Eloquent Coconut

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[eloquentcoconut]

~ Intermission ~ Twst Drabble Series

Twst Drabbles found all in one place! (or check out 'Twst Upon A Time' on ao3/wattpad/quotev to also find the series all in one place.)

Synopsis: Thorn and Sebek, from enemies, to frenemies, back to enemies, right? One of the first of many of Thorn and Sebek's book club shena

Synopsis: Jade teaches Thorn to be mindful of their words, as they just might come true. Plus, he really wanted to hangout and his method en

Synopsis: Thorn is just having one of those days - for the past week. Deuce notices and does something about it. Word Count: 1,502 Notes:

Synopsis: Night Raven College is an all-male school; you're going to find magic combined with sports outside. Word Count: 1,502 Notes: Jus

Synopsis: What does studying, basketball, break dancing, and surprise relocation have in common? NOTHING. Just an average day attending Nigh

Synopsis: Thorn thought they joined the board game club; not the boring games club. Featuring streaming Dress to Impress with Iida, Azul, an

[pomefioredove]

Hi! May I have a chocolate cookie, #1 , with frosting and candycanes? [I love reading your content ♡]

thank you so much!

order #1, chocolate with frosting, candy canes

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ requisite

summary: battered, bruised, and alone again... well, not quite tropes: only one bed, friends to lovers characters: rollo additional info: romantic, gender neutral reader, reader is yuu, reader running away.wav, umm fluff basically

You hadn't known who else to turn to.

Something deep, smothered and stifled by the smoke in your stomach, knew it was always going to be him. But you didn't want to burden Rollo with your bruised ribs and beaten pride. Or, painfully, but truthfully, you didn't want him to see you in such a sorry state.

Aching, broken, tired, with dry tears stuck to your skin and snot crusted on your upper lip. A disgusting display, so unlike the strong, smart Prefect that you were- that you wanted to be.

But, you had no one else. You couldn't go crawling back to Night Raven College after that fit. You couldn't face your friends, or their shock and fear at your outburst.

No. Never again.

Or, at least, not for a few days.

Whyever the Dark Mirror had worked for you, you didn't know. Perhaps you were so exempt from the rules of this school and this world, that it didn't even realize a person had passed through its threshold. Perhaps the Headmage had taken some pity on you. Each answer was more outlandish than the last.

Perhaps you didn't want to know. You had been spit out in the imposing lecture hall of Noble Bell College, darkened by night and abandoned by its usual repertoire of students. The candles on each heavy chandelier were dying, wax melting into the metal hands that cradled them. Not magical, you note. The students of Noble Bell always were a practical sort of people.

You hold your phone between two trembling hands. Now would be the time to text Rollo and tell him- everything. But you can't seem to get past the lockscreen, and each time you try the sweat and tears that had wetted your weary hands smear across the screen and sends it into a flurry of numeral confusion.

Later. The library always sounded warm and welcoming here. You can hide throughout night, and then-

"What are you doing here?"

You tense and turn, expecting a professor or a hall monitor or someone that would surely toss you outside to sleep with the sewer rats, but it's Rollo.

You suppose it has been a few months since you'd heard his voice.

"I-I- I couldn't-" it's so much harder to speak to him in person.

Rollo's eyes widen. Even in the dim light, he can surely make out your dismal state- bruised, certainly bleeding, battered and beaten as if you'd been tossed around by a typhoon. Trembling with fear and trepidation like a small animal.

"Come along," he says, not waiting for you to explain any further. You follow.

Rollo leads, though he still looks over his shoulder to surmise your shaken state whenever he hears a lull in your steps. Almost as if he means to offer his shoulder for you to rest on, but can't quite find the words to ask.

He stops in front of a heavy wooden door, slotting an iron key inside its petite lock, and pushing it open with such ease for someone of his size.

He brings you inside a bedroom, comfortable and modest, a warm fire flickering in the hearth.

"Lie there," he says, taking you to the bed. His eyes, almost gray in the dark light, are no less dull as he gives you a hardened look.

"...What were you doing out so late?" you ask him.

He sniffles, slipping away to the dark recesses of the room to sift through some drawers. "I could not sleep. I warned you of this,"

"Of what?"

Rollo returns to your side and sits beside you, at the furthest edge of the bed, a glass bottle and gauze in either hand.

"That they would hurt you," he says, simply, as if it were a matter of fact. "That you could not trust them to be gentle with someone like... you."

He dresses your cuts first, smearing some foul, herbal-smelling paste over each one. It stings, and you have to suck in your breathe to bear it.

"It's not like that,"

"Then why are you here?" Rollo deadpans, his eyes dark and lowered. "Surely, if it were an accident, or a mishap, you would be at the infirmary in your own school. But you are here. With me."

You can't come up with an excuse for that. You avoid his eyes as he takes to wiping the sweat and blood and blot off of your face with an end of his robes, as if the cloth meant nothing more to him than your comfort.

"I lost my temper," you admit.

"You surely had a reason,"

You bite the inside of your cheek, almost drawing more blood. "Not a good one. I was just..."

"Afraid," he finishes. "Fear manifests in the strangest of ways. As unforgiving as the flame, sometimes."

"Yeah," you turn away, and he uses his blood-and-blot stained hand to bring your face back towards his.

"You'll be perfectly safe here. For as long as you'd like,"

He says that, but you know he'd like you to stay. Forever.

"...Thank you,"

Rollo hums, and has you take something that tastes as strong as it smells. For the pain, he says. It's something he must have brewed himself, because it works well enough. Your bruises soften, the ache in your bones becoming naught but a numbness.

Your eyes drift across the dark room, warm from the colors of the fire but no colder or impersonal than Ramshackle was when you first made it your home. The only indications of life are the paper and quills on the desk, and, of course, the elixirs and medicines piled by potionology books.

This is his room.

"You should be thankful that you've lasted so long in such a wicked place," Rollo scolds. "If not for their limited mercy, you would have been brutalized months ago. Now, look at what they've done to you."

You don't have it in you to admit this isn't the first time. He hadn't even asked about the blot. You try to defend yourself, your mouth open, looking for soft words and finding nothing but reality.

Rollo puts you out of your misery, pulling you from the bed by your shoulders and suffocating you in a bone-crushing hug. If not for the medicine, you surely would have passed out from the pain.

"Don't frighten me like this. Ever again," he whispers, his face pressed into your shoulder.

"Ow," you say, and he swiftly lets go, letting you fall back into the feathery pillows.

"Ah... my apologies," he rasps. "...I know I cannot convince you to stay at Noble Bell. But when you do go back, the very moment your life or health is called into question, you will call for me. Is that understood?"

You manage to nod, and he noticeably calms himself. For the moment, at least.

"Very good," he says, standing. "Call for me when you wake."

His hand has not even touched the doorknob when you ask for him again. "Rollo?"

He stills. "Yes?"

"Will you stay?"

It might have been difficult to tell from the dim, warm light of the room, the dying fire flickering gold and orange across his pale skin, but you would later recall his cheeks turning rosy.

He steps away from the door.

"I... suppose... I could manage that,"

[eloquentcoconut]

Some of yall have issues for real, I removed messages/asks from being anon from all the hate I was getting for using 1 tag wrong. I promise it's not that deep, and if you feel that passionately about it, you should say that shit with your chest instead of hiding. This is my first time posting fanfics on tumblr 😂 no one gets it perfect the first time.

[eloquentcoconut]

☆The First Rule Of Book Club: You Do Not Talk About Book Club ☆

Synopsis: Thorn and Sebek, from enemies, to frenemies, back to enemies, right? One of the first of many of Thorn and Sebek's book club shenanigans.

Word Count: 1,982

Notes: I love Pride & Prejudice, could I make it any more obvious? I've teased some of the features in this fic way back in my twst baby names post.

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Grim entered Ramshackle’s lounge and ‘slammed’ an envelope sealed in dark green wax bearing Diasomnia’s crest onto the coffee table. “This has got to be from that loud mouthed guy - should I just burn it?” 

I chuckle at Grim’s sentiment - it's no secret that Sebek and I often butt heads, we often rub each other the wrong way, and on occasion argue, but I don’t think we’re enemies by any means.

Like that time in the library, where I got so fed up with him adding ‘for a human’ and the end of all his ‘compliments’ that I bit him and told him if he didn’t obey all my commands, by the next full moon he would become a magicless human. And for some reason he believed me and it snowballed into a crazy rumor, and became a huge mess where Diasomnia got involved… It was nuts.

Or that time at the stables where he tried to get back at me for telling him to fall off his horse, so he said, ‘perhaps it is YOU that should ‘eat manure and die’ and I responded, ‘eat shit and live Sebek.’

And most recently was gym class, we had to rotate between a few sports like volleyball, badminton, and basketball, and somehow, he always ‘accidentally’ managed to hit the back of my head with projectiles. I filled his gym bag with ice cubes and put my ice pack down the front of his pants.  

I squint my eyes at the memories. ‘Maybe we are…?’

“Let’s read it first to check who it's actually from.” I opened the pristine white envelope to reveal aged cardstock, written in non-too refined scrawl but the alternating green and silver sparkled ink was a nice touch. I think someone possessed Sebek though, all the little hearts floating around are just plain goofy and so unlike him.

{DEAR♡ST HUM♡N,}

{IT IS ♡NDER THE GUIDANC♡ OF MY M♡NTOR ♡ILIA THAT I CORDIALLY} {♡NVITE Y♡U TO THE DIASOMNIA LOUN♡E TO PA♡TAKE IN O♡R ♡OOK} {CLUB.}

{AWAITING YO♡R CO♡RESPONDENCE,}

{- ZIG♡OLT.}

Grim and I turn to one another. “This has got to be some sort of prank! No sane person writes like *that.*” Grim points his paw at the discarded letter. 

I shrug. “I guess I’ll find out after classes are over today.”

“Count me out of it!” Grim shouts.

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‘Since I can’t find my missing sock at the dorm, I probably dropped it here. It shouldn’t be too hard to spot.’ Searching by the riverbed, embedded behind the school, many of the trees are barren and the ground is blanketed in warm shades of browns and amber from the fallen leaves. 

As I examined the area, a few bunnies hop diagonally from me, I can’t help but to follow them with my head and spot a silver headed person resting against a stump. ‘Is that…?’

Squirrels, bunnies, and songbirds gravitate around Silver - some even nestled on and around him like a shield against the cold. I crouch down next to Silver and place a hand against his forehead to see if he’s alright. Slowly he stirs awake and looks up at me.

Instantly I’m mesmerized by his eye color. I’ve always thought Silver’s eyes were similar to a mellow violet, but up close, it's almost as if there’s waves of pink and blue. “Whoa your eyes… They really are like an aurora.” 

Silver remains silent for a while, until he gives a soft smile. “Your eyes are like starlight, comforting grey with flecks of gold.” 

Shyly smiling, I extend my hand to Silver to help him up. “I was just checking to see if you were alright, there’s frost in the air, it’ll snow soon. If you sleep out here, you may end up buried or sick.” 

“That’s very responsible of you…You’re Thorn Silvanus right?”

I nod. “And you must be Silver.” 

Silver yawns. “I’ve heard a lot about you from Sebek, whether I want to or not. I hope you don’t dislike Sebek or feel turned away from Diasomnia.”

I let out a hum as I walked with Silver. “I don’t dislike Sebek, I think him thinking my mere existence a scandal by calling me human is funnier more than anything. It's fun to tease someone so serious.”

Silver chuckles. “Oh yes, fa-Lilia and I often tease Sebek too.”

