#DO YOU REMEMBER THE PROMISE YOU MADE ABOUT ICE ADO???? HUH????

[cuteteacakes]

OH, SO MAPPA DOES REMEMBER ITS GOLDEN CHILD🙎‍♀️

[elysiadjarin]

Sword and Shield 6

Tags: Bad Batch x reader (you), fem!coded, poly!relationship, multi-part series, nonhuman!reader, Echo later on

Part 5: https://elysiadjarin.tumblr.com/post/655170472428830720/sword-and-shield-5

Warnings: none really. 

Without further ado, I present to you the moment you’ve all been waiting for. *bows deeply* *backs away*

6: Confessions

You snorted to yourself. Not act on it, that’s for kriffing sure. You sighed, shaking your head. Even if someone wanted to get into a relationship with you — already dangerous territory — why would they even consider accepting you harboring feelings for others? Ridiculous. Everyone you’d ever known besides your Vod’ika had been fiercely possessive of what they viewed as their own — and besides, even the 501st had been super protective and jealous of you in most aspects.

Letting out a heavy sigh, you resigned yourself to suffering in silence as always. They would never know, and you’d simply continue to work with them. Hopefully, best case, your crush would pass and fade away in time. After all, maybe this really was just a reaction to the kindness the Bad Batch had shown you after you’d been neglected for so much of your life.

You staunchly decided that you didn’t want to look further into it than that. Best not fan flames of false hope, after all.

Having made a decision, you refocused on humming and popping the finished three pans into the oven. You moved onto the icing you’d decided to put on the cupcakes. The team ate a lot, after all, and it’s not like you got sweets a lot on missions. The sugar might be a nice pick-me-up or reward for their hard work. Plus, you decided, the ship smelled nice now.

Whisking away at the icing in the chilled bowl, you let the contentment settle over you. Humming to the music, you started to sway a little and step lightly in time to the beat. The ship was warm; you felt content for the time being; and you were where you wanted to be.

“Whoa, what’s that smell?”

You almost started, turning around to see Wrecker in the doorway, staring at you with wide eyes. You felt your face burn as you realized that Crosshair, Hunter, and Wrecker had caught you dancing as you baked. Setting the bowl down, you gave them an embarrassed smile.

“Welcome back. I figured I’d make you some cupcakes-?” You offered, tugging at your hair that you’d put up and out of the way. “I just put them in the oven: I’m making frosting right now.” You picked the bowl back up.

Wrecker blundered into the kitchen, clearly a bit tipsy. His eyes lit up. “Whoa, seriously Shiv?” he exclaimed giddily. “Cupcakes? You’re making them? For us?”

You had to laugh at his flushed cheeks and childish grin of excitement as he plopped himself down on the floor and watched you. “Yes, I know we don’t really get sweets or anything on missions usually, so I figured I’d just... you know. I mean, you all work really hard, you deserve something for it. Plus, I owe you a snack, remember?”

Hunter nodded at you from the door. “Appreciate it, Shiv. I’m going to go back to my quarters for a while,” he mumbled, clearly on sensory overload.

You nodded back. “I’ll leave some for you in the cooler whenever you want some,” you promised. “Please get some rest.”

He nodded, trudging off.

You hesitated, glancing at Crosshair. “Would you... would you like to join, or... or should I just save you some?” you asked tentatively, unsure if the quiet and usually sullen sniper would want to be around.

He glanced at you, and you couldn’t tell if he’d even drunk anything or not. Then he grunted. “Too warm in here. I’ll be in the common room. Thanks for the... stuff.” With a curt nod, he headed off.

You blinked, then took it as a sort of thanks. Crosshair had always been short with everyone, so you took no offense to it; but you’d also realized over time working with him that the fact that he was never outright rude to you was his way of being personable. And the fact that he even sat in the same room as you for periods of time was another silent proof that he, at the very least, didn’t hate you. He normally never complained about working with you either, only making constructive suggestions that, while sometimes terse, weren’t overtly or purposely vitriolic.

You shook yourself and refocused to see Wrecker staring up at you with a sort of stupid grin.

“Are the cupcakes almost done?” he asked eagerly, turning to look at the oven.

You laughed. “Not quite, I just put them in a few minutes ago, so it’ll be another fifteen minutes or so.” You offered him the mixing bowl. “My arm is getting a little tired, can you help? I just need to mix this a little more.”

He took the bowl and started to whisk, still careful even in his tipsy state not to spill too much. Well, he tried, you had to note with some amusement. He still splashed a little, but you weren’t really bothered by it. You’d purposely put extra in there anyway, just to be safe.

“Did you have a good time?” you decided to ask, turning the music down and going to check the timer.

“Yeah! The drinks weren’t too bad, and I got to see a couple of familiar faces,” Wrecker said, still diligently stirring away at the icing. “I mean, I was a little sad when you left, but I knew why, you know? I kinda hoped you’d have fun, not have a bad time.”

You almost froze, desperately trying to calm your heartbeat that had picked up. Straightening, you sent him a jittery smile. “Th-Thanks, Wrecker. You were there, so it wasn’t all bad. It was just one guy.”

He notably cheered up at that. “Good, good,” he said with a decisive nod.

“Oh, can I see the icing? I think it should be done,” you said, trying to change the topic. Your newly-discovered feelings could absolutely not handle any sort of encouragement.

He held it out, glancing into it. “Is it supposed to look like that?”

You peered into the bowl, noting with satisfaction the peaks of the icing. “Yep. Could you put it in the cooler please? Once the cupcakes are out and cooled enough, I can put the icing on.”

He nodded and got up, carefully putting it away in the cooler. He rather gingerly sat down on a chair, then accepted the glass of water you offered.

“Thanks. I think I maybe had one too many,” he said, gulping down the glass.

You gave him a sympathetic smile. “Well, the water should help,” you encouraged.

“Do you drink, Shiv?” Wrecker asked curiously, peering at you.

You blinked, then shook your head. “Never really started in the first place,” you admitted. “I mean, I understand the draw, but I never was allowed to before, and then it just sort of... I don’t know, I figured that after all this time, why start? Caf is my poison of choice, and I don’t fancy the hangovers, not after taking care of the 501st with Kix too many times.” You rolled your eyes fondly at the memory.

“Huh. Makes sense,” he conceded with a nod.

The timer went off just then, so you grabbed the oven mitts and opened the oven. The toothpick came out clean, so you grabbed the trays and set them on the cooling racks, turning off the oven.

“Are they done?”

You hummed and nodded, poking at one. “Yep, they’ve baked all the way through and the top is spongy,” you said in satisfaction. “I knew it would be a good batch.”

“What flavor are they?” Wrecker tilted his head at the trays curiously.

“I made one flavored Nabooian chocolate, the second vanilla, and the third mint,” you answered.

“Whoa, Nabooian chocolate? Isn’t that pretty expensive?” Wrecker looked surprised.

You shrugged. “Yeah, usually, but the GAR usually gets things a little cheaper in bulk and I decided it was worth it this time around. Sometimes you just... need to indulge while you have the opportunity, you know?” You gave him a smile.

He smiled back and nodded. “Yeah... makes sense.”

Once the cupcakes had cooled enough, you carefully lifted them out of the tins and set them on the racks. Grabbing the bowl of icing from the cooler, you started applying it in neat swirls. Wrecker shuffled up behind you, peering over your shoulder at the process.

“They look nice,” he remarked encouragingly.

You glanced up at him with a smile. “I’m glad. I chose a buttercream icing so it would pair well with the flavors.” Once you were finished, you licked your fingers clean of the icing that had gotten smeared in the process. Cleaning out the bowl, you set everything away and began placing the cupcakes in containers. Grabbing a few, you took three plates and placed a few on them to go take to the others. Turning, you smiled up at Wrecker.

“Help me carry these?”

He grabbed two plates, letting you get the other one for Hunter. He followed you down the hall, and you stopped briefly at Hunter’s room. You knocked lightly on the door.

“It’s open,” a voice came from within.

You slipped through the door, then placed the plate on his bunk. “Here you go,” you whispered, trying not to agitate his senses.

He glanced from you to the plate, then nodded. “Thank you, Shiv.”

You just nodded back, then slipped back out and closed the door. Following Wrecker down the hall, you went into the common room to find Tech and Crosshair still there.

“Yo, Cross, Tech, Shiv made us some snacks!” Wrecker said, putting the plates down.

“Oh- the one with more on it is for Tech and Crosshair,” you said quickly, “and the other plate is for you, Wrecker.” Everyone knew that Wrecker ate more than the rest of you, due to his size and genetic mutation.

He grabbed his and sat down, gleefully beginning to tuck into his cupcakes.

“There’s Nabooian chocolate, vanilla, and mint,” you repeated for Crosshair and Tech’s benefit, twisting your fingers in your sleeves. “I hope they’re okay....”

“They’re so good,” Wrecker all but groaned around his mouthful.

You noticed that Tech was still engrossed in his work, so you decided to go and gently tap on his shoulder. He started slightly and looked up at you owlishly.

“Oh, Shiv.”

You gave him a gentle smile. “I know you’re doing good things, but please take a little break? You haven’t eaten or drank anything in a while.” You offered him water and a cupcake.

He blinked down at it, then seemed to automatically reach out and take it. “Oh. Uh... th-thanks, Shiv,” he said hesitantly, looking up at you with a sort of surprise buried in his eyes.

Impulsively, something in you drawn to his wistful expression, you reached out and brushed your fingers briefly through his mussed hair, smoothing the wild strands. “I thought you might be a mint type of person,” you said, giving him a smile.

He took a bite of the cupcake, chewing it thoughtfully. “I do like mint,” he confirmed, then began tucking into the cupcake, almost wolfing it down. He didn’t remark on your gesture, so you decided not to address it and instead turn around.

Crosshair was already halfway through a chocolate one. Glancing up, he lifted the cupcake in a sort of half-salute of acknowledgement.

You smiled back, glad that the sullen trooper seemed to enjoy the treat.

“Hey Shiv, come sit!” Wrecker motioned next to him. He offered you a cupcake once you sat beside him, but you shook your head.

“Oh, I’m okay, thanks. I sort of scraped the batter bowls when I was making them, so I’ve already had a taste.” You shrugged, picking up your datapad. “You enjoy them.”

“Boy am I,” Wrecker enthused, grinning. He polished off the others on his plate, smacking his lips. “These are super good.”

You briefly glanced up at Tech, noting that he’d absently begun on another cupcake while tapping away again at his screen.

“Do you think they’re going to put us through a battle simulation soon?” you asked warily, frowning down at your datapad.

“Statistically, probably,” Tech answered. “It’s been a while since our last one, and they do tend to keep up with us as a modified unit.”

You sighed, shoulders hunching on yourself. “And now I’ve been added to the force,” you concluded glumly.

“Is somethin’ wrong, Shiv? I like the simulations, they’re fun.” Wrecker glanced down at you curiously.

You sighed. “Well, I’m... I’m a weird factor in the whole mess. I’m usually either told to sit out on a simulation because they’re testing the functionality of the troopers, not me; or I’m limited to stun-only weaponry, which is really difficult to hold as a form. I’m made to be a lethal weapon, so my default is to use live ammunition, not training weapons. I can, of course, but it’s an extra thing for me to remember when I’m utilized in a simulator. The Kaminoans really don’t like it when I mess up and damage either their training units or their equipment.”

Tech tilted his head, brushing crumbs off of his lap. “I hadn’t realized it before, Shiv, but what relationship exactly do you have with the Kaminoans? You never really said how you came to be a weapon for a clone unit. Why wouldn’t you have been assigned to a Jedi or an officer?”

You grimaced, tucking your legs up to your chest. “That’s... a long story, Tech. Not that I wouldn’t tell you, but... I don’t think right now is the best time. Besides, I think Sergeant Hunter should be here to hear it, too, as my leader. But for now, I think it’s safe to say that the Kaminoans are interested in replicating my DNA, so using me with a clone force to see how I would react to and mesh with their clones is a convenient experiment for them.”

Tech conceded. “I suppose that’s fair,” he said with a nod. “But we will most likely be asked to participate in a training regimen soon.”

You reached up and brushed hair out of your eyes, feeling the exhaustion creep up on you. “I think I’m going to go to bed.” Standing, you sent everyone a tired smile. “Get some sleep, if you can.”

“Thanks for the cupcakes, Shiv. I’m gonna eat more tomorrow,” Wrecker declared, waving at you.

You nodded and stepped out, shuffling down the hall to your small room. You might have to spend the next couple of nights in the GAR barracks, considering the probable training regimen you’d be called in for tomorrow plus the report you’d have to give to Commander Rex.

You quickly fell asleep, exhausted at the mere thought.

~

Commander Rex raised an eyebrow in vague amusement as he faced you. “You didn’t have to send me an entire comprehensive report, as much as I’m sure the command base will appreciate it.”

You shuffled your feet sheepishly. “Sorry, Commander,” you laughed self-deprecatingly. “You know me.”

He nodded. “I think I do, which is how I also knew that giving you time to compile a report would result in me being able to see data for myself.” Standing, he sighed and clasped his hands behind his back. “I personally see your integration as a success, Shiv. You seem to be integrating into the team very well, and the team seems to accept you. But you also know that my report of success will have a natural repercussion.”

You looked down at your feet. “Tipoca,” you said resignedly.

“Yes,” Rex confirmed with a nod. “Tipoca. The Kaminoans have already requested the presence of Force 99 for checkups, especially since your integration has been considered a success.”

“I figured, Commander,” you said quietly. “I also mentioned it to the team last night. I might have to... tell them.”

“If you think it’s prudent.” Rex left it up to you. Then he sighed, reaching out to place a hand on your shoulder. “It was good to see you again, Shiv. You seem to be thriving in the Bad Batch. But I do have a word of warning.”

You blinked up at him, a little surprised. “Y-Yes?”

“You know that most Regs don’t look on defective clones very... positively. And you already know your own reputation on Tipoca. Keep your head up.”

You nodded. “That’s another reason I’m going to tell them, sir,” you admitted. “They’re probably going to say something, but...” You shrugged your shoulder.

Rex nodded. “General Skywalker asked about you the other day. He seemed pleased to hear that you had found a place with the Bad Batch.”

You had to smile at that, grateful that he’d remembered you. “If you see him again, tell him thank you for thinking of me. I didn’t think he’d remember me.”

“Will do. Go on, Shiv. You probably have to leave soon to get to Kamino on time.”

You nodded. “Have a good day, Commander. And-“ you paused before you headed back out, turning briefly to glance at him. “I hope to the Maker that you see nothing but success on your missions.”

He nodded. “Same to you, Shiv. Take care of yourself and your team out there.”

You left, letting the door slide shut behind you. Walking down the hallways and corridors, you sighed heavily and tried to think about how to tell the Bad Batch about your past. They deserved to know, not only as your teammates but also considering they wouldn’t otherwise understand the routine you’d have to go through once you arrived on Tipoca.

As soon as you got back to the ship, Hunter found you. “Good, you’re back, Shiv. We’ve gotten commands to go to Kamino again.”

You nodded resignedly. “I know. Um, Sergeant, would it be possible to talk to the whole team? I have to explain a few things before we arrive at Kamino. It has to do with why we’re being called there.”

