whumps @eatyourdamnpears @bloodsweatandpotato @pinkraindropsfell @whumptywhumpdump @theydy-cringeworthy @whump-in-progress @whumpsy-daisy @nicolepascaline @whumpcreations @briars7 @shiningstarofwinter @whumppsychology @alex-ember @miss-kitty-whumptastic @whumpy-writings @in-patient-princess @youtube-fandoms-bands @goblinchildindabog @mazeish @distinctlywhumpthing @inpainandsuffering @canniboylism @icannotweave

#box boy #box boy multiverse #box boy whump #box boy universe #pet whump #pet whumpee #pet-whump #rescue whump #conditioned whumpee #recovery whump #caretaker #lydia and coriander #original writing

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slimesgeneratorfics · 4 years

Text

I’m in a Discord server with @onemoontorulethemall , and they shared a whump idea that held me at gunpoint until I wrote a fic. Thank you for the inspiration for one of the longest fics I’ve ever written!

Title: Of Monsters and Men

Fandom: Rick and Morty

Word Count: 1684

Warnings: whump, serious injuries, uncensored swearing, canon-typical familial dysfunction (Seriously. If you’re not familiar with the show, this means quite a bit of dysfunction.)

Description: Based on the first arc (Issues 1-3) of the Rick and Morty comics, but the bug doesn’t escape the garage and... you’ll see. Read that if you want to catch cool references, but hopefully this works as a standalone too. But also, read the comic if you’re a fan of Rick and Morty. It deserves more love.

It had been three months since Morty had returned home without Rick: three full months without adventures, without purpose, and with one less person around to yell at him. Morty still didn’t understand why Rick had let him use the one-person portal out of that prison maze. Maybe Rick was done with this family and had finally decided to leave. Well, Morty was sick of living like this. He had to do something. Morty snuck into the garage, loaded some weapons into Rick’s car, and took off.

He barely made it past Mars when he was pulled over by space cops. The trial was much faster this time- he had already been found guilty, and this time Morty didn’t hesitate to make a mockery of the court system. It wasn’t that he wanted to go die in space prison, but he no longer had the energy to care about being good. If things went south, it was just one last hurrah for Morty, you know? No big deal.

They sent him to the same prison as before- Clackspire Labyrinth. Huge monsters and swarms of smaller monsters, none of which Morty recognized, attacked. Morty used Rick’s hidden panels to find weapons that made it easy to slice through every threat. He didn’t feel tired. He was fueled by spite and the desire to not die pathetically.

Morty heard the sounds of monsters being slashed around the next corner. This was strange- none of the prisoners he’d seen survived more than a couple hours, and there hadn’t been any new drop offs. Suddenly, a voice:

“WUBBA LUBBA DUB DUB! EAT THAT!” followed by a blast. Rick? It couldn’t be. His mind must be playing tricks on him. Or worse, this could be just another part of the torture.

“Rick” killed the monster and ran around the corner, bumping right into Morty. “Morty? Wh-what are you doing here?” he asked.

“Oh don’t act so surprised. I know you’re just another monster.” Morty raised his gun, but despite himself, he hesitated.

“Says you, you’re probably the monster! Why the hell would Morty be here?” This image of Rick was pretty realistic. He looked human, not robotic at all, and he was clearly scuffed.

“Enough! I’m going to kill you.” Morty fired, and a ray blasted through Rick’s chest. Wow, this thing had blood? This prison did not half ass psychological torture.

The fake Rick coughed and sputtered as robotic needles stitched flesh back together from the inside. The real Rick had tech on every organ to make him essentially unkillable, and apparently this monster was the same. “Don’t… cross me, you piece of shit.”

“I’ll cross whoever I want! You- you think I'm going to give up?”

Just then, the Rick monster fired a ray gun at Morty. To Morty’s shock, the mortal wound began to heal itself in the same way the Rick’s had. He didn’t remember any loss of consciousness between the trial and being dropped into the maze, and why would they have put such modifications in a prisoner who was supposed to die? But to assume that Rick, the real Rick, had installed them made even less sense. Morty was always expendable, nothing more than a human shield.

Morty pushed the questions aside. He was not going to lose now. “Just because neither of us can die doesn’t mean I won’t try to kill you. How about I aim for where it really hurts?” Morty aimed for Rick’s skull.

The ray bounced off, but the impact knocked Rick into a wall. The Rick was shaken, but he stood up. “You really think I would leave my brain unprotected? Maybe you really are Morty, because I can’t think of anyone else who would be that stupid!”

“Of course I’m Morty! Who the hell are you?” Morty tackled Rick to the ground and grabbed his throat.

“Morty, don’t you get it? We’re both here. You- you gotta believe me. I’ve missed you so much. I let you through that portal because I knew the long way would be dangerous, and you- you deserved to go home. I may act above it all, and I am, but you’re my grandson, Morty. I didn’t want you to have to live the labyrinth life.”

Was Rick… crying? Damn, this was a shitty fake. “Y-you’re not fooling anyone, you know? The real Rick doesn’t care about anything or anybody. He had a coupon for a free replacement Morty from the Citadel of Ricks. I- I bet he’s escaped and gotten a new Morty, maybe even- maybe even a new dimension!” Or, Morty thought hopefully, maybe Rick was about to come rescue him and tell him what a piece of shit he was for ending up back in galactic prison.

Well, Morty was done waiting to be rescued. He let go of the Rick’s throat with one hand and grabbed his ray gun, shooting the impostor directly in the heart. The blast didn’t make it far, but Rick lost consciousness from the impact. Morty sat back, still holding the gun. Everything finally hit as Morty’s numbness dissipated. Morty never wanted to be a killer. He didn’t want to live “the labyrinth life.” All he’d ever wanted was to see cool shit in the multiverse and pretend that impressing his grandpa was an achievable goal. Part of him wished this monster Rick could kill him just so it would all be over.

As if on cue, the monster Rick woke up. Shit, now Morty looked vulnerable. Maybe he could think of a way to use that to his advantage if he mustered the ability to be heartless again.

“You alright, little buddy?” Rick asked, as if he wasn’t the one who had just been unconscious.

“What do you care?” Morty replied. “Either you’re a monster and you want to kill me, or you’re the real Rick and you’re waiting to laugh at me.”

“Okay, that’s pretty reasonable considering how I’ve presented myself for, uh… always. But what if it’s neither?” Rick looked at Morty gently - hadn’t this torture been cruel enough? - and waited for a reply. Morty just stared at him, daring this Rick to prove himself.

“What if, and I’m just spitballing here,” said RIck, “What if I’m your real grandpa and I’ve always cared about you? I’ve been thinking a lot over the past three months, and I think I leaned too heavily on the god complex. Just because I’m literally the smartest being in the universe doesn’t mean I have to be an asshole about it, right?”

Morty let out a snort of laughter despite himself, but he quickly redirected into a scowl.

“Yeah, I deserve that,” Rick continued. “You know, back in season 1- actually, I don’t know where the comic fits in the continuity, let alone the - alright, ignoring the fourth wall, one time I was kidnapped by another version of me who wanted to steal my memories because I was against the Citadel and because I was ‘the Rickest Rick.’ And while he was stealing my memories, they were playing on a screen he had. I saw you as a baby, Morty. He was playing my memories of you, and I actually teared up. I denied it, of course, but in that moment I was thinking about how I’d endangered you by bringing you on these crazy adventures and how all our fun might end in disaster. I don’t want that for you, Morty. That’s why I installed all that protective gear in you while you were sleeping. I never told you because I always had to keep up that god complex attitude. I felt like I’d be a better person without my attachments, and I thought that if anyone knew how I really felt, they’d just use it against us. Do you see what I’m saying, Morty?”

“That’s a good try at a sob story, Rick. I’m almost convinced.” Morty looked down at his hands. “But there’s absolutely nothing you could say to me that would convince me that the real you could be that vulnerable.”

“Maybe you’re right,” Rick said, and suddenly Morty heard a blast and everything went dark.

…

“Huh? Where am I? What did you-” Morty’s vision cleared as his consciousness came back. He seemed to be in his room. Was he dreaming? Dead?

Rick walked in. “If I was a monster, I wouldn’t have set the gun to stun.”

“Huh,” Morty considered, “I guess you’re right.” He paused. “Did you mean what you said back there? Do you really care?”

“Don’t talk so loud. This stays between us, alright?” Rick said in a mock-threatening tone.

Morty grinned. He got out of bed and hugged Rick. “I love you, Grandpa Rick.”

Rick returned the hug. “I love you too, Morty.”

Rick stepped out into the living room where Beth, Jerry, and Summer were sitting. “You heard nothing,” he announced.

“Okay, sure thing,” said Summer, not looking up from her phone.

“Is Morty okay?” asked Beth.

“He’s going to be fine. I want- I want to really drive the point home that you did not just overhear a tender moment of familial affection involving Rick Sanchez, smartest man in the universe.” Rick crossed his arms and glared at Jerry.

“Whatever you say, Rick,” said Jerry, clearly disappointed that Rick was back and taking charge again.

“Thanks for bringing him back, Dad,” Beth said. “We were so worried. And don’t worry, your secret is safe with us.”

“My secret is not safe with you,” Rick fumed, “because it’s not with you. You have no secret, capiche?”

“Grandpa, get off her case,” said Summer. “I’m sure you’re the same asshole you always were.”

“That’s right! Rick never learns a lesson!” Rick went out to the front door and seemed to shout at the universe in general. “Rick and Morty a thousand years, no emotional vulnerability! Okay maybe a little, sometimes, but only when lives are at stake! The word count on this thing got really out of hand, but you’re still listening! Fuck the fourth wall! Roll credits and theme music!”

#rick and morty #rick and morty fanfiction #i really hope people enjoy this because i put a lot of time and love into it

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idontknowwhatsarcasmis · 4 years

Text

Old Acquaintances Made Anew

A Morriana fanfic

Hellooooo!! And I’m back in the DA fandom! Hope you’re all keeping safe and reading and writing loads in this quarantine! Stay at home guys! ^^

I started writing this story… sooo many years ago I don’t even remember! Anyways, I know this has been written many many times, buut I wanted to present my take on these two lovely ladies meeting in Halamshiral. I do hope you guys like it, cause I am really proud of it and had quite a bit of fun writing it!

Also, I have already started a second chapter, on Morrigan’s POV back in Skyhold after this, but wanted to see if you guys liked the idea first!

So, do let me know yeah?

As aaaaaalways, thank you brother for beta-reading it ^^

Enjoy!

Ao3

Ff.net

Xxxx

“A distraction would help.” Ellana said, biting her lower lip.

“What kind of distraction? There are plenty of them around here.” Cullen said, looking around in displeasure.

Leliana held back a smile at that, and saw both Ellana and Josie doing the same. The Inquisitor shook her head however.

“No, no. It needs to be something bigger. That’d draw most people’s attention.” She paused and looked at her other two advisors to see if they had any ideas.

Leliana started considering what she could let slip to whom that might entice a duel, but didn’t manage to get far before she was interrupted.

“Oh!” Josie suddenly said. “I think I know what can happen.” She seemed excited (and… scared?) as she looked at Leliana.

Leliana narrowed her eyes slightly.

“Yes?”

“Well, it would positively draw everyone’s attention, and might even leave them quite a bit distracted afterwards.” She said, looking away while biting her lip.

“Josie…” Leliana’s voice was a warning.

“I’m listening.” Ellana said.

“Well,” Josie started, slow at first but gaining traction as she spoke. “As we’ve told you, Your Worship, everyone was staring at you and Lady Florienne while the two of you danced. Another high member of the Orlesian society and a high member of the Inquisition dancing once more might do the same.” She completed, almost casually. So casually, that it made Leliana freeze in place.

