against dying. ⁽¹⁸⁺⁾

okay. we had terrible lives. now what? 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘥𝘺?

[schleckermaul]

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schleckermaul, noun. somebody with a sweet tooth. isola affiliated xerxes break from mochizuki jun's pandora hearts.

¹ app ² stats ³ credits ⁴ headcanons ⁵ commissions written by luce, 25, they/them. isola follow listed below.

the mad hatter, like the one from alice in wonderland, only a mass murderer by virtue of loyalty. break tried turning back time to save his loved ones and made things worse. he lost his left eye and killed 116 people in the process.

now blind in his remaining, right eye. he's usually getting around with the help of his chain, mad hatter, and a sword disguised as a cane. his chain being a monster from a parallel world, bound to break through a contract made with blood.

coughs up blood in terminally ill (his contract is slowly killing him).

break is a clown, vexingly cheerful and obnoxiously funny. he knows all types of useless sleight of hand tricks and is an overall annoyance to be around that thrives off teasing people.

his seemingly never-ending stash of sweets is his entire diet.

made by the narrative to kill her with built-in doom.

a once-knight, now-servant, break keeps a distance to most people except for those he considers close enough. once you've breached his walls, he's dedicated and caring.

his best friend is a doll called emily that he carries with him wherever goes. she's able to speak and uses this skill to insult whoever she wants to.

[schleckermaul]

a little bit of an announcement! i'll be dropping break briefly. i honestly think i've burnt myself out a little bit, and he needs a bit of a (hah) break for me to get back into the groove properly. i've been on hiatus before, but otherwise he's been going strong for almost two years, so i was somewhat nervous about finally doing it. i do have some plans for a different ph character to app in his absence! iykyk (though it's not hard to figure out). i think it'll be a nice way to get a different perspective until i can pick break back up. so stay tuned for that! thanks so much, see you on here again soon <3

[yeahgen]

@schleckermaul

'So as it stands, we're looking at anemia mixed with a mild case of malnutrition. It's not too serious, but you need to pay more attention to your health if you don't want to end up here again anytime soon.'

Tapping lightly at the clipboard in his hands, Yagen looks up to see if the patient's paying attention. He seems alert enough, sitting in bed with an IV drip attached to that pale, thin hand, but it's hard to tell if people actually listen rather than hear.

'...that's about it for now. Do you have any family members the hospital can contact? It'd be best if we could discuss these details with your primary caregiver in attendance.'

[schleckermaul]

he'd been in one of these facilities once before, when he'd returned from the mist with an arm slung around zhilan's shoulder. that was after the car crash and various battles he was in once the city got swallowed up, so it was no wonder. to end up here again, simply because he got a little too dizzy on his way home ...

   he has half a mind to pluck out the needle they've attached to his hand and swing his legs over the edge of the bed, leaving promptly. it was bad enough to discuss his situation with doctor baizhu, but at least he wasn't a total stranger, and malleable to break's fate. he can't imagine he'll be just as lucky with this person.

   ' if you haven't already, don't call that number on the paper. ' voice tired, but firm, break resists the urge to roll his eye or raise his voice. the last thing he wants is for zhilan to have to come here, fretting over him. ' this isn't unusual for me. i'm sick. i'll continue to be sick. anemia and malnutrition, you said? '

   he vaguely gestures at his throat and chest, as though that would grant some clarity. ' i'm dying. those are unfortunately side effects of my affliction. once i can walk, i'll leave. '

[nicawlette]

❝ I'm assuming you know why I called you here? ❞ Her tone suggests no nonsense, arms crossed and stance impatient where she stands before the body lounging comfortably in a cushioned chair. Her proverbial mirror nurses a teacup in his hands and appears ignorant to the source of her ire— nevermind that she hasn't ❛ called him ❜ anywhere, but instead hunted down his current location to accost him in the very manor they both lived in, together.

No matter, she'll endeavor to remind him, then!

