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#First drawing rippen

palaxy27 · 1 month

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I'm too late but I don't care I had to do it.

I'm still missing some scenes I'd like to do

#penn zero part time hero #pzpth #penn zero: part-time hero #penn zero #pzpth rippen #rippen #art #drawing #illustration #pilot #First drawing rippen #I prefer the current penn design #jejejeje Mr. reap

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skullhub · 4 years

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RIPPEN VERSE: Toontown/Who framed roger rabbit

Rippen in this verse lives among the more modern toons that came out of the million other phases that were apart of disney’s animation blocks and series that premiered in the 2010s. Unfortunately because he wasn’t a part of the ‘golden age’ group of toons, he was immediately scrapped and forgotten, like a sketchbook that was left unfinished over one bad drawing.

He lays low now that the fame died down, regretting ever becoming a disney toon in the first place, wishing for the fame and glory that all the rest had accumulated. Scowling in disdain at how much happier other toons seemed to be, especially since a lot of them didn’t fall down into obscurity like he did. They all got big fancy dressing rooms, red carpet greetings, autograph signings, the whole nine yards. And yet he barely even got a taste of the spotlight before it was pried from his claws and given to some ‘better’ toons on the block. To say he was envious, was an understatement, he wanted that fame for himself. And if it took wrecking havoc on the studio to get their attention, then so be it. Just as long as he gets the chance to take the stage one final time.

#Muse: Rippen #Rippen verse: Toontown

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illiana-mystery · 7 years

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I was tagged.

Rules: Answer these 85 statements and tag twenty people (Gonna do fewer than that, however)

tagged by:

@lordamakasu

The last…

1. drink: cheerwine 2. phone call: mom 3. text message: friend 4. song you listened to: A Girl Like Me by Gugudan (K-Pop) 5. time you cried: right after the Penn Zero series finale 6. dated someone twice: nope 7. kissed someone and regretted it: not yet...anyway... 8. been cheated on: twice...it sucks...but they can go fuck themselves for all I care... 9. lost someone special: many people... 10. been depressed: back in middle school...but I’m still riddled with anxiety 11. gotten drunk and thrown up: nope...I like alcohol...but not that much...

Three Favorite Colors

1.Green 2. Blue 3. Purple

in the last year have you….

1. made new friends: yes, I have made a lot of cool new friends... 2. fallen out of love: at least twice... 3. laughed until you cried: yes...it was an old Markiplier video 4. found out someone was talking about you: yep...many girls...many freshman girls on campus... 5. met someone who changed you: yep 6. found out who your friends are: in a sense 7. kissed someone on your Facebook list: yes, my ex/now casual friend?

General

1. how many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life? all of them 2. do you have any pets? two dogs...a chocolate lab and a terrier mix 3. do you want to change your name? i used to want to change it...until I found out that it means ‘divine lady’ 4. what did you do for your last birthday? eat out, get my first drink, went to a sex shop...i know it sounds weird...but it was fun 5. what time did you wake up? i usually wake up at 6:30 for my 9:00-4:00 shift at my internship 6. what were you doing at midnight last night? re-watching old episodes of Penn Zero with my brother 7. name something you can’t wait for: going back to college, seeing my friends again, and reuniting with my precious blondy boo boo bear because I miss him dearly 8. when was the last time you saw your mum: i live with my parents when i’m not at school...so... 9. what are you listening to right now? Fallin’ by Alicia Keys on my Spotify 10. have you ever talked to a person named tom? yeah, that’s one of my coworkers right now. 11. something that is getting on your nerves: my parents’ blatant homophobia and transphobia 12. most visited website: tumblr, twitter, youtube, and facebook (in that order) 13. hair color: jet black 14. long or short hair: shoulder length 15. do you have a crush on someone? My blondy boo boo bear, John Oliver, Markiplier, Rippen, Alex Moffat, Thomas Middleditch, and many others... 16. what do you like about yourself? i have an extremely weird life...but it’s quite entertaining and fun being me despite that... 17. piercings: not anymore... 18. blood type: B+ 19. nickname: Didi, Dee, Miss Di, DW, Jasmine (high school), Alice, and Larry (because my friends think I act like Principal Larry from Penn Zero) 20. relationship status: mentally dating a fictional hunky, buff alien cat man 21. zodiac: Aries 22. pronouns: she/her 23. favourite tv show(s): Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Milo Murphy’s Law, Steven Universe, Bob’s Burgers, American Dad, Rick and Morty, We Bare Bears 24. tattoos: none...yet... 25. right or left handed: left-handed...with good handwriting and drawing skills 26. surgery: no 27. sport: softball, gymnastics, chess, and cheerleading (when I was younger) 28. vacation: recently went to New York with the family 29. pair of trainers: huh?

More General Questions

1. eating: i just ate some pizza 2. drinking: just had a Cheerwine 3. i’m about to: take a shower 4. waiting for: nothing at the moment 5. want: to be able to control my anxiety more 6. get married: yes...I really do want to get married one day 7. career: graphic designer (although i am studying animation too)

Which is better?

1. hugs or kisses: i like hugs better...although kissing is nice too 2. lips or eyes: eyes...i like any color eyes... 3. shorter or taller: any type of height on a girl or guy 4. older or younger: older...I’m the older sibling in my family 5. nice arms or nice stomach: i don’t really care about that because i love chubby girls and guys 6. hookup or relationship: relationships 7. troublemaker or hesitant: i like both

Have You Ever…

1. kissed a stranger: nope 2. drank hard liquor: whiskey...once...never again... 3. lose glasses/contact lenses: nope...my glasses are precious to me... 4. turned someone down: many times... 5. sex on the first date: yep...it was interesting to say the least... 6. had your heart broken: twice now... 7. been arrested: nope 8. cried when someone died: all of the damn time... 9. fallen for a friend: too many times to count...

Do You believe in…

1. yourself: i do, but my anxiety doesn’t... 2. miracles: yeah 3. love at first sight: no 4. santa claus: nope 5. kiss on the first date: yeah...i like affection... 6. angels: yep

Other…

1. eye color: brown 2. favorite movie: Megamind

I tag @howdoislushie, @a-little-ray-of-fantasy, @peace-love-colbert, @jorgemoctezuma, @rebeccatheweeaboo, @bxllcypher, @theonlybezo, @sydneyredpanda, @katherinepierce04, and @pastelstrawberriess

#tagged #silly didi #tag post

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cryptobrief · 5 years

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Barry Silbert founder and chief executive of the Digital Currency Group and Grayscale Investments, made an appearance on Bloomberg at the end of a fretful week in crypto, and as expected is un-phased by the Bitstamp-induced correction, predicting this bull run won’t pop like in December 2017.

With bitcoin currently priced at $7,350, there’s every reason to be comforted by the fact that nothing goes up in a straight line, and a correction of sorts was expected by some observers, as EWN reported.

Silbert has seen it all before and is convinced that this bull run will not be derailed. More than that, he says that this time the bull run will be different, by which he means it will not be another bubble rippening for a pop.

