Ask/Dare Bruce, Jeremiah, Edward, Oswald, 514A, & Jerome - Gotham *OPEN* + MS

Mini Skit #97 *JUNJI ITO AU*

A/N: TRIGGER WARNING: MENTIONS OF DEATH AND SUICIDE AHEAD!!! SPOILERS FOR LOVESICK DEAD BY JUNJI ITO!!! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!!! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!

*Bruce and 514A are seen reading an online version of Lovesick Dead by Junji Ito that's been translated into English* 

Bruce: Fives, this story's plot gives me an idea for something we could do to those two soulless twin bastards. 

514A: *eagerly and curiously* Really? Tell me! 

Bruce: We make intersection fortunetelling be as popular in Gotham as it is in the story. So popular that it intentionally reaches those bastards' ears. We fuse and dress up like the Intersection Pretty Boy. And then when we see them at the intersection, we'll deliver the cold and chilling phrase he utters. And they'll kill themselves afterward. Think about it, Fives. With them gone, we won't have to worry about them anymore. 

514A: *skeptically* I kind of like the idea except there's some problems with that. First off, Jeremiah doesn't believe in the supernatural. Jerome kind of does. And it's not going to scare either of them enough to want to do it. Plus, unless you're somehow involved, Jeremiah's not gonna do anything at all. Plus, you told me that when Selina tried to kill him, he came back from the dead not long after.

Bruce: I suppose that's true considering he wouldn't have aided Ra's had it not been for Ra's bringing me up in conversation before No Man's Land happened. 

514A: *skeptically* Second off, the Pretty Boy's powers affect only girls, not boys. Because if it did affect both genders, Ryuusuke would have fallen for him the same way and would have ended up dead early on. Thus changing the story's course. 

Bruce: Or he would have been spared and kept for the Bishounen's *while making air quotes* "PERSONAL" use.

514A: *skeptically* And third, there's a chance that this could pull an Uzumaki and get out of control, like it did in the story. So many people, innocent or not, are going to end up dead if we're not careful. Look at what happened in Chapter 3, all it took was one rumor started by a *while also making air quotes* "friend" of Ryuusuke's to make things even worse. Had that not happened, the events of Chapter 4 would have been avoided and would have given the reader a different end result. 

Bruce: I know you are skeptical of this, Fives. But think about it, this is Jeremiah and Jerome Valeska we're talking about. They'd jump at any opportunity to find out if they are going to be romantically involved with me, or you, or either of us in the future at some point. It's like one of Ivy's flytraps, we lure them in and then when they are lulled into a false sense of security, we clamp shut on them. Win, win, win. Everybody gets what they want. We and the city get our peace and get to live our lives in peace without interference.

514A: *skeptically* I still don't know about this, Bruce. It's not like Gotham even really gets foggy at dusk anyway. 

Bruce: It doesn't but hey, there's noting wrong with working around some elephants in the room, right? Look, how about this? For everyone else, we'll say 'yes'. But if we encounter Jerome, Jeremiah, or any of their followers, we'll say 'no'. Besides, despite the gender problem, I think they'll be more attracted to the positive side of it. And they'll think that if it works for others, then it could potentially work for them the same way. 

514A: *skeptically* But doesn't that go against his character? No matter what the characters in the story expect, they're always going to be met with a cold 'no' regardless, followed by an equally cold shoulder. 

Bruce: That's why it's just an interpretation. Like the saying goes, "big minds get inspired and create, whereas small ones only spoil and steal".