He paused and stared at you for a moment, then nodded. “Gather in the common room once we’re up in the air.”

You nodded, heading off to the common room and trying to think of the best way to go about it. Everything felt... distant, in a strange way. You had to figure out how to distance yourself, at least enough to explain the standard procedure you were always subjected to on Kamino, not to mention what they’d have to look forward to.

Everyone shuffled in once the ship was in hyperspace to find you curled up on one of the seats, staring blankly at the floor. Wrecker plopped himself next to you, while Tech took his usual seat and Crosshair and Hunter sat opposite the three of you.

“So what’s all this about, Shiv?” Hunter asked evenly, opening the floor.

You sighed, uncurling enough to not hide your face. “I know I haven’t said that much about my past, or how I even started working among clone troopers. And now that we’re being called to Kamino, I figured this is probably the best time to tell you about it, since... it’s going to be important.”

You grimaced, reaching up to pull a hand through your hair. “I’ve already said that I’m a weapon, and that there aren’t many of us throughout the galaxy. I’m not the only one, but... definitely one of the few left. I... Since I can remember, my earliest memories start with me being a slave.” You didn’t even flinch, used to the memories. “I was bought, sold, traded off, moved hands throughout my earlier years, until I fell into the hands of a well-known Separatist leader who bought me to be trained as a personal bodyguard and weapon.”

Wrecker grunted, clearly displeased as he frowned thunderously.

Leaning back, you wrapped your hands around your knees pulled up to your chest. “I was... well, there wasn’t that much known about my kind or species, still isn’t. So naturally, I was... poked and prodded at for a long while until I was about... ten? That’s when my formal training began.” You rolled your eyes. “As if I hadn’t been forced to kill since I was six,” you said tiredly, shaking your head. “All that was different was that I was forced into a grueling regimen for three years.”

“You were forced to kill when you were six?” Hunter frowned, eyebrows furrowing as he stared at you intently.

You nodded. “Yes, that’s the earliest kill I can remember. I don’t even know what might have happened before that. My memory has been proven to be faulty concerning anything before seven.” Glancing around, you felt the familiar knot twist in your stomach. “Anyway, those three years were not just for combat training but also for etiquette training. I was groomed to be not just a weapon but an ornament for a rich, upper class noble that liked to flaunt his money and... eccentricity. After all, I was a rare commodity.”

“A very clinical outlook,” Tech remarked, tilting his head at you.

You glanced at him. “It was the only way I knew to view myself. I’d been taught since I could remember that I was a slave, that I lived solely to be a slave to someone else, whoever that may be. I was to be bought and sold freely at my master’s whim, passed from hand to hand. After all, I was just a weapon, right?” You shrugged, the bitterness twisting your lips. “It was all I’d known for most of my life. I was to stand still and look pretty staring at the ground unless my current master decided to use me to either protect himself or... reaffirm... his power.”

Wrecker cracked his knuckles. “Let’s go find him,” he suggested darkly, glaring.

You smiled at him slightly, patting his arm. “Thank you, but unnecessary. The War broke out, and after another three years serving as a weapon for the Separatists, my former Master was unfortunate enough to run into General Skywalker and his squadron, the 501st.” You shook your head. “Once my Master was defeated, I was freed from his control. I didn’t know what to do except offer myself to Commander Rex, since he’d basically won me in combat. One Master for another. Their confusion turned to horror once they managed to access the surviving information about me and figured out what and who I was.”

Despite yourself, you had to smile down at your knees at the memory. “Looking back... it’s almost funny,” you sighed, shaking your head. “The way they lost their minds trying to figure out what to do with me and how to interact with me. Long story short, General Skywalker decided that for the time being I should stay with the 501st and Commander Rex, since I’d latched onto him instinctively and refused to leave his side. It was my conditioning, so it was all I really knew. I’ve spent the past... four or so years with them until now. But there was a long process for me in those years.”

You winced. “This is where Kamino comes in. Not knowing what else to do with me at the time, Commander Rex and General Skywalker decided to send me to Kamino in order to figure out more about my biology and my mental conditioning. I’d been fitted with several inhibitor chips at the time, including a microchip that reinforced my obedience to whatever master held the other half of the microchip. Since my former Master had been incapacitated, the chip damaged, I’d reverted to the other inhibitors and latched onto Commander Rex. Kamino... was very excited to discover me.”

Crosshair snorted. “Of course they were,” he sneered.

You just nodded. “Of course they were,” you sighed. “I was another opportunity to look into for their scientific experiments. After removing my inhibitor chips, they put me through a long reconditioning process that re-taught me a sense of individuality and being. Since I had nowhere else to go, I decided to make myself useful and pay back my debt to the 501st by agreeing to subject myself to Kaminoan jurisdiction just like the clones. Clones became... my new identity.”

You took in a deep breath, closing your eyes for a moment. Bracing yourself, you continued.

“I chose to allow the Kaminoans to continue experimentations on me as long as I could stay under the command of Commander Rex unless he decided otherwise. Commander Rex was kind enough to take responsibility for me, and I was reconditioned to learn to work with clone troopers. The Kaminoans are interested in studying me in order to decide if it’s worth using me as a new DNA template for cloning.”

“An endless supply of versatile weapons,” Crosshair deduced cynically. He had his arms crossed, toothpick clenched between his teeth.

You nodded. “Yes. Once Commander Rex decided that I would work better with a smaller group... well, I’m here now. But that also means that as soon as he reported that my integration into the Bad Batch had been successful...”

“We’re going to be going through tests in order to test us now that you’ve been added,” Tech concluded. He nodded, adjusting his glasses. “Makes sense. After all, this could be the proof that they’re looking for that one of you in a group of four enhanced is worth an investment.”

You nodded. “I’m sorry. I did mean to tell you, I just... didn’t know when would be the best time, and...” you sighed. “Commander Rex did warn me that I’d have to tell you, especially since I’m not... I’m not very well favored among the Regs, especially on Tipoca.” You uncomfortably shifted, looking away.

Hunter sighed. “Well, that won’t really be a problem. We’re not well accepted among the Regs either.” He shook his head. “As long as you’re one of us, you’ll never be accepted.”

“I guess they’re right when they talk about being in good company,” you said with a weak smile. You already felt exhausted just trying to sum up the weirdness your life had been in general.

“Well, while it’s interesting and valuable data, it doesn’t really change much,” Tech said, looking down at his datapad. “It’s not like we weren’t an unusual unit in the first place. It’s just another added member and test.”

“Yeah! Don’t worry, Shiv, we’ll take care of ya,” Wrecker cheered, patting your shoulder. “Anyone talks bad about ya and we’ll take care of it.” He cracked his knuckles again.

You had to breathe a laugh. “Thank you, I appreciate that. But I am used to it, so please don’t get into too much trouble.”

“Wrecker’s always looking for a fight anyway,” Tech said, the eye roll clear in his tone.

Hunter stood with a nod to you. “Good to know, Shiv. We’ll just have to keep it in mind once we’re there, but I don’t think it really changes all that much when it comes to procedure. We’ve always been put through training anyway every time we go back.”

You nodded, relieved that the talk had gone well. “Thank you. I’ll... continue to do my best.”

“You’re going to need to if you’re coming in with us, this time,” Crosshair remarked, standing. He just glanced at you. “Wrecker, come with me to the cockpit.”

Wrecker patted your shoulder again, then stood and headed toward Crosshair. “What? Why? Did Hunter need us again for something?” His voice trailed off as he went off down the hallway after the sniper.

You blew out a breath, letting your forehead rest against your knees. The knot in your stomach had loosened, relief spreading through you in a sudden rush. You had, in the back of your mind, worried that the team might resent the added scrutiny your presence would bring. But it seemed as though they’d just accepted it as inevitable. Sometimes, it was still hard to accept the kindness and acceptance you’d been shown.

“Are you alright, Shiv?” Tech spoke up from his seat.

You looked up at him, feeling the shadows pool under your eyes. “Oh... I’m fine, Tech, thanks. Just...” You shrugged. “Telling that story is kinda exhausting for me. Always has been. Plus, I always feel tired whenever I try to remember anything that happened before I was seven.”

He tilted his head. “Did the Kaminoans figure out why?”

You shook your head. “They couldn’t tell if the damage to that part of my memories was a natural biological reaction to some trauma or an after effect of the myriad of inhibitor chips that had been implanted in me. Thanks to their conflicting effects at times, the Kaminoans decided that using an inhibitor chip in me was an unnecessary risk. Besides, I’d been so willing to stay that there was no point except for conditioning to reinforce my... loyalty, I guess.”

“I understand.” Tech nodded. “Do the questions bother you?”

“No.” You shifted, turning to better face him. “Besides, you guys deserve to know. I mean, I’m basically in your head most of the time anyway. I’d say we’ve passed the point of being afraid to ask personal questions.”

Tech glanced down at his datapad. “I know that our inhibitor chips are mostly disabled because of our mutations. You say that you don’t have one?” he asked curiously.

You subconsciously reached up and rubbed your head. “No, all of the older ones were removed. And the Kaminoans didn’t put one in. Too much risk without enough data. All I have right now is a high-grade birth control implant,” you said thoughtfully. “I’d been outfitted with one during my time as a slave, though I could never figure out why.” You furrowed your eyebrows. “I mean, they never intended to use me in that sense. I was strictly an ornament and a weapon; and besides, they’d conditioned me thoroughly with the implants to never seek out any sort of physicality in that sense, so why put the implant in?” you puzzled wonderingly.

“Perhaps as just an added measure of protection? A sort of security of the purity of a possession?” Tech suggested without malice.

You shrugged. “I’m not sure, though that might be a good guess,” you agreed. “The Kaminoans asked if I just wanted it removed, but I figured I’d just ask for a safer and better replacement just in case,” you said dismissively. “It was offered, why not. Besides,” you said with a dark sense of amusement, “I don’t plan to procreate, but I did have to sacrifice my virginity for a mission.” You rolled your eyes at the memory. “Kix and Fives almost lost their minds over that one.” You snorted.

Tech looked a little flushed, the tips of his ears stained with color as he shifted.

“Sorry, Tech,” you had to laugh a little. “Didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

He glanced at you. “It’s alright. But, uh, why were they upset?”

“Oh, not at me,” you said, shaking your head. “They’ve always been my brothers, so they’ve been protective of me. I guess I worried them when I told them about it because they thought I’d maybe been forced into it.” You shook your head with a sigh. “I just... I’ve never really been allowed to make any of my own choices, you know? It was one of my first big decisions I made, albeit kind of stupidly. Anyway, it’s not like anyone would want a relationship with me.” You shrugged, leaning back in your chair.

“Why not?” Tech sounded surprised, staring at you. “I mean, I’d think that choosing a weapon as a partner might be beneficial. Not that you’re just a weapon,” he added.

You smiled at him. “Thanks, Tech. But I mean... I am a weapon,” you pointed out. “I’m meant to be used as one, and... I mean, even now, I’m the weapon of a team. I don’t know that anyone would want all the baggage I come with, or even be able to handle sharing me with four other people — it’s just. A lot to ask.” You fiddled with your shirt. “Besides, I don’t know who’d be interested in me anyway.”

Tech seemed to open his mouth, then closed it. Then he opened it again as though he couldn’t help himself. “Wrecker is.” He jerked a little as though cringing.

You blinked, looking up at him. Telling your brain to shut up, it’s not what it sounds like, you tilted your head. “What? I mean, I’m glad he likes me, but-“

But Tech shook his head. “We’ve all noticed it. Wrecker definitely likes you. He pays a lot of attention to you, and he’s super protective. I probably shouldn’t tell you his feelings, but I...” He fiddled almost nervously with his gadgets. “It sort of just came out before I could stop it,” he admitted.

Your mind fairly spun. “I- I don’t-“ your entire brain short-circuited. Wrecker liked you? No, no, that had to be wrong. “What?” you choked out, feeling your hands start to tremble a little.

Tech grimaced. “Sorry, Shiv, I shouldn’t have said anything. Don’t worry about it-“ ”How could I not worry about it, Tech?” you exclaimed, your chest tightening. “I’m always in you guys’ heads, and- it’s not fair for me to know that when he’s been so kind to me and protected me so much that I-“ you choked on your own words, tears welling in your eyes. You rocked back and forth with a little whimper, reaching up to dig at your eyes. “It’s not fair.”

Tech looked like he didn’t know what to do, face pinched. “Shiv- I’m sorry, I... I don’t know what to do. I-“ He looked toward the door. “I should go get-“ “No, please-“ you blurted, trying to gasp for breath. “It’s not- not your fault, I just-“ You shivered, swiping tears away. “I’m sorry, I’m not being fair to you either.” You drew in a rasping breath. “I- I really- I just...”

“What can I do to help you?” Tech asked, his hands nervously moving as though trying to figure out what to do.

“I... it’s not fair,” you whimpered, not looking up at him. “I... I’ve grown so close to all of you, and... and I’m being stupid.” A hiccup wrenched out of you. “I- I realized last night, at the 79s... I realized that I- that you all have been so kind to me and it- it’s made me so selfish, Tech,” you half-sobbed. “I just want to do everything I can to be- to be a good teammate, a good friend, a- a useful weapon to you all, but I- it’s just that- I’ve been stupid and allowed- allowed myself to- to wish for more than I should.”

Tech sucked in a breath, straightening. “Shiv-“ ”I’m sorry!” You flinched, sure that he would be upset that you’d allowed yourself to blurt out the feelings you’d promised yourself would stay hidden. Sure that he’d remind you that you’re just a teammate. Sure that he’d tell you that Wrecker shouldn’t have formed... something.

“No, Shiv-“ Tech reached up and ran his hand through his hair. He abruptly stood, then placed a hand on your knee. “Wait right here for a minute. I’ll be back.”

You didn’t have the strength or presence of mind to stop him, the anxiety starting to seize you with a force that left you gasping. Hands shaking, you clutched at your chest with tears dripping down your face and tried to just breathe. This had to be it. They would find out, they would be upset about it, they’d decide that they didn’t want you as part of the team because what mad person is shown basic kindness and latches onto it to the extent of forming feelings for not just one but four people-

“Shiv!? Maker, Tech, what happened?” Hunter’s voice curled through the air, washing over you. A warm hand landed on your knee, making you flinch with a gasp.

“Shiv!” Wrecker’s voice made you feel even worse. Two giant hands landed on your waist, and you gasped as he lifted you up and sat down, setting you in his lap. “Shiv, what’s wrong?”

Despite yourself, you had to curl into him for the warmth he radiated through his blacks, desperate for some kind of grounding strength. Anything to help you calm down.

“I... I may have made a mistake,” Tech admitted, his voice laced with distress. He relayed the conversation as you let out a sob, shoulders shaking.

The way Wrecker stiffened made you abruptly try to push away, almost launching yourself off of him. Only his firm grasp on your hips stopped you.

“I’m sorry- I’m sorry- please-“ it wrenched out of you, leaving you raw and shaking. “Please, I-“

“Why are you apologizing?” Wrecker’s voice asked, sounding confused. “Shiv, don’t apologize.”

You looked up at him through watering eyes. “But I-“

He tilted his head at you, still keeping a tight hold on your hips. “Tech is right. I do like you.”