How will it be different this time?

So how will it be different? First, he addressed the chart technicals.

“Sentiment, the technicals are great… 80% draw down in price happened what three of four times before. Every time that happens…. record highs. As soon as you get the price going back up animal instincts come back.”

But the really crucially consideration is how the lay of the land differs, and that comes down to infrastructure.

“The difference between this increase in price versus the bubble in 2017 is the infrastructure is much different. You have custodians now, compliance software, trading software. People are more educated about the asset class. This time it’s different,” says Silbert.

He also addressed the question of trust in the space, interjecting that he thought the ICO phenomenon was at the centre of those worries, and had helped power the bear market.

“All of the demand from ICOs went away. Projects were trying to stay in business and selling bitcoin.”

Drop gold, buy bitcoin

Grayscale Investments is doubling down on the notion that bitcoin is digital gold, as seen in the recent launch of a nation-wide US TV advertising campaign themed Drop Gold. The ad had been previewed a couple of weeks ago.

Indeed, Silbert partly credits the ad with helping to generate the buying fever behind the recent bitcoin mega rally.

Although the ad was previewed two weeks ago, the national campaign only started running t the end of this week.

Silbert makes no bones about the fact that they are targeting a new generation of investors who will soon be coming into the family inheritance and will be more susceptible to the pitch from the issuers of bitcoin financial instruments.

Ad hits the mark with a million views and counting…

It’s a hard-hitting ad. “The ad is designed to be provocative,” Silbert explains. “This has already gotten over a million views.”

“So what is the number one thing to break in terms of view points regarding getting gold bugs into bitcoin, he was asked.

The ad is basically aimed at getting into the heads of millennials. “It’s important to start the conversation… there’s a generational shift happening,” he contends. “Anyone who has a phone can access this new asset class”, unlike with unportable gold bullion, as the advert makes clear.

“For the younger generation, money is digital… $68 trillion in wealth being handed down over the next 25 years.”

“It’s not all going to go into bitcoin, but whatever is in gold is going to diversify into something else.”

But what about the solidity of gold built up over millennia, how can computer code compare?

“Where gold has history and cultural significance it lacks in utility. Bitcoin as a financial rail has the potential to be incredibly value from an intrinsic potential.

In fact, Silbert argues that “gold’s use and utility is going down”, pointing to its drop in use in electronics, which he says has fallen by 30%.

On who is buying gold he says: “It’s central banks buying. So basically, if you are buying gold you are betting on the central bankers, which is weird because gold bugs think that central bankers are idiots and don’t know monetary and fiscal policy.”

He continues: “So, there’s a real disconnect – so OK I’m going to be betting on the bankers doing the right thing yet they’re the ones who are buying gold right now.”

Silbert is not the only one talking about digital gold, with Tyler Winklevoss also weighing in, as the EWN report here shows.

The Digital Currency Group is probably the nearest thing that crypto has to a conglomerate, with its fingers in many pies.

Abra, Bitflyer, BitPesa, Circle, Chainalysis, Coinbase, CoinDesk, Decentraland, Etherscan, eToro, Grayscale, Korbit, Kraken, Ledger, Parity Protocol Labs, Ripple, Shapeshift, Xapo and Zcash, are just some of the companies DCG has a stake in, or owns outright.

So what about some numbers, hard data on the institutional side?

In the first quarter Grayscale Investments saw 70% of inflows coming in from institutional investors and family offices, Silbert reveals.

What was the money buying? According to Silbert “right now it’s just bitcoin”. He said 90% went into bitcoin.

What about the rest of the crypto field?

He was asked what investors are to make of the rest of the field.

Would it be a sea of many or just a few from the 2,000 and more crypto offerings available that would prove their worth.

Silbert said there will be:

“winners in particular use cases, for digital gold bitcoin, privacy will be very big use case, Zcash and Horizon, … we like Ethereum Classic (ETC) for smart contracts.”

Grayscale has been a long-term supporter of the old Ethereum chain that was left behind after the DAO hack forced a hard fork that was followed by majority mining nodes.

Ethereum Classic is not much used, and fell victim to a 51% attack as a result in January, so at this point would be a risky pick for executing smart contracts on.

In July last year Silbert revealed that DCG held five coins, and the choices, bitcoin aside, were surprising,

“So, we have 50% in Bitcoin, 25% in Ethereum Classic, 15% in Zcash, 5% in Decentraland, and our newest one is 5% in ZenCash,” he said at the time

Silbert reiterated that there are “going to be a handful of winners”, so let’s hope he’s changed and rebalanced the holdings in that portfolio of crypto from 10 months ago, for Grayscale investors’ sake.

And what to say about the proliferation and oversupply of tokens?

“The ICOs brought in a lot of capital… but there were some negative consequences.”

“More discipline and certainly more infrastructure came out of it,” he concludes.

He didn’t let the opportunity miss to remind his audience about Grayscale Bitcoin Trust is “the only publicly quoted bitcoin fund out there” The fund has assets under management of $1.5 billion and he thinks it “will be one of the first that gets approved”.

Although it has a year to date return of 132% it trades at a premium of 29%, above its net asset value, ie is priced 29% above the value of its underlying bitcoin holding. That makes it 29% more expensive than buying bitcoin directly.

SEC approved collective investment vehicles still look a long way off in the US. The SEC recently delaying again a decision on the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF, thought to be one of the strongest offerings so far in terms of addressing custody and price discovery issues.

The Grayscale Ethereum Classic Trust has done even better than its bitcoin cousin, with a year to date return of 212%, but trades at a hefty premium to NAV – this time an eye-watering ridiculous 200%.

The post Bitcoin (BTC) Bull Run: Why This Time it’s Different to 2017 – Silbert appeared first on Ethereum World News.

#briefs

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vdmeganlawsontei · 6 years

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Ripple Skyrockets | The Rippening Is Here

