#And since i plan on drawing juste anyway maybe i should go for los au? Idk

[neowolf]

I should be sleeping (Morning shift tfooie!) but my brain became hardwired for some Castled vanias and I just..... Think about Lords of Shadow and whether or not Juste exists in this universe.

[little-kat07]

Unrequited Roceit, endgame logince, and endgame dukeceit idea where Roman and Janus are a double dancing and singing act (think like the musical Chicago) and are in a relationship as well. Roman is just happy to have a career with the love of his life, while Janus is MUCH more interested in fame and money- with or without Roman.

Janus: The press LOVES us! My act is wonderful and the producers can’t ignore it for long.

Roman: You mean OUR act?

Janus: Right. OUR act.

Roman soon meets Logan, a Broadway director who offers them an audition for a play. Musicals and Theater isn’t usually what they do, but they need the money. During the audition-

Logan: *clapping* That was amazing!

Roman: *breathless* You really think so?

Logan: You are going to go far in the world with that kind of talent, Roman. We’ll see you at the first rehearsal.

Janus: Wait- what about me?

Logan: Janus... you were amazing. You have so much talent, and it really pains me to say it’s not what we’re looking for. I’m sure there are lots of other directors who-

Roman is PAINFULLY oblivious to the fact Janus doesn’t care about him, so he stands up for his ‘boyfriend’.

Roman: What? You can’t reject him! Logan, I’ve been by Janus’s side in our career for decades. Either you take both of us or neither.

Logan: I... I suppose we can find a role for Janus.

Roman and Janus travel from Atlanta to New York, where their career is supposed to start.

Logan can tell Janus doesn’t care about Roman, and is heartbroken that Roman would stand up for the snake so easily. But he’s not supposed to get involved with the personal affairs of actors, so he tries not to think about it too much. 

He has a hard time with that since during rehearsal, Roman won’t stop being so fucking adorable all the time.

Logan: Hold on, Roman, could you-

Roman: Okay okay so I know what you’re going to say but I DIDN’T MEAN TO RAISE THAT LAST NOTE, It just felt really right and I can totally stop, but I actually had a little riff on the end there I wanted to do if I could and I know it’s really confusing and I’m rambling but please?

Logan: ...I was going to say move a bit to the left, but go ahead.

Janus is VERY AWARE that Logan and Roman have chemistry, and normally he wouldn’t care since he doesn’t actually love Roman but this time, his ticket to fame and glory is riding on the fact that Roman stays with him, so he tries to intercept their relationship.

...at the very same time that Remus, (who is Logan’s brother in this AU and i’m so sorry to intrulogical shippers) wants Roman and Logan to get together. He has been waiting for Logan to find love for so long and he is NOT about to let some snake boi take away his brother’s happiness.

So, Janus and Remus have a huge, unspoken battle over getting Roman and Logan together OR keeping them apart. Remus sets them up to be alone together, Janus sabotages it or gets there at the exact time and drives Roman away. 

Janus: What is your PROBLEM?

Remus: What is MY deal? Uh, bitch, what is YOUR deal? 

Janus: My financial and social future depends on Roman and Logan staying apart. I need Roman to get me to fame. YOU need to stay out of it.

Remus: Logan is my brother who up until this point was lonely as fuck. I’m not letting you break his only chance at happiness. You don’t even LOVE Roman!

Janus: Can you not talk so loud? Someone is going to hear us.

Remus: Maybe I WANT THEM TO!

Janus: *puts a hand over Remus’s mouth* Keep quiet, rat.

Remus: *licks it*

Janus: EW!! EW EW EW- WHAT THE FUCK, REMUS?

Remus: *cackling*

Roman hears.

That’s really all you need to know- He was right outside when Remus and Janus had that conversation. He stormed back to his room of the hotel and waited for Janus to come back, where they broke up and Janus took his things and left.

This is where things get interesting...

Remus: *knocks on janus’s hotel room door* Uh... snake?

Janus: *muffled grumbling* *opens the door* Yes?

Remus: *trying to smother his worried feelings* Hey snake bitch! I noticed you haven’t tried to... sabatoge any of my plans lately.

Janus: Y e s.

Remus: ...and I was just wondering why? I-I mean I just feel like you’re planning something. What are you planning? 

Janus: ...your futile attempts at being aggressive amuse me. I’ll tell you.

Janus has been feeling strange lately. He tells Remus how he and Roman go together- They had been best friends in highschool, and Janus actually did like Roman once. They used to be an inseparable couple, it was only when Janus realized Roman had talent that could bring him glory, did he begin to stop caring. Now that they’ve broken up, it’s hard to say whether Janus MISSES Roman- because he doesn’t, not really, it’s not about Roman as a person. He missed the feeling of being cared for by someone, being held like fame and money didn’t matter, those little moments Janus missed so achingly much because he thought he would ALWAYS have them- and now he doesn’t, and he doesn’t know what to do with himself.

Remus: ...why did you tell me all that?

Janus: My life feels pretty shitty at the moment and I don’t see how spilling my guts to someone who’s already familiar with my less than pretty personality could bring me any lower.

Remus isn’t quite sure what to do with this information, he’s spent his entire time going up against Janus and hating him. Now he doesn’t see what he knew as Janus, he sees a confused and self-depreciating person- and he feels bad. But he knows he SHOULDN’T, he shouldn’t feel bad because Janus is the bad guy, Janus is the villain in the story-

But he isn’t anymore. This is what the villain looks like AFTER the fairytale, after the hero beats them- confused, lonely, and... crying?

oH my god, Janus is crying, do something, help him, holy fuck, nOoooOOO-

Meanwhile, Logan comforts Roman. 

Logan: ...I should have done something. I KNEW that snake was bad news. Now he-

Roman: I’m quitting.

Logan: I- what?

Roman: I’m quitting- Janus still has his role in the play, I don’t want to spend another second looking at him. He can have his fame and his money, I don’t care about revenge, I just wanna go home.

Logan: But- Roman, no- You have so much talent! You could show him up, get famous, spread your story in the papers and never have to deal with anything like that again-

Roman: I’m sorry, Logan- I’m not mad at him. I couldn’t care less about what happens to him- I’m going home.

Logan: Back to Atlanta??

Roman: Yeah... *sniffle* Atlanta. Or maybe Marietta, or somewhere in that area. Northern Georgia, basically- I don’t know how I can go back to Atlanta right now, not with all the memories and stuff.

Logan: But... Roman... what about me?

Roman: Huh?

Logan: I-I mean, what about everyone else? Virgil, Patton, and Remus- you’re just going to leave all of us behind? (he laughs, almost hysterically) how- how am I gonna find anyone on the face of the earth who can fit your role?

Roman: Oh, come on Lo. I’m sure anybody can fit my role in the play, it’s a simple character and-

Logan: N-Not that, Roman- Your role in our lives? How am I- How am I going to find anyone I love like I love you?

Cue crying confession, adorableness, all that Jazz. Logince pining FINALLY comes to a close- And the rest of the fic would focus more on the Dukeceit aspect.

Remus, at some point, comes to the glaring realization that he ENJOYED bickering and fighting with Janus. He almost stops BREATHING when he finds that, in fact, he likes JANUS. 

Like, Like-likes janus. (No, the L-word isn’t available yet sorry lmao)

Janus figures out pretty quickly that he likes Remus but he just came out of an awful relationship in which HE was the manipulative one, and he really isn’t in the mood to focus on romance right now. Partly for fear that he’ll hurt Remus like he hurt Roman, and partly because nOT EVERYTHING HAS TO REVOLVE AROUND ROMANCE, HE STILL HAS BILLS TO PAY AND JOBS TO WORK, YOU HEATHENS-

Anyway, we have a couple of chapters dedicates to healing the tear in Roman and Janus’s platonic relationship. Janus works hard to try and show Roman he can be trusted as just a friend. (When I say works hard I mean WORKS HARD. I mean, remember what he did? It’s gonna take some work to sift through this.) Eventually, Roman and Logan (newly dating) have a little talk about Janus’s attempts.

Logan: I just- I get that he’s trying to heal it, but... I don’t know. I think I’m just being protective because you two dated once and I thought, if you fell for him once... you might again. And then, he might hurt you again, or even WORSE, he won’t hurt you at all and I’ll have lost you to him permanently.

Roman: ...guess what?

Logan: What?

Roman: When I look at him, I feel nothing!!! :D

Logan: ...nothing?

Roman: *grinning* Nothing at all! Now that I look at him, he’s not even cute!

Logan and Roman continue to burst into laughter.

One day, this happens:

Roman and Remus: *being lovable chaotic idiots*

Logan: *sighs* Why do we love them?

Janus: No clue.

Logan: *eyebrow raise*

Janus: waIT WAIT Okay look I didn’t mean Roman, okay, I- I meant Remus, and- Wait no I- UGH! *slams head on table*

Logan: *smirks* You like my brother. I knew it.

Janus: I’m so sorry I keep falling for people you know.

A couple chapters dedicated to having funny group bonding time, until this happens-

Janus: *acting on stage* If only someone were to look at me with the eyes that Jeremiah does with Her, I might finally be complete and live on to learn to love. My heart-

Remus: *from the audience* I will!

Janus: *pauses and turns to look out* What?

Remus *waving frantically* I’ll look at you with eyes! I’m not sure how else I would look at you, so I’ll do the eyes!

Janus: ...What?

Remus: *groans* JUST DATE ME ALREADY!

Janus: *taken aback* Uh. Okay.

Remus: Wait, seriously?

Janus: Darling, just shut up, I’m doing a scene here...

Remus: :D

And they all lived. Happily ever after? Who knows. But they lived, and that was enough for them.

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Do what you will with this idea! Tag me if you write or draw something though-

Reposts are appreciated!!!

[iffeelscouldkill]

Mission Log: REDACTED

A/N: Now that Yuletide reveals are revealed, I can go ahead and own this fic I wrote for the awesome Mousek for Yuletide! It’s quite long (14,999 words), so I’m not going to post the whole thing here, just enough to give people a flavour and lure them to AO3 for the rest.

This fic is written in an “audio narrative” format, in the same style as the From the Archives ficlets if you’ve read those. Slightly spoilery warning (skip over this to remain unspoiled but please read if you’re concerned about potential triggers): this fic features people’s memories being modified (though not completely irreversibly) without their consent.

Enjoy, friends!

Summary: Canon divergence AU from mid-episode 9. Instead of executing Plan B, the Rumor crew learns about a top-secret Regime project that is being carried out at ADVANCE Labs - and that the fate of the crew of the Iris is not what they thought it had been.Violet Liu goes in undercover, posing as a member of the lab team. But can she undo what the Regime has done to the crew and free them - without losing herself in the process?

Read on AO3!

---

“This is Agent McCabe. Two weeks have now passed since our last update. Based on the continued lack of audio input via this swarm of Strain H, we can assume that the crew of the Rumor have acted on the intel given to them by the insurgents, Thasia and Violet Liu, and successfully cured themselves of the VCN nanocloud infection.

 “As a result, pending further developments in this case, the Strange Case of Starship Iris is now considered closed. Footage from the case remains available in the archives and can be accessed on request by submitting form B7-081 with a superior’s signature.

 “My thanks to Major General Frederick, Agents Bauman and Cross, and the specialists at Procyon, as well as Junior Agent Goodman for their assistance in this case. Long live the Republic.”

*

SYSTEM: E.L.L.A.

USERNAME: EMILY CRADDOCK

ACCESSING RECENT DRAFTS... YOU HAVE ONE RECENT DRAFT. COMPOSED 26 JULY 2191.

REVIEWING DRAFT...

“Hey, it’s me. I just wanted to check in and say that I’m fine, I’m safe and I passed the background checks without any problems. I kept thinking the whole time that someone from the intake process would recognise me, but – none of them seemed familiar, and I guess I wasn’t either. Just a very small cog in the vast machine of the Reg- the Republic. God, I’ve got to get used to saying that again.

“I’m all settled in in my apartment – it’s twice the size of my room on the Rumor, but I can’t help thinking how much I miss that space.” Quiet laughter. “And you all. I… guess I’ll talk to you soon. I’ll have more to update you with tomorrow, after I start work at the lab. And I’ll be able to let you know whether our intel was good.

“Until then… Violet Liu out.”

*

“This is uh, lab report 05, week two? Analyst Brannon reporting on behalf of Gamma Team at ADVANCE.

“Over the past few days, our lab has continued work on synthesizing the NDMA proteins, and Specialists Chang and Yeboah report that they have made some positive advancements in this area. We have provisionally moved up the timeline for the first round of testing with this in mind, though Specialist Yeboah cautions that we need to monitor how the new proteins react with other molecules in the solution first, and then with the blood cell samples.

“A new member also joined our team today – specialist Huang. I wasn’t aware that we’d actually been hiring for our vacancy, but uh, she seems very qualified? A little over-qualified, even. In addition to her qualification from Brightwell she has extensive experience with this type of lab work, which makes us lucky to have her as part of the team. She’s joined Analyst Vázquez and Assistant Hudson in their work on the histone deacetylases.

“My specialism is in a completely different area, and I’m pretty sure our work histories have never overlapped, but – she seems familiar somehow. Except she said she was based on Mars up until six months ago, and I’ve been working on New Jupiter since… uh…

“Sorry – lost my train of thought for a minute there. I’ve been getting these persistent headaches… I think it’s all that poring over modelling data. Though I never get them while I’m working, so maybe they’re delayed-onset headaches? Heh. It could be the lab lighting; I might ask Supervisor Kaaka if we can swap out the bulbs for a lower wattage.

“Uh, anyway. This is Analyst Brannon signing off. Long live the Republic.”

*

ACCESSING RECENT DRAFTS... YOU HAVE ONE RECENT DRAFT. COMPOSED: 27 JULY 2191.

REVIEWING DRAFT...

“Hey, it’s me. Oh my god… oh my god, I can barely process what’s been happening. I was going to send this message as soon as I got back to my apartment, and instead I’ve just been sitting and staring into space because it’s just so… surreal…

“They’re alive. They’re all just… alive and working in a lab at ADVANCE on New Jupiter.

“I mean, we haven’t ruled out the possibility of highly advanced duplicates, but why would the Repub- the Reg- the IGR go to all that trouble? The simplest explanation - even if it still sounds pretty far-fetched - is that they're the same crew.

“Brian, if you’re listening to this – Alvy's alive. I know I didn’t work with him that long but I’m sure, I’m so sure it's really him. But it’s like Thasia and Other Violet said – none of them remember who they were, or their real names. Everyone here calls him Analyst Brannon – Michael Brannon.

“We’re not working very closely together, but I found an excuse to go over to his workstation and introduce myself, and – it seemed like he recognised me. I’m gonna try and find ways to talk to him – the real Alvy Connors is still in there, Brian, I’m sure of it.

“Is there anything you want me to… ask him? Maybe a question that only he would know the answer to?

“Sorry, I don’t have much more time – the IGR has listening devices planted throughout every Republic-issued apartment; everywhere except the bathroom. Even they have to draw the line somewhere. I scanned it, and it’s clean, but if I remember right there are still sensors that will activate if you go above a certain noise, light or heat, threshold – y’know, in case anyone takes it upon themselves to… build a bomb in here or something. And I don’t want the bugs outside to pick up what I’m saying, which is why I’m whispering.

“But I can’t stay in here too long, or they’ll get suspicious, so – I’m fine, and so far I haven’t messed up or called the Republic the Regime or anything in earshot of anyone. And no-one has recognised me. Well, except for Alvy, maybe.

