#I think I got a bit sidetracked from my original point in that. yeah. I want him

[bigboobshaunt]

Hiii MK1 Reptile, hiiii. DMs are wide open btw.

[thesoulspulse]

Danny Phantom Randomness ~ Hell’s Kitchen Edition

Ok, I’m gonna rant a little about this episode because I cannot believe this is canon. I tend to try to mentally erase this episode from my memory since it’s so bad and makes so many great female villains in the show act really...off. Not to mention Kitty gained the random power to banish men with a kiss which she totally would have used on Johnny 13 sooner to teach him a lesson.

Anyways, this rant is about Spectra in particular and one other character that deserves to be mentioned since I think she should have been included in this whole thing despite not being the same “age” as the other ghost gals.

I’m probably going to do a full “regarding” segment about Spectra later but lets just say, when I was talking to some people, I brought up my feelings about the weird changes they made to Spectra not only visually...but as a character in general cause she really started off strong and was honestly pretty terrifying! To be fair, it was early in Danny’s ghost hunting career and teen misery is no joke, so he wasn’t really equipped to deal with a ghost that could mess with his head like that.

Now, before I get sidetracked too much, let me just point out a few things real quick:

I will never understand why they turned Spectra into a generic shadow ghost when her first design really popped with the colored ghost aura, green mouth, and purple highlights. When compared to her second shadow form, it’s so bland!

Her human form has the sort of opposite effect since the new human form’s outfit is so...tacky:

I didn’t notice her eyes and hair are different too. Wow.

I will give her this, Spectra’s second appearance in the show and her plot were still IN CHARACTER unlike the part I’m about to get into. From the beginning they established that she’s obsessed with staying young and beautiful by any means necessary which was originally feeding off teen misery and later she decided to skip all that by creating a new body using Danny’s DNA and by copying the best traits from a bunch of other teens. But, I’ll get into that in a full character analysis post another time.

Ok, so backtracking a little, it’s already weird that Spectra can still switch between her shadow form and her human disguise when we know the first body was reduced to an old lady and the second...let herself go a bit after ending up using Jack’s DNA instead of Danny’s to complete the new body. That’s not the worst of it though...

The worst of it...is this!

Her expression says it all, “Why the heck am I doing a cooking show right now? This isn’t like me at all and I have no idea what I’m doing.”

Nothing about her character suggests she’s has any interest in cooking or getting her own hands dirty. If anything, I could see her as a television make up artist or maybe a talk show host since that would sorta go along with her fake therapist background and obsession with beauty, but a chef? Really? No, that’s why a member on my own discord server (who totally deserves most of the credit btw since I love this inside joke of ours) and I have decided as a new headcanon is that the honor of being a food critic/professional chef belongs to the one and only...

Lunch Lady!

It would have made infinitely more sense for the Lunch Lady to have a cooking show, not Spectra. She’s a misery ghost! What could be miserable about cooking delicious food?! Sure, it can be depressing when it doesn’t turn out right but in the episode Spectra’s still all cheery about it which I always found creepy for all the wrong reasons.

That’s not who Spectra is at all.

Ok, I’m done with my rant but hopefully you get my point.

The Lunch Lady would have been fun to use as a sort of Hell’s Kitchen reference and a ghostly food critic since she does have 50 years experience cooking food under her apron. I bet when she was alive, the Casper High lunches were something to actually look forward to. She obviously has a lot of pride in her craft even after death which is why she got so upset when Sam changed the menu.

So yeah, let the Lunch Lady enjoy girl’s night out too guys! Don’t exclude her since she’s a granny! I personally think it would have been adorable to see more of her playful side as a person doing some sort of baking class and handing out cookies to all the well behaved little girls since all the men had been banished.

Then again, I dunno, I just have a soft spot for the Lunch Lady despite her mood swings since I have another headcanon she was extra friendly to Poindexter when she was a cook at Casper High since they were both alive at the same time 50 years prior.

You can read that post here: https://thesoulspulse.tumblr.com/post/639775040884375552/regarding-the-lunch-lady-and-sidney-poindexter

Now if you’ll excuse me, now that I’ve gotten that out of my system I’m going to try and go to bed again. Been feeling kinda restless lately and I don’t know why. Hope you enjoyed my little tirade regardless!

[nctsworld]

got your back

✩ haechan x reader | spy au | enemies to lovers | fluff | 1k

SUMMARY ⇾ in which your partner patches you up when you get caught during a mission. WARNINGS‌ ���⇾‌ swearing; mentions of violence, blood, and injury; (almost???) kissing  RATING ⇾ teen+ FOR ⇾ @shaechans 

AUTHOR’S NOTE ⇾ so uh i’m not a spy of any sort, so take everything with a grain of salt slkdmf​

You clench your jaw harshly, trying your best to fight a groan as Haechan ties a ripped piece of his dress shirt around your bleeding arm. Fighting a groan to not only stay quiet from the guards, but more so wanting to not seem weak in front of your rival turned partner. 

Lee Donghyuck and you never got along at the academy since day one. One joke from him in underestimating your skill set, and you were determined to simply beat him and only him during all the training sessions.

But you weren’t the only one who made judgement at first sight, because Donghyuck was a force to be reckoned with. He was number one in everything, so you had to make an effort to be number one too.

Best Cadet of the Month always shifted back and forth between the two of you and by graduation, the academy decided it’d be best to split the top of class ranking and have you both share the prestigious award. 

By then, you thought that’d be the last time you’d ever have to see him. 

Of course, life never worked in anyone’s favor. Not only were you two at the same agency after graduation, but they figured you two would work best as partners, despite how exceptional you both were as individual field agents.

Five missions and many, many rounds of bickering later, here you are: donning a flesh wound in a worn-down underground tunnel beneath a mansion, sitting on the cold, cement floor in your stunning evening gown with your irritating partner.

“This is all your fucking fault, Haechan,” you mumble under your breath, watching him finish tying the tattered fabric tightly around your arm. You use his preferred codename on missions, but also off missions since you two were far from being friends.

“My fault?” he scoffs bitterly, releasing his hands from your make-shift bandage and points to himself with his now bare arm. “You’re the one who said we should get a closer look at the room.” 

“Because this is a recon mission; it’s what we’re supposed to do!” you hiss, jerking your head forward. “But I can’t believe I got shot on this fucking simple assignment because you couldn’t do the one task of keeping an eye out for the guards!” 

The words fall out in one breath, so you’re left panting by the end of your rant. You shake your head in disappointment before you lean your head against the wall with closed eyes. 

After a few moments of strained silence, the figure beside you carefully touches your forearm, which leads you to see him hanging his head in misery—a sight you definitely don’t see often.

“I’m sorry,” Haechan apologizes softly, eyes still on the floor. “I didn’t mean to lose focus and I’m really sorry you got hit.” 

Grinding your teeth, basking in your ire, you ask, “What were you even doing? Were you on your phone?!” 

“No, of course not,” he responds bluntly, lifting his head up with an offended expression. The world may get distracted by using phones, but all agents know using your phone during missions was looked down upon to the highest degree. 

He shrugs. “I just got... sidetracked.” 

You narrow your eyes in confusion. “By what then?”

Even in the dimness of the tunnel, Haechan’s gaze burns strong and pierces yours. 

“You.”

Confusion etches even further into your features. “What did I do?!” 

“No, you didn’t do anything, really. You just...” He glances off to one side and runs a hand through his hair, all the while smiling to himself before eyeing you again. “It was just you being you. Doing your job, being cute and sexy and serious, and especially in that dress.”

“Oh, my God,” you chuckle airily, focusing on the last part he just said, until you suck in air through your teeth at the sudden pulsing pain in your arm. Your suited partner draws back in caution, but the pain thankfully subsides for a bit. 

“Keep it in your pants, Lee. I’m your partner—” 

And nothing more; we’re not even friends. 

“I know, I know. I’m sorry, I just...” He steals another beat, staring off to one side once more to think his next words out. 

“Do you ever regret being my partner?” he asks casually, using his denuded arm to pluck at a piece of rubble on the floor. His eyes flicker back up to you in anticipation.  

Pursing your lips together, the truth rolls out of you without a filter. 

“Sometimes, yeah.” 

Jutting his jaw out, Haechan glances back down to the floor. You quickly follow-up with: “I mean, you know we’re both capable of being on our own.” 

He nods slowly. “When I complained to Lieutenant Lee at the start, he just said, ‘Sometimes, two is better than one’”—Haechan begins to pick at his fingers—“I thought he was stupid for saying that at first, but the more we work together, the more I think that maybe he was right.”

The pair of shining eyes are back on you. “Well, except for you getting shot tonight. Sorry again.” 

In unison, you laugh comfortably with one another and you stare at him in thought momentarily.

All the missions you’ve been on together, even the one tonight, have been successful. Both of you brought different things to the table, but it always worked for the better. 

And although you did get hurt, Haechan didn’t hesitate for a second to get you to safety and to tear his arm sleeve to put pressure on you right away.   

You’re so lost in your thoughts that you’re not even conscious of how you’re leaning into him. He does the same. 

“Hyuck...” you whisper gently, eyelids fluttering. You’ve never called him by his nickname before.  

Lips inching closer and closer, you feel his breath on yours, and your mouths meet—

Suddenly, a bang echoes nearby and both of you whip your heads apart, towards the origin of the noise.  

“Over there!” A voice yells. 

Both of you jump to your feet and run for your lives, except, for the first time, your partner clasps his hand with yours. 

And maybe it’s the adrenaline, or perhaps something else, but neither of you let go.  

nctsworld’s birthday week celebration!

[dialovers-translations]

Diabolik Lovers LUNATIC PARADE ;; Subaru Route ー Chapter 3

ー The scene starts on Glimmer Main Street

Subaru: Haah...What will that old geezer make us do next?

Yui: Based on what we had to do yesterday...I’m fairly sure today’s task will be a challenge as well.

ー An old lady walks past them

Yui: ( Hm...? )

Female Vampire E: Haah...This is bad...

Yui: ( That old lady looks troubled by something...? I wonder what happened? )

Selection

→ Reach out (☾)

Yui: Um, excuーー 

Subaru: Oi.

Yui: Subaru-kun...

Subaru: You’re not gonna talk to her, are you?

Yui: Eh? ...That was the plan though...

Subaru: You know the situation we’re in, right? We have somewhere to go, remember.

Yui: That’s true, but...I can’t just ignore it when there’s someone in need right before me...

Subaru: A person in need, you say...?

...

...Haah, fine. Be my guest.

...Seems like you’re still the literal definition of a kind soul.

→ Walk past her

Yui: ( I’d love to help but...We don’t really have the time for that right now... )

Subaru: Hm? Oi, what’s wrong? Let’s get going already.

Yui: Y-Yeah...

Female Vampire E: Haah...What am I going to do?

Yui: ( ...Uu... )

( I can’t just turn a blind eye to someone in need after all...! ) 

ー Yui runs over to the lady

Yui: Um...Is something the matter, Ma’am?

Female Vampire E: Aah...Miss. Well, I seem to have dropped my dear handkerchief...

Yui: I see. I’ll help you look for it!

Subaru: Geez...Guess I have no other choice...

*TIMESKIP*

Yui: ( Looking for a handkerchief might be more tricky than I thought... )

Subaru: Oi, it’s not over here.

Yui: Yeah...I haven’t found it yet either.

( I wonder if it got blown away by the wind...? ーー Ah! )

Couldn’t it be the thing stuck on that bench over there!?

Female Vampire E: Oh dear! It is!

Subaru: Haah...You finally found it? Then hurry up and graーー 

*Flap flap flap*

Yui: Ah...!

( A bird...! )

Subaru: Hey! Wait!

*Flap flap flap*

Yui: ( It flew away with the handkerchief in its beak... )

Subaru: Che...It’s sittin’ on a rooftop... 

Yui: ...I’ll go look for a ladder...!

Subaru: Aah, wait. The idea of you using a ladder is way too risky, I don’t think I could handle it.

...Haah. I’ll go grab it, so just stay put here, ‘kay?

I don’t need a ladder to reach that high...It literally takes one second if I fly.

...There...

ー Subaru leaps up into the air

Yui: ...Ah, Subaru-kun...

*TIMESKIP*

*Thud*

Subaru: ...Here you go. This’ll do, right?

Yui: ( Ah, in Subaru-kun’s hand is...! )

Female Vampire E: Yes, this is it! Thank you so much, you two. 

This handkerchief truly means a lot to me...So you helped me out immensely. Thank you so much. 

Yui: ( She seems very happy. I’m glad I reached out for her! )

*TIMESKIP*

Yui: Ah...Sorry we got a bit sidetracked, Subaru-kun...But still, thanks.

Subaru: ...Haah. You baffle me every time with how much of a goodie-two-shoes you are...

...But well...If you don’t mind that, I won’t stop you either.

Yui: Sure...?

( Usually he’d call me out on that kind of behavior...I wonder what has gotten into him today? )

Subaru: Anyway, we’re done now, right? Let’s go.

ー The scene shifts to Rubien canal

Gondolier A: ーー Off we go!

Yui: ( ...Today’s task involves retrieving a certain crystal from an abandoned mine inside a volcano. )

( ...Sounds like quite the struggle... )

Subaru: Oi, what was your problem earlier?

Yui: Eh? What do you mean?

Subaru: You seemed surprised after I said ‘let’s go’, remember? I’m referrin’ to that.

Yui: Ah...

( When we were told we have to head to a volcano today... )

( I was sure Subaru-kun would protest, but he just immediately responded with ‘let’s go’... )

Ah...Right. Please don’t get mad when I say this but...

I figured you wouldn’t like the idea of having to go all the way to a volcano.

However, you immediately rolled with it, hence why I was a little surprised...

Subaru: ...Hmph.

...Everyone has different things they consider valuable, regardless of whether others feel the same way, right? 

I finally understood that.

Yui: ...?

Subaru: Take that clown mask the old geezer wanted, for example. 

Or the handkerchief that old lady was lookin’ for.

Yui: Subaru-kun...

Subaru: Also...I’m sure that from an outsider’s perspective...What you mean to me...

Would fall under that same category as well, right?

Yui: ...

( How sneaky of him to suddenly say such things... )

( It’s embarrassing but...I feel as if my love for him has only grown. )

*TIMESKIP*

ー The scene shifts to the lake

Gondolier A: We’ve arrived at Tilkeys lake!

Yui: ( Phew...Seems like we’ve reached our destination. )

( Now we just have to head towards the volcano up ahead. )

Subaru: Haah...We’re finally here, huh...?

Yui: I thought you’d suggest we’d fly here instead of taking the gondola.

Subaru: Yeah...That thought crossed my mind as well, but I might need to save my energy for later, no?

Yui: ( Fufu...Seems like Subaru-kun is taking these tasks much more serious now. )

ー The two of them start walking

Yui: If I recall correctly, there should be a volcano on the other side of the water, right?

Subaru: That’s what the old geezer told us.

Yui: In that case, let’s just keep on walking straight aheaーー

ー The people around them grow restless

Yui: ...

Subaru: ...

Yui: ( It caught my attention earlier but there sure are a lot of couples around this lake... )

( I guess it can’t be helped since it seems to be a tourist attraction... )

T-There’s quite a few couples, huh...?

Subaru: Che...They’re annoyin’...

Yui: ( However, we can’t get to the volcano if we don’t go past them... )

Subaru: Oi, Yui.

ー Subaru suddenly pulls her close

*Rustle*

Yui: Wah...!

( He pulled me close...!? )

Subaru: We won’t stand out if we walk like this, right?

Yui: P-Probably not but...It’s embarrassing...!

Subaru: From their point of view, we’re...no different from them, you know.

Don’t let it bother you. Let’s go.

Yui: Y-Yeah...

ー The scene shifts to the entrance of the mine

Yui: Ah, seems like we can get inside through there.

Street vendor: ーー One second, you two.

Subaru: Ah?

Street vendor: You’re going inside?

Subaru: What if we are?

Street vendor: Oh no...But if you do, you better take one of these with you.

Yui: Are those...marshmallows...?

Um...Why do we need marshmallows to enter the volcano?

Street vendor: ...You see, there’s a certain tale being told around these parts...

Yui: A tale...

Monologue

ーー What we were told afterwards,

was the sad tale,

regarding this Smaragd volcano.

In the past...Due to the many mining resources,

available in this area,

mining for minerals flourished. 

On a fateful day, one of the miners,

fell in love with a Wraith (2),

who lived in the underground lake.

A Wraith and a Vampire,

made somewhat of an odd duo,

but to be able to live alongside her,

the man tricked a female Vampire,

and offered her body to the Wraith.

Why, you might ask? ...Per tradition,

Wraiths are not allowed to leave the place they were born,

unless they take control of the body of another being.

If they try and leave,

they will simply fade away.

Despite the many unfamiliarities which came with it,

 the two of them lived happily.

While living amongst Vampires,

the only thing the Wraith grew fond of...

were marshmallows. 

...However, 

their happiness was short-lived.

One day,

the original owner of the body she had possessed,

regained her consciousnessーー 

And killed the man.

Shaking with anger,

the Wraith killed the woman, who had been her vessel,

before vanishing herself.

To this day, the man’s spirit,

continues to look for the Wraith they once loved,

wandering around inside this volcano...

The fellow Wraiths,

as if they chose to carry on their lost comrade’s legacy,

have also taken a liking to marshmallows...

Yui: ...

( I had no idea this volcano is linked to such a sad story... )

Subaru: Hmph. In other words, if we run into one of those Wraiths, we just have to give them these as a snack?

I bet it’s just some urban legend, right? Ridiculous...

ー Subaru walks away

Yui: Ah, Subaru-kun, wait...!

( It might just be a made-up story but... )

Um...Excuse me? Could I get some marshmallows while I’m here, please?

Street vendor: Of course. I’ll pray you don’t run into any Wraiths. 

Yui: Thank you very much.

( Okay. I have to go after Subaru-kun...! )

ー The scene shifts to the inside of the mine

Yui: ( Where did he run off to...? )

( I don’t think he could be that far ahead... )

Subaru: ーー I knew it.

Yui: Wah! Subaru-kun!?

Geez...It gives me a heart attack when you appear out of nowhere like that...

Subaru: Knowing you, I bet you bought some marshmallows first before coming inside of here?

I figured that might be the case, so I waited for you here.

Yui: I-I see...

Subaru: You actually believe that story from earlier?

It’s just some obvious sales trick (3) to try and get us to buy his marshmallows, no?

Yui: It might be but...You know, better be safe than sorry...Right?

Subaru: ...Haah.

Whatever. Let’s just look for that crystal now.

Yui: He told us it glimmers and lights up, right?

Subaru: Yeah...According to the old geezer, we might find it by searching this rock surface.

Seems like they’ve conveniently got the mining tools all laid out for us.

*Rustle*

*Cling*

Subaru: I’ll use this to chip away at the wall so you look for the crystal.

Yui: Yeah, I’ll try my best!

*TIMESKIP*

*CLING*

Subaru: Haah...haah...

Yui: ( Hm...We’ve been searching for quite some time now... )

( But it doesn’t seem like we’ll find it any time soon... )

( On top of that... )

...Uu...

( Perhaps I’m paranoid after listening to that story from earlier but...For some reason, this place really gives me the creeps. )

*Rustle*

???: Fufu...Ufufufu...

Yui: ...Who’s there...?

*Rustle*

ー A strong gust of wind blows

Yui: ( There’s nobody... )

( Am I just hearing things...? But I could have sworn someone was there... )

Subaru: Oi, what’s wrong?

Ah...Subaru-kun...For some reason, this place has been creeping me out...

Subaru: ...Well, this isn’t the most fun place to be at.

Yui: Yeah...

Subaru: ...Let’s take a small break. You brought some food with you, right?

Yui: Ah...Yes! I got us some sandwiches on the way.

*Rustle rustle*

Yui: ...Here, this one’s yours!

Subaru: Yeah...Thanks.

*TIMESKIP*

Yui: Phew...That hit the spot.

( While the location is somewhat unsettling, this feels like we’re having a picnic together, it’s honestly kind of fun...! )

...I should have brought dessert with me as well.

Subaru: Ah? But we do, don’t we?

Yui: Eh?

Subaru: You got them at the entrance earlier, didn’t you? ...Those marshmallows.

Yui: You’re going to eat those!? I think it’d be better if we have those on hand just in case a Wraith shows up...

Subaru: Oh come on, I’ve been tellin’ you that crap is just some urban legend, haven’t I?

Yui: You think so...?

( But well...I guess it’s better to eat them than to have to end up throwing them away... )

Hold on...

*Rustle rustle*

Huh...?

Subaru: Oi, what’s wrong?

Yui: I can’t seem to find them...

Subaru: Hm...Didn’t you drop them somewhere?

Yui: ...

( Don’t tell me...Did a Wraith actually take them...? )

( In that case, I’m glad I bought some just like that person advised us to... )

Subaru: ...What’s wrong? Did you want to eat marshmallows that badly?

Yui: Ah...No. That’s not it, but...

( I’ll just keep this to myself... )

( It’s not like I have concrete proof that they were taken by a Wraith... )

( If the story we were told is true, it might be best to just quietly let it pass. )

Subaru: ...? You weirdo. Whatever. We should get back to work soon.

*TIMESKIP*

*Cling*

Subaru: ...Haah...!

Yui: Subaru-kun, how are things looking on your end...?

Subaru: No luck...I did find this rare-looking gem instead though.

But it’s not the one that old geezer wants...

Here, it’s this one.

Yui: Waah, it’s so pretty.

( It changes color depending on the angle! Wow...! )

( But this isn’t what we’re looking for... )

Subaru: ...

Yui: ( Subaru-kun has been staring at the gem in his hand this whole time, it seems. )

...Fufu, I see no harm in taking it home with us to remember this day?

