#{double o duck verse}

[aftermathfanfic]

Headcanons or curiosities about May & June from your fic?

Yea, sure.

List o' Lore: May and June

May and June, unlike the rest of the kids, go to Waterview Grammar, a private school on the Duckburg River. The same high school that Daisy went to, coincidentally.

They were unsurprisingly maladjusted to high school life, and the first couple of grades consisted of detentions and poor performance.

There's a group of girls at Waterview that the twins used to be friends with. They parted on poor terms after they realised that the friends were awful.

May seems to know everything about everyone at her school. She can tell you who's dating who, what family struggles someone's having, and what the latest schoolyard gossip is.

June often volunteers to help in the nurse's office, being well-versed in first aid.

May is very good at impersonating others. She often adopts Daisy's mannerisms when talking to

June is absolutely hopeless with handling animals. She loves pets to bits, but she's always had trouble connecting with them.

In 10th grade, one of the boys in her year asked May out on a date, and in a blind panic, she said "yes". She has described it as "the most tedious experience of my life."

June learned some basic repair and home eco skills from Donald. He noticed her watching him repair the houseboat one day and asked if she'd like to help. She couldn't have said "yes" any faster.

May secretly has a fondness for Double-O-Duck films. She thinks they're hilarious.

June is the only one of the kids who have been to church. She went to a sermon one day just to see what all the fuss was about and found it weird that the pastor didn't like it when she started asking questions.

May refuses to call Scrooge "Uncle". The old adventurer has always been awkward and distant around the twins, and May felt that her attempts to close that gap were consistently refuted. As far as she's concerned, Scrooge has to earn the right to be her uncle.

Paris wasn't the first time June's hurt someone.

May's School Subjects: Business Studies, Dance, English (Advanced), Mathematics (Advanced), Psychology, Forensic Science.

June's School Subjects: Biology, Electronics, English (Advanced), Mathematics, Physics.

Both May and June do gymnastics classes after school, three days a week.

[squeakyfir]

The Love from a Skeleton [Jack Skellington X Reader]

Plot: Halloween... The time of year you absolutely hate. Not because of the ghouls and monsters, you enjoyed that kind of thing, it's because of trick or treaters. They get free candy and whine and complain to their parents if they didn't get what they expected, which is the whole bowl of candy. Anyways, since you don't celebrate that holiday, you decide to go for a late stroll through the woods on the hiking trail. While walking, your whole life changes. And I mean that literally... Everything started to change drastically until you find trees with holiday symbols on it. One of them being a Jack-o-lantern. Being curious, you enter through the door and discover a world that would represent a children's book written by Stephen King. But the leader of this place was a king. Not just any king... A pumpkin king. His name is Jack Skellington. He's a very tall and slender skeleton with a pinstripe suit, a black cat bow tie and ghost dog named Zero. He discovers you and welcomes you to Halloween town until he can figure out how to send you home. But this place is perfect! No taxes to pay No drama And no more loneliness Jack believes that your hideous. But don't worry, hideous in the Halloween town definition means... Beautiful. Enjoy! *I do not own the Nightmare before Christmas. All rights belong to Tim Burton and Disney™*

Chapter 7

Previous ~ Next

Some time went by and Jack was still pressing forward with his plan. Even the citizens of Halloween town were just as determined as Jack because they were making monster toys, they changed the countdown clock from it being to Halloween to Christmas and they were even changing the appearance of Halloween town. Jack didn't have a sewing machine for you to borrow so you had to borrow Dr. Finklesteins and when you got to his laboratory, he was ten times more creepier than when you last saw him.

Anyways, Jack had set up an individual work area for you. Making Jacks santa suit was more difficult than you thought. When you had to take measurements of his body, you had to keep double checking every single time when you were sewing to make sure you didn't mess up. As you were sewing, you heard the people of Halloween town were making music and were about to start singing.

Again... Man, these monsters sure do love singing.

This time x2

Making Christmas x4

Is so fine

It's ours this time

And won't the cildren be surprised

It's ours this time

The other monster children were smashing and cutting the heads off of toys. The witches were making what looked like stew but then that fish monster popped out of the pot which meant it was disgusting.

Making Christmas x3

Time to give them something fun

They'll talk about for years to come

Let's have a cheer from everyone

It's time to party

The vampires were making toys as well. They were currently putting the finishing touches on a duck but it had sharp teeth, bloody bullet holes and was on a skateboard. What? The worst part is that it sang a verse from the song.

Making Christmas x2

Snakes and mice get wrapped up so nice

With spiders legs and pretty bows

It's ours this time

Three monsters were carving the face of a demonic Mickey mouse with sharp teeth, a suit and it was super creepy.

All together, that and this

With all our tircks we're

Making Christmastime

"Here comes jack" said the werewolf. You looked to the gates of his house and saw him and he looked surprised and happy. He spoke in song with happiness and was ecstatic about all of this.

I don't believe what's happening to me

My hopes

My dreams

My fantasies

Hee, hee, hee, hee

Jack then walks over to a monster who had one of the musicians in a pillory as he was making a hat out of a rat.

Won't they be impressed

I am a genius

See how I transform the old rat Into a most delightful hat

Jack appeared next to him and offered his suggestion.

Hmm, my compliments from me to you

On this your most intriguing hat

Consider though this substitute

A bat in place of this old rat

Jack then went over to the monster whose skin was constantly melting and very sticky.

Huh! No, no, no, now that's all wrong

This thing will never make a present

It's been dead for much too long

Try something fresher, something pleasant

Try again, don't give up

All of the monsters then went back to singing.

All together

That and this

With all our tricks

We're making Christmastime

With everything happening in Halloween town, it made you think of what was happening in Christmas town. You could picture the elves making or sewing toys or stuffed animals. They were also probably making gingerbread cookies and stuffing the stockings. You could also picture them cleaning the sleigh and putting all the toys in the sleigh. You brought out of your thoughts by more singing from the monsters.

This time x2

Making Christmas x2

La, la, la

It's almost here

And we can't wait

So ring the bells and celebrate

'Cause when the full moon starts to climb

We'll all sing out

Jack then finished off the song by singing...

It's Christmastime

Hee, hee, hee

Then out of nowhere, three skeleton reindeer appeared behind Jack and it this whole thing was getting worse and worse.

More time went by until Christmas was tomorrow. Jack was currently having you do the final stiches on his Santa outfit. "You don't look like yourself, Jack. Not at all" you said as you were stitching the sleeve if his outfit as he was wearing it. "Isn't that wonderful! It couldn't be more wonderful"!

You stopped stitching and pulled down the picture of his drawing of him in a Santa outfit and flipped it over to show him as who he truly was. The pumpkin king. "But your the pumpkin king"! He took the picture from you and snapped it into two on his knee. "Not anymore! I feel so much better now"!

You sighed and continued to stitch and talk. "Jack, I know you think that something's missing-"

You were cut off from talking when you accidentally poked the tip of his bony finger with the needle. "Ow"!

"Sorry"!

"It's alright, (Y/n). But you're right. Something is missing. But what? I've got the beard, the coat, the boots, the-"

Jack was cut off when the three monster children, Lock, Shock and Barrel, came back after being gone for some time with a walking bathtub and the same giant sack they used when they brought the Easter bunny here. "Jack! Jack! This time we bagged him" they all said simultaneously. "This time we really did"!

"He sure is big, Jack"!

"And heavy"! Lock and Shock then opened the sack and out popped Santas head as he said, "Let me out"! Everyone gasped in shock, and so did you. You were always told he wasn't real. How? "Sandy Claws... In person", said Jack as he then proceeded to take a hold of Santas hand, "What a pleasure to meet you"! As Jack was shaking his hand, he noticed his hand. You saw it too and it was small. You never would've guessed that. "Wh-why you have hands! You don't have claws at all"! Santa lifted his hat from his eyes and stared in horror of what he saw. The monsters and horrendous atmosphere. "Where am I"?

"Surprised aren't you" asked Jack, "You don't need to have another worry about Christmas this year"! Santa was so confused and couldn't find the right words to speak. "Consider this a vacation, Sandy. A reward. It's your turn to take an easy"!

"But there must be some mistake" Santa protested.

"See that he's comfortable" said Jack. Lock and Shock were about to close the sack again until Jack stopped them. "Just a second"! You were hoping that Jack had finally come to his senses but... No. "Of course! That's what I'm missing"! Jack had taken Santas hat off of him and placed it on his skull. "Thanks".

Santa kept trying to protest but the three monster children tied the sack back up and started to leave. Jack was practicing his Santa laugh and this was getting way worse and worse. Especially for Santa. You quickly followed after the children and stopped near the gate when you heard them say, "Where are we taking him"?

"Where"?

"To Oogie Boogie of course! There isn't anywhere in the whole world more comfortable than that! And Jack said to make him comfortable, didn't he"?

"Yes he did" said Shock and Barrel.

"Haven't you heard of peace on earth? And good will toward men"?

"No" the three monster children said devilishly. They laughed and cackled as they took Santa away. You wanted to follow them but you then heard Jack call out to you. You quickly ran back to the fountain and saw him looking worried but he then look relaxed and relieved when he saw you. "There you are! I was starting to worry where you were".

"Sorry Jack".

"Don't apologize, my dear. Now, why don't you go return Dr. Finklesteins sewing machine to him. You've completed the suit and it fits me perfectly"!

"Sure. I'll be back" you said. As you retrieved the machine, you started to head to Dr. Finklesteins laboratory. The machine was a bit heavy but luckily his laboratory was only a short distance. You opened the door and headed up the long spiral staircase. When you reached the top, you heard Dr. Finklesteins voice call out, "Hello? Who is there"? You looked over and saw him wheel over to you. "Ah! (Y/n), was it? How can I help you"?

"Hi doctor. I'm here to return your sewing machine".

"Right. Go ahead and put it back in the room it was in. You know, you can keep it if want".

"Thank you again for the offer, but as I've said already, I do not wish to keep it". He sighed and said, "Very well. The room is over there". He then wheeled off and you went to the large room and put the machine on the table. You decided to look around the room and saw a cabinet. Being curious, you opened it up and saw jars that some of then read as "Nightshade", "Frogs breath" and "Fog juice".

Wait a second... Fog juice???

That sounded very intriguing so you snatched it and closed the cabinet. You quickly left the laboratory and went back to Jack. But you had a question that's been bothering you for some time.

Who's Oogie Boogie?

That's a very odd name but considering all the other names you've heard while you were here didn't really surprise you. But your curiosity was to big to resist. You had to know.

You had to...

[ducknotinarow]

Misltoe d-o-d verse Drake and lp on accident

Drake walked into S.H.U.S.H looking for Launchpad the lousy agent who kept getting in his way well working on cases. Glancing around unaware of the decorations being placed in the building for the holidays. Odd that a stuffy place like this would do that but hey whatever.

Drake just stomped right into where that darn, devious, dashing anget was at. Of course happily helping around the office like the mister perfect guy he was. He stepped down from the ladder he was on taking notice of Darkwing suddenly big grin on his bill to greet him only to get caught off suddenly as Drake yanked him by his collar ready to give him a piece of his mind.  taking notice of the blush on the larger ducks face he just blinked a moment and glanced up, to see the mistletoe above the pair. That was odd he thought looking around as he let go of double-o-duck, seeing now that the whole place was full of busied angets hanging up various décor for the holiday. Oh he somehow forget about the holidays. Looking back to D-O-D to see him still standing in place, Drake slightly flustered himself considering the situation and how it may have looked when yanking him down just now.  It was just a tradition anyway, he thought as he the two looked at each other again that tension between them heavy once again like always.  “oh just kiss me so I can yell at you.” 

[fbfh]

“forever” paxton hall-yoshida x reader

genre: fluffy romance + mutual pining (not too slowburn tho lol)

word count: 3.4k

au: none?? jock x theatre nerd ig

pairing: Paxton x broadway baby!reader 

requested: yes !! i hope u like it uwu

warnings: one hell one motherfucking and i think that’s it for swearing?? um brief self deprecating/talking bad abt urself from paxton (bby boy needs a self love boost), reader and paxton are home alone together for a little while but nothing bad happens, uh,,, i think that’s it

summary: when Eleanor can’t run lines with you, she sends over a very attractive, mutually pining substitute.

reccomended songs: “Seventeen” - Tuck everlasting OBC, “The Kiss” -The Princess Diaries score

a/n: i’m p sure i kept the reader p gender neutral but there’s implied slightly long hair, and you play the lead (a girl named winnie) in ur schools production of tuck everlasting but like it’s theatre so anyone can play anyone lol,, this took so got dam long bc i’m fucking s o f t for jock x artist and it just sorta happened lol aLsO,, not super thoroughly edited so there might be a typo or two?? im tired lol

requests r open <3

You had only ever seen two athletes present during rehearsals. Once when Madeline (who at the time was playing Penny in your production of Hairspray) was dating a guy from the soccer team. The other was when the star of the basketball team had come in to give your choreographer pointers for the basketball scenes during High School Musical. 

Until now.

You had run onstage part of the way through “Live Like This”, which wasn’t out of the ordinary since so much progress had been made on the costumes. You were still tying the ribbon on your pinafore as you jumped into the song, but when your eyes met a face in the usually empty auditorium, you faltered. You almost sang the wrong verse, but recovered quickly, continuing with the blocking. What felt like a moment later, the number was almost done and you were nearing the end of your counterpoint with Mae Tuck - played by Eleanor, of course. Who could be better for the part? You held out the last note, trying to stay in character despite all the distractions in the back of your mind. You had to talk to Eleanor when the director called for 10; she’d started telling you how Devi was being weird recently. Also, what the Hadestown was Paxton Hall-Yoshida doing chilling in the auditorium? You shoved all that away, focusing on staying in character until the director called for a break. 

‘I want to go to the fair. I want to go so badly! I just need a change, need to get out of this house for a little while. I never do anything, so this can’t be asking for too much, right?’ 

You projected all that into your everything - face, voice, mannerisms, energy.

“Hold!” 

Everyone froze.

The director wrote a few things on his paper, sighed, and underlined something several times. 

“Okay, good job! I need to revise some of the blocking, then we’ll do notes, so take ten.” Your sudden nerves had definitely made you pitchy, you knew that would be one of your notes for sure. 

A chorus of “Thank you ten”s erupted, and you immediately ran to Eleanor, telling the others good job as you passed. 

You leaned in and started speaking to her, quietly.

“Okay you need to finish telling me about Devi, and that other news you’re being so cryptic about! Also, what’s up with Fierro over there?” you nodded towards Paxton hoping he wouldn’t see, and you noticed Fab is sitting near him. You realized they’re probably waiting for Eleanor and/or Devi. That must be it, he’s been hanging out with them lately, right? Eleanor gasped.

“You’re right! Paxton is such a Fierro!”

You cringed inwardly a little bit as her voice carried through the auditorium, mixing with the others. Your eyes darted over to him for a fraction of a second. Oh god. He was looking at you. Or in your general direction at least. Lena, the costumer, walked around the set gingerly, following you around and getting you out of your dress incredibly carefully as you and Eleanor walked off stage. 

“No! Well, yes- but no. What’s he doing here? Jocks never come here during rehearsals. I saw Fab too, are you guys and Devi getting dinner or something?” You said, entering the auditorium, and stepping out of the dress. You grabbed sweatpants and a silky, floral kimono jacket from your bag to throw over your leotard and tights. She waved back at Fab before sitting down in the front. You both grabbed your fans and dramatically flicked them open in sync. Your wrists fluttered, cooling both of you off.  A knowing, and slightly mischievous, look came on her face. 

“Devi and Fab and I are. Paxton must be here for something… else.” she shrugged, nodding towards Paxton. You looked over again. He was staring at you. You did a double take and tried to hold back your smile. 

“Wh- I do not know to what you are referring.” 

“To what I am referring is the blush on his cheeks.”

You barely held back a nervous, bubbling laugh.

“He is not blushing! Why would he be blushing!”

“I don’t know,” She shrugged, “Just like how I don’t know that he’s been loitering in the halls outside the music room during your last three solo music rehearsals.”

You struggled for an answer. Before you could form one, you were interrupted.

“Okay, okay what is the best Lin Manuel Miranda musical? Because Kathryn thinks it’s Hamilton-” 

“Duh!”

“-But I think it’s In the Heights! It’s an underrated jewel!” Jonah interjected, still wearing his Jesse Tuck hat. 

You considered for a moment.

“I mean, they’re too different to compare. In the Heights has the same energy as Rent - showcasing what goes on in ordinary people’s lives, and how love ties us all together,” he nodded in agreement, “But Hamilton is on a way larger scale, almost Les Mis meets Fun Home vibes. But in terms of personal preference…” Eleanor scoffed at your answer, and Jonah went back to debate further with Kathryn.