“I’m still trying to figure out what exactly they’re working on, here. If you’re going to go to the trouble of staffing a lab with the crew of an… of an exploded space ship, it must be important, right? Or maybe not. Maybe it’s just a test, to see how well they assimilate.

“I’ll let you know when I know more. Until then… stay safe. I will too. Violet Liu out.”

*

ACCESSING RECENT DRAFTS... YOU HAVE ONE RECENT DRAFT. COMPOSED: 27 JULY 2191.

REVIEWING DRAFT...

“Hi, Liu. It’s me.

“I’ll keep this to the point, since I know you probably don’t have much time to spend playing back these messages. We’re all fine here. Kind of in a holding pattern, since there’s not much to do until we hear more from you or from Thasia and the other Violet, but it’s not too bad.

“Jeeter’s really happy, by the way, since he listened to your message. I mean, I think he’s still – processing – because he thought Connors was dead, he even wrote to his parents, and now we find out he’s alive, but not… y’know. Not Connors any more.

“But he’ll be fine. Krejjh is helping, which means the two of them are being even more nauseating then they usually are, and that’s saying something.

“Anyway. Listen, I know you want to try and get through to Connors, but… just be careful, okay? None of us, including Jeeter, wants you to get hurt or – worse – on the off chance that we might be able to bring him back. We always knew it was gonna be a long shot.

“Tripathi said to tell you the same, by the way. Well, she said it in a more… Tripathi… way, but the idea was the same. Find out what you can, but don’t get caught. We can’t afford to lo- to mess this up.

“Okay, I should go. Arkady Patel out.”

*

“This is lab report 06, week three. Analyst Brannon reporting on behalf of Gamma Team at ADVANCE.

“Since my last report, we have introduced the synthesized NDMA proteins to the solution and tested their interactions with samples representing different blood types. Six out of eight of the samples produced expected results, but two of the samples produced some unexpected interactions with the AB type blood cells, which warrants further testing and study.

“Specialist Huang, Analyst Vázquez and Assistant Hudson are progressing with their work on the histone deacetylases, which should be ready to introduce in the next phase of the solution, pending resolution of the AB blood cell issue.

“Okay, what else… Oh, Specialist Huang is integrating well with the team. She and I have had a couple of conversations, though our second one was unfortunately cut short when my headache started up again. Maybe I should bring it up with Dr. Starling…

“Damn it. Is that the time? I was supposed to go for my treatment a half hour ago – damn it, damn it.

“Uh… I should probably redact that from the final report. This is Analyst Brannon, signing off. Long live the Republic.”

*

ACCESSING RECENT DRAFTS... YOU HAVE ONE RECENT DRAFT. COMPOSED: 30 JULY 2191.

REVIEWING DRAFT...

“Hey guys, it’s me again. Violet. It feels kind of nice to use my own name for a change instead of being called ‘Specialist Huang’ all the time… I almost forgot to react to it once, though luckily Vázquez thought I was just focused on my work.

“Not a whole lot to report still – I’m still trying to figure out what it is the Regime is doing in these labs. It’s something to do with DNA methylation and synthesized NDMA proteins – well, I won’t bore you with the science, but why would the IGR be working on that? Could be they’re trying to develop a neural enhancer, but for what? I haven’t ruled out the possibility of there being some kind of link to the nanobots, but no-one here has mentioned nanites, and there are no nanotech specialists working in the lab.

“They keep us very siloed, too. I know what I’m working on, or at least what I have to do, but I don’t know why, and none of the people I work directly with seems to know what we’re developing here. Just something about a solution and blood cell samples. We might not even be the only lab working on this, which means I’ll have to find another way to get at the bigger picture.

“I spoke to Alvy a couple times – I was careful, Arkady, don’t worry. We didn’t manage to talk for long anyway – people don’t socialise much here. I’d kind of forgotten what it was like to work in this kind of environment, where no-one trusts anyone or lets their guard down, because people will backstab each other for the slightest thing. Maybe they had a professional disagreement, or don’t get along, or they wanted to get the credit for the other person’s work. It doesn’t take much of an insinuation to get someone transferred or – worse.

“Nothing’s happened, not yet, and it’s still nowhere near as bad as that student internship I did during the war. But it feels… tense, almost hair-trigger. I think I heard we’re having an inspection later on this week.

“Anyway, Alvy – I didn’t get to talk to him for very long, not just because of the environment, but because he had this headache come on the second time we talked. I’m not sure if it means anything – he said he gets them often. Brian, do you… remember him saying anything about that before?

“He seems a little different to the way I remember him on the Iris – a little more serious, less laid-back, though he’s still the friendliest person on the team. I didn’t… get to know him under the best circumstances, so I’m not sure if that’s due to the memory wipe or not.

“He also mentioned that he’s been seeing a doctor for these treatments – they all have. It could just be something to do with the away shuttle explosion, some kind of recovery program – there was an explosion, even if it didn’t really kill anyone, and Alvy’s got these – support struts in one of his legs, I think they’re carbon fibre. He walks with a slight limp sometimes.

“It could be nothing, but I feel like it might be worth digging into? Arkady, are you able to poke around in ADVANCE’s systems a bit, see if you can find anything that resembles medical reports?

“I’d better go. I brought my makeup bag in here as a cover for taking a bit longer – I don’t even know if the IGR has cameras in these apartments, but better to be safe than sorry – but there’s only so long you can take to put on the bare minimum I wear.

“Send me a message when you can. Violet Liu, out.”

*

ACCESSING RECENT DRAFTS... YOU HAVE ONE RECENT DRAFT. COMPOSED: 30 JULY 2191.

REVIEWING DRAFT...

“Hey, Liu. Good instincts on the medical treatment thing. I didn’t spot anything like that in my initial sweep of the system when I forged your interview and acceptance records, but I wasn’t on the lookout for it either.

“There’s a limit to what I can access without jacking directly into ADVANCE’s mainframe computer or piggybacking on their local network, but I’ll dig around as much as I can.” Jokingly: “ Worst comes to worst, we could always send Jeeter in with an earpiece and make him pose as a computer technician.

“Oh, also, Jeeter says he doesn’t remember Alvy ever mentioning any kind of migraines or head pain. Apparently he’d go on these all-night coding benders and then sleep for two hours and be completely fine the next morning. Maybe it caught up to him, but – well, I’m not gonna jump to any conclusions. I’ll see what I can find in the medical records.

“Also – be careful with the inspection, okay? Your ID will hold up, Campbell doesn’t skimp on the quality, and you look different enough from the physical description they have on file, but those Regime higher-ups will ask some weird shit to catch you out.

“You’ve got the comm if you need us for anything. Just… keep your head down.

“Arkady Patel, out.”

*

ACCESSING RECENT DRAFTS... YOU HAVE ONE RECENT DRAFT. COMPOSED: 31 JULY 2191.

REVIEWING DRAFT...

“Hey, Liu, listen. You were right. There’s something weird going on with these treatments.

“I managed to track down the medical records for the whole crew. Wasn’t easy, but I’ll save the tales of my security-defying exploits for another time. Anyway, I managed to hack into an account belonging to someone called Dr. Starling. They were brought onto ADVANCE’s payroll on June 1st – two days before the away shuttle exploded.

“There are files for all of them, and the scientific stuff doesn’t mean much to me, but from what I can tell, they’re monitoring them all for signs of what Starling calls ‘leakage’ – memories from their previous lives. Five of the other crew members have reported experiencing head pains, and it’s not a physical injury – Starling seems to think the pain is set off by them thinking back beyond a certain point, or being reminded of something from their past life. They upped the frequency of the ‘treatments’ to try and counter it, but so far it hasn’t worked.

“I think that’s what they’re for, the treatments – they’re keeping the crew’s memories suppressed. Which means, if they can be interfered with somehow…

“Bad news is, I can’t get into the scheduling system, not without access to the local network. But in Starling’s notes it says that Alvy was meant to come in for a treatment earlier today- well, yesterday technically, since it’s after 3am. But he didn’t show. So maybe you could get through to him.

“Obviously, don’t blow your cover, but if Alvy’s been getting these headaches a lot, it could mean he’s trying to remember? You said he got a headache when you guys talked – what were you talking about?”

A stifled yawn. “Shit, I’d better sleep, Sana wanted me to help encrypt some intel to send to Thasia and the other Violet Liu first thing in the morning. I’ll talk to you later. Arkady Patel out.”

*

ACCESSING RECENT DRAFTS... YOU HAVE ONE RECENT DRAFT. COMPOSED 31 JULY 2191.

REVIEWING DRAFT...

“Arkady, you’re a genius! Oh my god, I could kiss you.

“I’ve only skimmed the records you copied, but they make references to a solution that sounds a lot like the one we’re developing in the lab. What if that’s the answer? What if that’s what the IGR is having the crew develop, another version of the treatment – maybe one that’s more permanent…

“…Oh god, that’s so dark. They’re having the crew work on erasing their own memories. It’s so inhuman, so – exactly what the IGR would do.

“–I have to go, I’ve got work in half an hour, but – this really helps. And I’ll try to talk to Alvy today, see if he seems any different after his missed treatment. Violet Liu out.”

*

ACCESSING RECENT DRAFTS... YOU HAVE ONE RECENT DRAFT. COMPOSED: 31 JULY 2191.

REVIEWING DRAFT...

“You, uh—” The sound of awkward throat-clearing. “You are welcome. Yeah. Like I said, it’s uh, it’s what I do! So, no, uh thanks required. Though if you wanted to, I—

“Shit, I’ve gotta go, Sana needs me. Uh, Arkady Patel out.”

Read the rest here!

[nostalgic-pancakes]

Room 73- Chapter 2/8

Ghosts are met, friends are made, D&D is planned and Patton remains a fashion icon.

Pairings (Chapter specific now because this is how we do): Sibling-y Moceit, Platonic Loceit (eventual romance), platonic intruality (eventual queerplatonic), sibling-y Analogical, brotherly Creativitwins (Remrom don’t interact please)

Read on AO3

Word count: 2869

Warnings: Dissociative episode, minor panic attack, bullying implied, foster system mention, small description of cafeteria food (I think that’s it? tell me if there’s more)

Other notes: Ask me questions about this au! I like those! (I also take writing prompts)

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It turns out, the guy in a skirt’s name is Janus, like the Roman god, not Janice, like the stereotypical seventies name. This is something Logan only knows because apparently he said Janus’s name wrong, and the other felt the need to correct him. Does this happen frequently? Or is this just another one of those ‘Logan-Things’? He doesn’t really know the difference with new people, and Halry-Dove secondary is just full of those at the moment.

Well, Janus is in his next class, AP Chemistry, so he may as well get to know him better, so that the ‘new person’ designation can be removed, for better or for worse.

(please please please be better, he doesn’t know if he could go through that again)

The spotify playlist in his ear has gotten to the next ad cycle, and the ad voices are so filtered and saturated, that he has to take his earbud out. Logan’s twin bops his shoulder when he takes off the blue earbud, and shrugs a shoulder.

Are you okay? Virgil’s asking. He thinks he probably is. This much nervousness is normal because he can calm himself and think about other things to calm himself. He is, most probably, fine. Nodding to Virgil, who pulls the corner of his mouth up into a grin, Logan enters the chemistry classroom and his brother keeps walking to the next room- Creative Writing, with that one red person that was in front of him on the bus.

The chemistry classroom is almost exactly what he expected it to be, albeit a little less full than he thought. He’s not early, so he knows that this is the full class strength of about five. He rationalises this as the fact that Haley-Dove Secondary is a small school and will therefore not have many chemistry pupils.

Janus is there, occupying a seat with two extra chairs on either side, clearly meant for other people. However, the other people in this class have all sat down, and Nico Flores is already on one side. Logan stands, having no clue what to do.

“Logan? Logan?” he snaps awake from his ‘Think-Logan’ state and tries to find the source of the voice. It’s Janus, who’s pointing to the unoccupied seat on his left, motioning for him to sit down. Is this a trick?

This could be like before. Don’t.

That part of his mind has a point. But-

This could not be that.

The second part of Logan’s brain is louder. He sits next to Janus.

“Hi Logan!” says Nico, opening faer pencil case and digging around for their hexagonal drawing tool. Right. Organic Chemistry. He’d forgotten that. Logan doesn’t think he packed it, but he may as well check.

Nope, he did not pack the hexagonal drawing tool. For all intents and purposes, he is fucked. He hears the slamming locker from outside.

Suddenly, there’s a tap on his shoulder. He manages to resist the urge to flinch, and looks over at who tapped him. It was Janus, but Nico’s looking at him with a...friendly (?) expression, like the ones Virgil used to show to everyone when they were kids. Janus, however, has something in his hand- a hexagonal drawing tool. An extra, as shown by the fact that he has another, a bit more used than the one being offered to him, but a hexagonal drawing tool nonetheless.

“Are you sure?” he asks, and Nico looks at him as if he just said that he planned to inhale the sun someday. (that would be interesting, but he would die so no) Janus nods, a bit slowly, but it seems genuine. Mom usually thinks that kind of thing is, and she’s almost always right when it comes to this kind of thing. So Logan takes the hexagonal drawing tool, just barely not stuttering through a ‘thanks’.

Throughout the class, everyone seems to refer to their hexagonal drawing tools as ‘hexa’s’ or simply ‘tools’. Since both of these phrases are simpler to say than ‘hexagonal drawing tool’, Logan ends up sticking with tools. Janus keeps complaining, however, of an itch in the back of his neck coming from the seat behind him. Nico says the same, however not as frequently. Logan doesn’t feel it himself, though he refrains bringing up that it might be because both of them are wearing clothings which touches the backs of their necks, like the back of Janus’s cape (?) and Nico’s pink turtleneck. This goes on for most of the lecture, though the complaints taper out by the last ten minutes of the hour.

Most of the class had left the room by the end of the class period, though he and Janus had volunteered to stay behind to clear up the supplies and wipe the board. That’s when it happened.

“Hh...hisss-- HI-HissssSSss”

Janus had whipped his head around the second he heard the noise, cape swishing along with him and making the strange ‘ffwpph’ noise. Logan himself only turned around once Janus’s eyes widened, indicating that the object of his surprise was a little behind Logan, and a bit to his left.

Except, there wasn’t anything there. Not really. Not in a way that there should be something.

Instead, it looked like what the world did near a fire- a bit swirly, as if rippling in the air. Like what would happen if TV static had something resembling a physical form, except maybe without the unsettling ant feeling.

It kept hissing, like the TV static Logan hates so much, and based on what Janus’s facial expression looks like, both of them hate it. And neither of them know what to do, so they bolt. Well, it’s more of Janus snapping out of his stupor, grabbing Logan’s wrist and sprinting out into the hallway, but they manage to exit nonetheless.

It doesn’t really catch up to him, not really, not until Janus is waving with a shaky smile and getting off his stop, gripping a boy in a suspender skirt’s hand tightly enough for that hand to become even paler, and Virgil’s booped his arm for the fifth time in one bus ride asking if he’s okay, do you want water, how’re you feeling? and answering monosyllabically to each inquiry.

It really doesn’t hit him until he’s home and in his pyjamas frantically googling what he saw, because he saw it it wasn’t fake someone else did too and--

there’s a hand, Virgil’s hand, entering is vision and--

Wiping away a tear off of his face. Logan was apparently crying, then. Not a new sensation, but a markedly unpleasant one, either way. Virgil looks scared again, like he did back when--

No. Not today.

Logan takes his twin’s hand, tries to make it a hard touch that Virgil can feel, rather than something intangible. Logan’s head starts to clear with the more gentle touches- Virgil’s hand on his face, later on top of the one gripping his own, Mom running her seamstress hands through his hair and Amma Holding him from behind, keeping him upright, steady.

