The trope I appreciate very much
Did you guys know that itās Autism Acceptance Month?
Anyway, I think we can all agree that qCellbitās latest hyperfixation is Skateboarding and that his special interest has been Enigmas since he was a little little kid. His knife is his comfort item, and one of his oldest stims is licking his lips in That Way (you know what Iām talking about), and he probably has a fake knife that he fidgets with (he used to use a real one, but he doesnāt want to accidentally cut himself in front of Richas and freak him out, so heās switched it out with a fake Halloween prop.) And his comfort food is human blood :) and also coffee :)
That's right, this isn't a joke! Would I lie to you?
Interest checks for The Reason is You, a Spiderbit/Guapoduo-based fanzine, are now open!
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ENGLISH FORM SPANISH FORM PORTUGUESE FORM
Guys when they relapse on the whole killing people thing (donāt worry heās just a silly catboy nothing to worry abt :3)
Comments like this on Breaking Dawn make me soooooo !! because like! That's the point! He's unhealthy! He isn't doing well and everybody around him knows it except for Roier, who has a pretty good idea that Cellbit isn't great but who has decided to keep quiet about it until Cellbit's in a good enough place to talk (love our little psychiatrist)
Cellbit is such an unreliable narrator that he himself has halfway convinced a good bit of the audience that he's Fine when he's literally so unwilling to just go home where he thinks the bear is- with almost no proof btw- that he's sleeping on a sofa too small for him and showering at the gym and lying about it. Like he knows he isn't doing well, but he isn't admitting it even to himself, and he has half of y'all fooled lol
i mean if u want
What if that's one of the reasons why Roier was so repellent to Pepito at first?..
For day five of @smallchaoscryptid's Spiderbit Week- Superheroes/Blood
-
Cellbit's dreams are always dark. They start with him in his childhood bedroom, and then they move him down to the kitchen his parents died in, and then they end with him under the bridge. The sounds are muffled, but he can still understand what's being said, and it's always: "It's your fault."
Because it is.
He's had the same dreams since the night his parents died.
Every.
Goddamn.
Night.
But, well. He deserves it. The darkness surrounding the edges of his dream blurs out the unimportant details, like the face of the little girl who was sitting at the kitchen table when Cellbit's parents died, or the view outside of his bedroom window.
But the darkness hides something else- and this is a recent development, and he really doesn't understand it. Because, just out of view, is a figure in all black with eyes that glow white and claws that tear through Cellbit's dreams like they're paper.
He doesn't know who, or what, this thing is, but he does know a few things about it:
The creature destroys Cellbit's nightmares, sending his subconscious tumbling into a much happier dream- one that he can never remember when he wakes up
The creature tries to talk to him every time, but the fangs in its mouth are so large that it just can't
The creature seems to grow taller and stronger with every nightmare it destroys.
The creature is scared of Cellbit's husband
Now, yeah, sure, the creature can't talk, but Cellbit doesn't need to hear someone speak to know what they're afraid of. That's his superpower: fear. He can look at someone and hear what they're scared of, and he can make them scared, and it's horrible and he's a monster and he deserves to-
Cellbit gasps his way into full consciousness. He stares at the ceiling, chest heaving, brain loud and annoying and and and and-
"Gatinho?" Roier murmurs, curled up by Cellbit's side with his head pillowed on Cellbit's chest. He wraps an arm around Cellbit's middle and squirms closer, somehow, he's so clingy.
"EstĆ” bem," Cellbit breaths. "Just... just thinking."
"Well, don't," Roier grumbles. "Your brain is loud. Sleep, pendejo."
As if on command, Cellbit's eyelids droop. Roier always has this effect on him; he's just so comforting. He's a living, breathing weighted blanket, and Cellbit loves him so fucking much.
Soon enough, he's asleep again, and he's face-to-face with the creature again.
The creature tries to speak, but no noise comes out.
It flexes its claws as Dream Cellbit starts the walk downstairs to the kitchen.
The dream is shredded, and Cellbit finds himself face-to-face with-
-
Roier and Cellbit have been married for almost one whole entire wonderful year. He's known Roier for one and a half years, and he's been out of prison for two years.
Roier knows about the creature in Cellbit's dreams, even if Cellbit hasn't told him what his dreams actually are. Roier's been trying to come up with a name for it for months now, but Cellbit doesn't really know what to think of that considering the creature is literally invading his brain every night.
"It's kind of sweet, though, right?" Roier asks.
Cellbit wrinkles his nose and jabs his chopsticks down into his rice.
Dinner tonight is Chinese takeout because Roier's tired from work and Cellbit is tired from existing. It's good, but kind of bland. Since they changed ownership and ended up under the Federation of Heroes' official branding, the food has gone downhill. Yet another thing that Cucurucho has ruined, ugh.
"I mean, maybe?" Cellbit replies. "It's kind of freaky."
"I don't know, it kind of sounds cute."
Cellbit gives Roier a flat look; Roier just grins and steals some chicken from his plate.
"It's destroying my dreams," Cellbit says. "That doesn't sound 'cute' to me."
"Yeah, but doesn't it give you different dreams?" Roier asks. "I think it's trying to help."
"Yeah, or it's trying to kill me."
Roier's shoulders tighten. "Do you think so?"
It's always hard to pick up Roier's fears, but Cellbit can often just guess them even without using his powers. Like, he knows that Roier is just scared enough of bears to refuse to go camping anywhere without a cabin for him to stay him. He and Cellbit are both terrified of losing each other, and they're even more scared of losing their kids.
God, Cellbit is so stupid. He doesn't need to be worrying Roier with this, he already freaks out enough when Cellbit ends up caught in the middle of one of the Federation's hero fights due to his abysmally terrible luck.
His face falls. He places his chopsticks down and reaches across the table and takes Roier's hand in his.
"It'll be fine," he tells Roier. "If it tries to kill me, I'll just... wake up."
"If it tries to kill you, I'll kick its ass," Roier swears.
He squeezes Cellbit's hand once and offers a lackluster smile.
Cellbit's heart twists in his chest. Oh, Roier...
-
The night's dream starts as usual:
Cellbit opens his eyes to find himself in his childhood bedroom in his childhood body. There aren't any bloodstains on his clothes yet, though that'll change soon enough.
He tries looking out the window, but that isn't what he did that night, so anything beyond the window is covered by the darkness.
There's a growl, and then the creature forms in the shadows near Cellbit's bed. (There are always two beds in his room, but why?)
"What do you want?" Cellbit tries to ask, but that isn't what he did that night.
Instead, and in a squeaky childish voice, he groans and shouts, "This sucks! I can't figure it out!"
He's at his desk. In front of him are multiplication tables he's supposed to be doing for homework, and they're easy enough that Adult Cellbit could do them now, but that isn't what happened that night. So the problems look like random lines and squiggles, and Cellbit's chest hurts, and he can't breathe, and-
"I can't do this!" he shouts, jumping off of his chair and pulling his homework with him. "MĆ£e!"
He reaches his door, has his hand on the handle, and then... there's the creature by his side shredding the door into pieces with its claws.
Cellbit blinks, and he's an adult again, and he's in a different dream, and he turns to the side and he's face-to-face with-
-
Roier is one of the few people Cellbit has ever heard of that doesn't have a superpower. He seems happy enough without one, but... but Cellbit thinks that he's lying. He isn't angry that Roier is lying, though. No, he understands, because he himself lied about not having powers until they'd been dating for six months.
In the back of his mind, Cellbit has a few ideas of what Roier's secret superpower could be. The only one he says out loud is, "I know what your power is. You're super handsome!"
But, in order, it goes:
Extreme endurance (evidence: goes for long runs every morning and ends up back in bed sweating and tired by the time Cellbit wakes up)
Can always cook the perfect meal (evidence: he's just really good at cooking)
Comfort aura (evidence: Cellbit always feels happy and cozy and safe when Roier is around)
Super strength (evidence: he's really strong)
But, well. None of those quite work, mostly because the majority of them are just early excuses for thinking Roier was attractive back before they started dating.
Tonight as Cellbit brushes his teeth and gets ready for bed, he thinks up a new idea:
Vocal projection (evidence: he's loud as fuck when he's singing in the shower)
Because, yes, Roier is, indeed, in the shower, and he's singing very loudly. But, really, Cellbit wouldn't have him any other way. He's perfect.
"Hey, guapito," Cellbit says after rinsing his mouth out. "I need your help with something?"
Roier cuts his song off with an irritated groan. "Now? I was almost to the chorus!"
