#A scrap of fluff from my fic that I’m particularly proud of

[actuallyjustabiscuit]

Preview for Ch. 3 of Jealous Jester

*Drops this and runs away*

Ragatha turned around when she heard her girlfriend let out a small groan.

“What’s wrong, Sweetheart?” The doll asked as she made her way to where the jester was seated on the bed.

“Mmn, something got in my eye I think,” Pomni responded while still rubbing at her face with her head down.

“Does it hurt?” Ragatha’s voice was now laced with concern. She quickly kneeled down. “Can I take a look?”

As she got closer to inspect whatever was bothering the jester, Ragatha found some humor with the way their height difference had changed. With Pomni on her bed and the ragdoll’s knees on the ground, Ragatha now had to be the one to tilt her head up. 

She hovered her hands close to the younger woman’s face, careful not to touch her yet.

“May I, Pom-Pom?” She asked softly. 

Pomni nodded, her right eye nearly closed shut. Having been granted permission, Ragatha finally settled her hands gently on her girlfriend’s cheeks. The doll leaned herself even closer and used her thumb to delicately stroke the eyelid, encouraging it to open for her and show what was underneath. 

And what was underneath…

…was nothing. 

Nothing about the eye looked irritated at all. The sclera was white and clear of debris. There weren’t even any tears. 

Confused, Ragatha backed away a few inches and realized that Pomni’s pretty pinwheels had flickered forward to make direct eye contact. She caught a glimpse of the sly smile that had curled on the jester’s face before feeling hands come up to clutch the front of her dress and quickly pull her forward. The ragdoll let out a surprised squeak when she felt her lips suddenly collide with her girlfriend’s. 

It took Ragatha a brief moment to register what was happening before she let her eye flutter close as Pomni leaned even further into the kiss with a slight tilt of her head. The doll melted against the jester with a quiet moan. She then felt Pomni’s hands move to her back, wrapping both arms around Ragatha’s shoulders to bring her even closer. 

The two savored the sweet moment they were sharing together, letting everything else around them disappear for a few minutes. Ragatha could feel Pomni smiling into the kiss, and it made her do the same. She could have stayed as they were forever with no complaints, but to her mild disappointment, Pomni’s face peeled away from hers. Ragatha was oh so tempted to pull her back in. It would have been easy with how her hands were cradling the jester’s face, but she knew better. 

Although the need for air was inconsequential, Ragatha couldn’t help but let out a series of small breaths to clear her head and cool her heated face. Pomni looked equally flushed but was wearing a triumphant smirk. Her mouth was now painted with the lipstick mark that always resulted from kissing the ragdoll, an obnoxious little feature of the Circus that the two were still getting used to. The jester appeared fully satisfied with herself, and the doll took notice of how her pupils had changed into hearts again.

With her mind still a little foggy after what just happened, Ragatha blinked questioningly up at Pomni before letting out an airy chuckle.

“Did you just steal a kiss by tricking me?” An amused smile of her own had made its way onto her face. 

The jester playfully stuck out her tongue and winked her perfectly unbothered eye, sending the doll into a fit of girlish giggles.

“Sorry~,” Pomni said while not looking apologetic at all. “I had to get you closer to my face somehow, Aggie.”

Ragatha recalled the strange way her girlfriend had been looking up at her during their embrace. If Pomni had tried being any less subtle about what she wanted from the taller woman, she would’ve stood on her toes. The doll blushed, embarrassed for not having picked up on the obvious hint.

“Silly,” Ragatha tittered, glancing away for just a moment while trying to tuck away some of her hair. “You could have just asked me to bend over.”

Something in the way Pomni’s eyes became slightly lidded as she bit down on her lower lip sent a small jolt up her spine that made her blush harder. But whatever it was that the jester was thinking in that half second was shaken away with a few blinks.

“I-I guess I just wanted to surprise you,” she said after clearing her throat, now looking a little bashful.

Ragatha was beyond charmed by these brief bursts of bravado that allowed her girlfriend to be more playful. She didn’t think it was possible to feel even more enamored for the woman she held in her hands. 

“Well color me surprised, Pom-Pom,” the doll whispered while lightly settling her forehead against the jester’s, noticing her shyness melting away.

“Good to know,” Pomni whispered back, then gave her a little wiggle of her brows. “But how about you color me instead?”

The doll felt her own brows shoot straight up at the unexpected comeback, before bursting out in laughter. The jester joined her, both leaning against each other and chortling away until they eventually came down from their moment of mirth. Ragatha leaned back to wipe away a tear and watched as Pomni rubbed the back of her cap n bells.

“Sorry,” she apologized after letting out a few stray chuckles, looking pink. “That was kind of a dumb thing to say, wasn’t it?”

Ragatha cupped Pomni’s face with both hands again. “Not at all.” She gave away the last of her giggles before gently turning her girlfriend’s head to lightly stamp another kiss on her cheek, smiling at the fresh mark and the jester’s blissed-out expression. “I actually think that’s a great idea.” She then eyed the girl carefully. “That is, of course, if you were serious.”

“[$#!%] yeah,” her girlfriend breathed out with a dopey grin.

That was all she needed. 