Ripple Skyrockets | The Rippening Is Here Ripple (XRP) has skyrocketed not only over the past 2 weeks, but also the past 24 hours, surging past the $2 mark (and getting close to challenging $3 at one point). The Rippening / Rippling occurred if you look at total supply, but given the fact this supply is mostly locked in escrow, it behaves more like inflation as it is released into the economy slowly. Steemit Post: http://ift.tt/2luQrtV Much of this surge in Ripple has come from recent news where Ripple announced three large credit card companies from Japan are partnering with them for a pilot program. In addition, two weeks ago they announced a pilot program with a number of Korean & Japanese banks. Despite these partnerships being exploratory, the market prices them in as full-fledged collaborations due to hype. This type of mentality is not unique to Ripple, but it is affecting Ripple drastically right now so it is worth noting. I see Ripple as overextended now, although I wouldn't be surprised if irrational exuberance carries it two fold from here given how absurd the rise in Verge was recently (illustrating how strong pumps can be). We also saw this with Iota before it eventually cooled off. Everyone buys in thinking that other people know something they don't know. This is unfortunate because Ripple has a real and interesting use case with an excellent team. It doesn't need hype to do well, yet this is the nature of the field due to the overinflation of Bitcoin. Furthermore, a lot of people associate the value of the Ripple token with the value of the network. While the Ripple token is the most convenient and trustless currency to use within the Ripple network, it is not representative of the network value and should not be priced as such. If I had the option, I'd much prefer investing in Ripple the company than Ripple the cryptocurrency. Why? Because I see higher value in the network the company is building than the token itself. Given the company is unfortunately private, this is not an option. I will personally stay away from the Ripple token at these levels. What are your thoughts? Thank you for watching / reading. ================ If you like my content, you can support me through using ANY of the affiliate links below (I receive small compensation). The beauty of affiliate links is that I can pick and choose what I like rather than have companies approach me - everything I linked below (with the exception of Trezor since I like Ledger), I use myself frequently. ================ My Recommended Hardware Wallets: If you want to store your cryptocurrencies safely, the best way is through a hardware wallet. Seriously - look it up and you'll find plenty of information supporting this claim. There are alternatives such as paper wallets, but these are convenient and my choice for cold storage (offline): Ledger Nano S: http://amzn.to/2hZPj0q Trezor: http://amzn.to/2AxD9TN Ledger Blue (expensive): http://amzn.to/2hk7xst I personally prefer the Ledger Nano S, but the Trezor is such a close second that it really doesn't matter which one you go with. Ledger Blue is premium and convenient, but not necessary. ================ My Favorite Book for Investing in Crypto: Cryptoassets: http://amzn.to/2zKDdCF This book is, bar none, my favorite book for investing in cryptocurrencies. It doesn't bog you down with technical jargon, but instead focuses on all the elements you should understand before you invest. It's a comprehensive book for both beginners and experts. Beginners will find information about major cryptocurrencies (not just Bitcoin) as well as details on historical market events (that you can draw on for future) and events to watch for moving into the future. Experts will find the chapters on valuation particularly useful. For those of you involved in traditional investing, this book is even more of a godsend as finance info is explored (correlations with other asset classes, ETFs, etc). ================ My Recommended Exchanges: Coinbase / GDAX / Bittrex http://ift.tt/2zC86Z1 If you sign up to Coinbase using link above, you and I will both receive $10 each after you buy your first $100 of Bitcoin using Coinbase. Coinbase is much less intimidating for beginners. Once ready, move up to GDAX for cheaper or zero fees. For altcoins, I recommend Bittrex. ================ Legal Stuff: I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. None of what I provide in my videos is investment advice. Please do your own due diligence. ================ My Platforms: Twitter: https://twitter.com/Truth_Investor SteemIt: http://ift.tt/2yilNeD Medium: http://ift.tt/2x8UGiu Seeking Alpha: http://ift.tt/2xFgwPg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qww1xANMyM4

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lewisgabriel84z31 · 6 years

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Ripple Skyrockets | The Rippening Is Here

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ebadamsdraws · 7 years

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Our first pepino melon! A bit small, but I’m hoping they’ll make it up in numbers. I heard they taste a bit like honeydew and cucumber... letting it rippen a bit more before we try it. . . #growyourownfood #veggiegarden #gardentotable #homesteading #sketching #sketch #illustration #drawing #illustrator #vegetables #pepinomelon

#growyourownfood #sketching #sketch #gardentotable #illustrator #illustration #pepinomelon #homesteading #veggiegarden #drawing #vegetables

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palaxy27 · 1 month

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Everything will be fine...

Penn Zero Part-Time Hero comic

Warning: Contains violent scenes, blood and angst.

(Note: English is not my first language so there may be grammatical errors).

Okay... so originally I had only planned to publish the first drawing, but while I was sketching two things came to my mind, what would happen if the heroes would face some enemies in His dimension? and what would happen... if sashi would be defeated in a fight? And that's how a fanart became a comic ;)

Now putting us in the context of the story, Phyllips came back 1 or 2 years after the end of the series and recruits again the dream team for phase 2 returning to his adventures but with a bigger responsibility and facing different villains in each mission in different dimensions (It wouldn't be like facing Rippen always) but nothing so different for our heroes... until now...

One normal day after completing a mission, the tired guys were leaving but Penn had to go back to the theater because he forgot his wallet (don't ask why it wasn't in his backpack, even he doesn't know 😑) only to find two guys taking a tube with blue energy out of the portal, one who seemed to be a person from earth and the other of a bigger, more atamorizing build... he didn't even seem to be human, but an alien (Not of the same species as Rippen). Before Penn could analyze the situation, one of them pushed him away, knocking him to the ground suffering a strong blow with one hand without much difficulty for the two to flee the place.

Boone and Sahi run back to the theater to see the guys running away seeing a confused and panicked Penn about what had just happened. They inform Phyllips about what happened and he informs them that the energy tube is actually the energy core of the portal, but the core was so unstable that it was contained by the portal itself, not much was known about the two guys, only that they were from this dimension, somehow they both knew about the existence of the multiverses and therefore the power of the core, They were able to somehow evade the security system, including Karen (they didn't even seem to care about her presence), so they must recover the core soon and Phyllips warns them that they shouldn't underestimate it since they are much more dangerous since they have knowledge of the multiverse and belong to the same dimension.

They manage to locate them not far from the theater, so they start going after them discreetly but the guys realize this, so they decide to separate them.

The corpulent one interposes himself between the heroes and his companion inciting them to confront him to "delay them", penn ole asks Sashi to confront him, since he hoped that she would come out victorious, preventing him from intervening in his plan to recover the nucleus; Boone had planned to confront him too but his appearance would make him go with Penn to get the nucleus, leaving Sashi alone (something he would regret).

Penn and Boone would find him but he would use the power of the core to his advantage during the confrontation, something that neither of them had in mind, hindering their plan to recover the core, even putting Boone's life at risk by throwing himself at the man in a desperate attempt to retrieve the core, receiving both he and the man a they received a charge from the nuclear force, but they barely managed to defeat it.

The two boys with some victorious scratches and blows would call Sashi to inform her about their victory, but she does not answer, so they return to the place where they had left her expecting to see the guy easily defeated by the assistant and affectionately that's how they found him, in an alley Remote and dark on the unconscious floor with some blood stains... but it wasn't his. Sashi was found against the wall seriously injured, destroyed, breathing heavily, with her tired eyes half open (Seeing the bandages you can get an idea of the severity of the wounds) while her visor was on the destroyed floor. Both boys were shocked by the scene, seeing how their friend, girlfriend and companion, one of the strongest people they knew, were in a worse state than their opponent.

