#3 AM gotcha' famous

[totallytoby404]

doodle

[kimkaelyn]

Ditto [s. todoroki]

𝒮𝓉𝒶𝓎 𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓂𝒾𝒹𝒹𝓁𝑒, 𝐿𝒾𝓀𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒶 𝓁𝒾𝓉𝓉𝓁𝑒, 𝒟𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝓌𝒶𝓃𝓉 𝓃𝑜 𝓇𝒾𝒹𝒹𝓁𝑒, 𝒮𝒶𝓎 𝒾𝓉, 𝓈𝒶𝓎 𝒾𝓉 𝒷𝒶𝒸𝓀, 𝑜𝒽 𝓈𝒶𝓎 𝒾𝓉 𝒹𝒾𝓉𝓉𝑜 — 𝒟𝒾𝓉𝓉𝑜, 𝒩𝑒𝓌𝒥𝑒𝒶𝓃𝓈

→ summary: when you transferred to U.A., you didn't anticipate slipping on a pair of chopsticks in the middle of the crowded cafeteria during your first week. however, what was more surprising was the unexpected fall for the boy who gracefully caught you.

→ pairing: shouto todoroki x fem!reader

→ genre: fluff, strangers to friends to lovers

→ word count: 13.1k

→ warnings & tags: sfw, female pronouns are used, usage of y/n l/n, Class 1-A are now third-year students aka 18+, swearing, the usual U.A. chaos, reader has a Quirk, misunderstandings, some training violence, minor injuries, mentions and discussions of insecurities, aizawa briefly belittles the reader as a form of motivation, beginnings of a panic attack but it's cut short, there is one instance of the reader appearing to be ‘flushed’ in regards to a fever, since this is my first bnha fic some characters might be ooc? | please kindly let me know if I missed any tags!

→ author's note: AHHHH HERE IT IS! I've been working on this for almost a year now and I am so excited to finally share it with all of you. Honestly, I didn't think I would ever finish this story, but I kept slowly chipping away at it thanks in part to the encouragement from @andypantsx3, @missrosegold, and @getstarried. Special thanks to @pikatsum for beta-reading this for me! Thank you girls. This is for you🫶🏻

The cafeteria at U.A. High School was a pretty chaotic environment, you quickly learned within your first week after transferring from another Hero Course in the countryside. There were multiple things that could and would happen after the famous students had gotten some much-needed nutrients in their systems.

It was only three days into the school year and nothing had happened just yet, but in the U.A. world, that something was overdue.

The first chaotic event of the year that everyone had been anxiously—or in some cases, excitingly—waiting for happened on Thursday.

The day started off average; you got to school with three minutes to spare, which was a new record, but you had forgotten your pencil pouch in your dorm room, so you had to borrow some pencils from a girl who sat in front of you; Mina Ashido.

“Thank you,” you whispered as you took the pastel pink utensil from her. There was even a cute little fluffy puffball at the end in exchange for an eraser. Good thing you had an eraser in your bag.

“No problem! I gotcha!” She physically lit up and gave you a bright smile before turning back to focus on the blackboard.

You somehow managed to get through your morning classes running on the four hours of sleep you got the night before. You were cutting it quite close to passing out at your desk during calculus class, but you were saved by the lunch bell.

As soon as you stepped foot into the hallway, you were wrapped up in the faint, delicious scent of your favorite food coming from the cafeteria. Your mouth instantly watered, and you made a mad dash for the source of the delicious scent.

“Hey!” a sharp voice made you freeze in your steps. You glanced over your shoulder to find Tenya Iida, Class 3-A’s representative, glaring at you. The light reflecting off his glasses made him appear more threatening than he really was, but regardless, you still found yourself shying away from his harsh glare and rapid-moving hands. As they passed by, some students gave you apologetic smiles while others were not shy about openly staring at the scene before them, wondering what you possibly could have done to induce the wrath of the student representative. “There is to be no running in the halls!” You cowered some more at his brisk and overly formal tone.

Geez, what a stuck-up, you thought to yourself.

“My apologies, Iida.” You respond with a bow. He accepted your apology with a curt nod before he continued on his way to the cafeteria.

You waited for him to pass before rising from your bow. “Wow, he makes it feel like I broke the law or something.” You mused aloud.

“Don’t take it personally,” a comforting voice said from behind you. You turned to find Momo Yaoyorozu, Ochako Uraraka, and Tsuyu Asui standing before you. Ochako gave you a slight wave in greeting. “Iida can be quite demanding,” Yaoyorozu reassured you.

“Thank you.”

Tsuyu regarded you with gentle onyx eyes. “It’s L/N, right?”

You smiled, happy that she remembered your name from roll call. “Y-yeah! I’m Y/N L/N.” You introduced yourself. “I, um, already know who you guys are.” You suddenly felt shy, and you bashfully rubbed the back of your neck out of nervous habit.

Before your transfer was finalized, you did extensive research into your future school’s history and future classmates. Thankfully—or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it—a lot of information is public knowledge; the various attacks on the school in the year leading up to and the conclusion of the War between the Paranormal Liberation Front and the Heroes, not to mention the various televised sports festivals, and the fact that the members of Class 1-A are practically household names even before their graduation.

The girls invited you to sit with them in the cafeteria. You had been keeping to yourself the first few days of school, choosing to observe from afar the already established social circles and friend groups. You had waited for an invitation to join one of said groups, and here was your opportunity.

The four of you made small talk as you made your way through the lunch line and to the table. Right away, Asui told you to call her by her given name. You told them about your life growing up in the countryside—with you and Uraraka bonding over your shared reason for becoming Pro Heroes—about the friends you had, embarrassingly funny stories from your junior high days, and eventually what led you to transfer to U.A.

“Well, this is the best Hero Course in the country!” you all laughed. “But to be frank, the only teacher at my old academy who could handle my Quirk retired, and none of the other academies within the prefecture had the resources to help me advance. Plus, my mentor is an U.A. alumnus, so naturally, the only other choice was U.A.”

Yaoyorozu hummed. “It is a shame about your mentor retiring, but that is what led you to transfer to U.A., and for that, I am grateful.” The class vice representative regarded you kindly. “I am a firm believer of things happening for a reason, and your transfer doesn’t change that.”

Uraraka nodded her agreement. “Momo’s right. U.A. is a place where anybody can make a difference, and I think you will find success here.”

You were rendered speechless. The tips of your ears turned red as your classmates regarded you with so much hope and sincerity in their eyes. “Uh . . . I,” you bashfully scratched the back of your head. Not knowing how to respond, you instead reached for the small bottle of milk on your lunch tray and brought it to your lips.

However, before you could take a sip, a BOOM erupted from the front of the cafeteria, accompanied by a gruff voice yelling, “Don’t walk in front of me, Icy-Hot!” You reflexively jolted at the loud noises and lost your grip on the glass, spilling the half-full bottle all over the front of your uniform.

“Shit,” you exclaimed as you instinctually rose from your seat, only to quickly sit down again when the liquid started to fall to the floor. The girls gasped and were quick to hand you all the napkins in the vicinity.

“Are you okay, Y/N?” Asui asked as she watched you pat down your sodden skirt.

“Yeah, I’m okay.” You waved off her concern as you continued to wipe away the remaining liquid. The napkins managed to soak up most of it, but your skirt was still damp. If you didn’t change skirts, you were going to smell of milk for the rest of the day, and you didn’t want to start off the school year with a reputation for smelling vile. “I’m going to go back to the dorm really quickly and change into a clean uniform. Please let Mr. Snipe know that I will be late for class.”

“Do you want us to accompany you?” Yaoyorozu asked. She began to rise from her seat, but you stopped her.

“No, no. I’m okay, really.” You gave her what you hoped to be a reassuring grin instead of a grimace. “Thank you for offering, Yaoyorozu, but I’ll be fine.” Before your classmates could respond, you stood from the table and made your way to the exit.

Great, this is just great, you thought as you walked, not really paying attention to where you were going. As soon as I make some friends, I make a fool of myself.

Unbeknownst to you, there was an obstacle in the aisle directly ahead. You were too distracted by your growing inner turmoil to notice the pair of metal chopsticks lying on the ground before you until your foot made contact and slipped out from under you.

It all happened so fast that you couldn’t even react.

Time froze as you became weightless, and you felt your body become briefly suspended in the air. Before you could react and rotate your body to prevent yourself from violently banging your head on the tiled floor, gravity took hold and yanked you back down toward the ground. You squeezed your eyes shut, not wanting to witness your classmates’ reactions to your misfortune.

Great, now I’m gonna embarrass myself in front of the entire school. Fuck you, chopsticks.

You prepared yourself for the pain of hitting the hard floor but were shocked when you were suddenly wrapped in a chilled warmth. You did slam into a hard surface, but this didn’t feel like the cold tile you expected.

“Are you all right?” a voice asked from above. You opened your eyes, only to find yourself captivated by a beautiful graphite and turquoise gaze. Your mouth opened to respond to the inquiry, but you couldn’t speak. This strange yet calming gaze hypnotized you, causing the rest of the world to fade into a buzzing silence. You watched as the perfect eyebrows of the owner of those magical eyes furrowed downward at your prolonged silence, the action momentarily drawing your attention.

With your attention span no longer zeroed in on the heterochromatic gaze, the world around you suddenly slammed back into your senses at full force. The volume of your fellow classmates’ conversations was deafening at first, but your ears grew accustomed once again to zone them out and focus on the person before you.

It took about thirty seconds for the entirety of your current predicament to register within your brain.

You were hanging about ten centimeters off the ground. The only thing keeping you upright and injury-free was Shouto Todoroki’s firm grip on your wrist.

“Um, hello?” the dual-haired teenager once again drew your attention to him. His grip slightly tightened before he tugged you up onto your feet.

“I think you broke her, Icy-Hot.” A rough voice drawled from your peripheral.

The intrusion of the other voice is what finally brought you out of your stunned silence. “No, I’m okay. Not broken.”

“Did you hit your head?” Todoroki inquired. He steadied you on your feet but didn’t release your wrist from his hold. Katsuki Bakugou was standing off to the side, trying to appear like he wasn’t involved with either one of you.

“I-I don’t think so.” As you reached down to brush yourself off, you caught a whiff of the unflattering scent of old milk emitting from your clothes. You held back your gag and turned to face Todoroki and Bakugou. “I’m sorry to rush, but I really do need to go.” You gave a quick bow. “Thank you for catching me, Todoroki. Bye!”

The two boys watched you sprint away like a bat out of hell. “T’fuck is her problem,” Bakugou muttered. “Fuckin’ extra makin’ me late for lunch.”

Todoroki didn’t respond to his classmate’s remarks. His lips pursed together as he watched you nearly run into a couple of first years before you disappeared around a corner, out of sight.

“Don’ even think ‘bout it, Icy-Hot.” Bakugou drawled from beside him. Todoroki cocked an eyebrow, the only sign of emotion on his otherwise indifferent expression. “Gettin’ involved with ‘hat extra will ruin your precious bloodline.”

You tried to forget about the cafeteria incident, but the embarrassing ordeal refused to secede from the forefront of your mind. As you lay in bed that night, your thoughts ran a hundred kilometers a minute, antagonizing and overanalyzing every second of what had happened.

As the night dragged on, your thoughts shifted from the overall event to one single individual: Shouto Todoroki. You knew who he was, of course. You didn’t grow up underneath a rock. Yet, you weren’t prepared for how much more handsome he was in person than on the news or in photos.

You overanalyzed everything he did in the brief two minutes you were blessed to be in his company, every word he said, and every brief flash of emotion that showed in his heterochromatic eyes. Todoroki had tried to approach you after training in Ground Beta once you had returned from the dorms, but you avoided him, not wanting to face him again so soon after the embarrassing first meeting.

By Sunday, you had begun to forget about your embarrassing cafeteria incident. Your newfound friends didn’t bring up the spilled milk, and thankfully, they didn’t see you slip on the chopsticks and fall into Shouto Todoroki’s muscular arms. You breathed a sigh of relief when you found out that last part. You didn’t want them to think you were a total klutz.

Todoroki may think otherwise.

As you were rounding the corner to walk back up the stairs to head back to your dorm room, Todoroki happened to be walking down. You both turned at the same time and walked straight into each other.

He wasn’t fazed by the sudden collision; however, you were taken completely off guard. No matter how strong you may be, suddenly walking into about a hundred kilos of pure muscle would make anyone stumble. While he remained steadily standing, you, on the other hand, fell back onto your ass.

It took about three seconds for the two of you to comprehend what the hell had just happened. You groaned out when pain flashed across your backside.

“My apologies, I did not see you.” Todoroki said as he offered you a hand. You begrudgingly accepted his assistance, face heating as your super handsome classmate helped you to your feet for the second time in a week.

“Thank you,” you bowed your head to him. You brushed away some dust from your sweatpants, finding yourself too shy to look back up.

You felt a firm, yet gentle hand land on your shoulder. You jerked your head upwards to meet Todoroki’s captivating gaze. “Are you injured?” His heterochromatic eyes searched you for any injury, and they glimmered with relief when he found none.

“No, I’m okay,” you reassured the male. “I may be a little bruised in the morning, but I will be fine.” Not to mention my bruised ego.

Todoroki hummed in acknowledgment, his hand still resting on your shoulder. His eyes were hyper-fixated on you, leaving you to feel bare under his intense gaze.

You shifted your weight back and forth as the silence between you dragged on for a couple more seconds. “Um, I—” You cleared your throat. “I should be on my way now. Got things to study, you know.” You told him with an awkward laugh.

You moved to step around him when it became obvious he wasn’t going to move. Your movements are what must have shaken him out of his stupor, with him bashfully stepping to the side to allow you access to the stairway.

“Right.” He said as you walked by. “Take care, Y/N.” You startled at his sudden usage of your given name, but nevertheless, you felt oddly relieved. You smiled shyly and bid him goodbye. Nothing else was said between the two of you, but you felt his eyes on you as you walked up the stairs.

I hope he likes cinnamon; you thought as you peered into the oven.

To be fair, you should have considered that before laboring for over two hours making kinako cinnamon cookies from scratch—which absolutely failed. Therefore, as a last resort, you were forced to run to the store and buy a box mix.

The he in question?

Shouto Todoroki.

It had been several days since your embarrassing first interaction with the dual-haired male and forty-five hours since your second, literal, run-in—not that you were keeping track, of course.

You wanted to do something nice for him as a way to apologize for your newfound clumsiness and thank him for his assistance in both instances. Your calligraphy skills were not . . . up to par, so to say, by any means, so a handmade thank-you card was off the table, and you highly doubt Todoroki was a flower guy. Not to mention his affluent background, so buying him a gift or offering to take him out to dinner was null—and way too straightforward for two people who were barely even acquaintances.

Therefore, you were left with only one option: homemade cookies.

Besides, all the old aunties back home always said the quickest way to win anyone over was through food.

“Ooooh, something smells amazing!” someone exclaimed from the stairway. Smiling slyly to yourself, you turned away from the oven to the new arrival.

You hadn’t interacted much with Rikido Sato save for the casual good morning greetings and thanking him for the delicious red velvet cupcake he baked for you as a welcoming gift to U.A.

“Thanks,” you said, grinning at the male.

The combined low mutterings of more approaching classmates brought your and Sato’s attention to the doorway where Mina Ashido, Eijirou Kirishima, Denki Kaminari, and Hanta Sero were entering the dorm.

“Woah something smells fantastic!” Kaminari said, gazing into the kitchen in hopes of spotting the source of the delicious scent.

“Yeah, it does!” Kirishima agreed.

“Oh my gosh, what is it?” Ashido asked as she walked over. Her eyes lit up when she spotted you. “L/N! Did you make something?”

“I did.” You confirmed with a slight nod. “I’m making kinako cinnamon cookies.”

“Oooooh, yummy!” the pinkette exclaimed as she bounced over to peer into the oven. Your other classmates quickly joined her, all of them staring into the soft, golden light of the oven with stars in their eyes.

“They look so good!” Kaminari was practically drooling at the tawny treats. At that moment, the timer went off with a soft ting! You politely shooed your classmates back as you pulled a hand towel over your hands.

“Step back, everyone,” you warned as you opened the oven door. “They’re going to be hot.” You carefully reached in and grabbed the cooking tray, cautiously sliding it off the rack and fully into your cloth-covered hands. Despite taking precautions, you hissed as the hot aluminum seeped through the towel and made contact with your flesh. As quickly as you could without dropping the pan of cookies, you turned and set it down on the kitchen island.

“These look delicious!”

“Woah, man, they look amazing!”

“I bet they taste as scrumptious as they lo—”

You zoned out the boys’ compliments as you moved to the sink and turned on the tap.

“L/N, are you okay?” Ashido asked as she followed you. Her question caught the other's attention, and they, too, turned to watch you quizzingly.

“Yes, I’m fine.” Your response ended with a wince as your skin made contact with the cool water.

“Here, let me see,” Ashido gestured to your hand. With your permission, she took your wrist with gentle fingers and held it up for you both to inspect. Your skin was reddened slightly, but it wasn’t anything serious. You let out a sigh of relief. “It’s not serious, thankfully, but we should still put some burn cream on it just in case,” Ashido advised as she turned off the tap.

You nodded your head again and followed the pink-haired girl as she went to retrieve the first-aid kit. Before you walked too far from the kitchen, you shouted over your shoulder to your classmates, “Please don’t eat the cookies, boys! They are still hot and are for someone special!”

There was a noticeable delay in response to your warning. After a pregnant pause, there was a muffled, “okamph!” in response. You were about to turn around and make sure that they weren’t eating your treats, but Ashido calling your name changed your plans.

“Let’s fix you up, yeah?” She said as you both entered the girls' bathroom. Ashido gestured for you to sit on the counter while she dug through the first-aid kit for burn cream.

“Thank you, Ashido,” you said a few moments later as she lightly applied the cream to the worst of the reddening. Your skin wasn’t blistering, which was a good sign, but it was beginning to ache.

“No problem,” she replied. She began to gently rub the cream into your skin, mindful of the sore spots. She beamed at you as she said, “And you can just call me Mina. We are friends!”

You smiled at her. “Okay, Mina.” The two of you were silent for a couple of minutes as Mina continued to dress your burns.

“So,” she started, breaking the silence. “Who did you make the cookies for?”

You sharply inhaled. “W-what? What do you mean?” You tried to play it off by playing dumb, but Mina gave you an are you kidding me look.

“Don’t play that game with me, girl.” She scolded you. “So, tell me, who is this ‘special someone’?”

You let out a heavy sigh, dropping your shoulders in defeat. “One of our classmates. . .” You trailed off, turning away from the pinkette, and absentmindedly twirling a strand of hair around your finger.

Mina’s eyes lit up and her eyebrows shot up to her hairline. “Oh my God, seriously?!?” She squealed. You turned to face her again. “Girl, you absolutely gotta tell me! Who is it?!” She went to grab ahold of your hands but stopped herself when she remembered your injury. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” You said. “But, um, I—” You hesitated, searching for the right words, but you couldn’t find them. “I’m sorry, but I can’t.” You said, barely above a whisper, turning away from your classmate once more in embarrassment.

Mina leaned back, taken by surprise by your change of tone. She studied you for a few seconds, her expression falling when she saw the look on your face; the clenching of your jaw.

“It’s okay, girl,” she reassured you. She set the roll of bandages down on the counter as she finished wrapping your hand. “You don’t have to tell me who your crush is if you don’t want to.”

You whipped back around to face her, eyes wide. “C-crush?!” you stammered out. “W-what?! I don’t have a crush! I never said I did.” you explained.

“Yeah, sure,” Mina smirked at you, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “You wouldn’t of baked cookies for them if you didn’t like them.”

“Um, because I’m nice?” you asked with a lilt in your voice. Mina does have a point, though, you thought.

Mina laughed. “Yeah, sure. Let’s go with that.”

A couple of minutes later, you and the pinkette exited the bathroom, laughing over something Mina had said. Your hand had been expertly wrapped and treated with some burn cream. Your injury didn’t even hurt anymore, but you were still going to check in tomorrow with Recovery Girl as a precaution.

As you rounded the corner to go back into the kitchen, you stopped dead in your tracks as your eyes fell to the now-empty pan where twenty cookies sat not even ten minutes ago. Mina stopped next to you, and you could see her giving you a questionable look, but you didn’t—couldn’t—acknowledge her. You just stared blankly at the pan, trying to process what you were seeing.

What the hell? you thought.

“Ah, man,” a voice drawled out. You slowly turned towards the source; Denki Kaminari. He was lounging against the counter as he rubbed his stomach for emphasis. “Those cinnamon kinako cookies were delicious!” Your brain blanked out when you heard that, the organ pathetically trying to comprehend and respond to the current situation.

“You’re telling me!” Kirishima piped up from beside the blond. Sero and Sato voiced their agreement from where they were seated on the couches. “They really hit the spot after the day I had.” The redhead noticed you and Mina. “Hey, guys, welcome back!” he greeted with a wave, a broad smile overtaking his features. “How’s your hand?”