"Desculpe. But you're better at naming things than I am, and I need help coming up with something to call the creature in my dream diary."
"You have a dream diary?"
"I'm starting it tonight. I'm going to figure this thing out."
"That's cute!"
Cellbit can see Roier's silhouette shaking with silent laughter through the shower curtain. Wordlessly, he opens the curtain so he can take the shower head down and spray Roier with it.
"It's serious," Cellbit says, ignoring Roier's screeching protests. "I think it's messing with my head."
"Put that down- vete a la verga, fuck!"
Roier bats at Cellbit's hands until Cellbit lowers the shower head.
And then Roier yanks the shower head away from him and sprays him with it.
"Pendejo!" Cellbit shouts. (Not the best swear word, but it's all he could come up with on such short notice.)
He skitters away from the shower and looks, horrified, down at his soaking wet pajamas.
"Whoops," Roier plainly says. "Guess you'll just have to sleep naked tonight."
He grins, and Cellbit hates him. He wants to kiss him soooo badly!
So he does, and it's nice.
A few minutes later as they crawl into bed, Roier says, "Hey. I have a name for your monster."
Cellbit looks at him. "Yeah?"
"Call it Venom. It's, like, dissolving your dreams, right? Like poison?"
Brain poison, hmm.
Cellbit grabs his brand new dream journal off of his bedside table and opens it. Right on the first page is a long, detailed description of his dream. Right below it is a description of the creature as well as a really messy drawing.
'Venom', he writes.
...What a specific descriptoin. "Dissolving your dreams", not quite how Cellbit has been describing it.
He glances at Roier out of the corner of his eye.
Hm.
-
The first part of the dream goes normally.
And then Cellbit is downstairs at the kitchen table with his parents. There's also a girl there, but Cellbit hadn't looked at her face that night, so she doesn't have one now.
"I can't do it," Cellbit whines. He balls his hands into fists and fights the urge to smash his own face into the table.
"You can," his father insists. "You're a smart kid! Why don't we take a break."
He gets up from the table and goes to cut some watermelon.
Cellbit knows what's about to happen next. But he can't close his eyes, because his eyes were open that night.
"Let's try one more time, okay?" his mother asks.
He sniffles and nods.
He looks down at the problems. He can't understand him, he's so stupid. He's so stupid! Why can't he be like [her]?! She's good at math. She's even finished her homework.
His vision starts to blur. He can't see. He can't- he can't breathe oh fuck he can't breathe why can't he breathe what why can't he
A scream.
He looks up and watches his father finish plunging his watermelon-cutting knife into his own stomach.
"Pai!?" the girl screeches.
"I can't do it," Cellbit's mother whispers. "I'm a failure. I can't do it."
She wrestles Cellbit's pencil from his hand and raises it to her eye and-
Cellbit gasps as a clawed hand rips the table into pieces in front of him.
As the dream shifts and as his body turns back into his own, he's pulled by the creature- by Venom- into a loose hug. Its claws dig into his back, but they don't hurt.
He looks up, and he finds himself face-to-face with-
-
Roier was the first person that Cellbit let himself get attached to after he was released from prison.
He'd met Roier by pure chance, and it was love at first sight. He was just so... and he's still so...
"Does this dress make my ass look big?" Roier asks, posing in front of Cellbit in a way that most people would probably call sexy.
...perfect.
They'd met at their mutual friend, Maxo's, club. Roier wasn't on the pole that night, he was instead working the bar, and he and Cellbit hit it off immediately.
The next time Cellbit had been gone, Roier wasn't there, but his 'cousin' was. Melissa, according to Roier, owns half of the club.
And then, seven months later while rummaging through Roier's closet looking for a hoodie to steal, Cellbit had seen one of Melissa's dresses, and, well. Cellbit isn't stupid, okay? But he hadn't said anything because he didn't want to break Roier's trust, and he lives by that idea even now almost two years after their marriage.
If Roier wants to tell him something, he will. It isn't Cellbit's place to push.
Cellbit checks out Roier's ass appreciatively.
"Everything you wear makes your butt look big," he replies.
Roier nods and smiles, more than content with that answer, and he goes to the other side of his dressing room to start putting his makeup on.
Cellbit tries to make it to every one of "Melissa's" shows. He's a good husband, he wants to support Roier in everything he does.
...And he can't sleep anymore unless he has Roier by his side. Does that make him clingy?
He yawns, anyway, and he leans back and slumps in his chair. He might move to the dressing room's sofa, he's exhausted. (He might not be able to sleep without Roier, but he can rest his eyes, at least.)
"Is it okay if I stay back here?" he asks. "I need to lay down."
Roier glances at him through his mirror, concern lining his face. "Are you okay?"
Cellbit waves his concerns aside. "I'm just a little tired. I don't think I'm going to fall asleep, but I don't want to accidentally pass out during your show. That would be bad for business."
Roier's eyebrows furrow, just slightly. "Are you sure?"
"I mean, if it's okay-"
"No!" Roier cuts him off so quickly that he even seems to surprise himself. "I mean. It's okay, but you might not be comfortable. I can try and find you a pillow?"
His voice is shaking, just slightly. Hm.
"Nah, I'm good," Cellbit replies. He shrugs his jacket off and balls it up in his arms. "I've slept in worse places before."
"If- if you're sure, then go ahead."
Something feels... off. Maybe it's just because Cellbit is tired, but something is just. Weird.
But Roier eventually leaves the dressing room, though not without giving Cellbit a big fat messy lipstick-covered kiss on the lips.
Cellbit moves to the sofa, and he pillows his head on his jacket, and he closes his eyes, and he... he falls asleep. Just barely, because his dream is a faded memory around him, but. But.
But Venom isn't there.
-
The third stage of the dream is the coldest. It gnaws at Cellbit's brain, because it was the middle of January when his parents died. He was alone and under the bridge and covered in blood and absolutely freezing.
The dream doesn't ever go on past the bridge. He always just sits there shivering until he wakes up unless Venom shows up.
So he sits, and he shivers, and he waits to wake up. His body is crying, and the tears are freezing to his cheeks. He can't breathe. He can't stop thinking of... of... fuck, who is that girl? The one who chased Cellbit out of the house. The one with no face but the same voice as him.
A police car speeds over the bridge above him. It's going to his house, he knows this. The morning after the bridge, he snuck back towards his house, and the police car was still there. So was the girl. So were his parents bodies, wrapped in sheets and being carried to a Federation-white van.
He's a mistake. [She] was always better than him. [She] never hurt anybody. It isn't fair!
He sobs and buries his face in his knees. He won't sleep tonight, Cellbit remembers staying up all night because he couldn't close his eyes without seeing his parents die in front of him, and he still can't close his eyes without seeing it.
"I'm a monster," he whimpers, the first time he'd ever spoken those words, but not the last. (Later, he would try to embrace them and become the monster the media labeled him as, but it didn't help.)
There's a snarl above him, and then there's Venom standing above him with its fangs bared.
"I-" Cellbit chokes, forced to repeat what he'd said all those years ago. "I need to turn myself in. I have to!"
He stands. Venom moves to block him, grabbing onto his shoulders and holding him in place.
"There have to be healer heroes," Cellbit reasons. "They can fix them."
(They can't, and they won't.)
If possible, Venom looks distraught. The darkness wavers around it, and that's when Cellbit realizes that this is the closest they've really gotten to each other. This close, he can almost make out a face hidden behind Venom's teeth, buried deep within its mouth. But it's too dark, but if he looks hard enough...
Venom steps back, and he tears the bridge apart, and Cellbit finds himself face-to-face with-
-
Roier is cooking dinner tonight, and it smells wonderful. Of course it does, Roier's the one cooking it. Everything he cooks is wonderful, because he's wonderful.
Cellbit sits at the table watching. The kids are all in the other room doing homework, and it's almost peaceful.
Roier slips with the spatula and drops it into the pan. He swears and scoops it out and swears again as the oil inside burns him.
Again, almost peaceful.
Cellbit swiftly stands from his chair and goes to help Roier.
"Here, let me-"
Roier lightly smacks his hand. "Não, não. Go away."
"Mmm, what if I wanna stay with you?"
He slips an arm around Roier's waist and snuggles up against his back. He rests his chin on Roier's shoulder and watches a beautiful smile spread across Roier's face.
"I guess it's fine," Roier sighs, playing up the theatrics. "I guess."
And then it's peaceful once more. Cellbit watches Roier cook, and he pays special attention to Roier's biceps. (Sue him, his husband is hot.)
But then, in the other room, Richarlyson starts shouting:
"This is stupid!"
