#I hope you don't mind me continuing this! I needed more of them being bros in my life 🥺

[howthesleeplesswander]

@tidaltow continued from here bc Liam's curiosity cannot be satisfied XD

The crease in Liam's brow furrowed deeper—and it had nothing to do with the calculus homework taking up most of his side of the lunch table. "Ugh, you're right. That's so much weirder knowing that they're all real. God or not, I don't wanna see that." To be fair, it wasn't like the Greek gods were known for their modesty. But still, how did naked statues like that even happen?

Was leaving off the clothing all the sculptor's idea, like some creepy way of trying to prove their obsession devotion? Or did Zeus interrupt them partway through a masterpiece like, 'No, no—how dare you put clothes on me'? Again, he wasn't sure which option weirded him out more.

Not that he had time to ponder before it was his turn to nearly choke. "Please don't give him any reason to smite me." With the supernatural insanity constantly cranked up to eleven in Beacon Hills, his odds of surviving to graduation were already touch-and-go. Then again, if Percy's very vocal displeasure with the gods hadn't gotten him electrocuted yet, some random kid from the town that was too whacked out for the gods to touch with a ten-thousand-foot pole was probably safe.

Which meant that, after studying the card presented across the table, he barely spared a thought before delivering a verdict. Guess he'd give Zeus reason all by himself. "Really? A stuffy suit? I would've pictured Zeus as more of the 'frat boy' kind of guy. Ya' know: prime toga real estate." Sure, it made sense for the king of the gods to have puffed-up CEO vibes, but what about all the trouble that he was responsible for in plenty of Grecian myths?

"Dionysus doesn't surprise me, though. At least he's not like Coach and can't decide which awful type of gym teacher to be." Though, if he could actually drink like Coach, that might be a different story. "How did he of all people end up as one of the heads of Camp Half-Blood again?"

[appleblueberry-pie]

When Gojo asks why we won’t just be with him we tell him that he isn’t worth it 😔🫰

He isn’t worth the body or the history… I know a lot of people like to brag about having exes and body’s but that shit is so embarrassing to me 😭 like I feel like a whore because a boy kissed me in like middle school and he was a BOY. Boys are so gross omg-anyway-

Like why would I date you if we’re gonna break up? Get out of my face bro 😔

"....Is that what you became friends with me for? I'm not interested in dating you, Gojo."

Gojo never knew you were the type to reject people like him. He was everything you wanted in a man and he knew it. Money, extroverted, very fine, strong, tall, sexy, intelligent, all of the above. So....why did you say no to his confession? I repeat, HE CONFESSED and you rejected HIM. He couldn't help but accidentally voice his thoughts.

He leans back in surprised and scrunches his eyebrows at your response. "What?" You raise your eyebrows at his answer and continued eating the food he bought you at this expensive cafe that you now loved. ".....What? Never been rejected before?" You laughed at his response and kept eating. He wasn't gonna pressure you into dog shit, he could kiss ass. You did like his qualities. But with how the dating pool is currently, you wouldn't be surprised if he had three bitches lighting his phone up currently. You had zero hope in all men unless they don't use their phones at all and instead told you the worst jokes on planet in hopes of swooning you.

You would rather not date him. He was nice eye candy though. He gains his composure back and leans on the table. "Yeah, I have been, but I felt like we were both interested in each other, you know...?" You nod, understanding what he meant. "Yeah....sorry if it seemed like I was leading you on." He shakes his head, still incredibly butt hurt inside. "No, it's not your fault."

Why did you say no? He wants to ask desperately. Too many questions filled his mind at the possibilities. Were you lesbian and he was too stupid to realize? Was he not your type at all whatsoever? Was he too stuck up like Suguru said? He doesn't know. "Is it okay if I ask what made you say no?"

You shrug and look up in thought. "Well, it's not you, it's just....too much is happening right now. And I mean with everyone. Too many people are love-bombing each other, there's no genuine connection ever, then there's 'situationships', and a looot of people my age don't have patience for long-term relationships and it's just....i feel like- ugh i guess I'll say it. But I feel like you're the perfect person to have all of those qualities. You're very attractive, Satoru, so....I don't know if I'm ready to trust you enough not to put those labels on your head. It's dumb, but yeah. And I do too much with relationships. I put too much time and energy into the person I'm with, and i hate doing that knowing that there are so many people who've just neglected my needs in return. Basically, I love trauma."

Satoru watched you the entire time you spoke, so you found it hard to continue speaking, but you managed to push through. "Fuck them." You roll your eyes and he takes one of your fries, eating them. "I'm serious. I can give you everything you want and need y/n. I wouldn't ask you out if I didn't have a major attraction and connection to you."

You didn't look impressed, but he was determined. "I agree with you. All of the girls I tried to date just wanted me for sex. I know you would treat me better than that. And I would be willing to give you the love and respect you deserve. I get....I don't want to say this, but I get really happy at the thought of being able to provide for you. All I want is you. And it's okay if you don't want me now."

He takes a piece of your cake and eats it without your permission. "I'm willing to wait."

I'm sorry I took forever with this omg. This is the start of many. I might do like 6 more tomorrow. I need sleep.

[moth--blood]

Obey Me × MC with chronic migraines

[ ft. the 7 brothers (seperate), Diavolo, Barbatos ]

cws: fluff mostly, brief nsfw ref with Asmo

Lucifer

the most consistent of the brothers with getting your meds and not panicking, more importantly

he tends to get small headaches from overworking, so he offers his meatheads to make you feel better if you don't have any practical ones ("no, im not letting you chug a gallon of chocolate milk thats not going to help. ..what do you MEAN thats worked before???")

insists on you laying down and resting in his room until you feel better. doesn't matter how often it is, he always makes you stop whatever you're doing to go rest

will play his softer records while you sleep in hopes it'll help the migraine go away faster

Mammon

panics, first and foremost.

are you broken? dying? humans are fragile MC don't laugh at him he's WORRIED

especially worried if you describe the pain as stabbing. for a second he genuinely thinks you're being stabbed by some Witch's voodoo doll of you. that concern never fully leaves

his worry turns to pampering when he's realized you're not, in fact, being stabbed through a doll, and now he's full of questions

will suggest anything and everything he can think of to help you, from the lights to kisses. doesn't matter he WILL try it

Levi

in awe you came to him about being in pain before anything else

awkwardly offers to let you sleep in his tub, and to get you meds or something else you might ask for

if the lights in Henry's tank bother you he'll put blankets over the tub so you don't have to look at them so directly

if physical contact helps and you ask him to lay with you he will lose his fucking mind. he'll do it but he'll be stiff as shit for several minutes before finally relaxing

offers to read his/your favorite manga to you if the noise wont be a bother

surprisingly really fucking clingy when you're so reliant on him. it makes him feel special

will play the lofi or quiet anime music that helps him sleep if the noise won't bother you. he figures if it helps him sleep it might help you not be in pain :)

Satan

also in awe you chose to come to him with this, especially if it's NB!Satan. he takes less time to process than Levi though

makes a big show of tucking you into his bed to rest, offers to get you tea and to read to you if the noise isn't an issue

if lights are a trigger dont even worry about it his room is dark as fuck!

he pampers you a bit less than Mammon does, but he still insists on getting you things and doing stuff for you.

takes very quick notice of your triggers, and does his best to help you avoid them!

zero hesitation will yell at the others for possibly accidentally causing another attack he gets protective quick.

Asmo

immediate pampering he doesn't need to be told twice

"oh, you don't feel good? here let me take care of EVERYTHING today don't even worry about it"

if scents are a trigger and his soaps or perfumes/colognes get a migraine going he will not stop apologizing. he feels AWFUL

dims all his lights and does his best to neutralize all the smells in his room, insisting you stay and let him take care of you

will also try everything he can think of, or at least suggest it

he's not the biggest fan of the idea of doing stuff to you while you're in pain but if that helps you he'll try it. but you gotta tell him the second it starts getting worse because the pampering will continue exactly where it left off

Beel

he's so worried :(

also lowkey thinks you're dying so he's extra careful with you.

will do anything you ask bro is at your beck and call when you don't feel good

akin to everyone else he'll bring up anything he can think of that might help

more than willing to cuddle you into feeling better if you ask.

gets Lucifer to bring you meds because he doesn't wanna leave you alone, and if you're not the biggest fan of taking them he'll stare at you with the biggest puppy eyes until you do

Belphie

pulls you upstairs to the attic and insists on you sleeping it off, even if that doesn't always work

a big cuddler so he doesn't mind holding you if physical contact helps

goes and gets you medicine and a drink without even being asked, and if you question or tease him about it he'll just mutter something about wanting to sleep in peace without you complaining about your head

he's just worried don't let him fool you again

very observant with your triggers and when you're around bright lights or loud noises, for example, too long he'll pull you aside and quietly ask if you're still feeling okay. if it's a yes he'll pretend he never asked and if it's a no, he'll pull you back to the attic pft

Diavolo

also thinks you're dying at first. i mean, for all he knew you were! Solomon hardly counts as human so imagine his absolute panic when his first actual human starts complaining of excessive brain pain. several times.

after you've been around a while though, he's super calm about it

words cannot express how quickly he goes "oh okay! here, drugs"

does keep your medicine on him basically constantly, just in case!

takes you to his room or to an unused room in RAD so you can rest for a little bit, and if it's bad enough at RAD he'll just fucking leave to take you home lmao

doesn't fully understand still, but he's doing his best! it's the thought that counts even if he's unknowingly making it just a little worse </3

Barbatos

also keeps your medicine on his person after a while.

memorizes your list of triggers and things that help as soon as he realizes you get migraines at all. he uses his power to find when you mention said lists and if you ask, he'll just smile and tell you not to worry about it

also tends to pull you aside when you're around your triggers for a while to make sure you're alright. regardless of answer he reminds you he has your meds if you need them

if warm drinks or comfort foods help, he figures out how to make them and when pretty fast. he likes being efficient at getting your pain to go away as soon as possible

[detshin]

uhm, how exactly will gosho develop the cousin thing in the manga.

I mean, I wouldn't know, honestly. What goes on in the mind of that man only he knows (and sometimes I doubt even that).

My opinion under the read more...

Personally, I've already stated many times that it's a trope I've liked and headcanoned for a long while now, and it's not like it's COMPLETELY out of the blue. The whole "they look the same" is a big factor, there have been references to them having some sort of "ancestor" in common, the Toichi and Yusaku tease was already there in the childhood case of Shinichi (where Toichi appeared and called Shinichi big bro btw 👀) and there was a time long ago that Gosho said something about it in an interview and that it was going to be talked about.

Anyway, point is, I could see this going in different ways. I would LOVE to see this being explored and dealt with nicely and seriously, but my hopes for that are low. He'll either just have it mentioned and never more explored or talked about (like with akemi and akai), or maybe in the mk manga now to talk about Toichi, I don't know?

Because honestly, I feel like people are getting hung up on the cousins thing and are forgetting about the confirmation of what we all have been fearing and it's that Toichi is indeed alive and both of Kaito's parents suck ass. And what scares me is the possibility of it being comedic or Kaito being okay with it or something when he deserves to have that be explored. He became a criminal because of it! And his parents know and aren't doing ANYTHING!

I've said this before, MK is not as shits and giggles as it seems. Story is pretty darn dark if you think about it. Kaito is one of if not THE most solitary (lonely) character of the dcmk universe. He is not as the fandom tends to represent him sometimes. That's not Kaito. The over the top, flirty, pompous one is Kid. It's a mask. A facade. Kaito is not like that, he is just a teen who is struggling to make real connections with people and who is terrified of being found out as a criminal and cannot for the life of him let people IN because they'll see right through him and whose "dead" dad taught him NOT TO SHOW HIS EMOTIONS.

Kaito NEEDS some support. Jii alone is not enough. His own parents have lied to him his entire life and he's constantly alone, grieving for something that is not real. He has Aoko, but he CAN'T let her in completely for obvious reasons. Hakuba's there, but same thing. And I'm sorry but Akako I don't really think counts either, he actively seems not to really even like her or whatever...

MY POINT IS. If Kaito can get some new family members that could support him... Why refuse it, no? I'm not talking about Yusaku because he's also been keeping him in the dark and all and hasn't really seemed to do anything about it. But Yukiko (yes I'm choosing to believe she's also oblivious to Kaito being put in that situation) and Shinichi? Oh, those two could do wonders for someone like Kaito, in my opinion. Because Yukiko is Yukiko (she was born to be the cool aunt), and Shinichi is... Well... Shinichi. He could understand Kaito and actively show him support and help. They COULD be amazing as family.

Now it's all just a matter of... Does Gosho WANT to go that deep into this? Or is he going to continue to disregard Kaito's suffering and not give him anyone to lean on?

Anyway, cousins Kaito and Shinichi rule!

[violetsiren90]

All I Haven't Said | Namjoon/Reader

💜 Chapter 3: Part 2 💜

Table of Contents: Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3 (part 1), Chapter 3 (part 2)

Pairing: idol!Namjoon/f!Reader

Genre: Soulmate AU; idol AU; chapter fic; strangers to lovers; a bit of idiots to lovers, tbh; slow burn; eventual romance; eventual smut; angst (life is messy & hearts are complex); OT7 featured

Summary: You found your soulmate - or rather, he found you. Turns out he's an idol of much acclaim who needs you for very real and unglamorous reasons. What could become of two hearts so used to giving of themselves when they are confronted with needing each other?

Chapter Word Count: ~7k

Chapter Warnings: This fic is 18+, as is all my work and my page as a whole; depictions of cancer and its treatment; secondhand embarrassment; awkward situations; soulmate skinship; loss of consciousness; dudes dude-broing a bit lol; mentions of minor character death (in past); cursing; chemo therapy and its symptoms; nausea and vomiting; characters eat meals; Reader is starting to grapple with some difficult feelings; Hybe kinda sorta depicted as being collective assholes in responding to this situation (gonna be a theme, guys)

Author's Note: Here comes part two! I know this is months coming (again), but I've finally found my stride with writing and work. I had this mostly done, and then redid some parts and finished editing, and well...I just hope you all enjoy it! My hope is to post part three in two weeks - I really want to get into a groove with plot progression here!

There is a lot of content in this chapter about medical procedures and treatment. I tried my best to represent these as accurately as possible with what information I could acquire, but if there are any misrepresentations, great or small, please don't hesitate to let me know!

Thank you again to all who have stuck with this story! I continue to be blown away by how much love you have all showered upon it, and I'm so excited to walk the path I intend for these two and have you all along for the ride!!

P.S. If you want to join the tag list, drop me a comment or an ask!

P.P.S. If no one has told you yet today, you're loved and worthy of love! 🧜‍♀️💜

"Out of sheer taciturnity the ceiling listens To the fall of ancient leafless rain, To feathers, to whatever the night imprisoned." ~Pablo Neruda

Chapter 3: My Windows Ache

Namjoon's labs had come back with even more promising numbers. A radiology scan had shown no shrinkage in his tumors, but the doctors commented that these were early days, and that the effects of the bond might even be keeping them from inflaming due to the chemo. You had watched him, smiling as the doctor reviewed the result, and couldn't help but feel a sense of pride. Your soulmate was on the road to recovery. 