You did not formulate an answer right away, your brain still processing the crumbled remains of your cookies. Your delay didn’t go unnoticed by the others, but before they could question it, Mina came to your rescue.

“It’s okay! Y/N is alright, nothing major.” She informed them. Kirishima’s gaze left you to focus on the pinkette by your side, but Kaminari’s remained transfixed on your blank expression.

“Oh, well, that’s great to hear! I was worried—”

“But you should be ashamed!” Mina cut the redhead off, tone sharp as a blade. “All of you.”

“What—?”

“Mina, why—?”

Kirishima and Kaminari spoke at once, their voices clashing, but the pinkette interrupted them once more.

“Y/N didn’t make those cookies for you.” She said. “She made them for someone special, yet you guys ate them even after she told you not to.” She just about bit the last part out. The boys gaped at Mina, her scolding catching them by surprise.

“Is that true?” Sato asked, rising from the couch to approach you. Everyone fixated their attention on you, waiting for a response.

You hesitated at the sudden limelight, and also in shyness. When you originally set out to bake the kinako cookies for Todoroki, you didn’t expect them to 1.) burn your hand and 2.) for them to be eaten by others. Even though you were upset, you didn’t want the others to be ashamed or scolded. But they did eat them after I told them not to, you thought, pondering your next move.

After a few moments, you squared your shoulders and steadily said, “Yes. I . . . made them for somebody.” At your words, the room’s atmosphere soured. The boys’ shoulders slumped as they realized their mistake.

“Shoot, L/N, I’m sorry,” Kaminari said, stepping forward to gently grab your uninjured hand and bow.

“Yeah,” Kirishima added, scratching the back of his neck and looking away slightly. “That wasn’t really manly of us.”

“Yeah, sorry,” Sero intoned, looking sheepish.

Sato came to stand in front of you next to Kaminari, who still had a gentle hold of your hand. “I’ll be more than happy to remake the cookies for you.” He said. “If you want that, of course.”

You smiled, though it was closed-lipped. “Thank you, Sato, but not today.” He bowed his head.

Suddenly, the front doors slammed open, startling the six of you. You all watched, shell-shacked—you did, at least—as a fuming Bakugou stepped inside, loudly exclaiming, “I had ‘hat dumbass villain handled! Damn Sidekick extra jus’ had to step ‘n and—” He noticed your little group gaping at him. “The hell ‘re ya fools lookin’ at?” As the words left his mouth, the other two members of the infamous U.A. trio entered as well.

“Kacchan,” Izuku Midoriya said, trying to placate the explosive male. “He was just trying to . . .” The rest of his sentence fizzled into the background as the entirety of your attention span landed on Shouto Todoroki.

It had already been well-established that the youngest Todoroki son was even more handsome in person, but seeing him in his Hero costume did things to you. Your mouth almost dropped open to gawk at his god-like appearance, but you clenched your jaw tightly shut to avoid that catastrophe. Despite that, you were pretty positive your eyes were as wide as saucers, greedily taking every inch of him in as if it were the last time you would see him.

I should sue him for the cost of my medical bills when I develop heart palpitations, you thought.

“Shut the hell up, ya stupid nerd.” Bakugou snapped at a sputtering Midoriya, drawing your attention once more. You could practically see the steam coming out of his ears.

“Is he always this angry?” you asked under your breath; half-serious, half-rhetorical.

“Oh, yeah,” Mina confirmed, voice just as low.

Sero snickered from his post next to Sato. “You get used to it after a while,” he reassured you.

One of Kirishima’s blinding smiles makes its appearance once again. “Katsuki’s always been passionate about, well, everything.” He told you, not bothering to lower his voice. “It’s who he is. We love him regardless.”

Sato chimed in with, “Platonically.” The boys snickered and Mina rolled her eyes, yet there was a small smile playing on her lips.

“Even though his sour attitude can be harsh and lowkey over the top,” Kaminari began, eyes shining with mischief. “It sure makes him fun to mess with!” Your companions groaned in exasperation and started to voice their reservations.

“No, Denki. Leave him be—” Mina urged him.

“Awe, come on, man. Don’t—”

“Heyy~ Katsuki,” Kaminari crooned, rocking back on his heels as the pale blond’s attention zeroed in on him. Kirishima and Sato facepalmed. “Why have trouble catching a ‘dumbass villain’?” he teased. “Bad day? Your head not in the game?” The hair on your arms rose to attention as an electric charge swept the room, putting everyone on edge. Kaminari’s baiting also drew the attention of the explosive male’s companions. Your eyes briefly met captivating graphite and turquoise, eliciting a sharp gasp to leave your lungs.

“You’re gonna regret the day you were born, dumbass!” Bakugou bellowed, pointing an accusatory finger at the electric blond, snapping your attention from the hypnotizing gaze. You fully expected him to charge the male, already taking a cautionary step back, but instead of explosions ripping apart the building, Bakugou grunted and moved towards the showers.

Mina turned to the blond and shouted, “Now why did you do that, Denki? You know better than to rile Katsuki up like that!”

Kirishima dragged a large hand down his face before running it through his unruly red locks. “I’ll go check on him,” he announced before jogging after the sandy-blond. You were at a loss for words as you continued to watch your classmates scold a shit-grinning Kaminari, not even the tiniest bit remorseful for his teasing of Bakugou.

“Please don’t take Kacchan’s rashness to heart.” A new voice piped up. You turned to meet the electric green gaze of none other than Izuku Midoriya, the new generation’s proclaimed Symbol of Peace. “I’m s-sorry, I don’t think we have properly met. I’ve been in and out of campus lately—with missions and such.” He practically skipped over to stand in front of you. He smiled brightly as he gently took your hands in his large, calloused ones. “I’m Izuku Midoriya. I’m so happy you are here at U.A.!” he excitedly exclaimed, lightly squeezing your entwined hands. You couldn’t hide your wince and small gasp of pain as Midoriya unknowingly squeezed your burns. The green-haired male let go of your hands so fast as if he was the one burned instead of you, eyes growing wide. “Oh my gosh, are you okay?!” he asked, noticing the bandages wrapped tightly around your hand. Midoriya’s frenzy caught the other's attention, and all eyes were on you yet again.

The tips of your ears grew hot at the unwavering attention from the Heroes-in-training—especially from a certain icy-hot male who made your heart falter in its beating. “Y-yeah, I’m f-fine.” You stuttered as you met each of your classmate's gazes, trying to reassure them of your stability.

“What happened?” Todoroki inquired, eyes hawkishly zeroed in on your face.

“U-um, well . . .” you trailed off, words fading from your brain as you slightly cowered under his unwavering attention. “I—”

“She burned herself while baking kinako cookies,” Sero spoke for you, having caught onto your growing anxiousness. You didn’t miss Todoroki’s eyes narrowing at the black-haired male’s words. Sato and Kaminari made noises of agreement, the blond absentmindedly rubbing his stomach in content.

Midoriya’s eyes shined. “Really? You did?!” He looked behind you to the kitchen, eyes searching for the aforementioned treats. “Where are they?” he asked when he didn’t spot any, only a plate littered with crumbs. He turned his attention back to you. You opened your mouth to answer, but a wave of shame overcame you as your eyes once again met those of the one you had made the cookies for.

Mina noticed your hesitation, giving you a knowing look as she answered for you. “The three idiots to your left ate them all,” she said with a little bite to her words, glaring daggers at the culprits. “After they were specifically told not to.” She reaffirmed. The boys shuddered at the reminder of their disobedience. The pinkette turned her attention back to the green-haired and dual-haired males. “I patched her up, though. The burns are minor.”

Midoriya nodded his head in understanding. “You should still see Recovery Girl,” he instructed, unashamedly expressing his concern for someone he had just properly met. “At least let her take a look at it.”

“I’m going to stop by to see her in the morning,” you reassured him, words coming back now that your mind was a little clear. His shoulders slumped in relief.

“You should rest, Y/N.” Todoroki’s searing gaze trailed over your form, calculating eyes searching for any additional outward signs of injury or discomfort. “After suffering an injury, no matter how insignificant, rest is important.” He softly chided.

“R-right.” You stammered out, at a loss for how else to respond to your handsome classmate's concern other than compliance. A wave of exhaustion washed over you at that moment. Your feet stumbled as you became lightheaded for a split second. You noticed the dual-haired male take a step towards you, catching onto your sudden exhaustion, but you quickly rightened yourself. “Thank you, Todoroki.” You’re not exactly sure why you thanked him, or what for. His concern, perhaps? He subtly nodded as you turned from the small group, breathlessly mumbling some sort of farewell and something about retiring to your room for the rest of the day.

The others muttered their goodbyes as you made your way to the stairwell.

As you walked up the stairs, head hung low, your throat began to burn and your vision began to blur with tears. The first one fell when you reached your floor, quickly followed by a couple more. You wiped them away, sniffing, as you made your way to your door. You didn’t react to the sudden presence next to you and the weight draped around your shoulders.

Mina didn’t say anything, only traced comforting circles into your back as tears flowed freely down your cheeks.

The next day, you and your classmates were gathered outside Gym Gamma for an impromptu training session. You were surprised that Class 3-A still regularly trained together, but in your defense, that assumption came from someone who didn’t have many options when it came to sparing partners up until your transfer—a major shortcoming in retrospect.

“Today we are working on ‘last stand’ combat.” Mr. Aizawa drawled in his natural I Don’t Give A Fuck tone. “Close-quarter combat in which a violent assailant has obtained the upper hand and corners you in an attempt to defeat you.” He proceeded to explain the instructions of the training exercise and pair the students into groups of four who would take turns being the Heroes and the assailants.

“Midoriya will be with Jirou.” Mr. Aizawa intoned, briefly glancing at the two students to confirm they heard. “Todoroki will be with L/N.” Your muscles stiffened when you heard that. Your heart began to race as you watched the red-and-white-haired male make his way over to you.

“H-hi,” you greeted him, giving a soft smile.

“Hello,” he said, politely inclining his head. “I look forward to working with you.”

“Same here.” You said before facing forward once more as the first group began their round. You and Todoroki observed the match in silence, with you paying extra attention to your classmates’ movements and taking mental notes of how they incorporated their Quirks into hand-to-hand combat.

The sound of approaching footsteps drew your attention. Expecting the new additions to be Ochako and Asui, you turned to greet them with a warm smile but paused when instead of your friends, Midoriya and Kyoka Jirou were standing next to you, both with warm expressions on their faces.

“Hi!” Midoriya greeted with a wide smile and a small wave. “I’m excited for this training exercise! It’s going to be so cool to see everyone’s improvement with hand-to-hand combat over the break! And any new moves! Or Quirk Awakenings! Or—” You had a hard time keeping up with what he was saying as it turned into a stuttering rant as he went on about each individual’s Quirk.

The rumors were true regarding his ramblings, you mused to yourself, wondering how long he could go on for before a small hand on his shoulder made him take pause.

“Midoriya,” Jirou intoned. “Calm down.” His cheeks flushed a bright red. He began laughing nervously while absentmindedly rubbing the back of his neck.

“S-sorry,” he said, shyfully.

“It’s okay,” you reassured him. “I agree with your stance, though. Observing others' skills is an effective way to improve your own. Get an idea or two.” You turned your attention back to the ongoing training, taking mental notes of your classmates’ fighting stances and their defensive moves, trying to get a better understanding of the why behind them. You pulled a small item from your jacket pocket, absentmindedly rubbing it between your thumb and forefinger. The movement caught Midoriya’s attention.

“What is that?” he asked, green eyes alight with curiosity.

“What? This?” You held up your good luck charm; a small, pink parrot keychain from a popular cartoon series you had won years ago at one of your hometown’s summer festivals. It was lucky because at the moment, while little you were trying to win, your Quirk had manifested. “It’s my good luck charm,” you explained the pink parrot’s value to you.

“Oh, cool!” Midoriya exclaimed. “You know, I used to have a good luck charm—it was my super rare exclusive All Might trading card! First edition!” His eyes shined as he reminisced. “I would bring it with me everywhere! Even Kacchan—”

“Deku,” drawled a low voice from the other side of your gathered class. The temperature fell as Bakugou’s vermillion eyes narrowed onto Midoriya. “Don’t say another word.”

“He’s such a fanboy.” Jirou chuckled, fondness seeping into her voice. Midoriya smiled sheepishly, not bothering even to try to deny the label. You spent the time until your group’s turn getting to know the two, quickly finding out that you and Jirou share the same taste in music; vowing to swap playlists after class. You were so caught up in your conversation that you almost forgot about Todoroki's presence, if not for the awareness of a body next to you. His chilled warmth seeped into your muscles, causing you to relax one moment, and tense up another.

“Are you all right?” he softly inquired, spying your tensed posture.

“Yeah, I’m good.” You replied, softly smiling but it didn’t reach your eyes. “Just a lil’ nervous, is all.”

Todoroki frowned slightly, not understanding how you could be experiencing anxiousness. “Wh—?”

“Oh yeah!” Midoriya suddenly interjected. “This is going to be your first time demonstrating your Quirk, huh?” he asked you. “Or at least this is gonna be the first time I will see it. What is it again? Object—no—um, yeah, anyway I bet it is awesome!” His eyes still shined with his enthusiasm and curiosity. “Sometime you gotta let me ask you about it! I have so many! Does it work like Ochako’s Zero Gravity? Or Yaoyorozu’s Creation?”

You couldn’t help but give a small laugh at his eagerness. You had never met someone as enthusiastic about Quirks as Izuku Midoriya. It was kind of refreshing to interact with someone as passionate as he was.

“Kind of,” you began, silently pondering over what you know of the brunette’s Quirk and comparing it to your own. “Ochako and I have the same limitations when it comes to the weight of an object, but besides that, our Quirks are different.” Your Quirk was object manipulation; you could telepathically manipulate objects within a certain range. To you, your Quirk wasn’t all that—wasn’t anything unique by any means—but to others, you were seen as a powerful goddess. “To be honest, I’m lacking in hand-to-hand combat skills.” You sheepishly smiled.

“Really?” Midoriya asked, blinking in shock. “I thought your previous school would have prepared you for all types of situations.” Jirou nodded her agreement with the green-haired male. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Shouto continue to observe you with a calculating expression on his face.

“Unfortunately, no.” You shrugged. “Their curriculum was more focused on improving the individual’s Quirk than learning how to fight without it.”

“Oh, wow,” Jirou said. “That could put you at a great disadvantage down the line.”

You nodded. “Yeah, I know. That’s why—” You were cut off by Mr. Aizawa calling for your group to begin your training round. “Welp, this is it, I guess.” You chuckled nervously.

Midoriya gave you a reassuring smile. “You’ll do great!” he said, giving you a thumbs-up accompanied by a warm smile.

“Do your best,” Jirou added before moving towards the training pitch.

You started to follow, but a cool hand on your shoulder made you pause, shivering softly. You turned to find Todoroki giving you an expectant look. “You’ll do fine,” he said, confidently. He looked as if he put his entire faith in you. “I’ll be by your side the entire time.”

You felt a surge of confidence fill you at his words. You gave him a determined look. “Right,” you said. “We got this.”

You swear up and down his eyes twinkled when he looked at you, but it could have been a trick of the light. “You got this.” He replied, softly. The two of you walked into the pitch together, side by side.

The training went . . . not terrible, but it could have been better on your end.

Todoroki, Midoriya, and Jirou were amazing. Even without using their Quirks, they each were a force to be reckoned with. You were captivated by how swiftly they moved—as if they were ballerinas performing Danse des Petits Cygnes.

You weren’t on the same level as them and the rest of Class 3-A. You knew that, and you acknowledged it, but to see and be confronted by it so bluntly in person made you feel a whole other level of embarrassment and shame. You weren’t weak by any means, you could hold your own in a fight for some time, but not like your classmates could—and had.

Perhaps that is what separates you from your classmates. They have battle experience. Hell, they fought in a fucking war for crying out loud while you were on the other side of the country, guarding civilian shelters. You were fortunate not to see much bloodshed, but maybe that brought you to a disadvantage against these future Heroes surrounding you.

The horn had sounded as Jirou pinned you in the dirt for the sixth time, signaling the end of the round. You heard the sounds of Midoriya and Todoroki’s scuffling come to a halt from somewhere off to your left as Jirou lifted herself off of you. She offered you a hand as you began to rise from the ground. You accepted her extended hand with a grimace as the muscles in your back burned.

“Nice work.” Mr. Aizawa said as the four of you approached. “You performed adequately,” he addressed Jirou, Todoroki, and Midoriya. He turned to you. “You, not so much.”

You flinched as the words landed home. Damn, you thought, but he’s not wrong. You had naively allowed yourself to believe that Eraserhead wouldn’t call out your inferiority, at least in front of others. Then again, he was Eraserhead—infamous for his bluntness and apathy.

“Your skills are greatly lacking in hand-to-hand combat,” he continued. “I haven’t seen somebody so physically inadequate since your classmates were first years. Coming from another Hero Course, especially one with its reputation, it’s to be expected that you’re not up to par with your new classmates, but I didn’t think it would be this bad.” As he spoke, he never broke eye contact with you, scrutinizing you. Even with one eye, his unrelenting gaze made you feel as if he could see every minuscule detail about you. “Based on the performance I saw today, it was a mistake to put you in this class.”

You heard a gasp from one of your classmates; its owner unknown. You gulped down your shame and remained silent. You had a feeling Aizawa wasn’t finished with you.

“From here on out, I expect you to train harder and push yourself further than anyone else. Extra training, extra classes—anything that will make you catch up.” His eye narrowed. “If I do not see substantial improvement in one month, you will be expelled. No exceptions.”

Your eyes widened, but your shock did not stop you from replying. “Yes, sir.” You said, keeping your tone neutral as you mulled over his words. Although extreme, I understand the reason for Mr. Aizawa’s methods, you thought. He’s right though. I’m far from even scrapping the level these guys are on. I need to be more disciplined and work even harder if I want to stand on equal ground with my classmates. Resolve made, you promised, “I will go Plus Ultra!”

“Yaass, Y/N!” Mina cheered. “Woohoo!”

Aizawa didn’t say anything else to you, promptly dismissing the class. Midoriya praised your performance and commented on his wish to sit down and talk in-depth with you regarding your Quirk. You promptly accepted his request, telling him you would let him know when you were free. He smiled before walking off to join Iida and Ochako.

“If it means anything,” a voice suddenly intoned from behind you. You spun around, having not sensed the person's approach. You weren’t all that surprised to find Todoroki there, softly regarding you. “I think you did well.”

You scoffed but smiled softly. “Thank you, but you don’t have to patronize me. I have a lot of work to do if I want to catch up.”

“You will,” he declared, before quickly clarifying, “Catch up. Especially with my help.”

You furrowed your brows. “Excuse me?”

“Should I repeat myself?” he inquired, his heterochromatic eyes swimming in mirth. “I will assist you in your training and classes.”

You didn’t respond right away, regarding him with suspicion. You waited for him to name a condition for his help, but when he offered none, you relaxed. “Thank you, Todoroki.” You inclined your head. “I greatly appreciate it.”

“Shouto,” he corrected.

You blinked at him, taken aback. “What?”

“Shouto,” he reiterated. “You may call me Shouto. We are friends, are we not?”

You gaped at him for a moment, processing his words. “Ye-yeah!” you said a little too loudly. “We are friends, Shouto.”

The small smile that graced his lips lit up your entire world and caused your heart to speed up, pounding almost painfully against your ribcage. “Meet me here tomorrow after class.” He instructed.

“Tomorrow.” You repeated in confirmation.

His smile grew a little wider. “See you then, Y/N.” He said before turning on his heel and strolling away. You watched him go in a daze, in disbelief of what just occurred.

“Oooooooo, Y/N’s gotta date!”

You shrieked at the sudden voice and spun around for a second time to find Mina standing there, hunched over laughing at your reaction.

“Mina!” you shrieked, placing a hand over your heart. “You scared the shit outta me!”

She continued to laugh. “Sorry,” she said once her laughter died down. “You were so entranced with Todoroki that you didn’t even realize I was here!”

“Oh, yeah right.” You responded, playfully rolling your eyes. The two of you began to walk to the dorm. “I wasn’t entranced with him.”

The pinkette gave you a look of disbelief, an eyebrow raised. “Yeah, sure,” she retorted. “You can lie to yourself all you want, but you ain’t lying to me.”

You scoffed but didn’t attempt to refute her claims. You put your hands in your pockets and looked to the ground, lost in thought. Mina didn’t say anything else, allowing you both to walk in silence.

The next afternoon, you met Shouto at the training grounds outside Gym Gamma for your first tutored training session. He regarded you kindly as you slowly approached, suddenly feeling quite bashful.

“Thank you for offering to do this, Shouto.” You said when you arrived. “It really means a lot. I don’t know how I’m going to repay you.”

“There’s no need for repayment.” He softly responded. “I volunteered to assist you. Therefore, no repayment of any sort is necessary.”

“Are you sure?” you asked. “I don’t want to inconvenience you—”

His soft call of your name made your next words die in your throat. “I assure you, this is fine.” He said. “Your company and attention are substantial enough.” You felt your face warm at his admission. Shouto gestured towards the training pit. “Shall we begin?”

