#I make Tristan sound like such a nerd

[dodger-chan]

Based off of this idea, originating with @rogueddie (also on ao3)

Steve was looking at Eddie. He had to. There wasn’t anything else worth looking at in the theater.

That sounded weird.

Steve was looking at Eddie. Because unlike Steve, Eddie was not bored out of his skull by the music, the overacting, the complete absence of story.

That last complaint was unfair. There was a story. Eddie’d summed it up for him on the drive over. Steve just couldn’t follow the story with all the singing being in Italian. Or German. Maybe.

He’d gotten used to hearing a bunch of different languages living with Robin, and being able to tell them apart, but everything sounded different when sung. And everything was sung.

Eddie, who only spoke English and nerd, didn’t seem to have any trouble following the opera. Or if he wasn’t following it, he didn’t care. He was clearly having the time of his life, his joy reflected in the smile on his face and the sparkle in his eyes.

So yeah, Steve was looking at Eddie.

Steve looked away quickly when the music stopped and the lights went up. It would be weird if Eddie caught him staring.

“Is it over?” he asked hopefully. It sure felt like they’d been sitting there for several hours.

“It���s intermission.” Right. Halftime. Or, no, the program said there were two intermissions. So one third of the way. “You’re not enjoying it?”

“It’s not my thing, but it isn’t so bad.” Steve lied. He could get through this. He’d survived worse.

It was a good thing no one had told the Russians about Wagner.

“Want to walk around for a bit? Stretch our legs?”

----

Walking around made Steve feel like he was doing something. Something other than staring at Eddie. Though with Eddie bouncing on his toes and excited hand gestures as he gushed about what they’d just seen Steve couldn’t keep from staring a little.

“Is this your first opera?” An older woman in evening wear asked Eddie. She was smiling kindly, but Steve knew how fake those kind smiles could be. He took note of the wrinkles around her eyes, the graying roots of her hair, any flaws she might be sensitive to, in case she was about to bring up the worn knee in Eddie’s best jeans.

Not everyone could afford a tux like her escort.

“Second, actually. Steve and I saw Don Giovanni here about four, five months ago.” That had been boring, too. But Eddie had loved it, even though he’d been a little embarrassed at enjoying a snobby, rich person kind of thing. So Steve had bought tickets to another opera as soon as he’d saved up enough for two. “I’ve heard Tristan und Isolde before, but it’s different live.”

“It is, isn’t it?”

And then the two of them started talking way, way above Steve’s head, with musical terms he’d have sworn were made up. Like, harmonic was a music thing, sure, but suspension had to do with cars.

It was so much like when Dustin and Eddie talked about Dungeons and Dragons that Steve had to smile.

“And they’re off.” The woman’s escort was smiling, too. He jerked his head in the direction of the bar. “C’mon. Let’s you and I get drinks while my wife and your boyfriend talk shop.”

Steve took three full steps before the words sank in.

“Shit,” he breathed. That was why he’d spent months setting aside money for opera tickets. And why he’d needed two. And why he’d spent all of act one entertaining himself with Eddie’s facial expressions. He was in love with Eddie.

Steve turned around.

“I’m very sorry,” he interrupted the woman. He was a little sorry; Eddie seemed to be enjoying her conversation. “I need to borrow this guy for ten seconds.”

“What the hell?” Eddie asked as Steve pulled him away from any potential eavesdroppers.

“Do you want this to be a date?”

“Um, what?”

“Tonight. This. A date.” Maybe Steve wasn’t making a lot of sense. He tried again. “That woman you were talking to, her husband called you my boyfriend-”

“Oh, shit, Steve, I’m sorry- '' Eddie started.

“Don’t be. Unless, you don’t want to be. My boyfriend, that is.” Steve looked directly into Eddie’s eyes. “Because I’d really like it if you’d be my boyfriend.”

“I’d like that, too.”

They couldn’t kiss in such a public place. But once they were back in their seats and the lights went down, no one would be able to see if they were holding hands.

Steve was suddenly looking forward to act two.

[mapplesand]

i'm bored but apparently there's a fun tag going around with the headcanon site (here) and i'm gonna do it because it sounds funny

basically i'm gonna put my ocs into it and say if the headcanon would be accurate or not

anyway enjoy

Marco sleeps in until noon.

oh yeah, it's canon that Marco usually sleeps until at least 1pm

Tristan is a theatre kid.

he's not because he's shy and scared of being perceived by other, HOWEVER he's a big poety nerd

Josh desperately needs a hug but doesn't know it and refuses to ask for one.

yes and no because Josh needs a hug but doesn't think of himself as "desesperate" so he won't ask one because he doesnt think he needs one, idk if that makes sense, there's like a whole subplot about him going to Tyler (out of all people) for comfort

Tyler is constantly singing for no reason.

nah you barely hear him talk

Marco is in your house.

uh oh

Tristan watches My Little Pony.

YES YES IT'S CANON Tristan had a big special interest on my little pony as a kid, his room was filled with my little pony and he still has stickers on his shelves, this is so true thank you headcanon generator

Josh listens to 80s music.

probably a bit but only the mainstream one that got popular again because of shows like Stranger Things you know, he mainly listen to popular songs you'll hear on the radio

Tyler is oblivous to any and all romantic interest someone may show them.

well, he IS autistic and has a very hard time understanding others so he would probably not get the hint at all, or he'll respond very literally to everything (he also has weird ass relationships with people so all he knows is blurred line between platonic and romantic relationship)

Marco shops exclusivaly at Hot Topic.

yeah honestly have you seen him

Tristan is tumblr famous.

Tristan does have a tumblr, that's the cool thing about writing characters in modern day lol, i don't think he'd be famous tho, just normal amount of followers

Josh is a youngest child.

I mean yeah, simple but yeah, he has an older brother

Tyler likes board games, but no one else wants to play with them.

man why does Tyler get all the random hit in the jaw, but yeah he probably does, he's a lonely guy (i do think he'd try to play with his younger sister who's 7 but he wants to play things like cluedo and she's too young to understand anything so it wouldnt be fair)

Marco can kill you in an instant, but wont.

LMAO yeah.... he's the strongest out of all 4 of them, also he reguarly beat the shit out of people, he also has a gun

Tristan can hug you and will.

Tristan is big on physical affection so yeah

Josh is a cry baby.

he's actually is a bit of a cry baby not gonna lie

Tyler has not showered in two and a half weeks.

for real this one applies to Marco and Tristan too, they're all bad with hygiene and Josh is the only one to shower everyday, Tyler probably doesn't care that much, it's not that he forgets he just,,, doesnt see why he should do it often i guess (my characters stink)

maybe i'll steal more stuff like this just because i'm bored and i need reasons to rant about these dudes

[away-ward]

wow, your latest qna about DN made me think, who is the most and least aggressive person in ranking? What do you think KO? How would you rank them? I think my top three would be damon/ emory/ michael. Now that you've mentioned about damon and emory, it reminded me of your past posts about their personalities and collaboration, how well they could work together without having any problems because they probably are pretty much on the same level of aggression and level-headedness, and only until now, i never actually realised that emmy IS pretty aggressive and dominant?

I dont think PD executed em's character well, but because of that qna, it made me zoom out of my understanding of DN and compare and contrast these characters, and surely, emmy really was pretty aggressive. Like why am i even shock, lmfaooo. I think other than PD not executing it well, emmy was also dealing with a lot of doubts and fear when it comes the "thunder bay" part of her life. We dont see her hesitating afterwards right? But then we dont see much of her overall. This also made me think thats why the train exchange between emmy, michael and kai had to happen. Or she will just leave again lmao.

like In comparison to banks who is outwardly pretty aggressive, but in actuality, she is more of a good follower of damon, her mom, gabriel and even kai in that hideaway bonus than a good enforcer (like you mentioned) or a pioneer, i feel like emmy is more aggressive in spirit than banks, i guess? Naturally, not just because of survival. Which also made me find banks & emmy's dynamic to be so interesting because on one hand we have emmy who looks laidback (we're talking about after nightfall) and banks who has piercing eyes, but in reality if push comes to shove, emmy would lead banks, not the other way around? Oh, wow? Or am i wrong? Like, do you get my vision, KO? It made sense right? And i feel so much headcanon can be done with that where banks could possiblly and finally get a close friend who she can follow who would catch her and lead her well rather than try to cage her all the time like everyone who's dominant than her in her life rn? Damn! We could've had that!!!

like the cocky laidback dominant nerd and her very prickly piercing submissive rule-follower/enforecer best friend? Like this friendship will be the first time where the use of the word "submissive" and "dominant" dont sound condescending because both banks and emmy can feel safe in their dynamics because they saw nothing wrong being either role, because! Theyre! Besties! And! Would! Kill! For! Each! Other! And put! Others! To! Jail! For! Each! Other! Omg? Noooo, like can you see the vision, KO? AHHHH! I remember watching larryreads's reaction to reading nightfall and she mentioned something about emmy being a shy nerd and i was like what? Did we read the same book, because the word shy or blush didnt even exist in nightfall. I remember emmy being described as ready-to-fight, cocky and stubborn, and quite flirt/spicy when she let go too (hence why emmy overpowered alex in their friendship dynamic, or even between emmy and aydin/damon), as oppose to banks who's very beautiful, prickly, super great boxing fighter, outwardly aggressive, steady reliable great worker who can also work in the dark, very loyal and honest. Im not saying they both dont possess these traits, im just saying one is more dominant than the others when it comes to these traits, especially in decision making. Emmy dngaf much about being shrewd or use lies and manipulation in a bigger scale, but banks did grew up being forward, straightforward and honest. And omg, another contrast!!

OMGGGGG If DN is famous, AO3 writers wouldve written them as that powerful feme duo, frfr. Ngl, banks and emmy really reminds me of Tristan and Dante from the dark verse series by runyx, where tristan is banks, and dante is emmy. Tristan is that dark, broody, killer and dante is the mediator and decider. Remind me of lana myers and jake denver, jake is emmy and lana is banks in terms of the do-er and the mastermind. Submissive and dominant. Not in the temperament all the time, but in overall characteristics and actions? And i just noticed too that We just dont see because emmy as being aggressive or pioneering because of side characters overtaking her povs in nightfall + her being introverted. But even then, i feel like emmy's voice still surface above them when it comes to decision making whether anyone agrees or not, which is why emmy can also be very divisive in the fandom, Which omg!!!! This brings back to that MBTI test, emmy really does sound like an INTJ, haha! And banks, ESTJ? ISTJ? Anyway, didnt emmy took a lot of control in fire night? From her conversation with will, her going after the evil guys, and talking to the cops. Yeah.

Like tbh im just running off with these ideas, that qna opens up a whole new discussion for the emmy x banks best friends agenda that i never thought of before. It also made me consider different types of aggression, like physical, emotional and thinking. And i feel like inner aggression (in spirit) would still dominate others. No matter how i see, i cannot see anyone being ranked above emory, damon and michael in terms of aggression. i feel like even kai ranks below them, because he can be neutral and passive sometimes. But thats the thing, theres no right or wrong or whos better or worse like emmy was better because shes dominant and banks was worse because she was submissive; theres just only the ranking, and it actually does open up to a deep dive of these characters' traits, and how they shape each others' dynamics. And if they really are family who fight for each other and cross anybody who comes after them, they were bound to trust each other with their temperament, strengths and weakneses sooner or later right? Rather than everybody doing whatever they want, the task divided by the the keader would be more efficiently done.

so what do you think of these? I dont rank will, rika and winter because i feel like theyre more on the submissive side. And i believe they fully enjoy their roles and have no priblem doing whatever works for the sake of their family. Not every one can and HAVE to be dominant, what one cant do, the others can. Thats what found family does right?

This ask is so exciting! Let’s get right into it. I’m going to save my ranking for the end, but I did have to spend some time thinking about it.

i never actually realised that emmy IS pretty aggressive and dominant? I dont think PD executed em's character well, but because of that qna, it made me zoom out of my understanding of DN and compare and contrast these characters, and surely, emmy really was pretty aggressive.

I’m not really sure why people started thinking about Emory as a smol shy bean, because she’s not passive in the least. In the past scenes, we met her when she’s quitting the swim team, and she says this is because she can no long wear the swim suit but she knows this is going to piss Martin off.

The thing is, she pisses Martin off on purpose on the regular as a way to rebel. She’s quiet about her abuse because she wants to remain close to her grandmother, and I’m not implying that she enjoys it by any means. Still, she knows Martin expects perfection from her, so she purposefully doesn’t brush her hair or iron her uniform. She lets the buttons fall off her cuffs. You can’t tell me Emory couldn’t figure out how to sew a button. She quits band, too. She does these things to intentionally irritate him.

She goes to her first period class; a senior class because they moved her up from the junior level because she wouldn’t shut up and stop challenging the teacher. Of course, there she doesn’t speak up much, but considering the subject matter, can we blame her? She still walks out without the teacher’s approval.

Emory likes showing off. She likes feeling like the smartest or most skilled person in the room. She thinks of herself that way, for the most part. Even when she gets to Blackchurch, and she doesn’t know anything about anyone there, she still thinks of herself as better simply because she’s not a criminal (which is funny for someone who previously watched a murdered happen, and helped bury a body, and vandalized a grave, and nearly committed grand theft auto, and so on, but the self-awareness is difficult when you’re in an unhealthy mental state). And despite being in a room full of criminals, she shows no hesitation in trying to best them because it’s what comes naturally to her.

I don’t think that PD told Emory’s story in the best way possible. However, a lot of what makes Emory who she is, is subtle and takes some digging and examining to understand. This could be said for all the characters, it’s just that I don’t like most of the characters enough to try to examine them this deeply. There is one bonus with PD not giving Emory a lot of attention – there’s less time to make her contradict herself as we see with Damon and Rika. As their characters get more and more light, some things make less and less sense.

