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supreme-lxadxr · 2 years

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~The Fallen~

Chapter 7

(A/N-- OOOH THIS ONES LONG- stick with it though! you've made it so far!)

CHAPTER 7

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Before anyone knew it- the morning announcement was sounding throughout the small community- sound waves piercing every inch of the thick, hot air outside.

Airin hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before- tossing and turning on every side- her eyes glued to the couch next to her.

It was empty- empty of her closest friend- the one she’d kept closer than her friend.

She knew it could always be worse- he could be dead, but in a place like this, you never know what could happen next.

And in the back of her mind, she could swear she heard distant yelling- coming from the area towards the back right corner, that held a large building used for physical training known as the Sports Center.

“Good morning residents! There’s not much to go into today, it’s all in the Auditorium! Make your way over there right now- prepare to be surprised!” Chief 2’s voice rang out, suddenly stopping and cutting out.

Airin groaned, running her hands through her messy hair. Her body was tired from running all that way, and her voice was significantly quieter than usual- due to Tina attempting to choke her out last night.

She slowly rose up, changing her clothes and slipping on her shoes.

An odd feeling was arising in her stomach- she’d been doing this with Dominance for so long that it started to feel lonely to do this all by herself.

As usual, Kiyotaka was leading the line to the Auditorium, ranting about something someone ended up doing- an unknown fault that seemed to disagree with his moral compass.

They all made their way into the Auditorium, a significantly smaller number of residents than last time.

With Isana, Kaz, Hailey, Hira, Ameena, and Dominance gone, everything seemed to move slower. There was no one next to Airin to tell her to bow even if she didn’t want to- no one to hype her up anymore. It really started to wear on her brain, after even a moment of thought about it.

Airin’s eyes glanced around the room, finally deciding to tune into what Kiyotaka had to say- being that he’d ran up to her and started shouting something.

“Airin! You wouldn’t have seen Ed or Kendall on the way here, did you? It’s unsuitable to be late to something like this! There’s most likely new announcements- which needs to be respected by all in attendance!” Kiyotaka adjusted his glasses in one sharp movement, a serious look lacing his features.

It took a moment for Airin to process the quick words he was shouting in fast succession to one another, causing her to stare blankly at him for a few seconds.

“No...I haven’t. I’d check the Cottages or the Washroom...you know Ed, so who knows at this point…” Airin sighed, closing her eyes.

“I agree with you- it’s honestly unsuitable the way he conducts himself! I’m giving him a stern talking-to as his fellow resident when I find him! All residents should be in harmony with one another, and try to build a good name for themselves! He’s doing the complete opposite- it’s...it’s...unwholesome!” Kiyotaka raised his voice, his eyes slightly widening with passion.

“Okay, whatever will get you off this tangent I’ll be fine with...” Airin sighed and turned away from him, still tired from the night before.

“I’m worried about it...the street lights are off. Everyone knows what that means…” Trina bowed her head.

Emerald jumped in between them, a hyper burst of energy sending her running and twitching quickly to the 3 of them.

“Don’t worry fam!! I’ll find Kendall for you guys, I won’t let anything happen to her! Did I mention we’re best friends? We’re totally besties, man! She’s so great, she listens to music with me and borrows my dresses! I’ll find her for ya, don’t you worry! Emerald’s on the case!” Emerald hopped from foot to foot, a hyper and energetic tone bursting in her voice.

Suddenly, the TV powered on, and everyone quickly made their way over to their designated squares.

“As you all know, we’ve been working on a very special motive for all you guys- and today is the super-despair-inducing-day-we-introduce-it!!” Chief 2 excitedly stated, making everyone uncomfortably shift.

“This motive all lies in that forbidden building called the House Of Memories! In that building holds all of your deepest secrets- including the victims and murderers! So if you don’t want your deepest, darkest, skeletons in your closet to rear their ugly heads, I’d suggest gettin’ to the killing! Today, all residents have a task to complete- finishing up the construction that was cut short yesterday! So get to it! Announcements...over!”

Everyone in attendance bowed, a sinking feeling arising in even the hardest of hearts. Everyone acted as if the words starting from Chief 2 physically slapped them, a terrifying yet nostalgic feeling arising.

They started out the door, softly chatting amongst themselves. Airin’s eyes couldn’t be taken off of the Nurse’s Office no matter how hard she tried, holding herself tightly as if she didn’t trust that she wouldn’t lose control of her body and just walk in. Hundreds of thousands of sharp-edged thoughts stabbing themselves into her brain caused fear to shake her heart- although hardened by cynical notions and haunted by the sight of yesterday.

They all made their way over to the construction site- the ghosts of the past haunting the minds of all in attendance. The spot of concrete had small crimson streaks lining it, waiting to be stepped over in remembrance of every bad thing.

Airin found herself deep in thought again- wondering, contemplating- analyzing deeply.

She found herself shifting uncomfortably at the thought of everyone’s reactions- no one- not even Lane, Vinnie, Mae or Kai- had allowed themselves to grieve over Hailey’s death yet. Everyone was so emotionless and numb, she found herself wondering if it really had happened the way she remembered it.

Without a second thought, Airin ascended a ladder, kneeling on top of a beam- one over from the beam that took Hailey’s life yesterday. She crawled over to it, the feeling of splintered wood on her bare legs making her shift uncomfortably. She made a point to hammer in the loose beam that had been replaced there precariously- still stained with harsh crimson streaks and puddles. It was dried by now- but it was still a harsh memory, forever etched into the heavy piece of wood.

Monica was assigning roles to every resident there, but Airin chose to ignore her for now. She was more worried about fixing this beam than anything else, and wanted nothing more than to just save one more of these resident’s lives.

She wouldn’t admit it out loud, but deep in the darkest, deepest reaches of her most isolated thoughts- she cared about all of them. She wanted nothing more than to see them all leave this horrible place- to grow as people, have families, lives, and full lifespans.

But there was always the ugly truth nagging in the back of her brain- it wasn’t true, and no matter how pretty the lies are, they’re still lies, and everyone is truly, hopelessly, stuck here.

And she already established in her mind what she needed to do to survive- never show any of her emotions.

And with that, she decided to keep all of those promising, false hopes to herself.

Airin was in her own mind, silence overcoming her ears, until she was suddenly snapped out of it, by hearing Lane’s voice overpower all the others.

“Hey- does anyone else smell somethin’ kinda weird? Or is that just me?”

Airin’s head shot up, her mind suddenly turning to the worst.

“H-hey! It’s not my fault, I didn’t get to the washroom in time last night!” Vinnie had a shocked look on her face, holding herself in embarrassment.

“N-Neither did I-I...aw- I-I’m sorry!” Mae’s eyes suddenly filled with tears as she stumbled over a ladder, falling into the middle of the concrete.

“It’s really no problem...I’m sure half the people didn’t anyway. We kinda had a skeleton crew in there anyway, we’ll still have time tonight I think!” Alana’s face broke out into an awkward smile, looking at Mae sprawled out on the floor.

“Ugh, yeah...it probably is you! You look like a gross, fat, pig, and you smell like one too! Go take a shower, you disgusting, toilet clogging piece of trash!” Jess turned her nose up at Mae, folding her arms. Alana rolled her eyes, grabbing onto her small friend’s wrist and pulling her away.

“Jeez...Jess, do you think anymore? You’re getting like some of those guys…” Alana rolled her eyes again, walking away.

“It is unsuitable to talk about other residents in this way! It’s no one’s fault that there was a shortage of residents taking a shower yesterday or any day! But I do advise keeping up with that schedule when is possible!” Kiyotaka threw his hands in front of him, as if to defend the words he was saying.

Suddenly, a familiar figure appeared on the grounds- one that shocked everyone to silence.

“I-I’m so sorry I’m late! I couldn’t find Ed anywhere, and I couldn’t leave without him…” Kendall raised her voice slightly, a scratchy undertone lacing her words.

Emerald ran to her, picking her friend up by the side.

“KJ!! See- I knew the ultimate detective in me could find her!! What happened to your voice, dude?!” Emerald yelled, hugging her friend tightly. Kendall shifted uncomfortably at the sudden movements and loud noises, gently smiling at her friend as she tried to wiggle free.

“Y-yeah...I’m fine...last night was rough. I was trying to go out onto the roof to see the sky but I ended up falling off...I’m really okay though! Don’t worry about me…” Kendall laughed nervously, swaying as she stood still. Her blonde hair was tangled and messy, and her body was littered with bruises. The sight of the darkening bruises and blood were enough to make Emerald stare with her mouth agape for a few seconds- trying to take in everything she was seeing.

The mangled, bruised mess that was Emerald’s- and many others- friend stood before them, her eyes dark and void of emotion. Yet ever so slightly, a whisper of pain was exploding behind her blue, dead eyes. Emerald shakes under the powerful pain her scars are carrying- lacing her entire frame, all up and down her arms, legs, chest, face and neck.

Airin felt a shiver run down her spine- despite the hot weather that’d been beating down on her back for what felt like hours now.

She didn’t fall off that roof.

Lynn ran to Kendall, taking the smaller girl into her grip- a motherly, concerned grip.

“Oh my- we have to get this taken care of...what happened to you? Have you lost any blood?” Lynn fired questions at the small girl, who flinched at Lynn’s gentle touch.

“N-No… I haven’t. And I fell off my roof, that’s it.” Kendall’s eyes suddenly held a form of aggression- not specifically aimed at anyone, but Lynn could feel a slight pain inside her- she felt as if she needed to take care of Kendall, who had been pushing her away.

Mia suddenly stomped over to them, grabbing Kendall hard by her shoulders.

“I swear...if that dirtbag hurt you, I’mma kill him! You don’t deserve him, girl! You deserve better!” Mia was passionately yelling, her eyes wide. Kendall backed up slightly away from her, surprised by the sudden reaction.

“H-Huh? N-no...it’s not like that! I told you what happened!” Kendall puffed out her cheeks in annoyance towards Mia.

Elle watched them from above, sitting cross-legged on top of a precariously hung beam. The emotionless glaze fell over her eyes again, and she had a dead expression lacing her features.

Meanwhile, Lane continued to walk around, attempting to find the source of the smell she’d been bothered with. It didn’t smell like food- she knew that smell the second it hit her.

It smelled metallic, like rust, metal, iron, or…

Blood. It smelled like blood.

Lane’s eyes widened at the sudden realization, which left her blindly running back to the others.

“Guys- I figured out what I’ve been smellin’! It’s blood! Somebody’s hurt or dead somewhere!” Lane had panic lacing her voice, which caught the attention of the others quickly.

“B-Blood?! There’s no way...everyone’s been here! This...This is so unwholesome!!” Kiyotaka suddenly had panic and anxiety lacing his features, already running after Lane- who had started towards the Sports Center.

Airin jumped down from the beam, hot pain shooting through both of her ankles as they hit the concrete. She pushed through the crowd, running as fast as her legs could possibly take her.

They all made it to the Sports Center, Lane making loud claims that she smelled it the most around this particular area. Every remaining resident ignored the sinking gut feeling they’d had for awhile now- only to get stronger- an unmerciful turn of feelings waving over everyone there.

“Hold on- I’ll check to see if it’s safe first...I don’t want anyone getting hurt, just in case it’s set up with some sort of trap, or something like that.” Monica pushed her way to the front of the surrounding crowd, breathing deeply as she reached for the heavy door. There were already dried crimson stains around the handle of the door, mocking the eyes of every onlooker.

“Someone must’ve been trying to escape...who don’t we have here?” Monica turned around, procrastinating the idea of opening the door.

“Who we don’t have here is who we’re not gonna have here ever again if you don’t woman up and open that door!” Jess screamed, sending the pitch of her voice sky-high. “If you don’t do it, I’mma bop you on the head, you idiot!” She smirked, giggling to herself. Monica sighed, turning around to face the large door in front of her.

It’s probably nothing...Even if it is, I’ll never know anyway if I don’t just try. It’s what they need from me...I have to. I don’t have a choice, even if it’s uncomfortable.

Monica reassured herself silently, the silence of the crowd making her stomach churn as hard as it could.

All in one quick motion, she reached for the door, swinging it open. Lane wasn’t wrong- an overwhelming smell hit her as soon as she stepped inside. Her sense of smell might not have been as tuned as Lane’s, but she definitely noticed the change in the thick air.

