the devil works fast, but sad landscape works faster. just look at it bro. look at that weapon.
"Cut! Everyone take five!"
Vil sighs, today's shoot has not been going well. He really wanted to get everything done today because won't be allowed to shoot at this site until next week! He takes a drink from the water bottle in his bag. His throat is sore from all the yelling he's been doing.
Still standing upright, he opens the script to review his notes. Ortho notices the housewarden has been pretty upset today. Usually, Vil will collaborate with the club to review footage or compare notes, but right now, he's sticking to solitude.
Ortho dosen't like when his friends are upset. Their moods rub off on him and it makes him feel gloomy too.
He switches the microphone he's holding to the 'off' setting. The grey fluffy windsock attached to it catches his eye. He peeks back over to the housewarden with a mischievous idea...
Vil's large hoodie, combined with his hair tightly tied up, leaves the back of his neck and upper shoulders exposed to the world.
Perfect.
Not wanting his metal footsteps to be heard, he extends the mic stand as long as it will go before slowly descending it behind the grumpy director. He gently swipes it across the exposed skin-
"ACK-!"
Vil shrieks. His whole body tenses and his head flies upward in reflex, ponytail flinging wildly. Ortho tries to get a few more movements in while the other is still twitching in shock.
"Pfffftt-"
The housewarden turns to grab the microphone with an iron grip. His sharp violet eyes make direct contact with his attacker. Obviously not pleased at the little prank. Dang it! Vil is too good at keeping his laughter in!
Usually he would brush something like this off- But Vil looks mad. The opposite of what Ortho was trying to do! The housewarden takes the windsock off the microphone and slips it over his hand.
"I see you're trying to be funny. When was the last time your joints were dusted, Ortho? You know the rules about looking proper and professional."
Vil's tone is laced with sarcasm and malice.
The humanoid would gulp if he could. His tactile sensors are turned on and there was not enough time to shut them off. Not that he really minded, but still!
Vil looms over him as he approaches. Then, he stops. The housewarden looks down at his hands and scoffs. This is way too immature. Covering his display, he states,
"I was just messing with you. No more messing with the equipment. Let's get back to work."
Vil turns back around. Ortho blinks. That didn't go the way he was expecting. Vil still looks so uptight..
"Oh alright. Whatever you say, Vil Schoenheit!"
The best he can do is help the rest of club run as smoothly as he can. He's still not an expert at this emotion thing yet after all.
...
Get pranked!! tickle angst(?) upon ye. You get nothing!! Vil is soo OOC i need to study him more that's why I didn't make it too long. I'm sad, so I'll make them both sad. Okay bye.
Summary: Ace and Deuce sneak into the Ignihyde dorm to steal an ultra-exclusive video game from Idia Shroud, but getting captured by Ortho leads to an interrogation that threatens to expose Ace's most humiliating secret.
Lee! Ace Trappola
Ler! Ortho Shroud
Word count: 1,862
"C'mon, dude! This way." Ace Trappola shushed as he crawled through the dark, narrow and dusty Ignihyde's ventilation shaft.
"Seriously— ack!" Deuce Spade got interrupted by Ace's ass bumping right into his face. He stopped, stretching his neck to take a slightest peak at his companion's face walking ahead. "Why did you take me with you? You seem to be pretty fine working all by yourself..."
"Because you are also interested in this game as much as I am."
"Am I!?"
"Hush now!"
They crawled slightly backwards as they heard two Ignihyde students walk below them. They were engrossed in the lively chat, not noticing the two idiots crouching on all fours above them. Once they passed by Ace waved his hand and resumed his snail-like crawling down the vent.
---
"I really don't like this.." Deuce muttered as he jumped off the vent. Ace meanwhile was busy looking around them in search of any other students around.
"Quit whining, Deuce. You remember where housewarden Idia's room was?"
"Dude, why did you take me with you!? I was doing my homework when you barged in and said we're sneaking into Ignihyde dorm. You didn't even fill me in! I don't even know what we're looking for!"