He started by teaching you some stretches that are supposed to help decrease sudden muscle spasms and strengthen them. Afterward, he had you show him the little knowledge you had of hand-to-hand combat to gain an idea of where you stand in regard to U.A. training. Once you had demonstrated the few kicks and different styles of punching you knew, you turned to judge Shouto’s impression.

Your breath caught at what you saw.

His handsome features remained stoically blank for the most part, but the pursing of his lips and slight furrowing of his brows spoke a different tale. He grumbled something under his breath that sounded a lot like they didn’t prepare you at all, but you weren’t one hundred percent sure.

“Shouto?” you inquired, voice slightly uneven as your mouth formed the syllables of his name. “Is everything alright?”

His beautiful eyes snapped to yours, and once again you were frozen by the intensity with which he looked at you. His gaze was calculating, and you could just about see the cogs turning in his brain as he silently regarded you. A couple long moments later, his lips parted on an exhale and he finally addressed you.

“We have a lot of work to do.” He declared. “But we already knew that.” You slowly nodded your head, curious as to where he would be going with this conversation. “Thankfully, you’re not completely helpless,” he intoned dryly. “Even though you don’t have many skills regarding physical, non-Quirk combat, I have identified several places where we can start, correct, and then build on.”

You steadied yourself, resolve firmer than ever before. You declared, “I’m ready.”

Shouto gave a quick, but detailed, overview of his plans for your ‘training tutoring’, you referred to your sessions as. He was going to teach you everything he thought you should know—which was everything he knew—in order to successfully become a Hero people could rely on.

The two of you began by improving your physique. You joined him on his early morning run along with Midoriya and Bakugou, who welcomed you with contrasting fervor. When you met for your afternoon training, you would run five kilometers before learning various grades of combat moves, and then concluding your time together by sparring.

It was established early on that neither of you would use your Quirks during your tutoring as the two of you were well-adapted to your respective Quirks—and the strict rules regarding their usage.

For the next several weeks, you worked tirelessly on your training, and your dedication and hard work paid off. At your end-of-the-month assessment, Aizawa was pleased by your rapid and exceptional improvement and announced you could stay at U.A. He also informed you that it was never his intention to expel you in the first place, but nevertheless, he was impressed by your efforts.

You and Shouto continued to grow closer as time went by. You still had your training tutoring sessions in the afternoons, and you became a regular on his early morning runs. You even hung out outside of class and training; preparing pre-workout meals and drinks together, and various study sessions at all hours of the day and night. Once, you even packed him a small canister of his favorite brand of soba noodles for lunch one of the weekends he was interning at his father’s Agency. When he came back to the dorm after his shift, he made a beeline for you and promptly informed you that from then on out, you would be solely responsible for packing his lunches.

“Now why would I do that?” you implored. You crossed your arms, awaiting his response. “Are you gonna pay me?”

Shouto slowly blinked at you in the way a cat would. “Why would I compensate you for an action you chose to do?”

You had no retort for that.

As you spent more time together, you noticed some changes. Shouto would stare at you for seemingly no reason, and whenever you called him out on it, he feigned innocence. He also sought you out more often, insisting on walking to your next class or to and from the dorm by your side. He even began to occupy you on your shopping runs, dutifully holding your bags for you. And whenever you would thank or compliment him, his whole demeanor would light up as if Aphrodite herself had shown favor towards him.

You weren’t any better, though.

If Shouto would do so much as even blink in your general direction, your heart would soar and butterflies would take flight in your stomach. At first, you brushed it off as nerves for being the subject of the Shouto Todoroki’s attention, but you were in denial, not wanting to admit what was actually occurring. Looking back, you realized that deep down, you had known all along what was happening, but at the time, you weren’t ready to admit it—to yourself and him.

Regardless of your rebuttals and lack of admission, you were falling for your dual-haired classmate, hard and fast, and there wasn’t anything you could do about it.

3 months later . . .

“Y/N! It’s starting! You’re gonna miss it!” Ochako shouted from the couches, the other girls of Class 3-A surrounding her, all dressed in comfortable loungewear. It was the class's annual Girl’s Movie Night, which was held every couple of months. Tooru told you earlier that week that they would like to have it more often, like once a month, but given their hectic and ever-changing schedules, the girls had to settle for every few months. They took turns who got to pick out the movie. It was Mina’s turn this time. True to her nature, she selected an early 2000s chick flick set in the States.

“Hold on, wait for me!” you hollered back as you finished pouring the freshly popped popcorn into a large bowl, a few kernels spilling out as you whirled on your heels to sprint into the living area. You nearly tripped over Jirou’s legs as you practically threw yourself towards the last remaining free spot on the couch.

“Ah, sorry!” you exclaimed as you settled yourself into the cushions, checking over Jirou and your popcorn bowl. “Did I miss anything?”

“No, it’s just starting,” Momo said, taking a sip from her cup of tea as the opening credits began to roll.

“Ooh, this is one of my all-time favorite movies!” Mina squealed next to you. “Have you ever seen it before?” she asked.

You hummed, acknowledging her question. You thought hard, trying to recall if you’ve ever seen the characters on the screen before. “I’m not sure,” you said. “I don’t think so.”

The pinkette gasped aloud and theatrically placed a hand on her chest, sprawling backward. “Y/N! You wound me!”

Across the room, Tooru piped up from her spot next to Asui. “How could you not have?! It’s only one of the greatest movies ever made!”

“Oh, I’m not so sure about that,” Ochako interjected. “Gonna have to disagree.” You expected them to start arguing back and forth over what is truly the greatest movie ever made, like your friends back home would have done, but they don’t. Mina stuck her tongue out at Ochako before turning back to the movie.

You all watched the movie in relative silence, save for the light background noise of popcorn moving around in a bowl and slurping from a now-empty straw. It was nice, peaceful; a well-deserved and appreciated respite from the grinding hustle of being Pro-Heroes-in-training.

“Just confess already!” Jirou shouted at the screen as the main character allowed another opportunity for them to confess their feelings for their classmate slip through their fingers. “Gosh!” A corner of your mouth curled at her irritation. A few grumbles of agreement sounded from the others as the movie continued playing.

You had to stifle your laughter as the main characters continued to pine after one another, completely oblivious to the other’s growing feelings. I can’t believe there are actually people in the world who are like them, you silently mused. It’s so obvious they like each other. I can’t believe they don’t see it.

“Ugh, the anticipation and pining is killing me!” Tooru cried out, her slippers moving frantically in the air as she kicked her legs.

Asui raised a brow. “I thought you’ve seen this movie before?”

“Well, yeah, I have,” the invisible female said. “But the suspense still gets to me!”

“It is quite intense.” Ochako agreed. “I hope they confess soon. It hurts to see them think the other doesn’t return their feelings.”

“I don’t understand how they cannot.” You admitted, shrugging your shoulders. The girls turned to look at you as you continued, “I mean, they’re so obvious.”

“Yeah, it’s kinda annoying at this point,” Jirou mumbled.

Mina snickered. “Y/N, as if you’re one to talk.”

You gave her a questioning look, eyebrows furrowing. “What do you mean by that?”

“Oh, come on. You’re so obvious, too, with your crush—”

You cut her off, “I do not have a crush.”

“You have a crush?” Asui asked. You and Mina responded at the same time.

“No, I don’t.”

“Yes, she does.”

“What is this about?” Momo inquired, reaching for the remote and pausing the movie.

“Nothi—” you began but was swiftly interrupted by the pinkette next to you.

“Y/N has a crush on Todoroki!”

The girls gasped and gapped at you, eyes wide.

“I do not!” You said, face burning as you tried to mitigate the situation. “We’re not like that!”

“Oh my.” You thought you heard Momo say under her breath, but you couldn’t really hear since Tooru started shrieking with glee.

“You guys would be the cutest couple!” she exclaimed, jumping up from her spot on the couch and racing over to pull you into a tight embrace.

“I mean, it does make sense given they spend so much time together.” Ochako mused, a finger on her chin as she considered the situation.

Asui jumped on the bandwagon with, “Oh they are definitely into each other.”

“One hundred percent,” Mina agreed.

“Girl, you gotta spill the tea!” Tooru exclaimed as she pulled away. “Tell us everything!” The others voiced their agreement.

“I do admit, I am curious as to how this relationship came to be,” Momo vocalized, setting her tea cup down onto its saucer. “That is if the two of you have gotten that far into your companionship.”

You blinked at the midnight-black-haired woman, shock clouding your brain for a moment as you processed her words. “Um, n-no. We aren’t in any type of r-romantic relationship.” You clarified, but immediately you could tell certain people thought your answer was complete horse poop. “We aren’t!”

“Regardless, you guys are pretty close,” Ochako interjected. “I’ve seen the way you look at him.”

Jirou nodded in agreement. “And all the extra training you do together.”

“The early morning runs,” Asui added.

“Okay, okay,” you threw your hands up in a placating manner. “I understand what you guys are trying to get at, but you’re wrong.”

Mina came to stand beside you, giving you a knowing look. “Girl, Y/N,” she began. “You can try with all your might to deny it, but it’s obvious what is really going on between you and Shouto.” She placed a delicate hand on your shoulder. “And I know you know it, too.”

You stared at the pinkette, pondering her and the other’s words. You wanted to continue denying what they were saying, but you were getting tired of denying your feelings to yourself. You slumped your shoulders, the tension leaving your body as you resolved to come clean with the truth—to yourself and your friends, besides a certain dual-haired male. “Alright, fine.” You let out a heavy sigh, mentally preparing yourself for their reaction to your next statement. “I like him a little.” You confessed, looking at the floor, too afraid to meet any of their gazes.

The room was dead silent for two breaths before Mina erupted in choking laughter. “’A little’? Yeah RIGHT!” She laughed so hard that tears began to stream down her pink cheeks. After she managed to calm down a bit, she turned to face you fully, laying a hand on your knee. “Girl, you’re lying to yourself.” She told you, tone light yet serious. “We have all seen the way you look at Shouto—” the others nod in confirmation. “—and your eyes tell it all.”

You flinched as embarrassment flooded you. “Is it really that obvious?” you asked. You turned to the others to gauge their reactions. “Am I?” They all nodded.

“Definitely.”

“For sure.”

“We could see it from a mile away.”

You gasped. “Oh my,” you covered your face with your hands. “Do you think Shouto knows?”

“I doubt so,” Momo said. “Shouto is quite intelligent and a formidable force to be reckoned with, but as I’m sure you’re aware, his experience and understanding of social concepts and cues are fairly limited.”

“In other words,” Jirou interjected. “He’s none the wiser.”

You released a sigh of relief. At least he doesn’t think I’m a psycho stalker or something.

“Hey, give him some credit, guys,” Ochako remarked. “Todoroki’s more aware than he’s given credit for.”

“Moving on,” Mina said. “Have you thought about confessing your feelings to him?”

You crossed your arms over your chest, shamefully looking away. “No. . .”

“What?!”

“Really?!” Tooru shouted. “But he’s so hot!” The sleeves of her shirt crossed in front of her. “I would do anything to be his girlfriend.”

You laughed. “While you are correct about his handsomeness, I don’t even know where I would begin or how I would confess.”

“Your feelings are valid, Y/N,” Asui assured you. “Confessing one’s feelings for another is a life-changing occurrence.”

“You gotta do it before graduation in a couple months, though,” Ochako added. “If not, then you may never get another chance to do so.”

“Why do you say that?” you asked. “As Pros, wouldn’t we work together often? Why does it need to be before we graduate and turn Pro?”

“Possibly, but with our chosen line of work, there is always a possibility. . .” she trailed off with a grimace.

You understood immediately. “Oh.”

“Although rare in the line of duty, it does happen.” Momo said. “I wouldn’t worry about that though, but I agree with Ochako.”

“Plus,” Mina began, mischief glowing in her eyes. “If the two of you get together before you make your Pro Hero debut to the world, you wouldn’t have to worry about him falling in love with some random civilian he rescues on the street or another Pro.”

You nodded. “You have a point.”

“Either way, I think it will all work out in the end,” Ochako said, her cheeks widening with her smile. “I think perhaps Shouto returns your feelings, and just simply doesn’t know what to do about them or how to address them, therefore you should tell him.” The other girls voiced their agreement.

“Yeah, it doesn’t have to be some big romantic gesture or anything,” Jirou said.

“Just be honest with him, Y/N,” Asui said.

“Yeah, girl,” Mina added, giving you a warm smile when you met her gaze. “You got this. Besides, he can’t reject you. You’re too hot for that.”

You squared your shoulders as a burst of confidence filled you thanks to the encouragement you received from your friends. “Okay, I will!” you loudly announced. “I will confess my feelings to him!”

The others cheered as you all held up your lemon water in a faux toast. In your happiness, none of you noticed the shadows shift in the stairwell and the soft noise of retreating footsteps on the wood.

You were screwed.

“How am I gonna tell him!?” you mewled aloud a couple of days later in the cafeteria. You dramatically slumped your forehead on the tabletop, mentally kicking yourself for allowing the girls to convince you that confessing your crush would be an easy endeavor. You felt a reassuring pat on your shoulder. Groaning, you lifted your head from the table to shoot puppy eyes at Ochako. “Ochako, help me!” you cried. “How do I confess?”

The brunette gave you a sheepish smile. “I don’t know, Y/N.” She professed, her eyes apologetic. “Proclaiming one's love for another isn’t really my strong suit.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” Asui mumbled under her breath before taking a sip of her drink, receiving a glare in response.

“Y/N, sweetie,” Mina cooed from your other side. “I think you’re overthinking it a little. It shouldn’t be but so hard. Just be honest with him!”

“But that is hard!” you said, waving your hands in the air. “I can’t just walk up to him and say, ‘hey, Shouto, I think you’re really hot and amazing. Wanna go out with me?’”

“Sure you can,” Momo intoned, trying to reassure you. “Maybe not in those exact words, but when the time comes, you will know what to say.”

“I hope so,” you sighed, slumping your shoulders. “I hope so.”

As time passed, you found that you did not, in fact, know what to say when the time came to confess your feelings to Shouto Todoroki. Whenever you were near him, you became tongue-tied and could barely speak without becoming a stuttering mess. During each interaction, Shouto would give you a long, confused look, his eyebrows drawn downwards as he watched you struggle for words. He wouldn’t comment on it, bless him, but he must’ve thought you to be a total weirdo.

Yet, he still accompanied you on the walk back to the dorm every day after classes ended, and he insisted on continuing your training sessions every weekend after he finished his shift at Endeavor’s Agency. The two of you grew closer, to your absolute delight, and yet you still hadn’t managed to work up the courage to confess your feelings to him.

Until one day . . .

You were sitting in homeroom during free period, chatting with Midoriya about the latest episode of the rebooted All Might: The Mightiest Man TV series.

“I’m telling you, Midoriya,” you said. “It doesn’t matter how much the animation and special effects have improved, the original will always be better than the reboot.” You crossed your arms and lounged back in your chair, waiting for the forest green-haired male to start sputtering his counterargument. “You can’t change my mind. I will die on this hill.”

“Are you seriously sayin—?”

A call of your name from a familiar tenor drew your attention. You turned towards the source to meet a pair of heterochromatic eyes. Shouto was making his way to your desk, coming to a stop right in front of you. You had to tilt your head back in order to maintain eye contact. After a moment, he turned his attention to Midoriya next to you. “Pardon me, Midoriya, but I need to speak to Y/N in private.”

You and Midoriya gaped at the dual-haired male for a good twenty seconds before you slowly rose from your seat. “O-okay.” You turned to face your green-haired companion. You hoped your eyes were conveying your inner panic as you said, “Midoriya, I’ll be back.”

All he could do was nod as he watched you follow behind Shouto, wondering why you looked so panicked to go with the male. Maybe you were constipated.

As Shouto led you toward the classroom door, Ochako and Mina shot you curious glances. When you met their gazes, they gave you a reassuring smile and a thumbs up, respectfully.

“Good luck, girl!” Mina whisper-shouted.

“You got this, Y/N,” Ochako said. You tried to match her comforting smile with your own, but it didn’t reach your eyes.

You followed behind the dual-haired male, silently wondering what was going on. Once you were outside the classroom, he led you down the hallway to a little corner nook bathed in the golden light of the afternoon.

“Shouto, is everything okay?” you asked, anxiously shifting from one foot to the other. “Is something wrong?” At your inquiry, he finally came to a stop in front of a set of windows and turned to face you.

“Yes, everything is fine.” He reassured you. “I have something I’d like to discuss with you.”

You blinked. “Okay,” you said. “Shoot.”

Shouto likewise paused at your usage of unfamiliar slang but didn’t comment on it. “Um,” he started, but drifted off, not finishing the thought. He opened his mouth only to shut it again after a moment or two without making a sound. You furrowed your brows as you continued to watch him struggle for words.

“Um, Sho?” you prodded. He didn’t respond, however, still thinking over his next words. Shouto never hesitates, you thought with a mixture of wonderment and anxiety. Is something bothering him? you thought with growing concern. You felt your heart come to a skittering stop as another horrifying conclusion came to mind; am I the problem?

“I overheard you and the other girls’ conversation on Movie Night,” he confessed at last, interrupting your spiraling train of thought. He bashfully looked away as if he was ashamed.

“Oh, okay?” you responded, absentmindedly going through the events of the night in question. Your heartbeat began to calm down to a normal rate. “What conversation?” You couldn’t think of anything in particular and were about to ask him to elaborate before the realization hit you like a freight train.

“I like him a little.”

“Okay, I will! I will confess my feelings to him!”

“Yeah, girl, you got this. Besides, he can’t reject you. You’re too hot for that.”

Oooohhhhh.

Fuck.

Maybe he didn’t hear that particular part of the conversation! You tried to reassure yourself as you waited for Shouto to answer your question. Your heart rate picked back up as panic began to settle in. We were there for several hours. There is so much he could’ve—

“You have an admiration going on.” You hate to admit you gawked at him for a couple of seconds before his formal wording translated into modern speech. You have a crush.

FUCK!

“Oh my God, I am so sorry!” you rushed out, trying to save face and whatever friendship you had with Shouto. You felt your cheeks burn. “Please, just forget you ever heard that!”

Shouto snapped his head to you as your words registered in his brain. “Why would I do that?” he asked after a moment. “We live in the same building with shared living space, barely anything is not overheard by another.”

Oh God, how much did he overhear?

“Besides,” he continued. “At our age, it is completely natural for one to harbor feelings for another.”

You blinked at him as his words registered, your cheeks now tingling due to the burn. Gosh, he sounds like a grandpa giving the birds and the bees talk.

“It—it’s j-just,” you stammered. “I-I-I—” You let out a harsh breath in frustration when your words continued to fail you. Shouto raised a brow before his eyes narrowed. Your heart sank when you saw that.

Oh great, he’s annoyed!

“Are you all right?” he asked before moving so he was right in front of you. You squeaked at the sudden warmth of his body heat as he placed a hand on your forehead. “Do you feel ill? You feel warm, and your face looks to be flushed with some perspiration gathering on your forehead.” His eyes frantically looked you up and down as he examined you for any further signs of sickness. “I should get you to Recovery Girl.”

“N-no!” you exclaimed when he went to sweep you off your feet. “Sh-Shouto, I—I’m fine, really. I’m n-not s-sick.”

“Oh?” Shouto blinked in confusion and, adorably, subtly tilted his head to the side. “Then why are you so febrile? And you are stuttering?”

“It’s not because I am sick. I’m just em-embarrassed.” You whispered the last part, and you couldn’t help but look away from Shouto in shame.

“Embarrassed? Why are you embarrassed, Y/N?” You shut your mouth, refusing to speak. Shouto sensed your hesitation. The light slowly left his heterochromatic eyes and he bashfully looked away from you. “Is . . . is it because you don’t want to be seen with me?” he asked. “For fear that your crush will see us together and not return your affection?”

You let out a gasp in surprise. “What? No!” You are quick to reassure him—your actual crush—of your intentions. “That’s not it at all!”

Shouto met your gaze again. His eyes lit up with what looked like . . . anticipation? Hope? You weren’t sure, but your heart began to race in trepidation. “Then what is it?”

“I like you,” you blurted out. You shut your eyes and covered your face with your hands, trying to hide from your drowning embarrassment. “Like, not even a little bit, but, like, really, really like you.” You whispered from behind your hands.

There was no immediate response from the dual-haired male. You didn’t dare to remove your hands from your face to check if he was still standing in front of you.

He probably didn’t hear me. You internally slapped yourself upside the head.

Before you could react, Shouto was carefully removing your hands from your face. His touch was gentle, like he was afraid you would crack and break under his fingertips. “Why are you hiding from me?” he whispered. Your breath caught in your throat as you stared wide-eyed at him.

“I—I.” Despite your efforts, words weren’t able to come out of your mouth.

“You should never feel like you need to hide,” he continued. He let out an airy tsk before he reached his hand up and gently tucked a piece of stray hair behind your ear. You felt your face heat up even more at the action. “Especially from me.”

