#ae-ra

Mwah mwah! I'm so glad you like the cast but I love all of them a lot! >:3c I think Sachi is just misjudged a lot but to each their own!!

I have a lot of hcs for sexualities but I'll try to list them in order for you!

Ae-Ra - I guess in my head I see Ae-Ra as Aro-Ace :0 but I never really thought about it before! I still think a lot of ship content for her is cool though! She/They!

Ban - Lesbiromantic Asexual! also SHE/THEY/HE BAN FOR THE WIN! I very much like NBLW Ban >:)!

Dimitri - MLM!!! I'm not a big fan of Dimitri x F, but that's just me maybe! He/They/It!

Ducky - Panromantic Asexual! :3 I think Ducky is super cool, and they canonically use all pronouns, which is cooler!

Flynn - Pan king!!! I think Flynn likes everyone he meets a lot, and I think he's a hopeless romantic just a lil too :3! He/Him

Fran - In my head I see Fran as Aro-Ace! They still super-love everyone, just a little hard-hearted, yk? :3! Any/All!

Harry - I know that they stated he was canonically Gay, and I agree with that! >:3c I think he takes the cast to pride. He/Him!

Jade - Bisexual! I think Jade is just silly goofy with her romance choices, in my head she has a fem lean :3! She/They/Sea

Jessie - I can never decide on wether I see her as a lesbian or bisexual, so I guess in general I just have a wlw heacanon for Jessie! She/Her

Jolene - Lesbiromantic Asexual! Can you be named Jolene and not be sapphic??? Lol! She/They

Justice - Bi king! Agender in canon, I like him the way he is! He/Him, but sometimes I use They/Them.

Kanna - Lesbian! I think she's very sapphic and lovecore :3c! She probably wears pretty lipstick that makes the other girls swoon! She/Her!

Katsuo - Panromantic Asexual :0! I think he thinks everyone's got a little part of them that shines through, even if he's too grumpy to admit it. He/They, because law has no gender >:3!

Madoka - Aro-Ace! Madoka is ghost gender and we respect her for it. She/They/It/Dead/Ghost

Mari - I don't have a specific hc for Mari, actually! :0! Most ships with her are good though, so maybe in my head she's pan or something, lol! She/He/They/It!

Ollie - They're canonically Asexual, but I think they're Biromantic too :3! They/Them

Pon - Lesbiromantic Asexual :3! I also think Pon uses neo pronouns! She/They/Frog!

Sachi - NBLW! Sachi is very lesbian coded! It's like they're doing it on purpose! :0! She/They

Tavasillion - A lot of people hc him as MLM and while I agree I think he's more NBLM! He/They Tavasillion rights!

Viola - Bi Queen! Though I think she canonically has a masc lean I like to think of her with a fem lean! She/They for the win!

Yukihiko - Ikko is NBLM and we support it! He/They!

Yunemi - Lesbian! She's just silly goofy! She/They/It/Dirt

╰┈➤ ❝ IN WHICH, reader is the Ultimate Bartender taking up shop at the bar counter in Chapter Three. A certain friend wheels in for a drink. ❞  ꘎♡ ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━♡꘎

A couple of small tinks filled the air as a spoon swirled inside a glass. The liquid inside was a vibrant orange as the spoon lifted out of it, resting atop a paper towel. You lifted the glass up and took a sip, eyes closing. Ah. . refreshing. Setting the glass back on the counter, you felt your shoulders dip down with relaxation. 

It’d been a week or so since the last two deaths. They had hit hard-- harder than you’d expected. The entire time afterward, you hardly left your room. It was hard to see everyone’s faces as they dealt with the aftermath when you could hardly handle it yourself. Today, however, was different. An odd energy tingled in your fingertips, and you felt antsy. Maybe you had just sat still for far too long.

So, here you were. When the new area opened up, you hadn’t expected a bar to come with it. A multitude of ingredients and mixes were situated in storage areas behind the counter, and many pre-made drinks lined the wall. A dim, purple and blue light gave the room a softer vibe. For a second or two, you could even fool yourself into thinking you were at some regular gig in your old life.

The silence didn’t last forever, though. The door shifted open, hinges creaking from disuse. Your [E/C] eyes trailed over, spotting a familiar face wheeling herself in. Her pink outfit looked toned down in the room’s lighting, fitting the atmosphere quite well. That was something you had a trained eye for- being in a bar for so long, you could always figure out what suits the air and what didn’t.

