#I can’t believe I hadn’t posted that animation yet I was so proud of it GGHB

[huffle-dork]

I got a lot of pics to show!! Behind on uploading them to tumblr smh HGHB

Here’s two pics from the latest Swap Beyond the Crystalverse chapter!

And here’s some pics I never posted from Glitch into the Huffleverse! Black magic JJ and then cute Oliver and Alt from the ending uwu and Alt being my personal dress up doll HGHB

Oh! And a cool animation I made of Alt from this chapter of SATCV!

Okay I think that’s it HGHVH

[delicrieux]

☆ﾐ 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚊𝚢 “𝚘𝚑”

PART 10: BIG DICK IS BACK IN TOWN

y/n is back in brooklyn for the holidays. thinking that a stream will make her feel less homesick for cali, she starts working on her famously titled hentai.free.srv. what was supposed to be a relaxing stream turns into a special delivery about two hours in.

─── corpse husband x reader ─── soc. media + written fiction! ─── word count: 2.2k ─── ❥ req: Here's one... You know those apps for delivery like Domino's or whatnot... What if reader is streaming Among Us with Corpse, and reader mentions they're hungry and Corpse offers to order them food, and readers like no no it's fine... Then there's delivery at the door (Corpse ordered beforehand) 

author’s note: fucky format is also back in town baby!!! also if you find any mistakes - no u didnt <3 thank u everyone for enjoying this story sm i literally cant believe how feral yall going strawberry cow was a nuclear explosion im still recovering tbh. got an ask a while ago and decided to incorporate it into myso. happy holidays everyone! myso will continue on monday!

ultimate masterlist.  ҉  myso masterlist   ҉   previous.  ҉   next.

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Indeed, being soft on any social media platform was the biggest disgrace and needed to be eliminated post haste. Moreover, it was a slippery slope - once you start flooding your timeline with cute imagery and heart emojis, what will stop you from posting inspirational Facebook quotes? Disgusting. If Rae were here, she would chide you (not you thinking about her as if she’s dead or something). For once in your life, you feel like you deserve it. 

Alas, you hope this little chaos you’ve caused is enough to throw everyone off. The stans, especially. You know the hashtags, you’ve seen ARMY scourging for info online with the same fervor and ruthlessness 1 Direction fans hacked airport security cameras just to spy on the boys. If you had any dirty secrets online, they are out to the public now - thankfully, besides the Harry Styles stan account (with edits and all), you have nothing. Though, now that you think about it, exposed nudes would have been better than your Punk!Harry edit receiving almost a million views. God, your life’s a fucking mess.

Your fans aren’t the only ones out for info - you, too, are trying to decipher Rae’s message. Code: Barbecue Sauce. The two of you had come up with it roughly two years ago, around the same time when you promised that if you didn’t find significant others by the time you’re 40, you’ll just marry each other. It was one of the many rules found in your friendship codex. Barbecue Sauce signifies information - an exchange of information. And depending on how it ends or begins (”So I’m sitting there” alludes to Rae, “On my titties” alludes to you), secret data on that person is given away, usually free of charge. 

But why? And to whom did Rae give away what? You had pestered her mercilessly and even sent some voice messages where you were crying. You were only crying because of a video of a grandpa smiling you saw on TikTok, but you are a snake, and so you put those tears to good use. If streaming doesn’t work out, you’ll just become an actress. Hollywood would love you. Your PR firm sure as fuck wouldn’t, though.

Rae was having none of it. She said you’ll figure it out eventually. Told you to channel your superior puzzle skills. You were quick to remind her that you can barely count to ten without having an aneurysm. Oddly serious, she admitted that she worries for you sometimes. Why only sometimes?! you demanded. She merely sighed. uttering under her breath something that sounded closely to “Boke.”

You leave her for barely a week and she’s already neck deep in the gay volleyball anime, hoodie and cardboard cutout and everything. Your life is falling apart.

But Brooklyn is nice. It had snowed when you stepped off of the plane. Thousands of snowflakes sprinkling into your hair, dotting your cheeks and nose. You missed this sight back in Cali. You missed your parents, too. 

Home cooked meals, old sweaters, your old room and about 40GB worth of old high school pictures on your computer. You went through them all one night. Some were stomach churning, cringe inducing nightmares. You were especially fond of those. Texted some of your friends that were still in Brooklyn, met up, decided to bake. Bad idea, Rae was the resident chef back in Cali. Besides laughing till your stomach hurt, and almost burning down your kitchen, nothing all that significant happened. Somewhere down the line, at about 3 am, half-way through a cheesy rom-com you had the overwhelming urge to text Corpse.

That’s where the problems really started. God, you missed California, missed being in the same timezone with a guy you hadn’t even met yet, how embarrassing is that?! You missed skating around and taking pictures of the beach in the setting sun, sending it to him, silently wishing he was with you to admire the view. 

You really want to call him. And to hang out with him. But for some reason, the thought of that springs up immediate anxiety and you shy away from asking. Him sending you cute good morning texts doesn’t help, either. Maybe it’s better he doesn’t know that you’re a blushing, stuttering mess each time you read “baby”. 

Late evening. Your stream is already set up, people are slowly trickling in and you greet them with a grin and a soft “Hello! Hi hi!”. You did your best to make your room a perfectly chaotic backdrop - led lights, an embarrassing amount of anime merch and plushies. You always try to balance out your weeb side by dressing hot as fuck for your streams - today’s inspiration just so happens to be egirls. Mostly because you watched one too many egirl make-up tutorials on TikTok, and also because you’ve been listening to Corpse’s song all day.

Yeah, no, who are you kidding, you dressed up this way because you were hoping Corpse was watching your stream. You didn’t forget your cat headphones, either. You know he likes them. You want to make him suffer. Perhaps then, finally, he will ask you out, so you wouldn’t have to.

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“I feel like,” You start when you put away your phone, staring idly at the chat, “I feel like I need a new name for you guys. Calling you guys after two years of streaming is just... weird, no? I also don’t respect men so I don’t want to call you guys. Like, so many creator’s have, like, a name for their fans. Uhm, Cody Ko has the chodesters, Kurtis Conner has, uh, folks? Kurtis Town? Citizens! Markiplier has mommy issues--” You can’t help snorting, “So, I’ve been, like, thinking - I know, shocking! - so I was thinking I’m gonna name you cockroaches. Because you’re grimy little shits impossible to kill. And also then I can use the legendary Minaj meme ROACHES!”

Your stream enthusiastically echoes ROACHES, making the chat swim. Yes, if anyone would enjoy such a name, it would be your audience. You’re as equally proud as you are disturbed.

“Well, anyway.” Leaning back into your chair, you throw your arms out with a bright grin, “Big dick is back in town, baby! If you noticed the backdrops different, it’s cuz I’m in Brooklyn now. Don’t ask me when I will return to Always Sunny, I don’t plan that far ahead.”

While Minecraft boots up, you decide to answer a few questions.

r u dating sykkuno?

You want to smack your head into the keyboard, but as it is, you can’t exactly afford a new one, so you refrain, “No, Sykkuno and I are not dating, we are just good friends. Uhm, I’m not sure how much I’ll have to repeat this, but, we really aren’t, so if the roaches could chill - Oh my God, that sounds so stupid, I love it - uh, yeah, if the roaches could chill that’d be great.”

the roaches lmao sounds like we’re a sports team

“Oh shit, yeah it does, uh-- maybe I can make like, jerseys or something. That’d be cool, I think.”

how disappointed are your parents with the way your life turned out?

“My parents are actually not disappointed at all!” You say with a cute little smile, “Uhm, they’re both really proud, actually. They’re glad I found something I love doing and made a job outta it. Dad finds my Youtube videos endearing. Yes, they watch pretty much all of my videos, unless I explicitly tell them not to. And yeah, with all the fucks and thirsting for anime characters. Uhm, it was very embarrassing at first, but I mean, after a while, shame just...doesn’t exist anymore, I guess? Funny thing about my parents, actually, when they watch my videos-” You eye catches a comment, “Oh! No, they only watch my Youtube videos. They don’t know how to use Twitter, thank God. Uhm, anyway-- when they hear a name they don’t know, like, I dunno, Dabi, or something, they google--” You’re grinning by now, eyes crinkling, giggling softly, “--who that is, and buy me like, merch and stuff. It’s really cute. 

can i be adopted by ur parents plz

will you and corpse ever collab?!

You were about to answer, though the man of the hour himself decides to do it for you.

Corpse_Husband: yes.

Okay, not to say your heart skipped a beat, but it totally did. With a pleased smile, you nod, like one of those bobble head toys sold at the dollar store. The motion is oddly reminiscent of Sykkuno’s own nod. Perhaps you had picked it up from him. The chat seems to notice.

pack it up, sykkuno

More questions pile about this mysterious collab you and Corpse are planning. Yeah, you’d like to hear more about it, too, since he single highhandedly decided one was happening right now. Corpse remains silent. Fine, keep your secrets. 

“Okay, guys, oh, I mean, roaches, Oh my God--” You’re covering your mouth, giggling, “-calling all roaches, calling all roaches, calm down. Everyone grab a snack and a blanket I’m turning up the music volume so we can all chill. Entering chill zone. Entering chill zone. Roaches, prepare.”

we are prepared

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An hour or so passes and you grow hungry. It shows with the amount of cakes you had baked in your server. Currently, you find yourself throwing eggs at the wall of one of the renovated houses, your face scrunched in concentration and slight frustration. 24 of the 50 eggs have been wasted. “What’s a girl gotta do to get some chicks around here?” you had uttered under your breath, until, finally, a screech - the egg finally spawns a mob. Your mouth falls open, “Aww, look!” You approach it, so small, walking in zigzags beside you, “It’s a baby chicken! Die, bitch.” The baby chicken is no more as you swing your bedazzled (you have mods) diamond sword. You’re cackling by the time the dust settles.

y/n is a child murderer

“Roaches,” You address your fan-base, spurring another fit of laughter - you can’t get over the name, “I think I’m like, forgetting that eating in Minecraft won’t actually make less hungry in real life.”

take a break and go eat queen <3

“Fuck no, we starve and die like men. Now I actually really need another chicken.”

Another twenty minutes trickle by and you’re trying to lure back a panda from the jungle when there’s a knock on your bedroom’s door. Whipping your head to the side, you slide down your headphones. At the same time, your mom pokes her head through the ajar door, “MOM!” You scream, “Get OUT of my room I’m playing Minecraft!” But your yell has no actual bite to it, as you don’t manage to hide your smile. Your mom laughs, doing some sort of sign language and motioning for you to follow her with her head. That or it’s some sort of performative dance. 

“I’m live right now,” You tell her, pointing at your screen. She knows this already, though, “do you want to say hi?” 

The roaches spam the chat with friendly hellos. You mom, quite impatient now, waves you over. 

“Sorry, roaches, mom needs something. Be back in a bit!”

Stopping the stream, you rush out of your seat and pleased she slinks into the hallway. “What’s this about?”

“Your pizza came.”

“My what now?” You echo, confused.

“Domino’s. You ordered pizza?”

“What? No? I was busy with the stream, I never--”

Thankfully, you had managed to grab your phone from your room before you exited. You almost choke on spit once you read the messages.

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You decide that it’ll be impossible to stream after experiencing what you had just experienced. You tweet out a quick apology to the roaches (God, that fucking name) and say that you had a breakdown but you’re okay. That is as a close to the truth as you managed to muster. It’s a sad sight, chewing and crying; your mom winced when she saw your state - disheveled hair and rundown eyeliner and everything. “D’aww,” She had muttered, caressing the top of your head, “don’t cry my little raccoon.”

If anyone was ever to ask you where did your chaotic nature come from, you’d answer with my mom. To make yourself feel better, you took a selfie - duck face and peace sign and the horrible 2000′s angle. Sent it to Rae. 

looking hot, her message read. 

thanks, was all you replied with.

You couldn’t just leave things as they were. Once you calmed down, you wanted to text Corpse, but how would you follow up the ungodly caps lock and screeching? Impossible. An idea sprung to mind, one that was brave. Taking the first step.

Instead of sending a text, you sent a voice memo.

“Thank you for the pizza, it was delicious.”

You voice still sounded a bit raspy. His reply was instant. Your heart skipped a beat. He sent a voice memo back.

“Glad you liked it, baby.”

He was going to be the death of you.

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tags (in italics is those i couldn’t tag! make sure all’s ok w your settings!) : @littlebabysandboxburritos - @fairywriter-oracle - @tsukishimawh0re - @ofstarsanddreams - @bbecc-a - @annshit - @leahh19 - @letsloveimagines - @bellomi-clarke - @wineandionysus - @guiltydols - @onephootinfrontoftheother - @liamakorn - @thirstyfangirl - @lilysdaydreams - @pan-ini - @mxqicshxp - @tanchosanke - @yoshinorecommends - @flightsandfantasy - @liljennyx3 - @slashersdream - @unknown-and-invisible - @sinister-sleep - @fivedicksinatrenchcoat - @mercury–moon - @peterparkerspjsuit - @unstableye - @simonsbluee - @shinyshimaagain - @ppopty - @siriuslystupid - @crapimahuman - @ofthedewthesunlight - @mythicalamphitrite - @artsyally - @corpsesimpp - @corpsewhitetee - @corpse-husbandsimp - @hyp-oh-critical - @roses-and-grasses - @rhyrhy462 - @sparklylandflaplawyer - @charbkgo - @airwaveee - @creativedogs - @kaitlyn2907 - @loxbbg - @afuckingunicornn - @fleurmoon - @yeolliedokai - @truly-dionysus - @multi-fandom-central707

more tags are in the comments bcs tumblr only allows me to tag 50 people max 💙

[dreamkidddream]

Can I request a teen mc who is like YUJI from jujutsu kaisen as in they are the vessel of SUKUNA PLSS? Like maybe they can manifest SUKUNA in his curse form as another being as well like megumis dogs? (If you don’t know JJK can you just do a chaotic teen mc? ❤️)

WHEW THIS ALMOST DID NOT GET POSTED SINCE TUMBLR DELETED PARTS OF IT.

So let me tell you: I started reading the manga but have yet to watch the anime 😭 it’s really good though and I’m probably gonna start it this week, but I’m not sure if I’m 100% confident in writing Sukuna. BUT this request was too good to pass up, so if you don’t like it I will write the other scenario instead just let me know!

So for these headcanons, I made it to where MC is Sukuna’s vessel like Yuji, and that they can manifest him if needed. But, I still kept it to where he’s not exactly a good guy with MC’s best interest at heart. Reader is gender neutral and younger than the Bros, so the dynamic is more family instead of romance just a heads up! Hope you enjoy!

TW: Minor cursing, spoilers for Lesson 16 in Mammon’s, Beel’s, and Belphie’s part

The Brothers with Teen MC who’s Sukuna’s Vessel

Lucifer

Was very irritated with this revelation, but still curious

Still annoyed either way though

He already had to make sure that you stayed alive during your stay and not disappoint Diavolo, but now he had to make sure that you kept this curse at bay too!

#GiveLuciferABreak2021

He’s very skeptical of you: not only because of you being a young human but also being a human with essentially a demon inside of you

A very troublesome demon if not kept under control at all times

Honestly Sukuna was like an buzzing gnat who wouldn’t just go away, so Lucifer didn’t see him as a threat personally. More of a nuisance that could grow into a threat if remained unchecked

After you explained the whole situation, he still assigned Mammon to you, but he made sure to personally keep an eye on you too

Your presence was seen as a threat at first, but as time passed, he, along with his brothers knew you meant no harm, but the same couldn’t be said for this Sukuna

He wanted to have faith in you, but he couldn’t bring himself to fully believe it. After an incident at RAD with another demon attempting to attack you, your powers (or rather Sukuna’s) came out to play

He saw the markings, the extra eyes, the malice spread on your face, and he then realized just how serious this has become. You were able to gain control back, but the damage was already done. You were so distraught, sobbing before you, trying to apologize and swearing that you didn’t mean for this to happen, all the while Sukuna was laughing, morphing a mouth on your cheek

It was so bizarre to see, and he couldn’t help but feel a pang of pity for you. You were such a kind person, always going out of the way to spend time and help wherever you could. You essentially became a part of the family, but he knew that you didn’t feel accepted because of him

After that, your “punishment” was to practice holding control over Sukuna with Lucifer, every day after school (which can just be seen as him checking in on you on a daily basis, and trying out different techniques to make sure repeats of this incident doesn’t happen again). Meaning that you trained on manifesting him at will, instead of him completely taking over

Not gonna lie he’s acting like a proud dad when he sees you making progress and Sukuna just sitting in your head tired of all this positivity lol

Lucifer cares for you, he’s accepted you fully even if you hadn’t for yourself. He wants to protect all of his family (including you), and he doesn’t want to think about what could happen if Sukuna becomes a danger to the Devildom or Diavolo...

Mammon

Is impressed but also low key nervous

Humans are not suppose to be like this, ya know!

He’s not the smartest demon in Hell, but he definitely knows that you can’t summon demons without a pact, and he knows your baby face doesn’t have one with the King of Curses

You had to break down the whole deal, and it made him even more confused and distressed

Was still acting annoyed being your designated babysitter, I mean seriously, just how annoying can you be?!

Just kidding! You guys are totally partners in crime in no time and you both make Lucifer get 2x the wrinkles now

“MC, let the Great Mammon show you how’s it done!”

“Mammon, you’re going to be the reason why we’ll be strung up again for the third time this week.”

“It’s going to be both of your idiots’ faults. Such a pathetic display.”

SHIT HE FORGOT YOU GOT A WHOLE CURSE INSIDE YOU

He HATES whenever Sukuna makes an appearance, whether you call on him or he makes his own special appearance. He’s like a gritty and more sadistic version of Lucifer, minus the style and uptight personality (and honestly the finesse too), which made him 10x the more aggravating

He honestly hates Sukuna in general. Here you are, his MC, one of the only people to stand up and defend him always, struggling to live a normal life because of him. It was bad enough that you got sent down here with no warning, but now you got sent with him, and from what Mammon could hear with the conversations between you two, he wasn’t exactly your BFF

Denies being excited about seeing you perform your cursed techniques, but only because it brings him out (and he guesses it’s a little cool that you know how to do it). But human, you don’t need that lame curse, you got the great demon himself to protect you!

On a darker note, you made Mammon swear to you that if Sukuna took over and you for some reason couldn’t gain back control, that he would protect himself and his brothers first before worrying about you. He hated this even coming up, you should be worrying about what’s the next scheme you guys could pull off, not some weird sharpie colored entity causing problems. But you were dead serious, and you made him promise that if the worst case scenario ever happened, he would make sure it’s taken care of

Mammon realized you were the missing piece to their family. It felt nice to have someone depend on him, to actually treat him with respect and care for him truly. He refused to accept Sukuna as a part of you (really he just acted like he didn’t exist, which he didn’t in his mind), and he refused to let him or anyone else harm you

You’re family now, and he wasn’t going to lose anyone else ever again

Leviathan

Oh look, another normie

Wow, you’re such a normie that you’re even talking to yourself through a manifested mouth on your palm-wait WHAT

You broke it down to him, and you just...stared at you, with a blank expression on his face. Until-

“OMG THIS IS JUST LIKE THE ANIME-“

How ironic lol

He practically had a fanboy overload moment whenever you showed off your cursed techniques to him after he begged asked you countless times

You guys remember that vine with the kid saying, “I have the power of God and anime on my side”? Recreate that while doing your moves and he’ll be in awe and dying laughing at the same time

Will post it to his Devilgram and DevilTube

His envy will start to show at first. How is it that someone boring like you get to have all these cool powers and have an actual king reside in you?? You’re living the Shonen dream and not even grateful for it!

But this reality for him would soon shatter after he saw Sukuna for himself, and the way that he behaved towards you. The way that the curse would just look at with disdain in his eyes just made Levi’s skin crawl. He was made well aware that you were in fact not living the anime dream he thought you were. The look in your eyes reminded him of how he would feel whenever he felt like a scummy otaku, and from that point forward he would find ways to cheer you up

You can plan on having anime marathons, game nights, even talking with Henry (I hc that he can talk and understand aquatic animals) when you get into these moods. Anything that helps him get out of his funks he’s hoping it helps you too. You don’t deserve this type of treatment from anyone, especially someone that even he can no doubt eliminate

You were honestly one of the coolest people that he knows, and one of the strongest too! Not just physically, but mentally too. He can’t imagine what could be going on in your head since Sukuna became a part of you, but he knows that you’re strong enough to overcome anything that he throws at you. And if you had moments where you faltered or doubted yourself, that’s okay! Levi would be right beside you the whole way, doing anything he can to keep pushing you forward

Be the teen anime hero that he’s know you can be MC! You wouldn’t be his Henry if he didn’t have any faith in you, you know?

Bonus: you don’t have to worry about your anime nights being ruined after one night when Sukuna somehow found a spoiler to an anime that Levi was really anticipating became a very visual warning for the curse. Levi convinced you to let him take over, and whatever was said resonated with him because you never heard a peep after that, both out loud and in your head

Satan

Oh he was BEYOND fascinated

We all know how much Satan loves to read and how smart he is, so while you look at your condition as a curse (no pun intended), he saw it as an opportunity

Could you feel this curse coursing through your body? Did you feel stronger? Could he see through your eyes all the time or only when you let him? He had so many questions it wasn’t even funny

Very understanding of your situation surprisingly (but still called you dumb for eating Sukuna’s finger)

Satan would be one of the only people you could really trust when dealing with Sukuna. Yes, you trusted all of the brothers, but if you were really in a bind you could count on Satan to come up with a solution quickly

The only issue was his anger. Everyone knows just how angry he can get, and to avoid him ASAP if you even think he’s getting frustrated. Sukuna knows this too, and will be more than happy to taunt him to truly bring out his wrath. While he does need you alive (for now), it wouldn’t hurt to have some type of fun around here. Plus, this could cause your bonds with these brothers to weaken, and the weaker the bond, the weaker the will to help you keep him at bay and defeat him

But Satan knew better, and you did your best in keeping Sukuna away. He may be the Avatar of Wrath but that didn’t mean he was stupid. However, he did have one slip up unfortunately

You see, he was just having a bad day and already got into a spat with Lucifer, and you sensed that he certainly needed his space. So while you slowly backtracked to your room and from his path, Sukuna decided to be the evil ass that he is, and proceed to provoke him. What finally made him snap was his comment that, “You would be a formidable opponent if you weren’t in your older brothers’ shadow, but oh well. Can’t help who you come from I see.”

