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pretoriafics · 4 years ago

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Therapy Sessions with the Devil - Part II

You guys requested me about this one so much! I'm glad all of you liked part one. Now, prepare yourself for your worst nightmare being Homelander's therapist.

Word count: 1.683 Contain: Therapist!Reader x Homelander Warnings: Mental disorders, sexual harassment, stalking and regurgitation. +16 only Versão em português aqui PART 1 THE BOYS MASTERLIST

If hell really exists, for you, it sure would be Friday mornings. Of course, that was a very contradictory thought for most people. Friday was usually associated with a fun day where, after work, you could go out with your friends in the evening and return home whenever you wanted. That was the advantage of Fridays: The fact that you know you don't have to wake up early the next day to go to work. Knowing that the week was coming to an end was like a cool breeze, as well as knowing that the next day would be pure rest. That didn't exactly apply to you. Okay, it was great to know that you wouldn't have to work the other day. That was the only good point on Fridays for you because on that specific day of the week you have Homelander as a patient. Your attempt to get rid of him on leaving Vought had been successfully thwarted because you were apparently a good professional. And you've never hated yourself so much for being good at what you did as a job. It turns out that, lately, things had started to get a little strange in the consultations with him. Homelander always mentioned a girl, whom he said he was starting to see differently. He filled her with compliments when he spoke of her, always reinforcing how much he loved the color of her eyes, her calm voice, and the way her hair moved with her graceful walk. Of course, according to him, if she were a Supe she would be perfect. But that's okay because he said he really accepted her "with that imperfection". You started to suspect that he was talking about you but avoided thinking about it. It not only made you sick with dread, but it completely perturbs you. A Homelander in love with you would be a great way to make it even worse than it was going. That morning on a Friday the 13th, when you arrived at the office, you saw that on your table was a sumptuous bouquet with the most beautiful reddish roses you had seen. Despite the beauty of those flowers, you took that as confirmation of your worst nightmare. Terrified, you let your bag hit the floor and ran to the bathroom. There, you knelt in front of the toilet and put all your breakfast out. Tears were wetting your face, your hands were shaking in pure fear. And then, you felt a hand touch your shoulder. “Yes, put everything out. Everything will be fine, it will be over… ” It was him. Homelander's voice flooded your ears, and you had to take a deep breath to try to take some control over yourself. “Okay, I'm already better. It must have been something I ate for breakfast. Can you excuse me and wait for me on the couch, please? ” He nodded, his blue eyes filled with concern. "Sure." As soon as he left, you closed the door. You took the toothbrush and the paste you kept there, brushed your teeth, and wiped away your tears. Then, you left the bathroom ready to get it over with. So, you sat in your chair while Homelander directed his worried blue eyes to you. You have started the query. "Well, let's get started then." “Don't feel pressured to make our session today. We can do it tomorrow, you are not feeling well. ” You forced a slight smile. “I'm better, thanks. And I don't work on weekends. ” Not least because you weren't willing to let Homelander ruin your Saturday. "I bought these flowers for you when I was coming here." He got up from the couch and took the bouquet from the table, handing it to you with a tender look. Homelander was beaming and even looked so anxious as a teenager in front of their crush. You, however, froze. You clenched your jaw and forced another smile, holding the flowers. “I appreciate it, John. I'm flattered, but I need you to know that we need to keep our relationship strictly professional and impersonal. I can have my therapist register canceled with this type of relationship with a patient because it is unethical, and I don't want to end up harming myself. ” Those words made you realize how brave you were. You had fought an internal battle to say that. "But I will put the flowers in a vase after the consultation." His expression became austere and you froze with it. Homelander nodded and lay down on the couch while you put the flowers back on your table. Fortunately, at that meeting, he hadn't mentioned you or anything you might suspect was about you. The subjects of that consultation were merely concerned with the Seven, about their suspicions about Starlight, and how angry he was with the team. You were with your head on the clouds. You couldn't stop thinking about what you would do now that your worst nightmare had become real. You were so disturbed, you didn't even see that appointment go by. It seemed to have passed in the blink of an eye, unlike the others that seemed to be an eternity. And then you were finally able to rest. Being Homelander's therapist also brought other burdens: No therapist could maintain consultations with you, because it was too heavy for anyone to hear you talk about Homelander. Until then, you hadn't been able to find anyone who could help you support the weight you carried on your shoulders. You even thought of writing everything you felt in a diary as a way to try to get out and put out what you felt. However, the fear that Homelander might read outweighed everything. That was another point: You felt, at times, that you were being followed and observed. The curtains in your house always remained closed, although you knew that if Homelander was really stalking you, curtains would not help. That was enough for you to start developing a little paranoia. But that Saturday had been unlike anything. As usual, you woke up with the feeling of being watched. However, it looked different that time. It was almost as if you were feeling that Homelander was also on the sumptuous penthouse where you lived. Knowing that hiding in any room in the house could be worse, you simply chose to go out with a friend. Your circle of friends didn't recognize you anymore, and they even seemed to be concerned about you. While you and your friend were walking through Central Park, while she was telling some random gossip from someone in your social circle, you couldn't stop looking around. Homelander was there, somewhere, watching you. You were quite sure of that! Night soon came, and that feeling of being watched did not go away. You had the impression that Homelander, when he came to watch you, never stayed that long. His maximum was three hours. But on that Saturday, he seemed to be on your heels all day. You chose to wear your worst pajamas that night, the one that best hid your body, since you never had the feeling of being watched at that time. You were certain that you would not be able to sleep, and you could already feel that your emotions were extremely drained. Trying to act as naturally as you could, you lay down in your King Size bed. You covered yourself with the blankets and turned off the lights. You were lying in a sideways so that you could see the door that went into your corridor. It was like you were waiting to hear Homelander's footsteps there. But then you saw, through the reflection of the mirror, the door to your closet - the only door you were facing away from. You saw the reason for all your dread. The mirror reflected the image of a Homelander with slightly red eyes, watching you through the crack in the door. His uniform pants were slumped under his feet, and despite the low light, you could see what he was doing - explained mainly by the movement of one of his arms. His eyes were on you as he touched himself, and that seemed to be the main reason he didn't notice that you saw him. Your heart sped up, and you had to contain a weeping of fear and the nausea you felt when you noticed that grotesque scene. Tears flooded your face so that your vision was completely blurred, and panic made your entire body stop functioning. Homelander was completely obsessed with you, and that would bring you to complete ruin. You didn't sleep the rest of the night - even when you noticed that Homelander was no longer in the apartment. Still, on Sunday morning, you only managed to get out of bed at seven. You had been crying all night, completely stunned by the surreal situation that had happened. Apathetic, there were no more tears, no energy to cry or be afraid. You were just an empty shell, an inanimate object - the Homelander's favorite one. So you walked slowly to the closet to change clothes. And there was proof that what had happened last night was real. It was everywhere. The pearly liquid present on the door, on the floor, and at some points on the wall proved that he had not touched himself just once that night. You staggered backward, feeling that sudden wave of nausea again. That scene was enough for you to stride to the bathroom, kneeling in front of the toilet while your body tried to expel something through your mouth, without success. Suddenly, you felt your heart racing. Panic enveloped you, and you leaned against the bathroom wall, your breathing as fast as your heart. Sweeping heat shot through your body, and you started to feel sweaty. The air seemed to start to drain from your lungs and you thought you were about to die. And if your time to die had indeed come, fine. Homelander would no longer torment you anymore.

#The boys x Reader #the boys x you #the boys x y/n #the boys imagine #the boys imagines #homelander x you #homelander x y/n #homelander x reader #homelander imagine #homelander imagines

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cooliogirl101 · 4 years ago

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Hello! TLM is my favourite Bleach fic of ALL TIME and I wanted to say thank you so much for writing it!!! I’ve obsessively gone through the TLM tags and AUs and I’m still impressed and amazed by how awesome (and terrifying) Sayuri is. I love your writing style and how you really flesh out all of your OCs :D anyway, after going through all the tags I realized I still don’t know how Sayuri and Tousen’s first meeting went and why it makes Sayuri so terrifying?? If you don’t plan to write it (1/2)

(2/2) Can you still tell us how it goes? Also, what was the original direction you planned to take TLM? It seems Sayuri goes along with Aizen’s plans but what end did you have in mind before you abandoned it, and how were you going to get there? No pressure to answer but it’d be awesome to know :) Again thank you for sharing your awesome writing!! I love all your AUs

Thank you so much for sending me this message anon-- it really means a lot to me that even after all this time, people still remember and care about the characters I’ve created.

To be honest, I didn’t have a firm direction in mind when I started writing TLM. I just saw all these stories with positive character development, where the person in question becomes a better person throughout the course of the story, and thought to myself, hmm, what if I wrote an SIOC story where the MC just...heads in the opposite direction. An SIOC that starts off, all things considered, as a reasonably kind, decent, empathetic person and evolves into someone who commits atrocities without blinking an eye, all in the name of love, loyalty, and keeping her little brother safe (that being said, I did imagine a few scenarios where Sayuri ends up on the side of the ‘good guys’-- see my black king au).

Regarding her obtaining Tousen’s loyalty...well the story there doesn’t start with Sayuri and Tousen, per se. It actually starts with Tousen’s unnamed friend (who I’m going to call Yui).

Warnings: Psychological torture, suicide mention, manipulation

Yui, who saw Sayuri sitting by herself at lunch at the Academy (Sousuke was on a mission) and broke away from her group of friends just to keep her company. Yui, who loves drawing in a way Sayuri both misses and envies (for her, the act of drawing is forever tainted by the portraits of hundreds dead-- and no matter what people think of her, Sayuri has never delighted in death). Yui, who always keeps a bag of seeds on her to feed the crows that are a nuisance to everyone else. Yui, who seeks her out even after they both graduate and join different divisions. Yui, with her quiet kindness and soothing aura, like cool water on a feverish face.

Yui, who spoke passionately about creating a better world, who believed so fiercely in the inherent goodness of people. Yui, who was murdered by the man she loved.

Sayuri stares out the window, face as expressionless as always. Normally, the death of a high-ranking noble’s wife would have been news for weeks, if not months. The fact that Yui’s death has been hushed up, kept quiet to the point that only a select few outside the nobility even know about it, is as good as a confession.

She glances down at her newest portrait, lips tightening for the briefest second. Then she leaves to find her brother.

Tousen Kaname learns of his only friend’s death nearly a month after it happens. He makes it as far as the gates to Central 46 (demanding answers, justice, revenge) before he finds himself wrestled to the ground, arms wrenched behind him to the point of dislocation, face shoved into the dirt. He can’t breathe, can’t smell anything except dirt and dust and his own blood, but he struggles anyway, screams his rage and grief into the air, cries murderer! for all to hear.

“What are you doing? Stop,” a voice orders sharply, cold as frost. Kaname feels the guards around him freeze, even as the guard kneeling on his back shoves his face further into the dirt warningly.

“Aizen-sama,” one of the other guards says respectfully, almost reverently. “Don’t worry, we have the situation well under control. We were just about to escort the miscreant into a cell--”

“No need. I’ll take it from here,” the first voice says coolly. “Head back to your posts, you’re making a scene.”

“Aizen-sama, please, there’s no need to trouble yourself--”

“I’ll decide for myself what troubles me, thank you,” she says shortly. The next thing Kaname knows, a gentle hand is helping him up and he lurches forward, clinging to it.

“Please,” he says desperately. He doesn’t know who his savior is but judging by the respect-borderline-fear the guards had addressed her with, she had to be someone important. “Please, you have to-- my friend, she-- she’s dead, they killed her, and--please, you have to make them pay, you have to get justice for her, you hear me? She didn’t do anything, she was good and now she’s dead and-- and--”

“Calm down. Focus on me,” the voice-- Aizen-sama--orders, quiet but firm, as Kaname breaks off into a series of increasingly panicked breaths. He obeys, clinging to her voice and her hand like a lifeline, focusing on her aura-- like starlight, he can’t help but think. Cold and distant, but no less bright for it.

“Good,” Aizen-sama says quietly and Kaname feels his shoulders relax slightly. “Come with me. We’ll talk in private.”

It isn’t until Kaname finds himself sitting on an absurdly comfortable chair with a cup of tea in his hands, his wounds cleaned and bandaged, that his mysterious benefactor speaks up again.

“You’re Kaname, aren’t you?” She asks, causing him to stiffen. “Yui talked about you.”

Kaname swallows, gripping his cup tightly.

“You knew her?” He asks hoarsely.

“I did,” she replies. Her tone is unchanged from before, still as emotionless as ever, and yet--

Yui had once told Kaname that he was the most perceptive person she knew. He reaches out with his own spiritual energy-- feels the tiniest ripple in a sea of composure that speaks of a grief that mirrors his own-- and he knows, without a doubt, that no matter how much she might pretend otherwise, Aizen-sama had cared for Yui.

Which means that Kaname is no longer alone in his quest to find justice for his friend. He can’t deny the sheer, bone-crushing relief he feels at that.

“Then please. Don’t let them get away with this,” he begs. “She deserved-- deserves better. She deserves justice.”

There’s a long pause.

“A month,” Aizen-sama says finally. Kaname blinks.

“What?” He asks, confused.

“Give me a month,” she repeats. “Trust me, it won’t take longer than that.”

This is what the rest of the world sees:

A week after his wife’s death, Fukushima Akito stops going to the social events and parties he’s known for. Those who are close to him say he hasn’t been sleeping well, that he’s lost his appetite, that he’s been drinking more.

“It’s understandable. His wife just passed,” people say. “He’s just grieving.”