She couldn’t possibly mean-

“That’s an excellent idea, Josephine!” Ellana exclaimed excitedly, looking around the room, as if trying to find who could be the centre of attention. “Did you have anyone in mind? I think the only people here that know how to dance properly would be Vivienne, Cass and Dorian, aside from the three of you. Vivienne would not be a novelty really. And I was thinking of taking the other two with me… besides, I think either might do more harm than good down there.” She said with a small frown on her face, likely imagining Cassandra or Dorian insulting someone beyond repair while sharing a dance.

Which, Leliana mused, was very probable.

Still, she was quite sure that they were not who Josephine had in mind.

“Actually, Inquisitor. I did have two people in mind.” The ambassador started and paused to bit her lower lip, eyes darting quickly between Leliana and the Inquisitor.

“Oh?” She asked, eyes also finding Leliana. Less subtly.

“Speak your mind, Josie.” Leliana said. She had a good idea of whom Josephine wanted her to dance with. As much as she loathed to admit, the idea actually did have merit. Getting it to work would be another matter entirely, however.

Then again, 10 years was a long time…

“Well, it so happens that we have two veterans of the Fifth Blight here tonight. One of our own, and one of the Orlesian society.

Ellena looked confused as understanding dawned on Cullen’s face, his eyes now also focused on Leliana.

“Two?”

“I’ve told you I’d had dealings with her on the past, Inquisitor.” Leliana said, barely moving her lips.

“Deal with wh-Morrigan?!” She exclaimed a bit too loudly, and flinched at the look Leliana and Josie gave her. “Sorry. Morrigan? You know Morrigan from the Blight?” She asked in a hushed, excited whisper.

“Yes, we were both companions of the Hero of Ferelden. We fought side by side for many months.” Leliana said, her voice as if of its own accord taking a story telling intonation as she scanned the room, looking for red velvet.

As she focused back on Lavellan, however, she couldn’t suppress a small smile. The Inquisitor was always very excited to hear more about her time with Mahariel.. Lavellan probably heard a lot about her before in her clan, but it was different to have a first-hand account. It was not often, Leliana thought, that a Dalish elf was at the centre of history. Well, at the positive centre of history.

“You did?” Ellana looked like she was about to ask more when Josie cleared her throat, looking at her pointedly. “I-I mean, that is wonderful, though! Surely a dance between you two would draw everyone’s attention! I mean, I wish I could see it…” She mumbled the last part, and the three advisors smiled softly at her.

“While a good idea in theory, I am unsure if it’ll work in practice. Morrigan and I haven’t spoken since the Archdemon was slain. Even then, we never talked much. She… was rather reclusive. Mahariel was the only one she would actively speak with.” Leliana said, eyes once again sweeping the room in search for the witch. “Also, as far as I know, she never cared for dancing, either.”

Josephine tsked at that.

“Really Leliana, that was years ago. She’s been at court long enough to have picked up some steps. Celene would not suffer any member of her court to not know the basics, at least!” Josephine said ,and Leliana conceded her point. “Besides, as you said, you haven’t seen each other for a decade! I doubt Morrigan would not want to catch up.”

Leliana raised an eyebrow at that, face blank.

“W-well, she wouldn’t dare reject the Seneschal of the Inquisition in front of all these people? We are honoured guests!” She tried again.

Leliana maintained her expression. The Morrigan she remembered would have no qualms whatsoever about doing exactly that.

Josephine was suddenly looking very uncertain, and was about to say something when Ellana interceded.

“Well, I think she might surprise you, Leliana! When I talked to her before she seemed perfectly polite. Celene will likely be watching you two, so she won’t have to be concerned about any murder attempts during the dance, and I really need this distraction. I might be gone longer than before this time.” she said with a small, hopeful smile, and Leliana felt her icy heart melt a little. Ellana reminded her so much of Mahariel sometimes.

She so missed her dear friend.

Rolling her eyes, Leliana let out a small sigh.

“Well, time is of the essence, no?” She said, glaringat the whoop and smiles she received from her companions. “Wait for her to take my hand, if she does, before vanishing. You two” she said to Josephine and Cullen, “go to different corners of the room and look pointedly at the dancing floor once I, hopefully, get there. We want to attract as many people as possible. Ask one of the servants to spread word.” Leliana instructed as she started to push and pull at her uniform, trying to make it look more proper.

Stupid, ridiculous uniforms. Presenting a united front was one thing. Wearing this? It was an outrage. It’d help her play her part when asking Morrigan for a dance, however, so at least that.

The others nodded in agreemnt, and Cullen and Lavellan moved away to play their parts. Josephine, however, stayed behind. Leliana raised an eyebrow.

“Are you alright?” She asked, barely moving her lips.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Leliana felt her brow furrowing.

“Well, you seem nervous.”

“I…” Sometimes she forgot that Josephine knew her from before she had been the Left Hand. “It’s nothing, Josie, don’t worry. Go, time is of the essence.” She said, with a small smile. With a quick squeeze of her hand, Josephine motioned to the main balcony with her chin, before she made her way across the ballroom to the opposite side.

Slowly, Leliana looked to where Josephine had pointed. Right there, by the Empress’ side.

Leliana closed her hand into a fist. Was she nervous? Why, by Andraste’s name, was she nervous?

Visions of lingering glances flashed before her eyes. Words that were, day by day, week by week, less and less cutting and more and more teasing. Fond.

Taking a fortifying breath, Leliana minutely shook her head to focus, and started walking towards her target. She made sure her steps seemed casual, but wide enough to draw attention at the same time. People needed to be watching her as she approached the other woman.

When she was but a few steps away, Leliana finally was able to actually admire the ensemble Morrigan was wearing. The sight almost made her step falter. Red velvet. Gold details. Low on the front. Another vision entered her mind, one that almost made her skip a step. Maker’s breath. What was Morrigan playing at?

Another step made her come close enough to the Empress and her advisor to call the attention of those nearby. As the two women turned to look at her, something flashed in Morrigan’s eyes.

Time for a trip down memory lane.

“Your Majesty, my Lady.” She said in a clear and (appropriately) loud voice, taking a deep bow.

“Sister Nightingale!” Celene exclaimed, nodding her head and giving her a large and warm smile. Out of the corner of her eyes, Leliana saw Morrigan giving her a small courtesy, and her lips twitched upwards. “What a pleasure to have you at court once more. It has been quite a while.”

Leliana allowed her smile to become larger.

“Too long, your Majesty. I’m afraid my duties have kept me away for longer than I wished.” She said, making sure her voice sounded just the right amount of sad, as if she were trying to hide it.

“’Tis all for a good cause, I hear. With your Inquisition, now.”

The voice washed over her like the first ray of sunshine on a cold winter’s day. An inexplicable tingling sensation spread from the tip of her fingers to the other.

All of which Leliana promptly ignored.

Morrigan’s voice hadn’t changed much. The same tilt. The same way of saying ‘tis’. The same tone that tried to impress on you that she knew much more than what she was actually saying. Leliana felt her smile become that bit more genuine as she directed her gaze to her old companion.

“Indeed. Being the seneschal to the Inquisition is a very busy job, but one I take to proudly.” Leliana said.

“I’m sure.”

Their eyes lingered on one another, but Leliana could not for the life of her figure out what was on the witch’s mind.

“Oh, allow me to introduce you-” Celene started, only to be interrupted by Morrigan.

“There is no need, Your Majesty. Sister Nightingale and I have known each other for many, many years.” Morrigan’s voice carried like velvet around Leliana, just like it had all those years ago. Her tone as she said her title, though, made Leliana want to wipe that smirk off her face.

Leliana could feel more and more eyes being drawn to them as the witch took a small step closer in her direction.“Indeed, your Majesty. There was a time when we travelled together. When we fought side by side with the Hero of Ferelden to defeat the Blight.” Leliana said, letting her old bard training take over as she turned to look back at the Empress. “Alas, circumstances made it so that our paths were separated shortly after we emerged victorious. Your magnificent ball, however, has presented me with an opportunity I have long since waited for.” Leliana let a happy and grateful smile grace her lips as Morrigan’s eyes almost imperceptibly narrowed.

“I’m very happy to hear that, sister. What opportunity have I unwittingly given you?” Celene asked.

“To make an old acquaintance anew. If you’d allow me, Your Majesty, I’d beg you to let me take your advisor from your side for one dance. It has been many years, and I find myself wanting to not let this opportunity go to waste. You’ll be able to keep your eyes on her all the time, of course..”

The fact that that line did not taste at all like a lie on her tongue was something that Leliana would stash away for later analysis.

Celene laughed, delighted. “Oh, but I would love to see such an event! As much as I’ve been trying to impart on Morrigan the importance of enjoying oneself on the dance floor, I have yet to succeed. Perhaps you’ll fare better than I did.” With that, their whole entourage focused on Morrigan, whose eyes had not left Leliana and were by now more perceptively narrowed. To her surprise, however, Leliana did not see anger there. What she saw exactly, she wasn’t sure, but it wasn’t anger. Nor disgust.

Clearing her throat for effect, Leliana extended her hand and gave a bow, eyes never leaving the witch’s.

“Well then, will you do me the honour of this dance, Lady Morrigan?”

Leliana more felt than saw that most of the eyes in the ballroom were on her hand at the moment. If this was a few years ago, she’d be exhilarated… as it was, she was rather glad for the gloves on her hand that’d certainly prevent Morrigan (should she actually take her hand) from feeling just how nervous she really was.

Which was ridiculous. 10 years. She was hardly the same ‘girl’ she’d been last time they’d seen each other. And yet here she was, as enticed as she had been back then with the mysterious Witch of the Wilds. As nervous as she’d been the first time they’d been left alone at camp. The first time Leliana realised that she had developed quite the crush on the younger woman.

But it had been 10 years. Lingering looks and teasing words had long since been lost to time. It was ridiculous to still be feeling this way.

“Well,” Morrigan smiled. A small smile, for sure, but clear for everyone to see, and if Leliana was not very much mistaken (or counting too much on wishful thinking), quite the genuine one. “If I must.” She said in her usual brusque manner, making all those around them chuckle and Leliana’s smile reach her eyes. As their hands touched and Leliana straightened, her heart did double time, and she had to fight to keep a blush from rising to her face.

“Shall we, then?”

“I did just accept, did I not?”

“Indeed, you did.” Morrigan did. Which in and off itself was sign enough that Leliana was far too out of her game and need to get back to it

“Well, by your leave then, Your Majesty.” Morrigan said, exaggerating on her excitement for appearances’ sake, taking back control over her emotions.

“Oh yes, this is delightful! Go ahead!” The monarch clapped her hands, drawing even more attention as she went towards the balustrade to look down at the dance floor.

Taking a small, fortifying breath, Leliana started making their way down the stairs, Morrigan’s fingers gently clasped on her own.

Soon after they took the first few steps, Morrigan broke their silence. Morrigan did. Which in and off itself was sign enough that Leliana was far too out of her game and need to get back to it

“So, I assume you’ll be the one leading?”

Leliana almost laughed at that, but stopped herself just in time, letting only a smirk spread on her face.

“Well, I was planning to. If that’s agreeable to you, my lady?” She asked casually.

“Stop that.”

“Stop what?”

She could just feel her rolling her eyes at that, even if Morrigan had apparently learned to keep herself from actually going through with the motions in open view.

“The whole point of going to the damned dancefloor, aside from drawing attention to us, is that so no one can hear us. Stop the court talk.”