But it only made you feel worse. “Wrecker, I don’t- I- I’m always in your head through the Bonds,” you pleaded, trying to explain. “I- your kindness toward me- I- I don’t want to take advantage of that. It’s not fair for me to- to ask you to return my feelings just because- because I’m with you all the time or anything, I- I shouldn’t have even said anything, I told myself I wouldn’t-“

“Why not?” Wrecker demanded, a frown curling his lips.

You squeezed your eyes shut, burying your face in your hands. “Because I’m in love with all of you!”

A silence fell in the room, only broken by your hiccuping sobs. Everything was wrong. You’d never meant to say it, never meant to do this.

“Say it again.” Hunter’s voice was low, demanding in a way that made you instinctually obey.

“I’m- I have feelings for all of you,” you whimpered, curling in on yourself in absolute misery. The truth of it resonated through you, a blessed sting of lovely pain.

“I guess that’s good for us, then,” Crosshair drawled, a smirk tilting his lips up.

Wrecker let out an excited whoop. “Did you hear that, Hunter? She said she likes all of us!”

Nothing was making sense. You looked up, trying to understand. Why weren’t they upset?

Wrecker grinned down at you, squeezing your hips in a way that made your stomach flip. “We all like you, Shiv.”

You gaped up at him, mind spinning. What?

Hunter reached out, using a finger to tilt your head to him. “Shiv, all of us have feelings for you, too. We had to discuss it because... normally partners aren’t comfortable with being shared. We Clones are used to sharing things, especially with each other. We didn’t think you’d want to be with all of us, so we decided to step back and let Wrecker have a chance, since you seemed to accept his attention. Not to mention, we’re not normal in any sense.”

You swallowed thickly, breath hitching as Wrecker’s hand came up to brush tears away from your cheeks. Your lashes felt heavy with them, and you sniffled, fingers unconsciously curling in his sleeves.

“You’re- you’re not angry with me?” you asked tremulously, peering through your eyelashes up at Wrecker.

“Course not, Shiv.” Wrecker’s ever-present grin had softened at the corners, his one good eye focused on you unwaveringly. “We’re super glad that you like all of us.”

Lips parting, you turned to look at the others, hope starting to bloom in your chest. You could feel heat starting to creep up into your cheeks as you realized. You’d confessed. They’d actually accepted and... returned it?

The corner of Hunter’s lips tilted up, dark eyes focusing on you. “You’ve taken care of us ever since you joined, Shiv. You’ve tried your best to acclimate to us, worked with us without complaining about anything, took responsibilities you didn’t have to, made food for us, even on the very first mission took damage for Tech and I. Why wouldn’t we appreciate that at the very least? We want to take care of you, too.”

This time, the tears that welled up weren’t because you were upset. Reaching up, you brushed them away shakily. “You... you like me?” you repeated, almost dazed. Surely you’d been hearing wrong. All of them? Liked you? Liked you?

Hunter chuckled. “Yes, Shiv. We do.”

You sucked in a breath, trying to grasp it. “I...” Your mouth seemed to insist on betraying you. “No one has ever liked me before.” You flushed. “Sorry, I-“

“Better for us, then!” Wrecker cheered. He practically crushed you to his chest, laughing. “So does this mean we get to call you ours now? Oh, does that mean I can kiss you, Shiv?”

“Wrecker,” Tech spoke up, sounding a bit alarmed.

But you stared up at Wrecker with a blink. “You... you want to kiss me?” you asked, surprised. The one fling you’d told Tech about had been just that— a stupid, hasty fling with no feeling to it, done to keep cover on a mission.

“Yeah.” Wrecker sobered. “But only if you want it, too, Shiv.” His honest brown eyes gazed down into yours.

You swallowed, fingers clenching against his chest. “If... If all of you... if you like me, then... then what does that mean for us?” you asked quietly.

“It means we all want to be part of a relationship with you, Shiv,” Hunter said firmly. “But only if that’s also what you want.”

You looked up at him. “I am your teammate and your weapon,” you said honestly, feeling a little lost. “I... I don’t want to be hurt more than I already have. If you- if you’re serious, then— then I’ll give you whatever I have,” you said, looking down at your hands. You closed your eyes, swallowing. “I’ll give all of you my all, equally, wholly. I’ll be a teammate, a partner, a weapon for all of you, as much as I can. But you have to know,” your voice cracked, “that if I do... you’ll have the power to completely break me. And I- I’m willing to take that risk. But you have the right to know that, before you— before you decide that you want—“

“We want you.” Hunter spoke lowly, confident.

“We love you, Shiv,” Wrecker pitched in.

“We don’t want to break you or leave you,” Tech said, shaking his head.

Crosshair met your eyes and nodded slightly, gaze fixed on you with an intensity that sent a shiver down your spine.

You decided to continue to trust them. “Then... I’m yours,” you said shyly, suddenly very aware of how closely Wrecker had pulled you.

Wrecker grinned widely. “Can I kiss you, Shiv?”

You flushed but nodded, giving him a shy smile. Your eyes fluttered closed as he bent forward.

Wrecker’s kiss was... so distinctly him. His mouth burned, breath hot against your own lips. He tasted like the buttercream of the icing you’d made for the cupcakes, and his hands clenched eagerly around your hips. Still, it was gentle in his own way, and you found yourself dizzy from the heat when he finally let go.

“You okay, Shiv?” Wrecker asked, hand sliding up to your lower back to support you.

You took in a breath, leaning against his chest. “Y-yeah- s-sorry,” you stuttered, “it’s just— your breath is so warm.” You swallowed, closing your eyes.

“Is it?” Wrecker quizzically looked down at himself, breathing on his hand. “Huh.”

“Can-“ you sucked in a steadying breath. “I-“ The Bonds, usually passive in the back of your awareness, were lighting up with emotion. Wrecker’s pure elation was coursing through you, making you lean your forehead against his chest for a moment. You let out a soft whine. “Wrecker, you- you’re broadcasting so much-“

“Huh?” Wrecker paused, then let out an “Oh!” The elation quelled a little after a moment. “Sorry Shiv. Is that better?” he asked sheepishly.

You looked up at him, still feeling a little punch-drunk from the overflow. “You- you’re happy?” you asked, tilting your head at him. He grinned, a wave of adoration crashing over you. You shivered, collapsing against him and burying your face into his shoulder with a soft cry.

Hunter let out a quiet, husky chuckle. “I think you’re overwhelming her, Wrecker.”

“Sorry Hunter,” Wrecker said sheepishly. “Can’t help it.”

You felt yourself being moved, and the flow of emotion slightly slaked off, enough for you to try to look up. You found yourself gazing up at Hunter, who had pulled you into his lap instead. He reached up, brushing his thumb under your eye.

“A little better?”

You stared up into his eyes, noting hazily how much darker brown they were compared to Wrecker’s. While Wrecker’s Bond had stopped being so overwhelmingly loud, it was still present. Instead, you started feeling a new trickle of emotion from Hunter’s Bond. A muted sense of pride, of fondness that ran deep in its strength.

Your hands braced you against his arms, wrapped around your waist to keep you steady. “I-“ your eyes fluttered as you lost yourself to the emotion, lips parting with quick breaths. It was so clearly directed at you, meant wholly for you to feel. It washed over you with a warmth in its strength that you had no defense against.

Hunter bent, his mouth briefly pressing against your shoulder. “Can I kiss you, Shiv?” he asked lowly.

You just nodded, barely registering the question, completely pliant. Wrecker’s kiss still burned against your lips, only the feeling of Hunter’s arms holding you grounding you still.

Hunter’s kiss, you thought fuzzily, was as sure as he was. The care was there, certainly, but the way his mouth slanted against yours and the way his tongue brushed against your lower lip held a confidence that Wrecker’s hadn’t. His kiss gave as much as it took, a soothing coolness trickling between your lips in exchange for stealing your breath.

Your fingers tangled in his sleeves, and once he let go, you had to helplessly collapse against his chest and gasp for breath. Your mind whirled, simultaneously drowning in the projected emotions as well as your own. This was really happening. They really— they really cared for you. Accepted and returned your feelings.

The Bonds didn’t lie; and they refused to allow you to doubt the reality of it all as they continued to pour affirmation into your starved soul.

“Please-“ your voice was a weak cry, tears hovering on your lashes. “I— it’s so much-“

“Do you believe us, Shiv?” Hunter murmured into your ear. “Can you see how much we care about you?”

You looked up at him through blurred vision and sticky eyelashes. “Hunter,” you whimpered, desperately trying to focus. He bent and simply pressed a brief kiss to your parted lips.

“I think Cross wants some attention.” He smirked at you briefly, then turned you around.

Crosshair’s fingers grasped your chin, tilting your head up to him. A single emotion crossed your Bond with the sniper before he bent.

Crosshair’s kiss was possessive. Far from cold, the brief flash of fierce want underscored the fiery way his lips caught yours. He demanded entrance, quickly staking a claim on your mouth as soon as your lips obediently parted without question. It was the least distant he’d ever been toward you, and he pulled away to leave you almost cold.

The corner of his lips curled up in a smirk as he observed you with dark eyes, the pad of his thumb briefly brushing across your lower lip. “I think I’ll find a way to bruise you a little more, Shiv.” The promise made you realize that your lips had swollen, bruised by his kiss. He let go, turning to walk back to his seat.

You reached up to rub at your eye, still dazed and flushed. Everything felt so... surreal, yet not. Taking a moment to try to gather yourself, you swallowed and turned. Hunter helped you up, and you teetered your way to Tech’s chair.

Tech caught you, easing you into his lap. “Are you alright, Shiv?” he asked.

You nodded. “I’m okay,” you murmured, almost dreamily. You reached down, touching his hand that rested on your waist gingerly. “Do you— do you want something? I always feel like-“ your eyelashes fluttered as you started to feel his emotions bleed over your Bond. “Like you keep wanting to ask me something.”

He swallowed. “I—“ He glanced nervously at you, then down to his hands.

You tilted your head. “You can tell me, Tech. Tell me through the Bond,” you murmured, reaching up to touch his cheek.

He shuddered, eyes closing. A hesitant thought slunk over the Bond. Can I... can you please... A non-verbal image bloomed.

You smiled a little, then reached up and pulled Tech’s head down to your chest as you leaned back a little. You brushed your fingers through his hair, gently letting your nails drag across his scalp.

He shivered with a quiet groan, his hands unconsciously clenching around your waist.

Leaning down, you pressed a soft kiss to his forehead. “Is this what you want?”

His head moved jerkily in a nod. “Please,” he groaned.

You let your hands move down his neck, dragging your nails across his shoulders, sweeping back up to bury in his hair. “Thank you, Tech,” you whispered softly, gratefully.

He looked up at you. “What? Why?” He sounded genuinely confused.

Your hands rested against his shoulders. “For always being honest with me. And being kind.” You offered him a shy smile.

He stared at you for a minute, seeming to drink in your face. “Do you- are you happy? I mean, with me?” His eyebrows furrowed uncertainly. “I did sort of... blurt-“

“Tech.” You closed your eyes, then, and reached out to all of the Bonds. “This is how I feel. About all of you.” You let your own feelings pour into all of them, returning the flow of emotion.

You bared yourself, showing them. How deeply you trusted them. How much you respected them, looked up to them. The things that you admired about them: their strength, their acceptance of you, their uniqueness. How much you wanted their attention, how much you loved their kindness. How deeply they’d managed to crawl into your very soul, how much you belonged to them already.

Tech shuddered, almost collapsing into you, head leaning against your shoulder. Wrecker sighed from somewhere behind you. You could hear Crosshair let out a quiet huff of breath, and Hunter grunted.

Your fingers gently cupped Tech’s head against your shoulder, assuring yourself that he was okay. It took you by surprise when his head abruptly tilted up, his lips finding yours. You let out a little noise of surprise, hands still cupping his cheeks. The desperation that colored Tech’s kiss had your heart fluttering as you hummed softly with contentment.

“Shiv,” Tech mumbled against your lips, his nose brushing yours.

“I’m here,” you murmured back.

His eyes closed, and he tilted his head to kiss you again. His kiss was hungry, needy, full of a soft sort of desperation that made you want more. His mouth begged you for attention, opening against yours in a way that pleaded for you. He almost whined into the kiss, and you had to brush your fingers against his cheeks as you answered.

“You’ll stay with us, Shiv?” Tech asked thinly, as though making sure before he surrendered.

You nodded. “As long as you want me... I’ll stay,” you promised.

“Forever, then,” Wrecker piped up, clearly pleased.

You fell asleep against Tech, lulled by the lingering emotions.

Forever.

Tag list: 

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@darkangel4121

@ladydiomede

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[noocturnalchild]

A Ruined Movie Night

pairing : Modern!Ben Solo X Modern!Rey

Rated : Teens and up

Word count : 1K

No warnings. Just small silly writing...

This is the first piece I write for this fandom...

Hi I'm back... dunno XD

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

“Can I sit by your side, Ben?”

Rey tried to make it sound as casual as she could manage, and she regretted even asking. She could just take her seat casually by his side, like friends do, after all, didn’t she?

“I charge by the hour”

He seemed unbothered, face focused on the action scene that broke out suddenly and she took advantage of his moment of inattention to move carefully on his side of the sofa.

“Prick, move your ass.”

Ben swallowed as she sat beside him. She was wearing that sweater he liked so much. With the three buttons on the back, starting from the collar down her neck. They were so tempting, these little three buttons, like round little candies wrapped in mauve, begging to be popped.

Ben aggressively dumped a handful of kettle corn in his mouth.

“Easy, angry bear! We haven’t even made It to the first half of the movie. Think about your smaller forest raccoon friend.” She leaned to grab some popcorn from the box on his lap and he ducked, swiftly lifting the box out of her reach, hiding it behind the sofa arm.

“Raccoons are cocky thieves, they say.”

“Bullshit !” She shouted, “They are the most ado-“

“Hey! Look, you made me miss how they blow up that ship!” Ben’s scream was tainted with laugher. “Can’t you keep still for a moment? Jesus!”

“And they are cute! AND you are definitely the one ALWAYS fidgeting in your seat! If my sofa could talk, I’m sure it would fill salty complaints against your flat ass!”

“My flat what?!” Ben mumbled curses under his breath.

“I can HEAR you.”

“I know.” he smiled.

They fell into a comfortable silence again, before Ben put the popcorn box in her lap, casually not moving his hand off.

“Just a precaution, forest thief.”

She gave him a faux dirty side look, followed by a lopsided smile as they refocused on the space opera playing on the screen.

Warmth flooded Rey’s space and she relaxed, limbs limp and head empty, lids heavy with sleepy comfort. His hand and technically, half of his arm were still on her lap. Damn, the man was warmer than her central heating. She wondered if he was conscious, or if people noticed. If his other friends teased him about it, if his exes…she chastised the latter thought, and corrected her stance. She was leaning a bit too much into his shoulder, she noticed as a dull pain started to numb the nape of her neck.

Rey tried to crack her neck a number of times, wincing at the pain that didn’t seem to lessen, but to increase. She sighed in discomfort, touching the painful place to find it ice cold. Fuck her premature cervical arthrosis.

“You alright?” Ben seemed to watch her for a while now.

“Yeah, just a light neck pain, 8 hours at Plutt’s do that to you.”

“Doesn’t seem to be light, to me.”

“I told you it’s ok.”