"Calm down," Bobby drawls. "It's just multiplication, let me see-"
"No, I can do it!"
Cellbit tenses. Roier doesn't seem to notice, and that's fine. It's nothing for either of them to worry about.
"You've literally been working on that for hours," Bobby argues. "Let me see."
"NĆ£o!"
Quietly, Pepito pipes up with, "I wanna see!"
"No!" Richarlyson yells. "I can- I can do it!"
"Let me see," Pepito pleads.
(Cellbit can't see.)
"Fuck you, give me the homework," Bobby snaps.
"Fuck you, it's mine!" Richarlyson exclaims.
(Cellbit can't breathe.)
"You literally can't even do it," Bobby mocks. "Give it."
(Cellbit can't-)
The world dissolves around him, and all he can see is his father's body sprawled across the floor and his mother across from him still muttering about how useless she is as he still muttered about how useless he is and he's both 26 years old and eight and he can't breathe and and and and and-
"Cellbit!" he hears. Two warm, gentle hands settle on his cheeks, and he blinks, and he's in his own kitchen. With his husband. Crying.
"It's fine," Roier whispers. He presses his forehead against Cellbit's, eyes slipping shut. "It isn't going to happen again. You're fine. They're fine. It's fine."
Cellbit blinks. The kitchen sounds miles and miles away, but he still heard that, and he knows for certain that he not once has told anybody about the night he killed his parents.
He swallows, fresh tears stinging at his eyes. "What isn't going to happen again?"
Roier tenses, but he doesn't move. His eyes squeeze even further shut, but he doesn't move. His mouth narrows into a pencil-thin line, but he doesn't move.
Cellbit can barely feel his hands, but he still moves his arms to hold Roier around the middle. The kids are still fighting in the background, but... but he can't handle them right now.
In a minute.
"Do we have to talk about it?" Roier hesitantly asks.
Cellbit's answer is immediate: "No. Just... sorry. I'm sorry."
Roier's brow furrows. "'Sorry'? Sorry for what, eh?"
"You shouldn't have to see all... all that. I don't even want to talk about it, but-"
"No, shut up. I'm sorry for sneaking into your dreams every night. It kinda just happens, I don't control it, but... it happened, and you were so sad, and I wanted to help."
Cellbit smiles faintly. His own eyes slip shut, and he can almost not see the bodies this time.
"You do help," he responds. "You help more than you could ever imagine, even outside of the dreams."
He tips his head up to kiss Roier, soft and brief and gentle.
Against Cellbit's lips, Roier mutters, "I can stop."
Cellbit shakes his head. "Don't worry about it. Now that I know it's you, I can stop freaking out about a buff scary monster guy haunting me."
Roier huffs out a quiet laugh. "I can try and be less scary, but I don't control that, either."
"It's still you. Just... God, does this make me a monsterfucker?"
Roier's laugh is much louder this time. He bites Cellbit's bottom lip before pulling back.
Cellbit's eyes open, and he looks into Roier's, and he can see the love in them, and he can feel the love in his own.
God-damn, how did he get this lucky?
"Who are you calling a monster?" Roier demands. He pinches Cellbit's side and turns back to the stove. "Fuck you, sleep alone tonight. I don't even care."
Cellbit smiles and invades his husband's space once more. He hooks his chin over Roier's shoulder, and he sighs against Roier's cheek.
"Te amo," he says. He presses a chaste kiss to the side of Roier's jaw.
Roier's ears turn red, but his face betrays no emotion.
"Your breath smells," he says, a smile teasing at his own lips. "Go brush your teeth before we eat."
Cellbit rolls his eyes, but he leaves to go do as he's told if only to try and finish panicking on his own and try and calm down before dinner.
He passes through the living room, and he sees Bobby at the table helping Richarlyson with his homework.
Some things do change, after all.
i agree with some things here buuuut he should still communicate more with the admins
we as the public dont need to know everything but the manipulation and leaks part would be easier if he talked with the admins and us as the consumers
sorry if i made any mistake eng is not my first language
translation;
"its insane quack made a statement in the discord
its point by point what ive been saying for 2 weeks mdrrr"
"basically:
- priority number 1: find a way to financially support everybody. [quackity] doesnt want volunteers because he understands that legally it is too risky, especially with the work laws in other countries that he does not know about.
- if the financial situation is good enough, we bring back the actors, but in the meantime theyre on hold. there are no updates because he doesnt want to make any false promises to them.
- theres little communication because of the legal pressure and due to the partial leaks which can be twisted.
- hes restructuring the entire studio and how it works, and it takes a lot of time. he also doesnt want to pressure too many people currently working to adapt so quickly to these changes. (im guessing its a major overhaul to how everything works[/working methods])"
¹: this is actually diverted i think? but i translated it as "cause issues" or "be wrong" because i think it comes across better? got help and it seems its better translated as "twisted"!
For day two of @smallchaoscryptid's Spiderbit Week - Fae/Kiss
-
Once upon a time...
Roier picks his way through the foliage with a grimace. His feet hurt, twigs keep smacking into his face, bugs keep flying into his mouth. This sucks, but it'll all be worth it.
Thunder rolls above, and rain starts pouring down without a second's warning.
...It'll all be worth it.
He's due back at the castle by morning, but, honestly, he'd kinda rather die than go back. If the wolves eat him, so be it!
Grumbling, he pulls his hood up over his head, and he continues onward. If he freezes to death out here, so be it!
He's not planning on going back to the castle alive, anyway.
Legend has it that, deep in the haunted forest surrounding the Kingdom of Quesadilla, there lives a man-eating witch capable of tearing a man's soul from his body before he can so much as breathe in her general direction. Nobody knows this witch's name, but everybody knows that she's totally fucked up: if she isn't eating people, she's eating bears, and her magic is said to be as destructive as the eruption that created the universe.
Roier needs to meet her now.
So he continues trudging through the woods. The lantern in his hand is fighting to stay lit, and his boots are filled with enough water to drown a rat with, but he's fine. He's going to die miserable, but he's fine.
There's a flash of lightning bright enough to blind him, and then there's a crash of thunder loud enough to make him jump and nearly drop his lantern. When his vision returns, the tree in front of him is toppled to the side, leaving only a charred and smoking stump behind.
And then there's the cat.
Roier, frankly, stares. Because... what?
It's a cute cat, at least: brown with black stripes almost like a tiger's and blue eyes so bright that they almost seem to glow in the night. It sits on the stump with its tail curled around its paws, very polite, 10/10 cat.
Hesitantly, Roier approaches. He holds the lantern up to the cat, tilts his head, smiles.
"You're so cute," he coos, bending down to pet the cat between its little ears. "What are you doing out here, eh?"
The cat yawns, and then it huffs, "I could ask you the same question."
Roier screams and recoils and drops his lantern. It goes out, but the forest doesn't grow any dimmer because the cat is fucking glowing now, okay. Okay!
The cat rolls its eyes, tail twitching. "Okay, ouch. I'm not that scary."
"You're a talking cat," Roier breathes. "What the fuck?"
"What, you were expecting the witch?"
A pause.
Then:
"Oh, come on!"
Roier finally collects himself, brushing the water off of his cloak and adjusting his hood and picking up his lantern.
The cat stands and starts pacing the stump in a small, annoyed circle.
"The witch isn't even real," it complains. "She never was! Witches aren't real!"
Roier frowns. "Fuck you, man, my best friend is a witch."
"They aren't. Witches aren't real. Magicians are real, but witches-"
"You are literally a talking cat."
"I am a faerie," the cat corrects, sounding almost pained as it does so. "Faeries are real. Witches are fake. It's all anti-faerie propaganda created by the Federation-"
"By the what?"
The cat flicks his tail at Roier; Roier's mouth shuts, and, to his alarm, he finds that he can't open it again no matter how hard he tries.
The cat angrily swipes a leaf off of the stump. Unfortunately, it is really cute as it does so.
But then it starts complaining again, and Roier decides that this annoying fucking faerie cat isn't that cute after all.
"I haven't eaten anybody in centuries!" the cat shouts. "Fucking Cucurucho..."
Roier's eyes widen.
He waves at the cat until the cat does its magic thing again and allows him to talk.
First, Roier sucks in a deep breath through his mouth. That was uncomfortable.
Then, he says, "I know Cucurucho. I'm supposed to marry him in three days."
The cat's eyes narrow. Its shadow beneath it seems to grow; it tinges itself red like a pool of water with blood in it, wow. That's almost cool.
"That's why I'm here," Roier explains. "I need the witch to kill me so I don't have to marry him."