I rub my arms together to warm up. “I’m not sure what Sebek’s issue is with humans though. The way he separates himself from them… Constantly elevating anything related to fae and putting down human stuff it's like he’s projecting? I know he probably looks down on me as much as any other human, but I don’t feel envious of those with magic or jealous of fae… It’s like he has internalized racism?”

Silver’s eyes widen to the point he looks actually awake. “You got all of that from his thundering speeches?’ 

I lightly laugh. “I do read a lot, but that’s just speculation on my part, I could be entirely wrong.” 

Silver places his robe overtop of me. It's my turn to look caught off guard. “You looked cold. My animal friends have kept me warm, wear it until we reach Diasomnia. I’ve heard Sebek was expecting you.” 

“Did you have a choice not to?” Silver and I laugh as we walk to the mirror chamber. 

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The creek of the large oak doors alerted the occupants in the lounge. Sebek’s face twisted as he spotted Silver and I. “You know one another?! And you’re both so familiar already?!”

 I glance at Silver and smirk, “we’ve met before.”

“Once upon a dream.” Silver finishes. 

“Fufufufu! This is a classic exchange from one of my favorite soaps! Whereas the prince charms his way to the heart of the female lead by being himself.” Lilia giggles.  

Sebek squawks and says, “THERE’S NO WAY SILVER WOULD HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH THAT HUMAN!” 

 I ignore the comment in favor of riling him up. 

I remove Silver’s coat and neatly fold it, handing it back to him. “Thanks Aurora.” 

“Thanks, Starlight.” Silver gives a polite bow and walks off. 

Lilia clutches his imaginary pearls. “Egad! The drama continues to unravel! What will unfold next?”

I shoot Lilia a grin while I hold out a book for Sebek. “After reading your favorite, I’d like to introduce you to mine: ‘Pride & Prejudice.’” 

Sebek scoffs and loudly criticizes the novel. “Of course you’d pick one of the lowest forms of literature, a romance, second worst to comedy!”

I bring the book back to my bag. “Take this in any way you like, SHUT UP Mr. Darcy!”

Many people in the lounge have paused in their activities to bear witness the infamous ‘Sebek and Thorn argument.’ Murmurs and whispers begin to clutter the space.  

Sebek was about to counter, finger raised, when Lilia reigned him in. “Might I suggest taking your qualms to your dorm room Sebek?” 

Sebek blushes in embarrassment. “Fine! The lounge is unsuitable for a quiet activity anyways.”

Sebek grabs my wrist and leads me to a winding staircase. 

“Unhand me you croc!” I attempt to remove my wrist, twisting and pulling, but that only leads to Sebek interlocking our fingers together.  

 “Be silent!” He spoke loudly.

 “BUY my silence!” I glare back. 

“Mind your steps, these stairs are steep!” Sebek yells back, taking the lead on the narrow staircase. 

“Thanks for the head’s up!” Shortly after, our quarrel resumes.

Our bickering fades the further we go, Lilia gasps, a scheme of his own brewing. “Spicy!”  

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‘Hmm. Sebek’s room is so ordinary and quite frankly boring. The dark academia aesthetic matches the rest of the castle… Dark velvet greens, books and weights, yeah bro works out at the library and studies the blade headass.’ Scanning the room, I spot a large portrait of Malleus hanging on the wall. Internally I sigh. ‘I’m not even going to ask. We know the answer.’  

Without much fanfare we start reading. Sebek sits on the edge of his bed while I sit at his study desk. After a while, I decided to ask Sebek some questions while he read. 

“Sebek, are you close to the second or third ball?”

Sebek let out a hum, “the second one I believe.”

Laughing to myself I tease him. “Go faster Sebek!”

Sebek frowns and goes to stand from his bed, not setting the book down. Unfortunately, Sebek is a bit of an airhead, and he trips over his weights, bumping into the furniture in the process and lets out a series of painful groans.

He quickly places himself back on the bed as if nothing had happened, his barley masked pained expression does nothing to ease my discomfort. I couldn’t help but exclaim, “OH MY GOD SEBEK! Are you okay?” 

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“Hey Grim, where’s Thorn?” Ace looked around the track field. 

Grim sat up. “What happened to ‘hello Grim’ or ‘how are you’? We’re not together all the time ya know!”

“Sheesh! I was only asking a question lint ball!” Ace countered. 

Deuce returned with Jack, where Grim and Ace were to rehydrate. Grim was attempting to break some Maginness World Records and had taken rest atop of their gym bags. 

Everyone silently looked at Grim expectantly. “Thorn’s with that green haired fae at Diasomnia for their book club.” 

Deuce tilted his head. “Really? They still have a club together? I didn’t think Thorn and Sebek got along that well.” 

Ace had a lightbulb moment. “I’ve heard of stuff like this from my older brother. Enemies sometimes get so heated they get personal and take things back to their room! They’re going to smash!”

Jack scowled. “I don’t think we should be jumping to conclusions.”  

“I knew that letter was suspect!” Grim crossed his arms.

“They’re going to smash? We gotta give Thorn back up!” Deuce’s delinquent side threatened to pop out.

Jack huffed. “I think we should mind our business and wait for Thorn or Sebek to tell us what’s going on.” 

“Let’s go rescue my hench-human!” Grim declared.

Jack watched as the trio rushed off, no doubt to cause more damage than if they left well enough alone. “...Idiots.”

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“Lilia-senpai! Have you seen Thorn and Sebek?” Ace asked.

“Yeah, it's kind of a big deal. We gotta stop them from smashing!” Deuce added.

Lilia, ever the prankster, went along with their little game. “Fufufu, as the saying goes ‘fighting cats are sure to have kittens.’ They’re in Sebek’s dorm room. Though I doubt there will be much brawling going on.”

“Sebek that dog!”

“Cat you mean, no offence Grim.” 

“None taken. BECAUSE I’M NOT A CAT!” 

Lilia guided the misinformed trio to the outside of Sebek’s dorm room and instructed them to wait. Curiouser and Curiouser, they pressed their ears against the door to see if they could hear anything of concern. 

“Sebek are you close?” Thorn questioned sweetly. 

‘Not so strange…’ The trio thought.

“Go faster Sebek!” Thorn urged.

‘A little weird but nothing out of the ordinary…?’ The trio thought.

Not long after, the shifting of furniture and groans rang out.

“OH MY GOD SEBEK!” Thorn cried out. 

‘!!! UHH!’ The trio thought in concern!

The door suddenly flies open! “Aha! Busted! You two are smashing!” Ace accuses. Deuce and Grim have fallen to the floor while Lilia cackles as he floats around. 

Sebek and I looked at one another confused for a moment. “We are? Sebek you should have told me; I would have put my book down.” 

Sebek makes a bewildered face, absolutely lost, with no signs of connecting shit.

[eloquentcoconut]

☆ A Walk in The Woods ☆

Synopsis: Jade teaches Thorn to be mindful of their words, as they just might come true. Plus, he really wanted to hangout and his method ensures a favorable outcome.

Word Count: 1,821

Notes: Idk what made me write this, but I like Jade. (I like the Leech twins in general, but Jade centric.) Googled real facts, so you cannot say you never learned anything from reading fanfics.

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“Good morning prefect.” 

My eyes flew open. Slowly turning my head to the right, there was Jade Leech, eye level with me in my darkened room. I break out into goosebumps, slowly I turn my head to the left to estimate the time. The sun has yet to rise, the sky is a deep shade of navy, grey clouds paint the sky. I notice Grim sleeping snuggly in fabric, like a cute burrito. 

“Jade what…?” I sit up and rub the sleep out of my eyes. “Why are you here so early?” As I wait for a response I hold my head in my hand, almost drifting back to sleep. 

Jade pushes a bundle of clothing into my chest. “I took the liberty of securing breakfast. Get changed.” 

My expression must be concerning as he elaborates. “Are you perhaps in need of a refresher? I specifically stated we would go on a hike tomorrow.”

“Yeah… Okay…No?” I crossed my arms. “All you said was ‘see you tomorrow.’”

“An oversight on my part, I assure you.” 

I rolled my eyes. “Well as slippery as your mind may be… But what about Floyd?”

It had just occurred to me that the tweels had both asked me to do stuff with them the next day. Was Floyd also just going to enter my dorm and whisk me away?

Jade's smile never leaves his face, but I swear I saw his eyebrow twitch for a millisecond. Jade pulls me out of bed and ushers me into the bathroom. 

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I stumbled out of the bathroom with a frown. “Jade, I’m practically drowning in these clothes. How am I supposed to hike?” 

While the white beanie and leather gloves fit, the beige jacket and blue boots however are too loose, it would be difficult to make them functional. 

“Forgive me, I’ve seemed to have miscalculated our size difference.” Jade says in faux sympathy.

Now that I’m more awake, and properly seeing Jade, I realize we match in a way. That makes sense given these are his clothes. Jade is wearing a beige beanie, a white jacket under his blue overcoat, leather gloves, brown and red laced boots, and an orange backpack secured with a buckle over his chest.  

Even though I know he’s doing this to goad me, I feel bad for complaining realizing these are his clothes. “Never mind, I appreciate the sentiment. I’m happy to wear them, and we match!” I say with a smile.

 Jade looks thoughtful. “I have a remedy for that.”

Jade steps closer. Oh duh, he can probably magic them to adjust to my size.

He scoops me up into a princess carry. Instinctively I wrap my arms around his neck for support. “Hey?! Why are you picking me up?!”

“Just fulfilling one of your hiking requirements prefect, and as an added bonus you no longer need to worry about being affected by ill-fitting gear.” He smiles. “Lucky you.” 

As he carried me through the living area, I noticed a pile of ghosts! “Did you beat up my housemates and stuff Grim in a sock?!”

“Now why would I do a thing like that?”

He’s dodging the question!

I shift my focus back to Jade. “I hope you left a note or something. People are going to misunderstand and think they stumbled into a crime scene.”

Jade chuckled. “I’ve left a note detailing everything of importance.” 

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The forest behind the school should be classified as a secondary mirror portal the way it somehow connects to everything. After some time, Jade begins his ascent up the mountain’s trail. The ground and ledges worn away from years of use. Small lightning bugs flutter by, their light dimming for rest. As we reach the first level of the mountain, frosted grass and unusual fauna are abundant. The area overlooks the campus. My stomach grumbles.

“Let’s stop for a moment for breakfast.” Jade suggests. 

I give Jade an unamused look. “May I be permitted to SIT DOWN to eat?”

“Of course.” Jade proceeded to sit on the horizontal log, moving me around so that I was sat on the left of his lap.

“JADE!”

Jade ignored my complaints and handed me a warm canister. Feeling hunger more than annoyance, I unscrew the lid to reveal the delicious aroma of rice noodle soup. Complete with an assortment of vegetables.

‘Of course there’s shiitake mushrooms in there. How do mushrooms work their way into everything with this guy?’ 

As I dig up new vegetables with each bite, my sights entirely set on a trail of fat glowing green mushrooms, I realize Jade is just as captivated by the scenery as I am. This feels awkward for me, like I’m spoiled or somehow taking advantage of Jade. 

“Open up.” I hold my spoon up to Jade’s face. He looks taken off guard for a moment but quickly recovers.

“Oya? What's this? Concerned for my well-being, or do you think I did something strange to the soup?” He gives me an unreadable look. 

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I say playfully, pushing the spoon past his lips.

On my next bite, he asks, “I notice you tend to lean towards lighter, and umami notes - is the dish to your preference?”