“No, it’s not, look at your face, your wince looks like a that of middle age martyr on a burning stick!”

“History nerd. I don’t look like that.”

“A constipated raccoon then.”

“Ok, I have arthrosis.”

“What?”

“As I told you, dumbass.”

“Are you 80 or something?”

“You idiot, it has nothing to do-“

“I know, I know that wasn’t funny. Where does it hurt?” Ben paused the movie.

“The nape of my neck, mostly…”

“It worsens when it’s cold huh?”

“Yes, exactly, and today was just…”

“Yeah, let me check if we forgot one of the windows open or something.”

“Yeah fine.” She winced again at the loss of heat when he moved to check the windows.

When Ben came back, he found her literally crumpled on herself, arms wrapping around her and shivering.

“What? I leave you one second and you transform into a snail?”

“Fuck you Solo.”

“Closed the kitchen window. You’re welcome.” Ben flopped down back into the sofa beside her, making her bounce in her place.

“Slow, I’m sick.”

“It’s your neck that’s hurtin’ not your ass- You fucking finished the popcorn!” He exclaimed at the empty box lying neglectfully now at her feet and she shrugged, not sorry the slightest.

“I’d crack you neck good if it wasn’t already fucked.”

“You’re rude!”

“Let me finish the movie, you should too.”

A few minutes later …

“Feelin’ any better?” Ben paused the movie again.

What a ruined movie night, Rey thought as she shook her head, eyeing the empty second popcorn box. In the end, none of them was really focused on the events anymore.

“Nah, to be honest. I’m so done.” She sighed.

“You should try heat patches.” Ben talked seriously now, concern visible in his chocolate eyes.

“Too tired to go and try this now, just wanna zone out on that couch when the movie is over, eugh.”

She slumped further onto the cushions. her cheeks were so red, and her hair all tousled and messy and he found himself staring and starring, a bubble of tenderness swelling in his chest at the sight before him.

“Ok, we can try something else…” words fled his mouth before he could catch them.

“Liiiike?” She pinched her brows, confused.

Ben showed her his hand.

“I… don’t… understand” she said slowly. Ben sighed, a pretty blush raised to his cheeks. In the faint light coming from the Tv, he hoped it wasn’t that obvious.

“Can …can I put my hand on the nape of your neck?”

Rey was dumbstruck for a second or two, looking at him with round eyes and Ben felt so stupid, the stupidest he felt for a while, to say the truth.

“Please?”

No, now he felt like the dumbest creature in the galaxy.

What kind of earthly idiot would ask their roommate to use their hand as a heat patch? Ben wished they’ve already created that damn time machine so he could hide his shameless face in the past and disappear from history, once and for all.

But here she was, surprise flipping to impish amusement. In her eyes was a flame twinkling in the feeble light of their small living space.

“Ok” her response came against all odds, and he had to metaphorically reboot to register it.

“Ok” Rey said again, no hesitation in her voice whatsoever, eyes wide open. Was he mistaken somehow, or was that a smirk she was giving him now?

No, she must be as stupid as him, that’s the only explanation.

“Hey, Venus to Mars? Ben?”

“Oh, hello”

Idiot.

“You offered. I’m waiting” she said firmly, an exaggerated grimace as she turned slightly, offering the base of her neck to him, pointing at it impatiently.

“Of-of course”

Hesitantly, Ben reached out, but before he could take his time playing his stupid self, Rey took his hand and pressed his palm resolutely on her soring spot, instantly groaning in relief.

“Fuck Ben, that’s definitely one of your rarest good ideas” She flexed her neck again, hand always grasping his, keeping it firm against her skin, like to absorb the maximum heat.

He should have thanked heavens she kept her eyes closed; his face resembled more that of a clown now, he knew. He had to return to cool Ben, have a grip on his running thoughts. He coughed a little.

“Oh, It’s uncomfortable?” Rey opened her eyes finally, seeming to realize he was struggling with their current position. She released his hand.

“No, just…just turn around... we could just sit like we were and you can use my hand as a neck pillow as much as you want”

“ So generous when you feel like it” Rey teased and the sparkle in her eyes returned. Ben really struggled to pull himself off the searing feeling he was lost in all of a sudden as his chest expanded with unfamiliar bubbles.

“Huh, guess so” he replied vaguely, still pretty much distracted by the placement of his hand on her skin. Damn, he had to find conversation, and soon. Silence wasn’t an option now.

Fuck. Make it awkward Ben, that’s it.

Ah right, the movie. Ben reached for the remote and pressed resume.

The sound of spaceships explosions echoed in the tiny living room walls. Rey and Ben both jolted in their place. They didn’t even remember putting the movie on pause in the midst of that action, mind on other matters. They both burst into laughter when the first shock subsided and Rey leaned a little bit onto him. She was visibly feeling better now. Her muscles seemed relaxed and warm and she looked…genuinely happy. Ben wished the smile he saw then on her face to never fade away. He promised himself that it wouldn’t, as long as they were together.

“So…Ben…” Rey sweetly sang-song after some moments of silence. “Since today is the day I apparently entered in your good graces … remember that little favor I asked you about …the history exam?”

Fucks sake. Not that. Now. That was too good to be true.

“No, Rey. Happens that I don’t remember that.” Ben refrained from rolling his eyes. He actually remembered well her very specific request to get help from him, and no, not to study...but to cheat.

Rey sighed, dramatic.

“At least I tried.”

“You should rather try and study, for a change.” Ben said firmly, trying and successfully hiding his amusement behind a frown, one of his stern ones.

It was almost comical now; the number of times she tried to get him to help her cheat on an exam, begging, bribing, without results, but never backing down. Typically Rey, he thought with fondness.

“So how long are we staying like this, anyway?”

“Just a lil bit mooore. next time think twice before you offer” Rey whined.

“You little scrounger” Ben mumbled between his teeth.

“I heard you!”

“I know” and he smiled.

[fraink5-writes]

From Darkness Into the Lantern Light - Chapter 8

Is there a more exciting way to start the best month of the year than with a heartfelt conversation between two fictional characters?

Thanks to @leio13 for her innumerable contributions!

Summary: Once upon a time, there was a cold-hearted queen. Although the Tsaritsa, as she was called, possessed her own divinity, she coveted the powers of the other Archons. Aiming to steal the Geo Archon’s gnosis, she sent her strongest warriors to Liyue Harbor. But just when Rex Lapis was almost defeated, he escaped to another vessel, that of a powerless baby, and was swept away to a hidden tower for his protection.

Many years after the great fight, the young and ambitious Harbinger, Childe, arrives in Liyue to grant the Tsaritsa’s desire, but, on his search for the Geo Archon’s gnosis, he ends up tangled in a mysterious man’s dreams to see Liyue Harbor’s Lantern Rite.

This chapter can also be found on Ao3 here. Without further ado, please enjoy!

The sky glowed bright orange, not unlike Childe's hair, when Childe's eyes cracked open. With a lingering hazy look upon his face, he gazed up. "Zhongli?" he asked in a mumbled whisper.

"Did you sleep well? Are you feeling better?" Zhongli smiled.

Childe nodded. "I had the strangest dream…"

Zhongli could not suppress his sigh. As long as Childe believed that what happened was a dream, Zhongli's secret was essentially safe.

"It wasn't a dream, was it?" Before Zhongli had realized, Childe's eyes had returned to their usual keenness.

Zhongli conceded with a shake of his head.

"I knew it," Childe declared while sitting up. “But don’t worry; I won’t ask about it—as per contract.”

“It’s all right.” Zhongli fidgeted with his ponytail. “It would be better if I told you myself than let it fester wildly in your imagination.”

“Good plan.” Childe smirked. He scooted next to Zhongli, crossed his legs close to his chest, and leaned his chin on his hands as though eager to hear a story.

Zhongli inhaled. This was the consequence of his actions. The price was only fair. Childe had risked his life to keep Zhongli from danger; as such, it was only natural that Zhongli put himself at risk by revealing his secret as repayment. He exhaled. “As you saw, my hair has the power to heal injuries. When I use it, it glows just like this.” Zhongli held out his now-amber hair for Childe to see.

“Woah…” Childe’s voice came out as barely a whisper. “Does it… does it do anything else?”

“Anything else? Not as far as I know.”

“How long has it been like this…?”

“As long as I can remember.” Zhongli twirled a few tiny strands of hair that he had hidden behind his ear. “When it’s cut, it loses its power and doesn’t grow back. That’s why my mother hid me away in that tower, and I never left. If someone were to find out about its power, they would try to take it for themselves. Such a power needs to be protected.”

“But now you’re old enough to leave on your own.” Childe gazed sympathetically as he reassured Zhongli. “You’ve spent all that time training to protect yourself.”

“Yes, I suppose you’re right.” Zhongli was at a loss; he didn’t know what kind of reaction he would receive—he had never even planned on telling anyone. Yet Childe’s composure put him at ease—if only a little.

“Come on. Like I said earlier, don’t worry. What could happen with the two of us?” Childe’s confident grin mellowed into a small grin. “I appreciate that you told me this.”

“I didn’t think it would be possible to keep that secret much longer.”

“Right? It’s only been two days, but it’d be hard to say we’re strangers at this point. Well, I consider anyone willing to fight with me a friend—which makes you, by definition, a friend!”

“Is that so? A very odd definition of friends, especially since we don’t properly know each other’s names.”

“Ahaha…” Childe scratched his head while laughing weakly. “So that wasn’t a dream either…”

“No.”

“Are you mad?”

“Not particularly. But I am curious as to why you chose to lie.” This was true. As their contract essentially stipulated that they remain strangers, he couldn’t expect Childe to follow the same code of personal conduct. However, he couldn’t help but agree that he and Childe had, in fact, surpassed the status of strangers, so, accordingly, he was curious about Childe’s real name.

“Don’t take it personally! I didn’t just lie to you; I stopped using the other name a long time ago.”

Zhongli and Childe stared in silence as Zhongli tried to repress his curiosity. Childe's face, as usual, was illegible, but rather than a fake smile, his mask was solemn.

"Alright, I'll tell you." Childe sighed. "Because I think you have a good point about the names." Breaking eye contact, he leaned back. "Ajax. That's the name my father gave me."

"'Ajax'… That's a nice name. Certainly not one to be ashamed of."

Childe chuckled with a shake of his head. "Don't misunderstand—it's a noble name. The original Ajax was a great hero and adventurer." As Childe explained, Zhongli thought he glimpsed a flash of light in his eyes.  Zhongli wished to grab hold of it and draw it out, but it quickly vanished into a shadow. "Such a proud name shouldn't be tarnished. That's why I left it behind when I started down this path." Childe laughed hollowly. "So that's it."

That's it? The empty conclusion brought a brief frown to Zhongli's face, but he was quick to push it aside on his search for Childe's light. "I want to know more about Ajax."

"Ajax?" It was a promising start as Childe smiled again. "Where to begin… As a great hero in Teyvat, he has many stories—" But the attempt ended in failure.

"No, the other Ajax."

"The other Ajax?" Childe blinked. "Are you sure? It's not a very good story. Boring at best, a downer at worst."

"I don't mind. I enjoy reading non-fiction." Frankly, Zhongli did not care about drama or excitement; he preferred facts about the world around him, and, in this case, he wanted to know how the man besides him came to be the way he was.

"Suit yourself." Childe sighed. "I'll do you a favor and skip all the boring parts though. One day, when Ajax was fourteen, he was walking through the woods. All of the sudden, some scary wolves appeared!" He paused for dramatic effect then continued miming the story with his hands. "Their claws marred the snow's face with dirt—and their fangs! Their fangs were dripping with blood! Powerless against the ferocious pack, Ajax turned and fled. He jumped over logs and ducked under branches, but alas! He was not careful enough as he went tumbling into a deep, deep hole! And, unfortunately, Ajax never quite made it out of there. The end."

Zhongli clapped. "That was a compelling story, but it was missing one crucial part." As emphatic a storyteller as Childe was, his story had a glaring hole. But it was such a dark and ominous gap that Zhongli dared not explore deeper. Its contents were locked deep in Childe's heart, where they should remain undisturbed. "The beginning."

"You really want to hear that?"

"Of course, the beginning is essential for getting to know the characters."

Childe raised an eyebrow. "Fine." Despite his reluctance, a grin sprouted on Childe's face as soon as he started speaking. "There once was a boy named Ajax, who lived in Snezhnaya, where it's so cold that if you stop moving, you freeze to death. He was named Ajax by his father after the great hero, and this fact brought much pride to the boy who loved ice fishing."

"Ice fishing?"

"Yeah, it's a little different than regular fishing." Childe mimed casting a fishing line into the water. "Once you've found your spot on the ice, you drill a small hole—a fish-sized hole—lower your bait, and then wait. Wait, wait, wait. If you feel a tug, you've got one! Sometimes it never happens, and that's fine too."

"How inefficient.”

Childe laughed. "Well, the fish aren't important. What's important is what you do while waiting. For example, you can sit down next to each other and tell stories, just like we are. That was Ajax's favorite part, listening to his father's stories. Thrilling adventure stories of renowned heroes and many from his father’s own youth. To little Ajax, his father was the greatest hero. As Ajax listened to these stories, hooked on every word, he dreamed of his own adventures, ones that would impress even the heroes he admired."

Just like little Ajax probably felt listening to his father, Zhongli was enamored by Childe’s storytelling, but, on the contrary, the details felt like the least important thing. He was mesmerized by Childe’s hopeful gestures, excited tone, and his eyes, which dazzled like the surface of the ocean on a cloudless day. They exuded an unfamiliar warmth, drawing Zhongli closer.

“Ah! How could I forget?” Childe suddenly exclaimed. “I should introduce the other major characters.”

Zhongli tilted his head.

“You see, besides his loving parents, Ajax has many wonderful siblings—five, to be exact! Two older and three younger: Teucer, Tonia, and Anthon. They are his world. Let’s see. Teucer is still so young, so he loves toys, and, among those, his favorite one is ‘Mr. Cyclops.’ I just defeated four of them back there, you know. Anyway, to Teucer…” As Childe described Ajax’s family, a subtle but persistent upturned curl played at his lips. His words fell softly like a blanket enveloping the characters. His faraway gaze reflected a fathomless affection, and, after an indefinite time, when they finally turned steadily towards Zhongli, he nearly melted. “How was that? Are you satisfied?”

Zhongli nodded. “Almost. However, I think I prefer Ajax.”

“Huh?” Childe’s head turned. “But you don’t even know him.”

“That’s not true. I just met him, and I’ve learned so much from your stories. He’s much more genuine.”

“If you think so, I’m glad.” Although Childe smiled, his eyes were dull with sorrow.

“It’s not too late. To be the hero in Ajax’s dreams, to be the person Anthon, Teucer and Tonia believe you to be.” Zhongli reached out his hand, his fingers lightly brushing Childe’s cheek. “I know that Ajax didn’t die in that forest. May I call you that, Ajax?”

Childe nodded, gently intertwining their fingers.

***

Ajax could feel heat building up under Zhongli’s hand on his cheek. He glanced side-to-side. Since when was it so dark? He had been so caught up in stories of the past that he forgot about the passage of time. He stood up. “I didn’t realize it was so late. You must be hungry. I’ll go get something to eat.” He quickly turned around.

“Thank you.”