Leliana did laugh then.

By now they had reached the centre of the dancing floor, and Morrigan stopped right in front of her.

“How should I talk then?”

“We’re in a ball in Halamshiral! How many times have I heard you screeching about these situations?”

Leliana chuckled at that as she placed her free hand on Morrigan’s waist, the other grasping Morrigan’s more firmly.

“You want me to screech?”

“Of course not! But it is unusual to see you not making a single comment about everyone else’s clothes.”Morrigan said, placing her hand on Leliana’s shoulder, closer to her neck than one normally would.

Leliana masked her dry swallowing by giving the witch in front of her a once over, a playful smile coming up on her lips.

“I could start that right now with your dress, if you’d like.”

“Never mind then.” Was her immediate answer, though Leliana felt Morrigan relaxing at that. Humming satisfied, she let herself join in her calm as they started the first slow, easy steps of the song.

“’I’d sooner let Alistair dress me’, I believe were your actual words.” She laughed as she picked up their pace slightly.

“I really didn’t mean what I said before. Go back to being your weird formal self.” Morrigan quipped, making sure to place a scowl on her face. She couldn’t fool Leliana though; she’d been on the receiving end of her real scowls far too many times to not be able to recognize them.

“I did describe these exact details for your clothes, no? 10 years ago! Did you keep me in mind during all these years? Did you miss me that much as well, my dear Lady Morrigan?” She wasn’t even trying to mask the tone of her voice, and barely even realized what she’d let slip.

Despite what Leliana had told the Inquisitor earlier about masks and playing a part, she’d been right; Leliana had felt more like herself here than she had in years, and even more now, with Morrigan in her hands.

It couldn’t be helped, she supposed; she brought her memories from other times… happier ones, perhaps, even with the Blight. That year travelling with the wardens and their merry little band had been the best year of her life.

“Blast and damnation, Leliana. Go back to making small talk. ‘Tis a better use of your time and mine.”

Leliana openly laughed at that, heart beating as fast as it ever had, throwing Morrigan on a little spin before bringing her back.

“That’s the first time you’ve said my name to me. Ever, I think…”

If Leliana wasn’t paying so much attention to their steps, they’d be both on the floor then and there. As it were, she managed to plunge them in the classic and very dramatic swing dip. By the gasps and coos from all around them, she had managed to do so successfully, and they had indeed managed to gather quite a lot of attention.

“Careful now, Morrigan. We wouldn’t want you to crease your pretty dress, yes?” She asked, and there it was; that famous glare that she so fondly remembered. Though it did lack the actual ill intentions behind it.

A very hard pinch on her neck made her quickly pull Morrigan out of the dip. She picked up the pace, making Morrigan work to keep up as she went for some of the more daring manoeuvres.

“I’m surprised that all your time away from the court didn’t make you lose your touch at dancing, Sister Nightingale.”

“I’m surprised you’ve acquired such skills at all, Arcane Advisor.”

She was sure Morrigan would have shrugged had they been doing anything else.

“One does what one must to survive.”

“Indeed.”

Their words went silent for a few seconds as they spun faster and faster around the dance, the only sound coming from their mouths being a slight panting.

“How’s Kieran?”

Something fiercely protective flashed through Morrigan’s eyes at that.

“I hope he adapted well to the court?” She continued quickly, watching as Morrigan relaxed once more.

“Yes, though he did prefer to have a wee bit more freedom. ‘Tis fine though, he’s doing well.” She said softly as Leliana spun her. Morrigan didn’t need to ask her how she knew of her child. She certainly assumed that Mahariel had told her, and that the name had been learned by spies. Which was true.

“Anything on Mahariel?” Morrigan asked, as if reading her mind (she used to be quite good at that).

“Not for a few months now. You?”

“Not for a few years.”

As the song drew to a close, Leliana smirked once more.

“You ready for the grand finale?”

Morrigan’s eyes narrowed at her.

“What are you planning, bard?

Instead of answering, Leliana quickened up her pace, twirling Morrigan under her arm, spinning her away and then back in to finish with a low and daring dip, following after her so close that their faces were just a scant inch apart, right as the song finished and a truly thunderous applause started.

“Now, that wasn’t too bad, yes?”

“I hate you, bard.”

“Not yet, you don’t.”

“Wh-“

Before Morrigan could finish her phrase, Leliana, in a show of courage and impulse that she could simply not explain, closed even more the distance between their faces and pressed a very deliberate kiss on the other woman’s cheek, right in the corner of her lips.

Not wanting to give her a chance to recover and kill her on the spot, Leliana pulled them back to their standing position, taking one step back for a small bow. Morrigan automatically answered, before lightly, very lightly, taking back her hand and directing them to the stairs, under the sounds of animated and awed conversation. On any other circumstance, Leliana might have allowed herself to be quite proud.

As it was… well.

The silence remained between them until they were halfway through the stairs, and Leliana had started to seriously doubt herself. Her hands, which had begun to dry, were going back to being quite clammy.

“You’re ridiculous, Leliana.”

The spymaster could have laughed with relief at that.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, my dear Morrigan!” She said, smirking as she saw the other woman actually rolling her eyes. “Also, second time.”

Her hand being crushed was quite worth the exhilarating feeling she was experiencing at the moment. It had been far too long since she’d felt this alive.

As they reached the top of the stairs, they made a show of bowing and speaking rather loudly.

“Thank you for gracing me with your company for this dance and for the riveting conversation, Lady Morrigan. It was indeed a pleasure to make your acquaintance once more.” Leliana said, daring to bring the other woman’s hand to her lips for a brief kiss, barely touching her skin.

Morrigan’s eyes rolled again, a cross between an amused smile and a scowl on her face.

“The pleasure was all mine, Seneschal. It was good to converse with you once more. ‘Twas good fortune that fate brought us together once more.”

“May it not be the last time, my Lady.”

With a small smile for an answer, both of them turned away at the same time. But before Leliana could take more than one step, the witch spoke once more.

“I did, you know?”

Leliana stopped, turning around only partially. Morrigan was looking at Celene.

“Pardon?”

“Miss you too.”

Leliana froze, mind completely blank as she watched the witch make her way back to the empress.

She didn’t know how long she stood there, half hidden by the column behind her, rethinking everything that had been said on the dance floor.

Before long, what felt like a distant voice brought her out of her own mind.

A very, very excited voice.

“Leliana, that was amazing!” Josie somehow managed to sneak up behind her, Cullen right by her side. “Every single eye on this palace was on you! People actually rushed from other rooms for this!”

“They really did. Some of the guards even left their posts for it.” Cullen said, a small smile on his face.

Well, Leliana supposed, still utterly distracted, mission accomplished.

Now what?

Xxxx

Mission accomplished on all accounts, apparently. Lavellan had performed admirably, and pulled off something Leliana was not sure could ever actually happen. Brialla and Celene governing together was quite something. She allowed herself a small smile; Mahariel would have been proud.

She sighed as she overlooked the gardens, allowing herself to relax a little. Everyone was actually enjoying themselves on the ballroom now since all the mess was done with.

Light steps sounded behind her, but just a she began to tense up, she felt it. The smell of magic. Of wood, fire and wilderness that seemed to still be with her even after all these years away.

Morrigan.

Her heartbeat doubled again, but instead of nervousness, she felt light. Relaxed, even. Happy that she’d been reached out to.

“And here we are once more. Following a Dalish elf in events that shall change and shape the world.” Morrigan said.

“We also have a qunari, a dwarf, another elf, and a warden.” Leliana let an amused smile play on her lips as she leaned her hip against the balustrade, half turning to face Morrigan as the witch came to stand by her side. Rather closer than necessary, but Leliana would certainly not complain.

Morrigan raised an eyebrow. “And from what I heard, you also have an older mage that thinks she knows better than everyone else.”

Leliana let out a short laugh at that.

“We have you for that, my dear Lady Morrigan.”

Leliana was sure that the glare she received would have sent many running for their lives. Not her though.

Morrigan scoffed at her lack of response.

“I don’t think I know better than everyone else, bard. I know I do.” She said simply, and Leliana rolled her eyes.

“Of course.”

The two paused, looking out of the palace, to the far distance.

“And I’m not old.”

Leliana laughed at that, turning to look at Morrigan from head to toe, in a very deliberate way. The same way she had 10 years ago, which had almost earned her a fireball to the face for her trouble. Now, though, the only heated response seemed to be on the witch’s cheeks.

Was that a blush?

Leliana smirked, but said nothing.

“What?” Came, predictably, the cutting question.

“No, not old indeed.” She said lightly. “The years have served you well.”

“Stop your games, Leliana.” Morrigan said, rolling her eyes. Leliana allowed her smile to become truly open and genuine at that, wanting to hide nothing at the moment.

“It is no game, Morrigan. Also, third time.”

Blush still in place, Morrigan turned to face her.

“Are you gonna keep count now?”

“Is it going to become a common enough occurrence for me to not have to?”

The question was not only about the name and they both knew it. Is this where they’d part ways once more? Or would they fight together again, side by side?

“Perhaps it shouldn’t. Maybe I’ll return to calling you bard. Or Sister Nightingale. Seneschal, even.”

Leliana felt a happiness she hadn’t felt for a long time settling deep inside of her.

Side by side it was.

She took a small step closer to Morrigan, their knuckles now brushing.

“I’ll stop counting, if you promise to keep saying it, Morrigan.” She said in a whisper, a little tremble in her voice at the boldness of her request.

Morrigan stopped for a few seconds, just looking at her. A look with so much feeling behind it that it reminded Leliana of how Morrigan had looked at her right before the fight against the Archdemon.

Without realising what she was doing, Leliana grasped Morrigan’s wrist as if to stop her from leaving again.

Once more, it seemed as though Morrigan had been reading her mind, because instead of recoiling as Leliana was expecting, Morrigan simply covered her hand with her own.

“Good. Seeing as I’m to live in Skyhold for the foreseeable future, it’d get tiring quite quickly.” She said, her dry tone failing to mask the fondness in her voice.

With a light squeeze on her hand (so light that Leliana thought she might have imagined it), Morrigan turned around and walked back towards the door, back to the party and to Celene’s side. Just before the witch crossed the threshold, Leliana recovered her senses, ignoring the blush on her own cheeks.

“I’m looking forward to working with you once more, Morrigan.”

The witch stopped.

“So am I. I guess wonders never cease.” She turned to meet Leliana’s eyes for one last time that night “Good night, Leliana.”

And with that, she was gone.

“Good night, Morrigan.” Leliana muttered to the empty balcony.

She turned to look over the gardens once more.

Morrigan had awoken something in her today, and she had no idea how the witch would feature in her day to day routine and responsibilities back home. This whole night had been almost an out of body experience for her; As if she was ten years younger again, flirting with danger, politics, lies, deceit, and with a wild apostate. And she’d loved it.

But tomorrow, they were to head back to the Inquisition. To Skyhold, where she was not a seneschal, but the spymaster. Where her responsibilities had weight, where her actions counted to their minimal details.

It had been a dream… a wonderful dream (full of murder, treachery and lies, but such was their life, and such was where she thrived in), but it had come to an end. Tomorrow, things would be back to normal.

Supposedly.

Leliana sighed.

What had she gotten herself into.

