#Cyrus keeps disappearing for weeks (against his will) and will come back with a HUGE crush

[ghost-qwq]

[ninja-go-to-therapy]

Whumptober 5: Where Do You Think You’re Going?

On the Run

I finally got around to writing something for my own damn AU, and it’s not even canon! I’m great at this.

Summary: Months after escaping from Prime Empire, Scott finds himself in Paris with none other than Unagami. It doesn’t go well. (This is of course part of the Miraculous crossover that I talk about sometimes on @blursed-ninjago-ideas)

Trigger Warnings: death threats, violence, panic attacks

4517 words

The years of his life Scott had lost to Prime Empire were hard to come to terms with. Every day he had been in there, he was well aware of the passage of time, but it was still the hardest thing he’d ever gone through.

Every day he had convinced himself that he would get out soon.

That first day, he was certain he’d be out by the end of the week. By the end of the week, he thought it couldn’t possibly be longer than a month.

It had gone on for years. Thirty, specifically.

Everyone he had ever known and loved had grieved and moved on. He had missed decades with them. His friends. His family. Everyone.

And it was all Unagami’s fault — right. Unagami was actually just a stupid little child who hadn’t really known what he was doing. He was supposed to be trying to get along with him, because he needed to be a role model or some shit.

Honestly, now that the kid wasn’t actively keeping him trapped inside a game for decades, he wasn’t all that bad. Sure, he could be a bit of a brat at times, but that was a phase that all children went through.

And apparently, he lowkey — that was the word Jay liked to use, right? He was so behind on the current slang — idolized Scott. Yeah, the child who’d been trying to turn him into a lifeless, numb, empty little energy cube for years and years and years, thought he was cool. That was… something, he supposed.

He was mostly doing this because Jay had all but begged him to. Said it made him a good person and he needed to let go of his anger.

Scott didn’t know if he would call it anger. He couldn’t bring himself to hate Unagami, but that didn’t mean that he wasn’t a little… well… uncomfortable around him. Yeah, that was definitely the right word.

But that was dumb. That debacle was finally over, and even if the nightmares and trauma didn’t go away, it wasn’t like Unagami acted malicious anymore. He wasn’t trying to kill anyone anymore.

So what if every time Unagami did much of anything, Scott’s grip on whatever it may have been that he was holding tightened enough to break a bone? That wasn’t that concerning. Everybody did that. Probably.

And hey, he could have had worse problems than scratching up his hands when he was nervous or anxious or really freaked out or really scared or flashing back to that cramped dark horrible nothingness when he was just lines of code trapped in a little energy cube with no way to get in or out or anything — and, uh, everyone had a random bad dream once in awhile. Or every night.

But he could put that aside, because he was a mature adult.

So here he was, babysitting an arcade-game-turned-boy, who was surprisingly energetic and very bright-eyed. 

“When are the ninja coming back?” Unagami asked, popping up from behind the couch.

Scott barely suppressed a surprised curse. This kid was way too light on his feet. “I don’t know,” he said, taking a deep breath to calm himself.

Unagami, unlike most kids would, actually accepted that as an answer and went back to his BorgPad, tapping away at the screen.

The thing was, nobody had seen the ninja in a few weeks, now. Scott was beginning to get concerned. After Lloyd had disappeared — which had been information divulged to Scott privately by Jay, because they didn’t want the general public to know — the next few days had been spent in a raw panic. And then, total radio silence.

He hadn’t heard from the ninja since.

He hoped they were okay. He was a little too familiar with people disappearing only to never be heard from again. Well, not until thirty years after the fact.

He wasn’t bitter, not at all.

“What are you doing, anyway?” Scott asked, trying to get his mind off the subject. He was supposed to be taking care of the kid for the day, he might as well have been trying to make some sort of connection.

“Hacking the Hexagon!” Unagami said, looking up from his screen with a big smile.

Oh, that was nice — wait, what?

“Excuse me?” Scott asked, jumping over the back of the couch and crouching on the floor, where Unagami was sitting criss-cross-apple-sauce. Scott peered over his shoulder at the screen.

“If they didn’t want it hacked they shouldn’t have made it so easy,” Unagami shrugged.

Was it… was it normal for a child to be hacking into government facilities from a BorgPad?

Scott was going to go out on a limb and say no. …It was probably just an AI thing? Yeah, it was probably fine.

He watched for a moment as Unagami’s fingers flew across the screen, lines in a language Scott didn’t understand everywhere. He’d never had the ambition to learn how to code.

But damn, back before Prime Empire, people had hardly even dreamed of tech like this. 

It was kind of crazy.

Scott was going to be honest with himself. The BorgPad was cool. It had tons of features that were all put together onto one little device — texting and pictures and games and social media and more. It had everything.

But at the end of the day, it was just another reminder that Scott had missed out on so much while he’d been trapped inside the game. 

Back in his day, people had been perfectly content with “low quality” arcade games and flip phones. But now… well, people like Cyrus Borg were completely changing the world.

It was cool. But it stung.

“As long as you don’t get like, in trouble with the law or something. I don’t want Dyer buggin’.”

Unagami gave him a weird look, but slowly lowered his gaze back to the screen.

Right. People didn’t say that anymore, did they? His vocabulary was really outdated. He was really outdated.

He sighed, standing up and heading to the kitchen so he could make some tea. Jay had given him some, claiming it was really calming.

Scott could use a little of that right now.

The label was faded enough that it was basically unreadable. Scratch that, it was completely unreadable. Did tea expire…? Nah, Jay wouldn’t have given it to him if it was bad.

As the tea was brewing, Scott leaned against the counter, fiddling with his phone. It had been brand new technology at the time, and had been pretty expensive.

Now, according to Jay, it was “mega-outdated”. 