It took Beel, Mammon, and Lucifer to properly restrain him from ripping Sukuna (really you) limb from limb, with him laughing manically and you scrambling back in fear. Which called for a very long, detailed family meeting (of course after Satan fully calmed down) that resulted in mediated meetings between you and him for the next month. You felt guilty, you should have done better containing him, but you couldn’t predict whenever he decided to pop up!

But after a long talk, Satan didn’t blame you. He blamed himself for losing to his anger and especially blamed Sukuna. He decided that it was time to get rid of this pest once and for all. Be ready MC, cause once he puts his mind to something, there’s no stopping him

Prepare for your bonding time to be deep into books and practicing new hexes and curses. But don’t worry, it’s not always boring and Satan makes sure that you’re having some type of fun. He’s really doing this to have some sort of protection for you: whether it’s against Sukuna or himself. He wants you to know something besides your cursed techniques just in case they fail for some reason

Will shockingly want you to manifest the curse, one main reason is to obviously collect information on him, the other reason is to test said hexes and curses on him

Can a curse be cursed? Let’s find out

You helped Satan with him realizing that anger isn’t the only emotion that you can feel, and with you being so young, he wanted you to experience life as much as you can. And while you had an extra...passenger with you, he will do his best to make sure that it doesn’t get in the way of you enjoying life. It was nice to see a joyous smile on your face

Also you guys did find a hex that made Sukuna meow for the whole day and it was the best thing to ever happen with him lmao

Asmodeus

Honestly wasn’t really bothered with it at first. If anything, he treated it like hot gossip when you told him in the beginning

One thing he will say though: humans can be so revolting at times. I mean you ate a rotten finger, a cursed, aged, sharp, disgusting- you get the point. He did cringe at that, but everything else was pretty normal besides that

Still talked about your daily gossip, painted nails, the works. But recently, Sukuna’s name has been coming up more and more in your recent convos. Asmo, being quite the messy curious demon, wanted to know more about this curse

He really treated Sukuna like he was just your show and tell act and would want you to bring it out to see how he really was. He was amused with your cursed techniques, but he wanted to see more!

He heard you both talking with one another, and he wanted to see him in person! He hasn’t done anything and you’re among the seven strongest in Hell, so what could go wrong?

So much. So much could go wrong

And so much went wrong

After you manifested him, it went downhill from there. The large amount of control you did show caught his attention, but then it moved to the King of Curses himself. He was very delighted to see him up close for more than a couple of seconds, and took his time admiring his physique up close. It was fun for him, but not for you. Sukuna could feel your will slipping since your focus was being divided dealing with Asmo, so he took this as his time to shine

You had an exhausting day, and you were tired, which he used to his advantage. Asmo started to complain when Sukuna suddenly disappeared, but didn’t have a chance to voice it as your arm suddenly gripped the front of his shirt. He felt himself jolt, feeling his heart pumping. He looked into your eyes and realized that this wasn’t you, this was now Sukuna. The black markings that lined your face along with the new eye color (and the extra pair of eyes) came with a grin that stretched across your face

“What’s the matter? You were so eager to be in my presence, is it not to your liking now that the tables have turned? You claim to be one of the strongest, yet I would be able to kill you just being in this form-Ah, the brat is trying to come back, what a shame. Do me a favor, little Asmodeus, don’t insult me like this again. I am a King, and you will remember that. I might have to pay you another visit and take your heart with me next time to make sure you’re aware of that.”

He didn’t give Asmo time to answer, as his grip loosened and you were back. He saw you stumbling, shook out of his own thoughts and reached to catch you. He knew that this curse was an issue, but he didn’t understand just how serious this was, how serious it had gotten so quickly. The thought of Sukuna didn’t scare him, but the promise of him coming back just for him caused some worry. He wasn’t the weakest, but he didn’t want to hurt you! As much as he couldn’t stand his new found scorn of Sukuna, it wasn’t enough for him to take the chance of injuring you

You didn’t strike fear in him, rather the opposite. To see someone he has grown to care about be the one to try and bring his demise was...saddening. He could just feel his heart breaking at the notion. And if this experience taught him one thing is to be more understanding of what you’re going through

You remembered bits and pieces of the incident, and whenever you asked Asmo about it, he would divulge a tad in what happened, but wouldn’t go into too much detail. He didn’t want you blaming yourself, and he didn’t want you to distance yourself from him either. You already proven yourself of formindable you are ever since you gotten down here, and Asmo wasn’t going to let some jealous wannabe demon get in the way of that!

So no more talk of the thing, and whenever it did want to make an unsuspecting visit, Asmo would be ready. The thing was immune to most curses, but that didn’t mean that he couldn’t be charmed to some extent, right?

Has covered the eye slits up with makeup and other beauty products every morning, becomes both of your favorite bonding activity. Anything to erase any evidence of it existing and to hear your giggles brightens his day everytime!

Beelzebub

Is very sympathetic of your ordeal

Has mad respect for you eating that finger though, even he doesn’t think that he would eat that

Maybe with some sauces and some Hellroast he might

Is another brother that tries to keep an eye on you. If this Sukuna really is as dangerous as you make him out to be, then he would make sure to be prepared if things went south

Beel’s motto: stay ready you ain’t gotta get ready

Will want you to practice your moves with him. Beel’s pretty powerful, and on muscles alone is one of the strongest brothers. He wants to make sure that you can recognize your full potential, and to always do your best. Expect to be in the gym or the HoL’s backyard working out and training majority of the week

Is thoroughly impressed with your cursed techniques

Beel doesn’t understand that while yes, you have a whole curse residing in you, doesn’t make you less of a human. He forgets that you still have some limitations, and you have to remind him at least twice a week. You gotten more powerful yes, but you still weren’t at Beel’s level

“You can do it MC! Don’t give up!”

“Beel this is over 500 pounds...are you forgetting that I’m still HUMAN-”

But you can never stay mad at him, he’s just too sweet and he means well. He genuinely wants you safe and prepared if anything happens with Sukuna, and if getting you buffed up makes him feel somewhat at ease, then you’ll deal with it

Shares his food with you sometimes. He makes sure that you eat properly too, so no skipping out on meals!

Great listener! Whether you’re complaining about class, talking about a new restaurant you’re interested in (he’s definitely tuned in), or venting about Sukuna, he’s all ears. Even gives you advice if you ask for it or if you really need it

Has encountered Sukuna while he took over your body once, and let me tell you, he was not happy at all

Beel is one of the brothers that are in touch with his emotions; he doesn’t really fly off the handle into a rage unless someone has done something to his family or if he’s being denied food. But now that you’re family and vulnerable not only to other demons but to this curse inhabiting your body, he wasn’t taking any chances

He made sure to be very clear when talking with Sukuna. He wouldn’t stand for anything happening to you, and he made sure that the curse would wish he stayed scattered if that boundary was crossed

Beel is a very protective big brother that’s constantly looking out for you all the time. Even if you feel like that you need to bare this burden on your own, he makes sure that you never feel alone.

He already lost Lilith, and he doesn’t want to lose you too. He won’t mess up this time

Belphegor

See, he knew that there was something wrong with humans, and you were living proof of that

How can you trust humans not knowing if they have another creature living within them?!

Whatever, he’s too sleepy to even care about it

And you weren’t one of the worst so...he guesses that you’re tolerable, but don’t push it!

In the beginning, he thought it was easy to manipulate you, but he could just sense that something wasn’t right with you (and no, it wasn’t because you were just human). He would hear you talking aloud to yourself, except that you were...responding to yourself too?

He thought you finally cracked up lmao

He brought it up as a joke once, but the way you reacted was tense and...ashamed? Oh, he just hit a gold mine. This could make things much more interesting. You shared a little bit of your story with this so called “King of Curses”, but he was smart enough to make a plan off of the information. Maybe he could take advantage of Sukuna like he is of you. Kill two birds with one stone

Well his plan backfired swiftly. After he was freed from the attic and went straight in for the kill, things went array. His hands were wrapped around your neck, he could-should see the life leaving your eyes, but instead he was met with Sukuna’s gaze. Belphie thought he planned this right, he made sure that he didn’t give you enough time to manifest him or to use your curse techniques, so how was this-

“You think I don’t recognize the look of bloodlust, you spoiled child? You were foolish enough to believe that you could get rid of me this easily like the brat?!”, and he was sent flying across the room. How was this happening, this wasn’t suppose to happen!-

“As much as I would like to see them die, they’re useful to me for the time being. Once they are of no use anymore, the only one who will be relishing in their demise is me. They’ll be dying by my hand, not by some weakened child.”

Those words still resonated with him still to this day. Honestly, the whole incident did. No matter how many times he tried to convince himself that you forgiven him and want to build a real bond together, his mind refused to erase that horrid memory, and he deserved it. When Belphie remembers back to that day, he remembers the horrified and heart breaking looks on his brothers’ faces, the way that your eyes show how betrayed and petrified, and how you were gasping out begging him to stop, before he comes out and puts everyone in danger

He felt disgusting, guilty, mortified, regretful, a disappointment. Those feelings only escalated after having them explain the truth to him, both about yourself and being a descendent of his dead sister. He could see how much you touched his family, and you extended that kindness to him too, and he just exploited it

He stayed far away from you for a very long time. He didn’t try to approach you at all, only staying in the planetarium or even the attic, to avoid crossing paths with you. He didn’t deserve to make a connection with you like his older brothers, as much as he wanted to. He was remorseful, it wasn’t because of the whole Lilith revelation, but because you really didn’t deserve that happening to you

You made the first move to make amends, to have a fresh start, and he couldn’t have been more grateful, albeit nervous. He was so terrified of messing things up again, but you were there to help keep him grounded. “I won’t lie to say that what you did was okay, but I’m willing to move on from it. You aren’t completely forgiven, but we can work towards fixing things, together.”

Belphie was shaken by Sukuna’s words, but he wasn’t necessarily scared of him. In fact, he would personally find a way to cast him out of your body and destroy him permanently as the perfect apology and thank you gift; the thank you for reuniting him with his family, and for helping them develop healthy relationships with one another. They weren’t as separate as before, and it made him feel so warm every time he thought about it

Not that he would ever say that to anyone

You both spent time together either napping or plotting for future LYS (Lucifer You Suck) pranks. And since Belphie is pretty good with magic himself, he would be teaching you some new spells or curses that you could use to protect yourself, even against the curse inside you

Belphie will make sure to not make another huge mistake when it comes to you ever again. He’ll have his little slip ups, but you were never put into harms way because of them. He doesn’t want to sabatoge this bond, and he wants you to truly be happy spending time with him. He’s not the greatest role model (obviously) and may be tight lipped about how he feels most of the time, but he really does have your best interests at heart

[chenziee]

Thank you @kerowyn-fr​ for the cute prompt :D I hope you like it :)

[READ ON AO3 OR UNDER THE CUT]

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When Garp handed him the newspaper with a stupid grin on his face, former fleet admiral Sengoku already knew he wouldn't like what was written inside. Taking a deep breath, he slowly unfolded the papers and immediately, the huge, bold headline punched him in the face, making him nearly choke on his tea.

Somehow, he wasn’t even surprised that Morgans found out about Kaido’s defeat faster than the navy but goddamn it, this bunch of kids really did it. Sengoku honestly didn’t think he’s see the day of Kaido’s fall, much less for it to happen thanks to some stupidly young pirates—the words ‘Straw Hat - Heart - Kid Alliance’ seemed almost mocking at this point. Damn brats doing the government’s job for them again.

Although, he did have to admit he would love to see Sakazuki’s face when he found out about this.

Looking at the attached photo of the apparent post-victory celebration, Sengoku’s eyes zeroed in on Trafalgar Law’s blurred figure and despite himself, he smiled. The kid might be a pirate, a member of the worst generation no less, but Sengoku still couldn’t help but feel proud of him, proud of the child Rocinante died to save. When he had talked to him on Dressrosa, he was worried the pirate was going to burn out, or completely lose his way after getting his revenge, but his lively—if annoyed—expression while he ate his rice ball and shoved at an equally annoyed Eustass Kid’s face with his foot… It gave Sengoku the feeling that instead, he had found himself somewhere along the way.

With the ruins of Onigashima behind him, he really looked like he was about to own the seas  and Sengoku hoped Roci was watching and was happy about the man his adopted son had grown into, about the great things he had managed to accomplish.

Just then, Garp moved to stand right behind Sengoku, reaching over his shoulder to poke at the photo. “Can you believe these three? They can’t even celebrate beating two of the emperors at once without fighting. I bet you Luffy started this,” he said, before bursting out in loud laughter.

Sengoku had to laugh as well. It really was ridiculous; they were like three little peacocks showing off their tails to see whose is the prettiest.

Wait, three?

He frowned, looking at the photo again. Now that he thought about it, Law really wasn’t the type to shove at someone with his bare foot, judging from how reserved he always acted during warlord meetings—all two of them that he actually bothered to show up for anyway. But he could only see Law and Eustass so where was the little Monkey?

Now that he looked closer, he could see that the foot in Eustass face was twisted at an unnatural angle that could only mean the ankle was either fractured several times over, or it was made of rubber. Following the limb with his eyes, he finally noticed another body splayed on the ground in between Eustass and Law, and soon he also found the arms that held up a plate stacked full of rice balls. It looked like the little Monkey was trying to keep the plate as far away from Eustass as he could and Sengoku was sure those rice balls were the whole reason of this scuffle. Then, he finally reached his head resting against Law’s thigh, clear threat in his eyes as he bared his teeth, looking like he was ready to bite Eustass’ metal arm off.

Sengoku shook his head in disbelief. It was no wonder he didn’t notice him at first; for one, his black hair was blending almost perfectly with Law’s dark coat, and two, who would look for the little Monkey in someone else’s lap? Certainly not Sengoku, and certainly not in Law’s lap.

Suddenly, the reality of what he was seeing downed on him.

Someone had a few questions to answer.

—————

As the Polar Tang pulled up to the Thousand Sunny one sunny afternoon, Law was surprised to see another small ship already there, swaying gently in the waves next to the Straw Hats’ ship. He didn’t recognise the vessel so at first he assumed maybe Straw Hat’s brother came to visit but then he noticed the navy flag and froze.

Listening carefully, he couldn’t hear any fighting; it was completely quiet, almost eerily so. But Law couldn’t see any damage anywhere, and the navy ship seemed too small to be a threat in the first place. The more he thought about it, the stranger it all seemed. He gripped Kikoku tighter, gesturing to his crew to wait at the Tang for now before he called forth a room and teleported himself onto the Sunny.

His anxiety wasn’t eased when he opened his eyes to see absolutely no one on the ship. Looking around the deserted deck, he tried to at least find some signs to tell him what in the world had happened but there was nothing except something that looked like a half-eaten newspaper page.

He was almost starting to panic when he noticed some movement in the direction of the kitchen and when he looked, he found all the missing Straw Hats in a huddle by the door, the movement he saw apparently being Tony climbing over everyone else to get as close to the door as he could.

Law sighed, rubbing at his forehead. He swore he would murder all these people one day—if they didn’t manage to stress him out enough to kill him first.

“What the hell is going on here?” he asked when he made it up the stairs to stand behind the Straw Hats, making everyone turn around to stare at him.

“Torao, hi!” Tony whisper-shouted from where he was hanging onto Nami’s shoulder, the only one who bothered with a greeting.

A long and heavy silence filled only with the crews judgmental, accusing stares followed. Honestly, this crew was so damn lucky their doctor was so cute or he would have beheaded all of them and stuck them to the mast.

“Well?” he prompted, raising an impatient eyebrow.

Several glances were exchanged until finally, Roronoa looked at him. “We were hoping you would explain why Luffy is getting a lecture.”

Law only gave him a blank look, trying to let his silence speak for itself but before the intended effect could arrive, Usopp interrupted, “Yeah, you could have warned us. Why didn’t you tell us who your grandfather was?”

What?

“For real. I almost had a heart attack when he got on board,” Nami added with a glare at Law as if it was somehow his fault.

“Right? Between Sanji, Luffy, and Torao, I can’t tell whose family is crazier.” Usopp shook his head before continuing in a disappointed tone, “And the fact neither of them bothered to tell us is ridiculous.”

Black Leg clicked his tongue then, lightly kicking Usopp in his shin. “Don’t lump me in with them, my only family is in East Blue.”

What?

“What the fuck are you people on about? My whole family is long dead,” Law snapped, his fingers flexing threateningly as his grip on Kikoku tightened again.

A beat of silence passed. Then Robot slowly raised his hand and pointed at the kitchen with his thumb. “Explain why this guy came here demanding he talks to his ‘grandson’s super boyfriend’, then.”

“And why he then grabbed Luffy and dragged him inside to talk about you. They’ve been in there for about half an hour now. I only hope Luffy isn’t getting squeezed to death,” Nico Robin added oh-so-helpfully.

Law’s head was spinning. First a nonexistent grandfather, now he was suddenly Straw Hat’s boyfriend? Ridiculous. He might have liked being around him, maybe his heart even fluttered when Straw Hat smiled at him in that blinding way of his, and perhaps he's been letting Straw Hat touch him more than strictly necessary, possibly even holding his hand once or twice but they weren't dating. Hell, Law hadn't even confessed yet.

He shook his head to make himself focus on the matter at hand. This 'grandfather' was a more pressing matter than his unaddressed feelings. "I'm going in," he sighed, then paused, looking around the eavesdropping huddle of people. "And get the hell out of here or I'll toss you in the sea."

"Sure you will," Nami muttered with a roll of her eyes, a smirk on her lips.

Law shot her and all the other grinning idiots a glare, which finally made them all shuffle away. Law was sure they’d be back the second he closed the door behind himself, though. With a sigh, Law gripped the handle and pushed the door open.

As soon as he entered the kitchen, two people and a goat turned to look at him and Law did a double take. Straw Hat was one thing. A random, actual, live animal on board was weird, but he’d seen much weirder on this ship. The old man who was sitting opposite of Straw Hat, however, that was a completely different issue.

“What the fuck?” Law muttered, unable to say anything more coherent.

“Hello, Law,” fleet admiral Sengoku said with a nod.

“Torao!” Straw Hat greeted as well, grinning and waving at him before he pulled out the chair next to him. “Come sit, your gramps has really good rice cakes!”

Law slowly turned to stare at Straw Hat instead and, a short moment later, moved forward as if on autopilot, too stunned to do anything but comply. Only when sat down and Sengoku tilted his rice cake packet towards him did Law manage to break out of his trance. “You're not my grandfather," he blurted out, eyeing the rice cakes suspiciously.

Sengoku hummed. "Technically not but you are still Rocinante's boy so I feel responsible for you."

Law blinked; it was true Cora-san was like a father to him and Sengoku did say Cora-san was like a son to him but that seemed a little shaky a connection to warrant the old man going around claiming he was his grandfather.

"We've been chatting about you," Straw Hat said, stretching his hand out to grab a handful of the rice cakes Sengoku was still holding out, then offering a few to Law.

At that, Law finally conceded and accepted the snack. He had to admit they were pretty tasty. "What about me have you talked about?" he asked, doubtful, yet almost afraid of the answer.

Straw Hat pursed his lips and frowned, quite obviously trying to remember the actual contents of the conversation. "Just how cool your powers are and that I shouldn't break your heart or something. It's not like I'm going to do that though, why would anyone do that?"

"Break my—" Law sputtered, his eyes going wide as he stared at the pirate who seemed like he didn't understand the implications of such a statement.

"I was just making sure your boyfriend was aware of the worth certain people place on you and your devil fruit and the danger that puts you in. Also that I will feed his precious hat to Baarbara if he makes Roci cry,” Sengoku explained, pulling out a rice cake of his own.

Ignoring the use of Cora-san’s name over his own, Law took a slow, deep breath before responding curtly, “I can take care of myself—”

“That’s what I said,” Straw Hat next to him announced proudly.

Law paid him no mind, simply continuing— “and he’s not my boyfriend.” He frowned, then added one last question, “Also who the hell is Barbara?”

“Baarbara is my goat,” Sengoku said fondly as he glanced at his pet, who was by his side happily chewing on something that looked suspiciously like one of Nami’s maps—Law really hoped he was wrong about that one. “But are you sure about that?” the former fleet admiral asked with a raised eyebrow, his eyes dropping down’t Law’s body to pointedly stare somewhere just above the tabletop.

Only when he followed his gaze did Law realize the position he was in. Somewhere along the way, Straw Hat had turned to the side in his chair, putting his legs over Law’s lap and, for some reason, Law had apparently put his own hand on his knee without even noticing. It was… yeah, it felt pretty damn intimate and Law felt heat raising to his face.

Slowly, he looked up at Sengoku, who looked like he was trying very hard not to burst out laughing. Then, his gaze slid to the side to glance at Straw Hat.

The other pirate was grinning back at him, looking entirely too amused by Law’s mortification, and Law scowled. “You’re not my boyfriend,” he said quietly, sounding uncertain even to his own eyes.

“I kind of am,” Straw Hat said, his grin widening even more. “Torao, you can be so stupid sometimes.” As soon as he was finished speaking, he started laughing in that cute, contagious, absolutely maddening way of his and Law…

Law has never felt so dumb and mortified in his life.

Yet, he still couldn’t find it in himself to push Straw Hat away when he leaned forward to give Law a messy, loud kiss on the cheek. Somehow, this had turned out to be simultaneously the absolute worst and best day of Law’s life.

He was still not showing his face around the Sunny again for a while though.

[cakers-2000]

~Persona 5 boys when you randomly kiss them~

Yes I call the protagonist Ren I’m sorry I watched the anime before I even knew about the manga and most of the fanbase killing him Akira I’M SORRY

I keep posting things from my Wattpad I’m sorry but a lot of the things I’ll be posting are from my Wattpad until I can get a few more things finished!

But enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ren: Honestly Ren wasn’t a big fan of PDA. Sure he’d hold your hand if requested and he’d occasionally wrap an arm around your shoulders to keep you close when crowds got big but that was about as far as he went.