     Nurse Cha quickly checked both of you over before initiating another skinship session.

     "I saw you out on the grounds earlier, and for the first time in weeks," she said, shooting Namjoon an approving grin. "Keep that up. He needs sunlight and fresh air," she remarked to you, flustering you even as you nodded in agreement.

     Why was she telling you that? Were you his keeper?

     Actually, you supposed, in fact, you were.

     You peeked back up at him and found him regarding you with a small, amused smile, which disconcerted you further. You shook your head, shooting him an eye-roll as you made your way into the bathroom to disrobe.

     After your first few experiences with skinship, you had asked Matt to acquire you some sporty, conservative sports bra and boy-short sets, and you slipped into one, pulling a hospital gown over it. After the way your conversation with Hyung-seo had unfolded you were glad to have them - the practical underwear felt far less intimate and flirty than your typical bras and panties, giving you much more peace of mind. 

     As you left the bathroom and made your way back to Namjoon's half of the suite, you noticed him sitting on top of the covers, long legs stretched out in front of him, in nothing but a black tee and blue boxers. He had a drip attached to a tube that ran under his shirt. When Nurse Cha glanced up from her touchscreen tablet to see you approaching, she waved her hand for you to come around to the other side of the bed, which had been adjusted to accommodate Namjoon's upright position.

     "We’re going to try this sitting up today," she explained as she typed. "He's on a chemo drip right now, and the doctor wants to see if the bond will help ease the nausea and some of the other side effects. I heard you just had a nice lunch, so it would be wonderful if Namjoon could hang onto his."

     She shot him a rueful smirk and he let out a chuckle. You smiled in turn and nodded as you slipped off your hospital gown and draped it over the end of the bed. You glanced up at Namjoon who had cast his eyes down at his hands, folded in his lap. The huge apparatus was lower than usual, so you slipped rather easily into it and against Namjoon's side. He raised an arm to drape over your shoulders and you settled against him, pressing your bare leg against his. It was comical how much shorter yours were, but you could only think of that for a fraction of a second as every other thought in your mind melted at the feeling of the man beside you.

     Butter. Warm, melted butter. It was as if every single muscle group in your body had suddenly released every bit of tension it had been holding. So many sensations at once, but this was the one you felt like leaning into at the moment. You felt like collapsing against him.

He sighed deeply through his nose. Yeah, you felt that on a spiritual level. Mmh. 

     Your melty, bond-induced reverie was broken, however, by a dissatisfied noise from Nurse Cha as she stepped toward the bed. You looked up to find her expression matched her tone. 

     "You're not really getting much contact," she said, scanning her eyes over everywhere you touched...and didn't. 

     You raised your arms slightly and a bit uselessly. You felt Namjoon lean forward.

     "Should I...like..." you looked to her for direction, but she was already in motion. 

     She grabbed your arm, guiding you off the bed and motioned for Namjoon to scoot back to the middle. She said something to Namjoon in Korean and suddenly he was tugging his shirt over his head. You felt your cheeks getting hot. Social norms had not prepared you for this amount of casual nudity. You stood there, eyes glued to Nurse Cha, hugging your arms over your middle and hoping that Namjoon was playing his usual blessed game of "look anywhere but soulmate". The nurse took your arm again and guided you back toward your previous perch.

     "Sit between his legs and lean back against his chest," she instructed, nudging you to join him.

You looked up at Namjoon. His face looked like you felt. And then it was just too much. You were standing in a hospital in South Korea in your underwear being asked to sit in a practically naked celebrity's lap so that he wouldn't die.

     You busted out laughing.

     Nurse Cha jumped, surprise clear in her features as she regarded you. 

     "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" You gasped, bending over to support yourself against the bed as you continued to chuckle, "This is just..."

     You snorted. Mortified but still attempting to swallow your giggles you clapped a hand over your mouth and looked up at Namjoon whose dimples were out and whose shoulders were shaking with his own silent amusement. Nurse Cha's lips curved up a bit to one side, but her narrowed eyes spoke of far less hilarity felt.

     "Here's the thing," you said, turning to the nurse while still biting back your laughter, "Namjoon is spoken for, and...well...I have a pretty nice ass."

     The nurse's eyes widened.

     You were probably being really impolite. That would have been borderline in the States. You weren't sure about here, but you felt like that might have broken some unspoken rules. Or, maybe spoken ones because there were a lot of formalities, you were learning. But you had reached your limit with all this. The awkwardness levels were at maximum, and you were gonna cope the only way you knew how - with humor.

     When you hazarded a look at your soulmate, he had drawn his knees up, grabbing them with his hands, his head dropped between them and his shoulders shaking as he badly repressed laughter of his own. You could see those dimples again. They were even deeper than before.

     "We need to get maximum skin-to-skin contact during these sessions," Nurse Cha insisted indignantly, clearly a bit flustered. 

     "I know, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," you offered her a contrite smile as you rocked back on your feet. 

     "Ah!" Namjoon drew your attention as he pointed behind you. "Throw me that pillow?" 

     You grabbed the little green cushion from the corner of the couch and tossed it to him. He lowered his legs and placed it over his lap.

     "How's that?" he asked with a closed-lip smirk.

     You gave him a thumbs up and clambered back onto the bed to situate yourself between his legs. You looked back over at Nurse Cha. 

     "Better?" 

     She raised a brow as she handed you a blanket. You thanked her quietly and cleared your throat as you fanned it out over your legs and Namjoon's, tucking it up to your waist. The nurse checked Namjoon's vitals and said that she would return in an hour to take him off the drip.

     You sank back tentatively against your soulmate's chest, careful to avoid the little port below his sternum. There it was again. Butter.

     Somewhere above and behind you, Namjoon chuckled. You smiled knowingly.

     "What?" you asked indignantly.

     "Did you see her face when you said that?"

     You shrugged against him.

     "Hey, it's true!" you insisted.

     "Sorry if this is uncomfortable for you," he murmured.

     You could hear that he was still smiling, but he sounded serious all the same. You let your head fall back.

     "Honestly, I felt bad for you," you huffed in another laugh before sobering. "And, thank you," you turned, casting your eyes up over your shoulder, "For always being so respectful. It's made this a lot easier."

     "Oh," Namjoon responded softly, "Of course." 

     You looked at his arms resting at his sides and thought of what Nurse Cha had said. You slowly picked up his hands in yours, raising them slightly.

     "May I put them around me? For more contact," you asked.

     You asked it boldly, but you felt shy. You wanted the chemo to work. You wanted it to stop hurting him while it did. When Namjoon let out a low hum of assent you drew his forearms around your waist and laid your own over them.

     Your eyes slipped shut. So euphoric but it always made you feel like sleeping. You weren't going to give into the urge, though, not just yet. There were conversations to be had.

     "Tell me about Hyung-seo," you prompted softly, shifting against him to get comfortable. 

     He was quiet for a moment.

     "Well," he responded slowly, "what do you want to know?"

     "How did you meet her?"

     He went quiet again. Then he sighed a small sigh. You wondered what that little breath carried.

     "She debuted in 2019. A buddy of mine - Seo Jungkwon, he goes by Tiger JK in the industry -  had signed her to his agency. Bangtan was just taking off, things were blowing up. I actually collaborated with him which is when I met her."

     He silenced for a moment.

     "We had a lot in common - how we approached life and music."

     "Had?" you asked, gently.

     He heaved another sigh. 

     "The last few years have been really tough on her. I mean, she hasn't had an easy life to begin with, but..."

     He paused, as if deciding whether or not to utter the words he wanted to say next.

     "Anyway," he redirected himself, and you wondered what thought he had dismissed, "Preparing for a tour is grueling, and this is her first one. I think the stress is really getting her."

     You hummed in acknowledgement. You recognized it in his voice - you should after all, as the same sound had echoed so often in your own - the hollow clemency of lying to yourself on someone else's behalf. 

     "Well," you offered, "She's lucky to have you supporting her, especially when you're going through such a difficult time yourself."

     Namjoon scoffed.

     "I mean, yeah, I'm sick, but...I don't know. In a lot of ways my life has been a lot easier these days. A lot simpler."

     "Really? In what way?"

     He huffed out a wry laugh.

     "I have so much time to just do whatever. Read, write...I've been learning a couple of languages. I get to do v-lives with ARMY pretty regularly, as the company allows - Jungkook went kind of crazy with it before enlistment so we have to go through them for access now."

     You had no idea what a v-live was, but from what little you had seen of Jungkook, you could imagine it took very little for him to get up to a significant amount of shenanigans. You smirked.

     "Did you have so little time for those things before?" you queried.

     "No! No way. It was like running non-stop for ten years. During my time in the military, I got a bit of a break and a change, but then I got sick and had to be discharged early, so...well, I didn't even get to experience that like I should have."

     You felt your hands tighten in response around his forearms. His life hadn't been cake-walk either, that was clear. You wondered if he knew that, if he acknowledged it.

     "Well, I'm glad you have more time for those things. You should keep as much time for them as you can, even when you're better."

     He paused for a moment before whispering agreement into your hair. You felt it even though he didn't say it, the caveat - if he got better. He would. You'd never make him a promise you couldn't guarantee, but you could make one to yourself. So you did.

     For the rest of the session you talked about Bangtan, and the recent history of the group's situation.

     You learned about conscription and that it applied to idols as well. You learned the members had decided to enlist pretty much around the same time so that they could reunite to tour again after being discharged. Namjoon had been released ahead of schedule when he had fallen ill, and at this point most of the members had followed, save Yoongi who was set to be discharged the following week. He fondly reported that they were all anxious to meet you, and that Jungkook and Jimin hadn't stopped pestering him with all manner of questions in your regard since their visit the previous day.

     Every time you had heard him speak about his members, the deep brotherly affection that permeated his words was incredibly evident. 

You asked him to tell you about each one, and he did.

     You blinked your eyes open as you felt Namjoon shift you in his arms. You slowly pulled yourself forward, struggling to focus.

     "I...I'm sorry," you murmured, "I fell asleep on you again." 

     Namjoon chuckled and assured you it was quite alright. As you wearily slipped off the mattress to stand, you suddenly felt the room tilt and your knees buckle. Namjoon's reflexes were quick enough to catch you in his arms. He stood to pull you up and hold you against him.

     "You okay?" he asked in concern.

     "I...I got dizzy..."

     You attempted to put your weight into your legs, but failed, sagging weakly against his broad frame.

     Nurse Cha was already in motion.

     "Help her to the bed," she ordered, striding across the room. 

     Namjoon wasted no time in scooping you up in a bridal carry to follow her. You gasped despite yourself, the sudden movement and his strength equally surprising. But every thought was fleeting as you found yourself struggling to maintain a grip on consciousness.

     You felt Namjoon lay you gently on the bed as cold, sticky monitors were pressed to your skin; heard him ask the nurse what was the matter, his voice tinged with anxiety. 

You heard him say your name.

     And then you heard nothing.

     You groaned as you came to. Your throat felt like the Sahara and your head was pounding. Pushing yourself to sit up, you became aware of the sound of voices on the other side of the curtain. Carefully drawing your legs to the edge of the bed, you clutched your IV stand as you struggled to your feet.

     Pulling back the hanging divider, you were surprised to see Matt occupying the little couch, a cup of coffee on the low table in front of him. Namjoon sat in the opposing chair, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees in rapt attention as the older man spoke. It was dark out.

     "Matt," you croaked, shuffling forward.

     Namjoon's head whipped around at the sound of your voice and he sprang up, just a moment faster than his guest, striding over to take you by the arm. You faltered just a moment in your steps as his hand cradled your elbow and you felt it - his touch and what it did to you. You wanted to curl into him. You wanted him to hold you.

You gently tugged your arm away.

     "You're awake - let me call the nurse," he said, almost to himself as he moved to press the red call button. 

     You sank down beside Matt.

     "What time is it?" you asked in a husky murmur. Your friend checked his watch.

     "1:33am."

     You frowned, blinking blearily.

     "What the heck are you doing here at the hour?"

     "Well!" Matt laughed before taking a sip of his coffee, "It's nice to see you too."

     "You know what I mean..." you grumbled, rubbing your eyes.

     "He called me," he said, gesturing with his raised mug toward Namjoon, who had returned to the armchair. "Said you'd had a fainting spell."

     Your eyes followed his motion to your soulmate, who was already scanning his over you, brow furrowed and full lips pursed pensively.

     "How are you feeling?" Namjoon asked.

     You huffed out a mirthless chuckle.

     "Like I got hit by a freight train."

     The worry lines on his brow deepened.

     "Hey, look..." you held up a hand to wave it weakly between both men as they regarded you in apparent concern. "I'm probably just adjusting to the bond or something. Cancer isn't contagious, you know," you ribbed, shooting a tiny smirk at Namjoon who attempted to return the expression though the smile didn't reach his eyes.

     The night shift nurse and an aid entered the room to assess you. Namjoon asked to speak with a doctor, and was told that Dr. Na would be checking in first thing in the morning. The nurse had very little else to report other than that your blood work had been sent to the lab and that they would be able to determine more once your results were available. He informed Matt that some charts would likely be available in twenty-four hours, but that your CMP could take up to three days. The aid urged you to try to get some more rest. Before departing, the nurse removed your spent sodium chloride drip and said that a meal would be sent up which you were advised to eat if possible, but to be sure to report any signs of food-rejection should they appear.

     Namjoon stood and sighed, rubbing the back of his neck as he gazed at your little portion of the suit.

     "They want you to rest, but how the hell are you supposed to sleep with me over here snoring? It's keeping you up, right?"

     You smirked.

     "Well, most of my rest over the last couple of days has been due to a lack of consciousness, but I do have to admit that you woke me up a couple of times last night."

    Namjoon groaned discomfitedly.

     "It really isn't a big deal!" you reassured him, "I'm a pretty sound sleeper."

     "And still I woke you up."

     "Don't worry about it..."

     "It's not just that, though," he insisted, hands in the pockets of his sweats and head cocked to one side as he continued to consider the small space across from his. "You don't even have a window. If you want privacy, you have to sit behind that curtain in the tiny bed -- I hate it. I've hated it since they were first preparing for you to arrive. I'll make some calls tomorrow. You need your own room," he stated decidedly, returning to the chair across from you.

He fished his phone out of his pocket and leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees as he fired off a message.

     Namjoon did have a point, it was a pretty meager space you currently occupied. But they must have had a reason, you thought, for wanting you to share a room with him. And you didn't want to cause any kind of fuss in the name of personal convenience that might detract from his treatment or recovery. 

     "Namjoon, it's fine..."

     He looked up at you, his brown eyes assured and determined.

     "Just let me handle it. I've got you."

     A sudden warmth spread through your chest like the rising sun on the frost of your anxieties, his gaze melting away the familiar worry of burdensomeness. You looked away shyly.

     "Good man," Matt said to him with a nod, and they shared a look as your soulmate nodded in return that seemed to be one of mutual masculine respect. You wanted to roll your eyes a little bit. You also felt pretty damn grateful.

     Matt stood to leave, pressing a kiss on your temple and promised that he'd return in the morning. He paused to shake Namjoon's hand.

     "If there are any further developments, don't hesitate to call me," he said, to which the younger man nodded in agreement.

