#puppetmuseum

╰ ☆ ✧ — @puppetmuseum asked: ‍surprise you now have a rabid dog u mean— medicine pocket with yumeno’s doll in their mouth and shaking it around as if it was a dog’s chew toy. Have fun with that.

↳ -: ☆ ( Unprompted. ) ☆ :-

˗ˏˋ *ㅤ★ㅤ‿︵ㅤ˗ˏˋㅤ𝑰𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒚 𝒅𝒐𝒈 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒅𝒐ㅤ—ㅤand yet somehow, it was a LOT less charming. Dogs were cut and fluffyㅤ—ㅤand most of the time, they didn't even know better ! What dog WOULDN'T be enticed by a doll momentarily left unattended and mistake it for a chew toy ?

⊱ ★ ⊰ㅤ˗ˏˋㅤThisㅤ—ㅤwas CLEARLY not a dog. This was a full grown adult with their doll caught between their jaws.

⊱ ★ ⊰ㅤ˗ˏˋㅤThey weren't QUITE sure what to make of the situationㅤ—ㅤbut this person was INSANE. And that was coming from them.

⊱ ★ ⊰ㅤ˗ˏˋㅤ❛ㅤHEY ! Give that back, you creep !ㅤ❜

In the middle of someone talking, she’s not sure who, she leaned her head onto the back of daisuke’s shoulder, putting her hand on the other. She stays like this with no words spoken, likely confusing her companions. She needed a second, just a second—

@puppetmuseum

this place has been no kinder to him , though he doesn't quite understand . it's the first time he's been figured out so quickly ; left with no form of self defense and utterly no one to convince . it's the first time he's been so readily damned , every rigid finger pointing and accusing at a perfect ninety degree angle . numerals and rationality reached beyond the gentle slopes and impressions of the boy's face , piercing his mind ; his heart , and sharply . one cast stone after another : they called him a devil , heathen , calamity , cataclysm , the death of all art ---

and was it true ? he couldn't bare to argue . dark too , despite every shared pain and desperate , indignant urge , had remained grim-silent within him . it was enough to escape the dungeons they had thrown their decried , so-called apocalypse into , a simple , albeit guilty trick for a phantom thief . sometimes , what couldn't be washed away or undone would simply be indulged in if only for better things' sake ... and vertin was out there somewhere , waging her own battles , braving still her own personal storms .

wanting to see her alone had been enough to keep him from sulking . through scant archipelago woods , taking fugitive shelter in setting-sun shadows , he had approached lilya the instant he had spotted her , mulling about the beach to take the sight of another bleeding afternoon in , drinking and toasting to nothing in that same careless , dare-devil way as always . c'est la vie , he's always thought at the sight of her . even when things turned dire , the witch would still find a reason to cackle and laugh , but it left behind the gentle , echoing shape of vertin's absence all that much more .

imagine his expression , then , when she returns . approaches from behind only as he's just stepped foot onto sands and inquired over her whereabouts , summoned up so suddenly like a ghost . his shoulder jumps the instant he feels her touch at it , and he nearly springs away , ready to sprint and bound towards safety like a hare . instead --- ' vertin ! ' wonder and relief . an immediate embrace , the small entirety of the boy's form throwing itself about her . thank goodness . arms clutch tight ; his head nestles into the crook of her neck , and when he finally retreats , he's already changed .

' are you okay --- ? ' the worried crease about his eyes pleads and implores . a frigid palm touches her cheek , and it's only now that he realizes vertin's subtle tremor and shake . ' you're not hurt anywhere ?! what happened ? ' between the folds of dark cloaks and clothing , he likewise catches glimpse of it ... ( damn , that's one ugly bracelet . ) a grotesque thing like that was more suited to being attached to a ball and chain , but the thought doesn't quell any of the brewing anxieties starting to boil in his mind .

' what did ... ' he stumbles clumsily into silence . thick brows settle heavy in their furrow . it was enough to witness vertin's exhaustion , the tug at his heart an immediate impulse --- without asking anything more , he takes the timekeeper up into his arms and jealously holds vertin close . ' no , nevermind . ' hush , hush . when he whispers , even the most brusque syllables turn to lyre-chord lullaby , sublime and divine . shadows drawn in a curtain by the shape of great black wings quietly hide vertin away . whether or not the worst had yet to come , he wanted to keep her like this --- kept in his arms and imperishable if only for a moment more .

and he doesn't mean to cry , but his tender heart could never resist even the slightest tug at every one of its delicate strings . weepy and struck , cherub tears spilling from the corners of covetous crimsons ---「 le cœur humain ... ne peut contenir qu'une certaine quantité de désespoir. quand l'éponge est imbibée, la mer peut passer dessus sans y faire entrer une larme de plus .」

it was a moving , but tragic love story he was reading .