Regardless, I agree with her that Emory is one of the most aggressive characters in terms of personality within the main crew.

We dont see her hesitating afterwards right? But then we dont see much of her overall. This also made me think thats why the train exchange between emmy, michael and kai had to happen. Or she will just leave again

At this point, I don’t think Emory had any plans of leave which is why she agreed to stay so easily. But it’s interesting that Michael said she was going to stay at St. Killian’s where they could watch her and she immediately refused that in a way that made it clear she would still be doing what she wanted.

Michael has to decide if it’ll be worth the effort it’ll take to exert his dominance over her, knowing she won’t go down easily. He backs off because it’s enough that she’s playing along.

I think he knows that he could overpower her if he wanted to. It’s just not worth the effort when she’s cooperating, which means he knows how much it would take to get her to do what he wanted. It’s an interesting dynamic.

In comparison to banks who is outwardly pretty aggressive, but in actuality, she is more of a good follower of damon, her mom, gabriel and even kai in that hideaway bonus than a good enforcer (like you mentioned) or a pioneer, i feel like emmy is more aggressive in spirit than banks, i guess? Naturally, not just because of survival

This is an excellent contrast.

Banks, in my opinion, is great at getting things done. She’s capable of calling the shots and making decisions. However, she’s also interested in maintaining the established order of things.

Maybe that’s why she wanted to be Senator, or was at least willing to go along with it. Coming into the group, there was already a dynamic at play. Michael was the leader, Kai his second, Rika his girl. She’s coming in under Kai and Damon. There’s a structure to the way the group works.

She isn’t afraid to call it how she sees it, which makes her useful to Michael. Kai is much to interested in keeping things agreeable. For instance, in the Hideaway deleted scene when he almost doesn’t tell Will why they’re meeting without him. He doesn’t want to alienate Will or make him feel bad for his behavior, even though his behavior has been pretty undesirable from a business standpoint. Banks doesn’t have that issue.

Still, she doesn’t want to disrupt the order, so she sticks to her role and doesn’t challenge it. Being a Senator gives her a space where she’s the one in control. It’s a different structure than what she’s walked into with the Horsemen.

In terms of how aggressive they are in getting their opinions across or getting their way, I do agree that Emory is more aggressive than Banks.

if push comes to shove, emmy would lead banks, not the other way around? Oh, wow? Or am i wrong? Like, do you get my vision, KO? It made sense right?

I think what we’re talking about is a battle of wills. Banks is straightforward, while Emory is more reserved, but both are loyal and value their relationships, so it could be that with each other they’d bend a little.

What you’re saying does make sense, but I think the way I’m interpreting it is that Emory, insisting on her idea and visions, gets her way if only because Banks doesn’t want to fight it. It’s not something she’s motivated to do, and she’s fine giving Emory the room to be the lead in their relationship.

because both banks and emmy can feel safe in their dynamics because they saw nothing wrong being either role, because! Theyre! Besties! And! Would! Kill! For! Each! Other! And put! Others! To! Jail! For! Each! Other! Omg? Noooo, like can you see the vision, KO?

I agree that there’s nothing insulting about they’re dynamics. I really do thing that they work because there’s nothing negative about the way they approach each other. They’d support each other undoubtingly, but give each other room to be themselves.

When they’re at they’re best, I think Banks is more subdued and accepting than Emory is. Like I said above, Banks is more outgoing and straightforward, but Emory’s opinions on things are stronger, so I think Banks would let her have her way.

However, if it did come to a point where they were on opposite sides of an issue, Emory would probably hold out longer than Banks. Unlike Michael, I don't think Banks would be able to subdue Emory if she wanted to. I also just don't think Banks would ever want to.

Additionally, regarding what you said at the start about my analysis of Damon and Emory’s relationship – I think if a difficult situation arose, Banks would seek out the others before acting, whereas Emory and Damon would know what needs to get done and silently do it without involving the others. They’re not going to wait for confirmation, or for the crew to debate, or wrestle with their conscience. They know what the hard decision is and they’ll make it without needing to discuss it. Banks could make the difficult choice too and be confident in it, she would just talk to the others first. That's the difference.

If DN is famous, AO3 writers enver written them as that powerful feme duo, frfr. Ngl, banks and emmy really reminds me of Tristan and Dante from the dark verse series by runyx, where enver is banks, and dante is emmy. Tristan is that dark, broody, killer and dante is the mediator and decider. Remind me of lana myers and jake enver, jake is emmy and lana is banks in terms of the do-er and the mastermind

Unfortunately, I don’t know any of these references. I mean, I know where they come from, but I haven’t read any of those so I can’t confirm. However, if someone else has thoughts you’re willing to share, please jump in.

This brings back to that MBTI test, emmy really does sound like an INTJ, haha! And banks, ESTJ? ISTJ?

Ah, yes the MBTI. I never heard back from the person who asked me to clarify, but I guess I’ll take the chance now.

When I started looking at my original answers, I was overcome with this feeling that Banks was an Extrovert. But that didn’t make any sense; Banks as an extrovert? So I started reading scenes with her exclusively, and I realized that… yeah, there’s a good chance for it.

What I did from there was go to MBTI-Notes, which is a blog here on tumblr, and instead of going directly to the types to see which one “fit”, I went through the functions and through process of elimination, narrowed down which function seemed to be expressed through the character’s POV chapters. From there, I built a stack that formed a type. I then went to the type to see if it worked.

Understandably, most worked… if you take into account the types when they’re in “grips” or “loops” (are we really surprised that all of the characters fall in the unhealthy range for their type). Anyway, being stuck in a grip or loop can change the way you’re personality presents outwardly.

Through this method, I determined Banks was an ESTJ, and here is the page for that. With Emory, I came to the conclusion she was INFJ.

But I encourage you to go through the functions and see what you come up with. There were definitely times I was on the fence for all the characters, so it’s up for interpretation.

Like tbh im just running off with these ideas, that qna opens up a whole new discussion for the emmy x banks best friends agenda that i never thought of before.

That’s really the reason why I continue to post these asks. It opens up the conversation, allows people to see a different interpretation and think about it. Maybe you agree, maybe you don’t. But it gets the conversation started.

No matter how i see, i cannot see anyone being ranked above emory, damon and michael in terms of aggression. i feel like even kai ranks below them, because he can be neutral and passive sometimes. - theres no right or wrong or whos better or worse like emmy was better because shes dominant and banks was worse because she was submissive; theres just only the ranking, and it actually does open up to a deep dive of these characters' traits, and how they shape each others' dynamics

Exactly! It’s only natural that people have different strengths and weaknesses. I love when it’s clear that a group works because they rely on each other and make up for each other’s lack, and no one is made to feel ashamed for it.

Anyway, my ranking of characters in terms of how aggressive their personality it:

These three take the top, as you said. The way that I see it, them wanting things they're way is a driving force in all they're stories. They’re competitive, and hate losing. In fact, I think they feel the pain of losing more than they feel the satisfaction of winning, and that's what drives them.

Damon

Michael

Emory

Damon comes first for obvious reasons, Michael comes second because he keeps Damon in line, and then Emory because while I don’t think she can control Damon, she won’t be steamrolled by him either. And that says something. And since these three can handle each other, we know anyone else is a breeze.

Banks because she’s upfront about it. Then comes Will because he can be aggressive when he’s pushed to it. But also the whole Blackchurch, faking being subdued while he was actually waiting for the moment to take control, which he was planning and preparing for… he’s not as submissive as he wants people to believe he is.

Banks

Will

Kai

Also, the moment in Emory’s house when he tells her that Martin needs to know about him, that he’s her man now? All Will wanted was to get Martin in the same room so he could stack his claim on Emory. There's something about that assertiveness that gives Will and duality the other's don't have. His in the middle of assertive and passive, but he knows what he's doing and he isn't ashamed of it.

Kai is sixth in line because he can be aggressive, but he likes to do it in secret. It's not something he utilizes, and I think in a situation where the others above him might become aggressive, he might still choose to take a passive approach for reasons only he knows (or perhaps doesn't).

Rika has more aggression than Winter, but she’ll bow to any one of the others if they were to go head-to-head. I think it’s probably clear that any battle she wins, is because the other person decided it wasn’t worth the fight.

Rika

Winter

Same for Winter but I think she knows that, where as Rika honestly believes she’s dominating at times.

This was an interesting topic and I hope there's more to come! Thank you!!

-ko

[talentedtignition]

A fun fact about Tristan is that he lets a donskoy lounge around his office because he’s afraid it’s going to get sunburn or freeze outside.

His name is Menace and he likes to eat just the corners of papers and scream at closed doors before walking away once they’re open, which is a problem when you’re a guild of thieves full of secrets and stolen goods.

[randomshenaniganery]

Tristan Kampana HCs

because I can do this and this man refuses to leave my brain my hand has not gotten any kind of rest for the past four days it’s insane

Warning: I know barely anything about the glorious masquerade because I really dont want spoilers so if u want to correct me with your superior knowledge on the future pls dont I want to play that event blind and enjoy it fully ty. Also idk if Jesus and the big G lives in twisted wonderland but I’ll just base it on what I know about the Hunchback of Notre Dame so maybe this list will change)

1. He likes history and philosophy and is generally a nerd this bitch has barely seen the sun and spends his time gathering random trivial facts about literally anything

2. He likes slim fitted clothing that are very flowy hence his adjustment to his uniform though he did get in trouble multiple times each time he got caught so he eventually put hidden buttons in them so that when he feels safe he can unbutton them and reveal his knee high boots, white pants and the heels he wears so that he remains taller than Rollo

3. He isn’t very forceful but he doesn’t really listen to anyone either which makes him a constant pain to Rollo but he’s too competent to get rid of. Like if u get mad at Tristan he won’t argue with you he’ll be quiet and go im sorry and if he thinks he’s right he’ll still do it anyway. He’s temper is subtle and his voice only raises when he gets into his rants about stuff he’s passionate about. He’s complacent but doesn’t break.

4. Loves the Bible thinks its a super interesting read however when he phrases it like that some people get offended because it sounds like he’s treating it as entertainment (he is)

5. He lives in the dark but he is blessed with excellent eyesight so it’s never been a problem when he reads until four in the morning. 

6. Tristan is pretty easy to convince to do stuff for u so some teachers are able to get him to sub for them if needed and he’s an okay teacher but if one student mentions one of the subjects he has a stupid amount of knowledge on the chalkboard would be filled with his scribbles while he talks too fast for anyone with regular hearing to understand him.

7. he can’t lie and he never really wants to but if he has to you will know immediately that he’s lying its just too obvious

8. he’d wear eyeliner but his eyebags darken his eyes enough for him

9. I’d write more about his dynamic with rollo but since i dont know rollo much I only know that they wouldn’t be happy with the sometimes Blasphemous rants and the desecration of the Noble Bell College uniform. 

10. Tristan prefers to follow someone around its too tiring for him to think about where he’s supposed to go and do without someone managing him. 

[that-stranger-in-paradise]

Trippin in Tristan Part 2 /2: Siegfried Jerusalem’s Brilliant Blunder (and why it is so precious)

alright fellow nerds, this is something I’ve been wanting to share for a long time. *cue powerpoint*

This event happens in the filmed 1995 Bayreuth Tristan, and it involves other key players Waltraud Meier and Daniel Barenboim. 

We are at the climax of the love duet. The second to last one, to be precise. Just a few minutes prior, Jerusalem already made several slips. He repeated a lyric thrice. He took a hasty breath in the middle of a phrase, leaving out a note. Not like anyone really cares. He sounds great. Meier sounds great. Their voices go really well together. 

This is the original score(piano transcription for easier readability). 

Everyone’s attention is on Meier as she does her “endlos” drop (5th down) followed by a breathtaking leap(octave up) upwards to “ewig”. But wait. 

Tristan’s lyric order should have been “endlos, ewig, ein-bewusst”. Instead of the open vowel of “endlos”, Jerusalem hit the right note but on the closed vowel in “ewig”. Now he’s stuck on the wrong lyric, thinking about what to do. 

He could flip the first two lyrics and keep the notes intact. “endlos” and “ewig” have the same amount of syllables. But in the moment, he decides to both flip the lyrics and improvise.   

He holds “ewig” until the right chord changes in the orchestra. Now, he does the unexpected(or is it the expected?). 

He sings “endlos” with the same rhythm and interval pattern as Meier. 

Well, nearly. Being the experienced musician that he is, he chooses the same notes as the chord in the orchestra. Instead of the octave jump, he aims a little higher to land at the right note he’s supposed to hit(it’s a 9th). 

All the while, clever Barenboim in the pit is holding the orchestra out, waiting for him to hit the high “ein-” in the next word. Meier too holds just a tiny bit longer on her note. 

Jerusalem hits his note. The orchestral wave is unleashed right after, and Meier shifts a note down as written to harmonize. Everyone is in bliss, and everything goes back to normal. 

But hold on. Hold your horses. We need to rewind that mistake a million times. 

Here is the incorrect version, starting from the beginning of the final build-up: https://youtu.be/lQNcTYVlcEg?t=2260

Here is what the climax is supposed to sound like with the same two singers and conductor: https://youtu.be/Q14GHL1C21o?t=407. (ignoring Jerusalem’s voice crack at the very end if you listen long enough)

This recording of the duet was the first one I heard in its entirety. When I looked for other versions of this duet, I was confused why the ending didn’t sound right. I eventually realized that Jerusalem made a mistake. *shocked pikachu face*

I love it though. *cries in the corner because there’s only one recording*

So what makes the mistake+improv so good imo? “I’ve got a little list”

1. It’s cute. He’s basically following Meier’s lead. 

2. It’s extremely satisfying to our ears and brains. Isolde’s high jump is already amazing, and now we get Tristan’s high jump too? Heck yeah. 