#morriana #dragon age inquisition #dai #leliana #morrigan #leliana x morrigan #morrigan x leliana #da fanfic #dai fanfic #fanfic #I love these two

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currently-shushing-birds · 4 years

Text

I'm rewatching the early Sanders Sides episodes (let go from My True Identity to Losing motivation) so here are my thoughts with mild context

Logan used to be such a smiley boy :(((

Oh logan that's gay

Roman pops up, insults them he's all "hi roman :)))"

"And that's when the anxiety kicks in" but virgil..doesnt show up. It's so weird

Roman goes "I'll learn to love myself" and then DOESNT

I'm calling it. That's Janus. Logan says he doesnt gave emotion and here he is being a SMILEY boi who is telling thomas what's good about him >:(

THAT'S- THAT'S ROMAN'S THEME WH-

Oh Patton...oh pat..

"YOU'RE A F A T H E R"

"I know it's got somethin' to do with storks!"

"Am I right tony?" "That's not my name"' "then w h a t i s i t"

A D U L T E R Y

"Please welcome my anxiety" "sup!"

What what a bitch. Like a mean girl. Regina who??

"Sorry kid" excuse but arent you the litteral child

*crosses legs like a gay icon*

WHERE DID THIS BITCH GO

I'm all good with our current virgil but goddamn he's like a villain and w o w I love Villians

"Hey there Princey ;)" jesus

Lily Singh is gorgeous and super cool but god that woman is an enigma

Such light eyeshadow

I have a headcanon that Virgil and Remus watch shitty reality TV together and I completely forgot about this-

*waves at bird*

"Anxiety can be a constant struggle" "that's right ;)"

YA NASTY

It devolved Thomas, I'm so sorry-

Leslie Odom Jr. is one of my favorite people

Ugh I'm so proud of Thomas

Logan- THIS ONE HAS A SONG!!

"Proper adultery"

Oh, this is when logan still liked YouTube I see

"NO" "hey!!!!"

Y'know the one John Mulaney bit where he's just saying "okay, okay" that's Thomas

L O G A N

When was Patton so mean-

"Ugh...I do not like you" and then the fandom declared they were in love

They all sound the same and it's weird. Later on they all have their own spots in Thomas' vocal range. Example: Virgil sings lower while Roman is a the highest part if Thomas' vocal range

The lip syncing is like- y'know what nevermind

Logan having fun singing: :0

"You sicken me!!" Damnn

It was his video >:(

I keep my closet open because I'm afraid of serial killers inside-

No one said prince but I love you so much-

I adore Roman's theme

*gay hand*

And this is also where we declared they were in love

*gay hand again*

Julie Andrews is a beautiful goddess

"Or dont eat fruit:))"

O H N O

I love Peter Pan-

That's what Janus did..lying and deceiving his way to my goddamn heart I love him

Princey is SALTY

Thomas doesn't age

And they're in love :)))

I watched this episode last night at 4 am :))

I love rent-

UGH ROMANNNNNN

"I love dISNEY"

Logan just became anxiety there

Just the "AHSJWJAEMTDESW" from Patton has me fucking rollibg

STORYTIME!!! *sits contently like a toddler*

Ugh I love Roman

I havent seen The Untimate Storytime but I wanna

Bizzardvark...Jake Paul...ew

Patton I love you

Gonna link my post right here because I love him so much

Logan is so excited-

EW NASTY

I love playing bubbly characters!! Join me Thomas!!

Aw Roman

Gay Disney Prince

AW VIRGE

damn Pat

Thomas is such a sweetheart I swear to god-

AWWW-

"I'm not you're son >:("

AWWWWWWWWW-

"Our little guy"

Your heart and your mind...yes they're in love

Patton s t o p-

*as Patton and Logan are bickering* ah..romance

We really are clowns

"I am not your son" you are though Thomas

Our biggest dilemma was "I kinda wanna learn more about myself" and now it's "IS IT B A D IF I KILL A MAN"

Onesie buddies

Is that ship art-

I miss the Sanders Sides intro

"I know big words too. Sssssaxaphone???"

GIRL

Is this the episode where Ligan speaks simlish

Thomas's acting is so good

IT IS THE SIMLISH EPISODE

Valerie...so pretty

"AYO ZIPIT TOO BLARP"

I do like bagels- also that tie in via the recent episode

Leave Valerie alone guys you're all gay-

He wrote that

Valerie just nods along

Oh look at that art

Oh Pat :(((

Dragon Witch: Fuck you Valerie

"MY SPLEEN"

Roman is bilingual and probably bisexual

You're upsetting him >:(

"I'm feeling all types of bad" BABY BOY-

"I wasn't trying to help" stfu

Awww

"IF I COULD GIVE YIU ALL BUTTERFLY KISSES-" *sobbing*

And they're in love

"I love you" *more crying*

Have..fun????

Does this imply Roman can hide a body

AHHHHHHH

They're. In. Love

OH I LOVE THIS EPISODE

all business strictly dress up seriousness

Thonas really said "Patton's my dad figure but God you guys are children"

He does makeup :))

Logan: he is ANXIOUS!!

Virgil: *blinks like he doesnt understand

*winks*

Smarrttt

*looking at Patton's hat*' kill the competition, sell the next edition. What a fine life-

"You're n o t welcome"

Patton be nice-

Logan thinking looks like that one meme where the lady has equations all around her..has someone drawn that

"Logic and I are playing dress up, anxiety is making us question our existence and I found a dollar" favorite fuckibg line every single time

EY NEWSIES!! RENT!!

God there's a lot of shipping content

Doo doo *giggle*

"My bad"

OOP

Patton is the character thar's smart but also a fucking idiot

"Is it because I have a dollar and you dont??"

Logannnnn

"You're dating this video"

Logan are you okay baby-

What the fuck kind of agreeing face was that

Pasta salad

Sir Sing A Lot

WOAHHH

I- LOGAN'S NAME REVEAL

FORGOT ABOUT THAT

A BITCH J U M P E D

I honestly dont know why I did this, I do it in other fandoms and no one is entertained but me- alright that's all

#thomas sanders #roman sanders #logan sanders #virgil sanders #patton sanders #sanders sides

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postmortem-bookworm · 4 years

Text

Bright - Bucky Barnes - Part Six

Fandom: Avengers

Type: Series

Word Count: I give up keeping track

Character(s): Shuri, Natasha, Maeve, Bucky, Steve, Dora Milaje, Xavier, Logan, Rogue, Storm, Kitty, Kurt

Warning(s): Cussing, Mentions of attempted suicide (but shouldn’t be anything triggering), smut (maybe), mentions of X-Men, Steve is crushing

A/N: This picks up almost right after Black Panther, but before Bucky is awake, there is no Thanos, and everyone is alive.

Now would be a good time to mention that I have just a slapdash of different X-Men timelines and stuff thrown together.

"You're glowing." Nat says during their next visit, the two of them are in Shuri's lab, Steve and Bucky had gone to have a guy's day, while they decided to spend time with the genius girl. Mainly because they're both do of her, and miss having another woman around, even younger than the two of them are.

"I am not." Maeve retorts as she flips through some of Shuri's designs for a new suit for the mutant.

"You are too!" Shuri giggles as she walks over to the table, hopping up on the metal beside Maeve. "You have been for a few days now."

"Is this cause of Steve? Have you decided to give him a chance?" Natasha asks with an excited edge in her tone. Maeve sighs as she closes the booklet in her hand, Natasha nudges her side as she looks at the ex-assassin.

"No, because I don't feel that way for him. He's like my brother. Also, I'm not glowing," She turns to the younger girl. "I have not been glowing," She clambers to her feet to look at the two women. "there is no glowing!" Her words are punctuated by the slap of the booklet on the table between the two grinning women.

"I think it's one of the village men." Shuri says as she glances at Natasha. "A few days ago she went home very tired, she looked worn out from something, and the next day she came back, and she was glowing, happy, without any bags under her eyes."

"Have you been paying some conjugal visits in the night, Mae?" Natasha asks as Maeve's face turns red.

"No! Oh my Lord, Nat! Wh-Why whywhywhy why would ask me that?!" Maeve stammers out as the two other women start laughing. "Wh-Wha-What is wrong with you two?! I swear to enjoy seeing me flustered!" Shuri and Natasha exchange looks before giggling again.

"We do." They say in unison as Maeve huffs, stomping her foot as her arms cross over her chest.

"It's only because we love you, Mae!" Natasha shouts as Maeve turns to stride out of the lab. "Maeve! Maeve come back!" Natasha calls as Maeve giggles, turning around to walk back in. "We'll stop. Okay?" Natasha smiles wider as soon as she sees Maeve walking back in with a fake pout.

"Indeed. My apologies." Shuri grins. "Perhaps you are glowing because you are just happier than you have been since before I've known you?" Maeve drops the pout to come hug her two friends.

"I feel very happy. I've got good friends, a nice home, and therapy is helping me a lot. I'm painting more, I'm writing more, I'm gardening more." She looks at Natasha. "Nat, I know I was so angry when you guys left me here before, but-"

"No apologies." Natasha says as she reaches up to push a burgundy lock from Maeve's bright blue eyes. "You're healthy and happy, that's all I want for you, sis."

"That and a good lay on occasion." Shuri pipes up, causing Natasha to throw her head back, laughing as Maeve turns bright pink.

"You said you'd stop!"

"My apologies, but you can't expect me to not take the opportunity lain before me!" Shuri giggles with her adorably toothy smile, and Maeve shakes her head. "Now, I will stop." She promises.

"Your promises aren't worth shit." Maeve jokes, causing Shuri to pretend to faint against the table in shock. The three of them laugh, continuing to joke around and chat until dinner in the palace, where Bucky and Steve join them once more. Once dinner is done and they all start towards the Quinjet, Maeve falls to the back of the group after tapping on Steve's shoulder.

"Yeah Doll?" He asks with bright eyes, his scruff is groomed but still not gone, she notes that she's getting a bit find of it. It suits him.

"Steve, you asked me-"

"It's a no isn't it?" He asks, cutting her off so she doesn't have to reiterate the conversation and her awkward explanation.

"It's just that, I don't feel that way for you, Stevie." She looks up at him as she fiddles with her fingers before her, rocking on her heels. "You're my brother, and one of my greatest friends. I never felt like that with you, and while that's the case, I don't want to lose what we have." Her eyes are pointed at the ground now, wavering with guilt that is visible for anyone to see. "I value our friendship more than anything, and if I lose you becau-"

"No no, stop Maeve." He grasps her shoulders, her eyes snap up to look at him. "There's no losing me. I love you, friend or more, and maybe some part of me is mistaking familial love for romantic, but I'm not leaving. You don't have to give a long speech, you don't have to worry about me badgering you, and you don't ever ever apologize for your feelings. I'm not going to guilt trip you for not liking me the way I like you. Yes, it hurts right now, and yes it will hurt for awhile, but I will not abandon you or our friendship because if this." Her eyes waver with tears as she throws her arms around his shoulders, hugging him as he wraps his arms around her, hugging her back as gently as he can.

"You're going find someone to replace this warm you feel, Steve. And that light of elation you hold for Peggy, that burns in your chest at the mere mention of her name, will be someone else's light as well. I promise. It's just not me." She whispers into his ear, before they pull apart, and Steve smiles down at her.

"You two okay?" Bucky calls as he steps back into look for them. She jerks away from Steve, wiping away a tear from her eye, and Steve chuckles.

"Yeah. Just clearing some stuff up." He shoves one hand in his pocket, throwing an arm over Bucky's shoulder as the two of them walk towards the Quinjet, and as she walks towards the landing platform, Natasha walks over to her.

"How'd it go?"

"I believe he took it rather well." Maeve answers, looking at the laughter on Steve's face, feeling his genuine content at having a response to his feelings, with just barely a hint of sadness. "Yeah," She smiles at him as he waves and smiles back. "really well."