❝ What's this I hear about you and Zhilan being ENGAGED? ❞ Nicolette's volume rises with every word, arms splaying out at her sides for greater emphasis. ❝ Your betrothed, was it? When did you plan on telling me about this little development? After the wedding? Am I even invited? ❞

In distress and disbelief, she continues, ❝ I can't believe you didn't even let me see the proposal— is this some kind of revenge for something? One of you is supposed to ask for my blessing!! ❞

@schleckermaul — explain urself quickly before i make up even more extreme scenarios in my head and blame you for all of them ✨

[schleckermaul]

xerxes break knows very well not to draw the ire of a powerful woman onto himself. living in the rainsworth household, a matriarchy, for the better part of twenty years, that's more than enough time to learn such a lesson. throughout his servitude he's only ever refused a single direct order from lady sheryl, the head of the dukedom. dedicated and loyal, the man always standing behind her granddaughter, you'd think he knew what he was doing.

   apparently not. he's in the middle of trying to recover from his latest health scare, sipping a cup of tea in one of the rooms of the mansion that offer a calming view to the outside. not that he can see it, but he can feel the warm shine of sunlight, hear the birdsong.

   he also can't see nicolette, but he can certainly feel her anger. he gulps his latest sip down, sets the cup aside.

   ' ... engaged? ' it's all he manages to utter at first, flabberghasted and a bit frightened by her entry. his mind struggles to catch up, so he awkwardly remains sitting, only holding up both of his hands in a defensive gesture. ' what are you ... '

betrothed, was it?

   ... hm.

   ' wait, nicolette. we're not— zhilan and i are not engaged. i have no plans to— where did you even hear this? ' who blabbered his business to her, of all people? ' i have no plans to marry, ' he finishes his earlier sentence, a bit lamely. it is true that he'd been calling zhilan his betrothed, but ...

[schleckermaul]

   no comment.

[salfxsher]

@schleckermaul

Despite Sal trying to go about his daily Spirale routine; he couldn't prevent the aura of doom and gloom that was radiating off of him. Before he had always been a bit of a subdued kind of guy, but now he was really somber.

Even has he held his grocery bags full of sweets, he looked utterly miserable. He had gotten out this morning not because he wanted to, but because he needed to. Otherwise he would just rot in his bed...possibly forever!

Why is it that when you are in the worst of moods, you run into someone that you know?

[schleckermaul]

luckily for sal, break can't see the bag full of sweets. what he can see even without eyesight is the positively miserable aura coming off of the guy, and it takes another moment for him to realize just who that is, walking around spirale like a pathetic, wet dog.

   kind of reminds him of gilbert.

   pursing his lips, he waves cheerily. ' would you look at that. back from the dead so soon? ' not that he blames the boy for leaving. there's no control over any of it, not with the stars in charge, doing whatever they feel like doing. he hadn't blamed nicolette when she left, but that's a special case. though he supposes this is, as well. after the last time the two talked, he can't help but feel the smallest of urges to check up on him. if just for ismael's sake.

   stepping up, he taps his cane against sal's ankle. ' what's got you looking so gloomy? shouldn't you be happy you're here? '

[emerald-polaris]

Pandora Hearts characters from the Mochijun 20th anniversary illustration!

All credits go to @/PH15th_Cafe, @/PH15th and Mochijun on twitter :)

[schleckermaul]

i have been missing break dearly, and i do wanna get some stuff out before august ends, so here's a general starter call, uncapped for now! new and old interactions happily welcomed!

[schleckermaul]

who the fuck is talking to my boyfriend

[schleckermaul]

new kevin content. he looks so fucking miserable lmao

[schleckermaul]

i have been cooking in the background. everybody fucking get ready.

[schleckermaul]

drabble — phantasm amalgam / reim's (belated) birthday.

the sixth of july has been hanging over break's head for the better part of the month. it's not that he's ungrateful. quite the opposite, in fact, with zhilan and nicolette under the same roof as him once more. perhaps he's even grateful for wang yi, if only to keep his better half appeased. perhaps it's in his bones, old as they are, to get hung up on nostalgia. perhaps he's still young enough to be homesick.

   he finds himself counting the days, now. with more than a year passed since he first arrived at the island, the birthdays are coming around for a second time, and they hit him unprepared each time, even as he watches time go by so slowly, so quickly.

   he remembers lady sharon's first birthday, the first one that he missed. he wonders how she fared the second time around. he wonders if she could remember a birthday without him, before he arrived at the rainsworths. if she remembered life without xerxes break in it, or if she's living it for the first time.

   if it got any better, with time.

   he think, i hope not. he thinks, i should not think so.

   and then reim's birthday arrives, for a second time. and it passes. and some absurd amount of loneliness, of missing parts of him that were so self-evidently his, has him marvel in disbelief that his best friend still hasn't made it to this island.

   is that moronic? it must be. perhaps reim would say so, if he were here to speak the words. to almost be angry, upset, at the fact that reim hasn't managed to get whisked away from their homeworld. to come swooping in, standing at break's side as he always has. when break thinks it so clearly, it really does sound moronic.

   he muses about it over tea, one morning. the air is thick with change, but break hasn't quite realized what it is that the stars have set up for them, not yet. he, plunk, plunk, plunk, puts a few cubes of sugar into his tea, swirls it around, sips at it. with the best of intentions, he put a plate in front of him, but it remains empty, with only the drink to keep him company.

   to have morning tea alone, with zhilan out and about, nicolette perhaps at her boyfriend's house. the mansion empty, other than himself. he hears the tapping of his own foot against the marbled floors. as if waiting. always waiting for something. someone.

   wishing.

