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kaibutsushidousha · 3 years

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Tribe Nine progress report #00 (part 1)

Translations from the official Tribe Nine website, supplemented with things that were said on stream.

Character names are in Japanese order because that's how they're officially romanized.

Also, I'll be posting this in multiple parts because I reached the image limit on this post.

World

In the country of Neotokyo, year 20XX, youth with no hope for society's future form Tribes to find a place to call home.

With time, the disputes between Tribes continued to grow more and more violent. The situation was very intense in the eyes of the Neotokyo government, so they enforced the XB Law, which limited the quarrels between Tribes to only Extreme Baseball.

Pitch, bat, and trade blows. The youths were crazy over this radical pride-staking game.

XB (Extreme Baseball)

A duel method similar to baseball, designed to settle conflicts between Tribes. As determined by the XB Law, the loser must obey the winner's order(s).

Runners and the fielder with the ball can initiate battles with each other for the right to reach a base. The slugfests between players equipped with body-enhancing gear are XB's greatest trademark.

Rules

The games must be played late at night when there are no longer any onlookers.

The games will use the entire City as its field.

Batters are only out by tag out or by strike out.

There is no home run. In case of an extra-base hit, the runner(s) can run through the bases until they initiate a battle against the fielder with the ball.

A fielder with the ball is allowed to initiate a battle against a runner, staking the runner's right to reach a base.

Players can equip XB Gear to enhance their physical abilities.

Anything can be used as XB Gear, as long as it's approved by the Judge Robot acting as the umpire for the game.

The win condition is either scoring more points than the opposing team or knocking out the opponents in battle.

The winner can give any order to the loser.

Characters

[This section will have some character profiles for a few Tribes, but before that, I'll have to go over some elements that were only explained in a previous interview and in the stream. The game will contain 23 Tribes, each themed after one of the 23 wards of Tokyo. The names of the Tribes here all match the names of the wards they represent. Their base concepts will be all about local stereotypes, of course, but in the stream, Kodaka compared them to One Piece pirate crews in terms of how much individuality the characters will get within the team.]

Minato Tribe

A Tribe famed as the strongest in Neotokyo. They value the bonds between teammates and genuinely enjoy XB.

[The Minato ward is the ward where the Tokyo Tower (also called Minato Tower) is. Due to holding the symbol of the city, Kodaka chose it to be the ward of the anime's protagonist Tribe.]

Kamiya Shun (Leader)

CV: Akira Ishida

Birthday: February 22nd

Height: 179 cm

Weight: 65 kg

Voice sample 1: Let's enjoy one more game.

Voice sample 2: I'll show you how to topple the Minato Tower.

"What could be more exciting than XB?"

The founder and leader of the Minato Tribe, as well as the main reason why they're considered the strongest. He is one of the very few Beam Bat users. He's as top tier as you'd expect as a pitcher and batter, not to mention he's unmatched at a fistfight.

He enjoys unchallenged popularity on the XB field, but he also has a more goofy side. His antics include giving his teammate incomprehensible nicknames and getting hungover on coffee, among others.

Shirokane Haru

CV: Shun Horie

Birthday: January 20th

Height: 160 cm

Weight: 47 kg

Voice sample 1: My name is Haru. Shirokane Haru.

Voice sample 2: If I can really hit this swing...

"If I really have potential... I wanna give it a try!"

A timid bullied boy. He was getting into trouble with the town's delinquents as usual when Kamiya and Taiga saved him. He was bound by his own perceived uselessness, but Kamiya noticed his natural agility, wits, and keen eyes and he was invited to use these "weapons" of him for the Minato Tribe.

Taiga

CV: Chiharu Sawashiro

Birthday: October 10th

Height: 182 cm

Weight: 76 kg

Voice sample 1: I'll beat Kamiya Shun and become the best player!

Voice sample 2: The match only starts when you get to the batter's box.

You got nothing to worry about, you got me as the captain on this ride aboard the S.S. Big Ship Taiga, where S.S. stands for "safe and sound"!

A hot-blooded boy who came to Neotokyo from the other side of the ocean in pursuit of one dream: winning against the strongest man, Kamiya Shun! He joins the Minato Tribe along with Haru. He's a novice in XB and struggles to memorize the rules, but he keeps challenging his opponents with his dauntless courage and the brute strength he's so proud of.

Arisugawa Saori (Vice-Leader)

CV: Mai Fuchigami

Birthday: November 22nd

Height: 162 cm

Weight: 43 kg

Voice sample 1: The Minato Tribe never says no to anyone wanting to join or leave. You can stay as long as you want.

Voice sample 2: Raise your arm higher and put more strength into your swing.

There's no ball I can't catch!

The Minato Tribe's vice-leader. Despite her frail looks, she's an outstanding catcher, capable of stopping even Kamiya's blazing fastballs. She takes charge, commanding Minato's ensemble of oddballs since Kamiya is too careless to be a real leader.

No one values the members of Minato's team more than her, but she is extremely strict about rules and morals, never hesitating to unload a cartridge of her favorite airsoft gun on a transgressing teammate.

Mita Santarou

CV: Mutsumi Tamura

Birthday: March 30th

Height: 150 cm

Weight: 44 kg

Voice sample 1: I know talent when I see it.

Voice sample 2: The first thing rookies do is carry my stuff. That's the law of Minato.

T-those dudes are no match for me...! Ok, you guys go take them on!

A member of the Minato Tribe. He claims to be the ace of the team but is actually just a reserve pitcher. He's a pervert and a sleazeball and often gets punished by Arisugawa for it, but he shows no signs of wanting to fix his flaws.

He tends to abuse his seniority over the new members, but he's as caring and friendly as he is unreasonably bossy.

Daimon Manami

CV: Fukushi Ochiai

Birthday: July 20th

Height: 191 cm

Weight: 180 kg

Voice sample 1: I accept all forms of gratitude and cake.

Voice sample 2: You gotta swing hard but without straining yourself.

Don't forget to eat well before a game of XB.

A member of the Minato Tribe. He's always supporting the other members with his gentle personality and great cooking. Minato's base of operation is Lovely Ocean, a restaurant he runs.

Despite his usual calm, no one can stop him when he snaps.

[Translation note: Manami means "lovely ocean"]

Aoyama Kazuki

CV: Shouya Chiba

Birthday: May 18th

Height: 174 cm

Weight: 57 kg

Voice sample 1: Huhu, even if I can't use my left arm anymore, my brain is still much better than yours, stupid people.

Voice sample 2: Timing is essential in our next strategy, I'll be giving the commands. It'd be easier for all of you since you won't have to think.

"You'll be my pawns."

A mysterious boy who suddenly appeared asking to join the Minato Tribe. He can't properly play XB because his left hand is injured. But for unknown reasons, he's very knowledgeable about XB tactics and how to handle a Beam Bat and makes full use of his ingenuity to bring victory to Minato.

He seems to have some kind of goal in approaching the Minato Tribe, but what could it be?

Chiyoda Tribe

A tribe under the patronage of the king of Neotokyo. They have been suppressing many other Tribes all over the country to ostentate their power.

[Chiyoda is the ward where the Palace is, so the Chiyoda Tribe are the guys with political power]

Ootori Oujirou (Leader)

CV: Jun'ichi Suwabe

Birthday: September 26th

Height: 192 cm

Weight: 78 kg

Voice sample 1: Can you entertain me, even a little?

Voice sample 2: A game needs blood. In eras where giants clash, the people are waiting for battles that spray blood and shatter bone.

"Winning is everything. There is nothing else I need."

The leader of the Chiyoda Tribe, and heir to Ootori Tenshin, the king of Neotokyo. Tenshin trained him since he was a child to be the strongest XB player.

He challenges teams all over Neotokyo to prove he is the best.

Ootori Tenshin (King of Neotokyo)

CV: Hiroshi Naka

Birthday: January 31st

Height: 177 cm

Weight: 51 kg

Voice sample 1: None is allowed to disobey the Ootori family! It's the masses to duty to kneel before me. Am I wrong?

Voice sample 2: Every single one of those so-called big shots sullying my Chiyoda must be exterminated! Go show them the power of the Ootori family!

"Through XB, you must show that that the power of the Ootori family is absolute!"

The king of Neotokyo. He's strongly obsessed with XB, to the point he trained his heir Oujirou since childhood to be the best player.

After that, he founded the Chiyoda Tribe with Oujirou as the leader.

He aims to trample all Tribes in the country in XB to ostentate the strength of the Ootori family.

CV: Mikako Komatsu

Birthday: March 15th

Height: 170 cm

Weight: 46 kg

Voice sample 1: As you wish.

Voice sample 2: I honestly and absolutely believe you will get the result you desire.

"Only death awaits the enemies of the Ootori family."

Ootori Tenshin's secretary. To the public, she's nothing more than a modest secretary, but her secret is that she's a cold-blooded agent, capable of doing anything for the sake of the Ootori family.

Countless people who criticized or plotted to opposed the Ootori family's plans may or may not have been to their grave by her hand.

#tribe nine #kamiya shun #shirokane haru #taiga #arisugawa saori #mita santaro #daimon manami #aoyama kazuki #otori ojiro #otori tenshin #kamiki yui

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nessinborderland · 3 years

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Be Mine (03)

Pairing: Niragi x Reader / Chishiya x Reader

Genre: Smut, Angst, Fluff, Omegaverse

Word Count: 4.8k

Summary: You were able to stay unbounded throughout your life. You didn't want an Alpha; you didn't need one. You would rather die than to give yourself to some random male. But the man that saved your life thinks differently.

Warnings: Alpha/Omega, Dubious Consent, Vaginal Sex, Vaginal Fingering, Finger fucking, Rough Sex, Rough Kissing, Unprotected Sex, Creampie, Breeding, Pregnancy Kink, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Drama, Developing Relationship, Past Abuse, Scars

Notes: Would like to thank everyone that has been liking, reblogging and commenting on this fic, I see ya’ll and I love you. It means the world to me <3 I’m so glad people are liking my lil Niragi work. My dm’s and ask box are open if you ever feel like saying hi and/or scream over stuff in general with me lol. Enjoy!

AO3 Link Masterlist

You had woken up to an empty bed the next morning. You had laid there, staring at the ceiling and rewinding every moment of the last twenty-four hours in your head, over and over. How things had changed so fast. How so much had happened already. You didn't know if you should feel sad or relieved by Niragi's absence; you weren't sure if you wanted to face him after what had happened last night. You still remembered the look in his eyes, his promise, how he made you feel. It was all so...overwhelming.

A week has passed without you speaking with Niragi. You barely caught a glimpse of him beside the occasional moments where you see him from afar with his group of militants, usually coming from or going on raids. You tried to talk to him on several occasions, but he was out of sight before you could get close enough. You also changed rooms after that first night, and part of you was hoping to see him barge in to take you back to his room. But it never happened.

He is avoiding you.

That or maybe he is usually that busy. Either way, you don’t like how this whole situation makes you feel. Yeah sure, maybe you aren’t exactly being the most approachable person either, but you are...scared. This is all so new for you. His scent has practically disappeared from your skin, and you can feel yourself getting restless again. Especially when he is close.

You don’t see him, but you can feel his eyes on you. You can smell the peppermint in the air every time he is close. You usually walk around the hotel alone or just stay in your bedroom. Walking around by yourself is nerve-wracking; the constant whispers, the stares, the way people either avoid you or get way too close to you. But you can feel him always close by, watching you.

Chishiya.

You honestly don’t know if you should feel safe or afraid. Afraid that he will use his influence as an Alpha to take you as Niragi did the first time you met. At least Chishiya hasn’t tried hunting you down yet. Even though stalking you around like a cat chasing a mouse isn’t much different.

You’re now in a car with Ann, exhausted, wet from head to toe, but alive. Another game where your skills were evaluated; another game where you won without particularly impressing her. You always feel like you’re alive out of sheer luck and the help of others. It bothers you more than you dare to say. You have already been evaluated in games of Clubs and Diamonds, and you’re sure you would be dead if it wasn’t for Ann and the other players.

You can’t understand how people can be so smart at these hell games. Yes, you were successful at solving the riddle that allowed you to win the game of Diamonds, but since when was that impressive? You would still have been eaten by that shark in the game of Clubs without everyone else’s help.

“How are you holding up, Kenji?” you ask the young man sitting beside you. His arm is bandaged with a t-shirt already drenched in blood and his face is pale. He turns to you with a half-smile.

“Alive, thanks to you,” he says, moaning in pain when the car rides over a bump. “Thank you for that, by the way. For coming back for me.”

“It was the right thing to do.” you shrug with a smile, “Besides, I almost got eaten too.”

You can feel Ann’s eyes on you through the rearview mirror. You wonder what she’s thinking. It’s like you’re back in high school, waiting for an important evaluation. You hate it.

The car finally parks in the Beach’s parking lot and you get out, helping Kenji to his feet before two men come to take him to the infirmary. You’re walking away to get inside when Ann calls your name.

“A lot of people wouldn’t have done what you did,” she says. “That was brave of you. And stupid.”

“Uhh, thanks?” you stand there awkwardly as she seems to assess you through those big sunglasses of hers. “I just-”

“What do you see in him?” she asks after a pause, interrupting you. “You have nothing in common.”

You don’t know what to answer; shared interests and personality traits are not exactly what attracted you to each other. You shrug, “Wolf things I guess.” It’s not exactly something easy to explain. You also would rather not give it too much thought.

Ann hums, shaking her head. “Just be careful,” and walks away before you can even think of an answer.

You’re about to make your way inside when the sound of tires screeching makes you look back. The militants arrived from the games. You instantly see Niragi as he gets out of a vehicle, and you desperately want to approach him. He makes his way to the entrance at a fast pace, rifle on his shoulder as he’s followed by the rest of the militants. His pace falters when his gaze falls on you, but he doesn’t stop as he passes by you without a word.

“Niragi!” you’re calling before you can think twice.

He stops in his tracks, making everyone behind him stop too. More than twenty pairs of eyes lock on you as you stand there, heat growing on your cheeks. Why the hell did I call him, you think to yourself before clearing your throat.

“Hmm, could I speak to you? In private?”

He sighs. “I can’t right now. I’m going back out,” he says in a dismissive tone. You can’t help but notice the dark circles under his eyes; you worry if he’s been getting enough sleep lately. “We’ll talk when I get back.” and with that, he turns his back on you and walks away, followed by his group.

He’s definitely avoiding you. You wonder why; was it all the rejecting? Maybe he finally realized you are more trouble than pleasure. Maybe he regrets his promise to you, made in an inebriated state?

It was your disgusting scars, a mean voice in your head whispers.

You flinch. Whatever it is, you hope that he will at least be straightforward and honest with you. Eventually.

You try not to overthink it as you get to your room and go straight to the bathroom, getting rid of your wet clothes before jumping in the warm shower. The thing you probably like the most about the Beach is the showers. That and the good food; there’s always a tray of delicious meals delivered to your room three times a day. You can definitely get used to those small luxuries.

You finish your shower just in time to receive your dinner tray. You eat your meal in bed, a book you found while outside laying open on your knees as you take occasional spoonfuls of your rabbit stew. The sound of laughter and loud talking makes you frown for the third time in half an hour. One of the things you dislike the most about the Beach; the constant partying.

You give up on the book and decide to sleep, hoping that your exhaustiveness will win against the noise of your next-door neighbors.

It does not.

You’re knocking on their door moments later. A man opens the door, clearly beyond drunk, if his breath and slurred speech are anything to go by.

“Could you guys please keep it down?” you ask. "I'm trying to sleep." The man stares you up and down with a smirk, and you give a small step back.

“Yo, guys guess who came to pay us a visit!” he says behind him. You can see three men sitting at a table, playing what you guess is poker, several beer bottles scattered around them. You think you recognize one of them as part of the militants. Maybe coming here wasn’t a good idea after all.

“Isn’t that Niragi’s bitch?” “Ask her if she wants to join us!” is what you hear them say above the laughter. Yes, bad idea. You put your arms around you, wishing you were wearing something more besides your cotton shorts and Niragi’s shirt.

“Listen, just keep the noise to a minimum, that’s all I’m asking.” you quickly say before turning around to walk back to your room. A hand grabs your arm before you can take more than a couple of steps.

“Why don’t you join us?” says the man. His friends stand behind him, a look in their eyes that makes you shiver with apprehension. “We could show you a good time.”

“Thanks but no, thanks, I’m just trying to get some sleep.”

“You can sleep here, we don’t mind.” he retorts with a pull to your arm. “C’mon-”

“Haru, this isn’t a good idea,” warns the guy you had recognized. “She’s with Niragi.”

Haru laughs and pulls you closer, ignoring your struggle. He sniffs your hair. “Then he has been doing a shitty job at fucking her.” he pulls at your shirt, “Isn’t this his? She doesn’t smell like an Alpha at all,” he chuckles, “And didn’t you say that he ignored her today? I don’t think he’ll care if we get his sloppy seconds.”

“Let me go!” you pull your arm from his grip and face the taller man. “Niragi is not here to kick your asses, but I am.”

“Oh look at this, the little Omega has claws!”

“So do I.”

You freeze. So do Haru and his friends.

You smell him before you see him. Peppermint and rain.

