#I love drawing her in different outfits and whatnot it's so fun

[pyr0peyt]

Winter be damned my girl can SLAY

[radioconstructed]

⌖ Don't ever question my VOCAL RANGE! HAHA! This was FUN!

[ DJ Cummerbund - Shaxicula (Loveshack x Toxic x Dragula) ]

[danwhobrowses]

One Piece 1000 - 10 Confessions as a One Piece Fan

Although we did the Initial Thoughts a week ago (a long week ago, damn) which you can read here I wanted to do something for the official release of One Piece’s 1000th Chapter At first it started out to be ‘10 things I wanna ask Oda that I don’t think we’ll ever know’ but I couldn’t think of 10, then I was gonna do a General opinion post about it, but didn’t want it to come off too negative. So I am settling on a confessions post, which will have elements of these anyway.

So as we have a happy 1000, let’s talk about some stuff I usually don’t get to talk about in One Piece

Note: There will probably be spoilers so make sure you’re up to date

10. Late Beginnings I think the first confession I have to have is that despite being older than One Piece I am unfortunately not a ‘Day One’ fan. In fact I think I mainly got into One Piece around mid-Whole Cake Island arc, before I had of course known about One Piece, it was a ‘Big Three’ anime after all but the most I knew about it was that they had a guy named Luff-y and another called Zorro, and it was about ‘Pirates who can’t swim’. My curiosity only developed when in a youtube deep-dive of anime clips I kept being recommended One Piece clips, and decided to give a couple a go. Most of them were Paradise arc stuff from the anime, the dub voices were mostly atrocious so I stuck to sub. I was happily surprised about the amount of fun and emotional weight these clips gave me, which led me to check where One Piece was as of current and backtrack from there (Ironically I did the same with Beastars). I did eventually get caught up around the time of the Mafia Meeting and I’ve kept up with each chapter since.

9. I mostly still prefer the Pre-Timeskip looks When I first felt this I thought it to be pretty controversial, nowadays not so much. I understand that Oda wanted to change the look for many characters but some of them did feel like a downgrade. I think the ones who got it worst was Franky, I think it’s the bulbous shoulders, Franky was no stranger to body horror from Enies Lobby to Sabaody but I kinda preferred that he still had a lot of his humanity rather than looking like an action figure. Otherwise I think Robin, Nami and Chopper had it bad, maybe Brook too but his was more fashion than design; the women in general took heavy hits by Oda’s proportion design - I mean I get it boobs are nice but proportions are what make them better - but Robin also underwent a skin color change in the anime, who pre-timeskip shaded her skin darker than in the manga and corrected it to match the manga, I think most of us would’ve preferred Robin to have kept the darker skin tone and possibly even the fringe, Robin’s hairstyle (and her fashion in general) can be hit and miss. I go to and fro about Nami, other than the general waist and bust adjustments I think it fits her character to use her sexuality a bit, she was no stranger to that pre-Timeskip, sometimes though I can’t tell whether I preferred her with short or long hair (Short was definitely better on Nojiko), I do think though that Oda could have her show less skin, she is still very pretty in outfits such as Water 7, Thriller Bark and even her fake pirate disguise in the early chapters/episodes. Finally with Chopper I think it was a bad move to alter the hat, that was a memento from his father figure Hiriluk, it’d be like if Luffy altered his straw hat or Zoro replacing Wado Ichimonji, I do also feel that the design for Chopper’s points while easier to draw don’t look as good, I think a lot of it is the scruff, or lack thereof in favour of smoothness, Walk Point is fine but Heavy Point, Guard Point and Horn Point seem less threatening, Monster Point especially too, in Enies Lobby he looked like a cave painting of menace and destruction, now he’s smoother and his scruff lighter so it’s not as good. The rest of the designs I’m quite fine with though.

8. I wish some markings stuck as well Tattoos and Scars seem to be optional in the One Piece world sometimes, unless it’s branded in molten heat like the Dragon’s hoof, Sun Pirates logo or an attack from Sakazuki. While Nami’s redesigned tattoo has stuck around and Luffy and Zoro’s scars persist, they are mainly character reminders/mysteries for huge moments in the story, and I kinda wish that some of the Straw Hats had littler markings, not just scars either. For instance, the Alabasta X on the arm, I really wish that stayed on each of the Alabasta characters’ arms since it was a symbol of friendship with Vivi, I also wish that Luffy kept the 3D2Y mark on his arm. In terms of scars though it would’ve been nice to see the characters a bit more battle-worn; Zoro’s ankle scars from Mr. 3 have faded and frankly he should be covered in little and long scratches given his fights with Mr. 1 and 2 years of Mihawk Training, Nami’s shoulder scar is hidden completely by her tattoo and she has no scars on her hand (from fake stabbing Usopp) or foot (from blocking Miss Doublefinger), Usopp himself could’ve used some small scratches because lord knows how there’s even still bones in his nose plus he was in murder island for 2 years, Chopper could at least have a small bald patch from when his shoulder was impaled and burned by Shura’s fire lance too, other than that there’s just Jimbei’s potentially missing shoulder scar from Marineford, though Oda has kept it obscured a lot so maybe that is still there. I understand why Oda doesn’t or forgets to, but it would’ve been nice if we lived in a vacuum of no time limits and whatnot.

7. Dead End Adventure is my favourite One Piece film I don’t know what it is, but Dead End Adventure just gives me the most fun out of the One Piece films. It has a good side plot and the side character Shuraiya was a blast of a character. Granted, Gaspard wasn’t too good of a villain side for actually harming the straw hat and his defeat was a bit underwhelming but the race, the settings it was all fun. It is not to say I don’t enjoy any other One Piece movies, I delight in the horror fuel of Baron Omatsuri - and that killer final punch - and Z’s tragic tale of a fallen marine, Strong World has that epic entrance to the party and Stampede also had some great team up moments and fantastic writing for Usopp and Smoker but Dead End Adventure always feels like the movie I could watch in any mood.

6. Skypeia and Fishman Island are some of my favourite arcs While I can understand the criticism of the Long Ring Long Land arc (especially since the anime dragged out the Davy Back Fight) it surprised me that people found Skypeia and Fishman Island arcs to be boring or less entertaining than previous arcs. Everyone has their preferences of course but I felt that Skypeia and Fishman Island were very powerful arcs especially with the theme of racism. Both had glorious setting design different to the common customs of the world we had seen, Oda made both Skypeia and Fishman Island feel very much lived in with its own budding culture and prejudices, with a villain who was dead set on destroying everything just to have their way. With Enel and his priests we were able to push several characters to newer limits, with Robin showing her fighting capabilities, Zoro learning his projectile slashes, Chopper having to endure fighting 3 priests and even Usopp growing all the more braver in the face of seemingly indestructible opponents and later gaining access to the dials. With Fishman Island it was different because it was basically a ‘flex arc’: where the main villain is meant to be a stepping stone rather than a threat but even then the symbolism of the enemy is what’s significant with them, the inherited hatred of humans. But at the same time we do learn new strengths from the crew; Red Hawk, the use of armament Haki, Skywalk, Hell Memories, Franky Shogun, Usopp’s pop greens, Nami’s weather eggs, Brook’s Soul Solid and his new DF power (which is possibly an awakening), as well as the first true steps of Jimbei joining the crew. The biggest strength of both arcs is the flashback as well, like Wano would in present time both arcs demonstrated that Oda can carry a story without his main characters and still keep it as captivating as ever, be it the friendship of Noland and Calgara, the tragedies of Otohime and Fisher Tiger or the life of Kozuki Oden and the man who would be Pirate King. And the impact of Fishman Island and Skypeia’s flashbacks both come back around in Dressrosa with the dwarves and Koala, and Fishman Island really does kick off the whole Yonko saga with Luffy challenging Big Mom, these arcs were definitely significant as they were entertaining with silly faces, strong fights, challenging themes, lorebuilding, good side characters and unique twists. And the overall message of healing from the past is still significant to this day. Through Wyper’s sacrifice and the Bell ringing to Jimbei giving blood and the Ryugu royals wanting to attend the Reverie, it is all very powerful stuff and while the arcs are similar in nature its their similarities that make me love them. Also the cover stories with Enel and Gedatsu on their own mini adventures are fun

5. I really want to know where Ghin is Ghin/Gin was such an interesting character in Baratie. Given that this was right before Arlong Park too so we had not seen a character conflict with different loyalties in One Piece until then, his gratitude to Sanji against his loyalty to Krieg created a fantastically complex character, but then he left and we didn’t hear about him ever since. Did he survive Krieg’s poison gas? Is he still with Krieg? One reactor of the episode said “maybe he’ll become the next Don” which was a concept I kinda really liked. The guy was pretty strong given that he had bested Sanji at that time, and since he didn’t appear in a cover story my mind does wonder. It’s not just Ghin either, a lot of the early East Blue characters kinda fell off the map; where is Morgan? Last we saw he was sleeping as he sailed past Jango, where is Kuro? For someone wanting to resume piracy after some years off he has been very quiet, where is Krieg? Only Arlong and Morgan were arrested and the latter escaped so the rest of these characters are a mystery. Recently in Wano I am still wondering where Law’s crew that he brought to Onigashima went, as well as Caribou - where is that slippery bugger?

4. Basil Hawkins is probably one of my Top 5 Supernova There’s something about that dude I gravitate towards, which makes it quite frustrating when the anime decides to add extra malice and creepy faces to him. Hawkins in Wano is still a victim, if anything he is simply a prisoner with better working conditions, if he thought he could survive escaping Kaido he would but he doesn’t so he won’t, he’s also gonna feel sore about Drake betraying him and letting Law cut him up, so it annoys me that Hawkins is seen like a villain. Not only does he have an extremely interesting Devil Fruit and creativity with it but he’s also audaciously confident in his fortunetelling, even Luffy ran from Kizaru at Sabaody while Hawkins looked at his cards while Kizaru was about to boot him to holy hell and said ‘nah I’m not dying today’, you gotta respect that moxie. At the same time though as a pirate he has that shades of grey element, he’s okay with letting some of his crew be disposable and we don’t even know to what end, he doesn’t look like a guy too concerned about being Pirate King or having riches. I also get a good laugh in that his hobbies are interior design, it makes me really want to see what the inside of his ship looks like. I think as a top 5, I have Luffy, Zoro, Law, Hawkins and then Kid, Bege, Killer and Bonney are not far behind with Apoo dead last because fuck Apoo. Kid and Killer are cool but I do feel like they need a bit more character, Bege earned some points in being funny and his care for his family in WCI and then there’s Bonney - I really hope we dig into Bonney’s significance, she feels really important and that mystery keeps her fresh whenever we see her. Drake too has only really started to become interesting because of SWORD, we could still see more fleshing but for now he is like bottom 3. It’s a shame Urouge has to be so low, he’s not bad but he’s not spectacular either, gotta admire his hobby of lovemaking though, you do you Urouge.

3. I don’t think that either of the ‘Most Beautiful Women in the World’ are the Most Beautiful Women in One Piece The in-world consensus seems to be that the Most Beautiful Women in the World are Boa Hancock, Komurasaki and Shirahoshi, and granted they are very pretty, but the most? Not for me. I mean, y’all know that Nico Robin, Nami and Vinsmoke Reiju exist right? Makino as well is stunning, as are Tashigi, Bonney, Margaret, Ishilly, Nojiko, Vivi, Rebecca, Pudding, Perona, Cosette and I’m sure a few others, realistically I think they could all give them a run for their money. I get how for those three their beauty is a plot point (Boa it’s drilling home Luffy’s obliviousness to it, Komurasaki it’s the swerve of her not being awful and for Shirahoshi it’s due to Vander Decken IX pulling the creep factor on her) but it would’ve worked the same way without the ‘world’ hyperbole I think. As much as Oda is iffy with proportions and rarely writes women with as much attention as the boys he sure knows how to make them attractive.

2. Some of my favourite individual Straw Hat scenes aren’t in Canon If I were to have a top 5 moments of each character, it may surprise you that some of it comes from movies or filler episodes, particularly Sanji’s flexing on Jessica in the G8 Arc (in fact, Jonathon is one of my favourite marines, T-Bone is in there too, but I don’t have room to fit that). Some are of course obvious because of how iconic they are but it does go to show that sometimes filler isn’t all bad. Since you’re probably curious: As a Group Goodbye Merry [Enies Lobby] Entering Shiki’s Palace [Strong World] Walk to Arlong Park [Arlong Park] Entering the Grand Line [Reverse Mountain] vs a Stuck Oars [Thriller Bark] Jimbei Giving Luffy Blood [FMI] Vagabond Drill on Big Mom [WCI] Leaving the Big Mom Pirates [WCI] Returning in Wano [Wano] Trying to argue with Luffy [FMI] Brook vs Chess Soldiers & Big Mom [WCI] Flashback [Thriller Bark] Breaking Mother Carmel’s Picture [WCI] Baron Corpse vs Dog Minks [Zou] Hysterically laughing at seeing Duval [Sabaody] Franky vs Senor Pink [Dressrosa] Playing with the Kids [Punk Hazard] vs Fukurou [Enies Lobby] Freedom Roller [Wano] Trapping Caribou in the Barrel [FMI] Robin  I Want to Live [Enies Lobby] Clutching Spandam [Enies Lobby] Throwing Usopp under the bus [G8] vs Yama [Skypeia] Clutching Tequila Wolf guards [Amazon Lily] Chopper Monster Point [Enies Lobby] Flashback [Drum Island] Chopper Man (& Minoru Kazeno) vs Usobada [Chopper Man Special] Don’t blow the whistle: Immediately blows whistle [Skypeia] Dr Chopper the definitely Human Doctor not wearing fake glasses [G8] Vivi w/ Karoo (she counts okay!) Goodbye speech [Alabasta] Escaping Bon Clay [Alabasta] Karoo Digging Luffy Out [Little Garden] Luffy Fan Club Meeting [Reverie] Slapping Usopp awake [Drum Island] Nami vs Kalifa [Enies Lobby] Standing by the kids [Punk Hazard] Saying goodbye to Bell-mere [Arlong Park] Helping Luffy vs Cracker via Lola’s Vivre Card [WCI] Luffy WILL be Pirate King [Wano] Sanji ‘I needed a light’ [Skypeia] Flexing on Jessica [G8] Saving the Vinsmokes [WCI] O-Soba Mask [Wano] vs Doflamingo [Dressrosa]  Usopp Alabasta speech [Alabasta] Awakening Observation Haki [Dressrosa] Sogeking Theme Song [Enies Lobby] vs Perona [Thriller Bark] Saving Luffy from the fire [Stampede]  Zoro Nothing Happened [Thriller Bark] vs Ryuma [Thriller Bark] vs Mr. 1 [Alabasta] vs Gyukimaru & Kamazo [Wano] “He’s sweeping our floors that fiend!” Test of Luck [Loguetown] Luffy ‘On the Sea, you fight Pirates’ [Wano] Red Roc [Wano] vs Katakuri [WCI] Haki clash with Doflamingo [Dressrosa] Punching Saint Charloss [Sabaody] I will have to say that for some characters I could go to 20 so if one’s missing it may’ve just missed the mark, such as Usopp and Nami vs Enel or Luffy putting back a Zombie or Stealth Luffy, I mean it is 1000 chapters as well as movies and filler episodes/specials...

1. I’ve learned quite a lot due to One Piece Since my fascination started with a deep dive of checks, I did start to learn a hell of a lot more not just about the franchise itself (you know it’s almost catching up BATMAN on total sales, which has been around more than 3 times longer?) but I also learned a lot about stuff Oda has used as a reference key; folklore, actual pirates, actual practices, the amount of detail Oda puts in is astounding. Which does lean into another thing I’ve learned, One Piece has changed the way I approach some of my ideas for writings and whatnot, before I would be afraid of either spoonfeeding or being too vague, Oda’s mastery not only in storytelling but character development, character quality and pacing has both helped and intimidated me a lot of times, I mean consider this: it took hundreds of chapters to get a proper backstory on Luffy, the main character, how unprecedented is that? Often I could fall into the trap of making sure you knew everything about the main character from day one but now I wonder about what’s necessary for the now and what can I work on. Another thing that both inspires and intimidates me is his drawing, I suck at colours and still do, and a lot of Oda’s attention to detail is incredible considering he’s gotta whip that out on the weekly, but at the same time you see some of his rough sketches and they’re pretty similar to a rough sketch of my own, so in a way it’s a ‘there’s still hope for you’ moment seeing those. I can’t say I’ve learned Japanese from listening to One Piece, but I have picked up on some stuff, some hiragana there, some phonetics here, I also appreciated some of the stuff kaizokuou-ni-naru does (I won’t tag them in case that’s a bit rude to do it out of the blue but check out their tumblr) when it came to deciphering the Japanese of chapters and the little puns and hints Oda puts in his native tongue. And of course any One Piece fan has learned one thing above all else: Patience. Oda himself included, it took over 20 years to get to 1000 chapters and we still have plenty of questions to ask, plenty of islands to see and thus plenty of chapters to go. So Straw Hats off to you Oda, and a happy 1000th!