     "Or I can call you!" you rasped after him as he raised his hand in one last gesture of farewell while shutting the door.

     You huffed.

     "Smart guy," Namjoon remarked, sitting back down in his chair. "You know he's read Toegye exhaustively?"

     You raised a brow at him, your lips quirking with a wry grin.

     "Two peas in a pod. He's probably going to be coming around here nonstop until he leaves just so you two can gab in genius."

     Namjoon smiled and touched his fingers absently to his jaw, his eyes trained on the linoleum.

     "Are you bothered that I called him?" he asked abruptly, glancing up at you.

     "What? No, of course not," you reassured him with a shake of your head. "I just..." You rolled your eyes and smirked. "I'm not used to sitting around while boys decide what's best for me."

     "Aaahhh," Namjoon responded with a nod, interlacing his fingers, "Well, you've been looking out for me since you walked through that door back there, and honestly, I could get used to that..." he leaned forward a bit, "But only if I get to return the favor. You said we don't owe each other, but that doesn't mean you get to be the only one doing the giving."

     You stared at him. The only one to do the giving. The words jarred something loose inside you. You swallowed the strange feeling that threatened to well into your throat.

     Before you could respond, an aid entered with your meal. A tray loaded with dakjuk, rice, and several banchan was placed before you. It smelled fantastic, and you actually felt you could eat. You moved to take the tray to your side of the suite but Namjoon stopped you.

"Hey, wait. I'm hungry. I'll eat with you."

He crossed to the other side of the room to pick up the telephone.

"Go ahead," he said with nod of his head a little grin, "Don't wait on me."

     He didn't have to twist your arm. The chicken porridge was steaming and savory, warming you up within just a few bites. A similar tray soon arrived for Namjoon, and you found it did feel far nicer to eat with someone than alone.

     Between bites he asked you about Matt.

     "He's my dad's best friend. When he died - my dad - Matt and his wife Rebecca helped to take care of us for a while. They've been really good to my family."

     Namjoon's face sombered.

     "I'm sorry about your father."

     You smiled softly at him.

     "It was a long time ago, when I was ten. He was a firefighter."

     He nodded quietly, giving you the opening to continue. You decided to take it.

     "A fire broke out at a high-security prison. The situation got really bad with a lot of people still inside - prisoners. They told the team to stop attempting rescues, that it wasn't worth it, for people like that. But my dad kept going. Alone. He saved seventeen more lives before...well, he couldn't make it out."

     When you looked up at Namjoon again his eyes were locked on you, his chopsticks resting idly in his hand.

     "Wow," he murmured after a pause. "And you were ten years old? That must have been so hard."

     You dragged your spoon through your dakjuk.

     "It was. But managing things after he was gone...that was harder, I think."

     Namjoon's brow knit in question but he didn't press you further. For the second time that night, you were grateful. Death was easy to explain, other things were much more difficult.

     You finished the rest of your meal chatting about Matt, Neo-Confucianism, and unequivocal humanism between mouthfuls of rice and porridge.

      The next day, you were moved into your new suite a few doors down. Namjoon had received no resistance from the hospital in procuring you the space, as apparently Hybe's representatives had been the ones to originate the request that you be at the idol's immediate disposal.

     Your room mirrored the setup of your soulmate's, being on the same floor but across the hall, and Kang Dae had dropped in with a catalog stating that you could select whatever you wished to make the space more comfortable. You had circled a few things and he had departed to procure them. Matt had brought the bulk of your luggage, which meant a good portion of books, your art supplies, and finally more clothes which you would blessedly now have no worries of mixing up with Namjoon's. You changed into jeans and a comfy Nirvana graphic tee.

     You were busy unpacking when a knock came at your door. You called for the person to come in while you continued to stack books onto a small set of shelves. The doctor had cautioned you and Namjoon against further skinship sessions until your blood work had come back, so you were anxious for the results, not wanting him to go through another bout of chemo without the aid of the bond. 

When you glanced up expectantly, however, you found your curiosity would have to wait - at least, concerning your charts - as in the entry stood none other than Kim Hyung-seo.

     She lingered in the entryway at the mouth of the space, her arms wrapped around her middle. She looked much more casual today in a pair of big baggy camouflage cargo pants, a tight black crop top, and chunky white sneakers. Her hair was pulled up into a bun, and she had black mask pulled under her chin. She was bare-faced, save for two small red dots under her right eye.

     You stood from your crouched position, trying your best to keep the surprise from your face.

     "Hi," you greeted her with a small smile, which she returned remorsefully, still hugging herself as she glanced around the room. "Would you like to sit down?" you offered, motioning to the furniture beside you. 

     She nodded, crossing over to take a seat in the little arm chair. You moved to sit across from her. Your first instinct was to offer her something to drink, only to realize you were in a hospital room with no way to deliver, at which you both laughed awkwardly. After a moment of tense silence, she looked up at you, gnawing her bottom lip.

     “I owe you an apology," she sighed. 

You gave her an encouraging smile.

     "Fuck..." she dropped her head in her hands, and you waited for her to collect herself. Finally, she raises her eyes to yours, interlacing her fingers with their long white nails in her lap. 

     "What I did...what I said yesterday...I was cunt. I'm sorry." 

     You let out a little laugh at her choice of words.

     "Well, I do accept your apology...but, don't be too hard on yourself. It was a really bizarre and unprecedented situation for all of us. I'm glad we're moving forward, and in a better direction."

You smiled again at her reassuringly.

     She nodded, her lips pursed and quivering slightly. You could tell she was blinking back tears.

     "Me and Joon...we'd only been engaged for a few weeks before we found out...you know, that he had a match. That it could be his only option to live - bonding. With you. It's just all really fucking scary."

     You nodded sympathetically. She released another sigh as she continued.

     "He had to decide so fast, they pushed him to just make this huge life commitment as fast as they fucking could and now..." She raised her arms, looking around the room in resign, "Here we are. And we have to figure everything out, and I'm about to leave and..."

     "I'm sorry," you murmured sympathetically.

She looked down into her lap, worry still twisting her features.

You wondered why she was leaving, now of all times - when things were the way they were. But that wasn't for you to judge.

"You know," you offered hopefully, "At least he's on the mend. At least you know he'll have someone to look after him."

     She hummed. You wondered if it was an agreement as her eyes flitted over your face searchingly. Anxiety from the previous day's encounter began to seep into your chest as you considered if you had chosen your words poorly. You had said what would have comforted you in under the same circumstances. But maybe you were different - too different.

You softened your heart, determined to reserve judgement. Life had given Hyung-seo had her own shoes, and you would do everything you could to understand what it was like to walk in them.

     "Can I add you on KakaoTalk?" you asked, realizing you were still clutching a book, and setting it onto the low table to pull your phone from your pocket.

     She was chewing on her lip again when you looked up. She stared down at the hardback. 

     "You read a lot, huh?" she asked, though it didn't sound like a question.

     "I do," you answered slowly, wondering where her train of thought was headed.

"All that stuff you said yesterday, you seem, like really in tune with people. And smart. You guys are, like, the same."

She pressed the words out in a strained voice. She looked so small and so sad. Your heart sank for her.

"Namjoon actually said that very thing about you yesterday."

She glanced up at you in surprise and confusion. You smiled.

"He said that when you met he was struck with how much you shared in how you saw the world, and how you approached music."

She regarded you silently as you continued.

"And that's your life right, your great love? Music? What a wonderful thing, to base your life with a partner in a love you share."

She nodded slowly, her eyes watering.

"Thank you," she finally whispered, and you nodded in understanding.

You reached out to take her hand and she squeezed yours. After a few moments of silence, she rose and wiped her eyes.

     "I'm leaving tomorrow and I want to see Joon again before I go," she explained. 

     You nodded.

     "Thank you for coming to talk to me and for sharing about how this has been for you. I really appreciate it."    

     She smiled - perhaps genuinely for the first time since you met. It was a lovely smile.

     You sighed as she left. It wasn't much, but it was progress. Maybe she would let you in. Maybe it wouldn't be so hard after all.

     When several hours had passed with no updates on your lab results, you decided to take a walk down the hall to see how your soulmate was faring. You knocked on his door, but received no answer. 

     "Namjoon!" you called softly with another rap of your knuckles, but were still met with silence.

     Just when you were about to turn and go, the door creaked inward on its hinges, slipping open to reveal your soulmate's tired face.

     "I just came to see how you were doing...are you okay?." 

     You followed him as he slumped back into the suite, but before he could even reach his bed he turned and pushed past you to hurry into the bathroom. It caught you a little off-guard and you stumbled, catching yourself on the opposing wall, but quickly realized the reason for his urgency when sounds of retching followed.

     The bathroom door was cracked open and you could see him hunched over the toilet, breathing heavily as his body wracked with each attempt to expel the contents of his stomach. You hesitated a moment, then pushed the door in slowly, coming to kneel beside him and gingerly place a hand on his back.

     He raised his head, eyes fluttering when you touched him. You gently pulled your palm up and down his spine, feeling the warm surge of the bond even through his shirt. He reached for a piece of toilet paper to wipe his mouth.

     "You don't have to do that..." he murmured, resting his forehead on his arm propped on the porcelain rim.

     "I know," you answered quietly, continuing to slowly rub his back. "Can I put my hand under your shirt?"

     "You're not supposed to be touching me until we know what's going on with you." 

     You slipped your other hand out to curl your fingers around his exposed bicep below the sleeve of his tee. He sighed, shoulders sagging as the comfort and warmth of the contact soothed his aching body.

     "Can I?" you softly persisted, and he nodded his head where it laid against his forearm.

     Slipping your hand beneath the baggy cotton you ran your fingers over his soft, taut skin, heart squeezing at the definition of his spine and the ghosts of his ribs. 

     "Did you do chemo without me?" you asked.

     “I've been doing it before you got here, you know,” he retorted weakly.

     "How are you supposed to gain weight if it makes you this sick? Please don't do it again without me."

     "You passed out, Y/n," he shifted his head to look at you.

     "We'll figure that out," you smiled, "But you need to be as agreeable to these treatments as possible, right?" 

     He nodded.

     "Hyung-seo paid me a visit this morning," you remarked after a moment of silence.

     "She told me."

     "Said she leaves for her tour tomorrow. When does she get back?"

     "February."

     "Of next year?" You paused to temper your shock, "That's a long time."

     "It's a world tour. That's how it goes."

     "Wow."

     You realized for the hundredth time in as many hours that there was so much about their lifestyle to which you were ignorant. You had so much to learn, but one thing you did know: he needed you right now, so you stayed by his side until the sickness had subsided.

     Nurse Cha arrived shortly after to conduct routine checks on Namjoon, and you sat by, thumbing through the latest issue of Batman and Robin which Matt had been kind enough to drop off with your things.

     "Your initial blood work came back with some concerns," she said, turning to you and picking up her tablet to access the results. "There are signs that your body's nutrients are being depleted. Since your fainting spells have been occuring during skinship, we ask that you refrain from touching until your CMP comes back."

     Namjoon glanced over at you, a chiding expression on his features. You flatly ignored him.

     "I need to be able to touch him, especially if he feels ill. He needs to keep down his food, right?"

     Nurse Cha hummed, pursing her lips.

     "Well, I'm going to run this by Dr. Na, but if absolutely necessary, keep it light and brief. And please be sure to document even the smallest instances of skinship so that we can track the effects."

     You agreed readily, and she left to continue her rounds. 

Glancing out the window, you noted that the evening was mild, and the gardens were aflutter with birds and awash in soft late-afternoon light. You thought about what the nurse had said before about the fresh air.

     "Hey," you remarked, still looking out the window, "We should take a walk - it looks so nice out. You up for it?" 

     "Great idea," he replied, joining you to look out across the greenery. "I'm definitely feeling up for it." He huffed out a little chuckle.

     "What?" you asked suspiciously. You were beginning to recognize his different laughs - this particular chuckle was always at your expense.

     "Gonna keep pushing it with the poor nurse, huh?"

     You scoffed.

     "Well, if I hadn't would you be feeling well enough to go out right now?"

     "No."

     When you glanced up you found that he was gazing raptly at you, his face filled with unchecked thanksgiving. Your witty response faltered on your tongue. 

     His touch, you were pretty damn sure that for the rest of his natural life you would never grow used to it...but his eyes? It was almost the same. Was this part of the bond? Or was it just...him? Did everyone feel this way when he held them in those eyes? When he looked at them, really looked...

You couldn't tear your eyes away. You couldn't find words.

     When Namjoon's phone suddenly buzzed you thanked almighty Samsung and sagged against the window pane. 

     "Damn," he muttered. 

     You looked at him questioningly.

     "I have a consultation with my radiation oncologist in ten minutes. Go ahead! I'll meet you down there right after."

     He pulled a sweatshirt over his head and changed his slippers out for his shoes.

     You returned to your room to grab outerwear as well. The evening was temperate enough to go without, but you were feeling chillier than usual. You felt your phone buzz in your pocket.

     Mom flashed across the screen.

     Your chest tightened and you silenced the ringer. You'd call her tomorrow, you told yourself. Besides, she had already spoken to Matt. 

     When you reached the garden, you decided there was someone you should call while you waited. Ambling down a gravel path, you held the phone up to your ear, stuffing your other hand into the pocket of your jean jacket.

     "Matt told mom that you passed out - are you okay?" Diana's voice on the other end registered genuine distress.

     You rolled your eyes and sighed. 

     "I'm fine. My body is just adjusting to the bond and probably jet lag and whatnot."

     "You better fucking be fine or I'm coming out there to make sure you are."

     You laughed. 

     "To South Korea? On a Wednesday?"

     "You know what I mean, god! You're so - hey! How did the fiancee thing go?"

     "I knew you'd want an update."

     "Spill."

     You sighed.

     "Uh-oh," she hummed, "That was your, things-are-an-effing-disaster sigh."

     "It was no- why do you keep trying to divine my air flow like they're casting-runes or something? Will you just let me tell you?"

     "You don't always say."

     You huff in exasperation.

     "Okay, well, I won't tell you what that sigh is," she mumbles in trepidation, "But I will tell you that I know enough to shut up and let you continue. Go on."

     "It didn't go swimmingly."

     "Fuck."

     "Yeah,” You lifted your fingers to absently stroke at the petal of a rose. “She seemed very frightened by the whole situation, which is completely understandable. But then...she also kind of came at me. She started asking pretty intimate stuff about the bond right off the bat. When I tried to redirect by suggesting we get to know each other better she started saying all this stuff she already knew about me. About Dad and Mom."

     "What?!" Diana gasped incredulously.

     "It was almost as if...I don't know, I could have been reading her incorrectly, but it was almost seemed as if she was trying to bring things up that might knock me off my footing. Make me...insecure." 

     You suddenly remembered your conversation with Namjoon the previous night. He hadn’t let on that he had already known your father passed when you were a child...but he had known. Passing out during skinship had gotten in the way of the conversation you had intended to broach with him about knowledge of the other. You had done research before meeting him, but only the basics. You had felt that as much should come from him as possible. Clearly you hadn’t been given that opportunity.

     "That bitch," Diana seethed, pulling your mind back into the moment.