It smelled like rust, iron, blood, something decaying almost.

Almost reminiscent of…

Another body.

Airin stepped past Monica, the disgusting, horrific scene unfolding in front of her dark eyes- reminiscent of deep voids, holding pain and despair- all fragments of hope had been gone, once again. All over again the scene played out in front of all of their eyes, shocking colors and gruesome imagery.

There in front of them, laid the body of the once-resident, none other than Ed- the one who they’d just lost- just been discussing.

There lay a metal bat next to him, the floor stained with dripping, drying, crimson regrets.

Kendall walked into the room, standing in pure shock and horror for singular moments- moments that could’ve passed as hundreds of thousands of years.

“N-No...it can’t be…! How did this...how…” Kendall stuttered, tears forming in her eyes. The waves of emotions were too strong for her to handle- shock, self-loathing, guilt, and despair all laced her features, rearing their heads as she began crying, shaking from the sheer force of her own emotions.

Emerald ran to her friend, catching sight of the body- letting out a high-pitched, painful shriek at the gruesome sight.

“Come on, you guys need to leave- we need to report this right now…” Monica’s voice was laced with shame, desperation clinging to every empty word she spoke.

Suddenly, the TV turned on, making a loud zapping sound.

Chief 2’s masked face appeared on the screen- their eyes lit up with a spark of hope- or possibly a sick spark of joy.

“As you can plainly see, a murder has happened! This death was not of natural causes- someone murdered Ed in cold blood! After exactly 24 hours has passed, another Trial will begin! His time of death was approximately 2:38 AM, but since I’m feeling generous, I’ll push it back to 2:38 PM! Now get to investigating!”

Their sickly optimistic, scratchy voice forced harsh shivers up Airin’s spine. She held herself tightly, a sick feeling in her stomach making her chest burn.

“Hold on- the murderer is among us! They could still be looking for another victim!! Everyone come inside the building, just in case!” Kiyotaka ran inside, tripping over his own quick feet. He inspected the body, kneeling next to it for a few seconds.

“I see...I assert that the metal bat next to his body is what was used to murder him! It makes sense in this situation, does it not?” Kiyotaka tilted his head to get a better look at the silver bat next to the still frame of their former resident. It was splashed up the side with crimson splatters, and it looked to be thrown on the ground.

“Who would’ve had a motive to do this...before the motive came out? It doesn’t make any sense to me...” Trina turned her head hard to the left, folding her arms over her chest.

“I don’t even believe this happened. I knew it was a matter of time before the next murder...but not like this…” Airin began, being spoken over by Tina.

“I k-knew it...I-I’m n-next...aren’t I? I w-won’t let t-them hurt u-us again…” Tina held herself tightly, biting her lip as hard as she could.

“That’s aside the point. What the point actually is who committed this murder this time.” Airin’s eyes grew cold as she looked at the slightly smaller girl.

Mae quickly ran to Ed’s empty, mangled frame, moving his blonde hair out of the way to inspect the newfound injuries to his body.

“W-Well the good part i-is that h-he didn’t appear t-to s-suffer…” Mae stuttered, folding her hands together.

“What’s that supposed to mean? Obviously he suffered, he’s on the ground...you know, dead?” Alana placed her hands on her hips.

“I-I’m sorry! I m-mean...he d-died instantly. T-There was n-no ‘last m-moments’...he j-just collapsed.” Mae started, inspecting his body further.

“Ah...well at least he didn’t suffer, I guess. But does it really matter? He’s still dead, and it was going to happen in the long run anyway…” Trina closed her eyes, running a hand through her dark red hair.

“No, nothing matters anymore, does it?” Elle tilted her head, having been standing silently for what felt like hours, staring at the damage left behind. “Humans really are capable of anything, aren’t they? It’s almost an art...an art of passion, and self-preservation.”

“An...an art? Are you kiddin’ me right now? A body’s in front of ya and all ya have to say is it’s an ‘art?’” Mia turned to face her, folding her arms.

“Ah...you just don’t have the eyes to see it as I see it. Or how the Chiefs see it, rather. Do you agree?” Elle smiled, closing her cold, dead eyes.

“I dunno how to respond to that… it’s all a bunch of crap to me anyway.” Mia’s eyes narrowed, and Elle turned her back. “All you’re tryin’ to do is prove me wrong, and it honestly ain’t gonna happen!”

“This is the type of thinking that will lead us all down deadly roads...but it seems residents welcome the beautiful lies, rather than the truth, that can be perceived to be quite horrible.” Elle turned back around, but Mia didn’t appear to be listening to her anymore.

“It’s really horrible...I said I’d never let another killing happen, but it just did! This place...it’s so unpredictable...I really hate it here…!” Bernadette stuttered on her words, shocked by the sight in front of her. She started inspecting the rest of the room, her eyes falling onto a door near the back.

Before she could say anything to the others, she started to walk towards it, Monica closely following behind her.

“Be careful...we all know what happened last time. I’m not saying we’ll find someone in here, but you never really know I guess…” Monica pushed in front of Bernadette, grabbing the door handle- and without hesitation, swinging it open with all of her force.

They both prepared themselves for the worst, cold, dark fears creeping up into Monica’s heart. Sharp, rough-edged thoughts carved into her brain as she closed her eyes, preparing herself.

But when she opened them, she saw nothing.

“Huh...isn’t there supposed to be, you know...stuff in here?” Bernadette began, gathering her thoughts, as Kendall and Emerald appeared behind them.

“Wowie! An empty room! I could totally dance or something in here!” Emerald pushed in between the two, shutting herself inside the closet. “Heya! Can you guys hear me? This place has great acoustics! Yahoo!!” She made a loud, high-pitched sound, jumping up and down at the sound of each echo.

“Maybe y-you shouldn’t do that...there’s probably stuff in there you shouldn’t be touching…” Kendall wrenched open the door, her features laced with concern for her friend. She had a glint of aggression digging deep into her eyes, narrowing them at the very sight of the door in front of her.

Kendall grabbed onto Emerald’s wrists, leading her out of the small, empty closet. She stopped right in front of it, breathing slowly.

“It’s really weird just how empty it is in there...isn’t there usually, like...equipment for sports and stuff in there?” Kendall turned her head back around to look into the dark space. “It did look like there used to be stuff in there, though...there’s so many scratches on the floor.” She bowed her head slightly, bending over quickly to analyze the marks.

There were deep, white scratches all over the floor- similar to the evidence found in the Washroom.

“Oh yeah, that’s like, totally dark, you know? It’s- ooh, it’s like the murderer came and stole everything to hide the evidence, man! That’s super spooky, I’m gonna start panicking so much I can’t even talk anymore!” Emerald bounced around, exaggerated expressions overtaking her features. Kendall looked disturbed, looking past her hyper friend into the dark room.

“Hold on, there’s something in here that shouldn’t be...let me in here alone.” Monica watched where her feet fell strategically, occasionally looking above her.

“There’s a trip-wire here. Whoever the killer is… they must have resorted to using the bat after this method didn’t work for them...but where’s the rest of the equipment?” Monica questioned out loud, starting to nervously sweat.

“A-A trip-wire? Hold on...where?” Bernadette began, stepping into the room. Sure enough- she tripped the small, invisible wire, sending a dumbbell directly above the door crashing to the ground- crashing hard enough to leave a crack in the hardwood floor. It had been suspended by a thicker cord- nailed into the ceiling and tied to the tripwire.

Bernadette let out a high-pitched scream as the force from the dumbbell threw her forward- thankfully now backwards, into where it landed.

“That...that shouldn’t have happened like that! How’d they do that?” Bernadette’s voice trembled with nervousness- as did her body. Monica pushed past her, inspecting the fallen dumbbell.

“It looks like it weighs 15 pounds...that was definitely set up to kill someone. I’m guessing when that method didn’t work, they resorted to using the bat...or maybe this door was locked. Would anyone know where the key is?” Monica rose to her feet, running her slender fingers through her tight, curly locks. “I know every other room here is locked up- I’ve never seen the keys anywhere. It doesn’t make sense how someone could just get that...I don’t get it.”

“Someone probably has the keys...or maybe they’re hidden somewhere, like they were last time? Weren’t they backstage or something?” Kendall perked up, her eyes widening in thought.

“I don’t know who would have them- and yes, they were! You know what…” Monica stopped for a moment, stepping over the fallen dumbbell. “Follow me, I know where some things might’ve gone.”

She made her way towards the back of the room, ascending a tight, hidden staircase. Bernadette, Kendall, and Emerald followed, slightly uncomfortable at the tight space.

Monica turned towards a small door at the top of the staircase, a note being hung from the doorknob. She picked it up, confusion lacing her dark-colored eyes.

I finally found it...I never thought I’d be able to come up here, but here I am.

I won’t let anything else happen, when I can find them.

-B.T.

Monica read it out loud, an indescribable feeling arising into her mind.

“Who wrote this...and how do they have two names?” Kendall stood on her tiptoes, trying to read the small piece of paper.

“I don’t know...who has more than one name here? Anyone’s name start with a B or a T?”

“Well...my name starts with a B, but I definitely didn’t write that! Was it someone...impersonating me?” Bernadette’s eyes were filled with confusion.

“No, I don’t know why anyone would do that. Trina’s name starts with a T...but there’s no B…” Monica trailed off, holding the paper closer to her face.

“Ooh, ooh! I have one- Tina’s name starts with a T!! Their names are so similar...it’s kind of confusing, you know?” Emerald jumped up, nearly falling backwards down the stairs. “There’s so many residents...there’s me, Kendall, Dominance, Kaz, Airin, Monica, Isana, Elle, Lynn, Mia, Kiyotaka...it would be so confusing if they wrote ‘K’, there’s so many K’s here! Guess we’re just A-OK then!”

“Wow, I never really noticed that! But there’s only one ‘B’, and that’s me...which isn’t very helpful at all! Unless someone’s trying to frame me, but who would do that? I...I can’t accept it!” Bernadette threw her hands up in front of her, as if to defend herself.

“It really doesn’t make any sense. Maybe it was planted there by Elle to confuse us?” Kendall questioned, folding her arms.

“While it’s interesting, it’s all aside the point, this is about Ed, whose name doesn’t start with a B or a T...now I’m gonna try and open this door.” Monica appeared annoyed, handing the note to Bernadette. Monica tried to wrench open the door- all to no avail. It didn’t appear to want to budge, no matter how hard she tried.

“Maybe it’s blocked by something? Here, let me try!” Bernadette approached the door, pulling and pushing it as hard as she could- all to no avail. It still didn’t want to move.

“This really makes no sense...why would this be blocked? There’s nowhere to even turn a key, so it’s not locked.” Monica still appeared annoyed, her frustration growing. “There’s probably evidence in there, and the killer was probably smart enough to hide it in there somehow.”

Meanwhile Airin was still trying to help around the site of the body, hardly finding any evidence at all. The only thing found was the fact that he was hit over the head with a metal bat, and he appeared to have some scars, as if he’d gotten into a physical altercation with his killer. His shirt was ripped, and both of his shoes were missing.

Contrary to the other bodies, he didn’t appear to have any sort of puncture wound on his body.

Airin had noticed the commotion coming from the upstairs, and began her way over to the staircase.

“What’s going on over here? I didn’t even know this existed…” Airin called out, ascending the stairs. Emerald, Kendall, and Bernadette allowed her to pass by them, and she stood next to Monica.

“Ah...Airin, we can’t open this door, and there’s no lock on it, so it must be blocked, but you can try to open it if you’d like- maybe you’re stronger than me or Bernadette.” Monica stepped aside, and Airin yanked on the handle. It still didn’t move- push or pull.

“It’s a door you push, you can’t pull it. But I can’t push it either. It must be locked from the inside, or blocked by something…” Airin stated the obvious, turning her back to the door.

“Maybe there’s a window outside or something? We probably won’t be able to get in, but you should try…” Bernadette ran a hand through her hair, awkwardly laughing.

“Ah, I never thought of that! Whoa, that’s some detective-level stuff! Great job, ultimate-detective-number-two!” Emerald jumped up and down, running down the stairs.

The group made their way outside, silently stepping over the dry ground- cutting through the hot, thick air. Airin shifted uncomfortably, unable to tell if she was nervous, or if the hot temperatures was the thing making her sweat so much. She stopped outside of the back wall, her eyes scanning over a high window. It was open, the window pane stained with dirt.