You, on the other hand, loved PDA, so it was a common occurence to surprise and embarrass him with random kisses. Today you had gone to Leblanc’s to get some help on your Math work but Sojiro had asked Ren to pick up a couple of bags of coffee beans as the store was running low and he wasn’t going to get another shipment in until next week.

And of course Ren agreed.

Now you were standing in the middle of the department store, bored out of your mind as Ren surveyed the shelves.

“Reeeeeen, I want to go baaaaaaccckkkkk.”

He chuckled at you but didn’t even give you a glance. “Just a sec.”

You moved to stand directly behind him and wrapped your arms around his waist, resting your cheek on his back. “Didn’t he give you the name of the coffee beans to grab?”

“Yeah but…” He picked up a bag of beans and you attempted to look over his shoulder though he was too tall for you to see. “This one says that it’s a lot healthier… If Sojiro advertises for both healthy coffee and the regular coffee that’s made Leblanc famous he could really rack up business…”

You sighed and nuzzled your face into his back, trying to get him to hurry along. “Ren, sweetie, you’re mumbling again.”

“Right…”

“Just grab the one Mr. Sakura told you to grab and you can talk with him about the other one later.” You gently grabbed his hands and pushed them back towards the shelf. “You know I can’t spend another night, we have to get back soon so you can help me out.”

The boy nodded, not saying a word and grabbed the correct bag before turning back to face you. He looked a bit disappointed and you couldn’t help but giggle.

“Ren you act like I’m putting you through torture. I told you to just talk about it with Mr. Sakura later.”

“But-”

You laughed more and grabbed the collar of his jacket, pulling him down to your level before placing a sweet kiss on his lips to keep him quiet. You stifled your laughter as you saw the blush on his cheeks, something he rarely ever held and the shocked look in his eyes. You piled a few bags into your cart and smiled at the boy before grabbing his hand. He didn’t say anything more to you, only continuing to hold your hand and push the cart.

You smiled in triumph, knowing that you had won and could return back to his home.

Though you most likely weren’t going to be doing all that much work.

Yusuke: “Yusuke how much longer am I gonna have to stand like this?”

You tried your hardest to remain still and composed for Yusuke as he drew you as he did almost every day (including lots of times when you weren’t even aware). He smiled at the canvas though you knew it was directed at you.

“Maybe a few more hours or so.”

“Yusukkkkkke.” You let out a groan and craned your neck as it was sore and he rested the paintbrush down on the eisel.

“How about we take a little drink break?”

“Yes!” You jumped at the opportunity to finally move and rushed towards the kitchen, stretching out your arms and legs as you prepared two cups of tea as you knew he loved drinking tea while he was working.

You continued to stretch yourself out as best you could before the tea was finished and brought the cups back to Yusuke who was currently staring at his work.

“Here.” You handed him the drink and he smiled before kissing the side of your head.

“Thank you Mon Amour.”

You smiled and nodded before glancing over at his work. You nearly spit out your drink as you saw his work. It was breathtaking. You honestly couldn’t believe that the women in his painting was you.

He noticed you staring and laughed a little sheepishly. “I know, it’s not quite done yet. I still haven’t nailed your features and I have yet to capture your beauty and poise between-”

He hadn’t finished his sentence as you set down your cup of tea and threw yourself at him, attacking him in a hug. He instantly hugged you back and smiled down at your small form.

You stood in content silence for a bit before you squeezed your arms around him.

“Yusuke…”

You moved your head to look up at him and he tilted his head, questioning your sudden interruption, his hair falling into his face as he did so and you laughed. You quickly reached up and put it back where it belonged before grabbing his shirt and pulling him to your level. You lightly kissed his lips, slightly afraid that he wouldn’t reciprocate but when you went to pull away he kept you in place until he was satisfied.

You held a blush on your cheeks and you buried your face in his shirt, not allowing him to see your burning cheeks but he only laughed and rested his head atop your own.

He really had you wrapped around his finger.

Akechi: Lately it had been nothing but busy days for the Detective Prince Goro Akechi. It was interview after interview about the infamous Phantom Thieves and if you had to be honest you rather missed his presence. Because of his busy schedule he had been excused from most classes, you hadn’t seen him in or out of school in several weeks. You had tried setting something up, to study together so that he could still have a chance of succeeding in his education but he always had to cancel on you. It was rather disappointing and you were practically starved. Hell at this point you just missed hearing his voice, he hadn’t even been able to call you as of late the poor boy was exhausted.

But finally, after nearly a month of not seeing him or hearing his voice he was granted a free day to focus on his studies. And you were able to see each other again.

The second you heard the knock on your door you had attacked him in a hug, refusing to let go of him for a good 10 minutes.

And he didn’t even try to fight against your affection. He held you back just as tightly, enjoying your presence. Truth be told he missed you just as much.

And when you were finally forced to pull away from him you got started on your work, helping the boy study all of the lectures and lessons he had missed from his classes.

But after a few hours you were starting to feel the tiredness creep in and knew that you had to grab something to keep yourself awake.

Your hand held onto his free hand as he took notes from your book into his notebook and you squeezed it lightly. “I’m gonna go grab some coffee, you want anything?”

His eyes didn’t move from his paper but you could see the smile on his face. “Some coffee would be nice.”

You nodded and quickly scurried off to the kitchen so you could resume your work quickly. Once it was prepared you slowly walked by, trying your best not to spill the coffee in his mug and set it down in front of him.

He seemed to be completely engrossed in his work. He hadn’t even noticed you put the coffee down in front of him. You smiled to yourself and placed your own cup beside him before draping your arms loosely around his neck. He still had no sort of reaction whatsoever to you and you could only chuckle.

You gently pushed his head to the side much to his confusion before pressing a sweet kiss to his lips.

He may have been confused, but he wasn’t letting the opportunity slide by him. He instantly kissed you back before pulling away from you, a smirk playing on his lips as he rested his cheek in his hand.

“Well now, what was that for?”

You smiled more and sat down in your chair beside him, resting your head on his shoulder. “I’m really proud of all the work you’ve done and how far you’ve come in your career but… I missed you.”

A flash of guilt covered his eyes but it quickly fell as a warm smile fell onto his lips. He grasped your hand in his own and rested his own head on top of yours. “I know, I’m sorry. I missed you too.”

“Don’t apologize. It’s your job. I’m just glad you could come over today for once.”

He stayed in silence for a few seconds before he quickly hopped up out of his seat. You pouted up at him as you had nearly fallen but he only smiled more and held his hand out to you. “Let’s go out.”

“Huh? But we still have so much left to do and I just made coffee…”

“It’ll be here when we get back, please (Y/N). I’ll call the limo so we don’t have to walk.”

“But-”

He grabbed your hand and pulled you rather roughly upwards and squished you against his chest as he hugged you tightly. “Pllleeeaassseee it’ll only take a few minutes.”

Something told you that it wouldn’t take a few minutes, but you knew that there was no winning against Akechi when he was like this and so, with a muffled voice as he still wouldn’t let you move, you gave in. “Fine, okay.”

“Yes!” He drew his phone out of his pocket at hearing you were in agreement before speaking towards you. “We can stop at the bookstore or something before we come home, alright?”

Your eyes were practically shining as you frantically shook your head. He knew fully well about your love of all things literature “You know just what to say don’t you?”

He nuzzled your nose with his own before quickly kissing your forehead. “That’s cause I love you.”

“I love you too Akechi.”

Ryuji: You had been walking through the halls of Shujin Academy, on your way to the art room to work on your project when you heard some whispers coming from the hallway right in front of the art room door. A small crowd was standing there, whispering amongst each other. As you got closer you could make out what a few of them were saying.

“Oh wow I didn’t think he cared about anything, let alone art.”

“Wasn’t he on the track team? I thought that was the only thing he cared about.”

“Isn’t he a delinquent? What’s he doing in front of the art room? Scary…”

You tilted your head in slight confusion as you pushed your way through the students. “Um, excuse me.”

“(Y/N)!”

You smiled when you made it to the front and could clearly see your boyfriend Ryuji waiting there for you.

“Ryuji? What are you doing here? You aren’t hanging out with Ren today?”

You were teasing him but you did partially mean it. Those two boys spent an awful lot of time together.

“Nah, he’s hangin with Ann.”

“So what do you want with me?”

“I wanna do some training in the courtyard. You wanna come with? It helps me focus if I train with someone else.”

“Ryuji I told you, for the next couple weeks I have to dedicate my time to my art project I can’t just-”

He took a step forward, his hands clasping over your own as he mustered up the biggest puppy dog eyes he could.

“Pllleeeaassseeee.”

You couldn’t help the blush on your cheeks due to the close proximity between the two of you but you smiled through it and moved your face so that it was inches from his own.

“Fine, but you better not expect me to do any of your training. I’ll be watching.”

You could still hear the whispers from the crowd, it seemed to be getting louder.

“Are they dating?”

“I thought (Y/N) was a straight A student, why would she wanna get involved with Sakamoto-kun?”

“Is he blackmailing her or something? This doesn’t make sense.”

His smile slightly fell at the accusations of the crowd and you pulled on his hand, attempting to pull him down the staircase not too far from the two of you. “You wanna get started right away yeah?”

His face broke into a smile and he nodded, hurrying his pace so that he could walk beside you.

“Yeah!”

“Holy shit I haven’t run that fast in ages!”

You couldn’t help but giggle as you watched the boy jump and dance around in front of you. He was truly improving and you couldn’t have been more proud of him.

“Good job hun.”

He let out a satisfied hum before placing his hands on either side of your waist, his face inches from your own once more. You were currently sitting on the fence of the walkway, stopwatch in hand as you were timing him. He stared at you, in complete silence and you laughed awkwardly.

“Ryuji? You good?”

“Yeah… No… I don’t think so.”

You slightly tilted your head in confusion and he elaborated more. “I just haven’t been able to stop thinking about what those people said…”

“Ryuji…” You grabbed onto his cheeks with your hands before placing a rather rough kiss to his lips. He didn’t hesitate on kissing you back and you stayed like that for a while until he eventually pulled away from you for air.

“Wow, okay (Y/N).”

He was slightly taken aback by your sudden actions. You could see the small blush on his cheeks.

You giggled more and ran your hands through his hair. “Fuck what they say. That’s what you always told me. Learn to take your own advice.”

You stuck your tongue out at him and he only laughed at your childish antics before his hands wrapped around your waist and he lifted you into the air with ease. “Don’t go gettin all mouthy you little shit.”

“Ryuji put me down! Right now!”

You struggled in his tight grip but that only made him laugh more as he flopped backwards, laying on the cool grass with you on top of him. He nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck and mumbled to you. “Thank you for always being here (Y/N).”

You nodded and placed your hands on top of his own, a content smile on your features. “Of course Ryuji, and I’ll always be here for you whether you like it or not.”

He only chuckled in response. He truly was lucky enough to call you his and he didn’t know what he would do without you by his side.

[dukeofonions]

Season Two Episode Ranking

Warning: I get very, very, very, critical in this ranking. Like, angry ranting that’s almost laughable. Should I be getting this worked up over an online series? Eh, probably not. But this is my life and I’ll get outrageously angry over whatever media I want. 

Seriously though, this is all just my personal opinion. I’m not saying you have to agree with me and if you like the episodes that I don’t then that’s perfectly fine. 

I tend to overthink things a lot and I spend most of my time analyzing every little details of this series because what else am I supposed to do at work?

So yeah, this ranking is definitely less positive than the one I did for the first season. But I hope y’all can still have some fun going over it! And if anyone does their own rankings be sure to tag me because I’d love to see them and see how mine compare! 

Anyways, enough of me acting like this is more important than it is, on with the ranking! 

I can’t believe season two only has 12 episodes. Now I went ahead and counted Moving On as one episode in this ranking since my opinions on both parts are pretty similar, but sweet cheese and fish this season started on September 1st, 2017 with Fitting in and right now is left on Putting Others First which came out on May 1st, 2020. And as of me writing this it is now May 2nd, 2021. It’s been a whole year since the last episode and we still have no idea when the finale is coming. 

Like, bruh. 

Also remember how the longest episode in season one was only about 15 minutes long and the shortest one was barely four minutes? 

Well the shortest episode in season two is Crofters- The Musical which is 8:42 seconds. The longest episode is Putting Others First which is a whopping 51:09.

And I wish I could say that the writing was on the same level it was in the first season, but there’s a reason I put that warning up there. 

Well, enough stalling, let’s get this ball rolling.

#11 Embarrassing Phases

There are no words in the English language that can describe the sheer amount of hatred I have for this episode. If I could rank this any lower, I would, which will happen once we finally get the season finale. I don't know how that episode will go but it'll definitely be better than whatever dumpster fire this was.

Like, okay. I have some positives. Roman, Patton, and Virgil's costumes were cool. I won't lie I live for vampire Virgil. And the message about embracing your past "phases" and exploring how they helped made you who you are. That's neat. I like that.

And that's it.

My biggest gripe with this episode is Virgil. He just acts like a complete bitch in this! And I don't mean that in an endearing way he's literally so mean for no reason!

He's all "You guys are trivializing my past!"

In response to them going "Hey Virgil, we're glad you're part of our group now and are proud of how far you've come!"

Like okay, even if it was insensitive to call it a "phase" literally there was no reason for him to get as angry as he did.

Just a simple; "Hey, I don't like it when you refer to what I went through as a phase because it feels like you're not talking it seriously."

Isnt that what this whole show is about? Communication???

It wasn't fun watching him just insulting the others, it was annoying!

Like poor Patton, just trying to help and be encouraging, only for Virgil to keep treating him like dirt.

What did I miss here? Virgil was fine in the last few episodes, so what the heck happened?

Oh and let's not forget the great advice Thomas offers Patton at the end of the episode in regards to handling Virgil: "Don't do anything to get on his bad side or else he'll do bad things to you!"

Okay I'm paraphrasing here but that's basically what he says! And since Virgil is supposed to be a representation of anxiety, this is a horrible message!!!

What happened to finding healthy ways to cope with your anxiety? What happened to keeping it in check so it didn't take over your life?

Yeah I'm definitely gonna make a full post about this one episode later because there's a whole lot more to unpack here. But yeah -10/10

#10 Putting Others First

There is just way too much going on with this episode. They try cramming so much in here that I don't even remember more than half of it.

I remember the opening song, then the Lilypadton fight and everything that happens from there. That's it.

And those are the best parts of this episode, but even that has problems because everything with Janus feels like a completely different episode.

Also the whole way they try to teach about morality is all over the place. How did we go from choosing a wedding over a callback to deciding whether or not you would die for your friends to self care is important?

And while the video game sequences, while utilized well in some places, were way too distracting and it felt like they were just trying to shove as many video game references in as they could.

You could take out just about all of them and the episode wouldn't change. Everything they were used for could have been done just through having the characters talk to each other, and knowing this makes the fact that this video was delayed for so long because of it just makes the whole thing worse.

Like the animations were well done, and I don't want to downplay the hard work the animator did. They were just doing their job after all.

But the trolley scenes (especially the second one) hurt my eyes with all the flashing (would have been nice to have some kind of warning for that) and some of the voice effects (especially on Logan's) were grating and distracting.

I want to rank this episode higher, but it has almost zero rewatch ability and honestly besides the ending, when I first watched this episode I was just kinda let down.

#9 Crofters- The Musical

Okay look, the song is a bop and I adore the fact that Logan and Roman got two episodes in the spotlight, but it's just kinda "meh" to me. Plus I get just a tinge of second hand embarrassment but that's just me.

And I know this is kinda unfair but another reason why this one isn't higher is because of a couple of things. One is that they set up some angst for Roman, he's clearly not doing well and Thomas thinks the best thing to do is tell him that he might get his own jam flavor.

Then he does, and instead of following up on that little plot point from this video, they just rushed out a commercial and completely ignored and potential story telling or character development for Roman.

So yeah "Return of the Jam" is the main reason why I don't like this one as much as I used to. And I actually just got an idea for a new post comparing these two so add that to my to-do list.

#8 Fitting In

I actually skipped this one during my first official watch through for one reason and one reason alone: I wasn't allowed to watch Harry Potter.

But I realized that my parents wouldn't approve of me of watching a gay man's content either so I just said screw it.

And luckily I understood enough Harry Potter references to get what they were talking about and honestly, this episode is a lot of fun.

It's a good follow up to Accepting Anxiety, and a nice way to kick off season two. Virgil is finding his place among the group and everyone is trying their best to make him feel welcome, it's really sweet.

And of course we get the new costumes (which i hadn't even noticed that they were wearing their old costumes at first) and I dunno it just gives off season one vibes and it makes me happy.

#7 Moving On Part One/Moving On Part Two

Yeah honestly my thoughts on both parts of this episode are the same. What can I say? It's really good.

This definitely one of the more emotionally heavy episodes in the series, and we see the characters at their lowest for really, the first time in this series.

I adore Patton's room and how each side gets their own corners. All the little details they add in, including the changing picture in the background, it really gives off that nostalgia feel they were going for.

What I love most about this episode is how (unlike some other episodes) they actually let the emotional moments sink in and don't throw in a joke immediately after. Like the ending is bittersweet, sad almost, and I love that they stuck with the mood up until the episode ended.

Not to say there weren't some jokes here and there (mostly in the first part) but once the mood shifts and things become more serious they let that mood stay. And when there are jokes they all work really well.

This is one episode I've actually watched the least out of season two, so it'll be interesting when I go watch it again to see if any of this holds up.

#6 Why Do We Get Out of Bed in the Morning?

Honestly I only put this one above Moving On because Logan and Roman are my favorites.

This episode is actually one of the weaker ones, which hurts to say because again, favorite characters, but goodness it's all over the place. It feels like a precursor to POF and not in a good way.

Logan and Roman just basically argue back and forth throughout the whole episode, never seeing eye to eye with each other, to the point where I think think the writers realized they couldn't find a way to get these two to agree so they just had Thomas step in and be like, "You guys make a really good team!"

Dude, were you even paying attention? They never even reached a conclusion on their own. And even though they have their little moment at the end, it's all kinda ruined when nothing in their relationship changes.

Yes, in Learning New Things About Ourselves, they acknowledge that there's more work to be done in regards to them, which makes sense. People aren't going to suddenly change overnight.

Yet despite having come to some kind of understanding with each other twice now (both here and LNTAO) in the following episodes they still act like they hate each other! Heck Roman is downright nasty to him for seemingly no reason and I don't really blame him for it.

More like I think the writers just don't know how to develop their relationship and just aren't as interested in them as the others. Logan's been reduced to being Mr. Exposition and apparently Roman's personal issues aren't enough for him to carry a room episode on his own because they felt the need to introduce two new characters before he finally gets it.

Sorry, what was I talking about? Oh yeah, the episode.

There's some funny bits here and there and the little animations are cute (even if unnecessary) but really it's only saving grace is being Roman and Logan centered.

Even though they felt the need to include a cameo from literally every other character because apparently no one has any faith that Logan and Roman can carry an episode on their own.

#5 The Sanders Sides 12 Days of Christmas

This episode is just pure fun. Look, I'm not a big fan of Christmas, even less of a fan of Christmas songs, but my gosh this episode almost makes me appreciate the season.

The way they're all just bickering the whole time, being very confused, and how there's just so much personality from each character even when they're not talking/singing and just being in the background is *chef's kiss* perfect.

There's so many fun little details to pick out during the song and it's fun to go back and watch how each side reacts to different things.

#4 Selfishness vs Selflessness

Gonna be real, this used to be my favorite episode. Until my overly critical brain started finding all kinds of problems in the writing department but I think I’ve been negative enough on this post so I’ll save it for another time. 

Janus steals the show in this one, it’s his first official appearance since his debut and he just soaks up the spotlight. It’s refreshing to have an antagonist in the show again, and he’s the perfect foil for each of the original Sides. 

He knows how to play into Roman’s insecurities, know how to feed into his ego and get him on his side. He’s in direct opposition to Patton, who believes that everything Janus represents is wrong. He’s able to silence Logan and take him out of the conversation, speaking over him most of the time. 

And I guess he and Virgil have some beef I dunno. 

The courtroom scenario is fun, and I love how Janus is the only one who sees how ridiculous it is (even though it was your idea in the first place, Jan) and everyone else seeing it as perfectly normal is hilarious. 

I do like some of the more dramatic moments in this episode, especially that final bit with Janus questioning Thomas until he finally gets him to admit the truth. It was intense and reminded me of the scene where Janus confronts Roman in a similar manner. 

While far from perfect this is still a good episode and I can find a lot to love about it, like Janus in a suit. 

#3 Dealing With Intrusive Thoughts

This episode scared the shit out of me and I loved it.

Okay it didn’t actually scare me. But I stayed up to wait for it to be posted, which wasn’t until 2 or 3 in the morning. So by the time I finally watched it I was half awake and not expecting anything that I witnessed. 

The result was me being terrified of Thomas with a mustache and it prevented me from sleeping. I was over it the next day though and had Forbidden Fruit stuck in my head all day. Which isn’t good when you’re running the register at work and you can’t stop singing it. 

There’s a lot of reason why I love this episode, Remus being the primary thing. His entrance is iconic, the first few notes from his theme play as he creeps up behind the TV, him smiling at Roman all creepily until he whacks him over the head and knocks him out for most of the episode. 

Then we get the song, Forbidden Fruit, which is just great. Slight secondhand embarrassment but seeing the finished product and all they put into it, I can’t help but love it. 

Still miffed that Janus hasn’t gotten a song... specifically a villain song... I won’t ever let that go...

Logan is another highlight in this episode (no surprise) and seeing him go head-to-head against his polar opposite without batting an eye was interesting since I was kinda expecting them to show Logan having trouble dealing with Remus but nope. He handled it like a champ and I love them both. 

Now I am kinda wary as to how they’re going to handle Remus in the future, especially with the intrusive thoughts aspect. It’s a sensitive topic and they’re already screwing up anxiety. But Remus has only been in one episode so far which means I can’t make any solid judgments until he’s appeared in more episodes, so I’ll have to wait and see. 

All in all, great episode! Definitely deserves to be in my top three. 

#2 Learning New Things About Ourselves

This episode made me feel so nostalgic. I freaking love puppets and grew up with Sesame Street and the Muppets, so I’m probably biased towards this episode but to me this is really one of the better written episodes. 

Perfect? Heck no. But really, really good. 