[sp4c3-0ddity]

tagged by @hailkuvira and @amillionsmiles. thanks!! <3

tagging uhhhh who have i somewhat interacted with that writes and hasn’t been tagged already uh @magical-merlance, @cosmicdusttrails, @tiredgaykeith, @rueitae, @elby9001, @ anyone else that wrote fic this year and wants to take a stab at it??

STATS:

Fics posted:  they’re all...VLD

Tumblr exclusives:  my fic tag for your viewing pleasure. but here’s a list of everything (i think) that i didn’t also post on ao3 (with the exception of a few that will be posted probably within the next week):

Misnomer, a crack fic

a euphoric plance kiss that i just wrote on a text post i reblogged

a Cupid AU plance ficlet i also wrote based on a text post

ficlet about Acxa, Ezor, and Zethrid after Lotor escapes them

Pidge getting Love Advice from Lance, also an addition to someone else’s text post

How I think Hunk learned Pidge is a girl, with a teeny tiny bit of plance because it’s a section of a plance fic i meant to finish that i’ve since lost this is why you save/back up your work often

Outtakes from ‘Howl at the Moon’

A The Wizard of Oz AU (honestly bless the anon that prompted this)

A shallura hurt/comfort prompt fill

Whatever the hell this is, all i know is that it’s gen but still involves kissing and is kinda a crack fic

FF.Net:  N/A

Archive of Our Own:  i’ll just go with oldest first like i did in the last section

Give a Little (5859 words), fake dating, my first posted plance fic

Ship to Wreck (3544 words), gen (despite the title hehe), sailor/age of (western) exploration-type Pidge-centric AU

Spectrum (9562 words), gen, a Wheel of Time/fantasy AU

Winging It (2187 words), gen, fun canon-verse fic where they race paper airplanes

A Slip of the Thumb (18697 words), plance, wrong number/text modern AU

Break a Leg and Other Cliches (29293 words), plance, modern ballroom dance competition AU

Incompatible Schedules (1025 words), plance, canon-verse fluff

All’s Fair in Love and Gaming (653 words), plance, canon-verse fluff

Be Gentle (4881 words), plance, canon-verse body swap AU

If Wishes Were Fishes (1167 words), plance, canon-verse vaguely bittersweet beach fic

Lightning Round (3003 words), plance, canon-verse battle couple in training fic

Build on Shaky Ground (3337 words), gen/plance (platonic), kinda angsty Garrison era

Unknowable (562 words), plance, canon-verse philosophical fluff

Wisdom of Hindsight (1344 words), plance, canon-verse angst

Caught (2727 words), plance, canon-verse lovebug AU

In Time (724 words), pallura, canon-verse hurt/comfort

The Art of Seduction (2075 words), plance, canon-verse fluff

Falling’s Not the Problem (26179 words), plance, future canon angst with a happy ending sorta thing

Smuggle Your Heart (21931 words), plance, Star Wars-ish AU

Pocket of Space (6203 words), kallura, a Vorkosigan Saga-ish AU that’s kinda...languishing at the moment

Howl at the Moon (10271 words), plance, future canon undercover fake marriage thing

Failure to Launch (1740 words), gen, Sam & Coran hurt/comfort and feels in general

Specter (18325 words), plance, future canon AU, and, um, major character death fic

What Not to Do in Chemistry Lab (2458 words), gen, modern/college AU with my chemist Hunk headcanons

Search and Rescue (1684 words), gen, pre-canon baby Holts fluff

Shopping for Disaster (6108 words), gen, canon-verse Allura & Pidge bonding-gone-wrong fic

Ink on a Page (8807 words*), gen, Pidge-centric Inkheart AU

In the Making (8184 words), plance, canon-verse/future canon ~over the years~ kinda thing

Strangeness and Charm (73407 words*), plance, a collection of prompts cross-posted from tumblr so they’re really a bunch of individual fics but i’ll count them as one for now

*word count not entirely accurate because subsequent chapters are complete but not posted

Total number:  39 (counting S&C as one fic) Total word count:  288,132 part of me wishes i was making this up

Ship/Character breakdown: Ship breakdown:  plance, undoubtedly, wins; gen stuff takes second place. then there’s the odd shallura/kallura/pallura stuff (i like all Allura ships so) Character breakdown:  hmm. Pidge and Lance dominate, obviously. Pidge also tends to dominate by gen stuff, with Allura possibly coming in second. Poor Shiro and Keith (though i still love them) kinda......lose

Characters that had the main focus: Pidge in much of my plance and gen stuff, Lance in much of my plance stuff, Allura in a decent amount of my gen stuff as well as in that languishing kallura fic

Specifics:

Best/worst title? Best title:  None really jump out at me, but I think‘Build on Shaky Ground’. Also before i suffer some serious post-posting (hehe) embarrassment, I’ve titled this brand-spanking new fic ‘The Start of Something New?’ (the question mark is compulsory) and i’m way too proud of myself for that reference to HSM at the moment. Honorable mention to ‘Search and Rescue’ for sounding more serious than the fic’s plot actually is

Worst title:  I’m actually displeased with most, but only ‘Smuggle Your Heart’ makes me cringe every time I see it

Best/worst first line? Best:  not sure but as i look now the first line from this fic gave me a good laugh:

Lance thought that after two years in space fighting furry purple aliens while flying a sentient robot lion that merged with four other sentient robot lions to form one large robot man nothing could possible surprise him.