Two weeks in, the heir to the Fukushima Clan starts talking to himself, shouting at things that aren’t there, crying for his deceased wife to leave him alone. He refuses to see anyone, even his closest friends.

“He’ll come around. Give him time,” people say, a bit more worriedly this time.

Behind closed doors, the servants whisper as well.

“Gone mad with guilt, I imagine,” one murmurs.

“Serves him right,” another says. “Lady Yui deserved better.”

Eighteen days after Fukushima Yui’s death, he starts complaining about bruises appearing on his skin that no one else can see. Twenty-one days after, Akito shatters a mirror with his bare hands, continuing to pummel the shards until his father and three cousins pull him away. Twenty-five days after, his screams wake the entire household-- his servants come running only to find him clawing at his neck.

“It-- it won’t come off,” he gasps. “The noose. It won’t come off!”

At twenty-nine days, he breaks down and begs for Yui’s forgiveness.

Exactly thirty days after Lady Yui dies, his two best friends-- the heir of the Goto Clan and the heir of the Miyake Clan-- finally have enough and drag him out of the house.

“It’s not good for you, being cooped up in that house like that. No wonder you’ve been going crazy,” Miyake Kaede complains.

“Look, we’re taking you out to have a good time and there’s nothing you can do to convince us otherwise,” Goto Dai adds.

And at first, it seems to work. Once he leaves his house, it’s like a weight has been lifted off Fukushima Akito’s shoulders-- he begins to relax, he laughs for the first time in weeks. Then at 4 p.m., he pulls out his zanpakuto and slaughters both of his closest friends without warning.

At 4:13 p.m., Fukushima Akito takes his own life.

(“That was unusually brutal of you,” Sousuke comments, looking down at the carnage from a nearby rooftop. Sayuri was many things-- ruthless, efficient, merciless-- but rarely cruel.

“I suppose I was curious what it would take to destroy a person,” Sayuri says after a pause.

“And? Did you receive your answer?”

Sayuri hums.

“The thing is, Sousuke, if you want to hurt a man, you go after him. If you want to break him, you go after those he loves. But to shatter a man beyond repair...he has to tear down everything he loves himself,” she says slowly. “You saw Fukushima Akito’s face once he’d seen what he’d done, when the illusion fell away and he saw the bodies of his best friends in front of him-- there’s no coming back from that.”

“Did you predict that would happen? That he would end up killing himself?” Sousuke asks curiously.

“Does it matter?” Sayuri asks indifferently. “He was finished either way.”

Sousuke looks at her for a moment. There’s no joy on her face, no satisfaction or pride, simply the steadfast resoluteness of completing a job that wasn’t particularly enjoyable, but which had to be done.

“Sometimes,” he says slowly, “I think it was a good thing I ended up being the one with Kyouka Suigetsu as a zanpakuto, not you.”

He may have provided her the ability, but every single torment, every single nightmare Fukushima Akito suffered during the last month of his life? That had been all Sayuri.

Sayuri smiles wryly.

“No, instead I ended up with Shiroi Seiun. Is that better or worse?” She asks.)

One day later, Sayuri opens her front door to find Tousen Kaname standing outside her home. She’s mildly impressed, although not surprised, that he’s managed to track her down.

“How did you do it? He demands in lieu of a greeting.

Sayuri pauses for a moment, then steps aside to let him in.

“I won’t insult you by pretending I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she says. “Fukushima Akito is dead. Is that not what you wanted?”

Kaname swallows.

“You killed him,” he says, voice shaking. Sayuri doesn’t bother to deny it-- she may not have been the one to strike the final blow, but she walked Fukushima Akito to his grave. “I...I should report you.”

“Then do it,” she says calmly. “If you truly believe I did something wrong, turn me in. I certainly won’t stop you.”

Kaname hesitates, looking torn.

“You...you won’t?” He asks uncertainly.

Sayuri takes a step closer to him-- watches him stiffen, sees him fight with himself not to retreat-- and brings his hand up to her heart, where her spiritual energy pulses the brightest.

“You’re a sensor, aren’t you?” She murmurs, leaning in so that her lips are by his ear. “You tell me. Am I lying to you right now?”

Kaname’s brow furrows as he focuses. Her spiritual energy is as calm as ever, no fluctuations or dips that might hint at a lie.

“Why?” He asks after a moment. “You say you won’t stop me if I choose to report you. Why?”

Sayuri studies him for a moment, the way he broadcasts his every emotion on his face for the world to see-- the naked vulnerability of someone who’d never learned to hide his expressions.

“Yui spoke of you, you know,” she says quietly. “The blind boy with the gentle heart, who shared her dream of creating a peaceful world. She trusted your judgement but more than that, she trusted that you would always do the right thing. I believed in Yui’s goodness and so I’ll believe in yours.” She lets his arm drop. “If you truly believe that what I did was wrong, that I shed unnecessary blood-- that what I did was unjust-- then by all means, turn me in to Central 46. Make me accept punishment. But if not...”

Kaname turns his head away.

“Was it really necessary to target his friends too?” He whispers.

Sayuri exhales.

“There were three main factors protecting Fukushima Akito. There was his own family, of course. However, although the Fukushima Clan is fairly powerful on its own, its true strength lies in its allies,” she states. “The Miyake Clan has two seats on Central 46. The Goto Clan has four. With those alliances in place, Fukushima Akito was untouchable. Now, however...” She tilts her head to the side. “By tomorrow, the entire Fukushima Clan will cease to exist. The Miyake and Goto Clans will make sure of that.”

She pauses.

“As for Miyake Kaede and Goto Dai...they chose to protect Fukushima Akito knowing full well what he was, what he’d done. They were not innocent.”

Kaname’s jaw clenches.

“Still, you...you could have gone through the courts, you could have--”

“And I would have gotten exactly as far as you did,” Sayuri interrupts sharply. “Spiritual power and political power are not the same, Kaname. I may have plenty of the former but in this world, the justice a person receives is decided by the latter. Yui died for no reason and the courts let her killer get away with it because his family was powerful, and he knew the right people. Me? I made sure those involved were punished for what they’d done,” she says, voice hardening. “For the crime of killing his wife, Fukushima Akito paid with his life. For the crime of betraying Fukushima Yui, a member of their family, the Fukushima Clan will be destroyed by their former allies. And for the crime of shielding a murderer, the Miyake and Goto Clans lost their heirs. Now tell me, is that not justice?”

Kaname swallows. He has no response to that.

“One thing you’ll learn, Kaname, is that the system fails,” Sayuri says after a moment’s pause, the anger in her voice replaced by something softer, tired. A deep sadness that makes something in Kaname’s chest ache. “Things slip through the cracks and all too often, it’s the innocents, the Yui’s of this world that pay for it, while their abusers, aided by the courts, go free. And when that happens, you have a question to ask yourself-- whose side are you going to take?”

“And you say I’m the manipulative one,” Sousuke’s voice comes from behind her, amused. “What do you call that then?”

“I didn’t lie to him,” Sayuri protests.

“Never said you did.” He pauses. “That boy...he’s blind.”

“Yes, he is,” Sayuri agrees. “Observant of you to notice.”

Sousuke laughs quietly.

“Always thinking ahead, aren’t you?” He asks, a fond smile tugging at his lips. “You think he’s worth the effort?”

Sayuri pauses.

“I think he has potential. Might even become captain, someday,” she says.

Sousuke’s eyebrows shoot up.

“Oh, really? Care to bet on it?” He asks slyly.

The corner of Sayuri’s mouth quirks up.

“Sure, I’ll take that bet.”

(Ironically, she caused herself to lose that bet.

“Oh sure, when Kaname achieves bankai but doesn’t want to be captain, everyone’s understanding about it. Me on the other hand, I’ve never released my bankai in my life, and yet when I ask to stay a lieutenant, I get Kyouraku shoving a captain’s haori in my direction and telling me to be at the captain’s meeting in 10 minutes. How is that fair?”

“No one believes that you haven’t attained bankai yet, Sayuri.”

“But it’s true.”

“It’s true that you’ve never released it, not that you haven’t attained it.”

“I would have thought you of all people would be on my side in this matter, Sousuke.”

“I prefer you as my equal, Sayuri, not my subordinate. I would have thought you, of all people, would know that by now.”)

#Anonymous #sorry this took so long #let me know what you guys think! man it's been a while since I've written anything for this #to love a monster #tlm

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bloodys44 · 4 years ago

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Silence and Cigarette Smoke

Original story and bonus content found here! ↓↓↓↓

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13289933/3/Silence-and-Cigarette-Smoke

Unfortunately it seems FF.net is having some technical errors and new chapter updates are only viewable through the app. I will continue to repost in hopes it will be available for everyone soon! Chapter 7 is viewable through the app and everything up to chapter 6 is online. Thanks for reading!