Why was Janus so nice?

Why would he lend Logan the tool? Does he want something?

What was that?

Was he dreaming?

Has he finally gone mad?

Was it real?

Logan doesn’t know. He doesn’t know and he hates the not-knowing so much because what if he makes a mistake? What if something goes wrong and he messes it up because he didn’t know enough, wasn’t good enough--

“Lo, what happened?” he asks, and Logan wants to tell him, but he’s scared that maybe he’ll be wrong, that Virgil will think it’s false. Virgil moves his hands up from Logan's, to his shoulders.

Wait. This entire town is a hive for supernatural activity.

The hands on shoulders becomes a hug.

Virgil’s best friend is a witch. Why wouldn’t his twin believe him?

You are worthy, Logan. You are worthy. You are worthy.

Logan steels himself. “I saw something, today.” he says, catching Virgil’s interest immediately.

“There was a...something? In the chemistry room? And...it hissed.” His twin furrows his eyebrows- not disbelieving, but contemplating, like he does with that tabletop game he likes so much. He’s thinking about it, properly.

Finally, Virgil looks up and bonks his forehead against Logan’s. “I’ll talk to Hildi and see if she knows anything, okay?”

Logan nods freverently, flopping onto the other side of the bed. Virgil laughs a bit, and pulls the duvet over Logan’s curled form, and Logan grins right back. It’s not at full strength like it’d be if he was happy, per se, but it’s getting there for sure.

Virgil smiles a bit wider at his twin’s face, and huddles right next to him. “Hey, can I tell you about the red guy in creative writing? His name’s Roman.” and he does. Roman seems nice- Logan hopes that that’s how Janus could be, maybe.

Right now Logan doesn’t need to worry about maybe-friends or scary things in chemistry classrooms, because his twin’s right here. What could possibly be there to worry about?

…

Patton thinks that this first week of school is going pretty well, thanks! His classes are all with people he knows at least to a surface level, nobody’s been outright mean so far (or even mildly mean, which is...new) and Janus made a new friend!

(Patton’s always been good at making friends, just not keeping them) (He always needs to leave, eventually. Who could want a fucked-up kid who’ll age out in a few years anyway?)

So all things considered, classes have been good and Remy and Emile have been nice so far! (even though that could change, stop getting COMFORTABLE!) Patton’s new friend, Remus, has also been pretty cool, even if he’s different from any other friends that Patton has had in his life.

Case in point, right now.

“Pat! Pat! Didja know that some frogs can FREEZE in the winter?” Is the conversation opener that Remus thinks is a good idea, dashing over to Patton’s side as soon as he has his food in tray and trying to get seated without his skirt flying up. It’s a pink poodle skirt today, with dark blue constellations on it, and it’s till his mid-shins, so Patton had thought that he wouldn’t need leggings or something.

Well, as Janus seems to be communicating through his eyes, bad luck.

Patton finally manages to get his skirt into the seat-slot and sit down, and puts up his smiley face again to face Remus, who almost seems to be vibrating. It makes the smile on his face a lot less fake-feeling.

“Yeah, Remus, I did. Even if they’re blood doesn’t freeze over, they’re mostly frozen for months!” and Remus visibly lights up again, glad to have engaged in his tangent. Does nobody else ask him this kind of thing?

The other people at the table end up joining in the conversation, though diverting it a bit to stay out of ‘disturbing’ and more into ‘mildly strange’. Logan, one of the other new kids, is talking to Janus about the whole point of the Trolley Problem, which Patton makes a point to look up once he gets back. He wants to know. Virgil and Remus’s brother, Roman, seem to be bickering as usual (whatever this new ‘usual’ is), but without any bite.

Lunch is going fine, whiling away the minutes eating school food which looks like it was made out of clay but tastes fine, at least.

“Okay, so when I came out, I realised that on the off-chance of me ever having a kid, I’d give them the most neutral name possible, so that it wouldn’t be too big of a deal.” started Virgil.

“Yeah, same here- I’ve never had to come out, but I just think that it’s such a terrible idea to subject anyone to hating their name, especially as a kid!” that’s him.

The conversation continues that way for a while, flitting from topic to topic, until Roman makes a joke ragging on the fact that Voltron took the definition of Paladin too far to make sense anymore.

“Hey! Why do paladins wear chainmail?” oh hey, Patton knows this one! It’s from some random D&D jokes page.

“Because it’s hole-y armor!” he replies, and immediately Virgil’s looking at the two of them like he has an idea. Logan’s not necessarily exasperated, per se, but he's clearly seen that look a couple of times before.

“Do you guys play Dungeons and Dragons?” Virgil asks, already fishing through his backpack for a notebook, half-eaten tray forgotten. Roman nods vehemently, like he was just looking for a reason for this conversation to come up, but not before hesitating a bit too long, deer-in-headlights style. It takes Remus elbowing his brother to calm him down and nod.

Virgil and Janus haven’t seemed to notice, but Logan’s looking at Roman strangely. Before Patton can say anything, Virgil’s found a blank page in his book and is jotting things down while talking really quickly, eyes gleaming like Remus’s when he finds something particularly gross to scar the entire Advanced Bio class (including Patton) for life. This one is more excited than scheme-y though.

“Okay so sincewealllike--”

“Slow down, Jack and Sullen, we have no idea what you’re saying.” quips Roman, and Virgil seems to gain a lot more awareness at that, proceeding to slow his roll, the gleam in his eyes never fading.

“Okay, Janus, Remus Patton- do any of you know what D&D is?” Patton nods, making himself grin a little wider, Remus sighs in affirmative, and Janus replies with a simple ‘‘Yes, and?”, while trying to look dignified, even though he’s bouncing his knee like mad. It’s adorable, really. Virgil starts grinning, something that Patton’s never seen and automatically makes his heart soar a bit like Flappy Bird.

“Okay, so we all know D&D and probably can learn how to play it, right? Right. How about we tried playing a campaign together?”

Roman squeals and Remus whoops, chattering on about not having played in ages and looking for a way to get back into it. Logan smiles, pushing his glasses up as Janus slowly unfurls his grin as they all make their affirmations. Virgil is positively bouncing in place now, eyebags no longer the most prominent thing on his face in comparison to that smile, radiant and making everything around patton feel less fake.

Virgil waits till he’s calmed down a bir before glancing at his (frankly incomprehensible, what is that handwriting?) notebook, and starts throwing around ideas with his twin, Janus and Roman, who are perking up more and more by the second, while Patton and Remus lean a bit closer, feeling slightly amused. It’s a dangerous thing to think about, that he and Janus could actually become close to these people.

Nothing lasts forever, anyway.

…

Janus didn’t really want to be back in the chemistry room, especially after everything that had gone down last time, but he was a highschooler and subject to the construct of education and schedule-keeping like everyone else, so it didn’t seem like he had a choice.

Well, at least he had Logan, who had (maybe? probably.) become his friend in the past week of school, for at least however long Jnaus had here. He wasn’t a good kid, so probably not long.

Either way, chemistry class was going as normal. There was still an itch on the back of his neck, and Logan felt it too, sitting where Nico was last time, while faer sat where Logan did. Class went normally, with the two of them trying to keep their cool while class happened and hopefully able to get out before anything else happened (again). It made sense, that with his luck, that would not work out.

Once again, everyone else left as soon as the bell rang, and Logan and Janus were the only people left to clean up. Brilliant. Absolutely peachy. Delightful. Maybe he should stop snarking so much. Nah, it’s fine.

So he and Logan were clearing out supplies, packing their own things and wiping the board, hoping to god that the hissing thing wouldn’t come back, when they heard a voice.

“Hello?” What the fuck.

Logan looks back first, this time and sees the static thing again. Except, it’s not? Well, it is, but it’s like the static took on the form of a person, maybe a teenager from what the two of them can make out. And that teenager? Looks very, very confused. What a mood.

With Logan a little it frozen into place, it’s Janus who eventually walks up to the thing (person? What is his life anymore?), and pauses.

“Hello.” but there’s no reply.

“You heard that, right?” Janus turns back to look at Logan, only to see him holding up his phone, presumably recording the whole ordeal. Logan widens his eyes and starts grinning, the way he did when he showed Janus his tool, spray-painted blue by his mom and Virgil.

“Virgil is about to have such a ball with this.” he relies, a bit awestruck, and sends it to his twin, and someone named Hildi. On that note…

What the fuck is Janus supposed to tell Patton?

[vagrantblvrd]

freewood fake marriage,:)

It’s been so long since I’ve written non!angsty Freewood and I like the way you think, Anon!

So like.

Let’s set this in a FAHC AU where Ryan’s been with the Fakes for a while now – about half a year or so. Long enough for him to realize he kind of likes these assholes and vice versa. (To the point he realizes if someone came to him on the side about killing one them he’d have to kill that asshole instead of the other assholes he works with, so you know. It’s kind of a problem.)

There’s also this...apparently there used to be another member of the crew before he came along? Or maybe he was just someone they worked with a fair bit.

Something like that because every so often someone will say something or do something and everyone gets quiet, gets That Look to them like someone close died and be like, “Oh yeah, that fucker,” or “God, that bastard would have loved to see an explosion like that,” and so on.

Even Jeremy seems to have known the guy, met him in that window of time between joining up with the Fakes and bringing Ryan into the mix.

Sometimes when Michael and Jeremy will head out for drinks on a slow night, or after a heist or a job or whatever and if someone asks where they’re headed one of them will put on this horrible attempt at a British accent and say they’re going out for “bevs” whatever the fuck that means.

There’s a lot of nonsense words the others use without a second thought that they’ll insist are British slang, and Ryan is just side-eyeing them so hard because what? (He’s been to the UK and never heard said slang in use, but what does he know, right?)

Ryan never asks because he gets it, you know. Life like theirs, you lose people sometimes. (He tries not to think about it happening with these assholes and most of the time he succeeds.)

Anyway, in this AU Ryan got pulled into the FAKE AH Crew because Jeremy came to Los Santos, right? Former Battle Buddy who shouldn’t know Ryan’s still alive because he was careful to keep it that way, you know?

(That whole shitshow that forced him to fake his death because their agency was doing shit it shouldn’t and Ryan cooked up this plan to bring it tumbling down, get Jeremy clear of things before that happened so he wouldn’t end up in jail or dead, and anyhow.

Jeremy was kind of pissed when he found Ryan again, the two of them on opposite sides of a job and Ryan standing there like an idiot while Jeremy held a gun on him. About to kill the big, bad Vagabond because some assholes wanted revenge on him and wow, the coincidence. And then Jeremy’s brain finally put all the little bits and pieces together of what he’d found out about the Vagabond while hunting him down and Ryan’s lucky Jeremy didn’t break his damn jaw when he hauled off and punched Ryan, so yeah.)

So, yeah.

Jeremy works for the Fakes and there’s a heist where they need extra muscle and it’s not like Ryan had anything going for him at the time so he was just, “Hey, asshole. Want a job?”

After hearing the details about the job Ryan was just so bewildered/curious he said yes and the rest is history.

Or should be, but then Agent 14 tracks Ryan down one day, right.

Smug bastard with that smarmy smile and cocky attitude strolling up to Ryan staking out a warehouse and tapping on his passenger side window before letting himself into the car. Completely unfazed by the gun Ryan shoves in his face and asks him how things are, chatters on about the weather and all that and wouldn’t gotten to the fucking point of his visit until Ryan finally asked.

And then wishes he hadn’t, because Agent 14 starts talking about Ryan and Jeremy’s old agency, all the weird coincidences that happened before and after Ryan staged his death. The way young agent Dooley just disappeared off the face of the planet and isn’t it strange, Mr. Vagabond, don’t you think it’s strange that this “Rimmy Tim” character bears such an uncanny resemblance to him?

(Sure, sure, it’s mostly to do with his reckless antics and love of explosions and all that because no one’s seen his face, but still. (Why just look at this wacky conspiracy theory someone put together on the subject, and Ryan stares at the photos of Jeremy from their agency days, the alarming amount of ones of Jeremy now. Ones that go back months, maybe since he first set foot in Los Santos.)

“I’ve got a bit of a problem,” Agent 14 says, like they’re old friends meeting over coffee and sharing their woes. “Terrible thing, really.”

Awful, just awful, but if some kind soul were to lend a hand with it, why all these files and facts and suspicious about this Rimmy Tim guy might just disappear.

Ryan’s so fucking tempted to kill Agent 14 then and there, but he knows it would just be the start of things, that he wouldn’t approach Ryan like this unless he knew he had him right where he wanted him.    (Had things set up so Jeremy and Ryan would be the focus of whatever agency 14 works for and all that, so he doesn’t and it kind of kills him to leave a threat to Jeremy alive, but you know.)

To his credit, Agent 14 seems to realize what a shit he’s being about things, knows the position he’s putting Ryan in and cuts out the bullshit when he knows Ryan’s in. (Agent 14’s proposal comes at the best time for 14 because Jeremy’s injured, got hurt on the last heist and annoyed at having to sit things out while he heals and Ryan’s feeling more overprotective of him than usual, because bad memories and all that.)

There’s this little packet of information – harddrive something – with important State Secrets or some such on it about to be auctioned off to the highest bidder at this gathering up north. (Way, way up north at some fancy ski chalet or resort, very Spy Movie location, and Ryan side-eyes Agent 14’s description because why.)

Anyway, anyway, he needs Ryan to pose as a potential buyer – 14’s bosses will provide the funds and all that to secure the McGuffin for them – and all he has to do is bring it back and hand it over to Agent 14.

“And this ‘conspiracy theory’ about Rimmy Tim will just go away?”

Agent 14 tells him it will, even though Ryan knows it’s not that easy, but he doesn’t have any choice in the matter.

Ryan sits in his car after Agent 14 leaves to let , some shitty little thing he stole earlier that day because a Zentorno is a car that draws attention, and wonders how the hell he’s going to explain to the crew he needs some time off.

========

“You want to go on a ‘murder break’,” Geoff says, disbelief and all. “You.”

Ryan shrugs, avoiding the look Jeremy’s giving him, the blatant shock from everyone else and realizes he should have waited to talk to Geoff alone about this. Not brought it up at the end of the weekly crew business meeting, but here they are.

HE smiles, tries to play it off as a joke, little light-hearted thing because the crew’s been busy the last few months. Job after job and a couple of back-to back heists and it’s just been kill, kill, kill -

“Okay, technically, you didn’t need to kill all of those asshole, and also, since fucking when do you take ‘murder breaks’?”

Jeremy of course, suspicious as hell and it takes careful maneuvering to keep him from getting too suspicious, (Enough to pry into things and discover what Ryan’s trying to protect him from and so forth.)

And since the crew doesn’t have anything big lined up, Geoff lets him have the time off he needs. Suspicious as hell and Ryan feels this bit of gratitude when Geoff reminds Ryan the crew’s there for him if he gets in trouble and so on and so forth, and for fuck’s sake be careful with whatever the hell he’s really doing.

After that Ryan has to meet with Agent 14 and his people to get updated on the whole McGuffin situation, pick up gear and equipment and memorize the cover they cooked up for him.

(Heir to some kind of business empire who’s bored with the usual rich socialite lifestyle or whatever and got mixed up with the wrong people. Too much money and nowhere near enough common sense and just an idiot in over his head who doesn’t know it yet, that kind of thing.)

After the first couple of meetings he gets the feeling he’s being watched, followed. Catches a glimpse of a purple Blista from the corner of his eye a time or two. This guy in tacky sunglasses at a nearby table when he meets with Agent 14 at an outdoor cafe he swears he’s seen around before, but nothing solid, concrete. (Every time he turns to look, the Blista’s gone or the guy’s on his way out and the like.)