You turn around to see him a few meters behind you, standing casually with his hands in his pockets. He looks bored; like he’s just passing by and there’s an inconvenience on his path. But his eyes…

“Chishiya-”

“You aren’t very smart, are you?” he interrupts, walking slowly towards you. “Harassing an Omega when there’s an Alpha around. It’s not acceptable back in the real world, what makes you think it’s acceptable here?” his eyes flash with something you recognize. You also notice the golden ring on them, giving them a more animal look. “Now you can either let her go or-.”

Haru releases his grip on your arm and takes a step back before Chishiya can finish his sentence.

“We didn’t do anything to her, man,” he says, hands raised. The man trembles slightly, eyes cast on the ground. “We were just messing around, that’s all.”

Chishiya chuckles and nods, “Of course, of course. Just remember what can happen if you mess with her again.” one of his hands leaves his pocket to scratch his neck, almost mindlessly. You gasp when you see the claws, the changed hand. “I would hate to get blood on my white hoodie.”

The men scatter back into their room without another word, tails between their legs. You stand there looking at him, involved in his scent. After more than a week without an Alpha, having him so close is not doing you any favors. His presence is unmistakably wolf, his scent stronger by his show of dominance. He barely had to try; Betas just instinctively know not to mess with Alphas. You start feeling hot, and you curse yourself; please not now.

“Are you okay?” his voice gets your attention.

“Uh-hm, yeah I am,” you stutter a little, “Th-thanks for the help.”

He takes a few steps closer to you, his eyes never leaving yours. You feel hypnotized; like you’re under a spell. He smells so good, and you’re so horny, and he’s the only thing making you feel safe now. You think of Niragi for a moment, until your wolf pushes the memory aside with a huff; Niragi is not there, you’re still unclaimed, and there’s an Alpha right in front of you.

You jump into his arms before you’re able to overthink things even more. His arms envelop you as your lips touch, and you feel that amazing electrifying sensation every time you touch an Alpha. His lips are soft on yours as he kisses you. His hands are surprisingly warm against your skin.

“Alpha- ” you moan into the kiss.

“Bedroom,” is all he says as he pulls you with him to your room. His lips are still on yours as he closes the door with a kick before making you lay down on the bed. His body covers yours in an instant, his hands roaming your body while his lips suck the skin of your neck. Even his kisses make you feel pleasure, and you whine as his hands go under your shirt to fondle your breasts. “Your skin is so soft,” he whispers with a pinch to your nipple. “I have been wanting to touch you since I first laid my eyes on you.”

“I- I want more,” your pussy clenches around nothing as you feel him hard against your stomach, “Please, Alpha...more,” you don’t care about how you sound. You just want that sweet release only an Alpha can provide. Niragi’s face shows up in your mind’s eye, but you ignore it; he wasn’t there for you when you needed it. Chishiya was.

His hands move to untie your shorts, sliding them down your legs to uncover your wet cunt. He sits back on his heels, hand on your thigh as he stares right at your naked core. He’s more expressive now than you’ve ever seen him before; his eyes burn with lust, his bottom lip between his teeth. You whine as he stays still, pushing your hips up; you want him to fuck you, not to stare at you.

He chuckles and licks his lips. “Open your legs wider for me,” you immediately do as he says, craving his touch. His hand slides lower until his fingers are tracing your slit in up and down movements, making you moan and instinctively close your legs. “Open,” he says with a glance at your face before leaning over your center. His breath is warm against your swollen clit.

You shiver as he flicks his tongue over your sensitive bud; it feels so good, and you want more. Your hands grip your pillow as you moan in time with his licks, almost letting out a scream when he sucks on your clit. No man had ever touched you like that; they were all inside you and over after a few minutes of thrusting. Even Niragi had gone straight to business. But fuck, does it feel good.

“Chi- Chishiya, oh my god- “ you manage to say before you’re interrupted by two of his fingers entering you. They curl inside you as his tongue keeps working wonders on your clit. You can feel an orgasm growing, toes curling at the pulling sensation in your core. You’re so close. “Please keep going, don’t stop.” you practically beg as he finger fucks you.

He stops.

You open your eyes with a displeased grunt to catch him looking at you, lips glistening with your juices. He smirks, “We’re just getting started,” he says, pulling you by the legs so your center is pressing against his crotch. You moan again at feeling him hard against you with only his swim shorts in the way.

You sit up to undress him off his hoodie, something he lets you do as he devours your lips. He suddenly pulls you up against him until you’re practically sitting on his lap. You grind against him, trying to put out the fire inside you. His mouth kisses down your neck to your breasts, without fully undressing you. You try to take off the shirt, but he makes you pause.

“That’s his shirt, isn’t it?” you nod and he huffs out a laugh, unbuttoning the first buttons only, “Keep it on,” he says before closing his lips around a nipple. You close your eyes and just enjoy the sensations he provides you. Your mind goes back to Niragi; how his tongue piercing felt against you as he sucked on you too, or how his hands never stopped pleasuring you. You almost grunt in frustration at the memories; he doesn’t matter now.

“Alpha, I want you inside me,” you beg as you keep grinding on him. It’s starting to feel like torture. Your hands slide down to work on his shorts, “Please...please.”

“Easy there,” he chuckles, pushing you back down on the bed. “We have time. Be a good girl and stay still,” he says as he gets rid of his shorts in a swift movement, now completely naked in front of you. You glance at his cock, hard as wood in between his pale thighs, a bead of precum sliding from the tip. Your mouth waters; you desperately want him to fuck you, you think as your pussy clenches around nothing.

You open your mouth to say something but hesitate, trying to follow his command. You wonder how can an Alpha have so much self-control; he should be deep inside you by now. It’s beyond frustrating. He finally covers your body with his, and you smile at the sensation of his skin on yours; it feels so good. You wrap your legs around his waist, pulling him closer as you kiss him with ferocity. It hurts how much you need him.

You finally feel his tip at your entrance, and then he’s inside you with a sharp thrust of his hips against yours. You scream at the sensation; so warm, so full, so unbelievably pleasurable. His thrusts are slow but firm, each hit of his pelvis against your clit making you see stars. His face goes to the side of your neck, and you feel as his teeth graze the skin, sucking and biting; right over the fading marks Niragi left on you a week ago.

“Go faster,” you whine as you push your hips up against his. You want him to fill you up to the brim; like Niragi had done. “Please Alpha, fill me up. Make me yours.”

He doesn’t say anything, but his pace gets faster, and you finally hear him make a sound since he started fucking you. His face is still hidden in the curve of your neck, but his hands clasp around your thighs, pulling them up until you’re practically folded in half. You finally feel him deeper, hitting your g-spot as his shoves get gradually harder.

“Tell me how much you want me to knot in you,” he grunts against your ear. “Tell me you want me.”

“I- I want you,” you whine. “I want you to knot in me, and fill me up with your cum. I want you.”

He kisses your jaw, thrusts getting even faster. You can barely think; all you want is to come and for Chishiya to do the same inside you. You want to feel him as he shudders, hear him as he moans and you milk him dry. His hand goes to cradle your cheek, and you finally see his face as he locks eyes with you; his white hair sticks to his neck and forehead due to sweat, and his eyes are more gold than the usual dark brown. However, an uncomfortable realization sparks in you; there’s only lust in his eyes. No care, no adoration, no imitation of something resembling love. Nothing like Niragi’s eyes had looked at you. Your wolf pushes those thoughts aside once again, and you close your eyes as you focus on the man currently thrusting in and out of you. He’s what matters now.

Your orgasm hits you like a wave, toes curling behind his back as you clench around him in pleasure. You feel him as he comes too, hands squeezing your thighs with enough force to leave a bruise. However, you gasp when you feel him pull out with a hiss, and he finishes spilling on your belly and breasts.

You lay there as he finishes with a grunt before laying down beside you, both of you panting furiously. The fog in your brain soon evaporates, and you have to control the impulse to run out of your own bedroom. Why do you keep doing this to yourself? First Niragi, now Chishiya. All those years of self-control wasted. They meant nothing. You were just pushing back the inevitable; the day you would be claimed with no real ability to even choose by who. Your wolf doesn’t care, but you do. The last thing you want is a relationship like the one your parents had.

But you still ended up fucking two different Alphas in a week; it’s not like you have a choice.

Chishiya moving beside you pulls you out of your thoughts. He’s looking at you with his usual expression; cold and with a pull at his lips that gives the impression there’s something that only he’s smart enough to understand. It annoys you just a little. You guess it shows on your face because he’s full-on smirking as he sits up.

“Feeling regretful, are we?” he says as he retrieves his shorts, putting them on, “I figured you would.”

“Then why didn’t you stop me?” you say in a low tone, sitting up with a moan. His come sticks to your thighs and runs down the skin of your breasts and belly. You sigh when you notice it stained Niragi’s shirt too.

“Why would I?” he shrugs, putting his hoodie on, “I can’t control this thing much more than you do. Besides- ” he says, shooting a glance at your torso, “Thought it might be fun.”

You furrow your brows at him. “This isn’t about me, is it?” you ask. Things kind of start to make sense now; his constant presence near you, the shirt he wanted you to keep, “This is about Niragi.”

His eyes lit up with something like amusement. “If I get to claim an Omega while pissing off Niragi then I’m doing something right.” he starts walking towards the door, “Don’t misunderstand though; I will fight to claim you when the time comes.” He closes the door behind him.

What have you done? You feel a sudden urge to cry, but push it back; you are done crying about this. So you just let a few tears fall before standing up and heading to the bathroom, wanting to get cleaned up as soon as you possibly can. You groan when you see yourself in the mirror, covered in love bites and cum.

You wonder how Niragi will react when he finds out; because he inevitably will. It wasn’t unheard of Alphas to fight to the death over an Omega; you just wish that isn’t what is about to happen. You don’t think you can live with that.

You step in the shower for the second time that night and vigorously rub your skin, trying to erase any and every sign of Chishiya off your body. Mission impossible, of course; his scent is still all over you as you get out of the shower. Next, you try to clean Niragi’s shirt. At least that one still smells faintly of cinnamon and wood.

As you should too, remarks the voice in your head.

You barely sleep that night.

You feel like a zombie the next morning and, as per usual, you stick to your room. You’re particularly into avoiding people today. Well, two people. So you keep to your room and jump between reading, to napping, to overthinking until you get a headache and then fall asleep.

A sudden knock on your door wakes you up, and you notice it’s almost night outside. You trip on your way to the door, opening it to reveal Chishiya on the other side. You scowl and move to close the door in his face, but his foot stops you.

“What?” you ask.

“We’re in the same group tonight,” he says, raising a piece of paper. “And before you say no, remember that you’re still under evaluation.”

“I have enough visa days,” you say, forcing the door on his foot. He doesn’t budge. You sigh and count to ten. You can do this; just another game. “Fine. But tell Ann that after this I’m only going out when I need to.”

You grab your jacket and get out, following Chishiya. You don’t say a word and neither does he. Your body feels his presence though, and you’re sure he can smell it in you. Smell himself in you.

You get in a van with your group, a bunch of people you faintly recognize but know no names. Chishiya seats right at the front, and you cringe as everyone else in the vehicle clearly knows everything that happened between you two. You hear Niragi’s name being whispered around, but try to ignore it, focusing on the road outside as you drive around looking for a game.

“Look there!” someone exclaims.

Koishikawa Botanical Garden.

The whole place is completely dark as you walk through the main gate, the familiar sound of the barrier closing behind you making you tremble with apprehension. A sign at the front says no weapons allowed, and you watch as two of the people in your group leave their weapons behind. Not really a good sign.

A single street lamp casts light on a table right next to the reception. You follow your group as they approach the table, but your attention is focused on your surroundings. You remember being there as a kid; hard to imagine that the beautiful open space full of trees and flowers of every species is now a game arena; a place of death. You wonder what exactly is the game that awaits you.

You focus your attention on the table, retrieving a phone and staring as it does the facial recognition thing it always does. It’s apparently a big game; there are already more than ten people waiting to play, and at least fifteen phones are still on the table.

You sit on a park bench while you wait, bracing yourself against the chilly night air. Chishiya is leaning against a street lamp right in front of you, and you know he’s staring, even though it’s dark and he has his hoodie up and covering his eyes. Your mind keeps rewinding the last twenty-four hours and you try to focus on something else with no success. If you’re not thinking about that, you’re thinking about the imminent game; both make you want to cry and run.

People slowly keep coming in, and you notice as the phones vanish one by one that the game is almost at its full capacity.

A sudden ruckus at the gates snaps everyone’s attention to the entrance, and you swear your heart stops as you see Niragi running in your direction with the most terrifying expression you’ve ever seen on him. He looks furious. Absolutely terrifying.

“I’m gonna rip your fucking heart out!” he screams as he gets closer. You notice his eyes are locked on Chishiya. His eyes; they aren’t human. Neither are his hands, now curved into claws. The other man doesn’t seem scared in the slightest; on the contrary, he looks like he’s having fun.

“Niragi, don’t- “ you scream as he lunges himself at the shorter man. Chishiya is fast though, swiftly dodging the punch before kicking Niragi in the stomach and stepping away.

Niragi huffs and doubles over before standing straight with a growl and trying another swing at the other man. Two men that got in with him try to corner Chishiya, but he just dodges them like it’s the easiest thing in the world.

“Not so bad without your gun, are you?” asks Chishiya in a mocking tone.

“With or without a gun, I’m still going to fucking kill you.” Niragi growls, “You fucked with the wrong wolf.”

Chishiya huffs a laugh, “Actually,” he says with a smirk, nodding in your direction, “I fucked the right wolf.”

Niragi’s eyes finally lock on you, and it’s like he’s seeing you for the first time. Only now his eyes are filled with something that resembles betrayal and pain. You hate it. You look down, trying to make yourself small; you don’t want him to look at you like that. Never.

“I’ll deal with her later,” he says in a cold tone, and you can’t help but flinch. He approaches the table and retrieves the last phone, eyes still on you. “Now I- “

You’re startled when cheery music starts playing all around you and the big screen you hadn’t noticed at the roof of the reception lits up.

“Registration has closed,” says a feminine robot voice, “The game will now commence.”

You look at your phone as it lits up.

Difficulty, Ten of Spades.

Game, “Akazukin: Red Riding Hood.”

Next Chapter

#alice in borderland #alice in borderland fanfic #niragi suguru #niragi x reader #chishiya shuntaro #niragi fic #chishiya x reader #also on ao3

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destroy-trash-boys · 2 years

Text

shuake shippers are so bad at analyzing text, they really are just ocs people project their murderboyfriends fantasy onto despite the game deliberately shutting that down. “but people can have an au and know it’s not canon!”

they’re not doing that though. they argue that villain joker is canon only because of his looks. joker is set up to be kind. this fandom is so stupid if people think not caring about a fucking rapist makes a character a “bad person” or morally gray. i wish persona 5 had good gray morality, i get it. but saying a character is morally gay because they don’t care about a rapist? that’s a bad fucking message there. the morals the game tells you to believe in are contradictory and bad. joker is bad if he doesn’t care if kamoshida dies. everything okumura did to others is erased because he died, and it made haru sad, and there’s no gray area there. it’s only bad to want abusers dead, guys. persona 5 has such a great message of justice for abusers.

joker is not a villain because of his awakening scene. a victim being angry at a system does not make them evil. every single person has dark thoughts, but you’re doing the bad analysis by using it to say he’s really evil deep down, because the point of the game is he doesn’t give into it because he has a support system. shuake shippers want to take that away and make him murder with akechi, despite also claiming that akechi’s murder is a result of him being manipulated by shido and other bad adults. which one is it, guys? you can’t have that take and also your “murder is empowering” edgy stance just because you want every ship to be like reylo or hannibal/will now

if you want an example of wrong choices joker made, the bad endings are right there, but that would involve realizing joker’s kindness and simple desire for happiness fuel it, and that’s not as fun for people than making him another generic ~~he looks so crazy~~ murderboy. it’s lazy and i’m going to call it lazy

#shuake #akira kurusu #ren amimaya

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sideblogformindtrash · 3 years

Text

dunno if i like like thiss but hg

CW: Dehumanization; is as a pronoun; mentioned past abuse; mentioned arson; mentioned death; collar/leash; low self –esteem;

Haru tugged at it's clothes. Blue was getting used to him doing that, though it was a bit unnerving. This time was to caught it's attention.

A couple was approaching, and happily jumping around them another pet, wearing a pretty yellow collar and matching clothes.

"Hey there, you two" the woman smiled. She spoke softly, keeping a respectful distance "Now, you are both adorable"

"Thank you miss..." Blue smiled. She didn't seem threatening... But it still felt its muscles tensing up, toes curling slightly, and it surely didn't trust smiles and soft words anymore. Not after the time it had spent on that awful apartment. People weren’t trustworthy. The outside wasn’t safe. It glanced over its shoulders. Master was nearby. He was reading something, sitting at a bench... Blue hoped he would notice soon.

"You… You are the pet called Blue aren't you?"

The man said. A cold shiver ran down it's spine, as it nodded. If the man knew... It could only mean he watched those videos.

Blue glanced at their pet, a happy thing obliviously jumping around. Haru's grip got stronger and he stepped up slightly in front of Blue.