[mariacallous]

My history education from K to 4th grade was not super Rigorous (because private Catholic school in suburban San Francisco Bay Area but like...Oakland/Berkeley suburbs leading up towards Fairfield and Sonoma. Fortunately I was a fucking nerd with two heavy reader parents so I got to feel superior because I read history and stuff for fun outside of school). 4th grade was CALIFORNIA HISTORY because I remember the Missions (where we briefly, if at all, touched on the colonial and hardly at all on what many could/would/did call genocidal aspects).

5th grade was your basic history and I remember at one point we had to dress up as historical figures and present our life stories? And i chose Nicholas II because of course I fucking did and I got dinged for not being fully creative with my cotume, which was meant to be his under house arrest outfit? IDK, my family didn’t have a ton of money and I wasn’t going to put too much effort into it since other people did more work on the costume and less on their history.

6th grade was history from “ancient times” up to about the early middle ages? We made pyramids out of sugar cubes, made papyrus parchment art, traced someone’s body to make a greek god/goddess (we got Athena and I was very pleased and I also posed to be Athena), and we also made a mummy which was basically drawing on pieces of paper and decorating and layering.

7th grade history was from wherever we theoretically left off in the early middle ages right up to maybe World War, if not maybe late 19th century.

8th grade was back to US history and I will never forget writing a ton about the causes of World War I and then being told that while I was technically correct I didn’t discuss enough about the US.

9th grade history was some bullshit newly created social studies class that was a mishmash from all over the place with a blatantly copywright-infringing “reader” that was just a ton of chapters and articles from various sources photocopied together - we spent some time talking about the indigenous tribes of Northern California which is the only coursework related topic I remember - the teacher was way past their prime and drank mouthwash out of their coffee cup. I got my first referral to the administrative office from this teacher because I was trying to correct something that was being said and defend a classmate who was being hectored by the teacher, which gave me my in with the cool kids group who went to a different middle school and out of which I still have my best friend after all these years (who was a frequent challenger of the teacher as well because she also loved history and didn’t tolerate being treated the way this teacher treated a lot of people - her mom actually sat in on a class once just to see and he didn’t notice for the longest time even though it had all been arranged and discussed).

10th grade history we were back to Europe and I liked the class and the teacher liked me but he was also kind of a jockbro (but an at least over-45 one, if not over-50) and also kind of a chauvinist dick. But I was in my element once again. We may have touched on non-European history but I don’t think it was prioritized. And this class had geography quizzes and whatnot.

11th grade was AP US History and it had the best teacher and was my absolute favorite and I will never forget how great it was even though we barely got to 9/11 and the textbooks ended right when Clinton was being impeached (because that was happening when they were being published). We did Jeopardy and I had to be told that I wasn’t allowed to answer at a certain point every game session.

12th grade was AP Government and Economics - one semester of each. The teacher was a fusty old basically libertarian dude who did not want me to discuss too much about Keynesian economics or governmental relations because it was a very cut-and-dried, both parties are basically the same and driven by interests and power. And this was in the middle of the 2008 recession too and so my classmates might have had some of the basic mechanics of how things worked but that was it. And we had the various issues discussions too which was fun.

We spent a lot of time going over the EPA, I remember, and particularly like Reagan’s appointees and how they interacted with Congress.

And then I took various history classes in college.

Suburban San Francisco Bay Area K-12 public education history classes, y’all. 

[thearcanaartificer]

Okay! These are not the next ones I had, but I crunched through this ask list faster. Here is the original post. I will be cutting off my post a bit because I will only be doing half here and half in another post.

Thank you to those that are reading this and enjoying it. If you ever want to chat, I love talking.

OC asks that reveal more than you think.

1. Do they sleep with a stuffed animal? If they have multiple, who’s the favorite?

She has a few. She made a lot of stuffed animals when she was regaining a lot of her motor skills as a way to practice stitching and pattern making, though most she donated to the local orphanage for the children there and a few have been given to her pets. She likes making stylized bunnies, dogs, cats, birds, and teddy bears. Asra had to hide most of her old ones she had from their childhood- even the ones she had made him when he was ten.

Her most prized one is actually one that she found that Asra didn’t hide very well. A black bunny with mismatched button eyes. She calls it Pumpkin (Yes, she had just bitten into some of Sesali’s pumpkin bread when she named the thing). It’s not well put together and the type of stitching that was used is the wrong choice- like a surgeon had sewn it together like they would a laceration- and messy, but the thing is worn and obviously well loved. She felt attached to it from the first moment she discovered it.

She use to chew on its ears a lot when she was first recovering from her amnesia as a from of comfort. She’s stopped since then, but she takes the best care of it since its the only part of her past that she seems to be able to hold on to without headaches.

2. Can they take care of a plant? What about a pet? What about a child?

Yes to all three! Though she is a bit of a scatterbrain when she’s in the middle of a big thought or job, she’s actually very good at taking care of things. Plants are easy enough, just water them and make sure they are maintained and make sure they get the right amount of sunlight. Boom. Done.

Pets, she has a multitude and some of them are exotic, so she has a few rescues scattered around Vesuvia to keep them properly cared for and has actually hired other Vopels to keep them for her. But she has at least five at home that are hers to care for and she takes very good care of them. Her dog is almost always by her side, her cat is intelligent enough to find her when he wants her company, and her familiar is a bird, so he comes and goes but she always has bones ready for him if he doesn’t want to have to scavenge.

3. Ask them to describe their love interest.

Big dumb, leggy bird of a man.

Okay, she knows he’s not dumb. He’s honestly one of the smartest men she knows- but he does dumb things when left unsupervised! So when she’s trying to describe him in a way that doesn’t give away the fact that he’s Julian Devorak- the wanted ‘murderer’ of the Count- she calls him that.

But if she’s asked to describe her love the right way? He’s a handsome man with the prettiest wild russet red curls of hair, strong nose, and a charismatic energy that will just pull you in. He wears mostly dark colors with at least one flashy bright one for dramatic flair and stands above the rest of the crowd with his height. He may be wearing his eye patch- no he doesn’t need it, its for the aesthetics, thankyouverymuch. He’s brilliant and kind and despite his towering, threatening looking frame, would rather cling tightly to her hand and draw courage from her presence. But he’s brave with or without her. He’s tender and altruistic and plays the part of being confident, but can get nervous and anxious if left alone in his head too long.

4. Do they look good in red?

She thinks she looks good in anything that isn’t predominately white or pastel. So red? Throw in some black or dark greys and yeah, she could work it.

She’d prefer orange though…

5. Speech! Speech! Speech! Speech! Will they give one, and what about?

Yes, she’d give you one. No, you don’t want her too. Hers are a bit complicated and unending and always to the wrong audience. One minute she’s giving some normal speech about whatever the occasion is and next, she’s trying to teach a bunch of drunks the nonlinear properties of the magic realms and how to navigate their way through time lapses, its like the folds of fabric with how they intermingle and touch from one time to another, and the different realms can be tricky based on their patterns and-hey Juli put me down! I’m trying to give a speech about- why are we leaving?!

6. Who will they take advice from, no matter what it is? Who won’t they take advice from, no matter what it is?

Old Glory, surprisingly. She’ll take most advice from other Vopel women and even Asra, but she’ll toss out a lot of their sillier ones- like don’t date Ilya (Asra’s). But anything Glory tells her tends to be very good advice (she’s never given her bum advice) and she’s far better with reading people than Odelia and so she’ll just default listen to her on a lot of topics.

She has a long list of who she won’t take advice from, but, to no one’s surprise, she’ll instantly tune out Valdemar’s advice. They rub her wrong and even if the advice is solid, she’ll ignore it because why would she ever want or take their advice?

7. Describe them in three words. Now let them describe themself in three words.

Smol chaotic neutral.

Controlled, chaotic exuberance.

8. Do complex puzzles intrigue or frustrate them?

The more complicated the puzzle, the more interested Odelia is. She has a deep love for whodunit novels because she loves a good mystery to piece together. Her mind loves puzzles of any sort. Magic and science both have the allure of being a puzzle, especially when she’s working on projects that require them to work in tandem (hence her unique brand of magical artificery). Asra use to bring her little puzzles to fidget with as she reclaimed the dexterity of her fingers and she’d just sit there playing with them- before she could even properly speak again- and figure out how solve them by herself.

9. Do they empathize with non-sentient things (dolls, plants, books…)?

She talks to them. A lot. Her plants are her babies and she’ll baby talk them. Her dolls have ‘personalities’ based on weird things they’ve done (like refused to stay in a particular spot so its persnickety about where its to sit or has fragile stitching so it’s an old lady stuffed toy). And books- she’ll talk to them about their condition or if they fall and land funny. A ‘there you are you sneaky thing’ to books that had eluded her.

But Odelia is a talker and it does help her focus on the here and now (rather than get lost in her thoughts) by talking out loud- even to inanimate objects.

10. What age do they most want to be right now?

The age she is now? She’s not one to daydream about her age or whatnot. She’s in her very early thirties and the world is her oyster. She’s fit and capable and her age is just an unimportant number to her. (especially since she doesn’t remember the previous years before ‘waking up’ anyhow.)

11. They’ve won the lottery. Spend, or save?

Haha, she’s already well off, so hurray more money? She’ll just invest the money responsibly as she did the money she had prior to that.

12. Do they like romance in the books they read (or in the book they’re in)?

Oh she’s a sucker for a good romance. If she likes the two characters, she’s in their corner rooting for them. She likes the wittier ones that banter more than anything. But she does get annoyed by impractical drama. Excitement! Danger! Ah YES! ‘Oh no who do I pick? I’m stuck between two choices!’ Grow up and outright pick. Let the one you don’t choose have a chance to get over you and move on with their life and find happiness (or pick both of them if that is a possibility! Just pick!). Because nothing is worse to her than pulling on the heartstrings of someone you aren’t going to pick.

13. Name one thing their parents taught them.

She doesn’t remember her birthparents. They were never a part of her life. Her birthmother briefly, but, when her magic’s rare classification came to light, she was taken into the care of another to raise and train her in the ways of their magic style. But she has had parents in her life. The most current ‘parent figure’ she has (one she remembers) is Old Glory (a nickname she gave the older woman and uses regardless of if the woman is present or not. A bad habit.).

She taught her through her actions that kindness isn’t reflected out outer beauty. Though most think she looks scary, as gnarled and scarred as she is (has a very mean resting bitch face), her heart is kind and compassionate. She tends to children with the utmost of patience, though tolerates no blatant disrespect. She remembers the names of everyone she’s been introduced to and what was last told to her about their day or life. Volunteers her free time to visiting the less fortunate and charging them no fee for her services. Hard shell, ooey, gooey insides.

14. Would they agree with the term ‘guilty pleasure’? Do they have any?

Oh she has guilty pleasures. A lot of the sweets she buys at Sesali’s bakery are guilty pleasures of her because she buys them by the dozens. Also mystery novels. She will re-read mystery novels she’s already read because she still likes the narrative and the build up to the big reveal. And theater. It’s fun, no matter how obvious the plot is sometimes.

15. What would they consider a waste of time– other than school or work?

Oddly enough, she finds sitting down to do her hair or having to apply make up or even more complicated outfits a waste of time. She’s very utilitarian in that regard. A ponytail will keep her hair out of her face so why spend hours learning how to do complicated braids simply because they look pretty?

Don’t be mistaken though. If Portia or Nadia or Julian want to do her hair or make up or dress her up- the time is no longer wasted. They enjoy doing those sorts of things and letting them enjoy themselves, despite how much she doesn’t understand why its enjoyable to them, means the time is well spent.

On her own though, nah. She’d rather do anything else- just throw on some clothes, toss her hair into a pony tail, and get going.

[catnaples]

hi! i have a matchup, if you could take it. i'm a female intp-t and i like music - i play the guitar and the flute, i like composing and singing. i also like dance, writing, drawing and learning different languages and cultures. i am shy, sensitive, and empathetic. i'm supportive and easygoing with friends. i am 5"2 and black and i usually wear long braids and sometimes they are coloured braids. i can be fierce and determined. i'm bisexual. i love sightseeing. i hope you have a nice day!!

Hi, I’ll be matching you up with Kiyoko!!

Kiyoko is pretty quiet, but that doesn’t mean that she isn’t afraid to take the lead in situations that make you nervous! She’s always there to swoop in when she senses that someone or something is making you uncomfortable, and is very adamant about swooping in when it seems like someone might try and take advantage of your empathetic personality. Whenever you’re with friends, you make up for her lack of chattiness with the fact that you’re so easy-going and laidback around those that you’re comfortable with. She also really likes when you’re fierce attitude comes out, and you put someone in their place (for ex, when Terushima was flirting it up with her and you swooped in to tell him off about not taking the hint). Dates with her?? So fun. She’d also probably be into sightseeing and whatnot, so traveling around a cute little town somewhere in Japan that both of you haven’t been to yet would be so fun. You’d both probably have on the cutest coordinating outfits and she’d hold your hand the entire time, pointing out all of the stuff that she finds fascinating or interesting. And she’d love buying you the snacks from the nearby stalls littered around the town (maybe even likes feeding you?). Kiyoko would be so soft for you ♥

[tfw-no-tennis]

hunty movie 1

sooo ruth and i watched the first hxh movie holla

me as soon as we’re done w/the yorknew arc: OH FUCKY ITS ANIME MOVIE TIME

i love anime movies. theyre so often Entertaining As Hell, and also Not Very Good. its a very fun intersection 

overall this movie slots pretty easily into that category. it was a good time but nothing revolutionary. which is ok! and that makes sense bc its not canon apparently 

this movie was basically the ‘killua and kurapika have Trauma(tm)’ movie lmao 

we open w/killua having a trauma dream abt illumi, rehashing the stuff we saw in the hunter exam arc....we see this a few more times in the movie, and it really drives home how killua is still rlly scared of illumi and kinda just goes into a dissociative trauma state whenever illumi is around (even fake doll illumi or dream illumi, in this movie). poor kid :( :( 

regrettably tho ruth and i agree that illumis outfit in this movie was pretty sexy 

ok that whole beginning part where kurapikas eyes get stolen happens SO fast hvbfhdjshfsk its like ok guess thats the status quo for this movie!

jesus poor kurapika. they cant catch a fuckgin break huh

also that kid was totally the kid that was alluded to by kurapika at the end of the yorknew arc...so i guess that was included in the anime as a setup for this movie? 

also apparently that stuff was based off of a short story thing the author did a while ago which is p cool

leorios terrible drawing skills is hvhbjsdfbsdfngsjkdf

also leorio is so tender w/kurapika hhhhhhh im gonna die. im gonna gay die

and gon and killua are just. tiny soulmate boyfriends ok 

ah yes i see the obligatory movie original character who befriends the protag

it kinda cracks me up how hostile killua is to retz like vhbhskhdfbaj i get that its bc of Trauma and his fear of betrayal/betraying but it also reads as killua being a Jealous Gay which is kinda hilarious 

ruth and i when hisoka shows up: [prolonged annoyed groaning and dismayed yelling]

hisoka literally just shows up to sow chaos and throw around information to stir shit up huh

of COURSE the villain is the former 4th spider thats like. easy choice lmao 

it might just be the fansubs but i feel like there were strong implications that hisoka and 4th spider guy fucked bhjdfashfdjnakn

the most unbelievable thing abt this whole thing is that hisoka didnt kill that doll guy lmao 

ohhh shit its uvo

OHHH SHIT NOBUNGA AND MACHI....its so bad but i really like the troupe members and when they show up im like !!!!!!!