“Anyway,” you turned back to Eleanor to ask her what the hell she meant by Paxton Hall-Yoshida was blushing. But before you could-

“Eleanor, we need you to try on your blue dress again,” Lena was already pulling her away, “I had the empire waist in the right place but half the pins fell out, and it’s just...” And she was whisked away before you could finish the thought. You just had time to help Holly get out her wig pins and drink some lemon water before notes. Eleanor still wasn’t back, so you made sure to write down hers for her. It was pretty standard; be quiet backstage, go over your lines, don’t touch props that aren’t yours, don’t eat in costume, and a couple blocking changes you made note of. After your end of rehearsal warm downs and huddle, everyone left relatively quickly. You ducked into the bathroom to freshen up a little. Sometimes it was hard coming down from such intense energy after rehearsal. You mentally ran through your to do list. You needed to get some more tea, write that essay when you got home, go over your notes- You gasped, cutting off your own train of thought. You ran out of the bathroom to look for Eleanor, still clutching her notes in hand. 

~

Your voice still echoed in Paxton’s ears. He wished he had a whole album of you singing. Your voice made him want to ruin his spotify algorithm by listening to nothing else. You had looked at him a couple times, and his heart had almost stopped. He didn’t know eye contact could be so intense. It’s probably just cause you’re like, the only person in the audience. Where else is she supposed to look? He deflated a little. He heard his name and looked over to you and Eleanor talking together. Hopefully it was about him. Hopefully it was good. He checked his phone, trying to look busy. When he glanced up to see if you were looking, you were gone. He started to look around for you when he saw Eleanor waving at Fab, and sure enough, you were next to her. What he didn’t expect was you dropping your dress to the ground. Time slowed down (and his heart sped up) as you stretched a little, and pulled out sweatpants from your bag.

Wow.

 You had on what looked like a bathing suit on underneath, and a few other people had done the same, but he knew that image would be in his memory, probably forever. His heart was beating in his ears and he knew he must be blushing.

“You okay, Paxton?” Fab asked, a seat or two away. Oh god, he didn’t want people asking why he blushed every time he looked at you! He muttered something about needing to make a call and headed for the doors. Don’t look back at her, don’t look back at her… His eyes involuntarily darted in your direction right before he left. You had on a flowy translucent jacket, your hair thrown back supermodel style as you fanned yourself to cool down. He needed to cool down too. Maybe a cold shower, a really cold shower.

~

You managed to find Eleanor just before she left. Two girls were with her, you had seen Fab once, and you’d heard a lot about Devi, but had never been introduced. 

You gave Eleanor her notes, and she hugged you.

“You’re a lifesaver!” 

“Of course, I-”

“Uh, who’s this?” you looked over, and the shorter girl - Devi, based on what you’d heard about her -  was giving you a weird look. You introduced yourself. 

“Nice to meet you. How do you know Eleanor?” said the taller girl - definitely Fab.

“Oh,” you smiled, “she’s my almost mother in law. And my arch rival,” you counted on your fingers, “my sister, my niece, my lover, my husband, and…” you trailed off, trying to think of the other dynamics your characters had had in past shows.

“Your co-conspirator.” 

“Right,” you laughed. Devi and Fab looked at you two.

“We’re in the musical together.” you clarified. You were about to part ways when you called to Eleanor, “Hey, we’re still on for running lines tomorrow night?” 

“Uh… Sounds good!” she walked away quickly, speaking to Devi and Fab in hushed tones. Something was definitely up. That was typical Eleanor Scheming behavior. 

~

That night, you almost couldn’t sleep. This wasn’t the normal post rehearsal can’t sleep. In fact, Tuck Everlasting was the last thing on your mind as you readjusted your pillows and snuggled into your duvet. You stared at the neon blue stars projected and swirling on your ceiling. You sighed. Again. Your brain was a 24/7 livestream of Paxton Hall-Yoshida to relax/study to. You saw him again, his face in the dimly lit auditorium, Adonis in a sea of faded seats. If you hadn’t been sure before, you knew now that red was definitely his color. You rolled onto your side. Your heart picked up speed as a thought crossed your mind. You could almost see Paxton now, kneeling next to you, his fingertips brushing your cheek. The piano underscore to “Seventeen” ran through your mind. You could imagine him saying “Wait with me, we could share the world…” so vividly it almost hurt. He leaned in, and… 

You let out a loud sigh and rolled over again. Your heart was fully saturated. That’s more than enough pining for tonight. 

~

“Paxton!” 

He was a little surprised when Eleanor just walked up to him at lunch the next day. Most people were too intimidated to approach him out of the blue. 

“I have a plan.”

“Uh, I don’t know what you-”

“Cut the crap, I know you like her.” 

His face blanched. Well, yeah of course he did. Who wouldn’t? He was going to ask Eleanor if there was something he could do to win you over, just not here, not now. Not where everyone could watch and jeer and rib him for it. Just like they were doing now. 

“Woah, dude, who is it?” Trent asked. He fumbled for words. He couldn’t believe this was happening. He hadn’t kept his crush a secret because he was embarrased of you, he’d kept it a secret because his dumbass friends wouldn’t get you. Hell, he barely got you. You were so deep, and emotive, and artistic... 

“Bro, if you like her as much as it seems like you do,” Trent continued, “you gotta win her over.” He was a little shocked at the agreement murmuring through his group of friends. He didn’t know how to respond. Trent turned to Eleanor.

“What’s the plan, drama mama?”

“First of all,” she said, an almost humorously dangerous look on her face, “never call me that again. Second,” she shoved some papers into Paxton’s hands, “meet me in the music room immediately after school.” She started back for her table. Trent looked back over to Paxton. 

“You gotta do it, dude. We’ll cover for you at swim.” 

The rest of his friends agreed. He was pleasantly surprised at how supportive they were being. 

“Yeah, I guess... we’ve got a plan.”

~

The next day went by pretty smoothly. No rehearsal was scheduled since they were finishing construction for some of the sets, but everyone was instructed to do a couple read throughs of the script, focusing on scenes they’re still forgetting, to make sure everyone’s off book. You stopped by 7 Eleven to get a blue slurpee (for homework) and a couple coconut waters (for run throughs). You texted Eleanor on your way to the slurpee machine. 

okay so do you like the mango coconut water or the pineapple one?? It’s the mango one right?? i always forget lmao

sent at 4:16 pm

btw I don’t have that much homework so you can probs come by around 5:30 if you’re ready by then

sent at 4:16 pm

Bae Tuck

OMFG!! I totally forgot about running lines tonight, I can’t make it! :( but I’ll send someone over to help you out. :)

sent at 4:17 pm

You squinted at your screen. That was weird. Eleanor never used colon parentheses smilies. Like, ever. She always used emojis, and usually way more than two per text. 

yeah np, are u good? ♡

sent at 4:17 pm

Bae Tuck

Yes :)

sent at 4:18 pm

Bae Tuck

Also get the passionfruit one 🥥🍠 👀

sent at 4:18

that’s,,, el that’s a sweet potato,,

sent at 4:19 pm

Bae Tuck

Close enough 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️

sent at 4:19pm

...Okay? That was definitely weird. You shook it off and headed for the counter to pay. You stopped half way there, and turned back to swap the mango for passionfruit. 

Not long after you had finished your homework and tidied up your room a little, the doorbell rang. You exited the kitchen, drinks in hand, and opened the door. Your heart caught in your throat. Paxton Hall-Yoshida was standing outside. And you were pretty sure he looked nervous. You both just stood there for a second. No one breathed, no one spoke. 

“Uh, hi, do you want to…” you backed up, motioning for him to come inside. 

“Yeah, thanks,” he said, entering the doorway. Paxton motherfucking Hall-Yoshida was in your living room. You held out a hand to him.

“Coconut water?” he took the box, looked at the label, and smiled. 

“Yeah, thanks,” he said again, this time a faint, yet unmistakable note of joy in his voice. He took a sip. He smiled.

“Passionfruit’s my favorite.” You silently thanked Eleanor, who you knew must have planned all this. Most of the evening was a blur, and you thanked god your family wasn’t home right now. You went upstairs, texted Eleanor asking what the actual fuck, made some surprisingly comfortable small talk, then filled him in on how to run lines. 

“Do you think playing the soundtrack would help you… get into character?” he asked. 

“I would probably just end up singing the whole thing,” You laughed and tried to ignore the butterflies in your chest. The main scene you struggled with was before “Seventeen”. It was harder to get into Winnie’s head because you had no romantic feelings for Jonah, and you always just made each other laugh. You had started with a few easier scenes of Winnie and Jesse, like the fair, and the dialogue before “Top of the World”. 

“That was really good,” he said, and you felt the sincerity of his words. 

“Thanks…” you smiled and took a sip of coconut water, hoping you weren’t blushing too hard. 

“So what next?” he asked. 

“Probably the scene before ‘Seventeen’,” you said, giving him the page and scene number, “it’s one of the hardest ones for me. I guess I just can’t connect to Jonah the way Winnie does.” 

“Huh,” he said, skimming the page. When you looked up at him, he had something between a smile and a smirk playing at his lips. You made yourself look away before you got too distracted. You refused to think about the fact that you were sitting across from Paxton Hall-Yoshida on your bed, in your room, like you were… close with each other. His eyes skimmed the script, finding the dialogue. He glanced up at you and nodded, indicating he found his place. You began.

“I was so afraid you wouldn’t get away,” you said, jumping into character.

“I may be 102, but I can still outrun anyone,” a smile played at his lips. You smiled, then let your face fall.

“I’m so sorry, I-I tried to warn you-”

“No, no,” he interjected almost seamlessly, “It’s okay, it’s… refreshing having someone look after me who isn’t my mom.” His eyes flickered between your face and the page. You smiled with him for a second, then let distress cloud your face.

“Jesse… that man came by my house today. He heard the music box, he knows about you-”

“I know he knows…” 

You continued on with the scene and he trailed off when he came to the sheet music for the song Seventeen. You took in a breath to start the dialogue in the middle of the song, but before you could…

“Six years from now you will turn seventeen,

Turn seventeen,

The same age as me,

Six years from now,

Go to the spring,

Go to the spring and drink…”

He was singing to you. He was looking at you and singing to you. His eyes only flickered down to the page to confirm the lyrics. He was nervous, you could tell. But through his hesitance, the emotion in his voice was sincere. Your heart was beating faster. You didn’t even notice your pulse was ringing in your ears, you were too focused on Paxton. 

“I'll wait for you till you turn seventeen,

Turn seventeen,

The same age as me,

Six years from now,

Go to the spring,

Go to the spring and drink…” Your hand rose to cover your mouth. He hesitated, and you remembered your dialogue.

“Uh, wh-what if I… forget where the spring is?” He reached out and took your free hand in his. Your pulse was off the charts. “I’ll go get you some water. Just… remember to keep it somewhere safe. Somewhere no one will find it.” You got the feeling he wasn’t just talking about the water. You knew he had never really been in a serious relationship before, and it clicked suddenly - if he learned an entire song to duet with you, just how much he must like you. You exhaled a breathy laugh, unsure how to process the sudden euphoria you felt. 

“You make the world sound so… exciting. I just want to drink the water right now!”

“Uh, no. You have to wait.” you both smiled, anticipating the upcoming joke.

“Why?” you ask, “What’s the difference?” You held your breath as he tried not to laugh through the delivery of the punchline. 

“Believe me,” he rubbed his thumb over your hand, “there’s a difference.” You both chuckled, and he continued singing. You were so focused on him, so… touched that he would do all this for you. 

“Winnie, wait with me,

And we could be married,

Winnie, wait with me,

And we'll share the world,

Winnie, you can stop time,

And live like this,

Forever…”

“I could live like this forever,” you echoed.

“Live like this...” you sang in tandem.

“What do you say, Winnie? Do you want to…” he broke character suddenly, and asked, his eyes boring into yours, “Do you want to go out some time?” 

He could see the adorable smile blooming on your face, even from behind your hand. You nodded.

“Yes, I-I would love that,” and you began to sing the last line in the song, “Forever-” 

But before you finished holding out the note, his lips were on yours. His mouth moved slowly, intentionally, against yours. You followed his lead, flustered. He leaned further forward, his palm caressing your cheek. It was everything you imagined it would be, and you had quite the imagination. Your head was angled up and your hands rested themselves on his back, one tracing little shapes. Your shoulders were pressed against each other and neither of you could think. He was so warm. He tasted like coconut and passion fruit, and a distant part of your mind silently thanked Eleanor again. 

You really could live like this forever.

[setsailslash]

mini prompt challenge!

Generate FIVE random words: random word generator.

Make a short story (10 sentences or less) based on those words.

Then tag 5 people.

Tagged by: @scandalsavagefanfic <33

words: vision, water, urge, right, precede. jaydick, a/b/o verse.

soooo i’m doing this slightly different because not all the words are used literally and i rearranged the words in an order where it can be read as one single scene instead of the five separate drabbles  because this kinda got away from me (like most things) lol

"So, I was thinking." Dick starts, sounding perfectly measured, perfectly content and at ease. And it is all of these things that give him away.

His head tips back against the arm of the sofa he is sprawled out on until he has Jason in his line of upside down vision again.

"You know that never goes well for either one of us." Jason cuts in, dropping a hand from flipping through their shared calendar hanging on the wall of Dick's apartment. It is a mess of events, coded at Jason's insistence and colour-coded at Dick's.

Jason turns to him, watches the way Dick pulls a pout, his bottom lip jutting out in exaggeration, baby blues gone wide and watery. "Don't be mean, Jaybird."

"Cut to the chase, goldie. What're you thinking?"

"About you."

Jason effectively rolls his eyes. He might know the answer but he still asks the question, he wants the confirmation almost as much as Dick needs his. "Is this about your rut?"

"This is." Dick ducks his head downwards by a bit, smiling sheepishly with the back of his neck bared. "I want to spend it with you."

Jason takes a breath through his teeth, his tongue feeling thick and heavy, his throat doing tight as he swallows hard to say. "You think I'm good for it?"

"Only if you think it'll be good for you too." Dick tells him, extending an arm out to try to reach for Jason. "I'm not going to be in my right mind. So I need you to be in charge."

"So you don't just want a full sized fleshlight doubled as a chew toy."

"A fles— christ, little wing." Dick sits up with a grimace but he doesn't withdraw his hand, he holds it steady.

Jason shrugs. "I've seen what's out there for alpha ruts."

"Oh god."

"And I like you, but not enough to think you're all that different from them." Jason plays nonchalant well but the tense line of his jaw gives him away. So does that thin waft of decay that drifts from him as he finally takes those final few steps to get inside of Dick's space. "Still want me?"

Dick smiles, warm like fresh sheets drying beneath the sun.

"Always, baby."

Tagging: @stevieraebarnes @crookedspoonfic @luthienluinwe @braingray @paperempires  and anyone else who sees this!!

[gamblealifearchived1]

//A few things to know. In regards to future stuff & canon. The ONLY thing I’ll accept from canon is the partnership between Steelbeak/Heron, the beak grab & the secret relationship with Steel/Launch that’s a thing on this blog. Well, that & the thousands of other ships I’ve accepted into my life with him :’D & Because of the hype on the Astro Boyd episode, NONE of that is canon. I’ll still watch it for Boyd, but. Honestly, Boyd stays with Mark/Falcon on this blog. Or whoever my Mark is with in that verse. 

My Falcon still works for F.O.W.L as an undercover agent. & As said before, LP living a double life as Double-O-Duck is completely still canon here. I think I’ve given my two cents. I’m gonna go back to iconing & then do some replies.  

[sagesparrow394]

A Big Problem: Part 1

Fandom: Sanders Sides

AU: Canon-verse, but when Thomas was a child.

Relationships: None. They’re seven.

Summary: Logan was the first side to figure out they could shapeshift. And, being the curious side he is, he doesn’t hesitate in trying it out.

Things don’t go quite to plan.

Note: ‘Romulus’ in this story is the King, aka Roman and Remus before the split.

—————

Logan didn’t know whether to cheer or go to a wall and slam his head into it in frustration. How on earth had he not come to the conclusion earlier? Seven years of existing and only now he realised this huge ability that was so painfully obvious! He was supposed to be smart!

... Then again, he was still the first side to figure this out. So, he was still the smartest, as he would always be. Clearly, he wore a lab coat. And he wanted to get a tie when he was older. Only serious smart people wore ties.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand! Logan smiled at his notepad, where the revelation was written out in big bold letters, underlined three times, and highlighted.

Shapeshifting. The sides could shapeshift. They were all effectively imaginary, after all. Since they did not adhere to human logic, it would make sense they’d be able to manipulate and change their forms.

Hold on... if they were imaginary, and Romulus was creativity and ruled the imagination... did that mean... Romulus created them all? Romulus created himself?! But how could he create himself before he existed?! How would that even work?! What the-

No! No, Logan. Don’t get yourself stuck in a paradox now. There was an important matter at hand that needed his focus. You could reevaluate your existence later.

Shapeshifting, it still baffled him how he hadn’t come up with it sooner. Patton and Romulus would get so excited when Logan told them about this! Escpecially Romulus. When he found out he could shapeshift into whatever he wanted while on his quests in the imagination, he’d get so excited! Logan would be praised for his findings!

Finally, the recognition the logical side deserved!