What.

“W-what?” you voiced aloud. You blinked a couple times, trying to bring your brain back from the brink of short-circuiting.

Shouto chuckled lowly, moving impossibly closer into your space. “I think you need to get your hearing checked out, love.”

You blinked some more. “What?”

“Have I broken you?” he asked, the corner of his perfect lips turning up at the thought. “First you forget your words, and now you have lost your hearing. . .” he trailed off as he continued to stare intently into your eyes.

What is he playing at. . .? you wondered as you blankly stared at him.

The two of you stood there and took each other in for quite a while. In reality, it mustn’t have been for very long—at most a minute and a half—but to you, it felt like hours. You were so close you could see the light reflecting in his heterochromatic eyes and the small streaks of gray in the turquoise-colored one.

“I . . . like you, too,” Shouto suddenly confessed, violently snapping you out of the daze his proximity causes. “I have harbored feelings for you for some time now.”

WHAT!?

“You . . . do?” you asked, skeptical. You were hesitant to believe his words in fear that this whole thing was some sick prank. But—

No. Shouto isn’t that type of person, you thought. He barely understands humor as it is, so he must be telling the truth.

“I do,” he confirmed.

“Oh, um.” You fumbled again for words, embarrassment flooding your entire system once more. You licked your dry lips, missing the way Shouto’s eyes locked onto the movement. “Cool.”

Shouto blinked at you, one of his perfect eyebrows raising. “Cool?” he repeated with a sly smile overcoming his lips.

“Mhm.” You dumbly nodded. “Cool.” You paused before muttering a small, “Ditto.”

He chuckled again, subtly moving the tiniest bit closer to you. He was just about crowding you into the corner at this point. “Ditto, huh?” He mumbled under his breath with a widening smirk playing at his lips. “I think I have broken you, dear.”

You grinned. “Perhaps.” Shouto chuckled again before falling silent. The two of you stared at the other, lost in each other’s gazes.

“Can I kiss you?” He spoke on an exhale, his deep voice somehow even deeper. Before you could internally flip the fuck out and fully comprehend what was happening, you were already nodding. That was all the confirmation Shouto needed before he brought your lips in for a sensual kiss. Fireworks exploded behind your eyelids as you relaxed into him.

You smiled into the kiss. Thank you, chopsticks.

The next day, you and Shouto walked into the classroom holding hands. Everyone collectively stopped what they were doing to openly gape at the two of you as Shouto, always the gentleman, escorted you to your seat. The shocked silence lasted all but three seconds before Mina and Tooru let out ear-piercing shrieks and practically tackled you.

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!” Mina was shouting meanwhile Tooru was holding onto you so tight to the point that she was nearly crushing you into her invisible body.

“AHHHH, I knew this was gonna happen!” she exclaimed before somehow pulling you in closer.

“Can’t . . . breathe.” You wheezed out before your boyfriend pulled you away from the two fangirls and protectively held you to his chest.

“I would be grateful if you didn’t crush my girlfriend to death, Tooru.” He intoned in his naturally dry tenor. His statement only made them freak out even more.

“Ah! Look at the two love birds!” Ochako swooned.

“Fuckin’ disgustin’,” grumbled a deep voice from somewhere in the back of the room.

Before you could turn to shoot Bakugou a death glare, Shouto was already clapping back. “What, are you jealous, Bakugou?”

The desks which had surrounded the blond a moment prior were blown to shiverines.

“I’LL END YOU!”

Fin.

→ extras: snapshot 1, snapshot 2, fic tag

No plagiarizing, re-uploading, translating, or copying of any kind or on any platform of my writing or inserted into any type of AI generator. Do not recommend my work on TikTok. Do not repost on YouTube.

[f14fun]

pixelated love (!simmer x mv1) - chapter 3

synopsis: in which the famous three time world champion max verstappen wants to learn how to play the sims 4. except, he doesn't really know how to. so what does he do, search up a youtube tutorial. low-and-behold, y/n's video is the first he watches.

smau ✮ ⋆ ˚｡𖦹 ⋆｡°✩ profile | masterlist ⋆.˚✮🎧✮˚.⋆ prev | next | series index ˚୨୧⋆｡

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yourusername

liked by maxverstappen1, landonorris and 127,821 others

yourusername: incase you haven't heard, max and i are getting married! planning my pinterest board wedding with @/maxverstappen1 as we speak!

view comments:

user1: what.

user1: mother you are getting married to that PASTY AND GNARLY EUROPEAN WHITE MAN??? 😡😡😡

user1: is this a joke

user1: this MUST be an insane practical joke that she pulled off

user1: think of your CHILDREN (me) as you make this decision

user1: until then, i uninvite myself from the wedding ❌👰🏻‍♀️👰🏻‍♂️

user1: sincerely, your favorite child

user1: (for all of you overtly sensitive fat fucks that was entirely satire 🤡🤡🤡)

user2: everyone who doesn't have twitter right now must be hella confused 🤣���

redbullracing: ???

yourusername: please avert your gaze to this message and the entirety of my account as a whole, deepest apologies for any confusion or misunderstandings 🤡

yourusername: @/maxverstappen1 fifth slide. my head between those juicy thighs. five o'clock tonight.

yourusername: need my head in between that meat like a stick on costco rotisserie chicken 🐔🍗😋🤤💦🫠

maxverstappen1: I am in shock.

maxverstappen1: I do not even know how to respond to this comment

maxverstappen1: Also what is a "costco"

yourusername: oh shit, i forget that you're not an american LMAO 🍟🍔🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅🤠🤠🤠🏈🗽

yourusername: it's just a huge wholesale groccery store

maxverstappen1: Oh okay, I see

yourusername: was that a redeemable statement!!!

maxverstappen1: Not one bit. ❌

maxverstappen1: Also it is spelled as *grocery instead of whatever mess you spelled

yourusername: i hate you

maxverstappen1: You cannot hate your husband, I am very likeable

yourusername: AHA YOU JUST ADMITTED IT

yourusername: I GOTCHA NOW BUDDY

user3: top ten wedding (???) announcements ever made, ladies and gentlemen

user4: Y/N I APPLAUD YOU, YOU HAVE OFFICIALLY EXCEEDED MY EXPECTATIONS ON HOW WILD YOU CAN GET. GO AMERICA RAHHH 🦅🦅🦅

yourusername: proud to do our country a cuntry 💅🏻🦅🏈

maxverstappen1: Wait if I marry you does that mean I also have American citizenship?

user5: MAX WHATTTTTT LMAOOO???

user6: did NOT expect max to type that lmao, free him y/n 🤠

user7: the #maxisaynhostage agenda never ends 🤣🤣

yourusername: what-

landonorris: Mate, what are you on about...

landonorris: Also congratulations to the happy couple! @/yourusername @/maxverstappen1

yourusername: awww, thank you so much lando!! max, you better make him the best groomsman or ELSE

maxverstappen: @/yourusername @/landonorris 😐😐😐

charles_leclerc: Congrats you two! 🍾🥂 Alex and I would love to be invited to your wedding!

yourusername: Saving a seat for you two (plus leo!)

maxverstappen1: There is no wedding. ❌👰🏻‍♀️👰🏻‍♂️

oliverbearman: the oli bearman erasure from the leclerc family is unforunately so real 😞

yourusername: OLI I WOULD NEVERRRR FORGET YOUU

oliverbearman: please adopt me 🥹🥹🥹

yourusername: of course 🥹🥹🥹

charles_leclerc: ???? @/maxverstappen1 .... Do you approve of this mate?? Your first child is my child?...

maxverstappen1: OF COURSE NOT PLEASE UNADOPT HIM @/yourusername

yourusername: this is your first born. no. ❌

oliverbearman: ❌❌❌

user8: the way she makes max more unhinged LMAO u can see it in his typing

oscarpiastri: Okay. The Oscar Piastri-Leclerc erasure saga never ends.

oscarpiastri: Hello??

oscarpiastri: Hello guys?

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taglist: @hiireadstuff @sinofwriting @mehrmonga @the-untamed-soul @glai1023-blog @loloekie @avada-kedavra-bitch-187 @sheastri @llando4norris @gwginnyweasley @carmenita122 @ririyulife @pausmoon @ur-fave-ave @eveninggstar @maddie-naps @erin-odonnell04 @rexit-mo @ems-alexandra @si1ver06 @iamred-iamyellow @bibissparkles

some of these didn't get tagged, and i'm having trouble (?) it's being very weird, idk, so please let me know if your name is here and it didn't tag you ❣️

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author's note: ty guys for reading this fic! 😍🫶🏾 LMAO I LIED part three came out faster than expected. but part four may take a while as i'm a tad busy these next four weeks 🫠

comment if you want to be added to the taglist! ⋆.˚✮🎧✮˚.⋆

[etherealstar-writes]

I WANNA BE YOURS | LIONESSES X READER | PT 7

pairings: lionesses x reader

summary: in which you're accidentally added to a random group chat, not knowing they're all actually famous footballers, and obliviously end up having many of them competing for your love and attention.

part: seven

part one here

✦ ——— ✦ ——— ✦

THE NATIONAL DIVING TEAM

the REAL karate kid

good afternoon losers

and y/n <3

the imposter

hey

willybum

good afternoon you dumbass

and hello to you too y/n

the REAL karate kid

rude

how are you y/n?

the imposter

eh i'm doing fine i guess

stairway

is everything alright

the imposter

i got fired from work today 😔

lotte

what happened?

if you don't mind me asking

the imposter

so i told ya what i do for work yeah?

well i've worked for this company for the past

whole year as their main solo media manager

and then my boss found out that his good old

friend's son was looking for a job and he's also

a photographer and social media manager so he

decided to fire me and hire him instead to

keep his relationship strong with his old friend

the REAL karate kid

that really sucks

your boss sounds like a terrible person

the imposter

yeah he was a really difficult person

i am kinda glad tho ngl

i don't have to see his annoying face ever again

but back to job hunting again 😔

neev

if it makes you feel better

leah got head-shotted in the head

by lessi during training

the imposter

i really hope someone got proof of it

stairway

i gotcha

maya

HELP

lotte

got K.O-ed lol

willybum

this isn't funny

i got a full on concussion

i'll get you back russo

the REAL karate kid

not my fault you're a terrible defender 🤷‍♀️

willybum

EXCUSE ME?!

the imposter

dam

them calves 😮‍💨

has anyone ever asked you

to step on them?

neev

um y/n is there something you'd

like to share with the group ...

willybum

weirdly enough yeah

i have been asked that

elton

it was actually just y/n asking

on a secret account

the imposter

don't expose me like that 😩

meado

every time i open this group chat

i get deeply concerned for you all again

i don't even know who y/n is and i feel like

i should be concerned about her as well

the imposter

woah

meado

i thought we were getting along well 😔

stairway

well if meado is concerned then

i guess she's offering to pay for

our therapy so let's go gang

the imposter

also

why do guys always train and

play football together?

elton

oh you know

we just like to play football together at times

stairway

yeah

it's fun

the imposter

okay ....

who am i to judge

✦ ——— ✦ ——— ✦

THE LION KING SQUAD

russo

uh

so guys

i have done something

toone

oh no

that is never a good sign

le tissier

okay i'm intrigued

this is gonna be bad

wubben-moy

the fact that she's using the group chat

without y/n is not a good sign

stanway

is she about to introduce her new wife

to us or something? did you like run away

and get married in vegas or something?

charles

we literally saw her yesterday georgia

so if she had then that would be

insanely impressive

toone

is that why you weren't at training today?

greenwood

ella looked very lost today

it was worrying

russo

yeah

i ran away with y/n and we got married

toone

HUH

stanway

WHAT

charles

EXCUSE ME

russo

OF COURSE NOT YOU IDIOTS

not yet anyway 😏

but back to the point

leah was also in on this

bright

oh like that's any better

williamson

excuse me??

wubben-moy

here we go

russo

okay

so

you know how y/n's looking for a job yeah?

well leah and i thought we'd put in a

good word for her in our media admin so

that you know .... maybe she can get

offered a job here and you know we can

actually meet her and get to know her irl ....

stanway

that is actually ....

the most decent idea i've heard from ya

charles

yeah fr

hemp

oh my god y'all are such simps

stanway

shut up

toone

i do wonder when y/n will find out about

who we are or if she ever will

charles

nah she's got to find out soon with

the euros starting next week?

williamson

i reckon we tell her after the euros

wubben-moy

well that shall be eventful

part eight here

[shi-daisy]

Burning the Memories

Last Day 😭 This week flew by and while I am sad is over I want to thank everyone for making it such a fun event with so many unique creations from art, fic, poetry, and even games! We really went out of our way to show our Spring High Lord love, and I am forever grateful to have found this lovely Fandom where many of have even become dear friends. Thanks everyone!

(Art is made with @copypastus amazing picrew)

Okay so onto the submission

If I had a nickel for every time my favorite character in series that went downhill was villianized and written out of character for the sake of a tattooed older man that likes younger women and is presented as the hero I'd have two nickels, which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.

So the final day of this Tamlin Week, I'm mashing two bad hyperfixations together and having my faves interact. Have some Tamlin and Riya friendship! (I do not recommend watching Disventure Camp in the slightest, it has the ACOTAR effect of starting out peak and turning to mush on Season 3, but Riya and other characters are still stuck spinning in my mind like rotisserie chicken, so if you do check it you might love em too)

Hope you all like!

@tamlinweek

Tamlin Week 2025- Day 7- Crossover & AU/Free Day

Burning the Memories

He wasn't used to company, not anymore. So when a human woman stumbled upon his lands and manor he merely helped her get back home.

Tamlin didn't expect her to often return and help with his decayed manor and state.

Riya Sharma was supposedly a famous actress in this other universe where she came from. He could see it, as the woman carried herself confidently and with a dramatic flare. She was tall, had tanned skin, brown hair and expressive big dark eyes. Today she'd come dressed in what she called a 'sterile suit' and had sweeped through the manor in a matter of two hours.

"Okay, house is clean. Now it's your turn!" She said.

"Pardon?"

"Take a bath giant puppy! Your hair is matted and I already washed everything in your closet, so it's time to get you looking fine!"

"First of all, I am not a puppy, I am a beast. Secondly, I am curious as to why you're spending so much time and effort coming back here to help me. You shouldn't be wasting your time."

She frowned and grabbed his face in her hands. "Hey! I can spend my time however I damn please! Look, maybe it's silly that I keep coming back to this medieval fairydust land, but I know you need a friend.

I was abandoned by many people I loved and cared for, just because I did was best for myself.

In that case I can understand some of the farewells...I did many things I regret. But you, you did nothing but desperately protect your people and land.

I'm not letting you go through the pain alone, not if I can help it and ease your burdens."

He felt too ashamed to look at her. "Your mistakes didn't lead people to the grave."

"I wasn't in a war like you. I was just in a stupid reality show. Different sakes hon, besides, you didn't raze Spring to the ground. That was your moronic ex."

"My actions pushed her to do it! Riya, you haven't heard the story from her side! You'd probably agree with her and rightfully cast me aside!"

"Tamlin, I am not giving up on you! I know what it's like when the other side twists you into a villian!

You didn't intend for this, you fought to fix your mistakes and protected your loved ones, you're a better man than many, you're even better than me, because I would've just let that bat die and his empire crumble!"

He chuckled. "Vengeful villianess, now what would the press say?"

Riya rolled her eyes and hugged him. "They'd say I slayed."

Tamlin noticed that when Riya pulled away he was covered in dust. "You-"

The actress winked and clicked her tounge. "Gotcha! Now you have to take a bath!"

"Duplicitous woman." Tamlin muttered.

"Hey, I didn't win a season by doing nothing. Now get prettied up, puppy beast!"

Yeah, she was a little wicked, kinda like Lucien whenever he wanted to play pranks, but Tamlin did appreciate someone seeing his side.

So he stood up and headed for the bath, deciding he'd make his new friend happy.

***

Tamlin had told her everything when she asked, about the clawmarks and destroyed rooms, about the paintings that were torn to shreds, and the dresses he still kept saved up, hoping in vain she'd return.

Riya was no stranger to that fruitless hope. She once had someone wishing she'd retun to him. Unlike Feyre she left it clear that she wouldn't, not until she achieved the win she wanted and was allowed to live her life on her terms. That was not acceptable and so the man who claimed she was the love of his life cast her aside and got married a year later. 'He and Feyre would get along so well. Ugh, just grossed myself out.'

Deciding to not waste more of her time thinking of Connor she took to the former Lady of Spring's room and took out the puffy dresses she rejected. From what Tamlin said these weren't her style, and he didn't know that until much later when she'd already burned his court to cinders.

'Expecting the man with no mindreader powers to read your mind. Actually have a mouth and spine like the rest of us and say no!'

But she didn't, instead she made Tamlin out to be a villain for daring to be traumatized and perhaps protecting her too much. It made Riya sick, but she could do little now other than help the High Lord heal.

"I didn't think those were still intact." Tamlin said.

Riya was startled by his voice as she and the dresses down on the bed. "They look brand new, you got her so many..."

Tamlin looked away. The High Lord was now in his fae form, keeping only the antlers covered by small rosebuds of his beast form. He'd dressed himself in the outfit Riya coordinated for him and was in better shape now, but still utterly heartbroken.

"You can keep them. I have nose use for them anymore."

"My world seldom uses this type of dress anymore. But I will keep this yellow one. Get the rest of them out in the garden. I'll be there with you soon."

"What for?"

"Just trust me, Tam."

He nodded and did as asked. Riya took the yellow puffy dressed and changed into it. By the time she got out Tamlin and taken the pile of dressed down to the garden.

"Oh, you look lovely. It suits you." He said while magically making a flower crown for her to wear. It matched his antlers.

"Why thank you!" She said while flipping her hair. "Now, is there anything else you have kept of Lady Acheron."

"Some paintings, why?"

"We're burning it down."

"What?! Why would you suggest that?!"

"Tamlin, you're not going to heal if you keep holding on. We need to purge her from here. She's not coming back, and if she did, it would be best for you to turn her away. You don't deserve to be hurt like this! So, we must begin the healing for you."

He sighed looking defeated. "I know you're right I just...I'm not sure I can do it."

"You can, and you will. I'll do it with you." She told him as she revealed she'd taken some objects of her own.

Tamlin's eyes widened upon seeing what they were, a strand of 'pictures' of Riya and her ex, along with a bottle of red perfume.

"Isn't this the perfume he gave to you?"

"Yeah...I couldn't bring myself to throw it out. Until now. I won't let you do this alone."

Tamlin took a deep breath. "Then go get the paintings. I'll light up the bonfire."

She smiled as she went back into the mannor.

'Baby steps, Tam.'

***

Some wood and bit of magic was all it took to burn a pyre of dresses, paintings, photos and a bottle that cracked to pieces upon being thrown there, making the fire roar for a moment until it simmered down again.

Tamlin watched the flames consume the cloth until tears blurred his vision and he could only weep in silence.

Riya's eyes were misty too, but she had cried all she needed to before even meeting her new friend. So she was the strong one now and held onto Tamlin's hand tightly.

"You're doing great. It's almost over."

"Is it?...Am I ever going to move on from this?"

"Yes. Because I will make sure of it."

"Riya, you can't stay here and make sure I heal."

"Then I guess that means I am taking you to Hollywood with me."

He looked at her surprised, touched and concedned all at the same time. "I can't. The court."

"You can return. Just for a few weeks let yourself be selfish. Just tell Luce and you'll be okay."

He wasn't sure if he could allow himself the selfishness, until he glanced at the pink dress Feyre wore when she chose to leave him behind without a word and discard everything they'd ever been. The dress turned to ash, and he too should let guilt turn to ash.

"Hmmm fine then, I shall tell him I'll be gone for a few weeks upon his return."

"Good. I am making sure you smile again!"

He did, at her, because despite all he still had left she'd been the first to make sure he healed. Perhaps in her world he'd make sure she got the adoration she deserved too.

"Thank you Riya."

"You're welcome, Tamlin."

So they stayed like that until the fire burned everything away. Tamlin was now content in the knowledge that for all the losses, he'd have people on his side in every universe.

[ominous-faechild]

✦ OC Questionnaire Tag 3 ✦

Following tag from @honeybewrites !

Featuring characters from Sun and Shadow: Freya, Crow, Daleira, Valyarus, Soren, and Grimnir! As well as a surprise visit from someone else...

Notes: Valyarus is Daleira's adopted dad, Lynsmouth nobility, and a faerie; Soren is Freya's dad, strongly hinted to be ageless, and worked as a sailor; and Grimnir is Crow's dad, the famous criminal detective of Lynsmouth, and known to work under an alias and masks to hide his identity.

Featured Questions (not all characters will answer): - "Sun or moon?" - "Would you rather drown or be buried alive?" - "How many people have you killed?" from @the-golden-comet - "Do you believe in fate?" kidnapped from the-golden-comet's post

"Sun or moon?"