machi is so cooooool

aughhhh its like....i feel bad for nobunga for having to face down uvo like this....and THEN when pakunoda shows up too :( and nobunga tells her doll ‘rest in peace now’ or something when he cuts her down....oof. but also like theyre evil murderers so im!?! conflicted?!?!

also the shadow beast guys that uvo killed showing up and then proceeding to do LITERALLY NOTHING was kinda hilarious

and damn so technically the troupe is on the same side as the main crew, what with all of them wanting to wreck omokages shit

also omokage looks like sephiroth lmaoooo 

ill be honest i barely know what sephiroth looks like but ruth said this and i felt in my bones that its true 

ok i gotta talk abt the kurapika backstory stuff bc OUUGHGHGHGHGH my fucking UWUS BITCH!!!!

seeing a bunch of kurta was sad....and seeing baby-er kurapika OUGH and also pairo is sooo cute and him and kurapikas friendship is so pure 

kurapika is so different :( theyre like, so much more innocent and excitable....thats so damn sad bro wtf 

pairo pulling some slick moves swapping that little potion thing - all while using his blindness as a cover - was so good...no wonder he and kurapika get along so well 

also gotta say its even more brutal that one of the main reasons kurapika didnt get Big Murdered w/the rest of the kurta is bc pairo pulled this stunt - if he hadnt, kurapika wouldve failed the test and never would have left 

also kurapika saying theyre gonna find someone who can help w/pairos eyes ;_; the similarities w/leorios backstory/motivation makes me die 

and seriously im still caught up at how innocent and pure kp is oooof ough 

tho still defs the kurapika we know....theyve seemingly always had a temper, what with the reaction to the dudes in the market 

like, kurapika did NOT hold back...even after finding out that they were just part of the test! tho i do get it bc they insulted pairo...kurapika’s love for their friends/stalwart need to defend their friends is clearly a big thing 

also the market people’s reaction to seeing kp’s red eyes is rlly interesting to me...are the kurta like, known to anybody? or are they more of a vaguely talked-about group that like, ‘probably exists’? or is it that people know abt them but not the red eyes thing? it seems like these people, if any, would know, bc this market is seemingly a day’s travel from where the kurta live....i want more kurta lore bro!!

i big love pairo helping kurapika cheat like that....such an interesting twist, and makes it obvious that theirs is a friendship of equals 

anyways i loved that flashback stuff and it just drives home how absolutely fucked up and horribly sad kurapikas whole existence is, especially in this movie w/pairo’s doll being used against them

n e ways back to the non flashback stuff

i love that gon’s super nose returned for this movie omg 

im just auhghghghgh gon and killua know each other so well uwu....

aaaand illumi (well, doll illumi) is back to fuck shit up for poor killua

ugh it still gets me how clearly terrified of illumi killua is...we dont really see him act like this any other time :( and the fact that doll-illumi was able to scare killua enough to get him to run away and leave gon behind (albeit briefly) was oof 

gon jumping in front of killua and getting his eyes stolen instead....baby boyyyy oughhh

also can i just say thank fuck they didnt replace illumis eyes w/gons bc THAT wouldve been some serious nightmare fuel lmao 

cant believe killua then ran away again and walked emo-ly on the train tracks 

and THEN he saw a train coming and was like oh well :( guess ill die :/ JESUS KID 

but gon w/his Big Sniff Powers comes to the rescue!!

it was so cute how gon told killua that killua didnt run and abandon him - they were working together to fight :’) gon understands killua so well 

i love how the squad then squads up to fight omokage...with half of them being blind lmao 

and in the half that isnt blind is leorio, who STILL doesnt know nen, and literally brings a knife to a nen fight 

i totally saw the whole ‘retz is a doll and her older brother is omokage, and retz actually died a while ago’ thing coming lol but still, not bad

all omokage does is talk abt the beauty of his dolls or w/e like ENOUGH bro 

kurapika fighting pairo and killua fighting illumi (AGAIN) was all so fucked up they shouldve switched opponents for less trauma oof 

and poor leorio is literally no help vhhvdijfhjbashkj he just gets throw around this whole time

kurapikas fight against pairo was sad bc it was such a fucked up situation...kp did gr8 tho, i liked them saying that this isnt the real pairo, cause pairo would never say/do these things. still and extremely sucky situation to be in! 

meanwhile its the gon and killua vs doll-illumi rematch...and this illumi is like, a version of illumi drawn from killuas mind/heart (or something idk, it was kinda glossed over which i understand), which means that hes extra scary and focused on telling killua how much hes just a mindless killing machine who cant have friends 

but luckily we have gon here to help snap killua out of his trauma haze, which certaintly wasnt the case at the hunter exam - so it was kinda nice to see how things went w/gon around :’) they work so well together oughhhhh....and they love each other so much broo gay preteen love real 

hisoka just fuckgin materializing in the house place to help sow more chaos....unbelievable 

me: i bet hisoka wont want to fight doll chrollo bc its not The Same as real chrollo 

ruth: no i think he will bc hes a whore 

hisoka: [fights doll chrollo] 

me: oh shit u right 

kurapika: ok omogake its time for you to FUCKING DIE- 

and then killua stops them and says that he’ll do it, be he doesnt want kurapika to kill anymore :( :( :( bro im sooo fucking sad. killua rlly b out here thinking that hes already too far gone to matter when it comes to murder, but he doesnt want his friends to end up like that, so he might as well take on that burden, because whats one more person’s death on his hands? (EVEN THO HE SAID HE DIDNT WANT TO KILL ANY MORE...but theres exceptions when it comes to saving your friend’s souls and whatnot) :( :( AUGHHH

but luckily retz comes THRU with some good ole fratricide

killua: [takes notes]

the fact that the phantom troupe just fuckgin shows up and is like oh hey its you guys. this casual enemy stuff kills me lmao i love it 

then they just fuckgin LEAVE and theyre like welllll we cant rlly fight u bc of chrollo’s state so by i guess. its NOT On Sight but someday it will be! YOU TOO HISOKA DONT THINK WE FUCKIGN FORGOT ABOUT YOU. 

dramatic house burning! and rip retz, saw that one comin tho 

when they all went thru and said their life goals and then killua was like shit i dont have a cool definitive anime goal LMAOOOO

but THEN gon said his goals should be to stay by gon’s side UHMMM???? baby gays AUGHHHHH and killua is just like lovestruck AUGHHHH 

Gays Win 

then they all peace out to resume the next arc lmaoooo

and then we see flashes of other characters, like the blonde girl (who ruth and i totally thought retz was, seeing thumbnails from this movie....we were like w8 hasnt that girl not been introduced yet??? lmao)

we also see some dude w/long hair and a hat who ive never seen before but ruth went OHHH ITS SCYTHE GUY!!! so i guess hes gonna b important?? lol 

and then we saw chrollo....still in the same place the squad left him vbhajfdjkahsbfkdjabhsukfdj CAN HE NOT GET DOWN FROM THERE W/OUT NEN OR AN AIRSHIP??? THATS SO FUCKING FUNNYYYYYY ARE YOU KIDDING ME 

general thots:

so this was very much an Anime Movie, in that they cant like, advance to plot or develop the characters much, bc its a movie. and this one is non canon

it was enjoyable but i do feel like it was much more typical shounen then hxh usually is...like, i feel like this was made by the same people who make like, the naruto movies or w/e, and w/the same sort of approach/attitude 

this isnt necessarily bad - i LIKE shounen for a reason - but it was a bit noticeable bc it wasnt quite as smart as hxh is usually, and it rehashed a lot of stuff weve already seen in this show itself 

but still i think it did a good job w/what it had, and it had some good angst, and everyone was very gay which is good

the art style was SLIGHTLY wack but it wasnt as bad as i thought itd be 

overall a fun time like most anime movies. didnt reinvent the wheel but i had a good time. im excited for the greed island arc, and im also disproportionately excited to watch the hxh musical bc that is a thing that exists and i MUST see it asap bc that sounds like the kind of hilarious wackiness that appeals to me specifically

so thats it...later! 

[agentbarton12]

Remember Me (In the Morning Light)

A/N: here is my fantasy!spideychelle contribution for day two :). this was supposed to continue, but this was already so long. let me know if i should do a part 2!

WARNINGS: none.

—

Honestly, wizards suck.

Like, they think that just because they can cast spells, and make random stuff apear out of thin air that they’re “superior” or something, and Michelle was having none of it.

No one asked them to be gifted and whatnot, so why did they have to shove it down everyone else’s throats?

It didn’t help that almost Michelle’s entire family was made up of magical beings. Her father, the king, was a mage. Her mother, a witch. All her siblings were younger than her and had yet to find out what they were.

As Princess of Queensland, Michelle got a lot of perks. Free anything in the markets (although she insisted she pay), all the food in the nine realms, spells and potions—it was all pretty neat.

The only downside of all this was the fact that she was a princess. And somebody somewhere decided that princesses by nature have to have a hard time.

Which is why she’s cursed.

That and the stupid wizard that cast the spell.

According to old laws, every princess of every kingdom in all the realms had to be cursed, locked in a tower, half-dead or, put simply, in a position for princes to “save them”. Apparently it builds their courage and bravery, performing an act of heroism like that.

But, the thing is, Michelle curse is just the worst.

Like, she would have prefered to be asleep for the rest of her life until her ‘true love’ came and saved her like her friend, Princess Elizabeth of Brant House. (Lucky for her, her prince was her best friend and she was only asleep for a week before Prince Ned kissed her. Michelle wishes she could be so lucky.)

The worst part about Michelle’s curse, is that she has no idea what it is.

All she does know, is that on her twelfth brithday, every sunset (very original), she falls asleep and wakes up somewhere else and stays there until the next sunrise. The only way to end this cycle is to have her true love present himself when she’s a princess and when she’s a...whatever she is during at night, and for her to recognise him.

And to make things even more interesting, she never remembers what happened during the evening when she’s back to herself.

Also add to the fact that she has no true love and you get yourself the worst. Curse. Ever.

So, Princess Michelle tries her hardest to do everything in the short space of time before she falls asleep.

This tends to be difficult, because the curse does not care what she is doing before kicking in.

(Once, she was swimming in the Enchanted Lake with one of her ladies-in-waiting, and as the last hue of orange was cast, she promptly fell asleep in the middle of the water. It gave her father quite the scare.)

Today, Michelle went out to spend time with Betty and Princess Liz of Allen House in the villages. They didn’t spend much time out because they were aware of Michelle’s curse. Hell, the whole kingdom knew about it.

After a fun afternoon with her friends, Princess Michelle retreated to her chambers where she got comfortable and and awaited the inevitable sleep that would wash over her.

In that moment, Michelle learned that just because you know something is coming, does not make you any more ready for it.

••

The first time the princess woke—or as she prefers to be called around him, MJ—up in his workplace, Peter was not the least bit decent.

He had stripped his shirt since it was dripping with sweat and making it very uncomfortable to work. His back was to her, so he did not notice her until she let out a slight shriek of surprise.

“What are you doing here? Who are you?” a younger, smaller Peter asked as he reached for his shirt and held it up in front of him. Her cry had caused him to jump in surprise and knock over the cauldron he was working on.

She sputtered, eyes wide, looking almost as lost and confused as Peter felt, and he softened. He offered her food and water, to which she accepted gratefully and it was then that realisation struck Peter. This was the princess. The princess of Peter’s home was in his workplace. But, if you had looked from far, you would never have noticed. She was dressed in commoners clothes; a simple dress, and workers boots.

“Where am I?” the princess asked. Peter knew about the curse. The whole kingdom knew about the curse and Peter figures that Princess Michelle’s must have started now.

Peter shrugged. “My workshop. My uncle gave it to me,” Peter admitted with a swell of pride. He was missing a tooth. The princess smiled.

He realised that, technically, she was not a princess at the moment and be needed to know what to call her. “I’m Peter,” he greeted, sticking his hand out.

She just stared at his hand and for a second, Peter thought he had just broken some royal rule, before she shook it and said, “MJ. I want to be called MJ.”

Now, when MJ wakes up, Peter is not the least bit surprised. He set up a little corner with a mattress and a few blankets so that when she arrives, she’s comfortable.

He stood over his workbench welding a piece of armour for his mentor, Tony Stark—the best blacksmith in the realm. MJ does not announce her presence, instead opting to watch Peter work.

It was a fascinating thing to watch.

Although Peter was a warlock—not a wizard, there’s a difference. At least according to Peter—he prefered building things with his hands. And MJ wasn’t complaining.

When she approached creepy level staring, MJ stood up and stretched, alerting Peter of her presence.

He turned around and a large smile spread across his face. “You’re here.”

MJ grinned. “When am I not?”

Every day, Peter wanted to say, but he couldn’t. Because to her, it wasn’t true. MJ wasn’t a princess. MJ was not cursed. MJ believed she was Peter’s best friend and spent every waking moment with him and Peter wasn’t going to be the one to tell her otherwise.

So, Peter jokingly says, “Oh, right, you never leave.”

MJ rolled her eyes. “Shut up, Parker, you love it when I’m here. I add value to your life.”

“Nuh-uh,” Peter shakes his head, “my job adds value to my life.”

“Right,” MJ drawled. “What’s it like being a wizard? You must be really popular with the children.” She moved to the table and leaned on her elbows on it.

“Funny, really funny. Have you ever considered being a jester?” She snorted. “And I’m a warlock, not a wizard. And it’s not my job.”

“What’s the difference?” MJ shrugged.

“Warlocks are cooler and far more superior to wizrads. They have better powers and get cool outfits. Have I mentioned that warlocks are cooler?”

“You have, it just confuses me how you’re one.” Peter glared at her and splashed water at her that he conjured from thin air. MJ laughed.

MJ hovered around Peter as he worked on the armour, handing him things he needed. Her work was not that important as she was completely out of her depth when it came to building.

When she gave Peter a tool, she accidentally lowered her onto a scolding hot piece of metal. MJ jerked her hand away immediately and cried out in pain.

Peter dropped what he was doing and hurriedly grabbed her hand and conjured water and poured it over her palm where she was burnt.

MJ squirmed in his hold, but he made sure to keep it firm, all while not hurting her too much. After cooling it, he dried it and began to wrap it. “Does it still hurt?”

She retracted her hand slightly as he added pressure and winced. “No,” she lied. Peter looked up at her with an unimpressed look and his eyebrows creased together. MJ stared back at him. Something fluttered around in his chest and Peter looked away quickly, returning back to the task.

MJ’s eyes never left his face.

When he finished and looked up, he noticed how close they were to each other. She was almost practically sitting in his lap. Peter’s heart pounded against his chest and he worried MJ could hear it.

Peter was in love with MJ.

He knew this. He really did.

But there was nothing he could do about it. Would actually.

Princess Michelle was destined to fall in love with a prince who could and would save her from her curse. And even though MJ wasn’t technically the princess, technically, she was. And pursuing anything wouldn’t be fair. On the faceless prince that would one day marry her, on her herself, and on Peter. When MJ would leave again. For good.

It is because of this that Peter clears his throat and moves back a little. “All better now.”

Numbly, MJ nods. “Thanks.”

The rest of evening passes with Aunt May coming to call them into the house for dinner. MJ shot Peter looks all throughout the meal and Peter ignored them.

When it was nearing the time MJ had to leave, she went back to her spot and curled herself on the mattress facing the wall, her back to Peter.

The action broke his heart a little. They always talked to each other until sunrise.

“Hey, Em. Can I draw on your hand? The bandaged one?”

Peter expected her to ignore him and pull the blankets over her head, so when she held out her arm for him, he was surprised. She kept her back to him, though.

Peter was no artist. He left that to MJ. She drew littles images of him on pieces of partchment she found lying around. His finished product is nothing to celebrate, but Peter is very proud of it.

He gives MJ her arm back and pulls the blankets up to her shoulders.

“See you tomorrow.”

••

When Michelle awoke, her left arm instinctively reached for her right. It was covered in cloth; a bandage.

She sat up and held her hand up in front of her face. There were drawings covering the bandage. Hearts and circles, little lines and arrows adorned the cloth with bright colours. On the palm of her hand, was what caught her attention.

