#I basically just started drawing Mr plant looking high accidentally

[roughsketch2010]

Why do you always draw Mr plant high lmao

[mowulf]

You Gotta be Kitten Me

CH 2: It's only a flesh wound

A note on cat breeds, because I don’t feel like spending an absurd amount of time describing them. (Also only Spy would have any idea what the different breeds are because he’s fancy like that.) From largest to smallest:

Heavy - Blue maine coon. He’s the largest by weight and length and has the cat equivalent of resting bitch face.

Sniper - Savannah cat. He’s the tallest, but he’s lanky and not nearly as long as Heavy.

Demoman - You know those cats that are so black they’re basically walking black holes? Yeah, that’s him.

Spy - Tuxedo cat. Primarily black with white fingers, white chin, and a white triangle on this neck and chest. When he sits up straight he does, indeed, look like he’s wearing a tiny, furry suit.

Soldier - Siamese. He’s loud. He’s obnoxious. And he makes sure you know he’s there.

Scout - Egyptian Mau/DSH mix. Egyptian Maus are the fastest domestic cat breed, reaching up to 30 mph, and can leap absurdly high. While he’s got the build of a Mau, the DSH shows in his calico coat.

Pyro - Ruddy Abyssinian. They look vaguely burnt and, like Scout, are quite small. Yes, they wear a sock on their head. No, you won't be able to convince them to take it off.

-----

“Gentlemen, we have a situation,” Spy said as he looked around the room. The other cats stopped what they were doing and approached. No point delaying the conversation.

“Yeah, tell me about it,” Scout said as he trotted over to shove Spy. “How come y’all get ta be so much bigger ‘n’ me? ‘S not fair.”

“That is beside the point, Scout.”

“That is exactly the point!”

”Scout.” Spy planted a paw on Scout’s head and pushed him away. Sniper got the hint and gently but firmly shooed Scout to the opposite side of the forming circle.

Demoman took a seat next to the awkward pair while Sniper attempted to figure out a way to gently pin Scout without accidentally crushing him and casually curled his tail around his paws. “It’s not all that bad,” he said casually. “We’re smaller, so we’ll be harder to hit. Pro’ly faster, too.”

Spy folded his ears and sighed deeply. “Really? Really? That’s what we’re going with? ‘It’s not so bad.’ Are you listening to yourself?”

Sniper flicked his tail and snapped, “Yeah, mate, we heard him just fine. What’s your problem?”

“My problem is a distinct lack of thumbs. Or did you forget?” The group fell silent as everyone examined their hands. Once he was satisfied that enough time had passed, Spy continued, “We didn’t just lose a few inches. Sniper is, at best, as long as his rifle, I can’t even hold a knife let alone stab anyone, and I’m reasonably certain the intelligence is twice Scout’s size.” He straightened up and settled a glare around the group. “We’re useless at best. Hell, Medic and Engineer would likely have an easier time in the next mission if we all just stayed at base. Especially if they have Heavy.”

A heavy silence descended on the circle. After a few moments Soldier stood up and yelled, “That’s still no excuse to not fight! We have claws! We have teeth! We’ll just have to fight them the old fashioned way!” His tail lashed as he spoke and at the end he reared back and swiped at the air.

Sniper was quick to shut that down by yelling, “That’s assuming we can even get close to anyone!” He puffed up and growled, high and deep. “We’re too small. We might catch someone off guard the first time, but then everyone will know to look out for us. Alone we stand no chance. As a group, we’re too obvious!”

“‘Sides, we need to get their intelligence back to base. Mission doesn’t end until someone has someone else’s briefcase,” Scout snapped, ready to jump up only to be pressed back into the floor when Sniper stepped on him.

“Those are the words of a coward! There are no cowards here! Or do I need to remind you maggots of that?” Soldier took a step forward, legs stiff and tail lashing in anger.

Sniper lowered his head and curled his lips in a snarl. “If you think I’m going to just throw myself into enemy fire with no hope of walking away, you’re a fool.” Scout squeaked as Sniper stepped on him to approach Soldier. Scout wanted nothing to do with the fight that was about to break out. While Sniper had the upper hand in terms of size, Soldier more than made up for that in crazy.

On the sidelines, the other mercs chimed in trying to break up the fight before it began, but no one was willing to actually get close. Even human, Soldier was not a force to be reckoned with. Once Sniper was no longer standing on him, Scout joined the rest in the safe zone.

Sniper and Soldier approached each other stiffly until there was only a few inches between them. Soldier’s tail continued to lash dramatically while Sniper’s only twitched at the end. For a long minute the pair simply glared and growled.

Soldier made the first move. Sniper flinched back when Soldier lunged forward, allowing the smaller cat to latch onto his neck and shoulder, back legs tearing at whatever they could reach. Sniper shrieked, swatted a couple times at Soldier, before running toward the nearest wall and throwing himself Soldier-first into it. Yelling broke out from everywhere, a combination of cat howls and human shock.

The impact didn’t knock Soldier loose and only seemed to make him more aggressive. The cat twisted and sank his claws deeper into Sniper’s shoulder while pulling with his teeth until he felt something give. Sniper responded by slamming into the wall three more times in quick succession, finally stunning Soldier enough to make him start to lose grip. That was all Sniper needed to finally stick his foot under Soldier and rip the other cat off.

He stumbled back a couple steps before lunging forward with a yell, only to be slammed into the ground by Medic. One hand grabbed the scruff of his neck and the other a fistful of loose skin near his rump and hauled him back, spitting and screaming. Engineer scooped Soldier before he could launch back at Sniper.

The two spit curses and profanities at each other until Demoman leapt between them and bellowed “SHUT UP!” Silence. “Soldier,” he turned to face, “this is not cowardice or abandonment. Think of it as a tactical retreat until we can figure out how to get the upper hand back.”

“That’s true,” Spy said. “We’re at a disadvantage. We need to figure something out.”

“But-” Soldier flinched when Demoman trotted up and bopped him on the nose. “We can’t-” Another bop. “Would you-” Bopbopbop Demoman stopped and hopped away when Engineer waved him off.

Once he was sure that Soldier had shut up, he turned his attention to Sniper. “And you!” Sniper bristled but remained silent. “If yer gonna fight, take it outside. You know th’ rules.”

More silence. Everyone waited tensely until Sniper finally sighed and Soldier relaxed. A collective sigh was released and the tension finally drained from the room.

“I’m going to need the medigun,” Medic announced. “I’ll be right back.” With that he released Sniper and left the room.

Soldier wriggled out of Engineer’s grip and the man made another grab for him but stopped when he saw the cats regather into the circle. Scout made a couple laps of the malformed circle, chirping in distress until Sniper finally dragged himself into their original spot, at which point he tucked himself firmly into the larger cat’s side. He made a few more distressed chirps as he eyed the mauled fur and flesh but was silenced when Sniper lay a paw across his back.

“Establishing communication should be our top priority,” Spy said once the circle had been properly reformed. “We can’t do much if Medic and Engineer can’t understand us.”

The other cats nodded and made various sounds of agreement only to fall silent when a deep voice rumbled, “Da.” Everyone turned to see an absolutely massive maine coon staring down at them. Even Pyro did a double take before scooting to the side to make space. There was a moment of reshuffling before Heavy finally took a spot and lay down, careful to tuck his lugs beneath him. “Doktor is dangerous. Keep distance and avoid his room.” He paused for a second, then added, “Avoid medbay, too. Anywhere he keeps birds.”

The circle gave another chorus of agreement. If Heavy was giving the warning, then extra caution needed to be used. Right as Spy was about to resume the conversation, Medic reentered, paused, and said, “Heavy?” Heavy looked up, flicked his tail, and then pointedly looked away. Sniper looked between the two before deciding they needed space. “I’ll be back,” he muttered before pushing himself to his feet and limping over to Medic.