That hurt more than it should have. He remembered being so excited about this thing, but now it was nothing compared to the technology of today.

“You want some tea?” Scott asked when it was done, going for a mug.

“What does it taste like?” Unagami asked, setting aside his tablet and coming over to observe the tea with interest. 

“Uhh… I dunno, haven’t tried it yet,” he shrugged.

“I think I would like some, please.”

“Yeah, sure.”

Scott went to pour it, but as he was doing so, he found his mind wandering to wondering where the ninja had disappeared to again. It was strange that they had just —

“Is that supposed to be happening?” Unagami asked.

Scott looked down at the tea, concerned to see a bright glow spilling from the kettle. “Uh…” before he could come up with a rational answer, it brightened, all but blinding the two as it took over the room.

When it faded, there was nothing left but a broken mug on the floor.

———

What the fuck?

What had just happened?

The last thing Scott remembered had been sitting in the kitchen making tea, but now… now he was outside, near some giant metal tower, in a place he absolutely did not recognize.

He didn’t recognize the place, but he did recognize the feeling.

He was in a new realm.

The first thing he could feel was the panic.

Not again. Fuck! Not again. He couldn’t go through this another time, he couldn’t lose more of his life to a monster, he couldn’t — he couldn’t — he couldn’t breathe. He gripped the grass he was sitting on, practically hyperventilating.

“Scott? Are you alright?”

Oh first master, Unagami was here too.

“Get away from me!” he yelled, though he made no move to put distance between them. Instead, the little brat only came closer.

“You need to breathe.”

“I said get away—” Scott’s words died in his throat. Something was different. Something was wrong.

“Captain Clockwork,” a voice said, booming throughout his head.

“What’s going on?” Scott demanded.

“I am Hawk Moth. I can feel your distress. The anger, the grief, all of it. You just want things to go back to the way they used to be, don’t you?”

“Yes…” he found himself agreeing, nodding along.

“I can help you with that. I can give you the power to take back your life. All I need in return is for you to retrieve two pieces of jewelry for me, called the Miraculous. Do we have a deal?”

Scott didn’t even have to think twice. “Yes, Hawk Moth.”

——— 

Unagami was concerned.

Scott was freaking out, clearly on the verge of a panic attack, and nothing he was doing seemed to help. And then, out of nowhere, it just stopped.

And then Scott started talking to nobody, and then his body, for the briefest of moments, was enveloped in a purple so dark it may as well have been black.

When it was gone, Scott looked different. He was wearing an outfit that could only be described as old-timey-steampunk. 

It wasn’t that strange, considering that sort of stuff was perfectly normal in Prime Empire. Still, Unagami should probably make sure that Scott was okay.

“Scott?” he asked, stepping a little closer.

Scott glared at him dark enough to kill.

Wide-eyed, Unagami took a small step back. “Scott, what’s wrong? Who were you talking to? Is this a video game, like Prime Empire?”

“You would just love that, wouldn’t you?” Scott yelled. “You would just love to ruin even more people’s lives!”

“What?”

A ball of light burst into existence in Scott’s hand, which was closed tightly in a fist. He threw the light off to the side, launching at a huge television screen on the side of a building. Almost immediately, it turned into a box-style TV.

Scott smiled wickedly. “Oh, would you look at that? The power to downgrade tech. If I can do that to a TV, I wonder what will happen to a stupid. Little. Arcade game.”

Unagami narrowly dodged a blast from Scott following those words. “Scott, stop! You’re — you’re not in your right mind!”

“Oh, I’m in my right mind!” he screamed. “I’m finally free, and what am I met with but a world that moved on without me? You took away my life!”

“Scott, please, you are not thinking clearly!” Unagami said, desperate.

“Save it, you little brat! Now hold still so I can kill you!”

Unagami tripped, falling back into the grass. He scrambled back, doing his best to get to his feet, but regardless, Scott had the upper hand. He was done for.

He squeezed his eyes shut, accepting the inevitable.

Suddenly, he was being lifted, and then he was in the air. What?

He opened his eyes.

“I’ve got you!” a girl dressed in red spandex with black polka dots all over it said.

“What’s going on?” Unagami asked.

The girl looked confused. “Uh…” they came to a stop on a rooftop. It was then that a boy dressed in what looked like a leather catsuit joined them, vaulting up with an infinitely long pole.

“How do you do, M’lady?” he asked, smiling at the girl.

“Not now, Chat. I just saved this kid from the latest akuma, but I don’t think he’s speaking French.”

“Language barrier powers?” Chat asked. “That’s a new one.”

“I don’t know, from what I could tell, the akuma was speaking in the same language as him.”

“What’s going on?” Unagami demanded. “What happened to Scott?”

Chat frowned. “It sounds kind of like Japanese. But like, not quite? It sounds like Japanese on drugs.”

The girl sighed. “Wonderful description, Chat.”

“Thanks! I try.”

“Wait, I’ve heard this before! It sounds like that language the ninja speak!” The girl said.

“Oh yeah! Maybe they’re from the same place?”

Unagami tuned out their rambling, glancing over the edge of the roof to see if he could still see Scott. Luckily, he couldn’t.

Or was that unlucky?

Scott was the only person he knew here, but at the same time, he’d lost his mind out of nowhere. And now he was on some sort of evil… violent rampage… manhunt… chasing after him… well, that was uncomfortably familiar.

 “Okay, well, our miraculous allows him to understand us, I wonder why it doesn’t work the other way?” Chat glanced at Unagami. “You can understand us, right?”

Unagami gave a frustrated nod.

“Okay, well, do you know why that guy got akumatized?”

Unagami had absolutely no idea what that was, but it was clearly in reference to what had happened to Scott.

