((So this is a oneshot that comes from my AO3 account (it’s in like a series of one-shots centering around Prompto), and I’m putting it here because I want to do one-shots and writing things here too (and also because it’s one of my two favorites in that project).
AO3 source [X]
Summary: He knows that it’s probably out of the question, but Prompto gets the chocobo decal anyway. (Alternatively: Prompto’s love for chocobos is a fact of life.)
This was probably a waste of gil.
This was also probably something that the others would never get behind. Noct and Gladio might get a kick out of it, but he was fairly certain Ignis wouldn't approve. It cost a good amount of gil, and there might be a little objection to the very idea of having a cute feathered mascot on the side of a car. And that's not even getting into the possibility of it being on the Regalia; something about royal appearances or something like that?
Prompto understood all of this, and he bought the chocobo decal anyway.
How could he not get it, though?! He was never ashamed of his fondness for chocobos (despite the endless teasing from Noct and the others about his hairdo), and it was such a cute picture too! Even if it never got placed on the car, that wouldn't stop Prompto from dreaming. He was a simple man with simple pleasures, after all.
There were a few laughs when the others discovered the purchase. There was a bit of light-hearted teasing from Noct, and Ignis was...well, Ignis. Although, he didn't seem like he disapproved as much as Prompto thought he would? In fact, he could have sworn there was an amused chuckle from the advisor, too.
And Gladio...he seemed resigned. He handed over a small bag to a very smug Noct and - wait a second.
That meant-!
"You two made a bet on me getting this thing??"
"It's an easy bet," Noctis responded, giving him a friendly punch on the arm. "The day you don't get something chocobo-releated is the day that Garulas will sprout wings and fly."
Prompto may have turned a little red at the teasing; he'd never admit it later.
Despite all the talk of decals and paint jobs, customizing the Regalia hadn't crossed any of their minds until there had been a massive wave in Imperial ambushes. It got to the point where there were ambushes at least two times a day.
At first it was Prompto's idea to make the change.
"If the Regalia's a different color, maybe they'll overlook us? Maybe...?" He let the question trail off. As he spoke, the suggestion just sounded dumber and dumber in his mind. He almost expected that his suggestion would be laughed off for being too simple or something.
To his surprise, the others agreed. It even led to a long discussion in the caravan. Prompto had a little trouble paying attention to all of it; he had been fighting off the urge to get to just doze off right there. He was tired, but he wanted to be awake for this.
Despite all the options available to him, Prompto couldn't bring himself to suggest that they use the chocobo decal. He wanted to, but he was worried that they'd think less of him for it. Would it be a childish request? Where would it even go, anyway?
It didn't stop him from glancing over at the decal whenever he thought nobody else would notice.
He wasn't sure when exactly he dozed off. It was getting a little late, and they had been fighting off monsters and MTs for a good part of the day, but he had no idea he was tired enough to actually fall asleep right then and there. In fact, it was the sunlight hitting his face that woke him up.
He groaned as he stretched his arms. He knew he was tired, but he didn't think he was so tired that he slept the whole night through. Geez, fighting things takes a lot out of a guy. Not that he'd turn back now to get out of it (far from it), but still...
He got dressed and stepped out of the caravan. He said good morning to the others (and Cindy too!), and then he passed the car.
It took him a few moments to realize that the royal blue car he had passed was definitely the Regalia.
It was completely different from its former paint job, and even the interior was different (a nice ivory) but it was definitely the same car upon closer inspection. He couldn't say the same for when someone looked at it from a bird's eye view, but Prompto could only guess.
That is, if he hadn't noticed the chocobo decal on the car. It was small and on the door to the front seat, but it was definitely there.
His reaction could only be described as mix between a gasp and a squeal. That was followed by him scrambling back towards the caravan, because what else could he do after making such a dumb noise but hide somewhere?
He'd later find out that it was partially Noct's idea to get the decal on the car. When he was asked, Noct would tease him about being easy to read. Again.
Eight Moments in Which a Blue Box was Involved (In Some Way)
So a long time ago, these posts happened on my dash. And a discussion with my GISHWHES teammates (mainly this one) followed. And yeah.
Supernatural timeline-wise, this would obviously be somewhere between Seasons 1 and 2. (Perhaps before the season 2 finale). As for Doctor Who timeline-wise, it's not set after a specific anything (because let's face it, everything's gone a little wibbly-wobbly and timey-wimey.)
Also I have no clue if I got Dean's character right. ;_;
I: Wichita
Most people wouldn't think twice about a blue police box in the middle of the street. Most people would regard it as some sort of practical joke and leave it be, assuming that it'll disappear within the next few days.
Sam Winchester was not most people, and neither was his brother. Most people weren't raised from childhood to kill the things that go bump in the night, or at least investigate whatever seemed off.
And that police box certainly seemed off.
Although Dean probably wouldn't have thought too much about the blue box either, if it wasn't positioned way too close to his baby - his beautiful Impala - for his liking. He wouldn't particularly admit it, though.