Two weeks later, Shuri wanders over to the two person village, her Dora Milaje guard not far behind. She finds herself grinning from ear to ear as she knocks on the mutant woman's door, which is opened by none other than Bucky, instead of Maeve. "Shuri, what can we do for you?" Maeve's voice reaches just past Bucky's shoulder, the soldier that is stooped in the door way, steps back to let the little Wakandan princess in.

"I have managed to convince my brother, to let you visit your home with an armed guard." She announces to Maeve, who drops the spatula in her hand, looking at the princess with wide eyes, reflected with terror and happiness. "We will fly you to there, and back. You may stay for a week."

"Sh-Shuri." Maeve stammers out in surprise, her tone is choked, and Shuri becomes confused. "I-I haven't been home in... Years!" She struggles to swallow as Bucky walks over to rub a big and warm hand on her back. "To suddenly go back, and to see everyone, I-I-I can't-"

"You do not have to." Shuri says in understanding, but Maeve quickly shakes her head.

"No, I want to!"

"You will not be alone. Sergeant Barnes will be accompanying you, as the part of your armed guard." Shuri's explanation causes Bucky and Maeve to exchange worried looks. "As long as you remain within range of your Kimoyo beads, and do not stray far from the manor, you should be fine. Putting nobody in danger."

"Then, all I say is... How much time do I have to pack?" Maeve asks carefully, but Bucky can practically feel the terror radiating off of her.

"You leave midday tomorrow." Shuri nods as Maeve wraps her arms around Shuri in a tight squeeze, before they part and they princess leaves.

"You gonna be alright, Darlin'?" Bucky asks as she stares at the door blankly. "Maeve?" He asks slowly as waves a hand in front of her face, causing her to jump, snapping out of whatever was making her space out.

"Hmm?" She looks at him, then smiles. "Oh, yes. I'll be fine." She stoops down to grab the spatula from the floor, then walks over to the sink to wash it. "I'm a little nervous, but extremely happy to see everyone again, well... maybe not everyone." She dries the spatula and goes over to the stove to stir the fixings in the pan, grateful that the food didn't burn. "Besides, I did say I wanted to introduce you to my family." She grins at him, a beam of happiness and warmth seems to pierce him in the chest.

"I can't wait, Darlin'." He leans against the counter beside the stove, arms crossed over his chest. "Now you know my next question, right?" She sheepishly looks up at him as he raises an eyebrow at her. "You gonna be okay to see this Logan fellow?"

"No." She speaks honestly, barely letting the question leave Bucky's lips. "But, I'll have to be. I miss everyone else too much not to go see them." Bucky pats her on the head, tussling her hair slightly, making her snack his hand, using the handle of the spatula to jab him in the side, making him chuckle. "Dinner's almost finished. Go wash up." He gives a mock salute, turns on his heel, and marches off to her bathroom as they both laugh. After dinner, she spends most of the night packing, then tossing and turning into midday the next day. After the long flight, it's nearly midnight, making Bucky and Maeve both a bit tired as the ramp lowers, and the two of them strut down it with their bags in hand. As soon as they get inside the manor, the sound of screaming makes Bucky drop his bag, hand going for his nearest gun, when a small figure of green, brown, and white blurs past him, barrelling Maeve over in an instant, the Mutant woman starts laughing.

"Ah missed you! Ah missed you, so much!" The smaller figure, a petite girl Bucky realizes, is sobbing as she hugs Maeve in a way that makes sure their skin isn't touching at all. Bucky drops his stance to pick up his bag from the hardwood floor.

"I've missed you too, Rogue. But, uh, can we get off the floor?" Maeve asks as she chuckles, the petite girl, Rogue, sniffles as she leans back on her knees.

"Sorry, Mae." Bucky walks over to help Maeve up, before he offers his metal limb to Rogue, who looks at him carefully, with hazel eyes.

"It's Vibranium. You won't hurt me." Bucky says, remembering the multiple doting conversations that Maeve had about the southernbelle. "See?" He reaches uo to remove the glove, showing the black and gold metal limb, and Rogue gapes a bit, before taking the hand he offers her again. Once on her feet, there's a poof of smoke in the hall, the smell of sulfur and rotten eggs is cloying as he turns towards it, readying to fight.

"Geez, like, Kurt, we couldn't just walk to the kitchen?" A young woman's voice meets Bucky, surprised that a blue furry boy with a pronged tail, has an arm wrapped around a smaller girl's form, her hand is waving before her nose, as if to wave off the smell.

"Zorry, Kitty, it is ezay to forget zat it doesn't smell good in small spaces." The German accident from the blue boy makes Bucky raise an eyebrow in surprise.

"Hey, guys. Look who's here." Rogue says from behind him, causing the two bickering teens to turn, before the girl squeals, dashing across the hall, right through Bucky's chest, and then throws herself into Maeve's arms. The more than Bucky looks at the two of them, the more he knows who they are, especially with how the other girl when right through him. That must be Kitty.

"Maeve, it haz been forever!" The blue German boy disappears in a puff of smoke, reappearing behind Maeve with the same stench, wrapping her in a hug as well. That must be Kurt.

"How are all my ducklings?" Maeve inquires playfully as they all part, Kurt grabs her bag from her as Kitty jumps up and down in the hall.

"Like, totally psyched that you're back! What was it like? Did you get to work with Black Widow? Oh, is Captain America dreamy? I bet he's super dreamy!" Kitty rambles as Rogue tugs Maeve from the hall, Bucky follows behind diligently.

"The Professor wants to talk with you and your friend." Rogue says, giving Bucky a friendly smile as she opens a door nearby. The office is well lit, with warm light, the smell of old books and ink hangs in the air, and Bucky is surprised to find a bald man in a wheelchair behind a heavy oak desk.

"Ah, if it isn't our very own, Blitz." The man greets, a fatherly smile on his face as the teens leave the office, shutting the door behind them.

"Blitz?" Bucky asks teasingly, causing Maeve to sheepishly rub the back of her neck.

"Codename." She explains offhandedly, before walking over to round the desk, wrapping her arms around the old man's shoulders in a hug. "Hey, Professor." She finally greets as the man hugs her back, and Bucky nods in understanding. This was her Professor, Xavier.

"You may call me Charles if you prefer." Bucky jumps as the man refers to him, before remembering that he's a telepath like Maeve. "Though not as powerful as her, thanks to her Empathy."

"Charlie," Maeve says sheepishly as she rounds to tug Bucky further into the office, the two of them sit before the desk in matching chairs, bags at their feet. "I feel like I'm in classes again, sitting in these chairs."

"You were a bright pupil. Which makes what happened to you, all the more saddening, that I never got to see you teach those you loved."

"Teach?" Bucky looks at Maeve again.

"I wanted to teach students after graduating. But, all that happened-" She shakes her head, looking up at Xavier. "I'm assuming that isn't just a simple visit, is it?" Bucky sits up straighter in the chair, hearing the firm tone in her voice.

"I'm afraid not, my dear. The past few months, Logan and Storm have been tracking a mutant with a... unique set of abilities." Xavier folds his hands before him on the desk, looking her in the eye. "As unique set of abilities as the combination of your own."

"What?" She gapes at the Professor as Bucky glances between the two of them. "Is it-"

"We are unsure. But, when Logan managed to catch her at one point, she was injured. The blood on his uniform gave us enough DNA to run a comparison. Maeve," Xavier looks down for a moment, as if processing how to explain the news. "the chromosomes are very similar. I believe that this is your biological mother." Bucky watches as the blood drains from Maeve's face, making him worry as he shifts in his seat.

"Wh-Why's that a problem?" Bucky finally inquires, making Maeve jerk in her seat, as if she forgot he was there.

"My biological parents were presumed dead after their house caught fire. I wasn't but a couple of weeks old, and the fire department was able to rescue me, but everywhere else was inaccessible because it was collapsing." She looks out the window, studying the familiar terrain of the land. "This means that all this time, my mother was-" She let's out a shaky breath. "and she just left me?"

"Darlin'," Bucky is out of his seat, squatting before her chair, taking her hands in his own. "you don't know that for sure. Maybe she wasn't aware you were alive, just like you weren't aware she was."

"But, she left me, Bucky." He reaches up to caress her cheek, wiping away a stray tear with a warm thumb.

"We'll figure out what happened." He promises, leaving her unable to do anything but nod.

"I didn't mean to upset you, my dear. But, you deserved to know the truth. I believe that we've kept too many secrets that have come to light I the wrong ways. I've much to do to reearn that trust you placed in me, that I lost." Xavier clears his throat, sounding surprisingly emotional, from what Bucky's heard, the man is often as emotional as a rock. "I will be here if you need to talk, for now, there is someone else dying to see you." As Maeve and Bucky both stand, the door to the office is thrown open, slamming against the wall like a powerful hurricane has hit it, and an african-american woman with snow-white locks walks in, eyes bright as she smiles, even her teeth are like sparkling snowflakes.

"Storm." Maeve is shaking as tears build in her eyes, before the two women meet each other half way, hugging so tight, it could practically rival the woman's hugs with Natasha.

"Blitz, I have missed you so." Storm's voice is like a cool wind, sweeping through like a breeze kissing balmy skin, and all Bucky can do is smile at the two of them. In the short time here, she's already changed. As part of the Avengers that he saw, she was often out into a little sister like roll, everyone being older than the burgundy haired young woman. But here, she's like a doting aunt and mom, and a sister in different respects. Bucky thinks he likes both equally.

"I'm sorry, it's taken me so long to come back." Maeve murmurs as she quakes in the older woman's arms, Storm presses a kiss to the crown of her hair, pulling away to cup Maeve's face in her hands, looking into her eyes.

"Never apologize for doing what you think is best for you." She pets Maeve's hair, before kissing her forehead. "Now come, you and your," She glances at Bucky, who is decked out in all black tactical gear, weapons in almost every accessable part if his body. "companion, you always did like the dangerous ones, must be tired. I'll show you to your rooms." Maeve blushes but nods as she walks over to grab her bag, but Bucky's already hefting the duffle over his shoulder, and the two of them are following Storm down the hall. It isn't long to see that Storm is leading her to her old room, the one that she had before she shared with Logan, which in passing his room, she notices the slash marks in an X in the wood door, making her frown as she follows Storm along the old teacher's corridor. "Hank and I prepared your old room as soon as we heard you were returning. I'm afraid that we can only provide a cot in there for your company."

"That's fine." Bucky answers softly, causing Storm to look over her shoulder at him, studying him for a moment, before stopping and opening the nearby door. The minute Bucky steps into this room, he can smell the stagnant scent of Maeve everywhere, as though it's seeped into the furniture and walls and floor. Seeing as she wasn't very old when she had this room, she had explained that the student's rooms were all full up when she came, so they placed her in the room as even a teen, he's unsurprised that the walls are covered in posters, though he was thinking more boy bands and less... 40's and 50's themed dancing posters. The walls are a light red, the carpet is a rich cream, and there's a fireplace roaring to fill the slightly cold room with heat. After so long in a place that only has heat and rain, he'd forgotten that it would be snowing in New York, and so had Maeve, it was getting close to Thanksgiving.

There's a cot close to the bathroom, which Bucky doesn't hesitate to walk over to, throwing himself on it in exhaustion. The two women giggle as the watch him. "So much for being an armed guard." Maeve teases as he lifts his head to look at her with narrowed eyes, before he sticks his tongue out at her, making the two women laugh once again as his head falls right back into the pillow and blanket on the cot. "I suppose you deserve a break, Bucky." She looks at Storm, whose whole body is turned toward her, her brown eyes are bright with a gleam, and a smile on her face.