The cat sits.
"I see," it says. "Unfortunately, the witch isn't real."
"Suuuure, but you are." Roier sneaks closer. "Can't you just-" He opens his hands and wiggles his fingers. "-magic me dead?"
The cat stares at Roier's fingers. "Um. No. Faeries can't kill."
Roier deflates. "Ugh."
With a frustrated groan, he sits on the stump next to the cat. The cat grumbles, but it doesn't, like, magic him onto the ground, so that's kinda nice of it.
"But," the cat says, slowly as if questioning itself as it speaks, "I can get you to kill for me."
Oh. Now there's a thought. But...
Roier looks to the side at the cat. "I've tried. I'm pretty sure he's immortal, man."
"You haven't tried killing him with faerie magic. Now, come here."
The cat hops off of the stump and pads into the forest. After a moment, Roier follows.
They walk until they reach a hollowed-out tree. Then, the cat hops into the tree and mutters to itself as it looks for something.
Eventually, the cat pokes its head out of the tree with an opaque brown bottle held in its mouth.
Roier takes the bottle and turns it over in his hands.
"This," the cat says, "is extract of unicorn. Mix this in with Cucurucho's food, and he'll be dead by the end of the night."
Roier's mouth twitches. It'll happen, just like that? Just like that? Decades of oppression over just. Like. That?
"Okaaayyy," Roier drawls. He looks back up at the cat with a small smile. "Thank you."
The cat responds by clambering out of the tree and lounging on a branch hanging by Roier's face.
"No, thank you," the cat insists. "You'll be doing us both a favor if you manage to kill that asshole."
"If this kills him, you'll be a hero."
"Oh, I'm no hero. I'm just..." (The cat grins with far too many teeth in its mouth.) "...an invested party."
Well, the cat is probably evil. But that's fine. So is Cucurucho, and two wrongs make a right, right?
-
Well, wrong! Because Cucurucho isn't fucking dead.
Roier stomps back to the tree stump with the faerie's empty unicorn piss whatever bottle in hand. He doesn't have a lantern this time because, frankly, he really isn't intent on returning to the castle this time. If he trips over a root and dies, so be it!
The cat is nowhere to be seen. Of course, the bastard.
"Gatinho!" Roier calls. He cups both hands around his mouth and spins in a circle and continues shouting, "Gatinho! Where the fuck are you! Come here!"
No response.
Frustrated, Roier chucks the bottle to the ground and plops onto the stump. He puts his head in his hands and groans.
"I am going to fucking die," he moans. "I can't go home, I need to die, what the fuck."
A twig snaps. A presence ghosts over his shoulder, what feels like fingers grazing his tunic. But, when he snaps his head up and turns around, all he sees is the cat sitting behind him.
Roier's eyes narrow. "You."
"Me," the cat agrees. "Did it work? Is he dead? Please tell me he's dead. He's dead, right?"
"No! He isn't! He thought that unicorn shit was edible glitter! Now he wants it at the wedding!"
The cat blinks. "Huh."
"Yeah, 'huh'." Roier huffs and turns back around and hides his face again. "Fuck you, man. You said it would kill him."
"It should've. He's a demon, right?"
"How should I know? He's a fucking bear wizard thing."
"Okay, again, wizards aren't real, magicians are. But you're marrying him, right? How do you not know what species he is?"
"It's not like I'm getting a choice in the matter," Roier spits. He glares into the palms of his hands, shoulders shaking with barely-concealed rage. "Either I marry him or he destroys the kingdom."
There's a pregnant pause as the cat takes this information in. Fair, honestly. Roier hadn't exactly told him that he's a prince. Wasn't important, still isn't important. Doesn't matter if he's a prince if he's being sold off to marry a goddamn bear like he's a common animal.
It's for the good of the kingdom, Foolish had said. He and Vegetta have always liked Cucurucho despite Cucurucho being a legendary fucking creep. It's either you or Leo.
And Roier isn't the one that's meant to take the throne after his parents die.
"Can't you just kill me?" Roier asks. He waves a hand in a random direction. "Just make a tree fall on me or something. It'll be an accident, it's fine, your faerie cops won't know."
"Um, no," the cat says. "That's fucked up."
"Don't you eat people? How the fuck do you eat people without killing them?"
"Who says I killed them before eating them?"
Ah. Sounds about right.
...Kinda cool, to be honest. Imagining a tiny little kitty cat rip a grown dude apart like he's a slice of bread. Almost funny in a way.
Roier jumps as something brushes the hair out of his face.
He jerks his head upright and glares down at the cat, now sitting delicately in front of him.
"I have an idea," the cat tells him. "Follow me."
As they walk back to the hollow tree, the cat asks, "Does Cucurucho still have that freaky mechanical sword?"
Roier thinks. "Maybe? I don't know, he kinda just sits and stares at people. Sometimes he chases the servants around with a sword? Dunno if it's mechanical, though..."
"Well, any sword will work. Hold on."
The cat leaps into the tree and comes out with a new bottle, this one clear.
Roier takes the bottle and swishes it around. The liquid inside looks like oil, okay...
"This is dragon's blood," the cat explains. "It's corrosive to the touch, so be careful. Tell him that it's a special polish for his sword. It should eat his skin to the bone and kill him dead."
"Huh," Roier says, suddenly much more careful with the bottle. He gently slides it into his pocket, makes sure it's secure between a bag of coins and his headband. "Okay. Cool."
"This should work," the cat says. "But I'll try and think of something else for if it doesn't."
"Yeah, well, it'd better work," Roier huffs. "I'm getting married in two days. Then the gods only know what he's gonna do with me."
"Trust me, we'll figure it out."
"Trust you? Aren't you some kind of evil faerie cat?"
The cat looks offended. "Excuse you, I'm barely evil anymore. All I do is read these days. Do you know how many books I have at my house? More than Cucurucho, that's for sure."
"You have a house?"
The cat visibly bristles. "Of course I have a house. What, do you think I'm homeless?"
"You are a cat."
"Not all the time!"
Oh, that's interesting. Roier can almost imagine what the cat looks like in a human form, but the idea escapes him at the last second.
"Whatever," Roier sighs. "Just kill me tomorrow if this doesn't work."
-
Roier doesn't even bother shouting as he storms up to the stump.
He sits, pulls his cloak off, tosses it to his feet, kicks it away. What the fuck!!
He doesn't so much as blink as the cat appears by his side.
"It didn't work?" the cat cries. "Really? That should've worked!"
"Yeah, well, it didn't," Roier huffs. "He wore gloves today. And Cucurucho figured out that I've been sneaking out to see someone at night, so he told my parents that we're going to move to a different castle out in the middle of nowhere. I bet he's going to lock me up, the piece of shit."
The cat's ears lay back on its head. Its eyes narrow, and its lip curls back in a clear snarl.
"I know," Roier agrees. "Fuck this guy for real."
"Fuck him."
"Fuck him!"
Roier smiles just for a second, and he even manages a brief laugh before remembering, right. He's fucking doomed. Right.
Sighing, he slumps to the side until he's tumbling off of the stump and splayed across the ground. He buries his face in the grass and screams.
To his credit, he hardly jumps as a hand firmly settles on his back and rubs it. Small circles, firm hand, big hand, it feels like, wow.
Something- a knee?- presses against Roier's arm firmly. It's grounding in a way. Almost.
"I'm getting married tomorrow," Roier whines. "Just kill me, gatinho. I promise I won't tell anyone."
"I'm not going to kill you, guapito," the cat says. (Roier blushes. Guapito...) Its voice sounds deeper, almost. Louder. More clear. "I can't."
"Then what am I supposed to do? Marry Cucurucho?"
"I won't let that happen."
"Why? Because you want to kill him? Because that hasn't exactly been working so far."
"Because it's super fucked up that he's forcing you to marry him. I don't give a shit about the kingdom, I don't live there. I want him dead, but I'm starting to think that he's unkillable."
The hand moves from Roier's back up to his head. Fingers sift through his hair. Woooow, that feels good. When's the last time Roier got touched this softly? Before Cucurucho arrived?
"I've been thinking," the cat continues. "I've been keeping an eye on Cucurucho for centuries, but he's never tried destroying the kingdom before now. Before you. I think that, if you're gone, then he might leave, too."
Roier cracks an eye open. He doesn't shift his head at all, so he can only just barely make out a hint of cloth. So the cat has clothes when he's a human, that's cool, Roier guesses. Makes him wonder where they came from.
"So... kill me," Roier tells him. "If it'll get him to leave the kingdom alone, kill me."