Ajax paused. “You don’t know how to start a fire, do you?”

“I may have read about it in a book.”

“Alright, let me show you real quickly.” Ajax scrambled to create a fire pit. Then he carved his drill and board in order to create the beginnings of a fire. “The goal is to create enough friction in order to get sparks.” When he created enough coals by turning the drill, he lightly blew on them to encourage a flame before putting them in the pit. After a sizable fire had started, Ajax stood with his arms akimbo. “See? Just like that.” Zhongli stared wordlessly, his mouth slightly agape. Of course, Ajax knew that it was a terrible demonstration, but he wanted to leave quickly. “I’ll be back soon, okay? I don’t expect any trouble, but if anything happens, you can hold your own.”

Zhongli scooted closer to the fire. “I’ll be fine here. Good luck out there, Ajax.”

Ajax’s heart thudded. He nodded brusquely before taking off. Running away from a fight was the response of a coward, but this was different. He needed to be alone to think and catch his breath.

Ajax, Ajax, Ajax. Ajax’s heart beat rhythmically to the repeated echo of his name. It had been years since anyone had called him that, except his family (and even then, he rarely had the opportunity to see them.) The sound of it bounced around his brain with such trepidation, such joy.

Was it okay for Childe to have told Zhongli all that? His name, his past and his family were his greatest secrets that he held closest to his heart. Not even his fellow harbingers knew about Ajax.

But Zhongli was different. He wasn’t calculating or malicious. Although justifiably paranoid, Zhongli lived earnestly and put a lot of trust into his principles and into others. Childe had given up on living like that, but he wanted to be worthy of Zhongli’s trust. 

Childe scoffed. Perhaps telling Zhongli about Ajax was another act of deception, for it was too late for Childe to return to how Ajax once was. He was a member of the Fatui. He operated through manipulation and murder. Even as he guided Zhongli to Liyue Harbor, the true intentions of his trip had always been to steal the power from Rex Lapis. At his core, nothing remained that was worth trusting.

When Zhongli dropped his paranoid guard, he was in fact too trusting. That fact had not left Ajax’s mind since Zhongli befriended the Crux Fleet. Although such a weakness was objectively exploitable, Ajax found it to have the opposite effect as well: it was endearing. It was an earnest, inadvertent manipulation that transformed Childe from a weapon to a shield. Maybe because Zhongli had not felt the cutting edge of Childe’s blade, he believed in Ajax. In return, Ajax would protect him. If Zhongli were the only person who believed, Ajax would become a hero like those of stories for him alone.

At least until Liyue Harbor. At Liyue Harbor, no matter what happened, Childe would have to confront all that had led up to that point. At Liyue Harbor, it would all end.

After Ajax had gathered a decent amount of berries and sunsettias, he was met with the issue of the main course. His only two blades were impractical for hunting if he chanced upon a bird or boar, but fruit would not suffice as a meal. He circled around the pool at the earlier battlefield until he spotted a shielded mitachurl sitting against a stone wall. Although there was no fire, it was unlikely that a hilichurl would make camp without a meal. Ajax crept closer, sure enough there were two more hilichurls and a boar carcass. Perfect. After clearing out the hilichurls, the meat was Childe’s for the taking.

Childe charged at large hilichurl. It jumped up, erecting its sturdy shield. With no way to deal with the shield, Childe danced in circles around the beast, swiping continually with his blade. An arrow grazed the side of his head. Aside from a few strands of hair, it was probably nothing to worry about. His thoughts returned to his main target: the mitachurl. On the next opening, he jammed a dagger into its back. Seeing their strongest member stagger, the samachurl frantically waved its oversized wand a few times before scrambling up the cliff and away. The hilichurl with a crossbow fired several directionless shots, but it too dropped its weapon as Childe slowly approached. Childe waited, daggers in hand. Finally, it turned, running after the samachurl. 

Ajax sighed as he inspected the dead boar. He and Zhongli would not need so much meat. Besides, he didn’t want to be the one to show Zhongli his first animal butchering. So he decided to carve out a piece there and carry it back to their fire. The hilichurls could enjoy the rest if they ever returned.

Crunch.

Ajax peered at the ground below his foot. There laid a red mask, broken in two. It must have been knocked by that arrow. He sighed. Despite never wearing it properly, Childe had always been fond of that mask, but he couldn’t possibly fix it—not in his current situation, at least. He stuffed the two pieces into one of his pockets. Then he hurried back to Zhongli, picking up some mint for flavor.

“Welcome back, Ajax.” Zhongli warmly greeted Ajax upon his return.

“Sorry for the delay.” Ajax sat by the fire and prepared for phase two: the actual cooking.

“It’s no problem. It looks like you brought back plenty. Do you need any help?”

“Nope. Just sit back and relax. I don’t think I mentioned this, but Ajax is also a talented chef, you know.”

“Is there anything he isn’t?”

“A good diplomat, for one. Unless you count being atop everyone’s wanted list.”

Zhongli’s laugh brushed past Ajax’s ears like a warm breeze. “Well, I’m looking forward to whatever you make.”

Ajax impulsively looked away, blush creeping on his face. “It’ll be ready soon. In the meanwhile, if you’re hungry, you can eat the fruit; they don’t need to be cooked.” For the remainder of the cooking time, Ajax focused keenly on the roasting beef.

When the beef was nicely cooked, he seasoned it with a bit of mint then handed a portion to Zhongli. “Enjoy!”

“Thank you.”

Before he could even think about eating, Ajax watched intently for Zhongli’s reaction as he bit in. Widening eyes, curled lips and a swift second bite—even without words, Ajax knew he had succeeded. His chest swelled with pride. Nevertheless, he couldn’t help himself. “How is it?” He asked. 

Zhongli daintily patted his lips clean before responding. “It’s delicious.”

Ajax beamed. “What did I tell you?” Only when he was full on compliments did he take his first bite.

“Ajax.” Zhongli lowered the sunsettia he was eating. “Concerning tomorrow…”

“I know, I know. Tomorrow’s the Lantern Rite, right?”

“Yes. Of course, you know this route better than I, but…”

“Don’t worry! We’ll definitely make it on time. But we should leave early, at dawn. I want to show you all Liyue Harbor has to offer.”

“Okay.” Zhongli sighed. “What a relief.” After finishing the sunsettia, he stood up. “It would be good to get some rest soon.”

“Yeah, about that, we should sleep in shifts. Unpleasant types flock around ruins. Sorry that I can’t provide anywhere better to rest for the night.”

“Don’t say that. You’ve already done so much.” Zhongli covered a yawn with his hand.

“Why don’t you go on and sleep first? I already got plenty of rest earlier.”

“Then I will. Thank you.” A meter away, Zhongli lay down on the grass, his back to the fire. “Goodnight, Ajax.”

“Goodnight.” So soft, Ajax’s whisper probably never reached Zhongli’s ears. As he finished off the remaining food, unwilling to make waste, he watched the rhythmic rise and fall of Zhongli’s shoulder blades. How peaceful. How could he, a man who had more at risk than Childe, trust the man at his back so blindly?

Ajax put out the fire to deter any potential visitors then he crept closer to Zhongli. When he was certain Zhongli was sleeping, he picked up a few silky strands of hair and brought them to his lips. How strange to think that this hair was the string of fate which drew them together, that it was the source of their problems.

I’m sorry, Zhongli, about our contract.

[jelanisaeed]

Round 1: VS Venonat - Legends Part 1

Hello everyone, welcome to my story! This is the first book in a series I'm writing. Hopefully, it'll be finished the way I want it to be. I have a lot of plans to manipulate known facts and add my own into the fray as well.

Sorry, y'all! I didn't mean to fall off on writing this. I just got self-conscious. But I'm not going to let that get into the way anymore! I'm gonna stay on top of writing this!

Especially with this new writing style I've got! I've discovered I'm more a slice of life, mystery, fantasy type of writer. Not so much action like I originally tried. So, my chapters will be much shorter than before and will have great character interactions. I hope y'all like it this go around! And I promise I'll do better with staying on top of things!

I've made a lot of changes to the OG story, along with the previous version so I'll make sure to spot them out and let y'all know!

Oh, and quick disclaimer. I'm a black queer writer so all of my stories, including this one, will have characters who explore black and queer themes. I hope this creates a welcoming atmosphere for all to enjoy my stories and see a different perspective on pokemon and what it can be written about.

I also hope to inspire more black and queer writers to write stories on this site. The more the merrier!

Oh and I'm thinking about doing this thing where I tell y'all what music helped me write these chapters. It's a fun little thing. Mainly because music is a big part of my writing process so I thought it'd be fun to share with y'all!

So these three chapters were inspired by the Calling All Lovers album by Tamar Braxton! I love her voice and have been obsessed with her recently! She's always been one of my favs (#piscesgang) but this revisit to this gem just kept me going! I believe the song that helped a lot was Broken Record.

Special shoutout to Big Dummy by Cocoa Sarai (#piscesgang) as well! That song kept me motivated.

Without further ado, I hope you enjoy it!

…

Pokémon Adventures: Turquoise, Jasper, & Ammolite

Round 1: VS Venonat – Legends Part 1

Location: Twinleaf Town Date: August 4th, 3000 Time: 8:45am

Legends. Paxton grew up on the grand tales of mystery and wonder. Weaved together by ancient people who desired to understand the world around them. From declarations of the universe’s creation to the birth of emotions. A legend existed for them all. And all found themselves scribed and stored in libraries across Sinnoh.

Once upon a time, he believed them. Sat amongst groups of budding trainers in awe as their teacher’s spun these tales. Admired the scholars who backed up these claims with beautifully dressed lies. Part of him wished he believed them. At least then he’d preserve the innocence he lost long ago.

Not that it mattered. Innocence didn’t make for a great travel companion. Clouded the mind and led even the best astray. Paxton knew he’d never succumb to it. Not again.

“Ain’t that right, Kiri?” his little formantis thrilled beside him. She fell in step beside him, having just defeated a wild bidoof. Annoying rodents with the worst aromas.

Under the morning sun, he kept moving. Summers in Sinnoh never made much sense. Despite the heat, a chilling breeze whisked by. Eastern winds—had to be from the lake. Still, a bit musty for his taste. He heard Lake Verity was a beautiful place filled with energetic, young pokémon. Perhaps just another well-crafted lie.

It doesn’t matter. Paxton shrugged and continued his path. He had his mission and pitstops didn’t fit the bill. Soon enough, he found himself inside Twinleaf Town. A cute little place filled with morning folks. They took to the streets with their pokémon and tended to their business. A few merchant stands set up with fresh produce and supplies.

“Pretty nice, huh?” Kiri agreed. She breathed in the fresh air and thrilled. Much better for her than Jubilife City.

Now, if any of them could point him in the right direction—

“I tell ya it’s true!” A youngster wailed to a crowd. Quite the sight, Paxton mused. Clothes tattered and caked with mud. His youthful tan marred with bruises and an odd burn across his forearm.

“There’s a monster in the lake! It attacked me and my nidoran!”

A monster in Lake Verity? Paxton frowned. Too farfetched for his taste. Powerful pokémon never lingered along the lakefront, so the merchants told him. The most dangerous any trainer encountered was a choleric gyarados!

There’s no such thing as monsters, he scoffed but got closer regardless. The kid had a story, no doubt about it. Perhaps it would prove to be a challenge for him.

Though his hopes weren’t high. Twinleaf Town hadn’t produced capable trainers in years—

“The boy speaks truth, if only misguided,” an elderly man took the boy’s side with a pleasant smile. Eyes narrowed with wisdom as leaned against his cane. “There’s always been a force protecting the lakefront. A guardian blessed by Lady Mesprit herself. It serves to protect the grounds from intruders.”

A guardian, the Paxton scoffed. Yet another well-dressed lie. And the crowd around him shared his thoughts if their whispers were any indication.

Clearly, the elder saw no reason to stop. He only adjusted his kimono and tapped his cane against the lush grass. A soft, melodic sound, yet it quieted the confused herd of people. Paxton whistled. Plenty of teachers killed for that superpower, especially on the last day of classes.

“Now, now,” The elder smiled, gingerly tapping the pokéball on his cane. “We all knew of the legend.”

The ball snapped open and released a pokémon before them all. A beautiful feline with glowing, white fur. The perfect contrast to its pitch-black skin and talons. Armed with a scythe-like tail and a crescent horn jutting from its forehead.

It glared at him with glowing red eyes. Eyes filled with frosty wisdom. Lingered on him, demanding something the trainer wasn’t prepared to give.

He flinched. Not his proudest moment. And the pokémon agreed, turning up its nose with a snarl.

“You feel it, Absol?” The man said in a graveled whisper. At once, the strange pokémon—absol, he supposed—growled. The elder stroked its forehead and locked eyes with the trainer. “Young man, what is your name.”

Part of him wanted nothing more than to flip the old geezer off. He hated unwanted attention. Yet the questioning gaze of the crowd made him shrink. Of course, that geezer had them wrapped up in his every word.

“Paxton,” he spoke softly, gathering Kiri closer for comfort. She glared and waved her arms for battle. “Paxton Lotus of Floaroma Town. This is my partner pokémon, Kiri the formantis.”

The geezer nodded with a strange smile. But Paxton couldn’t place why it disturbed him. “You all remember the legend,” the geezer spoke again. “A child blessed with verity. Discovered by the peaceful flower.” Paxton groaned. Of course, this had something to do with him. No wonder he didn’t trust the geezer. “Tell me, young one. What has brought you to his town?”

Easy. He had his mission. Deliver the package and report back to Professor Kapok. Nothing special. He did plenty of these over the weeks.

“To see the lake guardian with my own eyes,” Paxton spoke, but words felt foreign. “And start my journey with an adventure.”

“An adventure,” The man smiled. A knowing smile Paxton saw plentifully on Father’s face. “An adventure intertwined with the red strings. Yes, you certainly shall receive one. Follow me, please youngling.”

Something tells me I shoulda stayed in Floaroma Town

…

Suddenly, staying in Floaroma Town felt like the right move. Paxton sighed and ran a hand over his green coils. Lake Verity didn’t live up to the legends. No bustling pokémon or fairy spirits. Not even a spontaneous battle—though, Paxton yearned for it well. Just silence and a thick fog.

A strange fog at that. It hung over the trees until they caved to its weighed. Many bent at odd angles. Not even Eterna Forest looked so eerie. And that forest had far too many ghost-type pokémon.

“I hate this place,” Paxton shivered. The air seemed so cold and heavy. And each brush of air prickled his skin with sharpened icicles.

Paxton paused by a familiar tree. Passed it a few times now, he knew. No other tree had these strange cravings on the bark. Some language, he wagered. However, the letters seemed bizarre and had cycloptic eyes. Strange, yet they seemed familiar. As if he saw them in a dream before.

{Paxton…} a voice whispered on the wind. Eyes darted around, but Paxton couldn’t find the source. Yet the voice continued, whispering his name in an offbeat rhythm. {Paxton…}

Great, I’m loosin’ it! Paxton groaned. Yet the voice paid him no heed. Each whisper grew louder than the last with a pronounced echo. Mashed together with words until it jumbled into an incoherent mess. Pain shot through his mind and Paxton stumbled. Braced against the tree, he stared into the fog and froze.