MJ

She didn’t know an MJ. She wasn’t an MJ. So, what was it and who put it there?

After getting up, Michelle decided that it was far to early to ponder anything and took a nap.

During the day, she went out with her younger brother Miles to have lunch with a dutchess or countess about betrothal or something dull like that.

It was not Lady Gwen’s for her complete disinterest in the conversation. No, no, the princess blamed her bandaged hand (and the old men that thought having their daughters strive to be married off to continue their bloodline purely for monarchy sake instead of achieving something worthwhile was a good idea). Her mind was simply elsewhere.

Where did I get this? How was I injured? Who drew on me? Who is MJ? Am I MJ? These thoughts elicited an unwarranted gasp from the princess. She apologised profusely before excusing herself.

She wandered around the streets aimlessly, trying to calm her racing mind to no avail. She passed street vendors and purchased some candy for Miles as an apology for abandoning him.

While walking, a young man around her age yet significantly shorter, bumped into her.

“I am so...sorry.” He stopped moving all together as his eyes found hers and they looked strikingly familiar.

“It is perfectly alright. I didn’t see you either.”

The man merely nodded, shock evident on his face and said nothing. His eyes trailed down to her bandaged hand and widened. Then, he turned on his heel and walked away abruptly.

Michelle tried not to think too much about the interaction. Lots of people get flustered around her, it was normal.

But this turned out to be a fairly difficult task when Michelle laid down, ready to fall asleep, at sunset and nothing happened.

She stayed in her room and the sun went down and Michelle was awake to see it for the first time in nine years.

[emotionsofthesoul]

Chapter 29 _ Vamos al Valle De La Muerte?

Since Hope’s arrival Juliana and Valentina had begun to hang out with the twins and Penelope more often. Things on campus had smoothed out and no one looked at Juliana like the odd one out any longer. She had more than proven herself with each project and each assignment going above and beyond everyone’s expectations. Spring Break was around the corner and Juliana was given the week off from work with paid vacation.

One evening before the official beginning of Spring Break for either girls, Valentina was laying down on Juliana’s bed as Juliana sketched on her bedroom desk. They spent many evenings like this, simply being in each other’s presence as they each did their own thing. This particular evening Valentina was observing her girlfriend who was lost in her own world.

“Hey, Juls?” Valentina said not moving from her position on the bed.

“Hmm?” Juliana responded without looking up from her drawing.

Valentina smiled and continued, “do you wanna go to Death Valley for spring break? We can go with Pen and co. I think it’d be fun, our first official road trip together.”

That caught Juliana’s attention. “A road trip huh? Okay. What would be doing on this road trip?”

Valentina sat up with an excited grin knowing that Juliana was on board. “Well, we can take the RV and start with the Amargosa Opera House you always talk about. Stay there for three days, explore around the valley, then head to Vegas and figure it out from there?”

“Vegas? What are we gonna do in Vegas? We’re not even 21 yet.” Juliana asked with a slight giggle.

“We don’t need to be 21 to enjoy the city. Sure there’s clubs and casinos and whatnot but we can still go sight seeing. We can go to that Dinning In The Sky thing. On our way home we can stop wherever the girls want or anywhere else you want to go. If we leave tomorrow we’ll have about 11 days to do whatever.” Valentina said like if this hadn’t been a last minute idea.

Juliana threw herself on the bed next to her girlfriend pulling her phone out of her pocket. “Okay. Call Hope, I’ll call Penelope and they can call the twins.” Looking up quickly and changing her mind Juliana said, “Actually, no. Let’s tell them to meet us up at Maya’s Kitchen, tell them we have a proposition for them.”

Once they were all together they ordered their food and started planning their trip. Lizzie and Penelope wanted to stop by Warner Brother’s to go on the studio tour. The studio was holding the Pretty Little Liars exhibit once again and that show was the one thing, aside from Josie, that they bonded over. Josie and Hope on the other hand wanted to go to Universal Studios to go to Harry Potter world. 

They decided they would leave the following morning at 5am to arrive at the opera house by 1pm. They would take turns driving so by the time they arrived they could rest and watch the evening show.

The rest of the girls lived in the city so they went home to pack, Valentina on the other hand who lived further away decided to just get clothes from the loft and what she had at Juliana’s apartment. Valentina called her father to ask for the RV and tell him their plan, without much explaining he agreed.

By 9pm They all met up at Juliana’s apartment to help load everything in the RV. They decided spend the night at Juliana’s in order to leave from her place in the morning on schedule.

The following morning the girls were off on their trip. On the drive to Death Valley, Valentina and Julian took turns driving. The first few hours were quiet since most of the girls were asleep. Juliana was playing Valentina’s favorite playlist as they hummed along to the songs. Around 10am Hope pulled out her guitar and the entire group took turns singing while Juliana drove. Valentina sang a few originals for Juliana. They spent the remainder of the trip singing and telling silly jokes.

By the time they arrived at the Armargosa Opera House & Hotel they checked in and settled into their respective rooms. They took two hours to rest and by 3pm they went out to the main lobby and asked the woman in charge if they could organize a tour for the six of them. The tour was an hour and a half. By the time the girls were done with the tour more than half of them had shed a few tears. They fell in love with the story of the place and wished they could’ve met Mrs. Martha but they were glad her art, passion, and love lived on.

The girls went to bed soon after the show ended. Valentina took beautiful pictures of the place and the show, she decided that once they arrived back home she would edit them and turn them into a book for the Opera House. Juliana was so happy she got to finally see the Opera House she’d been wanting to see for about three years. She thanked Valentina for making one of her dreams come true. Valentina smiled tenderly and responded saying it would be the first of many.

Valentina and the girls left very early the following day to see the sunrise at the Racetrack Playa to see the sliding rocks. That was something Valentina had always wanted to see and capture with her camera. The sunrise was pretty but in that moment Juliana thought there was nothing more beautiful than the genuinely happy smile Valentina held on her face.

By noon the girls returned to the hotel and decided to check out and head to Las Vegas. Hope drove the two hours it took to arrive. The Mikaelson family has a residence in the city and Hope insisted they stay there so they didn’t have to get a hotel. They stopped by a grocery store and bought food to cook for dinner. They took the rest of the day to relax and watch a few movies, all agreeing to explore the city on Sunday morning and do another sight seeing run once the sun went down and the lights came on.

As planned they went exploring for a bit by foot, had lunch at one of Hope’s favorite restaurants and went home to relax while the heat settled. They ended up going to the Dinner In The Sky as Valentina had mentioned and went sight seeing for the rest of the night. Valentina took a lot of picture once again and couldn’t help but capture her beautiful girlfriend on their mini adventure. Juliana had never been to Vegas and was amazed by the night life and all replica towers.

They spent another night in Vegas and by Monday morning made their way to LA. Penelope and Lizzie being the ones most excited about their first Buena Park stop slept most of the way there so by the time they arrived they would be well rested and ready to enjoy the tour. 

Once in Buena Park the girls went to their hotel before getting their rental car to head to Warner Brother Studios for the tour. The tour was something they all enjoyed for different reasons. They learned all about the makeshift town of Rosewood and learned it was the exact same town and houses used for shows such as Gilmore Girls and Friends. They got to see Spencer’s famous barn. They got to see Radley Sanitarium turned into a hotel for a movie being shot. 

Juliana was most excited to see the Wonder Woman outfit from the DC Universe exhibit. The man giving them the tour explained that the Supergirl show moved locations to Vancouver because it was much cheaper to shoot there than in LA. They got to see all of the Batmobiles and the pink Lamborghini used in Suicide Squad. Valentina and Juliana being the car lovers they are, loved that tour stop. The tour ended at the gift shop where the girls all got souvenirs. Juliana bought a Bugs Bunny key chain for her father and a Friends mug for her mother. In that same building they held the Pretty Little Liar’s costumes and Valentina made sure to snap pictures for Lizzie and Penelope as well as a few candid shots throughout the tour. Being the fans they were Penelope and Lizzie each bought a mug with the signature Pretty Little Liars “-A” written on it as well as other merch. After the tour, they headed to the hotel and spent the evening at the spa getting pampered.

The following day they made their way to their final stop, universal studios. They spent the entire day at the amusement park making sure they covered as much ground as they could. By the time the park was closing the girls were exhausted yet satisfied with the rides they rode and everything they experienced. Juliana drove the girls to the hotel for their final night before finally making their way home the next morning.

This had been the best spring break Juliana had ever had and she still couldn’t comprehend how she got so lucky with a girl like Valentina. She didn’t think she’d ever get to see the opera house yet here she was at the end of their trip with one dream checked off.

-----------

Here is a video of the Amargosa Opera House that I think everyone should definitely see:

[quicksilversquared]

How to Announce a Pregnancy Chapter 4

Several years after the event of How to Fake a Marriage, Adrien and Marinette are ready to expand their family. When it comes to breaking the news, though…

Well, some people are harder to tell than others.

Month Eight, Week 1. Mr. Agreste returned from his trip in the middle of the night. He was too tired and grouchy from the plane ride (and also a very minor sunburn) for them to even try to slip in a family dinner before the gala that he was insisting they attend.

It was honestly getting ridiculous at this point. Or maybe getting ridiculous was the wrong phrasing.

It already had been ridiculous. It was just worse now.

"If anyone knew to look for it, they would be able to tell that I'm pregnant," Marinette said as she scanned her reflection in the mirror. "Otherwise…"

"Considering that you'll be giving birth in a couple weeks, it's insane that it isn't immediately obvious," Adrien commented. He scanned Marinette's dress, looking it up and down. With the draping sweater hiding the side view of the bump and a gorgeous gold necklace drawing attention to Marinette's neck and away from the bump that was almost entirely hidden by the black empire-waist dress, it would be a rare person who picked up that Marinette was pregnant. "I know exactly where to look, but as long as no one is looking too close they won't pick it up. And no one should have any reason to, really."

"I just worry that someone will figure it out partway through the evening." Marinette fussed with her dress once more, than straightened. "Hopefully they wouldn't just blurt it out in front of a group. Private congratulations I can deal with."

"And that's the most we would get, I think. You don't look that far along, especially not in that dress." Adrien gave Marinette's arm a quick squeeze. "You look radiant, love."

"Thank you."

The Gorilla picked them up, since the gala was a bit out of the city limits and neither Adrien nor Marinette wanted to borrow her parents' bakery van again. Mr. Agreste had already headed out, of course- he had insisted on overseeing the last of the preparations- so they had the car to themselves and were free to update the Gorilla on the progress of Marinette's pregnancy. He listened with an interested expression though, as usual, he didn't make any comments.

"We have approximately three weeks left to tell Father," Adrien commented, and wow, saying that out loud really cemented the fact that there was not a lot of time left. "We're talking to Nathalie, of course, to try to get dinner scheduled, but she only has so much control over Father's schedule."

"I've practically resigned myself to showing up for dinner a couple months in the future with Emma in my arms and letting Mr. Agreste find out then," Marinette mumbled into her hands. "That's just how this is going right now."

"I think the papers might have picked up on her by then," Adrien pointed out helpfully. "And honestly, I refuse to hide our kid from the world just because Father can't make time for us. If he finds out the news via tabloid or some investor congratulating him on his granddaughter, so be it."

"I was curious, so I decided to look up stories of other people who didn't discover their babies as early as usual," Marinette told him as they merged onto the highway. "And there were cases where people got to the giving labor part without realizing. And they must have had even smaller bumps than me."

Adrien let out a low whistle. "And we were rushing to get all caught up on all of the tests and forms and whatnot when we found out at four and a half months. I can't even imagine getting to nine."

"To be fair, some of them went into labor early. But yeah, the point still stands." Marinette caught herself mid-yawn and made a face. "Ugh. I rested all day today, I shouldn't be tired."

Adrien glanced over at her. "How is leave treating you?"

"I like sleeping in. And I got one of my projects done, so there's that." Marinette shrugged. "I'm normally going to be doing more during the day, but I just wanted to be rested up for tonight. Not that it's made any difference, it seems. Maybe it's just because it's dark outside and I'm hungry."

"We'll leave early," Adrien promised. "We can say that you've been working hard at work- which is true, even if you've been doing a lot of work from home recently. Maybe we can bring up the idea of scheduling a family dinner next weekend when we see my father."

Marinette made a bit of a face, but she tried to hide it. Adrien couldn't blame her. He was starting to think that they would have to wait two weeks minimum for his father to even consider scheduling a dinner with them, and that would put Marinette at eight months, three weeks.

Traffic was light, and it didn't take overly long for them to arrive at the gala. Adrien and Marinette wove through the crowds, greeting a few people that they recognized and avoiding others that- well, that they recognized but had no interest in talking to. Mostly people who thought that Adrien should return to being a model and Marinette should join Gabriel since she was part of the family now and had no problem telling them exactly that.

"And Father is busy, as always," Adrien sighed once they caught sight of Mr. Agreste, surrounded by designers and investors and department heads clamoring for his attention. "He's not going to work through that crowd until after we've left."

"How deeply unfortunate."

Adrien laughed. Marinette looked as though she wouldn't mind that at all, and frankly he couldn't blame her. Not with how all of their conversations with his father recently had gone.

"We should try to talk to Nathalie, at least," Adrien decided a few minutes later. "She might have an idea of what his schedule is going to look like and if we could schedule a dinner."

Marinette glanced over at the gaggle of people waiting to catch his father's attention and made another face. Adrien followed her gaze and this time, he spotted Nathalie in the middle of the fray, looking harried as she typed things into her tablet.

Things weren't looking hopeful, then.

Still, that didn't meant that they couldn't at least try to have fun. The food provided was delicious, of course- Tikki enjoyed the dessert spread while Plagg visited the cheese plates, and both Adrien and Marinette found things to eat- and there were a few people who were decent enough company to talk to. Mr. Agreste finally worked his way over to greet them, though it turned out to be because he wanted to show them off to a few investors. They managed to exchange a few pleasantries, and Adrien was struck once again by how stilted and unnatural his conversations with his father were compared to his conversations with Marinette's parents. If they were talking with Tom instead of Gabriel, they would have already exchanged at least a couple puns.

His father didn't pun in front of investors. He also didn't pun when they were having family dinner at the mansion. Adrien had had more enjoyable job interviews.

That actually wasn't an exaggeration, which was pretty sad.

It wasn't long before Mr. Agreste moved on, stepping away with his eyes on another potential customer that he clearly wanted to set up an appointment with. Before he went, though, he gave a once-over of Marinette's outfit. Adrien tensed up for a moment, wondering if his father had somehow picked up on her teensy-tiny baby bump, but that wasn't the case.

"I would like to remind you that, for future events, ladies should be wearing at least a short heel," Mr. Agreste told Marinette stiffly, gesturing to her feet. "Particularly short ladies. Flats should be left for informal events."

And then he turned and left.

"Adrien, will you be mad at me if I strangle your father?" Marinette asked after a second of shocked silence had passed. "Or whack him over the head with my oh-so-unfashionable flats?"

"Only because you'd be exerting yourself without Tikki's protection," Adrien assured her. "Otherwise, I would tell you to go for it."

Marinette laughed. "I bet I could take him down with one hit. It wouldn't be exertion at all."

Adrien tried and failed to not smile at that.

Nathalie managed to catch them right as they headed towards the door to leave. She looked a bit hassled, though she managed a smile for them.

"He's going to end up putting himself back at the same level of stress," Nathalie told them. "Which I've told him, but he's convinced that he's fine. I've scheduled regular doctor's appointments, though, just to be safe. And several screenings that his regular doctor recommended."

Adrien nodded, a whisper of worry in his stomach. His father was going to work himself into an early grave, he really was. There was only so much that Nathalie could do to help.

"Make sure that you aren't overworking yourself," Marinette told Nathalie. "Surely you could use some help, too, to back off on the workload."

"I hired two helpers while Gabriel was on holiday," Nathalie assured them. "And set limits on how late I'm willing to work on normal workdays, blocked off weekends for myself, and made a resolution to actually use all of the vacation time that I'm given every year."

Adrien nodded. That was good. He didn't want to lose Nathalie to overworking.

"But enough about that- how are you?" Nathalie asked Marinette. She glanced downwards. "You don't- excuse my observation- you don't look eight months along."