"Oh, no, please don't get the wrong idea" the man was quick to notice his axiety "...We really didn't approve of the way your owner treated you. Couldn't imagine doing any of that to our Bubbles...."

The pet peeked up when hearing its name, but soon dismissed it. They seemed happy, and healthy and clean and… unharmed. No scars or bruises, no dark circles around their eyes...

They must have been one of the lucky ones that ended up on one of the families like the ones on pamphlets. A pet that would be loved, pampered and cherished.

"...yeah, it's actually nice to see you...” the man stopped, right before saying something “…You having a new home. A new friend, too"

...A new home. But blue knew what he meant to say was ‘nice to see you alive’. It's nice to see you didn't die at that cutting board. Didn’t die to bring Master some more views.

"...A lot of people were worried about you, actually"

It knew. And it knew they never did anything to help. People worrying about him and leaving comments and making videos against Master… only ever angered him, and made him hurt Blue more. He would sit Blue on his lap and make Blue watch people complaining about the way it was treated and, and get so angry. Punish it for every single one.

"I mean we are obviously pro-pets” the man says, petting their Bubbles. Why is he trying to justify this to Blue anyway? What does it matter. Blue is just a dumb stupid pet, Blue has no say on it… Blue doesn’t care how they feel about this. “But… I have to agree there need to be more laws keeping them safe…"

...It looked back again. Master was staring at them this time, watching silently, tapping the long nails on the book. Blue gave him the smallest nod... It was the cue he was waiting for. He dropped the book and walked up to them.

"Hey there" ...and he steps in front of it and Haru. Haru finally seems to breathe again. He grabs onto Master while Blue just quietly hugs Bonnie “Can I help?”

"Oh, hello. You must be the owner" the woman greets... She tries to smile but she is bothered now. People always seem to be when they see Master. Bothered because he is just slightly... Off, and it’s hard to say why. Blue remembers that feeling too, but he got used to it by now “You have some lovely pets there...."

Master just nods, they both hiding behind him. Haru grabbing his sleeve, pulling it so much a patch of Master’s shoulder is exposed. Master has… scars too. Blue can see just the tip of them.

"...We were just telling Blue about how people are worried about him" she tries again. The pet Bubbles seems really, really nervous looking at their Master. They have stopped jumping around and are now hiding behind their own owners, completely intimidated "His situation... comes up often in Pets rights activism groups..."

"Activism" Master Orfeu repeats and claps his hands with a bug smile and eyes bright like a child given candy. The people all but flinch when noticing his teeth "Are you guys going to burn IFs house down or..."

They chuckle out of nervousness.

"No, nothing like that of course... "

"Well that's boring" Master says, rolling his eyes and shrugging, almost disappointed "On that case just… Make me a favor and don't talk about meeting Blue. He doesn’t need any more attention thrown his way”

"Oh, no of course not" the woman plays with the hair of her precious Bubble "It's just good to see he is... Doing fine?"

Not dead. Good to see he is not dead. Why is that so hard for them to say when.... Everything else isn't? Maybe being dead would be better. It wouldn't hurt, it wouldn't...

Haru pulls his arms, furrowed brows. He... Cups Blues face. He only notices now that tears are falling, as Haru he pulls Blue away, far from those people, back at the bench.

"hhhgns... It sorry Haru... it... Wishes they'd just .. stop looking at...at Blue"

Haru nods, softly. 'Its okay', he gestures, as they sit on the grass, Blue burying it’s ugly face on Bonnie’s fur.

"Bubbles... Is lucky" Blue says, pulling his knees closer, watching as the pet gets comforted by their ownwers. Happy. They seem happy.

Haru... Shakes his head. 'never, really, know'. This gestures are wonky, but Blue can kind of tell what he was going for.

"y-yeahm.. you are right” Blue sighs. They can’t possibly know.

...But still. It looks at its hands, folding fingers one by one, almost feeling the ones that were cut. It wondered what it did to deserve that. It must have really been a useless, worthless, disgusting pet. Maybe if it had been better... Just s bit better... It could have had a lovely family like that of Bubbles.

Well, it kind of does have one now, even if it doesn't deserve them.

@whumpropaganda @whumpzone @freefallingup13 @lave-whump @lightdrinker @fanmanga1357-blog

#whump #pet whump #blue needs a tag #i think i messed up the taglists #oc whump

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kareofbears · 3 years

Text

plainly in truth, chapter 4/5

“Without you around, it’s sorta like stuff is just kinda…bleh.”

—

Or: hiding, confiding, and misguiding.

read on ao3 or below the cut

Niijima Makoto doesn’t know what she’s doing.

It’s rare, but it happens. Sometimes she doesn’t understand the material in university. Sometimes the trains close down before she can catch the last one. Sometimes she has a breakdown because what does it mean that the system that got her father killed is the same one that she’s working so hard to get into.

But there’s always a way to find a solution—ask the professor after lecture. Call Sae and, as humiliating as it was, ask for a ride home. Convince herself that maybe she’s what the system needed in order to get real change. (She’s not quite there yet.)

She doesn’t know what she’s doing with Ryuji, and the internal tug-of-war is almost getting too much for her.

Makoto can help him; how many students has she worked with to help get them back on their feet? But each of those students she had tutored wanted help—she didn’t need to convince them to focus on school. How do you convince someone to get academic help? Duct tape them to a chair and show them a PowerPoint about how their life can fall apart if they don’t take this seriously? Then she’d be blatantly ignoring his mental struggle, and be no better than the adults who want to push kids through a meat grinder that’s the education system and turn them into mindless workers, existing solely to earn them profit.

Then she can leave him alone. That’s what he wants, anyway, and it’s by far the simplest option.

However, if she leaves him alone, would that mean that she’s still the same person who let Shujin students sell themselves to Kaneshiro? Convinced that they can handle it on their own, but only letting their debts pile higher and higher on themselves until they get crushed?

Sudden laughter and shouting from behind pulls Makoto back to reality. They were all in a heated game of Tycoon, and it sounds like Akira’s been on a winning streak for the past half hour.

She grips the steering wheel tighter, forcing herself to focus on the road and not the whirlwind of thoughts. The highway is nearly empty, despite the sun being high in the sky, not a single cloud blocking its rays. They’re on their way to Okinawa, and it’s her turn to drive.

Makoto may not know what she’s doing, but she can at least do this.

—

Okumura Haru has always had a bit of a guilt complex.

It started with refusing to give her hand to an abusive man for her also abusive father’s business, and it had only escalated even further once she realized that it’s technically her fault that her father had been killed; that one in particular had been crippling. Not only because he died due to her poor decision making, but it was another reason why the Thieves had fallen for Shido’s trap last year.

She respects herself enough now to understand that most of it is misplaced, but it doesn’t erase any of the guilt she still carries today. Far from it—that guilt has only grown to be bigger, looming over her as if it were ready to consume every inch of her body and spit out a bag of bones.

This situation, though, she can’t help but feel that her guilt isn’t quite as misplaced as she likes to convince herself it is.

They were all having lunch at the ferry’s restaurant; it’s small, given how little people want to go all the way out to Okinawa, but it’s still selling ludicrously overpriced coffee and pastries. Nobody seems to mind, though. All of them were sharing one cheese omelette, each with a plastic fork in hand, tapping them against each other to get the best piece and assert dominance like animals at a watering hole.

A way to soothe guilt is to somehow find a way to remedy the situation. Employees of Big Bang Burger have been unionized, her father is now remembered for the man he was rather than the man he became, Sugimura has long since been a problem (how he stopped being a problem, she legally cannot speak about), and Shido isn’t even in the public’s conscious anymore.

But for Ryuji, there is no way to soothe that guilt. Not in a way that matters.

It’s not just because Haru had essentially been the reason why too many people know his secret, but because the secret should have never happened in the first place. She’s his senpai, she was supposed to be the one looking out for him. Ryuji was struggling, mentally and academically, and she hadn’t realized it until it was far too late. He had been there for her, ready to knock Sugimura’s teeth into his throat, but she couldn’t have done the same for him when it truly mattered.

How do you soothe that guilt? Buy out the entire school? Forge his grades? More cram books? That’s ridiculous.

There’s no way to soothe that guilt, she realizes, because the only real way to do that was to turn back time.

—

Kitagawa Yusuke understands pride better than most people.

Without a cent to his name for most of his life, pride was all he had. Pride of being the pupil of someone great, pride of turning money away in the name of art. Being able to withstand enormous pressure and stick to his guns has always been one of his strongest abilities.

They’re in the Okinawa jail, tearing through Shadows and screaming Sophia’s name, over and over again until all of their throats are torn raw. He calls for Goemon, and ice crawls over the narrow corridors of the facility like ants covering every inch of a buffet. They’re all strong, because they have to be, but the Shadows here are cunning; fast and magic-infused, drunk on the strange, thick air that’s bled into every inch of cement in this building.

But pride can be an unforgiving catalyst that can change you from the inside out, like a parasite hijacking your brain stem and compels you to bow down to it. He had refused to see the truth, turned a blind eye to the evils of his sensei, and it made him into a lesser version of himself. It had made him weaker.

A crack of lightning strikes, emanating light so bright that he instinctively raises a hand to block it out. When it dims, any smell of the cold, dry air is gone—in its place is the distinct scent of ozone wafting around him, and a light buzz that settles atop his skin like a second layer. The hair on his nape stands, but Yusuke’s positive it didn’t come from the electricity still buzzing from the ashes of the Shadows.

Ryuji had obliterated all of their foes with one, clean strike.

—

Takamaki Ann can tell that something’s off.

Her toes are buried deep in hot sand, taking refuge under their big umbrella. The sun is just about setting over the horizon, casting an orange glow on her skin, and she idly hopes that she had put on enough sunscreen. They’ve tired themselves out for the most part; some were taking naps on beach towels, some had retired back to the RV where air conditioning awaits them.

Only Akira and Ryuji were left, standing where the sand meets the tide, water lapping at their ankles. She couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but she recognized the look on Akira’s face—with his glasses hanging from his button up, his eyes sparkled brighter than the ocean does, not quite smiling but his lips are curled up as if unable to completely restrain itself. It’s the look he reserves for Ryuji.

She digs her feet deeper into the sand, enjoying the way it tickles her calves. Ann’s been thinking about this whole thing in her head ever since she found out the truth, and something just isn’t adding up.

As absolutely insane as it all is, if she closes one eye, tilts her head, and slams her head against a wall, she can sort of, kind of, maybe understand where he’s coming from. She’s known him too long not to. The whole actively lying to his friends thing is still unforgivable, but the need to hide it? Understandable. She barely scraped by second-year herself with a prayer and English-speaking parents, and even then her grades are nothing to write home about.

Ann could barely believe that Ryuji really thought that Akira would leave him over something as stupid as flunking school, but even that she can understand, too. Everyday, she wants to be a better person for Shiho, and everyday, she goes to bed thinking that she didn’t try hard enough. Ann gets it. Love screws with your brain, swirls it up until you can barely stand up straight, and definitely messes with your perception of yourself. Ridiculous, crazy, but still somewhat coherent.

There’s still one piece in this whole puzzle that hasn’t clicked yet, and it’s been bugging her ever since that night in the cafe.

As perceptive as he is, as smart and observant and unstoppable as he is, as kind and knowledgeable as he is, as much as he adores Ryuji to the moon and back—

Why hasn’t Akira said anything yet?

—

Sakura Futaba knows that something’s off.

As the navigator, she sees everything she needs to make sure her team makes it out of every battle alive and victorious. Necronomicon can see stuff that no one else can, can predict two, three, four moves before it can happen. She eats stats for breakfast and spits out results by second breakfast. She knows her team’s moveset like the back of her hand and then some. Futaba takes this seriously, because if she doesn’t, someone’s not walking out alive.

The best part is that she’s good at this. So good that the eternal worrywart, Joker himself, can still walk out of the Metaverse with a head of thick, black hair.

But something’s been off. She felt it in her bones and that feeling only gets more prominent with every passing Jail—no, not even Jail. With every battle, that feeling only gets stronger in her gut.

When it started is still a mystery to her, but she started picking up on it in Sapporo. Sapporo. Her mom told her never to pray, but by god she’s hoping that it started in Sapporo, because this—this thing, is too big to have missed.

Futaba isn’t sure what it is yet, but she has no idea what’s happening with Ryuji.

To be more specific, she has no idea what’s happening with Captain Kidd, but that’s basically the same thing; Personas are the extension of the user, I am thou, et cetera. The weirdest part is, she knows something’s off, but she doesn’t know if it’s necessarily a problem.

It’s as if Ryuji’s been hitting the gym while they weren’t looking, or giving Kidd a stern talking to. His attacks, which used to be around the same baseline as the rest of the team, is nearly outputting double the amount of damage than the rest of them. His hits are buffed to the wazoo on a level she’s never seen before in any other Persona user, even Akira.

She’s considered bringing it up with him dozens of times. The two of them have to be honest with each other, not because they love and respect each other or any of that bullcrap—it’s because it’s the only way anything can ever function in the team. Between the navigator and the leader, if they ever hide anything from the other, no matter how small, things would never run smoothly. Or worse: it’ll crash and burn.

And then Ryuji comes along and makes them all take a blood oath to never, ever tell Akira a really big secret.

Technically, she doesn’t see an issue with it. It’s more of an unspoken rule than any kind of signed contract, and it’s mostly about Metaverse stuff instead of real world problems. She’s not eagerly telling Akira about her private Pixiv account or anything. But it’s not impossible to think that Ryuji being strong enough to be wearing ten Gilded Vests stacked on top of each other is somehow connected to his very real, very heart-affecting situation. If she really thought it was a problem, she’d tell Akira right away. It’s better to have Ryuji hate her than to have him dead.

But when she sees Akira’s face flash with relief in Akane’s Jail when Ryuji all but annihilates a mega-super-high level Shadow, one that Akira’s been stressing about the entire time since they’ve been here despite him trying his best to act cool about it because he has to be, it’s kinda hard to consider this to be a problem at all.

—

Between Konoe’s attacks and relentless bolts of ions getting shot up every few seconds, the static is so thick in the air that their hairs are all frayed and heading skywards.

The blast from Konoe’s mech, once a symbol of their triumph and had pulled no small amount of whoops and cheers from their throats, is only the first stage of their fated battle. They hadn’t planned for an extra phase, and the only reason they were able to escape was that steam from the busted metal and machinery had given them a few seconds of cover.

All of them are huddled behind a wall, outlined with neon blue that only served to blend them in with the futuristic technicholar that is the Osaka Jail.

“We’re clear,” Makoto announces, voice low as she returns from peeking around the corner. “No chance he knows our location.”

“Thank you Queen,” Akira says, mask pushed far up his head, clear eyes rapidly checking over each of his teammates, nodding. “Good work out there with the mech, now let’s figure this one out. What do we know?”

“Not a lot,” Futaba’s goggles reflect data as her fingers dance over the screen. “If we assumed that his weaknesses would be the same as his mech, then it would be lightning and nuclear.”

“Only if we assume that his physical form reflects his robotic form,” Yusuke points out. “What are the odds that that’s the case?”

Morgana taps his paw on the ground, deep in thought. “High, I’d say. Remember, he didn’t even think anyone could actually get into his Jail. He was worried enough to give himself two forms, but I doubt he’d go much deeper than that in terms of protection.”

“Look, my math might be a little off,” Ryuji starts. “But it’s literally a ten-on-one, right? I vote we kick his ass from the get go.”

Akira grips his arm. “Don’t. It might be a ten-on-one, but I don’t want to be walking out of here with only nine or less. We take this slow, like we always do.”

“...Fine.”

“What I’m worried about is that big sword of his,” Ann says grimly. “It looks like one hit from that thing I can kiss my entire torso goodbye.”

“That’s what I was thinking.” Eyes flickering to Futaba, Akira asks, “Possible defenses?”

“I’m not seeing anything special from it other than it’s huge and sharp and could kill us if he really wanted to, which, he does. So it looks like it’s physical, unless he has something up his sleeve.”

“Which he probably does, because that’s just how things usually go for us,” Ann sighs.

“We’ll go with what we know.” Akira gets on his feet, taking another peek, black coattails swishing around his ankles. With blood-red hands he pulls his mask back down, and they all straighten up. His voice is barely above a mutter, but they all catch every word he says. “Panther, how’s your energy?”

“Nearly full,” she answers.

“Use Concentrate on Queen and Skull on their call, double their magical attack whenever you can. I know it takes awhile to reuse when you’re using it for anyone but yourself, but try your best. Ryuji, how you holding up?”

“Like everything’s zero gravity, leader.”

“Then I want you to do the same with Charge for Fox, Noir, and yourself. Don’t overdo it though—only do it on my call.”

“Got it.”

“Sophie, Morgana: healing duty. Especially for those of you who drain your health like an open tap. Noir, try to get a vantage point and use Milady’s arsenal. Catching Konoe off guard can be what we need. Oracle, watch our backs. Everyone else, on standby. Are we all clear?”

With a nod, Akira takes a deep breath. “Then let’s get this show on the road.”

He takes the first step, knowing full well that ten more are right behind him.