   " you should be eating, xerx. "

   the cup rattles between his fingers as he clunks it against the saucer with a startle.

   his head swivels around as though he would be able to confirm with sight, but he feels reim's form as it steps closer, taking the empty plate off the table and moving towards the counters of the kitchen. busying himself with the cupboards, taking a peek into the fridge, it's as though he's been living in the mansion alongside the others for ages, confident and focused.

   for a second, break almost believes himself to be hallucinating. but of course reim would know how to move about the kitchens of the rainsworth mansion— he lived here, for years.

   ' i wasn't hungry, ' is what he manages to say, haltingly, unsure. he hears reim huff as he puts the finishing touches on whatever he's preparing, before he walks back over to break.

   the sound of a tray, sliding across the table. his plate, put in front of him. break stares down at it blankly.

   " it's toast, " reim says. and it's easy, to accept it. the description given, knowing about break's lack of sight. the food, to take care of his needs when he's so quick to disregard them. " with butter and honey, to help with your throat. "

   blinking a few times, break remains still for a moment.

   and then he sighs.

   and it feels as though a weight has been lifted, for just this second.

   ' it'll be more of a hassle to refuse you, won't it, mister reim? ' a hand reaches out gingerly, scrapes at the crust of the slice of toast. he doesn't pick it up yet, but when reim replies with a firm "yes", that reveals the self-satisfied hint of a smile on his lips, he decides to take a quick nibble.

   there's silence, until he's eaten half of his meal, listening to the sounds of reim swirling his own tea, clinking his spoon against the rim of the cup. break can picture him sitting there, one leg crossed over the other, his pandora's uniform loosely wrapped around his shoulders. flipping through a newspaper, quietly mumbling to himself, as they both prepare for the day.

   it almost feels too normal. as if he was back home, and nothing about the last one and a half years ever happened. as if reim truly did come, just to be at his side once more.

   but break remembers their last moments together. and he knows that, if reim were to see him again, he wouldn't just come and make him breakfast.

   well. not only.

   " you're thinking too loud, " reim says decidedly, pointing his gaze at break. ' sorry, ' he mumbles through another bite of his toast, covering his mouth with his hand. ' i was just thinking that you can't possible be ... yourself. it's as though i'm ... '

   " dreaming? " leaning back in his chair, break thinks it over for a second, before nodding. reim's always been a smart guy. it's one of his many strengths. perhaps his best one.

   ' yes. i'm loath to enjoy myself if you're just to ... disappear again. '

   " that's your problem, xerx, " reim sighs as he seems to direct his attention towards his newspaper again. " you get too caught up in the inevitable to enjoy the present. aren't you having a nice meal right now? "

   break takes a moment to feel out his body's response to the food. then he crosses his arms in front of his chest. ' yes ... '

   reim nods. " so enjoy it. everything passes. " and he lingers on those last few words, almost a bit uncomfortably. there's something more he means to say, break feels it in the air between them. he leans forward, towards reim, as though to coax the words out of him.

   ' yes? '

   reim puts the newspaper down for a moment to meet break, reaching out a hand to flick his forehead. his voice is softer, teasing.

   " you might as well. "

   giving a faux whine, break leans back in his chair again, rubbing his forehead. but he's smiling, with no pretense. and he breathes a little easier. and his head is a bit quieter. and when he tells reim that he missed him, lightly, and the words dissolve between the two of them like candyfloss, he doesn't feel bad about admitting it.

   and when, later on, the presence of his best friend fades away ... he doesn't fall apart about it.

[isolaradiale]

"Solaris, I have an idea that you're going to love!" Mimosa chimes, hands excitedly gripping the papers of what half-baked plan she'd come up with now. It isn't often that she's allowed to do as she pleases, on account of her ideas being much too chaotic and uncompromising, but the curious look on her colleague's face is enough to tell her that she may have decent odds this time around.

"Fine. Tell me of this elaborate plan you have. At the very least, it ought to be interesting." Chin in hand, Solaris sets aside the paperwork that he had been filling out, and the two of them proceed to have a very enthusiastic chat about the former's plans.