"I can't do that."
"I'm not next in line for the throne! It's fine! Just push me into the river, I can't swim."
"You can't swim? Really?"
"Well, I can, but I can pretend that I can't!"
"You are so... selfless," the cat says, sounding completely exasperated. "And stupid. No, come with me. I know how we can solve this without killing you."
The hand leaves Roier's head, and then a cold nose is poking at his cheek until he's sitting up and looking the cat right in its little kitty eyes.
"Do you still have cat eyes when you're in another form?" Roier can't help but ask. "That would be really cool."
The cat chuckles. "Maybe. Come on. I have one last thing we can try."
They go to the hollow tree, and Roier waits as the cat scrambles into the tree and surfaces with a necklace clutched in its teeth.
Roier takes the necklace and inspects it. It's a solid gold chain with a little charm that looks like a cat's head. Cute.
"What, is this evil faerie gold that will melt Cucurucho's skin off?" Roier asks.
"No, it's for you," the cat replies. "Wear it tomorrow. When the wedding reaches the climax, take the necklace off and break it."
Roier points at the cat accusingly. "You are going to kill me!"
The cat rolls its eyes. "I'm not. Just... trust me."
Trust the man-eating faerie cat, sure. Right.
Roier sighs, but he puts the necklace on, anyway. It's surprisingly warm around his neck.
The cat almost seems to smile. "You look lovely."
"This thing is going to explode and blow my head off."
"No, you'll see."
And, well. What choice does Roier have but to wait and see?
-
The final wedding preparations go by in an uncomfortable blur.
Leo comes in to hug Roier goodbye. She then punches Roier in the stomach and tells him to write to her once he's at his new house.
Jaiden comes in to help Roier finish getting ready. She's happy about the marriage because she really thinks that Cucurucho is a good person, and Roier can't help but be happy that she's happy.
Foolish comes in to walk Roierto the church. He and Vegetta each take one of Roier's arms, and they walk.
And then Cucurucho is waiting at the church in front of the altar in an all-white suit. His fur is meticulously brushed, his claws are polished, his smile is painted on, he's absolutely grotesque.
Roier hates him.
"Good morning," Cucurucho says as Roier settles in front of the altar.
"It's sunset, you fucking idiot," Roier snaps. He can say what he wants now, right? He's going to die, anyway. The cat is going to kill him.
Cucurucho laughs, and then the ceremony starts.
Roier tunes out most of the goings-on if only to keep himself from breaking down and breaking the necklace before it's time. The cat said to wait until the climax, so Roier's going to wait for the goddamn climax.
He comes back to himself as the cleric asks if anybody in the audience has any objections to the marriage.
This sounds like a fucking climax if Roier's ever heard one.
"Yes," he says. "I object!"
He tears the necklace from around his neck and throws it to the floor. Before anybody can stop him, he slams his heel into the charm.
The entire church erupts into screams as a blinding white light fills it. Magic tears at Roier's skin, biting and pulling. He squeezes his eyes shut, anticipating the end of it all.
But:
"I also object," the cat says.
Two large hands settle on Roier's upper arms, and he's pulled back and against a firm chest.
Roier tilts his head back- not too far, because the cat's human form is shorter than he is, funnily enough- and his eyes widen as he takes in the most beautiful man in the world. Long hair the same color as the cat's coat, scarred face, feathery earrings, cat eyes.
"No," Curucucho snaps. "No!"
"Yes!" the cat- well, not the cat, Roier supposes- shouts. "The prince is mine! He swore himself to me the moment he accepted that necklace, and so he will go back with me to the Faewild and become my husband. You know the rules, bear."
Leo, in the audience, cheers. So does Foolish, who always appreciates a good show.
"Gatinho," Roier hisses.
The faerie shrugs his concerns off. Roier is annoyed about this for exactly three seconds before he gets caught up in the faerie's eyes.
Could be a worse arranged marriage, that's for sure...
A long moment passes, but Cucurucho eventually says a begrudging, "Yes."
"So," the faerie continues, "you will not destroy the kingdom for this. If the prince has already been promised to somebody else, then he never rejected you."
"Yes," Cucurucho sighs.
"You're hot when you're arguing," Roier whispers.
The faerie's cheeks redden, as do the tips of his pointed ears. Cute!
Yeah, no, this arranged marriage will be way better than the last one.
"So!" The faerie turns Roier around so that they're looking at each other properly for the first time eye-to-eye. "You will be coming with me."
"Yeah, okay," Roier agrees. Hell yeah. "Take me, gatinho."
"'Take me'?" Foolish gasps. "Ooooo, this is getting spicy!"
"All you need to do is say my name," the faerie says.
He leans in close and whispers right into Roier's ear, and Roier returns the favor... with a couple of flirtatious remarks thrown in for good measure. Sue him, he's about to get married to a sexy faerie. He's going to make the most of the situation.
"Cellbit," Roier murmurs, and something tickles at his skin. Something... purple. It feels purple. Soft and purple.
"Roier," the faerie replies. He looks positively flustered, aww. He's going to be so fun to tease once they're out of the church.
As the Faewild's magic starts to pick up, Roier can't help but give the faerie a grateful kiss.
The faerie blinks away from the kiss after a moment of some very eager lip-chasing. His face is completely red, and his eyes are wide and unblinking even as the magic around them whips like the wind.
"There's more where that comes from," Roier teases. He puts his arms around the faerie and smiles. "You're marrying me, get used to it. That's just part of the deal."
Because faeries are all about deals, right? Well, Roier's the best deal this guys is ever gonna get.
The faerie swallows, an eager grin teasing at his face.
"Yeah," he breathes. "Alright."
He pulls Roier's head down for another kiss just as the Faewild swallows them whole.
-
(Legends say that there are monsters living in the haunted forest surrounding the Kingdom of Quesadilla. Once monster is a man-spider with glowing red eyes and fangs the length of one's sword. The other is a furry snarling beast of a thing with magic worthy of the most powerful of witches.
Ah, but don't worry, my child, for these monsters don't hunt humans.
No, they hunt bears, and isn't that a good thing for us?)
Fem!deathduo ehehe
Commissioned by @/PeecoA on twitter
Hereās a late-night Breaking Dawn Poll!
Roier: He's hitting me, he's hitting me! [Yelps as Cucurucho shoots him]
Cellbit: Heyā HEYā STOP HITTING MY HUSBAND MAN, WHAT THE FCK!
Roier: ESO, ESO!
Cellbit: Stop hitting my husband. Stop hitting my husband man, what's wrong with you? [Cucurucho hits Cellbit] Hey, you can hit me, but you cannot hit him!
Roier: [Barking to back up Cellbit, then gets hit by Cucurucho again]
Cellbit: [Puts himself between Roier and Cucurucho again] Stop, stop. Chill.
Every time I self reblog a fic chapter where I'm asking for comments (because I only get comments when I directly ask for them), I lose at least a dozen followers, and I get fewer comments, so it's like. Man. What's the point.
Three things that are in this chapter:
Popsicles
Hand-holding
Chainsaws
-
NEW CHAPTER
REBLOG REBLOG
btw if yall want spanish songs that r more latin rock indie and shit then there ya go
It will be in March 3rdā¼ļøā¼ļø
Since this weekend there's still the strike so not everyone will be online, so moving it to next weekend!
What is "QSMP Language Day"?
It will be a day here on qsmpblr that everyone will speak their native languages and, those who speak english by default, try and speak other languages they're learning and get some help as well!
The goal is to make everyone feel more comfortable speaking their mother tongue here on our hellsite and even find other peers that speak the same language as we do and we never knew about!
If it all goes right and we enjoy it, we could have it happen more often, even weekly if so, to also make qsmpblr a little bit less english-centric and maybe even rope some non-english speakers in here
The translator use is not only recommended but also actively cheered upon!! You can use Apple's in-built translator, you can use Ok Google's in-built translator, you can go copy text it in translator, or download a browser extension if you use desktop!! Everything is allowed for your better understanding
So everyone!! Prepare! Spread the word! Cram some duolingo lessons more!!
Let's all be ready for March 3rd!!!
i mean this from the bottom of my heart: no one is impressed by your loud ass car. actually we talked about it and we all want you dead.
Compilation of q!Cellbit quotes from today's stream that makes me wanna puke/pos
ROIER: See you soon... gatinho :)
CELLBIT: *squeaks* SEE YOU SOON GUAPITO!