Unnerving, but he figures it’s one of 14’s people making sure he’s keeping up his end of things and all that.

And then!

A couple of weeks after Agent 14 first approached him he’s on a flight to where the auction is set to take place. Has his posh little accent and proper mindset and gets through the first bit of things with ease. (For all that Ryan’s spent so much time building up the Vagabond’s reputation in Los Santos, no one’s seen his face and that was a factor in Agent 14 going to him with his problem.)

Things seem to be going well, until Ryan does some snooping before the auction.

Few days before it kicks off, time for Ryan and the other assholes to rub elbows, size up the competition and all that, who fucking knows.

Whatever the reason, Ryan wonders how many of them know they’ve hired him before to deal with Situations they’ve had. (Well, okay. Some he met/was sent on missions for when he and Jeremy were with their agency, the rest hired the Vagabond, but it all works out the same in the end.)

And of course just thinking that is tempting fate because one of them recognizes him. (Or is just that paranoid.)

Catches Ryan out when he’s in an unauthorized area unsupervised and no good reason for being there, pair of thugs with him with guns and all that and he has the horrible feeling he’s fucked things up without trying to. (That Agent 14 will think otherwise and Jeremy. And you know, the rest of the crew because they’re stupid like that, will try to fight 14 and the whole damn government and die.)

“Oh, there you are,” someone says, fond exasperation their voice and Ryan tenses as someone slips their arm through his, tugs him towards them. “You got turned around again, didn’t you?”

British accent and this threat under the little smile on his face, tone of his voice as he eyes up the asshole and his thugs.

“Friends of yours?” he asks, and Ryan glances down at this guy.

Vaguely familiar, and he knows those sunglasses from somewhere????

“Ah,” the asshole who caught Ryan says. “I didn't realize he was with you.”

The asshole isn’t talking to Ryan, no. He’s talking to the British guy, this look of something close to panic on his face. Even his thugs look uneasy, and that’s -

“Silly me,” the guy says, soft little laugh as he leans into Ryan. “I’m sure you remember me mentioning my husband before? We travel so much that it’s rare for us to be together in the same place for any length of time, you know.”

It’s...not quite an answer, but apparently it’s enough for the asshole who makes his apologies – goes hard on those, falling all over himself as he does and Ryan watches the asshole and his thugs flee. Scurry away with their tails tucked between their legs.

“What just happened?” Ryan asks, letting the guy lead him back to safer territory, somewhere they can talk.

The guy laughs, gives Ryan this look as they get to a luxuriously appointed suite. Fancier than Ryan’s, but he supposes that makes sense. (Government agencies never change, and sold him a lie about not wanting him to stand out too much.)

Anyway, the guy introduces himself, and of course it’s Gavin.

Claims he’s there for the Roosters, and should be worrisome because Ryan knows all about how close the Fakes and Roosters are thanks to Geoff and Jack’s connections. (Not so much worrisome about what the Roosters intend to do here as worrisome about the Fakes finding out what Ryan’s up to instead of being on a murder break, but his priorities have always been a little skewed.)

Gavin’s there because he’s with the Roosters (and maybe his grandfather’s connections with the mafia, but that’s more of a side note) and Gavin knows who he is.

“Pays to know in this business, love,” he says, rattling around the courtesy bar looking for a drink because it’s been a long damn day for them both and he’s about had it playing nice with all the rich assholes attending the auction. “Nice to finally meet you, though.”

Ryan has no idea what’s going on, is worried that he and Gavin are at cross-purposes here and how that’s going to affect things with Agent 14 and his people. (The devil’s deal he made to keep Jeremy safe, because that’s what Battle Buddies do and goddammit everything's fucked up now.)

Gavin finally settles on a drink for himself, and brings out a can of diet coke from the fridge from Ryan. (Overpriced, because of curse, but Ryan’s a guest and manners and everything.)

Tells Ryan he can have the McGuffin, that Gavin’s there to make sure it didn’t fall into the wrong hands.

“Oh, don’t get me wrong,” he says, bit of  a sneer going on. “I couldn’t give a damn about your government’s problems, but the McGuffin is safer in their hands than anyone else here, and Burnie happens to agree.”

That’s.

Too good to be true, but once again Ryan doesn’t have a lot of choice in things. (Doesn’t want the others to know, and killing Gavin would have the Fakes and Roosters at one another's throats until they figure out what happened, and then they’d be after Ryan and really, really, he’d like it if none of that happened???)

So.

“Married, though?” Ryan asks, going back to that bit of absurdity in a sea full of them and Gavin laughs, blushes.

“First thing that came to mind, actually,” he says, toys with the glass in his hands. “Hope you don’t mind?”

Well, since Ryan’s not dead or being tortured for information at the moment, he’ll take it.

“Nah, it’s fine.”

Gavin gives him this look, long and searching and laughs before he tosses back the rest of his drink.

“Alright then,” he says, as he sets his glass down. “Let’s get our facts straight then.”

They go over details about their marriage from how they met to what kind of pie Ryan likes -

“Is that really necessary?” Ryan asks at one point, because it’s been hours and he’s pretty sure no one here gives a damn about half the things they’ve talked about.

“Ryan,” Gavin says, scandalized. “You never know.”

That’s...he’s great at non-answers and shit, but Ryan’s amused enough with things that he doesn’t put up much of an argument. (There were other things he did though, and Gavin’s little giggle when he admitted he was just curious to see if Ryan would answer is in no way endearing.)

By the time leaves to go back to his own suite - “We’ll have to do something about that,” Gavin comments, because they’re supposed to be married and all and it would seem odd for them to have seperate suites – he’s not (as) paranoid about Gavin’s part in things here.

And Gavin’s right. The excuse that they were trying to surprise one another by showing up here unannounced might appease some people, but it would look odd if they continued to stay in separate suites and so on.

So.

“You have the better view,” Ryan admits, and it’s taken as a given he’ll be moving his things there later.

They get a little sleep, go down to the common room where some of the assholes are congregating (fashionably late and all) and mingle.

Ryan plays doting husband and Gavin does the same and it’s honestly kind of sickening (strange) how easily it comes to him.

They charm some of the less assholish assholes there, mollify the suspicious ones and on whole it’s less strange than Ryan was expecting.

They play happy couple all through the day and dinner, and then make their apologies as they head up to get some sleep – the auction is the next day and they want to be rested for it and all.

And you know, if they slip away to some snooping and end up getting attacked by masked thugs on a narrow walkway overlooking a frozen river on their way back to their suite, that’s a thing that happens.

Ryan’s got his knives and a few favorites from his agency days – never could find a good replacement garrote after he lost his a few years back, and anyway guns are better suited for Los Santos – and Gavin’s not half bad with a knife of his own.

“Do you mind?” Gavin asks, dragging the body of one of the thugs to the railing to toss him down below to join his buddies. “This bastard’s heavier than he looks.”

Ryan snorts out a laugh and goes to help him.

They both watch the body fall, breaking through the ice where it sinks below the surface soon enough. Won’t be found anytime soon, and the water will freeze over again soon enough, snow that started to fall a few minutes ago will help hide any evidence of foul play and honestly, it’s fortuitous they were ambushed out here.

“I’d almost say someone planned it that way,” Gavin muses, like they both don’t know it was.

No way to know who planned the attack, even if Ryan has his suspicions, but.

“I could use a drink,” Gavin says, and Ryan doesn’t protest when he slips his hand in Ryan’s and tugs him along behind him.

It should feel stranger than it does, this whole situation. (Agent 14 and his ‘deal’, Ryan on a mission for the government again. Running into Gavin who saves him from things turning into a disaster. Working with Gavin, even though he doesn’t know for sure their goals are compatible. Trusting Gavin not to stick his knife in Ryan’s back (literally) when they were ambushed. Playing happy couple. EVERYTHING, and yet. It doesn’t.)

Gavin gives him an odd look when he comes out of the bathroom after his shower – got blood in his hair, and that’s never a good feeling – and Ryan’s flipping through the television channels and sipping a diet soda and really, they’ve gotten almost too comfortable around one another so fast haven't they?

Ryan goes off to take a shower of his own and when he gets out room service has come and gone the two of them have a late night dinner/snack while they watch shitty movies. (Totally don’t fall asleep on one another or have that momentary panic the next morning of what the fuck happened for them to be snuggled up together under the blankets and really, their lives are just ridiculous aren’t they?)

The day of the auction Gavin gets a call and Ryan watches go off to take it – privacy and all – and tries not think about the bad feeling that’s been building all day.

He get sidetracked into conversations and the whatnot as they wait for the auction to start and Gavin still isn’t back.

Ryan notices the asshole who caught him out the other day slipping away in the middle of things, one of his thugs whispering urgently in his ear and this Look on his face at whatever news he’s given. This quick glance to Ryan and a smirk before he excuses himself and Ryan sits there for a little while longer, and Thinks.

Gavin’s been gone for a few hours by now, and Ryan doesn’t like it. Oh, sure, Gavin said the call might be a while, to go to the auction without him to secure the McGuffin and not to worry, Gavin can handle himself and all that.

And Ryan knows he can, saw it for himself, but he’s still concerned.

Gavin’s absence along with the asshole ditching the auction don’t add up to anything good, but.

Ryan needs the McGuffin to keep Jeremy safe, but.

Ryan watches the bidding go up, sees the way the rich assholes are getting...annoyed, unpleasant about it. Knows he should be putting in more bids than he has if he hopes to win, but.

Fuck it, he thinks after a few more bids go by.

If it comes down to it he can deal with Agent 14 and the threat he and his people pose himself, but this?

Yeah, this can’t wait.

So he goes off to find Gavin and realizes he never got around to returning that call. That he was grabbed on the way – signs of a fight that weren’t completely cleaned up.

Blood on the ornate carpeting, flecks on the wall and Ryan feels that bad feeling ramp right on the fuck up at the sight.

Continues his search in earnest and finds Gavin all trussed up in a storage/maintenance/cliche climactic fight scene area.

All beat up like someone’s been working him over for information – spoiler: they have! :D – and maybe other cliché things that I always love to throw in these things because I’m predictable like that.

And then!

Gavin realizing Ryan’s there and instead of the ~relief at being rescued the asshole’s annoyed at him.

Bickering as Ryan unties him and check him over because Ryan’s an idiot for not staying at the auction to get the McGuffin, right? The whole point of their “marriage and all and now he’s gone and fucked it all up to find Gavin and honestly, Ryan, honestly.

If he’s here then who won the auction and got the McGuffin?

“That would be me.”

*Dramatic Music Cue*

It’s the asshole from before, all smug and arrogant because not only does he have the McGuffin, but he has Gavin and his little boy toy too.

Ryan and Gavin share this look because okay, okay, if anyone’s the boy toy in their sham marriage clearly it’s Gavin and Gavin is super offended at that and omg, RYAN.

The baddie is bewildered by their antics and annoyed and starts Bad Guy Monologuing.

See, he knows who Gavin is.

Burns’ little protege and all that, and my, my, my, what would Burns have to say about him being here without permission?

Gavin looking over at the guy with this Look on his face, because one, he doesn’t need to ask Burnie's permission to do anything, okay. And two, maybe shut the hell up?

Ryan is ~shocked because Gavin told him (insinuate) that Burnie sent him here, but that’s not true???

And then they get the perfect opening to turn the tables on the asshole when he gets a little too into being a smug bastard and gets too close, or looks away long enough.

There’s this whole Fight in which Ryan and Gavin play cat and mouse with the asshole and his thugs – it’s not a huge challenge because these idiots are rank amateurs, but it’s enough to get the old adrenaline pumping.

Also, you know, one of the thugs gets off a lucky shot and Gavin gets movie-style shot. Flesh wound that’s more annoying than life-threatening and all that. The kind of thing that has Ryan fussing over him, all up in Gavin’s personal space and Touching and Worry and Gavin secretly enjoying it because not like Ryan will give him the time of day when this whole mess is over.

They grab the McGuffin where the baddie dropped it and go to Gavin’s suite to patch him up and collect their things to make their escape before the bodies are found.

Go to a roadside motel somewhere far enough away to feel safe when Gavin flags due to pain and blood loss and the little “interrogation” scene that happened before Ryan found him.

Ryan all worried and restless, anxious because Gavin lied to him and such but he hasn’t tried to kill Ryan or double-cross him. (And honestly at this point, he still trusts the bastard even though he knows he shouldn’t after earlier revelations and such.)

Gavin tells him that he got a call, about a month ago from some friends of his, these Lads. Something about a friend in trouble, stubborn sort who would appreciate them sticking their nose into things and if Gavin was free could he look into it for them all secret-like?

And Gavin, okay.

In the middle of one last job for the Roosters – favors owed and all that – before going back to his crew, but he could do this thing for them sure.

Went to Los Santos and started watching this guy – seemed nice and all, just in over his head. Tells Ryan about this silly little car he bought for the job when he got to Los Santos. Bright purple Blista he used to tail him, all the subpar lunches and brunches he ate while he ~spied on the guy and so on and Ryan just stares at him.

Belatedly realizes Gavin was the reason he felt he was being watched way back then, that he wasn’t imagining things because Gavin was spying on him the whole damn time. Got his own documents and whatnot in order to follow Ryan out to the auction and kept an eye on him which was a good thing since it probably helped save his life the day they technically met.

There’s more, Gavin telling Ryan about having to lie to Burnie (“I mean, he knows I’m lying, but he trusts me not to do anything to hurt the Roosters or the Fakes, so he doesn’t mind,”) and it clicks with him that hey, wait.

Something, something, something British slang Jeremy and the others use from time to time, this asshole Ryan assumed was dead who has a sense of humor that seems like it line up with this asshole they reference from time to time.

Horrible suspicion building that maybe -

“Who asked you to keep an eye on me?”

And Gavin smiles at him, like he knows Ryan’s finally put the pieces together in his idiot head.

“My Lads,” he says. “Michael and Jeremy, of course.”

Ryan just sits there while Gavin steals his diet coke, tiny little smile on his face and oh, Goddammit.

Because.

Of course Jeremy knew something was up with Ryan after Agent 14 made that deal with him, but he was injured and Michael was needed in Los Santos, and anyway, anyway.

Ryan would pitch a fit if any of them stuck their noses in his business, but he never met Gavin. Didn’t know the asshole, wouldn’t know what to look for if they called in a favor with Gavin, asked him to get to the bottom of things for them.

And Gavin had, because he was headed back to Los Santos for good anyway, having just finished one last favor for Burnie and the Roosters. Was going back to join the crew and work with them on their ridiculous heists and jobs and be back with his Lads and Geoff and Jack and all the rest.

To be honest, he was curious as hell about this Vagabond character anyway, someone he heard about line before Jeremy came along. And just when he thought he’d get to meet him, Burnie asked for his help and Geoff sent him off after making sure Gavin was going to come back – all soft and fond and worried about this little British idiot, “Don’t let that asshole sweet talk you into staying with them, you know he’s full of shit.”

But now! Now he got the chance to meet him, even if it’s not exactly straightforward and ”Ryan, Ryan, you’re so lovely, Ryan,” because the painkillers are kicking in and Gavin’s had a long, long day, and Ryan.

Christ, Ryan doesn’t even know.

Grateful to Jeremy and the others for worrying, even though they’re idiots. For asking Gavin to keep an eye on him and everything else. (Nothing turned out to plan, but he had the McGuffin Agent 14 wanted and he and Gavin survived.)

Ryan sighs, make a phone call to Jeremy and tells him they’ll be home in a few days – wants to drive a little more to get further away from the auction before hopping a plane to Los Santos. Keep an eye on Gavin and make sure his injuries don’t get worse.