Worst:  if i actually took the time to look through all my fics, i’d probably find so many awful first lines, but i’m too lazy so this one is a weak first line from my one and only shallura fic:

Shiro had never seen Matt and Pidge happier.

Best/worst last line? Best:  uh to be honest i think they’re all kinda bad but here are a couple funny ones (from this and this) that don’t require much work on my part sorry i’m lazy:

Lance watched him go for a tic, shrugged, and went off in search of someone else to bother, preferably someone he would not mind kissing.

“It was strange enough that I actually don’t want to forget, so listen closely, because I won’t tell it twice.”

Worst:  point at any one of my fics. i’m never happy with the Last Line. but here from Shopping for Disaster (it makes sense in context):

He still wrote the ticket.

General questions:

Looking back, did you write more fics than you thought you would this year, less than you thought, or about what you predicted?

I wrote...way more

What pairing/genre/fandom did you write that you would never have predicted last year?

definitely VLD in general, because i was still...hesitant to get into it?? i didn’t watch it till spring of this year 2017 a few months after season 2 came out, i think What’s your favorite story this year? Not the most popular, but the one that makes you the happiest.

There’s this one (named ‘Siren Song’) that has yet to be posted into my collection on ao3 and it’s a concept i very much want to expand into a fully fledged long fic. and, to be honest, i thought it would get more notes than it did

Okay, NOW your most popular story.

By tumblr notes, this one ('A Sticky Situation’ on ao3) takes the cake with 168 notes

By kudos/bookmarks/comments on ao3, that would be A Slip of the Thumb with 225 kudos and 31 bookmarks

Story most underappreciated by the universe?

Me, constantly:  I write gen fic too guys (in all seriousness, my Inkheart AU is going to be great)

Story that could have been better?

Can i say all of them?? No?? Okay, taking recent fic into account (because i do think i’ve improved overall even in the last few months), i wish i’d spent more time and put more effort into ‘Shopping for Disaster’, especially with making the action scenes more plausible, making the Druid scarier (because i want to get better at writing horror, believe it or not), etc. Pro tip though:  don’t write while you have a headache

And actually now that i think of it, I would scrap all of ‘Wisdom of Hindsight’ because it’s awful and uses a trope i really hate

Sexiest story?

sex?? in my fanfic??

but anyway!! hmm...’The Art of Seduction’ probably had the most graphic (except also not really) makeout scene. ‘Propriety’ (part of the collection) was almost definitely the most suggestive. ‘Howl at the Moon’ had the double whammy of a fakeout makeout and a fake marriage along with the kiss at the very end of the fic. so i dunno, i guess it’s in the eye of the beholder??

as far as vibe is concerned though, i actually think ‘Smuggle Your Heart’ is kinda...sexy?? *shrugs* Saddest story?

‘Specter’ without a doubt. *cue evil laughter* Most fun?

‘Smuggle Your Heart’ was actually wildly fun to write. i was really into action scenes at the time

Story with single sweetest moment?

not sure, but in my humble opinion it would the majority of ‘Burnout’ (also from the collection), particularly this sizeable bit:

Pidge would never admit it to anyone - except to Lance himself, maybe - but she liked it when he clung to her like this, or when she latched herself onto him. There was just something soothing about having another human body pressed against hers, a balm for the mind and a relaxant for the muscles.

Some of the tension trickled out of her as she leaned back into Lance, and his arms tightened around her, sensing her need.

“Guess what?” Lance said, voice soft and close to her ear.

“…did Coran get his hand stuck in something weird again?”

Lance rubbed his nose - scratching, probably - against the side of her head, then chuckled, the vibration reverberating from his chest into her back. “No,” he said. “Try again.”

“Hunk figured out a way to imitate peanut butter?”

“All right, you get one more guess before I tell you.”

Pidge rolled her eyes but said, “Did you finally find out how to swim in the upside down pool?”

“Oh, ha ha, very funny, Pidge,” Lance grumbled.

For some reason, that made her giggle, if only because the image of Lance’s last pitiful attempt to swim laps in the Castle’s pool cheered her.

“So…what?” Pidge said, turning her head slightly so that Lance could see her frown. Of course he would dangle a mystery in front of her without giving her a chance to solve it…

“I love you,” he said, pressing a doting kiss to her forehead.

Pidge’s face flushed, pleased and embarrassed all at the same time, her worries dissolving as easily as sugar in hot tea. “So?” she said, trying to show him how unaffected she was. “I love you too, so it’s not that special.”

“But you are, Pidge,” Lance said. He buried his face in her hair. “You’re special, and smart, and confident, and we wouldn’t be able to function without you. And anytime you’re faced with a challenge, it bows down to you, its queen - wait, no, it’s empress.”

Pidge laughed and rubbed her face. “Oh my God, Lance,” she said. “That’s the cheesiest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

“But it’s true,” Lance insisted. “And I know for a fact you love being praised.”