The minute Konoe spots where they were hiding, he takes a slow pace towards them, confident in his own abilities. He swings his lightsaber around him with ease, footsteps heavy and sure.

They take his lethargy to their advantage. “Split!” Akira calls, and immediately they head to where they need to be. “Let’s take this nice and—”

In a split second, the unhurried pace that Konoe was taking dissipates and he dashes forward, a blur to their eyes, heading straight for Ann, who just barely dodges out of the way.

“What the hell?!”

“He’s fucking fast now!”

“This guy’s speed just cranked up!” Futaba yells. “If he could do that without me even realizing it, then who knows—”

“Stay sharp, we know what we’re doing.”

“How on earth are you still so calm, Joker?!”

“Because I believe in all of you.” Dashing left, he brushes his mask. “Neko Shogun, help me out.” A black cat with eyes bigger than his hand materializes from the monochrome mask, and they all suddenly feel lighter on their feet, ready to dodge anything that comes their way. “Queen, Skull.”

“Roger that!”

Makoto scales one of the neon walls, grip strength insurmountable, and runs across the wires that are tied from each platform, boots barely touching the cord, before jumping down. “Johanna!”

An explosion, or something more akin to a nuclear bomb getting set off mere meters in front of them, occurs where Makoto lands, hitting Konoe head-on.

He staggers back, obviously shaken but he recovers quickly. Lightsaber buzzing red, he’s about to strike at her when she hops on the back of Johanna, engine revving. “Lucky us, he’s weak to nuclear.”

Ryuji hops on his feet, hyping himself up. “Not all of us have cars for a quick getaway,” he snarks, before he’s gone, sprinting so fast that he’s nearly a blur to anyone looking his way. Racing behind a wall, he gets the jump on Konoe. “Come on out, Captain!”

A storm brews even without a single cloud over them as ozone reeks and lightning strikes, the deafening sound of thunder makes their ears ring.

“Holy crap,” Futaba breathes.

“Is he weak?” he asks.

“Uh,” Ann says. Konoe uses his lightsaber as a makeshift cane to get himself on his feet, shaking his head aggressively. “Yeah, I’d say he’s weak to it.”

“Comms are set,” Futaba announces. “Noir, can you hear me?”

“Loud and clear, Oracle,” a bright voice chirps in their ears. “Joker, it’s an easy shot.”

“Take it.”

“With your help, Milady.”

The unmistakable sound of a gunshot rings out, and their heads swivel to see if it hit, but there’s no one there.

“What the...?” Ann wildly spins around, eyes widening. “Sophie—!”

Without turning her head back, Sophia instinctively ducks sideways, bits of red locks falling to the ground as Konoe’s lightsaber slices through the edges of her hair, and again when it grazes past her head, and another when it slices through the metal flooring like it was butter.

Panic grips her. “Pithos!” Sophia shrieks, voice high with fear. Blinding light shines from her hands, but Konoe walks into it like it was nothing.

Yusuke grips his katana, and silent as a gust of wind on a winter’s night, cuts through the air in front of him to deliver a myriad of slashes over Konoe. It does little to him, but it’s jarring enough that Sophia can escape where she was cornered.

“He’s very speedy,” Sophia says shakily. “Thank you, Fox.”

He nods, touching his mask in preparation. “That speed is nothing to jest about.”

“And we can’t do anything about it by just standing here! Makoto, back me up here.” Ann throws her mask in the air. “Carmen!”

“Find me an opening, and I’ll handle the rest,” Haru’s voice crackles.

“She’s right.” Akira touches his mask as it burns bright with the strength of dozens, maybe even hundreds of Personas. “She needs cover, and we need the element of surprise. Fox, Morgana.”

“Not a word more.”

“You got it!”

Ann takes a leaf from Makoto’s book, using her whip to grapple herself onto a ledge, running to take the high point behind Konoe, grazing Haru’s shoulder on the way there.

Konoe turns, but before he can take a counter measure, Akira calls out: “King Frost.”

At the same time, Yusuke says, voice loud and clear: “Goemon!”

Together, pillars of ice, meters and meters high surround Konoe, high enough that he can’t see anything past a few feet. But that height comes with a price; they can only make it so thick, and the lightsaber didn’t hesitate to crush it into bits.

“Panther, we don’t have too much time.” Already, sweat begins to pool and roll down Akira’s skin, using up his magic rapidly. “Are you in position?”

“Just—” she hops, heels clicking rapidly against the floor. “—About! Ten seconds!”

“We can hold it. Sophia, stay close on standby.”

“Understood!”

Motorcycle wheels screech next to Ryuji, and he doesn’t hesitate to hop on the back before they’re off again, leaving tire marks where they skirted off. “I swear to god, you play the racing games in the arcade. How the hell else would you get so good at this?”

“Would you shut up?” Makoto snaps.

“Roger that.”

“I’m in position!” Ann announces. She’s almost directly on top of the ice pillar. “On your signal.”

Gritting his teeth, Akira wipes the sweat away. “Hold.”

Yusuke swivels his head to him, knees shaking. “I can hold for as long as you need me to, but I might not be as much use afterwards.”

“It’s fine.” His eyes narrow at Konoe, still tearing through their ice blockade as the pile of shards only gets higher and higher. “Just a little bit longer. Sophia, use the biggest, most pinpoint bless move you have on my word.”

“Yes,” she responds, before hesitating. “He’s immune to it, I’m afraid.”

“I know.” Even Akira sounds breathless, his footing becoming unsteady.

“Joker, you don’t have much left,” Futaba warns. “You better hope this ends things, or we’re gonna have a real big problem on our hands.”

Once the shards of ice have piled high enough that it would surpass Konoe’s height twice over, and despite his hands beginning to turn blue, Akira's grin is wide. “Three—”

Yusuke’s vision begins to blur, but he refuses to relinquish Goemon.

“Two—”

Haru rearranges her finger on the trigger, palms drenched in sweat but they don’t shake. Not anymore.

“One—”

Ann takes a few steps back, sucking in a breath before sprinting forward, jumping straight over the open-chasm of ice and death beneath her.

“Now!”

Carmen releases a blaze of flame intense enough to encompass an entire neighborhood and then some, taking the shards and bits of ice that was piled high on top of each other and turning it into a cloud of fog and hot mist, shooting straight up and turning the visibility of the whole area to zero.

Yusuke crumbles to his knees as Ann tucks and rolls onto the floor, hissing as she feels her ankle twist into something nasty. “Shit!”

Akira staggers back, gripping his head like it hurts for him to stand, but that doesn’t stop him from yelling out: “Sophia!”

“Makougan!”

Like a lighthouse in the middle of a storm, there shines a beam of light so bright, so concentrated into one area, that they all know exactly where to aim their fire.

It all comes tumbling down, a perfectly set-up domino trap; Haru pulls trigger after trigger, bullet shells flying, ignoring the way her shoulder is inching further and further from where it’s supposed to be by taking the brunt of the recoil. Ryuji hops off the bike, crossing his arms in front of him calling two, three, four bolts as Makoto calls another nuclear blast.

From inside the whirlpool of thick clouds, where the fog is most dense, a figure sways, coughing and lurching forwards and back, trying desperately to escape.

“Oh no you don’t! Zorro!”

Wind, so thick you can almost see it, swirls around most of the mist, locking it in and dragging everyone else’s attacks right in the center.

Futaba’s clacking can be heard even now. “He’s losing health fast! Eighty percent, seventy percent, sixty—”

The ground trembles ominously.

“What in the world…?” Yusuke pants from the ground, elbows barely able to keep his torso up.

It happens again, stronger this time.

“Fifty, forty—” she continues, voice small and desperate. “Thirty! Twenty!”

Akira presses his palm against the ground, eyes closed before snapping open. Despite his exhaustion, he compels himself to stand, arms outstretched defensively. “Guard!”

They do so, and a streak of pure light flickers from the inside, before rapidly getting larger and larger until it turns into a scintillating sphere that grew and pulsed, eating up everything in its wake and blowing away the captivating fog. Try as they might, there’s nothing they can do to stand up against a Megidolaon.

Bruised and battered, Konoe stands tall as the Phantom Thieves can do nothing but look up from the ground, energy and options all but dried up until neither was left.

—

“Stop, I can walk, let me up—”

“Panther, stop struggling, your ankle is already too injured to—”

“Fuck! Oracle, does he know where we are?”

“Not yet; looks like that vanish ball Joker threw out gave us some cover but it’ll last for a way shorter time considering he blew through our plan in less than—”

“Whoa, Fox, you’re not looking good.”

“I’m afraid I can’t keep going, everyone. Goemon has reached his limit, but I don’t necessarily need him to keep fighting. Judging by my vision, however, my accuracy might be much lower than usual.”

“Man, shut up and stay down.”

“Sophia? Can you hear us?”

“Yes, but—ow!”

“Okay, stop moving, you’re only going to make it worse.”

“Joker, we still have plenty of items that we’ve accumulated from previous Jails. We don’t have much time before he can find us again, but if we put our heads together—”

“Are you talking about the scraps of grilled corn and the three life stones we have left? It would be suicide. We have to go in, guns blazing. It’s the only way it can work.”

“You’re talking about suicide, Mona, and the ‘guns blazing’ strategy you’re talking about would be literally lead to us serving our heads on a silver platter.”

“So what’s your plan, Queen? I’m all ears, I’m serious.”

“G-guys, stop fighting! We’ve barely got enough time as is. Just let me scan—”

“We’re pulling back.”

All eyes turn to Akira, posture straight despite the sheen of sweat clinging to his forehead. It’s obvious how he was barely able to stand.

Ryuji takes a step forward. “Are you crazy?”

"More than half of us are running on fumes, and half of those people are injured to the point where they can barely keep going. Our plan was shattered like it was nothing, he has a super move that’s so powerful that it tears through our defenses like tissue paper. We’re retreating.”

“Like hell we are! Do you know what’s gonna happen if we leave?”

“We heal our injuries, we get more items, we prepare better this time, and we come up with a better plan.”

“And that gives that bastard—” he jerks his thumb behind him. “The exact same advantage.”

“And what advantage do we have?” Akira’s voice is calm but they all feel the edge to it. “Who can even fight?”

“I can,” Morgana answers quietly. “He takes wind like concrete, though.”

“So can I. However, I can’t do as much as I normally can.” Haru rolls her shoulder, wincing. “I may have dislocated my shoulder earlier.”

“And me, obviously,” Ryuji finishes. “That’s nearly an entire team. We even have support and a distance shooter, and Futaba’s still in this too, so—”

“No.”

“What?”

“I said no,” he says, hard. “Don’t be stubborn about this. You know damn well why we can’t.”

Akira turns on his heel, only the slightest wobble in his movements. “Let’s move out. We only have thirty seconds left before the vanish ball wears off.”

“We’re not leaving.”

“Yes, we are.”

“Is it because you’re not on the team?”

A hush falls on them, and for a second, everyone forgets that they were even in the middle of a battle.

Akira glances back, hair covering his eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means,” Ryuji takes another step forward, chin tilted up. “That you don’t think that we can handle this without you.”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Is it really? When was that last time you weren’t on the A team, Joker? Does anyone remember?” He glances at the rest of them. “Anyone? No? Yeah, I figured.”

He stares at him. “What’s wrong with you? Why are you acting like this?”

“I just don’t like that you’re implying that I can’t do shit for myself.”

“Ryuji…” Ann tries quietly.

“Yourself?” He faces him, expression blank. “I thought this was about the team.”

“And I’m part of the team, ain’t I?”

“You’re not dragging the rest of them into your petty, nonsensical argument, Skull,” Akira goes toe-to-toe with him, neither one blinking. “That’s final.”

“You know it would be dumb as shit to give that guy even more time to prepare. It’s like Shido—he was the toughest guy we went up against because he gave himself a billion counter measures since he knew we were coming. Konoe barely knew jack but he handed our asses to us. We finish this now or we don’t finish this at all.”

“I’d rather lose the battle than lose my friends,” he hisses. “We’re leaving. Now.”

“You’re too fucking blind to see that this is more than just us, leader,” Ryuji spits the word. “I can do it—no, I will do it.”

Akira grabs the bandana around his neck. “I don’t know what’s gotten into you,” he says through gritted teeth. “But you’re not going anywhere near Konoe.”

But it’s useless, and they both know it—Akira’s far too drained and Ryuji’s far too strong for it to be much more than an empty threat.

Ryuji wraps his fingers around his wrist. “I’ll prove to you that I can fucking do this,” his grip is tight, before forcibly peeling Akira’s grasp from him. “Believe in me. I’m strong, Akira.”

“Don’t do this.” Any anger from his words dissipates, and desperation takes its place. “I’m commanding you, as the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts—do not do this.”

With a wide grin and lightning behind his eyes, Ryuji’s gone, and Akira’s hand is grasping thin air.

“Fuck,” he clutches at his head, body shaking with exertion. “Fuck.”

“Oh my god,” Makoto breathes. “He’s going to fight Konoe alone.”

“Over my dead body,” Akira touches his mask. “Come out, Yoshits—” Before he can finish, a gutteral sound from deep in his throat cuts him off, and he crashes ungracefully on the ground. “God dammit.”

Makoto shakes herself out of her stupor, taking a deep breath. “Alright, we can’t leave Skull. We’ll work with what we have.” Instinctively, she looks to Akira for advice, but his eyes are glazed over. Whether or not it’s from exhaustion or shock from what happened, she doesn’t know. “Noir, range attack. Shoot down the broken limbs from the mech, pray it still has nuclear running through its pipes. Mona, you’ll be on the support. Noir is already down in health, and Lord knows Skull’s going to need it. I’m down energy wise, but I have a good visual from above.” Eyes sliding sideways. “Oracle?”

“Comms are set up, I’m scanning for weaknesses, and Skull’s almost there,” she replies instantly. “If you’re going to join him, it’s now or never.”

“Alright.” Makoto swallows. “Everyone else, stay back. You two—go.” Morgana and Noir dart out.

“Thank you,” Akira says quietly. “I was just…out of it.”

“You don’t have to explain. That was…” she trails off when he looks up at her. His gaze in the Metaverse is sharp, always sharp, but now they’re dull. From knives to pebbles.

“Why did he do this?” he whispers. “What did I do wrong?”

The floor begins to rumble again, and they all lean over the edge to watch the battle playout.

“Everyone’s in position,” Yusuke narrates with a frown. “I don’t doubt Skull’s skill, but even at our full power, Konoe couldn’t be beaten.”

“He’s there,” Makoto says, and Akira watches, perfectly still. “He’s about to hit first.”

Ann leans forward, as they all did, at how Ryuji calls Kidd, voice ringing so loud they can hear it from where they sat on top of a wall. “Can he really do it?”

“Well,” Futaba heaves a deep sigh. “He’s right that this is probably our best shot, considering that we already got Konoe down to twenty percent of his health.”

Captain Kidd materializes, and his cannon is leaning back, glowing with power, and Konoe takes a step sideways, about to dodge.

“But Ryuji isn’t the same fighter that he was before.”

Instead of shooting forward, the cannon is swiftly raised skyward and thunder cracks before lightning strikes Konoe, followed by Ryuji lifting his pipe and slamming it straight into his skull and dodging just as another Megidolaon grows where he stood.

All of them stare, wide-eyed, at the spectacle before them like it was a sporting match; a back and forth happens, where Konoe would use his immense speed and power to try and get the leg up on Ryuji, but he would only hit thin air as he dodges and parries, shifting and ducking with a finesse they’ve never seen before, calling up Kidd and using electricity so potent that they feel can its static. Konoe grips his saber and swings and swings, triple-attack rolled into one but everytime he tries he only gets cut off when Ryuji slams his hand into the ground and calls dozens of wildly waving purple hands, each of them clawing at Konoe mercilessly.

“I knew he was stronger than he was before,” Makoto’s eyes are wide with wonder. “But it's like I don’t even recognize him.”

Ions and plasma strike as lightning meets saber, causing a violent cascade of sparks to fly frantically around the two of them. Bullets ring out whenever Konoe takes a step back, only to send him flying as a mini nuclear blast explodes behind him; Haru’s aim is impeccable.

This dance plays out for a long time, with Ryuji calling earth-shaking attacks and dancing around Megidolaons while Haru finds weak spots.

“Has he grown even faster?” Yusuke wonders aloud.

Futaba is struggling to watch all the data, attention straying to watch the fight. “He’s shaved off another ten percent off his health!”

“He’s incredible,” Ann says, awe-struck. “Isn’t he, Joker? He’s totally kicking his ass, pretty much by himself.”

“There’s something wrong.”

She peels her eyes away from below to stare at him, perplexed. “Things couldn’t be any better.”

Akira’s eyes are trained on Ryuji, on the way he’s limboing, countering every single attack rather than guarding. “I’ve seen his style since the very first day he got his Persona, and I’ve never seen him dodge so fluently. So desperately,” he says, eyes narrowed. “Something changed. And I didn’t notice.”

“Guys, am I crazy,” Morgana’s voice crackles in their ear. “Or is he really, really good at dodging attacks? I’ve only healed Noir this entire time, and she’s not even down there.”

“I just think he’s being cautious,” Haru replies, cocking her gun before continuing her assault. “Oracle? Report, please.”