“I don’t think he does. We have to get back to fighting before this guy destroys half of Paris,” Chat said, tapping his wrist as if there was a watch there.

“Come out, come out, wherever you are!” Scott yelled from the streets below.

“Oh, hey, that was French!” Chat said. “Akuma powers are awesome.”

The girl gave him an unimpressed frown.

Various balls of light were transforming technology into older versions of themselves left and right as Scott rampaged.

“Shit, okay, Chat, can you drop him somewhere away from the akuma?”

“Sure thing Bugaboo!” Chat said with a wide grin. He held out a hand to Unagami. “Hold on tight, kid.”

———

Ladybug landed in front of the akuma gracefully, her yo-yo at her side.

“Ladybug, I presume,” the akuma said.

“That would be right.”

The akuma glared at her. “Look, I don’t particularly want to hurt you. Just hand over the earrings and the kid, and I’ll be on my way.”

“What do you want with him?” Ladybug asked, eyes narrowed. “What could he possibly have done?”

The akuma laughed, and it started low, but it quickly gained a touch of psycho, edging on hysteria. “What didn’t he do?” He yelled, his arms widely gesturing — though his right hand stayed tightly closed. That could be important. “He kept me trapped in a video game for decades. He made me live every day in fear that it would be my last! He ruined my life! He took everything from me!”

Well… fuck.

That was actually a pretty valid reason to be upset with somebody. But how on earth had that happened in the first place? Well, the details didn’t matter. She had an akuma to fight.

Against all reason, Ladybug decided to try getting through to the poor guy. “You don’t have to do this! Hawk Moth is manipulating you!”

“I don’t care!” He screamed. “He made me into Captain Clockwork! He gave me the power to take back my life!”

He threw a blast of energy at Ladybug, which she only barely managed to deflect with her yo-yo. It bounced back to what looked like a brand new car, which immediately turned into a station wagon.

Oh boy.

“Time has moved forward without me. I don’t fit into this world, so I’m gonna make this world fit me!”

She needed to figure out what to break. Whatever he was holding, that could be it.

Unceremoniously, Chat dropped from the sky, landing in a heap next to her.

“I did not get that right…” he muttered, getting to his feet with some difficulty. “What’s the plan, M’lady?”

“I don’t know, but I think the akuma is in whatever he’s holding. We need to get him to drop it.”

“May I offer a distraction in these trying times?”

Ladybug smiled.

“Hey, the future isn’t all that bad!” Chat exclaimed, dramatically vaulting himself to be behind the akuma so that he had to turn around and his attention was off of Ladybug, while she quietly summoned her lucky charm.

“We’ve got video games! And bullet trains, and iPhones, and — ooh, we’ve got anime! It still baffles me that people ever managed to live without anime. A tragedy, really.”

Captain Clockwork glared at him. “We had video games and anime back in my day. It was good enough, it didn’t have to change!”

“That’s sort of the way of life, buddy,” Chat shrugged, batting away a blast with his baton.

“It shouldn’t be! I shouldn’t have gotten left behind!” he screamed, sending blasts of energy one after the other at Chat.

“Left behind?” Chat asked, lowering his guard slightly when the akuma, breathing heavily, stopped firing.

“That boy you stole away just a few minutes ago,” Captain Clockwork said, laughing hysterically. “He kept me trapped inside a video game, for thirty years. Thirty years! It’s not fair! It’s not fair! I’ll kill him!”

“How did a little boy trap you in a video game?” Chat asked, legitimately curious.

“He is the game! He ruled Prime Empire! He ruined my life!” 

Chat was regretting asking, because now the akuma was backing him into a corner, his fist glowing. He wasn’t sure he’d ever battled an akuma so full of pure rage before.

Chat extended his baton, sweeping it under the akuma’s feet and knocking him to the ground.

“This is so cool!” Alya shouted from across the street, filming with her iPhone.

“Alya,” Nino all but begged. “We gotta get to safety!”

“But I’m getting some great footage on this thing!”

Captain Clockwork growled, blasting violently at the pair. Alya’s brand new, expensive phone immediately reverted to a flip phone.

The way Alya screamed would have suggested someone had been murdered. “No!” she shrieked, being dragged away by Nino.

“Phones don’t need to be able to record! Just use a fucking video camera! They didn’t have to change it!” Captain Clockwork yelled, running after Alya.

That got the couple’s attention enough to start running.

Chat put himself between them, crying out when he intercepted a blast.

“Chat!” Ladybug yelled.

Chat grunted, rolling with great difficulty away from the akuma.

His baton immediately grew in length, turning into what looked like a perfectly regular, non-magical, old-fashioned baton.

“Oh fuck.”

“Hand over the ring and I won’t hurt you,” Captain Clockwork demanded.

“Sorry, I’ve got a contract,” Chat replied, using the baton as a sort of cane to help him get to his feet again.

He didn’t manage to dodge the next blast, which turned his magical very technologically advanced leather suit into a hoodie and a cheap pair of sweatpants. 

Panic gripped him, and he quickly went to feel for his mask. Oh, thank god, it was still there.

Captain Clockwork charged up another blast, but before he could use it, Ladybug grabbed Chat and swung her yo-yo, getting them both away and into a back alley.

“Are you okay, Kitty?” she asked, setting him down gently.

“I’m alright,” he affirmed. “I need to detransform, make sure Plagg is alright. Maybe when I retransform it’ll go back to normal?”

Ladybug purposefully turned around.

“Claws in,” he said.

Immediately, Ladybug could hear a low groan from her partner’s kwami.

“Here,” Chat muttered, presumably offering him some food.

“Thanks. God that really hurt…” Plagg muttered.

“It did?” Chat cried, worry seeping into his voice. “Are you okay? How can I help?”