A figure breached the fog. Pale as ice with messy coils and lifeless eyes. Naked yet the wisping streamers of the fog covered anything unsavory. The figure stared at him with shinning sky-blue eyes…and smiled. Giggled even!

Is that a ghost? Paxton swallowed. Spirits weren’t his forte. In fact, they freaked him out!

{Paxton…} the ghost spoke even though its lips never moved. It urged him to follow as it stepped back into the fog. {Paxton…}

…Hell. Against his better judgement, he followed it. Chased it through the shifting fog as Kiri appeared beside him in a burst of light. He needed her. If this ghost was anything like the kind in Kanto, then he couldn’t take any chances! Would’ve been a perfect time to find that guardian though.

Guardian…what if that ghost was the guardian? A chill ran down his spine. He hoped not. Dealing with the undead was Casper’s thing, not his! He had enough of ghost-type pokémon ever since he got lost in that busted down chateau!

Still, he put those thoughts aside and chased its faded form. Even as his lungs screamed at him to take a break. Or his legs struggled to keep up. He fought through it. And Paxton found himself in a clearing. Empty, yet devoid of the heavy fog. Just a soft breeze and lake water as it crashed against the ground.

The ghost turned to him and grinned. Eyes filled with mirth as it lifted off the ground and floated to the lake. Paxton followed and gazed in awe. The ghost danced above, swinging its arms. It spiralled through the morning skies and giggled. Soft and melodious as the soft waves rolling through. And with a grin, the ghost dove into the lake.

Glittering light erupted across the water. Engulfed the lake in a rainbow splendor.

For a moment, Paxton stared into the light. Entranced as thoughts raced through his mind. Feelings, long since buried, unearthed and flooded him in a sparkling array of light—

(Veno-NAT!)

Paxton didn’t realize he moved until the heat hit him. As he rolled along the soft grass, charred dirt sprinkled his skin. Ignited by flashes of green light. Something attacked him, but he couldn’t see anything in the grass. Just rustling as the breeze blew through—

(NAT!)

This time, Paxton was ready. He lunged away as streaks of light smashed into the ground. Unharmed except for the light scarps. Good enough for Kiri as she dashed into the fight. She weaved through the streaks of light and unleashed a spiral of glowing leaves into the tall grass. Trimmed grass fluttered through the air, but the rustled told him all he needed to know.

“Kiri, widen your range and trim the grass! Razor Leaf!”

Sharpened leaves ripped through the air and trimmed the tall grass. Amongst the fallen leaves, he caught a glimpse of the assailant. Purple for sure…and were those clodhopper feet?

The creature paused in the epicenter of the field. And…it had to be the ugliest thing Paxton ever saw. Thick, disheveled purple fur mashed with giant, red eyes, stubby paws and insect features. Poor thing. Nobody’d ever train something so hideous.

This must be the monster. Paxton frowned. Ugly or not, he had to get rid of it.

“Kiri, time to water the garden.” Kiri rushed it and slashed it across the chest. The bug cried out, but Kiri didn’t stop there. She slashed and slashed, drawing pained buzzes from the creature. Now that Kiri had a target, that bug didn’t have a chance.

“That’s it! Fury Cutter!”

Once Fury Cutter went to work, it didn’t matter what pokémon Kiri faced. Each slash gained greater strength than the last. A nasty move for sure but made pokémon battles so much easier. The bug stumbled away from a slash and hopped away. But Kiri raced after it, unleashing more spiraling leaves to smash into its back.

“Finish it, Kiri! Leaf—”

Kiri cried out, low and mangled, as she fell forward! Her blades held her up, but she gasped for air.

But how?! Paxton watched in horror as the air rippled and smashed into Kiri, blowing her back. He lunged for her. Caught her just before she crashed. And when he pulled her close, he found streaks of purple staining her green skin. Poison?

(Nat?) The bug hopped over. Body tensed as green light oozed underneath its messy fur. Paxton dipped a hand to his belt. He had the perfect pokémon for this ugly—

“Motha,” A calm, melodious voice washed over the field. And the beast paused. “That’s enough.”

The beast hobbled over to the lake with a certain bounce that Paxton didn’t appreciate.

“That’s enough fighting, please,” the same voice spoke again. And a trainer climbed out of the crystal waters. Clad in only a pair of black briefs decorated with bugs and bubbles. His soaked black coils hung over his eyes, dripping water down his toned hazelnut body. When he finally moved the coiled curtains, Paxton caught sight of sky-blue eyes.

Just like that ghost.

But…his looked so shattered.

“Who are you?” He spoke again with that same melodious quality. Only this time, there was a noticeable edge. Like a cliff blocking a powerful wave. “What are you doing in Lake Verity?”

Paxton scowled. Figures the monster had a trainer. It fought too well to be wild. But it didn’t make sense. Why attack? Paxton shook his head.

“My name is Paxton—Paxton Lotus of Floaroma Town,” he gulped. His heart pounded against his chest. “I’m here to defeat the monster in Lake Verity. That you, ain’t it?”

The trainer paused. And his eyes darkened with flecks of gray.

“I am the guardian of Lake Verity,” he began slowly as a storm brewed behind his lips. “My name is Turquoise. Turquoise Yukule.”

…

How did y'all like that chapter? It took some time to perfect, but I loved the twist it took! I'm happy with it.

Paxton's a new character I made. Lowkey based him off of a mix of the Aroma Lady and Gardener Trainer Classes. I'm starting to really fuse Trainer Classes for some reason and I love it lol

And yay, Turquoise is back! He's literally my favorite little bubble of sunshine. I love his character and did some changes to him too. I'll let y'all know his Trainer Class next chapter!

But I'd to hear from y'all. Feel free to leave a review or PM me. I'd love to hear your feedback. And I'll do my best to respond to all reviews as well!

[aboyandhisstarship]

Kindergarten AU: car crash

Thanks to @dysphoric-artist for the prompt and proof reading

still written in a diary style  and () are still kid adding his thoughts in after the fact 

anyway without further ado lets hop into it 

Ok now, you may not unreasonably say something along the lines of “Mike, you have literally died, hundreds of times. A good chuck of which happened when you were just a kid…how are you not 8 different kinds of traumatized.” And I thank you for your concern (weird guy who is reading my diary…really who does that you would have to broke into my room and stole this thing…which is uncool in every state) to be frank, I am traumatized…but I can’t really tell anyone why, what am I going to tell a headshrinker?

 Headshrinker: so Mike…why don’t you talk to me about the tragic events at your kindergarten….”

Me:  *bursts out laughing* which one…the time I got killed by the principle…or bugs, or monty, or Cindy…or the janitor…or those weird monster things (this would go on for some time)

Headshrinker: uhhh, I think you’re crazy…off to the crazy house!  (ok in fairness I’m pretty sure it doesn’t work this way…but I’m not exactly keen to find out.)

“Ok Mike” you may retort, “They might think you’re crazy…but you could be a superhero! Like the Flash, or Batman! They could call you….Reapto!”  (First off Random guy, Reapto? that’s the best you can come up with?) I tried that once to be the big hero…it can be rather hit or miss.

 High school parking lot:

Nugget said with a smile “if friend Mike, Friend Carla and the Pretty Lilly would be willing to accompany Nugget, we will indulge in some super…”

Nugget was interrupted by the loudest car screech I ever heard, my eyes went wide as felt massive pain and the air forced out of my chest.

I shoot up hyperventling as my alarm went off screaming a little bit too loudly “FUCK!”

My mother bless her soul, responded with an “I know you don’t want to go to school today young man but I will not tolerant such language.” (yea that was embarrassing)

I shook my self-off, and considered putting on a tally before deciding that it was a one off death adding to my journal *Don’t go to the parking lot after school Dummy* (normally I leave myself notes like this…and normally they are a lot more helpful, like don’t mix the red and green flowers it blows up the room you know useful stuff)

 Hallway, My high school:

I had been glancing at my watch about 4 times and Carla (Perceptive as she is) finally snapped “goddamn it Mike you got a date or something?”

I smiled awkwardly “what me no!?”

Lillie frowned “alright you are sketchy…”

Nugget nodded “friend Mike is definitely hiding something.”

A second later a car came crashing into the school slamming through several walls, nailing all 3 of us I paused briefly musing  “man I didn’t think the school was this badly built,” Before hitting the ground hard.

I woke up to the sound of my alarm and groaned grabbing my pillow throwing my face into it saying “not again!”

Before throwing himself out of bed grabbing his marker he added two marks onto my skin

5 loops later:

Ok I didn’t know the school was this badly built, guess what no matter where I was I got taken out by that car, the bathroom, Boom, the library, boom…I even skipped school once…I may have gotten grounded but I laughed thinking I had in fact won, only to get hit by a different car crossing the road, and looping. (I sometimes wonder if the universe hates me…)

But before I died I did get some valuable intel, I saw the death count (the entire school by the way…yea after this I wrote a strongly worded letter to the school board…again) but also the names of the folks in the car, two high school seniors…(now for the sake of timelines I can’t tell you who they are, but mike they didn’t die! Yea yea…just trust me the less anyone knows about the other timelines the better off we all are, tried that once when I first started looping…the planet literally exploded, so no names) so these teens who I dub….Bob and Bertha  crash and kill the whole school…and I need to find out why.

 So I approached the gang saying “alright sit down.”

Monty asked “what this about mike.” His voice clearly impaintent

so I lifted my arm showing the tally’s, that was it they were all ears as I explained “alright in exactly.” I glanced at my watch “4 and half hours, a car comes crashing into school and kill literally everyone, we need to stop that so ideas?”

Jerome proposed “maybe tell them?”

Buggs shook his head “real high and mighty types won’t listen to us.”

Lilly sighed “well they crashed into the building…so they clearly were not leaving it…”

Billy nodded “that’s right, that means they left are coming back for someone or something…we figure out what and bing bang boom.”

I pointed out “has it literally ever been that easy?”

Ted smiled “me and penny can think about cars, figure out what caused it.” Quickly blushing

Penny also blushed “I would love to Teddy…”

Felix cleared his throat “perhaps me and Cindy can get close to them ?”

Cindy smiled brightly (she had grown out of her bitchiness, but she was natural born queen bee, even if she was cool with us all the snobs and assholes in school love her.) “I can reach out…maybe find out what they have going on and more intel.”

I nodded “right find out what we can but tell me before it happens, so I can write it down.”

Everyone responded “right!”

I spent most of the loop with Monty and Carla using their connections to figure out if they were getting any drugs or other fun stuff to explain there “Skillful” driving (got em….yea ok not the best burn)

 Loop 12th:

I woke up with another groan “If I have to read another book about cars I am going to lose it!”

He glanced at his notes the car (a 66 Camaro…I swear those two are like a couple form the 60’s) and the other intel he had gathered from the others (they had indeed been indulging in drugs those bad bad boys and girls…ok I’m not one to talk, seeing  the number of crimes I have technically committed…but those were other timelines…and you know what let’s not go down that rabbit hole)  but the issue was simple, they had indeed nought some weed from Carla and monty’s secretive network (I never asked) but had not in fact gotten it yet, so the question still stood as to what exactly caused it.

 Nugget hole:

The Lair  (Ozzy wanted to call it that)  is what we call our base of operation’s,  I have been spending my time shooting down ideas that we already tried and smiling with evil glee whenever I  make ted and penny work together (honestly I want to yell make out already whenever I see them) but then it hit us, instead of stopping the car crash maybe we should stop them leaving.

 Now mike, you are likely saying, I literally thought of that after like the third loop, first off no you didn’t you liar, (seeing as we didn’t even know who they were then) also, this loop was different normally there are multiple things that need doing to affect a change in the timeline, so it is almost never that easy (ohh jee mister principle, the star athlete and his girl are going to skip class and kill us all ohh geee, yea real convincing huh?)  there was of course the factor, that our group (ok just me) were not exactly popular around school or town, they called us the kinder busters (pretty badass name right?...yea I don’t dig it either) so people consider us bad luck (to be fair…we did end up at two schools run by crazy kidnappers in a row…if that is not unlucky I don’t know what is.)so we needed a couple of people that will actually be believed, now 3 guesses of who my friends who Is the most likely to believed about that kind of thing?

Cindy? Well no seeing as she has her queen bee rep they may think that she is “fronting” (there words not mine…I shuddered just thinking about them trying to street)

Bugs? (HAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHHAHAHA *snort* HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAAHHAHAAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA…wait your serious… HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA)

Carla or Monty (better, but no joy they are bit to up to something…we need purist faces.)

Ok by now you have either guess correctly (good job!) or are yelling at the page, “stop teasing me mike and tell me!”

And naturally the answer is Ted and Penny, (I mean have you seen those faces! Who could say no to them?!)

Of course I had to convince them to do it.

 Nugget hole:

Ted asked “are you sure about this?”

I smiled “of course I am…ninty percent sure this will work.”

Penny smiled “relax Teddy this will be fine.”

I pulled out 5 dollars “here you go get yourselves some ice cream afterwards.”

Ted pointed out “you know I’m a billionaire right…”

Penny took the five dollars saying “deal! Come on Teddy.”

Now you dear reader may be sitting there thinking “that was easy, that’s it, what no boss fight, no dramatic showdown, no sweet groundhog day style montage where you do whatever you want?” (that was happened…more on that later)

My rebuttal to that dear sir, is screw you  let me have this, alright most of time when I start looping I have to fight monsters and a whole thing so I think I earned a nice break, but you might be sitting thinking “that was anti-climactic! Did Ted and Penny at least go on a date!?”

My answer to that is a yes… and no, you see both told me (under the promise to never tell a soul after the loop) they also sadly made me promise not tell the other person, now you may say Mike…after the loop they would not remember, you can pull a sneaky and just tell them that they like each other, and while you are right I don’t for a couple of reasons, number one being I keep my promises, number 2 is they would think I am messing with them (I know right those oblivious idoits.)

But sadly this journal is not a relationship journal of ted and penny (sorry guys, but this supposed to be a record of loops) but I will quietly disclose that they may have been a kiss on the cheek (I screamed I tell you)  of course they are still claiming to be friends in front of us but I don’t buy it…anyway I should proably end this entry…

So thanks for reading? (I mean you are reading a private journal…so I don’t know why you are reading this)

Mike June 26 20XX

[britishchick09]

danger force christmas special livewatch

welcome to the final livewatch of 2020, ‘chapa kills santa!’ ...jk it’s called ‘down goes santa’ (same thing right?). without further ado, let’s dive into the chaos of ‘the best story of christmas’!

the little pre-show channel bumper has a kid skating on tp... ONLY IN 2020!

the theme at the beginning of the ep is ‘deck the halls’ aww :)

chapa: “did you get a job at nacho ball?” bose: “i got a career at nacho ball.” eyyyy ;D (also how does he have a job isn’t he like 12?)

OH NOES THEY HAVEN’T DONE XMAS THINGS TOGETHER!! :O

chapa: “i’d say that’s an emergency, MILES!!!!!!!” oh boy will there be screaming chapa in this??

also since she cares a lot about christmas stuff maybe she won’t be the one to kill santa?

chapa: “no i don’t love christmas” BOIIIII

mika: “you took a long time to answer that question.” lol :D

SUP RAY

why does ray sound so creepy when he says “oh you wanna hear a... christmas story?”