Freya, the MC of Sun and Shadow who's explicitly sun-coded: Freya: Well... even before I found out about the whole "my dad gave me a magic restraint from a really young age without telling me and I actually have magic" thing... I'd always liked being out in the sun. I'd feel more refreshed, energized. I thought it was just normal, yknow? Like, who doesn't like being out in the sun? But apparently it's A Normal Magic Thing™ to feel better in your element? Even though I felt awful for a while without the restraint... apparently that's something called "magical sickness" from having too much uncontrolled essence? That's what Daleira said at least... I don't know. Regardless, um, sun, obviously, haha. 😅

Crow, the "shadow" of Sun and Shadow: Crow: Moon. The daytime is too bright and it's a lot harder to blend in. I mean--(*pointedly wiggles the sunglasses they're always wearing*)--I need these to be able to actually see thanks to my damned curse and how bright everything is. Then, like, I need to stick to the shadows at day because I just feel worse under sunlight, you know? So, yeah. Moon, easily.

Daleira, the OTHER, secret "shadow": Daleira: Sun! (gotcha 😉) It's thanks to the sun's energy that our world goes round--well, metaphorically speaking--and it would be almost unrecognizable if the sun didn't exist! 😊 Well, I mean, now that I say that... I guess the same applies to the moon, huh? Like, it's thanks to it that we have the tides and-- (*continues rambling about Science*) --wait what was the question again? Oh, right! "Sun or moon?" I would probably still pick sun, haha! 😊

Valyarus: This is an odd question. I would dare to say sun. Nights tend to be much more dangerous, both in the Faewildes and in this world. Criminals adoring the darkness and all, yes? Besides that, I am also weaker at night. So that should be an easy answer for me, no?

Soren: I'm brought back from the dead and/or a potentially disastrous situation in order to answer arbitrary questions? (*heavy sarcasm*) Interesting. How kind of our all-powerful gods to give me this opportunity. (Look do you want this break or not?) ... fine. Yes. (*Clears throat*) My wife and children all had sun- and light-allegiances. I feel that should speak for itself. However... as a seaman, the stars have always been my best friend, and it would be a nightmare to navigate without them. In spite of that, if you told me to choose between my daughter and the night, I would choose my daughter in a heartbeat. Happy? (*he asks, glaring at the camerawoman* Very, great job, Soren! 😉 *he scoffs*)

"Would you rather drown or be buried alive?"

Freya, who in the first chapter of SaS got traumatized by nearly dying in a shipwreck: Freya: Be buried alive. Next question, please and thank you.

Crow: Easy! I'd choose to be buried alive! Being encased in a coffin--or even just dirt--would surround me in shadows and I could just teleport out through them, ha! Daleira: Crow, you're supposed to take this at face value. There's no way getting out. If you had to die either way, which would you pick? Crow: (*scowling*) But that doesn't make sense! I could just teleport out! Daleira: Yeah, well that's not the point! It's supposed to, like, find out your personality and stuff! Which you'd, uh... consider to be the least painful death?... hm, that's actually really dark when you think about it... Crow: Exactly! Besides, it doesn't say I have to die through it! Just drown or "be buried alive"--not that I die in the process! (*smug birb.png*) Daleira: Um... actually, "drown" does imply death. Crow: Wait, what? Daleira: It's in the definition! "Drown: verb; to die through submersion in and inhalation of water!" Crow: ... and why do you have the exact definition of "drown" memorized? And where did you get it??? Do you have a dictionary lying around somewhere in your workshop??? Daleira: (*flushed*) Just--answer the question! Crow: I still pick being buried alive. It doesn't mean I can't escape alive, sweetheart. 😘 Daleira: (*groans and puts her face in her hands*)

Daleira: Unlike Crow, I'm actually going to answer this question as intended. 😒 While both are deeply unpleasant ways to die, I'd probably choose to drown just because it's quicker than suffocating in a coffin... or loose dirt. (*shudders*)

Valyarus: (*pleasantly; if not a bit smugly*) I could and would do neither. As a faerie, I could simply teleport out of either situation. Daleira: 😒😒😒 Daleira: (*takes a slow, deep breath... unlike someone in the situations posed in this question!*) Dad, the point of the question is "imagine you don't have any other choice". Like, if you had to pick one, which would you pick? Valyarus: (*quizzical look*) Well that's just incredibly dark, isn't it? Who would pose such a question? Daleira: (*exasperated, throws up her hands*) I don't know! Could you please just answer it, Dad??? Valyarus: (*gives a long, drawn-out sigh... also unlike someone in the situations posed in this question!*) If you insist, dear. I suppose... I would choose being buried alive. In your hypothetical situation, unaware that I was completely doomed, I would likely choose it knowing it took longer and spend a majority of the time I had trying to figure out a way out... only to die. Valyarus: But, Dally, you are aware that even if our bodies die, we do not, yes? Daleira: 😃 (*internal screaming*)

Soren: (*completely unaware of the events of the first chapter of SaS in this case--*) I would choose the sea--or, drowning, that is. I was born by the ocean, was made by the ocean, and lived through the ocean. I see no better way to die. Or a more fitting one.

Grimnir: In those cases, I'd assume I'd be being assassinated by some of my enemies... and so they're planning for it to be as painful as possible. In which case, it would likely look like this: my to-be killers choose to drown me. They repeatedly dunk and pull my head out at intervals maximized for suffering, but just barely below the time my body would force me to inhale. Ideally, none of them would have control over water magic, or they could simply let me breathe it in and draw it from my lungs. Which would likely be doubly as unpleasant as traditional water inhalation. Regardless--they would repeat this process until I finally suffocated or they got bored. And then they would kill me. Alternatively, my captors could've chosen to kill me through burying me alive. In that case, they'd do so without a coffin. That way, I'd be suffocating, buried within whatever material they thought would make me suffer most. Due to the phrasing of this question, I would assume it could not be anything inherently dangerous, otherwise I would die of exsanguination, poisoning, or whatever else. No, instead, I'd suffocate. In this case, it's unlikely my captors could interrupt or pace out my murder--unless they periodically buried, unearthed, and re-buried me, which simply seems like more effort than it's worth and comes with risk of a coma instead. Between the two situations, I would choose to be buried alive. Though, I hope you aren't intending on trying anything... I may be a detective, but I have a lot more tricks up my sleeve.

"How many people have you killed?"

Freya: Nobody??? What???

Crow: What do you mean? I'm a detective, not a murderer! Obviously I haven't killed anyone!

Daleira: (*voice uncharacteristically quiet*) It... depends on what you count as a "person." And... whether you're counting accidents... which you probably are. Regardless?... a lot.

Valyarus: I have killed very, very few people. If they even counted as "people" by the time I killed them is a better question. But... if you consider the fact that I, myself, am not human, and that those of us in my position call all of us sentient beings "people"... then I have killed very, very many people. That's why I'm in the position I am today. I am very powerful. And, sometimes, death is necessary to protect those looking up to you as a leader.

It's been a bit since Elvalen has joined Lynsmouth, though. I think I've gotten a bit rusty. 😄

(note: Valyarus has accidentally killed a lot more people in a similar manner to Daleira, but is not counting them due to it being "part of a faerie's nature", unintentional, and frankly unavoidable to an extent. Up his perceived creepiness/danger level as you deem necessary.)

Soren: Depends who's asking. If this has any possibility of reaching my daughter, none whatsoever. Otherwise... more than I wish. But being what I am, death is sometimes inevitable. Other times, it's simply the only correct choice. Would you rather leave a monster alive, or kill it where it stands to save its victims, both present and future? I think there's only one right answer there, and I have a number of people who'd thank me for it. ... even if my daughter would not.

Grimnir: Depends on what you mean by "killed". Does it count to put them in prison, knowing people can and might target them there? If so: I don't know. Definitely more than I can count. Otherwise... only a few. And only when necessary, in self-defense.

"Do you believe in fate?"

Freya: You mean the idea that our lives are predetermined from the beginning, that our decisions are set in stone before we're born, and that nothing we can do will ever change that? Of course not. And even if it did, I'd assume magic itself would interfere with how Fate wanted to make things.

Crow: I'm... not sure. I've never thought of it before to be honest. I'd guess there's probably some god out there capable of it?... though if you think of it that way, wouldn't all gods be Fate in one way or another? Like, they're all always just... sitting in their godly domains or something, watching us, seeing everything and making decisions off of it right? So from our point of view, wouldn't that make them the puppeteers of our fates? So I'd say it depends on what you consider "fate" to be. Is it an active force keeping things to a certain "timeline" or set of events? In which case I'd say no. Or is it a set of actions carried out by beings that can see so much more than we do, that are capable of comprehending things that we can't, and actively try enforcing their wills on us? In which case... I'd say yes.

Daleira: Fate? Like "things are destined to happen a certain way"? I wouldn't know! Haha, there's so many things in this world that it's impossible to know! Like, there's billions of lifeforms breathing, existing!, making decisions all at once! Could there possibly be a reason behind it, some sort of consciousness pulling everything in a certain direction to make sure different events come true? Possibly!

... what do I think of that?... hm. That's a great question. I... don't know honestly. I like the concept of free will, would like to think we all have complete control of our lives and where they go... but that just isn't realistic! Even if fate didn't exist, our lives are all still pushed and pulled in every direction by those of the people around us. And by nature! The world constantly throws things at us, and all we're able to do is react to it! Even if we make our own decisions, they're based on our life experiences and the examples we've seen of others... so it's impossible to say "free will" truly exists, either.

Valyarus: Fate? (*snickers*) Which kind of "Fate", the idea that Grand Destinies follow people, that some people are destined to come together and "complete" one another", or something... Or the cold and merciless goddess known for doing whatever it takes to achieve her goals?

Don't misunderstand me--most gods are "cold, cruel, merciless" and all those good things. But I've heard special things of Fate. She sees everything that has happened, everything that is happening, and everything that will happen at all times. She's able to make decisions with more information than anyone else. She's been able to plan out her actions and puppeteer everyone else from the very beginning of time. She's known for acting irrationally, having her son carry out the most out of place things... for what? What cause? What purpose? We don't know. We can't. What we do know is that she's willing to do anything. She and her son--acting on her behalf as all avatars do--have done some things even the other gods wouldn't dare do. Although, I don't think it's for a lack of willingness so much as it would otherwise get in the way of their goals to actively commit atrocities.

Regardless, oh--I do believe Fate exists. It's very hard not to when you've spoken to her son firsthand and he responds to you before you can even speak. I wouldn't recommend it, by the way. I've met some very disturbing creatures before, but he was... different.

Quinn: Well, that's just rude. Valyarus: Quinn: After I helped you and everything. Valyarus: How... how did you get in here? Quinn: Not telling. 😉 Want to apologize? Valyarus: Valyarus: (*indignant!*) I see no reason to. Quinn: Of course. No problem, then. Just... be careful around birds. Valyarus: (*silent, confused panic???*)

Soren: I believe Fate exists, yes. Whether or not that's a good thing depends on the day... and if you're in her way. Thankfully, it does not seem like I've done anything to cross her... at least, not for a very long time.

Grimnir: (*deadpan*) I would assume so. Otherwise, I'd worry who I gave my eyes to.

Your questions: - What would you do if you watched a starving child steal something expensive without anyone else noticing? - If you could go back in time and say anything to your younger self, what would you say? - What would you sell your soul for? (Metaphorically speaking, doesn't have to be literal. In other words: "What is the most important thing to you, that you would do anything for?")

Tagging (with no pressure) @darkandstormydolls @yourpenpaldee @.honeybewrites @fantasy-things-and-such @themboty @the-letterbox-archives and whoever else wants to join!

Divider from @cafekitsune

[thecohengod]

Here's My OC who I plan to be on a Mortal Kombat Mugen Game, Citra!

Info:

Aliases: Cassie Cohen, CCF-044

Alignment: Good

Allies: Alon Cohen, Sara, Shion and Cindy, Tabi, Agoti, Oishi Kawaii, Radi, Lofie, Sonya, Jax.

Foes: Shang Tsung and Quan Chi (Deadly Alliance), Rain, Sindel, Shao Kahn, Shinnok, Bane, The Joker, Noob Saibot (Bi-Han), Mileena.

Voice Actress: Ashly Burch

Place of Origin: Earthrealm

Species: Shygal/Cyborg

Bio: Once Citra was nothing more than a shygal that was known as Alon's Cousin, though very adept at martial arts, she used her skills for protection and justice. Freed by Alon and Tabi in a daring attack on Bane in Gotham City, Citra was asked to join the famous Alon Cohen clan, where her athletic nature would be an invaluable, but acceptable asset.

Ending: Citra is captured by Alon and reprogrammed with new orders; Destroy Shao Kahn. With Kahn unable to detect the shygal's athletic presence, Citra delivers a successful sneak attack. But, after eliminating Kahn and saving earth, Citra awaits new orders from Alon. The orders never came and Citra malfunctioned. She ends up stranded in the middle of the Nevada Desert, blindingly heading towards Israel.

Fighting styles: Mi Tzu, Sambo, Combat Knifes.

Weapons: Chest Bombs, Combat Knifes, Grappling Hook.

Moveset:

-Special Moves-

Short Range Bomb

(Hold LK) B, B, HK

Long Range Bomb

(Hold LK) F, F, HK

"Gotcha" Grab

F, F, LP

Dash Punch

F, F, HP

Blade Swipe

D, F, LP

Grapple Hook Strike

F, F, HK

-Combos-

HP, HP, LP

HK, HK, B+HK

HP, HP, HK, HP, HK, B+HK

-Finishers-

Super Hook Kick (Fatality 1)

(Close/Jump) B, B, U, U, HK

Area Explosion (Fatality 2)

(Far/Hold BLK) U, U, F, D

Electrical Decapitation (Fatality 3)

(Close) F, B, B, B, HP

Animality (Pikachu)

(Close) F, F, U, HP

Brutality

HP, HK, HP, HK, HK, HP, HK, HP, HK, LK, LP

Friendship (DVD Promotion)

(Mid) B, B, D, F, HP

Babality

(Far) D, D, D, BLK

Self Destruct (Hara-Kiri)

F, F, B, BLK

Credits belong to Thewill15 on Fiverr for the the character design. Note: I am also gonna go on mugenfreeforall because I need some help from some people on creating this character on Mortal Kombat Project, and this character will have 3 different releases, each with different fighting style.

[findinginga]

Waiting for Inga…

...and wondering, if she will appear!

The walk from the hotel to the agreed upon meeting place was roughly 1.5 km.  I departed about 15 minutes early to allow sufficient time.  The the coffee shop meeting place was named "Gotcha".  When I was searching for locations, the name was sardonically apropos and actually made me chuckle when I first saw it pop up in my search results.  Gotcha is located on Liteyniy Avenue and was an easy walk from the hotel.

I arrived a few minutes before 1:30 pm and decided to pop into the shop to be sure that Inga and Eva were not already there and waiting.  After confirming that they had not yet arrived, I noted that the shop was rather small and was located in the lobby of a mixed use building.  There were few seats available for patrons and it was clear that the shop largely relied on take away orders.

The lack of seating options was going to be problematic, especially with Eva, who I suspected would be restless after a few hours on a train.  I decided to wait for Inga on Liteyniy Avenue outside the entrance and scanned the area for other options.  There was an ice cream and snack shop across Liteyniy at the corner with Ulitsa Nekrasova.  I would suggest this as an alternative if Inga and Eva arrived.  I was pressured for time as I had a work-related Teams call at 3:00 pm.  I knew I had to leave for the hotel by 2:45 to be on time.

Approximately 20 minutes passed and it was about 2:10 pm when a taxi pulled to the curb on the opposite side of Liteyniy from where I was waiting.  I was able to see a petite woman and a young child exiting the vehicle with bags in hand.  Despite he upturned collar of her coat and the knit cap, I was able to recognize Inga.

I was surprised but pleased...

I have to admit it was a relief to finally see her in person and reassured that I had not made all the preparations for the trip for nothing.  I knew at the outset, before I even boarded my flight to London that the trip and my visit with Inga would not be all that I wanted.  There was an evolution in my feelings for Inga from the first time I saw her photo.  Admittedly, I desired her physically.  She was lovely and delicate in appearance.  With sparkling eyes and a warm smile, made even more charming by a slight overbite, she was adorable.  However, her need for control, her lack of transparency and her habitual lying offset the physical attraction I felt.  I grew concerned about her mental health and a shift began where I began to view her through more of a clinical lens then of romance.  It was clear that she could not be trusted and I, foolishly, believed that I could influence this in a more positive way.  Still, when Inga removed her coat to reveal her petite body, with disproportionately large breasts straining against a black knit sweater, I would be less than honest if I did not admit a let out a small sigh.  A heavy heart recognized that while I wanted to see all of her, to touch her and be inside of her, my desire would likely never be realized.

Eva proved to be an adorable six-year-old with a typical smile of an adolescent shedding teeth.  I quickly accepted the fact that Eva was, and would remain, fiercely jealous of her mother's divided attention.  Of course, this made it nearly impossible to carry on a conversation without frequent interruptions by Eva with questions or to point out one thing or another for which she demanded a reply.

Inga and I exchanged some gifts during the course of the 40 minute first meeting.  She carried a several paperbacks of famous Russian authors that she favored.  I gifted her some coffee mugs that I promised I would purchase at the airports through which I traveled to represent the steps of my trip.  Inga expressed her fondness for the mug I selected while at London Heathrow.  I also gave her a pearl necklace which was an impulse purchase when passing Tiffany at Heathrow.  Amazing thing about Terminal 5 at Heathrow, it can be 6:00 am and Tiffany is open.  Of course, I did not forget Eva in my gift-giving.  She shyly accepted the stuffed dolls I brought and played, ever so briefly with them before needing to recapture the attention of Inga.

...then disappointment intruded

I reminded Inga about my meeting engagement and she was quick to point out that she and Eva needed to be on their way to the home of her brother in order to avoid the evening traffic, which Inga described as impossible.

As a part of my pre-departure travel arrangements I secured tickets for a performance of Le Parc by the renowned Mariinsky Ballet at the Mariinsky Theater.  I reminded Inga of the performance time and we agreed to meet in front of the theatre at 7:00 pm.

As we parted ways and I began to walk back to the hotel, a sadness overtook me.  It was clear to me that Inga really had no interest in me.  Her body language betrayed her indifference.  I recalled her words from previous exchanges, when I was able to get her to talk about physical intimacy and sex.  She told me on more than one occasion that she could not possibly be attracted to anyone or declare her affection for anyone without first meeting them.  But, it is widely recognized that we make assessments of another as a potential partner within minutes of an initial meeting.  It was obvious to me, there was no spark felt by Inga.  Even though I told myself I had lowered my expectations and did not expect romance as an outcome of the trip, I was nonetheless disappointed.

My assessment of the situation was not wrong...

[dykejake]

innate magic | chapter two

pairing: josh kiszka x f!reader

words: 1.5k

warnings: 18+ content! oral sex. if I find out minors are reading this you will be blocked <3

summary: you meet a man in a bar, who you’re pretty sure you recognize from the local trader joe’s. he says he doesn’t work there, but that doesn’t mean you two don’t hit it off.

a/n: y/n in this fic is written with the intent of being plus size. if that doesn’t jive with you, you are 100% welcome to imagine her as either an OC or simply scroll past. much love!

thank you @fosterkidwiththebrokenjaw​ and @j3rboa​ for pre-reading for me, I love you!

missed part one? find it here!

When you awoke the next morning, you noticed that the bed was empty, and you could smell bacon and coffee. You slowly pushed yourself up and rubbed the sleep out of your eyes. As you allowed yourself to wake up all the way, you looked around the bedroom, noticing the little bit of decor around his room. He had a very homey and soft vibe, and his room reflected that.

You kept looking around, then suddenly did a double take at one of the decorations on the wall. Inside a frame was a picture of a band, the words “Greta Van Fleet,” and two vinyls. 

Holy shit. You knew who Greta Van Fleet were, vaguely, you liked the music enough that some of it was on your phone, but not enough to recognize a band member if you passed them on the street. That guy in the picture was DEFINITELY the guy you had slept with, though. The curls were unmistakeable. 

Oh my god. He was in a famous band, and you had told him that he worked at Trader Joe’s. Then, he had laughed and got chatting with you. THEN, he SLEPT with you. Holy SHIT. 

You didn’t bother to pick your jumpsuit or panties off of the floor, instead choosing to make your way downstairs in Josh’s clothes and meet him in the kitchen. He was humming to himself, plating some eggs and bacon. 

“Good morning -“

“You didn’t tell me you were in Greta Van Fleet.”

“I did say I was in a band!”

“Yeah, but - and please don’t take this the wrong way - I assumed you meant that you sang covers at weddings, not Greta Van Fucking Fleet.”

“That kinda sounds like a you problem.” He laughed to himself and then shrugged at you. “You staying for breakfast? I made you some.”

“Yes, I would love to stay for breakfast.” You sat down gently on one of the stools in front of his kitchen counter. 

“Good.”

He smiled brightly at you and pushed the plate towards you. He did not seem even the least bit phased by your revelation about who he actually was. 

“Coffee?”

“Please.”

He poured you one and pushed that towards you as well, then made his way around the counter to join you on the stools. 