"Is it this way or that way?" A pathetic attempt to change the subject.
"ACE!"
"SHH SHH!! Don't yell! Okay okay, I'll tell you. We're here to steal a game, okay? Happy now?"
"What game, Ace? We came all this way just because you've got an itch to play a game?"
Ace clicked his tongue. "Nuh-uh, a *video* game. No-no, a *limited* video game, Deuce. Premium one. Costs hella lot. Get what I mean? It got only 98 copies and not all can get a chance to play it. It's worth the time we spent to get here, trust me."
"Wait, really?" Deuce blinked twice, now curious about the crime. "It's that rare?"
"It is! It totally IS that rare. That's why we have to what, yes, steal it. From Idia-senpai. A game nerd like him should totally have a copy." Ace placed his hands on Deuce's shoulders like a proud father.
"What's that game even about." Deuce shrugged Ace's hands off his shoulders and reached up to adjust the strap of his bag.
"It's uhhh... It's about..." He giggled nervously, his fingers drumming against his lips. "It's about space rangers! Ahem, yes, y'know, robberies, shootings, space drama—"
"A-ha! So it was you two! I finally found you!" Ortho appeared out of pure nowhere, startling the absolute hell out of the criminals.
Ace's heart hammered against his chest as he almost dropped the flashlight he was holding. "RUNN!!!" He yelled before stumbling on the dorm rug, nearly falling face first on the ground as he went on the run.
Deuce squeaked. Hugging the bag tightly as he bolted from his spot following Ace.
"I've been tracking your silhouettes on my thermal imaging scanner for quite some time, but I couldn't identify these intruders. And now I see...it was you all along! Ace Trappola, Deuce Spade!"
Ortho's soles rumbled against the ground before puffing out strong fiery current to fly after the troublemakers.
Three of them rushed down the hallways. The damn cyborg was cheating by using his jet boosters to chase after them. Up ahead, the road split into two paths. The two boys exchanged a glance and nodded. This was the moment they had to go their separate ways...
"Right!" Ace barked.
"Left!" Deuce roared.
"DEUCE!!" Ace wailed, sending his friend his last glance. The cyborg appeared from behind the wall and to Ace's misfortune he darted after *him*.
"Ortho, why me!? Why won't you go after Deuce!?"
"I overheard your whole conversation, Deuce is simply innocent one in this situation."
"Oh come onnnn!!!"
---
Click
Ace squinted at the sudden light in the dark room. He blinked rapidly as he now got the chance to look around the room and examine his surroundings. This seemed to be some...pantry? A bunch of mops, buckets, some cleaning products and pair of rubber gloves.
"Ahem!" Ortho's robotic voice rang from the darkness as he slowly stepped into the center of the room. As the light enveloped his form Ace could notice him wearing an oversized brown jacket and fake moustache glued to his mouth. "You're, Ace Trappola right?"
Ace's brows furrowed. He glanced at Ortho up and down before saying. "What are you wearing?"
"It's cool isn't it??" He chirped. "Me and Niisan watched some detective movies together and I liked the way they were dressed so I decided to try it out on myself. How is it?" Ortho even posed by pinching the edge of his fake moustache. Mere centimetres before peeling them off. Cheap academy glue.
"Yeah yeah, it's cool but...Ortho, uhh, can't you like- untie me?" Oh right, Ace was bounded to a chair. He shifted his weight, struggling against the ropes neatly bounding his arms.
"Oh, of course not, Ace! You're the criminal I've catched and you must suffer an interrogation."
"Interrogation? A-about what!? You said you overheard our whole conversation!"
"You see.." He floated closer. The big jacket on him may looked a bit fake but under the crooked lightning Ortho looked seriously intimidating. "I've searched all my database and I couldn't find a single game about space rangers that got only 98 copies. And I'm sure you weren't lying about wanting to steal one of Niisan's games so I'm genuinely curious what was the actual game you wanted to steal..."