Sighs at Jeremy when he tries to play dumb about it and promises to tell him all about the whole mess when he’s back in Los Santos. (No point in keeping him or the others in the dark now, right?)

The next day Gavin’s all tired and sore and achey, little bit cranky and Ryan is just.

Amused.

Because up until this point Gavin’s been all smooth and polished, very Spy in a Vinewood movie about things, but now he’s turning into this horrible little gremlin and it’s weirdly entertaining.

“Sod off,” Gavin mumbles, but gratefully accepts the coffee Ryan got for him along with the breakfast he picked up along the way.

They take it slow, from there. Want to look like people on the return leg of a road trip and succeed perfectly because they’re both super tired and Done With Everything.

Don’t talk much, but there’s not a lot to say just yet. Comfortable with the silence, and when Gavin gets bored he starts up with his hypotheticals and Ryan weirdly enjoys them even though half of them make no real-world sense? But it’s fun and keeps him fro Dwelling on what’s waiting for them back in Los Santos.

(Jeremy and the others. Agent 14. Everything.)

They get to the airport safely, book a flight back to Los Santos without problems and Gavin sleeps most of the way there. (Tired, hurt, and Ryan feels it’s the least he can do to keep an eye on him for a change.)

When they get to Los Santos it’s to Jeremy and Michael waiting for them, the quiet ride to the penthouse, Michael shooting Gavin Looks while Gavin winds him up. (Jeremy sending Ryan Looks and Ryan playing dumb.)

And then!

The penthouse where Geoff yells at both Ryan and Gavin in turn, and then puts Burnie on speaker so he, too, can yell at them. (Mostly Gavin in this case, but Ryan gets his fair share too.)

They endure it like a couple of kids who broke curfew and face their parents’ ire after the fact, and then Geoff and Burnie tell them to get some rest while they deal with the mess with Agent 14.

“Uh - “

“Get the fuck out of here, both of you.”

Geoff and Burnie aren’t angry, just. Tired, because their idiot crews, okay. Morons all of them.

When Ryan and Gavin get out of the conference room it’s to discover everyone else has gone home, and there’s this awkward moment of what the hell they do now, you know?

There are rooms on other floors of the building for the crew, somewhere Gavin can crash until he gets a place of his own away from the penthouse, but.

“My place?” Ryan offers.

Somewhere with more personality than one of the spare rooms or the barely used room of Ryan’s here.

Gavin slides him a look, this wry little smile on his face.

“Thought you seemed the type to buy me dinner first,” he says, and Ryan snorts because Gavin is an asshole, isn’t he?

They stop to pick up burgers and fries on the way to Ryan’s place where he sets Gavin up in his spare room and for all they met in an unusual way, it’s not weird.

No more so than the talk they have later once they’ve gotten sleep and feel a little more human. Where Gavin explains himself a little more and Ryan does the same and then it just.

Ryan’s got the room and doesn’t mind sharing with Gavin until he gets his own place.

And, sure. They get Looks from the others when Geoff brings up the spare rooms at the penthouse and Gavin declines, tells them he’s staying with Ryan, but no one asks and they’re sure as hell not telling. (Not that they’d know what to tell, since they don’t know what’s going on with them themselves.)

Days, weeks, months go by and Gavin who’s never really put much effort into his own place has settled back into that empty space he left behind when Burnie called him for a favor a  while back.

Ryan realizes what’s been missing when Michael and Jeremy start throwing around jokes and stories and Gavin’s there to bounce them back around to the others. Realizes how much smoother the crew operates with him around and thinks he could get used to it.

Agent 14 doesn’t pop up the way Ryan was worried he would, and he finds out Geoff and Burnie came to an “agreement” with him thanks to Gavin’s help. (Gets told to ask Gavin if he wants to know what that’s all about, but he doesn’t get around to it right away.)

Eventually though, when it’s the two of them watching shitty movies eating shitty takeout on Ryan’s couch Ryan does.

Finds out Gavin called in his own favors to deal with Agent 14 and the material he had on Jeremy and Ryan. To come to a Deal with him about leaving them the fuck alone with the Roosters and Fakes behind him and how unpleasant it would be for 14 and his people if he pressed the matter.

Gavin shrugs because it’s what you do for crew, didn't Ryan know? And Ryan.

Ryan looks at this terrible little goblin wearing Ryan’s sweats – stealer of clothes extraordinaire – all comfortable in Ryan’s personal space and such. (Asshole’s wearing his clothes and leaning against him because supposedly he makes for a comfortable pillow and really, really.)

“Are we dating?” Ryan asks, because if they are no one bothered to tell him.

He thinks about the previous months. All the meals they’d shared together from greasy bags of takeout while staking out a target or grabbing food on the way home – HOME – after a long day.

Terrible movies and dinner on the couch like tonight and oh, God.

“Er,” Gavin says, not quite meeting his eyes. “We could not be dating, if you’d like?”

Ryan thinks about it for a moment, watches Gavin who starts playing with the frayed hem of his sleeve, and how much he actually likes the little idiot. (Likes having him around, all his stupid jokes and stories and hypotheticals and pretty much everything about him.)

“Well,” Ryan says. “Gotta work up to the marriage thing somehow.”

Because look.

They still have those IDs and papers from the Incident. Got Matt and B-Team to tweak them in case they need them again, make it “official” their cover identities are married and endured the grief it got them from the others.

Ryan laughs like an idiot when Gavin looks at him, surprised Ryan isn’t kicking his ass out or whatever he expected, and figures now’s as good a time to give in to that little urge to kiss Gavin. (First showed up back at that resort, but there was never a good time/excuse for it, and that trend continued on after they cleared everything up and got back to Los Santos.)

Gavin makes this little surprised noise, and for a moment Ryan’s worried he misread the situation, but then Gavin tugs him back down for another kiss and oh Ryan thinks, maybe he didn’t.

(The crew totally gives them shit for not realizing they’re basically an old married couple at that point, but whatever.)

[rosesisupposes]

If We’re Tryin’

Part 7 of Breakin’ Free, a High School Musical Sanders Sides AU

Chapter Pairings: Prinxiety, Logicality

Chapter Warnings: Scheming Deceit; 

word count: 4,025

Reader tags: @residentanchor @royally-anxious@bewarethegrammarpolice   @jemthebookworm@arandompasserby  @sparkly-rainbow-salt@astral-eclipse​ @thelowlysatsuma @adorably-angsty

<<6. Lunkheads | 8. Going For the Glory >>

read on ao3

SCENE: East High

Roman stood frozen in the middle of the hallway, a terrible weight dragging in his stomach as he watched Virgil walk away, disappearing into the crowd of students. Virgil didn’t want to do callbacks. He’d given up. But why?

The team finally seemed to have stopped being disappointed in him, but if Virgil was mad at him now, what was the point? Roman was so excited when he was with the shorter man. Like he was on the verge of some amazing discovery that he couldn’t quite name yet. And the more he sang, the more comfortable and fun it became. He didn’t want to lose that, not when he’d finally started to see himself as someone who could both sing and play basketball.

But if Virgil didn’t want to keep going, how could Roman continue?

He made his way to outdoor practice with the team, numb. Remy was running a scrimmage and grinned as he caught sight of Roman.

“Hey captain! Get your ginger ass in here!”

Roman stared blankly at the energetic team, dodging and weaving and shooting. It was too much. He waved Remy off and made his way to the track, jogging laps instead. Maybe the steady rhythm of running would help his jumbled thoughts and unsettled heart to align.

“Rem, is he okay?” Patton asked, watching the figure slowly jog further away.

“Don’t worry about it, Pat, he just needs to blow off some energy. I bet the pressure of the game is just getting to him.”

Pat frowned. “I hope you’re right.”

But even when he finished his laps, Roman didn’t rejoin the group, but went inside instead. Rem followed him in, only to see the star of the team failing, over and over. He was missing the basket even on easy shots. What was going on? Ro could make a layup in his sleep, but now he was struggling? As Rem watched, trying not to draw attention to himself, Roman managed to trip over his own shoelaces and fell to the gym floor.

He rolled over onto his back, muttering swears, before flinging the ball away and stomping off to the locker room.

Remy winced. They hadn’t messed up with their plan, right? It was just supposed to help Roman get back to focused. It was intended to help. So it couldn’t be a bad thing.

Right?

Two days later, Pat and Remy were in the cafeteria, waiting for Roman to join them from the lunch line. Just as he turning to join them, he practically walked into another student. He looked down, into deep brown eyes under purple hair.

Virgil.

He froze for a moment, then took a breath to start babbling apologies. But Virgil was already turning away. He neglected the table where Logan and the decathlon team sat, choosing instead to sit at a quiet table of mismatched chatter in the corner.

Roman stared after him until Remy called his attention. He looked up and gave a weak smile, then walked past their table to leave the lunchroom.

Patton chewed his lip, worried. “Rem, I really don’t think he’s okay.”

“Of course he is. Or will be. Maybe.” Remy sighed. “Fuck. No, you’re right. Even if he was a little bit unfocused before, it’s just worse now. The plan didn’t work, and we fucked up.”

“Language! But we do need to fix it, Rem. He’s our friend, and it’s our fault.”

“How do we even do that, Patton? It’s not like we can just hit undo.”

“This started through a miscommunication, right? So we’ll need to communicate really well to set it right. And we won’t do it alone.”

“We won’t?”

Patton shook his head, then stood and walked across the room.

Logan didn’t notice someone approaching until the students besides him were looking above his head and looking star-struck. He turned, to see Patton smiling at him from many feet above him. In a less sunny person, it might have been called looming.

“Pa- Mr. Baylor. Salutations. Was there something you needed from me?”

“Yes, Mr. McKessie, there is,” he responded, grinning a bit as he mimicked Logan’s manner of speech. “We need to talk, you see. About yesterday.”

“I see. Will you all excuse me?” He nodded to his team, then stood and followed Patton out of the lunchroom. Patton stopped by the basketball table to drag Remy along with them.

“Pat, babes, you could just ask if I can come with,” he complained.

“No I can’t, Rem, you’re too good at avoiding conflict.”

“Not my fault my reflexes are better than yours.”

“I find that very surprising,” Logan said, rolling his eyes, “because Remy causes my gag reflex to activate daily.”

Remy turned to face Logan with a terrible grin. “Oh hun, that can be arranged.”

Logan blessed his dark skin for making his blush that much less visible.

“Hey, no making fun of the allos, Rem, you already know you’re too much for us,” Patton admonished, utterly failing to keep his giggles from bursting of from behind the hand that strove to hide them.

Logan coughed and turned entirely away from Remy.

“What was it you wanted to discuss, Patton?”

Patton immediately sobered. “It’s Roman. He’s miserable. Has Virgil been down as well?”

Logan adjusted his glasses. “I am not particularly skilled at gauging others’ emotions, but Virgil has been rather avoidant over the last day. And even quieter than usual. It is very possible that he, too, is unhappy.”

Patton nodded. “I think the plan was a mistake. And since it was our mistake, we need to fix it.”

Remy ran a hand through his hair, his sober face a sharp contrast to his ‘Laughing On the Inside’ t-shirt.. “Not saying you’re wrong, Pat, but I really don’t know how we do that.”

“We caused this situation by removing the context of Roman’s outburst, did we not?” Logan said, thinking aloud. “So perhaps if we were to restore the context, and explain our collective part in generating his uncharacteristic response…?”

Patton nodded eagerly. “That’s what I was thinking too, Lo.”

Lo? Did he just give me a nickname?

“Will they believe us?” Remy asked

“They’ve got to,” Patton said fiercely. “We can’t be the ones who ruined true love!”

“True love?” Remy and Logan chorused, then glared at each other for voicing the same thought.

“Well, yeah! You two didn’t think the moping was just about the singing, did you?”

SCENE: Rooftop Garden

Roman was sitting alone on the roof, trying to absorb the sound of the wind, when the quiet was interrupted by a set of footsteps. He looked up to see Patton and Remy coming up the stairs. Well, there goes the secret hideout, he thought. Just another thing I’ve lost recently.

Rem seemed to hesitate, but was prodded on by Patton.

“Hey, Ro. Um. We just had another team meeting.”

Roman looked down. He’d missed it. Again. “Great.”

“We had a team meeting about how we haven't been acting like a team. I mean us, not you.” Remy took off his sunglasses and sat next to Roman. “Look, babes, about the singing thing…”

“It’s not happening anymore, Rem, I really don’t want to talk about it,” Roman said, refusing to face him.

“Ro, I just… I want you to know that we’re gonna be there, okay? In the audience, cheering for you.”

Roman looked up, startled. “What?”

“If singing is something you want to do, kiddo, we should be boosting you up, not tearing you down!” Patton added, smiling.

“Win or lose, we're teammates. That's what we're about,” Remy said, tentatively putting a hand on Roman’s shoulder. Then he grinned. “Even if it turns out you sing like a drowning cat.”

“Rem, I am sure he’s great! We just don’t know, because we’ve never actually heard you?” Patton interjected, turning expectantly to Roman.

Roman’s mood fell again. “Yeah, well, you’re never going to. Because Virgil won’t talk to me. And I… I don’t know why.”

Remy looked nervously at Patton, then back to Roman. “Um. We do.”

“Excuse me?”

“Here,” Patton said, handing him a packet from the lunchbox he carried. “I baked these fresh today. Thumbprint cookies, with this jam I just discovered in the health foods store. I think you should try one now, before we explain. After we do, you might need a second cookie.”

SCENE: Science Lab

Virgil was busy working through a particularly complicated reaction formula when Logan approached him.

“Virgil, can I talk to you for a moment?”

The shorter boy paused a moment, then shrugged a nod. He pushed his book aside and turned to face Logan.

Logan took a deep breath. “Virgil, I was, for lack of a better term, an asshole. But worse than that, I was an inconsiderate asshole. I mistakenly believed your interest in the musical auditions was killing our chances of having you on the scholastic decathlon team, and-”

“Logan, I don’t care about the goddamn auditions. I heard what Roman had to say. I'm on your team now. Done.” Virgil said curtly, turning back to his textbook.

“No, not done,” Logan said, stepping a bit closer. He didn’t want to invade the others’ personal space, but he needed to be heard out. “We planned it, Virgil. Remy knew he could get Roman to say things to make you want to forget about the callbacks. We orchestrated the whole thing. I am embarrassed that I was such a willing participant, and I am truly sorry for the adverse impact it has had.”

“No one forced Roman to say anything, Logan. It’s fine. We should be focusing on the decathlon anyway. It’s only a week away.”

“It is not fine!” Logan protested. “Doing well in the decathlon would be pleasant, but it is nothing compared to the regard you hold for your friends, myself included… or the regard you hold for Roman. That matters, too. And I regret that it took me so long to realize that.”

Virgil stared at him for a moment, then turned back to the board and continued writing chemical formulas, dark eyes focused on the task.

Logan nearly reached out to stop him, but let his hand drop. He allowed himself to send one last pleading look Virgil’s way, but it went unnoticed. With a sigh, he went to find Patton, to let him know that at least he had tried.

SCENE: The Montez Home

That evening, Virgil helped his mother continue to set up their house and unpack. They were very efficient packers after all these years, and tiered everything by importance. All the most essential supplies and clothes had been unpacked for weeks, and there were only decorations and knick-knacks left. His room finally felt settled now that his Nightmare Before Christmas posters were in a place of honor on one wall, and the cover art of treasured albums decorated another.

Humming Sing to himself, he carried his empty box downstairs, heading for the basement.

He was halfway down the stairs when he heard a knock on the door, and his mother opened it.