“Well…”

Lance let go of her and moved away, and Pidge missed him instantly…at least until he knelt on the floor next to her, putting him at below eye level in relation to her. He cupped her face, gently, and made sure she met his eyes. “You’re amazing, Pidge, and when you crack this code, we’ll all sing your praises.”

Pidge rested her forehead against his, reaching behind him to bury her hands in his hair. “But especially you, right?”

He smirked. “I’ll be the loudest one.”

Lance then kissed her, so softly it wasn’t much more than a warm brush of lips, and he pulled back before her eyes even closed. “Also,” he added, with a slow, sly smile, “it wouldn’t hurt to take a break, right?”

Hardest story to write?

This borderline crack fic that had a shippy premise but the prompter challenged me to write gen for it. i succeeded (i think), but was it worth it?? probably

Easiest/most fun story to write?

They’re all fun to a certain degree, but this The Wizard of Oz AU was great fun once I hit my stride. also honorable mention to ‘Smuggle Your Heart’, of which i wrote about 17k words in one day in a hyperfocusing haze (i didn’t sleep till 3 AM that day and i would’ve skipped dinner if my parents hadn’t reminded me).

(i haven’t had a day so productive yet inefficient since)

Did any stories shift your perceptions of the characters?

I actually....disliked Lance until i started shipping plance, and then my love for him only grew the more i wrote him lol. even season 1 Lance can be fun to write now, if only because he’s so ridiculous

Most overdue story?

hmm, perhaps something like ‘Failure to Launch’ because there’s a lot to explore in the adultier adults important to Team Voltron, particularly what Sam - the dad - might feel about his pretty young children getting sucked into a fight like this. but *shrugs*

Did you take any writing risks this year? What did you learn from them?

not really?? i...kinda played it safe?? perhaps ‘Ink on a Page’ is my riskiest venture to date because it’s a long fic and i have a poor track record with long fic that i start posting before finishing. hopefully i’m learning discipline and like actually finishing things

also i think ‘Specter’ was pretty risky, as would be writing anything i really have very little experience in feeling, plus people tend to feel very strongly about major character deaths and i was unsure how people (particularly people i interact with) would receive it. and i guess i learned that it’s okay to take risks?? i was pleased with the way the fic turned out (even if it broke my heart to write it), and it was sorta begging me to be written (you know that itch you get when a story wants out??). and ultimately i’m writing for myself...but it’s still nice when other people like your writing too

What are your fic writing goals for next year?

Finish ‘Ink on a Page’

Finish and post my definitely unconventional The Holiday AU that’s currently languishing as a Word doc of about 20k words

Write something amazing for the plance zine

Expand/write my sailor AU (of which ‘Siren Song’ is the prelude)

Write a slow burn plance fic (to be fair, The Holiday AU and the sailor AU are looking to be slow burn, of sorts)

Maybe...not write so much by the seat of my pants, be less impulsive and more thoughtful, outline more but remain flexible, be more efficient so i don’t burnout, push myself to write even when i’m not feeling ‘inspired’

Not compare myself to other writers (sad but true)

write for a different fandom/pairing?? who even knows at this point

[writer-and-artist27]

3, 4, 8, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18, 22, 23, 24, and 25 for the get to know your author ask?

Ahhhh! An ask! Thank you, anon. :) Anyways, let’s do this!

3.) What order do you write in? Front of book to back? Chronological? Favorite scenes first? Something else?

Considering my working on both Civilian Pianist and The Sea and Stars, I’ll have to say it depends. For CP, I tend to write from front of book to back in terms of the order, with chronological stuff coming with it, but with interludes and so on, I’ve had to delve into the timeline for the sake of consistency. I usually collaborate with Josh and Leo in that regard when it comes to keeping things on track. 

For S&S though? I try to do the same, just with sprinkles of many conversations with Lang and by extension, Beta, on keeping the CYB elements true to some extent (big ones being Kei and a lot of the CYB characters). Sometimes, this leads to me writing favorite scenes first, but then they go into storage for me to figure out for later. Most of the time, it’s still chronological first.

4.) Favorite character you’ve written

I’m actually going to exclude Tomoko from this question considering she is me to an extent. But for actual original characters barring influence like that, Hisako and Judai have been my favorites, with Hisako basically being able to say a lot of things that Tomoko just doesn’t say or won’t, and Judai being that funny, protective-yet-lenient dad I thought he might’ve been had Canon GX gone that way. A runner-up for this category is actually CP Kakashi though, since writing his floundering throughout the entire process of figuring out his feelings for Tomoko have been amusing. :d

8) Favorite genre to write

Emotional fluff. That’s all I can use to describe it. There’s a reason why a lot of early CP had so much hug-inducing fluff, and aside from me getting used to writing for Naruto in general, I enjoy writing those moments of lighthearted joy that Tomoko has when seeing friends (which in a way has shown up again and again in S&S whenever she hugs Kei). It’s only with CP going into arcs such as the Chunin Exams and everything leading up to Kannabi that adding in the emotion really got me going because of how emotionally open I myself can be. 

11) What aspect of your writing do you think has most improved since you started writing?