"Haha.. what's so interesting about it?"
"Strange, your heart rate increased when I mentioned about the game. Aaace..?"
"That's because you're standing too close!" And Ace was right. Ortho was practically covering him with his oversized jacket. The robot quickly stepped back and cleared his throat, returning to his detective persona.
"My apologies, Monsieur—"
"Ortho, I have no time for you detective roleplays! Untie me right now!!" Ace's chair rattled under his weight. "Riddle's gonna have my head if I won't return to the dorm immediately!"
"Nonsense! You're just trying to avoid my question!" Ortho grabbed the armrests of the chair, keeping it down."Look, let's review the evidence. You entered Ignihyde without permission. You lied about the game you wanted to steal. And your stress levels increase every time I mention the real nature of the game."
"Fine, let's say I lied about the game being about space rangers. What then? What are you gonna do about it?"
"You'll see exactly what..." Ortho reached into the inner pocket of his jacket as he slowly slid little pink fluffy feather out. "Well, feeling like telling me yet?"
Ace gave him an uninterested look. "A feather?"
"Yeah. What, are you not scared?"
"Not really. And what exactly are you gonna do with it."
"Tickle you."
Ace scoffed "And I'm supposed to be telling you all the secrets I've got just cause I'm scared of a little tickling. Pfft. Ortho, you can do better."
Suddenly, Ortho's jacket fell onto the ground as six, no, eight metallic hands with silicone ends appeared from his back. "What about now?"
Ace's jaw dropped at the sight. He was staring at the hands in front of him in genuine horror now. All of this are going to tickle him now?? Hell no! "Okay-okay, let's talk this out!" He frantically pushed against the floor with his feet, scooting the chair backward as far away from Ortho as he could.
One of Ortho's hands clasped the armrests of the chair, dragging it closer to himself. "So, tell me what's the real game you wanted to steal!" All eight hands flew towards Ace.
Ace jerked sharply, jumping along with the stool. "GyaHAH—!! PpfhaHAHAHAHA! O—ORTHO, WAHAIT!"
"Tell me!" Ortho's metallic hands sped up, whirring with relentless efficiency, the soft silicone tips dancing ruthlessly across Ace’s sides, ribs, and stomach.
"AhAHAHAHA! O-O-OHORTHO PLEHEASE! STOP, KHHAHAHA!" Ace thrashed against the ropes, his chair creaking violently under his desperate squirming. Every time he tried to twist away, three more silicone hands were right there, digging into his waist and fluttering over his ribs.
"Resistance is inefficient, Ace! Just state the title of the software!" Ortho noted, his fake detective mustache lopsided and hanging off one nostril.
"NEHEHEVER!" Ace bent double as far as his bonds would allow, his face turning bright crimson. "KYAH—! NahaAHat the ribs, Ortho! AhaAHAHA, ANYTHING BUT THE RIBS, COME ON!!"
"Adjusting targeted coordinates to ribs," Ortho announced happily.
"NO! THAT'S NOT— GAH-HaHAHAHAHA! OKAY, OKAY! WAIT—STOP FOR A SECOND!" Ace gasped, tears of helpless laughter welling up in the corners of his eyes. "I'LL TALK! JUST PAUSE THE TORTURE DEVICE!"
The mechanical hands instantly retracted with a soft clicking, hovering in the air like a cluster of polite spider legs. Ace sagged against the back of the chair, panting heavily, his face flushed and his chest heaving.
"I am all ears," Ortho said, leaning in. His thermal sensors picking up the massive wave of heat suddenly rushing straight to Ace's face.
Ace squeezed his eyes shut, his jaw trembling. Oh boy, he'd rather take a beating from Floyd. He'd rather do extra get his hair chopped from Riddle. But looking at those eight silicon-tipped appendages twitching eagerly, he knew he was completely outmatched.
"It's..." Ace muttered under his breath, barely audible.