Logan stood up, picking up his notebook, and went to leave the room. However, as he placed his hand upon the door handle, he paused.

No... No. He couldn’t go out there and tell them yet! Logan had done enough experiments to know that, well, you needed to do experiments. You must test out your hypothesis before telling others, in case you’re wrong and you end up spreading misinformation - but Logan was never wrong, he needn’t worry about that. The other issue about not experimenting however... Logan had much more experience with.

If you don’t experiment, no one will believe you because you have no evidence. Specifically Romulus. The King was fond of finding holes in Logan’s little test and tearing them down. He was strange... One minute, he’d be reading Logan and Patton fairytales from one of his many books, and the next he’d be making jokes a seven year old should not understand to gross out Patton, and yell at Logan for being a dork - not as in nerd, as in whale penis.

Romulus was an interesting character, one Logan may have to conduct an experiment on at a later date.

Logan placed his notebook back down on his desk. He flicked to a clean page, ready to record the results of his current experiment. Speaking of, what was he going to do for his experiment...?

He went over to his mirror, looking at his reflection. Hm... if there was one thing he could change about himself, what would it be...? It couldn’t be anything too drastic, he didn’t want to risk it going horribly wrong, or the change being irreversible. Just a subtle, yet noticeable change...

That was when it hit him. His height! Logan was the shortest of all the sides, and Romulus always made fun of him for it. Adding a couple inches to his height would be perfect!

He went back to his notebook, jotting down his current height: 3’7”. He then got out a measuring tape from one of the drawers in his desk, and stuck it to the wall. He stood up against it, double checking his current height. Yep. Still 3’7”.

This was it. Shapeshifting time!

He closed his eyes and concentrated hard. Bigger. Taller. That’s what he needed to be. Taller, taller than all the other sides so that none of them could make fun of him again.

He took a deep breath. Please have worked, please have worked...

He opened his eyes and a grin spread across his face. His jeans looked considerably shorter, his shirt had ridden up a bit, showing his belly button, his white lab coat was far too short at the sleeves, and when he looked at the measuring tape, he was just under a foot taller. Perfect!

At least that’s what he thought until his saw his eyeline was still rising. He was still growing. He was definitely the tallest out of all the sides now, he really didn’t need to keep going...

“Um... o-okay, body, you can stop growing now!”

It didn’t stop.

He hesitated, concerned, before feeling stupid. Telling himself to stop wouldn’t work, of course not! He just needed to do what he did to start growing. He closed his eyes, concentrating as he did before. Stop growing, stop growing, stop growing...

When he opened his eyes, he let out a sigh of relief. He had stopped...

For about two seconds, before with a jolt, he shot up another foot, and then continued to grow at a faster pace than before. He was sooner even taller than an average adult, and it showed no signs of slowing down.

Uh oh.

Logan whimpered in fear. He had no idea what to do! Why wouldn’t it stop?! Concentrating hard was enough to start it, why wasn’t it stopping it too?!

His attention was drawn away from his own panic when there were multiple popping sounds. The buttons on Logan’s lab coat had been forcibly opened as it grew far to small for him. The buttons were followed by multiple ripping sounds, the coat falling to the floor in pieces.

Logan only got a moment to mourn his favourite item of clothing, before being distracted as his head hit the ceiling, causing him to let out a sharp “Ow!”. He ducked a little at first, before he knelt down instead, only for, a few minutes later, his head to hit the ceiling yet again.

He bent forward, in more of a fetal position, growing more and more panicked as the room became far too cramped. His foot pressed against his desk, a cracking coming from it as his foot starting to crush it. Logan was as careful as he could be, trying not to break anything else in the room, but not quite being successful. His bed was the first victim, then his bookshelf.

As the ceiling began to crack, his back pressing against it, he started to wonder if this would ever stop. What would happen if he did break through the room? Would it injure Thomas, given as it would especially be the walls of his mind breaking?! He really didn’t want to find out, as curious a person as he was...

As the ceiling continued to crack above him, Logan sniffled, tears welling in his eyes. He didn’t like this, he didn’t like it at all! He wanted to go back to normal, he didn’t want to be a giant! He never should have tried shapeshifting ever! He just wanted it to STOP!

And it did.

Right at that moment, the growing stopped completely. The cracking above his back silenced. Logan took deep breaths, trying to calm down, and patiently waited for it to start reversing. However, it didn’t do that. He was just stuck.

He started to panic again.

-

Virgil had no idea what the heck was going on, but he could feel panic from one of the other sides. Like, a lot. A full on panic attack.

His first idea was, obviously, to check on Thomas. He sank out from his room, rising up into Thomas’ bedroom. The boy was led on the floor, drawing, his tongue stuck out in concentration. Romulus was sat next to him, giving him all sorts of ideas.

Thomas didn’t acknowledge Virgil as he appeared, but Romulus did. The King frowned, raising an eyebrow. “Anxiety? What are you doing here? Thomas and I are kinda in the middle of creative stuff! Nothing for him to be anxious about...”

“It’s not him...” Virgil mumbled, looking around. Everything seemed normal enough... “So, you’re doing good? Not panicking?”

Romulus shrugged. “I’m fine. Why’d you ask?”

“No reason...” And with that, Virgil sunk out.

Romulus turned back to Thomas, looking over the boy’s shoulder at what he was drawing. “Um, Thomas, why is that guy bigger than all the buildings?”

Thomas just smiled. “He likes to be tall!”

“... Okay?”

Meanwhile, Virgil rose up back in his room. He ran to the next door over and knocked. “Dee!”

There was a groaning and shuffling before, a few seconds later, the door opened, a very sleepy Deceit rubbing his eyes and looking up at Virgil. “What’ssss up...?”

“Sorry to wake you, it’s just... you doing good? You weren’t, like, having a nightmare or anything?”

“No... Why, what’ssss happened...?”

“Dunno... Sorry again, see ya!”

“Ssssee ya...”

Deceit retreated back in his room, as Virgil ran off again. He continued through until he reached it: the others’ corridor. He hesitated a little before tiptoeing in. He heard the sounds of humming from the kitchen, and assumed it was Patton. He went over and stepped in the room.

Patton had his back to Virgil, and was stirring cookie batter.

“Patton?”

He let out a yelp of surprise at the voice, dropping his spoon. He turned around. “O-oh! Anxiety... Uh, what are you doing here...?”

Virgil didn’t blame Patton for being nervous. The moral side didn’t hide the fact that he didn’t exactly like Virgil’s side of the, well, sides.

“Sorry to startle you, I, um... Just felt some panicked energy... You, like, good?”

“Oh, yeah, um, sure...”

“Cool... Sorry for bothering you...”

Virgil left the room again. This just left Logan. Logan would likely either be in his room or the library. May as well check his room first.

Virgil went to the indigo door just down the corridor, knocking on it. “Logan? You in there?”

“A-Anxiety?! U-um... J-just give me a minute!”

Yep. Logan was definitely the one the panicked energy was coming from.

“Logan, I’m coming in.”

“N-no, wait!!!”

Virgil opened the door, only for it to stop halfway open. Something was in the way. Virgil frowned, and slipped through the gap.

His eyes widened immediately as his eyes met Logan’s. Logan’s giant eyes, which were in a giant head, attached to a giant body.

Logan was a giant, basically.

Virgil was speechless. Logan’s face was burning in embarrassment. “Um... one of my experiments didn’t go quite to plan...”

[365daysofsasuhina]

[ 365 Days of SasuHina || Day One Hundred Twenty: Rabid Dog ] [ Uchiha Sasuke, Hyūga Hinata, Uchiha Itachi, Hyūga Hiashi ] [ SasuHina ] [ Verse: Best Years of Your Life ] [ AO3 Link ]

For as long as she can remember (which, to be fair, isn’t long - she’s only seven, after all), Hinata has loved animals. Especially small, fluffy, nice ones. At home, she keeps a tiny fluffy white bunny named Marshmallow: her best friend she feeds carrots and lettuce, gently stroking her big fuzzy ears.

So typically, she’s hardly afraid of anything that fits such a description. Cats, dogs, rabbits, guinea pigs...if it’s soft and kind, she’ll love it to pieces.

But today, she’s about to learn that not all things which are the former have to be the latter.

As typical, she walks with a small herd of other children from her elementary school only a few blocks from home. Bit by bit they peel off, everyone heading down their own street until she’s the only one left beyond a pair of boys. She’s spoken to them briefly, but given her father’s rather strict schedule for her, Hinata’s never really had the chance to get to know them despite living on the same street only a few houses apart.

Traffic is terribly congested today - new construction on the road they walk means cars are backed up something awful. So, for a time, the three of them are stuck on the sidewalk, waiting for their turn to cross.

“Itachi, I’m hungry.”

“I know, Sasuke - you can have a snack when we get home, okay?”

Glancing over as the brothers talk, Hinata blinks. She...technically has some crackers left over from her lunch she didn’t eat. An internal struggle tugs at her: offer, and admit to eavesdropping? Or remain silent, and pass up a chance to maybe get to know the pair a little better?

“But Itachiii, I’m hungry now! And look at all the cars - we’re never gonna get home!”

Itachi chuckles softly. “I’m sure you’ll live, Sasuke.”

“Um…”

Both turn their heads to look at her, seeing Hinata clutch her lunchbox to her chest. It’s a soft lilac in color with little cartoon ponies on it. “Yes?” Itachi asks, expression curious.

“I...I-I have a snack, if...if you want it.”

Sasuke, beside his brother, quickly brightens. “You do?”

Itachi seems a bit torn. “We don’t want to take what’s yours,” he begins, cut off as Sasuke whines, tugging at his shirt.

“But Itachi, she said we could have it!”

“Well...perhaps we can share.”

The trio sit atop a bench not far from the crosswalk, Hinata in the middle. She pops the clasps of her lunchbox, revealing the little baggie of crackers. “Um...there’s n-not very many…”

“I don’t need any,” Itachi quickly offers. “You two can split them, all right?”

“Are...are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure.” He smiles at her warmly. “But thank you very much for offering.” With a pointed look, he gives Sasuke a gentle nudge.

“...oh! Yeah, thanks!” he echoes.

Brightening, Hinata takes out the bag, intending to count out an even number of crackers for them both.

But then, the unexpected happens.

Half a block down, a keen-nosed dog lifts its head from the sidewalk it’s been sniffing, picking up the smell of food as the wind carries it. Owner busy chatting on her cell phone, all it takes is one lunge, and her grip on the leash is lost.

“Hey -!”

With a loud bark, it barrels down the street, target spotted.

Hearing the commotion, the three look up. Quickly it becomes clear what’s going on. “O-oh no!” Hinata cries, not sure what to do. There’s nowhere to go!

Squaring up, Sasuke hops off the bench, knees bending and arms open. “I’ll stop it!” he declares, clearly intending to take the canine head-on!

But thankfully, one among them has a level head.

Taking the crackers from Hinata’s hand, Itachi stands and chucks them down the sidewalk, where the open bag spills along the concrete. Just in case, he also then scoops his brother up under the arms, ignoring his flailing and moving him back several steps, putting himself between them and harm’s way.

By then the runaway pooch finds its prize, snarfing down the food as its owner runs in pursuit with a scolding on her tongue.

All three of them watch as she wrangles the creature back, not giving any word of apology or recognition.

Sasuke scowls, stamping a foot. “What a rotten dog! That was OURS!”

Beside him, Itachi just sighs in relief. “At least it’s gone...who knows? Maybe it would have bitten one of you if it wanted the food badly enough…”

Looking frightened, Hinata continues to hide behind the elder boy, watching cautiously to ensure it’s really leaving. “That was so s-scary…!”

“It’s all right, Hinata - it’s gone now. I’m sorry about your crackers.”

“That’s okay...better the crackers than...than us!”

“Very true.”

Gaze then moving to Sasuke, she dares to ask, “Were you r-really gonna stop the dog…?”

Realizing what she’s asking, he puffs up, putting on a brave face. “Well...yeah! Somebody had t’protect you, right?”

Blinking large eyes, Hinata’s cheeks dust pink. “M-me…?”

“Well, it’s good you didn’t have to,” Itachi then cuts in, ruffling his brother’s hair with a smile. “That thing was several times your size. It would have knocked you right over.”

“Nuh-uh! I could take ‘em!”

“Of course you could.”

Pouting indignantly, Sasuke then crosses his arms with a huff. “Well, now what? We lost our only snack...we’re gonna starve!”

Itachi rolls his eyes, shoulders wilting with a small sigh. “I’m sure traffic will move soon, Sasuke. We just need to be patient, and wait for a safe time to cross.”

“D’you think Mom will come get us?”

“Maybe. I’m sure she knows about the construction.”

“Hey, you three.”

The trio look up to see a man in a hardhat and a reflective orange vest. “Yes?”

“You need to cross?”

“Yes, sir.”

“C’mon, I’ll take y’over.”

Perking up, they move to follow, Itachi offering Hinata a hand. “So no one gets left behind,” he explains.

A bit sheepish, she does as asked, and together they follow the man over the crosswalk as he holds a sign saying ‘Stop’.

“All right, get home now,” he offers tiredly. It’s clear he’s been here all day.

“Thank you!” Hinata chirps as he leaves, still holding Itachi’s hand.

“Come on, Hinata - we’ll walk you home.”

Thankfully it’s not much farther, and they reach the Hyūga family gate. “There we are.”

“Thank you.”

“Of course.”

“Hinata!”

Flinching at the barking tone, she looks up to see Hiashi marching from the front door. “D-Dad…?”

“Where have you been?” he demands. “You’re almost twenty minutes late!”

“Excuse me, sir,” Itachi offers, unflinching as Hiashi turns his scathing look to him. “There’s construction up the road, and we had to wait.”

“Yeah! And then there was a craaazy dog!” Sasuke adds, gesturing. “It was gonna eat us!”

The man’s brow furrows sharply. “A crazy dog…? It wasn’t rabid, was it?”

“No,” Itachi amends quickly, giving his brother a look. “Just a lady’s dog off its leash looking for Hinata’s crackers. It turned out fine, sir.”

“Hm…” Not looking entirely convinced, Hiashi turns to his daughter. “You should get inside and start on your chores, young lady. You’re behind schedule now.”

Head ducking, she mumbles, “Yes, Dad…” Looking to her friends, she waves. “Thank you for walking me h-home.”

Both boys seem to falter for a moment, but then Itachi recovers and replies, “Of course. We’ll see you tomorrow, Hinata.”

“Byyye!” Sasuke calls as his brother tugs him homeward.

Without another word, Hiashi turns and heads inside. “Dinner is in two hours. You have until then to finish your chores, Hinata.”

“...okay.”

     Woo, random fluff! And I'm not sick for once, double woo! xD      Maybe not a LITERAL take on the prompt, but...well, I guess it works! It's been a while since I've done some smol fluff. About time I changed that! And a little bit of Itachi too, because...who doesn't love best big bro Itachi?      Buuut yeah, that'll do it for tonight! Thanks for reading~

[abundantchewtoys]

HS Epi: Meat p21 reaction

So, Dave, huh?

Doesn't seem as if Dirk is expecting him to fall unconscious too from the looks of it.

But that doesn't mean that he might not. It depends on who's really behind the condition, Dirk or Alternate Calliope.

You'd think Dave might get called by Roxy when they can't wake Jade up, but that might happen in the latter half of the page.

It's notable that Dirk even as almost omniscient narrator seems harried to continue acknowledging certain scenes. As if he fears he might be influenced.

"DAVE: holy shit thats disgusting KARKAT: DON’T BE A FUCKING XENOPHOBE DAVE: im not being a xenophobe" Yeah Dave, be more sensitive towards the people whose body image is celestial. :P

"Karkat doesn’t respond immediately. He shuffles his feet to the edge of the outcropping they’re standing on and stares down at the brood pit, where the Mother Grub of Earth C is squelching out unfertilized jelly." :O They actually left their hive! And they're meeting up with Kanaya! So... yeah, didn't think we'd require further indulging into the reproductive cycle of trolls, we had TMI already, but here we are. :P Jelly to go into the slurry, unfertilized like fish eggs. Joy.

"No answer. This silence makes Dave actually back up for three seconds and think about what the hell just came out of his mouth." Karkat's just distracted, thinking of something else or looking for Kanaya, I suspect, but Dave goes reading too much into it.

"Dave could definitely be handling this situation with a certain measure of restraint or grace. But he’s got my genes, so he decides to handle it a different way than that." Well, Dirk did say he owned his own faults. He wasn't lying.

"DAVE: but im almost as passionate about this troll speciesism thing as i am about the economy which you may not have known is my number one" Heh, Dave's really getting worked up about this, assuming he came over poorly.

"Karkat still doesn’t answer. He’s staring real intently at the jelly." He doesn't spot any mutations, by chance?