I love that we get to explore a bit more with Logan and Roman’s characters, in a lot of ways this is kind of a Logan episode which has him standing against the other Sides, and it’s really interesting to see just how different he is compared to the three of them and it could just be me but it seemed like he’s becoming more of an outsider and isn’t as close with the original four as he used to be, and this episode is what really kicks that idea off. 

I can also relate to the “Well that’s nice but what do you do for a living?” message, except in my case it’s more like I want to quit my “real job” to pursue what I’m passionate about while people tell me it’ll probably never happen or “Yeah that’s a nice hobby!” So this episode really struck close to home and I just have a lot of sentimental feelings towards this one. 

I love all of the designs for the puppets, they all just fit perfectly and I wouldn’t mind seeing them make a comeback one day. I know that’d be difficult since they’d need a professional to puppet them but hey, one can dream right?

And oh my gosh the song, it just gives off the same feel from Sesame Street and Muppet songs with it’s jazzy feel. And I won’t lie I flipped my lid when Logan and Thomas were in the same shot together. We hadn’t seen any of the Sides share the screen with Thomas yet and the fact that it was Logan, and he was arguing with Thomas and they were singing over each other? Ah I love it!

Also don’t get me started on how Logan’s bit in the song sounds more villainous than the others. I’m not saying anything just a neat little observation. 

I have a lot of happy feelings attached to this episode, so despite the few problems I have with it I could never bring myself to hate it. The only one that tops it is...

#1 Can Lying Be Good?

The episode that started it all. The one that caught my attention and sparked my new fixation on this little series that I had just glossed over before.

I really don’t know what prompted me to watch this episode, other than I wasn’t in the best place and it just happened to pop into my recommendations one day and I figured, “Huh, haven’t watched this guy for awhile. Let’s see what he’s been up to.”

Once the episode was finished my first thought was “Holy shit when did this series start having lore?!”

This episode is probably the closest thing to perfect out of all the season two episodes so far. The writing is clever, pretty much all of the jokes land, and oh my gosh the editing in this one is phenomenal. 

The way they show Roman shifting between himself and Joan throughout the episode is what sticks out the most. Having Roman’s voice coming from Joan, or having them briefly change back to Roman, I love it so much. 

Not to mention Thomas’s ever changing shirt that reflects what he’s thinking/feeling is a neat little detail.

Did I mention this episode is hilarious? The ridiculousness of each scenario that they act out, with all the little inputs from Logan and Virgil who are both trying their best to do their jobs besides not even wanting to be part of it in the first place is adorable. 

And of course, the man of the hour, Deceit. Or Janus as we now know him as. 

Is it weird that I like Deceit more as a name? Probably, but that’s just because I don’t like how early his name was revealed. 

Okay that was my last negative comment. Promise.

Now since I hadn’t watched Sanders Sides in a while I didn’t notice anything off about “Patton” during my first watch. But going back after seeing the rest of the series helped me catch all the little hints they added to clue in the audience that something wasn’t right. 

A lot of it is really subtle, mostly in the acting department, but once you’ve caught on to everything it makes you wonder how you didn’t notice the first time. You can even see Logan and Virgil throughout the episode, knowing that something is off with “Patton” but holding back their concerns until Virgil finally calls Deceit out. 

I’ve rewatched Deceit’s reveal so many times. When he finally drops the act after Thomas makes up his mind not to lie, you can just tell he no longer cares whether Thomas knows or not. Then things get even more tense when Logan is silenced, and everyone knows what’s going on except Thomas. 

The music starts to build up, Thomas is flipping out, then after Deceit taunts him again he finally demands to know what’s going on and BAM there he is!

I love everything about this. 

Like, what else can I say? This episode is brilliant. It really shows exactly what this team is capable of when they’re at their best. The pacing, the build up, the writing, all of it combined together to make the perfect episode.

Season Two has been, interesting. The long waits have caused some problems with the pacing and characters, not to mention the departure of Joan from the writing team with new writers entering the room, not to mention the first welcome now unwelcome arrival of Asides, and with only the season finale left before season three, it makes me wonder just where this series is headed.

I know this series is capable of doing incredible things, season one is still solid and it really holds up even after all this time. But season two just feels like a jumbled mess. Sure, it’s easy to enjoy the episodes individually, but once you try to fit them all together it’s like trying to jam a puzzle piece into a place where it doesn’t fit. 

The best way to describe this season is as an experimental season. Each episode has the team trying something new, sometimes it seems these gimmicks take precedence over the story itself. Of course, some of these can work to the episode’s advantage, while others are just distracting and you’d know you wouldn’t miss them if they were gone. 

It’s a mixed bag that’s for sure. One that has me watching in morbid curiosity as I wait to see whether it’ll crash in the end or blow my expectations out of the water. It really is fun to analyze these episodes, and yes I know I can be very harsh but believe it or not this is how I engage with media that I love.

My hope is that team will learn from season two and try to take a more simple approach with their production once season three roles around. Because if they continue at the same pace they are now I doubt there will be many people around to see this series through. 

And on that note, that was my ranking of season two! I’m actually kinda excited now to go back and rewatch everything, I hope I don’t have to wait much longer to do so but that all depends on when the season two finale comes. Whether it ends up exceeding my expectations or just being “meh” I know it’ll be interesting regardless and I can’t wait to see just how they plan on wrapping this all up before the final season arrives. 

[indefinitely-in-fandom-hell]

It’s Gaara Week! - just kidding, Gaara Week is in January - this is Gaara Weekly. So I heard the topic this time is:

“what Gaara would do together with Shinki if he had some time off” 

now that’s just wholesome, how could I not at least *attempt to* provide some headcanons?

*side note: I have no idea how I ended up with this mess of a post but here you go*

So we know their hobbies: Gaara likes “battling” according to the second databook and by the time the third came around, he added “cultivating cacti” to the mix. Shinki likes both “gardening” and “embroidery” according to character trivia from Boruto. Makes sense that they would bond over tending to plants right? In fact, most would probably assume that Shinki adopted this hobby from his father. And while I do believe they get some rare father-son time tending to Gaara's cacti together - I don't know if that's what they would actually choose to do if they had a significant amount of free time.

If I was being realistic: They would probably spend their days off training.

_________________________ Yeah I hear you people in the back screaming “booo” - but this seems to be the most realistic scenario - to me at least. So let me explain:

His people and village always seem to be the priority for Gaara and Shinki is the future of Suna, not only as the Kazekage's heir but simply as part of the next generation who will take on leadership positions after the current decision-makers retire. There is not a single doubt in my mind that Gaara views mentoring future generations as one of his top priorities. Shinki wants to make his father proud and properly represent his family and village. He is hugely appreciative of any training time his busy father can spare for him - such an opportunity doesn't come every day. Both of them have very no-nonsense, goal-oriented personalities.

- So if Gaara had a couple of hours to spend however he wanted, he would invest them in the future of his village: Shinki. If Shinki had the chance to get some in-depth one-on-one training with his father, he would jump at the opportunity.

We know that Gaara, unlike Naruto with his son, has at least somewhat regularly been training Shinki in person. He has mentioned how he taught his son 'everything he knows' and Shinki actually training directly with his (very busy) father just makes sense: The two of them are the only people we know of with their kekkei genkai - and Gaara is the only one with abilities almost identical to Shinki's. It’s true that Gaara only knows the basics when it comes to iron sand - or rather, that was confirmed to be the case until at least the early blank period. But he would know next to every use of regular sand and that’s still more than any other jonin in suna. Of course, as the Kazekage, Gaara simply doesn't have the time to do the majority of Shinki's training - but I wouldn’t question that he's the one giving the crucial advice, reviewing his training progress and telling his son what abilities need more work.  

So if he has a little bit of time to spare - I have no doubt he would (and does) put most of it into training Shinki. And that includes days off. 

_________________________

.

.

.

But y'all didn't come for that - don't lie.

*enter Part 2: “But what if we talk about cats instead?”

We love these two (and the entire Sand-family for that matter) so naturally, we want to see them use their time off for anything BUT work or training. Gaara and Shinki are definitely the worst offenders here, they always seem like those people who would rather work on their duties than cut cake on their birthdays - Gaara more so because he seems very focused on always putting his own pleasure behind doing 'something useful to others' and Shinki because he's just beginning to realize the value of friendship. *Insert mlp meme here*

So for the sake of fun, we will just assume SOMETIMES Gaara decides that his son should do “normal activities” instead of training and ends up going somewhere with him. But where? If for some reason, Shinki were to accompany his father to another village for a diplomatic meeting, I think they would definitely walk around that village a bit and just take in the local culture: food, sights, and the like. Imagine the way Lee and Tenten showed Gaara and Kankuro around Konoha in episode 497 and had them try ramen for the first time - kind of like that. But this example also shows just how rarely Gaara seems to get time off during official visits: it took him being Kazekage for 4 years until he ate his first Ramen - but ok, if the war hadn’t been in the way I guess Naruto would have made him try it sooner. Now, if we are talking about “regular” time off, the place would definitely need to be in Suna - Gaara is important for the protection of his village so he can’t just leave whenever he wants.

I’m also going to assume that Gaara can walk around relatively freely without being bothered by crowds - if simply for the fact that we have seen him do so before, at least in other villages. Gaara strikes me as a character who could very much enjoy new experiences - there was once a time when most things “normal” people did were foreign to him and he had to go through a very steep learning curve after his first encounter with Naruto. I can see him trying new things when he gets the chance and also wanting to encourage Shinki to do the same - so long something falls not too far outside both of their comfort zones.

.

We established all the little details but no one has gone anywhere yet. So if we are going for something interesting: > how about we bring cats into this?

Gaara and Shinki strike me as having a lot of, for the lack of a better word, “cat-people energy” - were they aware of this before this fateful day? Probably not. Were they aware of it afterward? - you bet!

Gaara felt a bit confused when he heard that Suna would be hosting a big pet show for the first time in a few years *he had to sign the paperwork after all* - what was that again? People bring their cats and dogs to show them to visitors and a jury?

“Must be another unique way humans manage to be vain about their property” - the concept of placing much importance in the things one owns and how they reflect on you was something Gaara understood as a concept but never fancied.

He didn’t understand very well why visitors would want to see such a spectacle until Kankuro said something along the lines of “sometimes people just want to see animals do cute stuff I guess? You know how girls and kids are - show them a dog rolling over and they will go crazy - don’t worry too much about it, I’m also not much of a fan.”

On a second thought: “Oh but maybe Shinki likes that stuff? I mean he’s a kid - ..... although he doesn’t behave like one most of the time.”

- and with that comment, the deal was settled: there would be father-son bonding time scheduled and they would go observe cute animals!!

Shinki wasn’t very thrilled but what can you do - he wanted to train but was too well behaved and respected his father too much to object any of his decisions - no matter how strange some of them sounded.

In the end, none of them had high expectations for this trip but they went anyway because “At worst we have made a valuable experience” - Gaara

*Shinki didn’t dare question what could be “valuable” about this*

As it turned out, the date they picked for their visit was designated for cats of all breeds --

Of course, both Gaara and Shinki had seen cats before - from afar. No one in their family owned any animals - if you didn’t factor in the deer raised on the property of the Nara-clan.

But they had also HEARD about cats before

--------- mostly because Shukaku never seemed to miss an opportunity to insult them: “cats are the most useless creatures, it goes to show how stupid humans are for domesticating them” - “and you are sure you aren’t just saying this because kids always seem to mistake you for one?” -Kankuro would add

*Needless to say: Kankuro still enjoyed provoking people he really shouldn’t.* -------------

Well now the two shinobi were in front of one - their first close encounter with a feline - a big sand-colored persian with her owner, a friendly-looking old lady, standing next to her.

“Well I suppose they are quite endearing with their big eyes” -Gaara noted

Old lady: “Oh dear would you like to come closer? She really enjoys being pet behind her ears - she’s even calm with most strangers”

Gaara was a bit hesitant

When you’ve only ever heard bad things about cats and their temper you might think twice about petting them when you get the chance - at least until you take the courage to hold out your hand and they start purring like you are their best friend and they will love you forever.

Now, if anything gets Gaara - it’s being shown unconditional love and acceptance in unexpected places

yes apparently this does not exclude kitties

*holding out his hand while the cat is purring and meowing* Gaara : O.O Shinki, next to him: O.O Both of them internally: "ohhhh so THAT'S what all the fuss is about"

- Instant non-verbal agreement that cats are awesome

After that encounter, both might or might not have been extremely tempted to adopt a cat.

But since Gaara knew no one in this family had much time to spend at home - *and because he had this lingering sense that the cat might develop a taste for his succulents* - he had to resist.

This however wouldn’t mean that their next “family day” wasn’t already planned to be a trip to the local animal shelter. _________________________ Bonus:

eventually, Shukaku finds out about their trips and is NOT amused that they considered bringing one of “those things” home.

Yes- he’s still fuming from that one time he was carried by Shinki in his more “compact” form and a toddler pointed at them saying “oh your cat is so chubby! can I pet it? Pleeeeese!!” (*needless to say both Shinki and Gaara were mortified back then and hurried to get Shukaku away from the little girl before any casualties were to occur*)

He continues to sulk for at least a full month about this “betrayal”.

[curtsycream]

The Village - Sarah Cameron

This is kinda said mostly because it deals with acceptable and being denied that. So this is more of a sad but fluffy Sarah imagine that is choppy but I’ll fix it later. I hope you enjoy and if you want to request an imagine check out my pinned post. It kind of turns into a platonic big brother Topper x sister reader imagine at some parts.

Y/N knew she was different when it came to the norms of the kook side of outer banks. At the age of seven she was wrestling her older brother and his friends. While he didn't mind and cheered her on when she would make Rafe tap out. Her mother didn't like that her daughter wasn't in touch with her feminine side.

Mrs. Thornton was always rubbed the wrong way when it came to her daughter showing a more masculine side. Y/N was never one to dress up in pretty clothes and throw tea parties with stuffed animals. She would rather follow her brother around and get dirty just for fun.

“Can I tell you a secret?” A twelve year old Y/N asked her older brother.

“Sure why not?” The thirteen year old responded while looking up from his homework.

The two siblings sat in Topper’s room doing homework for school. As the two sat in silence for a while Y/N finally spoke up revealing the secret she held for months.

“I think I like girls.”

“Oh,” was all Topper could say while fidgeting with his pencil. He didn’t see an issue with it since he also liked girls and thought it was normal. But when he finally looked back up he saw the tears in his sister’s e/c eyes.

“Do you think that’s bad?” She whispered.

“No, I like girls too so if anyone has a problem with you just tell your big brother.”

Puffing his chest out Topper smiles when his sister giggles at him. Pulling her close to him the two embrace holding one another tightly. “No matter who you like, you’ll always be my sister.”

When she turned fourteen she wanted to cut her hair since the length didn't make her feel like herself. Her mother didn't approve but she did it anyway smiling at her short hair in the mirror. The haircut made her proud as that haircut was the start of her journey of self identification.

Her mother was not happy that she cut her hair reprimanding the young girl. Thinking it would be best to explain to her daughter what she always did, that girls are supposed to be prim and proper. Just to brush off Y/N’s protests to remind her that it was a phase she would one day outgrow.

But that day never came, holding her girlfriend close to her chest Y/N sighs. It was one of those rare days where her parents were out and no one could stop her from being herself. She learned that the best way to be herself in the Thornton household was to hide all the things that made you different. While her brother hid his excessive drinking and drug use. Y/N hid her sexuality from her parents which meant hiding her girlfriend.

Sarah Cameron.

Sarah was in a similar situation one where her parents thought she was dating Topper instead of Y/N. Which the two girls used as their cover up story thanks to her brother agreeing with the cover up. Having to hide who they were made them think that there was something wrong with them. As if what they were doing was a sin that needed to be corrected.

“Do you think that our parents are right?”

The question was asked by Sarah while they were drunk and dancing at a party. Her lips close to Y/N’s ear as she whispered out the question. Taking a step back Y/N grabs ahold of Sarah’s hand before leading her to a quieter area of the party.

Holding Sarah’s face between her hands she presses a kiss to her nose. That lead Sarah to release a small giggle, “We love which is one of the purest things a person can do. Loving someone should never be wrong no matter what gender the person you love is. Our parents grew up in an day and age where people like us wouldn’t have a chance. Where loving who you want came at a cost and people would mock and try to hurt you for it. Now we live in a time where things changed slightly and can possibly be corrected. So no our parents aren’t right they just don’t understand yet.”

“But when will they get it? When will they understand that they’re hurting us? I hate having to hide just because my parents think what I’m doing is wrong. I’m supposed to be this example of what a kook should be yet I can’t even live the way I want to.”

Pulling Sarah close she runs her fingers through the blonde’s hair. “They may never understand that’s the thing even if we try to explain it to them. But there is no room for explaining especially when your family has status and a position in society to maintain. Which does hurt but guess what?”

“What?”

“No matter how much they hurt us we still have each other because there is nothing wrong with the way we love.”

Not even a week had passed before rumors went around about Sarah Cameron and Y/N Thornton. How they were brainwashed by media to think that loving the same sex was okay. It was as if the adults had no remorse or humanity when it came to love. They still wanted to write it off as an experimental phase that was wrong.

“Do you know how disappointing this is, I have people walking around talking about how my daughter likes girls. Do you not understand how much that affects this family. I thought we talked about this first you wanted to rough house with your brother then cut your hair. Now you want to kiss girls and act as if what you’re doing is normal. I’ve had it Y/N M/N Thornton, you better break up with that girl and start looking for a boyfriend.”

The harsh words she received from her mother left her in tears. Her phone gripped between her fingers as she repeated the words in her head. She had noticed the stares when she walked around and how adults would shake their heads. As if she was disgusting and had the devil leaning against her shoulder. It made her feel sick to think people would judge her and think she needed to be fixed.

Later that night she laid in bed with Sarah the two cuddled up together. Holding on to one another for dear life as if the other was their only life source. The two girls didn’t notice when the door first began to open. They were too late to see Mrs.Thornton standing in the door frame with a face red with anger. “Get out! I want you out of my house, tainting my daughter!”

It didn’t end well with Sarah being kicked out and her mother forcing her to break up with Sarah. Which Y/N found hard to do so Mrs. Thornton did it for her. While she begged her mom not to do it her mother’s mind was already made up.

“Why can’t you just be happy for me? Sarah makes me happy what does my gender have anything to do with the love in my heart?”

“You don’t understand love what you had was nothing but sinful lust. A woman should be with a man that’s the way the world works. I knew I should have sent you to Iverly maybe then you wouldn’t have sinned. Why don’t you follow your brother’s example, he’s straight why don’t you be like him.”

Her mother’s shouting drew the attention of Topper who had just come into the house. Confused about what was going on he walks into the living room to find his mother and sister arguing.

“What’s going on?”

“She kicked Sarah out and tried to make me break up with her. Now she’s telling me who I love isn’t who I should love. You can’t force me to love men you can’t that’s not who my heart wants me to end up with.”

Pulling his sister into his side he nods his head, “No matter what you do Y/N will always be Y/N. Who she is shouldn’t change because the norm is that women should love men. You can’t force someone to change when change isn’t something they’re capable of.”

After Topper had defended Y/N their mother left the room. Only to bring the topic up again at dinner to which her father supported his wife. Y/N was not allowed out of the house for a few weeks and had to take sessions at Iverly a correctional institution. It was her family’s way of showing her that she was wrong when they knew nothing of love themselves.

As for Sarah she hadn’t heard from her in a while as the two weren’t allowed near each other. But that didn’t stop Sarah from calling Y/N late at night or sneaking in through her window. While their parents believed they could keep the two apart. Sarah and Y/N would find ways to outsmart them which only made their love stronger.

Y/N was surprised to see her older brother walk into her room a few nights later. Almost immediately Topper pulls his sister in for a hug holding her close. Y/N could no longer hold the tears in crying out into her brother’s polo shirt. While her parents never agreed with Y/N when it came to her life choices. Topper always took her side even if it meant his parents would question him as well.

“There’s nothing wrong with you, it’s true there’s something wrong in the village. But regardless of that I still love you for who you are, you’ll always be my sister.”

[letusmeetagain]

Some thoughts about the ending and what wasn’t told...

It got so difficult to write about SnK.

First, the most important reason is my work. I’m overwhelmed with things I have to do. Another reason is that I was told my English is not really good so it ruins the message I’m trying to tell. Since then I’m trying to avoid English but I wanted to write a last post.

Regarding the manga itself.. I’m not really satisfied with the way last chapter presented things. Yet it’s not that it was a lot of things that I missed. Just some lines or panels that might have helped that some topics weren’t so... misleading like Armin thanking Eren. Some panels showing what kind of things won’t happen anymore without titans. The point I get is that Eren vanished the main reason division was anchored in. Yet humanity can find new traits to justify division as it happens in the ending. Eren’s doing might have built a brick between both sides. Muv Luv ends like that. The main problem, the connection with the aliens, vanishes as Sumika dies but the battle between humanity and the aliens just started. The main point is that humanity has now better chances althought it isn’t for sure they’ll survive. That kind of ending makes you ask yourself if all this journey and the sacrifices were worth it as we don’t get to see the true results. It’s a choice... I don’t complain about it. But it explains that feeling a lot of fans had while reading the last chapter.

The difference between Muv Luv is that we get to see Takeru reacting to Sumika’s choice and death. On that matter, there’s a conclusion we see ON camera. Isayama chose to leave it up to the reader, as something evident yet unspoken.

Knowing his inspiration sources, where he took his concepts from, and knowng that some things weren’t explained because he hadn’t time/will to do it... It’s like knowing how things could have been but we got this. That increase the level of frustration to me.

There weren’t any moments where we get the last lines about his truth (those that were presented at the last exhibition) and how Eren may have cared about it. In the last chapter he says he doesn’t want to die yet he doesn’t think he could be forgiven. After that, Armin cuts it leaving it open... as well as the part of him letting Dina eat Carla....

There’s important material missing:

A lot of fans got mad at Eren acknowledging that he was the reason why his mother died. I took it differently. He caused indeed Carla’s death. But it was to preserve the storyline as it was. He had to sacrify her although he didn’t want it. If you hear what Ted Chiang (the author of the main story of Arrival) explains about the knowledge of the future, you’ll get a glimpse about quantum mechanics and how determinism and free will are considered in Arrival. You can either understand it like what Nietzsche presented (as a way to be truly free because your will is to live fate as it is) (2) or understand it as Chiang explains (1).