“Five percent left,” they all hear the grin in her voice. “He’s actually going to do it.”

“Panther.” Ann blinks at Akira. “Help me up.”

She does, pushing his shoulders up until he’s sitting straight. “Needed a better view of him being a badass?” she teases.

Instead of answering, his gaze focuses, irises turning into a bright shade of blue.

Third eye, she registers with surprise. “We already know his stats.”

“I don’t care about Konoe’s,” his brow furrows slightly. “I care about his.”

“Two percent!” Futaba calls gleefully.

Suddenly, air catches in Akira’s throat. “What?” Ann startles.

“His endurance,” his voice shakes so intensely that she almost can’t understand what he’s saying. “His endurance.”

“What? What does that mean? Joker?” He tries pushing himself on his feet, crumbling and spewing obscenities when he can’t. “What are you doing? There’s nothing you can do, and Mona’s already got the healing taken care of.”

“One percent!”

The look in Akira’s eye is wild, and he’s paler than she’s ever seen him—whiter than when he came back from the interrogation room, and it’s enough to make her stomach drop all the way to the ground. “By the time they heal him, it’ll be too late.”

Everyone cheers and they both turn their attention back to the battle below them, where Ryuji summons one last bolt at Konoe, and finally, it’s enough to take him down.

Ryuji turns his back to Konoe, arms raised in triumph and drenched in sweat, immense pride clear on his expression.

It all happens in slow motion.

Akira jumps down, ignoring the protests from above, limping and scrambling towards Ryuji. Behind him, Konoe tries for one last, desperate attempt to win by swinging his saber weakly at Ryuji’s ankles, grazing his flesh ever so slightly.

“No!” Akira cries out.

Despite the cut being as shallow as a paper cut and as wide as a bee’s sting, Ryuji crumples to the ground, all life seeped out of him like he was struck through the heart.

#p5 #p5s #mine #fic tag #plainly in truth #persona 5 #persona 5 strikers #ryuji sakamoto #akira kurusu #akiryu #pegoryu #chapter four...how the time flies

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sparklyfaerie · 3 years

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How Yuki the bully but not Kyo?? 😂 Kyo is the one who told Yuki to disappear when they were little. He’s the one who would try to fight Yuki and was hostile to him every time they met. Kyo used Yuki as a scapegoat as a reason for him to be an absolute dick to Yuki and Yuki gives him back what he gave to him and Yuki is the BULLY?? Wow whose the bully apologist here 😂

Oh, Kyo is just as complicit in their bad relationship as Yuki is. I'm not excusing him, either. The thing is, I'm talking about as teens/young adults.

When we're introduced to them, yes Kyo is the one attacking Yuki. But we quickly learn that there is a severe power imbalance between them. Yuki is the superior one, in both skill and in social standing among their peers. He holds that over Kyo. He calls him an 'outsider'. He calls him stupid. He insults him at every given opportunity, presses as many buttons as he can in order to wound him, purposefully. He's also the one who throws the first punch, more often than not. In fact, though Kyo is the one who fights the most in the series, he very rarely actually throws the first punch. The scene where he's introduced is one of the few times he instigates the fight. Later that same day, Yuki kicks him through a door for simply saying the wrong thing. Haru attacks Kyo first. Kagura attacks Kyo first.

Kyo has no way of knowing what abuse Yuki went though as a child, but Yuki absolutely knows what happened to Kyo. Everyone knows what happened to Kyo. They are both victims, but by the time the series begins, Yuki is not just a victim anymore. He's paying his abuse forward, and Kyo is absolutely not the kind of kid to take that lying down, so he fights back.

Yes, he hits back just as much, but honestly? He was an angry child when they met. All he'd ever heard his entire life was how wonderful the rat was, and how awful he was. What child wouldn't be resentful over that? He didn't know that Yuki was living a life of isolation and abuse, and thus was deserving of compassion. No one did.

And Kyo at the beginning of the series was in a deep depression and was coping the only way he'd been taught how: Put the blame on someone else. That's what his biological father taught him, after all. It's what's been modelled for him his entire life by the rest of the Zodiac. He's the scapegoat of the clan, the monster who is so bad that everything awful must be his fault. His mother must have died because he was born. Akito must belittle him because he's the lowest on the totem pole. Yuki must be superior to him in every way because Kyo is just the Cat, and Yuki is the Rat, and is the closest to God. Therefore, because the Rat was the one responsible for the Cat missing the banquet and becoming a monster, everything awful that happens to Kyo must be because of Yuki, the rat.

Kyo's behaviour is bad, I'm not denying that. He's done some awful things to people. He hurt Yuki as a child. A lot. But he was a child. They're both old enough to know better by the start of the series, and it's almost always Yuki instigating. Kyo snaps back, and gasoline is thrown on the fire. It gets out of control until they're both trying to wound each other, both physically and emotionally.

And yes, Kyo hurt Tohru. Twice. Once physically, in what basically amounts to self-preservation. He wanted to make himself lose her because of what he did, not what he is, but Tohru was smart enough to recognise it for what it was. No, that doesn't make hitting her okay. But I'm inclined to side with Tohru, who is really the last stop on that train, so far as I'm concerned. It was a challenge that they overcame, and they were stronger and better friends for it. In real life? Fucking run for the hills. But we can't really compare it to real life, considering that Fruits Basket is a supernatural anime and there are other factors at play rather than just "guy gets angry and hits girl".

And Yuki's dislike of Kyo is justified, too. Kyo is awful to him. He blames Yuki for everything bad in his life; who wouldn't hate the person constantly screaming at them that they hate them and that everything is their fault? Noticing a pattern here? Kyo does to Yuki what his biological father does to him. Which is horrible. For someone like Yuki, who has severe self-esteem and confidence issues, to be blamed for everything terrible that has ever happened ever, especially after living a life of abuse under Akito. I completely understand why he hates Kyo.

The reason I like Kyo better is simply because I resonate with his character. Yuki is too cold for me to connect with for most of the series, and by the time he warms up, I'm already super invested in Kyo's storyline. That doesn't make him a villain, that just makes him a character that I don't particularly care for. I'm not saying he's bad. He's an important character for the story and it wouldn't be the same without him. I'm just not there for his story, like some others are. And I'm glad they enjoy him. I am. I just prefer other characters and their stories over Yuki's.

We know for a fact that Kyo and Yuki make peace eventually, and I for one would love to actually see that, instead of just what's implied by Furubana and the few moments of civility we get toward the end of the manga.

There are no good guys and bad guys in the Sohma clan (except the maid, fuck that woman). They've all done shitty things to each other, particularly Yuki and Kyo. The story itself is about the cycles of abuse and how they're broken, not just by those who commit, but those who suffer as well.

#Fruits Basket #Kyo Sohma #Yuki Sohma #anemoneforever #anonymous #asks #answering all three together or I'd just be repeating myself

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inkwell1013 · 3 years

Text

Quiet Hands - Persona 5

Pairing: Yusuke & the Phantom Thieves (platonic), Yusuke & Natsuhiko (familial)

Genre: Oneshot, Angst with a bit of fluff, Found family.

Word count: 2.9k

Warnings: In this fic, Yusuke deals with a lot of internalized ableism and ableist remarks from Madarame. There is also some physical abuse, emotional abuse and depiction of a panic attack. The r slur is also used. Please bear these warnings in mind before proceeding.

Summary: Madarame never understood Yusuke. He was quick to punish Yusuke for fidgeting. Yusuke learns that loud hands get him hurt. It is much better to have quiet hands. It is better to hold down all the stuff that makes him different. It is better to be who Madarame wants him to be. The Phantom Thieves seemed to disagree with this.

- - - - -

Yusuke was a creature of unbreakable habit. He enjoyed order and structure, and liked to know when he was expected to do things and how he was expected to do them. The slightest disruption to his routine would send him spiralling, leaving him in a horrible mood for the rest of the day.

Today was one of those days. Madarame had invited a guest over without warning Yusuke beforehand, and that had sent him into a tantrum of epic proportions. He didn’t like strangers and he didn’t like surprises, so this was a particularly detestable event in his eyes.

Madarame dragged him downstairs despite his vehement protests. “I don’t want to,” whined Yusuke, trying to pull his arm out of Madarame’s grip. “Let me go!”

“Oh, grow up Yusuke!” snapped Madarame. “You’re not a little kid anymore, and this whining is completely unacceptable for someone your age. Sometimes you must do things you don’t want to do. That’s life, and complaining isn’t going to change anything. Now, you will behave and act normal in front of this curator, or I will ground you for the rest of the week. Do you understand me?”

Yusuke squirmed in his grip. “But it’s so difficult Daddy. I don’t like new people.”

Madarame scowled. “I am not your father. What do you call me?”

“Sensei,” sniffed Yusuke. “Do I really have to do it Sensei?”

“Yes, the curator is expecting to meet you. I’m not having you embarrass me again,” said Madarame, shoving Yusuke into the living room.

The curator stood to greet them as they came in. He was an aggressively friendly man, who immediately went to shake Madarame’s hand with a wide, toothy smile on his face. “Is this your son?” he asked brightly.

“No, he’s my student. I took him in after his mother’s death,” explained Madarame, pushing Yusuke forward. “Why don’t you say hello Yusuke?”

Yusuke mumbled a hello, doing anything to keep from making eye contact, which was made difficult by the fact that the stranger seemed to be attempted the exact opposite at every opportunity. “I apologise for his behaviour,” said Madarame. “He’s a little shy.”

He punctuated the last word with a sharp glare. Yusuke curled further in on himself.

“I understand,” laughed the curator. “My daughter’s shy too. Anyway, what layout are we thinking for this new exhibit?”

Madarame and the curator launched into a lengthy conversation about the upcoming exhibition, thankfully leaving Yusuke out of it. He didn’t want to talk anyway.

All this stress of meeting a new person was making him feel a bit shaky. Similar to how a kettle filled with boiling water needed a way to release the rising pressure, he had found his own way of release. It varied by situation and circumstance, and today it had manifested as fluttery fingers. The curator hadn’t noticed, still engrossed in the work that Madarame was showing him.

Madarame shoot Yusuke a murderous glare and reached over a hand. He pinned Yusuke’s wrist to the table, forcing his hands to a standstill. The curator happily continued with the conversation, having not noticed at all.

“Quiet hands,” hissed Madarame. “You know the rules.”

Yusuke knew he was in trouble.

Nothing happened until the curator left. Madarame was cruel, but he wasn’t stupid. He never struck Yusuke in public and never in front of others - he had his reputation to worry about after all - but things were different behind closed doors.

As soon as the front door slammed shut, Madarame struck, like a viper leaping from the brush. He yanked Yusuke forward, sharp nails digging into his wrist. Stumbling, Yusuke desperately tried to regain his footing, but was thrown of balance again when Madarame smacked him on the side of the head, sending him lurching to the left. He was lucky enough to grab a hold of the coffee table before he hit the ground.

His ear was ringing with discordant chords of a half-finished song, and his vision was blurred, but he could still make out Madarame’s scowling face.

“Sensei, I—”

“Ten fucking minutes! That was all I asked,” screamed Madarame. “And you couldn’t even do that. What is wrong with you?”

Yusuke stared down at the ground. “I don’t know…” he muttered.

“You don’t know?” Madarame said incredulously. “I’m not having a retard for a student. You need to learn to control yourself. No more of that stupid fidgeting. I’ve let it go on for far too long anyway.”

“But I can’t control it,” said Yusuke.

“You will learn. You are not a wild animal that is completely lacking in self control. I raised you better than that.”

“Sensei, you can’t—”

“I’m doing this for your own good Yusuke. No one is going to take you seriously if you act like that. Now go to your room and think about what you’ve done,” spat Madarame. “Don’t think I’m feeding you after this outburst.”

Things only got worse after that. Madarame stayed true to his word and punished Yusuke for the fidgeting whenever he saw it. That didn’t mean that Yusuke stopped though; he just learned to hide it in front of his mentor. He learned to bottle it all down and release it when he was on his own so he could avoid the punishment.

Even so, the pressure was always building, hissing and screaming to be let out. Sometimes he couldn’t stop it from erupting out of him. Those where the worst days. He would be left shaking and crying, scratching at himself, trying to alleviate that crushing feeling deep down in his soul.

He was only hurting himself – he knew that – but it was the only way to make himself feel better.

Madarame didn’t understand it, just as he had never understood anything about Yusuke. As always, he resorted to violence. He would smack Yusuke on the back of the head every time, repeating the same words.

“Quiet hands.”

Like how a dog can be made to salivate at the sound of a ringing bell, Yusuke was conditioned to associate exhibiting these behaviours in front of others with fear. With pain. Whenever Madarame had guests over, he played the role of the perfect protégé and dutiful student, exactly how Madarame wanted him to, so that he could avoid his ire.

Not once did he question it.

Madarame just wanted what was best for him.

That was the only explanation.

As sad as it was to admit, Yusuke had never had friends before he met the phantom thieves. He had always been too busy with his art and studies and never had enough time to socialise. No one at his school liked him enough to talk to him anyway.

The closest person he had to a friend when he was a child was Natsuhiko, who had been more like a brother to him, but Natsuhiko left when Yusuke was ten years old. Ysuuke didn’t even get to say goodbye. He just found his bed empty one morning and was informed of his departure over breakfast. Yusuke never quite forgave Natsuhiko for leaving him like that.

The Phantom Thieves were a motley crew, but they were the kindest people Yusuke had met in a long time, so he was happy to call them his friends. They were all kindred spirits, people who had been beaten down and abused by the world, and people who wanted change.

He found solace in their friendship. It was comforting to be around people who were so much like him, who had similar pasts and experiences, and who could understand him.

That day he was reminded of how kind the Phantom Thieves were.

Yusuke had started yet another one of his passionate rants – this time about an artist from the Edo period, who was well known for his unique handling of colours and composition – and instead of blowing him off and ignoring him, as he had expected them to, everyone was paying attention to what he had to say.

And he loved it. Art was a second parent to Yusuke (it had certainly done more to raise him than Madarame ever had) and he would happily ramble about it for hours on end. Once he got going, he could rarely force himself to stop.

There was a lull in his ramble, and he realised how rude he was being. “I apologise,” he said. “I let that go on a bit long, didn’t I? I have a bad habit of running my mouth. It won’t happen again.”

“We don’t mind man,” said Ryuji. “Art makes you happy and shit. We get that.”

“It’s like me and computers,” added Futaba, who was crouching on the couch and fiddling with the ends of her hair. “Sometimes you’ve just got to talk about these things.”

“Whatever makes you happy Yusuke,” said Ann.

“We’re your friends,” explained Ren, leaning dangerously far back in his chair. “We only want you to be happy, and if this is what makes you happy, go for it.” Haru and Makoto nodded in agreement.

Yusuke couldn’t stop himself. He felt bubbly and ecstatic. All that energy had to go somewhere and he found his hand flapping, quite without his input or permission. He rocked on his heels, riding that wave of joy.

It didn’t last long however, and a wave of horror came crashing down upon him as soon as he realised what he had done. Everyone was staring at him and he was frozen in place.

It was like he was the painting in Madarame’s palace. That damn thing haunted his dreams. He would never forget it – the reminder that he was nothing than a thing to the man who raised him. The man he thought of as his father. It sneered at him, as he tossed and turned, reminding him that he would never truly be free.

A tiny sliver of his brain knew that Madarame was gone, and couldn’t hurt him anymore. But it was overwhelmed by everything else that was screaming at him that he was in danger. That he needs to run and not look back. But he couldn’t even do that.

They’ll only hate you after this.

He tried to force himself to say something – anything – but couldn’t force out a single sound. He swore that he couldn’t breathe. Everyone’s eyes were on him. His heart was racing, pumping adrenaline through his veins that he wouldn’t even use because he was too terrified to run, let alone move.

“Yusuke is something wrong?” asked Ren, ever the gracious leader. Yusuke wasn’t sure if he would be able to handle it if Ren hit him. He was usually so composed, but Yusuke knew he packed a mean punch. He had seen him use it on shadows before.

Maybe, if he uses it on you, you’ll turn to dust and blow away as well. Then you won’t bother them anymore. They’ll be happy that you’re gone.

“I can’t— I don’t— I need—" he stammered, unable to form the words correctly. Everyone was staring at him. This was so humiliating.

Ren cast a desperate look to Futaba, who nodded and swayed to her feet. She inched toward Yusuke and reached out a hand to touch his shoulder. Yusuke flinched and she pulled away.

“You need to breathe Yusuke,” said Futaba. “I know it’s hard, but you need to breathe. In for four, hold for seven, and out for eight. Come on, do it with me.”

Yusuke took in a single shaky breath. And then another. Soon, his heart stopped palpitating at a million miles an hour, and he finally felt stable.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled. “I don’t know what came over me. I- I don’t know. It simply happened.”

“It’s okay. You were just having a panic attack. Have you never had one before?” asked Futaba.

“No…” said Yusuke. “I can’t believe I lost control like that in front of everyone. This is mortifying.”

“No one’s going to judge you or anything. These things happen,” said Futaba, with a shrug. Everyone else nodded. “Do you know if anything triggered it?” she asked.