“Someone was in there...but who would want to climb that high- who’s that tall?” Airin shielded her eyes from the hot Sun, standing on her tiptoes.

“Ooh, maybe someone in high-heels on their tiptoes! That would be so cool!” Emerald piped up, being shut down by Kendall.

“Yeah, it would be, but isn’t that impossible anyway? We only have flats to wear, so no…” Kendall folded her arms, laughing nervously.

“I’ll go get somebody super-duper tall for ya! Don’t worry, Emerald’s on this!” Emerald ran towards the door, Kendall close behind, leaving Airin, Bernadette and Monica alone.

“So...uh- does anyone know when we’re gonna see the people in the Nurse’s Office again?” Bernadette spoke up, folding her arms over her chest.

The only time Airin had to not think about it was cut short- again. She wasn’t sure why she cared so much- she was independent, and she thought she didn’t need anyone. She knew she didn’t need anyone else. She could stand on her own just fine.

Which was true, she could stand on her own just fine.

But after doing it for so long- did she really want to anymore?

She was snapped out of her thoughts by Monica responding, hints of confusion in her tone.

“I-I...I don’t know, I wish I did...I honestly forgot about it for a short time there…” Monica placed her hands on her hips, looking to the sky with her eyes. “Is there a specific person you’re worried about?”

Bernadette’s eyes widened, and she turned away from Monica.

“Well, uh...I don’t know what happened to Isana, but there was so much blood all over the ground and her shoes...she’s my best friend, I just wanted to make sure she didn’t die or something…” Bernadette’s face flushed out of nervousness, and Monica nodded her head in agreement.

“Yeah...I don’t know what happened to her either...I hope they’re all okay. I’m still confused about why Kaz acted the way he did, and why he suddenly passed out like that…How about you, Airin?” Monica turned towards Airin, who’d been silently listening to their conversation. She was snapped out of her thoughtless listening, and her eyes widened.

“Oh...it’s not that important, but I’ve been thinking about Dominance a lot lately...I tried to tell him to not overwork himself, but that’s exactly what he did...so technically, anything that happened to him was my fault.” Airin closed her eyes, turning away. “So you’re free to blame me, and I wouldn’t blame him if he never spoke to me again after this whole thing. I’m not sure why I’m wasting my time anyway.”

Monica and Bernadette exchanged a glance for a second, before Monica spoke up.

“The only thing you’re wasting your time on is worrying about it so much...even if it feels like there’s something you could’ve done about it, in the long run, there’s really not.”

Airin turned back around, narrowing her eyes.

“Was that supposed to be...inspirational?” She questioned, tears threatening to spring to her eyes.

“I wasn’t done- let me finish and then tell me.” Monica began, an assertive tone in her voice. “You’re wasting your time worrying about it, because I’ve never seen a better duo than you two… there’s no way he’d abandon you over that. And if something happened to him...it was because of the shock of not eating or drinking, then witnessing someone die...I don’t think it would’ve mattered what you did or told him. The best part is that you did…” Monica stopped for a second, breathing slowly. “And you still tried to help him, no matter what. And even if something did happen, which I’m almost sure it won’t, that’s okay, since you truly did do everything to help him- and you built an amazing relationship.” Monica stopped, leaving a moment of silence hanging in the air.

Airin’s eyes widened- her emotions trapped tightly in her throat.

“I...I don’t know what to say...thank you…?” Airin pulled at a strand of her hair, embarrassed by her lack of knowledge in a social situation like this.

Monica’s gaze softened, and she folded her arms.

“You’re welcome, it’s the least I could do- being that we’re in almost the same situation and all.” Monica closed her eyes, deep in thought.

Before Airin could form an answer, Emerald’s voice rang out from behind them.

“Heya!! We found some super-ultra-crazy-tall-people!!” She was dragging Elle behind her by the wrist, who was trying to pull back. Kendall was walking alongside Lynn, leading her to Airin, Bernadette and Monica.

Monica’s eyes narrowed at the sight of Elle, silently stepping aside, in case she got any ideas.

“And enlighten me as to what was going through your mind when you brought Elle with you?” Airin shot out what everyone else- all except Emerald- were thinking.

“Nothing at all! She’s super-crazy-tall, that’s what, man! And Lynn said she’d control her, cuz she knew how to!” Emerald raised her voice excitedly, and Elle’s eyes widened. She lost the emotion in her eyes as quickly as it came, folding her arms over her chest.

“She is telling the truth...although I am not sure how to be a help to this situation- nor do I want to…” Lynn grabbed Elle’s wrist as she turned around, ready to walk away.

“Go right ahead, I’d like to see you walk away now. You’re helping them, whether you want to or not...sometimes you have to do things you don’t want to do…” Lynn pulled Elle towards her, not allowing her to leave the situation.

“I’m not supportive of helping potential murderers...but it’s bold of you to trust someone like me. Being that I could’ve done it, as well as any of you could have. Am I wrong?” Elle spoke up, and Lynn’s gaze grew angry.

“Stop joking like that...we all know you were not the culprit…” Lynn answered, covering her mouth with her hand.

“Huh...that’s an interesting proposition. But you don’t know that I’m joking, just as you don’t know we’re all pawns in a game.” Elle smiled, walking towards the wall. She wasn’t tall enough to reach it, but she very well could’ve jumped for it.

“The fact you’re not that far off from the window makes me suspicious, but I guess anyone could jump for that. I don’t know why one of us can’t just try it anyway.” Airin folded her arms over her chest in annoyance. Elle stood on her tiptoes, reaching for the window pane. She could just barely touch it, causing Lynn to wonder. She walked up behind Elle, and stood on her tiptoes. She could place her hand on the window pane, being that she was a few inches taller than Elle.

Lynn grabbed onto the windowpane with both hands, attempting to shift her weight into the open window.

“Please don’t ever try this- you could end up really hurting yourselves, just take my word for it!” Her voice was strained as she struggled, nearly losing her balance. Elle reached up, pushing Lynn into the open window as hard as she could. Her eyes widened as Lynn fell through, causing her to try and see into the high window.

“That’s not what I intended to do...it’s you of course, I would’ve intended to do it to anyone else, if you want honest words from me…” Elle smiled to herself, concern silently lacing her eyes.

Lynn stood up, not falling very far from the window. She looked down at the others, everyone wearing a concerned expression.

“I’m okay, don’t worry about me… This place is really packed tightly with equipment though…” Lynn began, barely being able to turn herself around.

Airin glanced behind her, noticing a medium-sized rock on the ground.

“Hold on...maybe the culprit wasn’t tall after all. Could they have used this to vault themselves into the window?” Airin questioned, kicking at the dusty rock.

“Only you would know, of course...why don’t you try it again?” Elle smiled condescendingly, tilting her head. Airin turned her back, completely ignoring the nonsensical words hanging in the air.

She pushed through the thickening atmosphere, digging both of her feet into the dusty ground. Everything started to feel like a challenge, the rock in front of her suddenly became an obstacle to overcome- all for a greater reason. She’d found herself snapping into this mindset multiple times, her thoughts becoming sharp and pointedly focused.

She ran with a start, positioning one foot quickly onto the top of the rock- dust kicking up into her face. All in one quick movement- twisting, turning, and rushing air followed- she propelled herself off of the rock, aiming for the window pane.

Thoughts in quick succession to one another flashed through her head as she opened her eyes, squinting against the heavy dust and bright Sun.

Before she knew it, she was all-too familiar with the window- hitting into the window pane with all of her force. She could feel the air leaving her body, waiting patiently for someone to laugh at her.

But no one ever did.

She hit the ground with as much force as she’d hit the window with, landing hard into the ground with a loud crash.

She could feel the air leaving her body with as much force as she could handle, the world fading to black around her.

When Airin opened her eyes, she was surrounded by Kendall, Lynn, Monica, Bernadette, Elle, and Emerald.

“Whoa! She’s dead! I’m standing over a dead person! Kendall!!” Emerald grabbed onto her friend, shaking her violently.

“H-Hey, what do you think you’re doing? Get off!” Kendall pushed her off, shocked by the sudden contact.

“She is not dead...trust me...I'd know more than anyone here, of course." Elle breathed slowly, bending to Airin’s level. Her eyes held a spark of fear and nostalgia- dark hopes and memories.

Airin felt a burning sensation in her chest- every ounce of air being forced out of her lungs. She gasped, blood making its way from the corner of her mouth.

“I-I’m okay...I j-just hit m-my fa-face on th-the window pane...I ju-just need a moment…” Airin choked on her words, stuttering breaths escaping her lungs as she opened her eyes against the blinding Sun.

“B-But there’s blood! So much! This doesn’t look okay...I should go get Mae or someone...right?” Bernadette sounded awkward and scared, her eyes wide.

Airin sat up, trickles of blood escaping from her mouth. She wiped them quickly, trying to make her way back onto her feet.

“It’s no-nothing I ha-haven’t seen before...it’s okay. B-But...did anyone e-else hear a sound just l-like the one I ma-made when I fell?” Airin caught her breath, a painful feeling shooting through her body.

“Well just now I did, obviously, it just happened in front of us!” Kendall folded her arms, half-joking.

“That’s not what she meant...she meant before...like maybe last night? And yes, I did...but wouldn’t that have been Kendall falling off the roof?” Monica questioned, placing her hands on her hips.

“Y-Yeah...it probably was that...I didn’t fall as hard as Airin, though. I just got the wind knocked out of me, like she did...but not as hard…” Kendall trailed off, inspecting Airin’s fragile, scarred frame as it sat on the ground. Airin didn’t feel any better than she had when she first hit the ground- air was hard to get in, like her chest was tight around her. She laid her head on her knees, hugging them to her chest- in some attempt to numb the tingling pain in her ribs.

Lynn stared down from above- already making an attempt to jump from the window to help.

Elle walked to the window, gently pushing her back in.

“That’s not going to be necessary… Monica seems to be able to control this situation- although I still am hesitant to put my trust in her…” Elle trailed off, starting to scale the wall with the help of the window pane, in an attempt to climb into the window.

Lynn lifted her up into the window, hoping that she wouldn’t fall and meet the same outcome Airin had.

“Me and Elle are going to search for some clues up in here, if you don’t mind...it’s so packed full of equipment, we might not be able to fit anyone else.” Lynn started, and was promptly cut off by Monica.

“It’s not that I don’t trust you guys...but I don’t think it’s a good idea. I’ll be coming too- and I’ll be bringing the note.” Monica held her hand out to Bernadette- in a signal to hand over the note. As soon as she did, Monica made an attempt to climb the window.

Elle grabbed onto Lynn’s hand tightly, her eyes scanning the place. She appeared slightly unsettled, but stayed silent about whatever the mysterious, disturbing thing was.

“We really should start looking around here...but be careful, since this place might be set up with more traps, if the killer is smart.” Lynn instructed, pulling Elle behind her.

“Every killer is smart. In a place like this, they must match the art of self-preservation with the art of passion and bloodlust...or perhaps it’s a pure accident. The mystery makes it more enjoyable, you know.” Elle smiled, closing her eyes. Lynn ignored her ominous words, fighting her way through the endless amounts of sports equipment- things no one had even seen before.

There were multiple pieces of different sets of things- hung all around the room like misplaced chandeliers. Something about it felt out of place- being that all of this either used to be somewhere else, no one knew it existed- or the possibility that it helped in a murder.

“I don’t see any traces of blood anywhere...or any signs anyone was here, other than the equipment all being in here now.” Lynn started, glancing her eyes around the room.

Monica eventually was able to vault into the window, nearly losing her balance and falling towards the uneven wooden floor.

“Why do you think-” She cut herself off, straining to stand up after she’d fallen. “Why do you think someone did that? Who do you think is strong enough?” Monica stood straight, grasping the note tightly in her hand. “Possibly- whoever this B.T. is- is strong enough.”

“B.T? Is this an accomplice?” Lynn questioned, confused towards the new name.

“No, it was on this note. I don’t know who it is- no one does. Maybe it’s a trap…” Monica trailed off, reading the note over and over again.

“It’s probably your other personality...no one has any evidence you didn’t write that note. It’s very plausible that you wrote it in the victim’s very blood…” Elle began, staring intently at the floor.