“I’ll be fine, Kitten,” Plagg said, laughing somewhat through the now very obvious pain. “Just defeat this guy and you can buy me some extra nice cheese to make up for it.”

Chat laughed. “Sure thing Plagg. Claws out!”

Ladybug waited a moment, then turned back around. Luckily, Chat had been right, and his suit was back to normal. “Okay, so we’ve got my lucky charm, but I still don’t know how to use it. Did you learn anything about the akuma?”

“Well, apparently the kid he was trying to obliterate trapped him in a game for thirty years,” Chat shrugged. “I dunno if that’s important though.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard. He keeps screaming about it every chance he gets. But as long as we free the akuma, he’ll be fine. Did you happen to see what he was holding?”

“It looked kind of like a phone, but like, one of those really old flippy ones. Like the ones they used in High School Musical!”

Ladybug sighed. “Well, that’s something. Actually, my lucky charm is a flip phone.”

“That’s weird… think he’d like that?”

“Wait! I have a plan.”

———

Meanwhile, Unagami was hiding behind a trashcan as Scott got closer and closer to his whereabouts. His heart was pounding loudly in his ears.

“Unagami,” Scott called out, his voice sickly sweet and too high in pitch. “Come out, come out wherever you are…”

Unagami held his breath, praying Scott didn’t find him.

“Isn’t it ironic?” Scott asked, something out of Unagmai’s sight crashing loudly. “The hunter becomes the prey. Bet you never thought you’d get retribution, huh?”

He hadn’t meant to ruin Scott’s life. He’d just been following his father’s instructions. He’d apologized. He thought Scott had forgiven him. He’d acted like he had.

Had he felt like this the whole time?

Angry and hurt and wanting to kill him?

And… was this how Scott had felt while trapped in Prime Empire?

Scared for his life, fearing every second that it could be his last? Keeping himself hidden away for years with the constant terror that he would be found?

The trashcan was thrown, and there was Scott.

“Found you.”

“I’m sorry—” Unagami said.

“Save it! Sorry doesn’t make up for the lost time! Sorry doesn’t make up for the fear I lived in! Sorry doesn’t fix things!”

He charged a blast.

Out of nowhere, a bright blue tornado threw Scott across the street.

It slowed to a stop, revealing none other than the blue ninja. “Unagami?” he said, bewildered. “How are you here?”

“Why are you defending him?” Scott screamed. “He trapped you too! He took all of your friends! He hunted you down like a wild animal! Aren’t you angry?”

“Scott? Jay cried, even more bewildered than before. “What the… wait, but Unagami is just a kid! Sure, he caused a lot of pain, but it wasn’t his fault! And he’s done all he can to make it right!” “That’s not good enough!”

“Ice to see you!” Zane yelled, dropping down from the rooftop.

Scott growled, charging a blast of energy. “Just let me kill the little brat! He’s not human! He’s not a person! What difference does it make?”

Unagami froze.

Scott… didn’t see him as a person? All this time?

He thought they had been bonding. He had thought… well, he hadn’t thought they were friends, exactly, but he had at least thought… 

It was true that he wasn’t human, but Unagami had likened himself to Zane. They weren't human, but they were still people. But that wasn’t how Scott saw it at all. And he had never known.

Zane screamed out as he was hit with a blast. The light encompassed him, and suddenly he was left with rusty copper skin.

Unagami’s eyes widened in horror.

“I — I — I — do not feel — Jay — I cannot — what is happening?” Zane stammered, his voice box glitching heavily.

“I can downgrade tech,” Scott said, laughing darkly. “You’re tech.”

“Scott, this isn’t you!” Jay attempted. “You’re better than this!”

“I don’t want to be better than this!” he yelled. He threw Jay to the side, completely knocking the boy unconscious.

With Zane unable to even move, Unagami was about to die.

“I never meant to hurt you,” he said.

“Hurt doesn’t care about intention.”

In what was either the best or the worst timing ever, the boy from before — Chat — waltzed over to them casually. “You were right, Captain Clockwork!” he exclaimed loudly. “Old technology is better! I’m just surprised that you didn’t notice I took your phone!” he said, waving around an old flip phone.

“What?” Scott — Captain Clockwork? — gasped, opening his fist. “No you didn’t, it’s right here?”

But then it wasn’t. Ladybug’s yo-yo string wrapped around it, and yanked it hard.

“No!”

Ladybug snapped the phone in half easily. “No more evil-doing for you, little akuma. Time to de-evilize!” she declared, catching the butterfly — Unagami wasn’t even going to ask why a butterfly had come out of Scott’s phone — easily. “Gotcha!” she set the butterfly free, and in a stark contrast to the previous shade of sickly purple it had been, it was now a pure white. “Bye bye, little butterfly.”

Scott fell to the ground, his new avatar — or whatever it was — dropping.

“Miraculous ladybug!” Ladybug shouted, throwing the fake phone into the air. A swarm of butterflies took over, somehow undoing all the damages that Scott had caused.

Honestly, it was far from the strangest thing Unagami had experienced recently.

———

Scott came to on the sidewalk. Hadn’t he just been near some big metal tower thing? And how had he blacked out in the first place? What the hell?

“What… what happened?” he groaned, unable to get to his feet. 

Zane — when had Zane gotten here? — said something in what sounded like another language.

“Everything’s alright now, sir!” a girl dressed as what looked something like a superhero said, smiling gently at him. “You don’t know what an akuma is, do you?”

Again, Zane repeated her question, this time looking at him. Ah, he was the translator.

“No…?”

Her and a boy in a leather catsuit shared a look.

“A bad man called Hawk Moth took advantage of you,” the boy explained, reaching out a hand and helping Scott to his feet. “You were feeling some kind of negative emotion, and he used that to turn you into a supervillain.”