The two boys took her to the theater, being greeted not only by Phyllips, but also by Penn and Boone's parents. They were all shocked to see the girl's condition. Phyllips quickly attended to her requests while her parents calmly asked them what happened, something that did not help them at all. Once Phyllips finished with Sashi, she sent the three of them home, feeling sorry for them and that they only take the weekend off, feeling sympathy for the boys. However, Sashi's parents and brother were not in town so Penn asked her parents that she stay with them until they returned and tell them what happened (spoilers: they found out before and they did not take it very well, especially their brother), they accepted without hesitation, Boone also stayed with them with the permission of his parents, since he was worried about his friend's condition and felt guilty

And that's how we get to this scene, with Penn and Sashi alone changing Sashi's bandages, even giving her his shirt as spare clothes when he has his clothes stained with blood, feeling scared and guilty for leaving her alone and the decisions he makes that lead to her. led to them getting hurt, but she tries to comfort him by telling him that it was not his fault, since they were able to recover the core and find her in time, saving her life (since she even subdued her opponent), however she was also scared, not because of him. encounter in itself, if not by realizing that she was not strong enough and that luckily she was able to defeat him and come out alive, making her feel weak and useless, apart from if she had not faced him and it had been Penn or Boone. Did they even Would they be here? However, she keeps it to herself, she has to be strong, for her own good and don't worry about her.

I don't plan to "go deeper" into the two characters but I plan to do some comivs in the future exploring different points of view on the incident, their reactions, feelings and healings. But if anyone wants to go deeper into this, they are free to do so (I would like to see it)

#PZPTH #penn zero part time hero #sashi kobayashi #boone wiseman #penn zero #sketch #art #drawing #illustration #penn zero: part-time hero #comics #penn x sashi #pennashi #she needs a hug #he needs a hug #everyone needs a hug #because some pennashi doesn't hurt anyone

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fanfic-inator795 · 7 years

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Hero Magi Penn Zero Magica: Chapter 10

Plot: Penn never really thought that he could be as strong or heroic as his parents. However, when a mysterious cat-like creature named Phyllis offers to grant him one wish in exchange for becoming a magical hero, he finds that he may just be able to make his dream come true, and maybe even get his family back at the same time. Unfortunately, the life of a magical hero is filled with tragedy and despair. Can Penn really live that life? Can he help his friends? And what is with that mysterious new art teacher of his? Read to find out!

...Um, yeah. Sorry (again) about the long wait. Between work, cons and moving I didn’t really have much time for this... gah :/ I’m really sorry... But I am still going to finish this eventually. In the meantime, enjoy some Rippen backstory! Idea for this story was originally @rinnysega‘s.

The streets were cold, the night was still young, and Phyllis' words were still echoing throughout Rippen's head as he travelled down the street and towards his apartment.

"If you still wish to defeat Walpurgisnacht, then Penn Zero will have to fight."

He clenched his fists. "No..." This was his mission. This was his wish, and he would not let it go in vain. He wouldn't fail. ...He couldn't fail. "Not after all this time."

It had literally been several lifetimes ago, and yet he could still remember it like it was yesterday..

()()()()()()()() ()()()()()()()() ()()()()()()()()

*THWEEEEEEEET!* The kids all immediately covered their ears as the gym teacher blew on his whistle, knowing just how to make the class silent.

"Okay class," Mr. Egsgard started to say, his tone dull and pretty uncaring, "As you may or may not know or care, your old art teacher suddenly retired last week. We wish her the very best. Now, since we've finally managed to find a replacement, I'd like to introduce you all to your new teacher, Mr. Rippen." The coach then gestured to the door as it opened, and a man stepped in.

The students' eyes widened as they looked at their new teacher. His skin was a pale green, and behind a pair of blue-rimmed glasses were a pair of yellow and red eyes. He was clean-shaven with shoulder length black and white hair that had been combed down in an attempt to tame it. He seemed nice enough, and fairly young too. Still an adult of course, but with how nervous and almost meek he seemed, there was no doubt this was his first teaching gig. The fact that the front of his shirt was damp enough for the whole class to see - another unlucky victim of that dangerous spot at the front of the parking lot that most of the faculty had dubbed "Water Sprinkler Row" - didn't exactly help his confidence either.

"Um, hel- er, g-good morning, children," Mr. Rippen greeted, giving the class a small nod, "I am Mr. Rippen. But, ah, I-I suppose you already knew that. Um-"

"Alright, you seem to have things handled pretty well," Mr. Egsgard told him, already making his way to the door, "Their all yours."

"Ah, right." Rippen cleared his throat before looking at his curious (and in some cases, unimpressed) students once more. "So, um, I-I suppose we should get started on today's lessons, eh?"

To be fair, the rest of the period wasn't TOO much of a disaster. ...Though, in Rippen's eyes at least, it had been pretty close to one...

He’d gotten through most of his lessons, but twice he dropped his notes. In one instance, he had been so frazzled that he ended up misspelling a word right on the chalk board! That definitely earned him a few snickers from this class...

Shortly after that, he decided to just give the class some free time to draw and practice the techniques he had just taught them about (or at least, tried to teach them about). That seemed to satisfy his students, and with a heavy sigh, Rippen sat down at his desk.

“It could have been worse,” he mumbled to himself as he searched through his bag, “Could have been a lot better too, though... Ugh, what am I even-?” He stopped, pulling out a paper. A single paper that was supposed to be a homework assignment, though it was hard to give the whole class homework when you only had one copy. He resisted the urge to facepalm.

With his luck, the copy machine would probably have a line - that is, if he could even find it at all! Swallowing his pride, he stood up again. “Um, class?” Rippen asked, crumpling the paper slightly in his hand as his hands stiffened, “I, I need to copy something for, er, for tomorrow’s lesson. Um, c-could one of you please show me where the faculty copy machine is?”

Unfortunately, no one volunteered. In fact, it looked like no one was even listening to him! Whether they just didn’t hear him over their own conversations or were just ignoring him on purpose, Rippen wasn’t sure. “Um, excuse me? I, er...” He gave another sigh. He’d have to just go find it on his own-

“I’ll take you there, Mr. Rippen.”

Rippen blinked. From the middle of the sea of students and desks, a freshman student with bright, curly red hair stood up. “Oh! Uh, t-thank you, Mr.- er-” Shoot! He knew the principal had given him a list of students before his first day. What was this boy’s name again?

“Penn Zero,” the boy told him, smiling, “And I’m pretty sure the copy machine’s just on the other end of this floor.”

“Oh! Well, that’s good. Um, w-well, come along then.” Penn gave a nod, walking out the door and beginning to lead the way. Honestly it was a bit embarrassing, a teacher needing to be escorted by a student. Though for Rippen, it was just another scoop on his worst-first-day-ever sundae.

“So, how do you like teaching so far?” Penn asked him, glancing back slightly.

“Oh, um... i-it’s alright, I suppose,” Rippen replied, not even really thinking about it. Definitely not a ‘professional’ answer. Then again, could he really be called a professional if he was just starting his career as a teacher?

“Yeah. I’m kinda glad we’ve got an actual art teacher again,” Penn continued. Pausing for a moment, he made sure to take a right when they arrived at a fork in the hall. “Art’s pretty interesting, you know? And I’m sure you have a lot to teach us.”

“Heh, well, I’ll certainly try...” Glancing down at his feet, Rippen rubbed the back of his neck. “Though, if I have too many more days like this one, I may not be here much longer.”