It doesn’t look like the type of gemstone you’d find every day!

Subaru: Y-Yeah...Good point.

*Rustle*

Yui: So...What are we going to do now...?

( We can’t just keep on aimlessly searching around forever... )

???: Fufu...Ufufufu...

Yui: ...!

( That voice just now...It’s the same one I heard earlier...! )

( Are there really Wraiths living here...? Oh no, we’re all out of marshmallows too... )

Subaru: ...What was that voice just now?

Yui: You noticed as well...?

Subaru: Yeah. I could hear it from behind us.

Yui: Yeah...Let’s try heading into that direction.

ー They follow the voice

Subaru: ...Around here, maybe...?

Now that you mention it, I did read this one fairytale from the Demon World when I was a kid...

In one of those stories, their dog barked to mark a location and they found a treasure buried underneath.

Does that ring a bell?

Yui: Eh? Y-Yeah...It’s a famous story after all... (4)

Subaru: This might just be...a similar case...!

...Let’s try diggin’ here.

*Cling*

Subaru: ...Ugh...!

*Cling*

*Crumble*

*THUD*

Yui: Ah! Subaru-kun, look!! Couldn’t it be that one over there...!?

Subaru: You’re right..It’s blue in color just like that old geezer said...

Yui: Waah! Thank god we were able to find it!

Subaru: Haah...Geez, finally...

But...Well, I guess it was worth goin’ through all the trouble...

Yui: Yes.

( Hm...? Then the Wraith’s voice from earlier...? Could she have been trying to thank us for the marshmallows...? )

Subaru: We were able to find the crystal, so I guess we should leave now.

Yui: Good idーー

*Flap flap*

Subaru: Aah...?

Yui: What was...that sound...?

*CAW*

*Flap flap*

Yui: Eh...An eagle...!?

Subaru: Haah!? Where did it come from!? ...Wait, fuck...It’s comin’ our way...!

*CAW*

Subaru: ...! Watch out...!!

*Thud*

Yui: Are you okay!?

( ...Did it target the gem in Subaru-kun’s hand just now...? )

Subaru: Oi oi...Are you after this gemstone perhaps...?

We went through hell and back to find it, so no way I’m handin’ it over!

Let’s make a run for it!

ー The two of them start running

*Flap flap*

*CAW*

Subaru: Che...It’s comin’ after us again!

Yui: Ah, Subaru-kun! There’s a rail cart over there...!

Subaru: Guess we have to use that to get out of here...!

ー They head towards the rail cart.

Subaru: Oi, hold onto this crystal.

*Thud*

Yui: Yeah...!

( I’ll put it in my pocket so I don’t drop it... )

Subaru: Kuh...

Get...movin’...!

*Rattle rattle*

*Thud*

Subaru: Awesome, it’s runnin’!

Is that eagle still comin’ after us?

*Flap flap*

*CAW*

Yui: Yeah...Seems like it set its sights on this gem after all...

*Flap flap*

Subaru: Che...That fuckin’ geezer! He didn’t mention this...!

*Flap flap*

Yui: Ah...! Subaru-kun, watch out...!

Subaru: Fuck...! Oi, you stay down. Don’t you dare raise your head!

*Rustle*

Yui: Y-Yeah...

*Flap flap*

*CAW*

Subaru: Che...You persistent pest! Buzz off!

*Cling*

Yui: Subaru-kun! Don’t push yourself too much...!

Subaru: Yeah, I know...! ...Uwoh...!? 

*Thud*

Yui: Eh...!?

( The eagle...Grabbed hold of him...!? )

Subaru: ...Kuh...Oi...Let go of me...!!

*CAW*

Subaru: ...Ugh!!

Yui: Ah...!!

Subaru: Yui...!!

Yui: No way...Subaru-kun!?

( Subaru-kun fell inside the ravine...!! I have to go save him...But what can I...? )

*Rumble rumble*

Yui: W-What now...!? The ground’s rumbling...?

*Creaaak*

Yui: Eh...!?

( The wagon’s tilted to the side...At this rate it’ll fall...!? )

...Kyaah...!?

ー She falls down

Yui: ( Oh no...At this rate, I won’t even live to get my heart back... )

( ... )

Subaru: ーー Yui!

Yui: ( Eh...? )

*Rustle*

Yui: ( My body is...floating...? )

Subaru...kun...?

Subaru: You’re fine now! Hang on tight!

Yui: Yeah...!

*Thud*

ー The scene shifts to a cave

Yui: Haah, haah...

We made it out...unharmed somehow...?

Subaru: Yeah...Seems like it.

Yui: ( But...Where are we? It looks like a cave of some sorts... )

...

( What’s happening...!? I can barely...breathe...!? ) 

Subaru: Che...Seems like we fell pretty far down...

We have to get out of here before you suffocate to death...!

ー The scene shifts to the underground lake

Subaru: Haah...Oi, are you okay...?

Yui: Just barely...!

( So there’s a lake underground... )

Subaru: Oi, you still have the gem on you, right?

*Rustle*

Yui: Yeah, don’t worry. I’ve got it.

Subaru: Perfect...Let’s get out of here at once then.

I don’t want to stay here any longer and run into trouble again.

Then afterwards...

...Don’t ever leave my side again, ‘kay? Who knows what waits ahead of us.

Yui: Yeah...!

*Rumble rumble*

Subaru: ...Hold up. Something’s...comin’...

Yui: ( This sound...Could it be the rumbling of the ground again...!? )

*SPLASH*

Subaru: ...Water...!?

Yui: Ah...The quakes from earlier might be what is causing the lake to flood...

Subaru: Che...It’s just one problem after the other...!

ー The water flows their way

Yui: Kyaah!?

( We’re being swept away..!? )

Subaru: Oi, hold onto me!!

*Rustle*

Subaru: Don’t you dare let go of my hand!

*Splash*

Yui: ( We...made it out alive...? )

Yui: Cough...cough...

Subaru: Oi...Are you alright?

Yui: Ah...Yes. I swallowed a little water, but I don’t seem to have any injuries.

I’m sure it’s because you protected me.

Subaru: H-Haah!? The fuck are you sayin’...!?

Yui: Eh? ...What do you mean? You proteーー

Subaru: Aah, shut up! Not another word!

Fuck...

Yui: ( Ah...Subaru-kun looked away... )

But it’s really all thanks to you that I was able to safely make it back out.

Thank you for saving me.

Subaru: ...

...Hmph.

Yui: ...We ran into several problems but...

It’s good we got out safe and sound, right?

Subaru: There’s nothin’ good ‘bout this shit. Honestly...We went through hell and back.

I don’t wanna go through that ever again.

Yui: Fufu...I agree.

*Thud*

Subaru: Anyway...Let’s go to the old geezer’s place already.

I’m gonna snap if he calls us out on takin’ too long again.

ー Subaru nearly trips

Subaru: ...

Yui: Ah, Subaru-kun, are you okay...!?

Subaru: I just felt a little shaky in my step. Don’t worry ‘bout it.

Don’t be worryin’ ‘bout someone else when you’re totally worn out yourself.

Yui: Y-Yeah...

( Even if he says that, I can’t help but be concerned... )

*TIMESKIP*

*Rustle*

Yui: ( Nn... )

ー Yui wakes up in the hotel room

Yui: ( Huh...? Where am I...? This isn’t...the anitque shop, right...? The hotel room...? )

( I remember heading from the lake towards the antique shop together with Subaru-kun... )

*Rustle*

Subaru: Nn...Ahー Fuck...My muscles sore...

Wait...Hah? Why are we at the hotel...!?

Yui: ( Thank god...Seems like Subaru-kun has woken up as well. )

Say, I wonder how we made it back here?

Subaru: Who knows...I can only remember up until the point we left for the old geezer’s place.

Yui: ( I guess Subaru-kun’s in the same boat, huh...? ...Hm? )

*Flip*

Yui: ( Oh? There’s a note on the bedside table... )

Subaru: What’s that? A note? Give me that for a sec.

ーー The requested gemstone has been successfully retrieved. 

Make sure to get plenty of rest today so you’re ready for the final task tomorrow.

...Furthermore, next time I find you two passed out in front of my store, I’m throwing you out on the sidewalk like that so you have been warned. 

...That’s what it says.

Yui: Ah...I see...We must have collapsed in front of the store.

Subaru: Geez...Who’s fault does he think that is!?

Fuck...! That older geezer needs to watch his words...!

Haah...I’m gonna sleep. You should rest up soon as well. Tomorrow’s the last day after all.

*Creaak*

Yui: Yeah, I will.

( Today sure was something else but...I had fun. )

ーー TO BE CONTINUED ーー

Translation notes

(1) 話 or ‘hanashi’ is more of a general term which simply means ‘talk’ or ‘story’. However, given the contents of the story, I thought ‘tale’ was a fitting term in English. 

(2) A Wraith is a type of ghost or spirit, originally from Scottish Folklore. They are said to be the embodiment of souls who are either on the verge of death, or who have recently passed on.

(3) 子供騙し or ‘kodomo-damashi’ literally means a trick/trap only children would fall for.

(4) I did a quick google search and Subaru is mostly referring to the Japanese folklore tale: Hanasaka Jiji. 

← RETURN TO CHAPTER 2

→ PROCEED WITH MAIN STORY [CHAPTER 4]

→ SUB-SCENARIO #1 [W/ KANATO]

→ SUB-SCENARIO #2 [W/ RUKI]

→ SUB-SCENARIO #3 [W/SHIN]

[mittensmorgul]

So for the most part, I outright reject the finale. But I do think, in light of the whole "Jimmy was supposed to be in the bar, and Dean was disappointed by that because his perfect heaven would have Cas in it" just makes me all the more convinced that the final episode was some kind of djinn dream. Like.... There's no other explanation in my opinion. If Dean's perfect heaven was supposed to have Cas, and he tragically gets faked out by Jimmy (????? Why tf would jimmy be there anyway), it just proves that it's not ACTUALLY heaven. That, along with he El Sol beer he's drinking is all the evidence I need. I think after 15x19, Dean and Sam got whammied by some monster, and are stuck in a hallucination, and that's what we're seeing. (My headcanon is that it's actually The Empty doing it, because it knows if it doesn't keep Dean and Sam occupied and spinning in circles, they'll invade the Empty to save Cas. So its trying to prevent that) :)

Hello, anon friendo! I am gonna start by offering the socially distanced version of a high five, because yeah... There is just so much to unpack here, and you provided such a succinct and all-encompassing series of statements to start from. Thank you!

*flings open array of questionable suitcases*

First off, Congrats on having rejected the finale. I know a lot of folks are still struggling with that one, for many reasons. But you have hit upon so many of the points I’ve been trying to make about the finale since it aired. I’d just like to start with some of the assumptions I’ve heard from folks about the finale that make it impossible for me to consider it fully honestly canon. Because so much about it just makes no goshdang sense... like... not at all...

One of the biggest issues I have surrounding the reception of the finale in parts of fandom is that it portrayed a “happy ending.” The show itself spent the entire final season telling us that a gravestone marked Winchester was not and never would be a happy ending (thank you Becky Rosen-- words I never thought I’d say, but honestly and most sincerely meant). Let’s break this down a bit.

Starting from the assumption that “heaven was fixed” so that characters could have true free will there, making it satisfying in any way that Dean died so young and never got to truly experience happiness during life, I would like anyone who has adopted this attitude to then explain Kansas the band. I mean... explain that in any satisfactory canon-compliant way. (hint: you can’t. it makes zero sense in canon, if heaven is truly reformed and “happy” with everyone in possession of free will.)

Which brings me to Misha’s comments about Jimmy being in the Roadhouse. Why, if heaven were truly fixed, would Jimmy ever in a bazillion years attend a party for Dean Winchester? If Heaven were truly a “happy” ending for Dean, why introduce this element of eternal tragedy and heartbreak to his heaven experience? Why taunt him with the eternal loss of Cas-- even if you don’t think he reciprocated Cas’s romantic feelings, he was canonically the best friend Dean ever had, and being forced to exist forever in a place where he had everyone else he ever cared for except for Cas? Is frankly horrific.

How the actual fuck is that a happy ending, in any sense of the word?

How is this the sort of heaven that Dean would’ve made for himself before it was “fixed?” At least in the memorex heaven, he could’ve lived in oblivious peace with Cas, even if it was always just his own memories and not ~actually Cas~. I honestly think that would’ve been happier than the abject tragedy of what we did get, and what we would’ve gotten had the original script played out.

All of this kind of makes me wonder if they ever even actually defeated Chuck. Like... it feels more like Dean got pulled into the Empty at that moment with Cas and Billie, and everything else after that point was the Empty’s endless experience of sorrow and despair we knew it subject its charges to. So that’s one potential for what could’ve actually happened. I mean, everything about the finale was sorrow and despair, you know? Dean didn’t even get to enjoy his pie at a pie festival because Sam smashed in in his face. How is any of it happy, in any way?

Because if that was actually heaven, there wasn’t actually any free will (because why tf would Kansas the band have chosen to put on that concert? why tf would Jimmy have been there, just to torment Dean with the taunt of Cas returning to him only to have that hope snatched away again? It’s cruel. It’s, in fact, a source of intense despair).

The djinn theory could also work, and I’ve read some excellent fix-it fic using that as a premise. But that doesn’t really explain what happened to Jack (and Amara, since she was in there with them) after hoovering up Chuck’s power, you know? I think the simplest explanations in canon are that Chuck actually won via the unified power of Light and Dark being transferred into Jack and effectively using him as a vessel. With Sam and Dean convinced they’d won, they effectively stopped resisting Chuck’s story for them, and using Jack’s understanding of humanity and the Winchesters specifically, Chuck finally was able to implement a version of his story that the Winchesters would just waltz into without thinking it was supernaturally influenced at all. Going bigger and bigger with monsters and cosmic troubles hadn’t worked, but going so small Sam and Dean would barely even notice the influence-- even with the incongruous reappearance of a vampire that appeared in their lives once, for like two whole minutes 15 years ago, and an unsolved case from the journal from more than 30 years ago that John had never even linked to vampires at all.

At this point, I need to mention that I’m watching 10.23 as I type this up. An episode in which we confront the Mark, along with Death, and Dean’s despair, where he learns a version of the truth (but by no means the full truth, or even accurate truth in some respects) about Chuck’s Story, Amara/The Darkness, etc. That would unfold more fully over the next five seasons. And what was the case Dean took in this episode? Vampires. LOLOL omg this show is nothing if not horrifically consistent, yes?

So because of this, I went haring off through my own blog looking for a post I made a long time ago about the symbolism of how various monsters are used on this show (because again, consistency). I got sidetracked by other posts in my monsters tag, including this from after 15.09 aired, which feels particularly awfully relevant. This was my reaction to Chuck’s Story he showed Sam in that episode, about what the future would look like should he successfully trap Chuck with a Mark, and which... yeah is basically exactly thematically consistent with what we saw in the finale, right down to a cheesy twist on vampires. Read the whole post right here, but this is the part that reached up and punched me in the face:

this is how Dean personally reacts when he loses Cas. We know how he reacts when he loses anyone else– think about what he did when Charlie died. He went on a murder rampage against the Stynes for killing her. When Mary died he broke some furniture and went full bore toward both resurrecting her and stopping Jack. But without Cas, Dean loses the will to fight. Sam has… always been different. He referenced Jess in 15.04 to remind us of how he was after she died in the pilot episode. Just like John, he picked up the revenge mission and ran with it. But for Dean, Cas is different. Without Cas… Dean gives up.

Because... Dean gave up. Sure, he and Sam weren’t overrun by vampires in the end. Chuck knew they’d never stop fighting the monsters, one way or another. The only way to get Dean to give up is something Chuck hadn’t quite figured out yet... maybe not until after 15.17, after confronting Cas in the hallway of the bunker, after absorbing Amara’s power, knowledge, and perspective on Dean.

Chuck needed Dean to give up, and honestly? Pushing Billie to clear him off the table and send him (and Cas, that pesky angel who never did what he was told) to the Empty would’ve been a direct way to deal with that... pretty much akin to having one sibling locked in a cage forever, yes?

Also, still looking through my monsters tag, I’m reminded of 14.15, and still cannot differentiate the version of Heaven in 15.20 from what was done to the people of that town. This... is not... paradise. This is actively what Dean has been insisting is the OPPOSITE of paradise since like… 4.22… No ending where Dean was a “Stepford bitch in paradise” ever had the possibility of being “happy,” at the core of things, and this “fixed” version of Heaven just doesn’t hold up to any degree of inspection. Something is seriously wrong here. https://mittensmorgul.tumblr.com/post/183465650390/so-can-we-talk-about-this-monster-of-the-week-for

And since I was unable to find the post I wrote who knows how long ago about Monsters and how they’re symbolically used on Supernatural to represent larger themes in the episode, I’ll just attempt to sum up what Vampires have been used for. Revenge. Vampires are always, in some way connected to themes of revenge.

(and hooray, I found at least a post adjacent to the one I’ve spent the last four hours trying to find... https://mittensmorgul.tumblr.com/post/187207052080/i-obviously-did-not-think-this-through, where I mention that shapeshifters are about revealing hidden truths (mostly about Dean since most shapeshifters are connected to Dean), zombies are about grief and the inability to move past it.)

So why... why at the end of their road is the monster that comes after them-- literally FOR REVENGE for something that had never been blamed on Sam or Dean to begin with, from season 1, directly connected to John’s revenge mission and the first time they learned about the Colt AND the first time they learned in canon that Vampires were even real... like... this feels very specifically like some kind of layers-of-meta levels of shade on them, you know? Vampires are for revenge, so what vengeance exactly is being visited upon Sam and Dean in this episode? If not Chuck’s entire story for them itself?

So yeah, 100% agree, something is incredibly rotten in the finale. And I am sick to effing death of people trying to convince us that anything about this was “good” or “happy” or “satisfying” in any way. Or even “how it was always supposed to end” with Dean dead bloody, as if the entire back half of the series hadn’t been suggesting that a true win was the subversion of all of Chuck’s story for them, and Dean finally being able to have his chosen family all alive, happy, and chilling on a beach somewhere watching the sunset. Nothing will ever convince me that the ending portrayed in 15.20 wasn’t exactly how Chuck thought he “won,” rendering it entirely irrelevant to the rest of canon, unless all of canon was ultimately the tragedy we’d been encouraged to believe would be firmly defeated in the end.

Folks, you can’t have it both ways. 

[writerofthecourt]

kenma proposing to you in animal crossing ft. kuroo, bokuto, and akaashi

warning: slight time skip spoilers, some swearing

a/n: this is a reupload because tumblr just decided to erase my post from the tags. i don’t know if this will disappear too, but we shall see. thank you to everyone who engaged with the original post

the moment leading up to it

you and kenma have been dating since high school

you were there when his channel first reached 100 subscribers, and you were there when he finally hit 1 million subscribers (currently 3 million and counting!)

he knew he wanted to marry you the day you showed up at his door unannounced with some movies, green tea, and ingredients for miso soup

he had announced the previous day on stream that he would be ending the session a lot earlier than usual due to feeling a bit under the weather

and now here you were :^))))

made him rest on the couch while you ran around his kitchen trying to get the soup ready

it was at that moment kenma thought, “i want to spend the rest of my life with this person”

soon after, he went out and got an engagement ring and came up with a brilliant plan on how he was going to propose to you

the game plan

he knew you were a big fan of animal crossing, so he thought it would be a cute and fun idea to propose to you in the game

invited kuroo to help out since he was also a good friend of yours

ended up very much regretting this decision

somehow, inviting kuroo also led to both bokuto and akaashi getting involved in the entire process

bokuto wanted to help and be a part of the ‘big moment’, and akaashi was just there to make sure everything ran smoothly (bless his heart)

the moment he opened up his island to kuroo and bokuto (akaashi just watched from bokuto’s screen since he didn’t own a switch or play video games), total. chaos. set. in

he had remodelled his island so that there would be a little cove down by the beach where he would propose to you, and it was going to be romantic and wonderful, and kuroo! would you pleaseee stop hitting his villagers with your net and running all over his hybrid flowers??? there is a goddamn pathway for a reason

bokuto, please stop decorating the cove with garden gnomes. they are not cute no matter how many times you try to reassure him that they are

“but kenma, they’re so cute. [y/n] will love them. tell ‘im akaashi”

akaashi is confused??? how do you play this game?

kenma was this close. this close. to revoking their best friend privileges for his island

“*gasp* you wouldn’t” “try me, bitch”

kuroo keeps getting sidetracked by the discourse and moral implications of the game

“okay, but don’t you think it’s messed up that players put so much emphasis on gathering ‘cute�� villagers to the point that they’ll socially exclude and isolate villagers who do not fit into their definition of ‘beauty’ in order to drive them off the island?” “...” “and doesn’t it bother you that there are shady, black market-esque online trading websites where you can exchange villagers for in-game currency? pretty fucked up if you ask me” “...kuroo, what the hell?”

when everything was finally done and over with, kenma still had to actually ask you to marry him. god, please have mercy on him

the execution

on the day of the proposal, kenma invited you to his island and asked if you wanted to shoot a video with him

you agreed, but the whole time you were there, he was a lot quieter than usual

you asked him over voice chat if he was okay

“huh? yeah, i’m fine” (whaaaat, he totally wasn’t acting suspicious or anything. what are you talking about...)

says he wants to show you a new addition to his island and asks you to follow him

leads you to a cove by the beach, and it’s completely decorated with flowers and other items to give it an ethereal and magical feeling

“wow kenma, this is beautiful! how long did it take you to make this?”

kenma goes quiet for a second before he starts reciting the speech he had written for you and memorized in his head over the past few days

“[y/n], listen. i know i’m not the most vocal when it comes to my feelings and affections for you, but i want you to know that i love and cherish you. i want to spend the rest of my life with you by my side. so...will you marry?”

at first you were a bit shocked by his confession. where was this coming from??? nevertheless, you still happily accepted his proposal, making him the happiest man in the world

kenma had to take a moment to gather himself after that

goes to your apartment the very same day in order to give you your ring. when he slips the ring on your finger, you give him a confused look. his heart drops

“do you not like the ring? i can get you another one if you don’t like it” “no kenma, it’s lovely, but i just thought you were...kidding about the whole proposal thing. i thought it was just for your video” “...so you don’t want to marry me?” “no, no kenma, i will marry you! i love you a lot!”

he audibly lets out a sigh of relief

the aftermath

posted the engagement video a few days later, and the video went viral, getting millions of views

in the end, kenma settled for one (1) garden gnome in the cove. somewhere in the back where no one could really see it unless you were really paying close attention. bokuto didn’t mind

somehow, someone in his comment section still ended up finding it and asked him why there was a garden gnome in the back

posted the ‘making of’ video days later, which also went viral due to the sheer ridiculous amount of crackhead energy in it

in conclusion: 7.5/10 experience, would not recommend

[chunhua-s]

im gonna CRY, this is like the 3rd time im sending this: OKAY-- ushijima <33 and a royalty au maybe? whether he's the loyal knight or loving king, i will take anything <33 ily davi ur so cool and btw ur handwriting is SEXC

i’m putting the note at the end because really? they clog a lot of space 🧍🏽‍♀️

YOURS ➽ WAKATOSHI USHIJIMA X READER

genre: angst

au: royalty, time travel

warnings: uh nothing went as i planned for in this oneshot and i’ve hurt myself with it enough to the point of a headache :D

when you open your eyes, you’re greeted by the night sky, though there’s something about it that gives you pause. the stars above you aren’t the same ones from your city — the ones that could only hope to shine against thousands of bright lights. the stars above you are brilliant in their light, loud with a declaration of glory and untold miracles that flow across the darkest purples and blues of midnight in rivers of silver. they’re radiant, telling you stories of worlds far beyond what you could ever dream of, and they draw your breath on frost and smoke as it falls from your lips. and should you have asked yourself — where does venus hide among this canvas of light, where does her red outshine the bursts of silver, the trails of gold that glow brighter than the sun, you’d never find your answer.

