#'remember when you were fourteen and used to call me senpai'

[tears-of-xion]

I loved the lukabrina art (I've seen it called that ship name too)! And yes you should draw more of Sabrina 😁

Just as a little fun thing for being so amazing some headcanons from my own fics for them:

She calls him senpai, yes, she is that otaku.

He calls her issi after they have been dating for a while. It's short for Pianissimo which is 'to play softly' in music terms.

He couldn't initially hear her song, because he was trying to listen as the audience, but it turns out he was a part of the music. (He can hear her song when they are doing things together)

She struggles with the attention he gives her. She both loves it and is overwhelmed by it.

He is likewise overwhelmed st times, by her sincerity. He is used to people hiding their emotions from him and having to intuit meanings. With her it is just all out there, and he's not used to so much openness.

She plays the ocarina(yes she is still a dork) bit not very well. She also plays the recorder, this one very well. (I had written this long before the movie came out)

He tried to ask her out the first time vis texts. She literally ran to the boat to be there in person (a sweaty panting mess) because 'You just have to do these things right.'

Hope this was as enjoyable to read as your art is to observe :)

I'm so happy that you like it!! 🥰 (and I'm def gonna draw more Sabrina once I get some ideas <3)

and oooooooh lukabrina headcanons!!!!!

Hehe the nicknames are cute! (I can imagine Kagami not having much of an opinion on Sabrina, but then she overhears her call Luka 'senpai' and suddenly she's judging her. excessively.)

Aww Sabrina struggling with the attention.〒▽〒 Makes sense considering that she's usually the one giving the attention without receiving much back, but oughhh....

Eeee them both being so good for each other but also being overwhelmed by each other's affection...adorable...

Guitar / orcarina duet time! :D

Her insisting on being asked out in person is cute!!! They're cute!!

And yes, these were so much fun to read; thank you for sharing!!! :D

[earlgreymon]

temporary goodbye

enlightenmonth 2022 (@koushirohikari) // [day 5-8] work/holiday you can say that this is a prequel of my first entry! i put the three children from 02 who were infected with dark spores (noriko kawada, keiko kurata, and hiroshi shibata) as hikari's colleagues in school. after all, noriko did want to be a kindergarten teacher like hikari, right?

It usually only took one ring of a bell to make her students disperse. For today, however, all of them decided to stay still in their seats instead of snatching their bags and going home. About more than a dozen pairs of eyes were peering at the sole adult standing in front of them, gleaming in curiosity and melancholy at the same time.

"So you won't be with us until graduation, Sensei?"

The woman in the spotlight gave a tiny smile. "I will come to celebrate your last day here, but until then, promise me you will do your best together with Kawada-sensei, okay?"

"But it will be hard to get into the elementary school without you!"

"What kind of nonsense is that?" Hikari cracked a laugh. They were way too young to worry about failing a grade; it wasn't like they were required to complete an entrance test to get into an elementary school. "You are all my brightest students. I'm sure it will be a breeze."

"Will you bring Little Pea later when we meet again?"

"Of course," Hikari cheered. "Little Pea is now as big as a cabbage, but I think Little Pea is way cuter for a nickname, isn't it?"

"We called our little sister Momo-chan because she always kicked Mama's tummy every time she ate a peach. Momo-chan also had rosy cheeks when she was born. Will you name Little Pea as Endou too then, Sensei?"

"Well…" she dragged her voice, changing the tune into a more humorous one. "I don't think Endou will be a fitting name, sorry."

"Is it because Little Pea is a girl?"

"That's a secret."

Her witty wink stirred up a little commotion between the kids, debating whether it would be a boy or a girl. Hikari decided that it was time to put an end before receiving scolds from parents for postponing their kids' homebound. To her surprise, though, everyone gathered to give her one last hug before departing, bidding goodbyes and wishing each other good health and luck.

The reality only started to hit when she saw the now-empty classroom. She tried to push away the feeling by walking to the teacher's room, sighing heavily as she sat on her desk. Hikari then proceeded to finish some of the remaining paperwork, not wanting to add more weights to her colleagues for the next fourteen weeks even though she was planning to return in less than that if the condition was in her favour.

"Araaa, Hikari-senpai," Kawada entered the room, a little perplexed after seeing Hikari still working ever so diligently. "I thought you'd take an early leave."

Hikari chortled, not averting her gaze at all. "Why would I haste?"

"Well, perhaps you want to take a longer rest."

"I still have some notes to do before leaving you with the duty, Noriko-chan."

"You know there's a technology called instant message, right?"

"I know, but why the delay if you can finish them now?" Hikari continued. "Besides, the knight in the shining armour is not here yet, so I have some time."

Kawada hummed understandingly. She then made a short gasp, indicating that she remembered something. "Shibata-sensei gave me this earlier. He thought you'd gone home already."

Hikari received the polaroid that Kawada handed. It was taken just this afternoon, right after the snow stopped falling. White piles turned their playground into an ice castle, so everyone had the same idea of playing outside. They built a giant snowman and decided to commemorate the moment by asking Shibata-sensei to take a picture.

It was amazing how a single photo could carry such a magical feeling. She observed each of her students closely; how their delightful smiles looked so bright even though the picture was blurry thanks to the minimal quality of an instant camera. Soon, those smiles were going to get wider, not only because they would feel the joy of moving to a new place but also because their faces would grow bigger as they got older. For Hikari, it was an honour to become a short part of their lives, to witness such changes.

"Senpai, are you crying?"

She did, without even realising. When she wiped her cheek, the tip of her fingers went damp.

"Oh my God, Senpai." Kawada gasped, a hint of admiration in her tone. "You're just taking maternity leave. It's not like you're leaving forever."

"I know," Hikari laughed helplessly. "Cursed you, hormones."

But they both knew that it wasn't because of a biological reason. It was because Hikari loved her job so much that it was hard for her to leave, even for a temporary. Everyone in the school knew Hikari would happily take any projects being thrown into her hands, although it might take time, as long as they were good for the students. And yes, she treasured all the children, whether they were under her direct guidance or not.