3. It makes the entire climax more powerful. It really reminds me of a beat drop. There’s a last second push to the top that was not there in the original score. Even Barenboim realizes this and does some rubato so the wave comes after Jerusalem’s high note instead of directly on top of it. 

And now we come to the most important reason. 

Let us zoom out to the big picture. Tristan, Isolde, and the orchestra are three players in this drama. In this moment, what does the orchestra represent? 

There is no right answer here. My personal interpretation is that it is waves of desire, waves of tragic narrative that T&I are treading water in. When they drown, they give up the battle, succumbing to nature and the storyteller’s whim.  

Notice how in the original score, it is only Isolde who leads the buildup and breaks free from the waves at the climax, jumping an octave. All of Tristan’s notes hide lower within the waves, functioning more as harmony than an independent melodic line. When he does get his high note, it is exactly when the orchestral wave reaches its peak, so he never quite escapes. 

This is not normal. For the past half hour, we’ve been watching Tristan und Isolde singing together. Their vocal lines overlap, dancing circles around each other. When one person calls, the other person answers. To have Isolde and Tristan separated at such a crucial moment is jarring.  

To me, this is foreshadowing. 

Perhaps it means that they will not die together. Perhaps it means Tristan will die first. Perhaps it means only Isolde will get a Liebestod. 

It is clear though that there is a border that separates Tristan and Isolde during the climax. They are not meant to be. 

Now let’s think about Jerusalem’s improv version. 

Isolde escapes first. Tristan joins her with his own high note.  

They are floating together, watching the giant wave of orchestra about to crash and envelop them. Even if it’s for a split second, Wagner’s foreshadowing language tells all.   

To put it plainly,

4. It paints a non-existent happy ending. 

And that’s what makes it beautiful. 

[beth-yeet365]

“We’re not finished” - bws

Pairing: Bradley Simpson x reader

Summary: you’re Tristan’s cousin and you’re as close as brother and sister. When he says that he has an extra room in his flat that he shares with his bandmate, Brad, you decide to move in... What’s the worst that could happen?

Word count: 2.1k+ 

Warnings: some alcohol consumption, Brad being forward which ight cause ome awkward situations, like one or two curse words and mention of boner ;)

Disclaimer: I don’t know if any of this is true either way it’s an imagine so don’t expect anything that’s super true... also you play drums like Tris but that is because that’s the only instrument I can play lmao and you’re 2 years younger than Tris so that makes you 3 three years younger than Brad

It all started with a facetime call with your favourite and only cousin, the one and only Tristan Evans. 

You’re moving into his flat that he also shares with his bandmate Brad. They had extra room and you have been complaining about how expensive rent is in London to live on your own and you don’t want a creepy roommate so Tris saved your ass and offered the room.

Moving in wasn’t as hard is you’d expected. Mostly because you had the other vamps helping you carry stuff to the flat. 

You of course carried some of your stuff up but not being the strongest person in the world made it pretty difficult.

You especially needed help with carrying your electric drum kit cause that shit’s heavy.

“Right, Y/N, I think you’re pretty settled in.“ Tristan said, carrying the last box into your new room. 

“Yeah, but I still need a bed to sleep in.“ You said.

“You can sleep on the sofa tonight and we’ll go to IKEA tomorrow.”

“Yeah from what we’ve witnessed from the times you’ve visited us on tour you can sleep pretty much anywhere,“ Connor started. “And definitely not as tall as Tris so you’ll fit anywhere.“ He then added, laughing as the other boys laughed at his comment.

“Ha ha, go on mock my height when you don’t have an awful lot yourself.“ You fired back, patting his shoulder. 

“She’s got you there, Con.“ Brad said to him chuckling to himself.

“Oh, you can’t talk either, Bradley.“ you told him.

“You wound me, darling.“ He acted offended and put his hand over his chest in mock hurt. 

“Hey! Don’t be flirtin’ with my baby cousin!“ Tris exclaimed jokingly.

We all laughed and decided to drink some well deserved beers after carrying all the boxes up. 

Soon enough James and Connor left to go home to their own places.

You started to unpack the boxes with your clothes and putting the closet and dresser that were already in the room. 

While unpacking your clothes you came across a small cardboard box you keep all your printed out pictures of you visiting the boys while they were on tour. You were like a sister to all of them. 

You took the pictures out of the box and looked at all of them while sat on the ground. They were all a mixture of selfies with all the boys, pictures of the places you’ve been and pictures have taken of you playing drums. All of the good memories. 

You smiled at all of them and moved to collect them and put them back in the box when a voice spoke. 

“You always look so concentrate and content.“

You looked up to see Brad leaning on the doorframe of your room, arms crossed in front of his chest.

He looked good. He always does though. 

To be honest, you’ve had a huge crush on him ever since you stepped onto the tour bus when you were 19 and he was 22. 

“Sorry, what?“ You asked in confusion. 

“When you play drums you just look concentrated but also content and happy.“ He said while pointing to the pictures of you playing, then moving to sit across from you on the floor. 

“Well playing drums is such a reliever, you know? It’s just you and the sound of the drums.“ You explained to him. 

“Yeah I get that.“ He said nodding. “It’s the same when I start singing or start playing guitar or piano.“

“It’s one of the reasons why I brought the drum kit with me just in case I get tired of you two.“ You said with a joking smile.

“Very funny, Y/N,“ He said. “Well I’m happy you brought it.“

“Why?“ You asked the curly haired boy in front of you, while you absentmindedly sifted through the pictures. 

“Because it’s hot.”

You snapped your head up to find his brown orbs staring right back into yours. 

You could feel the blood rushing to your face. 

Clearing your throat just to do anything to relive the now awkward tension in the room. 

“Where’s Tris?“ You diverted the conversation from the awkward situation from before. 

“He popped over to the shop to get something I didn’t quite catch.“ He answered and moved to stand up. 

“Oh.“ Was the only thing you could say, mentally hitting yourself. 

he was now standing up, looking down at you and offered a hand to help you stand up from the ground. You gladly took it and he practically heaves up. 

“Y/N-“

“I’m back!“ Tristan hollers from the entrance of the flat. “Where are you guys?“

“Coming!“ You shout back at him.

Dammit, Tris.

Sleeping on the sofa wasn’t as comfortable as you’d hoped. 

It was weird not being able to move freely because of the backrest on it but at least you had Jesse to cuddle you while you were on your phone. 

Jesse is Brad’s golden retriever and a national treasure to be preserved. 

She proved to be very cuddly at 1 a.m. 

You then noticed you were thirsty so you decided to get up and make some tea in the hopes that would make you sleepy enough for you to sleep after. 

You never noticed how noisy turning on a kettle was until you had to turn it on in the middle of the night where everything seems noisier. 

When the kettle boiled you found a random mug and some classic English breakfast tea in one of the cabinets. 

“You awake, too?“ A voice startled you. 

You jump in fright and turn around only to find Tris. 

“Jeez, could’ve announced your presence without scaring me.“ You tell him, putting the tea bag into your cuppa. “But yeah I’m awake how else would I be making tea?”

“Don’t get smart on me,“ he playfully scolds you. “Why you awake, though?“

“Simply couldn’t sleep.“ 

“Sucks, but now you have me to keep you up as well.“ He smiles at you and walks to the kettle making himself a cuppa. 

“Oh gee, am I supposed to be happy?“ You ask him making him roll his eyes at your questions. 

You both moved to the sofa and sat down to talk.

Late night talks with Tris were always the best especially since you were so close and therefore could talk about everything from playing drums and nerdeing about that to mental health. 

“Okay, Y/N, I have a question for you.“ He tells you making you furrow your eyebrows. He doesn’t really announce that he has a question unless it’s something or serious.

“Shoot.“

“Do you like Brad?“

Now that was a question you didn’t expect. Like never.

It caught you off guard, making it difficult for you to answer his question.

“What would you say if I told you I did?“ You ask him back.

“I would tell you to fess up ‘cause you both like each other.“ He responded.

“Is it really that noticeable that I like him?“ Your eyes widened with your ask.

“Umm, if it wasn’t you guys’ obvious flirtin’ it would be you completely snappin’ out of it and getting distracted when he walks into the room.” He explains making you put your head in your. 

“Oh my God does he know?“ Your question comes out muffled because of your hands. You also avoided his amused gaze in embarrassment. 

“No no, he’s just as oblivious to your feelings as you are to his.” He informs you, making you relax. You also decided to ignore Tris’ confirmation of Brad’s mutual feelings for you. 

“I’ll tell you what,“ Tris starts again. “James, Con and I all agree you’re good for each other but I’ll go back to bed so you can sleep ‘cause you look like you’re tired now,“ he continues and moves to collect your mugs. “and say goodnight to you.“ he finishes when he put the mugs in the dishwasher.

“Goodnight, sleep well Tris.“ You tell him and he kisses your cheek.

“Sleep well, Y/N, we’ll try to keep it down when we wake up later on.“ He tells you and he proceeds towards the hallway

“Thanks.“

You lay down on the sofa again with Jesse coming to lay at your feet and you were out like a light.

You were aching.

You had been assembling a bed, a desk and a chair from IKEA with Tris, Brad, Con and James since you came home.

IKEA manuals were gonna be the death of you.

Tris, Con and James had gone out to the shop to get some champagne to celebrate you officially moving in since you also got your own copy of the key to the flat from the landlord.

Brad had stayed behind mumbling out some excuse for not going. 

You?

You had stayed behind because you still had to move things into your room and make your bed and all that fun stuff. 

“Need help?“ Brad’s voice interrupted your movements in making your bed.

“Um, not right now but thanks.“ You answered politely.

You felt awkward as you remembered what Tris had told you during the night. Even though you had ignored them you still acknowledged them.

He’s just as oblivious to your feelings as you are to his.

You finished making your bed with Brad’s burning gaze on you.

A phone pinged and both of you reached to check your phones.

“Tris says that they’re gonna be late ‘cause traffic’s bad.“ Bard said.

You could only nod in acknowledgment as you read the same text but on your own phone.

“Well what do you wanna do?“ He asked, desperately trying to break the awkward tension.

“I’m quite tired, actually,“ you confessed. “Assembling really drains the energy outta ya, ya know?“

“Yeah yeah, I get that.“ He answered and looked around your room. “Should we see if we made the bed as good as the one in the shop?“ He suggested.

“Smooth, Bradley,“ you laughed out. “But yeah, let*s.“

You both jumped onto the bed. 

“This is almost better than the one in the shop.“ He says, wiggling around.

“Yeah it is.“ You hold your hand up for a high five which he high fives and let’s his hand stay there, moving to thread your fingers.

You smiled at his actions and reciprocated. 

He released his hand and moved it to your face to brush some hair out of your face, making your face heat up.

You decided to make a bold move and move your face just mere centimeters away from his face.

You were both breathing hard in anticipation, trying to figure out who would kiss who first. 

Fuck it, you thought and kissed him.

He immediately caught on and moved on top of you, his arms caging your head.

It felt amazing.

Lips moving together, teeth clashing, tongues exploring your mouths.

You threaded your hands in his hair and tugged at it eliciting a moan out of him.

On of his hands started moving from its position at your head down to your waist making you giggle cause you were ticklish. 

He moved away from your face agonizingly slow.

“That was-“ he started saying but looked at loss for words. “Wow, just wow.“

“Yeah,“ you agreed. 

You couldn’t think straight as his now swollen lips moved down to kiss your jaw and neck, leaving goosebumps in their wake.

He would suck, then lick your skin to soothe it.

To say the boy was talented was an understatement.

You could feel him smile against the skin on your collarbone when he found that spot that would’ve made you fall if you were standing up.

“We’re home again!“ Tris’ holler interrupted your little session, making Brad groan and fall on top of you. 

“We brought the champagne!“ James then hollers.

You both moved away from each other and sat up.

“Coming!“ Brad yells back at them which you were grateful for because you didn’t trust you own voice.

“You go ahead,“ Brad tells you. “I have to just sort something out.“ 

You snicker at him.

“We’re not finished,“ you tell him before walking out the door, smiling like an idiot ‘cause you couldn’t contain your happiness and the feeling of bliss.

One thing you forgot before greeting them was checking yourself in a mirror before greeting the guys.

“Hey guys!“ You greet.

“Uh, hey Y/N,“ James greets you back, holding back a chuckle.

Connor turned away to try and calm his laughter.

“Brad! Why does Y/N have hickeys down her neck!?“ Tris shouts while walking to your bedroom.

The smile fell off your face as James and Con couldn’t contain their laughter anymore.

Oh shit.

[steve0discusses]

S5 Ep 15 Pt 1: The Gang Gets Lost in India

Ah, back to Yugioh classic. Sort of. We’re going into the second filler arc before Bakura, which I have been told is kind of nonsense. And youknow what, from the first scene--this is the first scene by the way--yeah I can see the nonsense.

We got Yami cosplaying as the Chrysler building, we got Yugi saying WTFWTF, we got...this thing?

This thing tells us “Join my game, Yugi!” and then the demon just kinda bounces.

K, bye, I guess.

(read more under the cut)

Waking up from this nightmare, Yugi reveals that he has outgrown his good pajamas. Or maybe he just overused them like I did to my favorite pajamas during quarantine (which, not gonna lie, I hand sewed my favorite pajama pants back together 2 or 3 times like they were the Velveteen Rabbit. Quarantine pajamas and me were like best buds for a year there.)

RIP Yugi’s good pajamas.