OMG RAY DON’T SHOVE CHAPA OUT OF THAT CHAIR BRO

ray: “do you wanna hear the real christmas story?” the kids: “NO!!” lol :D

OMG RAY HAS THE BOOK IN THE HEADER PIC! :D

also all the kids said ‘ew!’ at the sight of it they really don’t want this story huh

story: “the first one was generous and jolly. the other was hot and fun.” lol

santa’s bro was named crampus wut

OMG SCHWOZ JUST SHREDDED THAT GUITAR YO!!! also hello george harrison’s lucy nice seeing you here :)

crampus wanted a jet ski and spent 1000 years on the naughty list where does this take place

this story is awesome not gonna lie :D

ray got the book from the truth store lol

story: “one day in the mid 90s” CLARISSA IS THAT YOU???

santa was lured to the desert with ‘promises of fish tacos, motocross and illegal fireworks’ lol

‘dill-weebs’ lol

santa and anti-santa fought in an abandoned mall lol

that was such a great story! :D

miles: “i don’t believe any of that!” ray: “CRAMPUS TOUCH!!!” miles: *SCREAMS*

and ray walks away with an evil laugh... >:)

mika’s sweater is so cute! :D

YO SCHWOZ JUST MADE AN XMAS TREE AND PRESENTS APPEAR IS HE MAGIC THO???? :o

and the audience cheers! :D

MIKA JUST KICKED A LITTLE TREE AND SCREAMED YO MIKA!!!

schwoz: “the big man will be here soon!” bose: “you mean shaq?” lol :D

schwoz cleans santa’s sleigh how cool! :D

there’s a corn lady in a corn truck ICE CREAM TRUCK WHO??? I DON’T KNOW HER

ooh the gums can be used to transform their civilian clothes too!

RAY AND CHAPA BOUGHT ALL THE CORN OMG :O

awww ray did it for chapa’s christmas love! ♥

ray: “our pants are down. we’re exposed!!!” ???

OHHH IT’S ‘P.A.N.T.S’ :o

is santa gonna land in the man’s nest without protection?

YO I WAS RIGHT CHAPA DID KILL SANTA!!!!!

SANTA’S ON FIRE OMGGGGGGG

santa’s beard is gray now is he my dad lol

chapa: “WE SHOT SANTA CLAUS!!!” out of context that line is so sad yet still hilarious

why did the meme airhorn just play

YO CRAMPUS ANTI-SANTA IS REALLLLLL

crampus: “it’s party tiiiimeee!!!” lol

the intro happened 10 AND A HALF MINUTES INTO THE 22 MINUTE EP what a record! :o

why did ray return with a big af senpai ball of yarn and needles

ooh the kids brought back strawberry ice cream :o

miles’ actor’s name appeared just as he was on screen coolio :D

there’s a sign on santa that says ‘none of your buzyness’ NUNYA WHO

also miles and chapa say ‘buzyness’ like nunya lol

CHAPA’S FREAKING SCREAMING ABOUT HER KILLING SANTA YOOO

santa doesn’t know who he is HO HO NOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

chapa keeps zapping ray when she disapproves what he says YO CHAPA

YOOO SANTA’S MISSING!!!

bose is a mechanic apparently coolio :D

they’re getting christmas day off BUT NOT XMAS DAY

CRAMPUS LIKES THE MEME HORN YOOOOO

bose: “it could be worse!” *sees crampus* “hey, i was right, it’s worse!”

crampus: “where’s my brother uglies!” his watch: “sick burn, crampus that stings!!” lol

CRAMPUS IS GONNA DESTROY CHRISTMAS NOOOO

crampus can teleport coolio :D

the side effects of catching crampus are ‘hotness and diarrhea’ why :(

mika: “OH MY GOD SHUT UUUUUPPPPP!!!!!!!” SAME MIKA SAME

ray: “don’t say anything!” bose: “he left!” ray: “...seriously”

BOSE WHY DID YOU SAYYYYYY :(((((

YO CRAMPUS TURNED BOSE INTO A PUNK SKATER YO :o

OMG RAY HAS A TAZER GUN SANTA’S DEFINITELY GONNA DIE

ray: “news is boring” indeed it is

on the newscrawl it says orphans were hit with a sack of presents who

the newsman said ‘in part 2 of our news-’ AND THERE’S A PART 2 OF THE SPECIAL EYYYY ;D

miles and mika transformed to applause! :D

punk bose thinks taco tuesday is the best holiday lol

english orphans are on the news WHY

HOLD UP are those the orphans from one of the previous eps???

the english boy sounds like schwoz when he’s crampus-fied lol

english girl: “percy you know i only have one lung!” ...omg

crampus is putting his hands all over the xmas sack AND IT’S SO WEIRD WTF

news lady: “now that you’ve found the sack of presents you can give them to the orphans!” ray and chapa don’t sound too thrilled with that...

DON’T CRAMP THE NEWS LADY NOOOOO

it’s 8:28 pm when ray and chapa are at the news station NOT A LOT OF TIME LEFT TO SAVE SANTA!!!

the news people, orphans and crampus with energy drinks: “TACO TUESDAY LIFE!!” news guy: “LIFE SPELLED WITH A Y!!!” ray chapa GET THESE GUYS BACK FAST!!!!!!

CHAPA JUST HIT CRAMPUS WITH HER POWERS YOOOO

aaand it didn’t work :/

news guy: “looks like this story will be c-c-c-continued!!!!” indeed it will! :D

onto part 2!

YO MIKA AND MILES WALKED INTO SANTAS DANCING TO AN EPIC ‘UP ON THE HOUSETOP’ EPIC

the main santa lady almost sounds like nat from bob’s burgers :D

did schwoz just speak russian??

YO HE’S SINGING IS THIS A MUSICAL NOW???

schwoz: “♬ you’re never too cool for the holidays! ♬” yay! :D

bose: “rule number sleighven-“ i thought crampus hated christmas WHY THE XMAS PUN DUDE??

schwoz gave bose a candy cane AND IT TURNED HIM BACK YAS!!!! :D

bose: “♬ i used to love these as a boy... ♬” schwoz: “♬ you’re not a man... ♬” lol :D

bose’s singing isn’t the best but schwoz is great! :D

bose is happily helping yay! :D

AND THE SLEIGH IS BACK!!!!!

the magic of christmas is tossing people a wrench lol :D

YO SCHWOZ JUST CARRIED BOSE AND CALLED HIM BOSIE! ♥♥

did bose just say ‘i still have these gross dimples’??? DIMPLES ARE ADORABLE BOSIE

an hp ad just played TWICE IN A ROW WHYYYYY

mika and miles look great as santa! :D

all the santas think they’re the real santa lol

real santa’s a rapper dj now lol :D

OMG HE HAS A RAINBOW HAT LOVE YA REAL SANTA!!!!! :D

the santa lady just got a text from a 909 number is that the swellview version of 1-800?

santa lady to crampus: “who are you and what’s your number?” WOAH WOAH LADY YOU DON’T WANNA DATE THIS DUDE BRO

the lady didn’t change when crampus touched her WAS IT THE GLOVES???

mika used her shouting powers on crampus AND HE’S IN HIS UNDIES GROSS CRAMP :(

the santa lady likes crampus’ max body spray WHY LADY????

the into for this ep is 7 and a half minutes in and this is more like it! :D

i skipped the intro last time BUT IT’S AN XMAS THEMED ONE YAS!!!! :D

ray: “outta the way poor people santa just got his christmas bag!!” ray stop

also the card for ray’s actor appeared when he spoke cool :D

YO WAS RAY CRAMP-IFIED TOO????

...no he’s just being ray

OH NO THERE’S A BALLOON CALLED ‘PARTY TIME’ CRAMP’S COMIN’ TO GET U!!!!!!!!

santa lady: “why do i get thrown through a door at this party every year?’ either you’re drunk or you just like slamming yourself through doors???

schwoz calls crampus ‘crampooss’ and it’s just his accent but it’s super funny :D

AND THAT HP AD PLAYS 2 TIMES IN A ROW AGAIN UGHHHH

crampus got away WITH EVERYTHING SANTA NOOOO

bose: “things can’t get worse!” news guy: “things just got a whole lot better...” bose: “see?” news lady: “for CRAMPUUUSSSSSS!!!!” bose: “...they got me.” lol silly bose! :D

crampus’ message is ‘rap, rock, love and CHRISTMAS HATE’

schwoz called italy ‘itallee’ lol :D

the world wide news anchors are just the swellview ones with accents lol :D

bose sees all those anchors being infected AND ALL HE WANTS IS A RUSSIAN HAT

oh hello ray

ray: “why didn’t anyone tell me lake swellview was frozen?” chapa: “,,,it’s december.” lol :D

bose called the infected people ‘crampas’ lol :D

schwoz pronounces christmas ‘christmuss’ :D

909 is san bernadino AKA WHERE THE STORY TOOK PLACE OHHHHH :O

they have to go to the abandoned mall OMGGG!!!!!!!!!

the kids really don’t want ray to take a coal bath

crampus called the santa lady ‘babe’ ARE THEY A THING????

santa: “can i get nexties for a massage?” ...nexties?

YO DID THE SANTA LADY DATE RAY????? :O

UGH the hp ads AGAINNNNNN

YO the lady has cardboard cutouts of bts in her bathroom YOU’RE NOT DAN AND PHIL WITH THE 1D PIC

909 reminds me of ‘one after 909′ and that’s a lot better than this place!

bose got ‘ultra dark sick glasses’ OH NOES

AND MIKA WAS SILENCED WHILE CHAPA WAS TRAPPED IN CHAINS NOOOO

miles is still standing GO MILES!!!!! :D

crampus said he and miles could be friends awww :)

...did crampus just say ‘your call t-mobile’

santa lady: “oh god THEY’RE FIGHTING OVER ME :D’ no they’re fighting for the other santa MS LADY

ray cried at KUNG FU PANDA????

maybe ray can give his jet ski to crampus to redeem him

OH WAIT THAT’S FROM THE STORY OMG :o

THE JET SKI SHALL REDEEM!!!!!

ray said ‘oh gross that’s mine’ to miles’ (and my) suggestion :/

WAIT RAY HAS 4 or 5 JET SKIS WHY

GIVE CRAMPUS THE JET SKI RAY COME ONNNNN

mika says muffled things and ray completely understands her lol :D

RAY GAVE CRAMPUS THE JET SKI KEYS YAAAS!!!!

OMG CRAMPUS IS BACK!!! and he kind of looks like henry??

the hp ad played but the 2nd one had text this time so that’s cool i guess?

santa still doesn’t remember oh noes :o

bose could lift the sleigh and miles could teleport to different houses AND CHAPA IS RUDOLLLLLPHHHH!!!!!

bose said the ‘guide my sleigh tonight’ to mika lol :D

christmas is ‘taco tuesday’ but better :D

the kids are great as santa

miles: “merry christmas you filthy animals!” ooh home alone reference

a button down shirt and a ball made the news anchors transform back aww :D

AND THE ORPHAN GIRL LOVES A TOOTHBRUSH PENCIL

all 7 members of bts are next omg why can’t it be blackpink

YAS THE SPECIAL WAS THE BEST STORY I GUESSED IT RIGHT!!! :D

and mika is still muffled

RAY IS IN LAKE HAVASU AZ REFERENCE!!!! :D

crampus looks like freddy mercury

and he’s with ray and santa! :D

that was a fun christmas special and it’ll certainly be a classic! what a way to end 2020 livewatches! :)

[littlemissmusiclover-blog]

GETTING BACK TOGETHER | Yuta

Nakamoto Yuta

"Healing Smile”

like when you see him smile, any pain or discomfort that you feel right now instantly vanishes

one time, you just had a leg operation so he visited you at the hospital

your leg hurts as hell like boi wtf is this

Yuta being Yuta, brought you fruits instead of flowers

“You don’t need flowers”

“You can’t eat them so I just thought of bringing you fruits”

you start eating the fruits he brought and while you’re eating, he’s just watching you

and you’re like “WHAT?”

He just giggles and smiles at you

then BOOM

the pain from your leg operation just disappeared

when you first met him, you thought that he’s the type of guy who doesn’t take things seriously

because he’s so cheerful and talkative af during breaktimes at your school

he’s the captain of your school’s soccer team yet you see him play soccer with the younger kids during breaktime lol Yuta

until you saw him one time while he was practicing soccer

that’s when you noticed that he REALLY takes things seriously especially his love for soccer

that’s why he’s so good at playing it and became the team captain because he practices really hard

whenever you’re sad, he’s always there to do aegyos in front of you

which by the way makes you cringe so hard

but still manages to get you laugh and lessen all your worries

you also know about his dreams of becoming an idol

and you support him with it

so you let him leave, allowing him to pursue his dream

you are aware that it wouldn’t be easy

but never thought that it would be this DIFFICULT

if before you guys would talk for hours on the phone, now that they’ve debuted, you guys only get 10 minutes to talk with each other

sometimes, there’s an additional 20 minutes to it if you guys were lucky

until those calls suddenly stopped

“Nakamoto Yuta is currently unavailable right now. Please just leave a message right after the tone.” -BeeeEEEEeeep-

From “One Call Away” to “We Don’t Talk Anymore” real quick #CharliePuthZoned ok i’m such a horrible person i’m sorry hahahaha no i’m not hahahahahahaha

Your situation would be somehow similar to Jaehyun

except that the fans both love you guys

Only Yuta knows about the company not being in favour of your relationship

so the company asks him to break up with you

“EITHER SAY GOODBYE TO YOUR CAREER OR TO THAT GIRL. YOU CHOOSE.”

“They really said that?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!” - Hansol

“That’s such a foul move.” - Johnny

“It definitely is a foul move.” - Taeyong

“You guys can still date secretly. Chill out.” - Haechan

“Haechan, I think you’re forgetting the fact that we’re not trainees anymore.” - Yuta

“But (y/n) noona is really fun to be with. I wish there’s a way out of this.” - Mark

“Tell the company that you got her pregnant.” - Jaehyun

*insert the members facepalming themselves*

lol Jaehyun no... just no

yes they did give him a death glare

“That’s supposed to be my line Jaehyun. Jfc.” - Ten

The members tried to give him suggestions on how to make this easy

but they only ended up giving him useless and dumb suggestions

and that’s when they realized that it will never be easy no matter what

Yuta texted you that he has one week off from his work

you felt very excited because this means that you guys would be spending so much time together

but Yuta didn’t feel the same way

for him, it’s like a countdown towards doomsday

though he never let it show what’s really bothering him because oh look how beautiful and relieving his smile is

problems? where?

what is even a PROBLEM?

DAY 1: Yuta took you to the Korean stationery shops

He helped you choosing which calligraphy pens you need for your project even though they’re just the same colour but different brand.

He even told you “I hope you’ll use those pens when you write your love letter for me at our anniversary” yuta’s_healing_smile.jpg

DAY 2: He took you to your favourite Korean restaurant

He lets you order any food that you want but when he noticed that you only mostly ordered meat he frowns

“Hey, it’s not fair that you’re the only one who’s gonna eat meat”

“Eat some vegetables too”

And when you protest, he shoves a spoonful of vegetables into your mouth

You: “STOP BEING LIKE TAEYONG EOMMA!”