This time, however, her dedication should be for one child and one child only—her own flesh and blood, whom she would welcome in less than two months.

And she wouldn't be welcoming him alone.

"Ah," Kawada, who stood just before the open door, squealed after glancing outside. "The knight in shining armour is here."

She gave a chuckle. "Can you tell him to give me a few minutes? I'll be right there after cleaning my stuff."

Regaining her composure, Hikari started to pack things up once Kawada left. She cleared her tabletop and took everything in her drawer; the spare shoes for PE lesson, the candy jar with only two left inside, the extra scarf she kept for months without laundry. She didn't know she kept many things in school until she required a second tote to bring them all.

As she walked down the hallway, she caught Kawada in the lobby. However, accompanying her was Kurata, who should have sat at the front desk instead of standing beside Kawada. A red-haired guy took Kurata's spot, working his hands above the keyboard, eyes fixated on the screen—a way too familiar sight for Hikari's sore sight. Her husband could never help himself once he was plastered in front of a computer, but that was what made him the Koushiro Izumi everyone knew.

"And we're done," he left the seat with a tiny smile. "Just a small bug in the program. No files were harmed, so all good."

"I am so sorry to bother you, Izumi-san!" Kurata bowed. "But thank you so much! Izumi-sensei is right: you're truly the knight in shining armour!"

He blinked. "Pardon?"

"I thought 'nerd in shining armour' starts to suit him better, Keiko-chan," Hikari cut in jokingly, shifting the attention to her.

Seeing how occupied she was, he approached her right away to assist with her bags (in which she argued they weren't that heavy, but still she was grateful for his initiative). The four of them shared a brief chat before concluding it was already quite late in the afternoon and they only had less than an hour to close down the school. It was Koushiro's turn to bow, thanking Kurata and Kawada for taking care of his wife all this time, which Kurata and Kawada returned with a wish of good luck for both of them.

"You really came to pick me up," Hikari said in amusement while they were walking to the station. "I honestly thought you were half kidding when you said you would clear up your schedule."

"Well, I made you a promise, didn't I? I guess the nerd in shining armour is never a man who broke his promises," Koushiro chuckled. "I told my colleague I have to go see my wife on her last day at work because she would surely cry in front of her kids."

Her mouth was agape from the accusation. "I didn't cry."

Koushiro didn't say anything.

"...at least not in front of my kids."

Now that she had given up, he finally laughed as he embraced her closer. "I am sure they are lucky to have you as their teacher."

Hikari hummed, touching her belly for a caress. An indescribable warmth amidst the cold wind pulled her lips upward.

"And I hope he will feel lucky to have us as his parents."

[writing-radionoises]

clear waters

ship: not ship centric, background kunikidazai and shin soukoku

genre: pure fluff

prompt: the ada goes on a family outing

notes: the new chapter has caused me nothing but pain so i wrote another installment in the ada akutagawa series

Atsushi has offhandedly mentioned over lunch break that he had never been to a zoo.

Akutagawa had agreed with him, stating that he hadn’t either, and really had barely been around Yokohama.

Hearing that gave Dazai a pit in his stomach, truthfully, though he’d never say that aloud.

Akutagawa had been with the agency for a little over six months now, they had put their past behind them maybe three months ago.

Dazai had watched the other flourish from afar, watched him open up and feel happy.

Dazai had watched from afar, watching Atsushi and Akutagawa’s relationship develop, giving them little pushes now and then to the final product.

It went unsaid, but Dazai knew what they were to each other. They smiled freely with each other, exchanged small talk frequently over work, and other such things.

Akutagawa had a habit of bringing in hot chocolate for Atsushi whenever he went to get tea.

Dazai had had enough relationships to know what they were to each other.

He was just glad he managed to make it all come together…

Though other than that, the gentle pushes to a relationship, Dazai remained uninvolved with Akutagawa.

Perhaps it was just neglect, or subconsciously avoiding it.

Dazai could recall being dragged to the zoo a couple times by Elise…

“Gin always wanted to go,” Akutagawa explained, sipping at his tea as he looked back up at Atsushi, “Never had enough money, nor time… So it never happened.”

Atsushi smiled in return, “I had never left the orphanage until I was eighteen, I’ve been meaning to take Kyouka for awhile. I think she’d really like it, you know?”

“Then why don't we go?” Dazai said with a smile, from his position on Kunikida’s desk.

Kunikida glanced up at his spouse, brows furrowed in confusion.

“Do we have time for that?”

“Probably not!” Dazai replied, “But regardless, it should be a little family trip! Have a break, we can take the whole agency. I bet Fukuzawa-senpai wants to see the big cats~”

“I wanna see the penguins,” Ranpo proudly announced, “I’ll go ask him.”

“Ranpo, wait-” Kunikida said, though Ranpo had already left the room as the blond sighed and nodded.

“Give in~” Dazai said to the other, ruffling his hair gently.

Atsushi smiled once more, shaking his wrist with glee, “I’m gonna go tell Kyouka!”

He passed his cup to Akutagawa as he dashed for the other side of the agency.

Fukuzawa had, of course, agreed. Dazai knew he could rarely say no to Ranpo, led alone Kyouka, who was extremely excited for the trip.

The group took the bus into the Yokohama zoo and from there, split off into a couple of different groups.

Fukuzawa, Kyouka, and Ranpo immediately went off towards the aquatics section. Kyouka wanted to see otters, and Ranpo wanted to see penguins. Dazai is fairly certain Fukuzawa just wanted to see the other two happy.

Yosano, Tanizaki, and Kenji moved off into the reptilian section, with Kenji mostly leading the way, and Tanizaki clearly nervous.

That left Atsushi, Akutagawa, Kunikida, and Dazai together.

Dazai was fairly certain Kunikida wouldn’t let Dazai alone in a public ever, so he expected this.

Atsushi held onto Akutagawa’s hand, and led them out into the big cats section.

Dazai and Kunikida followed suit.

One way or another, Kunikida and Atsushi trailed off more towards the lions, while Akutagawa seemed mesmerized by the tiger exhibit.