It’s fine. I’m fine.

I can get used to Yugi in his normal ass old man pajamas without any cute stars on them. I can accept this. He’s getting older. So much older that for a second I thought he was learning Hebrew, by the looks of his books on his counter. I thought...wow, is Yugi actually attempting to learn a language spoken around the time of ancient Egyptians???

But uh...I went a searching and unfortunately that’s not Hebrew, and if that is a language, I don’t know what it is. Pretty sure it’s just random marks because this show has to be translated in so many languages. Man. For a second there that looked like really sneaky world building, but nah, Yugi is still kind of a dumbass who has yet to attend a solid year of school.

Also, I got to take in this mustard yellow as if I’ve seen it for the first time.

It has strong building blocks energy. It’s...so much yellow and it’s extremely the vibe of that one set of animal crossing decorations that I have because it’s a very common recipe, but, can’t figure out for the life of me how to fit into any room.

What am I supposed to do with these, Nintendo? Other than recreate Yugi’s Muto’s haunted game store/house?

Like I live in the Bay area and we have wild painted houses so you can see them through the fog (back when we...still had fog, RIP California) --but this is a little much. This is such strong Protagonist energy but as a house.

Also, I’ve don’t think I’ve brought this up before, but like...Yugi is loaded, right? Like he’s way too good and humble to ever say he’s loaded, and they sort of make it seem like he’s not (when compared to Seto Kaiba) but damn, this location of his real estate sure is something. That and Grandpa’s tiny shop seems to run on a constant deficit and his family just doesn’t care.

We flash back a bit to Gramps sneaking out, and Yugi is like “oh great, my only Father figure I ever talk about is getting a backpack together and just...leaving without any notice, huh? Without telling me you were going to go? Didn’t think that would maybe be a little off putting?“ and Gramps is like “Yes?”

Like Gramps nearly died going to an amusement park a few episodes back so I can see why Yugi is a little bit concerned.

Down the street at a little town lottery, Joey is getting further into gambling (I don’t know what those little street lotteries are called, it’s in a lot of anime--but kinda looks like mom lotteries for moms.)

I’m not sure why India is on Joey Wheeler’s bucket list, seems a little random, but he went to Pegasus’ country, after all and that’s barely even a country.

Joey going nuts on a lottery machine instead of going to school was pretty peak filler, so I’m not really minding this stuff so far.

And then, just to spook me, check this out:

I can’t believe they even let them back into a classroom. In my nerd school, if you missed one too many days, you were sent to the bad schools to be someone else’s problem. But in Yugi’s case...that either IS his school or...Yugi is failing International School, which is just a thing he’s allowed to do, because, as I said before, this kid has got to be loaded. Even Seto Kaiba was like “I’m not spending money on this school anymore. That outfit is like 50 bucks a jacket.”

Youknow, I have seen all the other characters knock on Tea’s choice of cute ass monsters for the last 5 seasons, and she has never once changed them out. She is holding onto this scary seraphim thing with the many wings like every child with their first Pidgey. She does not care.

Also how is this thing cute?

like the front of this orb has a face with hearts on it but like...it is kind of remarkable what Yugioh decides is cute. Magma golem: not cute. this thing? This thing that looks like it’s a chibi version of the last chapters of the bible and will sound the trumpets of the second coming? So cuuuuute.

Tristan used to be the Janitor/hall monitor/square archetype. Like hell he can walk around with that 00′s R+B soundtrack.

Joey appears in order to get us the hell out of school, and the art team retires this school background for the rest of what I assume is this entire series.

Goodbye school. Maybe you’ll come back with Bakura. Which would be weird, since rumor is that arc takes place in ancient Egypt.

On their walk home, Tea lets out in an inner monologue that no one could hear that after 5 straight seasons of his BS, she’s sick and tired of Pharaoh being the center of attention all the time and she needs a freakin break.

TBH, as she was thinking in her head like “Pharoah is just so freakin much” Yugi switched over to Pharaoh and was like “WHATS UP TEA, THINKING ABOUT ME??” and I thought for a split second maybe he read her mind with his Pharaoh powers.

And like...maybe he did? Seems like a thing he can just do but chooses not to tell anyone about. I mean would you tell anyone? I wouldn’t.

So, unlike Miho in Season Zero, who at least had the decency to try to take her Mother to Australia, Joey Wheeler has wisely decided that the 3 other ticket holders will not be the 3 other members of his immediate family. That would have been the most awkward trip between Serenity, his mother he hasn’t really spoken to in 7 years, and his absent father who was written out of the series for being a raging alcoholic. They would have not even made it to the plane.

Instead he’s gonna take the ghost in Yugi’s head and call that an adult (two tickets in one, really). It’s honestly not that bad of a plan, since his only other father figure, Grandpa, is MIA, and his only other, other father figure, Roland, charges like 300 dollars an hour and wants stock options and health insurance.

And honestly they should have taken Roland because he’s one of their best plane guys.

So they take the smallest little Amelia Earheart plane in the world, going from Japan to (checks map) India...which 2 times the distance this plane can go and it crashes...which is exactly what would happen if you took a teeny tiny plane over the Himalayan mountains without refueling that thing.

We call this a magical incident later in the episode, but this is just basic math.

So, fun fact, (and probably why I discuss planes so often on this blog) two of my Grandfathers were pilots (well, three, since my grandmother remarried another pilot), which sounds like a crazy coincidence until you recall that their generation was in WW2 and we just shoved children in planes for 20 years and called that normal.

Anyway, to save on travel costs, my engineer Grandfather built his own plane out of junkyard parts, which, as you can imagine, is a living nightmare, and it was held together by like duct tape and gasoline (which at one time used to be cheap). Tempted God every day that Howls Moving Castle touched the sky.

And while I only know it from photos since I wasn’t exactly born yet, it looked exactly like this plane. So looking at this, all I can think is...yeah...that’s what you get for flying to India in a tin can car. To this day I cannot trust any plane of this size.

So, they climb out of their wreckage virtually unscathed and into familiar Californian territory.

At least Joey thought about bringing a tent.

It’s interesting how our cast has become so accustomed to this that they’re not even all that shell shocked. It’s just another day in the life.

So next time we shall find out what India has in store for us. Or if we’re even in India...because again...feels a lot like this BG team doesn’t do any research into their landscapes and every place feels a whole lot of the same. But...at least they didn’t put any Arizonan mesas in India.

[ashintheairlikesnow]

Akio

CW: References to the death of a friend, grief, suicide, murder 

Sequel to Found Out and this past flashback to Oliver Branch

The sound of thin, breaded pork cutlets frying in the big pan on the stove fills the air, and Akio breathes in the familiar smell where he lays on his back on his parents’ gigantic cream-colored sectional couch, stretched out across the whole length of it on one side. Not that he’s all that tall to take up all that much space, really, but what matters is that he would definitely have fallen asleep by now if it weren’t for holding his phone up over his face.

It fell on him, once, and he’s pretty sure no one noticed. Emi, his younger sister, hasn’t even looked up once from her own phone, except once to triumphantly announce that no one caught her and they all voted someone else off the ship. Then she looked back down and never looked back up.

Akio frowns, looking at his own screen, tapping his thumbs as he writes out an answer to the person messaging him. “Hey, Mom?”

“Yes?” His mother looks up from cooking, her eyes moving through the big open space right to him. They’d knocked down all the walls when they bought the house, open-concept-something-something. Akio didn’t care, but it was apparently deeply important to his parents. Something about family togetherness.

“You remember Tristan Higgs, right?”

Aimi pauses, tucks a bit of her short black hair behind one ear to get it out of her eyes as she flips the pork cutlets on by one, to get the other side nicely browned, too. The sizzling ratchets up in volume and then back down again. Next to her sits four bowls already filled with rice, and the table already has the vegetables ready to go. “Of course, honey. Oh, the anniversary’s coming up, isn’t it? I have an alarm set on my phone… did you want to go to the cemetery next week to see Ronnie and Paul?”

“Ew, no creepy graveyards for me, thanks,” Emi says, eyes still glued to her phone.

“We wouldn’t take you anyway,” Akio says, rolling his eyes. “You don’t even remember Tris or his parents.”

“I do, too. I was like seven. He was really nice. Mrs. Higgs was really nice, too. Mr. Higgs was weird.” 

“Wow, what a stellar eulogy that was, Emi. I can see why you want to be a writer when you grow up. The description there was just incredible.”

“Oh, go drive into a lake,” Emi says, without any particular rancor in her voice. 

“If you’re going to fight, I’m going to send you two upstairs so I at least don’t have to listen to it,” Aimi says, moving the cutlets to rest on a paper plate with paper towels lining it while she heats mirin, soy sauce, and… some other stuff in a different pan. Honestly, Akio has no idea exactly how katsudon happens, all he cares about is that it’s the perfect after-practice food and he is starving.

Except he keeps getting distracted by this guy on Insta. “Anyway, Mom, um, about Tris. So… yeah, I do want to go out and see his parents next week, yeah, but-... there’s this guy on Instagram who keeps asking about him. That’s… that’s weird, right?”

Aimi looks up, blinking. “Asking about Tristan? What is he asking?”

“Just like… he says he saw the video I put up on youtube, and he’s asking, like… what was his birthday, and did he like fried chicken, was he autistic, and… did he like musical soundtracks. This is weird stuff to ask a total stranger, right?”

“A little.” Aimi pauses while she watches the pan, and then pours a small bowl with beaten eggs into it, watching them spread and start to lighten to a puffy yellow as it cooked in the already-boiling liquid mixture. “Did you ask why he wants to know?”

“I did, but he just said he’s doing some research or something. But, like… research on what?” Akio taps on the guy’s little profile photo, bringing the profile itself up. “His username is benthebadmagician. Okay that’s-... that’s kind of cute.” 

Aimi’s voice turns sly. “Is this Ben cute?” 

“Ugh, gross, Mom. That’s not-... I mean he’s kind of-... that’s not important.”

“Ooooh, eyeballin’ the insta-hotties,” Emi singsongs. “Aki’s gettin’ desperate. Just get a freaking dating app like everyone else.”

“Already on it, Emi.”

“Then why exactly don’t you get any dates? Oh, right.” Emi sits forward and grins. “I forgot about your personality.”

Akio throws a throw pillow at her and the big orange poof misses by a mile. Emi laughs, getting to her feet and wandering over to the fridge, pulling a can of soda out and popping the top. “Aren’t you an athlete, how the hell did you miss that?”

“Language,” Aimi warns, waving a spoon at her daughter. She gently places the cutlets into the cooking eggs to finish up. “No swearing under my roof, young lady.”

“Aki swears all the time!”

“Aki is twenty-four years old,” Aimi says, almost primly. “And he doesn’t swear where I can hear him.”

“What, so it doesn’t count if you don’t hear him?”

“Of course it doesn’t, how do I know if I don’t hear him?”

Akio smiles, faintly, but he’s scrolling through the Ben guy’s instagram feed now. Just looking at the grid of squares, photos and videos. Lots of coffees and food, people laughing, photos of a girl with really pretty hair. Photos of Ben the Bad Magician himself. Nerd, Akio thinks, but cute nerd - definitely nose-in-a-book type. Nice brown hair, nice smile. 

“Oh look at that face,” Emi says, eyebrows raised. “Ben the Insta-Weirdo actually is cute huh?”

“Go eat slugs.” Akio keeps scrolling down and down, not sure what he’s looking for. Autism awareness banners - he checks those to learn the Ben guy’s got an autistic little brother, and his friend Christopher is autistic. There’s a couple slides, and he swipes his finger to what he assumes is a photo of the Ben guy with the little brother, who looks almost exactly like him, just a whole bunch younger and looking, unsmiling, off to one side while Ben grins at the camera.

Akio doesn’t bother checking the last slide - it’s probably just whoever the Chris guy is. He backs back out to the grid of thumbnails. Maybe he just picked up on the stuff Tris always did when he was excited, and got curious? Maybe his little brother liked the video? Akio’s gotten a couple comments from people saying they liked seeing an autistic kid just be fucking happy in public without getting shit on for it, and that used to be a big deal for Mrs. Higgs, too...

The question about musicals keeps snagging at him. Tris loved musicals, went through cycles with them. He and Akio had a whole routine done to a song in Hairspray, just for fun, when Tris was obsessed with that for a while. And then they were going to do the Time Warp as a routine once...

Akio keeps scrolling, only vaguely aware of his sister and mother talking, and Emi leaving the room to go call their dad in for dinner. 

Emi stops in the doorway and turns back. “Don’t forget to get his phone number, Aki. You can definitely trust strangers on the internet creepily interested in your dead best friend, right?”

Akio looks up, then, blinking at her. “Emi, that’s-...”

She seems to catch herself, and gives him a sheepish smile. “Sorry, Aki. That got bitchy.”

“Language,” Aimi reminds her. “But I appreciate you apologizing. Does anyone even hear me say to use nice language any longer?”

“No,” Akio and Emi say in unison, and then Emi disappears down the hallway, bellowing for their father in her loudest voice even though she could easily walk up the stairs and not have to yell at all. 

Akio looks at his mother and deadpans, “Your daughter is really weird.”

Aimi matches him tone for tone. “Your sister is weirder.” 

She places the cutlets on top of the rice bowls with the egg just underneath the meat, carrying them one by one to the table, setting them each down in their place, and then grabs her glass of wine, patiently waiting for her while she cooked. She pads on bare feet across the hardwood floor over to the pale white rug, soft as down underfoot, and stands next to where Akio is laying down. “Are you looking at the profile?”