Penn raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?” he asked as they turned down another, emptier hallway.

“Ugh, what do you mean ‘what do I mean’? I could barely get through a lecture without stuttering or nearly dropping my notes every few minutes... Honestly, I can barely LOOK the part of a teacher, much less act like one.”

“Hey, come on, Rippen,” Penn told him, “It wasn’t that bad!” Rippen blinked. He had always been taught that being called your first name without any sort of honorific was at best ‘too casual’ and at worst ‘completely disrespectful’. ...However, one look at the smiling student in front of him let him know that he certainly wasn’t being the latter. “Besides, it’s your first day! Everyone messes up their first day.”

“Hmph. Yes, well... That doesn’t make messing up any more pleasant...”

Penn hummed. “Well... Then I guess you’ll have to try to be the type that doesn’t let failures and screw-ups weigh them down. ‘Learn from them, and then let them roll off your back’. Well, that’s what my parents tell me anyway. But, I mean... I feel like you could do it.”

“...Really?” Rippen asked, his voice quiet. At that moment, even a concept as simple as that seemed beyond him. After all, he was someone who had failed quite a lot in life. And if he was just going to keep failing then... What was the point?

But Penn just gave him a determined smile. “Yeah, of course! I mean, you’ve made it this far, right? So now all you’ve got to do is make sure you keep getting back up. And yeah, I think you could do it... Like I said, you seem like a pretty good teacher.”

“...” Rippen said nothing, his face hot. He was the adult here, and yet here he was venting to a student, pretty much throwing any sense of being professional out the window. ...Although, he couldn’t deny that the boy’s words of encouragement meant a lot to him. “I... T-Thank you, Mr. Zero.”

Penn gave him a nod, stopping just as they reached the small office where the copy machine resided. “Yeah. No problem, Rippen.”

Just as Rippen had predicted, the copier had a line. Not only that, but it also ended up getting jammed. Twice. By the time he finished, the bell had rang and his class was long gone.

The rest of his day wasn’t much better. He had tripped over something in the hall, spilling his coffee all over the place. At lunch he sat alone, barely eating his microwaved fish sticks. Other teachers and faculty members glanced over at them. His ears just barely picked up on their whispers and comments, but he heard them just enough.

He had two more classes in the afternoon, but even while trying to do his best, they ended up being just as stressful and embarrassing as the first. And, to top it all off, the sprinklers decided the grass by the parking lot needed just a bit more water, and turned on as soon as Rippen stepped outside.

Soaking wet and feeling lower than dirt, he got into his car and drove away, squeezing the steering wheel as he did so.

“Ugh... What am I even doing here?” he asked himself. What made him think that he could actually teach a class just because he was decent at painting himself?

“All you’ve got to do is make sure you keep getting back up... I think you could do it!”

“Hmph... and just how am I supposed to just brush off failure when all I am IS a failure?” As he continued to drive, the words of his family echoed through his head, making it all the harder to focus on the darkening road ahead of him...

“Oh, you’re going into art? Well, just don’t expect much.” “Come on now, maybe he’ll get lucky. Even the worst art has some fans, and anyone can teach a class of high schoolers!” “Ha, I bet he barely lasts a week before he gets fired.” “I don’t know why you’re even bothering with it.”

“Why are you even still trying? Don’t you think you’d be better off if you just stopped trying? If you just died?”

Rippen closed his eyes. “Yeah...”

“That’s right... You should just die...”

“I... I should just-” He stopped, his blood running cold. Who... Who’s voice was that?! Opening his eyes, Rippen gasped and slammed on the break. This wasn’t the road that he was supposed to be on! This wasn’t even a road at all!

The sky was now a bloody mix of red and yellow. The pavements was crumbling all around him, and just in front of his car was a huge arch that looked like it was made of paper! Though, that didn’t make the face at the top any less gruesome...

“W-What... What is this place?!” Rippen shouted. Grabbing the gearshift, he put it in reverse and started moving back as fast as he could. There had to be a way out! There just had to-!

*CRASH!* Rippen let out a yelp. Something had stopped his car dead in its tracks! Stepping out, he could only stare in horror as he watched several distorted figures beat on the back of his car. ...Of course, once they noticed who was watching them, they quickly changed targets.

“S-Stay away!” he shouted as he started to run, “Please, just stay- OOF!” Ugh, curse his feet! Of course, the creatures had no such problem, and it wasn’t long before the started closing in on the shaking teacher. “P-Please...” He clenched his eyes shut. “Don’t-!”

*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!* *WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!*

Opening his eyes at the noise, Rippen got a perfect view of the creatures exploding in a burst of yellow and blue light. “...What... W-What the-?”

“Heh, that was a close one, huh?” “Yeah. We’ve reaaaally gotta work on our timing.”

Rippen’s eyes widened. He... He recognized both of those voices! Turning his head, he could see two brightly colored figures standing just behind him.

The first figure was a short, dark skinned man. He was wearing a tan shirt with a golden sweater-vest and a brown bowtie. Matching his tie, he was also wearing brown, bellbottom pants, and also had yellow fingerless gloves on his hands (hands that were currently holding muskets. Seriously, muskets?!). Finally, resting on the corner his glasses was a bright yellow gemstone.

The second figure was a bit taller, and with bright red hair that was impossible not to recognize. His outfit was a bit more knight-like with chain-mail over his chest and small pieces of armor over his arms and knees. Just above the chain mail was a small, blue gem. The boy was also wearing a bright blue shirt and silver-colored pants. As for his own weapon, it was bow made of dark wood with several blue gems adorning it.

Glancing over his shoulder, Penn smiled. “Glad you’re safe, Rippen.”

“P-Penn Zero? And... And Principal Larry?! But, what-? H-How-?!”

“Magical heroes.” Rippen flinched at the new voice, and glanced down at the ground where a small white cat now sat, looking pretty calm and actually kind of bored. “They are heroes who protect world against their villains, the witches.”

“Yep!” Larry said proudly.

“Heh, just don’t tell anyone else at school, okay?” Penn added. With that, he summoned another arrow - made out of bright light - and both he and Larry aimed their attacks straight at the arch-creature. Two more shots, and it was all over! Another victory for the Magical Heroes of Middleburg!

And as for Rippen, he just couldn’t stop staring. Not just in shock, but in amazement.

()()()()()()()()

“Here you go!” “Thank you, Princi-” “Aw, just call me Larry!” “Er, well, a-alright, Larry...” With that settled, Larry put the jar of coffee back over by the machine before sitting down. Along with coffee (and a couple cans of pop for Penn), there was also a wide array of both sweet and salty snacks spread out on the small table in front of them.

“I don’t know about you guys, but I just can’t have a drink without something to eat with it,” Larry told them after taking a quick sip of his coffee, “Unless it’s just water, or if it’s late at night and I just want a glass of warm milk. But every other time I get drinking something, I just get the munchies too! Say, have you guys ever tried dipping a sandwich in juice? It’s actually better than it sounds! Apple juice works pretty well with ham, but grape and orange-”

“How do you two fight those things?”