Spy coughed to draw everyone’s attention. “As I said before, we’ll need to establish some form of communication. Does anyone have any suggestions?”

“What about morse code?” Soldier asked.

Spy hummed. “Not a bad idea, assuming either of them know any. I know a little, but not nearly enough.”

“Do you know enough to get food?” Scout whined, stretching and rolling onto his back dramatically. “I’m dyin’ over here!”

“Scout-”

“No! Shut up!” He hopped onto his feet and puffed. “I didn’t eat supper on account of I wasn’t feelin’ good, and we ain’t had breakfast. I can smell bacon an’ I’m starving!”

“Mmph! Mr hnng trr,” Pyro chirped, also jumping up and circling in place. Spy smacked his face and groaned, knowing that there was no hope of getting the impromptu meeting back on track. Not with Scout and Pryo now feeding each other’s energy. Best to get them both fed before they worked each other into a frenzy.

“What’d I miss?” Sniper asked as he returned to the circle.

“Somethin’ somethin’ marsh code an’ Spy’s gonna get us food,” Scout announced before anyone else could speak. Pyro hopped over, muffled chattering displaying their excitement over the prospect of finally getting to eat something. The rest of the mercs were eagerly discussing breakfast as Demoman took the lead toward the cafeteria.

Medic and Engineer watched as the cats all began filing out of the room. As Heavy passed, Medic leaned down to try and grab Heavy, only to jerk back when the cat whipped around and snapped at him. Heavy gave an angry huffed before ambling after the rest.

“Well,” Engineer said slowly, “That was… interesting.” He stood up from his spot on the floor and stretched. “What do you recon they’re up to now?”

Medic ran a hand through his hair, sighed, and hefted the end of the medigun off the floor where he’d set it after treating Sniper. “Don’t know. Don’t care. Keep an eye on them. I’m going to call Miss Pauling.”

“Good luck with that.”

Engineer trailed after the small army of cats while Medic heaved another sigh and made his way back to the medical bay. The medigun was easily put away and he took a moment to pet Archimedes before he left in search of the base phone. If he was lucky, Pauling would be free enough to swing by the base. She could wrangle everyone under control and figure out what to do next. Or at least give him some pointers on how to take care of cats. Then he’d have to run to town and get cat food.

Fun.

[aknosde]

sorry for asking for your writing for the third time in like two days straight but plz plz PLZ give me more nico and percy (and thalia too if you want) platonic fluff i just really need it

Okay yes, greek kids of the big three coming right up (I'm programmed for angst but i tried to limit it)(other thing that’s funny is that im working on hcs for Percy, Reyna, Hazel, and Frank right now too)

They all pretty much call each other their cousins, but Thalia really likes to call Percy and Nico “cuz” independently because she thinks it’s the most annoying thing in the world and she likes to say it ironically. (The irony has been lost. It’s been lost for a really really long time)

Thalia: Hey cuz!

Percy: Hi Thals.

Thalia: See, “cuz.” It’s so stupid it’s funny.

Percy: *weak laugh* yeah... funny

-

They were all sent reeling after Bianca’s death. Nico of course ran off and became emo. But Thalia shoved herself into the hunters, barely giving a thought to Nico and Percy because it was too painful. She essentially cut communication between her and Percy for 3-6 months, and only started talking to him again after Mt. St. Helens. Percy shut himself up with guilt and spent all of his time looking for Nico so he could ‘repay his debt’ It wasn’t really a good time for anyone.

What Thalia is not saying: sorry for making you take the prophecy

What Percy is not saying: I feel like I killed Bianca

-

Nico likes to call Mrs. O’Leary his dog even though she is very clearly Percy’s. They argue about it all the time, but it’s all in good fun.

Nico: See, I’m her favorite. She can sense the darkness

Percy: You have all the darkness of a rainbow. Watch this. Mrs. O’Leary!

*Mrs. O’Leary comes bounding over to Percy where she immediately flops onto her stomach and waits for Percy to pet her belly*

-

In fact, Thalia is the only one of them who doesn’t like Mrs. O’Leary. Something Percy and Nico take great advantage of. They like to shadow travel Mrs. O’Leary directly into the center of the Hunters’ camps when Thalia is close by and scare her. She accidentally stabbed herself once because of it.

Thalia: So I went over to pick up my shield, because I love my shield you see, and then they appeared like ‘blarghhh’

-

Thalia would never admit it, but she’s scared shitless of Percy when he gets really mad. She often thinks about that time he lifted the whole creek of water and ice above her head, and thinks it’s really cool, but she’s also terrified of ever having to fight him in any real capacity. 

Percy: Hey look, I learned how to make daggers out of ice

Thalia: ah, cool

Thalia internally: what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck

-

None of them like fast-food from the same place. And Percy’s the only one who can drive. He’s too nice to make them all go to his pick though, even if they argue a lot. 

Thalia and Nico: McDonalds! McDonalds! McDonalds!

Percy *pulling up to the drive through*: one black coffee

Jokes on them because coffee makes Percy super tired so he basically traps them. No but seriously, Nico likes McDonalds, Percy likes Wendy’s, and Thalia likes Burger King. Percy drives around to all of their respective locations while Thalia blasts music and Nico hangs in the middle seat poking at them. They sit on the roof of some building and eat together.

-

Together they form some version of a holy trinity. Thalia = lesbian, Nico = gay, Percy = bi. You are never safe.

Percy and Nico, from the capture the flag jail: Let’s go lesbians! Let’s go lesbians!

Thalia: *sprinting across the boundary*

-

Actually they have a lot of overlap, kind of like a Venn diagram. Powers, music they like, it’s kinda funny. 

Random camper: So which one of you can control the earth?

Percy and Nico: *both raise their hands slowly*

Random camper: And which one of you can change the temperature?

Nico and Thalia: *slowly raise their hands*

Random camper: Great, and which one of you can sense and control the weather?

Percy and Thalia: *both raise their hands*

-

They are not allowed to spar together. Percy and Thalia especially. Emotions run high. Both Percy and Thalia can spar with Nico, but they can’t go all three of them either. The last time all three of them trained together a hill split down the middle, flowers from a certain patch now only grow black, and a big streak of plants were burned. 

Percy, drawing water from an underground spring and turning the very soil under Thalia’s feet to quicksand and forming a giant puddle: Sorry, I can’t hear you from up here!

Nico, shadow traveling Percy into the same trap: What was that you said about being ‘up here’?

Thalia, conjuring a bolt of electricity, shocking them all: hmm?

-

Percy is the tallest out of the three of them, and rather than fight it like Thalia did at the beginning, they accept it and make him being the tallest as inconvenient as possible for him. They make sure things are on the highest shelf so he has to get them down. They climb on him like a jungle gym.

Nico, sitting on Percy’s shoulders: Could you pass me a juice box?

Thalia, latched onto Percy’s back: Sure.

The counselor Percy is having a very important conversation with: uhh

Percy, ignoring them: So what I’m saying is that I can’t bend on having the glass replaced with an extra durable substitute. 

[bluecatstory]

The fortunate one - Chapter 2

The continuation & end to this. Thank you for reading! 

Boy met a tea kettle genie. Unfortunately, this wish-granting genie did not get to grant a single wish. This is an AU 100% based on Neil Gaiman’s The October Tale. Also, the main pairing here is GoYuu (Gojo Satoru/Itadori Yuuji), so please click back if you don’t like it. 

---

It was a lovely day for a stroll through the town. The weather was cool but fair, and green leaves flurried on the trees as the gentle breeze blew by.  

People were out and about, scurrying with their life. But if you pay attention to the crowd, you would see a strange pair. A pink-haired boy was walking together with a tall, lanky man. The handsome man was still young, maybe in his 20s, but his hair was white from the roots. His outfit even made it stick out more, all black with sunglasses. 

They were having a somewhat lively conversation. 