“I am, yeah. I don’t know what I’m looking for, really, just… hey, wait.” Akio stops at the thumbnail preview for a video, tapping to open it up. It starts with a blue-haired boy smiling, and his smile hits Akio all odd, makes his throat tighten and his heart start to race. The boy in the video puts up a finger and backs up, glances over his shoulder at a TV screen behind him playing the tango scene from Rent. 

Akio blinks as the boy holds out a hand and a girl with really gorgeous long wavy hair takes it, the two of them moving effortlessly into a perfect mimicry of the dance on screen. The room they’re in is mostly empty, furniture shoved to the walls to turn what looks like some kind of lobby into a dancing space.

“Wow, that kid can really dance,” Akio murmurs, but the smile catches him, tugs at the back of his mind. The blue-haired boy can’t keep the grin off his face, it has to hurt to smile so big for so long, and the last person Akio thought that about was…

“You got this, Chris!” Someone calls from offscreen, and for a second Akio hears Tris and catches his breath, but no, no, they said Chris. Someone else claps for Mari - that must be the girl, maybe. 

They continue to dance, and Akio can’t tear his eyes away. “Mom? Do you see this?”

Aimi looks up from straightening some magazines on the coffee table and leans over, sipping her wine absently. “See what, honey?”

“Look,” Akio whispers. His throat is closing up, he can’t manage anything more than that. 

The two do a spin, and then burst out laughing, and the Chris boy stands back up straight, throwing his arms up like he’s just hit a perfect landing-

“Oh my god,” Aimi says next to him, her own voice strangled and choked, and Akio feels his mother’s hand suddenly clutch onto his shoulder. “Aki, is-”

“He’s dead,” Akio whispers. “He killed himself after his parents-... he’s dead, Mom.”

The Chris boy looks right at whoever was filming the video, shoots them a brilliant, shining smile, and then starts rocking, his hands moving through the air and twisting at the wrists, bouncing up and down on his toes.

Akio’s breath is shuddering in and out, and his heart pounds, trying to break out of his chest. “He’s-... Mom, he’s dead.”

“His aunt had him cremated,” Aimi says, but her lips are barely moving and the wineglass is loos in her fingers. “After they found him. She didn’t want a funeral.”

“He’s dead,” Akio repeats, thinking of the smile, the movements, the shy way he ducks his head at the end when people clap him on the back. He backs up to the wall again, keeps scrolling, looks for more pictures of the blue hair. He opens every single one he can find, searching for something, some sign that will tell him he’s not seeing what he knows he’s seeing. “His aunt took his phone away after like three months and then he was dead a month later, wasn’t he?”

There’s a pause.

“Mom? Mom, didn’t he kill himself like four months after they died? Didn’t he?” Akio’s voice sounds weak and is getting weaker. “Mom, please-... please answer me, didn’t he-”

“He left a note,” Aimi whispers. “His aunt-... she said he left a note, that he couldn’t live without them. It’s-... I never thought-... I never thought to question her, Aki, I never-... she was Ronnie’s family...”

He clicks another video.

“You’re a fucking mess, Christopher,” The girl from the dance video says, sitting in a tank tops and shorts on the edge of a bathtub. “Letting your roots grow out like that. But don’t you worry, Madam Mari is here to help!”

“Please don’t, don’t don’t-don’t call yourself Madam. Please?” A voice says, uneasily, and the blue-haired boy moves into the screen. “For, for, for me?”

“Yeah, no problem, Chris. Why’d you let it grow out so bad, anyway?”

His hair’s not blue in this one - or it is, but only about half of it. Pale and faded, but the top of his hair has grown back in for about three inches, and it’s coppery strawberry blond. He turns to the camera and gives a sheepish smile. “I, I got distracted and for, um, forgot.”

Aimi’s wineglass slips from her fingers, hits the floor, sprays wine like blood across the pristine white rug. 

Neither of them notices.

“I… I cried for him for like a year straight,” Akio chokes out, and he finds more pictures, more videos, more more more. He opens them up and then backs out of them again, unable to stop himself. Every photo shows him some shard of the mirror reflection of a dead boy all grown up - a sparkle of green eyes, happy motions in the background of a video, more of that familiar sunny smile. “I kept-... I kept all the stuff he left in my room, I saved all h-his text messages from before he d, disappeared, I-”

“This can’t be him,” Aimi says in a fierce whisper. “It can’t be, Aki, it can’t.”

Akio taps on another video.

The boy ties his long blue hair back in it, glancing sidelong at the camera, a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth. “And, and, and you’ll, um, you’ll buy the, the, the-the-the nachos?”

“If you can still do it? Yeah, absolutely. Seeing that’s worth a plate of nachos to me. I’ll even buy you those fucking margaritas you like.”

“Chris just likes the sugar,” Someone else says, and Chris sticks his tongue out at them.

He takes a few steps back, rolling his shoulders, shaking out his arms. 

Akio tells himself that if the Chris on the screen doesn’t nail this, it can’t be him, it can’t be him at all. 

The boy puts his hands up, then down at his sides, back bowed briefly in a motion Akio knows too, too well, knows better than he knows breathing. The boy takes off across the grass without hesitation and-

Akio and Aimi both exhale.

-he jumps forward, dips at the waist, catches himself on his hands and does a perfect set of three backflips across a big grassy lawn, stumbling the landing but his feet pop right back into final position, and he throws his arms up with his chin lifted, and someone offscreen shouts, “Perfect Ten, Stanton!”

The boy laughs, shakes his head, says, “I’d be, be, be dinged for the, um, the landing, but-... but, but good, right? I did good? Laken?”

Someone with the coolest hair Akio has seen steps into the screen and they hug, kiss briefly, and then Chris apparently can’t handle the happy emotions because he backs away to start bouncing up and down, grinning.

He looks back at the camera. “Want to see me, me, me... me do it again?”

“He’s not dead,” Aimi says, and her voice sounds like someone closed their hands around her throat. “Oh, Ronnie-”

“What the fuck happened to Tristan fucking Higgs?” Akio’s voice is barely audible over the sound of the video starting over. “He’s… he’s not dead. He’s not dead, Mom, he’s not-... he’s not dead, Mom, he’s not dead and he’s right-... that the university, right? He’s not dead, and he’s, has he-... has he been here the whole fucking time?”

His mother doesn’t chide him for language this time. Her hand tightens on Akio’s shoulder as red wine soaks the rug beneath her feet and she whispers, “Give that Ben boy your number. Tell him to call you.”

Her fingernails ache where they dig into his skin through his shirt.

“Now.”

---

Tagging: @burtlederp , @finder-of-rings , @endless-whump , @whumpfigure , @slaintetowhump , @astrobly @newandfiguringitout , @doveotions , @pretty-face-breaker , @boxboysandotherwhump , @oops-its-whump @moose-teeth , @cubeswhump , @cupcakes-and-pain @whump-tr0pes @whumpiary @orchidscript

[the-kings-of-games]

I like Chaseshipping, so here's a college headcanon:

(Or: In which Tristan's friends are famous and he's famously dating)

While Téa goes to American and Yūgi and Joey continue to on their dueling careers, Tristan attends university two cities over to study business and accounting. He wants to help with the family business.

For convenience's sake, he rents a cheap apartment, but he comes home often, usually on weekends.

Due to living close to campus, he joins the gaming club (because it reminds him of his best friends) and makes friends. He's not the best at playing, but he's awfully insightful and knowledgeable about games, including Duel Monsters.

He's well liked by his classmates, and even professors can rely on his help. Tristan often agrees to go to drinking, but he doesn't go to "meet" people, though he's been offered a few times.

"Sorry, I have a boyfriend. He's in California right now."

Girls find it endearing, but that's all Tristan mentions of his boyfriend. A few people in his circle think the boyfriend's made up because he's trying to be nice. They tease him about it.

"He's real. I wouldn't lie about that, that's embarrassing."

"Then show us a picture! Come on, Tristan!"

"I rather not. He always incites a riot when he's brought up, and I know people will bother me about him."

"You make it sound like he's famous."

". . . He's— Very good looking. I guess." (Technically, a lot of people I know are famous, but I'll never tell any of you that!)

Then, one night out at a bar with the game club, there's a surprise appearance from some old friends. The door to the club's private room is opened, and Tristan hears a familiar voice.

"I knew I saw you coming in here, Tristan! It's been a while."

The room is quiet, and everyone's eyes are as big as saucers because there's a world famous duelist and the CEO of the biggest Duel Monster company in the world just standing there.

"Mai! Kaiba!" Tristan greets, smiling. Everybody's been so busy, it's been a while since they had a get together. "What are you doing here?"

Mai smiles back, winking. "Working on some tournament deals, and we stopped here for the night. Are these all your friends?"

Seto scoffs. "I knew I felt geek the moment I stepped inside this establishment. Be ready to leave at 9 tomorrow, Valentine." He's already leaving.

"He's still an asshole." Tristan is rolling his eyes to the back of his head, but he's still laughing. "It was good seeing you, Kaiba! Mai, you wanna stay for a drink?"

"Sure! Let's catch up a bit. I could use better company than Mister Brick Wall. Scoot over, Tristan."

Tristan introduces his club to Mai. All the club members are silently thanking the brunette because God, that's Mai Valentine! (And they got to see Seto Kaiba in real life??)

Mai warms up to the club immediately, answering questions from excited nerds. (Don't worry, she's very used to this.) She agrees to autographs. At some point, someone asks offhandedly if she knows Tristan's "boyfriend."

"Yeah, why you ask?"

"So he is real? Tristan won't tell us anything about him. We thought the boyfriend's made up."

Tristan is groaning, hiding behind a beer. Nosy friends. Mai is intrigued by this.

"Well, I won't tell if Tristan won't, but I assure you, the boyfriend is very much real."

"Can you at least tell us one thing about him?"

"Mai," Tristan says, pleading for her to stay quiet.

"Don't worry, Tristan. It'll be vague: he's famous in the gaming world."

The club ponders on this for a second, looking back and forth between themselves and Mai who's laughing. Someone famous in the game world, and someone world famous duelist Mai Valentine knows, maybe someone close to her?

"Joey Wheeler???"

Tristan spits out his beer.

For weeks after, Tristan is badgered by big DM fans on campus because word got out about Mai and by his club friends because they really want to know about his famous, real boyfriend.

However, Tristan doesn't let up, tightening up even more. This is partly the reason why he didn't want to tell in the first place.

Then, another surprise appearances happens but only for other people. Tristan had been excited for a week, and when he's done with classes that afternoon, he rushes out of the building, throwing himself at one of the guys in sunglasses standing outside. The other guy has a hat on and is shorter.

There's shouting between Tristan and the hatless one (a blond), the former getting the latter in a headlock while the short one laughs. They look pretty close. Tristan takes them to the game club because the shorter one loves games.

The three of the them show up at the club meeting which is already five minutes in. Tristan's guests take off their disguises, and it's Joey Wheeler, another world famous duelist, and Yūgi Mutō, the King of Games????

Everyone's freaking out. Two people burst into tears, and another into flames(?). They're all too shocked to speak properly.

"Does this happen all the time?" Joey asks, joking. He gives someone a wink, and they faint.

"I half expected this to happen," Yūgi says, a little worried.

"Remember it was all your idea," Tristan says, shaking his head. "Everybody, calm down, or we're leaving!"

Self-control is brought back to the club. Everyone who's into DM challenged Yūgi and Joey to a duel, but the former refrains, wanting to play the other games available first. Joey's all, "I'll take all of you on for the both of us!"

Everyone's having a great time, and someone is smart enough to ask about Tristan's boyfriend.

"Pretty boy?" Joey asks, scoffing. "There's nothing special about him. So what if he's Pegasus's—" Tristan clasps a hand over his friend's mouth.

"He's still your boyfriend?" Yūgi asks, confused. "I thought he—" Tristan has two hands, guys, for silencing his two best friends.

"I have dirt on the both of you. I'm not afraid to use it."

Joey and Yūgi choke a bit before nodding. Everybody is even more intrigued (about the boyfriend and the dirt Tristan has).

The meeting continues on like before, and the three leave about two hours later, Tristan and Joey chanting, "Cheap beer! Take out! Cheap beer! Take out!" Yūgi is laughing, waving the club goodbye.

By now, Tristan is the gaming club's most favorite member. Word gets out about Joey and Yūgi, and even more people are asking about them. Everybody's just waiting for the next famous someone Tristan knows to show up. Maybe Pegasus? Dueling prodigy Rebecca Hopkins? Up and rising American pop idol Téa Gardner?? God???

But months pass and there's nobody new shows up. Everyone's a bit disappointed as the semester comes to a close, but Tristan doesn't think much about it. He's just trying to finish his classes and have a good time.

Finally, there's only one club meeting left before break. Some people will graduate, some will come back to finish their degree. Tristan's already packed to go back home for the time being, and he goes to attend the last meeting, lingering on his walk over.

He does not expect to see one famous dice lover, creator of the popular Dungeon Dice Monsters, young and successful entrepreneur and part time model, sitting and playing with members of the club who are literally vibrating with excitement and awe.

"Duke! What are you doing here?!"

"Oh, hey, babe! I came to surprise you and take you home. I miss your sister's cooking."

Duke doesn't hesitate as he gets up and kisses Tristan on the lips. His smile is 100 watts, Tristan is nervous.

All the pieces finally come together.

"YOU'RE TRISTAN'S BOYFRIEND?!"

Duke's smile falls, Tristan is nervous™.

"Boyfriend? He's not my boyfriend."

Tristan is sweating, face red. Duke is glaring at him. The club is sweating. The tension can be cut with a knife.

"Tristan Taylor, what have you been telling everyone?! I'm not your boyfriend, I'm your freaking fiancé!"

". . . FIANCÉ?!”