Larry blinked, and the two magical heroes turned to look at Rippen, who flushed slightly in embarrassment. “I-I mean... Those creatures - W-What was that you called them? Witches? - They were just... monstrous. And powerful. How are you not terrified by just the sight of them?”

Thankfully, they weren’t too bothered by his question. “I guess we just get used to it,” Penn shrugged, “Heh, I’ve actually only been doing this for a couple weeks. Larry has way more experience, so I guess it helps to have a pro as you’re partner.” The boy then paused, taking a small sip of his own drink as he smiled softly to himself.

“But really... I guess that, even when I do start to freak out a bit or wonder if the next witch is going to be too much to handle, I just start thinking about all the people we’re saving and the good we’re doing. When you look at it that way, it makes all the trouble of being a hero worth it, you know?”

“...I think I do,” Rippen nodded, smiling back at him.

“Heh, it also helps that Penn here’s a fast learner,” Larry added, “I don’t really have much left to teach him! And by the time Walpurgisnacht comes around, I just know he’ll be full-fledged magical hero!”

Walpurgisnacht... Well that certainly sounded a bit intimidating. Still, Rippen tried to shrug it off. He was sure they would be able to handle it...

()()()()()()()()

Middleburg’s downtown was a complete mess. Dark clouds filled the sky, debris was everywhere... And his boss laid dead in front of him, his magical hero outfit long gone, his glasses shattered, and his body completely still.

However, over the sound of his own sniffles, Rippen heard a reluctant yet determined voice: “Well... Guess I should get back out there.”

“W-What?! Are you insane?!” Rippen shouted, clenching his fists, “That... That thing killed Larry. Do you really think you stand a better chance?”

“I don’t know,” Penn admitted, “But if I don’t try something, that witch is just going to kill more people. I have to at least try...”

“B-But...” He grimaced wiping away a tear. “...You’re still just a child, in case you’ve forgotten. N-No one would blame you if you ran away. I certainly wouldn’t.”

“...” For a moment, there was only silence. However, when Rippen finally glanced back up at the horrible scene in front of him, he saw his student smiling at him. ”You know... I still don’t think being a magical hero was that bad. Maybe not the ending I would have wanted but... at least I saved some people. At least I saved you. So that’s something I can be proud of, right?” He started to step towards the edge of the roof they were standing on.

“N-No,” Rippen shook his head, “Don’t- Y-You-!”

“Bye Rippen. Thanks for everything.” And with that, Penn summoned his bow and leapt back into battle, refusing to look back no matter how much his teacher shouted at him.

...Rippen had to give the boy some credit. He had fought hard, and refused to let up. No matter what, he was going to finish this fight. And indeed he did... But unfortunately, while he had enough strength and magic to defeat Walpurgisnacht, it just wasn’t enough to save himself.

So there he was, lying in a shallow puddle of water, completely lifeless... Rippen could barely stand the sight of it. “Foolish boy...” He scolded, choking back a sob as he cradled Penn’s body, “You knew you were going to die! Y-You knew... W-What, what does it matter that you saved the city or that you saved me?! You shouldn’t have had to die! You shouldn’t have...” He clenched his eyes shut.

“You shouldn’t have had to save me... If I had just been stronger, better... Then maybe...”

“...Is this your greatest desire then?”

Rippen flinched. Slowly, he turned to see a white cat staring at him. Phyllis... “Is this your wish, Rippen? Are you willing to trade soul for it?”

“My wish...” He looked back down at Penn. “...Are you really able to grant any wish?”

“Of course,” Phyllis nodded, “You have plenty of potential. So, will you make wish?”

“...Yes. I will.” Gently, he put Penn’s body down and stood up. Despite his dirty clothes, windblown hair and tear-stained cheeks, Rippen looked as determined as ever. No more being afraid. No more being weak or useless or a failure. This time, he would be the hero.

“I wish to redo my meeting with Penn, but instead of him protecting me, I want to be strong enough to protect him!”

For a couple seconds, Phyllis simply stared at him, and Rippen started to think that maybe his wish was too much for the creature. But then his chest started to burn, and as he held himself and tried to withstand the pain, a small orb of bright purple light came out of him. “The contract is complete,” he heard Phyllis say, “Now, embrace destiny. Let your new power fly free, and good luck!”

Bracing himself, Rippen reached up, and touched the light.

Suddenly, it felt like he had been caught in a tornado. Brief, yet energizing! However, the feeling ended almost as quickly as it had started, and before he could even try to figure out what was happening- He was back in his bed.

“...What?” As he sat up, he looked around. Yep, this was definitely his room. Same dark colored walls, same small face, same plush dog from his childhood sitting on his dresser. “...Oh no... No no no. Don’t tell me it was all just a-”

As he moved his hand, he felt something in it - something smooth rolling along his palm. With a gasp, he lifted it above the blankets. Sure enough, in his hand was a small, purple rock. A soul gem... Just like what Penn and Larry had!

“It wasn’t a dream...”

()()()()()()()()()

Now, since we've finally managed to find a replacement, I'd like to introduce you all to your new teacher, Mr. Rippen." The coach then gestured to the door as it opened, and a man stepped in.

The students' eyes widened as they looked at their new teacher. His skin was a pale green, and behind a pair of blue-rimmed glasses were a pair of yellow and red eyes. He was clean-shaven with shoulder length black and white hair that poofed out quite a bit, but the man didn’t seem too bothered by it. In fact, he was smiling brightly!

“Good morning,” he greeted, “As Mr. Egsgard has already said, my name is Mr. Rippen and I look forward to teaching you all.”

“Great, you’ll be fine,” Mr. Egsgard nodded, satisfied, “I’ll be in my car if you need me.” As the gym teacher left, Rippen looked out at his students - specifically, at a certain red-headed boy who was most definitely alive. Unable to help himself, Rippen grinned at him.

Of course, Penn saw this, and while he looked a bit confused at it, he did still give his new teacher a small, sorta sheepish smile in return.

The rest of the class continued normally, with Rippen actually managing to get through his lecture without stuttering or dropping his notes. However, he still gave them free drawing time, and - at about the same time as last time - he asked the class if someone could help him find the faculty copy machine. And, of course, Penn volunteered.

After that, it was as simple as a quick explanation, a side-trip to the principal’s office, and coming up with a time and place to meet after school...

“...Alright. Well, here goes nothing!” Clenching his fists, Rippen allowed magic to wash over his body, causing his teaching attire to transform into his new magical hero uniform. He was now wearing a white dress shirt with a black shirt underneath it, along with a dark purple tie and black pants. On his right hand was a diamond-shaped purple gem, and on his arm was a small metal shield.

And, as soon as he gave the shield a turn, time froze around him. However, Rippen didn’t have time to be amazed by it. He could hear the mechanisms within his shield ticking away like the seconds on a clock. So, he grabbed the old, abandoned golf club that they had found in the alleyway and began his attack on the training dummy (a trash can).