“(y/n)?”

it’s hard for you, but you manage to pull your eyes away from the night sky, and when you allow them to return themselves to the earth, your breath escapes you once more.

he’s standing amidst an old garden, his face familiar while being like that of a stranger. under the moonlight, you wonder if he’s an apparition, merely a figment of your imagination that approaches you with slow, almost cautious steps. he calls your name again and his voice carries to you on a chilling wind, it ghosts across your skin and fills up your lungs with the oxygen you’d forgotten to take. olive eyes glisten like deep ponds when he finally stands before you, and as you seek out your voice to respond to him, you find that it’s lost its strength.

“ushi-... ushijima?”

and truly, the face that you see before you is that of wakatoshi ushijima. his hair, the shape of his face, and even his lips that now twist into something of a helpless smile. here is the man who you’ve worked with for so long as the dietitian of japan’s national volleyball team; the man who you watched grow through high school, whose transformation reminded you of a cosmos flower in autumn; the man whose smiles told of secrets shared on late phone calls and a voice as calm as the ocean waves at night.

and yet, there’s nothing here of that man you know.

the wakatoshi ushijima you see carries the same regality that he always does, the same grace and silent power that flows from him just as the maroon cotton flutters around his body like waves. he’s always been the perfect picture of royalty, you consider, but here, with assured steps and a certain hush to the normally domineering force he exudes on the court, he really does appear to you like an emperor.

he chuckles lightly, a deep sound that rumbles in his chest and travels through your entire being as his eyes search your expression. there’s something that glistens on starlight, a certain warmth that you’ve yearned for on your loneliest nights, when his gentle words would pull you into deep slumber. does he see the way your brows furrow, the way your lips part with questions you don’t even know the beginnings to? “i thought i told you to call me wakatoshi, didn’t i?” he whispers, his tone soft and gentle, careful just as the hand that reaches up to cup your cheek. your heart stutters under the brushes of his thumb, and you’re sure that he can feel the heat spreading across your skin. “what are you doing out so late? and barefoot, nonetheless.”

he’s right. your feet sink beneath blades of grass as if they would be embraced by them, drops of dew clinging to your skin and causing a chill to travel up your spine. looking into ushijima’s eyes, you have no answer — neither for his question, nor for this strange situation you’ve found yourself in.

with concern melting into his warm gaze, he studies you for a while longer, the thumb that had been rubbing circles into your cheek coming to a stop as he ever so slightly tilts your head back to meet his gaze. at the same time, he’s leaning his head forward ever so slightly, as if to meet you half way. “(y/n)?”

“i—” your words fall short, disappearing under the night air when you try and speak. your eyes fall from his patient gaze, and all your attention is given to the green grass that, beneath the starlight, gives itself to a colour you can’t find the name for. this, you’ve decided, isn’t your world. it can’t be — the stars don’t shine as brightly as they do here, and neither does the air encompass you as if it yearned to kiss your skin. and in your world, wakatoshi ushijima has never held you so gently, and his eyes don’t sing to you poems of a feeling lost on your wildest fantasies. you force air into your lungs when you meet olive hues and try your best to speak with a wavering voice. “ushijima, what’s going on?? i don’t— where are we?”

you see confusion etch lines around his lips and between his brows as he frowns. “what do you mean? we’re in the palace garden, of course.” he says it so assuredly, confident, yet his words are hushed in a secret shared by the both of you. and the way he looks at you, you feel terrible for not knowing that secret. it feels as if somehow, you’d betrayed something sacred by taking the face and name of someone he might hold dear — maybe in this world, in this time, there’s a you who knows ushijima’s love.

“i’m sorry...” you mutter out, guilt and shame unwarranted yet potent behind your words as your eyes lock with his. “i think there’s been some sort of mistake. i’m—” you force yourself to swallow, to breathe; you find that the task comes difficult and your body betrays you terribly. “i don’t think i’m the person who you think i am.”

ushijima’s gaze falters, the hand that had so lovingly warmed your face falls to your shoulder and his fingers grab on to you tightly. “what do you mean...?” there’s a bit of a broken laugh that bubbles from his lips, and to you, it’s as foreign as the night sky above you, because there has never been a time when you’d ever seen him so vulnerable, open, pained. it’s new, and it scares you. it makes you want to wrap him into your arms and to take back everything you’ve said, to selfishly become the person he sees in you — the you whom he loves and cherishes so dearly. “you’re you, aren’t you? you’re (y/n)... my (y/n).”

you shake your head weakly, tears lining your eyes as feelings you’d long since fought against begin to spill from your aching heart like rain. every i love you that you’ve ever whispered to your starless sky burns your skin and sets an unbearable fire alight inside your chest, and the smoke clouds your brain and makes you forget your reality. my (y/n), he’d said — he’d called you his, his (y/n), with all the certainty and confidence in the world, as if those words should stand as true as the moon should shine at night, and oh, how desperately you wished they were true. you wished with all your heart that you really were his. but to look into his eyes, so hopeful, so loving and so, so beautiful in the starlight, you can’t find it within yourself to lie. not to him, and not to yourself. and so you steel your heart and abandon those feelings, and you lift your hand to pull his away from your shoulder, ignoring the pain that could blind you from its intensity. “i’m sorry...” you whisper, and this time, the hushed words bring no secrets, no sweet affections or longings told when the night showers your bodies in silver. it tears you apart and leaves your wounds to fester. “i’m really sorry, but— but i’m not them...”

“i’m not your (y/n).”

chile im so sorry this took so long!! and uh.... see i originally started this oneshot with a cute idea in mind??? but 🤡 somehow it turned into angst and uh.... but anyways!! i had these two requests and i thought “hey, why not combine them!” and it was the perfect opportunity to push my emperor! ushijima agenda 🤩 well.... that was the original intent? but somehow i got sidetracked.... again.... and didn’t really focus on that 😗 in summary? nothing went as i planned for this oneshot and somehow i ended up with a short angst oneshot that could work for an entire plot. like deadass?? i have the whole thing planned out in my head already and i was tempted to go off on it but it would become too long and i wouldn’t have a resolution for it all... or at least not one that didn’t involve pain. so, basically, reader in emperor! ushi’s world would have been like a palace worker who grew up with toshi, and they’d have fallen in love, but it’s ✨forbidden✨ because toshi would have already had his s/o chosen for him. on the flip side, modern world reader is team japan’s nutritionist and they, similarly grew up with toshi, but they have feelings for him that they don’t ever let show because they’re worried that they would destroy what they have with him already. if i went on with the plot, it would have shown reader going about palace life and their interactions with toshi, along with a handful of challenges that they’d have to face. this idea was highly inspired by one of my favourite k-dramas, scarlet heart ryou (a really good watch i def recommend it) but yeah! that’s the end of my rant! (it’s not. i’m stopping myself because if i don’t i’ll never shut up about it.) but anyways!! i really hope you guys enjoyed this oneshot! it feels good to write something after a while — if any of you guys have any thoughts or anything i’d love to hear them!!

taglist: @aiiishiiiteru @tsumue @bootylikepeachy @waitforitillwritemywayout @mixxfi @shnnn @janellion

send an ask to be added or removed!!

[penaltbox]

everything comes back to you - dylan holloway

a/n: aka the fic that took me forever to finish, or better yet, the one where dylan plays tour guide and you both get more than you bargained for

if you like it let me know! we love to get some feedback :)))

word count: 6.4k

__

“Where the heck is this place?” You wonder out loud, looking at the little campus map in your hands and turning in circles. You should be exactly where you were supposed to be, but for some reason you couldn’t find the right room. 

You were most likely transferring to Wisconsin after taking a gap year and going to the tour solo was something you thought you could handle. It was proving much more difficult than expected though. You swear under your breath and study the map again. 

“Hey, are you lost?” You hear a voice ask next to you. 

You jump a little but you’re met with a soft smiling blond who looks harmless despite how big he is. If a puppy could have a human form you were pretty sure this guy was it. You feel yourself smile back almost instantly. 

You hold the sheet up, feeling a little embarrassed, “yeah just a bit. I’m supposed to have this campus tour but I seriously cannot find the room for it.”

“Do you mind if I-?” He gestures to the paper, “I’m Dylan by the way. Not trying to be weird or anything.”

His cheeks start to turn red as soon as the words leave his mouth and you can’t help but think how ridiculously cute he looks. Maybe academics and campus life weren’t the only good reason to choose Madison. 

“Of course! Trust me, the help is appreciated,” you hand the paper over and bite your lip as he reads over the page. 

He frowns a little at the page and then turns to walk down the hall. He gets two steps before he freezes and looks over his shoulder, “come on. I think it’s right over here.”

You take a few quick strides to catch up with him and realize just how large he really is once you’re right next to him. You try to look him up and down quickly without getting caught, just to take him all in. He turns down a hallway you hadn’t even noticed before and stops in front of a door. 

“Uh oh,” he mumbles, looking at a sign placed on the door. 

“Uh oh what?” You ask, starting to panic a little. 

He points toward the paper sign. ‘All tours cancelled today. We apologize for any inconvenience.’ Your jaw drops and you stare for a minute, willing the sign to say something else. You were here for the next few days and now you suddenly had nothing to do? How could they just cancel like that?

Dylan winces next to you and awkwardly rubs the back of his neck, “did they send an email or anything? It seems weird that they would just cancel so randomly.”

You sigh and feel yourself deflate a little, “I don’t know but I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do now. My whole plan was to go on the tour today and then revisit a couple places I really liked tomorrow so I could be sure this was the place to go to.”

Dylan feels guilty for some reason that you’re being let down like this and he has this odd feeling in him that he needs to fix it somehow. He pulls his phone out of his pocket and sees a couple messages in the group chat that give him an idea. 

“How about this - what if my friends and I give you a tour? You’ll get a way more honest experience from us since we go here and then you’ll still get to see the campus?” He offers, the corner of his mouth starting to turn up. 

You glance up at him, weighing the pros and cons. He seems nice enough and he has been helpful so far. But he was also a boy and his friends might not be quite so nice. Worst case scenario, you could possibly get murdered, right? But best case… well he and his friends could be amazing and be the first people you meet at the school. You decide to go for it despite your worrywart side yelling at you to think twice. 

“You would do that? I don’t want to interrupt your day or anything.”

He smiles then, a big one that makes you gasp in a breath at how cute it is, “not at all! We didn’t have any plans. I just stopped over here to grab a couple things but I got a little sidetracked when you looked so lost. Let me call them.”

You nod quickly as he taps on his screen, lifting the phone to his ear. There’s a loud greeting on the other end that makes Dylan pull the phone back a little before he gives his pitch about needing help with showing this ‘poor girl who got lost’ around campus. You couldn’t help but laugh as you hear those words come out of his mouth. He offers a few ‘mhm’s’, ‘yep’s’, and finally a ‘cool, hurry up’, before he’s off the phone and smiling back at you. 

“I’m just gonna warn you now that whoever shows up will probably be way too loud and if they make you uncomfortable with how outgoing they are then just tell me. I’ll get them to back off,” he says, scratching the back of his neck again. It seemed to be a nervous tick for him. 

You’re not sure how a boy as physically intimidating as he is could be so endearing, but it works for him. It’s easy to reply to his mild warning with, “I think I’ll be able to handle it. I have a younger brother and he’s always been a handful.”

Dylan laughs at that and leads you back the way you’d originally come from. He walks outside and not two steps down the staircase does he hear his name shouted from a little ways over. A blond boy that seems to possibly be a bit taller than Dylan is headed your way and your eyebrows knit immediately. 

“Are all your friends giants like you?” You mumble, thinking he didn’t hear it, but you were very wrong. 

Dylan laughs and elbows you gently, “we’re not that big! You’re just short.”

Your face flushes immediately and you throw a playful smirk his way. It’s returned quickly enough that butterflies erupt in your stomach and you have to refocus on this new boy heading towards the both of you. He gives Dylan a quick fist bump before looking over at you with a big smile. 

“Hi, I’m Shay and I’ll be your tour guide today,” he says, a level of confidence rolling off him that you wouldn’t have expected from his goofy appearance, “has Dylan here been polite so far or do we need to kick him off the tour?”

You glance over at the boy next to you who already looks like he’s about ready to fight the one who just showed up, but he only shakes his head. 

“We’re fine, Shay. You’re just here for moral support, not to scare her away,” Dylan says with a roll of his eyes. 

Shay laughs and gives you a quick wink, “don’t be fooled. I’m the fun one in our group.”

You blush a little and nod, feeling a little nervous. Would these guys actually be nice and show you good things or should you have just figured things out on your own? You’re about to tell the boys to just forget it when Dylan pulls you back to the real world. 

“Did you have a degree in mind? We could show you the main building for whatever it is,” he says, his tone patient enough to make you sigh and relax. 

“Actually,” you smile, “I do. Biology.”

“Oh so you’re like smart smart,” Shay says, his eyebrows raising as he looks between you and Dylan, who lets out an annoyed sigh. 

“We’re not idiots, geez. Just come on,” Dylan shakes his head and starts heading down the sidewalk. 

You follow quickly, trying to keep up with his long strides and he seems to notice. He slows down half a step and gives you a little smile that makes you grin right back, but you look away just as fast, too.

“So your main building is probably this one right up here,” he points, still fighting off a little smile. 

You glance up and freeze in place, taking in the big building and how pretty it looks. What you don’t notice is Dylan watching you as you take in just one of the many spots on campus he wanted to show you. The awe on your face has him staring and he has to blink hard to get out of his own head. He just met you. He couldn’t be creepy and scare you off already. 

A quick glance over to Shay has him blushing as the older boy smirks at him before tapping away at his phone. Although Shay doesn’t say anything, Dylan knows he’d been caught in the act. He wants to move on quickly to hide himself from being embarrassed all over again. 

Dylan sets out on a mission after that: find every place in Madison that would get you to make that face again. He couldn’t help but think how pretty the look was on you and he’d do just about anything to see it over and over again.

You spend the whole day following these two giant dorks around and they make you laugh so much your stomach hurts by the end of it. You’re sitting on top of the half wall in front of the Kohl Center, looking around at everything when you take a deep breath and let out a big sigh. 

“Uh oh, is that a good thing?” Shay asks from your left, eating the last scoop of fro-yo from his cup. 

“It is,” you look over at him and smile, “I love it here. I don’t want to have to leave in two days.”

You turn your attention to Dylan on your right and find him looking at you already. You give him a once over and smile before looking down at the empty cup in your hand. 

“Do you want to do something tomorrow? I have a workout in the morning but I’m free around lunch,” he speaks up and you know he’s not talking about including Shay. 

Just as you guessed, the taller blond stands up with a quick clear of his throat, “it was super awesome to meet you. I hope you love Wisconsin as much as we do, and uh, I have a feeling I’ll be seeing you. Get home safe.”

You thank him and give him a hug before he gives Dylan a nod and starts to walk down the street. You can’t help but laugh and turn towards Dylan. 

“He’s a little odd, huh? Like super nice and friendly, but wow, that’s a personality,” you bring up, trying not to sound mean or anything. 

Dylan laughs with you, cancelling some of your nerves, “oh he’s something. We aren’t sure what to do with him most days, but we like him nonetheless.”

“Thank you by the way,” you say, your voice dropping lower as you notice the sun starting to set, “I really appreciate you guys going out of your way to show me around today.”

“No problem. Hopefully you got a good feel for everything, and that offer is still up for doing something tomorrow. If you want that is. You don’t have to if you don’t want or if you’re not comfortable with it or anything. I don’t want to overstep,” he rambles, his cheeks starting to dust a little more pink. 

You bite your lip, shocked that this cute boy was getting flustered around you of all people. You decide to save him some of the pain of whatever is scrambling through his head and you gently bump his shoulder with yours. 

“Hey,” you mumble, catching his attention, “I’d love to.”

His eyebrows shoot up and his smile makes your stomach flip a little, “yeah? There’s this cool spot close to the capitol with the best burgers in town if you like that kind of thing. It’s called Dlux if you’re a menu checker.”

“That sounds amazing,” you respond, your smile matching his, “I don’t know how I’ll repay you for this weekend. This town is unreal.”

He shrugs, looks happy as can be, as he tells you, “I think hanging out has been plenty of payment. Anyone that can give Shay a run for his money with witty responses is good in my book.”

He uses Shay as a reasoning but there’s a feeling in the pit of his stomach that says maybe it’s something else. There was something about watching you fall in love with where he lived, where you’d be living, that had him looking far more at you than at the city he’d been in for months. 

The two of you repeat the cycle the next day, getting burgers for lunch that are delicious and going all around town. Dylan watches you take pictures and answers as many questions as he can. He manages to find an open door for the main building your classes would probably be in and he has to take a deep breath and look away at one point when you’re just staring in awe at everything. He didn’t know what was going on with him. 

He can’t believe that he’d run into someone like you and had so quickly become enamored. He spilled to the boys that first night, due to some prodding from Shay, all about how cute you looked and how much you loved their everyday places and things. 

“Guys, I think I’m in love or something. Holy shit,” he mumbled, his mind racing after that second day with you. 

The boys give him a hard time, of course, but Dylan rolls with it. He wasn’t sure how you’d made your way into his life so quickly but he really hoped that weekend wasn’t the last of having you around him. 

Your days blur by and before you know it you’re packing up to head home. Dylan makes sure he has your phone number and snapchat before you leave, claiming that he’d need it in case he saw something he thought you might like. 

You swear the weekend had to be some kind of fever dream. This cute boy came out of nowhere and spent three days making you feel welcomed and at home in a place that had stolen your heart. How could it get better?

—

“Would you stop checking your phone?” Mike asks, glaring across the table at Dylan. 

He rolls his eyes in response but sets it back down, “why don’t you worry about yourself? You’re always checking on your girl, too.”

“Oh, so she’s your girl now?” Ryder asks, his tone immediately teasing. 

“No, come on. I met her once and we hung out a couple times. Knock it off,” Dylan defends, crossing his arms over his chest. 

“Except I saw the way you looked at her. You’re in so deep,” Shay teases, reaching over to try and rub Dylan’s cheek, but he’s quick to smack his hand away. 

He has to laugh it off otherwise he thinks he might explode. Shay’s quick to pull out his phone and pass it around to the other guys, all of them laughing and picking on Dylan. Mike finally hands it over and he sees what they’d be looking at. 

It’s a picture of Dylan standing right next to you as you look up at the science building for the first time. Dylan has a soft smile on his face and anyone who looks at it can tell Dylan’s completely smitten in that moment. 

“I’m in trouble, huh?” Dylan asks, a little laugh spilling out. 

He runs his hand through his hair as he sits back and looks at the picture again. He knew he had it bad, he could tell, but he definitely wasn’t giving it up. Things were only getting better as time went on. 

—

“Dude, are you good?” Ryder asks, smacking Dylan’s arm as he walks with his nose shoved into his phone as they head to practice. 

Dylan smiles at him, completely oblivious, “what do you mean? Of course I’m good.”

“You are sick,” Ryder laughs, “are you guys still texting? Have you guys left each other alone at all?”

Dylan’s shrugs and finally pockets his phone, but stops when he sees an ice cream truck parked near the ice arenas. He grabs his phone again and sends you a snapchat that makes Ryder start howling with laughter when he realizes what’s going on. 

“You’ve still got it so bad, oh my god. I’m telling the whole team now. Enough of just our group knowing,” he says over his shoulder, continuing his path towards LaBahn. 

Dylan rolls his eyes, knowing anything he says to Ryder won’t stop him from running his mouth to the team. If Dylan was honest he didn’t really mind. He’d enjoyed his time with you and now you both were almost constantly sending each other snaps of things you thought the other would like and you’d even had some lengthy FaceTime calls. 