"KARKAT: HEY DIPSHIT, SHUT UP FOR A MINUTE. KARKAT: I’M NOT IGNORING YOU BECAUSE I’M MAD. DAVE: what DAVE: that wasnt what i KARKAT: I KNOW THAT YOU PERISH LIKE A DELICATE LILAC BLOOM IN THE FUCKING DESERT IF NOT SHOWERED WITH MY VERBAL ATTENTION AT ALL TIMES. KARKAT: BUT I’M KIND OF WITNESSING THE REBIRTH OF MY ENTIRE FUCKING SPECIES RIGHT HERE. KARKAT: YOU EVER THINK THAT THIS MIGHT BE A MONUMENTAL MOMENT FOR ME?" Wow, this is actually really much more like the Karkat we're used to hearing rants from.

I can definitely understand he feels some very heavy feelings right now, since everything that happened in the A2 session and after has lead to this moment. So I'm definitely allowing Karkat a measure of solemnness, and perhaps even feeling proud and aloof at the achievement.

"Dave comes to the edge of the outcropping, standing shoulder to shoulder with Karkat as he too observes the majesty of translucent goo getting birthed out of an alien asshole." So majestic. I'm definitely getting "Mufasa showing Simba the Pride Lands" vibes from this scene. :P

"KARKAT: WHAT PART OF THIS IS DISGUSTING? KARKAT: IS IT THE SLOW DEFLATING OF ITS DISTENDED ABDOMEN? KARKAT: THE SOUND OF DOZENS OF SEGMENTED LEGS CLACKING AGAINST ITS EXOSKELETON? KARKAT: THE UNFERTILIZED SLURRY BEING SLOWLY SQUEEZED FROM ITS OVIPOSITIONAL SPHINCTER? KARKAT: IS THAT IT? IS THAT DISGUSTING TO YOU DAVE? DAVE: kind of KARKAT: ... KARKAT: YOU’RE RIGHT KARKAT: IT’S HORRIBLE" You know when people sum up three items, the third one is often the most important one. :P And yeah, I figure Karkat can still see how horrific this is even as a troll himself. We know how much he could get grossed out by Equius' sweat and strongly voiced his dissent, and this is a whole new level of excrements.

"KANAYA: Im Sorry But I Can Hear You From Down Here" Kanaya has excellent hearing, being able to discern their blabbering from all the squelching and clacking. It might the rainbow drinker abilities.

"She’s glowing. Her skin, I mean." Yes, we already established she and Rose would adopt, if they'd ever go for progeny, if Rose can be convinced. :P

"Kanaya steps out from beneath the canopy where she was doing grub science, wiping her hands on a silk cloth." It's cool to see Kanaya do such a Jade-like activity! It's actually quite logical that her kind would be well versed in biology, given their strong dependence on the grub for (biological) reproduction.

"Her mood can be politely described as pensive." ... Something might be bothering her. A lack of donations, so far? It's not as if the imperial drone system will be set again, right? Depends on how they did things on Beforus, which she might shed light on. ... Figuratively.

"DAVE: whats shaking sis KANAYA: Must You Always Call Me That DAVE: nah but it does feel pretty rad to say DAVE: like wow my sister in law is an alien how" Pffff, yeah, that's right! Well, that's the first time someone besides Calliope (and Joey) is called sis! What'd that make Karkat to Rose? :P Since he has ties to both Kanaya and Dave.

"DAVE: i love our awesome planet where everyone is free to form xenophilic family units without fear of government interference or reprisal" That's an odd thing to say, but okay.

"Karkat pauses to imitate a very common Davism that involves two hands and a double-wrist swivel. It’s an incredibly good imitation, because he sees this particular bit of body language like ten times a day." ... Does Dave make a jazz hands signal when he's trying to change the subject? :D

"KARKAT: IT’S THE STUPIDEST THING I’VE EVER SEEN AND YOU DO IT LIKE TEN TIMES A DAY." ... Is Karkat picking that up from the narration, unconsciously?

"DAVE: im dropping a beat DAVE: like im using a turntable and scratching one song into another" ... Well then, less dorky and more related to his interests than I thought.

"KARKAT: IT LOOKS LIKE YOU’RE TRYING TO FOLD LAUNDRY YOU FORGOT TO IRON." At this point both he and Dave have forgotten Kanaya's presence. :P

"KANAYA: So This Is About The Election KARKAT: AH." She was expecting them. I wonder if they'll get as much an evasive answer as Roxy and Calliope gave Jade.

"KANAYA: I Do Get The Internet Down Here" Pretty good reception though! 'The Internet', such a Kanaya-ism.

"KANAYA: I Am Impressed That You Managed To Be Seen In Front Of That Many People Without Spontaneously Bursting Into Flames" So he gave a public statement! Nice.

"KARKAT: WOW THANKS, ANOTHER VOTE OF CONFIDENCE FROM ONE OF MY DEAREST FRIENDS." Yeah, well, your speeching days are kind of behind you, and even then it was only in front of 12 people, she may or may not have a point.

"KARKAT: THIS CONDESCENSION IS REALLY RICH COMING FROM THE PERSON WHO DECIDED HER NARCISSISTIC OBSESSION WITH BEING THE ONE TO HATCH THE MOTHER GRUB WAS MORE IMPORTANT THAN NOT SEEDING OUR PLANET WITH A STOPGAP SYSTEM OF REPRODUCTION THAT WOULD CAUSE SYSTEMIC SPECIESISM TO OSSIFY INTO SOCIETY FOR 5000 YEARS." Pfff, Karkat already mentioned he discussed these topics so often with Kanaya over the phone. It'll be interesting to hear her retort.

"KANAYA: But I Do Not Think It Is Productive To Attribute These Resultant Troubles To A Single Decision Or Individual KANAYA: It Stands In The Way Of Our Efforts To Address Them KARKAT: MMNNNRRRGHHH......... DAVE: (shhhhhh)" I like this, Kanaya's right in absolving herself at least in part of the blame for the end result. Karkat is doing wonders in restraining himself from shouting. Dave is shooshing Karkat.

"KAYANA: You Know As Well As I Do That We Must Present A United Front" Yeah, that'd be best to not cause societal upheaval. But they're not doing a good job already of course, running two different campaigns.

"KANAYA: I Have Nothing But The Utmost Faith In You" ... is the new "I believe in you".

"Kanaya reaches out to put a hand on Karkat’s head. He doesn’t duck away in time, and she gives him an affectionate, matronly hair-ruffle between his horns." I love how Kanaya's motherly/sisterly feelings towards Karkat manifest sometimes. :D *pap pap good crab*

"KANAYA: While I Know That It Is Difficult For You To Take A Direct Compliment KANAYA: I Have In The Past Put My Faith In You When The Threat To Our Survival Has Been Immediate And Literal KANAYA: Its Basically Nothing To Ask Me To Do It Again Now That The Threat Is Far More ... KANAYA: *Existential*" Awww. Yeah, she always was one of his closest confidantes. Even going through with the trolling of the kids when she didn't feel like it would be that effective. And she's right, the dangers now are far more vague.

"KANAYA: Is How I Think I Shall Put It KANAYA: If We Are Going To Be Polite" ... And personal, I guess, since they come from within their own group. (Let's be honest, the trolls were a team but not a cohesive one. In that regard, the players on Earth C are far more kin.

"Dave is watching her, but Karkat’s looking contemplatively at his entwined hands. Kanaya’s right: it’s almost excruciating for him to take a completely unironic compliment, especially face-to-face, like what she just said to him. I understand this about Karkat. It’s one of the precious few things he and I have in common." Well, it stands to reason that if Karkat has a lot in common with Dave, he'd have a lot in common with Dirk too! But maybe some of those things are not part of the same set.

"We internalize and project the quality in very different ways, however, which is why I’m going to win." Here goes Dirk again, assuming he's the real leader on his side. He assumes his way of dealing with compliments will make him come off better, but he might just seem arrogant.

"KANAYA: Jane Has Been Here To Speak With Me Recently In Fact" Oh! I actually figured the issue was being discussed over the heads of the actual people impacted by a decision. ... Like is so often the case on our own Earth.

"KANAYA: You Know I Do Like Jane KANAYA: In Some Regards She Reminds Me Of A Friend We Had Who Sadly Did Not Survive Our Time On The Meteor" Feferi?

"KANAYA: She Was Unfailingly Kind To Everyone She Met But She Also Happened To Be The Heiress To The Throne Of A Vast And Bloody Empire" Aww. We didn't have much interaction between them, but it seems she held Feferi in high regard. It would have been a different empire under her. Different from Beforus as well, since the troll race had been influenced so severely by Doc Scratch and )(IC by then already.

"KANAYA: And While She Had A Lot Of Opinions On Reform She Had Already Wrenched Some Of Her Power From Our Last Empress In The Traditional Manner" Via the lusus. That might be her reasoning behind waiting until after the time skip to hatch the Grub. For the bond that would form between troll and grub. Maybe she felt she alone could handle the responsibility, or she craved a little sliver of that contact she lossed with her own custodian.

"Karkat finally looks up at the description of one of their many dead friends." Yeah, this would surely stir something with him as well.

"She rests an ear against the rise of its massive stomach, then taps the shell with two perfectly manicured fingernails." That calls back to when she got the matriorb out from her dead lusus' body.

"KANAYA: By Which I Mean That Jane Is Perfectly Pleasant And I Believe That She Has Only The Best Of Intentions KANAYA: But I Cant Shake The Feeling That Deep Inside Her Lurks The Potential For Despotism" Yeah, we know how it could have manifested in Feferi from Beforus.

"KARKAT: OKAY I GET WHY YOU GUYS KEEP CALLING JANE A CRYPTO-FASCIST KARKAT: BUT FUCKING FEFERI? SHE WAS HARMLESS. KANAYA: These Things Take Time To Gestate Karkat DAVE: damn" Dave is impressed by Kanaya's political analysis.

"KANAYA: Power Corrupts In Small Steps KANAYA: Compromises KANAYA: Concessions KANAYA: Appeasements KANAYA: And Leaders Follow The Example Set For Them KANAYA: Look At What Jane Has Modeled Herself After Already" So maybe the situation on Beforus wasn't Feferi's doing single-handedly, just a situation that grew and grew over millennia. A goal reached by means bartered over, the result corrupted in the process of achieving it.

I don't think Jane really modelled herself after the Condesce consciously, but if it's the only example of a powerful business woman she had, then of course she'd unknowingly copy some bad habits she doesn't think are bad.

"KANAYA: This Is Why I Trust You Karkat KANAYA: Because You Listen To Advice From Below And Beside You Not From Above" Plus, the Sufferer is his precedent, whether he believes in him or not. And yes, Karkat might admire achievements made by what he believes to be his betters (Vriska, Meenah, the Condesce), but he's learned not to copy their behaviour.

"DAVE: so weve got your endorsement then

She laughs, not kindly. KANAYA: Jane Offered Me “A Seat” On The “Board Of Responsible Troll Reproduction” KARKAT: WHAT THE FUCK. HOW DARE SHE! KANAYA: That Is Exactly What I Said" Wow, yeah, that was definitely inconsiderate of Jane. Trolls should be the end responsible of their own reproduction, and if there's a board, there's a chairman, but as long as there's a president above either and she's human, the inequality persists.

"RECREATION SPRAWL" Troll term for park.

"KANAYA: In Case You Cant Tell I Am Actually Fucking Furious About This" Well, thanks Kanaya, I really couldn't!

"KANAYA: Our Reproduction Method Is Alien And Unfamiliar KANAYA: To A Human It Must Sound Monstrous KANAYA: Uncontrolled Even" While it wasn't, of course, there's a rhyme and reason to it. Especially considering the dangers on Alternia, a big pool of spawn to go through the trials is necessary. ... I wonder if they're going to set up new trials on Earth C, in the brooding caverns?

Come to think of it... What the grubs go through... It's kind of similar in a way to how in humans, the male sperm has to survive the trip to the egg cell.

"KARKAT: WHEN I HEAR ABOUT HOW HUMAN GRUBS CHEW THEIR WAY OUT OF THE FEMALE MATESPRIT’S ABDOMINAL HOLE BEFORE CONSUMING THE WOMB MEMBRANE IT MAKES ME WANT TO VOMIT." That's... well, a different phrasing but still close to the truth. Makes us sound like birds hatching from an egg, though.

"KANAYA: I Hope That There Is At Least One Principle We Share As A Planet KANAYA: Which Is That We Must All Work To Ensure Equal Dignity And Respect For Every Species" It's sad that in real life, so many people disagree.

"KANAYA: Otherwise KANAYA: What Was This All For

The three of them stare at the floor in adorably cartoonish synchronicity. What was this all for, indeed?" It's almost as if they're looking down to the narration, acknowledging Dirk's presence. :P

"Morality is a cultural construct. It’s pure ego for any of them to believe that their personal interpretation of it will result in the most effective laws." As for your personal interpretation, Dirk? :P

"DAVE: would you be willing to say that exactly but DAVE: like in front of a huge crowd DAVE: and also a television crew or six" She'd actually pull it off better than Karkat. Maybe she could be his press speechperson on troll subjects? :P

"KARKAT: OR MAYBE JUST IN FRONT OF JAKE ENGLISH? KANAYA: Oh Dear Has Jane Recruited Jake" The Jakestakes return. Kanaya also believes in that Jake will sway the vote.

"KANAYA: That Would Be Disastrous KANAYA: He Is Beloved In The Troll Kingdom For His Perky Ass" Why. Of all the universal constants.

"DAVE: seriously? KARKAT: I TOLD YOU IT’S NOT JUST ME! KANAYA: It Has Some Terrible Arcane Power KANAYA: I Have Never Seen Anything Like It" It's like his <3 quadrant, a black hole everything is attracted to.

"DAVE: but jane is one of his best friends so we gotta approach this with a scorched earth policy DAVE: give him a whole cadre of sob stories thatll make him feel all manly and heroic for lending his support DAVE: just gift wrapping babies for him to kiss KARKAT: TROLL BABIES EVEN? DAVE: sure that can be part of the deal he can kiss the first natural born grub right on its gooey lil head" He'd don a mayoral sash, top hat, fake moustache and monocle for the occasion, I can just picture it.

"KANAYA: Have You Spoken To Rose Yet DAVE: uh no DAVE: i mean DAVE: shes

Dave mimes laying down and taking pills. The look Kanaya gives him is neither fond nor patronizing." Very tactful, Dave, real smooth. At least Dave didn't bother Rose while she's otherwise occupied, like during the start of their session. Progress, right?

"DAVE: whats up with that anyway DAVE: are you guys uh DAVE: grub pregnant" Oh, yeah I should have figured Dave would start wildly guessing when not knowing the specifics behind the migraine.

"DAVE: cmon karkat dont you wanna be an uncle to a lil bundle of love and unnatural genetic tampering" Oh, now the baby became a genetically manipulated crossbreed. Jegus, Dave.

"DAVE: ok stop freaking out im just saying from what i understand of troll reproduction it would be technically possible for a troll and human to KANAYA: No DAVE: and with ectobiology anythings possible" Well, it's true the fandom speculated about crossbreeds, but uh, Dave is just approaching the subject from the worst angle.

"DAVE: i dunno its just unusual for rose to brush me off for our annual ecto sibling oversharing session" I would have thought they'd AT LEAST schedule it monthly, not annually. :P

"DAVE: shes been sick for a while DAVE: either shes pregnant or i got reasons to be worried" And NOW we get to the REAL reason Dave's breached the subject.

"DAVE: id be cool with it yknow DAVE: bring on the rosemary combo grubs KANAYA: Rosemary" Hah, nice! Shipping name dropped! Maybe that's what Dave thinks of them in his mind sometimes, like how "Dave and Karkat" became a concept to their friends.

"DAVE: like rose plus your last name which is maryan or something right KANAYA: Maryam" Oh Dave, inconsiderate much? :P

"DAVE: the rosemary babies would have her hair and your horns or whatever DAVE: like when two cartoon animals of different species give in to their lust and have preposterous children" Like what Dirk drew for Jake and Roxy.

"KANAYA: Im Going To Call My Wife And You Are Going To Stop Talking" Oh boy, here we go. Is Dirk going to answer? Making him both narrator and character at the same time? Is he going to impersonate Rose? Or will Rose unexpectedly wake up?

"Dave and Karkat bicker about what their combo kids would look like, in the event that they decided to stop being such laughable wusses" Even Dirk is rooting for them, kind of. And why would they even discuss this subject if the subject of becoming more than friends even scares them so much they don't acknowle- wait I answered my own question.

"Rose’s line rings for a long time. It’s unusual, she thinks. Rose rarely leaves her phone unattended." She rarely leaves an occasion hanging to be able to speak long sentences.

"Rose is in absolutely no condition to be having a conversation with anyone. Not even her cherished bride. DIRK: Hey," Is Dirk going to lie, I wonder. It would just be another mark against him, but a big one, as it'd be a confirmed action of malicious intent.

"Kanaya’s voice turns sharp right away. KANAYA: Excuse Me

She can sense that something’s wrong." Alright! He won't be able to spin the wheel on her, if he'd wish to do so.

"She’s also smart enough, and facile enough in handling questionable men" - right, Doc Scratch.