Hm… that’s hard to say since there are still moments where I go to early CP and think, “Holy crap, I wrote that?!” in an incredulous voice before rereading again and realizing, “Hey, this is kinda cute.” But for the aspect I’ve improved in the most, I would like to think I did a lot in the fight scene and rising-action/tension categories. Early CP had so much fluff, it was easy to accidentally lose people in it. But when getting into the hard-hitters, well, they hit hard with my most recent work, so I’m proud to look back at those chapters and pat myself on the back for making them.

12) Your weaknesses as an author

Ah. This question. Well, I can only think of two:

Falling back on others a little too often when my writing muse comes to a screeching halt (I mean, Lang’s seen a lot of my stuff when I’ve floundered to the point where I’m surprised she still likes reading my stuff, and there have been many moments where I held myself back from calling Josh and Leo for the sake of trying to figure something out on my own)

Missing commas and em dashes (basically “—”). This is yet another reason why early CP is kinda on the love-hate category for me, because past me missed so many commas. Argh.

13) Your strengths as an author

Just one I can think of:

Delving into the emotions of the character I’m writing in. Even if I struggle with understanding the character in some way (e.g. Kei since she is Lang’s OC, not mine, so she’s harder to write for), getting into their minds and showing the emotion that can come from them is my specialty somehow. Whether it’s because I’m so emotionally open in real life, or just me trying to understand the motivations of the people around me, it shows in CP and S&S really well to where I’m proud (and also kinda mortified) when reviewers comment saying that they’ve cried. Definitely have come a long way from last year, even if I still flounder from embarrassment at seeing my early stuff.

15) Why did you start writing?

I can only really think of a few reasons. Hope you don’t mind the long text post. *scratches head* Then again, you’ve come this far, and I’m grateful. :)

To convey an idea I really wanted to write that no one had really done so far. I’ve said before that CP started with the question of “What if Kakashi had a best friend?”, and that still stands. Adding in how there are very few Civilian OCs that I’ve seen in the Naruto fandom, along with the low coverage of civilians in Naruto in general, that was one factor.

Lang inspired me. Simple as that. Catch Your Breath literally caught my heart when I discovered it in the summer of 2015 (at least, I think it was 2015, I can’t fully remember), and when seeing Kei, I wanted to try writing something along the lines of that too. Not to mention, it’s because of Lang that I got back into Naruto, and I can’t thank her enough. 

Silver Queen’s Dreaming of Sunshine made me see beyond fanfiction again. Shikako caught my heart just as much as Kei.

I wanted to reflect on the growth I’ve done so far as a person. There’s a reason aside from angst as to why I had Vy die at age 18 to the point of it affecting Tomoko in her new life, since so much has happened since then. I’m still attending college, figuring things out little by little, but Tomoko is essentially that self-reflection that I never got to do until now. And seeing how I could’ve been while also exploring the current me in writing has been very much worth it.

I wanted to see what it was like. Posting on Fanfiction and all. Cross-posting on other sites (including AO3) was never really my thing, and my old FFN profile was just sitting on the website, dusty and all after a few select reviews for an old fanfic a friend was doing, so I just dusted it off and got to work.

18) Were there any works you read that affected you so much that it influenced your writing style? What were they?

Yes, there were. No doubt about that. For fanfic stuff…

Catch Your Breath. Still my main inspiration to this day. 

Dreaming of Sunshine, especially since it started the whole SI-OC genre in general.

Deja vu no Jutsu, for the worldbuilding and the limits that a writer can surpass (since Vixen Tail wrote a lot to take in, and it’s hard when your brain’s not hardwired for binging), and

Inoue Shiori by Hermionechan90. This was actually the first ever Civilian OC fic for Naruto I ever read, and after seeing Shiori’s accomplishments and her realm in the shinobi world, it got me thinking.

As for books…

Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon series. For the mystery and attention to historical detail.

Robert Galbraith/JK Rowling’s The Cuckoo’s Calling and following books in the Cormoran Strike series, for being a mystery series that I found myself loving.

22) Are there any subjects that make you uncomfortable to write?

Sex scenes or anything related to smut, period. First, because I’m a demisexual person and the idea of Tomoko doing that kind of stuff equals “WHAT.” 

(Not helped by how Hisako is my spiritual avatar in the sense of protecting the girl, just because she’s so precious to me and the idea of her doing that equals O^O). 

And secondly… well, those CP fans who have seen Chapter 21 and my later “Announcement” chapter will easily understand why. For others, let’s just say I’m not as protected from society’s stuff as it might seem. I’ve seen some uncomfy stuff too, and it’s hard. 

23) Any obscure life experiences that you feel have helped your writing?

I feel like this is a weird answer, but strangely, my interactions with the older members of my family factor into this. The reason why I personally feel Judai and Hikari are so powerful in CP’s narrative (and not just because they’re honoring my original fanfiction roots in trying to write for Yugioh GX or their being our main heroine’s parents) is because my real Mom and Dad are personally involved in my life. I try to keep them updated every day I can, they help me whenever they can, and it’s been a mutually beneficial and loving relationship. I’ve seen my parents falter and worry, as Judai and Hikari have in-story, while also having a first-hand idea of how even adults in a child’s life can make mistakes (considering how things in life can be - my parents coming from Vietnam more so). So, having them in my life really helped in fleshing out the adult figures in Tomoko’s life, Judai and Hikari included.