Dylan is met with a round of interrogation the second he steps into the locker room and all he can do is glare at Ryder. The boys want to know more about this mystery person that had Dylan so wrapped up but he’s not giving much info. He tells them your name and where you’re from, but that’s about all he’ll give them. He thinks he’s fine until Shay picks up his head with a smirk. 

“Is this her?” He asks, turning his phone and showing off your Instagram, though he knew exactly who you were.  

“Stop it!” Dylan snaps, hurrying over to the older boy and trying to steal his phone away. 

Shay can’t help but laugh as he turns to look at his brother, “you weren’t kidding, huh? Holloway, you’re fucked. Just ask her out already.” 

“Just relax, every single one of you!” He warns, but there's no threat behind his words by any means and it only makes the boys try and rile him up more. 

Dylan’s blushing furiously by then and he shuts off the screen on Shay’s phone, setting it above him in his locker stall. Dylan shuffles over to his own stall and pulls out his phone to send you a warning. 

‘If you get a bunch of followers on insta and they’re all my teammates then I’m so sorry’

‘Uh oh who spilled the beans? 😂’

‘Shay of course. Are we surprised?’

‘Not at all. Have fun at practice!’

Dylan finds himself smiling at the phone again and he can’t even help it. You remembered when his classes and practices were most of the time by now and he really liked that for some reason. 

“Let’s go, lover boy,” Ty yells across the room, “you can call her later but for now you’ve got hockey and the boys.”

Dylan tries his best to wipe the smile off his face but it’s not as easy as it sounds. The boys run him a little harder than they usually would but it doesn’t seem to break his mood at all. It starts to be contagious though, and the team ends up skating a couple extra laps for goofing around and having too much fun. 

It’s not until Dylan’s in his room that night, attempting to study, that you send him a snap of the sunset at your place. He decides he needs to FaceTime you again right that minute. 

“Hi,” you answer, not expecting the call, but not minding one bit. You hated to say you missed him but you kind of did. The thought alone gives you butterflies that you tried to ignore. 

Dylan smiles at the screen and leans back in his chair, “you can’t keep sending me cool pictures of places in your town if I’m not allowed to come visit.”

You hear the flirty tone he strikes up right away and smirk, “I never said you couldn’t come visit. I mean I am dying to come visit Madison again so we can trade a trip for a trip.”

“So let’s do it,” he says, plain and simple, “you could even stay here if you wanted to. Then you don’t have to pay for a hotel. I can sleep on the couch.”

“I’m not kicking you out of your own place. But I think I might have to visit before too long,” you shake your head. 

“Next time we have a little break I might have to head your way then. I already know at least one pretty thing in that town since you live there,” Dylan says, not even sure where the confidence was coming from. 

You blush, ducking your head a little before looking up to find him blushing a bit too, “you better watch what you say or you’ll get yourself into trouble.”

“Maybe I want some trouble if you’re involved.”

“You better be careful what you wish for,” you warn him, but the banter has you buzzing with excitement. 

“Think I already got what I wished for, so we need to get you yours next. Now get up here and visit,” he laughs, but he thinks it’s most likely just talk.

You were probably busy and as much as he wanted you to visit, he didn’t want to sound pushy or anything. He’d had a lot of fun with you and he thought you had fun with him, too. He remembers something that might even sweeten the deal some more. 

“Hey,” he says quickly, “you remember that coffee shop we went to when you were here last?”

You smile and nod quickly, “I was just thinking about that place yesterday. It was so good.”

Dylan can’t help but soften a little when he sees you smile like that, “they have a new drink out. It’s a seasonal thing but I tried it and it’s really good. I think you’d like it.”

“Let me look at my plans for the next few weeks and let you know, okay? I can probably squeeze in a visit. Maybe I’ll even get to see you play,” you mention, trying to play it off, but you really did want to see him play a game. 

“You want to come see me play?” Dylan asks, trying not to sound too overly excited, “that would be cool. I could get you a ticket.”

You nod quickly, having to press your hand to your cheek as you try anything to suppress the grin that always takes over your face when you talk to him, “I’d love to come see you play and see more of that city. I had a pretty damn good tour guide last time.”

He bites his lip and nods, thinking of a good response, “well they’re all private tours now. You’ll have to submit an application to get the same guide you had last time.”

You let out a laugh and shake your head, “you got it. Just tell me where to sign.”

Dylan steals your attention for a few more minutes, soaking in the time he gets. He knows you’re just as busy as he is, or at least pretty close to it, so he tries not to waste your time. You delay getting off the phone as long as you can, but your mom calls for you to come downstairs and even Dylan hears her beckon you. 

“I’ll see you soon?” He asks just before you disconnect the call. 

“Very soon hopefully,” you smile, knowing you couldn’t wait much longer to go see him. 

—

Your hands are shaking as you raise your fist and quickly knock on the big door in front of you. You’re well aware of what’s waiting on the other side and you’re so excited to see him again that you can hardly contain yourself. 

The door swings open and reveals a blond boy, but not the one you’d been wanting to see. Regardless you give him a big smile and hug him back when he leans in. 

“Shay, how have you been?” You ask, holding him at arm's length and eyeing him suspiciously. 

He laughs and pulls you inside, taking your bag for you, “I’m doing just fine. I think the real question is how are you? You look a little nervous.”

You feel your face flush and your eyes go wide, “stop, do I really? Oh gosh, I can’t do this.”

You don’t even get the chance to turn around before Shay locks an arm around your shoulders, “I’m kidding, I’m kidding! Why are you and Dylan so much alike? He’s nervous too, don’t worry.”

The confession doesn’t make you feel any less rattled but you’re quickly being walked through the only semi messy apartment towards a closed door off to one side. Shay wastes no time knocking and pushes the door open to reveal Dylan. He looks over, a shocked expression covering his face quickly, and he looks like he’d been pacing in the middle of the room. 

He sees you tucked under Shay’s arm though and doesn’t even consider yelling at the older boy for barging in. He smiles right away, a soft one that makes you realize the trip was worth it, and he heads your way. 

“Hi,” he says quietly, holding his arms out for a hug. 

You dip out from under Shay’s arms and put your own around Dylan’s neck, hugging him tight, “hi, I’m here.”

You hear Shay groan behind you followed by the thump of your bag hitting the floor. You can’t help but laugh as the door closes behind the two of you, giving you some alone time. You figure Dylan is ready to pull away, but instead squeezes a little tighter, burying his face in the crook of your neck. You can’t help but run your fingers through his hair, finally getting to see him in person rather than over the phone. 

“You are here. You’re coming to the game tonight, right?” He mumbles, still leaving himself practically attached to you. 

You have no complaints about it so you reassure his question, “of course I am. I can’t wait to see you and the boys play.”

Dylan finally stands up, pulling his phone from his pocket and checking the time, “ah shit, I need to get changed. We have to head to the rink soon.”

You fight the frown that tries to make its way onto your face over him leaving so soon. You had him for the next two days before you really had to say goodbye. He tells you to make yourself at home, putting your bag on his bed before heading to his closet. 

You sit on the unmade bed and look around, taking in all the little pieces that made it his room rather than just a plain four-walled-space. A couple pictures, a Wisconsin hockey banner, and a shoe collection that earned your envy all catch your attention. Dylan turns around, a dress shirt in one hand and a tie in the other. 

“Do these match?” He asks, holding the two things a little higher. 

You glance between them and nod, “yeah those look good. No tie might even look good.”

He considers it for a second and then turns to put the tie back, giving you a little smile, “okay, no tie it is. Ready to meet the monsters? I need to get changed.”

You laugh but follow him quickly to the door. You were honestly excited to meet his friends, especially if they were all as friendly as Shay was. As soon as Dylan steps out of his room he stops and you can seem him shaking his head at whatever he’s seeing. 

“You guys all just happen to be changed and out here ready to go at the same time?” He asks, leading you to believe everyone had crammed into their living room at once and you were guessing it wasn’t because they were ready at their usual times. 

“Some of us weren’t sucking face and actually got ready on time,” you hear one voice say loudly, but a smack quickly follows it. 

“Be nice,” Shay reprimands the person and you find yourself peeking out from behind Dylan. He stays in place, almost like he’s protecting you, but Shay sees you, too, quickly calling your name, “come say hi. I’ll introduce you while lover boy here gets his shit together.”

You look up and find Dylan’s cheeks have gone deep red and he gives you an apologetic look, mumbling, “I’ll be right back. I swear I’ll be fast.”

Suddenly he’s stepping away and heading for the bathroom, leaving you with four pairs of eyes on you. You know who they are but you hadn’t formally met them yet so you opt for a little wave. 

It doesn’t take long for them to get you to sit down, introducing themselves and then peppering you with questions. You thought Shay was loud before but then you realize the whole group of them together was even worse. They’re all funny though and make you feel comfortable so quickly that you don’t even mind the seemingly endless stream of questions as you sit on the arm of the chair Shay takes up. 

The group suddenly goes quiet and before you can ask why a hand presses onto your back, causing goosebumps to shoot up your spine. You smile up at Dylan and find him giving you one back. The boys start to whistle and jab at Dylan, calling him names until he gives them a leveling glare. Something about the look makes your stomach flip and you have to look away, taking a deep breath to steady yourself. 

“I’m ready when you guys are,” he says to the group, but barely takes his eyes off of you. 

The boys, including Dylan, get up slowly and start grabbing things to take with them, hats and AirPods all included, but Shay stays in his spot next to you before tapping your leg. You look down at him and smile, letting him know you were listening. 

“I need to show you something,” he says, causing your eyebrows to pinch in confusion, “I just think you might want to see this.”

You open your mouth to argue but he hands his phone to you, showing you the picture he’d taken the first day you all met. The one with Dylan standing next to you with that soft look on his face that told you everything. You can’t help but smile as you look it over. 

Shay clears his throat a little, “I’m just saying, I called it that day.”

You nod, sending the picture to yourself, “yeah on his end. You missed it on mine though.”

“Did I?” He asks, finally standing up and starting to walk away. 

You watch him walk off and you can’t help but wonder what he meant. You don’t have to wait long before your phone pops up with a notification. Shay must have noticed you send the first picture to yourself because he’s sent a second one. This time it’s one from when you’d first got there that day and Dylan had all but swallowed you into a hug. 

He’s behind you then, his arm coming around you as he pulls you back against him. He sets his chin down on your shoulder and looks at the screen with a laugh, “in case you haven’t noticed, Shay manages to document every part of people’s lives with pictures and videos. Guess you’re officially part of the group now.”

You can’t fight the smile or the blush that take over your face then. Dylan diverts both of your attention and hands you his apartment key, explaining how to get to the rink, where your ticket will be, and where to wait after. You take it all in, nervous to have to meet him somewhere you’d never been, but a quick kiss on the cheek before he leaves has you more flustered than anything else. 

You’re instructed to make yourself at home, though it’s quickly countered by Ryder with a joking ‘don’t go in my room’, so you stick to the living room until you need to get ready to leave. Dylan was right about getting to the rink though. It was an easy trip, just go down to the end of the block then hang a left and keep going until you see the big arena. You really couldn’t miss it. 

You have to explain to the ticket window that a player had left you a ticket and by this point you were pretty sure the redness on your cheeks was just going to be permanent when you were in Madison. The girl hands your ticket over with a tight smile, one you don’t miss because it’s accompanied by her giving your appearance a once over. 

You’re quick to bolt away from the ticket window and head farther into the arena. It takes you a minute to find your seat but when you do you let yourself look around. It was a pretty impressive arena but you’re much more worried about watching the boys skate around on the ice. It only takes you a minute to find Dylan and you can’t take your eyes off of him after. 

The game goes by far more quickly than you wanted it to, but on the bright side you’d get to see Dylan finally. You wait in the lobby, constantly wringing your hands from nerves, watching as one group after another leaves the arena. You feel like you’re doing something wrong by waiting there but he’d specifically told you to wait inside until he got done after. 

You feel silly by the time the place is virtually empty, but none of the arena workers seem to be shooing you out. You’re about to turn around and leave when you catch sight of Dylan and Ryder heading your way. The smile on your face is quickly matched by Dylan and Ryder is quick to nudge him. He gives you a wave and heads outside while Dylan makes his way to you. 

He reaches for you right away, pulling you into another big hug that you knew you were going to get way too accustomed to over the short time there. You let yourself relax into him though, taking in the fresh smell of body wash that was coming from him. 

“How was the game?” He asks softly, barely pulling back so he can look down at you. You’re sure he doesn’t realize it but he’s gently rubbing one thumb up and down on your hip as he holds them and it gives you instant butterflies. 

You smile and nod as you respond, “it was really good. You guys are awesome to watch.”

“Do you maybe want to take a quick walk with me?” He asks suddenly, seemingly nervous about it. 

You’re curious what could be so urgent but you agree, trusting whatever crazy idea he’d come up with. You have to bite your lip to keep from grinning like a crazy person when he steps away and takes your hand, tugging you along behind him. 

It’s almost unreal how easy it is for the two of you to fall into step with one another and keep an easy conversation going. You feel comfortable around Dylan and he seems to relax around you in a way he didn’t before with the boys around. You’re not sure where he’s taking you but you go along anyways. 

“Is this the point where you take me to a weird part of campus and murder me?” You joke, looking up at him as you wander the streets of Madison at night. 

Dylan snorts and shakes his head, “no, I have no plans on ever letting you get hurt. If anything I’ll make sure you stay extra safe while you’re in town. It’s just a couple more minutes but I think you’ll want to see this. It’s a place I end up at a lot.”

Your heart hammers a little harder knowing he was taking you somewhere that meant a lot to him and you seem to pick your pace up a bit afterwards. You realize that he’s taking you closer to the water now, which had been blocked off mostly the last time you’d been there due to construction on the terrace. 

Your suspicions are right as he leads you to the end of Lake Street and hooks around a building, landing the both of you on a bench that looks out at Lake Mendota. It’s dark out but there’s still so many lights reflecting off the water. 

“I love it,” you mumble, very aware of Dylan putting his arm over your shoulders. You easily lean into his side before turning your attention back to him and smiling. 

He returns the expression, “I’m glad you came to visit. I was a little worried I might have been bugging you too much and you wouldn’t want to come.”

“No, I’m really glad I came. I think I finally got what I wished for,” you start off, referring back to the FaceTime that had convinced you to return to the city. 

“Oh you did? What is it?” 

You blush hard then, turning to look out at the water again, “I like being here. I don’t mind having you here with me either.”

Dylan tries hard to keep his cool but it’s harder than he thought, “I’m such a sucker.”

He laughs and it makes you laugh a little. You were both goners and you knew it all too well. He reaches over, gently grabbing your chin and making you look at him. You hear him mumble under his breath, ‘I can’t wait anymore’, and suddenly he’s kissing you softly. 

Your head spins a little and you lean into it, feeling like you can’t get enough of him. You finally need to catch your breath, pulling back, and leaning your forehead on his. You aren’t sure when you fell so fast for Dylan but you definitely did and he seemed to be feeling the same. 

“I can’t wait to see every inch of this city,” you whisper. 

“Well it’s a good thing you’ve got the best tour guide around,” he quips, leaning in for yet another kiss. 

[hasspartacusdoneanythingwrong]

The Flame-Soaked City, Part 2

Mash, Jeanne (not the servant), Cris, and Kat's trek through Fuyuki continues! Mash has to come to terms with her new powers, while The master trio are learning how to fly blind. How will they react when their little journey gets a lot more crowded? Also, we get sidetracked and spend way too much time justifying the existence of CEs in-universe!

Part 1 here Part 3 here

(Note: anything <between triangle brackets> is being said mentally between the masters.)

Mash and Dr. Romani talked for a bit more about Mash's new condition as a pseudoservant. Before he was cut off by interference, he gave us coordinates for a leypoint, a source of magical energy that could give us a more stable connection. The heat was awful, but Mash's spirit origin was obvious enough that we could follow her footsteps to avoid the worst of the debris in our path.

Those things in the debris were nightmares, though. Mash could flatten them easily, but they were difficult to pick out in the haze, and we were already losing blood from our head wound.

As we neared the leyline’s focal point, I finally felt a source of magical energy that was different from all the skeletons that searched through the wreckage of the city.

Jeanne: Mash, is that... a human? Over there!

Mash: You're right, senpai! That's... the director!

Cris: <<Aw crap.>>

Kat: <Come on, don't be like that! The more people we find out here the better!>

Cris: <<Yeah, but she's had it out for us ever since Jeanne zoned out in the middle of her speech.>>

Jeanne: <<<I did not "zone out", you two were distracting me! How do you expect me to carry on two conversations at once?>>>

Cris: <<I don't know, but you can get plenty of practice right now.>>

Olga Marie: Well? What do you have to say for yourself?

Jeanne: Yes?

Olga Marie:...

Jeanne: ...No?

Jeanne: What are we talking about?

Olga Marie: How on EARTH did someone like you make it into Chaldea? The second it's possible, we're sending you back. We don't need fools on the front lines, especially not injured ones.

Cris: <<Smooth.>>

Jeanne: Oh, will you just-

Olga Marie: What was that?

Jeanne: ...Will you just... stay here, while I check on Mash's progress with the summoning circle?

Olga Marie: Well? Don't just stand there then, get on it!

Kat: <That was close.>

Jeanne: <<<As much as I know you would love to argue with her, Director Animusphere has a point, Cris. We're barely holding on as is.>>>

Cris: <<Oh come on! The only thing here is a bunch of skeletons, and Mash can flatten them in one punch! We're fine!>>

Jeanne: <<<Something is keeping these skeletons together, and I'd rather not deal with that while I am fucking blind, Cris.>>>

Kat: <Hey, we've all been through a lot. Let's just see how Mash is doing.>

Mash: Oh, Senpai! Perfect timing, the circle is almost complete!

Jeanne: Director, we almost have contact!

Energy flowed through Mash's shield and into the sigils surrounding it. Soon enough, Doctor Romani was with us again.

Romani: CQ, CQ. Hello, hello? Okay, the connection's back! Mash, Hannah, it's wonderful to see you again!

None of us actually went by our legal name, but it is less of a hassle than explaining the real situation, so we kept our mouth shut.

Romani: Sorry! I mean, er-

Olga Marie: Doctor Romani? Why are you running communications? Where's Lev? Put him on!

Romani: Director, you're alive? Wha-

Olga Marie: Of course I am! Now where's Lev? Why is a medic on the comms line?

Romani: I know I'm not cut out for the job, but there's nobody else.

Jeanne: What... what do you mean by that?

Romani: Currently, the surviving full time staff of Chaldea is less than twenty people. I'm the highest ranking survivor. Lev was supervising from the command room, where the blast was the strongest. There's no way he could have survived that.

Olga Marie: ...No...

Romani: All other the master candidates are in critical condition. We might be able to save a couple, but-

Olga Marie: Don't be ridiculous! Cryopreserve them immediately! We can worry about reviving them later.

Romani: Ah! Of course! I almost forgot they had that!

After putting the other masters in cryopreservation, Romani continued with his report. Chaldea's systems were crippled, and rayshifting out currently wasn't an option. Their comms were also cut off from the outside world.

Olga Marie: Very well. Romani! Continue with the repairs. In the meantime, Hannah, Mash, and I will investigate the town. If we came back empty handed the Clocktower would have my head.

Romani: Right away, Director!

The connection cut off, and the director focused on us.

Olga Marie: Unfortunately Hannah, you're the closest thing we have to a master at hand, so we'll just have to see what you can get.

Jeanne: What do you mean?

Olga Marie: Do I really have to spell it out for you? We're at a summoning circle! Summon another servant! Chaldeas was designed to power the contracts of dozens of masters, even in this state it can handle whatever dreck you can scrounge up.

Cris: Please. I'll have you know I was brought here because I have the compatibility of three masters!

Kat: <Definitely helps that we ARE three masters. Now hurry up! I wanna summon a berserker!>

Jeanne: <<<You do NOT.>>>

Olga Marie: Just try to get ONE other servant for now. Overconfidence won't help us any.

Mash and Olga prepared some materials for the ritual, and then I repeated a chant Olga fed to us. And then...

A deluge of information forced its way into our mind. Bones scattered in a desert. The tranquility of sunrise. The feeling of chains tying us down. The agony of warfare. ...A white squirrel? Each one forced its way in haphazardly, shoving the last one out of the way.

Cris: <<Hey, I think I got something solid!>>

Kat: <Me too!>

Jeanne: <<<I... kind of?>>>

The first thing I noticed once reality faded back in were the gems littering the ground around us. Even brushing against one of them brought back the flash of feeling from before, but not quite as overpowering.

Cris: <<Jeanne? Stop playing with rocks. We're surrounded.>>

The first thing Cris noticed was the dozens of spirit origins now surrounding us. Before panic could set in, one of them spoke up.

???: Now that you have command over the army of shadows, victory is at hand. You can rest easy now, Master. We are the Hundred Personas, Assassin class.

Olga Marie: What did you do, Hannah? I said one servant, not one hundred! How do you expect to control all of them?

Jeanne: I think they're a package deal, Director. Their spirit origins are almost identical.

Jeanne: We're glad to have all of you. Thank you for answering our summons.

Each one of the servants standing before us had only the most minute of differences in their spirit origin. I'm sure if you overlayed them all they'd form the original whole. So many bodies in a single graph... fascinating...

Kat: <Um, Jeanne? You can geek out about your servant later, there's a couple others in the crowd.>

Two new servants in the crowd stood out. The smaller one approached first. Her spirit origin seemed very similar to Mash's- this one was definitely a knight class! Judging by our connection, they must be Kat's servant.

???:It is nice to meet you, Master. Since I am still in training, please call me Saber Lily. I look forward to working with you in the years to come.

"Saber Lily" was an odd name, but we knew enough about people not to pry.