Dazai stayed back, standing beside Akutagawa and watching him intently. He occasionally glanced back at the tiger exhibit, of the tiger just happily basking in the sun. A smile came to Dazai’s face.

“You like tigers?” Dazai asked, to which Akutagawa nodded.

“I thought you knew that,” he replied, looking down at the locket around his neck and fidgeting with it.

It was a golden heart locket, the chain tucked underneath the collar of his short sleeved white blouse. Dazai was pretty certain there was likely a photo of Gin inside the locket, since the two siblings separated, though he had never actually seen it. The most notable part about the necklace was more of the charm on it, next to the locket. It was a simple charm, half of the full yin and yang symbol, the dark side of it.

Dazai had seen Atsushi with the other half of the symbol, clipped onto one of his handmade bracelets that Kyouka had given him.

“Well, I assumed you did,” Dazai replied, half mindedly running a hand through his curls, “Though I thought I’d confirm.”

“Why?” Akutagawa asked, looking up at Dazai in confusion, “What does it matter?”

“Why not?” Osamu replied with a chuckle, “You’re a part of the agency now, you’re like family. Why shouldn’t I know some things about you?”

Ryuunosuke glanced away, looking back at the tiger with a face of dismay.

“... I’m not used to that.”

“Used to what?”

“People wanting to know me as a person, and not just a weapon,” Akutagawa explained, followed by a soft sigh, “There wasn’t a point to getting to know me when I was in the Port Mafia, most of the people I met there were more interested in my ability than my person. Now that I’m here, it feels like whiplash.”

“Ah, I thought the same thing,” Dazai mused, propping up his face in his hands, “I used to be so angry with everyone at the agency, I’m not sure why. Everyone was kind to me, and yet, I still thought everyone there was out to get me… I suppose there probably is a reason I could figure out if I dig deep enough in my memories, but that never goes well.”

“Mm,” Akutagawa hummed in response, nodding along, “It may be… Strange to me as well, because I had never really had a family before.”

“Oh?”

“I barely knew my parents, and I hated them,” Akutagawa said, followed by a slight laugh, “I had always wondered why they bothered creating my sister and I if they were never going to care for us… Regardless, I didn’t know them long, as you know, I grew up on the streets.”

“I remember,” Dazai remarked, “You looked like a drowned rat when Odasaku and I first found you. I just about had to apprehend you to get you to take a bath.”

A smile appeared on Akutagawa’s face as he instantly hid it behind his hand, followed by a laugh.

Dazai stops mid thought at the sight, a certain unnamed emotion making its way into his chest, as if being hit with a sudden understanding.

For the first time in the six or seven years Dazai had probably known Akutagawa, it was the first time Dazai had seen pure joy on the other’s face.

Not fear, not unease, not stress, not anger.

Pure, and unfiltered joy.

It was almost hard to comprehend, Dazai had known this kid since he was fourteen, maybe fifteen, and never seen a genuine smile.

He almost felt like a proud parent, having taken in this kid off the streets and cared for him enough to finally feel joy again.

… Is this how Odasaku felt, all those years ago?

“Dazai?” Ryuunosuke asked, looking up at the brunette with curiosity.

Dazai snapped out of his thoughts, of his own epiphany and gave Akutagawa a smile.

“Hey, let’s go find Atsushi, alright?” He said, ruffling the smaller one’s hair as Akutagawa gave a nod.

They left the tiger exhibit, and met up with Atsushi and Kunikida at the center of the room. Atsushi had ran for Akutagawa instantly, catching the other in a practically bone-crushing hug.

“Ryuu! There you are, I was just about to text you!”

“I don’t answer my texts ever, jinko.”

“Well maybe you should! I’d like to know where you are sometimes!”

“No.”

Dazai looked at the two and laughed, then looked up at Kunikida and gave him a wave.

“Did you have fun, mister honey bunny?”

Kunikida rolled his eyes, “Call me that again and I’ll divorce you.”

“You wouldn’t!”

“I might,” Kunikida replied teasingly, “But yes, it was interesting. I take it that it was the same for you?”

Dazai nodded, glancing back at Akutagawa, who was now being clung to against his will.

“Yes, definitely,” Dazai replied, happily, “I learned Akutagawa likes tigers.”

“Ha,” Kunikida remarked, rolling his eyes as he glanced at Atsushi and Akutagawa, “Never would’ve expected that.”

[inkblots-agent-four]

A Period of Bonding Time, Initiated by Marie-senpai

(Alternatively: The Oven Is Dead Now And Marie Gets A Kouhai)

[The Summer Before Arc: 4 / ?]

“I know I already said it on your way back, but good job, Agent Four.”

“Thanks, Marie.”

“No, seriously, you did really good out there. I wasn’t expecting you to do that good. I guess my pointers really rubbed off on you. Oh, careful, it’s really hot.” 

“Hah. Yeah, probably. Thanks for the heads-up. Ooh, hot chocolate.”

“In fact, I think I’ve earned the title of ‘senpai.’ Hmm, yes. I couldn’t have done it without you, kouhai.”

“Senpai? Kouhai??”

“They’re kind of slang terms back home. Senpai is a title for your senior. You’re my junior, so I can call you my kouhai. Oh, I have a kouhai now. Hah, take that... Callie.”

“Oh, she went missing, right? What happened to her, anyway?”

“...I don’t know. We hadn’t been seeing each other for some time, and then one day, I came back from a trip and she was... gone.”

“...sorry about that.”

“It’s fine. Anyway, as your senpai, I realized that we don’t really know each other. So, now I, Marie-senpai, declare a period of bonding time.”

“A bonding period. Really.”

“Hey, don’t knock it. I have it on good authority that bonding time is a crucial part of the induction process for the NSS.”

“...okay, ‘senpai.’ Whatever you say.“

“Woah, tone down that snark, young kouhai. You’re, what, fourteen? I’m nineteen, which makes me legally your senpai.”

“How’d you know my age? You aren’t, like, stalking me or something, are you?”