' i ... s-sorry , hiwatari-kun . ' the book whose pages he's nearly stained and gotten wet with tears is shut and pushed away by a careful , considerate hand . daisuke hurries to clear his mien , a little more than surprised himself that he could end up so enraptured by a novel even beside the other like this . should it have been a testament to the artistry of it , or to his and hiwatari's own growing-comfortable relationship ?

if he were to try at being honest , sitting beside the other made him feel a little dumb . inept and over-sensitive , just like it might have from the start --- no , that was wrong . even from the beginning , before his fourteenth birthday and his very first transformation , the other had still been kind to him without any sort of conceit . from offering a handkerchief to even warning him now , it was clear that satoshi loathed the sight of anybody's tears --- even a would-be enemy's .

so daisuke brightens . smiles and nods his head , laughing and sputtering awkwardly a little at first . ' th-thank you . i didn't even realize anything . it's ... a really good story . ' one that even might have been worth changing for . were he at home , free to be whoever both his thrumming heart and cursed genes forced him to be , then there was no doubt that even the coldest , wintry impression of the 'great phantom thief dark' would have been dissolved by these reverent , innocent tears ; the fallen angel weeping over beautiful works of art .

instead the niwa takes in a deep , steady breath . with his gaze removed from his own pastime , he can't help but peek over at the other's own apparent literary endeavor . ' um , if you don't mind me asking ... what are you reading ? ' he can't help but already make a few guesses : maybe it was something dry like a calculus book ( is that the sort of level hiwatari was at , or was he even beyond it ... ? ) maybe it was even something like a thick detective novel ... ah , but he doesn't want to assume .

instead , just as innocently , and without much thought to it beyond the warmth loitering in the dull thuds of his heart , he asks --- ' is it fun ? '

' VERTIN ?! ' he nearly drops all his things in an instant . nearly blurts out what the heck are you doing in my house ?! too . meeting one another out and about or inside of the suitcase was one thing , but seeing anyone that wasn't his immediate family or a live artwork standing in the living room of his family mansion --- a-ah , no , it should have been okay because vertin was an arcanist , right ? she already knew all about him and things like magic ... !

still , what a surprise ! one thing if not another , first her appearance , then her literal appearance , a hand quick to cover the space of his chest , the boy's palm set timid over the building thrum of his heart . wonder quells some of the pounding thunder --- he's never seen her dressed anything even close to like this , but the pure white and cool blues made for a breathtaking ensemble . a stillness sweeps over him , and it's only after he comes to senses that he realizes --- hopelessly , he's transformed .

' ... mm , emiko's really outdone herself this time . ' ignoring the embarrassed , flustered sounds echoing inside of his head , happily humming to himself over the noisy din of it , the great phantom thief steps forwards in a practiced glide --- all to precede the touch of his frigid fingers at the timekeeper's chin . delicately , he tries to return the set of her gaze to him , his own eyes pinching fond and tender at the corners . ' what a wonderful present . is it really all for me ? '

he teases because he can't help it . funny to see someone else at last struck by the practiced hobby and impeccable taste of daisuke's mother , but though his lips split into their usual sharp and playful grin , not a single breath is wasted mocking or laughing at her , the deep crimsons of his eyes glimmering instead . a little bit of veracity would not hurt ; not when vertin and his very own host were both deigning to feel awkward and shy .

' you look exquisite . ' and then , ' visit as often as you like . no one in their right mind would ever deny the privilege of getting to see more of you . '

his touch retreats as gently as it had arrived , a glance given to her delivery . funny , was there ever a point in giving a group of thieves even more things ? it's the act alone that moves him ; that fills him with another equal , silent wonder . it's just a little too good , too kind for him . ( the bags look completely stuffed . do we really deserve something like this ... ? )

maybe , maybe not . what mattered was that vertin had delivered such things to them regardless . the palm of his hand reaches out to caress her cheek , and in this last act , the niwa nigh immediately returns to himself . his hand too is snatched back with a small yelp , digits clutching at his own wrist as if they had turned brief traitor to himself . ' uh --- sorry ! sorry , about him ... '

' b-but --- it's true , you know ? even i've always thought it was really embarrassing , but my mom does a good job ... i've gotta admit . i'm sure it makes her really happy too , so ... ' ( ah , just come out and say it already --- ! ) ' it ... it's really nice to see you , vertin ! it's more than alright , we'd be happy to have you over , any time ! '

HE'S RIGHT BEHIND ME .

stares at the snow melting on the floor .

stares back at argentine , too .

AHHHHH ?! that's not normal ! that's not healthy ! he never thought he'd be seeing a so-called medical specialist gnawing on the bottoms of brushes and eating paints like it was konjac jelly ! but he hasn't forgotten their first meeting , after all --- the same lingering dread and intimidated , bewildered horror that froze him helplessly stiff and solid even at this very moment .

' w-w-wha ! wha ?! medicine pocket , no ! ' leave it to the niwa to still dash forward and desperately throw his arms about the other in an attempt to drag them back and away . his eyes shut tight though he can still hear the clatter of his things alongside any combating struggle and growl , his new captive no doubt displeasured in being interrupted and separated from what supplies they still stubbornly kept a number of right within their mouth .

was this what it was like having a human-sized dog ?!

' medicine pocket , no ! you can't ! you can't ! bad ! that's bad --- !! ' use them for anything but eccentric culinary experiments or strange oral fixations ! he's too afraid to put his hands anywhere near the other's mouth and teeth , and if they really wanted some , then medicine pocket could have received a few supplies for themself , but at least leave the rest untouched ! at least , leave something for him to still try to make some art with !