“So, you know my cool, cool music?” He asked sweetly, taking a sip of his coffee and then putting the mug down. 

“I do, yeah! Not well enough to recognize you, as we made clear last night, but you guys are great!”

You took a bite of the scrambled eggs he had prepared for you. 

“Well, thanks very much. I really appreciate that, genuinely, it’s very kind of you to say. What made it click, then?”

“The thing on your wall, with the vinyl.”

“Ah, I gotcha. Hopefully knowing who I am doesn’t change anything for you, last night was genuinely great and you’re genuinely gorgeous.”

“Not for me, no. Still here, aren’t I? If anything, it should change things for YOU. You really could have any girl you wanted, and you took the girl who thought you worked at Trader Joe’s home, you weirdo.”

You watched his shoulders sag a bit at your words, and you hoped you hadn’t offended him. 

“It’s not really about that for me. That’s not a genuine connection, that’s people who want something from me. I wanted to take you home because you made me laugh, because you’re genuine, and because you have one of the prettiest smiles I’ve ever seen in my entire life.”

“That’s a lot coming from Mr. Sunshine here. You have THE prettiest smile I’ve ever seen, and I mean that.”

He turned to you after finishing a mouthful of bacon and smiled. You did mean it - his smile was jarringly beautiful, even moreso in the light of day. 

“I hope you didn’t think that I was implying you’re shallow. I wasn’t, not at all. After all, you took me home and I’m not exactly the kinda girl rockstars sleep with.”

You saw his brow furrow out of the corner of your eye, but you didn’t say a word and neither did he, you two finishing your meal in silence. Once you both were finished, he gathered your plates and cups and went back to the other side of the counter to load the dishwasher. 

“Well, maybe I’m not a full-fledged rockstar like my brother, but I slept with you.”

Your cheeks pinked, you had no idea how to respond. It was a statement of fact, he had, and he had called you pretty over and over AND made you breakfast morning after. There wasn’t any room for arguing, or denial. 

You made your way over to where he was, and lifted yourself to sit on his counter. 

“You did. And you even made me breakfast, which is miles better than my last hookup. He made me climb out of the window because he didn’t want his roommates to see me.”

You laughed at the memory of awkwardly climbing out the window while he rushed you - but mostly so that you didn’t cry. You often told this story as a funny anecdote, but the look on Josh’s face when he lifted his head to look at you reflected exactly how it made you feel. 

“What?” His voice was gentle, sweet. 

“Yeah.” You laughed again, awkwardly, suddenly feeling incredibly vulnerable and wishing you hadn’t said it. 

“I don’t think that’s very funny. I think you’re stunning and honestly can’t believe you wanted to come home with me.”

You snorted at that. He was so genuine and sweet, and it warmed your heart and made you feel great about yourself, but uhhh… had the guy ever looked in a mirror? You watched his brow furrow again, and he opened his mouth to speak but you interrupted him. 

“Honey, I know you’re being serious and it’s really genuinely sweet, I promise. I’m not laughing at that, I’m laughing because I don’t know if you’ve ever looked in a mirror. You’re hot as fuck.”

He blushed at your words, smiling widely again.

“Thanks very much.”

You two sat in comfortable silence as he turned his dishwasher on, until suddenly he spoke again. 

“Y’know, I’m still hungry.”

“Oh? I’m not, really, but I’ll have another coffee if you’re having more to eat.”

He moved to stand in front of you, placing his hands on the counter on either side of you and looking at you darkly. 

“No… hungry for something else.”

He moved his face towards yours, but spoke before your lips connected. 

“You know what I mean?”

“I think I do.”

“And it’s okay?”

“Very much so.” 

He crashed his lips into yours and you gasped before kissing him back. It was unexpected, but not unwelcome. You moved your hands around his neck, playing with his curls as you kissed him. He let go of the counter and hooked his fingers inside the waistband of the boxers you were wearing. You wiggled your hips as he pulled on them so that he could take them off, feeling wetness pool between your legs at the excitement. He pulled them all the way down your legs, kneeling as he did so, kissing your knees and thighs before gently pushing them open. 

“Stunning.”

It was a gentle whisper, and then he was kissing down your inner thighs and towards your heat, making you squirm and whimper in anticipation. Then, he licked a broad stripe up your cunt and gently flicked his tongue against your clit, making you throw your head back and grip the edge of the counter, your knuckles turning white. 

“Fuck, Josh.”

His tongue teased your entrance, then your clit, and then he was sucking. Your toes curled and your eyes rolled back in your head. 

“So pretty like this for me.”

You let out a loud moan at his words, then an even louder one when he went back to lapping his tongue between your folds. He pushed his tongue into you and you gasped his name, and then his mouth was back on your clit and sucking, and your breathing was shallow. 

This man was a god. 

“FUCK, Josh!” You screamed, and he kept working his magic against your cunt until you came. He slowed his tongue, but helped you ride it out. When your breathing was mostly back to normal, he stood again, wiping the back of his hand across his mouth. It was fucking obscene, and made you whimper. 

“Not hungry anymore. Thanks, babe.”

It was so cheesy, you giggled. “You’re welcome.”

He picked the boxers up off the ground and handed them to you with a smile. “Unfortunately for me, I actually have to leave for the studio in about 5 minutes. You’re welcome to stay as long as you want, just lock the door when you leave.”

He then pulled his phone out of his pocket, unlocking it and opening it to a new contact page. He handed it to you, looking hopeful, and you smiled at him and put your name and number in. 

taglist: @secretgvfstan​, @fosterkidwiththebrokenjaw​, @screechesincoherently​, @tlexx​, @theweightofstardust​, @godblessmarywanna, @weightofdreams-gvf​, @prettyxvenomx​, @fictional-duchess​, @ascendingtostardust​

[idy-ll-ique]

What The Hell, Gyllenhaal, You Could’ve Just Told Me!

Pairing: Jake Gyllenhaal x F!Reader

Requested: Nope

Warnings: None

Genre: Floof

Summary: Y/N is Jake's assistant and he has an interview with Another Man.

Author's Note: I've had enough of not posting so you're getting this. I wrote it a long time ago, I think a few weeks after his actual interview with Another Man. Anyway, I'm posting it now so enjoy!

---

Jake POV:

"Y/N! Where are you?" I groaned as she finally picked up my call. "Outside, open the door!" I got up from the couch and opened the main door to see Y/N rushing towards me. I blinked, she looked so beautiful. Then again, she always did. I ended the call and kept my phone away. "Thank God, where were you?" I asked her as she stood outside, panting. "I'm sorry, my alarm didn't go off, my phone's battery died. I woke up late and then… well, now that I'm here, we should probably leave."

I nodded, grabbing the keys to my car and house. We left the house and got into my car. Y/N, if you didn't know, was my assistant. And she was the prettiest girl I had ever laid my eyes on. "Where to, first?" I asked her. She took out her phone. "Interview for Another Man. Then the photoshoot," she told me. I sighed and she looked at me. "Everything cool?" she asked softly. "Yeah, I'm bored already." She laughed, which made me smile.

"Come on, man! You were so excited about this, I know you. It's something else." I chuckled, shaking my head. "It's nothing, I swear." She stared at me suspiciously for a few seconds and then gave up. "Whatever." There was silence in the car as Y/N opened Instagram on her phone. "Should I put on some songs? We've got at least another half an hour in the car," I said and she shrugged. "Sure! Songs would be nice." I grinned and turned the radio on. 

Y/N raised her phone and I glanced at her. Oh, she loved taking photos. I followed her on Instagram, it was the best thing ever. She posted videos of her dancing and singing. As planned, half an hour later, we reached the office of Another Man. I parked the car and the two of us got out. We walked towards the entrance.

"Oh my God, Y/N?!" At the high-pitched squeal, both of us turned around. Two women walked up to us. "Hi," Y/N waved. "We're big fans! We love your Instagram, you have a beautiful voice!" Y/N exchanged hugs with both of them. I stood to the side, smiling. "Holy shit, Jake Gyllenhaal!" one of them squealed, looking at me. "Hello." I shook hands with the two ladies. "Can we get a quick photo, please?" Their names were Rebecca and Julie.

Julie raised her phone to take a selfie. Y/N draped an arm around my shoulders. My arm went around her waist and we smiled at the camera. After that, they went away. "You're more famous now," I teased Y/N as we resumed our walk towards the building. "Shut up," Y/N muttered with a smile on her face, giving me a slight push.

I laughed, shoving my hands in the pocket of my jeans. "Really though, I agree with them. You do have a beautiful voice," I said as we walked into the building. I saw the interviewer and his crew waiting for us. 

"Aw, thanks Jakey-poo," Y/N smirked and I rolled my eyes. "Don't call me that," I told her and she shrugged. "Okie, Jacob Benjamin Gyllenhaal," she grinned. "Jake is fine," I sighed, waving at her as I walked towards the interviewer. He led me to another room and I glanced back at Y/N. She sat in the lobby on a couch, keeping her backpack on her lap.

The interviewer and I sat down. "Hi, I'm Alex," he said, holding his hand out. "Hi," I smiled, shaking his hand. 

"One question before the cameras roll- Who's the girl outside?" he asked. "Oh, that's my assistant, Y/N Y/L/N. Very sweet gal. She's more famous than I am, apparently," I laughed. "Really? How's that?" Alex asked, amazed. "We met two fans outside, like, 15 minutes ago. They recognized her first," I snorted. Alex laughed, too. The cameras rolled and we began with the interview. 

---

 "Thank you for talking to us, Jake! It's truly been amazing." Alex and I stood up, shaking hands. "Thank you for having me! Do we do the photoshoot now?" I asked him. "Yeah. We have a few sets designed and a few venues as well, assuming you'll be comfortable shooting at different places?" I scoffed, waving my hand. "Of course, I'm cool." Alex then introduced me to Jessie, who was the photographer. "How about I meet you at the bridge?" she offered.

"Sure, no problem."

She gave me the address and left. I walked out of the room and looked around for Y/N. She wasn't where she was supposed to be. Her stuff was there, where was she? "Boo!" Startled, I turned to look to my right. Y/N was grinning at me, wiping her hands with tissues. "Goddamn it," I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. "Ha, gotcha. I was in the bathroom, silly," she snorted, walking towards her backpack. She kept her phone away and swung the backpack over her shoulders. 

"Where to, Captain?" she asked, tipping an imaginary cap. I told her the address as we walked out of the building. "You know, I met 3 people while you were giving an interview. I guess I am famous," she mumbled. "That is awesome, Y/N," I smiled, getting into the car. Y/N sat next to me and opened her backpack. "Yo, drink water."

She handed me a bottle of water before I could start the car. "I'm not thirsty." She stared at me with a raised eyebrow until I drank some water. 

I could never deny her, could I? I had a huge crush on her and it was common knowledge that people would do anything for their crush. I handed the bottle back and started the car. The bridge where we were supposed to go was nearly an hour away. "Ah, here it is. I waited for this for so long now, it's here. I'm impressed." What was she talking about? "What?" I asked her.

"News about us dating!" I nearly swerved the car. "The news about us WHAT?!" I asked her loudly. 

"Calm down, you big baby. Apparently when we met Rebecca and Julie there were paps around and they took a lot of photos. You know them, always printing the wrong news," she rolled her eyes. "Well then, Miss Famous, post it on your Instagram, tell them we're not dating," I grumbled. I did want to date her, though.

"Ah, good idea." She opened Instagram and I could hear her long nails clicking against the phone as she furiously typed something out. "Done," she said a minute later. 

"What did you write?"

 "I had been waiting for news like this. LMAO, I'm not dating @jakegyllenhaal I'm his babysitter," Y/N chuckled. "You wrote that?!" I yelled. Y/N burst out laughing. "Kidding, I wrote assistant, don't worry," she wheezed. I sighed in relief. A few minutes passed by in silence.

All of a sudden, Y/N's stomach started growling. "Shit, sorry," she whispered, blushing furiously. She clutched her stomach. "Hungry?" I chuckled. "Yeah," she sighed. "Wanna stop by, get some food?" She quickly shook her head. "No, we'll be late, then." I frowned. 

"It doesn't matter, you do. Come on, tell me where you want to eat," I said and she continued shaking her head. "It's alright. After the shoot we'll catch a snack, for sure," she insisted. I gave up. "Do you at least have snacks in that bag?" "Sure," she mumbled, taking out a toffee. She peeled off the wrapper and ate it. "Did you eat breakfast?" I questioned. "Nah, I was late, remember? Didn't bother," she shrugged.

"Not done, you gotta eat," I rolled my eyes. "Whatever, dad."

We reached the venue and I parked my car at the start of the bridge. The bridge was isolated for the shoot. "Aren't you getting down?" I asked Y/N when she didn't move. "I'm fine," she muttered, looking away. What happened with the sudden mood change? "Okay," I said slowly and closed the door after getting out. I kept the AC running for Y/N. Jessie was on the bridge, waiting. "Oh, hey, Jake! Ready?" I gave her a small smile. "Sure." She walked away and I leaned against the railing, sighing.

"Everything alright?" I heard and turned to look at the guy working on the lights. "Yeah, I'm fine," I told him and he nodded. "Alright, huge smile!" Jessie called out from a few feet away, holding the camera up. I managed a smile. Jessie was about to click the photo when she frowned. "Come on, man, not genuine. What's up?" Ignoring her question, I gave a broader smile. She simply lowered the camera, staring at me with a raised eyebrow. 

"We need authentic smiles, Jake. Do you want to shoot a little later when your mood is better?" Jessie asked softly, walking towards me. "Please! How about 2 hours later?" I sighed, relieved. "It's Y/N, isn't it?" I stared at her, shocked.

She only gave me a knowing smile. "I'm just like you, Jake. When my girlfriend is unhappy, my mood changes as well. Go make her feel better, then return when you're done," Jessie chuckled, patting my arm. I nodded and started walking away. I didn't even have the heart to correct her about the whole 'girlfriend' thing. 

"Also, what happened? Did you two get in a fight?" I turned around to face Jessie. "No, I… I found out Y/N did not eat breakfast and she was really hungry… but she refused to eat because I would be late to this shoot. She doesn't care a lot about herself because of me. I feel… guilty," I explained in a tired voice, rubbing the back of my neck. "Well then, I would definitely suggest feeding her first if it would make you feel better," she laughed. I gave her a small smile and walked towards my car. 

When I reached, my eyes widened. "Y/N, what the fuck, what happened? Why are you crying?" I hastily opened the door and sat in the driver's seat. She sniffled and wiped her tears. "I'm fine, it's just… whenever I'm super hungry I get all moody and sad because my stomach hurts and- Wait, are you done with the shoot already?" she questioned, confused. "No, we postponed it, we're up 2 hours later." I started the car. "What- Where are we going, Jake?" she asked as I drove to the nearest fast food restaurant. 

"We gotta put some food in that belly."

Y/N chuckled and I felt a hand on my thigh. "Thank you," she whispered, laying her head on my shoulder. "It's okay." We fell silent. "Did you postpone the shoot because of me?" Y/N asked quietly a few minutes later. "Yeah. I felt bad that you didn't eat for a long time and I couldn't smile for the photos. Jessie figured out it had something to do with you. She suggested we postpone, actually," I told her truthfully. "You're too sweet." 

Y/N pressed a kiss to my cheek and I smiled. We arrived at a McDonald's drive thru. We collected our orders and I drove back to the bridge. I parked the car in the same spot as before and turned to Y/N. 

"After you, milady," I smiled, gesturing towards the food. She took off the covering and bit into the burger. "Thank you so much, Jake, you're the best boss one could ask for," she squealed and I chuckled. I took out my phone to quickly check my Instagram while Y/N ate. I wasn't hungry, I didn't order anything for myself. When I heard a giggle, I looked up. 

Y/N had sauce all over her lips, pretending it was her lipstick. I opened the camera app and discretely clicked a photo because she looked too cute. With a smile, I returned to Instagram. "Wanna share?" Y/N questioned and I looked back at her. She was holding up the pack of fries. 

"Nah, I'm cool. You're the one who should be eating!" I told her. "Come on, man! You bought me two goddamn Big Macs and I was barely able to finish them! Eat this with me!" She shook the pack of fries in front of my face. I sighed and picked out one. We shared the pack of fries. 

Y/N was in a much better mood after eating. We had half an hour to kill after eating before we were back on schedule. "So… Y/N, tell me something about yourself." She narrowed her eyes at me. "What?" she deadpanned. "Come on, we've got nothing to do. Talk to me," I whined. "Well… what should I tell you?" she shrugged. "Your favourite things," I smiled. 

"The colour red, red roses, winter… the song Happy Now by Zedd…" she said, counting on her fingers. 

"That's nice, but I've never heard of the song," I shrugged. "Oh, no? The one that goes you're a world away, somewhere in the crowd, in a foreign place, are you happy now? There's nothing left to say, so I shut my mouth; won't you tell me, babe, are you happy now?" A smile bloomed on my face as Y/N sang. "Sing it for me," I blurted out and she looked at me. 

"Okay, let me put on the karaoke." Both of us took out our phones. I opened Camera and kept the video recorder ready. 

"Are you recording?" Y/N sighed, putting on the karaoke. "No, I'm on Instagram." Y/N believed my lie and started singing. She sang the first verse and the chorus. After she was done, I ended the video. "That was awesome! People are right, you do have an awesome voice," I told her with a grin. "Great! Your mood has improved, Jake, go for the shoot," Y/N said with a smile. "Only if you come along." Both of us got out of the car. 

Jessie was talking to someone but turned as soon as she saw us. "Oh, hey guys! I hope you're fine now," Jessie snorted, looking at me. "I'm fine, honestly," I laughed. "Great! Let's get to work!" The photoshoot was a huge success. I had broad smiles throughout because everytime Jessie clicked a photo, my eyes were on Y/N. 

---

"Ya know, Jake, you shouldn't cut your hair."

Y/N and I were back at my place. "What? Why?" I asked, running a hand through my hair. "I think it's a good look on you. I like men with long hair, so when you're like, cuddling, you get to play with their hair," Y/N smiled, not looking up from her phone. I stared at her, a smile on my face. A few seconds later, Y/N looked up, wide eyed, cheeks as red as a tomato. 

"I'm so sorry, I didn't- I-" I chuckled and got up from my place on the couch. I sat down on the floor in front of her. 

"Jake, what are you doing?" Y/N whispered as I took her hand. "Do whatever you want," I told her, placing her hand on top of my head. I heard a small chuckle and felt her hand combing through my hair, massaging my scalp. "Your hair is so soft," Y/N mumbled. 

"Thanks," I chuckled, closing my eyes. This was so soothing; I leaned back, laying my head on her lap. I took my phone in my hand and put on some songs. A song, specifically. All Your Days by Shallou and Emmitt Fenn. 

Y/N started singing along. I smiled, I could never get tired listening to her, her voice was absolutely angelic. "Hey, Y/N?" She made a humming noise. "Wanna get coffee later?" I heard her laughing and looked at her. She was grinning at me. "Are you asking me out?" she teased. "Yeah, actually," I whispered, eagerly awaiting her response. 

She leaned over and wrapped her arms around my shoulders in a tight hug. "Of course." I smiled, hugging back. 

"So, like… have you liked me for a while now?" Y/N questioned a while later. I was sitting next to her now and she was snuggled into my side. "You agreed to be my assistant around 5 years ago, right? I've liked you for the past 3," I answered truthfully and she sat up. She looked at me, an eyebrow raised. "You've lived with your feelings for 3 years now?" she asked loudly. 

"The most difficult three years of my life," I joked. "What the hell, Gyllenhaal, you could've just told me," she laughed. 

"You've liked me, too?" My jaw dropped. She nodded and I pulled her back in my arms. "If only we were bold enough," I laughed. She opened Camera on her phone. "I'm taking a selfie, join me." She smiled at the camera. That smile turned into a grin when I kissed her cheek. I watched as she opened Instagram, put a long caption and posted the picture. 

Alright, paps, you win this one. It wasn't one-sided; turns out, he's interested in me, too. Guess who's going on a date this evening with @jakegyllenhaal? 

I laughed when I read the caption. "You're a pro at coming up with Instagram captions," I told her. "You learn from the best," she winked. "Aw, thanks!" I said, touched. "What, no, I was talking about Ryan Reynolds." Y/N burst out laughing as I shoved her, frowning. "I'm kidding, stupid," she laughed, falling back against my chest.

---

A/N: Please ignore typos/mistakes, it’s just a fun, light-hearted fic. Thanks for reading, do like if you enjoyed it! Follow me for more fics, the masterlist is in my description (this reads like a YouTube outro lmaooo)

[roseymess]

Hii! I wanted to join your new ship! I absolutely love love love the idea! How are you so creative😫💪?

My royal aesthetic is like a dark academia aesthetic. Like so:

My favorite emoji is 😫 and the kpop group I would like is BTS! Thank you so much pretty <3

SR

Hey!! Thank you so much for the complement 🥺🥰🥰

In BTS I ship you with....