"What's a phone booth doing in the middle of the street, anyway?" Dean said. "Somebody make a mistake or something?"
"That's a police box," Sam corrected. "They used to be everywhere in Britain in the 60s. What's one doing here in the middle of the street...in Wichita, Kansas?"
"I don't know. We should find out," Dean said, marching up to the police box. He tried opening it, but to no avail. He pulled, he pushed, he did everything he could to get the damn thing open. Nothing happened.
He kicked the police box in frustration.
"Well, whoever did this, he's lucky that it didn't dent the car," Dean commented, going into the car. "C'mon, Sam."
As they drove away, Sam couldn't shake the feeling that there was something a little unusual about that police box.
II: What They Found in the Journal
"What are you doing?" Dean asked when he saw Sam flipping through the journal.
"Something bugs me about that police box, Dean," Sam responded. "I don't know why."
"You think it's something supernatural?"
"That's the thing; I'm not sure about supernatural, but I know it's out of the ordinary somehow."
"How else would it be out of the ordinary, Sam?" Dean asked incredulously. "It's not like it's a spaceship or something!"
Dean watched as Sam's expression changed from agitated to concerned/curious. That could only mean one thing.
"Find anything?" he asked.
"Yeah. Not about the box, but look," he said, showing Dean the page he was on. Dean read the newspaper clipping (it was from 2002); Indianapolis Man Vanishes While on Night Patrol. The article went on to explain how the man was a night guard at one of the many museums there.
"So?" Dean asked. "People disappear all the time, Sammy. He could have been kidnapped...or maybe someone hid his body really well."
"Yeah, but get this," Sam said, pointing to another piece of paper right next to the clipping. It read; Man Mysteriously Appears by the Kill Van Kull.
Dean scanned the article as Sam continued, "The pictures that the articles had are the same guy, Dean. And the article about Kill Van Kull was from 1916."
"He disappears in 2002 and appears in 1916?"
" Exactly! It doesn't make sense, Dean. How does someone mysteriously appear in the past and disappear in the future? And he's not the only one this happened to," Sam responded, flipping through the pages to show Dean more clippings. "There are others; people who disappeared from Indianapolis over the years and arrived in different parts of the country in different times."
Dean read through the clippings; more of the same; just as Sam said. One person found themselves wandering through San Francisco during the 70s, some unlucky sap landed in New York smack dab in the middle of World War II...
"Think we should check Indianapolis?" Sam asked. "It's not like we have any other jobs."
Dean seemed to concede with that.
"To Indianapolis."
III: Indianapolis
Sam and Dean's job took them all over the country. They couldn't afford to stay still for more than a few reasons; they were looking for their dad, supernatural beings don't exactly stay still either, ec cetera.
So when they went into a large city in Indiana, the last thing they expected to find was a blue police box on a random street corner.
Sam was the first to notice it.
"Dean, look!"
Dean blinked before he noticed the blue box. He stopped the car about five feet away from the box and the two brothers got out.
"This thing again?" Dean asked, circling the box.
"What's it doing here?" Sam questioned. "This looks like the same one we saw in Wichita. And that's a long way to Indianapolis. But look."
Sam and Dean watched as steam or smoke seemed to come out from inside the door. "Why's it doing that?"
"I don't know," Dean responded. "Maybe this has to do with the disappearances."
Sam was about to respond when the door opened and a man came stumbling out. The door closed behind him as he stumbled.
"Jesus!" Sam exclaimed as he caught the guy before he fell. "Dude, are you okay?"
The man didn't respond; he had lost consciousness. Sam checked his pulse.
"Well, he's alive," he said, peering at the phone box. "Wonder what happened?"
"Probably smoked a little too much in there," Dean said as Sam tried to open the door. "Didn't you see the smoke?"
Sam couldn't open the door; he sighed in defeat as he said, "It didn't exactly smell like cigarette smoke..."
"Look, whatever Sam. We didn't come here for a blue phone box and the guy who apparently lives in it."
"We should at least put him in a hotel room or something."
IV: Don't Blink
Dean and Sam found out that all those people disappeared from the basement of the art museum - someone had to get something and whatnot. So they went down to the basement the next day and found...
"Angel statues?" Dean asked. "What's with that?"
"That's a little weird," Sam conceded. "Shouldn't they be upstairs? You stay here; I'm gonna ask about the statues. In case there's anything, be careful."
"Come on, cut me some slack. How could angel statues be dangerous?" Dean asked as Sam walked off. He flashed a smile as he blinked.
Then his smile disappeared, replaced with confusion.
He thought he was imagining things, but it looked like those angel statues got a little closer to him.
As a method of precaution, he grabbed a container of salt from his bag. When he looked back at the statue, they had gotten even closer to him. One of them even had fangs bared into a snarl.
He backed away a few feet, not taking his eyes off the angel statues. Now he was positive that these weren't statues at all, but something didn't add up; how could they be so fast?
After around five minutes of this staring contest, his phone started to ring in his pocket. Not taking his eyes off the statues, he answered it.