"Analysis: Audio input too low. Please repeat," Ortho said, cupping a hand to where a human ear would be.
"It's Heartstrings Academy, okay?!" Ace blurted out, his voice cracking loudly in the quiet pantry. "It's a limited-edition, ultra-rare, high-school romance dating simulator! There! I said it!"
Ortho blinked his glowing yellow eyes. "...A dating sim?"
"YES! A DATING SIM!" Ace yelled, his entire face burning so red. "It was a cross-over release with a super exclusive voice-acted route, and only 98 physical copies were made! I wanted to play it, alright?! But if Deuce found out I sneaked into Ignihyde to steal a *romance game*, I'd NEVER hear the end of it! He'd tell Cater, Cater would post it on Magicam, and my life would be OVER!"
Ortho stood frozen for two whole seconds as his internal system processed the information. Then, his mouth would've spread with wide, dazzling smile if he had one.
"Ah! Heartstrings Academy: Pure Love Blossom Route!" Ortho chirped, clapping his hands together. "Niisan bought the Collector's Edition on release day! He spent three days grinding the tsundere heroine's route to get the secret ending!"
Ace stared at him, stunned. "Wait... he actually has it?"
"Of course! But..." Ortho tilted his head, a devilish, playful glint appearing in his eyes. The eight mechanical hands slowly fluttered their silicone fingers again. "Intruding into Ignihyde is still a serious offense. And Niisan's save files are sacred."
Ace's heart dropped into his shoes. "Hey—wait a minute! I answered your question! We had a deal!"
"I never promised to release you upon answering," Ortho said innocently, gesturing with a single finger. "And besides... detective interrogations require full confessions. Who were you planning to target as your main heroine in the game?"
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Ace shrieked as the silicone hands lunged forward again. "GHA-HAHAHAHA! NOOOO! ORTHO, YOU—gyahAHAHAHHA! STOP, STOP! ORTHOOO!!"
Idia + Ortho
%100 PLATONIC. SHROUDCEST SHIPPERS DNI.
Side Note: No literally I'm serious if I catch anyone on this post shipping these two it's an on-SIGHT block. Oh and this is post book-6. Other than that happy tktober!
THIS IS A SFW TICKLE FIC!!!
Beep! Beep! Beep!
6:30 am. School was going to begin soon. Idia had told Ortho and himself that he would try to get to school at least one time this week, but sevens the bed was comfy...
"Nii-san!" Ortho called, already in his school uniform. "Idia, c'mon, it's already Friday! You promised you would come to school with me today." He put his hands on his hips, looking down at his barely-awake brother.
"mmm... in a minute..." Idia groaned, his head going deeper into his pillow. He was definitely going to get up......... eventually.
"Please, Idia! Just one class, and you can go back to bed." Ortho sighed, pulling the blankets off Idia. "Wake up, Nii-san!"
Idia shivered, curling in on himself. "Ugh... Ortho..." He opened his eyes slightly, catching a glimpse of Ortho's disapproving stare. "I'll be up in a few..." Idia flipped over, shoving his face into his pillow for some comfort.
"Not in a few. Now, Idia! We're going to be late." Ortho huffed. He grabbed ahold of his older brother, shaking him to wake him up. Idia's reaction to that was tensing up, his breath hitching for a second before resuming as normal.
"Nii-san-! Are you okay? I didn't accidentally hurt you, right-?" Ortho panicked for a second, thinking he had injured his brother. He looked at where his hands where placed, however, and realised they were latched onto Idia's sides. Ortho grinned, a delightfully "evil" idea forming in his head.
"You have to wake up Idia. We're going to school and that's final." Ortho announced, his hands still on Idia's sides.
"mmm... later..." Idia yawned, unaware of Ortho's plan.
"Sigh, If you say so..." Ortho stood still, staring at Idia's unmoving body. Suddenly, he started rapidly squeezing his hands up his brother's sides.