“So tell me more about yourself, Yuuji. I want to get to know you more.” 

“What do you want to know?”

“Your likes, dislikes, dreams, family, just anything!” Gojo grinned playfully. His current master of the tea kettle, by far, was the most intriguing. He wanted to know what kind of person was Yuuji Itadori, who claimed to be perfectly content with his life. 

And Yuuji, like the honest boy he was, told Gojo of his family: his parents passed away in a car accident when he was just a toddler, how his gramps raised him by himself, and he also passed away recently, having left him the house. Yuuji told him about his job: how he was a kindergarten teacher who had gained his reputation among the school for cat drawings. He told him he also taught basic drawing at the local community once a week. 

“Ah, but have you ever wished to be more than that? With your physique, you would make a great athlete. Or model! I mean, look at those legs.”

Red crept up his face. Yuuji smiled sheepishly. 

“Thanks… I guess. But you know, I admit there were tough times. Imagine one accidentally smuggled candies in the class, and the whole 20 would go bonkers. And the parents would just scream at you for everything. But I’m making a difference in the kids’ life. Witnessing them discovering things and eagerly telling you about them. It’s rewarding, and I feel happy every day going to work. “

Yuuji’s smile was so beaming that Gojo felt blinded by it. Ok, so scratch work. He might need to dig into other areas. 

“Now it’s your turn, Mr. Cryptic genie. Tell me more about yourself.” 

“Hmm, you only need to know that I’m the strongest genie that can make your wish come true. Hey, we’re here! Can we buy some cheesecake? I’ll carry the groceries for you.” Gojo pointed to the cakes on the shelves and dashed away, leaving Yuuji standing confused at the door. 

Yuuji snickered at the childlike man. 

--- 

“How about friends? Lovers? You have one?”

“Sometimes, I feel like I’m talking to a police officer who’s doing a yearly census, not a 1000-year-old genie with a desperate need to please people.” Yuuji sighed as he unpacked his grocers in the fridge. 

“Excuse me, I’m only 966. And I ask because it’s my job. Kids these days…” The genie wiped the invisible tears from his eyes. 

“Ok, ok. Don’t cry.” Yuuji lightly patted his head. Being with the genie for a while, he realized Gojo had a dramatic side to him that sought attention. 

He told Gojo that no, he was not dating anyone now. His best friends were Megumi and Nobara. That they had stood with him since high school, through good and bad times. That Megumi was a grumpy yet caring dog whisperer with 2 adorable, fluffy, smart dogs. That Nobara was a strong-willed woman working her way through the modeling world. And they always made time to catch up on the weekend despite a hectic schedule. 

“Hmm, I see.” Gojo said thoughtfully. There were really no holes in Yuuji’s life to be fulfilled by wishes. Except one. 

“You know, I can see that your life is good. But you are missing someone to share that life with you. Wish, and you’ll get the perfect woman. Or man.“

“No need. I’m good.”

“Are you?” 

“Yes. I’ve got everything I need.” Yuuji patted the genie’s head lightly as an assurance. 

“So what do I do now?” 

Yuuji thought for a moment. Then he pointed to the garden. 

“Can you help me tend the plants?”

“Sure! Is it your wish?” Gojo said excitedly. 

“Nah. Something you can help while I make dinner.”

So Gojo tended the plants. Then, after dinner, he helped Yuuji wash the dishes. The list of things Gojo helped Yuuji gradually grew. He ran errands for him, picking up sweets and office supplies for the school. He helped Yuuji planned surprises for his class, joining his local art class as an assistant. And sometimes, when Yuuji was tired, he gave him an excellent massage with his big, strong hands. 

It was not that Yuuji wanted help. But he let Gojo help. 

As time passed, Gojo moved out of the spare bedroom and ended up in Yuuji’s bed. 

---

They were lying on the bed, hands holding each other. Gojo silently watched Yuuji as the sunlight crept on his youthful face, aligning his parted lips. As Gojo was gently brushing a strain of hair away, his lover opened his eyes, and he smiled at him. 

“Mhh…morning.”

“Morning to you, too.” The genie smiled back, lovingly. 

Yuuji stared at him just as he was in a trance. 

“Your eyes… so pretty.” His bright smile struck Gojo, time and time again. Yes, this was the sight he wanted to see every day. His beloved Yuuji wrapped up in his arms, smiling and looking at him and him only. 

“Is this why you always wear blindfolds or sunglasses?”

“Well, a genie would say that because his magical eyes can see everything, so covering them up is a way for him to not know too much. But I would say that those baby blues are only reserved for you.” 

The pink-haired boy’s laugh got muffled by Gojo’s sudden kiss. 

“Hey, I’m wondering… What if it was you who were granted 3 wishes? What would you wish for?” 

Gojo thought for a moment.

“Nah, I’m good.” He told Yuuji. “I’ve got everything I need.” 

---

Gojo was perplexed when he met Yuuji. The boy was weird in every aspect, genetically pink haired with tiger markings, refusing his granted 3 wishes, and insisting his life was enough. For almost 1000 years as a genie, he knew people would always want something. 

Gojo was not a benevolent being. As he appeared before the boy, the genie thought he would just grant him 3 wishes and take his life in return, just like his predecessors. Those greedy, low-life scums would just scream and beg him to spare them. But what was done was done. Oh, how he reveled in their blood and shrieking soul. That was why he got sealed in the fucking tea kettle. Killing too much, the gods said. 

The genie chuckled. 

But Yuuji, his beloved, his eternal sunshine, was different from them. From wanting to know more about him, he started to fall for the boy. His fluffy hair that never seemed to be tamed, his bright, bright smile that made Gojo’s chest hurt, his well-built body that he could not stop planting more kisses on every inch of it, and how he did everything with much passion. 

Gojo loved everything about Yuuji. And now, with him in his arms, he would not let him go. No matter what.

End.

[buoyantsaturn]

400 Lux (1/1)

summary: leo-atthedisco asked: will doesn't speak due to watching his brother die, and nico's like a 'bad boy' who tries really hard to impress will highschool!mortal!au??

it's this headcanon list but as a fic!

word count: 5286

read on ao3

Will was eight years old on the night that his brother Lee had picked him up from his piano lessons across town from where they lived. They were supposed to leave the middle school and head straight home, but Lee had decided to surprise his brother by taking the long way home and stopping for ice cream on the way.

They had to eat while they walked, because knowing their mother, Naomi was counting down the seconds until she expected her sons to be home, and if they ended up being more than five minutes late, they risked having the whole neighborhood watch searching for them.

The Dairy Queen they stopped at was running a little slow on their orders, so Lee had the two of them take a shortcut to make sure they got home on time. It was the same shortcut Lee took on his way home from school, but of course, things were different in the middle of the day than they were after dark.

Will could only remember flashes of what had happened. A man demanding their money, Will’s ice cream cone hitting the pavement alongside Lee’s, and a knife appearing from the darkness. The man vanished with Lee’s wallet and left his knife stuck under Lee’s ribs, and Will couldn’t even manage to scream for help. Lee had managed to pull his phone from his pocket and had Will dial 9-1-1 before he passed out, but Will wasn’t able to tell the operator what had happened.

By the time the police finally arrived, Lee was dead. Will hadn’t spoken a single word since.

By the first day of Will’s junior year, he’d figured out how to make the days as painless as possible. Sit in the back of the room, keep his head down, smile politely but make no other move to interact with his peers. A vague cutting motion near his throat and a shrug whenever someone asked why he wasn’t speaking.

Any teacher that had worked at his high school since he started his freshman year was aware of his disability, but he always wound up stuck in the class of someone new with no way to explain his situation.

He walked into his second period on the first day, moving straight to the back row, setting his backpack under the desk and sitting down silently - feet planted on the floor, hands folded on the desk, head angled down so as to avoid any accidental eye contact.