Yusuke chewed on his fingernails, a nervous habit that he never managed to kick, despite Madarame’s best efforts. “You’ll think it’s stupid.”

“We won’t. Trust me.”

“I am different to other people,” he admitted. “I always have been. When I was young, I had bad habits that were beginning to cause problems, so Madarame took it upon himself to… fix my issue.”

Futaba frowned. “You don’t mean..?”

“He used to hit me. It was never anything that bad, and never enough to bruise or scar, but it was adequate, and corrected the problem. I believe losing control and exhibiting that behaviour again in front of others was enough to remind me of it. I apologise for worrying you all.” He bowed his head, staring down at the ground.

There was a long, empty silence, which was broken by Ryuji. “Dude. He was abusing you.”

Yusuke blinked. “And that’s… bad?”

“Of course it’s bad!” exclaimed Ann. “He hurt you. It’s no wonder you’re afraid of him.”

“Why didn’t you tell us?” asked Ren, staring Yusuke down.

“I didn’t think it was important…”

Futaba walked over to the couch and took her previous crouched position. “So, Inari, are you autistic?” she asked.

Yusuke scowled. “I don’t see how that’s relevant. I was diagnosed as a child, but I grew out of it.”

He was a little surprised when Futaba cringed and Ren shook his head. “You don’t grow out of autism Yusuke,” said Ren, as gently as he could. “It’s a part of who you are.”

“But I’m not autistic anymore! I’m not. Madarame fixed me,” exclaimed Yusuke.

“Man, not to rude or anything,” interjected Ryuji. “But he lowkey traumatised you. He didn’t fix shit.”

“Hitting someone for stimming is like punishing your puppy for wagging it’s tail,” said Makoto. “You’re just doing what your body wants you to do. It’s normal. We all do it.” She gestured between herself, Futaba, and Ren.

Yusuke’s eyes widened. “You mean, you’re all like me?” he whispered.

“Yes,” said Ren “You’re not alone.”

“Thank you,” he mumbled, rubbing at his face with the sleeve of his shirt. Why was he crying? “You’re all too kind.

Ryuji rolled his eyes. “Nah. We’re just not shitty people like that bastard. Sorry if that’s rude or whatever, but it’s true.”

Yusuke couldn’t stop himself from snickering. “That’s absolutely true. He was a grade A asshole”

“Group hug!” announced Haru, launching herself at Yusuke. Soon, Yusuke found himself in the middle of a crushing group hug with every single Phantom Thief except Morgana, who was still peacefully sleeping on the windowsill.

“You’re a bit weird,” said Ryuji. “But you’re our weirdo.”

It was Yusuke’s turn to decide where the group went on their weekly outing, and he chose the planetarium. Natsuhiko had taken him there once, when Yusuke was about ten years old. Looking back, he knew it was because Madarame had come home drunk again and Natsuhiko didn’t want him to see that.

It was funny how many of his good memories were tainted by hindsight.

Even so, the day stood out in his mind. It was a single happy moment in the sea of abject misery that was his childhood. Natsuhiko had spent the entire evening pointing out different constellations and telling Yusuke stories about them.

Even after Natsuhiko left, Yusuke remembered the stories. He would trace the constellations onto his palm and whisper the stories to himself, desperately clinging onto the few things he had left of Natsuhiko. He remembered every single word, exactly how Natsuhiko had told him.

He and his friends found their seats and settled down. The lights flickered on above them, stars appearing in the dark expanse. He remembered Natsuhiko daring him to try and count them. It was impossible; there were just too many. An incomprehensible number.

It was beautiful. He would paint it, but he could never capture its majesty quite right. All the swirls of purple and blue and black, with pinpricks of light shining through, filled the entire domed ceiling. It would never fit on a canvas.

Futaba leaned over and whispered to him, “Do you know any stories about the stars?”

“Are you sure you want to hear?” replied Yusuke. “You know how much I can go on about these things.”

“Of course. We all want to hear!” said Ann. Yusuke looked around to the smiling faces of his friends and couldn’t help but grin himself.

“Okay,” he said, flapping his hands, as he collected all the right words. Flapping was his favourite stim. There was nothing quite like it for that fluttery, excited feeling in his chest. “Can you see those three stars over there that form a line?” he said. “They are a part of a constellation called ‘Take No Fushi’. They represent a bamboo cane, being held by a young girl. The story stays that she and her sister were carrying buckets of water balanced on canes of bamboo, when they were attacked by a fearsome Oni. There was no escape, so they climbed a rope towards the sky. The elder sister became the moon, and the younger sister became the stars that trail after her…”

Everyone was listening to him. No one minded his stimming. He knew, for the first time in years, that it was okay to be himself around those he loved.

#persona 5 fanfiction #persona 5 angst #fluff #angst #yusuke kitagawa #Autistic Yusuke #inkwell writes

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redxblueihateloveyou · 4 years

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I’m quite active on the free! Fanbase and something that I’ve noticed is that the reason makoharu is as popular as it is, is because majority of its stans are people who watched free! Once like 5 years ago. They also tend to be Makoto stans and they just want it because “mako deserves it” A lot of the people who actually are into free! or focus on Haru’s feelings always ship Rinharu, and it’s because if you look at what Haru wants it’s clear that he wants Rin.

Yeah, it’s true. Lots of ppl told me that they’ve seen it completely differently after rewatching it at a mature age. But even though I can’t relate to it when it comes to anime, cause I’ve started watching it at 19, I still don’t get for what reason you can hate Rin at 13, but love at 20, you know. Just because I really can’t find any reason to hate Rin. At all. Maybe it’s cause my mom stuffed me with books since I were young, but I’ve never had such thing like I hated some character and then reread some book or rewatched some movie later and it was like a complete opposite. But at the same time, my mom recently showed her kids in class BNHA and she said that many asked “why Bakugou is so evil?” which I think is pretty dumb for a 13/14 olds to be so shallow minded.

I mean, you can not fully understand grown up stuff, like you know, disney cartoons have something that only adults will get, but generally you should be able to see past the surface. But also I just don’t think you can appreaciate Free! being very young, cause as I said before, even tho it’s not that deep and silly at times, the beauty of it to me is that it’s so fucking relatable to ppl who’s been though stuff like that. Like not knowing what to do with yourself after school even tho you have great options.. I’ve been though that. Wanting to do what you love, but being afraid that this being your job will ruin it for you... check. Recently I’ve lost my grandpa, and this was the first time I went through smth like that, and it was a horrible time for my mom and I don’t live with my parents, but actually that picture of Rin from Yakusoku was stuck in my head and it moved me to get it together and do stuff for her, I probably wouldn’t before. So it’s not as silly as it seems if you know the feeling.

When it comes to Makoto, I’ve talked about it in this post already, I do not get why he has so many fans. I find it super sad. Cause every smart adult would never see Makoto as a reliable person in life (and that’s like the main button makoharu try to push). This fandom constantly markets him as an extremely good and etc while they dont even see that usually he’s either spineless, either plain stupid (that ocean saving Rei scene just pisses me off so fucking much to this day). I feel like the “the road to hell is paved with good intentions” is about him seriously. Every good friend can bring food, but at the end of the day it’s the tough situations that counts at least to me. And when it comes to them, if anybody noticed we’re on our own. Or we need to call Rin.

About “he deserves it”... And Haru doesn’t deserve anything in their opinion? Being with the person who makes him feel alive and his heart go boom-boom, who makes him reach for the stars and see the world, makes him want silly things like rainbows in the pool... that doesn’t matter, right? haha

I think when you ship something, you should think about both sides. You can’t just love one and don’t care for other... it leads to... well, this. Cause Rin makes Haru the best version of himself and Haru makes Rin the best version of himself. And that’s how it usually works in literally all of my ships.

Also this whole thing the makoharu fans are saying remind me of Yokozawa from “Sekaiichi Hatsukoi”, who went “but I was with him all the time, when you weren’t.. you left”. That’s not how it even works dude, and just because there was a misunderstanding doesn’t mean they can’t love each other anymore. It wasn’t Onodera’s fault and Rin’s fault, yeah, they left in the heat of the moment, but sometimes circurmstances play a bigger role. Plus let’s be honest, it needed to happen, otherwise they wouldn’t be this amazing and strong as they’re right now. That “I loved you before, but the person I’m in love with right now is you in the present.” got stuck in my head forever. I truly believe that Haru loves Rin even more as he is right now, same goes to Wangxian, Mikayuu and lots of ships. Separation is sad, but sometimes its needed for characters to get to where they are now.

I feel like this ship also started at times, when it was “very cool” to brand every ship ever as “abusive” for no reason and I laughed a lot at this phase, especially young ppl tended to throw stuff like “he’s not good for her/him”, when even a light argument happened. And that’s just so dumb, cause I felt like most didn’t even know what they’re talking about, it was just “cool” xD. I’m glad this phase has passed tho, cause it started to get.. not funny lol

I find it extremely hilarious tho that after all it’s been proven that Rin is what best for Haru, which I think was obvious from the very beginning. And I haven’t seen any new makoharu related anything for ages, nor on youtube, nor on “free!” tag, so I sometimes even forget that it’s the most popular ship in Free. In 2014 maybe? I’m just happy here, cause Harurin are together, they’re happy, they got evething they wanted, and Rin is glued to us right now haha What else do I need. I’m gonna edit the kisses myself haha I’m working on stuff to get better at this lolz

#answered #anonymous #rinharu #harurin #Free!#haru deserves to be loved by the person he loves the end of the discussion lmao #free #rin matsuoka #nanase haruka #otp

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oddlybitter · 3 years

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Another excerpt from upcoming Sporting Life chapter - Nothing Can Possibly Go Wrong

CW: Swearing, Abuse mention, Internalized Homophobia, Injury, Drinking, Child Abuse mention, Drinking mention.

please note that this does talk about trauma that both Akechi and Futaba have, so please keep that in mind as you read! it’s a little heavy. (if there is anything else you want me to tag, please let me know)

If one had to spare the details, Goro spent the next hour getting hammered on shitty vodka that tasted like candy. However, if one had a wealth of time on their hands, then the full story would reveal how he got drunk and a few more catalysts that would eventually add up to make the Worst Hangover Goro Akechi Would Get, Ever.

It really started as he pushed off the wall, leaving Haru behind in a sea of people that he didn't really like, marching into any other room he could find. Somehow, Makoto's restraining wasn't enough to keep Ann from the party, and she waved at him as she expertly carried out the maneuver for a physically perfect kegstand. Her girlfriend watched on in disgust, admiration, and quite possibly (but inexplicably) attraction.

"I'm very impressed. Mildly scared, but impressed." He said, watching Ann remove an arm and wave to someone in her gathering audience.

Makoto took a long gulp of her beer, and nodded dismally. "Tell me about it. I have to deal with this when the party's over."

The cheers reach a crescendo, and Ann, somehow coherent, did a little cartwheel onto her feet. "Yeah! Beat that, Iida-from-AP-chemistry!"

Iida-from-AP-chemistry did not, in fact, beat that.

Traipsing over to Makoto and Goro, Ann flicked her pigtails over her shoulder and scanned the linebacker's face with an eerie stare. "What's eating you?"

"Nothing is," He cleared his throat, encapsulating his next words with air quotes, "'eating me.'"

Shrugging, Ann made a noise of half-hearted agreement. "Fair enough, keep your cards close to your chest. Though some card games are played better with two, am I right?"

Makoto rolled her eyes as Ann's face shifted into a mischievous smirk. "Ann..."

"What, babe? I'm just trying to help things along for our dear Joker." She said, nuzzling her face into the crook of Makoto's neck like a tired cat.

Tired of her antics, Goro stormed through to the next room, the lights a different color than the others. It felt a little like walking through the layers of Hell. Still, he proceeded through all of them, looking for an empty one, taking a small bottle of alcohol as he went.

Finding another wall to slump against and brood, Goro watched the glistening pool in the Takamaki's back yard, taking off the bottle cap with his teeth. The look on Haru's face as he left, the sound of the quiet whimper of fear from Futaba as she sat outside his door when he was upset, the way he felt when Akira fucking Kurusu looked at him through his eyelashes, all of them felt like consecutive punches to the gut. Goro's head hit the back of the wall with a dull thud, and through the darkness of the room, he could see the reflection of the water on the ceiling.

After finishing off the bottle, Goro knew he should probably have given Futaba a message about how much fun he was not having. Futaba's chat icon stared up at him, a tiny cat in a frog hat, and the worst thing he could possibly think of doing was letting her hear his voice. He knew Shido didn't have an issue with alcohol, and he was more or less still coherent enough to pass as only slightly tipsy. It didn't help that on the night of his anniversaries with Wakaba and Goro's mother, Shido broke out the heavy bottles, and they sparkled like dangerous jewels behind the glass cabinet he kept locked. Slurring words and biting tones were all Futaba needed to hear to start shaking, twisting her shirt in her hands, and cowering away from any sharp movements. Goro had too many memories of applying bruise salve to her face, and on quite possibly the worst night of their lives, the dark, hand-shaped bruise that clasped around her neck.

So instead of calling his sister, Goro spared the pain and texted her.

"There you are." A voice called out, a tall silhouette standing in the doorway. "Was wondering where the introverts' room was."

Goro snorted, knocking back another bottle and leaving it by the other one. Checking again, he found that yes, there were two bottles there. How he got his hands on that other one was beyond him, but the fact he was actually inebriated really sunk in then.

Walking into the cold light reflected from the pool, Akira walked over to him, a can of beer in one hand and the other tucked into his pocket. "Can I join you?"

Waving his hand in indifference, Goro made a noncommittal noise. Sucking in a breath through his teeth, Akira crouched down next to him, poking his cheek.

"Yikes, you look like you could use some fresh air." He slid his shoulder underneath Goro's arm, pulling him to his feet. "There we go, up and at 'em, champ."

"Don't call me champ. It makes you sound old." Goro frowned, believing he could walk just fine without Akira's assistance, leaning away from him and opening the door to Ann's balcony.

Placing a hand between his shoulder blades, Akira hissed sharply. "Shit, be careful. We don't need any casualties at a Takamaki party."

Rolling Akira's hand off his back, the linebacker gave him a sour look. "I'm perfectly capable of moving without your assistance."

"Looks like you sobered up enough to be smart-mouthed." The dark-haired boy snorted.

Goro sighed, watching the rippling lines trace the underside of Akira's face, playing across his skin like liquid moonlight. His chest tightened painfully, and he looked away, instead choosing to run a hand through his hair. At one point, he was sure it was tied back, pulled out of his face, but it hung loose, just brushing his shoulders. Akira hummed a noise that Goro couldn't decipher the tone of.

"Your hair," He stated, "it's long."

Giving him a slow clap, Goro nodded. "Ever considered a job in, say, the detective business? They could use a sharp brain like yours."

Akira laughed, somehow taking Goro's scathing insults like water to a duck's plumage. "I meant it in, like, a nice way. Long hair suits you. Makes you look pretty."

The wry smile immediately fell from Goro's face, and he dug his nails into the palms of his hands. The way his chest was fluttering was simply, irrevocably wrong. There were rules he had to play by, and letting himself get swept up into Akira's charming whirlpool of "nice" was breaking every single one of them.

"I probably need to cut it, then. Gets in the way, you know." He mused, ruffling the back of his head.

Suddenly realizing that Akira was close enough for Goro to smell the scent of his fruit-flavored beer, his fingers twisting through the longer strands of his hair, a hot flush crept up the back of his neck. Almost as if he was transfixed, Akira's hand stayed at the base of Goro's neck, the heel of his palm barely touching his jaw. Distractedly, Akira's grip tightened, and Goro sucked in a breath, leaning into the touch.

As if struck by lightning, they sprung away from each other, attempting to regain their composure by leaning against the balcony railing.

"Sorry," Akira muttered, taking a sip of his beer.

Goro made a face. "What even is that? Smells like melted candy."

A short laugh left Akira's lips. "Says the guy who inhaled two bottles of Ann's disgusting lime vodka."

"Well, that's entirely the point," Goro explained, "it's disgusting, so obviously, I want more."

Throwing his head back with laughter, the quarterback leaned his head on his hand. "That makes no sense whatsoever."

A beat of silence fell between them, the summer night's breeze running across Goro's skin like water. Guiltily, Akira turned around, leaning his elbows on the railing, and giving Goro a look that read "sad puppy."

"So, hate to bring this up again, but you and Haru, huh? You're really broken up?" He asked, training his eyes on the doors.

Scowling, Goro gave him the iciest look he could muster. "Oh, of course. That's why you're here. Trying to make a good impression on your new conquest's ex? She's not a fucking vase, Kurusu. She doesn't need my permission to do anything, much less my approval."

Sighing, Akira ran a hand through his hair, a pained expression on his face. "No, that's not why I'm here. It's not even why I brought you here. I wanted -"

Anger flared like a snare drum in Goro's bones, and he snapped his head around to properly look at the dark-haired boy, clenching the railing of the balcony tightly. "That's all you do, isn't it? Want everything, ignore everything you already have, pretend that what you're asking for is trivial."

"That's not -"

"You will never, ever understand," He finished, "that you already have everything."

Neither of them spoke for a moment, and the only sound between them was the quiet whirring of the pool's chlorinator and the hollow sound of bass-boosted music.