“Yeah yeah, talk your mouth off. I never did that, and you said yourself you have no evidence against me…” Monica folded her arms, walking the other way.

They walked around the tightly cramped room for what seemed like hours- finding nothing. The only thing they found was a broken camera, which they guessed to be broken off of the wall using the bat. There were some dirty footprints running out towards the door- but they appeared to be of bare feet, so it was impossible to match them to anyone, although they did try.

Before anyone knew it, it was night, and the 10PM announcement rang out over the speakers.

Everyone knew the rules- no one could eat until the investigation and trial was over- which led to more nights of not eating, and minimally drinking.

Airin was beginning to feel better- the pain had hardly gone away, but she’d started to do better at ignoring it. She’d started to help around the site of the body again- which by now had been sitting there in hot temperatures for so long, it was getting hard to work with.

Hardly any evidence was found around the site of the body either, only significant wounds, which showed signs of a struggle. But it hadn’t happened after he’d been hit with the bat- since his death was instant.

Hardly any suspects were on the line, since no one had a truly clear view of what was happening.

Meanwhile, in the Nurse’s Office, Dominance had begun to wake up, an empty feeling arising inside of him. There was a guard who acted as a nurse- one of the only female guards. She’d been gone for a long time, and every light was off in the building. He sat up, brushing his magenta, spiky hair out of his face. He ran his fingers over his skin- his mask had been removed. He’d only ever done it once in front of anyone- in the skit he performed with Airin. But the curtains were closing, and no one saw it anyway. It wasn’t as bad as everyone thought in his eyes- he’d lived, and he still had basic functions- being able to talk, hear, a limited sense of smell, and sight out of one of his eyes. The rest of his skin was scarred over with charred, burnt flesh, which still smelled of that fateful day-

The fire. All of the fire...the fire he couldn’t protect himself from.

And Airin- how she’d tried to stop it- but she couldn’t reach him in time. His memories were fuzzy, failing every thought he reached into the most isolated reaches of his mind to find. He found himself shaking, his head buried deep in his hands. He couldn’t believe his lack of memory- if it continued the way it was, he’d probably end up forgetting about Airin at some point.

He shook the thought away, opening his large, blue eyes. One of them was useless- he couldn’t see anything from it anymore, and it’s color could be described as being lighter- almost metallic in color.

When he opened up his eyes, he could only see faint silhouettes- everything was pitch-black.

A sinking feeling arose into his stomach, turning and twisting as every bit of his comfortability fell away.

“A body...a body was found…” He whispered, his voice harsh and raspy. He was connected to a machine to measure his heart, soft beeping sounds emitting from it every so often. He removed the light clamp from his finger, standing up as quickly as his weak body would allow. He ran his hands along the table next to his bed, hope arising that he could find his mask.

As soon as his hands touched it’s stiff fabric, he slipped it on, and made his way into the cold night.

He was only wearing a small nightgown-leaving no protection against the harsh wind. He held it close, running his hands over his scarred arms.

It was just as he feared- every street light was off, meaning someone- a fellow resident- had been found dead.

He stumbled over his own feet, his shaky legs ready to give out at any still moment left hanging.

Dominance found himself walking towards Airin’s cottage, who’d been laying in her bed for several minutes now.

He analyzed the options he had as he stood outside of her door- intently wondering if his actions could unsettle her- being that a murder had obviously occured.

Or his worst fear- that the murderer was a person closer to him than he’d ever thought.

His body appeared to move on it’s own- as he found himself knocking on her door, his fist hitting the wood softly, but loud enough to be audible.

Airin had been laying in silence for some time now, staring out of her small window towards the beach.

“That’s the one. If we never leave here, before I die...I wish something could happen on that beach. It doesn’t matter if I get married or not- I just want something good to happen there- one last time.”

Airin had been lost in thought, her eyes fixed on the white, moonlit sand as the wind tossed it around, littering the grass with tiny pieces of white and gold.

“There’s a spark of hope- even in a place like this. There’s always hope...it never truly leaves.”

Airin smiled at her thoughts, tossing onto her back.

That’s when she heard it- the knocking at her door. She rushed to put her uniform back on, being that it didn’t feel as constricting around her whenever she didn’t wear it to bed. Every time she looked down, she noticed darkening bruises and scars around the area where the windowpane had hit her.

She stood up quickly, still dizzy from the impact with the ground. Her mouth wasn’t bleeding anymore, but she had found an area where an especially sharp tooth of hers had slashed a cut on her bottom lip- being the culprit of the blood.

She took some quick steps to the door, silently staring at it for several seconds.

The knocking came again, which caused her to jump slightly.

Her eyes grew wide with anticipation; her heart pounding in her ears.

The knocking came for the third time, the mysterious figure resting their hand on the other side of the door gently, as if to give a nervous welcome.

Her voice was shaken, the nervousness mirroring her own as she opened the door, ever so slightly as to see a familiar figure on the other side.

“H-Huh...how d-did you…?” She stuttered on her words, forcing them out as hard as she could. She was shocked by the sight laying in front of her- Dominance, standing ever so tall on her doorstep. He nervously chuckled, giving her his signature thumbs-up.

Her thoughts conflicted with each other in the height of her confusion- so badly she wanted to invite him in, and say everything she’d never told him. She wanted it so badly- especially in the glimpse of the thought that the murderer was still out there somewhere.

But at the same time, she knew truly in her heart- that he probably couldn’t forgive her for that. He’d know too much and leave- or blame her entirely for the whole reason he’d been in such a state.

She began to close the door, barely noticing how the moonlight illuminated the fear in her eyes perfectly.

“You really need to leave...they probably don’t even know where you are right now.” Airin stated, her eyes growing cold.

Dominance widened his eyes, confusion taking over his hidden features.

“Air, they know just where I am! And they know where I’ll be, too! Why are you scared of me now, man?” He put a cheerful tone on, stepping towards the door. She stepped back, closing the door in front of her.

“It’s just that...it doesn’t matter. I don’t know why you still would even want to see me right now anyway. That whole thing...it wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for me. So if you don’t want to talk to me again, I understand that.” She latched the door, and he stood in silence for a moment. His eyes wide and his heart beginning to race- he wasn’t sure how to react.

He stepped closer after a moment, placing his hand on the door handle. It wasn’t locked, but Airin was no longer standing there.

“Hey, man...what are you even talking about? Right after I woke up, you’re the first person I wanted to see- I wanted to make sure I didn’t crush you when I fell, or anything!” He began to laugh innocently, slightly cracking the door open. She smiled, hugging her knees to her chest. She was sitting on the floor slightly away from the door, enough that she could hear his voice. She was choking back tears, but to no avail, as they began streaming down her cheeks like rivers.

“So...obviously I don’t think it was your fault...and even if I did, I’d still forgive you anyway.” His voice had a serious tone to it, as he began stepping inside. She waved her hand in a way to signal him to come in- not lifting her head towards him.

Dominance stepped inside, closing the door behind him. Her cottage was pitch-black, illuminated only by the faint moonlight shining over her bed from the window.

He sat next to her, his breathing slow and heavy. He was still nervous- not sure how to calm the situation without making it worse in the process.

“I-I know y-you would...y-you’re kind o-of an idiot so-sometimes…” She smiled, wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand. They were wet and streaked with tears- the tears she wouldn’t allow to show again.

He smiled, closing his eyes as he turned his head to face her.

His emotions swirled inside him- an indescribable feeling arising into his chest. All in one quick, thoughtless moment, he reached up to pull his mask off, the fabric catching on his hair.

Airin lifted her head, confusion filling her features as she noticed him- without his mask on- which was really making himself vulnerable.

“Y-You didn’t have to take that off if you d-didn’t want to...I hardly ever see you without it, so I’m guessing it makes you uncomfortable…” Airin questioned, pulling her knees closer to her chest.

“No way man, it’s okay! I only do this around people I actually trust, I wouldn’t want anyone else seeing this...they can’t handle it like you can!” Dominance flashed a smile, closing one of his eyes.

Airin’s gaze softened, a smile falling over her lips.

“Huh...so you trust me?” Airin questioned, a sense of calm falling over her.

Dominance’s smile widened, as did his eyes.

“Of course I do, man! What reason are you gonna give me that I shouldn’t?”

Airin tilted her head, opening her eyes fully as to look at him.

“Why? Do you want a few?” She smirked, folding her arms across her chest.

“Hit me with it! ‘Cause it’s not gonna work anyway!” Dominance’s voice naturally heightened, the pitch of it low, but the tone of it growing.

“You know what, I don’t even know. Why don’t you come up with something?” Airin sighed, knowing whatever she said probably wouldn’t get through to him anyway.

He stopped for a second, thinking hard about something.

“Well, you’re really strong and could probably snap my neck if you tried, but I’m sure you wouldn’t do that!” He flashed her a thumbs-up, and she lowered her head, smirking to herself.

“Don’t try me, you never know what I will or won’t do...just like this!” She suddenly leapt at him, grabbing his wrists and pushing him towards the ground. It caught him off guard for a second, confusion etching itself into his eyes.

“Oh, I knew you were about to do that! I told you...you’re strong enough to take me, so I figured you would at some point, anyway.” He spoke up, suddenly realizing the position they both found themselves in.

“W-Well...are you gonna fight back? I’m proving my strength right now, you should be doing the same, I’m just expecting it now!” Airin spoke up louder, smirking to herself now.

“Yeah, give me all you got! But I mean, there’s still some basic rules, like don’t cause any permanent damage, don’t pretend you’re hurt just for an advantage, and obviously don’t hit anywhere that could seriously hurt anyone…” His face suddenly darkened in color, a light blush spreading over his cheeks as he started to sit up.

“Define that last one better.” Airin suddenly had a serious expression on her face, and he turned his head, scratching his neck.

“W-Well...don’t like, kick me between the legs or something.” His voice stuttered, nervousness overtaking his features. She nodded in agreement, folding her arms.

“So, how are we supposed to ‘win’? Is it like...a game?” Airin questioned, and he nodded in agreement.

“You got that right! To win, you gotta pin the other person down for three seconds, and I guess you can count that by counting to three out loud.” Dominance continued, and Airin’s gaze shifted around the room.

“Well then, come over! Let’s start!” His voice was slightly louder, filled with passion and excitement as he sat on the bed. He patted the spot next to him, and Airin walked to it. She sat down on her bed, silently worrying that it wouldn’t be able to hold both of them.

“Alrighty then, let’s get-” Dominance was cut off by Airin throwing herself at him, immediately pinning him down.

“1, 2…” She was cut off by Dominance shoving her weight off of him with his foot, landing on top of her pillow.

“I ain’t gonna go easy on you, Air! Give me all you got!” Dominance flashed a competitive smile, springing towards her.

She caught his wrists, and they began to push back and forth with all their weight.

They continued pushing each other back and forth, Airin being unable to suppress a smile. She giggled at his intensity, pushing back with all her force. He suddenly grabbed her shoulders, but she wrenched out of his grip quickly enough to throw him back. She suddenly noticed the way his eyes sparkled in the moonlight- including the one he couldn’t use anymore.

He tried to grab her wrists again, but in a quick movement of her leg, she kicked his hands away.

“I told you I wouldn’t go easy on you, and I wasn’t-” She was cut off by him suddenly hoisting her up onto his shoulder, all while she was distracted.

“H-Hey, let me go right now! Do you wanna die?” She kicked her legs as hard as she could, but he only spun and ran around, Airin still balanced on his shoulder.

“No way! You’re gonna have to make me!” He giggled, closing his eyes. Airin got a spark of determination in her eyes, suddenly wrapping her legs around his chest, suddenly enough to make him fall backwards. He tried to catch himself, only to be met with the back of the couch.

“H-Hey, are you okay? No pretending to be hurt, okay?” Airin had a hint of true concern lacing her voice, and she sat up on her knees.

Dominance laughed, a spark of passion in his veins.

“Are you kidding me? Do you think I’d get hurt just like that? No way- that was nothing! Don’t ya see what I’m made of?” He stood up, flexing his muscles for a few seconds. She giggled, standing up in front of him.

“Yeah yeah...we know, we’ve all seen it…” Airin rolled her eyes playfully, smiling to herself.