“Hello, are you Ms. Montez?” a familiar voice asked. His eyes widened as he saw his mom nod.

“Good evening - my name is Roman Bolton. Is Virgil home?”

Lisa slightly closed the door and leaned around the corner to make eye contact. Virgil shook his head, throat tight. She nodded in understanding, and flashed a brief “I love you” at him in ASL.

Turning back to the door, she responded to the tall ginger boy who was nervously shifting his weight from foot to foot on their doorstep, fiddling with a sheaf of paper in his hands as he did so. “Unfortunately, Virgil is rather busy with homework and such, so now's not really a good time.”

Roman gulped audibly. “I understand. It’s just that, I made a mistake, Ms. Montez. He doesn’t need to listen to my apology, but I really want him to know how badly I feel for making that mistake. Would you be willing to tell him I came to see him?”

Lisa softened a little. “I think I can do that, Roman. Have a good night.”

“Buenas noches, Ms. Montez.”

Roman turned and walked back down the entry path as the door shut behind him. He stopped and gazed at the house, wishing that he could somehow earn Virgil’s trust back. Listening to the quiet night sounds, he admired the balcony and graceful trees in the backyard of the Montez home. Wait. Balcony! That was it!

He took out his phone and dialed Virgil’s number. If he didn’t pick up, Roman would leave, and wouldn’t force himself into his presence. But if any part of him still was willing to talk…

After 4 rings, Roman was ready to turn away. But just at the last second, Virgil picked up.

“Hi.”

“Virge, I know you heard my idiotic rant, and I am so sorry. None of it was true - I’ve enjoyed singing so much, and particularly singing with you. It’s not nothing, it means so much to me. I just - I was so sick of my friends giving me constant shit for it, so I said things I knew would shut them up. I didn't mean any of it, please believe me.”

Virgil sat back on his bed, leaning back as he fought to keep the emotion and leaping hope out of his voice. “You sounded pretty convincing to me, princey.”

“I know the anger sounded real, because it was. I was frustrated and hurt and guilty, and I let my mouth run away with me, saying literally anything I thought would make them get off my back. But… Vee, the Roman you met on vacation, at the ski lodge… that guy was much more me than the dumbass you heard the other day.”

Virgil sighed. “Even if that’s true, the whole singing thing is making the school lose its collective shit. You said so yourself- everyone is treating you differently because of it.”

“Maybe because I don't wanna only be the basketball guy and they can't handle it,” Roman’s voice was rough - was he breathing heavily? “ That's not my problem, it's theirs.”

“What about your dad?” Virgil asked. He clamped down on the fluttery emotions in his stomach. Don’t get your hopes up don’t get your hopes up don’t get your hopes up.

“None of this is about my dad. This is about how I feel. I'm not letting the team down. They let me down. So I'm gonna sing. Will you be there next to me?”

Virgil rolled over on his bed, facing the wall. “I don’t know, Ro.”

“I need you to say yes, Virge. Because I brought you something.”

“What do you mean?” Virgil asked, sitting up.

“Turn around.”

Virgil turned slowly to face the window. There was Roman, smiling tentatively, standing on Virgil’s bedroom balcony. A leaf stuck in his hair called out the big tree behind him as his accomplice in getting up this high. Virgil slowly walked to the window-door and opened it.

“This could be the start of something new,” Roman sang softly, a capella. “It feels so right to be here with you.”

Virgil could feel a blush spreading over his cheeks. How could he not, when Roman was smiling at him with so much liking in his eyes, and singing their first shared song with as much feeling as he could muster?

“And now, looking in your eyes,” Roman continued to sing, bringing a hand up to cup Virgil’s face. “I feel in my heart the start of something new.”

Virgil was sure Roman could feel the heat of his cheeks where his fingers touched them, but the taller man didn’t try to rub it in. He just smiled earnestly, blue eyes meeting hazel, as he asked, “It’s a pairs audition, Virge. Are you with me?” He held up the paper in his free hand. It was Virgil’s sheet music.

Virgil smiled. “Yeah, princey. I’m with you.” He edged a bit closer, and took the music. Roman’s face was so close to his, but it was no longer physically possible for him to blush harder. Something in the taller man’s eyes changed, almost like a look of recognition or realization. Virgil leaned in, rising on his tiptoes as Roman slowly leaned down.

A car alarm went off on the street below, startling them both into leaping back. Roman’s face was even redder than Virgil’s, clashing terribly with his orange hair.

“I should, uh-” he stammered.

“Yeah, it’s late, and-”

“Thank you for, uh-”

“Yeah, you too,” Virgil said, and swallowed. “Um. Good night, Roman.”

There was that smile again, all freckles and pale skin and unabashed delight. “Good night, Virgil.”

He swung himself over the balcony railing, back into the tree, and grinned at Virgil from through the branches. “Sweet dreams!”

Virgil closed the balcony door again and collapsed onto the bed, still blushing. “Oh, I’m having sweet dreams alright,” he mumbled to himself. “And I’m not even asleep yet.”

SCENE: Music Room & Auditorium

Roman tore through the gym, dodging, spinning, and sinking baskets left and right. Not even Patton could guard him - he was here one second, gone straight to the hoop the next. The whole team felt the shift in energy - this was the focus they’d been striving for. They were one cohesive unit, sensing rather than seeing where their teammates were, passing with ease. Coach Bolton had nothing but praise: only days away from the game, but they were exactly where they needed to be. He could feel it in his gut - they were gonna win this thing. He wasn’t clear on the exact details of what had changed his son’s mood, but whatever it was, it was clearly working.

Still riding the energy of a successful practice, Roman flew through his post-workout shower. Teammates laughed and pointed at the clock as he shot finger-guns at the mirror. He grinned at them, and took off down the halls of East High.

In the science lab, the scholastic decathlon team was just as on point. Virgil had connected with the underclassmen in particular, and was walking them through a practical experiment. “See, guys, come look,” he instructed. “You’ve measured out five grams, right? Okay, now add that to the beaker.”

The younger student did as he instructed as the group gathered to take notes.

“See how it foams up? It’s been changed into an acidic state. And now our solution changes from pink to blue - just like the pH test strips.”

“It all makes sense now! Thanks, Virge,” a student said with a smile. Turning to give her a pat on the back, Virgil caught sight of the clock.

“Shit, gotta go! See y’all tomorrow, okay?” He quickly made his way to the door, removing his protective goggles and apron as he went.

He ran through the halls and nearly ran slap-bang into Roman as he rounded a corner.

“You’re late,” Roman said teasingly as they both ran towards the music room. Virgil grinned and grabbed Roman’s hand, pulling him along as they hurried to meet Joan for rehearsal.

Dee was strolling through the halls as if he owned them, as per usual. He hummed to himself, the callback song he and Cee were to perform in just three days. Even if this whole ‘callback’ thing was an irritating formality, it was nice to be able to

H suddenly heard something that sounded like voices accompanied by piano coming from one of the music rooms. He stopped short, reaching out and grabbing his twin’s arm without looking. They leaned as one to listen more carefully.

Two people were singing, and they sounded beautiful together.

“Wow, they sound good,” Cee said, not just a little concerned. Dee frowned, and crept to the door. Maybe it was some ensemble members?

Dee’s eyes widened as he saw that it was in fact Roman and Virgil singing, accompanied by Joan on the piano. “Cee, we have to do something!”

Cee furrowed his brow. “What if they’re just… better than us?”

Dee scowled. “They might be good singers, but they’re not actors. Now shush and let me think.” He took out his phone and scrolled through the calendar. “Hmm, ok. Our callbacks are on Thursday and the basketball game and the scholastic decathlon are on Friday…” He looked up, smirking. “Too bad all these events aren't happening on the same day... at the same time.”

Cee tilted a head, confused. “But that wouldn’t work, because Roman and Virgil just wouldn’t be able to come to the…” Dee nodded as realization dawned over Cee’s face. He smiled, finally seeing what the other intended. “I’m so proud to be your twin.”

“Don’t I know it,” Dee responded with a smile, and walked on with a new spring in his step.

That afternoon, Joan was in the auditorium instead of math class. They’d been struck by inspiration and also imaginary numbers were ridiculous, so composing was far and away the best use of their time right now. Humming very softly to themself, they revised and edited the sheet music on the piano as they relaxed in a corner of the backstage area. Suddenly, they heard voices walking in, and ducked to fully hide behind the piano.

“I don't want to hear about Roman Bolton or that Montez boy,” Ms. Darbus said, walking in. “In fact, I can’t hear anything about them.” She turned to face Cee & Dee, who had walked in with her. “But if you're telling me as co-presidents of the drama club that changing the callbacks would be what's best for our theater program, then I might be inclined to agree with you.” She checked around the area, confirming they were alone. “I will trust your judgments, Mr. and Mr. Evans.” She nodded decisively, and left.

“That was a yes, right?” Cee asked. Dee winked hugely, and walked off in the opposite direction from the director, singing under his breath. “Bop bop bop, bop to the top, wipe away your inhibitions!”

Cee still looked a bit confused, but followed his brother.

In their hiding place, Joan sighed in frustration. Would nothing with their show go smoothly?

They practically sprinted to the announcements board the next morning. But even though they’d expected it, they still felt the cold of disappointment steadily dripping down their back.

They were still standing and staring when the basketball and science teams came by.

“Callback Auditions reschedule to Friday starting at 3:30pm,” the sign proclaimed.

“Callbacks at the same time as the game?” Roman said.

Virgil’s mouth twisted. “And during the scholastic decathlon.”

“Why would they do that?” Patton asked unhappily.

“I hear hissing, and the snake’s named Darbus,” Remy growled, glaring accusingly at the poster over his sunglasses.

“It’s actually two snakes, and neither’s named Darbus,” Joan piped up.

Remy turned, and looked down. “Do you know something about this, small person?”

“Ms. Darbus thinks she’s protecting the show,” Joan told the group, “but Cee & Dee- well, mostly Dee - he only cares about protecting himself.”

“That’s it, bitches need to die,” Remy said, already about to storm off.

“Rem, no, no murder,” Roman interrupted. “We’re not going to do anything to them. Except maybe sing. I have the beginnings of a truly brilliant plan, if I do say so myself, but it’s only going to work if we can work together. Who’s in?”

Roman put out a hand that was immediately covered by Virgil’s and Joan’s in quick succession. Remy was next, and two underclassmen from the each team. Logan had gotten stuck on the outside of the group, but Patton put a hand up to high five him, then used his other arm to connect them both to the huddle. Logan smiled and felt the faint tinglings of a blush when Patton didn’t let go of his hand, instead clasping his hand more firmly.

“What team?” Virgil called with an ironic smile.

“Wildcats!” they cheered as a group.

Roman’s freckled face curved with his enormous grin. “Let’s do this, y’all! Game on!”

a/n: i’m having so much fun with this story, can you tell?

[wardencommanderrodimiss]

glasses

Really quick and messy Fae AU ficlet with Phoenix and Ema, written in about an hour and a half, trying to get myself back into the swing of the AU.

On the sixteenth of April, a box arrives at the Wright & Co. Law Offices.

Phoenix is suspicious of it, because Phoenix is suspicious of most things. It makes life in Los Angeles easier to trust nothing and no one, a conclusion Phoenix came to the hard way and has remained true to since. He examines the box on the doorstep without touching it; seeing no enchantments or curses and a European return address, he gingerly carries it inside and sets it on the coffee table.

(He would be much more suspicious if it came from anywhere in the LA area, because this is the hotbed and haven of the Court, and Phoenix inextricably tied to its royal family, Maya with her rows of sharks’ teeth and Pearl’s opalescent shiny skin, Iris insubstantial like ash and Mia and Dahlia who Phoenix does not know what they looked like beneath glamour. There’s a second Court, Maya says, one that her family once split from, somewhere in the Himalayas, but she doesn’t know more about it or worry more about it than that, so Phoenix filed the information away in the back of his mind to remember if he ever meets someone or receives something strange from that part of Asia. But Europe does not fall in the area of his suspicious -- Europe was home to Miles Edgeworth and Franziska von Karma, the two most solidly grounded people in Phoenix’s life, the two who look the same no matter what set of eyes he looks at them through.)

He cuts open the box and finds on top a letter, and beneath that, four Swiss chocolate bars that do not necessitate this box that is half again their length and deeper than them all stacked. The letter is written on lined paper torn from a notebook, the curly torn edge still attached.

Mr. Wright, it reads, and he almost recognizes the handwriting, a messy, loopy, child’s scrawl, and a quick run-down of his tiny circle of acquaintances and who among them are based in Europe lands him on the identity of the sender.

I lost the password for and got locked out of the email that I gave you back when, and I’d lost yours, so I had to snail mail but thought maybe it’s better for me to give you a box to start.

Phoenix sits down on the couch. There’s a few pages folded together.

Anyway I was home for vacation/as a translator for one of my professors - I get a scholarship for it! Sorry I didn’t get to see you. Didn’t have time, but I got to investigate a bit with Mr. Edgeworth. He seems to be doing good. I don’t know how much you talk. I helped him and his assistant on a couple cases and saw Detective Gumshoe too. It’s really helped my resolve to be a forensics investigator. (Sorry that I’ll be going up against you someday, but I’ve got to be on the prosecution’s side. I expect you to defend on all the cases I work on! It can be like a reunion.) Talking w Mr. Edgeworth’s assistant got me thinking, because she

Wait, his assistant? He has an assistant? It must be a new development -- in the past two months, since Phoenix last saw him. Ema can’t mean Franziska -- there’s no way Franziska would ever let a misconception like that take shape.

(Phoenix hasn’t spoken to Edgeworth since February. It’s probably time to reach back out.)

because she was talking about difficulties of what if there’s magic in the case that needs to be investigated. So I got an idea when we were talking about Luminol, and I was thinking about you and your magatama.

Phoenix does not like where this is going.

If it’s not too much trouble, can you get two magatama and mail them to me? I looked at mail rules and stuff and there’s no regulations about sending magical objects in the mail, I couldn’t find. You told me they weren’t particularly hard to make and the price shouldn’t be too steep, but you’re a lawyer and good with deals and contracts and I’m not so much. I didn’t think I should risk contacting anyone myself. I didn’t think you’d be happy about that. I need these to further the cause of science. You’ll be a great help. I can site cite you as my research assistant if I publish any papers on it. (The chocolate is not a bribe. I thought you might like it.) Sincerely, Ema Skye PS I have a new email

In spite of it, Phoenix laughs. “Oh, Ema,” he sighs, shaking his head, and then he glances quickly behind himself, because he feels like something or someone is at his shoulder. The office is empty, because of course it is, but he knows Mia would be interested, and definitely once she heard Ema’s name. 

He does admire Ema’s tenacity, and her enthusiasm, and that she’s at least mindful enough to know that she shouldn’t go out-of-the-blue trying to summon one of the fae to get a stash of magatama. (And that apparently part of her litmus is whether Phoenix would be disappointed in her.)

Taking the last page of the letter with him, he goes over to Mia’s desk and boots up the computer. It’s slow, but he has no inclination to get a new one. He’ll use it until it explodes. His money can be better put to other things, like groceries. He doesn’t use it enough to make a new one a worthwhile investment.

He pulls up a new email window and plugs in Ema’s address.

Ema, What exactly do you want two magatama for? I’m not going to consider anything without knowing what your plan is and advising you on whether it’s dangerous. -Phoenix

He waters Charley and picks a few pens up off the floor -- he doesn’t remember dropping them and not picking them back up and wonders if Maya appears in the night to scatter things -- and when he gets back to the desk he already has a response.