"It is good to see you smiling again. When you left, you would not look at anyone. I felt so saddened that I could not help you." Storm rests a hand on Maeve's shoulder, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Good night, dear sister."

"Good night, Storm." Maeve bids as the woman walks out, closing the door behind her, and Maeve changes out of her tactical gear in the bathroom, the full body leather suit had done little against the cold, but it was a force of habit to travel in it, incase of an attack. When she's changed into her too large plaid button down shirt and sleeping shorts, she leaves the bathroom to let Bucky in. He mumbles about a shower before bed, causing her to laugh as the door closes behind him, and as she's turning down her sheets, a loud rap on the door sounds. The sound is clue enough to who it is, making her palms sweat as she glances at the bathroom door, before crossing to the bedroom door, and slowly she opens it. Logan's demeanor hasn't changed, not that she had expected to, his hulking frame fills the doorway, his whiskey eyes are burning, his knuckles white with his fists clenched, he exudes his barely concealed rage as he looks at her. "Logan." It's one word, his name, steady despite her shaking.

"Maeve." Those whiskey eyes are burning into her, scorching as he looks her up and down, making her feel like a piece of meat, rather than safe as his gaze used to make her feel. "You left."

"You didn't come after me." She replies just as evenly.

"Didn't know you wanted me to."

"I didn't." He flinches at her cold honesty, as though he's been struck. "Logan, I hate you." She looks into his eyes with cold and calculated ruthlessness. "I hate you. You make think you have a right to be mad at me, but you haven't got any such right. You broke me. I can't stand the mere sight of you, right now. All I want to do is curl up, and hide until you leave. But, I can't do that." He takes a shaking breath, anger and sadness tinges his air, but she shakes her head. "You don't get to be angry, or sad, or anything towards me. There was never a "we" or an "us" Logan. It was just Jean. Always Jean. And then you didn't even care when Magneto-" Her voice breaks as she quivers in her place, eyes hazy with unshed tears. "I tried to kill myself, Logan. But, all you cared about what that Jean was alive. Then she died again, and you still didn't care that I was broken. The minute I started to feel again, you were gone. You ran away, not because of me, but because of fucking Jean." He swallows thickly as she reaches up to wipe her eyes. "Always Jean. So, yes I left. I wasn't going to wait for you again. Our relationship was over the minute I started, because you never loved me, you never cared more than sex." She sniffles as she looks up at him. "So, consider this the official break up. I fucking hate you, Logan. I deserve to be happy, and let's face it, you were never going to give it to me. Good-bye." She slams the door in the man's face, before turning to lean against the wood, sliding down it as she rubs her eyes with the palms of her hands, composing herself.

"I didn't mean to eavesdrop. Sound kinda travels in here." She looks up to see Bucky, dressed for bed, leaning against the doorway of the bathroom.

"That's always the disadvantage here. Old walls equal thin walls." She says un a surprisingly even voice. "Likely everyone else awake heard my speech too."

"Must make having sex seem like an orgy." Bucky chuckles, making her let out a weak laugh, before his smile falls as he pushes off the doorway. "You gonna be okay?" He asks, walking towards her.

"I don't know." He helps her to her feet, watching as she takes a deep breath of air, as if breathing fresh air for the first time in a long time. "Yes." She finally answers, letting the air out. "I'll be perfectly fine."

#james buchanan barnes #bucky barnes x reader wakanda #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x artist reader #avengers mini series #avengers series #avengers x reader #Avengers Series Part Six

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commentaryvorg · 4 years

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Danganronpa V3 Commentary: Part 6.8

Be aware that this is not a blind playthrough! This will contain spoilers for the entire game, regardless of the part of the game I’m commenting on. A major focus of this commentary is to talk about all of the hints and foreshadowing of events that are going to happen and facts that are going to be revealed in the future of the story. It is emphatically not intended for someone experiencing the game for their first time.

Last time, as trial 6 began to get crazy, the audience reared their ugly heads but with only vague hints of their terribleness so far, Danganronpa might possibly be on its last legs already, Tsumugi and the audience spent way too long babbling about their fandom while ignoring the actual characters and story they’re supposed to be here for, Flashback Lights had to be able to create the personalities and talents of everyone here because that’s just necessary for this story’s premise, and Tsumugi started insisting this means that nobody here is real in any sense at all, which is utter bullshit that would have been immediately and comprehensively shut down by Kaito’s wonderful convictions and belief if only he were still here.

…But since Kaito’s not here, this is starting to work on Shuichi.

“Akane”: “Isn’t this what you all wanted!?”

Keebo: “…We wanted this?”

“Leon”: “Yeah, you wouldn’t remember, but you guys were all from the outside world.”

Yes, they don’t remember, which means that they never wanted this! Just like how the Gonta who was executed for murder never meaningfully wanted to kill anyone, because he didn’t remember wanting it!

Also, all technicalities aside, Keebo definitely never wanted this, since there was never a previous owner of his body at all.

Pregame Shuichi: “Number 154… My name is ****”

Pregame Shuichi’s name is redacted here, which suggests that he maybe wasn’t even called Shuichi Saihara. Since they’re creating entirely new characters, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to give them new names as well, after all.

…Except that we the players saw in the prologue that at least Kaede and Shuichi had the same names, so apparently not. But even though it’s kind of awkward that they did keep their names, that’s something else we can just put down to the fact that it had to be this way, otherwise the prologue would have been massive spoilers. As it is, the prologue is designed to reasonably make sense once we learn about how they supposedly wiped their memories of their talents when fleeing the Ultimate Hunt, even though that’s not actually what was going on there after all. If Kaede and Shuichi had had completely different names before the reset, it would have given way too many pointers towards the real truth.

Redacting the auditionees’ names in these recordings, then, rather than being a hint that their names were different, was likely just down to the producers having to protect their identities in case they didn’t get chosen.

These recordings could have been faked by Tsumugi in her lab during this chapter’s investigation, sure, because she’s a freaking shapeshifter and the stupid cospox thing should not be taken as evidence against anything. But if she did that, it would have made more sense for her to not redact the name, to further drive home the idea that this is you, Shuichi, and the person you think you are is just a lie. So the fact that the name is redacted supports the video being real.

Pregame Shuichi: “I promise, if I get selected… I will work as hard as I can!”

No, if you get selected, you will very quickly stop existing. Did nobody tell you that? It… it seems nobody told them that.

Consider that this season is the first time the fourth wall has ever been broken and the process behind creating characters revealed for everyone to see. Without knowing about that, it’s somewhat reasonable that the audience might not realise that characters are created entirely from scratch each time. They might assume instead that the existing auditionees’ personalities are kept mostly intact and just modified to give them talents. So pregame Shuichi here is expecting to still be himself, just with added super detective powers.

It’s also a little odd that the audience doesn’t wonder why the characters they’ve watched in every Danganronpa series never once mentioned that they’re in Danganronpa. Perhaps the general assumption of the audience is that everyone is always somewhat acting because they want to put on a good show, and that the personalities of the characters they see really are lies to some extent?

Of course, random auditionees can’t necessarily be trusted not to break character (especially not when people are dying), and it certainly wouldn’t make a very good killing game if it were full of people super excited to be in a killing game, since that rather defeats the whole point of them fighting to survive and not kill each other. So obviously all the characters very much do need to be written entirely from scratch.

It is admittedly a little odd that these auditionees explicitly haven’t managed to figure this out. However, the people who’d want to audition would be a very specific subset of people who, A, kind of hate their lives and don’t mind throwing them away to be on Danganronpa, and/or B, probably quite like the idea of killing someone creatively in order to get famous. Anyone who’s already a kind, decent and caring sort of person like the characters who’ve actually been in this killing game (well, most of them) would never want to audition in the first place. So maybe that’s why the auditionees don’t question it, because the kind of person who’d audition is inherently the kind of person who misses the point of what really makes an entertaining killing game?

…I am definitely overthinking this, because as we’re going to see in due time, apparently the entire fucking audience misses the point, meaning that these auditionees are actually no more unrealistic than the rest of those morons out there. Think of this as more of a hypothetical: if the audience had been written better, this is how the auditionees could then be somewhat plausible. Though to be fair it would also be easier to just rewrite these bits to have the auditionees be fully aware that they’ll stop existing if they’re chosen, and/or to still hate their own lives but want to become the kind of heroes triumphing in the face of despair or at least dying for the sake of hope that Danganronpa is supposed to be about.

Pregame Shuichi: “I will come up with the best, most gruesome murders, I promise! Everyone will love it!”

This should not be what everyone is watching for! Creative murders that make for an interesting puzzle in a class trial, sure, but gruesome murders are emphatically not the point of Danganronpa. If all the audience wanted was to see people dying horribly, there would be no reason to even make it a game and have the class trials! Nor would there be any point in the whole hope-versus-despair thing, which we’re sure going to be fervently told is totally the whole point later on.

Pregame Shuichi: “And an Ultimate Detective hasn’t been the blackened yet, so I’m sure I can do that!”

It’s honestly kind of surprising none of the writers ever thought of that throughout all fifty-three seasons. And that this didn’t make them think “huh, that would be a novel plot twist, why don’t we do that with this guy?”.

Shuichi: “… Wh-What… was that…?”

It wasn’t you, Shuichi. It was your body and your voice, but that’s all.

Shuichi: “N-No… it can’t be! I’d never say something like—”

Monokuma: “You wouldn’t say that now, but this is you before you became who you are now.”

In other words, it wasn’t him! Monokuma is straight-up agreeing with Shuichi that he wouldn’t say that, because the person in the video was a different person than him! So it doesn’t matter one bit what that creep in the video said. It’s not relevant to the person standing here.

I gather that there’s a proportion of the fandom that believes these videos were faked. Since there’s only the vague possibility of that but no explicit proof of it, I imagine that the biggest reason people believe this is simply out of not wanting to believe the videos are real, because they feel it compromises the characters they love if they were “really” these varying flavours of murdery asshole. I totally understand that feeling – god, the entire story would fall apart if Shuichi, Kaede and Kaito weren’t actually who they seemed to be – but… the videos don’t actually create that issue to begin with. Monokuma outright says here that the people they were before the Flashback Lights are not the same people that they are now. The videos don’t have to be faked for Shuichi and his friends’ characters to not be compromised by them – they never were in the first place.

It’s also relevant that Monokuma is the one to clarify this. While he and Tsumugi have kind of been interchangeable exposition machines for a while, Tsumugi is currently very pointedly trying to make Shuichi and his friends fall into despair by hammering home how fake their existences supposedly are. Since she would never say this, because it’s the complete opposite of what she’s trying to achieve, Monokuma has to be the one to point it out.

Tsumugi: “When we saw your audition tape, we had a flash of inspiration. The weakest Ultimate Detective ever… Wouldn’t it be great to see him grow?”

I’m really not sure why that audition tape gave them this idea in particular. Sure he seemed a bit awkward, but mostly just creepily murder-happy, which isn’t exactly what you want in a hero. Still, however they got the idea… it was a good call. Shuichi’s character arc has been great.

Of course, they also decided it’d be totally necessary to sacrifice a perfectly good pianist and astronaut for the sake of this storyline. Which was also a great story, but much less intentionally on their part.

Pregame Shuichi: “You mean… we were selected!?”

Pregame Kaito: “We got picked!? Really!? Alright!”

Pregame Kaede: “Wh-Whoa, really!? I’m selected for it, too!?”