"There's a combination of factors keeping my bump in," Marinette said cheerfully. "But Emma is the right size and is doing well, so we're not worried about it."

"I certainly wasn't judging- I know plenty of women who wish they could have been that small when they were as far along as you, Adrien's mother included." Nathalie smiled. "And I don't think anyone noticed tonight, which is nice. I'm sure it's great to not have strangers cooing over your stomach."

"My mom once punched someone who wouldn't get out of her personal bubble when she was pregnant with me," Adrien told Marinette. "She broke their nose, I'm pretty sure. I think it made headlines. Father wasn't pleased."

"He's never pleased, though, really."

Adrien tried his best not to laugh at that. On his other side, he could see Nathalie fighting with a smirk.

"I'll let you two go, since I'm sure you're tired," Nathalie said once she had sufficiently composed herself. "And I'll let you know if any openings for dinner come up. Your father has already filled up all of his lunches and dinners for this week with appointments, against my advice," she told Adrien. "There should still be openings for next week, once things die down a bit. You'll be at- what?"

"I'm at eight months and one week now, and eight month-two by next weekend," Marinette told her. She was frowning. "I'd be worried about how long telling Mr. Agreste has been put off if he wasn't literally doing this to himself."

"I'd say that after this, you'll get a good four to five years of him never canceling a dinner on you again," Nathalie said. A small smile slid onto her face. "I personally can't wait to see his reaction. Promise me that you'll make sure that I'm in the room when you tell him."

"I think we can manage that much." Adrien grinned at Nathalie. She had never seemed this devious when he was younger. "As long as you don't decide to leave the city on whatever night we finally manage to pin my father down for dinner."

"I never leave Paris, you know that." Nathalie glanced back through the crowd. Mr. Agreste was gesturing to her, looking irritated that she wasn't right by his side. "I have to go. Good night, you two."

"Goodnight, Nathalie."

  As Nathalie had expected, week eight months, two weeks didn't even get as far as having a dinner scheduled. Apparently investors and potential clients came before family, so Mr. Agreste was kept in the dark for one week longer.

At least none of the tabloids had picked up Marinette's pregnancy. It was probably a combination of two main factors- the fact that Adrien hadn't modeled seriously for years (he made exceptions for Marinette's designs, of course) meant that the tabloids really weren't that interested in him anymore, and then Marinette's small baby bump was easily hidden under a loose sweater or dress. They hadn't really been in the public eye that much, either, largely not going to any high-profile events.

The week after that- eight months, three weeks- came with a canceled dinner. Nathalie sounded exasperated as she delivered the news.

"That really is ridiculous," Marinette said after Adrien had thanked Nathalie and hung up. "And after he made such a fuss about wanting you to live in Paris instead of London! He sees you about as much as he would if we were in London."

"It's all about knowing that he could visit easily if he wanted to." Adrien made a face at his phone. "Just like how he wanted me to live at home, but then never ate dinner with me, and never dropped in to chat when I was back from London. He just wants to know that he would have the option." He sighed, wishing that his mom was still around. She would have way better about spending time with them. But there was no point on lingering on what-ifs and what-could-have-beens. "D'you wanna call up Nino and Alya and see if they want to go out for dinner? My father isn't the only one who gets to have dinner plans."

"Oh, I like that." Marinette perked up, nearly upsetting Masha and Sasha, who were competing for her lap space. "Alya's been swearing up and down that her bump is easily twice as big as mine now, and I want to see."

"I'll call them up right away," Adrien promised. "And even if they can't come out, we can go out. It would be nice to have one more date night before Emma comes."

As it turned out, Alya and Nino were free and 100% willing to head out to a casual restaurant for dinner with them. They hadn't gotten to hang out for a couple weeks, since Alya was still working and also had family visiting from out of town, and baby shopping had taken up all of the time not occupied by that.

And as it turned out, Alya was 100% correct about her baby bump being twice as big as Marinette's. In fact, twice as big was a bit of an understatement.

"Yeah, you're definitely showing," Marinette said with a laugh as they all got settled around the table and accepted their menus from the waitress. "See, that's why I couldn't believe it when the doctor told me that I was already at four and a half months, because that's what I think of when I think of five months along."

"I wish I could just stop at this size," Alya admitted. "It's quite big enough, thanks. Big enough to let people know that I'm pregnant, not just gaining weight, but not quite at balloon stage." She grinned. "But all this pregnancy talk- have you looked at the Ladyblog lately?"

Adrien and Marinette both blinked at that. "Uh, no?"

"Yeah, a lot of people haven't been, but I've been getting submissions and-look!" Alya pulled out her phone, pulling up the Ladyblog with a few practiced taps. "I mean, I always get photos, because people know that I'll publish them and they like having an audience. But I noticed something last night, so I did a bit of digging!"

Adrien and Marinette exchanged a nervous look. They didn't know where Alya was going with this, and considering that it was technically them that she was talking about, that wasn't comforting.

"Look!" Alya announced, shoving her phone at them once the Ladyblog had loaded. "There's one photo of Ladybug from last year, then one from two-ish months ago, and last month, and this month, and last night- and do you see that?"

"You mean, do we see the bright red circle that you've drawn around Ladybug's stomach?" Adrien asked dryly. "Yeah, it's kind of hard to miss."

"No, not that- the baby bump!" Alya exclaimed. "It's still small- just based off of my bump, I'm thinking she's at three months at most, probably- but it's definitely there. That skin-tight supersuit doesn't hide anything."

Adrien hid his smile. Oh, Alya was so far off. That was probably a good thing, actually- other people would probably assume the same, and as long as Marinette didn't go out as Ladybug for a couple months after Emma was born, people would keep that assumption.

Or if she went out, but there was some way to pad the suit to make it look as though she was still pregnant. That might not be a good idea, though, since there were bound to be people who would think that Ladybug shouldn't still be exercising as a superhero when she was pregnant.

(Which was dumb, of course, since both Tikki and their doctor were fine with the exercise (though the OBGYN admittedly didn't know about the magical part of it), but since when did that ever stop anyone from judging?)

"So if I'm right with how pregnant she is, Ladybug'll probably be giving birth a couple months after me! Just think, Emma and Elodie might end up being in the same class as Ladybug and Chat Noir's kid!" Alya was practically bouncing in her seat. "It's so cool that she and Chat Noir are hitting the same milestones as we are! I wonder if they'll dress their kid up in the Ladybug and Chat Noir baby clothes. I mean, on one had that could be a super obvious giveaway, but on the other hand everyone in Paris does that, so maybe not?"

"If their family and friends know- which they have to, right?- then what harm would it do?" Nino countered. "No one on the street is going to think anything of it. Though I do wonder how many amateur sleuths are going to be trying to look up who got married after Ladybug and Chat Noir announced their engagement, and then at which of those couples is going to have a kid."

Adrien and Marinette exchanged a look. They had timed the release of their superhero engagement photo so that people would by and large count out their wedding as a possibility, and it seemed to have worked. Then with a little help- once again, Adrien would have to ask Tikki about potentially padding the suit so Marinette could go out and still look pregnant after she gave birth- they could use the news of their superhero pregnancy to throw people off of their trail.

"Anyway, we've been discussing this ever since Alya noticed the bump in the photos," Nino added to Adrien and Marinette. "She's excited, I'm not sure if you could tell?"

They all laughed at that.

"I just think that it's cool, that's all," Alya defended herself. "Like, I thought that we would never even know 'cause she would stop going out for a bit. Or maybe that would be just as obvious, if Chat Noir was still going out. But we haven't gotten any new news about them for ages, so all I've been posting is old footage that people submitted and patrol photos, plus any new things that I've been sent about the old superheroes. It's not much, really, not when I used to be posting things every other day."

"Well, that's to be expected, since Hawkmoth is gone," Marinette pointed out. Adrien watched as her hand rested protectively on her baby bump. He knew that she was a little self-conscious about it, since she hadn't really gotten used to people really seeing it and commenting on it- well, besides the people that they had told, that was. Finding out that people had noticed that Ladybug was pregnant had come as a surprise.

Adrien hoped that the news wouldn't stop Marinette from wanting to go out as Ladybug again. They enjoyed their exercise time together, and it was a good way to spend a clear evening when they didn't have company over.

"And it's a good thing too, because trying to balance a full-time job and full-time Ladyblogging and a new baby would be really hard," Nino added. "And I'm sure Ladybug and Chat Noir appreciate being able to sit back and enjoy their evenings instead of having to be called out to save the city."

"Anyway, on the whole baby theme- your Nonna is in town now, right?" Alya asked Marinette. "Since Emma could come early?"

Marinette nodded. "Yeah, she arrived- three days ago, I think? She's been meeting up with some old friends and exploring the city so she isn't underfoot at the bakery. I met up with her for lunch yesterday and let me tell you, she is about ready to deck Adrien's father. She thinks that I should be able to wear maternity fashion that would actually show off what bump I do have, and that the worry about tabloids is what is keeping me from doing that. But I don't know if I would necessarily want to wear super form-fitted stuff out and about even if I could."

Alya looked surprised. "Really? But I'm sure you could find some super cute pregnancy outfits. And you would rock them, honestly."

"I wouldn't want strangers coming up and commenting about 'oh! A baby!' or trying to talk about me being pregnant or- or any of the stuff that I've heard about," Marinette said, shrugging. "You've talked about it before, with how annoying it is to have people doing commentary on your pregnancy. And I just don't want to have to deal with that. Besides, loose clothes are comfortable."

Nino made a face. "Okay, fair enough."

"Yeah, I nearly decked a lady a week ago when she was asking if I was planning on bottle- or breast-feeding," Alya said. She made a face. "Like, who are you, lady? Mind your own business."

Adrien grinned. "Marinette was considering whacking my father over the head with her shoe when he criticized her for wearing flats at the gala. Is the urge to hit people a pregnant people thing, or…?"

"The urge to hit your father is a normal person thing," Nino corrected Adrien, who was dodging playful whacks from Marinette. "And the urge to hit nosy people is probably the same."

"I know, I know, I wanted to whack my father myself, I was just joking!" Adrien yelped. He sat up with a grin once Marinette finally let up. "And speaking of which- do you want me to really rub that comment of his in once we tell him? Just to make sure he knows how much of a jerk he's been?"

Marinette's smirk was vicious. "Only if I don't rub it in first."

Nino just shook his head, bemused. "I don't understand how your father dares to cancel stuff on you guys. I would be terrified to cross you two. Particularly when Mari's smirking like that."

Their waiter came back to get their order then, and conversation wandered onto what maternity leave was like for Marinette so far (filled with a fair bit of jittering around when she wasn't resting or making sure that everything was as ready as it could be) and what each couple had left to do (not much for Adrien and Marinette, but Nino and Alya still had some stocking up to do).

"My office is turning into Elodie's nursery," Alya told them. "Which is fine, now that my book has gone to print. My stuff is going to stay in there for the time being, though. It's not like it takes up that much room, now that everything is sorted and put away."

"We had to move a chunk of Marinette's sewing room into our bedroom," Adrien said. He grinned at Marinette. "That does take up a bit of the room. But we'll manage."

"As long as I'm not trying to make twenty leather warrior outfits again, I shouldn't take up too much space," Marinette said with a laugh. "And I've mostly been getting screen-printing orders on commissions recently, since I put up a note on my site that said that I was pretty busy and only wanted smaller projects. That barely takes up any space at all, since I just do the designs on my tablet and then-"

"And then have to fill up your entire living room with clothesline to hang pieces up to dry?" Alya chimed in, looking dubious. "I remember how much space that takes, Mari. Don't act like it's just a tiny side project."

"I outsource the printing part of most of my screen-printing orders now," Marinette told her friend. "I have a professional silkscreen printer doing the printing bit on those pieces, and I just come up with the design. It's faster and more cost-effective. And space-effective."

"And 'fewer chemical smells in our apartment'-effective" Adrien added with a laugh. "Which we all appreciate."

"I can do slightly more complex designs with a pro printer, too," Marinette added. "They cost more, of course, but they cost me more to make at home, too, and there was no guarantee that I would get it right. And I get a discount at the printer, since I'm such a regular customer."

"And then you get to keep all of the printing mess out of your house. Good idea." Alya nodded appreciatively. "...when did you start doing that?"

"Last year, I think. Or is it closer to two years now?" Marinette tipped her head to the side, considering. "I don't remember. I had been considering it for a bit before I switched, and shopping around for someone who would be good to work with long-term took a couple months. I just thought it might be a good idea because I really enjoy the designing part, but not the actual screen-making and printing part so much."

"And stuff was taking up so much space of our storage," Adrien added. "And it was taking up her evenings when Marinette had an order to do."

"You mean it was stinking up the place while you were home."

Adrien grinned and shrugged. "Yeah, well, even if you did try to do as much as possible outside, some smell still ended up in here."

"So anyway, my projects at home don't take up that much space right now," Marinette said loudly, ignoring Adrien's grin. "And they're very portable. So having half of my stuff in our bedroom and half in Emma's room should work until we get our three-bedroom apartment, however long that takes."

"Right, of course." Nino glanced up and hastily gestured to clear the table, just as their waiter arrived with their pizzas. They accepted their water refills, then eagerly dug in.

"So," Alya said as she loaded her plate. "So you have just about one week left, right? Are you excited?"

Marinette laughed. "Excited, nervous, occasionally terrified in case we mess up or somehow missed getting something important. It varies, really." Reaching over, she squeezed Adrien's hand. "I know it'll be all right, though. No matter what happens, I know that Adrien and I can handle it together."

[breezy-cheezy]

Mmmmmkay I have to rant about Nier: Automata for a bit; I accidentally triggered the end of the game (playthrough 2, ending B) last night and stayed up till 2:00 trying to finish the stupid “not allowed to save” phase. But y’aLL IT’S SO GOOD??????? AND 3RD PLAYTHROUGH ISN’T ANOTHER RE-RUN OF THE SAME STORY WE GET MORE STORY AAAAAAAAA

(more under the cut because there is ALOT for those who care;;;;;)

- OK SO THE MUSIC IS AMAZING??? I love LOVE that the music dynamics build in instruments and intensity as you progress towards danger/plot, but also softens again for quieter moments and just...musical storytelling is so sooooo my jam I love it. Also that the music goes 8 bit when 9S hacks stuff, it’s actually kinda cute X’D

- ON THE SUBJECT of 9S being able to hack into enemies and you getting to play that as a little teeny ship shooting down viruses and barriers and whatnot. Genius???? That added SO MUCG to the story on the second playthrough as 9S. Particularly discovering the fact that all of humanity?? Is actually extinct?? ...even BEFORE the aliens/machines attacked earth?? WH A T?????? WHAT THE HECK ARE ANDROIDS FIGHTING FOR THEN????? *every time an android salutes and says “glory to mankind” now* GLORY MY FOOT THEY ALL DEAD MOVE ON--

-  I realize it probably has alot to do with the lore of previous nier games and I’ll probably have to trawl through Wiki pages soon here. Emil himself really broke my heart aaaaaah baby...his side quest is so sad. I also looked at arts and he was a really cute kid?? Before he was turned int the freaky moon skeleton thing...?? Oh my goodness......

-  The secret lunar tear flower room is gorgeous. I just sat there for awhile to soak it all in...the music is so nostalgic and I’ve never heard that song bfore how do y’all DO THAT--

- Emil’s shop is pretty cute. He just drives around the ruins and sells stuff if you shoot him and he’ll stop X’’’D It did ruin alot of serious moments tho. *Engels, talking about how he’d sinned for killing so many androids and choosing death--* “S-A-L-E SAAAALLLEEE~~!! EVERY SALE’S A WIIIINNNNNN~~~~!!!! LALALaaaaaa~~~...” Me: *facepalm* 

- ...I just realized the little tune he sings is a cheerful rendition of the music in the flower room. H E C K

- ANYWAY. Onto the actual game. I really really enjoyed playing as 9S for obvious reasons (bABY) but it really did add so soooo much to the pretty much surface level story when you first play as 2B. Which sums them up pretty well...2B, Battle unit 2, pushes on relentlessly, avoids thinking too hard about things and what she’s doing because oh dear, EMOTION might get in the way...9S, Scanner unit 9, on the other hand, cannot stop his curiosity. He asks questions, he sticks his nose in way further than he should to some dangerous stuff. I think he realized Machines were sentient and had feelings long before 2B, but was in denial for a good while. You learn so much more about what you’re fighting as 9S, because he scans. He observes, searches, discovers. Heck, some hacking caused him to experience empathy for the poor things, to his horror...