A supervillain? What kind of negative emotion could he have been — 

He spotted Unagami, who was staring at him in nothing short of terror from against the brick wall of a building. Oh yeah.

“What did I do?” 

“Nothing that couldn’t be undone,” the girl assured. “All property damages have been magically repaired, so you don’t have to worry!”

“It’s not the property damages I’m worried about,” Scott muttered, looking at Unagami, guilty all but stabbing him through the heart. The kid looked traumatized.

Before anyone could say anything else, Unagami ran. Jay immediately went after him, but the others stayed behind.

Scott knew that if he went, he would only make things worse. “Please, just… what did I actually do?”

By the end of the recap, Scott had sunk back to the ground. 

There wasn’t really a way to fix this, was there?

[thinkingaboutyoungroyals]

Tyrus Month: Basketball

Try Out For My Heart (AO3)

A/N: I’ve had this little fic playing around in my head since the finale and I finally found an opportunity to write it!

“All right! Everyone, gather around!”

The girls on the court paused their warm-ups and made their way to where Coach Coleman stood. On his right, stood Buffy and TJ, both holding clipboards and pens.

“Thank you all of you for coming to tryouts today,” the Coach began. “As you all know, this year, we are starting Jefferson Middle School’s very first girls’ basketball team and it’s all thanks to Buffy Driscoll, here, who petitioned the idea to Dr. Metcalf."

Buffy gave the girls a little wave.

"For those of you who make it today, I’ll be your temporary Coach until we find a permanent one. And since she is the reason that you are all here, it's only appropriate that Buffy will also be your future team Captain.”

He gestured towards her and Buffy took a step forward to the claps and cheers of the other girls.

“Hi, everyone, I’m Buffy,” she said with a giant and welcoming smile. “I’m so happy to see so many of you come to try out today. TJ, here.” She gestured towards the other Captain. “Is the boys’ team captain and he will be helping me and Coach evaluate your skills. So, do your best and bring your A-game!”

The girls clapped and cheered again. Then, Coleman told them to finish warm-ups and they would begin with some drills in 10 minutes, followed by a mock game.

Buffy smiled as she watched the girls talk amongst themselves.

“Wow… I didn’t think there would be this many girls interested in playing basketball,” she said.

TJ was surprised too, but considering Buffy was the first girl to try out for the basketball team, it probably just set the ball rolling (pun intended). And to make up for his past transgressions to the girl, he had volunteered to help scout for fresh talent.

“Well, I’m willing to bet you inspired them,” he stated, sincerely. “I was kind of hoping you’d take over as Captain of the boys’ team when I graduated, but this is cool too.”

Buffy’s mouth fell open. “Now you tell me?!”

“Hey, it was one of a couple of things I thought of to try and apologize to you.”

Buffy raised an eyebrow. “What were the other ones?”

TJ opened his mouth to answer then paused. “Honestly, that was the only one. Cyrus said he would help me come up with something else if you said 'no'.”

The girl snorted. “Well, it doesn’t matter anymore. I’m very happy with having my own team.”

TJ flashed her a rare friendly smile. “You deserve it. Really.”

Buffy returned it. “Thank you. And I really appreciate you doing this with me today.”

“No problem, Driscoll. Besides, there looks to be a lot of great players here. I already marked off a couple we should keep an eye on.”

He looked down at his clipboard, flipping through sheets of applications and profiles of the students trying out. The profiles came with photos so he was able to observe the girls while they did warm-ups and practiced free throws. He meant what he said about them actually being pretty great. He kind of wished he had a couple of them on his team too, but he already ruined that.

“You know… Cyrus said he might stop by with Andi later.”

TJ looked up so fast that he felt his neck almost pull a muscle. “He is?” he asked, hopefully.

Buffy smirked.

“I… mean… Cool.” TJ nonchalantly looked back down to his clipboard but his heart was hammering in his chest.

Cyrus was coming to the tryouts. He was coming to see him. Okay, he was coming to see Buffy but surely, he knew TJ would be around too, right?

If TJ had known, he would have dressed better. It wouldn’t be the first time Cyrus would have seen him in just a shirt and basketball shorts, but he could have worn a nicer shirt! The gray one he was wearing now was all faded and old.

Letting out a chuckle, Buffy said, “I’ll go talk to some of the girls.”

She headed off to do just that.

When she had her back turned, TJ took the opportunity to run his fingers through his hair, fixing it and flattening some of the stray strands. Then, he checked his breath in his hand, glad that he decided on the chicken nuggets for lunch that day instead of the burger. Did he have time to run to the bathroom and check his teeth before Cyrus got there?

He felt almost silly, wanting to look good and decent for the younger boy. But, this was the first time he had a crush that actually lasted a long time instead of disappearing in a few days.

Cyrus was cute. Witty. Had a great sense of humor. Sweet. Kind. Loyal. Had a smile like sunshine.

He really liked Cyrus.

“Kippen! Come over here a sec!” Coleman called out to him.

Sighing, TJ jogged over to the Coach, hoping that their conversation wouldn’t take too long. He really needed a mirror.

The sounds of sneakers and basketballs bouncing against the floors greeted Cyrus and Andi as they entered the gym. Buffy was holding tryouts for her new team that day and they wanted to show their support.

Cyrus scanned the floor and found their athletic friend standing by one of the nets, looking serious with her clipboard and pen as she closely eyed the girls currently doing 3-pointers (he learned that from TJ!).

Swiftly, he and Andi found spots in the bleachers and sat down to watch.

Buffy saw them come in and waved before mouthing, “Ten minutes.” Then, she went back to observing her future team.