[westcoastrry]

Tracing The Stars Chapter 10

Blairs POV

Harry played a great game.

He only played in the first half but ended up scoring two goals, and we ended up winning four to one.

I was originally going to sit by myself when I got here, but Maya saw me and demanded I sit next to her.

I didn't know her very well. I just knew that she was Harry's friend. I know they have been rumored to mess around, and I definitely believe it. She was beautiful, but there was no need for me to be jealous. I was not dating Harry, he was my friend, and that was it. Harry's past or present sex life is also none of my business.

Maya was also extremely nice. All I knew about her was that her parents ran some big-time magazine in the city. We talked the entire game about the school musical, soccer, and she even asked me a couple of questions about my job at Joe's cafe.

Once the game was over, I noticed Harry and Gabe talking to a scout. We briefly make eye contact, and he mouths a "Wait for me," and I nod my head in response.

I was getting a few stares now that the game was over, and people started to realize I was wearing Harry's jacket, but I didn't have time to overthink the situation because Harry finally came up to me with his brown curls pushed back with a headband.

"Harry, you played so well!" I say, wrapping my arms around his shoulders going in for a hug.

His arms settle around my hips. "That was the best I've played so far. Looks like you are my good luck charm peach."

"Hey, you are coming with us to Joes', right?" Gabe says, walking over to where Harry and I are standing.

"Yeah, I'll drive with Blair," Harry responds. "I think the rest of the team can split up in cars."

Gabe smirks at us. "Yeah, yeah, alright, we will give you two your privacy."

+++

By the time Hary packed his stuff up, and we drove a short five minutes to Joe's, a lot of people from the game were already there. Harry leads me to sit in the booth next to him.

At the table was Don, Tristan, Levi, and Jacob. They were all seniors on the soccer team, and I know they usually come to Joe's after soccer games because I have served them all a couple of times. Maya sat next to Gabe, and a girl named Aaliyah, who I recognized from the cheer team, sat next to Tristan, who I believed was her boyfriend.

The rest of the girls cheer team sat at a table directly adjacent from us. I can't believe that used to be me last year. Between school musicals, the cheer team, my job at Joe's, Justin, and trying to keep up with parties and appearances at school, I was so stressed out. I don't even miss cheer that much, to be honest. It is such a popularity contest, and it was so draining.

I jumped at the feeling of Harry's arm snaking around my waist, bringing me slightly closer to his side. I was caught off guard at first, but the way butterflies spew off in my stomach and my cheeks going red and slightly tingled reminded me of when I first started dating Justin.

That was the first tell-tale sign of having a crush.

I embraced the feeling of Harry's arm around me, placing the side of my head in the crook of his neck.

Maya winks at me from across the table, and I send her back a smile and breathe out a weak laugh.

"How is your leg Harry?" Don asks.

Harry's fingers dance around the side of my hip. "It's good. No pain or anything for now, and I hope it stays that way for the season."

"Blair," Tristan spoke. "Yo, Long time no fucking see. Where the hell have you been!"

I laugh at his greeting. "Around I guess."

"Blair, remember those shrooms we did with Harry and Jacob sophomore year at Gabe's Party?" Tristian brings up.

"Yep. I'm pretty sure Harry fell into the pool that night," I giggle, looking up at Harry.

He groans. "Okay, I was high out of my fucking mind. Can we not bring that up."

"You single?"Jacob asked.  "You still with that Justin kid?"

I shake my head. "Nope, we broke up at the end of junior year, been single all summer."

Levi rolls his eyes jokingly. "Uhhh, who's gonna tell him," he says, pointing a finger at Harry. "If you are single, you might want to tell this guy. I think Styles believes he is your boyfriend the way he is all over you."

Harry becomes flustered, and his face falls red from embarrassment. "Alright, all of you shut up about me."

The conversation continues, and it feels like I have been with these guys forever. We reminisced about our old party days. Jacob brought up the time I got so drunk and threw up on his dad's boat, which I don't remember probably because of how wasted I was.

Gabe also asked me why I quit the cheer team. I just gave him the short answer and told him all my extracurricular activities were piling up.

At one point, the conversation ended up on my Dad, and who he says the worst player is. No one would believe me when I told them I didn't know, even though I knew it was Harry.  Levi swears it's some freshman named Dylan who made varsity soccer on a fluke, but I didn't even know who that was.

Our waitress finally came up to us. I recognized her as Candice. She got hired about a week ago, and I already liked her. We both complained about our overly affectionate boss on our breaks.

She waved at me before introducing herself to the table.

While Candice went around taking orders, Harry whispered in my ear, "How do those burgers sound."

I smile up at him. "Fuck yes."

Maya, Harry, and I ended up in deep conversation about our science teacher, Mr.Gunnerson, an old crazy nerd. While I was too lost in conversation with Maya, Harry's arm moves from my waist to my thigh, rubbing the exposed skin that my jean shorts did not cover.

A whirlwind of emotions hit me when I first felt Harry's touch on my thigh. I tensed up at first, not really sure what he was planning to do. When his hand just settled on my thigh, rubbing up and down, I was able to settle my emotions. I liked having Harry's hands on my body. It was a constant reminder that he was right beside me. Harry and I were sitting extremely close to one another, our sides practically overlapping. I really loved the attention he was giving me, and I wish I could just whisk him away and throw myself at him.

Was I ready to throw myself at him?

Absolutely not.

But my hormones were getting the best of me, and what was once innocent butterflies in my stomach was now a raging fire in the pit of my stomach, damp panties, a flushed face, and short isolated breaths.

The boy wasn't even touching me in a heavy sexual manner, but I was already all hot and bothered for him.

After I finished my food, I quickly excused myself to the bathroom needing a second before I jumped Harry's bones in front of everyone at the table.

When I got to the bathroom, I splashed a bit of cold water on my face hoping to cool down a bit.

"B!" A voice yells.

I turn around from the sink to see two cheerleaders whose names I can't really remember and Megan standing directly behind them.

"So I see you are wearing Harry's letterman?" The brown-haired one, whose name I think is Kacey.

My eyes dart downwards, a nervous habit, before answering her question.

"Harry just gave it to me because I was cold."

"So, how was the sex?" She curiously asks me. "I tried to fuck him this summer, but he was with some other girl at the time."

My jaw sets, and I can't help but feel a sting of jealousy.

"I didn't have sex with him. Harry is my friend."

"Please, we saw him all over you at dinner tonight." Kacey presses.

Megan places her hand on Kacy's shoulder and reprimands her in a whispering tone. "Can we just leave, please?"

Kacy scoffs. "Hell no! We all know you were Justin's whore anyways. What are you doing Blair hmmm? Trying to fuck every soccer player in the county?"

I was tired of being walked all over.

Fuck this.

I took a few steps up to Kacey, so I was a couple of inches away from my face. "First of all, I didn't fuck Harry, and even if I did, it would be none of your fucking business. Secondly, I'm no one's whore. Even if I did fuck every guy in this county, it would be none of your damn business Kacey!"

Once I finished my rant, I was about to storm out the bathroom when Kacey spoke up again.

"My name is Kelly."

"Oh wow. I don't care." I spit back, slamming the door.

High school is the most dramatic fucking place ever.

What was the point of that? My sex like, which is non-existent, is no one's business. I wasn't even surprised when Megan didn't stand up for me. She has always cared way too much about popularity and appearances.

I know Kelly is only lashing out because I have been hanging out with Harry, and she is jealous, but I'm just tired of being caught up in drama when it's the one thing I have done my best to avoid. I wish high school could be a place where everyone would mind their damn business, but this is Eastwood Highschool, and everyone here feeds off of drama, drugs, and partying.

I stormed out of the bathroom, and Harry was about to say something, but when his eyes set on me, he acknowledged the annoyed expression on my face.

"Peaches, you good?"

I grab my bag from the booth, searching for my card to pay the bill. I just want to leave Joe's as fast as possible.

"I'm fine. Where is the check?"

Harry sends me a look. "I paid it. Are you sure you are okay?"

I tilt my head looking up at him with a frown. "You didn't have to do that, Harry. We could have at least split it."

"It's not a big deal," he reassures me. "Let's get out of here."

Everyone walks outside to their cars, and I frequently forget how rich the kids who go to Eastwood are. Gabe and Maya have walked into some fancy BMW, and Levi speeds off in a Mercedes.

I don't even have a car yet. Sometimes I drive my mom's Toyota Camry on the weekends when she doesn't have work, but I have been saving up for a car, and hopefully, by the end of the year, I could afford my own.

Harry and I got in his car, and he placed his hand instantly on my thigh, backing out of his parking spot.

Before we could pull out of the lot, Maya, who is in the passenger seat of the Gabes car, rolls down her window and calls out, "If you two are going to have sex, send us an invite!"

The palm of my hand slaps my mouth in shock at Maya's bluntness.

Harry speeds off before Maya could let anything more vulgar come out of my mouth.

"You okay, Blair? You seemed a little distressed coming out of the bathroom." Harry asked, still focused on the road.

I sigh."Yeah, I had a bit of a run-in with some girls from the cheer team. They called me Justins whore, and they thought I was fucking you."

Harry frowns and looks annoyed by my words. "I'm sorry. I knew that you wearing my jacket would bring some attention to you, but I didn't think anyone would have the balls to say it to my face. Also, I'm sorry what they said to you about Justin."

"It's okay. I'm used to the rumors. Everyone thought I was fucking him even though I wasn't."

He snaps his head towards me with a raised eyebrow. "What?"

I laugh. "Yeah, literally all rumors. He tried fingering me a couple times, but it never felt good, and I never came, hence why I thought my clit was broken. A few heated make-out sessions and I gave him a handjob once in his car, but that was it."

Harry snorts. "During our all star-game, he literally told us he fucked you. What a fucking asshole."

"Yeah, he really was," I mumble out.

Harry notices my change in tone because once he pulls up into my driveway, he puts the car in park and turns towards me.

"Are you a virgin, Blair?"

Did he not like the fact I was a virgin? I know Harry was a super experienced guy when it came to sex, and maybe he wasn't into virgins.

"It's not a bad thing." He quickly reassures me.

"Yes, I have never had sex before. I usually don't do what we did the other night at Gabe's party," I trail off with my voice. "But I really liked it."

My confession makes my heart thunder, and my throat goes dry. I never got to tell him how much I enjoyed that night. When it came to Harry, I had this internal war with my brain telling me to leave him alone but my hormones telling me to let myself go.

Harry brings his other hand to my thigh, rubbing up and down and looking me in the eyes.

"Well, there is more of that where it came from Peaches. If you want it."

We stare into each other's eyes for the briefest of seconds. The tension between us was suffocating, and I wanted him to make a move so badly.

"Harry," I softly whisper.

"Fuck it." He whispered, searching for approval.

I slowly nodded my head, and that was all he needed for him to attach his lips to mine.

[nonbinarycore]

ive wanted to get into classical music esp understanding opera, any advice? (saw u liked Wagner/etc)

this is the best ask i've ever recieved i am so excited to ramble oh god ohg fuck. classical music is a huge and diverse world of amazing music!!! here are my tips for enjoying it:

- i love doing my own research about music and composers that i like and i highly recommend looking up facts about the pieces you're interested in. there's almost always some really interesting context or simply fun facts ! info about composition, reception, inspiration, early staging, etc can be super interesting and provide great insight that allows you to appreciate the piece more. that's a really fun way to engage further with the music :)

- i also love printing out pieces and analyzing them so i would recommend that if you know music theory but it's also a lot of work and a certified nerd activity. so.

- this will sound so pretentious but i'd say to use good earphones/speakers. the way classical music is recorded and like. "produced" i guess is different from music made today. playing classical music out of your phone or laptop speaker is totally fine but i always hear something new when i listen For Real with headphones.

- for opera, i reccommend that you avoid english adaptations and opt for the original language with subtitles.

- another thing about opera is that the plots can sometimes be Straight Up Stupid. but stick with it!! sometimes you have the ignore how blatantly unrealistic it is lmao.

- some productions can be super weird or like. Modernized? ive def seen some adaptations that i dont like and that's totally fine! don't worry about Appreciating every single staging choice, it's okay to look for a more traditional staging if that will help you get into it more.

finally here is a list of classical music including opera that i think is really enjoyable and accessible, and then some Funkier selections at the bottom :)

- dvorak serenade for strings in e major (Bangers.)

- mozart symphonies (pretty easy listening but also like. Masterworks. i like no. 41)

- mozart operas (probably the most accessible operas)

- strauss' opera der rosenkavalier (beautiful and gay. elina garanca's "wie du warst" with renee fleming lives in my head rent free)

- smetana's die moldau

- beethoven 3, mahler 5, tchaikovsky 6 (all amazing and popular symphonies)

- rachmaninoff's 6 moments musicaux

- brahms' ein duestches requiem (Germam Death Music)

- debussy's piano works (my faves are danse bohemienne, doctor gradus ad parnassum, 2e arabesque)

- ravel's la valse

- ravel's daphnis et chloe (an Experience)

- stravinsky's violin concerto in d major

- bartok's opera bluebeard's castle

- strauss' opera salome (my Actual favorite opera. not easy to listen to but makes me lose my marbles)

- wagner's tristan and isolde (wagner's operas are like. offensively long but super complex and interesting. this one has some really nice parts but will exhaust you thoroughly. wagner is really not for everyone but i would recommend trying this one !)

i hope this helps and i hope you enjoy these if you listen!

[johaerys-writes]

Aran and Tristan are childhood friends. Best friends. Brothers, almost. They’ve been inseparable since the moment they met, one rainy autumn day underneath the maple tree in the school playground.

Best friends don’t fall in love with each other. Surely not.