     "Hey, hey, hey," you cautioned her, "She's in a extremely difficult situation. And that was just my biased impression of her intentions. Don't be too quick to judge her, Di."

     Diana hummed discontentedly.

     "Also, she came to apologize to me today before she leaves on tour. We made progress, I think."

     "Apologizing? Bare minimum," Diana said with an air of dismissal. "What did you say her name was?"

     "Kim Hyung-seo. Her stage name is Bibi."

     Diana was silent for a moment. 

     "Found her," she declared. 

     You smiled to yourself - of course she had found her, the woman was famous. It wasn't as if stalking measures were necessary (though you had no doubt of Diana's abilities should that have been the case).

Diana clicked her tongue in disappointment.

     "She's hot."

     "She is very pretty," you agreed.

     "Yeah, but you're hot too. And, y'kow, you're you. Bet you're smarter..."

     "Di," you said, stopping to pinch your brow, "We're not in some kind of competition. We're both just human beings navigating pretty uncharted waters, okay? We both have our strengths and weaknesses. She's going to be part of my life as Namjoon's wife, so not only is building a good relationship with her important to me, I have a responsibility to her as well. We all do. To each other."

     Your sister paused on the other end before relenting sullenly.

     "Yeah, yeah. I guess you're right - you do need to make nice with her...as long as they're married, that is..."

     "DIANA."

     "Okay! Geez!" Diana cleared her throat. "How is the soulmate doing?"

     "He's getting stronger every day," you answered, happily moving the topic away from Hyung-seo.

     "That's great!" she crooned. 

     "It is."

     "Are you smiling? You sound like you're smiling."

     "How are you doing, Di? Classes are starting soon."

     You smirked as your sister's attention surged in a new direction, and for the next half an hour she regaled you with tales of her new housemates, and the smarmy and unseemly Johnnie (who had come crawling back, as predicted, upon returning to the States). 

     Upon hanging up with Diana, you checked the time, and discovered that it had been nearly an hour since you left Namjoon. You were starting to feel weak, and a bit cold - hunger, you told yourself - so you decided to return indoors for dinner.

     You called Namjoon on the way up to the fifth floor to inform him if your change in plans. He apologized profusely, saying that the doctor had been detained, and asked you to join him for dinner.

Letting yourself into his suite, you shrugged your jacket off as you headed for your usual spot on the couch when, suddenly, you froze.

    A man was rising to stand from where he had been seated on the sofa. He was clad in a dark blue button-down with a golden emblem on the shoulder and black slacks. He wore a black cap which bore a similar insignia to the one on his shirt and fit snugly over his short dark hair. He wasn’t as tall as Namjoon, though his shoulders were nearly as wide. His features were soft but arresting, and his deep brown irises, you thought, seemed to hold a bit of everything a pair of eyes could. Your comic book was in his hand.

You crossed the room toward him.

     "Hi, I’m sorry, Namjoon will be here soon - oh, I'm his soulmate, Y/n," you stammered, before catching yourself.

     The young man's sharp eyes widened, his lips parting as you bowed.

     "Je ireum-eun Y/n imnida," you started over in Korean.

     He bowed in return, raising his dark brown eyes to you again as he responded in a soft deep voice.

     "Annyeonghaseyo, je ireum-eun Min Yoongi imnida."

[perfectlyfinespacebacon]

everything now netflix

some spoilers!! and apologies for the long post.

i honestly really enjoyed it! it was almost like a skins/euphoria but imbued with like a heartstopper/sex education vibe in the sense that it dealt with serious teenage issues/mental health but light enough that it doesn't weigh down on you. my character thoughts:

mia was so infuriating almost at all times. obviously under the circumstances, it makes sense but there's this level of likeability that was missing for me. maybe it was the writing or the acting who knows but in my mind it's like this: im making an albeit an unfair comparison to effy from skins or even rue from euphoria, but they were battling their demons and making all the wrong choices but there was still this level of “i want to root for them” that's missing with mia personally.

in a similar vein with alison, she is meant to be this popular rich mean girl archetype who surprises you but obviously in the first half of the season she's supposed to be kind of unlikeable but i found her very endearing. as for the relationship, alison and mia DO NOT belong together. like at all. i am not rooting for them. alison in a way forced a relationship with mia and then also mia was like too scared to say anything about it. its clear that alison liked mia waaaaay more than mia liked alison. like carli says in the last ep as well, “to learn to not be a fantasy to each other”, alison needs to take mia off this pedastal she has for her. i'm very interested to learn more about her character outside of mia though if they hopefully continue the show. i have a feeling that we are supposed to think that she and cameron hooked up at the end or something but i'm rlly hoping its a red herring.

carli is also a character i would love to learn more about. she definitely has more chemistry with mia and i love her for standing her ground against mia, as she needs to help herself before she can be in a healthy relationship. but i will say it was pretty shitty stringing cameron along.

speaking of cameron, i didn't quite expect to like his character as much as i did. in a way his arc in the season is battling toxic masculinity as he kinda seems to come off as this laid back, bro kinda guy but he cares and loves so deeply. it wasn't right calling bec a "sket". i'm not british but obviously its like equivalent to slut, and im very glad he owned up to it. i'm also really interested to know more about his family and stuff.

i love bec as well. she deserves all the happiness in the world. im glad she was able to air out her things with mia, albeit in a very treacherous way and i also love how her mom was supportive of the abortion. i'm honestly kinda tired seeing the mom kicking out the daughter for getting pregnant trope so it was nice to see a mom just being supportive. bec is just such a wonderful friend and mia honestly has a lot to make up for. re not telling mia about her and cam, it was honestly frustrating seeing mia be so petty. i understand that its a big secret and she felt like everyone was hiding things from her but its also right to have secrets amongst friends, idk that really stuck out to me.

will for me had the weakest arc as in it wasn't the most interesting to me. don't get me wrong, i love the character but it just wasnt giving a whole lot to me. i recognize him as more than the comic relief but also at the same time he was stirring the pot in a lot of the arguments / blowups the group had, consciously and unconsciously. though i will say will x theo <3 but comedic duo of the century is will x alison. the little song they did for mia's birthday is stuck in my head.

tldr; great characters and great show. it's really hard to find a show about teens as a 25yo living in a 16yo body that i enjoy and don't find annoying. i just love how each character was able to be so nuanced despite being an ensemble cast.

but knowing netflix's track record it's gonna get cancelled because a) it's good b) has wlw content... but i really hope not.

[memeapple2]

Tails gets trolled rp starters part 1

yeah 😔 yes I'm leaving in the typos beacuse it's funnier that way :^) Fight me nerds!!

"Fuck you trolls!"

"They can't troll you if their dead!"

"I'm so mad, I'm gonna have sex with my girlfriend so I won't be so mad."

"Dumbass will learn."

"Mad? U Mad? U look mad U stupid bitch!"

"sorry *insert name* if this looks gay to the viewers."

"the art of trolling was actually started from humans but it wasn't called trolling it was called being a dick but back in the middle ages i was being made fun of because i wasn't human."

"im extremely hurt you would think im a douche. it might not look like it but i have feelings and you hurt them."

"hey can you put that on a coaster?"

"They have been getting trolled. you know how it is. there calling *insert name* gay and shit they cant take it."

"the way to stop a troll. is to become his friend .as his friend you can show him the right path!"

*-goes back to knitting-*

"come i will talk to these kids and stop this hate with kindness!"

"sometimes there is need to do whats needed, if it was up to me *insert name* would be dead and we would never have to worry"

"im not gay I have a girl friend and i would like it if this conflict to end in peace"

"you must not know who i am. i have alot of talent and i have lots of friends. one of my friends is right beside me . and for what your saying isn't true, so i am not afended by your hateful comments"

"ehhh...... im gonna ignore what you just said and ask you one more time. lets end this hate and become friends"

"why don't we just be friends this is stupid"

"ok im gonna take a random guess and say you guys failed with that peace crap"

"i fucking knew it"

"hello dickheads so your the trolls i heard about"

"hey do you see that? it looks like a group of pokemon.coming at us"

"for a em→→breaded donkey i can sure fuck your mom hard."

"there isn't. you remember what happen when you guys tried peace? you cant talk to them. there to oblivious"

"yea remind me next time to not kill such a fat person"

"high shovel!"

"ok i'm gonna go back to sleep now good night."

"banana"

"don't worry man I killed the fat one. its all cool man. i know all about the taste for blood"

"thank you for proving that peace isn't shit. when it comes to trolls. your a good friend"

" *insert name* Wake up! you fucked up big time!"

"People can't troll me beacuse I have no ears. They can't troll me if I can't hear them!"

"What? I don't have fucking ears!"

"If you don't mind I'd like to continue knitting this!"

"did you know with seat belts people die all the time in car crashes? I thought that was interesting!"

"have you ever been bitch slapped from lack of listening? Lack of doing what you're told? Beacuse I'm not that far from slapping you."

"which means I can be super powerful and kick everyone's ass..I'm gonna be awesomely badass!"

"trust me this plan will be better beacuse I'm gonna smoke my smart weed! I'm smarter when I'm high."

"Why are you filled with so much hatred and aggression? I'm finding it difficult to assume what you must have went through to mold you into the person standing in front of me now."

"Hey troll! FUCK YOU!!!"

"hmmmm this isn't as i thought it would be, killing people is really boring and all these annoying screams, i mean damn."

"Yeah that wasn't very good. I tried to do something similar to high shovel. Let's just forget about this."

"there is no need for any blood shed, this problem can be solved with out any villains"

"I do all kinds of stupid and gay shit."

"I’m starting to think that even if we pray our hearts out and know that we do wrong, that maybe there are things that god can’t fix and maybe, instead of putting our hope in god to fix all our problems we take action for our mistakes and learn from them."

"Sorry it took us so long to save you from TIME PRISON. So what did you do in TIME PRISON?"

"You gotta calm down bro, chill man, smoke a joint!"

"After 50 years I started to feel like I was losing my sanity so I started to break my fingers and I would just break my fingers and set them again. "

" I started breaking all my bones. I broke every bone in my hands. I broke my arms, separately, and then I started to break my own ribs. I broke my femurs, it took a while. And then I healed and broke them again."

"After 5000 years my bones were all scar tissue. They had all grown so solidly back together that I was unable to move. "

"And after another 5000 years of furious infinitesimal movement, I built up enough muscle mass to spontaneously break any bone in my body, and then I could move again. "

"My body had done so much healing that I healed almost instantly. That’s all I do now. Every time I move my body, my bones shatter and heal back in my next shape. If I take a single step, every bone in my legs splinters and then reforms. I don’t know what pain is because I have been alive for 10 million years."

"Okay but it looks like your walking normal."

"Well that's just stupid."

"oh sorry i forgot about this and took a nap and then took a shit. im so sorry i forgot but no worries man im here now"

"ahhhhh........................................................ yeah i dont know."

"hey your awful lonely. you must be a looser or something."

"this is the down side of having no ears, i can't hear if *insert name* is screaming for help or not, i mean i have no clue if hes screaming towards me back, so damn it having no ears kind of blows."

"hhahahahahahahahha i dont even know what the fuck you said?"

"i was trolled until i got bigger and stronger then them now i am feared"

".................... i have no importance to this story line what so ever, i think im gonna go."

"wow that story was super amazingly awesome, im not even joking right now"

"ahhhhhh so gay"

"we neutral's dont take sides in childish battles that normal people do. to pick sides is fullish."

"well most of the trolls are stupid but they all think there smart it's funny if you think about it."

"ummm. what object is like that? huh? ........ its unbreakable and its breakable? how is that possible? is it a liquid? hmmm i don't understand ?"

"now im gonna kick you right in your hairy ballsack"

"ok everyone! do you guys see this paper? well theres nothing on it yet but there will be"

"hey guys i was just telling him the plan. we are gonna do a all nighter and get fucked up hahaha its gonna be sweet."

"What? what are you talking about? We can discuss this further when there's not a gun in my face.."

"shut up, i got this alright, i got this shit in the bag, you'll see."

[stephaniebrownslover]

HIII! :D

I've read your Jeff and Liu's relationship hcs and I REALLY LOVED IT OMG

Soo can you please write a fluff oneshot about 'em?

(AND I THINK YOU'RE WORKING ON FOR TICCIWORK RELATIONSHIP PART 2 SO I'M SORRY IF I MADE YOU BUSSY THIS REQUEST CAN BE WAITED IF YOU WANT TO-)

I know I talked too much but thank you so much from now <333

HIIIIIIII!!!!!

I'm still surprised that people other than mt friends are reading and even liking my writing lol that means a lot really!!

And of course I can write about them since you asked! I love their bro-ship and it's cute and we deserve more Woods Family Fluff.

I'll write for Main AU, again, but this won't be lore related because everything important with them after the incident includes angst or other creeps but I want to write a dumb cute thing for you. Hope you don't mind, but if you do, please ask again for something lore-related like ticciwork oneshot.

NO NO I'M WORKING ON IT BUT I ALREADY MADE PART 1 FOR THAT FRIEND AND DON'T EVER WORRY ABOUT TALKING TOO MUCH OR MAKING ME BUSSY OMG NEVER PLEASE

Thank you so much for your ask and hope you like it too!!!

(I kinda wanted to write them stealing a tank lol)

(Also so sorry for late reply, my brain is so foggy lately which prevents me from writing)

Main AU Jeff and Liu Oneshot

Date: 2014

While Jeff was excitedly waving the board game box he was holding and trying to show it to Liu, Liu had his head buried well into the book in his hand, although his focus had not shifted. No, he might have loved his brother, but he definitely wasn't going to play monopoly with him.

"C'mon, L!"

"My name is not L. It's Liu."

That was the last straw. He knew that one Because Jeff was watching an anime called "Death Note" on the influence of his friends and Jeff had tried to make him watch it too. Liu would rather watch artistic films or something with real depth.

"Whatever, bet you're afraid of losin'."

"If it makes you feel better, then sure thing."

Liu wanted to continue reading his book, while Jeff senselessly waved one hand in the air. It could be read in his eyes that he had an unnecessary desire to challenge.

"Your loss, we all know I'm better at math."

"You did not."

"Oh yes, I did."

"Oh so you want to play a game, huh? Let's play a game."

Liu suddenly looked up from his book, he closed the object he was holding in one hand hard. It was hardly possible to say that he enjoyed being challenged.

Having a brother like Jeff who loves a challenge was a big problem for him.

Jeff looked in amazement at his brother, who had risen from the coach and was walking towards him with rapid steps. His green eyes were ablaze with an emotion that was not easy to understand.

"You in?"

Liu sarcastically crossed his arms, the menacing smile on his lips was enough to scare anyone, anyone except Jeff.

"Oh, how in that you would be surprised.

"Okay, so we're gonna play Monopoly, I know you like dumb nerd games, and I can rule kingdoms."

Jeff definitely didn't know how to play Monopoly. It was an even bigger problem that he talked more nonsense as if it was possible to do more, but it was Jeff.

Actually, Jeff didn't know how to play any board games. Of course, he knew, but either he didn't remember, or he was hitting the sense spot until the person he was playing with became really pissed.

"That's not- you know what? Just use the calculator on your phone."

"Which one?"