Breaking the silence with an equally fragile voice, Akira didn't even look at him. "I wanted to tell you that it was never about Haru. I'm sorry if that got mixed up, but honestly, I could never see her that way. I guess it backfired."

"You fucking asshole." Goro hissed. "You really dislike me that much that you literally tear me away from -"

Rolling his eyes in exasperation, the quarterback turned on his heel, standing up straight. "If you would just let me finish speaking, you'd hear that I don't hate you! Not in the slightest."

Helplessly lost, Goro pushed off the railing to stand in front of Akira, glaring furiously at his face. A mere inch separated them, and he could smell the sweet scent of that stupid beer on his breath. "Then what the hell do you think you're doing?"

"For someone so smart, you're so fucking stupid." Akira breathed.

Then, sliding his hands into Goro's hair, he cupped his face and leaned in, kissing him.

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datenightfright · 4 years

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Infamous

This story is dedicated to Oiwa. Thank you for allowing me to share your story, may you one day find peace.

Pairing: Kayako Saeki x WOC Reader

The Grudge fanfic

WARNING!!!: ALL THE WARNINGS! Abuse, attempted sexual assault. It doesn’t go into great detail, but if you’re sensitive to this stuff, please don’t read. WARNING!!!

Thank you @mlmdarkfiction and @doodleferp for your indispensable encouragement, your ideas, and for allowing me to ramble to you whenever. I appreciate you, thank you.

The Saeki house looms over you, an evil prophet to what you’re about to endure. This move had been in the making for several months now, and you had dreaded every moment. The stories around this house scared you, but your husband was undeterred. “Well?” He growls, snapping you out of your terrified daze, “Don’t just stand there stupid, help me move some of this shit in.”

“Yes,” You say, “Of course.” You strap your baby girl into her position on your back and rush to the small couch. Lifting it, on three, you two manage to maneuver the thing inside. The moving people had refused to enter the house, as had everyone else, even the realtor that sold it to you at a ridiculously low price, according to your husband. “It’s a stupid house,” He’d say, “Why everyone is afraid of a bunch of coincidences is beyond me.”

Your husband was the famous Haru Kubo, a paranormal investigator known worldwide for his exploits. You’ve lived in haunted castles, deserted mansions, and everything in between. All of them had scared you to live in. The thought of coming face to face with a real ghost was definitely your top three fears. But you loved Haru, so you tagged along with him on his adventures…until now.

Ever since you’d gotten pregnant, you’d been bugging Haru about settling down somewhere so your child could grow up with some semblance of normalcy. For the longest he’d resisted the idea, but since his mother started in on the badgering, he’d conceded to your wishes. You knew that he’d settle you somewhere gruesome, you just wish it hadn’t been this house.

It had all be Haru’s idea. He loved the thought of settling into the most haunted place in Japan. It would kick off his new book with a bang. Returning to his native country of Japan, he was going to explore all it had to offer, debunking one haunting after another. He was going to start with the biggest and juiciest of them all. The Infamous Saeki House.

Because you often helped Haru with his research, you’d done your fair share of work on this house. A tragic case of murder-suicide, your heart went out to the lonely Kayako and her son Toshio. From what you understood, a terrible curse had been put on the house, so that anyone that entered it would die a horrible death. You didn’t like the thought of living in such a house, but so far, every haunted place you’d been in had remained…well not haunted. You hoped moving into this house would follow the pattern thus far, but…there had been a staggering number of deaths attributed to this place. Too many for you, personally, to consider it a coincidence.

After everything heavy was moved in, Haru set his workstation up and immediately began working, leaving you to unpack the rest of the things. You jumped at every creak and groan the house gave you. You couldn’t help it, coupled with the feeling of being watched, and the knowledge of what had happened so long ago, it really creeped you out.

Luckily, because of your nomadic lifestyle, you didn’t have much to put up. So that left your afternoon to clean up and play with Sakura. At around two, she began to get fussy, and you put her down for a nap. “Woman!” Haru called, just as you finished tucking Sakura in. You wince, pausing in case Sakura woke up. When nothing happened you walked downstairs, wondering what on earth could be so urgent? “Yes, dear?” You ask, standing behind your husband. “Food.” He says, not bothering to look up from his computer screen. “Of course, dear.” You say, shuffling over. You don’t really have anything, not having had the opportunity to shop for groceries. So, you settle for peanut butter sandwiches and milk for him, and soup for you. You had to watch your figure, considering you just had a baby.

You place the plate down next to him. He barely registers you, just begins to eat. Frowning, he looks at his plate. “Really?” He finally looks up at you, irritated at his meal. “It’s all we have dear,” You say. “Mother would’ve gone out to get something before we started moving in.” He pointed out. You swallow the lump in your throat. Of course, why hadn’t you thought of that? He rolls his eyes. “Whatever,” He mumbles, “Make sure you go out tonight. I want a big breakfast in the morning.” You repress a sigh. “Of course,” You say.

Wandering through the isles late in the evening, you thank the gods that Haru had taken the time to teach you Japanese. You may be a slow reader, but you were at the very least fluent. You took your time in the little grocery store, wondering at some of the strange ingredients. You thought about buying some of them, after all you were in Japan now, Haru expected you to learn how to cook like the Japanese. You contemplate getting something wild and new, but ultimately decide not to, not for the first night anyway. Haru would be disappointed in you, but you could take it.

You don’t take long in the store, not wanting to cook a feast for two tonight. You’re tired, and quite frankly, you just want to get home and go to sleep. Moving halfway across the world takes its toll on you, and man were you tired.

You hum as you put the groceries in your car, finally done with the shopping. You stop when you notice people watching you. Little grandma’s hurry along once they notice you noticing them, some mothers scold their children and tell them not to stare, that its rude. You sigh. You might have to get used to that. Not only are you an American living in Japan, but you’re not white either. This is probably the first time any of these people have seen someone with a skin color like yours.

You buckle Sakura in her seat safely, making faces at her as you do so. She giggles and grabs for you. You can’t help but place a kiss on her cheek. Ever since you knew you were pregnant, she’s become you’re entire world. Haru whined about it every once and a while, but he had books to write, and TV interviews to keep him busy. Besides, you’d been living in his world for the longest time, now you had things to keep you busy on the long stretches of nights he was too busy for you.

Pulling into the driveway you notice some of the neighbors stare at you in horror. You ignore them, after all, its to be expected. You live in one of the most haunted houses in all of Japan, people are going to stare. You wave at them, flashing them the brightest smile you could, before gathering your daughter and the few groceries you’d gotten. You shuffle into the house as quickly as possible, shutting the door soundly behind you.

“Haru?” You call into the house, taking off your shoes before entering further. “Haru, I’m home!” You look over to his work area, he isn’t there. Maybe the move tired him and he’s in the bedroom. You resume humming as you put Sakura in her play pen. “I’ll be right back sweetie.” You tell her, kissing her forehead.

You’d just finished putting the groceries away when the smell of alcohol hits you. You’re just registering that its Haru when he wraps his arms around you, nibbling at your neck. “You look cute,” He slurs. You were sure he meant it as a way to get in your pants, seeing as that’s the line he picked you up with years ago, and subsequently the line that always let you know he was in the mood.

“Not now, Haru,” You say, trying to shrug him off. His grip on you tightens. Pressing his erection in your back he begins to whine, “Why not baby? It’s been so long since we did it.” You feel irritation flood your system. You’d done it two days ago, you wanted to snap. Besides, he always got so childish when you didn’t fuck him when he wanted. You had a baby you take care of; you didn’t have the luxury of just opening your legs whenever you wanted to.

“Come on, Haru,” You say, managing to turn around in his arms at least. “Later tonight, I promise.” His next whine falls on deaf ears. Over his shoulder, something white moves across your field of vision. “What was that?”

“What?” Haru says, looking behind him. When he sees nothing, he looks back at you. “Seeing things again? He teases. You glare at him. It’s not your fault that they’re living in the most haunted house in Japan, is it? Haru buries his face in your neck, trying his best to grind on you in his drunken state. “C’mon, give my big finger a tug or two.” He laughs at his own lame joke. “Haru, no.” You say, pushing him back, he stumbles. You see the fire in his eyes, but don’t pay any heed to it. “Now listen you,” He starts, but Sakura begins to cry. “The baby!” You gasp, rushing to get to her.

Haru stops you with a tight grip on your wrist. “Don’t fucking ignore me!” He snarls. You yank yourself away from him, trying to break his grip. “Let go!” You whimper, “You’re hurting me.”

“Listen, bitch,” Haru snarls. His words get you to stop. Haru had called you many names in your relationship, but never bitch. What the hell was this? “Haru, you’re scaring me.” You whisper. “You’ve ignored me for that brat long enough,”

“That’s your daughter!” Haru then does something he’s never done before, he raises his hand to you, punching you in the lip. Your head snaps back, you slip, landing hard on your ass, teeth clicking together. Haru throws himself on top of you. Before you can fully register what’s happening, he’s tearing at your shirt, grumbling about how he was going to take what was his. “Haru, Haru stop!” You scream. He back hands you this time, “Shut up!” He bellows. “Shut the fuck up! I’m tired of your mouth. You American women are always talking back.” Another back hand. By now you’re crying, wonder what the hell has come over him.

He’s always been a beast, a voice in your head says. You knew this day would come; you just ignored the signs so you could continue playing pretend. “I’m going to show you how to be a good wife. A quiet one.”

Haru wraps his hands around your throat, squeezing as tightly as he can. You immediately begin to gasp and claw at his hands, trying to get a breath. Your thoughts are on your daughter. Who will protect her from him if you can’t? You kick and struggle, trying with all your might to throw Haru off you.

It’s then you hear a faint clicking sound. Like someone pausing and thinking aloud with a long, low ‘uh’. Something black and white appears over Haru’s shoulder. A woman, the only other woman that’s lived in this house besides you. Kayako Saeki. She looks between you and your husband, wondering who to take first. You reach out to her, managing to choke out a small little “Please,” She looks at you, dead eyed, but intent. “I said shut up! You fucking American whore!” Haru yells, squeezing tighter. The edges of your vision begin to go black; you begin to struggle less. “Please,” You mouth. With all your might you try to send your thoughts to Kayako. Your daughter, please save your daughter.

Kayako’s characteristic groan grows louder, able to be heard over the cries of your child. This distracts Haru, his grip lessening so that you can gulp a lung full of precious air. With renewed strength you begin to struggle again. “Stop moving!” Haru snarls. He’s about to redouble his efforts in killing you when a white blur tackles him to the ground. You cough and splutter for a moment, your lungs burning. Without really thinking you crawl towards the living room, instinctually wanting to soothe your crying child.

You make it to her play pen, the moment she sees you, she settles somewhat. With some effort, you manage to take her out of her play pen and hold her close. You scoot yourself back against the arm of the couch, terrified. You’re going to die now, you and your daughter.

Your throat is in searing pain, you begin to tremble and cry. Kayako, done with your husband, comes crawling towards you. Her eyes wide, mouth closed. “Please,” You croak, tears flowing freely now. You give your now quiet daughter a kiss. “Please, be quick.” You beg, “Please, have mercy. P-please-” Whether or not it’s from terror or from exhaustion you feel yourself succumb to darkness, the edges of your vision going black once more. One last plea for mercy following you into a deep sleep.

#the grudge #ju-on #kayako saeki #kayako #slasher imagine #fic

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akechicrimes · 5 years

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there’s this thing called the “perfect victim myth” that a friend of mine introduced me to, which is the myth, even the requirement, that a person’s pain and trauma is only valid if they were on their best behavior, did nothing wrong, and can in no way be faulted for contributing to their own terrible situation. trauma is only trauma if you sat there as an unsuspecting, poor faultless blameless disempowered victim, and terrible things were inflicted upon you without any of your input whatsoever. it’s only if you did absolutely zero things wrong that you’re allowed to be considered a victim.

therefore, akechi did things wrong, and therefore cannot be a victim of anything on his own end. right?

i cannot stress enough that this is simply not how abuse, abusive behaviors, or trauma works in real life, and that believing such a thing does a disservice to not only all people who’s been victims of abuse, but also anyone who believes such a myth.

look--insofar as persona 5 is a game in which the main characters are all victims of someone else doing something bad to them, i think yusuke is probably the best example of an unfortunate real-life victim situation, so let’s talk about yusuke for five seconds: he actively prevents the PT from trying to save him, defends his abuser at the expense of himself, and even after he’s joined the PT, he sometimes oscillates wildly between “i hate madarame and refuse to even speak of him” and “i miss him terribly and still speak fondly about him and my time living with him.” he never really seems to unlearn a lot of behaviors he picked up from living with madarame--things like not caring for himself at the expense of art, not listening to his own hunger cues, and arguably has a whacked-out relationship with money due to madarame’s own whacked-out relationship with money. personally, i think he also has difficulty with respecting other people’s personal boundaries because madarame never respected his, hence him inviting himself to live with ann, or inviting himself to live with akira.

now consider a situation where yusuke drives the PT off, continues to live with madarame, drives himself into the dirt to supply madarame with his art, and eventually fulfills nakanohara’s prediction of killing himself in despair. is that yusuke’s fault? arguably, it is, isn’t it? someone extended a hand to him, and yusuke refused. even consider a situation in which yusuke successfully calls the cops on the PT, like he very genuinely attempted to in canon, and akira goes to jail because of violating his probation. what then? now it’s not just yusuke is at fault for his own suicide, but he’s also done a terrible harm to akira that will follow him for the rest of his life. what then? are we supposed to have sympathy for him now?

that’s not such an unusual situation. that happens. that’s why nakanohara warned the PT about it. it has happened before and will happen again, and not just in the gameworld of persona 5.

if you come away from that story believing that that’s yusuke’s fault, i’d say that you’re not wrong, but you’re not right, either. it is probably partly yusuke’s fault. is he still a victim? did terrible things still happen to him? that is also true.

does it really matter if it was partly his fault?

also now consider the woman that shido was harassing. what about her? do we sympathize with her? she helped get akira convicted to save her own skin. is she a victim or an abuser? should i sympathize with her or not? arguably she should have stood up for herself in the first place, right? maybe she shouldn’t have left herself alone with shido, either. when akira came to save her, maybe she should have run. when the police came, she should have testified that akira did nothing wrong. she probably would have had her life ruined by shido for the rest of her life, in that he’d probably go out of his way to destroy her career forever after, and she knew that, but hey, she should have stuck up for akira, right?

then there’s makoto--makoto who did some pretty colossally stupid things re: the yakuza incident, makoto who still had the nerve to love her sister despite her sister’s vaguely-immortal legal practices, makoto who didn’t immediately refuse kobayakawa when he arm-twisted her into doing his dirty work. what if makoto had decided that the letter of recommendation was more important? do you know how badly makoto shot herself in the foot by pissing kobayakawa off? that letter of recommendation might have been the difference between her going to the best college in the country to graduate as a doctor in law, and going to a run-of-the-mill college for a simple undergrad degree. her pissing kobayakawa off probably didn’t make her sister’s life any easier, for that matter; half the reason why sae acts as ruthless as she does is because there’s so much workplace misogyny against women in the justice system, and sae’s little sister being a shit to her principal probably didn’t help at all. so who’s to blame for all this? are we allowed to sympathize with makoto? how about sae? how about kobayakawa--makoto refused to help kobayakawa, and that directly contributes to kobayakawa getting fucked over by shido because kobayakawa wasn’t able to give shido what he wants. am i allowed to feel bad for him?

a lot of the cast of persona 5 doesn’t do anything even morally grey in this respect. the game goes out of its way to inform us that akira did Zero things wrong in trying to defend that woman from shido. ann is nothing but a perfect victim on her end, and is the model of a victim who resisted; she tried to run away, tried to tell kamoshida to stop, even had a good long sympathetic cry in an animated cutscene. haru is the exact same way. (ryuji gets put through the meatgrinder by his old track team for his actions, but if anything, ryuji has the opposite problem--he did everything right, and was punished for it. he’s the situation in which the woman stands up to shido and gets brutally destroyed for it.)

the point that i’m trying to make is that issues of victimhood and abuse get really messy. shido has a lot of dialogue that implies that he groomed akechi to do what he wanted, and there’s dialogue that tells us that akechi willingly volunteered himself for the role. both of those things can be true. we can acknowledge that akechi probably didn’t have much other options in his life besides his half-cocked plan to get revenge on shido. we can acknowledge that in all likelihood, i don’t think akechi ever really thought he’d live for very long; either he dies in poverty or he goes out with a bang against shido. we can acknowledge that simultaneously he probably did have other options that he should have chosen, like working a shitty low-wage job for the rest of his life because of his parentage.

so was akechi forced into this situation or not? if we can answer that question, things will be simpler, won’t it? we can say definitively: akechi had a choice, and therefore it’s his fault. akechi didn’t have a choice, and therefore it’s not his fault.

so which is it? was he forced or not?

the truth about abuse is that the victim always has agency. always. ALWAYS. and because the victim has agency, it is often very difficult to say that the victim was “forced.”