Chapter 3: The Dragons Birthday

Lucy’s POV

788

She always thought he looked the best while asleep. Mind caught up in a dream, unfocused to the world around him. The way his bare chest shuddered on every exhale. The stark white of the scars littered over his tan skin. There was never a time he looked more relaxed, his sharp facial features losing their regular heated mark. He was in every aspect, simply beautiful. Once her blurry vision had focused on him, she'd been utterly captivated. And now, with him laying so nonchalant atop her blue pleated comforter she took the time to soak him in. It was rare for a moment of peace to present itself in their chaotic lives. Sometimes she felt stuck in a constant state of running. And tiring as it was, she had never felt such happiness. It was almost funny, she thought. How she had been humored by Lissana's words the day she had met her. All her preaching about how she owed this man her entire life. And to think now, she felt almost the same. She really did owe him the world, for he was the one to actually give her one.Three years had passed since Natsu had rescued her from the forest and brought her to Fairy Tail. Taken her hand and led her step by step through his exciting life. Teaching her the unspoken rules of the enchanted world. The guild really was a dream, giving her a place to live and grow in exchange for work. Everybody had a simple job they worked while at home. Natsu for instance, worked the front guard line, scouting the edge of their safety enchantments for trespassers and unwanted visitors. When he wasn't out scouting, he stood watch in one of the three stone lookout towers. It made sense, given he had uncanny senses and tracking abilities. Lucy found herself taking shifts in the constantly busy infirmary alongside Lissana and her sister Mirajane. It was pleasant work, a good distraction from day to day life. But it was when they left the guild that the real adventure began. Fairy Tail (along with other guilds in the network) took job and quest submissions from trusted or other magic folks. They ranged from simple things such as retrieval of objects or escorting people during their travels, all the way to clearing out dark guilds and the slaying of demons. Natsu had been gracious enough to form a team with her, working alongside her to complete jobs. They truly had become an inseparable force over the last few years.Lucy set the plate she had been carrying on the side table by her bed before moving to lean against the end of her mattress. Natsu twitched slightly in his sleep but didn't wake, instead rubbing the underside of his nose against the back of his wrist. She snickered lightly, brushing golden locks from her view. She still found it hard to believe the man in front of her, sleeping so silent, was actually an unmatched powerhouse of magical energy. A dragon slayer, so he was called. An extremely rare form of magic, bestowed by the dragons themselves to aid the humans in their war against the 'white witch' hundreds of years prior. The rarity stemmed from the fact that these commanding creatures no longer existed, wiped out by the very magic they had gifted the humans. Thus earning the 'slayer' term. In the current day, dragon-slaying magic was passed down through bloodlines, slowly dwindling downwards to nothing. Natsu claimed he remembered nothing of his parents, choosing to never speak about them or anything else regarding his past. This sat just fine with Lucy, considering her home life wasn't much more uplifting. An abusive father, drunk with power. So consumed in his self-preservation he elected to wipe out a quarter of the population in fear of them uprising. Jealous of the power swimming through their veins. Even going as far as to execute his beloved Queen and daughter for their enchanted blood.Her mother had always whispered of the beauty that came with their magic. The glow of the gods she called it. And translated directly, it sort of was. Celestial magic rumoured to have been created directly by the gods for a historical gracious Queen. The only enchantment to possess such a warm golden hue, literal stardust drifting from fingertips. Natsu had gone out of his way train with her while she learned her capabilities. Even (much to his distaste) spending hours upon hours scanning over ancient books and text, looking for answers to explain her mysterious powers. There was extremely little known about celestial magic. Its rather small royal bloodline being the only people able to wield the starlight. After three years of constant work, Lucy believed she was rather proficient in its use, though she could never be completely sure. As special as it was, being enchanted with such abilities it was also rather frightening, to say the least. With rarity came obsession. Many stories existing of the pursuit of celestial mages, desire for their uncapped power. The story goes that besides their own magical abilities, celestial mages can greatly increase magical energy with a single drop of their blood. Their blood is said to taste like pure ecstasy. Mages go insane after a single drop, drunk on the taste. Natsu had told her. The thought always made her stomach turn.Lucy huffed, shaking her head to dismiss her thoughts. Today was supposed to be a happy day, she couldn't let her self get caught up over nothing. Sliding the light grey flats off her stocking covered feet, she pulled herself completely up on the mattress. It was a pleasant Tuesday morning, the sun soaking through the aged glass of the windowpane. Her room taking on a rosy hue as the light bent with the lace of her pink curtains. Her room was small (as were most of the dorms in Fairy Tail were) but she loved it just the same. Her bed was pressed against the far right corner, mirroring a birch desk placed at the conjunction of the other. It, currently serving as the sleeping place for a bizarre blue cat, napping happily, wound up in scaled white fabric. She had a small overstuffed closet at the foot of her bed and an ensuite adjacent to the grand door leading to the hallway of other rooms. It was her safe place, a real home to relax and be herself in. The old walls speaking for previous guild members long passed. The only thing was, that she more often than not had to share with an intruding pyromaniac. Whether that was a negative or bonus she never could decide. She crawled towards the unsuspecting male, strung out over the bedding in his sleeping state. Taking perch beside his head, she pulled her knees to her chest. Her wrist flicking outwards slightly as she moved to wake him. It almost felt criminal, pulling him from his peaceful slumber, but she was too excited, not wanting to wait any longer. She dusted her fingers over his forehead, moving the displaced pink tendrils from his closed eyes. The light touch was enough to sway him from his dreams, grimacing as he squinted one eye open."Good Morning birthday boy." Lucy smiled sweetly, running her fingers through his fringe once again before pulling back. She wrapped her arms around her folded knees, watching as the tired man before rubbed his eyes. "Bout time you joined the land of the living.""Birthday boy?" Natsu questioned, his voice raspy, rugged with sleep. "Lucy, you know I don't know when my birthday is." He shoved his elbow under himself clumsily, sliding his body to more of a sitting position against the headboard. An exaggerated yawn flashing his pointed canines."I know." The words a sweet hum over her lips. "And every year I tell you, everyone deserves a birthday, and that you should just pick a day to celebrate."Natsu was smirking now, his expression slowly coming together as he woke. "And every year I tell you it's not important, and that you're crazy.""You celebrate my birthday every year, what's the difference?" She questioned playfully."I dunno, just different cause it's you."Lucy tried to ignore the heat that was surely blooming over her pale cheeks, tossing her bangs to the side with a sway of her neck. "Stop being so modest you stupid dragon, you're just as important as anyone else and deserve a day dedicated to you just the same." Natsu rolled his eyes at her, earning a swat to his shoulder. "Since you never pick a day, I've taken the initiative of picking for you.""And today made the cut?" He joked, fingers twisting upwards to toy with a strand of her golden hair."It's the first day of summer." She rushed out with slight embarrassment. "I thought it was fitting considering your name."Natsu snorted, mumbling something along the lines of 'cute' before pushing himself upright into a complete sitting position. He glanced to the side, noticing the small plate Lucy had put down earlier. He spun his head back towards her, eyebrow raised curiously. "Did you really bake me a cake?" She had, in fact, baked him a cake. Lucy nodded sheepishly, feeling the heat in her cheeks expand down her chest. It was nothing special, a miniature loaf that resembled more of an oversized muffin than an actual cake. To be fair, it had only been her second attempt at baking. She had considered asking Mira to make one for him, but she was away on work with her younger brother Elfman and her husband Laxus. Leaving Lucy to her own devices. Her first attempt had left the guilds mess hall a smoky mess and resulted in something unedible. Her second attempt had actually tasted pretty good despite its appearance. She had iced it in fluffy yellow icing, a baby blue branding of '22' crowning the top."You think I'm twenty-two?" He questioned again, his voice more steady than his earlier playfulness. His fingers continuing to loop over her flaxen strands."Well nobody knows your actual age, so I had to make an educated guess." She huffed in response.Natsu chuckled slightly, wrapping his arm around the blonde and pulling her into his bare chest roughly. "You're probably right, as per usual." Lucy tried to scramble against him but was held firm between his rippling arms. He slid one upwards, wrapping it around her neck pulling her into him further His chin nestled in her flaxen tendrils "Thanks, Luce, you really are the best." His lips brushing just slightly over her temple as he spoke. The touch so light she wasn't sure if there was really any contact or if she was reacting to his unusually hot breath against her fair skin.She loved moments like this. When the loud-mouthed, cocky, and rather brash man spoke in gentle tones. It was such a contrast to his typical over-excited nature. It may be selfish on her part, but she loved that this side of him was private, only sneaking up when the boy felt truly comfortable. It wasn't that he was typically exhausting, in fact, he had matured greatly over the years. But she had yet to witness him speak so calmly to another, the constant rigidness in his shoulders lacking in moments like this. It made her feel special, like she really was important to somebody. Not that she could ever deserve somebody as special as him. Somebody who lived their life completely for those surrounding him."We should hurry up and head down to the hall, Lissana's been cooking breakfast for us all morning." Natsu nodded in response, sliding himself off the cotton sheets with another exaggerated yawn. He flung his arms above his head, stretching out his previously coiled limbs. Lucy watched absentmindedly as his taut muscles strained under the spance of his tan skin, moving in sync with his smooth rhythm. He slipped a black hoodie over his head, sliding it painfully slow over his ridged abdomen. Sometimes Lucy liked to believe he showed off on purpose, maybe hoping to get her flustered for his own entertainment. He side-stepped into the ensuite, rummaging around in cabinets before his head popped back out of the doorframe. He looked slightly dishevelled, toothbrush hanging from his perfectly placed teeth. Lucy couldn't help but giggle at his curious expression, already knowing what he was about to ask before he even started speaking."I think Lissana tried to make all your favorites." Natsu nodded excitedly, darting back through the frame to continue cleaning up for the day. She swore there was nothing in this world that got him more excited than food tended too.The walk to the mess hall was pleasant, small talk mixing with their echoed footsteps on stone. Fairy Tail had taken residence in a long-abandoned castle on the outskirts of the supposedly haunted forest. Encased in hills of sprawling green, plenty of room for its members to train and spend their leisure time. A safe and beautiful space hidden so casually within the modern world, at least, thanks to the protective charms cast over the vicinity. The castle and grounds were un-seeable by the normal eye, only appearing if you knew what to look for. Most common folk would have their mind altered slightly on approach, causing them to reroute their current path. But on occasion, people have still managed to slip in, mostly lost children who's pure hearts wanted only a family or somewhere safe to rest. But there had been cases of well-skilled mages slipping through. One's like their friend Erza who possessed an enchantment cancelling eye. That's where Natsu and the other's on watch and guard duty came into place, silently protecting the livelihoods of so many. Their Headmaster was always very adamant in the safety of his 'children', so he called them. Always making sure the proper steps were taken. This was something Lucy very much appreciated, almost considering the man to be her replacement father figure."Hey wait, let's step outside quick." Natsu mumbled, grasping the side of her arm and guiding her over to one of the numerous balconies. He pushed the enormous oak doors open with ease, practically leaping out to bask in the sun rays."You really are like a salamander sometimes," Lucy scoffed playfully, commenting on his community dubbed nickname. Mages were generally very secretive about their identities, even with mages of other guilds. Understandably wanting to avoid attention from the crown. But Natsu seemed to have a knack for attention, or rather, for destruction which typically caused a lot of notice from townsfolk. The population of Fiore deciding on the name 'Salamander' for their rampant arsonist. Natsu snorted, retaliating by ruffling her hair aggressively. He then spun the other way, practically flopping against the wall with an exhale. He reached behind his gold decorated ear to remove a cigarette from its resting place. Lighting the tip of his finger with a hypnotizing flame. "I really wish you would drop that awful habit." Lucy nagged, crossing her arms slowly. "You're going to cause your own early death."As per usual Natsu looked at her like she was crazy. "You do realize I breathe fire right? Smoke it practically oxygen for me."Lucy simply shook her head, not wanting to get into their usual child-like argument about the safety of smoking. "You know Mira would agree with me." She teased."I know Mira isn't my mother, so does it really matter?" He smirked, pulling a long drag and blowing the stream into the blonde's face. She swatted at the smoke angrily, muttering under her breath about her immaculate ability to deal with morons. She turned and stepped out slowly to the edge of the castle balcony, draping her arms over the stone railing. The weather was spectacular today, the sky clear and the air surrounding them was warm and comforting. The clouds silently wishing them well with their day."I was thinking," The blonde hummed, turning back to face her pink-headed partner "We could take a job request today. Birthday boy gets to pick? Maybe Happy would even want to tag along."Natsu beamed at her, exhaling a grey cloud. "Sounds like a plan Blondie."Eventually, Natsu finished hacking away at his cigarette, giving his body a final long stretch under the sun before motioning for them to return indoors. Thankfully he seemed to be the only man Lucy had ever met that never reeked of the poison smoke. (or she liked to call it) His typical earthy scent mixed with a hint of mint and cinnamon seemed to repel all foreign smells. The remaining walk to the mess hall was quiet, the two simply comfortable in the silence of the other. At least it started that way, interrupted only by Natsu's sharp inhale as he broke out in short fits of laughter. Lucy turned to him, gawking slightly at his strange behavior while she waited for him to catch his breath. They were only about a floor away from the hall, the castle being as obnoxious as it was, took a while to navigate through."A surprise party? You really pulled all the stops hey?" Natsu mused, turning his shit-eating grin to face her. She looked absolutely baffled, her pace coming to a complete stop. This only caused Natsu to laugh harder, clutching his sides with amusement. "Did you forget about my incredibly awesome superhuman senses?" He bragged playfully. "I can hear everybody down there running amuck trying to get everything together." Lucy's expression faltered slightly. Really, who could blame her for forgetting one of his hundreds of bizarre quirks. A pout started to work its way to her plump lips. Instantly Natsu cut off his laughter, moving to stand right in front of her. "Aweh come on Luce, it's not ruined yet, promise." She scoffed slightly, swatting at his arm. "I'll even pretend to be surprised, since you worked so hard n' all." Lucy only grabbed his hand, shaking her head slightly. Of course he would react that way, selflessly cheering her up at the slightest bit of disappointment. Even on his own birthday.When they arrived at the doorway, the hall echoed with its silence. Clearly, the other guild members had found an adequate hiding place. Natsu cast her his infamous smirk before pushing the doors open, and (rather skillfully she might add) gave off his best-surprised reaction to the other members jumping out, cheering his name. It didn't take much to rile up the other members, they were always ready for any sort of celebration. The mere mention of alcohol sparking the interest in most of them. Besides that, there seemed to be a collective amount of appreciation for Natsu among them. Either a family-style bond or respect collected over the years. Even in some cases, complete loving adoration. The latter of which currently on display as Lissana latched herself onto the man, wrapping him into a soft embrace."Happy birthday Natsu-san." She cooed into his ear, gripping the man tighter. Natsu returned the compassion with ease, thanking her for all her work in the kitchen this morning. They looked fitting together, at least in Lucy's opinion. Although, that didn't mean she was very fond of watching them. In fact, she found it rather stomach-turning. Watching as Lissana openly strung herself all over him to no avail. It wasn't that she hated Lissana either, the girl being exceptionally kind-hearted and sweet. A genuine soul. Not to mention she was one of the prettiest women Lucy had ever seen, possibly rivaled only by that of her older sister. She wasn't sure exactly what it was, the feeling in her gut when she watched them together. The glorious smile that Natsu always wore around her gave nothing but an uneasy feeling. This, of course, had nothing to do with the maddening crush she had on the man. No, it most certainly didn't."You're staring." A whisper fell over her shoulder, startling her. She tossed her head quickly, scanning her peripheral for the intruder. Levy McGarden. An extremely petite and slender woman. Her eyes playful while she teased. The blue strands of her hair tied back by a golden ribbon strapped across the top of her skull in its usual fashion. It just so happened that this literature-loving book worm was Lucy's best friend (besides Natsu, of course). "If it bothers you so much, why don't you just tell him?"The blonde stared at her friend with wide eyes, progressively more startled than before. "It's not like that! We're just friends!" She defended breathlessly. "How many times do I need to repeat myself? You and Mira are going to give me a stroke." She slumped over the counter of the bar she was currently seated at with a huff.Levy lifted her brow in a mocking manner, chuckling before taking a seat at the bar beside Lucy. "Whatever you say Lu." She teased further before letting her expression fall back to normal. "This party really is nice though, you outdid yourself this time for sure." Lucy nodded slowly, spinning on her stool to take in the atmosphere. The morning was still fairly young for a typical party in her opinion, but she had really wanted to spend the evening working on a job request with the birthday boy. After some convincing, she had managed to get the rest of the members to agree with the morning time frame. The hall was decorated in a beach style theme (this being the only way to incorporate burning tiki torches, a strange favorite of the pink-haired male). Strings of flowers spiraled the stone columns in a variety of color. All the members seemed to match, flower wreaths hung around their throats in the same manner. The overly grand hall taking on a more cozy interior. Even the enormous stained windows had banners plastered to their panes. Celebration wishes printed on the fabric. Everybody had woken up super early to pitch in, getting everything set up without a hitch. Smiles and laughter mixed together creating a pleasant feeling. Kinship and happiness coated over the walls. Even Gray, the ever stoic had cracked a smile. Bickering with Natsu while holding on to his prized possession Juvia. Though he had yet to admit it, his feelings for the blue-haired, eclectic water woman were growing to become glaringly obvious."It really is nice." Lucy hummed softly. "It's a shame nobody ever thought to celebrate his birthday before. Hasn't he been a member for a long while now?"Levy nodded happily. "I think Gildarts found him when he was about twelve or thirteen, I mean if he really is twenty-two like you guessed."Lucy let out another breathy hum, turning away from the crowd to face her friend once again. "Does anybody really know about his life before Gildarts found him? He never talks about his past.""I suppose that makes sense." Levy folded her arms casually, balancing her chin in her palm. "As rambunctious as he is, I think Natu's a little more reserved about his life on purpose. He really never talks about his opinions or feelings even, unless it's regarding a fight." She giggled lightly. "I think if he were to open up to anybody, it would probably be you Lu."Lucy turned her head back towards the crowd, scanning over the bodies in search of him once again. A gentle maybe falling from her lips, her mind more focused on its hunt. She locked eyes with him from across the hall and couldn't help but smile brightly when he started making his was towards her."Happy birthday Natsu." Levy chimed on his approach. He beamed at her, letting a string of smoke leak between his teeth while he thanked her. "Didn't Lucy outdo herself with this party?" She smirked, nudging her blonde best friend who rolled her eyes and groaned internally."She really did." Natsu agreed eagerly, wrapping his arm around Lucy's shoulder to pull her into half a hug. "Aren't I spoiled?""Maybe a little." Levy jested, poking his chest playfully. Lucy wasn't really sure how the rest of the conversation played out, instead focusing on the radiant cake Lissana was currently wheeling out from the kitchen. Not that she would ever mention it, but when comparing this to the strangled looking muffin she had presented to him earlier, she was slightly offended for her own creation."Time to make a wish Natsu-san!" Lissana called softly, pushing the platter in front of him. Natsu closed his eyes in thought before leaning forward to blow out the red candles splattered over the layers, and Lucy couldn't help but smile with the rest of the group. It was just so nice, seeing the boy that always made sure everyone else was doing okay, actually have a moment for himself. Taking a second out of his hectic life to celebrate his very existence. Smiling and cheerful surrounded by his makeshift family. A moment of true happiness. If the remaining day's of her life were at least half as good, Lucy thought she could consider herself lucky.The morning had begun to drift away slowly, the party winding down accordingly. Everybody needing to get to work and begin their day to day routine. The hall progressively becoming more silent. Lucy was busy clearing empty bottles and glasses from a table when she regarded a comforting heat creep over her shoulder. "Did you pick a job yet?" She cooed at her partner, noting his presence without a need to visually see him."Of course." Lucy fluttered her lashed quickly when a flyer was held in front of her sightline, his arm stretching over the top of her head. She squinted slightly, reading the print of the request carefully. The job was nothing out of the ordinary, a group of bandits disturbing the peace of a small town a short train ride away. They only needed to find their base, possibly ruffle them up a little and get them to vacate the premises. "Did you catch that reward?" He presses, stepping around her to face her. She grabbed the flyer from his extended palm, narrowing down on the fine print. The cash reward was rather minimal compared to the requests they usually accepted. She raised a brow at him over the edge of the page and he smirked, telling her to keep reading. Her irises flashed back over the text, blowing wide when she read the final sentence. One first edition copy of Queen Anna Heartfilia's uncensored oral history on celestial magic. "She's probably your great grandmother or something hey? Natsu asked cheerfully, studying her reaction. "I figure we might find something new the other books missed." She could feel the beat of her heart quicken with excitement. Information on celestial magic was insanely hard to find, and to find something created by one of her ancestors was completely unheard of. A once in a lifetime opportunity."Is this really the job you want to take? Today's about you, we don't need to take this for me.""Consider it a thank you for everything you did for me today." Natsu beamed at her, and she couldn't help but return the smile back at him. How lucky was she that this selfless man just so happened to be her best friend. She let out a breathy okay, wrapping the fire-breather in a tight hug. He chuckled at her, grasping her shoulders and holding her a step back to meet her gaze. "I have one more favor though," She nodded slowly, smirking back at the man. "You gotta share this with me before we head out." He reached behind him, grasping a plate he must have placed down earlier. The miserable excuse of a cake she had made for him presented before her.She almost broke out in a fit of laughter, needing to take a moment to catch her breath and calm herself. "You don't need to eat that, Lissana made you a much better one.""Ya, but you made this one." He deadpanned, looking at her curiously. Her cheeks were definitely inflamed, the heat brushing its way down her throat and over her collar bones. If it was possible, her heart rate doubled over its already quickened pace. "Plus," he continued while taking a large bite, "It tastes so fucking good." He laughed warmly, offering a bite in her direction. She joined him with her own fit of giggles, perching herself on one of the hall's benches to share the rest of the desert with him.They ate quickly, sharing their excitement over the new job. Lucy practically gushing over the fact that a book of that stature even existed. No matter her effort, she couldn't contain the smile cemented over her lips."What are you two up to for the rest of the day?" Lissana's cheerful tone carried over, pulling them out of their fixated trance. She had cleaned herself up after the party, draping herself in a summer yellow fitted sundress. It ruffled out over her hips, only accentuating her perfect curves more so. Her white locks pulled back with a pearled clip. Lucy was almost annoyed at her for simply looking like herself, completely void of any flaws."Just heading out for a job," Natsu responded, sliding over to let her take a seat beside him."Oh, that sounds like such fun! I haven't been out in ages." She wined graciously. "I was going to wait for Mira and Elman to return, but it's been almost a month, I'm not sure when they'll be back." She folded her slender fingertips over the edge of the table, leaning in slightly as she spoke. "Would either of you mind if I tagged along? I've been working on this new spell and I'm just dying to try it out!"Natsu glanced towards Lucy, trying to gauge her reaction. The blonde just shrugging at him, leaning back against the bench. She was silently hoping he turned her away, the selfish side of her wanting to spend the next few days with just each other. And happy (Natsu's royally annoying blue flying cat), of course. "Ah sure Lissana," Natsu sputtered, still trying to read the blonde. "The more the merrier I suppose."The fairy-like woman practically sprung out of her seat. Perfect dazzling teeth on show as she glanced back at them over her shoulder. "Oh, fantastic! I can't wait!" She mused, heading off towards the hall exit in a hurry. "I'll just head up and pack real quick!"Natsu flashed an awkward smile back at Lucy, shifting to lean over the table towards her. "Cheer up Luce, this could be fun if you let it. Next job will just be us, sound good?" She nodded back at him, groaning internally before heading up to her own room to gather her things together. It was strange, adding her to the equation. It was always just her and Natsu that went on jobs. Even Gray dropped in from time to time. But it was never Lissana. She knew that it shouldn't matter all that much. Lissana was an amazing person and a fairly good mage in her own right. As much as she didn't want to admit it, she knew jealousy was the only thing she had against the girl. To her knowledge, Natsu had never reciprocated the girl's advances and constant pining. He was also his own person, his decisions didn't need to compensate for her own muddled feelings. All she knew, was that this was going to be a really long trip.