“I just want you to be healthy that’s why I’m making you eat veggies too. I don’t want you getting sick. Who will be my food buddy once you got sick?” then he wipes away the leftover sauce on your lips

DAY 3: He took you out to get some bubbletea

Even though it’s freezing cold, you guys still got those cold bubbletea drinks you guys are weird

“Hey Yuta, you want to try my purple taro?”

“Sure”

But instead of tasting it through the plastic straw, he tastes it through your lips

and guuuuuurl, he’s a great kisser

DAY 4: He took you to the movies

He cried when the dog died

but he bawled his eyes out the most when the guy and the girl from the same movie broke up wow affected much

he cried so loud that the people inside the theatre told him to shut up and fuck off

so you guys didn’t end up finishing the movie and just left

“Omg Yuta, I’ve never seen you cry over something fictional”

He suddenly hugs you tight

“Jagiya, always remember that I love you so much, okay?”

“What is wrong with you Yuta? Why are you being like this all of a sudden?”

“Jagiya, just promise me that you’ll always remember how much I love you, okay? Don’t ever forget that, no matter what happens.”

DAY 5: He took you to Lotte World Ice Rink

You don’t even know how to skate but it didn’t matter because Yuta was there to help you

He would occasionally laugh at you slipping on the ice but mostly, his hands would either be holding your hands or your waist

which results for him to hug you a lot

“Yuta, how can I even skate if you’re hugging me like this?”

“It’s cold jagiya. Let me warm up at least.”

“Of course it’s gonna be cold. We’re inside an ice skating rink!”

On that same day, he also took you to Sky Rose Garden

“Woooooooow! Look at how beautiful these roses are, Yuta!”

“But they’re not as beautiful as you.” - Yuta

yaaaaaaaas boi that’s how you do it

you blush with what he said then he cups your face and kisses you on the lips

DAY 6: He took you to N Seoul Tower

“Why’d you bring a lock?”

He doesn’t answer you and just writes both of your names on the lock

underneath your names, he wrote: “If life won’t let us be together for now, then love will find a way to make us stay together for a lifetime in the future.”

this is heartbreaking Yuta why

stop it

anywayyyy...

you blushed a hell lot when you read what he wrote

your heart skipped a beat when both of you placed the lock on

Yuta kept the key but he said that he’s gonna leave it at the Postbox of Love so that no one finds the key for your lock.

DAY 7: You guys went to Yeojwacheon Stream

You guys just took a stroll there and kept taking pictures of each other

You were a little bit sad because it’s your last day of being together and after this, he’s going back to work again

Yuta, on the other hand, is feeling way worse

He’s having conflicted emotions

He wants to stay with you forever but he couldn’t because he has a career that he wanted to protect too

So he decided to do it tomorrow

and let you guys have your last moment as a couple

That evening, he cried when you guys stopped by the bridge

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m just gonna miss you so much.”

Then without any further ado, he kisses you again on the lips

but you noticed something different with his kisses

they were full of desperation though you didn’t mind it that much anyway

He whispers to you: “I love you (y/n)... gosh, I love you so much.”

“I love you too.”

dO YOU heAR ThAT?!?!?!

tHAT’S thE SounD OF MY HEArt BREAKing...

The next day, after they had a tv guesting, he asked if you guys could meet up again

He says that he has something to tell you

He went to your house looking all sullen

You noticed it immediately but you just waited for him to tell you what’s wrong

“Let’s break up”

You blinked twice, trying to process what he just told you

“I-It’s cold out here. Do you want to come inside first for a warm tea?”

You hoped that he would reject it but a part of you wishes that he would accept your offer

HE DIDN’T ACCEPT YOUR OFFER

“I’m sorry”

“So I guess this is it, huh?” You tried not to cry but you start tearing up anyway

He nods and looks at you directly which broke you guys even more

“Before I let you go, may I know the reason why you’re breaking up with me?”

He sighs, “It’s not just gonna work out. I’m too busy. I... I can’t fulfill my duties and responsibilities towards you.”

“I don’t want to be unfair to you”

“You deserve better”

“Please try to be happy without me” then he left

Y O U   D I D   N O T   S T O P   C R Y I N G    A B O U T   I T    U N T I L  7   D  A   Y   S    L A T E R

You didn’t know this but three days after your break up with him, he went back to all of the places that you guys had gone together

He even went to N Seoul Tower and tried to take off your lock

yes he kept the key he didn’t leave it at the Postbox of Love

he failed at taking off the lock and just burst out crying

the members got worried because he didn’t rehearse with them for a couple of days due to him catching a flu

Hansol texted you and said that Yuta is sick so you went to their dorm

When you got there, he was sleeping

so you asked help from Taeyong and Jaehyun to prepare a meal for him and the other members

just as you guys finished cooking, Yuta woke up

you brought the soup that you made under Taeyong’s supervision of course to Yuta

he was actually surprised and confused that you’re still here

you guys talked casually and laughed like nothing bad happened

the same kind of chemistry is still there

“I still don’t get why we broke up”

“I mean, you are the best boyfriend I could ever have.”

You were about to cry again and looked at him in the eye, “Am I ugly Yuta?”

“Am I exchangeable?”

“No, that’s not it (y/n)”

“THEN WHY?!”

lol MY EX AND WHYS STARRING YOU AND NAKAMOTO YUTA, NOW SHOWING

He couldn’t take it anymore and just told you everything from the fact that the company disapproves of your relationship to the day when they asked him to break up with you.

you felt relieved that somehow he told you the truth but you wished he could’ve told you sooner so you guys could take some proper measures for it together

when he was a lot better, you guys talked to the company and tried to convince them

and luckily, they approved it already

as long as it doesn’t interfere with Yuta’s obligations to his group

Both of you told the other members about this

PAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRTTTTTTTAAAAAYYYY

“So can I hold your hand again?”

You just smiled and intertwine your hand with his

“My cheeks are burning”

He looks around to see if anyone was looking at the two of you and when he notices that no one’s watching he plants a quick but passionate kiss on your lips

everyday you watch him on his rehearsals

even on their live shows

you even went to one of their fansigns

Yuta smiled like there was no tomorrow

it’s because he always knew that you were one of his reasons why he loves his work so much

YOU HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HIS INSPIRATION

[twocoursemeal-blog]

TCM Ramen Throwdown: ...April Madness?

Hi Friends! Hope you’ve reread (or remember) our Ramen Month posts from the last two years! (If you don’t, you can find our Ramen Month v1.0 Retrospective here, and Ramen Month v2.0 Retrospective here). We’ve had a lot of bowls of noodles at a lot of different restaurants and the recent end of March Madness gave us a great idea: what if we made a Boston Ramen Bowl Bracket?

We haven’t officially reviewed 16 different ramen places yet… (but we came so close!) so we let individual bowls of ramen we’ve had at each restaurant be contenders. Some restaurants are represented more than once on the bracket, but we’ve tried made sure that each bowl was distinct and memorable.

If you’re going to have a real bracket, you need seeding. We’ve seeded restaurants by their Star Ratings from our reviews. We’ve ordered restaurants with the same rating alphabetically (we tried to make it as impartial as possible, we promise -- which made for an interesting bracket!).

Our Competitors (with links to our reviews!):

(1) Oisa Ramen- Truffle Shoyu Ramen 

(2) Amateras Ramen- Edo Shoyu Ramen 

(3) Amateras Ramen- Tonkotsu Ramen 

(4) Ganko Ittetsu- Gankara Miso Ramen 

(5) Ganko Ittetsu- Gantetsu Shoyu Ramen 

(6) Santouka- Shio Ramen 

(7) Santouka- Shoyu Ramen 

(8) Shabu & Mein- Hell Ramen 

(9) Shabu & Mein- Spicy Tonkotsu Ramen 

(10) Little Big Diner- Chef's Ultra Ramen 

(11) Pikaichi- Jigoku Ramen 

(12) Yume wo Katare- Pork Ramen w/ Garlic 

(13) Totto Ramen - Spicy Ramen 

(14) Sapporo- Spicy Miso Ramen Ramen 

(15) Shin Hakata Ramen- Spicy Tonkotsu Ramen 

(16) Ruckus- Shoryuken Ramen 

Eliminated by default (can’t compete in the big leagues): Uni - Pork Ramen Pikaichi - Pika Miso Ramen  Sapporo Ramen - Shoyu Ramen  Shin Hakata Ramen - Unagi Tonkotsu Ramen 

Eliminated by default (slightly too similar to a counterpart): Little Big Diner - Chili Paitan Ramen

We spent an evening filing out our brackets separately, then talking through them as civilly as possible (no hidden relationship dealbreakers, fortunately). Without further ado, here are our picks!

We’ll start in the top-left Quarter:

Our (1) seed (and the only 5⭐ we’ve ever given on TCM), Oisa’s Truffle Shoyu faces off against Ruckus. No contest. Oisa advances effortlessly for both of us.

The Shabu Shabu Mirror Match was an unfortunate fluke in seeding, but them’s the breaks. Either way, there was still an easy winner: Hell Ramen.

This makes for an interesting Quarterfinal matchup with Oisa’s delicate vegan broth and truffled mushrooms against Shabu & Mein’s full-on aggro Hell Ramen, and here, we encounter our first heated disagreement. Angela thought that TCM’s first 5⭐ actually meant something to both of us (😒), and felt that Oisa coasts through that round on the strength of its execution and uniqueness. Matt felt that while Oisa’s ramen was truly something special, the Hell Ramen was just too fucking delicious to ignore, and when it came to measuring flavor on an absolute scale, it narrowly edged Oisa out.

Let’s finish up the left side of the bracket:

Ganko Ittetsu secures a unilateral victory against Totto, but really, you shouldn’t be surprised. We love Ganko. A lot.

The Ganko Gantetsu Shoyu vs. Yume wo Katare Pork matchup was another early point of contention. Again, Matt felt that flavor is king, and the raw power of Yume’s “Essence of Pork” gave it a needed edge in the bout. Angela finds that Yume wo Katare’s Pork Ramen is a “sometimes food”, while Ganko Ittetsu’s Gantetsu Shoyu is a day-in day-out excellent bowl of ramen. Both feature garlic as a key ingredient, but the fried garlic in Ganko’s bowl does more, and adds nuance that is absent in Yume’s bowl.

In the bottom-left quarterfinals, Angela had a Ganko vs Ganko match-up. Unfortunate, but inevitable -- both bowls are absolutely delicious in their own way. But, for Angela, there’s no way that shoyu ramen loses this battle; Ramen Month v2.0 was “Only Shoyu” Month for a reason. Ganko’s Gantetsu takes this one, easy.

Matt’s quarterfinal match wasn’t too difficult, honestly, as Ganko’s Gankara Miso packs in not just technical excellence, but also a heaping punch of spice and flavor. Yume’s proudly unrefined bowl wasn’t quite enough to compete with a stronger, more flavorful competitor.

Switching over to the right:

We have our (2) seed, Amateras’ Edo Shoyu Ramen, paired up against one of our least favorite bowls from Ramen Month v2.0. Is there a mercy rule? If there wasn’t in the (1)-(16) matchup, there sure as hell won’t be one here. EDO SHOYU SMASH.

In a slight upset, we both felt that Little Big Diner’s Chef’s Ultra Ramen edged out the solid but otherwise unexciting Santouka Shoyu Ramen.

In this surprisingly harmonious quarter of the bracket, Matt finally understood what Angela had been talking about this whole time -- Amateras’ Edo Shoyu was quietly but irrefutably phenomenal. Sorry, LBD, but Amateras’ Edo Shoyu was bound for the Semis from day 1.

Our final quarter begins:

A fast and complete victory of Amateras’ Tonkotsu Ramen over Sapporo’s Spicy Miso leaves little to discuss. In a similar vein, there’s just no way Santouka’s light Shio Ramen outshines the fire of Pikaichi’s Jigoku Ramen (despite our seeding methodology).

Once more, our quarterfinal match led to strife. After a long, hard look in the mirror, Matt sadly crossed off Pikaichi’s Jigoku in favor of Amateras’ Tonkotsu for the same reason that the Gankara Miso edged out Yume. Powerful yet unrefined can only carry you so far until you run up against someone whose technical execution is married to solid flavors. Congrats on the win, Amateras.

Angela’s choice may have had more to do with nostalgia than tasting notes. The Jigoku ramen has been a staple of Boston’s ramen scene for years, and that has built a loyalty that upset even Amateras’ strengths. RIP Pikaichi (🙏🏾🍜🙏🏾), miss you boo.

The competition starts to heat up in our semifinal matches:

Though our matchups are completely different, for both of us, Ganko had gotten as far as it could. In terms of flavor and power, Matt felt the Hell Ramen overwhelmed the Gankara Miso in a way that was reminiscent of a Ryo Kurokiba dish during a Shokugeki. There’s just no way to stop eating it. Hell progresses.

For Angela, Oisa glides through yet again. We’ve had better Shoyu Ramen in Boston than the Gantetsu Shoyu at Ganko Ittetsu (...sorry 😕). We can’t say we’ve ever had anything like the ramen at Oisa. That counts as a win, on Angela’s bracket.

On the other side, Amateras’ Edo Shoyu wins on both brackets, for similar reasons. It’s just good. For Angela, it’s too good. To her, it’s the best shoyu ramen in Boston, certainly. How does that lose to the second best spicy ramen on this bracket, huh? It doesn’t. Amateras to the finals.

For Matt, the match was over before it even began. Amateras’ Tonkotsu was extremely solid, but its shoyu was transcendent. Congrats to Amateras on the all-Amateras semi! You did good.

THE FINAL ROUND:

What an emotional journey. We’ve seen savage stompings, witnessed surprising upsets, and close, hard-fought victories. But now, it’s time decide an ultimate winner. Whose Ramen reigns supreme? [It’s the fiiinal countdowwnnnnnn!!] 

In Angela’s bracket, the (1) seed and (2) seed made it all the way to the Finals, and all is right with the world. But, here’s where it all goes wrong… Angela loves shoyu ramen more than she loves respecting her own TCM rankings. Amateras wins -- it’s the best shoyu ramen, and the depth and complexity of flavor beat the unique vision of Oisa, narrowly. It’s like David beating Goliath, if David and Goliath were roughly the same size and build, and their showdown was a completely fair fight.

It’s fire versus ice. Unbridled passion versus tense restraint. Is the arcing fury of Shabu & Mein’s Hell Ramen enough to burn away Amateras’ Edo Shoyu? Or will the rock-solid Edo Shoyu be the only thing left standing after the conflagration fades? After a long moment of introspection and clear-minded thought, Matt realized that as incredible a feat as the Hell Ramen was, the seemingly neverending depth and clarity in Amateras’ Edo Shoyu can quench any fire. Each sip of the Edo Shoyu was a challenge, asking “Have you found it all yet? Are you certain you know who I am?” Matt’s response? “Still, I seek the truth” Edo Shoyu emerges victorious.

Two different journeys, with the same winner. We’re not so different after all!

Our takeaway? Amateras’ Edo Shoyu Ramen is just uniformly excellent, and it has rekindled our desire to go back and have another bowl. If you have even a fraction of a chance, you need to go and try it.

If you’d like to fill out the bracket, you can grab a copy here. Be sure to send us a copy, and we might personally make fun of your terrible choices 😉! Also, give us a shout and let us know if we missed any notable bowls around Boston!