Jeff's rather confident disclosure of his secret caused Liu to pause in surprise once again.

What kind of idiot would disclose the application in which he kept secret photos and things that should remain hidden?

"... The one with numbers, not secret things of yours. God, I can't believe that I had to use this sentence."

"Why the fuck I need a calculator?"

Jeff's eyebrows were furrowed with anger. If it wasn't for Liu, he would have already responded with insults or attacked the person in front of him.

He might have been stupid, but he wasn't that stupid.

"Can you sum up high numbers?"

Or he could.

"... Fuckin' fine."

As Liu passed towards the table in the living room, Jeff followed him with a defeated attitude. While he pulled the chair out fairly and sat down, the fact that Jeff almost fell created a thin smile on Liu's face. It wasn't such a big deal.

He just liked that even after years later, he knew his brother next to him felt as comfortable as possible.

However, their feelings were not very mutual, because Jeff was a bomb ready to explode at any moment.

"You know how to play this, right?"

After Jeff sat down in the chair with a grunt, he shouted at Liu's question.

" 'course I do!"

Liu took the box from Jeff's hand and gently slapped on his hand when Jeff tried to reach out.

That's how Jeff realized that Liu was going to want something from himself first. Waiting for what he wanted, he responded only with a grunt.

Stupid nerd.

"Explain how we start the game."

He raised the index finger of his right hand in the air as he spoke confidently. With his other hand, he also pressed on top of it for emphasis.

"First, ya' choose a pawn to make your slave."

"Eh, kinda true. Go on."

Jeff raised his second finger and stepped on it, too.

"Then you roll the dice to occupy areas."

Well, that was where the mistake started.

But Liu didn't need to be so distrustful. Maybe his brother could surprise him, today could have been that day.

So he calmly made the explanation.

"No, you don't occupy the areas, you just pass them as you move just as the dice says."

"Told the same."

Jeff, on the other hand, breathed with an exasperated attitude.

"It's not the- okay, carry on. What happens when you stop on a point?"

"Easy."

The fact that he paused after saying this, didn't even deign to say anything, made Liu think that he was just bluffing.

And he probably was.

"Then explain."

"Um, you buy them?"

Liu raised one eyebrow in the air.

"To?"

"To... to throw them to the enemy!"

Taking advantage of Liu's confused moment, he pulled out the box and took out several household figures, which he threw at Liu. Although there was nothing to hurt, it was annoying.

"No, Jeff, stop."

Jeff was waiting for his brother to laugh like himself. Or to have an amused reaction. Or to be serious.

Anything, but not him getting off the table.

"I don't know why I trusted you with this. Clearly, it was a mistake."

While he was sitting at the table himself, he was almost begging for Liu to continue to stay as well.

"I was joking, I know Monopoly rules. Just don't go!"

"One last chance."

Liu took a deep breath and sat down at the table again. He really didn't know how long he could tolerate his brother's childish behavior, and he wasn't willing to find out.

There was silence between them for a while. It could not be said that it was a peaceful silence, although it was not uncomfortable either. This silence was more like the silence that occurs before something important.

Just when Liu was about to speak because he was starting to get uncomfortable with it, Jeff spoke by looking at his hands. And the whole time he was talking, he never lifted his head from the table.

"I was actually going to say that we can play Scrabble. I know you don't like this game and you can get bored or something and you shouldn't blah blah, somethin' somethin'."

Liu felt bad for a moment after hearing this.

It was obvious that his brother wanted to spend time with him. He was also aware that he had been neglecting him a little bit too much lately, but it wasn't his fault. He was just too busy and didn't have enough energy to deal with anyone. He definitely couldn't tolerate a hyperactive person like Jeff after a tiring day.

However, these were not an excuse.

He should have been a better brother.

"Okay, we can play both."

After Jeff heard this, he suddenly raised his head, quickly waved his hands in a way that meant no.

"No, no, you don't have enough time and-"

"I can always spare some time for my brother."

Jeff was relieved to hear this. After releasing his shoulders, he smiled. This was not a fake or sarcastic smile as usual, it was a real smile.

"Yeah. Me too."

Jeff and Liu were two brothers who cared about each other.

And nothing or no one could come between them.

It's awful lol sorry for that

[cosmicstarlatte]

Devil-Mart: Shopping (Obey Me!)

━━━━━━━━━━ ✦ ━━━━━━━━━━

The brothers and you go grocery shopping. You can imagine what that's like.

»Characters: Demon Bros + very brief Dia and Barb

»Tags: Shitpost, Some Wholesomeness, Levi my boy, Dia is precious as usual, Bulleted Style

»Notes: Sorry I know I've mentioned this a few times but finally edited it to my liking. :'3 Alternatively I have another fic where they actually work at Devil-Mart if you haven't read that one lol.

Lucifer:

Grabs two carts, one being a race car type with two seats

"Levi! Belphie! Get in!"

OF COURSE HE STRAPS THEM IN

Puts a backpack leash on Asmo

"Beel, Mammon, get a cart each."

They're a big family so yeah they need a lot lol

"Satan, stay where I can see you!"

This man pulls out a CVS-receipt type of shopping list

You can practically hear western showdown music as he stares down another customer for the last bag of spicy newt chips

Hands Satan Asmo's leash

He wins the last bag of course

"SATAN! ASMO! Where did you go!?"

(Later)

"I have a coupon for this."

"Well the sale sign said-"

"Here's my rewards card."

"I have reusable bags, thank you."

Mammon:

Thinks grocery shopping is boring but only goes because of you

Is the reason the store started locking more stuff up behind glass cases

Has tried to bargain with workers and hopes it works one day

Confidently accepted Satan's bet (you tried to stop it)

He left his shopping cart with you

Next thing you know he gets on the intercom

"Lucifer! Daddy will find you! Don't cry! If anyone sees a black haired-"

Lucifer drop kicked him knocking him unconscious

[Security Liked This 👍 ]

Levi:

Happily gets in Lucifer's cart and continues gaming on his console

Is use to Lucifer strapping him in

Finds it oddly comforting

"Lucifer can we get the Ruri chan limited edition cereal!?"

"It's on the list."

"Lucifer! Don't forget we need more Hell Sodas!"

"It's on the list."

"Oh and my special Ruri shamp-"

"Leviathan."

[A few minutes later]

"...Hey Lucifer!"

"LEVIATHAN."

Satan:

Didn't want to come but Lucifer makes grocery shopping a family outing

Walks around reading a book

Bet Mammon he wouldn't get on the intercom and embarrass Lucifer

He knew he'd do it

He happily threw the grimm on his unconscious body

He took out the last jar of inferno bee honey from a families cart when they weren't looking

Occasionally crosses off Lucifer's snacks so he forgets them

Decided to ''save'' Asmo when he got the chance

Asmo:

Not the first time he's been on a leash

Just typed away on his D.D.D

Keeps trying to flirt with any cutie he sees

Lucifer yanks him away every time

However Lucifer does use him for discounts at the meat deli

Asmo doesn't mind he always treats it like a game to see what he can get 😏

Employees have fought for the chance to help him if he requires assistance

Was thankful when Satan saved him from Lucifer's watch

They went shopping at the cafe book store next door

Beel:

Loves grocery shopping, loves it

Always has to eat a giant meal before shopping otherwise he can't go

Food and family outing only the best duo!!!

Always feels guilty knowing the list is long because of him but he does his best to help Lucifer shop for the items

Pushed one cart with food and pulled the other with an unconscious Mammon inside

Is the reason the store stopped doing free samples

Belphie:

Immediately started snoozing when Lucifer strapped him into the cart

Doesn't care much for grocery shopping but doesn't fight it

Grannies always coo over him while he sleeps

"Oh what a cutie! The other one is kind of odd though..."

Lucifer always carries a sleeping Belphie back to the van while Beel packs the back of the van with you

Sure Beel could carry him but Lucifer insists its Beel's duty to help with grocery shopping as much as he can

Lucifer won't admit he has a soft spot for the youngest

Belphie won't admit he pretends to sleep so he can be carried by Lucifer

As you guys leave, you see Barbatos walking in, pushing Diavolo in his own race car cart who is happily "steering".

"We're going to the chips, Barbatos!"

"No, we are here for dinner ingredients my Lord."

"But I'm turning left!"

->[Dia & Barb art]

⬦You might also like: Coconut︱Mexican Restaurant︱Waffle House︱ You ARE The Father

[taffycandyqt]

hi, just saw requests are open! can you write a oneshot where 2012!raph comes down with a stomach bug and his brothers and splinter help him through it?

I'm gonna me honest when I first got this request I was at such a loss for what to write, but then the idea to have Raph and Splinter have a heart to heart came to mind and I just 🫢

TMNT 2012

Fluff! Comfort

Platonic family stuff (none of that nasty fam shipping)

Warnings: mentions of vomit and throwing up, slight angst

Raph comes down with a stomach bug and his family does everything they can to help him.

It was Mikey's fault.

How? I don't know.

But after waking up in the middle of the night to hurl his guts out in the toilet, Raph figured that one way or another, it was Mikey's fault.

That morning he wasn't feeling any better but he'd rather go to morning training with a broken leg then miss something important. How else was he supposed to stay better than Leo?

And that mindset, is what leads us to the current moment. Leo standing in front of Raph, ready to fight, while he pukes onto the floor. Splinter immediately stopped the lesson to check on him, while Donnie froze, Mikey gagged, and Leo asked Raph if he was okay.

"My son! Raphael, what happened?" Splinter asked. Raph however could not answer. Even though he was no longer vomiting he couldn't stop gagging. Eventually, he was able to stop but it took a second.

"I-I'm fine sensei. I can continue."

"No."

"Sensei, I swear I'm okay!"

"You may be okay, but the mats are not. Go rest. Donatello, Michelangelo, go get cleaning supplies to help me with this mess. Leonardo, make sure Raphael gets to bed."

"Aw sensei, do we really have to clean that up?" Complained Donnie.

"Yeah that straight up nasty dude." Mikey agreed.

"Would you rather take your brother to sleep?"

The pair looked over to Leo and Raph as they fought. Raph getting violent trying to keep Leo off him even to the point of using his sais. While Leo was trying to push him out of the dojo and convince him that a little rest wouldn't kill him. At that moment a chill ran up Raph's spine and he chucked up a little bit more of his breakfast onto Leo's foot.

"I'll go get the disinfectant." Donnie stated and Mikey followed after him.

After everyone finished with their respective chores Donnie talked to Raph to get a synopsis on his symptoms. Though he couldn't call them symptoms because that would imply Raph was sick.

And Raph never gets sick. (🙄)

Afterward Donnie shuffled to his lab while doing some research on his computer to start on some medicine for Raph.

Splinter was in the kitchen making Raph some rice porridge. It was light on the stomach with a mild taste so Splinter hoped he would be able to keep it down.

Mean while Leo was trying to keep Mikey out of Raph's room so he could sleep. Mikey insisted the best way to get better was for a bro to read you comics till the awesomeness of the characters scared the sickness away.

"No."

"Awwwwwww come onnnn Leo! It's what he needs dude!"

"What he needs is sleep, if you really want to help go help Splinter make him food or Donnie with the medicine."

Was it a good idea? Maybe not, but at least it would stall Mikey for a little bit.

"I can't sleep if you all are YELLING OUTSIDE MY ROOM!" Raph shouted. And with that Leo was dragging Mikey away from Raph's door in the direction of the Living room. At that moment Splinter was walking towards them with a bowl in hand.

"My sons, how is he feeling?"

"He being moody, so that's good at least." Answered Mikey. This earned him a light smack on the head from Leo.

"I got him to bed but I don't think he's asleep yet." Leo finally spoke, giving an actual answer.

"I see." Was all Splinter said before continuing in the direction of his sick son. Upon entering his room he found Raph not resting but rather sitting on the side of his bed, lights on, fiddling with his sais. Raph looked towards the door with an unhappy expression as Splinter entered.

"You should be resting."

"I told you I'm fine."

"Someone who is 'Fine' would not vomit for no reason." as Splinter said this, he sat the porridge on his desk table while he took a seat on the rolly chair across from Raph.

"It was probably Mikey's breakfast or something." Raph stated a tad agitated.

"Oh? None of you brothers seemed to suffer from the same issue. Did Michelangelo not make them the same breakfast?"

"I DON'T KNOW MAYBE HE USED ROTTEN CRAP IN MINE!"

"Why would your brother do that?"

Raph didn't respond to this. He looked away mearly shrugged. Deep down he knew it was ridiculous, to blame Mikey, but this whole situation just felt so dumb. He hated being treated like he was weak. He hated all this attention. Did he want Splinter's attention? DUH! But not like this. He wanted the attention he gave to Leo. To be treated like he was understood. Like he was enough. Like his flaws didn't matter in the face of all his strengths. But no. No matter how hard he worked the only time Splinter treated him like he mattered is when he's a problem. Is when is need to be fixed.

"Raphael, why are you so reluctant to admit you are sick?"

"..."

"My son, everyone gets sick. It is nothing to be ashamed of."

"Easy for you to say." Raph said, not meaning to speak that out loud.

"And why would you say that?"

"Uuuuuuh..."

"Raphael, I cannot understand how you are feeling if you never tell me."

Raph scoffed, "I have told you. I've told you over and over. But it's always the same. Control you anger Raph, it's self destructive, it hurts you and everyone around you. GREAT! Who new that the best way to CONTROL YOUR ANGER WAS TO JUST CONTROL IT! WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT! But ohhhhhhhh because I don't know how to control my self like Mr. Perfect fearless leader Leo I'm just a mess. I'M 'TEMPERAMENTAL' AND 'MOODY' AND 'IMMATURE'. SORRY?! YOU ALWAYS TELL ME TO CONTROL MY ANGER, BUT HOW!?! DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO FEEL LIKE EVERYTHING IN YOU IS JUST BUBBLING BELOW THE SURFACE?! ITS LIKE WRAPPING A WATER BALLOON IN TISSUE PAPER! DOES THE TISSUE PAPER COVER IT? YEAH! BUT ALL IT TAKES IS ONE NEEDLE AND IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW MANY LAYERS OF PAPER YOU HAVE IT WONT MATTER CUZ THE BALLOON WILL STILL BURST AND EVERYONE WILL GET WET AND IT'LL BE ALL YOUR FAULT EVEN THOUGH YOU TRIED TO COVER THE BALLOON BUT ALL YOU WERE GIVEN WAS FRICKIN TISSUE PAPER! AND IT'S NOT LIKE YOU MEANT TO POP THE BALLOON BUT SOMEONE SHOVED A NEEDLE ON YOUR HAND AND KEPT YELLING AT YOU TO POP IT EVEN THOUGH YOU DON'T WANT TO BUT THEY KEEP YELLING AT YOU TILL YOU JUST DO IT JIST SO THEY'LL SHUT IT BUT NOW EVERYONE HATES YOU AND YOU HAVE TO KEEP DOING IT ALL OVER AGAIN OVER AND OVER BECAUSE FOR SOME REASON EVERYONE HATES WATER!

Raph huffed to catch his breath but he wasn't done.

"I know I'm not your favorite. but being sick just makes it more apparent that the only time I am a priority is when I do something wrong."