Fandom: Dragon Age

Pairing: Aran Trevelyan/Tristan Trevelyan (no relation)

Chapter 4: Wolf Pack of mine and @oftachancer​‘s collaborative fic Playground Love is up! Where Aran gets in trouble, and Tristan and his friends run to the rescue.

Read on AO3!

~

The smoke from the cigarette stung his eyes as Tristan took a long drag. It burned its way down his throat, filling his lungs. The school grounds were all but empty, his friends’ chatter echoing around the open space. He thought of telling them to shut it, to stop making so much noise- the day was over and almost everyone was gone, but teachers sometimes lingered well after the school closed. Madame Dupris wouldn’t appreciate it much if she saw them huddled there and smoking in the corner past the main gates. But Johnston was going off on one of his usual tangents, about this girl that liked him, and her boyfriend that looked at him funny, and the blokes from the softball team that were all jealous because softball was, and always would be, the ‘lamest sport’- as he put it.

“Polo matches are where all the birds go,” he said with a grin, puffing out a stream of smoke. “They see you riding a horse and they lose their bloody minds."

Cardew nodded along, smirking. They were all in the polo team together. Tristan was offense, Cardew was center, Johnston team leader. Tristan had noticed the girls that had been flocking to every one of their matches lately, but never paid them much thought; he’d assumed they were all there to watch the game. The Cross was a small place, and there wasn’t much else to do in the winter, but his friends would never believe that. He didn’t mind much, either way. Johnston and Cardew always played better when there were girls around.

“Reyes said she'll go out with me next time we win,” Cardew said, leaning against the wall.

Johnston scoffed. “She says that every game, mate. Last I heard, she was kissing Montanerre behind the gym.”

“Montanerre’s a prick. I bet he hasn’t pulled half the birds he says he has.” Cardew rolled his eyes, pouting. He and Montanerre had been in a fierce competition over who was the heartthrob of third form that year- so far, the tall, brunette Antivan was winning. “You get all your gossip from Hallewell, and you know most of what she says is bollocks.”

“Oh?” Johnston tilted his head to the side, his lips curled in his usual amused smirk. “So when she said you were crying at her feet when she dumped your arse last year, that was bollocks, too?”

“She didn’t dump me,” Cardew spat. He tossed his cigarette on the ground, then ground it into a paste with his heel. “I dumped her , and then she pestered me for a month after. Had to turn off my phone every night so she wouldn’t wake me up with all her texts, begging me to go out with her again.”

“I can vouch for that,” Penwith chimed in from his seat atop one of the old, worn out benches that lined the pavement. He had on his wide, peacemaking smile, which made his cheeks look even rounder and rosier than they already were, and was fiddling with one of his gym padlocks that had broken earlier. Fred was not in the polo team with them- too tall and gangly to ever be a decent rider, but he’d always been a fierce swimmer. He and Tristan had known each other ever since he could remember, even before that. There were still pictures of the two of them in kindergarten in one of his desk drawers, wearing the colourful Satinalia sweaters his nan had knitted for them. “You shouldn’t take Hallewell’s word for it- you know how upset she was after their breakup. Isn’t it better to trust what your friends tell you?” he amiably asked Johnston, then coughed as the other boy blew the smoke from his cigarette in his direction. “Put that blasted thing out, will you? I cannot believe your coach lets you puff away like a chimney every day.”

“He doesn’t,” Johnston grinned. “But even if he knew, I doubt he’d say anything. Not when our team’s had a streak like this. Three wins in a month. D’you know that?”

“I suppose I did not. You haven’t mentioned it in the past- what? Thirty minutes? My memory, as you know, is rather short,” he said, coughing as he waved the smoke away.

“That it is, old pal. That it is.” Johnston threw his arm over Penwith’s shoulders, then turned to Tristan. “Oi. Where’s squirt?”

Tristan shrugged and looked over his shoulder, past the gates. Late. Aran was never late- Not like this. Not knowing Tristan had a practice to get to. There was a ball of tension in Tristan’s stomach, one that had been there for a while and was steadily getting tighter. An insistent irritation; a tug. It didn’t make sense to him. He’d been fine a moment before. Yet now, it felt like that tension wouldn’t go away until he saw Aran appear around the corner.

He tossed his cigarette on the ground and slung his backpack over his shoulder. “I’ll go look for him.” Aran had probably found some new book in the library and lost track of time. Maker, he was a nerd sometimes.

“Coming with,” Cardew said, pushing off the wall. “Been waiting here so long, I need to stretch out my legs.”

The library was closed already for the day, which meant his plan to drag Aran out of it wasn’t going anywhere. The sound of laughter reached him from around the side of the building and he followed it, curious.

“Give it back-“ Aran said clearly, though his voice was higher than normal. High and clipped, the way it had been when the bough had broken under his feet while they were climbing one of the tall trees the summer before.

“How can you even carry this thing?” Another laugh. Tristan exchanged a wary look with Cardew, then rounded the corner in time to see a couple of the boys from a higher form tossing a backpack back and forth between them as Aran shook, red-faced, hands fisted at his sides.

“Give it back,“ he repeated. Squinting. His glasses were broken on the ground at his feet.

“Just gonna help you out,” Klein - fifth form - smiled broadly, dumping the contents of the backpack on the ground before he tossed the empty cloth sack back at Aran. “See. Now you can carry it.”

Read the rest here!

[typicalmidnightsoul]

21 for the nessian prompts please i love ur writing so much :))

ok so I went for a fluffy take on this anon if you want an angstier one send me another ask! I love you lots, honestly in love with little messages like this <3

Prompt list here

Send me prompts here

Prompt 21: 

“Who the hell was THAT?”

She wanted attention. That was it.

They were 4 weeks into quarantine and Cassian hadn’t even bothered to look away from his fucking screen, growling at strangers and his brothers all day, he only stopped for toilet breaks, food and sleep. She swore to god she felt like calling the electric company and paying them to turn off the electricity.

“That sounds like an amazing idea Nes, but it’s really harsh if you only want sex.”

Nesta looked up at Helion, “did I say that out loud?”

“Yes and I can tell you that I have a way better solution than cutting your electricity.”

Nesta looked up at this, “You do?”

Nesta had met Helion in elementary school where he was forcefully put in at Nesta’s table. She hated him at first, even that young he was a huge ass flirt and after all the flirting and rejection he faced from her; when they were writing he leaned over at Nesta and said, “your handwriting is so good.”

“You seem to be a Ravenclaw.” Well she was a Gryffindor first but she was horrified but when she took it again it said she was a Ravenclaw. The sorting hat didn’t take her fucking preference.

“Yes, what about-“

“Samesies,” He said, “I’m In Ravenclaw too.”

She almost kissed him, she used to be the only Ravenclaw on the table but now she had him. And since then they were nerds for life even if they were the most popular in school.

 “Of course I do, since when do I don’t?” His voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

“Go on then let’s hear it.”

“Ok so,” Helion threw the papers they’d been working on to the side,

“Helion we need those!”

“I’ll sort them out later at 3am when I get bored and have nothing  to do.” He clasped his hands together, “Anyway, so we all know your boy gets a bit territorial. So…”

Nesta groaned, “I don’t like this already.”

“Let me have my moment bitch! As I was saying so… we make you too busy for him.”

Nesta gave him a Kris Kardashian confused look, “Huh?”

“With another guy.” He finished.

Nesta collapsed onto the master bed groaning.

 Yes Cassian was territorial, when she said yes to being his girlfriend, he took her to his friends party and Helion was there and obviously Helion came up to her, and let’s say Cassian was a bit upset when Helion said, “Chillax Cass, this was my girl first.” Cassian had breathed a sigh of relief when Nesta confirmed they were and will always be best friends.

So this might work for that exact reason, “Ok, who did you have in mind.”

“Dorian Havillard.”

Nesta gagged, “Ew, no, Dorian used to hit on me so much in ninth grade, plus isn’t he with Manon now?”

“Pft, Manon will never admit they’re dating like I have a video of them snogging and she still goes, ‘that’s not Dorian’ anyway if she finds out Cassian’s ignoring you for his game she’ll say yes and then if it doesn’t work she’ll break quarantine rules and you better hope Cassian taught his X box to swim.”

Nesta laughed loudly, he had a point.

And it didn’t matter if Cassian was rich enough to buy 10 new ones. Manon would drown them all.

“Ok fine. I’ll give Manon a call.”

“Wait bitch!” Helion shouted before Nesta could cut off the line, “Whenevr you call or face time Dorian it needs to be a conference call because I want to make a tik tok. Deal?”

“Deal but you two need to stay quiet, and that reminds me like my recent tik tok.”

“Ok fine but…two? I only said me.”

“Yeah but I bet you Manon is going to do the same thing she’s been complaining that she hasn’t had anything to post for ages.”

Helion laughed, “Ok give her a call, bye hoe.”

“Bye dickhead.”

Nesta padded up to hallway and looked down into the living room downstairs, she saw him barking orders into his headphones and decided that she’d spare him the cruelty of Manon and give her a call.

“There’s my fellow witch!” She shouted as Manon accepted.

In middle school everyone used to call Nesta and Manon witches because of the amount of power they had over everyone from kids to teachers. She was at present time eating a chocolate bar.

“Hey bitch!! So how’s life? How’s your boyfriend?”

“Not so good, he’s stuck on that game since the beginning of quarantine.”

“Do you want me to pay your house a visit?” She didn’t even look up from her work,

Nesta laughed, “Nah, Helion has come up with another plan.”

“Helion’s plans and Tristan Thompson are two things you should never trust.”

“Yeah but this one’s gonna work.”

“Go on then.” Just then Dorian stepped out of the shower behind him, “Hey Manon-“ He saw Nesta’s face and ran back in.

Nesta squealed, “You got DORIAN TO MOVE IN WITH YOU.”

“Shut up, I asked him too only for quarantine” she mumbled, “Dorian she’s already seen your face you can come out.”

Dorian came out and blew a kiss to Nesta, “Hello witchling 2.0.”

She laughed, “The plan involves your boyfriend.”

Manon rolled her eyes, “He’s not my boyfriend.”

She explained the plan and the first thing Manon said was-

“I’m also making a tik tok. And I want reaction videos and shit because you’re making one too.”

Nesta rolled her eyes, “Ok fine, call you later.”

Now to put the plan in place.

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

Cassian got up from his game, he was so fucking hungry.

He walked down to the kitchen expecting to find Nesta there, but she wasn’t. He looked at the clock; it was Nesta’s snack time all right but where was she?

He headed upstairs, “Nes are you-“

She was in the toilet the door closed, probably doing her skin care routine. As he went to knock on the door he heard voices. She was on the phone. He thought it was Helion at first but then.

“For fucks sake, Nessie you were such a riot. I honestly hope nothings changed.”

“You’re an idiot, that was such a long time ago and I wasn’t a riot I was young and dumb.”

Cassian blanched, Nesta let no one except him to call her Nessie.

“Oh come on Nessie you know you loved those times when we went on the huge rides at the fair, it was literally only the two of us because everyone chickened out-

Cassian knocked this time, loudly “Nes!”

“Yes?”

“You hungry? It’s snack time.”

“Oh shit, it’s 6:30 I forgot. Um I’ll call you later.”

“You still have snack time?” The voice said, “Ugh I wish I was there, you make the best smores.”

Cassian was furious not at Nesta at that guy on her phone.

“Ok anyway bye.”

He heard the sound of water gurgling and water being splashed on her face.

She came out glowing, “Hey, let’s go down to the kitchen.”

“Who the hell was THAT?”

“Oh him? He was just an old friend.”

“Hmhm.” He watched as she went about the kitchen making the s’mores, he watched her in silence until she got out her phone, clicked a picture and sent it to someone, He eyed the caller ID, it was ‘Dory’ with the fish emoji.

“I haven’t heard of a friend called ‘Dory’ Nes.”

“Oh you wouldn’t have, we used to be great friends till we split up for college. He goes to Terrasen Uni, and he saw Manon and she gave him my number.”

“Oh ok.” He’d text Manon and see if there was anything to be worried about. She was really popular he convinved himself that she was just popular and had a lot of friends.

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

Nesta was pissing herself at the screenshots Manon sent her.

 Hey Manon.

Yo

So did you give Nesta’s number to a guy named Dory?

Oh yeah He was so happy to have

her number. I thought it would be

good for them to reconnect.

Um, so they’re just friends right?

Well now they are I’m guessing cuz she’s with you.

Wait what?

Oh yeah they were the dream

couple in junior high everyone

wanted to be them.

Dory and Nessie

So he’s her ex?

Yea

Shit.

Seen

 How easily had he fallen in to her trap? Too easily.

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

Cassian was not in the mood to be playing games. Rhys shouted in his earpiece, “Cassian! We just lost where is your mind nowadays?!”

Azriel replied from his other ear, “Nesta’s paying someone else the attention Cass wants.”

Cassian growled, “Yow two got the next game. I’m beat.”

He ignored their cries of outrage and clicked the game shut, heading upstairs. As he flopped down on their bed his eyes fell on his girlfriend who was lying face down on their bed on the phone. Again.

This was the 24th time this week.

Little did he know that she was just playing truth or dare without any dares with Manon, Helion and Dorian…until he came. Then it was Manon and Helion going deathly silent, and Dorian becoming sickeningly flirtatious but because Cassian was just too respectful for the situation he said, “Say hi to Manon.”

Poor thing he had no idea what was coming for him,

“It’s not Manon.”

“Oh say hi to your friend.”

“Cassian says hi.”

She giggled at something and sat up; Cassian took the moment and put his head on her lap. To his disappointment Nesta wasn’t petting him like she usually did but instead laughing at what that person was saying, suspicion clouded in Cassian’s eyes.