Again, check out the full story here! ↓↓↓↓

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13289933/3/Silence-and-Cigarette-Smoke

#natsu #natsu dragneel #lucy #lucy heartfilia #fairy tail #fairy tail fanfiction #fan fiction #fanfic #Nalu #nalu fanfiction #nalu fanfic

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web-of-fics · 5 years ago

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Worlds Away

Requested by @spaghetittiesbcimgay : hey! could i get something with our boy peter with a really smart reader?? who’s an intern at nasa or smth? and is obsessed with her instruments (guitar, bass, etc) and also space? (can you tell i’m projecting?) idk if this would be wayy to specific (if it is, totally leave out the last bit!! :) ) and i have no idea where to go from there but ive been dying for some peter x smart!reader sooo.. thank u so much in advance xx

Summary: You and Peter Parker are two of the smartest kids at Midtown High. So why are you both completely clueless at the fact you both have massive crushes on each other?

Words: 1391

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Obviously Midtown was full of students with extraordinary smarts and subsequent extraordinary internships because of it. Naturally, Peter had gotten a lot of attention when word spread that he’d swung (no pun intended) an internship with Tony STARK. The superhero hype around the school was real even months later. And after news broke about aliens visiting earth and all that a couple years ago, every hyper intelligent teenager’s hopes were directed on working with space tech: protection or exploration, it didn’t matter. But that was mainly Tony’s domain now and the world knew it, so Midtown’s students scrambled to find prestigious positions in other areas.

When you got accepted to intern as a research assistant for NASA, you immediately shared the news with a few close friends. And they were, of course, absolutely stoked for you. They were also huge blabbermouths so by the time everyone returned to school that Monday, the entire grade knew. Jealousy emitted from them like the energy of an exploding star. But unlike a star, the only visible evidence were the side-eye glares and slight shaking of the heads in disbelief. If you could read minds, they would be a mix of chatter saying: ‘why does SHE get to work for NASA?’ ‘I’m twice as smart as her—that should be my job’ ‘I bet she paid her way in—they’re not even accepting interns in the middle of the school year’ ‘she’s two years younger than me! I need that internship more than she does!’ Etcetera.

But not everyone was so green. Peter Parker, for example, was over the moon (still no pun intended) when you told him. He was also your number one suspect for blabbing. At least with him and his big mouth, you knew it was from a place of pride rather than an attempt to spread gossip. As if anyone went to Peter Parker for gossip. Maybe that was part of the reason you found him so appealing.

“If they send you to space will you let me know?” He said earnestly. You just laughed.

“I’m doing research, not training to be an astronaut. I don’t have the physical endurance!”

“But you’re smart enough to engineer a spaceship.”

You rolled your eyes. “Not on my own.”

“Still!”

“They’re not sending me to space and I’m not engineering a spaceship for other people to go to space,” you laughed.

“Well what are they not paying you for then?” he pressed.

“I’m joining the student research team that assesses alien remnants from the battle of New York to help find ways to improve our own space technology. NASA’s actually working closely with Mr. Stark on a lot of it--I’m sure he’d tell you more...”

You stopped talking at the awestruck expression on Peter’s face. He leaned forward.

“No way,” he gushed. “Mr. Stark didn’t tell me any of that. Wow, you sounded really smart just then.” He paused, thinking. “This is gonna be awesome for you, y/n!” he beamed, sounding just as enthused as you felt.

“I know!”

“When do you start?”

“Not for a few weeks.”

“Good,” Peter said.

You raised an eyebrow.

“I mean, I--I’m going to miss being able to hang out with you and stuff when you’re off doing space stuff.”

“Well, I won’t actually be in space at any point, so we should be good,” you smiled.

“Well, you’re definitely smart enough to go to space, so when you do eventually end up on a spaceship--” Peter held up a finger to cut off your objections before you could open your mouth. “--You could entertain your fellow astronauts with some tunes.” Peter mimed an air guitar.

“Shut up,” you laughed, swatting at his arm. “I think a theremin would be a better soundtrack for outer space anyway. Acoustic guitars have college-student-on-the-quad vibes.”

“Not when you play.”

“Okay Peter,” you rolled your eyes, flattered but embarrassed by his persistence. “I’ll show up on the first day of my internship with a guitar slung on my back and ask if they’d prefer the sounds of Brian May or John Mayer.”

“Perfect,” Peter said without a hint of sarcasm behind his smile. You blushed.

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After school that day, Peter came by your house as usual so you could work on homework together. You asked him once why he preferred to work at your place—not that you minded whatsoever, but you became curious after picking up on the pattern—and he said because your place was more “stimulating” than his. Stimulating! You had laughed so hard that his confusion had circled around until he worried he’d said something offensive.

“Stimulating? Really?” you had said after composing yourself.

“Well, yeah,” he’d replied. “You have all these cool instruments and your whole room looks like space.”

As you both entered it now, you bypassed the light switch and plugged in the strand of white Christmas lights that encircled the ceiling. Instantly the room was bathed in a soothing glow. You weren’t allowed to paint your walls black ("But it would look so much more like space, mom!”) so you’d ordered four giant tapestries with different galaxies on them and hung one on each wall. A sun-shaped lamp rested on your nightstand. It was one of those sunrise lamps that woke you up by gradually getting brighter in the morning to mimic the elusive wintertime sunrise. Your precious string instruments—an acoustic guitar (Gary) and electric bass (Lily)—stood opposite your bed. You couldn’t think of a better definition of a safe space.

And now school felt like worlds away. Minus the fact Peter was here with you to do homework.

Peter assumed his usual position in the bean bag chair furthest from the door. You collapsed into yours, closest to your instruments. A long ottoman served as a makeshift desk for you both to dump your school materials.

But today you both melted into the cushions without moving to open your backpacks, abandoned at your sides.

Peter--usually a ball of energy that would lead you to believe he was a puppy in a former life--closed his eyes and laid his head back. It had been an especially long week.

Without giving it a second thought, you leaned sideways and removed Gary from its stand. Humming a little, your fingers grazed the guitar strings until the notes strung into the beginning of one of your favorite songs.

After you finished you looked up and spotted Peter watching you. Of course you’d known he was there, but you’d half expected him to drift off before the first chorus. Your face burned.

His forehead creased. “Was that ‘Here Comes The Sun’?”

You lit up. “Yeah! You listen to The Beatles?”

Peter nodded, feeling confident. “John Legend is the best.”

You stifled a giggle. “Yep,” you said. You had an unreasonably strong urge to hug him.

You hesitated, not sure if you wanted to stop playing or continue.

“Can I hear another?” Peter said after a moment, making the decision for you.

“Sure,” you said, suddenly feeling shy. “What do you want to hear?”

“Anything.”

“Okay,” you steadied your breathing. Deciding to stick with the space theme, you strummed the beginning chords to Muse’s ‘Starlight’ and sang along quietly, losing yourself to your music and completely missing the infatuated grin that found its way onto Peter’s face as he got lost in thought:

Not only was he hanging out in the coolest bedroom he’d ever seen, he got to spend it with the coolest and smartest person he knew. He wanted to spend as many hours with you as he could, even though you would probably have a lot less free time once you started the internship. But until then, he would enjoy every moment he could. Like this one.

And who knows, maybe one day space travel would be a regular thing and then you could both hang out on the moon together for real and get away from it all. Peter could listen to you play guitar and sing random songs all day. He might even tell you how he really felt about you once he built up enough courage.

But Peter realized those possibilities were still worlds away. And right now, his world was sitting across from him, humming like a windchime that told him he was home.

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Just one more before bed? Click here for a masterlist of my fics!