There are two important points on that:

1. The acceptance of something you already saw because it happened and it’s unavoidable and thus future is happening at the same time as present and past so there’s no lineal progression.

2. The acceptance of the future because it will lead you to something you want to experience. In Arrival: the mother chooses to have her child although she knows she will die... but she doesn’t want to lose the opportunity to know her and live with her despite the pain of losing her.

So... Eren make this hard choice just to mantain things as they were. He was somehow forced to. The flaw here is that there’s no highlight on the reasons why this was more important. There’s no true development on the things he gained doing this sacrifice. We are asked to fill that hole: It’s apparently more important that everything happens as it does in order to accomplish what we saw in the ending...... that still didn’t happen.

Titans aren’t there anymore. But the walls are still there. We are supposed to understand that there’s a possibility that things get better. Not being able to touch something for sure makes Eren’s choices and sacrifices weaker to the reader.

Sushi (oldsummerdream) told me it was a sort of non ending... Of course it was.

I appreaciate how realistic it was. That’s how humanity is. That’s what happens in Watchmen... another inspiration of Isayama. I’m glad he didn’t write his ending like that. In that story, one superhero starts a plan against humanity, something like the rumbling and wants to make another hero responsible for the attack so humanity works together against him and stop fighting each other. In the ending of the film, we see a journalist getting a diary that tells the whole truth hinting that the whole plan to unite humanity would fail soon as they get to know it was his plan.

Thank god it wasn’t like that in SnK. In this story, we are supposed to think that Eren knows for sure Armin will reach a world without walls as he states “You will save the world”.

I personally accept it. It would have been better if he said something like “I saw it”, “I’m sure you will. I trust you”. Isayama’s lovely grandiloquence was missing as it wasn’t really impactful.

What I really missed is where Eren comes to know somethin about him and Mikasa’s decision. The process of him maybe not being proud of his doing but as someone who helped humanity to have a chance. He parts way with the world not being able to understand Ymir, Mikasa nor himself. That happened maybe... but off camera. That he knew the results of Mikasa’s choice means that he was still able to see and that he didn’t left the world.

By touching Ymir and gaining power he became a sort of god... yet his power as god was limitated as he couldn’t really understand neither Ymir nor Mikasa. Yet he got to know the future of a world he isn’t part of anymore. He remained as an observer through the birds.

It’s interesting to compare him to the main villain of ARMS. Eren didn’t want to become god at all yet he gathered some characteristics of one.

Regarding the connection between Mikasa and Ymir... In ARMS both, Ryo and Katsumi, come in contact with Alice and build a relationship with her to the point that she reborns as their child. Here there’s not contact between Mikasa and Ymir yet Mikasa was the one who saved her. Eren has no idea why.

We, as readers, have the task to fill this hole with asumptions. I don’t think it’s impossible. But since that’s the most important part of the last arc, I wouldn’t have minded if Armin made a wild guess about it helping Eren to understand it. It wouldn’t have been weird of Armin to do such thing. That they stated that love means freedom and from that on trying to dig into Eren’s motives to start the rumbling instead of leaving it as an uncertaing uncontrollable drive he had since his birth.

On that matter, Isayama chose to show us that Eren concept of freedom was based by his nature and that wasn’t up to revision or discussion since he can’t explain it. But this: we have Eren’s drive of freedom (was it inherited from Ymir maybe?) and the freedom that only love can give.

Was it enough for Ymir to witness love? Why wasn’t it enough for example to watch what Levi did for Erwin? Let’s say that she wasn’t able to look the whole creation. So it was needed to set her free... but how two different individuals showing love for each other is enough for her to ease the pain of her unrequited love? It’s interesting.

I was called out for asking for a closure for her. I don’t see why it should be wrong to develop at least how she left the world and how looking at Eren being granted what she couldn’t get for 2000 years would be unnecessary as she was an individual and the cause of everything. A closure for Eren is not so related to her, moreover when he couldn’t understand her.

Just a statement made by other character could have helped.

On the other hand, we never got to know why Falco received the memories at Slava. It also seems to be that Armin knew Eren would say to Mikasa that he wanted her to be free and Mikasa knew Eren visited everyone. Something like that made me believe that they got a certain amount of knowledge but there were no further explanations about it.

I wonder now what was that thing he couldn’t draw for the last chapter. The impression I have is that he couldn’t really plan the last chapter but he had to finish it no matter what. I also understand how the industry works and how the process of creating something works... sometimes, a work can be modified... So I guess we might see some minor(?) changes in the last volume and the anime.

[therainroguefanfiction]

🤾 Tryhard; Atsuhiro “Mr. Compress” Sako (Sportember #017)

📑 Table of Contents | ⚾ Challenge Post

Genre: Fluff

Word Count: 1,902

Pairing: Quirkless Reader x Compress

World: Boku no Hero Academia

Prompt: “Why do you try so hard?”

Sport: Dodgeball

━━━━━━༻🎾_🏀_🏐༺━━━━━━

Sako frowned as he watched you running through the park, just as you did every night at eight. You had no regard for your safety, out late at night as a quirkless, headphones in your ears as loud music blocked out the sounds around you. He thought you were utterly stupid, perhaps having a desire to be kidnapped or murdered. You were certainly making yourself an easy target and he had already intercepted several thugs in the past three months that he had been watching you.

Why did he feel the need to protect you when you had no desire to make things easy for him? For a brief moment, he considered the possibility that he had fallen in love with you, but he had never really been a man to believe in love at first sight. However, when he first met you in that coffee shop three months ago, he knew there was something special about you, something different.

In that time, he had gotten to know you as he watched you. Your name was Y/N and even though you didn’t have a quirk, you had gotten a scholarship at the Japanese Sports Academy, or JSA. The school specialized in creating professional athletes, but the school had never seen a quirkless graduate. Sure, the school had many quirkless students, but they either never graduated or simply dropped out because of the pressure.

Sports these days focus heavily on quirks and the amount of quirkless sports around today were less than eight percent. The number went down every year because people were no longer interested in quirkless people playing a sport. They preferred the thrill of quirks battling it out on the field, threatening to destroy each other in the name of sport.

You knew these facts well. He knows that you. So why are you trying so damn hard to keep up with people that you physically can’t stand beside? The world constantly tore you down, telling you how worthless you were, how impossible your dreams were, simply because you didn’t have a quirk. So why? It made no sense to him and it hurt to see you struggling so hard only to fail in the end.

You came to a stop in front of the vending machine outside the park, breathing heavily as you wiped the sweat from your brow. There was a stitch in your side from your run, lungs burning and legs throbbing from the effort. You felt so tired, but you still have twenty minutes left in your run. You were already so behind, you couldn’t afford not to stick to your training regimen.

You slid the coins into the machine, pressing the button for the sports drink and waiting for it to fall to the tray. Just as you reached for it, another hand darted out to take it from you. Your shoulders tensed as the hair on the back of your neck stood on end, your eyes locking with those of an older man. Two others stood close behind you.

Swallowing hard, you tugged one of the headphones from your ear, eyes narrowed at the man in front of you. “That’s my drink. Give it back.”

One of the men behind you snickered as he stepped closer, his hand on your shoulder. “Oh, looks like we got a feisty one, boys.”

You scowled, shrugging your shoulder as you tried to step away, but the three of them had you trapped against the machine. “If you want to keep your lives, I suggest you keep moving.” You may not have a quirk, but you had learned to fake it until you made it.

“Big talk coming from someone so small,” they snickered, exchanging amused looks.

“Why don’t you just hand over your wallet and we won’t have to hurt you.”

“Fat chance,” you scoffed, attempting to force yourself through them but the first man grabbed your arm. On reflex, you shot around and jabbed your foot into his crotch, watching him cry out as he fell to the ground.

“You bitch!”

“We’ll kill you!”

Their hands lit up as they activated their quirks – one seemed to be some form of electricity, the other sprouting green spikes. A squeak passed your lips when a spiked hand tried to grab at your face and you dodged just in time, the spike scratching the skin of your cheek. The man on the ground grabbed your ankle when you stepped back, causing your body to fall to the cement.

“Let go of me, you prick!” You scowled, using your other foot to kick at his hand, but his grip was like iron and wouldn’t let up.

“You’re gonna get it now!” They rushed at you and you squeezed your eyes shut, waiting for the impact. The sound of screams filled your ears, the grip on your ankle disappearing and when you cracked an eye open, you found all three men a few feet away, unmoving on the ground.

You blinked, pushing yourself up. ‘What the…’

“Honestly, my dear, you really are trying to make things difficult for me.”

Your eyes snapped to the side, wide with surprise when you noticed the man standing beside you. He was quite tall, wearing a large yellow coat that covered his body like a tarp. His face was concealed behind a black and white mask, a top hat sitting on his head. You knew who he was, you had seen his picture on the TV along side the others that called themselves the League of Villains. But… this villain had just saved you, hadn’t he?

He turned toward you, extending a gloved hand toward you, the color of a ripe tomato. “Come along, now, before the cops arrive.”

You shook your head, sliding back away from him before scrambling to your feet. “You’re a villain.”

“Well, at least you have some sense,” he teased. “Now if only you applied that sense to everyday life, as well.”

You scowled, resting your back against the stone behind you. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

He tapped where his ear is beneath the black cloth. “Every single night you run around this neighborhood with music blaring into your ears. If you have a quirk, that would be one thing, but you do not. Have you any idea how many thugs I’ve had to take care of to keep you safe?”

“And why would you do something like that?” Your brow furrowed in confusion and he took a step closer to you.

“Hm, do I need a reason?”

“You’re a villain. You don’t save people unless you can use them.”

“Come now, Y/N. I’m not an animal,” he chided, finally closing the distance between the two of you. You should feel terrified by this man, but you didn’t. Instead, you felt… safe.

“You know my name.”

“I know many things about you, my dear. Now, won’t you come along? I will escort you home safe and sound.” His hand extended to you again and, for a moment, you just stared at it. You could hear sirens in the distance, steadily getting louder as they got closer to your position.

Your heart was thudding loudly within your chest, but you knew that if this man had the intention of hurting you or worse, killing you, that he would have done so. Better yet, he would have just allowed the thugs to do it for him. No, he was not intent on harming you, that much you were sure of.

Swallowing down the lump that had formed within your throat, you slid your hand into his, watching as his fingers curled around it. Your life changed that night.

━━━━━━༻🎾_🏀_🏐༺━━━━━━

Sako rolled over in bed, his hand instinctively reaching out for you beside him, but the bed was empty, the sheets cold beneath his fingertips. His brown eyes squinted in the darkness, fumbling for his phone on the bedside table. Four in the morning. Where could you possibly be at four in the morning?

Throwing the covers back, he shifted until his bare feet rested against the soft brown carpet of the room. He checked the bathroom first, and then the living room, but the apartment was empty. With a sigh, he knew exactly where he would find you, so he quickly got changed and headed out.

Your breathing was heavy as you jogged on the treadmill, music blasting through your ears to try and motivate you to push yourself. You thought about the upcoming exams and you were determined to pass them, no matter the cost.

Sako stepped into the small gym that the apartment complex offered, his eyes scanning the empty room before settling on you. As usual, you were unaware of anything happening around you. With a sigh, he stepped up to you before tugging on the cord of your headphones, watching it fall from your ear.

Your head snapped to him in confusion before giving him a sheepish smile and turning off the machine, accepting the water bottle that he offered you. “Morning, Hiro…”

He hummed softly. “While I do appreciate that you’re no longer jogging at night, I would appreciate it if you actually slept sometimes.”

“I did sleep,” you pointed out. “We fell asleep together, remember?”

“For how long?” He quirked a brow, his hand resting upon his hip.

“Two hours.”

“That’s not something to be proud of, my love.”

You sighed, settling down onto one of the plastic chairs sitting under the window. “I know, it’s just… the exams are coming up soon. I have to train harder in order to keep up.”

He frowned as he squatted down in front of you, eyes scanning yours as he rested his hand upon your knee. “Why do you try so hard?” he mused softly. “The world will only hurt you.”

“Why?” You repeated with a smile, resting your hand over his. He was surprised by the warmth lingering within your eyes. “Maybe it will, but I won’t know that for sure until I try. This has been my dream since I was a child, the thing I based my whole life around. I know dodgeball isn’t the most popular sport, especially not for a quirkless like me, but… it’s a sport that I adore, that I grew up playing. If I don’t at least try and chase my dreams, then I’ll regret it for the rest of my life. I know you don’t understand, but…”

“You’re right, I don’t understand.” His free hand came to rest upon your cheek, thumb brushing against your skin. “However, I will support you in whatever you choose to do with your life. Forever and always, my love.”

You smiled, tugging him closer until his lips met yours, soft and warm, and full of love as he pushed himself against you, hand sliding to your jaw to pull you closer. Sako would probably never understand your feelings when it came to how hard you tried at sports, but he didn’t have to understand in order to support your dreams.

His forehead rested against yours as you brushed a hand through his short brown hair. “I love you so much. Never forget that.”

You chuckled in response, giving his hair a gentle tug. “How could I possibly forget when you tell me every day?”

“Don’t act as if you don’t enjoy it,” he teased, capturing your lips again.

━━━━━━༻🎾_🏀_🏐༺━━━━━━

[ryqoshay]

Happy Life: Cat Café

Primary Pairing: YohaRiko Words: ~2.7k Rating: G AU: Angelic? Time Frame: Early February of Riko’s 2nd year and Yoshiko’s 1st year of high school Story Arc: Stand Alone

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Author’s Note: 2020 was a bit of a blur for me, so I’m not sure why I decided to start writing this scene well after Valentine’s and after I had already posted a YohaRiko Vday scene earlier in the year. And yet, despite confirming on Sukutomo that the cards that inspired this scene were released in 2020, it feels like I’ve been writing this since 2019. Probably doesn’t help that 2019 was also a blur for me as well...

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“Welcome, Aqours!” The café owner greeted with arms open wide.

“Thank you for having us.” Dia replied with a bow.

“Th-Thank you…” Ruby also bowed next to her sister.

“Please take care of us.” You followed suit.

Chika, Kanan and Riko were about to offer greetings of their own when they were interrupted.

“Mirai, zura!” Hanamaru marveled, eyes wide as she took in the scene before her.

“<Shiny!>” Mari exclaimed, grabbing a themed cat toy with a sparkling pink heart near the end. Immediately, she began dangling it in front of a cat on a nearby platform.

“Ku ku ku” Yoshiko chuckled. “The fallen angel Yohane needs not such trinkets to attract a new familiar!” She pointed to a cat with leopard spots. “Tepēyōllōtl! Yohane summons thee to her side!”

For its part, the cat continued on its way past the group with nary a glance toward the blue-haired first-year.

“Cait Sidhe!” She tried again with a white bellied black cat. “Thou shall make a fine familiar for Yohane!”

To her credit, at least this time, the feline in question turned its head at the call but made no move to approach.

“Tepe-whatsit?” Hanamaru inquired. “Kite Shee? What kind of strange names are you trying to give them?”

“No stranger than Laelaps…” Riko murmured under her breath.

“Sorry for that.” Dia apologized to the owner.

“Don’t worry about it.” The owner chuckled at the continuing antics. “Many of the cats here actually don’t have names yet.” She explained. “If you girls can get them to respond to some you might come up with, we will certainly consider them.”

Several of the gathered school idols gave their affirmations.

“So, if you’ll follow me” the owner continued “we’ve set up a changing area in one of our private rooms. The photography company has already placed your outfits in each section.”

And yet another Valentine’s Day theme. Riko thought to herself as she followed her fellow second years to the mentioned room. There, she found her area as designated by a small handwritten sign. She pushed back the sheet to enter and found a pair of costumes.

So we’re doing idolized versions as well this time. She continued to muse to herself as she changed into the one that seemed more appropriate of a normal café employee, the one not decked out with lace and ribbons and extra accessories. Despite this not being for the idol magazine…

In fact, though they were utilizing the same publishing company to take the pictures and assist with costuming, this photoshoot was instead being sponsored by the café itself. The pictures were to be used for advertising and celebrating their grand opening. So, in that light, perhaps it wasn’t just another Valentine’s set. And the outfits were quite cute.

“Alright,” The head photographer said as the girls began to exit their changing booths “if I could have Kunikida-san, Kurosawa-san and Tsushima-san follow me to the kitchen.”

“You mean me, right?” Ruby asked, pointing to herself.

The woman checked her list. “Ah yes, that’s right, sorry for not being clear.”

“The kitchen?” Yoshiko inquired. “Are we not taking pictures with the kitties?” There was no mistaking the disappointment in her voice.

“We want to get a few pictures of everyone performing duties of the café as well.” The photographer explained.

“Yoshiko-chan just wants to play with the cats.” Hanamaru teased.

“Of course!” Yoshiko rebuked as she reluctantly followed the others. “They’re all so adorable and deserve all of the attention and affection we can give them. And I intend to do my fair share.”

“Probably more than your fair share.”

Whatever Yoshiko said in reply was cut off by the door closing behind the group heading to the kitchen.

Riko felt a small smile turn her lips as she realized that the younger girl cared far more about the animals than the photoshoot. Not that this came as any surprise to her, based on the behavior she had observed with Anko, but she couldn’t deny that she saw an endearing quality to it all.

----------

The grey cat sniffed the collar in Riko’s hand once before stepping closer. Gently, Riko slid the faux leather band around the cat’s neck and secured it. She then leaned back to admire the accessory and decided she’d made the right choice. Pink worked well with grey.

Riko smiled as the cat climbed up into her lap then giggled as she continued to climb and stretch up to lick her cheek.

“Perfect.” The photographer spoke up. “I think that might be the shot.” Though saying as much, he continued to snap more pictures in case an even better one presented itself.

Suddenly the cat’s ears perked up and her head snapped around to the side. Riko followed her gaze and after a moment was barely able to pick up a tiny, plaintive mewl.

“Sorry, sorry, Bastet!” Yoshiko’s voice followed. “I didn’t mean to sca-kyaa!”

Riko flinched as a thump sounded and the whole structure of a nearby tower bumped up, disturbing the half dozen cats perched upon it. Due to the commotion caused by the younger girl, Riko barely noticed that the grey cat had leaped out of her lap and made a beeline for where Yoshiko was now backing out from under the structure.

“I’ll leave this here for you for when you decide to come out, alright?” Yoshiko said gently before pulling herself out completely. “Hear that, Kankyo, Nunogire?” She directed her attention to the two cats who had not fled the tower. “That treat is for Bastet. But you can have… oh, hey there.” Her gaze shifted once again, this time to the grey cat who had arrived at her side and seemed to be staring daggers at her.

“Seems you met the shiest of our new arrivals.” A nearby staff member commented. “And earned the ire of another.”

“Who, her?” Yoshiko questioned as she let the grey cat sniff her finger before petting her. “Seems Anhur is just a little protective of the little baby, nothing to wrong with that.”

Anhur? Riko’s knowledge of the Egyptian pantheon was not the greatest, but she was fairly certain Anhur was the brother of Bastet, not her sister.

“They’re both quite protective of her.”

“Both?” Yoshiko asked.

The young woman glanced around for a moment before saying, “Oh, here he comes.” Sure enough, a golden chinchilla cat came trotting around the corner. “We took all three in at the same time and they bonded almost immediately.”

“Such a good big brother, Horus.” Yoshiko grinned as she reached over to introduce herself to the newly arrived cat. “Sorry I scared your little Bastet, I was actually just trying to follow Kankyo.”

“You’re still trying to give them names?” Riko inquired, moving over to the grey cat she had been working with earlier.

“They’re all too cute to not have equally cute names to refer to them with.” Yoshiko replied in a tone similar to the one Riko remembered her using when fawning over Nocturne. “Isn’t that right, Anhur?” She scratched under the grey cat’s chin before giggling as the golden cat refused to be left out and began petting himself on her free hand.

Did naming cats after Egyptian gods count as cute? Well, Bastet made sense as she was feline in nature, but the others…

“Cute collar, by the way.” Yoshiko commented, offering a treat to the grey cat… Anhur, apparently.

“I thought it would look good on her.”

“You have good taste.”

Riko was about to thank the other girl for the praise when she noticed something. “Say, those don’t look like the treats we were given, where did you get them?”

“Oh…” Yoshiko chuckled a bit abashedly. “Yeah, I ran out a while ago, and even went through a second bag they gave me… so I bought more.”

“You’re on your third bag already?”

“I can’t help it!” Yoshiko admitted. “They’re all such good kitties! And even Tepe and Sidhe wouldn’t ignore me when there were tasty treats to be had. And head pats, of course. And lots of scratchies and belly rubs.” She seemed rather proud of the last part.

Riko smiled. The younger girl certainly was enjoying herself. And was displaying a rather rare side of her personality; her grandiose entrance and continued use of strange names notwithstanding, Yoshiko seemed to have all but forgotten her fallen angel persona. She hadn’t even used her strange nickname for Riko, despite Riko deciding to allow it just the other day, for the time being, at least. Yoshiko may have still used Hanamaru’s nickname though, at some point.

“Well, if you run through that bag, I’ll let you use some of mine.” Riko offered after a moment.

“Thanks, but those are yours.” Yoshiko shook her head. “Far be it for me to deprive you of your own bonding experience with these adorable purr boxes.”

“You seem to be bonding quite well with them.”

“The treats help.”

I believe it’s more than just the food. Riko thought to herself as the other girl turned to offer a few niblets to another cat.

Riko looked up to see some of the other girls heading back to the changing room. “I think it’s time for the second round.” She said to Yoshiko.

“Alright,” Yoshiko nodded as she inspected her stash of treats. “I’ll join you guys in a minute.” She upended the bag into her palm and started distributing the remaining pieces among the cats gathered around her.

----------

“We should probably get a few shots of your iconic poses.” The photographer said. “Your fans always comment on them when we put them to print.”

“Very well.” Yoshiko nodded. “If that is what my little demons demand, Yohane shall accommodate.”

Riko glanced over from where she was posing for her own shots. Was that the first time Yoshiko had mentioned her fallen angel name since the group had arrived? And she hadn’t even dropped her voice to do so? Strange.

“Good, that will… oh?” Despite expressing her surprise, the woman’s fingers did not stop pressing the shutter button and continued to capture the scene in front of her.