We get shown this flashback to what apparently happened in the prologue as soon as they heard the words “killing game”. And yes, sure, we the out-universe audience never saw this part back then – but of course we didn’t. It would have been a gigantic spoiler. The game has not been averse to omitting certain things to prevent spoilers, like it also did with Kaede’s crime. We have precedent for the game lying to us, but only by omission. This is a somewhat bigger lie of omission than for Kaede, but it’s still much more reasonable to accept that the game hid a minute or two of conversation that did happen, rather than that it showed us an entire half-hour or so of events that didn’t happen.

Shuichi: “We really… said that?”

Shuichi’s response here also suggests he may well have just actually watched footage of this – the game used its usual flashback format to show us this, but that’s just because it’d be the easiest way to do that. If they did see footage of that, it cannot be faked. Tsumugi may be a shapeshifter, but she’s only one person.

“Fuyuhiko”: “The people you used to be are gone. You’re fictional characters now.”

Yes, they’re gone, so it doesn’t matter what kind of people they were! That video you just showed Shuichi means nothing about who he is now!

“Hiro”: “So you got nowhere to return! All that stuff’s fiction, too!”

Himiko: “Th-Then… my friends and family… My whole life before coming here…”

This is a legitimate thing for them to be upset about, though. It’s going to be so weird and difficult for them to come to terms with that as they start living normal lives once they’ve escaped: the idea that everything and everyone they expect to exist out there just doesn’t. They’re essentially going to have to treat it like all those people just died, and grieve for them, because they felt real to them until now.

(Himiko’s still not mentioning her master though and I am sad about that.)

“Mahiru”: “The only place we fictional characters can live is in this fictional world. Only in this world. Only in Danganronpa.”

Maki: “Only… in this world?”

Not for you, Maki! The outside world is better for you than the fictional world you thought you came from; there’s nobody forcing you to kill anyone out there! At least learning that her backstory is a lie shouldn’t be so bad for Maki, especially because her best friend who might have been the one person she’d be looking forward to seeing again was already dead. The orphanage doesn’t exist either, but her relationship with the rest of the kids there was probably less personal; at least this means there’s no orphanage of kids who will starve if she doesn’t keep killing people.

Tsumugi: “You’re all fictional characters created to kill each other. It’s what the world wants. That’s why… there’s nowhere to run.”

This is also a legitimate concern. However real they may actually be, all the assholes out there apparently don’t acknowledge that, so they’ll be escaping into a world that isn’t even going to see them as people.

Himiko: “E-Enough… I don’t want to know anything else! I’ve had enough!”

Tsumugi: “Ah! That reaction…!”

“Junko”: “Could it be… you fell into despair?”

Even if she did, Himiko’s still expressing her pain very openly rather than the empty, listless despair it could have been. Tenko would still be proud of her! …Though how you fall into despair is maybe not the best thing to be proud over.

“Makoto”: “It’s times like these you need to look to your friends for support.”

“Hifumi”: “However, all your friends are fictional, too.”

Clearly this isn’t enough despair for Tsumugi yet, though, because she’s about to go for where it really hurts. This is, of course, all bullshit, as their friends are exactly as fictional as they are – that is, not meaningfully fictional at all – but since they’re all dead it’s going to be harder to prove her wrong about that.

“Mikan”: “For example… even Kaito’s illness was given to him as part of his character.”

In other words: you murdered Kaito, you fucking murderer. You gave him the most slow and painful death that any Danganronpa character has ever had to go through. The fact that him having the illness was scripted does not for a second mean that his pain wasn’t very, very real. Is Tsumugi ever going to properly acknowledge this and take responsibility for his suffering and death? Of course not.

I’m kind of sad that neither Maki nor Shuichi ever properly pick up on this and get appropriately angry at her for doing that to him, now that they know that Kaito’s death wasn’t really the unfortunate but natural death it seemed to be. I suppose it’s because they’re being too shaken by the “not real” bullshit right now to be able to properly hold onto the fact that Kaito’s death still really mattered and is still very worth getting worked up about.

Tsumugi: “I was the one who came up with that plotline and gave him that virus.”

I mean, sure, you came up with the “Kaito dies from a virus” plotline. The entire delightful character arc that Kaito went through as a result of that? I highly, highly fucking doubt you had even the slightest inkling that any of that would happen.

(Also look at her still not properly admitting that she killed him.)

Tsumugi: “I was also the one who came up with the plotline where you fell for Kaito.”

Nope. I’m calling complete bullshit on this one.

See, I don’t think Kaito was even necessarily meant to make Maki into his sidekick in the first place. Making Shuichi into his sidekick – sure, that was definitely planned as part of Shuichi’s arc that Tsumugi just mentioned. But Maki seems more to me like her intended purpose in the story, in-universely, was to kill someone because of her tragic backstory as an assassin. She could very easily have been the murderer in chapter 2 if she’d seen her own motive video like they were all supposed to. And while Shuichi is very noticeably weak in the normal sense of the word and therefore someone whom it’s easy to imagine Kaito would want to take under his wing, describing Maki’s problems as “weakness” is a lot less natural. It probably didn’t even occur to the in-universe writers that Maki was weak in the way they’d expect Kaito to do something about. Yet Kaito saw her weakness and chose to help her anyway, because he was more real than they were thinking of him as when they scripted out expected interactions between their planned characters.

So the idea that they’d give Maki an artificial crush on Kaito when they never even should have expected them to interact all that much in the first place seems very unlikely.

Then there’s the part where Maki’s crush on Kaito doesn’t feel artificial and arbitrary at all. Tenko’s crush on Himiko? Now that I can buy was something planned from the start, especially since she had it from the start. She mentions in her FTEs with Kaede that she really admires performers and that’s why she likes Himiko so much, but that alone should have made her even more into Kaede, who behaved much more like a performer than Himiko did at first. So apparently Tenko also just had a particular thing for cute little magical girls, which could therefore very believably have been written into her. But there’s never any sense that Maki was written with an inexplicable thing for larger-than-life space doofuses. And as I talked about with much satisfaction when Maki confessed her feelings, the focus was on the friendship she had with Kaito – the friendship that Tsumugi likely didn’t even expect to happen in the first place. Her feelings grew from that friendship over her time with him and did not exist to begin with – she said she “fell for” him, not that she was always in love with him. So no, Maki’s feelings for Kaito were entirely something that happened on their own and were not planned.

Himiko: “Then, what about Tenko? Was she always defending me because—”

But even for feelings that were almost certainly scripted, that doesn’t really matter on the whole either. Tenko still genuinely cared about Himiko as a result of her crush, regardless of whether that’s what the writers wanted of her. She didn’t know she was following someone’s script. And Kaito supporting Shuichi may have also been scripted, but that doesn’t invalidate how much he cared either, nor make his support of Shuichi any different to his support of Maki just because one was scripted and one probably wasn’t.

“Kazuichi”: “Because that was her character. It’s the same for me, too.”

(Excuse me, there was plenty more to Kazuichi’s character than just his pathetic crush on Sonia, please and thank you.)

Maki: “Y-You’re telling us… this is all a lie? Even… my feelings…? Are you saying even *those* were lies!?”

However, this is really getting to Maki, exactly like Tsumugi wants it to. And this isn’t about Maki having put her romantic feelings on a pedestal and being upset because romantic love is totally superior to platonic love. It’s because, like I talked about back when she confessed, these feelings were supposed to finally be something that was her own. Something she’d come to feel entirely by herself, without anyone else, not even Kaito, telling her to or wanting her to, without anyone moulding her to be this way. But because she’s so used to the idea that all she ever is is a puppet for someone else’s whims, she’s much more liable to believe Tsumugi’s claim without questioning it. She doesn’t have enough confidence in her own feelings yet to be able to try and stand up for them like other people (like especially Kaito himself) would. Turns out nothing was her own after all, her feelings and desires really didn’t ever matter, and she’s only ever going to be controlled by people with far more power than her who don’t care about her at all. This is not specifically about romantic love and is really Maki being hit right in the issues that she’d finally been getting somewhere with.

(Though I kind of doubt Tsumugi realises that she’s targeting Maki’s issues so directly with this. She’s probably just saying this because to her this is all about romantic love which is obviously the most importantest bestest kind of love ever and so Maki must be sooo sad to think it’s all fake, right?)

And if Maki’s feelings towards Kaito had never turned romantic? Tsumugi wouldn’t be able to claim this at all. “Oh, hey, the fact that you see this person as your friend and care about them because of everything they’ve done for you? Yeah, those feelings are fake, they don’t mean anything, I made you feel that way, you don’t really care about them and all the things they did for you at all.” Doesn’t work, does it? Because feelings of friendship cannot come out of nowhere like romantic ones sometimes can. Which is why, in an out-universe sense, Maki’s feelings did need to be partly romantic for this to work. And it’s also why Tsumugi can’t take quite the same approach with Shuichi, even though his friendship with Kaito actually was scripted, because Shuichi’s actual platonic feelings there would have naturally arisen thanks to Kaito’s actions and were therefore very obviously not artificially induced.

Tsumugi: “Well, if you’re going to call fiction a lie… then yes.”

Fiction is technically a lie in the sense that it’s something untrue, but it’s otherwise quite different from lies in that it’s not meant to deceive anyone. Everyone consuming fiction knows that it’s untrue and just enjoys being able to suspend their disbelief and pretend that it’s true for little bit anyway.

That said, Maki’s feelings for Kaito, and her existence as Maki the Ultimate Child Caregiver/Assassin, and everyone else’s existences, are neither a lie nor fiction in the first place.

Tsumugi: “Everything in this world has a writing credit. All our words and actions…”

No, they don’t! You are not scripting every single word that has been coming out of everyone’s mouths! There were some events that the writers managed to influence, sure, and those can be considered to have a writing credit. But not even remotely all of it. And not most of the best parts, for that matter.

Tsumugi: “…are just a bunch of lies.”

They’re not lies if the person saying so doesn’t know it’s not true! Gonta was not lying when he said he didn’t kill Miu, nor was he lying when he said he was raised by a race from a decades-old videogame. Nor was anyone lying when they did or said anything that they believed was the truth from those memories they were given.

Tsumugi: “Even that thing Kaede said that moved Shuichi’s heart…”

Shuichi: “…What?”

…

Kaede: “I believe in you, so you should definitely believe in yourself!”

…

Tsumugi: “That was a lie! Cuz the real Kaede said…”

Pregame Kaede: “I’m perfect for a killing game. I don’t have any faith in humanity.”

The Kaede who said she believed in Shuichi was not lying and was no less real than the other one. Tsumugi is conveniently avoiding talking about the part where they’re completely different people (something Monokuma has already established) so that she can try and give the impression that our pianist Kaede was obviously completely insincere and knowingly lying and following a script.

Also, remember the very first post of this commentary where I made note of pregame Kaede talking about how rotten the world is? Yeah, that matches this quite well. And the thing is, Tsumugi probably doesn’t even know that pregame Kaede made that comment, and even if she does it’s not like she’d care to make an effort to match it, because Shuichi isn’t going to remember that. That match is something that’s only there for the out-universe audience to pick up on. So if Tsumugi did fake this video, it sure is an oddly specific coincidence that pregame Kaede’s words match so well. As such, it makes a lot more sense to me to assume that this video is real.

Why did pregame Kaede even think that having no faith in humanity made her perfect for this, though??? Does she not realise that obviously the kind of person who makes the killing game interesting is someone who does believe in people and has that belief battered and tested as they watch their friends kill each other? But as frustrating as this is, again, someone who did realise that wouldn’t be the kind of person who’d ever want to audition in the first place.

…And, again, the entire audience are going to turn out to be assholes who completely miss the point, so all complaints about the auditionees’ attitudes should just be lumped in with complaints about that, of which I will be having plenty soon enough. Practically everything wrong with this chapter boils down to how badly-written the audience is.