“Just a good guess. And that’s something I should be asking you, actually, since I’m the idol here.”

“Still not a hundred percent sure about that, but okay.”

“Oh, fine, keep fooling yourself- wait, what was your name again?”

“Woooow, what a good ‘senpai’ I have. So very sharp, and good at remembering names.”

“Shut up, you never even told me your name!”

“When we met, you sort of just... introduced yourself, told me Octarians still existed, named me Agent Four, shoved the suit and gun at me, then told me to go out there and rip the Octarians limb from limb from limb.”

“...I did do that, didn’t I.”

“You did.”

“...well, nothing I can do about it now. What’s your name, Agent?”

“It’s Maya.”

“Maya... short, snappy. Sounds like mine, which makes me... suspicious. You must understand, of course.”

“Okay, I’ve never heard of the Squid Sisters, or even about style or turf wars, but you can’t fault me! We don’t have a television at home, and the only place I can even get signal is in town, which my house is kinda far from.”

“...how did you survive? I’m a country girl myself, but people were pretty up to date back in Calamari County. Maybe it’s all the tourists...”

“Eh, I didn’t really know about any of that. I grew up on a farm, with like, five siblings. Between us, we had a lot to do, and a lot of games to play.”

“Huh. I’m an only child, but Callie was always right there, and we grew up like sisters.”

“Wait, are you telling me that the oh-so-famous ‘Squid Sisters’ aren’t actually sisters?”

“We’re cousins, and ‘Squid Cousins’ wasn’t exactly the most... alliterative of names. Also, if you’re not listening to the Squid Sisters, what exactly are you listening to all the time on those headphones?”

“...acoustic guitar covers of folk songs.”

“...pfft! Okay, I’ll let you listen to some of our songs. You’ve got an... interesting music taste, that’s for sure.”

“Hmph. If you’ve stopped laughing, can you give me more hot chocolate, then?”

“Huh? Oh, sure. I’ll text you some links to the music later too, okay?”

“...thanks, senpai.”

“You called me senpai! Without sarcasm! Wow, I have such a lovely kouhai here!”

“Don’t push it, Marie.”

“Fine, fine. Anyway, what kind of battles do you like best?”

[hanasaku-shijin]

By Her Side

Series: Lapis Re:Lights Characters: Tiara / Rosetta Words: 2,684 Genres: Friendship, General Summary: Rosetta is beyond thrilled to have her childhood friend Tiara join her at the Legendary Academy. Even though their lower ranking is at risk of getting them expelled, there is so much she wants to do by her friend’s side. ||  PATREON  ||  KO-FI  || COMMISSION INFO  ||

A/N: Okay, so I once again proved I have absolutely no self-control when it comes to fun series with cute girls who like each other, and I wrote this the day after episode 1 aired, before Lapis even has a fandom category on any site yet haha At this point, all I know about this series is what's been revealed in episode 1 and that's all. So I tried to just keep it all there and expand upon scenes that happened in canon so far, but just sprinkled in some of what I felt might be relevant, or have hopes for in future weeks of the show.

-----

By Her Side

Truth be told, Rosetta was absolutely thrilled to discover her beloved Tiara had somehow managed to end up at the Legendary Academy with her after two years, three months, and fourteen days of them being apart.

That glee and excitement had admittedly made her a little blind to the fact that - perhaps - some of the things that went on around here on a daily basis might prove to be a little overwhelming to someone who wasn't used to them.

Particularly the exploding arrows.

Presently, as one such arrow hits its target, the ensuing explosion bursts within the barrier in an eruption of flames and wind, and though the spell keeps the heat contained, the gust of air still snaps both hers and Tiara's hair and clothes back in a frenzy. To someone like Rosetta, it's just another everyday occurrence.

"You can basically take out a magical beast in one blow," she explains with a smile.

But as she turns her face to her childhood friend, she suddenly begins to understand this might not exactly be something she was prepared for.

Tiara's expression is frozen in spite of the flames, and as the winds die down, she begins to fall backward. It's such a surprise that Rosetta doesn't even have the time to remember how to reach out to grab her.

"Tiara? What's the matter? Tiara?! Tiara-!"

The poor girl hits the floor with a thud, and the shock on her face finally melts away as her eyelids fall shut and her head lolls to the side. Rosetta's heart jumps in panic as she drops to her knees beside her, and the old nickname comes without thinking.

"Tia-!"

The commotion draws the attention of the professor and the other girls who had been engaged in the exercise. They all peer around the pillars separating the firing range from the observation area in a fluster.

"Eh? What happened?"

"Who's that girl?"

"Oh no! Is she okay-?"

"Sh-Should we call the nurse-?"

Panicked, Rosetta reaches out to her friend and touches her cheek. Tiara feels a little warm, but it isn't feverish - likely just from the hot winds a few seconds ago. And her expression seems rather peaceful, so other than the fact that she's passed out, she seems all right. At the very least, Rosetta is glad she seems to have only fainted from shock, and nothing worse.

Rosetta breathes a sigh of relief. She lifts her head now to call out and answer the other girls' question.

"No, that's all right. I'm going to take her to the lounge."

Rosetta carefully slips her arms beneath Tiara's knees and shoulders, bringing her into her lap and close up against her chest. She strains out to also hook the handle of her suitcase on her fingertips. She braces herself to stand, and gets to her feet slowly. Somehow the weight of the suitcase is much more of a struggle to handle than Tiara's weight is.

Rosetta gets her bearings, checking to make sure her friend is secure in her arms before dipping her head to the other students, and then turning to start back the way they'd come.

As she walks with Tiara in her arms, Rosetta gets several concerned stares cast her way, but she smiles and reassures them all. She's glad that Tiara doesn't feel too hot across the rest of her body, so it's unlikely it's a fever. She has to keep reminding herself it was just the result of the blast, and nothing more.

By the time Rosetta reaches the main building, her fingers are beginning to ache under the weight of the suitcase, and yet holding Tiara still doesn't bother her at all. The stones sense her presence and allow the doors to open, and she hurries inside as quickly as she can manage.