I finished chewing a piece of cilantro to answer him. Although his expression and tone remain unchanged, I think more than praise he wants reassurance. “You did an excellent job Jade. Your observations were correct, I love these types of foods.”

After a moment of staring at my smile, he continues. “...You don’t think it's odd, to have stored away that information?”

“I think it would be odder if you didn’t notice, given your position in Mostro Lounge.” I chuckle. “Bird watching goes both ways.” I wink.

We return to comfortable silence as I continue to feed Jade and myself. The birds begin to chirp awake, the ombre sky dyes into a golden orange sunrise. I rest my head against Jade’s shoulder, basking in the warmth of the sun. 

Once the sky fades to a light yellow and blue tone, I seal the canister and reach around Jade to tuck it back into his pack. He comments, “you’re… Interesting.”

“And I think you must be overconfident or exceptionally strong to think you can carry me the entire hike.”

Jade stood up, shifting me back to our original position and counters, “perhaps you’re simply weak?”

“Hey.” I lightly protest. 

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Jade recites his extensive knowledge of kingdom fungi lore after we had a heated debate. Upon seeing a rounded white mushroom with three perfect red circles I insisted it was a toad while Jade insisted it was in fact a mushroom. I didn’t care to explain my joke, and if we can’t make ourselves laugh then what can we do?

“Fungi are genetically closer to humans than plants… 

Some researchers have utilized mycelium and agricultural byproducts to grow compostable packaging materials… 

These bioluminescent mushrooms glow so brightly, locals nicknamed them ‘electric mushrooms’ and use them as natural torches…”  

I start fidgeting and become restless in Jade’s hold. “Jade this was *charming* for the first two hours, but my legs feel like jelly, arms are heavy - mom’s spaghetti. LET ME WALK!”

Jade sighs, walks a certain distance, and concedes. As he loosens his hold on me, I look down and realize THERE’S NO GROUND BENEATH ME?! I quickly use all of my upper strength to stay connected to Jade, rather than the open arms of the cliffside.

“What's the problem prefect? You can let go at any time or do you just enjoy being close to me?” He inquires, arms to his side.

 “I’ll die?!”

“No, I wouldn’t put you in harm’s way. Perhaps a bone or two may break but nothing dire. I’ve selected a non-too steep hill.” 

“There’s crows flying beneath us?!”

Jade looks past me. “So, there is.”

“AH FINE! You can keep holding me!” I say in desperation.  

Jade brings his arms back to secure me. “Be careful what you say or ask for dear prefect. Or you just might get it.”

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“Hmm? What’s this?” Ace asked, Deuce also leaned in to read the post it on Ramshackle’s front door.

{I have the prefect. - Leech} 

Adeuce jumped back in shock. “EHHHHH?!”

“Which one?!” Deuce asked, crumbling the paper.

“Does it matter?!” Ace countered. 

“Do they owe them a debt?!” Deuce turned to Ace. The duo frantically ran off to track down their unlucky friend.

Just upstairs, Grim heard the commotion and rolled around pitifully on the bed. “Fwnya! What gives?! THORN! GHOSTS! I’m stuck!” 

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“You know Jade, our outfit colors compliment one another’s, like matching couples outfits but not matching 1:1?” 

Judging by the position of the sun in the sky, it must have been lunch time. As we made our descent down the mountain, Jade’s extra storage filled with rare and common toadstools, I made conversation with any thought that popped into my head. 

“How interesting. Merfolk have a similar trend amongst couples. Sometimes the couple wears matching jewelry sets, whether it be the same shell or gem stone the pair has bought or found on different pieces or the same piece but split, for instance a necklace becoming two bracelets.”   

I hum in response. “That sounds nice. I’m sure there's couples on land that would be into that too.”

Suddenly a thought pops into my head, and I try to mask my fit of giggles.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

I face Jade, “we should take a photo together, post it, and let people’s imaginations run wild with misconceptions, hehe.”

Jade grinned mischievously. “I like the way you think prefect.’ 

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[@ alienprotag uploaded new photos with @ shiiok.ing. Captioned: Just two inseparable mushrooms on an enchanted mountain] 

[@ ace.ofthe.court commented: pov someone just discovered photoshop - chill out w edits shorty 🙄] 

[@ shiiok.ing replied to @ ace.ofthe.court: Photoshop was not used to synchronize our heights.]

 [@ caterd.updates commented: 🥺😭 @ alienprotag has been compromised - mission failed]

[@ magicalwheels4lifer replied to @ caterd.updates: What do you mean senpai?]

[@ xchasseur.d.amourx replied to @ magicalwheels4lifer: Monsieur Mastermind and the Trickster are wearing matching outfits - signifying their courtship! C'est magnifique!]

[@ whimsqueeze commented: 😠😠😠 @ shiiok.ing ! IT WAS YOU WHO SNATCHED SHRIMPY AND MADE THEM MISS OUR DATE!]  

[@ alienprotag replied to @ ace.ofthe.court: He carried me duh 🤧🤧]

[@ ace.ofthe.court replied to @ alienprotag: Say sike rn.]

[@ shiiok.ing replied to @ ace.ofthe.court: I can assure you, I did in fact carry them the full duration of our hike.]

[@ muscles.n.apples replied to @ ace.ofthe.court: sbhfisdfinkf you just got dokkan’d.] 

[eloquentcoconut]

☆ Harleys in Hawaii ☆

Synopsis: Thorn is just having one of those days - for the past week. Deuce notices and does something about it.

Word Count: 1,502

Notes: Almost didn't make the cut to be posted with my other parts in my ~ Intermission ~ chapter in my 'twst upon a time' fanfic (ao3/wattpad/quotev) AND in my original outline, this was going to be a Cater/MC, but he already had his time in my fic with a coffee date. AND AND, the music featured are some of the songs I was listening to while writing.

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“Catch” 

I fumbled to catch the black helmet Deuce tossed to me. I couldn’t help but give him a confused look. 

“Follow me.” 

Was all that he offered. I matched his determined strides as we silently walked behind the main campus onto the forest grounds. 

Parked on the long-overrun mossy trail was a blast cycle! A sleek sparking blue design with neon blue light features. 

“What’s going on Deuce?” I ask with a small smile. 

Helmet already on, he pressed a button on the side to unshade his face. “You looked really done with this week, and riding always makes me feel better so I thought maybe it would make you feel better too. Plus, I did say I’d take you for a ride one day.”

Deuce took the helmet out of my hands and placed it on my head. Slapping the top. I gave him a look as the helmet magically adjusted. 

“That’s how my mom used to put it on me.” Was all he said with a grin, pressing the side button on his helmet once more. 

The helmet was much more technologically advanced than the exterior would lead one to believe. With a click of a button, Deuce and I could easily speak to one another, similar to a cell phone.  

Deuce had already sat on the blast cycle, making a show of revving the engine, with his own magic possibly. “Well, what are you waiting for? Let’s go!” 

I approached the mono wheeled device, unsure of how to move forward. “Deuce, I’ve never even ridden a motorcycle, let alone a magical vehicle.”

“Never? So, this is your first time…” Deuce thought for a while, then stepped off his bike, pulling me forward. “I think it would be best if you were in front of me for the best experience.” 

As I sat in the front, Deuce pressed his torso against me and put his hands over my own on the handlebars, the purr of the engine returning once more.  

A few thoughts swirled in my mind. ‘Whoa, sitting so close like this, feeling the shift of his movements… I never realized Deuce is BUFF AS HELL! You can get muscles like this from track?!’ 

“Heh. You ready for the ride?” Deuce questioned; I could hear the grin in his voice. 

The tire had the dirt skidding, the bike threatening to unleash its full potential as it waved left to right. 

Whether or not I was, I forced out a grin and called, “let’s ride!” 

The magical wheel shot off, instantly sending me even closer into Deuce, the force of the air and magic having us go this way and that. 

We were moving so fast; I had no idea how Deuce could expertly evade the small boulders and trees. My heart sped up at every turn, and hills became launch pads as we soared over each one. 

I started cheering and yelling over the excitement.

“All we’re missing now is some music.” 

“I got you covered Thorn!”

The song that happened to come on, from Deuce’s playlist, the radio, or internet, I’ll never know: JOYRIDE by Kesha. 

“Best night of your life, get in loser for the J O Y R I D E.” Deuce and I yelled as we laughed after each impromptu landing pad. 

The song changed to My Chemical Romance’s The World Is Ugly. Deuce quickly changed it. 

“Hey! Bring that back! I love songs like that!” I yelled. 

Although I couldn’t see Deuce, his sputtering told me I had caught him off guard. “Seriously? You don’t think it's like middle school emo cringe?” 

I answer, “no way, and if it is, who cares? Haha! Be free!” 

Deuce turned that sucker up! As we exited out of the woods, we flew through an open clearing, opalescent waves caught my attention.

I couldn’t help mumbling to myself. “I’ve never been to a soft starry sand beach before.”

“That changes today.” Was all that Deuce said, driving past the open water and loose sand, opting to turn into Sage Island’s town. 

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Deuce parked his magical wheel outside of a convenience store. As our feet hit the cobblestone, Deuce tossed me his helmet once more. 

“Making an emergency purchase?” I chuckled, feeling the adrenaline of something new made my body feel light and bouncy. 

“You bet. Stay out here I’ll be right back.” Deuce was already rushing inside before I could even reply. 

He wasn’t kidding. I didn’t even have time to start ruminating on my thoughts, he held one small bag in hand. Fishing around, he handed me an eyeliner pencil. 

I raise a brow. “Are you saying I look too ugly to be seen with?”

“WHAT?! No!” Deuce panicked, waving his hands in defense. 

“I’m only teasing you Mr. Honor Student.” I laugh lightly.

Deuce frowned slightly but quickly returned to his positive expression. “Makeup is a great way to either express yourself or hide yourself - whichever makes you feel more comfortable.” 

“True. But I don’t even have a mirror…The visor might be difficult to accurately use.” 

“I have an idea, if you’ll let me.” 

I hand Deuce the eyeliner, and he starts drawing a design on one of the corner of my eye, right outside the shop. 

I stare at my reflection from the shop window; Deuce and I now have matching spades. 

“Thanks Deuce, now we’re twinsies for real. What else is in the bag?” I make a show of attempting to peek inside, but Deuce puts it behind his back. 

Deuce mocks me with my own words. “Wouldn’t you like to know? It's a surprise tool that will help us later.” 

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LA Devotee by P!ATD is playing as the salty crashes sound out and blinding sand comes into view. 

As we find a spot on the beach to bask in the soft yellow glow, Deuce reveals his secret purchase, ice cream. 

Of course, during this time, I make sure to take a bunch of photos for magicam, and for myself of course. Eventually Deuce and I come together, pressing our faces together to make the spades look like an upside-down heart. 

Gently kicking the sand Deuce suggests, “wanna play in the water?”

I start removing my school blazer and rolling up my sleeves. “You’re on!”

The race to the coastline doesn’t stop once we hit the water, it evolves into a game of tag. Kicking and splashing the ocean water, getting completely soaked as we laugh and tease one another.  

Deuce accidentally slips, sitting in the shallow waves as he becomes a fountain. Between my laughs I walk over to help him when a melody catches my attention.

My head turns trying to find the source, spotting a few rocks, I start walking towards them in an attempt to figure out who could be singing so close to us. Before I can reach them, Deuce wraps his arms around my torso, lifting me up and throwing me into the water. A blur of glowing red passes my vision before I hit the water. 