"gh- whahahahahat? Ohohohohortho!" Idia squeaked, kicking his legs wildly. "Ihihihim up!" He giggled, flipping over to see his attacker.
"Oh now you're up, huh?" Ortho teased, smirking. "Or are you just saying that? I think you're still asleep, Nii-san." He changed tactics, drilling his thumbs into Idia's lowest ribs.
Idia shrieked, his laughter picking up an octave. "gehehEHEHE- OHOHORTHO!" The ends of his hair started to turn pink, embarrassed at the situation. "IHIHIHIM AWAKE PLEHEHEASE!" He shook his head back and forth. "ORTHOHOHOHO! *snrk* NAHAHAHAHA!" He snorted, squeezing his eyes shut.
Ortho, sensing his brother way already almost at his limit, slowed down to a stop. "Ehe! That was fun, wasn't it, Nii-san?" He giggled, grabbing Idia his jacket from the closet. "Here, c'mon. We really gotta get going now! We're gonna be late!"
"Ugh...... coming... thanks, Ortho." Idia yawned, his face still a bit flushed. I put on his coat and pat his brother on the head. Well not actually, cause artificial fire, but you get the idea.
a/n: hi yall day 4 is out. this was fun to write! i dont think i made it as “scary” as i wanted it to be, but i dont think its bad. ANYWAY, i picked reader because the obvious choice would be idia, but im already writing for him two other times this month so i wanted someone else, which means… u. LOL. also, things i want to mention: idia is mentioned A LOT here and thats because ortho cares about him a lot. ik hes not just like, all about idia and thats all hes there for, but i think him mentioning idia a lot just works best in this scenario. another is that this is meant to be platonic because ortho is a like,,, kinda like young asf so i dont really think he should be shipped with people. sorry this note is SO FREAKING LONG. so ill stop yapping now gn everyone
——
“come out, come out, wherever you are!” ortho exclaimed in a gleeful tone, but somehow his words set your nerves aflame.
you crouched behind the tree, waiting for him to pass, and half-debating your life choices. you hadn’t played hide and seek in ages, but you felt nervous at being caught, especially when ortho said that there should be a penalty for whoever loses.
you didn’t really know what that penalty entailed, but since it was ortho, you figured why not? but now, hiding and seeing him search for you made you think you should’ve asked.
but really, who knew ortho would want there to be a penalty for the loser! it was to make things for fun, he had said.
he called your name, and you pursed your lips together, not daring to even breathe. ortho had a lot of functions that humans couldn’t do, and maybe superhearing was one of them… you really didn’t know so you would rather not take your chances.
you peeked out from behind the tree, sighing in relief when you didn’t see him anymore. does that mean you won?
“found you!” a shrill voice called from behind you.
“GAH!” you cried, scared of your wits as you lose your balance and fall forward on the ground. after a second to process, you turned slowly, looking at ortho. “aw, you found me.”
“mhm! and with three minutes to spare, which means i win!” ortho added, looking like he was having the time of his life. you smiled at that, but still…
“guess you do. so what’s my penalty?” you asked, hoping it wasn’t too extreme, like trying to convince idia to hang out with you for the whole day. you swear, it was impossible to have him talk to you for anything longer than an hour, even if it was about his interests.
“i’m gonna tickle you!”
your eyes widened at that, completely flabbergasted. of all things in the world, that was the last thing you expected.
“….tickle?!” you squeaked, awkwardly. did you hear wrong?
“yep! i think it’ll be fun!” ortho replied, not commenting on the nervousness and embarrassment you were feeling.
“fun?” you asked, but you guessed you could see where he was coming from.
“unless you don’t want to..” ortho said, pretending to be upset. you inwardly groan, he can really be so unfair sometimes, because how could you say no when he was looking so upset.
“fine, yes, i accept my penalty!” you cried, unable to take the guilt. you did feel much better though, when he began beaming.
“you will! yay!” he exclaimed, flying towards you. “maybe if i tell my brother about your tickle spots, you guys will be friends!”