"My son..." Splinter was at a loss. He hasn't realized just how much weight Raph was carrying hand how his treatment of his brothers in comparison him had effected him.

"I am sorry."

"W-what?"

"I have always done what I believe would be best in order to raise you and your brothers. However I had not realized how greatly you were struggling and how my response to your struggle had effected you emotionally. You are not a burden Raphael. You are my son, my family, and I love you. I am sorry that I made you feel less important that you brothers and I'm sorry if my actions made it seem as though I favor Leonardo over you. I have always been proud of your skill and impressed by the speed of your progression. That is why I pushed you so hard in regards to your anger, as I could see how it was holding you back from tapping the true potential I see in you. From now on a will make a better effort to understand your needs so we can work on your struggles together."

Raph was speechless. He genuinely believed that Splinter didn't care about him as much as he did Leo or the others. He had waited for so long for someone or something to prove him wrong, and he was so happy it finally happened. As Splinter embraced his son Raph began to cry. He cried hard and afterwards he felt refreshed. He felt lighter now that his mind was clear and he had finally said all that he's always wanted to.

"I think I'm ready to rest now sensei."

"Good. Sleep well my son."

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

I'm not gonna lie, getting an idea for this one was hard and I avoided it for so long😭 but once I got it rolling I'm actually kinda happy with how it turned out.😍

[amazinguu-sekai]

may i request a platonic relationship with rei and ritsu as their youngest sibling who is cheerful and more energetic than the two? they still have the sakuma's illness but their youngest sibling would suddenly get bursts of energy to do some silly stuff (kinda like leo lol).

might i add, because of the unusual action of the youngest sibling, the sakuma family (aside from rei and ritsu) sees them like an alien. reader is secretly hurt and sad because of this, since theyre being treated like an outsider. though they dont particularly show it, but rei and ritsu knows and continues to stick by their side.

sorry if its very specific XD, do ignore the second paragraph if its too much :). also, feel free to decline if this doesnt interest you! still, thank you and have a nice day! :D

What it feels like being the Sakuma's youngest sibling !

kasumi: hi anon please forgive me for taking so long :( but i had fun making this one so hope you like it :33

cari: so sorry if it got out of topic! (Especially the unit part, but was quickly back on topic ><) It was an interesting request~ Thank you for requesting this! We love the Sakuma bros :3

reader: (gn) ; requested: yessu ! ; proofread: cari ; type: headcannon ; wc: 700+ ; era: !!

Another Sakuma sibling… you are so much different from your older brothers! You were talkative and always got along with everyone and even their unit mates and friends~ Lucky!

There are times where you randomly appear on either Ritsu's or Rei's practices but they don't mind, really, they want your company anyways and it's good to see you hanging out and deciding to watch them do their practice because it boosts their morale. (They want to show off in front of their sibling)

Ritsu turns you into his pillow when you decide to visit him one time saying, “I can't find Maa-kun anywhere, but you'll do. ♪” Izumi would scold Ritsu for slacking off the practice again, and… you as well. Since you appeared, Izumi would scold you for interrupting their practice and you could've just visited them when it's their break time, so Izumi told you their schedule so the next time you'll arrive is at their breaks. (Which you didn't follow)

You and Leo would be great buddies! Seriously, Izumi acts like a mother to the both of you since you two are talking about aliens and how Leo got abducted by aliens. Leo would get mad at Izumi whenever he asks you to leave, “Hey Sena! Don't make her leave!" Izumi would just sigh in disappointment because it would mean their practice will be cancelled.

Arashi will be your best friend as well! She would gladly help you out if you have troubles, or advice that you needed and if you needed someone to let out your problems and feelings whenever your brothers are busy~ (I love her sm)

Tsukasa… Well, at first, he adores you! If you like sweets, the two of you will go to various candy/cakes/sweet shops and again, you'll get scolded by Izumi alongside Tsukasa. If you're not a fan of sweets, Tsukasa completely understands it! But that doesn't change the fact that he will at least try to make you like sweets.

Now for Rei! Everytime you visit your oldest brother, he doesn't mind it when you barge into the rehearsal room, “Kukuku, how did my precious youngest sibling find me~?” He would joke about it but he is still happy you decided to visit him!

Now if you're the same age as Ritsu but maybe a year or 2 younger?? Kaoru would try to hit on you, honestly. Rei wouldn't like it and he doesn't want his youngest sibling to be tainted by Kaoru! Adonis always teaches you about some knowledge of his hometown outside Japan and if he ever got the chance, he would make you taste one of specialties! As for Koga, he's pretty surprised that someone like Rei who has a pretty mysterious personality is so different from him! He would be confused, but in the end, he would be on good terms with you. :3

There are times when you're out in the sun for too long, or tiring yourself, you would collapse. You inherited the illness as well, and Leo would get worried and will have a mental crisis trying to bring you to a shaded area as much as possible. And a few seconds later, you would be back to normal! ..just avoid staying in the sun for too long.

Due to you being pretty much different from the Sakuma's, your family members sees you as an outcast and disgrace because of how outgoing you are. You can't help but feel sad and disappointed at their words. (You would rant at Arashi about this and she feels bad for you!) But you also can't help wondering what if your older brothers think the same as them? You're worried that they're just faking their personalities to go along with yours.

Now, Rei and Ritsu don't really know the problems you're going through, but somehow when one of the Sakuma member told how “disgraceful” and “a shame to the family”, their blood boils, how can they call you with those words?! The two of them would comfort you and Ritsu would most probably hug while Rei pats your back, saying comforting words.

You don't deserve to be called like that after all, there's different types of people, they would encourage you to keep doing what you like since that's your own way and they would support you like a good brother they are!

[forestwhisper3]

heads up, seven up!

rules: post the last seven lines you wrote, then tag seven people. reposting, as the reblog chains get long!

. . . . . . . Yup, I'm alive (just very, very busy lately) Anyway, I was tagged by my good friend and amazing artist @joyfuladorable and thought this sounded fun. ...It may also be a sort of apology from me for being gone/silent for so long. So! Rather than the last seven lines, here are seven little teasers from fics I've been chipping away at during the bit of downtime I have- when I'm not just playing some Animal Crossing to destress, that is. It's not necessarily the most recent for some of them, but parts that I think you'll enjoy without giving away too much. Enjoy! (Also, please keep in mind that as these are still being refined, there might be parts you see here that may not be present in the final product) ============== Title Pending (Rottmnt) ==============

Not for the first time tonight, Raph had to wonder how he'd gotten to this point.

"There," his companion hissed quietly- a word he never would have used to describe her before this moment.

He leaned over her shoulder and squinted at the figures walking below. "You sure that's them?"

"OF C-!" she choked back her yell and settled for a heated glare. "Yes I'm sure! I'd recognize those ugly outfits anywhere!"

"How can you even see them from so far away?"

"That's how ugly they are."

Despite himself, he snickered a bit. Once he settled down, he crossed his arms.

"You do know this whole thing is crazy, don't you?"

She grinned ferally. "Yep."

"And it's very likely that if we're caught, we'll either get arrested or- if you're right about all this -even die, right?"

"Yep."

"You're insane."

"So are you coming or not?" she asked impatiently.

He looked over the ledge again, watching as the people below continued loading trucks.

"Well, Raph's made it this far," he shrugged, allowing an easy smile to slip onto his face. "And I think I'm overdue for a bit of crazy myself. Let's do it."

"Hell yeah!" Cassandra- Casey, he corrected himself -cheered, pumping a fist. "Let's go, Red!"

The two of them jumped.

============== Dragon of the Sun (TMNT 2003) ============== "Hey, I'm fine! Really! It'd take a lot more than some crazy lizard and spoiled son to take me out!" "You have cracks in your shell. And while I'm sure Donatello has provided excellent care, you are going to the med bay." "...Yes, M'am." Raph snorted softly as he watched Ananda start dragging Mikey away, his little bro not having put up nearly as much of a fight with her as he had against him and Don back home. Then again, he wasn't really surprised either. Maybe it was because Mikey played such a big part in reconnecting her with her dad, which led to her joining the Justice Force, but it was clear that she had a huge soft spot for him.

"And you're positive that there was no lasting damage?" And it seemed like she wasn't the only one. He turned to face Silver Sentry, the usually calm man also watching them go with furrowed brows and a frown. "Not that we could see," Raph sighed. "From what I've gotten him to tell me, he needs to take it easy for a couple more weeks, but he should be fine after that. Let's just hope nothing happens until then." And he really would hope this time. Usually he was itching for a fight within a few days, but if it meant Mike going out to fight before he was fully recovered? No way. Silver Sentry gave a sigh of his own. "And here I thought we could avoid this very thing by only making him an honorary member." ============== Turning Back Time (Linked Universe) ==============

"Hey, Time, do you have any other masks?"

Wind's question immediately caught the group's attention as they settled down to eat. Warriors looked up, admittedly curious as to how he would respond, especially since he knew Time would probably want to keep those cards close to his chest in order to mess with them.

But perhaps he was still remembering Hyrule's misunderstanding from the other night, since he was surprisingly straightforward in his answer.

"Quite a few, actually."

"And are they all magic like the- bunny hat?!"

There was something else Wind was going to say there, he realized, and judging by the way the others' gazes seemed to sharpen at the slight pause, they'd noticed it too.

Come to think of it, the two of them had been together this morning, hadn't they?

He thought about that for another second, then felt a chill of dread.

Could they be working together now? Sweet Hylia, he hoped not. Just remembering the sorts of things they'd accomplished together between battles during the war made him want to run far, far away. He was ninety percent certain that half the reason Impa disliked him so much was because of these two. He wondered if it would be possible to switch sides. ============== Recollections (Linked Universe) ==============

-of Darkness who sought to plunge the world into fear and darkness under his rule. Fearing his wicked rule, Zelda, the princess of this kingdom, split up the Triforce of Wisdom into-

"-eight fragments," Hyrule weakly read that part aloud, face pale and eyes wide in dawning realization and growing horror. "T-This-…this is-…"

He whirled around to look at Time and Legend, the sickly look on his face growing even worse when they nodded grimly.

"Oh no," he murmured, turning back around and curling a bit into himself.

"Okay, that's enough," Warriors scowled, although the worry in his eyes betrayed him. "Would one of you please just tell us what's going on already?! Why's Hyrule upset now that he's figured out whatever it is you two know?!"

"It's about me," Hyrule explained, looking up at them with haunted eyes. "That story we're reading? It's what happened in my Hyrule. Zelda- my Zelda -broke up the Triforce to keep Ganon from getting it. Shortly after, I found myself on my first adventure."

Silence. Then, the implications finally sunk in.

"Oh, fuck," Wind swore.

"Can't we-?!" Twilight began.

"I doubt it," Time sighed, already knowing what he was going to suggest. "Seeing as we were all brought here, then subsequently locked in, it looks like we're going to have to finish watching before we can leave. And I know it's not going to end with just Hyrule's adventures."

The air between them felt heavy now that everyone knew what they'd be seeing, and there was a pause, as if they all wanted to say something but couldn't find the right words. Finally, Legend let out an angry burst of air.

"Let's just get it over with," he said. "I know this is the last thing any of us wants, but it looks like we don't get a choice. The sooner we watch it all, the sooner we can leave this hellhole."

An apt description for this place, Time couldn't help but agree. Absolutely no danger to be seen, but somehow just as nerve-wracking as if there was. If not more so.

Another pause, but despite their reluctance, they all knew inaction was an even worse feeling. So Wild eventually started it up again. Fearing his wicked rule, Zelda, the princess of this kingdom, split up the Triforce of Wisdom into eight fragments and hid them throughout the realm to save the last remaining Triforce from the clutches of the evil Ganon. At the same time, she commanded her most trustworthy nursemaid, Impa, to secretly escape into the land and go find a man with enough courage to destroy the evil Ganon. Upon hearing this, Ganon grew angry, imprisoned the princess, and sent out a party in search of Impa.

The black screen started fading into color, although the words remained, and harsh panting could be heard as a landscape came into focus. ============== Title Pending (Trolls) ==============

Floyd was gone.

"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!!"

That simple, heartwrenching fact kept spinning and spinning and spinning in his mind until it was all he could think through the numbness that had taken hold of him.

At least, until Clay's scream managed to break through.

John flinched, finally tearing his gaze from his second youngest brother's crystalized form only to meet the furious, teary eyes of the third's. It was all he had the time to do before Clay shoved him away from where they'd gathered around, the tiny ember of rage that had been ever present in those last few days as a band finally blazing into a wildfire, fueled by the same grief that seemed to have frozen him in place instead.

"IT'S YOUR FAULT WE SPLIT UP! IT'S YOUR FAULT WE WASTED TIME! IT'S YOUR FAULT FLOYD'S-!!"

Clay choked, unable to voice that final, damning word. Instead, his face twisted as it finally seemed to catch up with him. Yet the tears that began to stream down did nothing to soften the anger that continued to burn.

Staring as intently as he was, there was no missing when that anger slipped into hate.

"I'll never forgive you," Clay hissed, his entire body trembling and tense. "We'll never forgive you."

He swallowed thickly and chanced a glance at Bruce and Branch.

They stared back in stony silence.

"I'm sorry," he managed to push through the knot in his throat and a familiar gnawing emptiness that began to settle in his heart.

Sorry he'd failed them…

Sorry he couldn't protect them…

Sorry he'd hurt them…

Sorry he couldn't be what they'd wanted him to be.

His apology only seemed to anger Clay further.

"You're sorry?! Is that all you can-?!" He cut himself off, and took a deep breath. When he spoke next, it was with piercing finality. "All you've ever managed to do is ruin things. Ruin us. So, if you're really as sorry as you say you are, you'll keep yourself from ruining what's left."

"Clay-" Viva protested, concern thick in her voice as she stepped forward.

Clay cut her off with a look and a shake of his head, but the bit of John that didn't feel numb appreciated the attempt.

She was good for him, he thought. He hoped they could be happy together.

Without him.

Because that was what they wanted, he realized. It was what they'd always wanted. Hadn't they always told him to mind his own business? To go away? To leave them alone? It was him who had been too stubborn to listen. Who had ignored what they'd practically been screaming in his face for years.

Not anymore, he promised. He'd already messed things up enough. For once, he was going to do something right by them.

Clay was distracted by Viva, and the others had gone back to looking at Floyd. It was like the universe was agreeing with him, telling him that he needed to take himself out of their lives for good.

He took a step back.

Two…

Three…

He took in the sight of his brothers one last time, knowing that it really would be the last time, and climbed into Rhonda.

"Let's go, girl."

She fought him for a moment, and he felt yet another pang of guilt- she'd gotten attached to them, it seemed -but eventually allowed herself to be steered away with a melancholy warble.

"It's for the best," he told her softly, eyes closing in resignation at the hollowness he could hear in his words.

A hollowness he'd experienced just one other time in his life and struggled to escape. Even now, he could see it overtaking him again in the way the color slowly leeched from his fingers and trailed up his arms.

That was fine. Last time, he'd pushed forward for Rhonda. For his brothers. For his-

He closed his eyes and slumped in the driver's seat as a fresh wave of loss swept over him.