Someone claimed the seat beside him, drawing Will’s attention momentarily as he dropped into the seat with a huff, tossing his backpack on the floor and leaving it in the space between his desk and Will’s. Will tried to sneak a look at the other boy, afraid of being noticed as he watched the boy kick his high tops up onto the seat of the chair in front of him, lounging back in his chair as he tapped on his phone underneath the desk. Will was pretty sure he’d seen this kid around in the past couple of years, but he was certain that he’d never be able to forget such a pretty face.

Will’s attention was drawn away from the other boy when the teacher called for attention - Mrs. Dodds, someone new, who had an angry southern accent that was almost the exact opposite of Will’s mom’s sweet and soothing southern drawl. Mrs. Dodds starting reading off the attendance list, and Will felt his heartbeat pick up its pace. Would he be marked as a problem child as soon as he refused to answer, or would he just be marked absent? Even worse, what if he was sent to the principal’s office for refusing to speak? It wouldn’t be the first time.

The boy next to him said a bland, “Here,” in response to the teacher calling his name - Nico di Angelo, if Will heard right. Of angels. Yeah, he kind of looked like an angel, Will caught himself thinking.

Mrs. Dodds called his name, and Will rose a hand in acknowledgement, but the teacher didn’t look up. “William Solace,” she said again, voice harsher this time, and she glanced up, finally spotting Will’s hand. “You’ll have to speak up, William, or else you’ll have to sit in the front of the class.”

As Mrs. Dodds continued calling out names, Will slumped back in his seat dejectedly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Nico lean toward him, and Will braced himself.

“Why didn’t you just say you’re here?” he asked, pouting in confusion. Cute, Will thought.

He made a cutting motion next to his neck and shrugged, hoping that Nico would understand.

“Oh, you’ve got laryngitis or something,” Nico whispered. “That sucks, sorry.”

Will shrugged again and turned back toward his desk. Or something, yeah.

Nico had learned to sit in the back of class because he could never keep his mouth shut. He’d gotten more detentions than he could count for snarky remarks and correcting his teachers - sorry, but he definitely knew more Italian than someone who’d only lived in Italy for a semester in college ten years ago, and don’t get him started on his history classes - but as long as he sat as far from the teachers as possible, they couldn’t hear his comments.

That was how Nico found himself sitting next to Will in his second period, though he figured Will had chosen a seat in the back to avoid getting called on when he couldn’t talk. He certainly didn’t look like a back-of-the-class delinquent - to be fair, Nico wasn’t either, but he certainly dressed like he was - and Nico figured that as soon as Will got his voice back he would move up to the front row and ask a question every five minutes. Nico found himself thinking about how unfortunate that would be - the back of Will’s head couldn’t be anywhere near as nice to look at as his face was.

When Mrs. What’s-Her-Face started teaching (on the first day of class, seriously?) Nico couldn’t help but groan softly, knocking his head back until it hit the wall behind him. He thought he heard a snicker and glanced over to Will who quickly looked back to the board, but didn’t hide the tiny smile on his lips.

He heard that same snicker a few times throughout the period, always following one of Nico’s dumb comments, and Nico felt a surge of pride at making this hot guy laugh. He was going to be even more upset to see Will move up to the front of the room - nobody had ever appreciated his snark as much as Will seemed to.

When the class ended, Nico packed up his stuff to and offered Will a two-fingered salute, and was just about to turn away when Will smiled and waved back. Nico hurried away and out the door into the hallway, hoping that Will didn’t see the sudden glowing pink of his cheeks.

His next three classes were just as boring as he’d expected for the first day of the year, sandwiched around his lunch period that he unfortunately did not share with any of his friends. He considered searching out Will, but thought that might be weird since they didn’t really know each other. He didn’t want to look desperate.

Nico ate his lunch quickly and all alone, arriving to his next class fifteen minutes early and leaving it the second the bell rang. He just had one last class to survive that day before he was free to go home and enjoy his solitude.

He walked into the classroom, immediately realizing that this class might not be as insufferable as he thought it was going to be when he saw Will sitting in the back row. Nico went over to him, taking a seat next to him, and he was greeted with another bright smile. Nico got a tingly feeling all over his body at the sight, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to run away to hide his blush this time.

“Hey,” Nico said. “Still no voice?”

Will’s smile disappeared, and he stared down at his desk as he shook his head.

Nico hadn’t realized that laryngitis could be such a sensitive topic. He was about to apologize when the teacher announced the start of class. Mr. Brunner started reading off the attendance list, and Nico said, “Here,” for the sixth time that day. He tuned out most of the names that Mr. Brunner called, until he heard, “William Solace,” and saw Will’s hand rise up next to him.

“Uh, he’s here,” Nico said, and Will smiled at him in thanks. Nico felt himself smiling back before he froze. Oh no, he thought, this is a crush.

He was much quieter during Mr. Brunner’s class than he was in Mrs. Dodds’s, afraid that he might blurt out something embarrassing to Will, and managed to keep his mouth shut until the final bell rang. He still waved goodbye to Will as he left, but didn’t wait to see an acknowledgement before he was rushing out of the room.

Nico found Jason at his locker. “What do you know about William Solace?”

“You mean Will?” Jason asked, closing his locker and turning to frown at Nico. “Blond. Junior. What do you want to know?”

Nico crossed his arms and looked away, hoping to prevent Jason from seeing his true intention in his eyes. “I dunno. I just met him today, he seems cool, I guess, but we didn’t talk much.”

Jason rolled his eyes. “No shit, dude doesn’t talk.”

“What do you mean?”

Jason started walking down the hall, and Nico moved with him. “I mean he doesn’t talk. Somebody told me he was in some kind of accident as a kid, I guess. He apparently hasn’t spoken since, but he insists on sticking with public school for some reason. Anyway, am I driving you home?”

Nico spent most of that night researching ASL, figuring that Will needed to communicate in some way, and sign language seemed the most realistic way that he would do so. He found a bunch of websites that talked about deaf culture, meaning that Nico found a lot more information than he’d been looking for - far more than the few basic signs for hello or goodbye or homework he’d originally been searching for.

He’d ended up staying up until nearly three in the morning after finally crawling out of a clickhole, which meant that he was this close to falling asleep in his first class the next morning. He woke right up at the end of class, however, anxious to get to Mrs. Dodds’s class so he could talk to Will.

Will beat him to class, and was already staring blankly down at his desk when Nico sat down beside him.

“Hey,” Nico said, and Will smiled at him. “Um. I’m sorry for yesterday, for bringing up that you can’t talk. I, uh, I didn’t realize it was such a sensitive subject. So. Sorry.”

Will frowned down at his desk. Without looking at Nico, he raised a flat hand up to his lips, then held that hand out towards Nico. Had he not spent the whole night researching ASL, Nico might’ve thought that Will was blowing him a kiss - a very sad, uncomfortable kiss.

“Um, that was sign language, right?” Nico asked, and Will perked up a little bit. Nico stared down at his hands, picking off his black nail polish as he continued, “‘Thank you’? I looked up a few things after school yesterday, in case you did speak ASL, but all I really looked for were school-related things. Like, uh, homework and teacher and classroom. So I don’t know much, but hopefully enough that I can help you with your homework if you need it? And then you won’t have to deal with Mrs. Dodds.”

When he finally looked up, he saw Will beaming at him.

Will was buzzing for the rest of the day. Only his mom and Mr. Brunner had ever bothered to learn ASL for his sake, but now this cute boy was learning a few signs? Just for him? A cute boy wanted to talk with him? It had never happened before, and Will wasn’t really sure how to feel - besides excited, because hell yeah, he was so excited. He wanted to run home and grab the ASL books his mom had gotten for them to share, or invite Nico over after school to teach him. That was all too forward, though, right? People didn’t normally get this attached to a single person after knowing them for a day, right? It had been so long since Will had had a friend that didn’t care if he didn’t talk, so rational thought had practically gone out the window.