“Hey Air, you know what this reminds me of?” Dominance’s eyes grew wide, and she shook her head in confusion. “It’s like that skit we did not too long ago...you almost fell on top of me that time too!” He laughed, and her eyes suddenly grew wide. Her cheeks reddened in embarrassment, and she quickly turned her back to him.

“Y-You were thinking about th-that?” She stuttered on her words, and he appeared confused.

“Well yeah, wasn’t it fun? I loved it, man! You did great- it was so in character! It’s like it was actually us…” Dominance trailed off, crossing his arms.

“Well it sort of was, who do you think we are- clones of us, or something?” Airin questioned playfully, and he averted his eyes to the ceiling.

“Well no- you knew what I meant! I see what you did there…” He giggled, smiling at her brightly. “No...I meant, the roles were so in character. I did it on purpose.”

“Y-You did? I m-mean...it w-was a lot like us…” Airin trailed off, hugging herself tightly.

“Yeah, I did! It was really fun, right? You seem so serious...come here!” Dominance stepped closer to her, suddenly pulling her into a hug. He picked her up off the ground, spinning around once before setting her feet back down on the ground.

She held onto him tightly, unable to suppress a smile she felt coming on.

“H-Hey- what do you think you’re doing?” Airin exclaimed, pushing her body away from his playfully. She didn’t mean it when she implied she wanted him to go away- at this point, she honestly just wanted to see how he’d react to it.

It was all in good taste- at least in her eyes it was.

After several seconds, Dominance set her back down on the bed, facing in a way that she was laying on her back.

He let go of her, sitting himself down on the bed, out of breath and sweating. He noticed the way his hands were shaking, but he didn’t try to do anything in an effort to hide it.

“S-So...what now, man?” Dominance’s voice shook as he laid on his back, his lungs taking in deep breaths.

“It’s pretty late...we should probably get to sleep now. But you don’t have to leave...if you don’t want to. I...I-I don’t want you to.” Airin sat up, turning her head away from him and folding her arms.

Dominance’s eyes widened, and he smiled.

“I wasn’t gonna leave you, man! Not when you need me most, which I can obviously tell!” Dominance smiled brightly, flashing his teeth in his happy gaze.

Airin’s gaze softened, as she closed her eyes. She suddenly had an overwhelming feeling- a feeling that he was okay, she was okay, and nothing was going to hurt them.

It’s okay- he’s not going to leave me again. He doesn’t blame me...and he’s still here. After everything I’ve done...he’s still here.

Airin smiled at her thoughts, rolling onto her side to face him.

“You...You aren’t gonna leave me, right?” Airin questioned, her voice small with confusion and uncertainty.

“W-What? No way, we can’t leave each other! We’ve seen too much to just...not be able to work something out like that. We have to stick together- it’s like fate.” Dominance had a serious tone in his voice, as if he deeply felt every word he said.

“That’s not what I meant...I meant-” Airin cut herself off, swallowing her emotions. “I meant, like...what just happened to Ed, Hira, Hailey, and Ameena. Like...you won’t die on me, right?”

Dominance’s eyes widened in his sudden realization, and he felt his chest tightening.

“N-No...well I don’t know...but they can’t kill me! You know me- they can’t kill someone who looks like this!” He ran his fingers through his hair, winking one of his eyes as he laid on his side. “But anyway, no way- we can’t die on each other! And if we go down, we go down together, okay?” Dominance sat up, grabbing both of Airin’s hands.

She suddenly felt a rush come over her, courage coursing through her veins. She could hear her heartbeat in her ears, her hands shaking in front of her. She stared into his eyes, chasing the feeling hanging in the air for just a few more moments.

Just one more second…

Airin was snapped out of her thoughts by Dominance suddenly standing up, heading towards the couch she pushed against her bed.

“H-Hey...you don’t…” She cut herself off, silently terrified to lose every moment they’d just shared. “Nevermind, it’s okay, y-you can sleep there.” She forced a smile, pain exploding behind her eyes.

Dominance confusedly looked at her for a moment, before fetching the blanket hung around the back of the couch.

“S-Sure! Well...uh- good night, I guess! Listen, Air- I really enjoyed coming over, even though you tried to lock me out and all!” He giggled, and she couldn’t suppress a mirrored reaction.

“Ah- shut up! That really doesn’t matter…” She rolled her eyes, laying down with a smile. “Well, good night, I guess…”

“Yeah! Good night, Air!” He smiled, turning onto his back.

Airin’s thoughts raced- every inch of cynicism conflicting with her exploding emotions.

We’re not in love...we don’t even share any stories.

Or do we…?

It just feels right- it’s something in his eyes.

Airin closed her eyes, letting her arms fall at her sides, and her racing heart and mind calm down.

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

Meanwhile, in another part of the community- Lynn and Elle weren’t so lucky to be able to fall asleep, and started to walk around the cottages, circling every path. Their journey was mostly quiet, the cold breeze filling with still silence.

Eventually, that silence had to be broken.

“Are you afraid to be out here at night, with no street lights?” Elle spoke up, staring intently at her feet. Lynn turned her head towards her friend, uncertain as to how to answer.

“No...even if I was, it doesn’t matter. I learned that awhile ago- my kids depend on me- and due to my motherly nature...I guess some of you do too. So I can’t just simply be ‘afraid’.”

Elle closed her eyes, silent for a moment.

“Ah, I don’t understand...why you’d want so many people depending on you. You’re too...strong for that. Don’t you understand human nature is just to break that down into nothingness? Have you ever seen something bad that you can’t forget?” Elle answered, her curiosity growing with each passing second.

“Well yes...we all have at some point in our lives. Mine is probably a car accident...I tried to drive away, after legally divorcing my partner. I wrecked the car, since he slashed my tires.” Lynn’s voice grew in intensity, her darkest memories filling her eyes. “No one got hurt, but that feeling...I’ll never forget it. The way the car rocked as I smashed into the tree, hearing my kids as they questioned what was going on- I’ll never forget that.”

Elle nodded in agreement, searching for an appropriate emotion to feel.

“I also didn’t forget this- that I lived through it...and so did my kids. Some people aren’t that lucky in life- I only had minor injuries.”

“Huh- I never heard of that. I’ve only been in a car a minimal amount of time, and I’ve never driven.” Elle confessed, not the slightest hint of embarrassment in her voice. “I have only minimal memories of it anyway, as I only have minimal memories of anything.”

Lynn stared at her in confusion for a moment- concern and uncertainty latching onto every word she spoke- and digging deep into her features.

“Please explain if you feel comfortable doing so…” Lynn spoke up, and Elle stopped under a street light. The pitch-blackness held steady in the atmosphere, a soft breeze tossing Elle’s hair upwards.

“Ah...it’ll scare you away, but I suppose I don’t mind…” Elle smiled to herself, hugging herself tightly. “Did you know I saw someone die once? That’s one of my clearest memories...the crimson color sticks with me all the time.”

Lynn’s eyes widened, but she stayed silent.

“You seem surprised by that. Have you not seen the same?” Elle turned around to turn her back to Lynn, a blank expression holding tightly to her features.

“Yes...but in a place like this that happens to be normal.” Lynn mirrored Elle’s tone, and Elle felt shock creeping into her mind.

“Well...I suppose you can’t be wrong...but it was already normal for me. One isn’t supposed to talk down on family members, so I am not sure if my father is truly a bad human at heart...but he did begin my hatred for it as a whole.” Elle closed her eyes, folding her arms over her chest. “I suppose being part of a gang makes you a bad human...and he used to bring me along on their missions...to this day I could get a memory of it from entering into a black-colored car.”

Lynn’s eyes widened further, concern arising in her heart.

“One day, when he returned home, he’d had enough of having a family...I saw it all, and I learned something new. Did you know using electroshock treatment doesn’t at all erase memory? It does delay brain function, I suppose...and the function of emotions isn’t always preserved alongside it.”

It took Lynn a few moments to process the words Elle was speaking, but as soon as the cold realization set in, an unsettling feeling arose inside of her body.

“O-Oh...that was...sudden. I didn’t know that happened, that’s why you’re...the way you are, right?” Lynn questioned, her face breaking out into an awkward expression.

“I am not sure I know of what you’re speaking of...my personality is the way it is, due to the fact that I like being this way. Mere humans cannot just...change that.” Elle answered, turning towards Lynn.

“I don’t believe that, you yourself just said your emotions and brain functions aren’t firing at full capacity, did I hear you correctly?” Lynn asked, scratching the back of her neck.

“Yes, I did say that...do you want to see something?” Elle tilted her head, moving closer to Lynn. Her figure was dimly lit by the moonlight, and the dead expression had left her eyes.

She parted her dark blonde hair, revealing old scars lining each side of her head and neck.

“This is from when it happened...it’s an art, isn’t it? Not an art of passion, per se...an art of rage. Perhaps- a lapse in judgement? I only would leave this place to start over...giving me and a person like you a chance to have another life.” Elle stopped herself, searching for her deepest thoughts. “Your life was bad like mine. That’s why you can tolerate things just like I can...it’s truly interesting to me. How humans perceive things is an anomaly to me...I’ll never truly understand some concepts.”

“I don’t think anyone can understand everything, and that’s okay- we don’t have to. But maybe listening to people could help you understand them better, and understand that not everyone has an intention to hurt you.” Lynn answered, her voice breaking under the pressure of her mind.

“Ah, I’ve never heard that before. I know how you perceived your trauma...nothing similar to someone like me. I don’t know how to feel about it- all I know is that we should survive this. You have the mind to do it...you think as the Chiefs do. They’ll spare you for that...I know I would.” Elle smiled, emotion filling her eyes as they widened. “I am not sure I know how to perceive someone caring about me...but I suppose I won’t stop you.”

“You shouldn’t stop me. Everyone in this world deserves a second chance- and someone to listen to them.” Lynn’s eyes filled with passion, and her heart filled with a desire- a desire to help- to focus.

Elle’s eyes widened, softening her gaze. A calm smile spread over her lips, and she clasped her hands together.

“You’re truly the only human I trust in this world...I know you’d never hurt me or someone else. I suppose that’s why I believe your children would mature to be...responsible people as well. This place doesn’t deserve someone like either of us- that’s why we should leave. We should stay...as friends. Someone like you shouldn’t lose a person who believes in you- instead of someone who’d chase you somewhere and attempt to hurt you.” Elle stopped herself, watching Lynn’s expression change. “Even if it takes all night, or maybe 100 years? I’ll never know...but I believe I’ve found hope sleeping inside myself. And I’d like to share it...I’ve never felt hope before.”

“You’ve...never felt hope before? In anyone- or anything? How did you get through anything?” Lynn questioned, her eyes growing wider.

“I do not have all the answers...but I believe I’m still alive, so isn’t that proof enough?” Elle answered, leaving Lynn to stare at her in confusion.

“I don’t think I’ll ever really know how that happened- or really how to get through to you...but I think I just did, so I guess I’m not doing horrible?” Lynn questioned, awkwardly shifting.

Elle smiled, closing her eyes.

“I wish I could feel things like you...but that’s alright. I can’t learn, but I’ll try anyway, if that would be certain to work…” Elle trailed off, starting to walk backwards. Lynn followed her silently, walking back to the cottages.

“Do you believe that I’m...evil?” Elle questioned, breaking the thick silence.

Lynn stared at her in confusion, before folding her arms.

“No, I don’t...I think you’re misunderstood. If you really had something to do with Ameena’s death, I understand your motive, although I don’t condone murder.” Lynn sternly answered her, and Elle nodded in agreement. “I think you needed someone to listen to you. And I guess that’s what I’m here for- don’t hesitate, okay?” Lynn smiled, and Elle mirrored her reaction.

They arrived at Elle’s cottage, both entering. Elle didn’t speak again for the rest of the night, silently motioning towards her couch.

Lynn laid down, kicking her shoes in the direction of the door.

Her thoughts were beating against her brain- stabbing through her heart and consciousness.

She knew it probably wasn’t safe to be in Elle’s cottage, alone- like she was- but she figured that Elle had proven she wouldn’t do anything- but was cut off by suddenly drifting into sleep.