I raise for air, pushing my slicked hair out of my face, mystery long forgotten. Deuce extends a hand to help me up, to play some more. 

Returning to the beach, the sunset is ethereal, surreal like a painting. Strokes of violet, light blue clouds, pinks and orange lowering into the ocean. 

Deuce starts freaking out over the sight. “I FORGOT ABOUT CURFEW! WE GOTTA GO!”

“But Deuce we’re still wet!” I say grabbing our disregarded items.   

“We’ll dry off during the ride!” He answers. 

We quickly scamper back to the magical motorbike, I sit behind Deuce this time, sitting so close to him that I can rest my head to the side of him. 

It's a race against the darkening sky back to campus. Halestorm’s cover of Bad Romance is playing as we whip through the forest, one solitary headlight activated. The wind is harsh against our exposed salty skin.   

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Our hair is frazzled, makeup smudged, clothes in a sorry state, partially on and half dry. We’re panting as Heartslabyul comes into focus. Riddle is standing outside the gates, tapping his foot impatiently, a stern look covering his features. But he’s not the only one, his vice housewarden, and Cater are also present. Trey reveals nothing with his neutral demeanor, however, Cater has a mischievous smile about him. 

“Do you realize what time it is?” Riddle demands. 

“What happened?” Trey asked in concern. 

“I think you mean *who* happened Trey.” Cater wiggles his eyebrows in our direction.  

It was at this moment I realized I did not have to run back to Heartslabyul with Deuce and could have been spared this awkward and slightly embarrassing confrontation if I had just gone back to my own dorm. 

Deuce tried to rationalize an excuse, but his prefect was having none of it. Thankfully he was spared from a collar. 

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[@ alienprotag posted 6 photos with @ magicalwheels4lifer captioned: Rockstars on the beach.] 

[eloquentcoconut]

☆ She’s The Man ☆

Synopsis: Night Raven College is an all-male school; you're going to find magic combined with sports outside.

Word Count: 1,502

Notes: Just words I threw on paper, I have no excuses.

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Sitting under the large, withered tree outside of Mr. S’s shop, a gentle breeze brushes past me. The weather is so tepid and bright that even the decrepit scenery looks serene rather than spooky. It’s a rare occasion I find myself alone.

“Thorn, you need to pick up more masculine hobbies.”

Epel’s lavender head bobs into my line of sight. “Where did that come from?”

“You need to be considerin’ your image. You’re the odd man out when it comes to sports - even Vil participates in athletics - and he’s Vil!” Epel states, closing the book in my lap and stuffing it in my bag. 

“Which is why I’m inviting you to try out for magishift.” Epel grabs my hand and pulls me up, leading me to practice. 

“C’mon I know if you saw how rugged and cool it is you’ll wanna join quicker than two shakes of a lamb's tail.” 

I let myself be pulled by Epel’s firm grip. “Epel, I don’t have any magic - if I tried to play on a team, I think I’d explode or something.”

Epel sputters for a moment. “Well, there’s nothing stopping you from warmup drills - it’ll be good for you. Even just watching will boost your testosterone.” Epel takes the time to flash me his biceps, as proof. 

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“You’ve got ten minutes to stretch” Leona calls out, walking off to sit in the shade.

“Oi, Leona.” Ruggie tails after their free-range captain. 

Epel and I did some stretches on our own, at first. Eventually we came together for some partner stretches like back stretching, wide legged straddle, back-to-back twist, and hamstrings. 

Epel glanced at the time as he took a sip from his water bottle. “We’ve still got some time left before-”

“Heh, wanna fight?” I playfully ask.  

The devious smirk I get in return is answer enough. 

It was on sight, Epel and I quickly found ourselves rolling in the dirt, smiling all the while. At one point he had me on my back, pinning my hands by my head, but I placed my foot on his hip and gently launched him backwards so that I was now straddling him. I pinned his arms to the side of his head and laughed out “pinned ya.”

Epel stuttered and I released him from my hold, he instantly sat up and crossed his arms. “Pff, I let you do that.”  

I looked away for a moment to take in my new surroundings, Epel tackled me. We spun and rolled until I came out on top. I pushed his shoulders down and smugly said “pinned ya again.” Epel’s face was slightly pink as we both panted.

“Gross the first years are trying to repopulate.” Leona’s arms were crossed as he gave us a bored look. 

Epel quickly bucked me off and stood up. I landed next to Leona with an ‘oof.’

Ruggie let out his signature laugh at the sight.

Leona clicked his tongue looking down at me. “You’ve got no business being on the spelldrive field herbivore. No muscles or magic; you’re a liability.”

I stood up, brushing the dirt off myself, not taking offensive to the comments. “I may not eat meat, but I photosynthesize.”  I rolled up my sleeves and flexed my muscles to the group. “Grr! That’s how greens eat!” 

Ruggie was the first to lose it and start tormenting me. He flexed one of his arms and said, “that’s how greens eat, shishishi.”

Epel laughed loudly, and Leona snorted. I quickly grew embarrassed and told Ruggie to stop. (Spoiler alert: he did not.)

“Shishi, come on Thorn,” Ruggie grabbed my hand, leading me off the field and in the direction of the storage shed. “You can be a real man and help me with some managerial stuff.”

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“Hm? I think my favorite Twisted Wonderland Classic would have to be “The Glass Slipper” Because she represents me! She’s broke!” Ruggie made an exaggerated motion, sticking out his hand, “let me borrow 20 madol.”

Clutching my sides from laughing, I used Ruggie as support to stabilize myself.

“Ahhh, Ruggie we have so much in common, you know what’s for dinner?” 

“SLEEP!” We both laughed out, hanging onto one another subsequently causing us to knock over the equipment we just set up. 

“Finally someone who gets it.” Ruggie said, dusting himself off. 

After catching my breath, I attempted to detangle one of the volleyball nets. Subsequently becoming half entangled myself. It started with the left sneaker, then a zipper, soon it was my right leg… Ruggie wheezed at my struggle.    

“It's not funny, Ed.” I crossed my arms as Ruggie came to my aid. 

“The heck it's not!” He chuckled as he untied me. 

After sorting out the equipment, and swapping some life hacks with Ruggie, I picked up the checklist Ruggie gave me and stood by the bleachers to observe the ongoing practice. 

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Leaning against the wooden beam, I still find myself confused on how one scores points in magishift. I only have the player’s groans or cheers to go off of. 

A break bell sounds, and Epel is instantly stepping off of his broom and rushing over to me. Practice must be over. 

“Did you see that?! I was like ‘wabam’, ‘pssfhof’ and ‘shuun’!” Epel happily animated with his hands.  

I can’t help but reciprocate his excitement, making some gestures and jumps of my own. “Yeah! When you had the disc and spun around upside down, I thought you’d drop it, but you never did and paved the way for a goal!” 

I brought my hand to Epel’s face, to fix his disheveled hair, but before my hand could even touch his face, he was gone. Epel’s body was slammed into next week! 

“LEONA?!” My eyes go wide to where Epel was launched. 

“No slacking on the spelldrive team, go clean up.” Is all he says to Epel. 

Epel stays grinning and yells out “you got it!” Running back to the field. 

It looks like Leona is going to leave too, and Epel seems fine, so I return back to cross referencing my papers before meeting up with Epel. 

A resounding slam rings by my ear. Looking up, Leona has kabedon’d me. 

“You don’t need an excuse to come watch me play herbivore.” Leona smirks. 

I cross my arms and turn to the side. “Ha? As if! I’m here to support Epel and help out Ruggie, obviously.” I try to mask my playfulness with annoyance, but I’m failing miserably, and Leona knows! 

Leona slams his other hand where I had turned, causing me to return to my original position, facing him. 

“No need to be shy, I can smell how much you like me.”

“And what does that smell like?” I raise a brow laughing. 

“Sweet.” Leona licks his lips, grabbing my chin, and deftly turns my head to the side - biting my cheek! 

I let out a high-pitched squeak out of surprise, Leona growls through his nibbling.

“If you ate more meat your cheek would be more satisfying to chew on.”

“Then stop?!” 

“Nah.” Promptly closing his lips around the space. It doesn’t hurt; it’s definitely a new sensation though. 

“I’m not a stress ball!” I lightly whine, unsure what else to do in this situation. 

Someone lets out a sigh. “Leona, what are you doing?” 

I open my eyes to see Ruggie with his arms crossed, but he doesn’t look off put by the scene in front of him.  

“He’s trying to use me as a snack replacement!” I yell.  

Leona releases his seal on me, “haa, you wish. Let's go Ruggie.”  

Rubbing my cheek, I pass Ruggie the paper he gave me. Walking side by side, Ruggie and Leona are caught up in their own conversation, now's my chance!

I pull Leona’s face to my own and bite him back! Through a mouth full of cheek, I ask him, “how you like that?”

Leona instantly pulls me off him and smirks. “I’ll give you a ten second head start herbivore.”

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“Hey Thorn, I’ve been meaning to ask ya.” Epel starts. 

We were walking back to the dorms in comfortable silence. I look at Epel awaiting his question.

“Whys yer cheek all red?” He points.

After a long silence, he asks another question. “And whys yer arms got bite marks and why is yer neck red too?” 

I let the questions sit, collecting dust before answering, “let’s just stop talking.” 

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“Prefect Leona seems in high spirits. It must have been one heck of a game.” Jack idly comments, watching Leona exit the lounge. 

Ruggie side eyes Leona. “Yeah. Right.”

“What are all those… *Interesting* marks from?” Jack coughs while asking, somewhat embarrassed. 

Ruggie lets out a long-tired sigh. “Trust me, you don’t want to know.” 

[eloquentcoconut]

☆ Practice Makes The Prefect Question Their Life Choices ☆

Synopsis: What does studying, basketball, break dancing, and surprise relocation have in common? NOTHING. Just an average day attending Night Raven College.

Word Count: 2, 470

Notes: Second half has bits of dialogue from Jamil's PE Uniform Vignette.

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Deuce smacked his head against the library table. “It's hopeless… I’ve never heard of any of these terms and the make-up test is tomorrow...” 

“C’mon Loosey-Deucey!” Ace jabbed Deuce’s side with his elbow. “That’s not how goody two shoes star-honor students talk.”

Deuce sighed, lifted his head and smacked his face in a resounding slap to hype himself up “right!” And got back on that grind set. 

“That’s why we’re all studying together, for support -” I started.

“I thought it was because we all bombed our last assignment?” Grim blinked.

“No thanks to you, Grim.” Ace frowned, reminded on Grim’s impromptu experiment that got all of us scolded by professor Crewel - and receiving a failing grade.

“No thanks to me?!” Grim threw his pencil at Ace.

Ignoring the spat, I moved my textbook closer to Adeuce. “Speaking of what’s the ‘swans cradle’?”

“Hey hey little guppies!” Floyd came bounding over to our group study session, forcefully scooting Ace out of his chair to sit next to me.

“Hey?!” Ace huffed from the floor, finding a new seat next to Grim.

“Shrimpy, how about we go on a date?” Floyd ‘asked.’

Everyone at the table made different sounds of surprise and protest, except for me as I remained silent taking in this new information. 

“Tomorrow, we hit up the Mostro Lounge for a bite, we go to the library, I’ll carry your books while you look cute studying, and then I’mma take you to the basketball court.” Floyd grinned, performing some seated basketball throws. “You can watch me sweat.” He winked.

I started laughing, thrown off by Floyd’s directness. “What? What? Watch you sweat? You think I’ll get a workout too through osmosis?”  