CELLBIT : DID YOU HEAR THAT? HOLY SHIT HE CALLED ME GATINHO! YOU HEARD THAT? FUCK HE CALL ME GATINHO
CELLBIT: I'm eating before the date so I don't go there and look like I'm starving. He'll think "oh he's so polite, he only ate a little bit"
ROIER: This place is so beautiful [referring to the castle's garden]
CELLBIT: Yeah, you really are...
CELLBIT: it's our future...
ROIER: it's beautiful!
CELLBIT: like you.
ROIER: Would you kill me?
CELLBIT: Never. I'd kill for you, never you.
CELLBIT: ADIOS GUAPITO!
...
CELLBIT: He didn't hear it
CELLBIT: It's okay, he'll hear it so much more
Q!Cellbit is so fucking smitten with q!Roier omg!!!!!
guys the difference between ems death not getting appealed vs pepitos death was that ems was doomed to happen and an egg was MEANT TO DIE THAT DAY. no matter how op the opponents were that shit was Planned to occur. they couldnt reverse that death when its clear the admins wanted the eye workers to kill an egg for the drama of it all. yeah it was completely unfair the eggs had to act ooc to get a death to happen but again they wanted a death to happen by any means. that was a decision from the admins. of course theyre not gonna reverse hers when it was supposed to happen to the eggs that day
something that really fascinates me about roier and bobbys relationship is that while roier did truly love bobby the initial foundations of their relationship was very. two faced. roiers kindness and gentleness towards bobby came from a place of burning hatred towards spreen. he had a master plan in mind to use his son to get revenge on his enemies. he wanted bobby to be strong and a warrior not because he wanted his son to be protected from the dangers of the world but because he wanted bobby to kill spreen. he wanted bobby to be the one to end him. particularly theres a moment where he goes to grab a bow in his storage room and direct states this is all part of his master plan. teaching bobby how to properly use a bow so he can murder his enemies for him soon. again this isnt to discredit bobby and roiers relationship because it did progress and develop into an earnest love and caring dynamic but the begins of their interactions were heavily influenced by roier wanting to seek revenge. everything he did was with an ulterior motive. the mindset of act like a loving father, smile, give the kid everything he wants, and then once youāve gained that affection and undying loyalty use him like a sword. theres something to be said about this deceitfulness brewing inside of roier after being betrayed himself because his revenge on spreen wasnt as simple as a desire to kill him. he wanted to BACKSTAB him. he wanted to return everything he felt with the betrayal back towards spreen. he wanted spreen to trust and be his friend so that he could ruin him. a methodical approach to vengeance that came with roier using bobby and shaping him into the person he needed him to be for his plan to succeed.
a lot of people perceive what jaiden roier and bobby had as the perfect family and in a way they were because roier wanted them to be. (and of course it helped that jaiden was an amazing mom) roier wanted bobby to grow up happy and comfortable and with all the confidence a kid could ever have because otherwise heād be useless in his plan. so in turn you have this sort of picturesque life bobby lived but a lot of the beginning was with a darker intent. again roier did love bobby and its evident by his hurt when bobby died. roier truly had grown a genuine attachment to bobby. thereās no doubt about that. but theres a lot of aspects regarding the betrayal that bleed into qroiers character and his actions soon after it occured and its important to note that heās not a saint. heās smart about the way he goes about things and his unshakeable anger can be a dangerous force of willpower that makes him capable of using anyone to get what he wants.
So, since the Eggs ran away in September and lived for weeks free of tasks and lives, and after they survived Purgatory while doing zero tasks, and after the three newer eggs survived for seemingly their entire lives without tasks or lives, a lot of people- both fans and creators and egg admins- have been complaining about the Egg Life System and how bullshit it is in terms of both player experience and the islandās established lore. Itās an outdated system that isnāt fun for anybody involved, and it should be properly updated for the new year.
Eggs have been the QSMPās lifeblood since when they were first introduced in April. They were initially an event then, but they soon developed into actual people with actual personalities that both the audience and the players all became ridiculously attached to.
Eggs are given to new players to give them someone to hang out with when theyāre alone on the server, and they exist for that purpose for everybody else, too.
So, if thatās the case⦠why the fuck can they still permadie? When lore itself showed that they donāt need to do tasks, and when players like the Korean members or like Roier or Bad would be completely alone on the server without the eggs keeping them company, it really begs the question of whether or not itās possible to still have the eggs at risk while not explicitly killing them.
And so I present a couple of ways to adapt the Egg System to the QSMP 2024 while still allowing the eggs to be put at risk and while still having consequences for risky behavior and while still keeping the cookie system in place because, really, thatās a decent way of doing the tasks.
Post-Purgatory, it was revealed that thereās an Egg Hospital. And it really would make sense for the serverās hyper capitalist second season to keep the hospital, and to use it the American Way.
When an egg goes down and ādiesā, the egg respawns like a player would. But the egg respawns in the Egg Hospital at Spawn, and the parents have to pay a hefty fee for their eggsā health.
The server already makes everybody collect coins and go into debt, so why not apply that to the eggs?
The fee the parents would have to pay would be ridiculous, like maybe 10k coins. Any coins they get from bounties would go to that and not to their own pockets, but the egg would still be alive. Every time the egg dies, the fee would increase regardless of whether or not the parents paid it off the last time.
So an egg has infinite lives, but the eggs and their parents are still punished for deaths. It keeps the parents from being able to buy necessities like warps or things from the Spawn Shops.
Egg Tasks are completed in exchange for Cookie Coupons, which allow the purchase of one cookie per coupon free of any monetary charge. In an emergency, parents can add to their debt by buying cookies outright. This way, eggs still get to do tasks while the parents are paying their debt.
Is this system harsh? Yeah, but so are permadeaths. This system just switches the deaths out for American-style medical debt that will ruin the parents financially should they āallowā their eggs to die.
Since the start of QSMP2024, the bunny employees have been trying to buy the eggs from their parents. Why not adapt that?
If an egg dies under this system, the parents receive a Strike from the Federation. After two Strikes, the egg is taken from their parents by a bunny social worker to live with the Federation until the parents can prove theyāre a āgood parent.ā
The parents do this by taking paid parenthood classes taught by the Federation that would cost maybe 500 coins per class (coming to a total cost of 3,500 coins.) After a week of classes, the parents get their kids back.
The classes would basically be a bunny worker showing up at the parentās home and making them do egg tasks for the bunny instead, maybe for ten minutes per day, showing that the parents can still take care of their eggs and that they arenāt neglectful or anything.
Furthermore, before the parents get their eggs back, they have to build a room specifically for their eggs if they donāt have one built already, and that room must be inspected by the bunny social worker. Parents have to show that they have food prepared for the egg. They have to have a set of armor prepared for the egg, and a sword and pickax. They have to have at least one toy or egg cosmetic purchased and waiting for the egg in the eggās new room.
Once all this is done, after a week, the eggs get to come back, and their Strikes are reset.
This isnāt too bad, but 3,500 coins is a lot of money for a lot of players, and having to do all these chores and not having their eggs around punishes both the players and the eggs the same way a permadeath would. Itās just that this doesnāt include the egg dying, it includes a new form of Egg Trauma.
-
If you have any other ideas of new systems, Iād be curious to hear them. And feel free to screenshot and share this post to Twitter if you want, thatās cool.
I just think there are ways to mess with the players and the audience without killing the eggs off, thatās all.
These systems I have proposed accommodate for server lag and general unpreparedness, such as not having good enough armor or going into a dungeon without backup.
The Murder Husband
(Again lol)
A very exciting day from the Merpepito AU
Read on Ao3
-
Pepito has been a pirate for one month and three days, and he has finally been given his first Pirate Job.
"Pepito, I'm trusting you with something very important," Captain Celbi had said as the ship had pulled into port.
He had crouched and pulled out a small leather pouch from the pocket of his coat. He held it out to Pepito, nodding seriously as Pepito took the pouch in both of Pepito's hands.
"Pac and Mike are going to go grocery shopping while we're here, but they always forget the most important food when I send them shopping," Captain Celbi explained. "They don't buy any candy, and we both know how important candy is."
Pepito nodded seriously. Candy is important, Apa Quackity says that it's one of the major food groups along with fish, seaweed, and cocaine.
"So I need you," Captain Celbi continued, "to take this money and make sure that you get candy. One piece for every crew member, and two pieces for yourself as payment for taking on this very important mission."
And so here Pepito is, grocery shopping for the first time as a pirate. Mister Pac and Mister Mike and Richarlyson are with him, but they don't know about his mission; it's a secret mission, Captain Celbi had said!