- Actually, there are alot of scenes where either 2B or 9S questions why a machine they’re killing is screaming for help, of crying for lost family, or loudly proclaiming loyalty to a king they’ll give their lives for...they stop for a moment, but the other quickly jumps in and reminds them that it’s just imitation. It’s not real, it’s fake, machines can’t feel, yadda yadda...it was odd to me they kept switching off on reminding, but...I think they both know, deep down, what they’re doing. But denial. Because if machines DO have feelings, if they are sentient...what does that mean for all they’ve killed...? Just...hoo BOY the moral dellimas in this game?? Scary good. The quests get that across alot.

- I don’t like the theme of hopelessness in most of the side quests?? I do see many of them as cautionary tales though. We watch many characters lose hope and the will to live after their thing/person they’re living FOR is gone. It makes me worry alot about 2B, who is a soldier through and through. 9S actually does have hopes and dreams for things outside of the war, which I love ;7; they definitely lean on each other alot emotionally on this respect though...I don’t know quite what to make of the themes of the game this far in yet;;;; 

- The love between 9S and 2B is of course my favorite thing. Familial, romantic, idk. I, being me, see it as more platonic, “You’re my rock in this storm” only friend/sister/brother vibe, but as more of a fan of platonic relationships, that is what I tend to do. But 9s following 2B around like a lost puppy and trying to do all he can to help and do his job but also getting bored with said job and trying to make the most of things, asking all the “why” questions, 2B acting irritated but also always keeps him close and makes sure he’s safe....going ballistic when someone hurts her boy ;;v;; I love...2 kids. Their operators and pods are such fun dynamics too~~ 

- As far as endings A and B...DANG. It hit worse because you get backstory on the giant ocean machine (that 9S just hit with a giant missle, which he also had to ride to keep it on the right path...DX NO SELF PRESERVATION) he just...wanted his mama......;;A;;

- Also it’s not fair. 9S is so injured by that missle attack, then I guess Adam finds him and is like “HM. *sticks the lil boy impaled on a wall* Perfect. *proceeds to emotionally and mentally torture said child*“ like YO ADAM THAT’S NOT HOW YOU DO THINGS. Then 2B proceeds to kick down walls for her boy and kills Adam and walks off carrying 9S bridal style into the sunset. Lovely. I have a comic idea for this part, lol.

- Oh I don’t like Adan very much, he is pretty tho?? There was alot of blood though...how do machines bleed?? How do the androids bleed?? What??? I question this alot. 

- HHHHHHH THE BECOME AS GODS CHAPTER SCARED ME I DON’T EVER WANNA DO THAT AGAIN DANG SUICIDAL ROBOTS SCARED ME SO BAD

- Fighting Eve was...annoying but still heartbreaking. He misses his brother so much....even though Adam is a butthead and couldn’t care less he left his little brother behind DX just everything about that fight was Tragic. Also Eve developing more self awareness and realizing “Eve” is a girl’s name and being a bit miffed LOL that’s what y’all get when your first book is the bible kiddos...I realize they’re technically like what? 2 weeks old still???

- The ENDING. From 9S’s perspective is especially scary....the corruption transforming him, 2B coming in to kill him to stop the pain, he BEGGED her to, just....hhhhhhh babies ;;A;; 2B’s soft broken crying over him as she’s forced to strangle her only friend to death just aaaaaAAAAAAAA I DIE ;;;;;;;;~;;;;;;;;;

- I was actually able to cry over it this time coz. It was 2 am. No parent awkwardly watching over my shoulder. Because the pose for this scene is...........super awkward..........like......really........their clothes are super torn up and uh. The first time I was just hoping my parents wouldn’t mistake it for a sex scene or something hhhhhghhhhh;;;;;; I really really REALLY wish the pose was different, the game does need to give the fanservice a rest, at LEAST for a scene this serious DX I’m able to ignore it but when someone else is watching I don’t wanna have to explain;;;;

- That IS a big gripe I have with the game. The fanservice. Just. Why. How is 2B’s outfit practical?? Self destruct mode???? REALLY???? Get this girl battle shorts or something please.....I guess if I looked at it more as a ballet outfit?? I might make some edits when I draw her because GEEZ.

- 9S gets some of this too. Self destruct mode, his shorts are blown off???? WHAT THE HECK???? Welp, never using that again. also why is he the only yorha boy android??????????? X’’’’D They never explain that!!

- BACK TO ENDING STUFF why were there random data hologram girls standing there, watching 2B strangle 9S?? Just...silently there...they weren’t there in the first playthrough?? I’ve seen them a couple times but they’re NEVER mentioned?? WHAT ARE THEY-- is it a glitch?? Wha--

- Teeny 9S being able to dump his consciousness into a giant machine robot guy and cradling 2B in his hand ;;~;; he’s fine y’all I’m so GLAD (I wanna draw something for this scene.... I wanna draw alot of things) 

- I love Pascal. He should adopt all the sad people to his happy peace village. He already started that...what a good egg. 

- The accessories option is lovely. I’ve been running around with 9S with a blue bow in his hair forever now ;7; replaced with the flower in his hair because BOYS AND FLOWERS I LOVE but I think I might give the flower to 2B because she’d look lovely with it and....I miss the blue bow X’D

 - Also the AMOUNT of things this could line up with a KH universe....as far as how androids work, hearts (black boxes), memories making you...you, being able to transfer “hearts” to new bodies when the old is destroyed, POWER OF LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP...there’s alot. I dunno what to do with this info...

Anyway, I have alOT of thoughts and feelings on this game, it’s like...a very cool book. I’ve had trouble putting down. These aren’t even all of them but idk who I can actually rant to so here it is for the Void

I’m so interested to see where it goes! 

[tranqueenila]

Innuendo.

May 15, 2018. 11:45 PM.

Dear diary,

The day went just as usual. I attended the lectures, I did my chores, I had a workout session from 4:00 to 5:00 PM, joining in the pilates. Nothing special really happened, not really. But there was something that caught my attention. Again, it was not very special. At least not until I really figured it out. During my break, I was damn ravenous that I ran my way to the café straight away just to remember that I left my wallet in my locker. So I did. I turned around, got to my locker, unlocked it and something dropped. It was a piece of paper, probably folded three times that it became smaller— small enough to be able to slip through the slit. I opened the paper and ‘I love your smile’ was inked onto the sheet. There was a little ‘K’ in slight cursive at the bottom, perhaps it was the initial of this anonymous sender. It was too cute, diary. I would be lying if I said I didn’t smile immediately, but I didn’t know who this was. Still very clueless about it. It could be harmful, too. But that was what it was. Until then. Jane’s signing out.

***

May 22, 2018. 10:00PM.

Dear diary,

Let’s skip the boring bits. I received another anonymous note, probably no, definitely from the same person. This time, they wrote ‘I love how you’d blush while reading my note too’ and I swear to God I frantically turned around to scan my surrounding. I’m pretty prominent at school, almost everybody knows me but I don’t. I don’t even know if the sender was a girl or a guy. Could it be.. Krystal? Hell no, she’s my best friend and she’s dating our senior, Hyunsik. K... mm. Kai? No, no. But what I want to clarify here is that, I’m not even into relationships, but this is pretty fun. Isn’t it? I’m looking forward for more notes tomorrow. Ugh, I can’t help but to draw out an imaginary figure out of this. Until then, diary! Jane’s signing out!

***

May 29, 2018. 11:00PM.

Dear diary,

I GOT ANOTHER NOTE BUT THIS TIME IT’S A GAME ON. Damn. I got another note. Two, in fact. One said ‘And the way you’d find me in the crowd, clueless and adorable’. Huft.

And another one, ‘Let’s play a game, Jennie love. Tomorrow, during the break, go to the café. Order your favourite drink. This is a perilous mission, because you see, you don’t know me. Yet. But I know you. My knowledge might be limited and I’d say the game’s over if you choose a different drink, though I know you’re keen to know who I am. See you, princess.’

CRAZY. That’s all for today, diary. I need to sleep to be able to do well (for what, really?) tomorrow. Jane’s signing out while yelling! K!

***

MAY 30, 2018.

The alarm rang in Jennie’s ears, putting a halt to her beauty sleep and made her eyes sprung open in a split second. She was dreaming about her secret admirer and she couldn’t help but to feel butterflies in the pit of her stomach. Rolling on her stomach, she gazed out through the transparent curtains that hung low on her window panel. It was still dark outside, understandable since it was 06:00 in the morning. Too early, she knew. But she had to make sure she didn’t run late to school today. She had to make sure she looked good, and all those weird stuffs that she never really cared about before. She was never a fan of going all-out for an outfit, but damn, she dressed to kill. She could wear a pair of button-up pants with a croptop, a thin cardigan and would still pull that look off. People often called her the woman of fashion, the walking gucci. No doubts though, she gave those vibes. And perhaps, she would make a good use of that today.

Pushing herself off the bed, she tidied up the bed, pulling on the comforters before dashing her way to the bathroom. It was a good morning shower; warm and refreshing. Definitely a good way to kick off her day. 06:40AM, and she was clad in black cropped knitted sweaters with a pair of leggings that hugged her slim legs far too perfectly. Not bad, she hushed. Once she was satisfied with her daily look, she grabber her bag and jumped her way downstairs. The last thing she heard was her mom’s ‘Be home safe, darling!’ before the door was shut behind her.

Sure, mom. It’s gonna be a long day.

—

Jennie idly tapped the back of the pen against her notebook, eyes following the slides that her lecturer had been showing for the past one hour. It bored the hell out of her. Politic was her least favourite subject, the one she would definitely drop without having the second thought. But now she had to sit for two hours, listening to rambles about this and whatnots. People cannot really blame her though. The lecturer’s voice itself was able to put her to sleep.

But no, not that day. She just couldn’t stop thinking about the notes, the hints. What, was she gonna buy the drink and this ‘K’ person would come out, serving the drink for her? Or, would this person be there too, so that they can have this cliché moment of putting the same order? Or, or—

Enough, Jennie, shush!

She shook her head, trying her best to bring her full attention back to the lesson. The smile that was once on her lips broadened, cheeks obviously reddened, leaving her soft and mushy in her seat while thinking of the possibilities that might occur in this so-called game. It was not even long (or maybe it was, she just lost track of time) until the bell rang and the class was soon dismissed. It was hella quick, as if God heard her undying prayers but that didn’t really matter.

Quickly, she got up from her seat, her cheerful visage could not hide the indescribable feelings that she contained in her big heart as she paved her way to the café. She was glancing around the colossal venue more often than not, obviously attempting to feed her curiosity about this person: the person that made her feel things just by dropping anonymous notes in her locker, the person that she had been writing about very constantly in her diary for the past two weeks. She had to meet them, whoever it may be. She had to. Without herself realising, she was already standing in front of the counter, eyes raking over the menu list on the wall although it was pointless because she knew exactly what her favourite drink was.

“Yes, Miss?” Came a voice of the person behind the counter. It was the same middle-aged lady, the one who had always been serving whenever Jennie dropped by.

“Iced lemonade, please.” She said, keeping herself poised as always with a cordial smile spread across her face, in which was gladly mirrored by the lady before she disappeared to make her drink. After a while, she came back and handed it to Jennie. It was the same bottle, the same texture, the same colour. Probably had the same taste too. There was nothing special, everything was the same— not until she noticed something written just a little below the logo. It said ‘Gotchu. Move to the assemble hall, see ya’, and those words caused Jennie to frown. In a good way, maybe. So demanding, she heaved.

But she did it, anyway. She turned on her heels and paced towards the addressed venue, at the same time sipping on her drink. It was fresh and energising, lifting Jennie’s insides in great sensation that never failed to make her happy. Maybe too happy, even, as she began to jump on her steps lightly. It was as if the short journey was accompanied by the rhythm of an anime’s opening song, clearly affecting Jennie’s already vivacious emotions. She rounded the final corner and there she was, in the middle of the empty hall.

Odd.

She pouted, trying to find the glimpse of anybody that might pass by. It was a spacious hall, and it was gonna take her the entire day to go through everything. She was about to exit though, thinking that it was too much of a task for her to do before she actually noticed a bouquet of flower at the side of the door, gaze drawing up just to see a big arrow pointing to the left with a big ‘This way, princess!’ atop. Look, Jennie hated to admit this but god damn it, this whole thing was so cute? Precious little being this person was.

“Coming,” Jennie breathed, hugging the bouquet close to her chest before she followed the direction. There was an opened door ahead of her, and she stepped in thinking that it was the only way. The moment she stepped in, she was greeted with a white blinding wall with tiny arrows about half of her height; horizontally arranged to continue guiding the petite girl in order to find her way out. It was just like the store room, but a week ago, the students council decided to paint ‘em new. Scratch that, it was not so important. Out of curiosity, she followed on, and she found another exit at one end of the room.

Jennie enjoyed every little ride, with cute little hints here and there, now and then. But this was getting too much. She wanted to know! Immediately, Jennie twisted the doorknob and extricated herself, warmly welcomed by the rays of sunlight and the greenery grass. It was a whole new dimension honestly, compared to the surrounding in the building. Everything was so exquisite, but the little box in the middle of the garden was the highlight of her view. It was a tiny box, not so tiny but a palm-sized box, tied with a white balloon. Cute.

She crouched forward, and the moment she was on her feet again, she felt a taller figure standing in front of her. She just knew it was gonna be someone taller by the look of this person’s shadow enveloping hers. Now that the chance was just before her, Jennie couldn’t bring herself to lift her head. Heck, she felt like she had no strength to do it. Scared? A bit, maybe. Nervous? Definitely. All these feelings were mixing that she felt as if her stomach was lifted up to her throat. You can do this, Jennie. You can, you will. Just lift your head and—

“Princess?” was heard. It was the voice of a male. So it was a he. She stayed silent, hand gripping the bottle of lemonade while biting her lower lip hard. She could barely produce any sound, but after a little debate whether or not to respond, she managed to hum out in reply.

“Aren’t you curious about your, uh, secret admirer?” He asked, and Jennie could tell that he tipped his head to one side. She could even imagine that he was raising his brows with an amused smile on his face. Ugh.

“O— of course. I mean,” Jennie said in a mere whisper, is now fiddling with the ribbon that tied the bouquet lightly. She was very positive that she blushed madly at this rate, but she stayed on nonetheless as she observed the movement of his shadow. His shadow. Right, she didn’t know his name yet.

“Lift up your head. Look at me.” He commanded, his hands were slipped into the pockets of his pants as he waited patiently. Jennie took a deep breath, coaxing herself in silent voice before she obeyed; lifting her head a degree each second, eyes still squeezed closed until she felt like she had faced him. Her eyes were shut, lips pressed into a thin line as she breathed out a quiet ‘done’.

The stranger shook his head, clicking on his tongue with a swift “Nu’uh, princess, open up”. Without any warning, Jennie felt the pad of his thumb caressing her eyelid, taking her by surprise but she didn’t even flinch. It took the last bits of her sanity for her to finally peer her eyes open, slowly drawing the outline of the man in front of her; it started as a silhouette, blurry figure came into view until she finally saw him in person. And holy cow.

It was Daniel. Kang Daniel.

Jennie gasped, taking a step backwards with her eyes widened. Here’s the story. Daniel was one of the most outstanding students there. He excelled in studies, sports, everything. He had a great built body, not too broad, not too big but just perfect for someone around his height, that full attractive face that seemed like it was perfectly crafted by God himself. Everything about him was surreal that he might as well been God’s best creature. And nobody knew this but Jennie had always been admiring him, having a masive crush on this guy. She would always drop by the field to watch him play, sometimes peeking through the window of his classes, and weird, stalk-worthy stuffs like that. Never once in her wildest dream she would ever think Daniel could be her secret admirer— she never even thought of that. But now, here he was, standing like three feets before her, eyes meeting hers with that dazzling smile that caused her heart to skip a beat. It was thumping so hard and loud against her ribcage that she was afraid that it might can be heard by the latter. Grinning, Daniel inched his face closer.