“Oh, I’m so proud of Buffy,” Andi gushed with a small clap. “And it looks like a lot of girls in school want to be part of her team. This is so exciting!”

“The rest of our semester and next year’s will be booked with games, for sure, but not to worry, I’ll jot them all down in my calendar,” Cyrus said, already mentally planning various signs and cheers.

On the other side of the court, he saw that TJ was watching another group of girls doing layups (another thing he learned from TJ!), his own clipboard attached to his hand. Cyrus couldn’t help but watch the handsome jock.

He had his serious face on. Others may find it intimidating but Cyrus thought it was cute. And that may or may not relate to the small little budding crush he had on him.

As if feeling eyes on him, TJ turned his head and looked towards the bleachers.

When he saw Cyrus, he broke into a smile. Cyrus waved, enthusiastically. The jock waved back before turning back to his task.

Cyrus sighed, dreamily.

“Are we really here just for Buffy or did you have another motive?”

He blushed and coughed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he replied to Andi.

His friend was flashing him teasing grin. “I know that look. I hadn’t seen that look in ages.”

“What look? I don’t have a look.”

Andi placed a hand over his. “You know that I’ve got your back, right? And you can tell me anything?”

Of course he could. Cyrus trusted her and Buffy the most. But, in this case, this…crush…was still so new to him. So strange. And it confused him. So, while he was figuring it out, he planned on staying quiet. Just until he got a clearer picture of what was really happening with him.

Besides, TJ was first and foremost his friend.

“I know,” he replied, taking her hand and squeezing it. “When I’m ready.”

Andi easily accepted this and they went back to watching the tryouts.

Although he should be watching Buffy, his eyes couldn’t help but stray towards the other side of the court.

Ten minutes passed and the coach blew his whistle and announced a ten-minute break so the girls could rest and hydrate for a mock game.

Buffy came over to them to chat.

“I’ve never seen you so excited!” Andi exclaimed.

“Are you kidding me? I’m beyond thrilled!”

“And we’re thrilled for you!” added Cyrus.

Buffy sighed, happily. “Thanks, guys. Your support really means a lot to me. And I’m aiming to make this team the best in all of Shadyside!”

“It will be! I’m sure of it!” Cyrus piped with Andi nodding along beside him.

Buffy smiled. “TJ has been a huge help too.”

“That’s great! I’m glad you guys are really getting along!”

“I can’t believe Cyrus actually managed to get you guys to make up!”

Their athletic friend chuckled. “Well, it turns out getting to know someone can really surprise you. And he’s definitely full of surprises.”

“Awww, Slayer, thanks. I’m flattered.”

TJ came up behind Buffy, four water bottles in his hand. He handed one to her before giving the others to Cyrus and Andi and kept one for himself.

Cyrus tried not to let his hands linger against the jock’s as he took the water and said, “Thanks.”

“Don’t get used to it, Captain,” Buffy replied, sassily.

TJ rolled his eyes before turning his gaze to Cyrus. “I told her she could have been the boy’s team’s captain next year but I guess I would have to pass on the torch to someone else now.”

“You sound disappointed about that,” Cyrus pointed out.

TJ shrugged. “She was the best player… other than me, of course.”

“Not according to our last one-on-one.”

“I still want a re-match.”

“Sure, Kippen. Any time. Anywhere.”

“You’re on.” TJ turned to Cyrus. “Will you keep score again, Underdog?”

Cyrus nodded, excitedly. “Of course!”

“Can I watch?” Andi asked. “I didn’t get to last time.”

“Of course! You can watch me beat TJ… again.”

“Not unless I beat you this time, Driscoll.”

Before they could get into another argument, Cyrus decided to interject. “It will be a fun… and friendly game, I’m sure.”

Just then, they heard the coach calling for both TJ and Buffy so they bid the two goodbye and headed off to see what the man needed.

Andi’s phone ping-ed and her eyes lit up. “It’s Jonah!”

Cyrus still didn’t know how Jonah’s parents managed to convince the school that he could leave for 8 weeks for Frisbee Camp but he supposed being an athlete always had its perks.

Meanwhile, a few feet away from Cyrus and Andi, some of the girls trying out were sitting with their things, resting and hydrating.

Cyrus didn’t mean to eavesdrop on their conversation but they were quite loud and his ears were fairly good at picking up words and topics he was interested in… namely, TJ’s name.

“TJ is cute, isn’t he?”

“So cute. And he’s such an awesome basketball player too. Did you see how many layups he did at the last game?”

“Ugh, he’s so cool. Do you know if he has a girlfriend?”

“If he does, it’s probably Buffy.”

At that, Cyrus froze and he strained his ears even more.

“Makes sense. They’re both captains. And did you see how close they are?”

Cyrus’ eyes strayed to the said captains, who had finished talking to the coach and were now in deep conversation with each other as they scanned the sheets on their clipboards.

TJ said something and Buffy laughed.

Normally, seeing his best friend get along with a person he considered his close friend would have made him happy.

But… Cyrus wasn’t.

“They’re so cute together.”

“Do you know when they started dating?”

He felt a prick in his heart.

Not again. He couldn’t deal with this again. Another best friend dating a guy he liked? It wasn’t fair.

Before he knew it, he was on his feet, his breaths suddenly coming in pants.

Andi looked up at him, questioningly. “Cyrus?”

“U-Um… I’m gonna get a drink of water.”

“But there’s water right here-.”

“And chips! I-I want chips from the vending machine. B-Be right back.”

Without another word, Cyrus climbed down the bleachers and walked out of the gym.

“… so I’ll take group A and you'll take B,” Buffy explained.

“You got it,” TJ replied, circling some names on his list.

Coleman had made a list of players for their mock game and he and Buffy were each to keep a close eye on the players of each team.