Jeanne: <<<Do you two know any lily-themed swordswomen?>>>

Cris: <<Of course, I totally paid attention in our History class. Who do you think it is, Kat?>>

Kat: <The biggest lily in history is that french one... Ahah! It's d'Eon, it's gotta be! I hear she's pretty! Gah, now I hope Cris got a caster, I want our eyes healed already!>

Jeanne: Thank you for coming. I hope this won't take that long, but I look forward to our time together as well.

That just left the servant Cris pulled, which was... oh no.

As the mountain of a servant stomped towards us, their spirit origin spoke volumes about them. Its fault lines and twists showed the unmistakeable marks of being forced into the berserker class.

It stopped inches from our face.

???: I am Berserker Spartacus. Sorry to ask this, but are you a tyrant?

[btschooseafic]

Hey you, what’s your dream?

Pairing: platonic!oc x ot7

Details: manager!oc, predebut/idolverse, partial BTS World!verse

Summary: The boys start filming vlogs.

Warnings: This is a fictional story based on real events. The characters presented here are not the same as their real life counterparts. [Masterlist]

Track 15: First log

Video Phone- Beyoncé ft. Lady Gaga, William Burke

“On your video phone (Make a cameo)

Tape me on your video phone (I can handle you)”

December 2012

“Okay, well, that takes care of the budget section of our meeting,” Aviva said, looking up from her papers. Jimin and Taehyung were playing some kind of hand game. Jin was watching something on his phone. Yoongi and Jungkook were napping on Jin’s shoulders. Namjoon was slumped over a bit and wearing sunglasses indoors, so she was pretty sure he was sleeping as well. Hoseok had been in the bathroom for over ten minutes now, but she was going to give him the benefit of the doubt and say he was really constipated or something. She let out a long breath. “Seriously, guys?”

“Hmmm?” Jin looked up at her, smiling innocently. “I’ll wash the dishes in the morning.” Aviva rubbed her temples.

“Yeah, you said that already. We already finished the cleaning schedule.”

“Oh.” He blinked at her. “Then… what were we talking about?” He looked at Taehyung and Jimin, who shrugged.

“The budget,” she said. “Which you might’ve known if you had actually been paying attention to me instead of playing on your phone.” Jin’s smile turned a little sheepish. “Ah, but you three get credit for staying awake at least.”

“I’m awake,” Yoongi said. Jin jolted.

“Aish.” He rubbed his chest. “Min Yoongi-yah, don’t scare me like that!”

“Boo,” Yoongi muttered, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. He looked at Aviva, his gaze suddenly so alert it made her blush. He smirked. “I’ll work on a grocery budget with hyung so you don’t have to.”

“Thanks, Yoongi-yah.” She let out a breath of relief. “That would be a big help. Now, let’s wake the others up, cause they actually really need to hear this next part.”

“Hmm.” He kicked Namjoon’s shoulder. “Joon, wake up.”

“Wh-what?” Namjoon sat up straight and looked around. “Why’s it so dark in here?”

The others snickered.

“Maybe these?” Tae suggested, stealing his sunglasses and putting them on his face instead. “Wow, yeah, these are dark. How do you see in these things?”

“I’ll wake Jungkookie up,” Jimin offered, springing up and shoving the youngest boy. “Kookie, time to wake up!” Jungkook just groaned.

“He’s so cute,” Jin cooed, cradling him under his arm.

“JK, if you don’t wake up right now, I’m going to take a picture of Jin-oppa cradling you like a baby and send it to Jen,” Aviva threatened.

Jungkook sat up abruptly, nearly knocking his head into Jin’s.

“I’m awake! Don’t do it!”

“Blackmail?” Yoongi raised an eyebrow at her.

“The tricky part is, she’d probably think it was really cute,” Aviva admitted.

“Yeah, but cute in what way?” Jungkook thought aloud. “Probably not the right way…”

“What’d I miss?” Hoseok asked, walking back into the room.

“Doesn’t matter,” Aviva said. “Everybody else missed it as well…” She paused as Yoongi caught her eye. “…With the exception of Yoongi-oppa who gets a gold star.” Yoongi smiled smugly.

“Kinky,” Hoseok said appreciatively. Aviva blinked at him.

“…How?”

“I don’t want to know,” Yoongi said, waving his hand as Hoseok opened his mouth again. Hoseok shrugged.

“Anyway,” Aviva said loudly. “Special announcement—Youtube finally gave us permission for an official channel, so I’d like for you all to start posting vlogs.” They blinked at her. “Video logs.”

“Logs…” Jungkook stared at her uncertainly.

“Just talk to the camera,” Aviva said. “About what you did today, or what your hopes for the future are.” Namjoon grimaced, shaking his head. “Joon, I know you like to write silly raps just for fun sometimes, maybe you could record one of those? I could edit them in sort of a meme format, and that should attract some viewership.” Understanding passed over Jungkook’s face. Aviva pointed at Jimin and Hoseok. “And you two can post routines that wouldn’t be spoiling any original content.”

“Ah, like, coming soon, Bangtan boys,” Hoseok said the last part in a surprisingly deep voice. Aviva blinked.

“Hobi, you ever considered voice acting?”

“Eh?”

She shook her head. “But I’m getting sidetracked… anyway, I’d like you each to get me a video by the end of the week.”

“The end of the week!” Jungkook repeated worriedly.

“It doesn’t have to be anything special,” she told him. “Just be sure to record it in the studio, there’s the best soundproofing in there.”

“Beep—Wrong,” Taehyung said. “It’s the Bangtan Room, not the studio!”

“I’ll call it the Bangtan Room if you actually pay attention during next week’s meeting,” Aviva offered. Taehyung rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“You drive a hard bargain, manager-noona.”

She sighed.

“But, who would want to know what we do all day?” Jimin wondered.

“Come to think of it, I’m not comfortable in front of the camera… I’m not sure I can do it,” Jungkook thought.

“I could be in the background out of the shot to keep you company,” Aviva offered. He frowned at her.

“Yeah, I think that would only make it worse.”

“Jungkook-ah, you’re going to be an idol, get used to it,” Yoongi said bluntly. Jungkook grimaced. “Unless you want to be treated like a baby forever?”

“No.” Jungkook’s brow furrowed.

“Don’t worry,” Jin said. “I’ll show you how to do it. Watch and learn!”

“…What, now?” Jungkook wondered, as no one moved.

“Ah… maybe tomorrow,” Jin thought.

“Okay.” Aviva gave him a thumb’s up. “Let’s meet at the studio around this time tomorrow and see how it’s going.” Jin smiled nervously. “Yoongi-oppa, text me some kind of treat you want and I’ll bring it for you.”

“Hmm, now I kind of want to know what Hobi thought a gold star meant,” Yoongi said thoughtfully. Hoseok opened his mouth again.

“Nope.” Aviva made an X with her arms.

‘Have you decided what you want?’ Aviva texted Yoongi first thing in the morning before she even got out of bed.

‘…I wanna eat meat.’

‘You always do! But remember the budget…’

‘right. ㅠ.ㅠ ok. Can I be exempt from logs for the next couple of weeks? I can do a product review of the new soundboard that I’m getting, but it hasn’t come yet.’

‘Ok. The viewers will miss out on your cute face, though,’ she texted before she thought too much about it. She froze. Shit.

‘Shut up >//<, u r the cute one.’

She laughed. ‘No, it definitely you. Just look at that emoji usage!’

 ‘u text like my grandma.’

 ‘u live like a grandpa.’

 ‘I see, so we match well together~’

She laughed again. It wouldn’t be too bad if not everyone got a log out this week. As long as two of three members posted something, that would be good. But was that really enough of a treat for Yoongi? She hadn’t done any baking in a while, and if she did something with ingredients she already had, it wouldn’t break the budget.

‘Do you like sweet things?’ She texted, and then got up to get dressed and start the day. Her phone buzzed. She finished getting dressed and looked at it.

‘d(^_^)b Duh. ♡.♡ Check the name.’

 ‘I thought it had something to do with basketball?’

‘…It does. I was just… guess I’ve spent too much time with hyung. ^^; ’

Aviva snorted.

That morning, Hoseok had somehow convinced Yoongi to join him at a nearby basketball court. They were shooting hoops, and Hoseok was frustrated, because Yoongi was winning, even though he kept taking breaks to look at his phone. He kept smiling at it, and at one point Hoseok even thought he blushed, although that might’ve been from the exercise.

“Who are you texting with?” He wanted to know.

“Your mom,” Yoongi said, without looking at him. Hoseok whipped at his ass with his sweat towel. Yoongi attempted to fight back, but Hoseok caught the towel, holding it as he smirked.

“Ah. I bet it’s Avi-yah.” He leaned over closer, trying to get a look at Yoongi’s phone screen. “What did she say that made you blush like that? Or was it a naughty photo?”

“That would be sexual harassment, technically, I think,” he said, twisting away from Hoseok, trying to keep his phone hidden. “Since she’s our manager.”

“Not if it’s totally consensual,” Hoseok thought, grabbing at the phone. Yoongi finally just shoved his phone in his bag.

“Let’s go back to the dorm and shower before she gets there,” he said.

“You don’t want her to see you all sweaty and messy?” Hoseok teased. Yoongi shot him a weird look.

“She’s seen me after dance practice plenty of times.”

“Ah, right.”

They walked out of the court, continuing down the street towards the dorm.

“Anyway, she doesn’t seem like the type,” Yoongi said, so quietly Hoseok almost didn’t hear him.

“To want to see you sweaty?” He wondered, confused. Yoongi rolled his eyes.

“To take pictures like that.”

Hoseok blinked. “Eh? You were still thinking about that?” Hoseok grinned. Yoongi was definitely blushing this time. “It’s always the quiet ones. Like, I bet you’re pretty kinky.”

“Depends who I’m with,” he said honestly.

“Ah.” Hoseok nodded. “You’re a switch.” Yoongi stared at him.

“…Can I consensually murder you?”

“What? No! How would that even…” Hoseok stopped suddenly as a familiar car pulled up alongside them.

The window rolled down and Aviva waved at them.

“Morning, boys. Need a lift?”

“Sure!” Hoseok said, going to open the passenger seat door.

“Ah, no, I have stuff on the seat,” she told him. “Sit in the back.”

“Okay, okay.” They got in the back. “What’s on the seat?” He wondered, trying to lean forward to see.

“Buckle your seatbelt, Hobi,” she ordered.

“I got it.” Yoongi buckled him in.

“…They’re cookies I made for Yoongi-oppa,” she said quietly. Yoongi blinked, and then a smile spread over his face.

“What? Hyung doesn’t deserve cookies,” Hoseok protested. “He threatened to murder me!”

“Yeah, cause he was saying dirty stuff about you again, Siljangnim,” Yoongi told her, without even hesitating. Hoseok gasped.

“Aish, you tattletale! Seriously?”

“While I appreciate you trying to defend my honor, or whatever, oppa, don’t murder him, that would be too much paperwork. Anyway, that stuff doesn’t bother me,” Aviva said. Yoongi and Hoseok looked at each other, and then her.

“Wait, really?” Yoongi said. “Why?”

“I grew up with Soonyoung, so I’ve been kind of… desensitized to that stuff?”

“Ah.” Both boys nodded. “That’s why your reactions are so amusing,” Hoseok figured. Aviva made a face.

“You know, both her and Taehyungie have said that before, I don’t get what I’m doing that’s so amusing.”

“Hmmm. Well, it’s similar to the satisfaction I feel when get Yoongi-yah or Tae Tae to react to things,” Hoseok told her. “They’ve got good poker faces, but they’re marshmallows on the inside.”

“Yeah,” Aviva agreed. “Cause he’s Suga.” Hoseok laughed as Yoongi groaned, a hint of a smile on his lips.

Later in the Bangtan Room, Jin was dressed oddly formal, in a suit.

“Seokjin-oppa,” Aviva started, but Hoseok interrupted her, pressing his finger to her lips.

“Shush. Just let enjoy the view for a moment.” He paused, tilting his head. “Eh, the moment has passed—why such a plain suit? That cut and color? So boring…”

“More importantly,” Aviva said. “Jin-oppa, you don’t have to do this in front of us, if it’s stressing you out too much.”

“Ha ha, of course not! I’m not stressed at all,” Jin said. “Why would you think that?”

“You’re standing as stiff as a board!” Aviva said.

“So…” Jin brushed his hair away from his face, ignoring her. “I’m going to do a three-line poem using my name.”

Aviva stared at him as he recited. “I don’t get it... did I lose something in translation?”

“No,” Hoseok told her. “It’s just not funny.”

“Yah!” Jin said, finally breaking from his robotic stance. “What do you mean?”

“It wasn’t fun at all,” Jungkook agreed, his nose wrinkling as he smiled slightly.

“It was hilarious,” Jimin disagreed. “But maybe not for the right reasons.”

“I’ve been thinking about the concept for these logs, but… do you think three-line poems are the right direction?” Namjoon wondered, tapping his chin.

“Not to mention the suit…” Yoongi added.

“Right?” Hoseok agreed.

“Is it too much?” Jin touched his lapel nervously. “I thought it would show I’m taking it seriously.”

“Aw, Jin-oppa, I really do appreciate the thought…” Aviva smiled at him gently. He smiled back at her. “But you should change.” He pouted.

“What about Tae?” Jin wondered as she started shepherding him out of the room. “He’s just been whispering into the mic!”

Aviva shrugged.

“Eh, some people like that kind of thing.”

That night, Aviva had just gotten home when her phone rang. It was Jin.

She answered. “Yes?”

“Ah, Aviva-yah? I was wondering, well, I think I need to get more used to being in front of a camera, so, I thought… maybe you could take some pictures of me?”

“…Like a photo shoot?”

“Did somebody say photo shoot?” Soonyoung wondered, popping up from the couch.

“Ah, it’s Jin-oppa,” Aviva told her.

“Oh? That oppa? Can you put him on speaker?”

“Um, oppa, do you mind if I put you on speaker?” Aviva asked him. “Soonyoung-ah wants to be included.”

“S-Soonyoung-ah?” He repeated. “Um… okay, sure.”

“Alright.” Aviva hit a button. “You’re on speaker. I think I know where she’s going with this, by the way. Soonie’s always liked dressing people up and taking pictures of them.”

“Well, yeah,” Soonyoung said. “It’s fun. But you never played with me!”

“I don’t like having my picture taken, and I don’t really like dressing up either, you know that,” Aviva said.

“Anyway, it would be fun to have such a handsome model,” Soonyoung thought.

“H-Handsome?” Jin said. “You’re too kind.” Aviva squinted at her phone, wondering at Jin’s sudden change in personality.

“You don’t mind people dressing you up, do you, Jin-oppa?” Soonyoung purred. “Since you’re gonna be an idol soon, hmmm?”

“Ah, no, I don’t mind,” Jin said, sounding like he wanted to crawl into a hole and die.

“Great!” Soonyoung said. “I’ve got some free time on my hands, so why don’t you meet me in the morning, that’s when the light will be best—ooh, ask Hobi to pick out a few outfits for you to bring, he’s good at that.”

“Okay, the ladies have arrived!” Soonyoung sang loudly, as they entered the dorm the next morning. She looked around. “Where is my model?”

“Ah, Soonyoung-noona,” Jimin smiled at her sleepily. He was still in his pajamas, sitting on the couch and playing a game on his phone, by the looks of it. “I heard there’s a photoshoot happening? Jin-hyung is in the kitchen, as usual.” Jimin pointed in the correct direction.

“Thanks, cutie.” Soonyoung leaned over and kissed his cheek before continuing on to the kitchen. Jimin’s face turned red.

“W-what?”

“…You haven’t really interacted with her much, have you?” Aviva realized.

“Ah, no, I’ve only met her a few times.”

Aviva nodded. “You get used to it,” she told him. Jimin looked doubtful. “Is Namjoon-ah in there too? He said he needed something.” Jimin nodded.

In the kitchen, Namjoon’s spoonful of cereal was frozen halfway to his mouth.

“What the hell are you doing here?” He said, eyes wide as he looked at Soonyoung.

“Joonie, I don’t remember saying you could address me so informally,” Soonyoung said, raising an eyebrow at him.

“Soonyoung-ssi,” Namjoon amended, putting his spoon down like he’d lost his appetite. “Could you please tell me... what the hell are you doing here?”

“Didn’t you hear me yesterday?” Hoseok wondered. “Jin-hyung’s having a photo shoot.” Namjoon’s eyebrows went up.

“With her?” He pointed at Soonyoung. Hoseok nodded. Namjoon patted the frozen stiff Jin on the shoulder. “Good luck, hyung. You’re gonna need it.”

Soon Soonyoung had left with Jin, somehow conscripting Jimin to help her, with Hoseok volunteering to go along.

“Do you think Jin-oppa has a crush on Soonie?” Aviva wondered as she sat with Namjoon, Jungkook, and Yoongi in the studio room. Jungkook and Yoongi were looking through a free-use video library for good meme clips to add Namjoon’s more serious than expected rap encouraging voting.

“What?” Namjoon stared at Aviva.

“She is hot,” Yoongi said, blunt as ever.

“Well…” Namjoon looked hesitantly at Aviva.

“She’s hot. She knows it, I know it, we all know it,” Aviva said, unconcerned.

“I guess,” Namjoon agreed reluctantly. “But I didn’t think Jin-hyung was the type to go for just looks.” He looked worriedly at Aviva again.

“It’s fine. I love her, including her personality, but I know she scares a lot of people,” Aviva said. Jungkook grimaced.

“She is a little scary.”

“Some people are into that,” Yoongi pointed out.

Jungkook’s eyes widened. “Jin-hyung is like that? Really?”

“We don’t know that,” Namjoon said, waving his hand. “And I never said I was scared of her.” Everyone looked at him in disbelief. “Okay, maybe I am a little scared of her…” Yoongi patted him on the shoulder.

“It takes a brave man to admit his fear,” he said. Namjoon smiled at him. “Which means Kookie is braver than you.” Namjoon frowned. Jungkook laughed. “Anyway, can we stop talking about this and get back to your video? I’m bored.”

As far as any of them could tell, Jin had survived the photo shoot. He was very quiet when he got back, but definitely more relaxed.

“These are actually great,” Namjoon admitted reluctantly, clicking through the photos of Jin on the studio desktop.

“Right?” Tae agreed. “The lighting and composition are gorgeous.”

“And the way she directs your eye to all these little details you’d normally miss is so cool,” Jungkook commented.

“…Did you both take photography in school?” Namjoon wondered.

“A bit!” Tae said.

“No.” Jungkook shook his head. “Just a personal interest.”

“Ah, you guys are constantly impressing me,” Namjoon said, patting both their heads at the same time. Tae smiled. Jungkook blushed.

“Okay,” Aviva said, walking into the room. “I got Jin-oppa to eat something and then sent him to bed.”

“Eat what?” Tae wondered.

“I picked fried chicken up as a treat,” Avi told them. “It’s in my office.”

“What?” Jungkook’s eyes widened. “Why didn’t you tell us earlier? It’s all gonna be gone.” He and Taehyung sped out of the room, though Namjoon stayed in his seat, frowning. Aviva sat next to him in Jungkook’s abandoned chair.

“Are you sure he’s alright?” Namjoon asked her.

Aviva nodded. “It’s just the Soonyoung after affect. I have seen it in many of her… um, objects of affections, over the years, even suffered it myself a couple of times.”

“What do you mean?”

“Hmm. She pays so much attention to you, it gets overwhelming,” Aviva explained. “It feels like she’s breaking you down and building you back up again stronger. She probably would’ve been a good manager… but she’s always been more interested in the technical side of things. She picked a broken old PS3 up off the street the other day and fixed it.” Namjoon made an impressed noise. “Don’t tell the boys, I don’t want them showing up at my apartment to play it at weird hours.”

“Got it,” he said.

That night, Aviva stayed in the studio to watch the vlogs on the desktop. Guilt stabbed at her chest when she saw Tae’s video in the queue. She should’ve told him what was said in that marketing meeting as soon as she saw him, but she knew it would hurt him. She was hoping to fight it somehow. Maybe if he’d made a really cute video it would convince the marketing team to retract their decision?

She clicked play, watching Tae excitedly brag about all the business cards various talent agencies had given him. There were some big names in there. Aviva leaned back in the chair, trying to untangle her feelings—the ones that came to the top were pride and possessiveness. She was proud that others saw how brightly Tae could shine, but she wanted to be the one to show everyone that light. But wasn’t that selfish? If she really wanted him to reach his dreams, shouldn’t she encourage him to strive forward, even if that meant alongside someone else...?

She sat back up, watching the video as Tae happily told the camera that he was already taken, and started making the cards into paper cranes. She smiled slightly.

“Manager-noona!”

She jumped as she felt someone’s hands on her shoulders.

“Kim Taehyung-ssi, are you trying to give me a heart attack?”

“Nope.” He was grinning. “But the guys don’t fall for that anymore, so you’re my best target!” She glared at him. He poked her cheek and cooed. “Even your glare is adorable!” She sighed, running her hand through her hair. She stared up at him, wondering how to break the news. He bit his lip, his playful expression turning into something she couldn’t read. “Ah, manager, why are you looking at me like that? That’s no fair!”

“Did you get taller?” She wondered absentmindedly, thinking she was having to crane her neck more than usual to look at him.

“Did I?” He wondered. “Stand up.” He took her hands in his, pulling her to her feet. Then he measured the distance from his head to hers and nodded thoughtfully. “The height gap has changed. It appears you’re correct, I am taller.” He smiled. “You’re so tiny, manager!”

“I’m really not...” Aviva automatically hugged her arms over her stomach.

“Well, maybe not all parts of you are small...” Tae glanced briefly at her chest and then blushed, moving his gaze to the ceiling. “But they are parts of you, and together they make up someone beautiful.” He booped her on the nose. “And cute.”