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demonsdarling · 5 years ago

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folklore first listen thoughts

the 1: CATCHY from the start. HIT THE GROUND RUNNING sweeter than fiction rights. very sweet heartbreak song. “in my defense i have none” NEVER LEAVING WELL ENOUGH ALONE. i like it a lot, so much metaphor and imagery. i definitely wanna feel this

cardigan: catchy, very much the type of song that would sound good loud in the car at night. “a friend to all is a friend to none, chase two girls lose the one”. i really can’t wait to figure out what this one means. so far this feels very heartbreak heavy, even though i’m only two songs in. “tried to change the ending, peter losing wendy”. obviously young love WHY DO I WANNA FEEL THESE SO BAD. someone better take one for the team and break my heart while i’m still a teenager. someone to make me feel better about myself and then to look back on losing that. wow

the last great american dynasty: rebecca as a character being introduced, i really like the idea here. like gossiping at a wedding like that. “maddest woman this town has ever seen”. i feel like rebecca is a character taylor relates to and put herself into her. TAYLOR BOUGHT THE HOUSE WOW. so it’s about the woman who lived there before her i love that. if i hadn’t lived in my house for my whole life, i’d totally romanticize the people who lived here before.

exile: off the bat reminds me of the last time. i like the film/story/ending theme that continues throughout the album. it really connects it all and i feel very immersed into it. lyrically this song is very beautiful and it just sounds so very good. sounds very red & speak now which i obviously LOVE. also i love that it’s so long. “you’re not my homeland anymore” WOW WOW. so beautiful ily this song

my tears ricochet: sounds very haunting right off the bat. weeping in a sunlit room hurts me so much i just know this will be the best crying song. loveD till my dying day?? is this from the perspective of a dead person STOP that’s heartbreaking. i have chills what the fuck. it’s so BEAUTIFUL “you wear the same jewels i have you to bury me” i said wow out loud like. i have nothing else to say but wow. stolen lullaby <3

mirrorball: sounds very young and sweet. reminds me of starlight for some reason, which i love so much. it sounds like a really sweet first love and learning about the other person and yourself and falling into that and learning from the experience. i might be obsessed with the idea of first love lately, so that’s perfect for me. this is a favorite i love it so much.

SEVEN!: so i claimed this song earlier because i say seven as a response to everything and thought it was funny. but this is a missing childhood anthem, which is so fearless. childhood best friends, this is everything to me. i was worried i wouldn’t love it this much. “just like a folk song, our love will be passed on” PLEASE PICTURE ME IN THE WEEDS BEFORE I LEARN CIVILITY. i’m literally crying. growing up was always my biggest fear, i always want to go back to being little and this wraps it up so well. “passed on like folk songs, our love lasts so long”

august: back to a love song! young love! OH ITS SO SWEET AND HAPPY SOUNDING. kind of an imaginary love, taylor at my age, and i’m inserting myself here because it feels so right. i had a trio of songs on fearless at age 7 and these three songs feels like that again. yeah i’m gonna need a summer romance like i’ve been dreaming of since i was 15. this sounds like every daydream i have about the people i have crushes on and i love that so much. i love relating to taylor so much.

this is me trying: this is so beautiful wow. it has the energy of a sweet and soft version of hygtg but this time taylor is chasing? i think this is one those songs everyone can adapt to their story. “so i got wasted like all my potential”. this one feels so real to me. i really am relating to this one and i might fall apart to this song. second cry of the album.

illicit affairs: I THOUGHT THIS WAS GONNA UPBEAT AND LOVER-ESQUE but it’s a beautiful sweet secret love story. this love here seems crushing and painful. it reminds me a little of 1989 in the vocals i think? which is so cool. i really love the bridge on this one. this love story is so obviously so unique and all-consuming and yet it’s secret at the same time. i fucking love it.

invisible string: of course she says 16 again!!!!! why does she romanticize 16 so much? for me it’s 17. but i’m 19 now. i would dance barefoot in the grass to this one. something pulling two people together like an invisible string no matter how far apart they get. SOULMATE SONG!!!! wow!!! all along we were destined. IT MAKES ME SO HAPPY. the dive bar! something pulled her to him! i love that so much.

mad woman: SHE REALLY DID SAY FUCK YOU FOREVER WHAAT. i went OOH! but this is very ~the man~ and reputation vibes but SOFT and so it feels very taylor, lyrically and emotionally, like this feels like a side of her we’ve seen before but painted in a different light. “women like hunting witches too” “every time you call me crazy i get more crazy” WHY ARE PEOPLE MEAN TO HER I WILL BEAT UP EVERYONE WHO IS MEAN TO HER. there’s no need to tear people down to get to the top.

epiphany: another super long song!! i’m being told betty is incredible and i’m itching to listen to it but this sounds so beautiful. take a shot whenever i say beautiful or wow! this feels like another soulmate song but i hate to be wrong so if i am wrong, don’t mention it. this sounds so very classical and fresh for taylor but also it has such a taste of taylor. something new she’s doing here but her flavor is always there and i love that. only 20 minutes to sleep but you dream of some epiphany 💜💜💜💜

betty: i have high expectations. oh harmonica very folksy sounds very like the beginning. hehe she said fuck again THE SUMMER THING hi august! i suppose this is from the perspective of the other person? i like this very much, i love the idea of young stupid love and first loves. james. james and betty i love them very much. this is like when i make a playlist and say someone should send me these songs. “i’m only 17 i don’t know anything” i just wanna be seventeen again BITCH. SHE SAID CARDIGAN CAR AGAIN i love thattt.

peace: “our coming of age is coming and going” OKAY HIT ME I GUESS? this one is making me feel things. if i could sing, i’d never stop singing this. her fears within her relationship and the chaos her life brings to his. it’s very showing of her love and worries within what seems like a solid relationship.

hoax: what i want to do right now is drive to a literal cliff / scenic overlook and sit in the car and cry to this song. “i am ash to your fire” did she not say that in another song? i don’t remember which. but i hear the struggles she went through in herself and how hard it was to get through, not just on her own but with someone else. i hope taylor is happy and safe in her relationship. in any relationship she enters into, its all i want.

this album was beautiful and lovely and everything i needed and wanted i only cried three? four? times. it’s so stunning and beautiful and i’ve said beautiful way too many times but there’s no other words. it’s incredible. i haven’t felt this much in so long. and if i’m wrong about anything here, never mention it again <3.

i love you, taylor.

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hoshigomi · 5 years ago

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2019 in Takarazuka!

This was my first year of living full time in Japan, and so I got to see more Takarazuka than I would EVER have anticipated would be possible to me. I feel really lucky. Here are my thoughts on this year- I didn’t limit any category to one answer because I wanted to give my respects to everything that caught my heart this year. It gets a little long, but feel free to give it a read!

Favorite Grand Theater musical: My favorite Grand Theatre Musical was Beside the Foggy Elbe, but it was ALSO God of Stars. These shows could not BE more different. Elbe was my favorite show in the way that Yukigumi’s Gaisenmon was one of my favorite shows last year and in the way that Hoshiai is some people’s favorite show. It’s my favorite show maybe EVER in that I cried during every single one of the [redacted #] performances I got to see. I’m not usually a fan of Heavy Serious Show, but this one may be my top favorite show of all time. (Feel free to read my review here- I can not BEGIN to hash out my feelings for this show in this tiny space!) I have literally never seen a show more perfectly suited for the people performing it than God of Stars was to Hoshigumi. It was stomach-ache funny and heart-ache touching and one of the most respectful, brilliant, plays-to-their-strengths, META taidan shows I have EVER seen- for every taidansha, and the upcoming top combi. God of Stars is overflowing with love and humor, and that’s exactly the kind of show that grabs my heart and refuses to let go. Special honors for 2019 go to Soragumi’s Oceans 11 because I love the hell out of that show and Makaze’s Danny, Susshii’s Saul, Seiko’s Queen Diana, Madoka’s Tess, Moeko’s Livingston, and Kazuki Sora’s Linus were specifically my favorite portrayals of those characters that I have ever seen.

Favorite revue: Hands down, the Grand Theatre run of Estrellas. Estrellas felt more like a rock concert than a revue to me at first, and then I learned to put in words that it felt very Chiegumi in a way that I LOVED. This revue flowed like none other, and I have really special personal ties to it as well, it having been Kai’s last revue in Takarazuka. I wanted to list standout numbers, but is it really a “standout number” if I can list like 12? There was so much CONTRAST and so many OPPORTUNITIES and so much, again, LOVE in the whole thing!! The chuuzume? Playful! The white number? Sincere! I cried every time! The pop star medley? OOF! BACK? INCREDIBLE! Starlight Parade? Beautiful! Estrellas was the best revue of the year and this is a category in which I don’t personally believe there was any competition. That said, I want to give special honors to Eclair Brillant for showing a side of Beni’s Hoshigumi that we never really got to see in revues (plus that bolero, which might be the best standalone NUMBER in Takarazuka this year, and the kuroenbi which again, blended personality with crisp blacks and whites and was a MASTERFUL passing of the torch), and Krung Thep which I loved a lot, despite having to see it with a weird flip flopped cast (F for Reiko :( ) Even though I only saw that one once some moments (the boxing number, Sakura generally just kicking ass, the chuzuume, Miya and Tamaki’s duedan) really stuck with me. Music Revolution used Pachelbel’s’ Canon and Neon Outfits in a way that I would never have thought would work, but did, and also featured an INCREDIBLY beautiful taidan number despite it being like, no one’s taidan.

Favorite small theater musical: HONESTLY, against ALL ODDS, Kamatari. I didn’t expect to even LIKE Kamatari, but between the HAUNTING score, the performances by Beni, Airi, Hanagata Hikaru, Seocchi, Kuracchi, and Mikkii SPECIFICALLY, the BEAUTIFUL set, and the touching and volatile relationships between the characters, I was HOOKED. It didn’t need a complicated plot- the character relationships drove everything, and I thought it was absolutely masterful. This one slid under a lot of people’s radars- please give it a look for yourself if you can! Special honors to Mozart, which I don’t think I have to explain, Diamond as Big as the Ritz for looking fun as HELL though I admit I DIDN’T GET TO SEE IT, On The 20th Century (unfortunately forever lost to time but featuring two of the most professional, brilliant lead performances I have ever seen), and On The Town, for being a faithful, loving take on a classic piece of musical theatre that I would have gladly seen more times than I got to.

Favorite numbers: (In no real order)

L’Operap and Bim Bam Boum from Mozart.

石を割って咲く桜 from Mibugishiden, because those voices give me CHILLS.

The Gift and Bolero, (Eclair Brillant’s sexy, sexy chuuzume and INSANE artsy number, respectively.)

Some Other Time from On the Town.

Pop Star/Hoshi Ni Negaiwo/Starlight Parade/Championne/星サギの歌 in Estrellas.

Beer Matsuri (prologue) in Beside The Foggy Elbe.

The title song from God of Stars.

愛した日々に偽りは無い from Oceans 11

We Need Love and Adventure In The Life from Casanova straight up slaps.

I haven’t seen Aquavitae but boy the theme song is catchy.

Favorite lead otokoyaku role: Beni in Beside The Foggy Elbe. I woulda given her the award for God of Stars but her Karl was TRANSFORMATIVE and HEART wrenching. It’s always nice to see someone break out of their comfort zone (or in Beni’s case, the zone that she really just gets the most credit for THRIVING IN), and do something new. Karl shocked me in all the right ways. Beni playing vulnerable? Oof. Special honor to Coto as Mozart because what the fuck how is anyone that talented, Makaze as Danny Ocean (because duh), Tamaki Ryou as Gabey in On the Town because boy does she nail earnest lovesickness, Daimon as Oscar Jaffee (for MUCH the same reason as I loved Beni as Karl), and Daimon as Yoshimura Kanichirou (which yeah I did have to look up his name but boy THAT was also a TRANSFORMATIVE role!)

Favorite lead musumeyaku role: Before me I have two envelopes and one says “Maaya Kiho as Lily Garland” and the other says “Kisaki Airi as Eileen”, and when I open the envelopes they both say “winner.” Maaya Kiho is probably straight up the most talented person in all of Takarazuka right now and I AM prepared to stand by that claim. Lily is very much the lead role in 20th Century, This was a beyond Broadway caliber performance and I would love nothing more than for her to reprise her role everywhere and anywhere. Airi’s Eileen was maybe one of the best musumeyaku roles I’ve ever seen, and she knocked it out of the park with humor, gravitas, earnesty, vulnerability, and skill that comes with being a musumeyaku with That Much Experience under your belt and That Juicy of a role to work with. Special shoutouts to: also Maaya as Christine in Phantom, if that counts as 2019.

Favorite supporting otokoyaku role: Wow, this one is a three way tie. Shocker. One of my greatest regrets though one I can’t really change is that I never got to see Mikkii as Mercutio in RetJ. The good news is that her performance as Fune no Esaka in Kamatari had EXACTLY the same kind of UNHINGED, POWERFUL, DANGEROUS energy that I love about her Mercutio. If you know me you know I can NOT get enough of Tenju Mitsuki onstage, and this role was a BIG, BIG validation of my obsession. Also a MASSIVE role for her. Asami Jun was DISTRESSINGLY NASTY and impressive as Saitou Hajime in Mibugishiden. If she was onstage, it was HARD if not impossible to look away from her. In 2020 I want nothing more than for Aasa to continue clawing her way up the ladder- she’s one of the ones who’s working to earn everything she’s got, and BOY, does she deserve all of it and more. Tobias, lovingly, lovingly, lovingly brought to life by Nanami Hiroki in her final Takarazuka role was an angel, a (quiet) voice of reason on a stage full of fools in Elbe. She didn’t have much stage time, but she imbued every second she did have with everything that got her where she is today. While he wasn’t an attention grabbing character, the subtle work she did with him was beautiful, stable, and warm. (And what a send off.) I was also impressed by and want to shoutout to: Seo Yuria as Nicholas in God of Stars, Hanagata Hikaru as Soga no Iruka (also Kamatari), AKATSUKI CHISEI as Chip in On the Town, Kazuki Sora as Linus in Oceans 11, and Amato Kanon as Johnny in Elbe, who didn’t do a whole lot besides yell, and still made my shoulders SHAKE with laughter every time she ran on.