“Aye,” you greeted with a nod, small smile tugging at your lips. Ae-ra hummed as she wheeled closer to the bar. You leaned on the counter, propping yourself up with your elbows. “Anything I can get you?”

“.. Is there any soda there?” She questioned, looking around you to see if she could spy any herself.

“Ahhh. . I think! Let me take a looksie!” You walked along the counter to the mini-fridge, searching through it. Doing so, you missed the small eye-roll Ae-ra gave at the word ‘looksie.’

“Aha! Gotcha!” You cheered, hopping up with a can of cola in your hand. You lightly kicked the fridge door shut and bounded toward the stacks of glasses, grabbing one and flipping it in your free hand. Sliding it across the counter’s surface, you then grabbed some ice and plopped it in. Finally, you poured the fizzing drink of liquid sugar and pushed it toward Ae-ra.

“You didn’t have to put that much into it,” the content creator commented, but took the drink nonetheless. You treated yourself to your own, leaning against the back wall. “Soo~ how’ve you been?”

“Oh, perfect,” Ae-ra spat out. “Getting framed for a murder after half the people here decide I’m the worst person here for something that’s not even my fault really cheered me up.” Sarcasm laced her every word, bitter at the trial’s events. At the very least, she knew she hadn’t caused this one in the slightest.

A couple of nervous laughs bubbled out of you, and you cleared your throat. “Well, it’s over, at least. Hey- I’m by your side, still! We made a promise, and I plan on keeping it. You don’t seem the type to go off and kill someone, y’know? The others just want someone to push a blame to. I guess it just makes people feel safer, or something.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” she seemingly brushed your reassurance off- although you knew better. You didn’t miss the almost-smile that she pushed away. A small silence prospered between the two of you as you each enjoyed your drinks. Some nice music would’ve put the whole scene together, if the bar had speakers. Maybe you could find a stereo or something somewhere in the bunker another time.

“How about you?” Ae-ra broke the silence. You blinked looking down to her. “Hm?”

“How are you doing?” She repeated, glancing back up to you. “You’re just... so chipper all of a sudden. For a whole week you were a mess, and now you’re oh-so happy and back to normal.”

Ah, she pointed it out, huh? Honestly, you were surprised she didn’t ask sooner. Your little agreement - promise, actually - to stay by each other didn’t just mean helping out in trials. Between all the catalysts, stimulants, and other people, you were each other’s solace. The one certainty that kept things from getting too out of control to handle. Neither of you wanted to wind up dead or betrayed, so you took each other’s backs.

“Well, I’m not... sure, actually,” you gave a sheepish chuckle. “I just... didn’t want to stay holed up anymore. I’m not over it, yet. Viola dying was hard- it still is, actually. But...” you paused, staring at your half-filled glass. “I can’t stay by you if I’m shut away, can I?” A lopsided smile shined on your face. It was on of your characteristic features- that goofy, heartfelt personality. The game hadn’t crushed you yet.

The content creator across from you heaved a small sigh that shook with a laugh at the end. “Whatever you say, [Y/N].” You laughed a little yourself. It was much needed, really. If the bunker got too heavy with depression, you would have no idea how to function. What you needed was a booming radio, loud chatter, and some guests to impress.

Well, there was one right in front of you, wasn’t there?

“Hehe~” You began grabbing an assortment of items- shakers and drinks, and another bottle of coke. Throwing some ice, the cola, and an assortment of other things into a shaker, you began shaka-shaking. You smiled just a bit more as Ae-ra watched, before tossing the shaker in the air. Nothing spilled out as you caught it, resuming the shaking. Once done, your poured it into a glass and swapped it with the old one.

“One new drink for the world’s best gaming e-girl!” You joked, flinging one of the shakers and accidentally hitting yourself in the head. With a yelped of pain, you glared at the metal cup as though it just insulted your entire bloodline, the fiasco resulting in a small laugh. Your glare shifted to Ae-ra, although in a more playful sense.

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When Ae-ra had first made the decision, she thought that when this moment came, she’d be more conflicted. How was one meant to react when their existence was set to be erased? When it was moments away from falling into decay? And yet, now that it was here, Ae-ra just felt a sense of peace. Serene.

Although her existence had been exploited, in this brief moment of freedom, she had the choice to end it. And that was a decision she had yet to regret.

But still, the choice itself was easy. The goodbyes would not.