Jimin

You were one of the princesses. The middle one. Your elder sister,Grace(let's say) was going to be the future Queen. Her groom had already been chosen from the next kingdom. In this kingdom,things go differently. The women are more authoritative and more powerful than men. You all have crown Princess,queens and women as chief royals. And of course,the reverse harem. Your elder sister had many husbands,second man-in,the royal male consort,and many. Your younger sister was quite the heart breaker,fooling around with men from all age.

Then there was you,all alone,in your own world. But still you were famous for your art,your wit and your dresses. Everything you wore would immediately become popular among the women in the. kingdom. Your swordman ship was also praised. And so were your fighting skills. Usually,you went with your sister Grace to a the wars. And won them. Ladies and queens from other Kingdoms wanted to be you. But you didnt care about all the fame. You had the beauty,the art and the skill. For you,longed for one true love. You were never interested in fooling around. You felt you were too shy for those things. You would imagine a man,coming and sweeping you off your feet. Someone whom you could protect,someone who would protect you in return. You wanted a fairy tale.

A royal ball was announced for your younger sister. Your parents were done with her days of fooling around and now wanted her to settle. You were also getting ready. You wore a beautiful black and red dress. Your lips red,your hair in a messy bun. You looked beautiful. Your red tiara dawning on your head. Of course,the theme was peach,pink and white.

You came in with black,red and dark aura. And everyone stopped and looked at you. Of course your sisters were proud of you,once again for not falling for the trend. Your eyes scanned the place. Many handsome men were present. Beautiful ladies as well. You took a wine glass and kept roaming around the place. You weren't in a mood to dance. You just stopped at one corner and drank your glass.

After sometime,as you were looking at your shoes,you heard a soft angelic voice. You looked up. A man,maybe in his kid twenties. Parted blond hair. Fair skin,plump lips, crescent eyes that were smiling, beautiful dimples. "Cute" you thought. But you knew,the man was far from cute. He looked like an angel. He was wearing a white suit. And he looked perfect,so beautiful and pure. "Princess? Are you there?" He asked,you were so lost ,that you didn't realise that he was talking to you. "uh yes,sorry pardon me" you spoke . " Its okay Princess,I asked if it would be okay if I asked your hand for a dance. The ball is almost over and I couldn't help but notice that you were standing here all evening,so if you would like to dance to the last song with me?" He asked, politely. Well,he was handsome,good looking. And he stalked you. So....

" Wow,you dance so well Princes,no one would have had any idea had you been stuck in that corner all evening" Jimin,the man whose name now you know,said. " Well,I never really cared. I liked staying alone. Idk why even i am famous" you said smirking,as if you didn't know. Jimin smiled at your words. He had already found you extremely charming. He had heard about you a lot in his kingdom and today he wanted to see you for himself. And definitely,he did right. You were absolutely the girl he always dreamnt about. Maybe not everyone's ideal but for him. He would often dream about a girl like you,in red, waiting for him. But he knew it's too good to be true. As he must return to his home when the clock strikes 12(gotcha😏🤭). You were the princess,while he could only afford to come here today through the help of the royal guard,who is his brother. He heard stories about you through the letters his brother would send him. And his dream came true.

You two soon left the ball room after the dance. You two were now, strolling in the garden,side by side. You had found the man quite attractive and of course, charming. You wanted to know more about him.

" So what's your dream, Jimin" you asked

" To be a fighter,yk,like a knight in armour" hearing his answer,you smiled.

" Well then,care for a challenge?" You said.

Of course, Jimin knew about your skills. But he had skills too. "Uh sure Princess-" he couldn't complete it but soon the clock striked 11:55 pm. His brother was already at the gate waiting with his castle way back home.

Jimin knew his dream reality is coming to an end. But he wanted it to last.

"Princess,i have loved and enjoyed every moment with you. And I wish I had more time. But i must leave now." He said and have you a bracelet. You saw he was wearing a similar one,just that his had a small lock attached to his one. Yours had a key. " Please keep this ,as a memory of tonight. I would love to dream of tonight for the rest of my life. And keep my lock bracelet as a memento. I must hurry now Princess. Have a good night" he said and soon he disappeared. You tried to chase him but the other ladies there pulled you in their conversation.

Months later.

You still think of that man. And you keep hoping you would see him again. You were now getting ready to train your new batch of armys. You went to the ground. But what shocked you the most was seeing Jimin, the man who had your heart locked to his gaze,there in the batch. He also looked stunned to see you and was expecting you to be mad. But all you did was smile,before you went on to command them. Knowing full well,Jimin would have to stay back for his punishment.

Hope you liked your ship. Sorry I got carried away. Please leave a feedback 🥰🥰🥰

[stdio2020]

Poppy and Amalia Ulman - ‘The Internet Persona’

In treating my social media as an ongoing performance project I am reminded of two great artists who have explored these ideas long before me. That is Amalia Ulman and Poppy. 

Ulman is best known for her work ‘excellences and perfections’ in which the artist transformed her instagram account into a scripted performance in which she underwent a ‘makeover’. She began going to pole dancing classes and implied through the images that she posted, that she had had breast augmentation surgery. Through a constructed array of locations and props she conjured the idealised consumer fantasy, the modern, glamorous woman. 

These images are beleivable, we have seen these sorts of things posted in earnest by our friends and family. Therefore this performance is beleivable, and becomes more ‘real’ the longer it endures. 

after 3 months ulman announced the conclusion of the performance through an instagram post. 

I think that this is a really good way to critique the culture and the lifestyle that is promoted on social media. However, in terms of being a beleivable persona, the illusion is shattered at the moment the artist announces the performance as performance. Viewers who beleived in her narrative will feel stupid and betrayed as the artist leveraged their support for cultural capital with another group of people (The Art World). And for people that knew her before, the game will be up and no further thinking on the matter can take place. 

For my project, what is more interesting is the confusion of what is real vs unreal, that the question of performative identity online remains a constant source of confusion. Ambiguity is the most interesting way for a viewer to engage with a work and provides more nuanced, textured discussions. It is important for me that the discussion doesn’t just stay online, that the performance is never not happening. After all the reality offline is not true reality either. Offline and online are the same thing.

In contrast to Ulman, there is Poppy. The brainchild of Titanic Sinclair and Moriah Rose Pereira. Poppy is a youtube personality whose aesthetic is characterised by a voidspace studio, pastel pink and cream colours, and a lynchian play on the infatalized female character. Poppy speaks both as though she were an android and a child, simple, deadpan statements like “being famous is important, its important to be famous.” are repeated in variations for videos that almost always remain under 5 minutes. In the past decade or so, Poppy has also developed a successful carreer as a pop musician. Music videos, recordings and albums are conceptualised as being part of the same universe. She even goes on podcasts and interviews as Poppy. Because Poppy is always Poppy to the public, and we have no idea about the life of Moriah - Poppy is our only possible perception for this person. In an unbroken decade long performance, its fair to say that Poppy IS the real person here, given that she has lived as long as the children from whom she draws her infantile nature. 

This project is a much better exercise in the internet persona than that of Ulman, who succumbed to the short lived satisfaction of the ‘Gotcha’ rather than thinking of the efficacy of the project on the whole. 

[macadoodle1996]

The SJM Switcharoo

So I know we all talk about how Sarah J Maas is famous for her leading ladies never sticking with the first love interest. It’s become a big joke, to the point that people have claimed that if Bryce and Hunt *isn’t* end game, that it will be proof that SJM has only One Plot.

Except I don’t think it will.

I’ll preface this by saying that I 10000000% want Bryce and Hunt to be end game, but I just don’t like the insinuation that not ending up with the first love interest will make SJM into a one trick pony. So let’s take a look at the love lives of our leading ladies. 

First, there is Feyre. When we first meet her, she doesn’t have much time for a grand romance, but she does have a lover named Isaac Hale (so is he the first LI?). Then Tamlin knocks down her door and she initially hates him. Though she is on the way to trusting him, before that happens she is saved by Rhys, who she thinks is the most beautiful male she has ever seen. By the end of the first novel, she and Tamlin have declared love for one another, just waiting for the mating bond to snap in place. After Tamlin shows himself to be The Asshole, she falls in love with Rhys, making him the 3rd “Love Interest” she’s had. (If I remember correctly, she flirts an awful lot with Tarquin while they visit the Summer Court, so it could be argued that Rhys is one of four love interests).

Then, we have Aelin. In the prequel (which I admit I have only read the first few chapters of--I am more of a fan of Aelin than I am of Celaena if that makes sense), she of course falls for Sam, who is murdered. Next we see her in somewhat of a classic love triangle between Dorian and Chaol. She kisses Dorian before ultimately turning him down. The next book, she and Chaol have a passionate relationship that really only lasts a handful of chapters before it crashes and burns. The next book she finally meets Rowan, but it takes like THREE (3) books for them to finally act on their romantic feelings for one another. 

Finally, there is Bryce, who starts in a ‘relationship’ with a guy who doesn’t appreciate her at all. Then she finally agrees to try with Connor, though not before one last fling at the club. Of course, we all know what happens to Connor..... But again, its about 400 pages of friendship and pining before Bryce & Hunt give in, and even that immediately goes to Hel in a handbasket before they reunite. Beyond that, who can say whether they are end game?

So what am I trying to say? I don’t think that it’s a cliche or a Maas-ism that none of our leading ladies have ended up with their first loves. I think it is real. All three of theses women are very different--different names, different species, different roles in society--at the end of their story than they are at the beginning. Changing up the love interest is not a ‘gotcha’ from the author; it is a necessity. Feyre the High Lady could not work with her human lover or with Tamlin the Asshole. Celaena the assassin may have been attracted to Dorian, may have been in love with Chaol, but Aelin Queen of Terasen could not have a relationship with the King of Adarlan or the Lord of Anielle. Bryce has not completed her arc yet, but it is for sure that the Heir of the Starborn fae would not stay in a relationship with a mortal who rolls off her to check his phone. 

So, while I will be disappointed if Hunt and Bryce aren’t end game, if she does end up with someone else, it will not be proof of SJM’s poor writing in and of itself. If she does end up with someone else, it will be simply because of the way she (and Hunt) have grown, that they no longer need each other. 

[auspicious-lilana]

Two Cats, One Heart (Chat Noir x reader)

Summary: Y/n Ross and Adrian Agreste are childhood best friends, they’ve been through thick and thin, including losing their mom, and dad. Since then Y/n’s mom made her live with Adrian at his mansion and forever leaving her life. Watch as their lives Change as they become the new heroes of Paris alongside Ladybug and see how Romance sprouts between the two models.

Part 1 |  Part 2 |  Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6  

"You don't have to stay, N/n."  Adrian said as he was in his fencing gear.

"I don't mind."  I said, shrugging it off as I sat on a the side bench. "Not like I have anything better to do. We go to our photoshoot together half a hour after this."  

"But you could go and have fun instead of staying here in a sweaty training room full of boys."  

"I am having fun."  I said with a smile. "I'm with you."  Adrian blushed slightly before grinning.

"You should watch your words, shortie."  Adrian chuckles. "You almost made me think you might have a crush on me."  

"I'll try."  I winked.

***

I checked the time to see it was almost  time for the unveiling ceremony. I looked to see Adrian fencing.

"Hey, uh. Adrian?"  I asked as he stopped to look.

"Yeah?"  

"I'm going to go out for a bit, starting to see how stuffy a room can get."  I chuckled as Adrian nodded.

"Sure, Stay safe."  

"I will, goldilocks."  I picked up my bag as I left the room, not knowing of the class of boys asking who I was, or if I was available towards Adrian.

I casually walked in the hallway before running in the girl's bathroom, going in a stall.

"If you thought that room was stuffy,"  Alpha said, coming out. "Try being in your bag for 2 hours."  

"Oh hush, Drama Queen."  I rolled my eyes. "Now we got a unveiling to be at."  

"We?"  

"Oh right,"  I said, grinning. "Lady Wolf  has to be there, Y/n Ross will have to go now."

"Can I eat fir-"  

"Alpha, Tails out!"  

***

"Hey, Kitty."  I said,jumping down the stage to meet Chat Noir.

"Hey, Petit Loup."  Chat purred as I scratched behind his ear as I chuckled when he nearly fell back once I pulled my hands back unknown to the jealousy fueling man behind us.

"Excuse me?"  A brown haired man asked us nervously. "Lady Wolf?"  

"That's me."  I grinned.

"I was wondering-"  

"Lady Wolf!" a group of students began to cheer as I got distracted by the cute little kid dressed as me.

"Hey kids!" I said, bending down to the little girl. "You look fierce."  The little girl giggled as I sheepishly grinned.

"Can I ask you a question?" Alya asked as I stood up.

"Shoot away!"  

{Third POV}

Théo sighed as he reached his arms out to Lady Wolf who slowly got crowded.

"What's with the long sigh?" Chat asked, curious.

"It's just that, I wanted to ask her to autograph this photo. She's amazing. She's so brave and courageous. the way she makes you just feel safe with a smile..."  Théo daydreamed as he looked at the photo of Lady Wolf as Chat frowned. He loved Y/n, but some small part of him felt familiar with Lady Wolf, as if he known her forever.  

"Perhaps the ceremony should commence. It might bring ladybug here faster."  The Mayor said to Chat Noir.

***

" ...I'm there!"  Marinette said, entering the boys locker, looking for Adrian's phone to delete the voicemail.

"Oh boy."  Tikki said.

"Which one his's?"  Marinette panicked.

"If you call him, you can make his phone ring."  

"Nice, Tikki."  Marinette called him before she pressed her ear on every locker.

***

"It's only proper for Paris to pay homage to those to protect us from evil."  The Mayor announced as the statue was soon unveiled. "Ladybug, Chat Noir, and Lady Wolf."  

Théo sighed before smiling as Lady Wolf approached him.

"so what was your question."  

"I was wond-"  Lady Wolf's phone (her baton) began to ring. "You should."  he sighed.

"No, I'm sure it's not that important."  

"Maybe it is."  

"If you insist."  Lady wolf took out her baton as she jumped to a private place before going to answer the phone.

"These statues are amazing. One thing's slightly off though"  Chat said as he crouched on the statue next to Théo. "I remember being taller than Lady Wolf."

"I never got the chance to ask her for her autograph." Théo sighed sadly. " I just wanted to express my adoration for her. Let her know that everything I had went into her statue. I'm sure if she took a little time to get to know me, she would see how much we have in common. Our devotion to the things we love."

"Hey, I don't mean to burst your bubble."  Chat said, putting his arm Théo.  " but you know, Lady Wolf and me, we're a thing, you know?"  

"Really?"  

"Yeah, we're like this." Chat crossed his fingers. "Didn't you see before?"  Théo growled and pushed Chat from his grips as he stormed off.

"What does Lady Wolf see in him?"  He growled. (A/n: I don't know, A cute black cat with a spoonful of cat puns?)

***

The ceremony soon ended as Chat and Lady Wolf said their goodbyes. Chat went back to the school as Lady Wolf went to a alleyway near the school as soon after they all went home.

"Where is it?"  Adrian frustratedly said as he searched all over his gym bag before glaring at Plagg who ate his cheese carelessly.

"What are you looking at me for?"  Plagg said, feeling accused.  "I didn't eat! I swear!"  

{Y/n POV}

"Hey N/n!"  Adrian shouted from his room, knowing from the thin walls that I'd hear.

"Yeah?!"  I shouted back, not looking up from my phone screen as I played piano tiles.

"Come here!"  I groaned as I missed a tile.

" 'kay!"  I dropped my phone on my table as I got up stretching.

"Wonder what's up with pretty boy."  Alpha asked.

"Don't know,"  I said. "Can't be that bad though, c'mon."  Alpha went in my pocket as I left my room, entering Adrian's. "You called?"

"Have you seen my phone?"

"Your phone? No, you lost it?"  I asked as I laid on his couch.

"Must have dropped on my locker room."  Adrian groaned.

"Don't worry too much of it." I sat up. "You'll find it in no time."

"And if I don't?"  

"Buy a new one."  

"But setting up and getting my contacts back is a pain."  Adrian groaned as he fell on the couch.

"Relax, it's probably still in the locker room as we speak."  I said. "We'll get it right now."  I got up as I grabbed Adrian's hand as I dragged him out the door, not seeing him quickly take Plagg behind my back.

***

"And in some astonishing news, there's been a spectacular theft at the Louvre."  The car radio tv on the chair  spoke as Adrian and I looked at each other confused. "Amateur video showed without a shadow of a doubt that the thief is none other than the famous hero, Cat Noir."

"What?!"  we both said in shock.

"Cat's meow?" Adrian mumbled as the car stopped at the school.

"I'll go look in the gym and you check the locker room?"  I suggested as we both nodded as we ran separate ways. I stopped at the gym door, before looking around and heading in the bathroom.

"Chat is a lot of things."  I said as Alpha came out once I went in a stall. "But thief isn't one of them. I just know it's a fake."

"Because your love for him is so strong."  Alpha mocked.

"Whatever."  I said, rolling my eyes. "We have a kitty to prove innocent and fake to catch."

"True love triumphs all."  Alpha continued mocking. "How about a true love ki-"  

"Alpha, Tails out!" I said as I transformed. "Man, I thought you'd never shut up." I chuckled before going out the window.

I was on my way to the museum as I ran to ladybug.

"Ladybug!" I exclaimed as we stopped.

"Lady Wolf."

"You heard?"

"Yeah."  

"Do you think...?"

"Chat Noir may get annoying, but he wouldn't steal." Ladybug said as I nodded as we went down to the museum to see the officers and the mayor.

"Mr.Mayor this is ridiculous." I said as we dropped next to the mayor.

"We're sure there's a simple explanation."

"Kitty's in the slammer, Ladybug, Lady Wolf." Officer Rogers said, approaching us.

"You don't actually think that'll keep hi-" I started to scoff before he cut me off.

"Now, now. Leave it to the experts, Lady Wolf. We've got it under control."  Ladybug and I exchanged looks, knowing that won't keep Chat in.

"Cat Noir is getting away!"  Officer Roger's walkie talkie said. Officer Rogers, Ladybug and I ran inside to see the metal bars they locked Chat in was broken down, he used his powers.

"Well, if he's so innocent, then why is he running away?" Officer Rogers questioned.

"Well if you were wrongly imprisoned, wouldn't you run?" I said, glaring at the officer as I crossed my arms. My baton began to ring as I gave Ladybug a look as we ran to exit the museum as I got out my baton to answer.

"Chat Noir! Where are you?" I asked.

"You know I'm innocent," Chat said. "Don't you, mon loup?"

"Now's not the time, Chat." Ladybug exclaimed. "This is really serious!"

" I'm gonna find the real culprit and save my tail. I'll get back to—" Chat hung up as the helicopter chased him. We got outside as we saw Chat running.

"Aren't you two gonna chase him?" Officer Rogers questioned as we both looked at each other before we began to sheepishly grin.

"We'll leave it to the experts." We both said with a smile as we both swung away.

*** {Third POV} ***

Chat Noir went in a subway as the police cars crashed into each other as he changed back and casually came out the other subway exit as Adrian whistling before he went to hide behind a pole as he pulled his jacket to show Plagg eating his cheese.

"If you want my opinion, I'd say the thief was akumatized." Plagg said, eating.

"That much I had figured." Adrian said as he held up the lolistick he found in the museum. "See that lollipop stick? The sculptor. How did I not see that jealousy coming a mile away?"

"Yours or his?"

"ha ha, real funny. You know I like Y/n."

"That's what they all say." Adrian rolled his eyes as he pushed Plagg back in the pocket.

***

"Gotcha, Copycat." Chat said as he watched from a window, on top of Théo's studio. He went in as he hid behind a wall, looking around before he called Lady Wolf who quickly answered.

"Chat Noir!" Lady Wolf exclaimed as Ladybug stood with her on top of a building as they were looking for him. "Where are you?"

"I found his Den." Chat said.

"Who's?" The two females said.

"My copycat." The two exchanged confused looks.

"We're not getting you."

" If you'd been there this morning the entire time, you'd know what I was talking about."

"Well? Tell us where you are."

"No, this is between me and him. I got myself into this mess, so I'm gonna get myself out." Chat hung up and put his baton away as he picked up a letter from his snooping.

"Cat's in the bag?" Chat Noir repeated confused as he looked at the box before it bursted as metals came out and chained his wrists. "Cataclysm!" Before he could touch the metal chains, Copycat appeared and put his hand on a box, wasting his one shot.

"I don't get what Lady Wolf sees in you." Copycat said. "A fool who so easily falls into my trap." Chat Noir reached his hand towards his back to get his staff, but didn't feel it there. "Looking for this?" Copycat held Chat's baton.  "Which one should I pick up? My one or my one?" Chat's baton began to ring as Copycat answered to see Lady Wolf.

"Lady Wolf, Ladybug, hurry up. I've caught the impostor at Théo Barbot's workshop." Copycat said as Chat Noir struggled in the chains.

"We'll be there in thirty seconds." Lady Wolf  said as they ran quicker.

"Don't come here, Ladybug! Lady Wolf! It's a trap!" Chat Noir yelled in vain as Copycat ended the call.