The night starts as any other in Spirale City, with citizens tucking themselves into bed and bidding good night to their loved ones. Sleep takes them, some more peacefully than others, but all experience the distinct feeling of falling as they lie on the cusp between awake and asleep. It's an odd feeling, one that almost makes it hard to breathe, but it's soon replaced with the lighthearted warmth of floating gently, gently down until they're back in their bed and the familiar streaks of morning light find their way across the bedroom. Eyes open to what seemed to be yet another peaceful morning only to be met with a strange, low wail coming from outside the windows of their home.

Curious and somewhat concerned, an investigation is surely necessary and so investigate our inhabitants do; what they find surprises some of them, but for others it's business as usual. A large, astral whale makes its way across the sky, filled with stars and planets that seem much closer than usual. The sun hangs high in the sky despite the stars being in full view, a smiling face painted on its surface. The streets are lined with various trees of differing species--some even edible--along with a light stream flowing down the roads, where some citizens are in their bathing suits with cups in hand. And some may even find that their homes have also been made fantastical in varying ways.

And somewhere far, far away sit two scientists. One looks bored whilst the other can hardly manage to stay in her seat. At Solaris's discontentment, Mimosa is intent on getting his approval, so another idea is born. "And what if they can affect the dream, too!? That'd be interesting, wouldn't it?" Her idea is met with a wave of a hand as if saying to do what she pleases. With the flip of a switch, the city's inhabitants would now find that their imaginative thoughts were made manifest but hard to control at first.

"Now, let's see how it all plays out, hm? I promise it'll be worth it. Just watch it all unfold!" Mimosa's hand slaps the top of the haphazard giant cube of a machine that now sat in front of her and Solaris. It vibrates intensely as though it's fit to burst from the seams at any moment. Truly a delicate masterpiece that holds the current dream environment all together. "Don't worry, it'll be fine…maybe!" One look at Solaris can tell anyone though that he has his reservations.

-- Welcome to our 2024 summer event, Phantasm Amalgam! As a recap, we'd like to thank our members for sticking by us this long, and here's to another anniversary event for the books! So what's going on? In short, you're all in a shared dream of fantastical and untold proportion!

Secondly, what's the TLDR read of the situation? Well, here's a couple of bullet points to catch you up to speed!

Upon going to sleep, everyone in the city was transported into a replica of Spirale, only it's entirely made up from the shared memory of it that everyone has! So, there are bound to be a few differences here and there but not anything too large.

Essentially if you can dream it, then it can happen. Anything is fair game. Whatever thoughts your characters have can become reality, all they need to do is think it into existence and it'll become real! It can even be changed by other characters as well. You can also change other characters with mun permission, of course!

Powers will be uncapped within the dream world, but someone else could simply dream themselves invulnerable to them too.

Please keep in mind that if you're interfering with what is being dreamed by another character, you'll need mun permission first!

There is no limit as to what a character can create or change. Whether it be a singular object (a lamp post, a tree, a car, and other objects large or small), an NPC, or even changes to player characters themselves. You can even change entire wards if you want to, but someone else can change it just as quickly! Take the chance to do something exciting and unexpected, the scientists are waiting for some interesting results!

As always please feel free to send any questions you may have to the masterlist!

There will be two parts to this event, with our first kicking off today and the second running from August 9th to August 16th 11:59:59 PM! As always, you'll still be able to do part 1 during part 2!

[kleinstar]

to: all contacts from: Yuriboogie

[txt] hello everyone! this is einymous

[txt]So Yuri borrowed me his phone and as a as thanks for that I had a beautiful idea

[txt] I'd like you all send nice messages nice messages for Yuri under this for all the hard work he's done for me and for you all! Pour your whole heart if you like pals!

[txt] Thank you very much! ദ്ദി(｡•̀ ,<)~✩‧₊

[schleckermaul]

yuriboogie, huh?

   (to: yuri) you cook well.

   he wrote and deleted that one a couple of times. knowing that somebody else is reading these ... he's also just not used to giving compliments. like pulling a tooth.

   ' ... let's not bring up the murder pact. '

   (to: yuri) your fighting could use some improvement. we should sparr again sometime.

[cushfuddled]

Every time Frightened Rabbit’s “Modern Leper” starts playing it’s like haha…oh no…I was supposed to be over this five years ago…

[darkenforcer]

"you suck so much it's unreal."

[schleckermaul]

' you want to talk about sucking? '

[schleckermaul]

   ' ah, young love ... '