The Sky Pepito town is huge, but Pepito doesn't think they'll get lost. Mister Mike seems to know where they're going even if Richarlyson does keep running off and getting lost in the crowd and punching people until Mister Pac goes to get him.
"Settle down, Richas!" Mister Pac groans. He takes Richarlyson by the hand and pulls him to his side. "You're going to get arrested like this, you know!"
"And?" Richarlyson challenges. "So what! Pai Cellbit gets arrested all the time!"
"Cellbit is also a complete sociopath," Mister Mike comments. He looks at the grocery list with a hum. "He told us to buy coffee, how the hell are we supposed to make coffee on a boat?"
Pepito doesn't know what a 'sociopath' is, but it sounds cool! Some kind of artist, maybe?
He looks around the market. There has to be a candy stall somewhere!
Back in the Reef, Miss Niki had the best candy. She made taffy out of The Ocean's salt, and she sold it alongside her cookies in her shop, and, man, Pepito really misses Miss Niki.
...He doesn't miss anything else about the Reef, though! Definitely not Apa Roier or Apa Quackity or Apa Mariana or Apa Carre or Ama Rivers or Awuelo Foolish, that would be silly!
Pepito is a pirate now. He's doing a Pirate Job for a Pirate Captain, and he's going to end up in sooooooo much trouble with the Navy because of it! (Everybody knows the Navy hates candy. It's because they're lazy disgusting sacks of organs and blood, according to Captain Celbi, and he's never wrong!!)
Pepito jumps as someone taps his shoulder. He looks up and sees Mister Mike looking down at him with crinkled, smiling eyes.
"Don't get lost, now, Pepito," he says. "Cellbit will leave you behind if we go back to the ship without you."
Pac gasps and smacks Mister Mike's arm, but he's smiling, and Richarlyson is laughing.
Pepito's eyes well with tears, but he doesn't cry. He knows that they're all pirates. They're evil. Of course Captain Celbi would leave if Pepito got back to the ship late, he's a pirate captain, and Pepito still hasn't finished his first Pirate Job.
So Pepito bites Pepito's lip and puffs Pepito's chest out. He will not be left behind! He's going to finish his Pirate Job, and then Captain Celbi will say he's a Good Pirate, and then Pepito will be a Good Pepito again.
...But Pepito can't see a candy stall or shop anywhere. Captain Celbi had said that this was supposed to be a secret, but if Pepito doesn't tell anybody that he was given this job, then it's still a secret!
Hesitantly, he tugs on Mister Mike's sleeve and spells out with his finger in the air, "C A N D Y"? (Apparently, there's something called 'sign language' in the Sky, but Pepito hasn't learned that yet, but at least Pepito can spell using the Sky Language now!)
"You want candy?" Mister Mike asks.
"Oooo, I want candy, too," Mister Pac eagerly says. He looks at Pepito with a smile. "When we're done shopping, we'll get some candy, okay?"
Pepito beams, all tears gone.
Richarlyson grumbles and tugs his hand free. He ducks his head, mutters something under his breath, glares at Pepito through his bangs.
Pepito frowns, all smiles gone.
He doesn't get why Richarlyson doesn't like him. They're friends, right? Captain Celbi always seems happy when they're playing together.
...Unless Richarlyson knows that Pepito is a Bad Pepito. Unless Richarlyson knows about the Very Bad Thing.
Uh oh.
-
(Cellbit watches the water, leaning against the ship's railing. He can dream of seeing him again, can't he?
Suddenly, a bright light erupts out of the ocean just over the horizon.
Cellbit frowns, standing and adjusting his hat.
That can't be good.)
-
Halfway through the grocery list, Richarlyson escapes again.
Maybe that's for the best, Pepito thinks. He likes Richarlyson, but he doesn't want Richarlyson telling his dads about the Very Bad Thing. Pepito likes Misters Pacandmike, they've been the ones teaching Pepito how to write the Sky Language. They're smart, and they're nice by pirate standards. Pepito doesn't want them to hate him, too.
So Pepito keeps watching Mister Mike argue with the saleswoman at the bakery. She won't sell him any bread because Richarlyson stole some cookies on his way into the crowd, it's rude. Maybe she's a pirate, too.
But the hair on the back of Pepito's neck raises on end as he hears a familiar shout and a, "Hey, watch it, kid! Where the fuck are your parents, huh?"
No...!
Pepito is a Brave Pepito. Pepito is a pirate! Pepito isn't scared of anybody!
But Pepito doesn't want to see the hatred in Apa Roier's eyes. He wants his last memories of Apa Roier's face to be happy ones where Apa Roier still loves him and wants to be his father and doesn't hate him or think he's a killer or a Bad Pepito.
Pepito can't help it.
Pepito runs.
Pepito holds Captain Celbi's money close to his chest, and he runs.
"What the-" Mister Mike exclaims. "Pepito! Where are you going!"
"Pepito?" Apa Roier asks. He shouts again and calls, "Pepito!"
Pepito ducks into the crowd and drops to his knees, clutching Captain Celbi's money tight so he doesn't lose it.
Apa Roier may be a fast swimmer, but Pepito is a Small Pepito. He knows that Apa Roier is super tall, so Pepito crawls between people's legs and under and through skirts and he hopes that Apa Roier can't see him because Pepito doesn't want to see him.
Pepito is gonna be in soooooo much trouble...
("He's a good boy," Apa Roier says. He glares over Pepito's shoulder at Luzu. "Not a killer. Can you get that through your skull, hmm?")
Pepito sniffs and wishes he was back home where he could hide under his bed until Apa Mariana would get on the ground with him and wait until he was done being scared. Apa Mariana would hold Pepito's hand and talk until Pepito felt better, and Pepito misses him so much. But now Apa Mariana has a New Pepito to hold hands with. He doesn't want Pepito anymore.
Suddenly, something heavy pounces upon Pepito from behind, knocking him down.
Pepito lets out a whine and faceplants onto the ground. He hears his glasses crack (at least he hopes it's his glasses...)
Captain Celbi's money digs into Pepito's stomach. It hurts...
"Got him!" someone shouts, and, oh, it's Richarlyson. Of course he's working with Apa Roier. He wants a Good Pepito, too, doesn't he?
Pepito whimpers and shakes his head. He wiggles, trying to get free, but all he does is rattle Captain Celbi's money a bit.
Richarlyson laughs and reaches under Pepito's stomach and pulls out the money pouch.
"This is Pai Cellbit's!" Richarlyson gasps. His other hand wraps around the back of Pepito's neck angrily. "You stole this from him!"
Pepito shakes his head again. He might be a Bad Pepito, but he isn't a thief! Captain Celbi gave that money to him for a job! A Pirate Job! So Pepito can be a pirate like everybody else!
"Hey, mister!" Richarlyson shouts. "I have Pepito!"
Pepito's stomach hurts, but not from getting tackled this time. He's going to be sick. Apa Roier hates him. He's came all this way just to find Pepito and arrest him and call him a Bad Pepito and-
Richarlyson is yanked off of Pepito; he shouts and fights and kicks right into Pepito's back.
"Richarlyson, what the hell?" Mister Pac demands. "What does Pai Cellbit always tell us?"
Pepito pushes himself up and back onto his hands and knees. His glasses are cracked, but he can still kinda see...
But then he's picked up by Mister Mike, and then they're running through the crowd.
Pepito glances down and sees that he's only being held to Mister Mike's chest by one arm. Mister Mike's free hand is holding a gun.
Pirates...
Mister Mike turns his head over his shoulder and shouts, "You are so grounded!"
"What? No!" Richarlyson protests.
"Crew protects crew," Mister Pac says. "Pepito is crew whether you like it or not."
Squinting, Pepito can see Mister Pac dragging Richarlyson along behind him as they hurriedly speedwalk through the crowd.
Mister Pac has his sword drawn, but it looks clean. That's good, Pepito doesn't want Apa Roier hurt.
"He stole from Pai Cellbit!" Richarlyson argues. "He's a traitor!"
Mister Mike rolls his eyes. "Who doesn't steal from Cellbit? Honestly, Pepito stealing from him is enough to make him crew in my eyes."
Pepito's jaw drops. A pirate likes him...!
They continue rushing through the crowd, groceries abandoned. Captain Celbi is gonna be so mad, but he might not call Pepito a Bad Pepito if Pepito's lucky. It isn't Pepito's fault that Apa Roier talked to the Sea Witch! Blame the Sea Witch, not Pepito!
The ship appears over the crowd, and Pepito can almost see the Pepitos on its deck. But his glasses are broken, so all he can really see are smudges that are vaguely Pepito-shaped.