"Too late, Cat. Ladybug and Lady Wolf's their way, which was my plan all along." Copycat grinned.

"They won't be duped."  Chat grinned. "They know me too well."

"I know you too well." Copycat said as he looked at his photo. "And for now on, Lady Wolf will only love me, Not you!"

"Love me?" Chat repeated confused before regaining his grin. "Right! She loves me! That's why she'll be able to reveal your true identity!" Copycat frowned as he put the photo back in his pocket before knocking Chat to the ground, taking his hand to take the ring off before the two heroines came in.

"Chat!" Lady Wolf exclaimed running up to the two as Copycat looked at her, lovesick. "Wow, he looks exactly like you."

"That's because I am me!" Chat said.

"Where's his akuma?" Ladybug asked.

"Inside his ring, of course." Copy cat said, pointing at it. "Go ahead, grab it." Copycat gestured for her to take the ring from Chat's hand. Lady Wolf kneeled down on her knee, holding Chat's hand as she reached for the ring before seeing a paw come off and stopping. "He even has the same powers as you." She said to Copycat, suspiciously.

"If you don't believe I'm the real Cat Noir, ask him about our love for each other." Chat said with a grin as Lady Wolf flushed in red.

"L-Love?"

"Have I ever lied to you, Mon loup aimant." Lady Wolf blushed looking into Chat's eyes as she regained her color, putting on a smirk as she let go of his wrist, leaning in to Copycat.

"You didn't tell him, right?" She asked as Copycat began to get flustered.

"What?" Copycat stuttered out.

"You know," Lady Wolf said, touching his cheek. "Our little secret."

"A-uh, no. Of course not!" Copycat grinned.

"We don't have a little secret." Lady Wolf whispered.

"What?"

"Copycat!" Lady Wolf got up pointing a accusing finger at Copycat.

"I love you, Lady Wolf!" Copycat yelled, angrily. "I'm way better than this mangy alley cat!" He grabbed Chat.

"Sorry but liars are losers." Ladybug grinned.

"And Chat may come up with the most randomest jokes in the universe at the worst times, but he wouldn't lie or pretend to be something he isn't." Lady Wolf said.

"Thanks for the compliment." Chat grinned. "I think?" Chat pushed Copycat off of him and kicked him to the wall as he stood.

"If I can't have you, then nobody will!" Copycat yelled. "Cataclysm!"

"Let's wrap this up!" Ladybug said. "Lucky Charm!" A spoon appeared and dropped on Ladybug's hand. "A spoon?" Copycat began to charge towards Chat Noir as Lady Wolf glanced at the chains holding him and grinned, acting quickly as she grabbed the chains, standing in front of Copycat, making him touch the chains, freeing Chat Noir as he kicked him to the wall.

"Nice going, mi'lady."

"Where's his akuma?" Ladybug asked.

"The photo in his pocket." Chat said. "Let's make it snappy."

"Ha ha ha! You're going to change back before me." Copycat laughed as the two cats began fighting before Ladybug joined and fought him before leaping  on top of a pole as Chat resumed fighting.

"He's pretty good." Ladybug admitted.

"Even I got to admit that." Lady Wolf said, as she dodged another attack.

"Don't need to rub it in." Chat frowned.

"I told you I was better than him." Copycat grinned holding both his and Chat's baton before Lady Wolf kicked his out of his grips as Ladybug used her yoyo to hand it to Chat who catched it.

"But we're better than the both of you!" The two girls exclaimed as they had a wide grin. Ladybug dropped and grabbed Chat's arm right before he could punch.

"Hey! It's me!" Chat exclaimed.

"He's lying! I'm the real one!" Copycat exclaimed as the two girls stood frustrated.

"Now you're both annoying me to pieces!" Ladybug exclaimed.

"Show me your rings." Lady Wolf said. "How many pads do you have left?" Chat gladly showed his ring to see one pad left blinking as Copycat was reluctant to show his rings as they soon saw was three pads left. Ladybug released her hold on Chat.  "Chat Noir, Scratch Attack!"

"Gladly." Chat grinned, bringing his claws out. "I love a good cat fight." He meowed as he began fighting Copycat as Ladybug used her lucky vision  and it shows her Cat Noir's staff, a wooden rod, her yo-yo and the spoon. Ladybug uses these to make a fishing rod while Cat Noir used his feet to prevent Copycat from attacking and Cat Noir winks as he unzips the pocket that has the photo.

"Time to go akuma fishing!" Ladybug grinned as she uses the fishing rod to lift Copycat into the ceiling and Lady Wolf jumps, tying the string to make sure he doesn't do anything as she grabbed the photo, ripping it as she came down. "No more evil doing for you, little akuma." Ladybug opened her yoyo. "Time to de-evilize! Gotcha!" She purified the akuma as she released it. "Bye bye, little butterfly. Miraculous Ladybug!" Everything turned back to normal as Chat caught Théo, letting him down slowly.

"Nice catch." Lady Wolf grinned as the two girls came up to Chat Noir.

"So glad you guys can tell the real cat from the fake one." Chat smiled.

"Once I figured out which cat was the one I truly lo- knew." Lady Wolf covered.  "It's a no brainer." Chat's ring began to ring as did Ladybug's earing.

"Better help the fella out." Chat said to Lady Wolf. "His crush just got crushed."

"I'll be going now too." Ladybug said, as they both left the two as Théo sat up, rubbing his head.

"What am I doing here?" Théo asked as Lady Wolf kneeled down to meet him. "Lady Wolf?"

"I'm sorry I didn't have the chance to really speak to you this morning." Lady Wolf said, holding his photo out for him as Théo stumbled to get his pen from his pocket, handing it to Lady Wolf.

"Can you autograph it for me?" Théo asked as Lady Wolf smiled, her Y/n side showing.

"Sure!" She took the pen and signed the photo. "You've got some real artistry here. You've really captured my essence."  She chuckled, giving the pen and photo back to him.

"Thank you, Lady Wolf." Théo smiled. "And don't worry. I know about you and Cat Noir. It's okay." Lady Wolf blushed confusedly.

"Huh?"

*** {Y/n's POV} ***

I helped look for Adrian's phone as I soon gave up and waited for him outside the locker room.

"Did you find it?"  I asked as he came out with a down face and shook his head.

"No," Adrian sighed. "Let's go home."

***

"Maybe you dropped it somewhere." Nino said as Adrian told him about his missing phone as they, including Y/n and Maya walked out in the classroom.

"That, or maybe you missed a place." Maya offered as they stopped in front of Adrian's seat as Adrian and Nino sat down as Maya and Y/n sat in the seats next to them, neither of them noticing Marinette slip his phone back in his bag as it dropped. Adrian looked down, shocked to see his phone.

"What the-" Adrian said. "I looked in there at least a thousand times." Y/n looked at the bag suspiciously.

"So did I, I was sure it wasn't in the bag."

"You need some time off,  both of you." Nino said, as Maya nodded.

"Hey, I know, let's go to the movies tonight!" Maya suggested.

"Hey, dudes, mind if a few friends tag along?" Alya asked from behind them.

"Sure thing!" Nino exclaimed as Adrian and Y/n smiled at the two girls.

[akariitsuki42]

Spirit Saga

Ch19

Chapter 18

After my conversation with Talon, I haven't called him father yet, he needs to earn the title, mother, she deserves to be called that. Same with Onyx, he remains being called brother, not big brother or little brother. Turns out we happened to be twins, but he was born first and was waiting for me, something held me back 3 years later.

I was told that Onyx did not start aging until I was born, aside from all that, I went back to only see Jimmy, "I guess Zacky is still upset at you for giving yourself away." "He has every right to be," he sighed. I can tell that something is wrong, "What's wrong, Jimmy?" "Before I came here, I was attacked by no ordinary Hollow," he said, "When were you going to tell me the 3 Menos Classes?" "When the time was right," I said, "Unfortunately, you ran into one, right?" "Ran into? I was attacked by one, Akari," said Jimmy, raising his voice.

I looked around to make sure that no one is listening to our conversation, "Alright, the 3 classifications of Menos, are Hollows that gained Soul Reaper like powers if they removed their mask, they are called Arrancars." "So, what are you wai- oh, you are telling me already," he said, snapping out of his little rant. I continued, "3rd class Arrancars are the lowest level, 2nd class Arrancars are the medium level, and the 1st class Arrancars are the most highest level. The 3rd class Arrancars are called Menos Grande or Gillian, the 2nd class are called Adjuchas, and the final class are the ones you need to steer clear and be on high alert when you see one."

"What are they called?" asked Jimmy. I looked at him, "Vasto Lorde." "I'm assuming that you will translate all the names in English, that would be great and helpful for me to understand," said Jimmy, "Can you kindly please do that for a newbie like me?" "Menos Grande means Lowest Great Hollow, Adjuchas means Intermediate Great Hollow, and Vasto Lorde means Highest Great Hollow," I told him. Then he asked, "Are most Hollows bad as you say? Because you did tell me that you and your other friends, including me, are Half-Hollows." "There are some Hollows that are good at heart, but like I said, it depends on who did good or bad in their lives when they were alive," I said.

He caught on quick, he was lucky that he was saved by me from becoming a mindless Hollow, so I asked, "So, what about this Arrancar that you were attacked by? What did they look like?" "I don't know I didn't get a good look at them," he said, "But, their hair was the color of the Urban Legend of Bloody Mary." "Oh crap, what did she say to you?" I asked, knowing on who it was.

"She said, watch my back," he said, "I never been so terrified of my life." "That happens to be the Mirror Elemental, she must've thought that you were stalking me," I said, knowing that is the case. I know that it was because that eerie feeling was gone, Jimmy was relieved that he felt safe with me.

"Now that's over, anymore questions?" I asked. Jimmy asked, "Do you have forms?" "Yes, I do, but this is not the place to be showing my Hollow forms," I said, "We can only have 2 release forms." "I see, is it possible to only stick with only one?" he asked. I nodded, "I know this sucks for you but you need to say the release call in Spanish." "Damn it!!" he yelled, "I guess I better start learning that language." "You don't have to, just the release call," I said, "Everything else you do not need to do." "But I feel like I have to," he said, pouting.

Synyster Gates comes our way, noticing that something serious is being discussed, Jimmy asked, "So, about these things, what do I do if I see the ones I need to steer clear from?" "Contact me, immediately, don't engage a conversation with it, just try to find a place to hide and contact me, I'll deal with it," I said, "You are not fully trained yet, you are getting there though. You just need to find a perfect fighting techinque and stance."

"Stance?" asked Jimmy, confused on the word. I clarifing, "Fighting position." "Oh, I gotcha," he said, "Do I remain myself or be someone else?" "Do whatever," I said, "I only be aggressive if it's a tough battle and might need to use all the powers to win." "Ah, so everybody is different on the battlefield, correct?" he asked. I nodded, "Just don't be another person that goes in head first, because that can really mess up your chances of surviving the battle."

He got that memo down, "Okay, no rushing in the battle hoping to win, got it." "Don't be stupid on the battlefield," I said, "It might ruin your chances as well." "Well, I did play stupid with Ember Rose and somehow I got away with it," he said, "I guess I did that so I don't wind up dead again." "You won't because the power I gave you, it prevents you from dying, you can only regenerate through a certain transformation like I did," I said.

While we were having a serious conversation about the things that I have not revealed yet, Gates said, "Hey, M Shadows is coming to see you 2, better get ready because he might have you play some songs." "We'll be ready," I said, "We are in the middle of something that does not concern you." "Whoa, hey now, let's not get hostile, I'm just letting you know on what is going to happen," said Gates.

I knew he left because it got quiet, then I asked, "Who else did you see?" "A giant griffin or something flying past me, but it was attacking something else other than me," he said, "Then a lady with horns on the sides of her head, looking like she was made out of lava. She almost attacked me, but that giant griffin and Ember Rose protected me." "Did they tell you to run while you still can?" I asked.

He nodded, "That's when Ember told me to watch my back." "I think she's telling you to be on your guard at all costs, you are lucky that you were saved by the 2," I said, "That one was a Vasto Lorde." "Oh, shit, yep, I am very lucky," he said, relieved and surprised on what I told him.

"We might need to get ready for what Matt has ready for us," I said, "I'll explain more later about the Hollows and your training will resume once the tour is over." "Good idea," he said, "For the sake of being in the spotlight, I decided to lay low for what is about to happen since now I'm an Elemental." "Good idea," I said, sighing.

Then we were led outside, Jimmy had his hood up again, I'm trying to make sure it was safe for myself to reveal him here in front of all their fans. Then I heard a husky voice saying, "Be brave." I looked around, no one was near my ear, then I felt a tap, it was Jimmy, he nodded.

I sighed softly, hoping everything will turn out fine, but something doesn't feel right, Rev looks up, "Akari, slowly look up." I look at who he sees, I see a lady wearing Egyptian style clothing, I hear Rev say, "Look at the necklace that she is wearing." I see a Sphinx necklace, "She was that so called Griffin, it was the most famous landmark and the mythical creature from Egypt, it's called the Sphinx."

That got his attention, "I was protected by an Adjuchas?" "Yes, like I said, there are good hearted Hollows, I'm one of them, along with many others," I said to him, "Don't be too scared if you run into a great friend like me and others. Just, watch out for my father, Talon GrimEarth, he has yet to earn the title of being called a father." "Then why name him that anyway?" he asked.

"It's a way for me to let him know that there is a hope for him to earn that title," I said, "He has to do more than what he does now to earn it." "I see, so who do you see as a father figure?" Jimmy asked. My eyes were watery when he asked that, "He goes by the name of Jushiro Ukitake, he made sure that I had everything I needed."

Then Jimmy got a closer look at her, "She, she has your eye color." "My eye color is not green," I said, "Wait, she can change her eye colors?" "Apparently," he said, "Although, it is very dark here." "Yeah, I think it's suppose to be Sandy Brown," I tell him, "That is how she turns into the Giant Sphinx." "Oh, I see now," he said, "Why is she here?" "I guess she is just making sure you are in safe hands," I guessed.

Jimmy asked, "Have you met her?" "That lady? No, I do not know on who that is," I tell him, "I only know that you might met another Elemental." "I think you may be right about that," he said, "Because she's gone." "Meaning that I'm right, you are safe with me," I said to Jimmy.

"Are you 2 done talking over there?" asked M Shadows. Jimmy saw me rolling my eyes, "Easy on that, try to be civil and nice." "I have been nice to him!" I shouted, "He's been nothing but mean and giving me a hard time ever since I've been here! He even said that I would not make it out into the world, following my dreams!"

Then he looks at me, "He believes in you, he does that to get to your head." "Why has he been harsh on me?" I asked. Jimmy almost answered when M Shadows stomped his way over to us, pulled me away, which surprised Jimmy to no end. Then M Shadows turned to Jimmy, "You, up where the drums are!"

Jimmy just shook his head, came over and gently pulled me away, changed his voice, saying, "I don't know what is going on but this is not going to happen if this goes on." This is when he turns his voice to all to hear, he raises his voice, "So, stop being a douche to this young lady, she has done nothing wrong the entire time she has been here! Or I might have no choice but to give myself away for who I really am."

"Do it! It's not like you are a fake posing as our old drummer," said Gates. I could tell that hurt Jimmy, he looked at me, I nodded telling him to reveal himself now by using the drums. He went to Brooks, Brooks bolted because Rev told him to move or he will make him move, then M Shadows told him to do the whole drum tracks of the Second Heartbeat, Chapter Four, and Unholy Confessions.

Jimmy pulled off his crazy drummer skills, he still has his style, I went to him, he looks at me, I helped him take his hoodie off, his hair was in his face which was great because he took his shirt off, well, almost, I had to stop him.

He understood, I brushed his hair away from his face, then we both heard gasps everywhere, we looked at everyone else, EVERY SPOTLIGHT was on us, I looked at Gates, I swear I started to see tears forming. I felt daggers at me, I looked at M Shadows, he was the source, he was glaring at me.

He's angry with me, Zacky was smiling, Johnny was mixed with emotions. All I had to do was look at Jimmy, he picked me up and ran off with me, knowing that I was going to get yelled at by M Shadows later. Is he protecting me in return? We ran out of the entire building, he got out my phone since he doesn't have his own, contacted the one who is known to this land.

I saw a red, white, and blue beautiful muscle car, out came William Hurricane, he escorted me in the passenger side, Jimmy took the back side, "Her home now!" "On it," Hurricane said. He immediately started to drive away, I thanked Jimmy for calling Hurricane, Jimmy said, "Hey, no problem, it's my time to protect you from what is about to come later."

[evesbeve]

Basically, I’m Gay. (#NinjagoPrideWeek2019 - Day Five - Coming Out)

This is my favourite prompt I’ve written for Ninjago Pride Week, and I think you’ll understand why.

Kudos if you know the inspiration for the title :3

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Summary: There was no way to prepare for what was to happen after coming out to his teammates, but Cole could have never predicted this.

(Read this on AO3 + FFN)

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"There's something I haven't told you."

All eyes drifted towards Cole's direction, and he froze.

For some reason, Cole had decided that he should come out at dinner, the very same day he unlocked his true potential. As if the endless questions about his childhood and his dad weren't enough.

What was one more secret, right? Right.

Better get it out of the way now that everyone's interested in my past than never, he had thought.

"Are you pulling a Wu on us, Cole?" Jay asked jokingly, putting some salad on his plate.

"I am standing right here, my students," Sensei Wu said as he made his tea.

"He's right though, you're very mystic," Nya said. "There's something I haven't told you is like, your phrase."

Kai chuckled at that. "Famous last words-"

"Don't say that," Zane scolded him, and Sensei shook his head, joining them at the table. "Is there something the matter, Cole?"

"It's just… I've shared so many things about myself today, so what's one more detail going to do, right?"

Cole averted his gaze to his plate, away from the puzzled looks of his friends. He sounded like a complete moron, and he knew it. This was stupid.

"So…?" Jay snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Imgay," he mumbled, avoiding to look at the others.

"What was that?" Nya asked, and he couldn't believe he'd have to say it again.

"I said, I'm gay?" Cole cleared his throat. "So, um, yeah. That's it. Basically."

The silence that followed next was screaming at Cole's ears. He had never regretted anything more in his life. He could feel everyone's looks on him, piercing through his body, judging him, shutting him out-

Seeing as no one was planning on doing so, Sensei cleared his throat to get Cole's attention. "Cole, there is nothing to be-"

"Me too."

Cole jumped at the sudden interruption, turning to the source of the sound. Kai was waving at him in a playful matter.

Cole must have misheard.

"I mean, I'm not gay gay," Kai corrected himself, "but I'm not straight either. I'm bi."

"You too?!"

Cole turned to his right, only to see a very excited Jay. His smile could bright up the room.

"Eyyy, I knew I wasn't the only one!" Kai said, high-fiving Jay.

"I'm pan," Nya popped in. "Just saying it, since it seems appropriate. I think. Surprise?"

"I do believe I would not identify as straight either," Zane — freaking Zane — spoke up next. "I do not particularly care for genders. I don't think I even care for my own either."

"Oh, would you prefer other pronouns?" Jay was quick to say. "We can change to they/them if that's more fitting for you."

Zane shrugged. "I don't mind, honestly. I don't mind male pronouns, but gender neutral ones don't sound bad either."

"What about she/her?" Kai asked.

"It doesn't matter to me."

"Gotcha! So like, you're nonbinary but don't care for pronouns, that's cool!"

Cole found himself going back and forth the table, too startled to keep track of the conversation. Was it even a conversation anymore? It felt like an information dump, and Cole didn't know what to take from it.

He placed his fork down.

He was getting dizzy.

"Gosh, thanks for speaking up, Cole," Jay said, patting his shoulder. "I wanted to bring this up for so long, and I did not know how, you know?"

"Wait, wait, wait," Cole found his voice again. "So there isn't a single straight person on this table?"

"What about Sensei?" Nya asked, poking Sensei's hat with her fork. "What are you hiding from us, old man?"

"I do believe there is something I haven't told you…"

Everyone froze at these words, curiosity sparkling inside of them.

"Well…?" Jay asked.

"... Your new training gear arrives tomorrow," Sensei said with a tiny smirk that was hidden behind his beard. Cole could hear it in his voice clearly though, and he couldn't help but laugh.

Everyone was laughing.

"It was almost a perfect score," Kai mumbled, taking a bite of his food. "Five out of six."

"Out of seven, you mean," Zane corrected. "You never know what Lloyd might be up to."

"I can't believe you're joking about that of all things?" Nya laughed. "Let him live his childhood, he doesn't have to bother with that stuff right now."

"Perhaps not," Sensei agreed, finishing up. "Do clean up when you are done," he said, placing his own plate in the sink and leaving for his room.

Cole knew Sensei was a closed man, but there was no denying his sorrow for his nephew. Who knew what Pythor was up to, after all?

"We are going to get him back," Cole broke the silence, earning nods from around the table.

"We are," Kai said. "And once we do, we're going to come out again- Ouch!"

Nya chuckled, kissing Kai's cheek as an apology for hitting him. "You're so dumb, Kai."

Cole couldn't believe he had such a loving family.