“I don’t agree, but thank you for the compliment,” she said stiffly.

Taehyung frowned. “I don’t do empty compliments.”

“I know. I have told you I admire your sincerity, Taehyungie.”

“Hmmm. You know, Jiminie doesn’t think he’s cute sometimes too, which is ridiculous, because he always is!” He tilted his head. “And I know I’m good looking, but sometimes people call me beautiful, like a few of those agents giving me business cards...” He pointed to himself on the screen. “And I’m not so sure how I feel about that.”

“Do you not want to be called beautiful?” Aviva wondered.

“I don’t know. Do you think I am?”

“Yes,” she said honestly.

He smiled. “Well, that makes me feel good, even if I’m not sure that’s exactly how I see myself... because you don’t give empty compliments either. Isn’t it amazing, noona, that no one sees things the same? You see me differently than I see myself when I look in the mirror. It’s like a painting, or a poem—we’re all art up to each other’s interpretation. I want to know more about how you see me, and I want to tell you more about how I see you.”

Aviva stared at him for a moment and then shook her head. “Tae, you are special, I’m sorry I can’t put it into such pretty, cheesy words as you do. There’s something else I have to tell you, and I don’t know where to start…”

“Would this help?” He held a crane out to her, which was made out of one of the biggest entertainment companies in the country. She swallowed. “I want to make a set of one hundred, but I want you to have the first one.”

“Are you planning on getting a hundred more offers?” Aviva wondered.

“Eh, maybe, if people keep calling me pretty,” he joked. He pointed at the video. “Will you post my video first?”

“I... I can’t,” she told him apologetically.

His brow furrowed. “Why not?”

She took a deep breath. “There was a marketing meeting earlier and they said, well, they want you to be a secret member.”

“Secret member?” He repeated.

“They don’t want to announce you until later. They know you’ll do well with the intended demographic and they’re hoping you’ll have even more of an impact if you come as a surprise,” she explained.

“I see...” He said slowly.

“So I’m not allowed to post any images of you online, but... I can fight it, if you want me to, Tae.”

He blinked at her. “Why would you do that?”

“Because you’re just as important a member of this group as any of the others, and I don’t want you to feel left out,” she said.

He smiled, a little sadly. “Thank you for offering, but I wouldn’t want you to get in trouble with your sunbaenims.” He wrapped his arms around her. “I’ll make it through.”

Instead of Tae’s video, Aviva launched the official Bangtan Youtube account with Namjoon’s ‘get out there and vote!’ rap as the first post.

The next day she launched their twitter page after talking to them about what kind of message they wanted to open with:

'What’s up! This is BTS. We’re finally officially opening our BTS Twitter~ *Clap Clap Clap* We will upload more weird and fun things that one could have only imagined about before our debut…’

Next was Soundcloud, which she opened with a solo song adaptations by Rap Monster and Suga.

To wrap up the year, all of the boys recorded a Christmas diss track together (except for Hoseok who was visiting family for the holidays). They called out themselves, Big Hit, Bang-PD, even Aviva.

“When do I ever sleep?” She wondered, glancing over the lyrics as they gathered in the studio.

“Well, we told you it was a diss track,” Namjoon said slowly.

“Besides, blame Jungkookie,” Jimin said. “He wrote that part.” Jungkook and Aviva squinted at each other.

“You need to sleep more,” he told her pointedly.

“That’s not what you make it sound like!” She argued. “You make it sound like I’m at home sleeping while you work to death!”

“Aish, just post the video already before we all grow old and die,” Yoongi groaned.

Although only Jin and Rap Monster were featured in the Youtube video Aviva and Yoongi did the editing for, Tae was still excited to hear his voice in the background. Aviva returned his warm hug and tried not to think too much about the glow of pride for the first posts wearing off and leaving them only with the strain of hard work.

[uncertaininnit]

who wants to read an essay about my relationship with simping/an appreciation(/simping lol) post about Will+Eret and also seperately tommyinnit that was written at 4:22 am and then added to the queue because i love the queue system also fun fact i pronounced the word ‘queue’ as ‘cc-week’ for like an entire year and idk why anyways

lets just jump into it

lol

so. if somebody was to ask me who my favorite mcyt is, i would think about it for a moment and eventually answer with either Wilbur or Eret. and i think that is purely out of simping instinct or whatever the fuck. 

to start, Wilbur; the prettiest man, period. i do not take constructive criticism. he is literally gorgeous and i get so mad at him for putting himself down all the time because he doesnt deserve the shit, especially not from himself. he is 24 years old and has the lowest self-esteem out of anybody i can think of. i want to yell in his face all the time. i want to tell him simps are the same species as him, and they have REASONS to simp. if you keep seeing appreciation posts about yourself (which im sure he does) that means people APPRECIATE YOU and WANT YOU to feel APPRECIATED. 

anyway, back to simping. let’s start from the top. his goddamn hair. it is, it is, and i just took a deep breath, so pretty. maybe it isnt the hair itself, probably, but the way it is done. wavy dark brown hair all floofy in the front. and he is constantly messing with it, which is THE cutest thing. when he is excited, he moves a lot, and his hair moves with him and gets messed up and ahhhcvkvyr moving on.

his face? lets start with his eyes. they are so pretty. i think my opinion on eyes is probably weird, and allow me to explain why. i never ever notice somebodies eye color when talking to them. i just dont even look. so when i am actively paying attention to somebody’s eyes, they are that much more important to me. but idk, i kinda feel like his eyes are one of the biggest factors of his face? like, he looks really pretty whether he is smiling or not, because his face doesn’t ride on his smile.

sidetrack paragraph about george: i think george is that way. he is adorable, but he is only really adorable when he is smiling. if i look up ‘georgenotfound cute’ it will be entirely him smiling, and never any other facial expression because he genuinely looks like the fucking weirdest thing sometimes when making a serious face. back to will.

i dont pay attention to noses because who even cares dude but i’m sure his nose does a good job of supporting his looks as well so good job nose

his SMILE. he doesn’t need to smile, but dude, when he does, it’s like i always used to say (and still would say) in regards to eijiro kirishima. it’s like... sunbeams, like rays of light are in his mouth and escaping when he smiles.i wonder how he keeps a star in there. because his smile literally lights up my heart. and when he tilts his head(basically all the time luckily)? so goddamn pretty. pretty man. pretty. 

that brings us to his neck, which is- no, kidding, but i do want to talk about his vocal chords! firstly his speaking voice, which i guess as an american it hits different for me because of the accent. but- i dont think i can put it into words. but the way he puts thoughts into words-(lol) idk, his voice is just really sweet. and his SINGING VOICE, here we go.

so he sings, duh. and i- holy fuck. he just sounds good, you know? he is a good singer. i want to put my emotions simply this time. he sings well, and he sounds good. a pretty voice for a pretty man. i cant even try to elaborate.

basically the only other thing of my concern is his fucking yellow sweater? or jumper or whatever the fuck? and his beanie? on his body? damn. i am genuinely attached to that sweater. it just looks good, ok? it does. 

oh yeah, and he’s hella fucking tall. 6′5? are you kidding? you couldn’t have at least been short so we could make fun of you?

oh yeah and his laugh-

it is now 4:53 am and a bitch is tired but i have an entire fucking train of thoughts and they must be somewhere before they slip away

the next part- Eret. i adore Eret. so incredibly much. and let me start this by saying i’m going to consistantly call him a he, because he doesn’t care and so that makes it easier for me. ok? ok.

he is the opposite of Wilbur in this one regard, confidence. and self-esteem. eret loves himself. that attitude spreads. look, not only is he like the #1 bicon in the world as far as i’m concerned, but he also actively fucks gender roles any day. strawberry dress pog? strawberry dress pog.

but seriously, he rocked the strawberry dress. and the suit, though i missed that stream. he rocks his crown, his sunglasses, just anything he puts on. and don’t get me started on the BOOTS

(im started on the boots) so firstly the heel boots, the first ones he got. when i first saw clips, my only thought was something like ‘woah.’ or maybe ‘damn.’ at that point i didn’t know much about him, just that he looked STELLAR in those boots (and the betrayal and shit yknow) and the PLATFORMS DUDE

the platforms are the same but moar tall, which is incredible. oh and now back to strawberry dress- have you seen him twirl? the twirl? hello? have you seen it? you must. 

also i havent even talked about HIM yet. hove you seen that picture of him with a bird on his shoulder? he is facing the bird, i think looking at it, with a wide smile across his face. and it is so pretty. he has the prettiest smile. 

also today i was looking for flour at the store place and a clip of him was playing in my mind- he was doing like an announcer voice, like in every superhero movie trailer- and he was just coming up with something to say, and what he ened up saying was ‘in a world... where.... cookies.... are made of pringles’ and OMFG its making me laugh even now. like of absolutely anything, that was the example he made. just thinking about it is making me smile. 

speaking of, have you heard his voice? his normal voice is really really deep anyways, but he has crazy range- he can effortlessly(i originally wrote effortly and when i noticed i laughed because i am so fucking tired bfv9wuocl) go from like an elmo impression (and a good one) to a just REALLY low voice, lower than his normal low voice. 

AND HIS SINGING VOICE! he doesn’t like actually make music like wilbur but on that one stream where he did kareoke (how the fuck is it spelled) with fundy and his voice is SO LIKE its deep and its just pretty and i never want to hear normal sweater weather ever again, just him singing it.

i think this is where i’m done with eret- it is 5:18 now, and a BITCH IS TIRED but i need to finish this while i’m still feeling this wayy or i’ll never finish it, i know this from experience.

and now it’s tommy time

the og reason i decided to make this an actual post . but i had to explain the simping thing before i got into my thoughts about tommy. 

but let me start this with just saying yes, i love him. he is a big man and i want him to be happy. which is the topic for today’s discussion, AHEM. 

so tommyinnit, right? he is 16, which is why i do NOT simp.i dont care that im also a minor, i wouldn’t do anything to make him feel uncomfortable, ever. in any world. never. because look- i dont know how to put it, but tommy is SIXTEEN. still young and impressionable and all that junk. and he is a fairly fucking famous twitch streamer. he does that almost daily.

what i’m saying is i dont want him to get hurt. him, and tubbo too. they are a part of the world, part of the public, all the time. don’t you think that is stressful? do you guys remember his haircut stream? on the day of his haircut? and chat was making fun of him for it, and wilbur was making fun of him for it. that is how i express affection, with my real friends as well. playful bullying. but at some point while Will was teasing him, he says something along the lines of ‘yeah, the big man hasn’t been having too great a day’ or something like that, and dude, my heart dropped.

a. he had mentioned earlier that he didn’t want to stream the day of his haircut because hair is always weird that first day, but since he hadn’t streamed in a good bit he felt obliged to. i dont really.. idk, i dont really like that. i dont want him to have to put himself in uncomfortable situations because he feels like he needs to for us. i don’t think that is healthy.

and b. chat and wilbur were bullying him. good-naturedly, but still, when he mentioned he had been having a bad day, the chat turned around and instantly started yelling shit like ‘AHHHH SORRY BIG MAN YOUR HAIR IS FINE’ and when Wilbur kept teasing him (you fucking beautiful bully man fuck off) yelling stuff like ‘WILBUR QUIT WE ARE H U R T I N G HIM’ and ‘WILL STFU HES HAVING A BAD DAY’ so im glad we all want him to feel ok

but still, it cannot be healthy. when i first got into MCYT, i though tommy was fucking loud and annoying. and he is! he is. but that is a big part of why i like him so much. and everyone jokes about him being a child, because he is, but i choose to not say stuff like that in chat just because i want him to be happy. those jokes are fun, but i want him to be happy. and he is happier when not being called a child.

im not attacking you, do whatever the fuck you want. i dont know why i feel the need to protect him or whatever, if he read this he would probably think i was hella creepy. i just- listen, i just want him to be happy. i just want him to smile and laugh. i sound SO GODDAMN CREEPY but- as ive said- i just want him to be happy. 

is this literally just what having a comfort streamer is? am i not crazy? does everyone experience this? and can we talk about tommy’s playlist it’s literally so sweet and bubbly compared to his personality and i love that. and the song he always plays at the start of stream and always like buzzes along to? that moment in time is my very favorite.

it is 5:44-

[sometimes-love-is-enough]

hiiiii min i'm bored can you ramble about philosophy

it’s been a very long day for me and i am very tired but fortunately for you that long day has been mostly comprised of Philosophy Lecture and Philosophy Research so in short yes i can ramble at you about philosophy

hello everybody. today, in order to get the facts on it straight in my mind so I don’t fail my upcoming test, i will explain the Raven Paradox.

The first thing you need to know what, generally speaking, philosophical paradoxes are. Basically, it’s when you build an argument by taking a bunch of statements that sound perfectly reasonable standing on their own, and proceed to take a conclusion that follows 100% rationally from all of those statements. But the conclusion just so happens to be completely absurd. 

Got that? Okay, neat. Now we can get into the meat of the paradox (which was originally proposed by Carl Hempel in the 1940s, by the way, in case you feel like looking it up more). This paradox has two main premises (statements) and a conclusion, so this shouldn’t take toooooo long. 

the first premise is known as Nicod’s Criterion, and is basically the idea that if you observe something occurring, such as watching sodium salt burning yellow, or seeing a white cat, you are providing support to the hypothesis ‘all sodium salt burns yellow’ or ‘all cats are white’. now, obviously this isn’t true, because... you know, all cats aren’t white. but that’s not really the point. we don’t actually think that all cats are white, but the fact that we’ve seen a white cat lends credence to the hypothesis that they are. 

correspondingly, seeing a non-white cat undermines the idea that all cats are white, and is evidence against that theory. 

so in fancy philosophical scientific terms, Nicod’s Criterion can be explained thusly:

Each observation (statement) of an F that is G confirms, or supports, the generalization ‘all Fs are Gs’; and 

Each observation (statement) of an F that is not a G disconfirms, or undermines, this generalization

seems reasonable, right?

you may at this point be narrowing your eyes at me and going ‘okay yes this does make sense, but it seems so oddly basic and specific that there’s got to be something subtly wrong about it. you’re going to use this against us later on aren’t you’

now, would i do that to you

would i

...the second premise!! is known as Hempel’s Equivalence Condition!! (yes he named this after himself. i endeavor to be that confident in my theories one day) in fancy philosophy terms, this is basically it:

any observation statement that confirms/disconfirms a statement P equally confirms/disconfirms any logically equivalent statement Q

which is. hey. that’s hard to wrap your brain around, huh. let me try to break it down a bit

an observation statement is just an empirical observation about the world around you in statement form. ‘the sky is blue’ is an observation, ‘i got out of bed at 7AM this morning’ is also an observation. ‘patton is an unsympathetic character’ is not an observation statement, because it’s subjective and open to debate. ‘getting out of bed at 7AM this morning was a mistake and i’m an idiot for doing so’ is also not an observation statement but it is true and i’m very tired. i should’ve slept in

‘the sky is blue’ would confirm the statement/hypothesis ‘the sky is always blue’ (in the way that i described in the premise above. it doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s correct, it just adds support to the idea that it is.) 

and finally, a logically equivalent statement to ‘the sky is always blue’ would be ‘it is not the case that the sky is not always blue’ 

you may be saying ‘but that’s the same statement, it’s just rephrased!’ to which i will answer, yes. yes it is. logically equivalent statements are pretty much that. they have to mean the same thing. ‘frogs are neat’ and ‘toads are neat’ are not logically equivalent, even though they may have the same kind of root cause - that’s not enough, they have to be pretty much essentially the same statement. 

so basically, if you have an observation statement that confirms a hypothesis, then it’s going to also confirm a logically equivalent hypothesis. if i observe a white cat, it will confirm the two hypothesis ‘all cats are white’ and ‘it is not the case that all cats are not white’ 

okay! that’s our two main premises taken care of. we got past all that fun hard stuff, good job us! to summarize:

PREMISE ONE: Observations of Fs that are Gs confirm, while observations of Fs that are not Gs disconfirm, the generalization ‘all Fs are Gs’

PREMISE TWO: Any observation statement that confirms/disconfirms a statement P equally confirms/ disconfirms any logically equivalent statement.

(if i didn’t explain any of this well enough/you’re still confused, feel free to let me know and i’ll try to break it down better)

Now, onto the actual paradox.

let’s say that we’re investigating the hypothesis ‘all ravens are black’, for some reason. and let’s say that we find a black raven, and we observe it, and we get some support for our theory because, see Nicod’s Criterion, that’s how this works! Hell fucking yes!

but oh no, here comes the part that it took me a week to wrap my head around properly.

the thing is, the statement ‘all ravens are black’ is logically equivalent to the statement ‘all non-black things are non-ravens’. they’ve got equal truth values. if one’s got to be true, so does the other

here, i’ll do a shitty venn diagram. 

so, idk if y’all did the whole venn diagram unit in math class, but basically, if you shade out an area on the venn diagram, it means that anything that’s shaded out can’t possibly exist. so, if i’m saying ‘all ravens are black’, that means that non-black ravens can’t exist. so i’d do this

ooh, i love those jpeg artifacts. 

seems reasonable, right? i’m not saying that black things that aren’t ravens can’t exist, or black ravens can’t exist, or that anything else can’t exist. i’m just saying that ravens that are not black are not real, and therefore have been shaded out of my venn diagram universe.

if i took the og diagram and tried to apply the statement ‘all non-black things are non-ravens’ to it... i mean, i won’t even bother putting a new diagram up, because it’s the same one. non-black ravens don’t exist, so the only things left in the black circle are ravens + every other black thing to exist.

so yeah. that’s why those statements are logically equivalent. i sidetracked myself a bit there because i wanted to explain that bit properly since it didn’t make any sense to be initially. anyway. the root of the paradox.

so if any observation that confirms the statement ‘all ravens are black’ also confirms the statement ‘all non-black things are non-ravens’... that means that the reverse is true, and if a statement confirms that ‘all non-black things are non-ravens’, then it confirms that black ravens are the only sort of raven to exist.

which means that staring at a white shoe confirms it.

or a pink purse. or a rainbow scarf. or... i’m running out of random examples, which is weird because there are so many things that are not black that aren’t ravens. it’s ridiculous. it means i can investigate this hypothesis just by sitting in my room and staring at everything that’s not black and nodding sagely to myself and going ‘ah yes. my raven hypothesis. it’s all coming together’

or, to rephrase it in a tone more appropriate for this blog:

i am out here investigating the hypothesis ‘the only occupants of Thomas Sanders’s house are Thomas Sanders’. the logically equivalent corresponding statement is ‘anybody who does not live in Thomas Sanders’s house is not Thomas Sanders’. 

i could investigating this by going to his house and checking through every room and nodding to myself as I confirm that Mr Sanders and all of his weird cosplay clones are indeed living there and arguing with each other. or I could just go into another house somewhere and look at all the non-Thomas-Sanders people living there and noting to myself that they are not in fact Thomas Sanders, and that would be pretty much the same amount of evidence for the theory. 

there’s other layers and angles to this, including the whole thing with ‘well if i observe everything that is not black in the world ever and never see a raven, then i’ve proven the hypothesis, haven’t it?’ which i find really funny for various reasons, but good god this has gotten long. if you’re still here and you actually followed along with any of it, i applaud you.

i am tired. i should go have a shower. i also find this particular paradox really weirdly fascinating so i don’t actually regret rambling on for several pages about it!! 

[ganymedesclock]

So... What do you think about revisiting Danny phantom in general? Revisiting the fandom I've noticed a lot of fanfic that have Danny's parents finding out his deal rather violently, or generally having more violence/angst than the original show..

I’m assuming you’re sending me this ask because of my recent burst of Danny Phantom art, so, it’s probably not a surprise to say I’m doing a certain amount of revisiting myself, and certainly not about to shame anyone else for it. It was a very dear cartoon to me in many ways and left some enduring hallmarks on my own writing, and I can absolutely understand people feeling the same way.

That said, as someone who’s been in this fandom for a while, albeit quietly- there certainly is a thread of macabre interest in fandom spaces, one I don’t always know that I agree with, especially when it comes to the Fentons.

My personal verdict on the Fenton parents specifically is I think they are not handled fairly by canon. This is a problem that Danny Phantom as a show shares with Fairly Odd Parents, though I would argue the Turner parents in FOP are quite a bit worse at this.

Roughly, I think how the Fenton parents are canonically depicted suffers from a phenomenon that affects many parts of the show: DP, as a series, has a bit of a sense of confused priorities between comedy and drama, and as a result, what’s 'real’ in-universe and what’s “just supposed to be a joke”. The kind of humor that DP tends to spring for is exaggerated or shocking behavior- it also tends to be a humor that hinges on the idea that other people are generally inconvenient to the main character. So humor-characterization is inconsistent here- Jack is negligent until it’s more inconvenient to depict him as overbearing (see: Girl’s Night Out and other cases he desperately wants to bond with Danny) he’s a recluse only loved by his wife until it’s more inconvenient to depict him as having an active social life (Masters Of All Time and that he and Maddie are going to a themed party so they’re dressed ‘weirdly’ in public)

A big victim of this is Jack’s sense that ghosts aren’t people and his desire to dissect them. Because here is the thing: it’s all talk, in the worst way. It hinges on the idea Jack- someone who knows enough of what he’s doing that along with Maddie and, in the past, Vlad- ripped two different holes in reality hard enough to permanently alter someone’s relation to undeath- has never seen a ghost before the series as he says in Mystery Meat.

The series has a big problem where it hinges on the Fentons’ inventions and expertise but also wants to treat them like idiots constantly. And if you notice how much I’m talking exclusively about Jack- that’s part of the problem. Maddie, in many ways, outside of episodes that throw her a bone, despite constantly being told by people she’s too good for Jack, is really treated as an extension of Jack. Masters Of All Time even suggests that her choosing Jack in the first place was just a path of least resistance between her two college friends, and she’d have married whichever one stuck around. 