"Dean?"
"Sam, where the hell are you?" he demanded.
"I'm outside. I'm calling from a payphone," Sam responded. "Let me ask you something; are you still in the room with the angel statues?"
"Well, yeah!" Dean remarked. "You left me here, remember?"
"Okay, uh," Sam started. Dean could hear paper crinkling on the other end. "Stay as far away from the angels as possible. Don't blink or look away from them. Also don't look them in the eyes. Just back away in a straight line," he recited.
"I get the 'don't blink or look away' part, but why that thing about looking them in the eyes?" Dean asked as he started to back away.
"I don't know. I found an envelope stapled by the payphone addressed to me. When I opened it, there was a note that said Call your brother and give him this information. And then there's a list of the stuff I told you. It doesn't say anymore than that."
"That could have been anybody who wrote it, though. What makes this note so special from anything else?!" Dean demanded as he continued backing up into the door.
"That's the thing, Dean. The note's in my handwriting."
Dean would have responded if he wasn't interrupted by someone grabbing his arm and dragging him away.
V: Dean Meets The Doctor
The door shut behind him soon after he was dragged off. Dean whirled around to face the same man from earlier. Only instead of the outfit he wore before, he was dressed in a trenchcoat and a suit. The man stared blankly at him, tilting his head to the side.
"Who are you?" Dean demanded.
"I'm the one who led you away from the Angels," the stranger responded. Dean fought the urge to facepalm.
"Thanks for that, but that doesn't exactly answer my question. Who are you?"
The man looked down at himself, blinking. "I am not sure; my physical visage has altered and my psycho-emotional state is completely new to me."
Dean only looked at the man in skeptical confusion. Was this dude a shapeshifter or something? Then why the hell did he save Dean's life? Regardless, he took a silver dagger from his pocket and hid it in his sleeve.
"...Dude, all I wanted was a name."
"Doctor. I'm the Doctor."
Dean stared skeptically at the unusual man. A shapeshifter named The Doctor?
"What the hell kind of name is that?"
'The Doctor' was about to answer when an employee walked in.
"Hey, are you two supposed to be here?" he asked. "I didn't see you two at the main entrance."
"My apologies," the mysterious man said, holding up a black wallet and showing the contents to the guard. "I think this should have all the information you need."
The guard took the wallet and examined it. He nodded, as if impressed.
"Okay, Mr. Novak. Sorry about that. You and your friend have a good one," he said, walking off.
Dean glanced at the Doctor skeptically once the guard was out of earshot.
"Mister Novak?" he repeated. "First you're this Doctor, and now Mr. Novak? Which is it?"
"The Doctor," he responded, holding up the wallet. Dean looked at it. Inside looked like a piece of ordinary paper. And it was blank.
"This is Psychic Paper," The Doctor explained. "It shows whatever I want people to see. That man saw a card for Castiel Novak - an art inspector - and his assistant."
Dean glanced at the paper. It just looked like a blank card to him. He had to hand it to him; if this dude was a shapeshifter, he was good.
"We should probably go," The Doctor said. "Your brother's waiting outside and he probably has questions."
Dean only watched as The Doctor walked off. He then threw the silver knife at him, and watched in shock at The Doctor caught it.
"I knew you were going to do that," he called. "I'm not a shapeshifter."
Flabbergasted, Dean found himself walking behind him.
VI: The Doctor Explains
"Dude, you alright?" Sam asked as he and the Doctor walked out the building.
"If you call being really confused okay," Dean responded. Sam then took notice of the Doctor.
"Hey, I saw you earlier. Why didn't you respond?" he asked. The Doctor tilted his head to the side.
"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about," he said.
"I walked out of the museum and saw you by that payphone," Sam responded, pointing at the nearby payphone. "I waved and tried getting your attention, but you just kept walking."
"That's when you saw that note," Dean assumed.
"You'll have to forgive me, but I don't remember being here. I woke up in a hotel room not three hours ago," the Doctor said.
Sam and Dean glanced at each other. An amnesiac, maybe? But Dean saw that he seemed to know a lot about whatever those things were...
"So what were those things? You called them Angels - I don't think you mean those fluffy white things from the sky," Dean commented.
"They are anything but that," the Doctor responded. "They are called Weeping Angels. Creatures from another world."
"Another world?" Sam repeated. "So they're aliens?"
"Yes. They have evolved near the beginning of the universe. They survived this long because they have the perfect defense mechanism; if they're ever looked at by another individual - human, alien or otherwise - they turn into rock. They have no choice; it's a biological fact. That's the reason their eyes are almost always covered; they cannot risk looking at each other."
"But you said they turn to stone. From what Dean and all the newspaper clipping say, they seem deadly. They can't be that deadly if they're just stone, right?" Sam asked.
"No, they can't," the Doctor conceded. "But then you turn away or blink. They are faster than any man or creature can conceive. If you so much as blink once, that could be all they need."