"to understand that she quickly needs to regulate the tone of her voice for diplomatic purposes. KANAYA: Dirk KANAYA: Is That You" Not fooling him at all, Kanaya, he knows you know it's him. This turned almost into a call with a hostage-holder.

"I don’t answer immediately. I’m distracted by something." His own narration, or something happening to Rose? ... Or perhaps... Perhaps Dirk is making contact with Reload Dirk, if he still exists. It would be something if he lost touch with Earth C for a while.

Perhaps it's more like what Blaperile thinks, Dirk is being distracted by events in the Furthest Ring, leading up to the upcoming perspective switch.

"She really should chill out, anyway. I’ve got everything under control. Not that she’ll ever be able to fully appreciate this." Well that's the understatement of the year. Kanaya would never forgive him, and it's only questionable if a lot of his other friends will. It'll dependent on further developments.

"I don’t have time to explain right now. John’s doing something vaguely important to the plot again." You'd think that what we last saw, John and the wallet, is where we'd continue his scene. But maybe Dirk fastforwarded his narration of John (he showed off at one point and let him spend a few hours, remember?), and now Rose's timeline caught up.

But this means Dirk's currently not in a state to answer Kanaya, but what does that mean? Is he going to freeze with Rose's phone in hand for a few hours, or has he broken off the call to "write" the narration?

"DIRK: Kanaya, I don’t have time to explain right now." That's not an acceptable answer for her and you know it. Unless he has her fall unconscious, too, Dave and Karkat and her are going to come over!

"DIRK: John’s doing something vaguely important to the plot again." Wow, he actually repeated his narration into the phone. He really doesn't control his situation as much as he thinks.

"KANAYA: Dirk... KANAYA: What DIRK: This is gonna have to wait. KANAYA: Dirk DIRK: I’m putting you on hold, ok? KANAYA: DIRK!" "Putting you on hold", pfffff. It's a personal cliffhanger for Kanaya. At least he's partially outed himself to the other people now. Unless he can continue his conversation with her with a 'reasonable' delay of only a few seconds from her perspective, and then proceeds to smoothly talk around what he told her, with his narration powers influencing her to drop the subject.

[ducknotinarow]

(Scraf emoji, I can't find it!) To warp a scraf around my muses neck to be the cold reverse [dod/drakepad]

"You know it be one thing if they were always sending me on these missions where I'm freezing my tail feathers off for, but I wish they would have the sense to at least weather proof my get up yeesh."

Drake muttered under his breath as he rubbed his arms with his hands using the friction to create some warmth. Launchpad or double o duck he meant, was standing off to the side peering around thier hiding spot keeping an eye out for anyone around. Drake had to admit it was interesting to see how serious they were about this mission or well every mission. Getting to know the guy finally he found him to be pretty lax at best almost like he was someone different altogether. Drake just tugged the pale scraf around his own neck tighter it was another cold night. Drake hated the cold so much.

But seemed he wasn't the only one as he took notice of the agent slightly shiver. Hmm, he stood up from the ground and walked over to them.

"Here" he spoke up getting Launchpad to look at him as he offered the scraf for them to use, at first he turned them down but Drake just rolled his eyes and manged to rope it over thier head and pulled them down a bit so he could warp it around the larger ducks thick neck.

"Just take it, I don't need that dumb bear on my case about how I let his agent freeze out here anyway."

[quranreadalong]

#165, Surah 33

THE QURAN READ-ALONG: DAY 165

We will get to Mohammed’s sexual adventures today, but first: more whining about the cowardly fake Muslims. Some of them, 33:20 informs us, would rather be in the desert with the Bedouin clans than have to serve under Mohammed in battle (this is making me sympathize with them tbh). They should remember that Allah has sent Mohammed as an excellent example, a paragon of virtue, and therefore everyone must pattern their behavior on his own. (For someone who loved to declare his religion free of saint nonsense and such, Mo sure did a fine-ass job of turning himself into a pure holy man eh?) Therefore, real believers weren’t afraid of the siege, because Mohammed wasn’t afraid of it. Real Muslims simply believed that “Allah and His messenger are true”.

Good Muslims are the ones who stood with Mohammed in battle (or rather ready for battle), bad ones are the hypocrites who were afraid and wanted to turn tail and run. Maybe Allah will forgive them, maybe he won’t. Well, fair enough. Neutral so far. We’ll finish up this particular topic with a recap of the events:

Allah repulsed the disbelievers in their wrath; they gained no good. Allah averted their attack from the believers. Allah is ever Strong, Mighty. And He brought those of the People of the Scripture who supported them down from their strongholds, and cast panic into their hearts. Some ye slew, and ye made captive some. And He caused you to inherit their land and their houses and their wealth, and land ye have not trodden. Allah is ever Able to do all things.

Those last two ayat are in reference to the poor Banu Qurayza, of course. Allah tells us that their brutal end was his doing, which is bad. Hey, at least the bloodiness of the massacre meant that they made it into the Quran! Most of the Bedouin clans Mo & Crew raided never even got a mention.

At any rate, we are now going to start talking about Mohammed’s wives. This entire section is in fact personally addressed to them. It begins in 33:28, in which Mohammed says that if his wives prefer “the world's life and its adornment”, then they should leave him. But if they stay with him and are good, they will be rewarded (in heaven). I guess that qualifies as a good-Muslims-go-to-heaven ayah and is good? Whatever. Moving on to the meaty part.

O ye wives of the Prophet! Whosoever of you committeth manifest lewdness, the punishment for her will be doubled, and that is easy for Allah. And whosoever of you is submissive unto Allah and His messenger and doeth right, We shall give her her reward twice over, and We have prepared for her a rich provision. O ye wives of the Prophet! Ye are not like any other women. If ye keep your duty (to Allah), then be not soft of speech, lest he in whose heart is a disease aspire (to you), but utter customary speech. And stay in your houses. Bedizen not yourselves with the bedizenment of the Time of Ignorance. Be regular in prayer, and pay the poor-due, and obey Allah and His messenger. 

Oh lord. Let’s break this down.

The first ayah is talking about sexual immorality (fahisha). Previously, in the fourth surah, we saw that slave women get half the punishment as free women for such things--interpreted in the ahadith as subjecting them to flogging but not screaming at them. Mohammed’s wives, on the other hand, deserve to be punished twice as much as typical free woman for sexual immorality. What that means, exactly, we don’t know. Twice as many lashings? The death penalty, but extra spicy? None of them were ever found guilty of adultery (that one “slander” of Aisha was the closest they ever came to that), so it’s unclear.

Regardless, the second ayah tells them to be submissive to Mohammed (oh, “and Allah”) to get their heavenly reward. Telling women that they have to be submissive to their husband is bad and no, “doeth right” does not make up for it. The third ayah is a bit strangely translated, but you probably get the idea: Mohammed’s wives shouldn’t flatter men or speak to them in flowery language, in case it makes the men feel like they’re flirting with them. They should just speak plainly and should not use any language that could be interpreted in more than one way. Policing how your wives talk to other men seems pretty bad, tbh, but in comparison to the line before and after this, I guess it’s neutral...

Finally, 33:33, which literally instructs Mo’s wives to “stay in your houses” (which is bad). It means exactly what it sounds like: they had to stay in their houses unless they had some pressing issue requiring them to leave. Men could talk to them in their homes, but (as we will see later in this surah) they could not look at them--they had to address them from behind a curtain. This is the literal meaning of the word hijab. Some “Muslim feminist” types claim that the tradition of female seclusion only entered Islam after it absorbed Persian culture or some such bullshit. But as you can see, it was a codified part of the religion the whole time. Yes, this verse is addressed to Mo’s wives, specifically. But Mo’s wives were supposed to be role models for other women.

Also, in case you were wondering what “bedizen” or tabbaraj means, Ibn Kathir offers various opinions:

“Women used to go out walking in front of men, and this was the Tabarruj (flaunting) of Jahiliyyah.”

“[It means] When they go out of their homes walking in a shameless and flirtatious manner, and Allah, may He be exalted, forbade that.'' 

"Tabarruj is when a woman puts a Khimar on her head but does not tie it properly.'' So her necklaces, earrings and neck, and all of that can be seen.”

So... Mo’s wives can’t walk in front of men, can’t walk like it’s for sale and the rent is due tonight, and/or can’t leave their headscarves hanging straight down so their necks are uncovered. Take your pick, but all options are shitty.

One last curious note here. The last ayah above, 33:33, concludes:

Allah's wish is but to remove uncleanness far from you, O Folk of the Household, and cleanse you with a thorough cleansing.

As it happens, this sentence is a bit of an odd duck. Despite being stuck to the verses commanding Mohammed’s wives to seclude themselves, a hadith says it’s about a completely different thing:

'A'isha reported that Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) went out one norning wearing a striped cloak of the black camel's hair that there came Hasan b. 'Ali. He wrapped him under it, then came Husain and he wrapped him under it along with the other one (Hasan). Then came Fatima and he took her under it, then came 'Ali and he also took him under it and then said:  Allah only desires to take away any uncleanliness from you, O people of the household, and purify you (thorough purifying)

Hasan and Hussein were Fatima and Ali’s sons, with Fatima being Mohammed’s daughter. So “people of the household”, or ahl al-bayt, evidently just means Mo’s family members. Ibn Kathir notes this hadith, but then notes a dissenting opinion:

[Ikrimah, a slave/student of Mohammed’s cousin, said] "This was revealed solely concerning the wives of the Prophet.'' Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn `Abbas said concerning the Ayah:  "It was revealed solely concerning the wives of the Prophet.'' `Ikrimah said: "Whoever disagrees with me that it was revealed solely concerning the wives of the Prophet, I am prepared to meet with him and pray and invoke the curse of Allah upon those who are lying.'' So they alone were the reason for revelation, but others may be included by way of generalization.

Hmm. Ibn Kathir tries to make sense of the dissent here by saying that this “people of the household” verse applied to Mohammed’s wives and Fatima and her family, thus why it’s included in a section directed at his wives. That makes sense, I suppose, though clearly some people like Ikrimah here believed it solely applied to his wives and that the story about how it related to Fatima, Ali, et al was false.

For the record, there are other versions of the story about Mohammed wrapping Fatima’s kids with his cloak, and not all of them have this verse affixed to it. So it may be an improper conflation (or it may be a legitimate one! Who knows!). The fact that it directly follows a list of demands for Mo’s wives indicates to me that it was at least partially directed at them, in the sense that doing all these things will make them “pure”. It doesn’t really make sense otherwise.

But anyway. This section concludes with Mo telling his wives (or... whoever) to remember Allah’s revelations.

We’re around halfway through the surah, so I’ll leave it there for today. More on Mo’s sexual adventures later. Stay in your houses and don’t walk sluttily til tomorrow, pls.

NEXT TIME: The Prophet (PBUH) outlaws adoption so he can sleep with his daughter-in-law, and other tales of moral uprightness!!!

The Quran Read-Along: Day 165

Ayat: 15

Good: 1 (33:29)

Neutral: 9 (33:20-25, 33:28, 33:32, 33:34)

Bad: 5 (33:26-27, 33:30-31, 33:33)

Kuffar hell counter: 0

⇚ previous day | next day ⇛

[ohnohetaliasues]

Where the Maple Leafs Are {Ch.4}

(Kat)

And I'm back, joining you for another chapter of Where the Maple Leafs Are.

Wish me luck.

I knocked on England's door.

"England's not going to hear that he barely comes to the door when I knock."

Run on sentences make me very unhappy.

"Just give him a min-"

"Good day, Sam, I see you have America on a tight leash." He said smirking. America made a loud sound of protest.

"Listen I need to ask some questions? Can we come in?"

The first question should not be a question, it should be a statement.

He moves out of the way and asked "would you like some tea?"

"Yes please!" if you can't tell I love tea...

Nope. Totally unaware.

America and I sit down on England's green grama couch 

Grandma? 

Grad?

Grammar?

Green?

waiting for the tea to be ready.

"Why are we here again?"

"To ask England about Canada."

"Who's Canada?"

"Exactly."

"Here is the tea" said England as he set the tray down.

I make myself a glass smiling I said "Thank you this is wonderful."

He smiles back at me and then asks "So what can I do for you?"

You can stop changing tenses, that's what you can do.

"I have some questions to ask and then I'd like to take you out to eat?"

THIS IS NOT A QUESTION THIS IS A STATEMENT.

His grimace did not go unnoticed.

"Go on"

"Is there a spell to make someone forgotten?"

He blinked stupidly at me then asked

"Why do you ask?"

STOP FREAKING BREAKING CANON. 

"Oh I don't know maybe because Canada can't be remembered and you're the only one with magic in your group. Now is there a spell that makes someone forgotten?"

"Yes."

"Is there a way to fix it?"

"Yes but it has to be done by someone who remembers the forgotten. Who's the guy again?"

Sarcasm doesn't suit you, Author-chan.

"Canada"

"What do I have to do?"

OH, I DON'T KNOW, ENGLAND, YOU'RE THE ONE WITH THE SPELLS.

"He needs to be there, you need to bleed and cry for him. And then you both chant a small verse together."

I AM LOSING MY MIND.

"That sounds easy?"

THIS IS A

S T A T E M E N T

NOT A

Q U E S T I O N.

Also, I can no longer tell who is saying what.

"It is easy, you see, the hard part is finding someone who can remember the person."

"Alright. Now are you ready to go out to eat?"

"I guess."

"Where do you want to eat Iggy?" asked America who was fed up with being ignored

America never calls him that. He calls him England or Britain. 

Did you even watch the anime?

"Wait? You're going to let me choose?" he asked happily "you really do have him on a leash!"

"Quit being mean England, America has been very nice this whole time."

That isn't mean??????

"Your right, your right."

We ended up at a restaurant called Rules in London. 

IT EXISTS.

It had burnt yellow walls with dark wood arches. It had paintings all around the room and in the corners there were glass cases with items in them with faces etched into the glass. From England's translations

This fanfiction is in English.

England speaks English.

Why are translations needed?

 all of the dishes were meat so just asked for what England got. 

Uh, fat chance friend. This is during ration time. meat was scarce.

America complained about how long it was taking, until I whispered in his ear that this was a chance to hang out with England.

Oh, you know, maybe because they're collecting all of the UKs rations for this one meal?

After small chat, laughing, and exploring the pictures and cases, our dinner came England and I got a duck dish with garlic and tomatoes 

Duck?? I see that no where.

America got a cheese pasta dish.

 These meals are impossible.

I kept most of the conversation going. We were talking about how there were almost no differences in our worlds when England asked me bluntly

OH NO DIFFERENCES YOU SAY?

1) WWII IS HAPPENING IN THEIR WORLD.

2)  PERSONIFIED NATIONS EXIST THERE.

3) OUR WORLD HAS BETTER TECHNOLOGY.

4) OUR WORLD HAS INTERNET.

5) WE HAVE LANDED ON THE MOON.

6)THE YEAR IN OUR WORLD IS 2017 (Or 2014 in the story)

7) THEIR WORLD IS RIGHT NOW IN 1941

NEED I GO ON?

"Do you want to go back?"

"No… I'll miss my brother but other than him there was nothing to keep me there."

Parents??????

They must be worried sick.

"Really? No parents? No boy?"

"I do have parents but I'm independent, and they have mike. My brother his six. And no boyfriend I always thought all the boys in my life were assholes really."

Your parents will care. They will miss you.

You cannot survive alone in the middle of a war as vicious as WWII, You idiot.

England look unhappy at the word independent 

oH WOW. REALLY?

and America was laughing loudly at me calling guys assholes.

Why? He is a guy, need I remind you.

"So I can bring Canada over later?"

"Who's Canada?"

"The guy who was forgotten."

"Oh yeah, bring him over tomorrow, at 12 I'll have everything ready. Oh and eat healthy Sam remember you have to bleed for him."

Oh yes, good luck getting a ration book in a world where you are not registered. You didn't even exist in this world until about 24 hours prior.

"What will it be like for him after? Will everyone magically remember him again?"

"No it will be like a whole new person has been introduced. Those who could remember him will recognize him though"

This is breaking canon and my sanity all on one blow.

"America can remember him most of the time France too if I remember right…

When dinner was over I was happy to see that England ate even more than me!

Why does that matter?

"So how come you suck at cooking so badly?" I asked bluntly

Because spice isn't a big thing in England. It's a historical thing I won't go into. It also involves climate.

"I don't know I just throw everything together put the heat on and leave it… why? Wait how did you know my cooking sucked?"

"Do you even use the stove?" I ignored his stupid question

"Yes I use the stove what else would I cook on?!"

"Some fanfictions write you using a big witch's cauldron."

"Ahahahahahahahahahah" laughed America.

Why was the 'Ahahahahahahahahahah' necessary?  It said America laughed, so it's kind of redundant.

 England blushing beet red said "Now see here! Just because I use black magic doesn't mean I have a witch's cauldron to cook in."

"That's not the worst of it. Some of your fans are really worried for you. Some say you cook your food like that on purpose because you have an eating disorder. Something about if it doesn't taste good you'll eat less."

"You don't have an eating disorder right Iggy?" asked America with a scared face

NO.