"Cellbit!" Pac shouts. "We need to go!"
Captain Celbi appears over the railing. With his hat and his coat and the clear scowl on his face, he looks truly evil. (So cool...)
"What the fuck did you do?" he demands as they approach. "You were gone for twenty minutes!"
Mister Mike is the first on the ship. As soon as he's on board, he drops Pepito to the ground and reaches out to grab Richarlyson and pull him on board, too. He gently shoves Richarlyson to Cellbit, who takes Richarlyson by the shoulders and holds him still in front of him.
Captain Celbi looks at Mister Mike, and then he looks at the out-of-breath Mister Pac, and then he looks at Richarlyson, and then he looks at Pepito.
His eyes darken, a weird rumbling sound coming out of his throat that almost sounds like growling, but that can't be right. Sky Pepitos don't growl.
Pepito shrinks back. In the air, he shakily spells, "S O R R Y."
"It wasn't Pepito," Mister Pac says. "There was some- some guy at the market who saw Pepito and started chasing us! I don't know, he might be Navy? But they don't usually go after mermaids, right?"
"Who cares who he was?" Mister Mike huffs. He still has his gun out. (Scary...) "Fuck that guy."
He glances at Richarlyson. "You're grounded, young lady. Go below deck."
Richarlyson's jaw drops open in outrage. "But- but he's a thief!"
He holds out Captain Celbi's money pouch. "Pai, see? Pepito stole this from you! He's untrustworthy."
Captain Celbi sighs and takes his money back. "I gave him that money so he could buy candy because you guys never let me have any. Go downstairs, we'll talk later."
Richarlyson's face falls, but he storms downstairs, kicking a bucket full of soapy water over on his way.
Captain Celbi looks at Mister Pac. "We can't leave yet. Baghera and Mousey are still on shore, and we definitely don't have the food supplies to set sail right now. Next port town is over a month away, we'll starve before then."
He takes Misters Pacandmike to talk, occasionally glancing at Pepito.
Pepito lets them be. Pepito isn't a pirate. He can't participate in Pirate Stuff. He failed his Pirate Job. He'll never be a pirate now.
He walks to the gangplank and sits with his knees to his chest. He can't see much of anything, but maybe he can help Miss Baghera and Miss Mouse with their bags when they come back to the ship.
Pepito can't see, but Pepito can hear.
"Shit!" Apa Roier shouts in The Ocean's Language.
If Pepito squints just right, he thinks that he can see Apa Roier backing away from a wooden post on the dock with a hand to his forehead. He's shouting and in pain and it's all Pepito's fault.
Apa Roier's head snaps between the docked ships, looking. Searching. Probably very, very angry.
And then he sees Pepito. And Pepito sees him.
Pepito can't help it. Pepito starts crying as Apa Roier comes running towards him, tripping over himself as he scrambles up the gangplank with extended arms.
"Pepito!" Apa Roier cries. Pepito can't see the look on his face, but Pepito bets he's angry. "Pepito!"
He keeps chanting Pepito's name as he runs, because he's always liked Pepito's name. He always says that it's the best name Pepito could have, and it's probably his favorite name, so the New Pepito is probably named Pepito, too.
Pepito stands and tries running, but his vision is so blurry with his glasses broken and with the tears in his eyes that he manages to trip over the bucket Richarlyson had kicked over and he falls.
Warm arms scoop Pepito up and hold him close in a tight hug.
"Pepito, what the fuck," Apa Roier demands, his face buried in the top of Pepito's head. "A month, Pepito, what the fuck?"
Pepito shakes his head, his entire body quivering. He wants to hug Apa Roier back, but is he allowed to? No, right? Apa Roier's angry...
A cold shadow falls upon them from above.
A gun clicks, cold steel pointing right at Apa Roier's head.
"I'm going to give you one chance to get off of my ship," Captain Celbi coldly says, voice low and flat and absolutely terrifying. "Let go of my crew member, and get off of my ship. One. Chance."
"Your crew member?" Apa Roier scoffs. "He's my fucking son."
Captain Celbi inches closer until the gun is pressed into Apa Roier's hair; Apa Roier doesn't so much as flinch.
Pepito shakes. His lip wobbles, tears streaming down his face and snot bubbling out of his nose. He wants his dad!
In the language of The Ocean, Apa Roier says, "We're going home, Pepito. I'll beat his ass."
Pepito shakes his head frantically. They can't go home, the New Pepito is there, and Pepito doesn't wanna meet them! The New Pepito probably looks cuter than Pepito does. Doesn't need glasses. Is a fast swimmer. Doesn't have asthma. Isn't a killer.
But he can't say this. He can't say anything.
Behind Apa Roier's back, Pepito spells to Captain Celbi, "D A D."
Captain Celbi meets Pepito's eyes.
He lets out a breath, lips pressed together and eyebrows furrowed, but he nods and backs off, clicking his gun until it's safe.
And then Apa Roier lets out a war cry and lets go of Pepito, swinging a leg out and knocking Captain Celbi to the ground. He laughs and lunges for his gun, trying to wrestle it from him. Captain Celbi's hat falls off, revealing the pointy white things on the top of his head; they press flat against his hair and he bares his teeth angrily.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Captain Celbi demands.
"You kidnapped my son, what the fuck do you think?" Apa Roier snaps. He crawls on top of Captain Celbi, his knee between Captain Celbi's legs and his chest pressed to Captain Celbi's chest.
"Oh my gods," Mister Pac quietly says. "Mike, I think they're gonna..."
"Cover your eyes, Pac," Mister Mike replies.
Pepito doesn't know what they're talking about. All Pepito can do is watch uselessly as his dad and his captain wrestle on the deck.
"I didn't kidnap him!" Captain Celbi argues. "Bad brought him to me!"
"And you took him!?" Apa Roier incredulously asks. "Fucking pirates-"
He looks at Captain Celbi, and he goes quiet. He stops fighting.
Confused, Captain Celbi looks up at him. And then he stops fighting, too. The pointy things on his head stick right up, seemingly happy about something.
"Oh," Captain Celbi quietly says. "Hello."
He and Apa Roier are still borderline holding hands over the gun. Apa Roier is still flush to Captain Celbi's front, and Apa Roier's knee is still stuck between Captain Celbi's legs.
"Hi," Apa Roier says, voice soft, almost reverent in a way, the same way he spoke when he talked about how evil and bad and disgusting pirates are. "You kidnapped my son."
"I really didn't."
"I'm not getting off this boat until you give him back."
Apa Roier leans in close as he says that.
Captain Celbi licks his lips. "Then I guess you're going to be stuck here for a while, because Pepito is a prized member of my crew. I wouldn't give him up for anything in the world."
Pepito is... a prized member? Of the crew?
Pepito can't help it. He gets up and runs to Captain Celbi and gives him as good a hug as he can with Captain Celbi pinned to the deck.
He's a pirate!
Pepito is finally a pirate!
Best day ever!
Three things that are in this chapter:
1. Quackity 2. Twilight 3. A wolf
-
NEW CHAPTER NEW CHAPTER
REBLOG REBLOG
TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK!!
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Spanish translations courtesy @iven-vodka
Summary:
Cellbit is a monster hunter.
That is to say: he is a conspiracy theorist trying to prove the existence of the supernatural. His current project is as such: werewolves. Werewolves are in the woods, and nobody cares except for him... and except for this one guy he met at his book club one week.
Turns out this Roier guy knows a lot about the supernatural, too. He says that he's a werewolf expert, and who is Cellbit to look a gift wolf in the mouth?
Or: Anti-Twilight werewolf romcom starring an ex-convict and a guy who definitely isn't a furry.
-
Thanks to @comfymoth for letting me play in their au!
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REBLOG REBLOG REBLOG
AU in which all Pepito wants is for Pepitoās dad to start smiling again. Pepito knows that Apa Roier is a HUGE fan of Spider-Man, aka Quesadilla Cityās most popular superhero, but heās been real sad since Spider-Man stopped hero-ing a couple months ago when his rival and WORST ENEMY Black Cat disappeared. And Pepito just wants Roier to be happy, so Pepitoās just gotta find Spider-Man and make him a hero again! (And maybe Pepito can get his autograph, because Spider-Man is Pepitoās favorite hero too!!!)
[An au in which Roier retires as a hero when the man he was working up the nerve to ask out vanished into thin air in a factory explosion after a fight gone wrong. He never even got to find out Black Catās name, and now he never willā¦]
[And, an au in which Cellbit has been stuck in the hospital for months in a coma, and all heās been dreaming of is the masked hero heās in love with.]