"To what? Kill me?" Dean asked, almost skeptical. "Buddy, I don't know if you've heard before, but we've had several brushes with death."
"They rarely kill you," the Doctor responded. "What they usually do is arguably worse than death. One touch and they send you back in time, condemned to live out the rest of your life in the past. That's how they keep themselves alive; they feed on the moments that might have been had you not been touched."
"Send you back in time? When did this turn into a sci-fi movie?" Sam remarked.
"My apologies," the Doctor said. "I understand if this is a little too much."
Dean held a hand to his head. "A little too much? You're saying that aliens and time travel exist. It's a little too science-y for me."
"And you?" the Doctor asked Sam.
"It's a lot to take in," he remarked. "But I figure...if demons and all sorts of supernatural stuff exist, why not aliens?"
The Doctor nodded, smiling. Sam was smart, a trait that he admired in people. Dean was smart too, but a little more, what's the word...harsh? That word would do for now.
VII: Bigger on the Inside
Sam and Dean Winchester had seen it all. Vampires, ghosts, vengeful spirits, shapeshifters, even demons. Nothing could really shock them anymore.
Except, apparently, for the blue phone box.
Which seemed to have a room the size of a high school auditorium.
Sam dashed out and looked around the phone booth again; just to make sure there were no signs of a trick or anything like that. When he found none, he stepped back into the phone box, where Dean remained looking at the machines whirring around them in wonder. The Doctor glanced at them, almost waiting for them to say something.
"So...It's bigger on the inside."
The Doctor nodded, almost amused. No matter how many incarnations he went through, how many companions he'd had, he loved it when people said that about the TARDIS.
He pressed a few buttons and the room started shaking. Dean and Sam grabbed on to a railing as the machine in the middle made wobbling and whooshing noises.
"Sorry, but I just came to a realization," the Doctor said when the noises and wobbling stopped. "Sam, where's the note you found?"
"Uh...it's right here," he said, taking it out of his pocket. The paper was very crumpled, causing the Doctor to shake his head.
"That's no good...I need you to recreate that note."
"Why?"
"Believe me, you'll know soon enough."
Sam blinked at the Doctor before shrugging and getting a notebook out of his jacket pocket. As weird as this was, the Doctor did save Dean's life...
VIII: In which Dean and Sam find themselves traveling with the Doctor (mostly thanks to Dean)
Sam and Dean waited inside the TARDIS while the Doctor stepped out for a minute. He didn't say much more than that, and he stressed that Dean and Sam not follow him out.
When the Doctor came back into the room, Dean and Sam were still looking around.
"So Doc...what exactly is this thing?" Dean questioned.
"It's the TARDIS. Time and Relative Dimension in Space," the Doctor answered. "It's my time machine."
"Right. Find an alien and the UFO isn't too far behind," Dean mumbled.
"Dean, a time machine travels through time, not space," Sam told him. "Hence the name."
"Actually, the TARDIS travels through time and space," the Doctor informed him. "I could go anywhere and anytime I wanted to."
"Seriously?" the brothers chorused. Dean shook his head at this.
"Hold on just a minute," he said. "I'm willing to believe that Weeping Angels bit, but time travel? There's no way you can prove that."
"Remember when I had Sam recreate that note and told you not to step outside?"
The brothers nodded, unsure of where this was going.
"I went back and planted the note that you wrote at the payphone you described," the Doctor explained. "You'll receive it soon enough."
Sam's eyes widened. "So that's why I saw you there? That was in my past, or present, I guess...and your future?"
The Doctor nodded. "The thing about time is that it's not a strict progression. It has many loops and turns, and can very easily be rewritten."
"Doesn't exactly prove it for me," Dean grumbled, crossing his arms. The Doctor took note of this and asked, "What would I have to do to convince you that this is true?"
"Oh, I don't know," Dean quipped. "Maybe have this thing take us to a planet where mountains start swaying whenever the wind blows?"
The Doctor hummed in thought, glancing up at the machine.
"I think I can do that," he mused, "Just that one trip, and you'll be back in your time before five minutes passed!"
"You can do that?" Dean asked, still skeptical. The Doctor smiled at this, as if he was about to show off something he was really proud of.
"Time traveler," was his only response as he flipped a few switches. The machine started whooshing again, and the room started shaking with more intensity than before.
Both brothers held on again, not knowing how to respond to that. Was there actually a planet like that??
What kind of insane traveler did they just meet?! And they were taken along for a ride!
Sam certainly hope that they wouldn't get killed (and that they really would be back in five minutes)...
Thanks for being patient with me on this. I was sleepy when I wrote some of this, and...yeah...I may go back to edit this later.
Last time, Terezi Pyrope was discovered dead in the library. A sword from the training room was used to kill her. Some evidence that was found points to Dave Strider, but there is even more evidence that proves otherwise. Can those pieces of evidence be enough to clear Dave's name? Find out...
When the students gathered by the red elevator, Dave could instantly feel the death glares coming from Feferi and Eridan...and the doubtful stares coming from John and Rose.