Favorite supporting musumeyaku role: Hands down, mother fucking Shirayuki Sachika as Hildy in On The Town. Excuse my language but what a brilliant performance, hooooooly shit. BIG bonus shoutouts to: Junya Chitose as Diana in Oceans 11, Shirotae Natsu as Louise Bollinger in Algiers, and Kozakura Honoka (voice of an ANGEL, does THE MOST character work, BEAUTIFUL NUANCED FULL REALIZED stage presence, IN THE MOMENT ALIVE choices) as Aloysia in Mozart.

Favorite up-and-comer (and/or shinko performance if you saw any):

Amato Kanon

and

Amato Kanon

My favorite shinko performance was the God of Stars shinko, led by: Amato Kanon, and my favorite 2020 shinko performance is the Hoshigumi RetJ shinko that I am assuming will also be led by Amato Kanon as Romeo.

Kanon aside, if you like dancers, I urge you to look at Ruri Hanaka in literally anything. Also, if you see any pictures of Yukigumi 105th Tsukise You, please send them to me.

Best Ensemble: Hoshigumi just like in general. I know I say this all the time, but my love for them came from this. Without fail, this troupe turns out ensemble show after ensemble show, and even the things that AREN’T ensemble shows become them because of how every actress milks their background opportunities for all they’re worth. I could write ESSAYS on the shit I’ve seen go on in the backgrounds of their scenes. I could write NOVELS, and I would be doing it for my own pleasure. No matter how you feel about WHAT they do, I think you’d be hard pressed to deny that they’re a very particular sort of group with a really high, warm, messy but intense type of energy about them. It works for me. They dealt with a lot this year, from their top being VOICELESS on a big taidan raku, to a top combi taidan, to a weather canceled top combi maeraku, and carried themselves through it all with grace and love and smiles and intentional positivity. I adore everything they are and everything they mean to me. This troupe got me through a lot this year, and I consider it such a privilege to be so enamored with every one of them.

Someone you gained a new interest in: This year I kept a planner where I had an entire page dedicated to every day this year and on January 2nd I have a little drawing of Yuunagi Ryou’s background sailor outfit from Elbe and the note “I definitely have a crush on her.” Now, 12 months, 3 reijou, 2 ochakai, and two embarrassing half conversations later, I sometimes look at her and go like “oh that one sure is mine now, huh.” She’s lovely. Watching her onstage is a type of fun and intrigue and ??? that I’ve never had with anyone else. I like her scratchy Showa voice. I like when she dances with her floppy hair. I like that she draws herself as a sheep on all her stuff. I like her half smirk and freckles. I think she’s neat. Thanks, Shimo, for making losing My One True Takarazuka Love a little easier on my heart and eyes. To 2020 and beyond. <3

Someone you did a 360 on: MAISORA HITOMI! I have to admit that I was not only not excited for her to transfer over, but also kind of angry when she was announced as Coto’s partner. And then I saw her in God of Stars. And I still wasn’t SOLD. I appreciated what they did with her and Coto, and that they were given chances (and some SAPPY meta lines about building a new future together), but I didn’t GET it. (Though BOY is she a beautiful dancer.) And then the Mozart rehearsal footage started rolling in, and the interviews started rolling in, and she was having FUN and coming into her own and adjusting beautifully, and what surprised me most, really PLAYING with her new partner and troupe. And then I SAW MOZART and I was sold. I saw shonichi and I was a teary bleary MESS by well before their duet dance, and in their duet dance I saw FRIENDS, and I saw two people who were LOVING working with each other. I saw two people having fun. Long story short, her role as Constanze was INCREDIBLE and compelling and it’s INSANE when you realize how YOUNG she is. I can’t WAIT to see where she goes from here. I’ve realized that I wasn’t fair to her at first. I adore her now. In my house? We love and respect Maisora Hitomi. Oh, also Seo Yuria who I’ve realized over the past 12 months that I would not only die for, but also kill for if the need should arise.

Personal biggest headline: Kai taidanned this year. There’s no possible world in which that WOULDN’T BE my biggest headline. They could swap all the tops and make a TMS kid a top musumeyaku and this would still be my big news.. Kai was the person who caught my heart six days into knowing what Takarazuka was and she was just. So perfect to me and for me. The entire experience of getting to be her fan, even for a short time, was a dream. Nothing about it ever felt hard or scary or stressful, and the people I met through her are some of my favorite people in the world to this day. It was a whirlwind of a run and a taidan experience and though I would do it all again if I could in a heartbeat, what we, and what she has now, is beyond I think any of our wildest dreams. I still feel so lucky about her every single day. Runners up include like Beni losing her voice completely during Estrellas senshuuraku (can’t wait for THAT to air on Skystage) and Hoshigumi losing maeraku for Beni/Airi/Mao/Renta/Riran taidan to Typhoon Hagbis (which also evacuated me from my apartment.) They could not catch a BREAK this year.

Favorite (???) random memory or happening:

Aasa Trending on Twitter just because she’s hot.

I don’t LOVE it but the transfers, from Hitoko to Aichan to SEIRA HITOMI??? to Shidou to Ayaki Hikari were all pretty fuckin’ weird.

Shiiran kissing Kai on Star Talk.

Everything Kai did post-taidan.

The time I saw God of Stars and Beni broke so bad she made Airi almost cry trying to stop herself from laughing and then Coto lost it and they got off track two distinct times before Hanagata Hikaru had to step in and start the scene over.

Getting called back at a certain someone’s ochakai because I was so nervous I walked away without shaking her hand.

Kanon’s first shinko lead (mic issues and restarted show and all) left me with a hope for the future and a warmth in my heart that I have never felt before.

Looking at @zukadiary at intermission of Kamatari and realizing that whatever summary was on Takawiki up until that day for that show was WILDLY off, and having to look it up to figure out what the fuck we actually just watched, because it sure wasn’t what I anticipated.

Most looking forward to: Anastasia, which I spoke into existence, and also Hoshigumi’s Romeo et Juliette which you can NOT convince me isn’t going to be Hoshigumi’s second GT.

#takarazuka #tkz #hoshigumi #ill tag them because theyre uh a LOT of this.

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asktheriftwalkers · 6 years ago

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Chronicle; 2 - Traces of Shadows

It’d been a week since the heist.

Iolar couldn’t get the woman in the Rift out of his mind. He’d stayed with Jace for a few days, before heading off to a safehouse to clear his head. It happened to be an old clock tower that long since stopped working. Honestly, the gears and old mechanics calmed him, trying to make them work once more. He could think things through clearly while his hands were moving.

Clad in a plain black tank top that showed all too many of his scars, he kept the cut Jace patched up covered and clean while he worked. After two sleepless nights of work, he finally gave in to his newfound obsession.

Grabbing a sketchbook and a few pens and pencils, he took his time and sketched a portrait of the woman in as clear detail as he could.

The woman had had lightly tanned skin and an angular face. Her jaw was prominent, her face long, her eyes slightly hooded and deep set. Her hair was harder, but long enough to be pinned back in a braided bun. All in all, she was beautiful in her own right, but Iolar wasn’t caring much for her beauty.

What he wanted to know was her identity.

So, he booted up his laptop, hacking into the DMV database to see if he got any matches for his sketch. He received a handful of them, and started scrolling through the potential hits. He didn’t linger long on all too many of them.

But one made him stop short. A woman, with a long, four pronged scar over her right eye, leaving it blinded, but her left eye was a cobalt blue. Her hair was silver, parted to cover some of the scars, but starlight silver despite her young age. Glasses framed her face, but she didn’t wear them when he saw her in the Rift.

Ishani Gloswell.

Iolar stared at her scar, instinctively raising a hand to feel his own facial scars. Over his left eye, deep, four pronged scars were present, cutting from his brow to below his jaw. The memories they brought caused a cold feeling to wash over him, a phantom pain aching in his gauntleted hand and his eye. The origin of the artifact, and what brought the Rift crashing in on him.

He pulled out his phone, speed dialing and holding the phone up to his ear. The moment he heard it picked up, he fidgeted. “Eva. I need to cash in a favor.”

“Eh? Alright, Iolar, what’s up? Is it a job?”

“I need you to help me track someone down.” He tapped his finger against his laptop, staring off into the inner workings of the clock tower. “Her name is Ishani Gloswell.”

“Huh, a woman?” Eva’s curiosity was apparent even over the phone. A curiosity Iolar knew all too well.

“Eva.” He spoke warningly.

She laughed, her smile apparent from her voice. “... Alright, alright, I’ll track her down. Though I gotta ask, what’s the significance?”

“... I think she might be like me.” Iolar stood, wandering to a ladder to get up into the inner workings of the tower, climbing.

“Like you? A thief?”

Iolar rested against a support beam, picking at a large splinter of wood. “... No. I think that- I saw her in the Rift.”

Silence came over the line.

“... Eva?”

She let out a breath. “You’re not kidding, are you? You think she’s a Rift Walker?”

“Yes.”

“... Well then, I’ll see what I can do. I’ll give you a call back when I find something.” She hesitated. “And Iolar? Try and get some rest. I know that tone. When was the last time you slept?”

“....”

“That’s what I thought. Get some sleep, turn up your phone volume, I’ll call you as soon as I have something.”

“... Fine. Call me.” He spoke curtly, hanging up. Letting out a sigh, he ran a hand down his face. He was tired, but nervous energy pricked at him. The thief crawled back down to where he had a hammock hanging above his work space. Turning up his phone volume, he set it down and laid down to try and get some rest. Eva was more than capable. She would find Ishani if she could be found.

-------------------------------------------------------

It didn’t take long before he had a solid lead. Ishani had been rather hard to track down, according to Eva. She only occasionally used her real name, and had a number of aliases. It took some of her connections in the underground to realize that Ishani was a fence of sorts by the name of Shadow, specializing in old artifacts. She bought and sold, but seemed to have an odd liking for things that were completely unidentified when it came to culture or origin.

Between Iolar and Eva, they tracked her down to a safehouse down by a pier. It was a new development, just waiting for new tenants.

“Are you sure you don’t want some backup, brother?” Jace’s voice came over the phone.

Iolar sighed. “Jace, I appreciate it, but no. I don’t want to spook her if I can help it. Besides, don’t you have some end tables or a coffee table to deliver?”

“First of all, it’s a dining room table, and second of all-... you’re already there, aren’t you?”

The thief hung up, slipping his phone in his pocket as he looked at the condo door. Well, here went nothing. Iolar stepped up to knock on the door, straightening.

At first, it was silent, then he heard rustling from inside. Then silence again.

He quirked a brow, glancing around before leaning up and rapping on the door again.

More rustling, before he heard footsteps. The door cracked open, a chain keeping it from opening fully. A cobalt eye narrowed at him in the opening, a silver brow quirking. “... Who are you?”

“... Someone who saw you in the Rift. That half world with the shadows?” He didn’t back down, staring her down.

Ishani blinked, staring at him for a long moment before closing the door. He heard the chain drop, before she opened the door wider. She was shorter than him by a fair bit, wearing plain jeans and a loose, gray shirt. Her silver hair was down, meeting her waist, and seemed a bit mussed.

“... You know about the Rift?”

“I know more than that, Ishani. Or do you prefer Shadow?” He raised his gloved hand, holding it up as he watched her reaction.

She stared at him, her eyes widening a bit. She held up her own hand, a fingerless cloth glove going up her arm, but sharp metallic tips from a gauntlet were at the tips of her fingers, chains connecting to the hidden parts underneath the glove. But it was unmistakably similar to what was on his own hand. “... You’re-... one of them? Someone like me?”

“A Rift Walker? Yes.” Iolar swallowed his nerves, straightening and gesturing to the inside of the condo. “May I come in?”

Ishani grinned. “Yeah, yeah, you can!” She stepped back, giving him space to freely enter as she went further into the condo. “I can’t believe this, another Rift Walker. You have a gauntlet? You can go into the Rift? Have you learned to control the shadows at all? What about ruins, have you found any?”

Iolar felt his mind buzzing a bit from all the questions as he stepped inside, closing the door behind him. “Slow down.” He closed his eyes, rubbing them with his free hand. “... Yes, I have a gauntlet, but- the rest of all that? What are you talking about?”

The woman turned to face him, blinking briefly before chuckling. She tied her hair back into a messy bun, gesturing for Iolar to follow her as she moved to a rather messy table. Iolar narrowed his eyes, examining the contents. There were artifacts on the table, as well as a few open notebooks with a hasty scrawl, and one with slightly neater handwriting, as though compiling the data.

“... What is all this?” Iolar asked, gingerly picking up one of the artifacts, a tablet of sorts.

Ishani smirked, leaning against the table. “Proof that the Rift Walkers existed a long time ago. Proof that we are far from the first of our kind.”

Iolar examined the tablet closer. He could see a faint depiction of a shadow and a humanoid figure, as well as an ancient language he couldn’t quite identify. It was too faded. “... Controlling the shadows?” He questioned quietly.