She's a little grateful no one else is here at the moment, or else she'd have some explaining to do as to why their newest student was passed out in her arms.

She hurries to the couch and crouches to her knees, letting the suitcase slip off her fingers and onto the floor at last. With a sigh, she now focuses on laying Tiara down as slowly and gently as possible, doing her absolute best not to jostle her.

When she's finally succeeded in laying her down, Rosetta heaves a long sigh. But the worry continues wiggling in her chest like a fish out of water. She can't help but reach out again to touch her cheek.

"Tia…"

She's worried. How could she not be? After all, Rosetta had seen her fall ill many times in their younger years due to her weak constitution. She'd thought Tiara had grown healthier with age, but she can't help being concerned at seeing her faint like that after they've only just been reunited.

Rosetta shifts her hand, turning it over to rest the back of it against Tiara's forehead. She doesn't feel warm anymore. The fear that it could be another bad sickness like in the past begins to fade from Rosetta's mind.

But just to be absolutely certain, she moves a bit closer to her from her spot kneeling on the floor and picks up Tiara's hand from where it's been draped across her stomach. Rosetta holds her hand for a second, relishing the familiar softness of her touch before she remembers the bigger issue here.

She turns Tiara's hand over and finds her pulse, holding two fingers against her wrist. She locates the clock on the far wall and tracks a minute, counting the beats of her heart until time is up; she's relieved to measure a healthy resting heart rate of about sixty.

"Thank goodness…"

She sits back with a sigh, wiping her forehead where she'd started to sweat a bit from worry, though she still keeps hold of Tiara's hand as well.

Rosetta is quiet for a moment, gently lacing their fingers together and giving her a soft squeeze before letting go. She lays Tiara's hand back over her stomach, then lifts herself up onto her knees.

"Tia…"

She makes a move to touch her cheek again, but just before she can make contact, Tiara mutters a soft little moan. Rosetta gasps.

"Tiara? Tiara-?" She withdraws her hand to clutch them together at her chest now.

Tiara slowly opens her eyes, and Rosetta whimpers in relief.

"Tiara-sama! Thank goodness you're all right."

It takes some restraint not to embrace her. Instead, she sits back respectfully as Tiara slowly pushes herself up, looking around.

"Where are we?"

"This is the academy's lounge," Rosetta explains. "Are you in any pain?" She can't help but still worry for her a little. After all, she had fallen flat on her back and hit her head.

But thankfully, Tiara presents her with a smile.

"I'm all right now, Rosetta-senpai." Tiara takes a friendly stab at her with the formalities, and Rosetta relents.

"Ah… Sorry, Tiara."

"As long as you take the hint." Tiara gets to her feet with ease now, and Rosetta is glad she doesn't seem hindered in any way.

Rosetta stands as well.

"Why don't we head to our dorms for the day?"

"Sure!" she beams, giving a salute. "Lead the way, captain!"

"But before that, we'll need to get a certain something."

"And what's that?"

Rosetta steps up to her and pokes a finger at the thin red ribbon on her chest.

"Your uniform," she explains. "I'll go ahead and get it for you, so you can explore upstairs."

"Okay! Thanks, Rose!"

Tiara smiles again, and Rosetta feels a flutter in her heart when she uses the old nickname. She feels she should be used to it by now, since Tiara's addressed her by it all day, but it still makes her happy.

So the two of them part for the moment, Tiara heading upstairs as Rosetta retreats to the main office to collect her uniform. It only takes about five minutes, and once she has the bag in-hand she finds herself scurrying up the stairs rather excitedly.

She still can't believe this is real, that Tiara had not only managed to make her way here all the way from Bristol, but she'd managed to walk through the Chairman's doors right as Rosetta had. She wonders if it had been anyone else if Tiara would have been assigned to their group instead.

Just thinking about it makes her want to frown, so she shakes it off and hurries to the roof.

And even before she reaches the top of the stairs, she can hear the voice of an angel drifting down through the cool night air.

Rosetta slows her pace now as she reaches the top, and finally comes to a stop beneath the archway. She finds herself gazing at Tiara's back, and that sweet, beautiful voice of hers carries out on the twilight breeze.

"Oh guiding light, please shine upon us. Please shine upon us…"

Though she only hears the end of her song, it still brings tears to Rosetta's eyes almost instantly. She wipes them away, smiling as she offers a soft applause and starts walking to join her.

"You sound as lovely as ever."

Tiara turns around in surprise, then pouts a tiny bit.

"You should've said you were standing there. How embarrassing…"

"That takes me back," Rosetta says. "Wasn't that…?"

Tiara perks up and gives her a small smile in return.

"Yeah. It's my sister's song." She moves aside where she'd been standing at the railing of the balcony, making room for Rosetta to join her. Rosetta gladly takes her rightful place by her side.

Tiara turns around to lean her back on the railing, facing away from this new town of her future, and instead looking back, just for the moment.

"I was always so sickly, so she'd always make me feel better with her songs."

As she recounts the old memories, Rosetta is once again reminded of the troubling times of their shared past, when Tiara would often be bedridden with terrible fevers.

All Rosetta could ever manage was to stand and whimper, never feeling like she could do anything to help.

But Eliza would be there at Tiara's bedside to sing for her every time without fail.

Rosetta always wished she could provide similar comforts for her somehow...

"Eliza-sama loves you very much and was always worried about you."

"Yeah…" Tiara mumbles. "Back then, things were still…"

"Hm?"

"Oh, no. It's nothing!" Tiara gives her a reassuring smile, then leans back against the rail once more. "The reason I'm so much better now is because of my sister's songs. I'm sure of it."

Rosetta feels a wave of affection and adoration flood her heart, gazing at her strong and pure-hearted profile as a small breeze passes over them. She smiles too.

"Yes. I'm sure it is."

The wind strengthens just a little, stirring up their hair and caressing their skirts.

Rosetta looks out over the twinkling lights of the city and closes her eyes, breathing it all in. It's the first time in two years, three months, and fourteen days she's gotten to breathe in the night air with Tiara by her side. If she could be a little selfish, she'd wish to always be able to share her future days and nights with Tiara, too.