Tsumugi: “And who could forget Kaito’s inspiring line?”

…

Kaito: “Don’t forget! The impossible is possible! All you gotta do is make it so!”

…I can accept that this line of Kaito’s might have been scripted. He said it a few times, like it’s a phrase he just liked to say a lot, even in his backstory (maybe to his former sidekicks), so this was probably written into him. But that does not matter. He had no idea he was following anyone’s script and said it for his own reasons while meaning every word of it.

Uggghhhh look at this absolute asshole here. There is nothing in this world that can ever convince me that this was, in any meaningful way, the same person as our heroic Luminary of the Stars who supported his friends with everything he had and selflessly put himself through untold extra pain because he was convinced that doing otherwise would let everyone down. But I do appreciate the painful jarringness of how completely opposite pregame Kaito was to the Kaito we’ve come to know and love, at least.

And it also matches quite well with the face we saw pregame Kaito making when they arrived in the gym, again back in the very first post of this commentary. That was not a situation in which Tsumugi could have been faking it, and you can’t convince me that that was ever the same person as our Kaito, either.

Pregame Kaito: “I’m not just gonna be in Danganronpa, I’m gonna kill everybody and win!”

That’s not even how it works! Pretty soon it’s going to be made apparent that everything always ended with hope winning, so a blackened has never managed to kill everybody and win, and if they did, that wouldn’t make a very entertaining story! (Grumble grumble unrealistic asshole audience, please file these complaints with the rest that will be coming later. Such complaints about the auditionees certainly shouldn’t be taken as evidence of the videos being faked, because the rest of the asshole audience that we see very definitely exists.)

It does seem that the in-universe writers might have got the idea for Kaito’s reckless stubbornness and inability to accept the possibility of failure from this person here, who is brazenly refusing to acknowledge the extremely high chance that he’ll just end up dead.

Pregame Kaito: “Once I’ve got fame and fortune, I don’t gotta worry about what’s impossible.”

But evidently this dude was also just a selfish asshole who didn’t give a fuck about anybody else and was quite happy to slaughter a bunch of people just to get what he wanted. The absolute least Kaito he could possibly be in all the most important ways. It’s an insult to Kaito that this guy shared his name and appearance.

(If Kaito were alive and seeing this video? It’d barely shake him at all. He’d just go, “Well, that’s not me,” in the most straightforward, isn’t-it-obvious tone of voice ever, and that’d be that. His conviction in who he is would be far too strong for this to get to him like it’s getting to the others.)

Tsumugi: “Every single thing that has happened in this killing game… is a lie!”

Shuichi: (It’s all… a lie?)

Unfortunately, while Tsumugi is quite obviously lying if you think about it for even a few seconds, Shuichi can’t see that.

Shuichi: (The reason we’re all here right now is because of them… Because of them… I was able to change. That’s why I was trying to live for them, too… I was trying so hard to stay positive… But… if even that’s a lie…)

It’s no coincidence that Tsumugi chose specifically Kaede and Kaito to do this for, because they were the people Shuichi depended on the most for his strength and confidence. Even though they’re not here any more, he’s still so dependent on the memories of who they were, to the point that upon hearing that they never existed, seeing supposed “proof” of that, he loses the strength to even question it. It just breaks him.

Since Tsumugi actually wrote the gist of Shuichi’s character arc, including the part where he came to rely on both Kaede and Kaito, she might at least have a reasonably good idea of what she’s doing this time. The thought that’d hurt Shuichi the most isn’t the supposed loss of his own feelings, like with Maki, but rather the supposed loss of his friends’ feelings and support towards him.

If Kaito and Kaede were only still here, they’d both be doing everything they could to reassure Shuichi that what Tsumugi’s saying doesn’t matter. Even if their support of him was scripted and planned, it doesn’t change the fact that that feeling of wanting to help him was real to them and not a lie they’d never have done anything else even if they’d known the mastermind wanted them to do this. But… they’re not here any more. So it’s heartbreakingly easy for Shuichi to forget how real and genuine their support felt when it was happening, now that they’ve faded into memories. Especially now that he’s learned that most of his memories were entirely fake to begin with, giving him the sense that he can’t trust anything that he thought he knew and believed was real.

I really love the way the game shows a collage of illustrations of Shuichi being inspired by both Kaede and Kaito, and then just makes them twist and swirl into nothingness, reflecting exactly what’s happening with Shuichi’s perception of them. And all his strength came from them, so if he didn’t ever really have them… he had nothing, right?

(Also Heartless Journey is playing and I am rather giving myself some sads here.)

Shuichi: “… Why… am I here? Why did I even survive this long?”

Shuichi’s had his exhausted-looking sprite for a while here. It’s especially fitting in this moment, considering where his mind was at when we saw him looking like this last chapter, and the fact that he’s been driven to wondering what was even the point of him surviving. Noooo, Shuichi.

“Hajime”: “This is fiction. There is no greater meaning.”

Shuichi wasn’t chosen to be the hero and survive until the end like this just by meaningless random chance, though. It was because the story of someone weak like him overcoming his weakness and growing stronger despite all his struggles is a meaningful story that can inspire people.

However, the fact that Tsumugi seems to genuinely believe that there’s nothing meaningful to fiction is going to be her downfall. Really, it was a bad move for her to even reveal to everyone that they are fictional, because that’s going to allow Shuichi to protest against this sick practice and end not just this game but all of them. But Tsumugi probably didn’t even realise what a risk that was, because it apparently doesn’t occur to her that there could be more to them being fictional and that they could even do anything but despair over its meaninglessness.

“Junko”: “How ‘bout that? You in despair yet? It will be troublesome for us if you don’t despair under our rule.”

Yep, that’s exactly why Tsumugi has been doing all this. If she can get everyone to despair, then Keebo will come swooping in with his hope robot powers and the audience will still get a story they want, despite how very off-script things have gotten. That’s why she’s been telling such blatant lies about how fictional everyone supposedly is.

(Also, her “Junko” has been switching personalities a lot more lately. I guess that’s just to match with the switching personalities in general, or perhaps to be more of a direct callback to the first game than she was earlier now that literally everything else she’s doing is callbacks.)

“Junko”: “Viewers flock to see your despair. That’s why all those people out there look sooo happy! See!?”

“Shuichi’s reaction LOL”

“LOL the face of despair.”

“Mmm, Shuichi’s despair <3”

“despair taaaimu!”

“You’re all in despair LOL”

“S-tier despair!”

Aaaaaand right about here is where the outside world just completely stops being recognisable human beings in any shape or form. This here is a general grab bag of some of the things that are being said, none of which is remotely like how any actual person should react to seeing a fictional character’s despair.

Yes, I have also been enjoying Shuichi’s despair this whole time. But I’ve been enjoying it in the sense that it’s been making me empathise with him and feel his pain. It makes me desperately want to reach into the screen to encourage him and help him in any way I can even though I know that’s not possible because this is how the story goes. If I was reacting in this completely detached, alien, “hurr durr lol despair” way that doesn’t seem to even remotely care about the characters themselves, that’d be the story failing to do its job properly!

Where was that person from near the beginning who was cheering “You can do it, Shuichi!”? They should still be cheering him on, trying to tell him that his friends weren’t all lies and neither is he and he can still do this if he doesn’t give up! The whole point of despair in these Danganronpa narratives is supposed to be so that people can root for hope to overcome it!

…It’s worthwhile to mention that there’s a good chance these comments are deliberately cherry-picked to be the ones most gleeful over the despair, since the hope fans are soon going to start showing up in droves, but even so, geez, these people. Have some fucking empathy.

(Though next time we will also see that the rest of the audience who are rooting for hope aren’t really doing so in a way that involves empathising with and caring about Shuichi’s pain either, so, eh.)

Shuichi: “Is this what the outside world wants? Is this what they want from us?”

It makes sense that this would be what they want from a character they’re insisting on seeing as fictional, but it does not make sense that they would want it for this purpose! Almost nobody should ever want it like this!

Monokuma: “Well, yelling for help is useless for fictional characters anyway. It makes the viewers even more depraved and obsessed when they feel sorry for you.”

Yes! Feeling sorry for them, that’s the point! This is the closest anything in this narrative ever gets to talking about the actual reason why watching fictional characters suffer is enjoyable – because it makes you care about them more, it makes you want to engage with the story more in your in-universe desire to see them overcome it and feel better, it makes the story have more of an effect on you! “Depraved” is a really uncharitable word for this – although maybe that’s more specifically for this context where they’re actually watching this happen to real people, in which case, yes it very much is.

Monokuma: “They watch, knowing that they shouldn’t, just to revel in the depravity of it all.”

The “knowing that they shouldn’t” part is after all something that only applies to watching real people die. Nobody in the actual real world should feel guilty for enjoying Danganronpa games because characters die in them – that’s the point. Nor should anyone feel guilty for enjoying any fiction where bad things happen, because that’s one of the main ways to create conflict, which is one of the driving forces of a story. If the narrative presents the bad things in a way that implies they’re okay to do in the real world, that’s another matter – but bad things happening in and of themselves do not make a fiction wrong to enjoy.

Shuichi: “It’s all a lie… isn’t it? Me… Everyone here… Everyone who died…”

Their deaths were not lies, Shuichi!

Shuichi: “I can’t fight… for a lie, can I?”

You thought it was worth fighting for before you knew it was a “lie”! Why should the fact that she’s calling it that change anything? You know the killing game still happened!

Around this point, Clair de Lune – Kaede’s piano song – kicks in as BGM. It’s pretty lovely and appropriate and heartbreaking.

Tsumugi: “No matter how much you grow, Shuichi, you’re still weak after all… Now that you know it’s all lies, you’ve gone back to the weak Ultimate Detective…”

She’s not wrong here. Now that the friends he depended on so much for his strength aren’t here any more, now that she’s convinced him that they never really existed at all… he still has the potential to be as weak as he always was without them, just like he always had the potential to be strong if he did have their support.

This concept might be why this is working so much on Shuichi, Maki and Himiko in particular. All three of them started off weak, and only grew stronger thanks to the events of this killing game and the support their friends gave them. Upon hearing that all of that was supposedly fake, it wouldn’t be hard to see how that’d bring them right back to where they started.

That’s also why none of this would work nearly so well on Kaito if he were still here – because he started off strong, and still had a good amount of that strength by the end even if the killing game had weakened him in a lot of ways, such that it wouldn’t go away just because he’s being told it’s a lie.

(And all of my yelling at Shuichi isn’t trying to imply that he’s being stupid to not realise all this – I know that he’s still weak enough in some regards that he’d let this break him apart. I just wish I could help him, like an actual person would.)

Himiko: “…”

Himiko’s no longer expressing her despair in a loud, emotional way and is just being depressed and listless like she used to be. Hearing that Tenko’s concern for her was all planned and scripted probably pushed her back into that.

Tsumugi: “Well, that was surprisingly disappointing… But I guess it’s okay! We’re still on script!”

Not even being subtle. This was entirely a ploy to keep things vaguely on the generic Danganronpa hope-versus-despair script so that Keebo could do his thing.

Shuichi: “Everything’s a lie… Everything’s meaningless… Everything we’ve done, everything we’ve faced together…”

You still faced that together! Kaede and Kaito still died for you! That’s not meaningless, no matter what else around it might have been a lie!

The shutting-down sound effects used when a protagonist stops being the protagonist are really quite appropriate here. It very much feels like Shuichi.exe has encountered a problem and needs to reboot, and it’s going to take him a while to do that.

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