“Look, I know what it looks like,” Dave said, crossing his arms. “But I’m going to be honest. I didn’t kill Terezi. The fact that that shirt and those headphones were there is either a stupid coincidence or an attempt at framing me.”
“How do we know that for sure?” Feferi asked, eyes narrowing.
“There’s a lot of evidence,” Karkat responded, crossing his arms. “Other than that piece of crap Eridan found.”
"Evidence? What other evidence?" Eridan demanded. "You found Strider's headphones and shirt in the crime scene, right?"
Jade blinked slowly at this reasoning. "Well, yeah, but..."
That was when the elevator door opened. Without a word, everyone entered the elevator.
"Dave..." John whispered to the blond. "You didn't kill her, right? I mean, I know you made that whole deal about your headphones going missing, and…"
"Course not, dude," he responded. “Don’t worry about it.”
The elevator started going down, and with it, several stomachs and hearts.
For the second time, they had to condemn one of their friends to die.
~
"Alright, you bastards!" Mono-Cal said as everyone took their places, glancing at the pictures of the students that had been killed before them. "Let's go over the rules again. The person you vote for determines the outcome. If you get it right, only the culprit gets punished. But...if you make the wrong accusation, then everyone else gets punished, leaving the murderer to graduate! Also...as this motive promises, if the culprit in this trial gets away with it, he or she is allowed to save one person from execution, allowing both to graduate!"
"We don't need to go through this," Feferi said, crossing her arms. "We already know who killed her."
"Do you now?" Mono-Cal asked, tilting his head to the side.
"Yeah!" Eridan exclaimed. "It was Dave!"
“I know it’s hard for you, but don’t jump to conclusions. At least listen to the evidence before deciding," Sollux sighed.
"Eridan, perhaps we should listen to Sollux," Kanaya interjected. "Need I remind you that all of our lives are at stake if we get this wrong?"
Eridan huffed, crossing his arms. "Well...okay. But it won't change anything."
"Oh, I think you'll be surprised," Sollux said, smirking.
"First we should make the murder weapon clear," Rose said. "That should give us some clues."
"It was a sword, right?" John asked.
"A sword from the training room," Kanaya confirmed. "One that Equius made."
"If Equius made it, wouldn't that make him the culprit?" Eridan questioned. Equius shook his head.
"With all due respect, highblood, I am not the culprit," he said.
"Oh yeah? And who could prove that?" Eridan responded, crossing his arms.
"I can!" Nepeta responded. "We were in the training room around the time Terezi was murdered! We noticed one of his swords were missing a little befur that, and he's worked on a replacement ever since!"
“Is that what that thing you’re carrying is?” John asked, referring to the item strapped on Equius’ back. “Why do you have it here?”
"It was partly my idea. I think in order to proceed, we have to make clear who didn’t do it,” Jade answered.
“Oh? And what do you have in mind?” Rose questioned.
Equius grabbed the sword that was hanging from his shoulder.
“John,” he called. “Could you attempt to carry this sword, please?”
John blinked at the unusual request. “Uh, okay…I guess.”
Dave snickered as John and Equius hopped off their respective posts and met in the middle of the courtroom. Equius handed the sword to John…and he was dragged to the floor almost faster than Dave was.
“Jesus fuck this is heavy!” John exclaimed, tugging at the sword. “Is this, like, half-cement?!”
“So…John can’t even lift it,” Tavros said. “Dave, uh…couldn’t lift it either. And didn’t Nepeta…say something about it being, uh…a replacement sword?”
"Correct. This sword is exactly like the one used in the murder," Equius confirmed. "I made sure of that."
"It was way too heavy for Dave to even lift," Jade said. "So how could Dave have murdered her with that sword?"
“Is it…because he couldn’t?” Tavros responded.
"So Dave didn't do it after all?" Feferi questioned, dumbstruck by this revelation. “Or any of the humans for that matter?”
"Then who did?" John asked, confused.
“Well, it’s obvious coming from an investigational viewpoint,” Sollux said. “The culprit messed up big-time in trying to frame Strider. There were only two pieces of evidence pointing at him; his headphones and a blood-soaked shirt. Whereas there’s an abundance of evidence pointing to one other person. Harley and Kanaya know what I’m talking about.”
“I certainly do,” Kanaya responded, holding out the piece of cloth Karkat had found. “This was found in Terezi’s hand. She may have been able to rip it in the struggle. When I examined it, it didn’t take me too long to realize that this was material that those on the higher end of the hemospectrum would wear. It is safe to say that Equius wouldn’t wear something like this – you see, this material is used for suits and dresses - so that leaves Feferi and Eridan.”
“So one of us…is the culprit?” Feferi asked slowly, glancing at Eridan.
"Um, Feferi?” Jade asked. “Do you mind if I asked you a few questions?”
Feferi blinked in confusion. "Um...I guess I don't have reason to. Go ahead."
"Okay. This is just for the record...where were you while we were investigating, and who were you with?" Jade asked.