This time, when the emptiness threatened to swallow him whole, John Dory looked into the abyss and hung his head.

It was time to stop fighting. ============== Journey (Pokemon SI/OC) ==============

"Satoshiii, you've got to be kidding me!" I groaned as I pulled his curtains open. "Seriously?! You promised you wouldn't sleep in!"

Ash waking up late was a running gag in the anime. I knew this. Really. I did.

I just hadn't realized how bad that habit actually was.

"EHHH!?!? Amy, what time is it?!"

Mrs. Ketchum must have had the patience of a saint dealing with this every single day.

"Late enough that you're only gonna have time to get dressed! Now, move it!"

"But, breakfast-"

"MOVE IT!"

He yelped and scrambled off the bed, and I hurried out of the room to give him privacy. Walking back to the kitchen, I huffed as I took a seat, rolling my eyes when I heard a loud thump echo from upstairs.

"Never a dull moment with that kid," Papa chuckled quietly into his tea, still a bit bleary-eyed himself.

"Good thing he spent the night. With Hanako gone, he wouldn't have had anyone to wake him up," Mama shook her head with a fond smile.

"Next time I'm leaving him," I grumbled, though it was halfhearted at best.

Mama handed me two lunches and I secured them in my bag before grabbing some extra riceballs for Ash and placing them on top.

"Is Shigeru going to be taking part in the field trip?"

"He said he hears enough about it at home, so no. Good thing too, I don't wanna babysit him and Satoshi. I wanna see some pokemon, too!"

It was a good way to test how things could be once I began my journey. At first, Mama and Papa had been a bit hesitant to agree when Ash brought it up yet again (he did so every year, but this was the first time we were old enough to actually go), but Uncle managed to convince them. I was going to be with a group, and Professor Oak was sure to have at least Arcanine with him, so I would be more than safe.

To his credit, Ash only took a few minutes to get dressed, but our house was a bit of a walk from Professor Oak's lab, and we found ourselves having to sprint for the last stretch of it.

"-guess we're setting off," I heard Professor Oak say and immediately pushed myself just that little bit more.

"Wait!" I called while waving my arms, never more grateful for all the running I'd done during training than at this moment. "We're here!"

I slid into the meeting place like a baseball player, taking care not to squish the contents of our lunches as I allowed myself to drop onto the grass to catch my breath. Ash was still a bit behind me, but they should be willing to wait now that I'd made it.

"Way to look like a total loser," a familiar, though currently unwelcome, voice cut in through the harsh pants.

I groaned. "I thought you weren't coming."

"I'm not," Gary scoffed. "I just got curious because Gramps hadn't left yet. Shoulda known it would be you two behind it."

"And I should have known you'd be too nosey to not butt in."

============== Horizons (FF7 SI/OC) ==============

Ryuu stretched as he wandered into the entrance area of the inn, not bothering to hold back a wide yawn as he tried to shake off the last vestiges of drowsiness. Overall, he felt much better than yesterday, his various pains now muted to a dull ache instead of the sharp throbs and spikes of before. Thank fuck for accelerated healing. Probably one of the highlights of being SOLDIER, in his opinion. Cassie's potions had only helped in that- he'd probably be back to normal by the end of the day or early tomorrow at this rate.

It was early- enough that the sun was just barely starting to rise -but to his surprise he wasn't the only one awake. The innkeeper was already up, phone pressed up against his ear and having what seemed to be a pretty serious conversation if his expression was any indication.

"-keep an eye out for him, don't you worry…It's the least I could do after everything your daughter's done for us. Besides, I know I'd want someone to do the same if it were one of my girls missing…" He sighed, tone turning apologetic. "I don't. Wasn't expecting her to leave so suddenly, or else I would've asked…I'm sure she'll be fine. She's a tough girl, and clever. She practically saved this town."

Wait. He couldn't mean-

Now completely awake, he rushed back upstairs, only just catching the innkeeper's now confused expression as he continued his conversation with who he was becoming more and more certain was Cassie's family, though unfortunately missing the question itself in his haste to check on her.

"Son of a bitch," he hissed upon opening all the guest rooms and finding them empty. "You little shit."

Is this what it felt like to have a younger sibling? He was pretty sure this was what it felt like to have a younger sibling. This sheer frustration and annoyance- suddenly, all of his friends' complaints made so much more sense. Not to mention the worry. What if she ran into something else she couldn't fight? She said that bodyguard of hers could keep her safe but how could he be sure of that? She hadn't even let him meet the guy!

Cassie'd left early on purpose. He was sure of it. The question now was why.

He wanted nothing more than to chase her down and find out, but as it stood, he couldn't. He'd updated ShinRa on his status the moment looking at his PHS didn't make his head feel like it was going to explode, but while they'd allowed him some recovery time, they were also being very pushy in their reminders that he report as soon as possible. He could understand the insistence- absolutely no one had expected what sounded like a run-of-the-mill monster extermination to put a SOLDIER out of commission, even if only for a day or so -but he wished he could just-

His PHS buzzed in his pocket, and he sighed, heading for the stairs again.

============== ============== ============== And there you have it! Hope you enjoyed the little clips! Like I said, I am working on them. It's just a lot slower than it used to be since I have a longer commute to and from work now, and by the time I get home, I'm usually too tired to write. I'll be going on a short vacation in about two weeks or so to visit my bro, and I hope to get a good chunk of writing done during that time. You may see a few chapters pop up then. Fingers crossed, at any rate. For now, I think it's back to chipping at them a little bit more. Take care!

[silver-wield]

hmm in the premise that SE is definitely set out to be killing a non existent ship in the trilogy (preferably in part 2 already), I just don't understand how anyone can think the story would go astray from it's array of chekhov's guns. Tbh, when I first watched AC, as a kid, in my mind I just assumed tifa was his gf and z and a were like his comrades who died. The part where he called him "mother" did help tons for me to think of it this way. It was only after 15 years? That I discovered there was even a debate? So I spoiled myself and by the principles of storytelling, FF7 seems to have the trope of quite literally any amnesia tropy kdrama plot I've ever seen that also exist in jp media. Aka, anything that happened during his amnesia phase does not count after finding out who he is, because he was most party manipulated to not remember things by the narrative and its character. Mind you, this is just me spoiling myself for a small context of a game i haven't played yet and only have superficial understanding of the characters. Also, the part in lifestream really sells it lol, he gets himself back? Because he was false before? It's so weird why this is even confusing.

So, I had a conversation with my bro about this and he's a debater, I told everything about the "LTD" and it's a long talk but he says, it's a non-debate. Since cloti is sourced explicitly in the game and sources, answering cloud's feelings as the main question.. the ltd asks "what does he feel for a?" But the thing is, it can also be asked "what does he feel for z?" Easily can be romantic IF we base thier "logic" of ca on zack + cloud. Canon wise both are stated as friends to him. But romantic? For both, it LITERALLY doesn't exist. It's not as to make it vague per say, but that the writers, story, and characters have no idea that it's even needed to be answered. Aka it is by default platonic. Not vague, it's platonic as stated by canon sources as it's the only one that exists. The LTD is a cult like idea that continued to persist in the fandom of FF7. But never in the mind of it's creator. This is their mistake. They find this as an activity of the fandom, but reality is, it undermines their work greatly. Destroying all the characters, and story they've made and for what? Cheap pity fan service? That's lazy. This isn't a charm of the game, but a mistake of its delivery. I mean as evident as how many pitied tifa in AC. Essentially it's like 1+1=2 (canon) but someone says it's 3. In short it's BS, but a lot are biting on "maybe it is 3" and ignoring all the proof for the sake of negating. Hence a non-debate because canon has already won and will always win.

Now, I saw a zerith point out how they're so happy they're even getting anything. Tbh I found this strange, a good story would utilize the successful built up if zack and they are thank god. But why do I see this as a random person? And they don't? I feel there's trauma in this fandom, and I hate that for all of you and a story that has intense potential. Which leads me to a "funny" thought. It seems for so long, cas have been going on about their way to misinform everyone, thus encouraging incels, dudebros, bandwagoners alike. This does not seem to sit well with devs, I sure hope so. I feel like the fact that they've been this toxic, is the reason why SE is extra mean to them and is even planning to finally give them an answer to the "what does c feel for a?" After all these time? A question that was never important to begin with because it's already platonic by default but copers want more. It is because of this desire, most likely "he doesn't feel romantically inclinde, even if you as a player did, he does not, never will, never did" would be the answer. SE could have let them have their merry way, but they've been pos. So they made the compilation, imperfect, but there's Zack, now Zerith is coming around and with closure, Cloti is being emphasized. They added stuff for cloti and more important, reduced what was "theirs". Had cloud's mocap actor emphasize cloti and downplay ca. We even had a trailer quite literally exposing to the whole world how disgusting the idea of ca is, and if you liked it? Lol get help , your morals are astray. There's so much much more, and for some reason if this is successful, if SE actually gives a shit for art and not cheap money? Then lmao, cas made all of this happen just because they can't stop fcking things up. The existence of a problem, that needs to be fixed. Because of that, ZA will be pushed on their faces, and they will definitely not like CT more with all the sexual built up in part 1. I'm obviously joking to " thank them", of course, the devs who lost their patience are to be thanked as they've been inspired to take responsibility for their shortcomings as well. But yeah, if everyone understood OG on the get go? And AC didn't get much shit? Nobody pitied tifa? doubt we would be even getting this much content for cloti, maybe cloud, and quite especially tifa.

It's a strange journey, but I hope I'm right about them having integrity. I sure hope so. I hope they don't leave room for pity, I hope they are ruthless with it. I don't think I ship anyone but I am a sucker for a masterpiece, and I very much want this to be one.

None of the devs have ever thought about that ship, and even when asked point blank Nojima was all "idk" and had to come up with something on the spot but even that was negative because he stated Aerith cares more about the planet than she would Cloud

Which is obvious from how she has zero respect for him

[orchidyoonkook]

heyyyyyyy❤hope ur good ,

sooooooo we are close to receiving a new chapter of To What We Were Before, And All The Things After?

Your writing is spectacular😭❤

This is all so interesting I need to see more of JK being jealous, the idea of ​​him being jealous makes my heart flutter so hard, will we have a strong love triangle??? Please, if so, make sure YN doesn't take stupid actions, for example, instead of talking, she prefers to jump to hasty conclusions.

I remembered your story when I watched Maxton Hall on Amazon Prime Video, it's not the same but it has a vibe, you know? I don't know how to explain it, I just liked everything haha

I am once again asking for forgiveness on late answered asks. however i genuinely thought i'd answered this one cuz it was TW3 related so: SORRY!!

anywhoooooo

I was trying to get the new chapter out before my big trip! But then life did what life does best and screwed me out of that happening, and then I sneezed and now it's July, so I'm trying my best to haul ass to post the next chapter. I've only been home for a week, and I've worked 5 of those days, had a migraine for the other two, and so it sounds like excuses, when in reality, writing creatively when youre a stupid grown up with responsibilities like chores and bullshit like having to cook meals so i can survive takes up a lot of the free time i have after work :(. And just to be clear I am not being sarcastic I'm literally so peeved I just can't write all day. Like who decided we needed to have money to live and survive. I hate this system that is not for creative minds.

ANYWHOOOOOOO

Your writing is spectacular😭❤

I will cry right now. Right this absolute second and I will not stop if you continue on with this. (Thank you so much oh my god i love you forever 😭😭😭😭)

This is all so interesting I need to see more of JK being jealous, the idea of ​​him being jealous makes my heart flutter so hard, will we have a strong love triangle??? Please, if so, make sure YN doesn't take stupid actions, for example, instead of talking, she prefers to jump to hasty conclusions.

More of JK being jealous you say?? Mmmm. Interesting. Interesting.

Y/N is a very well thoughout girly pop. She is strong in her goals and does not stray from them easily and that is literally all I can say about it without spoiling anything.

I remembered your story when I watched Maxton Hall on Amazon Prime Video, it's not the same but it has a vibe, you know? I don't know how to explain it, I just liked everything haha

BRO THE WAY THIS IS SUCH A HUGE COMPLIMENT. LIKE?????????? I loved Maxton Hall dude. like. Thats 👏my 👏shit 👏. E2L. Academic rivals. he falls first. He's pathertic for her. She has the drive of a winning racehorse. LIKE. L I K E. MY GUY. THAT IS MY SHIIIIIIIIIT. i can go on and on but that show hit all my guilty pleasure tropes and i can talk about it for hours.

SO

THE FACT. That you thought of my lil story when you watched it???? I'm gone. I'm dead. I am bewildered and flatered and out of ways to say my mind is freaking blown dude.

I know exactly what you mean, but in a rare moment of me being sassy and cocky: my story came out first (pretend the 2018 book doesnt exist to let me have my moment please cuz i didnt know the book existed until the show XD)

[jackstheprinceofhearts]

spoiler-free review on the stolen heir from an ex cardan greenbriar simp

here is photo evidence of me being cringe

alright so I have proven my ex-simp history now we can continue.

alright so first of all, let's talk about what I liked:

I thought the characters were funny, the art on the pages was gorgeous, the hardcover itself was amazing, and I really liked suren and oak as characters!

I also really liked the magic and all that and found it really interesting. I'll talk about the magic again later in the review some more)

I also thought it was just a fun book in general so I rated it 5/5 ⭐. now I do have to say it had no plot and normally I dislike that BUT if the characters are good then I can really enjoy the plotless vibes sometimes but some people just aren't the same like that. but overall I think holly did a pretty good job at making a fun book!

now, for the stuff i didn't like.... I have a few things to go over:

for me, I found the book pretty hard to follow, especially around the end... I was just so confused and maybe I'm just dumb??? but I found it to be really confusing at times.

also, I was pretty disappointed when we were told by holly that we would be getting jude and cardan "crumbs"??? like if you've read it you would know that there is barely anything, they were mentioned a few times and I get that it's oak and suren's story but I really did expect to at least like have them described or see them at some point even just one scene because she kind of made it seem like that.

like yes, there were some but when you hear that you expect there to be like scenes with them you know?? like by crumbs I thought she meant there would be like more of them in it than what we got. so I feel like a few people were just a little disappointed is all.

the next point I have is that all of the character development was at the end!!! like come on bro could we at least have had some foreshadowing or build-up or just SOMETHING to indicate what would happen?? I feel like we needed more build-up instead of just getting this ending for shock value and I was just so confused that I had to ask a few people what happened 💀 because it really just came out of nowhere and not like a "woah that plot twist was so good" like I guessed the twist but how the characters acted is what came out of nowhere but yeah I still liked the ending but it really made no sense.

also the middle of the book?? I remember very little from that because it just felt like the beginning had a lot, the end had a lot, but the middle and a lot of parts I just kind of really forgettable and I'm not saying the story is like bad because of that but I just found it hard to remember stuff but I did read it pretty fast so idk maybe if someone read it a bit slower than I did they may have remembered more but I usually remember a lot.