"No! I promise I eat three meal a day Al!"

England never calls America that. He calls him America.

"I believe you. I was just double checking. I haven't seen anything that points to an eating disorder America. Of course they say the same thing about you America… one can be told they are fat so many times before they snap. England are you coming with us to Canada's house?"

"Sure…"

After we finished eating we walk down the road when came to a small puddle. Judging from other fanfictions this was the ocean. I just jumped over the ocean lolz

It has shown in the anime that countries have to cross the ocean to go to one another.

It started to get colder as we walked. Canada's house was made of brick and maple wood surrounded by maple trees and snow, 

It isn't always winter in Canada, but seeing as this is supposedly happening in November, I guess this is fine.

Also, Maple trees? Maybe evergreen trees?

Maple trees aren't the only trees that grow in Canada.

it looked very homely. Rather cold in my summer dress and black leggings, I race to the front door and knock.

Um, why would you be wearing a summer dress in November? I'm American, like this character, and I know that it gets pretty cold here that time of year.

"Hullo?" asked Matt as he opened the door "Sam! Maple! You look so cold come in! come in!"

"t-thanks" I said shivering. Matt's house was cheery. There was a big brick fireplace that made the whole room feel like a great big hug. 

I actually may use this simile in my own writing. I really like it. Points to you, Author-Chan. 

I sat on one of his brown leather couches. Matt left into his kitchen. He came back with coffees for America and himself, and tea for England and me.

And this one, not so much.

The grammar in this story is going to kill me.

"Matt? We have something we need to tell you… it not bad!" I said the last part quickly because he started to panic.

*It's.

"Matt? I asked England if there was a spell to stop people from remembering someone. I thank England 

Thanks, England.

No, really. Thank you.

did it on accident. You look so much like America. 

Believe me, I can tell the difference fine.

Can't you imagine? England angry and hurt decided if he couldn't have America not one could! 

England is hundreds of years old. He isn't this petty.

Actually, that's sort of a lie, but I don't think he'd go as far as to try and cast a spell to make people forget who America is. 

Also, he's been using magic a long time, I think if he'd wanted to, he'd have casted the spell on the right person.

But then there's the time he summoned Russia, but that's beside the point.

So he found the spell decided to do it from behind and then wham! Cast it on the wrong brother…forgetting he had ever done it because of the spell."

"There is a counter. We can get everything ready for tomorrow…" said England looking like he could cry.

May I ask why?

"They will never remember you from before, it will be like me introducing a whole new person…"

Matt's face was totally blank. His body perfectly still. I move over to the other couch on Canada's right because America was on his left. I rap my arms around his neck and hug him.

Wrap*

Or else I just think of this:

Yoooo, She be puttin' 'er arms round his neck, 

Even tho dey done just met!

They already been out on a date,

Already callin' him her bae! 

He probably kinda scared of tha' strange girl, 

Who just up and invaded his worl'!

She kinda just appeared, nobody know why,

It probably have ta' do with dat England guy.

Holla!

Shut up it's a master piece.

 It takes almost a whole minute before he can hug me back.

Another tense change.

 I had watched England during this wait counting the seconds before he forgot us… 15 seconds on the dot.

??????

 I move on to America who was still watching us his hand on Canada's back. 

My brain is having trouble processing that.

America seemed to be able to fight off the curse for much longer. "I wonder if it's because his your brother that you remember him better."

"Maybe, dude."

Well, I don't forget my sister.

Also, it's canon that America doesn't forget Canada.

"I'm sure you will remember him after we lift this curse the off Matt. You can remember him now. Even though the curse affects you, you still remember him most of the time." This seemed to have helped America as he smiled

This makes me mildly uncomfortable.

Canada started to shake. "Matt? Are you ok?" a very hurried yes. I felt him rub his face in my shoulder. "It's ok to cry matt. You've been hurting for so long…

How has he been hurting? Canada has always seemed sort of indifferent about the whole 'who' thing. He just seems kind of annoyed with it now.

I can't imagine what it would be like for everyone but your brother and bullies to forget you."

WHAT.

WHEN DID ANY OF THIS HAPPEN?

Also, you just contradicted yourself.

You said that America remembers him most of the time, and now you say that everyone but your brother forgets you.

"What do we need to do? How is this going to happen?"

"England said I'm the hardest ingredient to find. The rest is-"

"Ingredient! Sam. you're not dying for this! I'll stay this way forever just stay!" I had never heard matt yell before. And his words were like little happy pills to my system.

Good call, Matt.

I give him a fan girl hug and squeal "I love you too Canada!"

Are you going to cast the spell or not?

These are important questions!

Apparently that's the end of the chapter.

Alrighty then. I'll see you guys in the next chapter.

Oh boy.

~Kat

[raccoonsinqueen]

Soulless Part 2

Quickly made this while I was at work *sweats*

“YOU’RE GOING ON A DATE?” Sans did a double-take, looking Papyrus up and down. “YOU? YOU ARE GOING ON A DATE??”

 “mm-hmm.” Papyrus shoved a handful of chips in his mouth. Had to get ready somehow, right?

 “PAPYRUS? MY GOOD-FOR-NOTHING, LAZIER-THAN-SLOTHKINGS, ASH-GUZZLING BROTHER IS GOING ON A DATE??”

 “yes, m’lord.”

 “I CAN’T BELIEVE IT.” Sans looked off in the distance as if that would give him answers. “SOMEONE ACTUALLY ISN’T COMPLETELY REPULSED BY YOUR... WHOLE SELF. WAIT... THIS IS CONSENSUAL, RIGHT?”

 “yep.”

 “IT’S A MIRACLE!” Sans exclaimed. “I WOULD CONGRATULATE YOU! IF YOU WEREN’T SO LAZY. IT TOOK YOU LONG ENOUGH TO FINALLY FIND SOMEONE, THOUGH I CAN SEE WHY IT TOOK SO LONG.”

 Papyrus shrugged. He never told Sans about the girls who he had rejected over the years, and it was for the best.

 “WELL, I’M JUST GLAD YOU’RE FINALLY GOING OUT AND DOING SOMETHING WITH YOUR GARBAGE DUMP OF A LIFE. SO CONGRATULATIONS FOR NOT BEING A TOTAL WASTE OF SPACE.”

 “Thank you, m’lord.” Papyrus genuinely smiled. His little bro was so cute.

 Something lit up in Sans eyes as he gained an idea, “OH, AND IF YOU NEED SOME TIPS ON BEING A DATING MASTER (WHICH WE BOTH KNOW YOU DO), I COULD GRACIOUSLY LEND YOU MY EXPERTISE? I HAPPEN TO BE VERY WELL VERSED IN THE DATING WORLD, UNLIKE YOU!”

 Sans had been on one date ever, and it was with a small child and their flower friend.

 “i would be honored, m’lord.”

 “OF COURSE YOU WOULD! MWAHAHA!” Sans beamed, making Papyrus smile again. “OKAY, SO FIRST THINGS FIRST IS YOUR GONNA NEED TO WEAR YOUR SPECIAL CLOTHES UNDER YOUR NORMAL CLOTHES, JUST IN CASE SHE-!”

 There was a knock on the door.

 “that’s probably her.”

 “I’LL GET IT!” Sans put his hands on his hips triumphantly before bounding to the door. “LET’S SEE WHAT GARBAGE IS WILLING TO SETTLE FOR YOU! MWAHAHA!”

 Sans opened it, but suddenly his expression changed. His eyelights grew just a bit, and his cheekbones warmed with magenta. Papyrus noted this very carefully.

 “Y-Y/N?” Sans faltered, before rearranging his position in a ‘casual’ way. “I, UH- FANCY SEEING YOU HERE!”

 “Sans,” The girl smiled, “It’s lovely to see you again.”

 “O-OF COURSE IT IS! IT’S ALWAYS LOVELY SEEING ME!” Sans huffed, only growing in color. “BUT WHY ARE YOU HERE! AR-ARE YOU HERE BECAUSE YOU COULDN’T STAND TO BE AWAY FROM ME??” Papyrus could see the hope in his eyes.

 The girl giggled, “Always. But that’s not the only reason. I, uhm, I actually came for... your brother.”

 “MY BROTHER?” Sans said, like the word was rotten. “WHY WOULD YOU NEED TO SEE MY BROTHER?”

 “Well-”

 “NEVERMIND, DON’T ANSWER THAT BECAUSE I DON’T REALLY CARE.” Sans waved off. “BESIDES, PAPY’S ABOUT TO GO ON HIS FIRST DATE, SO HE’S BUSY.”

 “F-first...?” There was that lovely ruby shade again.

 “YEAH, PFFT. I KNOW, IT’S HILARIOUS.” Sans said, elbowing her side. “UNLIKE ME! WHO IS A DATING MASTER!”

 “Is that so?” She giggled.

 “IT IS!” Master Sans excitedly, “I WAS JUST GIVING PAPY SOME POINTERS AND DATING TIPS BECAUSE OF HIS LACK OF EXPERIENCE!”

 “Do you think you could give me some tips?”

 “Y-YOU?” Sans almost jumped back, flustered. “W-W-WHY? DID YOU WANT TO-!?”

 “Because I’m going on that date with Papyrus.”

 “. . . ... PAPYRUS...” Papyrus watched as his brothers heart broke in front of him. The color left Sans and his eye lights shrunk in shock. Once the initial shock hit him, though, Sans buried himself in his bandana, his eyelights burning with hatred as he stared at the floor. The look alone made Papyrus’ mindset drop. “I SEE.”

 “What’s wro-?”

 “i’ve changed my mind.” Papyrus spoke up, grabbing the door to close it. “i don’t like you. leave.”

 But just as Papyrus was slamming the door in her face, Sans stopped the door with his boot. Papyrus was about to question him, but Sans turned to him with a darkened expression. “I DON’T WANT YOUR LEFTOVERS.”

 Papyrus face fell. He didn’t even have time to console his young brother because Sans shoved him outside and slammed the door. Papyrus tried to go back inside, but it was locked.

 Anger filled Papyrus as he turned to the girl who created this whole mess. Why couldn’t she just like Sans?! Sans was way cooler than he was! How stupid could you be to choose him over Sans?! And now Sans was probably broken hearted because of this idiotic, annoying-!

 The girl was looking to the floor with sorrow and wariness. Good. She had better been sorry.

 “tramp.” Papyrus growled, turning away swiftly.

 Despite his insults and as he walked away, she followed him.

 “stop following me.” He didn’t even look at her, but judging by the lack of footsteps behind him, she had stopped following him.

 Though, Papyrus could only get a few yards before Sans’ words echoed in his mind. Leftovers... Argh! Why did she have to make things so complicated for him!?

 Papyrus turned on his heel and briskly started walking back to the girl. She looked to him with question, but that expression soon turned to pain when he grabbed her wrist harshly and started walking again.

 “Ah! What are y-?”

 “no questions.” Papyrus fumed. Now he just had to figure out how to fix this mess...

 ---

 The tension was so thick, it could’ve been cut with a knife. They were at Muffet’s, in a booth in a dark corner of the diner. Papyrus was tapping his foot impatiently while the girl was sitting across from him, her hands folded in her lap and her eyes glued to the salt and pepper.

 Papyrus sighed. He had to figure out a way to get her to hate him. Which, granted recent events, should’ve happened already. But nooooooo, she had to be as stubborn as a mule, didn’t she? She should’ve hated him when he ripped her letter in half! And if not then, then when he insulted it! Was she a masochist?!

 Ugh. Papyrus could only think about Sans and his burning eyelights filled with hated. And not just his usual annoyed expression, but pure betrayal. It filled Papyrus with a broken feeling he didn’t want.

 “I think you should tell Sans that the date went poorly.”

 “what?” Papyrus was ripped from his own thoughts.

 She looked to the side, tentatively. “I don’t think Sans likes me very much... You saw his face when he found out I was going on a date with you. He must want somebody better for you...”

 Papyrus choked, “what?”

 “I didn’t really get the last thing he said, but I think you should say we ended up not clicking. I can vouch for you if he asks?”

 Wow. Okay, well problem solved then. Papyrus leaned back, “... you’re really dense.”

 The color returned to her cheeks. It was nice. “W-what? Did I get it wrong? Should we say it went well?”

 “no, you’re right. relatively.” Papyrus looked to the side. “so what? you wanna meet in secret?”

 “What? Oh no, that would be unfair to Sans.” She stood up. “Honestly, Papyrus, I didn’t expect to get this far with you.”

 “me neither.” Papyrus shrugged, before eyeing her. “then what’s the plan? I thought you were ‘head over heels with me’?”

 “W-well, yes.” She flushed. “But I’m perfectly content with you just knowing my feelings. The last thing I want is to get in between you and your brother, so I’m fine with just staying friends.”

 Something irked Papyrus. She’s content with him just knowing her feelings? Who does that? “why aren’t you fighting for me?”

 The girl blinked, her cheeks turning a rosy color. “Did you want me to?”

 ... That was an interesting question. Did he want her to? It would be more interesting to see her trying her hardest just for him. Though, it would be easier if she just fell for Sans. But which did he want more? Regardless, the answer to that wouldn’t change the answer he gave her, “not really.”

 She smiled, “Alright. I hope to see you around, Papyrus.”

 She turned around, and Papyrus couldn’t stop himself from saying, “stop.”

 She did.

 “sit down.”

 She did.

 “... you're going to leave me with the check before the food even comes out?” He rested his chin on his wrist. “you're very rude.”

 “O-oh my goodness!” She ducked her head to hide her ruby complexion. “Sorry, I didn’t mean-! I forgot-!”

 He couldn’t quite place his interest with this girl, maybe it was due to the fact that nobody really has put themselves before Papyrus before? Putting aside her own attraction just to keep his brother happy? Maybe that should’ve made it happy? It didn’t. But it did make him curious, and he didn’t know why he liked it.

 “how do you meet my brother?” He started.

 “Oh!” She smiled, “I work at the amusement park! That’s actually, uhm, where I met you too... But you must’ve forgotten. Which is totally understandable, to be honest.” She said, honestly.

 He didn’t forget, he just didn’t care.

 “I had noticed you two coming every once and awhile, but I hadn’t met Sans until he scraped his knee —er— knee-bone on a cart.”

 “what’d you do?” If Papyrus remembered correctly, she rushed to his side and pulled out her first aid kit.

 “I just put a bandaid on him, I kept them on me because I’m so clumsy with the machinery and cut my fingers often.” She smiled, lifting her fingers to show the colorful array of bandaids. “But Sans seemed to appreciate it, even if he was a little tsundere about it.”

 Papyrus snickered. Sans had always been cute like that.

 “That’s when you came over, once Sans had been bandaged.”

 “and what’d i do?” He had immediately ignored her and pretended like she didn’t exist as he checked to see if Sans was okay.

 “You went straight to your brother to see if he was alright. I-It was... very kind and admirable. Your worry over him... Even though he tried to brush you off as an annoyance, I could tell he was happy you were there.” She brushed a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, “It was... sweet...”

 “hmm.” All these compliments were foreign to Papyrus.

 “A-anyway, after that Sans had visited the amusement park more often. This time, without you. Which was a l-little disappointing... But I really enjoyed Sans’ visits!” She avoided Papyrus’ striking eyelights, “I just... enjoyed it when you were there, too.”

 “really?” Papyrus smirked. He liked that.

 She nodded.

 “cute.”

 It was as if her entire face exploded a steaming red. “C-cute?!”

 “don’t die on me, now.”

 “I-I wasn’t! I was j-just, uhm, not expecting...” She bashfully covered part of her face with her hands.

 Papyrus liked the effect he had on her. He liked how much control he had. He liked that she wanted his approval more than anything, and would ignore his insults and temper if it meant being near him. He liked that she wanted him more than Sans-!!

 Whoa, when did that thought enter his head? Papyrus had always put Sans before himself, he should be wanting her to be with Sans! ... But he didn’t? Maybe he could just have this one thing... And of course it wouldn’t last forever, and she’ll run crying to Sans. So it’d be a win win. Papyrus gets this new play thing, and Sans will get the girl in the end. So technically, Papyrus was doing him a favor. ...Right? Right! ...

 “what shifts do you work at the amusement park?”

 “I-...Uh, what?”

 “i want to visit you.”

 The thumping of her heart beat was loud enough that Papyrus could hear it, echoing in the empty corridor where Papyrus’ soul should’ve been. Her ruby blush flushed her face once again, but her expression was nothing but shock.

 “R-Really?”

 Papyrus smirked. He had her like a fish on a hook.

[evilsnowswan]

Rumbelle # 11 from that prompt list!

Prompt #11 “I can’t believe you shot me!” (Prompt List)

Thank you! :) Okay, so I cheated and made this prompt into another piece for an older verse. It’s what came to me first.

Summary: It’s Halloween and Belle’s shift as Volunteer at Sacred Heart Hospital. An unexpected visitor joins the festivities.

Hero

(Part 2 of Sacred Heart)

[AO3]

“I can’t believe you shot me!” She laughed, a hand on her hip, and squatted down to look at the freckle-faced boy who grinned from ear to ear. “Who shoots a fairy?”