Will had made sure to get to Mr. Brunner’s class as quickly as possible before his last class of the day so he could share the news with the one person he could actually talk to.

“That’s wonderful, Will,” Mr. Brunner told him. “I’m glad you’ll have someone your own age to talk to. You should let them borrow the books you used when you first learned ASL.”

‘I was going to,’ Will signed. ‘But should I offer the books first or just bring them to school tomorrow?’

“Well, does your friend understand enough to know what you’re offering?” Mr. Brunner asked, and Will shrugged. “Perhaps it should be a surprise, then. Head to your seat, Will, class will be starting soon.”

Nico was already in his seat in the back row by the time Will took his seat. “Mr. Brunner knows ASL, too?” he asked, and Will nodded. “Cool, maybe he can help me learn some more.”

I could teach you, Will thought. I’d be happy to teach you. But he didn’t respond.

Will brought the first level book the next day, but never ended up giving it to Nico. He wasn’t sure what held him back - embarrassment of some kind or the fear that Nico would think he was being too clingy and change his mind - but it was almost a week before he finally built up enough courage to hand the book over.

“An ASL book?” Nico said before Mrs. Dodds’s class started one morning. “Is this yours?”

Will nodded and signed, ‘You can borrow it if you want.’

Nico watched Will’s hands with a concentrated frown, but looked up in confusion once Will had finished. Will smiled at the adorable look on Nico’s face and held out his hand to take the book back, then flipped to the page with the word borrow.

“You’re letting me borrow this?” Nico asked. “This is so great, thanks!” Will signed you’re welcome, but Nico looked like he still had something he wanted to say, by the way he was biting his lip and jiggling his leg. “Can I, uh, have your phone number? So I can text you if I have any questions?”

Will nodded and pulled his phone out of his pocket, opening up a new contact and handing it over to Nico. He typed for a little while before giving the phone back to Will. “I sent myself a text, by the way.” Will nodded again as he looked down at the screen, smiling at what he saw. He had inputted his name simply as Nico with a ghost emoji on either side. He got a cute boy’s phone number!

Will was smiling for the rest of the day.

He’d managed to hold off on saying anything else to Nico until the end of Mr. Brunner’s class that day, finally caving just before Nico walked out the door.

‘Do you want to come over sometime so I can teach you?’ he asked, his hands shaking so badly that he didn’t really expect Nico to understand.

“Teach me?” Nico asked. “That’s all I caught.”

‘My house. I’ll teach you,’ Will tried again, then fingerspelled, A-S-L.

“Oh!” Nico said, eyes widening. “Yeah, I would love to! Um, but I can’t today. I’ll text you, though, okay?” Will nodded, and Nico smiled up at him. “Great, I’ll see you tomorrow!”

Jason was already in his car by the time Nico finally dropped into the passenger’s seat. “You’re late, now we’re gonna get caught in traffic.”

“Sorry, I was talking to Will,” Nico said, digging through his bag until he pulled out the ASL book, flipping it open to the page he’d left off on.

“What are you reading?” Jason asked, glancing over before focusing his eyes back on the road. “That’s not homework, is it? I’ve never seen you do homework before.”

“Will’s ASL book, he’s letting me borrow it,” Nico said. “He invited me over sometime. To teach me.”

Jason groaned. “Nico, please don’t confuse his kindness as him having a crush on you. I don’t think I could handle that again.”

“It was one time, and besides,” Nico started, “this is different.”

“How is this any different?” Jason asked, and out of the corner of his eye he could see Nico’s face growing red.

“I really, really like him,” Nico muttered. “That’s how.”

Nico went to Will’s house after school a few days later, and Will insisted that they finish their homework before they start practicing ASL. Nico caught him peeking over his shoulder a few times while they worked on their math assignment, and eventually Nico scooted closer to him on the couch until they could both see each other’s work clearly.

They stayed sitting closer than necessary when they finally moved on to ASL, and whenever the two of them turned to face each other, there were barely inches in between them - such a short distance that could be closed in a second, but neither of them ever made the move.

They developed a sort of schedule after that, one going over to the other’s house once or twice a week. They would do their homework and then practice ASL, sometimes watching a movie depending on how late it was, and Nico would usually stay over for dinner at Will’s house. Nico learned the concept of a name sign, and Will taught him his - a W and the sign for sunshine. Nico asked Will to come up with a name sign for him, and Will told him he would think about it. As soon as Nico left that night, though, Will started talking to his mom and made a name sign for Nico without even thinking - an N and the sign for ghost. (Naomi asked if Nico having a name sign meant that he and Nico were more than friends, but Will said he hadn’t thought about Nico like that.) (He had. All the time.)

Nico had started neglecting his other friends in favor of movie nights with Will. Piper tried inviting him to her house for a few parties, but before Nico could even turn her down, Jason had done it for him, telling her that Friday was Date Night and that Nico would probably choose Will over them. Nico had been indignant, even though Jason was mostly right, but now Nico had to convince Piper that he and Will were not in fact dating (regardless of how much he wished they were).

One particular Saturday night, the two of them planned a movie marathon at Nico’s house that would most likely last late into the night, so they’d gone ahead and planned for a sleepover. The two of them stayed up until almost two in the morning watching movie after movie, only stopping after Will had laid his head in Nico’s lap and almost fell asleep right then and there. They were due to go to bed anyway, since Nico had been having a hard time making out Will’s signs in the dark for a couple hours at that point.

Nico had blown up an air mattress right next to his bed in his room, and Will had collapsed on it and fallen asleep before Nico had even gotten into his own bed. Unlike Will, he had a terrible time trying to fall asleep - how could he, when his crush was right there? He could stretch his arm over the side of the bed and brush his fingers against Will’s arm. He rolled over to his other side, trying to push Will out of his mind so that he could sleep, but the thoughts wouldn’t go away. He remembered Will’s face close to his as he taught him signs, the gentle way he held Nico’s hands and corrected his movements. The way Will had so calmly laid down in Nico’s lap, comfortable enough to fall asleep even as Nico started to run his fingers through Will’s soft hair.

He heard shuffling, like Will was rolling over in his sleep, but the shuffling didn’t stop, and then gasping breaths joined it.

“Will?” Nico whispered, sitting up and leaning over the side of the bed.

He must’ve been having a nightmare, Nico thought, and was about to try to wake him up when Will bolted upright, sounding like he was wheezing or hissing - like he was trying to scream but the sound wouldn’t come out.

Nico launched himself out of bed, dropping into Will’s lap and framing Will’s face in his hands. “Will, shh, you’re okay,” Nico told him, resting his forehead against Will’s when he finally stopped struggling to scream. “You’re safe, you’re okay. Everything’s okay, I’m right here for you.” Will squeezed his eyes shut as tears started rolling down his cheeks.

Nico started to lift himself off Will’s lap, but Will wound his arms around his waist to keep him there. “I’m not going anywhere,” Nico promised. “Come with me, stand up.” This time when Nico tried to stand, Will let him, and followed him up onto his feet. “Lay down with me,” Nico whispered, climbing back into his bed, Will joining him without a second of hesitation.

Will wrapped his arms around Nico’s waist, hiding his face in Nico’s chest as he sobbed, and Nico pulled the blankets up around them. Nico started stroking his other hand through Will’s hair, only stopping when he heard something that sounded like whispering. “Will?” Nico asked softly. “Are you saying something?”

He strained to hear it, but it sounded as though Will was whispering, “I’m sorry,” into Nico’s t-shirt, over and over again.

“Shh,” Nico said again, returning to stroking Will’s hair. “Don’t be sorry. Go back to sleep, Sunshine, I’ve got you.” He pressed a kiss to the top of Will’s head. He would be surprised if he managed to get any sleep at all that night.