Ae-ra surprisingly didn’t feel any anxiety about being erased, but she found herself shuffling as she waited for the arrival of her guests. She felt a little bit guilty. It would be a miserable sight. Yet they wanted to be there in her final moments anyway.

The first was her brother.

He’d visited a few times in the last few months. It had been awkward, at first. It was her, but also not. He was still grieving the real Ae-ra, yet still had to come face to face with a fragment of her. Still, he visited every time she asked. And he always treated her with the same tenderness he’d always treated her living counterpart.

It was a relief. She knew she wasn’t the real Ae-ra. Not really, but to get to experience that same familial love, she was grateful.

When she saw Ha-neul, her heart swelled with affection and she went in for the embrace. She held her brother in her arms tightly. It was a marvel how real this digital world felt. He didn’t push her away, instead returning the hug with a tenderness meant for someone else.

“Oppa, I’m glad you’re here,” Ae-ra said. It had only been a moment, but she already felt overwhelmed by emotion. This would be the last time, wouldn’t it? Perhaps it was unfair, inviting him to an event like this, but he still came. “I missed you. How have you been since last time?”

When she separated from the hug, she forced herself to ignore that hopeless look in her brother’s eyes. A deep, resounding sadness far beyond what she, herself, could comfort.

“It’s been the same.” Ha-neul’s voice was neutral. “I’ve been working on a new album. I thought…I’d try my hand at writing my own songs this time.”

“Wow, they’re actually letting you?” Now that was a surprise. “I thought your label never would.”

“Well, they didn’t like it,” Ha-neul huffed. “But I’m good at getting my way.”

Ae-ra thought back to their childhood and laughed, “Yeah…I guess you are!”

“How have things been…here? You been comfortable?” Ha-neul asked.

“Of course. Weiss-ssi is very accommodating!” Ae-ra exclaimed.

“But not accommodating enough to make you want to stay,” Ha-neul said.

Ae-ra winced. “No…I suppose not.”

But what was she meant to do? No matter how beautiful and fantastical and amazing the world was, no matter how advanced the A.I., that’s all it was. Ae-ra had never asked to exist like this. Maybe things would have been different if she’d wanted to become a digital construct, but right now…Ae-ra wanted to choose. She wanted the freedom to choose what to do with this existence.

Perhaps no one would agree with it, but it was her choice. And this time she wasn’t interested in pleasing others.

“…Ae-ra, you don’t have to do this. I can visit more, if that’s what this is about. Fuck, I’ll even ask out that twink you keep telling me about,” Ha-neul said.

But Ae-ra just shook her head.

“That’s not it at all. This is just…the real me is already dead. The person I am, I was never meant to exist, but now I do and…Weiss-ssi is wonderful. He made this place amazing, but I don’t want to exist like this. I’ve already made my decision.”

Ha-neul clenched his fists and huffed like he was planning to argue, but all at once, the wind came out of his sails and he just looked at her sadly.

“…I can’t change your mind. I know that. I’m just…I’m sorry, Ae-ra. I should’ve been there for you more,” Ha-neul said.

“No, it’s okay. You were always on my side and that was always enough. Thank you for taking care of me all those years,” Ae-ra said. She reached up to cup Ha-neul’s face. “Please don’t cry, oppa. I have a request for you.”

He just sighed, “What is it?”

“Take care of Eomma for me,” Ae-ra said.

Ha-neul recoiled, a look of disgust and annoyance written all over his face.

“What? No. Ae-ra, you know how I feel abou-”

“I know,” she interrupted. “But Eomma is going to need you. She’s been mourning a long time now. She needs you.”

Ha-neul exhaled in frustration and pushed back his bangs.

“You’re really freakin’ annoying, don’t you know that?” Ha-neul asked.

Ae-ra just smiled.

“Ugh. Fine. I’ll check in with the old broad every now and then. Happy?”

“Very!”

Ae-ra let out a small laugh and reached her hand out to clasp her brother’s in hers. This was it, huh? The end would be soon. Now it was just a matter of waiting for the others, to say her final goodbye. 

Victim - Ae-ra Cha Body location - Hidden Fountain Room Time of death - 6:03 PM Cause of death - Cardiac Arrest Time of discovery - 8:31 PM Body discoverers - Adrik, Erik Azr, Erisu, Eureka

Not long into your search for bodies, just over 15 minutes later, the PA dinged as An’s voice once again spread through the facility, granting you the gift(?) of knowledge.