It took a bit to get the hang of it, but by the time he had reached his time limit, he had managed to make quite a few dents in the ‘dummy’. Suddenly, time started moving, and to Penn and Larry it looked like the can had went from fine to pretty wrecked in the blink of an eye.

“Huh... So you can freeze time! That’s definitely going to be handy!” Larry commented.

“Heh, d-definitely...” Rippen agreed, nodding slightly as he tried to catch his breath.

The two magical heroes frowned a bit at that, clearly concerned. “Though, it doesn’t give you much of an advantage if you’re exhausted afterwards...” Penn added.

Larry nodded. “Right... But there has to be a way to use it to your advantage and not get tired. Something that’s maybe a little less physical?”

Rippen thought for a moment. “...I think I may have one possible solution...”

He only ended up getting a couple days of training and preparing before being thrust into his first battle. The witch had a bit of a highwire theme going on, hanging itself high above the streets of Middleburg and using its wires to pull in anything from cars to trees.

Swinging around with his ribbons, Larry began laying his own high advantage point while Penn continued the offensive, keeping the witch’s attention with each magical arrow shot at it. ...Meanwhile, Rippen was just trying to keep from falling to his death, clinging tightly to the wire that he was crawling on.

“Okay, just about-” Larry pulled one last ribbon, and they all tightened, forming a bridge to the witch, “READY!”

“Alright, Larry!” Penn grinned before turning to the newest member of their team, “Go for it, Rippen!”

“Ah! R-Right!” He turned his shield, and the world froze just as he dropped down onto Larry’s bridge. With no wind to blow him off and no projectiles to dodge, Rippen easily ran across. Once he got to the witch, he reached into his shield’s pocket of infinite storage, and pulled out a small homemade bomb. “Good thing I remembered those science classes,” he mumbled to himself as he threw the bomb up into the witch’s chest. He then jumped off the bridge, and the world began to move again.

*BOOM!* Thanks to the bomb, the witch almost instantly became nothing but a ball of fire and smoke. And with their enemy defeated, Larry was able to use his ribbons to catch Rippen before he could even get close to the ground, slowly bringing him down to safety.

“Great job, team!” Penn told them, holding his fist out towards Larry, who of course happily gave him a quick bump. The boy then turned and offered Rippen the same gesture, and while it took a moment to understand, he did eventually give him a bump as well. “Heh, so, having fun yet, Rippen?”

“Fun?” Holding back a smirk, Rippen gave him a look. “Oh yes. Risking my life, fighting giant nightmarish creatures, and falling from great heights - I’m having an absolute ball!”

“That’s the spirit!” Larry cheered while Penn chuckled, “Alright, if there are no more witches in the area, then I’d say it’s snacktime! Oh, and Rippen, I managed to find those caramels you like!”

Rippen smiled at that. “Thank you, Larry.” In a flash, the three of them transformed back into their street clothes and started walking towards Larry’s car. As they went along, the conversation shifted to whatever story Larry felt like telling, casual news about their ‘off the clock’ lives, and even quick questions about the topics Rippen had explained in class (as it turned out, Penn really was sort of interested about art).

Basically, it was as if they hadn’t just spent the latter part of their afternoon being attacked and fighting a monstrous villain. It was... nice. It was nice to have friends, to be part of a team.

...Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to last...

Larry still ended up perishing after a battle with Walpurgisnacht, despite fighting with everything he had. However, with Rippen by his side, Penn was able to survive. It wasn’t the happiest ending, but it would be enough. ...Or at least, that’s what he thought.

That was before Penn collapsed.

“Gh... GhhhhAAAAAH!” Rippen winced at the boy’s screams of pain, but he tried his best to stay calm.

“It, i-it’ll be okay,” he told him, “W-We’ll figure out what’s wrong, just-!”

“R-Rip-!” Penn choked out. He started to lift his hand. “M-My-AHH! Owwww!”

“What? W-What is it?” Rippen asked, taking Penn’s hand. Within it was Penn’s soul gem - once a bright blue, now completely black. Of course... Phyllis had said that they would need to purify their soul gems in order for them to keep using their magic. But... But Penn’s soul gem barely looked like a soul gem anymore! Instead it looked more like a-

The man’s eyes widened. “...A grief seed...”

“AHHHHHHHHH!” As Penn let out one final scream, the soul gem began to flash, cracking and changing as it transformed completely into a grief seed before evaporating into a thick cloud of smoke - smoke that began to grow, taking the form of something vaguely humanoid as it covered the skies. ...And below, Penn’s body laid still and silent.

“...How...?” That was all Rippen could say, his eyes stuck on Penn’s witch while the rest of him was pulled back. How could this have happened?

()()()()()()()()()()()()

“Please, all of you, listen to me! I am telling you the truth! We’re all being tricked by Phyllis!”

“But, Rippen-” “Oh come on!” Boone rolled his eyes, “Phyllis is cool. What would she have to gain from tricking us?”

Rippen’s frown deepened... As it turned out, he wasn’t the only new magical hero in this timeline. One of his other students and Penn’s best friend, a boy by the name of Boone Wiseman, had made a contract with Phyllis as well. Unfortunately, he didn’t seem to trust Rippen at all...

“And hey, if she was trying to hurt us, I’m sure we could take her out,” Boone continued, crossing his arms, “Not that we would want to but - Ugh, why are you even telling us this? Are you just trying to freak us out or something? Hmph, or maybe you’re just working as a secret undercover agent for the Sashi girl, and you’re trying to make us lose our cool so we can’t fight-”

“No! I’m not trying to do any of that, I’m just trying to warn you!” Rippen insisted, even glaring a bit at the brown-haired now, “Why can’t you just-?!”

“Okay guys, calm down,” Penn said, stepping in-between them, “And hey, Boone, buddy, you’re the only one here who’s losing their cool.”

“...” Boone sighed. “Sorry. It’s just... Well, can you blame me? This guy literally just shows up and starts telling us all what to do. What, just because he’s older and a teacher? Besides, you guys don’t have to worry about almost being blown up by his bombs.”

“He does have a point, Rippen,” Larry spoke up, “Bombs and explosions are sorta dangerous when we’re all fighting together. Don’t you have any other weapons you could use?”

“Well... If everyone thinks I should, I’m sure I can find something.” After all, he had no criminal record, and he had a bit of money in his savings. It would be very easy for him to purchase a gun or two.

However, that ended up being the least of their worries...

Of course, Boone never confided in him, but from what Rippen had heard, he had been dealing with some sort of girl problem. Fighting over one or trying to get the attention of one or something like that. To any other teenager, it would have simply been met with some frustration and angst before being forgotten about. But, with magic thrown into the mix, something as simple as grief and depression suddenly became very dangerous curses...

“Shoot!” Sashi grunted, gritting her teeth and quickly shattering another one of Boone’s glass minions with her spear. “Come on!” she shouted at the witch residing behind the giant mirror, “Why are you doing this?!”