“Well. .” He said, scratching the back of his nape awkwardly with the same smile. It was obvious that she caught Jennie staring at him more often than not, causing him to feel a little shy under the powerful girl’s gaze. “Um, it’s me. Daniel. Kang Daniel, if you don’t know what the K stands for.” He continued, chuckling at how dumbfounded and speechless she was. He gave her another minute to digest the information, and when she seemed to relax a little, Daniel added on. “Open the box, please.”

Jennie did, fumbling on the box at first. She felt like everything was in a slow motion, so it took her longer to process what he was saying. With a swift flick, a ring was seen. It was silver, shining, with a little diamond on top. She gasped, meeting Daniel’s gaze again in confirmation as he gestured the small folded note in the box. This guy was full of mysteries, rather pouring out his feelings into words instead of saying them out loud. Jennie, more than delighted to do it, unfolded the paper and she read it out loud for both of them.

“Will you be my girlfriend. .?”

Jennie gasped for the nth times, holding the ring in her thumb while looking up at Daniel again. He was red; probably embarrassed too to confess without any warning. She was about to ask him before he silenced her down, quickly got into the post to explain everything.

“Hey, I. . I understand if it’s too soon. But I’ve adored you since ever you came in. I couldn’t help but to watch you every time you got into the class, put down your bag first and took out your notebook then lastly your pencil case. I couldn’t help but to eye your choice of food and drink in café; how you’d purse your lips and tap your chin when you had to make a choice. I couldn’t help but to have a crush on you. I noticed how you’ve been dropping by to watch me— no, maybe not me in particular, but I hoped it was for me that you stopped by the field. I noticed everything and it took everything I had to finally slip in the notes in your locker. It took my entire self confidence to even started this game! So. . will you be my girlfriend, Jennie? I promise I will make you happy. I even learnt how to make a great lemonade to give to you and—”

“Yes, I do.” Jennie said, cutting him short. Her answer seemed to catch him offguard, from the way his eyes wandered bewilderedly in surprise.

“W— what?” He stuttered, his ears reddened.

“I said, yes. I do. I want to be your girlfriend.” Jennie repeated, this time with a wide smile. She couldn’t help the blush creeping up her cheeks but it reached the peak of her emotions when Daniel suddenly whooped her up into his arms, hugging her frame close to him while spinning her around. It was a joyful moment to cherish, both of them holding each other as the bouquet fell on the ground. Neither of them wanted to let go though, by now Jennie had her arms around his neck to support herself.

“My girlfriend.” Daniel cooed, stopping the pirouette while pressing his lips on the side of her head, nose dipping through some loose strands of her hair to inhale her shampoo scent. Those words brought a smile to her lips. Who thought that would be true? Knowing your crush was having a big fat crush on you and now having your crush hugging you so tightly in his arms? Jennie couldn’t relate because she was living that moment right now. “I love you.”

Frankly, Jennie had never been someone who got into relationships often. By now, she had only one ex, probably, and it was about four years ago. She felt like relationships need so much commitments that she couldn’t give. But now. . hearing those three words coming from someone that she had been admiring so lovingly for so long, being held in his arms protectively as if she was the only valuable thing ever existed in this cruel world, too small, too soft, too fragile that he was afraid even the wind could break her apart— she knew it herself that she loved him too. She loved the feeling of love that she had at the moment.

“I love you too, Daniel.” Their lips met, eyes closing in pure ectasy before she pulled away to resume her words. “I love you so much. Thank you for dropping the hints.”

“Always, baby.”

“Always.”

[forte7]

Forte’s Fan Character Flashback Friday - #11

Name: Kaede Hatake Series: Naruto Background: So, this is probably the last Flashback Friday; turns out I'm kinda out of fan characters to really bring back - at least those that I really remember or have images of. But I will be ending this series off with a bang, I guess, cause today we're going to talk about one of my favorite fan characters who has way more development than a fan character really needs, but hey, I enjoy it and it's fun.

Anyway, I've posted stuff for this character before, but have a lot more I can share and have been kind of holding back for this post.

This is Kaede, my long-lived Naruto fan character. As cliche as it is, she supposed to Kakashi's adopted daughter, who of course, also happened to repress her memories of her actual family and birthplace and thanks to the Third Hokage's permission and whatnot, was able to just more or less seamlessly mesh into living in the Hidden Leaf village.

She was created right after I really got into the series, which was back around 2007, which correlates with one of the earlier images I have of her on my dA. You can see that one here, actually: https://www.deviantart.com/forte-girl7/art/Hatake-Kaede-69525304

Fun side note for that, I had done that image all on the free program GIMP and with a mouse and I'm still amazed at my younger self for having the patience to do all the things I used to do with just a mouse. I've been spoiled by my tablet, haha.

Anyway, one reason why I've been so attached to this character is because, like Rey a while ago, I used to RP with this character on a Naruto RP forum. However, this forum was much more active and the person who RPed as Kakashi was super into the idea and we really ran with the different scenarios we could put the two in. I'm actually still friends with that person and we talk about it from time to time and after the forum itself had gone under, still wrote fanfiction things together, just for funsies.

There's another reason why I got attached to the character and it's kind of a weird, personal, psychological reason, but could really be applied to a lot of my fan characters. As you may have noticed over the course of this series, a lot of my fan characters are either a character's daughter or younger sister. I never did the love interest thing; it wasn't and still isn't a thing that I was into. Not sure why, really, but not my thing.

The gravitation to having characters with older brothers or I suppose "idealized" father figures, however, I can totally explain. The brother thing is simple: I've always wanted an older brother, but as the eldest of the family, that was never going to be a thing. So, I guess I tried to find some kind of surrogate relationship with my fan characters. The same can be said with the father thing, too, but I do still have my dad around and while he isn't the worst dad, I guess he could have always been better. I don't want to paint my dad in a bad light, but he's always been a bit overbearing and had a lot of expectations for me that he pushed so much, I'm sure it didn't help with how my mental state's progressed through the years. Really, it's still a thing I deal with to this day and the more I think about it, the more I understand my younger self's need for "better" father figures to attach myself to.

Kaede was definitely one of those characters, and with someone like my old RP friend fanning the flames, it was hard not to get attached to a source of escapism that I really craved and needed at the time. That and having a set up like that and also have a friend who funnily enough cosplayed as Kakashi at one point saying "she should be canon", well, that's how you make a 14/15 year old's day, haha.

Anyway, I do have a lot of older art for this character (plus a lot of newer stuff), that I'll put next. I'll try and put them in chronological order, starting with some of the older stuff I have.

Old Drawing 1

Old Drawing 2

Old Drawing 3

Old Drawing 4

Old Drawing 5

Old Drawing 6

She's had a few different outfits over the years, though I do have a lot more stuff of her in more random outfits not really connected to her "actual" design. You can tell I was going through that "young weeaboo" phase looking at them, cause there are some of her as kitsune, some of her and Kakashi transformed into dogs, lots of them with bad fashion sense, and even here, she used to have a giant, paper fan as a weapon, cause "they have those in anime". And yes, I know, Temari has a giant fan, but her's is actually like.. a bamboo folding one, while the one here is obviously just a silly paper one that again, you would see in anime as a gag item.

Also, a few notes about some of her outfit inspirations: her earliest outfit looked way too much like Sasuke's, which I wanted to stray away from, but was hard considering I insisted on keeping her color palette the blue/tan mix.

One reason for wanting to stray from that is because of Kaede's odd stance when it comes to Sasuke. Personally, he's not my favorite, but Kaede herself is at odds with him, because of Kakashi's focus on training Sasuke in the earlier part of the series, mainly because of their mutual connection that is the Sharingan. Kaede has a slight inferiority complex when it comes to this relationship and is a major source for her lack of self confidence in her abilities.

Also, one of the later designs is an obvious rip-off of Kakashi's outfit from the Gaiden storyline (the bit where he actually gets his Sharingan). I liked elements from it, but again, would go on to tweak it so it wasn't just stealing from another character. Of course, if you look at the designs (and naming conventions) for a lot of the characters that are related... well, sometimes it seems like they didn't try much harder, hahaha.

And as another note, the reason why some of these images have the dA watermark on it was because I got these from my storage on there and they had those enabled. For the next few, which aren't in storage, I'll just link to the actual dA posts. These are still fairly old at this point, cause I haven't posted a lot of the newer stuff on there or anywhere yet, cause I've been... just going crazy on making new stuff and not posting it.

https://www.deviantart.com/forte-girl7/art/Daddy-s-Girl-126086387

https://www.deviantart.com/forte-girl7/art/Naruto-Kaede-326539607

Those two are from 2009 and 2012, while the ones earlier were posted in 2007ish. Also, the age progression there is pretty similar to the current one, though in the most recent, her older outfit reflects the changes to the general Konoha shinobi found in Boruto.

Now, this is just all visual development for the character. When I say a lot, I mean, a lot, cause there's also a written development to go with this. Granted, a lot of it is more recent, but that's because of me being weird.

Some of the posts there on dA do have the startings of a character profile, but they always say "I'll post most later" or "I'm still working on her profile" or whatever and that never came to light. That's mainly because, as I've mentioned before, I'm oddly pick about how plausible my characters may be in the canon universe. Kaede is no exception and may be the one that really sparked how particular I am about it.

I've been meaning for the longest of times to actually write a fanfiction that more or less adds Kaede to the story, though through research/rethinking, I would now add events not directly connected to the manga/anime, which would be needed either way, cause it's not like I was gonna shove her in the background of every actual scene from Naruto's story. However, because Naruto was still ongoing when I got into the series, I decided to bide my time and wait until it ended and how things unfolded.

While now that it's ended, that means I can comb through everything and actually make sure everything's covered, but it was quite an thing to tough through, considering some of the things that happened in the later chapters of the manga. I don't want to spoil anything for anyone really, but the series is pretty old now at this point and into their next series anyway, and some of the stuff that they pull off and hope you accept in the end game of Naruto is a bit much and trust me, you do not want to get me started on THAT topic, hahaha.

Anyway, now I'll be sharing some of the stuff I've been working on the last bit of time to actually maybe see that long-form fanfiction come to fruition. Please note that a lot of them are still a work in progress, but they have come a long ways since those earlier profile/backstory promises. It turns out that sitting down and combing through stuff, even after the fact, is a lot of work and very time consuming, because again, there's a lot of baloney that Naruto really hopes you'd be fine with, when sometimes they themselves don't stay the most consistent, especially when it comes to their actual time line.

I'm trying really hard not to go on a rant here... so let's move on the links and I'll explain them one by one if needed.

Profile Here's Kaede's current overall profile. It includes the general things on a profile sheet, like name, appearance, personality, backstory, and the likes. This also covers the same parameters for Kaede through the year, because I want to be thorough cause I'm weird like that. I also have little skill charts that use the same ranking system found in the Naruto Character Guidebooks, because I guess I like to waste time, hahaha. The backstory part of this is also kind of serving as a rough draft/abridged version for certain story events I'd like to write out, so sorry if they read... weird.

Relationships This document goes into more detail of Kaede's relationships to other characters. Kakashi's isn't full filled out yet, though it should probably be one of the longest ones, but I've been focusing on other characters, mainly her extended family, that I've been adding to bolster her backstory. There are line breaks between certain groups of characters, and the order after Kakashi should be Kaede's actual parents, her extended family (mainly a lot of her mother's relatives), Kaede's teammate and sensei, Naruto and the others of Team 7/Kakashi, and then other characters from the show.

Supporting Profiles Now, because I'm making up a whole gang of extra characters for my silly little OC, that means they also need profiles for a bit more fleshing out of their own, so that's this document, cause I just don't know how to stop myself sometimes. These again follow an order in their appearance, going from her biological parents to extended family, then teammates, followed up by teammates/colleagues of her biological father.

Technique/Skill List Pretty self explanatory. There are technically two versions of this list, where the other is really just a list. This one is the spreadsheet that covers other parameters of the various techniques/skills/jutsu/whatever and where I keep other notes.

Timeline This one is pretty much the biggest pain the neck for me, because again, it's taking time to cross reference the canon timelines that sometimes muddle themselves up anyway and can be annoying, yet amusing to read. This timeline focuses mainly on characters directly involved with Kaede, such as her extended family/what have you, so it's not the same in-depth one that I've been using on the Naruto wiki. Again, I'm trying to put her into the story, but that doesn't mean she's present and/or relevant to everything, cause she wouldn't be, hahaha, though there are some events present that are only there as kind of reminders for what's taking place in the main storyline.

As seen in the supporting profiles doc, all the characters I've come up with have designs, too, or are in the process of getting them and I've posted sketches and finished versions of them on my Patreon, cause those are also still a work in progress. I want to say I'll post them when they're done, but with me, who knows when that'll be, so I'll just some of them here now:

Supporting Character Drawings

Anyway, I think I'm gonna wrap this one up, cause I've blabbed for long enough. I know not a lot was actually covered Kaede-wise here, but that's because a lot of it would just be repeats of the stuff covered in the way-too-many-documents-for-a-fan-character up there.

Also, like I said, this is probably the last Fan Character Flashback Friday, so I want to thank you all for taking this journey with me to the past to revisit some rather fond memories and fun designs.

[theleastcarefulofgamedevs]

hehehehehehehehe ur turn. overshare pals

hehe im lov u ceec :)

---

1. coffee mugs, teacups, wine glasses, water bottles, or soda cans?

water bottles and soda cans!

2. chocolate bars or lollipops?

chocolate.... im lov it

3. bubblegum or cotton candy?

cotton candy!

4. how did your elementary school teachers describe you?

hardworking, earnest, and honestly? they gave me too much credit ebagweaganegioawnegew

5. do you prefer to drink soda from soda cans, soda bottles, plastic cups or glass cups?

soda bottles!

6. pastel, boho, tomboy, preppy, goth, grunge, formal or sportswear?

somewhere between boho, goth, and grunge hehe

7. earbuds or headphones?

headphones!

8. movies or tv shows?

movies,,

9. favorite smell in the summer?

you know that wet pavement smell after it rains? love that

10. game you were best at in p.e.?

dodgeball hehehe

11. what you have for breakfast on an average day?

nothin tbh. i don’t wake up early enough for it

12. name of your favorite playlist?

Writing Music! i made it hehehe

13. lanyard or key ring?

key ring!

14. favorite non-chocolate candy?

GUMMY BEARS AND JELLY BEANS

15. favorite book you read as a school assignment?

“A Child Called ‘It’“ by Dave Pelzer

16. most comfortable position to sit in?

cuddled up to someone in blankets,,, im lov anything with my s/o tbh

17. most frequently worn pair of shoes?

i have this beat up pair of blue slip ons that have bloodstains on em bc i got a nosebleed one day bwaeiugbaweugbaweubguaw

18. ideal weather?

post-raining, or like. just before it starts raining

19. sleeping position?

anything with my s/o or bein wrapped in like. a billion blankets

20. preferred place to write (i.e., in a note book, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc.)?

on my home pc in my room!

21. obsession from childhood?

dice and video games!

22. role model?

i know it’s gonna sound dumb but like. a lot of characters from media have influenced me a lot, like sans/komaeda etc. another one from my real life would be my aunt on my mom’s side!

23. strange habits?

i bounce my leg while listening to music or stressed,, that’s abt it. OH and i like twirling a small blanket around on my arm bc... acrobatics of sorts

24. favorite crystal?

amethyst, but anything clean cut and rounded looks rlly nice imo,,

25. first song you remember hearing?

the first day i remember in my life was christmas at my grandma’s when i was 4, so probably random christmas music ubwegebwgwebgoibgweg

26. favorite activity to do in warm weather?

sometimes when i get tired of sitting around at home i like to walk down to the dog park by my house! 

27. favorite activity to do in cold weather?

cuddle,,,,,,,,,,, wrap up in a blanket with some freshly baked cookies n just. be there

28. five songs to describe you?

megalovania, medley rush 2 from the sonic rush ost, the promised neverland english op, metal crusher from undertale, metal scratchin’ from sonic rush

29. best way to bond with you?

just talk to me! im godawful at starting convos but i love talkin to ppl! 