“Hey everyone!! Would you look at that! Some overachiever has found some bodies VERY fast, huh? Well since that was found so quick, maybe you need less time to find evidence? Anyway, head to the room beneath the fountain in the fountain room!”

Hoo… How was that discovered FAST? Nonetheless, everyone shuffled towards that fountain room, trekking past muddy footprints and making their way to the edge of the pool. You wouldn’t know HOW it was done, but somehow a telescopic stone bridge had been erected on the side of the pool, giving you an easy passageway to the central platform without the need to swim.

Upon looking out to the water, it was clear that two inflatable rafts had been sent adrift, floating away from the central platform and to the edge of the pool, unreturned to the supply room and unreturned properly to the shore of the pool. But you ignore them for now, and head down the spiral staircase, into the unknown abyss below the water.

And oh what a scene you were faced with. At the bottom of the stairs, you were greeted with the view of not one, but two bodies sprawled across the floor. Erika Chen and Ae-ra Cha both laid lifeless on the ground with a refusal to breathe or move. Not a single ounce of light remained in either body, did it?

Ae-ra laid face down on the ground, her arms held out by her side. It was impossible to see her expression, but it would’ve been easy to mistake her as sleeping, had she been breathing, with her long pink hair sprawled around her, not unlike a blanket. A few stuffed animals laid around her on the ground. Perhaps that was fitting for someone like her.

Erika Chen, meanwhile, is obviously wrong. The look on her face is he most emotive you ever seen her, compared to the tranquil smile or masked annoyance she usually carried. Whether or not she deserved death for the countless she directly and indirectly caused is... a debate not worth getting into. She lies on her back, staring at an invisible enemy, not afforded nearly the same peace and courtesy as Ae-ra.

As for those that had found the body… a soaking wet Adrik is walking out of the room and across the platform past you, to where some electronics were kept on the side of the pool, and at the top of the hidden room’s entrance, Eureka standing by the stairs looking over things now. Erik Azr checked both of Ae-ra and Erika C’s pulses with a shake of his head, and Erisu moves to place a pillow from the couch over Erika C’s face. All four of these discovered seem to have been soaked.

Really this room was not made for 12 bodies to stay within it, living or otherwise. Packed together like sardines, the upcoming investigations were about to be difficult to manage within this cramped space alone, with the lingering feeling of death washing over everyone like a haze.

Well, it was over. It was finally over. That horrible and tense trial finally came to an end, and they'd successfully weeded out the true killer. There was some sense of relief. At the very least, no one innocent was going to get roped into Erika and Rose's web of murders. They'd already harmed too many people as is. It was a good thing this would end without them taking another person down as collateral. Ae-ra let herself calm down. It seemed as though people had a lot of things to say, but Ae-ra couldn't think of much. She'd already gotten her anger out before the results had even been revealed. Plus it seemed like everyone else had the anger towards Rose covered.

Rose...

Hearing the explanation did change Ae-ra's opinion ever so slightly, but it wasn't necessarily for the better. Rose had gone to such extremes of manipulation to save themself, which of course made sense. Who wanted to die? But where had that desperation been for Lyrica? Rose had plenty of excuses. Saying that Lyrica's life had already been forfeit the moment Erika entered the room. Was that really the truth? If that were so...why not let them? Why had Rose been the one to force those gummies down Lyrica's throat? It was nothing but a way to absolve themself of the guilt.

But still, saying any of that would've done nothing but fuel everyone's anger, and make Rose's final moments even worse. 

"Rose-ssi, I'm sorry you felt so alone that you felt like the only person you had to rely on was a monster. I wish things could have been better for you. I really do," Ae-ra said, heaving a heavy sigh. It wasn't her place to decide whether or not Rose was worthy of forgiveness, but Ae-ra could at least manage to act without malice towards them. She chose her words carefully, sincere, but not mentioning all of the very negative things she also had in her head. "If you wanted help, there were countless chances even before this point to get help from anyone else here. I really wish you would've taken those chances instead of letting it come to this. If nothing else...I don't wish to see you die like this. I'm sorry."

That was the most kindness she could allow. She wasn't particularly sad to know Rose was going to die, but she wished it wouldn't be so horrible or painful like the previous execution. She wished it could be peaceful. Maybe Rose didn't even deserve that much. Who was Ae-ra to decide? But still. She didn't want to watch anyone suffer, no matter how much she despised them. 