“Eh?” Yoshiko glanced down. “Bastet?”

So that was the kitten Yoshiko had been so intent on befriending earlier. Riko watched with amusement as the small cat jumped and batted at the large ribbon streaming from the back of Yoshiko’s outfit. Of course Yoshiko would pursue a black cat.

“I think that’s the best one yet.” The photographer commented, checking the screen on her device. “I’ll let you two be.” She added before turning away.

Yoshiko laughed merrily and pulled at the ribbon to move it more for the cat playing with it. “But of course!” She replied, not seeming to notice the photographer was already leaving. “Any shot with a kitty as cute as Bastet in it is going to be the best.” She knelt to pet the cat who rolled onto her back to paw at the hand rubbing her belly.

“I must say, I’m impressed.” A staff member said as he paused to watch. “I’ve never seen that one out of hiding, especially without the other two nearby.”

“She just wanted to play.” Yoshiko barely looked up at the young man. “Although, you’re right.” She glanced around for a moment. “Ne, Bastet, shall we go find Anhur and Horus?”

As if understanding the question, Bastet jumped up towards her. Yoshiko didn’t appear to have been ready, but managed to catch the cat anyway, throwing herself off balance in the process. She quickly righted herself and laughed while cradling the kitten in her arms.

“Sakurauchi-san, if you could pose something like this?” The young woman working with Riko held her arms up with hands mimicking cat paws.

“Eh?” Riko turned her attention back to her own photo session. “Sorry, urhm…” that pose is kind of embarrassing… “will this do?”

“Perfect.”

----------

“Oh, is that the time?” You asked, looking at her phone. “Geez, I really need to head out.”

“I’ll go with you, You-chan.” Chika said. “You coming too, Riko-chan?”

“Uhm, one moment.” The redhead surveyed those around her. “Do we have everyone?”

The photoshoot had come to an end and the crew had already packed up and left. The girls had changed back into their street clothes before accepting an invitation to stay for a light snack provided by the café. But now things were winding down and everyone was looking to head home for dinner or to study or whatever other plans they had for the evening.

“We’re missing Yoshiko-chan.” Ruby pointed out.

“I don’t think she left our table.” Hanamaru chimed in.

Sure enough, as Riko scanned the area they had left a few minutes ago, there remained a blue-haired girl still lounging on the booth bench. Riko sighed and made her way back.

“We’re all heading out, Yoshiko-chan.” She said as she approached.

“This place is surely heaven on earth.” Yoshiko sighed contently as she closed her eyes and leaned back.

Wait for it… … What? That was it? Nothing about angels or demons or…?

Yoshiko’s smile grew as Bastet wrapped her front paws around her arm and nuzzled into the crook of her elbow. Anhur, Horus, Sidhe, Tepe, Kankyo, Nunogire and several others Riko couldn’t remember, but likely had received strange names, surrounded Yoshiko; on her lap, at her side and even across the top of the bench behind her head. Their combined purring could be heard from halfway across the room.

“I think this place broke Yoshiko-chan…” Hanamaru mused as she caught up.

Or fixed her, Riko thought to herself, this is the most at ease I’ve ever seen her. And she looks pretty cute sitting there, surrounded by cats and apparently about to fall asleep. She may very well have found her heaven here on Earth.

“I think…” Riko started “I might stay for a little while longer as well.”

“You sure?” Chika asked. “We could just wake her up.”

Riko shook her head. “I think we should let her rest. She had a busy afternoon.”

“Yoshiko-chan did have the most fun today, I think.” Ruby pointed out.

“Anyway,” Riko continued “I don’t want her to wake up and think we all abandoned her. And I don’t have anything in particular planned tonight anyway.”

“Oh, alright.” Chika shrugged. “You-chan, wait up!” She scurried away to chase the departing ash-haired girl.

As the rest of the girls said their goodbyes, Riko took a seat on the bench next to Yoshiko. Or, at least as next to her as allowed by the gathered cats.

“Care to order anything while you wait for your friend to wake up?” A menu entered Riko’s field of vision. “You girls worked hard today, so feel free to pick out whatever you want.”

Riko looked up to see the smiling face of the café owner. “Thank you, but you already gave us a snack a little while ago.”

“True, but I have a feeling you two might be here a little while.” The woman nodded her chin towards Yoshiko.

“Right, uhm… do you mind if I get something for Yoshiko-chan as well?”

“Of course, if you see something she might like.”

Riko scanned the menu, easily settling on a sandwich that looked good. And something for… her eyes found chocolate covered strawberries. Perfect. She placed her order.

“Just a dessert for her?” The owner inquired.

“She can have half of my sandwich if she wants, in exchange for some of her strawberries.”

“Very well, we’ll bring that right out.”

“Thank you.”

Riko smiled as she glanced over at the sleeping girl beside her, surrounded by a purring mass of fur. There was no denying this side of Yoshiko was incredibly adorable.

Riko pulled her tablet out of her bag, set it up on the table and continued her work on the new song on which she and Chika were working. A few minutes later, a server came by to drop off the food she had ordered. Riko swapped half of each item onto the other plate and slid one closer to Yoshiko’s side.

Though the official holiday was still a little ways off, Riko couldn’t help saying, “Happy Valentine’s Day, Yoshiko-chan.” before returning to her work.

----------

Author’s Note Continued in Followup Post

[anneshirleycuffbert]

the space between the letters: the Avonlea girls take on Queen’s

[if you’ve been following me, you know I’ve posted shirbert letters; this is a awae short/fic of what happens between their letters. since I can’t wait for season four and wanted to know how the girls fare at Queen’s, I decided to write my own personal snippet-of-their lives shortly after the events of the season three finale. I hope you enjoy it as I’ve enjoyed writing it!]

click here to access an index to my awae shorts/letters

The Space Between the Letters: The Avonlea Girls Take on Queen’s aka Cuffing Season

The Avonlea girls were having tea in the parlor on a crisp autumn afternoon. The sound of hushed conversation following a rush of laughter chimed through the Blackmore house, and fortunately the volume was not improper as to warrant the mistress of the house herself to leave the confines of her study to reprimand them. 

Jane Andrews was the center of attention, for just an hour before tea, two of Queen’s fine students had unfortunately come knocking at the same time. It was rather mortifying for Jane to have to entertain two suitors in the parlor with Mrs Blackmore in the study situated right next to it and the girls spying at the top of the staircase, hands clutching at the rails. She knew she was being watched on account that she had done the very same with her friends when Moody Spurgeon visited Ruby Gillis just the day before to play her a song he composed and planned to present at the Winter Ball in a few months. Now being on the other side of the staircase and in the parlor herself, Jane felt rather sorry for invading the couple’s privacy. 

The moment the boys stepped out of the elegant house and Jane clicked the door closed, the girls descended the staircase like a stampede of farm animals. They were promptly scolded by Mrs Blackmore then, and they all shuffled as quietly as they could manage to the parlor. 

The girls sat at the table in silence as Jane poured tea for each of her friends. Once everyone had stirred in their preferred amount of sugar and milk, and gently placed their spoons delicately on their saucers as Mrs Blackmore instructed a lady should, their eyes turned to Jane Andrews expectantly. 

“Oh, I’m so embarrassed!” she exclaimed, pulling her hands up to cover her reddened cheeks. Immediately, the questions flooded out of their lips and soaked the room. 

“What did they say to each other?” said Tilly Boulter. 

“What did they say to you?” inquired Diana Barry. 

“Did they ask to court you, at the same time?” demanded Ruby Gillis. 

Josie Pye laughed. “Their faces were almost as red as Anne’s hair!”

The room erupted into fits of laughter, and even Anne Shirley-Cuthbert found amusement in her former enemy’s words. 

Diana, however, had not yet warmed up to Josie and her humor, and faithfully defended the honor of her bosom friend. “We can all see Anne’s hair has darkened into a handsome auburn, Josie. And besides, many of the boys at Queen’s have taken notice of Anne because of her hair.”

“Oh, never mind about me,” Anne laughed, colouring, but she would later thank her dear Diana for defending her. “Jane, tell us everything!”

Jane recovered her usual straight face, with a ghost of a smile on her lips and a telling blush spread on her complexion. “There’s nothing very interesting to tell, really.”

After much prodding, Jane revealed the suitors to be Richard Cordell and Leroy Murphy. Both were in Jane’s mathematics class and admired her for her wit and intellect. She was one of the few students who could finish the math problem sets in record time, and one of the even fewer girls in class who would speak up to answer the professor’s questions. 

Ruby was not satisfied. “But what did they say to you? How did they compliment you?”

Jane, remembering she had spied on Ruby and Moody, felt compelled to make up for it despite the fact that Ruby had just done the same. “Richard said he has yet to see anyone who has eyes as gold or as handsome as mine,” she reluctantly revealed. The girls stayed impressively calm, waiting for her to continue. “And Leroy said that I give off the same air as a sunflower and his day brightens when he sees me.”

The girls burst into squeals of delight and Jane’s indifferent expression cracked, revealing a pleased and bashful grin, but not before harshly whispering: “Quiet, or Mistress Mang will come and finish us off for sure and certain!”

-

Now in the back garden of the Blackmore property, the girls had laid out blankets on the grass. Anne and Diana were lying side by side gazing at the cloud formations in the gorgeous blue sky that was slowly turning a purplish-pink, hinting of a beautiful sunset to come. The breeze was getting cooler as the days passed, so Anne was determined to cherish these evenings where they could lounge outside without fear of catching colds and potentially their deaths. She reveled at the sound of rustling leaves and chirping birds, missing the ones she friended at Avonlea.

“Dearest Diana, thank you for defending my honor and my hair earlier,” Anne smiled, turning to her bosom friend and squeezing her hand. 

“I meant what I said,” said Diana, squeezing back. “It’s a very handsome auburn now but even before it was a pleasant shade of red. That Josie Pye–“

“–is our friend now,” Anne interjected. “And since we are her friends, we need to make allowances for her. Sometimes.”

“Not even Aunt Josephine would be able to afford all the allowances we will have to make for her,” Diana sighed. “But I suppose you’re right.”

A comfortable silence enveloped them until Anne remembered Gilbert, and because Diana was kindred to Anne’s spirit, she knew when the silence whispered of worry. 

“I’m sure he’s sent a letter to you, Anne. It’s probably just been delayed in reaching you.”

“What if he changed his mind?” Anne groaned, unable to bear the thought of losing Gilbert again. Certainly there were girls more beautiful and brilliant than she at U of T, she thought. “Diana, be honest. Do you think he’s changed his mind? About me?”

Diana turned to look at her friend with a knowing, mischievous smile. “After the way he kissed you that day when all was revealed? Not a chance.”

Anne’s natural rosy complexion darkened. “I– we– you– Ah!” Anne bolted upright, discovering that it was possible to feel immense joy and painful embarrassment at the same time.

Diana laughed, sitting up as well. “I’m serious! And from your description of the kisses the two of you shared before I arrived, I would be astonished if he would dare change his mind. And don’t think I hadn’t noticed the way he looked at you before he jumped off the carriage to kiss you. Twice, if you happen to recall.”

The problem was Anne did recall. When all was quiet in her mind, she’d find her thoughts drifting to a brilliant, wonderful boy whose lips have stained her memory forever. She missed him. And, okay, she missed kissing him, too. But what she missed the most was the way he looked at her, made her feel when he looked at her. The way he smiled at her. His smile. His brilliance. Him. Gilbert. She missed him. Anne Shirley-Cuthbert sorely missed Gilbert Blythe. 

“I can’t believe it finally happened,” sighed Diana. “You and Gilbert Blythe were destined from the start to be together. He better have a good reason for his delayed response, or I’d have a good mind to scold him. Again.”

“I’ve no doubt you would,” Anne mused, so grateful for Diana’s part in bringing them together. 

Jane Andrews and Josie Pye bounded out the backdoor each holding a basket of fruit and joined them on their blanket spread. 

“Girls, I need your advice,” Jane moaned. “How do you choose between two boys?” She sat beside Josie, both girls crossing their legs. “Ruby said to go for the most handsome and Josie said to go for the most kind.”

Anne glanced at Josie, who was laughing at Jane’s distress. She couldn’t help but feel pride bloom in her chest for Josie Pye, who had come out of the worst of the scandal with Billy. Josie had a quieter demeanor, now, and had grown to be more thoughtful. Choosing a beau for their kindness over their looks was something Josie would never have considered a few months earlier. But Anne was as hurt as she was proud for her, for the sad happenstance that Josie Pye learned this beautiful lesson of love over a tragedy that she’d carry for the rest of her life. Much like she carried the despairing events of her orphan life, although they seldom came to her mind these days. Anne was hopeful that one day Josie would not be overcome by the painful memory of Billy and the shame he brought on her.

Ruby, however, had a ways to go in the way she viewed love and suitors. But Moody and her were courting now, and they were good for each other. Anne prayed with all her heart that it would turn out well. 

“If you could find it in yourself to think the most kind boy is the most handsome, then I think that would be ideal,” Josie said. 

“I agree,” Diana smiled at Josie sincerely. “When someone is good in heart, they become more beautiful than the one who is devilishly handsome with no virtue to their merit.” 

“Well, as of right now, who do you like more?” inquired Anne. 

“I don’t know,” Jane shrugged. “I’ve only talked to them briefly a few times before they came calling. I never would’ve thought they’d ask to court me!”

“So that’s your next move,” Anne nodded, brows furrowed in thought. “Get to know them both before deciding. And if one of them quits their pursuit of your worthy heart before you make your decision, then you know he’s not worthy of your love.”

Tilly Boulter, Ruby Gillis, and Lily arrived with a platter of chicken salad sandwiches cut up into delicate triangles, joining the rest of the group sitting in a circle. A gust of wind threatened to blow away their hats that were pinned to their hair.

Lily, deaf and mute and gentle and kind, actions speaking louder than words could scream, was happily adopted into the friend group. Mrs Blackmore considered Lily their chaperone when necessary, not trusting half the girls to be proper in public, while the Avonlea girls considered Lily their older sister. The moment she caught them staying up late the second night at Queen’s to practice sign language in the living area was the moment Lily knew she loved them. Her eyes now followed them with curiosity and wonder.

“Can you believe the number of boys that have been visiting lately?” giggled Ruby, nibbling on her triangle of sandwich. “We have all been called to the parlor by Mang because of a suitor. So many of them have come and it’s not even the third week of class!”

“Yes, and I wish they would stop visiting so frequently,” Anne laughed, half meaning it. She hadn’t minded when boys came calling for her friends, but it was an awkward situation when they came to visit her. The first time was flattering, but the last few times were excruciating because it would always remind her of Gilbert and how he could not come calling like the Queen’s boys. The girls, however, found it ever so exciting that quite a number of Queen’s students took notice of them, especially Anne, and it made them feel a sense of pride and camaraderie as they all represented Avonlea. Since their arrival at Queen’s, Avonlea had earned a reputation for raising some of the most charming, handsome, and bright girls the Island would encounter– the latter attribute an influence of Miss Stacey, who missed them dearly. 

“Anne, have you heard from Gilbert?” Tilly inquired, and the girls curiously looked at the girl in question. 

They were shocked to hear the news that Gilbert had sacrificed a sensational life in Paris with beautiful Winifred in order to study at the University of Toronto. Since they had reacted so severely, Anne was wise to wait two days before revealing that Gilbert was now courting her. She had worried of Ruby’s reaction, whether she would be angry or upset given her past infatuation of him, but her eyes were now fixated on a sweet, charismatic banjo-playing scholar. In fact, next to Diana, Ruby was the most excited for the new couple. But then again, Ruby was always enraptured in all things pertaining to love and romance. Nevertheless, Anne was grateful that the girls found her and Gilbert a solid pair. 

As for Charlie Sloane, who took notice of Anne a few months ago, he had quickly adapted to the prospects of Queen’s and rumor had it that he had taken notice of a student who was from Carmody.

“No,” Anne replied curtly, trying to hide her disappointment. “Not yet, but I will.”

Lily reached over to hold Anne’s hand. She had been so touched by the girls’ retelling of Anne and Gilbert’s history as they walked to the postal office two weeks prior, and she looked forward to meeting the legendary Gilbert Blythe.

“Don’t worry, Anne,” Josie offered. “If things don’t work out between the two of you, there are a handful of boys here that have expressed interest in you. They were sorely disappointed to find out you were not available to court.”

Josie spoke with good intention, but it rubbed Anne the wrong way and rubbed in the fact that Gilbert was so far away. She refrained from saying anything, only replied with a tight smile.

Just then, the familiar whistling of the postal worker drifted from the front of the house to their ears. Anne’s eyes met Diana’s, and within five seconds, all of the girls were sprinting around the side of the house to the front door, laughing excitedly. Lily calmly walked as she knew Mrs Blackmore would not be pleased if she witnessed the scene. 

“Ah, ladies!” old Mr Sanderson smiled upon seeing the youthful girls, tipping his hat as a greeting. “I have mail to deliver here. Now let’s see…” he trailed off as he rifled through his satchel, pulling out three envelopes, one a brown manila envelope, and two standard sized cream-coloured ones. 

“One for Mrs Blackmore–“

“I can take it to her,” Anne impatiently grabbed one of the standard envelopes from the old man. He didn’t notice her desperation. “Anything else?”

“Well, we have a letter… oh! From the University of Toronto– for a Miss Anne Shirley-Cuthbert.”

Anne froze, nerves tingling up and down her spine as her breath caught. Somehow, she lifted her hand to receive the manila envelope with a strange bump protruding inside it. “That’s for me, sir. Thank you.” 

The girls squealed in excitement, but Anne did not dare look at the sender’s name written on the top left corner of the envelope, although she knew it must say “Gilbert Blythe” because who else could it be from?

Anne faintly heard the last recipient, Tilly Boulter, but could not remember anything else after. 

Lily gracefully delivered Mrs Blackmore’s letter to her private study knowing Anne was too preoccupied at current, and Anne had not heard Diana shepherding the girls back to the backyard to give Anne privacy to read Gilbert’s letter to her. 

When she finally held it up and found that the letter was, indeed, from Gilbert Blythe, she felt her heart race. 

Anne hurried to sit on her favorite bench placed under the willow tree to the right of the house, trying to ignore the fact that she passed the spot where Gilbert and her had kissed weeks ago. She inhaled a deep breath of cooling air before opening the envelope, remembering the personal things of her heart and the feelings she expressed in her letter to Gilbert, and Anne prepared herself for his response to her follow-up question.  (Click here to read Letter 1: Anne’s letter to Gilbert) 

Exhaling, she unfolded the letter. 

-  

(Click here to read Letter 2: Gilbert’s letter to Anne)

-

Anne had read Gilbert’s letter five more times and pinched herself five times more before she rejoined the jolly group in the backyard, now packing up their picnic and heading inside. 

The girls couldn’t help but notice that Anne was in the same mysterious mood she was in the day they moved in to the Blackmore house. They knew it had everything to do with an old classmate who was now a medical student in Toronto but they said and asked nothing of Anne, allowing her to process and feel what needed to be processed and felt. 

She was unusually quieter than usual, for a longer period than usual, and Diana would have been more worried if not for the sparkle in Anne’s eyes and the slightly higher lift of her chin as she moved about in her silence. 

The two young scholars were finishing their homework in the bedroom they shared, sitting at their respective desks. Diana had been conjugating a set of French verbs when Anne spoke up. 

“He loves me,” she said, voice trembling. Diana left her desk to stand beside Anne who was sitting at her own, staring at the letter spread atop it. Anne looked up to meet her friend’s tender brown eyes with her own teary gray ones. “Gilbert loves me.”

“Of course he does,” Diana asserted, putting her hand on Anne’s shoulder. She remembered how Anne had cried when she told her she loved her the first time, and felt a pull at her heart that her bosom friend had now been blessed with romantic love, too. Diana felt that Anne deserved all the love in the world and was grateful that Gilbert was one of the few people who could and would supply it justly to her. 

“He loves me,” repeated Anne, beginning to cry. A tsunami of emotion spilled from her eyes and waves of shock, relief, elation, disbelief, joy, longing, and love broke Anne’s proper demeanor, reminding the both of them they were still girls. Their arms captured each other in a tight iron grip, and Anne cried into her bosom friend for a few minutes, the sound summoning the group of friends who were now fearful they misunderstood Anne’s mood and were afraid that something dreadful had happened. Diana smiled at them and nodded her head, assuring them silently that everything was alright. 

Tilly shut the door quietly and the sound of footsteps receded into the hall. The sharp tapping of Mrs Blackmore’s feet came bounding up the stairs. Within a few seconds, she knocked on the door and entered. 

“Girls, are you alright, I heard– oh goodness me, what’s happened here? Anne, why are you crying?”

“These are happy tears, Mrs Blackmore,” she sniffled. “I’m quite alright, thank you. I received the best news.”

The mistress Mang sighed a breath of relief. “Be mindful now of your tears. It isn’t ladylike to cry so, but you are at liberty to cry as much as you like here. Be sure to wash your face or you’ll be puffy in the morning.”

“Yes, Mrs Blackmore.”

“Good evening, ladies.”

The door shut again and Anne and Diana sat on the nearest bed. 

“Oh Anne, I’m so glad for you.”

“I can hardly believe it- Gilbert loves me– is in love with me! But I suppose he must love me to kiss me and to have kissed me in the manner and amount that he did,” Anne said, laughing in reference to their earlier conversation.  

“All is well then?” asked Diana, looking fondly at her friend. 

Anne nodded, smiling at the thought of Gilbert and his heartfelt letter.  “All is well and good in the world.”

“Let me know if you ever need to speak with me, about anything,” Diana squeezed Anne’s hand. 

“Thank you, dearest of Dianas. I will.”

Anne leaned back on her bed and watched Diana return to her desk and flip her French dictionary open. An idea bloomed in her mind, and she sat upright. 

“Say, Diana, would you happen to have a book containing foreign languages vocabulary? I’ve decided to engage in a long-distance duel with Gilbert Blythe and I am determined to beat him, fair and square.”

[lauras-collection]

Two Lies and a Truth [Part 2]

uni student!tom holland x female reader

Masterlist

Summary: Tom apologises and you don’t know if you should trust him.