"Whale...I was with Eridan, John and Rose the entire time," Feferi responded softly. "They were trying to comfort me. As you know, I was a real mess when we found Terezi."
Jade nodded. "Okay. And this goes to all four of you; did Tavros, Dave, Equius, or anyone doing the crime scene talk to you about what we found?"
"Well, uh…I don't suppose..." Eridan said, pushing his fingers together nervously.
"Uh, no," John said, blinking.
"The four of us were together the entire time," Rose added. "Nobody talked to us or anything. It was just the four of us."
"Okay, that's what I needed to know," Jade said hesitantly. "And now I can say this with certainty...well, what I mean is..."
"Save your breath, Harley," Sollux deadpanned. "I'll save you the trouble. It’s obvious Eridan's the culprit, anyway."
“H-Hey now!” Eridan responded. “Why accuse me? Other than that cloth there’s no real reason to frame me!”
"How about this; there’s something that Eridan said before the trial that bothered me a bit," Jade said, crossing her arms. "If you really think about it, it's nothing short of suspicious."
"And what might that be?" the sea-dwelling troll asked (was he nervous?).
Karkat thought about it for a bit, and then his eyes widened.
"You mentioned that Strider's shirt was found at the crime scene..." he said.
"And how did you know that?" Sollux asked, eyes narrowing. "Other than the people at the crime scene..."
"Only three people should know that," Jade finished. "Tavros, Dave, and Equius. By that logic… John, Rose, Feferi, and Eridan shouldn’t know about that.”
"No, we shouldn’t," Rose responded, glancing at Eridan.
“Oh, well…I forgot to mention that I found it, too,” Eridan responded hastily. “Oops…”
“How do you, uh...‘forget’ something important like that?” Tavros questioned. “The last time...this happened you were very, um...eager when it came to finding evidence.”
“Hey, slip-ups like this happen all the time!” Eridan argued. “Based on a shirt and a cloth…that’s all you’re going to pin on me?”
“Hang on, Ampora. I’ve saved the best for last,” Sollux said, smirking. “Terezi wrote a dying message in the writing the Blind Prophets used.”
He took out a photo of the message, passing it to Rose. When John got the photo, he blinked.
“They’re numbers and letters…three – R – one – D – four – N?” he questioned. “If you look at the numbers as letters…then that reads…!”
“It reads Eridan,” Feferi said softly as she was handed the photo.
“So let’s review,” Sollux said, “the culprit grabbed a sword from the practice room and found Terezi in the library. After a brief struggle, he killed her and planted Strider’s things there.”
“The big mistake the culprit made was that he didn’t make sure that Terezi was really dead,” Jade continued. “She must have seen the culprit planting the fake evidence and wrote out a name in blood.”
“And that, along with the cloth and the mere weight of the sword caused the endeavor to fail,” Rose finished. “Isn’t that right, Eridan?”
That was it. The trial was done; at that point, everyone cast their votes on the culprit. The slots turned…and landed on Eridan’s symbol.
"Well, well...looks like you bastards all got it right again!" Mono-Cal exclaimed. "The murderer of Terezi Pyrope...is in fact, Eridan Ampora! But uh-oh~! One of you voted wrong! I'll let it slide this time, but please be more careful!”
Feferi, to say the least, was heartbroken. Her ex-moirail doing something like this…She was really hoping it wasn't true, so...
Eridan glanced at the side, almost expecting what Feferi was going to say next.
“Eridan…why did you do it?” Feferi asked, about ready to cry. “Please be honest with me. Please…?”
Eridan swallowed, and then said, “Well…it was mostly because of the motive. I figured it would be a perfect opportunity to help you escape. I know how much you wanted to swim in the ocean again. So I…grabbed the sword and found Terezi.”
“And Dave’s stuff?” John asked softly.
“Pure coincidence,” Eridan said, chuckling. “I found them on my way to the library and figured, why not? If I’m going to do this, I may as well try to frame someone. I guess I didn’t do that good of a job…”
Nepeta blinked, and then realized something; “Eridan…did you do it beclaws you still have flushed feelings for Feferi? Is that why you wanted to help her escape?”
“Well…” Eridan started. He was about to say no, but then figured; if I’m going to die, why not make the best of my last few moments?
“Yeah,” he admitted. “I just wanted to see her smile…like we used to when we were grubs. She was happiest in the ocean, and I don’t think she was too happy here. Fef…I’m sorry. Just promise me you’ll escape, okay?”
Feferi nodded as tears ran down her face. She hugged Eridan, and the two friends embraced tightly. There wasn’t a single person (human or troll) that wasn’t moved by this event.
Except for Mono-Cal.
“What a lame reason to kill someone!” he exclaimed. “So I’m going to get to the good part! I’ve set up a lovely execution for our Super High-School Level Sharpshooter!”
At this, the chain clamped around Eridan’s neck, yanking him harshly away from Feferi.