“Boone, please!” Penn yelled, all while trying to dodge the arrows from his own clones, “You have to remember! You’d never want to hurt us! BOONE!”

But the witch just continued to shriek and snort. Its mirror vibrated, and several more Glass Penns came out - and all of them heading right towards the original with the intent to destroy.

“NO!” Running towards them, Rippen turned his shield. Once that was done, he got out his revolver and began to fire. The bullets froze just inches in front of the minions’ faces. They wouldn’t stand a chance. Putting the gun away, he then replaced it with a bomb and turned his attention towards Boone.

“...” His eyes filled with pity. The boy may have given him trouble, but not even the brattiest people deserved this. “I’m sorry...”

Time began to move, and the air was filled with the sound of shattering glass just before a huge explosion went off. Within seconds, the labyrinth disappeared, it’s creator no more.

“...DAMN IT!” Sashi threw her spear down. “Boone... This, this isn’t fair...”

“I know,” Rippen told her, glancing down at the floor. He could hear Penn sniffling slightly behind him. “I, I know it’s not fair... But-” Suddenly, he felt something soft and tight wrap around him, squeezing him and keeping him in place. And, before the man could even let out a gasp, a gunshot was heard.

In an instant, a bullet hit Sashi’s soul gem, breaking it into shards. The girl’s eyes darkened, and her hero uniform evaporated away before she even hit the ground.

“NO!” Rippen shouted, “Sash-!” From beside him, he could hear a musket being cocked while a sob was choked back. “...Larry...”

“I, I-I’m sorry!” Larry cried, still aiming his gun as tears streamed down, “B-But... I-I don’t wanna hurt people! We aren’t supposed to hurt people!”

“Larry, please-!” “But, but we’re just g-gonna turn into witches! So-” “Larry! Stop!” “So we have to die before we become witches!” He prepared to fire. “All of us!” “LARRY!”

*SWOOSH!* Before the principal could fire, the soul gem was hit with an arrow of blue light. And, as soon as it broke, he too fell to the ground dead, causing the ribbons he had summoned to then evaporate.

“...” Slowly, he turned to face the only other remaining magical hero - to face the crying boy who could barely keep from falling to his knees. “...Penn...”

“I, I just don’t get it...” Dropping his bow, Penn held his head and gripped his hair as the tears continued to fall, “Why did this happen?! I just-! I-I don’t want this... I don’t want this!”

Not even bothering to wipe away his own tears, Rippen walked over and pulled the boy into a hug. “Shhh, it’s okay... Y-You’ll be alright... We’ll be alright...”

Penn sniffled. “Y-Yeah... Yeah, we’ll just... W-We won’t forget them... And, a-and we’ll defeat Walpurgisnacht, and we’ll make sure no one else becomes magical heroes! Right?”

Rippen smiled. “Right. That’s exactly right... We can do this...”

And, in a way, they did do it. As soon as Walpurgisnacht arrived, they began fighting and didn’t stop until the witch was no more. Unfortunately, with only two magical heroes fighting, they had to use all their magic just to win. So... It wasn’t much of a victory.

At least, it wasn’t much of one to Rippen. “...Any grief seeds?” Penn shook his head. “Yeah... Same here. So.. I suppose this is it, then.” He looked up at the slowly clearing sky, blinking away any tears he felt. “Maybe... Maybe it won’t be so bad, being monsters...” Of course he was still scared, still wishing he had been stronger. But maybe... Maybe...

“Or maybe... We can just try again?”

“...H-Huh?” Rippen blinked. He turned his head towards Penn - towards where his once-purple soul gem laid in his hand - and gasped.

“Heh, sorry for lying,” Penn told him, wincing only slightly as he continued to cleanse Rippen’s soul gem with one last grief seed.

“Y-You... You fool! You foolish boy, why would you-?!” Rippen glared at him, choking back a sob, “W-Why on earth would you use it to save me?! You should have-!”

But Penn just weakly smiled it him. “It’s fine... When you, when you think about it, it makes sense... You, you can go back in time, can’t you, Rippen?”

And that was when it all became clear. “Penn...” With his own strength and magic back, Rippen sat up. Once again, he found himself cradling a dying boy in his arms... No, not just any boy. A boy that had ended up being his closest friend. A boy that practically felt like family now. ...A boy that he kept failing despite how much he wished to save him - and who had just given him another chance to possibly make that wish come true.

“Please, Rippen... Just, just make sure the me in the past doesn’t make another stupid mistake... Okay?”

“Of course,” Rippen sniffled, “O-Of course, I will... I’ll make sure Phyllis doesn’t trick you. I’ll make sure that, t-that you don’t end up like this! You don’t deserve it and, and I promise I won’t ever let it happen again!”

Despite the pain and the fear, Penn managed to smile back at his teacher. “Thanks... I- Erg!” He winced, and felt his blackened soul gem start to break. “I, ugh... Could, could I ask for, o-one last thing? I, I-I know it won’t really matter but...”

Slowly, Penn held up his soul gem, and closed his eyes. “I... I really don’t want to become a witch,” he said, his voice cracking.

“...” Rippen’s hands were shaking, but he reached into his shield anyway. He couldn’t deny him his one last request. ...He couldn’t watch Penn turn into a witch again. So, he took out his revolver, aimed it at the boy’s soul gem, and let out a cry just before firing.

()()()()()()()()()

“...” It felt like he had been laying in bed for hours, replaying the endings of each timeline in his head over and over. It was awful... But just laying around wouldn’t stop any of them from happening again.

So, Rippen got to work.

“No one will ever believe me,” he mumbled to himself, “And anyone I work with will most likely just end up dying anyway... I can’t rely on any of them. Not anymore. Not if I want to succeed.” So, he would just have to do it on his own.

And, that was how he continued on. In each new timeline, he would hit the ground running, gathering up as many weapons as he could and putting together various plans for Walpurgisnacht as soon as possible. He even used his magic to fix his eyes, just so his glasses wouldn’t in the way! (He also stopped shaving as much, though that was just simply out of trying to save time).

He would hunt witches and gather grief seeds, but he also began to hunt Phyllis, trying his damnedest to keep the creature from meeting Penn for as long as possible. Though, despite his best efforts, the two would still end up meeting one way or another. It was frustrating... Anger-enduing, even, but it didn’t matter.

No matter how many times he failed. Rippen swore he wouldn’t give up...

“All you’ve got to do is make sure you keep getting back up... I think you could do it!”

“Penn... He deserves a good life. One without witches,” he told himself, “And I’m going to make sure he gets that. I won’t break my promise, and I won’t fail. I’ll defeat every witch by myself if I have to! Even Walpurgisnacht!” He couldn’t fail, and so he would continue trying.

Even if it took an eternity.

((Gah, I don’t feel like this was that great... Episode 10 is pretty image/montage heavy anyway, but I tried to capture it the best I could in written form so, I hope you guys enjoyed it anyway))

#penn zero #penn zero part time hero #rippen #madoka magica au #pzmmm

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