Words: 3.2k

Warnings: bullying, angst, nothing else I think [there will be smut in future chapters]

A/N: Uhm...Is it apropriate to post the second part so soon after posting the first one? IDK. :D

The tags are probably not working, so a reblog would mean the world to me ❤️

Part 1

It started with a lot of “No, I can’t hang out with you after school.” At first you just thought he was busy. But after a few weeks you realised that he meant he didn’t want to hang out with you after school when he said he couldn’t. 

Of course, your feelings were hurt. Tom was your best friend and he didn’t want to spend time with you any more. But it was okay. At least you were telling yourself that. One day at school changed everything though.

Tom was standing by the classroom door with his new friend Drake. They were talking with each other as Drake’s eyes found you and a smirk appeared on his face. 

This morning you had told yourself you’d try it one last time. Ask Tom if he wanted to hang out. You had gotten his favourite sweets and your mum had rented the film you had always watched together at least once a year since you were five. 

Drake nodded at Tom signalling him that someone was behind him. Tom turned around and you smiled sheepishly at him.

“Hi, Tom.” You wrung your hands together and you didn’t know why you were so anxious. You had never been anxious around Tom. 

“Hey.” 

“Uh, I was wondering if you maybe wanted to come over after school? I’ve got your favourite sweets and mum rented Lady and the Tramp, I thought maybe you’d wanna watch it with me?” Tom loved dogs, they were probably his favourite animals. He’d always wanted one of his own but his parents wouldn’t let him. He loved watching Lady and the Tramp because there were so many dogs in it. 

You heard Drake snicker as Tom’s cheeks turned pink. His wide eyes turned into slits in a matter of seconds.

“No, I don’t wanna watch that childish film with you. Would you please just back off? Honestly, Y/N, get the message. I don’t want to hang out with you.” You felt like you had been slapped across the face. While Drake was laughing in your face you felt tears sting in your eyes. If you didn’t know better you’d say that Tom’s expression softened when he saw you cry. But that was only your mind tricking you. Maybe you’d just been the backup friend until he found someone ‘better’ all along, someone like Drake. 

You nodded mechanically. “Okay, I won’t bother you anymore then.” 

“I beg you, please.” He raised his hands above his head as if you were a kid that had finally understood what he’d been trying to tell you for a long time. 

***

This moment kept replaying in your head throughout the weekend. It was the moment that changed it all. The moment your best friend became your bully. You had never expected your friendship with Tom to end like that. You never expected your friendship to end in the first place. The summer before the incident, you had actually developed deeper feelings for him. Now, the thought made you laugh. How could you have been so stupid?

When the first day of classes rolled around you were happy that you had taken part in the campus tour the week before. At least you knew your way around a little bit. The system behind the room names seemed complicated at first but once someone had explained it to you it was pretty easy to get behind it. You entered the first classroom with fifteen minutes to spare and to say you weren’t proud of yourself would be a lie. The first class on your schedule for the day was a lecture about the concepts and history of film studies and having always been interested in films you were eager to learn more about the subject. 

You were just about to get out your laptop when a certain brunet entered the room, almost making you gasp. You had figured he was going to the same university, but you didn’t expect him to be in one of your classes. Tom looked around the room before he spotted you, doing a double-take he let out a breath before he weaved his way through the other students, climbing the stairs until he had reached the row you were sitting in. 

“Do you mind?” He asked almost sheepishly as he motioned at the seat next to you. You were dumbfounded but mechanically nodded your head. 

“Yeah, I mean, no. Go ahead.” You were confused as to why he wanted to sit next to you. Was this going to be like one of those sick games he used play with you in school? Uni was supposed to be a new start. A new chapter. You didn’t need Tom to bring back your past. You nervously focused on putting all your stuff on the table as he cleared his throat, grabbing your attention once again. 

“Look, Y/N. I just wanted to apologise.” His voice was soft. He didn’t want all the other students to hear what he was about to say. 

“For what exactly?” You mumbled as you turned to look at him. He was eyeing you with a wary look on his face. The polar opposite of how he used to look at you.

“For everything? I honestly don’t know where to start… Basically for being a complete jerk to you in school. I wish I could blame it on Drake and the others… But I never should’ve treated you like that. I should’ve been better than that and I’m sorry.” You were even more dumbfounded now. Had Tom Holland just apologised to you? For everything that he’s done to you? Were you still asleep? Was this a dream?

“I really appreciate that.” You finally said. “But don’t expect that everything’s fine between us now.” You looked at him for a moment “You had promised me, Tom. ”

“I know.” He agreed with you squeezing his eyes shut for a moment. “What I did wasn’t fair. It was stupid and immature and I wish I could turn back time and-” He stopped himself there pressing his lips into a thin line. “I just want you to know that I regret all that stuff. It’s the worst thing I’ve ever done, and you know it’s really not like me.”

“I actually don’t know.” You retorted. “I feel like I never really knew you in the first place. You just turned on me like this.” You snapped your fingers.

 “If you want…If you want I could try to make it up to you? I’d do anything.” 

Was Tom really wanting to right his wrongs? Make amends?

“And you’re really not tricking me right now?” You questioned, unsure of his intentions. Tom almost winced at your question. 

“No. I’m being serious about this.” 

“Actions speak louder than words.” Tom could say that he wanted to make things better all he wanted but you were only going to believe it when he was actually trying. 

“Yeah…yeah I know. I just…I wanted you to know that I’m not the way I used to be anymore. I’ve got better friends now, real friends. And that made me realise that I hung around douchebags all through high school.” He shrugged his shoulders an uneasy smile on his lips. 

“Took you a long time to realise.” You had known it’s got something to do with his new friends the moment Tom started treating you differently. It obviously didn’t only come down to the people he hung out with. Tom had made the decision to behave that way. But if he’d never met them, maybe you’d still be friends. 

Tom hummed affirmatively and with that the conversation was over. Not long after, the lecturer entered the room and your first university lecture was under way. You tried your best to concentrate on the lecturer’s words but your eyes kept glancing at the boy beside you. You never imagined seeing him again, let alone talk to him. The last time you had seen him was about three or four years ago. Your parents had visited his parents and you tagged along, you missed the twins and Paddy, Tom’s brothers. You hadn’t expected Tom to be home as well. And you clearly didn’t expect his friends to be there. 

You had intended to hang out with Harry and Sam, but Tom and his friends were hanging out in the garden being obnoxiously loud, always reminding you that they were still there. You felt uneasy the whole time. The twins constantly asking you what was wrong. You never told them. You couldn’t tell them that their older brother, who they looked up to, had turned into a complete jerk. Of course, they had wondered what had happened between you and Tom that you didn’t really talk anymore. You used to be inseparable. But they figured you just grew apart. 

That evening Tom had made yet another rude comment towards you, making his friends roar with laughter. Nikki, his mother, hadn’t heard what her son had said to you if she had he would’ve gotten a scolding right away. This wasn’t the son she raised. But she was oblivious to the way he had been treating you for years now. That was the day you decided you would not come back to the Holland’s home. You couldn’t. 

The sound of students packing up pulled you out of your thoughts. Had you really managed to drown out most of the lecture? Apparently so. You silently cursed Tom for already messing with your head. 

“See you around.” He said with a small smile as he slung his backpack over his shoulder. You only managed to nod again and started packing up yourself. 

The rest of the day went a lot better than your first lecture. You saw Ryan in a few classes and he managed to keep your mind away from Tom for at least a couple of hours. When you returned to your room, Kelly was laying on her bed with an open pizza carton offering some to you. 

“That is exactly what I need right now.” You blew a strand of hair out of your face as you let yourself fall next to her, picking a slice up and taking a big bite. 

“Rough first day?” She questioned and took another bite herself. You nodded thoughtfully. You were still confused about your conversation with Tom this morning. 

“Yeah. No. I don’t know.” You finally said after swallowing. You turned to look at her. “I talked to Tom this morning.” 

“Tom? As in your old neighbour and school mate?” She questioned with raised eyebrows. She didn’t really know the full impact this had on you. You still hadn’t told her what had happened between the two of you. She still thought he had just been your neighbour. You simply nodded your lips pressed into a thin line. “What did he say?”  You contemplated if you should tell her or not. But you needed someone to confide in right now. 

“Well, he apologised.” 

“Apologised?” She looked at you confused and you let out a breath.

“Some things were said when we were younger. I don’t really want to get into it right now but all you need to know is that he became a jerk when we started secondary school.” You laughed humourlessly. The corners of her mouth turned down. You could tell she knew that there was much more to the story but she nodded letting you know that it was okay and if you ever wanted to tell her the whole story she would be there for you. 

“Anyway, now he apologised and wants to make amends? I’m not sure I trust him. He gave me enough reasons not to.” You let your shoulders slump a bit. You were all for giving second chances. And the Tom you knew before you changed schools was one of the sweetest people you had ever met. “I wanted a fresh start. I haven’t seen him in years and now he shows up and messes with my head already.” You groaned. 

“You really liked him, didn’t you? Before he became a jerk?” 

“Yeah.” You chuckled a bit, feeling tears start to pool in your eyes. “I had the biggest crush on him. Stupid, huh?” Kelly squeezed your shoulder with a sympathetic look on her face. 

“No, it’s not stupid…I honestly don’t really know what to tell you. I don’t know what happened between the two of you and what he’s like. Maybe you should try to give him a chance? But be wary about it? And at the first signs of him playing you, you’ll just stop.” She shrugged her shoulders. You hummed and nodded. Maybe that was the best way to go about things. There was still one other person you could talk to though. To get a second opinion. 

Kelly took a look at the time and cursed. “Shit. I have a class in fifteen minutes. Will you be okay?” She looked at you again as she got up from her bed. You nodded your head and waved your hand dismissively. 

“Of course! I’m fine. I’ll see you later.” 

“You can eat the rest of the pizza if you want.” Kelly pulled on her jacket and picked up her bag from the ground. “I’m having dinner with Jordan after class.” If you looked closely enough you could see a blush on Kelly’s cheeks.

“Oooh. Have fun! I want all the details later.” You wiggled your eyebrows with a smirk and she rolled her eyes. 

“Yeah, yeah. See ya later.” With that, she was out of the door and you chuckled lightly. Ryan’s roommate was taking your roommate out for dinner. Who would have thought? You took another piece of the pizza and pulled your phone from your bag. Scrolling through your contacts you found the only person who would be able to understand you. Who knew what you’ve been through with Tom. 

“Beth? Hi.” You said as she picked up.

“Y/N!” There was rustling on her end “Hey, how’s university treating you so far? It was your first day today, right?” She asked making you smile. You were glad you had been able to stay in contact with her even though you had moved out of town four years ago. She had been your best friend in Kingston. You met her on your first day of secondary school and you weren’t sure if you would have been able to cope with Tom’s behaviour without her. 

“Yeah! First day’s over and… Beth, I need your advice.” Your voice was a little shaky and the rustling on the other end stopped.

“What’s wrong?” You could immediately hear the worry in her voice. 

“Tom’s here. He’s going to the same uni and he’s in one of my classes.” You rush out and the line is silent for a moment. 

“Hold up. Tom? Tom Holland?” She asked and you nodded despite the fact she obviously couldn’t see you.

“Yeah.” 

“What’s he done? Has he said something? I swear I’m gonna come down-”

“No.” You interrupted her. “No, he actually apologised.” 

“He did what now?” She sounded as doubtful as you felt.

“Yeah. I can’t believe it either. He says he wants to make amends.”

“Sorry, Y/N. But I think he’s full of shit.” She spat and you could imagine how her face was pinched together in anger. 

“He said he’s got new friends now.” You mumbled. Were you really defending him right now?

“Well, yeah, he stopped hanging out with Drake and the others during sixth form. But he shagged like half the girls in our year. I hate to break it to you but he’s a typical fuck boy and he’s probably just saying that to get you in bed, just because he can. Maybe he gets some kind of kick out of it.” 

You were speechless at her words. She had never told you that. It had probably been for the best. What good would that info have done for you? It explained his behaviour in the club though. Before he knew who you were. “I’m sorry.” Beth murmured when you didn’t reply to her. 

“No, it’s okay. You’re just being honest.” You sighed. “I just hoped that he’s actually being honest for a change, you know?”

“Who knows, maybe he is.” She was quiet for a moment. “I don’t know his motives and maybe I’m wrong with what I said... But he’s gotten really close with Harrison lately. D’you know him? Harrison Osterfield?” You tried to think about it but the name didn’t ring any bells. 

“No, never heard of him.” 

“He’s a good guy. Really. Maybe he had a better influence on Tom than that douchebag Drake.” 

“So what do you reckon I should do?” 

Beth thought for a second. “What do you want to do?” She asked then.

“I really want to give him a chance.” You almost whispered. “Is that stupid of me?” You felt the tears burning in your eyes again. How could you want to give him a chance when he had been treating you like shit for years? Maybe it was because you kept thinking about the sweet boy that Tom used to be. You were hoping that that boy was still in there somewhere. That Tom had decided to be that version of him from now on. And maybe Beth was right and that Harrison guy really did change him. 

“No, it’s not stupid.” Beth assured you. “Reckless, maybe. But not stupid. Just be careful okay?” You could practically see her raise her eyebrows.

“Yeah, of course. My roommate will look out for me, too.” A small smile was on your lips. You were glad you had a roommate like Kelly. You’d only known each other a week but you felt like you had known her for years. 

“Ooh. What’s she like?” 

And you told Beth about Kelly and everything else that had happened during the past week and she told you about her first few days at university in Edinburgh. You made plans to visit each other at some point in the future before you ended the call. You really wanted to wait for Kelly to come home so you could question her about her evening but you were exhausted. So instead you got ready for bed. 

You couldn’t fall asleep though. You kept thinking about Tom. How was it possible for him to already mess with your head? You had been fine after bumping into him on Friday. Well, except for the flashbacks that constantly replayed in your head. You had pushed the thought that Tom was possibly going to the same uni as you to the back of your mind. But with him sharing (at least) one class with you…you couldn’t avoid him anymore. And he had actually talked to you. Apologised even. 

You weren’t sure what the future would bring. But you hoped that everything would turn out alright.

Part 3

everything taglist: @rachaeldonnaspiteri1 // @localfangirlx // @averyfosterthoughts // @parkerpeter24 // @mrhollandisart // @tloveswriting // @tomhollandloverrrr​

Two Lies and a Truth taglist: @sad-sagita​

You can find the link to my taglist form here

[adventure-hearts]

I was asked about this topic recently, and, being bored out of my mind, I felt inspired to use it as a starting point for a new series! I hope to share my current headcanons about the personality types of the Digimon Adventure universe’s main characters, according to different personality systems: astrology, Enneagram, MBTI... feel free to suggest any other typologies you’d like me to explore in the future.

In this first post, I’ll try to explain which of the Sun Sign personality archetypes I find more likely and interesting for each character. Consider this this an update of my previous headcanons, post-tri. (and post LAST EVOLUTION Kizuna).

1: DIGIMON ADVENTURE + ZODIAC SIGNS

Taichi - Aries

Yamato - Aries

Sora - Pisces [semi-canon]

Koushirou - Aquarius

Mimi - Leo

Jou - Virgo 

Takeru - Libra

Hikari - Pisces

Daisuke - Sagittarius

Miyako - Gemini [canon]

Iori - Capricorn

Ken - Cancer

Meiko Mochizuki - Virgo/Libra

Maki Himekawa - Scorpio

Daigo Nishijima - Leo

Note: Every single headcanon is highly subjective and even I will probably change my mind about it. This is only a PROPOSAL.

If you’re interested in my interpretation and methodology, read on!

Canon Clues 

Although there are no official birthdays for the characters, several Adventure materials have provided “goalposts” where we can fit some characters’ birthdays. I strive to make my HCs as canon-compliant as possible, so it’s important for me to take this info into account.

Miyako is stated to be a Gemini in 02.

The official synopsis of tri. Indicates that Taichi is 17 years old during the series, suggesting the has an April-June birthday.

Sure, you’re free to ignore this little nugget if you prefer, but I personally like to think there’s a reason they mentioned Taichi’s age explicitly — something they never did before. They also never mentioned the explicit age of any of the other characters.

Funnily enough, the DALEK official website and novel lists the character’s ages during the events of the film. Since the film takes place in the summer of 2010, taking those numbers at face-value would require us to believe all 8 characters have birthdays in the first half of the year. 

This contradicts the explicit on-screen information about Jou’s age in the original series (see below). 

I’m proposing this should be interpreted as their “average” ages, rather than precise ages at this specific moment in time — after all, in Kizuna it’s more difficult to identify the characters by their school year, like they always did before.

Sora’s birthday is canonically before the events of Our War Game. The film takes place during the spring holidays, which typically begin around the third week of March.

Sora having a March birthday is so universally accepted by Japanese fans that it’s even on her Wikipedia page. I wouldn’t be surprised if more recent writers took that information into account, post-OWG, and portrayed her accordingly. 

Notice that Pisces is only the more likely option considering the canon timeline and Sora’s personality — Aries (late March) and Aquarius (mid-February) could fit as well. Hence why I consider this choice [semi-canon].

Jou, who is a 6th-grader, mentions he’s 11 years old during Adventure. This suggest his birthday would be after August 1.

Ken is supposed to be 9 years old in August 2000, when he’s in Year 3, suggesting he has an April-August birthday.

This is different from other guidebooks which only list the characters “average” ages, because this lists Ken’s precise age during a specific event.

I believe Ken being exactly 9 years old went to the Digital world is deliberate, since Osamu is stated to be 3 years older than Ken, hadn’t yet turned 12 when he died.

Again, except for Miyako, Sora, and Jou birthdays, I can understand why fans chose to ignore any of this.

Personal Notes

My method isn’t about finding a putative “Official / True Birthday” — that never existed, at least for the Adventure eight. It’s about finding birthdays that work within the limitations of canon (see previous section). 

My HCs are based on the personality / character archetypes represented by the the zodiac signs. In theory, any Chosen Child could be understood as representing a specific symbolical archetypes.

The problem is that the Adventure characters are quite complex and often deconstruct traditional archetypes. This explains why it’s so hard for fans to agree on which sign they are supposed to represent. I should also note that anime series seem to understand astrological archetypes slightly differently from the Western mainstream tradition, which explains why typical anime zodiac signs sometimes feel a bit “off”. 

Nevertheless, some archetypes are so strong that most of the fandom seems to have reached a consensus: Jou/Virgo and Koushirou/Aquarius, for example. Then you have textbook examples of archetypes like Gemini/Miyako (unsurprisingly canon), Taichi/Aries, and Hikari/Pisces. But even there is a lot of room for disagreement and subjective interpretation!

*

The 02 writers clearly intended Daisuke to symbolise Fire, Miyako Air, Iori Earth and, due to the Dark Ocean connection, Ken Water. In fact, it’s super easy to place those four characters into any traditional 4-group personality types, such as the four temperaments, Jung’s types, blood types, ABCD personality, etc. 

My HCs respect this, and ended up creating two polar opposites within the team: Daisuke/Miyako (mutable) and Ken/Iori (cardinal).  

*

It’s tempting to ascribe 12 main characters = 12 signs, but post-tri. I’m inclined to do something different and not put myself into such a limiting framework.

For this reason I repeat some signs, and I don’t have any Taurus character (sorry!).

*

My MAIN innovative choice is that I suspect Taichi and Yamato might represent the same sun sign.

Now, I understand this is an extremely controversial opinion. It isn’t a possibility I thought about until quite recently.

But Taichi and Yamato being “different but the same / two sides of the same coin” is incredibly well represented if both of them correspond to the Aries personality archetype. 

After all, they’re the leaders, the heroes, the Knights in shining armor. This explains their incredible similarities, despite superficial differences. as well as their love-hate dynamic: the rivalry, the union, the way they complement and balance each other out in an almost instinctive way.

Here are some examples of the Aries/Aries dynamic from the literature... 

Both of you are independent individuals and you don’t like feeling “owned” by anyone. Neither of you can tolerate being dominated or bossed by anyone else, so you probably make your own decisions, and direct your own lives. You respect one another’s autonomy, and a relationship that is based on constant togetherness and dependency wouldn’t suit either of you. Sometimes, however, there is too much emphasis on individualism rather than on being close and nurturing the relationship. You both have proud egos, and are sensitive to criticism. Almost inevitably you will compete with each other, and in small doses this can be invigorating. But it easily becomes nasty, and one of you is likely to get hurt. If you’ve ever seen two rams locking horns, you know what I mean! You either respect one another immensely or detest one another – rarely anything in between. (X)

If your relationship has been built on the basis that you are equals, the fire element produces tremendous vision and industriousness. Your combined power and effort could well be a force to be reckoned with — but again, only if you both learn to subdue your own ego in the service of each other. Remember, you can’t always be right. You need to try hard to see things from each other’s perspective; this will help the two of you become a great partnership over time. (x)

When Mars clashes with Mars, the result can be full-scale war, with all flags flapping, bravely and colorfully. Occasional flare-ups are bound to occur when these two are thrown into close, daily proximity, without the relief of some separateness in their association. But there will also be some glorious Highs to offset these Lows. (...)  It's been said that Aries people have a way about them. They do. Their own way. Yet, despite that sometimes antagonistic Martian exterior, they'll sense each other's desperate need to be appreciated and liked. When they get together, they may struggle for leadership, but the experience will supply some well-needed lessons. The shock of living with someone - or being around some- one - as innocently thoughtless, selfish and aggressive as one's self, is sure to soften any battering Ram, although there may be a few scars to show for the les- sons in living thus mastered. Aries hearts always carry more scars than the Rams ever show, or openly discuss. (x)

Sounds familiar, doesn't it? The more you read, the more this pattern begins to make sense. Try to watch the Dark Masters arc, the Agumon-is-kidnapped mini arc, tri., and even Kizuna with this possibility in mind, and you’ll understand what I mean.

Sure, order to accept this theory, you have to understand Yamato as a more atypical reserved / sensitive Aries (influenced by a Cancer Moon, perhaps?) and Taichi as a more “pure” Arien type. Yamato is more like a baby lamb, right? (don’t tell it to his face).

You can make a very strong argument for Leo!Taichi (that was my initial HC as well) or Yamato as almost anything else. I wouldn’t disagree. But why not come up with a fresh perspective to explain these two? 

Oh, and in case you’re curious, their (canon) Japanese Zodiac is also the same: Dragon, the direct equivalent to Aries. 