Mr. Wright. I think I have an ingenius solution for most investigators not having the sight. I’m going to mount hte magatama on a glasses frame for hands free investigating. I also want to see if I can use sandpaper/shop tools to cut open the hole in the center so it’s easier to see thru. I want to know if the exact shape of the magatama is important for its magical prowess and if it loses its power if parts of it are cut off. I think four might actually be a better number for the first batch. It gives me room to mess up. Thanks, Ema

Phoenix rubs his eyes and feels a headache approaching.

If you were going to try modifying it I wouldn’t recommend using anything metal, even if it’s not iron. Sandpaper would take longer but less risk of a bad reaction. But also, no.

It’s a really interesting question, actually, and Phoenix suddenly, badly, wants to know the answer, but he can’t condone the risk. Ema might draw attention to herself with the magatama, by altering them, or worse, attention from someone that wasn’t Maya or Pearl (because they are the only ones Phoenix would ask for a magatama) by her closer proximity to the Himalayas than Kurain. Or worse, she might succeed in making the glasses, wear them, and See things she shouldn’t and acquire bad attention that way. It’s rude to stare at the fae through a magatama -- the one rule for trying is don’t get caught which is difficult when it’s such an obvious and blatant motion -- and he fears that while there are no rules for a subtle magatama, one that doesn’t look it, the result might be even worse. Not only would she be staring, but Ema would also be trying to hide it, to get away with something she shouldn’t.

(It’s just scientific curiosity, he knows, nothing she means to be harmful, but They might not see it that way.)

Please, Mr Wright, it’s science! It’s important! Don’t you want to know? I’ll just take one to start with. It could really help our justice system and make sure that even magic isn’t above the law and isn’t getting away with crime.

He puts his head in his hands. God, Ema’s probably eighteen, now, isn’t she? She’s probably too old for him to petition to legally adopt her and bring her back to LA to keep an eye on her. Her extended family probably wouldn’t stand for it, anyway. He wonders what Lana would think.

I think it’s a clever idea, but too risky for you. I don’t want to see you getting hurt or locked in a bad deal or ending up like me. Promise me you won’t try and get any magatama yourself.

Mia likes to bind promises made in this office, make them stay true, and Phoenix wonders if that will work when one of them isn’t here, when Ema is on another continent, when Phoenix asks for the promise in electronic words. This isn’t honest of him, to try and lock her with magic into a promise, and for your own good is a slippery slope where naught but ash and bones lie at the bottom.

But Phoenix also spent a year living with my fault a mantra beating in his head, telling him that chosen death was my fault, and he was the one to introduce Ema to magic, to magatamas, to Sighted eyes, and if in investigating that she gets in over her head —

My fault.

He reads over his email again, after sending it, after he can’t take back the words, and it surprised him how much of his heart he laid out. I don’t want to see you ending up like me. He’s thought that, at Ema and Edgeworth and Franziska, but never said it. It’s easier for that sentiment to escape through his fingers than from his lips.

(He should try emailing Edgeworth but is afraid of what he might find himself able to say.)

Okay, okay, geez. You’re really serious on this. I like my soul where it is, tho, you don’t need to worry about that. I’m not gonna give it up for a science experiment but once I’m home and a real forensic scientist I’m coming to your office and hitting you up for this experiment because I still think it’s really important even if you’re gonna be an old fuddy about it.

No one’s ever accused him of being old before, though admittedly he thinks that being old is a blessing he won’t actually ever be afforded.

Good, good. So how’s school going? What were the cases you investigated with Edgeworth about? I didn’t know he had an assistant.

She probably knows this is a clumsy redirect, something to distract her, and she doesn’t respond until the next day — he thinks she’s mad at her until she sends back a novel-length response detailing the specifics of the crime scenes, evidence discovered, culprits, and methods.

In the next few days it’s suddenly much, much harder to keep a normal conversation going, to avail himself of anything but puzzling out the indistinct pieces of the Gramarye case that has left him unmoored and adrift, but the sporadic times he does manage to keep responding to Ema, he doesn’t mention it.

She probably knows the Gramarye name — everyone in LA does, the local coven like cryptids who appear when desperately needed to cut little dangerous deals. And if he mentions Gramarye she’s probably going to think magic crime and she’s going to return to the thought of the glasses —

Safer to keep her separate from that. Safer to keep everyone separate from that.

He only learns from Apollo and Trucy that she’s returned to the States, is working down at the precinct and on crime scenes now.

She doesn’t appear on his doorstep to bug him for a magatama.

[franeridart]

Hey! So sorry if you already answered this but what application and tablet do you use??

I use Easy Paint Tool SAI and a pretty old wacom intuos tablet! Both questions are answred in my faq, actually~

Anon said:You. You awesome person. You are my new fav artist. 💘💘💘

AW thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:I love your art and the style, it’s all so cute and it might give me a heart attack

He c k let’s hope not! Thank you so so much!!! ;^;

Anon said:hey, can ya do more tokage, pls

Sure, I mean to draw more 1B in the future anyway~

Anon said:nori is soo adorable!! I love your art and seromina so much and seeing them combined makes me mega happy!!! I gotta ask though, how are sero and mina as parents and how do they handle nori’s quirk?

They’re disasters as parents but they try their best and are always having fun - Nori adores them! In their house not a minutes goes by without someone laughing, they’re all super loud and cheerful always~ neither of them has any problem dealing with Nori’s quirk, Sero has spent a whole lifetime learning how to deal with sticky stuff and tape and glue so he knows all the tricks to save clothes and furniture from accidental quirk usage and so on, while Mina’s own quirk makes it easy to counter any glue that might end on her - the main thing actually is that the quirk itself was a surprise! Since Nori looks a lot like Mina, both she and Sero had expected her to have acid like Mina so when she started gluing herself around in places and walking along walls and stuff it was a surprise (they had expected to have to deal with the house being constantly half destroyed by acid though, so glue is nothing compared to that haha)

Anon said:Heyy I saw your twitter account and was wondering if you could link some of those “fics about them boys sharing a bed..“ I’ve been following you for a while now and absolutely love your work (: I hope you don’t mind lol. I need more kiribaku in my life gahaha ❤️ thanks !!

I didn’t really bookmark any and most were old things I had read in the past and spent time rereading lately, but the newest one I read is this one - honestly though at this point 99% of the fics set in the dorms have them sharing a bed, you just need to open ao3 and scroll down less than a page to find stuff lol

Anon said:If you’re not an Adventure Time fan this ask will make no sense to you (so skip it), but when I saw your drawing of Katsuki with a guitar, I immediately thought he was singing some edgy Marceline song, like the teasing-aggressive “I wanna bury you in the ground / I wanna bury you with my sound” (which he actually says at some point I think XD) or the romantic and melancholic “Slow Dance with You” and Eijirou M-E-L-T-S.

Not an AT fan, but the concept is adorable so I’m keeping the ask anyway

Anon said:Do you think you might draw more of your fantasy AU children while you’re playing with you’re new pencil tool? It would be neat if you did! Regardless, I’m grateful for anything you draw!

Yup! Can’t promise when it’ll happen but I love the fantasy AU and I love childhood friends AU, so the chances of me going back on it are pretty high!

Anon said:Are you going to draw Mako and Taiyou again? They are so wonderful.

YAH that’s definitely in the near future plans! Thank you for liking them!!

Anon said:I just…I love all your art. It’s so amazing you’re awesome

THANK YOU SO MUCH !!!! ;^;

Anon said:Stavo scorrendo il tuo blog e ho notato che hai risposto ad una domanda in italiano? Ho seriamente pensato fossi inglese tutto questo tempo! Amo seriamente i tuoi disegni, i tuoi oc sono meravigliosi e non vedo l'ora di scoprire più di loro.

AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH grazie infinite omfg ;^; specialmente per i miei oc, è sempre incredibile per me sapere che alla gente piacciono abbastanza da volerli vedere di più ;^;

Anon said:Hewwo! I’m a huge fan of your artwork!! I was wondering if you have any time could you draw some more of those dorm room scenarios?

Anon I’m sorry but I need you to be more specific, which dorm room scenarios are you talking about? Most of my comics at this point are set in the dorms hahaha

Anon said:I just noticed that on every artwork you sign “do not repost” and I hate it.I don’t hate that you do it, but the fact you NEED to do it. Artists all over the Internet say to not repost their art but people still do it…I hope this will stop someday Sorry for my english btw

Yeah well, I guess as long as people keep on following and giving notes to reposters that’s not really gonna change is it orz

Anon said:You should draw Present Mic x Aizawa *awkward finger guns*

Hell I really should, shouldn’t I

Anon said:my god im gay for your kiribaku like they’re so good aibdjsbsknwnx and i love the interactions between the bakusquad ahh keep being awesome :)

HECK THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!

Anon said:Honestly, this might be an odd question I don’t know, but would you ever consider putting your art together in a art book to sell? Cause to be honest, there’s not a piece by you that I don’t adore and I’ve seen some artist do things like that before so I didn’t know if that was something you’d consider. Maybe like all your BNHA pieces or something?

It’s not like I never considered it? It’s more like I dunno how worth all the work to figure out how to make it/where to print it and then to actually make it would be compared to the interest people would have in buying something they can have for free on my blog? It’s just doodles after all haha

Anon said:Would you be willing to draw a little lavi (dgm) doodle for me? Anything tiny, I just love him and your art!!!

I’m not doing requests right now, sorry, but soon enough the new chapter is coming out so I might draw him around then!!! I always fall in a serious dgm mood around the time of the chapter release haha

Anon said:More abuse of the ask function: 1- I love your art and have been for months. On top of that, it often feels cathartic, which is amazing to me. 2- I love how balanced you can make KiriBaku. You even manage to make me appreciate that overrated attention hogger that is Bakugou, you can handle him so much better than the author, because your character dynamics make so much more sense!! 3- I always, ALWAYS find myself reading through all your tags. They’re awesome. Thank you for everything.//Avevo finito lo spazio nell'ask precedente, so I’d only like to add that aside from cutie-smoochy (“It’s not about whether you break” and “I don’t need you” might be my favorite, and for what’s worth, I remember writing something exactly like the latter in the past), you also make mu burst into laughter. Like, the comic where Katsuki is about to out Eijirou on his red hair, I am still rolling. Kiri’s giant mouth is seriously hysterical XD

Thank you for the compliments!! I’m glad I can make you like a character and a relationship you’re not much of a fan of in the actual manga? ? ? Bakugou’s actually one of my favorite characters ever though so………. maybe……….don’t offend him and the way Horikoshi writes him while talking to me………….orz

Anon said:I am starved for Bakukamikiri stuff in this fandom……..But you got some good shit.

I’m!!! happy to be able to help there!!!! haha

Anon said:They mama Mitsuki art you drew 👏💯💖☺️💕👌 I love your art so much

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:Yessssss you have Twitter! It is boring at the beginning but then you’ll love it! I can’t wait to see you here and there! Now all my Bakushima favorite artist have one I can die of happiness!!

I’m!!!!!!!!!! Still trying to figure it out but!!!!!!!! For now it’s not that bad? Just!!! Very different from tumblr so I’ll need to get used to it first!!!!

Anon said:Omg do u shade jirous hair like its a heartbeat line? Dhdisbdisb thats so fuckibg good

THANK she actually has it in canon too, tho, so I can’t take credit for this!!!

Anon said:Im crying on how you draw kirishima’s soft hair

S O B I’m glad you like it!! ;^;

Anon said:Can I ask what your stance is on bakugo’s mom being abusive and sorry if you’ve answered this before

I love Mitsuki with my whole heart and while I don’t think she’s perfect I do think she’s loving and caring and trying her best and always looking out for what’s best for Bakugou 👍 no abuse anywhere, for me

Anon said:OMG I LOVE SEROMINA LOVE CHILD NORI

Thank you for liking her???? heck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:I wish I could use your art for my phone’s background ;^; You’re amazing! I love youuuuuuuuuu

No one’s stopping you from doing that, anon!!! Unless you don’t have a phone that allows you backgrounds, in which case ;-; thank you for liking my stuff that much tho!!

Anon said:Hey! I followed you way back when your main output was haikyuu!! comics and once you started putting out more bnha, i had to unf because i had no idea who everyone was rip. but now that ive finally had the chance to watch it i’m glad to come back and see how much you’ve improved!

HECK THANK YOU???? I’m glad you decided to come back????? oh man that’s super flattering !!!

Anon said:Yolo bakusquad bakubowl ?

I don’t really like the whole concept of [character]bowl, sorry!

Anon said:I absolutely adore your art style😍 every time I see your art it makes me happy:)

THANK YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:Can you draw Hawks and Tokoyami together? You are rlly creative and amazing! So I believe you will produce sth. awesome!!!! (If you don’t want to draw Hawks, could you draw a Tokoyami fusion?)

I can draw that! I’m just waiting to know how tall Hawks is compared to him before doing that 👍 be patient pls relative heights are something I’m stupidly fussy about 

Anon said:Burn the whole world to ashes for you? R U serius?! You always killing me dude. I ascended to the heaven of soft things. I N C R E D I B L E. Im sorry for the break down, i was without tumblr 2 months and the firts thing i do is go to your profile. Keep doing this plis im trully love it 😭💖

mAN I’m so glad you liked that one this much, drawing the boys being unreasonably soft with each other is my fav thing to do tbh !!!

Anon said:Omg I can totally imagine Nori and bakushima’s daughter being friends!!!

THEY ARE !!!!!!!

Anon said:Your seromina is amazing!!! I love that ship I feel like it is so underrated! Thank you for this blessed image!! 😭

No prob!! thank you for liking it!!!!!!! I’ve been in such a seromina mood lately, I might actually draw more soon enough!!

Anon said:Omg imagine a Tetsuwase love child. Something tells me they’d be adorable and one rather angry child, considering who their fathers are

I can see them as being quiet and grumpy………. hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Anon said:Hey just wanted to tell you I love your art. It’s so soft and beautiful. My dad doesn’t ship any characters from the series, but he does like the series and he thinks your art and style are really pleasing. We were talking about how nicely you shade and that the style is well developed and lovely to look at. Thanks for making such great art that makes me smile and giving me and my dad yet another thing to bond over.

YO THAT’S SUCH A COOL THING TO HEAR!!!! Thank you to both you and your dad for liking my stuff????? h e c k !!!!!

Anon said:Thanks to you I started reading haikyuu.

I hope you’re enjoying it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[wooolfies]

Don’t want to hurt you - Whumptober Day 18

Verse: Jurnex Superhero AU

Pairing: Jurnex

Prompt: Hostage[s]

Warnings: blood, gunshot wound, angst, psychological

Characters/Parties:  Natasha Jurow, John Kennex, Yekaterina Vashchenko

Word Count: 2346

It was early in the morning. The rising sun tried to make its way through the thick layer of smog that was covering Los Angeles.

The shops were opening and the fist rush hour of the day was just starting.  A teal coloured van slowly headed towards one of the skyscrapers downtown.

A young blonde employee opened the big glass doors to the the handful of customers inside who were already waiting.  Slowly, the bank filled with people.  An ongoing coming and leaving.  

Suddenly a man yelled something, drawing an automatic gun.  Most of the customers went to the ground instinctively. 

**

Kennex sat in the cruiser, on his regular tour across the city when the chattet on the police  radio went up again. There was a hostage situation going on and they were requesting all forces available.

He started to head towards the location. The coffee in the cupholder was getting cold,  he didn't care.  

In front of the building a huge group of people had formed already, he supported his colleagues by holding the crowd back.  The Swat team was still on its way, not to be expected in the next minutes.

They knew of four robbers who had taken at least two hostages.  Suddenly a shot rang out inside the building along with the sound of shattering glass.  