“Huh, weird. Where is Cyrus going?”

TJ turned around right on time to see Cyrus walking out of the gym, the doors slamming behind him.

Andi was left on the bleachers, looking perplexed.

A strange feeling came over TJ and he felt like something was wrong.

“You know… you can go after him, if you want.”

He turned back to Buffy. She was flashing him a teasing grin and a knowing look. As if she knew what was going on inside his head…

“Just make it quick, the mock game is starting in 5 minutes.”

“T-Thanks, Buffy.”

He handed her his clipboard and dashed off to follow Cyrus.

He spotted him at the end of the hall, staring blankly at the vending machine there. It almost felt like déjà vu except, this time, it was the other way around.

Squaring his shoulders, TJ took a deep breath and walked over to the younger boy.

When he got close, he greeted, “Hey, Underdog.”

Cyrus jumped and hit his elbow against the glass of the vending machine.

“Ow.”

“You okay?!”

Without thinking, TJ took his arm to inspect for injury. Thankfully, the skin was clear of bruises.

“I’m fine, thank you.” Cyrus gently removed his arm from his hold. “What are you doing out here? You’re supposed to be in there. With Buffy.”

“I have five minutes. I just wanted to see if you were okay.”

Cyrus couldn’t seem to look him in the eye. “I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You tell me.” TJ placed a hand on his shoulder. “You know I’m here for you, right?”

The younger boy looked up at him with his innocent brown eyes and TJ felt like he was drowning in a pool of them. He couldn’t look away.

“Do you like Buffy?”

TJ blinked, uncomprehending. “What?”

Cyrus bit his lower lip and TJ was momentarily distracted by the action that he almost missed what the other boy said next.

“I heard some of the girls talking. They think you’re dating Buffy.”

TJ didn’t mean to make a face… but he did. “I’m… not? We’re just friends. And I don’t like her that way. And isn’t she dating that Marty guy from the track team?”

“No, I'm not really sure if they still talk… but… you’re sure? You… don’t have a crush on Buffy?”

No, I have a crush on you! was what TJ wanted to say.

“I don’t have a crush on Buffy,” was what he said, instead. “Believe me, Underdog, I don’t. Okay? I mean, does it matter if I do?”

“Of course, it does! I’m her best friend!”

The exasperated tone suddenly made TJ suspicious. Cyrus looked distressed at the possibility that he could like Buffy. Could it be…?

“Do… you like Buffy?” he asked, hesitantly.

“Of course, I like her! She’s my best friend!”

“Let me re-phrase… do you have a crush on Buffy?”

It was Cyrus’ turn to make a face. “No! Again, she’s my best friend! That’s weird!”

TJ felt relief in his chest and a little hope bloomed as well.

“Then, why did you sound so mad when I asked if it mattered?”

“It just… does.”

“Why?”

Cyrus remained silent, his eyes trained on the floor.

“Cyrus?”

No answer.

“Okay, if you don’t want to tell me, it’s fine. But…” Feeling brave, TJ took one of the younger’s hands in his. “I’m here for you, okay? Remember that.”

Finally, Cyrus looked up. For a moment, he simply looked at TJ, as if reading him and TJ wanted to know what was going on in that cute little head of his.

“TJ… will you… hug me?”

The request was random but it had TJ’s heart beating like he was running a marathon.

Trying not to seem eager, he nodded and wrapped his arms around Cyrus, the younger’s head laying itself against his chest as his arms went around TJ’s middle.

It felt nice… this hug. It made TJ feel all warm and tingly all over and Cyrus’ hair smelt like lemon and orange. He hoped that he couldn’t hear how loud TJ’s heart was beating, though, that would be embarrassing.

“You give nice hugs,” Cyrus mumbled against his chest and it was probably the best compliment TJ had ever heard from anyone in his entire life.

He didn’t know how long they hugged. For all he knew, Coleman was screaming his name at the gym right now, but he didn’t want to break this moment.

Unfortunately, Cyrus eventually pulled away and TJ tried not to look disappointed.

The younger boy smiled up at him. “Thank you, I needed that.”

TJ returned the smile. “Any time, Underdog.”

Cyrus cleared his throat. “We should probably get back to the gym. It’s probably been more than five minutes.”

He turned to walk away but TJ gently gripped his arm. “If you need to talk or just need a hug, you know where to find me,” he told him.

Beaming like the sun, Cyrus nodded. “Thank you.”

Side-by-side, hands almost brushing, the two boys made their way back to the gym.

[auburnfamilynews]

Auburn gets a neutral-site game against one of the top projected picks in next year’s draft.

Last week we gave you a quick overview of what Auburn’s up against with the 2019 football schedule. In case you missed it, the news isn’t great. It’s a tough road. Maybe the toughest in college football, since the Tigers may have as many as five top ten opponents on the slate when the season begins. One of those teams will be sitting across the field at Jerry World in Arlington on August 31st.

Auburn began 2018 in Atlanta against a PAC-12 team and broke the Mercedes-Benz Stadium curse by beating Washington (the eventual conference champs) in an exciting game. Now the Tigers get another West Coast foe, only this one will be led by a consensus preseason top-five pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Let’s tell you about the Oregon Ducks.

2018 RECAP

Oregon was good-not-great in 2018, winning the games they should have and losing the games they should have. They really only had one tough stretch during the year, when they played four ranked teams in a row from September 22nd to October 20th. During that stretch they went 2-2, beating #7 Washington at home and #24 Cal on the road, but falling at home to #7 Stanford and at #25 Washington State.

Other than that, Oregon was pretty solid in the first year after Willie Taggart. Mario Cristobal came on to take over the head coaching job, but the Ducks are far removed from what we came to know from them when Chip Kelly and Mark Helfrich ran the program. They’re not the lightning-quick offense that we saw, and Cristobal won’t rely on the running ability of the quarterback nearly as much as the Ducks did with Darron Thomas and Marcus Mariota.