The Fentons are not respected as experts, so Jack is given his ignorant line about dissecting a ghost. The Fentons need to remain exaggerated, ridiculous, an inconvenience to Danny- so they threaten his alter ego and point guns at him, but this is funny and not serious and not a reason to be worried about them as parents, because they are not on Danny’s level. Nobody is ever on Danny’s level. There is literally an episode called The Ultimate Enemy. The antagonist is an evil future Danny. The only person who could ever be Danny’s ultimate nemesis is Danny himself. 

And when the series stops milking the Fentons for jokes about how they’re so stupid and how Jack is an idiot and Maddie married that idiot but even she doesn’t respect him even though she loves him and dutifully follows him everywhere and god how can these people care about ghosts they’re so ignorant and out of their league- 

-then it kinda shuffles its feet awkwardly and goes, yeah. the Fentons love each other, and love their kids.

Yeah, Jack has framed photographs of Maddie, Jazz, and Danny on his personal workstation.

Yeah, in Mystery Meat Jack was seriously debating walking away from his lifework because it upset one of his kids. 

Yeah, every time in canon the Fentons find out Danny’s secret they’re immediately all in supporting him.

Yeah, even not knowing it’s Danny, Jack has an amiable conversation with him in Million Dollar Ghost and the ghost containment units designed by the Fentons get some jokes about that they’re a little cramped but they aren’t horrifying prisons of inhumanity- and as soon as Danny Phantom the ghost boy has a good point, Jack lets him go on purpose. 

Yeah, Jack is a competent ghost hunter who can take on Skulker and win as well as beat down the giant lake monster Skulker brought with him in Girls’ Night Out and would do this in a heartbeat, no jokes and no sidetracks, because that monster just chewed on his baby boy and nobody does that to his baby boy.

Yeah, Maternal Instinct is an entire episode of Maddie throwing hands with (or deceiving and manipulating) literally anything she thinks was responsible for getting Danny in this dangerous situation.

...And then the series says “but that’s not funny! Here, have jokes about the Fenton Stockades, that exist and have spikes and Jack wants to put his kids in them for time out, when the spikes apparently don’t hurt given Jack is not injured for being put in there. Here, have a joke about Jack attacking Jazz with a vacuum cleaner because he gets hellbent on the idea she’s possessed for no good reason. Here, have an uncomfortable joke about how badly Jack Fenton wants to vivisect a ghost while it screams. Funny funny funny. Why- why are you flinching?”

It basically creates a comedic situation where the show is constantly winding up like it’s gonna punch you- with the idea that the Fentons are bad parents and this has consequences for Danny and Jazz personally- and then laughs in your face if you flinch. It’ll never actually punch you- but it will sure keep swinging its hand really close to your face and laughing at your reactions.

This is, I’m just gonna say- one of the worst elements of the series, this weird relationship it has with “hahaha are we depicting an abusive family or not? ;)” where its actual point is that Jack Fenton is a person who should be shamed for being overzealous, for caring about this niche field, because nobody cares about ghosts! (unless the entire premise of the show does) Nobody wants to think about ghost science! That’s LAME! (unless Vlad does it)

So I think ultimately this creates a polarizing experience in the fandom. What part of this information do you take?

Do you take, say, my personal approach, which is: 

“Hey, so it’s pretty clear and consistent that the Fentons love their kids and wouldn’t hurt them. The Fentons are nice people. They can be obsessive or headstrong but there’s nuanced and salient ways to examine this in the basic framework that they care, both about their family specifically, and in general- and while I think they can have flaws or conflicts with their kids, and with ambient ghosts in the world, I really don’t think they’re in danger of torturing a sapient entity in their basement and it frustrates and annoys me that canon ‘makes a joke’ of them doing these things because it thinks they’re so incompetent that these things are not really malicious actions, when- whether or not you successfully shoot them, it takes a certain kind of person to point a weapon you know is dangerous at something that looks, and talks, like a fourteen-year-old, especially when you’re a parent who has probably at least once in your life worried about something happening to your kids, and the ghost of a teenager means something happened to someone’s kid, in a general sense.

So my end conclusion on the Fentons is I think they are being depicted in a kind of metatextual bad faith, that they are not cruel or malicious people, and in my personal take or understanding on the series, I’d massively dial down those elements, and if any remain, take them seriously as problems they have in their relationships with other people.”

Or do you take an approach more rooted in,

“If the Fentons are shown to be negligent parents they are negligent parents, I’m going to examine and depict them as that, and I find this very hard to forgive, so it’s going to have real and nasty consequences.”

Both are basically valid. The place where I tend to get a little uncomfortable is twofold:

First, I think sometimes people just really want some fictional tragedy to either create or consume, and to that end, you aren’t going to get much juicy drama out of the Fentons being reasonable people. This isn’t evil or unforgivable, but for me, it’s definitely my least favorite fannish content to create or consume. I’m no fan of angst for angst’s sake, and I feel like there’s enough misery and heartbreak in the world that I’m not interested in wallowing in it unless it’s got something interesting to say.

Second- and this is a point I’m gonna be saltier: A lot of abusive Fenton fics that refuse to forgive them for the poorer-taste jokes the series makes, simultaneously give Vlad a blank check, when he has done targetedly malicious things to Danny. 

Now- do I also have a more sympathetic read on Vlad, and feel like canon also gives him a bad rap? Yeah! But you can’t have it both ways. You can’t say, “I can’t forgive the Fentons for stuff that was tagged onto them because canon thought it was funny, but I’m gonna editorialize Vlad’s depiction to lionize him as the ideal parent figure for Danny to run into the arms of.”

And the main reason I get so worked up in this, is I feel like Jack in particular (when Maddie is characterized as subordinate to Jack, following his cues, etc., and that’s its own demon) is... characterized as kind of a mocking caricature of traits that I personally recognize as an autistic and ADHD person.

Because the reality is? In many practical ways, I am Jack Fenton.

I like a bunch of weird stuff people find unacceptable or gross, like bugs

I’m hyperlexic (that means I talk, a lot)

Scatterbrained, forget words or where I left something or, sometimes, to do something important

Passionate and excitable including and especially in situations where it’s not normal, or expected, to have this much energy

I absolutely can forget birthdays, even for people I love dearly that mean the world to me! It’s horrible! There’s almost nothing I can do about it! My brain refuses to hold onto this information reliably and no amount of caring fixes it.

And being this way, living like this? My worst nightmare has always been that people think I either don’t care or that I’m just too much of a stupid, flippant buffoon to get right.

The thing about Jack is he’s “a person like me” and he’s “a person like me” who was designed to be a joke. We’re clearly expected to view him as untrustworthy, stupid, just like a big dumb dog of a man who barks in the wrong directions, who sometimes, when it counts, fetches a stick like he’s supposed to. Good job, Lassie. You got little Timmy out of the well.

And I am going to say with certainty and confidence that feeling like this is how people see me is the most unbelievably crushing feeling I have ever experienced in my life. That my excitement and passion means I’m unprofessional, stupid, don’t know what I’m talking about. It’s nearly painful for me, as an adult, to watch Danny Phantom because the show can never get off Jack’s case. And the few times it does, he hauls overtime arduously to make a difference, to help, to build something that will protect others, to put his own life on the line to stop hostile ghosts.

And immediately, then he goes back to being stupid stupid dog man. ha ha. why does his wife love him? no wonder his kids don’t ever want to be seen with him. no wonder his best friend is trying to kill him and he doesn’t even know, the big idiot.

(never mind that we see a scenario where he does know. and admits he would’ve forgiven Vlad anyway. but he can’t forgive Vlad hurting Danny.)

So to rein in this wild tangent: I’m not saying all must love Jack Fenton and despair. I’m not even telling people to hide their angst. If I have a sincere request, it’s this:

If you’re inclined to thinking of Vlad as a cool, troubled, complex person (as I do!) and are haunted by the implications of The Ultimate Enemy specifically for Vlad, that when Danny lost everyone else in his life that Vlad really genuinely tried to help, and was not gloating and happy and victorious to have Danny as his protege, and when that went badly, he was haunted to the end of his days by not having been able to help-

-but immediately turn around and think Jack is just a rotten awful person who’d absolutely hurt his own kid in spite of canon to the contrary (when there’s just as much, if not more, canon of Vlad being willfully hostile)

It might be good to examine why you’re feeling this way, and if this might not come down to the fact that even when canon has people call Vlad a desperately lonely fruit loop, it has a lot more respect for him than it does for Jack, and this isn’t because it’s actually taking a stance against any of the qualities it gave Jack that someone might find disagreeable- it’s because Jack’s just “a big old fat idiot nobody likes, right?”

and that’s... not something comfy to buy into.

[perriewinklenerdie]

Almost four years (Ethan Ramsey x MC)

Open Heart, Ethan Ramsey x MC

A/N: Hello, hello, hello! How we feeling fam, how’s the wife, how’s the kids? It’s been a hot ass minute since I wrote anything that even waved in the direction of a fic, and I caught a day off soooo... here we are :D

Remember how I said, this very morning, that I had a fluffy idea for Ethan and his kid with Claire for the ESIMY (Ever Since I Met You) series? Well, I lied. Or, more like, I got sidetracked. So, it’s a continuation of the ‘The secrets are out’ fic, and I planned on getting it a bit longer, but the story ran away from my original point (don’t worry, she didn’t get lost) so I might have to write it separately (when I live again that is). For now, this is where we are at.

As you probably already realized, it’s a part of the ESIMY series, so all you need to know is that Claire and Ethan met and got married before they started working together. 

AO3 link:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24359866

Tag list: @paleweasels, @kittykatchoices, @valiantlychaoticbarbarian, @radlovedreamer , @usuallyamazinglyaverage, @strawberrwess @palestazure, @cordoniaqueensworld, @universallypizzataco, @princess-geek, @faithhasnowords, @mightyfangirlofthefandoms, @drakewalkerfantasy, @timmagicktoad, @laceandlula, @greywitchyshots, @llamasgrl, @gingerjane15, @bucket-harrington , @marywrites-things , @ethanplaysfavorites , @mfackenthal , @betelgeusebee , @simsvetements,  @i-only-signed-up-for-fanfiction, @buzz-bee-buzz, @owleyes374, @cora-nova, @aworldoffandoms, @l822, @cream-ray, @ughhhxjazzy, @silverlitskies, @justendlesssummerfeels, @togetherwearerapture, @desmaranj, @edgiestwinter, @friedherringclodthing, @daisy-ashton, @waytooattuned, @choicesgremlin , @lapisreviewsstuff, @the-soot-sprite, @writerapprentice, @chasingrobbie, @choicesobsessedd, @x-kyne-x, @thisperfectmemory, @drakewalker04, @rookie-ramsey, @jlynn12273, @thepinknymph @dr-brianna-casey-valentine, @a-i-n-a-a-s-h @justanotherrookie

Enjoy! <3

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

„Almost four years? But that’s- we’ve been friends for three years!” Bryce exclaimed, falling back onto the couch in defeat. They’ve been having this conversation for the past three hours. She sat them all down and walked them through the last four years of her life, and the confusion and shock melted into understanding.

“I couldn’t exactly tell you ‘This year is gonna be hella long. Oh, and by the way, Dr. Ramsey is my husband’. I’m sure you all see how that would look.” Claire took a sip of her tea, shrugging her shoulders.

It hasn’t even been a full day since the incident at the hospital that caused them to reveal their relationship. To their surprise, everyone reacted to it pretty well, and the scandal was avoided, even if it did fuel the gossip mill.

Ethan insisted that she takes a day off, just to make sure she’s alright, and she agreed, even if only to not make him worry about her. She decided to use the fact that all her friends had a day off too and ask them to stop by for a bit of a story time. After a tour, they settled down in the living room with their drinks and listened.

“That explains why you didn’t live with us.” Elijah spoke up, nodding his head slowly.

“And why you never invited us over.” Sienna chipped in, her fingers drumming against her thigh.

“And why my flirting with you didn’t work.” Bryce concluded, a look of sudden realization taking over his features. “Oh crap, is that why Dr. Ramsey doesn’t like me? Cause I kept on flirting with his wife?”

“He doesn’t ‘not like’ you, he just thinks you’re a scalpel jockey. Flirting with me is just an added layer.” She giggled, placing her hand on her belly gently.

She didn’t lie. Ethan had a phase in which he felt threatened, to the point of him asking her straight up what was going on. Claire knew what Bryce was doing, and she actively kept telling him to quit it. For the record, he absolutely did, but his easygoing attitude remained a source of dread for Ethan for a long time. They had a long conversation, talked over and through every single bit of the situation and got to the bottom of the issue, came out on the other side with a newfound understanding and love for each other.

“So, let me make sure that I got it right. Every time we went home after drinks, you two just- what, met up by your car and went home together?” Jackie asked, raising her both hands to stop them all for a moment.

“Pretty much, yeah.”

“And every time he ripped one of us apart- wait, he did that only two times to you, right?”

“He sure did. On the first day, to make it seem like we didn’t know each other. And then sometime later, when I said that you were asking why he didn’t berate me for my mistake, he destroyed me the next day at work. Later that evening, he said that he felt so bad that I had no choice but to do better so he didn’t have to do again.”

Knowing that him going off on everyone but her would be suspicious, they came up with a strategy to have him summon her to his office. To an outsider, it was one hell of a punishment, and every time she went there, she received looks of pity from doctors and nurses she passed by. Everyone assumed that she was about to be eaten alive. Boy, were they wrong.

Because as soon as door closed behind her, he was all over her, be it gently hugging her or kissing her with fervor, creasing her clothes and ruffling her hair. They got caught by Zaid and Harper once, and ever since then, everyone that knew about Ethan and Claire being married, knocked on the door.

“I find it hard to imagine Ethan Ramsey being gentle. If I didn’t see it yesterday, I would say it’s impossible for him to be nice. And then walks Herond- are you Herondale or Ramsey?” Jackie’s eyes shifted from the view behind the window to her friend.

“Herondale at work, Ramsey outside. It would cause too much confusion and well, it would raise questions without a doubt.” Claire explained, leaning forward to look at Jenner that sat by her feet.

“Okay, so let me rephrase that. In comes Claire, in all white, and Ramsey melts. I kid you not, he’s a different man when you’re involved. I noticed it before, but never thought that this was the reason.”

“You should have seen him back when we first met. As a matter of fact, hold on.”

Claire stood up slowly, pressing her hand to her lower back. Being seven months into her pregnancy made her move at a different speed than what she was used to. Bending down, she reached into the cabinet and took out a photo album.

“Ethan would kill me if he knew that I let you see it.” she giggled, seating herself back down.

All her friends leaned towards her to see the photos. A younger Ethan Ramsey stared back at them, either alone or with Claire by his side. Smiling so brightly he could blind them. Different face of a man they only knew from a professional side.

“Oh my god, is that from your wedding?!” a happy squeal escaped Sienna’s lips, her arm draping over Claire’s shoulders as she brought her into a gently side hug. “You looked so beautiful!”

“That day was a amazing, yeah. And-“ she was interrupted by the lock turning, and moments later the door opened, revealing a somewhat tired Ethan Ramsey.

Silence fell upon all the people in the apartment, everyone staring at each other, unsure what was about to happen. And then, Ethan simply walked over to Claire, kissed her forehead, his hands resting on her shoulders.

“How are you feeling?” he muttered, choosing to not address the other people in the room just yet.

“I’m good, spent most of the day in bed, watching a documentary with Jenner.”

“I told you Netflix was a good idea.” He added with a satisfied grin, taking a step back to head into the kitchen. “Does anyone want something to drink or eat?”

The group stared at him dumbfounded. He observed them for a moment, expecting an answer, but got none. Claire spoke up instead. “I think they will stay for dinner.”

“Good thing I bought more ingredients.”

As he disappeared further into the kitchen, all the residents came back into the current world, one by one. It was amusing to say the least, like watching them wake up from a very deep slumber.

“Hold up, back up. Am I hearing things or is Ethan Ramsey watching Netflix?” Elijah shook his head, a small smile growing wider by the second. Bryce clapped his hands, laughing along.

“Oh yeah, we watch a lot of it when we have a day off, especially now that outside activities are pretty limited by my mobility.” She grinned, pointing towards her very pregnant belly.  “Most of the time, we cook and then eat dinner while watching some show.”

“Rookie, can you come here for a moment, please?” Ethan’s voice interrupted any other questions, his face appearing from the kitchen. She nodded, excusing herself and walking into the kitchen.

Ethan took her hand and pulled her to him gently, wrapping his arms around her. He leaned down, a teasing smirk taking over his face, and a moment later, their lips met. Her hands creeped up his body, resting on the sides of his neck, caressing his skin.

He turned them around, allowing her to lean against the counter to take some weight off her back. His lips strayed from her lips, making their way down her neck and back up again to her ear. She let out a shaky breath, her nails scratching him lightly.

“I missed you today.” He mused quietly, leaning back to look her in the eye. A beautiful smile grew on her face, her eyes shining brightly.

“I missed you too, and I can tell you for a fact that our daughter did too. She’s running a marathon in there.” she nodded towards her belly, just in time to feel a not so gentle kick, pressing against Ethan’s stomach, letting him experience it at least a little bit.

“Maybe you should lie down and rest.” Worry colored his voice, his lips capturing hers once more, the kiss having just a bit more heat to it. She hummed at the sensation, pulling him closer to her by his hair, leaning back slightly.

He picked her up carefully, sitting her down on the counter and resting his hands on her hips, his thumbs tracing small circles. The added height made up for the distance that the belly put between them, a convenience they often took advantage of.

“I assure you, I’m not tired.” She whispered, locking her ankles behind his back, her heels digging into his muscles. A chocked groan escaped his lips, his breathing growing ragged. His grip on her tightened, his teeth sunk into her lower lip and pulled on it with just enough force to make her moan.

Claire’s hand trailed down towards his chest, her fingers toying with the buttons of his shirt, undoing them slowly, one by one, revealing more and more of his skin. Her lips left his, a line of kisses moving along the column of his neck and reaching his collarbone. She took a deep breath, the scent of his cologne and the warmth of his body heightening her senses, tuning her into him.

“Guys, you do know that you can’t get pregnant again right now, right?” Bryce’s voice pulled them out of their bubble and made their heads snap towards the sound. Claire could vaguely make out the silhouettes of the rest of her friends, still seated on the couch in the living room, just barely covered by Bryce’s form.

“Lahela, if you don’t go back there and insist on joking about it, you’re not getting any food in here.” Ethan warned, though, to Claire’s amusement, there seemed to be a hint of humor in his tone. The younger man raised his hands in mock surrender, backing up and leaving the two of them alone again.

“Is that friendship I’m sensing?” she teased him, helping him button his shirt back up. Ethan shook his head with feigned annoyance, pecking her lips a couple of times.

“Why don’t you sit down and I make you a cup of tea while I cook? Since you’re clearly feeling so unwell that you would even suggest that.” He helped her back down and led her to the chair on the other side of the counter.

“Shouldn’t I go join out guests?”

“They spent the whole day with you, I didn’t. I think they can manage without you a while longer.”

[princess-butters]

Just a celebrity [knj X reader]

A/n: Hi, I know it’s been a while since my last post, I legit have no excuse except that it’s procrastination and that I had no ideas to go by, I still don’t, but I’m trying my best to write as much as I can now. I have a fanfic in the works that I have coming up and it’s hard to write each chapter without it being mostly filler and actually relevant to the story, you know? It’s actually something that’s been in the works for almost 4. Fucking. Years. and I’m just now writing most of the chapters I have planned. It’s somewhat of a short story too which I’m glad because I was really worried it would be too long and dragged out with said filler but what I do have is a character introduction to the characters. It’s not all of them but it’s at least something to begin the story so once it’s done, I can post it and show you guys what I’m working on. But anyways I’m getting sidetracked. This was originally supposed to be for an imagine but it became too long and I decided it should be its own story so enjoy.

Warnings: [TW // Mentions of forced strict diet, and starvation, Namjoon really wants to eat but can’t because of his company, description of being underweight. Fluff with bits of angst. Y/n is a cynical bitch to Namjoon in the beginning but warms up to him at the end of their first encounter. It’s a fluffy relationship at the end. If I’m missing any TW, please let me know.]

Word count: 1.8k

Your first interaction with Namjoon was during his concerts in Korea since you were studying abroad and your friend, whom you’ve met online and was the sole reason why you wanted to move here, told you about a K-pop group that had debuted a while ago and it’s safe to say that you...didn’t care too much for their music and you only went to their concert to support your friend who was quickly becoming a big fan of them. It’s a unique story, really, it’s not your simple story of a fangirl who goes to some concert and one of the members sees them in the audience and brings them backstage. No, this was completely different. You never had the desire about fantasizing idols when you were younger, now that’s not to say that you didn’t enjoy music because you did, hell, you even own band merch that you still proudly wear but you never found them to be attractive like most fans would and always saw them just as artists.

While Namjoon did spot you and your friend in the crowd, he didn’t tell some security guard so you could exchange phone numbers – it was by complete accident and fate one day when you were walking home from the grocery store to pick up some food for you and your friend until you heard someone bolting towards you, running away from something that seemed serious. Annoyed and a bit taken back by his actions at first, you glance behind you not expecting much but what you didn’t expect was the amount of crazed fangirls heading your way. Gasping as you saw the hurdle of fans, your feet were stuck planted on the ground, standing there frozen with fear as the young, violent fans inched closer and closer, pushing each other around like a bunch of wild animals, until you felt the warmth of someone’s hand, presumably the same guy from earlier.

“Come on, don’t just stand there like a crazy person! I know a place where we can get rid of them!” He sounded young, about your age, the young musician took your hand in his and dragged you with him.