“Wait a minute!” Feferi shouted. She was able to grab his hand, trying to tug him out of the chain. However, the chain was too strong, and Eridan’s hand slipped from hers.
“Eridan!” Feferi shouted.
“Feferiiii!”
~~
Eridan was on a pirate ship, behind the wheel. His feet were bolted to the floor, keeping him in position. He was surrounded by hundreds of other ships, about ready to attack. And attack they did; cannonballs, gunpowder, the works. Eventually it became too much for the ship, and it started to sink.
Eridan closed his eyes as he sank into the ocean. At least this was the sort of death he wanted, he mused. A pirate’s death.
That was when Mono-Cal swung into the picture, brandishing a chainsaw. With one move, he sliced Eridan in half, leaving the two body parts to sink into the ocean. Mono-Cal put on a small life-vest (red and green, of course).
So this was an anon’s request. He/She wanted an unlikely/surprising murder (NOT related to canon Homestuck kills), and I hope I delivered on the surprising part. This’ll be in two or three parts; this post’s gonna be the body discovery/investigation (with the Mono-Cal File thrown in there), and another is going to be the trial/execution. There may (only may) be a third part, exploring the aftermath of the whole thing, but ehhh… I don’t know yet. For now just expect this to be in two parts.)
Karkat could not believe what he was seeing. No fucking way was Terezi dead, there was no fucking way. After the Gamzee incident, he didn't know if this was a dream or not!
But there she was; impaled with what looked like a sword, leaving her pinned to the wall. Teal blood was everywhere, from the floor to the wall.
The scream Karkat made echoed throughout the entire school.
~
MONO-CAL FILE
Terezi Pyrope (Super High-School Level Lawyer) was murdered in the library at 2 in the afternoon. Victim was run through with what appears to be a sword and left to die there.
~
Jade, Nepeta, Kanaya, Karkat, and Sollux were assigned to investigation duty. Tavros was busy comforting Dave and Rose and John were talking to Eridan and Feferi at this time. Nepeta said that Equius was busy working with something, and that she'd fill him in on the details.
Sollux noticed a white thing (stained with teal) and lifted it up. It had what looked like a broken record...
"Isn't this one of Strider's shirts?" Sollux asked, holding up a white shirt. "What's it doing here, and why is it soaked in blood?"
"Are you saying that Strider did it?" Karkat asked, shocked. He growled, "That fucker!"
"Dave didn't kill her!" Jade huffed. "He was at the pool with me and Kanaya at the time this happened! Dave's being framed!"
"I concur," Kanaya said. "Jade's testimony is correct."
"But...who else could it be?" Nepeta asked, unsure.
As the four argued, Sollux noticed something behind Terezi's back. His eyes widened when he realized what it was.
"Shut up," he called.
"See? Sollux agrees with me!" Karkat shouted.
"No, all of you, shut up," Sollux snapped. "Kanaya and Jade are right; Dave didn't do it, KK."
"Didn't do - what the fuck are you saying?!" Karkat demanded. "Feferi discovered headphones, and we just found a blood-stained shirt of Dave's at the crime scene! That's more than enough proof that he did it!"
"And if you would look at what Terezi wrote before she died," Sollux snapped, "we may be able to figure out who actually killed her."
This caught the other's attention. They examined the message Sollux was pointing at. It was true; in her blood, Terezi wrote something that looked like upside-down numbers and letters.
"Numbers and letters?" Jade asked.
"Is this Blind Prophet writing?" Kanaya asked. Sollux scoffed.
"You got it," he responded. "Upside down, but hey, if you were writing a message behind your back like that, it'd be upside-down too. Terezi probably wrote it because she knew the culprit was going to try to frame Dave."
"And how, exactly, do you know it's not Dave's name she wrote?" Karkat asked.
"Because it'd be shorter," Sollux shot back, putting a hand to his head. "Blind Prophet writing is essentially the same as what humans and trolls use to write, but numbers replace a few letters. The number three replaces the letter E, four replaces A, and so on. This obviously has six characters, so it couldn't have been Dave - or any of the humans, for that matter. Honestly, if you got school-fed more often you'd know that, KK."
Karkat was too busy thinking about this new development to respond.
So did this mean Dave didn't kill Terezi after all?
And if he didn't, who did?
"So do you think you can unscramble this?" Jade asked. Sollux nodded.
"Don't underestimate me, Harley," he said. He then smirked, "I'm not called the Super High-School Level Hacker for nothing. It seems simple enough, anyway."
"Okay!" Jade chirped. Kanaya took this time to examine the murder weapon.
"I believe I know where this is from," she said.
"Where?" Karkat asked. Nepeta examined it too, gasping.
"That's from the training room!" she exclaimed. "They're really heavy - I don't think Dave can lift it."
"What about Equius, though?" Jade asked. "He's pretty strong, isn't he? And didn't you mention one time that he made things like this?"
Nepeta huffed. "He didn't do it! I was with him at the training room when this happened. But, um..."
"What is it, Nepeta?" Kanaya asked.