#writers and poets #writers on tumblr #authors #author #novel #novelist #bookish #books and literature #horror #dystopia #reading #read in 2022

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fantasyfandommaiden · 4 years

Text

Chloe Knows: The Miraculous Roasting of Paris’ Superheros

- When Chloe realises that there are other heros she begins to wonder if they also need her ‘encouragement’ of being a better superhero. She knows that her technique of insulting someone to improve themselves doesn’t work for everybody (the only reason it works for Adrien is because of his over-competitive nature, as well as his need to prove people wrong.)

- However, after seeing Rena Rouge a few times she notices that the girl seems a bit too… forward for the fox? If that makes any sense? I mean, Chloe was a closet anime/hero geek, and the fox seemed to be a sort of hero that would specialise more in stealth than going straight into the fray. Her weapon is a flute for kwami sakes. A FLUTE!

- However she knows that just bitching about her to the class wont get her anywhere, after all, what is the likelihood of Rena Rouge AND Chat Noir being in her class? (Oh she will be KICKING herself several months from now when she remembers this) but how could she get her point across?

- It was actually Alya of all people that gave her the idea when she was bragging about getting an interview with Ladybug about the new heros.

- The gears in her head began to turn as she looked towards her best friend and confidant, Sabrina.

Chloe: … Sabrina, your taking programming as an elective right?

Sabrina: *somewhat confused* … Yes, you said it sounded like ‘too much work’ and ‘involved too coding’ so you opted for the art elective instead.

Chloe: And you were saying yesterday that one of your assignments for your final mark is to make a website layout right? But you were having trouble coming up with an idea?

Sabrina: Well, I had thought about possibly doing one on gymnastics, or cute animals, but those topics were taken before I could comment and I don't really want to do a website someone else is doing… why?

Chloe: *a wide grin appears across her face* How about I help you with this assignment? I have a stellar idea that NO ONE will ever think to do.

- So with Sabrina’s programming skills, and Chloe helping inspire the layout (she couldn’t just outright design the layout for Sabrina’s final assignment, the two girls had gotten into the habit as of late to do homework together but not FOR each other) the website was designed.

- It was called ‘Miraculous Roasting’ and the main page layout had dark gray wall paper with all (known) Miraculous symbols on it, so it currently only had Ladybug, Chat Noir, Rena Rouge and the recently debuted Carapace. The symbols made it look almost like polka dots, which Chloe wasn’t crazy about (she was more of a strips girl but whatever).

- Their first video they posted? ‘The Roasting of Chat Noir: Part 1’

- The video literally starts with Chloe mid rant about ‘What do you MEAN I have to keep this video under five minutes?!

Sabrina: Studies show that videos over five minutes when you first start don't get as many views! Your on!

Chloe: I have a lot to say about this mangy cat that will take longer than five minutes

Sabrina: Then this will be the first part! Now come on, were recording!

- Sabrina becomes Chloe’s costart simply because she has to make sure that Chloe doesn’t go off on a tangent and stay on topic. She also makes sure that Chloe doesn’t get too ‘wound up’ so no Akuma’s appear.

- She also doesn’t know EXACTLY why she insists on being salty towards the heros, but she figures that it's just a way to blow off steam since Chloe has been trying really hard not to be a bully towards people… and its kind of fun to poke fun at the heros.

The first episode is about Chat Noir, the basic stuff like how he seems to goof off at inappropriate moments, being very flirty with Ladybug and always taking the hit and getting akumatized.

Sabrina: But Chloe, if Ladybug gets hit with a mind controlling akuma, wouldn’t that mean that Chat Noir would have to fight Ladybug?

Chloe: …. Okay, he gets a pass on saving Ladybug, but he could at least TRY not to get mind controlled by an akuma every other fight!

- That video alone makes them popular overnight, with many people stating that although some of the comments are true, that over all it seems to be in good fun (similar to CinemaSins), and Chloe WILL admit when she is wrong about something or give some praise to heros when they do things right.

- The next hero they do is Rena Rouge, and Chloe’s first statement is ‘In other news, another furry has joined the mix!’

Chloe: I mean, I get it, she's cool looking, I dig the costume even IF orange isn’t a great colour… but she should NOT be in the front lines! Her power is ILLUSIONS which she creates with a FLUTE, why the hell is she in the front lines using it like a bat?!

- Alya is a bit salty about being called out like that, and as much as she hates to admit it… Chloe is kind of right. So she makes a point the next time she’s Rena Rouge to hang back a bit (although it's REALLY hard for her to do that).

- After Rena Rouge’s video is released, Sabrina asks Chloe when she’ll do Ladybug’s roast video.

- It takes Chloe a full two minutes to realise her friend isn’t joking.

#ladybug au #ml au #Chloe Knows AU #chloe bourgeois #sabrina raincomprix #alya cesaire #rena rouge #chat noir

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toxicpineapple · 4 years

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Please give me your amami essay, I'd like to know the TEA! I was also gonna ask for the mastermind essay, but honestly I REALLY wanna hear your thoughts on his characterization (and your thoughts on his shitty fanon characterization)

HOOO BOY OKAY. this is good, it gives me an excuse to procrastinate on reading that new amasai fic on the latest feed. (note that i REALLY WANT TO READ IT, i’m just anticipating commenting and tbh the spoons,,, i lack them. it’s okay though i’ll get over it.)

so!!! let’s start with general attitude, because i think that amami’s is really unique. he’s a subversive character. in general i feel like that was the biggest goal with his character design and personality combination-- he looks like a total playboy, kaede even comments as much moooore than once. but he’s the absolute opposite. i’ll rant about that in a bit. i’ve already gone off on a tangent and i said i was gonna talk about attitude.

amami is laid back, but not to the point of complacency. y’know what i mean? like, he’s relaxed, but he’s on his guard, too. his speaking style is pretty casual (typically he’ll greet people with a “hey,” whenever he’s slightly uncomfortable he’ll probably say “haha”... this isn’t necessarily a canon thing but i like it when people have him talking in sentence fragments. ex. “forgot to grab my jacket” or “wanted to get a snack” sort of thing) and that’s just,,, the type of person he is. he’s casual. it’s remarkable considering how wealthy amami is-- though bear in mind, he still IS wealthy, so there are bound to be things he doesn’t understand about people-- that he can be so normal and like, down to earth, in a way. when people mess around with him he’ll probably just laugh it off.

to cite a fic i read once that had REALLY phenomenal characterisation, imo, ouma ends up dumping a bucket of water on amami’s head (on accident; there are some semantics and i won’t get into it but again the fic is really good and funny and you should totally read it) and amami just squeezes out his shirt and makes a couple cracks before walking away. (sorry this isn’t meant to be a “dumping love on fics” post but GOD that fic is hysterical.) he’s an enabler too, at least i think so-- remember that anthology chapter where kaede, shuichi, and kaito are trying to catch ouma and kaito sets an “amami trap” to stop him? all ouma has to do is flutter his eyelashes and go “pleeeaaase let me go amam~niichan!” and then he just. he does. what a fucking doormat i can’t believe him.

he’s like that though. i feel like big brother stuff is kind of his weakness. (and not in a kinky way alright i will destroy you. he might make a joke about having a sister complex in one of his ftes but he DOESNT that joke was just tasteless COME ON RANTARO WHFKLDSJFK) which brings me to his whole older brother thing, because like,,, YEAH. guy grew up with twelve younger sisters!!! and he remarked in his ftes with shuichi that they’re mostly step sisters, which means he just.... has a nurturing personality. i mean amami is somewhat conservative (if you try to come on to him during salmon mode you will be brutally rebuffed; amami tells u to keep your horny thoughts to yourself, though you shouldn’t be ashamed of having them) so i imagine he’s not the biggest fan of his father’s tendencies-- not that i don’t NECESSARILY interpret his father’s behaviour as him sleeping around.... it’s possible he just likes children and deliberately marries women who already have kids so he can take them... i mean it’s exceedingly decent to keep considering ur step children to be your children after a divorce so i have a hard time reconciling this common image of rantaro’s dad as some kind of player figure with the impression i got of him in my head but that’s just my daddy issues coming into play again so ignore me-- and yet he still considers all his sisters to be his sisters.

not to mention he feels a great deal of like, responsibility, when it comes to taking care of them. i find it impossible to believe that all the losses were his fault. you could ARGUE that the one he tells you about with his younger sister was to be blamed on him? but i mean, amami is a child. he didn’t even know his sister was following him out. sure he blames himself for it but there’s no real good way to blame him just considering that,,, he’s a kid. and he was so young-- he was obviously so young-- when it happened. so like, not to be all Good and Bad on you, but i do feel that amami is fundamentally a good reason. and you SEE that too, in the killing game. i’m certain he was on the fence about trusting that note he woke up with. would you trust it? he had no memory whatsoever of writing it, all he had were the words “ultimate hunt” and a map of the school to guide his way. i imagine he wasn’t even sure if he should do what the note said. but then ryoma started talking about sacrificing himself for everyone else, and rantaro probably thought, “well... if i have a way to get us out of here, even if it doesn’t work, i can’t just let ryoma sacrifice himself without having tried.”

rantaro is self-reliant too, i think. in the talent development plan mukuro remarks that she noticed he was injured a good number of times, but never said anything about it because she felt like he was trying to keep it under wraps. (note: good idea for an amami and mukuro friendship fic. must write. someone remind me.) i think amami kind of feels isolated from his classmates? either because he has these perceived notions of like, independence and whatever, not burdening anybody else with his problems (honestly not to go chabashira on main but wtf men ask for help c’mon i promise if you find a person who’s worth being in ur life they won’t treat you like shit for feeling ur feelings) or just because he’s not around a lot. i think amami is the type of person to invalidate his own problems a lot, or at least downplay them to others. he blames himself for all his sisters going missing, took the responsibility to find them all. you know the blow that’s going to be to his education? traveling around the world looking for twelve different people? and he plans to keep doing that!!! forever!!! ugh ;-; poor babey. but anyway i feel like he doesn’t want to tell anybody about his problems because he feels like it’s his thing to deal with.

i also believe that rantaro is a bit prideful. i mean, anyone can be prideful under the correct circumstances, and in fact there is a great deal of pride that simply isn’t addressed by the fandom in analysing characters and that makes me really sad because pride is such a SEXY character flaw but i’ll leave that alone for now. he hates being told to give up on what he’s doing. i mean everyone in his life has been telling him to stop looking for his sisters. that’s got to suck, but also, DAMN look at what his reaction was. this utter refusal to open up to anybody. shuichi’s ftes with him are spent pretty much just trying to get amami to stop squirreling around and actually TALK to him. amami asks shuichi at one point if he has any siblings and when the response is negative, amami immediately assumes that shuichi wouldn’t understand, would tell him to quit. just like everyone else.

(i mean, even with kiyo and mukuro, whose circumstances mirror his almost painfully at least in willingness to sacrifice stuff for their siblings, he doesn’t tell them what he’s doing, just that he’s doing it for his sister-- singular-- and that he would do anything for her. kiyo and mukuro!! out of ANYBODY, they would understand. in tdp they DO talk about it-- kiyo encourages him to keep searching-- as his friend...... fuck amaguji is such a good ship even if the implications of kiyo saying he wants to meet rantaro’s sister after he finds her bc she must be suuuuch a good person if he’s doing all this for her are uhhh not great-- and mukuro immediately understands when he says it’s to do with his younger sister. like, full stop. she just goes “okay” and goes serious. all at once. damn rantaro, mukuro, and kiyo really do be a power trio huh. i need to write more fic about them i miss them.)

this is more into baseless conjecture so take this as you will, but i also think rantaro is kind of,,, easily distracted lmao. he mentions helping out a village with a disease-- been a while since i’ve seen his ftes, sorry for any inconsistencies-- among other shit and like... bro what are you DOING. you have sisters to find. and he can’t be getting injured all the time, getting wrapped up with gang violence and all that, looking for people who were lost traveling. i mean sure, you could say they went all over the world and got wrapped up in all sorts of mess, but more likely they stayed in roughly the same area, waiting for him to come back. and also? i have a hard time believing his sisters were lost in these remote forest places people always put them. COME ON, who the fuck goes to some village for a vacation? a RICH person no less. i’m on another tangent. sorry. but yeah, i love the people who write rantaro as an absolute airhead. i headcanon that he has no way of judging the passing of time and thus is the absolute worst in the bathroom bc he sits there for twenty minutes thinking about the universe and then walks out like “:) ok ready to go” like wtf are you even doing there stupid akljdf anyway.

i think rantaro is softhearted and thoughtful. in his ftes with kaede he demonstrates an ability to look past what people show at surface level-- you can ask him about miu, kiibo, or kiyo and he’ll give u Good Fucking Insight(tm)-- and analyse their intentions more closely. and i mean this is just from a couple day’s interaction. he’s down to earth for sure, understanding when people are intimidated but also caring and observant. (his “talk about a first impression” line is so fuckaindgf.... good for his characterisation. i love romantic amamatsu but he so clearly takes an older brother role in those ftes, he’s really such a sweetheart,,,, hnadhfkj ;w;) rantaro is just. he’s patient with people. and selfless and kind. idk it’s all the good stuff. warm smiles and indulgence. all the way. probably lets kokichi steal his lunch.