And that’s how you became stuck with each other behind some gritty, old building, trash bins and garbage all over the bleak scenery, you and the young musician huddled up together in-between two dumpsters as the loud and obnoxious cheers of fans faded out into the air. Both sighing with relief, you look up at him unimpressed.

“I guess this is your everyday lifestyle?” You question the young star and he lets out a heavy sigh, still trying to catch his breath from running so fast. It probably didn’t help matters that he was also dragging you along with him.

“You haven’t seen the worst of it. I usually find these girls in my room.” He tells you nonchalantly, like he’s used to it at this point.

“Shouldn’t that be considered trespassing?”

“Yeah but there’s nothing I can do about it. I’m a big star around here and what these girls want, they’ll sure as hell get it.”

“Wow. And here I thought you were just another puppet for the music industry.” You reply back with a snarky undertone, lifting yourself up from the ground and wiping any muck and dirt left on your clothes. The young musician didn’t take your words kindly and narrowed his eyebrows together.

“Hey listen, it’s not as easy as you may think. Just be thankful you’re still alive because if they had caught you, you would’ve been roadkill by now.” He commented as if it was a statement of fact.

“I barely know you!” You argued, lifting your arms up to emphasize your point.

“Doesn’t matter to them. They see some girl out with a popular celebrity, they become lions and you’re their prey.”

You roll at his comment, thinking he’s just over-exaggerating. “Well thank you for the joyride, but I really should get back to my apartment.”

“What did you get?” He asks curiously as he stares at your bag full of food, he sounded like a kid who saw a bag full of candy on Halloween.

“Black bean noodles with rice on the side.” You explain to him simply, going over to make sure you got exactly what you needed and it didn’t fall out while you were running.

The man rests his hand against his stomach, it begins rumbling with hunger as he heard those three words. He hasn’t eaten since yesterday because of the intense and strict schedule his company has forced him to go through and he would be lying right now if he said he wasn’t hungry. “Black bean noodles? That sounds really good! That’s one of my favorite dishes, I haven’t had something like that in a while.”

You cross your arms, thinking it was his way of attempting to relate to you on some level. “Oh please, you’re a star! I bet you eat everything that’s handed to you.” You didn’t mean for it to come out so cold and bitter but you couldn’t help yourself, this was some celebrity and you’ve had a dislike for them because a lot of them are just stuck-up snobs who bully everyone lower class than them. The man gives you a look that even you couldn’t figure out, almost like he was envisioning the different foods he wished he could eat but couldn’t.

“I wish it were that simple. My company would kill me if they saw me eating anything like that, I’m forced to be on a strict diet and I’m barely allowed to eat a granola bar let alone noodles.”

Shocked by his explanation, you lower down your arms and began feeling bad for making such assumptions. You alternate looking between him and the food, clearly the thought of him starving had profusely disturbed you and you couldn’t help but send an expression of empathy and sadness to the lone musician. When you decided to speak up once more, your voice went up an octave, softly responding back in a more friendly manner, it was your discreet way of apologizing to the poor guy for being so harsh. “Really? I’ve never got it before. My friend likes them and practically begged me to get it for her.”

“Your friend has good taste. I guess I better get going, the fans have died down and it’s probably safe for me to leave. It was nice meeting you.”

“Yeah.” You mindlessly say as you watch him turn around before you could say anything else but when he rounds the corner, you quickly find your voice once again and call out to him, hoping he hasn’t left just yet. “Hey! If you want to, why don’t you come over and have dinner?”

He emerges from the side and leans against the bricks walls, hands in his pockets like he’s trying to protect himself from the freezing cold. “I can’t. Mostly because we don’t know each other and my company would kill me if I ate something that wasn’t on their list which is not many, to be honest.”

You slowly walk up towards him and look at him directly, taking a minute to look at his features. Poor thing looked like he was starving himself, even though you’ve never liked idols and found them all to be the same mindless puppets, it can’t be said for this guy. His cheek bones were hollowed, he’s skinny but to an unhealthy standard, and his eyes were baggy and darkened around the sockets, almost sunken in. You couldn’t tell if it was from a lack of sleep, starvation, or both. You hesitate for a moment before placing your mitten hand on top of his exposed hand. “But you’re starving. I can’t let you walk away and not have something.”

“I really can’t.”

“Please? I really don’t want to leave you in this state and the food I have isn’t that bad for you.”

After realizing that you’re not gonna give up on this and that you really were serious, he took a second to think it over. The thought really was enticing and he would be lying to himself once more if he said he wasn’t interested and desperate to eat anything, even if it came from a complete stranger, and he knew the food was legit because well, he can see it very clearly. “Well...alright.”

Once you heard his confirmation, you show a small smile and nodded with him. “Then it’s settled! Off to my house we go!” You latch onto his arm and begin walking home with him when another thought came to mind and halted in your steps. “Oh yeah, you’d better wear your disguise or we’re gonna be running from your psycho fans. I didn’t even catch your name.”

A chuckle came out of him as he placed his cap snug on his head and his mask covering half of his face, the only thing visible were his eyes, everything else made him seem like he was invincible to the public eye. “My name’s Namjoon.”

“So you’re that Namjoon guy my friend always talks about! Oh boy, this is gonna be fun.” You smirk to yourself as you two resume walking, the thought of your friend acting like a complete psycho in front of her bias entertained you.

Once you and Namjoon arrived at your place, your first instinct when you walked through the front door was give an explanation to your friend about why you were late and how worried she was. When you told her what had happened and showed her evidence to prove your case, her reaction was a lot more different than how she usually is. Throughout the evening, you and Namjoon got along fairly well—with the exception of your friend asking him benign questions about his career as an idol and if the other members are exactly the same in real life—you would frequently apologize for her erratic behavior as it worried you it would make the idol uncomfortable but he says it’s nothing compared to what he always hears from fangirls.

You and Namjoon surprisingly hit it off at the end of the night and you exchanged phone numbers when he was about to leave and promised each other you would meet again soon, this time without your friend in the picture. After he left, thoughts began to provoke and you wondered to yourself that maybe, just maybe, you were wrong about idols for once.

And now let’s look at today’s events, where are you and Namjoon right now in your relationship? Well one thing’s for certain is that you two are officially dating and have been since 2017, two years after your initial meeting. When you two became more comfortable with each other, he had invited you over to the dorms and introduced you to his members, to which they immediately welcomed you into their group with open arms, you’ve actually become best friends with some of them. It’s been a fun and crazy ride, exploring different countries and cultures had never crossed your mind before but now you can safely say that it’s been one of the best things to have ever happened in your life. You were fortunate to have somebody like him and him you because along the way, you have made each other better, Namjoon had taught you that being guarded and stubborn shouldn’t lock you out of the world and it’s okay to let your guard down sometimes, and you taught him that just because he was an idol doesn’t mean there shouldn’t be any boundaries and that he was a human being first.

Whenever the media caught wind of your relationship, they always thought it was just a fling and that the two of you would break up like everybody else in the industry but so far, you have proved each and every one of them wrong and now both you and Joon don’t give two shits about what everybody says.

[spaceyraccoon]

beneath the willow tree

I decided I wanted to go ahead and share a couple pieces of the first Portal fic I actually ever started writing, but never finished. My husband and I came up with a lot of content for it and I did end up writing a few of the scenes, my favorites which I will share below. They are unpolished, unedited, and indeed unfinished, but I still had a lot of fun writing these.

This story was going to be titled “Beneath the Willow Tree”. In it, Wheatley crashes back down the Earth and is found by, what seems to be, the last human alive - an 11/12 year old boy named Tommy, who has been living by himself, suffering from anxiety and depression, and trying to survive in the wake of his parents’ deaths. Wheatley ends up convincing Tommy to take him back to the lab to find “the really good jumper lady” so he can apologize to her. So the two head off on an adventure together.

We had a lot planned, and since I’m not going to finish writing it, I’ll give the spoilers - Tommy was found by Chell after her escape from Aperture. He was three years old at the time, his parents had just been killed, and he was extremely ill himself and near death. Chell took him with her, carrying him on her back, until they found one other human - a man - who was able to help Tommy. The three of them became a family - Chell and the man tried to have children, but Chell suffered through many miscarriages before she ended up becoming terminally ill (from her exposure to toxins at the lab) and dying. The man ended up dying at a later point as well. What was not known at the time Wheatley and Tommy came together was that the same lady Wheatley was looking for was Tommy’s adoptive mom, Chell, who had already died by that point. She was buried beneath the willow tree behind the house where Tommy lived, giving the story its title.

Anyway, here are the bits I did write that I am happy to share. I know it’s a shot in the dark, but if anyone likes this fic idea enough and wants to write it, please go ahead - you have my blessing! :3

---

"You know what I think the hardest thing in the world is? Convincing yourself of.. well, anything good, I guess," Tommy said quietly. Beside where he sat beside the boy, Wheatley shifted slightly, blinking at him as he listened, for once, in silence.

Tommy let out a sigh as he continued, "It's like-.. You get so used to things going wrong-.. You get this voice in your head that says everything is always going to go wrong, no matter how hard you try, and before you even actually try, you give up. Why even bother trying when everything is always going to let you down in the end? May as well cut right to the chase. Does that make any sense?"

It took Wheatley a moment to realize that the kid was asking for his input and he started, "Erm, well, no, not really..." He saw the crestfallen look start to materialize on the boy's face and he hastily moved to add to what he said, "I mean, technically, it's hard to actually 'give up' if you haven't actually tried in the first place, yeah? And- And as for hearing voices in your head, I think, if you are hearing voice insi-.. well, obviously hearing voices outside your head is quite normal, I think, unless you are by yourself, then no, it isn't normal. But then if you are hearing voices outside your head, then that means you are not, in fact, by yourself. Er, got sidetracked there, but anyway, point is, if you are hearing voices inside your head, point being, you should probably get that checked out," he finished with a little smug shake.

He shifted his gaze over in slight surprise when he heard a small scoff come out of Tommy. "I guess that makes sense," he stated, his tone completely flat, seeming to focus extra hard on pushing dirt around with the stick.

"What? It's not like I didn't tell you I wasn't good at giving pep talks."

Tommy pressed his lips together and his brow furrowed in what was a distinct look of annoyance, "You didn't."

"I didn't? Coulda swore I did, way back-.. In any case, I've said it now and that's what counts."

"Right."

"Look, if I've said something to offend you-.."

"It doesn't matter. It was just a silly thought. I mean, here we are, middle of nowhere-.."

"..-Somewhere, actually."

"...-somewhere, no idea where we're going-"

"-the lab - that's where we're headed - the lab-..."

"...-Fine, going to 'the lab', whatever. We still don't know what we are really doing-..."

"-Sure we do, we are looking for the lady-.."

"Right, but we don't even know who we are really looking for-.."

"Have I mentioned that she's a really good jumper?"

"Yes, but what does that even mean?"

"Jumper. Not like a jumper jumper - or I guess you might call it a sweater, but- jumping. You know, like jumping up and down. She's really good at it, jumping," Wheatley said with a quick nod while lifting his bottom eyeplate up in his version of a smile.

"Okay..." Tommy said with a sigh, "Continuing what I was saying - all of that, and we don't even know what really awaits us when we get there."

Wheatley's conciliatory expression - if you could call it that - suddenly changed from one end of the spectrum to the other, "Er... Now probably wouldn't be the best time to tell you that we may come face to face with the sociopath AI that runs the place, would it?"

Tommy's thoughts were brought to a dead stop, "WHAT."

"Nothing! Nothing, forget I said that, there is nothing at all to worry about. I'm sure it'll be fine, She probably won't even know we're there if we go in the back way."

"WHAT," Tommy repeated, aghast.

"MY POINT IS-.." Wheatley went right on without missing a beat, "You think we are just going off willy-nilly, and okay, fair enough, maybe we are a bit, but- Good news! We actually know a lot more than you think!" He accentuated this "good news" of his with with a happy, energetic waggle of his handles.

"...How?"

"How? I just told you. We know exactly what we're doing. We are in the middle of somewhere, heading towards the lab, looking for the Lady - who is a really good jumper and has brain damage, hard to miss - and-.. and we are at least moderately prepared for the sociopath AI that may or may not be still in charge of the place and who may or may not find us and kill us."

"What was your point again?"

"My point? Oh, yes, my point! The point is, uh... Actually, I forgot my original point. But my point now is that we are not wasting our time by trying, and yeah a lot could - probably will - go wrong, but, um, either way... here we are..."

He trailed off awkwardly, fidgeting around in the moonlit darkness as his words hung in the air.

Tommy let out another sound that sounded like a mix between a scoff and a laugh, Wheatley could not tell which. At last he said, "You know... in some really messed-up, round-about way.. that mess you just spewed actually makes sense."

Wheatley, taking that as a full-on compliment, wiggled himself into a more upright position, proud, "Of course it makes sense, I said it, didn't I?"

"Right," Tommy said with a small snort, rolling eyes, a gesture that Wheatley completely missed during his moment of inflated ego.

---

Something was exploding outside of the tent, Wheatley was sure of it. When the noise had first pulled him out of his sleep mode, he had thought it was simply the sound of the kid's snoring. Really, the noises that came out of that kid while he slept concerned Wheatley and he rather thought he should get that checked out, but seeing as they seemed to be fresh out of doctors (or any other humans, for that matter) he could only hope that the noises were normal, as the kid had assured him (rather sheepishly), and that he would one day get used to them.

Be that as it may, it was difficult to get used to something as loud and foreboding as whatever it was that was going on outside the tent right at that moment. It sort of reminded him of the loud and foreboding rumbling noises the reactor core had started making there at the end of his time at Aperture - not that he had been paying them much mind at that time, if he was honest, and also was not something he wanted to be thinking about, despite the fact that that was precisely where they were headed and why they were sleeping (well, why Tommy was sleeping) in this little tent to begin with. But it couldn't be the reactor core. Could it? Outside, on the surface, did not have a reactor core. Right?

Another rumbling noise, this time closer, terrorized him right out of his promise to the kid that he would be quieter while he was trying to sleep and straight into his "I must say something, anything, lots of things, to fill the silence (although things were most definitely not silent at the moment)" mode.

"Okay... It's okay. We're okay here. Everything is fine. Absolutely nothing to be worried about. Probably something completely normal, like, uh... whatever is normal that makes noises like that, things like, um.. oh, trains for one. Could be a train. Perfectly normal to hear trains on the surface, isn't it? Definitely not the- a reactor core, though. Pft, ridiculous. There's no reactor core on the earth. Or it could be bombs. Maybe bombs."

Wheatley's panels flared out in alarm and his optic shrank down to a pinprick.

"Bombs! Oh no, what if it's bombs? How could it be bombs? Oh, bloody-.. who cares how it could be? It's getting-... Little mate?"

The core swiveled in his spot at the end of the sleeping bag on which the kid slept and faced said kid, his casing shaking in alarm, "Little mate, I don't mean to alarm you, but- ... I keep hearing these, these sounds. Sounds like, explosions, maybe? Yeah, that's what it sounds like, explosions, happening... Just outside the tent. Rather alarming. I mean, I did say I didn't want to alarm you, but okay, yes, I do mean to alarm you, it's- it's getting rather close now. Tommy?"

He paused for at least as long as a personality core such as himself was able to pause before rocking himself into a slight roll and nudging against the kid's leg, "Tommy, please. Are you still alive? If so, wake up. It's- it is quite close now, something is. Still don't know what it is, but it is- Any minute now and it will be right up on us."

After a few seconds of this activity, he finally managed to rouse the kid, but not before getting an annoyed grumble out of him, "What are you doing? Cut it out. I'm trying to sleep."

"Oh blimey, finally! Had me worried, concerned, for a second there - thought you had died."

"What are you talking about?" groused the kid in return, clearly neither touched by the sentiment nor at all aware of the urgency of the situation and that what sounded like their inevitable, veritable doom was fast approaching.

"Erm, as I've been trying to tell you, but you, doing that sleeping thing that you humans tend to do, apparently have not been listening," - Wheatley could just make out a pair of young, yet weary, eyes narrowing at him from the other end of the sleeping bag - "I keep hearing these noises outside the tent. Like- explosions, or something? I don't know- I honestly don't know what it is, but it's something big and it's headed straight for us."

Tommy pushed out a sigh of pure annoyance, "What are you-.. I swear to God, if you are just freaking out over nothing like-..."

He was interrupted by what indeed sounded like an explosion and his eyes popped wide open like Wheatley had never seen before. His voice, moments before having been full of ire, suddenly went flat and weak, like someone letting the air out of a tire.

"Oh no..."

His quiet whimper was made mostly to himself, but of course Wheatley heard as well - and, of course, began to panic even more.

"'Oh no?' Oh no! What do you mean, 'oh no'? 'Oh no' is bad! It's something bad, isn't it? What is it? Can we make a run for it? Hurry, pick me up and let's get out of here!"

Tommy didn't seem to hear him and instead buried himself further into his sleeping bag, curling up and whimpering, "No, not now. Not now…."

"What are you doing? We have to get out of here before it gets us, whatever it is! It sounds fast! We can leave everything behind, we'll make do, just grab me and let's go!"

"It's not going to help…" whimpered Tommy from under the covers, "We can't outrun it. It's-.. It's best if we just stay put and ride it out."

"Are you mental?! Listen to how bad that sounds!" Another crash that only served to further emphasize his point, "Ahh! Just listen to that! Listen to that! It's almost on top of us now! Bloody hell!"

"I-It's just a thunder storm.. Nothing to worry about… We'll be okay, just need to-.. need to stay calm."

Suddenly there was a particularly loud boom and they both screamed.

"Oh that sounded bad! That sounded REALLY BAD!" Wheatley cried.

"Stop freaking out, everything is fine!"

"THIS IS NOT FINE AND I'M NOT FREAKING OUT YOU'RE FREAKING OUT!"

Another bang and suddenly Tommy was grabbing Wheatley, not without a grunt of effort, right off the end of the sleeping bag and clutching him tightly on his lap.

"WHAT ARE YOU DO-... Oh..." Wheatley decided he liked sitting here - he felt the least bit safer, at least. "You know what, never mind, keep holding onto me."

---

(Here they had just come across the Companion Cube Chell left behind after her escape.)

Wheatley did not trust boxes - in any form. For one, they had a tendency to hide things - somethings smelly things, sometimes scary things, sometimes things that you would rather have left alone and stuck in a corner to rot for the rest of eternity. Whatever things they contained, these things were generally not good. Secondly, they had a tendency to fall over and strike you with their sharp corners - Wheatley rather felt that spoke for itself. But the worst thing about boxes - the absolute worst thing - was that sometimes they took your place in someone else's life.

Such as where Wheatley found himself now, eye narrowed begrudgingly (not jealousy - nope - just begrudging) as he watched his small human (emphasis on HIS) loading up an Aperture Science Weighted Companion Cube into HIS spot on the four-wheeler.

Tommy, "Wheatley, why are you talking to the cube?"

Wheatley splutters, "I am not! Absurd! Definitely not talking to the cube. But if, say, I was in fact talking to the cube - which I am not, mind you - it would only be to remind it to know its place."

Tommy, "Know its place? Like, what, on the back of the four-wheeler there?"

Wheatley, "Well, yes, there, but also not to go getting any big ideas."

Tommy, "...Right. Well, let's get going. Don't want the cube going and getting any 'big' ideas."

Wheatley, "Yes, Right, good idea. Let's go."

---

Tommy was sitting at the foot of her bed, unable to keep himself from watching the unnatural, ragged rise and fall of her chest. He just had to keep watching, to make sure she would keep breathing, because he knew, he knew that if he were to look away for even a second, she would stop breathing. He was sure that if only he could keep watching her - forever, if he must - she would be okay. She would be okay, she would get better... she would not have to struggle to take those last, rattling breaths the way his sister had before she died...

He snapped back into focus at the sharp, metallic tang of blood on his tongue. His tongue probed the inside of his sore cheek and found the source of the blood, where it continued to press in an effort to stymie the flow. Strangely, Tommy found that he did not mind the taste of his blood as much as his tongue did.

A slight rustling sound brought everything back into focus. Immediately forgetting about the inside of his cheek he had gnawed open, Tommy shuffled up on the bed, careful so as not to jostle his mother too much, closer to where she was now blinking blearily at him, as though her ability to focus was now as much of a struggle as everything else was for her. She had never looked so distant, so weak, to him and that honestly frightened him more than anything else he had ever encountered in the world, wild and unforgiving as it was. She had always been strong, always been his rock, his protector, his everything... What was he going to do without her?

He must have said as much out loud, because he saw her lips move in response.

Alarmed and knowing how physically uncomfortable speaking had always been for her, he said, "Mommy, please don't try to talk. It'll make you more tired."

But his mother was nothing if not stubborn. She gave him a grim, determined look and surprised him with her strength, even in her condition, by placing an arm around his shoulders and drawing him in closer. Tommy knew that it had to be something important. He placed one arm around behind her, using the bed to prop himself up and taking away the need for her to use so much of her strength to hold onto him. He leaned forward, closer so that he could hear her, even as the heavy scent of (death) came rolling off of her and gently seeped its way into every one of his pores, sending an involuntary shudder through him.

The words she spoke were so soft, so succinct, but even though Tommy had to struggle to hear even at such close proximity, he could make them out. And he never forgot.

"Be brave."

He felt himself choke on a sob before he could even try to hold it back, "Don't-..."

He wanted to tell her that he was not strong. He had never been strong. She had always been the strong one. She was always the one helping him, comforting him, guiding him. When had he ever helped her? He was too small, too little, too helpless and ignorant and weak. He couldn't even help her here, right now, as she was withering away and in pain from some unseen force. And even if he could see it, what exactly could he do?

She seemed to understand all of this even though he did not say it - she had always been good at reading and understanding him. Her grip around his shoulders tightened again, bringing him in even closer until their foreheads touched.