"We did notice that one of the purractice swords he made was missing," she admitted. "So maybe the culpurrit stole it before we got there?"
"Hmmm...So we know what the weapon is, and who didn't kill her," Jade said. "Do we have anything else?"
Karkat then noticed something clutched in Terezi's hand. He forced it out of her hand and examined it. It was a piece of cloth. The color was undetermined (with the teal blood that seeped through it, it could have been any color), but it didn't feel like that cottony crap Dave's shirt was...
"Hey, Jade," he called. "Can you and Nepeta get Dave to lift one of Equius' sword things? We should see if it's too heavy for him. You know...to make sure he didn't do it."
"I'll do you one better!" Nepeta exclaimed, grinning. "I can ask Ekitty to let us use the replacement one he's making. He's been working on it since we discovered it was missing."
"Okay, then. We better get cracking!" Jade said. "The trial should be starting soon."
With that, Jade and Nepeta left the room. Sollux examined the cloth Karkat had.
"Where'd you get that?" he asked.
"Terezi had it in her hand," Karkat responded. "It doesn't feel like that cotton stuff..."
"May I see it?" Kanaya asked. "I believe I may get an idea as to who the culprit is with this cloth."
Karkat handed it to her and the rest of the investigation was done in silence.
~
"So wait. Let me see if I got this right. One of my shirts was found at the crime scene, so I'm the prime suspect?" Dave asked, leaning on the training room wall. If he was scared, he didn't show it.
"That, um...does seem to be the case," Tavros responded.
"But we know you didn't do it, because we found evidence that points at the real culprit," Jade responded. "One thing is the murder weapon itself."
"What does the murder weapon have to do with anything?" Dave asked. It was then that Equius stepped into the room, holding a practice sword.
"Simply hold this, please," he told Dave, handing it to him. The blond did so...and was instantly pulled to the ground by the sheer weight of it. The sword made a loud CRASH as it plummeted to the ground.
"Jesus fuck this is heavy!" he exclaimed, trying to pull it up with him. The sword did not budge. "What did you put into this thing, cement?!"
"What he put into it doesn't matter," Jade said, grinning. "It's the same make as the sword that killed Terezi, right?"
"Correct," Equius said. "I made sure to put the exact details of the murder weapon into this sword."
"So that proves it! Dave didn't do it!" Nepeta cheered. Tavros gave a small smile.
"That's great...but uh...if he didn't do it..." he started.
"Then who did?" Equius finished. "Nepeta, have you found anything while investigating?"
"Sure did!" she responded. "She wrote a dying message in Blind Purrophet writing. Sollux is trying to unscramble it, though. We should have the name by the time the trial starts."
"So...Dave's in the clear?" Tavros asked.
"We may need to convince Feferi and Eridan, though. Also maybe Rose and John. I think they believe it's you, because Eridan found a pair of your headphones there," Jade told Dave. "Fef told me that before I started. And then there's your shirt..."
"Great," Dave said, holding a hand to his head. Feferi was practically a fucking princess, and John and Rose...
"Attention, you bastards!" Mono-Cal's voice echoed through the school. "The trial will begin shortly. Please make your way to the elevator so we can begin!"
The group left the room; first Equius, then Nepeta and Tavros, leaving Jade and Dave. Jade smiled reassuringly at Dave.
You never thought too much of the color silver; while it was a pretty color, there was probably a reason silver went to the second place winner. According to everything you've seen, gold is better than silver; it was more valuable, after all.
But when you step out into your land, gold is the furthest thing from your mind.
Instead of green, you see silver. The grass is silver, the leaves on the trees are silver...and that's it. Everything else is what it (sort of) would be; brown tree trunks, a purple-blue sky dotted with stars...it was sort of peaceful, really.
You walk up to the nearest tree and watch as the leaves seemed to sparkle in the moonlight. You sit there, almost mesmerized by the sight. This has to be one of the prettiest places you've ever been in. How can this get any better??
That was when the earthquake began.
The ground starts shaking fiercely, causing you to panic. Instinctively you wrap the tree trunk in a tight hug and hold on for dear life. You wonder when the earthquake would stop, because if it goes on for much longer, you're certain you'll die.
You feel something land on your head. It's not a blow big enough to knock you out, but you feel it all the same. Briefly you wonder what it could be.
Thankfully it stops about five minutes after it started, allowing you to examine the mystery object. It's a silver apple. Frankly you're not too surprised to see that it's silver, especially since it probably came from the tree you were standing on. But should you eat it?
You decide to take a chance and take a small bite. You spit it out instantly; it tastes like metal! You pick a nearby apple from the tree to see if they all tasted like metal. This second one doesn't, surprisingly; it tastes sweet and juicy. It was delicious.
Now you remember what your sprite said; "Welcome to the Land of Silver and Quakes! Everything that is important in this world is silver, but that's usually ruined by the constant earthquakes. So your job is to stop the planet!"
How would you be able to stop an entire planet??
You find a road leading to a village and decide to follow it. Maybe you'll find some clues there.