the victim is always making choices for themselves. the victim always feels a modicum of control. the victim is always telling themselves that they could walk if they really wanted to; they’re staying because they’re going to make the situation better; they’re going to work hard and achieve their goals, even. this is the case of people looking at a battered woman and saying, good god, why doesn’t she just leave him? isn’t this a simple issue? is she being literally forced to stay with him? if she’s choosing to stay with him, is she really still a victim or a battered woman?

the truth about abuse is that it relies on pressure, and on limiting options. very rarely does abuse ever force anyone. in yusuke’s situation, there is enormous pressure for him to stay with madarame, both because of emotional ties, yusuke not having legal rights as a minor, yusuke not having the financial means to support himself, and simply the career prestige of having been madarame’s student--but is yusuke being forced to stay with madarame? arguably no. for the woman who accused akira, there’s pressure to do as shido says. but she has the option to refuse shido only in technicality, in the same way that someone being mugged technically has the option not to hand their wallet over, and consequently get shanked or shot.

as for akechi, there’s a lot of pressure to comply with shido, even when akechi feels like he’s doing it willingly, and even when akechi IS doing it willingly. there’s a lot of pressure to do terrible things such as murder, that akechi could technically say no to. akechi retains agency throughout his entire story, even when his agency is highly pressured to operate in ways that serve only shido’s benefit.

this is because akechi is a far more realistic victim than most victims of abuse in most media. he retains agency. and sometimes having agency means that you are highly pressured to do bad things.

this is the other thing about the “perfect victim myth”--a lot of it relies on arguing, “well, the victim is a victim because they had no other options.” that is to say, someone can only be a victim if it’s clearly demonstrable that they had no agency whatsoever in the situation. and this is simply not true. not of real life victims, and it shouldn’t be so for fictional victims.

and, not to mention, sometimes having agency means that you just straight-up do bad things because you’re coping badly. i mentioned earlier that i don’t think akechi intended to live very long, and that comes primarily from his willingness to sacrifice himself the instant he decides not to go through with his plan to kill shido. for a lot of kids in shitty situations growing up, it’s very difficult to see yourself growing up and having a fulfilling, happy future as an adult. if you’re not intending to live very long, why wouldn’t you consider all bets off? it’s not like you’re getting through this alive.

the other unfortunate fact of victims retaining agency is that they don’t always use it well, especially when they’ve been thru some shit, and this is almost always used against the victim to say, “well, you should have done this instead.” the entire thing smacks of ways to gatekeep “victimhood”--this magical status that lifts someone above criticism, above having flaws, and above the unfortunate status of being a human being. it’s a way of saying that certain characters are not allowed a right to their own pain because they didn’t fulfill certain criteria. it’s also a way of dehumanization, and avoiding the fact that real life is complex, and that doing good, doing bad, and even just doing living with other people is messy and often painful even at its best.

when someone acts out and makes bad decisions because they’ve been through a terrible situation or are in a bad headspace, obviously this does not excuse their actions, but it is possible to not excuse their actions and understand that people do not always cope well. coping is not always a cute waifish girl in an indie road trip movie. coping is not always a cute waifish girl crying in a bathtub. sometimes coping is being in such a headspace that you’re A-Okay with being murdered by your cognitive double because you don’t have anything else to live for. sometimes coping is latching on to the idea that if you just get revenge on the person who did this to you, maybe then you’ll be okay.

in the myths, the perfect victim is never responsible. the perfect victim is never an active player in their own lives. the perfect victim always copes well, according to the script, and never inconveniences anyone else. the perfect victim is always a heartwarming and uplifting story for other folks to feel good about. the perfect victim is, in a lot of ways, neatly packaged, bundled up, sanitized, and further dehumanized by removing their flaws.

i strongly do not recommend subscribing to the perfect victim myth. it benefits almost nobody, except for abusers who get to claim they didn’t abuse anyone because their victim didn’t fit the perfect victim model.

ultimately, my point is that i understand if akechi is not your cup of tea. lots of characters are not my cup of tea. i will never be a die-hard fan of, say, hifumi togo. i like her well enough, but she’s not for me. you can dislike akechi!! nobody said you have to like him!!!

but i strongly dislike when people bring morality, victimhood, and rhetoric of abuse into justifying why they don’t like akechi. but when you start talking about the reasons why akechi is the absolute worst and nobody should be allowed to like him because of reasons you’ve pulled out of the perfect victim fallacy, you’re doing a disservice to literally everyone everywhere who’s ever been in an abusive situation. no, not even that--you’re doing a disservice to everyone everywhere who’s ever suffered pain because of what someone else did to them. you become part of the rhetoric that invalidates people’s suffering and keeps us thinking of victimhood/abuse/trauma as a black and white issue.

and ultimately you’re doing a disservice to yourself, because one day, someone will hurt you, and you’ll believe that you don’t deserve to feel bad about it because you weren’t the perfect victim.

do yourself a favor and quit it.

#meta #mine #tw abuse #tw suicide #tw just general rough conversation about trauma #i should probably mention that there's maybe no anti-akechi fan who will really read this #but it was cathartic for me to write at the very least

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alphacrone · 4 years

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the sun shines and fights for your day (2122 words) by the_one_that_fell Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Fruits Basket - Takaya Natsuki (Manga), Fruits Basket Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Kuragi Machi & Sohma Kisa, Kuragi Machi & Sohma Hiro, Kuragi Machi/Sohma Yuki, Sohma Hiro/Sohma Kisa TW: Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Canon-Typical Violence, Verbal Abuse, Slight Victim Blaming, Manga Spoilers

Summary: Machi didn’t get harassed or catcalled often. But that didn’t mean it never happened.

Or, Machi is rescued by the two youngest members of the Zodiac.

***

Machi didn’t get harassed or catcalled often.

She chalked it up to her talent at being virtually invisible in public more than anything else. Her entire life, she had been quiet and dull and very good at ignoring men. But that didn’t mean it never happened.

“I have a boyfriend,” she told the man blocking her path. She’d only run out to pick up some groceries before Yuki’s visit this afternoon, but this—admittedly tall —jackass was making it difficult.

“Oh?” The guy smirked at her. “I don’t see him.”

Machi bristled, but kept her expression neutral. “I don’t need a chaperone to run errands, do I?”

“C’mon, smile a bit,” he told her, stepping closer. “You’re being rude. We’re just talking, aren’t we?”

“Leave me alone,” Machi said, frustration leaking into her tone. Yuki had taught her a few self-defense moves before he graduated, but people were starting to notice as the guy in front of her grew louder. She couldn’t just kick him in the balls for being annoying.

“Hey, I’m just being friendly,” the guy snapped, smile dropping. “Don’t you know how to make friends?”

“No,” Machi replied truthfully. She didn’t intentionally make friends; friends generally wormed their way into her life against her will. “Go away.”

“You’re such a bitch,” the guy spat. “Bet you think you’re so much better than me, is that it? Get off your high horse, you stupid slut.”

“Okay.” Machi sighed. All she wanted was to get some ingredients for soumen. Why couldn’t this guy just leave her alone? He was starting to make her nervous; what if he followed her home? Steeling herself, Machi ducked around him, but he caught her arm and yanked her back.

“Hey!” He shouted, fingers digging roughly into the soft flesh of her upper arm. Machi let out a surprised yelp of pain. “Don’t walk away when I’m talking to yo- OOF. ”

Suddenly the hand was gone, and Machi turned to see the guy sprawled across the sidewalk, clutching at his stomach. Standing above him was a kid, probably middle school aged, who raised a fist in warning.

“She didn’t wanna talk to you, you dumb bastard!” The kid shouted, his voice cracking almost comically. “Go jump in a lake!”

“C’mon.” A small, soft hand took Machi’s, and she looked down to see a young girl tugging at her to move. “Hiro’s got him distracted, let’s get away.”

Machi nodded mutely and let the girl drag her down the street, away from the man and the boy who’d saved her. They ended up at the entrance to a busy park, and the girl let out a deep sigh of relief. She looked up at Machi with brilliant, amber eyes. Despite the difference in color, Machi was reminded of Yuki.

“Are you okay?” The girl asked, nose scrunching in worry. She was cute in a way Machi didn’t know existed in real life. Was this some sort of child model? A tiny idol? A robot escaped from a laboratory?

“Did your friend...headbutt that guy in the stomach?” Machi asked. Everything had happened so quickly that it was a blur, but she was certain the kid hadn’t come at them with his fists alone.

“Aha, um...yes.” The girl looked down at her feet. “It’s a bad habit of his from- it’s a bad habit.”

Machi felt her lips twitch upwards. “I don’t think it’s a bad habit to save people.”

The girl beamed up at her, clasping her hands together. “So, you’re okay? He didn’t hurt you, did he? He was so scary.”

“Ah, no, I’m fine,” Machi said, rubbing at the back of her neck. “Thanks.”

“Oi! Kisa!”

The boy was jogging towards them, face pulled into a deep scowl. To Machi’s relief, he didn’t have a scratch on him.

“Hiro!” The girl—Kisa—waved him over. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Hiro said, scowl lessening as Kisa checked him over. When he caught sight of Machi, however, he huffed and pointed an accusatory finger at her. “You . Learn how to stand up for yourself! I can’t stand people who let themselves get walked all over. What if we hadn’t been there? You can’t expect others to fight your battles!”

Machi quirked an eyebrow. Who did this little punk think he was, her father? It was almost funny, getting lectured by a child. She let her thoughts drift to Yuki as the kid rambled on. He’d be here in an hour and she still needed to pick up groceries. Neither of them could cook, even after lessons from Tohru, but they had fun trying. Sometimes Yuki would purposefully smear sauce across her cheek, just so he could lick it off. The bastard thought he was so smooth ...but Machi would be lying if she said it didn’t make her heart race.

“Hiro!” Kisa shouted, disrupting Machi’s train of thought. “Stop it! If she’d hit that guy, he could’ve hurt her! You’re being mean. I’m...I’m disappointed in you.”

Machi hid her laugh behind a cough as the boy’s face grew bright red. He was a piece of work, but Kisa seemed to have him wrapped around her finger. They very suddenly reminded her of Tohru and Kyo, and this time she couldn’t help but snort a little.

“I-I-” Hiro bowed, first to Kisa, then Machi. “I’m sorry,” he said, head lowered. “I just got scared, seeing that guy grab you. I- I don’t like bullies.”

“It’s fine,” Machi said with a shrug. “I know a few self-defense moves, I guess I just froze. So, thank you. For interfering.”

Hiro nodded, looking at Kisa sheepishly until she smiled at him. Machi really wasn’t sure if these two were dating or siblings or whatever, but the way they interacted made her feel warm inside. They clearly knew each other well.

“I’m Kisa, by the way,” the girl said to introduce herself. “Kisa Sohma. And this is Hiro Sohma. Do you mind if we walk you home, just to make sure you get there safe?”

“Soh...ma?” Machi’s brain short-circuited.

“Ah, yeah. Sohma,” Kisa repeated with a smile.

“Are you related to Yuki Sohma?” Machi asked slowly. Surely that was too much of a coincidence. But these kids were unnaturally pretty, and Kisa’s hair -

“Yes!” Kisa clapped her hands together. “He’s our relative. You know Yuki?”

“Uh, yeah. He’s my boyfriend.”

Kisa’s mouth fell open. Hiro snorted. “That guy has a girlfriend ?”

“Really?” Kisa asked, ignoring Hiro. “It’s so nice to meet you! Onee-chan mentioned Yuki was dating someone but I haven’t talked to him in a while so I never got to ask.” She paused, tilting her head to the side to look Machi up and down. “You’re pretty.”

Despite herself, Machi felt her face heat up. “Um. My name is Machi Kuragi.”

“You could do better,” Hiro said off-handedly. Kisa smacked his arm.

“Yuki is nice, don’t say that,” she whispered. “Onee-chan, can we walk you home?”

It seemed yet another person in Yuki’s life had already adopted her—first Tohru, then Ayame, and now Kisa. Machi couldn’t really complain, though. It was nice to have a family.

“Uh, sure.” Machi decided she and Yuki could just go out to eat. Their cooking was pretty atrocious. “I’m just a couple blocks this way,” she said, jabbing her thumb in the direction of her apartment.

Without warning, Kisa grabbed Machi’s hand again and took the lead, despite not knowing the way. Hiro trailed after them, mumbling about older women stealing his girlfriend, but he didn’t seem too angry. “If you’re dating Yuki,” Kisa said. “Does that mean you’re friends with Tohru?”

Machi nodded. “We’re not close, but she’s easy to be friends with.”

“She’s the best, isn’t she?” Kisa asked, grinning from ear to ear. “I miss her a lot.”

“She should dump Kyo,” Hiro butted in. “He’s such a loser. Then she could move back here.”

“Hiro,” Kisa warned, her tone more playful than upset. “Don’t say that. Kyo isn’t too bad, and Onee-chan really loves him!”

Hiro snorted derisively. “Tohru loves everyone. She can find someone here.”

Kisa looked up at Machi with a conspiratorial glint in her eyes. “Hiro misses her too, he just won’t admit it.”

“I don’t!” Hiro protested, but Kisa waved him off.

“Do you go to school with Yuki?” Kisa asked.

“I did,” Machi said. “I’m in my third year at Kaibara, but he and I were on the Student Council together last year.”

“Oh! So you know Momiji and Haru?”

“Yeah.” Momiji had transferred out this year, but they had been acquainted. Alternatively, she couldn’t get rid of Hatsuharu Sohma, who asked for “Yuki Updates” almost every day before class.

Machi had never been great at small talk, but her curt nature didn’t seem to faze Kisa. “I never get to see Momiji anymore, since he moved out of the compound. But I get to see Haru and Rin a lot!”

They rounded the corner to Machi’s apartment, Kisa still rambling about people Machi didn’t know. Kisa stopped talking abruptly and began waving to someone in the distance. Machi glanced up to see Yuki standing outside her building, typing on his phone.

“Yuki!” Kisa called. He looked up, noticed the three of them together, and waved, confusion visible on his face, even at this distance.

They approached and Yuki reached out to kiss Machi’s cheek in greeting. Her face flushed, but the kids didn’t seem to notice. “Hey,” he said to her. “I see you met these two?”

“A guy was harassing her, so we stepped in,” Hiro said coolly, arms folded across his chest.

“He headbutted the guy,” Machi deadpanned. Yuki let out a surprised bark of laughter, covering his mouth with his hand.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Yuki said, taking Machi’s hand. “Are you okay?”

Machi nodded. “They insisted on making sure I got home safe.”

Yuki smiled at his cousins. “Thank you,” he said sincerely. “That was very kind of you, Kisa.”

“Hey!” Hiro protested, but he was ignored as Yuki patted Kisa’s head. She smiled up at him, eyes darting to Machi.

“I like your girlfriend,” Kisa told him. “Hold onto her, please.”

Yuki laughed, and the sound warmed Machi’s heart. “I plan on it. As long as she’ll have me.”

“Gross,” Hiro muttered. Machi turned to him, and bopped him lightly on the head with her fist. “Hey!” He shouted.

“Thanks,” she said. “For walking me home. And headbutting that guy.”

Hiro’s cheeks turned pink and he shrugged dismissively. “Whatever. Guy deserved it.”

“Can you two get home safely?” Yuki asked, grip tightening on Machi’s hand. They hadn’t seen each other properly in weeks, and she could tell he was antsy to get her alone. She bit back a smile.

“Of course we can,” Hiro snapped. Kisa smiled at Yuki sweetly.

“Yes,” she said. “Come visit us soon, okay? Haru misses you.”

Yuki nodded. “Will do.”

Kisa waved to both of them as Hiro took her hand and started pulling her back down the street. As soon as they were out of sight, Yuki pressed a proper kiss to her mouth. Machi melted against him, the whirlwind of the past hour finally over. “Are all of your relatives weird? Are you the normal one in your family?”

Yuki laughed against her lips, knocking their foreheads together. “You ask me that when Kakeru is your brother.”

“That Hiro kid headbutted a guy twice his size in the gut,” Machi said. “And that’s pretty normal after meeting Momiji and Ayame.”

“Have I introduced you to Kagura yet?” Yuki asked with a shit-eating grin.

“Your family is weird ,” Machi said, pulling her boyfriend towards the entrance of her building.

Yuki let himself be pulled inside. “I’m very aware.”

“Nice, though,” Machi admitted, cheeks growing warm as they climbed up to the second floor. “Your family’s pretty nice. The ones I’ve met.”

The unspoken truth of Yuki’s parents hung between them, but it didn’t dampen the mood, They’d bared themselves to each other before, whispering the untold abuses of their parents where no one else could hear. Machi knew Yuki didn’t go to the family compound to visit because those who hurt him were still there. Yuki knew Machi would only meet with her father in public, where he couldn’t raise a hand against her.

Yuki smiled at her. “They seemed to like you, Kisa and Hiro. Oh, speaking of, Ayame was asking about you yesterday…”

Machi unlocked her door and pulled Yuki in behind her, still chattering about his brother and her brother and silly schemes they were brewing. She smiled at him, and felt her heart expand to let her new family grow just a little more.

#fruits basket fanfiction #yuchi #machi/yuki #heed the warnings #x-posting from ao3 #anna writes things #aka machi is forcibly introduced to zodiac members #fruits basket spoilers #fruits basket manga spoilers

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