Nico waited until he felt Will relax in his arms, eventually falling asleep once again, and Nico finally allowed himself to close his eyes.

Nico woke up the next morning to the feeling of Will pulling himself out of Nico’s grasp. Nico rubbed at his eyes with one hand to wake himself up while his other hand reached out for Will, grabbing his t-shirt to keep him from getting too far away.

“Will?” Nico said softly. “Are you alright?”

Will pulled Nico’s hand off his shirt so that he could sit up, and nodded. Nico followed him up.

“Are you sure? Do you want to talk about it?” Nico offered. He saw Will’s eyes well up with tears before he shook his head no.

‘I’m sorry,’ Will signed.

“Don’t be sorry,” Nico told him. “You didn’t do anything.”

Will started signing rapidly, too quick for Nico to catch more than a word or phrase here or there - ‘You’re right,’ ‘I didn’t do anything,’ ‘I’m sorry’ at least three more times - and after a moment Nico reached out to stop his hands, holding them in his own.

“It’s okay, Will,” Nico told him, squeezing his hands. “You have nothing to be sorry for, there’s nothing to worry about. Okay?” Will hesitated before nodding, and Nico drew one of his hands up, pressing a kiss to Will’s palm. “How about we go downstairs? We can watch another movie, and I’ll make us breakfast.”

At school on Monday, Will surprised Nico by meeting him at his locker before first period. He waited for Nico to gather everything he needed for class and shut his locker before he reached down and took Nico’s hand in his, lacing their fingers as they started down the hall. Nico didn’t question it, afraid that if he did then Will would let go, and he certainly didn’t want that.

Will walked with him to his first class, squeezing his hand before letting go and waving goodbye so that he could head to his own class. Nico entered the classroom, immediately being cornered by Piper before he could sneak away to the back corner.

“What was that?” she asked, and Nico frowned.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

She gestured toward the door with both hands. “You! And Will! He’s never walked you to class before! And you were holding hands, what’s going on? I thought you said you weren’t dating!”

“We’re not!” Nico insisted. At least...he was pretty sure they weren’t. They weren’t, right? He’d want to know if they were, and how long it had been going on, because while cuddling on the couch during a movie was great, Nico figured that making out and completely ignoring the movie would be even better. “He spent the night on Saturday and had a nightmare, and he’s been kinda shaken up by it since. He just wanted some comfort or something, I don’t know, but he wanted to hold my hand so I let him.” He could feel himself blushing and turned away from her, crossing his arms over his chest.

Piper narrowed her eyes at him. “Uh huh. Okay, sure.” She jerked her head toward the back of the room. “You’d better get back there before somebody steals your seat.”

Nico kept a close eye on Piper for the rest of class, though not once did her eyes stray from that day’s lesson, never once pulling out her phone to send a text announcing the latest update on Nico’s love life.

He was happy to see the end of class, because it meant that he got to see Will. They had a test in their math class, which meant that they didn’t get to talk or pass notes, but at the end of class, Will’s smile goodbye seemed a little more upbeat than it had when they’d parted ways before the start of Nico’s first class.

Will had history for his third period class, and while he was normally one of the only kids sitting in the back of the room, that day Piper had decided to join him. She slid a note onto his desk after class had started that said, Are you and Nico dating?

Will wasn’t sure how to answer. They certainly acted like they were, but neither of them had ever said anything to confirm it. He hesitated before writing his response: I think so, but I don’t know how to ask him to make sure. He folded up the note and looked toward the front of the room as he held the paper out toward Piper.

Just ask him, Piper replied. If only it were that simple, Will thought, picking up the note and crumbling it in his hand. Just ask him - it wasn’t like Will had a voice to use to ask, “Hey, Nico, are we dating?” and if he tried to sign it, his hands would probably shake so bad that Nico wouldn’t be able to tell what he was saying, anyway.

Except that...he did have a voice, didn’t he? Physically, there was nothing preventing him from speaking, just some kind of mental block. He’d never considered that he would ever speak again, always assumed that he would be forever silent, but...he didn’t need to be. He could learn to talk again, if he truly wanted to. Would his voice even work after going unused for almost ten years? He would have to wait and see.

He didn’t say anything about it to Nico or Mr. Brunner during sixth period. He didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up - especially not his own - until he knew for sure that this was something he would be able to do.

He also didn’t text his mom about it, wanting to wait until she got home from work so that he could talk to her in person. He’d made sure to sign slowly and clearly so he wouldn’t be misunderstood, and when his mom repeated back to him what he’d said, tears had spilled over her cheeks. She wrapped her arms around his son, telling him how proud of him she was. They spent the rest of the evening researching therapists in the area that spoke sign language, reading reviews and checking rates, until Will finally settled on the one he would meet with.

Once Will started seeing his therapist twice a week, he didn’t have as much time to spend with Nico, which was both good and bad. He missed seeing his best friend so often, but he didn’t want to spoil the surprise, either. (He’d told Nico that he’d started seeing a therapist, but hadn’t told him for what, and Nico never pried.) They made up for their lost time, though, by spending nearly every weekend together - cuddling on the couch during movie nights and sleeping in the same bed whenever Will spent the night (Nico had foregone the air mattress after the third weekend in a row that Will had decided to sleep in his bed with him).

It took months for Will to be able to manage to speak a single word. His therapist broke him down and helped him to build himself back up, allowing a voice to be a part of his new and improved self. His voice was shaky and lacked confidence, it cracked worse than thirteen-year-old’s, but it was his voice.

He decided to cancel a single session with his therapist, knowing that it would be the best opportunity to surprise Nico, but also made sure that his therapist would still be expecting him for his next session - he could talk, sure, and that had been the goal, but he had a lot more to work through than just that.

Will hurried home after school, collecting some snacks and a DVD that he’d been saving for that weekend, and drove himself over to Nico’s house, trying to control his excitement as he knocked on the door.

Nico opened the door with a look of confusion on his face, one that switched to happiness at seeing Will, and then going back to confusion. Before he could ask what Will was doing there, Will said, “Hi, Nico.” It was shaky and rough and cracked on the first syllable, but the look on Nico’s face was definitely worth all the work.

“Did you--” Nico started, whispering as though speaking up would startle Will’s voice away. “You just--”

“Yeah,” Will said, holding back a bubble of laughter.

“But...how--”

“I wanted to ask you out,” Will said. His voice was starting to dry out already - he probably wouldn’t be able to talk much longer, but he just had to get this out. “Ask you with my voice. So, Nico--”

Nico surged up, hands framing Will’s face as he pressed their lips together. Will dropped the bag of snacks he had in his hands in favor of wrapping his arms around Nico’s waist.

“Yeah,” Nico breathed against Will’s lips. “Yes, I wanna go out with you. I really, really do.”

[junyuyangsbloggerapp-blog]

My Life and Pokemon

The long road to my current obsession. 

I live my life as a slave to Pokefanaticism. Just when I think I am free—that the lore of Pokemon will no longer excite me—there will be some other aspect of the franchise that will draw me in. I suppose it’s not too unlikely--this franchise has multiple manga storylines, an anime, many movies, and way too game continuities to keep track of. And yet again, for the fourth time, I am drawn in.

Both of these are Pokemon. Semantically, they are the same type. 

A rundown for those who may not have heard of or seen this franchise: Pokemon centers around these creatures called Pokemon. We’re not quite sure if they’re animals, plants, or household objects, because they are all of the above and also dragons.

But  we know is that they are all birds, because they all hatch from eggs.

Even the Ice Cream Pokemon.

Humans and Pokemon have a mostly mutualistic relationship, where they feed and help each other. Humans can catch and train Pokemon to battle each other, a process which is said to help both the human and their Pokemon. The storylines focus on different aspects to varying degrees, thus appealing to more people. It’s very common to find fans who have only played a specific series of the games, or only read the anime, or only played the card game.