“Nah, you’ll be busy. You’re going to clap for me, and cheer - as I beat all those other barnacles.” Floyd states seriously. 

Floyd is oddly endearing and cute when he wants to be. Suddenly he leans in closer, I stop laughing but my wide grin never leaves my face. 

Ace butts in, creating distance between Floyd and I. 

“If Thorn’s going to be cheering for ANYBODY on the basketball team, it’ll be me: the Ace of the court!” He states resolutely. 

“Tch. Whatever.” Floyd pushes himself out of the chair and storms off, kicking a stray paper ball.

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Eventually I was the only one remaining at the library table. Deuce left for his track meet, subsequently taking Grim with him. Something about wanting to ‘train to boost his magical abilities faster’ a bit surprising from Grim, but as long as he has a non-destructive hobby…  

“Ah there you are prefect. I’m afraid Floyd is throwing a bit of a tantrum we’ll say, and it would be in everyone’s best interest if you attended his basketball practice.” 

I jumped slightly in my seat at Jade’s soft-spoken voice. I meet his ‘friendly’ gaze and realize I’m cornered; stuck between an immovable bookcase and the immovable force that is Jade Leech.

I start collecting my things wondering how I’ll get past the slippery eel. The Leech twins, tweels, aren’t *bad* per say, just very rough with the things that pique their interest. 

“I’ve got Grim and a few other things to look after, I don’t have the time to spare.” I turn to stand, but Jade is already to my right!

“I was hoping you’d pick the hard way. I’m glad we’ve come to a mutual understanding prefect.” Jade instantly had me thrown over his shoulder.

“Ehh?! Put me down right now!” I struggled in his hold, becoming flustered as my one-sided fight was in vain. 

Jade continued his leisurely walk, pushing open the doors, acting as if he could not hear or feel me, or anyone else’s stares for that matter. 

“Jade, put me down or you will suffer the consequences!’ I shouted, his iron grip never relenting. 

Jade chuckled. “I’m sure your are capable prefect, but since I have you here, let's have a chat.” Jade adjusted his position, hitting his shoulder lightly into my abdomen. 

“Augh!”

“I find it unfair how you outwardly favor my brother over me, you indulge in his whims and close proximity.” Jade started.

I let out a sigh and asked, “do I get a choice? Whose fault do you think that is?”

Jade chuckled once more. “Fair enough. How would you feel about joining me on a hike?”  

“Unless you carry me the whole duration of the trip, no thanks. Ugh, even just thinking about it makes me feel tired.” I adjust myself over Jade’s shoulder, sitting up with my chin in the palm of my hand. 

Jade smirked. “That can be easily arranged, any other qualifications?”

I scoffed; Jade can be just as tolerant of jokes as his brother. “I don’t have any gear or clothes suitable for the mountains, so even if I did want to go, it doesn’t seem wise to be so unprepared.” 

“You’re quite correct, one never knows when the mountains may turn.”

It was quite for a moment; it looks like Jade took the long way to the gymnasium - how long have I been up here? He’s not even breaking a sweat. Showoff. As a wise man (Iida) once said ‘his Adonis stat is MAXED.’

Jade cleared his throat. “Hypothetically, if one supplied the gear, and carried you, you would go?” 

I felt apprehensive in answering Jade. “Sure...Are you plotting something?”

After a while Jade coyly answered, “...Perhaps.”

‘Ruh roh. Is he going to stuff me in a terrarium and force me to eat hybrid mushrooms? Turn ME into a mushroom? Probably not, BUT, you never know what he’s scheming!’ As I mull over the information, occupied with my wild thoughts, Jade gently sets me down outside of the gymnasium doors. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow prefect.” Jade politely smiles, turning away.

“Why?”

Jade refuses to elaborate and simply says, “better hurry inside prefect.”

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“OW!” Ace cried out, rubbing his shoulder.

“You’re out Crabby!” Floyd grinned.

Ace frowned. “Yo, just so we’re clear, we’re playing BASKET ball not DODGE ball! I swear I’ve told you like a hundred times! And lay off the weird nickname while you’re at it. Back me up here Jamil. Jamil?!”  

Jamil was already long out of sight, sitting down on the bench, taking a drink from his water bottle. A few other NPC’s I don’t care to know also sought refuge on the bench. 

Floyd’s head turns in my direction, “SHRIMPY!” 

His expression melted into a carefree smile as he ran towards me. Without warning Floyd lifted me up like a teddy bear and pressed me into his chest as he   s q u e e z e d. 

Unprepared I coughed out, “Ack! F-loy-d!” 

Floyd stopped squeezing me and carried me over to the bleachers, setting me down. “Watch me total these losers, kay?” 

I dumbly nodded from whiplash. Floyd instantly fell back into the rhythm of things once on the court. Seemingly less hostile with his teammates now, maybe that was the vertigo talking. My equilibrium is totaled.

The tense atmosphere was palpable. Floyd began absolutely dominating the court, a serious expression painted his face. A choir of sneaker squeaks and a basketball reverberating the ground. Floyd plowed through his opponents and teammates like a tank. He was in the zone, nothing could break his focus. 

The NPC’s in particular voiced their disappointment. “Hah-Hah.. Time-out, Floyd. How’d you get past all three of us?!” 

Floyd raised an eyebrow. “Again? Put in a little effort, wouldja? You’ll never learn how to steal the ball at this rate.” 

“It's all we can do just to keep up with your dribbling.” A Scarabia student complained. 

“Fine. I’ll give you another handicap. I’m normally a lefty, but I’ll only use my right hand this time. Try to get the ball, ‘kay?” Floyd switched the ball to his right and started running at his opponents. 

“Ugh! Our only chance is to go for a foul!” An Octavinelle NPC cried out.  

“Too bad, soooo sad.” Floyd mocked, shooting for the basket. “Aaaand SWISH! Nothin’ but net!” He boasted.  

“GAHH!” The NPC’s wailed in defeat.  

“You’re a fan of basketball?” 

I jumped slightly; Jamil’s voice startled me. His torso is turned to the side to chat. I really can’t imagine him going out of his way for friendly conversation though. 

“Oh yeah, it's entertaining to watch.” Unsure of what Jamil wants, I don't make any small talk. 

The corner of Jamil’s lips raises slightly, “you’re too late to join the team, however you could always aid in managerial duties or work as an assistant coach.” 

Feeling awkward of having a conversation at a distance, I move down the bleachers to sit next to Jamil. “Definitely worth considering. Any particular reason you want me around?” 

Without missing a beat, Jamil answers, “Floyd’s mood swings for one, and I get the impression you’d give valuable insights, with how attentive you watch and that there’s no magic required.” 

Just as he had finished saying so, Floyd was doing freaky flips in the middle of the court. 

“I’ve always wanted to try doing a head spin! You spin around like a top while balancing on your head! Like this, maybe?” Floyd was on his head, legs flung into the air, he used his hands to spin himself to the left and - “Oof! I fell right on the ol’ tailbone. Aha ha, it’s totally impossible. I can’t keep my balance.” 

Jamil sighed, getting up from his place on the bench and chastised Floyd for his improper form. 

“Where’d that stuff come from? How’d you learn all that stuff?” Floyd asked Jamil, dragging me onto the court as well. “C’mon Shrimpy! You should know this too!” 

Ace crossed his arms as he gave Jamil a look, “you have a passion for dancing?”

Jamil cleared his throat, “You heard nothing. It is simply something I briefly dabbled in with Kalim once upon a time.” 

“A headstand is basically as simple as standing upside down on your head?” Floyd turned to me, “I’ll give ya a boost shrimp.” 

“GAH?! FLOYD?!” Floyd picked me out and manhandled me upside down, holding my legs as my hands and head rested on the floor. 

Floyd let go of my legs as he attempted to do the same move himself, Ace caught my legs and helped me out of the position before I could get injured. 

“Oof! I guess I still don’t get it! Howzabout you show me how it’s done, Sea Snake?” Floyd asked Jamil from his position on the floor. 

Caught up in Floyd’s antics, Jamil found himself explaining the basics of a headstand while in a headstand. Ace and I backed away.

“Dude, I’m so over this. I’ve totally lost them. I would have never pegged Jamil as a breakdancer. Talk about the surprise of a lifetime.” Ace sat with me back on the bench.

“There’s always something new to learn everyday… If we’re willing.” I half-heartedly answer, too distracted by Jamil and Floyd’s breakdancing. Floyd is a quick learner, just like Ace.  

Ace grumbled as he packed up his stuff.

“Wah! You’re totally awesome Sea Snake! I’m totally fired up now to play some B-ball!” Floyd cheered, rising from the ground and locating the nearest basketball.

Ace slammed his bag down, “so now we’re going to play?!” Ace rushed back onto the court. 

I found myself immersed in the game - when Ace spun the basketball on his finger before shooting a five pointer, or when Floyd leaped towards the basket for a slam dunk! It was so intense and cool! While players like Floyd have an upper hand with height and strength, and players like Ace gain an advantage with fake outs and misdirection, the way Jamil avoids getting blocked or cornered and out maneuvers his opponents is akin to a choreographed dance, highlighting Jamil’s observant nature, he’s untouchable. Jamil advances for a slam dunk and he– 

“DOKKAN! NICE SHOT!” Jamil triumphantly shouted.  

When the buzzer blared, those who were not basking in the afterglow of a spirited play took to bullying Jamil over his catchphrase. 

“Pfft- dokkan. Dokkan!” Ace mocked between his laughter.

Jamil’s blush rose to his ears. “Quiet you!”

Floyd was into it making exaggerated hand motions and explosion noises. “If you can’t even get fired up, did you even play?”

As the boys came over to the bench, I jumped up and cheered “dokkan game you guys!”

Jamil grumbled “not you too….” 

Floyd embraced me in a hug, arms wrapped around my shoulders as my face squished into his neck. I feel a slimy substance on my skin from the contact.

“Shrimpy! Don’t I deserve a reward for playing so well? Let's have that date now.” 

Peeling myself off from Floyd I cringed. “Uh, you really weren’t kidding about the sweat, I think a shower before anything else would be preferred.” I make a show of pulling my shirt away from my skin.

Floyd tilted his head. “Eh, but I was just joking about the sweat. Azul has marketed the secretion as moisturizers and balms before, so think of it like that.”  

Ace, and I all made a questionable face at that, Jamil’s eyebrow raised, unanimously we decided it was for the best to drop the matter entirely and block it from our memories. And more importantly not to accept beauty or health products from Azul. 

Jamil smirked, “the prefect only started cheering after I entered the court.”

Ace groaned, “huffing copium much? Thorn was just trying to be nice.” 

Floyd rolled his eyes, “yeah right guppies. Shrimp likes me the best, duh!” 

“JAMIL!” A bright voice broke the rising tension. 

Kalim was happily running over to our group. 

“Hiya guys!” He cheerfully greeted. 

“Why are you here?” Jamil asked, somewhat annoyed, crossing his arms.

Kalim airily chuckled as he turned his attention to me. “Jamil’s pretty good at basketball, right? Like he’s the coolest best ever, right?” He winked as he nudged Jamil. 

I blinked. “Uh, yeah, Jamil’s good at basketball.” 

Jamil’s flush was rapidly returning. “Kalim, why are you here?” Jamil made an attempt to push Kalim out of the gym. 

“I’m just here to give my friend support after asking the prefect ou–” 

Jamil tackled Kalim before we could blink. 

“Oof!”

“There was an attempt on your life! We better go.” Jamil expertly crafted over top of Kalim.