I also just wish some things were explained MORE. I don't mind when it's left for you to figure out sometimes but honestly, I just felt like we weren't getting AS MUCH as we could be getting, like if suren's abilities had been used a bit more or if we had seen more of what oak could do I think that could've made the story a lot more interesting. and I know yes, yes there's a second book, and oak is supposed to have this air of mystery around him and what not but with duologies, each book has to be able to stand on its own a bit more so I just wish we could've explored the magic just a little bit more

but yeah there is my spoiler-free review of the stolen heir and my thoughts on it LMAO I hope you guys enjoyed this very long review and also if you guys want me to give my thoughts on more books or start posting more about different books then please let me know. (ofc I will still be posting about ouabh & caraval, but I just wanted to make some posts on the stolen heir and share my thoughts since it is currently what everyone is talking about.) love u guys thank you for reading!!!

[brendleellipsis]

Brendle Rambles About CPU Kerfuffle For No Good Reason

I'm not entirely sure why I'm doing this.

I've been having a lot of Thoughts and Feelings these past couple days. Even more so than usual, I mean. And the way I've been working through all that is by just... talking. Kind of a lot. Massive text walls in discord servers, meandering monologues in voice call. To be frank, I'm not sure if anything I've been saying makes any sense at all, if anyone can follow my frantic, stream-of-consciousness ruminations as they jump from one topic to another, desperately clawing at the walls in the hopes that, at some point, I'll say something that matters.

But it's whatever. The written word has always been my most trusted tool of communication, of bridging the seemingly unassailable gap between me and the rest of the world. It's through sharing these thoughts of mine that I feel just a bit less alone.

Enough about that, though. I'm here to talk about CPU Kerfuffle.

(WARNING: This Shit Is Loooooong)

What a fuckin segue, am I right fellas hahahaHA

I want to make clear before I start this Already Too Long Diatribe, I have quite literally no plans going into this. I hardly have an inkling of what I'm going to say and when I'm going to say it. But, in a way, I think that can be a good thing. I too often tend to overthink things, needing my ideas to be perfectly crystallized in my mind before they're worth putting on the page. As a writer, I need to get over that shit. That sort of thought process is the enemy of progress. I've wanted to talk about this sort of thing for quite a while, but I had been putting it off because I "don't have any ideas".

Ideas are overrated. Let's fly by the seat of our pants, just this once.

So. For a bit of background, CPU Kerfuffle is a stream series, streamed on Twitch by resident silly fella @chongoblog that involves taking a bunch of Level 9 CPUs in the game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, assigning them some characters (for example, pink Captain Falcon is Captain Valentine, silver Samus is The Guy From Spy Kids 3D, etc.), and throwing them into a tournament to watch them duke it out. The series changes and evolves and becomes something so much more as it continues, but that is pretty much the core premise of it. There's improv comedy and silly character interactions, it's a ton of fun and I love it.

But yeah, the series does start off relatively simple. And in a way, that's good. The first season, comprising of the first ten episodes, is... a little bit rough, but they're still very fun. Many recommendations on how to get into the series suggested skipping Season 1 and starting with Season 2, which premiered after a lengthy hiatus and served as a soft reboot, as it's a bit more indicative of what the rest of the episodes would be like. And I'm not going to disagree with that... but I also think the Season 1 episodes are worth watching too. Not just because they have the same charm, though they certainly do, and not just because you'll get to see the first appearances of some major characters, but because it's honestly quite fascinating to watch the show evolve from its more simple roots.

The first couple episodes don't really have much in terms of an overarching story, but I feel that they establish a status quo, which I feel is necessary for a story before you shake it up. You'd also get to see the commentators experiment with giving the characters small arcs within the confines of the tournament, the first of which being a character named Squid Jenny, who had her arc in Episode 2. You'd then be able to see the hosts try out their first arc that extended beyond the barriers of a single episode, with the Crimson Arc. I started watching this series around Episode 5, so being there, on the ground floor, watching the silly funny Smash Bros. show become a bit more than that. Of course, it was still very much a comedy, and the major players in the story didn't have nearly as much depth as they would in future episodes and arcs, but... there's something very cathartic and fascinating about watching this creative process happen in real time, to see the creators test their limits with each consecutive episode.

CPU Kerfuffle is the very first, and so far only, fandom that I have actively participated in. Ryan Chongoshow, aforementioned host of CPUK, has a discord server for his streams, and as such, there's a channel for the silly funny Smash Bros. show as well. This was my first real experience interacting with people who care about a story as much as I do, being able to actually express my thoughts on a piece of media to others. Eventually, I started writing fanfiction. For a show about Smash Bros. CPUs. On its face, the idea seems a bit absurd and dumb, and part of me felt insecure about it, but I knew the people I had found company with cared just as much as I did. Yes, the show was a comedy, it was irreverent and filled with shitposts, but there was still a passion there for the stories being told. And that passion only grew when Season 2 came around.

As I said before, the beginning of Season 2 acted as a sort of reboot for the series. Season 1 had gone on hiatus with a bit of a cliffhanger, with the Crimson Arc having some major loose ends untied (for context, the previous episode ended with Crimson seemingly killing one of the contestants). The first order of business was wrapping that shit up, and then continuing from there. There was a mini-arc that involved, to use a wrestling term, an absolute heel of a character that everyone, including the hosts, loathed with all their being, and again, it had the hosts experimenting with character arcs once again, which led rather cleanly into the next arc, which is widely considered one of, if not the best in the series. (My opinions on whether or not that's true are complicated, we'll get into it later)

If Crimson was an experiment in seeing what an overarching villain could do for a series like this, Dr. Order was the refined final product. Of all the villains in this series, she by far had the most incredible stage presence; she was arrogant and egotistical, she knew she was better than you and she was going to make sure you knew it too.

She is also a Wii Fit Trainer. So, there's that.

Order was introduced in Episode 14, and honestly, even then, I don't think anyone really realized what she was going to become, not even the hosts. Because, like. How could you think she'd be that good a villain? She's a Wii Fit Trainer. She sucks at fighting. She got unceremoniously dunked on by a Chrom named Bing. And then she came back the next episode with a clone of Bing, named Google.

(This is going to be a weird aside, but I want to talk about the community again and how cool they are. One of the greatest joys of being a CPUK fan is that the only real designs we have of these characters are Smash Bros. renders. And while this was certainly unintentional, I think Ryan Chongoshow accidentally created the most fan-artable show of all time. The Smash Bros. characters and the color schemes created a base with which to build off of, with everyone in the community having their own interpretations of the characters. That said, one of the fun things about it being a community is that, sometimes, collective headcanons just Become the way everyone thinks about the character. Google, who I mentioned earlier? I don't remember who decided he was a robot clone, I don't think it was mentioned in the show itself, but the community just Decided he was a robot! I love that! It's great!)

Anyways. I won't get too deep into the specifics of how the plot progresses, because if I did, we'd be here forever, and we all know this post is too fucking long as it is, but Dr. Order showing up again with Google starts the arc proper. Dr. Order is your classic mad scientist, she's just making shit happen because she can. There are several very important characters that have direct connections to her, being her experiments. There's the aforementioned Google, a clone of Bing meant to be the perfect fighter. There's Machiavelli, the ultimate lifeform, and Mach 2, who was built to be superior to Machiavelli in every way and just Isn't. There's Hackerman J0hn, who's an actual cyborg. There's Larry the Florida Man, a shapeshifter who's a whole fuckin can of worms that I won't get into but he's one of the best characters and honestly a perfect microcosm of what makes Kerfuffle's method of storytelling kick so much ass.

One of the great things about this arc is how personal it all feels. Crimson was, at most, an agent of chaos. He was characterized as this malevolent force of nature that tormented the tournament for no reason other than that he could. Crimson would get recharacterized later, with new lore being added to flesh him out a bit, but it took a bit for that to happen. Dr. Order, from the very beginning, is human. One would think that she'd be a downgrade in terms of scope, but not only does she begin dealing with forces she doesn't understand, she also makes every interaction she has with the tournament fighters feel intentional, calculated, and malicious.

This arc is where the show fully comes into its own. The final stretch, from Episodes 17-20, are some of the most tense and fun and satisfying experiences I had ever seen, seeing the culmination of what the show was. Dr. Order might not have been intended to be a villain from the beginning, but she became the perfect villain for CPU Kerfuffle. Season 2 begins with the disparate chaos of the tournament be brought to a standstill by a new head of the tournament, Iggy Koopa (yes, that one). Teams are put in place, and each fighter from that point on is enrolled in the tournament as a part of those teams. There's a real sense of camaraderie there, where these eight teams lift each other up, while also competing fair and square to see who's the best. Yes, the Kerfuffle tournament can get a bit... dramatic at times, but at the heart of it, it's a community. And Dr. Order is the antithesis of all of that. She does not have a team, she has subordinates, tools, with which she can claw her way to the top. She does not fight fair, she uses trickery and subterfuge to win her battles. Part of this is because she's a Wii Fit Trainer who sucks at fighting, but it unintentionally allows her to become even more of a malign figure in the cast of characters. And this makes it so, when she's eventually beaten in Episode 20 (which was an absolute Event in my life that I'll never forget, I cried actual tears), it doesn't only feel like the jerk was beaten up, but that community and friendship and love had triumphed over callous selfishness, that the ideal of defining who you are had beaten this monolith of petty control. And, yeah, that sounds like some Saturday morning cartoon Power Of Friendship nonsense, but. Fuck, man, that breaks me open.

And in many ways... I might very well be reading too far into things, but sometimes it feels like the themes of the silly funny Smash Bros. show reflect the feelings I have with its community. The world can be horrifying and monstrous. And it sometimes feels as though there is no way to endure it, that there's no point in enduring it. But... every once in a while, while I'm walking through this cold, dense, endless forest, enduring the slow but excruciating crawl of time moving forward... I find a campfire. I find people, telling jokes, telling stories. And... I think those little campfires are so deeply important. I think they're necessary. In a cold and indifferent world, it's vital that we find little pockets of joy and whimsy and absurdity and optimism, and that we share it with one another. We take our hope and our joy wherever we can get it. We try telling stories. We try telling jokes, drawing little pictures in the dirt. And that is the point.

To be honest, I've been considering ending this overly long diatribe here, if only because this has gotten insultingly long, and expecting people to read it is probably hoping for too much. If I did end it here, it would feel right. I've reached an emotional climax, and end point, I've said something that matters.

But... there's still more of the show to talk about.

CPU Kerfuffle does not end at Season 2. There was a hiatus after the Season 2 finale, which was by all means earned. But it did eventually come back for a Season 3. And I'm not going to talk too terribly much about Season 3? But I want it to be clear that it's not because it is somehow not as good as Season 2. In many ways, I prefer it. It explored the ramifications of Dr. Order's reign of terror in some really cool ways, and it's truly astonishing how, even after the villain's definitive defeat, her impact still echoes through all of the characters that she hurt. It's really great stuff.

The lore of the show is expanded even further. I didn't mention it earlier, but the first arc villain, Crimson, had a sister introduced in the tail end of Season 2, named Chartreuse. Where Crimson had domain over dimensions and space, Chartreuse had domain over time. And in Season 3, a third sibling is introduced, named Cobalt, the god of life and death. These deities are some of my favorite characters in the show. They're vastly different from one another, but in their own ways, they do very much come off as gods, as immortal, unfathomable beings. All three of them are fascinating, but I did not bring them up so I could gush about how much I love them.

I brought them up to talk about Prism.

This is another example of CPU Kerfuffle expanding on and, occasionally, slightly retconning parts of its established lore to tell a kickass story. Prism first appeared in Episode 15, and beyond doing some Wacky Stuff, she didn't seem particularly noteworthy. So imagine my surprise when she returns in Season 3 and introduces herself as the caretaker of the color gods, their babysitter, for lack of a better term. I honestly can not describe how kickass that revelation was.

Prism is a really fun villain. She is similar to Dr. Order in a lot of ways, but different in others. She does represent a monolith of control, with even the deities that look after time and space being simple disobedient children to her. But she is quite different when it comes to her mannerisms and methods. She is much more prone to talking things out, with an honestly chilling cheer, a smile that you can't quite tell whether it's genuine or false. Dr. Order is a villain that is fun to watch. Prism is oppressive, she dominates every conversation she is a part of, all while maintaining her bright attitude. It's absolutely chilling.

Prism begins an arc called The Grand Kerfuffle, an absolutely gargantuan bracket that was more akin to eight tournaments stacked in a trenchcoat than a single tournament. And to me, it honestly felt like the closest we could ever get in this show to a Final Arc. Each leg of the tournament felt like an event, with major plot turns, more build up to Prism as a villain, and the reveal that Spectrum, the elusive parent of the color gods, is dying. Spectrum had been foreshadowed for quite a while, so getting confirmation on its existence was huge. Crazy bullshit was happening, it was all ramping up to something incredible, I could just feel it-

And... then CPU Kerfuffle went on hiatus. And it never came back.

First off, I want to make this damn clear, I do not blame the creators for this happening. Mental health and maintaining ones own stability is so much more important than streaming a silly funny Smash Bros. show. Also, it's also not like things have abruptly ended, never to be seen again. During this lengthy break, Ryan Chongoshow has been doing Non-Canon Curiosity Tournaments (or NCCTs) in the aforementioned discord server. They're a lot of fun, and while it isn't the same, it is giving me the things about CPUK that I cared about most, the character interactions and the interesting plot lines. I honestly want to go into some of the ideas posed there, but this interminable post is long enough and explicitly non-canon material is where I draw the line.

With all that being said, though... I can't help but feel at least a little sad about that. Because, the more time passes, the more it becomes likely that CPU Kerfuffle just isn't coming back. Not in the way it was, at least. I've been trying to come to terms with that for a long time. Other people in the community seem to have done that. But... I'm not really sure if I can? To be clear, this is not meant to be a guilt trip. That being said, I've had far too many things in my life just... end. And not in a satisfying way, the way most stories do. They just stop. Friendships, and lives, and my own damn childhood. Done, just like that. Very abrupt. No closure. And as much as I can understand that sometimes, things are just Like That... it doesn't stop it from hurting. It doesn't stop me from wishing things were different. Wishing that my best friend in elementary school would have at least talked to me before wordlessly ending our friendship. Wishing that I could have spoken to my grandmother one more time before I lost the chance to. Wishing that a global pandemic hadn't ended my high school experience early, cutting me off into a cold, frightening world that I didn't know how to navigate.

Wishing that... that silly funny Smash Bros. show that helped me get through those hard times didn't have to end like that.

I'm well aware that I'm being wildly selfish, and irrational. Turns out, people are just like that sometimes. I get angry that my thoughts and feelings never coalesce, never make sense... but then I have to remember that none of us make sense. The world doesn't make sense. Life doesn't make sense.

But we have to live it anyway.

This could very well just be me reaching for a poignant ending to this meandering thesis I just wrote. Maybe I'm looking too deep into things where that depth just doesn't exist. Maybe I'm feeling just a bit too much about a silly funny Smash Bros. show. But, to be honest? I don't care.

The world is cruel, and cold, and uncaring, and confusing, and every day that I keep living has the potential to be a trial that I can't overcome.

But sometimes the rat wins. Sometimes a Florida man hits a shitty lady in the face with a volleyball. Sometimes a time traveling dog flirts with a time goddess and it becomes something beautiful, and you laugh and you cry and you feel as much as you can.

And then, with the memories of those times behind you, propping you up, keeping you from falling, you keep living.