*

A note about tri.: typing Maki and Daigo seemed straightforward enough. Maki is the stereotypical Scorpio antagonist, and Goggle Boy Daigo’s partner evolved into a literal lion.

I couldn’t resist the idea of making Meiko a Libra, considering her digimon partner is literally the Libra and Meiko is the 9th member of the group. But  personality probably fits other signs better — it’s very tempting to type her a Virgo, the polar opposite of Hikari. She could also be the missing Taurus element (Mei as the literal May Queen). 

The truth is... I can’t decide!

*

Disclaimer: There is zero scientific evidence for astrology and, as far as I’m concerned, it’s only interesting as a tool to analyze fictional characters in symbolic /archetypal terms. My headcanons are based on extensive reading about astrology, its symbolism and psychological profiles; I’m happy to share my sources (they’re not from pop astrology). But I’m also aware of the Barnum effect. We are all biased; there are no right or wrong options. Everyone’s conflicting headcanons are equally valid.

Feel free to ask questions or request more in-depth explanations for my suggestions, but FFS don’t start arguing with me and insisting I’m “wrong” based on other people’s equally subjective and disputable headcanons.

*

BONUS: Sun sign Archetypes / Personality Keywords

Aries

Aries at its best : Brave, assertive, pioneering, quick, determined

Aries on a bad day: Aggressive, hard-headed, selfish, impulsive, impatient, brutal

The Aries archetype : Prince Lancelot, the brave and romantic rock star of King Arthur’s court

The Aries stereotype : The rage-a-holic in the pickup truck who just gave you the finger after cutting you off on the freeway

Gemini

Gemini at its best : Curious, inquisitive, quick witted, communicative, inventive, clever, adaptable

Gemini on a bad day : Verbally cruel, deceptive, disloyal, restless, doesn’t follow through”

“The Gemini archetype : The jester; clever and mischievous, your wit and agility are your best defense

The Gemini stereotype : The meddlesome neighbor, snooping and eavesdropping

Cancer

Cancer at its best : Family-oriented, nurturing, intuitive, domestic, maternal, sensitive, sympathetic, emotional, patriotic, retentive, traditional

Cancer on a bad day : Moody, touchy, oversensitive, negative, manipulative, overly cautious

The Cancer archetype : The universal mother

The Cancer stereotype : The smothering mother

Leo

Leo at its best : Regal, creative, magnetic, performer, generous, inspiring

Leo on a bad day : Vain, domineering, attention seeking, insecure”

The Leo archetype : The benevolent monarch

The Leo stereotype : The shallow playboy or party girl

Virgo

Virgo at its best : Discriminating, thorough, scientific, clean, humane, scientific, analytical

Virgo on a bad day : Picky, critical, petty, self-centered, hypochondriac, gloomy, pedantic

The Virgo archetype : Sherlock Holmes, with his staggering powers of perception and analysis and his earthy tweed jacket

The Virgo stereotype : The quiet, slightly geeky scientist or secretary with horn-rimmed glasses and a repressed manner

Libra

Libra at its best : Refined, artistic, diplomatic, sociable, peace loving, persuasive, just

Libra on a bad day : Fickle, over accommodating, argumentative, indecisive, insincere

The Libra archetype : The diplomat

The Libra stereotype : The gigolo or “kept” man or woman”

Scorpio

Scorpio at its best : Determined, probing, brave, passionate, insightful, empathetic, penetrating, investigative, powerful

Scorpio on a bad day : Jealous, suspicious, sarcastic, secretive, vengeful, manipulative

The Scorpio archetype : The magician, able to transcend the laws of nature to achieve transformation

The Scorpio stereotype : A secret agent, skilled at investigative work and most comfortable working behind the scenes”

Sagittarius

Sagittarius at its best : Philosophical, adventurous, freedom loving, scholarly, funny, honest, athletic, traveler

Sagittarius on a bad day : Crude, blunt, know-it-all, arrogant, superior, intolerant

The Sagittarius archetype : The wayfaring stranger who transforms a community with his knowledge and wisdom before moving on

The Sagittarius stereotype : The clown who trips over his gigantic shoes and throws pies in your face

Capricorn

Capricorn at its best : Responsible, authoritative, traditional, pragmatic, hardworking, economical, serious, mature, ethical

Capricorn on a bad day : Domineering, stubborn, inhibited, unfeeling, fatalistic, judgmental, unforgiving”

“The Capricorn archetype : The wise elder

The Capricorn stereotype : A cranky old man or woman who keeps yelling at kids to “stay off my lawn!”

Aquarius

Aquarius at its best : Independent, genius, iconoclastic, rebellious, logical, scientific, progressive, intellectual, humane

Aquarius on a bad day : Eccentric, temperamental, unpredictable, cold, opinionated, radical”

“The Aquarius archetype : The charismatic rebel who wins over his fellow men by thumbing his nose at authority

The Aquarius stereotype : The mad scientist

Pisces

Pisces at its best : Sympathetic, compassionate, emotional, intuitive, musical, artistic

Pisces on a bad day : Impractical, timid, procrastinator”

The Pisces archetype : The mystic

The Pisces stereotype : The flake

from Kent, April Elliott. “The Essential Guide to Practical Astrology: Everything from zodiac signs to prediction, made easy and entertaining”.

[classic80sand90smovieloves2]

Meeting and Dating Buddy Revell

(This gif came out kinda alright considering it was made by me)(requested by @oh777 )

(My inner love for dissecting characters came out so if you’d like to see my ideas of why buddy is the way he is you can find them at the bottom of this post.)

- You, of course, meet Buddy at school. You’d had all morning to hear about the new psycho student before you actually got your eyes on the him. Because of that your first actual meeting was...kind of disappointing. Well no not disappointing just anticlimactic.

- It was just after first period, you were heading to your locker to get some stuff for your next class when you saw him. He was standing in front of your locker looking at the little slip of paper the main office gives you that has your combo printed on it. You debated just going to class unprepared instead of talking to him but you decided against it and walked up to him.

“Hi,” you greeted awkwardly. “Sorry but you’re standing in front of my locker...”

- He looked down at you and your heart stopped beating for a second. That is until he shuffled to the side with a low ‘sorry’ before he began trying to open what must have been his locker. Jerry had seen the entire thing right before he tried to verbally convince Buddy to let him off the hook.

- After your next class he begged you to try and help him survive. He wanted you to try and distract him after school so that he could have more time to plan what he was going to do. You hesitantly agreed but didn’t promise him anything.

- You stress over what you’re going to do all day, how are you going to distract a guy hellbent on killing your friend? You aren’t sure but by the end of the day you have to think fast. Your legs are jelly and you’re gulping as you walk towards him but you just focus on how he didn’t kill you this morning and how that’s probably a good sign.

“Hi, Buddy is it? I’m y/n I didn’t get to introduce myself earlier,” he didn’t answer just kept moving stuff around his locker. “So...uh, how was your first day?

“Fine.” He responded after an awkward silence.

“Good, good! Do you have a favorite class yet? Well I guess it’s probably too early to tell, huh? I-”

“Listen girly I know what you’re trying to do.” You stiffened like a deer in the headlights. He looked at you for a long moment. “Why don’t you tell me something, hmm? Why would you stick your neck out for that kid?”

“Because... that’s what Jerry would do for me.” You shrug. He looks away and goes silent for a minute

“I’ve got a kid to kill.” He says and shuts his locker. You trail after him quickly, wide eyed and silent as he walks out into the parking lot.

- Jerry didn’t seem nearly as nervous as you thought he would be which you took as a good sign. So the fight happens, Buddy is defeated and the crowd begins to clear out until it’s only really you left in the parking lot with a few unconscious bodies. You hear Buddy let out a groan so you hesitantly creep over and stand above him.

- He opens his eyes and they focus on you for a long minute as he tries to get his bearings. Finally he sits up and pushes himself to his feet, remaining silent as he stumbles to his car.

“I really don’t think you should be driving right now!” You can hear him let out a sort of low chuckle before he turns to you.

“Yeah? How else am I gonna get home?”

“Well... I can drive you...if you want?” He doesn’t say anything for a long time, you’re just about to leave until he throws you his keys and climbs into his passenger seats.

- You hop into the drivers seat and push the key into the ignition while he pulls down his mirror and rubs at the blood under his nose. He tells you what street he lives on and you start your drive towards his house. For the most part you’re silent until you decide to shoot your shot at the weirdly handsome new to the school psycho.

“Do you uh want some lunch or something?”

“-Fuck it; sure why not.”

- Before you know it you’re sitting in a booth with him at a pizza place not too far from school. You don’t talk for a good few minutes until he finally speaks.

“How does a girl like you wind up hanging around a kid like ...Jerry.” You quirk a brow in confusion. “I mean you’re nice and pretty and all that. Why would you hang around a wimp like him. How do you even become friend with a guy like that.”

- You start to talk about how you got to know Jerry and told him a few stories of things that had happened during your friendship with the boy. You were definitely less uncomfortable around him by the time the two of you had finished eating. When you’re walking out of the pizza place he convinces you that he’s fine to drive and you hesitantly give him your address so that he can drive you home.

- Once you pull up in front of your house, you thank him and start to get out until he grabs your wrist. You quickly turn to face him and he asks if he can “drive you home tomorrow”. You know exactly what he means by it and agree with a smile.

- The next day at school, Jerry tells you all about how Buddy gave him back the money and how he thinks he respects him now. You smile but neglect to inform him or anyone else that you’re going to be going on a date with the guy later that day.

- After school Buddy waits by your lockers and let’s you gather your things before the two of you walk to his car. He takes you to the movie theater where the two of you share a large popcorn and different boxed candy. You spend a lot of time glancing over at each other rather than watching the movie.

- Once the movies over the two of you sit in his car and talk about the cheesy parts of the film while you finish some of the candy you hadn’t eaten before. You realize just how much you’re beginning to like him as you watch him smile and shake his head while mentioning a particularly stupid scene.

- He drives you home and parks in front of your house; rubbing his hands across his jeans as he leans back in his seat. You give each other a long look before you slowly lean in and kiss him soft and quick. Once you pull away you quickly hop out of the car and give him a smile, telling him you’ll see him tomorrow. After you’ve disappeared inside your house he touches his lips; staring at your door before he shakes his head with a smile and drives off.

- You finally tell your friends about you and him, the next day. They think you’re crazy for even talking with the guy let alone going out with him. You assure them that he’s actually pretty nice but they don’t believe you. You can’t bring yourself to care.

- It’s not long before the whole school knows about the two of you. Some people will avoid you, others will try to get you to explain why you’re doing this to yourself but you just ignore them. You’re happy with Buddy and that’s all that matters.

- He always walks you to class.

- He usually walks with his arm around your shoulders during the school day. Everyone tends to move out of your way as you walk down the hall.

- You do make him seem a little less evil. It’s hard to maintain the reputation of a brutal killer when a girl half your size is tugging you around by your hand.

- Getting driven to and from school every day.

- Going places with nice views to just hang out in his car and talk to each other.

- Sitting with him when he smokes.

- Sitting with him in the library during lunch.

- You start off with soft kisses and that’s all you really do at the start of your relationship, up until he just can’t take it anymore and ambushes you with a full on heated makeout session.

- As much as he doesn’t like being touched by anyone he doesn’t particularly mind when it’s you doing the touching. He trusts and likes you, and that makes all the difference in the world.

- After a while he starts to really enjoy physical contact, well, as long as it’s with you. You’re the exception.

- He isn’t really sure how to respond to just innocent affection. He likes it...in a weird way, it makes him a kinda flustered and sometimes a little uncomfortable but it’s kind of nice at the same time?

- Brushing his hair out of his face.

- Sitting in his lap.

- Laying your head on his shoulder while he reads.

- Piggyback rides

- He could honestly lift you up with one hand if he wanted. It’s like you weigh nothing to him at all.

- He always wants to be seen with you; he’s proud that you’re his.

- Constantly says how you’re too good for him. He’s only partly joking.

- He doesn’t really like talking about his time in continuation or at his other schools so you have a kind of murky collection of different moments but not a full story.

- Learning why he doesn’t like being touched and supporting him, promising to help him in any way he needs.

- You’re admittedly extremely in love. He likes when you tell him, over time he’ll mutter it back to you.

- He loves hearing you ramble on about something you’re passionate about.

- He doesn’t really have any reason to be jealous since no one ever really dares to even talk to you knowing that you guys are dating.

- He still intimidates any guy who seems to be trying to get too friendly.

- Hes very protective even though no one would ever think about hurting you.

- Wearing his leather jacket.

- He lets you look at his brass knuckles when you spot them in his room one day.

- If you pester him about it he’ll “teach” you how to fight. The quotations are there because he never really takes it seriously, it’s alright though because neither are you.

- Watching wrestling with him at his house.

- Tossing a football to each other every now and again.

- He gives you his old jersey to sleep in.

- If you want to spoon then he’s always the big spoon because there’s just no other way that shits going to logically happen. You usually cuddle with either him as the big spoon or with you snuggled into his side with his arm wrapped around you.

- Sharks are his favorite animal so if you were to ever get him anything shark related he would be elated.

- He’s actually really smart. He doesn’t mind helping you study or do homework.

- You have to stand on your tippy toes to kiss him; he finds this adorable.

- He’s in awe when you wear his clothes. They’re huge on you and you think you look a little stupid in them but it doesn’t change how amazing he thinks you look.

- He just thinks you’re so beautiful. Even if he doesn’t tell you a lot, he’s constantly thinking it.

- Forcing him to make amends with Jerry. He does apologize but they don’t exactly become friends, they just kind of tolerate each other.

- I feel like Buddy would find Jerry and rant to him or silently hang out with him whenever you two were fighting. All Jerry would be able to do is just sit there like he was in the twilight zone or something.

- Double dates with Jerry and his girlfriend.

- You’re the talk of the school. There’s so many rumors going around about you.

- Helping him work off his anger ;)

- He thinks everyone’s trying to start something or try something with him. You have to convince him that they don’t mean anything by what they say.

- Patching him up after fights when you can’t stop him.

- Hes really nervous when meeting your parents. They don’t approve of him until they meet him and realize he’s actually kind of sweet especially to you.

- The future will happen when it happens. He just wants to enjoy the fact that for now you’re utterly and completely his.

{ Alright so here’s the thing; Buddy is a really complex character that I just cannot perfectly understand. Here’s a little bit of what I’ve picked up and decided is a plausible explanation for why he is the way he is~

Buddy seems like the victim of abuse, most likely by his father since every time he’s reacted violently to being touched the victim was a guy. Another reason behind my thinking is that he looks scared and uncomfortable rather than embarrassed when Jerry does land a punch on him; it looked a lot like he had a flashback. So in my opinion it’s a case of serious same sex touch aversion caused by some traumatic experience in his life.

That’s why I think he’d be alright with you touching him because it seems a lot like it’s just male physical contact that really gets to him. }

[elvendara]

MM Fluff Week 2020 day 4

Day 4: Accomplishments  ♡  Mysme Friendships

For @mmfluffweek

This one seemed a bit clunky, but IDK, hope you like it anyway!

Yoosung straightened his yellow bowtie yet again and ran fingers through his hair. He went back and forth on whether he should wear his hair clips. In the end, he put them on, after all, Saeran liked them and that’s all that mattered. They were silver with small diamond stars on them. A gift from the twins on his last birthday. Saeran had designed them and helped Saeyoung craft them. If he was honest, they were probably his most prized possession. Taking a deep breath and one final look at himself he nodded and walked out.

This was his only suit, but it had held up well. The sleeves might be a bit small now, he must have grown some, but otherwise fit properly. It was a deep blue that Saeran liked on him, which was a big plus. He was excited and a bit nervous, but he supposed tonight was probably not much different than an RFA party where there would be some wealthy and famous guests. Of course, Yoosung never actually had to mingle with those guests. His duties were more the backstage variety.

He stepped out of his apartment building to a waiting limo. The chauffeur nodded to him as he opened the door.

“Thank you.” Yoosung said.

“My pleasure sir.” The man closed the door as Yoosung settled onto the seat. He’d been in limos before, while accompanying Jumin, but never had one all to himself. It felt silly and wasteful, but Saeran had insisted. It took about fifteen minutes to get to their next destination. The chauffeur once more opened the door, this time to let Saeran in. The man looked stunning, taking Yoosung’s breath away. His red hair was slicked back, his mint colored eyes noticeably not hiding behind the fringe. The black eyeliner was expertly applied, as always, and his studded choker was around his neck. He wore a red Tshirt under a black coat, black jeans and his biker boots. How long since he’d dressed that way? Yoosung had to resist an urge to reach over and ruffle his hair.

Yoosung scooted over to make room for the man next to him, which he took. He turned to him and grinned, green eyes gleaming, but a little terrified as well.

“You look amazing.” He said.

“So do you, I’m glad you decided for this look.” Yoosung admired his boyfriend.

“Uh, yeah…not sure how it will go over though.” Saeran swallowed. Yoosung reached for his hand, it was sweaty.

“Nervous?”

“Shit yeah!” Saeran answered honestly. Yoosung laughed and lay his head on the other man’s shoulder.

“Don’t be, it’s going to be incredible, you’ll see.”

“I…I’m just afraid I’ll let everyone down.”

“You won’t.”

“I wish I could be as confident as you.”

“You don’t have to be, all of us are cheering you on, and even if nobody else likes it, we all love it!” Yoosung turned Searan’s face towards him and kissed him lightly. This was Saeran’s night and he was going to do everything in his power to make it a great one.

Saeran smiled, the tension in his body eased and he reached for the hair clips in Yoosung’s blonde hair. “You wore them.”

“Of course! They’re my lucky charm!” he giggled.

“I’m glad. And grateful for you, being here with me. I can’t imagine having done this by myself without you by my side.”

“You just needed a little push is all.”

“I don’t know. The man I used to be…well…”

“But that wasn’t the real you, it just took you a while to realize who you really are, without all that…uh…”

“It’s OK. I know you’re right. And I know that it will probably be a lifelong journey for me. But I hope you stay by my side.”

“Always.” They exchanged several more kisses before the limo stopped once more. When the door opened, Saeran stepped out into a few lightbulb flashes. He held out his hand for Yoosung, who took it eagerly. There was some media and some onlookers who looked more confused than anything, wondering if they were celebrities of some sort. His amethyst eyes blinked at the crowd, but Saeran only had eyes for him, placing his arm around his waist and leading them inside the art gallery.

The rest of the RFA was already inside, Jaehee and MC in stunning gowns fit for the Oscars. Jumin and Zen both handsome in their tails, Jumin in black, Zen in white, making an ethereal pair. Saeyoung on the other hand, wore a white buttoned long sleeved dress shirt with his regular black and orange hoodie, his hair in it’s usual disarray. Yoosung simply shook his head.

“Little bro! Making the fashionable entrance huh?” Saeyoung hugged him, and the others followed after. Saeran looked a bit awkward and uncomfortable but he handled it well.

“Mr. Choi. I’m so pleased you have arrived, there are several people who have been asking for you. May I take you from your friends?” The woman wore a black cocktail dress, her dark hair in a high tight ponytail, her grey eyes alert and determined.

“Uh…” Saeran stuttered.

“It’s OK, I think we’ll manage.” Yoosung shooed him away. Saeran nodded and let the woman lead him away like a trapped animal.

“He seems to barely be holding on.” Zen laughed sipping from his champagne goblet.

“Give him time, he’ll grow into it. V never much cared for the personal attention either.” Jumin said.

“But V used his charm effectively, I’m not sure Saeran has that same ability.” Jaehee said.

“No, but I think this really has helped him come out of his shell a bit more with other people. Although, I think he enjoys taking photographs because it allows him hide behind the camera.” Yoosung answered.

“Yep, but now he can’t!” Saeyoung laughed. “Can you believe my little brother has his own gallery showing? Not to mention all that social media blowing up over his photos! He’s going to be bigger than V ever was!”

“And I wonder who made that happen.” MC arched her eyebrow at her husband.

“Is it wrong of me to promote my little bro?” Saeyoung asked offended.

“No, but it might be to do it by hacking.” Zen laughed.

“Is that so? Hmm, remind me again, who reblogged onto all his own social media sites?” Saeyoung said.

Zen looked away without answering.

“It was something I never thought I would see, Zen posting something that wasn’t his face or body.” Jumin smirked. Zen slapped his arm but Jumin only laughed and pulled the man close, giving him a peck on the cheek.

“He did take some photos of me as well! I was only trying to help him.” Zen pouted.

“Absolutely my love.” Jumin nodded and went silent.

Yoosung was barely paying any attention as his eyes were on Saeran. In the last few years he’d come leaps and bounds from the man he used to be. There was still that hard shell, but once inside, there was a soft gooey center that was still so very fragile and vulnerable. He cherished the man, the good and the bad, and he was overwhelmingly happy that things were looking up for him. The photos he took were stunning. You couldn’t help but feel something when you saw them. Saeyoung was right, V was incredible, but there was a different perspective to the way Saeran saw the world. The truth of it. That while there was great beauty, there was also great sorrow.

After an hour Saeran finally made his way back to Yoosung.

“Can we go now?” he whispered in desperation.

“No, you promised you’d stay at least until ten.” Yoosung answered.

“What time is it now?”

“Just after nine.”

“Ugh…”

“Come on, why don’t you take me on a tour?”

“You’ve already seen them all.”

“Yes, but, I’d love to hear your perspective on them, you know, explain it to me as if I’ve never seen it before. Besides, it will give you an excuse to stay with me and ignore all these people.” Yoosung grinned.

“True!” Saeran’s eyes lit up. “OK, let’s start over there.” He took Yoosung’s hand and headed towards the center of the gallery. Yoosung didn’t move. “What?”

“I’m so proud of you Saeran.” Yoosung said, eyes glittering with happiness.

Saeran blushed and looked away, but there was a small smile playing around his lips. “You don’t have to say that.” He mumbled.

“I know I don’t have to. I want to. And I am, so very proud. And happy to be here with you. What you’ve done in incredible Saeran. You should be proud of yourself too.”

Saeran sighed and pulled the man closer. Yoosung was sure now, he had definitely grown, he was almost eye to eye with Saeran, if he hadn’t been wearing those biker boots, he might even be taller than the red head now. They embraced and kissed. Flashes exploded around them, but they were oblivious.