24) Have you ever become an expert on something you previously knew nothing about, in order to better a scene or a story?

I would like to say ‘yes’ to this, but for once, I don’t think I can. I’ve had to research things to the point of knowing the subject matter better (e.g. wartimes in Naruto, looks into the psychological state that Tomoko might have, etc), but I still had outside help in the form of Josh, Leo, and by extension, Lang, Beta, and Abalisk. So I can’t call myself an expert. But considering how a lot of my stories have been rooted in emotion, I think I’m in fair territory.

25) Copy/paste a few sentences or a short paragraph that you’re particularly proud of.

Oooh. Well, I don’t want to say too much, but an entire snippet for you, anon! This is all thanks to you~ :D 

The following scene was actually something I wrote while I was on my summer road trip, thinking it would be for the aftermath of S&S Chapter 13 (where the Drunk Guy incident happened, just with a better ending in the final version), but after some convos with Lang, Beta, and Leo, this specific scene ended up being scrapped (especially since Tomoko was saved much earlier than in CP, with the culprit not even being able to touch her). That doesn’t mean I still don’t like it - no - I just feel bad that I wasn’t able to include this!

Being set up to rest in my room for most of the day felt almost suffocating. Even if I knew it was for my own good.

Apparently trying to cook pancakes on my own after a long night seemed to not be the best idea I had in mind. Even if it sounded good at the time.

I gave everyone I knew such a bad scare last night, I had thought making them breakfast would be a good way to cheer them up. Instead, everyone was clamoring towards me, bustling me back into bed without even letting me finish cooking.

If I wasn’t physically a child already, this said more than enough.

Trying to sleep was difficult though. I wasn’t sure whether it was because of the endless stream of thoughts going through my head about what had happened and what I should be doing now or the state of my throat (which Kei did try to tend to again this morning before putting me back into my futon), but my eyes just couldn’t close. Sure, I could blink, but actually falling asleep didn’t seem like an option.

So instead, I was left staring up at the ceiling, counting the number of tiles up there while occasionally testing my voice with some light singing. Needless to say, it didn’t go so well.

“Haaa… haagh.”

I could’ve been a wheezing teapot if I didn’t know any better.

At least a notebook and pencil was left in reaching distance for me to use if I wanted to talk. My throat seemed to not be happy with me if I tried anyways.

I was already reaching 30 tiles when the door opened. Without even sitting up, I knew it was Kei from the casual sleepwear and messy black bedhead alone, walking in with a tray of food.

“You doing alright there, Tomo?” she said, voice quiet but still recognizable.

With my voice gone, I could only really nod and put on the best smile I could offer.

It was a broken smile, but a smile nonetheless.

But judging by Kei’s face, she didn’t believe the smile or me. Instead, she locked the door behind her, walked over to set the food to my right side and then hung her head. She wasn’t looking at me, but I could tell she was disturbed about something.

Then, she looked up at me with resolute eyes. “… I think I’ll ask Minato-sensei if I can take a break from missions.”

My heart froze.

Whether or not my panic showed on my face, Kei seemed to notice it enough and shook her head. “I know what you’re thinking, Tomo. This is the time of the Third Shinobi World War, and I should get some more experience out there before Kannabi happens.”

I nodded my head as fast as I could, not even caring that my hair was slapping my face while doing so.

“But Tomo, you didn’t see it.” Kei took a breath, and I didn’t miss how her hands clenched the sides of my blanket. “You didn’t feel your own chakra when it happened.”

Now I was feeling confused. In my funk, I sat up and reached over to grab the notebook, flipping to the first blank page to scribble. It took a few moments, but by the time I looked up at her again, Kei was inclining her head at me in confusion once I turned the notebook over in her direction.

What do you mean, Kei? What does my chakra have to do with this?

“Tomo…” Kei then sighed, reaching over to poke my head. “Tomo, Tomo, Tomo.” With each repetition of my new nickname, she poked my forehead, and I found myself getting a bit irritated. “I’m a sensor, remember? And even if you’re okay now, you didn’t feel your chakra when you got attacked yesterday. You… You didn’t know how close you were to… well.” She paused, looking up at me again and I couldn’t miss the amount of emotion rolling through her eyes. “I almost lost you yesterday, Tomo.”

Oh. I opened my mouth, then closed it. The throbbing in my throat was becoming more obvious.

What am I supposed to say right now?

“I-I can’t…” Kei clenched her fists again as she looked down. “That can’t happen again. Until everything boils down, I want to be there for you if any bastards target you again.”

I could only find myself mouthing Kei’s name before closing my mouth again.

What was I supposed to say?

I glanced down at my own hands before the lightbulb went off. Then, I turned to another page in the notebook, scribbling again. Near me, I could hear Kei’s confused grunt at my actions. I was honestly hoping what I was writing was enough to reassure her.

Kei needed to hear my opinion at least. Even if I couldn’t physically voice it.

When I finally turned the page over in her direction, I tried to hide my own gulp.

I’ll be okay. I’m not fully alright now, but I’ll be okay. You don’t have to worry about me, Kei. You should focus on your training and your work so that this doesn’t happen again.