My run-in with Pokemon first began in 2006 when I was eight and saw people playing with Pokemon cards. They all seemed like cool and well-adjusted people, so I thought, “Hey, if I play Pokemon, maybe I’ll become cool and well-adjusted too!” I bought some Pokemon cards because they were cute. I still flip through them sometimes.

Little me then set my eyes on the Pokemon games themselves. I really wanted to play Pokemon Emerald, which came out in 2005. It was hot off the griddle and looked absolutely packed with content. (It was. I still assert that it was one of the pinnacles of Pokemon main game development, even if I’ll have to fight one-hundred-and-one people who will try to convince me that ORAS is a better game. Literally, in order to beat some of the optional Emerald endgame content, you had to do calculations and strategize.)

There was only one problem.

My parents don’t believe in American food, Chipotle, Costco cakes, chicken tenders, or video games. They thought the latter would completely derail my life and firmly refused to get any consoles for me.

And so I learned to settle at a young age.

I settled for the anime. You know, the one about Ash, the annoying, forever-ten-years-old kid with the z’s on his face who refuses to evolve his Pikachu because merchandising and publicity said so. 

You might have heard bits of the age-long discussions “Who the heck is his dad?” (because only his mother has ever been revealed, and we don’t think his father died in the War) and “Why is he still ten?” He’s been ten for nearly twenty years now. 

That was a ridiculously childish show, where every episode had the same exact plot except the bad guys got increasingly better at crossdressing. Even 8-year old me could plainly see this and rant about it. The anime is pretty much responsible for many people delegating the entire Pokemon franchise to the “kids only” section of their heads, even though there are many parts of Pokemon that are...not so child-friendly. For instance, in the manga, there’s a scene where the villains kill the protagonist’s father and then decide to burn him so he can’t be revived.

But what the anime did right, and what no other branch of Pokemon has quite successfully captured. is the magic and spontaneity of battle and the vibrance of the Pokemon themselves. Sure, the anime characters are almost all some variation of “good-hearted and way too cheerful”, but they still had heartwarming and unique interactions with their Pokemon. The lack of human focus also allowed for entire episodes based on specific Pokemon and Pokemon families. And they would often showcase rather esoteric Pokemon too, which is great, because when you have hundreds of critters and your franchise only wants to promote the ones everyone already knows about, everyone else tends to slip through the cracks. People will wax lyrical about how Pokemon Adventures (the most well-known manga) brought forth increasingly complex, dark, and trashy plots, but it never really allowed you to observe the cute critters and watch battle mechanics because you would be too focused on whether or not the main character’s really annoying love interest was going to die.

Perhaps some of the introduced plot twists in the anime were rather...lame. Ash gets a badge at some point by accidentally triggering the sprinklers in a Rock type gym. Rock-type Pokemon are weak to water, and so he won. Regardless, that was pretty funny and shows how Pokemon actually interact with their world outside of battle (which may or may not be really violent dog-fighting, depending on who you ask). I quickly became entranced by the cute little mons dancing around, showing off their quirks and abilities, although the formulaic plot and pattern of the episodes easily bored me. You can only watch “Team Rocket shows up, tries to steal Pikachu, and then are lambasted into space” so many times.

Then, in 9th grade, I learned that instead of watching a bunch of too-peppy ten year olds duke it out, I too could take part in this violence. At that time, I was taking Fundamentals of Programming. The class itself was okay, but we were also learning Alice.

Thanks, Carnegie Mellon.

I mean, it wasn’t a bad programming language. It’s drag and drop, and most of the graphics have mansions in the Uncanny Valley, but it is far superior to Scratch. You could make some pretty sophisticated animations and games.

There is only so long you can gaze into the empty eyes of Alice Liddell.

And so we discovered the joys of Pokemon Showdown, a website where you could battle real life people. There are various tiers of battling you can partake in--each tier has its own unique limits on which Pokemon you can use--and the one we always battled in was “Random Battle”, where you and your opponent are both given a completely random, computer-assembled team. It was easy and quick, since we didn’t have to think about team-building (which takes literally eons) at all.

My peers and I became very involved in this. I remember battling out of boredom one day, picking the one-time username of “Grack 331” because Mr. Grack taught Fundamentals of Programming in Room 331. Out of the blue, my opponent messaged me: “Do you go to Troy High School?”

Turned out he was very bored in Robotics class and also indulging in the pleasures of virtual dog-fighting. (Although Generation VI asserts that this helps build a mutualistic bond between you and your Pokemon that will allow them to strip themselves of all humanity and inhibitions. This sounds like BS, but it does sort of hold up--Pokemon with human trainers are able to reach new levels of power. Given that some of Pokemon got the short end of the power stick, that’s pretty important.)

In this era, I became entranced with the complexity of battle mechanics. I learned about movesets, stats, and breeding. All were important considerations in selecting and creating powerful Pokemon who could counter almost everything thrown at them. In Pokemon, there is a concept of weaknesses and strengths. Think of it as a very complex 18-way game of rock-paper-scissors, except you could be rock and paper (and maybe have some scissors DNA lurking in there somewhere), and even if you were only rock, you could probably learn paper-like moves if your father was a piece of paper. Almost every Pokemon, regardless of strength, could be honed into a fine weapon capable of sweeping any opponent. (Well, except for Sunkern.) It was simply intriguing to see the way people play movesets and team compositions to their team advantage. I watched as very savvy battlers set up the field so that a pathetically weak pokemon could overpower opponents of huge power.

I think what ultimately stopped me from getting too into competitive Pokemon battling was the community. Interspersed between all the nice people, you had the hardcore fellows who believed in might over all else and delighted in tearing down others. They’re the kind of people who would go and curse you out if they didn’t like the way you battled, even if they literally didn’t know you at all.  My high school was already toxic enough--I really didn’t need more toxicity in my life. And so the second phase of my Pokefanaticism waned.

The next era came in the summer after 12th grade. Like everyone else, I started playing the darn new-fangled Pokemon Go (PoGo), where Pokemon appear as you walk around. You then throw balls at them and try to walk around more so that you could “catch them all”. I didn’t expect to like PoGo, because it looked like it would lack many of the features which drew me to Pokemon. There was no battling mechanic at all, no real human-Pokemon interactions, and the Pokemon themselves did not do much except engage in very basic battles and roar at you when you tapped them.

In here lay the ingenuity.

The game is so simple that there is literally nothing to distract you from ogling the cute mons. There are some noticeable patterns like “Water Pokemon tend to appear near rivers” and “Ultra Balls are more likely to capture Pokemon than normal PokeBalls”, but you really don’t need to understand very much to enjoy PoGo. Just look at the extremely simple catching mechanic, where you toss balls at Pokemon until one sticks. In the main console games, you have to think about weaknesses, properly trapping Pokemon so that they don’t run, inflicting status conditions like poison and paralysis, and picking the most optimal ball from an assortment of over 20 PokeBall varieties. (Things have gotten better, but PoGo is definitely a “appeal to as many people as possible” sort of game. Though it’s expanded its roster, it still focuses overwhelmingly on Kantan Pokemon and events, even though the last Kanto games Fire Red and Leaf Green came out in 2004. After all, when most older people think of Pokemon, they think of the Pokemon they grew up with, even though a lot of those critters had very clear design issues. These Pokemon happened to be Kantan Pokemon, Generation I.)

Thus, Pokemon Go lured in players who otherwise would have never touched Pokemon. The most hardcore players I’ve met understand all the in and outs of PoGo, but very little about the lore behind it. Heck, I met someone who had no idea that Mega Evolution is a thing, even though it is such a huge part of the games and advertising.