“w-wait, huHUHUH?!” you cried, feeling his cold fingers begin to squeeze and knead at your torso. tell.. idia?! is this him trying to get information so you and idia could be friends?! in a way, it was sort of heartwarming to see him care for idia so much, but at the cost of your dignity? brutal. “stahahap, dohohont tehehell him!”
“why not? he’s ticklish too! you guys can have tickle fights!” ortho explained, and you can hardly believe how… open he is about exposing idia like that. and besides that, huh??
“nohohoho gahahahaha i’m tihihicklish!” you laughed, when he began to travel towards other spots.
“yes, you are reacting quite a lot when i tickle you!” ortho giggled, almost teasingly and clearly amused.
“plehehehehease!”
as he continued tickling you, he would note down spots that were more effective and spots that weren’t. the worst part was that he was saying this out loud. talk about embarrassing….
“you’re so ticklish here!” he teased, and it felt like you got even more ticklish. how was ortho so good at tickling anyway? probably from idia? he did say idia was ticklish…
a part of you realized you weren’t completely opposed to having a tickle fight with idia sometime. you didn’t have a lot of time to think about it before ortho because to tickle the spot that had always driven you crazy.
“W-WAHAHAIT! nohoho mohohohore! mehehercy!” you shouted, feeling overwhelmed very quickly and almost as quickly as you shouted it, ortho had stopped.
“that was fun, huh?” ortho smiled into his hand, as you tried to catch your breath.
“it wasn’t terrible,” you admitted. “a suitable penalty, i guess.”
“hehe, i hope we can play again sometime!” ortho said, and you could tell that you guys most definitely would. and not only that, but something told u that idia would be joining next time, whether he wanted to or not. you chuckled a bit at the thought.
Hii congratulations on 300!! I have a couple drabble ideas for you!! Feel free to pick one or the other, whichever you're feeling the most!
Ortho finds Idia up too late and decides to tickle him senseless to tire him out
OR
Vil finds Epel up too late and decides to tickle him senseless to tire him out
Basically same scenario but different characters shdbdbdbd
hii thanks for the request, decided to do ortho and idia cuz i love them hehe, enjoy :))
——
“ohohortho! stahahap!” idia cried, cursing himself for making ortho this strong. ortho laughed at his brother, fondly.
“are you gonna go to sleep, nii-san?” ortho asked, scribbling his robotic fingers across idia’s tummy with glee. idia’s face and the tips of his hair were bright pink.
“nohoho! the ehhehevent ends i-ihihin one dahahahay!” idia squealed, pushing ortho’s hands away from his body, but with the tickling weakening him, the task was proving to be quite difficult. part of him wanted to give up now, but… the event was practically calling his name! how was he meant to go to sleep when it beckons for him so desperately..!?
“you can complete the event tomorrow! it’s important to get a full night of rest!”
“b-buhuhuhut..!” idia tried to start, but ortho cut him off with a sharp zing to idia’s ribcage, in a spot he knew idia was particularly sensitive in.
“no buts! you need sleep!” ortho was stern and idia averted his eyes, shifting to the monitor.
“ohohohortho!” it was only two in the morning! he has pulled all-nighters before so this was nothing and yet…
“nii-san, you don’t sleep enough! you’re still a teenager and you need. to. grow.” his little brother said, enunciating his words with a poke to idia’s side. idia both admired and cursed ortho’s unwillingness to give up.
“it’ll b-behehehe fihihine! juhuhust lehehet mehehe go!” idia continued to protest and ortho had sighed. for a moment, idia had thought he finally had ortho beat but ortho didn’t relent, tickling him. a second later, he began scanning over idia with his eyes.
“your vitals say that your breathing is fine,” ortho started, but then the tickling becomes more vicious, causing idia to erupt into a new wave of laughter. “so i think i have some more convincing to do! i’m gonna tire you out, nii-san! that should help!”