One of the robbers,  a first timer had tripped and accidentally fired his weapon.

The police outside reacted and started swarming the building.  

The robbers backed up, deeper inside the building, taking two of the hostages with them.  Three of them and the two hostages ended up in bathroom.  

The other robber had to hide in a closet in order to don't get arrested.

Kennex carefully walks down the hall,  caching every room to his left and right,  offices.  No one is there.  

Suddenly there were steps behind him,  he spun around.

She is standing right in front of him,  her gun pointed towards him,  her face stayed neutral as she pulled the trigger.  

There was pain in his chest, it seemed like the bullet has made its way through the vest into his chest.  He falls to the ground, darkness is surrounding him. 

**

When he gained consciousness he needed a quick moment to orientate.  

“Hey. I'm glad you are awake.”

He looked where the voice came from.

It was Jurow. She was sitting next to him on a chair and held his hand.  

He was feeling funny, like wrapped up into cotton wool.

“...Nata,” he murmured.

He was not dead.  He was not dead!

“You took quite a blow. They fixed you up quite well.  You coded. twice.  Don't scare me like that again,” she said quietly.  

“I hate this place,” Kennex looked around in the room.  Since the ambush and the long time spent in the hospital afterwards he got anxiety from hospitals.

“I know honey.  I talked to the doctors, as soon as you are fully stabilised were gonna take you home,” she paused. “I'm so sorry I wasn't there. And when I was, it was way too late.”

He squeezed her hand. She replied the gesture.  

“How--.How did it end?” he asked.  

She nervously escaped his eye contact, and looked to the ground.  

“So bad?”

“It was a massacre.  The hostages were killed and the police shot the robbers.  The only of of them surviving is the lady that shot you.”

Kennex let out a noise of discomfort.  “What a fail…”

“No.  Except you all cops are okay. And we all know that  freeing hostages doesn't work like on TV…”

He nodded in agreement, he was getting sleepy again.

**

Two days later.  Kennex was at home with Jurow, still staying in bed but with way better food and more privacy.  He felt much better psychologically being out of this place.

Jurow was happy about the pause in action Ava was doing at the moment, she could fully dedicate to caring for her love.  

He could eat when he wanted and sleep when he was tired. Not like in the hospital where there was a strict schedule for everything.

On his first morning at home, Jurow had made Kennex a healthy breakfast.

When she entered the room,  he was still asleep.  She quietly placed the tray on the nightstand. She smiled and quietly approached his bed to read his oxygen values.  She nodded, happy that they were normal. She quietly left again.

Vashchenko was working in her room over the fifth cup of coffee, the keyboard sounded like a machine gun, she seemed motivated.  Jurow decided to get her a new,  quieter keyboard.

Jurow went back to the kitchen to make a toast with butter.  She made herself tea instead of coffee. The kitchen still smelled phenomenal. She let herself sink into the chair while she waited for the water to boil.  She stared at the toast, she had taken only one bite from it. She didn't feel like eating, the toast seemed like plastic. Like something no-one would try to eat.

She stood up to pour the tea. She took the tea and her phone. Suddenly she hoped that Ava was doing some shit again, just to stop her downwards spiral of thoughts.

Jurow went upstairs, to sit with Kennex.  Playing some stupid mobile game where one had snip animals upwards, dodge traps and collect money. From time to time she sipped her tea.

She was focused on keeping her mind here and don't think about what had happened; the fact that she had let him down and now his killer was still running around out there, free like a bird.  Sure, the authorities where looking for her but she sure knew how to get off the grid.  Maybe she had made her way over the wall already.  

Jurow  cleared her throat and started scrolling through social media.  Not a good idea either.  The robbery was trending. Everyone was saying how sorry they were for the victims and how much the police had fucked up.

Kennex began to stir,  slowly waking up.  

Jurow turned off her phone and watched him wake up.

When he opened his eyes,  she was smiling.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.  He hadn't got a pain-medicine shot in hours,  the last time at 3am when he couldn't sleep because of the pain.  

“Still like shit,  but better than yesterday,” he reached for her hand and squeezed it. ”I'm glad, I'm with you now.”

“Me and your lead surgeon had a long discussion.  In the end I practically had to bail you out. We might get an unannounced visit from a doctor, controlling my work,” she scoffed. “I bet I have seen more GSWs  than them. Anyways,  do you have something specific you would like for lunch?”

“Noodles?”

“Sure.  But I need to buy a few ingredients for this… “

His face lit up. “Would be great. But before you leave,  can you check?  My chest really hurts...”

Jurow put both her hands into her neck for some time, to make them less cold.  Then she started to open a few buttons on Kennex’ shirt.  

His chest looked like a chest looks that had been shot recently and then opened up to stop the bleeding. For good measure she went across the room to get her stethoscope.  

Lung noises were normal: “You are OK.  But I'm going to give some pain medicine.”

Kennex nodded. “Thank you.”

Jurow was debating whether it was smart to go to buy some things for lunch nor not. Too anxious that something could happen to Kennex while she was gone.  

Vashchenko had made clear that she was in danger of punching someone in the face,  but she was willing to make a plan how-to this as fast as possible.

Jurow told Kennex that she would be back soon, and that he should tell Vashchenko if he needed anything.

**

Fifteen minutes had passed, Vashchenko could hear Jurow turn the key in the lock.  Jurow went straight into the kitchen, then up to John.

After she had talked to him and made sure he was OK up there, she started to prepare lunch. She still couldn't get this on thought out of her head.  She should have been there.  What kind of superhero was she?

The following night Jurow started having a nightmare, strange things evolving around the theme of losing Kennex.  She woke up from it when the worst part was reached.  Panting she sat up in her bed,  looking the open door between her room and the room he was sleeping in. “Nata?” it was him, not able to get up,  but he could tell that something was going on.  

Jurow silently cursed and stood up. Showing herself in the door frame, “What's up?” she asked.

“Are you alright?” he looked worried. Sitting in his bed,  his face strangely lit by the tablet on his belly. One of Natasha's black earphones was in his ear.  He had watched something because he had trouble sleeping.

Natasha nodded silently.  “Trouble sleeping?” she pulled her desk chair to his bed.  

“Yeah.  Why don't you come with me? Not like I'm sick and could infect you with something.“

“No…  It's just…  I don't want to hurt you,” she suddenly sounded very quiet, almost sad.  

“Oh,  honey, I'm sure you won't,” he smiled. He was missing her warmth, hugging on the couch and holding each other.  

“I can't, I have something going on I need to attend to,” she said, making a reference to superhero stuff.  When really she just wanted to curl up and cry without him knowing.  She loved him with all her heart, and still she had put him at risk, too often.  

“I'll be back.  Need to go to the loo first.”

She stood up and left the room.  She had done it again, lied to him.

Locked in the bathroom, not turning on the light, she let herself slide down against the door, hugging her knees.  She couldn't do this anymore. What if he actually died next time? Not like he already was deeply traumatized.  The police had only kept him in because he could not be corrupted by any mob.

She had a responsibility, there was always something going on in LA.  The public was relying on her. Damn, why hadn't she gone to this bank and helped. She was lucky that he survived it and didn't go comatose again, like way back after The Attack when Kennex had lost his leg.  

Jurow ended up curled up on the floor sobbing. She had fucked up. She was the worst hero ever, not being able to protect the ones she loved.

**

After a while being there like this she returned into the living room,  where Kennex had fallen asleep.

She sat down on the uncomfortable chair again, holding his hand while he was sleeping.  

When Kennex woke up, he saw her sitting next to him,  fallen asleep sitting in the desk chair.  Her hand was still clinging onto his.  He smiled, looking at the clock on the wall.  It was five in the morning.

Was she actually sleeping this chair?  

He felt sore and his chest was hurting so much he felt like he had throw up.  

Seeing her that way made him very concerned, what made him not feel better in anyway.  When he tried to pull his hand back,  she woke up as if her sleep was not really deep.  

“Sorry…” he murmured.  

Jurow was a bit disoriented at first.

“How long have you been sitting there?” he asked roughly and cleared his throat.  He tried to sit up a bit,  maybe that helped against the pain.

“Since, shortly after we talked tonight.”

He frowned, tried to move over a bit to her, letting out a groan.  

“Are you in pain?” she asked.  

He nodded.  

Jurow got up, almost tripping over her own feet.  She walked to the desk where all the items she needed for his care were placed and filled a syringe.

She stranded back up tall after having done the injection.  He looked up to her,  in the soft light that was filling the room.  

“You don't look well, honey.  What is going on?” he asked.  Not knowing another way to express his concern.  

She sat down onto the edge of his bed. “Is just… ,” she broke off.  She couldn't tell him.  

“Come on,”   he said while padding the bed next to him. He moved over a bit, so she had space to lie down next to him.  

She in fact now did it, very carefully barely touching him.  He lifted his blanket up to cover her. He carefully pulled her a bit closer to him.  Holding her.  

Jurow was barely keeping it together.  Her love to him was as strong as the fear to lose him.

But even for her,  it seemed to be great to be with him,  being held close.  Silently she began to cry.  It took quite a while until he noticed. “Would you like talk about it? You taught me that talking always helps.” He rubbed her back. “You can tell me everything,  your secrets are safe with me.”

Jurow signed. “It's not about that…” she paused. “I just failed.”

“What?”

“I should have been there. I almost lost you.”

“Oh Nata,” his kissed the top of her head.  “Just because you're a superhero doesn't mean you are responsible for everyone who lives or dies. It is not possible that you are everywhere at the same time and in the end you are only human, after all. And look,  even if I died, I still would have loved you.  I still love you. You are doing a magnificent job nursing me back to health.  There is nothing to be sorry for.  Okay?”

She nodded silently, still crying.  Kennex did his best to comfort her.

When Vashchenko came up a bit later to see why Jurow had still not called for her coffee she found the two, sleeping, clinging into each other.  She let out an “awww”, smiled and silently closed the door again.

Tagging: @grumpymedbae @homo-homini-lupus-est @donsdawn

Taglist

[franeridart]

ayy!! ^0^ I really love your bnha and haikyuu art heck,, i was wondering if you had doodled the miya twins or suna before? (○v○)~☆ i goddamn love your style and I was a bit curious

Never Suna, but I have doodled the Miyas a while ago! Atsumu twice, Osamu once (all before we knew their official colors, actually :O) they’re in my Miya Atsumu tag :D

Anon said:Hey Fran! You've been in the krbk fandom for a while so I was wondering if you had any fic recs or if you knew where I could find some (ღ˘⌣˘ღ) I feel like I went over everything already but technically it's not possible so I'm looking for recommendations because I don't know where to start! Thanks!

Sure do! I have one here, another pretty long one here, then another couple over here, this fic and this fic are short and beautiful and you should REALLY read them, this other one I’m not sure was in any of the lists I linked so here it is in case it’s not (btw it’s part of a collection, all of them gems, I suggest you read them all) also I was just looking for a good moment to rec this fic, please read it it made it between my top five bakushima favorites so fast

Anon said:Your chibi style characters have the cutest little hands and feet!

!!!!!!!!!!!! thank you so much for liking how I draw them !!!

Anon said:omg you make the best my hero academia comics !! I always have a big stupid smile on my face when i read them !

AHHHHHH that’s such a nice thing to know!!!!! thank you lots!!!!! :D

Anon said:Bakushima!!! So adorable!! Thank!! You!!!

You’re welcome!!!!! Thank you for liking them!!!!!

Anon said:I'm sorry if I'm being a creep, but which kind of I high school are you attending/ did you attend? Me and my friends really look up to you and we are kinda curious (Btw, I'm Italian too, no need to explain the Italian school system)

Ho frequentato lo scientifico! :O una decisione pessima col senno di poi, ma che vuoi aspettarti da scelte fatte a tredici anni hahaha

Anon said:I love baccano and I lovey our baccano au!!!!! It's perfect and wonderful. I love your art so much!

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anon said:I love when you draw Bakugou shocked by something cute Kirishima has said to him. Most adorable expression ever. What a blessing.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! this is a super nice ask cause I love drawing that expression on him too haha (which, might actually be pretty obvious considering how often I draw it...... lol)

Anon said:Do you plan to continue the fantasy au comic thing with fairy teru? cus I reaaally love your art and it looked really cute! Luv ya

Can’t say I am, sorry! Both drawings were never meant to have anything more added to them anyway - I can’t 100% exclude I’ll go back on the concept one day, maybe, but as far as planning goes there’s nothing like that

Anon said:I just went through your kiribaku tag (over a couple of hours) and I love ALL of the pieces in it, but I just wanted to say that the piece where baku is obsessed with kiri’s hands really stands out to me??? Like it’s such a great concept and the way you drew it just showed so much emotion. God I love it so much. I had seen it before but it just has always stood out to me. Sorry I just wanted to share because I love it so much. Hope you have a great week!!!

AHHHHHHH thank you SO MUCH for liking that one!!!!! It’s been a while since I’ve drawn it, but it’s still a concept I’m super fond of so knowing someone still likes it makes me feel real warm inside!!

Anon said:pls draw bakugou with glasses more. this needs to be a thing

Maybe someday I will! Meanwhile can I suggest you read this incredibly adorable and nice fic? :O

Anon said:I was able to use your tips about color and opacity for shading to help me with some of my drawings that I was using just like browns or grays to shade, and they look so much better! Thank you for sharing :)

YAY!!!!!!!!!! That makes me super happy to hear!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D!!!!

Anon said:i'm so happy i managed to exist at the same time that you do! going through your art really lifts my mood like nothing else. i love it so much! ♡

I have literally zero clue how to answer this, like, holy fuck, I’m??? Thank you so much???? That’s??? Such a strong feeling oh my god I feel a bit like crying

Anon said:Your baccano claire is so good

;O; thank you!!!

Anon said:I just wanted to tell you that your art makes my day. Every time you draw soft kiribakus it makes me stronger.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! good we can grow stronger thanks to how adorable those two are together, then!!!

Anon said:The little button eyes you draw on chibi Kiri are so cute?? (like on the last panel of the Kiri smiling at Bakugo comic) He looks 120% absolutely adorable 💖

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! thank you???? fun fact about that specific thing I do is that I think I took it from d.gray man? Probably? Anyway I’ve been doing that a long time, so when Mirio was introduced in bnha and I started drawing him I laughed a lot hahaha

Anon said:AHHHHH I LOVE ALL OF YOUR KIRIBAKUS THEY ARE THE HIGHLIGHT OF MY DAY I STG NO KIDDING your art is absolutely amazing and i love the style so much it’s gorgeous! and you’ve also got me interested in baccano so imma go binge it lmao

THANK YOU AND THAT’S GREAT BUT PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THAT BACCANO IS A SPLATTER OH MY GOD I??? hope you didn’t start it without checking the tags beforehand??????????? g o d s

Anon said:Hey, I looooooove your drawings, especially those of Bokuto and Kuroo, discovering the latest ones made me very happy :D Even when you draw something from fandoms I'm not familiar with, just seeing your art on my dash makes me smile

Gosh that’s such a nice thing!!! Thank you so so much ;O;

Anon said:I saw you like 19 days!! I’ve been reading this series forever and god I love it so much. I looked back recently and didn’t even realise how much the art has changed like wow. Have you ever drawn anything from it before? I’d cry

Never before, actually :O the artsyle is so different from mine, it feels like a challenge just thinking about how I should go about drawing them hahaha maybe one day!

Anon said:MY GOD I LOVE YOUR COMIC

I DON’T KNOW WHICH ONE THIS IS ABOUT BUT I’M GLAD TO HEAR THAT!!!!!!