“There was? Thanks Jamil!’ Kalim beamed, limping as he was escorted out of the gym.

Ace scratched his head, watching the pair exit the room. “What was that about? Huh?!” 

Thorn and Floyd were long gone, Thorn also escorted out of the gym, but in tweel fashion. Ace was left alone and confused. 

[eloquentcoconut]

☆ Play Stupid Games, Win Stupid Prizes ☆

Synopsis: Thorn thought they joined the board game club; not the boring games club. Featuring streaming Dress to Impress with Iida, Azul, and Ortho.

Word Count: 2,810

Notes: My first twst drabble part of a small series in my fanfic called ~ Intermission ~ The full collection can be found all together in 'TWST Upon A Time' on wattpad/ao3/quotev. This short was inspired by Caseoh and Sturniolo commentary.

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I let out a sigh as I glance around the board game room. Everyone else was getting fired up in their game play while I was left feeling drained playing twst’s version of Monopoly with two sinfully boring men. 

“Not that I’m not riveted to the spot playing ‘Proprietorship’ but can’t we play something more engaging… Doesn’t Twisted Wonderland have any video games?”

“Quiet! (I’m counting…)” Azul mumbled, eyes never leaving the board as he concentrated on strategizing his victory. 

“Don’t hurt yourself.” I eye rolled. 

Idia thumbed through his cards. “Just considering your best interests normie, since you know nothing of Twisted Wonderland’s games we gotta start on easy mode with parental controls.”

I side eyed Idia. “You two still owe me from that whole ghostly groom-napping. And I’ve decided I want to play a video game with you two.”

“What could I possibly OWE you? If anything YOU OWE ME for having to rescue you as well!” Azul quipped, head turning sharply in my direction. 

“Don’t start Azul! You failed! Became a Slapsville citizen, and I had to rescue YOU by the end!” I stood from my chair pointing at Azul.

Azul’s face grew flush from anger as he also rose from his seat. “I seem to recall a certain SOMEONE asking to reward their savior with a kiss?!” 

Sensing an oncoming argument from Azul and I, and not wanting to relive *that* Idia snapped. “Ok fine! Let’s go to my dorm room, I’ll teach you how to be a pro gamer!” 

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Idia’s room could best be categorized as ‘disorganized otaku’ - so the average otaku room experience. Posters lined the walls, and despite having an impressive hexagonal bookcase, topped with anime figurines and a Pain and Panic plushies, stray books littered the floor. Actually with so many clusters of half open boxes and cables, the floor was more like a mini labyrinth. There was a gigantic holographic-pod-chamber that looked like a prop straight from a sci-fi film that sat to the left of Idia’s desk. Maybe that was an elaborate 3D printer or a charging station for Ortho? Directly in front of his bookcase was his pc desk with at least four floating holographic monitors open, complete with *the* gamer chair. The chair, and keyboard were infused with rainbow led lights. His closet door and drawers were left open with clothes hastily shoved in. His bed matched the secondary theme of the room; dark blues, greys and blacks. The blankets and sheets were in disarray, and on the side that touched the wall was either a lamp or a tablet that had been clipped into the bed frame as a hands free device.   

Ortho, who had been milling about in the room, turned his head upon hearing our arrival. “Big brother! Thorn! Ashengrotto. Good job big brother on inviting friends over.” Ortho gave a thumbs up and winked. 

Idia made an indignant squeak and Azul just chuckled, pushing up his glasses. 

I smiled at Ortho. “Hi Ortho! I’m here to learn how to play video games, care to join?”

“(thank the great seven for Ortho… Less socializing for me!)” Idia muttered and thrifted through his room.

Ortho nodded. “Mmm! You came to the right person: my big brother is a certified gaming expert; there’s nothing you can’t learn with Gloomurai as your teacher.”

As Idia moved the monitors to face the side of his bed, Azul made a comment. “I’ve heard online streaming is becoming more popular - this could be a wonderful business opportunity for you Gloomurai.” 

“(Helping yourself, you mean…)” Idia glared at his ‘friend.’ 

“Let’s all commemorate your first time playing with other people physically by recording it, as a fun memory to look back on!” Ortho suggested. 

Idia sighed and gave his younger brother a wispy smile, “sure Ortho. (I’ll record alright, not clicking live though, no way I’m leaving a digital footprint with these two betas.)” 

“Oh! Senpai! I know I said I wanted to learn a Twisted Wonderland game but…” I started typing on Idia’s rainbow light up keyboard. “Ortho was telling me about how you’ve got an eye for fashion, and I thought,” with a right click of the mouse pad ‘Dress to Impress’ was loaded on the screen. “We could try playing this super trendy game where I’m from!”

“...Thorn who do you take us for? Isn’t this a kid's game?” Azul questioned, sitting down on the edge of the bed. 

“Ah! You would think so, but there’s strategizing to appeal to the judges who are also our competitors, underhanded tactics to ensure a clean sweep with a touch of luck. As much as it's about fashion, it gets cutthroat, petty, and biased. With us as a team, we’ll wipe the floor with these outmoded noobs!” I passionately explain. 

Azul crossed his arms, “hm, your egotistical tendencies are rubbing off on Thorn.” 

“Heh, it’s true I excel at coordinating outfits, maximizing their in-game properties while simultaneously keeping them ultramodern,” Idia cracked his knuckles, “I’ll show you how it's done. (Whoooa, I totally just delivered a badass cool guy protagonist line!!)” 

“I’ll generate some V-cam models so you can match with me, @ Cheerinja and @ Gloomurai!” Ortho said, eyes turning blue as he compiled a data spreadsheet and projected some models for @ Azzurrpod (Azul) and @ Alienprotag (Thorn) to choose from. 

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After the first round, everyone had become invested in obtaining a spot on the podium by any means necessary. Even after we realized Idia had accidentally hit live instead of record, we made the most of it and carried on. As the game play grew more intense, we huddled in closer on the bed, Azul scooting in closer off the edge next to Idia, I was on his other side and Ortho was next to me. Gloomurai’s viewership continued going up, with chat spamming messages and gifts, as we bickered amongst ourselves and them.

Our theme this round was ‘pirate’ it was Azul’s turn with the controller, and he ate I fear. Our character was practically a siren in sea captain’s gear. 

A smooth male computer generated voice read out a gift message from @ Shiiok.ing. “Captain Jack Spare-no-food.” [Donated 1 Madol]

Azul was not pleased and swiftly delivered a “moderators, expel that guy right now.”

The way in which Azul said it made me want to tease him, so I put on a silly voice and said “Mr. Electric, send this man to the principal's office and have him expelled immediately!” 

Idia and Ortho did nothing to silent their laughter. 

Before Azul could say anything, another message came in, from @ Whimsqueeze. “Azzurrpod, you’re built like my 83 y/o grandma.” [Donated 1 Madol]

“Unless your 83 year old grandma is 5’9 and ripped, no I’m not.” Azul wasn’t having any of it. 

@ Shiiok.ing added ““5’9 sideways.” [Donated 1 Madol]

“WHO TF SAID THAT?” Azul’s eyes instantly locked onto the usernames, he recognized these two jokers. He banned them from commenting for the rest of the stream.

As I hit them with pose #28, I half-heartedly tried to comfort Azul. “Man really spent 1 madol to type that out.” 

“Tch. Yeah.” Azul went back to focusing on the game.

During the next round, we were able to choose a theme, and every theme I recommended was shown no mercy. 

“No, absolutely not.”

“Yeah. Do better. Try harder.”

“According to my research, those themes aren’t popular. But good try!”

I was shot down so quick I just looked around at the group and deadpanned “so should I k*ll myself?”

Idia and Azul were caught off guard and laughed, Ortho however did not and asked me to never make that type of joke again. I agreed. 

Finally, the theme had been announced. A singular word was on screen. ‘Cat.’

“What clown put that in?” I asked, slightly ticked.

“That’s Idia’s theme.” Azul helpfully supplied.

“You guys gave me grief for ‘princess’ and ‘picnic’ but ‘cat’ is somehow better?!” I started. 

In the middle of our bickering, the automated voice read a gift message from @ Obnoxiou_thingg. “Kittens can you count down for me? I’m almost finished.” [Donated 50 Madol]

The room went quiet. While Azul and Idia had equally looks of shock and disgust. Ortho and I were lost. 

“There’s a timer on screen though? Can you not see it?” Ortho said this and double checked to make sure that the screen recording was still working. 

I added, “finished what? Using our gameplay as background noise to cook a cake or something? Just use a proper timer?” 

Chat spammed ‘r/whoosh’ as Idia and Azul looked at Ortho and I in a mix of relief and concern.  

Idia’s hair flickered red and using a deep voice changer he yelled “GET OFF OF THE CHANNEL!”

Ortho, Azul, and I laughed harder before going back to gameplay.

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Once our live ended, Ortho stepped out to take care of some other tasks while Azul and Idia eventually came to an agreement on which video game was the best Twisted Wonderland had to offer. 

Idia was recharging with some gamer fuel, cute mini candy makers and sugary drinks. 

“It's like playing a game irl.” He grinned, mixing the highly saturated liquid with the smallest spoon known to man. 

Once the glowing green gummy worms had set, Iida offered Azul and I some. Azul made a face at that. We brought our attention back to the monitor.   

‘Final Kingdom’ An open rpg that featured a wide roster of unique characters with a compelling ever-changing plot with high stakes, battles, gacha, otome moments, and based on the player’s strategic gameplay - offered almost no two gameplays alike. The visuals and music were nothing short of cinematic. In my opinion, it was reminiscent of Fire Emblem x Monster Hunter. Of course, for the grand experience, Idia took us all the way back to the prologue.

“Can you two extras stop pressing up against me?” Idia fidgeted in between Azul and I, the tips of his hair turning pink.

“Do you think anyone enjoys doing this? Invest in actual chairs and we wouldn't be in this predicament.” Azul berated, purposely pressing into Idia’s side more.

“(The calculated possibility for people visiting was less than 0.01%.)” Idia gripped.

“Four floating screens and only one that actually shows gameplay, cut us a break senpai." I said.  

“Ugh.” Idia dropped the matter and continued guiding me through the controls and in-game lore and explaining any cultural references. Sometimes Azul would butt in just to argue with Idia’s knowledge. Ortho wasn’t kidding when he said his brother was like a teacher, it was very easy to follow along.

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It was late into the night, and it felt like we had barely scratched the surface of gameplay.

Azul looked at his watch and said, “not that this isn’t invigorating, but I’ve got other business to take care of. So, if you’ll excuse me.”  

Azul attempted to leave when Idia shot back. “Heh, what’s the matter Azul? Malding ‘cause the noob is a better player than you?” 

“Past your wittle baby bedtime?” I smirked. 

Azul rolled his eyes. “Unlike you two I’ve got a lounge, clients-”

“Wah, wah, wah, give it a rest will ya baby?” I teased, despite feeling tired myself.

Idia added. “It's the first boss. But it's probably out of your expertise, of course you must have planned for this with your strategic exit.”

Azul snatched the controller and sat back down.

The first boss battle was beyond difficult. Even when Azul and I begrudgingly worked together, (read: hurled insults at one another) the monster remained undefeated. We wordlessly agreed and passed the controller to Idia.

As Idia played, I heard soft snores coming from Azul’s side. I glanced over and sure enough he was asleep. I looked up to Idia and he made no indication that he noticed. I yawned as I decided to rest my eyes. I’ll open them again whenever Idia eliminates the first boss. 