I’ll be alright.

Once Kei finished scanning my message, she looked up at me with softened eyes before reaching over. The last thing I was expecting was for her to push my notebook down into my lap before pulling me into a hug. “Tomo, you’re not fine at all. And it’s okay for you to rely on friends sometimes, y’know.”

I opened my mouth again, only to close it.

A hand started to run through my hair. “You’re my friend, Tomo, so let me be here for you. Please.”

[melodylandmouse]

Last week I think? Pom brought up that they had read something about lawyers jogging to help with anxiety and that they could see Benny doing that which I heckin’ LOVED the idea of, so I went out and read a thing about lawyers also meditating to help with stress, so all of that combined with the already existent headcanon of mine that Benny is made of pipe cleaners and duct tape (read: flimsy as all heck) resulted in me writing this little ditty.

Just a shortish one-shot that I’ve been calling “Benny Jogs to Taco Bell” even though a more accurate title would be something along the lines of:

“Benny Tries to Run from his Problems but is Harshly Reminded that he is his Own Problem Most of the Time (also Oliver is there)”

Contains fluff, doctors doing doctor things, and lots of robots being robotic. Rated PG-13 tops probably, fic below the cut, rip mobile users. 1800 words. Not the best thing I’ve ever written, but I still like it, so enjoy. I don’t think there’s any applicable trigger warnings since they’re all robots?

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Of all the unusual sights in Toontown, a backstabber booking it around the courtyard of Lawbot Headquarters before a trial was not one of them.

“There he goes,” buzzed a Spin Doctor to a Big Wig, both Lawbots’ glares following the lesser cog as he jogged by the entryway. He very nearly tripped over an invading toon on his way by, but he was too busy and she too stunned for them to engage.

The Big Wig scoffed and shook his head. “This case will not even be a challenge. I almost pity that shopkeeper.”

“Agreed. The rabbit would have been better off being represented by a pile of scrap he picked up off the street,” the Doctor added, turning his nose up. As they continued on their way to the courtroom, their sneers nearly turned to cruel smiles.

Benedict heard none of this. His focus was inward even as he nearly ran over that cat by the entryway. He didn't think about his ill-fated defense, didn't think about that openly-mocking prosecutor, and certainly didn't think about what was going to happen to his defendant when he inevitably lost this case… He had already taken the time to hope that some toons would be in the jury, and now he had ten minutes of nothing but last minute preparations before he needed to be in court, unless he wanted to be late to being thirty minutes early for the trial.

He had tried taking these ten minutes to update his will and say some hopeless prayers in the past, and therefore knew firsthand that this was a better way to spend his limited time. He kept his eyes forward, watching the floor ahead of him to make sure he didn't trip or run over anything, holding his pace at a brisk jog. Any faster and he'd be putting unnecessary stress on his systems. Any slower, and he wouldn't need to concentrate on keeping said systems in check. This way, he could just feel his pistons pumping at a constant rate, just focus on getting his oil flowing to every limb, just listen over the mostly deadened noise of his engine to the dull whir of his fans and bellows working to keep his components cool and clear, and of course just plunk, CRASH!

Benny didn't even have time to register that something had happened before he was on the ground in a dazed heap. That hadn't felt very good...

He groaned and sat up easily enough… He hadn't detected anything wrong before he had gone down, so perhaps it had just been some imperfection on the completely smooth and level flooring that had made him slip up…? He started to get up slowly, and discovered the problem almost immediately when his left knee buckled under pressure. He was sure he could hear something grinding in there, and, even worse, something rattling around further down his leg whenever he moved it. He winced. ‘Scrap...’

Rather than trying that again, he deployed his propeller, the blades whirling above his head just quick enough to get him off the ground and upright. He cautiously lowered himself; he could still control that leg despite the knee being what he could only describe as dislocated, so maybe... Yes, it could still support his weight so long as he didn't put too much on it. The moment he tried to bend it to walk, however, he nearly ended up on the ground again.

After several minutes of cautious experimentation that left him gritting his teeth, Benny was finally heading towards the courtroom with a stiff limp. So long as he kept that leg locked straight, it would support him long enough to take quick steps. Sure that rattling sound was attracting some stares, but it wasn’t like that was particularly unusual. He was used to ignoring them, and so just kept his eyes ahead and flew over the stairs rather than climbing them. He’d just have to make sure he stood in one spot during the trial, and hope his rhetoric was strong enough to keep everyone’s attention on his defense...

He was about to duck hurriedly into the courtroom when someone seized him by the elbow on his injured side and started dragging him in the opposite direction. Benny yelped as his leg was knocked out of its locked position by the sudden movement, but the grip on his arm made sure he stayed upright. “What do you think you’re—” His indignant remark was abruptly cut off when he looked up and saw a familiar Spin Doctor glancing down at him.

“Silence. You have the time,” Oliver said firmly, guiding Benny around the corner to one of the marble benches lining the hallway. It was quieter over here without the noise of all those other Lawbots shuffling into the courtroom. The Spin Doctor set to work the moment the Backstabber was sitting, bending the malfunctioning leg experimentally.

The grinding and rattling still made Benny grimace. “How come you weren’t in the courtroom already?”