“That’s what I think.” She folded her arms over her chest, her eyes sparkling a bit. “Hear me out, okay? The Rift Walkers and the shadows have been connected for longer than I can extrapolate. Most are hostile, yes, but have you noticed some seem to be more- curious about us than anything? It reminds me of feral animals, like they could be domesticated.”

“Domesticated?” Iolar turned to stare at her. “You’re insane. They’re a danger, not only to us, but to humanity.”

“Some of them, yes, but so are feral animals. If they’re scared, or hungry.”

The thief shook his head, setting down the tablet carefully before folding his arms over his head. “Okay, say you’re not absolutely insane. How do you find these artifacts?”

“Most of them are in the Rift, some of them I’ve found in the human world.” Ishani shrugged. “I’ve always had a passion for archaeology, and honestly? Seeking out answers to something that no one had even heard of? How could I pass that up?”

Iolar narrowed his eyes. It made sense, despite her- questionable views. From the sounds of it, she spent more time in the Rift than he did. He didn’t envy that.

“Could I see your gauntlet?” Ishani leaned closer, her eyes bright.

Stunned, he recoiled a bit from her as he stared at her. Hesitating for a long moment, Ishani stepped back and and scratched her head with a nervous laugh. “Ah... sorry. I haven’t even asked you your name. I guess I’m just- excited, to meet someone who actually understands what I’ve been studying for so long.”

He let himself breathe again, staring her down with a calculating expression. “... I would be lying to say I’m not interested as well, to meet another Rift Walker.” He held out a hand. “I go by Iolar.”

“Go by- wait. The Iolar?” Ishani blinked, looking up at him. “Like- the legend, Iolar? You’re kidding, right? Everyone I’ve talked to said Iolar was- a group of people.”

“I assure you, I’m Iolar. Though that isn’t to say I don’t have contacts, just as any thief.” Iolar faintly smirked at the reaction.

Ishani chuckled. “Well- wow. I guess that explains a few of the legends of how you escaped from some of the hairier situations. I guess that also explains how you found me.” She smiled a bit, pulling a card from a messenger bag on the table and holding it out. “But just so you don’t have to commit any other major felonies to contact me, here.”

-------------------------------------------------------------

Jace had been concerned when he didn’t hear back from Iolar for a few hours. He did his best to focus on his work, delivering some of his creations to their new owners, but when he drove back to the shop, he couldn’t help but sigh as he slipped in.

“Ey, Jesse, I’m back!” He called, slipping his keys back in his pocket.

“Hey, your friend showed up. He’s in your office.” He heard his friend call back from the inner workings of the shop. Jesse appeared in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe as he dusted off his hands. His hair was held back by a bandana, wearing a tank top and a rolled up flannel, covered in sawdust.

Friend? It had to be either Iolar or Eva. Jace nodded. “Alright, thanks, brother. How’s the dresser set coming along?”

“Slow. I have everything marked out and measured, but some of the mortises are giving me some problems when I’m cutting them.”

“Huh... alrigh’. Well, you can move on to the other cuts if you need to, I’ll come to help out as soon as I can.” He gave a smile, moving to head back into his office. He checked his phone briefly on his way, noticing a text from Eva. He opened it as he slipped into his office.

‘Hear anything from Iolar yet? He seemed really excited to go see that Ishani chick. Well... as excited as he gets.’

Jace glanced up to see Iolar laying down on his couch, plain as day. The carpenter chuckled, shaking his head and quickly typing a response to Eva. ‘He just showed up in my office.’ He sent the text, before glancing to Iolar as he moved to lean against his desk. “... So? How’d it go?”

Iolar looked up. He certainly looked a bit haggard, almost older than usual, his silver-white hair left without a tie and thus hung loosely around his face. His dark skin seemed paler than normal, as though he hadn’t slept in a few days, and even his normally sharp attire of a button up with the sleeves rolled up, suit vest, and professional looking jeans seemed mussed. The thief sighed, running a hand down his face.

“... She’s-... certainly open to the idea of there being other Rift Walkers.”

“That’s a good sign, yeah?” Jace probed, folding his arms over his chest.

“... She thinks the shadows can be tamed. Or at very least coexisted with.” Iolar looked up at him with his sharp, ice blue eye, the other blinded and cloudy since before Jace ever met him. “I don’t like her. But she’s smart, almost ridiculously so. Where I’m a thief and a fighter- she seems to be an archaeologist. A researcher. It’s like she’s studying the Rift, trying to understand it. I’m not-... sure how to think of that.”

Jace blinked, watching Iolar closely. “... So essentially, super smart, but otherwise, your complete opposite?”

The thief stood to pace around Jace’s office, tension in his gait. Jace stayed were he was as Iolar started speaking. “It’s not that I don’t want to understand the Rift, or the shadows, but it’s dangerous. The shadows are hostile, so I tried to limit my exposure. The only thing I knew was that the Rift was dangerous, hostile, so- what was I supposed to do? Be friendly with it?” The more his friend spoke, the more worked up he seemed to get.

“But she seems to spend a lot of time in the Rift. Could that mean she’s crazy? Or at least partially? Should I even trust her?” Iolar turned to face Jace. The carpenter knew his friend rarely showed trace of what he was truly feeling, but the confusion he saw on his friends face seemed genuine.

Jace stepped forward, resting a hand at Iolar’s shoulder. “... Gypsy, you met her once. First impressions are hard, sure, but can you imagine a single person who wouldn’t go a bit nuts from the Rift? Hell, even you have. Or did you choose to become a thief for the nifty aesthetic?”

“Come on, brother. She didn’t attack. If she’s coherent enough to create research that impresses you, she might be a few marbles short, but she’s at least as sane as you.” Jace smiled, watching Iolar’s face scrunch up a bit in irritation. There was a bit of the old prickly thief he knew. “Besides... Iolar, you’ve talked about how you’re the only one of your kind since I’ve known you. You never had a chance to even figure anything out about the Rift Walkers, because you were the only one. Now, you have a chance to change that. Why not take advantage of it?”

Iolar sighed, brushing Jace’s hand off of his shoulder and looking away. “... Jace-....”

“... Go on, you can say it. ‘You’re right, Jace.’ ‘Thank you, Jace.’ ‘You’re such a good friend, Jace.’“ The carpenter teased, smirking. He couldn’t help but prod, shoving his own feelings aside for the moment. His friend needed someone to be strong for the moment.

The thief gave a sharp look, but took a deep breath after a moment, closing his eyes. “... I’ll-... think about it.” He took a step back, running a hand through his hair to get it out of his face. “... I’ll be on my phone if you need me.”

“... Ya gonna get your hair cut soon? Or taking after me now? I bet you could rock a braid.” Jace chuckled.

“Lost my hair tie. And I- don’t know. It’s not too bad with it- longer.” Iolar shrugged, glancing back at Jace as the carpenter pulled a tie off his wrist, from under his watch. He held it out with a smile.

“... Should’ve just asked, brother. Go on, then. Just try and get some rest before I see you next, eh?” Jace offered, watching Iolar take the hair tie and tie his hair back in a low ponytail.

The thief nodded, not quite able to look up at him. “... Thanks, Jace. Really.”

He turned to leave, and Jace was left leaning against his desk. The carpenter sighed deeply, before a chime from his phone caught his attention. Eva. Feeling a little lighter, he pulled out his phone to look at the text.

‘Well, at least he’s alive. Let me know what’s going on when you get a chance, okay?’

Jace smiled a bit, starting to type a text before deleting it, hitting the call button instead. “... Hey, how’re you?”

“Still rolling, how about you? Did Iolar just leave?”

“Right on the nose there, Eva.” Jace chuckled, before letting out a breath. “... Ahh... I’m alright. Gypsy needed a therapy session. He seems pretty uncertain about the whole Ishani debacle.”

“You sound pretty tired.”

“I just wish that Iolar would see a bit further than the end of his own nose sometimes.” Jace admitted, moving to sit in his chair. “... For a genius, he can be really dense.”

Eva laughed a little. “Isn’t that part of being a genius, Jace? Their brains have to be a bit dense so that they can hold all the genius?”

Jace hummed, chuckling. “... Mm, if that’s the case, Iolar’s off the charts. Anyways... how’s England? Enjoying yourself over there with tea time and crumpets?”

“Oh hush. You’ve just never had a good crumpet before.”

“That’s true. Maybe one day you could help me fix that, eh?”

“You’re on.”

#original writing #writing #chronicle #iolar #ishani #jace #eva #iolarprose #jaceprose #aaaaannnnd PART TWO :D #things are gonna take off here soon #ONWARD

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crimsonrevolt · 8 years ago

Photo

Congratulations April you’ve been accepted to Crimson Revolt as Arthur Weasley!

↳ please refer to our character checklist

Arthur is a character that I adore already -- but your application made us fall in love with him all over again. From your reasons for choosing him, to the in character questionnaire, and all the way to your para sample -- you portrayed him with such genuine love and warmth that there is no doubt about the fact that you’ll do him justice. That he’s hung up on the little decisions, that he’s got a little muggle watch that he’s enchanted, that he’d want a magical potion that removes powers from wizards -- they all fit into the character we already know, and expand on them with little quirks and traits that make him utterly unique to you. I know we can’t wait to see him on the dash! *we’ve already messaged about this, but molly and arthur are already married and have kids in this rp, and we’re glad you’re alright with discarding the ship headcanon to reflect that.

application beneath the cut

OUT OF CHARACTER

INTRODUCTION

Hi! I’m April (She/Her), I’m 22 and in the CST Time Zone.

ACTIVITY

Hi! I work full time at an amusement park and have a really wonky schedule, so most of my activity will take place at night. I like to hang out and try to plot with people or reply to new starters if I have the time and energy, but if I don’t I at least try to reply to conversations I’ve already started. So I think that would be about a 6 or 7 out of ten.

TRIGGERS

*removed for privacy

HOW DID YOU FIND US?

My friend is applying for Rita! We’ve both been looking for a RP, specifically HP for me, and she found this one.

WHAT HARRY POTTER CHARACTER DO YOU IDENTIFY WITH MOST?

Neville Longbottom is the character I’ve always identified with most. He was, in the beginning, the underdog. Neville has always been kind of dorky and nerdy. He’s never been the most popular character in the book or the chosen one (Although he was very close to being just that…), but he was important to the story and there was more to him than people realized. He’s extremely loyal and genuine to his friends, which is what I think are some of the most important qualities in life. Neville is also extremely passionate about what he likes. Sure, herbology isn’t the coolest thing a character could be good at, but he owns it. He was the character that taught me it’s important to be genuine no matter what.

ANYTHING ELSE?

IN CHARACTER

DESIRED CHARACTER

Arthur William Septimus Weasley

FACE CLAIM

Josh Dallas

REASON FOR CHOSEN CHARACTER

What draws me to Arthur is his ability to go through hard times and come out on the other side not completely broken. That is not to say that he isn’t affected by war and the side affects of something as terrible as conflict and fighting, however Arthur is the type of person that finds the positive in things. I think that’s an extremely relatable trait right now that I could really tap in to and am excited to explore.

Also, I like Arthur a lot because he’s kind of dorky like me. He doesn’t have the best social skills, but he’s extremely good so I think that draws people to him as long as they don’t care about his blood-traitor status. Which he earned just because he’s a total geek about things. I for one am a huge geek and have a slight obsessive nature when it comes to TV shows and books and movies, so I can totally channel that into Arthur’s muggle love.

Speaking of Arthur’s muggle love, I really just want to explore the beginning of that and how it’s grown since then. It’s funny because I’m a muggle obsessed with wizards and here I am trying to write a wizard obsessed with muggles. Which is kind of cool if you think about it!

I really just love this character because he is unregrettably himself and good and loyal and all the positive things I want to see in myself. At the same time, he’s a little bit of a challenge for me because he wears his feelings on his sleeves. He is affected by the actions happening around him and very empathetic towards other people’s thoughts and feelings. While I am not like that personally, playing someone who’s more sensitive and emotional will be great opportunity for character development.

PREFERRED SHIPS // CHARACTER SEXUALITY // GENDER & PRONOUNS

I mean, I love Molly and Arthur so I would probably go canon with this, but this rp isn’t canon so…

Arthur is not so much focused on getting laid as he is about finding someone to start a family with because that’s something very important to him. He’s a hopeless romantic. Part of him feels like he’s starting to run out of time, but with the tense relations in the Wizarding World he’s worried about starting a family in tumultuous times. If he finds his person though, he will fight for them whole-heartedly and probably not take things slow (Not in a casanova way, but in a “I know she’s the one” kind of way). He’s very loyal and loving, but only after getting to know someone. Arthur is also extremely protective of all loved ones.

He/him pronouns and I don’t think Arthur really labels his sexuality… Prefers women, but almost borderline demisexual due to his obsessive nature and generally awkward personality.

CREATE ONE (OR MORE!) OF THE FOLLOWING FOR YOUR CHARACTER:

- Playlist (A little all over the place like Arthur): https://open.spotify.com/user/hahahahailey/playlist/0aGvYbtppLNHEJEkNf9ueA

- I also decided to dive into his name meaning a little because, as we know, no names are coincidental in the Wizarding World.

Arthur: “Many scholars believe that name comes from the Proto-Celtic arto- meaning “bear,” which later became arth in Welsh. Given that most of the evidence for the name comes from Wales, a Celtic route seems quite obvious. The name was made famous by King Arthurian tales, where Merlin himself comes from!” That being said, I totally see Arthur being this papa bear character, extremely protective of his “cubs” and tough when he needs to be.