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“UHH?!” Was the noise Idia let out upon realizing he was trapped between his two sleeping board game buddies.

‘Whatdoidowhatdoidowhatdoidowhatdoidowhatdoido?’ Flashed in Idia’s malfunctioning brain. He attempted to wiggle his way out, moving backwards so the duo wouldn’t hit the floor, but he ended up falling backwards instead, causing the pair to lay on his chest.

A high-pitched whistle was let out as his hair turned a deep set rose color.

‘How do I keep finding myself in these overrun cliche anime tropes?! I’m just an introverted social outcast! This shouldn’t happen to guys like me! HSDJKGSCUHASOI.’ 

Thank and praise the Great Seven that Ortho had returned! Idia mouthed the words ‘save me brother.’

Ortho blinked and silently giggled and projected the message:

[Your socialization is leveling up. I’m proud of you big brother! I’m just here to return a book I borrowed. Good night!]

Idia resigned to his fate and passed out from embarrassment. 

Before Ortho left, he tucked the trio into bed and took a photo of Idia’s first sleepover. 

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The pair had subconsciously managed to use Idia as a mattress. The accidental cuddle pile was as follows: Azul’s head lay on Idia’s chest with his limbs outstretched, wrapped around Idia and Thorn - hugging them close. Thorn’s head rested slightly above Azul’s, while Idia felt comforted by the pressure and had both his arms rested on the backs of the prefects.

Idia and Azul were the first ones to wake up. Their eyes bugged out once conscious enough to take in the situation and frantically, yet silently, pulled away as to not disrupt Thorn. 

“(What are YOU doing? What were WE DOING?)” Azul whispered and shouted.

“(You two fell asleep and pinned me! I couldn’t move!)” Idia whined quietly.

I rolled over and rubbed my head into the ‘pillow’ in an attempt to relax. ‘Are Grim and the ghosts arguing again? Ugh I don’t care, I’m sleepy, can’t they argue away from a sleeping person?’

After Thorn let out a huff, the duo picked up where they stopped.

“(SO WAKE US UP??!)” Azul countered, fixing up his attire.

“(Azul I tried! I passed out from your normie germs.)” Idia informed, turning his head as far as he could away from Thorn’s. 

“Hmm? Azul’s here…?” I mumbled. Still not entirely awake.

“(WHAT. ARE. YOU. DOING?)” Idia whispered shrieked, vibrating in fear as Azul took out his phone.

“(Isn’t it obvious? Collecting insurance.)” Azul’s glasses let off a shine as his camera shutter went *snap*.

With so much shaking from the bed, I swatted my hand back in an attempt to get ‘Grim’ to stop doing whatever it was he was doing. “Hemmy, Julie, Cassey… Go take care of your son… Before sunrise he’s yours.” 

“Wake up prefect.” Azul said, having sat on the other side of Thorn.

Idia mouthed the words ‘what did I ever do to you?! Abort! Stop!’

‘Prefect…?’ Looks like Azul let himself into my room, impatient octopus. I sat up and turned and realized I wasn’t in my room. Azul looked like the cat that just got the cream, and I looked down to see a scarlet Idia covering his face with both hands.

“...What are you two doing?” I asked slowly.  

“Heh. Looks like we both fell asleep in Idia’s bed. Good morning and goodbye to you both.” And like that Azul walked out.

I would have spoken more with Idia, but he was a babbling red swirling mess. “Sorry for falling asleep on you Idia, I’ll just go now.”

Idia frantically nodded; face still covered as I left. 

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“I can’t believe you let me sleep with the two prefects…” Idia rubbed his face tiredly. As it would turn out, passing out is not a form of well rested sleep, who knew?

Ortho tried to reassure his brother. “Think of it to a practice run, after all, the Ramshackle prefect, she-”

“(she?..)

She?

SHE?!

WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE?!” 

Idia’s hair shot up frantically as he stared in horror at his brother. 

“I misspoke.” Ortho looked off to the side. 

“IT'S LITERALLY IMPOSSIBLE FOR YOU TO MAKE A MISTAKE! I PROGRAMED YOU!” Idia panicked. “HOLY GREAT SEVEN A GIRL HUNG OUT WITH ME (and was in my room?! dsjfbjsbdfis)” 

Idia threw himself under the covers as his only means of protection against such a twisted fate. 

Ortho frantically waved his arms around. “Shh! Brother it's a secret!”

“Rip Idia you won’t be missed.” Promptly Idia passed out. 

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[eloquentcoconut]

Hello! I’d love to see a fic about Ace, Deuce and y/n having like a traumatic event that makes them all super attached to eachother and they’re almost constantly together and if one of them is away they all have different reactions like Ace gets super quiet, Deuce gets irritated easily and y/n getting super anxious. I’d really really love to see everyone’s reactions to this! Thank you so much!

Little Lies That Are Always On My Mind

Word Count: 2,349 words. 

TW: Bullying?

Synopsis: Ace, Deuce, and Y/N find themselves involved in a potionology accident of their own doing - surprise surprise. How are they going to sift through the lies and unravel the truth?  

Notes: I tried - y’all I really tried. 

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“Endless Night, an ancient but once a popular sleeping potion that allowed for the creator to infiltrate their victim’s dreams in order to access their memories, a rudimentary truth serum in today’s standards and I am being liberal with the word truth.” Professor Crewel cracked his whip against his desk, startling some of the students awake.

“Pay attention pups! I won’t be asking again so nicely IF there is a next time.” Professor Crewel began to write upon the black board.

“Endless Night was not 100% guaranteed that it would even work against the victim. Should the victim wake, suspect they’re in a dream, or their disbelief was pushed too far the potions effects would be null and void.”   

“Ace, why aren’t you stirring?’ Y/N whispered to their partner, nudging his side.

Ace jabbed a finger to his left. “That’s not my task! That’s Loosey-Deucey’s!” 

“No? I haven’t touched that ladle once. I’ve been adding the ingredients.” Deuce defended himself, side stepping to show off his collection of canisters as proof. 

“I’ve already put some of them in though…’ Y/N trailed off.

“But that was my job?” Adeuce said simultaneously. 

Y/N sighed and rubbed their head exacerbated. Ace and Deuce were their closest friends, they enjoyed their shenanigans and company dearly, but when it came to schoolwork, Y/N would trade them to professor Crewel for one dog kibble.  

Y/N turned to the duo once more. “Alright well I’ve put a twinge of sage and dried mint.”

“I thought it said a PINCH of sage and mint.” Deuce picked up their potionology textbook and began skimming the list.

“No way. I put a pluck of sage and dried coriander, you two need glasses or better brains.” Ace scoffed.  

Unbeknownst to the trio, their arguing had drawn attention. 

With a fierce crack of his whip, professor Crewel marched over to them. “No barking during my lecture, naughty puppies! You are all to stay behind after class and clean the entire room. Perhaps that will help you three learn to follow directions obediently. Start over.” 

“Yes professor.” We said at once. 

“It's your guys’ fault though. I called dibs first.” Ace whispered.

“Can it Ace.” Deuce mumbled, cleaning off his island. 

“Yeah, get bent.” Y/N flipped off Ace, turning around to examine the potionology textbook.

Professor Crewel coughed, “As I was saying, there is no margin for error. Even just one drop over, and the results would be disastrous to say the least. Sleep poisoning, restless slumber syndrome, and perceived dream world are just some of the few DIRE consequences.” Professor Crewel shot Y/N, Deuce and Ace a stern look.

Whilst people were milling about, caught up in their own business, the unattended cauldron began to bubble and brew with renewed vigor. Pink shimmering liquid squeaked as a violet sweet-smelling bubble floated to the top.

“UH! I don’t think it's supposed to be doing THAT!” Ace ran around the pot, pulling on his friends’ lab coat sleeves. 

“What?!” Deuce flinched back upon witnessing the overflowing cerulean goo.

“Huh?” Y/N jumped back as red spark clouds circled over the potions head.

A puff of black smoke, reminiscent of campfire marshmallows enveloped the trio, ushering them into a fitful slumber. 

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 Y/N, Ace, and Deuce are nothing short of a miracle case. It's a marvel in itself that they were able to wake at all. At least, that's what the staff at the infirmary would tell themselves. They weren’t pleased in the slightest when they awoke one by one.

Disoriented, the trio was able to find comfort once spotting one another, but why did they wake up alone?

“Do you guys know what happened?” Y/N asked tentatively. 

Deuce rubbed the left side of his head and scrunched up his face as he recalled the memory. “...We… Our potion exploded?”

“For a dream potion, I find it odd I didn’t dream at all. Just a flash...” Ace trailed off, outstretching his own hands in front of himself, confirming their reality. 

“A flash of black. More like a blink. I don’t feel any different?” Y/N finished. 

A half bear half human violently yanked the privacy curtains. “If that’s all you're going to do is lie there and take up space, get out.” The head nurse scowled and quite literally chased them out. 

The trio were left stunned and lost. Standing outside the infirmary doors, they looked up at midnight blue sky, encrusted with diamonds. No one had informed them what had happened, and no one had waited for them. 

Ace checked his phone. It was still the same day, 0 messages. 

A fast-paced puff ball darted by their line of sight. Y/N tilted their head to the side. “I’ve never seen a black rabbit on the school grounds before.” 

“A black rabbit?” Deuce perked up, albeit cautiously.   

“Why are you bringing up rabbits?” Ace questioned, pocketing his phone as they walked.

“I just saw one, anyway it doesn’t matter.” Y/N waved it off. There is a forest nearby, it really isn’t so strange an animal could roam the grounds. “But isn’t it odd that not a single person reached out to us?”

“Maybe it wasn’t that serious?” Deuce attempted to comfort the duo, himself included.

“Still…” Y/N wasn’t convinced, and the looks on Ace and Deuce were confirmation. 

Ace looked around and asked, “can we stay over at Ramshackle tonight?” 

“Sure.” Y/N reassured. 

Deuce fretted over the knick knacks on his coat. “Don’t we need permission though… I don’t want to get into even more trouble.” 

“If our own classmates, peers, and dorm cannot even manage a ‘get well soon’ DM, I say screw them and let them figure it out.” Ace crossed his arms over his head in a relaxed pose but looked off to the side frowning. 

“...Yeah.” Deuce dropped his hands and continued his walk with more certainty. 

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

The night was ordinary and serene. Y/N, Deuce, and Ace awoke one by one, did their morning routines and went off to class. No new messages, or a sense of urgency from the trio to check in with anyone.

And that’s where their peace ended, and their troubles started.

Entering homeroom, a wave of scrutiny washed over them. All eyes locked on their forms as they made their way to find empty seats.

“I guess that potion accident is water under the bridge. Or should I say goo under the desk?” Ace joked.  

Professor Crewel said nothing, letting out a scoff, and turning back to the board. 

Out of the corner of Ace’s eye, he noticed a poster of a bunny the color of midnight with deep set sapphire eyes. ‘That poster is new.’ He thought. ‘It's out of place in potionology, homeroom or any class at NRC…’

Ace whispered his findings to Y/N and Deuce. Before Deuce and Y/N could find the poster, professor Crewel had thrown a piece of chalk in Ace’s direction!

“Trappola! It has become apparent that you have learned nothing from yesterday’s incident about yapping - move to the other side of the classroom before I muzzle you!”

Professor Crewel was practically radiating anger, and everyone felt suppressed to say anything as Ace took his stuff and switched seats.  

Feeling the oppressive atmosphere, Ace could not find it in himself to make light of the situation and decided the best course of action would be to lay low until the whole thing blew over.  Even as his peers taunted him, Ace remained quiet, burning a hole through that off putting rabbit poster. 