THAT BEING SAID: i think rantaro also has a very serious streak. he doesn’t show it a lot but there are moments. he’s self-sacrificing-- i mean, obviously. he was the ultimate survivor, after all. some people hc that he got there by killing, or maybe everyone else in his game died but one person, but bro that doesn’t make any sense???? no. what happened was there were probably like three people left, and monokuma was like “one has to be sacrificed” and rantaro thought, welp. it’ll be me then. and i wouldn’t say the choice would be immediate because rantaro DOES has self preservation instincts-- he’s only human-- but i don’t think he’d have let anybody else make that decision. i think ultimately he would try to protect other people.

he can be scarily confrontational too. i do believe he’d usually only do it in the defense of others-- like, his base instinct is to protect. i read a fic once (oumami, unfortunately) where ouma was committing crimes and went to hide behind rantaro and rantaro instinctively moved to protect him, and that’s.... that’s good characterisation. point one to the oumami stans, point zero to me. motherfucker. (love u oumami stans, it’s just not my thing.) i really like it in fics when he’s stern, lecturing people for hurting other people, but i also think rantaro is too understanding to be truly unforgiving. like if two people got into an argument and one came out of it more hurt than the other, i don’t believe that amami would be unsympathetic to the less hurt one. i think he’s mature enough to take a look at the situation and go, well, okay.

i think he’d be TERRIFYING when angry. he’s patient, y’know? so it takes a lot to get him to that point. he’s really, ah, accommodating of people. puts up with a lot of bs kind of thing. but i imagine the best way to get him to snap is by hurting someone he cares about. and at that point: ur fucked. i’ve never written it before because i’m terrified of what i’d do with that kind of power but.... imagine the shuichi whump. holy god.

i’m NOT here to talk about shuichi whump (though i’m down to do that any time of day believe me) so i’m gonna like. shhhhiiiiiiffft.

i project on characters a lot so at this point it’s difficult to distinguish if some of my characterisation things are like, actually characterisation things? or just me venting, so like, take nothing i say as canon, but also,,, akdsjf we love a man who bottles up his emotions.

because rantaro just doesn’t have the TIME to be crying all over the place. he was probably a total wreck when he lost his first sister. and his second. and maybe even his third. but then he started to gather his composure, more and more. because if there’s anything that rantaro has in excess, it’s composure. the more losses he suffers the more of a shield he builds up. and the self hatred and the guilt and the blame and the responsibility are piling up and up and up, but god he hates it when other people see him sad, because he needs to be the strong one, he can’t just pile that up on other people. that’s not their weight to carry, and besides, he’s the older brother, he should be able to deal with his own problems. he’d just be burdening the people he cares about by letting them see his demons.

and then he doesn’t have any coping mechanisms because he never lets himself feel enough to cope, and when people get close enough to actually CARE about him, when people notice he’s upset or struggling and offer him help, he doesn’t know how to deal with it-- and god he hates lashing out at people but it’s so much easier to deal with the consequences of being mean than the consequences of breaking down. only conflict is scary when he’s one of the causes so he needs time to recover, and well, what better way to do that than to get on a plane or a boat and go look for his sisters? after all he’s wasting time whenever he’s just sitting around, they’re still out there and he needs to find them, so might as well just keep pushing himself to the limits, because it’s his fault they’re lost anyway...

something mukuro said to rantaro in the talent development plan stuck in my brain. like, initially it’s just a funny and cute interaction (rantaro even blushes and a blushing rantaro is a GOOD FUCKING RANTARO) but when i thought about it more i was like.... huh. hm. angst ideas. mukuro makes a joke about rantaro going over to her stand at the festival to flirt with her-- i think that’s the context, i know it’s play-boy related-- and rantaro assures her (as he always does) that he’s not that kind of guy, and mukuro agrees, saying she was just pulling his leg and that he seems like the kind of person who gets dumped because he doesn’t show his emotions enough. rantaro laughs, blushes, and says “haha, not touching that one,” and akdjfnnnnnn god mukuro you’re so blunt i love you fkdjf but wow. i usually have rantaro as not having dated anyone, just because i feel like he kind of hyperfocuses on finding his sisters? and given that he’s like sixteen (seventeen at the MOST) there’s not much of a timeline for when his sisters got lost. in my fic search i had to cram all the losses into a four-year period and damn that was rough. anyway i just don’t think he’d really prioritise romance. but that reaction implies that that’s EXACTLY his experience with romance, which makes a bit of sense because mukuro is ridiculously sharp, and also it’s,, it’s just sad idk poor rantaro. getting dumped because he’s like the emotional equivalent of a doorknob when it comes to his own feelings.

i do think rantaro is a bit cowardly. not in the sense that he’d shy away from danger-- i think he’d RUSH INTO IT HEAD FIRST because he’s a man or whatever, i know he respects women but he does seem to hold some of those very stereotypically masculine ideals of constantly protecting those around him, which is like.... ok toxic masculinity mcgee can u and kaito stop throwing hands every time u see each other ty-- but more in the sense that he avoids,,, confrontation. emotional confrontation just ain’t his thing. and i think he’d rather run away from it or otherwise find some way of ignoring it than try to address his problems.

he would, with that in mind, probably try to associate with people who don’t push the matter. kiyo and mukuro, for example. they both have a fair amount of baggage themselves so they’d probably be respectful. ryoma is lowkey enough that he just, he wouldn’t bring that shit up, that’s uncool. i also think rantaro would get along REALLY WELL with kaito, and i actually don’t think kaito would pull his sidekick stuff with him? just because in a way they’re kind of kindred spirits, and i think kaito would see an ally in rantaro before seeing someone to try to nurture, so they’d probably have some kind of a truce like, if you don’t force me to be vulnerable, i won’t force you. one of the reasons why i love amamota so much is because it involves the two of them growing to care about each other beyond that sort of unhealthy camaraderie and breaking down each other’s barriers and i just..... hhnnfhhdkfj they could be so good for each other but nobody wants to talk about thatjslfkj

you weren’t asking for my amamota mess lmao sorry anon i get sidetracked SO easily. but yeah, amami gravitates towards people who wouldn’t try to get him to be more honest with himself. and i honestly think the v3 cast would be pretty good about that overall, except for shuichi who is a detective and has a habit of sticking his nose in places it shouldn’t be, but i see no reason to write that out because amami’s ftes already display that beautifully. (well, that’s a lie, i’m absolutely plotting out a slowburn in my head already that involves shuichi stripping down his walls one by one, but forget about all of that rn we don’t need to talk about why amasaimota is my ot3.) also he is softer on childish people like ouma and himiko. ain’t nobody wants to TALK TO ME about how brilliant it would be if rantaro and hiyoko were friends because hiyoko has such problems in that department and he would take one look at her and go hm. i’m adopting her. and he’s so fucking patient and nice and she’d lose the will to make fun of him and i have to do ALL THE GODDAMN WORK AROUND HERE but it’s fine. at least i get to write it.

i’ve described the fundamentals of his characterisation pretty well by now i think. i have some throwaway headcanons, like uhh,,

he’s claustrophobic

plays the guitar and the ukulele

he prefers warm weather and perishes in the cold

high pain tolerance

he’s a Good Cook

doesn’t like sex jokes (they make him uncomfortable)

asexual (i do like a good demisexual hc at all times of day tho)

master of piggyback rides

does his own piercings

impulsive as hell

gets lost easily but can always find his way back

has a lot of scars from travels

hands are rough and calloused (again from travels)

morning person

smells like evergreen (you know i had to, you know i did)

Radiates Heat Like A Fucking Toaster Oven

good hugs

hates tying his shoelaces

likes being the big spoon :)

has a tongue piercing

i said “some throwaway headcanons” but i ended up listing way more than i mean to. i’ll make a separate list of my rantaro headcanons someday and talk about them all in detail but for now, uh, there’s that.

SO AS FOR THE RANTARO CHARACTERISATIONS I ABSOLUTELY DESPISE:

god where to fucking begin. actually i know exactly where to begin. it’s my least favourite one just because, like i said at the very beginning, rantaro is a subversive character. i mean i think he’s kind of a low hanging fruit when it comes to that. there are plenty of other subversive characters in the dr series but rantaro is like that. you expect a flirt and u get,,, a sweetheart. but then some people (usually the ones who ship him with female characters exclusively though i will see it on occasion in an amasai or oumami fic) decide to throw that out the window and make him a total playboy!! and listen, i have no problem with people who are a little flirty. we’re kids!! flirt ur heart out!!! and hey, that’s not what this is about but y’know what? so long as everything is safe, sane, and consensual, then yeah!! exercise your sexual freedom and sleep with whoever you want to!!! i don’t think there’s anything wrong with messing around a little, dating who u wanna and experimenting with ur tastes and preferences. if rantaro WAS a playboy, then there would be nothing wrong with that. i would love him just the same because he’s such a fundamentally GOOD character.

except that.... he’s.......... NOT. you slaughter one of the biggest aspects of his character by throwing away what matters to him and making him some hunky-deep-voice-dreamboat dude meant to sweep kaede/tsumugi/whomsteverthefuck off her feet. rantaro is one of those characters where he’s so blatantly not that kind of person, and it’s like. it’s an affront, almost, to portray him that way? and i do believe you should have the freedom to write what you want, since we’re in that age (aside from romanticised pedophilia and incest; that shit ain’t cute, i say this often but pro-ship DNI) where u should be able to take some liberties, but it’s just. hnnn. it’s so frustrating. rantaro does not know how to smolder! if he DID smolder, he wouldn’t even realise he was doing it. he doesn’t have people lying at his feet, okay? he’s too flaky for that. i wouldn’t say he’s unreliable but he definitely ain’t at school as much as he should be.

another one that i hate: st-stalker? what the fuck? that is not sexy that is creepy and weird?

another another one that i hate: yandere? what the FUCK??? that is not sexy that is glorified ABUSE???? the yandere trope is AWFUL bc you’re taking a controlling relationship and turning it into a fetish. NO. if he limits ur contact with other people, if he follows u everywhere, if he threatens ur loved ones, if he tries to control you, ladies and gents and nonbinaries, he’s not a yandere, he’s an abuser and you need a fucking restraining order. actually, people of ANY gender or sex can perpetuate this behaviour and IT IS NOT CUTE. I DO NOT GIVE A FUCK WHAT BOUNDARIES U SET IN PLACE, IF YOUR FREEDOM IS BEING RESTRICTED THAT IS ABUSE.

hate it when people make rantaro violent. hate it when people make rantaro a murderer. hate it when people make rantaro controlling. hate it when people make rantaro overtly sexual. some kind of sultry deep voice dominant kind of figure. dude, what the fuck? i don’t,, want to make any public comments about sex positions because i think that’s kind of Strange to just talk about on a post, but i do think that the way people portray him for their smuts is,,, idk it’s weird. i’m not gonna kinkshame u but like. :eyes:

i will however accept rantaro as a thrillseeker, or a highstrung rich boy, or a total space cadet, or a himbo, or a cryptid. these are all very good interpretations of the Mans. just, like. be wary of making him two dimensional. a good character is multifaceted. if you can take a trait that clashes with all of these and SELL ME ON IT, i will buy it. if u give me good justifications, or even just good writing?? then i will accept it.

the long and the short of it is, anon, he’s my favourite so i think about him a lot. i love writing rantaro. he’s just, he’s a Guy. y’know? He’s A Good Dude, If You’ll Give Him A Shot. :) we don’t get to see very much of him but i think that there’s plenty of material if you overanalyse everything, which, as you probably all know by now,,,, i absolutely do.

thank you for the ask, this was a delight to spend an hour talking about.