The boy pushed his mask up on his ginger hair. “I didn’t shoot for real,” he said as though it was obvious. “Fairies are invincible anyway.” He rubbed his nose. “I wouldn’t shoot you for real, Miss Belle! Heroes don’t shoot people.”

“I’m glad to hear that, August!” She ruffled his hair. “So, do I get to be a superhero too?”

Gold saw the boy hesitate, his brows furrowing together as he pondered her question with a seriousness that looked wrong on a child’s face. He couldn’t have been more than six or maybe seven years old, but his expression was that of an old man; an old man who had seen things; an old man who had lived.

Miss French, however, didn’t flinch away from it, and Gold knew why. She had been a volunteer at Sacred Heart for years and was used to it; used to the way the hospital changed people. This little lad - August, with his fiery hair and solemn face was no exception.

“I don’t know. I suppose…” August said slowly, not looking convinced.

Belle’s patient smile didn’t waver. It was the same smile he’d seen on nurses, but her’s wasn’t yet frozen in place. It was alive still, warm and breathing, and stretching comfortably to touch her eyes.

“If I’m invincible,” she said. “I make a good sidekick?” She bobbed on her toes excitedly, flapped her wings. He’d never seen anything more ridiculously beautiful. “I know I’m big and sparkly,” she pouted, “but what if you need a diversion?”

August cocked his head. “A- what?”

“A diversion. Make everyone look at me, so they don’t see you coming to catch them?”

“Yeah!” The boy clapped his hands and leaned forward, pulling his mask back over his eyes. “Okay. Let’s go! You fly behind me!”

“How exciting!” Belle leapt to her feet and twirled on the spot, glitter particles fluttering from her wings and skirt.

“Hurry! We need to help the others!”

She nodded, and stepped behind the wheelchair. “Ready, Dark Knight?”

“I am vengeance, I am the night, I am Batman!”

Gold tore his gaze away and turned to leave, quickening his pace as he strode down the long corridor.

He had wanted to go as he had come- unseen, invisible - slip in and out of the front door without anyone noticing, but that plan went out the window the moment Miss French and her young charge came hurtling out of the room and started down in the same direction.

Leaving a bright hospital room, the corridor ahead would appear pitch-dark, lit only by the rows of jack-o-lanterns at their feet - aglow and flickering in the biting air, sending out their artificial orange light through their mouths and eyes. Even if he ducked under the fake cobwebs, however, or went and pressed himself flat against the wall just beneath a string of fairy lights and fake rubber bats and spiders to let them pass, he’d still stick out like a sore thumb.

Being spotted was inevitable reality, and being run down by a boy in a wheelchair wearing a Batman costume became a far greater concern and a more pressing problem than he had anticipated.

Gold turned around, watched the pair approach fast, and contemplated making an ungraceful run for it. The double doors at the other end, leading to the stairwell and connecting the Pediatric Wing to the family rooms, weren’t that far.

Wrapped in orange lights that looked like miniature pumpkins, and sporting a hand-painted sign that read: “Go back while there's still time!” in bold red lettering, they beckoned, dared him to come closer, but suddenly the idea seemed much less appealing than it had half a second ago.

He winced.

Just then the automatic doors swung open.

From the doorway a tall witch in black and emerald robes stood shrieking and casting nonsense spells in all directions as she waved her wand up and down. Not only were her robes green, but her face was painted that way too, the white of her teeth and her rich red hair standing out banshee-like against the backdrop of her bilious makeup.

Stepping on what looked like severed body parts, a hand and a foot, or maybe an arm, Gold all but jumped out of the way.

The air filled with shrieks and the sounds of chains and shrill laughter, and then, from the open doors came another stooped figure that dragged one leg. It was a smaller witch, he saw, the taller one in miniature. She dragged something behind her - a corpse, a skeleton, a gunny sack filled to the brim with everything and anything noisy and spooky, or perhaps it was just candy.

From where he stood, Gold could see most doors to the family rooms in the opposite corridor were open, and from inside them came horror movie music.

"Come if you dare!" the little witch said in a booming voice that suggested she ate smoked children for every meal - breakfast, lunch, snack, and supper - and about twenty a day. A growing witch needed her protein.

The tall witch cackled loudly, and all around him, kids and caregivers, nurses and doctors poked their heads out into the eerie gloom to see better. The witch didn’t speak or turn her head. Instead, she tapped the large bowl in her arms with long fingernails. It was a heaped bowl of the finest candy.

Gold smiled.

“Do any of you dare enter?”

As a stampede of children came running his way, his smile vanished as fast as it had appeared. Over and around hospital gowns, metal braces and limbs in plaster, and with cut-out holes for various hoses and tubes attached to beeping machines on wheels, the little tykes were in full costume - and had already eaten way too much sweet pumpkin pie.

Charged up with sugar and anticipation, the commotion washed over him like a roaring wave, leaving him drenched.

When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in the very company he had so fruitlessly attempted to dodge.

“Friend or foe?”

The grappling hook gun poked his belly before a small fairy came to the rescue.

“Friend,” she said, putting a gentle hand on the toy. “This is Mr Gold, August. I know him.”

Gold gulped as he watched her hand swat the toy away, her fingertips almost brushing his damp velvet shirt.

“One of us?” August withdrew his weapon, but watched him closely as he exhaled.

“One of us,” Belle affirmed.

“You don’t look like a superhero.” The boy was eyeing his cane and lack of Halloween spirit, manifesting itself in one of his everyday suits and black leather shoes.

He opened his mouth to speak, but Miss French beat him to it. “Maybe that’s part of the plan?”

“A… a diversion!” August squealed, satisfied with himself.

“Disguise,” Belle corrected. “Mr Gold,” she lowered her voice conspiratorially, so only the three of them would hear. “Are you, by any chance, an undercover agent sent to come to our aid? Secret Service? FBI, MI6? Blink twice if you can’t say, but your answer is ‘yes’.”

A sharp intake of breath and a pair of big eyes riveted on his face for his reaction made Gold’s smile wide enough to reveal his gold tooth. Contrary to what people in town said about him behind his back, he was no stranger to the realm of wishful thinking and make-believe. Once upon a time he had been a well-known visitor, a frequent flyer. Maybe a little bit of fresh fairy dust was all he needed, strong enough to revive the memories. His eyes darted to Miss Belle’s and back to the superhero-in-training who was on the edge of his seat and straining not to blink or breathe - in case he missed anything important.

He blinked twice.

“Whoa…” August dropped his weapon into his lap and clapped his hands over his mouth. The young hero turned to his giddy fairy companion, unchecked delight on the part of his face that remained visible. “Miss Belle!” He exclaimed, offering a small hand, and the two of them linked pinky fingers. “We can’t tell anyone! Not ever! You have to swear.”

Belle mimed zipping her lips and locking them with an invisible key. She shook her head, and her ponytail and wings bobbed merrily.

“Your secret is safe with us, Agent Gold.” Gold took the small hand that was offered to him, and they shook like brave men. “Will you help us defeat the Wicked Witch?”

Belle leaned closer and whispered in his ear, her hand on his shoulder sending warm shivers down his spine. “It’s a game,” she said. “But you don’t have to-”

“Gladly, young friend.” Gold nodded, exchanging another quick look with his favorite fairy, who withdrew her hand and brought it to her lips as the sun rose on her face. Her eyes were bright and her cheeks tinted lovely shades of pink. He crouched down as low as his bad ankle would allow, both hands gripping his cane for support.

“I hear candy is involved? How do we proceed?”

August beamed at him, and the happy face of a different young knight pushed to the forefront of his mind. Gold felt his heart contract on the next beat. He blinked the sting away.

[i-w-p-chan]

Miss-err, Mr. and Mr. Croft, Part 8/Anniversary, Part 2

Important Author Note: Unless it is specified who says which part, the dialogue typically alternates between Tsuna and Hayato.

WARNINGS: OOC, Language (there is a lot of cursing), Violence, Indiscriminate Killing (Tomb Raider Typical Killing- applies to humans, animals, and mythical creatures), Dialogue Heavy, Set In The Tomb Raider Games 'Verses, So May Not Make A Whole Lot Of Sense If You Don't Know TR (unless you, like me, don't mind that), Uses Dialogue From The Game, Collection of Snippets/Drabbles/Scenes Featuring Tsuna's And Hayato's Adventures In The TR Games, Beware Of Unexpected Mood Whiplashes, Ship Teasing, Slight BoyxBoy (why do I even warn about this anymore?), Platonic 5927 (To The EXTREEEEEEEME!), Snark, Badass Tsuna And Hayato, Badasses In Dresses, Perverted Swords, Cute Hammers, And As Always: Shameless Self-Indulgence/Ridiculousness.

Disclaimer: Don't own TR or KHR.  

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"C'mon Tsuna." Hayato shook Tsuna's shoulder; Tsuna shoved him away and curled up deeper into his Corner of Woe, his lions curling up next to him, all with the same sad expression.

Off to the side was the only way forward: a deep tunnel going down- full of water. As much as the lions were surprisingly amazing acrobats, they weren't divers.

.

Tsuna stomped on the rat with extreme prejudice and used an unnecessary amount of bullets to shoot down the bats, all the while wearing a scowl worthy of Hayato as he was back in his teen years.

Usually, Hayato would give a snarky comment about unnecessary violence, but Tsuna wasn't in the mood for playful banter. Tsuna rarely got into such a mood. Even that time when Hayato told him about what Kurtis did in the Louvre didn't rile him up so much.

Hayato sighed; all he had to do was wait and hope Tsuna finished venting his frustration soon.

.

(Getting Tsuna hyped up by way of his 'babies' was a double edged sword, just as easily and quickly it could raise Tsuna to the heights of exuberance and happiness, it could drag him to the pits of despair and wrath.)

.

When the door opened, it allowed two gorillas and two lions into the arena. Hayato winced, was it a good idea to let Tsuna come into contact with lions again so soon?

.

Tsuna patted the lions on their heads as he smiled at them, "You did a good job. Now, go. Do whatever you want."

'Whatever you want' apparently translated into 'following Tsuna around'.

Tsuna sighed, "I'm afraid you can't always follow me around all the time."

"Hayato."

Hayato jumped, "Yeah?"

"You don't have to walk on eggshells around me."

"…" Hayato walked up to Tsuna and grabbed him, ruffling his hair. And then Hayato walked off, "Let's go."

"Hey! Hayato!"

.

"Spears?"

"Better than the blood-stained spikes of last time."

.

"The fire trap last time wasn't this terrifying."

"Eh. Let's go."

.

"I prefer Midas' Palace this time around."

"Yeah. It's much smaller. Not to mention easier to navigate."

"God, I can't even remember how many times we got lost last time around."

"Or how long we spent lost. It's a wonder we caught up with Pierre."

"He may have been just as lost."

"Of that, I am absolutely convinced."

.

"You know, last time we confronted Pierre at least five times all before the Tomb of Tihocan, yet we have yet to glimpse him."

"Maybe he was sufficiently scared away by your babies?"

.

"Ah, it's simpler here as well. Remember all the jumping and climbing and swimming that we had to do last time?"

"UGH."

"Not to mention there are less gorillas as well."

"UGH."

.

Tsuna and Hayato huddled close to the temple's door, their guns raised and trained on the centaur statue to the right of the temple.

Fifteen minutes later, they reluctantly lowered their guns, "It's… not going to come to life and attack us?"

.

"Pierre is not here?"

"God, where is that guy?! I thought I'd get to shoot at him at least twice! But I haven't seen any trace of him!"

.

"Oh, here he is. Sneaking up from behind us."

.

They stared at the two centaurs which apparently came to life after Pierre left with the Scion piece.

Pierre stared at the centaurs that bore down on him.

"Let him die. I honestly preferred the Pierre of last time."

"Yeah. At least that guy did his job."

Pierre threw the Scion towards Tsuna and Hayato; the centaurs tracked its movement through the air. Hayato caught it.

"Bonne chance~" Pierre attempted to back away, but the centaurs whipped their heads back to stare at him.

The centaurs literally trampled him with their hooves.

After they were done with him, they turned back towards Tsuna and Hayato.

.

"What's that glow?! They didn't emit it the last time around!"

"I don't know! But I get the feeling that we should- stand down!"

.

Tsuna kicked up the shield just in time to catch light and reflect it back at one of centaurs.

"It fucking petrified it! Fuck!"

.

"There! Done!"

Hayato looked at a piece of petrified centaur and made a face.

"But damn, what a way to go." Tsuna made a face over Pierre's corpse, "If I never see the corpse of someone trampled again, it would be too soon."

.

"Off to Egypt, then."

"AGAIN."

.

"Hello, Egypt. It's been ages."

"How many years?"

"Around fifteen."

"I still think it's too soon."

"C'mon, Hayato. It's Egypt, a classic."

.

"I don't remember there being such weight sensitive parts that would drop down or retract when someone is on it."

"We'll have to be quick then."

.

"Boy am I glad that those mummified creatures don't explode."

.

"Those traps weren't there the last time around."

"Well, crushing boulders and rotating blades. C'mon, Tsuna. It's a classic."

"Stop throwing my words back at me."

"Nuh-uh."

.

The two looked at the four sets of rotating blades. Each two sets rotated in the same direction which made two sets rotate towards the other end of the hallway while the other two made their way towards Tsuna's and Hayato's direction. Two sets were on a lower level than the other two.

"How are we going to go past this?" Tsuna observed the blades, thinking of ways to bypass them.

"How about I give you a boost to jump across. Then I'll wait until there is a gap between the blades, jump over the ones at the bottom and then duck under the oncoming ones at the top."

"O-kay?"

Hayato positioned himself in front of the blades as Tsuna ran towards him, and pushed Tsuna forward into a leap across.

"Alright. Here I come."

Tsuna stared in awe as Hayato jumped over the blades at the bottom, landing in a roll, and springing into a forward flip to cover the rest of the distance.

Hayato landed safely next to Tsuna.

"Wow…" Tsuna breathed out.

Hayato puffed out his chest in pride.

.

"This place is new."

"Yeah. Should we jump down?"

"Yes."

With that, the two dived into the pool down below.

.

"No Larson here, huh?" Tsuna wondered as he holstered his guns after the last mutated creature dropped to the ground.

.

Tsuna hesitated in combining the Scion pieces.

"Tsuna?" Hayato looked at him, worried.

"I… just got a strange feeling from the Scion. It reminds me of the chamber where Amelia disappeared."

Hayato put his hands on the Scion, "Should we continue?"

"Y-yeah. I think so? It doesn't feel hostile or threatening."

"If you say so." Hayato looked skeptical.

The moment the three pieces of the Scion were combined, Tsuna's flames exploded alongside with the blinding light being emitted from the Scion.

"Tsuna!"

.

When the vision began, Tsuna slumped over Hayato.

"Tsuna!"

Hayato gave Tsuna a once-over, noticing his unfocused eyes. Hayato framed Tsuna's face with his hands and reached inside of Tsuna's core with his own flames, blue and yellow; he felt around, engulfing Tsuna's core with the flames, searching for any disarray, and smoothing it over. Through his search, he passed over his own bond with Tsuna, thick and strong; Kurtis' bond, old and frayed and weak but still there; and finally a bond that wasn't there before.

Wha-?!

Light flashed and the vision slipped away, leaving Hayato clutching a still groggy Tsuna.

Natla plucked the Scion from Tsuna's fingers, right as Hayato refocused on his surroundings. He and Tsuna were grabbed by the same dark-skinned thug from last time.

Stupid, stupid Hayato! He cursed himself, how could you forget about Natla's ambush?!

He didn't bother to check to know that he had been stripped of his guns, along with Tsuna.

"You were the queen of Atlantis," Hayato spoke with a carefully measured tone, he already knew this, but it was better to keep her talking, distract her and her men. Hayato wasn't sure he could pull off the same dive down the cliff to waters below with Tsuna in that state.

"Once."

"And the Scion holds its history."

"It holds far more than that. All the knowledge of the ancients, things none of you could even comprehend, Mr. Croft- just look at the other Mr. Croft."

Hayato slowly breathed out, was the bond between Tsuna and the Scion?! Was it even possible to create a bond with an artifact?

"What is the Seventh Age?"

A way out, a way out! Where?!

"How far are you willing to go to find out, Mr. Croft?"

There was only one way, by using his flames, but that would be showing his abilities in front of Natla. Was it worth it?

"Not far enough I'm afraid. Kill them quickly! We have work to do." Natla walked away from them towards the car.

The youngest of the men hired by Natla aimed his gun at Tsuna and Hayato, the one holding onto them pulled out a knife.

Hayato clutched Tsuna closely, Tsuna tiredly clutched back. It was wholly worth it- and more.

Hayato's flames pulsed around, green and electric, forming a shield around him and Tsuna, and then his red flames pushed out of it, creating an extra layer, a very harmful extra layer.

"Kuh!"

Hayato took advantage of the distraction the flames provided and ran towards the edge with Tsuna doing his best to keep up, the green and red flame shield still at around the two of them.