“Who are you talking to?” He whispered.

She moved around the bed deep in her conversation.

“Nes?” He whispered, “Nes?”

“One second Dorian,” She looked at him her annoyance clear, “Yes?”

“Who are you talking to?” He asked sweetly, placing his face on a fist.

“Dorian.” Cassian almost fell off the bed.

“The fish? Again?!”

“Cassian do not be rude.”

Cassian lay in bed contemplating death. Nesta finished talking and put down her phone only for it to ring again. Cassian saw his chance and took it. He snatched her phone and sprinted for a different room.

“Cassian,” Nesta hoped that she sounded outraged; she looked at the camera in the corner that was recording the encounter and snatched it up sprinting in Cassian’s direction.

She crouched down and recorded Cassian on the phone,

“Look, I don’t know who you are but I just wanted to let you know that Nesta is off limits, ok?”

Dorian, god bless him for he must’ve been scared and it must’ve been Manon who told him to say it, said “Well that’s all good but are sure you care about her as much as you care about your game?”

“Do i- what” Cassian growled, “Did Nesta tell you that?”

“I mean why else would she spend hours talking to me and not you. Most of the time you interrupt the end of our convos.” That was definitely Manon holding a knife to his throat and telling him to say that because Dorian’s voice was going quieter by the second as if he was scared.

“Oh shit.” Cassian cursed and Nesta could not take it anymore her boyfriend looked too hurt by the words. She fell down on carpeted hallway, laughter bubbling out, her camera in her hand.

Cassian’s look was a face of confusion and then Manon and Helion started fizzing on the other side of the phone.

“Um babe?”

He looked so confused; Nesta put the camera down and went to him,

He pushed her away, “Explain.”

Helion said from the other side, “It was my plan!!! I get the credit! She wanted the attention she’s been missing for 4 weeks, so I said let’s make the man bring his attention to you!”

“Ok so who’s the fish?” He asked.

“Manon’s boyfriend.” Nesta replied.

“He’s not my boyfriend!”

Nesta mouthed to Cassian that he is.

“Wait babe you did this beca-“

“Because you were giving your x box too much attention!” Manon shouted.

“And you took your girl for granted!” Helion supplied.

Now Nesta screamed, “NO he did NOT! I was just being needy.”

“You have a right to be needy, you are his girlfriend,” Dorian said.

“Shut it! I haven’t decided if I like you yet,” Cassian growled.

“I promise I wasn’t flirting with Nesta I only did it in 9th grade then got rejected way too many times.”

“You flirted with her in 9th grade?” He growled.

“Dorian stop talking.” All three said at once.

“I’ll call you guys later. Love you bye.”

Cassian stared at his girlfriend who seemed to be avoiding his eye.

“Honestly Nes.”

“Can you blame me?”

“Ok no I can’t but next time please instead of doing this just please do whatever you want but not…”

“Did you think I was cheating?”

She flopped down on the couch next to him as he stretched his legs placing him on the right side of the couch, she curled a leg over his and placed her hand on his collar bone.

He put his hand on her ass making her dig closer to him and another on her back.

“No, I thought someone was trying to make you cheat and as much as I trust you I don’t like sharing.” She laughed lowly.

He flopped his head back, closing his eyes.

She decided to tease him a bit more and moved her hand just a bit. Just so he can push it back where it was.

She tried moving her leg.

He gripped her ass and pushed it back where it was.

She lifted up her head; he did too giving her a look.

She smiled at herself and kissed him before digging back to where she was in the crook of his neck.

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

tags: @skychild29​ @aesthetics-11

[naomipkx]

Naomi Powell-King’s Summer + Future Plans - @gallaghertasks 

“thank you naomi for being one of my favorite babies. from you running into things to you being late to all of your classes to your beautiful positive energy, i’m gonna miss you, stupid.” - kashia, the mun that cried several times while writing this task

The Powell-King sisters go on a road trip!

She got back to their shared apartment in Texas late that night, exhausted from staying for graduation and the flight back home. Sitting on the couch, sound asleep was Wren, the TV playing some random Netflix show and a blanket pulled over her. It was at the sight of her younger sister that Naomi smiled, locked the doors, and dropped her bag. Walking over to her, she sat down next to her younger sister, snuggling up next to her. This woke up the younger of the duo, a soft “welcome home” slipped through her lips, causing Naomi to laugh softly to herself. She was home, safe, loved, and warm. The two fell asleep together on the couch, Netflix soon asking “Are you still watching?”

The plan was for the duo to go on a roadtrip, a bunch of destinations in mind. They were happy to be back together, since they’ve rarely stayed apart. Naomi was the one to raise Wren ever since the death of their fathers. She was always by the other’s side, or at least, the best she could be as a spy. Maybe that was why the duo always loved and looked forward to these moments. Because of Naomi’s line of work and the dangers of it, that maybe they’ll never see again. That Wren would be all alone in this world, losing three of her only family members. Thoughts like that always made her stomach churn, there was no way she would leave Wren alone like that.

Their road trip was filled with laughter, lots of girl talk, and talks about their semesters. Wren met someone, a very pretty computer science nerd by the name of Nolan (”They’re really cool, Nao,” Wren said, her cheeks turning red. “And they only live like an hour away from us and said that they want to hang out with me this summer.”). Naomi didn’t share about what happened at Gallagher, not having the heart or energy to relive the stress and pain. Instead, she gave her sister a gentle smile and said that the semester was tough but that was the norm at Gallagher. But losing two students was not a norm and no one should expect for it to be.

It lasted for about two weeks; going to different restaurants, taking pictures, weird stop stations, and just being normal. The two spent this time together as if the world was to end after two weeks, for all they knew, it could. But for the time being, they were both normal. Wren made Naomi buy a polaroid camera, as a way to document different points in her life. It was used at every moment during their road trip. 

Naomi went back to work, both spy related work and her self-defense training job. Contact with the other alumni was rare, everyone went back into work mode thus limiting their amount of contact with each other. It was only Bobby ( @bbygrvr ) (”Bobby, I swear to God I’ll break your hand if you keep asking me if everything is bigger in Texas.”) who she stayed in contact with, the two were planning their own road trip but make it Vin Diesel. Her mind stayed on one individual the most and it was Elise ( @eliseprks ). The last time she saw her, it was when they all captured the Brotherhood members at Gallagher. There were tears threatening to run down her cheeks, the betrayal and hurt was apparent. But she kept it together because she was working, no one needed for her to be so emotional.

Even as the days went by, it just didn’t sit right with her. None of it made sense; why in the world would Elise Park help the Brotherhood? Was that really the end of the Brotherhood? More questions rushed through her head, zero answers following after. It was a certain phone call that gave her the opportunity to answer them. 

Strike Team

As soon as she got Roman’s ( @grayroman ) phone call, she went to her office with a request to help out with another mission. “More Gallagher business, huh?” her boss laughed at her, she didn’t return the laughter. Permission was given to her and she immediately got a plane ticket to D.C. “I’ll be home soon,” Naomi said too Wren, hugging the girl. It was a promise that was always kept between them, that she would always return after a mission. A hard promise to keep but it was going to happen. 

There began the integration of Elise, well, it was more of Naomi making fun of the other for wearing orange and promising that they will get back at the Brotherhood if it was the last thing she did. Which became the beginning of the Strike Team. 

It was nice, being with everyone again, or at least, mostly everyone. There was Roman, Jack ( @jvckstone ), Irene ( @ofgunshy ), and Elise. It was the five of them, inside of a dingy office that became their home for the next few months. Time spent looking for clues, in front of a computer, sorting through files, talking to different people who may be connected to the Brotherhood. But there were also days spent eating, laughing, pictures being taken of each other, lots of jokes, and, well, love. That was the best part of this mission for Naomi was their new family dynamic. The others would never say it out loud, maybe too scared to admit to it, but she did. Every single minute, hour, and day, it was her that would comment on their dynamic and how happy she was. There were times that her energy seemed unnecessary, the air being serious and everyone so focused. But maybe it was appreciated, as she centered all of them, bringing them back to Earth. Maybe it was her energy that kept them calm, that gave them the strength to go on. She hoped that it was that. 

When they were able to find a lead, it was both great and heartbreaking news. Great because the Brotherhood was finally being destroyed, heartbreaking because this... the Strike Team, this family was going to an end. And she didn’t want this dynamic to end, no matter what. But a job was a job and it needed to be completed. 

Everything was going just as planned. The members were being taken down, Tristan was found, information to completely taken down the Brotherhood was uncovered, things were good. Until they got to the hospital and everything went downhill. She watched him fall, tried to call out for help, for someone to save him. But he didn’t want their help. Jack had accepted his death back at the house. Her shouting came to an end, replaced by tears. This wasn’t supposed to be the end of their mission, not like this. 

But this was their norm: you were bound to lose someone important to you. 

Home, Love, Family

Months had gone by and there was still an obvious missing piece in all of their lives. Their newly formed family had lost a member but it didn’t break their bond. It showed all of them how important connections and family was, it just would’ve been better if they had their other family member. For Naomi, it was too close to losing her fathers, just this time she was there to watch as he died. None of this was fair but that was the career that she agreed to, death was an included feature.

But even so, the Strike Team didn’t die. Naomi, who only had one family member, had gained three more. She had people there who cared about her, people who she could count on and call if she needed help with anything. The Strike Team were together for Jack’s funeral, for Elise’s wedding, and years later, at Wren’s graduation. 

And throughout it all, Naomi just knew that Jack was beside them all. Because she loved that cheesy crap, that a person always remains somewhere deep within you even after they die. Because that was Naomi for you, a woman who believed in such cheesy and mundane things. It was apart of her brand after all.

[jewish-gay-elves]

Family Ties 1/2

Tristan and Anders have been in Kirkwall for a while, making a life for themselves with Anders' successful and desperately needed clinic. They like to talk about their new friends in town.

Words: 1686, Chapters: 1/2, Language: English

Series: Part 2 of the Tristan Amell: Bound to Fall Again

Fandoms: Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening, Dragon Age 2 Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: M/M Characters: Male Warden, Male Amell, Tristan Amell, Anders (Dragon Age) Relationships: Anders/Male Warden, Male Amell/Anders Additional Tags: mentions of dead characters and of sex, at separate times!, Nothing explicit, kinda domesticity, Family Angst

“You know Warden-Commander, Bethany told me today that her mother is an Amell, that she and her brothers were trying to find a way to reclaim their ancestral home and all that,” Anders said idly drawing patterns on his skin.

“Don’t call me that after we’ve just finished making love,” Tristan said, pouting at his lover.

“Oh don’t change the subject, you know what my intentions are,” Anders retorted back, as he propped himself up to look Tristan in the eyes.

“What if it’s true, love? What if they are Amells and you have family?”

“So what? Where have they been when my magic was found? When I was sent across the Waking Sea? Why should any of it make a difference to me? They weren’t there, and neither Bethany or her brother know what it’s like to be in a Circle. I am glad they have been spared but what common ground do I have with them aside from possibly being related?”

“Tristan, you don’t mean that,” Anders scolded, lightly slapping Tristan’s chest. “Don’t you remember? Bethany said earlier that their mother eloped with an apostate to Ferelden.”

“Alright, so it’s possible they didn’t know, they still weren’t there with me. Not like you were. Not like you have been. If I am to have any family it is right here, love of mine, you know that.” Tristan amended, still holding fast to his point and onto Anders.

“Oh hush you insufferable sap. If not for the sake of family, then remember the ancestral home I mentioned? I’m sure Leandra’s petition to the Viscount would go much faster with the Hero of Ferelden on her side and proving lineage,” Anders said smiling lightly at him. Tristan’s brows furrowed together as he thought.

“Are you trying to get me to use my title given by a different nation’s monarch to help them so that we can claim a room inside that fancy Hightown estate?” he asked.

“No! I don’t know how you could accuse me of such a thing! I just want to help people who’ve been kind to us,” Anders said in mock indignation.

“Oh yes, you are just the next Andraste with how saintly, and helpful you are, hmm?” Tristan said as he teased Anders’ sides. “Not a self-serving bone in your body is there?” Anders slapped at Tristan’s hands to push them away but only after Anders had pulled him in for a kiss had his lover relented. When they deigned to return to their conversation using words, Tristan gave up and answered truthfully.

“Honestly, love of mine, I could buy you a house, no an estate, twice as large as whatever ancestral home my potential cousins are trying to reclaim. Though, if it means that much to you, I will go with them to investigate the Amell estate and see if there is any connection to be made. If there is, I will add my voice to Leandra’s in the reclaiming of the property. If not, then we shall see what can be done. Does that sound fair?” He asked plainly.

“Yes, it does,” Anders said, smiling warmly. “The Hawkes have been nothing but good to us, especially with all their help with- With Karl. They deserve for something to go right once in awhile. Besides, how bad would it be to actually have family?”

“You’ve met the oldest one right? The twins aren’t bad folk but, I worry about Lewis and his future. Or more about the fact that he doesn’t seem to think there will be one. Something about him just makes me nervous,” Tristan said.

“Just think of him as the cousin you only have to talk to at Satinalia, or on First Day,” Anders teased back, trying to lighten things a little. “Honestly, he’s not irredeemably terrible at least, just kind of reminds me of Justice in a odd way. Very dedicated to the cause y’know,”

“Oh yes that’s exactly who I wanted to be reminded of, yes, yes, the actual corpse from our dreary little party,”

“Don’t speak ill of the dead Tristan,”

“Do you think it counts? Since,y’know, he was dead when we met him? He’s probably not even dead, just back to the fade. We could probably write to Petra, she’s still there and might know someone doing fade studies,”

“You absolutely awful nerd, I’m going to sleep,”