“I was coming to look for you. You were late,” Oliver explained. He already had Benny’s leg open, the small bolts that had been holding the exterior plates together each falling victim to a simple twirl of Oliver’s fingers.

Benny watched Oliver work with almost morbid fascination; his favorite Spin Doctor hadn’t wanted to be a mechanic at first, but that hadn’t stopped him from becoming so well practiced at his job that Benny couldn’t even feel him plucking bolts and poking around his internal structures. “Only relatively,” he said defensively, but it had little bite to it. “And now I suppose you know why.”

Oliver frowned, reaching down into his leg. “I’ve already called Jennifer.” He pulled out a particularly large screw from the bottom of Benny’s leg and showed it to him.

Benny groaned. “Oh no, that really wasn’t necessary!”

“This is a support screw, Benedict, an important one. If the other falls out, this joint is worthless,” Oliver growled, nudging Benny’s nearly useless leg for emphasis. Benny flinched, glancing stubbornly off to the side. “You insist on jogging even though you know your structure cannot safely handle the strain. I am finished waiting around for you to break down every time you take a case, so Jennifer is going to get you some better parts and you are going to sit still long enough for us to install them.”

“So that’s why you keep sitting in on all my clients’ trials.”

Oliver carefully replaced the fallen screw, spinning it back into place with a flick of his precise fingers. “It is one of the many reasons.”

Benny couldn’t help but smile. He glanced back over and saw Oliver looking up at him expectantly. He slowly bent his leg. Oliver studied the working parts carefully, then stood up straight and offered Benny his hand. Benny used it for leverage, and stretched his legs. Satisfied that he wouldn’t fall apart mid-trial, Oliver closed the plates over his leg again.

“Thank you.”

“Just take things slow until I can get a better look.”

“I’ll do my best,” Benny promised with a small chuckle.

The pair headed back towards the trial, Benny’s hand on Oliver’s shoulder.

 ------------------------

“Are you sure this is an ‘improvement’?”

It was the most skeptical expression both Oliver and the Micromanager standing next to him had ever seen on a Backstabber who happened to be doing lunges in circles around them.

“Beggars can’t be choosers, Ben,” replied Jennifer, the Micromanager. “Sellbot parts are the easiest to get even without considering that any other make would have to be imported.”

“They will do,” Oliver added firmly.

Benny stood up straight and looked distastefully down at his legs. They looked exactly the same on the outside, but inside they were all but entirely different. Oliver, with Jennifer’s assistance, had spent several hours working on fitting the barely compatible legs of a Two-Face chassis into Benny’s frame without damaging any parts. It was fortunate that Oliver had been up to the challenge, or else the upgrade may not have worked; although they were the correct size, fitting all of Benny’s modified parts in and around them in a way that wouldn’t cause any problems in the foreseeable future had caused some anticipated difficulty. Oliver was rather proud of his work, and knew that Benny really did appreciate the effort, so he didn’t mind quite as much when the Backstabber had scowled at the concept of having Sellbot insignias engraved into almost every part of his lower chassis.

“I believe you,” Benny said, raising his hands in surrender. “I’m just saying that I’m pretty sure that going from high quality Lawbot engineering to this is more of a downgrade in general.”

Oliver and Jennifer exchanged a look, but neither was about to remind him that he hadn’t been built with quite the same integrity as other Lawbots.

“I’ll admit it, I do not disagree with you there,” Jennifer said instead, pulling a pair of sunglasses from a pocket inside her suit. “But considering that you can jog to your heart’s content now, I wouldn’t look a gift horse in the gags on this one. Take care, Ben, Oliver.”

“Take care,” Oliver replied as she took her leave. Benny just hummed, lost in thought. Oliver gave him a look. “What is it?”

Benny looked over at him, thinking about the new parts. And more specifically, how Jennifer had probably gotten her hands on them... None of them was overly troubled when it came to finances, but brand new Sellbot replacement parts, especially chassis components, were not cheap. She certainly had not resorted to petty theft to get them for him, at least not in the traditional sense, but that wasn’t reassuring. He had seen the alternatives land many cogs and toons alike in much deeper trouble than simple crime would have. “Nothing you need to worry about,” Benny said with a reassuring smile.

Oliver knew that look all too well. That affectionate sort of smile that he had seen older toons give their younger counterparts... He found it endearing and patronizing in equal measure. He frowned and shook his head. “As if I wasn’t the one just looking after you.”

Benny actually laughed aloud at that. “You can’t blame me for that! You obviously worry enough as it is. Like I’m going to intentionally bother you with any of my problems.”

“Do you have any more problems for me to be bothered by?” Oliver asked immediately, seeming to think that if he squinted hard enough at Benedict’s face that he’d be able to read his mind.

“Oh, let me get out my list,” Benny snickered, clapping him on the shoulder.

Oliver might’ve scoffed at that, but it came out as more of a snort. “Point taken.”

“Good. Now off you get, I’ve got things to do.”

Oliver raised an eyebrow. “Since when?”

Benny just smiled and jogged off into the distance. Oliver rolled his eyes and nearly groaned aloud. Of course he was going to break in his new joints.

And if that ended up being literal again, so help him...

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Thanks for reading! <3