The extra warmth flowing to Hayato from Tsuna's skin was reassuring; they could jump off the cliff and Tsuna's flames would slow their descent. As much as Tsuna appeared to be physically exhausted, his flames weren't.

.

"C'mon, Tsuna, you think we can give chase?"

"Y-yeah." Tsuna greedily gulped in air, "We're not letting Natla and her men get away. Besides, we should get them back."

"'Get them back'?"

"Them, the Scion."

"An artifact that is basically a library of ancient knowledge beyond human comprehension uses they/them pronouns. Sure, why not?"

.

After Hayato made sure that Natla and her group left the yacht, he helped Tsuna to climb up to the deck.

"You feeling better now?"

"Yeah." Tsuna breathed deeply, "Much better."

"What happened back there?"

"I accidentally created a bond with the Scion. They're such a vast library of knowledge, nearly melted my brain with a basic information dump."

The two sat in silence for a few minutes before Tsuna stretched and stood up, "C'mon, we don't want them to get too far ahead of us."

Hayato gave Tsuna a searching look and carefully nodded.

"But if you faint again…"

Tsuna pouted, "I didn't faint!"

Hayato smiled, "Sure, keep telling yourself that."

"Hmph!"

.

"Sorry, darlin'. This is the end of the line."

Tsuna's eyebrow twitched, he was not in the mood for this.

Next to him, Hayato sighed, "Look, I'm feeling a bit generous so I'll warn you: stand out of the way." He paused momentarily, then added, "And give us that fuse while you're at it."

"No can do."

Tsuna's eyes narrowed and glowed orange; he raised his gun, "I don't think you'd like to know how many times I shot you in my entire life."

There was a brief moment of silence, and something shifted.

"Wha…" Larson faltered, "You are not…"

"Lara Croft?" Hayato viciously smiled, "No, we aren't."

"I was wondering when one of you would question why Natla keeps referring to us as 'Mr. and Mr. Croft'."

"Now," Hayato interjected, "Like I said before, just hand us the fuse and move aside. You're just unfortunately caught up in this. Would Tsuna shoot you? He would. Will he? Maybe. The alternative is death by fire, also at Tsuna's hands. Which do you prefer?"

At Larson's silence, Hayato continued, "This has nothing to do with you anymore. It's personal business for us." Ancient knowledge meant possible lead on the chamber where Amelia disappeared, which meant a lead on what happened to her.

"Then, what's it got to do with you? The Scion belongs to Natla-"

"No, they don't." Tsuna interrupted, "They belong with me, with us."

Hayato whistled lowly, "Now, Larson, you pissed Tsuna off. Would you like to die, or would you like to horribly die?"

.

"The Pyramid is better this time around."

"Certainly. The one before was a horrible haze of white and red. Eugh."

.

"You know, it's slightly amusing to see two doppelgangers this time around instead of one like last time."

.

"There they are." Tsuna let out a self-satisfied smile at the sight of the Scion. The Scion sparked and glowed while Tsuna's eyes glowed orange.

"You've reached the top, Mr. and Mr. Croft. There is no way to go but down."

"Right back at you." Hayato smiled blandly at Natla.

.

"It takes three to rule. Tihocan and Qualopec were too weak to destroy what stands in the way of the Seventh Age. But you two have the strength to claim this seat beside me." She trailed her long nailed-fingers on the back of the throne sitting in front of the Scion, "Immortality has its price; what are a few lives to sacrifice for your dreams?"

Tsuna scoffed, "We have no interest whatsoever with whatever it is you're preaching. Our dreams? You do not know what it is that we seek." Tsuna raised his hand, flames started to wreath it; at the same time, the Scion started to glow and Hayato positioned himself right behind Tsuna, his arm wrapping around Tsuna's waist, "Similarly, you do not even know who we are, what we can do, do you?"

The Scion shook and launched forward towards Tsuna's hand. Natla screamed in rage and launched herself after the Scion, and Hayato jumped back off the edge with Tsuna in his arms.

Natla connected with them and attempted to wrestle the Scion from Tsuna's grasp. Tsuna's flames flared and burned Natla, she momentarily let go as she let out a cry of pain; the flames burning her torso then turned into ice, weighing her down and causing her to go all the way down to the lava pit at the bottom, all the while shrieking in pain, rage and disbelief.

In the meantime, Hayato had launched his grapple hook and caught it on the edge of the platform underneath. The two of them dangled in the air for a moment before they started their climb towards the edge of the platform.

Once they made their way up, they looked at the ceiling where a pulsing meat sack was.

Tsuna put the Scion in his backpack and took out his guns in tandem with Hayato. Just in time for the sack to burst, and a huge mutated creature to drop down from it.

Tsuna looked contemplative, "I think that I prefer this one's appearance."

"Yeah. It looks less like a crawling ribcage."

"Let's just hope this one doesn't take as long as the last one."

"Don't remind me."

.

"Look! This one rushes forward!"

"We can make it go over the edge!"

.

"YEAH!"

.

"Thousands of years I've waited for this moment!" Natla snarled at Tsuna and Hayato, who stared at her new appearance in shock; her skin looked as if it was made of scales, reddish brown and with protrusions at her shoulders, elbows, hips and shins; pale lines spread across her skin which was marred with a distinct burn mark (caused by Tsuna's flames) that spread from her stomach towards her right cheek and covering her right breast, shoulder and side of the neck on its way; her head was the same as her skin, with horns across her forehead and going up; the top of her head was literally flaming; even her wings were different.

Her glowing eyes glared, "Do you realize what you've done?!"

"Do you think we care?" Hayato shrugged, his guns were out and pointed at Natla, "We have the Scion in our possession, they're ours now. We don't care for much else."

"We could kill you, right here, right now." Tsuna growled as his flames burst forth, "You attempted to take and use what's mine; I will not stand by idly and let you go without payback."

"Besides, "Hayato added, "None of us here has the higher moral ground. We're all fighting for selfish reasons."

Natla snarled and launched at Tsuna.

.

The two climbed into the yacht still outside the island as the island rumbled and shook.

Tsuna reached into his backpack and took out the Scion; he and Hayato stared at them. Then the two looked at each other and smiled. This had so much potential.

.

End chapter 8

[365daysofsasuhina]

[ 365 Days of SasuHina || Day Forty-Nine: Play a Game ] [ Uchiha Sasuke, Uchiha Mikoto, Uzumaki Kushina, Uzumaki Naruto, Hyūga Hinata, Hyūga Hiashi ] [ SasuHina ] [ Verse: Best Years of Your Life ] [ AO3 Link ]

If there’s one thing Sasuke dreads, it’s play dates: his mother setting him up with other kids his age to try and encourage him to run around and...well, play. As sweet of a kid as he is, he’s still shy in some regards...and it doesn’t help that a loudmouth blond from school has declared himself his best friend. He’s just...a complete opposite from the quiet, reserved boy.

He likes to play with his brother, sure - he’s comfortable with Itachi. They’ve known each other always. But Sasuke’s first few weeks of school have been a little...awkward. All of the other kids are strangers, and so many of them are too eager to wriggle themselves into his business.

So imagine his despair when his mother announces he’s been invited to a birthday party for none other than the loudmouth: Naruto, as he’s apparently called. Mikoto and Kushina were friends in high school, but until the former moved back into town with her sons, they’ve not had a chance to introduce their offspring.

Kushina, like her son, is also...uncensored in her volume. Every time she and Naruto come over, it’s a double whammy of noise and ruckus.

And no matter how hard he tries, Sasuke can’t avoid the other boy. It’s like he has a radar set to his frequency!

“Mom, do I have to go…?” he begs as they get into the car.

“Of course you do! Naruto’s your friend, isn’t he?”

Sasuke’s almost tempted to say no, just to avoid this...but something tells him his mother will see right through it. Or worse, scold him for being ‘mean’. “...I guess.”

“I’m sure you’ll have lots of fun! A whole bunch of your classmates have been invited, too - it’ll be a good way to get to know everyone better!”

He just groans as she straps him into his booster seat.

This is going to be the worst day ever.

It’s a sunny October Saturday, and by the time they pull up to the proper yard, several other cars are parked around the block, kids yelling and shrieking. Sasuke stares out his window sullenly, awaiting to be released from the belt of his seat before leaving the vehicle behind.

Kushina waves and jogs to greet them, opening the gate and...releasing a dog that leaps eagerly at them. “Oi! Kurama! No! Down boy!”

The Shiba Inu ignores orders, bouncing and licking at Sasuke’s face and coating it with slobber. “Eugh…!”

Grabbing the canine’s collar, the Uzumaki smiles sheepishly. “Sorry! Last I looked he was over with Naruto! C’mon, we’ll wash you off in the house, Sasuke.”

By then, the other kids haven taken notice, all running over to greet them. “Sasuke!” Naruto crows in greeting, clearly ecstatic.

“Everyone go back to the games - we’ll be right back! Kurama tried giving Sasuke a bath,” his mother replies, waving them away.

They step in and close the door, mostly adults in the house as the kids take over the yard. “Kurama claim another victim?” a blond man asks, grinning.

“Yeah, yeah - sorry again about that, Inoichi - he’s just so excited with all the little ones around…!” Kushina leads Sasuke to a bathroom, and it takes him a moment to realize his mother stayed behind with the other parents. But before he can protest, the redhead washes his face with a cloth. “Theeere we go! No more doggy spit! Now, you can scamper back out with the other kids, and -”

A knock at the door pauses her, opening it to reveal another child. “Oh! Hinata honey, how are you feeling?”

Pale eyes glance between her and Sasuke, clearly a bit unnerved. He vaguely recognizes her from class. “Um...a-a little better…”

“Well, do you want to head back outside yet?”

“I...was wondering if I could...have some water…?”

“Oh sure, sure! C’mon, honey -” Leading the way out, Kushina makes her way back to the kitchen, and Sasuke - having little choice - also follows. “You sure you don’t want something else? I’ve got some ginger ale - that’s good for upset tummies.”

“I-I don’t know if Dad would -”

“Oh, your dad’s not even here, he’ll never know,” Kushina cuts in, waving a hand. “If he wants you to feel better, he’ll let you have it. If he’s gonna get mad any anybody, he can get mad at me when he comes back to pick you up!” She hands the girl an opened soda can, and then looks to Sasuke. “What about you, sweetie?”

“Uh…” Glancing for his mother, Sasuke shrugs...and then receives his own can.

“I need to check on the games outside - you two come back out whenever you feel like it, okay?” And just like that, she disappears.

The pair watch her go before glancing to each other. “Uh...hi,” Sasuke greets, not wanting to be rude.

“Hi…”

“...does your tummy not feel good?”

“N...no…” The girl’s face flushes pink, clearly embarrassed. “I...I-I get nervous about s-stuff like...like this. So…”

“That’s okay - I know my mom says this stuff’s good for it, too.” And it’s one of the few sodas Sasuke actually likes: it’s a little bit bitter, not just loaded with sweet flavors like most. He carefully sips his own, trying to encourage her.

She’s quiet, unlike most of their class. If they’re going to just stay in here with the adults, well...he personally doesn’t have a problem with that. She’s already better company than just about anyone he’d find out there.

Looking to the soda nervously, Hinata then glances around before taking a small sip.

“Does your dad not like soda?”

“No...he says it’s b-bad for you.”

“Well...it kinda is. But it’s okay to have sometimes.” Or, so says his mother. “Kinda like ice cream. You can’t have it all the time, or it’d make you sick.”

Hinata hums in agreement, taking another small swig. Apparently she likes it. “Did the dog lick you?”

“Yeah…”

“It got Ino, too. She screamed all the way to the bathroom!”

Rather than laugh, Sasuke just furrows his brow. “...really?” Yeah, it was gross, but not that gross…

“Mhm. Sakura thought it was funny...but then the dog knocked her down.”

“That’s what she gets for laughing. Aren’t they s’posed to be friends?”

“I guess so…” Sip. “...do friends do that?”

“I dunno. I don’t really...have any. Except Naruto, I...guess.”

“Me neither.”

After a pause, Sasuke just asks, “You wanna be my friend?”

That makes her jolt a bit, almost spilling her drink. “M-me…?”

“Yeah, you seem nice.”

“Y...you, too. Um…o-okay…!”

It’s then Kushina calls from the door. “Okay guys, we’re starting up the games! Can you come outside?”

The little pair glance to each other...and then do as asked. “You feel okay now?”

“Um...a l-little better. I might sit out a bit, and keep my soda…”

“Okay.”

Kushina really went all out. Various stations are each a different kind of game: darts, bobbing for apples, ring toss, shooting a basketball into a hoop...and each get you a ticket when you win. Get enough tickets, and you can trade them for a goodie bag.

Hinata takes a seat on the back porch to watch, and Sasuke hesitantly looks to the fray. Kids are spread all over the yard, trying the different games and racking up tickets.

Well...no one said there was gonna be competition...and secretly? Sasuke loves to compete. He sets his soda next to Hinata, asking her to watch it for him, before heading to the ring toss.

To his chagrin, Ino and Sakura quickly show up to watch.

Doing his best to ignore them, Sasuke concentrates before throwing. With five rings, you have to get ten points, different targets worth different points. Aiming for the five, he nails the first throw...misses...and then nails the second!

“Keep goin’, kiddo,” the man watching the station grins, hair tied up atop his head. “If you get two more, I’ll give you two tickets: how about that?”

The offer gives Sasuke an idea, so he nods...and does just that.

“Nice throwing!” He offers the tickets, Sasuke snatching them and moving to the next game. And so it goes, playing each until he gets two tickets. Only once he has two sets does he approach the prize table where Kushina waits.

“Well well, look at you!” she teases. “You’ve sure got a lot!”

“Can I have two bags, please?”

“Well, everyone’s supposed to get one…”

His head shakes. “I want one for her, please.” He points to Hinata, still sitting on the back step and sipping her soda.

Following his gesture, she blinks...and then grins. “Ahhh, I see. That’s awfully nice of you, Sasuke - here.” Accepting his tickets, she hands over both bags. “Go on and give it to her!”

Sasuke nods curtly, dashing across the yard with them tucked to his chest before sitting beside her. “Here.”

“Eh?”

“I got you a bag.”

Big eyes go even bigger. “You...you did…?”

“Just cuz you’re sick doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get one. I got two sets of tickets - one for you and one for me.”

Staring at the offering, Hinata almost looks like she’s going to cry. Sasuke hates when girls cry…!

“T...thank you, Sasuke…”

“Well...you’re my friend now, so...yeah.” He hands it over, glancing aside with pursed lips. “Just...please don’t cry, okay?”

“O-okay…” Gingerly accepting, Hinata digs into the goodies, a small smile on her face.

Glancing back over, Sasuke can’t help doing the same.

The games keep on until later, when Kushina calls everyone over for dinner, cake, and then presents. Sasuke watches as Naruto tears into all the bags and boxes, including his own that hides a toy robot figure.

“Whoaaaa, cool! Thanks, Sasuke!”

By then, the party begins to wind down. Parents and kids start filtering out. But Hinata’s dad hadn’t stayed for the party...and seems to be late coming back.

“Come on, Sasuke - it’s getting late.”

Glancing between her and his mother, Sasuke jogs to the latter and tugs her sleeve. “Mom, Hinata’s dad isn’t here yet. Can we stay?”

“Oh, I’m sure Kushina will make sure she’s okay.”

“...but -?”

It’s then a car pulls up, a stern looking man emerging and scanning the yard. It’s only once he sees Hinata that he calls to her. “Come on, it’s time to go home.”

Deflating a bit, Hinata ducks her head, goodie bag tucked into her sweatshirt pocket.

“Wait!”

Pausing, she stumbles back a bit as Sasuke launches forward and gives her a hug. “S-Sasuke?!”

“...see you at school,” he mumbles, hanging on a moment longer before letting her go.

She blinks...and then gives a small smile. “O-okay. Bye…”

“Bye.”

Her father waits impatiently at the car, Hinata crawling into a back seat before they take their leave.

Sasuke watches before looking to his mother, seeing her frown as she does the same. “...Mom…?”

“...come on Sasuke - it’s time we go home.”

As she buckles him in, he asks, “...do you know Hinata’s dad?”

“Yes, he and I were in school together, like with Kushina, and lots of other parents here today.”

“Is he...nice?”

Pausing, Mikoto sighs. “...he’s a very...particular man.”

“Par...ticular?”

“...I’ll tell you another time. But,” she adds, smiling. “I’m very glad you said goodbye to Hinata. Did you make a friend today playing games?”

“...yeah. I guess I did.”

     Sorry this one's late! I, like Hinata, had a bit of a tummy ache today that slowed me down...but! I got it done!      More smols! Which honestly? I need to write more of - lil innocent kiddie interactions are so much fun to write. As much as I love the actual romance of this ship when they're adults, I love the idea of them meeting and getting along as children, no matter the verse! And a wee shout out to @berriesndbooks since they wanted some more pieces like this x3      Anywhooo, that's all for tonight! Thanks for stopping by to read~