"What a nice breeze."

She reopens her eyes and turns to her friend, only to find Tiara's eyes closed once again. She's hunched over slightly, leaning in a comfortable stance against the rail, as if she'd simply fallen asleep on her feet.

And with the wind flowing gently through her hair, the city sparkling far below, and the calm night blanketing all around them, Rosetta believes she's never looked more beautiful.

She reaches for her, gingerly brushing the backs of her fingers across Tiara's cheek. She twirls a lock of her sunset-red hair, letting the strands slip through one by one, each like its own string of fate. If even one of them can connect back to her, Rosetta will be more than fine with that.

She lingers here with her, admiring Tiara's quiet beauty, and by some miracle resists the urge to kiss her.

Moments pass them by, until Rosetta is aware it's nearly time for the Lapis group to have supper. She wraps her arm gently across the small of Tiara's back, carefully coaxing the sleeping girl away from the edge.

"Tiara?"

Tiara moans softly, unconsciously turning toward her to rest her head on Rosetta's shoulder.

"Rose…"

Rosetta wants nothing more than to stay like this with her forever. But she can't let her own selfish desires get in Tiara's way of doing whatever it is she came here to do.

"It's time for supper," she murmurs, gently brushing her head against hers. Tiara yawns a little, but eventually steps away from the balcony with her.

"Okay."

She doesn't open her eyes right away, and seems perfectly content to walk with them closed for a moment, entrusting herself to her childhood friend. Rosetta keeps an arm around her and guides her as far as the staircase.

"All right, you've got to open your eyes now."

"Right." Tiara does as much, and when she looks up at her, it's like gazing into two endless summer skies. "Thanks, Rose."

Rosetta dips her head to conceal her blush.

"It's fine. Shall we?"

"Yes, we shall."

And so they head down the stairs together, and Rosetta savors the last few moments she'll have alone with her before they inevitably join the others.

And they'll still have to figure out a rooming situation, and there's also the fact that she has yet to tell Tiara about the ranks and risks of being a fellow Lapis like herself.

But Rosetta is certain that no matter what happens from here on out at the Academy - even if she gets herself expelled - she'd rather have done so with Tiara by her side.

--------

A/N: Gosh I have no excuse. They're just so good together. And if you really think Rosetta only thinks of her as a friend, I'm not going to say you're mistaken but like... oh man.

Not much for my first fic, but I wanted to keep it all mostly tame and in relation to canon, since at this point we have so little information to go off.

I wanted to mention not only Tiara's red ribbon but her hair also being red. String of fate and all that. I don't know, I think it'd be nice if she and Rosetta could be bound together somehow.

I'll more likely than not be writing more for them in the future if the show keeps being this good. After all, these two are gonna have their own room... My gosh...

[onepiece-imagines-bartoloclub]