William: “From the Germanic name Willahelm, which was composed of the elements wil “will, desire” and helm “helmet, protection”. Saint William of Gellone was an 8th-century cousin of Charlemagne who became a monk.” Arthur has the will to protect his loved ones, so I think that one is pretty obvious.

Septimus: “Means seventh son”. While Arthur is not the 7th son, Septimus is his father’s name. He comes from a huge Wizarding family on both sides and that is important.

IN CHARACTER QUESTIONNAIRE

♔ If you were able to invent one spell, potion, or charm, what would it do, what would you use it for or how would you use it? Feel free to name it:

“I’ve always played around with the idea - what if I didn’t have magic? What would my life be like? And I’ll honestly never know unless I create this potion that temporarily takes away a Witch or Wizard’s magic. Subdues it in some way so that a wizard is unable to tap into their magical reserves. I could also see it being used as a way to teach young children a lesson that magic is something not to be taken advantage of. Or possibly use it to subdue the powers of powerful, evil wizards in prison or other situations. However, I could also see this potion being used by the opposition which… would not be good. In the right hands though, extremely useful and interesting.”

♔ You have to venture deep into the Forbidden Forest one night. Pick one other character and one object (muggle or magical), besides your wand, that you’d want with you:

“Oh, oh… I’ve heard rumors of these muggle objects. They’re goggles and they allow you to see in the dark without any lights. Called a Starlight Scope I believe. One would be able to see people and creatures without them seeing you, which would be extremely useful in the Forbidden Forest. Oh! And I would probably take Alastor. Fellow Gryffindor and a brilliant wizard.”

♔ What kinds of decisions are the most difficult for you to make?

“Surprisingly, I think the small decisions in life are the hardest to make. The big ones, well they’re so big usually you sway one way or the other. The small decisions… What to eat and where to go, they don’t have big ramifications so you don’t really care which way things go. Until the small decisions lead to big changes in life. Then they don’t seem so small anymore… What was the question again?”

♔ What is one thing you would never want said about you?

“Well, people already say quite a lot about me. Terrible things really, but it doesn’t bother me too much. I think one thing I wouldn’t be able to handle is someone close to me saying that they don’t know who I am anymore. That I’ve changed too much. I don’t want to be that for anyone. I want to be able to be someone’s rock.”

WRITING SAMPLE

Flashback!

“Okay, Arthur, you are ready… You are very, very prepared. No reason to be nervous, eh?” Looking down, Arthur adjusted his robes before glancing back up at the grungy mirror in the bathroom of the Ministry. He had arrived about an hour and a half too early for his interview with the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office.

On his wrist was a plain watch with two hands that he had bewitched to vibrate about 15 minutes before his appointment time. It was starting to get warm on his wrist, a side affect of his magic not going just quite right on the muggle object. If he was to give his best guess, Arthur probably had about twenty more minutes to find where he was supposed to go. With one last look in the mirror, he gave himself a nod of encouragement before setting off to find the interview location.

In the hallway, wizards and witches rushed past him a brisk speeds. Everyone seemed to be running late which only heightened his nerves. “Excuse me,” Arthur spoke up, trying to get someone’s attention but it seemed to be no use. He’d start with the elevator then. That seemed to be the most logical point of action. There, after giving the Goblin his intended location, the creature actually chuckled before sending the machine down into the depths of the Ministry of Magic. “Level three. Go down the hallway and turn left. Third door on the right.”

“Thank you. Thank you sir,” Arthur ducked his head before leaping out of the elevator, his briefcase in hand.

Having no where else to go now but forward, Arthur followed the goblin’s instructions and found the office in complete and total upheaval. Papers were scattered everywhere, flying from empty desk to empty desk. There was a coo-coo clock in the corner continuously going off. It was a sensory overload that Arthur hadn’t experience since his time at Hogwarts when some of his friends had set off fireworks in the Gryffindor common Room. “Oh my… Hello? Anyone in here?

“You’re early,” a man observed behind Arthur, making him jump. He hadn’t even heard any approaching footsteps or breathing or any clues of an approaching figure. “But let’s get started. I don’t have much time and we need someone to take over this office. It’s a mess.” The man pushed his way into the office, a disgusted look on his face at the chaos happening inside. So they would be skipping pleasantries today then.

Arthur followed behind the dark-haired, lanky man that seemed to hold some kind of leadership position in the Ministry. “Why, I would love the position and feel very qualified for it. I got “Outstanding” grades in Muggle Studies and Muggle Art and Muggle Music. I also have an interest in muggle objects being bewitched. Not that I’ve done that before!” His hand absentmindedly grazed over his watch. “Was there a question in there or was I just bragging on my own?” Arthur chuckled trying to connect with the other wizard on some level, but the other man seemed extremely disinterested. Feeling on the edge of exasperated, Arthur let out a huff while the Ministry worked waved his wand obviously looking for something. “Do you need help finding the questions you asked the other applicants?”

“Other applicants?” The older man chuckled as a candy bar flew into his hand, “Mr. Weasley, you’re the only applicant. You’ve got the job in this windowless hell for all I care. We just need someone who can confiscate muggle objects that no longer belong in the muggle world. You seem a little overqualified for the job really.” He took a large bite out of the candy bar, chomping on it in Arthur’s face.

“So you won’t be giving me a proper interview?”

“Ain’t that a good thing Mr. Weasley? You’ve got a job! So let’s get you upstairs to sign some paperwork shall we?”

“Well, what if I’m not qualified?” Arthur’s words stopped the other man in his tracks. “I mean, I am. Extremely qualified, really.“ He frowned. “ Look, I have spent time and energy preparing for this interview. I have a lot to say about the muggle world and how I can impact the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office. I have a lot of ideas. So if you would please sit down and ask me a few questions, we can make sure I’m the right person for this job. Not someone who will mess up this office even more.” Arthur waved his hands around the chaotic room.

The other man had the dignity to look almost take aback. Arthur nodded, his light hair bobbing up and down, proud that his Gryffindor traits were shining through in moments even after his time at school was over. “Now, did you see that article in the Daily Prophet on all those Muggles claiming to see a flying car? Because I have some ideas…”

#arthur weasley #hp rp #lsrpg #marauders rp #marauders era rp #accepted app

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grimdarkandhandsome · 8 years ago

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WORK PLACEMENT ON EXTREMIS A

... Doors inlaid with glowing lines, snaking thru symmetrical grooves ...

... Magno-locked safeboxes, cryptovaults, nested tombs ...

* * *

Extremis was, admittedly, a pretty cool planet. I mean moon. It was one of Chancellor Chyraxias's creations, designed a few years before they decided to ban this sort of thing. Basically, Extremis was once a normal grey airless moon, but Chyraxias's studio seeded it with self-reproducing machines that tunnel. These machines - Pandoricans - ate regolith and starlight and dug deeper and deeper hives and corridors, until they had grown into a colony too extensive for anyone to exterminate. The machines grew hive soldiers that defended against aggressors, and gleaming alien vaults for unknown computations. But their ambitions never grew beyond Extremis's surface. It became like a garden of fighting. A place you could, if armed, go and just explore, or just kick ass until you got your issues out of your system. We (me, Lysa, and Peri) got an internship at an outpost there in our last year before graduating the Academy. Unfortunately, while beautifully crafted, Extremis was nowhere near as popular as the newer and flashier Beveled Plains on Elysium I. In fact, that winter, Extremis was so unpopular that we were the only humans stationed in that entire hemisphere of the moon. It definitely got a little lonely.

* * *

I once got stuck in one of the cryptovaults for like an hour during haul duty. This would really have been fine, except someone had left a box of cyberpuppies in there too, and they really were asking for attention. The ones we were testing on Extremis A were totally useless in our robosynergy tests, but they were very curious about all things informational. At that time they were gravitating to language, but they didn't really have the attention span to talk properly. I thought I was alone (i was sitting against the wall, sighing) until I heard a shuffling sound from inside the crate. I had already powered up my flash pistol and fallen into a combat stance when the lid popped open and a metallic shape flopped clumsily over the edge.

<Minimizing fish!> it chirped, trying to get to its feet.

* * *

One of those nights on Extremis A I was going up the lift to check on the solar collectors. The alarm light had actually been flashing for hours; I just hadn't really felt up to dealing with anything stressful that day. I spent most of it just staying in my bunk and playing this dumb little RPG I found. Anyway, eventually I got up and pulled on my voidsuit, and up on the surface I did that surprised-dog-head-swivel reaction because sitting on top of the hangar was Peri. It was very weird to see her there because, well, I thought of the surface as _my_ place. I knew this was an illusion, because presumably all three of us saw the surface as our own secret introvert refuge, but it was a hard viewpoint to shake. We only ever came out here for deliveries and to take out the trash, so I used to think of the hard bright stars as _my_ stars.

Now Peri was here looking up at them, her mind clearly in a whole different spiral arm. I guess it made sense that she'd spend time here. She always needed nature to regenerate herself mentally, and I guess these stars were the only nature around on Extremis.

I pretended to care about the solar collectors for an awkward few minutes, but it was just one of those not-quite-talking rituals we participated in at that age. I couldn't focus on the error messages to understand if it was worth doing anything about them anyway. Eventually I gave up and moon-bounced over toward her.

She hadn't moved. She was so quiet those days that it kindof intimidated me. It was hard to approach her, anyway. I mean, I _got_ it, I stared at the stars too. I didn't feel like she was in a world I couldn't access. But it was hard to bring up topics like pickup lasertag, you know, when she looked at you with that Ineffable Star Vampire expression on her face.

I scaled the side of the hangar in the low gravity. Peri, despite what I just said a second ago, turned to look at me instantly and smiled. She said something that seemed cheerful, but we weren't on the same comms channel so I just saw her lips move behind her faceplate. I tapped a button in my wrist menu.

"Sorry, what was that?"

"You're getting pretty good at it," said Peri.

"Good at what?"

"At the wallrunning."

"Oh. I guess. You pick it up, you know."

* * *

After a while I realized we were sitting staring at the sky without saying anything. I had been feeling antsy around Peri a lot recently, and it surprised me a little that we could still slip into a comfortable silence like we used to.

"Maybe you should try on a 2J harness."

I lay down next to her with a sigh. A 2J harness was a piece of mobility gear with thrusters that let you get an extra burst of lift while in the air. People used them for dodging bombs and javelins and stuff.

"I'm not a Light, P. I'm a Medium. I wear a strength exoskeleton."

"Yes, but it's not like you have a lot of heavy armor. Energy shielding doesn't weigh anything."

I rolled my eyes. "Perihelion Yamaguchi, you're doing your thing."

She laughed. "Am I? What, am I forgetting something obvious?"

"No. You're coming down from the clouds."

She put her hand on my shoulder. "Okay. Sorry, I'll stop."

She did, too. She lay down, breathing deeply, and adjusted the optics on her faceplate. Probably zooming in on the stars. Her legs made a 45° angle with mine.

We drifted into silence again. It really was the most annoying thing. Whenever she came suddenly out of a deep reverie she always overdid the whole _physical reality_ premise. She knew her head was still half in the imaginary world, but she overcompensated and talked to us in a really dumbed down, condescending way.

Restless, feeling like I had nowhere to relax, I sat up again.

"Okay, I know I'm being a grouch. I guess I'm doing a thing too."

"Hannah has a thing as well?" I could hear the smile over the commlink. "Hmm ... hunching her shoulders even tho she's among friends?"

"Ha, well. Yeah, I don't have to be so sour. I'll try to warm up a bit."

"Yay! Good Hannah."

I kicked her boot. "So what are you daydreaming about?"

"Day? Oh." She spotted the sun, small and white in the black sky. "Yeah, I guess it is daytime. Well, I was just talking to the planets I haven't been to."

"Oh, the ones you _haven't_ been to this time."

"Oh right, I told you about that! Yes, I'm very curious about the worlds I haven't seen."

"Are they resentful at all? I mean, do they rebuff you as a foreigner?" It was easy to slip back into Peri-mode, even tho I had been grinding my teeth about her the night before.

"Ha! No, not at all! I mean, they're a little ... stony. They're not like people. For example, I was talking to Vega VI."

"Oh, I see, Vega VI."

Vega VI was an ice planet most famous for low-end hyperskiing resorts.

"Yeah. It's a methane-sea terrestrial, so it has a mind kindof like ... like an abominable snowperson."

"Abominable snowpeople aren't real. They're from video games. Also, I don't know what their minds are like."

"Okay well you know. They mostly meditate but are capable of great disapproval."

"That's not _you know_. That is definitely not common knowledge."

"Well, they're like that. And so is Vega VI. It's focusing on its capital city right now, but there are things it disapproves of, deep down."

"And what is the capital of Vega VI?"

"I don't know."

"You didn't ask?"

"The planet doesn't speak human language."

"Oh. Well that makes sense, actually."

"The things it disapproves of are, like, the negative spaces between its humans."

"Like the humans are too distant from each other?"

"No, the opposite! The humans are not physically distant _enough_ from each other! Vega kept asking me to brainstorm how to achieve this."

"That, um. I don't ... what did you say back?"

"Honestly, I dodged the question," said Peri conspiratorily. "Planets say pretty weird things."

Peri had actually been tested for psychic sensitivity back before I met her, but it came back negative. Lysa thinks the test was wrong, but I don't see it that way. Peri just knows things that everyone can know. Sometimes her perspective made more sense than this dumb Normal Life thing I kept trying to do. It confused me a lot. How do people break out of obsessions? How do people find out what they want?

#sunlight #writing #fanfiction #creative writing #pandorican #bravo squad #scifi #short story

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