There’s nothing wrong with being a casual player, because I’m a casual fan for many franchises and I can still get a lot of enjoyment out of them. The problem (and why a lot of people are getting increasingly irked by Pokemon’s reattempts at mainstream approval) is when your games get dumbed down and gimmick-fied to appeal to more people. Take, for instance, the recent Pokemon Let’s Go! Series. It’s cute and all, sure. Many fans, me included, would rather see all that effort geared towards Sinnoh (Generation IV) remakes. Sinnoh is a grand region with so much lore and possibly the best Champion of all time. And yet, what do we get? We get another return to the most hackneyed region, because it’s the one everyone grew up with and remembers.

I digress.

No matter how I feel, I inevitably fell. PoGo preyed on me where it mattered. It fed on my love for cute things and targeted my tendency to hoard things. Just look at my nail polish collection.

And before I knew it, I was taking extra long laps around MIT just to get more mileage and losing weight. Sometime in my sophomore year, I discovered the MIT PoGo community. This broadened my horizons. I could now engage in “raids”, where you take down an extra powerful opponent with your “friends”. Just two months ago, I was carefully planning my day so that I could go to important raids. I remember getting my timeslot for an exclusive raid and realizing that it conflicted with a presentation I had to give. So like a normal person, I hunted down one of my friends who was free, carefully arranged teams, and gave my PoGo community the details of his appearance so that they could find him if necessary.

So what snapped me out of my PoGo craze?

I rediscovered the complexity which had drawn me to the franchise in the first place. It all began a week before my second 7.05 exam, when I decided to check out the web series Pokemon Generations (again). It is a 18-episode official webseries, where each episode is five minutes or shorter. Apparently, they couldn’t afford to pay for longer episodes. Unlike the anime I described above, it stuck closely with the game continuity and was definitely darker and grittier without becoming edgy. The animation was also very sharp (whether or not it’s “beautiful” is hotly debated) and detailed.

I’m not sure why I decided to rewatch a series, however short, during this time. Maybe it was to actually view it; the first time around, my involvement dropped drastically after Episode 5. This iteration, I began watching with more attention to detail. In Episode 8, which is an episode that explores, “What if Team Aqua, the evil team that aspires to become global warming and raise sea levels, actually succeeds?” I noticed that someone refer to one of my favorite villains, Shelly, and she looked...very different. 

I expected the one on the left; I got the one on the right.

At first, I thought, “Maybe there is another Shelly,” even though Pokemon takes great pains to not repeat names. A few moments of googling told me, nope, same character. As you can see, Shelly used to be a fiery redhead. This was extremely distinctive, because everyone else on her team was either bald, brunette, or lighter brunette. I loved her when I saw her in the anime, because she was literally the only person during that arc finale who was competent. Her redesign (right above) was also pretty snazzy, but it’s also fairly jarring for someone who wasn’t expecting it.

In my googling, I discovered two things. The first thing was that many of the older Pokemon games got remade, where the plot was rewritten, the regional fauna elaborated upon, and the characters redrawn. The second was that despite these clear differences, and the fact that there are so many main console Pokemon games, all of them (yes, even the originals and the remakes) are supposed to fit into the same continuity.

Here, my foot fell into a rabbit hole. When my friend gave me a copy of the game Pokemon Soul Silver, my entire body sunk in.

 See, all this time, I had never really gotten up to date on the progression of the pokemon universe. We have 7 generations so far—each generation bringing forth a new region and new pokemon—and I had never really learned about anything after Generation IV. Being extremely young back in the day, I learned about the individual regions but never stuck around long enough to learn about their remakes. A lot of game developments also happened in the meantime, and it turned out that the Pokemon universe actually was a collection of Pokemon universes, where each continuity differed by maybe just a few details that eventually became huge life-changing inventions/events. Formerly, we assumed each game was somewhat standalone.

You might have noticed that so far, I haven’t really talked a lot about the humans of the Pokemon world, because I didn’t put too much attention into them. They’re fairly flat battling fodder in the original.  

But with the remakes, due to changes in creative direction, a lot of the humans in the games got more characterization. It was not a lot, just enough for you to feel the presence of a personality growing in there somewhere. And with the realization that their world(s) were so delicate and easily-disturbed came the potential for character development and interactions.

Immediately, I immediately became intrigued by how all my favorite characters back in the day had changed. Some are not too drastic—Clair from Gold, Silver, and Crystal was a...witch that starts with a b back then, and Clair from Heart Gold and Soul Silver (the remakes) is still that. Others are sweeping. Courtney from Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald turned from a somewhat sly but also underutilized admin into a mentally unhinged and eccentric scientist who may or may not secretly have psychic powers that allow her to see the results of her actions. (Not that it stops her in pursuing her dangerous goals. Some contest that her visions of the world’s destruction might not actually be visions, but rather, disturbed fantasies. People are weird.)

And here I discovered a perplexing paradox.

I am very character and worldbuilding focused. If I were given a choice between a hardcore plot and really good character interactions, I will always take the latter. The fandoms which have jumped out to me are all fandoms with well-developed characters, even if the plot is weak. My Little Pony, for instance, is very slice-of-life, and many of its attempts to a plot are cliched and clumsy. However, the characters undergo a lot of individual growth and have extremely nuanced interactions that allow me to overlook plot issues.

The Pokemon games have neither a complex plot nor an intense character focus. (Really, the anime doesn’t either. Hence I stopped watching it.) The plot is quite literally: you, as a ten year old (somewhat older in subsequent games), venture out into the world and battle people. Along the way, you get called along to save the world since child endangerment isn’t a thing in this universe. After you defeat the Champion, the strongest trainer in the land, you can catch all the Pokemon that exist in your region. This is a very simple plot. Yes, there’s a lot to catch, and a lot of content and wade through. It still doesn’t change the fact that the trainers are basically fodder for you and that the entire setup is made to appeal to kids. What sort of parent would let their ten year old child wander out into a wilderness where there are threatening creatures in the fucking tall grass? There are so many, many other questions.

Look at this cutie, who you might encounter on your journey. Except its Pokedex entry reads:  “It is whispered that any child who mistakes Drifloon for a balloon and holds on to it could wind up missing.” -Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver

And then one day, as I was playing Soul Silver and trying to decide how some of these characters even functioned, it hit me why I kept coming back to this franchise.

In order for this very simple and formulaic plot to work, the world in which it takes place must be very complex. At the least, it needs to be radically different from ours. The process of understanding this foreign world and how they have adapted is what makes Pokemon so appealing.

Let’s start with an aspect of the Pokemon games that is mildly well-known: the extreme youth of the main character, especially when compared with what you can do. You’re in the early years of your adolescence, and yet you can summon gods while priests and lorekeepers trained to deal with them can’t (ORAS). Sure, this is all the result of a game mechanic that’s supposed to entice younger kids. Real Pokemon training would probably be very dangerous and arduous, because Pokemon are basically dangerous weapons that could kill you. No one wants to play a game about what is basically dog-training but where the dogs are also nukes.

But if the Pokemon world were real, training would be very dangerous and require lots of patience. And most certainly, no one would send out their ten year old into the wild. One can dismiss all of this, rewrite canon for their purposes, or comb through the dialogue and events and develop a reasonable society in which things like this can become accepted.

And so my current obsession is constructing a reasonable and nuanced headcanon where characters are distinct and multidimensional. This is twofold. It is always mind-broadening to see how other people have interpreted the context clues and gotten creative, in the form of fan art, headcanons, and fanfiction.

There is a special whimsy about the Pokemon world which makes it especially appealing despite all the plot voids which exist in it. It is a world of really weird people and really strange life motivations. You have the mishmash of multiple tropes, Chosen Ones who are passed over for you despite being more magical and gifted than you’ll ever be and a lot of heartwarming goodness where you would expect none. People take baths with their venomous Tentacruel, they get their dreams ruined, they drop their balls…what more could you want?

Thanks for letting me know? 

I imagine in a few months, my Pokefanaticism will wane once more. But soon, as more content and more oddities are added, it will flare up again and again. Generation VIII is coming out in late 2018, after all.