(This one was a long time given and I apologize for postponing the request, I hope you enjoy this one senpai!♡♡♡♡♡♡) It was hard, but Sengoku was able to convince Kuzan and Sakazuki into training a new set of recruits who arrived to Marineford a few weeks ago. He thinks that these rookies would be better off being taught by heavily experienced soldiers, especially by the monster admirals themselves, he would've done it himself but he has too much paperwork in his office. Kuzan couldn't care less about teaching them but Sakazuki was somewhat curious, he asked the fleet admiral to see the files on the new recruits to see if they were even worth his time. All of them looked very generic and uninteresting but his eyes landed on the last person, their picture covered up and a lot of their profile is covered up and blacked out with ink, he thought that whoever this person was had to be important or maybe even a former criminal, the mere thought made him growl. ----- Time Skip to 3 days ------ It was 10 am and the ship with the new recruits have arrived are all lined up in front of the admirals alongside vice admiral Dalmation who's giving them some last minute pep talk. "Alright, newbies! For three weeks you'll have the honor to be trained under the most powerful members of the Marines, the prestige admirals Aokiji and Akainu. Remember to not look at them in the eyes and only speak when spoken to, DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!" "YES SIR!" He walks up to the admirals and salutes to them. "They're all yours." Akainu nods while Aokiji sleeps in the corner of the room, Dalmation leaves and the molten admiral decides to scan the soldiers. They're all exactly how he saw them in the folders, but one in particular stands out from all of them. She stands out at 6'2, long black hair and a dark skin tone, she sports a scar that travels from the bottom of one eye, over the bridge of her nose and under the other eye. She wears the usual newbie marine clothing of a white cap with the Marines logo on the front, white shirt, long blue jeans and brown boots. He guesses that she's the one who's files are covered up, but there's also something about her that's familiar. He shakes his head and kick the cold admiral awake and adresses his new soldiers. "As long as you're with us, you will suffer through a fate worse then hell, you might be new but we will not go easy on you and for those who can't take the heat, raise your hands now and I'll happily toss you into the ocean to swim back home." Nobody raises their hands and he smirks. "Very well, let's get started." A day turns into two and late turns into a week. Akainu scoffs at the majority of the newbies as they can barely manage a push up and some even tried to slack off but were quickly caught by a half sleeping Kuzan. Out of all of them, the girl seems to be the only one with any experience and both admirals catch on quickly as she was able to go through all of the exercise regimens and was even able to land a hit on the the molten lava user during a spar. But even with all of that in mind, there's something about her that attracts the admirals to her, heck she's the only one there that gets a "Good work" and a "Not bad" from the both of them. Sometimes whenever she salutes them or greets them before training, they become quiet and rigid, her smile quiets them down, especially when they're arguing about how to train the newbies. "Y/N! Did you finish off the family of Sea Kings like we ordered too?" "Yes Akainu, sir! They're all dealt with and are sent to the chef to become our next week's menu." She replies with a salute that always makes his cheeks heat up a little but cleverly hidden away by a scowl. "Good, you can rest now, Kuzan will be giving you your next exercise in an hour." "Yes sir!" She sits down on a bench outside the range of working officers who are being yelled at by the heated admiral for trying to take a nap. "Excuse me y/n, but I hope you don't mind that we have a little talk." She springs up on her feet and salutes the calm Chilly Chilly devil fruit user. "O-Of course Aokiji, sir!" He smirks and gestures her to sit down on the bench with him. "Cut the formalities kid, I just wanted to talk." "Kid? We're only ten years apart." "That's true but that's beside the point." She sits down next to him. "So, what did you want to talk about?" "..... How did you manage to avoid the Marines for so long?" She stiffens at the question "W-What do you mean Aoki--" "I mean, how did you last all these years without being caught even with being one of the few living members of Roger's crew?" "...... I stayed in Shank's ship until I was confident enough to go off on my own. I may have had a low bounty, being the musician and all but I knew that being a member of Roger's was enough to get me executed.... I was done with the pirate life after Roger's death and at heart I wanted to be a marine as well, but I new that being a warlord was not an option for me." "Hm..." "...... Is there anything else you needed to ask?" "Just one thing, who else knows about you?" "Garp and Sengoku, but that's it. It was hard but at the end it was Garp that helped me get recruited." "...... Alright, kid. That's enough interrogating for today, let's go, you have to swim five hundred kilometers around the island, I wouldn't have ordered you to do something like this but the hot head over them would raise suspicion if I didn't tell you what to do." He pats her head and leads her to the beach. She stays quiet until they arrive. "Oh and kid." "Hm?" "This will be our little secret." She looks at him and smiles. "Thanks." He smirks again, expertly hiding away the ever looming blush on his cheeks. ------ Time Skip 2 weeks ------- The last two weeks blaze by way too quickly and for Sakazuki and Kuzan, it was true. During those fourteen days they grew attached to the new recruits (admittedly they grew attached to y/n but they wouldn't admit it) and it almost saddened them to see the newbies enter Dalmation's ship and swim away. The rookies salute the admirals while the boat goes away but they saw y/n give Kuzan a little wave and a wink while her superior wasn't looking. It was extremely hard for Sakazuki to admit but he grew too attached, he knew about the woman's past and was both angered and frustrated with his new feelings for her. He kept it quiet for the two weeks and during that time he tried to avoid her as much as possible while also attempting to give her the hardest and rigorous training possible. In the end he chose to keep quiet and wait, hoping in a some tiny part of his conscience that she stays on the path of complete righteousness. As for Kuzan, he couldn't care less about her former status as a pirate, whatever path she chose to follow was completely up to her and all he could do is wait to see her again. They return to an office, having been called up by Sengoku in order to talk about a possible war coming up with the new Whitebeard pirates. They waited for the fleet admiral to arrive. It was quiet for a while until Kuzan decided to speak up. "So Saka, what do you think about the new recruits?" "Why do you care Kuzan? Or are you asking because you want to talk about your disgusting crush on a pirate?" "Pirate? What pirate? All I saw were Marines in trainin--" "Don't talk lies Kuzan! You know just as well as I do that y/n was a filthy pirate!" "A filthy pirate you say? All I saw was potential marine, nothing more and nothing less." "I don't care what you think of her, a pirate is a pirate no matter where they are and who they join." And as much as he says that, he knows that Kuzan knows that all he said was bull. While he holds an infinite am out of contempt for pirates, there was something about her that was different and tiny part of him hoped that she stays on the path of justice. "Whatever you say, don't think I didn't see you sneaking peeks at her during the push up regimens." "Shut it, Kuzan."

[arcticcurio]

Strawberry Chocolate

Happy Valentine’s Day! (or in my case Single’s Appreciation Day...whatever)

Time for a little romance in the ADA office with Ranpo x fem!reader ~fluff

I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did writing it. I experimented with a character I’m not too familiar with (as I haven’t written as much for them as others) so hopefully they are not too OOC (that and I tried a different style). 

Under the cut to not clog dashboards with the length.

1850 words (ish) Completely SFW 

           The sound of the door opening with force resounded with a pronounced thud in the relatively quiet office. A few of the workers looked at the door for the source of the sound while others like Kunikida did not even look up from his pile of paperwork. Once seeing the source of the sound a collective sigh as it was not another unannounced raid but rather Ranpo and Atsushi coming back from a snack run. Atsushi's arms were filled with large brown paper bags and he set them down on the first empty desk he could find. Ranpo meanwhile bounded into the office and sat back down at his desk, feet propped, presumably to get some work done before the day was over.

           "It's that time of year isn't it? Strawberry flavored everything."

           A voice called out from behind Atsushi. He tensed for a second at the sudden voice but relaxed as soon as he saw it was (Name) (Surname), one of the secretaries that started at the Armed Detective Agency well before he did. She reached into one of the bags and pulled out a box of strawberry candy and threw it towards Ranpo, who caught it from his sitting position. Atsushi answered her,

           "Yes, I think it is because of Valentine's Day coming up- N-n-not that that matters..."

           He stuttered the last part out as he realized it could be interpreted in a whole different direction than he meant it. A light laugh escapes her lips as she proceeded to grab one of the bags and take it to the kitchenette in order to inventory the snacks into Ranpo and nonRanpo designations. Ranpo seemed to prefer strawberry flavored candy this time of year, she mused to herself. She calmly spoke to him placing the items out of the bag into the cabinets,

           "You think so? I always associate it with chocolate because strawberries are a spring crop."

           "Strawberries are summer crops. That's why they are the best then."

           Kenji corrected her with a bright smile on his face. He then walked over with the rest of the bags and set them over on the counter for her. She smiled and ruffled his hair offering a quiet 'thank you' and continued to unpack the bag in front of her. He picked up a box of chocolate out of the bag and examined it intently before shoving it in his pocket, "I don't associate strawberries with Valentine's either, (Name). I think that chocolate is better. We used to make a chocolate soup back home on Valentine's and everyone would share."

           She continued to empty her bag into the cabinet and responded to him,

           "That does sound nice. I wonder if I should make chocolate this year."

           Her gaze shifts away from what she is doing for a moment and Kenji notices.