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

History of Magic with professor Trein wasn’t any better. A cloud of tension followed the three into the sinfully boring classroom. 

Deuce clocked a noirette rabbit with ocean eyes resting in the plush cushion where Lucius usually slept. Deuce looked to Ace and Y/N in confusion as the pair let on as though they did not even see the rabbit. 

After a while of taking notes, the rabbit hopped over to Deuce and flung his pencil case off his desk. 

Deuce balked, Y/N and Ace looked bewildered at their friend’s sudden clumsiness, and all the other students turned their heads to the source of noise.

Professor Trein looked up from his papers and gave Deuce a stern look.

“I’m sorry professor! A rabbit-”

“None of your excuses.” Professor Trein returned to grading his papers. “See that another disruption doesn’t happen again.”

“What was that?” Y/N whispered to a flustered Deuce. 

“Didn’t you guys see that rabbit bat my stuff away?”

Ace shook his head. 

Deuce grumbled and returned to his studies. But the rabbit had returned. With a sly smile the rabbit tore out the history pages with its teeth out of Deuce’s textbook!

*riiiiiipp*

“STOP THAT!” Deuce shouted at the naughty rabbit.

Y/N and Ace looked concerned at whatever was affecting Deuce. The peanut gallery gave their two cents in the form of bitter comments or mocking laughter. 

Professor Trein scowled. “Spade, remove yourself from my classroom before I give you detention.”

“But professor-”

“NOW.”

With his head held low, Deuce left third period. 

Deuce wasn’t sure what else to do with his sudden free hour, so he stood outside the classroom waiting for the dismissal bell to toll. 

Other students gawked they passed by, whispering loudly about ‘once a delinquent always a delinquent.’ Or ‘watch out! If you look him in the eyes, he’ll throw something at you! Scary!’ 

Deuce started to sweat. ‘How would they know? Am I really that obvious? I’m not even good at fronting my ‘good boy’ persona?’ 

A few daring students made fun of Deuce until he snapped. Deuce had grown so irritated that he left and decided to wander around campus to blow off steam. 

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

Returning to Heartslabyul after school, Y/N, Ace, and Deuce were met with opposition from Trey, Riddle, and Cater upon entering. Heartslabyul students gave them dirty looks as they passed by the group. 

Riddle was the first to speak, and rather harshly too. “How nice of the Night Raven College punk celebrities to grace our humble dormitory with their presence.” 

Ace crossed his arms. “We were literally in the infirmary from 1st period to midnight. Which any of you would know if you bothered to check on your underclassmen.” 

The micro celebs were met with fierce looks. Y/N watched as the black hare emerged from the rose hedge and ran towards the Heartslabyul higher ups. 

“That rabbit is back!” Y/N said to Deuce.

Deuce didn’t notice the rabbit but believed his friend anyways.  

The rabbit poked Cater’s leg. Cater turned his gaze to Y/N and asked, “so it’s true, you’re stealing other dorm members to fill up your own dorm.”

The bunny tapped Trey’s shoe. 

Trey crossed his arms and nodded. “You think you can get your way with everything just because you ‘helped’” Trey air quoted the word, “with a few overblots… Oh brother.”  

Y/N gave Cater, Trey, and their prefect a harsh look. “Where is this coming from? This seriously cannot be about yesterday’s potion accident…”

Y/N stopped and considered it. They didn’t have any dreams last night, nor did Ace or Deuce, and the actions of the ever-vanishing rabbit are making their school life needlessly difficult. While Y/N was musing over their thoughts, the dark rabbit swatted Riddle’s elbow and winked.

Riddle glared at Y/N. “Don’t act like you did anyone any favors. Not everything is about you Y/N. You literally brought up the overblots just for praise… Wow.” 

Deuce stepped in, “you guys brought up the overblots, not Y/N.” 

Cater eye rolled. “Puh-lease, Y/N is always acting like they're better than everyone. They’re just malding ‘cuz their lies finally caught up with them.” 

Trey added, “How many times does a coincidence need to happen before it's a pattern? I bet they’re causing the overblots to make themselves look good… Talk about messed up.” 

Y/N was upset to say the least but had no idea on how to even defend themselves against this weirdly one-sided beef. Y/N felt as though there was nothing they could do if people were this dedicated about misunderstanding them out of thin air. Their thoughts began to swirl together, lingering on ‘what ifs’ as their breath quickened. 

“You guys are jerks!” Ace had had enough. “Whatever is wrong with YOUR messed up heads, get over yourselves!”

As Ace took hold of Deuce’s and Y/N’s hand, exiting Heartslabyul Y/N made a connection.

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

“You think we never actually woke up?” Ace’s eyebrows rose in alarm. 

Y/N nodded. “That rabbit, everyone else acting like actual villains but only with the things directly on our mind or what had just happened to us… It’s like a dream, isn’t it?”

“A twisted nightmare you mean.” Deuce rubbed the back of his neck tiredly. 

The day left the Ramshackle club emotionally defenseless. Dreading what would transpire the next day, and the foreseeable future if they could not escape.  

“It's no fun if you’re aware.” A little voice whined. 

!!!

The dream bunny made its appearance seamlessly materializing into existence.

“GAAHHH?!” 

Its coat gave off an iridescent glow as it breathed. Ace broke the stillness. 

“What do you gain from tormenting us?” He demanded.  

The dream bunny said nothing and gave a smug grin, "once you wake after tonight's slumber you’ll be returned to your waking world.” 

Promptly, the creature vanished in a cloud of fading sparkles. 

Y/N, Deuce, and Ace were left with little choice, they agreed it would be in their best interest to stay in Ramshackle and wait until they awoke the next day to leave. 

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

*COUGH! ACK!* 

Slowly one by one, Y/N, Ace and Deuce attempted to organize their thoughts as they awoke in the infirmary bed. Despite being snuggled in close, they were crowded by a mirage of concerned faces and a wave of questions. 

The three looked at one another, as if asking permission from one another to dare to voice their thoughts. They never did, swept up in the fussing and caring looks of their friends, even professor Crewel was present. 

Eventually when the fanfare settled down, and the three were permitted to leave, they left together to spend the night at Y/N’s dorm to discuss what in Twisted Wonderland they had been through. 

A black rabbit with blue eyes skidded past them. The trio had a wordless understanding wash over them.

‘If we’re together, we’ll always be fine.’ 

[dotcie]

Writers Truth & Dare Ask Game

🎱 ⇢ post your AO3 total stats  🍓 ⇢ how did you get into writing fanfiction?  🌵 ⇢ share the link to a playlist you love 🕯️ ⇢ on a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? why is that? 🛼 ⇢ describe your latest wip with five emojis 🥑 ⇢ you accidentally killed somebody, which mutual(s) do you text for help? 🥤 ⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you love 💌 ⇢ how many unread emails do you have right now?  🌻 ⇢ tag someone you appreciate but don't talk to on a regular basis 🐇 ⇢ do you prefer writing original characters, reader inserts, or a mix of both?  🧃 ⇢ share some personal lore you never posted about before 🎲 ⇢ what stops you from writing more in your free time?  🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings 🧸 ⇢ what's the fastest way to become your mutual? 🪐 ⇢ name three good things going on in your life right now 📚 ⇢ what's the last thing you wrote down in your notes app?  🍬 ⇢ post an unpopular opinion about a popular fandom character 🔪 ⇢ what's the weirdest topic you researched for a writing project? 🦷 ⇢ share some personal wisdom or a life hack you swear on ❄️ ⇢ what's your dream theme/plot for a fic, and who would write it best? 🌿 ⇢ give some advice on writer's block and low creativity 🥐 ⇢ name one internet reference that will always make you laugh  🏜️ ⇢ what's your favourite type of comment to receive on your work? 🍦 ⇢ name three good things about a character you hate 🥝 ⇢ do you lie a lot? what's the most recent lie you told? 🦋 ⇢ share something that has been on your heart and mind lately  🦴 ⇢ is there a piece of media that inspires your writing?  🍅 ⇢ give yourself some constructive criticism on your own writing 🐚 ⇢ do you like or dislike surprises? 🪲 ⇢ add 50 words to your current wip and share the paragraph here ☁️ ⇢ what made you choose your username? 🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them 🌸 ⇢ do you have any pets? if you do, post some pictures of them 🎨 ⇢ link your favourite piece of fanart and explain why you like it 🧩 ⇢ what will make you click away from a fanfiction immediately?

[eloquentcoconut]

Twst Requests

I've never done this before, so when it comes to rules and requlations 🤷‍♂️ it might take a looooooong time to complete, but lets learn together!

You can also comment requests on my fics if you prefer.

I've been having so much fun writing my ~Intermission~ chapters (they're like my own stand alones and will be uploaded in a few weeks to my fic twst upon a time) that I thought why not write some other fun ideas - maybe they could even be featured in my next intermission chapter, get their own collection, or stay on Tumblr.

[eloquentcoconut]

The Phantom Bride Part 2 Links

(Links to photo inspiration I used in my fanfic 'TWST Upon A Time' by eloquentcoconut on ao3/wattpad/quotev)

[taruruchi]

Okay, guys, new game

Rb and put in the tags whose handwriting yours is most similar to !!

The above pic is from @/twstassets here

[eloquentcoconut]

Espressino (and more coffee advice) - Elizabeth Minchilli

Coffee advice for the next time you are in Italy: order an espressino (or macchiatone or marocchino) for something a bit bigger.

(1st image in link was the inspo for the character Espresso)

20/20 Mocha Cappuccino - F-Factor

We can’t espresso how good this cappuccino is! Start your day off energized and satisfied with this homemade, 20/20 take on a coffee shop st

(This link was the inspo for Mocha.)

Hazelnut and silky steamed frothy layer accentuate impressive Hazelnut notes in this latte. Espresso mingles with Hazelnut lightly topped wi

(I cannot find the exact image I used for Latte inspo T.T but it was similar to this in that it was light brown and white.)

Holland Lop Color Chart - Holland Lop Rabbit Colors

Need help deciding what color Holland Lop bunny you want? Pictured are the Holland Lop rabbit colors that we have worked with. Some bunny

I made the character's rabbit beastmen; specifically so they could have their coffee colourings be apparent if their name wasn't enough + floppy eared bc they need rep too ♡ (and they're Italian bc Cappuccinos are Italian.)

[eloquentcoconut]

Twst Upon A Time Coconut Secret

🤫 Originally, when I wrote the 3 new characters: Mocha Cappuccino, Espresso Cappuccino, & Latte Cappuccino - they were going to be based on Sanrio's dog characters (Cinnamoroll, Mocha, Milk, Espresso, Chiffon, & Cappuccino.)

I imagine the cafe dog sanrio characters as one big family 💕 But that would have been *a lot* to write - and then I thought 'what on earth could these cuties do to be sent to the villain school? NOTHING thats what; they'd be better suited for RSA but we're not there yet.'

With that in mind I turned the three chosen into triplet Italian floppy eared rabbit beastmen; just trying to add some variety with the OC's I've already sprinkled throughout the story. And they were supposed to have nicknames based on their drink; Mochaccino, Espressino, and Latteccino, but I couldn't work shop that in so soon.

[eloquentcoconut]

Playing twst bingo by ueidesign 🖤 (check out their tumblr for clean versions.)

The 'real which dorm would you be sorted into test' 😈

Tallying up my marks, I'd be in Ignihyde (allegedly)

☆☆☆