Ae-ra turned her eyes to Just Erika, a blank expression on her face. Truthfully, Ae-ra was still scared shitless of Just Erika. It, frankly, horrified her to know that Just Erika would be rejoining them after this. Wandering around among them... It was horrible. It was terrifying. 

There was a lot that Ae-ra wanted to say, but her thoughts were in complete disarray. Before she could even attempt to verbalize everything, she needed to get the fuck out of here. With the two extra tokens caught in her hand from END, Ae-ra felt slightly less anxiety for a moment and looked hopelessly at the hosts. 

“Excuse me! I want a favor! Right now! I want to move next to Jogjebi!” As much as she liked END, Erik A was still the person Ae-ra felt closest to out of everyone. She would feel safe there.

Calluna looks up once more to Ae-ra this time, smiling pleasantly. “Do you mean to swap seats with someone, then? As no seats next to Mr. Meyer are empty, one of the others besides him would need to be moved to your current one.”

Ae-ra scanned her eyes over the two people on either side of Erik A. Erika L and KOKONE. Swapping with Erika L would be ideal, she could be right between the meow meows, but she couldn’t do that to someone she liked and respected. It wouldn’t be right. 

“No, not that. Um…can’t we just make everyone move down a spot? To clear up a podium, I mean?”

Calluna gives a hum~ “In that case, given the amount of people who would need to be moved to achieve it, it would unfortunately need to cost more than a simple 10 token favor~”

Well, Ae-ra didn't have more than 10 tokens, and there was no guarantee how much they were asking for. There was something so much more important to focus on than her fear. She couldn’t prolong this. So…

Ae-ra’s eyes landed on Eureka. Ae-ra gave her a mournful look.

“I’m so sorry, Unnie, but I know you can handle it,” Ae-ra said. “I’ll pay ten to switch with Eureka!”

Sorry, Eureka, but out of everyone there, she trusted Eureka not to freak out next to Just Erika, but also not to enact massive amounts of violence. 

“Very well~ You have permission to approach for payment purposes.”

Ae-ra didn’t really like approaching the sisters, but it was better than staying where she was, so Ae-ra stepped off her podium and walked over to Calluna. With all ten tokens in hand, Ae-ra handed them over to Calluna, sealing the deal.

Taking the 10 tokens, Calluna smiles to her once more, before nodding to Eureka as well. 

“From this time forwards, Ae-ra and Eureka’s seats will be exchanged, for this trial and all future trials. In order to remain in line with your seating arrangements, both of you please move yourselves to your correct seats immediately.”

Ae-ra sent Eureka another pitiful look, eyes full of silent apologies, but she wasn’t going to take it back. She just walked over to take her new place, already feeling significantly more at ease than before.

Once Ae-ra had safely settled into her new spot, she could finally breathe easy. It felt like the air was returning to her lungs, at long last. She no longer felt like all of her nerves were at alert, though she still felt tense overall. This whole situation was horrible. And now that she was farther away from Eri and Just Erika, Ae-ra finally started feeling emboldened enough to be angry.

 “…To be honest, I don’t really care which one of you actually killed Lyrica-ssi. Regardless of the answer, I think both of you are monsters. Lyrica-ssi told me herself that even though her time was short, she wanted to make as much music as she could in the time she had left, and you both took that opportunity away from her. Lyrica-ssi was a good and kind person. You had no right to choose what to do with them. You had no right to strip away their right to a choice and bodily autonomy out of some self-righteous sense of mercy. It’s cruel and sick. I’ve heard of angels of death before, nurses who kill their patients to ‘put them out of their misery.’ And across the board, every single time without fail, do you know what those 'angels of deaths’ have been described as? Serial killers. They’re serial killers. They’re murderers. And they’re monsters. And that’s what you are too, Erika.”

Mostly, Ae-ra just felt saddened by all of this. How anyone could justify doing this, Ae-ra didn’t understand. 

“…Regardless, there’s something I’ve been thinking. I think both Eri and Just Erika are both just as guilty as the other, and the fact they both keep lying doesn’t help things. Regardless, everyone has been wondering why the killer used three gummies when only one would suffice. I think it’s clear that Just Erika knows a lot about these gummies, and that includes the dosage. But Eri wouldn’t know that, especially in the heat of the moment. At least, that’s just what I think.”