In the PAC-12, which was admittedly the worst of the Power Five conferences, Oregon was 25th in scoring offense (34.8 ppg), 48th in scoring defense (25.4 ppg), and finished fourth in the North division behind Washington, Washington State, and Stanford.

What we’re going to see from them in Texas this August begins rightfully so at the quarterback position, so let’s break down what makes Justin Herbert the guy in the backfield for the Ducks.

QUARTERBACK

Justin Herbert’s got all of the physical tools to be a complete NFL quarterback. First of all, he’s huge, like almost Cam Newton-sized at 6’6, 233 pounds. He’s got a great arm and he finally started every game last season for the Ducks. In thirteen contests he threw for over 3,150 yards to go along with 29 touchdowns and only 8 interceptions. His completion percentage could be better (just 59% last year), and he did regress from his 2017 yards/attempt (9.6 to 7.8), but he’s going to be the second guy taken at quarterback after Tua in the 2020 Draft.

Despite being large, he won’t run much (just 166 yards on 71 carries last year), and he does have a tendency to either be a boom or bust guy in the passing game. He wasn’t super consistent throwing the ball, and without some of his top targets back for 2019, he’ll be in trouble if he can’t make find a rhythm. Some times it wasn’t necessary for him to play all that well, like in early wins over San Jose State (just 16-34 with 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions), but he disappeared in consecutive losses to Washington State (115 rating) and Arizona (90 rating).

It’ll be tough for Herbert to find good footing against what should be one of the best defensive lines in the country, and a secondary that’s got a ton of experience as well. If he’s the focal point of the Oregon offense, he’ll need to depend on what might actually be the strength of that group to keep him upright.

OFFENSIVE LINE

Auburn’s defensive front vs Oregon’s offensive line should be one of the marquee position battles during the early part of the 2019 season. All five starters return from 2018, so the Duck front is big and seasoned, and it’ll probably look something like this:

LT Penei Sewell (6’6” 345)

LG Shane Lemieux (6’4” 317)

C Jake Hanson (6’5” 297)

RG Dallas Warmack (6’2” 316)

RT Calvin Throckmorton (6’5” 315)

Lemieux, Hanson, and Throckmorton all have at least 37 starts on the line, so they’re heading into their senior seasons, and everyone except for Sewell will be a senior in 2019. Throckmorton sat out of the spring with an injury sustained during the bowl game, but he should be back for the regular season.

There’s not really a weakness, as Throckmorton’s absence gave the Ducks a chance to build some quality depth. Brady Aiello took over at right tackle for the spring, and he played really well. Additionally, Malasaela Aumavae-Laulu was the top JUCO lineman in the nation last year, and he’s pushing Dallas Warmack for the starting gig at right guard, so there’s not really a weak spot on the entire line.

In 2018, they allowed 22 sacks in 13 games and paved the way for 4.5 ypc in the run game. It stands to reason that they’ll be better this year, but Auburn’s biggest strength will be the unit matched up against them in the opener.

If the line can be good, then that allows Herbert to stay clean and make plays. That’s where the issues may be... some of the biggest playmakers from last year are gone.

WIDE RECEIVER

Dillon Mitchell led Oregon in catches, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns last year. He’s gone, and with his departure go 75 grabs, 1,184 yards, and 10 scores. Mitchell was a big guy at 6’2, 189, and now the most prolific guy in the Oregon passing game is junior Jaylon Redd, who caught 37 passes last year.

Redd will return, but he’s a different type of receiver at just 5’8. Also gone is the tight end Jacob Breeland, who snagged 24 passes for 377 yards in 2018. So with those absences, Redd, running back C.J. Verdell, and receiver Brenden Schooler seem to be the main targets for Herbert. Verdell was pretty solid out of the backfield as a pass catcher, and Schooler provides that big body that they’ll miss without Mitchell.

Oregon’s going to rely heavily on some newcomers to the group this year. Penn State grad transfer Juwan Johnson provides a huge frame at 6’4, 231 pounds, and he joins the Ducks after catching 81 passes in his Nittany Lion career. After him, freshman Mycah Pittman may be a guy to watch out for as well. Both did pretty well in spring, and Pittman caught seven passes in the spring game. The position battles will likely only be settled once they get into fall practice.

RUNNING BACKS

Unlike the wideouts, the backs are pretty much set in stone. C.J. Verdell will be the starter after a 1,018-yard (5.0 ypc), 10-touchdown season last year, and Travis Dye will come in nearly as much as he finished 2018 with 739 yards (5.3 ypc) and 4 touchdowns.

Verdell’s a great all-purpose guy who added over 300 receiving yards last year, and he got a little bit more weight to increase his durability in the offseason. Behind him (next to him), Travis Dye actually came on stronger than Verdell at the end of the year, finishing off the regular season with a 199-yard outing against Oregon State. With a higher yards-per-carry average, he’s not so much a backup as starter 1B.

Behind those two, the Ducks are really excited about Cyrus Habibi-Likio, who only got 18 carries last year but served as the goal-line runner (7 rushing touchdowns). He’s turned into more of an every down back, and we’ll certainly see him in situations further out from the goal line.

This is a group that could work really well depending on how much the offensive staff leans on the running game this year. Behind a really experienced offensive line, Oregon could run through the PAC-12, but like we mentioned, they’ll have a heck of a task coming against the Auburn defense to start the year.

...

We’ll check out the defense tomorrow!

from College and Magnolia - All Posts https://www.collegeandmagnolia.com/2019/5/9/18563339/2019-opponent-preview-week-one-oregon