30. places that you find sacred?

every person’s room feels that way, as well as obvious places, like churches n whatnot. we went n visited my aunt’s old house so my mom could pick up some stuff and being in her room after she died in 2015 was just like. an emotion i can’t rlly describe

31. what outfit do you wear to kick ass and take names?

hoodie, trackpants, n sneakers hehe

32. top five favorite vines?

back at it again @ krispy kreme, ADAM, they were roommates, two dudes in a hot tub, my croissant

33. most used phrase in your phone?

either “be there soon” or “ily” 

34. advertisements you have stuck in your head?

none tbh. i don’t watch much tv so i don’t see ads often

35. average time you fall asleep?

either 10:30 or sometime after midnight. no in between 

36. what is the first meme you remember ever seeing?

it was a rage comic

37. suitcase or duffel bag?

suitcase!

38. lemonade or tea?

lemonade, but i LOVE tea!

39. lemon cake or lemon meringue pie?

LEMON CAKE....

40. weirdest thing to ever happen at your school?

i was walkin in the halls with my friend and someone dropped a styrofoam cup of pasta on my friend’s head from the second floor awbegiuawbeguiawbguaewg

41. last person you texted?

the person who sent this ask heheheheh

42. jacket pockets or pants pockets?

jacket pockets!

43. hoodie, leather jacket, cardigan, jean jacket or bomber jacket?

hoodie!

44. favorite scent for soap?

anything really, but i like whatever my s/o uses bc it would remind me of them!

45. which genre: sci-fi, fantasy or superhero?

fantasy!

46. most comfortable outfit to sleep in?

underwear tbh. like. that and a tshirt or just underwear is the only way i can sleep

47. favorite type of cheese?

sensory issues say i have to hate all kinds of cheese outside of like. grilled cheese so let’s go with that/cheddar

48. if you were a fruit, what kind would you be?

dragonfruit! 

49. what saying or quote do you live by?

GOD pretty much every quote from monomi or chiaki in danganronpa 2, but mostly “if you learn to love yourself, that love will continue to carry you for your whole life! love, love...”

50. what made you laugh the hardest you ever have?

OH HERES A FUCKIN STORY OK so i was at my friend’s house with a bunch of others bc we were doin a sleepover type thing and we were eating raising canes in his attic at like 3 am and some guy high on like. 3 different drugs at once got impaled through the leg on his fence. nobody saw him but we knew he was there and the cops were there in like 3 minutes. that very same friend has some of the most wack stories ngl

51. current stresses?

just doing well in school and making sure my s/o is happy!

52. favorite font?

comic sans.......................... im sorry

53. what is the current state of your hands?

my palms b sweaty but my fingers are dehydrated tbh. typin

54. what did you learn from your first job?

work.... difficult

55. favorite fairy tale?

probably the princess and the frog!

56. favorite tradition?

christmas!

57. the three biggest struggles you’ve overcome?

probably my most noteworthy traumas tbh. gettin therapy for em, too

58. four talents you’re proud of having?

writing, my ability to overcome obstacles, being able to help ppl as well as i can, and making friends fast!

59. if you were a video game character, what would your catchphrase be?

“Not dead yet.”

60. if you were a character in an anime, what kind of anime would you want it to be?

Probably either shounen, romance, or moe,,,,

61. favorite line you heard from a book/movie/tv show/etc.?

“It’s a beautiful day outside. Birds are singing, flowers are blooming. On days like these, kids like you... should be burning in hell.”

62. seven characters you relate to?

sans, komaeda, makoto naegi, komaru naegi, toko fukawa, chiaki nanami, and chihiro fujisaki!

63. five songs that would play in your club?

they’d all be fall out boy tbh. that and videogame osts

64. favorite website from your childhood?

armor games hehe

65. any permanent scars?

i don’t think so? at least, not yet

66. favorite flower(s)?

roses and anything blue!

67. good luck charms?

my dice sets!

68. worst flavor of any food or drink you’ve ever tried?

vanilla york peppermint patties... gross

69. a fun fact that you don’t know how you learned?

pikmin in pikmin 1 who are underneath a bridge when it’s completed are killed because they get pushed through the ground

70. left or right handed?

right handed!

71. least favorite pattern?

probably the hellish bumpy pattern all teachers have all over their fuckin classrooms

72. worst subject?

math

73. favorite weird flavor combo?

chicken nuggets in milkshake... good. or frankly just like. cooked chicken mixed with anythin cold like ice or ice cream

74. at what pain level out of ten (1 through 10) do you have to be at before you take an advil or ibuprofen?

like. 3 or 4

75. when did you lose your first tooth?

i was eating a crunch bar and it fell out hehe

76. what’s your favorite potato food (i.e. tater tots, baked potatoes, fries, chips, etc.)?

I WOULD DIE FOR FRENCH FRIES.

77. best plant to grow on a windowsill?

any small blooming plant, like a single rose or flower!

78. coffee from a gas station or sushi from a grocery store?

hrm. coffee from a gas station tbh

79. which looks better, your school id photo or your driver’s license photo?

NEITHER LOOK GOOD LMAO and i don’t have a driver’s license. that’s just like. a prediction

80. earth tones or jewel tones?

jewel tones!

81. fireflies or lightning bugs?

lightning bugs!

82. pc or console?

either works but i spend more time on pc!

83. writing or drawing?

writing, but i like both!

84. podcasts or talk radio?

talk radio, but i love podcasts like TAZ or Critical Role! 

84. barbie or polly pocket?

neither? but probably barbie bc it’s more well known? idk

85. fairy tales or mythology?

mythology!

86. cookies or cupcakes?

cupcakes all the way b

87. your greatest fear?

me being the last person i know alive. i’d rather die than outlive everyone

88. your greatest wish?

i hope that no matter what there is after we die, i get to be with the people that are most important to me. 

89. who would you put before everyone else?

my s/o and family tbh

90. luckiest mistake?

buying danganronpa bweguowabguawebogbaweibg

91. boxes or bags?

boxes!

92. lamps, overhead lights, sunlight or fairy lights?

fairy lights!

93. nicknames?

i go by wes, dev, bines, anything rlly

94. favorite season?

spring!

95. favorite app on your phone?

tumblr hehe

96. desktop background?

it’s the ddlc cast! it’s a greyscaled image of four of the events cut together and their eyes glow hehe

97. how many phone numbers do you have memorized?

only one, and it’s my dads bc i have to call him every time i go to my grandparents’ hehe

98. favorite historical era?

probably the one we’re in now tbh, but like. also hate it

[power-rangers-grid-spirits]

Premise and Basic Plot and Whatnot

anthony's author notes: I know Power Rangers for being "that series with colour-coded heroes who consistently blow shit up for the good of Earth". Power Rangers has a cookie-cutter idea of what constitutes a good storyline, and as the local writer dude, I decided I want to subvert those tropes in my own series.

Grid Spirits or Spirit Grid (i like and use both, but grid spirits is technically the “official” title) is entirely founded on and reliant on Grid Theory. Grid Theory is the concept that every Ranger ever is connected to the Power. (It's not canon, holy heck is that a tragedy) Sometimes this comes into play from birth, while other times it doesn't kick in until the character(s) become Rangers. You can find my favorite Grid Theory fics here and here.

The idea of this series is that each colour has a coloured spirit attached to it, and to all the Rangers of that colour. The Red Spirit is tied to the colour red (duh) and to all the Red Rangers, even if some of the Reds (side-eyes Tommy) don't use their Red Ranger Powers anymore.

I did have to make decisions on how to divide the colours up. Ninja Storm has both a Red (Shane) and Crimson (Hunter) Ranger, as well as a Blue (Tori) and Navy (Blake) Ranger. I went with having the different shades go together (for example, Hunter's Crimson is considered Red) with the sole exception of Aqua (James Navarro of Dino Charge), which is its own category. As for the Rangers whose titles aren't colours (hint hint half of S.P.D.), I looked at each of their pages on the Fandom Wiki and used those. (seriously that site is a gift from god)

One by one, the Grid Spirits run off into a new universe (a carbon copy of ours. It has the franchise; oh the headache my Rangers could give the execs) and each "possess" an individual whom they deem "compatible". This grants the individual full access to every Ranger power of their colour we know, some that we don't, and the ones I made up for this. This does include different elemental-kinesis power sets specific to each character, but I gave Jaiden the reins on those. The Grid is also now an actual physical space. It is in a different dimension, but with the Spirits' powers, the team can teleport there.

Unfortunately, because all of the Grid Spirits are out and about, the villains from every season are let loose as well. Madame Odious is in charge because I said so and I want her to. Rita is naturally her second-in-command. 

Cue the dramatic fight scenes...with a TWIST!! :0 oh my so surprising

I think we all know that every city the Rangers have ever been in is an absolute disaster zone. A crater courtesy of idiots in spandex. We all knew it was the truth.

I don't know if you've ever seen Lolirock. I myself watched about ten episodes before I got bored. The point, though, is that they have this little mascot thing (it has a name but i don't know it) and it can teleport the princesses and their monster of the week into an arena dimension. Since the Grid is now a place the Rangers can go, and I make the rules here, it has an arena where the Rangers can fight the bad guy without, you know, destroying everything around them. It also cuts off any communication to the main villains (e.g. Rita, Lothor, i'm bad at remembering these characters please ignore me)

Power Rangers is not terribly well-known for its plot. However, since we don't have the big studio budget for a television show, we'll have to write the story in book form and actually have the desperately needed Rangers’ character development. (oh no how so very dreadful)

jaiden's art notes: Hi y'all! I do the character designs and art (and excessively make picrews but that's not important here).

Each character has a unique and special backstory, and I wanted to make each character unique and special designs to match. Anthony let me pick each character's elemental powers so I could incorporate them better into my designs, so if you're curious about that, it's a question for me.

The Rangers have two appearances: their regular civilian appearances, and their Spirit form appearances. The reasons for this are because this is more mystical-y than the Power Rangers we know and love, so it makes sense that their Spirit appearances would be influenced by their powers. Each design is a mash of their civilian appearances and one ranger of their colour. Design-wise, this is also because I hate, HATE doing helmets with a burning passion and no way in frozen-over hell am I making those here. (I am aware of the fuck-ups in the Turbo movie when they tried to film with pieces of the helmet missing. I do not care. They look different, what identity could they reveal if they look entirely different. They could only reveal it if they specifically told someone "hey, i'm a grid spirit" or if they transformed in front of someone.)

The suits are pretty simple. Each Ranger wears a dark grey bodysuit with geometric tessellation patterns in light grey. These extend to their wrists, ankles, and have a high neck. Over this, they each wear white gloves and boots, but the specifics vary between Rangers. The boots may extend to any height, as can the gloves, which may also be fingerless in some cases. Each of them, finally, has a "regular outfit" over their bodysuit in their signature colour (for example, several of the girls have short dresses), and a wide black belt around their midriffs with a stripe around the middle in their colour. (think martial arts belts, but wider.) Each costume is specifically designed so that it doesn't draw attention to any *ahem* particular locations.

So, you know, this'll be fun. The two of us are excited to get this train out of the station. Wanna stick around?

[starspatter]

For old time's sake: Haruki x Kyonko for whatever questions you want

Imma just answer all the questions. =P1: Who spends almost all their money on the other?Considering the number of penalties Kyonko gets for arriving late, she’s pretty much Haruki’s walking wallet.2: Who sleeps in the other’s lap?Haruki, and Kyonko covers him with her cardigan.3: Who walks around the house half-naked and who yells at them to put on some clothes?Seeing as he has no problem changing for gym in the classroom when others are around/wearing Chippendale outfits(?), I’d say Haruki.4: Which one tells the other not to stay up all night and which one stays up all night anyway?Kyonko tries to tell Haruki not to stay up all night searching for aliens and whatnot but ofc he doesn’t listen.5: Which one tries to make food for the other but burns it all by accident and which one tells them that it’s okay and makes them both cookies?I imagine Kyonko’s not the best at cooking but she tries anyway and Haruki makes fun of her for her lack of “womanly qualities”.6: Which one reads OTP prompts and says “Oh that’s us!” and which one goes “Eh, not really”?Haruki and Kyonko, respectively.7: Which one constantly wears the other’s clothes?If by “other’s clothes” you mean outfits Haruki picks out for Kyonko… *cough*8: Which one spends all day running errands and which one says “You remembered [thing], right?”Kyonko is basically the errand girl of the SOS Brigade already, so…9: Which one drives the car and which one gives them directions?Haruki is a total backseat driver, although in high school he would at least be the one to give her rides on his bike as opposed to the other way around à la Haruhi and Kyon. XP (Given the way he drives though I’m not sure Kyonko’s in any better position. ^^; )10: Which one does the posing while the other one draws?Haruki totally has Kyonko pose in different outfits, and even though she grumbles she goes along with it.11: If they were about to rob a museum, which one does backflips through lasers and which one is strolling behind with a bag of chips?Haruki’s doing the backflips for sure.12: Which one of your OTP overdoes it on the alcohol and which one makes the other stop drinking?Well in the novels Haruhi swore off alcohol when she tried it during the island trip, so I imagine Haruki does the same.  I don’t see Kyonko going too overboard, so I guess neither of them.13: Which one likes to surprise the other with a lot of small random gifts?Haruki, although his “gifts” aren’t exactly what you’d consider traditional…14: Which one keeps accidentally using the other’s last name instead of their own?Seeing as we still don’t know Kyon(ko)’s last name… ^^;15: Which one screams about the spider and which one brings the spider outside?I don’t think either one would really scream, but Haruki would insist on bringing it outside in hopes that it’s a magical creature who would later come back to thank them by granting them wishes or whatnot.  Kyonko would think he’s just doing it out of the goodness of his heart at first but then when she hears the explanation she just rolls her eyes and prays it doesn’t turn into a giant monster spider like the cave cricket incident.16: Which one gives the other their jacket?Haruki, as in “Someday in the Rain”.17: Who keeps getting threatened by the other’s overprotective older sibling?Well only Kyonko has a little brother as far as we know(?), and I don’t think he’d be so much overprotective as idolize Haruki. XP18: Who’s the first one to admit they have feelings for the other?Out loud?  Kyonko, probably.  (I mean, she already kissed him in Closed Space but I guess that doesn’t really count as an actual confession. XP)19: How good would your OTP be at parenting?Well I’ve been operating under a happier AU idea than our actual theory of the genderbent cast being the first generation, but assuming Haruhi is still their daughter I think they’d be good parents either way (if a bit overbearing on Haruki’s side).  Haruhi does mention her mom works a lot so she had to learn to do the cooking and stuff, so I imagine Kyonko’s more the breadearner of the family.20: Which one types with perfect grammar and which one types using numbers as letters?Haruki would type with symbols, although I think it’d be more as an attempt to reproduce an alien language/secret code.21: Who gets attacked by a bully and who protects them?I think Haruki would be a more likely target for bullying but he probably wouldn’t put up with that bullshit so they’d be scared of him instead.  If anyone did come after Kyonko though he’d definitely defend her.22: Who makes the bad puns and who makes a pained smile every time the other makes a pun?Kyonko: “Yare yare.”  (“Good grief.”)23: Who comes home from work to see that the other one bought a puppy?Kyonko comes home to find Haruki playing with a puppy (that may or may not be able to talk).24: Which one gives the other a piggyback ride when they’re tired?Haruki will carry Kyonko, whether she protests against it or not.25: Which one competes in some sort of activity and which one does the overzealous cheering?Haruki loves his competition, although Kyonko’s cheering would probably be pretty laid-back.26: Who takes a selfie when the other one falls asleep on their shoulder?Haruki, never one to pass up a blackmail opportunity.27: Which one would give the other a makeover if they asked?*Haruki holds up next outfit for Kyonko to try on*28: Which one owns a pet that the other is absolutely terrified of?Kyonko’s presumably the only one with a pet (although now I’m wondering if Shamisen’s predecessor was a talking dog instead of a cat), but I don’t think Haruki would be terrified so much as thrilled if he knew it could speak at one point.29: Which one holds the umbrella over both of them when it rains?Haruki due to his height, although he’ll run off with it anyway to tease Kyonko.30: If your OTP went on vacation, where would they go and what would they do? Who would take the pictures?Some mysterious landmark, like Stonehenge or something.  Haruki would be taking all the pictures for paranormal research of course.