#amami rantaro #rantaro amami #abuse mention #long post

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nny11writes · 4 years

Note

For the fic writer ask game: What’s a trope that you’d like to never hear about as long as you live, let alone write? (Feel free to rant :) )

Hahahaha, sorry were you looking for one trope?

I’m usually so positive so now you’ve done it. You’ve unlocked me complaining about random shit that doesn’t usually matter. Because the damn busted wide the fuck open! Okay, so I’m going to approach this as outside of smut fics with intense kinks I can’t stand (vore, foot fetish, scat play, etc), because that’s me getting squicked and/or triggered and not just tropes that I wish would die in a fire.

My only disclaimer up front is that if you love most of these (hopefully it’ll be obvious which ones I will not forgive/excuse you from), that’s awesome! Go for it! Read it, write it, print it out to loving re-read and paste on the walls! Fandom is, in large part, about finding your niche and enjoying what you enjoy pretty much shamelessly. So I’m not passing judgement on anyone who enjoys reading or writing (most of) these.

CW: rape, sexual assault Also I’ve had a shit few days, so if you don’t want to read someone just being negative and bitching this is probably not the post for you friend. But it all below a cut so people can avoid!

Crossover Fics/Rule 50

My main gripe with this is that without fail a series I love get crossed over with a fandom I either don’t care about or hate. Every time I’ve tried to force myself to read one it’s never worked out for me. Sometimes fics aren’t properly tagged and I’m getting into the setting only for other characters from another fandom to suddenly show up and literally I instantly loose interest. The closest I got to writing a crossover fic, was on FF.net where I had all the characters I wrote for “talking to me” when I hit a big wall of writer’s block in the hopes that writing something so different and strange for me would help. It didn’t. It was interesting for 0.2 seconds to wonder how characters would interact, but then I instantly lost interest because I end up leaning so heavily of character tropes to make it work which, for me, isn’t fun to read or write.

Like, just write fusion! I like fusion! I’m currently writing a SPOP-SW fusion! It allows me to play with characters in a fun world that I already understand, but without the frustration of characters becoming more 2D or very OOC (or both) to force them to interact with one another. Rage Fics

Honestly? If you write and post rage fics, fuck you. Full stop. Fuck you.

I’m about to tangent, but I swear it’s related. This is the equivalent of someone tagging a character or ship or fandom they hate in a post bashing them or blasting them to hell and back. Fucking beyond rude and obnoxious. That’s what rage fics are cranked up to 11. You are 100% allowed to hate on fandom/character/ship/trope/whatever the fuck, but when you do that shit you are forcing people who enjoy the media to see/interact with your BS because you fucking tagged it to show up where we are. A great example here in SPOP is Catra. I love her! I understand why some people don’t, and they’re 100% allowed to hate her and resent that so many people like her. Recently I went to the Catra tag to find art and fic, maybe some of the top notch meta this fandom puts out if I was lucky, and got stuck seeing post after post after meta post comparing her to another character in the show to explain why she’s an awful person, badly written character, and anyone who likes her (but didn’t like the poster’s fave) was an idiot/asshole/troll/bitch/dumbass and you know what? I went from having a decent time decompressing after a shitty day at work to getting fucking sent around the sun with stress. Like, bro, I’m here to ENJOY myself thanks, and when you tag things I go to for fun and fluff when I’m out of spoons and ready to snap to ranting about hating it, you make me want to scream.

Y’all don’t know how many people are lucky that I write up responses in word so I can get it out of my system and then just DELETE the whole fucking thing. Rage fic is that same fucking set up, but instead of being a relatively quick post (where I can block the poster here on tumblr), it’s a fanfic that people are going to continue to click into over and over and over again for fun only to get body slammed. There’s no way to warn people on AO3 if something is a rage fic beyond not leaving a kudos and dropping a comment. I don’t know a lot of people who read comments first so it doesn’t always work.

If you post rage fics, grow up. Stop that shit. Fuck you. Instead, try not purposefully interacting with fandom that makes you so mad that you think doing this is an appropriate reaction. Block tags, block users, regulate comments, go whole fucking hog. You should be able to enjoy fandom too! But if you can’t do that without tearing down other people in fandom then you make me want to beat you over the head until you self-isolate to play by yourself in a different sandbox. Seriously. Fuck you if you do this.

Troll Fics

Did you think I came on strong for rage fics? This is worse.

If you do this? Fuck you. You get NOTHING but my pure rage and if I find this shit I will report you however I can and then shout from the rooftops about it. And I’m sure if you do write troll fics because you enjoy being purposefully offensive and triggering then you’re probably delighted that my reaction to just thinking about this is wishing I had the power to fuck up your life.

Like, the ONLY thing I can say for rage fic is that at least typically the person writing it actually enjoys some aspect of the fandom or fandom in general.

Troll fics are just meant to be offensive on purpose and if you write and post that you’re a bad person. No exceptions. You can make different choices and work to become a better person or a good person, but right now, right this second as you do it? You’re a bad person. You should probably figure out why you get so much joy out of posting things with the sole purpose of hurting/triggering/being cruel to others. And you might need help to do that. I legit think you should reach out to people with different opinions from your own to try and break out of it. Get a therapist. Do fucking something worthwhile, because posting troll fics is not worth anyone’s while. Fuck you. Rape as a Backstory

I hope I don’t have to fucking explain why this makes me want to literally explode. I’m purposefully not writing that as R*pe so that people with rape tagged don’t see this.

If you think that rape is the only way to push your story forward or is a great way to give a character “free and easy trauma”, literally stop. Just. Fucking. Stop. There are other ways. Really look at your work, really think about /why/ it’s so important to you that the character /has/ to be raped. Most of the time the real answer is you don’t have a reason you just chose it because you either don’t care, think it’s not a big deal, or never considered other possibilities. There are stories where rape does need to be included, stories that address the topic kindly and/or tag appropriately for it. I’ve read some of these that were really amazing, both short (<1k) and long (>100k) because the author actually took a hot second to address the topic in an intelligent way. Whether that was to dive into how it’s harmful, address their own trauma, or (honestly) even for the smut porn of it but with all the proper tags on it. If you have it to be purely enjoyed by yourself and/or others with dubcon or noncon kinks, cool, good for you, TAG IT APPROPRIATELY. Fucking bless writers who still use “Dead Dove/Do Not Eat” tags y’all are doing great work. But the vast majority using this trope?

They aren’t that, they aren’t anything like that at all, they aren’t always tagged correctly or at all and that’s by design, it’s often for shock value or a quick ‘well that’s why they’re anti-social’, it’s sometimes used as an excuse for one character to swear off sex until the “right person” comes along to “cure them”, and they shouldn’t have ever been posted.

Redemption Equals Sex/Sexual Karma

I know this is spring boarding a bit, but please stop writing these two tropes.

I’m exhausted y’all. And not just because I’m asexual. This trope is disgusting and usually comes with heaps of sexism, racism, and homophobia. If you want to write smut please just write the fucking smut. I’m literally posting smut fic and am planning to work on another one tonight! JUST WRITE SMUT WITHOUT MAKING IT DISGUSTINGLY ANTI-MINORITY GROUPS AND PLAYING INTO HARMFUL STEREOTYPES. If bad guys become good(ish) guys because a woman saw past their barriers, took care of them, are a surrogate mother, and then had wild and kinky sex with them then it’s a bad fic. Likewise, if a character is punished for having sex, or is sexually assaulted to show that they’re now bad then it’s a bad fic.

If a character’s suffering is rewarded with sex to “cure” them and “make them better” then it’s a bad fic.

There are so many ways that this shit becomes a seriously harmful fic.

Please. Please, stop doing this. I am on my knees. Stop!

I am sick of ‘Draco’s in Leather Pants’ (can’t fucking believe I’m whipping that term out again holy shit what year is it) getting redeemed because they slept with someone and now found a reason to care. Sex leading someone on the path towards redemption is so EXTREMELY rarely handled in a way that’s well done. Just. Don’t. Be an unapologetic villain lover, slap them in an AU where they aren’t a pure villain, but don’t do this. Like I wrote above, I’m also just sick of (usually, but not always) dudes who put rape in to punish (usually, but not always) female characters or to punish weak/pushover characters (usually, but not always males). And equally tired of traumatized characters “casting off their shackles” to enjoy wild and kinky sex because someone with a magic dick/strap/fingers/tongue “showed them it’s okay” and “made it all better”.

Just, don’t. Be a fucking decent human being and don’t.

Character/Reader Fics

I...I really just don’t get this? It’s very uncomfortable to me and I’m assuming that’s due to me being aroace, I can’t read them and if I try to I either become so uncomfortable I stop or so rage filled I stop.

I don’t mind 2nd person stories, but most of the ones I see are character/reader fics and it’s...like, it’s just bad. Not “cringe” just enjoyable for me. I can’t explain why I hate this so much considering I do enjoy some 2nd person fics. Idk, I really don’t have the words to explain why these bother me so much. :\

I ain’t got an alternative, if you like these you like them, and if you don’t you just don’t. Thank you for tagging so I can avoid. Have fun on your own! Song Fics and/or Audio/Sound Cue Fics

Sorry guys, I just hate it. I can’t really read a fic and listen to music at the same time, it becomes background noise 100% and detracts from both for audio cue fics.

Fuck, just realized I don’t know if people know what those are. Audio/Sound cue fics are fics where you’re reading along and all the sudden there’s a link or URL that you’re supposed to follow to help set up the next scene/enhance it. Hate it. Hate, hate, hate. It detracts from your story and makes it weaker while being annoying and breaking me the reader out of my enjoyment of your story. Hate! Telling me in the A/N that this (or these) are the song(s) you listened to while writing, song(s) you based the story on, or even that you think they’re good songs to get you in the mood for the story is totally okay! I’ll probably ignore it unless I went head over heels for it, in which case I WILL go back and listen to all of them. (Why hello Rhythm and Blues, you punched me in the face and I now listen to every song even vaguely mentioned in the story or A/N, you’re that good, it’s so fucking good guys, I can’t stop talking about this fucking series it’s just so good?????????) Song fics are also typically in this boat for me. And I want to be really clear, not fics where a character is singing in the fic with lyrics written out. That doesn’t bother me, that song is now effectively part of the story and draws me in. But if it’s paragraphs of description before suddenly cutting it’s annoying. Why, oh why, do I put up with this misery? Still looking for a reason For now it is a mystery to me Why, oh why, do I put up with this misery? Still looking for a reason But for now it's ancient history to me

So yeah I’m making an example to complain about the example.

But question.

Was that needed?

All I did was make overly explicit my feelings in this text that was already there in what I’d written. Song fics feel to me like writers who aren’t confident that their writing is good/understandable/relatable and so they are desperately throwing someone else’s creation into their own in the hopes the reader will get it. Friend, I promise you, we’ll get it without the song! The song lyrics detract when they’re just floating out there, and have taken goods fics and made them frustrating. Either that or you think you’re so amazing that your shit don’t stink and the rest of us idiots can choke because of your brilliance. I’ve found several song fics that if I copy and paste them into a word document and delete the song out, I really enjoyed the fic itself on it’s own merits in a way I literally couldn’t with the lyrics in there. Again, if you are weaving music into your fic, weave it in. Have characters sing, write the lyrics out as a character is listening to the music, quote the song in your fic (preferably without it being super obvious. I’m not saying my take on that was the best, but I did write a Catradora fic on giftly request based on a song and I 100% used lyrics from it in my prose and built my whole plot around it without breaking out to quote the song explicitly), just do something that’s not, like, punching me in the face because “clearly I couldn’t get it” or from a fear that “they won’t understand”. At best you seem insecure and unsure about your story, which is fantastic without the song. At worst it seems like you’re saying your fic is so beyond the average reader that we would never understand your vision without someone else’s original content in it.

#cw: rape #tw: rape #negativity #fandom #fandom negativity #me actually complaining about shit explicitly #and I still edited it a lot to make it not rage ranty #my anxiety won't let me live if I don't #about the author #tag game #writing game #writer game #fic game #fanfiction game #oh my god Imma post now otherwise I'm going to dive back in and scream A LOT MORE BECAUSE MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM #bobkitten

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