           "All that work for compensation chocolate? If you like someone you should tell them and not wait-"

           Kenji is stopped by her clamping a hand over his mouth. She knows that her smaller senpai could easily throw her out a window but for some reason he just lets her stand there, hand over mouth, for what seems like a century. She pulls her hand away and attempts to explain the reason for not confessing sooner her tone of voice mismatched with her bright red face,

           "I can't Kenji. It could go very badly."

           Kenji smiles as if he's figured out who she's referring to and walks back to his desk,

           "If I know any better they've already figured it out."

           She wanted to make him stop talking; he really could not have figured it out already right? She's made little effort to make her inner thoughts on the matter known, then again she's getting told by a fourteen year old that she needs to stop faffing about and just get it over with. Who is she kidding? If her young senpai, knows then everyone knows.

           While she was quietly chastising herself in her own head, she did not notice that someone was calling her name, repeatedly.

           "(Name)! Are you listening?"

           She jumps at the voice and slowly turns around to have a pair of emerald eyes meet her own. This was the last person she needed to see right now, Edogawa Ranpo, in her face. She clears her throat to stop the apparent blush creeping on her cheeks. Curse, you Kenji for even mentioning it, she thought as she attempts to answer him without seeming nervous,

           "Ah, sorry about that. Do you need something Edogawa?"

           He crossed his arms and stared at her almost as if his eyes would bore holes into her body. Why was he staring? Was there something on her uniform? She shifted her weight and pulled at the fabric of her uniform to check for stains as he kept staring silently. He finally turned on his heel and walked away from her with his hands laced behind his head,

           "I need you to take dictation for me."

           As Ranpo strides back to his desk and (Name) quietly gathers her note pad and a pen from her desk. When she's in the drawer she spies a box of chocolate pocky. Ah, that’s right…I haven’t eaten lunch yet, this will do, she thought. She quickly picks up the box from the drawer and shoves one of the cookie sticks in her mouth, shoving the rest still in the box under her arm as she hurries over to Ranpo's desk.

           She sits down on a chair that was two chairs down from his desk chair and crosses her legs to support the weight of the notepad. Ranpo looks at her for a moment before ordering,          

           "You're too far away. Closer."

           He pats the chair that is next to him. When did that get there? He could not be serious about needing to be that close. Were the cases that confidential? The thoughts run through her mind as she sits down in the chair, chocolate pocky still sticking out from her mouth. She begins to write the heading that Kunikida designed so that "even notes will look like they have a place in the file" on the tops of the notepad pages. It was tedious to create by hand so she was glad that Edogawa was not in a rush to start talking about the cases. The chocolate pocky box is laid on the corner of the desk and she grabs at the pile of case binders. 

           For once Ranpo was glad that Kunikida had demanded some weird way of doing paperwork that was too complicated for its own good. This meant that he got to stare at her for a bit without her noticing. Sure, he stared at her earlier, but that was observing why she was ignoring him.

               He knew how she felt, he knew probably sooner than she did. He was the best detective in the whole office after all. The contraction of pupils, the jumpy nature, and the fact that her demeanor got brighter at the mere mention of working with him told him so and he could not be wrong...Right?

    ��      He stared at her determined face for awhile and wondered just how could keep a stick of pocky sticking out of her mouth for that long without melting. His thought is too late apparently, as he quickly notes a drip of melted chocolate on her lip. Were her lips always that soft looking? If- He decides to look elsewhere to keep his mind from drifting into territory that it had no place being just now.

           He looked around the office as she continued to write feverishly on the notepad, everyone was working on their own, minding their own business. Kunikida was buried two piles deep in paperwork, Dazai was lounging on the couch with his headphones on and eyes shut, and finally, Atsushi and Kenji were almost out the door to go and see about a case that came up earlier in the day.

           His eyes drifted to the bright red chocolate pocky box sitting on the corner of the desk and he smiles.

           "(Name), can I have some of your pocky?"

           Ranpo's voice called out to her.  She looks at him with a quizzical look on her face, pocky stick still resting in the corner of her mouth. She answers back,

           "Sure if there are any left. I've had the box awhile; I'm surprised they aren't stale."

           She hands him the box and continues with what she is doing. He looks in and sighs as the silver bag normally containing the cookie sticks is completely empty just as she had warned. He opened a couple of case binder and stood them so that the covers were shown to the office, like a barrier. He then spoke up gesturing the box in her peripheral vision,

           "The box is empty, (Name)."

           She immediately turned to look at him to answer him that she would grab some more out of the desk but his face was a lot closer than she remembered it being. The light smell of strawberry filled her nose and a blush threatened to creep across her cheeks. She paused to compose her thoughts. This was the moment that the great detective was counting on.

           The next few moments seemed to happen in slow motion. A hand behind the head, the empty chocolate pocky box hitting the floor and two breaths becoming one; a perfect combination of strawberry and chocolate. Her eyes drifted shut as her mind could not register what happened at first as he bit the pocky stick hanging out of her mouth and then pressed his lips on hers.

           She was brought out of the trance as he pulled away rubbing his lip with his thumb and licking it triumphantly. Was that chocolate?

           With a smirk on his face and feet coming up on the desk knocking the binders over with a clatter,

           "Thanks for the pocky, (Name)."

           She quickly hid her face with her notepad as she could feel her whole face burn. She hoped that no one else saw that. Her eyes peek over the notepad only to see Ranpo leaning back in his chair with hands behind his head; she felt her breath hitch when their eyes met.

It was almost if nothing happened, she brought a hand to her lips almost to confirm what just occurred was real and not a very vivid daydream. Her eyes drift over to Ranpo simply sitting almost waiting for her to her to say something. Ranpo spoke to her when he noticed that she opened her mouth to speak; "Now you can give me special chocolate for Valentine's Day."

           She giggled and exhaled the breath she had held in as his cheeks lightly tinged pink at what was said. I guess my worries were unfounded, she mused to herself as she picked up the empty box of pocky off the floor and threw it in a nearby trashcan. Maybe she should make strawberry and chocolate candies for Valentine's Day; after all, she already knows that her confession won’t go badly.